Don't talk to strangers

Oh, in the strangest dreams, walking by your side
It is the hole and you impose upon your life
When you're out loneliness, it crawls up in the crowd
It's what you feel but can't articulate out loud

Oh you go to sleep on your own
And you wake each day with your thoughts
And it scares you being alone
It's a last resort

All you want is someone onto whom you can cling
Your mother warned of strangers and the dangers they may bring
Your dreams and memories are blurring into one
The seams which hold the waking world have slowly come undone

You'll come undone

Oh you go to sleep on your own
And you wake each day with your thoughts
And it scares you being alone
It's a last resort

You go to sleep on your own
And you wake each day with your thoughts
And it scares you being alone
It's a last resort

Oh

Don't talk to strangers
And don't walk into danger
Don't talk to strangers
And don't walk into danger

Oh you go to sleep on your own
And you wake each day with your thoughts
And it scares you being alone
It's a last resort

You go to sleep on your own
And you wake each day with your thoughts
And it scares you being alone
It's a last resort

Don't talk to strangers

Oh you go to sleep on your own
And you wake each day with your thoughts
And it scares you being alone
It's a last resort...

"Sleepsong", by Bastille

Korra's fur skin boots squelched in the mud. The heavy, stagnant heat creeped into her feet. She could feel the sweat on her toes. She put one foot forward once more and suddenly found herself entrenched in swamp water up to her knee.

If not for her present company, she would've screamed in frustration. As it was, she let out several curses and choice words for the spirits.

The spirits were confused. They didn't understand what 'go have sex with yourself' meant.

The hazy, afternoon sun blazed overhead. The two women were glad they packed lightly. The temperature they were in was the worst kind of heat. Hot and humid, hanging in the air, refusing to let them cool down. It stayed with them even after the occasional cloud blocked the golden star's rays.

Eventually Asami said what both of them were thinking. "This," she panted, as they both collapsed on a thankfully solid piece of earth, "is disgusting."

Korra looked over to see her lying on her stomach as she sat on her hind quarters and rubbed her calves balefully. Asami was gasping with the heat. She offered her water bottle and the woman accepted it gratefully.

"Yeah, it is. We don't have much choice though."

"How far do we still have to go?"

"Another few kilometres."

"Another few kilometres!" Asami sputtered, her face red from both the exertion and the exasperation. "Oh Spirits, you can kill me now. Save Shin La the trouble. I know I survived Amon, Tarrlok, Vaatu and all the others. I promise I'll die this time."

Korra chuckled, but she did have a point. The way they were going, they wouldn't reach Koh before nightfall. That meant they would have to set up camp. In the middle of a spirit world swamp infested with who knows what. With barely any knowledge of what could be out there.

"There has to be a quicker way," Asami said as she adjusted her position so she was lying on her back. She stared up at the bright blue sky with just a hint of trepidation. She'd seen the wonder and beauty of the Spirit World; that splendour was a massive contrast to this.

Korra looked out over the swamp again. They had nothing but a general direction and her own innate connection. Reaching to touch a branch of a long, overhanging tree, she closed her eyes and concentrated.

In times like this, I prefer to rely on a friend.

A voice cut through her focus. Male. He was laughing, but not maliciously so. Not like Shin La. This was much friendlier, and when he spoke the sound filled her with hope and warmth. And as the sound got stronger, she felt a strange sensation beginning to tickle her skin. A breeze where there wasn't one before. A small trickle of wind pulling her hair back. A small little gust, ruffling her clothes and-

"Korra," Asami said, her voice bereft of any annoyance or irritation. "Open your eyes."

"Korr did as she was asked. Then she closed them again. Then she rapidly blinked a few times, just to confirm what her eyes were telling her she was seeing was really there. And then she let her mouth open wide agape.

A massive sky bison faced them, his proud horns glinting in the sunlight. He had trampled on the trees in their way and had splashed both women with dirty swamp water, but neither cared. A great groan emanated from the creature as he opened his yawning maw to reveal the blunt molars inside his jaw. To anyone else this might have been interpreted as a sign of aggression.

But somehow, they both knew not to be afraid.

His rider slid down from the saddle, his robes buffeting slightly with the little jump. He landed gracefully on the small patch of earth, avoiding the murky depths his great beast trampled in. And then he smiled, as if he'd been searching for and finally found his long lost friend.

Asami said the words, but she looked back and forth between the avatars to make sure she had it right. "Avatar Aang?" she said, her voice small.

The airbender grinned at her awe. "The one and only. I've got someone I'd like you to meet. Korra and Asami, say hello to Appa."

Mako sipped at his tea. The steamy aroma wafted from the cup and filled his nostrils, helping him clear his mind. He took a deep breath and allowed himself to recede into the depths of his mind.

