A/N: Trigger Warning: Gore and Graphic Depictions of Violence. I've been wanting to do this for a very long time, and now I guess I wrote it, lol. I was mostly inspired by 2dshepard's fanart on tumblr of these two, so I decided to write a fiction piece about it, haha. This story is gonna be heavy and thick with both plot and emotional stuff. If you've read my mini-fic, "The End of an Era", you'll know what I mean by angst, haha. Anyways, I've never done a cross-over before so let me know if this is terrible or something, haha. I hope y'all enjoy it, and hopefully leave some feedback! :D Thanks for all the support on my other stories (which will be updated shortly), and enjoy! :)

Asami has always wondered what death feels like.

As she clambers through the thick vines, following the sounds of Korra and Kuvira's screaming, she deduces that death must feel better than whatever numbing pain she's experiencing right now. Her father is dead, smashed into flecks of flesh and dust. Her mother is somewhere in the afterlife, and her friends… well, they're hopefully still breathing. Fire burns up ahead, followed by a parade of flying rocks and bursts of ice. Purple light beams on, following the movements of the elements. Anger fuels Asami's every aching step as she limps towards the clearing in which Korra and Kuvira battle.

Before she can take another step, however, something crashes into her, sending her whirling backwards.

"Fuck," Korra's voice grumbles as she rolls off the heiress' body, clutching her chest. Asami stumbles forwards, grappling at Korra's arms as the young Avatar grinds her teeth in pain and frustration. The inventor looks down, shocked to see blood pooling beneath her closed fingers. Scarred flesh is barely visible in the pale light of the purple beam flashing behind them. Teetering to the side slightly, Korra groans and leans against the bark of a remarkably unscathed tree. The Avatar's eyes shift upwards, dazed and confused at the sight of Asami's worried face.

"Korra," Asami chokes out as she gazes at the multiple wounds and lacerations that coat the dark skinned woman's body in terrible blacks, reds, and blues. Korra shakes her head and coughs out a wad of blood as she struggles to push off the tree. Her back hunches as she limps forwards, back towards the entrance of the clearing. Before she can move further, Asami reaches out and tugs at her arm.

"What are you doing?" The heiress asks, her voice shaking with fear and worry. Korra winces at the touch, but shrugs out of the older woman's hold. Her eyes are cloudy with grief and dismay as she shakes her head, gazing back to the clearing where the fate of the city rests.

"I'm going to end this," she mutters through gritted teeth, "once and for all."

"You can't," Asami tells her strictly, slipping on her glove. Korra raises her brow but the inventor nods her head, "not alone, that is." Korra looks as though she's about to argue, but before she can, Asami wordlessly pushes forward, running towards the manic dictator with a determined face.

Kuvira grins wickedly from the gun, swinging the nozzle back to face them.

"Brought a friend, Avatar?" She snarls out, glaring at Asami before smirking at Korra.

The younger woman stands in front of the heiress, her fists erupting in flames. Her chest burns with the score from a shot she'd been nicked with earlier. Ignoring the reddening flesh beneath her collarbones, now blistering and peeling from under the burnt clothing, Korra stands straighter, extending her arms and shooting a jet of fire in the former captain's direction. Kuvira dodges the attack by only a hair, causing her to lose her balance upon the platinum beam. Her foot slides against the safety valve, causing her boot to kick the handle off clean. The small piece of metal, now fallen to the crisp earth floor, goes unnoticed by anyone as Kuvira growls at the two women menacingly.

"Fine," she snaps as she twirls the gun again, "I'll kill her first and make you watch as she dies."

"No," Korra replies as she darts forward, slicing gusts of air towards the metal-bender, "no more killing. No more war. This ends, now."

Korra kicks up a pile of rocks and throws them out to meet Kuvira's chest. The boulder slams into her with a force brute enough to knock her out from the vines, sending her tumbling to the floor. The cannon jerks upwards, purple light frothing at the nozzle. Before Korra can strike again, Kuvira slams her fist against the ground, causing a wave of earth to whip Korra out from under her feet, sending the Avatar hurdling through the air to the other side of the clearing. Upon seeing her friend being cast aside like a rag-doll, Asami runs over to Kuvira, her eyes glazed with rage as she screams, jumping into the air before landing with her glove pressed flat against the metal-bender's clothed chest. Kuvira hisses as one-hundred thousand volts of electricity jolt up and down her body, causing her skin to char. Asami is relentless as she pushes harder, images of her father and of a bloodied Korra surging through her mind. Her anger and need for revenge consumes her as she watches Kuvira's eyes widen.

"Asami, stop! The cannon!"

The heiress and the metal-bender both look up to see the nozzle swinging in their direction, the light beaming from the wide hole. Asami pulls her glove away and stops breathing out of shock. Kuvira, still dizzy from the overload of electricity, barely has time to recognize that the Spirit Beam is heading towards them. Asami hears something crunch, causing her head to cock to the side and glance at Korra, limp-running towards them. Her face is ashen with worry and fear, and in that moment, Asami begins to understand that death seems imminent. Her head swivels slowly to face the impending purple flare, her breathing slowing and her eyes narrowing like a predator upon stalking its prey.

Let it come, she seethes internally, let me become death.

Just as the beam fires, Asami watches in horror as Korra's body steps in front of hers. The Avatar's hands are facing forward, producing a gust of air as she takes a steady stance. The heiress shakes her head and goes to move, but her body is slow and her movements are disjointed. The gun produces its foretelling shriek, and Asami's heart stops beating in trepidation of what's to come. Korra's body begins to glow, a scream piercing her lips as the heat of the oncoming beam begins to engulf them. Kuvira sits up and clutches the dirt beneath her fingers in fear. Korra's head jerks up and the middle of her chest begins to glow a whitish-blue. Asami's reminded of the time she'd become a spirit to defeat Unaavatu in Republic Spirit.

"No…," she breathes out as she suddenly realizes Korra's intentions, "Korra, no!"

Her cries are drowned out in the deafening noise as the beam fires. Purple and white light blind the young heiress and the metal-bender. The world goes from extremely bright and hot to cool and dark within a few seconds. The noise disappears, and soon Asami finds herself being tossed upwards, side-to-side, and then back down against something cold and hard. Her body feels like it is stretching and ripping apart, but at the same time being compressed into a pinhead. Asami screams as her head hits a hard ground with a thunk, knocking her out cold. Before her eyes close shut, Asami looks over to see Korra's body stop glowing and fall to the ground with a sickening thud.

There's a piercing scream before everything goes dark.

/

Asami blinks open her eyes slowly, much against what her throbbing head wants. Her entire body feels like it's on fire as she stirs from her place, lying upon the floor. The ground beneath her is cold, hard, uncomfortable; it's not at all like the texture of earth or dirt. The heiress grumbles as she glances around at her surroundings, vision still blurry and faded. All she makes out is walls upon walls of metal and steel. There are a few windows in the distance, but all around her is mainly metallic scaffolding. The woman furrows her brows in confusion as she cocks her head to the side. It seems almost like a factory, but the spaces are predominantly void of any kind of machinery.

"Ugh," she chokes out in a wheeze. Her lungs ache as she closes her eyes again, groaning in pain. She waits a few moments as the spell of nausea, from having moved her head too quickly, simmers down. Once she feels like she's managed to compartmentalize the various jabbing pains, she reopens her eyes and glances around at the empty spaces. Scattered papers and random assortments of garbage litter the floor. Asami gazes to the side, her eyes widening as she makes out a limp body laying with their legs under a scrap piece of metal.

"Korra! Shit… oh God," Asami blurts out her best friend's name as soon as she meets the sight of the downed Avatar, laying with her limbs splayed out a few meters from her. Something pulls at her heartstrings as tears well in her eyes at her fallen friend, suddenly reminded of the time Zaheer had poisoned her. Kuvira rests closer beside her, arm bent at an awkward angle and face planted into the ground, though her back still falls and rises.

