Many years earlier…

"Get the guards outside of the castle and into the villages. They could make it even to the Kian by sundown if you hurry."

The young commander protested, "But sir, that would leave the palace walls unprotected and-"

Bai Jian, leader of the Southern Hu Clan, whipped around, "DO NOT QUESTION MY ORDERS, Da. I want the men ready to move in an hour. The Xiong have already crossed our borders as we speak. I will NOT have my people become a man slaughter for them."

Da gulped, his tail twitching nervously, "Y-yes sir….but what about your family and the…"

"I have already made the necessary arrangements. If we can make it to the shelter of the Northern Clan borders, we should be fine. Meet us in three days at the place we discussed earlier. Now MOVE."

Sighing, the tiger warrior bowed, "Yes, my lord." Da exited the room and quickly ran into the soldiers' barracks, following out his leader's orders. If the Xiong wanted a blood bath, then that is what the murderous leopards were going to get.

Bai Jian turned to his window and looked out at the empty feline village. The dwellers of the Huang Valley had already evacuated. All that was left were a few abandoned clay pots and the occasional wind chime. This had been his childhood home. It was where he grew up, trained, and was elected the leader of Hu Clan. In a few hours, the Xiong clan would be here and frantically search for the tigers, looking for captives and innocent blood. But they would only find empty houses, with empty chairs and empty tables.

Bai Jian's ears slightly moved as he heard a gentle voice.

"There you are, Warrior. I was afraid you'd gone to another world and left me."

He turned from the window and his eyes fell upon a graceful figure. Lianghu. She was holding a bundle that appeared to be a wad of spare clothes for the journey.

"Lianghu? You were supposed to leave the village hours ago."

The female tiger smiled and shook her head, "I couldn't leave you ALL alone. Someone has to protect you."

"I'm not in a mood for games or jokes," Bia Jian answered. "This is serious. The Xiong could be here any minute and you're still here. What about Lei Huang, is she alright?"

Lianghu's head nodded, "Yes. See?" She drew back a cloth from the bundle she was holding, revealing a small orange striped head. "She's fine." Bai Jian glared at Lianghu.

"You kept our daughter here too?"

"It was either that or let a stranger take her to the borders…we should get going…The Northern Clan will be expecting us and we can't keep them waiting."

Bai Jian didn't answer. Lianghu sighed and walked over to him, "Hey," she placed a hand on his arm, "We'll be alright. You-"

A loud crash coming from the courtyard interrupted her. The leader of the clan's eyes went from gentle to alert. "They're here. We need to get moving, NOW." Without allowing her to respond, Bai Jian grabbed Lianghu's arm and pulled her into the next room, quickly running down the hallway and out the back entrance to the castle. Lianghu held the small bundled tiger named Lei Huang close to her. They ran out of the palace and into the southern courtyard.

Lianghu looked around frantically, "Where's Da, I thought he was supposed to be waiting for us!"

Bai Jian spoke, "Yeah well change of plans. He took the rest of the soldiers to the surrounding villages." Once again, the tiger took Lianghu's arm and quickly ran to the wall surrounding the fortress. He spotted a cart and climbed up on it. The yells and bangs from the inside of the castle told him that the Xiong weren't finding what they were looking for. Bai Jian had it, and he wasn't about to give up his daughter to those blood stained hands.

"You need a boost?" He asked.

Lianghu rolled her eyes, "No. I'm perfectly capable of climbing over a wall with my child in my arms." With that, she proceeded to reach for the top of the wall, only to find that her hand couldn't reach it. Sighing, she turned to Bai Jian, "Yeah…I need a boost."

He smirked and lifting her up, allowing her to climb over and jump down on the other side. The tigeress was soon followed by Bai Jian. Lianghu turned to him, "Where do we go to now?"

Bai Jian sighed and looked at his small daughter in her arms. "We can't let the Xiong find us with Lei Huang. If they capture us and we have her…we need to find a place where they wouldn't think to look"

Lianghu raised an eyebrow, "Like where?

His lips gently touched Lei Huang's forehead, "…you know exactly where we have to go."