A/N: Alright! Thank you to all those who reviewed and to everyone who have enjoyed the story so far. Special thanks to FFcrazy15 for helping me with detail stuffs as well. Prepare yourselves cause this chapter is reeeeeeeediculously long. Hope you like it.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Kung Fu Panda things, except my OC's ;P

Chapter 2: Those Born of Sheva

He awoke, with a scream more piercing than that of a new born cub. His eyes frantically darted around the space he was in, images real and subconscious flashing before him. His mind was painting his subconscious thoughts, memories and emotions all at once. He roared with all his might as flashes of blood, clashing steel, flames, and charred bodies filled his vision. He could smell burnt fur and flesh, hear screams echo in his mind, and taste the sickening flavor of blood; completely unsure if it was his own or someone else's.

Thrown in among this unnerving backdrop of despair and torment were also images of bliss and joy. A village, with children playing in open fields, villagers engaged in festivals, harvests, and a woman with eyes like sapphires cradled in the embrace of her mate. The two partners gazing into each other's orbs; slowly yet determinedly leaning closer to one another to consummate their love.

Then fire. An inferno scorching all the images away as the sounds of death and destruction filled his ears once more. And as he lashed out in this ungodly haze of anger, sadness, and pain... he saw it. A dark figure walking through the destruction as flames twirled around it licking its form, but seemingly ever bent to it's will. It approached him through the fiery haze, like the shade of death itself. He struggled and writhed as the all too familiar presence encroached on his very soul the more it approached him. It reached toward him, body blackened as a void and claws cold and unfeelingly. He fought, struggled with every fiber of his being but he could not move from it's fiery gaze. He began to feel a stirring within himself, and gazed at his body in horror as he was slowly consumed by the dark presence before him. He felt pain, anger, despair, fury, and above all... hatred.

Quickly! We're losing him...

As he was being immolated in the flames of this darkness he heard a voice. Soft and heavenly amidst the blackness that had all but consumed him. His body, now mostly blackened by this dark entity, had ceased its inhuman writhing and spasms. The being in front of him dispersed, as a sweet fragrance filled his nostrils and soothed his mind. In the now calmed blackness he searched for the source of the voice breathing sporadically from the adrenaline still in his blood stream.

Shhhhh... calm down, you are safe now...

His seemingly charred form soon slowly began to mend and the darkness subside. He breathed in deep as he let fatigue and exhaustion take hold. He felt a cooling sensation touch his brow sending him into further relaxation.

With that his once frantic eyes had slowed and began to lid heavily. The last thing he saw was a pair of bright soothing indigo orbs gazing into his ocean green eyes.

...I'll take care of you...

His eyes shot open and he breathed in the dank cool air. As his orbs slowly regained their focus, he scanned his current surroundings. He could barely discern specific shapes, but judging from the smell of wet canvas and the light crackle of a fire he was in some sort of tent lodging. Soon his sight cleared and his current observations were justified.

He was sitting upright in a bed mat on the floor of a dimly lit tent. The overall look of the tent was simple, with red and purple designs decorating the roof and base of the tent. To his left was a short table at shoulder height at arms reach. On it were all sorts of elixirs, medicines, and salves strewn across its surface. They varied in color and size most looking unused. Upon further inspection, however, he could see one or two that were recently emptied.

He reached over and picked one of the bottles up and carefully wafted its scent towards his nose. He immediately gagged and dropped the bottle on the grass floor beneath him, holding his nose and making coughing and hacking noises.

That... was foul, he thought as he shook he head.

Then, he turned his attention to the other bottle and, with slight hesitation, removed it from its resting place. Warily, he eyed the bottle before attempting another brief sniff. To his surprise the smell that filled his nose was both pleasant and calming for him. It was sweet and held the fragrance of early spring flowers in bloom. It was almost too intoxicating and he found himself lidding under its influence. With a quick jerk of his head he shook these feelings away and his vision cleared once more. Throwing the bottle to the floor he turned to his right and viewed another table just as tall as the first. On this one lay many bloodied bandages along with a set of calipers and a bowl of water. Only then did he think to check his own physical being. He was layered head to toe in thick medical bandages tied tightly and neatly around his body. After observing the careful wrapping, he nodded to himself in approval at the skilled work.

