Fight of Fear
Resting on the logs in the middle of a river was the Shadow of Fear. It was a Shen-Gong-Wu shaped like a golden eagle and it had the power to bring a victim's fears to life. Jack knew the Xialoin monks would be on their way and he wanted to be prepared to fight them with a new tactic. He decided to fight by means of theatre. He started his video camera and began filming his attack on the heroes. The Jack-bots shot logs from their cannons, aiming for Dojo. The poor dragon was hit in the head a few times. Omi used the Ruby of Ramses to lift the log off Dojo so he could get his flight pattern back.
After adjusting his camera, Jack decides to get into the action by going after the Shadow of Fear. Clay tries to lasso the Shen-Gong-Wu, but the fans of Jack's heli-pack snap the rope. Jack and Clay were standing on logs on opposite sides from the Shadow of Fear. Jack ordered his robotic makeup artist to give Clay a makeover and he also had the camera focused on the cowboy. Poor Clay was just too camera-shy and that gave Jack the chance he needed to grab the Shen-Gong-Wu and escape.
Omi used the Orb of Tornami to create a large sphere of water and splash it against the river. Clay surfed on the log he was standing on. Raimundo used the Sword of the Storm to create a wind strong enough to destroy the dam up ahead and Kimiko used the Lotus Twister to grab Clay and save him from falling.
Clay felt ashamed of himself for his embarrassing defeat. Omi tried to cheer Clay up, but got carried away by boasting that he wasn't afraid of anything. Of course, his friends didn't believe him. Ironically, someone who has no fear is also someone who has nothing to believe in; no hope to hold on to. And it is fear that gives us courage.
Omi proved his courage on the obstacle course. Everyone was wearing blindfolds, being careful not to get caught in the traps, but Omi managed to get through with ease.
"Your courage is admirable, Dragons-in-training," Master Fung told his students. "Yet the bravest monk is not one who fears nothing, but the one who is willing to face what he fears most."
"Even with the Shadow of Fear, Jack Spicer cannot defeat me," Omi boasted. "I have never met a fear I was afraid of."
"That's a lie," Max barked. "Everyone's afraid of something, Omi. Even you. And one of these days, we're going to find out what."
"No matter how convincing you try to be, there's still a lot you can't hide," said Emily. "By telling us that lie, you're also lying to yourself."
"It is not a lie," Omi argued, though he knew it was.
That night, Jack returned to the Xiaolin Temple, ready to devastate the monks using the new Shen-Gong-Wu he acquired. He came to everyone's chambers and used the Shadow of Fear to infiltrate their dreams, turning them into nightmares. He laughed at the things Kimiko, Raimundo, and Clay were afraid of, but when he saw Max and Emily's fears, he thought he was going to die of fright. The girls' fears turned out to be more than he bargained for. Omi was the last one. He infiltrated his dreams and looked for his fears.
Jack wasn't surprised to see Omi's dreams made up of himself. After all, the young monk did have an oversized ego. But when he saw the thing Omi was most afraid of, Jack laughed hysterically.
The next morning, the monks tried to make breakfast, but everyone was still half-asleep. Raimundo was squeezing the oranges to make juice, Omi was cracking eggs, Clay was making pancakes, Kimiko was grilling bacon, Emily was setting the table, and Max was making toast. But due to their lack of sleep, they couldn't concentrate and ended up making messes all over the kitchen.
Clay apologized. "I guess I'm a little tired."
"I think we all are," Max said, noticing everyone's expressions.
"I had the most horrible nightmare and couldn't go back to sleep," Emily said, rubbing her eyes.
Master Fung knew this was the cause of the Shadow of Fear. Omi tried once again to hide his fears and act bold. So his teacher gave him the assignment to watch over the Shen-Gong-Wu in case Jack would come back to infiltrate the temple again.
And Jack did come back. He found Omi guarding the vault and was ready to devastate him again. After getting his camera rolling and setting the stage, Jack used the Shadow of Fear to bring Omi's nightmare to life.
Omi's scream attracted the attention of his comrades. They went to the temple and found Jack stealing their Shen-Gong-Wu. They fought off the robots, but Jack still managed to escape with some of their treasures.
Clay inspected the vault. "It's not too bad. They only got a few of the Shen-Gong-Wu."
Emily looked around. "Where's Omi? He was supposed to be guarding the vault."
Max found him sitting upside-down near a tree, frozen with fright. "What happened?" When Omi didn't answer, Max and the others agreed to bring him inside.
Everyone wanted to get back at Jack, but Omi was too ashamed and embarrassed and tried to talk his way out of this rumble. But his friends wouldn't let him. They knew something was wrong and they weren't going to find out by leaving Omi alone, so they took him along.
In the basement of the Spicer residence, Jack started his camera and was ready to film the fight. Kimiko made the first move. "We've come for the stolen Shen-Gong-Wu, Jack." She jumped, using her Judolette Flip to attack the robots.
Jack was ready to make his move. He used the Shadow of Fear to bring everyone's nightmares to life. Kimiko's fear was a broken worn-out doll named Mochika, Clay was afraid of his Granny Lilly, Raimundo was afraid of a purple jellyfish-like creature, and Omi was afraid of a rabid squirrel.
