Okay, prepare yourself. This is pretty long. 8)

P.S.--Myla is my own charrie
~~~~~~~~

Xiaolin Showdown
By Aramel

Chapter 1

The young warrior stood upon the field, sword drawn. Her eyes closed as she raised the sword to her face. Rain poured down upon her, but her concentration was fixed on the task ahead. Lightning lit the grey sky and thunder rumbled in the distance. She remembered what Master Fung had told her, and slowly opened her eyes to stare at the targets.

With a swift movement, she threw the sword through the air and nailed the target. The metal hit the wood and sent small splinters flying. Bulls eye.

“Whoo! All right, Myla!” Kimiko, Raimundo, Clay, and Omi cheered.

“You got a Taurus Face!” Omi smiled.

“ ‘Bulls eye’,” Raimundo corrected.

Myla walked over and removed the sword from the wood and placed it in her sheathe.
“You really think I did good?”

“Dern good,” Clay replied in his Southern accent.

“Yes,” Master Fung agreed, “That was one of your better training sessions.”

Another bolt of lightning split the sky, followed by a booming crash of thunder.

“Come in, my Xiaolin Dragons. The weather is terrible. Get inside before you all get sick.”

Myla pulled her brunette hair back into a ponytail before wiping the sweat and rain off of her face under the dry porch. She had worked long and hard today and was glad Master Fung had called them in. It was time to eat, anyway.

~~~~~~~

Kimiko sat on the top bunk of the bunk bed. She was talking to Keiko on her cell phone. Myla laid on the bottom bunk. She turned over and closed her eyes as Kimiko hung up the phone and laid down too.

“So, what did Master Fung want to talk to you about?” Kimiko questioned, referring to earlier.

Myla closed her eyes and remembered. Master Fung had pulled her aside to discuss a very important matter. It was something that Myla had waited for since she became an apprentice.

Myla was graduating to become a Xiaolin Warrior, which meant she would have to live away from the apprentices and move on from the Xiaolin Temple to protect the world from Wuya’s evil.

She hated the thought, but loved the opportunity.

“You know how I’ve been here for a while, Kimiko?”

“Yeah, what about it?”

“Well, I’m graduating soon to become a real Xiaolin Warrior.”

Kimiko’s eyes sparkled. “That’s fantastic news!”

“It would be…”

“What do you mean?” Kimiko asked, coming down from her bunk to look at Myla.

She sighed and looked away. “It means I’m going to be leaving the Xiaolin Temple. Leaving forever and never coming back.”

“What?!” Kimiko was shocked. “But…where will you go?”

“Somewhere else…” Myla shook her head. “I don’t want to leave, but I don’t want to stay either…”

“This is such an amazing opportunity, Myla, but we’re your best friends.”

“I know…and that’s why you have to keep this a secret. I don’t want to let the others know. They’re going to make such a big deal about it. Besides, I want to spend my last few weeks here with you all and teach you what I know.”

Kimiko was speechless.

Myla turned over. “Don’t worry about it, Kim. Just get some sleep.”

Kimiko nodded and climbed the ladder to the top bunk. She climbed under the covers and rested her head. Kimiko couldn’t believe what Myla had just told her. She had known Myla for the longest time; ever since she arrived at the Xiaolin Temple and met Myla. And now one of her close friends would be leaving…

Kimiko turned over and closed her eyes, trying to get some sleep. She wanted to help her best friend, but she feared there could be no solution to this problem. Either Myla would leave and be sad, or stay and be sad. Kimiko could find no answer, so instead she rolled over and went to sleep.

~~~~~~

Kimiko yawned and sat up, blinking in the dim sunlight. Myla was over in the other corner of the room putting her hair in a bun with a blue ribbon.

“Good morning, Kim,” Myla said, turning around on the stool.

“So this isn’t a dream,” Kimiko clarified.

“Look, I know you’re having trouble accepting this. Believe me, I am too.”

Just then, a loud knock came at the door and Raimundo’s angry voice.

“Kimiko! Myla!” He exclaimed.

Myla opened the door and looked at him. “What is it, Rai?”

“Where are Omi and Clay?” Raimundo questioned, infuriated. He held a small furry object in his hand. “They put this in my bed!”

He lifted up the object and showed it to the girls. Both Kimiko and Myla’s faces brightened.

“A puppy!” They exclaimed simultaneously. Myla grabbed it out of his hands to get a better look.

The fuzzy puppy was black with a little white mark on its tail. It smelled just like a little puppy should.

The girls smiled as the little sweetie yawned and closed her eyes, resting her little head against Myla.

“What’s this?” Myla questioned, noticing the dog’s collar. It had a yellow tag with a red swirl on it.

“Hmm…where have we seen that mark before?” Kimiko asked. Both recognized it, but couldn’t remember.

“Who cares? That mutt had an accident on my bed,” Raimundo retorted.

“Aww, Rai, don’t be mad at the little girl,” Myla replied.

“We should give her a name!” Kimiko said.

“How about Retard?” Raimundo mocked.

“That wasn’t nice,” Myla frowned. “And besides, we should probably run this by Master Fung first, before we go on naming it.”

“What’s the point of keeping the thing anyway? All it does is eat, sleep, and leave nasty surprises.”

Myla leaned down and let the puppy lick Raimundo’s nose. “How can you resist that?”

For a second, Raimundo smiled. “Alright. Let’s go ask Master Fung.”