I'll have to thank whoever tied these bandages... I can barely move in them, he thought with a smirk. That's when something else on the table caught his eye. A small red bowl was also sitting on the table with smoke slowly billowing from its mouth. He reached over and picked up the bowl. After only briefing inhaling its scent he immediately recognized the fragrance from his bout with hallucinations. Also, something in the back of his mind told him he had smelled this before.

He pondered out loud, "Is this...?"

"Tibetan healing incense." said a soft feminine voice.

He immediately turned toward the direction of the voice and couldn't help but stare at the figure standing before him. She was a clouded leopard, wearing a maroon silk training vest with a brown cloth bracer hugging snugly around her very feminine frame. Around her waist was a red sash that wrapped around both her vest and her brown bottoms, and on her paws were a pair of matching brown gloves. In her paws were what looked like fresh bandages.

Though he thought his eyes would then begin to roam the enticing curves of her body (as he would shamelessly admit), he was surprised that what held him the most was her face. The spots along her delicate facial features seemed to form a natural mask luring him to gaze helplessly into her eyes. Those kind indigo eyes that, even now, seemed to calm and relax him with their concerned gaze.

The leopard was perfectly aware of the current attention she was getting from his eyes though and she politely cleared her throat to gain her guest's attention. Upon realizing that he was staring, very rudely, the male in front of her bowed his head low and humbly.

"Forgive me. I did not intend to offend you by staring. It's just I was immensely curious to know who my current benefactors were." said the male feeling slightly warm under the fur at his own stupidity.

"I wouldn't worry too much," she said with a kind smile as she placed her bundle on the table to his right, "you are not nearly as much trouble now as you were yesterday evening."

She continued to move around the tent, picking up various items that either lay scattered on the floor or in an unorganized mess on the tables next to him. She picked up the vial that he had thrown to the ground earlier when he had smelled it and noticed the man grimacing at the sight of it. "I see you reacquainted yourself with our vial of Sweet Wormwood extract." she giggled.

"Is that what that smell was? Blegh... it was absolutely vile, I thought it was poison!" he exclaimed covering his maw and leaning away as if it the smell might harm him.

She laughed again, "Almost. Though its smell is... unpleasant it is extremely useful for slowing down bleeding and lowering a fever when ingested. Which you needed to have both taken care of." With that she placed the vial on the table with a group of other empty bottles. "You are very lucky. It is hard to come by, but thankfully our line of work does not often require us to use it. Emergencies only, like a man found bleeding in the middle of the forrest." With that, her amused expression turned to one of concern as she turned and began to review his current condition.

He scratched his arm uncomfortably in her gaze, "I am sorry for causing you so much trouble. If there is anything I can do to-" he began, but was soon cut off when the leopard raised her paw in his direction silencing him gently.

She lowered her paw and smiled, "Your generosity is appreciated, but we don't need compensation for helping those in need." At this the man felt genuine and pure thankfulness toward the generous female next to him. It was not often that he received aid so willingly and without pay from strangers. In fact, he rarely received aid at all since people gave him such a wide berth. And for good reason.

His eyes then drifted back to the used bandages on the right paw table. She followed his gaze and understood the question he was forming in his mind. "You were unconscious when we found you." she said catching, his attention once more as she began to revisit what happened. "We were not even sure if you were alive at all. There was... so much blood... I- we didn't know if you would survive the night." Her eyes seemed distant as her voice began to trail off. The man nodded to himself; it must have been a traumatic experience for a young lady such as her.

She shook her head to clear her mind of the images and continued, "Your wounds were pretty bad, so we brought you here and tried our best to revive you. I guess we did a little too well a job as you tried to claw apart that mat you are lying on." she stated humorously gesturing with her head towards his position. That's when he looked down and saw that the mat was indeed torn to shreds underneath him. He chuckled nervously scratching the back of his head mouthing "sorry", but the female leopard only remained smiling at his boyish embarrassment.

