THE CAVE SERIES

THE CAVE

Author: Masksarehot
Fandom: The Legend of Korra
Status: Complete
Genre: Romance, Drama
Rated: M
Pairing: Amon/Korra

Summary:

Amon must cooperate with Korra if he hopes to survive his injuries following a natural disaster, forcing him to face his prejudices about bending head-on...and leaving him grappling with an inconvenient growing attraction.

Perview :

The meeting ended before it began.

Amon had stationed his troops around the peak, ready to strike at his lieutenant's command, and entered the cave alone, pressing against the wall by the mouth. The plan, once she entered, was to emerge from the shadows, intimidate her until he had squeezed out every bit of information about Tarrlok, and leave her paralyzed with fear. Not elegant, but effective. The Avatar was an extremely valuable tool to the Equalist cause, but only so long as she truly feared and respected him.

Shortly before midnight, she entered, holding a glowing fireball in her hand like a torch. "Amon?" she called.

"Avatar," he greeted, and she jumped and spun, her eyes wide with fear. Good. Walking slowly up to her, he kept his shoulders broad, his gaze strong. A bead of sweat trailed down her temple, glistening in the light of the flame, but she stood tall.

"You came alone?" she demanded.

He stopped, looming over her, and did not answer.

Her brow cocked with suspicion and she folded her arms over her chest, wilting a little under his gaze. "Look, I hate you and you hate me, but right now we have a common enemy. I have a proposition."

A deafening groan drowned her next words. The cave ground heaved.

Normally light on his feet, Amon staggered. Behind his mask, his lips curled into a sneer. Earthbending. That this was a trap was not surprising, but how had her troops gotten past his?

"Call off your earthbenders," he intoned, struggling to maintain decorum as the ground shuddered. "We agreed to meet alone." Another tremor nearly knocked him off his feet.

Across from him, the Avatar fell to all fours. "I did come alone!" Her voice was panicky.

He barely had time to register that it was a legitimate earthquake when the ground pitched, upending him. Jagged rocks crumbled from the cave roof, their slams sending sprays of stone showering down on them. A shard sliced into his arm, through cloth and flesh, and drew blood.

His eyes snapped to the Avatar. He had to keep her alive; all his plans depended on it. She had managed to rise onto one knee, her hands deftly bending the fallen rocks away from herself. She was skilled indeed, but too focussed on the immediate. Above her, the ceiling was beginning to crack, a heavy load of debris about to drop.

"Above you!" he yelled, but his deep voice was lost in the echoing moans of the earth around them. Still she focussed on the stones around her. Still the ceiling began to give.

No choice.

He launched himself at her, barrelling toward her on all fours, the ground rocking so harshly that it hit either shoulder along his way.

She lifted her head just before the impact, her eyes widening, but he was too quick for her to avoid.

His momentum sent her tumbling. He rolled, landed on his back, and a crushing white pain seized his shoulder and enveloped his mind in darkness.

Link: www.fanfiction.net/s/8185069/1/The-Cave

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SEQUEL: SHADOWS OF THE CITY

Status: Complete
Genre: Romance, Drama
Rated: M
Pairing: Amon/Korra

Summary:

Amon must cooperate with Korra if he hopes to survive his injuries following a natural disaster, forcing him to face his prejudices about bending head-on...and leaving him grappling with an inconvenient growing attraction.

Perview : 

The shops gave way to a row of houses, small businesses that also doubled as living quarters for downtrodden families. The cobblestone here was worn, grass poking between the broken stones. Amon's nose wrinkled; the stench of garbage that wafted from the alleyways was stronger today than usual. He had just started to turn off the street when a scream caught his attention.

In front of one of the houses stood a man speaking to a young girl. The girl was maybe eight, her dark hair in pigtails. Amon recognized her as a girl who usually sat in the garden, yellow eyes alight as she played with a doll made out of a knotted sock. Every day he had passed by, she had reminded him of the sister he might have had, the one taken from him in her infancy. Today, however, she was all young Amon. Her fists were on her hips, and as the man took a step toward her, she let out a bloodcurdling shriek of resistance. Passersby gave them a wide berth, no one looking directly at them.

Amon tilted his head and began to pad toward them, observing. The girl's clothes were tattered and her bare feet were braced in a fighting stance that looked to be firebender posture.

"I just want to talk to your father," said the man, his voice heavy with impatience.

"No! You're going to hurt him again." The girl held her hands in front of her. Definitely firebender posture. Behind her, a man with slumped shoulders hobbled out of the house and tried to pull her inside, but her stubbornness held her fast.

Amon came to a standstill twenty feet from them, his throat suddenly tight. The scene was far too familiar for comfort.

"Your payment is long overdue," said the threatening man to the little girl's father.

