Hoo boy...Well I'm back and let me tell you that was one crazy Spring break! sorry I didn't update for a while but trust me...you didn't want to see an update from me this week, heh heh. Panama city...nothing quite like it for Spring break that's all I'm gonna say! Thanks for all the awesome reviews and support and I'm sorry if I left you impatient. but I'm back now.
Real quick, a guest asked what I was going to work on when this story is finished. Well, I'll be focusing entirely on Time waits for no one when I finish Fate Can Be So Cruel. turns out I am incapable of working on more than one story at a time.
Without further ado, I give you Chapter 25! Enjoy the Read!
Chapter 25
A meeting 20 years too late
Back in the Palace courtyard…
Viper, Crane, Monkey and Mantis, were all standing in the courtyard staring at the closed gates that Master Oogway had just walked through not so long ago. They couldn't believe it. Oogway had just up and left them all without even a second thought. So many things were running through the warriors minds as they stood in total silence.
They were devastated that their oldest teacher had left them. After all, if not for Master Oogway seeking them out, none of them would even be a part of the Furious Five, save for perhaps Tigress. They were angry because they had failed to prevent this event from happening. And Even though Po had broken his end of their deal by leaving early, Oogway still insisted on leaving the Jade Palace forever and none of them could understand why.
They were worried because they feared that they would never see their Master again. Worried, that before they may ever get the chance to learn, Master Oogway could somehow pass away from their world and they may never know as to how, or why. He never told them where he was going and he never gave any indication that he would see any of them again. And that fact was weighing heavily on all four of the Master's hearts.
Mantis had hoped over to stand between Viper and Monkey as he spoke for the first time in a while, "Maybe… if we can convince Po to come back, then so will Master Oogway!" Monkey just shook his head no saying, "Come on Mantis, there's no way Po's coming back up here. He totally hates us again. And besides, even if Po did come back, how would we even manage to get word to Master Oogway? We have no idea where he's going or what he's going to do." Mantis then suggested, "Crane could fly around and try to spot him from the air! Out of all of us, he'd be able to cover the most ground."
But Crane just shook his head no saying, "Even if I did go looking for him, I doubt that if by some small chance that I did find him, that he would come back willingly. When Master Oogway sets his mind to something, I've never seen it be changed for any reason." Monkey nodded and Mantis merely hung his head low in defeat. "So that's it then?" the bug whispered as Crane nodded his head and sighed saying, "Yeah…looks that way."
Suddenly Viper had lifted her head and started slithering over towards the Gates when Monkey called after her, "Viper? Where are you going?" Viper stopped short of the door and just continued looking forward for a moment before declaring, "I'm going to find Po, and convince him to come back." Crane then asked in disbelief, "And how exactly are you going to do that? Like Monkey said, Po hates us, there's no way he'll come back now."
Viper then turned around and nearly shouted, "Well I have to do SOMETHING! I can't just let him leave like this thinking the worst of us all! He has to know!" Mantis then asked as he lifted his head towards the snake, "Know what Viper?" Viper remained silent for a brief moment before she answered with conviction, "That we're his friends! And that we still care about him. Master Oogway may have left the Palace but that does not mean we have to just give up on Po. He needs to know that he can count on us!"
Crane then asked as he tilted his hat, "You sure he even wants anything to do with us? I mean, come on Viper, the guy just threw us around like it was nothing. It didn't even look like he cared!" Viper paused for a moment as she remembered the hurt filled expression that was covering the Panda's face as they tried to subdue him, when she replied, "That's not true…he cares, and I think right now he feels betrayed. I can't let a brother of mine feel this way and not do something about it, so I'm going to look for Po and find this Ming person and apologize for what has happened here!"
And with that, Viper turned around once again and began making her way over to the Gates. Just as she was about to exit through them however, a sudden roar coming from the direction of the Palace caught everyone's attention. "Was that Tigress!?" Monkey asked when the noise was suddenly followed by a much deeper roar, also coming from the Palace.
"THAT definitely was not Tigress!" Mantis declared while Viper whipped around shouting, "Somebody's invaded the Jade Palace! Monkey, quickly; help Crane lock the Gates! We can't let whoever's up there get away!" Immediately, Crane and Monkey shut the Gates and locked them. Once they were done, Viper shouted, "Master Shifu's up there and weakened from his fight with Po. Whoever's up there we can't let them hurt the Master or Tigress!"
