Chapter 16 – Treachery Within
Yggdrasil Realm
The Convergence…its getting closer and my prison will weaken and the eternal darkness will return to the lands of gods and men.
Loki was kneeling in front of the tree; within its trunk was the dark ball of power. Inside terror incarnate.
"My lord, I have spread the seeds of discourse over Midgard." Loki said.
And the Avatar?
"Still oblivious to everything." Loki replied
Good.
Loki turned to leave when he felt the darkness consuming the ground he stood on. The Convergence was indeed really close. He sighed and exited the realm through the portal.
The being inside the dark prison smiled and looked at its armored hands. He laughed loudly; everything was falling right into place. The Godling of Mischief was spreading chaos thought the Nine Worlds while the fool Amon was unbalancing the mortal plane of existence. Victory was nigh and the dark one knew it.
The entity then remembered the last time he had been freed, how glory was taken from its grasp. So close…but the damned Avatar had imprisoned him here.
This time will be different, last time the fool Malekith had failed me. But now…darkness will prevail!
Republic City
Korra and Thor stood looking at how the police searched the last warehouse of the day. Next to them were Tenzin and Chief Beifong, the officers didn't find anything.
"Nothing ma'am." The officer reported. Lin nodded.
"There, are you happy?!" Asami said, obviously angry. Mako placed his hand over her shoulder, calming her down. Mako motioned his head to Korra and they walked to talk.
"So…I hope you're convinced now." Mako said.
"No! Doesn't matter how cooperative Hiroshi is being, I know he's lying." Korra responded.
"Why are you doing this? Are you that jealous of me and Asami?" Mako accused.
"What!? Don't be ridiculous, there is a golden haired seventeen year old prince over there waiting for me!" Korra quickly responded.
"If you don't drop this…consider our friendship over." Mako said, that struck Korra in the psychological gut. Mako walked away with Asami, Thor was worried and went to see if Korra was alright.
"You okay?" Thor asked.
"Yeah…I'll be fine." Korra said, Thor then felt a presence coming from his left. It was strange, as if someone had ran right in front of him.
"What the?" Korra said gaining Thor's attention. She had a little note on her hand. "Hey, you might want to see this."
"What is it?" Tenzin asked.
"If you want to know the truth about Hiroshi Sato, meet me at the Silk Road Bridge, 9 pm tonight." Korra read the letter.
"I don't trust it." Lin said.
"It's our only chance to proof that Hiroshi is lying." Korra said.
Below the Silk Road Bridge later that night
The assembled went to the bridge, following Korra's gut once again. Thor hadn't said it but Korra was acting much like he did back in Vanaheim. But then again, Korra could drop him faster than he could say 'I'm sorry'. They saw a man hiding behind one of the bridge's columns.
"Are you our contact?" Lin asked.
"Yes." The man responded. "Hey I know that you have been saying that Hiroshi is an equalist and it's true."
"How do you know this?" Korra asked the mysterious man.
"I used to be an Equalist but I left, I believed in Amon's message of equality and all but I didn't sign for this war." The man responded. "You haven't found any equalist equipment in any of the warehouses because Hiroshi doesn't keep them in his company's warehouses."
"Where does he keep them?" Thor asked.
"Hiroshi keeps them in a warehouse but none in visible sight, but in his mansion, underneath it." The man revealed. Everyone was surprised at this, now they had to go and find this secret warehouse.
On the way to the Sato Mansion aboard Air Ship
Thor looked around the air ship, an amazing feat of machinery and human capability. Since he had been pretty much been isolated from the outside world for much of his life, Thor was amazed with all of this technology. The only things he could do in the Odinpalace were train with the Warriors Three, some Valkyries, study with Thialfi literature and mathematics.
Then he saw Korra looking at a window alone, she appeared to be thinking to herself. Thor sighed and went to talk to her.
"What's up?" Thor asked as he placed his arm around her shoulders.
"I'm just thinking…I can't believe that Hiroshi is actually an Equalist." Korra replied.
"Me too…this is going to be tough for Asami." Thor said.
"Yeah." Korra said. "Thanks for believing me." Thor smiled.
