A/N: this will be the first story I have written where it is from the reader's POV and let me know what you think! The story will reference many MK elements such as mythologies and whatever is canon.

Thanks to Ultravioletsoul for some very good constructive feedback on my writing as I know I am focused on the emotions and feelings on the characters but not in describing the scenery. Also, I seem to mix past and present tense up all the damn time, lol.

…..

TIMELINE 14 YEARS BEFORE THE FIRST MORTAL KOMBAT TOURNAMENT

You were always fond of Hanzo Hasashi as a child, well, not when you first met him. There was such a huge age gap between you two when you were 10 and he was 20. You met him as your mentor, it was a exchange program during the peaceful times between the Tengu and the Shirai Ryu. The elders opt a program to cross train techniques between clans as they all originally stemmed from one somewhere in Asia. That is, according to all the history books written a thousand years ago. So the idea was that the cross training would allow dispersed clans to come back to their roots and become familiar with one another again.

Hanzo can be described as a very rough teacher, despite his youthful age; it was the first time he was there to teach younger members for ninja cadet training. You were not the star pupil in day one either. Though, truthfully, you either had days you were livid to see him and days during the program where you hated his guts. Such an odd extreme to learn as a child.

The first day of the cross train program, you showed up late since it was the first time you were at Shirai Ryu compounds. You were an orphan, no one really watched over you as a guardian, no one really guided you as a child on what was proper. You were eating your rice bun as breakfast in the session when he stopped you. It was his first time teaching and you were literally insulting his authority.

"State your name, why are you enrolled in this program?" Hanzo said as he stood tall and folded his arms.

"My name is [y/n], I am becoming a ninja because my grandmaster said so," You replied in honesty. Truthfully, as a 10 year old who had never been on a life or death mission, you lacked understanding in worldly matters. Yet, more snickers were heard among the other students.

Hanzo was furious you were not respectful of him and he had to maintain respect over the rest of his pupils. As an instructor, he was already looked down upon by the senior ninjas of his clan and his father had forbidden him to become a ninja. Everyday that he was a teacher was an insult to his dream of one day being a ninja. You did not understand that though at the time, but, you took a good look at his angered face and then split your bun in half and offered half of it. He whipped it out your hand at the speed of lightening as it fell into the dirt. Now you suddenly understood why they nickname him Scorpion. Of course, now you laugh if you thought back of that time. As punishment, he made you fetch water and do milk runs all week after. That day, you promised yourself you will become a worthy ninja or warrior in front of him.

Over the months, you saw him during the cross training program that were almost like a monthly camp. He was always snarky, sometimes outside of the lessons, if you bumped into him at either the Shirai Ryu compounds or the Tengu Outpost, he would turn his head and pretend he didn't even know you.

…

TIMELINE - 12 YEARS BEFORE THE FIRST MORTAL KOMBAT TOURNAMENT

One fateful day, two years after you met Hanzo, an accident happened during an off-site cross training at the mountains. It had already been raining for days, an event only later known as the '3 weeks of rageful tears'. At first training still continued, no one was suspicious the rain would make the environment that dangerous that a landslide suddenly dragged you and seven other students, a mix of Tengu and Shirai Ryu. It happened so fast, you simply remembered sliding off the cliff and seeing the frantic looks in all the other students and Hanzo's eyes as they stood relatively safe where they were but helplessly witnessed the rocks drag the other 7 students down with you. It was assumed a fatal accident for all 8 students.

You remember the fear of helplessness as the earth dragged you down to the bottom of the hills to some pit where no strength of human capacity would have saved any of the students and the mud kept piling over you…and piling….till you had your last breath and the mud clogged your nostrils and lungs. You wanted to do so much more in life….you did not even get a chance to accomplish your own personal goals…

The rain did not stop for a certain amount of time, slowly, the area you were buried became a small pond and slowly the mud which had buried you had diluted. Eventually, your head started to stick out from the puddles of mud. You suddenly got up and gasped for air as you climbed out of the mud and from the water which was currently up to your waistline. You started coughing the dirt and grime out of your system. You formed a bowl with your hands catching rain water and drank what you can. You were cold and shivering in the middle of the night and you found some of the other bodies but the students were long gone and were floating face down. You were confused, crying and scared now as you were surrounded by death, but you managed to calm yourself down as your lessons and survival instincts kicked in. Soon after, the rain was mostly cleared from the night sky. You looked skyward and you can barely make out the stars, but you knew the constellations well thanks to all the lessons you had attended. When you determined the positions of the stars, you knew where you were and the Shirai Ryu site would be fastest to get to to seek help.

You crawled and fumbled your way there, the mud in your clothes made you feel defeated. Each step, was just you squishing around the mud caught inside your shoes. Eventually, you got to the compound and the alarms were raised promptly. Several Shirai Ryu members ran to see you and already knew who you were. Then as you were brought to a doctor's tent for an inspection, a sleep-deprived Hanzo Hasashi charged in and looked at you in complete shock and guilt-ridden that you were still alive.

