Chapter 3 : Mysteries and escapades.
Tigress was the first one to spot it. The building in front of them was truly coming down but something vaguely white had appeared on the roof. The figure hesitated for a few moments, unsure what to do. "Too long", she thought. Then, when he began to lose his balance he took something from his back and held it in front of him, covered by his cloak and his arms. Feng had seen it too, as had Shifu. The moment he jumped, everything seemed to explode. When they looked again, only a pile of rubble with some small flames remained.
Then something in the bushes in front of it moved. Something crawled it. A young wolf cub, wrapped loosely in a large, stiff, filthy, white cloak.
"XIA!" Feng shouted, running towards his little girl and almost crushing her when he hold her in his arms again. Tears rolled once more, from relief and happiness this time.
"Baba?" came a weak response.
"Yes, yes, Baba is here". Fengs wife had arrived too and barely got to hug them when a healer arrived to check on Xia. Against all odds, she seemed to be fine. She had a couple of bruises on her sides and her breathing would be difficult for some time due to the smoke, but apart from that she appeared to be unharmed.
"This truly is a miracle" the healer, a goat said amazed. "I don't understand how she possibly came out alive, let alone unharmed!"
"Alex saved me. He promised he would help me and get us out, and that I would see mama and baba again. He told me to not go from under his cape. That the cape would protect me from the fire and ashes and splinters." The small voice led everyone surprised.
"Alex? Is that what the stranger is called who saved you? The one who was wearing this white cloak?" Shifu asked quickly.
"I think so. He said I could call him Alex, because his friends call him that too."
"Where is he? I need to thank him! He saved my daughter's life!" Feng said turning towards the rubble with the others.
Tigress had already been busy searching for this stranger. There were many things at work here. Strange things. She hated not knowing, to be in the dark and having to guess when things when not in control. Who was he? What was he? Why was he here? And how did a complete stranger manage not only know that there were two children inside, where they were, and got them out unharmed too? Especially knowing very well that she could not have done that. Maybe the sheep if she had known. But she would never have survived the fire and heat before she got Xia.
She kept turning rubble over when, when she turned over a large wooden floor-part, she froze for a moment. She picked up a white, wet piece of cloth she had seen him put before his mouth. To help against the smoke, she reasoned. She turned around and gave it to her master.
Shifu first looked surprised and stern, like he wanted to demand why she stopped searching, but his expression turned sad, and his ears lowered. He spread the cloth so that Feng and Tigress could see it too. It used to be white, with some sort of abstract drawing or decoration in blue on it. A lot of it was grey or even black from the fire, and it was very damaged. However, there was another color, a dark red, present in something that, unlike the blue was not a pattern. There was a lot of red. Feng lowered his head. There was no question what the red was. If the only thing they could find of him was a bloody piece of cloth...
Tigress didn't just let it with that, she moved back to the rubble site, and searched further, but she couldn't find another trace. It was not she first time she saw someone die in an awful way. But most of the times those were bandits, criminals and the like. To see someone die like this, a complete stranger who without much hesitation gave his life to save children from a burning hell, that was something different. Those people are very rare. She wondered why he did it. Did he know them? No, that clearly wasn't the case.
So why? Was he a criminal who had had enough of that life, and desperately wanted redemption? Was he a hero? An gentle soul like Po who rushed in without thinking and did the right thing without having the panda's luck? A phantom of sorts? Or was he still something else entirely? After all, she didn't even know what he was. He walked straight up and when he pulled off his shirt she had seen that he had no fur, or very little except on top of his head. His hood had prevented a good look.
"Tigress?" came the voice of Master Shifu.
She turned around and asked, "yes, master?".
"There is nothing we can do here now, I'm afraid. Let's head back to the palace. I need to meditate on this, and I will visit Feng and Xia later to get more answers."
"Yes, master."
They turned away, noticing that most people had already left the place. The day was beginning, and it would be a busy day. What a way to begin a day. But then Tigress stopped.
"Master, stop!"
"What is it, Tigress?"
"His bag! He was wearing a grey backpack and threw it on the ground before he went inside. It will give is some answers."
"Where?" Shifu asked, his tone curious and a bit hopeful. Tigress walked a bit back over the grass.
"It is right he...". Shifu was over there fast. Tigress stood before a small rock, her brow furrowed.
"I don't understand master, it was right here."
"Are you saying that someone took it?"
"It must have. But I don't understand why!"
"There is more happening here."
"But what master? Was it a set-up? Do you believe the stranger had anything to do with the fire?"
"I don't know. But search around, maybe we'll find a clue to who took the bag".
They both began to search around, searching for tracks or anything, but the grass did not show much tracks. Nothing clear anyway. But Tigress wasn't just a peasant. She was extremely cunning Kung Fu master, and a tiger too. Her senses were perfected. She could still smell the unfamiliar scent of the grey bag on the rock, and there had been movement in the grass. She was certain of that. And in the loose, wet dirt she found what she was looking for. Tracks. Fresh ones.