"Hey golden boy!" Lin called Thor.
"Yeah?"
"Take this." Lin threw him a Metalbender Cop armor. "You'll need it."
The young prince looked at the metal armor, it was no Asgardian battle armor but it was better than nothing since he had no powers or bending. "Umm…how do I put this on?"
"Let me help you with that." Korra said.
Sato Mansion
The airship hovered above the mansion, its hangar doors opened allowing the Metalbending Cops to exit stealthily being followed by Chief Beifong. Tenzin, Korra and Thor. "Let's do this quick." Lin ordered her officers.
They busted through the main gates, surprising everyone inside. "What the!" Bolin screamed.
"Secure the mansion." Lin ordered.
"What are you doing here!? You got what you wanted!" Asami quickly told Korra and Lin.
"Where's your father? We need to talk to him immediately." Lin asked.
"He's in his workshop; he was already stressed out with you raiding his warehouses." Asami answered.
" Ma'am, we have secured the perimeter, mansion is secured." An officer reported.
"Good, Thor you lead my officers ahead towards the backyard." Lin told the young prince.
"Will do." Thor acknowledged.
He quickly went with the Metalbending Cops towards the back exit of the mansion. Lin, Tenzin, Bolin and Asami went behind them. "I can't believe this, you won't stop will you?" Mako asked Korra.
"I'm sorry but I can't drop this, Mr. Sato is working with the Equalists and you will have to see it yourself." Korra responded walking away leaving Mako alone.
Mako grunted, a bit of the Nova power within him sparkling like it was electricity. "Helmet, tell me if she is lying." Mako asked his hidden helmet.
"Subject: Korra's heart beating and brain patterns are at optimal conditions, she is not lying." The AI responded.
"So she is telling the truth…" Mako said and soon went with the others.
The backyard was empty and dark, with only the light of the stars shining down from the night sky. Lin opened the door to the workshop…there was no one inside.
"This doesn't make sense…Dad!" Asami yelled for her dad.
"Looks empty." Lin said.
"We already checked the grounds, we couldn't have missed him." An officer stated.
"Hmm…" Then Lin used her seismic touch to see if there was anything below the mansion…and sure there was. "A secret entrance."
Then using metal bending, she bended the metallic gate that covered the entrance to the underground complex below the mansion.
"Uh…Asami, does your dad know about the secret tunnel below your house?" Bolin asked.
"No…it can't be." Asami was astounded.
"I'm sorry Asami, I don't think Hiroshi is everything we believed he is." Korra apologized.
"Everyone inside, except for you three. Officer Lanski, make sure they don't get in." Lin ordered.
"Yes ma'am." The officer saluted.
The team of metalbenders and the others descended deeper into the mountainside were the supposed complex was built in.
"Whoa…this sure is deep." Korra said.
"Be prepared for anything." Lin reminded everyone.
They arrived to an immense warehouse; surely enough there was Equalist propaganda everywhere. "Well we can say that I was right." Korra said.
"How did Hiroshi build this without anyone noticing?" Thor asked.
"Look at that." Korra said, she looked at the suits of armor standing by a wall.
"Those must be the new stuff that Hiroshi was talking about." Thor said. Then the floor shook and metal walls ascended from the ground and trapped them all within.
"Yikes!" Thor quickly jumped out of the way of one of the walls. "It's a trap!"
Above, Mako, Bolin and Asami were growing restless for waiting on the others. "I'm not waiting, watch this." Mako said, he flicked his finger and a small blue fire appeared on the officer's foot.
"What the!?" The metalbending officer yelled, he jumped in circles trying to put out the fire.
"I thought that metal didn't catch on fire." Asami said.
"I'm full of tricks, now come on." Mako replied while they quickly ran down leaving the officer still jumping in circles. "Hold on, Asami I think you should stay."
"Why?"
"I want you to be safe, okay?" Asami nodded, Mako and Bolin went down the secret entrance.
Chief Beifong tried to metalbend the metal walls but it didn't work. "I can't bend the walls." Lin said.
"This is not good." Thor said.
