Korra had been pacing around Varrick's office for the past few minutes, and it was definitely starting to get on Mako's nerves.
"I still don't get why Bolin isn't here", he grumbled.
"He said he had errands to run", she told him half-heartedly. She knew Mako would flip if he knew what his little brother might actually be doing, so Korra made something up that he unfortunately didn't believe.
"Running errands, really? Instead of helping us find Varrick- come on, where is he?"
"I don't know, he didn't tell me!" The two of them would've been seconds away from an argument if Asami wasn't there to play peacemaker.
"Wherever he is, I'm sure he's fine." Korra wasn't convinced, though.
It wasn't that she didn't trust Bolin's ability to handle things, there was just so much that could go wrong. And it was her home, and her family in trouble, she just felt responsible to take care of it all.
"I hope he shows up soon, though", Asami admitted. "We could use his help."
"I still don't get why they're thinking of giving up looking."
"Would make sense if he just got out of the south before everything went down,'' Mako explained. "Apparently they've been searching all day with no sign of him"
"That's because they haven't been too hard!"
The voice was muffled, but it was definitely coming from inside the room, and it sounded like..."Varrick?"
He poked his head out of the stuffed animal sitting in his office for a dramatic reveal fitting his personality. "Ta-daaa!"
Asami followed up her first question with another. "Have you been hiding in there this whole time?"
"Yep! Hollowed out Ping-ping just for this scenario. He was already dead, just to be clear, I'm not a sicko. Figured I better make myself scarce after that whole Unalaq thing went belly up."
"They're saying you wanted the rebels to assassinate him", Mako accused.
"What? No! I just wanted to get him to agree to stop interfering with my businesses. Aaaand maybe sign a defense contract or two."
"What about troops occupying the south, the chieftains kicked out of the palace, and all those laws Unalaq passed?", Korra reminded him.
"Can't get everything you want in a negotiation, dear. Gotta make sure to leave a little wiggle room."
Unbelievable. "What about my dad, was he involved?"
"No. Warned me as I said the word 'revolution' that he'd tell his brother if he thought there was any chance we'd get violent. Had to put together the palace attack scheme somewhere else."
That was a weight off Korra's shoulders. She'd fully trusted her instincts that her father was innocent, but it felt so good to know for sure, and they didn't have to force it out of Varrick either. Although, the information itself didn't change the situation, as Asami reminded them.
"But he just got sentenced to life in prison for something he had nothing to do with."
"It hasn't been a picnic for me either, sweetheart. It's so cramped in here, and I haven't even been able to get honey for my tea. In a bear, Zhu Li!"
"Sorry, sir." He had his assistant in there?
"Then let's make a deal", Korra offered. "I drag you in front of my uncle to tell him my father's innocent, and you can be in the roomy jail cell he was in instead."
Varrick was trapped, and he knew it. Before he could offer some sort of bargain or plea for mercy, Bolin burst through the door.
"We've...got...a...problem."
Korra went up to him right away, asking if he was alright, but that got Mako suspicious. "Why wouldn't he be?"
"M'fine", Bolin interrupted. "Just need...to catch...breath."
Once he collected himself, he explained. "The judge was just doing what your uncle wanted the whole time. All of it was his ideas, even freeing your mom and sparing everyone else."
"What?"
"He wants to make sure he's the only person you trust, so he's trying to get rid of everyone else. That's why he told you about Tenzin and your Dad keeping you down in the training compound, and brought up that he got banished."
"And I did exactly what he wanted me to."
"You had no way of knowing", Bolin consoled. "There's more, though. After the spirits attacked the North when your dad destroyed that sacred forest, your grandfather was only planning on making him stay from the tribe for a few years as punishment."
"But Dad said he got banished, so what happened?"
"Your uncle warned your grandfather that the spirits wouldn't forget what your dad had done. That the attacks on the city would continue and get worse if he stayed in the North. He didn't want to do it, but since he thought it had to be done, your grandfather stripped him of his birthright and banished him for life."
"He wanted your Dad out of the way so he could be in control", Mako concluded. "Just like the trial."
