"I'll never serve a spoilt selfish witch like her!" Elira snapped at the Dai Li agents
"You will"
The door then slid shut, leaving them all in darkness.
"Elira? Is that you?"
"Kai?" El whirled around, squinting her eyes as they adjusted to the darkness and she spotted the boy sitting amongst the group of people.
"Kai! Thank God. Are you okay?"She sprung forward, hugging the boy tightly "What happened? Where're Bolin and Mako?"
"I...kinda left them on a train to the lower ring" Kai smiled sheepishly
"Kai" Elira sighed, but she was relieved she now knew where the boys were. Sorta.
"Um, excuse me, miss? Your name is Elira? As in Master Elira, Avatar Aang's granddaughter?" A man asked hesitantly
Elira smiled at him, thought douted he could see it with how dimly lit the room was "I am"
The others all began to mutter and whisper.
"What are you doing here?" A girl asked
"Well, I was looking for you. I had a feeling that witch--I mean the Queen--was keeping you somewhere" Elira explained, standing up and addressing all of the airbenders "But don't worry, Avatar Korra and my family are all still out there. I'm sure that once they realise what's going on, they'll come to rescue us, I promise"
"But what do we do right now?" Kai questioned, looking scared.
"For now, we sit tight. My father always said that patience was a virtue. And that's exactly what we need right now. Patience" El put a hand on his shoulder, smirking at him "But who's to say we can't have a little fun while we wait?"
Kai looked up at her, confused by what she meant.
*
Outside of P'Li's secret prison, Azula and Shai stood with Tonraq and the twins waiting for Zuko to return. Finally, they heard Druk roar and the dragon landed on the ground in front of them with a thump.
"Did you see Zaheer?" Tonraq asked
"The only thing I saw was a snowstorm heading our way," Zuko explained, pointing to a large cloud of snow heading towards them.
"That's not a snowstorm, brother" Azula narrowed her eyes " That's him."
"Well, then why don't we give them a nice warm welcome?" Shai smirked and the group started running towards the snowstorm.
As they neared, a snowcat jumped out, Ghazan driving and Zaheer and Ming-Hua jumped off running to meet the group.
"I put you away once, Zaheer, and I'm going to do it again!" Tonraq yelled, waterbending a punch and an ice block at Zaheer, but he dodged both attacks easily.
Shai sent a fire blast at Zaheer as Zuko and Azula went for Ghazan in the snowcat.
Zaheer nimbly flipped to the side, avoiding the fire before bending back and dodging a water strick from Tonraq.
Before the two men could attack again, Zaheer pulled them both off their feet with a swipe of air.
Desna and Eska attacked Ming-Hua with multiple ice shards at a rapid pace, which she dodged.
The twins then created a field of iceberg spikes, but Ming-Hua manoeuvred through them with her water arms.
Landing behind the twins, she quickly froze the pair in ice blocks before jumping up and using her waterbending to create an ice drill, breaking through the ground.
She glided down to P'Li's cell and a White Lotus sentry firebent at her, but she easily knocked him down as she landed.
Another sentry attempted to waterbend at Ming-Hua, but she quickly froze him to the wall before then freezing P'Li's prison cell's door, causing it to fall off of its hinges. She stepped inside and approached her shivering friend.
"Ming-Hua."
"Let's get you out of here." Ming-Hua waterbent at the metal chains restraining P'Li, breaking them and the firebender stood up.
P'Li removed the cuff on her forehead, revealing her "third eye" tattoo before clinging to Ming-Hua's back as she used two ice axes to climb P'Li and herself up to the surface.
"We could have just taken the elevator" P'Li muttered as Ming-Hua continued to climb in silence " Show-off "
After the two of them reached the surface, Druk roared making them look up and the dragon flew down breathing fire at the two.
P'Li easily redirected the fire, smirking "I've waited thirteen years to feel this warm."
Easily taming the fire, P'Li used her combustion ability to send a blast at Druk, sending the dragon away.
Further away, Zuko dodged a rock from Ghazan as Azula sent a blast of blue fire at the man jumping off of the snowcat.
