Well shit, this took a while. I finally updated, yay for me! I don't really have anything else to say, but enjoy the chapter!
Disclaimer: I have no affiliation with DreamWorks and, therefore, do not own anything from Kung Fu Panda. I only own Hu, ask permission to use him.
Let's make our way up to the palace. Firecrackers blasted and everyone was having a wonderful time! Dragon kites were being flown, kids were running around with those things that spin in the wind, whatever they're called. Two bunnies ran by, laughing hysterically.
"I'm a kung fu warrior!" one of the kids yelled. The other one responded with, "Me too!" People were pouring in, eager to see the warriors fight and more people were climbing up as they walk in.
Let's now make our way to the bottom of the stairs. Down the long stairs that lead to the palace. Standing right at the base was Po and Hu, Po looking up in shock and slight horror, while Hu looked bored at seeing the set of stairs once more.
"Alright Hu, let's start the climb," Po said, pulling his noodle cart behind him. Hu stared at Po, struggling to pull the cart up the stairs. He's never going to make it up with that cart, Hu noticed. He walked up to Po, thinking of some lie to get out of helping him.
"Listen Po," Hu began nervously, "I'm gonna go up and… uh… save us a seat!" Nailed it!
"But, what about me? I'm never gonna make it up these stairs by myself," Po complained.
"Don't worry, I'll save a spot for us. I know how much getting up there means to you," Hu responded, smiling. On the inside, he was feeling guilty. Sorry bro, this isn't just for your own good, but for the good of China as well.
As Hu began to walk up the steps, he looked back and smiled. "Don't leave the noodle cart, you know what dad will say." He turned back and started running up the steps, passing pigs, rabbits and ducks alike. Po stood, slightly jealous that his brother could run up the steps so quickly without breaking down. Turning back to the cart, he began working on pulling the cart up again.
Now, let's fast forward. Several hours have passed and Po was continuing to climb, only he was literally climbing them, on his hands and knees, dragging the cart behind him. Breathing heavily, he struggled to even speak his thoughts. "Come on… Come on, ya… Almost there." Po turned on his back to rest and he caught something at the bottom of his vision. "What?" he said, and looked down to see the floor.
Po only made it up seven steps.
He could not be more disappointed. "No! OH NO!"
A pair of pigs ran past, stopping to talk to him for a few seconds.
"Sorry Po," one of the pigs said. "We'll bring you back a souvenir," the other one told him apologetically, before the both of them began running up again.
Po watches them, almost accepting his defeat. Almost.
With a newfound determination, Po spoke to himself, "No. I'll bring me back a souvenir." Throwing his hat and apron off, he looked up and took off up the stairs, eager to see his kung fu legends fight.
Oogway and Shifu reached the bottom of the steps, lined with the palace geese. They observed the courtyard filled with villagers around them, all of them bustling with excitement.
"It is a historic day, isn't it Master Oogway?" Shifu talked to his mentor, excited for this moment.
"Yes," Oogway responded, "And one I feared that I would not live to see. Are your students ready?"
Shifu bowed. "Yes, Master Oogway."
Oogway smiled at the red panda. "Now know this, old friend. Whomever I choose will not only bring peace to the Valley, but also to you."
Shifu looked back in shock. He didn't understand his master's words and right now, he couldn't ask what he meant.
Looking back out, he saw something on his left, in the shadows of the Palace. It was the shadowy outline of a muscular figure, leaning against a wall. He did not know who it was, but seeing the way his eyes searched around him, Shifu was suspicious.
Getting one of the geese, Shifu whispered to him, "Get some of the stronger pigs and tell them to keep an eye out on the figure standing there and detain him if any sudden movements are made. I will not have anything ruin this event!" The goose bowed, "Yes Master Shifu" and walked to some of the pigs.
Shifu walked back to Oogway, just as another pig called out to the audience, "Let the tournament begin!" The roars of the crowd were incredible.