"Your grasp of the obvious is inspiring, kid." Varrick's voice was dripping with sarcasm. "But he might actually believe all that stuff he said, too. Who knows with that nutcase."
Korra, however, was too angry to think straight. "That sneaky, no good weasel! He's nothing but a liar and a traitor!"
"I've been trying to tell you that from the get-go!", Varrick reminded her.
"I'm gonna go down to that prison, get my dad out, find Unalaq, and put my foot up his-"
"Korra, you can't do that."
She wasn't willing to hear this right now. "Bo, I-"
"No, I mean you actually can't do that. Unalaq was worried about a breakout attempt, so he's moving your dad and the rest of the rebels to a prison in the North where you can't get to him."
"When?"
"They're already being held in one of the ships in the bay, and they're planning on leaving for the North soon."
"And you didn't lead with that information?", Varrick chastised.
"I was getting to it. There's a lot of stuff to go over."
"How'd you find out about all this?"
"The judge told me", Bolin explained.
But that answer didn't satisfy Mako. "And he gave you this information willingly?"
"Does that really matter?"
"I think it does, yeah." He definitely wasn't willing to let this go.
"Ahem." Everyone's attention went back to Varrick. "As interesting as that conversation would be, it seems we're on a more tight schedule now."
"He's right. I don't care if Unalaq puts my Dad on the moon, I'm getting him out."
"There's no going back if you do this", Asami warned.
"I know. Will you help me?"
"Of course."
"We all will", Bolin added.
So they came to an agreement with Varrick. If they helped him get to his yacht waiting in the harbor, he'd use it to help them free her father and the rest of the rebels that were being sent to the North. He also had the idea of getting him there by staying inside "Ping-ping", while one of them was a "handler", as part of a traveling circus. Bolin volunteered to do that by himself, which allowed the rest of team avatar to travel much easier, but it gave Mako more time to question Korra once they were waiting for him to get there.
"You mind telling me what you've got my brother wrapped up in?"
"I don't have him 'wrapped up' in anything."
Mako didn't even try to hide his disbelief. "Hmph."
"If you have something else to add, just say it", she snapped. "I'm not in the mood."
"I know you had him with you at that rebel meeting your parents held, and he went with you to stop them from kidnapping your uncle, and visiting the prison to see your dad."
"He offered to come along." And she'd needed him there, too, so Korra didn't appreciate Mako treating Bolin's support like some kind of manipulation on her part.
"So telling him no and making sure he's safe was out of the question?"
"I'm his girlfriend, not his babysitter. If you have a problem with all this, take it up with him. But you might wanna stop treating him like a little kid with no mind of his own."
"Can we take it down a notch, please? We all want what's best for Bolin."
Asami was right. And they needed to stay on task at hand either way. But they had to wait for Bolin to get there in order to move along with their plan.
More like a desperate attempt. They were all aware of how much they were winging it, but they didn't have much choice. It would be much harder to break her Dad and the rebels out in the North if they didn't act now.
At least they could get started now that Bolin had arrived, but he was visibly nervous as he got on the boat.
"What happened? Did the guards give you any trouble?"
"No, Varrick pulled some weird trick with a bunch of money that kept everyone distracted. I just ended up running into Eska."
"My cousin? What did she say to you?"
"Oh, nothing, just that she wants to get married. To me."
"Married?"
"Guess the apple didn't fall too far from the tree with that one, huh?", Varrick added. "Am I right or am I right?"
Nobody responded, they were all busy listening to Bolin explain. "I guess that's Unalaq's plan to get rid of me. No wonder he wanted that judge ordained. She started talking about a chasm between us and wanting to bridge it, something about Dolphin-pirahnas if I said no, and can someone please help me get this thing off?"
Asami was the first to recognize what it was. "Is that a betrothal necklace?"
"Or her version of one, I guess." No wonder Bolin looked so upset.
Korra was able to get it off by unclasping it from the back of his neck, and the mark it had left behind showed it had clearly been put on way too tight. She wanted to burn up the necklace in her hand, but there were too many metal spikes to do that, so she settled for throwing it in the water.
"Where is she?"
