Waking up to pain is a common occurrence when doing martial arts, what with sore muscles and joints being a factor.

Waking up to excruciating pain, your body aching like it is on fire while simultaneously feeling like you could take on the world and run laps around China is another story. Because it isn't just overwhelming as hell, it confuses you. The kind of confusion where you know you want to figure out the situation, but you are so confused and groggy, you don't even know how to start the process of figuring out what you are confused about.

Hard to grasp the concept? It's okay, Crane had problems grasping anything at the moment. Such example was the memory of how he got to sleep. Weren't they in the middle of fighting bandits? Did he fall asleep in the middle of a battle? That would be troublesome. He just hoped the others were okay.

With a loud groan, he turned onto his side. Whatever he was sleeping on was kinda uncom-

Wait.

…

Why was he sleeping on the ground?

He opened his eyes and looked down at his body. Sure enough, he was laying on his side. His right side to be exact, which also made him realize how badly his shoulder ached from sleeping on it all night. He also noticed a small blanket covering his long legs, little panda figures decorating the material, which made him stop for a moment and stare.

All right… Not the weirdest sight I've woken up to.

He couldn't recall the last time he slept like this, though what he did remember were maddening back pains that made the rest of that day almost unbearable, and he suddenly did not want to wake up at all. To spice up this already amazing morning, his hazy mind reminded him of how problematic it would be to stand up. Damn inversely bending knees.

"Crane?"

Hearing Viper's soft voice, he raised his eyes. Not only did he see the snake curled up next to him, in her usual sleeping position, he also realized that everyone was there, scattered around him and snoring in peace with no kind of replacement for a bed or covers. Except Po, he had a thin blanket hardly covering his stomach, and Crane made a note that he and his friend were apparently sharing the sides of a ruined cover. The rest of his friends had nothing else though, they were just sleeping on the hard, uncomfortable wooden ground.

Uncurling her body, Viper slithered up to the pained-looking bird, "How are you, sweetie?"

"I'm… peachy, actually." Crane replied. He attempted to get up to look at her, but froze midway.

"Woah, woah, woah, don't move! I'm working here!"

They heard the insect's voice before Mantis' head popped up from behind Crane. Holding an acupuncture needle in his foreleg, he gave a halfhearted stink-eye to the frozen bird. Crane wanted to apologize or at least nod in understanding, had it not been because unseen chains were keeping his body from making the smallest of movements.

Rolling his eyes, Mantis went back to work. He threw the needle over his shoulder and took out another from Crane's backside, this one from the neck. It had an immediate effect, and the bird collapsed onto the ground, groaning as the pain of waking up came back to him.

"Since when were you there?" Crane murmured as he massaged his sore head.

"For sometime," Mantis answered, taking out the rest of the needles in quick succession, "Woke up to you making weird bird noises. Thought you had a seizure. Or, y'know, a weird dream."

Crane groaned when he felt the last of the needles leave his body, the pain of waking up fading gradually. Viper was gently stroking his free wing with the end of her tail soothingly, smiling at him the whole time.

"O-kay," Mantis said, jumping off from Crane, "You know the drill. Do you feel dizzy, nauseous, disoriented, or about ready to just give up and die?"

"Dizzy and disoriented are synonyms, are they not?" the avian asked in a whisper, letting the wing that has been covering his face slide down onto the ground.

Mantis' face fell and so did his empathy towards his patient. "If you have time to be a smartass, then I think you are fine."

"All right, all right, sorry," The avian tried to amend, "I feel a little weird."

Viper and Mantis shared a glance, before the snake cleared her throat.

"Weird, how?"

"My back hurts like hell for one."

"Sleeping in an unnatural position and on the hard ground." Mantis noted by the book, "Your spine won't throw any birthday parties to you anytime soon."

"And… my throat is dry."

"Effects of dehydration and last day's heat. Your lungs are still waiting for a thank you, by the way."

"And… energized?"

"That's- huh?"

Crane turned his head to look at his friends.

"I feel energized. Powerful. Like, I could take on the world."

The smaller Masters shared another glance, this one nervous. Mantis shook his head at the silent question of Viper, signalling that no, this was not normal to feel like after getting knocked out.

"Yeeeah, no. You aren't taking on any kind of world these days. Doctor's orders."

"Can I stand up at least?"

With a distracted 'sure', Crane's friends grabbed his left wing and helped him stand up. It didn't go swimmingly, the thin legs of the bird were still not entirely awake. He flailed a little when the prickling irony-feeling of his unused appendages reached him, and consequently almost fell forward, but he ended up finding his balance. He sighed when he deemed his body safe for standing, and smiled a happy, if a little shy smile.

They didn't notice the wind picking up for a fragment of a second.

"You good?" Mantis asked.

"Yeah, I think I am," to emphasize his point, Crane rearranged his legs in a form that looked more natural and, dare he say, confident.

"Eeerm."