With Asami's exclamation, the metal-bender shifts her body, blinking her eyes open until dull green eyes meet her own emerald. She looks around at her surroundings, her eyes growing wide with fear and anger before she turns to face the Korra laying before her. A snarl plays at the older woman's lips as she struggles to her feet, her hand out in preparation to bend the metal of the floor around the neck of the woman who'd taken everything away from her. Asami's eyes widen as she gasps, rushing to stand as she leaps towards Korra, her glove extended and primed for a punishing electrocution.

"You wouldn't want to do that, Ms Sato," Kuvira growls lithely, spitting her name like venom as the charging woman stops to stand before her friend's defenceless body. The heiress only snarls back, stiffening her back and drawing her arms forward in offensive position.

"Stay away from her," she snaps in return, "or I won't hesitate to kill you."

"Like I killed your father?" Kuvira glowers wickedly, a smirk plastered to her face as she extends her hands, her fingers curling upwards to draw two sharp blades of metal into the air. Asami almost falls for the bait, but instead, the woman stays stoic and rigid over Korra's body.

"He was pathetic - squashed like a fucking bug," Kuvira sneers, goading her own as her fingers twirl around the metal, "and believe me, I won't hesitate with allowing his whore of a daughter to follow in his footsteps. I'm sure he won't mind seeing you so soon, hey Daddy's girl?"

"You bitch, shut up!" Asami screams, finally snapping under the weight of the metal-bender's threats, her bottle-green eyes glowing with an immeasurable amount of rage. Kuvira's lips curl up into a wicked smile as she grins. She launches the two blades of metal in her direction, but Asami dodges with refined experience. One of the makeshift daggers misses, but the other manages to nick her arm, causing the heiress to screech in pain. Blood drips to the floor as she rolls, evading another chunk of metal. She swings her legs in a fast circle, knocking Kuvira to the ground roughly. The metal-bender grabs at Asami's ankle, bringing her down. The two twist and roll upon the floor, kicking and punching mercilessly.

"Finally," Kuvira snaps as she bends a piece of metal around the inventor's waist and flings her off and into a wall, "a non-bender with some fight."

Asami moans out in pain as she clambers to her hands and knees, blood dripping down her nose as she glances up. Her ribs protest as she goes to stand, causing her to fall back against the ground with a huff. Her bleeding arm has grown numb and her head feels like it's been hit by a Satomobile. She can only watch helplessly as Kuvira limps over to Korra's body, grabbing at the Avatar's collar with a fistful of her shirt. Asami lets loose a growl, but her body can't move just yet. The inventor can only lay and watch painfully as she's helpless once more. This is it, Asami thinks dreadfully, I'm losing another person I love. The former captain only laughs as she heaves the Water Tribe girl upwards in a clean jerk, smashing her against a wall.

The Avatar's eyes jerk open and she coughs as she's thrown back to the ground roughly. She glances up to see a bloodied Asami crawling to her hands and knees, but before she can part her mouth to call out to her, a firm boot plants itself in her back and an elbow winds around her neck, harshly tugging upwards. Her neck nearly snaps under the pressure, but she can barely manage a strangled cry. Kuvira's sinister laugh echoes off the metal walls. Beside them, Korra notices a beam of energy surging upwards, a faint droning sound reverberating from each and every pulse. Her eyes flicker open and shut with the lack of oxygen to her brain, but she shakes her head, growling as she fights to stay conscious.

"W-Wait," Korra gasps, clawing at the arm around her neck, "Kuvira, just… just w-wait."

"For what?" Kuvira spits, driving her armoured knee into Korra's back, causing the Avatar to scream in agony. "You have nothing left to live for."

Kuvira releases her hands from her wrists, instead replacing them with metal cuffs from the floor. With a quick jab of her fingers, two blades of steel pierce through the Avatar's chest from beneath her. Korra lets out an agonizing shriek as the sharp prick of the makeshift daggers pierce her already blemished skin. Her eyes begin to flicker as the Avatar State begins to take over, protecting her from further harm as she metal-bends the blades away. Blood pools from beneath her, acting as an adhesive as the crimson sticks her clothing to the cool floor. Korra growls as she rolls her body swiftly, breaking the cuffs and sending a blast of air in Kuvira's direction. The metal-bender snarls as she's thrown against the wall. Korra goes to launch a fireball in her direction, but the State suddenly cuts out, violently dropping her to her knees.

"You're pathetic," Kuvira snarls as she stands, panting with exertion. "You were no match for me in Zaofu, and you're no match for me here."

"That's just it," Korra huffs out between a hacking cough. Crimson blood dribbles down her chin as she glances up at a somewhat confused and irritated Kuvira, before looking around her in a dazed shift of her head. "We don't know where 'here' is, Kuvira."

"What does it matter?!" The metal-bender roars as she bends another chunk of metal to her face. "This ends now, Avatar!"

Korra doesn't have time to react as the metal flies in her direction. The Avatar only ducks as the block soars over her head and into the shining orb of light behind her. The beam cackles and fizzles, spewing sparks of electricity everywhere. The metal absorbs the tiny shocks before consuming them. Korra scrunches her brows together in confusion as she watches the beam start to grow thinner, its energy being absorbed by the steel chunk. She may have not had a proper schooling before, but she's seen what can happen when electricity and metal interact. After having seen the destruction of Varrick's pulse upon the Mecha-Suits back in Republic City, she knows what is about to come.

"Run!" Korra screams turning back to face Kuvira as the crackling behind her grows louder, "fucking run!"

This time, upon seeing the beam manifesting its power inside the metal block, Kuvira freezes in horror. She knows what's about to happen next, and as she glances to the few metal straps upon her shoulder blades, she cannot help the deeply rooted fear from taking over. Her frame stiffens from shock, preventing her from moving. Korra follows the dictator's gaze and immediately knows what the metal-bender is thinking. Fortunately for Kuvira, Korra isn't one to hesitate. The Avatar hastily reaches up and quickly rips the few remaining clasps of metal from her uniform and whips them across the room as she stumbles to her feet. She scrambles to get as far away as she can, but her pace is sluggish and her footsteps clumsy from disorientation.

"Korra, the beam!" Asami's voice cries out, causing the Avatar's head to cock to the side. The heiress is running towards her, eyes wide with trepidation as she grabs the Avatar with her non-gloved hand. Asami hoists her up and drags her further away from the beam. They run over to where Kuvira is still standing, dumbfounded. Korra notices the metal belt around Kuvira's waist and gasps. A terrifying high-pitched grating noise, almost like nails upon a chalkboard, sounds from behind them and Korra turns, only to see the last sliver of the beam absorb itself into the metal orb.

It takes a little less than two seconds for it to explode.

Korra whips around, and as if she were in slow motion, she rips the metal from Kuvira's waist with a flick of her bloodied fingers. The electric waves from the conducted steel pulse out in a steady wave, rippling through the air with strong currents of high voltage. Korra barely manages to throw the metal belt to the side before the pulse hits them, sending them all careening backwards and into the far wall from the sheer force of the blast. Korra gasps as she feels fire burn into her chest, brighter and hotter than before. The Avatar glances down in horror to see a small piece of shrapnel from Kuvira's previous daggers is lodged in her skin. The electricity zaps through the tip, causing thousands of volts of current to zip through her veins.

"No!" Asami cries out as she watches Korra's body jolt upon the ground. Kuvira backs herself into the wall with wide, fearful eyes as the Avatar's eyes flicker between white and blue. Screams tear from the younger woman's throat, terrifying enough to make the metal-bender's blood curdle. Her jaw opens and snaps shut in rough bites, trying to ward off the excruciating pain she's experiencing. Asami reacts quickly, tearing off a riding glove from her shaking hand and shoving the wad of it into the younger woman's mouth to prevent her from biting her tongue as she thrashes upon the ground. Kuvira only continues to watch silently as Korra finally stops her writhing.

