Content Warning: Character Death.


"So you worked for Varrick on spirit energy, what exactly did you do?" asked Asami.

Her first shift guarding Chou had just begun and now he was locked in the panic room with her. Having nowhere to go meant there wasn't any way to get away from her questions and Chou clearly knew that. He shook his head, an alarmed expression on his face. "I know who you are Miss Sato and if you think I'm going to give you information on spirit energy then you're sadly mistaken."

Asami shook her head and moved to sit down on one of the cots so she was looking up at him. "I understand Chou, I honestly do and as a matter of fact I agree with you. I'm not asking for technical details but I need to know what you gave to the Fire Nation. I know they're trying to make weapons and what they'll do once they have them but I have no idea of when they'll figure it out. If you tell me what you did for Varrick then I can guess at how long it'll take before their weapons are working."

Chou raised one of his eyebrows as he looked at her. "So you say but how do I know you aren't trying to trick me? Spirit energy tech would be massively profitable to a company like Republic Industries. And it's just a coincidence that I ended up being locked in a panic room on your estate?"

"If you know who I am then you must be familiar with my father. How could you think I'd possibly be after spirit energy after what happened to him?" she asked incredulously,

Her so-called guest looked at her in confusion. "What do you mean? He was locked up after the Equalist revolt..."

Tears started to well up at the corners of her eyes as she saw that giant metal hand descending in her minds eye once again. "When Kuvira attacked the city Lin Beifong got him out of prison to help us fight her off. I don't want to talk about it but he was killed in the battle. I'm not after spirit energy, but if the Fire Nation gets their hands on it then a lot more people are going to die."

Chou immediately looked away from her when he heard that her father had been killed. "I'm sorry, I didn't know. The people I was working for kept me isolated in the facility. I didn't have any idea what was happening in the outside world. For what it's worth Hiroshi Sato was one of my heroes when I was growing up."

"My father was one of your heroes? Why?"

The witness sat down on the cot facing her and glanced up at the ceiling. "I grew up in a small village. My family were farmers who raised moo-sows and wooly pigs. I hated it and I wanted to get out, make something of myself in the city like your father did. He was born in a poor area but became one of the richest men in the city. I know I'll never succeed like he did now but the things he did drove me to be the first person in my family to graduate from college. And now he's gone, my condolences to you Miss Sato."

His gaze returned to her after a minute however. "I'm not an engineering, I'm just a technician. I don't really understand Varrick's theories but I know enough to build components for him. There was a group of us that worked together to build the equipment that they used. I was the one who manufactured the power cells used to contain the vines. That's all they have, they don't know how to get the energy out of the vines yet. There is one thing you should let the Avatar know however. The vines are extremely volatile and will explode if exposed to too much electrical current."

After that Chou had clammed up about his past work and wouldn't say anything more on the subject no matter how carefully Asami tried to pry information out of him. Her efforts came to an end when Korra told her of the firebenders who had attacked her home. Once her shift was over Asami immediately headed towards where the bombs had gone off. The hallway had been ripped asunder, pieces of the wall and ceiling flying out in all directions including covering the seared carpet in heaps of wooden splinters.

She picked up a piece of debris up off the floor and stared at it. Firebenders had come into her home with ill intent, to do murder. They had been driven off but this wasn't the first time that this had happened. A similar event had taken place years ago resulting in the death of her mother. Asami had never been able to understand what had twisted her father, what had made him do all those terrible things. Until now. No one had died this time but now she had some inkling of the terrible rage and grief he must have felt all those years ago. This was her home, the place she should feel safest and these firebenders had violated it, in more ways than one. Wood and glass could be replaced but now those movers were out there somewhere and and it would only be a matter of time before that would come to haunt her in some form or another.

Her butler approached from behind as she stared at the damage done by the bombs. "Shall I call the construction company Miss Sato? They're likely busy in the city but an offer of some extra yuans would suffice to get them to send a crew here for repairs."

Asami jumped when his voice popped up next to her. "We'll have to eventually but I don't want strangers around while Chou is here. Once he's gone we'll have this fixed. Until then cover this up with tarps and bring some heaters to deal with the cold air coming in at nights. I'll also ask Korra to have Naga stay here to help guard this area."

The days from then passed by slowly as the convention drew closer. Asami had her work to occupy her but this rotating schedule made it difficult to find times to speak with the engineers at Republic Industries. She was able to work in the occasional phone call but most of their communication was through messages couriered back and forth, an inelegant and expensive solution at best. Iroh probably had the easiest time of it as his swordsmanship lessons were an excellent way to relax, at least it was for him. Korra, on the other hand, was usually a sweaty mess as she struggled just to keep herself from 'dying' over and over in their sparring sessions.

