Mei Ling was developing a severe craving for bean buns when a soldier rushed into the room, striding right up to Long Feng and Sao. Judging from the look on his face, he wasn't here to announce the successful capture of Po, Ember or the creature. He stopped before the two high ranking officers, bowed and made a brief report. "Sir, still no sign of the Dragon Warrior. The enemy has almost broken through the palace gates."

They were close enough that Mei Ling could see the beads of sweat of Long Feng's forehead. He looked down at the table, and the skewered image of the woman he loathed. "Change of plans! The panda's death is top priority!"

The soldier blinked. "What?"

"Tell every available man that I want the Dragon Warrior hunted down and killed! I want him found before Ember gets to him!" Long Feng bent down further over Ember's picture. "I will not let her win. No matter what."

Mei Ling and Crane locked eyes, and she doubled her efforts to pick the lock of their chains with her claw. How the Wu Sisters pulled it off in less than a second she'd never know. Monkey made sure to keep her activities concealed with his prehensile tail while he quietly whistled.

As Mei Ling worked at the lock, Sao grabbed the soldier's shoulder, stopping him from leaving to carry out his orders, and then strode up to Long Feng. "General, for the love of the gods listen to me! We're not in control anymore, I don't think we ever were!"

Long Feng didn't look away from the picture. "What are you rambling about now, colonel?!"

"Sir, it's over!" Sao threw his arms up in the air, gesturing to the entire army. "Hei Nuwang's brilliant and twisted plan has failed! If we continue on like this, we will die!"

"What are you saying? Ember has already won?!"

Sao leaned over Long Feng, desperate to get through to him. "Her obsession with the panda is the only reason why she hasn't outright destroyed us yet! We can't risk angering her further by killing him before she gets what she wants!"

"Have you completely lost the plot, Sao?!" Long Feng finally stood straight and faced him. "I REFUSE TO GIVE THAT UNHOLY WITCH THE SATISFACTION OF DEFEATING ME AND DESTROYING HEI NUWANG'S PLANS TO USHER IN A UNIVERSAL CONVERGENCE!"

Sao took a step back, looking aghast. Mei Ling froze in shock, and so did her friends.

The central hall, once filled the sounds with clinking armour and worried whispers, had become silent as the grave. Every single soldier, even the brainwashed ones, had stopped to stare at their general.

Sao swallowed and slowly approached Long Feng. "Take it easy."

Long Feng's teeth and single fist were clenched. He sent spit flying as he responded. "Don't give me orders, I'm the general! I am in control!"

"Please see reason, Long Feng!" Sao pleaded. "It's over! Ember is winning, and the only thing we can do is get out while she's still distracted by the panda!"

"Ember is winning because my men are weak and stupid!" Long Feng shook his fist, his face contorted. "I will not allow her to win because of their incompetence! I WILL NOT ALLOW IT!"

Sao was practically begging now. "Don't you see? This is what she wants! She wants to drive you mad and watch that madness tear the army apart!"

There was nothing Mei Ling, Crane and Monkey could do but watch.

"I am not mad, Sao! I am a soldier!" Long Feng shouted. "And what Ember really wants is to turn my own men against me! Soldier, put this mutineer in chains!"

Sao looked truly anguished. Mei Ling regained her composure and resumed lock picking. The soldier did not move. "But sir... he's right."

"Soldier, that is an order!"

When the frightened soldier still didn't move, Long Feng looked ready to attack Sao, but two rhinos saw it coming and grabbed the deranged general just as he lunged. "Sir, get a hold of yourself!"

Mei Ling heard the lock click, just as Long Feng threw them both off with his one arm. He staggered back, a little closer to the prisoners, panting and livid. "How many more of you has she turned to her side?!"

"Nobody has turned against you, Long Feng!" Sao roared back. "They just want to get out of this alive!"

"Cowards! All of you, fools and cowards!"

Long suddenly stopped and looked around, for a single moment noticing the stares. The shocked looks on his men's faces. The wide eyes of Mei Ling and her friends. Sao's fear and despair.

"Long Feng..." The fox said slowly. "You're damaging morale. Maybe we should continue this conversation in another room."

The moment was gone and Long Feng's eyes narrowed. He looked around at his men again, this time with suspicion and ever growing rage. "Wait... wait... you... you're all with her!" He turned his wrath back on Sao. "You're going to bring me right to her, aren't you?!"

Sao bit his lip. A droplet of blood dribbled down his chin. Mei Ling actually felt sorry for him as he raised a shaking arm to point at his friend. "Seize him, he's lost it!"

The two rhinos lunged at Long Feng, but even with one arm he was a forced to be reckoned with. Both men were sent rolling across the floor. Long Feng shook his fist at the ceiling. "I know you're listening! One way or another, I will tear you apart!"

The soldiers were too stunned to stop him as he sprinted out the nearest exit.

"Stop him!" Sao screamed. A quarter of the men in the room took off in pursuit, followed closely by Sao himself.

Monkey's face looked almost comical. "I think that went well." He looked around the room, taking in the diminished and much more manageable number of soldiers. "I guess it's now or never."

Mei Ling slowly pulled the lock out the chain links. "Agreed. Once we're out, we head to the guard tower and get some weapons."

"Now you're talking."

With that they threw aside their chains and started a little madness of their own.


Sao listened with a heavy heart as the battered wolf explained in detail how the prisoners broke free and escaped while Sao was trying and failing to locate Long Feng. The rhino must have used one of the palace's secret passages that they had been unable to find, for he had completely vanished.

When the wolf was done, Sao told him to join the search for Long Feng and wandered alone in the central hall. He meandered past the column, stepping over the chains scattered across the floor, until he reached the map table. The mirror was still there, right where Long Feng had left it. The mirror was one of Hei Nuwang's early experiments before she moved on to living subjects. Through alchemy and unholy means she had turned the mirror into some kind of communicator, far faster than a messenger. This was not the first time Sao had used it to report a general gone mad.

He exhaled and picked up the mirror. This was going to be unpleasant, but Hei Nuwang needed to know.

When Hei Nuwang's black face appeared in the mirror, she appeared to be striding down a city street. She was almost to the palace. "Colonel Sao? What is the meaning of this?"

"Mistress, we... we lost Long Feng." In the mirror, the panther stopped walking. "Some thing happened, he went nuts, and... We're still trying to track him down."

Hei Nuwang's expression turned positively feral. "You... lost... Long Feng? Do you realise that this is the second time in less than half a decade that a general has gone barmy on your watch, YOU MORON?! GENERALS DON'T GROW ON TREES, YOU KNOW!"

Her voice echoed around the large room like thunder. Sao rubbed the dried blood from his mouth. "I don't know, maybe Ember did something to mess with his head, but he got too obsessed with revenge."

Hei Nuwang looked away. "What makes that traitor think she can mess with me like this?! I will rip out her heart and put it in a box!" She looked back at Sao. "I know about her mindless slave army. I'm leaving it to you, and this is your last chance to do right!"

"Yes, Mistress."

"Find Izumi and the masked one. Tell them to meet me in the burned building as soon as possible. We'll see what we can salvage from this fricking mess!" She lowered the mirror. Sao could see nothing but rubble and pavement, but he could still hear her. "Nobody screws with me. Nobody!"

The mirror cracked and went blank.