Chapter 5
Disclaimer: I neither own the rights to DreamWorks, Kung Fu Panda, the Kung Fu Panda cinematic universe nor any of its associated media, derivatives or products. I do not profit from this work.
[Scene: midair, over the Forbidden City. The faint sound of wind is in our ears, the shot sighting along Crane's back as he glides through the air, eyes narrowed and pinned on the back of the departing duck. He glances down as he passes over an inner wall and gives a nod to the "gambling" guards below, who have pretended to not notice the intruder. They nod back. Crane refocuses on the target, rising to hover above and behind on a higher current, never in direct line with the moonlight.]
(LOI and Crane's flightpath leaves the forbidden city. As they do so, two shadows, originally looking like stone roof charms, take off from a shop rooftop and trail behind Loi as a defense guard, heading west. The rear guard is composed of two hawks, both wearing armor over their heads and wing-joints and spur-like coverings on their talons.)
CRANE: (Frowns in confusion at the armor. The birds begin to move over the city, and Crane takes every opportunity to weave in and out of buildings, hiding behind pagodas.)
(Shot from a shop window below: a young GOSLING, looking up at the moon, sees Crane's silhouette passing overhead and lets out a gasp.)
GOSLING: No way…
(LOI and his guard suddenly bank, forcing Crane to follow as they make a half-circle and turning back eastward, now south of the Forbidden City.)
CRANE: (Muttering to himself) Diversion tactics. Where are you headed…?
NOISE: Flap! Flap! Flap! (Wingbeats, rising upwards. Crane looks back, startled.)
GOSLING: (Rising, laboriously, into view) Are you– Master– Crane?
CRANE: Uh–
GOSLING: It is you! I can't believe it! (Being very loud) M-my name's Qiu-Li; I'm your biggest fan!
CRANE: Th-that's nice, Qiu-Li, but I'm kind of busy right now–
GOSLING: I have your action figure! Can you really do barrel rolls and tail dives? And do you really have six different moves of kung-fu-action?! (Does a little kick mid-air, dropping a few feet before his wings lift him up again.)
CRANE: Uh– (Glances forward again. Loi is still there, but the hawks are gone.) What the–
GOSLING: W-What is it–?!
CRANE: Shh! (The Gosling shuts up, looking hurt, as the master looks left and right, arching his long neck. There's nobody ahead of him but Loi; the hawks are gone.) Oh-h-h, we are so screwed.
GOSLING: What? Mmf! (His words are muffled as Crane's long legs suddenly grab him out of the air and clap over his mouth..)
CRANE: Hold on, kid. (Spreads his wings and quickly rises up into the air, breaking up into the low misty clouds hovering over the city. He unmuffles the gosling as they're lost in the fog.)
GOSLING: Wow! I've never been up so high before–
CRANE: (Hissing) Look, Qiu-Li, you've gotta be quiet!
GOSLING: (Eagerly whispering) Why? Ooh! Are you on a mission?
CRANE: Well, uh– (Looking around in the cloud formations; it seems pretty empty.) Yeah, I'm on a mission, a-and if those guys catch me they're not gonna like having a witness. (He looks down. The gosling is peering up at him with trusting eyes.) Aw man. Look, just—keep quiet, okay? I think I lost them.
GOSLING: (Whispering) Okay. (Settles into Crane's talons, looking delighted.)
(For a long moment, there is silence. Crane glides steadily through the cloud formations, the moonlight occasionally breaking through in patches.)
(And then, two dark shapes cut through the fog, rising to level with him in the air. The birds of prey hover on either side, and Crane gulps. Qiu-Li hunches in his talons, looking suddenly scared.)
(Crane looks right and then left, calculating. Suddenly, he barrel-rolls, flipping midair over the left goshawk and banking around in a loop. With frightening agility, the goshawks change course to follow.)
GOSLING: Uh, Master Crane! They're following us!
CRANE: Yeah, kid, I can see that! (Wheels again, diving into a cloud formation. The goshawks punch through the cloud after him; Crane spots a shadow rising quickly underneath him just before one of the goshawks pierces upwards through the mist, rolling and raking his spurred talons at Crane's underbelly. The larger bird yelps and spins out of the way, losing altitude and banking through the air.) Oh man! Not good!
GOSLING: Master Crane!
CRANE: Hold on! (Wheels around a cloud pillar, but the shadows are still after him like black darts, orange eyes glowing in the dark. He dives to a lower layer, mist trailing off his wingtips.)
GOSLING: Y-You can outfly them, righ?
CRANE: Are you kidding me?! These guys are hawks! (Panting as he strains to get ahead, wings pumping.) I've got an idea.
