A/N I don't own A:TLA, I just want to play in the world for a while. Hope you enjoy!

Shen stepped back from the position he'd taken not thirty seconds ago and let his arms drop. The colored scarves and reed-balls tumbled to the ground in a fashion that could only be called 'semi-controlled.' Monk Heiwa and Samyou clapped from their seated positions on the meditation plaza that was on top of the spire of rock. Shen bowed, acknowledging their recognition.

"That was a very good trick Shen," Samyou said. Monk Heiwa nodded enthusiastically.

"I haven't done that since the marauders killed my family," Shen said quietly. "I'm glad the knack came back."

"It'll be a fine addition to the Airbending forms," Monk Heiwa said.

"No one's done that before?" Shen asked dubiously. It seemed like an obvious thing to think of.

"Haven't seen it done, though that doesn't mean it hasn't been," Samyou said. "This'll make you one of the youngest Airbenders in history to get a tattoo. I think a few fifteen year olds have gotten them, but it's rare for it to be that early."

"Just like that, I"m a master?" Shen asked dazedly. "That's kind of a screwy system. I don't even know half the forms!"

"Do you think so? Anyone smart enough to think of something nobody else has deserves recognition don't you think?" Monk Heiwa said, eyes twinkling.

"I guess so," Shen said.

"I'll get some of my older boys to go looking through the archives and I'll also send letters to the other temples. We should confirm that nobody else has done this within the week and you'll be a full fledged master," Samyou said.

"And I'll let Arashi and his friends know too, they'll want to be informed," Monk Heiwa said. The three started climbing down the small mountain, Slobber (who'd joined, he and Shen were becoming very attached) bringing up the rear. The small Skybison had almost ruined the show when he'd tried to catch one of the scarves in his mouth.

When the four reached the bottom of the stairs however they walked into a scrum of noise and bustling bodies. Young monks and quite a few older ones were airlifting crates up onto the backs of various bison that had arranged themselves in the central square of the temple.

"What's going on?" Monk Heiwa asked, filling his lungs with a tidal wave of air and shouting at the top of his overinflated lungs.

"Monk Heiwa, we tried to find you but couldn't!" one of the older teenage monks said. "The village near the base of the mountains has been attacked by marauders, we're going down to give them food and medicine."

"I'll grab Junyo and load him up with supplies from the healing chambers!" Monk Heiwa said back, voiced raised in urgency.

"I'll grab Horo," Samyou said, "Maybe we can transport some of them to a larger town, find some healers."

"What were the names of the marauders?" Shen asked the young monk.

"I don't know and it doesn't matter now," the monk said, breathing deep and sending a blast of air under a pallet of food. It rocketed up, only to be caught by two more monks on the back of the Skybison the pallet had flown over, and they lowered it gently down onto the behemoth's back. "That's all he can carry, let's move!" the monk said, leaping onto the Skybison's back. Shen stepped away as the great tail slammed into the earth and a shockwave of air erupted from it. The great bison lifted into the sky, as if it weighed no more than a leaf.

"Samyou," Shen shouted, running to catch up to his friend before he could truly disappear into the crowd. Samyou paused and allowed Shen to catch up, then resumed his run to his bison. "I want to help."

"I know Shen, but I can't let you. You remember Master Arashi's ultimatum. You can stay if you stay but if you go you'd be outcast from our order forever. You'd wander the earth with no true home," Samyou said.

"But these marauders might be the ones that killed my family! I have to know," Shen said. Samyou stopped, and Shen nearly ran into him.

"Why do you have to know? Why would it be important? Nothing you do can change what happened to them. Move forward Shen, don't let the past be an anchor around your neck that pulls you down. Remember what you've learned here," Samyou said. "Let go."

"I'm not sure I can," Shen said quietly.

"Then what's the next step? You find out that they're the marauders that killed your family, then what? Revenge? We're taught that revenge is like a two-headed rat-viper. Even as you kill on head the other's biting you, poisoning you. Revenge is not the Air Nomad way," Samyou said.

"I just want to help. And I need to know, just for peace of mind," Shen said.

"I'm sorry, but I can't allow it. I'll try to find out and tell you when I get back, alright?" Samyou said.

"Alright," Shen said. Samyou touched Shen's shoulder and then sped off, using blasts of air to push him along far faster than a normal person (or most benders) could run. Shen waited for him to get out of sight, then ran his own way.

It took an hour for the last of the Skybison to lift off for the village. Most of the young to middle-aged Air Nomads of the temple were going down to help. Only the very young and old were staying behind, and the elders mainly because someone had to watch the younger ones. Samyou was long gone by the time Shen unfurled his glider and took to the air, trailing the last bison to leave.

