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CHAPTER TWO - DO YOU KNOW WHO ONCE SAID, 'NEW GROWTH CANNOT EXIST WITHOUT FIRST THE DESTRUTION OF THE OLD?' THE WISE GURU LAGHIMA, AN AIRBENDER

182 AG

TWENTY-EIGHT DAYS BEFORE THE REPUBLIC CITY SUMMIT

I'll try again, Kaili thought. We'll try again. This time will be different. It won't be like last week. For sure. I can do this.

She left work a little early that day, Chief Beifong had let her go because she'd hurt her ankle on the job and needed a little rest. That Triple Threat Triad member she arrested was pretty fast and she stumbled chasing him. But her mind was more focused on something else. Someone else.

She had given him the key to her apartment last week. When I get home he'll be there. She was a little excited, she even considered buying him a bouquet of flowers. Doesn't the guy usually do that sort of thing? she thought. Never mind, he won't have anywhere to put them anyway.

. . .

When Kaili got home, his coat wasn't hung up on the rack. He must've been running late. But it was a perfect opportunity for her to prepare the bedroom and set the mood. She could finally use those candles!

As she was finishing up, she heard him unlock the front door. She was nervous, but the candlelit room looked just as romantic as she was hoping, which reassured her. His steps grew close.

"Hey," he said. "You're early."

"You're late," Kaili retorted with a smile.

"What's all this?" he asked, looking around and gesturing at the romantic lighting.

"This," she said, walking to him, "is for you." She took and set down his briefcase before kissing him, unbuttoning his shirt at the same time. She led him to the bed and laid herself down.

He slid her shield down from between her thighs and over her feet. He was ready. When he entered her, she couldn't hold in her voice, even if she wanted to.

Okay, she thought. This is good. I can feel it, this feels good. This feels good. Just wait for him to finish. That's all I have to do… Just don't think about… it… But she did. She always does. Every single time. What's the point? Her cheeks turned wet and her moans of pleasure had at some point become cries of agony. There's no point! I'm infertile! There's no reason for this at all! It's useless!

"Spirits," she heard him exclaim under his breath. "Again?"

She sobbed even harder. Because of her infertility? Her inability to sustain a relationship? Her loneliness? Her pathetic existence? "No, I-I'm sorry! I-" she stammered, covering herself now, her lower parts and her chest. But what she really wanted to cover was her face.

"What's wrong with you?" he asked, getting up and dressing himself. "Kaili, I- I don't think I can do this anymore."

"No," she pleaded. "Please, just-"

"I can't do this anymore!" he repeated, louder. After a moment his voice shrank. "I'm sorry, I just can't. I'm sorry." He left the key on her drawer and walked out.

After he left, Kaili continued crying. Until she fell asleep, and dreamed a dream.

"Mom! Mom! Look! Look at my bending!" My son says to me. My beautiful son.

"I'm watching dear," I reassure him.

My dear son assumes his waterbending stance, and water out of thin air gathers in a ring around him, sparkling in the sunlight as his face wrinkles in concentration. Without dropping the blue halo, he assumes his firebending stance and with a roar summons a bright hoop of flames. His expression relaxes as he turns to me and the elements return from where they came. Ecstasy. I prepare for his running embrace and kiss him gently on his head as he lands.

"Did you see? Did you see, Mom?" he asks, still excited. "I can bend two elements now! I'll be able to bend all four soon!"

"Yes, sweetie!" I say, beaming the warmest smile I can. "That's wonderful!"

I hug him tightly. I don't ever want to let go. I'll never let go.

Kaili woke up, still exposed. She wished there were someone there to warrant her embarrassment. How many more will I chase away? At least in her sleep she could be at peace. But for now, it was time to get ready for work.

When she got out of bed, she often turned the radio on, it made her feel like she wasn't completely alone, even though she knew she was. But the news of world politics didn't make the woman feel any better.

"The Fire Nation and Earth Kingdom have continued to draw away many of The Republic's key workers as a result of political tensions. Firelord Izumi's new policies offer free housing, rent-free for up to three months, as well as permanent jobs in the Fire Nation for any citizens currently employed in the United Republic of Nations. She has also reportedly ordered her son, Prince General Iroh, to return home, bringing his fleet and crew, leaving the United Forces severely understaffed, not to mention underequipped. King Wu's policies have been less generous for his citizens, especially those who aren't involved with military, medical or engineering - but has promised to bring further incentive for Earth citizens to go back to their home countries-"

Those tyrants think they can do whatever they want, she thought, putting her grey uniform on. The world would be better off without them.

They hadn't come up with an official reason yet. They would obviously never admit the real reason for their sudden withdrawal, but everyone knew. It was because they were afraid of the Republic's growing power. Not like that President Moon was completely blameless, her aggressive nature didn't mix well with her administration's secrecy. And given that it was her fifth and final year in the office, it was almost as if she was already checked out. She knew she had no chance of being re-elected, she definitely didn't have Kaili's vote.