"That was when we had to use the incense on you, in order to calm you down and put you back under." she said with simple finality, "You have been out ever since. This is the first time I have heard you say anything coherent. Though whether I could call this an intelligent conversation is still to be seen." she said further teasing her mummified guest. At this the male gave a full hearty laugh before immediately wincing and grabbing his side.

"Oooo hehe... be careful ," he winced grinning with gritted teeth "you're such a crack up that I'm about to...errrrr bust a gut."

The female leopard smiled warmly and rolled her eyes. "Here." She reached over and drew a piece of something from another bottle, and then offering it to him, "Chew this, it's willow bark. It will help numb the pain. At least for a while... until then, if you could avoid hurting yourself further the ladies and I would really appreciate." Raising her eyebrow and forming an expression that oozed sarcasm. "You were not an easy patient to handle."

The man smiled at the feline as he placed the slightly minty piece of wood in his maw, I think I am going to like this girl. Then his eyebrows raised as another question formed in his mind, "Soooo you have been taking care of me this whole time and I still don't know where I am or who you are." He frowned slightly as he chewed and looked at the amused feline. "I guess I really suck at introductions huh?"

"Yeah kinda." She stated humorously, "To answer your questions though we are currently located 30 li* north of the most southern part of the Yangtze River, and in answer to your second question..."

She offered him her paw, but before the male accepted it he paused and checked under the sheets he was under. He sighed with relief at the realization that he was indeed wearing pants and gladly accepted her friendly paw. She helped heave him onto his hind legs, gently supporting a good portion of his weight so he wouldn't strain his wounds, and they made their way to the tent entrance. She grabbed hold of the tent flap with her other paw and flung it to the side, blinding the male with the intense light of the sun. As his vision adjusted to the intense rays he squinted and shook his head in disbelief. He thought that his eyes were playing tricks on him, but when his vision cleared he saw what looked to be an army of female leopards curiously gawking at him and his companion.

The feline next to him smiled, "We are the Ladies of the Shade, and we welcome you to our home."

The compound they were in was enormous. Everywhere around him were tents similar to the one he had recently occupied. Going in and out of them were an innumerable amount of females, mostly clouded leopards. The prospect of so many females living alone in one place was... daunting. If that weren't enough, the recently sharpened log barriers around the encampment and the sheer number of unpacked supply crates being unloaded into tents suggested they had not been there long.

At these thoughts he turned his attention back to his hostess. She had left his side not long ago and allowed him to freely roam around the encampment under the careful watch and... playful ogling of her comrades. He watched in contained admiration as she went from tent to tent helping her fellow ladies in whatever tasks they were undertaking. Occasionally she would catch him staring and he would quickly avert his gaze elsewhere, causing the leopardess to smirk before returning her attention back to the task at hand.

As he continued to tour the village sized camp, he marveled at the spectacle before him. Here was a town full of women, doing odd jobs and labor that were traditionally only reserved for men. Chopping wood, hauling lumber, woodwork, smithing, and even trading within the village were all handled by these extraordinary women.

He was still busy watching the carnival of activity around him when his arms were gently seized and linked in the hold of two cooing twin leopards with matching plain eggplant colored dancing vests.

"Uhh hehe... hello there." he chuckled nervously heat rising to his cheeks. The two girls giggled at his bashful reaction to their less than subtle advance.

The one on his left tugged his arm leading him toward a large tent. "You can't expect to get the full tour, walking all by yourself do you?" she said, her purple eyes laughing as his demeanor turned from one of embarrassment to one of uncertainty. The sister on his right did her best to maintain a giggle at his reaction.

"Here let us be your... 'guides'." said the one on the right, smiling mischievously into his ocean green eyes, "This will be fun."

Oh no... he gulped as they brought him closer to the tent. Soon the one on his left detached herself from his arm and opened the flaps to the dark interior of the tent, while the one on his right began to push him towards the opening. He prepared himself for the worst.

But any sort of mental preparation could not prepare him for what he saw inside.

