Jaune and Courage the Cowardly Dog
Chap 50: Squatting Tiger, Hidden Dog
"WOW! THIS IS ONE BIG WALL!" Nora shouted in amazement.
"Thank you bringing us along Muriel." Ren said smiling as he observed the wall we were on.
"Oh. It's no problem you two." Muriel said as she also was in awe at the wall.
We were currently in a different part of the world called China. The northern part of China to be exact. And to be even more exact, we were on an extremely long wall called the Great Wall of China. Needless to say, it was impressive as it covered most of the side of China.
"Can you all believe it? The Great Wall of China." Muriel exclaimed as she held the book in her hand which was all about China.
"Big deal." Eustace said annoyed.
"The longest structure ever made: One of mankind's great wonders." Muriel said reading the book she had.
"But it's just a wall. Ain't got no door in it. Ain't got no windows. Ain't holding up no ceiling." Eustace complained as we continued to walk up the great wall.
"No appreciation for anything." Ren said shaking his head. He then turned to me along with Nora. "You know Jaune, despite being here for less than a day, I've seen many things here the closely resemble the culture of the towns we grow in."
"Really?" I asked surprised.
"Yeah Jaune. It feels like being back home." Nora added excitedly before going sad and muttering. "Before it got destroyed."
"Yeah." Ren agreed sounding sound as well. Hearing this gave me an idea.
'Maybe the magic tree can help.' I thought hopeful that the tree could give them back their home.
"You should try and see the beauty." Muriel told Eustace.
"Blah, blah, blah." Eustace complained.
"Enough of this sad moping. What should we do next Jaune?" Nora asked. Her sad mood leaving her as quickly as it came.
"Not sure. Courage any idea?" I answered before turning to Courage to see if he had any idea.
'Nope. Just enjoying the view.' He answered smiling.
"Maybe auntie might know." Nora shouted before running up to Muriel. All the while, we just smiled at her infectious joyous attitude. This is, until we heard something.
'You both hear that?' Courage asked which I translated to Ren.
"The laughing. Yes." Ren answered.
"Sounds familiar. like Di Lung." I said as I recalled where I heard the laughter before.
"Watch where you're goin', ya fools!" Di Lung shouted as he pushed as all to the side.
"WATCH IT!" Ren shouted annoyed.
"Ass." I said getting up before helping Ren and Courage up. "You both okay?"
"I'm fine Jaune." Ren answered glaring at Di Lung.
'Same.' Courage answered as he glared at Di Lung as well. 'What's he doing here anyway?'
"I have no idea." I answered.
"Whatever the reason, he better not try anything." Ren growled. Looking back, we saw Di Lung get Nora's and Muriel's attention. Curious and concerned, we hurried to catch up to them.
"Hey. Ladies with innocent soul. I be your tour guide. Show you Great Wall." Di Lung told them.
"We seen enough already." Eustace complained.
"And why should we trust you after what you tried to do with Courage?" Nora asked glaring at him.
"I changed. Now give tours to all who come to the wall." Di Lung answered with a smile that we knew meant he was lying.
"A tour would be lovely. Could you take us to the top?" Muriel asked.
"I take you up all right. Ha, ha, ha." Di Lung answered while laughing.
"And how are you going to do that?" Nora asked suspiciously.
"With this." Di Lung answered as he took out a frog.
"A frog?" I asked confused. Ren and Courage were equally confused as well.
"You fools. Watch." Di Lung said annoyed. At this, the frog croaked. And from its mouth, a giant bubble started forming. He then quickly moved the frog so that the bubble would envelope Muriel. He then did the same to Nora.
"Oh, my." Muriel gasped as the bubble started to float upwards.
"WWWHHHEEE! BYE EVERYONE!" Nora shouted in joy as the bubble floated up as well. Unaware that Di Lung trapped her in it.
'AAHHHH!' Courage screamed in terror.
"WHAT DID YOU DO!?" I demanded of Di Lung. Instead of answering, he just laughed before running off.
"WOAH!" He suddenly yelled before falling off the side of the wall. Confused, we turned to our side and saw Ren had fired his weapons at Di Lung's feet causing him to go off balance and over the side of the wall.
