Here's chapter four. Hope you like it.

As you know, I don't own Kung Fu Panda or it's characters. Only my OCs. Now, Enjoy.


"Al...Al wake up." Mr. Ping shouted. "Oh dear, he's blacked out." he concluded after some time.

Mr. Ping started pacing back and forth, thinking what to do.

"I can't drag him, he's too heavy, and I can't leave him here, I have to make sure those wounds are treated." Mr. Ping said to himself. He suddenly stopped and facepalmed as realization hit him, he could do something for the mean time.

Ping went to his cart and rummaged it to find something to cover Al's wound with or at least tie his leg to reduce any bleeding. A sigh came from him when he found nothing useful. His attention was drawn to a pack with two straps and little things that you could pull. Ping was intrigued by this sort of bag. He had never seen anything like it. 'It must be Al's. I wonder where he got it from. Wait! He might have something useful in there.' Mr. ping was thinking.

Although he discouraged the act of snooping in other people's belongings he had no other option, so he tried to open it by pulling the zipper and once he managed to open it, he began taking the useless items out one by one until his eyes landed on a small white box with a red cross on the outside.

"Oh, what's this?" he spoke his thoughts. His feathery fingers managed to open the box and his features lightened up. He had found what he was looking for. Inside the box there were bottles full of some sort of liquid he didn't recognize and there were bandage wraps and a pack of fluffy thingies that looked like little clouds. He walked over to the unconscious Al and set the box next to his leg. The pants that Al was wearing were also strange to Mr. Ping, but he did not waste any time contemplating on it. Al's left pant leg was drenched in blood from the area of the wound, down.

Mr. Ping stood still. He had the items and everything, but he didn't know how to cover Al's wound properly. His head went into his hands as he groaned.

"I should have taken healing lessons from Huiliang." he stated solemnly. Huiliang, Mr. Ping's neighbor and local healer had offered Ping a lesson on how to treat wounds and the like when Po was younger, but Ping refused because he was too busy running the restaurant and taking care of Po.

"Mr. Ping!"

Ping turned around at the call of his name. His eyes quickly identified Tigress, one of the Kung Fu masters, running towards him.

"Oh thank goodness!" Mr. Ping exclaimed at the sight of the Master of tiger style.

Tigress reached the aged goose and was perplexed seeing Mr. Ping in the middle of what looked like a recent skirmish, with an unconscious wolf and dog nearby. The wolf looked like he wasn't waking up any time soon but the dog looked...absolutely thrashed. Tigress looked at the goose.

"Mr. Ping, what happened here, did you do this?" Tigress asked as she gestured to the knocked out wolf then to the blacked out Al.

Despite the situation, Mr. Ping was ready to burst out laughing but chuckled instead.

"Pfft. Me? Hahaha, heavens no." Ping replied.

"Then what happened, do you know?" Tigress asked. She wanted answers, she had heard the same sound she heard last night coming from these parts.

That question clicked Mr. Ping's mind back to the situation at hand.

"Ok, that one is a bandit..." Mr ping pointed at the wolf. "...that one is not." he now pointed at Al. "Now help me get the one that is not a bandit into the wagon. He needs to get medical attention, now."

Tigress looked at the one that was not a bandit and noticed he had blood on his pant leg. She nodded to Mr. Ping and walked over to Al. To Tigress, finding the suspicious man from last night was top priority. But for her, saving a life was an even greater priority than any other. Little did she know, that the one she was looking for was closer than she thought.

Tigress gently lifted the teenager over her shoulder, walked over to the wagon and set him down with care, not wanting to worsen whatever injury he had.

"What was this boy doing out here?" Tigress asked, curiosity eating away at her.

"I'll explain when we get to the restaurant." Mr. Ping answered.

Tigress raised a brow.

"To the restaurant? Aren't we taking him to the healers?"

Mr. Ping shook his head no.

"The healer's ward is probably full of patients that are catching a sickness that's going around. In the restaurant we'll have more space and I can call over Huiliang if he's not busy." he explained.

"And if he's busy?" Tigress asked.

"Tigress!"

Tigress turned around to see Po and the rest of the Furious Five running towards her.

Mr. Ping focused his attention to Viper who was slithering closer.

