The Journey of a Thousand Miles.
Thousands of years ago, a furious battle was waged between the great and noble Xiaolin Dragon Dashi and the evil Heylin witch Wuya.
This was the first Xiaolin Showdown.
Wuya pitted her dark magic against Dashi and his mystical power objects, the Shen Gong Wu.
In the end, Dashi triumphed, and Wuya was forever imprisoned in a simple wooden puzzle box.
The threat averted, Dashi spread his Shen Gong Wu around the earth.
For generations, they have secretly maintained the balance of good and evil.
And a long line of Xiaolin Dragons has stood ready to face evil, should that balance ever shift.
Narrator's POV.
A rainy morning in the Xiaolin Temple. I have been practicing my art all morning, however it always comes to the same conclusion. I always land too far to the left. It is most disappointing.
My name is Omi. I am a Xiaolin monk in-training. I have been training within the Xiaolin Temple for as long as I can remember. Training to become the chosen Xiaolin Dragon of Water. It is a high rank in the Temple, and is also a destined role for the war against good and evil.
"Omi." My master, Master Fung called me from the dojo, "Time to come in, young monk."
Master Fung is my mentor, as well as my caretaker since I came to the Temple. He is wise, as he is kind. Kind as he is strict.
He is a young, elder man with a faded black beard and mustache. Bald, like myself. Light skin, to show his Asian ethnicity. And light blue eyes, like a pool of calm water.
He wears a blue tunic over a white monk shirt. A golden dragon medalion around his neck. A black belt around his waist. Black pants and shoes.
"But Master Fung, my Lotus Strike ends an eighth of an inch to the left." I explained, lowering my stance, "As a Xiaolin Dragon of the water-"
"You're not a Dragon yet, Omi." He cut me off.
"Yes, but I have been chosen to become one." I pointed out, "And that means striving for and obtaining perfection."
"It also means having the sense to get out of the rain." Master Fung told me with a small chuckle, then instructed, "Come, young monk. There are things I must tell you."
I raised a brow in confusion and interest, then did as I was asked. As I entered the dojo, our dragon companian, Dojo looked at me, resting on the bonzai tree, "Callin' it quits, kid? That Lotus Strike looked like it was pulling to the left."
You have heard me correctly. Dojo is an actual dragon. He's over 1500 years old, and a friend of the great and powerful Grand Master Dashi. As a dragon, he is capable of changing his shape and size whenever he likes.
Master Fung turned to our dragon companian, "Dojo, don't you have a scroll you're supposed to be guarding?"
"The ancient scroll of the Shen Gong Wu?" Dojo shrugged, "Come on, 1500 years I've been watchin' it, and all it's done is gather dust."
"Each day holds new surprises, Dojo Kanojo Cho." Master Fung told him.
Dojo noticed the usage of his full name and left, "Okay, I'm goin'. I'm goin'."
With the dragon gone, Master Fung turned his attention to me, "Speaking of surprises, I have one for you, Omi." He started walking toward the foyer, "New students are joining the temple."
I was taken back by the news, "New students?" I quickly followed my master, "This has never happened before. At least not in my lifetime." Then I started using my skills, "Can I teach them to walk on their fingers, master? Or how to blend into the shadows? Or maybe to walk on walls? And ceilings too?"
Master Fung grabbed my shoulders, from the ceiling and placed me back to the ground, "Perhaps, young monk, perhaps."
With that, we continued to the foyer and into the part of the Temple, where the rooms were located. There stood four people. Teenagers, by the looks of them. Two boys and two girls.
"Omi, I would like you to meet Raimundo." Master Fung started with introductions.
The first boy nodded, "'Sup?"
Raimundo was a tall, teenaged boy with olive-colored skin, dark brown hair and green eyes. These traits were of someone with Brazilian ethnicity, or Spanish.
He wore a white, hooded shirt. Green pants with a lot of pockets. And red shoes. Red bands were around his wrists too.
"Kimiko."
