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Chapter Text

"All through the hellish hours of blackness, it shines there."
~Polaris by H.P. Lovecraft

Cole walked in the farthest reaches of hell searching for his daughter. With every step, he felt heavier. Though there were no scars on his body and the scars on his hands had healed, it made no difference. His body was waging a war it could not win.

One more. Just one more. And just like that, his stubborn streak ended. The young man collapsed.

"This is not your time. One day you will be reunited with your loved ones but that day is not today."

He gazed up. A woman he knew all too well - from the visions his daughter had told him and the other Earth champions in great detail before she was taken to this hell hole - extended her hand out to him. He took it. He was on his feet once more.

Looking into Harumi Hasashi's eyes, he asked her if she had come to help him.

Harumi shook her head. "The elder gods won't let me be here more than I should. I was only allowed here so you can go back to your family."

Cole laughed. A crazed, cold laugh that matched the hatred in his eyes as he thought of all he had lost. "What family?! I had a family and your husband stole it from me. How different is he from what Sub Zero did to you?"

"You don't understand, Cole. When Hanzo descended into hell, he didn't master the flames immediately. In order to become one with them, he had to offer something." Harumi looked away. Cole could not see it because his vision was limited by his living state but Harumi wasn't. Where her eyes fixated on was on her husband and their many times great-granddaughter.

Seeing the two recite the old mantra of the Shirai Ryu brought back many memories. Even now it hurt thinking back of the day when Bi Han and stole everything from them.

Hanzo will always protect her. He will declare war on the gods if need be to keep her safe. That was what Cole had never understood, to care for someone so much that you're willing to risk everything. Prior to Shang Tsung's interference, he had taken his family for granted. Instead of being a responsible parent, he let his wife take over his role of provider, working long hours to make sure there was food on the table. Meanwhile Cole got into petty fights with his employers. He wasn't able to keep a job more than a month. Then, when the golden opportunity came to relive his glory days of lightweight champion, Allison Young let him take it. An enabler at heart, she preferred to be stuck with a struggling out-of-his-luck husband rather than having to deal with a daughter who'd resent her for taking her away from her favorite parent.

It wasn't a healthy environment for any child to grow up. Yet Hanzo said nothing, focusing instead on getting Cole to release him. When he finally had, he began to show himself to Emily Young. He'd bring her trinkets from the Netherrealm and other realms he'd visited. He was testing her, to see if the blood of her ancestors ran strong in her. 

Harumi watched their interactions with great interest. Like Hanzo, she couldn't rest easily knowing what had to be done. When her husband wasn't visiting her, Harumi took his place, telling her all sorts of stories of the man Emily Young had initially been so intimidated by. Harumi put a human face on Hanzo which enabled Emily Young to grow closer to him.

“My daughter was never supposed to be a part of this!” He yelled at his ancestor but Harumi merely looked away. From where she stood, she could hear the laughter shared between Hanzo and Emily Young. Cole could not because he belonged to the living and could not see past what his mortal eyes allowed him to see.

Cole was floored. He had enough of monsters and the elder gods. Had he not done enough? Fulfilled the prophecy, brought every champion together and then helped Liu Kang win the tournament. He wanted to be free of this burden.

“Do you think this is funny?”

She turned back to him. “No, but this is the life that was unwittingly chosen. I am truly sorry but there is nothing else that can be done. When Hanzo sent himself here, he thought his sacrifice was enough but he later found out that it required one of his own. Death pays for life. You must believe that Hanzo did everything in his power to find another way out but there wasn’t. He didn’t want to cause you pain.”

“But he did.” Cole said, realizing that nothing more could be said to change this. Hanzo had his family stolen from him and in a twisted way, giving his life to protect his loved ones and keep Earthrealm safe, he had also forsaken them.

Cole’s eyes darkened. “I do not want to see your face again. When you see your husband, tell him he better be prepared because this time, there'll be no escape from certain death."

Cole was going to make sure of that he caused the wraith worse pain than it had ever experienced in hell.

He turned on his heel and started to walk again. The pain had returned but he no longer minded it. He called on Raiden. The thunder god appeared and took Cole away. When he returned to his old gym where his friends were waiting for him, he told them what transpired. It had all been for nothing. Everyone looked to Raiden. Liu was the first one to ask him if he could do something but the thunder god responded that this was out of his league.

Bullshit, thought Cole. The thunder god could very well force the wraith by appealing to the elder gods or threatening him to kingdom come. If Raiden doesn’t want to, it’s because he agrees with this monstrosity. Now everything sense. Emily’s slow change in behavior, Raiden’s interference prior to the tournament. He knew that once Scorpion was freed, that his daughter would be taken. It was why he had given a lot of leeway to Cole as opposed to the other champions to spend time with his family. Raiden wanted Cole to have another child so the line of chosen ones would continue.

No one said anything. Sonya was the one who cut through the silence, gesturing to their companions to leave her and Cole alone.