The rest of the Avatar's time was spent studying Katara's novel or practicing on the healing mannequin Asami had procured for her. The first half of the book focused on Katara's history as a healer and the things she had dealt with from the first time she ever healed, an incident with Aang when he was learning firebending, to the years Korra was there after what Zaheer had done to her. Katara hadn't mentioned her by name but Korra easily recognized herself in the elderly waterbender's printed account. Once she got to the second half of the book Katara had shifted from recounting the past to recreating them, on a mannequin anyways. The premise was obvious, reproduce a problem and then solve it. Ideally Korra would have had someone else who could set up the problems but she was the only waterbender in the mansion. It wasn't exactly cheating but she still felt a bit guilty at doing it all herself but ultimately the goal was to learn how to fix these problems. Setting them up was still instructive in of itself since it let her see these scenarios from another angle before she set about undoing them.

Eventually though the appointed day arrived and the four of them hopped into one of Asami's vehicles as they got underway. The threat of another attack had been looming over their heads but nothing had happened. If there was going to be another attempt on Chou's life then coming after him while he was in the car was the best and last opportunity before he could testify at the convention. Korra kept her attention fixed on the window as she watched for any signs that another threat was imminent. The only signs she saw however were ones left over by Kuvira's attack on the city. The homeless. Everywhere she looked there were people who had been displaced by the fighting. Down alleyways, under bridges, hiding beneath bushes in the parks. And these were just the ones she could see, there had to be even more hiding inside of buildings or down in the tunnels beneath Republic City itself. Anywhere they could find food or a place to hide from the rain pouring down today. Raiko had construction crews working day and night but it would be months at the least and likely years before they could replace everything that had been lost.

Their destination, on the other hand, bore no scars of what had happened. Asami had turned around a corner and suddenly everything had changed. There were no refugees here, no ruined structures that could be seen, the streets were clean and all the buildings looked as if they had risen with the sun that very morning. Police vehicles and what could only be private security forces were nearly standing on every corner and even a few rooftops in the area.

The whole purpose of this meeting was to negotiate and sign an international treaty formally banning all development and use of Spirit Energy. As such this gathering was being attended by leaders from all over the Four Nations. It wasn't limited to just them however. Spirit energy might be the headline but the true appeal of this event was all the people in attendance. There was well over two hundred, possibly three, people here. High ranking nobles, wealthy business owners and politicians from every nation and city-state filled the room. The business deals and arrangements resulting from this get-together would shape local and international economies in the years or even decades that followed. And those same people would remember that a certain president of the United Republic had been responsible for providing the means for said deals and arrangements to happen. At least that's what Asami had explained to Korra as they had approached the venue.

Korra frowned as she skirted around the edge of the crowd full of people sipping champagne as they rubbed shoulders. "Am I going crazy or is that Viper over there Asami?"

Asami turned her head to see what Korra was referring to and she stumbled at the sight of the mobster standing there. If Asami had been making a list of who to invite to this event then the leader of the Triple Threat Triad would be somewhere in the realm of 'arrest on sight'. But there he was, a slender glass in hand while he chatted up what looked like some sort of noble from the Fire Nation. "I don't think you're the one going crazy Korra. I can't imagine why or how someone would invite that man to this." She glanced off to the side then shook her head while holding back a laugh. "But I don't think we're the only ones to not like it."

Either Viper hadn't noticed or he was pretending not to but Lin Beifong was standing just a few feet away, her arms folded as she glowered at the crime boss. No doubt Lin would like nothing more than to slap that grin off his face before hauling him off to jail and the fact that she couldn't was almost certainly eating away at the police chief.

Iroh's eyebrows drew together when he noticed what they were talking about but he was looking at the woman. His gaze lingered for a moment before he turned his attention to Asami. "I think this is where we split up now. Your invitation means you can watch the events from the audience but Korra and I will be up on the dais. Come find us when you get the opportunity."

The dais in question was a platform at the head of the room elevated a meter above the floor. There was a podium at its edge and a square table behind that for the major players here today. Korra was seated at one end of the table and Raiko's chair was on the other. In-between them were the representatives for the other nations. Fire Lord Izumi was seated next to Tenzin and past them was her father Tonraq, then her cousins Desna and Eska. The last seat was taken by Suyin Beifong, who had been chosen by the city-states of the Earth Kingdom to stand for them. As she waited for the proceedings to start, Iroh's words about her friends were bouncing around in her head. Raiko had never been much of an ally to her and neither had Izumi, but everyone else at this table had fought on her side in some form or another. Though to be fair Desna and Eska had fought against her as well before turning on their father Unalaq.

Raiko waited until the audience had seated themselves before he stepped up to the podium and turned the microphone on. "Ladies and gentlemen, allow me to express my gratitude to all of you for being here. I hope you've been enjoying your stay in our fine city thus far and that we can come to a consensus on the issues that bring us together on this beautiful day."

Korra had to suppress the urge to roll her eyes as she looked at the water-drop be-peckled windows lining the walls. 'A consensus on the issues' indeed. She had little love for the president but Korra had to admit that Raiko was in his element here. An audience listening to him deliver a speech but that's all he was good for. Talking. She should be in the Fire Nation looking for and then destroying the spirit energy lab but instead she was stuck behind this table listening to the president say nothing in so many words.