'Wasn't that a little excessive?' Courage asked.
"He is fiercely protective of Nora." I explained.
"So, what should we do now?" Ren asked. Before either of us could answer, Eustace cut in.
"Big, dopey, stupid, idiot wall! It don't keep out mosquitoes or squirrels or stupid neighbors coming to borrow sugar. It's a wall: Wall-to-wall wall." He complained as he walked away.
'Like always. Never helpful.' Courage sighed in annoyance.
"Again. How should we catch up to Nora and Muriel?" Ren asked impatiently.
'Maybe the same way Di Lung used to take them away.' Courage suggested as he grabbed the frog Di Ling used.
"Worth a shot." I said as I took the frog from him. "But how do we get him to make us a bubble?"
"Perhaps, jump on him?" Ren asked confused and uncertain. At this, Courage smiled before taking the frog and placing it on the ground. He then began to jump on it which caused the frog to let out an even larger bubble.
"Quick. Get in." I said before jumping towards the bubble and getting inside it without breaking it somehow. Ren and Courage quickly doing the same.
'Ha, ha, ha.' Courage laughed as we floated into the air.
"Well. I can say that this is the weirdest way I have travelled yet." Ren said as he tried to keep his balance as to not fall down I the moving bubble.
"Same." Courage and I agreed.
'Where do you think this bubble leads to?' Courage asked.
"Hopefully to Nora and Muriel." I answered while trying to keep my lunch down from the rocking the bubble was doing.
Ten Minutes Later
'Oh, thank Oum. We're here.' I thought relieved when we approached what appeared to be a palace of some kind.
"Don't you have motion sickness pills Jaune?" Ren asked confused as he remembered that I didn't appear sick on the trip here to China but a few moments in the bubble had my motion sickness acting up.
"No. I haven't had them in a long time." I answered.
"Then how come you didn't get sick on the way here?" He asked.
"Apparently, Muriel knows a recipe that helps with motion sickness. She claims it's the vinegar. But I doubt that." I explained. He nodded in understanding as the bubble entered the palace.
"Wow." Ren said amazed at the design of the place.
"This is amazing." I said also amazed at what we were seeing.
'Yeah.' Courage agreed. But right after he said that, the bubble popped. 'Oh.'
"Ow!" We grunted as we hit the hard floor. Getting up, we began to look around to see if we could find Nora or Muriel.
'AAAHHHH!' Courage screamed getting our attention. Turning to where he was looking, we saw what appeared to be an empress standing next to Di Lung who somehow got here before us. But that's not what got our attention.
"HEY RENNY! JAUNE! COURAGE!" Nora shouted from high up in the air. Being suspended from the chains that were around her ankles and wrists.
"Nora! Are you okay?" Ren shouted to her.
"Fine." Nora answered as she began to pretend to fly around like she was a plane.
"Oh, goodie. You three are here." Muriel said getting our attention.
"Muriel. Don't worry. We'll get you down." I told her as we started to move towards them. But the sound of a gong caught our attention. Looking towards where it came from, we saw that a green lady, supposedly an empress, rang the gong.
"This can't be good." Ren said worried.
"Deboning begins." Di Lung declared before laughing manically.
'AH!' Courage gasped when we saw Di Lung pull out a table with various tools on it. 'NO!'
"WAIT!" I shouted as we ran up to the lady.
'Don't do this.' Courage begged the lady. Apparently, either the lady knew what Courage said or was annoyed with him touching her robes as she spoke angrily to us.
"What?" I asked confused as she spoke in a language, we hadn't heard before.
"She says. 'Who dares to challenge the will of the empress?'" Di Lung translated.
"We do." Ren answered as he took out his weapons.
At this, the empress laughed before clapping a few times. We were confused as to what was supposed to happen at first. But got our answer as the room started to spin. Faster and faster, it spun with each passing second. Soon it spun so fast that we were all forced to ground from losing our balance. And possibly losing our lunch as well as we began to feel extremely dizzy. Glancing over at Courage, I saw that his pupils even began to spin in circles. Gripping tight to the rug in the floor, I looked up and saw the smiling/laughing forms of Di Lung and the empress. But that soon changed along with the scenery.