Kimiko was a small girl, but was still taller than me. Her skin was light, indicating her Asian ethnicity too. Possibly Japanese with a name like 'Kimiko'. Her hair was blonde. Short at the front, but long at the back. And light blue eyes.
She wore quite the combination of clothes. A blue tank top with a red star. White, fingerless gloves. A red and white folded shirt and matching boots of the same trio of colors.
Kimiko was talking to a device close to her ear, "He said that? Hey. No way!"
"Elijah."
Elijah was shown to be a little bit taller than Kimiko. Even for a girl. Her skin was very pale. White as the snow. Her eyes were hazel, nearly green, with black bruises around them. Short, messy, ravenette hair with violet streaks. Elven ears and freckles under her eyes and across her nose.
She must be Western European.
Elijah wore a pair of black glasses over her eyes, a light grey, hooded shirt, like Raimundo, under a pair of black overalls. A black and green striped scarf around her neck. Matching black and green fingerless gloves. Black sandals and a dark purple sash around her waist.
Elijah said nothing, but bowed in greeting.
"And Clay."
Clay tilted his head and smiled, "Howdy."
Clay was the largest one in the room. Light skin, like Master Fung and Kimiko. Short blonde hair with long bangs hanging over his light blue eyes.
He wore a brown setson hat. A red bandana around his neck. A light blue collared shirt. Blue jeans with a brown leather belt. Brown boots and gloves.
He spoke with a strong accent. Must be American.
"Master, where are the new students?" I asked Master Fung, looking around in confusion.
"Right in front of you, Omi." He answered.
I looked at the four teenagers before me, "They are not what I expected."
"The best things in life rarely are." Master Fung explained to me.
I nodded in understanding, "You are right, master." Then I smiled and bowed to the four teenagers, "Welcome, my new and strangely-attired friends."
"I must be going, young ones." Master Fung told us, as he left, "I can see there is much teaching to be done here."
I nodded, "Yes, master." Then turned to my new friends, "Much teaching indeed."
*Later, In the Courtyard...*
"The key is balance." I explained to the new students, as I showed them how to walk on their fingers, "If you are a beginner, you may want to start with three fingers."
"Uh, just curious." Clay spoke up, "When will we need this?"
"Try never." Raimundo answered in a snarky tone.
Kimiko was still on her device, "Okay, Keiko, I'll e-mail it to you." She put the device away and asked, "Is there a Net connection around here? No?" She smiled and reached into her backpack, "Oh, no worries. I'll go wi-fi."
She grabbed another strange device and started writing on it. I grew interested in the device, "Oh, what is that? Is it magic?"
"It's a PDA." Kimiko explained to me, "I'm sending a message to a friend in Tokyo."
"A secret message?" I asked, intranced.
Kimiko shook her head, "Nuh, I'm just telling her I've met a very strange kid, who apparently doesn't know about personal space issues."
"Really? Who?" I asked, then hid behind her and pointed to Clay, "Is it that guy?"
Clay shook his head, "Not me, partner."
"It's you, chrome-dome." Raimundo told me, folding his arms.
I looked at Kimiko. She nodded. My cheeks started to feel warm and a shy smile grew on my face.
*A Little Later...*
"Lesoon two: the Fierce Cheetah method of fighting." I explained, as I continued today's lesson, dashing across the yard, "I defy you to catch me! Witness the speed of a cheetah. I am dazzling and confounding you! And now, I stri-"
However, I got caught by Clay, who threw a rope around my ankle, and dragged me toward him, "Hey!"
"Hope I haven't mucked up your lesson too much, little feller." Clay apologised, "Just can't resist a challenge."
Kimiko was on her communication device again, "Yeah, uh-huh. The cowboy just lassoed the little guy."
Angry, I rose to my feet and shouted at the four teenagers, "I am the teacher! You are the students! You will give me the respect I deserve!"
"Respect this." Raimundo spoke up from behind me.
