The panic room in the Sato estate hadn't always been there. If Hiroshi had possessed the foresight to include it then the event that led to its creation might never have occurred. But the Triad's invasion of his home had taken place and Hiroshi's grief over his wife led him to have the room specially constructed to repel every form of bending. Multiple layers of platinum, water repellent materials and insulation were all sandwiched together to form the walls of the room. Plus it was fully prepped for the possibility that a stay in the room lasting days with things like emergency food rations, water sealed in plastic barrels, bed cots and even a portable toilet all ready and waiting. The last thing of note were hand held radios allowing them to contact members of the staff from inside the panic room if necessary. It was all excessive and over the top but still didn't come close to the extremes the murder of his wife had driven him to in his last years of life.

His paranoia had been unwarranted in the years to come as there had never been a need for this room, at least not until now. Prince Wu would have been safer in the panic room during his time hiding on the estate and if it had been up to Asami then she would have shoved Wu in there just to get him out of the way. Unfortunately for her Mako's grandmother had made that impossible and had insisted her family would protect him while he stayed there. Chou, on the other hand, had no one around to guard him in a similar manner and he had actually demanded to stay in the panic room upon seeing it. If it had been up to Asami then that would have been enough of a precaution but General Iroh had insisted that one of them be in there with him at all times until the Spirit Energy convention that was to take place. Asami had been reluctant due to the complications it would put on the work she was doing at Future Industries but she had eventually conceded the matter. The three of them would have to deal with the change to their sleep schedules but they had all been through worse ordeals and this was only a temporary measure.

The biggest question Korra had on the matter was what she could do to pass the time until Chou's moment in the spotlight. Taking Naga out for some runs would have been ideal but leaving the mansion was out of the question. If something happened then she needed to be close by to help out which meant she was stuck here in the mansion. Asami had already provided her part of a possible solution in the book that Katara had written but it wasn't until past the halfway point of Iroh's first shift that she had the rest.

"What is this?" asked Korra. She had been dragged out to the garage to find a large wooden shipping crate waiting for her. Asami wedged the narrow end of a crowbar into the box as she levered the top open. Inside was a life sized mannequin covered all over with narrow grooves running from head to toe. Korra's eyes widened and she turned to wrap her arms around Asami in a bear hug. "First Katara's book and now a healing dummy. You're starting to spoil me Asami."

"Well if you're going to start practice healing again then I'm not going to sit by and let you use second rate materials." She lightly kissed Korra on the lips while squeezing the Avatar's shapely bottom with one hand. "Only the best for you from now on."

Korra kissed Asami back for a moment, a broad smile on her face. "Thank you, really." She turned her head to look at the mannequin again. "Where am I going to put this though? It needs to be somewhere where there's clean water that I can use."

"You could take it down to the pool for now Korra. It's chlorinated though, is that an issue for you?"

She frowned and wrinkled her nose at the word Asami had just used. "Chlor-what? Does that mean the water has chlorine in it? Healing doesn't work as well if there's stuff in the water."

Asami brushed a stray piece of hair behind her ear as she considered the problem. "If the pool doesn't work then you could always get water from the women's shower. I'll ask one of the staff to bring you a bucket or two until I figure out a better solution okay?"

It wasn't the ideal setup for learning to heal but Korra wasn't going to complain. She may have been born and raised in the South Pole but that hadn't made her immune to the bitter cold and fierce storms common to the region. Instead she was lying on a cushy chair next to the pool in Asami's air conditioned mansion with Katara's healing manual in hand. The thing that wasn't ideal however was this book. Korra had been excited to see what kind of techniques Katara was passing on but her initial skim through hadn't turned up any sort of images depicting how a move was performed. She frowned to herself as she flipped back to the beginning, what kind of book was this exactly? What sort of instructional manual didn't include any techniques for people to learn? But this was written by Katara, the best healer in the world, and she had specifically sent this for Korra to read after Asami had spoken to her so there must be something here even if she didn't see it yet. Once she reached the first page a small piece of paper fell out from between the pages into her lap. Korra picked it up and unfolded the note to see a message written on it.

