Thanks for coming

Disclaimer: I still don't own Kung Fu Panda.

First, I would like to thank Luna Goldsun for giving beta to this story. I really appreciate it. Now, I would like to note that, Tai Lung is in this story. He survived the Wuxi Finger, and is alive and jumping. There's so many fan fics out there you can look on if you want. But my story only emphasized on what happened next after he joined. Good?

Let's start:

Day 1

Shifu stared at the sky, frowning. It had been hours since the eclipse started. Normally a total solar eclipse would only lasted for few minutes, but from the look of it, this time, it's different. He feared that this phenomenon will affect their welcoming preparations for their guests.

He received a letter approximately one week ago. Apparently, some kung fu masters from the south wished to visit them; they requested to challenge their highest kung fu master in a friendly match. They identified themselves as the Southern Iron Dragon Clan, who was on their way travelling around the lands of China to fight worthy foes. And Shifu accepted their arrival, along with their request, although Po excessively objected the idea. It took him several tries before the panda finally gave in. Since then, Po had been training harder day by day. Shifu even had him battled the other masters, one too many. Now, he was certain that Po would put up a good fight. Next, all they needed to do was to welcome their guests the next, next day.

Sitting under the Sacred Peach Tree of Heavenly Wisdom, Shifu played his flute to calm himself. It was mid-afternoon, the land bathed in the waning light as the sun slowly sank behind the mountains, dotting the landscape before him. He ceased playing, the need to play suddenly lifting.

Shifu let out a sigh. "I should go and check on it." He stood up, and plodded back into the palace, carrying the flute behind his back.

There was definitely something going on behind this eclipse. By all means, it wasn't natural. Maybe he can find the answers among the old scrolls. But first, he needed to worry about getting himself cloaked by dusts.

*

Po was in the market with his dad, who never stopped sharing his obsession with noodles. Once the goose found out there was going to be a festival soon, he couldn't stop blabbering about the business they would get.

But Po was absentminded for the whole time. He constantly stared at the sky, wondering about the rare phenomenon. His father's words fell on deaf ears until the goose made himself heard.

"Son!" Mr. Ping called. "Are you listening?"

"Oh.. urmmm, yeah, sure. I am listening all the time, Dad."

Oops.

"Really?" said the goose suspiciously, hands over his waist. "As I was saying, we will need four packs of noodles, five cabbages, twenty red onions, eight blocks of tofu, and four rows of—Po, don't look at the sky that often, son. You might burn your own eyes!"

Po stammered, "Oh okay."

The goose sighed, "Look, I know the eclipse actually lasted for hours, but there isn't anything to worry about, son.

"Now," he clapped his hands together, looking excited. "Let's go to the next store. I still got a bag of salt to buy!"

Just then, Po had a glimpse of Tigress among the crowd. She was standing in front of a grocery shop, arms folded across her chest. When Po focused more on her, he was surprised to see her eyes staring straight at him. Among the busy street, their gazes met like there was nothing between them. Po nervously cracked a smile. And Tigress did the same, but her smile was more sincere.

There had been these awkward feelings lately. Po was definitely crushing on her, and had been for a long time, yet he could not put it into words. He was afraid of rejection, cast away from the person he loved. Although he had been keeping this little secret for months, bit by bit he knew it was leaking. Soon, everyone would know… somehow.

*

In his quarters, Shifu was pouring over the scrolls when someone knocked on his door.

"Yes, who is it?" he asked, pausing his studies.

"It's me," Tai Lung's voice came behind the door. "The armored bull is intact, and the firecrackers are stocked, as you've ordered."

The door swung open, and Shifu's head peered through the gap. He exchanged a silent greeting with Tai Lung, and said, "Good, that will be all. Anything else?"

Tai Lung thumbed over his shoulder, "I presumed you noticed the eclipse today is unspeakably long? Any superstition you wanna share? I am all ears."

So, Tai Lung was worried too, Shifu thought. "Yes, I am checking it now," replied Shifu. "I'll tell you if I find any."

After Tai Lung walked away, he shut the door, and continued his reading. He had a mind on the longest eclipse he ever heard, but he couldn't remember the details. If he was not mistaken, he learnt about it when he was young from Master Oogway. But it was some sort of fairy tale, he thought.

Still, he wanted to be sure. He tore open scrolls after scrolls, scanning the old parchments stored in his rack, one after another. It was a troublesome work, and he should have ignored the unusual eclipse like anyone else; doing his meditation instead of this. Yet the worries never escaped him. The eclipse was an omen. And he was sure of that.

*

Shifu was running toward the kitchen before dinner. As he had hoped, everyone was there.

"Master," his students greeted upon seeing him.

