Karate Leopard
Part Two
Xai waited until Rik-Zi and his men were out of sight before he rushed off to wake up Gavial and the others. They all seemed a bit cranky, especially Gavial, when they were woken, but they were immediately alert when Xai gave them the news.
"Why would Rik-Zi take Shifu if he got what he wanted?" Cheetah wondered aloud. "I would've thought that he would kill the old man."
"It doesn't matter." Xai said. "We have to help him." But the other bounty warriors, even Gavial, were hesitant. "Are you kidding me? I thought we were supposed to be the good guys; the ones who stop the bad guys. Rik-Zi has already taken my master's life and I will not allow him to take another."
Jake stepped up. "I'll help. You'll need my tracking skills." He immediately went outside to lock onto Rik-Zi better. The others finally decided that Xai was right, and agreed to help.
"We should go warn Shifu's students." Yukio said. He rushed to the door and opened it, only to find the Terrific Three standing there.
"Shifu's been taken." Crane said. "And-"
"We already know." Gavial informed him, Tigress, and Monkey. "Xai here caught sight of Rik-Zi and his gang taking your master away. We're ready to help in any way we can."
Tigress seemed a bit wary. "What'll it cost?"
Surnam thought about it. "How about-"
"Don't worry about it." Xai interrupted. "Think of it as a favor." Surnam shot Xai an exasperated look, but Gavial smirked slightly. Flirter. He thought.
"Thank you." Tigress said gratefully. "Now how are we going to find Rik-Zi?"
"Jake's working on that now." Cheetah replied. "He can track anybody down."
"Then we'll leave tomorrow." Monkey confirmed. Everyone nodded and went back to bed. But as Xai closed the door, Crane frowned at him.
"Don't get any ideas about Tigress, funny boy." He threatened before leaving.
The next day, the Three met up with the Bounty Hunters at their base and Jake used his powers to lock onto Rik-Zi again.
"He's in the jungle." He confirmed. So, with Jake leading the way, the group headed out. It didn't take long to find the jungle, nor did it take long for Monkey to fall into a pit, finding the ruins of an underground palace. As the others followed to investigate, Xai found a scroll in the rubble.
"Hey guys!" he called everyone over. "Check this out. It's got weird writing all over it."
Crane inspected it. "It's an old form of Bird Language. It says that this is the Tengu Scroll, containing the Tengu Army."
"Is that one of the scrolls of the eight kingdoms?" Monkey asked.
"No." Gavial said. "But you never know when that might come in handy. Better hold onto it." Crane nodded and handed it to the bounty hunter leader, who tucked in away in his bag. The group climbs out of the pit and took a break. When they did, Xai made his way over to Tigress.
"So, remember how you said you'd tell me about your past?" he asked.
Tigress smirked. "Yes. Would you like to know now?"
"Well, I need something to do." Xai replied.
Tigress chuckled. "Well, I came from….." Suddenly, Komodo pounced them. Tigress managed to kick him away, but he came again, attacking the two cats with full force. The rest of the group joined in the fight as Rik-Zi and his men came charging after Komodo. Though they all fought hard, the bounty hunters and the Terrific Three were losing. Xai and Tigress were no match for Komodo. Cheetah and Surnam attacked Pangolin with all their might, but he didn't even feel their hits. As Monkey and Crane fought Saimang, he recognized Monkey as his old rival from the Sapphire Palace. Yukio managed to dodge many of Tarantula's attacks, but he is bitten by her.
Meanwhile, Gavial managed to catch sight of Shifu, who was still bound and gagged near the battlefield. Gavial rushed over and removed the cloth around his mouth.
"You alright?" Gavial asked.
Shifu looked past him and his eyes widened. "Watch out!"
Gavial whipped around, only to be tackled by Rik-Zi. The two of them fought hard, and they were worthy opponents. Soon, though, Rik-Zi got the upper hand. But as he did, he noticed a large figure coming towards them.