"I do believe Master Viper has healing knowledge and would not hesitate to help." Ping answered with a smile.

Po was surprised to see his dad out here and by an unconscious wolf nonetheless.

"Dad? What are you doing out here, and what happened?" Po asked as he looked around and took in the scene. "Did you do that?" Po gestured to the two unconscious animals.

Ping laughed lightly. He couldn't understand why everyone believed that he had knocked out a wolf and a dog that were both five or six times bigger than himself.

"No son, I'll explain when we get this fellow to the restaurant and the bandits to jail." Ping replied.

"Bandits? There's more than one?" Viper asked.

Mr. Ping nodded.

"Yep, two. The other wolf is supposedly tied up to a tree, back there." Ping gestured in the direction he came from.

"Monkey, Mantis, go and check to see if he's still there. If you find him bring the both of them to the Valley's local prison until further notice." Tigress ordered.

Monkey and Mantis both nodded and went to find the other bandit.

"Crane go ahead and deliver this bandit to the prison." Tigress added. Crane nodded.

Viper noticed the blood on Al and spoke up.

"What about that one? He looks wounded." Viper pointed with her tail.

"He is, that's why I need you to come with us to the restaurant, in case the healers are busy with other patients."

Viper nodded. Mr. Ping turned to Po.

"Po I need you to see if Huiliang is busy. If he's not, bring him to the restaurant."

"Sure thing dad." Po replied and took off.

Viper slithered onto the wagon to take a look at the boy's wounds.

"Let's go." Tigress said.

"Wait!" Mr. Ping exclaimed. He ran back to the tree Al was sitting against and picked up the white box that he took out of Al's bag. He closed it and put it in the wagon.

"What is that?" Tigress asked while eyeing the box.

"No idea. But it has some healing supplies." Ping replied.

Tigress nodded and began pulling the wagon. Meanwhile, Viper was checking Al's wounds. She gasped when she took note of the long puncture he had in his thigh.

"Mr. Ping!" Viper called with urgency in her voice. Ping turned to look at her. "were you there when the boy received a wound to the leg?" Ping nodded and winced when he remembered seeing the entire blade wedge itself into his leg. "How long ago was this?" She kept asking.

"Er...about twenty to thirty minutes ago." Mr. Ping replied.

Vipers eyes widened and without thinking twice she wrapped her body a little bit above the cut to stop the bleeding. She heard a weak grunt and noticed a strange scent coming from the wound. Her tongue flicked out over it and she identified the cause of it.

"Poison!"

"What?" Tigress asked.

"Poison! The knife had poison also." Viper clarified.

Tigress let out a growl.

"What is it with bandits and poisons?"

"The good news is that it wasn't concentrated, its not lethal. But, it will leave side effects." Viper explained.

"Hmm. That's probably why he blacked out so fast." Mr. Ping contemplated.

"Whatever the case, we still need to get him there quickly." Tigress said as she continued hauling the wagon.

After a few more minutes, the three of them reached the village streets. The villagers that were walking about in the streets kept glancing towards the Kung Fu masters and the semi-unconscious Al. They continued walking with a hurried pace until they reached Mr. Ping's Noodle shop.

The locale was empty. Since Mr. Ping had gone to get some more produce for his famous Secret Ingredient Soup, he remorsefully had to close he shop for meanwhile until he returned. He wanted to leave Po in charge of it until he returned, but being the Dragon Warrior, Po had a lot of responsibilities.

Before they could enter, Po appeared from around a corner and came over to inform them the news.

"Bad news guys. Huiliang can't come because he's taking care of a couple of patients that need urgent attention."

Tigress turned to Viper and nodded to her.

"Looks like its up to you. If there's anything you need, tell us." she said.

Viper nodded and looked around to find a place to put Al on.

"Ok first thing, I need a table to place him on it."

"There's a table to the back that's not being used. Po can you-"

"Already on it dad!" Po said while already dashing through the kitchen.

While she was waiting for Po to return, Tigress looked the dog that was in the wagon over. He still seemed to be out. That's what she thought until she detected the slightest movements that Al's arm made.

"Looks like he's coming out of it." Viper said. "The poison must still be affecting him. I was able to smell derivatives from the Deadly Nightshade plant. That's what must have caused him to black out."