Surprisingly, the gobsmacked sound didn't come from the group of theirs. The three turned to its direction and saw both Tigress and Monkey out of sleep, looking at them with disbelief written over their startled faces. Before Crane could ask what was so weird, he noticed the simian's finger pointing at something behind him. He, Viper and Mantis turned and… didn't have a single clue what they were seeing.

On the wall that divided Monkey's room from his, there was a large slash going horizontally. It was easy to realize how large that was; it cut in literally above Po's still sleeping form, matching the panda's size in comparison.

"How did tho-" Crane started to ask, but his beak froze mid-word. He couldn't believe what his eyes were telling him, because when he raised his wing to point at the wall, its fabric and wood both got cut into with a drawled out tearing sound, making another gash. Spooked, he drew his wing back, just in time for the floor to explode next to his right leg.

"Whoa!" he said, stepping back from the erupting splinters. His gaze travelled to his wing as he unfolded it with the utmost care. He took notice of the black feathers on the inside right away, and after turning his appendage, he inspected the marks.

The room's peaceful air was suddenly no more, an ever-moving breeze began circling between the walls, tickling the different furs, scales and feathers with a cool touch.

"'Wind'? Where did this come from?!"

"Crane."

The bird in question looked up and saw his friends looking back at him weirdly. He needed a moment to identify the feeling; caution.

"Don't you… feel a little weird? I mean, weirder than before," Mantis asked.

Crane did feel 'weirder than before', his entire body was denser and heavier to carry all of a sudden. A low humming also bounced inside his ears, a soft tune, but barely noticeable.

"I do. W-what's going on?"

The breeze picked up the pace and evolved into a high wind that moved the painting on the wall and the edges of their clothes.

"Buddy, your eyes-"

"What of my eyes?!"

"They are glowing."

Crane's breaths quickened. The hollow and pulsing essence of panic spread from the core of his gut with incredible speed, and what's worse is that he was losing control to it. He didn't know what was going on, what was happening to him, what is that word doing on his wing or why can't he suddenly control wind. He knew he was supposed to have some control over the chaotic element, but never this much. Barely pointing at something should not make holes on his walls!

And now his eyes were glowing? Crane whipped his wing in front of his face, and sure enough, yellow light reflected from the feathers, which meant that his eyes were actually frickin' glowing!

The high wind circled inside the room and gained enough strength that Mantis now had to ground himself so to not be moved. The rest of the Masters noticed this phenomenon, some even realized the fact that the center of the wind was their close-to-be panicking friend.

Horrifying conclusions were made.

"Crane," Tigress said firmly, "You have to calm down. Now."

"I d-don't understand."

"Crane?"

"This is weird. Impossible! What's going on with me?!"

"Crane!"

As the Master of the Crane Technique hyperventilated and ignored the outside world, the wind in the room went wild. It picked up Viper and Mantis with no real effort, throwing the snake over to Monkey's room while the insect met the only solid wall headfirst. Monkey tried resisting it, but the invisible hands snatched him with ease. Fortunately, he found a hold on the still sleeping and the very much grounded Po's arm.

Tigress, seeing as she was the only one capable of putting a stop to the situation, fought through the miniature gale. She descended onto all fours and grounded her claws into the wooden floor. Steadily, she made her way towards Crane. The bird had his eyes frozen onto his now glowing wings.

"CRANE! LOOK AT ME!"

"I don't understand, I don't understand, I don't understand, I don't-"

Tigress shut her eyes and silently apologised for what she was about to do.

She raised her open palm, fighting against the wind as it tried to take advantage of her sudden imbalance, and hit the bird on the side of his neck with precision and care. The move was effective, and Crane dropped back to unconsciousness.

Consequently, the wind died down. Like it was never there.

There was a beat of silence in the room, which only Po's loud, obnoxious yawn and the sound of him getting up broke.

"Goob momning guyz." the panda slurred, rubbing his eyes, "How iz 'rane?"

The lack of answers made Po stop what he was doing and look around the messy room; Holes in the walls, Crane's little bed thingy, pillows and blanket in the corner, the painting the avian made yesterday sticking out of the door like someone smashed the picture into it. He also noticed Monkey next to him, panting like he just finished one of Shifu's punishment runs around the village. Viper was dizzily slithering back to the room through one hole, before she collapsed, groaning. Turning his head, his eyes landed on the knocked out Mantis' green body, twitching on the ground. There was Tigress too, standing above Crane's unmoving form, her hand looking like one of those judo-karate chops.

"Did I sleep through somethin'?"

The library of the Jade palace was usually an orderly and clean room. Imposing shelves filled with scrolls containing everything there is to know about the morals and the beauty of Kung Fu. Master Oogway had written these scrolls himself throughout the years, and by now, the value of these pieces of knowledge were on par with gold and silk. The room was usually orderly, because at the present time, most shelves were scarce of those sacred papers. The missing scrolls were either closed and placed in a pile on the central table, or were being read by Master Monkey, Master Viper or Master Shifu.