"Retreat!" he barked an order as he knocked Gavial away. He and his comrades ran off into the thick jungle, Komodo grabbing Shifu along the way. When they had disappeared, the figure came up to the warriors and the bounty hunters. It turned out, he was a panda; a large, burly panda.
"Who are you?" Gavial asked.
"My name is Kappa." The panda said. "A kung fu warrior from the war." He glanced over at Xai. "I worked with Xai's father. I understand you're fighting Rik-Zi."
"Yeah." Tigress said. "He's taken Master Shifu."
Kappa growled. "I will join you. I know the land well, and I can help you bring Rik-Zi down." Gavial agreed and suggested that they should camp for the night.
After camp had been set up, Yukio walked over to Xai. The young clouded leopard was staring at Tigress, who was tending the fire.
Yukio shook his head. "You know, I'm starting to think this Tigress chick is starting to take over your mind."
Xai rolled his eyes. "It's just a crush. You know how we boys get when we see a pretty girl."
Yukio rolled his eyes this time. "Whatever." He was about to lie down to sleep when he felt a sharp pain in his leg, and he yelped.
"What's wrong?" Xai asked worriedly.
"Uh…nothing." Yukio lied. "Just a…..muscle cramp." Xai seemed suspicious, but the two of them went to sleep.
Meanwhile, a few miles away, Rik-Zi and his men were taking a break. Rik-Zi was refreshing himself in a pond, seeing how a salamander must stay hydrated. Saimang was meditating while standing on his tail. Tarantula was taking a nap in a tree. Pangolin was sharpening his claws on that same tree. Komodo kept a close eye on Shifu, who was sitting aside from them. His bonds had been removed because the circulation was being cut off in his hands, but he didn't dare move from the spot he was in, fearing that Komodo would kill him then and there, and he wouldn't be able to help his students. He took the opportunity to try and formulate a plan in his head, but every plan had a flaw. Nine out of ten times, that flaw was the giant lizard that never took his hateful eyes off the master.
"Why are you doing this?" Shifu demanded. "You and Tai Lung were my best students, and now you're trying to kill me."
Komodo snarled. "Don't play dumb, old man." But he noticed Shifu's dead serious look on his face. "When I ran away, I would've been dead had Rik-Zi not taken me in. He gave me shelter, food, and water. He taught me how to fight dirty. And you know what? It works." Komodo took a moment and studied his claws with a pleasant look on his face.
Shifu caught on. "You used your claws in battle?"
"And my venom, at times." Komodo added.
"That goes against-"
"I don't care if it goes against kung fu laws." Komodo snapped, glaring daggers at his old master. "I don't even understand why we aren't allowed to use stuff like that. They give us an advantage. Like, say…." Komodo suddenly thrust his claws to Shifu's throat. "…if I wanted to slit your throat."
Shifu swat the lizard's claws away. "Why do you hate me? You were a dedicated student."
"I've hated you ever since you adopted that little fur ball Tai Lung." Komodo hissed.
"What did you want me to do?" Shifu tried to explain. "Leave out to die in the cold? I wasn't about to abandon him just because you were jealous."
"Shut up!" Komodo suddenly slammed his fist into his master. Shifu's head slammed against a rock, and he was out cold in seconds. Komodo growled as he stood. He should've killed the old man then, but he knew Rik-Zi still needed him. After all, once Shifu's students and the bounty hunters were dealt with, he could do what he wanted with the old man.
Komodo turned to Rik-Zi. "Are we ready to go?"
Rik-Zi sighed and got out of the pond. "I suppose so. Let's head back to the base." The group headed off. Komodo grabbed the back of Shifu's robes and dragged him along.
Don't kill him yet. Komodo thought to himself. Just wait. My revenge can wait for a while longer. So, as he followed his leader and fellow comrades, Komodo started devising plans for his former master's execution.
