Rules

"No iron in your veins to give you any sense of pain or fear..."

Part Five

Everything seemed to move in slow motion as Mako dodged and ducked the Avatar's flame-laden punches. With quick eyes and quicker reflexes, Mako was often able to discern movements in a fight and retaliate in a way that few other fighters ever could.

He had been in a street fight when he was nine, fending off other urchins who had wanted to take the loaf of bread that he and Bolin had managed to steal, when a trainer passing by had pulled him aside and taken him in to give him real sparring lessons. When the trainer was finally able to understand just how swift Mako's eyes were, he told Mako that his speed was a rare gift and honed it to its highest potential.

But the Avatar was swifter than anyone Mako had ever faced, and it was proving to be a challenge for him to keep up. He bent backward as she lunged forward at him with her fist and took advantage of the split-second opening she'd left, pushing his feet out to kick her squarely in the chin as he flipped back onto his hands and again onto his feet.

But she was up just as quickly as she'd fallen, and with a roar of fury, she raised the earth beneath him and sent him flying.

Mako somersaulted through the air and landed on the balls of his feet and one hand, and he sprung up immediately to charge at her once more. She ran towards him fearlessly as well, blasting fire at him that he dodged with ease. It took mere seconds, but it felt like a lifetime—they were playing chicken with each other, and neither was backing down.

Just as they were about to clash, Mako slid and went for her ankles—a move so sudden that the Avatar did not see it coming—and swept her off of her feet. As she hit the ground, he moved to incapacitate her completely and chi-block her, but she rolled out of the way just in time.

Damn it! Mako propelled himself into a handspring as the Avatar pounded the ground, sending a quake that rippled out so far that several other Equalists around them fell. In the immediate aftermath, the Avatar shot a well-aimed flame straight at his chest, and he felt the breath knocked out of him as he landed on the ground with a thud and skidded several feet backwards. He took a heaving breath and forced himself to move before the Avatar saw another opening.

As he sprang back up on to his feet, Mako took a split second to look around for Bolin, and he let himself feel a moment's relief to see that his brother was holding up quite well against Sato's daughter and the former pro-bender they'd rescued the previous evening.

The fight continued like this, hit-chase-evade-miss, from one side to the other, for many more minutes, until the facility and the equipment were no longer the issue—all of the fighting had destroyed a great deal of it, anyway. Everyone was exhausted, running themselves ragged, and both teams were far more concerned now about their lives than their respective missions.

Mako glanced around again as he dodged another kick from the Avatar and saw that several of his men had fallen, and many had seemed to retreat. While Bolin appeared to be doing fine, Mako could tell that he was beginning to get tired. Still, it also appeared that the Avatar's team was now attempting to incapacitate only as many as it took to retreat safely.

"Korra! We've done what we came to do! Give it up, we've gotta get out of here!" Sato's daughter called out in the midst of the struggle, and she and the former pro-bender were making their way towards the side of a building, where a large whole had been blown into the wall. The airbender fought from another corner, taking on three of Mako's men at once.

The Avatar appeared to ignore her teammate and moved even more aggressively at Mako, who had been reduced to defending himself as he struggled to catch his breath. He had to hand it to her—the Avatar not only had the speed and the skill to match him, but her stamina was also absurdly high.

Mako saw that Bolin was in a similar position; he was now fighting defensively against Lin Beifong with a look of terror on his face that would have been hysterical were the situation not so grave. Mako briefly went on the offensive, jumping down onto his hands and spinning his feet into a kick that sent the Avatar flying back. Before she could recover, Mako jumped in front of Bolin and began sparring with the metalbender.

"Bo, get out of here!" he shouted as he blocked kicks and punches.

"No, I can't leave you!" Bolin shouted back, and he moved to Mako's side to assist him.

"I swear, Bo, if you ever"—Mako paused as he ducked a flying cable that narrowly missed his neck—"chose a worse time to not listen to me"—he drew his leg up and pushed it into a side kick towards Lin Beifong somewhat blindly, exhausted and distracted, and was thus surprised to hear it connect with her chest and send her sprawling to the ground—"I mean it! Get out of here! I'll come home soon, I promise!" Mako pushed Bolin back, raising an arm out in front of his brother's chest and ready to defend him from any more blows.

"But—"

"BO, NOW!" Mako roared, turning towards the Avatar, who was now running towards him, fury in her eyes as she saw that he had knocked down one of her teammates.

