And here we are! A new Kung Fu Panda movie and a new fanfic to go with it!

Yes, I absolutely adored KFP3. Perhaps not as much as 2, but that's hardly a complaint. I especially loved the new villain Kai, who may not have as much intrigue as Lord Shen, but made up for it by just being really really fun to watch. He was the perfect blend of evil and darkly hilarious. So since I love these two villains so very much, it's only natural that I put them in a fic together. Without further adieu, I give you Shen vs. Kai!

Enjoy. :)

Shen vs. Kai: When Evil Collides

Chapter 1: A Different Path

"...inner peace...inner peace..."

Deep in the afterlife of legendary masters known as the Spirit Realm, Grandmaster Oogway, creator of kung fu and paragon of virtue, meditated in solitude. It was something he did very often now. After all, what else was there to do here? He had willingly given up his life for the sake of the future, and now he was here, free to spend the rest of eternity communing with the universe. It was a prospect most people would find mindless and soul-crushing, but Oogway, as he often had, was able to find the silver lining even in death itself.

Already, he had spent countless days simply walking (or floating) through the vast expanse of his new home, observing the intricate patterns all around him, seeing how far one could throw a stone in a place that knew no gravity, making another staff to replace his lost one, making an even bigger staff just in case. To the enlightened mind, the Spirit Realm was not the end of life, but simply the beginning of another.

The old tortoise smiled to himself. The universe was being quite talkative today. He knew exactly why of course. It was almost time. In only a few months, a path that had been paved a long time ago would finally be traveled. A new era in the history of kung fu was about to begin. And it would only be a few more mon-

Oogway stiffened as he suddenly heard a noise. It was a sharp, rattling sound that grew steadily louder...approaching his very position.

No. It can't be...

Unprepared, he only had time to dodge out of the way as a giant green blade struck the place he was just sitting. That weapon was unmistakable. It had to be him, and yet it couldn't be. Not so soon. The machinations of fate were firm and precise, like pieces on a game board.

Now it appeared that his old friend had just flipped the table.

"...You are early." It was all he could say.

The blade was yanked out by its chain and returned to its master, a bulky yak standing on the platform across from him. A yak who was now raising an eyebrow in utter bafflement. This was clearly not the reaction he was expecting. "Oh sorry, am I interrupting your Zen time? I'll just come back next Tuesday then."

Kai turned around and walked a few steps away, before he abruptly stopped and threw out another blade behind him. Oogway swung his staff and deflected it harmlessly into the air. "I've waited almost five hundred years for this rematch," Kai growled. "I'm not waiting a second longer just because it doesn't fit into your divine schedule." The second blade came back to him as well, and he now swung them in circles at his side, glaring menacingly. "Now fight me, brother!"

He didn't understand. This was not how it was supposed to happen.

The universe had gone silent.

Oogway sidestepped to the left to avoid the first blade, then the right to dodge the other. He grabbed both chains and catapulted himself into the air. He could see Kai down below, grinning wickedly at him. This was a battle he already knew he would lose, and yet it was a battle he would fight regardless. That was his destiny.

But now it seemed that destiny had gone wrong. His chosen successor, the future of kung fu, was not yet ready for this challenge. For the first time in longer than he could remember, Master Oogway had no idea how this would all play out.

Even still, he believed.

There are no accidents.

Oogway readied his staff as he plunged towards his adversary.

Not even this.

Gongmen City had always been one of the most prosperous cities in China. With the invention of fireworks, it became more prosperous still, achieving a legacy that would last until the end of time.

Lord Shen, the city's new ruler, intended to go even further. Gongmen would soon be the crown on his new empire.

Like all great rulers, his success had not come easy. First, he had taken what was already his parents' legacy, the power of fireworks, and made it his own. With his new weapon at Gongmen's gates, no one would dare to threaten the city again. Then everything went wrong. The prophecy, the massacre, the exile, all those struggles he had to endure. All those years he had to spend cold and bitter, awaiting the day he would take back what was rightfully his.

Now that day had finally come. His future had been secured. Or had it?

Honestly, he wasn't entirely sure why he insisted on having the old Soothsayer divine for him again. Perhaps he just wanted to see the look on her face when he finally proved her wrong. Or maybe there was a lingering fear that maybe, just maybe, there was still something he needed to worry about.

...Ridiculous. He must have wanted the look.

Whatever the reason, that was why the two of them were now standing there in front of her divination bowl. After a fair bit of annoyance that he was sure the old goat had caused just to spite him, he was finally going to see his future.