Mantis then asked as the Four Warriors quickly made their way over to the steps, "How the heck did they even get into the Palace without us noticing!?" while Monkey shouted, "Who cares!? We got to get up there and help Tigress!" and with that, the Warriors ended the conversation and raced up the Palace steps, hoping they could reach their Comrade and Master in time.
At that moment, within the Hall of Heroes…
Tigress growled as she went high for a spin kick, aimed right at Tai Lung's head, but Tai Lung expertly ducked and countered with swift Jab to Tigress's abdomen. The Instant Tai Lung's fist hit her, Tigress pushed through the Pain and pushed off Tai Lung's arm with her paws and vaulted over the Snow Leopard. The instant she landed, Tigress dropped and crouched low while immediately bringing her right leg around in a low sweep kick aimed directly for Tai Lung's legs, which he easily leaped back from a few feet creating a small distance between the two, while he studied Tigress's moves and skills.
Tigress quickly got to her feet and waited for Tai Lung to make the next move. She hated to admit it, but a part of her was feeling…anxious. Tigress had always known Tai Lung had been strong. To have been Trained by Master Shifu he'd have to be. But throughout the past 20 years she had heard stories of the Legendary Master's fearsome strength, his cunning, relentlessness, as well as his raw power and skill. In truth, she had always envied the snow leopard for his reputation.
But it was more than that. She also knew that the two of them had completely different upbringings, despite training under the same Master…and the same Father. Briefly her eyes darted towards Shifu who was watching from the Moon Pool and she could see that he was not pleased in the least about what was happening before him. But Tigress couldn't worry about her Master's approval right now. Right now she had a task at hand.
Tai Lung was looking for the Dragon Warrior and Tigress needed to know why. And besides, she planned on keeping the Snow leopard occupied for as long as she could. 20 years without a single message from her Foster brother and now here he stood before her. One thing was for certain, he had a lot to answer for.
Shifu continued to watch as his adoptive children once again began to circle each other, each watching the other for the slightest indication for an attack. And yet, Shifu knew neither one of them were really giving this fight their all. For one, Tai Lung had yet to remove his Green cloak from his person. No, Tai Lung was studying Tigress, he was clearly analyzing her every move. Her strengths, and her flaws. He was seeing just how far she had come in 20 years. But judging by the emotionless expression on his Son's face, Shifu could not tell for certain if he was impressed, or disappointed.
Shifu briefly looked over at Tigress and noticed she was entirely focused on Tai Lung. She had appeared to have completely forgotten about the Master, as the two's eyes remained locked on the other's. When Tigress had so openly disobeyed Shifu's order not to fight with Tai Lung, Shifu was beyond shaken. Never, in the past 20 years since he had adopted the Tiger did she ever disobey a direct order and it left the Red Panda completely speechless.
"Is it because she wishes to prove herself against Tai Lung? Could that be why? Or is it because of what happened with the Panda? Is this some attempt to show her displeasure towards what happened on my end? She made it obvious that she placed me somewhat at fault for the Panda leaving but that was just as much his choice, and as a result, Master Oogway has left us."
The thought of his Master now forever gone from the Jade Palace immediately caused Shifu's ears to fall. But they were immediately perked up again when the two warriors before him clashed once again. "Enough of this! Tigress, Tai Lung, cease this meaningless battle this instant!" Shifu demanded while the two Masters fought. Tai Lung quickly responded with, "With all due respect Master Shifu, You have not been my Master for 20 years and as I said, I am in need of a nice warm up match."
Tigress immediately snarled as she announced, "I'll give you more than a warm up!" as she quickly back flipped away from Tai Lung and onto one of the giant Jade pillars. The instant her feet made contact, Tigress quickly pushed off and shot directly towards Tai Lung. Tigress briefly saw the surprised look on his face when her right Paw immediately made contact with the right side of his face and sent the snow leopard staggering back a few steps while she landed on all fours and growled lightly at the snow leopard.
Tai Lung slowly brought his paw out from under his cloak and rubbed his jaw briefly. He definitely wasn't expecting that last punch to be so hard. "I see you haven't wasted the past 20 years after all sister…well done." He thought to himself as he stared back at the Tiger, his face still refusing to display any sense of emotion. "Not bad Tigress…but you're going to have to hit me a lot harder than that if you want to stand a chance against me." Tigress's eyes narrowed as she declared, "I intend to Tai Lung."
