A/n: Hey guys, it's been a while, SORRY. I'll be switching to the third person P.O.V from now on. Pronouns like "she," and "her," will replace "I" or "my" to portray Fara's narrative.
"Korra, you have to go stop Su before she does something terrible." Jinora exclaimed.
"Stop her, we should be helping her." Opal retaliated.
"We have no idea where your mom is, or what her plan is. If we go charging into Kuvira's camp, we could get them all captured, or worse," Fara explained.
Korra nodded in agreement. "All we can do now is wait."
Opal's expression sank, and suddenly, the speakers around Zaofu came alive with an uncertain, crackling energy.
"Attention citizens of Zaofu." Kurvia's voice echoed, freezing everyone in place. "Your leader, Su Beifong, attempted to attack me tonight while I slept, ignoring the terms of our truce. Luckily, I now have her and her assault team in custody. Rest assured that I will not take revenge on the peaceful citizens of Zaofu, unless your remaining representatives meet me outside the city at dawn to offer the full and unconditional surrender of your city. Oh, and Fara, should you consider contacting General Iroh to attack, we'll face serious consequences. I spot him at the border lines; instruct him to stand down with the rest of his united forces, or I'll take serious measures into my own hands. That is all."
Fara's entire body jolted at the mere mention of Iroh. "Iroh?"
She turned to Jinora, whose expression mirrored her own confusion. "Iroh's here?"
Opal shot a stern gaze at Korra. "Korra, you can't let Kuvira get away with this! We have to go break out my mom and brothers!"
Jinora, irked by Opal's aggressive stance, stated firmly, "You swore an oath of non-aggression when you became an airbender. You can't just attack Kuvira!"
Frantically, Fara's panic set in. "Iroh—Iroh! I need to find Iroh!"
It felt as if Fara was in her own world, with no one acknowledging her urgency. Opal declared with defiance, "I don't care about the oath! I have to save my family!"
Korra placed a hand on Opal's shoulder. "No, Jinora is right. Your mom attacked the camp. Kuvira was just defending herself."
Opal angrily shrugged off Korra's hand. "Defending herself? She was going to attack our city! I can't believe you're refusing to fight!"
The house doors creaked open, revealing Meelo in his nightclothes, haven been disturbed by Kuvira's announcement.
Rubbing his eyes tiredly, Meelo complained, "Why is that loudspeaker lady talking when I'm trying to sleep?"
Fara knelt down to meet Meelo at eye level. "Dumpling, where is Ikki?"
Suddenly, Ikki emerged from the doors, hand in hand with General Iroh. "Fara, look who I found!"
Fara nearly collapsed on the floor, tears streaming down her cheeks as she looked up at Iroh, her vision blurry from the tears.
Iroh kneeled down, picked her up, and embraced her in a tight hug. "I missed you so much."
Sniffling against his chest, Fara replied, "I-I missed you too. I'm glad you're okay."
Iroh eased out of the hug, pressed a gentle kiss to her forehead, and tenderly brushed her hair back. "I'm okay. It's just my men. Kuvira blocked our entry; she anticipated our move. But she issued a threat against you, your siblings, Su, and her sons. She's holding them captive but allowed me to enter if I withdrew my troops, and that's precisely what I did."
Everyone looked bewildered. "What are we going to do?" Suyin's husband, Baatar, asked.
Huan walked up behind Opal. "Jinora, Fara and I will go talk to Kuvira at dawn, and maybe we can work something out. I promise, I'll do everything I can to keep the peace," Korra promised.
After a moment's hesitation, Opal said, "I'll go with you."
"We'll go, too," Ikki added.
Fara turned her attention to Ikki. "No! Dad told us to find Korra, and we did. Now you need to stay safe."
"Come on! Let us help!" Ikki insisted.
"I can't risk anyone else being captured," Korra stated. "You can stay with General Iroh, Baatar, and Huan while I work things out with Kuvira." Korra turned to Iroh, who were positioned behind the two children. "Make sure they get back to Tenzin if anything goes wrong." Iroh nodded.
Meelo expressed his disappointment. "Aw, man! When do I get to see some action?"
"Dumpling, I'm begging you!" Fara pleaded. "You must stay safe. I couldn't forgive myself if anything happened to you all. Iroh will take care of everyone."
Meelo cast Fara a pleading look with puppy dog eyes but eventually relented with a nod. "Okay."
As everyone began to prepare, Fara lead Iroh away.
