"Shen"
The captured wolf, as it turned out, was keen on speaking.
Several times Yu had made the trip out of the safe confines of the boat and back onto the docks - avoiding the still unconscious wolves to make her way to the one soldier willing to give her more information. Yu had bartered food, water, and a handful of personal information about Alf (which was utter nonsense, but it helped the wolf open his mouth) - in exchange for more information about the Yongshi.
But she didn't dare touch the scroll, which was still laying about ten feet away on the docks.
The Yongshi were an ancient group, usually comprised of a loose hierarchy of warriors. There didn't appear to be any one single leader - for the organization was so disconnected - but there had been scarce reports that the wolf had seen in news scrolls. Sometimes a Yongshi member would be seen out in the open, lurking just for a moment before disappearing from sight. They had been spotted all around China, and much like Alf - their reputation and knowledge was mostly unknown. Few knew of the existence of the Yongshi, and like the wolf - fewer still knew any actual information.
"Tastes good," the wolf remarked, biting into a bean bun while still rolling on the floor in chains. "Thanks girlie…"
"How old are they?" Yu questioned, sitting down quietly.
"Older than China," the wolf returned gruffly. "Older than any Palace. Older than Oogway."
"Older than Oogway?" Yu hesitated, eyes glaring.
"More powerful too," the wolf recalled, munching another bite from the bean bun.
The fox huffed, smiling sarcastically. She stared up into the noon sky, watching the air seemingly disagree - violently gusting forward and pushing her whiskers back. It was one thing to say that an organization's members had been older than China - but to then say they were more powerful than Oogway?
"You're bullshitting," Yu noted, snatching the bean bun away from the angry wolf. "I want real answers."
"Hehe," the wolf snarled, snickering. "You people really are in the dark, aren't you…"
Yu scowled. Before Po had come into the Jade Palace, the Valley had indeed been isolated from the rest of China - not that it was a separatist area, but more that Shifu's stern reluctance to speak to the outside world (without reason), combined with the fact that the Valley was housing someone like Alf - yes, Yu agreed that the Valley had been sheltered before the "Dragon Warrior".
"No one is more powerful than Oogway," Yu firmly replied, old affection for the late master coming up. "He invented kung fu!"
"You think kung fu is the only way to look at the world?" the wolf spat. "Like I said - don't speak on what you don't know…"
"You don't seem to know much either," Yu growled.
"I don't, but at least I accept there are things out there that are much, much bigger than you, me, the panda, China…" the wolf went on. "The Yongshi'll make Oogway look like a little wimp."
Yu sighed for the millionth time. "In all of China, Oogway is the most powe - "
"Who said the Yongshi were Chinese?" the wolf interrupted.
Yu felt confused. "Of course they're Chinese. It's in the name - Zui - "
"That's how we call them," the wolf remarked. "How do you think people in other areas of the world call them? With their own native tongues!"
Yu laughed heartlessly. "So you're saying - there's a secret, ultra-powerful, globe-trotting, ancient group out there who've been sending us cryptic bullshit for the last year? Are you slow or something?"
"That snow leopard you guys somehow put down - he isn't a problem worthy of the Yongshi," the wolf stated. "Even my boss - Shen - even he isn't worthy of the Yongshi's attention. They only focus on the biggest of stuff."
"Like a Seeker," Yu repeated for emphasis. "Like Alf."
The wolf grinned mockingly. "The kid might not know what his future is, or what he's capable of - but the Yongshi might. They might have all the answers that fleshie really wants."
"He's not capable of anything," Yu returned, groaning. "Just a random kid…"
"It's in his blood," the wolf retorted. "It's in their nature. Seekers can't help but be - what they're destined to be."
Yu took the time to choose her next words carefully. "What are you saying, you idiot? Quit being all vague and stuff."
The wolf sighed, fidgeting in his chains. "I'm saying there are things - plans - dice set in motion out there - that are way larger than what you people can think of. My guess - your fleshie friend has something to do with it."
