I don't have much to say tonight. Pretty tired and Legion just dropped for WoW, so I'll be neck deep in that for a while!

After raiding nearly seven slaver hideouts, Rai finally had a lead. She had her goal in mind and didn't waste any time in getting to it. She was quick, efficient and ruthless in each of the hideouts she attacked. She and Hiro did most of the work, taking out the slavers and leaving one alive, whom she'd interrogate while Sati and Takumi freed any slaves that were present. The first few she interrogated had very tight lips; they were stubborn and unwilling to give her any information. One had even spit in her face. Her patience was slowly wearing thin with them and she had Sati and Takumi leave the room before she began a more… questionable approach. But sure enough, every little bird sings and each little bird pointed her closer and closer towards her target. Uncharacteristic of her however, she let them live. Not out of mercy; she would never show a slaver mercy. What she wanted was for the little birds to sing something for her to someone else, a message to let him know that she was coming and no amount of arrows or cave collapses was going to stop her.

Nearly a month of nonstop travel and searching passed and it finally brought them here: the largest city in all the Earth Kingdom. "Ba Sing Se," Rai said aloud. Everything she had heard about the enormous city didn't do it justice now that she was seeing it in person. She was hardly awed by the sheer size and presence the city made, she had just… never seen such a large city before.

"I had always wanted to come see Ba Sing Se," Takumi said, standing next to her, "But we could never save up enough money for the trip."

"I wish we were here under more pleasant circumstances," Rai said, laying a reassuring hand on Takumi's shoulder, "But we have a slaver to smoke out."

Getting into the city had been easier than anticipated. The political reforms set about by Prince Wu years ago and the relative state of peace the world experienced contributed to a much more relaxed atmosphere. Despite lacking any official documents and identification, Rai and Hiro were still allowed in. Having an Air Nomad vouching for them helped as well.

"I guess some things never change," Hiro remarked, noting the distinct walls that not only surrounded the entire city, but also divided the three social rings of the city as well.

"People with the most money are always the ones calling the shots, no matter how much someone wants to think otherwise," Rai added.

"So where do we start?" asked Sati, "This isn't exactly like all the other small towns we've been to. This is the largest city in the world! They could be hiding anywhere!"

"Should we try the Upper Ring? It's not as easy to access so they might be hiding up there," Takumi suggested.

"It's possible. But sometimes the best place to hide is in plain sight, which makes the Lower Ring just as likely of a hiding place," Rai responded.

"Perhaps we should split up. In a city this large, we need to cover as much ground as possible," suggested Hiro.

"Agreed. You two look around the Lower Ring for anyone suspicious or the sword and chain slaver emblem. But do not approach them," she said with emphasis to Takumi and Sati. "Send Kiwi or Daisy to come get one of us. I don't want one of you to end up wandering into a slaver den alone. Follow from a distance and observe, do I make myself clear?"

Both nodded while Sati asked, "What about you and Hiro?"

"We're going to try and find a way to sneak into the Upper Ring. They let us into the city without any ID or passport, but I doubt we'll be as lucky if we want to go further."

Knowing their jobs, the four nodded and split up, each going a different direction. Takumi slowly wandered through the marketplace with Kiwi, carefully eyeing all the people that occupied the wide street. Between the sheer amount of people in the street and the number of people running back and forth across his line of sight, it was hard to keep track and really point out anyone that looked suspicious. As he turned the corner to go down another market street, Takumi gasped and quickly pulled back behind the corner. He carefully poked his head out and spotted a familiar figure: black hair in a short ponytail and a bow and quiver of arrows strapped across his back.

"Ryota!" he whispered in shock. But… out here? In the open? For someone so secretive, why would he be so out in public like this? It couldn't have been that easy, could it? He quickly turned to Kiwi and whispered to her, "Find Rai!" As the ostrich horse galloped off, Takumi quickled returned his focus to Ryota. "Shoot!" he cursed under his breath, seeing that Ryota had moved from his spot and advanced further down the market. Takumi slowly crept after Ryota, making sure to keep himself hidden from sight whether it be hiding behind a market stall or pretending to browse market contents with a group of shoppers. Eventually, Ryota moved down to a small alley. Takumi was hesitant to follow, Rai's words echoing in his mind. He had to keep following Ryota, but what if he wandered right into their hideout? Well, he had already sent Kiwi after Rai and knowing her, she would be here any second now. If it was any other suspicious figure, he might have let him go. But this was Ryota, the one person they had been trying to track down for the month! He couldn't let this opportunity slip up!

Takumi watched as Ryota disappeared down another corner in the alley. Takumi slowly peeked around the corner, but stepped out in confusion. It was a dead end. There was no door or window and he was certain he saw Ryota turn here. So, where did he go? Takumi stepped further into the dead end, looking around for any clues as to where Ryota could have gone. Takumi was so focused on the alley that he didn't notice Ryota standing on the roof right above him.

