"Mushu," Mulan called out.
Mushu looked up and shouted, "Mulan, I can hear your voice... Don't come into the light!"
"Mushu, I'm not dead."
She grabbed him and turned him around to face her.
"Mulan... is that you?" Mushu's expression shifted to surprise.
"Yes, it's me."
Mulan sighed and rubbed her temples, then nodded.
"Miss Man, I thought you were dead. It's good that you aren't. I'm glad to see you're okay."
Mushu gently tapped his chest. "I almost thought I was seeing a ghost for a minute there."
"It's not a ghost."
Mulan turned Mushu toward Aladdin, Carpet, and Abu.
"AHH!! A floating carpet...!" Mushu shut his eyes and screamed.
Unable to remain on the sidelines any longer, Aladdin spoke, "Ahem. Carpet isn't a ghost; he's real."
He gestured toward Carpet.
Completely unbothered by Mushu's reaction, Carpet floated over and gently rubbed his tassels across Mushu's head.
"Hey! Get your fluffy hands off me! I'll mess you up with my overpowering dragon breath if you come any closer. I'm warning you!" Mushu slapped Carpet's tassels away.
"Huh... You're real. A floating carpet... Never thought I'd ever say those words or see one in my entire life."
Mushu finally looked directly at Carpet, scrutinising him. He hopped down from Mulan's arms and walked around Carpet with an inquisitive expression.
"You can talk?" Mushu asked.
Carpet's edges nodded.
His movements produced soft jingling sounds that echoed throughout the cave.
"You can understand people and move like a human. Incredible!" Mushu stopped in front of Carpet.
He turned toward Mulan, "Where did you get this thing? If I bring a couple back home, your ancestors will finally get me off the hooks... I mean, I'll finally get a day off."
"It's him," Mulan gestured toward Aladdin.
Mushu turned to Aladdin and walked over.
"Hello, stranger. I'm Mushu, guardian of the Fa Family, now serving as Mulan's guardian. Thank you for saving her. You have my respect."
He stretched out a hand for a handshake.
Aladdin smiled and shook it.
"It was nothing. I only did what any sensible person would have done."
"How about we improve our relationship by selling that flying magic carpet to me? I'll become the guardian of whatever family you come from. I don't usually make offers like this, but you seem like a good man."
"Carpet isn't for sale. He's part of my family too," Aladdin replied.
Mushu furrowed his brows as he shifted his gaze between Aladdin and Carpet, trying to understand what he meant.
Yet he couldn't figure out whether Aladdin and Carpet were brothers or where exactly Carpet fit into the family tree. He quickly shook the thought from his mind before it became even more confusing.
"Okay. Families aren't for sale. I understand," Mushu replied. "You mentioned that you weren't ordinary. I don't think there's anything more extraordinary than talking with the powerful Mushu... me. Mind explaining what you meant?"
Mulan gently slapped her forehead and shook her head.
Aladdin chuckled. Before he could answer, Abu stepped forward.
"And what makes you think you're extraordinary, lizard?" he asked.
"Lizard?" Mushu pointed at himself. "Am I the only one seeing this, or is that monkey talking to me?"
He pointed at Abu while shifting his gaze between Mulan and Aladdin.
"This is Abu," Aladdin introduced.
"Abu," Mushu let the name settle in his mouth before walking toward Abu with a confident stride.
"Listen here, monkey. I don't know who you are, where you came from, or how you can speak. But I'm very sure I'm far older than your entire ancestral line put together. So speak to me with some respect, or else I'll send you back to the Ice Age."
Abu didn't fully understand Mushu's words, but he guessed the dragon was mocking him.
"Oh yeah?"
He stepped forward until he was only an inch away from Mushu.
"Oh yeah?"
Mushu bumped his chest against Abu's and stood on his tiptoes to match his height.
Suddenly, something amazing happened.
Abu's body began to bulge and grow larger. He didn't stop until he stood over two meters tall.
"Oh no."
Mushu fell onto his backside.
Abu looked down at Mushu with a confident expression before grabbing him and lifting him clean off his feet.
"Calm down, monkey!" Mushu shouted, sweating profusely. He turned toward Mulan and yelled,"Mulan! Come help me talk some sense into this gentleman... Quickly, before he turns me into floor paste!"
Mulan sighed for what felt like the umpteenth time.
"Don't scare him like that, Abu."
She walked over and gently took Mushu from Abu's grasp.
Mushu climbed onto Mulan's shoulder and quickly hid behind her back.
"I've never been so insulted and disrespected in my life. Mulan, avenge me... Deal with that monkey!" He pointed at Abu as he shouted in indignation.
"No one is going to harm anybody. Let's calm down and talk," Aladdin said, stepping forward.
Mulan nodded in agreement.
Abu shrank back to his normal size and climbed onto Aladdin's shoulder. He looked at Mushu and slowly drew a finger across his throat as if slicing it.
"Ehh..." Mushu ducked even farther behind Mulan until his entire body disappeared from view. He clutched his chest and breathed heavily.
Twenty minutes later...
Aladdin explained everything to Mushu, from how they had rescued Mulan to discovering Shan Yu's camp and formulating a plan to rescue Li Shang and the remaining survivors.
He had also used the opportunity to heal and awaken Cricket.
The little cricket stood off to the side, silently observing the entire conversation.
"Oh yeah... I remember hearing Mulan's voice before I went unconscious. I thought it had all been a dream," Mushu scratched the back of his head with an apologetic expression.
"I apologise for my manners."
"It's nothing. I'm just glad we're all on the same page now. Aren't I right, Abu?" Aladdin glanced toward Abu.
