Lord Zuko has returned to the Fire Nation. Pabu, Naga, and Bolin and Mako's family remain in Zaofu, where Yin is a very stern pet-sitter.
Team Korra has started on their journey to the Northern Air Temple. Tonraq, Lin Beifong, Suyin Beifong, Bolin, Mako, and Asami brainstorm for a rescue of the air bender hostages. Lin calls off an air assault, as P'Li will shoot them down. Suyin calls off scaling the cliffs of the Northern Air Temple, as the lava bender will burn them alive. Bolin's bird call is an admirable effort, but Korra nixes them all. She is convinced that the air benders will only be safely recovered if she turns herself into Zaheer and the Red Lotus. Korra points out that the return of the Air Nation is necessary so the world can regain balance, so if the worst should happen, she's done her job as Avatar. Asami points out that there's no way they're letting Korra go in alone; the rest of the team gives her their support, but looks fearfully to each other as Korra leaves to radio Zaheer that he's getting what he wants.
Zaheer is smug on the radio. He is playing his leverage to full advantage, and dictates how Korra will surrender. Korra will turn herself over at Laghima's Peak, seen in a previous episode. Suyin sees a way to ambush the Red Lotus; while Korra is keeping Zaheer busy on her surrender, her metal benders could climb the peak undetected and ambush Zaheer. After Asami, Bolin, and Mako radio that they've safely recovered the air benders at the Air Temple, of course.
When trading hostages for the Avatar, you need to be sharp. Zaheer gets in a meditation session before the big event, reminding himself of Guru Laghima's vague directive to let go of the earthly tether, to empty oneself, and become wind. Maybe Zaheer should research what Guru Laghima would have thought of taking air benders hostage as a part of a spread-chaos-and-disorder scheme. Does Zaheer know what "become wind" means, or will he realize later?
Enter the void, become wind, and don't kidnap your fellow air benders
P'Li approaches from behind, and Zaheer is fine with the interruption. The two are well aware today could end badly for them. Red Lotus is in the open, and inviting enemies to approach. The Avatar has evaded them before, her friends have defeated them before. P'Li reminds Zaheer that his mission saved her from a life of servitude to a warlord. Zaheer reminds P'Li that he thought of her every day in prison. Together they vow, no more prisons, no more running. Today they succeed, or they die.
Korra's goodbye to her friends is bittersweet. They all head into their separate fights, but only after deep hugging. Tonraq, before he climbs Laghima's Peak with the metal benders, also gives her encouraging words, reassuring her that he'll be fine just before leaping into his climb, water in his hands ready to use as his own grappling hooks. Korra glides up to the top of the peak.
Asami, Mako and Bolin, in the airship, circle the Air Temple, concerned about the damage. Mako, carrying the radio, warns Korra not to turn herself in until he tells her the air benders are safe. Ghazan is brusque when they arrive, ordering them inside. They can see Tenzin, clearly, bound and gagged and barely conscious. Behind him, in the shadows of a distant alcove, are the others, bound and silent, heads bowed beneath their hoods.
Korra arrives, radio slung around her shoulder, and wants the air benders let go first. When Zaheer calls her bluff, Korra agrees to surrender, and approaches P'Li. She makes a show of abandoning her radio and glider, and P'Li makes a show of chaining Korra's hands and ankles, and telling her the chains are platinum, so Korra won't be able to bend them as metal. Zaheer then gives the all clear to Ghazan, who waves the others to a bound and gagged Tenzin.
He's just resting his eyes
Tenzin isn't relieved to see them, furiously groaning something through his gag, and Asami tries to calm him, telling him that everyone's getting out of there. That's when things turn to poop, right there in the temple. The other air benders literally collapse into puddles on the floor. Water was holding the clothes and ropes in shape. Water controlled by the huge bitch sitting behind the air bender decoys. Ming Hua attacks.
What, you can't trust the Red Lotus?
Mako manages to get a broadcast to Korra, who hears and attacks Zaheer. Even with feet and hands bound, Korra has plenty of moves. Mako radios Lin to attack. She, Suyin and the other metal benders get to the peak and start. P'Li stays behind to handle them. Zaheer concentrates on Korra. Lin's earth bending sends up a lot of dust, which gives them time to avoid P'Li.
You know I'm the Avatar, right?
Zaheer tries to march Korra onto the airship, but Tonraq ambushes him, while saving Korra from plummeting. The airship, obviously piloted by someone who doesn't like when things don't go as planned, takes off. Tonraq is ready for Zaheer, shouting at him that he can't escape, while whipping water around to attack.
Asami frees Tenzin while Mako and Bolin hold off Ghazan and Ming Hua. When Ming becomes impatient, Ghazan brings on the full lava flow, which Bolin can barely hold off. With no exit, the airship stolen, and the bison scared off. Bolin has to improvise. With Tenzin showing the way to a secret room, Bolin bends rock barriers as they use a secret stair to descend the temple cliff. When the lava catches up with them, Bolin bends them an opening in the cliff that they are quickly trapped in, with the lava coming for them.
