Here is the other half of the chapter that I wrote. So far, it is the shortest one.

Enjoy!

— GrayZ

Volume Five: The Shadow

Chapter XIII

Feathers and Gold Eyes

The raspberry tea served the avian well, including the hopes for the trio to begin their trek towards the enigmatic territories of the Jin Dynasty. The waxing gibbous moonlight cast its pulsing silver rays beneath the clouds, transpiring the light through thick branches and leaves. Crane did not mind checking their surroundings as if he preferred to be on the watch. He could fly and observe the far and the near, willing to detect foes if they emerged. The moonlight was preferable because Crane focused on sighting the terrain well. However, the outcome of this scenario was that without the light, he would stay on the ground and survey the environment unless torches could emerge at night.

Crane detected no bandits or strangers now — good for him and his friends. However, his instincts reminded him to deaden his hype and focus ahead of the coming days as he and the Furious Five had always done. Nearly distracted to thinking of early times, Crane had bitter and good moments when serving at the old palace where the avian master used to work as the janitor. His only purpose for being there was to clean obstacles, action dummies, and clothes and wash the floor with soap and a mop — these tasks were for him to earn his yuans so he could feed himself and his mother. But there was something more than that for him being a janitor because Lee Da Kung Fu inspired him to be a fighter; the bovine, who educated his students, sought no future for the avian because, from his perspective, Crane was slim, allowing opponents to take on the easiest foe like the avian. But that all changed when someone so close and far encouraging pushed his limits to prove the teacher wrong.

One student saw the avian performing his flight tricks when hanging clothes and towels on the strings that night. He remembered this student well; she outpaced and outsmarted her classmates with her bo staff, and her strength smashed many. The bovine teacher mentioned that she was among the best students in his class; her dexterity talent was gifted, and she was born a fighter in her blood. Yet, Crane could see her close to him, even when the leopardess was unseen, far away. Where could Mei Ling be now after the Second Gongmen Battle? If only he could stay and aid her; deep in his heart, he chose kung fu to fulfill his purpose of helping citizens, preventing foes from slaughtering them.

Where the moon soars

Feathers quiver,

Where the day soars,

Paws trot.

Yellow eyes beam

Ebony wings quiver

Gold fire eyes gleam

Claws sharpen silver.

For the night of wings

And the day of fists

Hearts bleed and heal.

Crane remembered the poem; he and the leopardess used to write it before his life as a janitor parted to join kung fu masters at the Jade Palace. What left him to be the honorable warrior under Shifu's regard? What stopped Crane from seeing his closest friend again in Lee Da Academy? If only his late teacher could bring Mei Ling to the Jade Palace, the avian's idea would have gone differently than planned. Punishment struck him once, and he would never repeat the same mistake after Shifu caught him red-handed.

I wanted to see her that night — just one day. Crane thought. He would rather not speak or remember the next morning after he flew back from Lee Da and snuck into his chamber. All the avian remembered too well was the eyes of disappointment from the red panda across the corridor of the Student Barrack.

"Night and day. . . Night and day," Crane muttered, reflecting the leopardess's ambiance.

And the snap from the broken branch popped.

The avian jolted and hastily twirled his wings, quickly turning to where the sound occurred from behind. The peacock still rested on his mat near the embers, but in the opposite direction, the Dragon Master emerged nowhere. Great. Where's Po? The avian traipsed and inspected his surroundings more warily while another snap chanted a click somewhere beyond the hill ahead. Shen opened his eyelids and quietly stood up, his crimson train extending in slow vibrations.

"Gods to be — where is the panda?" Shen muttered, grabbing the bo staff.

"No idea," Crane whispered. "We are being watched."

The figure in a hooded cloth approached casually on the ridge, emerging from the thick walls of velvet moss tree barks.

Although Shen and Crane prepped their fighting stances, readying for the stranger's movement nearby. With grass and thick layers of loose leaves from the trees that were crushed by one's steps, the figure in a black and dark cyan vest and trousers stopped to a halt, the eyes of amber sparkling. The tap of a glossy lime pole was aiming behind the hooded figure and Po—

"Hold it right there, shadow warrior!" the panda uttered. "No funny ideas. Who are you?"