He ran up and hugged you for the first time. You only remembered him whisper to you, "I am sorry, I am sorry." You understood he had to had to take all the students back to the grounds due to the poor weather after the incident. And he had been grieving since. After, you and him had a new kind of bond as you would grow to think of that as your happiest and most innocent of days. It did not even really occur to you that you had a secret ability to re-spawn. Though, when you did the math between the days, you immediately understood that it had been two weeks since you were listed as KIA. Yet, who would believe you? So you kept this to yourself.

….

TIMELINE - 10 YEARS BEFORE MYTHOLOGIES

You were Hanzo's favourite pupil out of the cross training program, you two spent time together here and there. After all, you had no family and he was an only child. He wanted a sibling of some sort. Today, you were at the Shirai Ryu compounds and it was very nice, yet breezy day with no lessons. You were spending some time with Hanzo though he had been odd around you.

"Why do you speak to me so oddly?" You asked Hanzo as he was getting flustered and was behaving out of character around you the last few days.

"I realized I must speak differently in tone between a man and woman," he collected himself and stood up proudly.

"I am not considered a woman yet. Are…you… practicing on me?" You raised your eyebrow.

Then he turned mid way to ignore you and his face went beet red when she walked by, Kana, the woman whom all the Shirai Ryu were fawning over. You were around 14 at the time, that may be the first time you felt envy. You wished you were her and you only wish when you grow up you can just be an ounce as beautiful as her.

"You look well today…Kana, your hair is…lovely,…" Hanzo gulped and croaked out those words.

Kana stopped for a moment and ran her hand over the silky locks and gave him an acknowledging smile, "Thank you, Hanzo," and she walked away with that.

"Sensei!" You raised your hand up once she was out of distance just to not ruin Hanzo's daydream. He snapped to look at you as you had interrupted his thoughts. "That pick up line was inefficient."

"What would you know about romance? What would you have me say, brat?" He sneered at you.

"I would have said this in your place: My name is Hanzo Hasashi, I am known for my speciality in the kunai. They call me Scorpion for my lightning speed, but my real specialty is making you fall in love with me," you said without shame and with a completely straight, serious face and then broke out in laughter at the end.

"Do not be absurd!" Hanzo fumed, red in the face from anger and embarrassment. He never was fond of your puns and jokes. "What films do they allow you Tengu brats to watch that you would learn to speak so boldly?"

"Johnny Cage," you replied, in reference to the rising action star.

You can only remember having to do the milk runs for a week because of that answer. Though in truth, you made that comment outside of your lesson so a part of you would always wonder why you simply accepted the punishment.

You knew some time later after that day, Hanzo began to spend more time with Kana, they were the right age for each other and they sure as hell looked good together. Though, deep down, you will always crush on him.

…..

TIMELINE - 8 YEARS BEFORE MYTHOLOGIES

One day, Hanzo paid visit to the Tengu output and passed you a highly decorative red envelope, you know what that invitation is for was but it the first time you have seen one. "I will have to find out how to get there," you smiled. He was going to marry Kana, you were happy for him but also sad in realization that the days you had to spend with him would diminish. He had asked you to be part the day being a bridesmaid. You did not understand fully what you will be doing but you really wanted to be there.

Though coincidently, the Tengu elders had an argument with the Shirai Ryu over political and financial matters. The Tengu stopped seeing value in continuing the cross training from a security and cost efficiency standpoint. Or perhaps they felt they had arrived to a the stage in the programs where there was little to benefit from each other. Cross training and exchange programs were halted and neither clan were permitted to visit each other unless there were signed orders. That was the last time you saw him in this span of time. Due to the cutoffs, travel between the two clans was forbidden; you never made due on being there for his big day.

…

TIMELINE - 6 YEARS BEFORE MYTHOLOGIES

The Tengu clan had matured finally in leadership roles, the last two years, you had an opportunity to exchange a few words with Hanzo when he and you were a part of the yearly clan talks between the Shirai Ryu and Tengu. You often ask each other how you both were doing. You found out Kana was expecting and he was going to be a father.

You told him you were thinking to take candidacy to uphold the title of Kremnine, a Tengu title of legacy. He was immediately concerned for you since Kremnines often had high rates of mortality due to the amount of one-way missions they agree to do. He warned you not to, even though, he took risks everyday becoming a full ninja despite his fathers wishes. You understood why though, being a ninja was high risk yet high reward; he would be providing Kana and Jubei a luxurious life within the clan.

You could not admit the truth to him, the time you survived the land slide….that was first, but later, you discovered…you simply can't be killed. That is why you can be Kremnine.

To your dismay, the peace talks stopped when the elders could not make agreement and once again communication and visits between the clans were prohibited unless a mission was involved.

At the time, the difference between one side of the party giving life and the other possible losing their life seemed like such a polar end opposite. You soon discovered, it was not so much.

…..

