So my computer had a bad accident and I had to get it to fix and waited for a month. Then I had to put writing on hold to do some family business with took me another month but it's now out of the way and I'm finally back. Anyway, we're finally here, this is the chapter I've been dying to write. Po finally faces Tiān Cháo! There will be nothing but action, comedy,(well my attempts of being funny), and fun. So grab your snacks and drinks cuz' it's an epic one, and to make it more exciting put on your favorite boss music during the battle scene, enjoy guys!
Chapter 10:Vs Tiān Cháo (part 1)
"Hello, Panda."
If there was one thing Po did not expect, it was being unprepared for someone sneaking upon him. Neither he nor Shen even heard her coming and it wasn't a dramatic entrance. Nuwa only stared knowing what the monkey's presence meant. She stayed close to the ground guarding the sleeping pile, her eyes dart to the sides looking for the other ones.
Shen's body rigid to a defensive stance, his sight not leaving what he believes to be the enemy as she sat on the boulder staring down at his friend. Po however held his staff tight, he stared back at those violet eyes, seeing a small gleam. He watched as Tiān Cháo's smile then turned to a frown.
"You know it's rude to ignore a lady," she spoke up.
The panda blinked, his arms lamely relax. He was expecting some sort of attack. But seeing this as an opportunity to distract her, he allowed himself to be himself.
"Uh, hey," he greeted with a small wave as he normally greets people, "Didn't see ya there. We were just chilling and stuff. So uh, how you doing?"
Tiān Cháo was specious by this odd casualness already seeing through it but decided to play along.
"Oh I'm fine, wonderful actually," she said with fake cheeriness.
"That's gre-"
"Because I finally found the thieves who took my dragon." Tiān Cháo cut him off offhandedly.
Po's lips tighten seeing that sinister grin returning. So much for distracting her. He could see she was actually upset from her change tone and stayed quiet. Shen didn't back down his stance as he glared at the female monkey.
"How did find us?" Shen demanded.
She didn't have to answer the question. Out from the tall trees and landing on her shoulder was Gang, chuckling evilly.
"Of course," Shen muttered.
At this moment, Nuwa quietly moved her long tail to nudge one of the sleeping masters, her tail brushed to Tigress's side. Tigress opened one eye immediately sensing something was wrong. She stayed very still as she listened to what was behind her.
"So you're Tiān Cháo right?" Po asked.
"Correct. And you must be the great Dragon Warrior," Tiān Cháo said with amusement eyeing up and down on the panda. Nothing about him looked impressive to her.
"You look more like a walking joke."
The hurtful comment didn't even faze Po. It was something he has grown used to every time a bad guy underestimate him, he simply rolled his eyes to the insult.
Tiān Cháo then turned her attention to Shen, who has been glaring at her and Gang for a while. She found him more fascinating, she had seen many birds before but nothing like him. Her smile didn't leave her face as she acknowledges him.
"And you, you're the ill-looking warlord aren't you?" she delivery taunted the peacock.
Shen had to shudder a deep inhale, trying to control himself. The fact that he was still being called sickly made him furious. He snarled his beak and hissed at the duo, his glare deepens. He wanted to tackle her but he knows he can't, the others were still sleeping, if he or Po makes one wrong move they will put them in danger.
When he didn't answer her, Tiān Cháo kept smiling, gently rubbing the top of the Gang's head with her figure nail. The crow didn't mind the kind gesture, he only wished the nails weren't so sharp. "Gang told me so much about you, about what a bad man you are."
"Hey!" Po grabbed back her attention holding his staff in front of him, "Leave him alone."
The golden monkey just hummed, she had enough with the conversation already. She stood up, her tail handing her weapon as she stared down at her enemies.
"Let's cut just to the chase boys, hand me back Nuwa nicely," she threatened, pointing her weapon at them.
Po already had an answer, "Not happening lady. Prepare to face the power of chi!"
He swirls his staff and pointed it right at the duo, expecting his chi to glow up and strike them. But sadly nothing happened, there was only the awkward silence of the wind. The monkey and crow glanced at each other and back to Po, who huffed in irritation.
"Are you kidding me, work!" he shook the jade staff, thinking that would activate it.
Shen just looked at him agape and confused, "What are you doing?"
"I was trying to use any chi left for an attack."
"What?"
"As an attack, you know like I did back at the village."
"What are you talking about I never saw you do anything like that."
"How did you not see that? It was so bright and awesome. It's like when we first woke up Nuwa."
"You're only going to weaken yourself you fool!"
"I told you I'm fine. You're starting to sound like my dads and that's weird."
As the two bricked on, Tiān Cháo raised a brow in disbelief that they were doing this right now. She turned her head to Gang, she pointed at them with her thumb and mouthed 'seriously?' to him. He can only shrug, he too was surprised by his enemies' changed dynamic. The monkey gazed away, wondering how these buffoons were warriors in the first place. Seeing they weren't going to stop she growled impatiently.
"Enough!" Tiān Cháo crouched down slamming her palm on the bolder, sending a wave of energy in the ground. The chi traveled to the tress, causing its large roots to raise from the ground and towering the masters. Po and Shen stop arguing and turned to see what was going on. Their eyes widen by the strange phenomena, the roots were moving on their own. Shen was almost backed away in fear, none of what he is seeing shouldn't be possible. Po was distracted at being amazed than frightened, wondering how Tiān Cháo was doing this.
