I blink a few times, trying to adapt my vision to the darkness that has engulfed the entire room. There is very little quantity of light, the only source coming from the far end corner. Out of the corner of my eye, I see Chief Beifong leap and attempt to metalbend the big, thick wall that rose up behind us. Yet, nothing happens.
"I'm afraid you won't be able to metalbend that wall, Chief Beifong." Hiroshi Sato's voice booms across the entirety of the room. Suddenly, blinding green lights start going off one by one. I immediately lift my hand up, trying to shelter my face from the potent light. "It's solid platinum. My mecha-tanks are platinum as well. Not even your renowned mother could bend a metal so pure."
The giant, robot-like machines start waking up one by one. They approach us, circling us into a corner. We all immediately put ourselves in a defensive position. Despite having world-class benders by my side, I can't say I don't feel nerves scurrying through my body at the sight of Sato's mecha-tanks.
"Hiroshi!" Korra calls furiously. "I knew you were a liar, no-good equalist. Come out here and—"
"And do what, young Avatar?" Hiroshi interrupts bitterly. "Face the wrath of your bending? No. I think I'll fight from inside here, where my odds are a little more...equal."
"That source was a setup." Beifong spats. "You lured us down here."
"Guilty as charged." Hiroshi states, superiority oozing out of his voice. I feel a lump in my throat out of anger, this man played us. He made Korra and I look like fools. Like the bad ones.
Instantly, Sato's mecha-tank lets out a wire with a claw at the end, speeding at our direction. We all jump out of the way, dodging it. As soon as I land, I see another one coming my way, I jump back on my hands and quickly get back on my feet. I waterbend a whip with a frozen, sharp edge and cut the wire's end.
The mecha-tank attacking me continues to advance, slamming its heavy arm on the ground, attempting to squash me like a bug. I furiously drift to my left and feel my skin burn, I look down to see that my pants have a hole in them, opened through the dense friction I just experienced. I wince, then turn to face the mecha-tank with fury. I send out a water lash that wraps around the mecha-tank's feet and freeze it, stopping it from advancing any further. Then, I waterbend a ramp that goes upwards, sort of like a grand wave, and jump on it. By freezing certain points of the ramp, I manage to propel myself to go high into the air. I land at the top of the mecha-tank. I wrap water around my hands and freeze the edges, making it as sharp as a knife. I proceed to slam my hand to the glass, breaking it. I aim at the equalist driving the tank, yet I only manage to give them a slight cut on their arm, since they keep avoiding every attack I make.
Suddenly, I feel a hardened, round shaped metal wrapping my waist. I look down to see that it's the claw of the mecha-tank's arm. My eyes widen in fear as I feel myself being lifted up. The arm pulls back and throws me with a colossal strength and speed. Fear scurries through my entire body, preparing for the worst.
"Luna!" I hear Korra scream. "No!"
I slam into the wall, then fall to the ground. I feel the air blow out of my mouth during the impact, my mouth tasting metallic. Blood. I remember reading about internal bleeding when I was training with Gran-Gran. If I'm conscious, it must be minor. Yet, I need to get to a healing hut fast. I clutch my stomach. Tears are falling out of my eyes like a waterfall.
Everything around me seems blurry. The pain in my head increases by the second. I feel nauseous and greatly fatigued. I notice my eyes are barely open, yet I fight to keep them that way. I figure that losing consciousness could not be good for me right now.
I try to move my body, but it doesn't seem to respond any command I give. The only thing I can do is lie on the ground and try to focus my vision. I groan in pain, my body not coping well with the forceful impact to the ground.
The overwhelming pain and weakness I'm experiencing brings continuous flashbacks of my accident to my brain. Feeling my leg burn, my head hurt, and my heart quicken in panic all remind me of twelve-year-old Luna, experiencing real, excruciating physical pain for the first time in her life.
"Is Luna in there? I want to see her! I want to tell her I'm sorry! It's all my fault, Grandpa!"
I feel how wet my face is due to the tears, I attempt to breathe in deeply, trying to suppress the trauma that I'm reliving. I need to stand up. I need to help everyone. I'm no use laying on the floor like this. I'm not that helpless little girl anymore.
"Not right now, Iroh. Let her rest. She's been through a lot."
Get up, Luna. Get up. Do something. Anything.
"I never wanted her to get hurt. She's my friend."
Snap out of it. Your friends need you. Republic City needs you. Get up!
"No one blames you. Or Luna."
My left arm begins shaking out of pain as it finally begins to slowly respond to my commands. I flex it and attempt to press my palm firmly on the ground. Yet, as much as I try to lift myself up, I don't have the strength. Stop being so weak.
"Well, I'd say that was a near-flawless test run." I hear Sato gloat. "Load everyone into the transports and deliver them to Amon!"