Though his eyes were once again adjusting to the darkness of the new tent, the familiar thwack of wooden practice weapons immediately caught his attention. However, they weren't wooden swords as he expected. They were in fact variously colored parasols being used as weapons. Everywhere inside, ladies were engaged in competitive sparring with the colorful sun protectant gear. While this particular weapon choice seemed... rather ineffective, continued observation proved him very incorrect in this assumption. While not very fatal, his trained eyes could see the impact and precision with each blow made. Also, the diversity of the fighting styles was immensely impressive.

One fight showed off a very skilled lynx using dual short parasols while taking on two other leopard combatants. She began her assault by lashing out toward her first opponent. As the umbrella came within striking distance, her foe leaned backwards to avoid the blow. However, once she had opened herself up, the lynx then swept low with her foot causing the unbalanced feline to fall to the mat. Sensing an opening the other leopard charged in to attack from the crouched lynx's rear flank. Much to her dismay, the lynx pointed her umbrella towards the leopard opening it up and instantly blocking the strike while impairing the leopards field of view. Once blocked, the lynx used this opportunity to tuck into a backward roll and plant a firm double kick to her opponents unguarded torso. Unprepared for the attack, the second leopardess was launched into the air and back onto the mat.

While this match continued on, he took in the other variations of fighting. Concealed projectiles, hidden blades, stun gas; These ladies were well armed, and judging from their combat skills well trained.

At this point the twins had reestablished their hold on hims arms and continued to drag him to another section of the tent. As they opened the flaps to the portion of the huge shelter he was once again left dumbstruck. Where combat and martial skills were practiced before, here was something much more elegant.

They were dancing, and they were not amateurs either. Even here their parasols were utilized in the creation of this art. He gawked as the turns, leaps, and bounds of the dancers in combination with the skilled use of the umbrellas mesmerized him. It was a beautiful performance that exemplified the lightness and grace of their style. He could not remember seeing anything so beautiful in a long time.

Soon the music slowed and the dancing came to its dreamy conclusion with all ladies kneeling on the floor with open parasols covering their delicate forms. When it was over, the male couldn't help himself but applaud wildly causing the faces of many a woman to turn surprised in his direction. Seeing he was the only one clapping he awkwardly stopped scratching the back of his head.

"Hehehe... hope I didn't interrupt anything... at all." he said completely embarrassed. All the ladies in the room giggled lightly, and the twins looked at each other and smirked knowingly.

"There is nothing you need to feel shy about." said the first twin sweetly teasing the fur on his chest with her claw.

"Yeah. It's just that we haven't had the company of a new male in months." said the other twin while rubbing his bandaged arm gently making a playful pouty face.

The male began to feel uncomfortable once more as the ministrations of the felines only continued. "And uh... why is that?", he asked.

"Because we are the only all female nomadic dance troupe in all of China." A familiar voice stated behind him.

He turned and once again and found himself staring into the bright indigo orbs of his hostess. Her hands were on her hips, her eyes furrowing with annoyance at the twins whose demeanors had changed to a mutual look of shame.

"So Hua," began the hostess, crossing her arms over her chest raising an eyebrow. "is this what you and Liu call, 'warming up before practice'?" At this Hua and Liu both smiled nervously, rubbing their forearms under her uncomfortable gaze.

Hua opened her mouth first, "He just looked a little lost, soooo sis and I decided to help him find his way around."

"Yeah, please don't be mad Song. Besides when was the last time you let us have any fun?" Liu exclaimed and was joined by Hua, both pouting innocently at their friend.

At this she rolled her eyes in disbelief. She opened her mouth to reprimand the two of them, but stopped and tapped her chin in thought. The twins eyed this with the hope that they would avoid punishment.

"You know what? You girls may have a point." At this the twins purple eyes lit up and they beamed at their leader.

Song's contemplative expression shifted into a sly smile, causing the twins and even their guest to shiver in response. "And what could be more fun than helping Lao Shan maintain the armory for the next week?"

The twins ears instantly dropped down in disappointment "Song! You can't be serious?" cried out Hua.

Liu eagerly nodded in agreement, "Yeah, working with old man Lao... for a WEEK!" Her eyes pleaded with Song to reconsider.

"You should both be happy." Song said with a bemused expression on her muzzle. "It's not often that Lao gets a visit from his two best proteges. I thought you liked working on our weapons?" At this she received a defiant glare from the two now huffy leopards.

