Winding Legacies: A 'The Legend of Korra' Rewrite

Episode 4: In Harm's Way Part 2

"Oh, I can't believe that she had them right under our noses this whole time," Korra groaned as she flung herself down on the couch in the living room of the villa.

"Right, just vile," Bolin murmured as he flopped right beside Korra. The rest of Team Avatar trailed back into the house, their shoulders a little heavier after Jinora told them that they'd all missed the fact that the Earth Queen had been hiding her kidnapped citizens right beneath their feet.

"We have to get into there tonight and get them out. Where did Kai say there was an entrance again?" Tenzin turned to his daughter, making sure that his words were gentle. Since she'd come back, she seemed a little off. At first, he thought Kai had hurt her feelings and he was ready to tear Ba Sing Se apart to make him pay for that. But, the longer she sat beside him on the way back, the more he realized that it wasn't sadness that was gripping her. It was confusion and a type of confusion that only feelings could cause.

That was something he knew quite well.

"A corner of flowers in the West of the Middle Ring."

Mako pinched the bridge of his nose. "Because that isn't vague at all." Jinora shook her head.

"Before I came back, I went to check if he was telling the truth and he was. There was a straight shot from the secret entrance to where they're holding the airbenders."

"Okay, so we go in under the cover of darkness. Two teams go in the tunnel while one goes to find the main entrance on the topside and serve as an extraction point. Then we set off the biggest distraction you could ever imagine and we escape unnoticed."

Lemaya picked her head up from its lean over the back of the couch. "What about the last part of what you just said would make you think we'd come out of that unnoticed?"

"Ahh!" Bolin clasped his hands over his mouth as everyone snapped their heads to him. "Sorry," he muttered, relaxing back into the couch, "I just heard someone knock on the door and thought it might be the Earth Qu-"

His words faltered as another knock sounded and everyone fell quiet. "She always has the worst timing," Asami groaned as she rose to her feet and padded over to the door.

"Everyone, act natural!" Korra delegated from the couch. She held everyone's eyes, waiting for them to nod at her to show they understood how necessary it was for them to not tip her off about their plan.

Gun's head depended on it.

Bolin shooed Pabu back into his shirt as Asami pulled the front door open. Her face was frozen in a polite smile, but as she took in who was waiting on the other side, her demeanor stalled as a surprised smile cracked on her face. "Lin? What are you doing here?"

Lin nodded at her politely before shoving past her, making a striding beeline for Tenzin that Korra felt even with her eyes closed to the entire ordeal. "We need to get Korra out of here. Her life is in danger." Korra's eyes pried open, her feet already on the ground by the time Lin's final word left her mouth.

"What do you mean I'm in danger?" she asked, despite knowing that Lin wasn't talking to her. Instead, Lin responded to her question by speaking to Tenzin, Korra's rising concern not interesting her in the slightest.

"I just got word from Lord Zuko and Tonraq. Ghazan and the others have escaped."

Tenzin's hands fell loosely to his side. "How?"

"Because they got help from an old friend. Reports said that there was an airbender with them and, what do you know, it was Zaheer." Tenzin clutched his robes helplessly as he sat down on the arm of the nearest couch. Of all the things he expected to still happen that day, that was not one of them.