Chapter Text
It wasn’t often that Kuai Liang found himself on the defensive when sparring, and it certainly wasn’t often that he had been like this for most of its duration. The katana he wields isn’t his first weapon of choice, but it’s the only thing he has that can protect him from the onslaught due to his opponent not letting up. The sounds of swords clashing against each other as he blocks strike after strike are grating and a painful reminder that this match is not in his favor.
Each attack pushes him further back which will end up with him being backed into a wall or stumbling and falling on his ass. He needs to find an opening soon or this match will end in his defeat. He tries his best to scan his opponent's stance to find any faults, anything that’s unprotected that can provide him with a quick and efficient way to at least falter his coordination, but his focus is constantly taken away with each swing of his opponent's blade.
On the sidelines observing this encounter are the grandmaster of the Lin Kuei and his younger brother. It wasn’t typical that these two important figures would watch spars within their clan, but this spar wasn’t typical either, due to the fact that this spar was between their middle brother and their most recent recruit: Hanzo Hasashi.
Hanzo had been steadily working his way up through the ranks as he proved his might time and time again. From his introduction, it had already been obvious that he was stronger than the average warrior. After demonstrating his skills through defeating numerous members, even besting Tomas, though only by a small margin, it was now time for him to prove his skills even further.
Bi-han watched this fight because it was an excellent way to gauge Hanzo’s skill and improvement. Tomas was here for that as well, though he was mostly intrigued due to the fact that both of the fighters wield fire powers. He was only a little disappointed when he remembered that they wouldn’t be showcasing their fire, but even if they don’t, he figures the outcome of the match will determine the better pyromancer regardless. If one of them wins fireless, they would just win faster if they were actually using it.
Watching the fight play out and seeing the position that Kuai Liang is in, one would think it wouldn’t be long before Hanzo would face the grandmaster himself, but Bi-han and Tomas knew better than to underestimate their brother. If Kuai Liang was one thing, he was stubborn, and even if he were to lose, as that seems to be the direction the fight is headed, he won’t go down without a fight.
As the spar progressed, Kuai Liang was still defending, but reached a point where he wasn't backing up anymore. He stood his ground firmly and if he needed to make a movement to evade an attack or adjust himself to better angle his sword, he would move to the side instead of back in order to not lose ground.
Something he noticed was that Hanzo’s attacks were getting slower. They possessed the same strength and speed behind each blow, but the time in between each strike was steadily increasing: Hanzo was getting tired. That was evident by the heavy, exasperated breaths that he was taking and the split second that his body would deflate before preparing himself for the next slash.
This tiredness was something that Kuai Liang was ready to take advantage of. Hanzo was a powerful warrior of course, but he wasn’t trained in energy conservation as much as Kuai Liang was. His attacks, powerful and heavy, were greatly effective, but they weren't sustainable with how much Hanzo was overexerting himself. Kuai Liang hated having to be on defense for a long time, but he had to keep this up if he wanted to outlast Hanzo. He had much more stamina remaining and now he just had to have patience.
Kuai Liang could also tell that Hanzo wasn't as well-versed in physical attacks as he is. He figures that Hanzo is too reliant on his fire due to the way his attacks are executed. The angles, lengths, and forces behind each slash, kick, and punch seem like they are missing something because it is expected that their damage comes from the extension of a raging flame. This makes it easier for Kuai Liang to evade and block attacks, but also to ensure that the few that do connect aren’t doing anything too harmful.
It must be a lengthy few minutes of this same song and dance playing out. Hanzo is dripping sweat and his hair has fallen out of his neat bun as the strands stick to the sweat-slicked skin of his forehead, face, neck, and shoulders. His breaths are ragged and exhaustion is evident in his stance and movements. Despite this, he continues, and this would lead to his downfall.
The opportunity that Kuai Liang has been waiting for comes when Hanzo staggers after failing a jab, and Kuai Liang quickly evades to the side. Without missing a beat, he brings the hilt of his sword down harshly to the back of Hanzo’s neck. He falls to the floor and rolls a few feet away before quickly rising to his feet.
Numbing pain spreads from his nape all the way up to his scalp and spots appear in his vision as he tries to recover. He barely makes out his opponent quickly racing towards him with his blade at his side ready to strike. Hanzo barely counters the first hit, but his reaction time isn’t fast enough to defend against the uppercut that sneaks its way from underneath their joined swords. He backs away but Kuai Liang doesn’t let up, forcing him to defend strike after strike, being the opposite of what their positions were some minutes prior.
