Chapter Text
13. Masters
The pounding seemed to be the first thing that came crashing through to her.
She couldn't even bring herself to make a noise, she could feel her surrounds forming around herself. Her fingers scraped in the dirt, her hair was splayed out around her, every time she exhaled, the particles of dust would fly out in all directions. She let her eyes open, it took longer than she would have liked for the individual pebbles and stones to come into focus. She stared at them for a while, trying to make sense of what had happened. The side of her head ached and she could feel that her hair had matted there, she ran her fingers over it gently. It was sticky and cold, she knew there was a relatively deep cut. She sighed with exertion as her arms pushed her up, she looked around her immediate area. There were tall walls that sloped around the dusty area, no one else was insight. She was in the middle of a large circle, lights blasting down in her and chains linked above.
It became abundantly clear that this arena-like pit, was designed to keep everything that enters inside.
…
Jinora would have been lying to herself if she had said she wasn't worried about Kai. She kept herself tapped in with his energy, waiting for even the slightest change. It was his idea to walk in front of her, that way she can have warning if he turns to harm her. Kai had whispered all he knew to Jinora, about how Bú Yi doesn't seem to be able to watch him non-stop, that only when he wants to see through Kai, in which he then seeks him out. They spent the entire trip mouthing or murmuring, as Bú Yi would not be able to register soft sounds or dim lights. This also meant that Kai kept his eyes mostly closed, only opening them slightly if he tripped or got confused about direction. He was trying to make her feel comfortable with her decision, though if she was honest, she wished she hadn't acted so abruptly. She trailed along behind Kai, she watched as tiny spirits danced around her. Every now and then, she would disappear into the trees, going from branch to branch, then return back to the ground, where the spirits would be waiting for her. One pair she found particularly amusing, they would skip into the other, collide and bounce off the opposite's big, round bellies. Though the spirits were only the size of her own hand, she would chuckle as they flew through the tree trunks to surprise the other. I am glad some spirits aren't hostile.
...
Her head whipped towards the sound of microphonic feedback, the squeal intensifying the pain she was already feeling. There was a sudden murmur from a small crowd that Jinora couldn't see, she wondered how long they had been waiting for her to become aware. In a moment of terror, she looked down at her body, she was clothed and unbound. She slowly got to her feet, glaring at the blackness and whispers that came from beyond the lights, she still couldn't bring herself to speak. "The master awakens!" A voice yelled through the two speakers, one at either end of the arena. She whipped her head towards the grinding sound, her hair fell in front of her eyes, and she blasted it away with a flick of her wrists.
Someone was using earthbending to raise a section of the wall, creating a doorway-like entrance. A hand burst out of the darkness and grasped the side of the stones, their knuckles were white with effort, though the skin was browned and battered. Jinora knew who it was immediately, she huffed a tearless sob as Kai pulled himself into the arena, the wall behind him grinding closed. Will this ever end? She thought, as she turned her defensive position on the young man she loved.
…
He wanted to turn around and gaze into her eyes, he wanted to turn around and pull her to him, he wanted to feel her lips on his own. He also wanted to keep her safe, which meant that he could do none of the above things. He huffed a sigh, "How is your chest feeling?" He whispered. He knew she was reconsidering her plan for them to storm the mountain as a two-person-bending-team-machine, he wanted her to know that he believes in them. But what good will that do if I could turn on her in a second?
"It aches, but nothing I cannot handle." She whispered back. He nodded to himself, it was hard enough to see through his eyelashes as he tried to limit his vision, let alone remembering to keep his voice down. He tried to think of a light-hearted conversation that would put her more at ease, something that will just remind her that it is me…
"Do you think the others have found Mako yet?" Kai said, stepping over a branch, the darkness of the night almost caused him to trip.
"Of course, we have been gone for hours. Bolin and Opal were only going to get a cup of tea." She shrugged, smiling softly for the last part, "I bet the first thing Bolin was annoyed about, was making tea for us when we wouldn't even be there…"
"Ha, I bet Bolin convinced Opal to stay a little longer... If you know what I mean..." Kai smirked.
Jinora smiled softly, "No, no I don't... Care to explain?" Her smile got wider, but she kept her voice serious.
She saw Kai's ears start to redden, "Well, you know... I assume that Bolin would have asked for her to have a bit of time... Y-you know, with him..."
"I still don't understand..." Jinora was trying not to laugh at how much Kai was trying to avoid saying anything sexual, which she thought was surprising.
"Like, he was really worried about her. When he realised she was fine, I can imagine he would have wanted to be alone with her. I mean, I did when I heard you were okay." He mumbled the last part, this time, it was Jinora's cheeks that reddened.
"You did?" She asked.
"That was the best night of my life, and you are the best thing that has happened to me. When I knew that you were okay, all I wanted was for us to be alone... But, now, I want to be rid of this spirit-thing before we are again." He murmured the last part quickly, and Jinora could tell he was angry.
"We are going to be okay, Kai. We will be together."
...
His glider suit was torn from his body, exposing his chest and arms, his hair was messed up significantly more than usual, and he had fresh scratches down his cheeks and across his chest. His once green eyes looked more faded than ever, now bordering on a lifeless grey, they screamed with pain. She couldn't stop herself from admiring how he looked, how much it reminded her of their first kiss, or the night of their first time of having sex, until the eyes. She knew that he was a massive threat, especially with the amount of hostile energy coming from his body. There was something increasingly more dangerous about how he held his physique now, how he looked as though he hadn't been fed in a number of days. His frame was still strong, but it didn't hide his ribs or his hipbones as well as he had only a few weeks ago. His lip curled up in a silent snarl, Jinora took a step back. She knew not to speak yet, she knew that this wasn't his choice.
