The Arkeyans Weapons Factory

## Premise

Elida and Tai Lung act as decoys to divert new enemy super-tanks, while students Fenghuang and Esther attempt to destroy a Arkeyan droid factory.

## Synopsis

The kung fu army is pushing forward towards the massive Arkeyan foundry after destroying the main shield generator. Elida's squadron of gunships is forced to land south of Tai Lung's position. Meanwhile, Esther is briefing her clone squad on the battle plan to take control of the approaching bridge by destroying the gun emplacements on the other side, but Tai Lung keeps interrupting her sentences. Once the briefing is over, she demands of him why he keeps barging in her briefings, which makes her believe that he doesn't trust her. Tai Lung defends him self by saying that he just wants to get the job done right, but this only strengthens Esther's irritation. They are arguing as Elida and her student Fenghuang arrive to discuss the plan of attack.

The four masters then analyze the tactical data on the Arkeyan factory. Tai Lung boldly suggests a frontal attack, but Elida says that a frontal assault would be too risky. She suggests to infiltrate the catacombs beneath the factory, accessible through the bottom of the gorge, entering the foundry and destroying its main reactor with explosives. Elida opts that she and Tai Lung keep Poggle the Lesser's forces occupied, while the students infiltrate the factory, though Tai Lung believes that Esther is not ready for a mission like this, despite her insistence.

As the students take off, Elida asks Tai Lung as to why he doesn't want Esther participating, to which he doesn't answer. They then prepare a frontal assault by having their troops move straight towards the bridge. Meanwhile, inside the factory, Lord Poggle and his tactical Arkeyan droid TX-21 monitor the factory's efficiency. Though it is operating at 50 percent capacity, it has already churned out ten garrisons of new Arkeyan droids ready to deploy. A new weapon, super tanks capable of repelling kung fu artillery, approaches operational status as well. Tai Lung and Elida, along with Captain Rex and Commander Gree's clone troopers march across the bridge to battle the Arkeyans. Unfortunately, they fall into a trap, as helicopter-like Drones start coming out of the surrounding spires, leaving their forces in a deadlock. As the masters continue to push forward, Poggle is advised by his tactical droid to set loose the super tanks, equipped with ray shielded armor powerful enough to stand against kung fu artillery and elements.

Down below, the students have successfully infiltrated the catacombs. They sneak past a wall filled with sleeping Arkeyan Cracklers, and proceed carefully, but are unable to avoid awakening one Cracklers, who follows them through the catacombs from that point onward. Eventually, the students make it to the factory's main reactor and start placing explosives around it. However, the Cracklers they woke up has alerted Poggle and his tactical droid, who arrive with one super tank and many Arkeyan Defenders in the reactor room. The Arkeyans begin picking their bombs off the reactor while the tank starts firing at the students. Esther attempts to stop the Arkeyan Defenders by grabbing on to two Arkeyan Bombers, but they cause her to slam against the reactor, knocking her unconscious. As the Arkeyans escape into the catacombs, Fenghuang is left with a choice: the bombs or Esther's life.

Outside, the super tanks' mortar cannons make short work of the clone forces and their cannons. Tai Lung orders a retreat as he and Elida plant bombs on the underside of the bridge the tanks are on, before detonating them. They then have to face the second wave of Arkeyans without any heavy artillery, infantry support or escape.

Inside the factory, Fenghuang attacks the super tank, destroys the Arkeyan drivers and successfully takes control of the tank when Esther wakes up. They decide to use the tank to destroy the reactor, knowing that they won't survive. The explosion destroys the factory, causing the spire it was built in to collapse on the Arkeyans attacking the Masters and the clone army, but the tank's heavy armor protects the students from the massive explosion.

After failing to contact the students on their comlink, Elida believes they are dead, but Tai Lung determinedly orders that the rubble be moved. Deep below the surface, in the cockpit of the super tank, Esther and Fenghuang struggle to stay conscious. Worried that they will die from lack of air, Esther fashions a communicator out of a power cell from the tank in an attempt to contact her master. Receiving the signal, Tai Lung rushes over to a pile of debris, and the two masters elements lift the debris off the tank, freeing their students.

Upon seeing the two girls still alive, Tai Lung says to Elida that he never lost faith in finding their apprentices, chiding her for giving up on them too soon, but Elida replies that, unlike him, when the time will come she'll simply be prepared to let her student go and asks Tai Lung if he can say the same, which he does not answer. A few seconds later, while Elida commends her student for the success of the mission, Fenghuang tells her Master that it was thanks to Esther that they managed to contact Tai Lung; Elida then admits to Esther that her master never lost faith in her and that she was proud of her sister.