"Well it's that or you can have watch duty with Yan for the next few nights. I'm sure he'd love the company." At this the twins stiffened fur bristling on end.

"N-n-no that's okay we have missed Uncle Shan anyway, right sis?" said Liu waving her hands in front of her defensively.

"Of course. Later Song!" They quickly fled the dancing section of the tent and out into the encampment leaving a victoriously smiling Song and a completely confused guest behind.

The man looked to his host with puzzlement written all over his face, Song chuckled and smiled after the two leopardesses. "Those two are the twins Hua and Liu. While they may be a bit... eccentric when dealing with visitors, they are invaluable to our family and are the best fighters we have besides Weapon Master Lao Shan and me."

His eyes widened at this revelation and he looked at the amused feline with incredulity. "Who are you ladies exactly?"

Song just smiled warmly at her perplexed guest, eying him up and down. She placed her hands on her hips and nodded towards the exit. "Let's get you changed first. Gods know it only attracts unwanted attention, you walking around shirtless and all." The man blushed at this causing her to giggle, "Then I will tell you all about us."

An hour had passed since his unexpected venture with the twins, and he and Song were now walking together through the camp once more. In that time he had been treated to dinner and even fitted with a new outfit courtesy of several of the Ladies' seamstresses, and he was still marveling at their workmanship. His top was a dark blue v-necked vest with silver embroidery on the edges of the sleeves and neck opening which exposed a good portion of his still bandaged chest. On the back was a pattern of silver flames rising from his lower back and parting around a silver yin yang symbol in the center of his upper back. His new silk trousers were pitch black with a white sash going around his waist. He looked sharp, and he knew it.

Song noticed how he was admiring the work of her girls and smiled in satisfaction. She was still unsure at this point who this man was, but she found his childish fascination and boyish demeanor very charming in their own right. She frowned slightly as she then remembered a certain friend whom she hadn't seen for at least a year since they last crossed paths.

He reminds me so much of him. I wonder how he is doing right now?, she thought to herself.

Just as she began to delve into memory lane, her concentration was broken when the male next to her began speaking. "So let me get this straight. This entire camp is a nomadic troupe of dancing warrior felines who used to be a deceptive clan of thieving bandits. But now you have become their new leader, after ousting your corrupt predecessor, and you all make a living by traveling around and performing all over China?"

Song laughed at little at the sound of his still unbelieving tone of voice. "For the most part. We also act as a haven for women on the run where we either help them get back on their feet or invite them to join our little family." The man nodded, astounded that such a noble group of women existed in China.

Then he smirked and watched as a group of felines argued and made dinner for themselves around a fire. "So do you often pick up strange men lying unconscious in the forest? Or is it that I am just that interesting?" he suddenly felt extremely dumb for asking that, and hoped he hadn't offended his kind host in any way.

She paused in front of him causing him to stop and look on with slight concern. That was until she turned her head nonchalantly in his direction, her bright eyes shining in the camp fire light once again hypnotizing him in place.

She smirked, "Only if they seem like they can pull their own weight."

"Well. I'm glad I seem worth the trouble to you." He said smiling broadly at the enchanting female glowing in the fire light before him. Song turned away quickly becoming slightly flustered.

Oh smooth move idiot, he thought as he shook his head in disbelief of his own audacity.

He quickly tried to make up for his mistake and moved toward her slightly in response before the sound of her soft controlled voice stopped him. "You have been no trouble at all, and we were happy to help."

Her back was still to him, but he could swear she was trembling slightly. Before he could confirm this she breathed in deep and sighed heavily turning once more with renewed confidence in his direction gesturing his way. "Come on. I have someone I want you to meet."

He nodded and followed her through the small city of an encampment. At first he thought they were going back to the large training tent they were in earlier. They passed it however, and moved on to a much smaller dome of canvas further towards the edge of camp. In front of the tent were two leopardesses on guard duty looking extremely bored. When they approached the tent they jumped back to attention only to have Song smile at them signaling that they could relax once more. They opened the flaps to allow Song and her guest entry.

