Four days before the Jade Palace's destruction...

Tigress couldn't remember the last time she'd sparred on the Jade Tortoise of Wisdom, and with Crane no less. On the other hand, she remembered how entertaining it was. Having to land a blow that Crane's wings didn't deflect while balancing on a swaying jade bowl at the same time was one of the few training sessions she could really call a challenge. More than anything it was because Crane had the advantage of flight. If he ever lost balance all he had to do was flap his wings and hover in the air until he could touch down again. Tigress didn't have that luxury, but she was okay with that. Her acrobatics more than made up for it, as they did now as she grabbed the rim of the bowl with both paws and pushed off, breaking through Crane's defence and striking him right in the chest. The winded bird hit the floorboards with a bang at Shifu's feet. "Booyeah!" On the side line, Po pumped his fist in the air.

"Excellent work, Tigress." Shifu said. "Crane, would you kindly tell me where you went wrong?" Crane was too winded to speak. "Alright. Tigress?"

Tigress leapt off the bowl. "He relied too much on hovering in the air whenever he lost balance. It gave me an opening."

"Correct." Shifu jabbed Crane with his staff to get him up faster then turned to the other students lined up against the wall. "It is unwise to rely on one technique, for eventually someone will notice and use it against you. No technique is truly invincible. Great Master Viper learned that the hard way. No offense, Viper."

"None taken." Viper said.

"Po, Monkey, you're up." Shifu said. As Monkey pushed Po onto the bowl with extreme difficulty and much grumbling, Tigress and Crane took their places by the wall. Tigress could tell at once that Mantis was still miffed about the criticism Shifu had given him concerning the use of pressure points. Right now, however, she was more concerned about the dark circles under Viper's bright eyes.

"Bad night, huh?" Tigress asked.

"Bad dream." Viper merely said. There were yells and thuds as Po and Monkey got started.

"Wanna talk?"

"Not really."

Tigress turned her attention back to the sparring match. Monkey had just wrapped his tail around Po's wrist, only for the panda to grab hold and yank him into the bowl. Monkey had the mother of all death glares when he climbed out and resumed the fight.

"Crane..." Viper spoke. "When Ember messed with your mind, what did it feel like?"

Crane looked around Tigress's body to look at her. "I haven't been able to remember what it was like since those monks drained the leftovers of Ember's chi out of me. Why?"

Viper looked up at Tigress, and seemed to come to a decision. "I caught Su sleepwalking last night."

On Viper's other side, Mantis's antennae twitched. "You what?"

"Nothing serious happened this time, thank goodness." Viper said. "After I woke up from my nightmare I heard her walking about in her room, but the candle was out. She was standing in a corner staring at the wall when I found her. I went to wake her up and-" She stopped, staring at the floor with a haunted look in her eyes. "She spun round with look of pure... pure hatred in her eyes, and said, 'don't touch me, you hateful witch!'"

The shocking words seemed to punch Tigress right through the chest. "Viper, I highly doubt she meant you."

"I know that." Viper shook. "But that's the problem. Right after that, she shook her head a little and went right back to normal. I don't think she remembers what she said."

"Holy crap." Mantis muttered. On the jade bowl, Monkey aimed low and hit Po in the thigh, nearly knocking the panda off. "Have you told Master Shifu?"

"Yes. He said he was taking care of it."

"Really?" Mantis asked irritably. "Because right now it looks to me like he's too busy pointing out all the ways we suck."

Tigress didn't bother scolding him, for Shifu had just turned round. "I can hear you, you know. And I've told you before about avoiding the facial nerves."

Mantis winced. "Sorry."

"In case you're wondering how I'm taking care of it, I have already sent Zeng to inform the monks of the situation. Maybe they know what in the world is going on with her. And until Zeng returns, all we can do is continue as normal. Understand?"

They all nodded quickly. Shifu turned back round, just in time for Po to deal the finishing belly blow and send Monkey flying into the wooden warriors. Much flailing of timber limbs ensued. Everyone was laughing expect the luckless primate and Crane, who spoke to himself so softly that only Tigress heard him. "Mei Ling, what have you gotten yourself into?"


Mantis hadn't felt this outraged since Po called him a little guy. "What do you mean you knew about Mei Ling's mission before the rest of us?!"

Crane winced as Mantis yelled at the top of his lungs, while Monkey smacked the bug's head with his tail. "Keep your voice down!"

