"So basically, a real long time ago, this cool playa named Dashi broke out his best moves in a challenge against this freaky witch lady named Wuya. Now, I don't know if it was like a test of strength or a dance challenge, but on that day they practically invented the Xiaolin Showdown as we know it today," Jermaine explained from inside the makeshift puppet booth in an attic.
He raised his left hand, which was holding a crude representation of the Heylin witch. "I'm gonna go and give the whole world my old lady stank!" Jermaine cackled as he shook the Wuya puppet about.
He raised his right hand, holding an equally crude puppet of Grandmaster Dashi. "Your old lady stank ain't no match for my Wu."
The Dashi puppet proceeded to bash the Wuya puppet on the head with various objects, including an old sock and a comb. "Wuya's Heylin magic was defeated by the Shen Gong Wu that Dashi had created, and in the end he trapped her ugly butt in a box." The Dashi puppet lowered an empty tissue box onto Wuya's head and gave it a final whack with a spoon.
Jermaine lowered both his hands and emerged from the booth, standing in front of an unimpressed looking Jessie as Manu and Chucky Choo sat beside her. "When Dashi was finished with all that, he scattered his Wu around the world, ready to get picked back up again if the balance of good and evil got disrupted."
"And that's where we come in?" Jessie asked him.
"Uh-huh," Jermaine replied. "Wuya's back as a ghost, but she's teamed up with that momma's boy Jack Spicer. That should make our job not so tough."
Jessie grumpily rose to her feet and scowled at Jermaine. "You could've just told me that anytime! What was with the whole puppet show? You think I'm some stupid country bumpkin, city slicker?"
Jermaine recoiled. "Why'd you have to be up in my grill all the time? I was just trying to make it fun for you all."
Jessie walked out of the attic while Jermaine, Manu and Chucky looked on. "She's not ever going to be a Xiaolin Warrior with that temper," mumbled Chucky.
"We're not supposed to be a Xiaolin Warriors," Jermaine added. "We're just filling the real heroes shoes while they find their new home."
"It would be cool if we could experience what it feels like to be a Xiaolin Warrior for a while, though," Manu said sheepishly.
Master Monk Guan abruptly walked into the room, making Manu jump. "Manu is correct; this is an excellent opportunity for confidence building exercises. We also need all the help we can get in the fight against evil."
Jermaine looked exasperated. "How are we gonna get our act together if everything I do makes that cowgirl blow her stack?"
Guan smiled warmly. "Perhaps by helping her with chores you will grow closer together," he said. "Right now it is her turn to practice wielding the Shen Gong Wu."
Jermaine encountered Jessie near the obstacle course, but she was not using any of the Shen Gong Wu in the crate that the Xiaolin Warriors had leant them. He frowned and picked out the Rainbow Star, a multicoloured throwing weapon. Jessie appeared to be blindly attacking one training dummy out of a dozen or so, pounding it with her fists.
"It's supposed to be your turn to train with the Shen Gong Wu," Jermaine told her, eliciting an angry glare from her.
"I prefer to do things with my own hands," she mumbled.
"It's okay if you're a little afraid to use them," Jermaine continued.
Jessie exploded. "Afraid? I've spent weeks in the wilderness! A little magic ain't nothing compared to what I've been through!"
Jermaine looked hesitant and backed away from her again. "Chill, chill! I wasn't dissing your skills!" Jessie appeared to calm down, although she was still clearly in a bad mood. "I'll just practice over here," he said, readying the Rainbow Star.
He tossed the Shen Gong Wu at a small gathering of dummies, making it zoom around them and back to him like a boomerang. Where the weapon had passed them, the targets were patterned in all seven colours of the rainbow. Jessie had been watching, and scoffed at Jermaine. It appeared that Jermaine had not quite expected the effect of that particular Shen Gong Wu.
"That sure is a mighty weapon, Xiaolin Warrior," Jessie said sarcastically.
Jermaine had an idea to get her practicing. "You think you could do better?"
Jessie let out a small haughty laugh and chose a Shen Gong Wu from the crate. "As sure as a gun," she said, holding the Bear Baton.
Calling out the mystical object's name, the black baton emitted a brilliant pulse of light that blinded Jermaine for a split second. Standing where Jessie had been was a grizzly bear wearing her familiar hat, which then proceeded to charge at the dummies.
"Dang, I guess you'll be the muscle of the team!" Jermaine exclaimed, sounding both impressed and frightened as he watched the ferocious beast tear the dummies apart with her teeth and claws.
The Jessie bear immediately halted her brutal attack and glared at him. "Are you saying I ain't smart enough to be a tactical fighter?" she roared, her voice several times deeper than her human voice. "You asking for a slogging?"
Jermaine almost squealed. "Hey, cut that out!"
Jessie shifted back into human form, laughing breathlessly. "You should've seen the look on your face!" she said after catching her breath. "You city boys are so easily scared when things don't go according to plan!"