"We need to get out of here." Tenzin added. Then the machines on the side started to come alive, they began to move.
"Do not over force yourself Lin; even your great mother could not do it. That pure platinum, a metal so pure that it is unbendable." The voice of Hirsoshi could be heard coming out of one of the mecha tanks.
"Oh crab baskets." Thor said, he was basically unarmed and he was about to battle a bunch of metal behemoths.
"Hiroshi!" Tenzin yelled.
"Yes Tenzin, with this new weapon we are ready to equalize all of you bending scum!" Hiroshi responded.
The mecha tanks moved on the attack, the metal bending cops quickly went on the offensive. Using their metal wires to contain two of the metal machines. Korra bended fire against the Hiroshi's tank while the others rumbled with the remaining tanks.
Thor jumped on the back of one of the tank while it was being distracted by the officers. He saw a metal patch on its back; he ripped it out as it was badly screwed in. Inside there were many cables and tubes, he thought that if he took them out then the tanks would be useless.
He punched through, short-circuiting the metal beast and leaving the driver inside helpless while the officers brought it down. Thor jumped on the aside avoiding getting crushed. "Hit them on the back, it's their sweet spot!" Thor informed the others.
Lin quickly caught that and avoided the attacks of the long arms of the mecha tank; he turned the gauntlets of her armor into spikes and went to town on the driver's cockpit. Then by making the driver get distracted she jumped on the back of it and destroyed the wirings inside.
"Two down…seven to go." Korra said. "I bet that the guy who gave us the tip on this place was into this huh!?"
"Clever deduction Avatar!" Hiroshi responded, attacking Korra with the tank's might. It threw its metal claws to catch Korra but it missed.
"How about you get out and fight like a man!" Korra taunted the mad man.
"I think not, I'm going to stand in here where my chances are more…equal." Hiroshi replied.
Korra blasted more fireballs at Hiroshi's tank but its armor was too strong. The fire didn't do a thing, and it would take too long to actually dent it.
The metalbending officers, Tenzin and Thor ganged up on another tank and brought it down. But they didn't notice that two more ejected their wire claws at the officers and caught them. Electrocuting them in the process.
"Blasts!" Tenzin cursed.
"Whoa Tenzin, watch the language." Thor joked. They were surrounded by more mecha tanks.
"Thor!" Korra yelled once she saw him and Tenzin being surrounded.
"I should not worry for him." Hiroshi said as he struck Korra with the tank's metal arm while she looked at Thor.
"Agh!" Korra yelled in pain as she was knocked out by Hiroshi. Lin took notice; she was already taking out a tank. She went to save Korra but another tank blocked her way and electrocuted her.
"No!" Tenzin yelled.
"If we are going down then we might as well go down fighting!" Thor yelled, running towards the tanks alone. Tenzin blasted air, knocking the tanks off them.
The tanks over powered the young prince, taking him down with rather easily. Tenzin was now alone, he did all he could with airbending but was took overwhelmed.
They were all down, unconscious. Hiroshi hopped off his mecha tank and cleaned his eyeglasses. "I think we could call that a success." Hiroshi stated.
"What do you want us to do with them?" The Lieutenant came out of one of the remaining tanks and pointed at the police officers.
"Bring them to Amon." Hiroshi ordered.
Mako and Bolin entered the warehouse through another entrance, through an emergency tunnel. They peeked to see if the others were okay. They saw Equalists putting several metalbending cops into trucks, closer to them were Korra, Tenzin, Thor and Lin.
"There they are, we have to this quietly." Mako said.
"Mmhm." Bolin agreed. They came out of the tunnel and walked slowly towards their unconscious friends. Mako placed Korra on his back and pulled Thor with his right arm, Bolin did the same for Tenzin and Lin.
"Where are you going boys?" Hiroshi spotted them.
"Oh Mr. Sato…what a big complex you have here it looks really…cool." Bolin responded nervously.
"The sponsoring of our team, you helping the Avatar, it was all a set up!" Mako finally understood Hiroshi's plan.
"Yes it was." Hiroshi replied.
"But what about Asami, you don't care what she thinks?!" Mako responded.
