"Again!"
Aden lurched forward from his readied position just in front of the Jade Palace entrance and threw a wide variety of punches and kicks at Monkey. Unfortunately for him, Monkey blocked each strike with ease, all while balancing on his tail. In a last-ditch effort, Aden leaped towards Monkey and outstretched his arm in hopes of making contact with his side, but Monkey quickly saw through his plan. Within an instant, Monkey grabbed his wrist and twisted it. Aden winced as his body was forcefully turned around. One swift quick from his opponent's leg to the small of his back was all it took to painfully send Aden staggering forward until he finally collapsed onto his hands and knees.
"Always maintain control of your body when you strike," Master Shifu instructed. "Lunging wildly at your opponent is an incredibly risky move that could make the difference between life and death."
Aden heaved as sweat dripped from his brow. His body ached from the nearly incessant training.
"I thought I was supposed to make crops grow with a magic guitar..." He wheezed.
"You're familiar with metaphors, are you not?" Master Shifu returned.
Aden rolled his eyes, begrudgingly worked his way back to his feet, faced Monkey, and resumed a fighting stance.
"Again!" Master Shifu repeated.
His form was still sloppy, but there had been noticeable improvement over the past few weeks. Training began almost immediately after his musical display in the Hall or Warriors, and Aden quickly learned how little he actually knew about fighting. Due to his lack of experience, Master Shifu focused nearly all of his energy on getting Aden up to speed. It eventually developed into a team effort, as the Furious 5 and Dragon Warrior allocated a decent portion of their training time to guide and advance his technique.
Channeling his ability had also proven to be an immense challenge and an incredibly perplexing concept for Aden. It seemed to almost come at random. One minute he'd be getting his butt kicked relentlessly, and the next he'd have his opponent subdued without batting an eye. Identifying the pattern was a difficult task, however Master Shifu convinced him that training would lead him to enlightenment for his problem.
Besides training, the dynamic between Aden and the Jade Palace residents changed almost instantaneously after he proved his musical ability. To be fair, everyone had already been treating him kindly with the exception of Tigress. But now, their minds were saturated with curiosity and wonder. Aden barely got any alone time after that, as every student warrior nearly drowned him with questions. Everyone except Tigress, that is. They asked him about everything under the sun, including: friends, family, hobbies, customs, holidays, and even cuisine. At first, everyone was thrown for quite the loop after he explained the human diet, but he assured them that mammals on his world didn't have the same level of consciousness as them and that killing mammals here would easily be considered murder to humans. It took a minute for that information to sink for all of them, but the honesty and compassion he exuded helped mitigate their concern relatively quickly.
The one thing, though, that they were all absolutely fascinated with was his music. China undoubtedly had a rich culture and history where music played a critical role, but none of the warriors had ever heard anything like what Aden played. Virtually everyday after dinner the team of Kung Fu Master's would request a private show from him, and Aden would happily oblige. It's not everyday you had a group of fans begging for an encore. They would all gather around in his room and sit longingly while he played timeless classics from his world on his newly acquired acoustic guitar.
It seemed as though life had finally dealt him a good hand to play with, as the cordial nature of everyone had begun to grow further into a familial one. However, there was still that one person that left him puzzled after every interaction. Tigress no longer treated him with hostility, but she held a sullen attitude every time he got near her. She never asked him any questions and would just sit quietly in the back of every performance of his, leaving almost immediately after he finished playing. Aden felt bad that they weren't speaking to each other, but he wasn't sure of how to broach the situation and felt it would be best to let it be.
The current sparring session between Monkey and Aden had lasted for a couple minutes now, and it was evident that Aden was exhausted. Master Shifu had established that his last training session for the day would not end until he could land a single hit on his opponent. This wouldn't have been much of a problem for him if he hadn't been training for the past 10 hours. His punches and blocks were growing weaker, as his tired breaths grew stronger. His eyes were losing focus, and his mind finally began to drift from the fight.
Then, just like that, he snapped. His eyes shot open, and his body regained enough energy to dodge a punch, maneuver to the back of Monkey while tripping him in the process, and apply enough force just below the back of his neck to send Monkey face first into the ground.
"Excellent work, Aden." Master Shifu commended. "I'm completely baffled by your your ability to recover and overcome your opponent. You have officially completed your training for the day."
Aden removed his hand from Monkey's back and bowed. "Thank you, Master."
As soon as Master Shifu turned around to walk towards the Hall of Warriors, Aden lost nearly all feeling in his muscles and collapsed on the ground next to a now sitting Monkey.
"You're getting better," Monkey smiled.
"Thank… You…" Aden took deep breaths in between each word.
Monkey chortled and stood up. "Come on, let's get something to eat."
Aden stood up and tiredly walked with Monkey to the kitchen. They entered the room to find the remaining student warriors enjoying a cup of jasmine tea and lightly chatting.
"Woah, did Master Shifu make you take a shower as training?" Mantis laughed at Aden's sweat ridden state.
"Hardy har har," Aden mocked in return, as he got himself a bowl of noodle soup and took a seat at the table.
"Master Shifu sees something in you," Viper spoke. "He wouldn't be pushing you this hard if he didn't."
"Yeah, I just wish he'd assign naptime as part of my training."
"Well, we're all off tomorrow," Po chuckled. "So, let's just kick back and relax."
"That reminds me," Crane added. "Isn't the fall festival tomorrow?"
Po's eyes lit up. "That's right! We should all totally go!"
"That could be fun." Viper agreed.
"That does sound pretty fun," Aden commented. "You should all definitely go and enjoy yourselves."
Po raised an eyebrow at Aden. "You wouldn't want to come with us?"