This is what Kuai Liang has been waiting for, and with his opponent tired and finally being able to attack, the match should be his. That is why when Hanzo manages to disarm him, sending his sword flying to the opposite side of the arena with a well-timed flick of his own, his frustration overflows and he unleashes his anger.
Even though Hanzo has the advantage of a weapon, he is helpless against Kuai’s barrage of punches and kicks as he swiftly evades his sword. Hanzo positions his arms to defend against a punch he sees approaching his face, but quickly regrets it as he realizes too late that Kuai Liang feigned. He feels a quick sweep to his legs and his body meets the ground once again.
His arm hurts from the impact of the fall and he looks up to see his opponent looming over him. He’s injured, exhausted, and honestly quite tired from how long this fight has taken. That’s why it’s no surprise when he throws his katana some distance away and rolls onto his back and nearly yells, “I yield! I yield!”
On the sidelines, watching the conclusion of the match with varying levels of judgment, the brothers breathe a sigh of relief. The tension and anticipation of how close the match was were building up in them and although they were confident in their brother’s favor, they weren't sure how it would’ve ended if not for the comeback at the last minute. They waited patiently for Kuai Liang to acknowledge his win, but were left confused as he just continued to stand over Hanzo. It wasn’t until a few moments later that Bi-han noticed that something was wrong.
Kuai Liang looked down to see Hanzo splayed on the ground with his eyes closed. He was taking several deep and desperate gasps in an effort to calm himself and regain energy. Kuai Liang however, was still steaming with energy and anger and seemingly hadn’t realized that the match was over. He walked over to Hanzo’s discarded sword and picked it up firmly. He stalked back to Hanzo with the sword by his side, contemplating something, but before he could even make another move, he felt a forceful tug. Kuai Liang stared at the bruising grip on his arm and trailed his eyes up to be met with a furious look from his elder brother.
“What the hell is wrong with you!?” Bi-han admonished him angrily as he released his grip, seeing that his younger brother had calmed down. “Your opponent has yielded and you still continue to attack? What’s gotten into you Kuai Liang?”
Kuai Liang continued to stare wide-eyed as he digested his brother’s words. He doesn’t know what got into him, he just felt this urge to… to what exactly? Not harm Hanzo surely. He already yielded, doing anything further would’ve been dishonorable, so surely he wouldn’t have even dared. So then why did he pick up the sword? Not finding the answer to these questions and wanting to quickly rectify the situation, Kuai Liang bows and says, “I’m sorry, Hanzo, please forgive me for my rashness. I was out of line and it will never happen again.”
Hanzo, not particularly realizing the seriousness of the situation, simply stands up and shrugs, “It’s fine, I don’t think you would’ve done too much damage. If the grandmaster hadn’t stepped in, I feel like I could’ve held my own even if I was caught off guard because I yielded.” After Kuai Liang looks him in the eyes Hanzo smiles and continues, “I enjoyed our spar Kuai Liang. I liked the challenge it gave me, I look forward to the next one.”
Kuai Liang, not wanting to continue the conversation, simply nods and takes his leave, not without feeling his brother’s glare on his back. He knows they will have to have a discussion later, but for now, he wants time for himself and his thoughts.
-
The smell of antiseptic and eerie cleanliness is all too familiar to Hanzo ever since his introduction to the clan. The evidence of all the rigorous training and sparring that he’s been through to prove himself has been etched into his body through all of the bruises and scars he’s earned. Nothing too serious to put him out of commission, but enough to warrant these numerous visits.
He hisses as Sektor applies pressure to his nape and she lets out a sigh. Each time Hanzo visits her, he is adamant about being fine and downplays his injuries, but she can tell just how much they affect him. If it weren’t for their Grandmaster practically forcing Hanzo to see her, she would have no idea how banged up he would be.
“It’s not that bad Sektor, it'll heal in a few days.” He turns his head to look at her and is met with an unimpressed look. “It’s not like I use my neck like my leg or arm you know? I don’t need to rest, I'll just take it easy.”
“You say you’ll take it easy and you just end up coming here over and over,” she says while putting some gloves on with a snap. “You know I’m not even supposed to be doing this. I’m not the clan’s medic, so why does Bi-Han keep sending you to me for some reason? I have more important things to do and your repeated visits keep taking me away from them.”
“Really, like what?”
She looks at him tentatively before walking over to a drawer to rummage through some supplies. After a few seconds she pulls out a tube, fabric, a bottle, and bandages before saying, “None of your business.” With all the items acquired, she makes her way back over to Hanzo to see what she has to work with.
