-Chapter 12: Bolstering the Ranks
Years ago...
The stormy weather besetting the Sky Temple was reflective of his mood. Pushing past the many double doors, the hooded figure crept silently through the halls of Raiden's dwelling place and soon found his destination. It was a simple room, dedicated to a single solemn purpose. Many had come to visit this place for a variety of purposes, but just setting one foot within one could sense the mournful atmosphere surrounding it all.
Two portraits hung from the wall, one of Kung Lao and the other of Liu Kang, the two prized pupils of the White Lotus Shaolin. Killed during Shao Kahn's treachery amidst the final Mortal Kombat Tournament, their deaths were mourned by all who knew them... but some harboured a different emotion: anger.
He was one of the different ones. His anger towards Raiden was well-known but not reciprocated by his family. He deemed them blind, foolish even, and sought some small measure of payback to assuage his crippled soul. That was why he was here, seeking to reclaim something given as a gift that never should've been. The small tekunin statue stood beneath Kung Lao's mural and it caught his eye, memories of friendly familial visits and countless hours spent growing up together. It would be his, not Raiden's. The thunder god did not deserve it, not after causing his death.
But as he reached for the statue, a voice called out to him.
"The pain of his death grieves you, and rightly so, Kung Jin."
The hooded man turned around to see a figure beyond belief. An ethereal woman clad in robes of dark and light, gold highlighting each inch of her form. She seemed to radiate with power, her voice like that of a goddess... but why was she here?
"Who are you?" He asked.
"I am Kronika, Keeper of Time. And I've come to ask for your help, Kung Jin." She replied. Kronika. He'd heard stories, the woman held in some legendary regard like the Elder Gods. But he had no idea she was real.
"I don't want to help you." Jin dourly responded, turning back to claiming the statue. Kronika alighted behind him.
"I feel your pain for the loss of your cousin. Surely, that was not the destiny I had in mind for him." The Keeper continued. "Raiden has interrupted my work and now it must be corrected. I know you feel similarly."
"What do you mean 'your work'?" Jin wondered, not turning to look at her.
"The destinies of the realms and its inhabitants are mine to craft, mine to direct." Kronika answered, a hand settling on Kung Jin's shoulder. "I had great things planned for your cousin. But Raiden's foolish choices during the tournament interrupted them. He is responsible for Kung Lao's death." Her words were carefully picked, knowing how volatile Kung Jin was during this time. She felt him tense beneath her grip and she smiled subtly. "I know your pain. And I want to help ease it."
"There's nothing you can do for me." Jin responded.
"What if I could bring him back? I could restore Kung Lao to life." Kronika offered. Another tense, his heartbeat quickened, and her smile grew larger.
"But... how?" Jin asked, turning around. His expression was one of bubbling hope and Kronika fought to hide her glee.
"I intend to restart history, to correct all of Raiden's wrongs." She explained. "But I cannot do this alone. Will you help me, Kung Jin? Will you be there to see your cousin made whole again?" The offer seemed too good to be true and, in the midst of his tumultuous feelings, Kung Jin would give anything to see his cousin alive and well again...
Kronika had made many visits to many people before she restarted history. Before the first timequake, she had already visited the likes of Shang Tsung, Nightwolf, Fujin, Kung Jin, and many others who were ready to be enlisted well before they'd settled into their current alliances. Those who joined her were kept safe within the immortal walls of her sanctum, rendered immune to time's effects until she was ready to make use of them. Those who refused her were banished to the Void, deemed an obstacle that would only get in her way. The rest of her conscripts were found after the timequake, Shao Kahn and his allies always ready to take the fight to Raiden while Jax Briggs just needed a little strenuous push to be convinced to join her.
But some needed no work at all to sway to her side.
Gliding into the room, Kronika found herself between two cribs and she took a moment to eye her newest recruits. She knew exactly what to tell them, how to empower them, the necessary steps needed to ensure their aid. Extending her arms, she let her Sands of Time fall over the twins...
Present day...
Kuai Liang and Liu Kang walked side by side through the Fire Garden, taking a moment to breathe in the midst of such busy preparations. The Forces of Light were nearly ready to take the fight to Kronika, only a few small details needing to be sorted.
"Your Shaolin masters, they are ready?" The cryomancer inquired.
"They will fight until the last man." Liu promised.
"That is likely what it will take." Kuai grimly mused.
