Tactical Misfire:

The Red Lotus were in uproar. The enemy fleet had arrived and the battle for the city had begun. It was not exactly going to plan.

Their occupation of the city had been swift and resolute, striking hard and fast into the key districts and controlling the most influential figures in the city. Indeed, the President himself was a member of their Order. Keeping his bending secret had been difficult but the people had believed that Raiko's successor was an honourable man. It was a shame that Cho Tin-Hua was not an honourable man.

His rise to power had been a tricky one but he had finally defeated Raiko in the Republic City elections after making a big display of support for the non-benders of the city and promised to protect them from any attack. Even twenty years after Amon and seventeen after Kuvira, people were still worried about benders and their ability to create mass destruction.

Lying to them about his bending had been difficult. A native of the Earth Kingdom, he had grown up practising his earthbending until he joined the White Lotus. Disagreeing with their methods, he had defected to the Red Lotus after discovering a sleeper agent in the midst of their ranks. From there, their plan had grown.

Cho was not a strong man. He was short, squat and had strange, patchy hair. His skin was dark and his face was pudgy; a life sat at a desk instead of bending made one prone to chubbiness. His wife was even more so, but he had only married her to get the Zau family on his side. Their influence was considerable in the city. He even had trouble standing up to his mother-in-law. Then again, she was a truly terrifying force.

And so it was that he hid behind his desk when the knocking began on the door. Peeking out from behind it, he noticed a figure slip in and close it quietly behind it. The lights were off and the figure was covered in darkness. Nevertheless, he knew who it was.

"Ah, it's just you. I thought it might have been….family," he murmured with a shudder, emerging from the desk.

The figure sat down in a chair on the far side of the room, legs crossed over one another at the knee. "I'm afraid they'd most likely be a more welcome sight, what with the news I have for you, mister President…" the figure said in a dry tone, somewhat like a purr.

Cho sat himself on the edge of the desk, his legs dangling and his feet just brushing the floor. Why couldn't he have longer legs? He WAS the President after all!

"What's the matter? Do the Red Lotus need something? I've done as much as I can without giving away my position. The people still think I'm being held hostage here," he said pompously.

"Oh, you are."

Cho's smile faded quickly. "Wait, you mean…?"

The figure nodded, only just visible in the gloom. "Quite. The Order does not require your assistance now we have the city. We dislike such figures of authority."

Cho backed away slightly. He knew the Red Lotus aimed to free the world from oppression but he never considered that they'd remove him. He was too important to them for that!

"But I helped you take the city! I put your people into positions of power, helped them run business, totally become a part of the city!" he said, hands now in the air as a sign of peace.

The figure stood up slowly. "Very true," it said, slowly moving towards him. It pulled a knife from a sheath on its hip and began to twirl it slowly in the air. "I actually lied to you. I have three pieces of news for you. Do you want the good, the bad or the really bad news?"

Cho gulped, eyeing the knife carefully, which glinted in the thin sliver of moonlight that shone through the window. "Erm…I….the good news?"

"The good news, mister President, is that the key prisoners that Miss Scarlett wanted so carefully imprisoned have escaped. Furthermore, we can't find the Avatar as the spirit portal is still locked."

"That's…not good news. Is that not the bad news?"

"No, I'm quite sure," the figure said. It darted forward and slashed at Cho with careful precision. The President of Republic City did not even feel any pain as his body hit the ground, his eyes staring lifelessly ahead in the dark.

The figure whistled and two Red Lotus members entered the room. "I've just delivered the really bad news. The President died from fright at it. Please remove the body."

Wiping the knife on the back of the chair the figure had sat upon, it sheathed the weapon and rolled its neck.

"Oh, also, please get me that spirit mirror. I need to try and get that damned spirit to heel."

One of the Red Lotus looked up from dragging the body and straightened slowly. "I…uh…" she began to say, unsure of how to break the news. "The mirror is broken. It exploded on its own, nobody touched it."

The figure hissed between clenched teeth. "If that spirit has done something to break its bargain with us, I shall make it suffer. Vehrin is not the boss of us."

It turned and paced to the window. The city had been quiet, for a while. Now that the enemy had arrived, the fighting had begun once more with vehemence. This did not bother the figure. The fighting had continued long after the Red Lotus had taken control of the city but any attempts to fight them off had been quelled. The Red Lotus had seeded themselves into the city too well to be removed so easily. The newcomers would likewise be repelled.