Tai Lung nodded as he retorted, "That's good-" but before he could finish, Tai Lung immediately rushed Tigress in what seemed like 2 seconds and instantly Tigress felt a powerful fist connect with her stomach, forcing her to double over, her eyes wide open with shock and surprise. "What!?" Tigress wondered as she heard Tai Lung whispering in her ear right then, "-Because I have yet to get started." And with that, Tai Lung tossed Tigress a ways away.
When she landed, Tigress was on one knee holding the spot on her stomach Tai Lung had just hit as she looked up at the snow leopard and growled. She never even saw that attack coming! Apparently just because Tai Lung was away from the Palace, didn't mean he had stopped with his training. But as Tigress got to her feet once more, Tai Lung charged her yet again, but this time she was ready. As he neared her, Tigress leaped back to create some distance, but as she landed she immediately pushed herself forward and launched herself into a high jump kick, aimed for the Leopard's torso.
However, Tai Lung was ready and as she flew towards him, Tai Lung skillfully leaned to the side and allowed her to sail past him. as she did though, Tigress didn't miss the opportunity to strike out with her right fist aimed for Tai Lung's jaw once more, But Tai Lung blocked the attack with his arm and countered with his own fist hitting her right in the face while he followed through with a side kick to her rib cage and knocked her back a ways.
Once she landed, Tigress winced in pain briefly as she watched the snow leopard closely while she got to her feet. This was ridiculous, there couldn't be such a gap between their strength. Tigress, like Tai Lung had trained under Master Shifu, so how was it that Tai Lung was still acting as if he wasn't trying!? Whatever the case, Tigress decided to forget about it and focused on the battle. She couldn't lose this fight.
As Tigress charged Tai Lung once more she immediately flew into a string of combos trying to find a chink in the snow leopard's defenses. But for every strike, Tai Lung seemed to be able to either counter, or block each attack and it was only serving to anger the Tiger. As Tigress leaped up to deliver a powerful spin kick aimed for Tai Lung's head once more, Tai Lung ducked and just before Tigress could land, her chin was immediately met with a mighty uppercut, stunning the Tiger momentarily while Tai Lung kicked Tigress back into one of the pillars hard enough to cause some dust to fall from the roof.
As Tigress sat there on the ground breathing heavily while she tried to clear her head of her slightly blurred vision, Tai Lung announced as he slowly approached the Tiger, "You have done well Sister. But I'm afraid this is where our match comes to a close." Tigress growled as she slowly got to her feet and snarled, "In your dreams Tai Lung! This match is far from over!" Tai Lung stopped and raised an eyebrow asking, "Is it? Tigress, look at yourself…it's over. Now tell me where I can find the Dragon Warrior."
But as Tigress looked up into Tai Lungs gleaming yellow eyes, she just spat and said, "if you want me to tell you, then you'll have to keep going!" and with that, Tigress instantly leaped and kicked Tai Lung in the face, following through with her signature double palm strike aimed right for his abdomen, forcing the Snow leopard to fly back into his own Column.
As Tai Lung fell down from the column he shook his head and looked back at Tigress and this time he actually smirked as he said, " So you DO know where I can find him!...Very well then…perhaps I'll continue this game for a bit longer Sister. It seems you still have a few surprises for me yet…or was that your best shot?" Tigress growled as she shouted, "Not even close!" but before, she could make another move, a voice from the far end of the Hall caught both her and Tai Lung's attention, "Tigress!"
Immediately, both felines turned to see the Four Masters making their way down the Hall and over towards Tigress, each of them taking their respective fighting stances around her despite the Tiger's obvious annoyance. Once they arrived, Viper asked worriedly, "Are you alright Tigress? We came as soon as we heard you and the intruder from outside." Tai Lung actually smirked at being called an intruder, but mostly because of how true he felt it was.
Mantis then asked, "Just who is this guy?" but Crane looked over at Shifu and asked worriedly, "Master Shifu, are you alright!?" but Tigress silenced them all nearly shouting, "We're fine! And that is not just any intruder…that is Tai Lung." Immediately all four pairs of eyes widened in surprise as Viper turned back to the snow leopard asking "You mean…your Foster Brother!?" Tigress growled lightly at the title but nodded her head as she answered, "That's right."
