Did somebody say angst? I think somebody said angst.
Also, sorry again for the late posting. I'm trying ever so hard to get back on schedule. *cries a million tears* I might just have to release a chunk of chapters soon hahaha.
*nervously laughs and hides*
(-)
Chapter 10
Doubt
"Future Industries? Why would we go there?" Korra directed Naga southwest, despite her question.
"My dad has boats that he uses for shipping. We're going to steal one."
"Why? Wouldn't your dad get mad and suspicious about that?"
"Yes. That's the point. If he doesn't know it happened, then he'll be more surprised when he gives the police report. If the Strikers find out, they won't think he'll be involved –"
"Because he didn't know!"
She smiled. "Exactly. Besides, I know how to helm those ones. My dad has shown me how to operate most of the vehicles he's made." The engineer tightened her hold on Korra's waist. "They're big enough to fit Naga on, too. Otherwise, I would have gone with a plane or airship instead."
"Your dad has planes? Like, airplanes?"
Asami nodded. "They're still in preliminary development, though. So it's probably better that we didn't take them."
Korra shrugged and leaned forward, beckoning Naga to go faster. "How far away is it?"
"About the same distance as the camp was."
"What if they see us?"
"They're probably still searching the forest. It won't take me long to steal the boat."
"We want to help, Asami." Tonraq interjected, drawing circles with his somewhat-battered legs. "If not with stealing it, then with helming it. I've been steering ships since I can remember."
She bobbed her head. "Thank-you. I can't imagine the journey to the Southern Water Tribe is short. I'll need all the help I can get."
"I can steer boats too, Asami." Korra grinned, a part of her trying to boast in their frantic situation. "My dad taught me. I even went ice dodging when I was – shit!"
A line of late-night Satomobiles and Cabbage Cars were speeding up the bridge on both lanes. There wasn't enough room for Naga and the vehicles to stay on the road at the same time, and there were too many of them for Naga to jump over all the cars; their spacing was just close enough to prevent her from hopping in between. Not only that, but the polar bear dog was too far and too fast along the structure to halt and turn around with the automobiles raging their way. Upon another glance, she could see a faint pair of glowing green eyes coming from the Satomobile that was first in line.
Fuck!
"Hang on, everyone!" Korra gritted her teeth and forced Naga into a sharp turn over the side of the bridge. A flash of lightning shot through the sky as they made the plunge.
With a tight grip and several screams, they splashed into Yue Bay below. They emerged from the water moments later soaked more than they had been from the rain alone, but in one piece.
Korra glimpsed behind her, panting. Asami was tight and shaking against her, her face buried into her tan shoulder. Her father was near her mother, holding both himself and his wife on the saddle. The bag was between them, the ties tight to seal the opening and protect its contents from the sea water. She squinted to the top of the bridge. The vehicles hadn't stopped to chase after them. She sighed in relief. "Keep going, Naga. This way. Go, before they change their minds!" She directed the animal southwest.
Naga pumped her legs as fast as possible, proving just how capable of a swimmer she was. They sped through the water, hoping no one would notice them as the City woke from their slumber. It didn't take them long to pass the broken bridge near Cabbage Corp. where Asami had first run into the Striker they knew as Warship and she now knew as Sentai.
It took the same amount of time to reach the docks behind Future Industries. Lucky for them, the rain was lighter and lighter the further south they travelled.
"There: the smaller one on the end. We'll take that one." Asami pointed from her somewhat-curled position, her arm shaking from the cold as she did so.
Korra nodded and steered Naga accordingly.
The polar bear dog crawled onto the shore line, dripping wet and panting.
"We're almost there, girl. Just hang on."
Asami hopped off of the animal with gusto, her sights and focus dead ahead.
Korra followed, her sights and focus set on Asami alone.
The engineer analyzed the outside of the facility as they crept up to its borders. While the lights were on, she could see no movement inside.
Good. They aren't working yet.
I wish I had more time to check things out.
Check what out?
Things.
The gloves?
She clenched her jaw, wishing the thought had never even crossed her mind. She looked over her shoulder – a mixture of feelings inside – as she took one last look at everything she was leaving behind: Republic City, the place she had grown up, the only place she had ever known, with its glowing urban lights and the dark clouds overhead. She almost thought of going back until the thought of her father crossed her mind again. Memories shot into her sight, ranging from Hiroshi Sato to the Strikers rampaging through the City.
I can't – I can't go back.
Asami bolted over to the boardwalk and sprinted to the ship, using anything – even complete physical exertion – as a means for mental distraction. She had to be focused, not on her father or his possible crimes, not on the Strikers that had nearly taken Korra away, but on the woman behind her. On Korra herself. On her safety. On their escape. She narrowed her eyes on the boat as her legs pushed her forward. "Go get Naga ready. I'll need a minute," she called over her shoulder.
