This chapter is dedicated to Mako Iwamatsu. RIP legend.
Mako waited silently in the old rundown shop. The time was somewhere between 11 to half 11 at night. Hazukk had produced another tip, although he wouldn't be coming along on this operation. There was supposedly going to be a raid on Paiodou Street, one of the busiest streets in Republic City, well known for its shops affiliated with huge brands. Quang's Jewellery, Future Industries and Lim Yao's (a huge clothes brand for all types of budgets) were just a few of the names there among many. If even a slightly reputable source tipped that there was going to be a raid there, the police quite simply had to listen to it. There were 17 other officers on standby, waiting to pounce at a moment's notice.
It had been three weeks since Mako's fight with Bolin. Mako hadn't spoken to him since, and although he had been visited by Asami, Korra had been too busy to visit apparently, Asami saying that she hadn't been spending too much time with Korra either. His ribs hadn't been knocked out of place too much during the fight with Shinoda, so when healing water was applied, they healed in just over two weeks, which was very quick considering how he'd got injured a few weeks before the operation. His head was fine, but the back of it looked a bit messed up if the hair was shaved off. He was feeling 90%, and when Hazukk had told him about what he had heard about, Mako was determined to help.
He still felt like shit on the inside though. He was ready to forgive Bolin but wasn't going to go to him. They'd both been knocked down much harder than Mako had hit him, but Bolin had to know that he wasn't getting off that easily, and be the one to apologise first. Apart from Asami coming a few times while Mako was hospitalised, Hazukk was the only one who he'd been keeping regular contact with. He'd had misgivings about the journalist at the beginning, but they were becoming good friends quickly. Hazukk had visited Mako regularly enough in the hospital, about five times, and was fun to chat to. They'd mainly made small talk, but eventually, it always turned to darker things.
Hazukk hadn't been lying about the Triple Threats accusations. Mako had had it confirmed by Chief Beifong a few days later, who he had apologised to for his outburst. There'd be a regular watch on Korra for the next six months every full moon. He didn't want to believe it, but he didn't have anything to do with the case anyway. His friendship with Korra might jeopardise the investigation, so he was to avoid visiting her unless absolutely necessary. If she visited him, there wasn't much he could do but play along, but under his oath he had to obey Beifong's orders before his personal feelings, and he certainly intended on doing that. He was a Commander on merit, after all.
"*Buzz* Unit 1, there's an armoured van coming from Penny Bridge at a high speed, get ready for combat, over, *buzz*" the radio on his motorbike blurted out, interrupting Mako's thoughts. He snapped his head out of the clouds and flicked the headlights on. The engine spluttered for a moment before revving into life, and Mako rolled out of the entrance, the door long gone. The vines had snarled around this block all those years ago so the street was abandoned this late at night, all the owners forced out of business. He heard the wagons from around the corner (this street was a dead end due to a tree cutting the road in half), and accelerated around the curve, the four-man vehicle right behind him. Suddenly, a loud scream was heard as his radio erupted into a series of reports all at once, and he sped up even more.
They reached the popular street after a few sharp turns, and lo-and-behold, there was an armoured car which had crashed into a shop with the name 'Southern Style.' The flimsy metal bars they had rolled down over the windows bore almost no resistance, and bystanders were running for their lives, screaming out the names of family and friends they were with. Mako slowed down and jumped off his bike. He grabbed a microphone he had equipped on his motorbike and spoke into it:
"This is the police, come out now with your hands above your heads! If you resist, we will have no choice but to use force," his voice blared across the street.
"We've got hostages, take one step closer and they're dead meat!" a voice called out from the inside of the shop.
"Shit," Mako cursed as he peered in through the wrecked shop-front. He saw three small figures being held by the neck and ice knives to their temples. They looked like women, who were barely looked old enough to be adults. Black tears from their make-up streamed down their faces, but they were all dead quiet. They must have been told not to say anything, because otherwise the chances were they'd be wailing like a baby sky bison trapped in a tunnel. There were two guards, who'd presumably been on a night shift, laying still on the ground in front of them, blood smeared over both their heads. The truck had rendered them unconscious, or worse.
