The New Guest


"That is the stupidest idea I've ever heard," Monkey bawled. Po scratched the back of his head. "Why would you even think something like that? You know he's dangerous."

"He's not... that dangerous," Po nervously grinned. The simian glared. Monkey's narrowed eyes weren't natural to him. "I know it sounds bad."

"It's crazy."

"But we've done crazier."

"Po," Monkey sighed, "bringing a crook back to the Jade Palace and putting him in the dungeon is waaaayy different than jumping off a cliff trying to fly with nunchucks."

The wolf slowly turned his head and looked at the panda with a look that said, what the heck did you do?

"Don't look at me like that," Po griped. "Look, if there are more bad guys like Sho after the wolf, then we have to protect him until better guards come. Or we can have the others and Shifu come and protect him." The panda smiled, but Monkey grimaced at his friend's proposal. After fighting Sho, the simian doubted his teammates' abilities. They hadn't fought someone this strong since Tai-Lung, and if Po was having a hard time beating him...

Monkey looked at the wolf. His red eyes looked up at the clear blue sky, watching a small butterfly flutter its wings through the air. The creature landed on his nose and slowly opened and closed its wings before fluttering off again. Monkey sighed. Wolf didn't seem too dangerous. Plus, with Master Shifu there as well, they could put up a good front.

There was one problem. "What if Sho comes back with his army of bandits?"

"Then we'll just have to get stronger to beat them," Po smiled confidently.

"You sure we can do that?"

"I'm sure," Po said. Monkey shrugged.

"Alright, but Tigress is gonna hate it."

"Why you say that?"

"Remember what Platon said about him and felines?" Monkey asked. Po's eyes widened as he looked at the black wolf. Wolf averted his eyes from his gaze. "Yeah, this is gonna be fun," Monkey muttered. The guards, who were packing up to leave for the garrison, came up to the warriors.

"Uh... what should we do?" Asked the guard, the one that was the rudest. Po crossed his arms, giving a slight frown.

"Go back to the garrison and tell Platon what happened. And maybe learn how to put up a fight."

"Hmm," growled the wolf, nudging Po in the side. The panda couldn't help feeling like he was growling at him. Po rolled his eyes.

"We'll... yes sir," the guard said.

"Mr. Three and Mr. Four said they were going to the garrison before retiring," Monkey said, "If you catch them, they can get the wolf and take a message to Platon." The guard nodded and, along with his men, marched back. Monkey scanned the wolf up and down, still in his chains. "Alright, let's get the doggie home. Hehe, doggie. Get it?"

"Hehe I... get it," Po nervously grinned. Wolf smiled at the joke. The panda breathed a sigh of relief. He had to be careful around this canine; there was no telling what he could do. "Come on, we've got a long way home."

**********************f

A couple of days passed, and Tigress stood next to Master Shifu when Zeng ran in, frantically flapping his wings. "Master Shifu, Master Shifu! The Dragon Warrior and Master Monkey have returned." The red panda rose his bushy eyebrow.

"That shouldn't be. They couldn't have been that quick. They still have three days to go." He mumbled thoughtfully to Tigress.

"They came with a dark wolf in chains," Zeng said. Tigress and Shifu widened their eyes and slapped their faces.

"He didn't," Tigress muttered.

"Knowing Po, he's already on his way," The red panda grumbled.

Po and Monkey slowly walked through the village with Wolf in tow. The black dog curiously looked around like a newborn child, watching the people go by and shielding their children. He didn't seem to mind. He looked up at the tall mountain that the two warriors were leading him to. "I hope you like climbing," Monkey smirked. Wolf slowly nodded and started up the mountain with the masters behind him. "What are we going to tell Tigress?"

"Ahh, I'm sure she'll be fine. Besides, he's not after Tigress, right?" Po asked the wolf. The canine stopped, looked back at the panda, and emotionlessly shrugged as he kept walking on. "Uh... that probably means no."

"Uh-huh," Monkey muttered. They finally got to the top. Wolf gawked at the dazzling palace standing before him. Closing his eyes, he inhaled deeply through the nose. The scent of peach trees, flowers, and herbs was on the wind.

But then he felt someone blocking the sun's rays. Wolf opened his eyes, and the glaring quiet snarl of the female tiger met him. He immediately backed up into Po's pudgy gut. "Master Shifu, Tigress," Po shakily grinned. "Nice to see you-"

"Po, what are you doing? Why is this criminal here?" Shifu demanded.

"Well, Ah... there's a good reason... I just-"

"Uh Po," Monkey interrupted. "I think I should talk."

"Hey, I'm a good at talking," Po protested. The wolf and the simian shared a low-lidded glance.

"No, you're not," Monkey flatly said. Wolf shook his head as well. Monkey sighed, "I never thought I'd be the voice of reason. Voice of comedy sure, but-"

"Monkey! Po!" Shifu yelled, "Explain what happened." So Monkey told him and explained the situation. Shifu's eyes went round. "Sho? He hasn't been heard of since..."