"Shit, shit, shit," Asami cries as the smell of charred skin and smoke filter into the air. Kuvira slowly nods her head up to see that the beam from before has gone, leaving an empty, blackened space in the middle of the room. Her breathing quickens as she glances around the new area. There is little light, with the only source being the orange and brown haze filtering in through the windows in the distance. The hallways are unlike any hall she'd been in before. Everywhere she looks, there are metal and concrete walls, almost curved in the shape of a flattened octagon.

"Korra, wake up," Asami whimpers as she shakes Korra's motionless body. "You're not leaving me, not after you were gone for three years. Come on, Korra. Fight back. F-Fight back… please. You can't leave me. You made me a promise that you're here to stay. Just… just hang on, Korra."

Tears run down the heiress' cheeks as she grips her friend tighter in her arms. Her body is limp and heavy. Her skin almost sizzles as Asami presses her head against Korra's chest. She tries to seek out a beat, but the thundering rhythm of her own pulse in her ear drowns out any other noise. Choking back a sob, the raven-haired woman pulls her friend's body back, her eyes scouring up and down for some sign of life. Quickly remembering her standard first aid training, Asami places Korra back on the ground before she leans over and parts her mouth. She removes the glove before she places her ear just above her friend's mouth, holding her breath as she anxiously waits for a response, of something to assure the inventor that Korra is okay, but Asami gets nothing but silence and stale air. It takes a few seconds for the realization to hit her like a tidal wave.

Korra's not breathing.

"Fuck… oh fuck, no, Korra, come on, don't do this to me," she growls through her hiccupped cries.

Asami quickly peels off her electric glove and locks her fingers together before planting them atop the Avatar's chest. She's extra mindful of the sharpened metal, but doesn't go to remove it in case of causing her further blood loss. Asami's injured arm burns with each compression she douses upon the downed Avatar, but she doesn't stop beating her fists against her stopped heart. She completes her thirty repetitions before she tilts back Korra's head and places her lips upon the younger woman's mouth, breathing in two puffs of air.

It's ironic, for a moment, that Asami had spent three years dreaming of the moment in which their lips would meet, but unfortunately, it had been three years too late; three years spent dancing around something neither of them could explain but both of them could feel; three years of wanting and needing but never getting; Asami had waited three years… only for her to say goodbye. Letting out a muffled scream as she pulls away from those beautiful dark lips, she returns back to the compressions, frantically pumping her arms in order to restart her friend's heart.

"Please," the inventor sobs, "Korra… don't, d-don't leave me."

Her pumping is growing weaker, but Asami doesn't stop. She can't stop now, not when she'd just got Korra back. She feels her own blood sticking to her skin as her laceration bleeds furiously into her riding jacket, staining the already dark material a shade of crimson. Once more, Asami pumps down until she's finished another set of thirty compressions. She returns back to those chilling lips, tasting the faint tang of copper upon her tongue as she breathes more air into the Avatar's lungs. For once, luck seems to be on her side as out of the corner of her eyes, Asami can see her breaths go through. Korra's chest rises and falls faintly with each forced push of air, giving the heiress some crude sense of hope.

"That's it," she says, adrenalin giving her new strength as she resumes the forceful pushes. "Come on, Korra. Come back."

Kuvira watches silently as Korra's body shudders and a hacking cough wracks through her frame. Asami immediately pulls her hands back and watches as Korra's eyes flash open, first white and then blue, before she rolls back on the ground. Her coughs go from dry to wet as bile rises to the back of her throat. Asami's eyes widen in shock upon seeing the lolling Avatar, so Kuvira decides to take action. She reaches forward upon impulse and shifts Korra onto her side, watching with mild disgust and hidden relief as she manages to half cough, half vomit out the blood and liquid obstructing her throat. The Avatar's body shivers and curls up as she rids herself of the bodily fluids, the acrid scent filling the space between them.

It takes a few moments before Korra rolls onto her back, her eyes fluttering open and shut with fatigue and pain. Asami is clutching her hand, crying harder as she glances down at the bleeding chest wound. Korra tries to make a noise, but only a strangled gasp parts her lips. Asami hushes her and grips the hand she's holding with white knuckles. Korra's eyes blink slowly as she regains her strength in her moment of rest. Kuvira grimaces as she makes note of all the blistered skin fused to the metal chip lodged within her front. In the back of her mind, she knows that simple healing isn't going to be enough to fix that wound fully. Even if she were to metal-bend the piece out, it could tear other muscles and ligaments. Kuvira leans back a bit, looking away in mild shame. She bites her lip, trying hard to drown out the noise of Asami's quiet sobs and Korra's muffled grunts.

"Why did you save me?" Kuvira asks after awhile, still not looking at Korra. Her voice is neutral, not carrying any tones of revere or disgust for the Avatar's previous actions. Korra's still trying to get her breathing back to normal, but she purses her chapped lips anyways, taking a pained breath.

"I don't know," she mutters, closing her eyes as another wave of agony washes over her, "I just… did."

"I…," Kuvira starts to say, but then stops. She glances up to see Asami's lethal glare bearing into her eyes. For the first time since the battle of Lahima's Peak three years ago, Kuvira actually shrivels under the smouldering gaze, her shoulders buckling under the sheer hate in the heiress' eyes.

"Touch her again and I'll make her regret it," the inventor snarls harshly, cowering over the Avatar's body protectively. Kuvira doesn't fight back this time, and instead she bows her head in silence, neither agreeing nor disagreeing. Asami growls again, but before she can say something, Korra's hand shoots up, her fingers curling around the material of her riding jacket's sleeve. At the touch, Asami's gaze instantly softens.

"Korra?"

"Ssh," Korra hisses, drawing the two women's attention, "I heard something."

"There's no one else here, Korra," Asami whispers, but Korra hushes her again, clenching harder around her jacket. The Avatar struggles as she pulls herself up to a sitting position, squinting her eyes in the darkness before her. The air is cool and stale, the burnt scent still lingering as they peer through the haze. Asami is crouched behind the younger woman, staring into the bleak obsidian, ears primed and ready should another sound occur.

Suddenly, a faint scrabbling noise breaks sounds in the distance.

There's muffled screeching, but the sound is nearly inhumane. Kuvira's muscles tense at the jolting noise, realizing with a dreaded fear that the screams are coming closer. The older woman hobbles to her feet and stares into the darkness, gulping as sweat beads down her forehead. There's now the sound of something that resembles almost a sharp popping noise. It's loud, the effects ringing off the hollow walls. The three women breathe heavily as the scratching and screaming grow clearer, indicating that the source of the noise is coming closer. Korra turns to face Asami, pursing her lips to prepare the woman to run again, but the words never make it out of her mouth because something flies out from the darkness and lands at their feet.

A cold, limp body of a metal-armoured officer thunks as it slams into the ground beside them. Asami gasps as she scrambles away from the body, pressing herself against the wall as her heart beats wildly inside of her chest from the sight. Korra only stares, wide-eyed and pale as she leans forward, reaching out for the soldier. She's never seen this kind of armour before. The Mecha-Suits for the Earth Empire had been green and far larger than these men, but as Korra looks to the white and yellow armour, she feels nothing short of confused and afraid. Her hand lays itself upon the soldier's shoulder, her palms feeling over the sturdy material of the suit. It's hard, but it doesn't contain high quantities of metal.

"A-Are you alright?" Korra asks them, her voice shaky. Kuvira reaches out, clasping the Avatar's arm.

"Stop it! We don't know who that is," the metal-bender hisses warily, narrowing her gaze on the soldier. Asami turns to face her, the colour drained from her face as she gulps out, "you mean, this isn't one of your soldiers?"