"Sorry." Mantis said softly, then whispered furiously to Crane, "What do you mean you knew about Mei Ling's mission before the rest of us?"

"She told me the last time she came to visit." Crane said. "She didn't say what she was doing, only that the mission was top secret, and if anything happened to her I would look after her son."

"And you were sworn to secrecy." Monkey said. "That's fair enough. But how did you figure out that Mei Ling's mission had something to do with the Children of Nuwa?"

"Not long after Mei Ling disappeared, we found out that the Emperor and the other high officials knew about the organisation's existence. After that, it wasn't hard to connect the dots. No more talking. I don't think we're alone."

The corridors of the HQ were ominously dark and silent. Most of the lights were unlit, and what little they could see of their surroundings was a mess. There were gouges in the walls and floorboards, and some blood here and there. People had been battling here very recently. There must have been fatalities. There always were in war. So where were the bodies?

Mantis was getting tired of being carried around on Monkey's shoulder, but he didn't want to risk getting separated if he jumped off. He definitely didn't want to get lost in this place. He hated dark places like this. The darkness could be hiding anything from a dead body to an eyeless demon with claws that could rip flesh like paper. So he swallowed his pride and stayed put.

Every open door they passed led only into darkness. Each time, Crane poked his head into the room, holding the little lantern out in front of him. Most rooms were relatively tidy. Others were just as trashed as the corridors. All were empty.

"Crane, you're Mei Lings BFF." Monkey said. "Any ideas where she would be hiding?"

"Probably somewhere where she could easily defend herself. Somewhere like an..." Crane turned towards an open set of reinforced doors. He stuck the lantern inside, illuminating shelves stocked with weapons. "... armoury."

Mantis shrugged. "Wouldn't hurt to check it out. Crane, keep an eye out."

With Mantis still on his shoulder, Monkey crept past Crane into the room. The armoury was like a maze, with dozens of shelves and no walls. There were weapons of all kinds here. Axes, morning stars, spears, swords, crossbows, and a splintered bamboo staff thrusting out the darkness and nearly jabbing Monkey between the eyes.

Mantis had figured from the start that finding Mei Ling would be harder than it sounds, and that the frantic sprint across the rooftops would only be the start of their ordeal. Now he stood corrected.

Mei Ling was slumped in a corner of the armoury between two shelves stocked with swords. She held the staff up for five whole seconds before she realised who she was pointing it at.

"Monkey? Master Mantis?"

"Hey, why does the bug get to be the master?" Monkey complained with a growing smile on his face. "Crane! She's here!"

Crane was there in a flash. He shoved his way past Monkey and crouched down beside Mei Ling. She looked like she'd been through the wars. Her fur was a mess and she was bleeding from a gash in her thigh. Yet Mei Ling was grinning from ear to ear as she embraced the bird. "Crane. I knew you get my message."

Crane glanced at her injury. "Mei Ling, what happened here? Where is everyone?"

Monkey turned his head so he was facing Mantis. "Buddy, dig into the pack and find something for that cut." Mantis swiftly climbed into the pack Monkey was carrying and started searching through the supplies. He could hear Mei Ling speaking as he searched for the medical box.

"I was ordered to take a battalion to capture the HQ. There was no way I could refuse without arousing their suspicion, so I opted to try and take as many prisoners as I could. But the mission went wrong the moment we broke inside."

"The paint brush pushers were tougher than they looked, huh?" Mantis chuckled as he found the box and pulled it out the bag. Monkey took the box and knelt down on Mei Ling's other side.

Mei Ling didn't so much as smile. "Worse than that, Mantis. Something's very, very wrong with them. Their eyes... they..."

"They're being mind controlled, too?" Monkey looked incredulous as he started disinfecting Mei Ling's injury with alcohol. She clenched her teeth and took several deep breaths. "I don't get it. Why would they send you to take the HQ when they already took it?"

Mei Ling shook her head. "Ember did a little brainwashing of her own is my best guess."

Mantis let out a low, guttural growl at her words. "Peeeeeerrrrrfeeeeeeect!"

Monkey looked just as ticked as he cleaned the cut and started wrapping. "Where are they now?"

"Most of them left to fight in the streets." Mei Ling said. "There might still be a few around here somewhere. Probably looking for me."

Crane glanced back in the direction of the door. "We'd better get you out of here. Can you walk?"

"Only one way to find out."

