by Tracey West
CHAPTER 13
Valley of War
Back at the Jade Palace, Master Shifu, Tigress, Viper, and Monkey stood in the garden of statues, looking out over the valley. Crane and Mantis had not returned, and they were worried.
Even more worrisome were all the messages they were receiving from throughout China. Another one f lew in, attached to an arrow. Monkey jumped in the air and grabbed it. He landed next to the others, removed a red piece of parchment, and read it.
“It’s from the Eastern Province,” Monkey reported.
Master Shifu took the arrow from him and set it in line with the other arrows they had received.
“Master Lizard, Master Ox, Master Eagle . . . all of them. In every village from the sea to here. Every master in China has vanished,” he said.
“Maybe they are all at a party?” Monkey suggested hopefully.
Tigress and Viper looked at Monkey.
“Monkey,” Viper said in a disapproving voice.
Monkey shrugged. “I didn’t get invited either.”
But they all knew the truth—even Monkey.
“Kai has taken their chi,” Master Shifu said. “We are all that stand between him and the knowledge Oogway left in our care.”
He looked at Tigress. “The villagers, evacuated?”
“Done, Master,” she replied.
Master Shifu paced around the garden. “Crane? Mantis?”
“Still nothing,” Tigress reported.
Then Viper cried out, “Wait! It’s them!”
They could see the silhouette of Crane high in the sky, with the tiny Mantis perched on his back. But as the warriors got closer, they saw that they were both green and glowing.
Master Shifu’s heart sank. “No . . .”
Jade Crane dive-bombed them, and the four warriors ducked just in time to avoid him.
Jade Mantis leaped off Jade Crane’s back and they both landed in the middle of the statue garden. Behind them, through the smoke, Kai himself appeared. He marched forward past the two jombies.
Master Shifu’s eyes narrowed. “Kai.”
Kai’s entire body was glowing with incredible chi as he looked up at Oogway’s statue. Master Shifu and the rest of the Furious Five blocked his path.
“Nice. Very tacky,” Kai remarked.
“How dare you set foot on these grounds!” Master Shifu said angrily.
Kai snorted. “Look at you pathetic fools. Groveling at the feet of Oogway.”
“You are not fit to speak his name,” Tigress said, her eyes like two burning coals as she glared at him.
“I am not fit, little kitten?” Kai asked. “I fought by his side. I loved him like a brother. And he betrayed me. Well now I will destroy everything he has created!”
He hurled his chain blades at them.
“Go!” Master Shifu yelled.
Monkey, Viper, and Tigress jumped out of the way just in time. Kai’s chains whipped like huge, angry snakes with minds of their own. Monkey jumped and leaped over the chains. Viper moved so quickly she was a f lash in the air.
Tigress bounded at Kai, delivering a brutal blow that knocked him to the ground.
“How’s that for a little kitten?” she asked.
Kai’s eyes glowed green with rage. Behind him, Jade Crane and Jade Mantis jumped into the battle.
Jade Crane f lew into Tigress, knocking her off Kai. Master Shifu jumped in and unleashed a furious attack.
“I will not let you destroy Oogway’s memory!” he yelled.
“Why not?” Kai asked, blocking a blow from Master Shifu. “He destroyed mine.”
While Master Shifu and Kai battled, Monkey managed to catch Jade Mantis in his hands.
“Mantis! It is me! Your bestie!” Monkey said.
But Jade Mantis was completely under Kai’s control. He used his amazing kung fu strength to f ling Monkey back and forth, pummeling Tigress.
“Sorry, Tigress!” Monkey apologized as the two collided. And then they collided again. “Sorry!” And again. “Sorry!”
Master Shifu jumped up to deliver a right heel kick to Kai—and then froze in midair.
He had spotted the Oogway amulet around Kai’s neck.
Kai used the moment of weakness to send Master Shifu f lying into a stone wall. Tigress ran after him.
Kai held out his hand, pointing at Jade Crane and Jade Mantis.
“Bring them to me!” he commanded.
Jade Crane dragged Viper behind him, and Jade Mantis dragged Monkey. Neither of them could escape from the grasp of the jade masters.
