Po was having the best five minutes ever. Ever since he had woken up in that prison cell, he had been scared poopless for Tigress, Shifu and all his other friends. To see Mantis against meant more than a bear hug could ever express.

Unable to speak with Po's chest fur in his mouth, Mantis had to push himself out of Po's ecstatic embrace. "It's good to see you too, Po. Where the heck have you been?"

Po proceeded to launch into an excited breathless tirade that lasted over thirty seconds. When he was done he took a long, wheezing gasp, giving Mantis a chance to take it all in. "So you originally came here to find Tigress?"

"That, and Ember kinda forced me too." Po took another, shorter gasp. "Have you seen Tigress? I have to know if she'd okay!"

"She's okay, Po. She helped me escape by posing as one of the soldiers. I don't know where she is, though."

So Tigress is here! Po could have danced. "What about the others? Are they okay?"

"They're fine. They're still in the central building."

"Then what are we waiting for, let's go!"

"Hold it!" Mantis grabbed Po's foot before he could reach the door, and the panda fell on his face with a dull thud. Rubbing his face, he turned over to stare at Mantis. "Po, that place is crawling with soldiers. I only barely got out of there without being seen. Besides, we've still got a royal family to save."

"Huh?"

"You know? Emperor Xian? Haoxin de Nushi? Tigress's number one fan? They're being held in the library. We have to help them."

"If stupid Ember doesn't get in the darn way." Po said under his breath.

"What's that?"

"Nothing. The library isn't far from here, is it?"

"No. The garden in between doesn't have many guards and provides a lot of cover. I've already planned a route, so we won't be soon as long as you do as I tell you."

Po touched the Heart of China around his neck. "It's kinda weird when you say stuff like that. It's usually Tigress who does the planning and ordering."

Mantis rubbed the back of his neck. "Yeah. Two months and I still haven't got used to this. We should go. They'll realise I've escaped, eventually."

"Won't they realise that there's an inflator in the ranks when they find the key with our friends?"

"Don't worry, I put the key back in the soldier's pocket when no-one was looking. They won't suspect a thing. Come on, and I'll explain everything we've learned about the Children of Nuwa on the way."


When Sao was summoned to the front gate of the palace, the butterflies in his stomach that had been fluttering about since the arrival of the creature grew even more agitated.

God knows he had enough to worry about already, with the creature, Ember, the panda, and Long Feng's decline. Ember's telekinetic nerve attacks and the creature's deadly shadow trick had by now cost them a lot of men, and it was doing nothing to help Long Feng's growing instability. A few minutes ago Sao had learned that the rhino had given the order for their 'artificial' troops to be released from the warehouse, and the fox had not liked that one bit. Hei Nuwang had given those warriors to Long Feng to use only as a last resort. Their deployment could only mean one thing: they were no longer in control.

Wait, were we ever? Or had our initial success merely lulled us into a false sense of security?

Sao was also wondering about Hei Nuwang, and if this loss of control applied to her as well. It was her idea to attack the Imperial City and take the emperor prisoner. What was she thinking of the current situation? Was she just as concerned as Sao was? Was... Was this all part of her plan?

He had been on his way back to Long Feng to confront him with these thoughts when the brainwashed dog soldier intercepted him, insisted with those intense red eyes and dead voice that he come at once to the front gate. Irritated and nervous, Sao followed him across the palace grounds with one arm sheltering his head against the raining embers, wishing that the Children of Nuwa had used a means less disturbing than the hypnotic elixir. As they approached the front gate, Sao grew aware of a rhythmic, thunderous pounding on the massive, trembling doors of the gate. "What the hell is going on out there?"

"You will see." The soldier said tonelessly. They entered one of the two gate towers, climbed the stairs, and walked out onto the top of the wall. The bowmen were leaning over the parapet, aiming their weapons at an enemy Sao couldn't see. He strode over and looked down.

Glass-eyed citizens. Hundreds of them. An entire ocean of pigs, antelopes, geese, rabbits, and many more flooded the wide space between the city buildings and the palace wall. Every single one of them was carrying stolen blades, kitchen knives, farming tools, anything that could serve as a weapon. Every single one of them was facing the gates. Stunned, Sao looked to the gates himself, and his jaw dropped when he saw the source of the pounding. A massive elephant dressed in grey and black was striking the gates over and over with a hammer bigger than his head. What scared Sao most of all was that the elephant wasn't even putting a full swing into it. It merely tapped the gates like it was hammering a nail, but with each blow the great doors shook. They would not hold forever.

Sao stormed over to the unbrainwashed soldier in charge of guarding the gates and grabbed him by the chest armour. "Why aren't you firing?!"

"We've tried, sir! Look-" He gave a signal, and a soldier fired straight at the elephant's head. It didn't even notice as the arrow sunk into its skull. A second later the arrow disintegrated into glowing ash. As for the elephant's head, it was fully intact. "They're all the same! The empress must have cast some sort of spell!"

Even as he clenched his fists, Sao hardened his expression. He had to show strength. "Do everything you can to block the gates and stop that elephant before it breaks through. I must report this to the general."

"Yes, sir!" the soldier saluted him, but Sao was already making his way back down the tower. In next to no time he was back in the central hall, passing by the prisoners chained around the column, tpo focused on Long Feng to notice that for some reason Monkey had wrapped both arms around Mantis's cage.