"Deadly nightshade?" Tigress asked. She had never heard of such a plant before. Viper detected her confusion and proceeded to explain.

"The Deadly Nightshade is one of the most poisonous plants around. Ingestion of one of its fruits, stem or root can cause imminent death in an adult."

"And you know this...how?" Tigress asked. Viper just smiled.

"I bought a scroll about different plants of China and other countries last month." Viper answered. "It also mentioned that the Deadly Nightshade can cause hallucinations, dizziness, unconsciousness, blurry vision and of course, death."

"Are there any antidotes for it?" Tigress asked, somewhat worried for the kid.

"Well, not really. The scroll never mentioned any antidotes for it, but it did say that if a small amount of poison was ingested, it would still cause effects, then wear out within days or weeks depending on the quantity of the poison." Viper made clear.

Tigress nodded that she understood and turned to see Po coming out with a table held over his head. He set it down and nodded to Tigress.

Tigress then walked over to Al and picked him up bridal style and went over to the table to put him down. Once he was on it, Viper started giving commands to each of them to bring what was needed.

"Po, bring me a damp cloth with warm water to clean this wound."

Po nodded and went in the kitchen, filled a small pot full of water and set it on the fire for a few minutes.

"Tigress, bring some gauze from the infirmary."

"Alright." Tigress replied and dashed out the restaurant. She met Mantis, Monkey and Crane outside and told them everyone else was inside and that she was going to get some gauze from the infirmary that was at the other end of the village.

Crane, Mantis and Monkey entered into the restaurant and saw the guy from earlier on a table, being taken care of. They just stood to the side and watched silently.

Po returned with the soaked cloth in a bowl and placed it beside Al's injured leg. Viper nodded in thanks.

"Mr. Ping, I need a knife to cut his pants so I can attend the wound." she requested.

Instead of going into the kitchen to get a knife, Mr. Ping headed over to the wagon and searched Al's backpack. He took out the survival knife that he saw the last time and he brought the white and red box he had taken out in the forest. Ping set the supplies on the table and stood back, giving Viper space to work.

Viper was confused as to why he brought the strange white box with a red cross on it.

"What is this Mr. Ping?" she inquired as she pointed to the box.

"It's a box with healing supplies inside of it. I was going to use it when we were in the forest but i didn't know how." Ping responded. He walked back to the box and opened it, revealing the bandages, the bottle and the fluffy cloud thingies.

Viper nodded and focused on what she was going to do. She had to cut his pants without further injuring him. This task is sort of difficult when you don't have any hands, so, she decided to ask for some help.

"Po can you cut his pant leg for me?"

Po hesitated. He certainly did not want to do something wrong and end up further hurting the boy.

"Um...I think it's better if my dad does it. He has far better skills with a knife than I do." Po said nervously.

Viper turned to Mr. Ping and he nodded, took the knife and in three moves of the wrist he managed to cut the part of the pants that was above the wound to the part just below it, making a big enough hole in the fabric to allow Viper to care for the wound. His white fur that he had on his leg was stained red from the blood.

"See. I told you!" Po declared.

"Thank you Mr. Ping." Viper said gratefully.

"No problem." Ping replied.

Viper then began cleaning around the cut with the cloth. She heard a quiet mumble from the boy, but he still had his eyes closed.

Al was in complete darkness. He could feel something warm on his leg. He tried to open his eyes but his eye lids weren't responding. He tried to talk but only a mumble came out. 'Where am I? Why does my whole body feel numb? What happened?' Al questioned in his mind. He heard a voice but it sounded far away.

"Someone get some ointment to put on his face." It was a feminine voice he heard.

'Wha-? Ointment? Face? What is going on!?' Al screamed in his mind. 'Come on, move! Move something!'

"He'll soon be conscious." Viper announced. "His fingers are twitching."

"Um, Viper what's that?" Crane asked as he pointed to the bottle in the white box with his wing.

Viper and everyone else that was there looked at the object. She lifted it up with her tail to examine it. The bottle was made out of some unknown material, unlike the ceramic jars they used. There was a transparent liquid shaking about inside of it.

"I don't know. Inside it looks like it has water." She guessed.

