SUB ZERO'S RESOLVE
"Finish him!" The voice boomed. The spectators were quiet, waiting expectantly. Sub Zero glanced over his shoulder at Shao Kahn, the large, arrogant, sadistic man who hosted these brutal tournaments. He sat on a throne just outside the arena, snarling at Sub Zero through his bony mask. "Finish him," he repeated. The blue-clad warrior scoffed, turning back to his opponent. A Tarkatan, one of Baraka's underlings, stood frozen from the waist down, trying desperately to escape its icy prison. Sub Zero approached the creature, a blade of pure ice slowly forming in his right hand. The creature shrieked, but was quickly silenced when Sub Zero decapitated it. Blood gushed from the Tarkatan's neck, and its head flew several feet in the air before landing at Sub Zero's feet. He crushed it under his boot and raised his arms over his head, victorious. By now, the crowd was deafening, screaming his name at the top of their lungs. He turned to face Shao Kahn. "Who's next?"
The Emperor chuckled and snapped his fingers. Baraka, who stood off to Shao Kahn's side, jumped into the arena. He was clearly upset about his subordinate's death. Baraka snarled, blades extending from his arms. "Prepare to die, human," he growled. Sub Zero took up a fighting stance and formed a second blade in his free hand.
Baraka wasted no time. He lunged at his opponent, slashing angrily. Sub Zero spent several minutes deflecting the blows, until his icy swords weakened and shattered into small fragments. Baraka grinned, a terrifying sight considering his mouthful of fangs, and lunged once more, trying to pierce Sub Zero's heart. The Lin Kuei assassin ducked under the blow and rolled, coming to a crouch behind the Tarkatan general. He focused his power into his hands, firing large, razor-sharp shards of ice from his palms.
Baraka turned to face Sub Zero, only to be impaled several times by the icicles. Blood spurted from the wounds, and Baraka howled in pain. Sub Zero ran and drop kicked the Tarkatan in the face. With a sickening crunch, several of Baraka's bones cracked, and he flew to the ground. Sub Zero panted, out of breath. As his enemy shrieked in agony on the arena floor, the assassin took a moment to regain his composure. The spectators screamed for him to end the Tarkatan's life. And that's exactly what Sub Zero did. He walked over to the broken and bloody Baraka, and unceremoniously froze him solid. Raising his boot, he stomped on the creature's face, shattering Baraka's head and spraying blood and shards of ice in all directions. The crowd loved it. He turned to the enraged Shao Kahn, ready to do what he had come to do. "Your turn, Emperor."
Shao Kahn stood, apparently angry that Baraka had failed. He stomped into the arena, walking over to the frozen Tarkatan and smashing what remained of his body with a large hammer. Ice shards and gore exploded everywhere, and Sub Zero shielded his eyes. Shao Kahn turned to face the assassin, brandishing his hammer like a club. "Now you die, mortal."
Sub Zero grunted as he rolled to the side, barely avoiding Shao Kahn's first attack. The hammer struck the arena floor, sending bits of stone flying through the air. Sub Zero rose and sprinted at his opponent, trying to tackle him, but was kicked in the chest and knocked to the ground. The assassin grunted, clutching his chest; several of his ribs were now broken. Shao Kahn laughed maniacally, obviously pleased with himself. "Is that all the great Sub Zero can do? I must say, I'm disappointed. I expected more of a challenge."
Sub Zero rose, with some difficulty, to his feet. "Don't think you've one yet, tyrant," he muttered. He extended his hand and froze the ground at Shao Kahn's feet, taking the Emperor by surprise. He howled as he slipped and fell on his face, dropping his hammer. Sub Zero smiled under his mask; it's not every day you get to humiliate the most feared man in all the realms. But it was short lived, as Shao Kahn quickly recovered and began to stand. Sub Zero thought fast and grabbed the Emperor's hammer. He swung it in a wide arc, catching his foe dead in the face. With a loud cry, the Shao Kahn flew backwards several yards and landed with a thud. Blood pooled from his head, and Sub Zero was sure he was dead.
The assassin tossed the hammer and approached Shao Kahn. His eyes were closed, and he wasn't moving. The crowd was dead quiet. Sub Zero stood for several moments, surprised that he had actually won. Soon the shock wore off, and he turned, raising his arms in triumph. But the crowd wasn't cheering. Sub Zero was confused. He had just saved the realms from the most terrifying man in history. They should be celebrating. He turned to look at the body, but was met with a meaty fist to the face. There was a loud pop as his nose broke, and when he hit the ground, he saw stars. The Emperor wasn't dead.
Sub Zero moaned. He was in agony. But he was trained to ignore the pain, so that's what he did. He rose on shaky legs, breathing heavily. With a grunt, he grabbed his nose and popped it back into place. Blood soaked through his mask, dripping down his tunic and onto the ground. But he ignored it. He instead focused on Shao Kahn, who had retrieved his hammer. With an angry yell, the Emperor rushed Sub Zero, swinging it wildly. But though the assassin was in terrible pain, he was still able to avoid the blows. Shao Kahn's rage made him slow, and Sub Zero took advantage of it. As the hammer came down to crush his skull, he rolled to the side and launched an ice ball, freezing the weapon to the ground. The ice spread up the handle, enveloping Shao Kahn's hands, and soon his arms. The Emperor screamed his defiance, trying in vain to break free. Sub Zero stalked towards his enemy, an ice blade in his hand.
"Now, Shao Kahn, you die." The assassin swung his blade, smashing the Emperor's arms. He screamed, blood oozing from the stumps. His cries shook the arena.
"Please, don't do this! I can make you rich. Together, we'll rule the realms!" He pleaded.
"Not interested."
At this, Shao Kahn turned and ran, fleeing for his life. But his lack of arms made him clumsy. He fell face first onto the ground, and groaned miserably. Sub Zero walked over casually, watching his foe writhe in a pool of his own blood. The assassin clutched his blade in both hands, and raised it over his head. "Burn in Hell," he murmured. Then he plunged the blade into the Emperor's head, killing him instantly. Sub Zero turned away from the corpse, and let the crowd's infinite praise rain down on him. He had killed Shao Kahn. The realms were finally free.