Before Tai Lung began telling his story, the 4 remaining members of the five came in to listen to what Tai Lung had to say. They all sat down in front of him, across the cell bars.
Tai Lung stared at the five, who were watching him attentively, waiting for him to tell the famous story that was going to help them understand what was happening. "It all started as you know." Tai Lung said as he watched them. "The panda killed me… or so it seemed."
Tigress glared at Tai Lung with hatred and anger after he called her friend "panda", but she held back her anger and let him continue with his story.
"After I died, well, I was lost, it was a dark place, there was no light, there was no feeling of peace, there was nothing… only a feeling of loneliness that I had never experienced before, and a weather that was cold but only sent chills through my spine, something that I cannot explain" Tai Lung continued.
"I spent about a month in this dark place, just looking for a way out, looking if there was somewhere I could go… and finally a light appeared in the distance, it was a yellowish light, and it felt warm every time I got close to it. I ran as fast as I could towards this light, hoping I wasn't going to miss it, and as I crossed this light it took me to the spirit realm."
"You? In the spirit realm, pffff!" Tigress said laughing, not believing a single word Tai Lung said.
"Are you going to let me finish or not!" Said Tai Lung looking at Tigress coldly.
"Alright!" Tigress responded, crossing her arms and tilting her head.
"When I entered the realm, I didn't see anyone, it was just me, wandering like a lost soul in a strange place. But I finally felt a peace that I hadn't felt in a long time. I stopped feeling afraid.
Also, for me, time ceased to exist, hours or seconds no longer existed, I guess only the moment I was living was real, but it felt like I wasn't aging, like time wasn't passing, there was no hurry to do anything." Said Tai Lung remembering everything.
"I felt so at peace in my solitude, with this new life… but then I found Oogway, he was sitting on an island, floating in the distance.
He looked so calm and at peace... but I felts so much rage when I saw him… I knew that he was the one who had taken away my legacy, my destiny... at that moment I felt like ripping off his head like never before, but before I could even try anything, he spoke to me, like he was able to read my mind and already knew what I was feeling."
"You talked to Oogway, that sounds… strange, why would he even want to talk to you? You wanted to kill him!" Crane said showing his confusion at the situation.
"Believe me, I thought the same." Tai Lung replied, "But Oogway is full of surprises."
The five of them looked at each other with a look of disbelief, they didn't know what to think about this, but Monkey spoke quickly.
"But what did he say to you, what happened there…"
"I still remember it like it was yesterday… or at least that's how it felt to me." Tai Lung sent his mind to that moment, it seemed like he was there, as the story was being told, he relived every second.
"Come Tai Lung, sit with me for a while, there are things we need to talk about." Oogway said in a calm voice, motioning for Tai Lung to sit next to him.
Tai Lung with a face full of rage approached slowly, but still did as Oogway asked, he sat down and just looked forward, trying to avoid his old master's look.
"I notice that you are tense, old student, relax, you are no longer in the world of the living, you should not worry here." Oogway said as he placed his hand on Tai Lung's shoulder, trying to calm him down.
"Worry?!" Said Tai Lung angrily removing the turtle's hand from his shoulder. "All my worry is thanks to you! You took away everything I dreamed of, you took away the only thing I trained for day and night! And now you ask me why I'm tense?!"
Tai Lung got into an attack stance, standing up fast and shaking the ground bellow him, you could see his eyes filling with tears of rage, but they stayed in his eyes, showing Tai Lung's fury and anger.
"You stole my dream! My only wish" said Tai Lung before launching himself at his former master with a strong attack.
Oogway just stood calmly, he raised up his arm and stood in a defense stance. After that he easily stopped his former student, grabbing Tai Lung's fist with his hand, and slowly turning it onto his side.
Tai Lung fell to his knees before his master, his head bowed and a tear fell from his face.
Oogway released his arm and slowly lifted Tai Lung's head. "Oh, my old student, you are so blinded by hatred that you are not able to see the truth that lies in front of you, let me show you."
Oogway slowly placed his hand over Tai Lung's left eye, after doing so a light began to glow in a yellowish bright color between the eye and the turtle's hand "if you want to see the truth, close your right eye and open your left, but this will cost you your eye."
Tai Lung looked doubtfully at his former master through his right eye, confused at what was happening, but without thinking for another second he closed his right eye and opened his left eye, giving in to the blinding light that was coming out from the turtle's hand.
At that moment Tai Lung saw himself in an alternate timeline, becoming the dragon warrior. Everything started wonderfully, he was loved and desired, but later, he could see himself becoming a beast. He saw how he destroyed the Jade palace, he saw millions of people being murdered by his own hand, he saw himself taking advantage of the power he was given, all in order to conquer everything, for no reason at all.
Tai Lung fearfully pulled away from Oogway's hand, his chest rose and fell rapidly, he couldn't believe what he had just seen. His eye now had a scar covering his face and he had gone blind.
Oogway took a red cloth that he had kept in his island, and slowly placed it over his old student's damaged eye, covering it so it wouldn't bother him.
As he finished wrapping it up he look directly into Tai Lung's good eye with confidence. "Maybe your destiny wasn't to become the dragon warrior… but that doesn't mean you weren't destined for something more."
After this words, Tai Lung had finally realized that what Oogway was doing all along was only to protect him from becoming someone Tai Lung himself would never have wanted.
"What should I do, master?" Tai Lung asked, standing up, looking at his master, now with a look of peace.
Oogway looked at his former student and smiled "only you can know that." Oogway pushed Tai Lung off the island and before he knew it, he was back in the world of the living.
Tai Lung slowly started coming back from his memory daydream as he was telling the story, he returned his mind to where he was, in the Jade Palace cell.
The five of them were left speechless, they didn't know what to say to him, they didn't know whether to believe him or not.
"Well, after that I came here, I came looking for answers to what I should do, to look for what I was meant to do., which i think my old home will help me find" Tai Lung said, holding in his hand the cloth that Oogway gave him to cover his eye.
Tigress looked at Tai Lung angrily and quickly got up and hit one of the bars of the cell "take your lies and your "destiny" somewhere else, you are not welcome here!"
Tigress began to walk rapidly and stiffly to the exit but before leaving the room she turned at Tai Lung "and you will never be!"
Tigress left the room angrily, Viper quickly followed her and left the room.
Those who were left alone looked at Tai Lung with a cold gaze and a few seconds later followed their friends out of the room.
To be continued…