"Woah, Master Pangolin was right," he whispered to himself. Po was about to call out his friends to wake up but Tiān Cháo throws a threat to him.
"If you don't obey me, then I'll make sure your little army stays asleep forever."
That made Nuwa finally step forward.
"No Tiān Cháo!" she cried, "Don't do this, no one has to be hurt."
The golden monkey turned to the dragon, seeing her pleading her to stop. "Then make this easy for all of us and come back to me."
The dragon shook her head.
"Please let my friends go," Nuwa said in her pacifist manner, "You know this isn't the way. Do the right thing."
Tiān Cháo 's eyes narrowed, her expression unchanged. "I am doing the right thing. But I guess you don't care about your so-called creations."
The goddess stared at her. None of her kind tactics were working and she was not sure what she should do. She glanced down to the ground and noticed Tigress was fully awake. When the two made eye contact Nuwa slowly lowered her tail to cover her. No, she knows what she has to do. She glanced back to the monkey with a somber frown.
"I'm sorry Tiān Cháo."
Swiftly she lifted up her tail and Tigress was already on all fours charging at the monkey with a growl. Po heard his friend and allowed her to jump on his staff. With a pushed he sends her in the air ready to pounce on the duo. Tiān Cháo slammed her foot on the bolder, another wave of chi was sent to the ground and a pillar of earth pop out and hit Tigress in the chest.
Seeing Tigress fall from the sky, Shen quickly goes to his dao and lets out his peacock call, waking everybody up. They all woke up hearing the commotion and gawked in shock at the moving roots. Master Pangolin immediately recognizes this and whips his tail to one of the roots that were too close to him. Lang grabbed his hammer protecting Ah-ma and the four masters go to protect the panda kids. Mei-Mei was the last to wake up.
"What's with all the fuss- oh gods what are those!?" she cried backing away from the growing roots.
"You fools brought this upon yourselves," Tiān Cháo exclaimed, "Hema! Twins!"
Suddenly three individuals jumped off from the trees with something triangular coming down. Nuwa was hit, she found herself on the ground with metal chains trapping her whole body. She struggled to get up, Hema and the twins held the chains down causing her to bellow a wail for help. Gang flew down to help them while Tiān Cháo jumped and swung to the highest root. Po saw this but knows he can't reach her, he spots Tigress and rushes to her helping her up.
"Tigress go after Tiān Cháo, me and the others will stop them."
"Got it!"
She takes off and Po runs to the hippo, he throws a kick at his face causing the masked man to fall. Po calls out to his friends, "Guys, we can't let them take Nuwa, knock them down!"
"Right!"
While everyone runs into battle, Crane grabs the children and flies them to Lang and Ah-ma.
"Watch them!" he said before joining the battle.
"Why am I stuck babysitting?" Land said but didn't complain as he pushed the kids closer to Ah-ma.
All eight warriors go to break the heavy chain trapping the dragon, but they jumped back from the roots as more pop out, embedding with chains and pulling it down. Tiān Cháo can still control them and she moved her arms, commanding all the plants to attack them. The team decides to split up.
Hema gets back up and goes to grab the chain but he was knocked down again, this time by Master Pangolin. He rolls up into a ball and charges at the hippo again. Hema moves away and he reaches for the ax he had been carrying. The pangolin unrolled himself ready to take down the hippo. Hema uses his ax to strike but the master deflects each strike, using his long claws to perform a Jum Sau technique. Master Pangolin then use a spin attack, using the armor on his tail to knock the ax out of the hippo's paws and then face him again. He leaps forward using his knee to hit Hema in the face. Although his wooden mask covered his face, the hit was still powerful enough to push Hema.
The fox twins were trying to hold the dragon themselves, they saw Viper and Mantis coming their way but they refused to let go. One twin tried to kick Mantis but the bug was fast, he threw his double kicks but the fox was quick as him. The other twin looked for the snake. Viper moved sneakily through the holes of the chains, she slithered down and warps her body around them. The twin tried to push her off without letting go, their sibling turned to them for a second which gave Mantis the advantage. With a strong axe kick, the twins were on the ground with the masters on top of them. Mantis calls to his friends.
"Alright, guys take off the chain-aaagghhh!"
"Mantis!" Viper cried seeing Gang grab him. The twin then helps their sibling by pulling the snake away from them. Viper grunts as she hits the ground but charges at them before they can grab the chains.
Monkey and Crane spots Gang and they take off. Crane carries Monkey and throws him to the crow throwing his legs out to attack, but Gang dodges it dropping the bug. Monkey grabs his buddy and lands on the tree.
"Are you alright?"
"Yeah, we gotta get back down there."
As Monkey and Mantis go back to the ground, Crane was high in the air with Gang, distracting him.
"Out of my way!" Gang threatened as he zooms towards him.
"Wings of Justice!"
Gang suddenly was blown away but catches himself, his wings flap harder to charge at Crane with his claw-like feet out. The master avoids his attacks and did a twirl to create stronger winds to push him further away. The crow was trying to get closer, every time he does Crane will use pak sau wing technique to smacked the attacks. Gang only manage to get one starch on Crane's back but he shook it off. With no other options, Crane extends his claws as he clashes with Gang, their feet lock on as they tried to knock one of them out of the sky.