"Alf's never been the main focus anywhere," Yu remarked, again hating to use his name in front of the soldier. "He's good at keeping himself low-key."
"He's a freakin' Seeker," the wolf reiterated, eyes widening in frustration. "The only one left, as far as I know. Sooner or later, there won't be any more hiding…"
"From what?" Yu questioned.
"I don't know!" the wolf growled, annoyed again. "Look, all I can tell you is that there are things we don't know about. Answer my damn questions!"
The fox stood up, beginning to eat the bean bun disrespectfully in front of the hungry wolf. The repeated vagueness was pissing her off, but also there was the discernment that the wolf indeed knew very little.
"What questions?!" Yu spat.
"What's with the whole killing your parents thing?"
Yu paused, crushing the bean bun in her paw. The wolf glared gleefully at her, emotional reaction achieved and the fox's expression saddened - yet she didn't sob this time. Yu simply tossed the half-eaten bean bun into the sea ahead of her, ignoring the wolf's expletives following behind her - the fox resilient, and choosing to settle for another long nap.
. . .
"My mortal enemy… stai - "
"Shut up."
"Fine."
Po was growing uncomfortable. After a brief jaunt through the Palace Courtyard - complete with a haunting image of Master Rhino's impeccable stone hammer wedged alone in rock flooring - the group had shoved the Five, himself, and a disguised Alf into the main Palace. Now there was the issue of trying to make themselves up the long stairway without making Po faint from exhaustion. The panda had already tried to hitchhike on a large gorilla soldier the way up, before an annoyed Tigress shoved the panda down and to the floor.
To tell the truth, none of the rest of the Five, Po, or Alf knew what was making her so reckless as of late. The stern, eternally strict leader of the Furious Five had been all but absent - and the more Po realized, she had been absent for a while.
Since Tai Lung.
The rushed actions.
The quick temper.
The nonchalant attitudes.
The repeated girl names.
It had been subtle, and something that one couldn't accurately decipher unless they knew Tigress intimately. Ever since Po and Alf had joined the Palace, a cascade of events managed to take place: Shifu grew just a bit less uptight, the Jade Palace's training became significantly more fun, and aside from the old master's fierce seriousness at Alf - the overall environment of kung fu felt more lax and enjoyable. Most of this had been attributed to Po, but no one could have predicted Tigress to react to the new rules so coolly. It usually was never an issue, as the combination of her fearsome skill and manic aggression kept her viable on team missions - but as of late, something seemed to be relaxing her a bit "too much" for comfort.
"Po," Alf whispered, finally reaching the top of the stairs. "Look."
Po, the Five, and Alf had finally ascended to the Throne Room. Their wolf escort still surrounded them, keeping an especially close eye on the panda has he struggled to move properly in acupressure cuffs.
And right next to a massive, cylindrical black cannon, flanked by paintings, marble flooring, an old goat, and a private enforcement of wolves - the peacock was there.
Shen.
"Greetings panda," the peacock began, moving forward with a confident smirk. "We meet a - "
"Just a second," Po interrupted, twitching as the cuffs tightened a bit more. "Anyone got any spare acupuncture needles? These things are starting to chafe."
The Five groaned in annoyance, while Alf fidgeted. Po turned back to the peacock, and walked nonchalantly forwards to make eye contact with him.
"You got any spare needles?" Po queried.
Shen simply felt flabbergasted. He pointed a stray feather to his right, where a box of needles lay idly waiting. Po walked over, trying to somehow shove one into his paws - but because of the restrictive cuffs, only managed to cut himself over and over.
"Ow!"
"Yeeha!"
"Ooh!"
"Yowch!"
"ENOUGH!" Shen roared. "FORGET ABOUT THE NEEDLES!"
A pair of wolf soldiers shoved Po to the ground, while the rest of the soldiers tightened their circle around the Five and Alf. The old goat - tears just twinkling in her eyes, retreated to the musty darkness of the pillars supporting the multi-layered room.
"The Furious Five," Shen remarked, smiling. "Legends in China speak of your greatness."
