Before Setting Sail
Knights of the Realm
The whole time Po was explaining things to his master, Luthera was feeling Tigress stare a hole through her.
"So after we stopped Blade's brother," Po told Shifu. "We found ourselves in some new drama. First we had a trial for Klaus and then Junjie assembled all of our old enemies. After that, we fought them a few times but lost because Kim broke my back. Then after I took on Klaus as a student, my back got healed and we came back to the Valley of Peace to stop them."
"I see," Shifu finally appeared to settle down. "Sounds like quite the story. Now… which one of these people is Klaus again?"
"I am," Klaus walked towards Po and Shifu.
"Hmm," Shifu scratched his beard. "I seem to remember your face from somewhere…"
"He was on a wanted poster," Monkey brought forward a poster they had gotten from one of the towns.
"Yeah, he stole the Tianshang weapons, I think," Mantis recalled.
"Po, you knowingly took on a criminal as your pupil?!" Shifu was taken aback briefly.
"C'mon Shifu," Po insisted. "Klaus and I had a rocky start but we became friends. Besides… he scored a major victory for us by defeating Pai Mei."
Shifu's ears suddenly perked up in interest.
"Defeated Pai Mei, you say?" Shifu's interested was piqued. "That… is quite the accomplishment, considering all the legendary things Pai Mei has accomplished as a master."
"I couldn't have done it without Po's tutelage," Klaus replied.
"Well Po," Shifu's expression softened. "Perhaps I was too kneejerk. Maybe it is time you took on another pupil as the Dragon Master. How are the kids in the Panda Village by the way?"
"Well, it's been a while since I've seen them," Po admitted. "And I didn't get them involved in all this Tianshang and Junjie business. But they're doing fine on their own now as the Four Constellations."
"Your Dragon Master was a real hero alright," the hamster emperor walked up to Shifu who bowed. "He and his gang stopped the bandits who took my throne and saved the country in the process."
"Good evening your majesty," Shifu bowed.
"So," the Emperor told both Po and Shifu. "Everything has been mostly taken care of but I'd like everyone's presence before my throne later. There's just one last thing to take care of."
"So what does this thing do?" Crane asked Akna, looking down on her backpack as the two birds got acquainted.
"Well, it's my invention and I use it for combat purposes mostly," Akna told him.
"Hey, is that the Constable's royal identity seal?" asked Monkey as Rukhmini sat in a corner counting the cash she had stolen from the elephant.
"Pipe down, sonny!" Rukhmini growled. "Shout it out louder, why don't you?"
"Um, pleased to meet you?" Luthera asked Tigress.
"What's your exact relationship with Po?" demanded Tigress, getting right to the point.
"He and I are friends of course," Luthera looked uncomfortable. "Po has… told me so much about you."
As Po smiled, watching the Dragon Knights and Furious Five interact, Peng walked up next to him.
"I know I'd gotten mad at you in the past over my uncle and we've made up since then," Peng told him. "But my battle with Pai Mei opened my eyes."
"Really?" asked Po.
"Yeah," Peng answered. "I saw for myself just how unrelenting Pai Mei really was and how he would not surrender or accept a helping hand from the enemy. Now I understand what happened between you and my uncle. I see why you had to do what you did that day."
"I see," Po frowned. "Pai Mei really was just that stubborn, huh?"
"He was," Peng admitted. "I saw it in his eyes. And I bet you probably saw the same thing my uncle's eyes."
"Hey Po," Klaus walked up to him.
"Yes, star pupil of mine?" Po smiled.
"It would appear I still have sentencing," Klaus told him. "The Emperor told me that my trial technically is still ongoing so we're not out of the woods just yet."
"Hmm," Po stroked his chin. "Considering everything that's happened, I'm sure the Emperor will go easy on you."
"Hey Po," Tigress walked up to him. "I hear you took a new student."
"I did," Po introduced Tigress to Klaus. "Tigress, meet Klaus."
"An honor to meet you," Klaus bowed to Tigress.
"Likewise," Tigress smiled. "I never thought you'd take on another pupil."
"Well, the panda kids in the village can fend for themselves now," Po told her. "Besides, it's a challenge and a treat to train someone of a different background who has wind magic as his main power."
"Just what did you do in all this time you left the Valley?" asked Tigress. "You sound like you had quite an adventure."
"Well, it's a long story," Po told her. "But I met Wandering Blade, met all my new friends, and explored the world, fighting different enemies. Oh, and I found out my dad was a former pirate king."
"Mr. Ping was a pirate?" Tigress blinked. "You're kidding!"
"No, he really was a pirate back in the day," Po confirmed.
Tigress looked over at Mr. Ping who was sitting with Forouzan in surprise.
"Is that the Pirate Queen Forouzan?" Tigress looked shocked.
"It is," Po told her. "But it's alright. She changed and now she's basically my stepmom."
"You really led an interesting life ever since you moved out and became the Dragon Master, haven't you?" Tigress grinned.
"You know it," Po answered.
"Well Po, it's good to finally have you back in the Valley," Tigress told him sincerely.
oooo
A few days later, the Dragon Knights and the Furious Five stood before the Chinese Emperor who was reading a long scroll.
Everybody looked somewhat nervous but the most nervous of them all was Po.
Next to the throne room was Kim the Invincible who gave Po an intimidating stare.
"How ya doing, Kim?" Po finally waved to try to break the ice.
"The Emperor decided that my abilities were too precious to be allowed to rot away in prison," Kim told Po. "And since he's had a large turnover of treacherous guards who sided with Junjie, he decided to make me his bodyguard for his second reign."