A block of worry and agitation was eating away at the firebender. It had been ever since the crime scene earlier that day. This was not that uncommon, as in his line of work he would see the odd fucked up thing. As much as Republic City looked like a democratic utopia, the truth was far muddier. Murders and robberies were down, but they weren't eradicated. They never would be. So, ergo, it would make sense for a particular situation like that to bother him. But not in this way.

Disgusting ritualistic deaths and would horrify him, make it harder to sleep, but they wouldn't grip him with such morbid fascination. After he'd gotten back to the precinct, the detective had gone through every file they had with any relation or similarity to the one he'd seen earlier. He still remembered the way Aria's eyes bulged as he walked out the building almost buried beneath the folders.

He was reading them all. Yes, all of them. Bolin had wisely decided to leave him at it. Besides, Opal was coming home tomorrow. His time would be way more productive preparing for that than annoying his reticular brother.

The words kept coming back as he searched for any correlation with new case. Any strand of evidence, any connection at all would vindicate his hunch. Why did two simple words bother him so much?

The Dreaded.

He'd heard them before. Recently. He must have. Surely there was something here!

The image of fresh blood on the walls kept cropping up in his head. Dark whispers of foreboding prodded at the edge of his mind, promising death and instilling him with, well… dread. He kept searching the files nevertheless.

The next case he picked up was the case of Taren Malik.

Hmm… now why was that name familiar? He pondered this as he opened the file. A picture of a young, snot nosed kid fell out. Let's see, multiple instances of pickpocketing, one convicted felony, that being fraud. Impersonating a police officer, no less. What kind of child would even think to do that? He shook his head as he read on.

Long black hair, which he'd recently cut short. No parents, so he was an orphan. He'd ran away from not one but two orphanages, and he'd lived out on the streets ever since. He reminded Mako of someone…

Wait… Surely not…

He looked at the photograph again. It was grainy and old, showing a twelve year old boy wriggling against an officer trying to contain him long enough to get the picture taken. A cheeky smile was on his face, like he'd slipped something out of the officer's pocket and only he knew.

"Skoochy," Mako said with dawning comprehension. "Well, I'll be damned."

And then, there, in small little block letters, was what he needed. The small little connection.

FOUND ON PERSON: FLIER FOR GROUP MEETING. SUBJECT: 'THE DREADED'.

"Bolin!" Mako called his brother as he reached for his coat. "Leave some noodles for me after your dinner. I'm going out."

"This is far as I can go," Aang warned them as they felt the cool atmosphere of the clouds start to settle as they approached a rocky canyon. Appa let out a low murmur as the sky bison began to descend.

For such a massive animal he landed with a fair amount of grace. The girls barely felt the thud of the earth as he touched down. With a little shrug he deposited them down onto the ground.

"So," Korra said, as she looked around the massive rock formation the great bison had brought them to. He'd landed just on the edge of a small, pebbled path, leading up to a massive cave in the centre of the canyon. The pale sun shined on the rocks, making the dark cavern stand out all the more. "That's where we're headed. That's where Koh's lair is."

"Indeed," Aang murmured his assent. He spoke grimly, like he was not happy with their choice to seek him. "The Face Stealer lies just inside. He will tell you what you want to know."

"Any last suggestions?" Korra asked her predecessor hopefully. The full comprehension of what she was about to face had only started to dawn on her in the last few minutes as her goal became closer and closer. Her anxiety had started to ratchet up a bit, even if she didn't want to admit it.

"Keep your face guarded at all times. Give nothing away. Be neutral. He will look for a weakness, he will look for a chink in your armour. You must not give him any."

Korra nodded. It sounded similar to what Kuruk had said.

"Well then, what are we waiting for?" Asami asked. "Let's get on up there."

"Wait," Aang exclaimed in alarm. "You are going too?"

"Yeah," Asami replied. "Why wouldn't I?"

Aang looked between the two women. Asami was on the defensive, her arms crossed and her expression guarded, with her foot set squarely in the ground just waiting for the Avatar tell her no. Korra however, was doing the same thing as Aang was. She seemed much more conflicted about the whole situation. An understanding seemed to pass between them.

"Because you will emote, and you will doom the both of you to an eternal, empty existence," Aang said simply. "Koh is a master of manipulation. I cannot describe how in words. He is a predator, a being who feeds on any expression whatsoever. And he has history with the Avatar."

"I don't see why I shouldn't go," Asami argued back. "I can keep my emotions in check. I've been doing it for the past month or so," she muttered angrily. There was a bitter aftertaste after she said that, like there was more truth in her words than she would like. "Korra, tell him. You know me better than anyone."