"At some church nearby, I think. Waiting for me. I'm sorry, but I didn't know how else to get away other than playing along."
"You did the right thing, kid. Best way to deal with a crazy woman is to lie big and leave fast."
Varrick's advice made sense. Kinda. Either way, Bolin had been smart to not do anything to upset Eska, and now they needed to get him out of here, which he seemed eager to do. He insisted he was fine though, just that he "wanted to put an ocean between himself and Eska as soon as possible."
Once they got inside the hull, Varrick showed them a small plane they could use to get close enough to get on the ship to search for her dad, but Asami noticed a problem immediately.
"There's no runway. How are we supposed to take off?"
Varrick apparently hadn't noticed until she mentioned it. "Zhu Li! Take a note: 'Build runway'."
"Yes sir." Did she really need to stay in there?
"I've got an idea for how we can get around that", Korra told them. "Will it be able to handle all four of us?"
"I don't know. It was only tested with three passengers."
"Then I'll stay behind", Bolin offered. "Won't be much use on a metal ship in the middle of the ocean anyway.
"And you can make sure he doesn't try and pull a fast one when we leave", Mako added.
"What kind of person do you think I am?", Varrick demanded.
"Do you really want me to answer that?"
"No I do not."
So while Asami sat in the pilot's seat, Korra and Mako stood on the wings, using firebending to give the plane the extra boost needed to take off.
Once they were in the air, Korra was able to summon the Avatar state to push two ships apart, creating a hole big enough for Varrick's yacht to slip through. Soon after, she saw the outline of a battleship off in the distance.
"Look!", she pointed. "They have to have my dad there!"
Landing wasn't an option, so they had to bail out before it crashed. Luckily Asami had aimed the plane in a way that created a distraction for those up top when it made impact. It allowed them to slip below deck without being spotted, but Mako made sure to steal a set of keys from an oblivious guard.
They didn't have long to look, so Korra wasn't concerned with being sneaky anymore. "Dad? Dad?"
"Korra?" She recognized his voice immediately, and she found her father in a cell much larger than the one he'd had in prison, but he was with all the other rebels now, and not particularly happy to see her taking part in a prison break.
"Korra, what are you doing here?"
"Getting you out. I'll explain later."
But while Mako fumbled with the keys trying to open the cell, Korra sensed people heading towards them, probably unhappy with what they were doing.
"I'm gonna go buy you some time", she told her friends. "Make sure my dad leaves with everyone else."
"You sure?", Asami asked.
"I'll be fine, Unalaq can't afford to let anything to me."
Her dad took notice of his brother's name. "Unalaq? Korra, this is crazy, what's going on?"
"Dad, I promise I'll explain everything, but right now I need you to listen to me." She took off, not waiting for a response as she tried to head off anyone coming to stop them, and sure enough her Uncle was there, accompanied by multiple soldiers.
"What exactly do you think you're doing here?"
"I could ask you the same thing. Locking up my dad? Getting him banished from the North? How could you do that to your own brother?"
"I see you got Judge Hotah to loosen his tongue. Do you think there won't be any consequences for something like that?"
"I didn't do anything to him", she dismissed.
"Then it was that boyfriend of yours, or one of your other companions, wasn't it?"
"You can't prove anything."
"I don't need it. For him, or any one of your friends."
"You're not laying a finger on Bolin", Korra warned. "Or anyone else."
"And you're not in a position to be making demands or threats. Do you have any idea what kind of path you've set our tribes on? A civil war that will cause the dark spirits to annihilate the South, and even I won't be able to stop them."
"Why should I believe anything you have to say?", She challenged. "All you've done is try to turn me into a puppet for whatever you're trying to do."
"I'm trying to help you realize your own destiny. Your father failed to heed my warnings about attacking in the sacred forest and it nearly got our home destroyed. What happened was his own fault, regardless of my involvement, and unless you and your friends give yourselves up now, you will cause even more devastation than he did."
"...No. I'm done being manipulated by you. I'm doing things my way from now on. In fact, you're gonna let us leave with my father, and take your troops back to the north. Today."
"And why would I want to do that?"