Their master was panting, "I've…It's a…bad." He shook his head, rephrasing himself quickly. "I have a very bad news."

"Really?" Po asked nervously, "Is it about my cooking?"

Shifu suddenly went blank on his expression. "What's wrong with your cooking?"

"Nah… Urh…." Po stammered. "Nevermind."

"Go on, master," Tigress said.

"The eclipse!" Shifu pointed at the sky outside the window. "It's a signal before the Hell Gate opens!"

"Huh!?"

"Hell gate?! What hell gate?"

Shifu took out the scroll tied to his sash, unrolled it, and placed it on the table. Everyone darted their eyes across it.

"Wait a sec," Mantis said, after reading the title. "This is an old children's story."

"Yes it is," Shifu snapped impatiently.

"But-"

"It's an old tale," Tigress interrupted at Crane, "To motivate the kids for courage, right?"

"I hoped it was," Shifu said. "But look here." He took out a small note somewhere - the note was brown with age and well worn.

"This is a piece of Juang Gong's memoir. It said that," He began to read out loud. "'A solar eclipse, lasting for a whole day has just happened. It's an odd moment. Though no much knowledge is known regarding this phenomenon, most chose to ignore. But who could judge, that it was a warning before the demons from hell were released'." He paused to look at them. When everyone was silent, he continued,

"'Before dawn, we were awakened by a horrible otherworldly sound. Next thing we knew, demons walked the earth in daylight, rampaging the land. They are the dead, the lost souls who can't rest in peace." Viper gasped in horror, but Shifu continued. "'Brave warriors were no match for the demons. They are outnumbered. But the most formidable among them was a six foot, giant monster. It scavenges any dead bodies it could find. Our people were killed one by one. Until we thought we had met our doom, the new daylight dawned, followed by a pitch that screamed by the land. The third day, was a signal before the gate closed."

Everyone jaws had dropped in horrified silence, and he wasn't going to blame them, because he was no different. "So," Po started. "The first day you said. Is today right? And the second will be-"

"Tomorrow!" Shifu snapped, panting hard. His eyes were unfocused, scanning them from one to another. "Tomorrow" he repeated, clearing his throat. "Will be the day the Hell Gate opens."

Silence hung in the air. Po slipped a quick peak at Tigress to see her reaction. No, she was as surprised as him.

Shifu closed his eyes and shook his head.

"What now, Master?" Viper asked.

The red panda sighed, "We have no choice. We have to evacuate the village."

"What?!" shouted his students altogether.

"We are leaving this place…for good?" Tigress asked.

"No," Shifu reassured. "We aren't moving out. We will come back once the threat is over-"

"Whoa, stop right there, master," Tai Lung protested. "Are you forgetting the fact that we are the best warriors in China?"

Shifu looked menacingly at him. "I've thought about it before. But even if we were able to fight them, the villagers might get in the way, get killed, or worse."

"Okay, before that," Mantis interrupted. "Are you saying this story is real?!"

"From what I can come up with," Shifu said. "The original event was recorded by Juang Gong. And later, someone else probably rewrote it into a story for remembrance."

"That's a theory?"

"Yes, it is a theory… for now."

Tai Lung nodded in agreement. "Okay, I'll buy it… 'for now'." He emphasized the last two words, pantomiming the quotations with his pincers.

"Master, where is this gate going to open?" Tigress asked.

Much to her surprise, Shifu couldn't answer. "I… err…" He snatched the scroll from the table and read it for the second time, eyes darting quickly from side to side. He read out the contents when he found it:

"The demons were spawned at the world's end. From which no lands lie further beyond, covered by a thick layer of eternal mist, it marks the bottomless end of everything."

"End of the world?!" Po widened his eyes. "But, the world is… Round, right guys?"

Tigress let out a sigh, and said, "Yes it is."

"This scroll was written long before us," Shifu continued. "They might've only reached a cliff or something,"

"If you ask me," Crane said. "That sounded like The Mountain Pass and the Devil's Mouth. You know, the 'no land further' and the mist description?"

Shifu abruptly widened his eyes. "Of course!" He searched the scroll for the written date. When he had confirmed, he held the scroll beside him, and said, "This scroll was written during the third ruler of the valley. But the Thread of Hope was only constructed during the twentieth ruler, Jiao Ching."

Silence slipped in once again, and Shifu continued. "So, it would be possible that Juang Gong, far from knowing the truth, believed that they had reached the end of the world – currently known as The Mountain Pass." He paused at what he had said; one of his eyes twitched.

Tai Lung laughed sarcastically at his reaction. "That only draws to one simple conclusion."

"Hell Gate," Tigress whispered. "Will spawn before the Thread of Hope."

"Bingo." Tai Lung pointed at her.

