Chapter 01: A Great Loss

"Hey, Tigress! Don't you think this new 'Stone of Revival' is pretty awesome, with its pretty shinning black color filled with loads of awesomeness?!" whispered the panda.

"It will be awesome only if you let it stay where it is right now. Master Shifu don't want you to touch it." said mildly Tigress. It was all just to stop the panda from ruining anything around.

"You know? Legend says that this stone was made from the ashes of a great, undefeatable warrior, and touching this stone revives the dead again, but only for once! Oh, I wanna touch it so bad!" and the panda awkwardly touched that stone before Tigress could take any action. Nothing happened of course! "It isn't working! Hey, let's check if it can really do that or not!" The panda was so excited for new historical items were brought to the Jade Palace, kept in the Hall of Heroes.

"Po, you are not dead, so it won't work on you."

"I know, I know! So, how about you kill me somehow and touch the stone! I'll then come back to life again!"

"That's stupid, Po. Let's go back." and the mild Tigress walked away. Po was actually the one to drag her in the night just to show her those new items for he wanted to share his excitement with someone else too, but Tigress seemed not interested a bit.

Dragging her again to another item, Po excitedly told her, "Not now! You see, here is the Sapphire necklace that can break every curse! Isn't that really awesome?!"

Rolling her eyes with a sigh of boredom, Tigress said, "I'm getting sleepy, Po."

"Ugh! C'mon, Tigress!" but after watching her back, Po had to give up. Both then went, going to the barracks.

A few weeks later, just as usual, the Five, along with the Dragon Warrior, were training in the training hall that Shifu appeared from the door. After judging them for a while, he called at once, "Tigress! Po! Come over here!" The male from the wooden dummy, and the female deflecting the burning arrows with her arms, left their places, bowing on respect, "Yes, Master?" The rest continued their training.

"I have a task to give you both. It's about bringing the stone that was lost."

Po continued, "You mean the Revival Stone! It got lost?! But how?!"

Someone, I don't know who, but someone stole it the previous night. According to Zeng, the Hyena's clan was the one to steal that stone and some other objects as well."

For the lousy panda did not want to go, he was trying to find excuses. "Master, is it really that important to… you know… to bring that stuff back?"

"Po, you might take it lightly but you have no idea what they have taken. That stone has the power to bring the dead back to life. The Hyena clan is said to be the wittiest clan ever. If you don't bring that stone in time, the results can be drastic!"

The responsible Tigress said at once, "Master, give us the map to the location. We will bring that stone back."

"Okay," agreed the red panda "but be careful. The Hyenas will show you no mercy. Just a moment of distraction and… You know what I mean." Both nodded at once for they knew the nature of how Hyenas actually were. Shifu too knew more than both of them together.

Soon, the red panda, bringing the two to the scroll's room, handed over to them the map of where lived the Hyena's clan. After some preparations, both started their journey. The journey, even though the mission was a very tough one where there were chances of death on every step, was filled with jokes, pranks, tongue twisters, and also some serious gossip and secret stuff sharing where Po played a huge role. Mostly, Tigress would listen but at times, she would smile, or become sad, along with Po.

Running, walking, climbing, and hiking, going through green lands and mountains, they finally reached where they had to; the Hyena's clan. The place was covered with pointed grass on the harsh ground, lined with stone walls making a square where lived every Hyena in its own small room. The place was vast, and was creeping with the death-dealers.

Both the tigress and the panda were peeking at their domain, planning on whatever they could to bring the stone back that they were caught before the two could make a move. Those were some shape-faced, fierce-natured hyenas that brought them right into their domain. Having their limbs chained together, Po and Tigress were brought right in front of the ruler of the place who had his body turned around to the map of China, opposite to the two.

"Master," reported one hyena, "we have intruders. The two were watching us, but we caught them."

"The Dragon Warrior!" A deep, throaty sound came from that figure. Both the panda and the tigress were curious to see the face of the one covered in pitch-black. From his looks, he seemed pretty muscular and powerful. He continued, "Messing in everyone's affairs. You haven't changed a bit! What a consistency!"

"Who are you?!" coldly asked the dragon warrior, "And what do you want?!"

"Who am I, and what do I want?" He turned around, and his looks surprised the two a little. He did not seem any hyena, but someone else. The whole body covered in pitch-black, except the eyes that were glowing golden, filled with pride in them.

That black figure continued, "You can call me your darkest nightmare, the dark soul, or the dead from the past and I am here for revenge!"

"Revenge?" asked Tigress "From whom?"

"Isn't it obvious? Revenge from those who destroyed my life! The so-called Dragon Warrior, and Shifu!"

Both the panda and the tigress were really surprised!

"Master Shifu!" murmured the panda. "I know every villain is bent on killing me but why him?"

"You have got a pretty bad habit of interfering in other's business. For the time being, I will snatch something closer to you and Shifu!"

"Closer to me?" asked Po "Well, closer to me are dumplings, noodles, bean buns, and..." but before the panda could complete his sentence, the warrior in black grabbed Tigress.

The panda cried, "Not her! You coward! Fight me!" while the pitch-black giggled devilishly.

"Leave me, you...!" Poor Tigress could do nothing for their bodies were so complexly chained that they could barely move. All she could do was warn him with her roars, but that did not work for her. Meanwhile, the panda too was fighting his chains, warning the one.

At once, the black, muscular figure, showing Tigress to Po while holding her from behind her neck, pulled back his claws. The fierce claw reflected in Po's jaded eyes as they grew wider. Also, Tigress turned around her head, and when she saw that, she suddenly turned, giving a final look to his best friend, a look filled with 'the last goodbye', and then she cried, "Get out from here, Po!" while Po shouting, "NOOOO!" and then the fierce, razor-sharp claw pierced right through her heart!

The panda could do nothing but watch the whole scene happening in front of him. He was shocked! Something that he never ever imagined happened right before his eyes!

Her eyes faded away and turned white, hazy, and the final tear left her eye, trickling down her cheek. The soul had now left the body, leaving the panda in complete paralysis! The jaded eyes turned wet, and tears started shedding from those eyes. He was the dragon warrior and yet he couldn't even do a thing to save his best friend. He had turned so poor!

The pitch-black soul threw the dead body, covered with blood, in front of the panda, and the panda then tried to move but fell suddenly on the floor. Crawling on the ground, he made it to the dead body.

Meanwhile, watching his actions and his face, the dark warrior grinned.

"Tigress... Tigress... Wake up. Wake up!" In his broken voice, the panda was trying to wake up his friend but nothing could happen for it was too late!

Bowing down to him, the cruel, dark soul mumbled, "You will die the same death, but not now. It will be a betrayal. You had finished this story with a happy ending, but now, it has started with a sad beginning." and then got up, adding, "The beginning of the end is beginning, panda! Be ready for that." and then at once, delivered a blow so sharp right in the face that turned the panda unconscious! Tigress was dead! Po was knocked out! And the Dark Warrior started the preparations for the next move!