She saw his arms tense, she knew what was coming. She manoeuvred her body, spinning on her toes as a razor-sharp gust few past her, the ends of her hair were sliced clean off, she growled as they floated to the ground. They are out to kill... She spun on her heels this time as Kai's second blast aimed for the centre of her body, she thrust her hands towards him and knocked him flat. It became obvious to her that whoever was controlling him, hadn't taught themselves, or been taught, airbender defence techniques. She threw her fists towards the roof of the arena, the torrents heading for the unseen people witnessing this battle. She turned her body back as Kai flew towards her, blasting himself across the dusty ground with his hands. He collided with her, she struggled to have his hands release her shoulder and neck.
…
They had just landed after an hour of gliding, there was a stream leading towards the mountain they were aiming for, and Jinora was desperate for a drink. "This is why I discourage impromptu travel plans." She muttered softly as she lifted her cupped hands to her lips and drank the deeply.
"Hey, you were the one that knocked-out the cop..." Kai huffed quietly, mimicking her, the water was cool and clean, "We could of had a police escort!" He smiled, it was almost too hard for Kai not look at her, he let himself remember what could happen if Bú Yi picked up on him, "This stream runs through the chamber they kept me in before they let me return to you." He whispered, at least, I think I remembered running water… "If we follow it, we should make it there before sun-up. Unless you want to take a break? We have been travelling all night."
"I think we could have ten minutes to collect ourselves." Jinora smiled, sitting on the edge of the pebbly stream.
"You said it, boss." Kai sighed. She let her hands trail across the surface of the running water, she watched as the same two spirits from earlier continued their game. Their blue, glowing bodies colliding into the other, rebounding from their stomachs like they were covered in invisible springs, then diving through trees and stones like they weren't even there. They had followed them from the minute they had landed the first time, trekking on foot and gathering a ground of followers. Jinora knew that repetition in behaviour was a common sign that the spirits were trying to communicate, but she had no idea what they could possibly mean. It was interesting to her, she turned to look at Kai, about to voice her hypothesis, he had his hands behind his head and his eyes closed as he reclined on the bank. She became distracted from her previous thought, he looked so peaceful in the moonlight.
She smiled as she removed on of her hands from the water and ran it over his stomach, he gasped in surprise and his eyes opened. But without looking at her, he smiled and let them close again. She laughed softly at the fact his soft sighs sounded like Pabu's snores, she watched his lips turn into a grin as he grabbed her hand and held it against his chest. Beneath her fingertips, she could feel the pulse of his heart, she couldn't control her bottom lip as it trembled slightly. She leant her body over his, hovering her lips above his own. They brushed together gently, it was almost instantly Kai caught her lips between his teeth. She responded by crushing her mouth against his, he growled a laugh as his arms encased her, pulling her on top of him. "Kai! We need to be wary." She smiled against his lips, speaking softly against them.
"You were the one that started this." He replied with a smirk, he held her tighter as she tried to wriggle away.
"Well, I am stopping it now," her lips showed no sign of ceasing, "We need to be more vigilant."
His eyes fluttered open and he smiled, momentarily forgetting where they were, "Hey, we are only human-"
…
"W-ha-t is yo-ur favourite col-lour?!" She croaked loudly. There was hesitance, his hands weakened for a moment as she thrust away from him. It was like a never-ending, terrible dream. His possession had taken him before the end of his sentence by the creek, Jinora had felt the energy change and hadn't gotten away quick enough. He had rolled his body atop of hers, pinning her down, she had thrashed and Kai had reached for a rock. She couldn't remember past that, and she knew that Kai would never be able to forget.
"What was the year you joined the Air Nation?!" She yelled immediately as she backed away from him, the spiritual energy coming from within flattered. Kai groaned, grasping his head. "Answer me, Kai!"
He lifted his eyes to hers, they were slightly luminous, the green-yellow that has come to represent the horrible reality of Kai's possession, he is fighting it! "No-" his body violently shook and the glow disappeared. "I don't need to answer anything." His voice said loudly, "Your fate is tangled with Kai's. You will either kill with him, or be killed by him."
"You don't have to do this, Kai!" She yelled, she was paying attention to her surrounds, feeling all the energies, not wanting to be caught off-guard by an ambush with another spirit, "Tell me about when we first met!"
Kai charged, swiping his arm towards her body, she shot herself into the air and landed easily on her toes. Kai's body crashed into the wall, he seemed dazed as he turned his head towards her, groaning as he got to his feet. "Bur-burgundy…" he whispered.
"W-what?" Jinora said.
"Burgundy." He seemed to be straining to get the words out, "The sunset, yo-your eyes, our grapes."
"Yes! Yes, Kai!" she yelled, taking a step towards him, "Fight it!"
…
"Let me get this straight..." Lin started, if the situation wasn't serious, she would have been smiling from ear to ear, "Two kids, young adults, got the better, of my top detective... Is that right?"