Abu reluctantly nodded.
He had been looking forward to testing his skills against a dragon. Unfortunately, the dragon had turned out to be a coward.
"What do we do next?" Mushu asked.
"We heal Li Shang and the others so they can wake up as well," Aladdin replied.
"And then?"
"So they can head to the capital and warn the Emperor about Shan Yu and his army."
"That's a good plan," Mushu nodded.
"If you don't mind me asking, how did you bring more than three hundred men out from right under Shan Yu's nose and all the way up a mountain?"
"I have a few magical items that helped me accomplish it," Aladdin replied.
"Can I see some of them? Please?" Mushu pleaded.
"I can't show them to you right now. How about next time, after we're done with all of this?"
"Okay. It's a deal," Mushu stretched out his hand for a handshake.
Aladdin shook it.
"Now I'm going to leave you guys to heal the rest of the soldiers while I head outside to get some fresh air and bond with Carpet. I hope you don't mind?" Mushu asked.
"Go ahead," Aladdin replied. "But don't wander too far away."
"Yes," Mushu whispered quietly. "Come on, Cricket. Let's go secure the premises."
Cricket leapt onto his shoulder.
Mushu stopped in front of Carpet.
"So how do we do this?" he asked curiously.
Carpet lowered himself to their level, then formed a small staircase with his lower edge. He gestured with his tassels for them to hop on.
"What a gentleman."
Mushu climbed the stairs and sat atop Carpet.
Cricket hopped down and bounced around Carpet curiously.
"Settle down, Cricket. We're about to take off."
Mushu held onto Carpet as they slowly rose into the air.
Cricket clung closer to Mushu.
"Woohoo!!"
Together, they soared out of the cave and shot into the sky.
"Was that a good idea?" Abu turned to Aladdin and asked.
"I don't know, but it's better than letting him stay here. Otherwise, we might not be able to make any progress," Aladdin replied with a sigh.
He finally understood why Mushu hadn't been sent to bring Mulan back home after she had run away. If he were Mulan, he would think his ancestors didn't love him very much.
Mulan, who had been quietly listening to their conversation, chimed in, "I'm sorry about Mushu. He doesn't always know how to behave."
"It's no problem. He's an energetic little dragon," Aladdin replied, waving his hand absentmindedly.
Mulan was relieved that Aladdin wasn't annoyed by Mushu's antics.
She nodded.
"So Mulan is your real name?" Aladdin took the opportunity to ask after a brief silence.
Mulan froze. But remembering that Mushu had already revealed everything, she closed her eyes with a sigh, her shoulders slumping in defeat.
"Yes. My real name isn't Ping. It's Fa Mulan."
"A beautiful name. Do you have a reason for hiding it from me?"
"The Chinese military only accepts men. Women are forbidden from joining the army. It would be a death sentence if they discovered that I, a woman, disguised myself to enlist," Mulan replied. "It would bring dishonour upon my family. So please... I hope you can keep this a secret."
"But you saved their lives."
"It wouldn't matter because I broke the rules. Besides, I didn't rescue them alone. You did most of the work."
Silence settled over them as Aladdin rubbed the liquid onto Li Shang's face.
"Okay. I'll keep it a secret. You owe me one," Aladdin replied.
"Thank you," Mulan breathed a sigh of relief. She had been worried that Aladdin would be angry about her deception. However, he seemed understanding of her situation and didn't take it to heart.
Aladdin nodded.
"Let's get back to work."
***
Shan Yu slowly awoke from his slumber.
Pain coursed through his body, forcing him to collapse back onto the ground. He pushed himself up once more before rolling onto his back.
The sun had already set.
The pale moon hung high in the night sky, casting its gentle light across the land.
Shan Yu's sword was still clutched tightly in his hand.
This was the first time he had suffered defeat.
"SCREE!! SCREE!!"
A large bird of prey circled overhead.
It was a great falcon.
As though sensing he had awakened, the bird swooped down and landed beside him. It rubbed its feathered head affectionately against his.
"Hayabusa... It's good to see you made it," Shan Yu said, gently stroking the falcon's head.
"How about the others? Are there any survivors?" he asked.
Hayabusa screeched toward the night sky.
"I see..." Shan Yu muttered.
Regaining control of his body, he slowly sat upright. He looked around and saw that his men were also beginning to wake. Some of them were still asleep. A few of them remained unconscious.
Seeing the pieces of flesh clinging to the corners of the falcon's beak, Shan Yu realised that it had been protecting him and the others while they were unconscious.
"You've done well, Hayabusa."
He gently stroked the falcon's feathers.
"We need to find them. Can you track where they went?" Shan Yu asked.
The bird looked in a certain direction and screeched.
"Good."
Shan Yu was satisfied with his companion's competence.
Remembering everything that had happened, including the unknown soldier who had infiltrated their camp and the strange smoke that had somehow rendered all of them unconscious, he wanted nothing more than to find whoever was responsible and crush them.
He slowly clenched his fist. He could not let this go, especially since they were responsible for his daily torment. He would make them pay.
As Shan Yu gathered his strength and slowly rose to his feet, he couldn't help but put his thoughts into words while rallying his men after the defeat they had suffered.
A surge of emotion welled up inside him. He spoke.
[Again.
I saw it again.]
[In sleep...
I die.]
He rose fully to his feet and walked forward.
[Something's waiting...
Good.
Now I know where to look.
Soldiers!]
[Yes!]
The soldiers gathered around him, supporting one another as they joined him with renewed resolve.
[The Hunt…
Begins.]
Together, they walked toward their stables.
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