"No," Kuvira and Korra both answer at the same time. Korra looks to Kuvira and then glances back at Asami as she bites her lip.

"This isn't like any Earth Empire armour either," she says as she turns back to the soldier, her hand still upon the person's shoulder. Asami cocks her head slightly, her brows furrowing as she processes the information quickly. What Korra isn't saying suddenly hits her and she can't help the feeble gasp that parts from her chapped lips. Kuvira's head snaps up when she hears more faint popping noises in the distance.

"So, it could be Fire Nation maybe?" Asami asks, but she already knows Korra's going to shake her head.

Asami has Fire Nation roots. She knows Fire Nation because they killed her mother and because she'd dated Mako. They never wore armour to begin with, and definitely none that looks like this. Kuvira gulps as she hears the noise come closer, her eyes flashing back to meet Korra's knowing, but also fearful, gaze. The Avatar looks back down at the soldier as she swallows thickly. The younger woman slowly rolls the person over, biting her lip as she hears the disgusting crunching of what she hopes is the armour. The person's body lolls sickeningly, and Korra immediately knows the noise came from their bones. Once the soldier is directly on their back, all three of them gasp as they look at the state of the… person's face.

"What… what is that?" Asami breathes out as she feels her fingers prickle with anxiety. Korra pulls her hand back quickly as she, too, presses herself against the wall in fear. Kuvira remains stuck, staring at the image before. She stares at the face, if it could even be considered a face, with trepidation.

Dull blue eyes stare open and wide, pupil-less and lidless, bearing a lifeless stare at the ceiling. Blue streaks of light crawl from underneath the skin, as if it were a crab attempting to break from its shell. The skin isn't even white or dark, it's also a faint, sickly greyish-blue. The bottom of the jaw of what once had been a man is ripped off, bearing forth an ugly set of yellowed and deformed top teeth. The… thing, has no tongue, nor does it seem to have face. It looks to be complete bone, with a thin layering of blue-freckled skin. It's demonic looking, something Kuvira, Korra, and Asami had never seen the likes of before. It's a new level of horror as the three women gulp in fear.

"Guys," Korra whispers shakily, "I… I don't think this is Republic City."

"Then where are we?" Asami asks back, pleadingly gazing at the Avatar, hoping the young woman has answers. Korra only looks petrified as she gulps and shakes her head. The sweat drips from her bloodied and dusted scalp to the cold metal of the floor with soft drips.

"I don't know," she says, and as another piercing shriek starts from the end of the room, she firmly tells them, "but I don't want to wait and find out."

The three women scramble to their feet as the popping noises return. Sprinting in the opposite direction, they try to evade the sounds of the screaming and of the small firing noises. The ominous sounds are only getting louder as they run faster, leaping over metal crates and ducking around walls. Korra's chest is burning with exertion, and her eyelids are fighting to just stay open as they sprint harder. Suddenly, gruff voices begin to ring out in the noise, but the Avatar doesn't want to risk finding out who they could be.

At this point, she considers everyone to be an enemy.

As they are running, more windows pop up on their left-hand side. Korra glances through the glass to see an expansive land of red and orange dust. Her eyes widen as she makes out valleys of rock and crater. It doesn't even look like Earth at this point. Korra's eyes glaze as she watches what looks to be a giant sandstorm rolling their way. The area outside is barren; there are no other buildings or people or even spirits for that matter. There had been some faint hope in the back of the young woman's mind that this may be the Spirit World, but she knows that if it were the Spirit World, there'd be thunderstorms and clouds raging outside. Her frazzled emotions aren't changing the environment either, let alone the weather.

"There!" A muffled voice calls from behind them. "I see them up ahead!"

"Shit," Kuvira mutters as she turns her head over her shoulder, only to watch as shadows flicker in the dim light of the windows. The woman turns and flicks her wrists, causing the sheet of metal to be pulled up over to block their path. As she turns back, she meets Korra's gaze, and the Avatar nods thankfully, before they begin running down another corridor. The voices cry out in frustration from behind the sheet of metal.

"Come on," Asami says as she darts into another narrow hallway, "we need to lose them."

"Do you even know where you're going?!" Kuvira snarls, running alongside the heiress. Asami glares at her, hands curling into a fist. She goes to retort when suddenly a wall ahead slides open, blinding the three of them with a bright light. The women come to a grinding halt, unable to see.

"We found them, sir," a growly voice echoes as more light shines down on them, "what do you want us to do?"

Korra closes her eyes and breathes deep as she feels energy run up and down her veins. She summons Raava from deep within her, allowing the Light Spirit to consume her. The Avatar's eyes flash open as she rises, flares of air and fire curling around her frame. The voices become distorted as Korra pinpoints every body that isn't Asami or Kuvira. The Avatar spreads her arms apart suddenly, causing the dust in the room to disappear. The masked soldiers glance up at her in shock and surprise as Korra launches a fireball at the first one.

"She's attacking… with… with fire?" One of them speaks, awed as he rolls out of the way. "No, she's not got the M-451 Firestorm - wait… sir, she's… she's… you're not going to believe this but… she has no weapon." Upon seeing Korra in action, Kuvira launches forward, bending some metal from the wall to smash against one of the men. The soldier yells in pain as Kuvira tightens a metal belt around his middle, holding him up against the wall.

Getting the same idea, Asami runs forward, vaulting over a dazed soldier and onto the one in the back. Slipping on her glove, she places the electric blue against the armour. The soldier writhes and collapses to the ground in wild, erratic thrashes. Asami ducks as another soldier whips out baton and whacks at her side. The heiress narrowly avoids the hit as she does a backflip before pushing off the wall in a charge. She slides under the soldier and then spins gracefully, planting her glove just under his knee cap. The doors on the end whoosh open again, revealing more soldiers.

Korra locates another soldier, bending pieces of the metallic walls in order to launch them at the men. Kuvira finishes each soldier that Korra starts attacking, with Asami taking down any she misses. The trio work like a well-oiled machine, like they'd never been enemies in the first place. The soldiers start using these handheld objects that fire sharp rounds of fire, and as Kuvira discovers as she'd barely avoided being hit with one, they do a great deal of damage. Are they like miniature versions of her cannons? The metal-bender doesn't want to find out as she bends out a flat piece of metal before protectively moulding it to her own body like Su had done when they'd fought at her re-education camp just south of Zaofu.

A student is only as good as her teacher, Kuvira thinks as she hears her armour twang from the heat of the soldier's attacks.

"Avoid the fire-pellets from those weapons," Kuvira hisses to Asami as she zips around the younger woman to punch a guard off of her shoulder. Asami barely manages a nod before she glances back up at Korra, still hovering several feet in the air. The heiress prays, as she watches the blood dripping down her torso from the chest wound, that Korra knows what's doing and can sustain the State. The inventor turns back to the fight, only to watch as more soldiers come through the wide gap. Asami breathes unevenly, attempting to catch her breath as she bolsters the rest of her stamina.

"There's so many of them," she pants as she ducks when one soldier fires something at her, "we can't hold out for longer!"

"Just… hang on," Kuvira chokes out as she throws up her hands and bends the metal from the sides of the door, causing the supports to curl down. The soldiers glance up in disarray, shouting orders to each other as they run into the room, weapons drawn. Asami watches with wide eyes as Kuvira brings the sheet of metal down upon a handful of soldiers, leaving about only five or six left for the three of them to handle. The entrance remains blocked off as Kuvira releases her hold upon the steel. Asami lets out a furious cry as she bolts forward, glove extended. Korra throws a napalm explosion of fire in the direction of three soldiers, while Kuvira and Asami take out the two approaching from the left.