Mako had Korra's hands massaging circles on the back of his head and neck, water healing all that it could. The unimpressed detective had his arms crossed over his chest and an irritated scowl embroidered over his face, he pouted slightly as he answered, "Yes…" He spoke swiftly to save his pride, "But it was a surprise attack, I was trying to break the tension, and Jinora just-… It was so quick."
"Did she appear like it was against her will?" Tenzin asked quickly, worried only for his daughter becoming like Kai.
"I knew they didn't want me there... For... Reasons..." He glanced awkwardly between the people in the room, "Like I said, they got the jump on me and when I came too, they were gone and Bolin was shaking me."
"Where were you two when this happened?" Suyin asked, raising an eyebrow at her daughter and Bolin.
"W-we were getting tea!" Opal said quickly.
"Yes! I making, we lots of love tea." Bolin nodded along with his girlfriend's words, he hadn't noticed the words coming out muddled until Opal threw him a look of annoyance. Their heart rates gave it away to the Beifong sisters, their blushing gave it away to everyone else.
"You couldn't have waited until after the meeting?" Mako said, clearly unimpressed with his brother.
"Oh! I see how it is!" Bolin said, raising his voice, "When you want ladies over, its all, 'I need the house tonight, bro. I know, I know, I promised to take you and Pabu out for noddles, but it is gunna have to wait!' But when I-"
"That was one time!" Mako exclaimed.
"OH REALLY?! It happened with both Korra and Asami! Not to mention the nurse from Republic City Burns Unit and that pretty lady visiting from the Fire Nati-"
"Shut-up, both of you." Lin snapped, "You will drive me to drink with your ridiculous bickering."
"It isn't ridiculous..." Bolin grumbled, Lin shot him a look that made him keep his mouth closed.
"Korra, can you sense her spirit?" Tenzin asked softly. Korra had only returned from the spirit world for less than a minute before Wei and Wing had told her the new developments. She hadn't had a moment to search for her, she had the utmost faith in Jinora, and knew whatever caused her to attack Mako, she could handle.
"Not yet, I haven't." she said, standing, the water still swirling around her fingers.
"Find her, we need to know where they are before something terrible happens." Tenzin said sternly, "Whatever is causing all this must be taken care of."
"I hate to bring up the elephant-koi in the room…" Bumi mumbled loudly, "But how does one attack a spirit? Especially when it is inside a human."
"Inside Kai…" Ikki mumbled, no one had noticed her sudden presence in the doorway.
Korra pursed her lips, she had only seen one person able to remove a spirit from someone's being, and that was with assistance from another spirit. She shivered at the thought of Unalaq and Vaatu, the thought of doing anything similar to Kai made her feel sick, "I-I will get to a spirit vine and seek her out." She nodded, depositing the water back into the pouch that now sat against her hip, a gift from Katara, and headed for the door. She wanted to avoid the thought, and subject, of internal spirit-removal for as long as she could.
Tenzin saw the look of horror in Korra's eyes, "Stay safe, stay vigilant." He whispered, as she left the room.
Asami and Mako nodded to Tenzin's words and pursued, Bolin made a noise that sounded like an 'oop' and followed quickly. He never got the non-verbal communication thing that the others seemed to be able to do, Opal shrugged at her mother and rushed after the group. "We need to be ready to go in a seconds notice," Korra said quickly, knowing that they could hear her, "No matter what we find, I think only us should go after them."
"Those two going off alone is what stated this whole situation." Mako said, "I don't think we should leave anyone, who is willing to help, behind."
"What if it is really bad? What if no one makes it out? You want everyone to go down with us?" Opal snapped, thinking of her mother.
"Korra," Mako hurried his pace and stood in front of her, both hands on her shoulders, "You don't have to prove anything. We shouldn't be doing this without all the help we can get."
"Are you saying you won't come?" Korra asked, she knew the answer, but she wanted him to remember his promise.
"Of course I will, I will follow you anywhere." He said, but it was still clear that he wanted more backup.
"Mako, amongst us we have all the elements, plus lava, lightening and kickassery," She glanced at Asami with a small smile, she was already pulling her glove on and smiled back, Mako dropped his hands and she walked past him, "No one has to die today."
"Oi! Don't forget metal." Wei's voice called from down the hall, "No way are you going without us."
"Yeah, we owe Kai an apology…" Wing mumbled, it didn't look like they would take 'no' for an answer.
"Okay, let's find them." Korra nodded.
…
Keep control, fuck, Jinor-no- he gasped as the pain took him again, his body was walking slowly towards Jinora. It was snarling at her, he knew she wouldn't give up, even if faced with death. Her kisses were so soft, her body was so warm. He remembered her tensing up when she felt his spirit shift, he had felt the pain of possession almost instantly.
He remembered the moment he had realised his body was reaching for a rock, pinning her down as she tried to get away from him, he remembered the feel of it in his hands as it was slammed into the side of her head. The sound would haunt him forever, the look of terror in her eyes would never escape his nightmares. He remembered the fury as Bú Yi gave him momentary control after making him carry her to the base of the mountain, only to be taken by guard-like people. He was beaten again, he attacked two men in one of his moments of relief, he was sure one of them was deceased by now.
Bú Yi and the Mewua had laughed at his idiocy: "You thought walking with your eyes almost closed, and whispering would confuse us?"
"Your eyes were open and ears listening when the master Jinora told you to come with her. We knew what you were doing the whole time!"
" And now, she will join you. Mewua has served me well, now I need Jinora to assist you in removing the nomads. The lands we will claim…" he had trailed off, "When she is weak, we will strike."
