"Ah, we meet again, friend,"

When Joshua heard this voice, he was taken aback.

In the amount of years that he was alive, no voice too sweet nor too rough, no tone too high or low, nothing compared to the delivery of what was said. He looked around. Joshua didn't see the body of the one who had spoken.

There was nothing but his soul.

Suddenly, the figure appeared. It looked human, but its height was bordering on the line of absurdity. Joshua only saw a silhouette. No eyes, no mouth, no skin, but only the tall image of such an uncanny individual.

"Apologies, for my appearance," He heard the voice again, but this time it came from this thing, "the human mind cannot decipher such a sight as mine,"

Joshua stared in awe.

Who was this guy? Why was it speaking in such an informal way to him, as if it had met him before? Most importantly, what was he?

"Who...are you?" Joshua's voice cracked out after a nervous exhale, "Where am I?"

For a moment, he felt the gaze of the creature press him to his core, so much so that Joshua coughed hard as if he had no air in his lungs. A second later, the pressure lifted. He now felt a gaze that was oddly soft and comforting, like snuggling under the blankets of a warm bed.

"I am a being, an all-powerful entity," It answered, its voice calm and welcoming, "and I have summoned you here after your death,"

Joshua cringed.

"...So I did die," He spoke, feeling his insides tighten with disappointment, "I...left them all...and everything I have known..."

"You seem at peace, if I may say," Joshua looked at the creature again after he heard this, "you've gone through it well,"

"But, let's forget about that," It continued, "I have an experiment that I'd like you to take part in,"

Joshua stared in both curiosity and shock. How could he just forget about everything, about his moments of success and failure, and just about what he knew? His now pounding heart quelled.

Perhaps that was the better option?

"What is this 'experiment' you speak of?"

"Well, Joshua," It replied, making sure to say his name with much deliverance, "you humans are so...unconventional in the way one expresses happiness,"

He stared at the being in confusion.

"Entertainment!" It elaborated, moving its lengthy arms as it spoke, "You know? Books, films, video games? Right? Right?"

The way the being spoke with such friendliness took him off guard, so Joshua could only nod.

"In simpler terms, I'm going to reincarnate you into another world I made, an alternate universe, you could call it," In front of the figure, manifested an almost round and transparent sphere, "in this world, holds a continuity to one of these 'franchises' that many love so dear,"

"The one they call, Kung Fu Panda,"

Hearing those words brought a wave of nostalgia to Joshua. It had been so long since he had heard of that name, let alone watched any of the movies. However, he also knew of the fourth movie but didn't watch it. The reason? He spoiled it for himself.

Why? Word of mouth.

"So, your job, or rebirth-" The being paused its monologue that Joshua was so invested in, and looked up from the sphere at him, "-is simple,"

It grumbled a moment as if it were trying to find the right words.

"You'll find yourself in the body of the firework-addicted peacock, Lord Shen,"

To say it took a moment for Joshua to register what it said was an understatement. The dude who singlehandedly was the reason why Po was even in the Valley of Peace in the first place and why he had trauma and trouble remembering where he came from. He, a recently deceased man, were to become such a creature, and that made him concerned.

However, the figure wasn't done.

"your objective is to live as Lord Shen, from start to finish," It chuckled as if knowing what Joshua was thinking, "do what you want, live how you want, and die how you want,"

It stared at Joshua, now talking about the elephant in the room.

"I have one, small condition," The being lifted one of its black fingers, "you do not, under any circumstances, attack the Panda Village,"

"What?" Joshua was so engrossed that he wanted to know more, "Isn't that derailing the entire plot?"

"Exactly," The being chuckled again, "that is what I want. Now, I am not saying you can't commit genocide if that's what you desire, but I want something...different, and that's why I brought you here. To play out this change."

"I get it," Joshua spoke, nodding, "but, why me?"

"Consider yourself lucky," The sphere that formed now disappeared from the being's hands, "if it were another, I would name them lucky as well,"

"Now, before I send you down to enjoy your new life, I will hand you a system," It said, "Why, you may ask? I've seen you struggle enough, so if you manipulate your body to utter perfection through exorbitant amounts of training, it will transform you into a cut above the rest,"

After hearing this, Joshua could only feel his body warm with gratitude.

"Lastly, are there any questions you'd like to ask before I send you to the realm of Kung Fu Panda?" Joshua watched as the being folded its arms, "I'll answer most of your questions, but some, and I know you have a few, I will not be able to ask,"

Joshua sighed.

After all these explanations, this reincarnation and system sounded both familiar yet had a hint of hocus pocus. Nevertheless, he had questions.

"Is there an afterlife, like heaven and hell?"

"I won't say, but there is no heaven or hell, that's all I can tell you,"

Joshua thought carefully. Maybe questions that can produce an existential crisis are not on the list of answerable. Even if he now has confirmation of those two things, he couldn't help but feel that this being was getting slightly irritated if he continued. Pissing off a godly being you don't understand isn't a bright idea.

"After I die again, what will happen to me?"

"There's the Spirit Realm, but I'll leave that as a reward for you to discover,"

Joshua, now taking a moment to think, fired off one of the most important questions in his entire lifetime.

"Will I get laid?"

He could feel the neverending daggers of a gaze on his soul. While his mind almost caved in, he wondered why he even asked such a question. Was he a furry? Sure, Joshua could ask, but was it really necessary, even for a virgin like himself?

"...Yes,"

"Oh..." Joshua had hoped the being would elaborate on that, but the silence that followed ended his curiosity on the subject. He decided to ask another one, "...you said I'm forbidden to raid Po's village, is there anything else I mustn't do?"

"Like I said," The being responded quite well, as if it was interested, "you have the freedom to do whatever you want. Just don't follow the canon of what happened in the original,"

Now it made sense.

"Very well," Joshua said, "there's nothing else I can think of right now to ask you, but-"

"Worry not, my friend," It spoke, accompanying the words with a low rumble, "I only wish to see you prosper, and to see a what-if scenario come to life,"

"If you say it that way," He looked at the being one last time, "Okay, I have no other questions to ask,"

"Then you shall begin your second chance in this new world," The being moved its arms in a way that made it look as if it was doing magic, "I shall be watching,"

A chill ran down Joshua's spine when he heard that. Now, as his body twisted and warped to proportions too large and, at the same time, too small, it was evident that his new life was beginning. Joshua's vision shut. He felt slow, tired even.

That is how he started his new life as a peacock.