"Firelord Izumi finally made a public statement addressing her critics, stating: 'As far as we are aware, implementing policies which offer housing and work to my own citizens doesn't violate any law of my homeland, any law of the United Republic, and certainly not any international law which the Fire Nation has officially agreed to.' President Moon's administration admits that the Firelord's statement is true, however, only due to the fact that she and her father Firelord Zuko have refused to sign new amendments to the International Law Agreement for over fifteen years. The Earth Kingdom, however, did sign the latest agreement but it remains unclear if they are required by law to abide to them due to their on-going restructuring of their government. Experts in the Republic say that every Earth State is restrained by the agreement. King Wu and his advisers have yet to make an official statement regarding the matter. We're hoping that these issues will be addressed in the upcoming Republic City Summit, where world leaders and city officials will gather to discuss-"

Time to go to work!

"Kaili," said the Chief, looking out the window with her back to the young detective. "You can have a seat if you want but this won't be long."

Her legs were still tired from chasing after those Triple Threat thugs yesterday. She sat down.

Lin: "Kaili, I'm putting you on the White Lotus Guard." She turned and looked at her to see her inquisitive expression.

"The… White Lotus… Sorry, Chief, the name sounds familiar but…"

"You know, the not-so-secret secret organization that assists the Avatar from the shadows? Well they used to work in the shadows but nowadays their work is mostly," the Chief tapped a piece of paper on her desk, "in the paperwork."

"Right," Kaili pointed at her. "I still don't know much about Avatar stuff but- Wait, Chief, The White Lotus? They sound like important people! This sounds like an important job!"

Lin: "It is," she replied nonchalantly, "but you won't be alone."

Kaili: "But, Chief, my metalbending-"

"You'll have time to improve your metalbending," Beifong interrupted as she finally sat down. "You most likely won't need it anyway. Don't get me wrong, it's an important job but it's unlikely to see any action. Police presence will put off any potential attackers."

"But, why me?"

"Well," she sighed, "You watch the news, don't you? We're not exactly overstaffed. But it's not like I'm reaching for the bottom of the barrel here. Rookie or no, I've noticed your work… Plus…" She leaned back in her chair. "You're not dirty."

Kaili looked up to meet her eyes, surprised. The Chief must've also noticed her slight disappointment. The Chief scoffed.

"What? You think I'm blind? That's my mother. Listen Kaili, if I reported every cop in the department who bent the rules a few times I wouldn't have a department. And like I said, we're not exactly overstaffed. But maybe by rewarding earnest, young talent like you I can set an example to those guys out there," the Chief pointed to the door. "Maybe they'll see where honest work can get them."

Her words restored faith. At least she can tell the difference.

"Chief, I- I don't know what to say."

Lin: "Say 'yes.'" She saw the rookie hesitate and raised an eyebrow.

"Chief," she said, "what about my case? The Triple Threats?"

The Chief started to explain, "That case isn't completely unrelated. The White Lotus, or, namely, the Grand Lotus of Republic City, Ranlok, has been accused of some things. Some baseless rumours backed up by nothing but conjecture from the mouths of criminals. We don't want anything happening to him, especially before the Summit."

That piqued Kaili's interest. "What rumours?"

"The White Lotus is funded, mostly, by the Republic. They think he's embezzling funds. Just because he drives fancy cars, now they think he's stealing. And thieves are the best people to steal from because they can't go to the police."

Kaili: "But-"

"These are, of course," she interrupted, "out of hand rumours of a criminal organization. We've looked over the papers, all the money is there, he's definitely not stealing. Times are tough for all of us in the city, gangsters included. They'll reach for anything."

"I understand."

"Good, you start tomorrow."

Kaili nodded her head and began walking out but stopped with her hand gripping the door handle. "Chief," she said turning around. "Someone arrested another Triple Threat earlier today. Is he still here?"

"Lu and Gang are interrogating him. If you wanna give it a shot, be my guest," she shrugged.

. . .

"Hey! Good cop, bad cop," Kaili mocked, opening the door to the interrogation room. "Chief said it's my turn."

"Very funny," said Gang as the pair of them left.

"Hey, Lady," said the thug, cautious. "I don't have anything to say other than what I told your two donut-eating buddies out there. I was just going for one of my nightly jogs. I don't know anything about any spirit world- uh…"

Kaili only glanced at him before grabbing one of the chairs and placing it in the corner of the room, under the camera, so she could reach for it and turn it off.

"Hey, hey," he said sounding more than a little worried.

She got off and used the remaining chair to sit down, leaning forward.

"Relax, I know it wasn't you," she said. "I meditated into the Spirit World. They didn't see anyone like you."

He gave the rough detective a doubtful face. "You can meditate into the Spirit World? Without a portal?"

"What, I don't strike you as a spiritual person?" she said. I guess it was true that I would be the last person you would describe as spiritual but I like going to the Spirit World. It's way better than this one. And the spirits are friendly. For the most part. "We're not here to talk about me, we're here to talk about Grand Lotus Ranlok. Talk."