It was long over noon, but the events of this morning were still fresh in everyone's mind. Shifu, after hearing a detailed version of what happened, wasted no time snatching the closest two Masters and brought them to the library with him. Their goal was to find anything related to the Vase of the Wu Xing. If they were lucky, they could even get the Elemental Chi back into its place, preferably without hurting Crane.

There has been a constant silence in the room, only interrupted when one of the Masters closed a scroll and unfolded another one. No one wanted to stop to chat, because no one knew what wasting time could mean.

No one, except Monkey.

"Y'know, I seriously question that some of these are written by Oogway."

Viper and Shifu glared at him.

"Why's that, Master Monkey?"

"Well, call me crazy, but I cannot imagine the old turtle writing about the alluring beauty of female warriors and how to use those in the way of Kung Fu," Monkey replied, snickering as he turned the scroll so Viper could see it. Said snake tilted her head as she scanned the page, a little more interested in its content.

"Ah yes, that scroll." Shifu said, his scowl easing, "I remember it fondly. In the days of the old Furious Five, Oogway had all of us go a week living by the way of female warriors. Nevermind the fact that most us were males and had to survive the week with make-up on."

Monkey smiled widely and leaned closer "Did he make you go down to the village like that?"

"Daily. The best part was when he arranged an event where we had to showcase our feminine side to the Valley of Peace. It was almost as grand as the choosing of the Dragon Warrior."

Monkey laughed at the image. "Man, what I would give to see that."

"It was the single most embarrassing thing that has ever happened to me," Shifu shuddered, "But, to be fair, we shared the embarrassment and it helped us forge the comradeship that made the first Furious Five. Now that I think about it, I should advise Po to do the same to you."

Monkey immediately lost his smile and chocked on his own saliva. "What?! Please Mas- Shifu, don't do this to us! Only Viper would enjoy it, and maybe Crane, 'cause he likes colors and stuff, but the rest of us would literally die! Of shame!"

It emphasized his point when the snake master to his right squealed in delight with a wide smile on her face. She was completely lost in that scroll.

"I didn't even think about doing that! This is so smart. And beautiful, my God…"

Monkey motioned towards her with both his hands. "See?"

"Dignity is something that could be regained overtime. Losing it would certainly give everyone a new perspective on life," Shifu retorted, barely holding in an amused chuckle at the horror on Monkey's face. Before said Master could beg (because he sure looked desperate enough to be doing that), the red panda whipped out another scroll and held it out in front of Monkey's face.

"For now, we have more important matters to attend. But first, before I forget."

The Master took the scroll and unfolded it curiously.

"I heard from Po that you are ready for the next and final step to become a weapon specialist." Shifu continued, a proud smile on his face, "This scroll contains techniques that are suited for Grandmasters, who have perfected the Monkey way of Kung Fu and the handling of a particular weapon."

Have you ever seen a wanderer finding the truth or the faith he was looking for and realizes that this finding enables him to finally settle down and live an actual life? Because if so, this was how Monkey looked. Happy, yet cautious, like he wasn't sure he deserved this. Uncertain, whether this is really it, or there will be more to come. That there is more of the road.

"Are… are you sure Shifu? Am I really ready for this? Isn't this too much?"

"The Dragon Warrior told so, so I would imagine it's a yes."

"But I'm asking you."

"And I'm answering you."

"That was not an answer."

"Considering the context, it indeed was."

Monkey groaned and head-butted the table. "You will not answer me, are you?"

Shifu smiled.

"Exactly."

Monkey glanced at the scroll in his hand. He was honestly touched and elated, but at the same time… maybe he wasn't ready yet. He knew that when it came to who was the strongest of them; they always regarded him at the last places. Not because he sucked or anything, but his main strength that made him unique wasn't as impressive or flashy as the others'. It was literally the fact that no one knew what he was about to do. While some would regard unpredictability as the best skill of all, in his and many others' eye, it was more like a great asset instead of a fighting style. That's why he took up learning Bo staff wielding.

But who knows, maybe with this scroll, he can finally rise to Tigress' pure skill, Mantis' strength, Crane's wings or Po's Dragon Warrior-ness.

"Thank you, Master."

All of this out of the way, they went back to their search for answers.

…

But not five minutes later, the air in the library changed phenomenally.

"Master Viper, I must have misheard you. Would you, please, say that again? Slowly, this time."

There was a moment of quietness, where the snake in question collected her thoughts.

"There… is nothing about the history of the Vase here. We looked through every scroll, that was about artifacts, Chi and such."

Shifu's answer was a maybe-a-little-bit-fake, raspy laugh.

"That is impossible. This room contains every knowledge concerning Kung Fu."

"Maybe the Vase is not connected to Kung Fu?" Monkey asked.

"Master Oogway taught me about the scroll himself. I've seen him read the scroll with my own eyes. Surely you found that?"

Shifu got the answer to his question in the form of a brown, wrinkled and worn-out scroll put in front of him. What shocked the red panda was its contents:

'Elemental Chi could be alive. It could be not alive. The Vase is a mystery. It is also an open book. The only thing set in stone would be the task for future generations to discover the true beauty of the elements.'