Down below, Po and Shen were trying to pull the chains and the plants off but then the roots grab hold of them from behind and threw them. They hit the ground hard and looked up in time to see the roots were aiming directly at them, they moved out of the way in time before they were stabbed. Shen had enough and swing his dao, cutting the roots in half.
"Man, did you see that? I can't believe Tiān Cháo can control them like that," Po said excitedly.
"Po she's trying to kill us!" Shen glared at him.
"I know but the way she doing it is awesome!"
The peacock just facepalmed and cut up more plants without even looking.
"Stop being impressed, go and help Nuwa while I'll deal with this," Shen commanded while he goes and swings his blade more.
Po nodded but he was knocked over, grunting he looks up to see Master Pangolin on top of him. He apologized and the two of them stand back up to fight with Hema together.
Meanwhile, Mei-Mei was having a hard time on her own. She tried to use her nun-chucks but it didn't have much effect to the plants. At one point, she just throws her bag and it did absolutely nothing. Freaking out, she started to throw her nun-chucks at every direction.
"Ah! Don't touch me! Don't touch me! I'm too glamorous to die!" she screamed.
Then Shen jumped in, moving his dao with speed, cutting all the roots in seconds.
"Ah thank you, you're a lifesaver," Mei-Mei thanked.
The peacock turned to the female panda glaring, "Do you even know how to fight? How are you even a warrior?"
"Oh no, I'm not a warrior. I'm a dancer," she admitted "I can totally fight, but I'm not like a professional, I mean it is my first mission."
Shen just stared at her, that made no sense at all. "Then why did the others invited you?"
"Because I asked."
Shen sadly came to a realization; this female is just as absurd as Po.
"You pandas are all the same…" he muttered in irritation.
Just then, Viper was thrown right by them but she slithered back to the twins. They run towards her having their first out but the snake moved to the right. She circled them, missing their attacks, and then she swipes her tail with a few jabs causing the two to fall backward. Mei-Mei goes to help her friend and picks the twins up, separating them.
"Ha! I got cha'-ow! OW!" Mei-Mei cried. She tried not to let go as the twins bite her figures.
Crane was still flying, this time having Gang following him and he flew around trees, getting closer to the ground. Gang was trying to keep up, wanting to kill the crane, what he failed to notices was the other masters were following them. Crane took a quick glance behind him and made his move, he called out his friends.
"Mantis! Monkey!" Crane called out as he instantly flew up. The two masters caught Gang off guard and took him down with a powerful kung fu kick to the ground. The three of them joined Viper, Mei-Mei, and Shen, who tied up the twins. With the crow on the ground, Shen walked over to him and stomped on him causing Gang to cry out.
"You should have stayed dead," Shen hissed but before he can do anything he saw Gang was smiling.
Suddenly the roots moved to the six warriors, they tried to move but the roots tied them up in a tight bunch. Shen was pulled in so hard he dropped his weapon. They struggled to break free but nothing worked, they can only watch as Gang files to the twins and breaks them free. Bao witness all of this and saw the opportunity to help.
"I'm coming guys," he said. Lang tried to stop him but he wasn't fast enough as the boy took off.
"What are you doing?!" Lang growled and turned to Ah-ma and Lei-Lei, "Stay here!"
While that was happening, Tiān Cháo kept the masters tied while also focusing on capturing Nuwa. The plants were still pulling down the chains. Nuwa wailed a roar as she clawed the ground, trying anything to break free. The golden monkey smiled, she never had to use her new power to this extend. She was getting better and once she has Nuwa in her palms she'll be able to do more. Tiān Cháo was so busy doing two things at once, she didn't notice Tigress sneaking behind her.
Tigress made sure to stay as quiet as she can while climbing the trees. She jumped from branch to branch, getting closer to the monkey. On the last branch, she hid behind the tree for a moment, making sure Tiān Cháo didn't see her. Tigress slowly and softly peaked out, she was only a few feet away from her. She glanced down for a second, seeing her friends being captured as well when she saw that she made her move. Tigress swiftly and incredibly leaps out to Tiān Cháo, catching the monkey and causing her to cry out. They both land on a large branch of a tree. Furiously Tiān Cháo swing her stone sword at the female tiger and pushed her off. Tigress landed on another branch and shook off the throbbing pain of her shoulder. She looked up glaring at the monkey.
"Stop getting in my way!" Tiān Cháo growled as her hand closed around the dragon jades. She slammed her hand on the tree, the chi made it glow and she had control of the branches. She made them grow longer and turn to attack Tigress.
Now with her distracted, roots around the masters were loose, Lang runs up to them and uses his strong jaw. His teeth break the roots, freeing his friends.
"Help the dragon I'll deal with them," Lang grunt wielding his hammer and following the boy panda.
Lang found Bao attacking one of the twins, he jumped in the air throwing a kick but he missed. The twins tried to hold him down but the boy was fast. With a determined demeanor, Bao turns around ready to show off the move that he practices in class.
"Here we go," he whispered to himself and then cried, "The double punch and kick technique!"