"Who?"

"The Head of White Lotus Republic City? The guy you and your two-bit buddies are trying to rip off? How do you know he has the money?"

He hesitated. Kaili pointed her entire arm to the now blind and deaf camera. "I turned it off! Help me out here."

"Come on," he said. "How many cars that guy own, huh?"

"No, there's something else," she insisted. "You guys wouldn't go after someone this high profile unless you had proof, even you guys aren't that desperate." He knows what I'm talking about, it's written all over his face. He wants a deal. These rats are always eager to sell information for deals. They act all reluctant, but they were always gonna squeal. Here it comes – 'What's in it for me?'

"Well, what do I get out of telling you?" he asked.

She couldn't hide her smile even if she tried. "I'll get you out of here. You can go back to whatever sewer you crawled out from."

"Cute," he said, cheeks raised. He dropped his expression and leaned in towards her. "At first they were just rumours, but then we noticed him going in and out of his headquarters. He's not meeting with President Moon or anybody, he's driving to this shady car wash."

"What do you guys have against cars?" she retorted.

"Listen. The money he's taking is going to the Red Lotus. The guys an anarchist, like that crazy bunch who tried to kill the Avatar! We've seen the guys at the meetings."

"Whoa." Kaili put her hands out in front of her. "You sure you're not getting your colors mixed up here, pal? That's ridiculous. I can see why the Chief dismisses everything you guys say. And even if he was a part of this group, he would be all about freedom, right? Isn't that what you guys are into? I mean, sorry for my lack of delicacy but your criminals, right?"

"The Triad believes in order, we have a hierarchy. Just like you guys, we have rules too. Everyone believes in some form of order. A guy looks at a head of state and wants that position, maybe he's a little ambitious, maybe he's willing to hurt a few people to get what he wants. But that's not what these guys are after, they don't want power for themselves. Or anyone. What those guys want is the opposite. They wanna destroy power itself, to put the king on the same level as the servant. When they say 'Freedom', they really mean-"

"Chaos." Kaili let the word slip.

"Right," the thug nodded, almost fearful. "Chaos."

Lying in bed trying to fall asleep, Kaili started thinking about her mother, which in turn led her to start thinking about her absent father. She got up and walked to the closet. She reached for the darkest depths and found the picture of her mom. She shuddered just looking at her. It's okay, she's dead now, she comforted herself. She flipped it and opened the back to get what she was really after, a small piece of paper with distinctive handwriting. The only thing she ever had of her father.

'I must leave.' It read. 'I will always love you, my child.'

Her mother said that he left before she was born, before she had been given a name. Her mother also said that he's probably dead, and deserves to be. A little ironic. But she said a lot of things when she was drunk. And she was drunk most of the time. Too drunk to protect her daughter from the dozens of strangers she invited into the house.

The girl used to imagine what her dad looked like. What his voice sounded like. Where he was. What he was up to. What trouble he was involved in. She hoped that he thought of her as much as she thought of him. She wondered why she wasn't angry at him for leaving. She should have been. She had every right to be angry. But she never was.

TWENTY-FIVE DAYS BEFORE THE REPUBLIC CITY SUMMIT

"Hey, Korra, I wanna show you something, but you need to promise me that you won't tell anyone," Jinora said.

"Yeah, sure, I promise."

Jinora had taken Korra to the mountains, just outside the city.

"Okay, earthbend that boulder into sand," she requested, pointing to the boulder.

"Uhh, I can give you gravel, take it or leave it."

She shrugged. "Good enough."

Korra smashed the boulder into the smallest fragments she could.

"Now, watch." Jinora had to really concentrate for this. It took a lot more out of her than that trick she showed off on their way to Ba Sing Se. She had to get into a proper stance for this. Korra watched in awe as she saw the pebbles come to life and dance before her.

"What? You're an earthbender? But how-" A wave of gravel smacked her in the face.

Jinora almost dropped her stance laughing. She sent another wave at Korra, and another. But the Avatar struck the earth and blasted it away both times of course, before blowing Jinora into a bush. The younger woman launched herself out and levitated down, still laughing.

"You... did that with airbending?"

"Yeah, if I airbend hard enough, and control the flow of air correctly, I can 'bend' the loose pebbles," she explained, scratching the back of her head. "It still needs work, though, it's not perfect."

"Wait, so… it's not just sand or gravel… it's… any loose, lightweight material that happens to be lying around?"

Jinora pushed her lips together and nodded.

"So… you can bend anything!? You're an everything-bender!?"

Jinora covered her mouth and giggled, blushing. "Maybe that's an over-exaggeration. But it can be pretty powerful." Her expression grew stressed and she took her stance again. "I can flow the air outward, causing objects to move to my will." She gathered the flying pebbles. "But I can also force the air inward, causing the object to collapse." The loose earth imploded into a solid ball. She let go of it and it pounded to the ground with only a few bits of earth flying free.

