反射

Book 1.5: Reflections

Chapter 8: A Dance Among the Wind Gates

The Pro-Bending Arena was filled with screams and cries of fear as chi-blockers stood in the bleachers, holding the spectators hostage with gauntlets that glowed with a menacing blue light. Police officers lay unconscious at their feet. The masked and charismatic leader of the Equalists stood in the middle of the ring, basked in the golden light of the colossal lamp overhead at the apex of the glass dome, as he delivered an address he was certain all of Republic City would hear.

"My followers and I will not rest until the entire city achieves equality. And once that goal is achieved, we will equalise the rest of the world. The revolution… has begun!"

With a resounding crash of shattering glass overhead and the ear-rattling blast of an exploding bomb destroying the pro-bending ring, left behind by the revolutionaries, the Arena erupted into chaos.

"I'm going after Amon!" Korra cried, jumping into the water below the ring.

The cacophony of noise was muted as she twirled below the surface for several moments, channelling the swirl and energy of the water through her body.

Go.

She exploded from the surface in a spinning typhoon of water. People in the stands looked on in awe as she shot upward through the air in pursuit of Amon, riding atop a conjured waterspout. Despite the red and white pro-bending uniform she was wearing, this powerful display was inadvertently serving as a reminder to all that she was indeed the Avatar, the most powerful bender in the world.

With an impromptu boost from Lin Beifong's metal cables, Korra found herself standing on one of the platforms hanging at the bottom of an Equalist getaway rope, her hair blowing in the evening wind. She glared up at Amon as he escaped into his airship and, with a cry of frustration, hurled a huge fireball at him.

Hearing familiar hisses and whistles, she looked down to see Lin emerge from the hole in the glass dome of the Arena in a graceful spin, her steel whips twirling around her as they retracted back to her wrist-cuffs. She immediately lashed out with her right-hand whip and ensnared a chi-blocker that was swinging down toward the Avatar on another rope. With a startled cry, the assailant was pulled down and slammed into the glass dome below.

The next thing Korra knew, two more rebels slid down the rope and knocked her off the platform. The young woman landed hard on the roof, a menacing and jagged crack appearing in the glass beneath her feet.

She and Lin found themselves side-by-side, engaged in a fight with Amon's chi-blockers on the dome rooftop of the Arena, against the glittering backdrop of Republic City's skyscrapers.

Korra and Amon's Lieutenant exchanged blows, dodging and striking back at each other with blasts of fire and electrified batons. She side-stepped a spinning swing, followed through by an outstretched thrust of a kali-stick. The Avatar then used her opponent's momentum against him, picking him up and slamming him down into the glass. In a surge of adrenaline and a powerful plume of flame, she sent him tumbling over the side of the dome.

However, her victory was short-lived. As soon as she landed from the jump, her eyes widened with fear at a loud cracking sound. The glass roof shattered beneath her feet, sending her plummeting back down toward the pro-bending ring, far below. If she hit the water from this height, the surface tension would mean little difference from hitting concrete.

Come on – ! Do something, she screamed at herself. Bend the water into a spout and soften the fall!

However, try as she might, Korra could not feel the ebb and flow of water through her body anymore. She began to panic.

What's going on…?

As she plummeted downward, Amon's scornful laughter echoed in her ears.

"What's the matter, young Avatar? Can't waterbend anymore? That's not all… You can no longer bend earth or fire either…"

She screamed as her doom rose up to meet her.

"I told you I would destroy you. Finally… you are powerless."

Korra awoke with a strangled scream, tangled in her bed-sheets. Sweat beaded down her face, and she took several deep gulps of air to try and slow her breathing. Feeling the soothingly familiar sensation of a scratchy tongue licking her hand, she wrapped her arms around the polar-bear dog's head.

"It… It's alright, Naga. Just a bad dream."

Her furry best-friend whined comfortingly, and she found herself glad that the White Lotus sentries had arrived yesterday afternoon, not too long after she had returned from the Police Headquarters. As soon as they docked, Naga had practically exploded from the ship and pounced on her master with a happy bark.

Korra sat that way, resting her body on the beast's large head for a while in an effort to stave off the chill in the air, before stealing a glance out the window. The sky was a creamy kind of pre-dawn colour. She sighed, figuring that she might as well get a head-start on the day's airbending training.

However, as she made to get up, exhaustion hit her like one of those damned spinning panels in Tenzin's air training. She sunk back to her pillow with a sigh, her eyelids drooping.