The rest of the page was blank. Shifu didn't have the mind capacity to plan a response.

"So…" Monkey asked, awkwardly shuffling in his place, "Should we panic now?"

Getting out of his disbelief, Shifu rubbed his forehead, trying to ease the impending headache. This new turn on the situation complicated many things. He had believed there would be at least something about the Vase of the Wu Xing that could help Master Crane, but apparently Oogway recorded none. Whether it was on accident, or his Master deliberately wanted to mess with him, he didn't know. He wanted to believe it was on accident, but then again, his master did tell him that there were no accidents.

Case on point, something needed to be done now. Master Crane couldn't control Elemental Chi, and Shifu knew that this could lead to undesired consequences. Even with the obvious destruction one wrong move could make, the mental impact worried Shifu the most. He did just convince the bird he is worthy of living in the Jade Palace, so if he knew that he is basically a ticking bomb that could even kill one of his friends with a wrong move, he would surely do something irrational and brash.

Running into this deadend was a bigger problem than it first seemed.

Frustrated, Master Shifu stepped back from the table and walked over to the nearest window to contemplate.

"Master, what should we do now?"

Hearing Viper's worried, borderline desperate voice, Shifu didn't even try to fix the honorific. He just sighed and closed his eyes.

"Without any possible way of knowing how to extract the Chi from Master Crane, we can only hope that him and the Dragon Warrior will find a way to control it."

"Do you really think Po could teach him control over that power?" Viper asked, "I mean, if panicking is enough to bring this much destruction…?"

"Master Po is pre-eminent in the art of Chi control. If anyone can teach Master Crane, it will be him."

"But these two Chis are different. You said it yourself yesterday. What if Po cannot help at all?" Monkey asked.

It was worrisome how Shifu didn't answer immediately.

"If he cannot truly help, then it all depends on Master Crane in the end. There is the saying; 'When the student is ready, the teacher will appear'."

Shifu's students didn't look anymore reassured, but nodded along nonetheless. They couldn't argue with old wisdom.

"Maybe there is another place?"

The hesitant question got their attention.

"Could you elaborate, Master Monkey?"

"Well… maybe there is a scroll somewhere that is not here. Like, can there be a place in China with a scroll about the Vase?"

Viper, finding the question valid enough, turned to Shifu.

The red panda was pondering this suggestion. "There could be one place with such information, but it's still not completely certain."

"What place?"

"That would be the Emperor's own library. It is said that the knowledge of a thousand years are stored there, within the grand walls of the Holy Palace. Be it secrets of the Empire or the discoveries of old minds, everything is there."

Viper and Monkey shared a surprised glance.

"Sounds like an 'if all else fails' kind of place." the simian Master agreed, "How do we get an audience with the Emperor though?"

"It shouldn't be hard. After putting a stop to Lord Shen's plans, Emperor Kekao started to view the Masters' Council as his allies and began making bridges with the Grandmasters."

"Why bridges though? Temples look fancier."

Shifu's deadpan face was so flat, Monkey was only half laughing at his own joke. That didn't stop Viper from hitting his nape. Thankfully, he was saved from further violence when they heard a knock on the door of the library. Soon, it opened and Master Tigress stepped in.

"Master Shifu, I've come with news." She said, bowing in respect.

Shifu nodded. "About Master Crane, I believe?"

The tiger straightened out, but didn't answer right away. She hesitated, which did not go unnoticed. And if Tigress hesitated, something dire must have happened.

"Yes. He recently woke up and began his training with Po."

Viper gulped. "How is he?"

"Crane is fine." Tigress shrugged, "He is still shaken up, but Po is encouraging him to view his newfound situation as an opportunity to be better. He volunteered to teach Crane how to handle Elemental Chi, but his methods are…"

"Is there a problem with the Dragon Warrior's way of training, Master Tigress?"

"There is absolutely nothing wrong with those." the tiger tried to amend, "It's just, he dragged Crane down to the village and I'm positive I heard 's name mentioned. Excuse my disbelief, but I cannot imagine how Po's father could be of any help."

"And Mantis?" Monkey asked, reminding the room about his best friend's unknown whereabouts.

"He went too, claiming that he needed to monitor his patient."

"Right, I bet he was just hungry."

Shifu cleared his throat, catching the conversation before it went adrift. "The Dragon Warrior's methods may be questionable, but the results are indisputable."

"Of course." Tigress replied.

She couldn't really argue with that point. The panda put a lot of emphasis on training them in ways that suited the individual's need in advancement and enjoyment. These usually meant that Po took one hobby of the Five and fused it together with training. Examples included Viper's ribbon dancing or Mantis' upkept medical practice. Tigress didn't have an actual hobby per se, she was absolutely dedicated to The Way in every aspect of life. This didn't discourage Po though, and he got around that. He built on one of her defining character traits, her dedication to be better. This roughly translated into putting together the hardest, toughest, borderline impossible obstacle courses. Running through the village with bowls of noodle soup balanced on her head and hands, said soups being on fire, while she simultaneously had to avoid touching any patch of ground where the sun cast its light, meaning she had to keep to the shadows of the houses without setting them on fire was an instance.