'What?' I thought as I no longer saw them but instead what looked like a restaurant. But I wasn't sure as we were still spinning at an extremely fast rate. Though we soon slowed down. And because of that, we fell to the table beneath us hard.
"Ow!" We all groaned in pain and dizziness. Shaking my head, we slowly got up and off the table. Though, we did use it to stabilize ourselves as we still were a bit shaky on our legs.
"And how will you all pay for the soup strangers?" Somebody asked. Looking up, we saw a lady, presumably the owner, walk to the counter holding a bowl of noodle soup.
'Huh?' Courage asked confused.
"Where are we miss?" Ren asked.
"In my noodle shop young one." The lady answered.
"Got any money Jaune?" Ren asked.
"Yes. Give me a second." I answered as I stood up and reached for my wallet. But it looks like Courage had an idea.
'Will this do?' He asked handing the lady an intricate box. She took the box and opened before closing it and putting it away. Clearly surprised by this.
"You all have a great journey ahead. A journey that you must all take to overcome your foes. And get back your loved ones. Muriel Bagge and Nora Valkyrie." The lady said as she blew on the noodles which somehow caused them to form an image of Muriel and Nora. She then placed the bowel back onto the counter with the noodles changing to the palace, we were just in. "The noodles never lie."
"Wow." Ren and I said in amazement at the fact the noodles of all things showed this.
"Now go." The lady told us. Courage then immediately tried to jump into the bowl.
"Calm down Courage." I said as I caught him before he landed in the bowel.
"No, my friend. It is not portal." The lady said shaking her head.
'Ha, ha, ha.' Courage laughed embarrassed.
"The journey begins there." The lady corrected pointing behind us. Turning around, we saw a giant tiger moving through town while carrying a crying baby by the back of the shirt using his mouth.
'AAAHHH!' Courage gasped in horror with his eyes becoming big and bloodshot.
"You're kidding. Right?" Ren asked as he tried to take out his weapons. Only to realize that he no longer had them and groaned in realization when he realized they must be back at the palace.
"To defeat the tiger, you must enter the jaws of the tiger." The lady explained. The noodles in the bowel showing Muriel and Nora being de boned. Somehow.
'AAHHH!' Courage screamed at this.
"How should we go about this Jaune?" Ren asked as we slowly approached the huge tiger.
"I have no idea. And I doubt our aura would last long." I answered shivering as I saw those huge teeth holding the child captive.
'Perhaps the soup can help.' Courage suggested.
"How exactly?" I asked confused. He chuckled before tossing the soup so that it covered all three of us.
"Great." Ren said annoyed as he took off the noodles that clung to his clothes. He then sent a light glare at Courage when he threw parsley at us. Followed by a slice of pineapple and cherry on top.
"We're going to need a shower after this." I said as I felt gross and sticky.
"Yummy." The tiger said when he caught our scent and turned to us. He then dropped the kid. "Beat it kid."
"AAHHHH!" We all screamed as the tiger came up to us.
'This is going to suck so badly.' I thought as the tiger open his mouth before taking us into it and began to chew. And apparently, by the sounds of pleasure, he found us tasty.
"And now. You all must learn your first lesson." The lady said walking up to us. Not fazed at all that we were essentially being eaten. Yet somehow, not bleeding or being killed instantly.
"What would that be?" Ren asked annoyed and in pain from the teeth biting into him.
"To relax completely in the face of danger." She answered.
"How do we do that?" I asked.
"You must concentrate on peaceful images." She explained.
We all huffed at this but did so anyway. Closing our eyes, we began to slow and control our frantic breathing. Soon, peaceful images started to come to mind. As they came, the pain of being eaten started to lessen to the point we didn't feel it anymore. After a second, we started to feel at ease but a strange feeling came over us. It felt as if we no longer solid but a liquid instead. Opening our eyes, we saw that we were no longer in the tiger's mouth.
"Huh?" The tiger asked confused at what he saw. A second later, about ten villagers came and picked up the tiger before throwing him into the cage and locking it. As they did this though, we turned back into a solid.