When Monkey was done, he helped Mei Ling to her feet. It turned out she could walk slowly as long as she had the staff to keep her steady. With that, they made their way back through the maze of shelves and into the corridor. From there, they would return to the hole they came in from and look for an empty building where they could hide Mei Ling while they continued on to the royal palace. Speaking of which... "Mei Ling, have you heard anything from the palace?" Crane asked. "Are Emperor Xian and his family okay?"

"They're okay." Mei Ling replied. "But Long Feng is holding them in the palace."

Mantis's heart sank. "Who the heck is Long Feng?"

"He's the axe-crazy son of a rotten apple who commands the army."

Crack.

The sound of a foot on broken pottery made everyone turn their heads. Crane looked down, but it was a crumpled scroll he had stepped on. Mantis rubbed the back of his neck. "Is there any way to convince the rest of you that going to check that out is a really bad idea?"

Crane and Monkey looked at each other. Then Crane looked at Mei Ling. He shook his head. "Okay, yeah. We're convinced."

They started walking again. It was slow going, what with the others having to slow down for Mei Ling, and Mantis was really wanting to get out of this creepy place. "Step on it, Mei Ling!" He blurted out.

Mei Ling stopped dead and looked at him with cold, narrowed eyes. "I'll step on you in a minute. Look, guys, I'm going to tell you what I know, just in case I don't get another chance."

"Mei Ling, we don't have time for-"

"Can it, Crane." They continued on. "The Children of Nuwa are being led by this psychopath called Lady Hei Nuwang. Somehow she has the power to create and control amethyst stone. I don't know what she's up to exactly, but I do know that her main priority is Ember. She's obsessed with capturing her. She tried to retrieve the key to Ember's resting place and then tried to retrieve Ember herself from the Himalayas, but both times you've interfered. I'm assuming she attacked the Jade Palace to keep you from interfering a third time."

"And boy is that going to blow up in her face." If Mantis had knuckles he would have cracked them.

Once again Mei Ling glared at him. "Be grateful you haven't faced her yet, Mantis. Now shut up, there's more. Those two members of the Brotherhood of Bloodstained Hands who disappeared... they're members of the Children of Nuwa, now."

"You're kidding." Monkey said.

"No. Izumi's become one of Long Feng's lackeys, and Sutoraiki is working on some alchemic experiments for Hei Nuwang. I haven't found out much about these experiments, only that he's using living test subjects."

"That little scumbag." Mantis growled. They were approaching the last door before their escape. "Anything else?"

"Yes. This isn't the first time the Children of Nuwa and Ember had crossed paths. Hei Nuwang and Long Feng tried to get Ember to join her cause, and when she refused, they tried to kill her. They failed of course, but she was hurt so badly she was taken beneath the white fortress to recover, while the population of Shambhala was evacuated for their own safety."

"Where are they now?" Crane asked.

Mei Ling shrugged. "They searched for decades, but got squat." Mantis and Monkey reached the door first. Crane stayed behind Mei Ling, keeping an eye out for anyone following them. "One more thing. Hei Nuwang has a sister. She was a member herself, but she left after the attempt to kill Ember failed. No-one knows where she is now."

When Crane and Mei Ling finally reached Mantis and Monkey, Monkey opened the door.

Two seconds later, Mantis sighed. "Damn."

A dozen red eyed soldiers in the room, all armed with swords. On the rooftops visible through the big hole, two dozen soldiers armed with bows and arrows. On the pile of rubble that was once the pagoda, three dozen soldiers with all sorts of weapons. Atop the remains of the pagoda roof directly facing the four masters, a bulky rhino with one arm, black armour all over and a jubilant sneer.

"And just when I thought I was gonna hafta tear the empire apart looking for you sorry prancers!" The rhino who could only be Long Feng folded his arms. "To think that little Miss Best of the Best was a double agent. Who would have guessed? Do you know what happens to traitors of Lady Hei Nuwang?" Long Feng paused. "Neither do I. But I can't wait to find out." He started to raise his arm to give a signal, but then a bird came down from the sky landed beside him.

"Sir, the Lady has requested your presence at the palace."

Long Feng waved the bird away and strolled across the ruined pagoda, away from the HQ building.. Before he disappeared behind the wreckage, he looked to the soldiers above. "Unfortunately, I've got places to be. Boys, try not to kill any of these chumps. Bring them to the palace when you're done."

As the dozen soldiers with swords charged, Mantis leapt from Monkey's shoulder to take them on. All the while he thought of how much this was going to suck.