She couldn't lie, it was good training, against traditions it may be.

In the meantime, Shifu raised an eyebrow when Tigress did not excuse herself even after delivering the news. She was just standing here, contemplating, like she wanted to tell them something else that may be even bigger in magnitude than her first notification.

"Is there something else?"

"Yes. A messenger goose arrived recently and came with news from the Emperor himself."

Tigress did not understand why suddenly everyone looked at her like she found a way to enlightenment and brought it before them. It was disconcerting how she could taste anticipation in the air.

"What did Emperor Kekao inquire?"

Tigress exhaled slowly and clicked her claws.

"The message was not sent by Emperor Kekao. The capital city of Lin'an has been recently attacked by a large bandit horde. There were noticeable amount of casualties on both sides, but the defense was successful. Even then, some bandits got into the city, and they killed the Emperor and his family."

…

"What?" Shifu jumped into a stand in his indignation.

"The Emperor is dead?"

"Him and his family." Tigress repeated sourly to Vipers utterly astounded question. The snake Master struggled with not getting emotional in place.

"His family? So every single Kekao is…?" Shifu asked, though it sounded more like a demand.

"Dead. According to the message, they have been assassinated at the same time. The Grand Council has recently chosen a new Emperor. He sent the message."

"So it was an organized putsch." Shifu concluded with a frown.

This news was truly troubling. That there was a big enough group of bandits to rival the Chinese Imperial Army meant that the unity of the country was at a critical level. Add to the fact that someone eradicated the entire dynasty of Honghe, the stability of the Empire was probably down the gutter. Unless this new Emperor produced a miracle, a civil war would break out in the following month or so. This must be why his Majesty was contacting them; to request help.

"Did the new Emperor tell his name?"

"He called himself Emperor Qiang Lei."

"Lei…" Shifu murmured, tasting the word. He found the name oddly familiar, but for the life of him, he couldn't recall where he heard that name.

"Master Shifu, the Emperor's message contained a request as well." Tigress spoke up, retrieving Shifu's attention, "He asked for an attendance in Lin'an with the Masters of the Jade Palace. He says it's dire."

"Wait, wait, wait!" Monkey said out loud, obviously amidst mirth, "The Emperor, is asking for an attendance, with us?! Don't tell me I'm the only one who finds this ironic!"

They too found it ironic. The Emperor never, ever asked for an attendance with anybody. Even the leaders of foreign lands had to ask his Majesty to meet, never the other way around. The only way this request could have been even more tradition-breaking is if the Emperor asked to come to the Jade Palace.

"I cannot decide whether this is concerning or flattering." Shifu noted, half-heartedly agreeing with Monkey. He made his way towards they exit of the library, "We'll start packing up right away."

"But what about Crane?" Viper asked, as she her friends followed the red panda. Upon hearing the question, Shifu stopped but did not face them.

"I have the utmost confidence in Master Crane's ability to find a way to coexist with his newfound power, especially now that he is under the tutelage of the Dragon Warrior. I would advise you to follow my example."

With that, he left the library. The three masters shared a glance, and after a shrug from Monkey, they followed Shifu.

The attack of the pigs did little to change the life in the village. They were just too used to the constant yearly onslaughts. For a place called Valley of Peace, it sure as hell was a popular target for bandits of all kinds, wanting to steal a prized artifact or to challenge the most famous figures of Kung Fu. The villagers accepted this pretty easily, especially when Oogway chose Po as the Dragon Warrior and he began training the villagers too. After that, assaults were like flies on a warm summer evening; annoying, but ultimately inconsequential. On the flip side, the aforementioned Kung Fu figures reacted the same way; not batting an eye on the fact that the children were joyously running around, playing alone or together, while the adults made casual conversation on the streets, like it wasn't barely a day ago their home came close to getting ransacked. This was the reason Master Shifu, Master Viper, Master Tigress and Master Monkey were casually strolling down the main road, their goal, the Dragon Warrior's Noodles & Tofu ("Talk about advertising" the simian once remarked), within their sights.

Stepping through the circular arch of the entrance, the place was filled with customers as per usual. Some of them huddled into a big group around one of the back tables on the right side, close to the door, that lead into the kitchen and the Ping residence. There were rabbits, geese, pigs and some more unique species, or at least unique in the Valley of Peace. One of these were the pandas, represented with two people; Li Shan, helping Mr. Ping in the kitchen and Po, in the middle of the huddle, eating a bowl of noodle soup and speaking animatedly.

What caught the newcomers' attention right away was that Crane was nowhere to be seen.

"So get this," Po said, a thread of noodle on the side of his face as he finished drinking his soup, "The bandit was coming at me with a spear with a really pointy end, while he screamed like he was completely nuts. He was like 'AHHHHHH!', and I see in his eyes that he wouldn't stop. What I do is I ground myself with my left foot and with an awesome spin-kick, I launch his weapon out of his hands, hitting another bandit on the face!"

