Author's note: This one-shot was requested by lin-kuei-loser on Tumblr. They wanted to read a short story "(...) about Raiden and Hanzo trying to stop being jerks to each other and apologize(…)." I've deviated from the original prompt, but nonetheless, I hope my readers enjoy this.
Disclaimer: Mortal Kombat is owned by Warner Bros. I make no monetary profit from the publication of this story.
No Strangers to Darkness
The tranquillity of the late evening sky above Hasashi Hanzo was disrupted by the sudden appearance of dark clouds; they had gathered far too swiftly to be entirely natural. Why could the gods not let him mourn and remember Takahashi Kenshi in peace?
Hanzo remembered the folly of that day, when he had played into Quan Chi's waiting hands and inadvertently assisted in Shinnok's escape. Not long after that, he had sought to atone for his blunder with his own life. Raiden, seemingly changed after purifying the Jinsei, had intervened then, persuading him out of seppuku, and once again into immortality. The steady pulse of Earthrealm's life force in Hanzo's veins was his only constant, even as his fellow champions who had borne the burden of defending Earthrealm, grew old and died.
A flash of lightning illuminated the ancient steeples of the House of Pekara and briefly dispersed the thin mist in the surroundings. The former spectre arose swiftly from his kneeling position in front of Kenshi's simple tomb and faced the familiar figure that had formed before him as the crackling electric maelstrom died down.
"You are not welcome here," the unmasked ex-Shirai Ryu Grandmaster practically growled at the Thunder God, his arms glowing an iridescent blue as if by instinct. Blue flames grew in his eyes, which were not obscured, for his hood was lowered.
"Be that as it may, Hasashi Hanzo," the Thunder God responded, his pale pupil-less eyes solemnly meeting the ninja's hostile gaze. His voice was tinged with the tiniest bit of impatience rather than threatening malevolence. "I have come here to make amends, not for a confrontation."
After their combined invasion of Outworld, the shinobi had not met Earthrealm's former Protector. More precisely, Raiden had never sought him after the Elder Gods gave Kotal Kahn the right to defend Outworld in Mortal Kombat. Fujin had paid the Shirai Ryu a visit then, to inform him that Raiden had been corrupted during the Jinsei's purification and was leaving the Realm's Protection in the Wind God's hands, to focus on battling the corruption of his soul.
The man formerly known as Scorpion banished the manifestation of the Jinsei's energies. However, he would not merely accept whatever apology that the Thunder God wished to offer. "Many Shirai Ryu lost their lives because of your negligence -"
"As I have said before," Raiden interrupted him, "I had not foreseen the corruption of the Kamidogu. Just as I did not anticipate my own corruption ..." he trailed off with a sigh and looked away to the horizon. Few other gods or mortals would admit their faults so readily, Hanzo mused, though he could not help but wonder why Raiden would confide such a thing in him of all people.
And then the shinobi remembered what he had realised in the aftermath of Shinnok's second invasion in his lifetime: he himself was no stranger to darkness, corruption or even outright deception. While Quan Chi had killed his family, warped his memories of his previous life and thoroughly manipulated him like a puppet master, he had chosen to be called Scorpion; willingly following the twisted sorcerer's every command ... until he had been freed from his state as a Netherrealm spectre.
While the pain of losing his clan had lessened in the years between the Kamidogu crisis and Shinnok's return, the deaths of his wife and son still gnawed at his soul. This very agony had enabled him to wield the fires of Hell for a time, and had fuelled his desire for vengeance; he'd given in to his fury and killed Quan Chi, ignoring the pleas of his friends and allies. Thus, he had sealed the fates of the souls who had been so completely warped that they enjoyed their revenant states and were compelled to be loyal to the Brotherhood of Shadow. Even with their masters' death and incapacitation, the misguided fury within the revenants had not abated.
Even now, in his scarce dreams – as a living man sustained by the Jinsei, Hanzo had very little need for rest - Harumi would call out to him to save her and Satoshi, and he would fail to reach them in time ...
His dreams, and his immortality, served to remind him that he would never meet his old family again. And he would lose those among the living that he now regarded as family – Takeda especially – to the ravages of time, if Earthrealm's enemies would not claim them. Just as he had lost Kenshi.
"Hanzo," Raiden spoke, breaking the uncomfortable silence that had fallen between them. "If I could take your immortality away, I would. Shinnok's corruption was beginning to influence my judgements then." He did not elaborate further, and Hanzo did not ask him to.
Knowing that this was the closest thing to an apology he would get from the Thunder God, at least for the moment, he nodded briefly.
The Thunder God raised a hand to the Heavens, summoning a thick bolt of lightning. With an almighty flash and a loud boom of thunder, he disappeared from the old tombs of the House of Pekara, leaving Hanzo alone to the thoughts and memories of his loved ones.