Just as Korra's about to go for the last man, the State cuts out again, causing the Avatar to fall back to the floor. The young woman hits the ground with a hard thunk upon her chest, causing her to scream and for the metal inside to dig deeper into her flesh. Asami cocks her head over to see Korra writhing on the ground, her hands curling into a tight fist as pain spreads across her body. Asami darts backwards and quickly reaches for Korra's body. Kuvira makes sure that the last few soldiers are out before she, too, turns around. Kuvira's eyes widen as she watches two more figures approach from the shadows behind the two women. Kuvira goes to bend the metal when suddenly a flash of blue sends her careening into the wall.

Asami's head snaps up at the sound of Kuvira's body smashing against the wall. She spies more blue wisps of energy coming in her direction, but she quickly grabs Korra's body and rolls them away. A female voice yells something, but Asami can't understand what she's saying. More popping noises ensue, and the two women, one hyperaware and the other barely conscious, feel the heat of those fire-pellets Kuvira had previously mentioned. Asami wraps a strong arm around Korra's waist as she turns them so that she can shield Korra's body with her own back.

"Put her down and no one gets hurt," the husky female voice calls out. "Now… or we'll have no other option but to shoot."

"Shoot then," Asami screams back, tightening her hold on Korra, "because I'm not letting you have her while I still draw breath."

"You don't want to do this," the woman growls back, a clicking noise following her voice, "trust me."

Before anything else can happen, a flash of silver whips past Asami. The heiress glances to the side to see Kuvira back on her feet, throwing pieces of metal at the assailants that stand a few feet from them. The woman that had spoken to her from before lets out a grunt as she fires her weapon, the pellets clanging against the steel. Kuvira's face is set and her jaw is locked in determination as she bends more metal upwards, trying to create a shield around the three of them. The pellets storm upon her faster, and before Kuvira can place the wall in front of the heiress and the Avatar, another flash of blue knocks her aside, sucking the air from her lungs as she's flung backwards, only to crash into Asami. The two women go sprawling, leaving the Avatar defenceless. Korra wearily jerks her head up, only to watch as the two figures step into the room with their weapons drawn.

Before her, standing in armour similar (bare for the colour and style) to the ones of the soldiers from before, is a fiery red-head with shimmering green eyes. Korra chokes out a cough as she watches the intense emerald gaze scour over her frame. She's taller than Asami, with broad shoulders and glowing orange scars. Her armour is black with a single red stripe down one arm, with a chest embroidery that reads 'N7' with a matching red finish. The mysterious woman's green eyes are clear with an unreadable expression, but in the centre of her pupils, Korra can make out the faintest twinge of red. The Avatar heaves herself upon her hands and knees, growling at the unfamiliar person before her with her lips curled up in a hostile snarl.

"Who are you?" Korra asks, her snarl weakening only slightly as she stumbles to her feet. The tall woman remains silent and watching, however. Her gaze remains glued to the younger woman. The intensity of those green eyes has Korra shrinking in her pelt boots as the woman looks her up and down.

"W-What do you want?" Korra stutters nervously, still somewhat out of breath. Another figure steps forward, but this time, it's a darker skinned woman with raven hair and amber eyes. The soldier is decked out in a similar heavily armoured suit, except hers blue, black, and white; Korra notices that she doesn't sport the same insignia as the red-head standing beside her.

"Eva Coré, you Cerberus bitch. Where is she?!" The shorter woman demands, motioning to her with her weapon. Korra's shoulders loosen as she looks to the both of them with a now frazzled expression. The red-head seems stoic and unwavering, but keeps silent as the other woman steps forward aggressively, her weapon held higher. The Avatar is not only confused but also terrified as she stares down the tiny nozzle.

"I-I don't know what you're talking about? I'm not a doctor but if you need a healer-"

"A healer?" The shorter soldier retorts, brow raised suspiciously. Korra nods and sets her palms flat. She tries to summon water, but then she realizes that she doesn't have a flask. Panic sets in as she starts looking around for some water, but much to her dismay, there is none. The soldier that had spoken is about to lower her weapon when suddenly, a chunk of metal slams into her frame, knocking the amber-eyed soldier to the ground.

"It's a trap!" The darker skinned woman calls out, raising her weapon and firing as Kuvira leaps through the dust. The metal-bender evades the pellets as she ducks and slides, drawing up pieces of the floor as she goes, before flinging them in the two women's direction. Blood mats her crazed hair to her face, obstructing a bit of her vision but not enough to affect her aim. The red-head looks surprised at the sudden attack but not scared as she dodges the shrapnel evasively, her feet light and quick. Korra can see that she's equally confused as the Avatar is herself but is hiding it better.

"Wait, Kuvira, stop!" Korra calls out, stepping between the former captain and the soldiers. Kuvira looks enraged that Korra would dare give her an order, but hesitantly lowers her hands and takes to scowling over her shoulder at the two women, now standing and watching them. The darker skinned woman glowers at the metal-bender, but Kuvira only scoffs, clenching her fists. The soldier looks to the bent pieces of metal and swallows thickly.

"H-How did you do that?" She asks in a lithe voice, her grip around her weapon tightening. Kuvira growls, clenching her fists harder. Korra can see that the metal-bender is close to attacking, so she quickly intervenes, turning back to face the two soldiers with a pacified expression.

"Look, she's a bender-"

"A what?" A gruff male voice calls out. Korra looks past the shoulder of the dark skinned woman to see a burly man with armour nearly identical to hers step forward, a wary expression painted upon his face. He has a larger gun in his hands as he steps closer with a glare. He sports a tribal tattoo up along the side of his neck, and a few faint bubbled scars drape over his eyebrows and chiseled jaw. His deep brown eyes shift warily at the three women.

"Must be biotics," the raven-haired woman replies in a mutter, her eyes never leaving Kuvira. Korra only cocks her head, further confused. The man grunts, but turns away for a few moments, his eyes gazing at the corridor from which they'd come in from. Korra tears her eyes away from him and back to the other woman. Still, the red-head has said nothing. She only continues to stare at the young Avatar with a piercing, hawk-like gaze.

"Please," Asami whispers as she gets to her feet, causing the female soldier in blue to aim her weapon on her. Asami draws her hands up instinctually, trying to make herself as friendly as possible. She makes her way to Korra's side slowly, her sides aching as she stands with a slight hunch.

"We just need to get back to Republic City. We don't want trouble, I swear," the heiress pleads, her eyes glazing with tears. "We don't belong here, and it was an accident. We're not the ones you want, okay?" The shorter woman snorts and clicks her weapon, a flashing red light pointing to the inventor's chest. Asami gasps when she looks down, but she doesn't feel anything. Coloured light? Is it dangerous? Asami swats at the small circle, much to the bewilderment of the soldier. Sensing her distress, Korra steps in front of her, taking the small point of light upon her own chest instead. Fear is laced in those icy eyes as she stares down her enemies with a terrified expression.

"Cerberus must be getting desperate," the soldier scoffs as she clicks her tongue dismissively, "but I don't have the patience for fucks like you, not while Earth is burning and people are fucking dying. Give up Dr Coré or I'll make you wish that you'd collapsed with those traitors over there." At this, all three of the women raise their brow, their faces paling and jaws slackening with shock. Korra nearly does a double take as she takes a hesitant step forward.

"E-Earth… w-what did you just say about Earth?" The Avatar asks, her voice cracking as she feels her heart sink into her stomach. "What do you mean people are dying? Did we not destroy the cannon?" The red-head's eyes flicker with a unknown expression as Korra speaks, but the Avatar is too busy staring at the shorter woman, dying for answers. The soldier looks confused and a bit irritated as she growls again.

"You fucking prick," she seethes, reaching to raise her gun again. Before she can, it's swatted down by the man beside her slowly.

"Ashley, stop, I've got something on the HUD," the man growls, holding up a hand, "it looks like those pendejos caught up with us."