I felt a draft and looked down. It turned out Raimundo pulled my pants down to my ankles. Embarrassed, my cheeks grew warm again and I sighed.
Kimiko giggled, still on her device, "No way! The Brazilian kid just pantsed the bald kid. Ha!"
Elijah was the only one who hasn't said anything. Let alone do anything. The only she has done was stare off into the mountains.
Then she started shivering and hugging herself. Like she was cold. But it is not cold in the Temple. And it is summer. Cold is out of the question.
Suddenly, Master Fung told us to gather in the main dojo. It turns out that the ancient Heylin Witch, Wuya has returned and it is time to retrieve the Shen Gong Wu before Wuya does. Kimiko asked why.
"The world will be thrown into 10,000 years of darkness." Master Fung answered, "It is your most solemn duty as Xiaolin warriors to find all the Shen Gong Wu before Wuya does."
Raimundo raised his hand, "I have a question."
Master Fung nodded to the Brazilian boy, "Yes, Raimundo."
"I saw my room and no bed. Just a mat. What the dilly?" Raimundo asked.
Master Fung, Kimiko, Clay, Elijah and I looked at the Brazilian boy in confusion. We have a very serious mission, and he chooses to complain about the living arrangements?
"Um, we can talk later." Raimundo quickly dismissed.
*A Little Later, in the Scroll Room...*
Elijah's POV.
Master Fung lead us to a small room with a wooden table. on top of the table was a scroll within a golden casing, "Learning is a treasure that will follow its owner everywhere."
"The ancient scroll of the Shen Gong Wu!" Omi gasped.
Master Fung opened the scroll and it showed an ancient, chinese coin, "Ah, the Mantis Flip Coin. It has revealed itself. Whoever holds the coin will leap with the skill of a mantis."
Kimiko smiled, "Wild!"
Master Fung closed the scroll and Omi spoke up, "And so our grand quest begins. Follow me to victory!" He ran off, but noticed something, "I have no idea where I'm going."
I supressed a giggle, then Kimiko nodded, "Yeah. How do we find the Shen Gong Wu?"
Master Fung turned to the green dragon, "Dojo, you helped Master Dashi hide them."
The dragon, Dojo, shook his head, "Yeah, but that was a long time ago. You can't possibly expect me to remember which-" he started shuddering and then pointed to the window, "This way."
Raimundo shook his head with a glare, "Right, like we're gonna take direction from a gecko."
Dojo glared at the brazilian boy, "Gecko?!" Then he shapeshifted into a larger dragon and growled at Raimundo, "Don't ever call me a gecko!"
Raimundo quickly nodded in fear, "Eh, my mistake."
*Later, in the Sky...*
"Can't believe I went from temple guardian to babysitter in less that a day." The large dragon complained, as Raimundo, Omi, Kimiko, Clay and I rode him toward the location of the Shen Gong Wu.
During the ride, Kimiko was teaching Omi about a certain game. Raimundo payed a joke and ended up getting punched in the arm.
*San Francisco...*
We arrived to a large city. with a familiar red bridge. Dojo landed in a lonely alley and shapeshifted back into his small size. He looked around the city and gasped, "Whoa! A lot has changed in the last 1500 years."
Omi gasped and looked around, "So many people. So many buildings. What is this place?"
"San Francisco." Raimundo answered.
"We've got a Mantis Flip Coin to find." Kimiko reminded.
Dojo sniffed the air, "And it's close." He sniffed again, "Real close."
Suddenly a voice shouted from behind us, "Bow before me, citizens of Planet Earth! I now rule you with the Mantis Flip Coin!"
A gothic, teenage boy flipped down from the gate and landed safely on the ground.
A raspy voice told the boy, "You cannot rule the earth yet. You have but one Shen Gong Wu."
The boy asked, "How many are there?"
"Hundreds!" The voice answered.
"What?" The boy gasped, "Okay, you're gonna need to get solid and help me out here."
"Hello, friend." Omi greeted politely, "That coin is of great mystical importance. May we please have it?"
