A/N: Star Wars reference. Kudos to anyone who can tell me which one. It's in the original Trilogy, mind you.

-Flash-

Shang let out a snarl, slashing his sword and felt satisfaction as the blade sliced through the Knight's neck, through an unprotected nick that allowed Shang's blade access to the flesh and follow through. He allowed himself a savage grin as he watched the Knight's headless corpse crumple to the ground, the head rolling a good distance away.

But curiosity overcame his satisfaction, he had to know the identity of the man he had just killed. Sheathing his blade, he took a step toward the helmeted lump. Another and another brought him closer until he knelt, undoing the faceplate and what he saw made his blood run cold…

He looked into his own face…

-Flash-

Shang snapped his eyes open, sitting up and clutching his head. That was the third time he had the nightmare. It had started almost immediately after he fought the Black Knight, and it was making him wonder who the man truly was. As if those dreams were trying to tell him something, but he just couldn't figure out what. If the Knight was still alive, that is. He exploded in flames, and Shang was unsure if he teleported somewhere else or if he had actually died. He sighed, throwing the blankets aside, and looked toward his door. And what he saw, definitely confirmed what he thought.

The Black Knight stood in front of his closed door, unarmed. The Knight's head lifted a little, and Shang heard a sharp intake of breath, as if surprised. He then disappeared in flames, leaving Shang confused at to what had just happened. The Wolf stood up, apprehensive, anticipating an attack. But he slightly lowered his guard when none came. He rubbed his eyes and looked back at the spot where the Knight disappeared.

Was I still dreaming…? He thought.

Mei smiled softly, leaning on the doorframe as she watched Zero spar a snow leopard. Although she had no idea who the man was, she guessed that her panther already knew the man.

That, and they obviously knew each other's moves. When Zero tried to kick at the other's head, and then whipped his foot and attempted to hit his side, the man countered his move. The same went for the man, who followed through with a combo that ended in a headlock. He attempted to choke him, but Zero knocked the man's breath out of his lungs with an elbow to the side. Putting a foot behind the man's leg, he swept his feet from under him and, using an arm, slammed the man's body into the ground. He put a foot on his chest, and rested the point of his sword against his opponents neck, score for Zero. He backed up a little, letting his opponent up and they both jumped back, taking a good look at the other; they both ran forward. And their fists connected solidly, neither seemed affected if there was even any pain at all.

They stopped and bowed to one another. Zero smiled at Mei, who entered the Dojo.

"Who's your friend?" Mei asked.

"This is Proxy." Zero answered, which earned a raised eyebrow from Mei.

"Seriously, that's his name. I'll explain later." Zero assured her.

"Master, would it be sufficient if I just merely show her?" Proxy asked, Zero shook his head vigorously.

Mei narrowed her eyes and looked at Zero.

"Zero…" Mei said in a stern voice, crossing her arms and giving him the famous 'Burning Glare' that she used on her students.

The Panther looked at her with a grin, which began to falter.

"Okay! I'll talk! Just quit staring at me like that, it burns!" Zero wrote quickly.

Mei let a small smile play over her face as she gently kissed Zero on the cheek, shaking her head. He was quite cute when he acted like that.

"I'm sorry," She apologized. "I just don't like people keeping secrets from me."

"I understand." Zero nodded. "Rest assured, I would never keep secrets from you, trust me."

"I do trust you," Mei said softly, putting a hand on his arm.

"Ah, so you must be this 'Mei', Master was telling me about earlier." Proxy said.

"I am," Mei nodded. "And you are… Proxy, did I get that right?"

That's a very weird name… Mei thought.

"Yes, PROXY-2.0 at your service, ma'am." The Leopard gave a small bow. "Or may I call you Master as well? Since you are emotionally associated with my creator?"

Mei blinked, while Zero face palmed. "Zero, what is he talking about?"

"It's a long story." Zero replied.

"I've got time to kill." Mei said. "I don't have any classes today, so…"

"I wasn't trying to stall, I was merely stating a fact." Zero answered patiently. "Remember yesterday, I kept trying to tell you what I wanted to say and I got interrupted?"

