Night Of A Thousand Stars - Part 2

In the president's booth, Raiko and his wife were happily watching the mover.

"You're too late Nuktuk. Soon, my doomsday device will shoot this block of ice into the Earth's core, freezing the entire planet, and I will be ruler of Ice Earth!" Evil Unalaq laughed diabolically.

" I don't think so," Nuktuk replied

Suddenly, Raiko and his wife were pulled backwards by unseen figures clasping their hands over their mouths to restrain them from making a sound.

The figures, now seen to be Northern soldiers, tied up the already gagged couple as the president's guards were slumped unconscious against the wall next to the door.

As the soldiers finished their job and turned to guide the presidential couple out, the door of the booth slammed to the floor revealing Bolin on the other side.

"I don't think so" He glared at the soldiers.

Buttercup managed to wriggle out of her gag and screamed as Actress Ginger screamed simultaneously in the mover.

One of the soldiers sent a water blast in Bolin's direction, but he acrobatically flipped out of the way.

As he landed, he used his momentum to dislodge a slab of rock from the wall behind him and hurled it at his attacker.

The waterbender was hit square in the chest and thrown out of the booth, plunging into the water, screaming.

The audience gasped and turned in the direction of the noise.

"What was that?" El muttered as the noise caught her and Lin's attention. The chief of police narrowing her eyes in suspicion.

Back in the booth, Bolin punched the floor, crackling the ground with an earth wave which threw the three remaining waterbenders against the ceiling. When they landed on the floor, Bolin threw another punch straight forward, throwing the three soldiers out of the booth, landing with heavy thuds on the metal bridge which allowed access to the playing field from the players' locker.

"Mister President, get back, I'm here to help." Bolin quickly untied the president and his wife and Buttercup hugged her husband.

Without hesitation, he ran to the edge of the booth and jumped down. He landed in a crouch, ripping the sleeves of his suit as he did.

Standing back up, he tore off his sleeves off completely, a determined look adorning his face before cracking his neck and walking forward toward the three assailants standing in the ring.

"Looks like there's nowhere to go." He smirked

Above, Elira softly gasped upon seeing him "Bolin?"

One of the soldiers sent a stream of water at Bolin from the playing area, but he managed to dodge the attack and the audience gasped in fear.

Lin turned to her officers "Secure the president and Lady Azira and call for backup immediately!"

"No! Gran-Gran can handle herself, focus on protecting the president" El turned away from the fight in front of them.

"Elira, we don't know if these attackers are just after the president. It's too risky, we shouldn't underestimate them!" Lin argued

"I'm not" Elira smirked "You're underestimating my grandmother"

Without another word, El opened her glider and flew towards the ring where Bolin was avoiding more attacks.

He bent out three earth discs and each disc at a waterbender.

One of them got hit and was incapacitated while the remaining two continued attacking.

Bolin dodged one of the waterbender's attacks, while on the screen, Nuktuk avoided Unalaq's attack in a similar fashion.

"Bolin, look out!/Nuktuk, look out!" Elira cried in sync with Ginger on the screen.

She flew headfirst into him, pushing him out of the way of a water hose. Rolling on the ground a bit, the two stopped with Bolin looking up at the airbender in shock.

"El? You here?" He gasped, sitting up

"Of course I am, you're my best friend" Elira smirked, getting to her feet

Bolin smiled softly at her before remembering they were in the middle of a fight.

He quickly got up and grabbed El's hand, pulling her out of the way of another stream of water.

When attacked on the other side, they stopped at the centre and Bolin bent out two entire stacks of earth discs.

"Stay behind me!" He warned El as the waterbenders threw endless streams of water at them, being blocked by the stacks, while on-screen Nuktuk hid from Unalaq's attack from behind a pillar.

Bolin waited for the right moment before punching the stacks at the waterbenders, successfully hitting them.

Bolin threw discs from the stacks to the waterbenders, while Nuktuk continued throwing streams of water.