"Master, over here!" She yelled. She didn't recognize those tracks. They didn't look anything like sandals, and where not in any shape she was used too. Shifu studied them for a moment and then seemed to realize something.
"Tigress, did you by any accident notice what kind of shoes this stranger was wearing?"
"Some sort of strange boots Master, why?
"I looked a bit ahead of you and found something else." With this, Shifu showed his hand. In it, he held a few green leaves that had a bit of red on them. Blood.
"Master, are you saying that the stranger is still alive? That's impossible!"
"Nothing is impossible" said Shifu, quoting his old master.
"But.."
"Tigress, it should also have been impossible for this Xia to survive. And it should certainly have been impossible for someone to get both children out of that hell, unharmed. Not to mention that his cloak seems to be unable to burn and protect from heat, if I understand it correctly. If he has such a strange bag, and a cloak of such a strange material, would it truly be impossible for him to survive?"
"I understand master. I assumed he couldn't have survived because he got separated from this protective cloak."
"So did I. But what was he actually Tigress?"
"I... don't know master. He was an animal I have never seen before, from the little I could see."
"I see. I want you to follow him, to find him, and try to convince him to come to the Jade Palace Tigress. He is wounded, so offering your help with that should ease it. I do not want you to use any force. Who- or whatever he is, he did save the lives of two children today. I would like answers, but he has his rights to privacy and we are in no position to disrespect those."
Meanwhile Alex was running, all the while thinking he was a lucky bastard. He had managed to not only survive this whole thing, he had saved two children. During his jump with Xia he had thrown the girl forward, into a bush that would soften the landing. She would most likely not leave without a broken bone here and there or some cuts and bruises but it was better than dying together. Then he had quickly grabbed the table that had thrown out when he jumped. Keeping that table behind him had saved him from the flames during the explosion behind him. He had landed a bit hard on his feet but managed to roll through, lessening the impact. Something he could not have done with a small wolf on his back. The table had rebounded on the ground and placed itself perfectly on top of him. That small and extremely durable table managed to save him from almost all the rubble that would've hurt him. He did wound his arm and it bled quite a bit. His shirt had been used to stop the bleeding. When Xia came out, everyone immediately stormed towards her. No one noticed him taking his backpack and leaving. Although it had been close with that Tiger. Seriously, paranoia itself might become jealous in comparison.
Only then he suddenly realized that he had just crossed the famous Master Tigress.
"It must've been her. She was commanding with authority, and she is the only permanent tiger in the valley. And her temper and suspicion are almost legendary...". Wow. WOW. He had just shown the famous Master Tigress, who was practically revered by fans in the valley (and the rest of China from what he overheard), wrong. He had done her job for her, sort of.
The second feeling that came over him was a feeling of dread and fear. He doubted that humiliating this Tigress in such a way was a good thing. Calling her a bloody idiot probably wouldn't help either...
He kept running at a steady speed. No doubt they would have questions about him and as soon as the little girl started talking they would know his name, and more.
Soon he arrived at a river he crossed earlier. Unlike then, he took a different approach this time. Instead of just crossing the river, he started wading through the river. On the other side it was very shallow and didn't slow him down much. Even when going against the stream, uphill. After going about 200 meters through the water he got out and jogged further towards his cave, slower this time. The small trick would hopefully work and buy him a lot of time. In the water he could not have left tracks or smell. And the rushing sound of the water had hushed the sounds of his splashing. Whoever was tracking him would have a bit of a problem unless they possessed senses far better than earth's animals.
Ten minutes later he was proven right, although he didn't knew it at that time. Tigress had been able to follow his tracks and scent easily enough. She was slowed down because of the unknown factor of the scent, but no one could mask the smell of blood. She hoped he wasn't too wounded.
"Probably not, otherwise he would have collapsed by now, or he would have treated his wounds" she thought. The tracks, certainly later on were not difficult either. He did not seemed to bother to hide them anymore. His shoes or boots seemed to have a strange sort of grip on the underside, she noted. "Smart idea, actually. It must give him a lot more security and balance in muddy underground or difficult terrain than mere sandals."
She soon arrived at a small river. The tracks led straight towards it, seemed to hesitate a moment and then went into the shallow path through it. Tigress smiled a bit inwards. She was closing in, she knew it. These tracks were very fresh. She would get her answers soon.
When she crossed the small river however, her inward smile disappeared. She wanted to follow the tracks. The only problem was, there weren't any to follow. She looked around, in the mud, sand and grass. This was ground in which hiding tracks was difficult, but there truly seemed nothing to follow! Desperately she smelled the air, inhaling it almost – no, not a single hint of the smell around.
"How is this possible! He is bleeding, he can't just disappear into thin air! He is a creature of flesh and blood, not a ghost!" she grumbled frustrated. She began to search the river banks for a while and then the path backwards for anything she might have missed, somehow already feeling it would be hopeless. Hours later, she went back to the palace.