The red-head finally breaks her stare with Korra to take a hard glance to her right. Her features harden as she grips her gun tightly to her chest. She nods at the man and at the woman named Ashley. The raven-haired woman growls something under her breath but switches to a smaller weapon while the man stays with his bulky one. The two take up point beside the narrow corridor while the green-eyed woman hangs in the back with her own weapon drawn. Her expression is cold and distant, but focused and determined in the same. The man clears his throat and glances back at her.

"Four clicks, five targets… all hostiles," the man reads out as he presses a finger to his ear. "Two are heavies, judging by the infrared scans."

"What's the order, Skipper?" Ashley hisses, glancing back to the green-eyed woman. The taller soldier remains silent as the telltale sound of heavy thumping fills the room with a distant thrum. The man glances to the source before cocking his head once more, and the red-head nods. The man looks to Ashley and the two proceed into the corridor with their weapons drawn, leaving the three strangers alone with the mysteriously silent woman.

"What's going on?" Asami asks, confused by the entire situation. It's been made clear to her long ago that they're not in Republic City, but are they even on Earth anymore? She'd seen the view from the windows, but she'd just assumed that they're in a part of the desert that no one had known about. Dread fills her weary bones as she stumbles forward, her mouth dry and head spinning as she watches the scarred woman stare at Korra.

"Shepard! The data packet has been recovered," another, softer, female voice sounds from behind the red-head, "I've also located Dr Coré. I sent the coordinates to Ashley and James. They've left Cerberus for us so they can find the doctor; the infiltration team Cerberus sent is half a minute from our location." Korra looks up to see something (someone?) she'd never seen before in her entire life, whether it had been in the material or spirit world.

The woman that comes to stand beside the soldier, is… blue.

"What are you?" Kuvira blurts out as she takes a step backwards out of shock. The blue… lady, looks over at the metal-bender with an inquisitive expression. Her eyes are a brighter blue, an electric azure that isn't much far off than the glossy irises of Korra's own eyes. Her skin is almost scaly, like that of a crocodile, and her hair (or at least the women think it's hair) is curved backwards into tight, even tendrils atop her head.

"Excuse me?" The blue-lady asks, confused.

Kuvira goes to respond when suddenly a loud explosion and a flash of orange and red bursts from the corridor. Flames spit over the floors as the three women duck. The blue-lady and the red-head seem unfazed as they turn to face the direction of explosion. Korra watches in awe as the blue-lady produces a sphere of sapphire energy from her fists, before throwing it forward. Grunts of disarray sound in the background, indicating that the woman had hit her target precisely. The red-head grunts as she slams something into her weapon before taking aim again.

"They came faster than I'd expected," the shorter woman snaps as she pulls out a smaller weapon from her belt and fires in the direction of the corridor. The red-head mutters something inaudible as she raises her own slightly elongated weapon and fires rapidly. Bursts of hot, bright light emerge from the narrow nozzle, spraying those same fire-pellets everywhere at lightening speed. Another explosion rockets through the air, barely missing their heads as the flames collide with the metal rail above them. The Shepard woman mutters something under her breath as she slides her weapon onto her back before reaching for another smaller one on her waist. She stifles a gasp as a fire-pellet bursts against her armoured chest, sending her stumbling back.

"We can get out of here," Kuvira whispers as she watches the two women fighting whatever is in the tunnel, "let's go while they're busy."

Korra nods as the three of them attempt to slip past the two weapon-wielding women. Just as they're about to get past, a fire-pellet whizzes through the air, hitting Kuvira in the metal plating she'd wrapped around herself during the last battle. The woman is tossed backwards from the force, causing her to wheeze out of shock and dull pain. Luckily, the pellet hadn't penetrated through her shield, but it'd been dented pretty bad. Korra leans down and goes to pick her up, but another shower of pellets rain in their direction. The Avatar growls as she envelopes her fists in flames, shooting a jet into the distance. She barely nicks the blue-lady, and as the woman turns, her face becomes wide with shock.

Before the woman can say anything, Korra bends a piece of metal from the wall and forms a blade from the steel. She launches it forward, causing the blunt end to smash into a soldier, sending him sprawling back against the ground. Her eyes stay focused on the three other soldiers, but her movements are growing sluggish once more from her slow, but steady, blood loss. The Avatar lets out a huff as she blasts a cushion of air at the oncoming soldiers, throwing them backwards and away from their line of sight. Taking advantage of their new vulnerability, Shepard fires her weapon three times before lowering it. They wait a few moments in silence before both the blue-lady and the red-head lower their weapons. The azure woman glances at Shepard before checking over the heavily-breathing and fatigued Avatar with a raised brow.

"You… what was that you were just doing right now, with the air, fire, and metal? How did you manipulate them the way you did? Perhaps, could it be a higher level of biotics, maybe engineered, or even augmented?" The woman asks curiously, her eyes no longer cold and hostile, but curious and amazed. Korra flinches at the instant turn of her expression, but doesn't risk another confrontation as she shrugs, furrowing her brows.

"Bi-what now…? I don't even know what those are. No. I mean isn't it a little obvious? I'm the Avatar?" She asks incredulously, as if it were the stupidest question she'd ever been asked. In truth, it somewhat is. Everyone across the globe knows who the Avatar is; after the defeat of Unavaatu, she'd made a sizeable reputation for herself, though one could argue whether it was entirely positive. The blue-lady, however, still looks confused.

"What is an 'Avatar'?" The woman asks once more, perplexed. The red-head looks wary and somewhat suspicious as she glares at Korra. Asami steps forward from behind the younger woman, Kuvira following in tow with a heavy limp, clutching her arm tightly to apply pressure upon her cut.

"She's the master of all four elements," Asami explains, a little intimidated by the notion of someone not knowing about the history of the Avatar - a history that was as old as time itself. Korra nods, before she juts her head up slightly, glancing up and down at the blue woman.

"What are you? A spirit?" Korra wonders, furrowing her brows.

The red-head snarls as she suddenly leaps forward, grabbing Korra's collar in one hand before shoving her against the wall. Korra yelps out as the small shrapnel piece from before digs back into her chest painfully. Shepard is relentless as she slams her against the wall again, before whipping out her weapon and placing it square in the middle of Korra's forehead. She clicks it back as she growls, gripping the younger, terrified, woman tighter. Asami surges forward and reaches out with her glove, but before she can land a hit she's suspended in a glowing blue orb mid-air by the blue woman.

"Stop! Let me down, just… don't hurt her, please," Asami begs as she struggles to free herself from the singularity, "look, we're not your enemies."

"Shepard, she's right," the blue woman's soft voice calls as she steps forward, laying her hand upon the soldier's shoulder.

"Please," Korra cries as her eyes well with tears, "we're just lost, okay? We just need to get back-"

"Where?!" The red-head snaps, the first word she'd said since their meeting. Her voice is deep and husky, feral almost as her pupils flash a brighter red. The grip upon the younger woman's collar grows stronger as she presses her harder into the wall. "Where did you come from? Where is his base?!"

"Who?!" Korra yelps as she claws at Shepard's strong, armoured hands, "I-I don't know who you're talking about."

"Shepard!" The blue woman says again, this time in a sharp voice, "let her down. Now."

"No," Shepard seethes as she curls her fingers tighter around the cloth of her collar, "I want answers. I… I need answers, Liara."

"You won't get what you want from them," Liara responds quietly, "so please, be civil and put her down."

Shepard hesitates a moment before she releases her grip, sending Korra crashing to the floor. Liara lets the singularity dissipate as Asami plops to the floor as well. The two women rub their aches from their sore bodies as Shepard stands before them, huffing angrily as she points her weapon between them. Liara remains quiet this time, watching carefully through those icy eyes as Shepard kicks at Korra's leg roughly.