The little panda changed with full speed and a battle cry, ready to take the enemy down. But the twins saw it coming and moved out of the way, watching poor Bao fly in mid-air. He felt himself falling in slow motion as he cried out and tumbles to the ground. The twins jumped to strike but then a hammer smacked them away. Gang saw this and goes after Lang, he does a loop de loop and flew with great speed. The wolf boss was quick and did a summersault, the moment he sees Gang closing in again he swings his weapon.
"Heads up birdbrain!"
Gang tried to stop but it was too late, the hammer hit him, sending him flying and landing on the twins.
"Aw man, I almost had it," Bao pouted, upset that he messed up.
Lang turned around and grab hold of him, making sure he won't go anywhere.
"You almost got killed kid," said Lang, "Next time I'll you hit a target less threatening."
Bao's face lit up, "Really? Can I use your cool hammer?"
"No," Lang said bluntly, "But thanks for calling my hammer cool."
Back to the battle with Hema, Po and Master Pangolin were really wearing him down. Hema refused to stop but knows he couldn't keep this up for long. Holding his ax tightly he goes after Po but the panda was ready, using his jade staff to stop the ax, creating a bright spark. He was surprised it didn't break the staff so he kept pushing, Hema pushed harder not letting up.
"Surrender now Panda," Hema threaten but this only made Po form a smirk.
"As I always say to every villain I meet: never!"
With a powerful axe kick, Po kicked the ax out of Hema's paws causing him to stumble.
"Now Master Pangolin!" Po cried as he quickly crouches down. The pangolin rolled up and speed down, using Po's back as a ramp. He was in the air and ready to land on the hippo, but Hema uses his strength to catch him. Suddenly Hema heard a heroic cry he looks to see Po coming at him with a headbutt to the gut. Hema groans in pain and then Master Pangolin unrolled himself and knock him out with his signature move, the iron tail.
Once Hema was knock out, Po cheered for the master. "I can't believe I saw the iron tail with my own eyes!"
Pangolin smiled enjoying the praise, "Good work Dragon Warrior, now let's save Nuwa and quick."
The panda and the pangolin rushed to the dragon using Hema's ax to cut the roots. The six masters, Lang and Bao join in tearing on the large plants as well. Nuwa felt the plants around the metal chains slack and slowly gets up, helping the others. The more it loosens the more she was able to pull forward, one by one the chains start to break. Using all of her strength caused the dragon to be radiant. Everyone saw this and backed away, watching the dragon glow. Nuwa was using her chi to break through the chains and with a final push, the metal snapped in half.
Meanwhile, Tigress was jumping from one tree to other avoiding the living branches. She would use palm strikes to push them away and dodge them with her flexibility. Tiān Cháo was trying to corner her, also jumping to trees and controlling the branches. But she stopped when she noticed a bright light in corner of her eyes. She turned around to see all of her friends were knocked out and Nuwa has broken free.
"No!" the golden monkey snarled with furrowed brows. She ignores Tigress and goes back, finding her way back to the ground. Tigress realized this and quickly follows her.
Nuwa moved her body, getting rid of any aches she felt from the chains. She spotted Tiān Cháo coming their way, she thought for a moment and decided to make her move. She leaps forward and stomped her front legs, causing a wave of her chi to trip Tiān Cháo. This gives Tigress enough time to catch up and harshly push her, holding her down.
"Nuwa you have to get out of here," said Po, "Take the kids and Ah-ma. We'll deal with Tiān Cháo."
"Okay," Nuwa agreed. She turned to Lang who placed the boy and her back, she gives him a small smile to reassure him they'll be alright. Nuwa swiftly goes to Ah-ma and Lei-Lei letting them climb her back, she gently uses her head to help the goat who was struggling. She also took the cane in her mouth.
"Hang on, I'll try not to go too fast," Nuwa said as hops away from the battle.
Now with the kids and the elderly at a safe distance Po and the others can deal with the golden monkey. Tigress held on Tiān Cháo's arms and tail, making sure she wouldn't swing her stone sword at her.
"It's over Tiān Cháo," Tigress sneered, "Hand over the dragons."
When she refused to respond, Tigress reach over to her neck to grab the jades. This angered Tiān Cháo and she managed to free her arm.
"DON'T TOUCH THEM!" she screamed using her free hand to claw Tigress's arm.
Tigress held a grunt in, feeling the nails dig in her skin. Tiān Cháo used her other arm to elbow her in the chest. She grabs the master, held her above her head, and threw her right at the panda. She then slams both her paws on the ground summoning jagged rocks randomly pop out of nowhere.
Everyone barely avoided the rock's path, Viper, Monkey, and Lang cried out, getting cuts on their shoulders and their sides. Tiān Cháo started to pick up the rocks, throwing them at the group to keep them away. She jumps over to Hema, placing her figures on his forehead to give some of her chi. She sees Crane and Mei-Mei, she backflip and her tail swings her weapon at Crane landing a hit, then she grabs his legs and threw him at Mei-Mei. She makes it to the twins and Gang, giving them chi too. They all stood with their new and boosted energy, ready to fight again. Po and Tigress get up and see the enemies.
"Oh boy…" Po said worriedly.
Tigress squeezed his shoulder in comfort, "We got this, let's go."