He laughed nervously before frowning and avoiding eye contact with her, spotting Chucky crawling gingerly towards them. "Hi kids...I've got something you guys need to look at." Chucky grabbed his tail and displayed it to Jermaine and Jessie, making the latter cringe and the former retch. The end of the dragon's tail had swollen into bulbous, glistening growth. "Is this normal?"
Master Monk Guan came running to join them, slipping a cell phone back into his robes. "Chucky is experiencing his first Shen Gong Wu sensation. Dojo and the Xiaolin Warriors have informed me that it is the Suika Scale."
"Have you asked them if they're all gonna be as bad as this?" Chucky worriedly questioned his master, wincing when his swelling suddenly appeared to grow slightly larger.
"Your health is of utmost importance to me," Guan replied with a small smile. "Luckily, Dojo has informed me that this particular symptom is less unpleasant than others." Chucky seemed to go paler when he heard the answer.
Manu was quick to arrive, coming with an enquiry. "Wait! We haven't even decided what roles we'd assume in a real mission."
Knowing that they needed to retrieve the new Shen Gong Wu in time, Guan hurriedly explained the situation to them. "This first mission will give you a true assessment of your abilities; Manu and Jessie will learn what combat roles best suit them."
Jermaine was puzzled. "Are you implying you already have a role for me?" he asked hopefully.
"Indeed; as you possess the skill level of a Wudai Warrior, you are already more experienced in combat than your peers. I have decided that you would best fit the position of leader," Guan replied, much to Jessie's chagrin and Jermaine's delight.
Jermaine grinned and walked over to the crate of Shen Gong Wu. "You heard the boss man; everyone grab a Shen Gong Wu each!"
Jessie remained holding the Bear Baton, while Jermaine and Manu selected the Ninja Sash and Imo Gazer. Manu happily followed Jermaine closely behind as he strolled towards Jessie's flying machine, the Quetzalcoatl.
Jessie caught up and grumpily pushed Jermaine aside so she could sit on it first, while he, Manu and Chucky sat in the trailer that was fixed to the back of the serpent themed quad bike. As Jessie revved up the engine, the Wings of Tinabi installed within the flying machine came to life, lifting the Quetzalcoatl up into the air followed by its characteristic rainbow vapour trail.
Meanwhile, in an old abandoned warehouse somewhere in the grimiest corner of a big city, Jack Spicer was at work. He felt that making a few adjustments to his Undeniably Fiendish Object, or UFO, was simpler than putting up with his young cousin Megan.
"It would be easier to complete these upgrades if I had some Jack-bots to help," Jack grumbled. Some of Jack's robots had joined the little blonde girl around a large rectangular black table, all dressed in smart business suits, Megan included. "I thought I removed their knowledge of tea parties from their programming."
"This isn't a tea party, Jack," Megan said haughtily. "I'm holding an important business conference right now and it's rude for you to interrupt."
"I am pleased to inform that despite the rise in rainbow prices, the amount of unicorns purchasing them has increased by thirty percent," droned one of the Jack-bots, pointing to a chart. Megan and the other Jack-bots began to nod and mutter animatedly to one another.
Jack rolled his eyes, but when he turned his gaze back to his work, his eyes met with Wuya's ghostly stare and startled him. "Your parents no longer consider you part of the family, and yet they still hold you responsible for monitoring this brat! At least she seems to have matured."
"And I thought living on my own would allow me to be more evil," Jack said with a sigh. "Too bad my evil team all happen to be busy today. Who'd have known that they all had dogs that needed taking to the vet, even Ashley?"
Wuya chuckled at Jack's obliviousness. "Yes, what a cruel twist of fate it was to disallow them from helping you take care of your cousin."
Jack suddenly yelped as Megan dumped a large pile of books onto his lap. "Okay, it's time for you to help me with my homework," she said. "I have to write about someone cool I know."
The evil boy genius's mood went from anger to glee. "Wow, really? You think I'm cool?" Jack looked like he was about to cry tears of joy.
Megan looked at him as though he was speaking gibberish. "No, stupid. If I wrote an essay about you, everyone in school would pick on me. I'm going to write a report on the Xiaolin Warriors, and since you seem to get your butt handed to you by them a lot, I thought you'd have lots of experience with them."
Wuya and Jack scowled in disgust. "You should write a report about me!" hissed the ghostly witch. "I hold dark secrets that have been lost to mankind for aeons! Join me, and we shall create the most evil third grade report the world has ever seen!"
"No thanks," Megan said, turning away from her cousin and the ghost. "If you know any prettier dark sorceresses, give me a call."
Jack laughed at Wuya's offence, but was frightened when she suddenly experienced a surge of magical energy, making her eyes glow. "A Shen Gong Wu has revealed itself; the Suika Scale! It possesses the power to transform the wearer's body into water!" her voice echoed through the largely empty warehouse.
"I'll come with you for research purposes," Megan added.
"Well maybe I don't want to go!" Jack snapped. "I'll lose a Shen Gong Wu, but It'll stop you from doing your stupid report!"