Or not…

After falling back to sleep for what only felt like five seconds, Korra was jolted awake by Ikki perched on her knees on the bed, yelling into her ear.

"COME ON! COME ON! WAKE UP SLEEPYHEAD! YOU'VE GOT A BIG DAY AHEAD OF YOU!"

She groaned as she cracked an eye open. "Ikki, what time is it?"

"Six o'clock! On the dot! Early morning training!" the hyperactive little girl exclaimed, clapping her hands together excitedly.

"The morning is evil," the teenager whispered, rolling back over and pulling the pillow over her head.

"Come on, you have to get up! Pretty pretty please?" Ikki persisted shrilly. The bed creaked and groaned as she practically bounced up and down in excitement.

"Ugh, what's so special about today?"

"Well…" She took on decisively coy tone. "If you do well in training today…"

Korra perked up, her interest piqued. "If I do well today, what?"

The young girl grinned widely at her. "Daddy says that if you do well and master the next airbending sets, Jinora and I get to teach you how to ride an air-scooter!" she gushed excitedly.

The Water Tribe girl's blue eyes lit up. "Really? What are we waiting for? Let's do this."

Dreary white-grey clouds covered most of the sky, although patches of pale blue sky could still be seen from the deck of the ferry. The dark waves of Yue Bay lapped up against the wooden hull, causing a rhythmic rocking of the ship.

"Come on, Mako," Bolin said, exasperation in his tone, as they sailed slowly past Aang Memorial Island. "At least try and act cheerful."

"I am acting cheerful," the brooding firebender snapped.

The long, red and furry fire ferret draped around his brother's shoulders chattered shrilly.

"Uh-huh, sure you are." Bolin sighed. "Look, bro. You're stressed out. Asami's stressed out. You're stressing ME out. Heck, you're even stressing Pabu out! But work's over for the day. Leave your problems at the power-plant, and let's have some fun tonight, alright?" He looked pointedly at his brother. "And don't be so hard on Korra this time."

Mako chose not to voice the fact the vast majority of his discomfort at that moment was stemming from the notion of spending the upcoming evening with his girlfriend and… Korra. Especially given what he had almost confessed to her in the South Pole. However…

"You hear me, bro?" Bolin's voice cut into his thoughts.

"Yeah… I hear you."

The sky was beginning to darken as evening fell over Republic City. Golden lights were starting to come on in the metropolis, reflected like a mirror image in the waters of Yue Bay. The two brothers spent the rest of the ferry journey in silence, soon arriving at the docks of Air Temple Island.

After learning where Korra was, from some Air Acolytes living on the island, they made their way up a flight of stone steps to a paved area, surrounded by a dense bamboo garden and lit up by a handful of pale lanterns. At the far end were three girls, as well as a set of ancient wooden wind gates. The brothers paused when they saw Jinora and Ikki draw their arms back, before unleashing twin torrents of air that set all of the wooden panels spinning rapidly.

"What are they doing?" Bolin asked.

"Airbending training," Mako said, smiling slightly at the sense of déjà vu. He remembered seeing an identical scene unfold several months ago when he had first come to Air Temple Island, looking for his "little lovebird" brother.

Sure enough, the young men fell silent when they saw a flash of blue navigating the spinning panels with incredible grace. Wind echoed throughout the gates as Korra spun and twirled her way through them – eyes closed in concentration, one of her arms held straight and high above her head, the other low. The fur pelt around her waist billowed outward, almost like a skirt in the wind.

It was like watching a graceful dance. A dancer in Water Tribe garb, infused with the grace of an Air Nomad. A wise guru once said that the separation between nations, and the very elements themselves, was an illusion.

"Whoa…" Bolin breathed as she emerged on the far side of the spinning gates. She really is beautiful…

Mako frowned slightly "Come on, Bo. We need to tell her about our dinner plans now, so she has time to get ready." He shrugged nonchalantly. "You know what girls are like."

"Yeah! She's going to be so excited!" his younger brother whooped. "Kooooraaa!" he called out, waving his arm and running over.

The girl looked over at them in surprise, while the two young airbenders started giggling and whispering to each other.

"Hey, it's Maaaaako," Ikki teased. "Does he still drive you 'crazy', Korra?"

The young woman in question whirled, a traitorous blush creeping across her cheeks. "Run along, girls!" she snapped, before blasting both of them clear over the bamboo garden with a powerful gust of wind. They giggled as they controlled the air currents below them, slowing their descent.