“This is not over. There is always a way, we just have to keep going.” Sonya said. And Cole could only smirk, finding her encouragement pointless yet cute. In many ways Sonya was like Hanzo Hasashi. It was cruel that she was not his descendant. Had she been, there would be no need for Hanzo to take Emily, or any member of his family when Sonya’s fearlessness alone would have convinced hell not to take her.
Over the past three years, the world had found out about other dimensions. As a consequence, new task forces were created that were in charge of dealing with otherworldly threats. Jax and Sonya were put in charge of Outworld Task Force. Despite her busy schedule though, Sonya still found times for her Hollywood sweetheart Johnny Cage and Cole’s daughter. The Special Forces captain was the closest thing Emily had to an aunt. Naturally, Sonya could not accept defeat.
Under other circumstances, Cole would have appreciated her and told her that indeed, they were not going to give up and will find a way to bring Emily back but that boat had long sailed. Nevertheless, not to alarm her or the other champions, he nodded at her, took her hand and the two of them walked outside where the rest were waiting.

After he assured his friends that he’d keep fighting the good fight, he returned home. His newborn son and daughter, Lawrence and Sandra were shrieking, crying out for their absent father. Somehow they seemed to know that the man who had returned was not the same one that had left.

His wife in an insane asylum for God knows how long and he was a shade of what he used to be.

He went to the nursery and in a stilted voice told them to be quiet. They were immediately silenced. Good. The twins began to get closer to one another, cowering before him. When they were born, they always welcomed him; now, he was a stranger to them.

Cole no longer had any friends. He had acquaintances. The reason why Outworld won so many tournaments was because they were not afraid to do what was required for them to win. If Raiden and the likes of Liu Kang were any bit like them, they would not have to worry about dealing with otherworldly threats.

He went to his and Ally's room. On the mirror was a photo of her and Cole holding Lawrence and Sandra. It had been taken the day after she had given birth to them. The pain had been excruciating. The doctors did not think she was going to make it but Emily surprised him by hugging him and telling him that everything was going to be alright. 

I should have known something was wrong. Since he and Ally had told her she'd be an older sister she knew they were going to have twins. At the time he and Ally laughed it off but now it all made sense. Emily had become more aware of her surroundings, she was more confident and less shy to the point that she started making more friends at school. Cole dismissed it as typical changes from adolescence but he chose to be careless.

Not anymore. Lawrence and Sandra would never enjoy the idyllic childhood their eldest sister had enjoyed. He'd protect them but he'd also prepare them for what lay ahead. Choosing extreme care over preparedness had lost him, his daughter. This time, he was going to make things right. By the time the next tournament came, he was going to make sure Scorpion was there and Cole would give him a taste of his own medicine by having one of the twins ending his wretched existence once and for all. 

He went outside to watch the stars. It was his favorite activity with Emily. As a kid, she was always curious. She asked him all types of questions. Sometimes he had answers, other times he made things up, trying his best to sound convincing but Emily, ever the clever girl, knew better.

Contrary to what people thought of Earth's champions, they were all just like everyone else. With every fiber of his being, Cole resisted giving into his grief. Wherever you are Hanzo, I hope you make your peace with my daughter because her face will be the last loving member you will laid eyes on because when we meet, it will be another one of mine who will destroy you. He did not care about Earth anymore. It was funny. Was this what Bi Han felt when he turned his back on the human race? Had something similar happened that prompted him to ally with Earth's greatest enemy?
Cole would not give Raiden or the rest of his teammates any reason to suspect him. He'd play his part but when the time of truth came, he was going to ally with whoever he could, to achieve his revenge.

NETHERREALM

From the Netherrealm Hanzo walked the corridors of hell, no longer alone. He had died protecting his remaining offspring. Hearing her cries made him realize what horrible things he had to do to save her and thereby, ensure the prophecy to come true and protect earth from the forces of Outworld.

Quan Chi was not too pleased – neither was the elder “mad” god Shinnok but Hanzo did not care what they thought as long as he gained mastery of the flames. For a long time, he was a ghost, watching events unfold from his hellish prison. Little by little, he began to embrace the darkness and the pain until he became one with the flames. Yet hell was not done with him. Shinnok reminded him that there was still a price to be paid and the only way to pay it was through sacrifice.

Scorpion refused and as a result, the wraith had to wage his own civil war in hell. Although he emerged victorious, imprisoning Shinnok and sending Quan Chi running to Outworld for sanctuary, he found that they’d been right. As further proof of this, when he visited Emily Young, he felt a strong aura. Her arcana had not yet been unlocked but soon it would and when it was, hell would come to claim her.

In the midst of all of this, he was visited by Harumi. She told him there was no other way. He already knew that but it didn’t make it any easier. Both decided to visit Emily beforehand, preparing her for when the time came to take her.

When the time finally came, Emily Young showed no fear. All she asked was if she’d see her family again. Scorpion did not know if that was possible yet the part of him that was still Hanzo responded with a “maybe”, adding that she could exit the Netherrealm whenever she wanted to visit Earth and see her family from afar but she'd always have to return here.