Once inside, Song gestured for him to follow her further in. As soon as he entered he immediately noticed the twins hard at work inspecting weapons and tinkering with the internal mechanisms which made the fascinating contraptions work. Upon seeing him enter their faces lit up with excitement and they jumped to their feet in order to begin where they left off earlier. That was until the tall statue behind them thundered in disapproval.

"What are you two sirens doing?" They immediately froze their advance towards Song and their guest and quickly turned around and faced what the male had originally mistook to be a sculpture. The figure stood towering in front of the twins, standing at least four chi* above them and probably two above himself and Song. He was a grey water buffalo, and judging by his wrinkles and long white beard well into his life. His face was hardened and weatherd with age and experience, and was only matched by his long horns curving out horizontally from his skull. He wore a simple tan silk robe, and held a beautiful ornate wooden cane in his left hoof carved into the shape of a dragon crawling up the shaft of the staff resting its head under his grasp.

The old buffalo then turned his stern gaze towards the newcomer, and his expression changed from annoyance to stoic interest as he analyzed the male in front of him. The guest couldn't help, but feel uncomfortable under the intimidating gaze of the old buffalo, and shuffled his feet slightly out of habit. What worried him the most was that he didn't seem offended by his presence, rather he seemed familiar with it.

Once his old yellow orbs were satisfied they had observed all they needed, he turned his attention to Song giving a grunt and nod in her direction. "Mistress Song." he grunted.

"Uncle Shan how many times do I have to tell you to just call me Song." she said as she smiled and bowed in respect toward the aged bison.

He grunted raising his staff in her direction. "As head of the Ladies of the Shade you must realize your responsibilities as leader Song. Otherwise..." he stated turning two the still attentive and nervous twin leopards "how can you maintain control over these... children."

Hua huffed in annoyance, but was quickly silenced when Lao's gaze hardened on her once more making her seem at that moment even smaller than before. Lao sighed in annoyance picking up a piece of equipment and observing it thoroughly before nodding and placing it on the floor with a grunt.

He turned to the twins once more, "Hua. Liu. Your work today has been... satisfactory. You are dismissed for the rest of the night. I expect you here tomorrow at dawn's first light." With that the twins sighed wearily and bowed to their mentor before leaving the tent to recuperate for the night.

When the girls had left, Song tried in vain to withhold a small affectionate giggle at the familiar actions of her mentor causing the old buffalo's mouth to curve slightly upward at her. It soon fell back into his trademark frown as he sat back down in his bamboo chair. Song sat in a lotus position on the mat in front of the aged bison, briefly being joined by her guest seconds later.

Lao took a pipe from his robe pocket and lit it sighing, "Song I cannot emphasize enough the importance of how you discipline the girls here. They are skilled and have the necessary knowledge I will confess that much, but do they have the discipline and fortitude to follow your orders when it is necessary?"

Song gazed straight into the calculating eyes of her mentor, "They will know how to react when the time comes uncle." She stated with confidence, then she smiled warmly. "Until that time, though, what's the harm in them being able to be girls once in a while instead of warriors."

Lao let out a low frustrated sigh, "I know you wish them happiness Song, that alone makes you a better leader than Su ever was. I just want you to be safe as well. Do you understand?"

"Yes uncle." she stated, a small smile tugging at her lips.

Lao took a puff from his pipe and once again concentrated on his other guest, causing the male to shift uneasily in his seat. He exhaled the smoke from his lungs and leaned back in his chair. "So... when did you start taking potential suitors into our family Song?"

At this the man stiffened, the question putting him into a fit of awkward coughs. Song had a similar reaction, first going stiff and then averting her eyes from her companion folding her ears back in embarrassment and slight frustration.

"Uncle!" she hissed, "He is a visitor here. We found him wounded in the forest and brought him back here to heal." she felt a slight warmth rising to her cheeks.

Lao Shan snorted in his reclined position and shrugged, "Forgive my preconceptions Song." he stated with alack of any apologetic tone in his voice. "It's just the only male I ever see in this village is my son Yan, and he is out on guard duty most of the week."