The boy chuckled and shook his head, "No way, shortie. This Shen Gong Wu is mine."
Raimundo raised a brow, "How does he know about Shen Gong Wu?"
"How indeed?" The raspy voice spoke from behind the boy.
It was a small purple spirit with a familiar jester-like mask.
Dojo gasped, "Wuya! Wow, the years have not been kind to you."
The spirit, Wuya, hissed at the small dragon. "Mind your tongue, reptile! Dashi isn't here to protect you!"
Dojo quickly flew into my hoodie.
The spirit growled at me, then gasped at my protective glare at her, "You! You have the stench of dragon on you. How?"
The boy looked at me and gasped, "Ellie? What are you doing here? I thought you were back in Ireland."
"Ellie?!" The others exclaimed, looking at me.
"Hello, Jack." I greeted with my voice finally spoken, "Long time, no see."
"Away, evil spirit! You cannot stop us." Omi told Wuya.
"She can't. I can." Jack told us. Then called, "Jackbots, attack!" A bunch of robots, Jack's infamous Jackbots, appeared and surrounded him, "Mince them."
The robots charged toward us. Omi was the first to attack the robots. The rest of us attacked the robots and were doing very well.
Clay used his brute strength to destroy the robots, "It's not your weight. It's how you throw it around."
Jack turned to the spirit, "You never mentioned freaks in pajamas would be lookin' for the Shen Gong Wu too."
Wuya shrugged, "Details! You've got the flip coin. Go!"
Jack's backpack morphed into two helecopter blades and he started to fly away.
Omi noticed and ran after him, "The Mantis Flip Coin!"
Kimiko threw a Jackbot, but it flew toward Raimundo. Raimundo ducked and the robot flew toward Clay. The robot colided into Clay and Clay flew into Omi.
Omi reached for the evil genius, "Got ya!" Until Clay threw him into the garbage.
Jack laughed, "A lesson for losers. Don't mess with Jack Spicer." And he was gone.
"Kindly remove your gigantic self from being on top of my body." Omi asked Clay, as he tried to free himself from the large cowboy.
Clay moved off Omi and stood up, "Sorry about that, little buddy."
Omi stood up and shouted, "Because of you four, we have lost the first Shen Gong Wu!"
Raimundo shrugged his shoulders, "Dude, it was a coin."
"A magical coin!" Omi exclaimed, "Do you not understand? The more Shen Gong Wu Wuya possesses, the stronger she is!"
"Sorry, Omi." Kimiko apologised.
Clay nodded, "We'll do better next time."
Dojo peeked out of my hoodie, twitcing like crazy, "Uh, next time is now. I'm sensing another Shen Gong Wu."
Kimiko dug into her backpack and grabbed the Scroll of the Shen Gong Wu, "Let's see what we've got."
Omi looked over and gasped at the image demonstration, "The Two-Ton Tunic!"
Dojo smiled, "Oh, I remember that! It was Dashi's invulnerable armor."
Kimiko chuckled and smiled, putting the scroll back into her backpack, "Excellent. Spicer better watch his back, because this round is ours."
*Venice, Italy...*
We found the Two-Ton Tunic, but Jack found the tunic before we could.
Luckily, Raimundo and Clay charged him into a boat, riding off into the river, leaving the tunic with us.
Omi picked up the tunic and smiled, "Jack Spicer. Today, victory is mine!"
Clay turned to the river, "Better not count your chickens before they hatch."
We turned to find that Spicer ha jackbot reinforcements.
Omi laughed and put the tunic on, "A fearsome force. But they are not prepared for the awesome might of the Two-Ton Tunic!"
The tunic glowed and morphed into armor. However, the weight of the armor caused the dock to buckle and break under our feet. Omi, Raimundo, Clay, Kimiko and I fell into the water.
*Later, in the Sky...*
"Look, it's not the way Grand Master Dashi would've done it, but, hey, you're still learning." Dojo tried to make up feel better.