"Are you sure you don't need –"
Asami had already propelled herself onto the deck before Korra could finish her question, rolling and crouching to manage her landing.
Korra halted at the edge, jaw somewhat dropped as she watched the raven kick a metal door down after unlocking it from the outside. Within seconds, the heiress was out of sight. "Okay, then." She spun around and motioned to whistle, but thought better of it.
Better to attract less attention, in this case.
She ran back down the shoreline until she was within earshot of her animal companion. "Come on, Naga." She waved her on, pivoting mid-step to sprint all the way back to the dock.
The engine kicked to life by the time they reached the boardwalk.
Naga jumped with ease onto the boat, Senna and Tonraq firm in the saddle.
Korra hopped over the gap but her jump wasn't quite high enough. She crashed into the edge of the ship. With a frantic kick of her legs, she squirmed over the side and rolled onto the deck, panting and sweating.
Tonraq wasted no time. He slid off the side of the polar bear dog and Bent what water he could muster around the chain; while his motion returned, his Bending was still a bit murky. He froze a small amount of liquid on the links to make the metal brittle. He leaned over the edge and slammed his heel into the icy section. The tether smashed under his foot. "We're good to go, Asami!" He hollered over his shoulder, sliding his leg back onto the deck.
On cue, Asami increased the propeller speed. The motor ramped up. Within a few seconds, they were soaring away from the Future Industries dock, away from Yue Bay, away from Republic City. They had escaped the storm; clear, moonlit skies were ahead of them, the stars unhindered by rain of any sort.
"Korra? Korra, sweetie?" Senna plopped down beside her daughter, having been the last to recover from the chi blocking.
Korra hadn't moved since her scurry into the boat. Her eyes were shut, limbs motionless; the strain on her body overwhelmed her. She was exhausted and she had lost too much blood from all of the adrenaline forcing her heart to race faster.
Naga stood beside her, nudging the Water Tribe girl with her snout.
"Give her some space, Naga. Tonraq, I need your water sack!" She pulled the bloody shirt off of her daughter to reveal a large gash between her breasts. Her white bindings were stained red.
He sprinted to them, the color leaving his face upon the sight of his child. He kneeled down and popped the cap on his carrier.
Senna tried to pull water from it, but it was empty. "We must have used it all during the attack. I'll just have to use the sea water and the rain water from the deck." She Bent a small amount of fluid from the side of the boat and hovered it over Korra's wound. "It's not as clean, so it'll take me a little longer to heal this. Keep an eye on her breathing, Tonraq."
He nodded and grasped his daughter's hand. "It's going to be okay, Korra. Your mother is going to take care of you."
After a few minutes, the injury was healed over. The blood was still soaked into her clothes and a very faint scar was visible on her chest. But the bleeding stopped. Korra was breathing. They were safe.
Thank the Spirits.
"We should get her inside, Tonraq. She's shivering."
"You're right. Here, I'll take Korra. You take her clothes and her bag."
Senna bobbed her head and pulled the water from Korra's clothing before she rose. She grabbed the carrier off of Naga's saddle and the soaked, dirty shirt from the deck. She followed her husband who cradled her child against him, as if Korra was a kid again having fallen asleep in the training room for the umpteenth time.
The three of them made the descent down the steps into the cabin of the boat.
Naga mewled at the much-too-small entrance and shook the water out of her fur, wanting nothing more than to be with her human companion.
(-)
"Asami? Are there any rooms here for Korra to sleep in?" Tonraq stood in the door way, the brunette in his arms.
"Yeah, down the hall to the le –" Her statement trailed when she twisted and saw the Water Tribe girl. She wanted to cross the room, but refrained since she was steering the ship. "Is – is she okay?"
He nodded. "She'll be fine. Senna healed her wound. She just needs rest."
Asami bobbed her head and brought her attention back to the path in front of her. She glanced over her shoulder as the trio exited, concern spreading throughout her shaking being.
Korra.
She refocused and gripped the wheel until the three of them left the room. Her hands were quaking, but she refused to let anyone see it. A thousand thoughts tore her mind apart, empowered by her exhaustion. She couldn't do this, not right now; she struggled just to keep herself standing. She couldn't take this mental torture. The image of Korra being stabbed and shocked by Sentai wouldn't leave her sight. It bounced between that and the conversation she eavesdropped on with her father.
It can't be true. He wouldn't have done something like that.
The way it sounded…
Maybe he was just upgrading them and the Strikers stole them. He's always inventing new things.
But why would he make electric shock gloves in the first place?
To protect people?
Against what?
Other people?
Say it Asami. You know who.
She sighed, her eyes a bit watery. Benders.
Exactly.
He wouldn't supply them to the Strikers, though. He would never want to kill people. That's just not who he is.