Once more he leaned forward in his chair, causing the old bamboo to creak under his immense size. He made eye contact with the male in front of him and held it for some time.

"So tell me young man," he began making sure he had the boy's undivided attention. "What brings a 'Child of Sheva' to our little corner of China?"

What did he say?, thought the male as his surprised and frantic ocean green eyes avoided the amused golden orbs of the great bison. When he finally had control of his emotions, his face hardened slightly and he gazed intensely into the eyes of the elder mammal.

Song could only look on in utter confusion at what had just transpired between Lao and her guest. She watched with a mixture of fascination and apprehension as the two males locked eyes for what seemed like hours.

She finally found her voice again, "Uncle Shan. What do you mean 'Child of Sheva'?"

The Buffalo's stern gaze softened slightly as he looked at his confused god-child. Briefly he returned his gaze to the male only to see him staring at the ground with a somber expression engraved on his muzzle. He heaved another heavy sigh and took another puff of his pipe as he leaned back in his chair once more.

His eyes searched inwardly, organizing his thoughts before answering Song's question. "Many years ago, long before you were born child, I used to belong to the warriors' tribe know as the Qidan. Our clan traveled the land in search of worthy foes to test our mettle, and we eventually found ourselves on the borders of the empire. In this particular case the southern border of Tibet."

Once more the bison fancied a glance toward the male in front of him. He still maintained a stoic demeanor, but the old bison could see within the eyes of the young male an intense fire that burned within him. Lao's eyebrows rose with slight curiosity, as he could swear the stranger's ears were flattening slowly against his head. Shrugging slightly he continued his tale:

It was there we encountered a tribe of natives living in the area. When they did not show hostility toward our arrival we traded with them and they gave us supplies. That night we stayed there to rest. It was black as the void, with no stars to be shown in the night sky. I awoke to a blood curdling scream. I took hold of my axe and ran out of my tent, only to be stopped by the natives. I told them to release me under threat of death, but still they held on with an overwhelming fear in their eyes. Though the fear was not towards me, but to something out in the shadows of that hellish night. My eye could barely see in that blackness, but I could make out a form in the shadows where the natives were keeping me from. Off in the forest, I saw a creature with ears that looked like horns and fangs that could have been from a demon. Aside from those striking features what stayed my axe that night was his eyes. I was ensnared in the icy grip of those cold ruthless eyes. I thought that I had died right then, it seemed like an eternity. However, as soon as I blinked for the third time the creature vanished along with the chill in my spine.

He paused and looked toward the two mammals before him. Song was leaning forward with anticipation. She always loved these stories, he mused to himself. The male however was now looking at him with a firm gaze, though his eyes revealed nothing this time.

The water buffalo puffed once more, "They called it 'Sheva kē baccā' or 'Child of Sheva'. It was to them an evil spirit sent by their god of destruction to punish those who had done him wrong. After we left the next day, we found an empty bandit encampment. The scent of death still hung heavily in the air as we passed by, the corpses of the poor fools placed on pikes to ward off those foolish enough to investigate. Needless to say we never ventured to that territory ever again." He breathed in heavily as he finished his tale.

When he was done he took a few more puffs from his pipe as leaned back in reclined in his seat eyes distant as if he was still in that dark forest. His thoughts were soon interrupted however, as a deep chuckle emerged from the male in front of him.

The male had now burst into a hearty laugh leaving Song, and even Lao slightly confused as to the reason. When his laughter died down he wiped his eyes with his index digit.

"You don't actually believe those old myths do you, Master Lao?" said the male between fits of chuckling causing the bison to sit up more in his chair looking intently at the almost hysterical mammal.

"I do not know anything about spirits or demons boy, but those bodies were real. As were the claw marks left in their flesh. And I'll tell you, that the only other time I have seen anything like that beast, was life very evening." the weapons master stated gnawing on his pipe to calm his inner warrior fury.

The guest continued laughing to himself, "I mean, even if I were one of these 'Children' you heard of, I can assure you that I am most certainly not possessed by some blood thirsty spirit. Hunting down prey late at night just for kicks... hehehe anyone who has known me for a minute can tell you that I am far too laid back for that sort of thing."