Komodo smiled. It'll be a bloody one.
STAR STAR STAR STAR STAR
The next day, Jake led the group out of the jungle and out into some grass lands. "If I'm correct…"
"You always are." Cheetah said.
Jake sighed. "The Ruby Palace should be near here." The group kept walking.
Crane walked over next to Tigress. "What do you see in that Xai character?"
Tigress shrugged. "I don't know. He's kind, charitable, and kinda cute." Crane stared at her, awestruck. He shook his head and moved on to talk to Monkey. What Tigress didn't know is that Xai had been hiding in the tall grass. He was really happy that Tigress seemed to have the same feelings for him.
Yukio walked over and noticed Xai's dreamy look. He shook his head and hit the clouded leopard upside the head. "Ow!"
"Would you stop that?" Yukio whined. "The Ruby Palace is up there, now let's go." Yukio started walking, but screamed in pain and crumpled to the ground. Everyone rushed towards him.
"What's wrong?" Gavial demanded. Yukio showed him his wounded leg and found a bite mark in his calf. "What bit you?"
"Last I checked, that Tarantula girl." Yukio growled.
"There should be some medicine in the city." Kappa informed them. "We must hurry." The group hurried off, Yukio leaning on Xai for support. Once the group had reached the ruins of the Ruby Palace, they desperately started to search for the medicine, splitting up into groups. Jake stayed with Yukio as the fox rested. Xai and Kappa were in the remains of a hospital when Kappa found the cabinet that held the medicine. But, upon looking in, they found the shelf empty.
"They can't be out!" Xai cried.
"They're not." Kappa confirmed, inspecting the spot where the medicine used to be. "It's been recently taken, and I bet Rik-Zi's the one who took it."
"Let's get going." Xai said. "We have to catch up with them." Kappa nodded and they informed the group of what happened. As the group was leaving, Xai noticed Tigress standing before a destroyed house, holding something in her hand.
Xai walked over to her. "What's that?" he gestured towards the necklace in her hand.
Tigress sighed and put the necklace on. "It was my mother's. The Ruby Palace was my home." She sadly walked off, and Xai gave the ruins one last solemn glance before joining the others.
STAR STAR STAR STAR STAR
Back at Rik-Zi's base, which was none other than the snowy Sapphire Palace ruins, Shifu sat shivering in the shrine room. He was right below the statue of the Yeti, who held the Yeti Scroll in his paw. Shifu had his wrists in shackles attached to a nearby rock next to him. Apparently Rik-Zi had been using the palace as a base long enough for him to have a prisoner or two. Shifu had a bad feeling that any prisoner stuck here didn't last long.
Komodo came in, smirking down at the shivering master. "Would you relax?" he droned. "I hear Hell is warmer."
Shifu growled in his throat. "Why can't you come to your senses? Can't you see that Rik-Zi will just kill you once he's thru with you?"
"You mean like with Tai Lung?" Komodo hissed. "You always preferred him for the Dragon Scroll. You did give him his name. That's why I ran away; I knew that there was no place for me at the palace." Komodo turned away from Shifu, a dark smile on his lips. "But Tai Lung and Master Oogway were fools. They never understood the full power of the Dragon Scroll. If you gather it with the others scrolls of the eight kingdoms and their centerpiece, you will have the power to summon the beast within the scroll. Defeat the beast, you get its powers."
Shifu stood up, his fists clenched tightly at his sides. "You're crazy; nobody can control that much power."
"That's the reason why I'm glad Rik-Zi found me." Komodo explained. "He'll teach me to use and control that power. Then nobody, not even Tai Lung, will stop me."
"He's in prison." Shifu said flatly.
Komodo tensed up. "What….?"
"Oogway refused him the title of Dragon Warrior." Shifu explained. "He rampaged across the valley, was defeated by Master Oogway, and put in jail for the rest of his life." Komodo snarled. "So I guess this was for nothing."