"Really?" Mantis emphasized. "Which ones?"
"Shut up Mantis," Monkey spat.
"So forgive me for the suspicion," Shen noted. "But why - why in the name of kung fu would you betray your own - Master Shifu, isn't it? And why - why would you ever give up the Dragon Warrior?"
"Who's a panda," Zhong noted, emerging suddenly from the circle of soldiers. "This whole story might seem kinda fishy at first."
"You vouched for them?" Shen returned, confused. "Zhong - this story makes no logical sense!"
"I know," Zhong forced. "But - we already knew from the news scrolls that the Dragon Warrior was a little - weird."
"Hey!" Po shouted out, about ten feet away and kneeling down. "I'm right here!"
Tigress narrowed her eyes. "You try spending your entire life training for something - trying to impress your father - and then have some stupid destiny take it all away. Wouldn't you be angry?"
Alf gasped, beginning to see what she was doing.
All of them had read the files and information on Shen over the past few weeks. The Five, Po, and Alf had an elementary understanding that Shen was in-line to rule Gongmen City - before the prophecy of a warrior of "black and white" came along, and diverted him from his plans.
Yet only Tigress had managed to make the connection behind Shen and his background, exploit his hatred of predetermined destiny to their own advantage - so Alf felt more comfortable now, but still - the feeling of recklessness pervaded throughout Tigress' aura. It was admittedly strategic and well-planned - but it still didn't feel like Tigress. That would have to be discussed later.
"Yes," Shen noted, eyes glazing over in nostalgia. "Yes I would actually…"
The peacock walked away, pacing around the marble flooring. Po was still irritated that much of all "this" made no sense to him - why Shen and his wolves acted so strangely around him, and when the rest of Tigress' plan would start working.
Right now, they were sitting ducks.
"I apologize for the rudeness," Shen noted. "You five have done me a great service in bringing me the Dragon Warrior - and the fact that he's a panda, oh…"
Po's blood began boiling again, seeing Shen stare at him in an awkward manner. "Why. Does. It. Matter. That. I'm. A. Panda?"
"In time my chubby friend," Shen remarked gleefully. "As for you Five - you'll be rewarded handsomely for your deeds."
The Five and Alf nodded in agreement, as Tigress stepped a bit more forward. "Actually Lord Shen, we'd like to serve under you."
By now the Five and Alf (maybe even Po) could see her general train of thought. Shen had definitely kept more cannons in here than the one they were seeing - but as time passed, they grew worried that the peacock might be storing them alternatively in a different spot, perhaps a factory. Tigress was almost definitely trying to play for time, which meant the rest of the cannons (or at least their locations) had to be known as quickly as possible. The twenty or so wolf soldiers around them (even Shen) could be easily taken down, especially since only Po was trapped in the cuffs - but not before manipulating a few locations out of them.
"Serve?" the peacock noted. "Serve me? Really…"
Shen walked straight up to Tigress, casually but prominently sharpening a few of his blades. "You must forgive all the suspicion - this rather seems too good to be true…"
"Fine, hang around with these morons," Tigress spat, pointing out at the wolves. "See how far that gets you."
The wolves growled, but Shen was miraculously still smiling. He watched Tigress retreat to the rest of the Five - trying to see if even a hint of concern was being given off from anyone towards Po.
The Five were completely apathetic. Shen smiled again.
"I sympathize with your struggles," Shen noted, sighing. "But yes - you're right. Much rather trust five of the greatest masters in China than my army of buffoons…"
The wolves snarled again, but Shen shut them down before turning to Tigress. "Well, Master Tigress and the rest - I thank you for your service. How would you like to be rewarded?"
"Actually let's just skip that nonsense and just get to fixing your cannons," Tigress remarked, acting bored.
Alf smiled underneath his black mask. Her acting had gotten a bit better.