The woman in question wrung her hands. "I do. Asami can keep a straight face."

"Then tell him!"

"I can't, Asami. Because I agree with him."

"What?" Asami said, after a moment's silence. It came out as a whisper, like she couldn't believe what she'd heard. "Why?"

"Because if you went in there, he'd find a way to get to me," she replied simply. Aang mumbled his agreement. "He… might hurt you. Maybe not physically, maybe not even verbally. But if he found a way to get inside my head, or yours, or something like that… One response. One tiny flicker of emotion and the whole façade may as well crumble. One slip is all the excuse he needs. And if we're being honest, that's more likely to happen if there are two of us."

Asami opened her mouth to speak, but Aang cut in before she could. "We are gregarious beings. We connect and bond with each other every single day. No matter how big a mask you may hide behind, one unfortunate mistake and it is all undone. This is something Korra must do alone."

Behind them, Appa rumbled his agreement.

Asami looked at both of them, and then took a deep, frustrated breath. "Fine," she said, rubbing her forehead. "I don't agree with you, but if you feel its best, I'll stay."

Korra clasped her hands gratefully. "Thank you, Asami."

"Yeah, yeah," she rolled her eyes. "Just come back alive."

"I will."

With that, Korra turned her attention to the little path carved out of the stone ahead of her. A small peeking hole of the unknown peered out from between mighty wall of the gorge. Who knew what lay inside it?

Taking a deep breath, the Avatar began to climb. She was about to find out.

He flicked through the man's personal possessions carelessly, without much of a second thought. The old pictures of a smiling couple and a beaming child didn't hold any sentiment within him. If he wanted to digest this man's life story, he would have possessed and stripped him of his mind and body. He wondered why he was doing it, but he couldn't quite stop. He came to the conclusion that he was simply bored.

He supposed that rifling through his stuff wasn't any worse than waiting for him to come home.

His wife and child were out. They hadn't been when they arrived. He wondered when they might come back. How much of a scare did he give them?

There he was, letting his mind get distracted again. Why did he bother wondering? Humans were trivial and mundane. They would argue that they were special and unique, but most of them were just spinning cogs in a system far greater than they ever would be. They were slaves to their own world's design, condemned to live within the four walls they inflicted on themselves. They held no mystery inside.

Yet the fact was undeniable. Raiku's death. The demise of his cohorts also. Lin's predicament. All political, connected to the city than his arch rival. Why was that? When had he decided to mess with the human collective, rather than just destroying their self-appointed messiah? Why had he become so involved?

He knew why of course. He could feel the itch in the crook of his elbow. It was one that would recede with only one thing.

He could feel the draw from here. The sudden loss of power was like a cord being severed, the life that fuelled him suddenly becoming scant and long reaching. He hadn't realised how dependent he was, how greedy he was for the real thing. Normal bystanders were fast becoming inferior to the intoxicating source she promised. Soon, the denizens of the city would not be enough to quench his thirst.

The Avatar had gone into the Spirit World. He'd felt her go. His steady leeching of her power had been cut short, and now as he waited for the man to come home he realised how hungry this world had made him. There was a wealth of riches for him here. Why shouldn't he indulge in the chaos?

The black spot on her palm definitely remained, but he needed to get closer to Korra once again to feed the impulse. And he had no idea how long she would take in the Spirit World. He must find out for himself.

Almost by coincidence, Shin La heard the door open as he looked bac from the window. His new victim was home.

"Sorry I'm late honey," he said, not even looking up as he threw his coat on the hanger. "Traffic was a nightmare. It was a long, old day. Say, it's awfully quiet in here, where are-"

His voice evaporated into nothing when he saw the demon staring at him. He had to bite back the almost overwhelming urge to run. He'd never seen his face nor heard his voice, but somehow he knew. Their eyes locked for a moment and he knew.

"I persuaded your wife and child to take a long, refreshing walk," Shin La said, his smooth rich tones almost mesmerising the target right there and then. "They won't be back for an hour. That gives me and you plenty of one on one time. Would you care to take a seat?"

The man gulped. He didn't want to comply. For all he knew the demon had murdered the both of them and their bodies were reeking the bedroom. But his voice lulled him to obey. He did as he was asked.

"Wonderful," Shin La smiled. "I will not delay. I am here for a specific reason. One that if you struggle against, it will result in very negative consequences. Do you understand?"

The man nodded, finally finding his voice. "Where are they? Where is Sheila? Where are my wife and daughter?"

"Unharmed," Shin La answered, tracing his fingers across the man's brow. His forehead was lined with sweat. "Depending how vivid the connection is. Who knows, if I manage to form correctly I may even spare you."