Ghazan stomped the ground, producing a large boulder in front of him, from which he punched more rocks at the siblings.
Azula ducked as a rock flew past her and Zuko sent a blast at Ghazan.
The earthbender deflected the blast before throwing another rock.
It hit Zuko in the stomach!
"Brother!" Azula cried and ended up getting hit herself, the sibling falling into the snow.
Shai and Tonraq were still battling against Zaheer, but the airbender continued dodging their attacks.
But Shai noticed Ming-Hau and P'Li from the corner of his eye and saw the firebender preparing to fire at them.
"Watch out!"
P'Li fired at them and Shai ran in front of Tonraq, using his bending to protect them from the blast. But the impact still sent them flying into the snow.
Zuko and Azula sat up, watching defeated as the snowcat sped off into the tundra.
*
The next morning in the lower ring of Ba Sing Se, Tu burst into his family home waving something in his hand.
"I've got them. These passports should get you into the Upper Ring" He declared
"Awesome!" Bolin exclaimed "Tu, you're the best cousin a guy can have"
The rest of the family looked on with saddened looks making Bolin quickly turn to them "And my other cousins as well. Yeah. Yeah, you're all the best"
The two brothers then stood up and Mako took the passports from Tu.
" Thanks. I know this wasn't easy." He smiled
" It's such a shame you two must leave so soon." Yin stepped forward, wearing Mako's scarf around her neck.
"I wished we could stay. But if it's true the Earth Queen is forcing airbenders into her army, we have to do something about it." Mako declared
"I love you both. Come visit again" Yin hugged her long-lost grandsons, who hugged her back
"We will, Grandma," Mako promised as the rest of the family joined the hug
"I love you too, Grandma" Bolin turned to look at the rest of the family again "And Chow, and Tu, and Meng-Meng, and Chow Jr., there is Big Tee and Little Tee, and Medium Yu, and ... and ... and what was your name again?"
*
Back at the Team Avatar's residence, Korra was furiously punching two protective gloves in anger, which Asami was holding whilst wearing protective gear.
"I know that Earth Queen is lying to me!" She huffed, dodging Asami's counterattack and kicking one of the punching gloves "I can tell by that stupid little queenly smirk of hers! I can't believe I helped her. I should have known she was using me!"
Korra spun in the air with airbending and kicked one of the protective gloves, knocking one out of Asami's hand and pushing her slightly back.
" Hey, I think I can use a break. You letting off steam is starting to, hurt...A lot." Asami took off her other glove, flexing her aching wrist.
"Sorry." Korra apologised
"Asami? Korra?"
The two girls turned, seeing Jinora hurrying towards them with Pichi in her arms. And she looked worried.
"Have either of you seen El? I can't find her anywhere" She asked
"Wasn't she going to search for the boys?" Korra replied
"Not without Pichi" Jinora held up the lemur who chittered "And no one's seen her"
The two older girls shared concerned glances before the sound of Pabu chittering caught their attention and the ferret ran forward, staring at something.
The ladies turned to see Mako and Bolin running toward them, panting.
"Mako. Bolin. You're okay. Where have you been? El's been worried sick" Asami questioned
Bolin kneeled over panting "We chased Kai. Train. Slipped away. Lower Ring. Slept in trash pile. Met our family. Grandma tears. Mako scarf. Earth Queen. Lying"
He slumped to the floor exhausted
"Can you interpret that?" Asami asked
"The Earth Queen's been secretly taking away airbenders and forcing them into her army," Mako explained
"She was lying. I knew it!" Korra exclaimed, punching her palm angrily "I swear, the next time I see her-"
"Wait, if the Queen's taking airbenders, what if she took El?" Jinora gasped
"What? What do you mean "Took El"? Where is she?" Bolin looked around for his girlfriend in panic.
"We don't know. We thought she went searching for you two" Asami answered
"But she left Pichi behind and no one's seen her all morning" Korra continued "I swear, if the Queen hurt her, I'm gonna--"
"Shh! It's the Queen." Jinora whispered and Korra softened, looking over at the Queen, who was being carried in a sedan.