Wuya wanted Jack to use the Shadow of Fear on Max and Emily, but Jack was hesitant to do it. "I've seen what those girls are scared of and even I'm pretty freaked out. I gotta give them credit for having such fears."
"All the more reason," said Wuya. Reluctantly, Jack uses the Shadow of Fear on the girls. Max was afraid of a human-lupin hybrid who liked to hunt her down and Emily was afraid of the creature form the horror film Alien. Everyone ran around the basement being chased by their fears until they left the Spicer residence.
Frightened and embarrassed, the monks returned to the temple. When they did, Max found one of the cameras left behind by Jack. She started it and the camera projected a scene of Omi being attacked by the squirrel. Omi admitted that he was too proud to admit how afraid he was and how ashamed he was for not having the courage to stand up to his fear.
All of Omi's friends consoled him. They didn't laugh at him for his fear, but expressed how happy they were for him telling the truth.
Dojo sensed a new Shen-Gong-Wu. It was the Crouching Cougar, a treasure used as a handy transportation device. As the dragon was leading his friends to the treasure, everyone began thinking of a plan. They knew Jack would use the Shadow of Fear to bring their fears to life again and they needed to be prepared. That was when they came up with the idea to fight each other's fears instead of their own.
Just as they anticipated, Jack used the Shadow of Fear once again, but this time, the monks were ready. When everyone's fears were coming in to attack, everyone switched places. Clay was fighting the sea creature, Raimundo was fighting Granny Lilly, Omi was fighting Mochika, Kimiko was fighting the squirrel, Emily was fighting the hybrid, and Max was fighting the Alien.
Jack didn't expect this, but he hurried to claim the Crouching Cougar while the heroes were occupied. He was within range, but wanted his close-up. The camera was pressed against his face. Everyone, along with their fears, raced to claim the Crouching Cougar, but all twelve hands touched it.
A twelve-way Xiaolin Showdown? Was it possible? It was. In this game, it was six against six, each player wagering one Shen-Gong-Wu. The Xiaolin team wagered the Two-Ton Tunic, Shroud of Shadows, Lotus Twister, Silk Spitter, Star Hanabi, and Ruby of Ramses. The team of horrors wagered the Serpent's Tail, Eye of Dashi, Third Arm Sash, Fist of Tebigong, Sword of the Storm, and Thorn of Thunderbolts. The game was a sumo match where the monks had to stand against their own fears and the first ones to leave the ring would lose the game.
Mochika used the Eye of Dashi to attack Kimiko. Kimiko tried to use the Shroud of Shadows, but it was too small to obscure her completely. With the appropriate physical form of a sumo wrestler, everyone's moves were sluggish, but they tried to move around as best as they could. Raimundo used the Silk Spitter to trap the sea creature's tentacles together, but the monster used the Third Arm Sash to counter attack. Granny Lilly tried to attack using the Fist of Tebigong, but Clay weaved his way around using the Lotus Twister. Omi kept trying to run away from the squirrel, but the rabid rodent went through him using the Serpent's Tail, disgusting the young monk. Emily stood still, frozen in fight. The Alien couldn't move because it wasn't used to such a physical form, but it still used the Sword of the Storm to try and blow her away. Emily tried to use her weight to stay in place, but she was slowly moving toward the ring. Max tried to use the Star Hanabi, but the hybrid countered using the Thorn of Thunderbolts.
Omi remembered the wisdom he learned from his master. Bravery does not come from not having fear, but having the strength to face fear. Omi was afraid of the squirrel, but he was not afraid to fight the rodent. The animal charged in to attack, but Omi used the Two-Ton-Tunic. The squirrel hit his head against the armor and was knocked out of the ring. Emily finally snapped out of it. She used the Ruby of Ramses to move the Alien closer to the ring. The monster's tail came into contact with the ring, meaning it was out of the game. Max used the Star Hanabi at the hybrid's feet. The abominable creature danced around until he fell back and came into contact with the ring. Kimiko used her strength to lift the doll out of the arena. Clay gave his grandmother a shove and she tripped over the sea creature's tentacles and left the arena. Raimundo got up and so did his fear, only to realize that its tentacle was touching the ring.
Everyone praised themselves for their victory. Now that they stood against their greatest demons and won, they would be less afraid of their fears. It also felt good for them to be back in their physical forms.
"It's funny how things so small can seem so large in our minds," said Kimiko.
"Not at all, actually," said Emily. "It's quite common and often overlooked. That's what makes it so surprising."
"I wonder what Jack's greatest fear is," Raimundo thought. "Guess we'll never know."
"We can find out," Max said, holding the Shadow of Fear. "I swiped this when no one was looking."
Emily grinned. "You sly vixen."
Max decided to take that as a compliment. This Shen-Gong-Wu did seem to best represent her element, so she decided to use it to infiltrate Jack's mind. Jack's fear was no better than everyone else's. Rather it was more embarrassing than his enemies'. His worst nightmare was being flushed down the toilet. But knowing Jack Spicer, it came to no surprise that he would be afraid of something like that.