Copyright: I do not own Kung Fu Panda, nor any of the original characters such as Lord Shen, the Furious Five, Po, etc. I'm also not making money off of this. I do however, own my OCs.
Warning: This story relies somewhat heavily on OCs. If you don't like, don't read.
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Gongmen city was celebrating. Fireworks filled the sky, along with the rising sun, commemorating the occasion. One might think, upon seeing the display of parading citizens and happy partying, that they were having some sort of traditional holiday filled with laughter and good spirit.
If the wandering eye should look closer though, it would notice the variety of destroyed buildings, the occasional unmoving form on the ground, and the wreckage in the harbor with small fires still going on the parts sticking above the surface. They were like disturbing funeral pyres, half-done and they reeked of destruction and death, just like the dead that floated around them.
The city was not experiencing a holiday; they were celebrating the death of their tormentor, Lord Shen.
Just hours earlier the peacock lord had been sailing out of the harbor at full throttle, leading his fleet of junk ships and ready to turn his army of cannons onto the rest of China to spread his reign of death and destruction.
But the dragon warrior had stopped him. A fat Panda, hand-chosen by the great Master Oogway, had been able to finally end the rain of fire brought by Shen's cannons. Even in the end, he'd tried to reason with the defeated peacock. But still, his words only angered the warlord and he'd attacked in a last itch effort to strike out at his enemy. He'd only ended up sealing his own doom, cutting the ropes that held the remains of his largest cannon, causing the large weapon to fall down on top of him and crushing him.
But Po, the dragon warrior, had made it out alive. And he was celebrating with the rest of the city while helping some of those affected during the initial crisis. The collapse of the city's palace had caused more than a few displaced families, costing some of them even their lives.
As he worked with the furious five to clean up the immediate mess, Master Croc ran around the corner. The Master, although bulky and not at all made for land, was doing a pretty good job of running now. He was panting by the time he reached the group of warriors, and he had to take a breathing moment to catch his breath.
"…Dragon Warrior…" He huffed.
"Er, what is it Master?" Po asked, curious as to what the big rush was.
Looking directly at the panda, the crocodile's eyes were full of determined worry. "One of our scouts spotted a sail with a very… familiar insignia on the horizon. We've confirmed it's presence, but we can't properly make out the marks yet. But they do appear to very closely resemble Lord Shen's."
Po's jaw dropped. "But it can't be! Didn't he just, y'know, get squashed?"
"We all saw it. Yet the ship we see is so far out to sea, it couldn't have possibly been part of the battle just last night. It's also coming our way."
Master Tigress spoke up next. "Well, looks like we'll have to go wait out in the harbor for this unknown ship, just to be safe." As the surrounding group agreed and started to make way for the harbor yet again, a commotion came up from the crowd ahead of them.
"What is it now?" Shouted Po over the roar of the crowd.
Master Storming Ox answered from the midst of the mass. "Dragon Warrior! It's a messenger!"
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The ocean's blue was often calming. One who could take the time to appreciate the wonder of the great expanse of water could indeed, watch it for hours. The hue changed restlessly and often playfully, given the right conditions. It could bring peace of mind, or open the gateway to freedom.
At least, that was what Captain Mu thought of the ocean.
But today, the sun rose and cast its rays along dull clouds that gathered in the distance. The red tint reflected into the ocean waters, coloring them red. Any self-respecting sailor would know full well that this meant trouble in the upcoming day, perhaps even days. Know one knew how long a storm could last.
For someone like Mu, who held very mixed emotions about storms, the upcoming threat was enough to stir life into him. On one side of the coin, storms meant destruction and hardship, the change into the season where the sea was rough and hard to travel on. But on the other side, he could find them fun and exhilarating. A storm was a true adventure, in which a ship and her captain were tested for their worthiness. A challenge meant to be conquered. However, a particular storm was always one or the other, never both. How did Mu decide which one?
He had absolutely no clue. He just woke up one morning, and if there were signs of a storm on the horizon, it usually depended upon the side of the bed he'd woken up on. Bad or good, it affected the lives of everyone on board.
Today Mu had the unsettling feeling that this would not be a fun storm. So-saying, he turned to his first mate and called "Full-sail! We have a strong tailwind, and I want to get to our destination before the storm gets us!"
His first mate, a bulky Krait snake by the name of Mal, nodded in mirrored concern for the problem at hand. "Aye, Captain. I'll get the rest t'work on it."
And so it was done. The other inhabitants of the ship scrambled to their positions, creating a well-oiled mechanism; Mu had ensured all of them knew what they were doing long along. They were all well trained, and all sworn to him, their Captain.
Soon they were sailing full-throttle towards their target landing. Mu stood at the bow of the ship and squinted, trying to see if he could spot land. Frustrated, he brought out his spyglass and looked through it. Still nothing but Open Ocean. Giving in, he alighted to the uppermost point of the mast, where the wood formed a cross. Who needs a crow's nest when you're a bird? Looking through his spyglass again, Mu was able to see the dim form of land in the distance, and what looked like buildings, perhaps. Then they were almost there.
Keeping his position on top of the mast, Mu called down to his crew. "We're almost there! Ready the supplies and keep on course!" Satisfied, Mu settled himself into the corner of the crosspiece. It felt good to be home free. Months on the ocean, although free and exciting, was a very long time to be on the sea.
Mal slithered up next to him. "It'll be good to get into port and replenish our supplies, huh Captain?"
"Yes, and I believe the crew could use a good leg-stretching. I know I could."
"I thought you loved the ocean." The snaked joked.
"I do. But it's not practical to spend forever on it. Even I have my moments where a tree or two is a welcome sight."
Mu thought that his first mate was going to make fun of him, when the snake suddenly turned towards the direction they were sailing in. "What's that?"
Eyes widening, Mu squinted to make out what looked like a pillar of smoke in the distance. He brought out his spyglass once more and was shocked at what he saw through it.
The city was smoking. Parts of it appeared to be on fire, and small sparks of what he assumed to be fireworks – Mu hadn't really seen a lot of them – rose in the air. So was it a mishap with the explosives? Was the city under attack? Either way, he still had to go there.
His voice tense, Mu turned to his friend. "Send a messenger, perhaps Ju, to the city at once! Tell her to scout the city to make sure it is safe for us to land there, alert whoever's in charge that we mean no harm, and request permission to dock in their harbor." Mal nodded and was instantly away, to pass on the message to Ju, a quick and agile Seagull. The citizens, if they were under attack, could well expect him to be another sign of threat. That was all he needed. If they were going to arrest him, or attempt to sink him, upon arrival then he might as well just turn around and head back out to sea to ride out the storm.
Just then he saw a flash of white, and saw the small form of Ju setting out rapidly towards the glowing form of what he knew to be Gongmen City with his important message.
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Read and Review! :3
What do you think for my first chapter? I'm pretty darn proud of it myself, though I'm open to criticism. More chapters to come soon!
Plus, a cookie to whoever correctly guesses what type of animal Mu is, as I did not mention it this chapter!(Friends: if I've told you already, it does not count! X3)
~Ciao