Panic rushes through my veins. I'm stupidly aware of my weakened state, I'm terrified. I can't let us be taken. I won't. All of a sudden, I feel someone put their arms on my back. My eyes widen in fear. I whimper.
"Shh," A familiar voice coos. "It's me, ice girl."
"M-M...M-ako?" I manage to ask weakly.
"Don't talk." He whispers softly. "You're okay, I've got you."
I feel Mako turn me around and I'm looking intently into his eyes. He puts his arm around my waist and lifts me up. He proceeds to put my arm around him, holding unto my waist. He then walks and does the same with Korra, carrying the both of us.
"Y-You sure y-you can c-carry us both?" I say, feeling pain in my abdomen every time I try to speak.
He chuckles slightly. "You calling me weak?"
I smile softly. As Mako walks and I attempt to, I feel the nausea getting stronger. I gulp, trying to distract myself and not think about how bad I'm feeling. I see Bolin carry Tenzin out of the corner of my eye, just as he was about to grab Chief Beifong he's stopped by a wicked voice.
"Not so fast, boys." Hiroshi warns.
"Hello, Mr. Sato!" Bolin greets nervously. "Wow, what a really...um, swell, scary factory you have here under your giant mansion."
I feel as Mako's body tenses, his grip on my waist getting tighter. "Sponsoring our team. Supporting the Avatar. It was all just a big cover."
"Yes," Sato admits instantly. "And the most difficult part was watching my daughter traipse around with a firebending street rat like you!"
I manage to lift my head slightly, enough to see the electricity trickling out of the gloves on Hiroshi's hands. There are two equalists on each side. If I were in good condition, the odds probably wouldn't be bad. Yet, considering my injuries, and the ones of the others that haven't been assessed, I say we're in big trouble.
"Dad, stop!" Asami's voice booms throughout the room. I see her tear up. "Why?"
"Sweetie...I wanted to keep you out of this for as long as I could," Hiroshi begins. "But now that you know the truth, please forgive me. These people, these...benders, they took away your mother, the love of my life. They've ruined the world. But with Amon, we can fix it and build a perfect world together. We can help people like us everywhere." He takes off his glove and stretches it out to her. "Join me, Asami."
I see our friend proceed to take a few steps towards her father. She reaches out and hesitantly grabs the glove. She puts it on and examines it meticulously.
"No..." Mako whispers, pain in his voice.
"I love you, Dad." Asami says, her voice breaking. Then, she slams her hand unto her father's chest and electrocutes him, leaving us all in awe.
Equalists proceed to attack her, yet Asami dodges all of their attacks gracefully. Korra manages to stand and stares at our friend in complete and utter shock. I must say, none of us saw this coming.
A sharp pain burns my stomach. I welp and cough into my elbow. When, I stretch it, I see blood. My eyes widen.
"Luna," Mako coos. "You're hurt." He turns to face everyone else. "We need to get out of here, now!"
I feel his remaining arm lift me off my feet. My nausea increases as I feel us moving. Don't close your eyes, Luna. Stay up.
"I'm here, ice girl." Mako says, looking intently into my eyes. "Stay with me."
"It...h-hurts." I weakly manage to say.
Don't give in. Fight it. Be brave.
"Don't do this." I hear him say, yet each word feels as if coming from further away. "I need..."
My eyelids flutter, and it's getting harder and harder to keep them open. Then, all I see is pitch black darkness.
☾ ☾ ☾
Unbearable pain. It's overwhelming, it's exhausting, and it's waking me up. My eyes snap open and I'm screaming.
"Hold her down!" I hear Korra command. "I'm almost done!"
"S-Stop!" I plead. "Stop!"
Suddenly, my arms and legs are immobilized. I try to fight them off, but I can't gather up sufficient strength to do so. I feel someone cup my cheeks. Yet, my vision is blurry as I'm crying, overwhelmed with pain. "Just a little more, ice girl. You can do this."
The pain sharpens. A burning feeling overtakes my abdomen. I try to fight them off, try to make them leave me alone. It hurts too much. I want it to stop.
"K-Korra, are you sure you're doing it right? She wasn't screaming this much before..."
"Shut up, Bo!" Mako hisses.
"Guys, don't scream so much." I hear Asami call, but her voice seems faint.
"Everybody, quiet!" Korra snaps. "I'm trying to work here."
I don't know what my best friend did, but suddenly, the pain eases. I breathe in deeply and close my eyes in relief. Then, I blink a few times and turn to see Korra is facing me, tears in her eyes. "Why...why are you crying?" I croak, my voice hoarse.
Her arms wrap around me and I feel the crook of my neck wet as her tears fall on me. "Don't scare me like that again." She says. I softly wrap my arm around her, ignoring the complaints of my abdomen.
"I'll try." I say, as she stands. "What happened? W-Where are we?"
"You were bleeding internally." Korra sniffs. "You were hit pretty hard down there. I stopped it though, good think you have your flasks, or I don't know what I would've done."