"Because you still need me to open the northern portal", Korra reminded him.
"Actually, I don't. You've served your purpose." Then Unalaq finally addressed his soldiers. "Take the Avatar and her friends into custody, and retrieve the escaping prisoners."
They didn't finish their first step towards her before Korra blasted them down the hallway with a gust of air. Then she set the floor between them on fire so they couldn't follow her as she went up the stairs to the top deck.
She didn't see her father and her friends, but there was plenty of evidence that they'd been there. There was water all over the place, no doubt the result of waterbending used to fight off the guards, several of which were strewn around, unconscious. "Guys?"
"Korra, down here!" She'd heard Mako's voice and ran to the edge. "We're all set to go, so hurry up and jump!"
She followed his instructions, and used her own waterbending to catch herself, and gently be placed on Varrick's yacht. "Is everyone here?"
"Everyone's fine", her dad told her. "Varrick, let's go!" That was all the direction he needed, and they sped off away from the ship they'd escaped from, eventually arriving at a secluded spot that Korra realised wasn't too far from the southern water tribe.
Then came the conversation she was dreading. "Korra, Bolin, this is the exact opposite of what I told you to do. What reason could you possibly have for pulling a stunt like this?"
"Unalaq was behind everything, sir. He told Judge Hotah to convict you no matter what, and he made sure you were banished after the spirits attacked the North."
Her dad looked devastated at Bolin's explanation. For whatever problems he'd had with his brother, he still hadn't expected something like that. "I know you didn't want me involved, but I couldn't let Unalaq take you away when we realized what he was doing. I'm so sorry, Dad."
"I understand", he told Korra as he accepted her hug. "Thank you for getting me out, sweetheart."
"We owe you thanks as well, Avatar Korra". She knew his face from when he tried to kidnap Unalaq, and the ugly insults he said to her boyfriend. "And an apology. We never would've seen our homes or families again if it wasn't for you."
"Bolin's the one you should be thanking", she pointed out. "We never would've found out about any of this if it wasn't for him."
But Bolin understandably didn't seem to be in the mood for gratitude or apologies. "Just remember this next time."
"So what do we do now?"
"My brother betrayed me, our family, and both of our tribes. It's time to stop running from my past and put him in his place."
The rebels stepped forward. "You have our support, Chief Tonraq."
"Mine too", Korra added.
Her father disagreed. "Korra, the best way for you to help is away from the fight."
"But you said the South would get crushed by the North if there was a war," she argued.
"That's why I need to go to Republic City and get support from President Raiko and the United Forces. We can keep Unalaq and his army busy long enough until they get here."
"I'll get you all the help you need. I love you, Dad."
"I love you too. Good luck."
With that, he departed with the rest of the rebels, on a raft made of ice heading towards the mainland, while Korra got ready to head to Republic City with her friends to get her Dad help.
"I really owe you big time, Korra", Varrick told her while surveying the area with a telescope.
"For what? I just started a civil war."
"Oh, don't get worked up about that, it's no big deal. I meant getting me out of that mess with your uncle. If it wasn't for you I'd still be hiding back in my office."
"Plus, we'll be putting a whole ocean between me and Eska", Bolin added.
But Varrick spotted something that caused concern. "Uh, looks like we have some company! And not the fun kind!"
He passed the telescope to Bolin, while the rest of them stared at the large wave approaching them. "What is that?", Asami wondered.
"That would be my darling Eska", Bolin told her, face completely drained of color. Then he turned to Varrick. "Quick question: Is this thing fast enough to get away from a crazy waterbender that you just left at the altar?"
"Why do you think I built this boat?"
Notes: So the tension between Mako and Korra wasn't something I had planned on writing when I started this chapter, but I think it fits well into the story. Also tweaked the role Unalaq had in Tonraq's banishment a little bit, since even though Unalaq hired the barbarians in the show, it was still Tonraq's screw-up for destroying the forest and causing the spirits to attack, right? Anyway, one of the biggest strengths of LOK was the villains, and for me it was kind of a missed opportunity to have Unalaq be more of a zealot in terms of his spiritual beliefs, rather than just simply power hungry.