Although surprised beyond reason of the return of the revered Master, Crane couldn't help but wonder, "So what's he doing back? And why are you two fighting!?" At this point Tai Lung stepped forward and called out, "Although I agree that I have no right to step foot in these sacred halls-" but Crane tried to clarify, "-That's not what I meant-" Yet Tai Lung continued talking, "-I have come for a purpose. I come seeking the Dragon Warrior chosen by Grandmaster Oogway. As for why to the little sparing session with Tigress…well…let's just call it some long overdue sibling bonding time."
Monkey then spoke up for the first time as he looked over at his Comrades and then back to Tai Lung, "He's looking for Po? Why?" but the name did not escape Tai Lung's ears, as he spoke calmly, "So…that is his name…Po. I look forward to our impending battle. But first…" as Tai Lung slowly began counting each of the warriors before him, "5 masters including Tigress…hmm." Tai Lung then looked back at Shifu as he spoke to all the Masters "Either Master Shifu has adopted you all like he did for both Tigress and myself…or this is the current generation of the legendary Furious Five that I have heard tales about."
Viper then snapped, "The second option, and if you're going to fight one of us!" at that point Mantis cut in shouting, "Then you got to fight us all!" Tai Lung smirked once again as he was immediately surrounded by Tigress and the Furious Five. "Very well, perhaps fighting all of you will give me the proper Warm up I need before I challenge the Dragon Warrior."
At this point Shifu slammed his Cane down onto the ground shouting, "That is enough Tai Lung! I order you all to stop this madness at once!" but as Shifu said this, Tai Lung simply reminded, "Forgive me Master Shifu but again, I cannot take orders from you." and with that, Tai Lung brought both his arms out from under his cloak and entered the fighting stance for his infamous Leopard style, and Tigress realized for the first time that he was only just now starting to take this seriously.
Although annoyed at the fact her Comrades were now joining the battle, Tigress did not ask them to stand aside. Perhaps if they could subdue the snow leopard then maybe they could lock him away in the Palace Dungeons before he had the chance to escape and disappear for another 20 years. Once the hall died down to a deathly eerie quiet, Tigress shouted, "GO!" and immediately the Furious Five advanced and closed in on the snow leopard.
As the Five Masters closed in, Crane struck first with three kicks to Tai Lung's face which Tai Lung blocked with a single forearm each time while Mantis leaped up and delivered a powerful kick to the Leopards chest with two of his four legs sending the Leopard straight into Viper who quickly lashed out with her tail, striking Tai Lung several times in the side while he tried to defend himself. After her third strike, Tai Lung struck out with a right Claw strike, but Viper lithely dodged and wrapped around his arm as a result, gripping the leopard tightly while she used the upper part of her body to wrap around the Leopards neck.
Using the muscles in her lower body, Viper immediately pulled Tai Lung's arm towards his face and forced him to strike at himself. Tai Lung, although furious at being made to attack himself, had to admit the trick was useful as he pried Viper away from his neck and tightened his grip around her throat. But before he could get rid of her, Monkey appeared beneath him and using his hands to steady himself, pushed off the ground and performed a double kick aimed right at Tai Lung's jaw launching Tai Lung a few feet up into the air, while Viper released him and fell down to the floor gracefully.
While Tai Lung was still airborne he was about to flip down towards the ground when suddenly Tigress appeared before him with both her arms pulled back and her eyes completely focused. Immediately Tai Lung realized what was coming, and as he neared her, Tai Lung brought his arms forward to defend himself while Tigress released a powerful roar and leaped up at the incoming Leopard striking out with a powerful Double Palm strike.
The instant she made contact, there was a small shockwave as a result, and Tai Lung was launched high into the ceiling and then through the roof! But Tigress wasn't done yet, as she looked over at Crane and shouted, "Crane!" and immediately the Avian flew over and grabbed Tigress by the back of her vest and flew her up through the new hole in the roof. Mantis immediately hopped onto Monkey's shoulder and together the remaining 3 Masters chased after their Comrades leaving Shifu alone in the Hall of Heroes.
