Prologue
A bright light.
That was the first thing Lord Shen saw after being crushed by his own cannon, or at least the remains of it.
How did he ever get to this point? How could this happen? The Soothsayer was right about Shen's future; the warrior of black and white did defeat him, but then he accepted his fate to die and take his own life.
Personally, he didn't know why he didn't make one move. He decided that he didn't react because there was nothing left for him to live for.
The panda already took everything he ever wanted. He took everything: inner peace, loving parents who protected him before they parted, loyal friends, fame... and he had nothing.
Thirty years of planning to take all of China and now the curtains of his life have closed. Thirty years of just preparing for his predicted fate. Thirty years of suffering. Thirty years of nothing.
He now thought that he failed his parents once again- BIG TIME. But why would he care about them? They never cared for him. When he rampaged the panda village, he expected to feel pride and accomplishment from his thrilled parents, but instead, felt anger and betrayal from the looks of his parents' horrified faces. Nothing hurt him more than that moment that came from his own parents, the two people who gave him life and raised him. Well, he could then ask them, if they want him to be next in line for Gongmen City, he should defend himself to take the throne? What would they say to that?
They should've been on his side. But he wanted to surprise them with his act to make the news all the better for them, but that never happened. It was worse and earned him a one-way ticket to exile. He thought that they would be relieved that their son would live to take the throne.
But no, they exiled him. And since then, he believed that they never cared for him or even loved him... never.
He thought all this before he looked around, not realizing where he was from all the contemplating distracting him.
The world he was in now was bright, soft and foggy, but generally in a positive way. There were many hues of heavenly oranges, yellows and pinks in contrast to Shen's favorite colors: black and red. At first, he thought it was very quiet and dull there until he spotted a barely visible silhouette in the distance slowly coming closer in his direction. No, two silhouettes. They were shaped like him, but they were different in a way. One of the two was taller, broader and stronger-looking than the feminine, shorter-looking other. But as they came closer, he quickly realized that they were his parents.
His parents.
How could this be?
He thought they were dead until he stupidly remembered that he is too. But... he was in heaven? But why? After all the horrible things he's done, which he never regretted even once, he was never fit to come here. But he felt suspicious by the time his parents finally came before him.
They looked youthful, totally unaged and very lively, as if they never died at all. They looked like they were exactly when they exiled him. They exiled him...
But then all that faded when Shen took a look at his mother. Her large brown eyes were clouded by tears, which he confused whether they were from happiness or sorrow. But he doubted they were happy to see him. They never were. The face his mother given him now was the exact same look she'd given him the moment he left in exile.
Then she started to sob and his father comforted her by wrapping his wings around her, soothing her. She jerked violently, but to Shen's curiosity, they were inaudible. He saw that his father say something to his wife, but never heard what was said. He heard not even a whisper.
But then anger crept up to him at that moment, knowing as if it were a fact that his father said to his wife, "I know, he was a horrible excuse for a son…"
But almost as if his thoughts were spoken out of mind, he heard a voice behind him.
"You assume too much," the voice said calmly.
Shen turned around and saw before him the very creator of kung fu and the wisest of all, alive or dead. Master Oogway. Like his parents' visage, he looked eternal and very peaceful. Untouchable. He had his staff with him and smiled broadly at him. Never before had Shen seen someone simile directly at him with honest meaning. There were many feigned smiles sent to him, but when Oogway smiled at him, there was no sense of dislike in it at all. Shen was obviously amazed.
"Assume? Nonsense. I assume nothing. I know." Shen said smugly and bitterly.
"Oh, really?" Oogway said as he came to a stop. "You assumed that you finished the panda genocide. You assumed that your parents"—he gestured to them—"would be pleased about what you did."
Shen remained quiet as the wise tortoise continued.
"You also assume that you're right all the time." He added.
Shen started breathing heavily. He was right. He always wanted to be right. He wanted everything to happen in his way and his way only. But he was embarrassed to say so, so he stood silent.
"Shall I go on?" Oogway asked.
There were five seconds before Shen could answer, "No."
He took another look at his parents. They were staring at him with impossibly worried looks, piercing him somewhere he never felt before. Without thinking, Shen lifted his wing and stretched it towards them, but he felt nothing. He tried again. Nothing.
His mother lifted her eyes at him and tears welled up again.
"How come…?" Shen whispered, not believing what was happening.
"They can feel you, and it pains them so much." Oogway simply explained.
"But how can I—"
"It's like touching or talking to strangers. You don't understand them or even know them."
Shen looked at his concerned parents frightfully.
"They know you. They feel you. They're concerned for you, Lord Shen." Oogway continued. "But you never knew that."
Shen shook his head worriedly.
"No, I know they hate me…"
Oogway just chuckled at the response and said, "You are still blindfolded, young Shen. You must understand their reason."
Shen hung his head and said coldly, "What reason…?" he shot up before he shouted, "If they cared about me, they would let me go find the panda that was DESTINED to defeat me!