The man's reply turned into a strangled yelp as Shin La closed in, forcing himself down his throat. The man's eyes bulged and it suddenly became impossible to breathe. It felt like the walls of his throat were lined with tar, smothering him, suffocating him, until this feeling washed over him and…

His struggling stopped. His fists that were gripping the siderests of the chair were now lax and hanging down the side. "Shush," Shin La said from his mind. If a snake could speak, this is what he would sound like, he mused. "Sslleeeeepp."

The last thing the man saw before the dull grey of an emotionless dream was a world filled with a swampy jungle and a purple sky.

It was surprisingly warm in the cavern. The humidity of the swamp followed her into the cave. Drops of perspiration dropped from her forehead into the milky white water that muddied the wet earth. Her feet made squelching noises as she walked. Her heavy breathing stained the crystal glass glowing bright green on the sides of the walls. Stalactites hung low from the ceiling and stalagmites rose high from the ground, obstructing the Avatar's path. As she walked further and further into the cave, leaving the moist heat of the swamp behind her, she could only liken it to a maze.

No, not a maze. A web, built of gems and stone.

A short, sharp tingling feeling crept up the back of her neck. She couldn't hear any noises except her own. For every step she took, she felt eyes on the back of her neck. The nooks and crannies, inconspicuous at the start, now looked like they hid all manner of monster. If she looked back, the path she'd just taken looked unrecognisable.

She lit a sphere of flame in her palm. The light bounced off the walls. They revealed primitive drawings, of stick figures hounded by a huge monster, with legs as spindly as a spider. She ventured further on in the labyrinth.

Scuttling. If she focused she could definitely hear scuttling.

It echoed off the walls. It reverberated in her ears. The more she concentrated the more insidious it became, scurrying deeper and deeper inside until…

A large, insect like creature dropped its head from the ceiling and Korra barely suppressed the urge to scream.

It was a good thing she did.

"I told you, Avatar," Koh's rich, low voice intoned. "I told you we would meet again."

Taking extreme care, Korra shakily rose to her full height. The creature rocked back and forth, like a hypnotist entrancing its victim. The Avatar had to resist the urge to sway with him. Her eyes already followed his movement.

It regarded her with lazy curiosity, or maybe it was calm malice. She slowly managed to focus in on his face. That was a mistake.

She had to fight the urge to frown. His face was an unnatural blend of expression, different colours in a perpetual swirl of agony, like an artist had had a breakdown and blended together every single colour he had. A distorted circular rainbow greeted her, with sharp eyes and a predatory grin fixed on her somewhere in the amalgam. Then, in an instant, it changed.

His skin became stiff, and his eyes became wet. A macabre puppet greeted her, tear tracks so full and weeping that they no longer fell from his eyes. The cold, salty water was now a firm part of his identity, trickling down in an endless torrent of misery. It was at odds with the red crimson spread across his lips, covering him from cheek to cheek with a murderous slasher smile.

Kora took a very long, very deep breath. She could do this.

"Your face," Koh said, fascinated by the woman's irrational need to emote yet the resilience she showed in fighting that impulse. "It is stiff and rigid. Soft and yielding. It yearns to flex, to feel. I wonder what face you will leave me, hmm?"

He purred like a kitten as a leathery, barbed tendril slowly caressed her cheek. The Avatar kept her eyes dead ahead. It would reduce her want to blast him as far away as she could.

"You are Koh, the Face Stealer," Korra stated more than asked. "I have questions for you. Will you answer them?"

Her monotone intrigued the monster. He peered in for a closer look. "Are you in there, Aang?" he laughed devilishly, his face changing from the crying mannequin to a cackling dog like creature within a second. Korra had to resist the urge to gag as the saliva dripped from his gums and the foul smell from his panting was blown right into her face. He seemed satisfied with her silence. "Yes, I will, Avatar. Ask what you want. There are no secrets in my house."

A small step, but a step regardless in this voided minefield of expression. "Shin La is attacking Republic City. How do we defeat him?"

Korra had seen many people react to the news of Shin La's existence. Some were dismissive, others wary. Lately they'd transitioned into full on horror at the sheer mention of his name. But never before had she seen someone react this way at his presence; Glee. Pure, unbridled glee.

"That is a name that I have not heard in a long, long time," Koh said, smacking his lips as he spoke, gazing at the Avatar like she was his next meal. "What did you do to attract such a devil to your detriment? A great, great sin. Defeating him will not be easy, young one."

"I must try." There was no impassioned speech or lasting impression this time. Just plain, neutral fact.

"Indeed you must. There is a way, guaranteed to weaken him. Should you possess the means to utilise it. The natural flow of yin and yang. Separating one energy from another, aiming at your foe, and letting it ignite."

"Lightning."