"How could I have let this happen?" Shifu muttered to himself, as he listened to his students continue to struggle against his Son. They were no match for Tai Lung, Shifu knew this. He trained Tai Lung himself, he trained him harder than he trained anyone before or after him. Even Tigress. He knew that the Five never stood a chance against the snow leopard. Even after 20 years of exile, Tai Lung still found a way to keep up with his training. He was stronger than ever and all Shifu could do was watch helplessly.
Forcing himself to push through the throbbing pain in his newly damaged hip, Shifu began making his way over to the Terrace so that he might better be able to keep an eye on all of his Students and his Son. And to think, all of this could have been avoided if he had just opened his mouth about the Panda.
But even he had to admit, he was curious to see just how far Tai Lung had come in his training since his departure. As he walked through the Hall, Shifu could not help but wonder, "What will Tai Lung do when he realizes Oogway chose the very Panda he failed to rescue as the Dragon Warrior?" And with that, Shifu continued forcing himself over to the doors to the Hall.
Outside on the roof…
After Tai Lung burst through the roof he immediately back flipped and landed on the rook in a low crouch, his green cloak flapping rapidly in the wind behind him. Storm clouds had begun to form overhead and in that instant, Lightning crashed across the sky. As Tai Lung looked up he could smell the moisture in the air. It was going to rain soon…a lot. But before he could ponder the thought further, the Crane and Tigress emerged from the Hole in the roof and Crane had launched Tigress right at Tai Lung.
As Tigress was about to land a powerful kick to the side of Tai Lung's head, the Snow Leopard caught her by the ankle and swung her around, earning him a short scream of surprise while he threw her right back at the Avian and the two immediately tumbled onto the roof in a heap. But before he could advance upon them, Tai Lung was immediately surrounded by the remaining three Masters who quickly began to attack once more.
If nothing else, Tai Lung was beginning to realize why each of them were give the honor of joining the legendary force known as the Furious Five. Their teamwork was flawless and their drive to fight as one was clear and evident. He was proud Tigress was selected as a member of the Furious Five. Not even he had managed to achieve such an honor. "Well done Sister."
Tigress and Crane had landed a small distance away and were finally getting up off of each other. "Man, this guy is no joke, and I thought you and Po packed quite a Wallop!" Crane breathed out as he adjusted his hat, Tigress however shook her head and snapped, "Focus Crane, we have to subdue him and get him to talk. I want to know why it's so important for him to find the Dragon Warrior."
Crane nodded and immediately flew off towards the Snow leopard while Tigress slowly got to her feet. In that instant, the sky above her began to open up and rain began pouring down upon them all, while thunder boomed across the dark gray sky. As Tigress looked up she could feel the rain pouring all around her and her mind was taken back to that day in the Cave with the Panda.
How he had taken her in from the elements despite his mistrust for her at the time and still cared for her when she was injured. But then she remembered the hurt filled expression on his face when she realized that he thought she had betrayed him and she could not help but wonder what would happen should Tai Lung ever meet him.
Shaken by her thoughts by Monkey's cry as he was kicked in the face, Tigress immediately dropped to all fours and began racing across the rooftop towards Tai Lung, running through the pouring rain as if it was an endless wall of water.
Tai Lung had to admit, he was finally starting to actually try against these warriors. Thanks to the rain, his cloak was now drenched and therefore was interfering with his movements slowing him down significantly. As he dodged and weaved through each of the Four Master's attacks, his mind was constantly shuffling through counter attacks and blocks, but before he could even try to attack, another Master would strike out at him and force him to block or dodge.
By this point he was getting annoyed and in one fell swoop Tai Lung roared as he leaped up into the air and launched a powerful spin kick, knocking each of the four Masters back away from them sprawling back on the roof. Crane released a short cry as he landed on his wing badly, "My wing!" but when Mantis had gotten up to look at it, both Master's knew Crane wasn't going to be flying anytime soon.
As soon as Tai Lung landed, he was breathing heavily as he tried to keep his eyes on all four warriors when his ears suddenly picked up movement coming from behind him. But before he could even determine who it was, instinct took over and Tai Lung spun around, and immediately back flipped, extending his right leg out into a powerful kick connecting with…Tigress's chin!?
The instant it happened however, Tai Lung regretted it at once. "No!" Tai Lung shouted as he landed on the roof in a low crouch and watched as Tigress soared through the air beyond his reach. Tigress never even saw it coming. As she flew there in the air, she thought she could hear voices screaming, "TIGRESS!" was that Viper? it had to be. But Tigress couldn't think straight.