"…Whoa..." Korra managed to say. "First the flying, now this. I don't know if I should be scared or proud." Jinora giggled again, assuming Korra was kidding, and ran up to hug her. "We need to show Tenzin! He'll be…" Jinora shrank around Korra's body. "Wait, why didn't you want me telling anyone about this again?" Korra asked, her face behind Jinora's.

"Just… don't…" Jinora put on a big smile before recoiling to face Korra again. "You already promised."

TWENTY-TWO DAYS BEFORE THE REPUBLIC CITY SUMMIT

She awoke at her usual time. Another boring shift at the White Lotus today, she thought, getting up.

Well, she thought, standing guard on the ground floor of the surprisingly small building, Chief wasn't lying about the lack of action. Not like I'd be able to protect anyone if something did go down, she scoffed at herself. This wire is more just for show. She was glad metalbenders already had such a strong reputation in the city, making her an automatic perceived threat.

It was almost the end of her shift when she received news that Grand Lotus Ranlok would be returning soon. Ranlok… She had been debating with herself all day.

"Excuse me," she said to a passing White Lotus member. The sound of keys rattling on his waist stopped. "I'm detective Kaili, would it be okay if I had a look at some things in the library? It's to do with a case I'm working on and I'm fresh out of leads."

"Nice to meet you, detective," he said with a smile. "This doesn't have anything to do with the Triad case by any chance, does it?"

"Actually, no. We've gathered intelligence that seems to indicate that the Red Lotus may be attempting to… revitalize. We're getting desperate and any information on the group would be helpful."

After a very short moment of consideration he smiled at her again. "Unfortunately, our headquarters is quite new so our library isn't as vast as you might expect. But if you think you can find something which may help you, I'm glad to give you access, especially if it can help to stop dangerous criminals."

Kaili feigned a sigh of relief. "I can't thank you enough."

"Follow me."

The man lead her up the stairs and into the small library. It was as he said. Short of books. Kaili walked in and the man with the keys intended to accompany her, it seemed.

"Looking for anything in particular?" he asked, struggling to look over her shoulder.

"Do you have more than one item related to the Red Lotus?" she asked.

"Well, know your enemy and all that," he said, after a casual shrug of his shoulders. "Red Lotus history is White Lotus history, most of the founding members of the group were originally White Lotus. Altho-"

Luckily someone had requested the man away. "I'll be right back," he said with a smile that seemed forced before walking briskly out the door.

There was a file labeled 'The Order of the Red Lotus' full of what she had assumed to be works of their members. It was more accurate to use the word 'teachings'. One quote stood out to her: 'New growth cannot exist without first the destruction of the old.'

Huh. Interesting. Guru… La… Lageema? Laghima.

It had some basic information about the group. Their names. Their leader Zaheer. Some of Zaheer's works. This Guru Laghima sounds like a pretty smart guy but… isn't this taking his teachings a little too far? As she read over it she noticed something.

Wait. Wait. This… This handwriting… It's… the same…?

Kaili closed the file immediately and ran out the door with it in her arms. There weren't many female White Lotus members so the ladies' room had a single toilet. It was the only place she could think to go and it was on the same floor.

Please don't be taken, please don't be taken! It's not taken!

Kaili ran inside, locked the door and sat down. I drew too much attention, everyone I passed turned their head towards me as I rushed past them! Kaili opened the page and inspected the writing for what seemed like hours. Though she was focusing solely on the handwriting, she couldn't help but absorb the meaning of the writing and reflect on the message of the-

*Knock! Knock! Knock!* Kaili froze.

"Detective?" a male voice said, deeper than the man with the keys. "Detective Kaili? Are ya in there? It's Ranlok. Detective, what're ya doin' in there?"

Think, think… What do I do? What do I do!?

Another flurry of knocks interrupted the girl's train of thought – or lack thereof.

Wait, I'm sitting on the toilet! Why didn't I just say I'm using it!? Ah! I've been silent for too long, that would be weird if I said that now! Think! Think!

"Detective, I understand you took some of our here files?" the man said.

He's Red Lotus, Kaili decided. He won't let me take these, I have to get out of here.

She looked around desperately for something, anything that could help her to avoid earthbending a Kaili-shaped hole in the wall to escape out of. The wall behind her had a window. It was just big enough for the girl to climb through. She opened it wide and looked down at the bushes below.

But I'm upstairs! Ah, there's no time! I have to jump.

She threw the folder down into the shrubbery and followed it down. She fell for longer than she was expecting to and couldn't time her knees to bend correctly. Her ankle buckled, the same one that she'd hurt a couple of days ago. The detective swore and got up, one hand on the wall. It's not sprained. I can walk. She picked up the folder and limped around the building to her car and floored it. I need to go home.

. . .

Kaili rushed inside to find that picture frame and the hidden note inside it. Here it is! She flipped through the papers of the folder to find Zaheer's writings once more. She analyzed the two pages like holy scriptures for what seemed like an eternity. There's no difference. It's the same handwriting. Zaheer is-

*Knock! Knock! Knock!*

It's him again. He must've followed Kaili here. Well there's no running now. Kaili answered the door and accepted whatever fate was given to her. She was a deer in headlights. Ranlok didn't seem hostile and his breathing was as deep as hers.