GOSLING: W-what are you gonna do?
CRANE: Just—don't throw up on me, okay, I hate vomit! (Pulls his wings in and dives.)
(They pierce down through the cloud layer again, the two darts hot on their tails. The city looms in front of them, neighborhoods, blocks, rooftops—Crane squints as the gosling screams—and—)
(He pulls out of the dive just in time, spreading his wings and swooping upwards as a sickening CRUNCH sounds in the alleyway behind him.)
GOSLING: (Looking back; only one dart is following) You got one!
CRANE: Going up! (Loop-de-loops upside down as the other goshawk flies through his circle and then shoots straight upwards into the sky. He banks right; the goshawk banks left. Both miss each other in the middle. They loop again, the city rising and falling out of view behind them.)
(As they cross in mid-air, the goshawk extends its armored talons; Crane's free talon skitters uselessly off the wing-armor, and he lets out a gasp and immediately loses altitude as large bloody scratches are ripped through his white chest-feathers.)
GOSLING: (Screaming) Master Crane!
CRANE: (Wheeling, struggling to stay afloat as he gasps:) I'm okay. Just a scratch—oh no. (The hawk is turning around again, orange eyes sighting down the larger bird.) Oh man. Kid! Open your wings!
(The goose doesn't have time to ask why before Crane suddenly throws him up into the air and kicks him skywards. The kid squawks and flaps his wings at the parabola's arc, peering down at the city far, FAR below.)
GOSLING: (Panicking at how high up he is) Uh– uhh-! (As he watches, below him Crane wheels around as the goshawk does the same. They shoot past each other; blood flies, and the goshawk banks and starts spiraling downwards. Crane swoops upwards in a flash of white.)
CRANE: (Panting) I got him in the eyes. He won't be able to follow us now. Come on! (Grabs the kid out of midair and plummets to the ground.)
[Shot shifts to Crane and the gosling swooping down to earth in an empty alleyway. Crane lets go of the goose and stumbles sideways, collapsing against a wall and clutching his wing to his chest.]
CRANE: Oh man. (Pulls his feathers away to see blood.) That was close, that was way too…
GOSLING: Um, Master Crane–
CRANE: (Snapping and flinging up a wing) Don't–! (The goose stops, startled, and steps back.) Don't… talk to me, for a second.
GOSLING: But I–
CRANE: Do you have any idea how much danger you were in?! (The kid shuts up.) Those were war hawks, Qiu-Li, for the Ten Thousand! That armor wasn't for show! (The goose looks hurt.) You were almost killed, and I failed my mission!
GOSLING: I'm sor–
CRANE: Sorry doesn't fix it! (He closes his eyes and pants a few more breaths, clearly in pain. A snuffling noise starts up, and when he opens his eyes again he sees the kid is tearing up. Immediately feeling guilty:) Oh– look, um, kid, I'm sorry. I know you didn't mean… (Qiu-Li starts to cry for real.) Uh oh.
GOSLING: (Wailing) I'm sorry! I-I m-m-messed up your m-mission and–
CRANE: No, no! I mean, yes, you did, but– (Qiu-Li sobs again.) Listen… I'm sorry. I was way too harsh, you're just a kid. (Awkwardly patting the kid with his wing.) Come on. L-let's get you home; where do you live?
(Shot moves ahead to Crane and the goose walking through the streets. The kid looks morose, but thankfully isn't crying anymore. Crane is limping but trying to hide it whenever the kid looks his way.)
CRANE: Look, I really am sorry. I didn't mean to make you cry.
GOSLING: S'okay.
CRANE: No, it's not. You're just a kid; I shouldn't have been so harsh. (Hesitating) Listen, kid… people like me–
GOSLING: (Looking up, still with that puppy-dog worship) H-heroes?
CRANE: A-alright, heroes… we're just like everyone else, okay? Just like you. (Kinder) Which means sometimes we make mistakes, a-and we have good days and bad days… Anybody can be a hero. Even you.
GOSLING: R-really? You mean it?
CRANE: Sure. But… if anybody can be a hero, that means heroes can be… just like anyone else. (Apologetically) I'm sorry for snapping at you. I'm just under a lot of pressure right now.
GOSLING: D-Did I ruin your mission?
CRANE: (Hesitates, and then decides to fudge the truth a bit) Nothing me and the rest of the Five can't fix. (The Gosling looks a little less morose.) Are we close to your house?
GOSLING: Y-yeah; just down this street. Th-thanks, Master Crane…
CRANE: Don't worry about it. (The kid looks down at his feet, and Crane nudges him with his wing.) Hey. (The kid looks up.) You were pretty brave up there.
