Chapter Eight
Black Dragon Hideout
Erron Black
Erron stared down at his student with sympathy. That wound was surely causing terrible pain, but he knew it wasn't fatal. Kano had his methods… It was best not to interfere unless it was absolutely necessary. The gunslinger resisted the urge to help her to her feet, keeping a careful eye on Kano. Biting her lip, she shakily stood up and faced her 'leader'. The head of the Black Dragon turned to face Erron with a terrible smile on his face. "And now, it's time to discuss your employment, Mr. Black." He twirled one of his blades between his fingers, looking thoughtful. "You wanna join the Black Dragon?" he asked. Erron could see that Madi was nervous, eyes darting between Kano and him. The gunslinger nodded in response to the question. The Black Dragon leader grinned and said, "Then kill the girl." His apprentice's eyes widened in shock and fear, knowing she had no chance. Before she could move away he pushed her to the ground and place his gun against her forehead. She looked up at him, a look of hopelessness on her face. Erron assessed the situation to himself. All he needed to do in order to get the job was to put her down. He didn't want to. Madi was nice to have around, and she was a good fighter. But, Kano was offering a lot of money… An idea popped into his head, opening up a new possibility. He placed a hand on one of his pockets, feeling for something… Behind his mask, he grinned as he touched his portal stone. In one quick movement, he switched his target to Kano and fired. In the same instance, Kano tossed his butterfly knife. The bullet and the blade passed each other in the air. While the knife was flying towards them, Erron threw the stone, grabbed Madi, and jumped through the portal. Just before it closed, however, the knife went through. Kano clutched his injured leg while grinning. So what if they got away? Someone's getting hit!
Lin Kuei Temple
Erron Black
When they reappeared, they were in a snowy environment. Erron sighed, relieved his plan had worked. He looked to his partner… And realized with shock that Madi had one of Kano's knives sticking out of her shoulder. She whimpered in pain, staring at the blade. She reached a hand to feel at the wound, but Erron commanded, "Don't touch that yet; let me get something to wrap it." He pulled a length of cloth from his poncho, then, getting behind her, propped her up to assess the damage. He grimaced upon noticing that the tip of the knife was sticking out her back, and her clothes were covered in a layer of red liquid. "Why didn't you kill me?" she asked quietly. Erron sighed and said, "I had a moment of clarity in there. I would have received a lot of money from joining the Black Dragon. However, I can earn a lot of money with you too." She held back her question, sensing he had more to say. "You see Madi, you have mastered my abilities. Together, we are a deadly team. And that's profitable. We could make probably just as much, maybe even more. But in the end, there's one thing that separates you from Kano." "What might that be?" she asked.
He replied, "I know you mean those words. I could tell Kano to give his absolute loyalty to me, but in the end, he would leave me for dead. You, on the other hand, still have morals, although I might have stained a few of them. You will have my back, and that's a better policy. So here's the plan. As soon as you've recovered, you will work with me, and I will receive your paycheck. In return, I will keep you alive and fed, while providing my protection. Deal?" Despite the pain, she smiled and nodded. She frowned as a fresh wave of pain hit her full force. "If I recover…" she groaned. Erron replied, "I'll make sure you do. I didn't just give up a job only to lose you. I'll have to stitch it close… You're losing too much blood." Before Madi could comment, a voice from behind said, "Freeze intruders. State your business, or we will take you down." Erron turned around, coming face to face with several Lin Kuei ninjas. There seemed to be about 8 of them… An easy fight, even without Madi. Unfortunately, he thought he could see more in the distance. He rested his hands on the grips of his revolvers, preparing for a fight. He was ready to protect his partner if they tried anything.
As much as he wanted to end them all then, he decided to try diplomacy first. "Please," he began, "My friend doesn't have much time. She'll die if she stays out here in the cold for too long." "Mercenary. Why should we care about your predicaments?" the nearest ninja jeered menacingly. Erron held back a sarcastic remark and grumbled, "I wish to speak with the grandmaster. He'll have some sense." Another member retorted, "And how do we know this isn't some ploy to assassinate him?" The gunslinger chuckled and said, "If I wanted to kill him, do you really think this is how I'd go about doing it?" While the members all shared a feeling of distrust, one headed back towards the temple. Erron sighed in relief and whispered, "Hang in there, Madi."