Hu stood with his back against the wall, scanning everywhere for a certain panda. The stairs will be a challenge for him, he's not the most athletic person in the world, Hu thought. Nothing seemed to radiate "panda" around him and the tournament was set to start. "Let the tournament begin!" he heard and the crowd cheered with approval. Looking out of the gates, he saw a black paw grab at the flat ground. Hu tensed. Impossible, he thought in shock. The paw pulled up the rest of the body with him, and there, lying on his back, was Po, cheering at himself for making it up. No, he can't enter, Hu thought, his eyes narrowing. Holding up a paw, he outstretched his arm at the doors, and as if being pushed, the doors began to close without anyone physically pushing the door closed. Po stood up, his face in shock, and began running to the closing doors. Hu willed the large doors to close faster, hoping to stop the panda from entering. The doors closed, without a panda slipping through it.
Hu smiled, Perfect.
Po's paw grasped flat ground. Gasping, he pulled himself up over the final stair. As he flipped over, he lied on his back, gasping for air. "Yeah!" Po said while punching the air, "Ha ha!"
Po's victory was shortly lived, however, as the doors began to close. "Oh no. No no no! Wait! I'm coming!" he screamed at whoever was closing the doors. As he got up and ran, the doors seemed to close faster. He was almost there and with a final push, he sprinted at the door.
The doors close and hit him in the face. "Owww," he says, before falling to the floor. The crowd cheers. On the ground, Po heard a loud voice that he would recognize anywhere, Master Shifu.
"Citizens of the Valley of Peace!" Shifu began, causing Po to scramble up and try to see his heroes, "It is my honor to present to you… Tigress! Viper! Crane! Monkey! Mantis! The Furious Five!"
Po laughed excitedly and suddenly, in mid air, five figures descended from the sky. Guess who? As soon as they all landed, Crane, the only avian member blew a huge gust of wind which knocked the window closed, and knocked Po off in the process.
"Warriors prepare!" Shifu called out, to which Crane stood in the center of the ring. Po scrambled over to the door, where there was coincidentally a hole to look through. Po looked through the hole and saw a dragon head that opened it's mouth to attack the bird in the center. Po couldn't stare at anything else. "Woah! The Thousand Tongues of Fire!"
Po's excitement, once again was short lived. A pig stood up right in Po's view of the action. "Woah, look at that!" the pig said.
Po couldn't have been more annoyed. "HEY! Get out of the way!" Of course, the person didn't move, why would he?
Po noticed that Crane was overhead and rockets flew past the bird. As Po backed up, he watched excitedly as Crane dodged rocket after rocket, before they all targeted him and advanced.
Po laughed excitedly, but in the meantime, he wasn't looking where he was going. And he was right by the edge of the stairs.
Po fell backwards down a few steps as the rockets burst into a red flame. Po climbed back up the steps and looked at the sky, awaiting the action that was long gone. Dejected, Po's head hit the floor. It's time that he got in.
Now, Po tried everything to get into the stadium. He tried to launch himself in from a bamboo tree (he was to heavy to get launched and when he got off, the tree slapped him twice), he tried to pole vault (was launched straight into a wall), he even tried to punch the door (what did he think would happen when he tried to do that?) and none of the tactics worked. Po, sensing defeat, gave up slightly and sat outside of the arena on the palace steps. The crowd never stopped cheering the whole way through. Shifu's voice cut through the entire stadium. "And finally, Master Tigress!"
Po sat up, straight as a board. He needed to get in to see his favorite member of the Five.
He ran over to a tree and began to pull it down with a rope. "Believe me citizens, you have not seen anything yet," Shifu shouted. Po was really annoyed now. "I KNOW!" he screamed.
As Shifu announced what Tigress will be doing, Po launched himself into the air, catching a glimpse of Tigress. "YEAH!" he screamed, before being slammed into part of the palace, knocking him out for a few seconds. Once he comes to, he hears Shifu say, "Citizens of the Valley of Peace, Master Oogway will now choose, the Dragon Warrior!"
"Huh?" Po begins, "Oh no! Wait!" Po looks down at where he is sitting. He's in the middle of a tent filled with fireworks. Po smiled, an idea on the brain.
A few moments later, Po had armed a chair with a surprisingly large amount of fireworks, all tied together at the fuse. Practically jumping onto the chair, Po gets a match from the stand and lights the chair.