"Don't forget about air-scooter lessons tomorrow!" Jinora called out as she floated down to the ground and ran off with her younger sister.

"Air-scooters?" Bolin said as he stopped in front of her. "Wow, you're quickly becoming a master airbender, huh?"

"Just putting forms together and actually getting results. I've learned all sorts of neat stuff for airbending," Korra replied, grinning at him. "Wanna see my marble trick? Well, it's not really 'mine', it was Aang's, but Meelo taught me – "

"No thanks," Mako said as he reached them. "We came here to tell you about dinner tonight."

"Dinner?" she asked, frowning.

"Well… the other night didn't exactly go according to plan… What, with us both nearly being flame-broiled, stabbed, crushed by rocks, and then arrested." Bolin scratched the back of his neck sheepishly, before his tone abruptly brightened. "So I went ahead and told Asami that you're back in the city, and she wants to meet up with us all for dinner tonight."

"Oh," the young Avatar replied, smiling. "That sounds really nice. Where are we going?"

"Asami made a reservation at Kuang's Cuisine," he said, barely able to contain his excitement. The pale lights of the lanterns glinted off his face, his expression like that of a child who had just been told he could have any toy in the store he wanted.

Oh Bolin... Korra smirked, in spite of herself. "You sound really… enthusiastic. Is this Kuang's place any good?"

"Oh, it's only the most exclusive restaurant in the entire city. You can't even stand outside it without being properly dressed. Trust me, I've tried."

"…Oh," was all she could muster in way of a response.

In actual fact, there was a whirlwind of thoughts inside her head. She had never eaten at a restaurant so classy that it had its own dress-code. If she got dressed up, what if someone recognised her?

Although… it would be really nice to see Asami again, and have the group hanging out again like old times.

She opened her mouth to say all of these things, only to find herself summing it up in a single word.

Mako quirked an eyebrow. "'Oh'?"

Korra's face blushed slightly. "Um, I mean, I'm not sure I have any clothes fancy enough… Can't we go somewhere more… low-key?"

And inconspicuous?

However, upon seeing Bolin's crestfallen face, she relented. "Hey, I know! Let's go to Kuang's!"

"Asami insists on having a fancy dinner to welcome you back." Mako noticed Korra's uneasiness, and his tone softened. "Don't worry. I was nervous the first time I went there, but it's not all that bad."

Oh yeah, I almost forgot about your fancy first date, she could not help but think sourly.

"Just wear your nicest dress, and the doorman will get you accessories and stuff," Bolin interjected helpfully, as the fire ferret jumped off his shoulders to forage on the ground for food.

"Dresses? Accessories?" the young woman laughed. "Bolin, what were you doing when you were standing out the front of that restaurant?"

"Nothing suspicious," he replied, choosing that moment to look away as Pabu and a native winged lemur began to chase each other in circles.

"Anyway, the booking is in two hours," Mako said. "That's enough time for you to get ready and get to the restaurant, right?"

Korra shot him a look. "More than enough, City Boy. You should know by now, I'm no prissy girl."

He smirked. "Sure do. Just making sure nothing changed while you were down in the South Pole."

When you didn't so much as return a single letter, he reminded himself, his smile fading.

"Great!" Bolin exclaimed scooping up his pet fire ferret and turning to leave. "We'll see you there at seven then."

The monolithic structure of Future Industries' primary factory stood like a silent guardian at the foot of the inland mountain range just beyond Republic City, its distinctive external smokestacks towering over the streets at each corner of the structure. The scale of cars driving past was like that of ants, the gargantuan building dominating the immediate area in the industrial district.

In the upper level of the factory, the atmosphere in the boardroom was thick and heavy with tension and unease – a common ambience throughout the company ever since Asami Sato's impromptu takeover from her now-incarcerated father.

"This is a huge step forward in technology," an agent insisted.

"I still believe people would have trouble accepting this form of travel," another department head argued.

The agent looked toward the far side of the boardroom, where the wall was lined with glass windows, allowing one to look down into main factory floor. He could almost see it now: rows upon rows of biplanes, all with the Future Industries logo. "Air travel would be a far safer option than anything else available," he persisted. "And think about the publicity – air travel! Something that was once only achievable by the Air Nomads. The reliability and functionality of these high-speed aircraft has already been proven – they decimated the United Forces' naval fleet during the Equalist Revolution."

