So here is my new story! Don't worry, I have not given up Friends Forever; I am going to update them both!
To The-Legend-Spyro: Thank you for all your help, advice and support! You are the best! I am looking forward to discuss this chapter with you!
I know that this chap is short, but come on! It's prologue! The other chapters will be longer! And more exciting! I promise!
Just so you know; I come from Denmark so English isn't my best language. There will probably be some miss-spellings. Forgive me for that.
And maybe you don't get all if this chap; I like secrets that I first will reveal in later chapters.
Thanks for reading my story; please leave a review!
I do not own Kung Fu Panda. Never have and never will.
Behind The Golden Eyes, Prologue
It was night; people were asleep. Only a hooded stranger was enjoying the darkness. It made his mission a lot easier.
He must admit that he had been lucky; he had gotten here a lot faster than he had expected. He had found a captain that been willing to transport him closer to the valley (of course had the money helped the captain to make the right decision). But now he had to walk the rest of the way.
He sighed deeply. The boat ride had been comfortable; it had given him a chance to rest his tired legs. And it had been easier to please the cub.
He looked inside his brown cloak. She was still sleeping. He took a firmer grip on the blanket that was wrapped around her. The little tiger was the whole reason to why he was there.
He had sacrificed a lot to make her safe. But was she worth it? He briefly wondered about the thought. Had he done the right thing?
He walked through the dark forest. Moonlight was the only form of light. Silent trees were watching his every move, but none of them could reveal him. They were safe.
And that was why he was doing this; to keep her safe.
This mission wasn't going to stop him. He had taken his decision and he could not change it now. Even if he had to sacrifice more. It couldn't stop him. He was too powerful. People respected him. He could build his life up again. He just needed some time.
He could do whatever he wanted. No one could stop him.
A small whimper got his attention. He looked at the cub that was lying safely against his chest, his left arm keeping her there. She must be dreaming.
Could she remember anything? When she grew up would she then have any memories about him and her mother?
A sound of a branch getting broken was nearly screaming in the dead-quiet forest. Or maybe not so dead anymore…
Five dark shapes could be seen as they walked out of the trees' shadows. One glance said that there were three boars and two wolves; all having weapons and all not looking peaceful.
"Show yourself, stranger!" one of the wolves barked.
Pulling the cub closer to himself, he stepped forward and did what they told him to do. Remarkable calmly, he removed his hood.
A face covered with black stripes was revealed in the moonlight. Two golden eyes, burning with anger, were staring at the attackers.
"A tiger!" a boar said, clearly uncomfortably at the thought of fighting the feline.
A wolf glanced suspicious at the tiger. "What are you hiding?" he said, his sword pointing at the place near the tiger's chest where the cub was sleeping, unaware of the dangerous situation.
There was no response. The tiger didn't move at all. He was not going to fail his mission. If they wanted a fight, then he would give them one. A horrifying growl sounded in the forest, when he showed them his anger.
The wolf saw it as a signal to start the fight. He ran forwards, his word ready to take down the mysterious tiger. A big mistake.
In a second, the tiger was gone. Confused by the amazing speed, the wolfed halted in the middle of his movement. His eyes begged his companions for help, before staring blankly into nowhere. His death was brought by the knife that had been stabbed into his back.
The other watched helplessly as the body fell to the ground. A sneer from behind them made them all to freeze. Panic was attacking them; what were they going to do? Those who had been stealing and killing merciless, were now shaking of fear.
The tiger watched the four shivering figures with annoyance. If they just hadn't challenge him… They had chosen their own faith by doing that. He couldn't let them escape. No one must know that he had been here.
He stormed forward, delivering a powerful kick right in the chest of his opponent. The poor boar was sent directly into a tree, knocking him unconscious. The tiger stopped shortly, before turning around, catching the arrow that was flying towards him.
A furious yell came from the wolf that was charging at him, axe swinging in the air. The tiger easily dodged it and with all his strength, he forced the arrow he was holding in his paw into the wolf's heart. The wolf dropped dead without a sound.
Now there were only two boars back. Realizing that there was no way to escape, they were going to do the same as their companions had done; fight until dead.
One of them made his bow ready; another arrow was flying through the air. It missed its target; a nearby tree was hit instead. Praying for the best, the second boar leaped forward until a pain in his leg ended his run. The tiger had taken the fallen wolf's axe, and had swung it into the boar's knee.
Now the boar was lying on the ground, preparing himself for his last moment. He was killed by his own knife. The tiger quickly turned away from the body; he was not wasting time. There was still one more to kill.
"Please, don't…" The boar begged for mercy, but the tiger continued walking slowly against him, his mouth pulled back in a snarl.
The boar tried to use his only weapons, the bow and an arrow, but his whole body was shaking too much. But he already knew that he had lost. This tiger couldn't be killed. This tiger was didn't have a soul. This tiger was a monster.
The tiger saw his helpless victim's fear. His eyes were full of it.
"Please don't kill me! I will do everything!"
Soon he laid dead just like the others. Without a word spoken, the tiger left the battle scene. Eyes scanning the area; he found what he was looking for. She was lying behind a bush, exactly where he had hidden her.