"Yes, I remember." The Mountain Cat replied.

"Master, permission to leave? I need to report back to the others. I was just sent to 'check up on you', as they say." Proxy said.

Zero nodded, leaving he and Mei alone when Proxy left the Dojo.

"Zero, what was he talking about 'Creator'?" The Mountain Cat asked.

"Well," Zero began. "He's an old family friend, one of the few I have left to remember my family by."

Mei blinked again. "That still doesn't answer my question."

"I know." Zero wrote, patting her on the shoulder. "Can we sit?"

Mei nodded, taking a seat and letting Zero do the same.

"Mei, yesterday, what I was trying to say was that I'm from-" He hung his head as the bell over the front door rang.

Am I ever going to be able to say it? Zero thought.

"Mei?" Called the familiar voice of her father, who bowed and entered the Dojo.

"Master Shifu and his students are preparing to leave soon if you want to see them off with me." Vincent told his daughter. "That is if you want to."

"Of course." Mei replied, standing up and then offering Zero a hand up. "You coming, Zero?"

"But-" Zero began.

"After we see the others off, alright?" Mei said, and then Zero nodded.

"Mei, can you give Zero and I a minute?" Vincent asked, when Mei gave her father a worried look he added: "I just want a word, it won't take long."

"Well, I'll see you two in a bit, then." Mei said, walking out of the Dojo. A few seconds later, the ring of the bell was heard, then it was silent.

"What is it that you wanted to speak to me about, Mr. Vincent?" Zero asked.

"I'm curious." Vincent answered.

"Curiosity is not a sin," Zero smiled. "Go ahead, shoot."

"I know that my daughter is a grown woman and that she can take care of herself. However, I am her father, so it is only natural that I protect her from… unpleasant men." Vincent said. "You seem like an honest enough man, though."

Zero blinked. "Master Vincent," Bowing as he addressed the Mountain Cat formally. "I swear that I would never do anything to hurt your daughter. I would rather be given the most horrendous of tortures than to lay a hand on her in harm. That is why I want her to stay here while I help the others with the Storming. War is something that is better not seen for someone like her."

"Do you think that she would listen to you when you ask her to remain behind?" Vincent chuckled.

"Probably not, no." Zero opened his mouth in a silent laugh. "Whether she agrees or not, I do not want her to go."

"I do not want her to go as well," Vincent sighed. "I have already lost her mother years ago, I do not want to lose her too."

"I understand." Zero nodded. And for a while, it was silent.

"Dare I ask what this is that you've been trying to tell Mei for the past two days?" Vincent inquired and when Zero hesitated, he added: "You do not need to tell me, if you do not want to."

"You're her father, so you have a right to know as well." Zero sighed. "I do not want you to think that I am insane, I do not lie when I tell you this."

"I understand." Vincent replied. "You have my word that I will think no different, Zero."

"I do not want many to know," Zero wrote. "Because I plan to leave it behind when Death Adder and my boss are both gone."

The Mountain Cat nodded, understanding.

Zero took a deep breath. "Master Vincent I will tell you, but I only ask that you allow me to tell Mei myself."

"On my honor." Vincent put a hand on his shoulder.

"Master Vincent, I am really… from the Future." He tensed up, closing his eyes and taking a deep breath to calm himself.

"So you are a Time Walker then?" Vincent asked, raising an eyebrow and causing Zero to open his eyes to look at him. "That is a term I have frequently read in my stories, tales of those who are able to walk from one time period to the next."

"So… you believe me then?" Zero replied, surprised.

"True, it is a bit hard for a regular person to wrap their head around. But I am unlike most men. To answer your question Zero, yes, I do believe you." Vincent answered. "You said you plan on telling Mei, right?"

"Yes, sir." Zero wrote. "But I plan to leave the Future behind, once I rid that time period of my boss. Then I plan on living here, helping Mei out with her classes. After everything, I just want a life of peace."

"You have my blessing." Vincent said, smiling as he bowed.

"Blessing on what, per se?" Zero asked.

"My blessing to you when you go to the Storming. And let the wisdom of your ancestors guide your blade to victory." Vincent replied.

