Information Dump
Shifu paced back and forth, glaring into the glossy jade floors. "Where are they? They should have been back ages ago." The red panda paced on. Zeng stood in place, silently watching the floor too.
"Please be okay, Wolf," He whispered. He had grown fond of the canine since he listened so much better than most.
Then again, he couldn't speak so it might be biased.
Just then, the doors opened wide to a battered but triumphant team. Shifu rushed over and examined them. "You're hurt."
"What gave it away?" Monkey grunted.
"And Sho?"
"No longer a threat, Master Shifu," Tigress bowed, being held up by Po.
"I beat him!" Po exclaimed happily. "But Tai Ya- Platon's still out there. I'm sure that he's gonna try something. I just don't know what."
"Wolf!" Zeng quickly waddled up and hugged the wolf tightly. "I'm so glad you're back."
"Hehehe, it's good to see you, too, Zeng," replied the dog. Shifu and Zeng jumped when they heard the voice. "And my name is Lion. Not Wolf. Or Blackie... or King of Demons... Or Wolfie... Or-"
"You... you can talk?" Zeng asked.
"What happened," Shifu finally asked. Po sighed so loudly that the wind cleared the weight from his shoulders to make room for his legs to crash to the ground. The Furious Five and Po told Shifu and Zeng what happened. Everything. Po told everyone what he knew about the Jai-Yin and how he found out that Tigress was one of them. Lion narrowed his eyes.
"So you knew she was the person I was trying to find? And you didn't tell me?"
"I didn't have proof," Po answered.
"You knew what the tattoo says. It's the same thing."
"Yeah, but I didn't know you were looking for a tiger and-" The whole room stared at him. "I was freaking out okay! Plus, what would happen if they took me and beat it out of me?!"
"There was no need to tell them at the meeting that you knew," Lion argued. "You could've said nothing. They didn't even know I was looking for someone in the first place!" Po groaned, dropping his head into his hands. He felt Tigress's hand on his shoulder and heard the wolf's sigh. "But I understand. This whole thing put a lot of stress on you. I don't expect you to make the right decision every time."
"Thanks? I think?"
"If Po did tell you, would it have changed the outcome of the fight?" Tigress asked.
"Yes, we wouldn't have fought," Lion sighed. "But he is right. He had no idea it was a tiger I was looking for so it could have been someone completely different. Some other Jai-Yin orphan."
"How many orphans of the Jai-Yin are there?" Viper asked.
"More than I want to think," Lion stared deep into the floor.
"Oh, which reminds me," Po interjected. "I heard somewhere that Platon had a son. Do you know what happened to him?" Po instantly regretted the question because the wolf glared at him with the bright red hatred of an abused slave. "Uh... I was just-"
"Platon's son is... no longer with us," Lion hissed on the s.
"Okay, okay, good to know," Po nervously chuckled.
"But why were you looking for me, specifically?" Tigress asked.
Lion took a deep breath and began. "You and I are son and daughter of the leaders among the Jai-Yin. I am-"
"You're the Wolf of the Jai-Yin."
"Correct," Lion said to Po. "And Tigress is the daughter of the Tiger of the Jai-Yin."
"Her name wouldn't happen to be Li, would it?" Po asked.
The wolf eyes went round. "How do you know-" Then he facepalmed himself. "That's right. You and Yueding did your own snooping."
"It wasn't snooping," Po huffed quietly.
"Anyway," Lion continued, "Yes, Li is Tigress's mother. Tigress's real name is Lily, but... I'm just glad your name was changed."
"Why?" The tiger asked.
"Not to be rude and... please don't tell your mother this when we go back, but Lily just didn't seem to fit one of the strongest warriors among the Jai-Yin. To be honest, the pig's nickname 'King of the Bandits' was better than Lily."
"Pig? You mean Sho. Why do you call Sho a pig?" Viper asked.
The wolf rolled his eyes, shaking his head. "He's a brown bear that is head of a group of BOARS called the BOAR Bandits."
"Ah."
"But I shouldn't be too hard on him, I guess. He's going through an identity crisis right now thanks to Po," Lion smirked. The panda nervously grinned and twiddled his fingers together.
"I have to ask," Shifu started. "Why the name Lion?"
Lion sighed, "I was... named after Platon, Platon Lion. Sho and I were his students. It's not something I'm proud of, but... things change."
"Are the Jai-Yin titles important?" Po asked. The wolf shook his head.
"We're more clan leaders than princes or royalty. It was pretty... nominal, but it still held a lot of responsibility. Something that Sho hated."
"Why?" Shifu asked.
"Sho doesn't really like order or responsibility all that much. He'd much prefer enjoying himself and having a good time. As much as he makes a ruckus of things, he's pretty 'go with the flow.' The only real reason why he even worked with Platon to capture me was because Platon offered to leave Sho alone. That guaranteed he could make a mess of things... within reason."