The masters shook off their injures and charged at Tiān Cháo and her friends.
With quick thinking, Tiān Cháo's right hand glow in red heat while the other hand frosted in pure white. She clapped her hand together, opened them, and blew a large mist all over the area. The masters stopped as the mist blankets around them. They stay close with arms in defense and all eyes in every direction, no surprise attack will affect them.
Shen's crest twitched as he heard a sound above him. He glances up to see something moving and leaping to the trees. He squinted his eyes seeing the figure move up ahead and disappearing. He realized someone was going after Nuwa. Shen takes off, leaving the others to deal with enemies.
Before Po could even say anything, he had to move out of the way as Hema attack. The hippo grabbed his ax back and kicked Master Pangolin away. Tigress and Mei-Mei had to watch out as Gang flew in, using the half-broken chain and threw at them to slow them down. They kept their guard up as they continue to fight.
Nuwa runs through the forest, making sure not to go too fast. She glanced back to see no one was following her, the children, and the soothsayer. Once they were far enough she stopped to catch her breath, placing the cane on the tall grass.
"Okay, we should be safe now."
"Shouldn't we try to help?" ask Bao.
"No young one, we must stay here," Ah-ma explained making sure he doesn't jump off.
"We'll wait here," said Nuwa, "If they don't come back I'll go alone and find them."
Just then roots came out from the ground, it tied around Nuwa's legs. The goddess was startled, she tried to pull away but more came out and pulled her feet in the dirt. The four looked up to see Tiān Cháo jump off from a high branch and landed on the ground. The golden monkey stared at them with piercing violet eyes.
Ah-ma held on to the children, her eyes widen as she felt her aging body froze. She watched as Tiān Cháo takes a deep breath, stands up, and slowly walks towards them.
"I'm not going to tell you this again," she began in a calm manner, "Give me back my dragon."
"Please, don't hurt them," Nuwa begged, trying to pull free but the roots just tighten around her legs.
Tiān Cháo rolled her eyes, "I might as well take them as prisoners then."
She readied her hands to take Nuwa's chi once more, but she was suddenly startled by a strange pattern appearing in front of her, dancing in front of her eyes. Shen stood up and with a spin from his train, knocks down Tiān Cháo to the ground, holding his dao threateningly.
"Don't. You. Move." the peacock said aggressively but softly enough for her to hear. He wasn't going to let this which go near Nuwa and the kids, especially Ah-ma. Shen had his train and his dao ready to attack if the monkey doesn't back off. Tiān Cháo only gets up again and swings her weapon but Shen blocked it.
She smiled wickedly.
"You're in no possession to order me around peacock," she mocked.
Shen ignored her, pressing his dao and towering over her.
"Don't make me hurt you," he warned her but she laughed.
"That shouldn't be a problem for you."
Tiān Cháo uses her tail to wrap around his leg and pulled him under. Shen landed on his back and glared up to see her form her hand to a fist, glowing red. He rolled out of the way before the fist made contact, strains of grass burned to ashes in seconds. He gets up and swings his dao down but Tiān Cháo blocked it. She moves out of the way, charging him again trying to land a hit.
The peacock and the golden monkey have been circling around each other, blocking and hitting their weapons throughout their battle. Shen was quick, he was able to avoid Tiān Cháo's attacks including the roots she summoned from the ground. But he knows he can't keep this up, he was getting tired and he has to think of something. He blocks another attack and for a moment spots the jade stones. Shen remembered the mention of more gods were trapped in jade. He has to grab them away from her somehow.
Suddenly Tiān Cháo spin around and kicked Shen. She jumps in the air, does a flip, and kicked him again sending him to the ground again. But Shen caught himself this time, using his dao as a balance beam he swung himself and body-slammed Tiān Cháo, causing her to stumble backward. It wasn't enough but at least Shen knows he can catch her off guard. The golden monkey caught herself, bending and standing on her hands and tail, and then pushed herself back on her feet. She growled and charged at the peacock once more. They clashed their weapons casting a bright spark of flying flares.
Tiān Cháo noted how Shen was breathing and smiled. "You're not getting tired, are you peacock?"
She moved to throw more large roots at him, but Shen just cut them with ease.
"Just because you have god powers doesn't mean you can overpower me," said Shen as he tears down more plants.
"Oh, I beg a differ," Tiān Cháo smiled, "These powers will help build a greater world and I can overpower anyone who stands in my way."
This made Shen pause for a second. The way Tiān Cháo talked, how confident she was, it was all sounding eerily similar to him. Did he really sound this arrogant when he made those cannons, was he really this blind back then?
He signed as he pondered these thoughts, he had to admit to himself that he was arrogant and blind. It felt so strange to run into someone who was acting just like how he used to be. He blinked as large roots pop out and he moved away, cutting all of them in half.
"Ruling China and making it better will not bring you any happiness," Shen stated standing his ground and staring directly at Tiān Cháo.
"And I know from experience…" Shen glance over to Ah-ma who had been watching him. She heard what he said and her face was a mix of stunned and satisfaction. Shen could sense the soothsayer was proud that he learned from his experience, she was probably more satisfied that she was proven to be right which he knew. But the moment didn't last, Tiān Cháo laughed as she lunged at him. Shen blocked her weapon as she leans close to his face with glee.