Mako saw it register on his brother's face that there was no room for arguing. "Be careful, bro!"

"I will," Mako said, putting up his fists as he prepared for the Avatar's attack. "Now, go!"

With a few quick maneuvers, Bolin made it out of the building safely. At the same time, Mako saw that one of his men had managed to electrocute the airbender, successfully distracting Lin Beifong into running over to his rescue.

Mako turned his eyes back on the Avatar and tried to ignore his rapidly growing fatigue. He was exhausted, and if he was not careful, he'd be captured. With no one to interrupt them now, he decided it was time to put an end to this. Mako charged at her once more, more determined than ever, and he felt a last adrenaline rush flood his veins. He dodged the familiar array of elemental moves that she blasted at him before he lunged into the air and dove into a roll behind her. Before she could react, he rolled onto his feet placed a well-aimed roundhouse kick right into her side, stunning her just long enough so he could pull her in by the waist and knock her out.

"KORRA!" Mako heard the airbender shout from behind him, and Mako grabbed the now-unconscious Avatar and moved just in time to dodge a powerful wave of air. Drawing all his remaining energy, Mako ran for the exit, carrying the Avatar on his back, and before the injured airbender and metalbender could catch up to him, he disappeared into the familiar darkness of the city to head for Amon's headquarters.

Mako sat with his legs drawn up to his chest, ankles crossed and arms locked around his knees as he watched the light of the fire dance on the face of the unconscious Avatar. Four hours had passed since their battle in the facility, and he had yet to report back to Amon.

This had not been a part of his plan.

Mako hurried through the shadows, making his way towards Amon's headquarters with the Avatar on his back. He was so tired that even in the darkness, he could feel his vision blurring and occasionally going black. He needed to get back immediately or risk passing out in the street; in full Equalist gear and with the Avatar as his captive, that was not an ideal situation.

She was surprisingly light for someone so strong and built, but then again, she was several inches shorter than him and had been incredibly quick on her feet. Mako glanced to the side to see her head lolling on his shoulder, and he frowned as he saw Bolin's face pop into his mind. It had been gnawing at him since the fight had ended, but he'd been trying to ignore it. It was no use, however. For the first time in his life, he was truly uncertain of whether he should finish the mission, for too much was left unexplained.

Once Amon had removed the Avatar's bending, what would come after that? Would he and Bolin get the peaceful, stress-free life that they so longed for, or would Amon have plans for further domination? If that was the case, would Bolin be put at further risk? Mako shuddered to remember Amon's words earlier that evening—that with enough battle experience, Bolin would become "more like him."

He didn't want that. As much as it got Bolin into trouble, Mako liked his brother the way he was—kind and quite carefree compared to the battle-hardened fellow Equalists.

He knew what his brother would do in this situation. It was far less clear-cut than the Agni Kais or the Triple Threat Triads, gang members who had used their bending for clearly corrupt purposes. And if Bolin could feel merciful enough towards men like that to drop his weapon, he would most likely let the Avatar go, even at the expense of the mission.

And as for the Avatar herself... Mako sighed as he stopped in an alley to sort out his thoughts. Well, she certainly didn't appear to be the terrible person, the bane of all non-benders' existence that Amon's campaign so strongly made her out to be. She had seemed rather brash and impulsive, sure, and possibly lacking in certain manners, but if anything, she had seemed extremely concerned for the state of the city, benders and non-benders alike. Even more shocking was that this concern extended to Mako as well; the care she had expressed for Mako's well-being and for his brother's, even when he had attempted to provoke her into attacking, had jarred him. And although she was fierce in battle, much of that fury appeared to come from a protectiveness over her comrades—something with which Mako was quite familiar himself.

He saw Amon's mask looming in his mind, his voice echoing as he spoke of loss and sacrifice and gains in the movement.

What about the Avatar? Was she so willing to sacrifice anything—anyone—for her movement? And what was her movement, anyway? What was she aiming for?

Out of nowhere, a steady rain began to fall, drenching him and adding further weight for him to carry. He sighed. It appeared that, as much as he was at a loss for what to do, nature was going to decide for him.

Mako glanced around to figure out where exactly he was, and as soon as he could deduce the nearest safe place, he moved quickly, knowing that he would fade soon if he didn't.

And now that he was here, with an unconscious Avatar and a mission to complete and so many unanswered questions and a suddenly very uncertain conscience, he had no idea what would come next.