"Did you—"
"Before you come for me, Little Miss Medicine, I did everything by the book. Like Katara taught us." Korra defers.
I chuckle slightly, and then clutch my stomach. I sit up slowly, and I feel arms behind me help me sit up. I look to see that it's Mako. He offers me a small smile, which I return. I scan the room and furrow my eyebrows. "Where are we?"
"The police department's airship." Korra clarifies.
I spot Asami on the far, back corner, clutching to a pole as she stares out the window. My heart sinks, remembering how she saved us. The sacrifice she made. I look at her, my chest feeling heavy.
Mako proceeds to sit down next to me. "Um, I'm sorry I didn't believe you guys." He begins. "But Asami's dad being an equalist is not an easy thing to believe. Even now."
"I know." Korra utters solemnly. "I'm sorry this whole thing happened."
"So, I know this is not the best time, but, does your offer to live at the Air Temple still stand?" Mako sheepishly asks.
"Of course, it does." My best friend assures. "And Asami's welcome too."
"Thank you so much."
"After everything she's been through, she's going to need you, Mako."
The firebender nods and proceeds to go to his girlfriend. Korra and I both watch him go to her. He puts his hand on her back, and she immediately slams into his arms. I can hear her cries from here.
My best friend turns to face me. "Come on, I need to bandage you." She says softly as she grabs the first aid kit that was at the foot of the bed.
I nod and lift up my shirt to my ribs, revealing a big bruise on my abdomen. I wince upon the sight of it and turn to look at my best friend, who is sitting next to me and taking out the bandages.
"I'm really proud of you, Kor." I say, as she commences to circle my stomach. She looks up to meet my eyes, looking sad.
"What for?"
I smile softly at her. "What you just did was really mature."
"It was no big deal." She dismisses.
"Except it was." I counter, cupping her face and squeezing her cheeks. "You're putting others' needs before yours, Avatar. You're growing."
She laughs softly. "I guess I am."
☾ ☾ ☾
"You're aware that if your mother ever found out that you were bleeding internally under my supervision, she would swim all the way here from the South Pole and ruthlessly murder me?!" Uncle Tenzin scolds.
I've been awake for exactly five minutes. Aunt Pema was bringing me breakfast in bed since I'm not at my 100% yet. As soon as Uncle Tenzin heard I was awake, he slammed the door open and began screaming at me.
"Sweetie..." Aunt Pema begins.
"No, Pema!" My uncle dramatically dismisses, his cape augmenting his movements. "Luna is under my supervision! I should've never let her act so recklessly!"
"Uncle, I—"
"I don't want to hear a single word from you, young lady!"
I lift my arms and let them fall down in defeat. I notice Korra peak her head into my room, her eyes widened. Then, I notice Ikki, Jinora, and Meelo poke their heads in, in that exact order. I suppress my need to chuckle as that would worsen the situation.
Uncle Tenzin continues. "And not to mention what my mother would do! Do you want your Gran-Gran to kill us both?"
I quietly look at my uncle. I blink a few times, unsure of what to do.
"Well?" He insists.
"I thought I wasn't supposed to talk..." I say quietly.
Uncle Tenzin's face reddens, his eyes looking overpowered by anger. Before he can scream at me again, Aunt Pema places my food at the edge of my bed and turns to face her husband. "Tenzin! Your niece has been through enough! She's okay! Screaming at her won't change what happened. Now, let the poor child rest!"
Aunt Pema proceeds to grab Uncle Tenzin by his robes and pull him out of the room. Once we've secured that they're gone, my cousins, Korra, and I burst out laughing.
"Dude," Korra states in-between laughs as she walks into my room. "You almost made Tenzin explode."
"I know!" I giggle. "Who would've figured he'd be this upset?"
"I haven't seen Daddy get that mad in ages..." Ikki states, her eyes widened.
Jinora approaches me, offering me a small smile. "How are you feeling, Luna?"
"Thanks to Korra, much better." I affirm. "I'm already sick of being cooped up in here, though."
"One more day of rest should be enough." My best friend assures. "Besides, the boys and Asami get here tomorrow. That'll be a good distraction."
"I hope so." I say, truthfully.
"Come on, guys." Korra calls, gathering up my cousins. "Let's let Luna have her breakfast in peace."
"Aww." Meelo whines. "But I like Luna! She's cool."
Korra and I giggle. "If you let me rest today, Meelo," I begin. "I'll duel you. Maybe this time you'll actually beat me."
He narrows his eyes at me, the points at me firmly with his index finger. "You're on, cousin."
With that, my cousins and Korra wave goodbye and leave me by myself. I proceed to grab the bowl of rice and chopsticks; I slowly begin to eat my breakfast. I look out the window, and I hear the birds chirping. I smile to myself, knowing that I'm going to be okay.
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word count: 2901
status: unedited
a/n: i looooved writing this chapter !
hope u enjoyed it
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