Chapter Text
“Ugh..” Asami groaned as the mud beneath her boots oozed, “Kuvira was a power-hungry bitch, but if there’s one thing I could give her credit for, it was keeping the lower ring clean.”
Katara chuckled, “Yeah, I’ve had to get used to that since I kept getting deployed here.”
“Well, good thing we’re almost at the address; I wonder what this avatar is like, or if they know of their abilities.”
Katara nodded, “Well, it has been almost 18 years now; I think I would’ve at least accidentally come across the fact I can heat my food up with my fingers instead of using gas by this point.”
“That was funny,” Asami laughed, shaking her head, “But, with how Guan and the Dai Li have been cracking down on foreign bending since they were reinstated, it wouldn’t be far off to say the avatar might not know anything yet.”
It was true. Despite how forward-thinking the Earth Republic presented itself after steering away from an absolute monarchy, remnants of how said kingdom had operated, namely the Dai Li, had reared its ugly head into the modern day, and Guan was the reason for it.
Alas, there was no war in Ba Sing Se.
“I guess it’s all the more important we get to them before him and his goons do then.”
“That, I can agree on.” Asami nodded.
All of a sudden, shadows darted overhead, and without warning a pile of rubble came crashing down from the rooftops above.
Instantly Katara sprung into action, not even looking up; instinct took over. She slammed into Asamii, driving them both to the ground as a slab of stone crushed the spot they’d just vacated. Pebbles pelted her back as the echo faded.
She pulled away, rising to her feet, “Are you okay? That was sudden.” She stretched her hand out to help the older woman out.
Asami coughed, wincing as Katara pulled her up, “Yeah… I’ll live – thanks for the save.”
“Something must be going on; even though we’re in the lower ring, you don't see rocks falling out of the sky, and people running across roofs everyday.”
Asami nodded, before shaking the thought away, “Yeah, you’re right – but we’re not the police; we’re here to find the avatar, we have to stay on task.”
Asami was right, Katara knew it.
But still, something didn’t sit right with her; what if someone was in trouble? Were they supposed to just sit by and let it happen, in the name of obtaining the Avatar? Would that be something said Avatar would even endorse?
Well, maybe that was the kid in her talking.
“It should be down this corner.” Asami announced.
Katara nodded, shaking off her thoughts.
They turned the bend, walking onto ‘3rd street’ as the sign read – this was where the Dai Li had been monitoring for the past few years, and where Guan believed the Avatar had been growing up for the past eighteen years.
Finally, they were here.
Nothing would stand between them and their goal from here on out.
Or so they thought.
“Leave us alone!”
A scream—sharp, panicked, too close. Katara and Asami rounded the corner just in time to see a family being dragged into the open, two masked men closing around them.
Asami’s jaw tightened. “Katara, the mission–” She couldn't even finish her sentence.
The mission blurred in Katara’s mind, replaced by something heavier, instinctive. She didn’t wait for Asami’s approval this time.
“Hey! Knock it off!” She stepped forward, setting her feet against the ground forcefully. Air rushed forward in a horizontal line, knocking the men off their feet and slamming them onto a fruit stand with a hollow thud.
Asami sighed, strapping her right hand with a glove that buzzed with electricity, "I guess this is what we’re doing today. Katara! Get the family out of here, I'll deal with these guys.”
It didn't take long for the men to get back on their feet. They responded immediately; not one, but two of them charged at Asami.
Unfortunately for them, she’d seen this before. She shot forward, palm crackling with chi as she struck the first attacker square in his chest.
He screamed in pain as electricity pulsated through him, his body giving up as he tumbled over.
Not learning from the mistakes of his comrade, the other lunged in with a dagger, aiming for her shoulder but he was off-balance – asami capitalised; she kicked through his legs, sweeping him off his feet and onto the ground with a thud.
Judging from how he groaned in pain–he’d be out for a while.
She wiped her hands down on her trousers, chuckling,“Well look at that, guess I’ve still got it.”
Katara rushed to the aid of the family, seeing that Asami had dealt with the thugs; a mother, father and a daughter. They looked pretty normal, nothing stood out about them and there were certainly no clues from their appearance as to why they were being dragged out of their house by thugs.