'Dear Korra, it's exciting to hear that you're taking an interest in learning healing. I remember how frustrating the subject was for you when you were younger and how eager you were to get through it and move onto the next element. I'm afraid that I can't teach you as much as you think I can however. You might not have realized it but I taught you as much as I was able and that your education was as thorough as that of my other students or any of the healers in Republic City. That's not to say you can't grow but the best healers are born, not taught. I hope my manual helps you in some fashion though and I wish you the best.

-Katara.'

There may not have been any techniques in the novel but it wasn't entirely uninformative. The opening pages focused heavily on the importance of chi as it applied to healing. The human body and it's chi were interconnected and what affected one affected the other. Physical injuries served to hinder the flow of chi within a person and could cause different ailments depending on the location and severity of said injury. Ultimately healing was the act of using waterbending to restore the flow of chi within a person and accelerate the body's returning to its natural state. The mark of a skilled healer was being able to determine how a person's chi was disrupted and their ability to manipulate what they saw happening. It was the first lesson Korra had learned from Katara as a child but now that she was reading it as an adult it made sense in a way that it never had before. There was no secret to healing or some trick that made Katara the world's best healer. She wasn't the best because of some arcane knowledge, she was the best because she could see what others didn't. After the beginning Katara's writing transitioned into talking about her history as a healer, the injuries she encountered and how she had figured out what was wrong and how best to heal them.

"There's nothing wrong with reading but I have to admit that I never pictured you as someone who would spend their spare time getting sucked into a book."

The Avatar almost jumped out of her skin as Iroh's comment snapped her out of her reverie. She glanced at him before looking at the clock on the wall. Two hours had passed since she had started reading and Korra hadn't noticed because the book was too engrossing. "What? You think I don't read books? I read books all the time!"

That actually wasn't true. Korra really didn't spend much time reading, the real world was more interesting than words on paper but Iroh's comment had put her on the defensive. If Iroh had detected her lie he gave no indication of it. "I was actually wondering if you'd care to work out with me. Usually I train with some of the other officers on base but that isn't possible with this Chou business. Plus I've always been curious to see how good of a martial artist you are."

Korra glanced down at her book to see what page number she was on before setting it down. "Why not, one of the gyms is through that door there. You mind holding a pad for me while I warm up?"

The pad in question were fairly simple, a chest sized block of foam with straps on the back for holding. Korra exhaled before she started repeating a quick combo without any power behind it. Jab, cross, hook then the same combo again but starting with the other hand. The next hit came from below as Korra slammed her shin against the pad driving Iroh back a step. "So I had an interesting conversation with Asami today." Iroh stood his ground this time but the sound of Korra's kick blasted through the room. "She told me that you were planning to 'secure an alliance' in your words after you retired but what that really means is that you're looking for a political marriage. And now I just can't help but remember that you were hitting on me at that restaurant. Anything you feel like telling me!?" She kicked the pad again and Iroh winced at the force behind this latest strike.

Iroh lowered the pad as he took a few steps back to make sure she couldn't reach him with her kicks anymore."I know what it looks like but that was the whole point."

The Avatar frowned and she scratched at her head for a second, confused at what he meant by that. "What?"

"Appearance is everything to my people. It's hard to explain so you'll have to trust me on that." Iroh turned a bit to look out the westward facing window. "I've been a member of the United Forces for a long time and my trips back home have been few and far in-between. I'm still the Crown Prince but my people don't know the person I've become. What they remember is a haughty prince who liked to party far too much and frequently got into trouble. If I'm going to convince them that I'm not that person anymore then I have to show them that I'm willing to do what it takes to be a good ruler. Part of that is finding someone worthy of sitting beside me on the throne. I knew you wouldn't be interested in me but I had to be seen making the attempt anyways."

"So you're saying we only had dinner to make people think you were courting me? You're not actually interested in me?" asked Korra.