Tigress and Master Shifu watched in horror as Kai sucked the chi from Viper and Monkey. They both shrank and turned into jade amulets!
Tigress moved to attack Kai, but Master Shifu held her back.
“No! You must warn Po!” he told her.
Kai lashed his chains around the Oogway statue, sending Tigress and Master Shifu f lying backward.
“I will show you the true power of chi, brother!” he said. “Ye-aaaaaaaaah!”
With a mighty pull, he ripped the statue from the ground.
“No!” Master Shifu cried.
Kai swung the statue around and smashed it right through the Jade Palace, carving through the scroll room. Then he let go. Oogway’s statue f lew off the mountain, and the scrolls—centuries of wisdom—were scattered by the wind. The statue fell from the steps, shattering in the valley below.
Master Shifu sank to his knees in despair. So much knowledge . . . lost.
“Oogway, forgive me,” he said.
The sound of Kai’s mocking laughter made him look up.
Kai grabbed Oogway’s amulet. “Hmm . . . what do you say, Oogway? Do you forgive him?”
“You may have destroyed the Jade Palace, but you will never succeed,” Master Shifu said. “There will always be someone to stop you.”
“Who, the panda?” Kai asked. “His chi is strong, but it won’t be enough. He will meet the same fate as you—”
“No!” Master Shifu cried.
“—and so will every panda in that village,” Kai said.
Kai shot out his hand, sucking in Master Shifu’s chi. Master Shifu shrunk into a jade amulet.
Tigress gasped in horror.
“Po, I hope you’re ready,” she whispered.
Tigress glanced down to see the scroll with Oogway’s story at her feet. What luck! Now she could find Po.
She only hoped she would find him before Kai did.
CHAPTER 14
The Truth Revealed
T hat night Po looked out at the sea of pandas before him. A huge festival was taking place, and everyone was dancing and celebrating. Po chatted with his new friends contentedly—he finally felt like he was one of them, a true panda.
But as Po made his way through the village, he came upon a wilted f lower in the ground. He took a deep breath and tried to use the same chi move he’d seen Shifu do.
Just then Po spotted a familiar figure climbing over the cliff wall at the edge of the village.
“Tigress?” he called after her. At the sound of Po’s voice, the music died down and the pandas gathered round.
Po made his way over to Tigress; she looked exhausted and worried.
“Who is she?” Mei Mei asked Po.
Lei Lei looked from the action figure in her hand to Tigress. Her eyes lit up.
“Big Stripy Baby!” she cried happily.
She ran to Tigress and clung to her leg.
“What are you doing here?” Po asked Tigress.
“Kai attacked the valley,” she replied. “He’s taken every master in China, including Shifu and the others. It’s all gone, Po. Everything. Everyone . . .” Her voice trailed off, and she looked away.
“Everyone?” Po asked.
Tigress nodded. “Everyone,” she said, and Po let the weight of that sink in.
All the pandas got quiet. Then Mr. Ping spoke up.
“How’s my restaurant?” he asked. The pandas looked at him
, horrified. “We’ll talk later.”
“And now Kai is on his way here,” Tigress continued. “He’s after you, Po. He’s after all pandas.”
The shocked pandas gasped.
“How long do we have?” Po asked.
“Not long,” Tigress replied. “Please tell me you’ve mastered chi.”
Po turned to Li, who was hurrying through the crowd of pandas, trying to get them in order.
“Here, take the baby,” he said, handing off a cub to its parents. Then he picked up another. “Okay, who belongs to this one?”
“Dad, Dad!” Po shouted, catching up to him. “You need to teach me the secret chi technique now,” he said urgently.
Li had a funny, nervous look on his face. “No, no, I’m afraid you need more time,” he said.
He quickly shouted to the pandas. “Everyone, go get your things!” Then he rushed over to a smaller groups of pandas, directing them to get all the food together. “Let me hand you that—”
“I don’t have more time,” Po argued. “I need to learn it now.”
Li grabbed a bowl of food from the table. “Sorry. You’re not ready,” he said f latly. “Pack everything!” he called to the pandas who were already f leeing into their huts.
