As I start to wake up, I grow aware of the change in my condition. First, I don't feel the bitter cold frosting my skin, nor my feet frozen solid as ice cubes anymore. Instead, I feel the warmth of an indoor place and some kind of covering over me, a blanket, silky to the touch.
My limbs still feel sluggish, which I'm beginning to suspect is not from the cold.
Like before, I feel some weakness coming from my body, but I cannot ascertain the source. Maybe being in the cold for so long will do that to your body.
Finally, I feel like I've gained enough strength to move around, or at least to look around.
I open my eyes and look at my surroundings, finding myself in a small spartan room, almost bare if not for the bed I'm laying on right now and a small drawer next to it.
The floor and walls are made out of wood and what seems to be a traditional paper door. Even the bed gives a rather minimalist air.
After getting a good look at the room, I hear some voices in the distance seemingly arguing about something. I can take a good guess about the main focus of the conversation, probably me, the person they have rescued.
I quietly exit the room into a hallway with many similar doors—this building seems to be a dormitory of some kind—and go slowly over to the source of the voices. I don't know why I'm being so cautious, given that I have been saved and have been given a warm room for recovery. I doubt whoever saved me means any harm to me.
Nevertheless, I approach quietly to a paper door that seems to lead out of the hallway into another room, and where the voices are coming from.
I slowly open a fraction of the door and peek.
What I see leaves me bewildered and speechless, for some reason. I see six different animals: a tiger, a viper, a monkey, a mantis, a crane, and some kind of small animal I don't recognize. A red panda perhaps, though I can't say with certainty.
More bizarrely, they are talking among themselves and some of them are even standing upright. It seems my brain is telling me that something is wrong with this scenario, but it can't tell me why.
"I don't trust him. We should be watching him, in case he tries anything." the tiger says with a feminine voice, laced with animosity. It seems the tiger is a she.
She seems against leaving me without a guard. Wise, given that I'm now up and about, and spying on them.
"We can't just start interrogating him the moment he wakes up! He almost died a few hours ago." the viper says, again with a feminine voice. It seems they have been going around this argument a few times now; a tone of exasperation can be heard in both parties.
"Enough, Tigress, Viper! We won't interrogate our guest. But we must make sure he is no threat to us or the valley." the red panda says with an air of authority that leaves me certain he is the one calling the shots here. What Tigress and Viper say next assures me.
"Yes, Master Shifu!" they answer at the same time, heads bowed in deference.
"With that said, won't our guest join this conversation and introduce himself?" the red panda is clearly looking at the door while saying that. It seems I have been exposed.
Without any more second guessing, I enter the small space, which I now see is a small kitchen and dining hall. I need answers and they don't look to mean me any harm.
The moment I step fully into the room everyone looks and inspects me, making me somewhat uncomfortable, which is to be expected seeing as I am the only one that is not an animal.
"Well damn, a lot taller when he isn't crumpled on the ground like a stepped-on leaf." the mantis says in what seems a joking manner.
The viper, or rather Viper, as the red panda called her, reproaches him immediately, but I actually appreciate the joke since it diminishes the tension in the room quite a bit.
"I'm very grateful to you for saving me. I don't think I would have lasted much longer in that cold." I decide that starting by thanking them can't go wrong. They saved my life, so it's the least I can do.
"You were someone in need of help and my students helped you. That is all there is to it." starts Master Shifu. "However, what I want to know is who did my students help?" The old master clearly wants to know who I am.
"I apologize, but I want to know as much as you, even more I would think." I say as I start to explain my dilemma. How I woke up in that forest without memories of myself, or what I was doing or even where I currently am.
Some of them look at me with suspicion, mainly Tigress, and others look as perplexed as I am.
"To summarize your predicament, you don't know who or where you are. You also don't know what you were doing, or anything from your past for that matter." Master Shifu says what everyone else is thinking. "Hmm… that is quite the predicament indeed." he says with a pensive tone.
"That sounds very suspicious, Master Shifu." Tigress reaffirms her belief.
"He needs help! We can't just ignore his memory loss." Viper gives me a vote of confidence.
"Wait, do you even know how you look like?!" the monkey interrupts the heated debate.
"Huh… now that you mention it, I can't remember my face." I let the comment slip, as I start to touch my face slowly.
"Monkey, bring that small hand mirror from the warehouse." Master Shifu orders without hesitation.
"Good idea! Maybe seeing yourself will bring back something to your mind." Viper seems on board with the idea.
Tigress doesn't say anything on the matter.
And so, that brings us to this situation. With the mirror in my hand, I prepare myself for the revelation and the possible return of my memories.
As I finally gaze into the mirror, the first thing I see are my eyes.
A pair of steely gray colored eyes look back at me. They give an air of sadness, beyond what I currently feel. The eyebrows over them look thin and angular, of a silver color.
Then I look further up and see long silver hair that goes beyond my shoulders, slicked back. Such long hair looks annoying to maintain, but it is quite beautiful in my humble opinion.
Finally, I take in my face as a whole. I have sharp features, a stoic expression on my face taking place almost on its own. It feels too intimidating.
I try to smile and change my expression, ignoring the looks of the other inhabitants of the room, but my face feels most natural with the stoic look engraved on it.
Most important of all, no animal features I can see. Curious.
"Well… anything come to mind?" asks the bird, face brimming with curiosity.
