Chapter 10 is up and ready to go! Thanks to all of you who reviewed the last chapter and caught up to the story! I hope this one is a good one for you guys.

Enjoy the read!

Chapter 10

Nothing But A Coward

The next day, Tigress woke everyone up at sunrise, so that they could get an early start on their journey again. Nightshade was easily wakened since he was still trying not to get on Tigress's bad side. Po however, was a bit of a challenge. Eventually it took Tigress throwing a cup of water on his face to wake him up resulting in the Panda whining profusely. But after the three managed to clean up camp and had a light breakfast, the party set out and began their long trek towards the Tower.

As they walked, Tigress was thinking about what they had managed to learn about Nightshade. A wolf who basically left his pack because he refused to follow a man like Shen. Which Tigress of course, had her own reasons for hating that miserable peacock, which now that she thought about it, were somewhat aligned with the reasons she hated Nightshade. They both tried to kill Po, and where Shen Tried to take over China, Nightshade tried to bring about the end of the world. Whether or not he was willingly involved, Tigress still wasn't convinced about. The Next two days were pretty much the same as the first one. Nightshade remained relatively silent while Tigress remained focused on the goal ahead, and Po of course was the life of the party, though after a while he would give up and just remain quiet like the others.

It was the end of the third day and they were arriving at a small village to stock up on supplies, mostly just food for the next several days, since they would be traveling into some mountains within the next day or so and they wouldn't be coming across another village between here and the tower. As the three were wandering through the village marketplace, Po was eying up the wares while Tigress was standing close behind him. Nightshade would often overhear Po asking Tigress which fruit looked best to her, or what she thought would be good for the journey. Resulting in Tigress either saying whatever he thought, or just picking something. As the two were looking at an apple cart Nightshade was a stand away looking at some vests, his gray tunic he had been wearing was now torn and wearing thin due to being exposed to the elements and the tunic in his pack was what he used to sleep in at night. Spring may have just recently begun, but the nights were still incredibly cold. After counting the coins he had earned from working in the noodle shop that day back in the Valley, Nightshade finally decided on a light gray vest , with Dark blue trim. It was short sleeved yes, but was thicker than his current tunic and he could now double up on the layers at night.

After paying for the vest, Nightshade put it on and placed his old Tunic in his pack as he walked over to where Po and Tigress were standing by a building. But not before stopping to buy about six apples with his remaining coin and placed them in his pack. The Dragon Warrior and Master Tigress were already helping him with finding his friends, he didn't want them spending any money on him to eat . as Nightshade approached the two Tigress said "It's getting late, we'll stay at the local inn tonight and then make our way over to the mountains tomorrow. With any luck, we can reach the foot of the mountain by Nightfall tomorrow. Then if all goes well, we should be at the tower a full day ahead of schedule, then we can formulate a proper plan about how to go about rescuing those people." Po and Nightshade nodded as the Panda said "Hey, as long as I can sleep in a bed tonight, I'm good to go!" and with that Po and Tigress began heading over towards the inn. Nightshade was about to follow them when something caught the corner of his eye. as Nightshade turned he noticed several boars huddled around each other looking at the three of them as they talked in hushed tones amongst themselves, many of them watching Nightshade and his companions. "That's a bit odd…perhaps they just recognize China's two Saviors or something." "Hey Nightshade! Keep up!" Po shouted, as Nightshade turned around calling back "R-Right, I'll be right there!" and with that, Nightshade hurried after the Dragon Warrior and Master Tigress, a sickening feeling beginning to form in the pit of his stomach.

Although The three of them had to share a room, the accommodations were nonetheless very pleasant. There were plenty of beds for everyone to have their own, as well as a blanket for each provided by the inn keeper, and since The Dragon Warrior and Master Tigress were staying in the inn keepers inn, the good soul never charged them for their dinner. Even Nightshade, since he was traveling with them wasn't made to pay for his meal, which was a good thing, since he spent all of his coin on the apples and his new vest. As Po was snoring peacefully in his sleep, Tigress was sleeping soundly nearby. Nightshade however wasn't so fortunate. Across the room, Nightshade was restless, as the wolf began to toss and turn in his sleep, images of his friends began to plague his mind.

Inside Nightshade's Dream scape…

Nightshade was standing in the center of a dark chamber, the only source of light coming from a hole in the ceiling up above him. As he looked around, he realized he was all alone, so he called out "Dragon Warrior? Master Tigress? where is everyone!? Where am I!?" suddenly his ear twitched as he heard footsteps approaching him from the left. When he turned in the direction the sounds were coming from, his eyes widened in shock, as he whispered in disbelief, "…Ling!?" as the white bunny began to walk into the light, her pink dress in tatters, and a piece of it wrapping her wrist. "LING!" Nightshade shouted as he rushed the rabbit and dropped to his knees, embracing his friend, "I was so worried about you! Are you alright Ling!? Where's Chef?"