"You think I want to rule China," Tiān Cháo said with a raised brow, "I don't want this pathetic land, I want to destroy it and everyone on it and create a new one. You and your friends show up interfering with everything I worked so hard for. When I finally get rid of all of you then I would finally be happy."
She pushed her sword harder on Shen, she knows he was losing strength and it was only a matter of time she will get the upper hand.
The peacock tried to push back but he could feel his legs wanting to give out. Of all the times of battling, he really wished he wasn't such a weak bird. He could see the piercing eyes staring down at him, can see the hint of insanity peeking out. Shen could not see any hope of saving this witch, there was only one option to stop a madwoman who desires nothing but wiping away life. He didn't want to go through it, but his focus was protecting the kids and Ah-ma. With the last of his strength, he leaned to Tiān Cháo with his ruby eyes glaring at her.
"You asked if I was getting tired, I'm just getting started," Shen said before he kicked her away and turned to the goat.
"Cover their eyes," he ordered.
Ah-ma knew what he meant and pulled the panda kids closer, she covered their eyes. Bao and Lei-Lei were watching the battle amazed by the peacock skills but were now confused why their vision was blocked. Nuwa on the other hand was busy pulling her legs out of the ground one at a time. When she heard Shen's order, her ears perked up knowing what he was going to do.
"Wait, Shen!" Nuwa cried but the peacock ignored her and charged at full speed.
Tiān Cháo tries to block every attack, but she couldn't keep up as Shen swiftly swings his dao in every direction towards her. She felt small cuts on her arms and filched when her weapons fly out of her hands. Shen took this chance to jump on top of her, when they hit the tall grass, his feet held her down by the neck. He twirls his dao and did something he hasn't done in a long time, he stabs her.
He wouldn't penetrate the metal protecting her chest but he could still stab her flesh outside the metal. He went with the left arm. Tiān Cháo didn't even scream only let out a short gasp as she felt the sharp blade go through her arm. She stared back at the peacock, who didn't look remorse for his actions.
Shen was not trying to kill her directly but held her down enough to grab jades away and then let her go. If she were to die it would be from the large wound and massive blood loss. He leans forward enough to stare her down, his brow furrowed.
"You shouldn't have challenged me," he sneered as he reached to take the necklaces. But suddenly Tiān Cháo grabs his wing, holding it tightly as a smile appeared on her face. This confused Shen, he stabs her she should be in pain.
"And you, are an idiot," she roughly breath out as her hand glowed bright red.
Shen screamed as he felt his feathers burning intensely, Tiān Cháo holds tighter smirking. She then kicked him off her, grabbing his dao and pulling it out of her arm.
Ah-ma and Nuwa gasped watching Shen fell to the ground in pain. The peacock held up his wing seeing the burn marks on his feathers, it hurt when he tried to flex them. He looked up to see the golden monkey standing up, the stab wound was gone, in fact, all of her cuts disappeared. She turned to him, wearing the same smirk.
"Did no one tell you about spirit warriors," she taunted twirling the dao, "You can't kill what is already dead."
She breaks the dao with her knee throwing away the handle. She walks up to him, ready to stab him with his own blade, but out of the blue Tiān Cháo heard a shout. Before she could see what it was, she found herself being tackled, tumbling on the grass again. She picks herself up and looked to see the panda in front of her.
Po has his staff carried behind him with his belt, he held his arms out and position himself in a defensive stance.
"I thought I told to leave my friend alone," Po remarked keeping his sight on her.
Tiān Cháo growled in fury, she was in no mood in dealing with every master in one day. She couldn't find her weapon which meant she had to use her chi to take him down.
"You're still willing to protect this bad man!" she snarled in annoyance.
"You bet I am," Po answered with no hesitation, "Now are we gonna fight or what?"
She runs towards the panda, throwing a heat-up fist at his face but Po dodges it. Every time she would try to throw a fist or a kick Po would use his arms to block them. Tiān Cháo would summon roots but Po ran up the tree and simply stomp on them. He threw his palm strikes at her, pushing her back so she wouldn't throw another attack. Tiān Cháo jump back and threw her hands on the ground, pillars spring out and coming at Po's direction.
Instead of moving out of the way, Po thought it was a good idea to hops on top of them. Just like in training, he runs on top of the stone pillars, running to the other side. He jumps off but didn't see Tiān Cháo anywhere. Po looked in every direction, he knew he going to be ambushed and pulled his jade staff as his defense. Just as he thought Tiān Cháo jumps out from her hiding spot behind a tree, now receive her stone sword back. Po readied himself, he suddenly looked down when his staff started to glow. He pointed his staff at Tiān Cháo and a beam of chi hit her while she was in mid-air.
"Oh, now you work. Where were you twenty minutes ago?!" Po yelled at the staff like it was a real person.
Tiān Cháo landed hard on the ground bewildered by what just happened. She sat up to see Po yelling at the staff, she stares at him dumbfounded. She did not expect so much power coming from this fat bear, she never saw anything special about him until now. Her eyes shifted to the staff he was holding and realized the chi came from the staff. Now she was seeing potential in the staff. Putting away her sword on the side she charges at Po while he wasn't looking. She finally lands hit as she use both her feet to double punch him in the face. The panda felt the pain as he plunges to the ground. He shook his head; his eyes widen when he didn't feel his staff in his paws. Po looked around but spot the jade staff with Tiān Cháo, who stared at it with interest.