~~~~~~

“You can only keep her if you all promise to take care of her and clean up her messes,” Master Fung stated.

“Deal!” Clay, Raimundo, Omi, Kimiko, and Myla chimed in.

“Alright, my Xiaolin Dragons. We should name her.”

“Chi!” Omi shouted.

“Belle!” Clay bellowed.

“Moonfire!” Raimundo exclaimed.

“Kye!” Kimiko chimed.

“Shadow!” Myla cried.

“Calm down, everyone,” Master Fung commanded. They were quiet. “Why don’t we blend those five names? Moonshadow Belle Kyechi?”

“Or, what if we just call her Moonshadow Kyechi?” Myla suggested.

“Ooh, I like that!” Omi replied. “It is so, off and over the brick wall!”

“ ‘Off the wall’,” Raimundo corrected.

“Yes, that too,” Omi smiled.
~~~~~~

The Xiaolin Dragons and Master Fung sat down around the table to eat their supper that night. Next to the table was Moonshadow Kyechi. She had a large red bowl filled with dog food, and a large bowl of water, and whenever she would eat, she would almost fall into the bowl.

Everyone was in good spirits as Clay and Omi explained how they had found Moonshadow Kyechi and laughed about how they put her in Raimundo’s bed and scared the living daylights out of him.

Between the laughter, Myla would turn away and think about how she was going to be leaving the Xiaolin Temple and all of her friends. So far, Kimiko and Master Fung were the only ones who knew about her graduation. She hadn’t told the boys.

Kimiko saw Myla’s expression and remembered that this would be one of the last evening meals they would have together before Myla was leaving. The graduation was in three weeks. There wasn’t much time.

“Myla, isn’t there something you would like to share with us all this evening?” Master Fung inquired.

Myla sighed and placed her fork on her plate before speaking. “There is, Master Fung.”

Everyone looked up waiting for her to continue.

“In three weeks, I am going to be graduating from the Xiaolin Temple to become a Xiaolin Warrior.”

“Wow! That’s amazing!” Raimundo exclaimed.

“Great job, Myla!”

“Then you can teach us all of your new warrior moves!” Omi smiled.

“Well...not exactly...” They grew quiet until Raimundo broke the silence.

“Well, why not?” He asked.

Myla heaved a heavy sigh. “I’m going to be leaving the Xiaolin Temple--forever...”

“What?” The boys said in unison.

“I’m going to be traveling far away to protect the rest of the world from Wuya’s evil,” Myla explained. “And I’m not coming back.”

“But--” Omi was hardly ever sad, but this dismayed him.

“Look, I’m not really hungry,” Myla softly replied, pushing her bowl away. She then stood up from the table and left the room.

Master Fung followed her.

~~~~~~

Myla stopped in front of one of the temple windows and looked outside. The rain continued to fall. Just like the tears on her face.

She really didn’t want to leave, but there was a whole world of opportunities for her...so many things she could do.

But then there were her friends; Omi, Clay, Raimundo, Kimiko, and Dojo.

Myla heard footsteps behind her and tried desperately to wipe away her tears. Master Fung placed a hand on her shoulder.

“Do not cry, my Xiaolin Dragon. You have lifted the heaviest of burdens from your heart,” He said, trying to comfort her.

Myla looked away, her eyes filling with fresh tears. “I don’t want to leave,” She explained with tears flooding down her face. “But I can’t stay. I am going to miss my friends if I leave, but I’m going to miss so many new opportunities, too...Master Fung, what should I do?”

“Do what you feel is right,” Master Fung sighed. “No one is going to make the choice for you.”

Myla sniffed and wiped her tears on the sleeve of her shirt. “Yes, you’re right. I’m going to go think this over in the meditation temple. Please, do not let anyone bother me.”

“Go sort out your problems,” He said. “I will go talk to the others.”

“Thanks Master Fung,” Myla replied. She left the hallway and went out to the Meditation Temple.

~~~~~~

That's all I have for now... If you need any clarification, I'll answer your questions.