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Part 4, Scene 20

Peter sat outside the 101st Precinct for an eternity. He had tried to think of every possible alternative for rescuing Kermit, saving Lo Si and bringing Bon Bon Hai to justice. Unfortunately, every plan he thought of ended in disaster. He could not take on the Sing Wah on his own, successfully rescue Kermit and retrieve the information to help cure Lo Si without doing the one thing that the evil man had demanded. . .retrieve the disk.

Taking the disk, however, was not as easy as it sounded. To do that he would have to deceive his friends. He would have to cross the line. He would have to jeopardize right in favor of wrong. It was a choice he hated to make, but one which was unavoidable. Too much was at stake if he failed.

He closed his eyes and made an attempt to calm his nerves and his chi. He failed. The turmoil of the evening weighed heavily on his mind and prevented any possibility of using his Shaolin skills.

Defeated, he climbed out of the Stealth and ascended the stairs of the precinct building. Pushing his way through the heavy wooden doors, he scanned the station for potential witnesses to the crime he was about to commit. Fortunately, it was 3:30 in the morning and the squad room was virtually deserted. A uniformed officer was booking a suspect and the front desk was empty. Captain Simms' office was dark, as was Strenlich's. Peter felt a sense of relief. He could get in and out with the disk and never be spotted.

"Hey, Pete," Sgt. Bill Murphy said from the front desk, startling the ex-cop.

Peter tried to cover his surprise. "Hi, Bill. I didn't see you there."

"Spilled my coffee. Had to clean up the floor," the man responded with a sheepish grin. "Whatcha doing here this time of the morning? I thought only us cops had to keep these hours."

Peter smiled as he walked past the man. "A Shaolin's work is never done." He proceeded to Kermit's office. "I just need to find a program that Kermit said he'd leave for me."

Bill nodded to the man, never questioning the explanation. Peter felt a huge surge of guilt course through his body. He had been awarded with the inherent trust of his friends at the precinct, and now, with this act, he was going to betray them. Throw away everything. Sighing, he resigned himself to the fact that he had no choice. Kermit and Lo Si's lives were more important than his honor. He would do the act, and then live with the consequences later.

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Part 4, Scene 21

Peter was escorted into the dark chamber. A single light shone down on the large chair against the far wall, and on it, the diabolical Sing Wah leader sat, as if sitting on a throne.

"Ah, young Caine. I knew you would come through. You are so dependable. . .and predictable."

Peter's anger surged through his body, but he held his tongue. Bon Bon Hai smiled. "So, where is the disk?"

"Bring me my friend," Peter demanded.

The Asian shook his head. "You think you are in control here? How insolent of you." The man motioned to the shadows. This time, Peter knew what to expect. He threw a knee break kick to his right and connected solidly with the leg of one of the Sing Wah minions, who screamed in pain as he collapsed to the ground. Not stopping the action, the young Shaolin spun around with a roundhouse kick and embedded his boot into the neck of the second attacker. Within seconds, the men were no longer a threat.

"Your skills have improved, Shaolin. I suspected as much. It is good I chose to put my plan in place when I did."

Peter, patience stretched to the limit, couldn't hold his tongue. "Quit the chatter and bring me my friend."

Bon Bon Hai shrugged his shoulders and pointed to the door on the backside of the room. It opened and Kermit was dragged inside, propped up by two Sing Wah assassins. His head slumped forward and his body sagged between the two men.

Without needing to examine him, Peter instantly felt pain. Kermit's injuries extended beyond the head injury he had sustained earlier. Now he suffered from additional wounds.

Peter rushed forward in concern. Two men were suddenly at his side, and this time they held him firmly. The Shaolin fought to extend a hand to his partner, to reassure the injured man of his presence, but the hold on his arms did not waiver.

Bon Bon Hai left his chair and crossed the room to stand between the ex-cop and his friend. "Unfortunately, Mr. Griffin misbehaved. Someone should have told him it was bad manners to attempt to kill a gracious host. He has been taught a lesson." The evil man grabbed the ex-mercenary by the hair and lifted his head so that Peter would have no trouble seeing the swollen and bruised features of the man's face. The ever-present sunglasses were now gone. Kermit's left eye was swollen shut and blood drizzled down from a cut on his temple and blended with red streams from his nose and mouth.