He continued to walk. Emily Young was not far behind, taking her time to explore her new home. Scorpion’s face twisted in wry amusement. She was truly something. She could have screamed at him, begged him to take her back to her father but she had come a long way since his first visit. She had come to understand what her role was in all of this madness. Her near-death experience at the hands of Bi Han had helped her mature faster. Like him, she was willing to do whatever it took to protect her loved ones, even at the cost of her personal happiness.

Maybe one day she will return. Scorpion knew better than to give her false hope but seeing how Cole was descending into darkness, he opted for re-adopting some of his humanity to give the girl something to look forward to.

~o~

10 YEARS LATER

Emily no longer feared the unknown. She was always surrounded by flames and she had come to like it. She did not know how long it’d be before she was reunited with her father, but she knew that someday, when all his trials and tribulations were over, he’d know why she decided to leave and mayhap he'd also forgive Scorpion.

“Sacrifices are never just.” Scorpion had said. She asked if he had known that sending himself to hell to achieve the power to stop Sub Zero and protect his bloodline require him taking one of his descendants, would he have done it all over again? Scorpion answered her earnestly that he did not know. Obviously, his first instinct would have been to look for other venues but as he lay dying there, reaching out to his crying babe, he had to think fast or lose another offspring to the ruthless assassin.

Emily did not fault him for it. But neither did she condone his actions. Though she had not witnessed the astounding sights that her father, Sonya and the rest of the gang had when they participated in Mortal Kombat, the Netherrealm had opened her eyes to many truths.
What she once believed were only two paths: that of light and darkness, in truth, there were many more. Most people, whether humans or races from other realms, walked in shades of grey. There were no heroes nor villains. Some were dastardly and deserved to be punished for their sins in the afterlife but most often than not, people were just … people.

When she finished exploring she returned to Scorpion. He was waiting for her. He surprised her by telling her there’d be no training this time. He motioned for her to sit. He took his katana and gave it to her. Around the hilt was the string bracelet she gave her father.
“How?” She asked him. She had made two. One had been taken from her when Sub Zero had come for them while the other remained with her father. She doubted dad had destroyed it. Sadly though, that was the case.

“Are Lawrence and Sandra going to be okay?” She asked.

“It is hard to say, your father will raise them to fight me. They will grow up to see things his way, but not every child remains tethered to their parents. Sooner or later, they will get to leave the nest and see things differently.”

Emily hoped so. She did not want Lawrence and Sandra to become their bitter rivals, much less have their father as their main antagonist. It’s this concern that prompted Emily to ask Scorpion what their next move would be against Outworld.

Scorpion’s told her that they’d work in secret with Raiden. They’d be felt but not seen.
“Remember, Emily, we are on their side but not with them. Be seen and heard when it is needed but otherwise, be invisible.”

Emily nodded. In the Netherrealm, time was a relative thing. But every time they conversed, Emily felt like they never had enough time. For Scorpion though, he felt grateful for these moments because it made it easier to him to cope with the guilt. One day, this girl would be free of this burden. He did not know when or how. He just did. However, he feared that by then, she’d chose as he did, to remain here, tethered to the realm between the living and the dead – always watching, always protecting, but never being a part of the world she’d once belonged to.

Chapter Text

SARAH CONNOR

The universe always finds a way to screw me over. Of that, I am absolutely certain. 

Through the many timelines I traveled I saw that one thing was inevitable: Judgment Day. I spent a lot of time preparing my son for it but now I have no son just this girl who's the new messiah. Dani Reyes wasn't born for this but fate had picked her because it had to have someone to counteract the machine threat.

If I could trade spots, I gladly would. My while life has been nothing but a series of mishaps. I don't mind adding another grand calling to the list.

History is after all written by the survivors and I am surely that.

While Dani keeps on doing target practice in the outskirts of Juárez city in the Mexican border, the man I least want to see appears.

"Got tired of appearing on my dreams, thunder god?" I give him a mock bow. His saddened lightning eyes anger me. I don't want his pity.

"First Kyle then you. I recorded everything that happened on that night so John would know that we lived a lifetime's worth." I say, reciting my last recording to John while he was still nesting in my womb. It almost seems like it was yesterday. I was riding on a jeep with my German shepherd resting next to me. It was in that moment that I understood that fate had chosene to be the mother of the savior of humanity.

"I taught John everything. Raised him to be a leader, the kind that inspired his father to volunteer for that dangerous mission but it was all for naught. No matter how many times I told myself that fate could be rewritten, Iit always came back at me with a vengeance." My smirk was wiped from my face when he raised his hand. Lightning bolt shot from it, hitting the unfinished liquor bottle.

"Bastard."

"You are a disgrace to Earthrealm."

"Say it louder, Your eminence. Maybe the elder gods will hear you this time and decide to intervene. Ah, that is right. They will not because they do not give one flying fuck about us."

"That is not entirely true. Some gods do care." Raiden says, referring to himself. "Sarah, you have another chance to protect Earthrealm. If the machines win, Earthrealm won't have champions to compete. Outworld and the Netherrealm will invade and there'll be no trace of any of the people who lived and died in this world."