At the Jade Palace, Shifu stood for his own mysteries as well. This cloak seemed, after a few tests, indeed unable to burn. Holding it straight against a flame from the cooking panel barely left a trace. Whatever fire had left those burn marks must have been like hell. What material was this thing made from? He began to wonder even more when it seemed to hold water perfectly. Not even a bit of moisture on the other side. It seems to be coated in a protective layer, probably adding to its stiffness. Yet it wasn't really much heavier than others sturdy clothes or anything. But how?
He also noticed some fold marks, and after a few attempts at getting the pattern, it was remarkably small. Easy to transport.
And the other cloth that was almost drenched in filth, sweat, and blood was strange as well. The material was woven in a way he was unfamiliar with. Especially because it was so thin and fine.
Shifu kept pondering on this strange thing. After a while, he could only think of a few options, all relatively unlikely. He should wait until Tigress was back.
His eyes shot open. Or he could maybe already visit Feng. Both Shifu and Tigress knew him well enough, surely his daughter, Xia, could provide some more answers?
With that he put the cloak somewhere in his room, in a cabinet and left the palace to pay the wolf a visit.
"So you really have no idea, at all, who it was that saved you?" Feng asked his daughter.
"No baba, I told everything I know. He looked a bit like a hairless monkey, I think. But taller and no tail, baba."
Shifu sighed. He didn't have much more answers. He wished he could ask his master for counsel. But Oogway had never answered something straight to the point anyway. And Feng was less of a help then he'd hoped. The wolf still stood there with a goofy smile plastered on his face, just happy that his daughter came out unharmed. Suddenly it dropped a bit.
"No matter how happy I am my Xia is still alive, I do feel a bit guilty about this 'Alex's'' fate. I owe him practically a lifedebt." He lowered his head a bit. "And now I'll never be able to do something in return..." he murmured.
"I wouldn't be so sure about that."
He looked up. "What do you mean, Shifu?"
"He might not be."
"Not what?"
"Dead."
"I'm afraid I don't follow Grandmaster Shifu. We both saw the blooded cloth. And you confirmed that it was the cloak Xia wore that must have protected him so far."
Shifu sighed again. "My student and I found a track that lead away from the scene. He left some bloodmarks on this track, that smelled the same as the blood on the cloth. Also, the one who created that track took his bag with him, that he had dropped before he entered the flames."
"So he's alive !" Feng said loudly, his grin reaching even further than before.
"It looks like it. Master Tigress is looking for him, because he is still wounded."
"Well, when you find him, please tell me. I must thank him and repay this debt somehow!"
"I thought wolves didn't have the concept of a life-debt?" shifu asked, curious.
Feng scowled a bit. "That's because wolves normally stick to a pack and the entire pack is one family. And we do not owe such debts to family. But to an outsider, the whole pack would be in debt. Since I am not part of a pack I think I do owe him such a thing" he explained like it was the most normal thing in the world.
"I see. I must return to the palace, Tigress will no doubt already be back with him, or news. It's been several hours." He gave a nod, and left.
Both Master and student found each other in the hall. And Shifu was surprised, to say the least.
"What do you mean, he vanished?" Shifu asked, his tone slightly louder.
"His trail did Master. I could follow it very clearly until he crossed a stream. On the other side, there was not a hint of tracks or smell. The banks downwards were completely clear of any signs. I followed the tracks several times back and forth but there was nowhere even a hint of another direction. And the stream was too shallow too swim or have a boat waiting."
Shifu was truly a bit clueless. This 'Alex' was something that they didn't know, he had a mysterious cloak that was utterly resistant to many elements, he had saved a child from a burning building, and evaded and escaped the master of the Tiger style. Not his usual mystery to solve.
"Then maybe it is best if we just leave this matter alone for now, Tigress. After all we are a bit in the dark here. This 'Alex' did a good thing and saved an two innocent lives that would otherwise have been lost. If he puts so much effort in staying anonymous, then maybe we should just let him be for now."
"But master! He is a creature we have no experience with and he's roaming free in the valley! Who knows what he could do! People who hide themselves from us rarely have good intentions. It could be a plot to make us trust him in which he shall attempt to harm us unexpectedly and I shall...
"TIGRESS!" Shifu shouted, anger clear in his voice. Tigress was taken a bit back by this ostentative display of anger.
"Most criminals don't risk their lives to save children from burning buildings. Especially not if they had something to do with it. And if it was an attempt to gain trust so he could take us out unexpected, he would have stayed around for thanks, trust, or trying to get a return favor. He didn't."
Tigress' form had slumped a bit down, gazing to the ground, somewhat ashamed. Shifu's voice had returned to something softer, calming.
"I understand your concern, Tigress, and I don't like prying in the dark either. But we mustn't let ourselves be controlled by paranoia simply because we don't know something. Otherwise we should interrogate every single villager. Let's for now focus on training again and leave the matter alone. If you encounter him again, you can try to bring him here."