"What just happened?" Ren asked confused as to how he just did that.
"Is this how it feels every time you transform into a liquid Courage?" I asked him.
'More or less. But this felt a bit weirder.' He answered looking a bit queasy.
"All of you learned the first lesson well." The lady congratulated us.
"Thanks." Ren said rolling his eyes as he helped us up. Clear that he did not enjoy what just happened and was impatient in getting back to Nora.
"Two more lesson await you all on the rest of the journey." The lady told us while pointing to a carriage that is being pulled by an animal.
'Oh.' Courage whined.
"Great. Let's go you two." I said as I helped them up before proceeding to the cart and getting on.
"Those are three stupid courageous dog and kids." We heard the lady say as she waved at us.
'At least I won't get motion sickness traveling like this.' I thought as we passed the gate. Turning around, we saw nothing but a vast land between us and the place we are hopefully heading to. 'Thank Oum as it's going to be a long trip.'
Three Hours Later
For most of the trip, silence was the only thing heard. Aside from some small chit-chat from time to time, it was quiet. Normally, we would be talking all the way. But we really couldn't focus on talking as we were nervous and worried for Nora and Muriel. Not to mention, we were also wondering what these other two lessons could be. And if we were even going in the right direction. For all we know, that lady could have just tricked us into going into the tiger's mouth and riding this carriage.
'Hopefully we get there in time.' I hoped as I looked over the area. 'Least the view is nice.'
"Do you hear that?" Ren suddenly asked. Perking up, I strained my ears for what he could be referring to.
"Is that music?" I asked as I wondered where it could be coming from.
'Huh?' Courage asked confused before lifting the sheet behind us. And to our surprise, there were three people playing makeshift instruments.
"Hey dog and kids. Why don't you all give here these jugs a blow?" The man with the white hat asked. Looking to the side, we saw three empty jugs that we could blow into.
"Um. How do you do this?" Ren asked as he picked one jug up.
"Like this." I said before beginning to blow into the jug with music being the result.
"I see." Ren said as he tried to do the same but failed.
"Just keep trying. You'll get it." I told him.
'There you go.' Courage said as he stopped blowing into his jug. Looking back at Ren, we saw that he quickly got the rhythm down.
"What was that?" I asked when I heard something whistle through the air.
'AAHHH!' Courage screamed when whatever it was passed us. Looking back, we saw that it was darts that nearly hit us. The darts striking a tree and killing it instantly.
"Poison darts. They be music haters." The guy with the white hat exclaimed before covering them with the tarp again.
"Shit. We don't have cover." I said as I began to look around for anything to use for cover but came up short.
"I don't see them." Ren said trying to spot our attackers. I turned to Courage to ask if he saw anything but stopped when I saw him jump and try to get into the jug.
"Courage that is not going to-woah." I began but shouted in surprise when we were suddenly knocked off the carriage by a rock in the road.
"Great. There goes our ride." Ren said as we got back up.
"GET DOWN!" I shouted as I pushed him down just as more darts flew above our heads.
'We have to get out of here.' Courage said as he used some broken shards of the jug to block some of the darts.
"But where are we supposed to go?" I asked worried.
"Behind that tree." Ren answered pointing to a tree that had not yet been killed by the darts. Nodding, we got up and ran to the tree. Diving behind it at the last second as more darts nearly hit us.
'Now what?' Courage asked peeking around the tree. I was about to say something when we heard the lady's voice again. Looking around, we saw that she somehow had taken the form of a bird. Well, the body of the bird as the head was her human head. Just much smaller.
"Lesson number two. Use your enemy's force." She told us before flying away.
"What did she mean by that?" Ren asked.
'I have a feeling I know what she meant.' Courage answered gulping.
We were confused as to what he meant. Looking to him, we saw him step out from the cover and wait. Quickly, more darts were sent towards him. But instead of moving out of the way, he stood still. We were about to grab him and pull him back behind the tree when the first dart reached him. But instead of hitting him, Courage somehow managed to catch it with his teeth. Soon, more darts came but landed and got stuck in the first dart Courage caught. Very quickly, a long line of darts was formed. Once long enough, Courage then used it to connect the hill we were on to the hill next to us as a bridge.