"Why do you care what happens to us? You're a god. You'll just be reassign to another realm or sent to the eternal palace. What's your stake here?"

Raiden looks hurt that I have asked him such a thing. He comes closer and kneels before me. It is the first time he's done this.

"The first time I came to you, your son was five, I looked after him while you were away with the other champions. We won that round but knew what was coming and vowed we'd fight the Lin Kuei corporate puppets who were responsible for humanity's near extinction. Shao Kahn never considered John a threat until he saw visions of the future. Every one of them showed your son beating Sky Net and giving humanity another chance to rebuild. Thousands of years of darkness under machine rule; that is what Shao Kahn promised the machines who would not be content unless they had mortals to enslave in a virtual prison. But John was the variable that changed all of that. Now that he's not here, another one must come and you must protect her or else, he wins."

"I can't do it anymore. Look at me, I am too old for this shit. Dani is the one you should go to."

"No, it has to be you. You refused Cage, Kang, and everyone else's help. You can't refuse my help. Humanity is unlike any other race. You love more than you should, hate beyond what you should and yet your will to fight despite the odds being against you is stringer than other races." Raiden paused. His expression changed. "There are higher beings than the elder gods who keep the secret of the first God."

"You told me the story about him."

"I didn't tell you all of it. He was betrayed by the elder gods. His parts were divided in various realms. If every realm merges then he is awakened. The dreams you've had since you were a girl were not my doing. It was him; He chose you to be His messenger and protect earth's savior. It is why you have survived this long, his strength lives in you."

"He should have picked someone else. I never wanted this job but I took it because Kyle believed in me. After John I believed that the future could be changed. I told myself that over and over but now ... Fuck it all hell."

Raiden gives a long sigh. I expect that will be enough for him to go but instead he rides only to sit next to me. He takes off his hat and for a moment he looks almost human.

"I can't make you take this burden. I know that it is a lot after everything you've gone through. But I ask this not as a god but as a friend."

That is unexpected. However his voice is genuine and there is a glint of something more in his eyes which resembles the the longing that I saw in Kyle before he confessed he loved me.

I ask him once more, my voice more serious than before. "Why are you really here, Raiden?"

It takes him a while to answer but when he does, it is as I suspected.

RAIDEN

I risked a lot coming here and I put myself in greater danger by confessing my feelings for her. Every time I saw Sarah Connor, I did not see a woman marred by pain and old age but a remarkable warrior who never knew when to quit, who would go to the ends of the world to defend earth from every threat.

Yet ... My feelings could not erase her grim outlook of the future. When I left ... I made a decision. To save this endangered species, I transported the chosen ones and their families to a far away planet in the outskirts of this galaxy where Shao Kahn would not dare to look. Even when this dimension merged with Outworld, there'd be parts of this universe that'd be out of his reach. Furthermore, the machines that would enslave humanity, would be left to their own devices for a long time that they'd grow bored and start fabricating threats of their own to keep themselves occupied. Their self inflicted wounds would land them in a never ending loop which will culminate in its destruction. By that time, Earth will be nothing more than a memory. All it's treasures, it's secrets, lost ...

But, I thought, what gave those things power were its users. As long as humans lived, remnants of that power would always live on.

It was worth the risk so I made it. And the eons passed and as I continued to watch over by humanity's new home, I was glad that I did. Outworld and the elder gods were angry but I reminded them that they got what they wanted and in the end, isn't that what they wanted?

To my chagrin, the only thing that I regretted was that they damned Sarah with eternal youth. A great and terrible gift. Sarah's new gift made her wonder the streets of one of the urban planets from the core worlds - where the seat of government was for this galaxy.

Sarah still manages it the best she can. She dared me to follow whenever we cross paths. There no surprise that she  wants to mentally torture me but I am a god who has much more experience than she does. Even though I don't fall for her traps, she continues to tease me.

Out of all the past Earth champions, she's the only one that remains and the last relic of a bygone era. She was also the only one whom I cared for deeply. But she was, as they said in the old world, forever out of my reach.

Chapter Text

REY

My life isn't what it's supposed to be. I always knew that there was something special for me waiting out there. 

When I defeated my grandfather, I gained all the knowledge that was encased in that decaying vessel. Yet, I didn't become a vessel like he said he would because I had all the Jedi with me. Their strength helped me defeat him. I became as I told Darth Sidious "All the Jedi" and yet, I did not feel as a savior.

When the Skywalk twins, Luke and Leia, the former smugglers, Lando Calrissian, Han and his wookie companion Chewbacca, blew up the second death star, their victory was celebrated across the galaxy. 

My friends were welcomed as heroes but I continued to be a nobody. The special something within me was there, I was told by Luke's ghost, to restore the Jedi to greatness.

He was right. I have been doing that but even then, though a reformed Jedi Order has been built from the ground up with the knowledge of what came before and what I gained after destroying the former Sith emperor, I continue to be another blip in the galaxy.