"So Sho would be able to live in comfort at the expense of China's safety?"
"Not exactly," Lion slowly said. "Sho does have a firm grip in the crime world, simply because he's too slippery for the authorities to catch and too strong for most warriors to fight. And if anyone does happen to step out of line, he's the one that gets the job done under the table."
"But why did he defect from the army in the first place, then?" Shifu asked. Lion grumbled and pursed his lips together. He stayed silent for a moment before finally speaking,
"Simply put, he hated the idea of working directly under a traitor. Sho has a weird sense of pride. Originally, he joined the army to get stronger and give the Emperor some payback. That's what he says anyway. That all changed when he was working directly under Platon. He'd rather be a bandit than serve under a traitor."
"Why is it such a sore topic?" Tigress asked.
"Because he still was under Platon. Doing his dirty work for him," Lion gave a long sigh. "He knew it, but... he couldn't admit it. Pride comes before a fall, I guess." Tigress scootched closer to the wolf, leaning in on her knees.
"My parents. Where are they? What are they like?"
Lion smiled, "Your parents are probably the best people I know. Your mother is a very strong powerful woman. She's actually the only person that Platon fears. She's the strongest among the leaders."
"That's... scary," Po gulped. He could barely get by with one strong tiger. Having two of them felt like a familiar nightmare he had.
"When the Emperor ambushed us, she helped me out of the fray. After a year or two of training me, I promised to find you for her," Lion smiled. "And I have."
"Why didn't she find me herself?" Lion began to speak, but then found himself caught up in words. He looked around the floor as if his words were splattered over the ground. Tigress frowned. "Did... did she not want me?"
"No, no, she wanted to keep you more than anything. But... your parents figured that if the Emperor followed them, you would stand a chance at surviving. When everything calmed down and the Emperor started his... whatever at Jai-Yin Mountain, Li wanted to find you. So I offered my help if she'd train me." Lion grimaced a bit. "It just occurred to me that if she came to find you, this whole thing probably wouldn't have taken so long."
"Why?" Tigress asked.
"Sho wouldn't have moved an inch and he wouldn't dare go against your mother. If anything, he would have given her an escort straight to your orphanage. Platon wouldn't have done anything either. The only reason I even attracted attention from both of them was because... I... have this tendency to help any and everyone I see in trouble. And it bites me in the butt sometimes. I even made a deal with the demons to find you. There were a lot of false leads," The wolf smiled. "But it was all worth it. I finally have my little sister back."
"Why is the Emperor so afraid of you?" Po asked.
The wolf took a deep breath and spoke slow. "Because out of all of us, I give him the most nightmares."
"Ah, nice. Uh... can you say that in a way that doesn't make me want to pee my pants?" Po asked kindly. Lion chuckled a bit.
"Sorry. My spy work puts a lot of the Emperor's dealings right in the open. If I were to speak, he could have the entire country turn against him in a blink of an eye. Plus my activities here give the other Jai-Yin who have been hiding here a normal life. Of course, most of them have either fled to the secret villages or enlisted into the army. I don't know if the Emperor knows this, but I know that Platon does. Either way, if I were ever to show myself to the public, Emperor Fu would have the country, the Jai-Yin, and potentially the best of his army fighting him. That's a lot to fear. And having my demons doesn't make it any better for Emperor Fu."
"Oh yeah right. The demons... uh... are they really uh..."
"Po," Shifu interrupted, "I think there are some questions best left unknown."
"Right, right, sorry," Po chuckled nervously. Tigress smiled a bit while the wolf sniggered to himself. "Anyway, there's still one question I have. Well, one of many. Do you know what the Emperor wants on Jai-Yin?"
Lion sighed. "That I don't know. I've tried talking with Sho. There was a time when he and I worked together to get our home back. All we managed to do was get his hammer from the mountain. And when I do ask Platon, when we're not fighting as much, he tells me he can't figure out what the Emperor wants with the mountain." Lion groaned and ran his hands up his face and over his head. "It doesn't make sense why he's so invested in it. If it was heirlooms or treasures, he would have come after us. Each and every time I go to that mountain, it doesn't seem like a single thing has changed. But they have been excavating a lot." The wolf shrugged. "I don't know. That place is already dead to a lot of us, anyway."
"Wow, that's... wow," Po whispered. The hall fell into a quiet with the tiny flickers of candles and lanterns darting shadows across the room. The information fell on them hard. Hardest on Tigress.
"Master Shifu," Lion said directly, "Thank you so much for taking care of Tigress... and for changing her name." Tigress narrowed her eyes. "I'm sorry, but Lily is such a... un-tiger name."
"I like it," Po objected.
Lion could only smirk, "Of course, you would."
"So... What do we do now?" Monkey asked. The room fell silent.
"We get stronger," Tigress said as she stood up. "Now that you found me, we need to take down Platon."