"Quick! Pabu. Shirt" Bolin opened his shirt and Pabu jumped in, chittering in protest" I know. Sorry. Kinda sweaty."
The sedan was put down and Jinora quickly hid Pichi behind her as Gun and the Queen approached.
"Good. You're here. Gun, tell them the news." The Queen ordered
"We've received word from the Yang Province. There have been reports of airbenders there." Gun explained and Korra took notice that the man would not meet their eyes. Almost...guiltily.
"Wonderful, isn't it? It's the very thing you've been looking for." The Queen smirked
"Thank you! That is just the most wonderful news. Ever. Yay." Korra replied, sarcastically
"So, I assume you and your friends here will be leaving immediately?" The Queen questioned, missing Pabu wiggling in Bolin's shirt and Pichi's ears peeking out over Jinora's head.
She began sneezing uncontrollably
" Is there an animal in my presence?" She glared at Gun, grabbing the front of his robes.
"N-no, Your Majesty. I would never allow an animal near you." The man stuttered
Bolin folded his arms innocently but his eyes widened when Pabu's tail popped out. He clasped his arms around the tail and ran off with Jinora following behind him, Pichi in her arms.
The Queen sneezed again "If I find one within fifty feet of me, it's your head"
She turned back to Team Avatar" Anyway if you need any assistance packing, let Gun know. He'll see to it that you're on your way by evening"
" Uhh, this evening? I'm not sure about leaving so soon-"
"Because our airship is having engine trouble. It'll take me until tomorrow to finish the repairs" Asami quickly lied
The Queen finally turned to leave, sneezing violently the whole way back to her sedan. The team glared after her.
"Thanks for buying us some time." Korra smiled at Asami
*
Inside the house, Team Avatar was having a meeting in the main room. And no one looked happy.
"I can't believe the Earth Queen is conscripting airbenders," Tenzin said
"Those people should not be forced to join an army!" Korra scowled
"Well, technically, the Earth Queen has a right to conscript her citizens" Bumi stated and everyone stared at him silently "What? It's true."
"Elira is not an Earth kingdom citizen. She has no right to conscript her" Zira argued
"But how sure are we that it was the Queen who took her? She may have just gone looking for Bolin and Mako and didn't tell anyone" Asami questioned
"Not without Pichi" Zira gestured to the lemur perched on Bolin's shoulder "And I spotted her leaving late last night through my window"
Zira looked down in shame "I should've gone after her"
"Where was she going?" Tenzin asked
"I couldn't see properly, but it looked like she was following someone" Zira replied
"Gun" Korra declared and the others stared at her "Didn't you notice how he wouldn't look any of us in the eye? It's because he's the reason El got caught"
"Now, Korra, I think you're right, but don't do jumping to conclusions" Zira warned
"Guys, what if Kai was spotted airbending?" Jinora looked down worried "He might have been taken too."
"Probably not. He's surprisingly difficult to catch, like a— like a little, greased hog-monkey." Bolin stated
"But what if he was?"
Korra got up from her chair, kneeling in front of the 11-year old "Don't worry, Jinora. We'll find him. Him and El. We just need to figure out where to look."
"I bet they're under Lake Laogai" Mako declared
Everyone stared at him
" What? I've been reading some of Jinora's books." He explained
Zira shut her eyes and sighed, clenching her fist "Mako's right. The old Dai Li agents used to have a secret fortress beneath the lake. It had been destroyed but if they've managed to rebuild it, it's the perfect spot to hide airbenders"
The others stared at her sympathetically
" I know how to check it out without being caught. I can project my spirit into it!" Jinora smiled
"You mean that out-of-body thing you did to help giant, spirity Korra?" Bumi asked
"You can still do that?!" Tenzin looked at his daughter shocked
"It's not as powerful as it was during Harmonic Convergence, but if I can get close enough, I think I can do it," Jinora explained
Korra smiled and placed a hand on her shoulder "Let's go get Kai and El out. Let's get all the airbenders out."