"This is unbelievable! Bolin is bending two full stacks of earth disks at once, which would normally be illegal. But then again, he's fighting three waterbenders with only an airbender as backup, so all rules are out the window!" Shiro Shinobi yelled in the crowd, grabbing his neighbour.

The ring was soon filled with dust.

Elira sent a gust of wind at one of the soldiers, knocking them over the edge of the ring while Bolin knocked out another with a disc.

The other soldier waterbent and prepared to attack Bolin, but Bolin dodged the attack and bent out two discs to shield himself from another water blast.

Whilst the last soldier was distracted, Elira sent a stream of wind underneath them, sending them into the air and making them yell in surprise.

Whilst the soldier was air-born, Bolin bent one last disc into the soldier's stomach, knocking him crashing into a nearby speaker.

"Tell me who sent you!" Bolin demanded, disc at the ready with El at his side

"It was Varrick, please don't hurt me, Nuktuk!" The soldier cowered

The duo were shocked! Dropping their stances, they turned to look up at Varrick in his booth.

"Mako was right..." El muttered, watching as the man quickly tried to flee but was stopped by Lin.

Seeing the duo distracted, the soldier yelled as he attempted to grab Elira, but Bolin retaliated in time and slams a disc to his stomach, tossing him into the pool, while on-screen Unalaq was defeated.

" It's a knockout!" Shiro yelled and the crowd cheered.

Bolin turned and waved back at the audience with Nuktuk. Flexing his muscles with a grin.

"You did it!" El jumped and hugged him, laughing as Bolin spun her around.

"We did it, airhead. Together" He set her back on her feet. "Listen, El, I...uh...I..."

Why was he stuttering? And why was he so nervous all of a sudden? He finally knew how he felt about her, so why couldn't he say it?

Elira chuckled, ruffling his hair "You can tell me later, Bo. Right now, let's just enjoy all this well-deserved attention"

She turned to wave at the crowd again as they cheered. Bolin just smiled softly at her, wrapping his arm around her shoulders and waved at the crowd again.

*

Outside the arena, Varrick and Zhu Li were led into a police truck as a reporter took pictures.

Many reporters were taking pictures of Bolin and El. The duo were being silly, pulling faces and dramatic heroic poses for the camera before turning to one another and laughing.

Their childish moment however was ruined when Ginger ran up to them, practically pushed Elira to the side and kissed Bolin, taking him back.

"I can't believe my boyfriend is a real-life hero!" She gushed and Elira glared at her

"Boyfriend? Wait, stop. I broke up with you" Bolin reminded the actress. 

"Oh come on, Bolin, you'd be crazy not to take me back" Ginger smirked, leaning into the earthbender

"Well, sorry, but consider me crazy" Bolin brushed her off "Because I'm not"

Ginger looked stunned and scoffed "And who could possibly be better than me?"

Bolin turned to look at Elira, who had looked away scowling.  

"Someone I can't live without" He muttered with a soft smile and Elira's eyes widened, turning to face him once again as her cheeks flushed red. 

Ginger glanced between the two as they held eye contact, before scowling and stomping her foot. Yelling in anger, she stormed off as Asami came up to him smiling with pride.

"Wow, you sure told her" She laughed

"Yeah, turns out all she wanted was fame and attention. That was a real deal breaker" Bolin shrugged 

"Mmhmm" Asami smirked and El giggled as Zira joined them. 

"Bolin, you and El saved the president, I could not be more proud of you both" She smiled, embracing her granddaughter

"Thanks, Gran-Gran" El hugged her tightly 

"Yeah, thanks, Zira" Bolin added

"And you proved Mako was right all along. We have to go tell him what happened" Asami grinned

"Yeah, let's go!" Elira cheered before a familiar groan caught their attention.

Looking up they saw Oogi descending to the arena.

"Tenzin?" Zira muttered in confusion as the bison landed

"Dad!" Elira exclaimed in excitement, running towards the bison as Korra jumped off "Dad! Korra! You'll never guess what happened! It was so cool!"