What Shen hoped for was to be right this time, but all Oogway said to his statement was, "Did you ever hear the saying, 'One often meets his destiny on the road he takes to avoid it'?"
Shen opened his beak, but had nothing to say. Oogway was absolutely right. No doubt about it.
"You sealedyour fate, Shen." He said lastly.
Shen felt his throat go tight. The old tortoise was right. When he was running away from his presumed fate, it kept on running after him.
"So why are you telling me this, then?" Shen asked, looking down. His parents glanced at Oogway, wondering why as well. "I'm already dead, anyways."
The tortoise gently held out a hand to Shen's shoulder. The polar white peacock startled a bit from the gesture, but then grew comfortable.
"You deserve a second chance." He said simply.
Shen's eyes widened and looked up into Oogway's eyes, certain that he's not joking.
"Pardon?" he said in disbelief.
"You deserve a second chance," he repeated. "You have to realize how much you had. Your past, your present… your future."
He couldn't believe it. He has another chance at life.
"I will give you life again, but DON'T take advantage of it. If you mess it up, that's it. You had your chance."
Shen stole another glance at his parents. Do they love him as much as everyone says? He won't believe it until he finds evidence about it. He needs answers. He can't screw up this time.
"I'll do it." He said quietly, breathlessly. "But… how do I—"
"You must find inner peace." Oogway said with a smile.
Shen's heard that before and he took the wrong turn. This time, he'll consider it. But there's still something.
"But who'll teach me? Who'll help me?" he asked eagerly.
"You'll find out for yourself, Shen. This is your story to unfold. You will discover it cover to cover."
Shen already felt frustrated, but how can he say no?
"I'll do it." He said surely.
"Remember, Lord Shen," Oogway said seriously, but also gently, "Every random act of kindness goes a long way. Follow that path and you'll find love."
Shen didn't know how to respond, so he just nodded. Then with one touch of Oogway's staff to the top of the peacock's head, he came back.
His blood-red eyes shot opened suddenly just then and he felt his whole body again. But then he realized that he was lying down on sand. Sand?His feathers lightly touched the rough and sandy earth; it was moist, but he looked behind him and saw that the tide was low.
Then he stood up and found himself feeling odd. He identified himself closely and quickly noticed that his robe was still intact, clean, and undisturbed. He also noticed behind him was the ship he sailed in before his invasion. He actually got washed up to the shore. He saw a few of his blades stuck onto the wood, remembering that he threw them at the panda in his last battle. They had minimal rust, but still clear enough to see a reflection.
Reflection…
He carefully pulled out a blade and braced himself so the pull wouldn't accidently cut him. The chunk of metal slipped out smoothly with a whispery shingand took a look at himself with it.
He looked more or less the same, but he looked a bit younger. His feathers looked pure white and clean. So far, different than his ashy patched, dirty look before his death.
But his younger appearance startled him so. Perhaps he was the same age, but was given a youthful image to start over. Oogway must've done this for him. He remembered how impossibly stressful he was that he developed bags under his eyes, also his eyelids darkening to a grayish-black.
But now, his eyes were perfectly formed and his eyelids were light grey to go with his white feathers.
But by seeing himself uninjured after waking up from death, he remembered an important scar.
His feet.
They were still covered by the metal plating as he looked down at them.
Eager, he bent down to hurriedly take off the plating to see if they are healed like the rest of his body.
He closed his eyes as he did so, treating it like a surprise gift. Once he felt that they were off, he glanced down and frowned.
The burnt scars were still there. They were an ashy black color in contrast to his light orange legs. Out of everything else on his body, he wondered why his feet had to look the same as before.
Those scars were still with him, and he had to live with it. He had to thank Oogway for giving him youth again, but wished with everything that everywhere on his body was fixed. Embarrassed to show them to anyone, he covered up his feet again by placing back the metal plating.
This is a new day, but he had no idea how to start it. If people would see him, the first thing they would do is aim arrows at him and shoot at the chance they get. He's still currently a threat. If he's lucky, he would only get intimidated. But he never wants to feel that way anymore. He doesn't want to become alienated any longer. But that will take some time. He can't just pop out of nowhere in a huge crowd and yell out, "Hey! I'm Lord Shen and I've come to rearrange myself!" He thought of that as a simple death wish. He decided to walk alone all the way to the Valley of Peace—by himself. He was stealthy enough to be unseen and he could mostly cross without being spotted.
He looked around at the moment and started to step forward, but then remembered something.
His weapons.
He took out a blade from inside his sleeve and stared at it. Then there was his reflection again. He looks different, but the same peacock from before just cannot repossess him.
He threw out his blade to the ground and angrily stripped himself of all his hidden weapons until he came to his jagged lance. It was a weapon he so long held that he can't bear to part with it. He decides to keep it to defend himself on the journey he's determined to take to find the one person he's sure will help him: that warrior of black and white.