Tigress nodded, bowed and went to the training hall.
"Maybe master Shifu is right", she thought. "After all, he did risk his life to save children. And he might prefer to be alone because his differences. There is still more to him than he displayed, but then again, he's something we've never seen. Maybe I'm jumping to quick to conclusions because I couldn't find him."
With that, she tried to put the matter out of her mind and resumed her training.
Alexander had reached his cave without any further fuss. He didn't bother hiding tracks anymore or tried to take strange routes. If that Tigress got past the trick he pulled earlier nothing else would help anyway. Besides, he was way too tired. The pain in his arm had increased too and by now he felt like his arm was on fire. He plumped his bum on the ground and got his first aid kit. Disinfecting the cut that, thank his lucky stars, wasn't very deep. Putting some cooling cream on it, and wrapping some bandages around it filled him with relief. After checking and treating other small burns on his body he went outside to sit down with a very light meal and made a small fire to cook some water and make tea.
Once again, he blessed his luck within his unlucky situation. He might have stranded in a completely strange world, at least he didn't get here without camping and trekking supplies to last weeks. But he had to face it none-the-less : his supplies were diminishing. He still had food for a week, maybe more if he rationed it very carefully and found more plants to add. Outside of Gingko leaves he hadn't found much edible plants or berries. And hunting wasn't an option. Fishing was, but there weren't that many places to catch fish nearby. Yes, the river nearby held fish and there was a larger lake on the border where he went swimming sometimes, but still...
There was only one solution. He had to find friendly contact and try to trade or work for something. He did not want to resort to stealing his food, not in the least because it would bring more attention to him. So far, he hadn't actually done anything wrong, and he desired to keep it that way.
His other option was trying to go to the jade palace.
The villagers saw him as a freak, threat, monster and whatnot. He knew that by now. They'd never seen something like him, and he was taller than most creatures he had encountered. Wolves, leopards, cats and the likes were comparable in height, but rarely taller. Rhino's where the only ones that were definitely bigger. However, the majority existed out of geese, sheep, pigs, antelope and the likes. And those he had already encountered had shit their more-often-than-not lacking pants. He had tried several times again by now, in the month that he was here. The last time he tried to approach a caravan the pigs had thrown stones at him. Not exactly the warmest invitation, he mused wryly.
Frankly, he had survived so far because he had had a couple of encounters with bandits. Crocodile bandits with the collective IQ of a rock, that is. Who knew that you could so easily scare people with a flashlight beneath your face, and some intimidation? Fortunate as it was, it scared the living hell out of those on guard duty, and he had simply taken some of their spare stuff. By the time the rest woke up, he was already long gone. And he had won himself gear, a sword, food and some useful trinkets. Was stealing from thieves illegal here? He didn't bother worrying himself, that was pointless.
The other option, the jade palace was not easy either. Maybe the five would not see him as a threat and use their brains to at least give him more information on what to do in his unique situation. If they did not use their heads, it could result in him being killed.
He might have a couple of years of kickboxing and fencing under the belt, be in a strong condition by spending two years in harsh climates and have a sixth sense that could warn him about a great deal of situations but he wasn't an idiot. He had spent his last two weeks observing and learning from a distance with his binoculars. The five and even the panda where completely out of his league. Sure, he had had his conflicts with bandits by now, but there was a world of difference. Besides, he was only used to fighting humans.
The analytic approach told him that Shifu, Mantis, Viper and to a certain extent Monkey where at a huge advantage due to their smaller size. And the last one had his tail as a fifth limb. Crane could fly. The Panda was too... well, massive for standard tactics, but he could at least outrun him. Tigress was frankly the only one in similar posture, the only one that he would have an idea on how to handle if it came to a fight. And she happened to be the most skilled, paranoid, intelligent, ferocious and aggressive out of all those fighters. Wonderful.
Po would not instantly attack him. He was too gentle and open for that. However, speaking with him alone was practically impossible. Besides, he would instantly run with Alexander to the palace, and they might not be so accepting.
Then it hit him. He needed a wolf. Not just any wolf. He needed to find the family of the cub that he had saved. Their child, Xia could recognize him and thus trust him. Which would maybe make the parents help me. After all, most monsters or enemies don't save cubs from burning buildings, do they?
It was time to put a use to the social training he had gone through by accompanying his parents from young age to dinners, meetings and the likes. Time for some convincing that he wasn't dangerous or hostile at all and create some form of trust, while not giving to much information away. He couldn't plunge in by exclaiming he came from a different world or dimension! Half-truths was probably the best way to go in this one. Animals would with their refined senses no doubt be able to pick up his unconscious body language better. Not lying, but simply leaving out parts would solve that. He'd just have to be careful with what information he gave away.
Satisfied that he had a possible solution for now, he allowed himself some rest after rearming his traps.