“Good afternoon, I’m Katara of the White Lotus, and we’re here to help.” She looked at the daughter, seeing as she seemed the most alert, “What’s your name, if you don't mind me asking?
The daughter spoke up, “I’m Zemira. Wait, the white lotus… What are you guys doing here? And those tattoos… you’re an airbender? Thanks, of course but it’s not something you see everyday.”
Katara smiled, nodding “We’re here… on official business, and yes–I’m a master which is why I have these…but we noticed the ruckus here and saw you guys were in trouble–what’s up with that?”
“We have as much of an idea as you…they kicked our door in, and dragged us out here, saying we have to come with them. We’re all non-benders, aside from dad and he’s unwell, so we couldn't do much.”
Katara held a hand to her chin, pondering on the situation for a moment, “How many of them are there?”
“That I can remember… four?”
Asami walked into earshot, “Wait… four? We only saw two–”
Katara opened her mouth to respond, but the ground beneath them quaked—sharp, deliberate, unnatural. Suddenly, the problem was not just two unaccounted men, but five of them as they emerged from the rooftops.
With haste, they circled around, creeping towards Asami and Katara. Now up against the house, they had no choice but to fight their way out of this, and that they were prepared to do.
“We took on two of you low-lives, I'm sure we can handle a couple more.” Katara smirked, bouncing on her toes.
Katara’s smirk barely had time to settle before she felt it—a shift in the air, subtle but wrong. The masked men didn’t rush them. They didn’t take a stance or bark threats. They simply… stood there, shoulders angled slightly downward, like they were waiting for something.
Asami frowned. “Why aren’t they—?”
A sharp crack echoed from somewhere beyond the circle. Not bending. Not stone. Something softer. Bone? Katara’s stomach tightened.
A sixth figure stepped out from the alley beside the house, moving with a calmness that contrasted the tension choking the street. He wasn’t masked. He didn’t need to be. His presence alone tightened the air around them, like gravity had doubled in an instant.
This was their leader.
Katara felt her heartbeat stutter.
The family shrank back instinctively.
Asami’s stance widened. “Who the hell are you?”
The man didn’t answer. He simply lifted one hand, palm facing upward.
Katara’s breath caught.
The movement was too gentle. Too smooth. Too controlled.
Asami took a step forward—and instantly froze.
Her back arched unnaturally, breath ripping out of her lungs as her arms snapped rigid at her sides. The daughter screamed as her father’s knees buckled sharply, his body jerking like a puppet with tangled strings. The masked men didn’t move; they didn’t need to. Something else was controlling the battlefield.
Katara’s eyes widened.
She’d seen this before… her great grandma, she’d warned her about this.
No. No, not that. Not here. Not now.
Asami strained, teeth clenched, electricity stuttering in her gloves but unable to complete a circuit. Her muscles spasmed violently as an invisible force twisted her joints just enough to hurt, not enough to break.
“Asami!” Katara reached forward
Her fingers stopped inches from Asami’s arm. She could feel it. A pressure in the air. A pull on the water in her own veins. Subtle, probing, tasting her bending like a predator testing prey.
The man finally spoke, voice calm, almost polite.
“Asami? Would that be the famous Asami Sato of Sato industries, now with the white lotus? I actually really like you, and the lotus… well that was until you interfered here.” He chuckled.
Katara’s blood ran cold.
He flicked his wrist.
The family collapsed instantly, limbs locking at painful angles as they were dragged toward the masked men—no hands touching them, no bending stance visible.
Just him.
Just his will.
Asami was yanked off her feet next, dragged across the dirt as she choked on her own breath, fighting for control of her own body.
Katara’s pulse hammered in her ears.
Bloodbending.
She'd heard about it, but she never paid it any mind–never thought it was real.
This man bent bodies like airbenders bent leaves.
She stumbled backward, fear slicing through her defenses. She couldn’t win this. She couldn’t even reach them.
She tried to take a stance, “Let them go!” she shouted, thrusting her palms forward in an attempt to blow this man away.
His fingers twitched.
Her knees buckled.
For some reason, he wasn't fully controlling her— he was testing her limits. Measuring her. Seeing how far he had to push.
The masked men began hauling the immobilized family toward the alley. Asami fought harder than any of them, electricity flaring in bursts—until his other hand rose, and her body snapped rigid again, her scream cut short as she was forced still.