TIMELINE - MYTHOLOGIES

One day, several Shirai Ryu appeared at the Tengu outpost including Scorpion, though, he felt distant to you. You knew he had been a ninja for a some time and assumed it was his experiences that have changed him and it had been years since you last saw him. During that time, you took Hanzo's concern seriously, so instead of applying to be Kremnine, you focused on being a front line medic. You were, at least, noticed for doing a very, very good job of it.

You found it odd that only Hanzo spoke among his fellow team when he was greeted by yourself and Wu Lae. He asked for the gate by the bridge dam wall to be closed due to a unspecified mission. He had signed papers by the elders which was passed to Wu Lae. As Wu Lae took a minute to inspect the signatures, Hanzo turned his attention to you and called you by your name. He picked up your hand and kissed the other side of the palm and you felt was odd; he never behaved that way in front of you before.

If you were a teenager, you probably would have been giddy but you knew better. There was something odd about him, but, you could not quite place it. Wu Lae then agreed that the gate will be closed and assigned you and a small group to the task as it was a 5-man job.

You went your separate directions, you never thought you would never see him again.
You would only learn years later, the true meaning behind closing the gates.

…

DAYS LATER

You heard the news, Scorpion and the entire Shirai Ryu clan were confirmed massacred. You remember crying yourself to sleep for days, saddened to hear that. Secretly to you, he was still the man you liked. Though he did not ever do anything romantic with you, you were still happy for him that he was with Kana.

You had no idea where his body was, you could not even visit his real grave if you wanted to. You volunteered to help clear out the Shirai Ryu village as an effort to prevent contamination and bacterial outbreak from all the decaying corpses. The villains behind the Shirai Ryu massacre set everything to flames, so while you were there, you could not even help distinguish bodies on site. Every supposed female corpse made you think it could have been Kana, every body of a small child made you think it could be Jubei. In the end, the Tengu had to opt for a mass grave.

Though something bothered you…that gate Hanzo asked you to close, you chased it down and noticed bodies along the way. To your horror, since you locked it up, there were dead Shirai Ryu sprawled in agonizing expressions at the gate. Had the gate not been locked, those people may have been able to escape to safer locations from whatever they were running from. They were not burned like the rest of them; you know you had to decontaminate the gate area.

The fear of a clan massacre caused many Tengu elders to suggest a pact with the Lin Kuei. The idea was security in numbers and the Lin Kuei had wanted the Shirai Ryu to fall due to increased rivalry of skilled assassins.

The Tengu on the other hand, lacked those resources. In the past, the Tengu had always had a ninja warrior under the role of Kremnine as their legacy. The last Kremnine's shoes had not been filled and he was a legend….he was also known as your father. Or at least that was the last officially recognized Kremnine.

There was, at least, a Kremnine who was in training but died after 2 months of accepting the role that you were aware of. The Elders decided this would remain a secret and denied there being attempt of having a new replacement. Most Kremnines in the past, did not get opportunity to fully train themselves for the role before they lose their life, but it was recognized as the highest honour in the clan as they were picked.

There was push to the current leader, Wu Lae, to take on the title, but he refused, he could not be both roles at the same time! While he was an alright leader, he certainly feared death.

You, by now, realized one thing about yourself…you have no fear of death because you cannot even grasp it. You had gone out on numerous missions now. Some which you returned back as the sole survivor, though some of masters wanted to revoke your registry in the missions under suspicion that you must be bailing out of missions, thus pretending to be the sole survivor.

One night, you snuck into one of the meetings between the Elders and Wu Lae where you interrupted mid-way by offering yourself as Kremnine in front of the elders.

A few snickered and passed each other looks that suggested, 'who does this medic think she is?'

"How dare you walk in to a private meeting! We should have you executed!" Wu Lae raised his voice. Though he secretly gave you brownie points for being able to sneak in undetected. The guards had now surrounded you, with their weapons ready and did their best to look ready in order to cover up their embarrassment.

"I, repeat, I nominate myself to be your Kremnine, elders," you said, determined.

"We know you, you show promise…of course….as a medic… but you are neither the fastest or strongest fighter," Wu Lae argued. "Your insolence here will prevent your candidacy."

"Allow me to demonstrate why I am to be considered above your candidates," you pulled out a knife and the guards were ready to slay you. You shocked the room when you plunged the knife in and out of your heart. Your body collapsed instantly.

'She is a disgrace', 'This is really that Kremnine's child?', 'She must be disposed of without the body seen.' Were the voices you heard when you died again.

As the guards walked up to your corpse, ready to remove it from the scene, you suddenly got up and brushed blood off your suit. You picked up and concealed the knife.

"Impossible," Wu Lae walked up to you and inspected you.

"Do you need another demonstration?" You asked.

"Since when did you?"

"Several years ago, during the 3 weeks of raging tears when I was listed as KIA, truth is, I really did die for 2 weeks and I had that ability since," you explained.

You were escorted out into the lobby of the meeting room as the rest of the meeting was intended to be private. After the meeting concluded, you saw everyone exit the room, Wu Lae went up to you to officially offer you the title, Kremnine, and you accepted.

….

A/N: the next chapter is about you meeting elder Subby.