"Damn you!" Peter shouted. "He wasn't to be hurt."

"As I said, he misbehaved. I will not tolerate disobedience. Remember that, Shaolin." Bon Bon Hai turned away and began a return trip to his throne.

Peter, ignoring the restraining hands, charged at the man, his rage overwhelming him. Sensing the attack, Bon Bon Hai spun around and thrust an open palm in the direction of the young man. Peter's progress was halted and his body was lifted off the ground and thrown backwards as if he weighed no more than a rag doll. The wind was knocked from his chest when he collided with the hard floor. He gasped for air, attempting to recover. When he opened his eyes, Bon Bon Hai was standing over him. "As I said, I will not tolerate disobedience."

Peter rolled over onto his stomach and pushed himself back onto shaky feet. He glanced at Kermit. The man raised his head on his own and nodded, doing his best to indicate that he was still in one piece, despite the look of pain on his abused face.

Peter turned to Bon Bon Hai, fire in his eyes. "I could kill you for what you have done," he cursed.

The evil man laughed. "But you won't. You are Shaolin. Your belief dictates that there is always another way. Death is not an acceptable option for you." He paused and then took a step towards the young priest. "Fortunately for me, the Sing Wah do not believe that way. Death is always an option. . .an option that we are only too happy to embrace.

The two goons approached Peter's side a third time. They grabbed him firmly. The priest did not struggle. Kermit was too weak to help in resisting the force they were facing and Peter wanted to do nothing which would jeopardize the injured man's life.

Bon Bon Hai reached out a hand and began to pat down Peter's shirt. He then circled the captive and patted down the Shaolin's back and then ran his hands down the jeans. He felt the disk in the man's pants pocket. Stepping in front of the captive, he smiled. "Give it to me," he whispered.

Peter felt the grip on his right arm loosen. He reached into his back pocket and pulled the disk free. "Here, it's yours." Handing the disk to the Sing Wah leader, he nodded to Kermit. "Now, where's the remedy for the poison?"

Bon Bon Hai laughed. "You are a fool, Shaolin. Do you honestly think I intended to give you the ingredients to save the old man?"

Peter's fury grew to new heights. "Damn it! What's the cure?"

"You're Shaolin, figure it out for yourself," the Asian replied cockily. He turned and headed for his chair. "You believe that I care about this?" The man held up the disk and broke it in half. Peter shook his head in confusion. "You are so naïve," the man explained. "It was never about the disk. It was about how easily I could take your honor from you. . .what it would take to motivate you to do my bidding."

Peter struggled in the combined Sing Wah grip. Bon Bon Hai grinned at the futility of the act. "You want to kill me, don't you Shaolin?" he goaded.

Peter's eyes bore into his enemy's, but he said nothing. The man smiled. "What? You don't? You honestly can exercise restraint?" The man's voice became tinged with a new sound. . .the sound of pure evil. . .the sound of the Dark Warrior.

"You are a coward, nothing more. You allow me to take your honor, the lives of your friends, and yet you do nothing to stop me. I thought you to be a threat. I now see that the Caine line is no longer a menace to me. You are but a mere shadow of your father, nothing more. When he is gone, I will have won."

Peter held his ground, using every once of his will not to allow his anger to take over. He knew that only by remaining calm did he have a chance of freeing Kermit.

"Hmmm," the man continued. "Perhaps the proper motivation is needed. It's quite obvious to me that losing the life of the Ancient does not matter to you. But your friend, here, is a different story." Bon Bon Hai turned to the men holding Kermit. "Take him from here and kill him. Bring his body back to me when the last drop of blood has been drained from it."

The horrifying words cut into Peter's heart and soul. Losing all control, he screamed at the top of his lungs, "NO!"

Blind rage overtook him. Gaining the strength of ten, he flung off the Sing Wah restraining him. They flew across the room and slammed into the walls, collapsing to the floor, lifeless. Bon Bon Hai, housing the evil of the Dark Warrior, laughed. But Peter didn't hear the taunting.

The ex-cop turned to help Kermit, but found his friend had already disappeared from the room, and he had no idea where he had been taken. He and Bon Bon Hai were alone. Peter rushed to the Asian man and flung himself at him in a full tackle. The man did not fight back. The force of Peter's weight hitting him caused both men to fall to the floor in a tangle of arms and legs. Peter's fury gave him the strength of ten and allowed him to position himself on top of the man and within seconds his hands had worked their way around the Tiger's throat.