GOSLING: (Grins despite himself) Thanks.
(They reach the house; Crane pecks at the door with his beak like he's knocking. After a moment the door opens; he quickly takes off his hat and uses it to hide the scratches on his breast.)
MOTHER GOOSE: Qiu-Li? You're supposed to be asleep! (To Crane, recognizing him:) Wait, aren't you–
CRANE: (Quickly cutting in) I-I was just flying by when your son mistook me for Master Crane of the Furious Five. (The chick looks up at him in surprise, but Crane ignores him with a forced laugh.) C-Can you imagine? Me, a kung fu master, with these skinny legs!
MOTHER GOOSE: (Mortified) I am so sorry. Master Crane is his hero, but (sternly) that is no reason for him to go sneaking out at night and bothering strangers, right, Qiu-Li?
GOSLING: Y-yes, mom.
MOTHER GOOSE: (Shepherding him inside with her wing; to Crane:) Thank you so much for bringing him back.
CRANE: No trouble, madame. Your son seems like a good kid. (He gives a nod to Qiu-Li, who blinks, and then smiles and gives him a grateful nod back.) Have a good night.
MOTHER GOOSE: Yes, thank you. Qiu-Li: bed. (Escorts her son inside, who looks back at Crane in surprise. The larger bird winks, and then the mother closes the door.)
(Immediately as soon as it's closed, Crane lets out a pained gasp and leans against the wall, taking several deep breaths as he puts his hat back on. The wound is clearly paining him more than he let on. After taking a breather he spreads his wings and gives them a few flaps.)
CRANE: (Hissing) Ooh. Ouch. (Taking off into the night.) That's gonna leave a mark…
[Scene: back at the palace. Po is packing back and forth while the others and Shifu wait for Crane to return.]
TIGRESS: (Anxiously) He should have been back by now.
PO: What if he's been captured? What if they're torturing him?
VIPER: Don't say that!
SHIFU: It won't help to dwell on it. We just have to wait until he returns or until we receive a ransom note.
PO: (Pacing again, making a worried "mrm!" noise as his face scrunches up—and then he stops as he sees a shadow outside his window.) Look! (Shifu and the students crowd around the window. The shadow comes more into view: it's Crane, flying badly.) It's him!
TIGRESS: He's injured.
CRANE: (Flies in through the window shakily and half-collapses onto the floor, panting.) Oh man. Solid ground.
VIPER: (Slithering up to him) You're hurt!
TIGRESS: (Urgently, kneeling down beside him) Crane, what happened.
CRANE: (Out of breath from the strain of flying injured, shaking his head) I lost him. Thanks, Mantis. (Lifts his wings for Mantis's bandage rolls; the bug winces at the sight of the bird's white feathers stained with scarlet splotches and streaks.) He had a rear guard; I was hiding on a higher current, but this kid totally blew my cover! I barely got us out of there alive. I'm sorry, guys.
VIPER: (Sympathetically) You're safe; that's the most important thing.
SHIFU: (Demanding) Did you see which way he was flying?
CRANE: Southeast. That's all I know.
TIGRESS: That's something, at least. We can work from that, Crane, good job.
CRANE: These guys he had—they weren't just some angry insurgents, Master. (Shifu's frown deepens, concerned.) They had armor, and their aerial attacks—they acted like soldiers.
TIGRESS: (Frowning to herself) The messenger said he served General Zhong…. (Looking at her teacher anxiously:) Master, I don't think these are the actions of a few angry individuals.
SHIFU: (Grimly) Nor do I, Tigress. It is as I feared: (his students turn to him, worried) the Ten Thousand are forming a true army. We must inform the Emperor.
[Scene: large wooden doors being thrown open. The Five, Po and Shifu enter a bustling imperial office in the morning sunlight: officials sit at low or raised desks with brushes while guards in armor hurry between them.]
(WU, in guard armor, comes up beside the group in the doorway and turns to them with a smile.)
WU: Welcome to the head offices of the imperial guard.
SHIFU: (Looking up and around in awe) Impressive.
WU: Wait 'til you see our break room.
[Smashcut to a large map being tossed down a table and rolled out with a flourish.]
WU: This map shows every street and building in the Northern Capitol. (The map of the Capitol glimmers faintly gold in the morning light, showing the Forbidden City, the Imperial City around it, the rest of the capitol sectors and the shipping canals.) We've raided the Ten Thousand's hideouts here, and here… (places black blocks on two locations in the city) but weren't able to take any prisoners to interrogate. We suspect the main hideout is somewhere in the southeastern commercial sectors, by the Grand Canal.