Omi shook his head and pouted, "I do not wish to speak of the failures of me or my students. I only wish to find the next Shen Gong Wu."
"Which is?" Raimundo asked.
Kimiko grabbed the scroll from her backpack and opened the scroll, "The Eye of Dashi."
Looking over the image demonstration, Clay spoke up, "The way I figure it, it shoots lightning somethin' fierce."
"Okay, Mistress of Darkness." Dojo looked at me, "Who are you really, if your real name isn't Elijah?"
That got everyone else's attention.
Raimundo nodded in agreement, "Yeah. How does that Jack Spicer know you so easily?"
"Are you evil, just like him?" Omi asked me.
I sighed and turned to the others, "No, I'm not evil. My name isn't Elijah. It's Eleanor May Carter. The boy, Jack Spicer, is my cousin on my mother's side. My mother and Jack's father are siblings." I explained, "My mother thought the temple was an all-boys school and had to put me under a boys name. She sent me to be safe."
"So, why didn't you say anything when you joined?" Clay asked me.
"My mother told me to never speak. To keep who I really am a secret." I answered, then sighed, "So much for that..."
*Later, in the Mountains...*
"Now, this is my kind of place." Clay smiled, as we arrived to the mountains.
"Are you kidding?" Kimiko exclaimed, typing on her cell phone, "I'm not even getting a signal here."
I hugged myself and shivered, "I hate it storms. They scare the heck out of me."
"If I were a lightning-shooting Shen Gong Wu, where would I be?" Raimundo wondered, as he pointed Dojo around the area.
"Close." Dojo answered, "You'd be close."
Omi looked around an spotted something on a nearby tree, "The Eye of Dashi!"
He climbed the tree and grabbed the Eye of Dashi. However, so did Jack, "Sorry, monk boy! This one's mine!"
Omi pulled back on the thread of the necklace, "I was here first."
Jack pulled the Eye of Dashi toward himself, "Too bad." Suddenly, the Eye of Dashi started glowing with a golden aura, "Hey, what's with the glowing?"
Omi gasped, "It is a Xiaolin Showdown."
"It's a what now?" Raimundo asked, tilting his head.
"A Xiaolin Showdown." Dojo explained, "It's what happens when two warriors reach a stalemate over a Shen Gong Wu. Two words: Freak-y."
"Jack Spicer, I challenge you to a Xiaolin Showdown!" Omi challenged my cousin, "I wager my Two-Ton Tunic against your Mantis Flip Coin. Whoever reaches the last stone first wins the Eye of Dashi. And the other Shen Gong Wu as well."
"Accept the challenge." Wuya told Jack, "Accept it!"
"I accept your challenge, Omi." Jack told Omi.
Omi nodded, "Let's go! Xiaolin Showdown!"
The golden aura around the Eye of Dashi glowed brighter and created a blinding light. Once the light faded, The Eye of Dashi was floating on the other side of the hopping stones.
Suddenly, the stones raised into the clouds, growing into pillars.
"Oh. I did not expect this." Omi gasped, as he looked into the clouds.
"That's a Xiaolin Showdown for ya." Dojo told the chinese boy, "Always keeps you guessing." Then he called loudly, "Gong yi tan pai!"
Jack and Omi looked at him strangely, "That means 'go'." Dojo explained.
"How am I supposed to do this?" Jack wondered.
"Use your Shen Gong Wu." Wuya told him.
Jack nodded, "Oh, yeah." Then called his Shen Gong Wu, "Mantis Flip Coin!"
He started leaping from stone-to-stone with ease.
"Jack Spicer forgets I have my own Shen Gong Wu." Omi smirked, "Two-Ton Tunic!" The tunic morphed into armor and collapsed into the stone pedastal, "Of course, I forgot the Two-Ton Tunic is very heavy."
Omi made the first hop and fell to the lowest pedastal.
"Maybe, this would have been easier, if he didn't call the Wu yet." I noted, rubbing my chin in thought. Kimiko and Clay looked at me, "What? I'm just thinking aloud."