Her eyes drifted as Time slowed and she continued flying through the air, away from the Palace roof, and out into the courtyard, but the only face that held her attention was Tai Lung's as he watched helplessly from the roof, and Tigress saw his face twist with guilt. He never meant for that kick to be aimed at her.
Shifu watched helplessly from outside as he watched Tigress soar back away from the Palace roof and immediately his heart sank. "No! Shifu whispered as he watched her fall. But as she neared the palace wall, Shifu's eyes widened in shock as he muttered, "It can't be…"
Tai Lung watched as Tigress was kicked back off the roof and over towards the wall surrounding the Palace. At this rate She'd land on the otherside and no doubt break her neck on the stairs. "What have I done?" Tai Lung whispered when suddenly his heart skipped a beat as he watched a black and brown figure leap off of the Palace wall and was heading right for Tigress. "Who…is that!?"
Moments before on the Thousand steps…
Po was slowly making his way up the Thousand steps leading up to the Jade Palace, with the Dragon scroll clutched loosely in his right paw. As he climbed, Po's eyes were often drifting back to the Scroll as he wondered to himself, "Am I doing the right thing?" but as soon as he thought about it he remembered what Ming had told him back in the restaurant about being terrified of the Panda and he knew that he needed to change that. "But what if I get up there and they don't want me to come back…not that I could blame them…in fact, I'm sure Shifu won't even want to look at me."
As his mind drifted towards the Red Panda he remembered Shifu's face the instant Po stomped down on his hip. He knew Shifu had a bad hip, he'd seen the old Master limping around all the time despite him trying to hide it. And yet Po still never hesitated to try and crush it…he never stopped. He was so blinded by his rage that it took him till just then while he stopped climbing the steps and his eyes widened in realization…He was just like them.
He had acted EXACTLY like a Master. Not like the ones at the Palace, he was now certain they were different, but he had acted EXACTLY like one of his Masters from before. He hadd beaten Shifu down until the Red Panda couldn't get up. He had been ruthless and uncaring at how much pain he had caused the Red Panda. He had acted no better than Sai…or Cheng.
The realization forced Po to drop to his knees as tears threatened to escape his eyes. "How…how could I have ever let myself be compared to THEM!? I spent my entire life hating those Monsters and now…Now I'm no better than them…I'm a…I'm a monster." as Po whispered the last words his grip tightened around the Dragon Scroll as he tried to steel his nerves. If nothing else, maybe the Masters would allow Po to return the Dragon Scroll.
Even if Oogway said Po was to be the only Dragon Warrior, according to Tigress the title was said to have incredible honor. But after today, Po was certain that he didn't deserve such honor. Ming was right. He over reacted big time. Those Masters up there had done nothing but try to be his friend. sure they got off to a rocky start, but one by one each of the Kung Fu Masters began to open up to Po. They taught him how to read and write, how to meditate, they taught him what a vocabulary was and helped started to expand his. And what did he do? He threw it all away just because of an accident.
It was in that moment, Oogway's words from when he was attempting to teach Po balance echoed throughout his mind, "Your anger only blinds you Po. You think it gives you strength but you are wrong child. It only holds you back!" Po quietly whispered, "You were right…my anger did blind me." after years of believing his anger was the only thing that could keep him alive, Po finally realized that his anger was exactly what almost made him lose Ming for good and maybe even his Dad.
"I need to make this right. There has to be a better way than-" but Po was cut off as he heard a loud crash coming from above him. "What was that!?" The Panda wondered and immediately Po began racing for the Palace gates. In no time flat, Po managed to reach the top and tried to burst through the Gates but was surprised to see they wouldn't budge.
"Locked?" Po wondered aloud. "Why on earth would they lock the gates this early?" It was in that moment that thunder Boomed across the sky and it started to pour down on the Panda. His brown robe and pants soaked in seconds Po hastily looked around for another way in to the Palace. He had to find Tigress and the others and make this right.
Seeing no other way in, Po spotted a nearby tree and quickly placed the Dragon Scroll under his robe and into the waistline of his pants, while he climbed up the tree using his claws. Once he was high enough that he could easily jump from the tree and onto the top of the wall Po looked forward and his eyes widened in shock, "Tigress!?"
