Hello, so here the longer chapter. Enjoy. :-)

27. All or Nothing With Your Life

It was in the afternoon, but the sky was dark like at the beginning of the night. Dark clouds covered the sky and announced new snow.

The peahen watched them through the window and wished she could fly away. Footsteps of a bird sounded through the corridor. Firm and slow. She didn't move, didn't turn around. She knew his walking pace.

They stopped. She could feel his glance behind the door in her back. A loud rush of the door let her wince. Then someone slammed it again. He carried out his harsh movements deliberately, just to see her fear.

She still didn't turn around, but her heart stopped a silent moment. His feet started to move again in her direction. Closer and closer. Very slow and relaxed.

She tried to concentrate what happened outside. He approached next to her at the window and stopped. She realized him in the corner of her eyes. He seemed to look out of the window, too. The blue peacock lifted his wings and tapped his finger feathers together.

"Are you watching the snow again?" he asked mockingly. "Of course. Like always, don't you?"

He gave a condescending smirk. "You always had a sense of useless things."

He turned around, but she felt, that he gave her a nasty side-glance. "Is that the reason why the universe brought you to be a nobody?" Carefully, he wiped with his wing over a chair and took a place on it. "Stop staring outside! Come here!"

Immediately, she turned around to him, but she didn't look at his face. With lowered glance, she came closer until she reached him.

He waved with his wing and pointed at the floor. "Sit down."

Without protest, she kneeled down to the ground. She knew his commands. He leaned back in the chair and watched her with suspicion. His wings on the armrests constricted more.

"Look at me!" he ordered.

She lifted her head without hesitation. His blue narrowed eyes met her silver ones. He - full of optimism and anger, and she - sad and afraid.

"You are looking for so many useless things." He put his wings together. "Am I so useless for you?" He reached out his wing and patted her cheek. "You were always good for useless things." Then he smiled. "But useful for my plan."

Xiang gave her a last light slap and released her. Then he put the end of his finger feathers together, leaned back in the chair and smiled mockingly, when he realized her shocked face.

"Did you really think I would let me catch for nothing? How do you want to come into a castle on an easy way?"

Yin-Yu was just staring at her husband.

"I knew, King Wang would never kill me in front of your eyes." The peacock got up and walked a few steps away from her. "Don't be so afraid. Of course. It was my wish that the Hun guys attack our town to arrest us all. My father never managed to take his castle under control. But I would make it. And I made it. I made enough provisions for that. Guo was one of the first ones, who agreed with me." He stroked over some of his finger feathers. "And step by step, he persuaded more and more to follow me, and to get me out of the prison. And to deprive King Wang of his power."

He looked behind. Yin-Yu was still speechless.

Xiang smirked. "Unfortunately, I couldn't win the whole army over. It was a little, little risk for us, that they could hurt us in our home. But it was worth it."

The peahen lifted her wings and covered her beak and couldn't hold back herself. "You risked the life of your family!"

The peacock shrugged the shoulders. "Well, so what."

"We could be dead!"

But she was more shocked about that he didn't rebuke her for her protest. He seemed to enjoy her desperation.

"Who cares? Even if so, there are enough better women, which have a stronger character than you."

Carefully, very carefully, Po peeked around the corner. Two big bulls were standing at the entrance of the prison. He retracted and looked at the others.

"Alright. Discussion of the situation." He pointed at Wang. "As long as we don't know who of your soldiers is loyal to you, everyone could be a potential enemy. Well then. First, we have to come out of the prison. But as inconspicuous as possible. First step, knocking out the guards."

"I will do," Sheng said and ran forward.

King Wang had no chance to say something. In the next second, Sheng was next to the two surprised oxen and kicked them hard. But one of them took the chance to scream a loud "Come over he…!" Then they lay on the floor.

Po put his forefingers together. "Could you have done it a little quieter?"

The following howling and rumbling of heavy feet got an answer to his rueful question. But Sheng showed himself unimpressed. With a loud scream of attack, he jumped at the first running guard and smashed him to the ground.

"Maybe we should help him," Po said and started his kung fu fight.

Wang and Shen came with and a chaos with guards began.

"They don't stop," Po muttered. "So I think, they aren't on your side, are they?"

"It seems to be," Wang said and was forced to strike the next one of his own.

"Alright, guy!" Po cried around. "We have a little minus quotient."

He got angrier when more and more guards appeared.

"What was Xiang thinking?" he muttered. "That's sheer madness!"

"And what about the ambush in the underground?" Yin-Yu found the courage to ask that question.