The enigma figure, whose limbs were hidden in ebony wraps, sniffed under the mask. "Do I smell cookies?" the female voice asked.

What? Po withdrew his head in confusion, and so did Shen and Crane, whose heads exchanged once more.

"Po, don't tell me you borrowed some of Monkey's cookies," Crane retorted.

"I didn't! Maybe I got some."

"Preposterous!" Shen flickered his wings. "Did I not recall that you were supposed to quit eating those confectionaries?"

"Nah, I never say I quit cookies. I want some when I like some."

"What? Absurdity."

The female figure under the cloth hood stepped in twice. "Whoa, now. Hands where I can see them," Po warned.

"Relax, Dragon Warrior. I mean no harm," the female relaxed and did comply.

"No need to be mean, but I am the Dragon Master now — hey, how did you —?"

"My apologies, Dragon Master," she corrected, lowering her arms. Her eyes glanced at the avian under the conical hat. "I hope you are not mad at me when I show your face, Master Crane."

Unveiling their perplexed faces, Po and Shen stared at Crane, who muttered and gazed to a stun, looking back and around as if the world eyed him too awkwardly. "Me?" he held the wing on his chest. "What are you guys looking at me for?"

"Don't you recognize my voice?"

The avian had moments to reflect the figure's soothing voice from the tree's breeze and the light hiss. But those eyes — glinted from the heavens, though they were oddly familiar when Crane met his friend in Lee Da. They were amber from the morning light. Approaching the female, he stopped and examined her forehead, the patch itself being a U-shape downward.

The figure, removing the hood and the mask, was the golden cat herself, her long ears flickering high.

"M-Mei Ling?" Crane fell his beak wide open; Po submitted his yin-yang staff, and Shen quickly lowered his weapon. For a moment, the avian had hundreds of ideas, wanting to speak with her for so long, even after Lee Da Academy, including the company she was with the group to save the Dragon Warrior in Tibet and the Second Gongmen Battle. "You. . . you are here."

Mei Ling simpered. "I always know you are the most shy person, Yuen Long."

Po deafened his intense gasp. "No way! Crane, you never told me you have a name!"

This revelation caused Crane to soften his grunt, lowering the hat to hide his timid face and embarrassment. "I prefer Crane, Po. The names are secret."

"What?! I always knew you guys have names!"

How embarrassing.

"My bad, Crane," Mei Ling chuckled. "It has been over a decade? Maybe longer than that? You know I never forget about you."

"So do I," Crane added, beaming a little.

Shen cleared his throat, breaking interruption as the two looked at the peacock. From Po's perspective, Mei Ling was neutral. Her reaction was unvivid to see the peacock as the Dragon Master stayed persistent on her. "I do not mean to interrupt your reunion thing," Shen pardoned, crossing his wings. "I ponder where your friend comes from and why she is here."

"Of course," Po stepped in. "It's nice to see you again. I like to hear what you are up to, Mei Ling."

"Um. . . How did you get here?" Crane asked her.

"I followed you guys in the airship, in the occupied room," Mei Ling answered, sitting on the small boulder.

"I knew somebody was in there!" Po clutched his paw with determination.

"Did not," Shen glared in skepticism.

"So, why are you here, Mei Ling?" Crane asked, approaching her before Shen and Po neared them ahead of the dying firepit, where the embers and dots of fireflies wafted from the burnt woods.

"As I was saying, Dragon Master, Crane, and Shen, I was in the airship, where I was completely hidden from your sights," she began, looking at the embers. "Before I came to you three, I left Lee Da after I received the message from one of the Emperor's officials. I left home two weeks ago because one of Huangdi's trusted friends wished me to travel to the Jin Dynasty. The general recommends I ride across the sky rather than hike on foot at a long distance. He desires not to have a lone warrior to seek aid with the Emperor's daughter. The general word to me was that other warriors would take the airship to ride with me."

The golden cat met their eyes. "But then, you guys showed up when the ship arrived at your palace," she added. "I suppose the general did not name the warriors because his surroundings would be compromised."

"Compromised?" Crane repeated.

"I cannot say. The general wishes not to mention what he has issues with."

"Who's the general you had spoken to?" Po asked her.