She couldn't help but feel a whirlwind of emotions, craving an end to the chaos so her loved ones could relish in happy, secure lives.
Fara bit her lip, her eyes gazing up at Iroh without turning her head. "I'm glad you're here and safe."
"Fara, of course I'd sail half around the globe if it meant being with you and make sure you're always safe." Iroh smirked. "You're my soulmate, you know."
Fara pouted sadly. "I never want to be away from you again," cupping Iroh's cheeks, she drew him nearer. "I've been in agony without you, trying not to show it, but I'm a mess."
A single tear dropped down Iroh's cheek. "I've been too. I try to maintain a sturdy façade for the crew, but they've noticed the shift since I've been with you. You make me soft, Fara. I'm not the stern, stringent General I once was with them."
Fara stood on her tiptoes for a clearer view of Iroh. "Is that a bad thing?"
Iroh wrapped his arm around her waist to balance her. "Not at all."
Their noses grazed together, sharing each other's breath.
"Is this the appropriate time right now?" Iroh sighed.
"I don't care," Fara murmured. "I haven't seen my fiancé in months. Kiss me."
Iroh's hand cradled the back of Fara's neck, hers found its place on his chest. In the quiet corner outside Suyin's home, their lips molded into one, feeling as if time slowed down. Their touch was tender yet electric. Iroh's hand, still wrapped around Fara's waist, pulled her slightly closer, deepening the kiss.
The taste of each other lingered as their lips continued exploring the familiarity of each other's mouths.
Their noses brushed together again, a playful nuzzle punctuating the kiss with a shared smile.
Neither of them wanted to part, but eventually, they did when a loud scream echoed. "Spirits, do you two have no shame?!" Meelo interrupted, making the couple pull apart.
Both Fara and Iroh were too shocked to speak. One moment they were holding each other, the next, being scolded by Meelo.
Ikki passed by, observing how close Iroh and Fara were pressed against each other, and glanced at Meelo's embarrassed state. "Been there, experienced that."
As everyone started leaving the room, Korra spoke up. "Fara, it's time to go."
Fara nodded, stealing one more glance at Iroh, and planted a kiss on his cheek.
Then, she glanced down at her two younger siblings. "Behave with Iroh!" she warned.
"Behave?!" Meelo chuckled. "Behaving is my middle name!"
"Plus," Ikki rushed over and embraced Iroh. "We love Iroh."
✧༺♥༻∞༺♥༻✧
On the valley floor in Zaofu, Kuvira's army stood ready for battle, banners flapping in the brisk wind. Korra, Opal, Jinora, and Fara walked toward the front line, where Kuvira awaited, and behind her were the imprisoned Suyin, Wei, and Wing.
Kuvira shifted her focus from Korra to Suyin's family, encased in massive steel cases. Opal's anger echoed, "Release them now!"
"If Su agrees to bow to me and turn over Zaofu, she and the rest of your family will not be harmed."
Suyin forcefully responded, "Never! I'll never bow to you!"
Jinora and Opal began to look worried, prompting Korra to speak up. "There must be some way for us to resolve this!"
"I've already laid out my terms, and I think they're very reasonable. After all, Su did try to take me out during our so-called peaceful negotiations," Kuvira said.
"You call bringing an army to threaten our city "peaceful"? Wei exclaimed.
Opal gazed around before saying, "Where's Bolin? I know he would never go along with this!"
"Bolin is with my fiancé, working on something very important." Fara narrowed her eyes at the word fiancé, considering how Kuvira threatened her own fiancé. "But I assure you, he's on board with my plans. You two have been apart for some time. I guess you don't realize how much Bolin has grown up. Now turn over Zaofu."
"Or what?" Fara said as the sky rumbled, the wind grew more aggressive, and her eyes flashed from her natural color to white.
"Oh," Kuvira hissed. "I like you, you've got punk."
"I can't just let you take the city!" Korra exclaimed, her short hair flapping in the wind.
Kuvira sternly spoke, "Avatar Korra, you are interfering with internal Earth Empire business and letting your personal feelings get in the way of reason. Zaofu cannot continue to rule itself. They have been hoarding their riches and technology too long. I'm here to distribute those resources fairly throughout the nation. This is about equality."
"You don't care about equality!" Opal asserted with sincerity in her voice.
"This," Fara gestured, "is about control!" She turned to Korra. "Just take her down. Before I do."
Opal shouted to Korra, "You know it's the right thing to do! You have to stop this!"