Megan shrugged her shoulders and smiled sweetly. "Okay then, I guess you don't need that little thing. You cry so much that you must be already made of water."
Jack suppressed his rage, clenching his fists and biting his bottom lip. Finally, he clambered into his UFO and set the coordinates of the activated Suika Scale. Megan smile persisted as she followed him inside the vehicle, sitting in the passenger seat.
"Nice thinking, Jack," Wuya whispered. "Who knows; you might have a chance to prove that you're superior to the monks, and to prove that the Heylin side is a suitable topic for foolish mortals to write about."
The Quetzalcoatl moved at an alarming speed, and only Jessie truly felt comfortable during the ride through the sky. Chucky's grotesquely swollen tail acted as a sort of compass, pointing them in the direction of their first Shen Gong Wu.
"Looks like Chucky's tail is getting better," Manu said, to the dragon's relief. "That must mean we're close."
Jermaine looked down from the Quetzalcoatl's trailer after noticing the Chucky's tail was pointing in that direction. "Down there; it's somewhere on that pier!" All of a sudden, Jessie violently swerved and sent her vehicle plummeting downwards, making her passengers cry out in alarm. "I was gonna tell you do it smoothly!" Jermaine cried.
Touching down on the wooden pier in the middle of the thick sea mist, the Quetzalcoatl retracted its wings and skidded to a halt. Jessie casually climbed off her seat while her companions clambered out sluggishly, their bones feeling like jelly.
"Toughen up, boys," Jessie said, pointing at a fishing boat moored to the pier. Tangled in its nets was a turquoise coloured scale from an enormous fish or reptile, as large as someone's hand. "Our wart's right there."
As Jermaine, Manu and Chucky regained their strength, Jack Spicer's UFO swooped down from the sky. The fishermen aboard the boat emerged and began to marvel at the strange visitor to their pier, but when a laser cannon emerged from underneath the UFO, they panicked and began to untie their boat from the pier in order to escape.
As Jack-bots began to arrive on the scene, Chucky dived underneath Jessie's hat as the Shen Gong Wu retrieval team assumed their fighting stances. The glass cockpit of the UFO opened to reveal the boy genius and his cousin, who seemed to be very perplexed by the sight underneath him.
An equally confused Wuya emerged from behind them both. "What are these children doing here before the monks arrive?"
"Hey, wait a second," Jack added. "They're all the Xiaolin losers pals!"
Megan shrugged her shoulders. "Anything's more interesting to write about than you." Her comment earned her a brief angry glare from her cousin.
He pressed a button, causing him and Megan to drop out from underneath the UFO on ropes. Jack landed safely on his feet, but Megan landed on her behind to his amusement. "These substitute losers don't have much combat experience, so we can take them on in person! If you can zap any of these dweebs, you'll get extra credit."
Jack produced a ray gun for himself and his cousin, but Megan appeared reluctant to use the weapon. Jack ordered his robots to attack, and the new heroes were forced to spring into action. Jermaine placed the Ninja Sash, a black belt shaped Shen Gong Wu, around his waist and ran towards a crowd of Jack-bots approaching him.
"Ninja Sash!" he yelled out as he performed a magical gesture with his hands, causing two doppelgangers to appear at his side in a puff of smoke. The three Jermaines moved in unison, performing the same strikes against the wave of robots. One Jack-bot appeared to be more heavily armoured than the rest, equipped with a large cannon on its chest.
The three Jermaines leapt into the air and came down upon the reinforced adversary. "Wudai Iron Palm!" they yelled together, striking the robot at three different weak points. Immediately, the once formidable machine was reduced to a pile of scrap metal.
Jermaine stood proud with his doubles, but his two copies were erased by Jack Spicer's laser fire as he was caught off guard. Jessie, in the form of a bear, loomed over the evil boy genius. When Jack noticed her tall shadow, he turned around and found himself gazing into her gaping maw. Jack gave a quick squeal and fell over backwards, accidentally pulling the trigger on his ray gun and destroying several of his own robots.
Jessie struck the Jack-bots that came to aid their master with her strong paws, while Chucky managed to leap out from under her hat, joining Manu as he ran to the boat that was quickly leaving the pier in the chaos. They were halted by Megan, weakly pointing her ray gun at them.
"Watch where you point that thing, kid!" Chucky said to her nervously. "You've got a whole life ahead of you as long as you do nothing drastic!"
Megan squinted her eyes at the rotund reptile, bewildered to see another dragon. "You're not Dojo."
Chucky sighed. "I get that a lot."
As Jessie unleashed her inner fury against the Jack-bots, and as Jermaine aided her with his Wudai Warrior expertise, Jack managed to escape from the disorder and made a run for the fleeing fishing boat as well. He activated his Heli-bot and flew past his cousin, but Manu readied the Imo Gazer.