" You mean, s-she isn't p-possessed yet?" Kai had asked, relief flooding his veins, it was like an anaesthesia.
" Of course not. I have a wonderfully theatrical plan for her."
" It w-won't work." Kai mumbled, "We will win this." Pain crushed through him as he threw his head back and screamed. Thrashing and groaning, Bú Yi chuckled at Kai before letting him feel respite.
" You let me worry about that. She was still unconscious after you handed her to the guards, my possessing powers would be useless on her in that state. The subject needs to be alert for possession. We can still weaken her… But alertness is crucial."
He felt all his pent up rage, worry and sadness, he was determined to use it. Bú Yi's hold was stronger now than it ever was, the proximity to Kai was surely the answer. As he was marched to the arena, he knew nothing good was behind the doors, he only had a moment to take in the sight of Jinora, standing battered and beaten, before he realised what was planned.
The moments that he could break the hold were what kept him fighting inside, he needed to tell Jinora to kill him. She needs to save herself, she needs to live. She needs to get out of here before… Before… His arms attacked repetitively, swiping and swinging, blasting unbearable amounts of air at impossible speeds. Jinora managed to deflect and defend herself for an impressive amount of time, considering that the spirit was working Kai's body to the point of potential breakage. He groaned and managed to break for a moment, a single moment, it was all he needed, "Kill me, or run!"
Kai almost crumbled on the inside when Jinora reacted in the opposite way to what he had just begged of her.
She was frozen, her eyes wide.
That was all that was needed.
Her moment of stillness was enough for Bú Yi to use Kai's bending to throw her to the ground, he felt sick as he walked towards her body, laying defeated on the solid, dusty floor of the arena. She was breathing heavily, moaning softly as she tried to collect herself. The wound in her chest must have been causing her incredible amounts of anguish, Kai was crying to himself, begging his body for restraint. She looked up as Kai stood above her, staring down at her with eyes that she knew belonged to another. Bú Yi's long body snaked around his torso, floating up like a halo above his shaggy hair. Jinora's chin jutted out in fury, she was going to look Kai in the eyes, they were still going to win this fight.
…
Korra pulled back from the vine, her eyes wide and her mouth open, she gasped as she broke the connection. Everyone watched her as she stumbled back and looked towards the distant mountain, seemingly hours away from where she stood, I can't make it… She had seen two visions, one from only hours in the past, and one that depicted hours in the future. Kai's hand reach for the rock, Jinora was made unconscious, Korra had screamed to no one. She felt sweat break out across her body, she was having an anxiety attack, her chest felt tight. "Korra?" Asami said softly, recognising the signs, "Korra, honey, breathe."
"I can't get there," her eyes were wide as her hands gripped the back of her head, she was leaning forward slightly, feeling like she would crumple, "Kai is going to kill her, and I can't get there… I can't do this, the spirit is too strong." She had seen Jinora being thrown around, Kai's eyes glowing and his body appearing to break as it performed seemingly impossible tasks.
"Where is 'there', Korra?" Asami rubbed circles on her back, tracing triangles between her shoulder blades.
"The mountain. The mountain has them…" She whispered, pointing towards the ranges on the horizon. Bolin looked to either side of him, he nodded at Opal, they had practised this a million times, she stood still and straight as Bolin jumped and put all his energy into blasting her into the air with his bending. Everyone was shocked at first, looking at Bolin and then watching as Opal peaked and opened her suit, gliding smoothly far above them, heading for the caves.
He walked towards Korra, "They need us." He whispered, before grunting and taking off across the flats, as he ran, his arms pumped fiercely, the earth beneath him moved up with his feet, he was land-riding in moments. Wei and Wing glanced at Asami, who nodded for them to go, the copied Bolin and took off in the same direction.
"He is right…" Korra breathed, she glanced up at Mako and Asami, "Kai and Jinora are in trouble and all I can do is allow my body to shut down." She muttered, trying to stand straight and pull herself together.
"You have been through a lot, what did the spirits say? They must have a greater plan for someone like Jinora, they would not just kill her." Mako said, he glanced over his shoulder and then up along where the bison were sleeping and floating, he walked away and started calling for Lefty.
Korra concentrated on the conversations she had with the spirits, "They said," Mako jumped out of the way as Lefty and Pepper dropped to the ground, though he had only hailed one, the other always followed, "They said that it's hold over the others gets weaker with the more it possesses…" Mako was now watching Korra speak, "They said that Kai was the second person he possessed, and that Jinora was supposed to be." Mako and Asami exchanged a look as they all climbed upon Lefty, he took off into the air and Korra was still thinking, "Right before I came back, one of the spirits told me that the wilds that grew around the Northern Temple's site are amongst the most spiritual in the world… I didn't even know that. They said that destroying the land around it could release all kinds of chaos, like right before Avatar Wan separated the worlds, just straight-out wars between everyone, spirit and man. But Bú Yi is pushing for this war, I mean, he possessed Mewua, it must want the war to happen if it is using someone who was bidding for the mines..."
"Bú Yi reminds me of Varrick." Asami said. Both Korra and Mako looked at her, "He was willing to throw away my company to start a war. Just so he could gain more power, he would throw away people's lives and homes and a whole company… Sure, he is fine now… But still, he tricked me into helping him; he needed someone for everyone to focus on and someone who knew the business."