CRANE: That was the way I saw the messenger headed.
WU: (To Shifu) Grandmaster, the Guard's resources are at your disposal.
SHIFU: Actually, Master Tigress will be taking lead of this mission. (Gesturing up to his student, who looks surprised.)
TIGRESS: Master, are you sure? With a matter this serious…
SHIFU: (Calmly) Oogway himself foretold your importance to this task, Tigress, and I have learned not to question his judgement. (She bows fist-in-pam to him.)
WU: Well then. (Tigress looks back at him; he smiles.) We await your orders, Master Tigress.
TIGRESS: (Glances around at her comrades and the gathering imperial guards, looking, to the knowing eye, more nervous than usual. Nevertheless she turns towards the map, narrowing her eyes as she studies it.) The Ten Thousand seem to like causing fear among the people…do we know where they'll strike next?
WU: We have informants in the underground who keep us aware of threats to the city, but the Ten Thousand are more careful than most.
TIGRESS: I'm certain they'll attack again. And when they do…(takes several yellow-painted blocks, and places them in the center of the Forbidden City), …we will be ready.
[Shot: montage of the group trying, and failing, to capture and interrogate a member of the Ten Thousand while simultaneously stopping terror attacks:]
[The group is spying at night, perched on rooftops and leaping from one to the other against the moonlight. They watch some sort of sneaky dealing going on down below, but when they jump down and arrest the pair the pig they've arrested laughs awkwardly and shows the illicit goods he has inside his outer-robe. Annoyed, the group turns around—just in time to see a masked figure scamper away through the shadows, as the building behind them explodes.]
[In an arson attack, buildings are burning in a neighborhood of the town. Po and the Five are hurrying townspeople out of the burning buildings and trying to save lives. Mantis chases a masked cat-like figure through a burning building, hopping under the burning timbers, only to find that the cat has disappeared out the other side.]
[Back at the guard offices, at their respective loaned desks. Po gains a despairing look as stack after stack of intelligence briefings are placed in front of him, so tall it blocks him from view.]
[Fight at the river: a bridge has been destroyed. The group is battling a party of assassins, who at a shouted command leap over a building and vanish without a trace.]
[At the office, Po is sleeping and drooling on a stack of paper; he startles awake as Tigress passes behind him and smacks the top of his head.]
[In quick succession, shots of the group arriving at one, two, and then three different terror acts, each time just seconds too late from catching the culprits.]
[They arrive too late for the fourth time—just in time for TIgress to chase after a fleeing masked figure. She rounds a corner and, again, he's gone. Tigress snarls and punches a wall, cracking it, before stalking away past the others, who share looks.]
[Transition fade to the palace at sunset...]
[Scene: sunset, in the palace garden. Po is walking along, admiring the trees. It is now later in the fall, the leaves drifting down continuously, and the garden is colored more in red than yellow; clearly several weeks have passed. Po pauses underneath the plum tree Tigress picked the flower from, looking up in delight to see that its branches are now weighed with heavy plums, and then quickly looks around to see if there's anyone around, before sneaking over to the tree and grabbing hold of a branch.]
EMPEROR'S VOICE: Oh! Dragon Warrior!
PO: Euayh! (Jumps and turns around, startled. The emperor has just come around the bend in the path.) Oh! Um, your Majesty! I was just– uhh…
EMPEROR: (Looking delighted as he hurries up to Po) I see you've noticed our plum trees. Aren't they lovely this time of year?
PO: Um y-yeah. (Hopefully) The, uh, the plums look delicious.
EMPEROR: The cooks harvest them at the end of the month and make the most wonderful pastries with them. (Obliviously walking away from the tree, much to Po's disappointment; the panda follows him.) You and the Five have been so busy with the guards, it must be nice to take a break and visit the gardens.
PO: (Joking) Yeah, it feels like all I do these days is read intelligence reports. I miss the days when we could just punch our problems away. (The Emperor chuckles.) Viper even found Tigress sleeping in the guard offices one night.
EMPEROR: Thank you all for working so hard for me. I knew when I called on the Dragon Warrior and the Furious Five that I would be in safe hands.
PO: Uh… your Majesty, can I ask you something? (The emperor gestures for him to continue as they walk over the bridge under the scarlet maple trees.) Master Shifu told us to like, not talk to you and stuff, but you're… way more chill than I thought an emperor would be.
EMPEROR: (Laughing sheepishly and closing his eyes) Oh. I'm sorry, but, well, I wasn't raised to be an emperor, after all. Sometimes I forget. (Adjusting his glasses and opening his eyes.) Besides, all these rules can be so stuffy. Use this hand, wear this hat, say this not that—it's hard to get the important things done!