Aiming the bronze telescope like artefact at the airborne villain, Manu prepared to call its name. However, Jessie was also quick to notice that Jack Spicer was making an attempt to seize the Suika Scale. Transforming back into her human self by deactivating the Bear Baton, Jessie leapt at Jack before he could soar high enough to reach the boat. Unfortunately, she came between Jack and Manu just as the latter activated the Imo Gazer.
A beam of light shot out from the telescope's lens, striking Jessie. Immediately, the cowgirl fell into a deep slumber, landing face down with a thud on the wooden planks of the pier. Jack briefly glanced back at her, both amused and puzzled, before flying onto the boat and untangling the Suika Scale from the netting.
Jermaine, battered by the Jack-bots that had overwhelmed him, rushed to attend Jessie's unconscious body as Megan was lifted away to Jack's UFO by a pair of Jack-bots. Jack jumped into his vessel shortly afterwards, proudly holding the new Shen Gong Wu. As the UFO took off with its entourage of robots, Megan looked down at the heroes with a concerned look on her face. Jack nudged his cousin with his shoulder so she could see him with the Suika Scale, but she remained disinterested.
Manu and Chucky joined Jermaine in successfully shaking Jessie awake. As soon as Jermaine saw that she was alright, his apprehension turned into anger. "You made us lose the Wu! Manu could've handled Jack himself!"
Jessie got up, pushing him away and almost knocking Manu over in the process. "That's the thanks I get for trying to give Manu a hand?"
"Manu almost had the Scale in the bag! You should've continued helping me deal with the robots!" Jermaine replied furiously.
"Guys, it's okay," Manu said hesitantly. "I wasn't sure if the Imo Gazer would work on Jack. I've never used it before, so I had an equal chance of failing by myself."
Jessie and Jermaine managed to calm down, but still avoided eye contact with one another. Strangely, they noticed Chucky was facing away from them too. "Glad to see you guys have settled your differences," he said, talking to two seagulls that were standing nearby.
"Chucky dawg, what are you talking to those birds for?" Jermaine asked, picking the dragon off the ground and turning him to face them.
The heroes became shocked and disgusted when they realize that Chucky's eyes had almost practically swollen shut. Manu's mobile phone began to vibrate, and after answering the call and listening to the Xiaolin Warriors on the other side, he explained the situation to his teammates. "It's another Shen Gong Wu!"
"Oh boy," Jermaine groaned. "We'd better not screw things up this time."
"This time you can bet your bottom dollar that we'll give Jack a licking!" Jessie proclaimed. "Let's head back to Guan's and get all our warts!"
"Jessie makes a good point!" Chucky said, speaking to no one. "Let's overwhelm that sucker!"
Jessie flew the Quetzalcoatl with much less vigour on their second journey from the temple, mostly due to the fact that its trailer was mostly occupied by the crate containing all of their Shen Gong Wu. The heroes were wearing thick coats, as they were heading towards a snow covered mountain. Built into the side of the peak were the impressive ruins of a fortress.
"What was this thing's name again?" Jermaine asked, still bemused by the bizarre nature of the new magical artefact.
"The Wonder Undies!" Chucky replied, his sight returning to him. "They're the ultimate undergarment." Jermaine and the others exchanged puzzled looks before Chucky pointed excitedly at the ruins. "There they are!"
On top of the fortress's tallest tower were the Wonder Undies; a pair of golden underpants waving on a flagpole. The Quetzalcoatl came down upon the snowy mountain road leading to the entrance of the ancient structure. To the dismay of the heroes, Jack Spicer and Megan were already standing atop the fortress walls.
Jermaine and Manu lifted the crate out of the trailer while Jessie shouted a challenge to the evil boy genius and his cousin. "You two ain't gonna get away with the wart this time! Come on down here; we're gonna have a real showdown!"
Several Jack-bots appeared behind their master, but they did not spring into action immediately. Instead, the robots revealed their built in speakers and began to play polka music. "I've been practicing," Jack Spicer said with a sneer.
"Practicing getting your butt whooped to awful music?" Jermaine asked.
"Nope!" Jack grabbed his coat and pulled it off, revealing that he was wearing lederhosen underneath. He began to squat up and down in time with the rhythm of the music, causing the heroes to snigger.
Then, Jack began to yodel loudly. As he continued to yodel, their amusement was replaced by fear as a deep rumble echoed throughout the mountain. The entrance of the ancient fortress was suddenly burst open by an great avalanche, which then headed down the road towards the Quetzalcoatl. The heroes tried to run, but they were quickly buried by the mass of snow. While Jack and Megan remained untouched, the flagpole holding the Wonder Undies was dislodged by the rumbling, tumbling down the huge pile of snow.
Jack stopped dancing and the robots ceased their music as Wuya screamed. "Jack, you imbecile! Your pathetic song and dance has lost us the Shen Gong Wu!" He smiled softly and pointed to the mass of snow beneath them; amongst the whiteness was the crate of the heroes Shen Gong Wu. "On second thought, your performance has yielded many more prizes," Wuya continued.
