Hello there!

I'd like to take a little time here to thank my regular reviewers, Frozen Wolf heart 22 and Footrod Flatts. Your feedback always brings a smile to my face. Thanks.

And to the guest who left those kind words, I thank you and I'm glad you like the story!

By the way Flatts, when I read your review, I couldn't help but laugh a little. The review reminded me of that meme from Thor: Ragnarok. It was like I was saying "Shao's finally going to do something," and you scrunched up your face and said, "Hmm, is he though?" :)

Anyway, on with the show!

Qian's Pharmacy

"So I suppose you've heard the news, right?" Qian said, his eyes lighting up with Shao's declaration.

"You mean about the wedding? Well, yeah, I heard about it, but why does that matter?"

"Don't you think that would be the best time to shoot her?"

Shao raised his brow, shocked by the prospect.

"What! You want me to shoot her at their wedding? With everyone watching!? No way! I'd be caught before I ever could start running!"

Qian clasped his hooves together and thought of a way to rephrase the question.

"Hmm, let me ask you this: have you actually planned how you're going to kill Master Tigress?"

"Don't call her that," Shao quickly interrupted. Qian raised his brow, as Shao had never talked back to him like that before.

"Why? What's wrong with that?"

Shao sighed. "Just… don't. It makes her sound like a person."

"And right now she's a…"

"Monster," Shao finished. "I've seen how she really is. Let me tell you, all her years of kung-fu discipline will fall away when something bad happens. And not even her future husband wants to be around when that happens."

Qian smiled, but in his head, he was thinking, "Wow, Shao. You're even more wacked-out than I thought. I never knew I let a little physco work for me all these years. I'm shocked you haven't killed me yet."

"But," Qian actually said, "besides that, you do have a plan, right?"

Shao got on the defensive, as it was a fact that he did not really have a plan.

"Hey, if you want to go and try assassinate a bunch of kung-fu masters, be my guest. Let's see if you do better."

Qian held his paws up. "Hey, hey, no need to get feisty. I was just saying. I mean, this isn't like the Tower of Sacred Flame." The ram's eyes lit up as he mentioned that name. "Hey, so is it true that you just waltzed in the building?"

Shao signed again. "Pretty much. I stole some clothes and I posed as a servant. Either my acting skills are pretty good or the other servants don't really have any brains."

"Ahh, so they don't have any brains," Qian cheekily responded.

"But," Shao continued, ignoring the joke, "You're right. I don't have a plan for her."

"And what about the other ones?"

"Viper and Mantis?"

"Hm-hmm."

"Ahh, I don't know anymore. I first thought I would remove all three of them, but recently I just can't get my head out of my time at the orphanage. I guess I'm not even really worried about them anymore. How many praying mantis bandits do you see?"

"I think a better question is how many praying mantises do you see at all?"

"Ah, yeah. So, I'm only really focused on Tigress. She's simply dangerous, both to her friends at the Jade Palace and to the people. She's no different than Tai-Lung; she just needs something to nudge her off the edge and she'll become the same thing."

As Shao admitted that Tigress was his main focus, he could have sworn that Qian had a look of… disappointment? Yes, it almost seemed to be that way, but as soon as it arrived, it was gone.

"So, were you going to walk up the Thousand Steps and pose as a servant again?"

Shao waved his hoof. "Oh, come on. You know that couldn't work. All the servants here are pigs, geese, and bunnies. I just got lucky in Gongmen because there's a much larger population of sheep and goats."

Qian gave a small laugh. "So… we're back to square one. How were you going to get to her?"

Shao shrugged. "I don't know. I make it up as I go along. It worked with Croc."

"So you're telling me you'll rely on your luck to keep you from being beheaded?"

Shao gulped, as he preferred to keep the potential consequences of his deeds out of his head, especially while it was still his own.

"Well," Shao began, "I'm open to new ideas."

"Ahh, there we go! Now, as I was saying, she and the Dragon Warrior are getting married soon. I can't remember exactly when; in fact, I don't even think there's a specific date yet. But, it's coming soon. Think about it, they'll have a huge gathering down here in the village square so fit as many people as possible. You can just be there, mingling in the crowd, and when she shows up, you pull out the gun, shoot her, and run away. Everyone's going to be so confused at the sound that they'll never notice you slip away."

Shao looked at Qian with wide eyes. "They'll never notice!? You don't think the Dragon Warrior is going to see me pull out a gun and shoot his wife dead in front of him!?"

Qian shrugged. "Maybe. He doesn't know what a gun is."

"Yeah, but he'll still see me pull out an odd-looking thing, point it at his wife, make a loud noise, and then her falling over dead. I know the Dragon Warrior isn't known for his brains, but I think he'll connect the dots."