"Detective," he greeted breathily as he invited himself inside and closed the door. Kaili couldn't tell if it was her wire cables or the folder which kept stealing his attention away from her face. "Why did ya take that folder, detective?"

Kaili guarded her silence.

He sighed and his arms feel limp to his sides. "It seems that you've gone and figured me out," he said staring at a stain on the floor.

"Well," she mustered the courage to say, after a gulp. "You didn't make it very difficult." Why did I say that!? What am I doing!?

"Excuse me?" he said as he looked up to meet her eyes, offended now, more than anything.

"Yes, that's right!" Kaili exclaimed with confidence from an unknown source. "Your not-so-secret secret meetings? Under the car wash? The only reason the police haven't figured it out yet is because of all that going on!" she gestured around at the political tension of the world. "It's a miracle!"

"So," he started. "The police don't know about this? About me?" He seemed to be fully relaxed now, his breathing stabilized. "Why did you take that file and drive here, Detective? Why didn't you go back to the department?" He looked away from Zaheer's works and brought his attention to her other hand, holding her father's note. "What is that?" he said, grabbing it before waiting for an answer.

"It's a note from my father. To me. Before he left me and my mother. And this," Kaili said, slowly bringing up the folder, presenting it to him as his eyes widened. "Is Zaheer's work. Handwritten by himself."

"Spirits!" the man called. "You bear a resemblance to him. You're his daughter!"

To hear it said aloud was different from reaching the conclusion internally. Kaili couldn't stop the tears from flowing, even if she tried. Were they tears of sadness? A result of knowing her father was an infamous criminal? Or were they tears of… joy? A result of finally having a father? To know that he was still breathing?

Kaili's display of emotion visibly moved him. As if her many years of sadness had been conveyed through one act of vulnerability. She could tell he was fighting back his own tears, though she was in no position to point it out.

"I'll ask you again, Detective. Why didn't you go to the police?" He had just met her, but knew something about her which she didn't realize about herself at that point. She had been silently denying it this whole time, but there was no running now.

"I-I…" she stuttered, backing away down the hallway, into her room. "I have to see him."

"What? How are ya gonna do that?" He followed her into her room and saw her take off her uniform and sit cross-legged on her bed. Her lotus stance. The last thing she saw before she closed her eyes was Ranlok sitting down on a chair near the drawer.

. . .

Kaili opened her eyes. Ranlok was still sitting on that chair, except he was snoring. She got up and opened the curtains to realize that she had been in the spirit world all night.

"Did ya see Zaheer?" Ranlok asked, after a yawn. Kaili had somehow woken him up.

"Don't you have a family to get home to?" she asked, turning to face him.

"The Red Lotus is my family," he answered dismissively. "Now didja see yer father or not? You were in there the whole night."

"No." She grabbed her arm and gazed down. "No, he uh… It looks like he hasn't been there for a few years at least…" She started to tear up again.

Ranlok stood up and came to her. "Hey, it's okay. It's gonna be okay, kid." He held her. "You'll get to see him again."

"No, I won't. They don't allow prisoners like that any visitors."

"No, I mean we're planning on breaking him out."

"Wait, what? You are?" Kaili pushed the man away, shocked. "What are you doing? Why are you telling me this? Why are you comforting me?"

"You wanna see your father dontcha?"

Kaili contemplated the idea for a minute. This was crazy. The Red Lotus? Out of all the criminal organizations, her father had to be part of the one that... made the most sense to her...

"The Red Lotus isn't what it used to be," he explained. "But! We have enough skilled benders and we're all White Lotus, the guards'll be no problem for us. In fact, there'll be less guards on the night of the Summit."

"But, don't you have to go to the Summit?"

"I'll have a few hours to get there after Zaheer is freed. We just need a metalbender who can open those big doors."

"Me?"

"You can do it can't you? Those wires aren't just for show, right?"

Kaili looked down at the reel of metalbending wires as if she had just found them there. "Actually... they kinda are."

SEVENTEEN DAYS BEFORE THE SUMMIT

Walking down the stairs of the car wash, there was a distinct border between the smell of cleaning products used at the busy valet and the musk of an old basement. At least the underground room was somewhat decently lit. There were some Pai Sho tables and a central round table, large enough for the thirty or so chairs tucked under it.

Kaili didn't want anyone knowing that she was meeting with these people, so she exercised extreme caution travelling here. She advised Ranlok to do the same. She wondered how he'd gotten in his position in the first place.

The Red Lotus had been dwindled down to a group of seven, eight including Kaili. Well, actually it was more complicated than that. The large majority of the members had faded away as a result of Zaheer's failure and absence but were willing to rally to the Red Lotus flag once more after a strong leader took the reins.

The remaining few, however, weren't unskilled. There was a mix of firebenders, waterbenders and earthbenders and they were all White Lotus.