"Correct," Koh nodded, his body coiling around Korra like a snake, the hairy little feelers on his side brushing up against Korra's smooth skin. "That is his greatest foil. A bolt so quick and true will fell him like any other foe."

"Is that it?" Korra had meant it as a simple query, but she could not stop a hint of surprise seeping. Koh was back on her in an instant, black pupils boring into her own, looking for any chink in her impassive armour.

To his disappointment, he found none. "Hmm, perhaps not. He does grow stronger by the day. Soon, conventional means will no longer apply. It is in his nature, something you cannot possibly match."

"What is it that I cannot match?"

Koh smiled at her ignorance. He would not need to draw emotion out from her. The revelation he was about to reveal would do it for him. "He is neither spirit nor man, but he possesses shades of both. He can bend, but he cannot be bent. He can form, but he cannot remain whole. He is an abomination, an unnatural fusion of man and spirit. He should not exist."

"Yet he does," Korra noted, curiosity slipping in without her realising it. "Why?"

"A long time ago, the blank slate between your world and ours formed. The Void, where nothing but despair and darkness dwelled on the very fringes of the world. Ideas unformed, raggedy creatures not wholly put together. For thousands of years it remained lifeless, cold and desolate. And then something finally set alight.

"A yearning to understand slowly started to develop. It brought itself into the world, breathing with it, inhabiting it, and it was content. The Void manifested itself in the form of a thick, dense forest, which haunted nearby settlements and stole the young who travelled off the beaten path. Not even wildlife would venture inside. This forest came to be revered as a deity, an example of a road that should not be taken. Can you guess its name?"

"Shin La?" Korra answered, as his body pushed hers. He was slowly advancing on her, his face now morphed into one decidedly more human. A thick, bushy beard adorned his face as he spoke.

"Azran Ekaal," Koh said instead. "The Father of Nightmares. The Corruption of the Mind. The list goes on. But yes, this was what Shin La used to be. An entity that existed a long time ago, when humanity was still in its infancy, neither dead nor alive. He didn't breathe, he didn't live. He wasn't even a he back then. Mortal words cannot be enough to describe. It hummed with the Earth. Its heartbeat beat with the wind. It lived in the sun and it lived in the night. Eternal, immortal and unknowable. It just was. And then one day, that all changed."

"What happened?" Korra asked. Her throat was dry as she stood enraptured by the tale of how Shin La came to be. To be fair, so was Koh. His eyes were no longer currently on Korra, lost in a story that occurred so many years ago.

"You happened. An orphan wandered in to the forest, sad, crying and alone. His feet were sore and his body trembled with the cold. A perfect target. The forest assimilated its victim like it would to any other, slowly possessing its prey until nothing would remain, not even a shallow husk. Only this child was different. This child was the Avatar. This child was -"

"Noah," Korra answered for him. He nodded in confirmation. "Avatar Noah."

"Indeed he was. Disgusted by its approach, Raava repelled the invading force. The child ran frightened out of the wood, and found refuge in a nearby village. But he never forget the forest, and it never forget him.

"Touched by something greater than it, by something that lived and breathed, that died, it irrevocably started to change. Its ties to the Void grew weak and severed. The collective whole became confined to a single body, as it began to develop an individual conscience. Its perspective became less complicated and narrower. It became trapped inside a form, bound by the laws of the physical world. It lost its connection to the Earth. And as result of this, it hungered for revenge. Shin La was born."

Korra's mouth went dry. "What happened next? How did Noah defeat Shin La?"

Koh's face changed again, to an old man with w wispy white moustache hanging beneath his nose. "The rest is a formality. Shin La went on a killing spree, desperate to find a way to return himself to his original form. But he could not. He never will. So, instead he decided on the same path of action that he traverses now. He found Avatar Noah, by then a young man skilled in all the arts, and attempted to destroy him as he does now to you. And just like you did, Noah went to me for guidance. History repeats itself, Avatar. And I will tell you the same thing I told him.

"Vestiges of Shin La's original form still remain. You cannot destroy him completely, because he is a fundamental element of the world. His aversion to light will defeat him, maybe even render him to dust. But he cannot be killed; he can only be bound. One individual must bond their souls with his to imprison him once more. They must let him inside without fighting the intrusion. And most importantly, they must already be touched by a spirit. The only creatures than that can bind a spirit are the ones that have already bonded with one. Only then can Shin La be imprisoned. You wonder about Noah's name in the history books. Why don't you ask Raava what happened to him."

Korra narrowed her eyes. She could tell the simple act of lowering her eyelids attracted Koh's curiosity but she didn't care. "What do you mean?" she 'asked.' It sounded more like a demand.