Megan looked down at the destruction, looking visibly distraught. "Always pick on people weaker than you," Jack said to her. "And make sure you make it look as easy as possible. That way, you'll be too busy laughing to think about their horrible demise!"
A team of Jack-bots began to gather up the scattered Shen Gong Wu, but their efforts were disturbed by a mass of fur and claws bursting out of the snow. The large polar bear reared up and unfolded its front legs, letting Manu and Chucky safely drop onto their feet and belly. The bear changed back into Jermaine, wearing the white Polar Paws Shen Gong Wu on his hands. Manu had managed to save one other Shen Gong Wu; the Horde of Haiku. A few metres away, the muffled sound of a revving engine could be heard, and Jessie on the Quetzalcoatl burst from the snow shortly afterwards.
Weary from being buried underneath so much snow, the heroes still managed to assume fighting stances. Jack jumped down and hesitantly helped his mechanical minions to pick up the mystical artefacts, but Wuya gave him some advice. "Finish them off, Jack! Use the Neptune Helmet!"
Jack briefly looked at the fishlike helmet before placing it on his head and calling its name. Jack was immediately surrounded by a miniature tornado, creating a large snowstorm. The boy genius walked forwards menacingly while laughing like a madman. Jermaine, Manu, Jessie and Chucky tried to stand their ground, but they found themselves tumbling down the mountain once Jack came closer to them.
When the heroes came to their senses, they found that Jack had taken almost all the Shen Gong Wu and left them. Manu and Jermaine were lying in the snow while Jessie proceeded to turn the Quetzalcoatl back upright. Chucky, who had tumbled further than the others, came back holding the flagpole and the Wonder Undies.
"Cheer up, fellas!" Jessie said to her crestfallen companions, shaking the snow off her hat. "At least we managed to win the wart we came for!"
While the dragon excitedly removed the magical briefs from the flagpole, Jermaine questioned him. "What do the Wonder Undies do, Chucky?"
With an unpleasant gurgling noise, Chucky morphed into a larger and more humanoid form. To Jermaine's displeasure, the dragon stepped into the Wonder Undies and began to try and fit the magical undergarment on his posterior. They were skimpy and left little to the imagination. "They're self cleaning, indestructible and increase the power of your rear end a hundred times! Shame they couldn't have been made in a larger size."
Jermaine looked back at Jessie, a look of fury on his face. "Jack Spicer made off with practically all our Wu because of you, and now we're left with one of the most useless Wu imaginable!" As Jermaine blew his top, Chucky stumbled around, trying to take the tight briefs off.
It did not take long for Jessie to become irate as well, but it was also clear that she felt a little humiliated. "If you thought it was a bad idea, why didn't you stop me from gathering up all our warts in the first place?"
"You haven't been listening to any advice I give you," Jermaine replied. "It wouldn't have made any difference."
The two bickering heroes fell silent and avoided eye contact once again while Jessie prepared the Quetzalcoatl to take them home. A depressed Manu was the first to jump into the trailer, while Chucky stumbled and toppled inside.
As the vehicle took off, Manu had an idea and spoke to his moody teammate. "Jermaine, I know a way I can get her to appreciate you more."
Jermaine cringed. "I'm not gonna go on a date with her, if that's what you're talking about."
Jessie continued to pay them no attention. "No, not like that," Manu stuttered. "I mean I have a good way for her to learn how to appreciate her teammates more." Manu continued his explanation, this time whispering in Jermaine's ear. The two allowed Chucky to listen to their plan too, all while Jessie was blissfully aware.
That evening at Guan's Temple, the ancient master was displeased with their progress. Jessie had been given the hardest chores; scrubbing all the hallways on the ground floor was her last duty for the day. "Sorry you got stuck with the most chores, Jessie," Manu said as he walked down the hallway she was currently cleaning. "Want me to help?"
"I'm surprised it ain't Jermaine who wants to lend me a hand," Jessie replied. "He would've probably boasted about his greater experience, or something."
Manu looked left and right, seeing if the coast was clear. "Jermaine got his skills by training with one of the greatest warriors; Chase Young. But it's a secret."
"Is he afraid that his moves ain't original?" Jessie asked with a chuckle.
"No; Chase Young is Master Monk Guan's worst enemy. Jermaine said he'd only use the techniques to fight evil, and if you keep it a secret, he might show us how to perform those moves too," Manu continued.
Jessie looked surprised, but then smiled. "Don't worry, I won't tell no one."
Manu smiled back. "That's good. I figured if you knew more about him, you'd get along better."
Many continued on his way, and Jessie's smile became more roguish. When she had finished her chores late at night, she crept quietly towards Master Monk Guan's office. The martial arts master was reading from a small book, wearing a pair of equally dainty reading glasses.
"Ah, Jessie, what brings you here at this hour?" he asked her. "Are you having trouble sleeping?"
"Master Guan, I realized something real terrifying," Jessie said, feigning astonishment. "Jermaine's been using the secret moves of your nemesis; Chazz Young!" She hesitated for a second. "I don't mean to sound like a tattletale but I couldn't think of any other way to let you know!"