Komodo lunged, aiming a punch. But Shifu managed to block, and the two warriors were locked in position.
"You're the one who drove me to power in the first place!" Komodo shouted. He pushed away and tried to punch him again. When Shifu blocked, Komodo took the opportunity to slash his claws across the master's shoulder. Shifu went to his knees, and Komodo slammed him into a rock. While Shifu was down, Komodo drew his knife. When the old master tried to stand, the large lizard slammed his hand down on his chest, pinning the old man to the floor. With Shifu down, Komodo raised his knife and thrust it down.
Suddenly, Rik-Zi charged in and tackled Komodo. He brutally hit the komodo dragon. "You idiot! I said not to kill him! He's the bait, remember? And I told you specifically that you could do what you wanted with him once his students and the bounty hunters were dead."
Komodo snarled and walked out of the room. Then, he ran away. I'll get my revenge. He thought. On both Shifu and Rik-Zi.
Meanwhile, Rik-Zi glared at Shifu, who was trying to stop his shoulder from bleeding too badly. "No wonder Komodo ran away from home; you kept getting him angry." Shifu only glared at him. Rik-Zi removed his shackles and led him to a pillar, keeping Komodo's knife to the master's throat. Rik-Zi tied Shifu's arms behind his back and tied the master to the pillar. "That should hold you….till your execution." Rik-Zi walked off, chuckling darkly.
Meanwhile, Xai and the others got to the Sapphire Palace in the mountains. No sooner had they all stepped foot into the sanctuary when Rik-Zi and his men attacked, minus Komodo.
Kappa took on Saimang, but the gibbon was no match for the panda warrior, and was quickly knocked out. Xai, Tigress, Cheetah, Jake, and Monkey fought Pangolin. Being like an armadillo, Pangolin could easily block their blows with his hard shell. But Jake used his powers to see what he'd do next, and informed Cheetah. The cheetah warrior managed to grab Pangolin and hold him down while Xai finished him off.
Yukio, Gavial, and Crane had been fighting Tarantula. The large spider proved a very strong opponent, and Crane had narrowly missed her fangs one too many times. Then, Yukio went to his knees, the poison spreading fast.
Tarantula saw this. She smirked as she revealed the medicine for Yukio. Before anyone could say a word, she smashed in on the ground, laughing about it. Yukio got angry. He was determined to finish this fight no matter what. So he took out his knife and charged. Tarantula was unprepared and was overwhelmed. With a fast swipe of his knife, Yukio reduced Tarantula into two halves of a spider in a puddle of blood.
The fox never had a chance to celebrate, because he went to his knees once more. Gavial rushed to him and caught the former thief before he fell. Yukio stared up at Gavial and smiled. "I hope I've done well."
"You have." Gavial promised. Yukio sighed and died peacefully in Gavial's hands.
Gavial was pretty shocked, but then his shock turned to rage as Rik-Zi attacked him. The gavial tackled the salamander into an indoor pond, snarling. But then, Rik-Zi showed his true powers. While standing in the pond, he gained ultimate strength. When Gavial tried to attack, Rik-Zi hit him away like he was a fly. Rik-Zi sent Gavial flying, and the bounty hunter landed right next to Shifu.
Rik-Zi assumed he had finally won, but then Kappa attacked him from behind, knocking the salamander out of the pool. The two warriors fought hard, and they seemed to match each other in strength. But Kappa was much stronger, and disabled Rik-Zi in one blow. Kappa was about to kill the salamander when Rik-Zi shouted, "Stop!"
Kappa froze, but he seemed suspicious.
"I surrender." Rik-Zi said. "You are a great warrior." Kappa growled, but stood up straight and started walking towards Shifu.
Xai had been watching the battle from the shadows he was watching on the wall. He thought Rik-Zi would go quietly, but then he saw the salamander grab Yukio's knife. Before he or anyone could shout a warning, Rik-Zi let out a cry of triumph. Xai watched with horror as Rik-Zi stabbed Kappa in the heart.