"Someone who knows the business…" Mako whispered, he rubbed his chin, thinking quietly, "You mean, like Jinora?"
"Jinora doesn't know engineering?" Asami raised an eyebrow, "Though, it would be no surprise if she did."
"No, you knew the business of engineering, Future Industries has some of the finest machinery, created and designed by you. You know how to get the deals; you are a friend to hundreds of small businesses and thousands of towns and villages." Mako looked between them, "Jinora is like that, but with the spirits. She is known amongst them, loved by them. Bú Yi needs her to rally them…"
"Spirits don't join human wars…" Korra mumbled, not wanting to accept the conclusion Mako had come too.
"This won't be a human war, and with Bú Yi and Jinora's abilities combined, it won't be much of a fight."
…
Jinora hadn't broken eye contact as Kai's body stood over her, he looked fierce and cold. She heard footsteps coming towards her, brushing over the dust and scraping slightly. An older man stood next to Kai, Jinora recognised him from long ago, arguing for the land the once had the Northern Temple atop it. "Mewua," the spirit hissed, "Your time has come, you have done well and will now be freed. Enjoy your riches; the land will be yours by nightfall, mine it, as we agreed."
Mewua turned and faced Bú Yi, now floating at his eye level, "Thank-you, Master." He whispered as the spirit moved closer. Jinora watched with alarm as Bú Yi stabbed its tail through Mewua's chest, there was no blood, but there was no doubt that the experience was excruciating. The old man twitched and moaned as Bú Yi began to withdraw its limb, Mewua slumped to the ground as his body became free. He was abruptly dragged from the arena to rest, Jinora mustn't have noticed the other men, she was fixated on the tiny yellow-green spirit that Bú Yi had attached to itself. Its body twisted as it faced Jinora, now scurrying backwards in the dust.
Kai realised what was going to happen, but his body kept him trapped, kept him entombed. Jinora was tossing air at Bú Yi, but it was dodging her blasts as if they were cast by a paper fan. "Stand, human." Jinora shook her head, still shuffling back. "Well... If you won't stand alone…" She furrowed her brow in confusion, but it soon crumpled into horror as she saw Kai walking towards her.
"No… No, no, no, no, no, Kai, please." she cried as she felt Kai's cold hands grasp the tops of her arms and lift her from the ground, holding her to Bú Yi as if she was a gift, as if she was a sacrifice. She could hear him trying to fight against it, his groans coming from behind her as he kept her raised in the air. His inner being was crumbling, he didn't know how a simple human could withstand so much pain, so much heartache. Bú Yi smiled and moved closer, its tail held the spirit, moving closer and closer to Jinora.
"Welcome to the fight." It snarled, pressing the spirit against her chest.
There was a moment when Jinora was sure it was the end, she would be like Kai, under controlled and used to wipe out the airbenders. She felt the tears rolling down her cheeks, through the dust and blood, dipping from her chin. Kai, please, make it be over-
She heard a grunt of annoyance, and let her eyes flutter open.
Bú Yi was violently trying to force the spirit into her, but it was not absorbing into her being. It let out a ferocious roar and she felt Kai's arms drop her, she hit the ground hard and Kai followed. He was huffing and sobbing as he pulled her to his chest, checking if she was okay, stroking her face and wiping her tears. "W-what happened?"
"I d-don't know!" she said, "It was like the spirit wouldn't fit in me-" she had a moment of clarity, a sudden remembrance of the two spirits that danced around her, jumping through earthly physical objects and rebounding off spiritual ones. Jinora permanently had a spirit within her, her own, her projection was already taking up every millimetre of her, "Kai! I know how to help yo-NO!" they hadn't noticed the men walking towards them to pull them apart, one grabbed her shoulders and the other was pulling her by her hands, she was kicking and struggling. Kai was frozen, Bú Yi obviously had him, making him stand still and watch her being taken away, until it could figure out how it had messed up.
Kai's eyes were glowing, she knew that he was trying to fight it. She closed her eyes, blocking out the pain, the fear and let herself disappear from her body.
Her projection was flickering, the distractions were only numbed, she turned towards Kai and flashed towards him. She knew it was a colossal risk, leaving her body open to just the attack she had avoided, but she needed to do this. She needed to try. She held her breath, she prayed to her grandfather that it would work. Her projection flew through Kai's body, Bú Yi realised too late, watching as Jinora's spirit tore its portion from Kai's chest.
Nothing moved for a moment, both Jinora's spirit and Bú Yi's portion seemed to evaporate into the dusty air. Jinora gasped loudly as she returned to her body, she saw Kai open his eyes, his own soft green shone. He seemed dazed for a moment, like he had forgotten where he was, he had been freed, Jinora watched with relief as his brow furrowed in fury, "Kai!" she called out, a smile of reprieve on her face.
It came crashing back to him, "LET HER GO!" he yelled, leaping into the air and swing his leg towards them.
This cannot be… HAPPENING! Bú Yi though furiously, he realized that he had to get out of there before-
The walls crumpled outwards, someone was earthbending them, a pair of twins burst through the rubble, tossing their cables around, fighting and trapping people. A taller, bulkier bender burst through another wall as if it was paper, he leapt through the air, and his fist hit the solid ground, lava exploding from beneath his hands. Bú Yi recognised them as they appeared, the firebender dove into view at his brothers side, they were intent on surrounding everyone they could. Finally the electricity-welding non-bender, the airbender he had previous attacked, and the Avatar came, the airbender swung her hand towards Bú Yi's form, "There it is." She snarled in his direction.
