Bolin knew taking a job with the triads was a bad idea, but he knew they needed the money. He didn't trust Shady Shin to be honest any more any more than he trusted Pabu not to be squirmy during bath time, but the money Shin threw at him to join was at least three times as much as Mako made in a week with his job at the power plant.
Once the Satomobile he'd gotten into had come to a stop, Bolin recognized the warehouse from other odd jobs he'd done with the triads, also without Mako knowing. It was a small comfort to know if things went bad inside, with a rival gang or the cops, he knew the surrounding streets well enough to make a quick getaway.
It was weird for him to see a bunch of familiar faces once he got inside. Aside from Shady Shin, there was also Lightning Bolt Zolt, Two-Toed Ping (he'd never found out how he got that name), and a few other people he remembered. It was like a really messed up version of a family reunion.
At least until some guys in masks came crashing through the ceiling. Nobody even had time to react. One of them jammed a rod into Bolin's chest to shock him, and the next thing he knew his hands and feet were tied up, his mouth was gagged, and he was in the back of a truck with Zolt, Shin, and Ping.
All that Bolin could do at that point was speculate on who had captured them. It probably wasn't the police if the triads leaders had been caught, too. He knew from experience that there were enough dirty cops on their payroll that they would've been tipped off about a raid like this. A rival gang attack didn't make sense either. The equipment they'd used was more advanced than anything he'd ever seen, how would a street gang get their hands on that kind of stuff?
His mind wandering was starting to make him panic. Bolin had no idea where he was, who had taken him, or where he was headed. Even Pabu's whereabouts were a mystery right now.
"Wait, Pabu!", Bolin thought to himself. "If he's not with me, then maybe he escaped! He could find Mako and Korra and help track me down!"
He didn't want to dwell on his pet fire ferret being his only chance of getting rescued, but the truck he was in didn't offer the opportunity as it screeched to a halt. Bolin hoped for a moment that his brother and the avatar had been able to find him, but when the back opened up, the only people there were the guys that kidnapped him.
A blindfold was put over Bolin's eyes by some dude with a weird mustache, and at that point he could only guess where he was based on the sounds he was able to hear.
Ok, so I think I'm inside now. And I can hear a lot of people...maybe I'm at some sort of gathering?
Then the person carrying him stopped and set him down on his knees. It felt like he was on wood, but he couldn't be sure. The blindfold was then removed, but Bolin still wasn't able to see anything with the spotlight shining in his eyes.
It confirmed his earlier suspicions though. He was definitely inside, and there was definitely a crowd in front of him. Mako and Korra might have been able to sneak in, but he had no way of knowing for sure. All he could make out were the people near him on what he thought was a stage. There was still Zolt, Shin, and Ping, but there was someone else up there he couldn't make out, and...was he wearing a mask?
"Greetings, my fellow Equalists", the figure spoke with a chilling voice. "My name is Amon."
Equalists? Amon? Those guys in the park that complain about bending all the time? That's who broke into the warehouse armed to the teeth and took them all out in five seconds?
"I learned the cruelty of bending at a young age", Amon continued. "When I was a boy, a firebender attacked my family, killing my parents and leaving me scarred. I now wear this mask, to hide my identity from those who want to stop our great revolution."
Bolin was stunned. The story of Amon was disturbingly similar to his own, just without the scar. He could understand how that incident made him hate bending, even if it was just one bender that did that to him. But how'd he get all these other people to support him?
"But I know I am not alone in my suffering. For far too long, the world has left us behind in favor of those with...unnatural abilities. Look no further than our 'great' Republic city. Built by benders, for benders. Led by a council full of benders that do nothing to help their citizens. Poverty, homelessness, corruption, people trying to survive-none of it matters to them! No even stopping bending criminals like these from hurting innocent people."
"Wait, he thinks I'm a criminal like these guys?", Bolin thought. "Hoo boy."
"Well, if Mako can get me out of this, he's definitely gonna kill me right after he saves me."
Amon then continued his rant. "But we are defenseless no longer! For I have been to the spirit world and have been given a new power. The ability to take away people's bending away. Permanently!"
Bolin couldn't believe it. Taking away bending? The only person he'd ever heard of doing that was the avatar. This guy had to be crazy!
And what the masked man did next wasn't proving otherwise. He gave one of his henchman an order to untie Lightning Bolt Zolt, and give him an opportunity to fight for his bending.
Bolin had heard what Zolt's lightning had done to people, so setting him free seemed like a terrible idea for Amon. But he was able to dodge with ease. As if he knew what attacks were coming.
Then he knocked Zolt to his knees, put a thumb over his forehead. And when the Triad leader got back to his feet, unable to produce any lightning, Bolin realized Amon wasn't bluffing.