Looking into the evil black eyes of his enemy, Peter's stomach churned when the man continued to smile at him, even though the life was slowly being squeezed out.

"Where did you take him?" Peter screamed.

The man still grinned. "To his death. His blood is on your hands. . .on your conscience," he croaked.

Peter wanted nothing more than to wipe the diabolical grin from the man's face. He released one hand from the man's throat and raised a clenched fist above his head, preparing to strike the man in the vulnerable windpipe.

Suddenly, his hand was frozen in mid-air by a stronger one gripping his wrist. Furious at the interruption, Peter released Bon Bon Hai's throat and brought his other hand up in an effort to fight off the new arrival. Spinning around, he threw a punch, and found it easily avoided by. . .

"Pop?!?" The word left Peter's lips, the tone of his voice revealing his surprise.

"Peter, you must not," the calm voice of the Shambhala master whispered.

"You're here? How. . .?" Peter asked, amazed. Then realizing the desperate situation, he turned his attention back to the man lying before him. "Damn it, where's Kermit."

Bon Bon Hai looked from father to son and shrugged. "Dead by now."

Peter's anger surged again and he raised his fist preparing to bring it down in a deathblow. Then his fist was stopped again, only this time there was no restraining hand on his. The air itself had frozen it in place. Peter knew the source of the resistance. "Father, release me," he growled.

"Peter!" Kwai Chang Caine shouted. "You cannot do this!"

Peter ignored his father and consciously pushed his fist towards its target. "Peter, NO!" the voice shouted again. "It is fulfilling his plan!"

Then a second, familiar voice joined his father's. "Peter, I'm okay. Caine found me."

The sound of Kermit's voice caused Peter to glance away from his target and look for the source. The ex-mercenary was kneeling next to Kwai Chang Caine, holding his side tightly with his right hand and breathing heavily through swollen lips, bloody saliva drizzling down his chin. He gasped in pain, closing his eyes against the tremor in his body, and then forced himself to recover. "I'm okay, kid."

Peter looked from Kermit to Caine to Bon Bon Hai on the floor. His raised fist was still in the air, but he no longer fought to deliver the strike. Flooded with conflicting emotions, the clenched fist began to shake, as did the rest of his body. "Father. . .I. . .I. . ." he stumbled. He looked at the evil man again and then back at Caine. "He. . .he's killing Lo Si. . .He was going to kill Kermit. He. . .he cannot live."

Caine shook his head. "Peter, I know what you are feeling. I, too, have felt the anger and pain you feel. But there is another way. There has to be another way. Death. . .killing. . .will not take the evil away. It will only allow it to grow."

Caine stepped forward and shot a hard look at the Sing Wah leader. "That was your plan all along, was it not? My son was to become the new weapon of the Dark Warrior. If he killed in cold blood, you would have what you would need to allow the Dark Warrior to live in him. He would have stepped off his path of light into permanent darkness."

Bon Bon Hai said nothing. Peter's eyes shot between the two men. "What?"

"It was never about a disk, or the Ancient, or Kermit. It was about hate. He needed you to disavow your beliefs, to leave the light and willingly walk into the shadows. You would become his weapon, a weapon which could ultimately be used to defeat me. You are my vulnerability."

Caine placed a soft hand on his son's shoulder and lowered the clenched fist to his side. "My son, death does not defeat evil. It only allows it to grow. I have learned that through the mistakes I have made, through the mistakes our line has made. My grandfather killed the emperor's nephew to avenge evil. But it did nothing to take evil away. I, myself, attempted to wipe out the evil of Master Dao. . .Tan. But I did not succeed. With his death, evil survived. . .transferred to another. If you kill Bon Bon Hai, you will not destroy the evil that fills him. It will survive and transfer to live in another. . .and then another. . .and then another. . .and eventually it will consume you." Caine crouched next to the younger man. "That is why there must be another way."

Peter closed his eyes. He heard the words, but the anger was so pervasive. He didn't know if he had the strength to bottle it back inside. . .to walk away from the man who had brought so much pain to others.

Caine felt the internal struggle within his son. He squeezed the man's arm. "Peter, please, I ask you, one Shaolin to another, do not kill this man. Walk away. Leave him to the fates."