"And my blessing to you and Mei, I want you to take very good care of my daughter, understand?" Vincent asked, his peaceful expression turning serious.

"I promise," Zero wrote. "Shall we see the others off?"

"Come on, Time Walker." Vincent laughed.

"Remember, not a word to the others. It's better for them not to know."

"Don't worry, my lips are sealed." Vincent replied to the note.

"Vincent, I really do appreciate your hospitality." Chen said, smiling at his old friend.

"I only wish your stay would have been longer, but I understand your current situation." Vincent replied. "How soon is the Storming to occur?"

"Once we get back to my village and assess our situation with Magmoor, I'd say…" Chen thought on it for a second. "At least a weeks time. If things run smoothly, a few days at best."

"Excellent." Vincent smiled. "When do you want me to send my Militia?"

"As soon as possible," Chen replied, to which Vincent nodded.

Chen, along with the Five, Po, Shifu, and Shang turned to leave. Zero smiled, waving to the group as they began their journey back to Arkoma. He wished he was able to get to know them a bit better, but he guessed that would have to wait. More important matters were at hand.

As they themselves turned to leave, Zero took Mei's hand.

"Can we talk somewhere more private?" He asked her. Zero had asked for a new scroll, so she had given him one as he discarded the one he had used earlier. There was still room on the scroll he just had, but she shrugged and didn't think of it.

"Can you excuse us, Father?" Mei asked.

"Enjoy your day." Vincent smiled at the both of them.

Mei led Zero away from the village, down a supposed path that she knew toward a cave she had found when she was a child. At first, it seemed to be just an ordinary cave, but as Mei led them deeper into the cave, Zero's mouth dropped in shock. Here and there, along the ceiling and ground, were crystals. They appeared to glow with a faint blue light, but Zero was confused on how exactly the quartz was glowing the way it was. But as he looked up, every few feet, there were small cracks in the ceiling, rays of light filtered through the little fissures, hitting the crystals. Thus, the crystals somehow were absorbing only the blue in the sun and refracting the rest of the light spectrum.

They neared the mouth of the exit, coming into a large circular clearing. The clearing was encircled by the cave, however the ceiling stopped at the mouth and did not cover the glade. And what he saw in the area made him smile in admiration. There was a waterfall, completely frozen over. Since the ice in these mountains seldom melted, the water that splashed and was frozen in intricate designs that not even the most skilled sculptor could replicate. There was a small pond to accompany the waterfall, which tendrils of frozen water spider webbed and traced itself to small holes that led to the walls of the glade.

"What do you think?" Mei asked. "I found this when I was a little girl, and I've been coming here ever since if I need to get away or think."

"It's beautiful…" Zero wrote. "Just like you."

"Thank you, Zero." the Mountain Cat replied, smiling as she blushed. "And your mother was right, you are a looker."

As she said this she ran a finger across his jaw, causing the Panther to shiver.

"So…" Mei began, waiting for him to spill the beans.

"I'm just going to flat out say it." Zero wrote. "Mei, I'm from-"

Zero's expression changed and he suddenly hugged Mei, grunting as two daggers pierced his back. He yanked them out and curled his lips over his teeth in a silent snarl.

Mei made move to take a stance, but Zero shook his head.

"Zero, what's going on?" she asked, looking around.

Again, Zero shook his head. He closed his eyes, and suddenly pointed in a direction, snapping his eyes open and with a flick of his wrist, sent a knife flying.

"It seems that your skills have not wavered despite your time here, brother!"

As if from nowhere, another black Panther appeared, plucking the knife from the air as if everything was perceived slow for him. He smirked at Zero, who simply glared in return. Zero pointed at himself, and then at the mysterious man, and shook his head.

"Don't deny it!" the Panther snorted. "You and I are blood! How can you defy your destiny to fall at my hand after what you have done?"

