Disclaimer: I do NOT own Mortal Kombat or anything related to it.


"And is it all about the pay?"
"Hence the term mercenary." He chucked her under the chin. "Try to keep up, halfling."
— Kresley Cole (Dark Desires After Dusk (Immortals After Dark #6))

Chapter 49:Dairou


"Next time I agree to do a job for Darrius, he'd better pay double."

This was what Dairou told himself as he made his way to the Resistance hideout with Viviana sitting on his back. Darrius had paid him to free a family of three from prison, explaining that the parents were allies of his. When Dairou asked why he didn't start a riot so they could escape in the chaos like Dairou escaped in the past, he argued that they were incapable of fighting and would surely be caught. If he didn't know any better, he might have assume Darrius actually cared about the trio.

Luckily, he did know better. It was obvious that Darrius arranged the rescue of people of no use to him anymore because he understood how bad he would look to his followers if he abandoned one of their own. He was no better than Hotaru in that regard. They were both willing to do whatever was necessary to achieve their goals. Were they not on opposing sides, they would be strong allies. This was not Dairou's problem, however. All he cared about was the koins he would receive after completing his assignment.

Unfortunately, Holland and Wyleen were dead by the time he arrived and their daughter would have been executed as well by now. The rescuing part was simple enough. It was getting to the Resistance's base of operations (which was located outside the city in an underground cave) that was the hard part. The fact that Hotaru's men were tearing the city apart looking for him didn't make things easier. Master of stealth as he was, Dairou knew how well-trained and vigilant the Seidan guardsmen were. If he made one wrong move, they would find him. Even with his skills in kombat, he would be distracted trying to protect Viviana and risked being outnumbered, so he had to be extra careful to avoid detection.

The sun was just beginning to rise. Having taken this route before, he knew he was a good ten minutes from his destination. Viviana remained silent for most of the journey, only asking who he was and why he'd helped her, to which he replied that he was sent to save her by a friend of her parents. Dairou's comment regarding payment snapped the girl from her silence.

"Are you a mercenary?" She asked. Her teal eyes were wide with innocent curiosity, her dirty chestnut hair was a tied into a loose ponytail, her face was covered in bruises no doubt the result of rough treatment from the guards, and her tiny body was clad in a yellow dress soaked in sweat and stained by dirt. She was otherwise unharmed, though.

"Yes." He answered tersely, not in the mood for small talk. She didn't get the hint.

"Why are you so grumpy?"

He rolled his eyes."Are you always this inquisitive?"

She frowned, wrapping a lock of his black hair around her finger."Hmph. Are you always this crotchety?" Inquisitive and sassy. The majority of the children he encountered were shy, quiet, confused, and scared. Viviana was not any of those things. She reminded him of another little girl...

No. He wouldn't think of her, or any of them for that matter. They were dead. His entire family was dead, including that little girl no older than Viviana. Nothing could change that. Besides, why should he care? He was a mercenary who cared for koins, not honor or love. He'd accepted that long ago. The real problem was forgetting. Why would he want to forget? Because he was in no mood for the pain of remembrance. The past was best left alone. It was the present that mattered and if he was to finish this job, he had to focus on the present.

"Do you kiss your mother with that my mouth, child?" As soon as he uttered the question, he regretted it. The gasp she let out in response to the query didn't lessen his regret. He didn't need to look at her to know she was crying. She buried her face in the back of his neck to muffle her sobs. To his dismay, this reminded him again of the little girl he'd lost. Was this the Elder Gods' way of tormenting him? Was taking away his loved ones and unjustly imprisoning him not enough? And they wondered why he never prayed to them...

He recognized the entrance of the Resistance hideout: a well-disguised hole in the ground. Kneeling down, he removed the lid, took a quick look around to make sure no one else was there, went inside, closed the lid, and climbed down the ladder with Viviana clinging to him for fear she would fall or he would drop her. The moment he reached the ground, a group of soldiers hurried to greet him. One went to get Darrius, who arrived minutes later.

The Resistance leader was a dark-skinned, bald man with a goatee and a pair of stylish golden sunglasses covering his eyes. He wore a gold and black vest with sleeves that stopped at his elbows and a collar concealing his neck. On his hands were a pair of black gloves and he also wore baggy blue pants, and bright colored boots. Everything about him screamed arrogance, professionalism, and cunning. It was thanks to these traits that he was able to sway so many to his side. His eyebrows rose when he noticed Viviana's parents were not present.