"Maybe it's some kind of antidote." Po piped in. "I think you should put it to the wound. It was inside the same box as the other healing supplies, so maybe that helps cure injuries." He reasoned.

Viper had to admit Po had a point. As she pondered whether to apply the liquid or not, Tigress came in with the requested item in her hand.

"I've got the gauze." Tigress said. Her eyes focused on the bottle Viper was sustaining. "What is that?" she asked as she approached her comrade.

"Oh, Tigress." Viper noticed her and answered her question. "I think it's some kind of healing liquid."

"Where did you get it?" Tigress wondered.

"It was inside that box." Crane answered for Viper and pointed towards the box.

"And that box was inside that weird bag." Po added and pointed to Al's backpack that was in the wagon.

Tigress' head moved to look at the box then the bag, then she turned her head back to the table that Al was on. Something then clicked in her head and she turned her head again back to where the guy's bag was. The more she looked at it the more familiar it became.

'Where have I seen that bag before?' Tigress asked herself. She was so deep in her thoughts that she did not hear Viper calling her. Tigress snapped out of her thoughts when she felt a paw on her shoulder. Her head spun to see Po in front of her.

"Are you okay Tigress? We lost you for a second there." Po observed Tigress closely.

"Yeah, I'm okay. I was just thinking." she replied.

Po nodded.

"Alright. Viper was telling you to be ready with the gauze. She'll need it after she applies the liquid." Po explained. Tigress nodded.

Viper was trying to figure out how to open the bottle. After a few minutes she managed to open it by twisting the top off. She decided to pour it on the wound instead of putting it on the bloodied cloth. Viper tilted the bottle until a stream of the liquid came out the opening.

As soon as the substance made contact with the ruptured skin, Al's eyes shot open and dilated.

"GAAAAAAH!" He sat up abruptly an clutched his wounded leg. "OOOOHH! THAT BURNS! IT BUUUURNS! MAKE IT STOP! OWOWOWOWOWOWOW!" Al yelled and closed his eyes.

Everyone in the restaurant was shocked and worried at Al's reaction. Except Tigress, she was more shocked at the eye color that he had.

'Sky blue irises. The same color I saw from the suspicious individual from last night. Could it be him?' Tigress' mind was racing.

Meanwhile, Al was still clutching his leg with his eyes shut, wishing for the stinging to go away. When the burning feeling died down, he opened his eyes and the first thing he saw was a green snake on his leg looking back at him. His first instinct was to shake it off and run like hell. But he remembered, he was in a place where animals could talk.

"Uh, Hello?" Al said slowly.

All the masters and Mr. Ping relaxed when they saw that nothing serious had happened, but still confused as to what caused him to yell.

"Hello." Viper replied. Al released a breath that he was holding. For a second he though that the snake was really going to attack him.

"Who are you and what are you doing on my leg?" Al asked.

"I am Viper, Kung Fu master of viper style. I was treating your wounds."

Al looked at his leg and he saw the gash the wolf had made with the knife.

"Oh. Well, thanks." Al did not know what else to say. He was wondering though, if this was one the 'masters' Mr. Ping told him about.

Tigress was keeping an eye on him. He seemed oblivious to her presence. If this was indeed the same person she had chased last night, he would show some sign of recognition when he saw her. That's what she was looking for.

"I'm going to wrap up your injury. Do you mind?" Viper asked him.

"Er...no, I don't mind. Thank you."

Viper nodded and turned to Tigress.

"Hand me the gauze please." Tigress nodded and walked forward, her gaze never leaving Al.

Al raised his head and started looking around. He noticed a variety of animals, a Panda, a Monkey, a Crane, a grasshopper. Al paused and did a double take. After getting a better view, he noticed it was not a grasshopper, but a Praying Mantis. All except the mantis and snake were standing on two legs. When he caught sight of a very familiar orange, black and white tiger he unwillingly tensed and his eyes shot wide open.

'It's him! It has to be.' Tigress asserted in her mind when she saw his reaction. Al avoided eye contact to don't make her suspicious of him. She was about to question him, but Mr. Ping beat her to it.

"How are you doing Al?" Ping asked.

Al turned to face the goose that was to his right. He could notice the deeply concerned expression on his face and voice.