The panda went to his knees. His breathing was a mixture of snarling and gasping. Rik-Zi smiled. "And so, the great Kappa falls."
Kappa snarled at him. "Just wait; my son will save the Valley of Peace from the likes of you." Kappa then fell down, dead.
Rik-Zi sneered, but then he saw that he had made an avalanche with his scream, and he ran off, scooping up the Chimera Scroll. Gavial woke up, seeing the ceiling about to fall on him, Shifu, and Xai. He quickly got up and held up the ceiling with all his strength. While nobody was looking, Saimang had woken up and taken the Yeti Scroll from its shrine. Xai rushed to Gavial's side to help, but he would have none of it.
"Get the old man and get out of here!" Gavial ordered. Xai hesitated. "Now!"
Xai jumped and rushed to Master Shifu, freeing the master from his bonds with his claws. Xai saw the Dragon Scroll and grabbed that as he and Shifu made a run for it. Shifu looked back at Gavial. "Thanks."
"Don't mention it." Gavial smirked. Shifu nodded and followed Xai and the others out of the room. Once everyone was out, Gavial let the ceiling fall, burying him and the Tengu Scroll in the rubble.
As the group escaped, Cheetah, Jake, and Surnam got separated from the others, but somehow managed to find an exit. Xai, Tigress, Crane, Monkey, and Shifu saw Saimang with the Yeti Scroll.
"We can't let him get away!" Shifu cried.
"I'll get him!" Xai said. "You guys get out of here!" Xai started to run off, but Tigress trailed after him. Xai stopped and he and Tigress stood face to face. "If I don't make it out, I want you to know that I always had feelings for you."
Tigress smiled softly. She took off her mother's necklace and gave it to Xai. "Keep it." She said. "So you'll remember me. I've always had feelings for you, too." She quickly kissed him and then ran back to her friends and master. Xai seemed in a trance until he remembered what he was doing, and he gave a chase.
As Saimang ran, he hid behind a pillar and picked up a large rock. When Xai passed by, Saimang slammed the rock onto Xai's head, knocking the clouded leopard out cold. Saimang lunged to kill him, but then Komodo appeared, knocking Saimang away and hitting the gibbon into a hole. Then, Komodo dived into the hole to finish the job.
Xai woke up with his head hurting. He assumed it was because someone was screaming. Suddenly, the screams stopped, and Komodo appeared out of the hole with the Yeti Scroll in hand.
Xai didn't seem afraid. But he didn't attack either. "Who are you? Where am I? Who am I?"
Komodo smiled. "I am Komodo, your master. You are Saber. This used to be our home, but Shifu and his minions of the Jade Palace destroyed it and killed everyone. I managed to save you in time." Komodo turned. "Come, we shall avenge this place and kill the old man and his people."
"Saber" nodded and followed his "master", not knowing that he had left Tigress' necklace.
STAR STAR STAR STAR STAR
Cheetah, Jake, and Surnam waited for the others to catch up. But, when they saw the city crumble and nobody had joined them, they came to the sad conclusion that they were dead. So the three warriors moved on.
Shifu, Tigress, Monkey, and Crane watched the city reduce itself to rubble from the avalanche. Xai and his friends were nowhere to be seen or found.
"I don't see them, do you?" Monkey asked.
"No." Shifu sighed. "Nobody could've lived thru that." Tigress had tears stream down her face as the four of them started the journey back home.
Miles away, Saber and the newly recruited Chameleon and Guar ravage a village until it is reduced to a raging inferno. Saber walked up to his master Komodo and bowed to him.
Komodo smiled. "You're doing the right thing, Saber. Well done."
Saber/Xai suddenly woke up, wondering if he had a nightmare or something. After thinking for a long time, he finally said, "I remember now."
A/N: Trust me; this will all make sense in the final story.