"Let me go!" Amon demanded. "My brother is back there!!!"
"Amon, you are smart enough to know I can't." Akashi said, moving as a blurry figure while running on the ground. His speed seemed unlimited.
Mastering flight reduced his effective mass to near zero; as he flew, he could pick up enormous speed. Amon had ignored how blurry everything was. But what he didn't ignore was his little brother. Akashi now knew who was the better brother.
"You can save him after I take Korra out of this country. Now! If you get back, you'll be screwing everything. His sacrifice would be for nothing." Akashi said.
And with that being said, Amon saw a large pillar of fire rising from the concentration camp.
Seeing that they were at a safe distance, Akashi stopped and set Amon down.
"Dang it! It's all your fault!" Amon yelled at Akashi.
"You're just venturing your frustration of being powerless." Akashi crossed his arms and replied. "You could use your bloodbending. Even though you can't control me, you could make me stop running. But no. Deep down inside, you realize that we made the most logical and necessary step."
Amon glared at Akashi but calmed down. He didn't say anything — that was only because he had nothing to argue with. Akashi was right. If not for him, they would have both gone to trial. They would have been executed for their crimes or tortured for them — or worse.
If a monarch was cruel enough to put women and children in concentration camps and starve them solely for opposing him, she would have done worse to the brothers.
"And why is your girl guarding the prison. Isn't she the Avatar. Isn't she supposed to know the good from the bad." Amon replied, frustrated.
"Well, she came to take a look. You guys have the talent to make yourself appear bad." Akashi shrugged. "She's not the fastest calculative person in the world…"
"It frustrates me when power goes to the idiots." He said.
"Say that one more time." Akashi lifted his finger, veins appearing on his face. "And I'm going to kick your ass, right here, and right now."
Believe it or not, he was triggered by someone mentioning that about Korra. Sure, she's naive and sweethearted. But only he — or the police chief, or her father… her mother — could tell her that. Not outsiders.
"Huh? You totally fell into her." Amon breathed in and shook his head. "Forget it. Let's talk about the important stuff now."
"Yeah." Akashi said.
"Since you have planned this all along. Where should I go now? Where do I find people opposing her. And how do I get started." Amon said.
Akashi reached into his pocket and took out a check: one million yuan.
He gave it to Noatak, and he said, "Figure it out."
Noatak pointed at Akashi, shaking.
"Don't tell me you were planning to dump the whole thing on me You dirty schemer!!!" He retorted.
Still, Noatak took the check.
"Sorry about your brother, I mean it." Akashi patted Noatak. "But he did it on his own. Nobody forced him. Do you understand what does this mean?"
"And what do you think that it means?"
"It means that you can finally leave out of the cycle of hatred that your father put you through, his false vendetta to avenge against Republic City. You can be the hero you always desired."
"Tsk…" Noatak clicked his tongue and glared at Akashi. He had calmed down. "I should go back and save my brother."
"Knowing the Dai Lee agents, they would hide him. And with you around, they wouldn't trial him publicly fearing you."
"I can tell as much."
"But since the Avatar is here, they would reconsider. That's it. I'll convince Korra to stay an extra two days. Because of that, the Earth Queen would use her as a shield and she would hope you show up. But if I took the Avatar away during the trial, you can lead an attack." Akashi nodded. Then he glared at Noatak and tapped his forehead with a finger. "But remember, no killing the monarch before uniting the people."
"I'm not stupid!" Noatak yelled. "Geez! I can tell why Tarrlok hates you."
"No, he doesn't." Akashi shook his head. "He loves my food."
"Forget about it. How do you plan to keep the Avatar busy during the trial. Matter of fact, forgot I asked. You know your way better than I do," Noatak crossed his arms and turned in the direction of the prison.
"Thanks for your vote of trust." Akashi replied. As for how to keep Korra busy, well… he had thought of something.
"So, see you later." Akashi replied.
"Where am I supposed to go?" he asked.
"Find out yourself." Akashi shrugged.
Before Noatak could think about asking a question, Akashi vanished from his spot, flying somewhere else.
Noatak followed the direction Akashi had gone, catching a glimpse of him as he lifted his head.
"He can be at places while no one could," he muttered, looking back at the check. As a bloodbender, establishing dominance would be easy for him. In fact, if he desired, he could go to the royal palace, kill the Earth Queen, and get away with it; no one could stop him except for the Avatar herself.
But that would create chaos and bring pain to countless people. As much as he hated to admit it, Akashi had the better approach to bringing justice and toppling a ruler.
-x-X-x-
Needless to say, after Korra brought order to the prison, someone wasn't very happy. The Earth Queen, hearing the report, bit her nail while muttering.
"That useless Avatar. She had only one job, and she screwed it up."
"Your majesty, she may hear us," said one of the counselors.
"Tsk." The queen clicked her tongue. Knowing that the Avatar was a late teen undergoing hormonal changes, she didn't want to provoke her. Not to mention that she might be having a difficult day. So she decided not to mess with a potentially unstable enemy.
"Tell her that she did a good job bringing the order…" the queen looked at the ceiling, sighed, and held her forehead.
This year had been the most stressful of her life, and her blood pressure had risen. Well, that wasn't her problem — that was the doctor's.
"So, your majesty. With Amon escaping, what are you planning to do?" asked the counselor. "Should we execute Tarrlok and make an example of him, so that no one else could rebel?"
"He's hidden right now, isn't he."
"That' correct."
"Than keep him alive, shackle him so that he would not be able to commit a suicide," said the Queen. "No harm shall touch him."
She didn't want to get on the bad side of a very strong bloodbender. If she killed his brother, Noatak might lose his reason and take her down. She knew whom to mess with and whom not to.
"As long as the Avatar is around, we will hasten the trial." she said, "As before that, I'll take some of my anger at him."
She smirked widely.
That book had stated many facts. But there was one that had yet to happen. And she was going to make it true.
A true psychological torture.
-x-X-x-
Akashi returned to the rented house. Korra had not returned yet. He lit a cigarette along the way and discarded it before entering the house.
It had been a very stressful night; he had left Lin sleeping on the bed before going to the concentration camp.
"Well, well." Echoed a voice, "What have you been doing?"
The lights turned on.
Lin crossed her arms, looking at him with suspicious eyes.
"I was just smoking." Akashi said, lifting his hands.
"I'm not a ten years old girl to lie to. I can smell it, and I know you lit it up the cigarette in order to answer me," she said, walking to Akashi, wild smirk on her face, as if saying, 'I caught you.' And Akashi didn't blame her for that. It was a cop's instinct to be happy when proved right.
Akashi scratched his chin.
"Considering that the fact you sent bloodbenders to Earth Kingdom with false testimony, and knowing that you have something against the queen, I couldn't help but not sleeping and kept thinking all night." Lin said, "So, answer me. What were you doing?"