Xiang waved his wing. "Just a little show. You know, I like to have a little dramaturgy. Originally, it was my plan to go through the secret passages to make a little expedition. But some strange guards were too watchful and hunted me. And you crossed my way. I can't stand annoying persons. Especially of strange ones. But that's unimportant. Guo came before all uncorrupted soldiers grabbed me, and I staged my re-capture."

"For what?" The peahen had trouble to order her thoughts.

"Is that so important for you? I like to have my fun."

"Fun? I was scared. Weren't you afraid about your son and your daughter?"

He snorted. "Your daughter? Why should I? She is a stupid child. And your son?" A derisory smile crossed the corners of his beak. "I gave him the order to undergo a last test."

"We need a better plan!" Po cried.

Suddenly, a little thing jumped on his head.

"Not far away is another secret door," Tu said over his face.

"Really?" Po hit the next guard and looked around. "Where?"

"Follow me!" Tu jumped away.

"Hey, guys! Follow me."

A loud sound let him wince. With a loud cry, the young peacock was thrown through the air and crashed against a wall. He moaned and couldn't stand up immediately again. The big ox soldier snorted with satisfaction and swung the ax. Sheng blinked, but his back ached too badly and he sank back to the ground.

The Hun soldier went hurtling towards him, but a white cutting lighting aborted his run. The giant fell aside with a loud scream. But this couldn't stop him. With a new attack he lunged at the white peacock, but Shen's quick movements and hard kicks with feet and wings confused the big ox. Finally, Shen used the ax of him and crashed it against the attacker's head. A last cry and the ox stayed down. Heavy panting the lord stopped next to him and stared down at his knocked-out enemy. After he was sure that he wouldn't stand up again he relaxed his body and came back to his normal posture.

He looked back. Panting Sheng lay on the side. Their eyes met, but without a warm emotion. Shen with reproach, Sheng with humiliation.

"Hey, hey!" Po's voice cried at them. "Little change of plan! We gonna make a little afternoon break! But without lunch!"

Like a roller, King Wang passed them and grabbed the body of Sheng. Shen saw how the guards came closer, so that he was forced to flee like the others. Around a corner, Tu opened a hidden door in the wall. As fast as they could, they disappeared inside and closed it again. The thundering feet of the passing guards died away after a while. All were out of puff and exhausted, but they regained their composure.

"Where does that way lead?" Po asked Tu.

"To the higher stages," the cicada answered. "Just follow me."

Wang and Po followed the request, until the panda realized that the others stayed behind. He turned around. Sheng was still laying on the floor, while Shen was watching him. Po was going to go back, but then he decided to go a few meters more away and to let them alone.

It was dark in the corridor, but Shen could see how Sheng covered his head with a wing.

"Why do you try to prove yourself the whole time?" the white peacock asked.

A loud exhausted sigh of his son sounded. "I tried to correct my mistakes." He paused, gasping for air. "All my training for nothing."

Shen narrowed his eyes. "Is it that, what Xiang's plan included?"

First the younger peacock didn't reply. But after a quiet sob…

"If the Huns attacks our town, he wanted to make a last test with me. He would allow that his Huns would fight against me. If I defeat them, I would be worthy of being his successor. If not…" He lowered his glance. "I failed." Tears welled his eyes with rage. "I can't even protect myself here."

There fell a deep silence. The white lord heard how the boy tried to restrain weeping. He rubbed his wing tips together. He had never talked with his own parents about such things. He didn't know how to talk about it now. Finally, he bent a little down and came a little closer.

"Do you know, when I was in your age, I wasn't as good as you are now."

There was a sobbing sound, but it sounded more like a panting "Really?"

"Well, maybe not so nearly. Your fight style is not bad. But you are a little bit too…" He searched for a fitting word. "Too overzealous."

"Anyone who hesitates is a loser, Xiang says."

"Forget everything what Xiang said!" Shen screamed. "And if you don't want to die, then listen to me! Alright?"

He couldn't see it detailed, but Sheng seemed to be shocked and confused.

The lord cleaned his throat. "What I want to say is… I already missed your birth, but I don't want to be the first one who has to see your funeral." He avoided his glance. "And believe me, I know the feeling of failing. But there is always a way of standing up."

He didn't want to enlarge upon the topic and held out his wing at him. "Now come on. Everything else we can talk about it later."

First, Sheng hesitated. Then he grabbed it and Shen helped him to stand on his feet again. But before they continued their way, Sheng muttered something.

"Now I understand, why mother had grieved about you."

The lord paused for a moment. "Did she?"

The young peacock didn't want to talk about it more, but maybe he didn't need to say more.

Po and Wang had waited in a lonely corner and counted the seconds.

When they appeared, Po lifted his head with excitement. "And? Did you remove all ambiguities?"

Shen gave him an unsatisfied look. "Not all yet."

"Your son was too weak."