Peter turned his eyes to his father's. "One Shaolin to another?"

"Yes, my son. As I have said before, you are now the master. You are the newest leader for this community. Please, do what is right. . .do what you know to be right in your heart. Do not let this man destroy all you have worked for."

Peter's gaze dropped to Bon Bon Hai, who still lay on his back. He felt a surge of peace course through his body, replacing the anger and hate. He turned back to his father and nodded slowly. Rising, he said nothing. Instead, he turned and approached Kermit, who had collapsed prone onto the floor, wheezing and visibly in pain from numerous injuries. Kneeling down next to the dark-suited man, Peter lifted Kermit to his feet, allowing the ex-mercenary to lean heavily against him.

The sound of many footsteps echoed in the hallway. Peter prepared himself to return Kermit to the ground, fearing another battle was near. He was pleasantly surprised when uniformed officers rushed into the room, followed by a trench coat-wearing Captain Karen Simms.

The reinforcements wasted no time in taking Bon Bon Hai and his associates into custody. The evil man shot a look of death at Peter Caine and his father. "This is not over. I know your weakness, Shaolin. We will meet again, and next time, you will not be so lucky." The Sing Wah leader was then led out of the room, handcuffs secured on his wrists.

Karen Simms spotted the injured detective, her lover, being supported protectively by Peter. She rushed forward, fighting to keep her face as unemotional as possible. She approached the two men and looked at Kermit's features. Her warm, gentle hand made contact with his cool, limp one. "How bad is he?" She released the flaccid fingers and moved her hand to caress an uninjured spot on his face.

Peter shook his head. "He's hurting. We need to get him to a hospital."

Kermit lifted his head, eyes fluttering open, trying to give the woman a cocky, self-assured smile. He failed miserably when it ended in a grimace.

Karen felt an explosion of fear in the pit of her stomach. "An ambulance is already outside."

Suddenly, Kermit's knees buckled as he passed out from the pain, but his body never hit the floor. Instinctively, Peter was prepared. He grasped the man in his arms and lifted him, carrying his friend from the room of evil.

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Epilogue

Peter and Dr. Sabourin watched as Kwai Chang Caine dropped the last of the herbs in the Ancient's mouth. "Will he be okay?" Peter whispered.

The older Caine nodded. "In time, yes."

Peter breathed a sigh of relief. He turned to Dr. Sabourin. "How about Kermit?"

The doctor smiled and shrugged. "He's going to be very sore for a while. He has two broken ribs and a punctured lung, deep bruising to his abdomen, chest, back and face, not to mention five stitches on his temple. I'm going to keep him in the hospital for a few days."

"He'll hate that." Peter grinned at the woman.

"I've already had to sedate him. He tried walking out of the ER a few minutes ago. He didn't make it three feet before he collapsed." The woman shook her head in amazement.

Caine turned to the doctor. "He is coming around. He will need plenty of liquids and rest. He should stay here until he is stronger."

The doctor nodded. "No problem. I'll make sure he does."

Caine smiled at the woman. He then looked at his son, reached out a hand and pulled the younger man to him in a fierce hug. "I have missed you, my son."

Peter, surprised by his father's reaction, hesitated with a response at first, and then allowed himself to be pulled in, immediately returning the hard squeeze with one of his own. "I've missed you too."

Caine guided his son towards the door and into the hallway. "We have much to talk about."

Peter dropped his head, averting his eyes. "I'm sorry, Father. I failed. It's just that. . .I don't think that I. . .I shouldn't have ever agreed to these." He held up his wrists, displaying the tattoos of the tiger and dragon. He paused for a moment and then completed his thought. "I don't deserve them."

Caine shook his head and gave a warm smile to his child. "Why do you think you have failed?"

"Gee, where do I start?" Peter answered spitefully. "I betrayed my friends. I hurt Kermit. Worse yet, I. . I wanted to kill Bon Bon Hai. More than anything in the world, I wanted to kill that man. That's not very Shaolin-like."

Caine shook his head, letting a small laugh escape. "No. . .but it is very human-like."

He led his son to the exterior of the hospital, finding a park bench near the front entrance, where they could sit and watch the sunrise. Caine sat and motioned his son to do the same. "You believe that because you sought vengeance, you failed."