Viper frowned. "This is bad. That's our only way out."

Shifu started to pace back and forth, thinking about his options. Po looked out at the night sky. The moon was half way up. It will be at least ten hours before dawn.

"We won't get out in time," said Shifu suddenly. "Not with the villagers. Instead, we will have to lead them here."

"What!?"

"You heard'im." Tai Lung smirked. "Get them far from 'the hell' right?"

"Yes."

"But what about dinner!?" Po hastily asked.

He couldn't smile at Po's childishness at a time like this, so he said, "You can have your dinner first, while I go inform the magistrate. Evacuate the villagers once you're done, start with the ones closest to The Mountain Pass."

"I'm coming with you master," Tigress stood up.

"No," Shifu insisted. "I will go alone. Save me some dinner, I will have them later." With that, he paced out of the room, leaving his students in the kitchen.

The magistrate, he thought - a pig with a black spot at his right eye - was elected not long after the Palace started receiving new students. Sometimes he wished he hadn't done that to lessen his burdens. He never thought that pig was that ugly to him, until he started running the village in a reckless manner. He was a total miser, and whatever he said was law. Most of the time, he would send a messenger to consult with him (definitely not himself), but ninety percent of his advices were not taken. To him, the magistrate only did so to please the villagers that he had 'consulted' Master Shifu. This little doing had definitely dropped his 'wise reputation' among the people.

Shifu slipped a sigh. Frankly, his skull is as hard as a rock, and his brain is as tiny as a peanut. It would be a problem reasoning with the pig - to evacuate the village over a children's story.

His house was easy to find, since it was the largest, most luxurious in the valley. It was located in a large clearance fenced by heavy concrete. There were two guards by the entrance, but they immediately let him past as soon as they recognized him. Shifu walked over the yard, passing many sculptures on his way – pigs, birds, rabbits, most of them were females.

What a letch I've chosen, he thought. The entrance of the mansion was a giant, steel door covered in fine sculptures. Shifu exhaled deeply before knocking.

Instantly, he heard a faint response behind the door. "Coming…" It was female. It should be one of the maids. The door swung open after a few clicks and clacks, revealing a middle-aged rabbit. She had a hard time recognizing his face under the torches, but she quickly bowed when it became clear to her. "Master Shifu! What can I do for you?"

Shifu nodded in silent. "I want to see Magistrate Kuang immediately."

"Yes, right away. But please wait for him at his office. The magistrate has gone to bed quite a while ago."

Typical, he thought, but nodded quietly as a response. The magistrate treated himself like the king of the valley, a useless, foolish king at that. Shifu waited at his office as promised, tapping his foot on the ground impatiently. It might take half an hour to get that pig over here.

There was a cupboard where he saw a tremendous display of priceless treasures. From the left, he saw the ancient plate of Mu Zau. Placing at its right, the Gold Urn of the Twin Dragons, followed by the Blue Thunder Dagger, the blow horns of Hanzu, the Jade of Temaski, Jar of Unicho…

He stopped when the door behind him swung open.

"Ah, Master Shifu!" The magistrate greeted lightly as he walked in. "What a surprise to see you here!" He was still wearing his blue-and-white striped pajamas. The maiden stood quietly behind him. She disappeared when the door closed.

"I bring urgent news," Shifu replied firmly. He stood at where he was, watching the magistrate slowly slipped into his comfy chair. "I'm going to get straight to the point. We have to evacuate the entire village to the Jade Palace immediately."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa… " The magistrate looked uneasy. "Calm down, Master Shifu." He waved in the air. "Now, Why so?"

This is the hardest part, he thought. He splattered the scroll on his table, along with the parchment written by Juan Gong. Carefully lining up his words, Shifu began explaining the phenomenon one after another.

*

By now, his students were standing at the edge of the village. A path curved itself beyond their vision at front, enclosed by thousands of old woods. The full moon shone brightly above their head, illuminating the darkness in a weak milky light.

"All right." Po clasped his hands. "Let's get the show on the roll."

"Sure, sure," said Tai Lung impatiently. "But in case you haven't noticed, it's the middle of the night. Everyone was probably sleeping right now."

"Try cockle-doodle."

"Ain't funny mantis."

"Hey, I was wondering," Po said. "Do you think we're a bit rushed on this eclipse?"

"What do you mean?" Tigress asked, sounded a bit agitated.

"I…was…Urmmm… May-be we need more proof on this," Po replied. "You know? Some kind of 'okay' sign." His facial gesture was completely tense. Po was certain that Tigress would do something horrible to him, but instead, he received a frown from her.

"Yeah," Tigress let out a sigh. "As much as I hate to admit, I was worried too."