Tigress had literally just been charging a green cloaked figure and had literally been kicked right in the chin, resulting in Tigress being sent flying back away from the Palace and right towards the Wall where Po was standing. "No!" Po heard someone shout, who's voice he couldn't recognize. "TIGRESS!" That was Viper, Po's eyes darted over the roof and he saw the other Masters near the intruder. But Po couldn't think about them right now. Tigress was soaring towards him and if he didn't do something she would end up seriously hurt, or worse!"
As she neared him, Po leaped out from the tree and the moment his feet touched the top of the wall, Po pushed up with everything he had and leaped right for Tigress, with his arms outstretched. It was like time itself had slowed as the two neared each other. Po could see Tigress's eyes were barely open. But as she flew directly into his arms, Po braced himself and caught the Tiger bridal style as he grunted into her ear, "Gotcha!" as he fell down into the courtyard and landed in a low crouch, trying his best not to jar the injured Tigress as his left knee landed firmly on the ground to stabilize him.
Shifu stared into the courtyard in shock as he looked upon his pupil's savior and realized it was the Panda. "He came back…he saved her!?" Shifu whispered as he hobbled in the direction of the two.
Viper, Crane, Mantis, and Monkey were staring wide eyed at the Panda as Monkey cried out, "He caught her! Po caught her!" Mantis then shouted, "I knew he'd come back!" while Viper whispered, "Oh thank the Gods Tigress is okay!" while Crane shouted, Come on, we got to get down there!" but nobody moved as the four warriors all stared at Tai Lung who was staring at the Warrior in the courtyard, his eyes wide with shock, and confusion. "It can't be…" Tai Lung whispered as he stared at the large creature carrying his foster sister.
There standing in the courtyard looking down at the semiconscious Tigress stood a Panda of all things, wearing black pants, and a brown robe. Tai Lung then realized the Monkey had called the creature Po. "So…HE is the Dragon Warrior?" Tai Ling wondered as he studied the large creature. The Panda seemed to not be paying any attention to him which was fine by the snow leopard.
"Funny that Master Oogway would chose a creature resembling my greatest failure to be my greatest challenge." Tai Lung mused, as his mind instantly remembered the tiny face of the Panda cub he had imagined that he could never find. Shaking his head of the thoughts, Tai Lung instantly leaped from the roof and hurled down towards the Courtyard. The time for his redemption had finally arrived!
Tigress groaned as she felt whoever it was who caught her stand to their full height and bring her closer to them. As she opened her eyes, Tigress was beyond shocked to see the eyes of none other than the Panda staring down at her, as they were filled with concern. "Panda?" Tigress whispered in confusion, unable to believe he had come back, while Po simply nodded, his face still in a frown as he whispered "I gotcha…you alright?"
Tigress grunted as she suddenly felt the intense pain in her chin and Po quickly wiped away some of the blood that had started trickling out of her mouth as a result, "Yeah…I'm fine. You… You came back?" Po nodded as he answered, "There's something I need to figure out." But before Tigress could ask what in the world Po was talking about, both creatures heard a loud thud and turned to see the Snow Leopard had landed in the court yard in a low crouch, his bright yellow eyes focused completely on Po.
Tigress growled and Po's hold on her tightened a bit, surprising her as she looked up and saw him glaring at the Snow Leopard. Eyes of bright yellow staring into eyes of cold, fierce Jade…except, something wasn't right. "Something's different…his eyes…they aren't as cold as before." Tigress noticed as Tai Lung called out to the Panda, "Are you the one they call Po? Chosen by Grandmaster Oogway himself to inherit the Dragon Warrior name?"
Po's face remained serious as he studied the Leopard briefly before answering, "My name is Po, yes…who are you, and why are you fighting with the Masters?" But as the snow leopard stood to his full height and answered Po, the Panda's eyes widened in surprise, "My name…is Master Tai Lung… And I have come to challenge you for the right to the Dragon Warrior title!"
After 20 years, Po and Tai Lung have finally come face to face for the first time. How will Po react to Tai Lung's challenge? what are Tai Lung's thoughts about the Panda? And just how far will the Leopard go to prove himself worthy of the title? This chapter may have been a bit shorter but I promise the next one won't be as short.
However, it has been a month since I last updated my other story so I need to get a chapter up over there ASAP.
Thanks for reading and remember...
Review!