A/N: For the sake of this chapter, everything in italics is a flashback. Oh, and enjoy the cameo ;)
Yù couldn't get out of the room fast enough.
She managed to keep from tripping until she was in the hallway, but a weak board collapsed under her foot. For the second that she fell, she was weightless, but then her foot hit hard ground and pain shot up her ankle. She sat forward and slowly pulled her foot out of the hole.
"I can't catch a break, can I?" She shook her head.
After checking out her foot, and finding that it wasn't hurt, she stood slowly and decided to carefully tiptoe her way out of the barracks. As silly as it sounded, she didn't want to risk falling again. So she made her way as slowly as possible towards what she presumed was the exit. Once Yù got to the end, she was very happy to find a door to the outside. She took a few deep breaths of clean air-the barracks had been musty-and reveled in the sunlight from the setting sun.
Growl. She groaned. Her stomach felt hollow. Growl.
She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, hoping to be able to smell some kind of food. A sweet scent drew her down a rocky path. She opened her eyes and tried her best not to trip over stones and roots. The scent carried her up a hill, and once she cleared the top of it, she found herself at the base of a massive peach tree.
"Cool." She breathed. Judging by the overwhelming number of peach blossoms, the fruit must have been getting ripe. A few peaches hung in the lower branches, and she was able to gather them easily. Yù sat under the tree and tore into them eagerly. After all these years, she could finally say she was full.
Yù must have dozed off, because she opened her eyes and found that the sun had slunk below the horizon. The sky over the mountains had transformed to hues of blues and purples. The stars were just becoming visible.
"So it's as pretty as they say." She murmured quietly. Of course, she had only heard tales of the Valley. Any mention of it was seen as a crime, so most of the stories were whispered along trade routes and passed in secret. "I wish I could have lived here."
A breeze ruffled the tree she was sitting under, and a few petals blew off. There was a massive gust, and the entire tree suddenly went bare. She jerked up from her spot and watched as the sea of petals moved like a river, dancing along the breeze. It was enchanting, like a show. She stood slowly, feeling a sudden desire to not disturb their dance.
The stream moved back along the path she had come from. She took off, following them as best she could. They led her in between buildings and back towards the main courtyard. They circled around the courtyard a few times and then burst through the front doors of the main building.
She was hesitant to follow it. Some part of her wondered if it was a trap. Still, though, she had nothing better to do.
Yù entered the main building carefully, watching for anything that she could possibly trip over.
"Woah." The inside of the hall was magnificent, despite the outward appearance. Even though a chunk of the ceiling had fallen through, she could still see the massive dragon statue that hung from it. The pool underneath it contained water as clear as crystal, completely unchanged by the outside world. Along the back wall, rows and rows of scrolls sat perfectly organized. Even the massive columns that supported the building shone with brilliance, the red paint seemingly fresh. The peach petals seemed to settle all around the room.
"What do I do?" She asked out loud.
"You could try getting the scroll."
Not expecting someone to respond, she yelped and skittered backwards so fast that she stumbled and fell.
"Sorry. I didn't mean to frighten you." A small paw suddenly appeared at her right side. She looked up at it's owner, and found herself looking at a small red panda. She took the paw gratefully and stood.
"I know you." She said simply, turning to look at him. "I mean, I've heard stories." He smiled slightly and bowed. She found that he was about a foot shorter than her. "What are you doing here, Master Shifu?"
"This is my home." He said simply. He hobbled ahead of her, using a cane she didn't realize he had at first. He kneeled down to pick up a blossom, and she watched as he rubbed it between his fingers. "It seems the peach tree of Heavenly Wisdom brought you here."
She felt her heart drop. She had eaten from that tree. "About that. I-uh-"
"You ate a peach?" He chuckled and stood back up. "It's alright. Po did the same when he first got here." His voice faded softly, as though he were in pain.
"What happened here?" She asked him. She almost regretted her question when his face went dark.
"We should have seen it coming." He started. He walked over to the pool and sat slowly, wincing as he did so. She sat cross legged at the base of the stairs and waited for him to continue.
"I had received a message from the Imperial city requesting our help with a wolf problem in the southern province."
"What's going on, Master?" Viper slithered into one of the big wooden chairs and watched him expectantly. They were all gathered in the kitchen, having just started eating. Po was facing away from him towards the sink, washing bowls for soup. Monkey and Crane were cursing over a checkerboard.
"The Wolves have grown increasingly active as of late." The entire room seemed to tense at his words. Mantis' spoon clattered into his bowl. Crane and Monkey stopped their game of checkers. Tigress glanced to Po's back as a wooden bowl clattered harshly into the sink. Shifu dropped the scroll on the table and pinched the bridge of his nose.
Viper slithered over and glanced at the scroll from where he put it. "The imperial council has asked for our help."
"But why?" Crane spoke up. "There have been rumors of the wolves taking over port villages for weeks. Why are they just now calling us in?"
"Because they have become bolder." Shifu gestured to the scroll. "A few days ago, three different cities in the southern province were burned to the ground. The Imperial council believes there may be an underlying threat to the Emperor. That is why they are calling us in now."
"What would we do?" Mantis asked. "If we were o go after them, how would we do it?"
"That's a good point, Master." Monkey spoke. "There are seven of us and thousands of them."
"I have not thought about it yet." Shifu admitted. "I just received the scroll moments ago."
There was silence among them.
"Come on, guys." Viper finally spoke. "We haven't backed from a challenge in so long. Why haven't we done anything about it yet? Why is there so much hesitation?"
"Do you know how many wolves Shen had on standby?" Po finally spoke from where he stood at the kitchen basin. He grabbed a towel and turned towards them. "Even before he attacked my village, he had over three thousand. Master Croc told me that there were over ten thousand in his ranks by the time Shen died. If even half of those remained in China, we're screwed." His voice was eerily calm. He dried his hands and just held the towel there for a moment.
"When did you find that out?" Shifu frowned.
"Wolf boss told us after Shen was defeated." Po shrugged.
It was quiet for a moment, but then Shifu spoke up. "Tigress, you are being awfully quiet. What are you thinking?"
The others looked to their unofficial leader. She thought for a moment, before saying "It isn't just the wolves I'm worried about." She made eye contact with Shifu. "Boss also told us that Shen recruited timber wolves from the north."
"But why?" Monkey frowned.
"Timber wolves specialize in torture techniques." She replied." They were the ones keeping the wolves in line from behind the scenes. If they're involved in this-"
"None of this makes any sense." Po sputtered. "Why go all the way to the North for reinforcements? On top of that, why wait two years after Shen's death to start killing again?"
"Master," Tigress glanced at her father, "we can't do this alone."
He looked at all of their faces one by one, and in them he saw a mix of worry, doubt, and anxiety. "Then we will need some help."
"That was my mistake." Shifu said quietly, and Yù looked up at him. "I separated them. Sent them to different directions to get reinforcements. They never made it."
"What happened?" Yù asked, but she feared the answer.
"Po, Tigress, and I remained here. Crane was sent to Dai Lee, Viper to Ho Ching, Mantis to Jun Jing, and Monkey to Lee Nao. A far as I know, they were captured. I cannot bear to think the worst." His head bowed. "Tigress and Po were training when they brought the cannons."
A/N: sorry to break the chapter up weird, but otherwise it would have been too long.
Boomie out