Imagine disrespecting someone, only for them to appear around and hear all that you had to say. In stories, that situation had always amused the Earth Queen. But to think that it would happen to her in real life was something that she had never thought would happen. And when it did, it gave her goosebumps.
She paused, trying to process the smirk on the face of her previous worst enemy.
She knew about his face, but it was their first time meeting face to face. Quite tall, young, muscular, and handsome. Nothing like in pictures.
But he was still an enemy.
"How did you get in here?" she asked, her tone authoritative. "Forget about it. You think you are smart enough to sneak in. Yet, you are dumb enough to announce your presence. To put your head in the mouth of the lioness, you are expecting to get out of this harmless."
Guards, secret guards, Dai Li agents, appeared from everywhere, surrounding Akashi. The staff who were earthbenders joined in.
Akashi crossed his arms, darting his eyes.
'Usually, to be trapped from every direction with this many would be scary.' Akashi lowered his head, closed his eyes, and smiled. 'But they are the ones who are trapped with me.'
"Got nothing to say?" asked the Earth Queen.
"Yeah, I've got something to say," Akashi said. "You've taken some scientist whose daughter I'm courting, so get him back. I'm taking him home."
Everyone looked at him silently. The Queen tried to process his words. This man, in this situation, had zero survival instinct. It would be fun to work on breaking him and teach him what fear was like.
A laughter broke across her face.
"Hahaha! Idiot thinks he can get out after we found him. He only defeated five assassins in the past, and he thinks he's strong enough to do anything. What are you planning to do, Akashi, kill me if I don't obey your order? You should be concerned about your life first. Well, I'm feeling generous today, so I'll keep you for torture later. Maybe some stress relief." She shouted, "And for you, I have thought of plenty of new punishments, things you couldn't think about in your books."
'And here I thought I was the one who was getting crazy,' Akashi thought to himself as he looked at her silently.
"You're too old for me; otherwise, I would have done the same to you," Akashi said.
Okay, he could see some hypocrisy in his words. But Lin was hot, and the Earth Queen wasn't his type.
"Attack him." The Earth Queen pointed her fan forward. The soldiers were the first ones to attack, using their earthbending stance.
Akashi reacted at a speed that was impossible for humans. Even before the earthbenders' nervous systems could complete the orders to their muscles, he reacted and appeared in front of the first one, punching him, kicking the one next to him, and then moving to the next one, turning into a real One Punch Man. Sometimes one kick. One elbow.
And he wasn't holding back, using wavesbending to amplify the shortwaves. The result was blood getting sprayed everywhere. Even with the naturally strong bodies earthbenders were born with — capable of shattering stone — they couldn't handle the hits that were thrown at them.
The Earth Queen, standing from her throne, opened her eyes widely, her jaw dropping, lips shaking. With every passing second, a new drop of sweat formed on her forehead.
Akashi was barely visible. Sometimes he left an afterimage, and sometimes he didn't. And by the time you did see him, he had already moved to the next target.
After kicking the ass of the first wave surrounding him, Akashi appeared in the middle of the room, joining his hands together, taking a deep breath in and grabbing air around him, compressing it to create an aura of vacuum around his body.
The remaining soldiers and agents took this as a sign of him getting tired. They didn't waste the chance and jumped at him.
Akashi spread his arms quickly.
Strong wind surged everywhere, pushing everyone flying away from him. As their bodies hit the walls, mouths leaving groans, sound waves followed.
Akashi snapped his fingers, adjusting the frequency and the power of those waves. As his level in wavesbending was high, it was easier done than said.
They fell on their knees, backs, and all, bleeding from their mouths and ears, which was a sign of internal damage.
[Exp…++++]
Akashi ignored the experience points notification; although the income was massive, more than two million points, it wasn't enough to level up.
The Earth Queen and her counsellors or friends that were sitting next to her looked at the scene unfolding, shocked.
"How?" the Earth Queen pointed her shaking finger at Akashi. "How… how."
Akashi took a deep breath in and sighed.
"What did you think was going to happen?" Akashi asked, staring at her. "Your guards defeating me, and you finally achieving your goal." Akashi shook his head. "If you were decent enough from the beginning to let the matter between us go after Tarrlok failed to kidnap me, you would have enjoyed your life." Akashi stopped for a second, as if to consider it. "Well, you are a dead woman anyway," he added.
"You. Are you threatening me? If you kill me, you will be labeled as a global terrorist. Every nation will be against you. Everyone will chase you, and you won't have any way to make money in this world other than running away and stealing." She threatened, drawing Akashi's life in front of him. "And your very own girlfriend will have to chase after you."
Akashi considered her threat.
He clapped. It was a good threat, to be fair.
"I wonder," Akashi walked to her slowly, and he asked, "Would I become an international terrorist if I killed everyone here since no one will be left to tell the story? Or would I be if I helped the rebels reach your palace and claim your life with my own hands? Then I would be a local hero taking down a tyrant."
The Earth Queen opened her eyes widely. "That's it. Help me, stop the rebels, and you will have Hiroshi back."
Akashi stood in front of her and pinched her nose. She shook her head up and down while he scolded, "You still don't understand the dynamics of power. The most powerful make demands, the weak listen and obey, got it, bitch?"
The Queen opened her eyes widely. Never in her life had someone dared to disrespect her.
"No matter how high your position is, do you think that you will live if I snap my fingers?" Akashi asked.
The Queen's tears accumulated in her eyes. It was the first time ever she had felt weak. And it was overwhelming.
"Please," she said, "Just take him and leave."
"Order your people," Akashi replied. "Bring who you kidnapped back. Send someone, and if they brought an army back, I'll start killing, starting with you."
"I get it," she turned to the nearest coward standing next to her and not saying anything. She screamed, "Tell the Dai Li to bring him back!"
"By him, do you mean Hiroshi or one of the airbenders?" he asked for clarification.
"Are you dumb!" she asked.
"You kidnapped many people, Your Majesty!" he argued. "It's confusing."
"Bring the fucking scientist!" she screamed as she pointed at the door.
"Oh, that one? I get it." That person stood up and began running.
Akashi raised his eyebrow, hearing something new, something he had forgotten about.
Airbenders. Right, that event. It meant that by now, the Order of the Red Lotus's leader, Zaheer, would have made his move. And Korra was targeted.