PO: I know, right! Aw man, finally, someone else who gets it!
EMPEROR: (Happily) I believe you and I are alike in many ways, Dragon Warrior.
PO: (Surprised, but delighted) Oh, uh– you think so?
EMPEROR: Indeed. We were both, let us say, unexpected phenomena—lifted up by fate from a lower station into one beyond our wildest dreams, foretold and chosen through Grandmaster Oogway's great wisdom. (Smiles up at him.) It's a bit disorienting at first, isn't it?
PO: (Laughing) You're telling me! I mean some days I still don't know why they let a guy who almost burnt down the Jade Palace with a fireworks chair–
EMPEROR: A what?
PO: –Become Dragon Warrior! For a while I wasn't sure Oogway made the right decision.
EMPEROR: And yet, both of us were chosen for a reason. I for my talents—and you for yours.
PO: Ha! I'm not sure about talents; trust me, your Majesty, this is all training. (Pats his, somewhat smaller than years before, belly.)
EMPEROR: (Mildly) It is more than that. It is said that you, Dragon Warrior, love Kung Fu more than any of the other masters—even, forgive me, Grandmaster Shifu himself.
PO: Uh… (realizing) yeah. I guess that's true. I mean, don't get me wrong, the others are devoted—but, y'know, Kung Fu was my first love. Always has been.
EMPEROR: (Nodding) China, Dragon Warrior, is my first love. I have always served my kingdom to the best of my ability… and that is why I find a kindred spirit in you.
PO: (Touched) Wow. Um, thanks, your Majesty. I'm uh, super honored, and all that.
EMPEROR: (Smiling at him again) The pleasure was all mine. (The sound of the city gong drifts over the garden.) I have a meeting with your grandmaster in a little while, but for now… (Reaches into his robe pockets and retrieves two plums; Po's eyes go wide, happy. The emperor, whispering:) I won't tell anyone if you don't.
(Shot of them sitting on the bridge-railing, eating plums and laughing like old pals.)
[Scene: kitchen, after dark. Monkey, Mantis, Crane and Viper are finished eating and are talking; Po walks in the door and sniffs the air.]
PO: (Happily) Smells good. This cook knows his stuff! (Goes to the stew pot and his face falls to see it almost empty.) Sheesh. You guys didn't hold back, did you?
MANTIS: (Slightly salty) We assumed you were eating with His Majesty.
PO: (Arguing) Hey, don't be jealous. (Looking around) Where's Tigress?
VIPER: She isn't with you?
PO: No; she didn't eat here? (The others shake their heads.) She's probably still in the guard offices or something; you know how she gets. (Grabbing a bowl of leftover stew.) We should take her something. Ooh! (Grabs another.) And for me. (A third, balancing it on his arm) And one for the road…
[Shot shifts to a hallway in the guard offices. Tigress is reading another intelligence briefing; the lantern on the desk gutters a bit, and she glances at it before recognizing the time, and sets down the paper. Shot moves to her walking along through the hallways of the gaurd offices, lost in thought, when she passes by a door and her ears flicker at the voices from within. She pauses and glances through the crack.]
(It's Shifu, Wu, and the Emperor, in Wu's private study. They seem to be discussion the mission. Tigress hesitates, and then steps nearer the door, peering inside.)
SHIFU: (Arguing, but respectful) Forgive me, your Majesty, but I know the Dragon Warrior very well. "Practicality" is not his strong suit; I believe that Master Tigress is indeed best suited to lead this mission.
EMPEROR: But the Dragon Warrior is preeminent among the kung fu masters, is he not? They say that the heavens themselves chose him from among the masses, and presented him before great Master Oogway in a ball of fire! And, Grandmaster, you cannot deny that the investigation has not proceeded as we had hoped…
SHIFU: Yes, that is true. But the prophecy says–
EMPEROR: I do not doubt that Master Tigress is the one who will save my life. What precisely the stars have preordained, however, is not always as clear as the paths they take across our skies. All I am suggesting is that perhaps the Dragon Warrior should take charge of the more immediate, practical aspects of the investigation. (To his head guard.) Wu, what do you think?
WU: My men and I had hoped to make more progress by this point, your Majesty, but we will abide by whatever your wisdom decides.
(At this point Tigress pulls away from the door; her expression is difficult to read, but her frown and downcast eyes indicates that she's upset. She leaves.)
(Inside the room, Shifu's large ears flick, and he turns his head slightly, glancing back at the door.)