"That was cool, I give you that," Mantis' voice came from the center of the huddle, signalling he too was there, eating probably.

"Cool? It was awesome! The look on the pig's face was hilarious!"

"Which pig? The one that had the spear or the one that met the spear?"

"Well, the other didn't really have a look on his face. Since, y'know, he was knocked out and stuff."

"That's true."

Seeing that the topic was on hold while both of them resumed eating, Shifu notified them of their presence.

"I hope the soup is filling, having a good meal should be a daily task for any practitioner of Kung Fu."

Po, with his face stuffed, turned towards them and smiled awkwardly. The huddle dispersed after realizing that there would be no more stories now that the rest of the Jade Palace residence arrived. They either left the shop or took a seat at another table to order.

Po swallowed what he had in his mouth. "It is, but something's different. It tastes different. Like it has something in it that it didn't have before…"

"Maybe Ping actually put a secret ingredient into his Secret Ingredient soup?" Mantis guessed, taking another half-spoonful of the meal.

"Could be. Ever since my Dads began working together, they have been experimenting. There is something with the tofu too."

Tigress shamelessly took Po's spoon and tasted the soup. After some thinking, she snorted.

"Star anise. Not bad."

"You sure?" Mantis asked, looking into his own bowl of soup, "I coulda swore I smelled clove."

Tigress scoffed. "Don't be ridiculous."

"Let me try!" Monkey said, taking the silverware from the tiger and getting a spoonful of Po's soup. The panda looked scandalized by how blatantly people were stealing from his meal.

Monkey slurped it up and tasted it. All eyes were on him to decide who was right.

"Hm. Tastes like… fennel seed."

"What?!"

"Oh my god…"

The simian put his hands up in defense. "I'm just sayin' what I'm tastin'."

"From my soup nonetheless." Po grumbled as he snatched his spoon back.

While this was going on, Shifu looked around the shop in search for Crane. Much to his confusion, the bird was still nowhere to be seen. Had Tigress misheard Po's plan, perhaps? Unlikely, as the panda was sitting right in front of him, which is evidence enough that the tiger's hearing was as good as ever, But then where was Crane?

"As amusing as it is, Dragon Warrior," Shifu spoke up with a passive face, even if his mouth stretched into a thin line, presumably to stop from curving upwards, "May I ask where Master Crane is?"

Po swallowed the next portion of soup and pointed towards the kitchen. "Oh, he is right there."

Right on cue, the door opened and the bird in question stepped out, but he wasn't like what they expected. The most distinctive traits from the Crane they come to know and love were the little apron wrapped around his purple sash and many bowls of soup balanced on his wings and head. Three soups on each wing, and five more on his hat.

The dude looked afraid to breathe, much less to move.

"Eh… H-hey guys. How are you doing?"

He did not wait for their answer and moved with careful steps, rare and coordinated, the bowls occasionally shaking when he lost his footing. His face was awkward, and he refused to connect eyes with anyone, clear signs of how uncomfortable he was doing this in front of his friends and Teacher. Nevertheless, he continued on his way, and arrived next to the closest occupied table where a female pig with her kid was sitting.

"Here is your order, Ma'am." Crane said and gently slid two bowls onto the table from his hat.

"About time already. What took you so long?"

"I apologize, w-we have a lot of customers today. I brought your order as fast as I could."

"Not fast enough. Do you want my sweet bean to starve?"

"Sweet bean…?" Crane asked, before he noticed the kid on the table, already gobbling down the noodle soup. "OH! No, I absolutely would not! I apologize if I gave you the impression."

The mother scoffed. "See to it then. My friend is at another table with her own little star. I hope you know who to serve next if you don't want a complaint."

Crane gulped and gave the slightest of nods. "C-certainly, Ma'am."

With that, he stepped away from the table and looked over the shop. He didn't need a lot to locate who she told him to find; it was the only person in the whole place who was giving him a deadly glare. She also sat at the other side of the place, so he needed to get through the labyrinth of tables to arrive there, which would need some time to happen, time Crane was not sure he had. Cringing, he sighed and made his way there.

In the meantime, Shifu was seriously reconsidering scolding Tigress about trusting Po's training methods.

"Po, would you care to tell me the benefits of this… exercise?"

The panda's eyes lightened up. "Okay! So from what you guys told me about this morning, it was obvious there were a lot of things needed to be done. You see, I thought about it and I figured, these problems formed layers. And these layers needed to be solved one by one. So I thought, why don't we start from the top, then? Crane's cool powers only caused damage when he moved his wings quickly. So I gave him a task that would teach him how to be focused on slow movements."

"Starting with the physical problems?" Shifu asked with an agreeing nod, "Wise move. Am I right to assume that the next layer would be the mental dimension?"

"Oh yeah, it apparently caused a vortex or something. Inside the room, which, for the record, would have been kinda awesome to see, but oh well," Po said, begrudge in his tone.