# Kung fu panda: a whole new world
Aqsa_roses
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Chapter 3: Chapter 3: Mysteries and escapades
Chapter Text
Chapter 3 : Mysteries and escapades.
Tigress was the first one to spot it. The building in front of them was truly coming down but something vaguely white had appeared on the roof. The figure hesitated for a few moments, unsure what to do. "Too long", she thought. Then, when he began to lose his balance he took something from his back and held it in front of him, covered by his cloak and his arms. Feng had seen it too, as had Shifu. The moment he jumped, everything seemed to explode. When they looked again, only a pile of rubble with some small flames remained.
Then something in the bushes in front of it moved. Something crawled it. A young wolf cub, wrapped loosely in a large, stiff, filthy, white cloak.
"XIA!" Feng shouted, running towards his little girl and almost crushing her when he hold her in his arms again. Tears rolled once more, from relief and happiness this time.
"Baba?" came a weak response.
"Yes, yes, Baba is here". Fengs wife had arrived too and barely got to hug them when a healer arrived to check on Xia. Against all odds, she seemed to be fine. She had a couple of bruises on her sides and her breathing would be difficult for some time due to the smoke, but apart from that she appeared to be unharmed.
"This truly is a miracle" the healer, a goat said amazed. "I don't understand how she possibly came out alive, let alone unharmed!"
"Alex saved me. He promised he would help me and get us out, and that I would see mama and baba again. He told me to not go from under his cape. That the cape would protect me from the fire and ashes and splinters." The small voice led everyone surprised.
"Alex? Is that what the stranger is called who saved you? The one who was wearing this white cloak?" Shifu asked quickly.
"I think so. He said I could call him Alex, because his friends call him that too."
"Where is he? I need to thank him! He saved my daughter's life!" Feng said turning towards the rubble with the others.
Tigress had already been busy searching for this stranger. There were many things at work here. Strange things. She hated not knowing, to be in the dark and having to guess when things when not in control. Who was he? What was he? Why was he here? And how did a complete stranger manage not only know that there were two children inside, where they were, and got them out unharmed too? Especially knowing very well that she could not have done that. Maybe the sheep if she had known. But she would never have survived the fire and heat before she got Xia.
She kept turning rubble over when, when she turned over a large wooden floor-part, she froze for a moment. She picked up a white, wet piece of cloth she had seen him put before his mouth. To help against the smoke, she reasoned. She turned around and gave it to her master.
Shifu first looked surprised and stern, like he wanted to demand why she stopped searching, but his expression turned sad, and his ears lowered. He spread the cloth so that Feng and Tigress could see it too. It used to be white, with some sort of abstract drawing or decoration in blue on it. A lot of it was grey or even black from the fire, and it was very damaged. However, there was another color, a dark red, present in something that, unlike the blue was not a pattern. There was a lot of red. Feng lowered his head. There was no question what the red was. If the only thing they could find of him was a bloody piece of cloth...
Tigress didn't just let it with that, she moved back to the rubble site, and searched further, but she couldn't find another trace. It was not she first time she saw someone die in an awful way. But most of the times those were bandits, criminals and the like. To see someone die like this, a complete stranger who without much hesitation gave his life to save children from a burning hell, that was something different. Those people are very rare. She wondered why he did it. Did he know them? No, that clearly wasn't the case.
So why? Was he a criminal who had had enough of that life, and desperately wanted redemption? Was he a hero? An gentle soul like Po who rushed in without thinking and did the right thing without having the panda's luck? A phantom of sorts? Or was he still something else entirely? After all, she didn't even know what he was. He walked straight up and when he pulled off his shirt she had seen that he had no fur, or very little except on top of his head. His hood had prevented a good look.
"Tigress?" came the voice of Master Shifu.
She turned around and asked, "yes, master?".
"There is nothing we can do here now, I'm afraid. Let's head back to the palace. I need to meditate on this, and I will visit Feng and Xia later to get more answers."
"Yes, master."
They turned away, noticing that most people had already left the place. The day was beginning, and it would be a busy day. What a way to begin a day. But then Tigress stopped.
"Master, stop!"
"What is it, Tigress?"
"His bag! He was wearing a grey backpack and threw it on the ground before he went inside. It will give is some answers."
"Where?" Shifu asked, his tone curious and a bit hopeful. Tigress walked a bit back over the grass.
"It is right he...". Shifu was over there fast. Tigress stood before a small rock, her brow furrowed.
"I don't understand master, it was right here."
"Are you saying that someone took it?"
"It must have. But I don't understand why!"
"There is more happening here."
"But what master? Was it a set-up? Do you believe the stranger had anything to do with the fire?"
"I don't know. But search around, maybe we'll find a clue to who took the bag".
They both began to search around, searching for tracks or anything, but the grass did not show much tracks. Nothing clear anyway. But Tigress wasn't just a peasant. She was extremely cunning Kung Fu master, and a tiger too. Her senses were perfected. She could still smell the unfamiliar scent of the grey bag on the rock, and there had been movement in the grass. She was certain of that. And in the loose, wet dirt she found what she was looking for. Tracks. Fresh ones.