I know, Asami, I know. But look at the evidence.
What? A late night/early morning call about a shipment of missing gloves? Notice the missing part of that. If the Strikers have them, then it's very possible that they stole them from him.
What would he be doing with a shipment of gloves anyways?
I don't know. But maybe I can find out.
(-)
"How is Korra doing," Asami asked the moment one of them walked into the doorway. The heavy steps afterwards told her it was Tonraq.
"She's resting now, but she doesn't seem to be sleeping well. She keeps tossing and turning and muttering names." He approached the Non-Bender and stood beside her, looking out over the setting moon with a worried face. He decided it was better not to mention that one of the names his daughter kept sputtering was, indeed, that of the heiress. He wasn't guilty of just pure intentions, though; while he could see that the young woman was very much exhausted and probably couldn't use the additional stress, there was also a hint of frustration in his motives. His daughter was spitting out a slew of names, none of which was his. Then again, if his daughter was having a nightmare – which was very likely, based on his observations – perhaps it was better that she wasn't mumbling anything having to do with him. He'd caused enough damage...
He shook his head and brought his focus back to the woman beside him, a sudden wave of concern passing through his chest. "How are you doing, Asami?"
"I'm fine." She kept her eyes dead set ahead of her, refusing to show weakness and oblivious to anything Tonraq might have been struggling with inside. She hid her shivering to further her case.
"You should have Senna look at your back wound. She can heal it. She fixed my legs up after we put Korra in her room – they got a few scrapes and bruises when I was bouncing off Naga."
"I'm glad you're feeling better," she replied more as a courtesy than from genuine care; while she did feel a hint of content that Tonraq was no longer hurt, she had much heavier things on her tired mind. If anything, she was more concerned about Korra, and this worry – intermingled with her churning insides – diluted her feelings for anyone else. The thought of the injury near her spine, though, brought it back to the forefront of her mind. The wound started to sting just by existing. She tried to reach for it to give it a comforting rub, but the laceration was just out of reach of her fingertips. "Is it that bad," she questioned as she attempted to stretch to it again.
He shook his head. "No, it's not that bad at all. Not very deep, not much blood. Just quite a bit of bruising. He must have whacked you pretty hard with that baton, didn't he?"
She nodded. "He caught me by surprise. My feet were tangled up and –"
"Asami, you don't have to explain to me. I know you're a good fighter. I witnessed that today, trust me."
She smiled to the compliment and continued steering, abandoning her attempts at reaching her back wound.
"Why don't you take a break for now? You look like you could use some rest, too."
"Are you sure? I can keep going."
He put a hand on the wheel to get her attention. His blue-grey eyes locked onto her exhausted green ones. "I'm sure." He displaced her from her spot without touching a single hair on her head. "Sleep, Asami. Besides, I know the route. Until we get a map so I can show you, you won't know how to get there."
She sighed and crossed her arms, knowing the truth in his statement; while she knew Republic City like the back of her hand, navigating the rest of the world wasn't quite her forte. Not yet, at least. "I suppose you're right. Is Senna sleeping, too?"
"I believe she did retire for the rest of the night. I'm sure she wouldn't mind if you woke her up for your wound, though."
Asami waved her hand. "No, let her sleep. I might as well take this time to catch up, too. If you need anything, I'll be in one of these cabin rooms."
"Of course." He didn't turn from the wheel as she departed, keeping his focus just as intense as she had when she was mulling over everything that happened. What she didn't know that he was doing much the same.
She stopped in the doorway and stared at him one last time. Instead of heading down the corridor to the quarters, though, she made her way below, into the storage and shipping area of the ship.
(-)
Asami cracked her knuckles and cranked the large door open, careful to be as quiet as she could. She pulled on the handle just enough for her to slip inside. The room was dark. She searched the wall nearby until she found a light switch and flicked it on. There were several smaller crates on this vessel instead of the larger metal containers, which is what she was hoping for: it told her that this was, indeed, a local vessel. If her father had been shipping the gloves in the City, she assumed he would use a small, fast ship to do it, not one of the giant ones utilized for imports from the Earth Kingdom. Anyway, it would be too risky to move the gloves on the road with all of the Metal Bending Police around, searching for anything that might get them closer to the Strikers. With Satomobile and truck transport out of the mix, that left sea fare. Boat transport regulations were much less strict in the City, regardless, making it easier for people to sneak things into the cargo.
She glanced at each of the wooden boxes, reading the labels on the outside. Most of them were, in fact, just Satomobile parts; she recognized them by part number alone.
Still…
It wasn't enough to convince her. She crept to the shipper's office and picked the lock with ease. She slipped inside and turned the light on. Logs, records, and shipment tags were strewn about the area. She ignored them for now and searched for the toolbox that she was sure to be there.
Nevertheless, it was.
