Mortal Kombat Mythologies: Cyrax

Chapter II

An hour later...

"What the hell is wrong with you?" Cyrax exclaimed, furious at his partner. The pair was sitting in a forest clearing, miles from the compound of Xi Shien. Sektor was seated on a rock, bandaging his injured arm. Cyrax was facing away from him, staring into the woods beyond.

"I did nothing wrong, Cyrax!" Sektor barked back. "I did what any Lin Kuei operative should have!"

"You foolishly attacked a soldier who was clearly wearing body armor!" Cyrax retorted, turning around to face Sektor. "There would have been plenty of ways to deal with the situation but instead you rushed in with no plan or thought!"

"There was no reason I should be blamed in this. We were clearly unprepared to fight this enemy," Sektor said, trying to calm himself. He tore off the bandage and put the roll back into his pack.

"If you had just followed my lead, we wouldn't have had to abandon the mission," Cyrax said. "I would have rather died back there than to face what is waiting for us when we return to the Lin Kuei."

"Father will understand," Sektor said with some confidence. "Once we explain that our enemy's arsenal was simply too technologically advanced when compared to our own, the blame will fall to the client for not properly warning us."

"You know nothing," Cyrax said. He walked up to Sektor and placed his face in front of his partner's. "Our duty is to the mission and that means accounting for the unaccounted for. There was no excuse for what transpired back at the compound. We would have been perfectly capable of handling the situation had you not been so headstrong…"

"We shall see," Sektor coolly replied. "I think I know my father well enough to explain our predicament…"

"Worthless mongrels!" the Grandmaster bellowed. "This failure is unacceptable!"

Cyrax and Sektor were kneeling before the Grandmaster's throne. The Lin Kuei Grandmaster was angrily pacing back and forth in front of his subordinates. Surrounding the throne room were other Lin Kuei clansmen, all standing stoically at attention.

"Do you know how valuable this client is?" he continued. "This mission should have been a simple task. It was not even an assassination assignment, it was merely to steal data…and yet you still come back with nothing!"

"Father, if you would let me ex-" Sektor tried to say.

"No! Your father is not here! I am the Lin Kuei Grandmaster," he said harshly. Sektor immediately lowered his head submissively. "You forfeited your right to address me 'father' when you returned empty-handed…" He looked towards Cyrax. "You were the mission lead, perhaps you would care to enlighten me as to what caused this grievous error, Cyrax…"

"The mission had been going smoothly," Cyrax began, looking towards the floor. "We had infiltrated the compound of Xi Shien with no difficulty and located the data bank." He turned his eyes towards Sektor. "However, Sektor impatiently attempted to take down one of the guards on duty with his weapon, despite the fact it should have been obvious that he was well-armored."

"That is not true!" Sektor said in his defense. "Our training would have called for me to have acted as I did. It was the fact the guards on duty were equipped with technology that exceeded that of the weapons we carry!"

"If your son would train more in the arts of stealth and assassination we wouldn't have had any need to engage the guards! This mission's failure falls entirely to Sektor!" Cyrax argued.

"Fa-Grandmaster," Sektor said, catching himself. "I assure you that this comes down to the lack of technology we have at our disposal!"

"You were being reckless!" Cyrax said, addressing Sektor directly. "You are just making excuses for your own incompetence! Take responsibility for your ac-"

"Silence!" the Grandmaster said, cutting off Cyrax. "I will not let you waste any more of my time with this inane bickering!" He motioned to one of the clansmen standing nearby. The clansmen took a ceremonial sword from behind the Grandmaster's throne and handed it to him. The Grandmaster ran his hand down the length of the sword. "I am sure you are aware of the penalty in the event of such failure…"

"Yes, Grandmaster," the two men said resignedly. They bowed their heads as the Grandmaster raised his sword above his. However, instead of bringing the sword down on them, the Grandmaster simply thrust it into the floor in front of them. The pair looked up and saw the sword wedged into the wood floor. Confused, they looked up at their leader.

"Be grateful that I value your skill more than your lives…" the Grandmaster said coldly. "Any lesser operatives would have been dealt a fatal blow for such ineptitude." He turned away from Cyrax and Sektor. "However any further mistakes will not be greeted with such mercy."

The two men stood to their feet and put their hands behind their back. "Yes, Grandmaster," they said in unison.

"You are all dismissed," the Grandmaster said, still with his back turned to his audience. "However, Cyrax and Sektor, you will not be receiving any new assignments for the next month as punishment." With that he thrust his hand out at his side and the crowd of Lin Kuei clansmen made their way to the door with the exception of Sektor, who stayed behind. The Grandmaster knew that Sektor had not left the room with the others but still did not turn around. "Why are you still in my presence, Sektor?" he asked.