"Let's go." I said as we quickly crossed the bridge made out of darts.
Crossing the bridge and avoiding the rest of the darts that were sent our way. Once on the other side, we did not stop and continued to run into the forest. Avoiding the trees that were in our way. Even when we could no longer hear the darts coming for us, we did not stop running. We only did stop when we reached the edge of the forest.
"There it is." I said when we exited the forest and saw the palace from before.
"And not a moment too soon." Ren added happy that we were finally back.
'Just need to pass the gate and we can free Muriel and Nora.' Courage said as we made our way to the gate. Only to freeze when we got near the gate doors. Reason being that in front of the doors, was a sleeping green dragon.
"Now what?" Ren asked as the dragon woke up with smoke coming out of its nostrils.
'Can we pass?' Courage asked while pointing to the gate. The dragon growled before letting out a burst of fire at us.
"WOAH!" We all shouted while jumping out of the way.
'Why can't things ever be easy?' I wondered as we slowly back away from the dragon that seemed ready to let out another burst of fire. Hearing a light buzzing, we looked around for the source and saw a dragon fly land on Courage. And to our surprise, and slight annoyance, it was the same lady from before.
"What's the lesson this time?" Ren asked.
"Use your enemy's force against them." She answered before flying away.
"How are we going to use the dragons fire against him?" I asked dodging another blast of fire the dragon sent my way.
The dragon tried to hit Courage this time as evident by him turning to face Courage. He screamed in terror but because of this, the fire went inside Courage's mouth. He then closed the fire which trapped it somehow in his mouth. He then glared at the dragon before somehow sending the fire back at him. The result was the dragon getting severely burnt before turning to ash with the wind blowing it into our faces.
"Okay. That's three lessons. Now what?" Ren asked through a coughing fit brought on by the ash getting blown into our faces.
"You have all learned to make peace with danger. Now you all have the power." She answered before giving a slight bow to us. We returned the gesture before turning around and going through the gates.
"Well. Those lessons, were alright, I guess. Despite the fact that Courage did most of the work." I said as we began to climb the steps.
"Without him, I doubt we would have gotten this far as I am not sure we could have done with the darts and the dragon. Well, at least how the 'lesson' was supposed to go anyway." Ren agreed as we reached the top.
'Let's see what they are up to.' Courage said as we walked to the door. Getting there, he looked through the keyhole. Only to scream a second later and pull away. Though, his eye stayed the same shape as the keyhole.
"What did you see?" Ren asked.
'Muriel in a tub with Di Lung taking out her bones.' He answered which I translated for Ren.
"How about Nora?" I asked.
'Still chained to the ceiling but now acting like she is a helicopter.' He answered.
"Did he see Nora?" Ren asked.
"Yeah. She is fine. Still chained to the ceiling and now acing like she is a helicopter." I answered.
"Well. Let's go and save them." He said turning to the door.
'I'll knock.' Courage said stepping closer to the door. But instead of 'knocking,' he kicked the doors so hard they flew off their hinges.
"Excessive." I told Courage as we entered the palace.
"Yay. Renny. Your back." Nora shouted happily.
"How lovely. Now you three can enjoy this practice as well." Muriel said unaware what Di Lung was actually doing.
"Ha, ha, ha." The empress laughed as she got up from her seat. She then raised her hand and a spear flew into it.
'Hi-Yah.' Courage shouted as he took a fighting stance. We chuckled at this before doing the same. The empress then thew her spear at us.
"I got it." Ren said as he easily caught the spear an threw it back at her. But she just as easily dodged it by mover her head to the side.
"COOL" Nora shouted as she watched the fight with glee.
The empress smirked at her before turning back to us and summoning a giant nunchuck from the wall. She then leapt down from the stairs to fight us. We easily dodged her first set of attacks. After a few more strikes, I managed to grab the nunchucks and take them away from her. She grew annoyed at this and tried to attack us with her hands. Courage decided to use this to his advantage by sneaking to the side. He then grabbed some shuriken that were on the wall and threw them at the empress. But she easily dodges them. Ren and I then went on the offensive and attacked her. However, she was quick enough and skilled enough to block each of our attacks. But we did not give up attacking. Only stopping when we heard the sounds of metal clanking around our feet.
