I looked around, horrified. There was almost no noise, an eerie silence consuming everything. Only the wind and the faint moans of agony from the injured gave any indication that this wasn't the land of the dead. Carts and homes were reduced to stubble, burning with scarlet flames. The tangy, salty scent of blood lingered in the air, and smoke covered the sky, making it an ashen black rather than gentle blue. A pair of malicious, evil eyes floated on the horizon, a good twelve feet off the ground. They seemed to hover, no body visible, due to the fact that it was now night, and the smoke filled air didn't help. A bone rattling growl cut through the air, and I shuddered. I was sure he would attack, kill us all in some unspeakably horrible way, but what he did next was much worse.

He teleported to a few feet away from me, where Tigress stood, panting. She was obviously exhausted, her breathing uneven and ragged. She was completely vulnerable to attack; she wasn't paying much attention due to her overwhelming sense of fatigue, and he knew it. Quicker than lightning, he grabbed her by the throat, digging his talons into her flesh. She let out a strangled, choked scream, struggling to free herself, but to no avail. He was stronger than all of us. He teleported back to his place on the hill, overlooking the ruined village with an evil smirk, all the while clutching one of my best friends (and only crush) by the throat. Even from the approximate fifteen feet away from him that I was, I could see the blood beginning to trickle down her next, staining her already red fur, making little rivers that gushed off her neck and onto the ground and her clothes, leaving little red lakes.

She gasped, her breathing still limited. She wasn't getting enough air. Soon she'd either lose consciousness, or die of shock, exhaustion, and blood loss. I'd prefer the former over the latter, I really would. I was about to run forward and fight, try to save her, but he called out. "Take a single step and she dies. Right here, right now." Holding up a sharp foot long blade, he ran it under her chin, just barely gentle enough to not slice it.

I couldn't tell if he was bluffing or not, but I couldn't take chances. I wouldn't let her die. Only in his dreams and in my nightmares would I let her be hurt in any way before I threw my life before her to prevent it. I loved her; I guess that wouldn't be anywhere far from the truth. Man that felt good to say. I admit it, I'm in love with her. There, I said it. "Put her down!" I yelled. "Or what, Dragon Warrior?" he taunted.

"What do you want? I'll do anything, just put her down!" "Hmm." He mused, obviously taking his time to state his request just to aggravate me. And it was working. I was worried for Tigress's safety, nothing else mattered at the moment. "You." "What?" "You." He repeated. "You will be my prisoner, in exchange for the girl. It is your decision, and I'd advise out to choose quickly if you wish to see your beloved tiger ever again. She'd lost quite a bit of precious blood/" he said. "Alright! Anything! Just put her down!" I instantly agreed.

"Po. No, don't. You'll regret saving m-" "No I won't. I want to save you. I have to. If I don't, what kind of a Dragon Warrior am I?" Despite the situation, she gave a small smile at my logic. "Come on. Let her go. A deal's a deal." "Alright." He dropped her and she immediately grasped her bleeding neck, desperately trying to stop the red liquid from flowing. I was about to walk over to him and let him take me prisoner, but something made me change my mind. He was still holding his blade, and before I could even blink, he thrust it downwards, driving it into her stomach.

Her body went rigid, and she gasped, eyes wide. Her head fell to the ground, unconscious. He laughed evilly, then teleported somewhere else, his horrid cackles still echoing in the air. I ran to Tigress, who was barely breathing. I knew I couldn't leave the blade there, it might infect her body. But if I pulled it out, she might suffer from internal bleeding. Key word being might, I pulled it out in one quick motion, nearly vomiting as blood sprayed from her wound. I pressed a hand to it, shuddering as the cool liquid came in contact with my fur.

Gathering Tigress in my arms, I ran off, trying to find the others. I found them caring for the wounded in a small building that had somehow survived. "Guys!" I shouted, rushing in. "Hey P- WHAT HAPPENED?" Monkey yelled, noticing Tigress' ill condition. They all rushed over, looking ultimately concerned. Viper's eyes were already watering when she saw Tigress first, but broke down sobbing when she saw her stomach wound. After that, she started hyperventilating, taking quick, short breaths, squeaking. Then she fainted on the spot, although from shock or shortage of breath we're unsure.

"What… How…?" Crane asked, looking at me as I gently laid Tigress down on a bed, probably wanting an explanation of why she was in such a condition. "Do you really want to know?" I asked seriously, hoping he didn't really expect me to explain. My stomach was upset enough as it was. I didn't need to be telling any bloody battle stories. I just shook my head in response, turning to look at her. She was breathing ever so gently, like the slightest touch and it would cease. Her clothes were stained red, even her already scarlet vest, where the stains should've been unnoticeable, splotches of red were visible. Seeing her in such fragile condition pained me, so much it was indescribable.

Viper wasn't much better. Her breathing was normal, even as usual, but her scales looked awful. Instead of their usual forest green, they were now a ghostly pale green and white. She had a bit of a fever, according to Crane, who was spending all his spare time watching her. It was pretty obvious (to us, anyway) that he was crazy for her, and she felt the same way, but they were both way too shy to admit it. I don't see why he doesn't just tell her, it's not like she'd kill him or severely injure him for saying something like that. Tigress, on the hand, would totally murder me, bring me back to life, kill me again, bring me back from the dead once more, than bury me alive. Ok, I may be exaggerating, but not by much. That's one of the many things I like about her. She's not afraid to act when she's angry. Sure, she has control over what she does, but she doesn't hesitate to beat any one of us to a pulp if we say something that really ticks her off.

Except maybe Viper. But that's only because they're best friends and Viper's a bit… fragile. Emotionally and physically. Even things meant as a compliment can upset her, or, if aimed at the right place, a simple punch could really damage her spine. Sure, when it comes to a battle, she's really strong, but she's delicate on the inside. Easily offended. Emotionally vulnerable. That sorta thing. Anyway, that's the reason I haven't told Tigress I like her yet. I'm way too young to die. But now I might never get to tell her. She might never wake up. No. No, that won't happen. She can't die. She's our leader, our commander. She always knows what to do, always has a plan. Without her, we'd be lost. I'd be lost. We need her, all of us. Even Master Shifu. Even if he doesn't want to admit, I know it's true. He loves her, very, very much. I'm not sure she believes it, but he does. I can tell, I just can. I can't explain, but I just know. Like when you can tell someone is staring at you, even though you haven't even looked to check, you can feel their eyes on you.

Oh no! What are we going to tell Master Shifu? He'll freak out if he sees her like this! And then he'll kill me. I'm the Dragon Warrior, its my job to keep everyone safe. He'd be so angry if he saw his adoptive daughter in such a condition, he'd probably explode. Oh man, I'm toast. Over. Done. Finished. Destined to die a slow, painful death. Just what I needed.