"Master, over here!" She yelled. She didn't recognize those tracks. They didn't look anything like sandals, and where not in any shape she was used too. Shifu studied them for a moment and then seemed to realize something.
"Tigress, did you by any accident notice what kind of shoes this stranger was wearing?"
"Some sort of strange boots Master, why?
"I looked a bit ahead of you and found something else." With this, Shifu showed his hand. In it, he held a few green leaves that had a bit of red on them. Blood.
"Master, are you saying that the stranger is still alive? That's impossible!"
"Nothing is impossible" said Shifu, quoting his old master.
"But.."
"Tigress, it should also have been impossible for this Xia to survive. And it should certainly have been impossible for someone to get both children out of that hell, unharmed. Not to mention that his cloak seems to be unable to burn and protect from heat, if I understand it correctly. If he has such a strange bag, and a cloak of such a strange material, would it truly be impossible for him to survive?"
"I understand master. I assumed he couldn't have survived because he got separated from this protective cloak."
"So did I. But what was he actually Tigress?"
"I... don't know master. He was an animal I have never seen before, from the little I could see."
"I see. I want you to follow him, to find him, and try to convince him to come to the Jade Palace Tigress. He is wounded, so offering your help with that should ease it. I do not want you to use any force. Who- or whatever he is, he did save the lives of two children today. I would like answers, but he has his rights to privacy and we are in no position to disrespect those."
Meanwhile Alex was running, all the while thinking he was a lucky bastard. He had managed to not only survive this whole thing, he had saved two children. During his jump with Xia he had thrown the girl forward, into a bush that would soften the landing. She would most likely not leave without a broken bone here and there or some cuts and bruises but it was better than dying together. Then he had quickly grabbed the table that had thrown out when he jumped. Keeping that table behind him had saved him from the flames during the explosion behind him. He had landed a bit hard on his feet but managed to roll through, lessening the impact. Something he could not have done with a small wolf on his back. The table had rebounded on the ground and placed itself perfectly on top of him. That small and extremely durable table managed to save him from almost all the rubble that would've hurt him. He did wound his arm and it bled quite a bit. His shirt had been used to stop the bleeding. When Xia came out, everyone immediately stormed towards her. No one noticed him taking his backpack and leaving. Although it had been close with that Tiger. Seriously, paranoia itself might become jealous in comparison.
Only then he suddenly realized that he had just crossed the famous Master Tigress.
"It must've been her. She was commanding with authority, and she is the only permanent tiger in the valley. And her temper and suspicion are almost legendary...". Wow. WOW. He had just shown the famous Master Tigress, who was practically revered by fans in the valley (and the rest of China from what he overheard), wrong. He had done her job for her, sort of.
The second feeling that came over him was a feeling of dread and fear. He doubted that humiliating this Tigress in such a way was a good thing. Calling her a bloody idiot probably wouldn't help either...
He kept running at a steady speed. No doubt they would have questions about him and as soon as the little girl started talking they would know his name, and more.
Soon he arrived at a river he crossed earlier. Unlike then, he took a different approach this time. Instead of just crossing the river, he started wading through the river. On the other side it was very shallow and didn't slow him down much. Even when going against the stream, uphill. After going about 200 meters through the water he got out and jogged further towards his cave, slower this time. The small trick would hopefully work and buy him a lot of time. In the water he could not have left tracks or smell. And the rushing sound of the water had hushed the sounds of his splashing. Whoever was tracking him would have a bit of a problem unless they possessed senses far better than earth's animals.
Ten minutes later he was proven right, although he didn't knew it at that time. Tigress had been able to follow his tracks and scent easily enough. She was slowed down because of the unknown factor of the scent, but no one could mask the smell of blood. She hoped he wasn't too wounded.
"Probably not, otherwise he would have collapsed by now, or he would have treated his wounds" she thought. The tracks, certainly later on were not difficult either. He did not seemed to bother to hide them anymore. His shoes or boots seemed to have a strange sort of grip on the underside, she noted. "Smart idea, actually. It must give him a lot more security and balance in muddy underground or difficult terrain than mere sandals."
She soon arrived at a small river. The tracks led straight towards it, seemed to hesitate a moment and then went into the shallow path through it. Tigress smiled a bit inwards. She was closing in, she knew it. These tracks were very fresh. She would get her answers soon.
When she crossed the small river however, her inward smile disappeared. She wanted to follow the tracks. The only problem was, there weren't any to follow. She looked around, in the mud, sand and grass. This was ground in which hiding tracks was difficult, but there truly seemed nothing to follow! Desperately she smelled the air, inhaling it almost – no, not a single hint of the smell around.
"How is this possible! He is bleeding, he can't just disappear into thin air! He is a creature of flesh and blood, not a ghost!" she grumbled frustrated. She began to search the river banks for a while and then the path backwards for anything she might have missed, somehow already feeling it would be hopeless. Hours later, she went back to the palace.
