A/N: Eek! I'm sorry I didn't get this out sooner- life invaded my writing time and as a result... well, yeah.

But man, that season finale of Korra- gotta admit, that was just freaking epic. SPOILER: Loved the whole Tarrlok and Noatak thing, and it was freaking sad when Tarrlok committed suicide! And also kinda dumb... I mean, SERIOUSLY, Tarrlok? And of course, as a MaKorra fan, loved the kiss at the very end. ;)

Thanks to BELLA X STARFIRE7745231, xanimejunkie, Hedgi, TheMysteriousFanGirl, Jaguar Jenny, chickchick and Argen-Lobo-Rider for reviewing! You guys are the best!

Chapter 3

Korra wasn't scared.

Okay, she was a little scared. After all, it wasn't every night that you were tied up and thrown into the back of a car in the dead of night by one of the world's most famous politicians.

Ha, politician. More like a rising dictator.

Anyways, given the circumstances, she could admit that she was a little frightened.

But her anger overruled her fear by far.

Tarrlok, that little…! Korra proceeded to mentally use a long string of choice words to describe him. That little weasel-snake first had enough nerve to call her a 'half-baked Avatar', then even kidnapped her afterwards? Instead of facing her head on? Coward!

And the bloodbending. Ugh, that stupid bloodbending! Now she really had been scared when she found out that she no longer had control of her body, when her limbs had been bent at awkward angles and thrown like a rag doll. Honestly, she was a little angry at herself for not anticipating this- there was a reason Sifu Katara had told her about bloodbending.

But for the most part, she was really, really, really mad at Tarrlok. She was mad at him for insulting her, using her, bloodbending her, kidnapping her, and for making her truly, truly scared.

Korra let out a yell, spewing an arc of fire from her mouth like a dragon. Tarrlok!

She resorted to panting once the fire dissolved, the ropes around her body suddenly much tighter. She tried shifting her arms or moving them in the slightest- no dice.

She tightened her teeth. She had to get out of this situation before Tarrlok fulfilled his promise and drove her away from Republic City, from Asami and Tenzin and Bolin and Mako…

Her throat tightened at the thought. Mako. What had happened to him and the others? How would they be able to be bailed out? Surely Tenzin or someone would get them out…

But what if, in the end, he didn't? What if no one did?

For that, she had to escape. And she couldn't do that if she just sat there and mentally screamed at Tarrlok.

Korra began racking her brain for a plan, and sure enough, one emerged.

She began yelling a hoard of insults and threats to Tarrlok. She made sure that they were loud, that they could be heard. It was nighttime, sure, but that didn't mean that there wasn't anybody that could hear her yells.

"For the billionth time, let me out!" she included among them. "You can't treat me like this, Tarrlok!"

After many other insults and phrases like that, she found herself out of breath, unable to yell anymore. She breathed in and out deeply, hoping to catch her breath soon.

The silence outside unnerved her. What if no one had heard her? What if they hadn't been enough?

She hadn't been successful, had she?

Korra bit her lip. So it was up to her.

Suddenly she remembered a trick her firebending instructor had taught her- a dangerous one, but it might come in handy given the situation. Usually firebenders did it when they wanted to heat themselves up.

She just needed to focus… if she wasn't careful, she could very well set herself on fire. But if it succeeded…

Korra closed her eyes and concentrated on directing her body heat around her torso. Then bit by bit, that heat got warmer and warmer and warmer until there was a line of fire bordering her body and burning through the ropes.

The bonds eventually crumbled under the sheer heat. She was quick to extract the heat as they fell to the metal floor. She rubbed her arms after she made sure she was okay.

Korra stood up slowly as to not make too much to noise in fear of alerting Tarrlok, then looked down at herself and smirked.

Heh… stupid Tarrlok.

Now, how was she to get out of here…

Her head whirled around, as if expecting some doorway to magically appear on one of the metal walls. But none would come, of course, and the only one that was there was locked. Even if she could get out, at the rate Tarrlok was traveling, she'd probably end up smashing her head on the road… and if she did survive the effect, Tarrlok would notice and she'd simply be recaptured…

She slowly realized that there was only one option. She'd have to wait till he arrived, and when he came to get her she'd flat out attack with every fiber of her being. As for his bloodbending… the only way out of that was for her to attack so much that he wouldn't have time to react.

It was incredibly risky. She had no idea what the outcome could possibly be. But she also knew it was her only chance.

All she could do now was wait.

So wait she did.

Korra had no idea how long she was waiting, but to her, it felt like hours. The monotony of the tires nearly put her to sleep.

But then, finally, her eyes opened.

The car had stopped.

Then a door opened and shut again, followed by footsteps.

Korra stood up and positioned herself into a defensive stance. She attempted to settle her thumping heart as Tarrlok came closer, closer, closer.

This was it. All or nothing.