"That's the gist of it yes. I know the age gap between us is... significant but the political advantages of a hypothetical marriage to you outweigh that. You're the Avatar, your father is the leader of the Southern Water Tribe, your cousins rule the Northern Tribe and you have the likes of Master Tenzin and the Beifong family among your allies. I'll say it again, I know nothing will ever happen between us and we both know it but I had to be seen making the attempt."

Holding onto her anger and continuing to pummel that pad and indirectly Iroh would be so much more satisfying but she had to, albeit reluctantly, admit that his reasoning made sense in a way. "I suppose I can understand that you were just trying to do your duty but don't drag me into your whole marriage alliance stuff again got it?"

Iroh dropped the pad and bowed at the waist towards her. "As you command Avatar Korra."

Korra glanced at the pad that Iroh had dropped. "I guess that means we're done warming up. Feel like sparring?"

The man looked down at the pad, at his hand then back at her. "Uhhh, if that's how hard you kick during a warm up then I think I'll pass on unarmed combat. Though if you're interested we could try something you aren't as familiar with."

"Such as?" asked Korra.

Iroh headed for the side of the room and picked up a long and slender bundle of leather from the floor. "I never had any part in deciding what combat arts you be taught but my grandfather did. We've talked about it from time to time and one of his grievances is that you never had any sorts of weapons training. The timing isn't the best but I thought I'd see if you might be interested in a few lessons with these." He undid the loose knot on the outside and opened it up to reveal two pairs of swords in it. "Zuko was well known for his skill with the broadsword and he passed some of it onto me before I joined the United Forces." He turned the bundle in his hands to hold the hilts out towards Korra. "What do you say?"

Korra tentatively picked up one of the swords then another as she held the first one straight up in the air in front of her face. They were made out of wood but it was heavier than she would have expected. "So Zuko wanted to teach me how to use these? Why? I mean I get that he would want me to know something other than bending but I had plenty of hand to hand training. Why would he be annoyed that I never learned how to use a broadsword?"

"Oh it wasn't about the broadsword, it was that you had some kind, any kind of weapons training. Sword, staff, batons, knives, just something for the sake of being well rounded. Your bending is powerful and you certainly kick hard enough but sometimes you need to be able to rely on something else."

She lowered the blade to point at the ground while returning her gaze to Iroh. "I'll play along with this while you're here since it's something to do but I can't say I'm all that interested in swordsmanship. Question before we get started though, what's in these? They feel heavier than they should for some reason."

Iroh set the leather blanket down before answering. "These are practice swords. The outside is made of wood for safety but the inner core is metal so they weigh the same as a real sword. We still need to wear some protective gear however but there seems to be a fair amount of that in here." Most of the gear that Asami had been manufactured with pro-bending in mind but a padded jacket or helmet was pretty universal when it came to softening blows. Once they were both suited up Iroh grabbed his pair of swords and moved to the center of the room. He bent his knees and held the broadswords up in front of him. "This is the most basic stance used for this style, all of the forms can be traced back to this position." Iroh waited until she imitated his stance before continuing with his monologue. "The hardest thing a beginner encounters is the fact that's there's two swords. If you only have one sword then you can just use your stronger hand but since there's two you have to train your off-hand or it'll hold you back. As for this lesson I want you to get used to swinging these around so just try to hit me for now. If you can." Korra scowled at the jab tossed in at the end there and she moved forward as her swords began swinging through the air.

At the end of it sweat was dripping into her eyes and Korra's hands were resting on her hips as her chest heaved up and down. Iroh's confidence in his swordsmanship was justified as far as she could tell anyways. She hadn't come close to hitting him a single time and Korra would have been killed multiple times if the weapons hadn't been made out of wood. It was something of a sobering realization for the Avatar. She might have mastered the four elements and was skilled at hand to hand but there were still areas of combat that she was a novice at. Iroh collected the swords from the floor and was putting them away as he spoke. "That was a good first session. I do have some tips for you though."

Before he could start elaborating on them Asami's butler burst into the room, a look of utter panic on his face. "Avatar Korra! Something's wrong. I was just on my way to the kitchen when I found one of the maids lying on the floor. She was awake but couldn't move or talk and this was sticking out of her back." He held up a feathered dart for the two of them to look at.