It turned to flee but was met with the face of Kai, Bú Yi was distracted long enough for Korra to approach. She closed her eyes, when they opened, they were glowing, her hands moved beautifully with skill and determination.
It raced towards her, it knew it could take her out, something stopped it, someone was bending air in a perfect sphere, keeping itself trapped inside. It turned inside the sphere and saw Kai, his hands moving skilfully and precisely. Bú Yi roared and moved itself towards Kai, planning to attack, when suddenly there was a severe increase in the pressure, Jinora was helping him, and Opal. It couldn't force the sphere to move with its body, it was trapped inside, and it was manic.
Avatar Korra was still walking towards it, she opened her pouch that sat on her hip. Throwing the water across the ground beneath the sphere, the airbenders all released Bú Yi at once.
Bú Yi was sure it could outrun her, or possess her, it was still strong enough to win. She began to move her arms, its body coiled to attack, but that was until it realised what she was doing. Two streams surrounded it, turning slowly, almost with the intent to hypnotise, Bú Yi felt itself falling, felt itself fading. "This isn't the end, you might think you have won now, but I will have the control I deserve! I will retur-"
"Why did you want this war?" Kai suddenly asked, Korra held Bú Yi fast.
"With those wilds destroyed, you would have made thousands of spirits homeless…" Jinora murmured by Kai's side.
"Homeless? Would I have made them homeless?" it snarled, "Or would I have opened up the whole world, with the Air Nomads gone again, the spiritual leaders would be next, they would be defenceless against the attacks. We could have taken them all, we would have had two worlds."
"You would have failed." Jinora whispered.
"We will seeeeee." Bú Yi hissed, as Korra finally sent him away.
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Epilogue
Jinora was pacing back and forth at the foot of the temple, she fiddled with her robes, her hair and the large airbender pendant that hung from her neck. She was waiting for her father, uncle, Korra and Lin, they were to relay the final verdict.
The past weeks had been difficult, with many arguments, Jinora had been allowed to take the room next to Kai's. He often woke up with a shout, sweat covering his body and tears rolling from his cheeks. He knew that he would never be able to forget everything that his body had done, Jinora would only sit with him, until he was able to be calmed down.
Opal dived into spiritual research, she was determined to never be taken off guard again. She and Kai would work tirelessly with Jinora, trying to develop skills that could assist in detection and prevention, in case anything returned. For their efforts, Tenzin decided it was time that they became masters. They had proven themselves to be selfless and persevering, and he said that the younger generations needed to be educated on the dangers they had faced.
She was constantly glancing up at the temple, as today was the day that they were waiting for. Ikki, Kai and Opal received their tattoos that morning, and were to be anointed within the hour. Ikki had sent Jinora from the room, tiring from her constant fidgeting and patrolling of the back wall.
She didn't want to miss any part of the ceremony, but didn't want to be in the dark, she began pacing again.
Finally, she saw Naga bursting towards her in a sprint, the large polarbear-dog halted centimetres from her face and nudged Jinora with her big, wet nose. Korra leapt over the last few stairs, thinking that Naga would trash the ceremony, "NAGA! Naga, don't you dare-oh, Jinora! You waited for us?"
"Y-yeah, I wanted to know what to tell Kai and Opal. And Ikki kicked me out because I couldn't stay still." She smiled half-heartedly, "I was making them more nervous than what they needed to be."
"I understand." She smiled, glancing behind her as Bumi and Tenzin appeared at the top of the stairs, followed immediately by Mako and Lin.
"Well?" Jinora asked eagerly.
"Mewua refused to speak to us about Bú Yi, or anything else. He is in very bad shape, the doctors and healers don't think he will last until morning. The pain of possession wreaked havoc on the elderly man's body, some of the damage couldn't be undone." Tenzin said.
"So, Bú Yi could still be out there?" Jinora queried, "And what about Kai? The spirit sent time in him too!"
"I don't think it will strike again, all the investors that knew what Mewua and Bú Yi were aiming to do, and how they were accomplishing it, have been arrested. They all rolled on each other, like the vermin they are." Lin said, crossing her arms over her chest, "And Kai was a lot stronger than Mewua, a lot stronger than most."
"But, only Mewua would know everything!" she yelled, "He is the one we need to talk too!"
"It is all okay, Jinora!" Bumi smiled, patting the young master on the shoulder, "You are all safe now. Korra sent it away, you saw it dissipate!"
"But, Korra admitted that all she did was use her spiritbending! That doesn't remove them, it just 'cleanses' them… It will return, it wants to win."
"I know, Jinora." Korra said, "It will be back one day, it could be six weeks or six centuries. And if that happens, in any of my lifetimes, I will fix it." She took a deep breath and placed her hands on both of Jinora's shoulders, "We know what to look for, the White Lotus is on guard, spiritual masters all over the world have been warned... And thanks to you, we know what it takes to remove a spirit from a human."
"You knew it too…" Jinora mumbled.
"But I was too afraid to do it." She whispered back, "I would have frozen up, but without even being told what to do, you put yourself into the crossfire, you saved Kai."
Jinora sighed.
"And countless others." The Avatar finished with a humble smile. Jinora nodded reluctantly, turning towards the stairs and heading towards the ceremony.
