The Five [COMPLETED]

Part Ten

Sifu ran back to the Hall of Warriors, calling, "Master, master!" He dashed in, and saw his master precariously balanced on top of his staff. "Master," he hissed again urgently. As always, Oogoway slowly slid off his staff and turned to his former student. "Yes, Sifu?" he said.

"Master, I have to talk to you," Sifu said, beginning to pace back and forth. "I told Skylar about Dragon Eye's plans, and suggested bringing in extra forces, but she refused! She believes that the battle has be fought by them and them only!" He grabbed his master's shoulders, staring into his eyes with a crazed, desperate look in them. "You have to convince her of otherwise! She will -"

"Sifu. Breathe," Oogoway interrupted calmly. Slightly embarrassed, Sifu let go of Oogoway's shoulders and began to take deep, calming breaths. Oogoway nodded slightly before stating, "She is right, Sifu. This battle can only be fought by them. There is no room for extra forces. The prophecy does not say, 'Sifu will acquire extra forces to help them win because he is afraid of their deaths.' It says, 'Only the stolen generation can save them from what is to come.' That means just them, Sifu. They are the stolen generation; five children brought from Australia to China to train to become the strongest warriors the world has ever seen." The old man's voice grew soft. "And they have, thanks to you." He sighed. "I know you fear for them, Sifu. But it is time to accept that you cannot shelter them for too much longer. They are growing older. They will have to fight harder and harder battles; ones that you will no control over whatsoever. This is one of those battles."

Sifu was silent.

"It is time," Oogoway whispered. Sifu didn't need to ask what his master meant: he knew.

It was time to send them to battle.

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"So . . . Dragon Eye has an army?" Matthew asked. We were eating dinner with the others.

"I . . . I guess so, yes," I replied. "Sifu took me into this weird room underneath the Hall of Warriors and showed me the scroll. It was covered in plans, and I directly quote, 'For your destruction'."

"We can't fight against an army!" Mark protested. "There'll probably be millions of them and only five of us. The odds will most definitely not be in our favour."

"If the prophecy says we can defeat them, then we will," I objected, looking around at them. "We can't lose hope before the battle has even begun. If we do, all will be lost." The others gave slow nods and murmurs of agreement.

"Skylar's right," Matthew agreed determinedly, looking at me. "This is what we were trained for; right from when we first arrived here. If we have to fight, then we will fight."

"Yes!" Violet yelled. "They will not defeat us! We are the Furious Five!" We all nodded again as one by one, we all began cheering, letting out howls of challenge to the far-off warriors we had yet to face. Hope shone in every person's eyes, and I knew in that moment, that we were united. Nothing could ever defeat us. Sifu was going on about nothing.

Just as that thought crossed my mind, I heard rapid footsteps in the hallway. As one, our heads snapped towards the sudden commotion. The Palace servants were scurrying to our dorms, taking our few belongings. My head tipped to one side. What are they doing? Sifu dashed into the kitchen. "Students!" he yelled in a commanding voice. "Listen to what I have to say." His gaze flitted over us as he waited for the servants to scurry back out of the barracks. "The time has come."

My eyes widened. "For us to fight?" I asked. Sifu met my gaze and nodded. I lifted my head nobly. "Then let us fight," I said.

"You will," Sifu said. I narrowed my eyes at him. He seemed too composed. Much too composed. So I asked, "Are you okay, Master?"