Chapter 17: The Dragon Scroll
The sun was setting low on the horizon, the sky taking a vibrant yellow-orange hue as Po, Shifu, Leo, Donnie, Raph, and Mikey were heading back to the Jade Palace.
"You have done well, all you." Shifu told the five of them, sounding quite proud.
"Done well? Done well?! We've done awesome!" Po said enthusiastically, his enormous belly bumping into the red panda and knocking him slightly off balance.
Shifu stumbled slightly before straightening himself. "The mark of a true hero is humility." He stated. "But yes, you have done…" He sharply yet playfully jabbed Po in the side hard, "... awesome."
The turtles shared a laugh while Shifu chuckled as Po stumbled a little before laughing as well.
They were about to head down to the student barracks when they heard the sounds of steady wings flapping above them.
Looking up, they were surprised to see Crane slowly fluttering down towards them, and carrying what looked to be four other figures. And as he came lower to the ground, they realized he was carrying the rest of the Furious Five who were completely frozen.
"Guys? Guys!" Po cried as he and the turtles rushed up to aid the fallen Five while Shifu stood speechless.
"Dudes, what happened to them?!" Mikey exclaimed as he and the others examined the Five. "Are they dead!?"
"No, they're breathing!" Po stated. "Are they asleep?!"
"No, they're not dead. And no, they're not asleep." Donnie retorted, checking each of them for pulses. "It looks like they've been paralysed."
"What, they're gonna have to sit in wheelchairs for the rest of their lives?" Raph said sarcastically, though there was an underlying worryness in his voice.
Donnie frowned at his hotheaded brother's rather crude comment. "No, but it seems like their completely imobile." He replied, trying to move Monkey's arm, only to find it stiff as a statue.
Leo placed a hand on Crane's shoulder. "What happened?" He asked in a gentle yet commanding tone.
Crane panted breathlessly. "We tried to stop Tai Lung before he could get here… but we were no match… for his nerve attack."
Shifu pursed his lips as he frowned. "He has gotten stronger." He then performed several light jabs to specific parts of Mantis' chest, reversing the paralysis on the bug.
"Who? Tai Lung?" Po asked, sounding panicked. "Stronger?!"
Shifu then went over to Monkey, and with a few more jabs and a light punch, freed the simian from his paralysis.
As soon as he was free from his paralysis, Monkey's fist shot up and hit Donnie in the nose hard. "He's too fast!" Monkey cried as he sat up, wincing slightly as Donnie glared at him while holding his beak. "Oh, sorry, Donnie."
"Why is it always my face?" Donnie grumbled under his breath.
Shifu then knelt down next to Tigress and quickly freed his student/daughter.
"I thought we could stop him." Tigress said weakly as she gasped for breath, sounding ashamed of herself. "I'm sorry I disobeyed you, Master."
Instead of being angry with her, Shifu instead gave her a solemn look. "He could have killed you all." He said firmly, moving over to aid Viper. "Although I am disappointed that you disobeyed me, I'm glad you're safe." He said, sounding genuinely relieved.
Tigress looked surprised by her master/father's response as she sat up.
"So, why didn't he kill us?" Mantis grunted, still recovering after being freed from the paralysis.
"So everyone could see his victory." Leo stated with a scowl, instantly recognizing the tactic. "He let you come back alive to show everyone how strong he's gotten, to strike fear into our hearts."
"Yes." Shifu agreed as he freed Viper. "But it won't work."
"Uh, it might…" Po spoke up. "... I mean, a little. I'm pretty scared."
"Me too." Mikey whimpered.
"You can defeat him, panda." Shifu told Po. "You and your guardians."
Po shifted nervously. "But… I mean… the Five are masters. And Leo, Raph, Donnie, and Mikey are highly trained ninjas. I'm just one me." He argued.
"But you will have the one thing that no one else does." Shifu stated.
Po's eyes widened as everyone glanced at each other in dawning realization.
Once the Five were able to stand and walk on their own, Shifu led Po, Leo, Raph, Donnie, Mikey, Tigress, Viper, Monkey, Crane, and Mantis were all led into the Hall of Heroes before coming to a stop several feet away from the reflective pool.