There is something disconcerting about a super powered individual holding the keys to salvation. Las time the galaxy had left their fate to the Jedi or Sith, they ended up losing everything. It is better if I am just a shadow, an administrator rather than the central figure of the new government.

The kids I train and teachers I oversee are nothing like me. They have potential but that's it. Nothing like the old Jedi Order when it was at its height during the High Republic era. Things are as it should be. Balanced, peaceful, boring ...

I should be happy but I am not. I thought I was going to experience adventure and the satisfaction of vanquishing evil. Instead I felt like it was all a bad dream and now that the dream has ended and I am awake, I am back to be another one of many inconsequential beings in this galaxy.

From a corridor in the temple of the Reformed Jedi Order, a figure watched, always waiting for when Rei Skywalker will head this way alone so she can reveal herself to her.

So much had been sacrificed to ensure the safety of the human race and all other species in this universe. Sonya Blade was supposed to cross over to the other side where all of her friends awaited. Even Scorpion. That infuriating serious wraith had proven himself to them many times over. At last, after ten thousand years, it had forced fate to give him absolution. Sonya watched from limbo as he crossed over into the great beyond where his family was waiting for him. Sometimes when he visits her, she asks how it feels. He tells her that it is like waking up from a bad dream except you know it wasn't a dream. He said that Cole was there as well with his other descendants, living not far from his compound. Every day, he'd rise to a new sunset and meet his wife outside where Satoshi and his daughter were waiting for him. When he was with Cole and a young looking Emily, he'd also have all the time in the world to converse, train and have a good laugh at mundane things.

Sonya was envious. Her former mentor and best friend, Jax Briggs, also described the same. 

Everyone was where they should be. Except her. Because of course, Sonya always had to be screwed over by the universe.

Tonight she had followed Rei knowing she'll sense her. Too walled up by her insecurities and meditation, she did not acknowledge her.

"Back to the start." Sonya says, to no one in particular. 

But she finds that someone is there. A figure in a plain training attire finally comes. A laugh escapes from Sonya. At last, she thinks.

SONYA BLADE

At long last, she is here. I wonder if this is how Raiden felt every time his chosen champions finally

"You've been following me for a while. Who are you? You're not Sith it Jedi, but I sense a deep power emanating from you." Rei says and I nod then cut straight to the chase.

She doesn't believe me so I expand on it further. Everything you've felt, that you're part of something more, it is true. Your nightmares weren't the product of Force visions, it was your arcana tellin you about your lineage.The knowledge that you acquired isn't evil. There were once people who fought in a legendary tournament called Mortal Kombat. The generation after mine fought the last ones and we closed the gates to other dimensions. Or so we thought. The Sith corrupted the teachings of generations past and so did the Jedi in neglecting their pupils to embrace their full potential. When Palpatine began his insidious plan to bring back the Sith empire to you, he weakened that protection. Now that the genie is out of the bottle, Earthrealm needs its champions to defend her again."

"Earth is long gone."

"It is but it is how this dimension is still referred by the others. You were told that the Force consists of microorganisms that binds the universe together and give Force users their abilities. That is partly true but there's more to it than that. The arcana, your inner power, is what makes that possible."

"If that is so then why wasn't it there to help my mother to save her or stop Palpatine's thugs from murdering them and leaving me on Jakku?"

"Each man and woman must decide his own destiny. The arcana only reveals what you have within you and it activates under extreme duress. You parents didn't have the dragon marking but you do." I say and point to her waist where it lays hidden.

"We do not choose to be chosen. I did but you've probably already seen in your dreams that was under special circumstances. I had no choice, I had to take the marking from a bad man who betrayed us to save my friends."

It was too much for the Jedi grandmaster to absorb but it was better she start now than wait for her to find clue after clue only for it to be too late when she figures out everything. Besides, dead or not, I am a soldier and my approach was always sink or swim.

"Where is this thunder god then? Where is my guide or am I to do all on my own again?"

At the mention of Raiden a sad smile passes on my lips which quickly fades as I begin my tale of how he was punished, corrupted and then regained his old position as this realm's protector. "He wasn't supposed to intervene but he couldn't let us perish and he saw what the rest of us did: enough was enough. My daughter, Jacqui Briggs, Emily Young, Hanzo Hasashi, Kuai Liang, and Takeda helped bring him back to his senses but the elder gods were still pissed. He could be Earthrealm's protector but this time he'd be under watchful observation."

"How am I supposed to fight then? You can't expect me to do everything for you."

"I don't expect anything. You have the knowledge, I told you what's up, it is up to you and the new chosen ones to step up and prepare for the next tournament."

Rei is angry. I can't blame her. I would be too but those were the new rules of the game.

She calms herself down and asks me something new. "You said that we are bound by blood. But you didn't mention your daughter as my ancestor so how is it that you're my ancestor?"