The contents of the bowl burst into blue flames, lighting up the entire room as they rose towards the ceiling. The Soothsayer closed her eyes, lost in a trance. "I see…I see…a peacock…"

Shen watched the flames rise even higher, some of them turning pure white and forming into a distinctly familiar shape. His shape. Shen looked to them eagerly. What glory lied in his future now? What great victories did he have yet to achieve?

The Soothsayer froze. Her expression, normally so calm and assured, turned pale. She had seen something she did not expect. "I…I don't understand…"

Shen could barely keep the smug grin off of his beak. There it was. The look he had been waiting for. "My future…has changed, hasn't it?"

But his grin faltered as she stared up into his eyes. This was not a look of defeat, or disappointment, or even regret. It was a look of sheer terror. "It has…" she whispered, "…but it has not changed for the better…"

Before their eyes, the image of the peacock suddenly burst into flames. Shen took a reflexive step back in shock. Even the old goat was surprised, gasping at the sight. The normally blue flames turned into a sickly green, consuming Shen's image right in front of him. He saw his own face cry out in agony, and then it was all gone. The bowl returned to normal like none of it ever happened.

Shen needed a few more seconds to recover from that, then whirled around on the goat frantically. "What was that?! And don't tell me it was this 'warrior of black and white'!"

She shook her head slowly, fearfully. "No…you will no longer be defeated by a warrior of black and white. You will not get the chance." Her expression now turned into a mix of horror and sorrow. "Shen…in three days' time…you will be dead."

Shen's eyes widened in fright and he put a wing over his chest. "I…I don't believe it…"

His face abruptly shifted into a scowl. "You've managed to come up with a prophecy even more absurd than your last. Well done." After all, this was not the first time she had foretold his demise, even if she wasn't so direct about it before. He chuckled to himself, walking towards her. "And let me guess, I am to avert this horrible fate by changing my ways and going down a different path?"

She turned away. "...You are to avert it by leaving the city at once and running far away."

"Of course I am." He rolled his eyes. "You just can't let me be satisfied, can you?"

He saw a flash of anger on her face, another expression he wasn't used to. "I can't let you be killed."

"Killed? Me?" He burst into loud, unpleasant laughter. "Well, if it's not this black and white wonder of yours, then who is it? Who is going to come for my life this time? Nobles? Peasants? Demons?"

"I foresaw...that you will meet your end at the hands of a greater evil."

Shen snorted, unimpressed. "Vague as always, I see. I don't suppose this 'greater evil' has a name?"

"He has many names…though he will soon find he is unable to use them…"

"Enough of this!" Shen threw a knife into the center of her bowl, shattering it into pieces. She had foreseen him doing just that, but it was not for this reason. "I have come too far to be scared away by your ghost stories."

She didn't need to be a seer to know that she was not going to convince him, but she felt compelled to try anyway. "Shen, please listen, I am only trying to keep you safe."

"Safe?" His eyes blazed with fury as he towered over her. "Since when have you ever cared about keeping me safe?! Was it not you who foretold that damned prophecy and got me exiled in the first place?! Tell me Soothsayer, how safe do you think I was spending all those years out in the desolate cold?! How safe do you think I was having to plunder nearby villages just to find enough food to survive?!"

He was wrong of course. It was Shen who had gotten Shen exiled, but she couldn't find the will to argue that now. Her mind was too clouded to even think about it.

She didn't understand. This was not how it was supposed to happen.

But Shen paid no mind to her inner turmoil and continued. "But guess what? I survived, didn't I? I survived, and now I'm back to finish what I started. You just admitted yourself that your original prophecy will not come to pass. Do you know what that means?" He leaned in close, hissing at her. "It means that you were wrong, Soothsayer. And if you were wrong once, I'm willing to bet you will be wrong again. Because nothing is going to keep me from my destiny. Not a panda, not some mysterious boogeyman, and certainly not you."

She did not respond.

For a long time, the two just stared at each other in silence. That silence was broken by the sound of thundering paws coming up the stairs.

"Lord Shen! Lord Shen! I saw a panda!" the Wolf Boss cried.

He could tell instantly that he had missed something. Shen barely even batted an eye.

Footnotes:

To make the timeline clear, this fic kicks off shortly after the beginning of KFP2. So the attack in the Musician's Village has already happened, Thundering Rhino is dead, and the heroes are en-route to Gongmen City right now. There are reasons I did it this way, which will become apparent later. Because needless to say, this is not going to stick to the events of canon for very long.