Black Dragon Hideout
Agop
Agop kept close to his team, examining the base with excitement. This was his first real mission, and he was going to find Madi! "Look out!" Cassie exclaimed, dodging out of the way of flying bullets. A few Black Dragon members ran down the hallway, firing wildly and without direction. Easy targets. Agop phased behind them and swept them with a low kick. With a few quick punches to the head, they were knocked unconscious. "Good job!" Takeda commented. "All within a day's work!" Agop replied with a grin. "No time for chit chat. We have to keep moving and find Kano. There's no way we can let him escape." Cage stated, advancing down the hall with her pistols in hand. "Yes ma'am…" Jin muttered before following suit. So far, everything was going great. The mercenaries were not prepared in any way, and they scattered like flies. A hint of movement caught Agop's eye and he spun around. He gasped in surprise upon seeing the leader of the Black Dragon trying to sneak away. Agop launched his own spear, catching the man and punching him in the face. "You're not going anywhere!" he exclaimed. "And who's gonna stop me? You?" the mercenary spat, getting to his feet. "No, that would be me." Sonya said from behind him. He only had time to turn around before she hit him with an energy blast, electrocuting him. He collapsed on the ground and the general quickly cuffed him. "We did it! Kano is ours!" Jacqui said with excitement. Agop smiled. The main assignment was complete… Now where was Madi?
Lin Kuei Temple
Sub-Zero
"Grandmaster." one of the Lin Kuei said as they entered the room. Both Sub-Zero and Aidan looked up. "What is it?" Kuai Liang asked. "Two intruders were spotted outside of the temple. One of them is Erron Black, and the other is seriously injured. Erron has requested an audience with you, and seeks aid for his comrade." "Very well. Aidan, stay here. This won't take long." he stated. "But, can I please come?" the Little Man begged. "Just wait. I'll only be gone a few minutes." The grandmaster and his follower walked out of the room, heading outside.
Aidan
Aidan, of course, was not satisfied by the answer. Waiting a few seconds after his teacher had gone, he followed. Through the doorway he saw the courtyard. Sub-Zero stood before the captives. He gasped upon seeing Erron Black, who was sitting on the ground, with his partner leaning back against him. Aidan's eyes widened upon seeing the knife sticking out of her shoulder and the red stain on her clothes. "Erron Black. What do you think you're doing here?" Sub-Zero asked coldly. "Trust me," the gunslinger replied, "I don't know why we came here. We were escaping from the Black Dragons, and I threw the Portal Stone and pulled us through. Kano must have thrown a knife at the same moment so it came through with us, and hit Madi in the process-" "Madi?!" Aidan exclaimed, running to his teacher's side. The wounded looked up in surprise, hardly believing her ears. "Little Man?!" she questioned, straining to sit up straight. Despite her pain, she began to laugh weakly, in which Aidan joined her. He rushed to her side, earning a glare from the mercenary. "Oh my God, Madi! Are you okay?" the Little Man said with worry. She shot him a look and joked, "Yes, Aidan, I'm feeling WONDERFUL." "What is the meaning of this?" Sub-Zero questioned. "She's my friend, from my home." Aidan explained.
Madi
While still in great pain, Madi was overjoyed. Finally, she found one of them! "Can you tell Subby to let us go?" she mumbled with a small grin. He looked at Sub-Zero and pleaded, "Can we help her? I know Madi; she doesn't wanna hurt us." "I'm having trouble believing that. Besides, it's not her I'm worried about." he replied, shifting his gaze to Erron Black. The mercenary narrowed his eyes, saying, "Trust me Sub-Zero, I have no reason to kill you. Right now I only want to get help for her." The grandmaster tilted his head and asked, "This isn't very characteristic of you, Mr. Black. Why the sudden change?" Erron looked at Madi, replying, "Because she's my friend." Kuai Liang was quiet for a few seconds before saying, "Very well. How may I be of assistance?" "She needs to get out of the cold, and I have to do something about her wound… She'll bleed out otherwise." the gunslinger stated, earning a groan from his partner. "That's encouraging…" she grunted between clenched teeth. Madi flinched upon feeling a vibration coming from her pocket. It probably was a text from Agop… "Little Man…" she began. "What?" he answered. "Can you grab my phone from my pocket? I think your brother texted me…" Aidan did as he was told, and, sure enough, he had. Together, they read Agop's message, 'Where'd you go? We've searched the base, and you're not here. We caught Kano tho, so thanks!' "They caught him!" Aidan exclaimed in excitement. "Wait… You were communicating with Special Forces while we were at the base? Heh. I guess it's a good thing I chose to get us out of there… Glad that bastard got what was coming to him." Erron chuckled. "You know Agop as well? Well, Aidan did mention you were a friend… Maybe we should call over Cassandra's team to assist you." the grandmaster thought aloud. "I could call Agop." the Little Man suggested. "That would be awesome." Madi grunted, fighting to keep her eyes open. Just a little longer.