"Alright, I guess. I do feel a little dizzy though."

"That's probably the effects of the poison." Mr. Ping talked a little low.

Al heard and he immediately wanted to know more.

"Poison? What poison?"

Viper decided to take the conversation on from here.

"The knife that made this cut had poison on it." she said as she pointed to Al's leg with her tail. "The poison appears to be from the Deadly Nightshade."

"Never heard of it." Al cut in.

"It's a plant, a very poisonous plant. Luckily for you, the amount that was applied to the knife was an extremely small portion. That's what caused you to become unconscious and it's making you feel dizzy. There will be a few more effects until the poison fully leaves your body." Viper ended her explanation.

Al nodded at the information and decided to ask something else.

"Why did I feel a stinging sensation on my leg when I woke up."

Viper seemed to hesitate before answering.

"Well...when we brought you here we found a bottle with transparent liquid inside your bag. We though that it was a healing substance and I applied it to your cut." Viper pointed to the bottle that was on the floor.

Al followed her tail and when he saw the bottle he started smiling.

"Yep. That explains it."

"What is it? What does it do?" Viper asked.

"It's rubbing alcohol and it helps prevent bacterial contamination or infection." Al explained.

"Alco-what thing now?" Po was clearly puzzled.

"So it does not help heal wounds?" Viper queried.

"Not really, no." Al replied.

"Sorry." Viper apologized.

"Don't worry about it. So...who are your friends?" Al asked as he took a glance at all the others.

"Ah, I'm glad you asked." Po spoke up. "The one on your leg is Viper, that's Monkey, the one on his shoulder is Mantis, the one with the hat is Crane, and she's Tigress." Po pointed to each of them as Al followed his finger. 'Obviously' Al thought to himself. "Together they are the Incredible Furious Five." Po continued. "I am Po..." he paused for dramatical effect. "...and I am the Dragon Warrior! We are the Kung Fu Masters!"

Al chuckled at Po's enthusiasm. 'These guys seem nice...Unlike those two wolves.'

"And you are...?" Al was going to answer Po's question but Mr. Ping answered it.

"This is Al. He helped me when we were in the forest. My wagon was broken and he fixed it for me. Also he stopped the two wolf bandits from stealing from me, hence the injuries."

"Really?" Po asked. Al nodded. "Thanks for saving my dad. You must've been awesome!" Po was grateful that he was there to defend his dad when he himself couldn't at the time.

Tigress was paying attention and started wondering if this kid, really had any ties to the events of yesterday. He did not appear hostile and he did help Mr. Ping handle those thieves. Anyway, she still wanted to ask him some questions.

"Nah. I don't know any Kung Fu so I'm certainly not as good as you guys." Al grunted as Viper finished wrapping his wound with a knot.

"Sorry. There, that should do until we can get a healer to stitch it up." Viper spoke.

"Aw man." Al mumbled.

"What's wrong?" Po asked.

"I'm not a fan of needles." Al stated.

Po chuckled.

"Yeah, that makes two of us."

Al started to laugh. Never in his life did he imagine himself having a conversation and laughing with animals. The only animal that Al talked to back home was Chubbs, and Chubbs never talked.

"Well I guess I should open up the shop. Po can you Al and the other masters stay for a bowl of Secret Ingredient Soup?" Mr. Ping asked.

"Of course dad. That was our plan anyway." Po replied. The other masters and Al nodded.

"Can you clean the place up before you let the customers in, we don't want to scare them with the scene." Ping said as he entered the kitchen.

"Sure thing."

Al slowly move his leg to the side of the table. He was glad that the knife had not made critical damage. It only pierced through muscle and although it still hurt bad, he could still limp. He made to stand on his right foot first so he wouldn't have to use his left so much.

"Don't apply weight on your left leg until you get it stitched." Viper warned. Al nodded.

Crane came over to help Al sit at another table. He stood at Al's left so the boy could lean on him.

Al was thankful that Crane was helping him. He was relocated to a bigger table towards the left wall of the restaurant.

"Po, I can help you clean." Monkey offered.

"No, it's okay. Wait for me at the table, I'll be there with your bowls when I finish clean." Po hefted the table in the air as he walked to the back to clean it and return it to its place.