"Hmm… just a small headache, I'm afraid." This is extremely frustrating. Only questions and no answers. "When I think what I am, the only answer that comes to my head is 'human'."
"'Human'? I've never heard of such a species." Shifu muses. "Perhaps Grandmaster Oogway may know more."
"You think this Grandmast—" I am beginning to formulate my question when I am interrupted.
"But that is quite enough for today. Both you and my students have had a long day, and tomorrow may be even longer." It seems I will have to wait for my answers. "I recommend you rest, for tomorrow you will rise early at the sound of the gong. I expect you to be up to greet me when it sounds." Master Shifu warns with a stern tone.
After that conversation, Master Shifu leaves the kitchen and leaves the rest of us to our own matters. Shortly after in the silence that ensues his parting, a small embarrassing sound is heard, embarrassing for me that is, since it is the sound of my stomach begging for food. I don't know the last time I ate but it seems my body could not wait any longer. Was that maybe the source of the weakness I'm constantly feeling?
After everyone glances at my rumbling stomach, Viper makes a suggestion I wholeheartedly agree with.
"How about I get started on dinner? We all are pretty hungry I'm sure!" I wonder for a moment how a viper could cook before I dismiss the thought for the next commentary. "While I'm cooking dinner why don't we all introduce ourselves to… our guest?" It seems not having a name would be problematic, but I can't just make up a name on the spot.
"I'll start! My name is Monkey, the one and only master of mischief and acrobatics in the Valley of Peace!" Monkey speaks with a jovial tone, without a hint of shyness.
As he introduces himself, I look over him noticing his lithe frame. His fur is a shade of gold, and his blue eyes shine with humor. His posture is relaxed, in contrast with Tigress.
He wears bracers on each wrist and a pair of reddish-brown pants.
"I shall go next, I suppose. I'm Crane, member of the Furious Five. Nice to meet you." Crane introduces himself politely.
I look at him, observing his lithe frame and his blue, white and black colored feathers. His eyes are a brilliant yellow.
He wears a pair of blue trousers and a conical Asian-looking hat. He gives an air of confidence but a look into his eyes tells me he actually is a little nervous.
"Mantis the name, let's make sure we stay in good terms, yeah?" Mantis looks quite menacing while saying that, though I can see he isn't totally serious.
From the way he speaks, he seems to have quite an ego. He isn't wearing any clothing that I can see, but his skin is a vibrant green and his eyes an intense red.
"Oh, now me! I'm Viper, it's very nice to meet you! If you need someone to talk to, you can come to me." she says while finishing the dinner.
She has an air of compassion and warmth that puts me at ease. It feels like speaking with a dependable ally or friend.
As I look at her, I notice her scales, lime green with a black pattern on her back. Her body is slender and sleek, as expected of a snake, and her eyes are a beautiful emerald green. She seems to be wearing two flower clips adorning her head.
Everyone falls silent as we look at Tigress, waiting for her introduction. She looks quite annoyed, with me or with the situation I can't tell. Finally, she speaks.
"I'm Tigress." Brief and stern, just as expected.
She looks at me while talking, with a stoic face. Her fur is an orange color with black stripes that run across her body, her tail has a black and white pattern though. She is quite imposing and her eyes are an amber color that gleam with intensity.
Her attire consists of a sleek and form-fitting red outfit with black trims, which reminds me of a traditional Chinese martial arts outfit, and loose-fitting black pants bound with some bandages at the ankles.
Her demeanor screams hostility at me, but maybe it feels that way because she is a tiger. Or maybe she really is hostile to me.
At any rate, with introductions out of the way, I try to introduce myself, as much as someone who doesn't know who they are can.
"I still can't remember my name, so address me as you wish please. Again, I would like to thank all of you for your kindness and for saving me from dying in the cold out there." I humbly thank them again, since I will be depending on them for the foreseeable future.
Afterwards, they tell me about many things, much of it information I can hardly wrap my head around.
We are in China, in a village called The Valley of Peace. This place is called the Jade Palace, where students of Kung fu gather to learn under Master Shifu and Grandmaster Oogway.
They are part of a group called the Furious Five, a famous group of masters of Kung fu, who are protectors of this valley, and all of China if needed.
It is so much information that I'm sure I have forgotten something, but I can always ask later. And more importantly, the food Viper cooked is delicious.
It feels like I haven't eaten in years.
Tigress is the only one who doesn't eat what Viper made, opting for some tofu cubes.
After such an eventful evening, I make my way to the room I woke up in before to rest, not without bidding everyone else a good night.
Before I can enter my room to rest, I am stopped by someone I didn't expect.
Tigress turns me around before I can fully open the door, standing mere centimeters from my face. I'm honestly quite scared.
She speaks before I can make a comment.
"I was the one that decided to bring you here. Don't make me regret it." Or else, she leaves unspoken, I'm sure.
"I promise I won't do anything that would bring harm to you or the Jade Palace. I will leave once I have my answers." After a moment to gather my determination, I make my promise.
She looks at me for a long moment before turning and entering the room opposite mine. What a lucky guy I am. I have the tiger just in front of my room.
With that cheery thought in my mind, I proceed to enter my room and go directly to bed.
As my consciousness fades, I can only think that Master Shifu is probably right and tomorrow is going to be a long day.