A/N: Hello all! Apologies for the delay...i have entered hell month (aka final exam month) and things are getting shaky. I may not be able to update as much for the next two weeks, at least until school is over.

Also, I think this story may be longer than anticipated….

Enjoy!
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"Shen…" Kai's wide-eyed gaze flicked back and forth between the group."I know that name. Bi Liang used to talk about him."

"He's dead." Shifu bit out. He glanced at Po, who was staring angrily at some point in the distance, fists clenched at his side.

"What does he want with Shen's cannon?" Viper asked the group, but the question was directed at Kai.

"It isn't Shen's cannon?" Kai replied, uncertainty written on his features. He was taken aback at the confused looks sent his way. "I mean, Shen built it, but the design wasn't his."

"Kai," Tigress stepped forward, "what do you mean?"

"Bi Liang used to talk about Shen all the time. He used to say that if Shen had done what he was supposed to, China would have fallen years ago." Kai replied. "He was adamant about it. He blamed the rebellions on Shen's inadequacies...whatever that means."

"You mean Shen wasn't working alone?" Crane frowned at the boy. "He was working for someone?"

"Yeah." Kai nodded eagerly.

"So, everything we knew about Shen was wrong?" Monkey looked at Mantis.

"But the Soothsayer…" Po trailed off.

"He destroyed the panda village because of the prophecy, that much remains the same." Tigress folded her arms across her chest. "The only thing that has changed is that we now know he was working for someone. So what is that person planning?"

"All I know is that his primary goal was taking China, and Bai Liang hasn't done that yet." Kai spoke up. "This camp is proof of that. So he will retreat back to his weapon because he knows that it works."

"So what do we do?" Po's question was soft, and it silenced the room. "How do we stop this?"

"Destroy the cannon?" Mei Ling shrugged, but there was a question in her voice.

"That won't be easy. If he's pulled back forces from the camps, his weapon will have protection, and a lot of it." Tigress replied.

"And all those people…" Viper trailed off. "We have to find the other camps, see if we can help the prisoners in them. If they're anything like these people, they're close to death."

"We don't have the supplies for that." Mei Ling replied. "This camp is overstretched as it is. We don't have enough food or beds. And we've only got a few doctors at most."

"The priority is helping them. China is nothing if the people suffer." Shifu spoke in response. "We need to find more supplies."

"The festival…" Kai's sudden outburst caught them off guard. Tigress looked caught off guard for a moment before she understood what he was getting at.

"It's a good idea...a risky one, though." The unspoken communication between the two was habit from ten years of quick looks and whispers when the guards weren't looking. Seeing her comrades watch them expectantly, she explained "The Mid-Autumn festival is in just under a week. Bai Liang always has a caravan of food brought in for a feast in the Imperial City. It's the biggest party of the year aside from New Years."

"You want to attack a heavily guarded caravan?" Crane was looking at her like she was insane, and maybe she was.

"It's a way to get food." She explained. "And if they really are pulling wolves back, it will not be as heavily guarded as it normally is."

She looked to Shifu, who was thinking it through, hand stroking his beard. "Fine. But I will not be sending all of you."

He stopped their protest with his hand. "Viper is right. There are other camps in the western regions that we must try to assist. And we need some of you here, protecting the people." He sighed and leaned on his cane. "Viper, Mantis, Tigress-work on the caravan. Kai, if you know the route the caravan takes, it will help them."

The young tiger nodded in reply.

"Crane and Mei Ling, scout ahead for camps. You two are our fastest. If you find any, come back here. We can send a group out to free them. The rest of you will need to remain here to protect the camp."

His statement dismissed them all to their planning. Kai moved quietly to look at the map of China spread out on the table. He frowned at it, dark eyes scanning over the valleys and mountains. He felt rather than heard Tigress move to stand next to him. With a tentative claw, he pointed to a spot on the map.

"Is this where you're from?"

She nodded, humming in reply. Mantis hopped up on the table, Viper slithering up behind him.

"Do you know the route the caravan takes?" Viper looked up to him kindly, and he gulped. "Not exactly. They change the route it takes every year to avoid being robbed. I know the food comes from the south . They spend days collecting it." Kai shrugged.

"You think they could be in the valley? There's a ton of farm land down there." Tigress asked him, but he shrugged again, looking a bit overwhelmed.

"We'll leave for the Valley tomorrow afternoon so we can travel by night. Maybe we'll be able to spot the caravan from the palace." Viper was excited about the prospect of going home. She sat up taller, eyes mischievous.

"Mantis-" Shifu came over to join their group. "I have a special task for you. Come with me." He gestured to the door with his head, and the bug followed him outside.

"What was that about?" Po came over to the table.

"No idea. But if I know Shifu as well as I think I do, he has something up his sleeve." Viper replied.

"I'm surprised you're okay just remaining here." Tigress teased. "I thought you'd want to be a part of the action."

"Well, even though I know you're desperate for my help, it will be nice to stay here. Maybe I will get a group together...collect some peaches. Warrior stuff."

Viper giggled at his teasing, relief in her chest. It was nice to hear them bantering again…

Tigress glanced back down to the map briefly, and then at each of them, gaze turning serious.

"Alright. What's our plan?"

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A/N: I know it's short, but I have been trying to write for two days and I keep getting interrupted.

Bear with me peeps