𝐖𝐚𝐫 𝐨𝐟 𝐇𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐬 | 𝐓𝐥𝐨𝐊

XXV

The Silk Road Bridge was one of Republic City's marvels. Made of sturdy iron beams the color of polished brass, the suspension bridge connected two of the city's largest districts. At that hour of the night, the suspension cables were dotted with lights, making the bridge clearly visible to passing airships.

In the distance, Korra waited anxiously beneath one of the enormous support towers, alongside Tenzin, Chief Beifong, and Sora. The young Avatar couldn't help but observe the older girl, watching as she gazed distractedly at the view of the city beneath the night sky.

Under the glow of the various lights from the nearby buildings, Korra found herself looking at the captain through a new lens. The lights reflected off the neatly arranged white strands of Sora's hair, tied into a low bun, with a few strands delicately loose beneath the gauze covering her forehead and around her tanned face. When the taller girl tilted her head slightly to the side, Korra could also make out the freckles scattered across her face. Lowering her gaze, she noticed that there were a few more along Sora's neck.

And when she looked up again, she met a pair of emerald-green eyes staring back at her, causing the younger girl to turn her gaze away quickly.

On the other side, Sora stared at the young Avatar with an expression of mild curiosity, clearly observing the girl's strange behavior.

But before she could do anything, a whisper broke through the silence at the stroke of midnight.

"Psst. This way."

Korra didn't know what had been happening to her lately or why she had been paying so much attention to Sora, but she mentally thanked the spirits for someone interrupting her thoughts.

Ignoring the fact that she had been caught staring by the white-haired girl, Korra turned toward the warehouse employee who had handed her the note. He wore a cap pulled low over his eyes and had his jacket collar turned up so no one would recognize him. He stepped out of the shadows and approached the group. The man glanced around nervously before beginning to speak.

"Listen, I joined the Equalists because I believed what Amon was saying. I thought he could improve our lives as non-benders. But I didn't enlist for this... for this war."

"What do you know about Hiroshi Sato?" Beifong asked.

"He's making those gloves for the Equalists, and there are rumors that he's working on something even bigger. Some new kind of weapon," he explained.

Korra sighed. She knew Sato was plotting something! Now, finally, someone was confirming her suspicions. She just wanted Mako to hear it too.

"Something bigger?" Sora repeated, frowning.

The informant nodded. "I don't know what it is. I only heard the Equalists talking about it. They said it was something that would change everything."

"We searched all of Future Industries and found nothing," Tenzin said.

"That's because he has a secret factory."

"Where?" Korra asked.

"It's right below the Sato mansion."

"Why are you saying all this?" Sora asked immediately, breaking the silence that had settled over the group after the man's words.

The man turned toward the captain. "Because I want a way out. I only got involved with them because I believed things could get better for us. I never wanted things to escalate into a war." The man swallowed nervously.

"It's kind of naive of you to think that when you're involved with a terrorist group, don't you think?" Sora said.

"I was just doing what I thought was right for the sake of my family. If I had known things were going to get this bad, I wouldn't have gotten involved with them." Having said everything that he needed to say, the warehouse worker gave a quick bow and tucked himself further into his coat, disappearing into the night.