He looked to Shin and Ping, who seemed to be panicking just like he was. Bolin struggled, trying to break free of the ropes binding him, but it was no use. "Hurry Mako, please."
Shady Shin didn't last much longer than Zolt against Amon, and he ended up losing his bending just like his boss. Ping didn't even try to fight, instead trying to run to an exit. It didn't work, as he was caught by some equalist henchman, and stripped of his power too.
The next thing he knew, Bolin was lifted off his feet, gag and bindings gone, and Amon staring him down. It didn't feel like he was on a stage anymore. It felt like he was back in that cold, dark alley, with mom and d-
"No", Bolin thought, trying to will that away. "I've got to explain to him. Maybe he'll understand." He felt himself come back to the stage, but his legs had turned to jelly, and any attempt to speak came out as pathetic stammering.
"Uh, h-hi mister Amon, sir", Bolin feebly spoke while twiddling his thumbs. "Listen, I-I think this has all been a b-big misunderstanding."
If his words had any effect, Amon didn't show it. He just kept standing there, with that menacing look in his eyes.
Bolin kept trying to talk though. "I'm not a-actually with the triads, I just needed s-some extra money."
Amon still didn't say anything, but he started walking towards Bolin, a hand already outstretched. Before he could say anything else in the hopes of being spared, a fog came out of nowhere, covering the entire stage.
"Is that...Korra?" Bolin didn't have to dwell. It could have been anybody for all it mattered, it was an opportunity to escape! But when he turned to run, he wasn't able to. It was as if he was being held in place, but he could tell there was nobody touching him.
He could feel someone approaching him though, and the grip on his body disappeared, but before he finally tried to defend himself, he was able to recognize the face of his older brother.
"You alright?", Mako asked. Bolin gave him a quick nod, and they headed towards an opened door that looked like it led outside. While they were running, a thought popped into Bolin's head to quickly check one of his pockets, and he realized taking the job offer from the Triads wasn't all for nothing. The equalists had never patted him down or searched him, so they never took the money he'd gotten from Shady Shin. "Maybe Mako won't kill me after all", Bolin hoped.
(-)
Mako was definitely going to kill Bolin.
He hadn't come to that conclusion right away. Once they had all escaped from Amon's rally and the pursuing equalists, Mako still kept his guard up the entire time he was walking back with Bolin to the area.
Once they got inside their apartment though, Mako finally felt himself relax a little, but that disappeared when he saw Bolin heading towards his room.
"Where do you think you're going?" The question made his little brother stop in his tracks. Did he think they weren't going to talk about what happened? That he would get away with it without a lecture? Pabu seemed to sense what was coming, so he hopped off from his perch on Bolin's shoulder and scurried out of the room.
He hadn't heard a response from his brother, who was just standing in the same spot, but that just made all the emotion he'd been feeling that day boil over for Mako.
"Do you know how lucky you were? That Skoochy saw you with Shady Shin? That Korra was with me at the rally with me? I told you to stay away from the Triads! Do you have any idea what could have happened?"
Bolin still hadn't moved or said anything, and that only made Mako angrier, who was now straight up yelling at him. "Well, let me break it down for you! You could've lost your bending! You could've been arrested! Spirits, Bo, you could've been killed! Why? Why would you do something like that?"
Bolin finally did something, but it was only to reach into his pocket and pull out a large wad of bills. Mako walked up to him, ready to smack the money out of his hand and tell him it didn't matter how much he made, but when he saw his face, any anger disappeared, leaving only guilt.
He hadn't seen earlier because the room was dark and he wasn't close enough to see, but it was clear to Mako now what state his little brother was in. His eyes were screwed shut, with tears running down his cheeks.
Mako now realized that apart from a quiet thank you to Korra, Bolin hadn't said anything the entire night, which was so unlike him. Whatever kind mood he was in, he always seemed to be a talkative one, and getting him to shut up felt like a miracle. The only other time he would think of Bolin being so quiet was when...
"Aw, crap". Mako pulled his brother close and hugged him tight, and Bolin did the same, with a grip tight enough to make Mako wince. If he had any hard feelings towards his older brother, Bolin didn't show it, instead just burying his face in Mako's jacket, letting the fabric soak up his tears and muffle his sobs.
Mako couldn't do much in that moment, just do his best to comfort his brother, and try to move on from all the awful things that happened tonight, and all those years ago.
Notes: Bit of a shorter chapter, I know, but the ideas I had for this episode weren't very long, and I wanted to get this finished around the holidays. Practicals earlier in the month kinda messed with the schedule.
I wanted to add Bolin's perspective on his abduction, since it got glossed over in canon,and give a better depiction of the dynamic he had with Mako before later chapters in this story. Kind of show that even though Mako can be a jerk, he does love and care about his little brother. It felt like they tried to make him the Zuko of the show, but it didn't work for multiple reasons IMO.