"No name. He likes surprises when you see him soon, Master Po," she replied. Her eyes caught on the white teapot with the Jade Palace patterns. "You have some tea?"

"Suit yourself, Mei Ling. It's peppermint tea from Chen Xing's grandmother," Po said.

"Xing?" Mei Ling recalled the warrior's name, walking past the panda. "How has he been up to since Gongmen? I hear that boy has the Maker of Widows, and the yak defeated the ghost."

"Long story," Crane said. "You are coming with us to Zhongdu?"

She poured what was left of hot water from the pot, pouring the cup with peppermint flavor. "Listen to me, Crane. I know the land more than any of you," Mei Ling worded, her amber eyes staring at them. "Unlike the Song Dynasty, filled with hopes and fame, Jin is a strange land. The people of low grounds and high places will look at you all as strangers, especially you, Dragon Master."

"Me?" Po held his paws on his chest.

"The way you wear your burlap shorts and red cape with a hat, I promise you: You'll be the first to be stared at by everybody."

"Nah, no way. Nobody can since I was in a big town with my buddies."

"Oh?" her ears perched up, not surprised. "I look forward to seeing what's next when you head into these roads."

"So, what do you know about this domain?" Crane queried, leading close to the firepit with miniature dots of embers.

"The two dynasties used to fight at each other's throats for many years before the Peace Treaty. Jin Dynasty still despises the people of Song; you keep going from village to town, and the first thing the citizens see is the unfamiliar faces. They will think you are not from here."

"Are there any fame posters? Like me, the Five, or any masters?" Po asked.

"Sadly," she sipped her tea. "I was busy studying around the land and could not catch any sightseeing on those posters. I am sorry, Po."

"I knew it," Po figured, reflecting on the last pathways from the previous city where he could hardly find any fame posters. None were there.

"This journey is a long road ahead of you," Mei Ling said. "The north is that way if I remember."

"It is," Crane said.

"Good. And you have the map," Mei Ling looked, humming. "Zhongdu has been heavily guarded there since I last traveled to the nearest town. The Emperor of Jin resides with his officials inside, so Huangdi's daughter is either in the temple or Juyong."

"One of the two," Po reflected. "You think it's a good idea to knock at the city's gate and introduce ourselves to the Jin Emperor?"

"I wouldn't be so sure to do that, Po," Mei Ling was uncertain. "If I remember, the general will be at the city walls somewhere, and he has his trusted accomplice who will have us enter the city as visitors."

"Brilliant," Crane nodded.

Stroking under his chin with perception, the Dragon Master reflected on the feline's idea of entering the capital without being spotted by the guards and the officials. He found something useful for Mei Ling's conception. "Okay. I say we approach on the safest route and plan before entering Zhongdu," Po stated. "I can go into stealth mode once we get there."

"A stealth mode?" she repeated.

"Um, yeah. Remember you blended in with me and the Five and tried to enter the city?" Crane asked with slight embarrassment.

"It's the best way to blend in," Po beamed without denying his suit of stealthy tactic. "Besides, stealth mode is my go-to scenario."

"Hmm," Crane droned his sigh. "We'll see how this goes."

"Great! We'll get some sleep right now. 'Cause tomorrow will be the most awesome adventure ahead of us. To Zhongdu!"

"It's morning now, panda," Shen pointed his wing at the horizon.

Far to the East, the sky emerged the shade of dark orange before the silver clouds ebbed together, the morning creeping into rich crimson-yellow. "Awesome! Noodles, anyone?" Po lifted his limb in the air before the three warriors, who repeated their glances with exchanges into minor puzzlement. After deliberation, the three accepted and waited for their breakfast meals.

Author's Note:

— And here lies a special guest who will be one of the supporting characters throughout the story while helping out with Crane. I planned on bringing her in to be useful for Mei Ling the last time I used her from A New Prophecy.

— The poem is mine, and I think I am not great at writing poetry. So. . . I put it there to indicate something for both Mei Ling and Crane. Let me know if you guys like it or have some rewriting suggestions for my poem.

— Same as I planned to release another chapter at some other time. But don't worry, my writing habits will return. Enjoy summer, graduates, and peeps! :)