"So this is what's giving you power," she comments paying no mind to him.
Angered Po rush to Tiān Cháo trying to grab his staff back. Master Oogway gave him that staff, he had been taking care of it since and there was no way he going to let it fall into the wrong hands.
"Give it back!" he demanded, trying to pull it away like a game of tug of war.
Tiān Cháo refused to listen and instead mocked him. "What's wrong panda, powerless without your magic trinket?"
"Oh looks who's talking, miss I use stolen awesome chi do all the work."
"At least I use my chi to do what is right."
"It's not yours!"
Po and Tiān Cháo kept pulling and holding on to the staff, digging her nails on his paws but he refuses to let go. They growled at each other but everything came to a halt when they heard a loud crack. They stared at each other for a second before looking down, feeling the forest around them tremble. The ground shook and suddenly started to crack, it spreads all over the area as the grass and plants rapidly aged.
Po took this distraction as a chance to get his staff back, he headbutts Tiān Cháo and stumbled away. The golden monkey cried out feeling pain in her head. She too stumbled but was too distracted by what was going on around her rather than paying attention to the panda. She watched as the cracks spread to the trees, causing them to split into twos. One tree begins to fall to Tiān Cháo's direction but she leaps away in a nick of time. She starts to climb up the trees, hoping one to another, using the chi to have the branches catch her. She did a cartwheel and flipped over a large falling tree.
Po watch Tiān Cháo make her getaway, he would go after her but seeing the ground cracking open, he was more worried about his friends. He tucked his staff safely behind him and runs to check on Shen. Nuwa finally freed her legs and rush to the peacock too.
Shen managed to stand on his own, but his feathers still sting from the burns.
"Shen are you alright?" Po asked.
"That damn monkey…" Shen hissed.
"Let me see it," Ah-ma said but Shen held his good wing to her.
"No, we need to get out of here," Shen insisted seeing the destruction around them.
Nuwa frowned seeing all of the trees and plants dying. This was because the worlds were colliding, she was so scared for her creations but put the fear aside for now.
"Agreed," said Nuwa, " We need to get to safe grounds, both of you hop on my back."
Po help Shen get on the dragon's back, he held on to her with both wings despite his injury. With everyone on her back, Nuwa takes off, carefully not to jostle them. She picked up speed when the falling trees followed her path.
Back at the battle, the masters were still fighting Hema, Gang, and the twins. They stop when they felt the ground beneath them began to shake. It cracked and rumbled along with the plants around them dying. The ground tears apart, splitting the teams, Tigress held her arms up keeping her friends behind while Hema did the same for his team.
The hippo looked up to see a shadow run above them, knowing it was their leader.
"Retreat, c'mon!" Hema gave the order with Gang and the twins following them.
Tigress watched them disappear in the mist, her ears twitched from the sound of trees falling from the distance.
"We have to go, now!" she ordered the team and they followed her.
The masters make their getaway as the ground continued to split. As they run, they jumped over cracks and dodged rolling trees and rocks. Master Pangolin rolled into a ball to gain some speed avoiding every tree. Mei-Mei tried to keep up but she was getting tired really quickly.
"I'm coming, I'm coming!" she gasped out heaving with her backpack.
Lang heard a noise and spotted large boulders rolling down from a small hill, heading to the female panda.
"Look out!" he cried. He got on all fours and pushed Mei-Mei out of the way before she got crushed. The two fell on the soft grass but the wolf quickly got back on his feet and help Mei-Mei up. Tigress stayed behind to help the two. they grab her arms each and dragged her forward.
Viper, Monkey, Mantis, and Crane swiftly moved under the trees as they fall. Mantis and Monkey hopped to one branch but it broke in half and they found themselves falling. Monkey uses his tail to grab his friend and tried to jump to another tree but saw big flying boulders heading his direction.
"Wah!" he cried as he tried to dodge every rock, "Bad day! Bad day! Bad day!"
"Go left!" cried Mantis, "No my left!"
Crane spots them and dives in, he grabs monkey by the arms and flew up avoiding the rocks. Thinking he could fly his friends out of the danger he turns back to fetch Viper. She was slithering around the trees but looked up when she heard Crane calling her.
"Viper grab on, hurry!"
Viper jumped and wrap herself around the bird's neck. Now that he collected his friends, Crane flew upwards and out of the chaos.
Tigress, Lang, and Mei-Mei managed to dodge every single tree that came down, they finally found a safe spot and stop to catch their breath. Crane land beside them and Master Pangolin unrolled himself. When everything got quiet, they all turned to see the destruction behind them. There was endless piles of dead trees everywhere and the ground plates pushed upwards as if an earthquake happened. They all just stared as the mess, it was terrible to look at.
They heard a sound and turned to see Nuwa rushing towards them, with the kids, Ah-ma, Po, and Shen. The dragon laid on the ground, allowing her passages to climb off her back. Po carried Bao while Lei-Lei runs to Tigress, who picked her up and held her close.
"Everyone okay?" Po asked.
"Yeah, but they got away," Tigress responded, "Do you think they're still around?"