"Sure I do! I'm just not sure how the village will react to seeing me, though."
"Well, you can't stay locked up here forever," Mantis countered. "You've been here for well over a month now, and you still haven't left the Jade Palace yet."
"Besides, what's the point of training to become a super rad Kung Fu Master if you can't even protect the valley?" Po reinforced.
Aden briefly thought it over. "I can't argue with that logic. But, do you really think a festival that the entire valley attends is a great place to introduce a foreign being like myself?"
"He has a point," Crane joined in. "If we aren't careful, he could incite a frenzy that'd be near impossible to control."
They pondered the situation for a moment before Monkey grew an animated look and snapped his hairy fingers.
"I got it! Let's make masks!" He proposed.
"Masks?" Aden questioned.
"Oh, yeah! I completely forgot about that!" Po shared Monkey's enthusiasm. "Some people like to wear costumes to the fall festival. Kinda like that Halloween holiday you told us about."
"You know, that's not a bad idea..." Mantis acknowledged.
"It's just crazy enough that it might actually work," Crane added. "Plus, It'd be great for you to see the village in action before Master Shifu announces you as a new protector of the valley."
"Then, it is decided!" Po announced and pointed a chubby finger at Aden. "You are coming to the festival to party with the Jade Palace whether you like it or not!"
Aden returned a hearty laugh. "Alright, alright, alright, you've convinced me. Let's make ourselves some masks."
"Woo!" Po exclaimed, shooting both arms up in the air in a double fist pump.
"I'm glad we figured that out," Viper spoke up. "I think that's enough excitement for me in one day. I'm going to be in my room if anybody needs me."
"I'll walk with you," Crane said as he waltzed out the of the room with her.
"You guys want to play a game of Mahjong?" Monkey addressed Aden, Mantis, and Po.
"Yeah, I'm down," Po answered.
"Same," Mantis joined in.
"Aden?" Monkey asked again.
"Nah, I'm probably just going to eat, wash up, and kick back for the night. I'm beat." He replied.
Monkey gave Aden a quick thumbs up, then motioned for the others to follow him. "You boys ready to lose?"
"Oh we'll see about that, buddy," Po contended, as he grabbed a few almond cookies from a jar and marched out of the room at the back of the group.
Aden couldn't help but chuckle. Not long ago he was completely devastated by the loss of his home. But now, he feels grateful for the new home he's gained. Almost like the universe has granted him a newfound sense of human companionship.
His inner musings were cut short by a light cough at the other end of the table. Aden looked up to see Tigress staring at him with tired eyes. It wasn't until that moment that he realized she had been in the room the entire time. Not one word had escaped her lips during the entire conversation with the other warriors. He held her gaze for a few moments before looking away and scratching the back of his neck uncomfortably.
"Oh, hey Tigress," he began.
"Aden," She simply returned.
There was a brief moment of silence between them before Aden spoke again. "Um… How's it hanging?"
"I'm sorry."
Aden's eyes drifted back to Tigress' at her unexpected apology. Her gaze hadn't faltered since he looked away from her, but now he could clearly see the pain in her vibrant, orange pools.
"I've been a complete disgrace as a warrior," she continued.
Aden's brow raised slightly.
"You have been nothing but kind to the Jade Palace, yet I have only disrespected you. It was unfair of me to assume your intentions were nefarious considering there was little evidence to prove it. You were-and are-still acclimating to a new world, and I should've been more sympathetic to your predicament. I am sorry."
Tigress lowered her head despondently and bowed in an apologetic manner. Aden sat quietly absorbing every last word of her apology before the corner's of his mouth raised into a tiny smirk.
"That's why you haven't been talking to me?" He questioned, a chuckle escaping his lips.
Tigress raised her head and displayed the same dejected look before with a hint of curiosity.
"Well, if you're looking for forgiveness, then your apology is more than accepted," He gave with a warm smile.
Tigress grew an even more confused expression upon hearing this. "You forgive me already? But, I treated you terribly! The pain I cau-"
Aden held up a finger to silence her. "You did nothing wrong. It's very obvious you care a lot about your allies and were just trying to protect them. Sure, you were a little rough on me, but a strange dude falling from the sky would make anybody uneasy. I don't blame you for your lack of trust. I just wish you'd have told me sooner, so we could start building a healthier rapport."
"I… I don't know what to say," she stuttered. "I didn't expect to be forgiven so easily."
"Well, I'm a pretty easy going guy," Aden returned, giving her a friendly wink.
Tigress didn't know how to respond and decided to sit for a few moments quietly reflecting. She eventually dawned a unique expression that held a mix of contentedness and frustration.
"Thank you," She began. "But, it doesn't feel right to have my actions pardoned without reparation."
Aden rolled his eyes. "Well, I don't take life debts, so how about you pay me in weekly installments of hang out sessions?"
Tigress' overall expression still didn't change, but Aden noticed the crease of her mouth waver slightly, as if she was trying to hold back a smile.
"I don't think that will appease me completely," She replied. "but it's a start."
Aden stretched his arm out across the table with a smile plastered to his face. "Friends?"
Tigress finally lost the battle with her emotions and let a small smile break through her stolid expression, as she grasped his open hand and gave it a firm shake. "Friends."
Tigress stood up from her seat and bowed slightly. "Thank you again, Aden."
"No problamo. Have a good one."
With that, Tigress ambled out of the room leaving Aden alone to his thoughts. It was as if a weight had been lifted off his shoulders. He was finally on the road to becoming a Kung Fu Master and had the full support of everyone at the Jade Palace.
Aden finished his bowl of soup and stood up, cringing at the foul scent of his sweat soaked clothing. Now all he needed was a bath.
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