Earth bending hero time!
Tonraq and Korra battle Zaheer together, with Tonraq getting in a spearing attempt with a giant shard of ice. Zaheer dodges the blow, massive as it is, and attacks Tonraq, hurtling him off the cliff.
Shoulda' worked
Lin and Suyin hide from P'Li, who's blasting the rocks they hide behind. Lin says a quick I love you to Suyin, then scolds her to attack once P'Li is distracted. Insulting P'Li as she dashes from the rock, she dodges the combustion bender's attacks until she's hit, crashing on the ground. With P'Li focused on her on the ground, Suyin gets to work, and her large metal collar/chest piece floats off of her. It reshapes itself while swiftly flying towards P'Li, engulfing her whole head in a sealed helmet less than a second before P'Li launches another explosion.
Kind of uncomfortable
Zaheer, trying to spy the airship in the distance, turns around in despair when he hears the explosion in that helmet, which would have reduced P'Li's head to ashes. He's broken for a few seconds, until Korra launches a second attack. He dodges her bending, only to blast her with so much air she's knocked out. As Lin and Suyin surround him, he gathers unconscious Korra on his shoulder. He turns to face them, and closes his eyes. He re-recites Guru Laghima's wisdom. And then, he takes a step back. Into the void. Did P'Li's death "empty him" so he could become wind? Did he know that it would?
Lin and Suyin rush to the peak's edge, only to see a totally-in-control Zaheer, Korra still over his shoulder, floating above the clouds. He takes to flying right away, too, zipping up to Lin and Suyin's complete astonishment and buzzing the airship Ghazan and Ming Hua were bringing to him. They, too, are amazed. But then, gaining new powers is Zaheer's game this season.
Can't catch me, I'm the Red Lotus Man!
Tonraq caught some luck, even if he didn't catch a branch or rock on the way down. A metal bender has caught him, and he's hanging on for dear life, watching Zaheer fly his daughter away. Zaheer flies away, passing the Northern Air Temple, which is completely engulfed in lava.
Trapped on the ledge about to be a lava fall, Bolin decides to make the sacrifice play by running right into the lava. As Mako cries out for his brother, Bolin is hidden by the lava. For a moment. Then the lava turns black and cool and into rock, and Bolin emerges totally unscathed. It's Bolin's talent- he's a lava bender too. Even if he only realized it when they were all about to die.
Consider this lava bent!
Their day gets a little better when Kai turns out to be usefully floating around the Temple, pops up behind them, and they climb onto the bison calf's back. The Air Temple falls to fiery pieces as Kai and the bison calf get them away. Tenzin, crushed, watches.
Thanks a lot, Zaheer
Suyin's metal benders are tending to the injured, which includes Tonraq. He's getting helped personally by the bender that caught him on that cliff. Tonraq thanks her personally and she introduces herself as Kuvira. We linger a bit on her, to remember her face, presumably because we'll see more of her. There's a terrible sounding bird call, and Tenzin and his rescuers collapse on the ground.
So, now that you have a name, will you have a plot line?
Kai wants to tell them something about the air benders, but there's the news of Bolin's lava bending, and Zaheer's new talent for flying. The adults don't really have time for Kai, until he shouts that he knows where the air benders are. He points out that after escaping the assault on the Temple, he spied the air benders taken to some nearby caves, by members of Red Lotus he didn't see before. The team realizes there are more than just the four they've been fighting. And they don't know how to even get close to the caves. Until, Tenzin gets his first bit of hope.
They hear a familiar call, and see a shadow from above, as Oogi reappears. With Oogi, Kai can lead a team to the air benders for their rescue. But he can't go until Mako has had a talk with him, their first since Kai caused him so much trouble in Ba Sing Se. They talk it out, manage to get a joke or two in, and then Kai and some of the adults fly off.
When Ghazan and Ming Hua find Zaheer in a cave, they demand to know how long he's been flying. He announces that since he's given up all earthly desires, he can follow the footsteps (metaphoric) of Guru Laghima. He proceeds to show them Korra's imprisonment. She is chained, chains spanning a vast chamber in the cave. She's far back enough from Zaheer that she can't hurt him with bending.
I guess I'm officially the coolest guy ever
Chained to immobility, the symbol of the Red Lotus framing her as a prisoner, Korra's a little ticked off that Zaheer killed her father. Zaheer tries to sympathize, pointing out that he's lost someone too. But all her pain will soon be over. A new world will be arriving soon, and Zaheer tries not to sound excited as he calls for two acolyte-looking servants to bring the poison. So he's wanted to kill her all this time anyway?
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