"So… we good then?" asked Po.
Kim crossed both arms, not taking his glare off of Po for one second.
"When I broke you and tattooed your defeat, I already accomplished my main goal of defeating the Dragon Warrior," Kim said, seemingly satisfied with that accomplishment. "I suppose we are even now, given everything that's happened."
"Whew," Po sighed.
"However, as the Emperor's guard, I will be keeping an eye on you, Po," Kim reminded him. "Just keep that in mind."
"Uh… will do," Po swallowed.
"After having reviewed everything," the hamster monarch told everyone. "I would like to say today will be the conclusion of Klaus's trial."
"You'll be fine, buddy," Akna whispered to Klaus.
"Now, as we all know, Klaus is guilty of theft," the Emperor went on. "However, in light of his recent actions, including helping to restore me to the throne, I have decided on a more lenient punishment."
Peng patted Klaus on the back in support.
"Klaus, you are hereby sentenced to seventy two hours of community service," the Emperor told him. "The one overseeing your service will be the Dragon Master, Po Ping. He will decide when you've paid your debt in full."
"Don't worry, I'll make it fun," Po whispered to Klaus.
"And now, this trial is officially over," the Emperor declared.
The Dragon Knights cheered as Klaus was let off the hook.
"Thank you your majesty," Klaus bowed before the hamster monarch.
"Now, I know I said that you would be under the Dragon Master's care for the most part," the hamster continued. "However, given recent reports I just received, I would personally like to send all of you on a mission to the city of Hanzhong as part of Klaus's community service. On the outskirts, there have been a spat of strange citizen disappearances and there have been sightings of a mysterious bat-like figure in the area who's suspected of those people going missing."
"We'll be on it then," Po accepted the offer. "Now we can finally get that Furious Five and Dragon Knights team-up we've always wanted!"
"It would be an honor to work alongside you," Luthera said to Tigress.
"Alright then," Tigress finally agreed coolly. "I'll see what you can do out there."
Meanwhile, Kim's eyes still bore a hole through Po that made him uncomfortable.
"Anyways, we're gonna head out now," Po said, walking off. "We'll be sure to handle this problem for you, your majesty."
"I'll be watching you, Dragon Master," Kim finally said, no longer using the term "Dragon Warrior" for once. "Good luck on your mission."
"Uh… thanks?" Po looked befuddled.
He did not know if Kim finally called him by his new title as a sign of respect or not but it certainly sounded like the hippo was finally giving up on open hostility.
oooo
Out in the outskirts of Hanzhong, both Pang Bing and the White Bone Demon stood together in the middle of the forest.
"We were fortunate to have met, sister," Baigujing told Pang Bing.
"Yes we were," Pang Bing agreed. "That earthquake which shook all of China freed me from my imprisonment and brought us together."
"I believe I have now drained enough souls from the people of this city for our experiment to be a success," Baigujing declared.
The old bat woman took out a spiritual orb that contained everyone she drained.
"Then let us begin," Pang Bing took her staff and ignited a mystical circle on the forest floor.
Baigujing place the orb at the center of the circle and before long, mystical energies swirled around it. Soon, a new metallica bat-shaped body was created from the power of those souls, in addition to Pang Bing's magic.
"Behold, your new body is complete," Pang Bing presented.
"At long last, I finally have my armor back!" Baigujing cried with delight.
The old bat entered into the armor and took control. Soon, the metal monstrosity that was Baigujing began to flex her arms and legs, feeling the power course through her once again.
"So, what do you say to a test run of your new body?" asked Pang Bing.
"I would be delighted!" Baigujing told her.
"And I say we do a different kind of test run!" a familiar voice rang out.
"What?!" both Baigujing and Pang Bing turned around.
Before them were Po and the combined forces of the Furious Five and Dragon Knights.
"A test run of two bodaciously awesome teams joining forces to stop you evil ladies!" Po pointed a finger at them.
"You ready to perform that new aerial move we practiced together?" Crane asked Akna.
"You read my mind!" Akna replied.
"You again, panda!" Baigujing snarled. "And this time, I don't see any of your panda brats with you!"
"Tonight's a school night for the Four Constellations," Po told her. "But just so you don't feel lonely, I got two adult teams in the room ready to give you a talking to!"
"And a new student," Klaus surrounded his fists with gusts of wind.
"You will not stop us!" Pang Bing growled. "We've come too far to lose to the likes of you!"
"We'll just see about that, won't we?" Luthera held her sword tightly.
"Yes we will," Po smiled and pointed a finger at the two villains. "Furious Five and Dragon Knights… let's GO!"
At once, both teams united and charged into the battlefield against the ancient Siamese cat and the White Bone Demon.
The End.
Author's Note: So when I started writing this, KFP4 hadn't come out yet but sometime during the middle of this series, the movie came out and pretty much declared all the shows non-canon. I wasn't too happy about it but it is what it is. After that, I decided to change the ending. Originally, the ending for this series would've been more "canon compliant" where I'd end things in such a way that would leave the ending open to transition into the fourth movie but since all the shows are considered non-canon now, I decided to write this new ending where Klaus becomes Po's student and both teams join forces to fight Baigujing and Pang Bing whereas my original ending would've ended in the Dragon Knights sailing away from China. Maybe it all worked out in the end. Although, just for the record, this is the first time anything like this has happened to me where I'm in the middle of writing a series when suddenly, the shows I'm writing for all get de-canonized right when I'm still writing. =/