“Run, Katara!” Asami strained against the hold, voice shredding. “Go!”
Katara’s heart twisted. She wanted to fight. She wanted to save them. But her body was slipping under that invisible pressure, veins tightening like wires under someone else’s fingers.
The man tilted his head.
“Smart girl,” he said softly.
“Run.”
A stone wall erupted upward between them—erected by the masked earthbenders on his command.
Katara didn’t think. She sprinted down the opposite alley, feet pounding on stone, tears stinging hot in the corners of her eyes as screams echoed behind her. She tried to turn back twice—both times, she felt that same invisible tug on her blood.
Warning her.
Pushing her.
She fled.
She didn’t stop.
She didn’t look back.
Because she knew:
If she turned around, that man would take her too.
And no one would be around to tell the tale.
…
They descended from the rooftops one by one, dropping into the alleyway below.
Ryo glanced left, then right. All clear.
They’d made it back home—in one piece, no less.
“We’re good,” he muttered, waving the others forward.
With the police still hunting them—and Deng and his lackeys now added to the list—getting out of the Middle Ring had been anything but easy. Normally, they would’ve slipped through the black market without a problem. Tonight, that option was off the table.
They were wanted.
When they reached the house, nothing seemed out of place. A few lights were still on. From the outside, everything looked… normal.
“Looks like we got here before him,” Kazuki said.
Aiko nodded. “Or maybe he was bluffing?”
Ryo didn’t respond. He couldn’t explain it, but something felt wrong. Deng wasn’t the kind of man who bluffed. Not with the power he had.
Ryo knocked.
They waited.
He knocked again.
Nothing.
A third time.
Still no answer.
That alone set his nerves on edge—someone was always home.
Ryo exhaled through his nose and reached into his pocket, pulling out a jagged scrap of metal. He rolled it between his palms, reshaping it, softening the edges, bending it into a crude key. He slid it into the lock and twisted.
The rusty hinges screamed as the door creaked open. Ryo flicked the light switch.
“Well,” Aiko said, forcing a smile, “nice place you’ve got here.”
She was lying.
The house was small and cramped, its walls stained with age and neglect. The air smelled faintly of dust and oil. Secondhand furniture crowded the living room—an old couch with sagging cushions, a coffee table chipped at the corners, mismatched chairs pulled in from other rooms. Everything looked worn, but cared for. Lived in.
Aiko kept her thoughts to herself. She wasn’t spoiled enough to judge them for the home they grew up in. Kazuki and Ryo were good people. That mattered more than appearances.
Kazuki kicked off his shoes and chuckled. “It’s okay. We know you think we live in a shithole.”
Aiko winced, glancing away. “That’s not true.”
Ryo cut in, scanning the room. “No one’s home, from the looks of it.”
Kazuki shook his head. “If you’re implying Deng got to them, you’re wrong. We got down here as fast as humanly possible—there’s no way his guys beat us. And there’s no sign of a struggle outside. You know the neighbours wouldn’t let something like that slide.”
Aiko nodded. “Yeah. If they were taken, we’d know.”
“You’re both naive,” Ryo scoffed, pinching the bridge of his nose. He dropped onto the couch, an arm falling across his forehead.
Kazuki rolled his eyes. “And why’s that, Mr. Know-It-All?”
“Do you really think Deng—a bloodbending psychopath—would leave clues behind?” Ryo shot up, stepping into his brother’s space. “What is this, hide and seek? He got here first and cleaned up after himself. End of story.”
Kazuki held his ground. “And?”
“And this is your fault. Again.” Ryo jabbed a finger at his chest. “You thought you were big time. Thought you could steal from a bloodbending supercriminal.”
Kazuki scoffed. “You wanted this just as much as I did. But when things go sideways, you always dodge accountability.”
“Fuck you,” Ryo spat.
That was all it took.
Kazuki shoved him back onto the couch. The cushions swallowed Ryo for half a second before he sprang up.
“Oh, we’re doing this today?” Ryo snapped, grabbing Kazuki’s shirt and yanking him forward.
Kazuki slapped his hand away. “You started running your mouth.”
