Kuvira's Assistant

Chapter 20

Standing strong in front of the top floor door of the temple on Air Temple Island, the Chief of Police and President Raiko watched as the Earth Empire airship began to park.

The heavy metal airship ramp slammed into the ground and two Empire soldiers, clad in emerald green, approached the pair. A moment of silence passed as the four looked at each other, determined. And then another moment passed as eyebrows began to raise. Swiftly, a third Empire soldier jogged towards his colleagues and the group began to whisper to each other.

"Are you sure?" One soldier asked.

"Check the engine room." The other chimed in.

"What's going on? Is everything alright?" The President, a little suspicious, questioned them.

"Just a minute, sir. I'm telling you, I looked everywhere..." The third Empire trooper whispered to his colleagues.

"Alright!! Enough whispering!" Lin cut them off and the President followed, "I'm ready to discuss the terms of the surrender with Akemi Ikedo and Bataar Junior. Where are they?"

"Umm... I'm not sure." The soldier sheepishly replied. He looked to yet another colleague that joined the confused group. She was holding a radio receiver.

"It's Kuvira. She wants to talk to Akemi. What should I tell her?"

"... For goodness' sake, give me that radio. Let me talk to her." Raiko sputtered, extremely stressed and irritated. "Kuvira, this is Raiko. What kind of game are you playing? You told me you would send Akemi and Bataar over with your terms, and they don't show."

"What do you mean they didn't show?" The commander sternly asked him from inside her mecha.

"They're not on the airship."

"If they're not on the airship, then where are they?"

Interrupting her conversation with Raiko, Korra radioed the Great Uniter and put Bataar on the line, with hopes that this would assuage the situation at the very least.

"Kuvira, it's Bataar... I've been captured. Our airship was ambushed and I was taken by force. Korra refuses to release me, an-"

"Where is Akemi?"

"... Akemi..." he gritted his teeth, "was captured too, but they've got her in a separate room so that we can't connive."

Kuvira didn't believe that Akemi, with the skills that she has, could have been captured that easily. Something wasn't right about the situation. Nonetheless, she scoffed internally. The fact that everyone assumed she'd want to talk to Bataar first was... Funny, to say the least. "Tell the Avatar that I want to speak to Akemi."

"Wh-..?!" He sputtered, "What about me?! I'M the one with something to tell you right now, listen to ME!"

The group surrounding Bataar shot each other glances, feeling as though they were listening in on a private argument.

With a sigh, Kuvira responded, "What is it?"

Visibly irritated, Bataar continued, "Korra refuses to release me unless we back down and leave the city."

"Were the two of you injured?" Kuvira simply questioned him.

"I'm fine. I'd assume that Akemi is, too."

"Is the Avatar there with you now?" The commander very sternly asked.

"Yes. Everyone is here." He responded. And with that, Kuvira shut off her microphone and instructed her crew to locate Bataar's radio signal.

Caught with emotions in the heat of the moment, Bataar pleaded to his ex-fiancee, "Listen. If we don't back down, the Avatar will never let me see you again, and I refuse to live that way. Forget the United Republic... We have our Empire! We have each other!" As Bataar went on with his speech, Varrick came forth to speak to Korra.