Korra remained silent as El ranted on and on about the recent events. Knowing that once she told her what had happened to Jinora, her child-like excitement would immediately disappear.

"...And then I jumped down to help, and we fought off the attackers together and...Hey, you okay?" Elira stopped her rambling upon noticing the look of guilt on Korra's face.

"El...I'm so sorry. But something's happened" She said

"What do you mean "Something's happened"?" Elira questioned

"Jinora and I...We went into the Spirit World so that I could close the portal from the inside" Korra explained, her head down in shame "But Unalaq was waiting for us and..."

"Korra, you're scaring me. Where's my sister?" El demanded as Tenzin came up beside her.

"Elira..." He sighed, wrapping an arm around "Jinora's soul is trapped in the Spirit World"

Elira froze and Zira gasped behind her, holding a hand over her mouth in horror.

"No...No no no no, she can't be" El turned and glared at Korra "Why didn't you do something?! Why didn't you protect her?!"

"El, I tried to save her but Unalaq--"

"I don't care!!" Elira screamed, shocking everyone around her." You were there! You could've saved her! She would be here right now!"

"Elira, it's not Korra's fault" Tenzin hugged his daughter close as tears fell from her eyes. "What's done is done. The only way we can save Jinora is by stopping Unalaq"

Tenzin nodded at Korra and the Avatar quickly ran over to the president talking with Lin.

"President Raiko!"

"Avatar Korra? What's wrong?" He asked

"Sir, I know I've asked for your help before, but things have changed" Korra stated as Tenzin and his family, minus Pema and the kids, walked up behind them.

"Unalaq doesn't just wanna take over the South anymore. He wants to destroy the whole world" Korra declared.

Raiko now looked frightened

"Unalaq is going to destroy the world? He really does have a doomsday device?" Bolin said

"He's trying to release a powerful dark spirit during Harmonic Convergence, which is only a few days away. If he succeeds, the world as we know it is over. Sir, we desperately need your help." Korra begged

Raiko thought for a moment before replying. "I'm sorry, Korra, but my answer is still no."

Elira saw red while her family and Korra widened their eyes in shock.

"Don't you understand?! There are lives on the line and my sister is one of them!" She yelled, getting in Raiko's face

"Raiko, you must reconsider!" Tenzin added, glaring at the man

"I'm aware that lives are on the line. And that's precisely why my troops are staying here. If the world is going to be thrown into chaos as you claim, I need to protect my citizens. I'm sorry."

"My sister is one of your citizens!" Elira snapped

"Raiko, I understand that you want to protect your city and your people. But if Unalaq is not stopped, there will be no one left to protect!" Zira glared

"Sir, Nuktuk needs your help. I know you love helping people." Bolin placed a hand on the president's shoulder

"Son, I appreciate you saving my life and I'm a big fan of your work, but my decision is final" Raiko declared and walked away.

"Never should have saved that guy," Bolin muttered bitterly

"Ditto" El agreed, glaring daggers at Raiko's back

"Mom, you think if you gave Uncle Zuko a call he'd help?" Ursa asked her mother

"There's no time. The fleet wouldn't reach the North before Hamonic Convergence" Zira sighed "Even on Appa, it took the Gaang and I weeks to reach it" 

Elira looked down, clenching her fists. They were running out of options.

"If you guys need help, I'm here for you," Asami stated, placing a hand on El's shoulder

"Yeah, me too," Bolin added, taking Elira's hand.

"Thank you" Elira squeezed his hand, giving him a tiny smile

"It's so good to see you guys again" Korra smiled at her friends, before looking around

" Wait. Where's Mako?"

*

At the prison, Mako was sitting in his cell when the door opened and Bolin walked in, now in his usual outfit.

"So, how was the big premiere?" Mako asked

"El and I saved the president, in real life!" Bolin grinned

"Wait, wh-what?"