"Fixing?" Shen noted. "My cannons need - "
"Lord Shen, they're good designs, but they're really dated," Viper added, beginning to catch on. "I mean, if you're just relying on these idiots and those defective cannons - well, I wouldn't put too much faith in - "
"Shut up girl," a wolf soldier interrupted. "I'll rip your head o - "
"Quiet fool, she's right," Shen noted, walking privately to Zhong to whisper in his ear. "I always suspected the Seeker technology was imperfect. Perhaps because we can't get inside their ship and see the full blueprints or something - go accompany them."
"Accompany them where?" Zhong returned. "To the area you showed me? The ship?"
"No you fool," Shen bit back. "No one knows about the Seeker connection but me. Take them downstairs to our newest batch of cannons. See if they can really turn the cannons more deadly or powerful - if not, kill them right then and there."
"You still don't trust them, do you?" Zhong admitted with a smirk.
"Their story still seems like utter nonsense," Shen observed. "Yet they gave me a panda - an actual panda - something which places a lot of my doubt in your ability to do what I tell you to do."
Zhong gulped, old memories resurfacing. "I'll do what you say now."
"Good," Shen breathed, moving back to the center of the Throne Room as the Five, Alf, Po, and the wolves awaited his next words. "We have a number of new cannons downstairs on the eighth floor and - "
Shen stopped his words midway, walking forward gently. His eyes fell onto the only black, completely covered figure who hadn't said anything yet.
"I'm sorry I never acknowledged you," Shen noted. "You are?"
The wolves rounded closer to the figure, chuckling.
"Escort," one of them said gleefully.
"Rider," another said cackling.
"Master Swallower," a final wolf retorted.
A burst of laughter from the surrounding wolves. It took all of Alf's patience and foresight to keep quiet during all of this.
Tigress however, again de-escalated the situation. "She's an escort we brought along. She did wonders for our team, and we thought she might do wonders for your men."
Shen shook his head in pure amusement. "A panda Dragon Warrior and the prostitute of the Jade Palace - life really has changed since I've been back in Gongmen… Zhong, take two of your thirstiest men - "
The wolves howled and giggled, pinching Alf's sides and disrespectfully smacking his bottom.
" - and yourself, and accompany Master Tigress and the escort down to both your private rooms and where the cannons are." Shen finished. "And this time - do what I tell you to do."
Zhong nodded sadly, moving forward to brush past Alf, the howling wolves, and Tigress. "Yes sir…"
Tigress and Alf began following the Boss Wolf back down the staircase. Alf ignored the two overenthusiastic wolves nudging him from either side, choosing to pay attention to the panda and the rest of the Five - still remaining with Shen.
He was worried about Po. He was worried about the rest of the Five. He saw the old goat come back out, crying. Shen dragged Po to the center of the Throne Room.
Tigress gently pulled Alf away, squeezing modestly to give him some desperately needed assurance.
This had to work.
A/N
First off, apologies for missing my usual Friday deadline - FF net rekt my acct randomly and I couldn't access my login for a while. Rest assured, this Friday itself (basically in 3-4 days) I'll post a new chapter as compensation :) I like keeping routines going.
This chapter is short-ish, but only bc I wanted to take a breather and sort of set up the trajectory for the next few "arcs". Next chapter for instance is quite heavy, and the chapter after that, etc… Anyone who knows me knows I love to plan stuff in advance - and right now I'm planning stuff that will happen at the end of KFP 3. Yes you heard me right - I love planning far ahead! (Makes payoffs more rewarding) Plus no one likes endless chapters of heavy drama - I like oscillating! (between heavy and light chapters)
So this is a nice, fun chapter to just see our fav. Characters again and roll the ball further down story-wise.
And, since we're now at 99 reviews (wtf?) and it's new years (actually not, but close enough) - I'm gonna make a fake review of this story, under this acct name to reach 100! Check it out, I think you'll get some good laughs outta it. :D
Support yeah is great… (he said excitedly. :D) And again my apologies for the wait time (but more for the breaking of my Friday "guarantee") - expect a new chapter this Friday itself. :D (3-4 days)
~TW