Zero bared his fangs more fiercely, drawing his sword. Mei guessed that they were opposites, since Zero wore dark crimson, his brother wore a light sapphire colored attire that mimicked everything Zero wore. The only main difference that she could discern was the color. That and the fact that there was a major difference between their choice of blades. Whereas Zero fought with a broadsword that she sheathed at his right shoulder, the crosspiece was a dragon's closed maw, the blade extending from the dragon's unparted lips. A design of fire was etched into Zero's blade, Mei noticed. His brother fought with an O-katana which had a black scabbard with the blade's handle itself wrapped in white silk cloth with an intricate design of black silk covering the sides of the handle made a straight line to the guard.

"Oh, the silent treatment, eh?" The Panther said, drawing his own.

"Wait, I forgot… I sliced your neck…" he said. "Your voice is gone…"

"I guess Bentley was never able to heal you, was he?" The Panther gave a derisive grin. "How's it like? Being limited to just communicating by notes? I guess you deserved it for slaughtering our family!"

Mei gasped, looking at Zero, whose tail had bristled along with his fur, silently snarling.

"Zero, is this true!" She asked incredulously.

Zero looked at her, and his expression softened. He shook his head, looking back at his supposed 'brother'.

"Ah, I see you have found yourself a mate." The Panther sneered, making Mei flinch at the word 'mate'. "How can you stomach your past and pretend as if nothing has happened?"

"He didn't kill your family!" Mei protested. "He told me that it was your uncle!"

"Lies!" The Panther spat. "He's already feeding you false accusations. You shouldn't believe anything he says!"

"No." Mei said, causing Zero to look at her. Zero's brother flinched, surprised at the certainty in her voice as she spoke. She stepped up to Zero, gently taking his hand. "I believe him, he has a kind heart. He could not kill his family, and you are too blind to see it."

"Shut the hell up, wench!" The Panther snarled.

Zero tightened his grip on his sword, taking Mei's hand and kissing it once, before letting go and rushing at his brother. As he neared the other Panther, Zero raised his sword, and slashed forward. As the blade neared his brother, he smirked and stopped the blade with his own. Before Zero could even react, the other Panther thrust his blade upwards and, in the process, knocking Zero's sword out of his hands. The Panther didn't even waste time, he thrust out with his fist, catching Zero on the chin. He followed through with an elbow to the chest, then an uppercut that lifted Zero a few inches off the ground and finally ended with a fierce kick that knocked Zero a good ways away from his brother.

Zero spat blood from his mouth as he pulled himself up, and froze when his brother held his blade by his neck.

"It is time for you to pay for your sins, Brother." The Panther said, raising his sword.

Thinking quickly, as the blade came down, Zero tackled his brother; knocking him off balance. They wrestled, rolling through the snow and ended with Zero coming out on top, a knife to his brother's throat.

"Go ahead, kill me!" His brother shouted, tears streaming down his face. "Kill me like you killed our family!"

Zero shook his head, getting off his brother, holding out his hand. For a second, he thought his brother would let go of his rage. His assumption was short lived, as his brother suddenly grabbed his hand, straightening his arm out. He smashed his fist down on Zero's left elbow, breaking it and making his arm bend backwards. Zero let out a gargled scream as he fell to the ground, clutching his arm that remained erect and refused to bend properly. Mei let out a snarl, rushing at Zero's brother.

But before she had even closed the distance between she and he, the familiar form of Proxy leapt between them. His fist smashed into the panther's jaw. As he shook his fist, a blue light enveloped him, followed by the sound of crackling static, and there stood a completely different being than before.

"So it seems your droid is doing your fighting for you now, eh brother?" The Panther asked, clutching his jaw. He spat out blood as he spoke, his jaw seemed to be broken as his voice was slightly garbled. "I will let you have this reprieve to live, but you will die! I swear it!"

With that oath sworn, he disappeared in a blur of blue.

Mei took an involuntary step back, and if it weren't for Zero's injury, she probably would have ran at the sight of Proxy. He… she couldn't even describe him. His body appeared to be made of metal, with the pieces of his insides that were visible seemed to be red, blue and black wire type things. He was completely alien to her.

"What the heck are you?" She demanded, frightened.

Proxy held up a finger, motioning for a minute. He helped up Zero, but the Panther shook him off. Zero glared daggers at Proxy, who held up his hands in defense as if in a 'What did I do?' gesture.