"You have two minutes," she growls abrasively, "start talking."

"We woke up in this building after I bent the Spirit Beam away from us, back in Republic City. That's… that's where we're from," Korra begins to explain, her voice shaky from nerves. Asami nods as she continues Korra's explanation by saying, "we have no clue what is happening here. I think that the portal we came in through may have gotten destroyed when the energy was conducting through the metal."

"Listen," Korra says pleading, warily watching the weapon pointed at her face, "we don't belong here, okay? We're needed back in Republic City."

"And where is this Republic City?!" Shepard demands in a snarl, cocking the gun again. Liara's brow raises slightly, but Shepard's fiery gaze doesn't falter. The red in her pupils flares as glares harder at them. Korra gulps as she bows her head, unable to meet those raging emerald orbs.

"Earth," she murmurs quietly. For a moment, Shepard's gaze almost softens. The woman looks at the two of them pensively before she lowers her weapon, sliding back into her holster. Korra and Asami both glance up, grateful for the release of tension in the air. Shepard looks somewhat mournful as she turns away, barely able to face them. She runs a gloved hand through her tangled amber locks as she bites her lip.

"Earth… I…," Shepard stumbles, glancing to the floor as she barely croaks out, "I don't know what's happening with Earth."

"What do you mean you don't know what's happening?" Asami whispers, her voice quivering as she feels fear wash over her. She remembers Ashley saying something earlier about Earth burning. It… it couldn't be true, right? Earth had been fine when they'd been torn from it, bare for the mess Kuvira had left for them to clean up. Korra picks up on Asami's unease as she stumbles to her feet, her knees wobbling slightly.

"W-Where are we?" Korra asks, though she's afraid of the answer. The world outside doesn't seem like it is in trouble. Shepard turns back to look at her with a serious expression, her lips forming a tight line as she glances over at a wary Liara, before shifting her gaze back to the Avatar.

"We're at the archives," she answers bluntly, "on Mars."

"That's not right," Asami splutters, shocked, "M-Mars is an entirely different planet. There's no way-"

"What year is it?" Korra asks, interrupting the frazzled inventor. Shepard doesn't seem fazed by the question as she parts her mouth slightly.

"2186 CE," she tells her straight, before cocking her head slightly. "Are you not from this year?"

"CE? What does that mean?" Shepard goes to answer when suddenly a blue hand places itself upon the crook of her elbow.

"You can play twenty questions later, Shepard," Liara hisses as she stares past Asami's shoulder, "but now, we're expecting company."

Shepard's face grows serious instantly as she nods, reaching for her longer weapon again. Korra sticks close to Asami as Liara taps her wrist, pulling up a glowing red interface. The heiress immediately is struck in awe at the technology as she watches Liara tap a few things into the holographic screen that hovers above her wrist. A few moving dots show up on what looks to be a radar system. Asami cocks her brow as she attempts to understand just how the glowing thing works. Liara shuts the screen off before she reaches for her pistol, pointing to her left.

"We've got multiple hostiles coming in from the left," she says, glancing at Shepard. The taller woman nods as she pulls forward her weapon. She glances at the two of them, but before they move out, Shepard pauses, her teeth grinding as her eyes narrow.

"Where's your friend?" She snarls, the hostility returning to her voice. Korra looks confused for a second, but then she turns around to see that Kuvira is missing from the spot where she'd been standing. A pit of anxiety swirls in her stomach as she glances back at the seething Shepard.

"Shepard, no time. We have targets inbound! On your six," Liara calls out, reminding the red-head of the danger. Reluctantly, Shepard swivels and takes aim, running forward towards the sound of marching boots and popping fire-pellets. Korra and Asami press together as Liara flanks them, using her free hand to envelope a blue half-sphere around their bodies. The blue woman leaves the sphere and glances at them with a strict expression.

"Don't move," she says urgently, "we'll take of this, but after, you need to find your friend."

"She's not our friend," Asami growls bitterly, "she's the reason we're here in the first place."

Liara goes to answer, but she's cut off by a familiar voice.

"Don't worry," Ashley's voice rings out as she steps towards the three women, "she's not going anywhere."

Korra cocks her head to see the soldier walk out with Kuvira on her knees, being dragged alongside the brute soldier. The Avatar feels empty and betrayed as she sees Kuvira sarcastically chuckling from under her breath in pained gasps. Asami doesn't feel pity for the the traitorous metal-bender as she spots the line of black bruises along her face. Blood trickles down her forehead as Kuvira nods her head up wearily, green eyes lit with frustration and another unreadable expression. Asami glares at her in disgust as she turns her head away. Ashley snorts, shaking her head as she looks up to Liara.

"James and I got Coré, but it's… well, complicated. You'll see back on the Normandy. I sent him off to deliver… uh, the doctor, to Cortez. James' shuttle is waiting at the landing pad for us," Ashley explains in an emotionless tone, though her breath hitches when she mentions the doctor. Liara furrows her brows, but nods regardless. She's about to say something when suddenly, Shepard runs back to the clearing, her eyes wide and her face pale.

"We need to get out," she says as she grabs Liara's arm in a rough tug, "this place is rigged to blow. Cerberus planted a bomb."

"What?" Liara blurts out, jarring her body to stop. "Shepard, the research, the data-"

"It's lost, Liara," Shepard says, her voice somewhat pitiful as she sees the raw pain in Liara's blue depths, "we have to go. We can't afford to go down with it. I… I'm sorry. We have to leave, Li. Now." Her voice is softer, almost loving, causing both Asami and Korra to get to their feet.

"What about us?" Korra asks, fear tainting her voice. "What about the portal?"

"There is no portal," Shepard snaps back, her temper returning. She lets go of Liara to push Korra roughly. "We have to get out of here."

"How can we fucking trust you?!" Kuvira growls from her knees, her mouth garbled by blood. "You nearly fucking killed us. I'm not going anywhere with you." Shepard only rolls her eyes and scowls at the metal-bender as she lets go of Korra and instead nods at Ashley, who instantly releases Kuvira from her hold. The taller woman rushes up and towers over the former captain with a menacing snarl as she clenches her fists tightly.

"You want to stay here and burn, be my guest," Shepard hisses lithely, "but I have a fucking galaxy to save and I can't risk it for your life." Kuvira looks about ready to fight the burly woman, but thinks better of it when she sees the seriousness in Shepard's eyes.

"Fine," she growls, heaving herself to her feet, "let's get the fuck out of here."

"Wait," Ashley says suddenly, glaring at Kuvira's back, "we're just letting them on the ship now?"

"We don't have a choice, Ash," Shepard tells her strictly, pointing at the metal-bender, "now grab her and let's fucking go."

As if they needed another push, a loud crash and boom interrupts them. Korra and Asami don't hesitate as Shepard pushes past them, leading them towards the exit. The women run quickly, dodging falling embellishments as they bob and weave around corners and long corridors. The ground beneath them shakes harder as they approach the docking bay. Shepard bypasses the entrance door and they run into the giant room. Asami and Korra don't have the time to look at all the different mechanisms and pieces of equipment that are so unlike the things they'd been used to using, because they're currently being forced towards two large hanger doors. Shepard runs up to the electronic interface and attempts a bypass, but the system fails.

"James," she shouts over the sound of the crumbling roof, "the hangar doors aren't opening, we need another way out."

"There's a small platform two floors up. It's right where we came in. I can swing by there, Lola," James answers, his response garbled in the static of the radio. Shepard nods as she pulls away from the hangar doors and points the women towards the ladders towards the second floor.

"We need to get outside so James can pick us up," she screams as a piece of cargo crashes to the floor. "Hurry!"

