Suddenly, a loud sound echoed from deeper within the cave.
Mulan spotted a large figure in the distance, its footsteps echoing through the dim cavern.
Mulan instinctively stepped back.
"What's that?" she asked, frightened.
"It's Abu," Aladdin quickly replied. He placed a hand on Mulan's shoulder to stop her from drawing her blade.
He looked into the distance and shouted, "Hey, stop scaring her."
A loud snort echoed through the cave.
"I wasn't trying to."
Abu stepped into the range of the fire torches.
"He... Abu?!" Mulan exclaimed in shock, pointing at him.
He was still dressed in his usual purple attire, but his body had grown significantly, now standing at around two meters tall. His massive muscles rippled with explosive strength and vitality.
Abu stretched his legs before flexing both arms above his head like a bodybuilder.
"Like what you see? I've got more." Abu winked at her as he flexed his calves.
"Ah!!"
Mulan swiftly covered her face in surprise. Her cheeks flushed red.
"Abu?" Aladdin called out.
Abu snorted in annoyance once more and looked ahead.
Carpet clapped for him from behind. At least, he had a friend who understood what a real man meant.
Abu released his technique and returned to his normal form.
"You can open your eyes now," Abu folded his arms as he stared at Mulan in grievance.
Mulan sighed in relief upon seeing that Abu had returned to the cute little monkey she knew. She regretted not closing her eyes sooner and wished she could wash the sight from her mind.
"Please warn me beforehand if something like that ever happens again," Mulan turned to Aladdin.
"Sorry. I didn't think it would be a problem," Aladdin apologised.
He turned to Abu.
"Are you done looking around the area?"
"All clear," Abu nodded.
"That's good," Aladdin said.
Considering the existence of Mushu in China, he didn't want to risk unknowingly trespassing into the territory of a magical beast. Fortunately, there was nothing nearby.
Together, Aladdin and Mulan carried Li Shang down from Carpet and laid him in an empty area near the entrance of the cave that Aladdin had set aside for him.
"We can't wake him up right now?" Mulan asked.
"Not yet. The others need to wake up too. You don't want him anxiously waiting around and worrying while the rest of his men are still unconscious, do you?" Aladdin replied as he knelt beside Li Shang.
He slowly began removing Li Shang's armour.
Mulan helped him as well.
"I think I can heal their injuries and help them recover so they all wake up around the same time."
Aladdin pulled a small sealed wooden jar from within his attire and placed it on the ground beside him.
"Al."
"You can do that too?" Mulan was once again surprised by the myriad mystical items Aladdin possessed.
Aladdin nodded.
"But I'll need some time. Possibly a week to get everything done."
There were over three hundred survivors rescued from the Hun army's camp. He could heal every one of them within a single day if he used his abilities without restraint. However, because he was trying his best not to reveal the true extent of his powers, he deliberately chose to stretch the process over a week.
"Al."
"What is it?" Aladdin turned to Abu, who had been calling him.
"Umm... I think I found him."
Abu pointed at a small red dragon that had slipped out from beneath Li Shang's armour.
Aladdin's eyes widened in astonishment.
"MUSHU!!" Mulan exclaimed. Her expression turned to shock as she scooped him up into her arms.
"Mushu, wake up!"
She gently tapped his cheeks, noticing that the dragon's scales had turned dull, almost as though they were fading to brown.
Aladdin saw that it truly was Mushu, the small red dragon who had accompanied Mulan throughout her journey. It turned out that he had also been affected by the smoke, which was why they hadn't been able to find him.
He wasn't only surprised by Mushu's appearance but also by where they had found him.
Aladdin refocused his gaze on Li Shang.
Does that mean Li Shang is now aware of Mushu's existence?
Mulan soon calmed down, realising that Mushu wouldn't wake up. She looked at Li Shang, realising the repercussions of what had just happened.
Li Shang hadn't reacted to her when she appeared as Ping, so she doubted Mushu had revealed her identity to him. But one question lingered in her mind.
How had Mushu and Li Shang met?
Could it be that Mushu had encountered Li Shang during the raid on the camp and decided to help him so he could, in turn, help her?
"I don't think he's going to wake up," Aladdin said. "He seems to have inhaled the smoke and fallen unconscious like the others. I'll try waking the dragon first before attending to the others ."
"Can you really do that?" Mulan replied, her eyes brimming with hope as she looked at him.
"I can try. I won't make any promises," Aladdin replied, taking Mushu from Mulan and laying him gently on the sheet before him.
"Okay. I trust you."
Mulan nodded. Her trust in Aladdin had grown to the point where she believed he wouldn't lie to her.
As long as he said he could do it, she believed he could.
"Since we're on the same page, let's get to work."
Aladdin rolled up his sleeves.
"I'll help as well."
Mulan removed her armour and rolled up her sleeves.
Aladdin opened the wooden jar and poured a small amount of the viscous white liquid onto Mushu's face. As he gently rubbed it over the dragon's scales, he channelled his magic into Mushu's body.
He sensed that Mushu hadn't sustained any injuries. The magical smoke had simply entered his body, causing him to lose consciousness.
All he needed to do was expel the toxic smoke and allow Mushu's body to recover.
Ash-colored smoke slowly seeped out of Mushu's body and dispersed into the surroundings.
The process required Aladdin's full concentration since he wasn't treating an ordinary beast but a magical one.