"Chase Young's secret moves?" Guan slowly put the book down on his desk and stood up, a stern look on his face. "I must tell Jermaine right away that I will not allow such dark arts on my premises."
He strode past Jessie and out of the room; she watched him with glee as he continued down the corridors, rubbing her palms together. "That'll knock that city slicker down a peg."
Jessie had converted her temporary living quarters into a garage for the Quetzalcoatl, using its trailer as her bed at night. Before she settled down, the lanterns of the courtyard that illuminated her curtains from the outside began to flicker as though there were people walking by. Curious to see who was up at that hour, Jessie peeked through a small gap in the curtains.
In the courtyard stood Master Monk Guan and Jermaine. In the moonlight, Jessie could only see that Guan had his arms folded, and that Jermaine was bowing his head solemnly. She gasped when she saw Jermaine bend over and pick up two suitcases, before slowly walking to the exit of the Temple grounds. Jessie gulped hard and moved away from her window, and later found herself unable to get a comfortable night's sleep.
In the morning, Manu and Jessie were woken early by Guan, as a new Shen Gong Wu had revealed itself. While Manu seemed revitalized as he stood before Guan for the mission briefing, but Jessie appeared shaken. Chucky Choo stood at Guan's side; every inch of his scaly body was bright red.
"I used to envy Dojo a little. I thought searching for Shen Gong Wu was all about sightseeing and romance," he grunted, unable to move his body without feeling pain. "This next Wu better have some kind of time travel power, so I can go back in time and punch myself for believing that!"
"Unfortunately, Jermaine was asked to leave the Temple for misconduct," Guan explained, making Jessie wince. "I am sure you will be able to retrieve the Shen Gong Wu without difficulty, for there will be dire consequences if you fail. The Diablo Del Fuego allows its wearer to breathe fire; it is capable of mass destruction if it falls into the wrong hands."
"I feel like I'm already on fire," mumbled Chucky.
Jessie hesitantly ran to the Quetzalcoatl, followed by Manu. Manu was holding Chucky gingerly with a pair of tongs, ensuring that the dragon did not need to move a muscle and cause more pain for himself. Feeling immense guilt, Jessie's fingers were almost too shaky to start the ignition.
The Quetzalcoatl landed in some ancient ruins, consisting mostly of crumbling columns, illuminated brightly by the morning sun. The sky was a vivid blue and almost completely cloudless, but despite the fine weather, there was no activity from either people or animals.
"Ah, the freedom of movement!" Chucky sighed. His condition was improving now they were close to the Diablo Del Fuego. The red devilish mask was placed on a column in the centre of the ruins, allowing the adventurers to spot it easily.
"Well Jessie, you're leader now," said Manu. "Now Jermaine isn't with us, I guess you won't have anyone telling you how to get it."
Jessie glanced back at Manu with a hint of sadness, but then continued onwards. The central column was surrounded by several smaller pillars, and when the adventurers stepped into their area, they all seemed to shudder. A compartment tear the top of each pillar opened up, revealing mechanical faces not unlike Jack-bots.
The robotic columns began to crackle with electricity, just before generating a force field around the small area. The crackling wall of energy reached the top of the central pillar, leaving the Diablo Del Fuego perched on top on the exterior of the bubble.
Cackling evilly, Jack Spicer emerged from his hiding place behind a pillar as skinny as he was, before activating his Heli-bot to effortlessly claim the new Shen Gong Wu. Megan peeked out from behind a pillar too, looking hesitant. "Right into my trap!" Jack laughed. "Bet you're glad you didn't write an essay about these suckers now, eh?"
"They've been through enough," Megan grumbled. "Tormenting them like this is just inflating your ego, you sicko."
Jack dismissed her comments and continued to leer at the captured heroes. Jessie banged her fists against the force field, but received an electric shock for her efforts. "What I'm wondering is why the Xiaolin losers got a bunch of substitute heroes to get the Wu for a change. Seems like they made a poor choice," Jack said with a sneer.
"We're doing them a favour," said Manu. "They've got a more important task to deal with than face off against you."
"I bet you're happy to be out there instead of in here with me!" Jessie growled, kicking the force field, only to cause more pain for herself. "I'm gonna tear that smile off your face!"
Jack was genuinely startled by her ferocity, but regained his cool. "Serves you right for you and your girl gang double crossing me," he snapped. "Word on the evil street is that the Black Vipers ditched you for going soft."
Jessie fell silent and stopped struggling. When Jack saw her sit down quietly, he grinned in triumph. "Man, it feels good to be bad today. You taking notes, Megan?"
Megan appeared to be writing in a notepad, but she was secretly drawing unflattering pictures of her loathsome cousin. While Jack marvelled at the Diablo Del Fuego in his hands, Manu and Chucky comforted Jessie inside their prison.