"We need to find those escapees. Inform Scarlett that her failure to safeguard Zukoh will not be tolerated. Her confidence is now arrogance; she is not the leader of the Order of the Red Lotus, no matter what she thinks. You all answer to me. Now find Zukoh and those damned Airbenders and bring them to me."

Tenzin was alive. Mercifully alive.

Lin had indeed been cooped up in the Police Headquarters, along with a handful of officers that had not already been captured by the Red Lotus. Upon seeing Tenzin on his knees outside, however, she had reluctantly surrendered. Her feelings for the Airbender would never truly go away. In any event, fighting the Red Lotus would only get her officers injured and she was not prepared to risk their safety for no chance to success.

The Order had swarmed over the HQ, taking any remaining officers hostage and freeing any criminals currently locked in the cells. In their place, they threw any of the opposing citizens of Republic City into the cells, locking them in with gleeful delight. They were the law around here now.

Tenzin was locked in one such cell. They had beaten him badly due to his actions assisting the Avatar's escape into the spirit world. They had even tried to make him open it, despite his protests that he did not have the power to do so. Only Jahn could unlock the portal. This was not an excuse that they liked. His tormentors had not even resorted to bending; physical blows had hurt just as much, however. Afterwards, they had thrown him in the cell and left him there. For the last two days, he had rested and listened intently for any sign of life. So far, nobody had even fed him; his captors only went as far as to waterbend some water in carefully just the once.

Still, he was alive.

He had not seen what he happened to Lin and the others. Indeed, he had no idea what happened to any of the people he cared about. Jinora had not contacted him at all, which made his stomach roll in worry. Even though she was all grown up, he still worried about his little girl. He knew Bumi and Kya were always resentful that their own father was never quite there for them as much as he was for Tenzin but he was determined to always be there for his kids. They deserved the love he received.

It was at the end of his second day that he heard the noise. A wailing claxon sounded through the city, loud and brash, ringing through the night. It was the city warning system. An enemy fleet was approaching from the ocean.

Tenzin could not see outside to find out what was going on but he was willing to bet his glider that the United Forces had arrived to liberate the city. Either that or one of the other nations had arrived to assist them. Obviously the Air Nation would be an unlikely choice but a great deal of them were now imprisoned in the city. Rescuing their fellow Airbenders may have been a cause worth rising for.

Tenzin shook his head as he thought. His stomach was painful at the lack of food but meditating helped considerably. "Clear your mind…" he murmured to himself.

It couldn't be the Airbenders. They would have flown in, not sailed. Maybe the Water Tribes had sent a force? Also unlikely. They were having a few political troubles lately; the Tribes would not send an army to help Republic City whilst they were so preoccupied.

The cell door flew open, making Tenzin open his eyes quickly and fall back as light flooded the cell. He waited until someone revealed themselves before he would react. Nobody entered the cell, however, prompting the older man to poke his head round the doorframe and into the corridor. It was dimly lit but his eyes had already adjusted to the gloom sufficiently in the last forty-eight hours. A person stood at the end of the corridor, barely visible. It turned, revealing a bright blue face with a wide grin and large tusk like teeth. A mask.

"It can't be. Who are you?" Tenzin asked weakly.

The person merely turned and ran, disappearing into an adjacent corridor. Tenzin was in no shape to follow so quickly but he pulled himself up and made his way down the hallway, cringing as his cramped legs screamed at the effort.

The smell of food distracted him. Wafting from the side, he pushed a door open to witness a lone man sat at a table about to dunk some bread into a steaming hot bowl of stew. They stared at each other awkwardly for a moment before the man stood up quickly. Tenzin reacted smoothly; swiping his right hand across himself, the air under the man's legs quickly moved sideways, making him fall to the floor and hit his head on the chair. Tenzin edged into the room cautiously but the man was out cold.

"Sorry about that, but a man has to eat…" he mumbled to the unconscious man as he sat down at the table and pulled the bowl towards him.

Leemi's tongue was wet, warm and gruesome. It slithered over her face one more, but this time she reacted.

"Urgh! Leemi! Gross!" Aana said in disgust as she sat up quickly. Wiping her face clean of bison saliva, she stood up and shook herself.

Her sky bison seemed happy to see her. Leemi grumbled deeply and nudged her with her nose, making Aana laugh. Patting her head, Aana felt happy at being able to feel Leemi's fur under his fingers. She struggled to remember the events that had just occurred; something must have happened for her to be asleep on the floor! That never happened! Sleep was for beds, not floors.