They collided—more wrestling than fighting. Kazuki hooked an arm around Ryo’s neck, trying to pull him down. Ryo twisted, driving an elbow into his ribs just hard enough to draw a grunt. They tumbled onto the carpet, rolling, shoving, throwing clumsy punches fueled by frustration rather than intent.
“Get off me—”
“Then shut up—”
Ryo briefly got the upper hand, shoving Kazuki’s face aside. Kazuki retaliated, grabbing his wrist and flipping them over, pinning Ryo’s shoulder near the coffee table.
“You’re such a dick,” Ryo hissed.
“And you’re—”
“HEY!”
Aiko stormed in, planting herself between them. Kazuki released him as she shoved them apart, fury radiating from her.
“What is wrong with you two?” she snapped. “We have real problems to deal with—”
“Wait.” Ryo raised a finger. “Shut up.”
Aiko bristled, but stopped.
Ryo squinted beneath the coffee table. Something was taped to the underside.
He tore it free.
Turn on the TV.
Kazuki didn’t need another word. He grabbed the remote and flicked it on.
Deng filled the screen.
That smug smile told them everything.
“Wow,” Deng said, leaning back. “Took you boys a while. I was hoping to kidnap your family in front of you—but I suppose this will do.”
Ryo’s jaw tightened. “I fucking hate this guy.”
“I warned you,” Deng continued. “Work for me, or pay in blood. You’d have made a tidy profit, too. But you chose defiance.” His expression hardened. “You deserve what’s coming. Your family doesn’t.”
The camera cut.
Zemira.
Mom.
Dad.
Bound in chains. Gagged.
Their limbs twisted violently, bending at impossible angles as they screamed through tape. Ryo and Kazuki stood frozen, helpless.
Then it stopped.
The feed returned to Deng’s face, his smirk intact.
“Disobedience breeds consequences,” he said. “Obey, and we can avoid that.”
The screen went black.
Silence swallowed the room.
“We’re going,” Ryo said, eyes still locked on the dead screen.
“No,” Aiko said sharply. “How do you know this isn’t a trap?”
Ryo laughed bitterly. “What—should we email him and hope he’s impressed by our grammar?”
Kazuki exhaled. “We don’t have a choice. We play along and get them back.”
“But—”
“Enough,” Ryo snapped. “I dragged you into this. Don’t let me drag you any further. This is our family.”
Aiko’s shoulders fell. She knew it was pointless to argue. Deng was always a step ahead—and maybe, just this once, bending was the only way forward.
TAP. TAP. TAP.
All three froze.
“I’ll get it,” Ryo muttered.
He crept to the door and cracked it open slightly.
A man stood there, with an unkempt hairdo and a quickly greying beard, composed and unmistakably authoritative
“Police Chief Mako,” he said, holding up his badge. “I’m here with the White Lotus. We’re investigating a kidnapping reported at this address earlier today. Would you happen to know anything about that?”
Ryo’s shoulders finally relaxed, and he opened the door fully to reveal two others clad head to toe in orange gowns along with blue tattoos. He’d heard of this before--these were airnomads, and not just any, they were masters of their craft.
Unlike their counterparts in the middle and upper rings, citizens of the lower ring rarely ever met a bender who could manipulate one of the other three elements, with airbending being almost unheard of. Unfortunately, with the resurgence of the Dai Li, the citizens of the walled city found themselves in a new era of reluctance to the outside world.
“Yeah, we do–”
Kazuki came alongside him, his eyebrow raised curiously as he abruptly cut off his brother “Wait… Chief Mako? Is that the Chief Mako of Republic City?”
Mako nodded, gesturing to the women beside him, “And these are masters Jinora and Katara. Would you mind letting us in?”
The brothers spared a glance at each other, silently weighing up their options.
What was the Police chief of Republic City doing in Ba Sing Se, let alone the Lower Ring?
What made their case so special?
With a mutual nod, they gestured for them to come inside; they'd take all the help they could get.
An air of calm entered the room as the party swept through the corridor, eyes darting to and fro, subtly scanning the house.
Aiko stood off to the side, arms crossed over her chest, her skepticism obvious.
“Are you okay?” One of the women in orange asked.
She shook her head, coming back to reality, “Yeah… sorry, I haven’t seen an airbender in years, so I was a little thrown off by your tattoos is all.”
