The woods surrounding the spirit portal were silent and full of shadows. The blinding light of the portal threw everything into a sharp relief, giving Asami the impression that she and Iroh had walked into one of Varrick's black-and-white movers. There was no wildlife of any kind; she heard none of the chirps and trills she'd come to associate with a wooded area at night. Their footsteps were the only sounds.
The portal itself stood in a clearing in the middle of thick, gnarled trees. A jet of solid white light, interspersed with streaks of green, rose in a thick column as high as Asami could see. It was perhaps 15 feet across and, though she couldn't see through it, likely as deep. It was beautiful in the same way that the Southern Ocean had been beautiful from the air; an object of awesome, nearly limitless power of which she knew she was only glimpsing the surface.
"What do I do?" she heard Iroh say softly.
"I don't know. I flew off with Chief Tonraq, remember?"
"Okay," he said. "It doesn't feel… angry, I suppose. Like the dark spirits. Just powerful." He glanced sideways at Asami, then took a few steps forward. "Stay here," he said.
"Like hell!" she hissed. "I stayed behind the last time and look what happened. Giant, evil spirit Unalaq is probably kicking over my factory as we speak."
"Please!" Iroh said. He looked back at her, and in the harsh light she saw that his face was pale and tight. He looked, of all things, frightened. Like he had been when she'd asked him about the melted gate. Which, she now realized, he'd never answered.
"Please, Asami," he said again. "I don't know what the spirit portal will do. It's the most powerful thing I've ever felt. More powerful than all of those dark spirits combined. Getting through might take some kind of meditation, or a test, I don't know. I might not even be able to do it. But I do know that I can't figure it out if half my brain is worried about your safety."
He wasn't scared for himself; he was worried about her. The idea seemed to ignite something small and warm in her belly, like a flickering candle in a dark room.
"Okay," she said. If anything happened to Iroh because of her she didn't know how she'd live with herself. "Be careful." Iroh nodded, then turned to the portal. He approached slowly but deliberately, shoulders back, back straight, the way one might approach a dangerous animal. He stopped just in front of the beam of light, paused, and took a deep breath. He raised his right hand. Asami squeezed her eyes shut.
Nothing happened.
Asami opened her eyes. Iroh was gone.
"Iroh?" she whispered. The silence of the forest was deafening.
Suddenly, Iroh's head appeared at the edge of the beam of light, followed by one arm. He held out a hand to her.
"Asami!" he said. "Come on. It's okay. You've got to see this."
The spirit portal opened onto a scene unlike anything Asami could have imagined. The forest was gone. Instead, she stood with Iroh on a wide expanse of volcanic plain ringed in the distance by black, jagged rocks. The sky above was a deep, flawless indigo utterly devoid of stars. On this side of the boundary the white light of the spirit portal was bent, arcing in an enormous, perfect curve to connect with the ground about a quarter mile distant. Beneath the apex of the arch stood a single, massive tree. It was dead.
It looked to Asami like some kind of ancient oak, if oaks could grow as wide and tall as a city block. The tree towered over the flat landscape, its gnarled, stubby branches stretching naked into the darkened sky. A wide crack opened into its center, as if it had once been hit by lightning.
Standing around this opening in the tree were Mako, Bolin, Tenzin, Bumi, and Kya. Asami breathed a sigh of relief. Although the team looked tired and scuffed, no one appeared injured. She thought that it was nothing short of amazing that they were all well and on their feet. She was so focused on her friends that it took her a moment to realize that they were not alone. Unalaq's twins, the ones who had helped capture her only a few hours before, stood off to the side in wary silence. Korra was nowhere in sight, which made a certain amount of sense, though Asami had no idea what the real relationship was between the giant spirit they had seen and her friend.
"Asami!" Bolin was waving his arms over his head. The rest of the group looked stunned at the sudden appearance of not one, but two completely unexpected people. Asami gave them a quick wave, then turned to Iroh.
"How will you know where to go?" she said. The dark plain looked the same to her in every direction. Asami didn't know what she'd been expecting, but she'd somehow assumed the way to Republic City would be more obvious.
"I don't know," Iroh said. "I'll have to trust my instincts. There isn't time for anything else. From what I've read of the Spirit World though, it isn't static. It reacts to your thoughts and feelings. Perhaps if I think about Republic City hard enough, a path will open." He shook his head. "That's the best I've got right now."
In the meantime, Tenzin, Mako, and Bolin had jogged over to them. Behind them, Kya and Bumi kept a sharp eye on Unalaq's twins.