"Father, whether or not you believe Cyrax, I did not say anything untrue," Sektor explained himself. "We met our match in that compound, our weapons were insufficient in dealing with the enemies within."

"Cyrax has made a good point," the Grandmaster said in response. "Your brazen and irresponsible actions do seem to be the cause of this mission's failure. You should be glad that I didn't force the brunt of the responsibility to your shoulders."

Sektor gritted his teeth upon hearing his father had sided with Cyrax but kept his composure. "Perhaps…I did not act in the most appropriate manner, yes," he continued, with an irritated tone. "However can you not agree that I have a good point about our equipment's antiquity? The client did not make clear that he hired us to assault a compound guarded by such highly-equipped mercenaries."

"You are Lin Kuei, Sektor," the Grandmaster said. "There's no excuse for failing only because the enemy has better equipment. Your stealth and cunning are what will suffice in those situations. I would spend this next month perfecting that."

"But the world we live in is not the same world that our ancestors did," Sektor pressed. "Would they have not wanted us to change and adapt to the evolution of our enemies? It is the only way to succeed…"

"The training and fortitude that we build as Lin Kuei has been standing strong for generations," the Grandmaster said. "Our weapons and techniques have yet to fail us."

"In this case they have…" Sektor replied, almost defiantly. "You say spend the next month refining myself in the art of stealth…I say it is not enough…"

At this point the Grandmaster turned his head slightly, acknowledging Sektor for the first time since their conversation began. "Let us assume that I agree with you and concede that we are being held back by relying purely on our practices of our forefathers…" he said, now somewhat intrigued. "What exactly do you have in mind to change this?"

Sektor smirked slightly, now knowing he had piqued his father's interest. "I believe we can give ourselves an edge if we explore more modern weapons. We cannot exist in a world that has surveillance equipment that never sleeps or enemies equipped with firearms while we try to confront them with little protection. There must be some evolution… Let me use the funds of the Lin Kuei to explore and research contemporizing our armaments. It can only be beneficial for all of us."

The Grandmaster slowly turned around. He paused in thought before speaking. "I find your ambitions to be disrespectful towards the lineage of our clan…however as my son, I am encouraged by your interest in the preservation of the Lin Kuei…" He paused again. "Very well, I will grant you the funds to conduct this 'research.' But do not waste my time or I will not hesitate to reconsider. I am already uncertain if this is a wise decision."

"Do not worry, father," Sektor said. "I have only the clan in mind…" With that, he turned around and slowly left the Lin Kuei throne room.

Cyrax was standing outside the Lin Kuei temple with Smoke and another man, dressed in blue.

"Sektor showed nothing but cowardice back there," the man in blue said. Frosty vapors were emanating from his body. "A Lin Kuei should possess more honor, and this comes from the son of the Grandmaster, no less…"

"It's in the past, Tundra…" Cyrax said. "I'm not happy that he tried to worm out of taking responsibility either but I'm just appreciative the Grandmaster was forgiving enough not to punish us more severely."

"Well, look who comes our way…" Smoke said, pointing behind Tundra and Cyrax. The two turned around to see Sektor walking towards them.

"What took you so long to leave the Grandmaster's chambers?" Tundra asked. "Trying to save face with your father?"

"Actually, the Grandmaster has just granted me the use of Lin Kuei funds," Sektor replied, smugly. "I intend to research new weapon technologies that might aid us in the future."

"Again with this?" Cyrax asked, exasperated that Sektor continued pushing this issue. "Your insistence on dodging the truth is disheartening, Sektor. I'd expect the son of the Grandmaster to accept responsibility for his error instead of avoiding blame by making excuses…"

"I have not made any excuses for what played out on our mission," Sektor said, unflinchingly. "You were there, it should have been clear that our inferior weaponry a large factor in our failure."

"I trust Cyrax's account," Smoke stepped in. "If anyone's actions hurt the mission, it was your mistake in moving forward without your partner's agreement."

Sektor looked around at his three detractors. "Well, regardless if you think I am to blame, the Grandmaster is allowing me to explore a new opportunity here and I welcome it."

"You know as well as I that you're just wasting everyone's time," Cyrax said. "Just take your reprimand and commit to improving…"

Sektor offered no reply as he walked by the three men. Tundra scoffed at Sektor from behind his back. "Arrogant fool…" he muttered.