"Well, I didn't say you could stand in the front row."

Shao groaned. "Qian, I've pulled the trigger on that thing once. I can't aim it."

Qian shrugged again. "Well, when you come up with a better idea, you let me know. I'm… open to new ideas."

With that, Qian got up out of his stool and walked to the door. He opened it for Shao and gestured for him to go through.

"Anyway, we can keep talking about this tomorrow. I just have some tidying up to do and then I'll head home myself."

Shao hopped off of the counter which he had been sitting on during the conversation and walked out the door, telling Qian, "Good night," on his way out.

"Good night," Qian echoed as Shao passed, closing the door as he left.

When he was gone, Qian pulled out a key and locked the door from the inside. He had some serious work to do tonight, and he didn't want his little pawn to come back in and see what he was planning for his game.

The thing about Shao, Qian thought, was that he was so narrow-minded. He just didn't have the big-picture in mind.

Jade Palace- Next Morning

After the morning gong and rung and the students had eaten breakfast, they resumed their normal routine of training in the Training Hall.

While they were at it and Po was conducting the show, Shifu had much more time to himself. He enjoyed meditation. Oogway had always told him about it, and showed him through example how beneficial it could be to him, but his young and eager mind could not understand it then. At least it did now.

In his room, he lit a few candles around him, sat down on the ground with his legs crossed, and focused on the silence and all it had to offer.

But, peace never lasts long, and his silence was soon shattered by a knock on the door.

Shifu sighed. He had more time, yes, but it never seemed like enough.

"Yes?" he asked.

The door opened slightly, and Zeng poked his head through.

Upon seeing Shifu meditating, he assumed an apologetic expression. "Hey, sorry. It's just that you have two visitors who want to see you. Actually, they want to see all of you."

Shifu raised his brow. "All of us? What for? Who are they? What do they want?"

"Umm, they didn't say what they wanted. Only that they needed to speak to all of you, and that it was urgent." Zeng seemed to pause after that.

"And?" Shifu tried to coax out of him.

"Master Shifu," he began, "It's Master Peng. He and his mother."

Shifu shot up from his seated position. "Peng!?"

Zeng nodded.

"And his mother? That would make her…" he let that thought drift away in his mind. When he had initially met Peng and heard what little he gave of his own tale, he wondered why Tai-Lung was chosen to be laid at the doors of the Jade Palace instead of his sister. Why not both?

He shook himself back to reality. He nodded to the goose servant. "Thank you."

As Zeng flew off to resume his post, Shifu quickly walked out of his room and out of the Palace. He walked across the public courtyard, where Po had originally been chosen as the legendary Dragon Warrior by Oogway. It was still a mystery to Shifu how Oogway could foresee what Po would become and what he would do for everyone else.

But, he had to push his thoughts aside as he got closer to the doors of the courtyard.

"Wow," he briefly thought to himself. "I really am starting to get old. Everything I see has some kind of memory attached to it, with a long and detailed history that follows after."

Shifu reached the doors, took in a deep breath, and pulled them both open.

Standing over him were two leopards. On his left stood a young leopard, whom Shifu quickly recognized. Peng. He may have been older, but Shifu could still easily recognize him. The only difference was that he now sported a red vest instead of his old tan one, but that was probably because he outgrew it, not because he cared about fashion. However, he still had his orange belt on his waist.

On the right stood a leopardess, about the age of his students. Maybe a little older, he thought. She had on a sleeveless blue vest, decorated with flower patterns made of a darker shade of blue. She had on a simple pair of black silk pants, much like the ones Tigress wore. She had her paws behind her back and stood up straight, with her chin up high and her eyes looking down at the red panda.

Standing there in that position, Shifu instantly knew who it was. Tai-Lung's sister. He could see his adopted son in her face, her posture, and even her body. She was just as big as Tai-Lung, and looked nearly like the female version of him. Even her eyes shone with the same golden hue. It wouldn't have surprised Shifu to learn that they were twins.

Shifu saw all of this in an instant, and when he opened the door, the leopardess began to immediately speak.

She put her fist on her open palm and bowed, which Peng quickly followed and Shifu did in return.

"Hello, Master Shifu," she began. It was at that moment that Shifu realized that any connection she had to her brother was purely on the surface. Whereas Tai-Lung had spoken loudly and with confidence radiating from his words, his sister spoke quickly and softly. She clearly had no intention of staying long, only to deliver her message and return to the many other duties that plagued her.

"Hello," Shifu responded.

"Allow me to introduce myself," she started. "My name is Lianmin." She gestured to her son. "And this is my son, Peng. I believe you've met him before."

Shifu looked at Peng and smiled, and Peng smiled back. "Yes, we've met."