Darrius placed his hands on hips."Is it safe to assume that Wyleen and Holland are dead?" There was a hint of disappointment in his voice to convince his men he was saddened by the loss, but the lack of true sorrow informed Dairou of his employer's act.

Viviana whimpered as she leaned back, her face a tearful mess."H-Hotaru made some soldiers cut their heads off right in front of me!" She stammered in between whimpers. Dairou felt a bit of pity for her. At such a young age, she witnessed the execution of her parents under the orders of a family friend no less. Safe to say her innocence was destroyed by this ordeal. All for the sake of order, Hotaru would say.

Sighing, Darrius rubbed his temples."Thank you for your services nonetheless, Dariou. If you will kindly hand the girl over to my men and come to my office, I will give you your koins."

Dairou nodded, reached behind him to grasp Viviana's arms, and gently lowered her to the floor. She turned to look at him for a moment then gave him the shock of his life by hugging his leg and giving him a wan smile."Thank you for saving me, Dairou."

Too stunned to reply verbally, he gave a curt nod. Viviana offered no protest as a soldier took her hand and led her away. She glanced at Dairou a few times until she and the soldiers were out of sight. Darrius gestured for Dairou to follow him, which he did without hesitation and in silence. He'd done enough jobs for Darrius to remember how things worked in their deals. A comfortable routine, though as long as he got paid, he didn't care.

Dairou stood in the doorway of his employer's office, watching him saunter to his desk, open a drawer, pull out a bag of koins, and gesture for him to come over to take it. He was in the center of the room when Darrius tossed him the bag which he easily caught and stuffed into a pouch on his belt, yet before he could turn to leave the door slammed shut. The sound of footsteps behind him alerted him to the presence of a third person.

"Dairou." The Seidan turned to face the new arrival who'd uttered his name. Leaning against the door with crossed arms and head tilted in greeting was Fujin. Darrius came to stand beside Dairou, not the least bit surprised by the deity's presence. One thing was clear: they had planned this.

"Fujin." Dairou said."What brings you to Seido? Or do you prefer to call it Orderrealm?" He maintained a blank expression as he spoke, a necessary skill when living in Seido, though he was nowhere near as good in the art of hiding his emotions as Hotaru and Darrius. No one could beat them in that category. When the Wind God failed to respond, he turned to Darrius with a raised eyebrow and flick of the head in Fujin's direction."Care to explain?"

"Earthrealm is in need of your services, Dairou." Fujin said."Darrius informed me that you were doing a job for him, making it the perfect opportunity for us to meet. I am sure by now that you are aware of Raiden's insanity."

"Well aware, actually." Dairou replied."But it isn't my problem."

"It will be your problem if he and Hotaru target you next."

Dairou scoffed, rolling his eyes. He gestured to his on-again, off-again employer."Hotaru seeks to eliminate Darrius. I'm just another fugitive to him, not a threat to order like the leader of the Resistance. You may not know this, but Darrius does. My sole concern is ensuring that no one ruins business for me."

"Of course." Fujin shook his head."You care for koins. A typical mercenary. You were not always this way, however. You were once an honorable man with a loving wife, beautiful daughter, and caring parents...until they were murdered. All of their throats were cut in their sleep whilst you were away on a mission. You received a tip from an unknown source informing you of the murderer's identity. You found the man, killed him, and were arrested for murder. It was later discovered that the tip was false and you had been tricked into killing an innocent man. Darrius started a riot during which you escaped and you have lived the life of a fugitive/mercenary ever since. Therefore, let me repeat my earlier statement: Earthrealm is in need of your services."

"The Resistance is also joining forces with Fujin." Darrius interjected."You've made it clear you have no intention of joining my rebellion, but if you agree to fight for us in the tournament as well as the coming war, I'll pay you extra. I can imagine after your last job for me that you seek double from me for your next assignment. I'm willing to offer you triple instead."

Dairou smirked. His on-again, off-again employer certainly knew how to arouse his interest. Fujin should be taking notes on how to talk to mercenaries."I'm listening."

Darrius smirked back with a nod."I thought so."