"The only way you're going to keep me from marching into Zaofu is if you physically stop me. Now what are you going to do?" Kuvira challenged.
"It looks like you're not giving me a choice." Korra's expression turned resolute.
With a confident smile, Kuvira declared, "Very well." She turned to her troops, asserting, "I want you all to know that I would never ask any of you to do something that I'm not willing to do myself. So, rather than risk your lives, I will fight the Avatar one-on-one. No snow bender." Fara fixed a stern gaze on Kuvira. "Korra, if you win, then you can do whatever you want with Zaofu. But after I beat you, I want you out of my business for good. I'm the one who brought peace to the Earth Empire, not you. You're not relevant here anymore."
Fara stuck up both her middle fingers at Kuvira. "It's stormbender, bitch!" On cue, a thunderous sound struck the air, startling the troops and even catching Kuvira off guard.
"Yeah, Fara!" The twins cheered from their encased metal prisons.
Korra smiled smugly. "Fine." With a serious expression, she added, "You wanna fight the Avatar? Then let's finish this, right here, right now."
The two parties stood facing each other silently for a moment. Kuvira stood stoically with her hands behind her back, watching Korra. Korra looked determined, followed by the three airbenders.
As Jinora spoke, Korra glanced down at her. "Are you really ready to fight her?"
Fara's eyes softened as they traced over Korra's. Her muscles, which were once intimidating when they first met, had faded away. Physically and mentally, Korra appeared different, and a trace of concern flickered across Fara's face.
"Just stay back and let me handle this." Korra smiled smugly. "It's been a while," her smile faded into fury. "but I've got a lot of pent-up rage."
Overwhelmed by her emotions, Fara embraced Korra tightly and planted a kiss on her cheek. "If you need me..." her eyes gleamed with a white intensity, indicating she'd help if necessary.
"Don't do anything stupid," Korra teased.
"Don't mess around!" Opal said. "Kuvira is too good! Just go into the Avatar State and get it over with!"
"No, I'm only going to use that as a last resort," Korra told her.
Putting a hand on Korra's arm, Jinora said, "Be careful."
As Opal, Jinora, and Fara left Korra, retreating to a safe distance, Korra cracked her neck and took up a fighting stance. Kuvira stepped forward to challenge Korra.
"Use whatever you want: all the elements; the Avatar State; anything you need." Kuvira smirked as she took up her own battle stance. "I know you're a little rusty."
"Enough talk!" The Avatar fired two jets of flame at Kuvira, who sidestepped the first and ducked under the second, slightly off guard.
Kuvira spun back around to face Korra, who leaped toward her opponent, sending an arc of fire in her direction. Kuvira skillfully dodged, narrowly avoiding the fiery blast.
Korra swiftly bent a stone toward Kuvira's face, but the metalbender barely moved her head out of the way. Dodging another fiery punch, Kuvira reacted quickly by bending a slab of earth between them, deflecting Korra's attack and leaving her side exposed.
Utilizing on the opening she created, Kuvira manipulated a chunk of rock directly into Korra's stomach. As the Avatar stumbled back, Kuvira flung two metal clasps at Korra's extended wrist and ankle, using them to propel her through the air.
Korra crashed to the ground, tumbling to a stop and momentarily lying still. The soldiers in Kuvira's army erupted in cheers.
Kuvira straightened up, laughing as she resumed her fighting pose. "Looks like the Avatar's a little off her game!"
Struggling to get to her feet, Korra finally rose, and Opal called out to her. "Don't let her get you frustrated! She wants you to make a mistake!"
Fara held Jinora tightly as they both watched Korra intently, their worry palpable.
Korra launched a fissure at Kuvira, but the metalbender rolled out of its way and skillfully avoided Korra's airbending attack. The Avatar propelled herself into the air and unleashed an air blast at Kuvira, who once again dodged the attack. Korra attempted firebending, but Kuvira manipulated the earth beneath her, causing her to lose balance and striking her with a rock to the chest.
Despite shooting more fire and air blasts, Korra struggled to land a hit on Kuvira. The metalbender deftly dodged the attacks and trapped Korra's foot in a fissure, blinding her with a metal band and delivering another blow with a rock.
Tearing the metal from her face, Korra rose once more, firing another fire blast at Kuvira.
Kuvira dodged several blasts before retaliating with metal plates, all of which missed Korra. The Avatar soared into the air in an attempt to land a hit, but Kuvira thwarted her efforts. Despite repeated attempts, Korra struggled to connect with Kuvira, who deftly avoided each attack.