"I work in a city some distance from here known as Nangjing. There, I am employed in the business of finding certain individuals who are a danger to the people."

Shifu raised his brow. "You're a bounty hunter?" It seemed very unlikely to him that both Tai-Lung and her could fall into a similar line of work, given their lack of connection whatsoever.

Lianmin gave a soft smile at the title. "Of sorts," she replied. "Not like what you might call a bounty hunter, taking down bandit clans and fulfilling private contracts. No, I specialize in tracking. It is my job to find certain people and to apprehend them."

"Ahh, I see," Shifu responded, impressed. "Well, what brings you to the Valley of Peace?"

The soft smile left Lianmin's face as she got to buisness.

"I assume you've heard of the assassination of Master Croc in Gongmin City?"

Shifu stiffened a little at this. What did they have to do with this, he wondered?

He nodded.

"We believe that his assassin has arrived here, in the Valley of Peace. We also believe that he has intentions to assassinate the Dragon Warrior."

Behind his white fur, Shifu went pale. He quickly threw the doors back all the way.

"Come in," he beckoned. "I think my students and I all need to speak with you."

Valley Streets

Shao walked along the streets once more in the sunny morning of the Valley. But this time, it was different.

It was the first time that he had gone from his house to the pharmacy in the mornings since his last day before his… vacation. How different he was now in only that short time. That one morning, before he knew about the weapon, back when his thoughts about predators were seldom. Now, they had become an obsession, something that must be overcome at all costs. Shao could no longer really tell why he wanted to finish his mission so badly. Was it because he really cared about his fellow citizens? Or was it something else? Something darker? Did he really just want revenge for his parents? Did he just want to punish Tigress for his terror-stricken days at Bao-Gu? Or was it something even deeper than that? Something much more basic and terrifying?

Was it simply that Shao was tired of being a nobody? That he was jealous of the masters of the Jade Palace, with their life of luxury and their god-like treatment? Did he just want to carve his own name into the scrolls of the great historians just for the sake of it?

These thoughts had plagued the goat for some time, and he had never come to a definitive answer. He had worried about it so much that he began to no longer care. It didn't really matter anymore why he was going to kill Tigress, no, kill that monster; it only mattered that he did it. All other things faded away and paled in comparison. He began to spend all of his extra time fantasizing about it. How it would feel when he finally freed the Valley from the threat she clearly posed. She was so like Tai-Lung, he thought. Why did anyone think she would end up differently?

But Shao still had to contend with his other side. The one that shouted no to his plans, the one that forced him to remember Master Croc's face. He struggled with it constantly now, as it never ceased to nag and tug at him, even when he did his best to lock it away. In the midnight hour, he fought so hard against it, as the silent night was when it came out in full force, determined to stop his plans to help the innocent ones.

Shao no longer felt hunger. He only ate because he knew he would starve if he didn't. He no longer felt like sleeping. He only did it because he knew, sooner or later, his body would fall asleep for him if he chose to ignore it. Every waking hour was now spent in thought of his mission, of his duty that he had been given. The gods had gifted him with a new power, and he was going to use it to help people. That was all that mattered anymore.

Meanwhile, as he had been making his morning commute, something caught his attention.

Over by one of the many walls that lined the streets which housed shops and homes, was a piece of paper which had been nailed to the wall. The paper was new to Shao, so, trying to get a closer look, the goat walked up to it. What he saw almost made his heart stop.

On the paper was a sketch of the face of a male goat. He was about the same age as him, and the shading of the sketch suggested that he had white fur. However, unlike Shao, the goat in the picture had a much more sinister expression. Shao's eyes traveled down to the bottom of the page, which read-

"Murderer Wanted. Assassin of Master Croc of Gongmen City."

For a moment, Shao simply stood there. He wasn't afraid. His brain simply couldn't process the words on the paper. Who was it even talking about again, he wondered?

But there was something in the back of his head that tugged. The small smile that had formed on his face slowly faded away when his shocked brain put the pieces together.

It was him. And someone knew that he lived in the Valley.

Shao continued to stand there for a few more minutes as the realization began to sink down on him.

He wouldn't be able to simply walk away from his crimes. The consequences were coming back out of the grave he thought he had left them in. And they would grab his ankle, and he would desperately try to shake loose, but no matter how hard he struggled, he felt certain that the claw- Master Croc's claw- would drag him down into the dirt.

It took all of his strength to prevent himself from sprinting off like a madman, to not scream so loudly for so long that they took him to the asylum, where he would undoubtedly continue screaming forever.

With every fiber of control he had being put to good use, Shao turned around and walked away, his heart beating far above the normal rate, his eyes wide, and sweat pouring down his face.

And, that's it for now! If you liked the chapter (or didn't), then feel free to leave a review (or not).

Either way, keep being awesome!