"I do, I just can't stand seeing her going out with a street rat like you who bends the element that took her mother away!" Hiroshi said, now losing his cool. "But it all ends tonight."
The Lieutenant and the other Equalists stood beside Hiroshi; he placed the electric glove in his hand. Mako looked around, nowhere to go and he couldn't just use his powers. Not now.
"Dad?" A voice came behind Hiroshi, in the entrance.
"Asami?" Hiroshi said as he turned around and saw his daughter looking at him with disbelief.
"Dad…how could you?" Asami said, with a sad tone in her voice.
" Asami, listen I only did this for you. These benders took your mother away from us, please do it…for her." Hiroshi said as he held the glove for Asami to grab.
Asami looked at the glove, thinking on what she should do. She took the glove, her father was smiling.
"No…" Mako murmured sadly, Korra had regained consciousness and was also seeing with disbelief what was happening.
"I love you, daddy." Asami said before she electrocuted her father and the Lieutenant at the same time. Asami quickly went to Mako, Korra was able to walk on her own.
"Take Thor to safety, I'll make a distraction so they don't follow you out." Mako said.
"But…!" Korra tried to say no.
"Now!" Mako ordered, Asami and Korra carried an unconscious Thor away following Bolin out. The remaining Equalists surrounded Mako who stood smirking. "Time for a test run."
His attired the changed into the Nova Centurion armor in an instant flash of light. The Equalists were surprised by this. He raised his arms and shot bolts of energy through the room, taking down several Equalists and destroying their mecha tanks as well. "This is awesome!" Mako said.
Mako then exited through the emergency tunnel, blasting the entrance so the Equalists wouldn't follow him and the others.
Air ship
They had made it back into the police air ship, the rest regained consciousness in the ship.
"Okay…that hurt. What happened?" Thor scratched his head.
"We were knocked out, are you okay?" Korra worryingly asked Thor.
"I'm okay…just a little roughen up." Thor replied, Korra hugged the young prince while he giggled.
Mako walked next to Asami, who was still looking at her home knowing what her dad had turned to. She embraced him, crying in his arms. Mako was now pissed, the Nova Force in him boiling…
"My officers…" Lin said she was on a metal bench; she was wounded from the attack.
"They were…they were taken." Tenzin said, he couldn't lie to her. "We will get them back."
"No… you can't. The law wouldn't let you." Lin said.
"It wouldn't let you too." Tenzin said.
"I know, that's…that's why from now on…I will act outside the law." Lin said. The airship flew into the city; this had been an exhausting day for all of them. But unknowingly for them…something worse was coming their way.
Someplace Else…
Amon stood inside what seemed to be a secret lair, he wasn't too fond of secret meetings but the god that chose him had ordered the Equalist leader to go.
Then the Master of Magnetism entered the room, surprising Amon. "What are you doing here?" Amon asked.
"I could ask the same thing to you, pest." Magneto replied. Joining them was also the mercenary known as Deadpool.
"Oh oh, Bucket Head and Mask Man are here too? Awesome." Deadpool said.
"This lunatic is here too?" Magneto couldn't believe what he was in for. In the shadows stood someone who two of the villains in her thought was a myth and the other knew was evil incarnate.
"Gentlemen."
"Red Skull!" Deadpool and Amon were baffled by his appearance.
"What is this scum doing here!?" Magneto went on the defensive, only pure hatred could be seen on his face.
"Calm down." Loki appeared. "No need to fight."
"God of Chaos." Amon said. "You have assembled us, for what?"
"Yeah!" Deadpool added.
"It has come to my attention that each of you has a goal to accomplish, and what better way to accomplish them by doing it together?" Loki replied, the Enchantress appeared behind him. "While the supposed heroes of this realm are alone and separated, we are together and united!"
"A team?" Red Skull asked.
"Aye! A team that no realm has ever seen, we are something beyond the petty forces of Midgard and Asgard could ever handle! We are…the Masters of Evil! Hahhaha!" Loki laughed, joined by Deadpool.
Amon and Magneto looked at each other, they were in the same boat but they agreed with Loki. For now…