Chapter 1: EGG

There were many dangers in the Kuatan Jungle that they had faced, and they knew all of them until this day.

It was hot and humid that day, and they pondered if the heat was playing tricks on them. A broken pod lay before them, damaged heavily with debris littered about the jungle; a path of broken trees was evidence enough to prove that it had crashed landed. As the Emperor and his guards looked upon the strange craft, they found themselves unable to come to a conclusion of it's possible origin.

Kotal Kahn rubbed his chin with uncertainty. Though severally destroyed, he had an inkling that it was not of Earthrealm and yet it was the only thing he could think of as suitable explanation.

He looked at his guard, Erron Black, a former resident of Earthrealm, who also seemed confused by the craft. He looked at it with his hands on his hips and shook his head, confirming that he did not think it of Earthrealm either. D'Vorah, who had volunteered to inspect the wreckage, emerged, sported her wings and flew to join the Emperor. She carried something in her hands, and they all narrowed their eyes at what she held. They had not expected to find it among the rubble.

"An egg?" Black questioned; unsure if he was seeing things right. He looked at the leathery, slippery sack that dripped she held with a grimace. The bug queen didn't mind the texture and found it familiar to her own children's eggs.

"Yuck!" Ferra spat in disgust with her tongue out. Torr grunted as if agreeing with his symbiotic partner.

"This one finds no trace of life," she informed him. "Perhaps what was inside hatched long ago."

The Emperor nodded in acknowledgement. "Whatever is in the jungle we will locate it, as well as whoever brought it here."

"If there was anyone in there," Black pointed out. "May have been remote piloted. Special Forces has somethin' like that."

"If so what purpose would it serve?" Kotal questioned. "There is nothing in the jungle worth planting a new life in."

"Nothing we know of," Ermac multiple voices chimed.

"Nevertheless, we shall look for this creature and it's master," Kotal Kahn motioned towards the five Osh-Tekk warriors that had accompanied them and they quickly formed around the Emperor. He instructed them to scout the area and report anything they thought noting. With that order, they fanned out in all directions.

D'Vorah noticed the worried look on the Kotal's face; his thoughts lost in deep concentration. "Something troubles my emperor?" she asked.

Kotal Khan looked at her with a grim disposition, "I feel a change in the jungle. Something has stirred it that does not belong here."

"This one would not worry," D'vorah assured him. "It may yet reveal itself as Earthrealm trash."

"I must confirm if so," Kotal replied.

"Emperor-"

Kotal interrupted the Kytinn queen. "I will speak with them."

The only warrior that had remained quiet was the Zatteran and Kotal couldn't help but notice something amiss with him. He looked upon the jungle with a guarded but unsure stare, as if he was trying to find something he couldn't see.

Reptile felt as if something was watching them. He had thought he had seen movement but turned to slowly to catch it. After that, he felt an uneasy feeling sink under his scaled skin he couldn't ignore. The only reason he did not say anything was because he didn't actually see anything and did not want to waste his Emperor's time. However, as he turned towards the group, he offered one last glare of warning not to toil with them to whatever was out there.

What Reptile was right about was that there was something watching them, but they were not its target... for now.

It was after something else that could be more dangerous than the potential prey that it saw before him. He watched as they discussed amongst themselves, their language they spoke foreign to him. He traced patterns in their words, trying to distinguish what was being said. They were stranger than any creature he had hunted before and that alone sent anticipation through him.

He would eliminate what he was charged to do first and then make a hunt out of all the creatures to bring back their heads to his clan.

They all looked to be warriors, and he would be pleased with their trophies. He particularly had his eyes on one of them. A large human shaped beast with feathered hair and whose skin burned hot with the intensity of the sun. There was a large beast with a smaller human upon it, but it did not impress him as it should- he had taken larger creatures. The burning man was what he wanted; he was the alpha.

He watched as they proceeded to the camp they had established not far from the wreckage of the escape pod. He looked upon the craft with irritation that he would have to accomplish this chore before he could hunt. It was imperative that it did not find what it was looking for before he could kill it; this was not an established hunting ground, and it was forbidden until decreed by the elders.

He would have to suggest this strange unknown place as a proposal with the trophies he would collect when he returned to his home planet. He hoped he would be able to do so before ruin could overtake it. It would be such a pity to let this place go to waste to the black serpents.

A lone Osh-Tekk warrior paced his way through the jungle with a dreadful weight of uneasiness. He was no fool and noticed that whatever wildlife that was present had suddenly and ominously departed. He clutched his spear a little tighter as he looked for the survivor of the craft and hoped they were not hostile.

He heard something in the brush and turned to meet nothing.

Panic set in.

His eyes darted from left to right as heard what sounded like scuttling through the forest floor. He turned to face the sound of the noise and felt his eyes bulge in alarm as something raced at him. He thrust his spear towards the brush violently began to push aside and whatever underneath quickly advance on him. He felt himself take a step back, the brush covering whatever was coming for him. He prepared his spear for an attack.

Suddenly it stopped a few feet from him, the brush still once again. He narrowed his eyes and slowly and as quietly as he could, he approached. He held in a breath as he used his spear-tip to move the leaves away.

A yellow and red spotted lizard native to the Kuatan Jungle hurried away, and he let out a sigh of relief. He shook his head, laughing at his own foolishness and turned back in the direction he was heading when he felt himself halt.

Something clung to the tree nearby he had not seen before. It was a small, white animal that hung silently on the tree as if it were a piece of fungus. He approached the seemingly harmless new animal to gaze closer inspection on it.

He didn't even have a chance to scream when it abruptly attacked him with a lightning speed he would not have thought possible.

He cried out in terror as his vision blackened and held onto his face with a strength he could not break; it's bony and wet fingers held onto their back of his head like an iron mask. He gurgled and fell to the ground, the last thing he felt was something wet, hard and yet pliable being shoved down his throat before darkness clouded him.

A/N: Hoped you enjoyed the first chapter. Let me know what you think with a review and as Shang Tsung would say "IT HAS BEGUN!"