The women make the climb as fast as they can with their injuries, but time is not on their side as the clamber up to the door. Ashley thrusts her armoured shoulder against it roughly, swinging the heavy metal open with a loud thud. The minute the atmosphere of the planet meets their skin, the sensors on the suits of the three soldiers flare up, causing their mouths to be covered with oxygen masks. Korra catches the small detail and quickly winds three air-bubbles, placing them upon the mouthes of Asami, Kuvira, and herself. They fight against the raging winds as they stumble outside.

The sound of a droning engine roars from overhead, causing Asami, Korra, and Kuvira to look up in awe. The wingless, engineless shuttle drops down to hover before them. It's something out of a dream, Asami thinks, before her eyes cast a glance to rolling storm clouds coming from behind the floating vehicle. It takes a second for her mind to register that she's on Mars, a different planet. It's overwhelming and scary as the ground shakes harder beneath their feet. The three women stand in amazement as the door slides open to reveal the burly male soldier from before. He's shouting something, but the women can't hear him. Fear spikes in the Avatar's veins as she watches the shuttle teeter back and forth in the air from the heavy winds.

Shepard turns around, ready to translate the message to the three strangers but before she can, a loud explosion breaks through.

The last thing Korra hears before the world goes dark is Asami's bloodcurdling scream.

/

"Liara," a voice calls in a scream, "Liara get her up, the place is about to blow!"

Korra blinks open her eyes, surprised to see that her oxygen bubble had managed to sustain itself as she'd been knocked out. Her eyes blink open to the dusty vision of Liara standing before her, hand extended. Behind her, Korra watches as Ashley helps a battered Kuvira onto the shuttle. They both collapse inside the ship upon their backs. Korra blinks slowly, the ringing in her eyes beginning to die out as she hears Liara's voice clearly now.

"Get up, we have to go!" Shepard's voice bellows from behind her. Korra turns slightly, squinting in the dust that stings at her eyes. In the haze of orange and brown clouds, she can see that there's something draped across the tall woman's shoulders in a fireman's carry, but she's too dazed to figure out what it is. With a dreary nod, the Avatar reaches up for the blue woman's hand, allowing her to hoist her upwards.

Throwing a limp arm over her shoulder, Liara half carries, half drags Korra to the shuttle. The vehicle teeters somewhat as another blast of flame and rock burst from the collapsing building behind them. Korra turns her head upwards slightly to watch as a massive pillar crumbles, falling on its side in their direction. Her eyes widen and her mouth parts in a silent scream as she stares at the tall piece of rock falling down in slow motion. Shepard follows her gaze and feels the same fear strike her, but she pushes forward quickly, digging deep into her energy reserves. She shifts the weight of the woman upon her shoulders as she runs faster, towards the shuttle. Blood is dripping down the back of her armour, but she's not certain who it belongs to; right now, she doesn't have time to figure it out. The place is tearing apart and they have to move or none of this will be worth anything.

"Liara!" Shepard yells, her voice losing itself to the raging wind, "get her on the shuttle, now!"

Liara gives Korra a harsh push before they both tumble onto the shuttle roughly. Korra yelps as she clutches her chest. The Avatar rolls to her side as she curls up in pain. Liara drags her away from the entrance she watches Shepard leap onto the shuttle, the body atop her shoulders falling next to her. Ashley slams her fist on the door controls and James pulls the shuttle away from the falling pillar. Kuvira watches, through the sandy window, as another explosion rockets through the place where they'd just been standing a few moments prior to embarking on the shuttle.

"A-Asami," Korra cries out as she finally recognizes the limp body beside Shepard's slowly lifting frame. The red-head groans as she removes herself from the floor of the shuttle to limp over to Liara. Korra crawls over to Asami's side, her eyes widening as she takes in the extra-pale complexion of the heiress. Korra's hands cup Asami's cheeks as she begins to sob uncontrollably. Asami's breaths are shallow and quick, and her skin is cold.

"Liara," Shepard whispers softly as she watches the Asari staring at the burning complex with a desolate expression, "I know that things are hard right now, but there's nothing we can do. We did all we could, but sometimes, it's not enough." Liara remains silent and motionless, bare for the tears welling in her eyes. A few moments pass before the azure woman can nod and bow her head, turning away from the destruction.

"So much history," she chokes out, "so much knowledge, Prothean or otherwise, all gone in a matter of hours." Shepard bows her head mournfully as she places an encouraging and gentle hand upon the dusted white shoulder of her armour.

"We'll make it worth it, Li," Shepard growls determinedly, "I promise."

"Good," Liara whispers, wiping away a stray tear, "those thousands of years won't be lost in vain. I won't allow it, Shepard."

"Hey! Hey, help!" Korra's shrill, panicked voice interrupts their moment. Both older women turn around to see the Avatar curled over the inventor's side, shoulders shaking as she sobs. Kuvira sits on the seat, locked up by Ashley, watching with an emotionless expression as her eyes stay glued to the pale woman's frame. Something flickers in her opal eyes, but she turns away as Korra lets out a heart-wrenching scream. Shepard and Liara leave their positions at the back of the shuttle to quickly circle around Asami.

"Why is she so cold?" Korra sobs, placing her hands upon Asami's cheek and jaw. At the touch, the heiress coughs and shudders violently. Korra grips her body tightly as she pulls her friend into her strong arms. She ignores the burning in her chest and instead focuses her energy upon Asami. Using her fire-bending, she warms up her own body despite the ache it causes in her lungs. Asami stills shivers, teeth chattering from shock as she looks around with wide, crazed eyes. Sweat pours down her face as her hands tremble in Korra's lap.

"K-Korra," Asami gurgles through hiccuped breaths as she stutters, "K-Korra, m-my l-l-leg."

"What's wrong?" Korra asks worriedly, glancing down. Instantly, she's met with a gory mash of mangled flesh upon Asami's left thigh, bleeding like a waterfall upon the floor of the shuttle. Something inside Korra's heart snaps at the sight and she freezes up, causing more panic for the injured heiress. Both Shepard and Liara grimace at the sight, but the captain breaks her trance and grabs at the medical kit by the door, tearing it open and reaching for the medigel inside. She rips open the packet and pours the cool gel into the gaping hole, cringing at the damage done to the raw flesh.

"K-Korra," Asami stammers again, her voice growing more worried and shrill as she stares down at Shepard doing the work of tending to her bloody leg. Asami's chest rises and falls faster as she begins to hyperventilate from the gory sight. She sees Shepard's bloodied gauntlets weaving clothes around the gaping wound; she sees Liara's crimson gloves as they tie a band around the hole in her leg; she sees it all, but something's not right.

"Asami, you're gonna be okay," Korra tries to tell her, but Korra's a shit liar. "Just, stay still and let them help, okay?"

The Avatar shifts to block the horrid view, and as Asami glances up fearfully into those equally terrified icy eyes, it all hits her with a jarring realization. Korra's rubbing her arms and trying to tell her soothing things, but the sound doesn't process. She feels so numb and cold, but her body burns at the same time. Asami's eyes search Korra's gaze before they cast their glance over her shoulder and back to Shepard and Liara. They're arguing about something, and the heiress can spot the blue woman's hands pressed tightly against her wound. Suddenly, Asami's breathing slows drastically, her mouth going dry. She looks back to Korra with desolation and sheer fear, causing the Avatar to tense up.

The inventor lightly squeezes Korra's hand as black speckles cloud the corners of her eyes, threatening to pull her into darkness with the ever-growing feeling of fatigue. Korra shakes her head as tears begin to well in the young Water Tribe woman's sapphire depths. The heiress' lips quiver as she parts her mouth, feeling the world come to a jarring halt. Never in a million years would Asami have thought that she'd be uttering the same words Korra had once told her three years ago after the battle with Zaheer upon Lahima's Peak, but perhaps, in some sick and twisted sense, it has been a million years.

"Korra," Asami croaks in a broken voice, "I can't feel my legs."