Iroh grabbed it away and sniffed at it tentatively. "Shirshu toxin... Chou."

Korra's fatigue vanished in an instant as she realized what was going on. "Let's go!"

Normally the staff could be seen throughout the mansion as they performed their daily tasks but not this time. The halls were empty and the air felt unusually still as if the building itself was holding its breath. Korra saw a nearby door was just barely ajar and she stopped to open it. Inside was a woman lying on the ground, the sheets from Asami's bed next to her. In addition there was another dart identical to the one that the butler had shown them in her arm. Iroh pulled on her shoulder and pointed towards the safe room. "You can deal with the servants later. Chou is in danger right now."

The two of them started sprinting down the hallway again and they skidded around the corner to where Chou was hidden away. A small group dressed in black clothing and masks was standing outside the door while one of them was cutting away at the metal door with a plasma cutting torch. There was a brief moment of them staring at each other and then bursts of flames were flying from both sides as the fight began. Korra and Iroh stood their ground at first but the barrage of fire was non stop and soon the two of them were forced on the defensive and they were beginning to lose ground. And while they were fighting the man with the torch kept cutting away as he sought to gain entry to murder the man hiding within. Korra growled under her breath and her eyes turned white before fading and the fight turned as she unleashed a gale of wind at the firebenders invading Asami's home.

One of the intruders made a fist with his hand and the entire group began backing up and fled down the hall, splitting up as they did so. Korra started to pursue them but Iroh grabbed her shoulder again holding her back as he pointed at the wall. Several small gray oblongs decorated the walls and door to the panic room itself. Korra yanked them free with her airbending and hurled them down the hall as red lights began to appear. Iroh dropped to the ground, hands on his head, behind her while Korra formed a wall of air separating them from the presents they had been left. There was no ball of fire like the last time firebenders had tried to kill her with explosives. Just a blinding burst of light midst a shower of flying shrapnel and then there was a very large hole where the walls and ceiling had been.

Iroh was quick to get to his feet and he was inspecting the damage that had been done to the door. "I think we were lucky. They must not have been here for very long before we showed up, they only got partway through the first hinge."

"Tell that to the staff who got in their way. Do you have your radio on you?" asked Korra.

"Yeah, I picked it up as were leaving the gym." Iroh flicked it on and Asami's voice came through instantly.

"What was that!?"

"Some firebenders tried breaking in to get Chou but we drove them off." Korra cringed at the next bit she had to relay to Asami. "They had some bombs with them so now there's kinda some walls missing down the hall... and it looks like they paralyzed a bunch of the staff with shirshu toxin."

Nothing but silence came through at first as Asami was no doubt processing what had just happened in her home. "Great... I'll stay in here with Chou. I know you need to get some sleep but do you mind watching the door until we're sure they're gone Iroh? And can you take care of my staff for me Korra? I don't know if you can heal them or not but there'll be antidotes for that toxin in the city. If any of the staff weren't effected then you can send them to get it while you search the mansion."

Checking the entirety of the mansion for any firebenders who might still be lurking about was tedious but necessary. Searching this mansion felt like it took hours as she scoured the place room by room and floor by floor. Eventually she came to the last place that needed to be checked before she was confident that the estate was clear, Asami's bedroom.

She pushed the door open and slowly stepped inside, her head swiveling from one direction to another as she looked about for anyone that shouldn't be there. The bedroom was empty as was the bathroom attached to it. It wasn't until she exited the bathroom when she realized something. There wasn't anyone here who shouldn't have been but something that should have been there was missing.

The camera that Asami had taped to the ceiling of her bed frame was gone. The tape holding it in place had been cut, by a sharp knife by the looks of it. Everything Asami had recorded herself doing to Korra was gone, stolen. But something had been left behind in return for the camera, a mask lying face down in the middle of the bed itself. Korra reached out to turn it over with trembling fingers and once again she found herself staring at the unchanging visage of Amon.

"Crap."