Peter nodded, too ashamed to answer. "Peter, do you know how many times I wanted vengeance on Dao for what he did to the temple. . .and to you? For what he took from me?" The man shook his head. "And I had many more years experience at being Shaolin than you have had, my son." He reached a hand for Peter's and grasped it tightly. "You did not fail. You succeeded. You fought temptation and won. You did not step off the path of light."

Peter closed his eyes, trying not to doubt his father's words. "Why. . .why did he do this?"

"To conquer what is good. That is always evil's purpose," Caine answered simply.

Peter sighed, squeezing his father's hand affectionately. "I'm glad you came back, Pop. I would have killed him. I know that."

Caine shrugged. "Perhaps. Perhaps not."

Peter looked into the warm brown eyes. "You didn't find Mother, did you?"

Caine thought long and hard about his answer. "I did not find her physical being. But I did find something of her."

"What?" Peter frowned, confused.

"I found her essence again."

"Her essence?"

"Yes. In you." Questioning hazel eyes met his brown ones. "Your grandfather made me realize something that I had chosen to ignore. In searching for my wife, I walked away from everything about her that I loved. For she is in you, my son. I needed to look no further than here," Caine released Peter's hand as he placed his own over his son's heart, "to find her."

Peter felt his throat choke with emotion. He placed his hand over his father's, holding it to his chest. Caine savored the feel of his child's beating heart against his palm. "She could be alive."

"Perhaps," Caine agreed.

"You should try to find her," Peter prodded.

"I tried. I did not succeed. I must wait for her to come to me. As you did. As my father did." Caine smiled, remembering his father's words. "I can choose to either live my life in the past, or I can live for the future. I choose the future. I choose you." The father's hand slowly moved from his son's chest to his cheek, the touch hesitant at first and then more assured. Peter leaned into the callused hand, realizing how much he had missed the safety and love that the touch symbolized.

Caine looked into the hazel eyes of his child. He smiled at the affection he saw in the gaze. Removing his hand, he turned serious. "I must apologize to you, my son. I was negligent. I ignored my obligations to you. . .to this community."

"Look, Pop. . ." Peter started to protest, fighting a twinge of guilt.

"No, Peter, please let me finish. When I took my brands, I was given the choice on how to grow. . .how to learn what they meant to me. My Master helped me in that decision. The same is true of my father, and of his father. But I did not give you that opportunity. When you took the brands, I did not give you the choice of determining what you needed to do to make them yours. You were forced to take on the responsibilities I left behind. I abandoned them. . .I abandoned you." Caine was silent for a moment. He closed his eyes. "Can you forgive me?"

Peter's mouth was agape, guilt overwhelming him. "There's nothing to forgive. I'm a big boy now. I should be able to find my path on my own. What happened last night was my failure, not yours."

"I am not speaking of last night. I am speaking of the time since I left." Caine stood and looked down at his son, hands folded in front of him. "My son, I now ask you for your permission to help you with the task ahead."

"The task?"

"Yes. To guide you to your next level of awareness. May I assist you with that?"

"Yeah. . .but. . .I'm not sure that. . ." Peter stumbled. He swallowed and then gathered his thoughts. "I'm not sure you're gonna want the job. You see, Pop. . .Dad. . .a lot of things have changed since you left. I didn't just sit back and try to live your life. I couldn't. I realized pretty early on that I wasn't you. I've made decisions about my future. . .how I have to live with these." He held up his wrists. "I don't think you're going to like what I've come up with."

Caine smiled at the young man, his pride overflowing. "Nothing you could ever do could disappoint me. The fact that you have moved on, despite my failures, brings me great joy."

"I moved on because of what you gave to me. You gave me the independence to find out who I was. . .what the brands meant to me. I don't think I could have done that if you had been here."

Caine's grin grew wider. Peter pushed himself off the bench and Caine's arm was suddenly around his shoulders, pulling him near. "Perhaps you could show me what you have learned. Lo Si tells me that you have been working very diligently at learning the role of an apothecary."

"He said that?" Peter's surprise was evident. "Huh. I wouldn't believe everything he tells you, Pop." Caine laughed as he and his son made their way back into the hospital. "It is good to have you home. . .Dad," Peter whispered.

"It is good to be home, my son."

End