His arms and torso are littered with tiny cuts and gashes but dealing with them all would take all day, which with Sektor’s patience already running thin, is not an option. She douses the fabric with the liquid in the bottle and rubs it across Hanzo’s skin as if she were bathing him. They sit in relative silence during the process, only hearing small hisses as she roams over particularly nasty gashes. Once she finishes with the fabric, those gashes are the ones that she focuses on when applying bandages. The smaller ones will heal on their own and aren’t at risk of infection, so she leaves them alone.
As Hanzo watches her work he can’t help but say, “You know, for how much you claim to not be a medic, you are awfully skilled at taking care of patients.”
She doesn’t say anything for a few seconds and Hanzo expects her to be annoyed or not say anything at all until she says, “Bi-han, his brothers, Cyrax, and I used to get into a lot of trouble when we were younger. It wasn’t anything serious or especially dangerous, just dumb daring things that kids do.” Her mood shifts to one of reminiscence and Hanzo feels dumbfounded. This is the first time that Sektor has even alluded to something from her past, and as curious as he is to hear more about their upbringings, he decides not to ruin the moment and keeps his mouth shut.
“We used to do things like sneaking out, challenging our elders in fights, going to restricted areas, and a bunch of other stupid shit. It was very risky, especially for the brothers and even more so for Bi-Han. I remember we got caught a couple of times and the reprimandings that the Grandmaster gave us always made us question if it was even worth it,” she says with a slight chuckle.
She moves to sit on a stool where she has a good reach and view of Hanzo’s arm sporting a nasty bruise from where he told her he fell on it earlier. She unscrews the tube to apply some ointment on his arm as she continues, “Needless to say, we always decided it was worth it because it was the most fun we had outside of boring clan life. As we learned more skills and got stronger, we also got sneakier and better at hiding our activities. Almost every time, we would get injured somehow and we couldn’t go to the medics because they’d snitch on us, so we took care of ourselves. Of course with me being the designated uh…” She pauses to think of the best word, “...support of the team, medic duties ultimately fell on me. I was the best at it, and I saved our skins more times than you can imagine. So yeah, I guess I answered my own question earlier, that’s why Bi-Han keeps sending you to me.”
Being finished with his arm, Sektor moves behind him to do the same process to his nape. Hanzo doesn’t know what to say as he digests the information he just heard. Within all the time he’s been with the clan, he has gathered that Sektor and Cyrax seem to be the closest to the brothers and the ones that the Bi-han trusts the most outside of his family. He just figured that this closeness was founded on loyalty and skill, but with this new information, it seems that they were closer than he ever imagined. To him, the five of them just seemed to have a professional relationship. Even within the brothers themselves, they haven’t expressed the closeness and familial bonds that Hanzo would typically think that siblings would have. However, learning what they used to get up to in their younger years, having fun doing things that many teenagers do, makes him second-guess his beliefs. He realizes that the relationship he sees is the one that they want him to see, and if he wants to learn more about their true relationship, he will have to prove himself more trustworthy.
He thinks to pry more and ask Sektor for more anecdotes, but his mind goes blank as he yelps, feeling a sharp pain at the back of his neck. He quickly turns around and is met with an irritated look as she says, “Oh c’mon I barely touched you.” Whatever peaceful mood she seemed to have is quickly gone and replaced with the annoyance she had at the beginning. He realizes asking her for more details wouldn’t be the best at the moment and leaves it for another time.
She touches his nape once more and he braces for the sharp pain, but it quickly melts into a cooling sensation as the ointment is applied. He sighs in contentment as the throbbing eases away and leans backward into the feeling.
A few moments later, they are interrupted by a knock on the door and it opens to reveal their leader walking into the room. Sektor straightens a little at his presence and says, “You’re just in time Grandmaster, I’m almost finished and then Hanzo can be on his way.” She seems to rush when applying the cream and once she’s done Hanzo misses the relaxing sensation that it brought him.
Bi-Han looks him over and notices the bandages and bruises and asks Sektor, “How serious are his injuries?”
“Nothing serious, he won't need any rest so long as he doesn’t do anything intense. He should be all healed within a couple of days,” she says blankly as she snaps off her gloves. Hanzo finds it ironic how she chastised him earlier when he said the same thing about his injuries not being serious.
Finally being all patched up, Hanzo decides to get up but winces as he pushes using his bruised arm. Sektor and Bi-Han share a look and she sighs, “Or maybe he does need some rest. Just make sure not to use the arm too much and you should be fine.”
“Agreed. Hanzo I’ll give you the week off from training until your injuries are healed. I think you deserve it after putting up such a good fight against my brother. Of course, you’ll still be expected to complete clan duties, but nothing too straining, yes?”