"Hey, hey, hey. Are you saying that Master Shifu is making the wrong choice?!" Crane hastily interrupted.

"No," she snapped back, but after giving a thought about it, she cast her gaze to the ground. "Yes."

"Hate to break it to you," Tai Lung waved around to get their attention. "I'm not here to flutter that old geezer, you got it? But he often sees stuff that we can't. He spent most of his life reading thousands of boring scrolls, and I think he's good enough to tell the difference between the truth and fiction. It's a kind of thinking that you will develop after being a bookworm for a very long time. You get it?"

Tigress glared him. "No."

"Fine!" barked Tai Lung, crossing his arms. "My point is: I think that we best follow his order, one way or another. And in case his prediction is wrong," he chuckled evilly, "Not my problem."

*

"I am telling you!" Shifu furiously slammed Magistrate Kuang against the wall, lifting him by his collar. The pig's large snout hung inches before the red panda's face as he grilled the swine. "There will be hell by the day of tomorrow!"

The pig smirked, "You can't possibly believe such an old story was true?"

"I do believe it!"

"Look, with all my respect, you are making a quick jump on here."

"You won't find any eclipse that last for a day would you?!"

"No, but maybe one in a million."

"Nonsense, this is the sign!"

"Are you certain this is the one? We've only seen the eclipse so far. There is no other matching evidence."

The red panda dropped the pig to his feet, stepping back. Well, for some reason, this pig was good at arguing.

Shifu ran through the memoir once again. "Somehow, the record existed. So it's better to be safe than sorry."

"But," Mayor Kuang reminded. "You are saying that you aren't sure if it's really true?"

"I… "

For that very brief moment, Shifu couldn't think of anything. He certainly had no guarantee it was the eclipse stated in the story. Maybe it was. But what if it was not? What would he say to the villagers? He might get thousands of complaints if he raised a false alarm by the middle of the night. If that was not all, hiking all the way towards the Jade Palace took hours, and approximately 7 hours for those living at the edge of the valley. If they chose to act after the gate opened, it will be too late. However, if they moved early but ended up with a false decision, he was screwed. It was a simple choice, but with extremely high risks. Shifu was lost in his thoughts, rooted to the floor speechlessly while he stared at it.

"Okay," the mayor smiled. "If you wished to discuss it further, we can continue it tomorrow. I'm a busy man you know, but I can relocate some time for you." He grinned. "At a restaurant, that is."

Shifu stared menacingly at the black-eyed pig. He felt being pushed aside like a useless servant over a cunning master. Still, it was clear that he lost the argument, as much as he wanted to give the pig a matching black eye. All he got was a theory; a blind guess. In his life, he had seen a lot of people throwing in their theories like mad. But most of the time, they were easily rejected. Looking down at his situation now, Shifu was becoming one of those 'brilliant' people.

He shrugged it off. What about the students he had sent? Have they started the evacuation? Should he call it off? What if the story was true? Then again, what if it was false?

Finally, he let out a deep sigh over his decision. I should call it off, he thought grimly.

"Let's hope I'm not too late for that."

Just when he began to pace out of the room, a loud scream pierced through the open windows. It was so loud that both he and the magistrate had to cover their ears. Every glass in the room broke; every urn and every jar. The scream definitely didn't belong to their world – It was blood-chilling. Started high-pitched, but slowly turned into a monstrous roar that trailed for a long time. Kuang lost his sense of balance, tumbling to the ground. Shifu felt the same. His ears were ringing horribly as his senses started to daze. But as a stronger person, he managed to stay on his feet. The scream died out slowly, yet he could hear the echoes rippling across the valley.

*

"What the heck was that?" Tai Lung asked, covering his ears like the others. They heard the scream too, but it was louder as they were outside.

"No idea," Po shrugged. "But it's the Exhibit B we wanted alright."

Everyone slowly uncovered their ears. At the same time, the houses in the valley started to light up one after another; voices started swarming the disturbed night.

"Hey, guess what." Mantis laughed. "It was the alarm clock we needed."

*

Shifu looked outside the window, noticing the villagers awakening. Behind him stood the disoriented magistrate, still trembling in terror. He gave a yelp when Shifu turned to him.

"Stay here if you want," the master threatened. "I'm taking the villagers… with, or without you."

"I'm definitely going! Oh, please TAKE me with you!" The mayor started to kneel in front of him, begging unstoppably.

So this is the magistrate I chose, he thought. Shifu gave a sympathetic smile. Maybe I shouldn't have said that.

Now, I was thinking a lot in this story. And this story reflected some of the small thingies I've gone through in my daily life. No, I am not saying that my life was interesting... .

Anyhow, hope you enjoyed. PLease review. I'd like to hear your voices.