*
In their prison, El and the airbenders were still trapped in their dark cell. They were all speaking quietly, El trying to keep everyone's spirits up by making jokes and puns, but no one seemed to be in a joking mood.
"Say, El, we haven't heard any new songs on the radio lately. Are you through with singing, or just taking a break?" A young man, named Yung, asked
"Taking a break. Trust me I've got plenty of songs I want people to hear, but right now I'm more focused on helping re-build my nation" Elira replied
"Miss El?"A woman spoke up
"Yes?" Elira smiled
The woman looked away shyly for a second "I...I love listening to you singing on the radio. Can you sing something now?"
A few of the other airbenders agreed, pleading with El to sing something. "Yeah/ Please, El/ You have such a pretty voice/ Sing us something"
"Okay, okay" Elira giggled "Let me think"
She didn't have her notebook with her, so she simply went off memory.
"La-la-la" She began singing "La-la-la, la-la..."
She took a breath before continuing "Gales of song. Guide me through the storm"
The airbenders listened in awe, the echo of their cell making her voice sound haunting
"On the wings of a small, simple melody. Words take flight and soar. They carry me. A world we'll see. Looking for a farewell, I pull the threads. A life without you I cannot accept. I can't tell that lie, I can't let go.
But now that you're gone, I have to move on. Seems like everyone just smiles staring at the sun. But what about me? Tell me how I will know where I should go? Oh gales, you sing and guide me!"
El closed her eyes as she sang
"I walk alone, there's more to life I have to know. It's just me, lost so far away from home. Alone I shut myself in. Still, the winds howl, they call and their voices lead me. Gales of song, guide me through the storm. Let the melody lift me high, I'll be me!"
El opened her eyes again, taking a breath
"Gales of song. Please stay by my side. Winds of love. Breathe into my life..."
The airbenders applauded once she'd finished and Elira felt a sense of accomplishment, seeing the airbenders smiling happily once again.
But the happy atmosphere she had created was shattered by the cell door opening. Light poured into the dark room and blinded many of the airbenders. Elira glared at the two Dai Li agents standing in the doorway.
"What do you want?" She snapped
"It's training time" One of them smirked
*
The Dai Li took the airbenders into a large dimly lit hall, making them stand in pairs, one on either side of the room.
"You are the property of the Earth Kingdom" The Dai Li sergeant proclaimed, Kai and Elira glaring at him "You will become the Earth Queen's elite fighting force and protect her at all cost. It is your duty to serve the Earth Queen."
Two airbenders attacked their opponents, who redirected the attacks and countered, knocking them down.
El didn't bother re-directing the blast, simply twirling to avoid it.
Beside her, Kai was paired up with Yung. He redirected his blast and prepared to attack fiercely but Yung held up his hands in surrender.
"Go easy on me! I'm not that good." He pleaded
Feeling sorry for him, Kai threw out a weak blast, which Yung easily dodged and they smiled at each other.
"Never show mercy!" The Dai Li sergeant snapped "Now attack your opponent, and this time, like you mean it!"
Begrudgingly, Kai threw a stronger blast and easily knocked Yung to the ground.
"Sorry." He apologised
"A soldier never apologizes to his enemy!" The sergeant snapped again
"I'm not a soldier!" Kai snapped back
"You will be when I'm through with you." The sergeant glared before turning his back and walking away.
"Hey" El leant down to whisper to Kai, smirking mischievously "Watch this"
She bent an air current towards the sergeant and smirking, swept his feet out from under him. He cried out as he landed on the floor with a thump and many of the airbenders started snickering. El and Kai included.
They quickly silenced when the sergeant stood up and glared at them.
"Who did that?!" He snapped
No one answered, making him angrier.
"Fine. If that's how it's gonna be. No food and 2 hours extra training" The sergeant demanded and the airbenders groaned.
"You didn't have to do that, El" Kai whispered as the sergeant stormed away.
"Yes, I did. And I said we were gonna have a little fun, right? Let's make these dunderheads regret locking us up" Elira smirked