"Commander Mako, what should we do?" one of the men in his unit asked him. There were two other units, of Unit 2 of eight and Unit 3 of six men respectively. Unit 2 was pulling up now.
"They have hostages, don't approach yet," he ordered as they emptied out of their cars. "Form a semi-circle around here, don't let them escape." He grabbed his radio, and turned it on. "*buzz* Unit 3, this is Commander Mako, do not swarm around the entrance of the shop 'Southern Style', secure all possible escape routes from the roofs and behind the building. I repeat, secure all possible routes from above and behind. *buzz*."
"*buzz* Roger that *buzz," was the brief response he got back. Mako walked up to ten metres away from the van. He saw about four more people, all in masks, throwing whatever they could access easily by smashing the glass cases and taking huge handfuls of jewellery into their gear bags. Rings, necklaces, pocket-watches, the whole lot. They worked quickly and soon nearly the entire shop's showpieces were gone. The police set up a perimeter with a three foot tall stone wall. Their were two firebenders, including Mako, a waterbender and ten metalbenders.
"What's the order, Mako?" came from one of his subordinates. "We have a clean shot at the men holding the hostages. If we get lucky, we can grab the hostages and get them out of harm's way."
"There's no need for that," Mako replied. "One foot wrong and we have three dead innocents on our hands. They're cornered. We have all the exits covered, there's no way out of this for them." As he said that, he heard one of the looters shout that they were all finished. Mako grabbed his microphone again.
"I repeat, come out of the shop with your hands behind your heads and leave the hostages unharmed! This is your last warning."
"Fat chance!" one of the men with ice knives shouted out. "We hold all the cards." He tugged at the hair of the girl that he was holding, and she yelped. Her and Mako's eyes met. She pleaded for help without saying anything.
"Just stay calm and everything will be fine, girls," he called out. His eyes darted around for anything that might be of help to him, but nothing stood out.
"Now!" a voice called out from the shop. The three women were released, and a pillar of earth each propelled them out of the shop and over the perimeter. Everyone's attention naturally went to the women flying through the air, and five cops broke the semi-circle to rush behind and catch them. The Triple Threats took their opportunity and streamed out of the shop, four hopping into the back with their bags, and two getting into the front. The seventh man zipped open a backpack he had and nearly twenty remote bombs fell out, but before they hit the ground, a ball of air encased the bombs. Being controlled by none other than the seventh man himself.
"An airbender?" one of the police shouted in confusion. "Since when-"
"It doesn't matter! Arrest them!" Mako ordered, although he was just as surprised to see one of them airbend. He got over the initial shock quicker though as he had seen it plenty of times before, while most of the cops there had probably never witnessed it. But the airbender wasn't waiting around for them to get over their amazement. Five funnels formed on the ball and the bombs flew out, falling just in front of the perimeter, a couple landing over it. The driver clicked a remote detonator.
They exploded, destroying the barrier that the police had set up and distracting everyone. Mako clapped his palms together, fingers straight, and pointed them at the onrushing flame. It parted before him, and when the initial dust cloud cleared, Mako saw the van driving away. The airbender had presumably gotten in the back, but they weren't going to escape that easily. Mako sprinted to his motorbike, which had been protected from the blast by the police wagon, and forced his helmet on his head. He pulled on the accelerator, and pursued the thieves. The rest of Unit 1 and Unit 2 scrambled to get organised, but if Mako had waited for them, he may as well just go home while he was at it. He heard his radio buzz as they called for backup, but it wouldn't come in time.
Unit 3 split into two groups, one on top of the buildings on each side of the road. They were remarkably quick in their pursuit, but their pace worked against them. Five Triple Threats met them each, and the group to Mako's left was stopped completely, and drawn into a fight. However, the timing of the attacks was off, so the leader of the group to his right sacrificed himself to let the others keep going. Now, there were only three police compared to nineteen just a few minutes ago.