"You were right about Varrick. He tried to kidnap Raiko!"

"I knew it!" Mako exclaimed, standing up

"But it didn't work, because of you, and because of me and El. Let's just say we all did good. Beifong says you're free to go"

The two walked out of the cell and stopped

"Sorry for ever doubting you, Mako." Bolin apologised

"Don't worry about it, bro." Mako pulled his little brother in for a hug

"Oh! And guess what?" Bolin grinned 

"What?" 

"Okay, I know you probably already knew how El feels about me"

"She finally told you?"

"More like screamed at me" Bolin smiled sheepishly "But, we're good now. At least I think we are--Anyway, it took me a bit but I know now. I love her, Mako!" 

"You do?" Mako raised his eyebrows in surprise. 

"Yeah, I was just too much of an idiot to realise" Bolin sighed 

"Does she know you feel the same?" Mako asked 

"No, I tried to tell her but couldn't get the words out" Bolin huffed

"Don't worry, you'll get your moment...And it's about time you realised. Seriously, watching you be so clueless was just painful" Mako smiled and wrapped an arm around his brother "But I'm happy for you, bro" 

"Thanks, Mako" The two then walked out into the visitor area and were greeted by claps.

"Nice job, Mako. You're going to make a great detective." Lin smiled

"But chief, there aren't any detective openings right now." Gang said

"Actually we have two openings" Lin declared and Lu and Gang stared at each other in shock.

Korra then ran forward and kissed Mako as their friends stared in shock.

"Mako, I've missed you so much." Korra smiled

"Wait, I thought they..." El muttered to Asami who narrowed her eyes in annoyance.

"Oh yeah, did I forget to tell you? Korra's back." Bolin eyed the situation awkwardly.

"Korra ... hey, I missed you, too. So you're not still mad at me?" Mako asked

"Why would I be mad?"

"...We had that fight before you left, remember?"

"No, not really. I got attacked by a dark spirit and I lost my memory for a little while. Maybe it hasn't all come back yet. Was it a bad fight?" Korra questioned

"Uh ..." Mako glanced at everyone watching them " No. No, it wasn't that bad"

"Idiot" El faced-palmed as Asami looked away, annoyed and jealous.

"Korra, we don't have much time" Tenzin walked up to them "We need to figure out how to deal with Unalaq."

"I think I know just the man to talk to." Bolin declared

Elira eyed him suspiciously. He didn't mean...

*

Elira scowled as she stood with her friends and Lin, in front of a lavish prison cell where Varrick was detained. The businessman turned to look at his guests, sat in one of his plush chairs.

"Guys, hey, what do you think? Varrick Industries built this prison, and I had this cell made special. I had a feeling I'd end up here one day" He stood up, grinning slyly " Zhu Li, c'mon, we got guests! Whip up a pot of that green tea I love!"

"Yes, sir." Zhu Li bowed and went to get refreshments.

"Zhu Li's in prison with you?" Korra asked, looking surprised

"Of course! I don't go anywhere without my assistant. Do you?!"

"We're not interested in your tea. And this isn't a friendly visit." Mako snapped

"Don't tell me you guys are still mad about everything that happened?" Varrick questioned

"Yes" Elira glared, crossing her arms

" But I did some good things, too" Varrick insisted " Korra, who warned you about Unalaq? I did. Bolin, who got you into the movers? I did. El, who got you into the music industry? I did! Asami, who saved your company? I did! Mako, who got you thrown in jail!? I did!... Oh yeah, guess that was a bad thing"

"You stole everything from me and you tried to kidnap the president. Those are pretty bad, too." Asami scowled

"I wasn't going to hurt him. I just needed to start a war. Well, a bigger war." Varrick explained

"Well, we're gonna end it. Where's all the stuff you stole from Asami?" Elira demanded

"The Future Industries' stuff? It's on my battleship."