The woman smiled, “it’s okay, what was your name anyway?”
“Aiko.”
“Katara.” She stretched out her hand, “Nice to meet you.”
They shook warmly, “Nice to meet you too Katara.”
“So.” Mako gathered the attention of the room, “What happened today?”
Ryo decided to do the honours.
…
Mako exhaled, stroking through his beard. “So, this Deng, you say he’s a bloodbender–correct?”
The twins nodded.
“That changes things. We’d need to run a sting operation of sorts to extract your family; I’ve dealt with a bloodbender myself, years back. But one thing I remember is that you can’t approach them head on, or things become almost impossible to deal with.”
Kazuki’s eyebrow shot up, before shaking his head, “Chief, with all due respect, you don’t understand the situation; there is no extracting our family from him. This man has countless Dai Li agents in his pocket, and for all we know he has lackeys in every corner of this city–until we do what he says, there is no safe place for us in these walls.”
Mako chuckled, “What, you think after you raid a couple rival gangs, that Deng is gonna let you walk away scot free? Let me answer that for you–no! He’s going to make you do more, more and more! Until eventually, you either end up dead or in prison. If you give people like these an inch, they’ll take a mile.”
Ryo stood up, his patience wearing ever thin. “You know, now that I think about it, I don’t know why I even let you guys in. This isn’t even your decision to make; our family is the one that’s been kidnapped by this psycho bloodbender, not yours.”
Jinora felt distant from the conversation. As a matter of fact, since entering this house, things had felt… off. The few minutes they’d been here felt like hours and seconds at the same time. She’d felt uncomfortable in her own skin; it was like she was overheating, and her tattoos itched like crazy. The room felt small, yet large all at once. And her eyes.
Her eyes.
They’d been locked onto the twins ever since she laid eyes on them.
That was it, there was something about these two… or it was just all in her head?
Suddenly, she blurred back into reality, her ears latching onto the conversation.
“...Sato, CEO of Future Industries, and a personal friend of not only the White Lotus, but to us all. She was… we were here, and Deng took her, along with your family. We tried our best, but… there was nothing we could do; he just… bent us to his will. Come to think of it, he just let me go, so I could tell the tale. If that doesn’t tell you who we’re dealing with, then I don’t know what will. And I’ll be damned if I’m gonna let us have this man run us around after what he’s done.” Katara sighed, calming herself down, “So let us help you.”
Seemingly swayed, Kazuki looked to his brother, “Maybe we should listen to them, bro.”
“No!” Ryo spat, his anger finally escaping his control, “I’m not gonna let you drag us into another mess, no, not again! Every time I listen to you we end up worse off. We’re gonna play ball, end of story. I’m not putting our family at risk for you guys’ egos.”
Kazuki couldn’t disagree, Ryo was right.
“Let’s calm down fellas, you boys are smart enough to know giving the bad guy what he wants is the wrong move here.” Mako intervened, desperately trying to win over the twins.
“They’re right guys, Deng isn’t gonna just let you guys walk free after you do what he asks.” Aiko chimed in.
“Whether it’s the right move or not, the point remains; Deng isn’t someone we can just stand up to–it’s either we play ball, or we face the music, dragging our family down with us.” Kazuki explained, reluctantly siding with his brother.
Aiko heaved a sigh, it becoming apparent to her now that the twins weren’t going to back down. “Well, it’s clear you have your minds made up. I have too; I’m going to stay with them. Go, get yourselves deeper than you already are.”
“Gladly.” Ryo spat, grabbing his satchel and making a beeline towards the door, “Come on, Kazuki, we’re going.”
Kazuki followed along before he felt something clutch onto his hand. Glancing over his shoulder, his gaze was met by Jinora, the older airbending lady. Her eyes pierced into his, no, even deeper–to his soul.
“If you guys go, things will change. And they will never be the same.”
Chills trickled down his spine. What did she mean by that?
He spiralled into thought, only breaking back to reality as his brother tugged him.
“Let’s go, bro.”
Kazuki looked back at him confused, for a moment, before he remembered where they were and what was happening.
And with that, they left, not before Kazuki could spare one last glance at Jinora, her unsettling eyes still piercing like daggers.
…