Ranlok, being the highest authority of the White Lotus and Red Lotus alike, was running things now. They sat down at the table and Ranlok introduced Kaili. Everyone was quick to trust her, being Zaheer's daughter. They explained to her that Zaheer hadn't gotten the support he expected from the Red Lotus. His ideals being considered far too extreme for most of the group, even by the Red Lotus' standards. And so he had decided to act with his small team of trusted accomplices. Ranlok had also explained to her that even when interrogated relentlessly, Zaheer's group didn't name anyone, remaining loyal until the end. But her father's views were beginning to be accepted and the necessity of his actions became apparent, given the state of world affairs. The Red Lotus felt like they both owed and needed Zaheer. They owed him for not accepting his ideals and for his and his group's silence. And they needed him to revive the Red Lotus to bring the former members back. So they would act.

They were going to break Zaheer out of prison. We're going to break my father out of prison.

Zaheer was being held in a White Lotus facility just outside the city. Though it was a White Lotus facility, it was funded by the state so all visitors needed signed permission from President Moon, even a Grand Lotus. On top of that, it was inaccessible with conventional vehicles as it was deep within the mountains. Kaili and the other two earthbenders would need to slide everyone up there. But as soon as the two guards recognized Ranlok, their guards would be down and incapacitating them would be easy. In fact, any guard who saw Ranlok would be easily taken care of, but then they'd have to kill them. The only problem was that there were two large, metal doors to go through. And if the guards weren't willing to cooperate with them, it would be down to Kaili, the only metalbender out of three earthbenders, to open them. I have a lot of metalbending practice ahead of me. They had decided that this was to happen just a few hours before the summit, as some of the guards would be relocated there, leaving the facility a little more vulnerable. This would be done in enough time for Ranlok to be present at the Summit and avoid suspicion. By that time, they would all be on their way to one of the old Red Lotus buildings in Gaoling. Of course, with their leader, Kaili's father, Zaheer.

Kaili asked Ranlok if they could have a little talk in private. "The Red Lotus has a lot of those toys left over, right?" she asked. "Any discreet explosive devices?"

"Bombs?" Ranlok said surprised. "Discreet? Well, we have these small explosives. You can wear them around yer torso. Obviously, the wearer would be the first to die."

"Would they be able to kill everyone in a large room?" Kaili asked.

"…Yes… I suppose they would." The aged man gave an inquisitive look. "Why?"

"Do they come in women's sizes?"

"This isn't a joke, Kaili! You wanna use them at the summit?"

The summit is the perfect opportunity to get rid of corrupt leaders and show the world that the Red Lotus is back. I don't want to let this opportunity slide. "I'll be one of Chief Beifong's trusted guards. I won't be frisked. You'll be a little late, they'll be just sitting there. I can get into the room. In an instant, everyone will be gone. The Firelord, the Avatar, the-"

"Kaili, I can't letcha do that! Yer father wouldn't letcha do that."

"Which is why I'm asking you. This needs to happen, Ranlok, for the cause. The only other person who could do it is… is you… but the Red Lotus needs you, you're an important asset, my father's going to want you by his side. Let me do it."

"Ya think yer father doesn't want you by his side? Ya think he's gonna want me by his side after I let his daughter sacrifice herself? The answer is No!" he said, sternly. "This is the last I wanna hear about this."

DAY OF THE REPUBLIC CITY SUMMIT

It was beginning to get dark. The Summit would start in just over an hour.

There were eight Red Lotus members in total, and all eight of them drove to the facility, in four cars. They could look past the windscreen wipers and heavy rainfall to see the Fire Nation balloons in front of the moon, the first ones to arrive in the city. Even with all the room, Ranlok had been fidgeting, adjusting his vest every so often.

They drove as far as the road could take them, until they had to ride up the mountain. Kaili's earthbending was good, really good, her metalbending would matter most tonight. She wore her police uniform and everyone else wore their White Lotus robes so the sentries were quick to let their guards down when they saw them.

"Grand Lotus Ranlok!" said one of the sentries, walking towards them with the other following behind. "Is there a problem? Did something-"

The masked waterbender took control of him and the one behind him. Bloodbending was a rare skill, even under a full moon, and was always fascinating to watch. Kaili saw the way they contorted until they passed. The bloodbender, Kav, crouched down to them and whispered an apology to who he still considered to be his brothers. They continued inside the facility.

The giant metal doors came into view. They were running towards them as one of the earthbenders joined them from a hallway to the side.

"That's all of them?" Ranlok asked, huffing and puffing.

"Yes sir!" he replied, less exhausted than Ranlok.

"And the security room? With the cameras? The guards in there are taken care of?"

"Yes sir! We're clear to go!" They had managed to take care of all the guards without any of them sounding the alarm. The mission was looking to be a success.

"I'll take it that none of the metalbenders wanted to cooperate with us?" Ranlok asked. When the man shook his head, he said, "I guess it's all up to you, Kaili."