"I'm sorry Manu," she said with a sigh. "I told Master Guan about Jermaine's training. I thought he'd just get yelled at, but I didn't expect him to get kicked out of the Temple like that! If he was with us now, we probably wouldn't be stuck in this booby-trap."
"Don't think like that, Jessie," Manu said. "You're the strongest of us, and Guan says you have untapped potential. We'll eventually learn to work as a team."
"The only bit of good I've done is help you grab those useless underpants!" Jessie exclaimed, still feeling humiliated from their second Shen Gong Wu retrieval.
"I wouldn't be too quick to call them useless, if I were you," Chucky said smugly. "Dojo said that Grandmaster Dashi created each of the Shen Gong Wu with a purpose; in the right hands, and with the right attitude, they can get you outta any mess."
Chucky reached into his shirt and pulled out the rolled up Wonder Undies. "How are those gonna help? They're about as useless as a sidesaddle on a sow," grumbled Jessie.
The dragon shape shifted into his humanoid form, much to Jessie's displeasure, and wore the magic underpants once again. Chucky then proceeded to press his rear end against the force field, the Wonder Undies preventing him from receiving a nasty shock. The Shen Gong Wu began to glow, and to Jessie and Manu's surprise, began to distort the force field as Chucky pushed harder and harder.
"The Wonder Undies!" Manu exclaimed. "They're magnifying the strength of his butt!"
Jack turned his attention to Chucky and the noises he was making in his effort to break down the barrier. "Oh please, are you desperate enough to embarrass yourself like that?" the evildoer asked haughtily. "The only thing that can dissipate my patented force field is-"
Jack's words were drowned out by a large explosion from within the bubble, obliterating the pillar shaped Jack-bots that had been generating the wall of energy. When the smoke cleared, Chucky was still standing in the same position, his face bright red in embarrassment.
"One of those," Jack stuttered.
"Those undies really do power up your caboose," Jessie said with a cough, waving her hand in front of her nose. "Next time warn us when you're gonna let rip." Chucky shrank back to his usual shape and size and pulled the Wonder Undies over his head in humiliation.
Hastily spraying a can of deodorant all around, Jack tossed the Diablo Del Fuego to one of his robots. Jessie leapt into action, obliterating the Jack-bot with a flying kick, but not before it threw the mask Shen Gong Wu to another robot. The Jack-bot then tossed the mystical artefact back to its master before Jessie destroyed it as well.
"Still mine!" Jack laughed. Manu and Jessie were suddenly restrained by two Jack-bots each. As Jack continued to laugh, a swarm of tiny insects began to gather around him. Their buzzing became louder, and Jack squealed in horror. "Wrong deodorant!"
As he waved his hands to shoo the insects away, they began to bite him. Once again, Jack dropped the Shen Gong Wu, but this time it tumbled into the path of his cousin. As Megan picked up the Diablo Del Fuego, the swarm of bugs flew away from Jack and began to swarm around the fiery Shen Gong Wu instead. Before everyone's eyes, the cloud of insects coalesced into a familiar shape.
"Jermaine!" Manu gasped.
The Wudai Warrior looked back at his friends with a grin. "Sorry I'm late; I used the Horde of Haiku to get here," he explained, revealing the bronze rattle shaped Shen Gong Wu in his free hand. With his other hand, Jermaine held the Diablo Del Fuego with Megan.
As the mask began to shine brightly, Jack cried out. "She can't be in the showdown, she'll ruin everything!"
Megan looked back at her cousin and scowled before turning back to face Jermaine with a determined look in her eyes. "Looks like this is one of those Xiaolin Showdowns my cousin keeps losing."
"You sure you want to go ahead with this?" Jermaine asked, seemingly worried for the little girl's wellbeing. "I wager my Horde of Haiku against your Suika Scale."
Jack became even more furious. "You'll tarnish my winning streak! Back out now!"
"The game will be hoop jumping," Megan continued, ignoring her cousin's complaints. "We've both got to jump through the hoops at the same time. Whoever jumps too late is out."
"That's too complicated! You'll never win!" Jack screamed, but his words were again drowned out, this time by Megan and Jermaine yelling "Let's go, Xiaolin Showdown!"
In a flash of light, the ruins began to transform. The floor crumbled away into nothing; Jack, Jessie, Manu and Chucky had to leap onto some columns and climb up them. Some columns stretched down into the endless abyss as blue as the sky, while some columns rose up and broke into pieces, rearranging themselves into hoops.
"Gong Yi Tan Pai!"
Megan activated the Suika Scale, transforming into a jet of water that shot off the column she was standing on and towards the nearest hoop. Jermaine used his superior leaping skills to leap from column to column with enough speed to jump through the first hoop at the same time as Megan. After both competitors were through the ring, it crumbled to dust behind them.
"She's got style," Chucky said, standing on the same column as Manu while Jessie stood on a separate column.
"That little missy may be young but she's still on Spicer's side," added Jessie.
"She should've moved faster," Jack huffed, hovering using his Heli-bot.