“Of course, thank you, Grandmaster,” Hanzo says affirmatively. In all truth, Hanzo was hoping to get right back into training. If he were to be successful in his rematch against Kuai Liang, then he would have to take all the opportunities he got to better himself. However, a break sounded good too, and he couldn’t wait to relish it.
“Excellent, I’ll walk you out once you’re alright to leave.”
Without missing a beat Sektor voices, “He’s alright now, there’s nothing more I need to do.”
“If I didn’t know any better I’d say you were kicking me out,” Hanzo adds, even though he knows that is exactly what she’s doing. He’s met with a dismissive eye roll and he turns to face Bi-Han fully. “Alright, let’s be on our way.”
Bi-Han nods and they take their leave after bidding Sektor farewell. They walk the halls in awkward silence as Hanzo thinks of all the reasons why Bi-Han came to see him. Of all the times that he’s left Sektor’s lab, this is the first time that Bi-Han has personally seen to walking him out. He’s curious as to what spurred this on and asks, “Is there a reason in particular that you decided to accompany me? I know you’re a busy man, am I in trouble of some kind?”
“No, nothing like that, but it’s true that I wished to speak with you.” He seems to contemplate his words before saying, “I wanted to apologize for my brother earlier.”
“Oh that,” he chuckles slightly, “You don’t have to worry about that, all is forgiven. I actually enjoyed myself so I don’t mind. Besides, I don’t think he would’ve actually severely harmed me.”
Not being satisfied with that answer, Bi-Han adds, “It doesn’t matter if he wasn’t going to harm you, the fact of the matter is that he crossed a boundary. Again, I’m sorry for his behavior and I can assure you that something like this will never happen again.”
Hanzo can tell that he’s getting increasingly angry, and not wanting to upset him further, he simply says, “Ok, alright, I’ll keep that in mind, thank you.”
“Don’t worry, I’ll speak to him tonight and hopefully try to smooth things out. I’ll see what I can assign for you to do tomorrow and arrange for Sektor to help you if the need arises. I hope we can resolve this, and I’ll see you tomorrow.” With that, Bi-han starts walking back the way they came, leaving Hanzo to go about his business.
-
To answer Bi-han’s question, yes, something has gotten into Kuai Liang, and it all started when he showed up. Kuai Liang doesn’t know what it is, but ever since his arrival, he’s just had this urge to just release tension. Every time Hanzo is around he can’t help but feel disdain for him, to wish him to leave and crawl back to wherever the hell he came from.
Which is another note because no one knows “wherever the hell he came from.” It had been a typical day in the clan when Liu Kang arrived unannounced and looked a little bit stressed. He urgently requested an audience with the brothers and they worried it was something dire. Was Earthrealm in danger again? Was the alliance with Outworld over? But those worries were unnecessary as Liu Kang presented Hanzo Hasashi, a pyromancer who was now to be welcomed, trained, and brought up within the Lin Kuei to become a defender of Earthrealm.
Kuai Liang had never believed in love at first sight, but if it was anything like hate at first sight, then he would convert to a firm believer. He had hated him since their first meeting and that feeling has remained up until this day. He doesn’t know why but something deep down just brings all of those negative emotions whenever he thinks about him. It doesn’t help that he’s been getting spontaneous headaches, first appearing just days after Hanzo settled in. They started off minor, barely feeling them, but as of late, they have gotten more persistent, and Kuai Liang can’t help but associate them with the man who’s been terrorizing his thoughts. Even now, the earlier events seem to have spurred on another one, and he can tell he’s gonna be in for a long night.
Kuai Liang knows that the feelings that he possesses are irrational. The man has been there for around 7 months and has done or shown nothing that would indicate he deserves those ill feelings towards him. He’s quite frankly been nothing but kind and open to Kuai Liang and the whole clan. He’s proven himself to be trustworthy, reliable, valiant, and a whole bunch of other positive qualities that it infuriates Kuai Liang to think about.
Rationally, he knows that he should let these negative feelings go, but he just can’t shake them. It seems to be something innate within him, and no matter how much the other man proves himself, they just won’t go away. For now Kuai Liang has remained cordial, professional with him at best and outright rude to him at worst. He has tried his best to keep his feelings at bay and respect the other man, but if his outburst today says anything, he doesn’t know how long he can keep this up.
A knock at the door interrupts his thoughts and he turns around thinking of who it could be. Judging by the fact that he didn’t hear their approach, they must be highly skilled, and remembering the incident from earlier, it could only be one person. “Enter.”
Bi-han’s entrance is no surprise but it is upsetting as Kuai Liang rolls his eyes internally, knowing where their conversation will lead.
