This chapter contains some flashbacks, which are denoted by italics. It's the first time I've ever done this, so let me know what you think.

Chapter 7: Memories

It had been a full week since they failed to stop the Lang Qun, and Masters Ox and Croc were feeling more and more apprehensive by the minute.

They knew that the wolves had to be in the process of recreating Lord Shen's deadly weapons by now. They probably had several of them made already and who knew how many more they would produce. By the time they decided to attack, their armada could be even bigger than Shen's. And the worst part was, there wasn't a damn thing they could do about it.

They had already sent another message to the Jade Palace, only to be told that they were still busy with their own missions. They promised to come help as soon as they were done, but knowing Hui, it would already be too late by then.

They also made an attempt to request help from the Imperial Army, but that ended in failure as well. Their response was that the Lang Qun "did not yet pose a serious threat" and "there is no evidence that they can reproduce Shen's weapons." That's what they said anyway. The masters suspected that, in actuality, they simply didn't care about Gongmen City anymore. The city's reputation had suffered greatly after Shen's attack and there were some who would rather see it shrivel up and die than send any kind of aid.

They even tried to get help from the Soothsayer again, but she could provide no more insight. The only thing her vision showed this time was the image of the city burning, which wasn't exactly reassuring. Multiple times they considered evacuating the city altogether, but continued to decide against it. They weren't even sure why. Perhaps they feared the Lang Qun would attack sooner if that announcement was made, or perhaps they didn't want to make their already-impoverished citizens leave their homes, or perhaps they were just being cowards.

In any case, all they could do now was continue on their daily routine and wait for their doom to come.

They were back in the middle of another sparring session, futile as it was. No amount of training was going to be enough for them to stop the Lang Qun by themselves, especially not with those weapons in their possession. But still, they trained. At least it was something productive.

It was in desperate times like this that they remembered the better days...

Ox and Croc faced each other on that same sparring platform many years ago, back when the shadow of the Tower of Sacred Flame still loomed over them.

Back then, their techniques were far less refined, having been street fighters for most of their lives. They had to constantly remind themselves to keep their kung fu teachings in mind as they traded blows and to fight with honor. Master Thundering Rhino stood watching them, adorned in his new master's robes and holding a giant cloud hammer that he hadn't yet fully mastered. He was trying his best to look like the wise mentor, but was clearly uncomfortable in that role. They couldn't blame him. It had only been a few days since he had become their master.

At first, they were all on equal standing under Grandmaster Oogway, who took them on as students after their victory over the infamous Wu Sisters. He took them here to Gongmen City to continue their training, in the hopes of being able to look after the city in place of its former rulers. Eventually, Rhino proved to be the fastest learner of the three and Oogway granted him the title of master. He then left their sides and returned to the Jade Palace, leaving Rhino in charge of their training.

That pressure was really starting to get to him, something that did not go unnoticed. "Rhino-er, Master Rhino?" Croc asked, reminding himself of their new relationship again. "Are you alright?" Ox had stopped himself in the middle of an attack and was now looking at him as well.

"Please...don't call me that," Rhino said, avoiding their gaze. "I'm not ready for that title yet."

"Grandmaster Oogway says otherwise," Ox argued. "You're not gonna deny his wisdom NOW are you?"

"Well, no...it's just...". Rhino fumbled for words as he looked down at his robes. "...I'm not sure I'm ready for this kind of change yet. I mean, we were just friends a few days ago and now I'm supposed to be your master."

"What, you think that just because you're our master now, you can't be our friends anymore?" Croc asked, giving a cheeky grin. "Boy, for the wisest of us all, you can sure be dumb."

Rhino looked back up, a little offended, when Ox cut in. "Yeah, no one said we're not allowed to have fun anymore. Lighten up."

"That wouldn't be very professional."

"Screw being professional. In case you haven't noticed, Oogway himself isn't exactly the most traditional master either." He went over and put a hoof on Rhino's shoulder. "How about this: you can be our strict, no-nonsense, kung fu master during the day, but once practice is over, the three of us go back to just being buddies."

Rhino gave a soft smile. "I would like that."

Croc cracked his knuckles. "Well, now that that's settled, can I go back to whupping Ox's butt?"

"In you dreams, scale-face." Ox fell back into his fighting stance.

Rhino watched his students, his friends, stare each other down, and took on a stern demeanor.

"Begin."

Croc took a punch to the jaw and was flung off of the sparring platform. As his head cleared, he looked up to see Ox throwing his arms up in triumph. "Yes! That's 161-160! I take the lead!"