It appeared that he did not have much time to decide when the Avatar's eyelids suddenly fluttered open. He watched as she registered the situation, her eyes looking up above her, and he could practically see her recall what had happened before she'd been knocked out. With a sudden, startled intake of breath, she looked over at him and sat up simultaneously, and instantly, she sprang to her feet and jumped a few steps back, fists raised defensively.

"You," she snarled. "Where am I?"

Mako stood as well, hands raised with his palms facing outward to show that he was not going to fight. He realized he must have looked much more menacing with the mask on, but he supposed that if he took it off, her reaction would not be much better. "Calm down," he said exasperatedly. "You're safe."

"Don't tell me what to do! Where am I?" she roared, and she blasted the flames of the fire he'd started earlier at him.

Anticipating this, Mako dodged to the side and was in front of her in a flash, closing the gap between them quickly and chi-blocking her before she even realized what was happening. He was thankful that her fatigue and grogginess had worked significantly to his advantage, and she stumbled backward, palm-blasting nothing at him. Just as she began to fall back, he reached out and grabbed her by the waist, and she squirmed in his arms, pushing him away to little avail.

"Get off of me! Who the hell are you? What have you done with everyone else?"

Agitated, Mako grabbed both of her wrists in one hand and pinned her against the stone wall beside them. His face was inches from hers. He wondered if she could see his eyes through the goggles, if she could see who he really was. "Careful, Avatar," he said, his voice low. "You're not in a position to be so demanding right now."

She glared at him with eyes so cold and yet so fiery that, were it possible, could have turned him to stone, and her lip curled in a growl.

"If you'll let me, I'll explain where you are and why you're here," Mako continued. "But if you try anything, I could easily knock you out and take you to Amon. I know you don't want that."

"Try me," the Avatar spat.

"Try you?" Mako laughed mirthlessly. "You're tired and weak, and you're probably still disoriented. You don't have your bending and you won't get it back for hours. What are you going to do?"

Of course, he was bluffing—he was exhausted beyond words—but she didn't need to know that.

Warily, the Avatar's face softened, although her eyes did not, and Mako felt her hands relax in his grip. He let go and moved back a few steps, and when he saw that she was not going to make an attempt to attack him, he sat on the opposite side of the fire and gestured that she do the same.

The Avatar's movements were so unlike her, he thought, as she carefully made her way to sit down across from him. She usually reminded him of a tiger—lithe and sure and ferocious—but now, she looked much more like a startled deer. He wondered if she had looked at Amon with those same angry, fearful eyes in her past encounters with the Equalist leader; for some reason, the thought bothered him.

"You're in a cove off the outskirts of the city by Yue Bay," he began. "Your teammates, as far as I'm concerned, are safe. I left with only you, and everyone else was alive and in one piece, for the most part, when I left. My men were gone by that point."

He saw her shoulders relax somewhat, and he could practically feel the relief that showed in her face. Still, an angry frown marred her features as she pounded the ground with a fist. "Well, what about me? Why the hell am I here?"

Mako hesitated. "I'm supposed to take you to Amon."

The Avatar raised her eyebrows. She had to have known that that was his mission, but she was clearly confused as to why he hadn't followed through with it yet. "So why are we here instead? Is Amon coming here?"

Mako had to laugh at that. "No. Amon doesn't come to those captured. They're brought to him." He paused. "Although, I'm sure he'd be willing to make an exception for you, Avatar."

The Avatar scowled. "How flattering."

"You're here because..." Mako paused. What else could he say? The truth was the least intimidating thing he could give her, but what was the point in trying to intimidate her now, when he'd made it quite clear that he couldn't even take her to his leader? "You're here because I don't know what to do," he said softly.

"What?" The Avatar stared at him for a moment, and then it was her turn to laugh. "You don't know what to do? Am I supposed to feel bad for you?"

"What? No," Mako said, irritated. "You're lucky I was nice enough not to bring you to him—you should be thanking me!"

"Thanking you?" she scoffed. "You've got me held hostage in some cave by the ocean, and I have no idea what you're going to do with me. The day I thank you is the day I die."

"You're good at putting on a front, Avatar."

"Yeah, well, I don't need a mask to do it," she spat.

Mako smirked. "Well-played."

"So, you don't know what to do? It'll be awfully interesting for you to go back without me if you decide to leave me here. I bet your all-powerful leader doesn't want a weak link on his side," the Avatar said, her voice cold and taunting.