Koh's smile grew wider. She was pushing the boundaries now. Any moment later and they would break. "Avatar Noah is no more because he was subjugated indefinitely into Shin La's form. His figure became Shin La's tomb. Where do you think he got that human body from?"

Korra's aggravation gave way to surprise as the revelation gave way to horrible, dawning comprehension. "No," she said, unable, no, unwilling to understand. "No, that can't be… I've seen Noah, in my dreams. Noah does not look like Shin La!" She was trying to keep her voice neutral. She was failing. Unconsciously, she began to back away as the monster grew ever closer.

"A projection," Koh explained away, his face morphing back into the weeping mannequin. "Something that he wanted you to see. The juxtaposition of what was and what is now. Look upon Noah and Shin La, and try to see a difference."

"No," she shook her head. "You're lying."

"I am Koh. I do not lie. I have no need to. The truth is far more open to interpretation." He was leaning ever closer, so much so that Korra had backed away into the water. Sodden earth squelched underneath her feet, and that helped bring her back to normality. She looked down for a second to inspect her muddy boots. She looked up and found the Face Stealer staring her right in the eye.

She couldn't feel him breathe. She scrambled to recover her neutral façade as he silently stared her dead in the eye. She could feel the tremor in her legs and the twitch in her fingers. The urge to turn around and run was unbearable. But his captive glance kept her held in place like a puppet on a string.

It wasn't just the fear. It was the truth she wanted to run from. Because if that was true, that meant Noah had given himself up to seal Shin La away forever. And that meant someone would have to do it again to end this.

There was only one candidate capable of doing that. She knew it, so did Koh, and probably so did Shin La himself. There was a sick twisted feeling settling in her bones, like she was the subject of a cruel joke that she was last to get. Koh's words were almost sympathetic when he spoke.

"You realise. Good. It would be better to face your fate here. A much simpler destiny. A much more dignified end."

A single, shuddering breath to help calm her was all it took.

Korra's world was turned upside down as she was flung back against the walls of the cavern. The milky white water splashed beneath her as she struggled to regain her feet. She looked around. Unwittingly, she'd backed herself into a corner. She steadied herself with a hand on the wall as Koh moved in ever closer like a spider does to a fly.

"Stay back," Korra tried to shout, but her voice came out smaller than she intended. "Stay back!"

"I can oblige," Koh repied. "After all, you will come to me."

Korra tried to respond with a volley of air, but found her hand unyielding to her wishes as she tried to execute the manoeuvre. With an increasing sense of panic and dread, she looked back to her hand still stuck to the wall.

Smooth, sticky silk had wrapped itself around her hand, effectively pinning her palm in place. She tried to tug against it but the cavern's grip was like iron. Desperately, she tried to kick up a water storm as Koh slowly scuttled towards her.

Her legs didn't even move. The water, formerly so muddy and sloshy had quickly hardened into stone. She heard a crack as somehow her hand behind her moved downward, forcing her to kneel. Her knees bent and she had to lean backward to avoid breaking her arm. That left one free hand to ward off the creature that had reared up on its many, many back legs and was almost licking its lips at its next prospective meal.

There was very low light. A green flame in the distance was the only source. It only served to magnify Koh's shadow as his presence seemed to swallow up the world. "You know," he said, his face morphing to that of a beautiful, Water Tribe woman. "I have lived an awful long time. I have stolen the aspects of pacifists and murderers, of tyrants and heroes. I have feasted on loved ones of your ilk and fed well. But I have never tasted the luxury of an Avatar. The face of one once beloved seems fitting, don't you think?"

Korra didn't hesitate. Flame billowed from her palm, but the way the wall clung to her other limb made her lose her balance and her defence fizzled out harmlessly. And when she looked up again it ripped a scream from her throat darker and edgier than anything she had ever witnessed.

A hollowed out mask of a face, a black blank canvass around the edges of what would resemble a appearance burned itself into her mind. She opened her mouth to scream again but the sound was caught in her throat, torn away from her as she could feel aspects of her identity start to drift away.

With her eyesight rapidly dwindling, Korra saw what was about to happen. Her face would have screwed up in sheer, unadulterated terror had she the capacity to do so. The blank canvas started to fill with features. Unique traits like the dimples on her cheeks. Special characteristics like her hairline. Encompassed by brown skin. Short, wavy black hair. White teeth. Blue eyes.

Her blue eyes.

Korra did the only thing she could do. She opened her mouth and let out a horrid, screaming torrent of flame.

Asami didn't like waiting. Her patience was thin at the best of times. These were definitely not the best of times.

It was a combination of things. Frustration, boredom, perhaps a little bit of exasperation. But they all paled in comparison to the worry. Anxiety had flooded into her veins and it refused to leave. She was fidgeting constantly, and she couldn't sit still. Her knee was bouncing as she sat on the rock and waited.

