Before anything else, I own nothing but the original characters, and content therein related to them. Avatar: The Last Airbender/The Legend Of Korra is owned by Nickelodeon, and any mentioned creator's work belongs to them, and them alone.

AN: Kinda a short and just sad chapter.

Chapter 3 Shadows Of The Past.

Three days into their trip north, after tearing down camp, Korra sighed, as she found Sokka still laying in his sleeping bag. "Come on, Sokka. Get up, we're burning daylight."

"Don't wanna." Sokka muttered, still half asleep.

"Why are you in such a hurry?" Katara asked, as she cinched down the two girl's tent packed away in Appa's saddle.

"I just…" Korra sighed. "Look, the Southern Air Temple isn't too far from here, and I sort of suck at air bending actually. I figured it might be a good idea for me to grab a few books, or something to learn from." Korra looked over at Sokka, who was still in his bag, before she walked over to him, and picked him up over her shoulder like he was a sack of potatoes.

"Gha!" Sokka said, as Korra jumped up onto Appa's saddle with air bending. "Put me down, woman!"

Korra did exactly what was asked of her. "You can sleep on the flight." She said, before jumping over onto Appa's head and grabbing his reins.

Katara giggled at her brother. "What's so funny?" Sokka asked.

"I'm sorry, it's just that, this is the second time your distressed damsel has carried you around." Katara said.

"I can't help that she's just freakishly strong." Sokka said, as he curled up in his sleeping bag.

"Don't worry Sokka, I'm sure you'll be bigger and stronger than her some day." Katara jested.

"Actually he will be." Korra piped up. "Sokka, you grow to be like… 6 foot 2, I think." Sokka smirked at his sister, who rolled her eyes, as Korra whipped Appa's reigns. "Come on big guy… Yip yip."

In a southern theater Fire Nation Harbor, Prince Zuko stepped off of the landing ramp of his ship, his uncle close behind him.

"Uncle, I want the repairs made as quickly as possible. I don't want to stay too long and risk losing her trail." Zuko said, before his uncle spoke.

"You mean The Avatar?" Iroh asked, before Zuko turned to face his uncle.

Zuko nearly hissed. "Don't mention her name, on these docs, once word gets out that she's been reborn, every Fire Nation soldier is going to be looking for her, and I don't want anyone getting in the way."

"Getting in the way, of what, Prince Zuko?" The two turned to find a familiar face.

"Captain Zhao." Zuko said, restraining his anger.

"It's commander now." Zhao said, before bowing to Zuko's uncle. "And General Iroh, hero of our nation."

Iroh held a hand up. "Retired General." He corrected modestly.

"The Fire Lord's brother and son are always welcome guests, any time… What brings you to my harbor?" Zhao asked.

"Our ship is being repaired." Iroh said, holding a hand out to the giant scrape in the hull.

"That's quite a bit of damage." Zhao said, almost sounding impressed.

"Yes, you wouldn't believe what happened." Zuko said, only for Zhao to smirk.

"Oh, I'm sure I would… Over tea perhaps?" Zhao asked.

High above the Patolla Mountains, Korra, Katara, and Sokka, all saw the Southern Air Temple, seated at the peak of a mountain. "It's amazing…" Katara said in awe.

"It looks deserted." Sokka said.

"That's because it is." Korra said, as Appa gently landed at the seat of the mountain temple. "According to… Well, you actually Katara. The Temples should be completely empty."

"The genocide huh?" Sokka asked, as the three dismounted Appa.

Korra shrugged. "Well yeah, but there shouldn't be any skeletons laying around for the most part either. The air nomads run and hide, it's what they do. Actually I think Katara in my time mentioned something about some guru who was keeping the temples clean."

"Wait, I'm alive in your time?!" Katara asked in amazement.

"Yup. 85 years old, and still kickin'." Korra said, as she started walking up the mountain trail, leaving a smile on Katara's face.

"So… How's your search for The Avatar going?" Zhao asked Prince Zuko, after having sat down, a warm cup of tea in hand.

"We haven't found them yet…" Zuko said tersely, as his uncle sipped his ginseng.

"Did you really expect to? The Avatar died 100 years ago, along with the rest of the air benders." Zhao said, as Zuko looked away from the commander. "Unless you've found some evidence that The Avatar is alive."

Zuko closed his eyes for a moment. "No. Nothing."

"Prince Zuko." Zhao stood. "The Avatar is the only one who can stop the Fire Nation from winning this war. If you have an ounce of loyalty left, you'll tell me what you've found."

Zuko looked away from Zhao. "I haven't found anything… It's like you said, the last airbender probably died a long time ago." Zuko stood from his seat. "Come on uncle, we're leaving."

Before Zuko could exit the tent, the two door guards crossed their spears, as a soldier entered the tent. "Commander Zhao. We interrogated the crew as you instructed. They confirmed that Prince Zuko had The Avatar in custody, but she escaped."

Zuko cringed, before turning around. Zhao looked over his shoulder at Zuko. "Remind me again how your ship was damaged?"