"The Air Nation is safe, and the Northern Temple lands remain in the hands of our people." Tenzin said to the people around him.
"She is right about Bú Yi, Tenzin." Korra said, "I sent it away, but I couldn't destroy it. What if… What if it returns one day, and takes someone with more power? Like the president, or someone like General Iroh?"
"Stop worrying, Korra." Mako said, "You have done all anyone could ask."
"He's right, kid." Lin said, "You did your job, and you did it well. If anything happens, we have what we need to fight again."
"But, until that happens!" Bumi said, suddenly lightening the mood, he offered Lin his arm, "M'lady?" Lin scowled and pushed him away, fighting to keep the smile off her face. She started walking up the stairs towards the temple, "Don't think this will discourage me!" Bumi laughed racing up after her.
Tenzin smiled, rolling his eyes and following his brother, "Come along, Korra, Mako. Everyone will be waiting for us."
...
The party was in full swing, everyone either had a drink in their hands, or the faces of the newly anointed masters. They were kissed and held, given praise and congratulations. It was almost as big as Varrick and Zhu Li's wedding, almost. This party, however, was thrown by the Beifongs as a combination end-of-year and Master ceremony celebration. It was on Air Temple Island, and acolytes had travelled from all over the world to celebrate the first post-Harmonic Convergence airbending masters. Tenzin had been very against a public celebration for the trio, stating that air nomads were humble people. Suyin just laughed and added 'New Year Party', to the invitations saying, "In the seventy years our families have been associated, a bald monk has never been able to stop a Beifong from having some fun!"
Bumi twirled Lin around, she was trying to keep her lips pursed in her normal, unimpressed scowl, but as she was fitted back against his chest everyone could see the corners of her mouth threatening to break into a smile. Asami's hand was wrapped around Korra's and they hurried towards the dancefloor, laughing as they spun each other to the music. Opal was having her head rubbed continuously by Wing, while Wei and Bolin held each other and constantly teared at the sight of her, "So proud, Sweetie. We are so proud." Suyin would whisper, her hand on her only daughters shoulder, Baatar Snr. would nod along with his wife's words.
"So damn proud!" Bolin would sob, hugging her.
Kai had been watching Jinora from across the room for two hours now, every time they tried to walk to each other, they were snatched up by another person. The downside to being newly tattooed, was that the individual was newly bald, so everyone knew where Kai, Opal and Ikki were. Right now, he was in a conversation with General Iroh and Lord Zuko, he wouldn't dare leave it. She was being held in conversation by her Gram-Gram Katara, whom had one arm around Ikki, the other around Meelo. Tenzin came over to greet the Fire Nations Royals, and Kai saw his opportunity to grab a handful of grapes and respectfully bow out of the conversation.
He was almost halfway to her, when-
"Mako! Look at our little brother!" Bolin suddenly yelled across the party, grabbing Kai, his mouth was filled with the small fruits, having been starving since his tattoos were completed at day break, "All grown up and saving the world!" Kai glanced in Jinora's direction and smiled apologetically, his cheeks still bulging with the presence of the small fruits, she too had just been captured by someone new. At this rate, I will never get to her... Mako politely excused himself from his conversation and began to walk towards Bolin, Kai and the Beifongs.
"How does it feel to be a master?!" Wei asked.
Kai quickly swallowed the fruits to answer, "Fine, I guess." Bolin was still hugging him.
"I would congratulate you on the recievence of your tattoos, but the repeated use of the soft blue and arrows has become rather generic, therefore taking attention from the individuality of yourself and achievements and forcing you to become perceived as group, or 'team'." Huan mumbled, using his fingers to make quotation marks on the word, 'team'. Suyin shot him a look of annoyance, he quickly cleared his throat, for fear of being roused on later, "However, from an exclusively artistic viewpoint, one could say that the tattoos displayed in contrast against the particular pigments of your skin is somewhat satisfactory, visually speaking."
"Thanks, Huan." Kai smirked, "I like them too."
"Way to go, Kai." Mako smiled, finally reaching the group and rubbing Kai's newly bald head, the freshly tattooed skin stung slightly.
Mako didn't have to be a detective to see that Kai was desperate to get to Jinora, he tried multiple times to distract Bolin, but his arms still trapped the young master. He knew that Bolin wouldn't let him go, he decided to take drastic measures, "Hey Bo, I don't want to alarm you, but, is that Eska? A-and your old betrothal necklace?!"
"Argh! What?! Where?!" He spun around, dropping Kai and ducking behind Opal.
"Run for it, Kai..." Mako whispered as he pushed forward, blocking Bolin's view of him, "Ah, sorry bro, must have been an apparition."
"What. The. Fuc-don't. Do. That!" Bolin yelled, Kai grinned as he slunk through the party, still hearing Bolin carrying on, he looked back over his shoulder with a wide smirk. He didn't see Jinora until he had ran into her, they hit the ground with a thump and an 'oof'. They both had wide eyes and their mouths opened in surprise, Jinora pursed her lips first, laughing softly as Kai tried to get off her. After a minimal struggle, the managed to get back onto their feet. Their pendants had intertwined in the fall, and he grinned sheepishly as Jinora worked to untangle them.
They stood for a moment, smiling awkwardly at each other, neither had words.
He blushed furiously as Jinora suddenly pulled him into a long hug, burying her face in his neck, holding him tightly.