"I'm not too sure how people would react to this – it almost seems like another nail in the coffin of the airbenders," a balding company official interjected.

"Oh, please," the advocator snorted derisively. "The Air Nomad culture is dead and buried."

A young woman at the head of the table, with long dark hair, done up in a bun, stiffened visibly. "I would appreciate you holding your tongue, and showing Avatar Aang and Minister Tenzin's family the respect they deserve," she said sharply.

The man looked abashed. "My apologies, Ms Sato."

Asami Sato had always held the utmost respect for Tenzin. When he allowed her to come and stay on Air Temple Island with Korra and her friends, after her father was exposed as an Equalist supporter during the revolution, her opinion of him had only improved over time.

However, she could not help but agree with the proposed motion of commercial air travel. Future Industries' reputation had been severely damaged as a result its involvement with the Equalists. Sales of Satomobiles were at an all-time low, and she needed something to get them back on top.

"The Research and Development department has my approval," Asami said. "See what can be done about constructing a commercial airplane." She stacked her papers and stood, signalling the end of the meeting.

As the boardroom emptied, she took a moment to stand at the wall of windows and gaze down into the factory – her factory. Another migraine was forming, and she rubbed her temples and sighed. Maybe she was not cut out for this. It would make so much more sense for her to leave Future Industries in more capable hands. But she did not want to see some stranger running her father's company – a father whom she still loved, despite everything he had done to her.

"I now see there is no chance to save you!"

"You really are a horrible father."

"Excuse me, Ms Sato?" her attendant called from the door. "There is someone here to see you."

"Does he have an appointment?" she asked, turning.

Her breath caught in her throat, and she blinked in surprise. Standing with her attendant at the door was a handsome young man with styled black hair, wearing a red military uniform jacket and pressed white service pants.

"Ms Sato," he greeted. "I am General Iroh of the United Forces."

"I – I know who you are," she replied quickly. "You're in charge of the garrison in the city. We met in the shanty town during the revolution."

"Yes, I remember you. I'm sorry I did not get a chance to formally introduce myself then. And I sincerely appreciate your help in disabling the Equalist airfield," he replied genuinely.

Although the enemy biplanes had, for the moment, been grounded, the Equalist airfield on the far side of the mountains was still acting as a proverbial thorn in his side. Two United Forces airships he had dispatched to take the airfield had been shot down on approach, and fighting within the city was too heavy at the moment for him to organise any kind of ground assault, not to mention that the mountain-range would act as a natural barrier against such an attack.

However, it was only a matter of time before the Equalists repaired the runways and mobilised their airplanes again. If that happened, they could very well turn the tide in the battle for Republic City in their favour. Something had to be done, and soon.

The young general pushed these troubling thoughts from his mind as he turned his attention back to the heiress standing before him. Instead of the form-fitting black and red-trimmed racing outfit he had seen in her in last time, Asami Sato now wore a pressed business suit. With her hair done up in a bun, she looked like an almost entirely different person.

Be professional, he berated himself, and distracted himself by looking around the boardroom. "Your family has quite the operation here."

"Thank you. It was my father's dream – " Asami's words caught, and she cleared her throat awkwardly. "What can I do for you, General?"

"Please, call me Iroh," he replied with a smile.

She found herself reciprocating. "What can I do for you, Iroh?"

"I have been instructed by my superiors to engage in negotiations with Future Industries, regarding the construction and development of Mecha-Tanks," he replied, his tone all business. "The United Forces believes that bipedal mechs would provide invaluable siege support, as well as tactical advantages in the war against the Equalists."

"I'm afraid I have nothing to do with making my father's horrible war machines," the young businesswoman replied briskly. "Besides, my company does not have the schematics for those – they were an Equalist weapon."

"Yes, but Future Industries was a front for Hiroshi Sato's involvement with the Equalists. Your father must have been keeping the design documents somewhere – if not here, then perhaps at your residence?"

Asami found her mood quickly souring by the topic of discussion. "I'm sorry, but I am not about to turn this company into an industrial military complex. I'm afraid you're going to have to leave."

She had been expecting the general to argue, but was surprised when he bowed his head respectfully.

"As you wish. Thank you for your time, ma'am."

The heiress stared after him as he left, a frown marring her features.

"Is… everything alright, Ms Sato?" her aide asked carefully, reappearing in the doorway.

"…Yes, everything's fine. If you'll excuse me, I'm leaving for the day. I have a dinner reservation to get ready for."