Chapter XXIV: Stress and Memories

Saltrall grinned when he got the GPS lock on Tarrlok from his hair. He watched the dot that represented him heading up a mountain towards a small cabin near the top.

"Bingo," He whispered as he began inputting the coordinates. "Hang on Korra, I'm coming." He said, pulling a lever and taking off.

He landed quickly and his TARDIS became a pine tree, he looked around on the monitor but sighed in relief when he saw he beat Tarrlok. He got out quickly and, with his Sonic by his side, carefully made his way into the cottage. He scanned it with his Sonic and found that there was a large box in the basement. He knew there could only be one thing in it and he ran for the stairs.

"Korra?! Are you here?" He asked anxiously.

Korra stood up inside the box at the sound of his voice. "Saltrall?" She asked with a scared tone of voice.

"In the flesh," Saltrall joked, before sighing in relief as he ran down the stairs before stopping in front of the box. "God, it's so good to hear your voice again, Korra,"

Korra smiled, not that Saltrall could see it, "It's good to hear yours, too." Saltrall smiled and started trying to unlock the door with his Sonic.

"Come on, almost-" He started before stopping and looking towards the door, turning off his Sonic. "What's-" Korra started to ask before getting shushed by Saltrall.

Saltrall heard a door close and he knew it was the front door. He put his Sonic away and looked for a place to hide.

"I have to hide, don't worry, I'll be right here, stay calm," Saltrall whispered hurriedly before running over and hiding behind some crates by the stairs.

"My life is a disaster now, thanks to you." Tarrlok said furiously as he came down the stairs and looking at Korra's box.

"So your little bloodbending secret's out?" Korra asked a little smugly, making Tarrlok growl and start walking out, "And I know how you bloodbent me without a full moon." Korra continued, making him stop, "You're Yakone's son."

"I was his son, but in order to win Republic City, I had to become someone else." Tarrlok said, not looking at her, "My father failed because he tried to rule the city from its rotten underbelly. My plan was perfect. I was to be the city's savior. But you, you ruined everything!"

Korra just laughed, "Come on, you know I didn't work alone!"

Tarrlok growled in response, "Yes, and the next time your little alien friend shows his face I'll make sure he never sees you or anyone he cares about ever again!"

This time it was Saltrall's time to growl. It was soft, barely audible, pointing his Sonic at Tarrlok. He took some deep breaths and calmed down, but he left his Sonic pointed at Tarrlok.

Tarrlok just chuckled a sinister chuckle, "Not that it matters, of course," He started, finally turning to Korra, "I'll escape and start a new life. And you're coming as my hostage."

"You'll never get away with this!" Korra yelled, pounding on the door of her box. She was terrified, even with Saltrall right there she was worried about what Tarrlok had said, and she hoped he stayed calm and didn't reveal himself.

Korra shut up, however, when she heard Tarrlok gasp from the top of the stairs.

"Amon!" Tarrlok said, shocked at seeing the Equalists inside the box, and Saltrall heard Korra gasp while his eyes widened.

"Crap crap crappity crap crap crap," Saltrall whispered and pressed himself against the side of the staircase where he was hiding.

Saltrall heard a struggle until he saw Tarrlok back up and watched in horror as Amon took his bending away, turning away and trying not to listen to the screams of Tarrlok. Amon tossed Tarrlok over his shoulder and turned from the box.

"I'll take care of him. You four retrieve the Avatar. Do not underestimate her. Electrocute the box to knock her out before you open it." Amon ordered the other Equalists. Saltrall took advantage of the opportunity and quickly placing a clear protective barrier around the box.

Saltrall watched as the Equalists surrounded the box and hoped his protective layer protected her. Then he saw one of her armbands pop over one of the bars in the roof of her box and he smiled as the box was electrocuted and as she pretended to be electrocuted.

He stood when they opened the door and Korra attacked them, intending to help her, but she handled them all before he could do anything.

"Huh, good job Korra," He said, coming out of hiding and looking at their bodies. He was gonna say something else but Korra nearly tackled him in a hug.

Saltrall grinned and hugged her back just as tightly.

"God I missed you," Saltrall said, "We all did."

She smiled, "Thank Saltrall, It's great seeing you again." She said, "I'm gonna make a run for it, can you get your TARDIS and meet me somewhere?"

"Uh, yeah, sure," He started, making Korra smile before kissing his cheek and running out of the room, "But, I... can..." He said as he watched her before sighing. He summoned his TARDIS and ran into it as the Equalists started getting up.

Saltrall sighed again, "Why did she have to run? Hell, why didn't I just summon you here, girl?" He said to his TARDIS, rubbing the console. He got a lock on Korra's position and he pulled the lever. As he did that he realized that even though Korra smiled and hugged him in obvious relief she still had fear in her eyes. He shook his head and opened the door to look out for her. It turned out to be the perfect moment as without even realizing it Korra flew in and hit the arm of the couch.

"Korra!" He exclaimed, running up to her, but she was out cold from the impact. He got on one knee and picked her up and laid her out on the couch, covering her with a blanket.

He looked outside and stepped into the cold. He saw he had landed on the side of the mountain, and he waited against the side of the TARDIS, hoping that he would be able to signal for help. He thought about what he had seen inside, not only Tarrlok losing his bending but also the fear in Korra's eyes even as she smiled and hugged him happily. He'd seen looks like that before, on Gallifrey and elsewhere, as he fought near the end of the Great Time War. It was a look of pure fear and he knew that Korra would be dealing with this experience for a long time.

He shook his head trying to push those memories and thoughts back into his head when he heard movement. Standing and wielding his screwdriver he relaxed when he saw it was only Naga.

"Hi girl," He said, putting his Sonic down and petting her head. Naga let him pet her before she looked up and howled. Saltrall looked at where she was howling at and grinned when he saw a flying bison and knew who was on it. He waved his Sonic with the tip illuminated so that Tenzin could see them better as the bison landed.

"You have no idea how happy I am to see all of you!" Saltrall exclaimed as Tenzin, Lin and the others got off the bison.

"Where's Korra?" Mako asked with intensity in his voice, causing Saltrall to clench a fist unconsciously.

Saltrall heard the TARDIS door open behind him and he turned "I'm here, don't worry," Korra said from the doorway.

"She's right there," Saltrall replied with a hint of bitterness meant for Mako. Tenzin and Lin ran up to her and started asking her questions and making sure she was okay.

Saltrall walked over to Asami as Mako pushed them aside and picked her up and carried her towards Oogi the bison. Saltrall saw the pained look on Asami's face and put his hand on her shoulder and she looked at him before smiling very softly and looking down. Saltrall looked back towards the saddle of the bison and saw Mako pushing some hair from Korra's face. He sighed softly and looked back towards the others, wondering what would happen next.