"Po!?" a voice rings out. Po looks over and sees his father, holding his apron and hat. His father looks at him in shock. "WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!"
As the duck ran over to Po and began to try to blow out the fuses, Po's spoke to him, "What does it look like I'm doing? Stop, stop!" and pushed his father away. "I'm going to see the Dragon Warrior!"
"But I don't understand!" Po's father almost cried, "You finally had the noodle dream!"
Po had an uneasy look on his face. "I lied, dad. I don't dream about noodles."
Po looked down at the almost burnt out fuse, not noticing his father's shocked glance. Only a few seconds left.
"I LOVE KUNG FUUUUUUUUUUUUU!" Po shouted while closing his eyes expecting liftoff. A liftoff that never came. Po looked down and saw that the fireworks never ignited. Leaning over to get a better look, Po fell forward onto his face. Po looked away, his dream of seeing the event was destroyed. His bottom lip began to quiver slightly. Po's father picked up the apron.
"Come on son, let's get back to work," he said.
Po could only agree. "Okay." Po began to push himself up to get the apron and that's when all hell began to break loose.
Turns out that the rockets weren't duds. They ignited quickly and Po was launched headfirst into the wall. After flying around face first slightly, Po was soon launched upwards into the sky, screaming. Po's father suddenly screamed out "PO! Come back!"
But Po couldn't come back. He was sky high on his tiny chair and the rockets exploded in the air. Po's chair dissolved into ash and soon, the giant panda was like a comet hurtling towards the Earth screaming. Before impact on the ground he could make out a familiar scream saying "NOOOO!" and then the world went black.
A few moments earlier
Hu stood against the same wall that he was left near for hours. Looking at each of the masters fight something was surprisingly entertaining for himself and the last one was up now. Master Tigress.
I forgot that there was another tiger in the Valley. Then again, I really shouldn't have since this is Po's favorite member of the Five, the white tiger thought. As Tigress began to set up in the ring, he heard someone shout "YEAH!" Looking over to his left he saw a panda being launched across the sky of the palace.
So, he did not give up on trying to get in. I'm honestly impressed, Hu thought, before he began to get nervous. He could get in.
The moment Hu heard that Oogway would be choosing the Dragon Warrior, he almost died of joy. Po could not make it in if the warrior is chosen quickly. Looking up at the stair, he saw that Oogway began to descend the staircase. If I may add, very very slowly.
Hu was shaking in both anticipation and impatience. Move faster you old geezer, Hu thought rudely. Po could be trying to get in right now. Hu had no choice, but to take matters into his own hands and make sure the panda would not enter. He pushed himself away from the spot on the wall before pushing his way through the crowd. I must get out there! I must stop Po! the tiger's thoughts echoed.
However, karma's a bitch and karma was going to unleash its wrath on Hu.
In sync with the events above
Several pigs were watching the muscular figure in the shadows, waiting for him to move. Master Shifu's orders were clear, if any sudden movements are made, detain the stranger. As they watched, the stranger moved forward with a purpose, pushing through a crowd of people. The pigs looked at each other once before moving towards the figure, beginning their restraint.
Back with Hu
Hu felt someone push him down to the ground. He flipped over onto his back and saw four pigs standing over him. They were wearing fancy garments compared to the normal villagers and they were each surrounding him. They seemed to be wanting either money or a fight. Hu stood back up before calculating his next move. Hu has dealt with a bandit or two trying to rob him, but multiple was a different story. Time to see what you are made of.
Hu pushed one over before turning back to the other three. They began to jump onto him, trying to bring him down. Hu was strong, but the shock from having thieves try to rob him in a ceremony with some of the greatest kung fu masters was overwhelming him. Suddenly, a burst of color exploded above him and everyone, including the pigs and Hu looked up at it. The crowd "Oh'd" and "Ah'd" and only Hu seemed to notice the black and white object that was speeding towards the ground.
"NOOOO!" Hu screamed, before the object smashed into the center of the courtyard.
Back to Po
Po slowly came to, looking around him. He saw several animals around him, some with concerned expressions, one in particular (guess who) in a battle stance.