"Asami," Tenzin said, "I thought you were with my mother. Is everything okay? Is that blood on your collar? And Iroh, what on earth are you doing here? Have the United Forces finally gotten involved in the war? How long have they been here? What's going on?"
Asami held up her hands to stop the flood of questions. "Master Tenzin," she said. "Everyone is fine. More than fine. Though I imagine your mother will have a few things to say when you see her next."
Iroh cut in. "Tenzin, good to see you," he said. "We were worried." They shook hands, and Iroh nodded to Mako and Bolin as well. Then he tipped a little salute in Kya and Bumi's direction.
"How's it hanging, Iroh?" shouted Bumi from a distance, one hand cupped to his mouth.
Iroh smiled, then turned back to Tenzin. "I'm afraid that the United Forces are still on the sidelines, Tenz. I'm here in my personal capacity. I'd consider it a favor if you kept that between us, too. The president of the Republic and I had a bit of a, well, a bit of a disagreement about the importance of the war down here. While what he doesn't know can't hurt him, I'm not sure that I can say the same."
"Of course, Iroh. Thank you for coming," said Tenzin. "I'm sure we can use a man of your talents. One member of the United Forces is, I suppose, better than none."
Iroh smiled slightly. "Two, counting Bumi. We're a regular band of renegades."
"Tenzin," Asami said, "we might not have much time. Based on what Iroh and I saw, it looks like Unalaq merged with Vaatu, then took off north, most likely towards Republic City. Then Korra, or projection of her, or something like that, went after him. Is this more or less accurate?"
"Yes," said Tenzin. He rubbed his chin. "More or less."
"We don't really know what happened," added Mako. "Korra's body is still here. You can't see her, but she's inside that tree in some kind of trance." He glanced nervously around. "We've had more visits from the dark spirits, so we're making sure she's safe while whatever that spirit version of her is goes to finish Unalaq and Vaatu. That's why we didn't come back."
"That, and we're not entirely sure that we can trust Desna and Eska," said Bolin, nodding towards Unalaq's twins. He lowered his voice. "I think they're kind of crazy."
Asami nodded. It all made sense. She motioned to Iroh, then stepped a little away from the group. He followed her, but glanced back at Mako as he left. He looked slightly puzzled. "You'd better go, then," she said quietly.
"What about Avatar Korra? If we need to guard her body, I can stay."
"Who zapped more dark spirits today, you or me? Go. I'll stay and help. Besides, Korra might need you elsewhere." Asami had no idea if this was true, but hoped it would get Iroh moving. Then she had another thought. She rummaged in her pocket and brought out her mechanical light. She took Iroh's hand and pressed the rectangular metal into his palm, then gently closed his fingers over it, covering his hand in hers. "Here," she said. "Take it. Just in case."
"Wait, your prototype?"
"You borrow it all the time. I think you use it more than I do. Just bring it back."
"Asami, I don't—" Iroh swallowed, then glanced around, as if fully taking in their surroundings for the first time. He ran one hand quickly through his dark hair, his jaw tight. "I don't know that I'll be able to get out the other side. It's a theory, nothing more. And if I can't… I don't know what happens if I can't."
Asami rocked forward on her toes and kissed him. Her lips landed somewhere between his cheekbone and the corner of his mouth. His skin felt dry and hot. As she pulled away she saw that the odd, wary look was back in his eyes, the one he'd had when she'd first touched the scar on his arm. This close, it almost looked like a question.
"Go," she said, and gave him what she hoped was an encouraging smile. She pushed his hand, the one holding her light, to his chest and then let go. "See you in Republic City." Iroh nodded, frowning slightly. Then he turned and took off at a jog in the opposite direction of the tree.
Asami watched him go, then turned towards her friends. They were all staring at her.
Mako stepped forward. "What was all that about?" he asked.
"What was what about?" said Asami.
"You just kissed General Iroh," he said.
"On the cheek." For all Mako knew, that was all she'd ever done, too. "He's a friend. What of it?"
"That's not what it looked like from here. And since when?"
"Mako, who I kiss and why is so unbelievably none of your business that it's almost laughable."
Mako scowled and opened his mouth to argue, but Bolin put a hand on his brother's chest and cut in. "Hey!" he said. "I like General Iroh. He seems like a handy guy to have on our side. But uh, Asami. He knows the war is still in the South Pole, right? So where is he going?"
"Where is he going, Asami?" asked Tenzin. "It seemed like he was in a hurry so I didn't press, but what is he looking for?"
"I'm not sure it's my business to tell you," Asami said. "Just know that he's trying to help."
Tenzin nodded. "All right. But whatever it is, I hope he finds it soon. Because as soon as Korra wakes up, she's going to close both of these portals for good."