"Right into their trap," Mako muttered, the wind snatching his words before they even reached his own ears. He went into fifth gear, and managed to get alongside the van, his body practically glued to the bike to avoid his torso acting as a parachute and slowing him down. He blasted a huge fireball at the side of the armoured car, but barely even rocked it. The guy in the passenger seat poked his head out the window, and scowled at Mako.
He flung a high-speed volley of water at the commander. Mako struggled to deal with it, and he tipped from side to side as he wiped the water off of his helmet glass. Too late, he saw the van take a sharp turn, which Mako hadn't prepared himself for in the slightest. He squeezed the brake as hard as he could and came to a shuddering stop just in front of a corner shop.
He looked at his reflection for a millisecond, then repositioned the bike at the vehicle getting away. He tensed his body and continued his pursuit of the Triple Threats, a look of determination hidden behind the reflection of the moon on his helmet.
The two remaining metalbenders swung around the curve on their cables and landed on top of the armoured van with a loud thud. They prepared to rip the top open, but a firebender and the airbender climbed out the hatch and jumped into a fighting stance.
"No-one messes with the Triple Threats!" the firebender yelled and threw a quick firejab at one of the cops. He followed this up with a roundhouse firekick immediately, not giving them any chance for an instant counter. It hit the first cop and he stumbled back, with his hands covering his face, nearly falling off. The second cop whipped his cable out and struck the firebender on the shoulder. A loud crack was heard despite the whizz of the wind and he grunted, falling to his knees and grabbing his shoulder. The second cop took one step forward and drop-kicked him back down the hatch.
"I guess we mess with the Triple Threats," he taunted the airbender.
"You've never faced a bender like me," the airbender said triumphantly. "Come get me if you're so strong."
"Cocky shit!" the cop shouted over the wind and threw a hard backhand at the airbender's nose. Brass knuckles formed around his fist and would've had the airbender out for the count, but airbenders weren't known for their preference of fist fighting, even if this guy seemed to be a rogue. He grabbed the cop's wrist and shoved it upwards above his head. The cop quickly formed a baton by making his cable rigid with his other hand, and brought the full power of it down towards the Triple Threat's temple. The airbender was too smart for that though, and opened his hand vertically as if to catch it.
You'll break your hand before you manage that, the cop thought. But he found himself eating his thoughts as a torrent of wind met his baton. He watched it gradually get pushed back like he was losing an arm-wrestling contest against someone slightly stronger. When his arm was in line with his chest, the airbender raised his knee to chest height and drove his heel into to the stomach of the metalbender's armour. It didn't hurt, but he was blown backwards into the first cop who'd just recovered from the fire attack.
They both stumbled backwards blindly, tripping over each other's feet. The airbender crouched, put one leg forward, and then spun 360 to make a helicopter kick. The air kick swiped their shins and the cops face planted before rolling off the side and onto the road.
"One left," the airbender said, and faced the motorbike quickly catching up to them.
Mako raced past his stricken colleagues and didn't slow down at all. He sent an even hotter fireball at the van and scorched the back-doors. The airbender, threw air-punch after air-punch at Mako, but Mako dodged them all.
His fighting style is more like a firebender than airbender, Mako noted, seeing similarities with his own fighting stances. He nearly fell over while tilting, and hugged the bike even tighter.
"Fadrh, get up here!" Mako heard the airbender shout, who seemed to have a fairly high voice. He was definitely from Republic City. A stocky man squeezed out the hatch and looked at Mako, who was gaining on them all the time. The airbender's next words were incomprehensible to Mako, but the earthbender got the message loud and clear. He got down on one knee and shoved his hands towards the sky, as if doing reps with a weight. A twelve-foot wall was erected in front of Mako, who didn't have enough time to turn. He improvised, and blasted the ground beneath him with a flamethrower as he and his motorbike flew over the wall.
But the airbender had anticipated that. Their eyes met momentarily, a deer caught in headlights, and Mako was helpless to do anything as a whirlwind slammed into him and his bike. Momentum ripped him off his mode of transportation. Mako flailed about in the air as the tarmac rushed to greet him. He thrust his arms in that direction and directed all the power he could bend out of them. Two flamethrowers roared out of his fists and slowed his descent considerably. He landed awkwardly, his face in the ground, but unharmed apart from a few scratches. He raised his head to watch the van become smaller and smaller in the distance until it disappeared around a junction. He punched the ground in fury.