“I am ready,” Po said.
“Not quite,” Li said. Ignoring Po, he headed toward the bridge leading to his hut.
Po wasn’t sure why his dad was acting this way.
“What are you talking about?” he questioned him. “I’ve done everything you’ve asked. I’ve mastered napping, sleeping in, hammocks, hot tubs. I am totally at one with my panda parts. Now why won’t you show me?”
Li continued to ignore Po and kept walking. Po grabbed Li’s arm, forcing his dad to face him.
Li gave in. “Because I don’t know it!” he blurted out.
Po was confused. “You what?”
“I don’t know it, okay?” Li admitted. “No one does! Maybe we used to . . . but not anymore.”
Po was stunned. “You lied?”
“No, I . . . Yes,” said Li, looking down.
“Why?” Po asked.
“To save your life!” he cried. “I find out some blade-swinging maniac is coming for you, and I’m supposed to do what—just let that happen?”
“Yes!” Po said. “I’m the Dragon Warrior. Facing maniacs—that’s my job. But because of you I left the valley unprotected. I left my friends unprotected. And now they’re all . . . they’re all . . .” He couldn’t say the words. Just thinking of Master Shifu, Viper, Crane, Mantis, and Monkey as little green amulets . . . it was too horrible.
“That would have happened to you, too!” said Li. “I already lost you once. I am not going to lose you again. I can’t.”
He tried to pull Po toward the hut, but Po pushed him away.
“You just did,” he said.
Po walked away from his dad, and Li stared after him, heartbroken.
CHAPTER 15
A New Plan
Li’s orders to evacuate the village had sent the pandas into a panic. They scurried back and forth, not sure of what to pack or where to go. Po walked through them, determined. Mr. Ping trailed after him.
“Po, I’m so worried for you that I can’t even enjoy being right about everything,” Mr. Ping said. “Now run, run, run, as fast as those chubby legs can go!”
“Run?” Po snorted. “There’s nowhere to run.”
Mr. Ping knew that stubborn look in his son’s eyes. “What’re you gonna do?”
“I’m gonna stay. And fight that monster.”
“Po, he may be a monster, but he’s still your father,” Mr. Ping said.
“Not him. Kai!”
Po pushed past his dad and rushed to the bamboo forest, kicking and punching, breaking the bamboo to bits. He used the broken parts to piece together a training dummy shaped like Kai.
Po went into his old training routine—dodging, kicking, punching, jumping—but Mr. Ping knew this wasn’t the way.
He left Po and went to Li’s hut, where he found Li staring at a picture of his wife holding baby Po.
“Hungry?” Mr. Ping asked, holding out a bowl of dumplings.
“Not really,” Li said.
“For later, then,” Mr. Ping said. He handed the bowl to Li.
“You know, you weren’t the only one who was lying,” he said.
Li raised a furry eyebrow. “Oh?”
Mr. Ping took a deep breath. “I didn’t really come along because I was worried Po would go hungry. I was worried . . . about you,” he confessed.
Li was confused. “Worried that I’d go hungry?”
“No!” Mr. Ping corrected him. “I was worried you’d steal Po from me.”
Now Li was shocked. “I’d what?”
Mr. Ping looked away, embarrassed.
“I know. That was crazy,” said Mr. Ping. “But I realized having you in Po’s life doesn’t mean less for me. It means more for Po.”
Li thought about this. Mr. Ping was right, but what did it matter now?
“Well I’m not in his life,” he pointed out. “Not anymore.”
“Your son got mad at you. Welcome to parenthood.”
“I lied to him. . . . He’ll never forgive me.”
“I lied to him for twenty years. He still thinks he came from an egg. . . . Sometimes we do the wrong things for the right reasons.”
Mr. Ping unfolded a piece of paper, placing it next to the picture of Po and his mom.
“Look, he’s hurt, he’s confused, and he still has to save the world,” Mr. Ping told him. “He needs both his dads.”
Mr. Ping turned and walked out, and Li looked back at the paper he had left. It was the sketch of Po, Li, and Mr. Ping from the restaurant.