Bi-han brings with him a tray containing a teapot and two matching cups. He sets them down across from Kuai Liang and sits as he pours tea into both of their cups. They both attend to them to take small sips and wait. This does Kuai Liang some good as he feels his headache shift into a dull ache. The silence stretches as Kuai Liang refuses to say anything first and his brother lets out an exasperated sigh.
“What happened earlier?” he asks in a tired tone.
“Hanzo and I sparred, and I won because he yielded, despite that I was going to continue but you stepped in just in time. I’m ashamed of my actions and I will-”
“No I- no Kuai don’t tell me what happened, Gods I was there and watched it all play out. I want you to tell me why you did it. What were you thinking? What was your headspace during all of that?”
Kuai Liang looks down at his cup and thinks over the words he is about to say. How is he supposed to explain his reasoning to his brother if he can’t even explain it to himself? “I don’t like Hanzo Hasashi.”
Unsatisfied with that answer Bi-han says, “Well, I know you don’t like him. Everyone knows. You’ve made your stance quite clear by how you act around him. Despite your dislike, it doesn’t excuse your behavior earlier nor your behavior in general. It’s like a switch has been flipped in you and you’ve changed. I see it. I see how fast you become irritated as he enters a room. I don’t understand Kuai, he has done nothing to warrant this.”
Bi-han furrows his brows as a realization dawns on him, “Has he done something? Has he done something to you, Kuai? That I don’t know about? Is he-”
“No!” Kuai Liang says immediately to shut down any accusations his brother is thinking of. He might not like him, but he won’t allow his reputation to be tarnished by something that’s not true. “No, I just, I don’t know how to describe it. It’s not that I think he is a bad person, it's just that…” His throat becomes dry, so he takes a sip of tea and continues, “I feel like something is missing. Something crucial about him that we don’t know. I’m just trying to be prepared for when we figure it out.”
“You think he’s hiding something from us, keeping a secret.”
“I mean, yeah, we basically know nothing about him. We don’t know where he came from, his past is a complete mystery. Most importantly, he’s a pyromancer. Earthrealmers who wield powers are so rare, there just has to be something special about him.”
Bi-han seemingly thinking it over says, “We might not know everything about him, but I don’t believe Liu Kang would’ve brought him to us with ill intentions. So far he has been a great asset, he pulls his weight and bolsters our forces. He’s mysterious, but I trust that he is a good fit for the Lin Kuei.
“I suppose I understand, but just why now? Why didn’t Liu Kang bring him to us when we were defending Earthrealm? Why didn’t he choose him as one of his champions? Surely he would’ve been a better fit than the actor, the swordsman, and the village farmers combined. I just don’t like how late and random his appearance has been.”
“I see what you’re saying, but you said it yourself, pyromancers are rare, maybe Liu Kang just had a hard time finding him.
Kuai Liang scoffs, “I doubt it. If he created us, then it would be impossible for him not to know. This had to be on purpose.”
“Liu Kang is a fire god, not omniscient. Perhaps he did withhold Hanzo on purpose, but it was probably for a good reason.” Bi-Han’s cup appears empty, which is usually a good indicator that their conversation is nearing an end.
“I know you feel a way about Hanzo, but I just ask that you try to be more amicable towards him. Everyone notices, even him, though he doesn’t show it. I’m not asking you to like him, but please try to get to know him a little better. I believe you might not find him as bad as you make him out to be, and you could find some similarities. After all, he is now Lin Kuei, and I want him to feel as such.”
Kuai Liang sighs heavily and considers his brother’s words. He’s right and there’s no valid argument against it, “I’ll try, brother, but no promises.”
Knowing that that’s the best answer he will get, Bi-han nods and gathers the tray with their late-night beverage. “Good night Kuai, try to get some rest and hopefully you'll have better considered it in the morning.”
“Good night, Bi-Han,” he says as he watches him silently exit. Sighing heavily, he decides to listen to Bi-han’s advice of getting rest and prepares himself with his nightly routine. He’s grateful for the tea he brought him tonight because otherwise, he’d have a lot more trouble getting sleep. Getting in bed, his thoughts drift to Hanzo, which is met with annoyance as he eagerly tries to welcome sleep.
He couldn’t help but notice all the similarities between them and thinking about the conversation he had with his brother, of the odd timing of his arrival. They both wore similar clothing with a similar aesthetic, had chained kunai as their preferred weapons, which was a niche weapon in and of itself, and most notably possessed pyromancy. Hanzo might as well just call himself Scorpion with how much he copied Kuai Liang.
Winning their spar made him feel immensely satisfied because it gave in to his feelings of superiority, made it clear to anyone that no matter how much Hanzo was akin to him, Kuai Liang was still stronger, still worthier, still Scorpion.