Aang and Appa were similarly subdued, the animal even more so than his master. The massive sky bison wandered back and forth, grunting and moaning uneasily as his eyes kept drifting to the cave ahead. Aang on the other hand, just stared out over the forest on the other side. His mind was kept captive by his own memories of the Face Stealer.

None of them knew when it happened. It was like a telepathic feeling all passed between them. Asami would later chalk it up as coincidental hunch, or maybe a warning from the Spirit World, further proof that the world the spirits dwelled in was truly alive.

Asami couldn't hear it, but she could feel the scream. A deep, weary sensation of uneasiness crept into her mind. Aang similarly felt the effects, but his only reaction was a stoic furrow of his brow. He could tell that something had gone wrong, such was his innate connection to Korra. He could not however hear her cries.

Judging by his reaction, Appa most definitely could. He started to roar and grunt more erratically, his distressed bellows becoming louder and louder. His tail began to thump against the ground. He made to move towards the cave and then stopped, like an invisible being was telling him no. The beast shook its head erratically as it tried to deal with the screams.

"Something is wrong," Aang said, saying what was all on their minds. He turned back to face the cave. "Appa would not react this way otherwise."

"Okay," Asami nodded, trying to swallow down her panic. "What do we do?"

"I... am not sure," Aang said uncertainly. "I do not know if I can help."

"What?" Asami replied, almost hit for six with surprise. "What?! What do you mean? You're the Avatar! What do you mean you can't help?!"

"No," Aang shook his head. "I am the Avatar no longer. I am merely an aspect. I do not hold the vast power Korra now yields. I do not know if I can interfere."

Asami stared at him blankly. "What on Earth are you talking about?" The panic was starting to escape.

"I am a spirit now. I can interact with this world. But I cannot make it bend to my will like I once could. If Korra's time is now, then I cannot intervene. It is the way of the World. If she is meant to die here, then she will." As he spoke he hung his head low.

"Bullshit!" Asami replied immediately. "Absolute bullshit! You gave us a lift here! You appeared to Korra before! You can influence the world. And don't give me that will of the world crap! Korra is there and she needs our help! Stop speaking about her like her fate is sealed!"

Aang looked at the ground. The words stung. "I am sorry," he almost whispered.

Asami looked at him helplessly. She turned her gaze to Appa. If a sky bison could look sympathetic, he was. She turned back to the airbender, hoping that he'd change his mind.

He didn't.

"Fine," Asami said, her expression becoming resolute as she slipped her electric glove on and unsheathed one of her knives. "If you won't help me, then fine. I'll do it myself."

With that, she ran off up the rocky path, silently hoping that she wasn't too late.

For a minute there was silence as they both looked on as the young woman sprinted away. Then a deep billowing bellow emanated from the sky bison. The airbender looked at his lifelong friend with a feeble gaze.

"I can't do anything about it. I can't."

"Huuuuuhhhhnnnn," was the reply. It was not an impressed one.

"Appa, it is forbidden. I can guide, I can monitor and I can advise. I cannot fight."

"Huuuuhhhhnnn," Appa said again, but Aang knew what he was really saying. Then find another way. Help her.

Aang made to reply, but the words were washed away from his lips as an idea took form. He advised against it. It was reckless. It was foolhardy. It might also save Korra's life. He glanced at his animal one more time.

His next grunt conveyed his message clear as day.

Do it.

Nodding, Aang sat down on the ground, crossed his legs and began to meditate.

The torrent of fire disorientated the monster somewhat, as the suction like movement stilled as Koh tried to shake off the flames like a dog would to water. Breathing and gasping heavily, Korra frantically checked her features with her free hand. She still had her mouth, nose and eyes. Good.

She knew that if she didn't break free, that would be the case no longer.

Her hand refused to budge from the wall, trapped by some invisible, ethereal force. Hunkering down, Korra strained to rise from the cement like grip of the once tranquil water. It buckled and cracked slightly, but apart from that it refused to budge.

Koh was getting up again, having extinguished the inferno that Korra had breathed upon him. ""It is only a matter of time, Avatar. You are like a bear tied to a stake. You cannot fly nor flee. You can fight the course if you wish. The end result remains the same."

Korra shook her head frantically, sweat now gushing from just beneath her hairline. "You're wrong," she gritted her teeth. "My friends need me. The world needs me. I'm not going to die here."

Koh made to respond, but whatever his reply would have been was drowned out by a desperate, breathless scream coming from the lighter depths inside the caves. Koh's smooth façade turned into a malevolent grin. His face contorted into a clown like doll. "Let's see what your friend thinks about that, shall we?"