Meanwhile, Crane quickly served the 'more troublesome' customer and continued onto the more pleasant ones, who liked him or something akin. He had just served a family of adorable (and nice) rabbit family, feeling a tad bit happy at how polite and grateful the parents were. His hat was now bowl-less, while there were only one more soup held on each of his wings. With the goal in mind, he scrutinized the shop for the last hungry tables.

His eyes swept through the place and found his prize.

The small piglet was there, sitting alone at a table with his eyes downcast. Mr. Ping gave him new clothes this morning, presumably one of Po's old ones, and a cup of Li Shan's steaming tea. Crane's heart went out to the kid, especially when those devastated and affrighted pair of eyes met his. And boy, oh boy, the way they lightened up by just a tiny ounce, clear sign that the little piglet was happy or at least relieved to see him, Crane couldn't help but smile freely.

For a second, he forgot about that sizzling patch on his right wing, constantly reminding him of this morning, the morning that he oh-so wanted it to go away and believe it was just a weird nightmare.

"Hey sport, how are you?"

His only answer was a subtle nod.

"Okay… Here's a little food. Don't worry about paying, I took care of that." the avian said, putting the meal down on the table right next to the tea. He expected the piglet to dig in right away, he did look rather thin compared to any of his species he has ever seen, yet that's not what happened. The kid watched the soup like he had never seen one before, questions swimming in his eyes, before he looked back up at Crane with a silent thought;

Mine?

"It's yours to eat, d-don't worry about it." he replied, trying to muster the most soothing tone in his vocal range.

Much to his relief the kid grasped his given pair of chopsticks, and, even if with a hesitant beginning, began munching away on the noodle soup. Crane considered this sight, and knowing that those ugly wounds had also been tended to with the utmost care, he let his shoulders sag completely. A relief, where the ugly phantom atrophied from his shoulders, who had been clinging to him and whispering many 'what ifs' that made him want to hug himself in a corner.

That's when his eyes noticed the figures outside the shop.

Through the arch, he saw two people walking by slowly as they passed the noodle shop. A pair of geese, the familiar features coinciding in his mind into recognizable faces. The elder one was pulling a little rickshaw which had bags of all sizes piled into its seat instead of other people, while the smaller goose toddled next to him. Sparing a glance at the piglet, still occupied with eating, he passed the table. Once he was out of the labyrinth, he picked up the pace as much as he could without spilling the noodles or doing anything 'quick' movement wise, so as not to go against Po's words. Reaching the exit, he sighed in relief when he saw the geese being still in hearing range.

"Lao! Sir!"

The rickshaw halted and two heads turned to him. Crane could see that they recognized him right away, but did not respond. Instead, the elderly goose told something to the smaller one, getting a barely noticeable nod. The elder then walked over and bowed upon arriving before him.

"Master Crane. Is there something you need?"

Sadly, Crane could not reciprocate the act of respect, thanks to the bowl of steaming soup in his wings. Instead, he opted for a nod.

"Yeah. Just wanted to ask how are you doing. With the shop and everything I mean."

Lao sighed tiredly, not even trying to mask his sadness.

"Catastrophic. We barely had anything connected to us, and even those have been taken. Our savings, necessities, family treasures. All of them. Everything."

"Oh…" Crane said, staring into the soup. "Can't I or the guys help somehow? Maybe to compensate?"

The goose waved him off. "Your help is appreciated, but it's a lost cause. Even if we did get back onto our toes, this beautiful village would never feel home again."

"So you are… moving?"

"We have no other choice. I realize this valley is no longer a safe place for my family, small it may be. We need to find a new place to settle, where a new beginning awaits. Where my grandson can flourish into a man of its own kind."

Crane could not reply. He felt like he was being beaten from the inside. He wanted to reach out and beg for them to stay, to give them another chance, but what would that accomplish? Humiliate himself further in front of his ex-admirer?

Speaking of ex-admirers. "How's him?"

Lao ignored his croaky, heavy voice. "He is… shook, not going to lie to you, young man. But don't worry about him, you are still his favorite person in the world. Even if you changed professions."

Crane's eyes widened as he realized that for a famous Kung Fu Master, prancing around in an apron and a bowl of soup may be a confusing sight to see.

"Eh-hehe, it's not what it looks like, I swear! It's just… community service?"

"Truly admirable nobility," the elder said with a bittersweet smile, before even that melted off his face. Lao's hands moved forward, Crane didn't even notice he had kept them behind his back the whole time, and suddenly he had a very darling instrument laying before his legs in all its shining glory and outstanding beauty.

"With the end of my shop, I believe these will be more useful at your possession," Lao said, also producing Po's elbow pads and putting them next to the erhu, "I wish you a great continuation to your story, Master Crane. I feel like this is only the beginning."

With a bow of respect, which Crane refused to admit he deserved, the elder walked back to the rickshaw. He patted Xiao on the head, murmuring something the avian Master couldn't hear, and continued their journey to the border of the valley. Crane felt a lump forming in his throat as he idly watched their figures get smaller and smaller. He briefly saw the little gosling look back at him, with a little Mantis figure clutched in his small wings. His grandfather must have made it overnight.