Zuko was ushered back to his chair, as two soldiers stood behind him. Zuko looked over at his uncle before taking a calming breath. "Two days ago, I spotted a bright beam of light in the southern sky. Judging that it had to have come from a powerful source of either fire bending, or spiritual energy, I had my ship sail further south. By the next day we reached the Southern Water Tribe, where I met the Avatar."

"Go on." Zhao said calmly.

"I didn't immediately realize who she was. I thought she was another tribal savage. But that's when she claimed she was The Avatar, and bent air. Something only The Avatar should be able to do." Zuko said.

"This air nomad. She somehow survived for 100 years?" Zhao asked.

"No… You were right about the air nomads…" Zuko corrected. "This girl, she was Water Tribe. The Avatar reincarnated, by my guess, around when I was born."

Zhao hummed. "The Southern Raiders must have missed her then… I always knew their reputation was unearned…" Zhao sipped from his tea. "Continue."

Zuko sneered at Zhao. "She surrendered herself in exchange for her village's survival. Once we'd left, she was able to take on my crew single handed, and escaped on some flying monster. That's when she damaged my ship. She dropped an ice shelf on it."

"Do you have a physical description?" Zhao asked.

Zuko thought back and mauled over every detail he could. "Tan skin, a little lighter than most savages would have. Blue eyes. Dark brown hair. She's…"Zuko paused.

"She's what?" Zhao asked. "The description you've given covers almost every Water Tribe girl and half of the Earth Kingdom. If there's anything distinctly noticeable about her I need to know."

"She's short… Shorter than I am at least." Zuko said confidently.

"And roughly your age…" Zhao said. "Well, that should narrow it down."

As the three members of the water tribe entered the temple, they made their way through the many vast chambers, collecting ancient scrollworks from the library, and what little currency the monks would have collected from trade with outsiders. Nearly halfway through their search, the three came across a door at the far end of a curved hallway near the temple's center.

"That's a huge door." Sokka said with a nod, as he adjusted the bag on his shoulder now full of scrolls.

"I don't see a knob, or a handle… Or even a lock." Katara said.

Korra looked at the three blue spiral knots that were connected to what appeared to be brass trumpets protruding from the door. "Because it's opened with airbending." Korra approached the door, before setting her staff down, and sending a burst of air from either fist into the openings.

As the flow of air continued, each of the blue spiral knots turned under air pressure, and made a musical note, ascending in octaves, before the locking bar in the center of the door clicked open.

Korra picked up her staff, and the entryway opened up with a gust of stale air. The three walked through the door into a cavernous room, filled to the brim with statues, spiraling around and around up a slope towards the temple's ceiling, where darkness engulfed them.

"Who are they?" Katara asked, as Korra walked in between the stone sculptures, coming to a realization.

"They're all me… All my past lives…" Korra said, as she found the center of the room. "All 1,000 Avatars…" Korra stood before a depiction of a tall Fire Nation man. "Roku…" She said, swearing that for a moment the light danced across the statue's eyes.

"You know him?" Katara asked.

"He was The Avatar before Aang…" Korra said, looking left to the next few statues in the spiral, finding a much taller woman with a headpiece. "Kyoshi…" A tribesman with a wolf skin over his head. "Kuruk…" An air nomad woman, with long flowing hair. "Yang Chen…" And on and on and on. "Szeto… Salai… Yuve…" Korra held a hand to her head, before turning around, and leaving the room.

"Where are you going?" Sokka asked.

"I just… I need a minute." Korra said, exiting the chamber, passing a little winged lemure on the way.

Walking outside, Korra found her way down a side path in the mountain, the little white lemure following behind her curiously. "I guess you're Momo then…" Korra said to the lemure as it jumped up onto the staff in her hand. "I don't know how I know that name, but I know it…" Momo sniffed her hair, before jumping off of her staff, and running through a curtain that led to a small side building. Against her better judgment, Korra followed the lemure, and as she pulled back the curtain to the building's entrance, her eyes went wide, and her heart sank.

The room was littered with the bones, and corpses in varying stages of mummification at such high altitudes. It was disturbing, and Korra felt her skin crawl in the presence of so much death. Fire Nation armor littered the ground, and as Korra swallowed a lump in her throat, she saw a single skeleton sitting against the far wall, wearing air nomad robes. "Gyatso…" Korra said, remember a name she'd only heard in a past life.

She knew about the genocide, but… Reading history books didn't do justice to the feeling of seeing it's aftermath. The air itself felt darker in the room, and colder. Korra planted her staff in the snow, then put her fists together and bowed to the since passed master, both in respect, and admiration. For Gyatso had killed near a platoon of fire benders enhanced by a comet, and took himself with them. "Rest in peace… My old friend."

Later, as the three prepared to leave the temple, Korra stood on the edge of the mountain's landing, and looked out at the sunset, Momo resting on her shoulder. "I'm not gonna' let the Air Nomad's be forgotten…" She said, before turning and looking at Appa. "I know you two aren't the only other's of your kind out there, and I know there has to be an air bender hiding somewhere… But until the day comes when they return to the world, I'm going to do everything I can to preserve the nomad culture." Korra said, before jumping up onto Appa's.

"Where to next, Korra?" Katara asked, as The Avatar looked over her shoulder at the siblings.

"Don't know… I guess north, and wherever the wind takes us." Korra said with a small smile.