"Why? There's no reason to fight him anymore," Lion said.
"But he will come after us and the village."
Lion grumbled under his teeth.
"She's right, Lion," Po said as he stood up with her. "I've seen Platon and the Emperor's type. They don't stop until they find what they're looking for. And I don't think you want innocent people getting involved."
"I've been getting involved one too many times. It's time to leave this country up to its own fate."
"But it's still my home. Our home," Tigress replied. Lion glared at the floor. Then a small smirk crossed the tiger's face. "But I'm sure that my mother would be okay with you abandoning thousands of innocent people."
"Grk!" Lion grunted at the thought. "Grr, fine."
"Whoa, you're good," Po whispered to her. Lion finally stood up along with the rest of the team.
"I'll try my best to train you all, but most of my time will probably be with Tigress, Po, and Crane."
"Why me?" Crane asked.
"You managed to make a deep cut in Sho twice now. That's a sign of some untapped strength... or unbridled rage," Lion shrugged. "In either case, training is going to be in high gear."
"I agree," Shifu said. "I will focus my attention on Viper, Mantis, and Monkey. I think we've become lax in our training recently."
"Hey, we're not that weak," Monkey protested.
"I didn't say you were," Lion said, "But if you have some hidden strength that can turn the tide and help us, it's better that you train up that." Shifu nodded with the wolf.
"Alright!" Po exclaimed. "I can't wait! OOhh! Can we start with the weighted punches or! Or! Maybe what Tigress does with the weights on her back or-"
"Is he always like this?" Lion whispered to Tigress as Po continued talking a mile a minute.
The tiger smiled, "Since the day he was born."
Meanwhile, the cold mist around the base of the Jai-Yin mountain slowly burned away. Among the clattering movement of spears and weapons, Platon walked straight into the Emperor's encampment. He grumbled to himself, nodding and waving to passerby guards along the way. His mask was off and tucked in his cloak, and the hood that previously hid his face was removed. His eyes were locked onto the Emperor's tent, marching over wet grass to the guards. But the guards stopped him.
"I wouldn't go in there if I were you, Councilman."
"Why not?" Platon asked. The guard grimaced. "I need to speak with Emperor Fu. I'm in no mood for games, soldier."
"THIS IS ALL YOU'VE FOUND! THIS IS WORTHLESS TRASH!" A loud smash rang out from the tent. "Go back and find that thing before I have you all killed on the spot!" A small fox ran from the tent for his life.
"Neither is the Emperor," continued the soldier.
Platon sighed, "Do you know what's been going on?"
"No, but I believe it has something to do with what he's trying to find. Whatever it is, we've had no luck in finding it." The guard finally let Platon in. The lion saw pottery smashed all over the nice carpet. Pictures of lions and bears could still be seen on the scattered debris. That is until Emperor Fu crushed the largest piece under his heel.
"Worthless trinkets." Though he gritted his teeth, Platon was careful not to growl. "Platon," The deer said, finally recognizing his presence. "You've returned. I trust that the prisoner is secured."
"No. He's not."
"What!"
"The wolf is under the protection of the Masters of the Jade Palace and the Dragon Warrior."
The deer took a deep breath, slowly speaking. "And you didn't reclaim him because of what?"
"In the fight, the Dragon Warrior managed to defeat Sho and take away his uh-" Platon shook his head. He knew the deer didn't care much for Jai-Yin culture. Only the important things were necessary. Meaning, the things relevant to him. "The wolf spoke saying that-"
"He spoke?" Fu asked. "Interesting. I'm correct in saying he hasn't spoken for years."
"Yes, your Majesty."
"What did he say?"
"He found what he was looking for," Platon replied. The deer stroked his beard before straightening his posture.
"So the Dragon Warrior defeated Sho. And the prisoner says he found what he wanted to find? What do you think his next move will be?"
"If anything, he'll try and disappear."
"So he won't fight us anymore?"
"I... I don't believe so."
"You don't believe so? Councilman," Fu said. "You said whatever he was looking for was his one goal and that once he found it, he wouldn't meddle in my affairs again. That's the main reason I didn't have him killed, Platon." The deer glowered. "Have I made a mistake in sparing him?"
"... No, sire," Platon replied. In truth, Lion gave himself up willingly. Fu knew he could never kill Lion; he firmly believe that Lion was the only reason why Platon didn't murder him.
"Then we don't have to worry," Fu smiled. "He left you alone and doesn't want to fight you?"
"N-No."
"Then we'll forget about it. Within a month's time, we will have made progress here. Then we'll be able to regain control over the Jade Palace and restore order," The deer made an unusual smile as he stroked his beard. "Send word to my son and have him come join me in two weeks' time."
"Yes, sire." With that, Platon left. As he exited the tent's flaps, he could have sworn he heard the deer muttering about some emerald.
It didn't matter in the end. There was a lot to do. A lot to think about.
Continued...