"What's going on? Where… Uh?" Po got out, turning around on the floor until he sees a long nail pointing in his direction which was owned by a tortoise.
"What are you pointing…" Po began before his eyes shot wide open and he flushed with embarrassment.
"Oh, okay, sorry. I just wanted to see who the Dragon Warrior was," Po stammered uncomfortably.
"How interesting," Oogway said.
Tigress, who was behind Po, asked the old master, "Master, are you pointing at… me?"
Tigress was eager to think that she was the Dragon Warrior, she has been training her whole life for this moment. The universe, however, had different plans.
"Him."
Po looked at Oogway. "Who…?" he began, before shifting over sideways to avoid the finger, which just followed him.
"You," the tortoise said.
"Me?" Po responded. Po did not expect the sentence that came out of Oogway's mouth.
"The universe has brought us the Dragon Warrior!"
Almost everyone was shocked.
"What?" Po began. "What?" asked the Five, shocked. "What?" Shifu said angrily. "What?" said Po's father who just entered the arena. "No…" whispered Hu, from where he stood with the pigs still hanging onto him. The pig standing by Shifu hit a gong. All hell officially broke loose, in a way that was not expected.
The crowd cheered! Everyone was celebrating! The Dragon Warrior was chosen! Time to release the confetti! Party time! Break out the alcoho- oh wait, now's not the time.
A group of geese rushed by Shifu, carrying a palanquin for the Dragon Warrior.
Shifu was infuriated. "Stop! Wait! Who told you to-" he stammered, but he was ignored.
Meanwhile, Po stood there, not moving an inch, mouth ajar. The palanquin was lowered next to Po and he still stood there. The crowd, however, just pushed him onto the palanquin and the geese, with tremendous effort, lifted the form of transport and began to carry Po away.
The Five, not wanting to be disrespectful to their masters, bowed to the panda without actually meaning it. All of them were disappointed and pissed, Tigress more than the others.
Hu stood there, with the four pigs still on him, shocked and appalled at the sight in front of him. He just stood there, trying to process what just happened. The pigs soon detached themselves from the tiger and said, "Let's follow them! We can get up close to the Dragon Warrior!" Hu stepped back into the shadows, still thinking about what has happened.
Shifu pushed his way over to Oogway, trying to explain what happened.
"Master Oogway, wait! That flabby panda can't possibly be the answer to our problem. You were about to point at Tigress. That thing fell in front of her. That was just an accident!" he exclaimed, still angry about the events that have just occurred.
Oogway only turned to his pupil and smiled, before saying, "There are no accidents."
CRASH
The two masters looked over towards the palanquin to see Po smashed through the bottom of it. Shifu only gestured at the palanquin while Oogway smiled. The stronger pigs that tried to restrain Hu took to the palanquin and began to carry it up the steps to the top.
Shifu stood there watching it all, his eye twitching in annoyance. The Five walked back up to the red panda and it was Tigress who spoke up, "Forgive us, Master. We have failed you," while bowing respectfully. Shifu replayed the events in his head and came to a decision.
"No, if the panda has not quit by morning, then I will have failed you," he replied, determined to see the panda gone. As he turned back around, his eye caught something once more. It was that muscular figure once more, standing in the shadows and he appeared to be staring at him, nothing or nobody else. Even from a distance, he could see the blood red eyes pierce him. As Shifu was about to walk over, he heard something. You have no idea what your master just did, he heard. Looking around him, he saw that nobody was speaking to him, looking back, he saw the shadowy figure's eyes narrow. Destruction will come, everything will slow and my brother will die. The figure took a small step out of the shadows and Shifu could finally see that the figure was a white tiger. Impossible, Shifu thought. Another tiger?
The tiger just kept staring at him. Don't be surprised if you find me in your halls tonight.
Suddenly, Tigress walked in front of Shifu, obstructing his vision of the white tiger. Once she moved, the tiger was gone.
Shifu continued to stare for a few seconds, before turning back to the palace. The tiger can wait, Shifu thought.
I have bigger problems to deal with.
So how was it? I would love to hear your thoughts, feel free to review! Have a fantastic day/night/any configuration of time you prefer!
Yours Truly,
TheAdaptableWriter