"…" Silence. Nightshade pulled Ling back to look at her as he asked "Ling? What's wrong?" finally the bunny looked up at Nightshade, her black eyes all glazed over as she whispered "Why? Why did you leave me Nightshade?" Nightshade's heart began to break as he tried to speak saying "I…I didn't want to!" but Ling cut him off saying "Why did you leave me behind with that Monster Nightshade? I thought…we were friends. What did you think would happen?" Nightshade closed his eyes as he lowered his head saying "Ling, I'm so sorry, this is all my fault! But I promise, I'm gonna get you out of this. I'm going to get you out of here!" But when Nightshade opened his eyes, Ling was nowhere to be seen.

"Ling!? Ling, Where are you!? LING!" but as Nightshade was about to go searching for her, a new voice reached his ears "You left us behind Shade." Nightshade turned to see Chef now behind him, as the Warthog stepped closer into the light, Nightshade's eyes widened as he saw many cuts and bruises covering the warthogs body. "Chef…It wasn't like that…and what happened to you? Did…Did Drizen-" but Chef cut him off saying, "-You left us behind for dead Shade. I gave you a job, a roof over your head, and you just up and run away the minute trouble shows up. Like a coward! Ling and I are going to die in this Hell hole, all because of YOU Shade!"

Nightshade then dropped to his knees once more as he said "It wasn't like that! I ran because I didn't want you to get hurt! Neither of you! I ran so that Drizen would follow me and leave you both alone!" But as Nightshade looked up again, Chef was gone. Then a harsh voice echoed from behind, as a shadowy figure stepped out from behind a pillar, "Doesn't sound like it to me." Nightshade saw that it was Tigress now before him. As the Tiger Master approached him, she spat, "If you ask me, you just got scared, scared like a little pup, running straight for the Dragon Warrior, hoping he could make all your troubles go away. Just. Like. That!" as Tigress just made a waving motion with her paw. Nightshade then roared at Tigress "You're wrong! I came to the Dragon Warrior because I had no one else to turn to!"

"But how could you just leave them behind like that?" Nightshade turned to see it was the Dragon Warrior who asked him that, as he was walking over towards Tigress. As he now stood beside her, his face was one of disappointment. "How could you just leave your Pack behind like that Nightshade? Because of you, their lives are in danger, and now Tigress and I have to risk our own just to bail you out of trouble…we already have a lot on our plates as is, and now we might end up missing our own wedding. Hech, we may end up not coming out of this alive. How is any of this fair to anyone?" Nightshade then hung his head low as their words sank in. was he being a coward? Did he just run away to save his own tail? "No…" Nightshade whispered to himself as he stood up. "You're all wrong…I'm not a coward…I didn't run away!" But as he looked around, he noticed he was now completely alone. "Then prove it."

Nightshade's heart stopped right then as he recognized that dark cold voice. Nightshade looked up to see the Giant Dark Purple Dragon that was Hei'an, towering over him as he grinned wickedly down upon the wolf, his Purple glowing eyes holding Nightshade in place, as the wolf was frozen in fear. "Hei'an…" Nightshade whispered as he tried to move but found himself unable to. This clearly was Hei'an before him, but something was off. His form wasn't solid; it was shadowy, transparent if you will, as the Dark Dragon Whispered. "You could have finished that raven off yourself if you only used more of my power. Use my Darkness Nightshade…Use my power and you can still save your friends."

Nightshade then found his voice again as he shouted "NO! I don't need your Darkness! And another thing! You aren't real! The Dragon Warrior and Master Tigress destroyed you! You are gone Hei'an!" The Dark Dragon chuckled as some Dark tendrils of darkness began to slowly make their way towards Nightshade from the depths of the nearby shadows, "Oh I'm sure you would like nothing more than to believe that Nightshade, but you see, I am very much alive, I am inside your very mind as we speak, I know your every doubt, your every fear, I know all your thoughts and all of your secrets. And most importantly…" as the tendrils of Darkness began to wrap around Nightshade as he was lifted up into the air, the wolf trying his hardest to break free of the Darkness wrapped around him. As the Dragon brought the wolf up to eye level, he stared into Nightshade's eyes. a look of victory plastering his face, "I am inside your heart Nightshade…You will accept my Darkness willingly, and you will one day serve me yet again, so that I can truly return!" Nightshade then screamed as he struggled with the shadows around him "NO! I won't be your puppet anymore Hei'an! I won't!" but no matter how hard he struggled the Darkness was just too strong, as the sound of Hei'an's laughter rang loud throughout his ears, as Nightshade screamed while he was wrapped in the Darkness completely. "NOOOOOO!"

Back in the real world…

Nightshade bolted up from his bed and was immediately forced right back down as a strong arm held him down onto the futon, while a single paw covered his mouth. "MMmphh!?" Nightshade tried to speak, only to realize that the Dragon Warrior was now standing above him, a serious look plastered over his face, as his golden eyes stared down at Nightshade. "Wait…golden eyes!? I could have sworn they were jade!" The Dragon Warrior stared at Nightshade, as if contemplating something and Nightshade took a chance as he glanced over at the hanging mirror in the wall. Immediately his heart sank as he began to realize what was bothering the Dragon Warrior, as his own eyes were glowing purple once again.