At the Jade Palace, Shifu stood for his own mysteries as well. This cloak seemed, after a few tests, indeed unable to burn. Holding it straight against a flame from the cooking panel barely left a trace. Whatever fire had left those burn marks must have been like hell. What material was this thing made from? He began to wonder even more when it seemed to hold water perfectly. Not even a bit of moisture on the other side. It seems to be coated in a protective layer, probably adding to its stiffness. Yet it wasn't really much heavier than others sturdy clothes or anything. But how?
He also noticed some fold marks, and after a few attempts at getting the pattern, it was remarkably small. Easy to transport.
And the other cloth that was almost drenched in filth, sweat, and blood was strange as well. The material was woven in a way he was unfamiliar with. Especially because it was so thin and fine.
Shifu kept pondering on this strange thing. After a while, he could only think of a few options, all relatively unlikely. He should wait until Tigress was back.
His eyes shot open. Or he could maybe already visit Feng. Both Shifu and Tigress knew him well enough, surely his daughter, Xia, could provide some more answers?
With that he put the cloak somewhere in his room, in a cabinet and left the palace to pay the wolf a visit.
"So you really have no idea, at all, who it was that saved you?" Feng asked his daughter.
"No baba, I told everything I know. He looked a bit like a hairless monkey, I think. But taller and no tail, baba."
Shifu sighed. He didn't have much more answers. He wished he could ask his master for counsel. But Oogway had never answered something straight to the point anyway. And Feng was less of a help then he'd hoped. The wolf still stood there with a goofy smile plastered on his face, just happy that his daughter came out unharmed. Suddenly it dropped a bit.
"No matter how happy I am my Xia is still alive, I do feel a bit guilty about this 'Alex's'' fate. I owe him practically a lifedebt." He lowered his head a bit. "And now I'll never be able to do something in return..." he murmured.
"I wouldn't be so sure about that."
He looked up. "What do you mean, Shifu?"
"He might not be."
"Not what?"
"Dead."
"I'm afraid I don't follow Grandmaster Shifu. We both saw the blooded cloth. And you confirmed that it was the cloak Xia wore that must have protected him so far."
Shifu sighed again. "My student and I found a track that lead away from the scene. He left some bloodmarks on this track, that smelled the same as the blood on the cloth. Also, the one who created that track took his bag with him, that he had dropped before he entered the flames."
"So he's alive !" Feng said loudly, his grin reaching even further than before.
"It looks like it. Master Tigress is looking for him, because he is still wounded."
"Well, when you find him, please tell me. I must thank him and repay this debt somehow!"
"I thought wolves didn't have the concept of a life-debt?" shifu asked, curious.
Feng scowled a bit. "That's because wolves normally stick to a pack and the entire pack is one family. And we do not owe such debts to family. But to an outsider, the whole pack would be in debt. Since I am not part of a pack I think I do owe him such a thing" he explained like it was the most normal thing in the world.
"I see. I must return to the palace, Tigress will no doubt already be back with him, or news. It's been several hours." He gave a nod, and left.
Both Master and student found each other in the hall. And Shifu was surprised, to say the least.
"What do you mean, he vanished?" Shifu asked, his tone slightly louder.
"His trail did Master. I could follow it very clearly until he crossed a stream. On the other side, there was not a hint of tracks or smell. The banks downwards were completely clear of any signs. I followed the tracks several times back and forth but there was nowhere even a hint of another direction. And the stream was too shallow too swim or have a boat waiting."
Shifu was truly a bit clueless. This 'Alex' was something that they didn't know, he had a mysterious cloak that was utterly resistant to many elements, he had saved a child from a burning building, and evaded and escaped the master of the Tiger style. Not his usual mystery to solve.
"Then maybe it is best if we just leave this matter alone for now, Tigress. After all we are a bit in the dark here. This 'Alex' did a good thing and saved an two innocent lives that would otherwise have been lost. If he puts so much effort in staying anonymous, then maybe we should just let him be for now."
"But master! He is a creature we have no experience with and he's roaming free in the valley! Who knows what he could do! People who hide themselves from us rarely have good intentions. It could be a plot to make us trust him in which he shall attempt to harm us unexpectedly and I shall...
"TIGRESS!" Shifu shouted, anger clear in his voice. Tigress was taken a bit back by this ostentative display of anger.
"Most criminals don't risk their lives to save children from burning buildings. Especially not if they had something to do with it. And if it was an attempt to gain trust so he could take us out unexpected, he would have stayed around for thanks, trust, or trying to get a return favor. He didn't."
Tigress' form had slumped a bit down, gazing to the ground, somewhat ashamed. Shifu's voice had returned to something softer, calming.
"I understand your concern, Tigress, and I don't like prying in the dark either. But we mustn't let ourselves be controlled by paranoia simply because we don't know something. Otherwise we should interrogate every single villager. Let's for now focus on training again and leave the matter alone. If you encounter him again, you can try to bring him here."