Zero placed the sheath of his blade between his teeth, trying to even his breathing. Mei realized what he was going to do, but he waved her off. He took hold of his broken arm, clutching his hand into a tight fist and, with the sound of bones scrapping against bones, he let out a groan as he corrected his arm. He winced, letting his arm fall in his lap, limp, but it was now able to heal properly. He removed his sheath, breathing heavily. Mei knelt next to him, keeping her distance from Proxy.

"Let's go back to the Dojo." she said. "We can talk and I can fix your arm there, alright?"

For a few minutes, she just heard his ragged breathing. But then he nodded.

Before helping Zero up, the same blue light enveloped Proxy and he was back into his Snow Leopard form. Mei jumped, blinking and then holding Zero tighter, helping support his broken arm.

"Tell me the truth," Mei said, tightening the knot on Zero's sling, and began to bandage the knife wounds on his back.

Luckily, it wasn't his writing arm that was broken.

"Mei, I've been trying." Zero wrote once she had finished bandaging his back. Mei helped Zero pull on his jacket, letting it rest on his shoulders. "But I keep getting interrupted."

Mei nodded, it was true. "Alright, but who's to interrupt us now?"

"Mei, I'm from the Future!" Zero wrote quickly, showing it to her.

Mei's breath caught in her throat. Then she sighed and let out a laugh, smiling at Zero.

"So, a Time Walker, huh?" Mei asked.

Zero blinked, very surprised at her reaction. "You believe me?"

"If that's what you are, then so what?" Mei replied. "I told you that I would take you seriously, remember? And after everything that's happened, I guess this explains it. Proxy's transformations and his look, you're both Time Walkers? My dad's read me a lot of stories like that when I was growing up, it's my favorite genre."

Zero nodded. "But I plan to leave the Future behind, after my boss is gone."

"Master wants to stay with you after we are finished." Proxy spoke up. "Master really cares about you, and I do not think you can find anyone better."

"I don't think I could." Mei said, wrapping an arm around Zero's shoulders.

"And what about your brother?" Mei asked.

"To make a long story short, Master was framed for his family's deaths." Proxy spoke up. "His uncle poisoned Father's morning tea, causing his throat to swell and thus, did not allow air passage. With no air getting into Father's lungs, Master attempted to poke a hole in his throat to allow air."

"And Zero's brother walked in while he was attempting to cure his Father." Mei realized, piecing it together.

"Yes, and because of that misunderstanding, it cost Master his voice." Proxy finished.

"Zero…" Mei whispered, squeezing his shoulder.

Zero shook his head, standing up and bowed to her. "Thank you for fixing my arm. If it is alright with you, I need to be alone for a little while."

Mei reluctantly nodded. "Proxy, does he always shut people out?" she asked when Zero exited the Dojo, she was thoroughly worried.

"Master is… troubled." Proxy said. "I will not say why, because it is his reason, not mine, to give you. Master is also angry with me, because he did not want me to reveal my true form."

"If he needs comforting, then I'll comfort him." Mei said. "Before I do, what about you?"

"Master created me directly after his family's deaths. With the help of Bentley, I came into being." Proxy answered.

"What are you exactly?" Mei asked.

"I am a droid," Proxy replied. "A being that is created as a mechanical device that can be programmed to carry out instructions and perform complicated tasks usually done by people. Most droids resemble a man in appearance and can function in a similar way. However, I have been given a special ability to be able to copy ones appearance. I am mostly used for infiltration that Master Zero and Master Snake Eyes cannot partake in, when deception is required."

Okay, I'm going to pretend that I understood all of that… Mei thought, smiling and nodding to Proxy.

"Well, we can talk later, Proxy." Mei said. "I think I'll go see Zero."

Man, there is so much that I need to wrap my head around… Mei shook her head.

A/N: I am sorry if this chapter bored you. Or if you lost interest since you have found out Zero's secret. However, I will continue to press on with this. Zero does not go back to the Future until Kung Fu Panda 3.5, so don't worry about it going from one time to the next in this story.