"Sir!" He called out to Long Feng, who was leaning over the map table. Two rhino soldiers stood in his path, but soon stepped aside when they saw who it was. Sao went straight up to Long Feng, who did not look up. As he was about to speak, he saw that Long Feng wasn't looking down at a map, but a small painting of Ember before her attempted murder at the Children of Nuwa's hands. Ember's painted image had three knives embedded in her heart, neck and pelvis. "Sir, we have a serious problem."

"Of course we do! I've sent the claymen to hunt down her and any remaining enemies of the Children of Nuwa. Just focus on findin' that panda!"

If Sao wanted to get anywhere with the general, he couldn't lose his temper. "Sir... Ember's forces are attacking the gate. We must move quickly to form a sufficient defence."

Long Feng looked straight into his eyes. "The guards will take care of it. Ember and her little panda pet are th' main priority."

He turned back to the painting and with his one hand he plunged another knife into the panted Ember's arm.

Despite his natural instincts telling him to back away, Sao stepped forward. "Long Feng, we need to talk."

"Later."

"The hell with that! You can't seriously believe that Ember and Po are working together! Have you lost your mind?"

"No! Ember may have taken my arm, but she will never have my mind!" Long Feng glared at him. "Or perhaps it is you whose mind has been stolen?"

"Of course not!" Sao took a deep breath. "Sir, we were sent here by Hei Nuwang, supposedly to take the city and capture the emperor, and we have experienced nothing but misfortune since we started. A creature is running around killing people, and Ember has amassed an unkillable army at our doorstep..." Go ahead, Sao. Say it. "I fear we have been deceived."

He had just implied that Hei Nuwang, the woman to whom Long Feng had sworn allegiance a long time ago, had betrayed them. He fully expected the general to do something violent. Instead Long Feng merely stared at him like he had done something incredibly stupid. "Of course you were deceived! Hei Nuwang didn't want to risk someone letting it slip or Ember would figure out the real reason for this invasion!"

"What?"

Long Feng looked around, but none of the soldiers appeared to have overheard. He lowered his voice. "Ember is everything. You know that. Hei Nuwang wants her at any cost."

Sao went numb. "This invasion. It's a lie."

"Better than that." Long Feng leered. "It's a trap."

"We're just bait, aren't we?"

"Did you ever feel like we were expendable?"

Sao's fist started to rise.

"You son of a-"

"SIR!" Came the shout of a gorilla soldier, drawing their attention. The soldier was standing next to the prisoners, alarm written all over his face as he held up an empty cage.


Mei Ling had hoped that they could hide Mantis's escape for longer than that, but there was a silver lining: the hissy fit Long Feng threw once it was discovered that the cage was empty.

Her leg was still in agony after the jostling it endured when they searched her and her friends for the key to the cage, coming up empty handed. She did not know how Monkey had managed to hide it, and after everything Crane had told her about the primate in his letter, she was pretty sure she didn't want to. In any case, Master Tigress's gift to them was safe, and ready for when the opportunity for their own escape came around. She just hoped that Mantis had managed to get out the building by now. As for the croc who had been the former holder of the key, Long Feng was forced to spare his life after several witnesses confirmed that he had not gone anywhere near the prisoners since they were brought to the central hall, and the key was still found on his person.

"He must have picked the lock himself. It's the only way." Sao said.

"Or maybe that evil witch picked it for him!" Long Feng's entire body was heaving with rage. "Why in god's hell is she not goddamn dead?!"

"Is it me, or is that guy going off his rocker?" Monkey asked.

"Shurrup!" Crane whispered. "Don't provoke him!"

Mei Ling took a long, hard look at Long Feng's murderous expression, and the way he rubbed his stump. Ember's assault decades ago had to have damaged him in more ways than one.


Master Eagle Jr.'s work was almost done. For hours, or perhaps even days, he had led dozens of palace servants down the great passage, the one that led all the way from the royal bedrooms to the outskirts of the city. He'd endured the cramped, dark underground where he couldn't fully spread his great wings, knowing it would be worth it once the servants were safe. Even so, fearing for Xian and his family, having no idea if they were dead or alive, had been torture. If only he had gotten to them before Long Feng did.

At last they reached the end of the tunnel, where a big stone door stood waiting for them. Di Tan, the palace chef and Mr. Ping's idol, held up a torch so Eagle Jr. could see himself pushing the door open, filling the room with crimson sunlight. The avian warrior poked his head out, seeing lightly falling embers and a yellow and green countryside. As the servants filed out, Eagle Jr. turned to Di Tan, who knew full well the bigger bird would be going back. "There's a road on the other side of this field that will take you to the next city. You make sure these people get there in one piece."

Though clearly afraid, the old goose nodded. "Are you sure you're alright going back by yourself?"

"What choice do I have? All our men have been killed or subjected to the elixir. If- no, when I find the royals, I'll tell them to meet you at the Red Lily Inn."

"You... probably shouldn't go without a weapon." Di Tan slowly pulled a big carving knife from his apron pocket and handed it over. "I know it's not a proper blade, but-"

"Thank you, Di Tan." Eagle Jr. slid the knife into his sash. "See you soon."