"... which brings me to my main point and the most important issue facing us today. Spirit Energy. I know many of the people here saw Kuvira's attack firsthand but many of you were far away." He gestured with one hand towards a blank section of wall. "If you'll be so kind as to turn your attention over here."

After a few seconds an image of Kuvira's giant robot appeared on the screen. It disappeared only to be replaced with a second, the robot firing it's cannon. A third image showing fiery explosions in the distance. Ruined buildings. Piles of rubble, dead bodies in the street. The images kept on coming, one after the other until Raiko lifted his hand again. "Spirit Energy. War has been a part of our history for as long as there have been people to write it down but now we find ourselves on new ground. Never before has there been a weapon capable of the destruction that Spirit Energy can unleash. We have opened the door to something that can and will annihilate us all if left unchecked. We avoided the abyss this time thanks to the Avatar but it falls upon the rest of us to ensure that such an incident will not be repeated. With that said I turn the floor over to our next speaker, Iknik Blackstone Varrick."

Varrick, Zhu Li, a few cherry-picked individuals whose lives had been turned upside because of Kuvira. The stories of the survivors were all similar sounding tales of woe but Varrick's was more of a rant against the misuse of what he had created. Zhu Li's speech urging the people to support a ban was as methodical as the woman giving it. And then the last speaker of the day was approaching the stand without any introduction from the person before him.

He set a glass of water down on the podium as he looked out over the crowd. World leaders behind him and a gathering of the world's richest and most powerful people in front of him. The man picked the glass up and took another drink before starting to speak. "Hello, I'm sure most of you have no idea who I am so let me introduce myself. My name is Chou."

Chou coughed into the crook of his elbow before continuing. "I have a degree in electrical engineering technology but I'm not an engineer, just a technologist. I used to work for Cabbage Corp but I was hired by Varrick to work on a research project he had just begun. Spirit energy. At the time, our goal was to find a new source of energy. It wasn't until Kuvira took an interest in the project that the technology became a weapon. Once I realized what Kuvira was doing I took my notes and ran. I don't know how they found me but I was offered sanctuary in the Fire Nation in exchange for something. My notes."

People in the crowd had been quietly chatting to each other but a deathly hush fell over them. The sound of Chou coughing was the only sound in the room for several painfully long seconds. "At first I said no but they convinced me that they only wanted Spirit Energy for use as a power source. So I agreed but they lied. After a month I found designs for weapons that -.''

Whatever he had meant to end that sentence with was drowned out as the crowd erupted in a roar that echoed off the walls. Izumi's face didn't change in the slightest but there wasn't any way she didn't hear the venom being hurled at her and the other members of the Fire Nation in the audience. Desna and Eska exchanged a glance and the twins were rising from their chairs as they headed towards the nearest exit. Raiko rushed towards the podium, pushing Chou out of the way as he started speaking into the mic but his words couldn't be heard over the din from the crowd.

Chou started to head towards the door Desna and Eska had left through but he collapsed in a heap halfway there. Korra jumped from her chair and over the table as she rushed to his side as he violently convulsed once on the floor before going still. She grabbed him by the shoulder rolling him onto his back. Chou's lips were flecked with blood and spittle and his eyes were bloodshot. Korra pressed her fingers into the side of his neck but there wasn't any pulse, the man was already dead.

The Avatar's head lifted as she stared out towards the crowd. People had started throwing punches and the event's security was moving to break the ruckus up before anyone started bending at each other. But there was one person who didn't seem to have noticed what was happening. Viper met her gaze head on and he smirked before turning and slipping out the doorway. Korra let Chou's head back down to the ground before she was on her feet chasing after him.

There should have been security at the doors but the chaos inside had drawn them away from their posts and the front of the building was empty. Korra's head swiveled about as she looked for the mob boss but there wasn't anything or anyone on the street. She turned intending to head back inside when there he was, standing at the edge of the building with his hands in the pockets of his trench coat. The moment their eyes connected Viper turned and walked into the alleyway behind him.

By the time Korra sprinted around the corner Viper was waiting by a pair of cars and half a dozen members of his Triad were flanking him. He flourished his arm in a mock bow as she slowed to a halt. "Always a pleasure to see you Avatar Korra. I still remember meeting ya on your first day in Republic City."

"What do you want Viper? If you had anything to do with Chou's murder then you're going to pay." Korra raised her hands up to chest level as she prepared for a brawl like the one that had gotten her arrested by Lin's metalbending police unit.

"I ain't here to cause any trouble Avatar. I'm actually bringing you a gift, the one who poisoned that schmuck's water. What ya do with him is your problem. Boys." Viper ducked into his car and shut the door. At the same time two of his goons popped the trunk open and pulled someone out. They unceremoniously dumped the hogtied man on the ground before departing the scene.

Korra stepped forward and rolled the figure over to look at his face. She had only met him once but there was no mistaking this particular person. His nation may have subjected him to a particularly brutal form of exile but the man's name popped instantly into her head as he grinned too widely at her, as if unaware or uncaring of his predicament. "My employer says hello."

Ifuago.