The spirits were on the roof. Bad people had taken the city. She had been poorly, but now she felt better. Much better. That feeling of being drained had gone now. Aana smiled. She knew her mother would have something to do with it.

"She'll be back soon. And Dad. Don't worry Leemi, the spirits will protect us!" she said with a big smile. Before, she had been so scared. Now, she felt sure that everything would be ok.

Leemi rumbled a reply and moved towards the window. Aana stood with her, gazing out at the night silently. The city was mostly quiet and shrouded in darkness. The bad guys didn't like lights apparently.

A loud noise startled her nearly out of her skin. Jumping visibly, Aana looked around for the source of the claxon but it seemed to be coming from the sea. Faint lights flickered out on the open ocean but she couldn't make out exactly what they were. Ships maybe?

She didn't hear the spirit fly in through the other window but noticed it from the corner of her eye. The little flying boar looked up at her from the floor, so she knelt down to talk to it easier. The noise nearly drowned out her words but she managed to shout above it. "Hey little boar spirit! What's going on?"

It twitched its snout and flapped its wings. Flying up to her shoulder, it tried to shout in her ear but simply was not loud enough. Giving up altogether, it flew over to the window and indicated upwards. Fluttering out, it hovered as it clearly waited for her.

Aana bit her lip. She knew she wasn't meant to leave the Temple, especially with bad guys around. The spirits might not even be super nice either, so they might be there to tell her off. Or maybe…

She grabbed her glider from the wall and dived out of the window. As free as the air itself, she extended the glider as she fell and neatly evened out of the fall. Gliding along the island for a moment, she laughed as she felt the breeze in her hair. The claxon sound cut off rather suddenly, leaving the only sounds in the night skies that of her breath and the rush of the wind. She could spend all night flying around outside, but she had been summoned by the spirits. She could hardly refuse.

Shooting upwards, she deftly landed on the Temple roof. She had no fear of falling off, as the giant dragon spirit was wrapped around the upper portion of the Temple and was also resting on the roof. She landed before its huge snout, bowing as her feet touched the solid surface.

"Great Qi-Lóng. You asked for me?" she asked politely, with a faint smile.

The dragon spirit gazed on her with giant eyes. It was almost as perfectly sculpted as a real dragon, but the lack of any legs highlighted the difference. Instead, the six great wings along its back indicated its affinity with the element Air, along with the spiral pattern on its forehead. It blinked twice and lowered its head so that it was a mere foot away from Aana's own.

"Yes child," the dragon spirit said in a deep voice. "Events are unfolding at a rapid pace and history seems close to repeating itself. The spirits owe you their thanks for talking sense when nobody else would."

Aana smiled at the great spirit and shrugged. "Well, I just knew that the spirits shouldn't attack the city. You all seemed angry."

Qi-Lóng nodded. "We were. Our minds were clouded by a presence that made us anger at the human insolence. That presence has gone, as it has also gone from you, child. Nevertheless, the humans desecrate spirit lands. This cannot continue."

Aana shook her head. She knew that the bad guys probably didn't mean to be bad. Maybe they were just a bit confused. She said as much to the spirit, which grumbled in disagreement.

"The humans that have taken the city care not for us, despite their claims. They see us as tools to be used. The Red Lotus are not as they were."

Aana's eyes widened. "I know them. They tried to hurt Avatar Korra when my mum was a little girl."

Qi-Lóng craned its long neck around to stare out at the sea. The lights had grown even brighter and they were vast in numbers. "They will not last long in this city. The Avatar will reopen the portals and we can return to the spirit world. The mortal world is interesting but our home is damaged. Maybe with our help, it can recover."

Aana pondered that in silence. "Does that mean the spirits will all go?"

Qi-Lóng looked back at the girl. "For a time, maybe. You understand us better than most, child. You understand. Our home has need of us; the spirit world is ill. We shall heal it."

The young Airbender sighed. "I'll miss you all though. We can still visit through the portal!"

The dragon spirit nodded. "Indeed. Although the Avatar will need to ensure only decent humans will visit our world. Despite Harmonic Convergence, it seems the world still has need of the Avatar to be the bridge between our two worlds. For now. Until we learn to live in peace."

Aana nodded and placed a hand on the dragon spirit's side. It was rough, like leather, but warm to the touch. "How will we stop the bad guys without you all though?"