Kuvira trapped Korra's hand in a metal plate, launching her away once more. As Korra defended herself with a wall of earth, the two opponents engaged in a fierce back-and-forth, trying to knock each other down.
While holding the boulder at bay, Kuvira disintegrated the rock, causing Korra to fall to her knees.
Smugly, Kuvira taunted, "Come on, Avatar, get up! Show me what you've got!"
Opal, Jinora and Fara watched Korra uncertainly. Opal suddenly rushed forward. "We have to help her!"
On the ground, Korra lifted her head, yelling across the battlefield to Opal, "No! Stay back! I can handle this."
Kuvira resumed her fighting stance, a confident smile playing on her lips.
As Korra unleashed a burst of fire, Kuvira manipulated the ground beneath her, causing her to face the opposite direction. Undeterred, Korra recovered and hurled a boulder at her opponent. However, Kuvira swiftly bent a metal plate around Korra's ankle, sending her somersaulting through the air and crashing several yards away.
Fara winced, feeling the weight of helplessness as she watched her best friend endure a brutal beating. The desire to intervene tugged at her, and with a forceful exhale, Fara unleashed a strong wind, toppling Kuvira to the ground, eliciting a groan from the metalbender.
Seizing the moment, Suyin shouted, "You have to go into the Avatar State! Do it!"
Witnessing Kuvira lunging toward Korra, sheeding any hesitations, Korra entered the Avatar State, repelling Kuvira with a powerful airbending blast.
Kuvira rose once more. Korra pursued, propelling herself after the metalbender, blasting her even farther away. As Kuvira's hair unraveled, Korra ascended from the ground on an air spout, holding a massive boulder, preparing to crush her opponent.
Struggling to her hands and knees, Kuvira faced Korra with a hint of hesitation. Fara could see a sudden fear in Korra's eyes. Panic seized her, and Korra tumbled out of the Avatar State, releasing the boulder as she fell helplessly to the ground.
Jinora looked up, puzzled. "I don't understand. We got the poison out; what's wrong with her?"
"I knew you were weak," Kuvira taunted. She shot two metal plates at Korra, suspending her mid-air by her wrists. A sinister smile plastered the metalbender's face before slamming Korra into the ground, encasing all but her head in a mound of earth.
Approaching with lethal intent, Kuvira prepared to deliver the final blow. Just as she readied herself, a lightning bolt struck near Kuvira. The razor-edged metal plates went flying, with one slicing Kuvira's cheek as she was blasted to the ground. Struggling to stand, Kuvira faced Fara, whose eyes had turned white.
Jinora, Opal and Fara simultaneously unleashed blasts of air at Kuvira. Caught off guard, Kuvira soared through the air, landing hard on her back in front of her troops. Rising with the assistance of two soldiers, she angrily cried out to the airbenders, "You broke our agreement! Attack!"
The army charged forward, and Jinora, Opal and Fara conjured a formidable tornado. Fara enhanced the tornado, amplifying its force, causing occasional lightning sparks to burst forth and scatter several soldiers. The remaining forces could only brace against the rage of wind.
Jinora yelled above the tumult to Opal and Fara, "Keep them back! I'm calling for help!" She clenched her fist, initiating an astral projection to seek assistance.
Observing her sister's skill, Fara remarked, "My little sister is a genius," as she continued to rotate, unleashing sparks from the tornado.
The tornado, fueled by the airbenders, continued strongly, holding back even Kuvira's mecha tanks struggling against the powerful headwinds. Korra awakened, shattering the encasing wall, only to immediately collapse to the ground.
Above, fire blasts rained down. Fara looked up to witness Iroh, Ikki and Meelo atop Pepper, diving into the midst of the tornado. "Here comes a hurricane!" Meelo exclaimed. The tornado died down as Iroh descended, snatching Korra in a bridle-style hold. Opal, Jinora, and Fara launched themselves onto Pepper's back, while Meelo directed airbending at Kuvira's tanks. "You can't handle all this, Meelo!"
"We've got her, go!" Pepper immediately took off.
"We have to save them!" Opal prepared to jump off to rescue her mother and brothers, but she was restrained by Jinora and Ikki.
"Opal, get out of here; we'll be fine!" Su shouted to Opal. "Just go!"
Tears streamed down Opal's face. "I'll be back for you! I love you!"
Fara turned to look at Iroh, her eyes glistening with tears. "We've failed everybody."