"Outsmarted from the very beginning," he mumbled to himself. Then loudly, he shouted; "FUCK!"
Mako got a lift off one of the wagons back to headquarters, crammed in between two other men in the back. The smell of torched armour and humiliation hung thick in the air. He didn't utter a word unless spoken to, and the journey back was as awkward as could be. There was an airship out looking for "an armoured van with a hatch in the roof," but it was hopeless. Mako had been the last chance they'd had to maybe catch them, but he'd fucked that up. To pour salt into the wound, none of the Triple Threats who'd interfered with Unit 3 had been caught. Not even one.
The radio kept blurting out incoherent orders to fill the silence. The speaker had been damaged in the explosions, as well as Mako's motorbike. He sighed, knowing that he'd be on a pay cut for the next few weeks.
The wagon arrived at the station just as ten rolled out, sirens blaring. Mako's hopes went up. Maybe they had managed to track down the Triple Threats, and were sending reinforcements. He wanted to join them so badly, to make up for his earlier mistakes, but he knew that he had to report what had happened to Chief Beifong, which caused him to grimace.
If you'd been more alert, maybe you'd be looking forward to the report, he chastised himself. He got out the back of the police wagon and walked up to the front doors. Just as he was about to walk through, a number of metalbenders burst past him. He just about avoided being run into, but none of them even paid him any attention. If it was this serious, he thought, why didn't we bring more officers there in the first place?
As he made his way through the entrance hall and up the stairs to Beifong's office, he gulped. Everyone was swarming around like bees in a hive, in a frenzy to get their job done. He stepped up to the door nervously, and noticed it was open. He knocked anyway.
"Come in!" Beifong barked. He walked in and was about to give an official report, but she stopped him before he even opened his mouth. "What are you doing here Mako? You're supposed to be headed to Moutrang Prison! What makes you think you have the authority to ignore an order from me?"
"The radios were broken in an explosion, Chief," Mako said, while cursing in his head. What did a high-level security prison like Moutrang need the police for?
"Bollocks!" Lin Beifong cursed loudly. "Well, what happened? Did you arrest them?"
"They raided a jewellery shop on Paiodou Street as Hazukk said there would be," Mako stated clearly. "We saved the hostages, but the Triple Threats got away with everything they took. On top of that, Paiodou Street will need to be partially closed off for a few days to rebuild the damage caused by bombs. Police equipment was also rendered useless during this."
"I can't believe we were so complacent, here we were all smug after busting a drugs shipment and now they've launched seven simultaneous attacks across the city!"
"Seven?" Mako repeated stupidly. "Wha-wha-wha-"
"Our forces have been spread thin over the city, and the main purpose of them was to draw attention away from the prison. Early reports say that all of Triple Threats caught just a few weeks ago have escaped."
Mako slapped his forehead, furious. Hazukk's tip hadn't been wrong, but it was only a snippet of a much bigger event. "I'll get in a wagon right away and head there." He turned around to head out the door.
"Mako," Beifong called. "Is there anything helpful about the benders you fought that might lead us to them?"
Mako was about to reply with a 'no', then realised that he was leaving out something huge. "Yeah. I forgot to mention, but they've recruited an airbender."
"What? An airbender?" Beifong repeated. "I'm going to ring Air Temple Island first thing in the morning!"
"No," Mako said, raising an eyebrow from his superior. "I know it sounds stupid, but he didn't really fight like an airbender. He had a firebender's technique, if that sounds believable." Beifong took this in, then nodded.
"I'm still calling them anyway. Anything else?"
Mako thought about it, hard, for a moment. "No," was the answer.
"Then go to Moutrang Prison this very instant!" Beifong commanded, and Mako essentially jumped out of the office. She had that effect on anyone and everyone she wanted in the force. Good for keeping order, apparently.
Back in the office, Lin Beifong rubbed her temples. This was an absolute shitshow.