Croc didn't feel the need to tell him that he had just spaced out for a bit. Let him have his victory. Whatever kept his spirits up. "I want a rematch!"

"You're on!"

Croc climbed back on the platform and readied himself again. There was no better way to forget about their impending demise than in the heat of battle.

Several li away, Kai Hui sat at his desk in the abandoned academy, in the midst of writing a letter. The place was quieter than usual as he had sent most of the Lang Qun away to their foundry in order to work on Shen's weapons, which he had recently named 'cannons'. Might as well put a name on such a masterpiece of weaponry.

The letter he was writing now contained instructions for that group, telling them what to do once the cannons were complete. He had little doubt that they could finish the cannons and carry out his instructions without supervision. He had trained them well enough.

As he continued to write, he started to realize how familiar this all seemed to him. The office had grown on him over the past several weeks, feeling more and more like home...

Hui couldn't remember how long he had been in his room today, but he didn't care.

Piles upon piles of scrolls, books, and other documents lay spread on the desk of his room, some falling onto the floor. The young, wide-eyed wolf pup ignored the mess, figuring he would get to them all eventually. Gongmen City was such a fascinating place, and there was so much to learn. He couldn't believe how much he didn't know about his own birthplace. His nose was currently buried in a book about the history of the city, a history filled with so many interesting facts that he wasn't sure his brain could hold them all. But he would certainly try.

He was halfway through the chapter about the invention of fireworks when a loud slam startled him. His mother stood in the open doorway, looking sternly at him. "Hui! What are you still doing in here? Didn't I tell you to go outside and play?"

He fiddled his fingers nervously, trying to look anywhere but at his mother. "I-I'm sorry, Mama. I was just in the middle of this really good book and-"

"No more excuses!" she snapped at him. "I didn't rent you all those historical documents so you could waste all of your free time cooped up in this room. Wolves are social animals, Hui. You need to get along with the rest of the pack."

He knew she was right. After all, one of the first things he elected to learn about was his own kind. It was unhealthy, sometimes even fatal, for a wolf to be so isolated. And yet...

Hui walked over to his window and peered outside. He could see some of his packmates playing in the street, playfully wrestling with each other. Even from here, it was obvious how unlike him these other wolves were. Their fur was unkempt, their clothes stained with dirt, and they were so aggressive too. Compared to his well-groomed fur, clean clothes, and calm temperament, it was hard for him to imagine that they were even the same species sometimes.

He felt his mother's reassuring paw on the top of his head. "I know what you're thinking, but you're not as different as you think you are. We're all wolves, Hui. We all have the instinctual drive to come together as a pack. Just keep that in mind and do your best to make some friends."

Hui was still a bit nervous, but swallowed the lump in his throat and managed a smile. "...I'll try, Mama."

She smiled back as she leaned down and kissed him on the cheek. "That's all I can ask."

Hui reluctantly slipped on his sandals, as for some reason, he was the only wolf who ever bothered with them, and headed outside.

It was about twenty minutes later that he came back in. He could still vividly remember the look on his mother's face when she saw him. He looked quite a lot like the other wolves now with his messy fur and clothes, except that he was also covered in bruises and had a very noticeable black eye. Both eyes were brimming with tears.

"You were wrong, Mama," he sniffled through a bloody nose. "I AM different. TOO different." Without another word, he retreated back to his room and slammed the door.

Kai Hui was shaken out of his memories when he felt a wetness on his paw. He looked down and saw that he had been squeezing his ink pen so tightly that it had snapped and spilled ink on his paw, and on the letter. He felt ashamed for allowing such petty memories to distract him at a time like this. Those days were over. He was the Alpha now.

He grabbed a nearby cloth and wiped most of the ink off his paw, but some of it stubbornly clung to his fur. No matter, he would be going to the bathhouse later anyway. He considered himself lucky that this building happened to have one.

Tossing the pen and paper away, he started over, not willing to let this minor frustration get to him. Wolves had a tendency to be easily-angered, yet another problem with the species that he needed to fix. The Lang Qun still had a few unfortunate habits here and there that reminded him of the savages he had known before, but overall, they were meeting his expectations nicely. Which was good, because his plan was about to move into the next stage and it would only get harder from here.

Finally finishing his letter, Hui sealed it in an envelope and passed it off to another wolf, who saluted and rushed off to deliver it to the workers at the foundry. Hui watched him leave, feeling a tinge of both anxiety and excitement wash over him.

Soon, so very soon, his dream would become a reality.