"You know what I just realized?" Raimundo asked, "Master Fung never answered my question about the bed."
Kimiko looked at the Brazilian boy and decided to cheer on, "Come on, Omi!"
Jack had a big head-start, "I've got this in the bag. But, never hurts to cheat." He summoned two of his Jackbots, "JackBots! Don't care, don't want to know how, just make him gone!"
The JackBots charged toward Omi. Omi groaned, as he struggled to move, "I cannot fight with this heavy garment!" He looked at Clay and an idea hit him, "It's not your weight." He destroyed one of the Jackbots with the armor, "It's how you throw it around!"
"That's showin' 'em!" Clay smiled.
The second JackBot toward Omi. Omi hid in the armor and hopped onto the back of the robot as it passed him.
"Honor the power of the 'off' switch!" Omi noted, what Kimiko taught him.
He found the switch, on the back of the robot, and the robot fell into the abyss of the cloud. Omi returned to the Two-Ton Tunic and continued the race.
Kimiko smiled and cheered, "Don't mess with the monk!"
"Don't just stand there like a buffoon." Wuya told my cousin, "Finish the race!"
Jack nodded and leaped ahead. Omi was able to catch up with the gothic boy.
Jack smiled in victory, "Now that I've defeated you, perhaps you'll respect the genius of Jack Spicer!"
Omi smirked, "Respect this!"
He pulled Jack's pants down and hopped ahead of him. Raimundo chuckled in humor, as Omi reached the end of the race.
Wuya noticed and cried in dismay, "Noooo!"
Omi touched the Eye of Dashi and the glowing Shen Gong Wu flooded the sky with a golden light. Everything was back to normal, like nothing happened. Omi was holding the Eye of Dashi, the Mantis Flip Coin and was wearing the Two-Ton Tunic in its tunic form.
We ran up to Omi was smiles. "Omi, that was sweet!" Kimiko praised.
Clay nodded in agreement, "You done a good day's roundup, partner."
I nodded and smiled, "Way to show Jack who he's messing with."
Raimundo nodded, "I really liked that robe thing." Then asked, "What's it called again?"
"The Two-Ton Tunic!" Omi answered, then the tunic morphed into its armor form. The weight of the armor caused Omi to fall, "Whoa!"
Raimundo and I helped the little Chinese boy to his feet, "I got ya."
*The Next Day, Back in the Temple...*
"You have all done exceptionally well." Master Fung praised us, then turned to the dragon, "Wouldn't you agree, Dojo?"
Dojo shrugged his shoulders, "Not bad, for amateurs."
"The journey of a thousand miles begins with but a single step." Master Fung noted wisely.
"Where do you get this stuff?" Dojo asked him with a raised brow.
Master Fung shrugged, "I have a desk calendar."
"Master Fung, there are so many Shen Gong Wu left to be found." Omi spoke up.
Master Fung nodded, "Your new friends will help."
Omi nodded in understanding, "Oh, yes, master. I have already taught much to Kimiko, Eleanor, Raimundo and Clay."
I giggled, "Please. Ellie is fine."
"But, Omi, they are here to teach you." Master Fung explained.
Omi's eyes widen in shock, "But I am the chosen one."
Master Fung shook his head, "You aren't the only chosen one, Omi. Someday your new friends may become Dragons, as well." Then gestured to each of us, "Kimiko, the Dragon of Fire. Eleanor, the Dragon of Wood. Clay, the Dragon of Earth. And Raimundo, the Dragon of the Wind."
"Is this true, master?" Omi asked in shock.
Master Fung nodded, "Yes, but I didn't want to tell you until you were ready."
The shock was too much for Omi to handle. Can't say I blame him. Four new students and they're destined to become the Dragons of the Five Elements. New arch-nemesis guided by an ancient spirit. Omi groaned and fainted.
"I don't think he was ready." Clay noted.
I lightheartedly giggled, "I believe this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship."