Slowly, they all looked up to the ceiling, staring up in muted awe at the ceiling where the key to limitless power lay in the mouth of the ornate golden dragon statue.
The Dragon Scroll.
"Do you really believe I'm ready?" Po asked Shifu.
Shifu turned to him. "You are," He said, "Po." He then nodded to the turtles as they stepped up beside the panda.
Behind them, the Furious Five watched in silence. Whether any of them were ready or not, they were about to witness the event of a lifetime. The Dragon Scroll was about to be opened for the first time since it was created, and its legendary powers would be revealed.
Master Shifu approached the new shrine in the Hall; the shrine that was made as a tribute to the late Master Oogway.
The shrine itself had a beautiful, simple painting of the wise tortoise practicing the art form that he'd created on the cliff next to the Peach Tree of Heavenly Wisdom. Below the painting and in front of rows of candles lay Oogway's crescent moon-edged staff.
Bowing his head solemnly, Shifu gently lifted the staff from its spot on the shrine before slowly approaching the pool below the Scroll.
Eyes closed, Shifu raised the staff and twirled it in a very fluid and specific manner while Po, the turtles, and the Five simply watched in anticipation.
As Shifu moved, the pink peach petals by the pool shifting and floating into the air around the water in a calm breeze like as they ascended higher and higher towards the ceiling, all the way up to the Dragon Scroll until finally one of the petals softly landed on the Scroll's end, loosening it enough to make it fall.
Shifu quickly caught the Scroll with the end of the staff, sending a single ripple through the center of the pool.
"Behold," Shifu spoke in a low voice, turning to face Po and the turtles, "the Dragon Scroll." He held it out to them. "It is yours."
Leo, Donnie, Raph, and Mikey glanced at each other while Po looked hesitant.
"What happens when we read it?" Po asked curiously.
"No one knows." Shifu answered. "But legend says you will be able to hear a butterfly's wingbeats."
"Really?" Donnie asked, surprised. "That's amazing!"
"Yes," Shifu said emphatically, "and see light in the darkest cave; you will feel the universe in motion around you."
"WOW!" Po exclaimed excitedly. "Can I punch through walls? Can I, can I - can I do a quadruple backflip?"
"Ooh, ooh, ooh! Can we shoot lasers from our eyes?" Mikey asked eagerly. "Or turn invisible?"
"Focus." Shifu told them. "Focus. Read it, Po, and fulfill your destiny. Read it and become… the Dragon Warrior."
"Whoooaaaa…" Po gasped, taking the scroll into his paws.
After a thousand years, they would all finally know the secrets Oogway had written in this legendary parchment…
… that was, if Po could ever get it open.
Po grunted as he tried to twist the top with all his might, only it refused to budge. "It's impossible to open." He grunted before trying to open it with his teeth to no avail. "Come on baby, come on baby…"
"Oh for the love of-!" Raph grumbled before snatching the Scroll out of Po's hands. "Give me that!" He then effortlessly popped the end off before shoving it back into Po's paws.
"Thank you. I probably loosened it up for you…" Po muttered in thanks/embarrassment while Raph dusted off his hands. "Okay, here we go…"
Po slowly started to unravel the ancient Scroll, the mystical key to the universe itself as Leo, Donnie, Raph, and Mikey watched over his shoulders.
Meanwhile, Shifu and the Five simply observed them anxiously as Po unrolled the piece of parchment, the inside giving a bright golden glow.
And as soon as they laid eyes on the scroll itself, Po let out a terrified cry while Leo, Donnie, Raph, and Mikey all collectively gasped in shock.
Shifu and the Five jumped at their reactions, mouths agape as the power of the Scroll was finally in all it's-
"It's blank." Po said, looking up from the scroll.
None of them had been expecting that.
"What?" Shifu said, surprised and confused.
"Yes, Master, look." Leo stated, taking the Scroll from Po's paws and handing it to the red panda.