Tigress nodded, bowed and went to the training hall.
"Maybe master Shifu is right", she thought. "After all, he did risk his life to save children. And he might prefer to be alone because his differences. There is still more to him than he displayed, but then again, he's something we've never seen. Maybe I'm jumping to quick to conclusions because I couldn't find him."
With that, she tried to put the matter out of her mind and resumed her training.
Alexander had reached his cave without any further fuss. He didn't bother hiding tracks anymore or tried to take strange routes. If that Tigress got past the trick he pulled earlier nothing else would help anyway. Besides, he was way too tired. The pain in his arm had increased too and by now he felt like his arm was on fire. He plumped his bum on the ground and got his first aid kit. Disinfecting the cut that, thank his lucky stars, wasn't very deep. Putting some cooling cream on it, and wrapping some bandages around it filled him with relief. After checking and treating other small burns on his body he went outside to sit down with a very light meal and made a small fire to cook some water and make tea.
Once again, he blessed his luck within his unlucky situation. He might have stranded in a completely strange world, at least he didn't get here without camping and trekking supplies to last weeks. But he had to face it none-the-less : his supplies were diminishing. He still had food for a week, maybe more if he rationed it very carefully and found more plants to add. Outside of Gingko leaves he hadn't found much edible plants or berries. And hunting wasn't an option. Fishing was, but there weren't that many places to catch fish nearby. Yes, the river nearby held fish and there was a larger lake on the border where he went swimming sometimes, but still...
There was only one solution. He had to find friendly contact and try to trade or work for something. He did not want to resort to stealing his food, not in the least because it would bring more attention to him. So far, he hadn't actually done anything wrong, and he desired to keep it that way.
His other option was trying to go to the jade palace.
The villagers saw him as a freak, threat, monster and whatnot. He knew that by now. They'd never seen something like him, and he was taller than most creatures he had encountered. Wolves, leopards, cats and the likes were comparable in height, but rarely taller. Rhino's where the only ones that were definitely bigger. However, the majority existed out of geese, sheep, pigs, antelope and the likes. And those he had already encountered had shit their more-often-than-not lacking pants. He had tried several times again by now, in the month that he was here. The last time he tried to approach a caravan the pigs had thrown stones at him. Not exactly the warmest invitation, he mused wryly.
Frankly, he had survived so far because he had had a couple of encounters with bandits. Crocodile bandits with the collective IQ of a rock, that is. Who knew that you could so easily scare people with a flashlight beneath your face, and some intimidation? Fortunate as it was, it scared the living hell out of those on guard duty, and he had simply taken some of their spare stuff. By the time the rest woke up, he was already long gone. And he had won himself gear, a sword, food and some useful trinkets. Was stealing from thieves illegal here? He didn't bother worrying himself, that was pointless.
The other option, the jade palace was not easy either. Maybe the five would not see him as a threat and use their brains to at least give him more information on what to do in his unique situation. If they did not use their heads, it could result in him being killed.
He might have a couple of years of kickboxing and fencing under the belt, be in a strong condition by spending two years in harsh climates and have a sixth sense that could warn him about a great deal of situations but he wasn't an idiot. He had spent his last two weeks observing and learning from a distance with his binoculars. The five and even the panda where completely out of his league. Sure, he had had his conflicts with bandits by now, but there was a world of difference. Besides, he was only used to fighting humans.
The analytic approach told him that Shifu, Mantis, Viper and to a certain extent Monkey where at a huge advantage due to their smaller size. And the last one had his tail as a fifth limb. Crane could fly. The Panda was too... well, massive for standard tactics, but he could at least outrun him. Tigress was frankly the only one in similar posture, the only one that he would have an idea on how to handle if it came to a fight. And she happened to be the most skilled, paranoid, intelligent, ferocious and aggressive out of all those fighters. Wonderful.
Po would not instantly attack him. He was too gentle and open for that. However, speaking with him alone was practically impossible. Besides, he would instantly run with Alexander to the palace, and they might not be so accepting.
Then it hit him. He needed a wolf. Not just any wolf. He needed to find the family of the cub that he had saved. Their child, Xia could recognize him and thus trust him. Which would maybe make the parents help me. After all, most monsters or enemies don't save cubs from burning buildings, do they?
It was time to put a use to the social training he had gone through by accompanying his parents from young age to dinners, meetings and the likes. Time for some convincing that he wasn't dangerous or hostile at all and create some form of trust, while not giving to much information away. He couldn't plunge in by exclaiming he came from a different world or dimension! Half-truths was probably the best way to go in this one. Animals would with their refined senses no doubt be able to pick up his unconscious body language better. Not lying, but simply leaving out parts would solve that. He'd just have to be careful with what information he gave away.
Satisfied that he had a possible solution for now, he allowed himself some rest after rearming his traps.
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