Mako bristled at that. A weak link. That's what Amon considered Bolin. Although he knew she was only speaking out of anger, the Avatar was completely right about that. "Don't be so sure I won't take you to him, Avatar. I'm not a weak link."

"Really? Because bringing me here instead, letting all of my teammates go—that seems like a very un-Equalist thing to do," the Avatar retorted. "Wouldn't Amon call that weak?"

"I'm not a weak link!" Mako shouted.

"Then what are you, if you can't even finish your mission? What are you fighting for if you don't believe in Amon enough to take me to him?" Korra shouted back.

"I DON'T KNOW!" Mako roared, and the fire seemed to blow around violently just at the sound of his voice, although he was sure it was the wind from the bay.

Even the Avatar seemed startled by the sudden outburst, as she leaned back a little and her eyes widened, the hard glare in them momentarily gone.

"I don't know," Mako said more quietly. He stood and paced, suddenly completely unnerved. "I joined the Equalists because Amon had a plan. Firebenders killed my parents when I was a kid, and I've been on my own ever since. I've never had a plan."

The Avatar watched in silence now, clearly stunned at the sudden change in tone. He saw pity on her face and he couldn't tell if it offended him or soothed him.

"But this plan, now... I don't know," he said, and he stopped to look at her. "Is it really the answer? To take away everyone's bending?"

The Avatar stared at him, and then she shook her head. When she spoke, her voice was much softer as well. "No. I can tell you right now that it's not the answer at all."

"That's what I'm starting to wonder about myself," Mako said. He sat down again, resting his head in one hand. "My brother..." he trailed off, unsure of how much he should even reveal to this girl.

But she spoke with a gentle voice, and Mako saw with some surprise that she no longer seemed so angry—rather, she seemed genuinely interested in what he had to say. "Is your brother an Equalist, too?"

Mako was quiet for a long time before he finally spoke. "My brother... My brother has always been that 'weak link.' And as a soldier, I've always kind of thought that, too. But now, I wonder if he's stronger than me."

The Avatar looked around the cove, and she leaned back on her hands. "Your brother would have done what you did tonight."

"Yes," Mako whispered. "He would have risked his life to save you, even if it's against orders. And he'd probably nearly have died in the process. He has a knack for getting into trouble. But... If he got hurt," Mako muttered, more to himself than to the Avatar at this point, "I could never forgive myself. He's all I have left." He looked up at her.

He felt his head spinning now, a mixture of the fatigue and the rush of strange, unidentifiable emotion he felt from explaining away his life's dilemma to a stranger—to the enemy. He sighed. "You're free to go, Avatar. Next time, I might not be so unsure, and you won't be so lucky."

He stared into the fire, expecting to see her get up to leave at any moment—or, perhaps she was planning on attacking him now that he'd left himself open. He was too drained to do anything about it now, he thought resignedly.

"Wait," he heard her say, and he looked up, startled. She wore an expression of intense suspicion, brow furrowed and eyes glimmering with curiosity. "Who... Who are you?"

Mako leaned back a bit, although she did not move towards him. "I can't tell you that."

The Avatar crawled toward him then, around the fire, as though in a trance. "It's just... You remind me of this boy..."

He felt her hand reaching up to remove his mask, and he reached up to grab her wrist before she could do it.

The Avatar stared at him unfazed, no trace of anger or hatred left on her face. She looked at him like he was vulnerable—he supposed he was—and like she wanted to help him. "Please," she whispered, and after a moment's pause, she gently pushed her hand forward. Mako's fingers loosened and fell to his lap.

He felt the cool air of the cove hit his face as the Avatar removed his mask completely, and the first thing he saw was the clear blue of her eyes, wide and full of an emotion he could not place.

Hi, guys! As always, thank you for the outpouring of support for this story! You really all have been such a wonderful group of readers, I don't even know how to express my thanks enough. Some of these reviews you've been leaving me and/or messaging me are some of the sweetest reviews I've had, and I've been writing here for ten years.

So, this next chapter is also in Mako's point of view, and some pretty big developments occur. I had a really hard time with the pacing and characterization here, so if Mako or Korra are rather OOC here, please forgive me. If it truly bugs you, please message me with your concerns! They might help. I might come back and edit this later. If I do, I'll let you know! (Also, as a side note, this was my first time writing a real action sequence… it was so hard T_T) Thank you again for reading—and please leave a review! I'll try to get around to responding to the reviews I have in a couple of days!

Love,

boreum dal