"You have a battleship?" Korra asked

"Of course I do! I bought the first one they made! Named her the "Zhu Li". Varrick sat back down as Zhu Li came over with a tray of tea

"You named your battleship after your assistant?" Bolin questioned, raising an eyebrow.

"Yup. They're both cold, heartless war machines." Varrick grinned

"Your tea, sir" Zhu Li placed the tea cup and saucer on the table next to Varrick.

"Look, I'm truly sorry for the mess I caused" Varrick apologised, picking up his tea" Let me make it up to you, take Zhu Li"

Everyone looked at him in silence before he continued "My battleship, it's yours, and everything on it"

" It's not the fleet we were looking for, but it's the next best thing." Korra smiled

" All right! Team Avatar is back in business. Haha!" Bolin grabbed his friends in a group hug, making them laugh as Lin smiled at the youngsters with pride.

*

Later that night, Elira lay awake in bed on Varrick's ship. She couldn't sleep. Every time she closed her eyes, she could see her sister calling out to her. Begging her to help before disappearing into the darkness.  

With a frustrated sigh, Elira sat up, waking Pichi beside her, who looked up at her owner with a small chitter. Giving the lemur a slight scratch behind her ear, making her purr, El got up from her bed and silently crept to the door. Sneaking out, she headed down the hallway with Pichi following behind her. 

After various twists and turns, she reached her destination. Slowly opening the door, she paused as it creaked, glancing over her shoulder in case someone heard, before slipping inside. 

Stepping in, she paused at the sight of Jinora laying on the bed. Walking over silently, El knelt beside her, looking down sadly at her motionless sister. She looked so peaceful. No sign of fear or distress on her young face and if El didn't know any better, she would think her sister was sleeping. 

Pichi chittered sadly, laying her head on El's knee as the girl reached over and gently stroked her sister's hair out of her face, a tear falling down her cheek. 

 The door suddenly squeaked open, causing the girl to jump as her father appeared in the threshold. 

"Dad, hey" El quickly stood up and wiped away her tears before Tenzin could see "What are you doing here?" 

Tenzin frowned in concern before embracing his daughter, holding her tightly. Elira sighed and returned the hug, clinging to her father as he gently stroked her hair. 

"I had a feeling you'd be in here. I just wanted to make sure you were alright?" He asked

"I'm fine" El muttered, turning to her sister once again as Pichi climbed onto her shoulder. 

"...Elira, before this happened...Jinora told me something" Tenzin said, also looking down at his younger daughter "She told me that you too could enter the Spirit World. And that you have been for some time" 

Elira sighed, lowering her head "So the secrets out, huh?" 

"Why did you never tell me? This is an amazing achievement, Elira" Tenzin questioned 

"I guess..." Elira sighed again "I knew how much you wanted to be able to do it but couldn't" 

Tenzin looked surprised "How did...?" 

"I followed you into the Temple once when I was like 6. I was curious to see what happened when you enter the Spirit World" Elira smiled slightly at the memory of little 6-year-old her hiding behind a pillar to watch her father "I'd got it in my head that there'd be flashing lights or something cool like that...I never told you I could do it because I didn't want to hurt your feelings" 

Tenzin smiled softly, placing a kiss on his daughter's head "And I appreciate that sweetheart, but I do wish you would've told me"

"I know, I'm sorry" Elira looked down, moving her bangs out of her face

"It's alright. But next time something big happens, like a Civil War breaking out" Tenzin sent her a pointed look making the girl breathe out a laugh "Please, tell me. You don't have to do everything on your own. If need be, I will always be there to help guide you" 

"I know, dad" El smiled briefly before turning back to her sister once more and sighing. 

"She must be so scared" She muttered 

"Perhaps, but she's strong and knows we won't stop until she's home, safe and sound. We will find her, Elira" Tenzin reassured her, placing a hand on her shoulder. 

"I hope so" The girl whispered, reaching over to hold her sister's limp hand, squeezing it tightly. 

Hold on, Jinora, I'll find you...I promise...