They approached the door. Kaili could feel everyone's eyes on her, which didn't help. Everyone's counting on me. My father is just through this door. You can do it, Kaili, you can do it. She assumed her stance and struck the door, just barely denting it. I can feel the unrefined earth within the metal. She breathed deeply and let out a grunting cry, prying open the door ever so slowly. It must've looked like she was just sliding it open with her bare hands. She basically was, her bending was so weak. After the opening was big enough for everyone to fit through, Kaili bent over, hands on her knees, gasping for air. She glanced forward at the second door. Just one more.

"Well done, Kaili!" said Ranlok, patting her on her back. "We knew you could do it! Just one more and we're done!"

"Yeah," Kaili said, still exhausted. She marched to the door and hit the door harder this time, compensating for her lack of energy. The dent on the door was more noticeable this time, but the door was sliding much slower.

"You wanna take a break?" Kav asked her. "We have some time, the alarm wasn't activated."

"No! I got it!" she said stubbornly. She wanted to get this done as quickly as possible, there was no telling what risks they would be taking by staying here longer than they needed to.

They could slowly see more and more of him. He came to walk towards the door as far as his chains would let him. Ranlok was the first to push his way through the growing gap. Kaili's father squinted at him. "Ranlok?" he said, astounded. "You-" Zaheer was cut short by Ranlok's hug.

"Zaheer! We've come to getcha! We were wrong not to join ya, ol' pal! Thanks for keeping yer silence!"

Zaheer: "Nonsense! I would never rat out my brothers!"

"We'll have time to talk later," the firebenders broke their reunion up as they raced to burn the cuffs off of him. "This might burn a little," one of them said.

Kaili came stumbling in which sparked Ranlok's memory of her. Her father looked at her visibly confused at her police attire. Her eyes had wondered over to the cuffs being burned off of his wrists, she noticed they were a little loose. Actually his entire body is a little lighter-looking than I remember seeing him in pictures.

"And I want you to meet our newest member," Ranlok said, gesturing to her, beaming. She came closer as the cuffs hit the ground with a clank. "This is detective Kaili. Your daughter."

"I-is it true?" Zaheer stuttered. "A-are you really…"

Her cheeks were already wet. She took one step at a time towards him, she didn't want to ruin this moment by losing her balance and falling over. Whoops. It was the ankle that she had hurt from jumping out of that window, but her father caught her before she got anywhere near the ground.

"I knew we would meet again, Kaili," he said.

"Me too, dad," Kaili said, pulling away from him. "We shouldn't stay here for too long, we need to go."

"Zaheer," said Ranlok, grabbing his bony shoulder. "You remember the place in Gaoling? Fly over there and everyone will meet you there. I'll make my way there after the summit."

Zaheer looked down solemnly. "I can't fly."

Everyone was taken aback. They weren't expecting this. They hadn't planned for this. They thought that even if they were all caught, Zaheer, at least, could escape and revive the Red Lotus, alone if need be.

"But- but…" Ranlok tried to speak as his hand fell from his friend's shoulder.

"Does this have anything to do with why I couldn't find you in the Spirit World?" Zaheer's daughter asked him. "You haven't been there for years."

"You looked for me there?" He had just become the newest person to learn of her surprising spirituality, if you could call it that. "Yes, it's related, but I can tell you about it on our way out of here." Zaheer turned to his old friend. "Ranlok, it's fine. You hear that? No alarm. We have time. We'll get out of here. Okay?"

Maybe the fact that the person he was rescuing had to reassure him snapped him back into reality. Is this how Ranlok always reacts to obstacles?

"Okay. Let's go."

It was raining when they returned outside. The plan now was to make it to Gaoling taking separate routes so as to not draw unwanted attention.

The first of four cars drove off. Kaili opened the passenger side door of hers for her father and he got in. As she walked to the driver side, she saw Ranlok hunched over of the window of the second car. He then said his goodbyes as they began moving off. He didn't turn around, even though Kaili was sure that he heard her walk up behind him.

"I'm gonna go to the summit now, kid," he said, finally.

"See you soon?" He didn't answer. Kaili turned him around by the shoulder. "Right?" she repeated, searching for an answer in his eyes.

He gazed downwards as he avoided the question and stuck his hand out at the girl, looking for a handshake. "It was a pleasure working with you, Kaili."

Her hand reached forward, going past his, to the bottom of his vest. She pulled it out and lifted it up. Her body had been obscuring her father's view, but she could see as clear as day what Ranlok had around him. The explosives. He was wearing the explosives and was going to use them at the Summit.

"Kai-" Her swift embrace cut him off. Tears flowed once again from her closed eyes. She must've gotten his collar wet.

"For the cause," he said, softly.

"F- for the cause," she replied, trying to contain her emotions, not succeeding.

They let go of each other and Kaili watched him get inside and drive away. She wiped her tears thoroughly and got inside the remaining car, next to her father. He probably wanted to ask, but figured he shouldn't if she didn't bring it up first.