As Shen rose in the air he looked back briefly. He hadn't stayed at the Air Temple long, but already it was like ripping his heart out to leave. But he had to go. He had to avenge his family. He knew that he'd never find true peace until he did. The anger that he'd so recently thought he'd put to rest boiled in his belly and he felt hot tears slide down his cheeks.

A noise startled him, and he dipped in the air as his twitch of surprise nearly upended the glider. Slobber was flying along beside him, mouth open and tongue trailing in the wind. The Skybison had grown since they'd first met, he was nearly as tall as Shen now and much broader, but he still had a ways to go before he was fully mature. His horns were starting to come in as well, much bigger than the little nubs they'd been when he and Shen had first met.

"Slobber get back!" Shen said, his voice raised over the wind. The Skybison calf grunted at him and sent a puff of air into Shen's face. "I'm serious! If you follow me you'll never see your family again!"

Slobber pumped his tail and bumped Shen in the side, nearly upending the young Airbender again. Shen corrected with a grunt, but he was smiling too. He took one hand off the glider and rubbed Slobber's furry head. He quicky gripped the strut of the glider again and willed the air currents around him to propel him faster. He and Slobber flew off into the night.

The village was smoldering. It looked like the marauders had decided to play with fire before they'd left, probably to 'discourage' any attempts at pursuit. Shen and Slobber landed in a clearing a little ways away from the village and Shen crept over the border. He didn't think anyone would recognize him in the chaos, the villagers didn't know him and most of the Nomads would be too harried to take stock of his face. But if he ran into Samyou or Monk Heiwa than it was all over. Part of him still hoped to return to the temple.

A family was huddled outside their hut. The roof was gone, only a blackened series of wooden struts remained. The walls were scorched but the stone hadn't burned as easily. Shen walked up to them and put a comforting hand on the man's shoulder.

"I heard there were Airbenders here," the man said. He sounded distant, like he was talking from the other side of a long tunnel. Shen remembered that feeling all too well and the anger burned hotter. "We're uninjured, just lost most of our things in the fire. I suppose that doesn't mean much to you," he said. Tears slid down the wife's face and she clutched her three children to her tightly.

"I was wondering if you knew who did this," Shen said quietly.

"Why would you care?" the man asked. "You wouldn't do anything about it. Not even the Avatar can be everywhere at once, and we're too small for her notice anyway."

"You're not too small for mine," Shen said, and the man looked up in surprise. He'd probably never heard of an Air Nomad speaking in anger before. "I want to stop the people that did this. Tell me who they were, and where the went."

"I don't know, I only saw a couple of them. One was big, muscly, had a hammer. The other was kind of thin, but like a Rumbler. Thin but muscly. He had a scarf on," the man said.

"Was his name Tozoku?" Shen asked.

"I didn't get a chance to ask. I only saw it because I was already getting my family out of the fire and I thought I'd have to fight 'em. Mistook them for villagers at first, but then I saw their faces. Their eyes were so cold," the man said.

"Did you see which way they went?" Shen asked again.

"I think they went west," the woman said. "Our neighbor said that they took the Berry Paths to get out, and those go west for some time." Shen bowed to them in the Air Nomad fashion and started to go, then paused. He pulled three colored scarves from his robe and made a small whirlwind in his hand. He expanded it, allowing the air to swirl around him and the scarves danced in the air. The children looked in wonder as the scarves whirled around and then fell neatly into their hands, on to each child.

"These are magic scarves," Shen said, putting on a cheerful face. It was so easy to fall back into the patter of the circus. "They bring fortune and happiness to those who hold them. Take them in good faith." The children stared at the scarves and then back to Shen, then they each wrapped the scarves around their necks. Shen bowed again and walked past. Once he was a safe distance away he unfurled his glider and took off.

Samyou had started a fire and was cooking a big pot of vegetable stew. The other Nomads of his group were getting small bowls out and were helping him get the uninjured villagers in a line so that they could have full bellies for the start of rebuilding when he felt a current of air across his bald head. He looked up and saw a young Airbender gliding above the village. A very recognizable Skybison calf was trailing in the Airbender's wake. Samyou lowered his head and said a brief prayer that the wind would guide Shen on his journey, then looked back to the pot.

Shen found the Berry Paths easily enough. They were worn paths that the villagers must have made over centuries by going through the clearest ways of wild thickets of berries. They stretched for miles before they hit a road that went through the forrest. Shen saw no light or signs of movement. Either the marauders were very good or they'd already passed through.

He flew along the Berry Paths for most of the night, trying to listen for any signs of people, but found none. He continued to the main road and landed. Slobber thumped down behind him and the Skybison lowered himself to the ground, tongue lolling. "I know you're tired boy, but we've got a ways to go," Shen said.