"No!" Shifu exclaimed, turning his head away. "I am forbidden to look upon the…" He paused, cracking one eye open. Then, in one of the worst exercises of self-control any of them had ever seen, Shifu snatched the Scroll from Leo's hands as he stared at the Scroll for a solid minute before closing and opening it again and again, practically turning it inside and out trying to find something…
"... Blank." Shifu murmured, astonished. "I don't… I don't understand."
Po, the turtles, and the Five looked stunned while Shifu turned away contemplatively.
"Okay," Po said, sounding deflated, "so like… Oogway was just a crazy old turtle after all."
"Well that's just great!" Raph said sarcastically, throwing his hands up in exasperation. "Our one solution to this whole problem and it's a big fat load of nothing!"
"All of that hard work… all of that training… just to find out the Scroll was blank." Tigress growled bitterly in agreement.
"What a ripoff!" Mantis grumbled.
"Yeah, man, what a bust!" Mikey groaned, disappointed that the Scroll didn't give them any super powers or anything.
"No," Shifu said sharply, "Oogway was wiser than us all."
Donnie took the Scroll into his hands and inspected it closely. "Maybe there's like a secret message on it or something?" He mused looking for any signs of some hidden writing.
Leo took a look at the Scroll as well, trying to find anything resembling a clue, but was only met with his own reflection in the gold parchment. "Doesn't look like that, Donnie." He said solemnly.
"Oh come on!" Po said, feeling all of his earlier confidence drained away. "Let's face it, Oogway picked me by accident!" He then slumped down on the floor, dejected. "Of course I'm not the Dragon Warrior. Who am I kidding?"
Leo, Raph, Donnie, Mikey, Viper, Monkey, Mantis, Crane, and even Tigress gazed at the saddened panda sympathetically as a collective silence filled the Hall.
"But who will stop Tai Lung?" Tigress finally asked in a quiet voice.
"He'll destroy everything and everyone." Crane said.
"So what do we do?" Viper asked, her usual bright voice sounding very downcasted.
Shifu sighed before turning to them, a new determination engraved on his features. "Evacuate the Valley," He said to the Five, "you must protect the villagers from Tai Lung's wrath."
Tigress' heart thumped against her chest, inwardly dreading where this was going. "What about you, Master?"
Shifu looked down, averting his eyes. "I will fight him."
Everyone present gasped in shock.
"But Shifu…" Po spoke, his voice barely above a whisper, "He'll kill you."
Shifu turned to them with a sad smile. "Then I will have finally paid for my mistake."
Po, Leo, Raph, Donnie, Mikey, Crane, Viper, Monkey, Mantis, and especially Tigress looked devastated.
Shifu then turned to the Five. "Viper, Crane, Monkey, Mantis," He addressed them, "you are among the greatest students I could ever teach, and it was an honor to be your teacher."
He then turned to the tiger master herself with a sad smile. "And Tigress," He addressed her with a soft, fatherly voice, "you were not just a great student, but a great daughter as well. Adopting you from that orphanage was one of the greatest decisions I ever made in my life." His smile slowly faded into a sad frown, however. "And I'm sorry I was never the father I should have been to you." He then gently took Tigress' paw into his own. "But I want to say that no matter what, I have never stopped loving you… my child."
Tigress had tears springing up in her eyes, her harcore exterior melting away as she slowly released her paw from her master's hand, her words unspoken as she could not convey enough how much she loved her father… and how much it was tearing her apart to lose him.
Finally, Shifu then turned to Po and the turtles.
"Po, Leonardo, Donatello, Raphael, Michelangelo, I want to apologize for doubting you all." He said. "You truly have become masters in your own right, and for that, I am proud of you all."
The red panda then addressed all of them directly. "It is time for you to continue your journey without me. I am very proud to have been your master." He then placed his fist into his palm and bowed to all of them.
Reluctantly and solemnly, Po, Leo, Raph, Donnie, Mikey, Tigress, Viper, Crane, Monkey, and Mantis all bowed back respectfully before slowly turning around and heading outside to evacuate the residents below.
Stopping briefly, Po turned back to see Shifu gazing into the pool solemnly before Donnie wrapped a comforting hand around the panda's shoulder, guiding him away as they went down the thousand steps…
… and leaving Shifu to his fate.