Gladir stood their staring down at the wolf as he was contemplating on what he should do. For the past three days Gladir had been keeping a watchful eye on Nightshade through the panda, much like Tigress had, waiting to see if he could sense the presence of his brother like he did back at the palace. And up until now he hadn't. It was only until a few moments ago, that he noticed the familiar dark presence once again, and so without waking the panda, Gladir slowly pushed the Panda's mind out of the way, as he took over and investigated. If Hei'an had indeed returned then Gladir would wake the Panda. Normally he wouldn't be using Po's body like this without permission or unless Po was unable to get himself to safety, but he wanted to make sure Hei'an truly was back before he woke up the Masters.

As he stared down at Nightshade however, the wolf's breathing slowly calmed down and his eyes returned from a bright purple , to their normal steel blue. Gladir then thought to himself. "So at least it seems like Hei'an isn't in control at the moment…But I know I sensed his presence this time. It was hard to determine for certain back at the palace but here…it was like there was a struggle just now between them…a struggle for control." Once Nightshade was completely calm, Gladir released the wolf and beckoned him to follow the panda.

In moments the two were outside, standing on the side of the inn away from any late night stragglers, the only source of light being the moon. As they were standing their Gladir started, "Tell me about your dreams Nightshade." Nightshade seemed taken aback by the Dragon Warrior's change in voice as he backed away up against the wall "Wh-Who are you!?" Gladir however remained where he stood as he crossed the Panda's arms saying, "Do you truly have no idea who I am?" Nightshade then stared at the Panda for a moment before whispering, "…Guang? Are you…are you Guang?" Gladir nodded the panda's head as he corrected "I am…although these days I have taken the name of Gladir" Nightshade then asked "Is… Is the Dragon Warrior-"But Gladir shook the panda's head no saying "-No, he still sleeps, it's just you and me here Nightshade." There was a long Silence as Nightshade stared at the ground for a moment until Gladir broke it. "Now…about those dreams, tell me about them."

Nightshade was silent at first but decided to do as Gladir wanted, "It was the first time I had a dream like that…a dream where HE was in it." Gladir nodded his head as he indicated for Nightshade to continue. "He was…different, in the dream…almost, like he wasn't complete, like he was mostly a shadow or something." Gladir pondered this for a moment. "So Hei'an isn't truly back yet…but it would seem like he is certainly trying to return through Nightshade." Gladir then asked "You say he has never appeared before you until tonight?" Nightshade nodded his head as he admitted "It felt real…but I'm not sure if it really was…it could just be a dream…right? I mean, maybe I'm just too worried about my friends or something." As Nightshade looked up at the panda's face he noticed Gladir was staring at him seriously as he muttered "It's possible…" But it was hardly convincing to Nightshade.

Nightshade then asked "Is it…possible?" Gladir then raised the panda's eyebrow as Nightshade continued "For him to return…is it possible?" Gladir then continued to stare at the wolf as he slowly nodded his head yes. "If even the smallest traces of his Darkness has survived within you…it is possible for my brother to return to power in time…But only if YOU let him." Gladir then walked forward and got straight into Nightshade's face saying "Nightshade, I want you to listen to me very carefully." Nightshade nodded his head as he waited for Gladir to continue. "I want you to NEVER use my brother's Darkness again…" Nightshade stared at Gladir for a moment as the Dragon continued "The more you use his power…the greater the chances of him returning grow. You must never use his Darkness again, or we risk having him unleashed upon the world once more…Do you understand?"

Nightshade stared into the panda's golden eyes as he slowly nodded his head whispering "I understand." Gladir nodded as he said "Good…now, go back to bed, before Master Tigress realizes we are gone and hunts us both down." And with that Nightshade turned and walked back into the inn, with Gladir following closely behind him, thinking to himself "I shall tell Po all that I've learned tomorrow, for now I will let his mind continue to sleep, he has enough to worry about without me interrupting the few hours of peace he can get these days." And with that, Gladir took the Panda's body back to his futon, careful not to wake the Tiger Master as he and Nightshade laid back down onto their futons.

Soon Nightshade heard the Panda's snoring return as he lay there on his futon, but sleep was not something he wanted right then. He was too worked up for sleep. What if Hei'an showed up again? What would Gladir do then? No, Nightshade just laid there for the rest of the night, as he waited for dawn to arrive.

Well there you have it! Chapter 10. Nightshade is now having Nightmares and is not completely sure if Hei'an is really back or if it's he imagination running wild. Gladir seems to think he might be trying to come back though and is going to be keeping an ever watchful eye over the wolf as a result. Remember those boars from earlier? We we'll see what they're up to in the next chapter. Sorry I didn't post this yesterday but I was meeting with an artist to discuss an cover image for this story and on top of that, my internet connection was down last night so I had to wait until I got to work to upload it. Sorry.

In the meantime, I'm going to start on Chapter 11 so make sure to…

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