Oh boy, here it comes. Confessing one's sins, even if that stranger is your blood, is never fun. But it has to be done. "I had another child besides Cassie. After Johnny and I started to have troubles, Raiden and I grew close. He always considered me the serious one of the group. I had done many personal Sacrifices for the nation and then our realm that I gained his respect. As the years passed and our interactions grew, we both felt strongly for each other. We wanted to keep our relationship strictly professional but when it comes to the heart, no one is free to choose there."

A knowing look is shared by us. Rei knows all about that. Just like her ancestors, she has suffered for it.

"Johnny found out. We had a big fight. He decided to divorce me. But our marriage was already on the rocks; if not Raiden, it would have been something else. He took Cassie and I was left to pick up the pieces. For his transgression, Raiden was punished and to free himself, he was corrupted by dark forces. The rest, you already know. I hid my son from him. Johnny, Liu, Cole, Jax and Hanzo helped me keep him safe. When humanity got to this galaxy, he was among the refugees Raiden sent here before Earth was lost. I wanted to tell him the truth and so did Raiden but we agreed that it was for the best if he was ignorant of his lineage. Others who found out about their bloodline always paid a heavy price for it. I didn't want to see what happened to Cole, Jacqui, and even my own daughter happen to him. So we left it alone."

"So not only am I the daughter of a failed clone from one of the most dangerous Sith Lords to have ever lived, I am also a descendant from a god? This never ends. All I wanted was a family, to be Rey somebody not everybody. I took the Skywalker name out of respect and I am not giving it away when I have done a lot to fulfill Luke's dream "

"Then don't. I'm not asking you too. But you can't run away from this any longer, Rey. You are who you are and if you don't heed the warning signs, it won't just be one world that will get lost. It will be all of them. Outworld will be merciless this time." I say. "We don't choose to what we are born but we still get to make a choice on how we face the danger. You just have to keep going and prove yourself that you can or else you'll regret it for the test of your life."

Rey blinks. She has heard this phrase before through her dreams where she has seen pieces of my life.

"You didn't make it this far just to make it this far. You got to keep going. The fight isn't over." I say placing a hand on her shoulder then vanish.

I hope she does get to heed my advice. If she does, she knows where to find me. I am as Raiden was, always watching, always waiting. He can't interfere so I stayed behind so he could through me. Others can move on, not me. I will always be a soldier, an eternal protector. 

Chapter Text

CHAPTER 1

 "Sometimes I wish that the lights got turned out but I am such a loser and a coward of what may comes next or that there's nothing afterwards that I start begging the powers that be like a ninny not to take me. I immediately regret it. The things we want to see succeed that deserve an opportunity for more stories to come never triumph. Why? I don't know. Perhaps it has to do with all of us - those who never take the center stage, merely exist to fight other people's battles - being duped into believing there's something greater awaiting us if we suffer. Nothing good is every easy, right?, It is all a bunch of horse shit ... And yet some people are fall for it, despite their cold exterior, because they find someone to guide them through the dark mists ... But not all of us are so fortunate. There once was a prophecy in the continent of Westeros, in a land far, far away in a magical realm where every planet was fueled by dark powers and astounding creatures that roamed the skies. It said that a song would be sung by unlikely parties. Fire and Ice brought together by tragedy. Two families disregarded by the powers that be but that shall persist until all kingdoms come ... 

 The prophets of that realm misinterpreted it and believed it pointed to one of their own. In reality, it was about us. Our families, marked by death, hated by the gods and used by villains and heroes alike. A universe filled with wonders and horrors with the people caught in the middle of this conflict left with little choice but to follow or be killed. Should my soulmate and long life companion follow me to the farthest reached of this realm, I want people to know the story of those who served their masters faithfully, rebelled against them and brought their side glory beyond anything their master could have ever dreamed of.

This is their story ..."

~ Baptism through Fire & Tombs of Ice by Kuai Liang, Grandmaster of the Reformed Lin Kuei Order & Keeper of the Great Seal

~o~

Bi Han

Bi Han opens his eyes, expecting to find nothing but darkness. The last thing he saw wasn't Hanzo Hasashi. No. Scorpion. No matter how much he hated him, he was a worthy for and he'll respect his wish to call him as such.

Scorpion's last words as Hanzo Hasashi had been "Remember this face." Bi Han had but as the centuries went by and the magic he was imbued in by Outworld, his arrogance grew and he forgot all about him. He was as he told Shang Tsung, a ghost. But the Hasashi seed was strong. It lived on and with it, its power forged in fire by their ancestor's sacrifice.

But in death, you could not cloud my vision from the only person that ever truly mattered. There, wearing a golden circlet, her chocolate brown eyes sparkling as she emerged from the hot tub, she was. He raised his hand out to her.

Just a little bit more. One more step. Then another.

Roused and appeased. He found her during one of his raids wrecking havoc on one of the disorderly realms that was also close to being joined to Outworld. She had just been brutally violated, her son and daughter murdered by a mountainous beast of a man. She was left to die when he came across her.