The Furious Five went ahead and took a seat at the table where Al was sitting. Seeing the opportunity to get more information on this fellow, Tigress decided to ask a few questions.

"Where are you from?" She asked with seriousness in her voice. Al nervously turned to face the tiger before replying.

"Well you see...I'm from a far away land to the west." He wanted to say 'time' too but decided against it because they would think he was a maniac and that wouldn't do any good.

"What brought you to the Valley of Peace?" Tigress continued her 'interrogation'.

Al knew he had give them the half-truth about why he came, but how he came he would not say.

"I came here because I'd like to get a better understanding of different places, customs and traditions."

"So... you're a traveler?" Mantis asked. Al smiled and nodded in his direction.

"Yeah, you can call me that."

Monkey lifted his hand to get Al's attention. When Al nodded for him to speak, Monkey asked the question that probably was ringing in all of the master's minds.

"How old are you?" A few seconds passed before Al answered.

"I am seventeen years, ten months, and twelve days old." Al replied to the query.

"And already you are out and about in the world?" Viper asked in disbelief. Al slowly nodded.

Right then, Po came out of the kitchen with seven bowls; three on each arm and one on his head. As he approached the table, Al was amazed at the skill that Po had.

"Here you go." He said as he slid the six bowls to each of the masters and Al. Po took the one on his head off and laid it on the table, then he produced four pairs of chopsticks and a spoon. He handed the chopsticks to Crane, Monkey, Tigress and Al, and he handed the spoon to Viper.

"Er...can I have a spoon too. I...don't know how to use chopsticks." Al was a little embarrassed but Po smiled understandingly and went to the kitchen to retrieve it. When he came back, Al thanked him and dipped the spoon in the soup, he brought it to his lips and as soon as the liquid made contact with his taste buds, Al felt a great explosion of flavor in his mouth.

"Woah! That was great!" Al dipped the spoon again and again and again until the bowl was completely emptied. Po looked at Al.

"So, I'm guessing you liked it?" Po asked with a grin. Al chuckled.

"Liked it? Nah. Loved it? Definitely." The other masters laughed, even Tigress, though she was still keeping an eye on Al just in case. She still had to ask him about the events of yesterday. A bright reflection of light caught her eyes. Tigress turned to the source and saw a strange object around Al's wrist.

"What's that thing?" Tigress asked as she pointed to his wrist.

Al looked at his watch. He remembered what a certain wolf that had taken it from him had said, 'Look at the jewelry this guy has.' He chose to stick with that.

"Its a type of jewelry." Al hoped that would be enough to quench their curiosity. Unfortunately it wasn't.

"What's it made out of?" asked Monkey.

"Metal." That seemed to satisfy them.

As they were finishing Viper spoke up.

"I think we should check and see if any healers can stitch that wound up."

Although Al hated the idea, he knew she had a point. He sighed heavily and nodded in affirmation. Soon after he heard an unexpected question from Crane.

"Are you afraid of heights?" Al was confused as to why he would ask that randomly but shook his head no.

"Why?"

"Because I'm going to fly you to the healers so you don't further injure your leg." Crane made clear.

Al was surprised, not at the offer, but instead the ability this avian had to claim he could fly him.

"You can do that?"

Crane nodded.

"If I can lift the weight of Po here, I'm certain I can lift you up. Besides your not nearly heavy as Po is."

Po, who was listening in, looked at Crane with a unamused expression. Crane just shrugged it off. Al smiled at their exchange.

"Alright. Let me just get my pack." Al was going to get up from his seat, but he felt something hold him down. He looked to the side and saw that Po had him held by the shoulder.

"Remember what Viper said? Don't put weight on your leg, it'll only make it worse." Po kindly admonished. "I'll get it for you."

In truth, Al had to keep reminding himself that he had to take it easy because of the injury. He's never been hurt this bad before, only a few minor scrapes and/or cuts but never something this drastic.

If his mom were to find out about this, Al could already imagine her giving a sermon on how reckless this is and the possible dangers that it has. His mind then went to thinking how things were at home. He wondered if his mother had the whole city looking for him by now.

Al snapped out of his thoughts when Po placed the backpack on the table.

"Thank you, um, Dragon Warrior." Al did not want to call him by his first name for fear of offending him.