She pulled the red and black metal container from its place in the corner of the room and plopped it on the table. Her fingers flipped the latches up and pushed the lid open.
Perfect.
The heiress retrieved a small prybar from the top tray and slammed the box shut, closing the latches as she did. She spun the tool in her hand and made her way to the many crates in the storage area. She jammed the end of the crowbar into the seam of the first wooden box and pulled it open.
Several wrapped pipes fell out, clattering against each other. She kicked them around, looking for any sign of the electric weapons.
Nothing.
She repeated this with every crate, taking only a few minutes to invade and search each one. After about twenty crates and a whole lot of sweat, she tossed the prybar down in frustration; each of the containers held up to their labels.
Maybe there's another storage level somewhere.
Asami returned to the office and glanced at the ship schematics on the wall, which supplied her with details for the entire ship and the storage floor she was on in two separate images. The boat was much smaller than she thought. After analyzing the blueprint, she realized there was no physical way to add another unit of shipping on the vessel without cutting into the ballast or the engine room.
She growled and ripped the drawing off the wall, letting it fall to the floor beside her.
Maybe these will tell me something.
She sat down at the desk to her right and leafed through the many shipping reports on the top and in the drawers. She scanned the text, looking at every sheet possible.
There wasn't as much to go through as she had hoped.
Most of the cabinets were filled with blank forms and labels. She tossed her current completed stack behind her and lowered her head onto the desk.
Please, please give me a reason.
A reason for what?
For why.
Why he made the gloves other than to supply the Strikers with a weapon?
She nodded, refusing to remove her cheek from the cool wood tabletop.
Well, think of their construction. Sure, the Strikers use them to zap people, but what else could they be used for?
I don't know.
Maybe… maybe they were meant to be chargers.
Chargers?
Sure. Look at that, right there next to you.
Asami lifted her head and pulled the pinned papers from the folder beside her. It was a parcel she had ignored, considering the label was 'Satomobile Review Report' in Hiroshi's handwriting. Her father's vehicle line was not her focus right now; the electric gloves were. "Why?"
Well, it's the only thing you haven't looked at yet. I figured it was worth a shot.
She sighed and flipped through the list of pros and cons, her weary eyes too tired to deal with this.
Good brakes, axels stronger – less damage on potholes, fuel delivery needs work –
"I told him to install that design I made for him."
Asami, focus.
Right, right. Tires sturdy, exhaust needs improvement, battery…
Her eyes widened.
"Habit of shorting out and dying on long drives. Need some sort of portable shock or charge device to boost battery until better battery made – need more money for research and development – current cables for dual vehicle jump not effective when single vehicle is used or no other vehicles are nearby."
She lowered the papers onto the table.
You – you don't think this is it, do you?
He did say they were prototypes. Maybe he's working on their effectiveness in kick starting the batteries.
Or maybe you're just too blind and in denial to see any other possibility.
Asami frowned and folded her arms over her chest.
I know that both of these options could exist, and for that reason I...I have to give him the benefit of doubt.
She rubbed her eyes and hunched over. Her mind throbbed. She was much too exhausted for the turmoil within her, yet it was that very tumult that prevented her from sleeping. First, it was Korra disappearing. Then, it was being afraid of Korra for some Spirit-forsaken reason. Now, it was this whole ordeal with her father and the Strikers.
"I need air."
She pushed herself to her feet and abandoned her rummaging, too tired and indifferent to give a damn. Asami crawled onto the deck one painful step at a time and made her way to the front of the boat. She leaned against the railing with her forearms on the top bar. The cold wind blew right through her while she stared at the moon. She remembered the last time she was like this – absorbing the illumination from the celestial body above. It was with Korra – of course it was – after she learned that Kuru had been the one to attack the Water Tribe girl. Korra had been out here for what felt like hours, trying to get the cold to numb away her feelings. Asami had been inside under a blanket watching it all unfold until she stepped out, unable to bear seeing the Southerner in such a state for another second longer.
Their roles were reversed now, except there was no one watching over her to see if she was alright. She was above the helm, so Tonraq couldn't see her from the wheel. The rest were asleep, two in the quarters and one on the deck. No, she was alone this time, and nothing – Korra included – was there to stop her from letting the cold seep into her nerves and penetrate her core.
So she did.
She closed her eyes and took in the scent of the crisp air mixing with the salty sea. It didn't take her long to start shivering; her clothes were just not enough to protect her.
That was fine. She didn't want protection. She wanted to be consumed, wanted to let everything get buried and frozen so that she wouldn't have to deal with it.
So she did.
Asami leaned against that railing and allowed her feelings to sink further and further into herself, never to resurface again. She pushed away her thoughts, pushed away the pain. With a single tear from each eye and a soft sob, she allowed the bitter darkness to swallow her where she stood.
(-)