Agop
Agop was in the helicopter with the team. Sonya sat in the corner with a restrained Kano, who was spewing threats at anyone who would listen. Agop's phone began to ring. He answered, saying, "Hello?" "Agop!" Agop frowned, confused to hear his brother's voice. "Aidan? How are you calling me from Madi's number?" "She and Erron appeared at the temple! Madi's hurt really bad… Could you and the team come here and help her?" Kano stopped shouting and faced Agop with disbelief. "Wait a sec… Madi? Are you saying that little bitch caused the destruction of my organization? I swear the next time I see 'er, I'll-" He was cut off by a jab to the ribs by Sonya. "Shut the hell up, asshole. Nobody gives a crap." she stated. Agop pulled away from the phone and asked, "Are we able to go to the Lin Kuei Temple? My other friend is there, the one who told me the location. She needs our help." Cassie replied, "Well, without her, we would have never caught Kano. I think we can arrange a stop." Agop returned his attention to Aidan and said, "We'll be there shortly. See you soon!" He hung up and faced the prisoner angrily. "You hurt my friend… You bastard!" Takeda was barely able to catch his student's arm, stopping him from punching the former leader of the Black Dragon. Kano chuckled and said, "Sorry boy, you're gonna 'ave to try 'arder than that." "Agop, it's not worth it." the Shirai Ryu said, shaking his head. With a scowl on his face, the student sat down. The sooner he got to see his brother and his friend, the better.
Madi
Madi sighed in relief upon seeing the approaching aircraft. She didn't know how much longer she could take the pain. Agop emerged from the craft, followed by Cassie, Takeda, Jacqui, and Jin. "Hi!" Aidan exclaimed, hugging his brother. "Hey! Long time no see!" Madi said while biting her lip. Erron helped her move so she could see Agop better. "Cassandra Cage. I am glad you could come." the grandmaster said, addressing the leader of the team. "Sub-Zero, good to see you. Now, what seems to be the problem-" Cassie trailed off upon seeing the injured girl. She gasped in surprise and stated, "We need to get her on the helicopter immediately! She'll need first-aid, and- And- Wow, it goes all the way through?" "Not helping." Madi grunted. Cage turned to the gunslinger and asked, "Can you help her walk?" He nodded and tentatively helped Madi to her feet, being uncharacteristically gentle. Agop ran to Madi's other side and, along with the mercenary, began to help her to the copter. As they began to walk away, Aidan shouted, "Wait! Can I come with you guys?" "Sure!" Takeda replied. The Little Man turned to his master and said, "Thank you for teaching me so much." "It was my pleasure. Make sure you visit every once in a while to continue training. You are always welcome amongst the Lin Kuei." The grandmaster was caught off guard when Aidan hugged him, then walked off to join the others.
Erron Black
Erron Black sat next to his comrade, not saying a word to anyone else. As soon as they had entered the plane, Kano started shouting curses and threats until Sonya knocked him unconscious. Once they had entered the vehicle, a man had taken care of Madi, removing the blade and binding the wound tightly. She now sat in the seat next to him, listening to her friends' stories. Erron chuckled a little to himself. Compared to her experience, the other two had it easy! He saw that she was slowly fading from consciousness, which was understandable. Between the cold weather and the knife through the shoulder, she had probably lost a lot of energy. He was surprised when she grabbed his hand and whispered, "Thank you, Erron. For everything." Beneath the mask, he smiled a little. "No problem, kid. Now rest; I'd say you've earned it." He watched as her eyes drifted close and she sunk into sleep. If everyone else wasn't watching, he probably would have given her his hat. Unfortunately, he still had a reputation to maintain. So he sat through the rest of the flight quietly, staring into space and trying to act like it wasn't his first time on a helicopter.
Hi everyone! Wow, I haven't posted anything in this for a little over a month... I'm so sorry!
Well, this chapter has quite the story of its own. I had four different directions this could have gone, which one one reason why it took so long. Once I had written it, I decided I wanted to follow my pattern of posting, which was have the next chapter written before I post the current one (EX: have written chp. 9 and then post this). However, I sense serious writer's block ahead so I wanted to give you guys something. Then, I realized I underestimated the size of Kano's blade and had to rewrite this chapter in a more urgent tone. Anyways, I hope you like this chapter!
Review time!
ImAPleb: Amazing chapter, and great story so far. The wait was worth it, though nothing from Netherrealm?
Yeah... Don't worry! I plan on devoting the entire next chapter to Alec and the Revenants. I noticed I've been seriously neglecting that storyline... It's gonna be important soon too...
Guest: I just found a huge hole in the story. Wouldn't Rain just teleport away?
Well... It's not exactly a huge hole... He stayed and fought because his pride didn't allow him to run from a 'child'. (There. That's an excuse.) The story wouldn't have been any different if Rain wasn't in it. He was just there because he was requested. (And unlike Boon, I listen!)
Side Note: Not entirely all that pumped for KP2... Still want it though. We can now have Alien vs. Predator and Jason vs. Leatherface!
Thx! - Hedgehogs4713