"Come on, you call me Po. I don't like formalities." Po said.

"Okay." Al picked up his pack from the table top, stuffed the first aid box inside of it and put it on. Po was looking at the pack the entire time. He just had to ask.

"Hey it's Al, right?"

Al nodded.

"I've never seen a bag like that before. Where did you get it." Po questioned.

"They make it where I come from." Al answered.

"Let's get going Al." Crane spoke up. Al nodded and Po helped him stand.

"So, how's this going to work?" Al wanted to know.

"Simple. You hold on to my legs and I'll hold on to your arm, then liftoff!"

"Okay?" Al was a little unsure about this. "As long as you don't make me fall."

Crane flapped his wings twice and he was airborne. He hovered over Al so he could hold on to his legs. Al reached up and grabbed the avians legs and gripped them as tight as he could.

Once Crane was sure that Al had a firm grip, his talons wrapped around Al's forearm and he began to flap his wings harder. In a few seconds both of them were off on their way to the healer.

"Be careful guys!" Po shouted after them.

Al was enjoying the view of the Valley from up there. The afternoon sun still had a ways to go before it set, that and the refreshing breeze that blew through the air gave the view a tranquil feeling.

"Not bad." Al commented.

"You think this is good, you should see the view from the palace." Crane spoke.

"There's a palace here? Where?" Al never remembered seeing a palace or any large structure that resembled a palace.

"Up there on that mountain." Crane pointed with his beak since his wings were busy.

Al looked up and in the distance he did make out a large building that was sitting at the top of the mountain with a trail of stairs leading all the way down to the village streets.

"What is that place?" Al asked curiously.

"That's the Jade Palace. Home to the Furious Five, Dragon Warrior and Grandmaster Shifu." Crane informed.

"Wait, so you guys live up there?"

"Yep." Crane replied. "Alright were here!" he announced.

Crane slowly made his descent and allowed Al to touchdown lightly. Al at once leaned on the nearest wall he could find when he felt the pain in his leg.

Crane landed and helped Al walk to the entrance of the establishment. He pushed the door open with his wing and they both entered.

There was a lady rabbit as a receptionist that was sitting behind a wooden counter and seemed to be writing something in a large scroll that was atop the counter. When she took note of the Kung Fu master and the wounded fellow next to him, she picked up a wooded stick and banged it to a gong that was placed behind her.

A few seconds later a goose and another rabbit appeared from the opposite side of a rice paper door.

"Master Crane! What's the matter?" asked the rabbit.

"This fellow has sustained a knife wound on his left thigh. We've stopped the bleeding but he'll need stitches."

The rabbit nodded before motioning for them to follow him to a improvised patient room. They took a few turns until they came up to a room that had the door wide open. Most of the divisions were made of rice paper and there was a window and a small wooden table with a chair in one corner, and a cot in the center.

"Sit down on the cot sir, I'll be with you in a second." said the rabbit.

Crane helped Al to the cot and Al sat down. Al took the backpack off and laid it beside the cot. He decided to use this moment to ask a question that he had.

"Why are you guys going out of your way to help me, a stranger that you barely know?"

Crane turned to Al then answered.

"Well that's part of our duty as Kung Fu masters. We help and protect anyone that needs help or protection. We do our best to keep the order and peace. Just like you did. You helped Mr. Ping with his wagon and you protected him from those wolves. Even if it didn't come out good for you." Crane glanced at Al's wrapped up wound. "But you did it because it was the right thing to do. It was selflessness. The trait of a Kung Fu master."

Al nodded and remained pensive.

They waited there for ten minutes before the same rabbit came back, but this time he had a thick needle with a type of thread Al did not recognize, a small jar with some kind of liquid, and a damp rag. 'This is gonna hurt.' Al thought to himself as he glanced at the needle.

"Sorry I took so long, I had to see another patient." He said as he set down the articles. He then turned to Al. "I'll need you to lie down on your back." The rabbit ordered.

Al followed instructions and did as he was told. The rabbit unwrapped the gauze Al had, he then walked over to the table and picked up the rag, soaked it with the water that was in the jar and cleaned around the wound again.

When that was done, the rabbit healer grabbed the needle and proceeded to stitch it carefully.