'Huh?' Courage asked looking down. Looking down, we realized that we were so focused on fighting the empress that we did not realize Di Lung behind us. He used our distraction the cuff our feet to chains.
"Damn it." Ren said annoyed as he tried to open the cuffs but found it locked.
"Ha, ha, ha." The empress laughed. Her laughter echoing as she levitated off the ground.
Once high up in the air, she stopped before smirking at us. We were worried as to what she was going to but were ready all the same. Looking back at the empress, we saw that she stopped laughing and concentrated on us. Green lasers came out from her eyes and came towards us. We managed to duck in time which caused the laser to miss and instead hit the chains that were attached to our legs. Allowing us to move freely again. Seeing that she was about to strike us again, we looked around for anything that could help. Seeing a mirror next to us, we grabbed it and put it in front of us. Hoping that the laser would bounce of it like the shows claim they do. And to our relief, that's what happened. The lasers bounced off the mirror and struck the empress instead. She screamed in pain before turning to stone and shattering to pieces.
"Oh, no." Di Lung exclaimed worried.
"Well, that takes care of that." I said as Courage and I put the mirror back.
"You guys were awesome." Nora shouted startling us.
"Nora. Are you okay?" Ren asked hugging her.
"Yes Renny." She answered with a peppy smile.
"How did you escape the chains?" I asked curious.
"I didn't." She answered giggling as she showed us the chains still on her. Looking back to the ceiling, we saw that she merely broke the chains from the ceiling to get down.
"Now let's get Muriel and get out of here." I told them.
But before they could say anything, a bright light came from the window blinding all of us. After a few minutes it died down which allowed us to be able to open our eyes again. And to our surprise, we saw the lady still as a dragon fly enter through the window. She smiled at us before transforming back to human. Except this time, instead of the clothes she wore at her noodle shop, she was wearing the same clothes as the empress.
"Who's that?" Nora asked confused and amazed at what she just saw. "And can she teach me that?"
"The good empress back to reclaim throne." Di Lung gasped seeing the lady and answering Nora's question. "I not carry out bizarre torture for evil empress. Not deboning. Re boning."
"How lovely." Muriel said as Di Lung began to put her bones back in her.
"Because of you three, peace and harmony are returned to our kingdom." The good empress told us. A light then shone above us with what looked like a silk worm coming down. The empress then took out the box we gave her earlier and used it to hold the worm.
"That's good." I said as Courage shouted in joy while Nora hugged Ren tightly.
"Oh my." Muriel said getting our attention. Turning to her, we saw that Di Lung finished putting her bones back. But we saw that he mixed up a few pieces. "Who could fail to see the beauty of this magical land?"
"It is truly a majestic place. Even more so now that peace has returned. Thank you all." The empress agreed.
"You're welcome." We told her.
"Now. Is there anything I can do to repay you?" She asked.
"Um, maybe fix Muriel as Di Lung placed a few bones in the wrong place." I suggested.
"Very well." The empress said as she quickly ordered a tired Di Lung to fix Muriel. We just chuckled at the expression Di Lung made at this. As he deserved this and far greater punishment for the trouble he caused.
Note:
Sorry for the delay in chapters. Life got in the way and things got very busy so I couldn't update as much as I wanted.
(1) Night of the Scarecrow with Qrow, Ruby and Yang. (2) Curse of Shirley with Qrow, Yang and Ruby. (3) Wrath of the librarian with Blake. (4) Thousand years of Courage with Sun and Neptune. (5) Courage meets the Mummy with Ruby. (6) The Transplant with Terra, Saphron and Adrian. (7) McPhearsome Phantom with Blake, Kali and Ghira. (8) Aqua Farmer with Blake, Kali and Ghira. (9) Food of the dragon with Blake, Kali and Ghira (10) Journey to the center of Nowhere with Peach (11) Heads of Beef with Sun and Neptune.
Ball of Revenge will come soon. I just need to do the episode with the weremole for all the villains to be introduced. Any ideas on who should appear? If any?