Maybe it was a bit impulsive on Asami's part to have left for her mission completely alone. She had assumed company would only slow her down, but she now realises it wouldn't hurt to have someone manually taking charge of her ship while she goes to fight off unwanted pursuers. Nevertheless, the autopilot technology she had meticulously developed over the past couple of years works just as fine, too.

The engineer whistles a gleeful tune as she reaches a short ladder leading up to a circular hatch. She stuffs a slender hand into her glove and climbs the steps effortlessly. With her ungloved hand, she turns the wheel on the hatch and it creaks open.

Icy winds blast her face when she peeks out. She spots the plane above her and absently recalls designing that model years ago; it was one of the very first vehicles she'd shipped out as head of Future Industries. Vaguely, she makes out two silhouettes in the darkness, one perched on each of the plane's wings. Both of them are preparing to descend.

Asami pulls herself up onto the metal surface of the top of the airship. She quickly adjusts her position, keeping balance as ropes fall at the opposite end, followed by the two figures who land lightly on their feet.

"I don't want to hurt you," she shouts, her voice just barely heard over the combined hum emanating from both aircraft. While she is looking forward to a good fight, her conscience tells her she doesn't actually want to hurt anybody. "Please leave!"

The duo – one man and one woman, now that she has a better view – exchange brief glances before sprinting over to her, armed with sharp, glinting blades that shimmer under the moonlight. She smirks, shifting into a fighting stance.

The man reaches her first. He swings his knife sloppily, and she deflects it by using her arm to knock away his. Her other fist connects with his chin, and the cloth covering his mouth is removed in the process. A follow-up kick to the chest sends him flying.

A moment later, the woman is on her. From the corner of her eye, she sees the man nearly roll off the airship, barely hanging on to its side. Her heart stops in a panic, and she considers bolting after him to save his life. A second later though, the plane maneuvers downwards to his direction, and Asami knows she doesn't have to.

She focuses on the woman in front of her. She looks younger than Asami, perhaps more than a couple years so. But the look of determination on her face tells the engineer that she's been doing this kind of thing for a while. And under hardened features, she spots just a trace of desperation. Interlaced with the rush of adrenaline in Asami's veins comes a wave of sympathy. The woman – the girl, is not here to cause trouble; she's here on a mission to survive. Oddly enough, the passion in the girl's eyes reminds her so much of Korra.

Asami wants to ask her to come inside the airship so she can give her what they came here for – food, water, supplies. But before she can get a word out, the girl's foot makes contact with her cheekbone. She winces, berating herself for not paying attention in the middle of combat. Her opponent jabs her blade forward. Asami side-steps to evade the attack, and places a gloved hand on the girl's shoulder.

Mild electric currents pass into her body, and though Asami's glove is set to the lowest level, it's enough to make the girl's legs give way. She falls to her knees.

"Stop fighting," Asami commands, hints of compassion showing in her tone. She hears the plane just as it moves upward to fly level with her. The man from earlier jumps onto the top of her airship again.

She holds his stare, then walks calmly over to the open hatch. "Come with me, both of you."

Bolin gets up the next morning with his mouth turned up in a big smile. He jumps out of bed and proclaims a loud good morning to all his bedroom furniture. Then, in a mad rush, he washes his face, brushes his teeth, dresses up in his military suit and gels his hair the way his superior likes it. He has something to tell her today, something that will mend the rift between him and Opal, and maybe Mako, too, once his girlfriend proudly tells his brother all about it.

"You the man, Bolin," he says cheekily, tugging down a stray strand and applying more gel onto it. Satisfied, he winks at himself in the mirror and grins. "Alright. All you gotta do is tell Kuvira, respectfully, that you want to be stationed in the state of Yi for a month or two. You know, to help out and bring happiness and stuff."

He knits his brows together, straightening his expression into a perfect Kuvira impression. "No, Bolin, I need you and your awesome skills with me at all times, cause you're so brilliant and important."

His face relaxes, and he blushes at the compliment to himself. He waves his hand nonchalantly. "Oh, you flatter me, Great Uniter, but I believe this is something I must do. See, when we left Yi a few days ago, my heart shattered knowing that I was leaving behind a people who were still in the process of healing. You could even see the sadness in their eyes on our way out!" He widens his green orbs for emphasis. "I know some of our troops are still there doing their job, but I can't help but feel that I should be there too, serving and protecting those in need. I promise you, within two weeks, I'll help shape Yi back to the great state it once was!"

Bolin goes into Kuvira-mode again. "Are you sure about this, Corporal? This isn't because of Opal, is it?"

"No, milady, no. This is not at all because of my lovely, beautiful Opal. This is all me. I mean, sure she may be there, but this isn't some excuse to be with her or something. That's just dumb."

"Alright, Bolin, as you wish. I, Kuvira, hereby discharge you on an honourable assignment to reform the great state of Yi!"

Bolin's pearly-whites are exposed fully by this point. "That's how it's gonna go," he assures himself, looking back at the mirror. "And I should really stop talking to myself."

After a brief hesitation, he leaves his room and makes his way to Kuvira's. Too impatient to wait for the elevator, he proceeds up the staircase instead. He walks with a light spring in his step towards her elegant double-doors. He remembers how he dissed Prince Wu's demotion to a junior suite yesterday, and scratches his head in a guilty fashion. Not cool, Bo. Not cool.

Kuvira's doors are slightly open, and he stops when he hears two voices deep in conversation. From his position outside, he could only hear certain bits of it. Not like he really intended to, but it doesn't occur to him to walk away.

"It's power... devastating. Nobody would dare go against us and our army." Bolin recognises Kuvira's rich voice.

Baatar Jr. is the one who responds. "Then the other nations.. us alone. What about Zaofu?"

"It's ours."

His thick brows furrow in suspicion. But just as he moves closer to the gap between the doors where he can hear more clearly, the elevator bell dings from behind him and he jumps away.

Varrick and Zhu Li exit the lift. "Bolin!" Varrick yells eccentrically when their eyes meet. The conversation inside the room is put to a halt. "What are you doing here, you big lug? Didn't see you at breakfast, and man, the egg custard tarts are de-zhu-licious! See what I did there, Zhu Li?"

Bolin smiles uneasily at him. The double-doors open fully and Baatar Jr. emerges. "Varrick, you're late." His gaze travels to Bolin and for a moment the lavabender thinks his little eavesdropping stint has landed him in trouble. But Baatar simply nods in greeting. "Is there anything, I can help you with, Bolin?"

Bolin shrugs. "I uh- no. I mean, yes." He glances at Varrick. "You know what, I'll just come back later."

A/N: Sorry sorry sorry for the lack of updates! I've been really busy (but that's no excuse, is it). I have good news and bad news. The bad news is that the average length of each chapter will probably be reduced to that of this chapter's. But for the good news, I promise to update more frequently, so that balances it off, right?! Tell me what you think in a review. Oh, and in my head, Asami and Korra are gonna be reunited really soon, so stay tuned.