"You know him, Master Shifu?" Po asked.

The red panda sighed, "He used to be part of the emperor's expert crack soldiers before he went rogue. The details into why are pretty... murky."

"Hrm," The wolf grumbled under his breath. Tigress walked over to him, still glaring down at him. Wolf loudly gulped.

"So what are we going to do with him?" Tigress asked.

"We'll keep him in the dungeon below for now," Shifu said. "We'll contact the garrison for more soldiers."

"Don't worry about that," Po smiled, "We told the guards to get Mr. Three and Four. I think they're the only ones that can really defend him."

Tigress spun around and faced him. "What about you?" She asked. "You defeated Sho singlehandedly?"

"Uh... Ih..." Po glanced at Wolf who only nodded. "Yeah, yeah. I did. But he was really... really tough. Better safe than sorry. Besides, that was just him by himself! Can you imagine if he had other people stronger and tougher than him?!"

"He has a point, Master Shifu," Monkey shivered. "Eeee, just saying that makes me uneasy."

"Hey!" Po shouted. The wolf snickered quietly.

"Platon and the guards know how to keep him. I can't imagine the damage Wolf could have done if Po hadn't stopped Sho," Monkey explained. Shifu stroked his beard pensively.

"It would be better to keep him here. None of the other criminals would know about it," the red panda glanced at the wolf, still in shackles and staring at the masters' worried faces. "But he'll have to be monitored."

"Great! Then it's settled," Po smiled. "Now if no one need s me, I'll just be going over to the Training Hall."

"Po," Tigress grumbled, "You have to be a part of this, too. It was your idea that... wait, what did you just say?"

"Uh... I need to go to the Training Hall?"

"To do what?" Shifu asked.

"To... train?" Monkey, Tigress, and Shifu couldn't even say anything. They just had dropped jaws and briefly glanced at each other before staring at Po again. "What? Do I have something in my teeth?" They still stared silently at him. "What? I can't train?"

"No, no, not at all!" Shifu recovered through a cough. "Uh... you go and do that, Dragon Warrior. We'll move the criminal to the dungeon." Po briefly smiled and went on his way. The red panda turned to his students. "When did Po like training?" Tigress and Monkey only shared the same confused look as their master.

Meanwhile, Mr. Three and Mr. Four were finishing up their resignations. An antelope stood behind a wooden desk, writing off the papers. "And you two were directly working under Councilman Platon?" The rhinos nodded. "I see. Were you part of the-"

"Jai-Yin project, yes we were," Mr. Three finished. "Could we please get this over with?"

"I... I understand you want to get on with early retirement, but things need to be in order, sirs," The antelope ritually smiled.

"Yesss," Mr. Four hissed, "Early retirement." Just then, they heard a loud commotion coming from outside the stone office.

"Wait, isn't that the dispatch that was in charge of Platon's prisoner?" Mr. Three asked.

"It... It is," Said the antelope. Mr. Four and Mr. Three ran outside to see the men battered, limping, but more importantly, humbly hunching. They stumbled into the open square of the fort garrison.

"What happened?" Mr. Four asked.

"The... the King of the bandits... attacked us," Said one of the guards. "He would have killed us if it weren't for the Dragon Warrior."

"Sho," Mr. Three grumbled. "The dirty bear."

"The prisoner. Where is the prisoner?" Mr. Four asked frantically.

"They took him to the Jade Palace. They wanted you two to tell Councilman Platon and get the dog," The guard said.

"We'll just send a messenger to tell the Councilman. There's no need for you two to make such a trip. Especially since the emperor is on his campaign," said the office antelope. Mr. Three stroked his chin.

"No, we need to talk to the masters of the Jade Palace," He said.

"S-sirs, I don't think that this is the right course of action," The antelope official stuttered.

Mr. Four was already putting his armor back on as he spoke, "The Jade Palace is on our way down south anyway, and we're the only ones that know where Platon is exactly. It takes less time and energy."

"He... he told you?" The antelope asked. "But that's a top secret-"

"What he told us is not important," Mr. Three remarked, snatching some spears and gear from a fallen soldier. "On our way, we'll talk to the Masters of the Jade Palace and bring the prisoner to Chor-Gom Prison. We've fought Sho's kind before. Then we'll tell Platon about the whole situation."

"Oh... Okay, I guess the papers for retirement will have to be filed another time," The antelope quietly agreed. With their armor and weapons back on, Mr. Three and Mr. Four marched out of the garrison, and the doors closed behind them.

"So what's the plan?" Mr. Four asked.

Mr. Three muttered, "We get there and see if there's been any damage. We get the truth."

"And then?"

"We'll see if things change. From here, it will be about two days' journey."

"You're thinking what I'm thinking," Mr. Four stated more than asked. His partner nodded with a sly grin.

Continued...