Yin-Yu kneeled on the floor and was near to tears. "My son? He is… also your son."

Not biological, she knew…

"A weak one has no right to be my follower. Same to your daughter."

She held a wing on her chest. "She is stronger than you think."

"What is a life worth of a female? Because of her, my whole plan was delayed." He turned around. "But there is still something more, that built a question in my mind."

The peahen was afraid of a coming disaster. Xiang's eyes were more minatory than usual.

"Who was that white peacock?"

In her head, everything went black. "I – I knew him from my childhood."

Xiang showed himself more relaxed. "In this case, it doesn't matter where he is now."

She was horrified. "What have you done to him?"

"He got a cold bath. He will never be thirsty again."

She stood up. "But you told me, you would take care that he comes out of the castle!"

He pointed down to the floor. "Under our feet, there is a nice river. Of course, it will bring him out - and out of the world."

He watched how the peahen broke down psychically. "No, you didn't…!"

She turned around, but she didn't find a chair. Instead, she leaned against something else.

Xiang clicked his tongue snidely. "He already didn't look well." He put his palms together and watched her. "Is that a problem for you?"

His smiling pulled the rug out from under her feet. She tried to stay, but she trembled.

"So, a friend in your childhood? It doesn't look like."

A female scream cut the air when Xiang jumped at her and pressed her with his feet claws on the floor. "What a role does he play in your life?!"

"Did you hear that?" The group stopped and listened like Po did. "There was a loud voice. I think."

"If you want to take a look," Tu said and pointed to the side. "There is a moving wall next to us, where you can come into the corridors on the upper floor."

"Maybe we should open it and take a look," Po proposed.

King Wang rubbed his head. "I had never thought that they are so many gaps in my home."

Po chuckled. "If you knew what mysterious gaps in Jade Palace I have found."

Carefully, he pushed the wall away and peeked through it. The corridor was empty. No guards. Maybe Xiang had sent them away.

"Over there is a door," Po whispered.

King Wang looked over his shoulder. "It's the room where Yin-Yu had been lived."

"Let me out of here!" a female voice shouted.

"That's my sister!" Sheng cried.

"You mean Xia? Alright. Follow me."

Po ran over the corridor to the door and knocked against the wood. "Xia? Is that you?"

First, there was silence. "Is that you, Po?"

"Yes, it's me. Are you alone?"

"They took mother away!"

"We know. Wait, I will open the door…"

A fast white light and Shen had cut through the interlock.

Po scratched his head. "Well, that's the easiest way to do it."

Sheng was the first one who pushed open the doors.

Xia froze, when she saw him. "You are still alive?"

But Sheng grabbed her wings. "Where is mother?"

"She wanted to speak with King Wang."

The surprise of the girl grew more when she saw Wang in front of her.

"Don't panic," Po said and waved his paws. "It looks complicated. But there is always a logical explanation for all."

Her eyes became wide, when Shen went through the door frame.

"And for him too," Po added with hesitation.

"I will explain you everything," her brother calmed her. "Don't worry. Everything will be alright."

All pricked up their ears.

"Oh, oh. We receive visitors," Po said.

"Out of here!" Sheng pulled his sister, but the little group was forced to stop when many big guards ran at them through the corridor. Sheng hid his sister behind him.

Po pressed his fists together. "I will make it."

"Alright," Shen said. "Take them, but Xiang is mine."

The panda stared at him with excitement. "Oh, am I hearing the special word through the universe of your subconsciousness, which starts with "L"?" Po grinned. "Yeah, you are still in l-o…ooooo rd. A lord. You are still a lord? Right?"

The panda swallowed down the word "love" after Shen had given him a very warning filled glance. Po rubbed his palms together, ducked his head when Shen looked at him so icily.

Then the peacock turned away and left the others.

"Oooo-kay," Po said. "Here we go!"

King Wang and Sheng were ready too.

"Don't worry!" Po shouted behind the white peacock. "Everything is under control!"

Xiang added his pressure with his foot claws on the woman's throat, while his other foot started to hurt her chest. "You were right, that you told me before our marriage it would be a mistake to marry you."

Yin-Yu got tears in her eyes. "I-it hur-ts!"

"Shhh!" the peacock whispered. "How many times should I tell you? You talk if I allow you." He dug his claws deeper. "After so many years, I see it was a mistake. You were just a millstone around my neck. It's not a surprise for me that your mother bit the dust so early."

He bent more down. "For the last time: What did you have with him?"

She kept her lips closed.

Xiang sighed and gave his claws a pull. "In this case, I have to torture you."

Suddenly, a vase crashed against him and threw him away from her. Lying in shards he lifted himself up. The door of the room stood wide open.