The Warrior and The Bandit

The Palace Warriors

The sound of the gong echoed throughout the valley as the sun rose and woke those who had not yet risen. Within a matter of moments the Valley of Peace came to life with shops opening up and the sounds of children running through the streets could be heard all around.

Uptop of the great valley, in the highest mountain, rested the Grand Jade Palace. A beautiful and large palace made of jade and gold. The home of a wise old turtle, who had saved the valley hundreds of years ago.

Master Oogway.

The elder turtle of the valley is said to be nearly over one-thousand years of age. Many believed that not to be true but a lot more believed he really was. All the tales he foretold and wise wisdom he gave them were tales that not just anyone would know.

With him lived his student and old friend, Master Shifu, his greatest student and best kung fu teacher in all of China. Along with the two lived Master Shifu's students, The Furious Five, Master Tai-Lung and Mistress MaSha.

The nine masters were the ones to keep the Valley of Peace and China free of bandits and assassins. Though Master Oogway noticed how crime had gone up ever since the most wanted criminals had gotten a leader. A leader no one knew the identity of but was known as the Crimson Bear.

Master Oogway worried for his citizens. He feared only the Dragon Warrior could put a stop to the Crimson Bear.

But who is the Dragon Warrior?

No one knows. Not even Master Oogway.

In hopes to find the Dragon Warrior he had put the Furious Five, Tai-Lung and MaSha on trial already to see if any of the seven young warriors were worthy. However, Master Oogway did not feel that any of them were the legendary warrior.

Sure, they had their strengths and were great warriors, but none met the expectations of the Dragon Warrior.

Master Tai-Lung had always been a Kung Fu prodigy. From a young age he had quickly learned the art and mastered all thousand scrolls by the time he was twenty-one, Oogway didn't sense the Dragon Warrior spirit in him.

Mistress MaSha was the youngest member in the Palace. Even though she wasn't a prodigy like Tai-Lung, the young master had gotten better than Tai-Lung on the path of mastering Chi.

Master Tigress was the unofficial leader of the Furious Five. She was the Master of the Tiger style a.k.a hardcore style. Most knowledgeable and mature of the five. She was still the youngest of the Furious Five.

Master Crane was one of the first flying class masters to fully master the rare five-fingered blast punch. Which in truth was no easy task, especially for a master like him.

Master Mantis was one of the few masters that knew of acupuncture, as he was a doctor before joining the Jade Palace. Surely that would have given some advantage to be the Dragon Warrior.....not really.

Master Monkey was someone who knew Master Oogway before coming to the Jade Palace. Trained under his wise wisdom and guidance, surely he was Oogway's predecessor. Monkey wasn't too worried about it though.

What really shocked everyone was when it came to Master Viper. The daughter of Grand Master Viper and quite a powerful warrior all on her own, even with the fact that she didn't have poisonous fangs like her father.

None of these warriors ever came to satisfy the grand master or the Universe. Accepting their fate, the seven warriors decided to focus on improving their skills instead. Hoping that someday, the Dragon Warrior would reveal themself.

Master Oogway sat on his grand staff, his head resting on the small curb of its design, that somehow the old wooden staff held the grand turtle without even a wobble. The grandmaster meditated peacefully until he heard the grand doors of his palace opening.