Ryota smirked as he stealthily jumped off the roof and silently landed on the ground. He advanced slowly, his footsteps barely making a sound as he approached Takumi from behind. Ryota quickly wrapped his arm around Takumi's neck and pulled the boy close to him. Takumi panicked and struggled, but Ryota was stronger and kept Takumi in place. "Ah, ah, ah," Ryota teased, clicking his tongue to create the disappointing tsk sound. "What's a little lamb like you doing so far away from your flock?" Takumi tried shaking Ryota off him, but the slaver's grip was tight. The boy grunted, trying to say something, but Ryota's arm pressing against his throat cut off any words that tried to slip out. "Shhh…" Ryota hushed as he felt Takumi begin to go limp. "That's right, go to sleep." Takumi groaned, still trying to resist, until the lack of oxygen took its toll and he passed out.

Ryota grinned as he dropped the unconscious boy on the ground. With a light kick from his toe, he turned Takumi over onto his back. "Time to have some fun."

Rai walked along the wall separated the Lower and Middle Rings as Haku leisurely followed behind her. The wall was exceptionally thick and no doubt someone would notice her earthbending her way through it. Every entry point was heavily guarded, so sneaking through would be difficult. Rai took a step back as she looked up to the top of the wall. Could she go over? No, someone would spot her climbing the wall and there would surely be guards posted along the top of the wall. If she couldn't go over, then… maybe under? She remembered that Ba Sing Se was originally an underground city before they eventually moved everything to the surface. Those old tunnels and cave must still exist! All she had to do was find an entrance…

"Caaaw!" Rai quickly spun around at the sudden sound and spotted Kiwi galloping towards her.

"Kiwi…" she exhaled as the ostrich horse stopped in front of her. "Takumi…" she realized. He must have found something and sent Kiwi to fetch her, as she had instructed him to do. Before she could tell Kiwi to lead her back to Takumi, an arrow suddenly whizzed right in front of her face and struck the wall to her right. She almost felt the sharp movement of wind actually cut her as the arrow passed right by her. She stared at the arrow in the wall with wide eyes before quickly looking in the direction it had originated from, but there was no one in sight.

She narrowed her eyes in suspicion as she carefully reached for the arrow and pulled it from the wall. Tied firmly to the arrow shaft was a scroll. Wrapped within the scroll was what appeared to be some sort of VIP pass. She moved the pass aside to read the scroll's contents.

'Dearest sister,'

Rai's eyes instantly narrowed as a scowl formed across her face. This was obviously from Ryota; no one else could make that accurate of a shot. But, if he could have hit her, why didn't he? He missed on purpose to deliver this message. And he clearly wrote this opening with as much sarcasm as he could portray in writing.

'It seems dropping a mountain on you isn't even enough to bury you. You've made quite a dent in my business and I just can't have that go on. You see, it's bad enough that people know you're disrupting the trade. But it will be far worse for my reputation if people found out my own sister was the one sabotaging us.

'They might start thinking I'm weak or incapable, or worse, that we're in league. And I just can't have that. So this is what we're going to do. Enclosed is an elite pass you can use to gain access to the Upper Ring. When you get there, come to the Gallery Tower, you know, the one that overlooks the whole city. It's technically closed for the day, but I'm sure you'll find a way inside. You and I will settle this once and for all. Two go in, one comes out.

'And you will come alone. The pass only works for one. Sorry, no plus ones and that includes the eel hound and the rest of your menagerie! And I'm sure you're thinking that this is clearly a trap! Well, it is. And you're still going to come anyway. Why? Because I have something precious to you in my possession. You have one hour. If you don't show - or if you do show and you're not alone - it's simple: I will kill Takumi.

'See you soon, sis!'

Rai's hands shook furiously as she finished reading the letter. He had Takumi and he knew she would come for him, all the while taunting her with his words like "dearest sister" and "see you soon, sis"! He wanted her to play his sick game… and she didn't have a choice. She took the elite pass in one hand while setting the letter aflame with her other, tossing the burning pile to the ground in anger.

An hour. That wasn't a lot of time. She had no idea where this Gallery Tower was and it was all the way in the Upper Ring, the complete opposite end of the city. She didn't have time to find Sati and Hiro and tell them what happened. And Ryota would kill Takumi if she came with anyone. She quickly climbed onto Haku's saddle and rode towards the nearest gate leading into the Middle Ring. However, she stopped when she spotted a market stall to her immediate right selling waterskins.