Al let out a few grunts of pain during the entire process. He vowed in his mind that he would be careful not to get anymore cuts. This hurt and he did not want to experience it a second time.

When the healer sealed the injury, he cut the thread with a knife and tied it with a knot.

"There, all done! Now, I suggest you stay here for a night or so. I will have my attendant bring you an special herb mix and you will have to apply it to the area I just stitched twice a day. It will help it heal faster." Al nodded at the instructions he was being given. "I also think you should use a cane or support to don't stress the sutures."

Al did not fancy the thought of using a support to walk. It would make him feel old. But it was the doctors orders and he knew he had to follow it to the letter.

"Thank you Mr. Huiliang." Crane bowed.

Mr. Huiliang returned the bow and exited the room.

"I'll go inform the others that you're okay. Do you need anything?" Crane asked.

"No. Thank you." Al replied as he began to sit up.

Crane nodded and started walking out of the room. He stopped and turned his head.

"If you need help or anything call for Mr. Huiliang." Crane advised.

"Alright."

With that said, Crane walked out, closed the door and headed back to Mr. Ping's Noodle shop.

Now that Al was alone he could talk to Haivas.

"Haivas." He called out. Haivas' hologram appeared.

"Hey Al, how do you feel?" she asked.

"Okay, I guess." Al replied as he picked up his backpack to see if anything else was removed from it. He saw his jacket that he had taken off earlier was still there, along with everything else. He zipped his pack up and slowly got up, then he made his way to the window. Al was surprised at the garden that was right outside. It was full of different kind of flowers that he hasn't seen before. Then he looked up.

"Judging the position of the sun it looks like it's around four or five in the afternoon, and I'm supposed to stay here the whole time?"

Some one knocked on the paper door and Al turned from the window.

"Come in." He said.

A goose, the same one that was next to the rabbit entered the room.

"Mr. Huiliang sent this herbal mix for you to apply it on your wound. It'll help cure it and it will decrease the pain." The goose extended his wings to hand the jar over to Al.

Al took it in one hand, then he dipped his head in thanks. The attendant walked out of the room and shut the door.

"Alright. Let's see if this really works." Al sat down on the bed and lifted the lid of the jar. A pungent smell flooded his nose. "Whoo. That's strong." There was a thick paste inside, thick like peanut butter. It was cold to the touch. Al dipped a finger from his paw and took out a reasonable amount and started rubbing the contents on his sealed injury.

Al felt a chill run up his spine as he continued rubbing the cold substance. When he was done he placed the lid back on and placed the jar on the ground. He could already feel the pain receding.

"How does it feel?" Haivas queried.

"Its feeling better already. It's numbing the pain." He answered.

"That's good."

Al stood up, having both legs share the weight equally. He still felt a little throbbing in his leg, but it did not hurt so much. He could walk without limping, so that was good.

"Al," Haivas started. "I've been thinking...why don't you record or log your findings and events in this place. Besides this could be the discovery of the century. As a plus, it helps keep you sane."

"You know, that doesn't sound like such a bad idea. But I think I'll take a walk first." Al stated.

"But Al, your-"

"It doesn't hurt so much thanks to that stuff the doctor gave me. Besides I need to keep my leg exercised." Al argued.

Haivas knew he could be really stubborn sometimes.

"Ok. But no running, jumping, climbing and-"

"Swimming." Al finished for her. "You don't have to tell me. I already know." He said as he put the jar inside his pack. Al picked up his backpack and headed out of the room.


Tigress had returned to the Jade Palace after Al had been carried off to the healers. She was trying to find Master Shifu to tell him that she had found the mysterious individual from last night.

Tigress had looked for him at the Peach Tree, Hall of Warriors and the Training Hall. Now she was on her way to the kitchen. When she entered, she saw Shifu sipping a cup of tea.

"Afternoon Tigress." Shifu greeted

"Master." She bowed in respect. "I've got news concerning the individual from last night."

Shifu's ears perked up. "And? What news do you bring?"

"We've found him. He's currently at the infirmary."


Thank you once again for reading. Please leave a review. Next chapter will be up either Monday or Tuesday. 'Till then.

-Th3Ph4nt0miz3r™