Po did need them. And he wasn’t going to give up on Po.
He just had to hope that Po hadn’t totally given up on him.
Po was still punching furiously at the training dummy when Tigress blocked his fist midpunch.
“This isn’t going to work,” she said.
“It has to,” Po replied, winded.
“You’re not thinking straight.”
“I am!”
“You’re not,” she argued back.
As they bickered, they began to spar.
“I’ve seen Kai. I’ve seen what he can do,” Tigress said, blocking another punch from Po.
“But he hasn’t seen what I can do,” Po said, f lipping over. He held Tigress’s paw in a familiar pose.
Tigress gasped. “The Wuxi Finger Hold?”
“It’s my best move,” Po replied. “I just have to get Kai, grab his finger, and then . . . Skadoosh! Back to the Spirit Realm.”
Tigress broke his hold. “He has an army of jade creatures. They see everything he sees, so there’s no sneaking up on him. You will never get close enough.”
“It’s gonna work!” Po cried as she dodged a kick from him.
“He can only be stopped by a Master of Chi.”
“Oh, you sound just like Shifu with the chi chi chi!” Po shouted, throwing another exhausted punch. “Chi this! Chi that! Chi chi chi chi! I’m not a Master of Chi, okay? I don’t know if I’m the Dragon Warrior.” Po breathed in shakily. “I don’t even know if I’m a panda. I don’t know who I am!” His voice dropped to a whisper, and he collapsed in a heap. “You’re right. There’s no way I can stop him.”
Li emerged from the fog, breaking the silence. “Unless you had an army of your own.”
“You?” Po asked.
“Not just me,” Li said.
“Us,” said Mr. Ping, by Li’s side.
“All of us,” Li said. All of the pandas from the village emerged from the fog. “I finally found my son after all these years. It’s gonna take a lot more than the end of the world to keep us apart.”
Po sighed. “But you don’t even know kung fu.”
“Then you will teach us,” Li said.
“What? I can’t teach you kung fu. I couldn’t even t
each Tigress, and she already knows kung fu!”
Li came closer to his son. “Po, I know I’m the last guy you want to trust right now. But you gotta believe me—we can do this. We can learn kung fu. We can be just like you.”
Po’s eyes lit up. He looked around at all the pandas as an idea started to take hold. “What did you just say?” he asked.
“ ‘We can do this’?” Li ventured.
“No!”
“ ‘We can learn kung fu’?”
“After that!”
“ ‘We can be just like you’?!” Li said, his voice rising.
“Yes!” Po cried.
“We can?”
“No! You can’t!” Po burst into laughter. The pandas around him thought he’d finally lost it. “But you don’t have to be! That’s what Shifu meant—I don’t have to turn you into me. I have to turn you into you!”
Mr. Ping shook his head. “That doesn’t make any sense.”
Po wrapped his two dads in a huge hug. “I know!” Po laughed. “Thanks, Dads!”
“You’re welcome?” Ping and Li chorused.
“I’m gonna do something I never thought I’d be able to do: I’m gonna teach kung fu.”
CHAPTER 16
Po’s Turn to Teach
T he next morning Po gathered all of the pandas in a wide field by the waterfall. He had spent all night thinking about his own kung fu training. The field was the perfect location for the exercises he had in mind.
Po put his hands behind his back as he addressed the students. “You guys, your real strength comes from being the best you you can be. So who are you? What are you good at? What do you love? What makes you you?”
He broke the pandas out into smaller groups. He watched Bao play jianzi, and he studied Mei Mei as she twirled her ribbons. He even watched Big Fun use the hammocks to catapult Dim and Sum up the hills.
Tigress followed him from group to group, but she had no idea what he was doing.
Once Po had figured out what each panda was best at, he had them do it over and over. He asked Bao and all his friends to play a marathon game of jianzi. “Yes, good, good! Again!” he called to them.
He asked another group of pandas to roll downhill, and he had Big Fun practice hugging a log. “Hug that log, you!” he shouted encouragingly. “Hug that log like it’s the last time you’re ever going to hug it good-bye forever!”