Ten minutes later, Mushu's scales returned to their bright red colour, and his body began to twitch.
Aladdin gently opened his small jaws and poured a little of the liquid into his mouth.
The liquid was a revitalisation elixir Aladdin had brewed through alchemy for himself and Abu. It was like drinking a can full of sugar that actually benefited the body.
He had prepared many things with the intention of concealing his true abilities. Although many of those preparations had become unnecessary, he was simply glad that a few of them had proven worthwhile.
After he was finished, Aladdin withdrew his hand and gently laid Mushu back onto the sheet.
He covered him with a piece of cloth.
"That should do it. We can only wait for him to awaken. Unfortunately, I don't know when," Aladdin said.
To Mulan, it looked as though Aladdin had simply poured some magical liquid onto Mushu and healed him.
She didn't try to reason through it. She was simply glad that she had found Mushu.
***
Thirty minutes later...
Mushu finally showed signs of waking up.
"Cough! Cough...!!"
Mushu awoke, trying to spit out the lingering liquid in his mouth.
He looked around.
"Where am I?"
Suddenly, he froze.
"Mulan."
"Wait a minute... I might be seeing things right now."
He rubbed his eyes with his tiny hands.
"This shouldn't be possible."
He looked back in the direction where he had seen Mulan, and to his surprise, she was still there, staring at him.
"Mulan... is that you?" Mushu's voice trembled as he stretched out a hand toward her.
"Yes. It's me. It's Mulan," Mulan replied, gently taking his hand.
"Mulan!!"
Mushu sprang up and leapt into her arms.
"Mushu!!"
Mulan wrapped him tightly in her arms as tears streamed down her face.
"You have no idea how much I missed you. After I left to search the area, I saw the tent collapse. I went to find help because I knew I couldn't rescue you alone. I couldn't find anyone except Li Shang. You should've seen how Cricket and I tried to convince him to rescue you."
Mushu suddenly paused.
"Wait a minute! Where's Cricket? Cricket!!" He looked around frantically.
"Li Shang... why is he?"
He spotted the familiar face lying unconscious on a sheet spread across the ground.
"Oh no."
Mushu jumped down from Mulan's arms and knelt beside Li Shang with a look of horror.
"It shouldn't be like this... It shouldn't have ended like this..."
He began sobbing, believing Li Shang was dead.
"Mushu, Li Shang isn't dead," Mulan quickly said.
"You mean... he's alive?" Mushu turned toward Mulan with a hopeful expression.
"Yes. He's just asleep, like you were. We're waiting for him to wake up," Mulan replied with a nod.
"That's terrific... You're full of surprises, Mulan."
Mushu suddenly paused with his arms outstretched.
"I think I remember something. Cricket was with me, hiding inside Li Shang's armour. He should still be somewhere around here."
Mushu dived into Li Shang's clothing and began rummaging through it.
"Ah... here he is."
He emerged moments later, triumphantly holding a tiny cricket high above his head.
"Mulan, can you heal him too? I hope we're not too late."
Mushu hurried over and gently placed Cricket on the ground before Mulan.
"Mushu..." Mulan called softly.
Seeing her expression, Mushu furrowed his brows.
"What? Don't tell me you can bring a dragon back from the brink but can't do the same for a cricket. Wait a minute... You fought Shan Yu and rescued Li Shang from his grasp. Could it be that you're not Mulan at all, but some shapeshifter who took over her identity after she died?"
As he spoke, Mushu slowly stepped backwards.
"No, that isn't what I meant," Mulan said, shaking both her head and her hands.
"I meant... I wasn't the one who helped you recover."
"Then who did? Don't tell me you climbed Mount Tai and found some healing potions."
Mushu stood with his arms folded, narrowing his gaze at Mulan.
"He did."
Mulan pointed toward Aladdin.
Aladdin, who had been quietly observing the scene, was deeply surprised that Mushu's voice wasn't any different from what he remembered.
A Chinese dragon speaking with the accent of an African American from his former life was strangely quirky.
The moment Mulan pointed at him, prompting the small red dragon to finally notice him, Aladdin raised a hand and waved.
"Hello."
"AHHHH!!!" Mushu screamed in fright and ran to hide behind Mulan.
"If the ancestors find out that I not only revealed myself to the Captain of the Imperial Army but also to a complete stranger... That's if they don't first find out that Mulan died under my watch... It's over... My days as a guardian are numbered."
He collapsed onto his backside, weeping profusely.
Aladdin didn't even have time to respond before all of that transpired. He cleared his throat and introduced himself, "I'm not just any stranger. I'm Aladdin, a young traveller who just stumbled into all of this and decided to help."
He added, "You don't need to worry about your ancestors finding out about me... I'm not ordinary either."
Mushu cautiously peeked out from behind Mulan and scrutinised Aladdin from head to toe.
The purple attire was unlike anything he had ever seen in all his years living in China. Nonetheless, from its design and quality, he could tell that the young man came from a respectable background.
Mushu soon noticed the monkey standing beside him, dressed in similar yet distinct clothing.
Then he noticed Carpet.
Mushu rubbed his eyes. He placed both hands around them like a telescope and stared at Carpet once more.
"AHHH!! A ghost!! I knew it was too good to be true…!!"
Mushu screamed, then collapsed on his knees, weeping. He pulled his face as he continued, "Mulan… Where are you?!! I'm on the other side of life!!"