She was about to walk head first into a trap and even if waterbending wasn't her best, she'd need every advantage she could get and Ryota not knowing she was the Avatar was her only advantage right now. She stepped off Haku's saddle and purchased the largest waterskin they had. She strapped the waterskin securely over her right shoulder before bending water from a nearby well straight into the skin until it was completely full. She pulled her dark green cloak back in place, concealing the waterskin as she made her way to the gate leading to the Middle Ring. She turned to Haku and Kiwi, both awaiting her instructions. Any other day, she would tell them to go find Sati and Hiro, but Ryota's instructions were clear. She had clearly put him on edge, which she had intended to do by raiding all those hideouts. But now, she couldn't afford to push Ryota any further, especially if he had Takumi. Even if he was lying about that, she couldn't risk it.

"Stay here," she simply said before moving towards the gate checkpoint. She handed the officer the elite pass and he simply waved her on through. She took the monorail straight through the Middle Ring to the Upper.

As the Upper Ring gate official waved her on through, he quietly muttered, "Gallery Tower, northeast." Rai quickly turned to look at the official who spoke, but he didn't look at her and instead focused on the next person coming through the gate. He must have been one of Ryota's men, guiding her to the Gallery Tower. That meant one thing: Ryota was eager for her to arrive. She made off towards the northeast, running as quickly as her feet could carry her. Her hour was almost up, which only made her push herself faster and harder. She spotted a sign that read "Gallery Tower" pointing to a tall rectangular tower in the plaza ahead. As Ryota said in his letter, the tower appeared to be closed to the public today. She moved to the front door and placed her hand on the lock.

Metal.

Rai placed her palm over the lock on the door and quickly flicked her wrist, metalbending the lock open. She carefully looked around the plaza, making sure that no one was paying attention before she slipped inside the tower doors. It was completely dark inside, but as she took a step forward, the lights slowly came on. The ground floor of the tower was completely empty, with the exception of the elevator at the far end of the room. The door was already open, as if it was waiting for her to get in.

She knew this entire thing was a huge trap, but she didn't have a choice. Takumi's life was at stake. Once she stepped into the elevator, the doors closed behind her and the elevator rose.

Takumi groaned as he slowly opened his eyes. He tried to move his arms and legs, but as he became more aware of his surroundings, he discovered he was sitting in a chair with his hands tied behind his back and his ankles tied to the chair legs. He struggled against his bonds, but the ropes were tight and dug into his skin painfully.

"Ah, he's awake." Takumi looked up and saw Ryota walk over to him, pulling a second chair behind him. Ryota stopped in front of Takumi, pulled the chair forward and sat in it in reverse, resting his arms on the back of the chair. "So, how're you feeling?" he asked.

"How am I feeling? What the hell is going on here?" Takumi shouted.

"Wow," Ryota said, impressed, though Takumi was certain that wasn't genuine. "You really have some bite to you. I can see why my sister likes you so much."

"What is this?" Takumi asked, narrowing his eyes angrily at Ryota.

"Isn't it obvious? It's a trap of course, and you're the bait!" Ryota exclaimed excitedly.

"Bait? I don't know what you're planning but Rai's going to stop you!"

"Oh, by the time she gets here, she'll be too late to stop me. We're going to play a game, you see, all three of us."

"What kind of game?" Takumi hesitated to even ask.

"It's simple and I'm sure a genius like you will be able to figure out the rules. I like to call this game: Who does Rai love more?"

"What?"

"You see, I'm a proud guy and I don't like the idea of being replaced."

"Replaced? What are you talking about?" Takumi cried desperately.

"Why you, obviously! That was probably the only reason she took you in in the first place, because you just reminded her of me," he said, placing his hand on his chest. "She's come to cherish you as one would a little brother. There's just one problem: the position has already been filled. Rai has only one little brother and it is me," he leaned in close to Takumi as he whispered menacingly into his face.

"Why do you care?" Takumi barked, "You said you hated her!"

"And I do! But there's just this little part of me that can't stand the idea of being replaced. Maybe it's my pride," he mused, tapping his index finger on his chin in thought. "Either way, I don't like being replaced and I'm curious to see just how far Rai is willing to go. When it comes down to it, I want to see which little brother she loves more, which one she'll chose to save."

Takumi grit his teeth, trying not to let the uneasy feeling forming in his stomach show. "You're crazy!" he cried out.

"I prefer the term theatrical!" Ryota exclaimed, thrusting his arms out to the side as he grinned widely.

"Sir," one of Ryota's henchmen spoke up, "She's here."

"Ah, good. Go down and greet my sister, would you?" Ryota asked, waving his henchmen away. "Sit tight, Takumi," Ryota smiled sadistically while patting Takumi on the head. Takumi tried leaning away to avoid contact and shook his head after Ryota pulled his hand away. "Enjoy the ride."

Next chapter: Rai battles her way through Ryota's subordinates to reach Takumi, but must make a difficult decision.