He felt his body warm as his arms encircled her, wrapping around her robes and pinning her body against his own. He felt a smile light up his face and tears of happiness stung his eyes, they pulled back. Jinora's eyes were watery, her own tears threatening to roll from her lashes. He reached his hand out, cupping her cheek, he wiped his thumb over her cheekbone as the tears finally fell. He left no mark against her skin, no sign of difference between them, nothing to stop him from being with her. He leant his head towards her, slowly, he wanted her to know that he was going to treat like she deserved.
Jinora huffed a laugh of impatience, as she grabbed the back of his head and crushed their lips together.
It was like the first time, the world seemed to stop for them, they felt like there was no one else. His arms wrapped around her waist as he lifted her from the ground, she lifted one leg into the air, her lips moulding to his. Their lips made whispers as they moved together, she almost smiled when she could taste the sweetness of grapes on his tongue. They drew back after a moment, she beamed and kissed his forehead, right on the point of his arrow. He let his eyes close and the tear roll down, dropping from his chin and disappearing into the gathered material between them. His blush seemed to make his arrow glow, as did hers. When she pulled back, they gazed at each other, the lights from the party shined brightly. She leant her forehead against his, "We are going to be okay, Kai." Jinora whispered. Kai nodded, not taking his eyes off hers, "We can be together." She murmured, pressing her lips to his arrow again.
They realised that there was perfect silence around them, they looked around them. Bolin was holding Opal, his nose running as he tried in vain to hold his emotions in. Tenzin, Pema and Kya stood with small, proud smiles. Bumi started clapping, beaming as Lin joined. Korra and Asami clapped and Mako whistled, Meelo and Ikki cheered for their sister and Kai, before long, the whole congregation was applauding the pair for their bravery, persistence and sacrifice. Kai lowered Jinora to the ground, they both blushed as everyone carried on for them, it took a moment for the Acolyte band to strike up. Everyone seemed to return to dancing and celebrating, Kai took Jinora's hand in his, twirling her gently and holding her against his body.
"I want to apologise." He whispered, her head was against his chest, hearing his heart beat.
"What for?" Jinora whispered back.
"A great number of things, but mainly, the night I returned..." he was trying to make sure that his voice stayed soft, and that his feet didn't crush hers as they turned.
Jinora pulled back from his chest, she had her brow furrowed in confusion, "W-why?" She asked, "What do you have to apologise for?"
"The way I acted, it was not romantic or gentle... And you deserved so much better, like candles an-and music, and... A bed..." Kai glanced down at his feet, they swayed together, their bodies close. He felt her hand catch his chin, lifting it so their eyes met.
"Kai, there was a candle." She sighed, a small smile lighting her face, "Your breath was like music to me, and your sighs..." She blushed as the words came, "I mean, I had a bruise on my lower back from the ledge in the bath, but, Kai... I wouldn't have changed a moment." He searched her eyes for the lie, "It was perfect, you were perfect." He felt his lower lip begin to quiver and lowered his head onto her shoulder, she kissed his cheek, "And we have plenty of time to try again and again." She smiled, he didn't share her mood, guilt still consuming him. "There is one thing I was wondering..." She whispered, "Could you tell me something?"
"Anything." He whispered back.
"When Uncle Bumi and Chief Beifong walked past the bathing room, as we went in, Bumi said that he told you what love was…" Jinora turned her head to the side, "Is it everything he made it out to be?" she smiled softly.
"Yes." He smiled softly, genuinely, "A lot harder than he made it sound, though."
"Yeah, he made it out to be so easy." She chuckled. Kai stopped dancing, Jinora looked worried at his sudden pause, on reflex from the previous weeks, she felt his energy. She almost visibly sighed when he seemed okay, no foul-play with his spiritual energy.
Kai finally spoke, "Bumi has told you about love?"
"Of course, he is my uncle after all." She smiled softly, wanting him to resume dancing with her.
He bit into his lip, "When did he-w-what did he say to you?"
Jinora half smiled, her eyes softening, "He pulled me aside the morning after you were caught drinking, he was sneaking out of the kitchen with enough food to feed a hundred people." She looked at her feet, then back into his eyes, "He said that he could tell I was not confident in myself, or in what was happening between us. He reassured me with a few short sentences, that we would be fine… No matter what we faced."
"What were his words?" Kai said, a hint of a smirk showed. She bit into her lip, trying to remember the words.
"He said…" she sighed the words brought a smile to her lips, she was just about to continue speaking, when Kai's mouth began to move.
"You can't stop thinking about them..." Kai whispered, she looked at him, "She is always on your mind. In your heart…"
Jinora felt her cheeks redden and her heart ache, her smile became more pronounced, "You just want them to know that they are perfect, even when they think that they are pushing you away." She murmured, he began to pull her body to his, starting to sway to the music again.
"You are just looking for a way to prove how you feel." He said, his hand tightened around hers.
"I just want to tell you…" she bit into her lip, her eyes flickered to his mouth.
"Show you." He leant closer, watching as her teeth released her lower lip.
"That if I had one wish…" Their foreheads were almost touching, their noses pressed against each other's, "It would be to get under the layer of armour you coat yourself in, to keep the world out."
"And make it crystal clear," she let her eyes fluttered shut, her entire being felt warm, felt blissful, she could feel the heat from his lips as the gap was almost closed between them.
He turned his head, leaning into her, closing his eyes, "That you…" his arms held her against him, "You are everything that is right in the world."
"My world."
"My world."
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