Chapter One: The Foundation
A blizzard blew through a mountain village, its inhabitants hardly daring to brave the weather. The few who did bolted from shelter to shelter until they arrived at their destinations. One such destination was often at the village bar, where an open fire welcomed those people in need of warmth.
The pig in charge was readying another round of hot tea when a traveler came inside the bar, snow covering most of her. She was very easily labeled as a traveler, especially since no one had heard of any peafowl living all the way up here in the mountains.
The peahen brushed off most, if not all, of the snow and walked wearily to the counter. She didn't even talk before the bartender set a tea cup in front of her.
"So what's your name?" the pig asked after the peahen took a drink.
"Ting," the bird answered.
"Ting?" the pig asked. "Like one of those teachers from that soothsaying school, Shido La or something?"
Ting had just took a sip and coughed a little.
"Shide Lao," she corrected him, "and I am no longer a teacher. I have a greater calling now."
The pig scoffed.
"And what would that be?" he asked.
"I must rebuild the Tower of Sacred Flame," Ting answered him.
The pig almost dropped the tea cup he had just washed.
"Is that a joke?" he asked her. "You want to rebuild that tower? You're crazy!"
"Crazy is a matter of perspective," Ting said humbly as she was about to take another sip.
"You're almost as crazy as - as Shen!"
Ting slammed the tea cup back onto its saucer. The pig and all those nearby were surprised that neither broke.
"How dare you compare him to even me!" Ting screeched. "I will rebuild everything he destroyed so we can all forget his cursed name!"
"How can you rebuild an entire race of pandas?" the pig argued. "And what about Master Thundering Rhino? You can't bring him back by building a tower on his grave!"
He turned to put a few things away.
"Hmph," he said under his breath, "and he was my favorite Kung Fu Master."
Ting picked her tea cup up.
"He was mine, too," she whispered before taking a sip.
Her sincerity cooled the pig's anger. She looked at the remains of her tea. She sighed as she set the tea cup down.
"We know how Shen has affected us," she began again, "but what must he have done to his parents? They may have turned in their graves so often that they may have dug a hole to the Americas."
The pig whirled around.
"The whats?" he asked.
Ting dismissed the question with a wave of her wing.
"So after you rebuild the tower," the pig started, "who'll take the throne?"
"Oh, I don't know," Ting answered, "nor do I care. As long as the Masters' Council keeps the building standing, I couldn't care less who was in charge. There can't possibly be anyone worse than Shen."
"What'll you do after it's built?"
"I don't know that either. I guess I'll find out when I get there."
Ting looked at the door as a snow-covered goose rushed in and shook himself off. The blizzard was still raging.
"At least the construction will begin as winter ends," Ting said to herself as she put a few coins on the counter.
She walked toward the door, ready to brave the weather to her destination.