Crouching down, he put a hand on her face and took her to the house where he was staying. His guest was a wealthy merchant who was the liaison between the crown and the Golden Company and the Bank (both were located in Esos across the narrow sea). He also happened to be one of this realm's many mortals who had sold his soul to Outworld in exchange for a good position in the new world order.

There was nothing in this universe different from his own with the exception of magic that lived within every being. The undead white walkers in the North, the Children of the Forest, the sinister force behind the Three Eyed Raven and the dragon eggs yet to hatch in Esos, held amazing power. People here were born with their arcana whereas back home, an arcana manifested itself for the chosen ones to fight in Mortal Kombat.

But all this intoxicating magical environment made these individuals weaker. The sinister force that had everyone dancing from its strings was arrogant like Bi Han. It believed it could see beyond the reaches of this world. It was right. It could BUT not beyond the reaches of this dimension. When an unknown variable entered the equation, it pushed back. Bi Han, by then already adopting the name Sub Zero, pushed back, confusing it even more until - like Shang Tsung had tasked him - it became desperate and in its desperation caused a series of events that led to the destruction of all champions that could have proved a challenge to Outworld's fighters.

But that did not come to pass until decades after the raped princess of Dragonstone. It was weeks before she opened up. She wanted Bi Han to lie to her, to tell her that her children got out scotch free and her beloved was waiting for her in their fortified in Dragonstone where his newborn sister, younger brother and mother were. But he could not. Bi Han had no qualms about killing but lying to like that to someone in her condition was low, even for him.

Elia Martell hated him for it. But then, as he - Gods knew why at first - he continued his visits, the warmth that had characterized Rhaegar of Dragonstone's Dornish bride, returned. And it was infectious. Sub Zero knew sooner or later he was going to have to pay a heavy price for falling in love. He was ready for it. Being Shang Tsung's prized enforcer came with its benefits. Every other of his fighters were expendable. Him on the other hand, was irreplaceable. There was no one like him and there never will be.

Or maybe that was what Shang Tsung was counting on. As his vision becomes clearer, he sees her next to Sektor and Cyrus.

What the hell are they doing here? And why am I not in a burning crisp? He wonders. Elia steps forward. She holds a mirror in her hands that she raises to his face level. It is then that he sees. His eyes are no longer blue. They have returned to their natural eye color. His skin color is still pale with remnants of the scars and cut by Scorpion and Cole Young. 

"How?" He asks. He suddenly flinches when he stepped forward to get closer to her.

She hands the mirror to Sektor who looks more annoyed than pleased that the former grandmaster of the Lin Kuei is this vulnerable.

Damn you to hell. Bi Han would love to see him try going one on one with the fiery warrior and his accursed descendant.

It fees like his body is still surrounded by pain. Seeing her reignited that but he doesn't let any of them see that. Him flinching was already weakness enough.

Elia takes him in his arms and whispers in his ear everything that has happened since he was gone.

The tournament was pushed back for two more years so Shang Tsung can get new fighters to level the plainfield. In addition to that, Shang Tsung made a deal with fellow sorcerer Quan Chi to bring his soul back fr the clutches of the Netherrealm. 

"So this is the new debt." Bi Han says. He smirks. It was darkly humorous. He had paid the price for falling in love with Elia and sacrificed their goodness for the Lin Kuei and in the end, he still ended up being indebted to Shang Tsung. 

It never ends. "How long do I get to keep this body?"

"It is yours forever. But the price is one you'll have to pay till they release you." She says with a sad expression.

He lets go of her gently. They have lived together for two centuries. They may live for many more if they continue to play their cards right.

After all, this was all a game. And whoever was clever to survive it, won.

After she walked him to their room, she had him rest on the bed. When she locked the door behind him, Elia showed him a necklace with a pendant hanging from the bottom. It was engraved with a new sigil: a frozen Sun's spear. 

"You were always proud of your words. Have you abandon the gods?"

"Pleasing the gods were all I cared but it soon became clear that no one cared about what I had to say. My words are still the same. Unbent, unbowed, unbroken. The gods left me for dead, you rescued me and gave me purpose and now it is my turn to rescue you."

Their lips touch. Her lips are still warm to the touch while his continue to be cold but she doesn't mind. He is here with her and vice-verse. 

He saved this woman in the past and now she was doing the same. Shang Tsung and Quan Chi could play whatever games they like. He'd serve but he wouldn't be their slave. Whoeber ensured the survival of his clan and family is whom he'd give him his allegiance.

Elia

Elia has seen many men do unspeakable things and likewise, women with unquestionable behavior. As a child, she had walked among snakes and none would bite her. But as soon as she came to the capital, she was surrounded by lions, stags, wolves, and dragons who pecked at her until her essence was destroyed.

Yet she kept on living. For her children. Always for them. But then she found herself without children. After Lord Tywyn Lannister's brute had his way with her, she begged Robert Baratheon to kill her. Robert did not have the balls to kill her himself. Something about causing a poor widow and mother more pain was a huge dishonor to his armor.

She wanted to spit in his face and ask him what about all the men and women who died because of his wounded pride but I was too hurt to say anything more.

