Chapter Five

".. then he jumped and kicked her and she just fell over," said Mantis. His voice trailed off quietly at these last words as he stood next to an attentive and concerned Shifu. They were in Tigress' quarters and Shifu was propping her head up gently. He had already bandaged her ribs and feed her a broth of special herbs intended to speed healing. "He was so fast," Mantis continued, "We had just reached them when he hit her." Turning his face to the floor, Mantis couldn't help but adopt a face of shame. "Or maybe we just weren't fast enough." Sighing and turning his eyes to face Shifu, he bowed to his master. "Is she going to be alright?"

Shifu bathed her brow with a damp cloth and looked her over to ensure his aid had been rendered properly. With a nod to the bandages, Shifu smiled slightly and turned to look at his student. "She will be fine," Shifu said calmly, "However, with three broken ribs, she is out of commission. This foe meant to kill her with one blow. His technique is of the Posui Siwang style. They attack in ways that allow them to do the most physical damage to an enemy's body by using gravity and an opponent's force against them. It is a style revered by assassins and thieves." He stood from the stool on which he sat and paced about Tigress' room, for the moment, lost in thought. As Mantis was about to break the silence, Shifu spoke again. "Get the others together in the hall of warriors, Mantis. We will need to hurry if we are to save Mr. Ping and stop this threat." Mantis bowed quietly and left to rally the others. Sitting back down next to Tigress, he took her paw in his and looked her over one last time. She was still asleep from the broth, but she no longer looked in terrible pain. She looked relaxed, like the many times he had seen her fast asleep after a long day of training. He drifted off for a moment, thinking of the days when she was younger and the snoring she could kick up after a ten mile run through the mountains. Shifu came back to the room slowly and his face twisted with a trace of anger. He couldn't believe it; assassins in the Valley of Peace? This new danger presented serious problems, and Shifu was not one to underestimate an enemy. Giving one last glance to Tigress, he stepped out of the room and closed the door behind him before walking swiftly to the Hall of Warriors.

When he arrived through the door to the left pawed side of the hall, he called out Po and the others to fall in and prepare for mission orders. They scrambled in front of the sacred Pool of Tears; a twenty paces wide shallow reflecting pool for meditation and in its reflection on the palace ceiling was the statue of an ancient Chinese dragon. Tucked within the dragon's powerful jaws and balanced perfectly, sat the legendary Dragon Scroll. The scroll that had once been by given to Po, who, once unlocking it's secret, used the knowledge he gained from it to defeat Tai-Lung and save the valley. Funny, thought Shifu, that this panda was his most prodigal student. Suddenly, he had a feeling of longing for the wisdom of Oogway. A tortoise and founder of the Jade Palace and Kung Fu itself, his master had gone on to the next world just a few short years ago, and Shifu missed him greatly.

He walked between the columns of pure forest-green, large carved jade dragons twisting down them, and came into view of his students. Standing before them, his back to the pool, he addressed them with a commanding tone.

"Viper. Crane. I want you two to head south out of the village to the temple of Sheng Shou Lei. There you will find a healer by the name of Master Qiu Yijing. Ask that he come here at once and tell him of Tigress' condition. Now, go! We don't have much time. "

"Yes, master," Crane replied as both he and Viper bowed. "We will be back with his as fast as we can." Turning to Viper, he smiled. "Need a lift?"

"Of course," said Viper, smiling back. "You are such a gentlebird!" At that, she leapt up to his neck and loosely coiled around it. Taking a few paces for speed, Crane the hopped into the air and they were winging south.

"Mantis, Monkey and Po, I want you to head down and tell the villagers to pack everything that they can carry. Tell them that a great evil now travels our streets, one that cloaks itself in shadow and destroys without mercy. Get them all to safety here at the palace. As for the moment, we are evacuating the village."


Qiu Yijang was a fox. His crimson and white fur showing over his slender yet muscular frame, he stood no more the four feet tall, but had a look that told Crane and Viper he could hold his own in a fight. Donned in a white daoist priest robe, and simple gold wire-framed spectacles, he looked no more than the age of seventeen or so. What stood out most, they noted, was that upon meeting him, they both somehow took right to him. It was as if he was a beacon for the convalescence of harmony itself. Truly, he was a master of monks, and right now, he had guests.

The three sat in a room of simple belongings. The statue of a dragon that stood taller than Po, was the the front of the large area, and to each side of it, a row of cots. Before the dragon was an altar of stone with various herbs in jars with incense burning in coils above. Over in the south corner of the room was a long table used by the monks for dining, which is where the three were talking.

"So, Master Shifu requires my aid? How very, prophesied." Master Qiu smiled warmly at the pair. "I suppose we shouldn't delay further. Are you going to give this pretty little gal a ride back or shall I fly her?" Crane turned his head at an odd angle and raised a brow at the fox.

"Thanks… thank you, Master." Qiu strolled over to the alter and, producing a cloth sack from beneath his robe, began stuffing some jarred herbs into it. "But," Crane continued, "how did you know that Master Shifu would send us, and what did you mean by that, "You can fly" thing?"

The fox beamed at them, grinning from ear to ear. As he did so, he began to lift slowly off the ground. His body seemed weightless, completely defying gravity. Further up he floated until finally the tips of his ears touched the ceiling. "Well, this is just a mind over matter issue," he said cheerfully to them. "As to how I knew of your arrival? That is an issue of mind over universe, but, such is the way of a monk!"


Po was standing at the entrance to the noodle shop, watching bunnies and pigs, sheep and geese, all running to and fro as they scattered to their homes to collect what they could. For the last hour or so, the Dragon Warrior had sorted, carried and stored, and was about ready to make his fifth trip to the palace. Some bunny children were sitting against one of the village's clay brick walls just down the street and it seemed that two of them were attempting to comfort the third. By the look of her, the third child seemed terribly upset. Never one to shy away from helping, Po wandered over to them and knelt down beside her.

"Hey, what's the matter, kiddo?" Po brushed her cheeks gently with his paw to dry her eyes and gave her his biggest smile. "What has you so bluuuuee?" He put his paws to his own cheeks and pulled them down into a silly face as he finished his question. For a moment, it seemed as though Po's attempt to cheer her up had worked, but her smile faded halfway to showing and she continued to shed tears. "I'm sorry, kid." he said "What can I do to help?"

As she stood there sniffling, she tried to catch her breath but still her reply came in broken clips. "I'm… so… sorry, Po. They said… they would hurt… mommy if… I didn't… wait here at… this… wall. I just… want… mommy.." She continued to cry, now harder than before and slumped to a sitting position, the two slightly older boys now hugging her tightly. Po stood and, adopting a blank expression. Why, he wondered as he turned slowly in place, would the leopard and his gang make such a crazy demand? The answer came quickly, if the form of an arrow biting deeply into the backside of Po's bicep. Spinning from force and pain, Po bellowed and fell face down, to the hard stone. Ripping the arrow from his arm, he rolled to his back and attempted to kick up. His attacker was already on him, however. Raising his paws quickly, He grabbed the leopard by the wrists and forced with all his strength against the assassin's downward thrust with a long, thin dagger. The look of hunger, of a killer was in the leopard's burning, golden eyes. With gleaming fangs bared, assassin laughed madly as he tried to muster enough strength to drive the dagger into the panda's throat. The blade sank lower and Po clenched his jaw and grunted, attempting to shift his opponent. The pain in his arm was searing as he struggled. Fear began to grip the Dragon Warrior as he felt the blade's tip brushing his neck fur.

"Shhh…," hissed the snow leopard, "be silent, panda. Sleep forevermore!"