Enjoy the wait? Yes? No? Whatever, here's you reward for waiting.

OOOOOOO

"PO!" Shifu cried in alarm and surprise. He knelt down on the panda's chest and began slapping his cheeks. Nothing. He yelled in his ear. Nothing. The red panda tried everything, but no response came from Po. Shifu turned and ran to the bedding chambers.

OOOOOOO

The images never stayed during Po's slumber. Voices and people flickered in and out of existence, and no matter how hard he tried, Po could not comprehend what was happening, or what they were saying or doing.

Then, one face rose above the others.

It looked like that of a tiger's, but something was off. Not the fact that his eyes were like two wheels of vibrant color, or that silver markings adorned his forehead, but just the face that he looked like a tiger, and yet was not a tiger. The thing's eyes delved into Po's, and a finger rose to his lips. Shhhhhh…

The world exploded into chaos.

Wars raged, fires burned, armies rushed blindly to their deaths at the hands of each other. It all flashed by faster than one could comprehend, but the panda could comprehend. He wished he couldn't. Blood flowed, screams rang out, it was all a malady of nightmarish and gory imagery. Then, one of them slowed down. A dragon writhed through the mob of friend and foe, tearing every enemy apart. It turned to Po, and it delved into his eyes, just like the thing had.

The dragon's eyes were the exact color of green that Po's were.

Everything behind it faded into darkness, and the panda was relieved. But, the relief soon turned to terror as the dragon opened its mouth. Po tried to step back, knowing he was going to be ripped in two by those jaws at any moment.

And the dragon spoke.

"You are the One, Dragon Warrior," The dragon's voice was a deep baritone, unlike any other ever heard in the universe. "The heir of the Dragon Artifacts."

"What are the Dragon Artifacts?"

"The Dragon Artifacts are seven artifacts that, when combined, give the bearer great power. Many generations of warriors have searched long and hard for these artifacts, but not one has found a trace of them, and only one hides in plain sight."

"How do I get these Artifacts?"

"You already have one: the Dragon Scroll, the one that hid in plain sight. The others are the Dragon Elixir, the Dragon Power, the Dragon Sword, the Dragon Fury, the Dragon Soul, and the Dragon Secret. The secret to finding these are hidden within the Dragon Scroll."

"How do I get them out of the Dragon Scroll?"

"Use the one thing that you and Shifu already possess within your souls. It soothes the soul, smooths the wrinkles within, quenches the-"

"Inner peace!"

"Yes."

"But how do I use that to reveal the secret?"

"You must find out yourself. I, your Dragon Within, cannot reveal this. You must find the artifacts, or the world will descend into chaos and war, as you have already seen."

"Please! Give me answers!"

"Find the artifacts… find them… find…" The Dragon Within faded out of sight, and the images of war came back.

Po did not understand, and a question that was rather common came to mind: why me? Why do I have to find these artifacts, stop this war? I'm scared! Why? WHY? WHY?

The last thought came out as a haunting, drawn-out scream that echoed in his mind and shattered the landscape. Yet again, the world descended into darkness.

OOOOOOO

After what seemed an eternity, the world came into view as Po opened his eyes with a gasp. After his pupils adjusted to the light, he looked about. Tigress sat nearby, Crane at the panda's side. He instantly recognized the room as his bedding chamber. How did I get here? He wondered. Then Po remembered; his body locking up, the darkness enclosing his mind.

A flash of red and white, and the next thing Po knew, he was staring into the worried face of the red panda known as Master Shifu, "Po! Are you alright?"

"I had a vision. I need to get the Dragon Scroll back down."

Shifu's eyes widened, as did Tigress' and Crane's, "Come with me!" Shifu exclaimed, and he sprinted out of the bedding chamber. Hesitating for the slightest moment, Po, Tigress, and Crane did likewise.

Soon, the four arrived at the Hall of Warriors, drenched from the rain that had appeared out of nowhere before Po woke up. They walked up to the pool of water at the front, as Shifu twirled and whipped his bamboo staff about, blowing the petals up in short gusts of air, until one landed on the end of the perfectly balanced Dragon Scroll, and the artifact slid out of the jaws of the beast. The red panda extended the staff, and the Scroll bounced off the end, to land in his paw. Shifu turned around and tossed it to Po.

The panda, like he had months before, struggled to open the canister, until he handed it to his master, saying "Sorry."

"No need to apologize." Ploonk! He handed it back to Po, who promptly opened it to the familiar golden foil. He stared at it a moment, then his eyes brightened, remembering what his Dragon Within had said, "I have an idea. Give me a minute here." Po set the scroll on the ground went over to the columns by the side, and he reached out.

A raindrop touched his finger, and the panda let it roll down his paw. Deftly transferring it between paws, fingers, and likewise, he slowly stepped over to the Scroll, and let the drop fall of his claw onto the foil, the other three watching in awe and amazement.

The drop disappeared like it would into a sheet of paper, spreading out lowly, and a shockwave of writing spread over the foil.

OOOOOOO

R&R please!