Temple
The Valley of Peace
I watch as the Temple's roof
explodes, Tai Lung and his former master shooting up into the air to strike at and wrestle with each other. Tai Lung appears to get the edge as they crash back down, making a new hole.
Honestly thought I'd have more time than this.
"
All I ever did, I did to make you proud!"
I'll step in… Ah, slither in, if it looks like he's actually about to kill the chap, but even when they were on good terms they mostly related to each other by hitting each other.
"
Tell me how proud you are, Shifu!"
I get close enough to see through one of the holes in the wall their fighting has created.
"
Tell me!"
His hands are burning with blue fire. Burning oil from one of the braziers.
"
TELL MEEEEEEEEEEEE!"
Both sets of knuckles strike his diminutive opponent and send him flying backwards towards the pool at the end of the room. Okay, last… I flick out my tongue. Dumplings? Where..? Oh, the Panda's coming back. Huh. Hadn't really paid him much attention before, but he's gained quite a bit of
mental focus from somewhere. Hm. Having Tai Lung sent back to prison would probably cause my task to flip over into 'flat out impossible', but it would be best if I didn't reveal myself.
"I… I have always been proud of you." The Red Panda pushes himself up slightly from where he fell.
"From the first-" He pants.
"-moment, I've been… Proud of you."
Tai Lung stalks closer. But.. some of the passion that drove him to assault his father figure appears to be waning.
"And it was my pride… That blinded me. I loved you too much to see what you were becoming." Shaking with effort, he turns his head to face Tai Lung. "
What I… Was turning you into. I'm s-.
I'm sorry."
What do you want?
Tai Lung's eyes dim. For a moment he stands like a statue, motionless and lifeless.
Then he falls to his knees, rocking back and forth slightly as conflicting emotions surge through him.
"I'm sorry, master."
Shifu blinks, taking a few more panting breaths as he tries to work out what just happened. "Ah… What did you say?"
"I'm sorry, master."
There's a quaver in his voice.
"Oh. Okay." Shifu blinks again and nods.
Then he frowns, staring up at hulking foster son. "What?"
"I'm sorry, master." Tai Lung drops onto all fours, choking back his tears. "I…" He crawls towards his not-entirely-up-to-speed former mentor. "I thought that was what I was
for. I thought that was what you were training me for. Everything… Everything that was worth
anything about me, I had because of
you… I thought-" Shifu is looking a
little nervous now, as the clearly distraught Snow Leopard still towers over him. "-that I needed to validate that by…" He sniffs. "By being the absolute greatest Kung Fu warrior that exists. By becoming the Dragon Warrior. And then… And then when Oogway turned me away…" He collapses onto his chest, hands gripping his head. "I thought I failed you. And you didn't..
care…"
Nervously, Shifu sits up and then cautiously reaches forwards with his right hand to gently pat Tai Lung on the head. "There. There?"
Tai Lung darts forwards, wrapping his arms around his former master's back and pressing his face against the man's chest as he bawls into his robe. Shifu freezes completely still for a moment, then sighs and goes back to patting him. "I have no idea what is happening any longer, but-"
"Waaahahaheeeeeh!"
"-I would rather not have to fight you and I am not having to fight you. So, I will not question it." Another sigh, deeper this time as his immediate need for oxygen is dealt with. "I should have pressed Oogway for answers-"
"Ughuhhuhuhrrr!"
"-then and there, if only to find out where I was going wrong in my teachings. And, now I think I will have to apologise to Master Tigress too, for the way I treated
her."
Tai Lung makes an unsettling noise, like he's got an awful lot of snot built up but doesn't want to blow it out over his master's robes.
"Oh, hey!" The Panda stands at the smashed in doors of the temple. For a moment, he beams at them. Then he doubles over, panting hard from his exertion in running all of the way up the mountain. Well, he is a big Panda, with.. proportionally short legs. "You guys made up! Whaw, aheh." He sighs with exaggerated relief. "I thought I was actually going to have to fight you for a while there!"
Shifu taps his son on the head, then gives him a slight push. Tai Lung pulls back a little, rising into a hunched all-fours position as he turns to see who it is.
"'Cause, y'know, even with the Scroll, I…" He holds his right hand up in a request for time while he bends over, gasping for air. "I've only actually been… Studying Kung Fu… For a couple of weeks…"
Tai Lung stares at him in utter bewilderment. "This is the Dragon Warrior."
Shifu closes his eyes again, nodding. "I know."
"I feel-"
"I know."
"-not, less bad-"
"I know."
"-but-."
"I know."
"You guys
have made up, right?"
Tai Lung is still too bewildered to respond coherently. Shifu looks him over, then returns his attention to the Panda. "He isn't on a rampage anymore, and he's been in prison for twenty years for his crimes." He takes a deep breath as he attempts to centre himself. "So I suppose we have."
"Oh. Cool." The Panda waddles forwards towards them. "In that case-" He pulls the Dragon Scroll out of his back pocket. "-I guess there's really no harm in letting you read-" Shifu starts frantically shaking his head and waving his arms back and forth across his chest in an emphatic 'no' gesture. "-the scroll after all." He notices Shifu. "What?"
Tai Lung can't bring himself to look at it. He shakes his head. "I-I don't want to read it. I don't deserve-."
The Panda holds the rolled up scroll out in front of him. "Hey, it's cool." Tai Lung starts backing away. "I don't think it's about whether you deserve it or not, really. Because, y'know, heh." He shakes his head. "
I sure didn't."
"No. No." He raises his right hand to block his view of it. "I don't want to see it!"
The Panda shakes his head. "I think it's like one of those zen puzzle things? Y'know, the answer's something you can't understand until your head's in exactly the right place."
"Po!"
Oh, that's his name.
"I didn't get it when I first saw it. And, ahh…" He leans forwards, mantling his mouth with his free hand to stage-whisper. "Between you and me, I don't think Master Shifu did either."
"I don't want to see it!"
"It's fine, look." Po unrolls it and holds.. the blank but surprisingly reflective scroll out in front of him. A mirrored surface. Oh, that's clever. And a bit stupid.
Tai Lung puts his left hand over his eyes, waving Po away with his right as he comes closer. "
Stay away!"
"Here."
"
No!"
"
Here." Po knocks his outstretched arm aside and tries waving the scroll in his face.
"
No! I don't want it!"
"Here. You gotta-" Po tries pulling the hand over Tai Lung's face off so he can wave the scroll at his eyes. "-see-" Tai tries to turn away, but since he can't see where he's going he trips and falls onto his back. "-what's on-" Tai tries rolling onto his front, a motion Po converts into a confused roll which results in Tai lying on Po's vast stomach with the scroll in his face. "
-this!"
Tai Lung blinks, squeezes his eyes closed. Too late. He's already seen it. His eyes come open again, staring madly at the surface.
"See what I mean."
"I DID! ALL THIS! FOR A BLANK..! For a blank scroll…"
"Guess you… Kinda
did. The way I see it…"
Okay, I think he's done. So that's all of them. Past me, you need to go and deal with Ambush Bug now. It's been a while, but I seem to remember it going something like
this…
?