Qi-Lóng pointed towards the lights on the sea. "Help shall always be given to those that require it."

"What the hell was that noise?"

"The city's warning system! There's a fleet inbound! Not more Red Lotus, surely?"

"You think so Kai? We're totally screwed if you're right…"

"Hey, Auri. Hey! Look at me. We're going to be fine. It's probably the United Forces. They took their sweet time if it was…"

Auri shook her head. "Why would they take so long if they were here to save the city?"

Kai shrugged. "Dunno. Although, the Red Lotus were already in the city. There was no super long march like there was back when Kuvira attacked. They probably only just found out."

The pair were stood on a rooftop in the business district of the city. They had been making their way to the President's office to help liberate him from the Red Lotus when the claxons had been set off. The ships out on the sea were definitely getting closer all the time but it was currently impossible to tell who they were due to the nights embrace.

Kai pointed. "The President was in that building there when they struck. Zukoh was right; if the people have a leader to rally behind, they'll help overthrow the Red Lotus."

Auri nodded. "Even if they just each free a White Lotus, it'll help shift the balance."

Kai grinned. "Right. Let's get moving."

They both leapt from the building and soared towards one of the skyscrapers, which was one of the only ones showing no damage. As they approached one of the higher floors, Kai began to spin as he flew upwards. Blasting a focused gust or air from his feet as he approached a window, he grinned as the glass shattered, leaving him free to fall through safely. Auri quickly followed and they snuck across the room quietly, as though they hadn't just made a huge racket breaking in.

The building was silent. They emerged into a hallway and made their way down it, checking each room for any sign of people. One room revealed a young woman huddled in a corner, crying softly. When Auri approached, she noticed her airbender garb and pushed her away violently, shouting about hating benders. Obviously shaken, Auri had backed away and had ran to Kai.

There was nobody else on that floor, so they climbed the stairs to the one above. This one also proved to be futile and even Kai wondered how long it would take for them to find the President. The Red Lotus had all begun to move in response to the new ships out on the ocean and Zukoh had pointed out it would be a good time to move. If they were quick.

The next floor up yielded better results. They only had to check a number of rooms before they found one that clearly belonged to the president; it had the giant words 'Pres' and 'Ident' on both doors, separated by the gap in between. Both doors were open slightly, prompting the Airbenders to look at each other in worry. Kai cautiously edged into the room, which was in total darkness.

"Ah. Shit."

"What? What is it?" Auri asked in a slight panic. The night silence was starting to creep her out.

Kai emerged from the room. "Blood. On the floor. Still wet, otherwise I wouldn't have seen it. See?" he asked, holding up his foot.

Auri covered her eyes quickly. "No! Don't you dare!"

Kai pulled a face as he lowered his leg. "Looks like they got the President. We failed."

Auri sniffed, clearly upset at the poor outcome of the mission more so than the death of the President. In all honesty, he'd been even more unpopular than Raiko.

"Well we tried. Honestly, I doubt we'll find him, given the state of the room. Best thing we can do now is go to the Temple and find my daughter. I need to make sure she's ok and if we-" Kai said, already walking away from the room, before he heard a crackling noise coming from inside.

Turning, he paced back and peered back through the doors. Auri also stuck her head through, relieved that it was too dark to see any of the blood Kai had mentioned. "Is that…?" she asked, listening carefully.

"The radio. Yeah," Kai said, pulling the door open wide and walking back in. He shuffled around the desk before brushing a number of papers onto the floor and grabbing the radio speaker. Tuning it carefully, he listened as a voice became clear.

"tss…a mess….tsss….the pres…..tsss….repeat, a message…..for the President…"

Kai looked over at Auri in hesitation, who nodded and gave a thumbs-up. Pressing the speaker button, Kai leant down to the microphone. "This is Kai, of Air Temple Island speaking. President's Office. Who is this?"

"…Kai? Married to Jinora?"

"Yeah that's me. Who's this?"

"Where's the President, Kai?"

Kai frowned. "Not here. Again, who is this? If you don't answer then I'm assuming you're hostile and this little chat is over."

"….Look out at the ocean. That's me. And we're not hostile. At least, not to you or the city. This is Kazon, Crown Prince of the Fire Nation, Admiral of the Second Fire Navy Fleet and we're here to save your city and free my brother and my aunt. Anyone seen them around?"