"Kaili," he said. "You know, I don't want you to feel like you have any obligation to the Red Lotus. This is very serious business and I think you should think about-"

"Dad, I joined the Red Lotus because I think it's what the world needs right now."

"…Uh… right…"

"Well, we've got a long drive," Kaili said, after a sigh.

"Yes." He put his hand on her leg. "To Gaoling," he said, with an optimistic smile.

"Yeah," Kaili said, trying to return the smile. "To Gaoling."

The Avatar's airship hadn't landed before she did. The raged Avatar created a crater on her landing and sprinted on the wet cobblestone, all the way inside the house.

"Tenzin!" she shouted. "Tenzin, the Summit! They're waiting for us!" She burst into their room and saw Pema tending to her unconscious husband. "Tenzin, wake up!" she yelled, walking towards the bed. "We have to go! We're delaying the summit!"

"He's sick!" Pema informed Korra, as if she couldn't tell. "He's been like this for weeks! He needs to rest!"

"No, no, you don't understand! He needs to be at the summit! It's very important, it could decide the fate of the entire world's political climate!"

Pema put herself in Korra's way. The commotion had attracted the children. They peered inside the room concernedly.

Tenzin rolled awake, delirious. "Uhh… the summit… I need to…"

"See!?" Korra whipped her arm towards the half-awake man. "He said so himself! We need to go! I'm taking him!" She made to pick Tenzin up but Pema stood between them once again, her arms extended, guarding him. Her face had twisted further into refusal. "He's. Not. Going. Anywhere."

Korra kissed her teeth and tightened her fists.

"Korra," Ikki spoke in a more understanding tone. "Even if you take him, he's not gonna be of much help."

Korra swore and pushed her way through the children and out the door. "Where's Jinora?" she demanded, but their guess was as good as hers. She darted to Jinora's room and snatched her glider before jumping out of the window to fly into the sky again.

. . .

When landed on top of the slippery, wet roof of the tower, Jinora was there meditating.

"Jinora!" she screamed at her, pushing and pulling her peaceful body. "Jinora! JINORA!"

It was no use. Korra screamed at the sky in frustration and it returned her aggression with thunder and lightning. She opened the glider once more and flew to the airship.

"GO!" she shouted towards the front and they took fight before the boarding platform had fully retracted. "JUST GO!"

While apologizing profusely for her lateness and the absence of Air Nation representation, Korra noticed that she wasn't the last to arrive.

Grand Lotus Ranlok had walked into the meeting room with a solemn look on his face. Some of the metalbender guards felt his quickening pulse and were put on edge. President Moon wanted to scold him immediately, but after noticing that something was off, spoke delicately. "Ranlok...? Where have you been?"

"My sincerest apologies," he replied, close to tears. Korra's eyes widened as he pulled out some kind of remote with a single trigger. "For the Red Lotus."

*Beep*

They were driving south, past Omashu, but they were also going right past Gaoling, around the mountain ranges and eastward to the rocky regions near the south-eastern coast, unbeknownst to Zaheer.

Zaheer had been explaining to Kaili the reason for his absence in the Spirit World and his inability to take flight. After Avatar Korra visited him, they forbade him from meditating and airbending, out of fear that he might grow too powerful and one day escape again. Even physical exercise wasn't permitted to him, explaining his current skinniness. He said that they would punish him for disobeying. He said that he resisted at first, but eventually couldn't. It became too much for even him. Not being able to use his powers for years weakened them.

But during his explanations, Zaheer was curious as to why his daughter had insisted to leave the radio on during their conversations, but about halfway to Omashu he got his answer as the broadcast had been interrupted by a distressed woman announcing the breaking news. Kaili turned the volume up.

Oh no. Something was seriously wrong.

Jinora regained control of her physical body and could feel dread in every inch of it.

Dad?

She threw herself off the tower and dove straight down until she flew through the window to her room. Panting, she jetted down the hallway and opened the door to her parents' room to see looks of horror on their faces.

The radio was on. "-A large explosion of some sort at the City Hall where the Summit was just underway. It's unclear how many were caught in the blast- Hold on, we're just getting word that all members of the Summit were indeed present at the time of the incident. Among those members were: Firelord Izumi, King Wu, President Moon, Grand Lotus Ranlok and... Avatar Korra."

Jinora buckled onto her knees. "No… No… Korra… No..."

.

. . . . .

. . . . . . . . . . .

. . . . .

.

NEXT: CHAPTER 3 - HOW FAR WOULD YOU GO TO MAKE YOUR DREAMS A REALITY?

"Kaili? Where have you been?" asked a familiar voice. It was the bloodbender, Kav.

"What? You couldn't wait a few months to take me with you?" Kaili said, stepping closer to her father. "No!" she started, in a mocking tone. "It was too dangerous! Let me leave my unborn child with a careless, drunk, neglectful, insane, heartless monster!"

Zaheer embraced his daughter suddenly, bringing tears of his own. "I'm so, so sorry for what happened to you. Will you ever… ever, find it in your heart to forgive me, Kaili?"

"I need to find the Avatar…"