He finally sat up straight again collecting himself, the buffalo's gaze growing ever more intense as he did so. As Song watched the spectacle she could swear she heard Lao Shan's stone pipe begin to break between his teeth.

"Besides," the man said, finally back to his normal boyish self. "I would never harm anyone who who has shown me as much kindness or care as your god-daughter has. You have my solemn oath on that." And with that he kowtowed low before the great water buffalo before him.

Song looked to her god-parent in anticipation, hoping this sudden outburst hadn't offended him. Lao stood from his chair looking taller than ever before, and walked toward the young male. Song raised her paw towards him in slight protest, but her efforts died as the grizzled old warrior approached further.

Then suddenly without warning, Lao let loose a booming laugh. It shook the whole inside of the tent and pulled a small shriek of surprise from Song. She had never heard him laugh so loud in her life, let alone... laugh at all. The buffalo clutched his great torso with his free hoof as if in pain, but still the laughter continued.

At this point the male had risen up from his kowtow and stared in fascination at the now merry bison. He couldn't help but smile himself as the large buffalo continued to bellow with laughter, and he eventually joined him leaving an extremely confused Song to watch in absolute shock.

Their laughter soon died down after what seemed like multiple minutes, and the water buffalo wiped his golden eyes of tears. "You are something else my young friend. I don't know many that would converse with me and be considered of sound mind, but you are something else to be sure. I can tell from your actions that you are a man of your word, and for that you will have the respect of many a foe. You certainly have earned some from me tonight."

The young male beamed with respect and admiration at the sagacious old warrior before him, and placed his fist firmly in his palm bow humbly before him. "Your words are most kind master, and I couldn't wish for a more formidable adversary than yourself." he said smiling.

The bison snorted and waved the elating words away, he raised an eyebrow at the male. "What is your name boy?"

The male looked up from his bow eyes shining with life, "My name is Gui, Master Lao."

Lao nodded his head slowly, "Gui, I have a knack for reading people. Don't you dare prove me wrong already by groveling before me. True men stand tall before worthy foes, and only the actions they make truly define who they are. Words are meaningless." he gripped the male by the shoulders and helped raise him to his feet , his grin showing off rows of old yellow teeth.

Lao then turned to Song, who was still in shock from the whole spectacle, "This one is... unique. You have my approval Song."

She immediately snapped back to attention having registered that last part and growled at her god-father, "Uncle! By the gods above, he is our guest here." She turned beet red under her grey spotted fur, and Gui had in turn focused his attention anywhere but her.

Once more Lao waved her words away and returned to his chair and tiredly sat down with a low thud. "All right. Now you have gone and tired and old man out. Go, and leave me to rest. These weapons do not maintain themselves, and gods know those twins are barely help as it is."

With that, Song joined the grinning male beside her by standing, and with a small smile made a motion for them to depart from the tent. As they were leaving the tent Gui was stopped with a heavy hoof on his shoulder. He turned to meet the intense gaze of the old bison once more, only this one was more dangerous and fiery than the last.

"Now listen here, boy." said the old man in a tone that gripped the young male's attention as hard as he was gripping his shoulder, "I still do not trust you, it is a luxury I rarely indulge myself in. Nor do I care if you really are a 'Child of Sheva' or not."

His grip tightened, and his face darkened around his eyes causing them to give an eerie glow. "However, if you do anything that hurts that innocent child; death, nor gods, nor demons will stop me from making the rest of your miserable life a living hell. Is that perfectly clear?"

Gui stared into the bison's eyes, the fire in them smoldering even brighter than before behind the piercing glow of his aqua irises. He smiled genuinely, "Clear as adamant."

A/N: All right, long huh? Yeah I know, and I still didn't fit in everything I wanted to. Oh well such is life. Review subscribe all that good stuff. I wanna know whatcha think! Rock on everybody.

Notes: "li"- chinese equivalent of a third of a mile

"chi"- chinese equivalent of a foot

Names: Hua- "Flower"

Liu- "Stream"

Lao Shan- "Old Mountain"

Yan- "Rock"

Gui (Gweh)- "Ghost"