Crane felt the tear, but did nothing to stop it. He stood in the middle of the main street, wearing an apron, with a bowl of lukewarm soup in his wing, and he was an emotional disaster too. The farer the small family went, the more he convinced himself that he was just a failure, nothing else. The tear reached his beak and creeped down around its girth. When it reached the point where it should have left the beak and fell to the ground, something different happened.

It moved sideways midair.

It floated.

The single droplet of tear wavered as it circled Crane's body in a moderate pace. It also didn't seem to have ideas of stopping soon. At the same time, the soup inside the bowl shook, the thrown out droplets of the delicacy joining the tear. As it continued sending out droplets, a strip of light brown liquid carrying threads of noodles formed around him, which he did not notice. He didn't even perceive how his yellow eyes shone and the tune of a soft, calming voice started to sing in a peaceful tune that only he could hear.

"Hey Crane, what are you-" Viper began, before cutting herself off with a gasp. It shook Crane out of the sad stupor he was in and turned to look at her. But instead of looking at the snake, his eyes caught onto the phenomena happening around him. In his startlement, he let go of the empty bowl, crashing it onto the ground to pieces.

"D-do my eyes glow?"

Viper could only nod numbly.

"I h-hear a song. That's bad. How do I… turn this off?!"

"Just, don't panic Sweetie, okay? Everything will be all right if you calm down."

Easier said than done. Not every day do you get noodle soup almost embracing you. Looking at the ring of liquid around him, his eyes also caught onto the cracked up earth under his legs.

"I'll…. I'll try. Yeah, try. I will. Promise? I m-mean, I promise!"

Viper gave him a reassuring smile. Even if it was painfully obvious that she forced it, Crane accepted it gratefully.

"What was that noise?"

Crane and Viper looked over to the entrance of to see their friends, Shifu, Mr. Ping and Li Shan standing here, with the guests of the shop behind them. Innocent curiosity filled the eyes of those who didn't witness this morning's event, probably thinking this was another spectacular display of Chi, while the rest were tense, ready to jump in if something happened.

What's worse, the kid was there too.

Tigress took a step forward. "All right Crane, here is what will happen. You will let Viper go over there to sooth you. If she cannot calm you down, I will have to repeat this morning, understood?"

Crane's eyes widened when he heard this. "No! Don't-" He shook his wings and his head, trying to gesture how much he disagreed with this plan.

This was a big mistake.

The moment he raised his wings to make the aforementioned gesture, a strong gust of wind blown forward, right in the middle of his friends and the guests. The blast blew the many animals back, some crashed into the tables, some were thrown right into the kitchen of the shop. As they were outside the place, Crane's friends were unlucky enough to hit the outside stone wall. Po, who shielded their impact caught Mr Ping, while Li Shan jumped in between the wall and the two smallest Masters, Mantis and Viper.

Crane frozen in place, his peak unhinged, his wings held up. His brain stopped functioning, unable to process the event, or anything that happened. His eyes swept through the pained forms of his friends, until they landed on the piglet; said kid sat on the ground, leaning on the wall of the shop with his back, touching a fresh, bleeding bruise on his shoulder. His shaking eyes bore onto Crane's shining yellow ones, and the avian realized how different they looked; that miniscule trust was no more, only uninhibited terror of him. Before Crane could utter anything, the piglet suddenly straightened out and began sprinting away from the scene, towards the border of the village, into the unknown.

Crane's chest felt numb and like a dense void. The soft tune persisted the whole time, trying to sooth him with its melody, but he was nothing but a hollow statue at the moment. Only Tigress' form shielding his view made him look up. He looked at his friend, who was clutching her left arm and was giving him a glare. Crane felt his body relax as he accepted what must be done. He presented his neck for the hit that was about to come.

His last thought was how much he hoped the tiger directed her glare at the situation, not him.

Story Miscellaneous
#7:The Author has kept his inspirations upfloat with Zayde Wolf, Fall Out Boys, Imagine Dragons, The Score and several 80's songs.
#8:Crane's favorite song, the so-called 'Ascension of the Wise' is a song we mere earthlings and real people call 'Oogway's Ascend'.
#9:If you hadn't understood why The Author said he was ambitious, now you may understand it from the fact that the two main plot lines has been revealed
#9A:Gosh, what did I start, this is going to be more than a handful...

Chapter 3 Miscellaneous
#1:The final Chapter 3 and the draft bares great differences. The only untouched or unedited part of the original draft was Mantis' diagnostical question and Crane's 'smartass' answer.
#2:The eagle-eyed viewers can already see where the story was going, foreshadowing is a joy, yet it's a difficult task.
#3:The chapter was of great importance in nature, thus its complicated spirit was something the Author had to fight with.
#3A:Starting both two main plotlines is no joke guys, I wouldn't recommend doing it at home.