Bi Han could have killed me when he found me. But he chose to leave to nurse me to good health. I never asked him what he saw in me. I never will. He has his reasons and whatever those reasons are, he's not going to express it in a poetic manner. That was Rhaegar's style. After the humiliations at Rhaegar's hand, she stopped dreaming. Bi Han was a realist but deep within that cold exterior was a man who still had his humanity.

Elia brought it out, little by little until the two came together. To this day, there is nothing she will not do for him and vice-verse. Yet, the most important thing that remains, the only thing that matters is legacy. Legacy is all that will remain after they're gone and become nothing more than a blip in collective memory. It is their legacy, through Kuai Liang, which will give them immortality.

Elia wa damaged beyond repair that she was certain she'd not beget another child but her desire to have another babe in her arms, suckling from her breast, was too great and his seed too strong that her wish came true.

After the absorption of her realm by Outworld, her womb grew fertile. She gave birth to a son. When she had been delivered of Rhaegar's offspring, she was always left weaker. This time it was not so.

Death pays for life, she thinks as Bi Han awakes from their bed. His brown eyes meet her chocolate brown ones. This was the first time they had been intimate since he had gone to do Shang Tsung's bidding.

This is our time now. Everyone always focused on the big players, understating the knights and pawns who were equally important - if not more. A pawn moves slowly, taking advantage of its lowly status to get ahead of others until it comes out on top and voila! It becomes a queen.

Bi Han is no knight in shining armor, neither was he the heartless thug those two sorcerers wanted others to believe he was. Even in rebirth, she observed, he was handsome. He was a man people saw as a specter but she saw him for what he was: a consummate warrior, proud of his clan and his legacy.

He caresses her olive skin. She is the sun and he the spear. She is his and he is hers. Yet they also have cause to worry. Their son has inherited his father's remarkable abilities but he doesn't possess his cunning or her gentle wit. He is gentle alright but that's not enough to make it in this cruel world. It took a lot of self sacrifice, sacrificing her affinity to her long held ideals and her maternal instincts, to put him at Sektor's mercy. Bi Han protested, but she pointed out that the path of the Lin Kuei is one of pain and rediscovery. Kuai aged slower than human children but he would eventually grow up and when he did, did Bi Han want a worthy heir or a rose petal who'd end up as a liability for them or worse, be killed off easily? He saw her point. It wasn't easy for her to be this cold but being a dutiful p, enabling wife is what got her last children killed. I'd rather have a son who grows up to hate me then another dead one.

Noob Saibot

Bi Han died a long time ago. All that remains is a specter. He knows the sacrifices she has had to make their son strong. Yet, that doesn't free her of the guilt. She grew among warriors but she was already treated with kid gloves. Her mother, the ruler of Dorne, never let her wield a spear or play with her younger brother. Her health was always delicate. Yet it was she who survived while the rest and their descendants are but a distant memory.

He wished he can possess the powers of Shang Tsung and Quan Chi to open a portal, drag Rhaegar back from the world of the dead so he can torture him. Does he not see the fiery beauty he had before him? He was no dragon, much less a man. 

When he visited his son, he sees a grown man, ready and eager to prove himself to his clan. He doesn't cower before his father whom he addresses by his old alias. Bi Han corrects him, affirming his new identity to everyone in the room. "Kuai, you are Sub Zero and will lead this clan. I have been reborn as Noob Saibot. "

Ella smiles approvingly while Sektor's lips twitch, suppressing his urge to scowl. Kuai on the other hand remains stone faced but his eyes give away his terror.

in a perfect world, Noob Saibot muses, we could live in peace like in the songs Elia was so fond of. But this isn't a song. There are no happy endings here, only tragedy. We are players who have been played; it's only fair we get to push back. Others twist the rules, so will they. 

After the meeting is over, Sub Zero and Elia remain behind. There are no affectionate words from father to son. Noob Saibot tells he will be the Lin Kuei's spear, place his clan above else, and dispose of who he had to, to ensure his success. Kuai nods, then he leaves.

This is how it feels to be him. The dragon that resides in his soul is an ice dragon. A monster like the fabled creatures that once roamed the sky before the first men arrived to the North of Westeros; a creature of grace who kills without pity and without remorse. He cannot show weakness. Elia knows this, she reminds him after she sees the cloud of guilt in his eyes.

He must be strong, he must remain as he's always been, stone cold. I have become the ice dragon.  And Elia, his Persephone. Two lost souls united by their love. Unlike what he initially feared, his love of Elia strengthens his resolve. It makes him ruthless and colder. He will kill and do what is asked of him to keep his intoxicating bride by his side and see their son carry on with the Lin Kuei legacy.

Chapter Text

Thanks to everyone who have supported this and every other fic of mine. However, I've come to the end of the line. I'll no longer be continuing this or any of my other works in progress. I've come to the end of my writing cycle. I don't have the spark. If I ever did, it's gone and I won't be writing anymore.

Yours truly,

AnnaCipactli12.