The road was covered in tracks from carts and ostrich-horses and Shen felt despair close in on him. He took a deep breath and focused on his anger. The wind stirred around him, and he took another breath, then started hunting for sign. Something strange caught his eye and he leaned forward in the stark moonlight to see it better.

A footprint, human, and pointed perpendicular to the road rather than parallel. Looked fresh too. So the marauders weren't stupid enough to use the real road, and had instead disappeared into the forrest. Shen started to walk, and once he did he found signs of a group passing through. Scraps of cloth were stuck to a pricklebush and the brush was trampled near the road.

"Slobber, stay here and rest. I'll be back in two hours at the maximum," Shen said. The Skybison snorted but stayed put. Shen leapt into the growth and started running. The marauders might have a lead, but they were no match for the speed of a determined Airbender.

Dawn had hit by the time Shen caught up with Tozoku and his band. He heard them bivouacking through the forrest long before he saw them. They weren't subtle, but Shen was impressed by how far they'd managed to get. He heard the rumble of Earthbending and quickly scaled a tree.

They were setting up fortifications. They raised earthen hills, careful not to break the undergrowth, just create bulges that formed a natural-looking crater. In that crater they set up earth tents, surrounding a small earth hut. It looked like Tozoku was an Earthcarver, though not much of one to Shen's eye. It looked like a child's drawing of a mansion, too small and the details too ham-handed to be mistaken for the true thing.

Shen felt his rage boil and he leapt from the tree, unfurling his glider and floating above the fortification. For a moment he hung in the air, then he closed the glider's wings and spun the staff over his head. His anger fed the wind and it tore at him and around him. He created a bubble as he landed, dispersing his force so he wasn't injured and pushing it out at the same time.

The wind tore at the tents, cracking them and shattering the ones closest to his landing zone. Cries went up from the marauders and Shen began gathering the air. A knife flew by, deflected by the crazed air currents surrounding the young Airbender. He spun the knife and sent it back towards' its thrower, who dodged just in time to be cut in a non-vital area rather than his throat.

Shen sent a blast of air at the man and knocked him back. The ground rumbled beneath Shen's feet and he leapt, using the force of the propelled rocks to get even more altitude as he spun into the air. The wind exaggerated itself along his movements, and the swirling air tore at the two Earthbenders who'd gotten their wits together enough to attack.

A stone flew and hit Shen in the neck. It stung, but didn't do more than that, and Shen looked down. Tozoku was standing at the entrance of his hut and was looking at Shen with shining eyes.

The Airbender sent a blast of air at himself, propelling himself down quickly and he landed in front of Tozoku, shaking the ground. "I recognize you," Tozoku said. "This is a hell of an audition kid."

"Not an audition," Shen said, and sent a blast of air at Tozoku's throat. The Earthbender stepped aside, raising a shield of rock to disperse the air as it tried to curve to meet him.

"Now that was rude," Tozoku said, his dead eyes almost looking alive for a moment. A ghastly smile pulled his lips apart. "Why are you attacking me? I can grant you anything you want."

"Alright, how about my family back?" Shen groweled, and sent another blast of wind at the marauder.

"Let's not be children about this little Airbender, you may not realize it but I could give you a family. We're a family here, and you'd be welcome amongst us. As soon as you acknowledge me as leader," Tozoku said.

"There've been a lot of people offering to 'let me' join their family. I've grown sick of it. I don't want to be 'let in.' I'll make my own family, but before I do I'm going to take yours away," Shen said.

"At least have some originality," Tozoku said mockingly. "This is getting boring. Yan Beng, get this kid out of here. Permanently."

Shen was blasted by a series of fist-sized stones and it took all he had to stay on his feet. The big man with the hammer and the beard brought his weapon down again and an avalanche of stone rose from the ground and Shen barely managed to get above it.

He slapped his staff down and the air followed the object's path, an invisible wave plucked at Yan Beng, but his legs were cemented into the ground. The Earthbender didn't move. The hammer came down and raised a thick but low wall around the marauder, and Yan Beng began hammering his own wall. Chunks of stone flew out and at Shen, who landed among the rockslide to avoid them. The earth started closing in around him and he leapt, but his ankle was caught. Tozoku wasn't just watching, and when Shen caught his eye the marauder lord smiled down at him. There was no emotion behind it, the man almost seemed to be going through the motions of pleasure.

Shen sent a blast of air down, breaking the rock and pushing himself up and out. He felt an energy inside him that he never had before and he slammed his staff against the ground. The shockwave knocked the marauders off their feet and Shen leapt up, driving his staff into Yan Beng's stomach. The big Earthbender whoofed his air out in a cough and Shen kicked him in the side of the head. He was down, but not dead. He still sucked air into his lungs.