Fujin sighed, uncrossed his arms, and pushed off the wall he was leaning against to approach the Sedian duo."As I am sure you have noticed, I am desperate. As is Kotal Kahn. We would not be requesting your help nor allying with Darrius under normal circumstances. But allow me to make one thing clear to you, Dairou: do not betray us. Desperate times call for desperate measures and a desperate man is a dangerous one. If you join us, then you will stay on our side and not defect to Raiden's side."

"Don't mock me, Wind God." Dairou hissed."Hotaru would never accept the aid of a fugitive like myself."

"He did not hesitate to make an exception for the Red or Black Dragon Clans."

"The Red Dragon are a strict and respectable lot. As for the Black Dragon..." He shrugged with a grimace."As you said, desperate times call for desperate measures and a desperate man is a dangerous one. I've heard of the things he has done and I suppose I should have expected this. Luckily for you and the emperor, Darrius understands how I think."

Fujin stepped forward, hand extended to offer a handshake."So we have a deal then?"

Dairou looked at the offered hand for a moment before nodding and shaking the Wind God's hand."Yes, Fujin. We have a deal."

Fujin's communicator suddenly rang. The Wind God answered the call, frowning when the hologram of Sonya Blade appeared."Sonya Blade, what is-"

"Fujin, we need you here now." She said urgently."Something happened in Outworld a few minutes ago. I'll explain when you get here."

"Very well." He nodded, seeing her seriousness."I will be there shortly." He ended the call and turned to Darrius."Gather your people and prepare them to leave. I will return in a few hours to escort you all to Earthrealm."

Darrius nodded."We will be ready, Lord Fujin." The deity returned the nod before raising his hand and teleporting himself away, leaving the mercenary and Resistance leader alone.

Dairou smirked wryly at his current employer."Incredible acting on your part if I do say so myself." He rolled his eyes at the confused look the other Seidan gave him."Don't play dumb with me, Darrius. You may have the Resistance and Wind God fooled, but not me. You and Hotaru know each other far too well for a victor to ever emerge. You both follow an ends justify the means mentality. The only difference between you two is your goals."

Darrius sighed."Is there a point to this lecture?"

"All I wish to say is that you best be careful. One wrong move and your followers will see you as the ambitious, unscrupulous man you truly are. You would not hesitate for a moment to sacrifice all of them if it meant victory for yourself. You're not the revolutionary and visionary half of Seido thinks you are. What you are is a terrorist desperate for power whilst Hotaru is a dictator obsessed with putting you down."

"Why do you care?"

"I don't." Dairou said firmly."I'm just sick of watching your patriot act. As soon as we've defeated Hotaru and Raiden, I'm finished doing jobs for you."

Darrius chuckled."So there is still a bit of honor within that cynical heart of yours, after all."

"More so than you. That is for certain." That being said, Dairou exited the room.

Alone in his office, Darrius frowned and sighed as he removed his sunglasses."He can never know the truth." He muttered under his breath, shaking his head.


Who exactly the original timeline was referring by Dairou's family was never specified, so I had the freedom to use my imagination in that regard and settled for his entire family which I'm going to go into further detail about in later chapters. Hopefully I did our favorite cynical Seidan mercenary justice.

Another thing: seeing as the curse known as cold and flu season has begun and my immune system being the weakling that it is, I'm going to get sick too. At the moment, I'm experiencing that feeling when it hurts to swallow so that means when I wake up tomorrow morning, I'm going to most likely have a sore throat and stuffy nose. Yay! So naturally, it may take a few days for me to recover and take care of other personal things. God, I hate this season.

Anyway, please remember to review, leave constructive criticism, but no flames!

Determined Savior - Is it safe to assume that Dairou is your favorite character? :)

Guest - I agree with you for the most part. I've never been too fond of Havik but at least he played an important role in the story in the comics whereas Hsu Hao (like you said, fuck that guy) just showed up for 2 seconds to get killed off. I can't stand Kobra or Mokap but hey, if they can make people go from hating Stryker and Nightwolf in the original timeline to loving them in the reboot, maybe they can do the same for the others. I've always liked most of their storylines so I enjoy writing them and exploring their characters. I think most of them should be given a second chance too.

Next up: Chapter 50:Li Mei II