"After all of this, I don't think so."
Shen climbed down, letting Ah-ma checked his burned wing.
"Whoa, what happened?" Lang asked checking on the two.
"I underestimated that witch," Shen muttered in annoyance, How did she heal her wounds…?"
"I was trying to explain it to you," Nuwa spoke up, "Spirits who wander back to the mortal realm cannot be affected by physical harm."
"So, that means she can't die twice?" Lang asked feeling confused.
"Yes."
"Aw man," Po facepalmed when he realized, "I was so focused on getting my staff back I didn't think to grab the jades from Tiān Cháo."
"We need to come up with a new solution to take her down," said Tigress not sounding too upset.
"Yeah cuz' all of that crazy stuff came out of nowhere," Mantis comment riding on top of monkey's head, "That's the craziest morning I ever had."
"I had no idea she was that powerful," Viper added.
"I can't believe Gang was even helping her," said Crane.
While the others were talking Mei-Mei over to the others. She noticed Shen's burn injury. Her eyes lit up as she remembered an important item.
"Oh hey, I have something for that," she said to the peacock, as she pulls out her backpack and opens it. She rummages through and pulls out a jar of medicine, but frowned when she double checks her bag.
"That's weird, I know I packed more for the mission."
Bao cringed a little, remembering that he threw some jars away to fit in the bag. He stayed quiet, making himself look innocent.
Mei-Mei opens the jar and dips her paw in the cream, scooping the right amount, and turned back to Shen. The peacock wasn't too sure about her skills, he glanced at the soothsayer who smiled at the female panda. He sighs and allows her to take his wing. Mei-Mei smears the medicine on his feathers, he does his best to ignore the stinging but Shen couldn't help but flinch.
"Sorry, should have given you a warning," Mei-Mei sheepishly smiled, "I promised the others I'll help out with the healing stuff."
Shen eyed her, "Is this also your first time attending an injury?"
She started at him for a second before admitting, "Yeah. Everything's a first for me but, I still want to help."
Shen blinked sensing the tone of her voice shifted, she must have sensed his doubt on her. But while he was watching her, she seemed the focus on wanting to get this right. Mei-Mei reached for the straps to bandage his wings as best as she can.
"Am I doing this right?" Mei-Mei asked Ah-ma, who chuckled.
"Let me help you dear, and thank you," said the goat.
Master Pangolin scans around, looking for some entry through the piles of trees. He frowned and walked over to Po and Tigress.
"That was the way to home, but with all these trees in the way, I'm not sure where should we go."
Tigress gently rocks Lei-Lei thinking for a moment. She gazes at the landscape, everything seems clam but she wasn't sure when it will start up again. They're going have to move quickly to get to the village before Tiān Cháo finds them. The goal was to rescue the villagers first before dealing with her. With a stern and stoic expression she turns to the others.
"We're going to walk around this. Keep your guard up, Tiān Cháo is still out here."
They all agreed and the group followed Po and Tigress, now having their guard up for anything. Nuwa stayed behind to stare at the mess and deeply frowned. All of the trees and flowers she admired were gone. She spotted one flower that survived but was wilting. With a figure, she gently touch the flower with her chi and it roused back to life. Nuwa was not satisfied, she wanted to heal all of the land and make it beautiful again. But that will take the goddess hours, she doesn't have time on her side, Nuwa sighed and turned back to the group, following them.
Meanwhile, Hema, Gang, and the twins found a spot to rest, waiting for their leader. They lost her during the mist. The twins checked on each other for injuries while Hema and Gang talked.
"I can't believe the panda is that strong," Hema grunted, "It would have taken my whole army to slow him down."
The crow rolled his eyes, "Heh, why do think he was titled as the Dragon Warrior. But that's not the issue here, they got away with Nuwa."
Hema stood up after stretching his arms, "The masters can't hide her forever. We must find them."
"Yes, we will indeed."
Tiān Cháo appeared climbing down from the trees. She drops herself in the center, she stands up as her friends made a small bow to their lady.
"You all did well, but we have to be better if we are going to get Nuwa back."
"And how'll we do that?" Gang asked.
"I'll admit we were slightly outnumbered, even the panda surprised me," Tiān Cháo admitted flexing her tried figures, "He is a master of chi. But just because he can control chi, doesn't mean we can make a wager."
The twins' ears perked up curiously, Hema and Gang glanced at each other and back to Tiān Cháo.
"A wager my lady?" Hema questioned.
She smiled, "Nuwa is protective. She will defend the masters but she will never harm us, even in the worse circumstances. Which give me an idea how we can make her come back to us."
This is my favorite chapter to write and I apologized for delaying this, but tell me what you guys think? Don't forget to leave a review because I really like to know. Also here is a few facts to share.
The title of the chapter was inspired by my favorite game NSR: No Straight Roads. It's part 1 because Po will be facing her a couple of times. Some of the techniques use in the battle are real and I looked upon what they can do. A tiny reference to the show Jackie Chan's Adventures, which I remember watching. And lastly, Tiān Cháo being stab was inspired by what Kai said to Po. The Wushi finger didn't work because Kai was already dead and I always wondered if other physical attacks won't affect him either and wrote it for her.
Thanks for reading guys, stay safe out there!