"Please, I cannot pay you today."

In Amon's mind's eye, he saw his own father begging for mercy. Heat flickered in his chest.

"Leave him alone!" screamed the girl, and she blasted a bolt of fire at the man.

The man grinned, easily dodging, and then he clawed his hand into the air.

The girl shrieked. Her legs twitched as her feet left the ground. Puppet-like, her body began to float and contort. Her father howled.

"Do something," whispered Amon, waiting for the father to intervene.

"Pay me," said the bloodbender. "I wouldn't want to hurt her too badly."

"Please! I'm telling you, I can't. Don't hurt her." Amon could tell by the fear in the man's voice that he was not going to stand up against his daughter's attacker.

The bloodbender grinned and clenched his fist, and blood trickled from the girl's mouth.

Amon dropped his satchel and bolted to the attacker's side. Six blows to the flank hit the bloodbender before he knew anyone was on him. He whirled, dropping the girl, but Amon was already on his other side. Six more jabs and the man was completely disabled. A holler of frustration left the man's mouth as he began to sag toward to the cobblestone.

Out of long-unused instinct, Amon's hand clamped onto the back of the bloodbender's neck, pushing him to his knees.

"You dare to use bloodbending," he said, his voice dangerously calm. "And on a child. You are pathetic."

The man turned to spit at him. Amon dodged and punched a finger into the man's neck in retribution, eliciting a scream and a sob.

"Listen closely." Amon's grip tightened on the other's neck and he leaned close to his ear, using the deepest timbre of his voice. "You will not abuse your bending like this again, or there will be consequences."

The man was gasping hard, sweat and tears trickling down his face. "Like what?" His eyes were white all the way around the irises. "You'll take my bending?"

He figured out who I am. Though he managed to keep his face impassive, Amon's heart seized. He tossed the man to the ground and stood. "Do not follow me, and do not touch them again. I won't hold back next time."

The girl and her father had run inside. The streets were deserted, though eyes peered out of cracked doors and shutters. Amon's lips curled. Too much fear. He should not have been the only one fighting back.

He stormed back to his satchel. One of the masks had spilled out; he shoved it back into the bag, hoping no one had seen it. It reminded him of all he had given up. Once upon a time, he could have decisively ended this bender's tyranny. Now all he had were words and empty threats. His greatest threat, his identity, wasn't even one he was free to utilize.

Footsteps sounded from behind, running. The bloodbender was trying to charge at his back. Amon listened; at the last second, he flattened to the ground and spun, taking out his attacker's legs. The bloodbender flew over him, crashing into a wall. Amon swooped at the man and drove his palm into the other's face, slamming his head back against the wall once, twice. The man slid to the ground, unconscious, leaving a smear of crimson on the wall. Blood from his nose began to trickle down his face, and the colour faded from his skin.

Amon stood in front of the fallen man, hunched over, and struggled to catch his breath. He hadn't meant to hit him so hard.

Sirens began to sound in the background; one of the neighbours must have called the police.

Standing tall, Amon brushed off his robes, then slung the satchel over his shoulder. Every instinct told him to flee, but he knew that becoming a fugitive was no longer an option – he had a new life now. He held up his hands as the first car arrived, offering himself up for questioning.

In his mind, he was already drafting a speech for Midori to deliver to the Council. Maybe he couldn't fight against the benders as Amon anymore, but he would do what he could as Zoran.

Link: www.fanfiction.net/s/8412387/1/The-Cave-II-Shadows-of-the-City

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SIDE STORY/SEQUEL: WELCOME TO THE FAMILY

Status: Complete
Genre: Family
Rated: T
Pairing: Amon/Korra

Summary:
Fluffy little snippet set a few years after The Cave II (Spoilers!) Selora's training session with Amon is interrupted when the phone rings with big news: Korra is going into labour.

Link: www.fanfiction.net/s/8671621/1/Cave-Fragments-Welcome-to-the-Family

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SIDE STORY/SEQUEL: WRINKLES & AFTERGLOW

Status: Complete
Genre: Romance
Rated: K
Pairing: Amon/Korra

Summary:
On a special anniversary, Amon & Korra share a dance, forming a memory so strong that it will resonate with the next generation.

Link: www.fanfiction.net/s/8729530/1/Cave-Fragments-Wrinkles-Afterglow

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SIDE STORY/SEQUEL: A SONG FOR THE DEAD

Status: Complete
Genre: Spiritual, Family
Rated: K+
Pairing: Amon/Korra

Summary:
Set in The Cave AU (Amorra). Amon, Selora and their families say farewell to his former lieutenant and Midori. Character death.

Link: www.fanfiction.net/s/8900322/1/Cave-Fragments-A-Song-for-the-Dead