The cub was awake now; she was staring at him with big golden eyes. Others on her age would probably have cried if someone left them on the cold ground. But she didn't.
The tiger couldn't remember a single time that he had seen his daughter cry. She actually never showed her feelings. Only when she was angry. In a way she scared her own father. She was only a little cub and she was already behaving like himself. What was she going to be when she grew up?
If she was lucky, she would get her mother beauty. Maybe even her intelligence. Then she would be able to go through her life well.
What would she get from him? His strength? His determination? His temper?
A part of him wanted to see his daughter growing to be a warrior. Just like her parents. The cub's mother was skilled, no doubt about that. But her father was also. He had just proved it with the fight.
A child with two deadly warriors as parents. People could only imagine how dangerous she could be. But the tiger knew better. If he had learned how to control his strength, then his daughter also could do it. She just needed someone to show her.
But it wouldn't be him. It wouldn't be her mother either. None of her parents would be there to guide her. She had to handle herself.
A quit moan came from a half-unconscious boar. Hitting the tree had apparently not been enough for him. The tiger growled; he was wasting too much time here. But he didn't want any witnesses…
He did it quickly. The boar hadn't even felt anything. The tiger looked closely at the body. She couldn't have sent them. They were way too easy to kill. This was just some thieves that have been attacking travellers. If she had hired someone, he would probably been dead right now.
He understood why she was angry at him. Kidnapping her child hadn't exactly calmed her. But the cub was also his. He had the right to take her.
It was amazing how quickly a love could stop. One discussion and she had command him to leave. He had taken their cub with him without her knowing it. The love was gone, killed by anger. But was the love truly gone? Could love and hate exist at the same time?
The cub moved slightly, getting her father's attention. He sighed; he had just killed a living creature in front of a little child. Not exactly the best parent. Another reason to why he was doing this.
He glanced around; searching for any signs of civilization. He should be there soon. The Valley of Peace couldn't be that far away now. He had heard some sailors talking about this village, apparently one of them had lived there as child. The tiger had overheard how to get to the valley and had quickly found the captain to help him.
The Valley of Peace sounded perfect; he wanted a peaceful place to his child to grow up. And a peaceful place meant a place far away from the cub's mother.
That was all he wanted. A safe place where his child could be. Her mother couldn't take care of her. He wouldn't allow that. He had seen how she truly was. No way was he going to let his child stay with her. Then this was better. Letting the child growing up without her parents' influence.
Then there was always the option that he could raise her… No! He had taken his decision. There was no time to think about stuff like that now! Imagine him with a child… No! This was definitely better.
The cub kept staring at him with her golden eyes; like she was trying to ask him something. The tiger looked away, suddenly feeling thankful that his daughter couldn't talk yet. Then he saw it.
The silhouette of what he guessed was the Jade Palace; the first sign of the village. But it was far in the distance; there was still some travel to do. Eyes focused on his goal, he continued forward.
He passed a big, round, gray building. The tiger didn't care about it; he was going to find a nice house where he could lay his daughter outside. That was his plan until he found the doll.
He was nearly stepping on it before he saw it. An old, dirty doll that looked like it had been lying outside in all kinds of weather. The tiger was interested in the toy; not because that there was some kid missing it, but because it belonged to a kid. That meant that there were children living here.
He took a step closer to the gray building. A low fence surrounded it, but the tiger didn't waste time with walking around, trying to find the opening. He simply jumped over it as the easiest thing in the world.
He took a glance around and was about to leave again, but then he spotted the sign. It was hanging near the gate, the old wood covered with big letters.
"Bao Gu Orphanage"
An orphanage? It didn't look like a place he would enjoy to grow up in. Actually, it reminded him of a prison with its gray front and the little windows. But maybe it was nicer inside.
With a sigh, he held his daughter out in front of himself. She was only a cub; so little and innocent. She was unaware about the problems that were haunting the world.
An orphanage was better than the risk with laying her in front of a random house. In an orphanage someone would take care of her no matter what. It was there job to help orphans.
It would be better for everyone if she lived here. She would be out of the dangers that were in her parents' world. Her mother wouldn't find her and he would leave her. She could live in peace without them.
He laid her gently doorstop. The cub kept looking him straight through the eyes, like she was trying to make a bond between them. A bond that couldn't be broken.
But it did. The tiger turned around, walking away. Suddenly, he stopped. He glanced back, looking at his daughter. She was lying alone on the cold ground. He felt guilty of leaving her there. A father shouldn't do such a thing. But after all, he had never thought that he would be a good father. A father should protect his child. But that was what he was doing.
His mouth opened; he wanted to say goodbye. But no sound came out. He had never been good with words and she wouldn't understand him anyway. He shook his head and disappeared into the forest.
The little tiger cub just waited for someone to notice her. She didn't know how much of a surprise she would give the caretaker when the sun rose. She didn't know that she would be adopted by Master Shifu and live in the Jade Palace. She didn't know that she would grow up to be Master Tigress, leader of the Furious Five. And she didn't know that one day her forgotten past would find her and give her the biggest adventure of her life.