A stone hit Shen's shoulder, making his entire arm go numb. Tozoku had recovered and was on the attack now, face blank. Shen spun as another stone flew toward him, feeling its path with the air.

Tozoku slammed one booted foot into the ground and Shen leapt as the ground softened, trying to suck him down. He sent a wave of air at Tozoku but the marauder spun through it, alternately sinking to his ankles and jumping to disperse the force.

Shen and the marauder lord circled each other, neither attacking nor backing away. "It's too bad you won't accept my invitation. You have a darkness in you that I could have used boy," Tozoku said.

"I'm done being used," Shen said. He looked into Tozoku's eyes again, not the scared boy, or the angry young man this time. Something hit him like a stone, but it wasn't a physical one. "And I'm done with this. I can see you now Tozoku. I came here because I wanted you to feel the despair I felt when you killed my family. You wrecked everything good in my life. But I made choices too after that. And I can see that I could never bring despair to you either. You don't feel do you? You just do these things because you can, and there's nothing in your head saying 'no' or 'that's wrong.'"

"Conscience is a construct made by those who want to keep power," Tozoku said.

"No. It's empathy. It's feeling. And you don't have those. I can't destroy your life any more than I can get my family back because it doesn't matter to you," Shen said.

"Is this your way of trying to surrender? I'm not letting you go after what you've done to my camp," Tozoku growled.

"No. I'm having a personal revelation," Shen said. With that, he struck the ground with a burst of air. Tozoku sent a wave of earth into the cloud of dust Shen had created but the Airbender wasn't there. He was behind the marauder lord. Shen grabbed the scarf's knot and pulled it, briefly choking Tozoku before it gave and pulled away from his face.

Shen summoned a wind and it picked Tozoku up, and swirled him around. The marauder lord spun, trying to spread his arms and legs to get some semblance of control but it was for naught. Shen spun him until the marauder lord was unconscious, then pulled him up to a tree. He tied the scarf around Tozoku's wrists then secured him to the branch so he was hanging by his arms.

Shen left him there, hanging and humiliated. The marauders would be unwilling to get him down after this, and the Air Nomads or the Earth Kingdom citizens could decide what to do with him. Shen walked back to Slobber, who was wide awake now and rumbling his worry. An adult Skybison was standing next to Slobber. Horo licked Shen as he came up to her, and Shen laughed.

"You made the right choice in the end," Samyou said, sitting on Horo's head.

"I hope so," Shen said.

"Hope is an illusion. And so are pants," Samyou said.

"Yet we still wear them," Shen said. "I'm banished now, right?"

"Well, seeing as you mastered your vengeance, and nobody would know you'd been gone unless I said something you don't have to be," Samyou said.

"I'd know what I did. It was amazing to learn all that stuff, and I feel like I've come out of it a better person, but I'm no monk," Shen said, sighing. "Maybe if I'd stayed...but it's silly to think of 'might have beens.' I'll miss learning about my people though. But I miss being a performer too. And I want to travel the world, see all there is to see."

"I'll always be around if you need someone to talk to," Samyou said. "I might even meet up with you, I like traveling around too, and it is part of the title."

"I'd like that," Shen said. "Where would you want to go first?"

"There's this amazing thing near the Si Wong Desert, have you ever heard of the 'Misty Palms Oasis?'" Samyou asked.

"No, what is it?" Shen asked.

"Worth the trip. Plus, there's this really funky library out there where you could get some knowledge about the Air Nomads if you were interested," Samyou said.

"What would I do after that?" Shen asked.

"Whatever you wanted I suppose," Samyou said. They looked at each other for a moment and smiled. "Hop on Horo, and let's go into the wind." Shen leapt onto the back of Horo and Slobber lifted into the air so they were level. Slobber licked Shen, covering him in saliva.

"Slobber!" Shen shouted, but he was smiling. Samyou joined him and flicked the reins. Horo rose into the air and let out a rumbling roar that echoed across the countryside. The two Air Nomads flew into the breeze.

Author's note: So writing this took a little more time than I thought it would. I was inspired by 'The Rise of Kyoshi' and wanted to stay in the world. My own projects got in the way a lot but I'm glad I got this done. This was my first FanFiction, and very probably will be my last. I've got enough of my own worlds to create without playing in other peoples'! But I'd like to thank you all for reading, and reviewing. It's helped to have an audience. If you're into super hero fiction and historical fiction look for 'The Golden Age of Heroes, Book 1 Origins.' I don't have a set date for release (learning about how ebooks work is more complicated than I thought and I'm terrible with computers) but there should be a website soon and after that a first book. This has been an amazing journey and I'm glad I could get this character out there. Good luck in your wanderings Shen! And good luck to all you readers out there! Live Long and Prosper, Go with Peace, and Wubbu Lubbu Dub Dub.

~LB