The columns that Jermaine and Megan landed on began to give way, sinking into the void below. They had no choice but to leap through another hoop, using similar tactics to before. On the third hoop, Jermaine tried to gain the upper hand by transforming into a swarm of insects with the Horde of Haiku again. When Megan saw him trying to get ahead, she transformed into a jet of water and enveloped the cloud of bugs. As they collided, the two competitors transformed back into their regular selves and tumbled through the hoop together, landing clumsily on the same platform afterwards.
"What are you doing?" Jack yelled at his cousin. "Go in for the kill!"
Megan became a waterspout yet again, launching herself with enough force to nearly knock Jermaine off the platform. Megan gained a considerable lead while the soaked Jermaine tried to regain his balance. When he stabilized himself, he glanced back at his comrades. Jermaine noticed that Jessie was really eager for him to win, and he could even hear her chanting for him to do his best. He looked forward at his opponent and smiled.
With an impressive leap, Jermaine soared over several columns and landed to the platform that was nearest to the fourth hoop. However, Megan was nowhere in sight. Jack began hovering above the battleground, trying to find his little cousin. "She's gonna let him win!" he yelled to himself.
When Jermaine noticed that the column he was standing on was soaking wet, it was too late. Instantly, the moisture reformed back into Megan with such a force that it sent Jermaine falling. Megan leapt through the fourth hoop, this time without Jermaine. With no chance of Jermaine catching up, the showdown ended, and the environment changed back to normal.
Megan was standing with the Suika Scale, Horde of Haiku and Diablo Del Fuego. While her cousin had been annoyed at her during the whole showdown, he was now ecstatic. "You did it! I never doubted you for a second!" he proclaimed, running to give her a hug.
Megan smiled and slowly turned away from him, stopping him in his tracks. She walked over to Manu and Jermaine, handing them the Shen Gong Wu they had won. Jack Spicer's jaw dropped, and Jessie's jaw almost dropped too.
"Sorry Jack, but Megan's picked the side that'll give her support," Manu said with a smile.
"Wait a darn second, were you two planning this the whole time?" Jessie asked her companions.
Jermaine grinned. "Manu told me that she seemed pretty reluctant to join in with Jack's shenanigans back on that pier," he explained. "When I left the temple last night, I flew over to ask if she was okay."
"You're not exactly the Xiaolin Warriors," Megan added, "But you'll make a good assignment subject."
A furious Jack ran over to the crate of Shen Gong Wu he had stolen from them, ready to strike them with one of the mystical objects in retaliation. To his horror, he found that the crate was now full of stuffed animals. "My Wu!"
"I felt pretty bad for Jermaine and his friends," Megan explained slyly. "I decided to give them all their Wu back. The essay will be more interesting if they have a full vault of Shen Gong Wu."
Jack burrowed through the toys, hoping to find at least one Shen Gong Wu left. The heroes and Megan climbed aboard the Quetzalcoatl and its trailer and soared back home, just as Jack lifted out a vacuum cleaner that was at the very bottom of the crate.
"Jack," said Wuya softly from within the vacuum's dust bag. "When we get back to the lair, you've got a lot of explaining to do." Biting his bottom lip, Jack could tell from her tranquil fury that she had a particularly nasty punishment waiting for him.
As the Quetzalcoatl soared back home with its new passenger, Jessie looked back at Jermaine sadly. "Do you want me to drop you off back at your place, Jermaine? I'm not sure if Master Guan's gonna like it if we bring you back to the Temple."
Jermaine smiled and replied. "Nah, Guan's crib is closer."
Guan was waiting in the Temple courtyard as the Quetzalcoatl descended. Jessie hopped off the vehicle eagerly and rushed to the ancient and wise master, holding her hands together in a pleading manner. "Please let Jermaine stay, Master Guan sir! It was my fault that he got in trouble! He saved us all today!"
Master Monk Guan smiled, but turned his attention towards the others instead. "I see you've managed to successfully recruit miss Spicer. Well done, Manu and Jermaine."
Jessie froze and then looked at her companions in disbelief before looking back at Guan. "Wait another darn second; was this a plan of yours to make it look like Jermaine was kicked out?"
"We apologise for deceiving you," Guan replied. "It was a test to see if you truly did appreciate Jermaine's company. The techniques that Jermaine learnt from Chase Young were the same ones that me and Dashi had learnt; Chase would never teach his dark secrets to anyone."
Jessie frowned and bowed her head. "So you pulled the wool over my eyes so Jermaine could hear me praise him."
Jermaine approached her apologetically. "Nah, it wasn't just to make you learn; I learnt that deep down, you really do have a heart."
She lifted her head and smiled. "I really like the way you tricky varmints do things around here. I think I'm ready to do some more practicing."
Megan grinned and handed Jessie the Diablo Del Fuego. Jermaine gulped audibly as Jessie put the mask on, its eyes glowing red. The Wudai Warrior ran, avoiding Jessie's fire breath while Megan took notes for her project.
"Excellent method of agility training, Jessie!" Guan said with a smile.