As the voice became clearer, Korra's face screwed up in horror. She could hear the squelch of boots on mud, the hopeful call asking if she was okay. And just as Koh scuttled away up into the darkness unseen, Asami's face came into view.

A gracious breath of relief escaped her lips as she saw Korra unharmed. "Korra, thank the Spirits!"

"No!" Korra yelled, twisting and contorting, trying to escape like a dog tied to a post. "Go, Asami! It's a trap! Go, Go! Get out of-"

No sooner had the Avatar started hollering Koh made his move. Dark, wispy legs latched into Asami and spun her around to face him. He had abandoned any sense of humanity, greeting Asami with the monstrous guise of a gigantic spider, with too many eyes to count. Fangs protruded from his mouth, tipped with deadly, venomous hairs. "Welcome, my dear."

To her credit, Asami didn't scream. But she couldn't help the way her eyes raised in shock, the way her voice caught in her throat, and the way her mouth hung open in fear.

Koh did not need a second invitation.

Asami's gasp caught in her throat as Koh begin to steal her possession. Korra squirmed desperately, trying to fight the supernatural force holding her in place as she watched her best friends identity being washed away like a river over a stone. It was even more horrifying watching it from the outside, the way the monster clung and stretched her face like cling film. And all Korra could do was watch in silent dismay.

The rock would not give. The ground would not crack. She was too far out of reach. She could see Asami swaying on her feet, see her face being worn like a mask on a stranger. She was running out of time.

Please, Raava, Aang, Wan, anyone, help me! Please!

She watched helplessly as the final stage began. Asami's voice died. She was too late…

One second later, Asami was left face down in the milky white water, coughing as it filled her lungs and clouded her eyes. She could not see, but she could feel the wrathful howl of the wind behind her. If her vision wasn't so impaired she would have seen the Face Stealer pinned to the wall, the first expression of apprehension on its face for hundreds of years.

Koh had good reason. Because standing in the middle of the whirlwind, buffeted by red and yellow robes and framed by a glowing white arrow, hovered Avatar Aang.

"Found your second wind, Aang?" Koh gritted his teeth as the cave began to shake, the consequence of the Avatar ripping a gigantic hole in the walls in their escape. He struggled to move, but found himself pinned in place. Aang's face shook with rage those glowing, white eyes studied him.

"No," He intoned, his voice becoming younger and lighter as his visage melted away to reveal the young water tribe woman behind it. "Not Aang. Korra."

Rocks began to fall and splash in the water. Asami had to duck and dive to evade the debris. "We have to go!" she shouted at the top of her lungs. She had no idea if it was futile or not. The wind was roaring in her ears so much that she had no clue if the waterbender could hear her.

She could. With eyes still fixed on the monster stuck to the wall, Korra raised one hand and summoned a mighty wave of water behind her, bending the mysterious river that turned to stone and back again to her will. It rocketed into Asami like a tidal wave, but Korra ensured that it broke no bones nor caused any injury. It just transported her far, far away from the cave and out of danger.

"No, wait!" Asami yelled, but it was useless. Whatever decision the godlike entity had made was already in motion. There was no stopping it.

She kept her head above water as the wave swept her away, rushing with incredible speed as the cavern started to collapse. The roof caved in and several times she was sure it would crush her. As she was raced out of the cavern, Asami wondered where this fantastical adventure had gone so very, very wrong.

She was spat out of the cave on a geyser, twisting in the air just in time to see the ground seal up behind her. She hit the ground with a thud.

For a second, Asami didn't know what to think. The sun was still out, so not too much time had passed. Aang and Appa were nowhere to be seen. The swampy forest was still to her left, the trees swaying in the light, gentle breeze.

She looked back to the cave, now closed by the Earth. She finally took stock of the situation. She didn't want to. She knew she wouldn't like what she found.

She had nothing but her pack and a few supplies. Aang and Appa, her spirit guides, were nowhere to be seen. Korra had collapsed the entire cavern around her, while in the Avatar State. She had no idea where she was. And she was all alone.

One word. That was all that she could use to describe it.

"Crap."

Back on the saddle mofos.

I'm still recovering from That Which Shall Not Be Named Lest I Get Angry And Rant Again, but I'm back on steady footing. This is still missing a couple scenes, but nothing that won't be covered next chapter. After that it'll be like it never happened. Woo!

Next chapter we'll be seeing more of The Dreaded, Shin La and of course, Spirit World adventures. Think of this a little mini-arc like they do on TV shows. It's setting up the crescendo that is coming. Hope you're excited about it as much as I am.

You know what I'm about to say next. Psst! The button's right there. Come on, you know you want to. See you all whenever :)

PS. Happy... Leap Year? Do people say that? Happy extra day of the year? Happy Leap Year!