"There will not be a fight, if Kharon does not help us." The monk remarked. "Is there any word from Grandmaster Hasashi?" The Lin Kuei grandmaster shook his head.
"No. If we do not hear soon, I will return to the Netherrealm." He stated. Liu nodded, but then their walk was suddenly paused when a colum of flame sprouted before them, the fire fading away to reveal the yellow tunic of a familiar ninja that Liu Kang immediately recognized... the Scorpion of the past he and Kung Lao had fought.
"Wrong Scorpion." He realized, suddenly alert and ready. "This cannot be good."
"Get Raiden!" Kuai urged, ready to deal with the wraith by himself. Liu darted off as Kuai squared off against Scorpion, the spectre looking around in awe of his surroundings.
"The Fire Gardens... rebuilt?" He whispered. His future self had seemingly been telling the truth. To see his clan's ancient surroundings so pristine again and not destroyed by invaders... it did wonders for the spectre. "The Shirai Ryu are indeed restored." He determined. Clouded eyes glanced up at the approaching Kuai, the cryomancer bearing a grim tone across his features.
"Why are you here, Scorpion? Where is Grandmaster Hasashi?" He demanded.
"He is dead." Scorpion replied, gaze falling. For a moment, Kuai bore a look of pained hurt before he channeled his sorrow into rage.
"And now you have come to finish us." He accused, hands balling into fists.
"I understand your mistrust, but I am here to assist you." Scorpion quickly countered.
"I find that impossible to believe!" Kuai snapped, icy energies surrounding his fists as he prepared for kombat.
He would not get the chance to engage his former rival, for a portal snapped open behind him. The two warriors stood still for a moment, watching in wonder before a man suddenly took form and stepped through.
"What is he doing here?" Kuai demanded of Scorpion as Shang Tsung appeared before them.
"We are not together." Scorpion vehemently answered. Regardless if he was telling the truth or not, Shang Tsung's presence was always cause for concern and Kuai made ready to deal with the sorcerer.
"If you are here to help, prove it." He told Scorpion, getting ready for kombat once more. "Join me against the sorcerer."
"I shall." The spectre growled, hellfire forming within his hands and coating his ready kunai. But before either of them could engage Shang Tsung, another more friendly face emerged from the same portal and approached the two ninjas. His presence gave them sudden pause.
"Fujin?" Kuai gasped. "Raiden thought you lost when the timeline was broken..." casting a quick glance at the sorcerer, Kuai drew a startling conclusion, "but you stand with Shang Tsung?!"
"We have urgent news for Raiden." The wind god told him. "Please, let us pass!" Kuai was unmoved.
"This may be the sorcerer's trick." He told Scorpion.
"The Fire Gardens will not be defiled by his presence!" The spectre vowed. In an instant, the two pairs were ready to fight with the ninjas attacking first. Scorpion's kunai was sidestepped by the displaced duo while Kuai's ice ball missed Fujin was the wind god propelled himself up and over the projectile. He landed gracefully, turning to find Shang Tsung encased in solid ice. Seeing he was now on his own, Fujin knew he needed to end this quickly as the two elemental warriors took stances against him.
"Why you have joined Shang Tsung is beyond me, Fujin. What has he done to corrupt your mind?" Kuai asked.
"Nothing, Sub-Zero. If you would only let me explain-" Fujin tried to respond.
"First, let us clear your head." Kuai stated, promptly hurling another ice ball. Fujin stepped aside, letting the supercooled projectile pass him by. Scorpion attempted to intervene next, throwing a bolt of hellfire that nearly struck Fujin's boots if not for him flying away. The wind god had no intention of bringing any harm to these warriors and sought to end this needless confrontation as soon as possible.
Summoning his powers, Fujin struck both ninjas with hard just of winds, staggering them first from behind before flattening them out from in front. Shooting ahead within a tornado of his conjuring, Fujin sucked up both Kuai and Scorpion and spun them around before pitching them back to the ground. Kuai attempted to retaliate with sliding kick, only for Fujin to draw him into a personal whirlwind and spin him around before kicking the Lin Kuei out of the gusting winds and send him sprawling. Scorpion then attempted to teleport in and attack Fujin from behind, only for the wind god to be ready and waiting for him with his krossbow, the weapon loaded with heavily energized bolts that struck the ninja like a pair of heavy gusts.
The two warriors had been thoroughly staggered, Fujin's attacks wearing on both Kuai and Scorpion to a point where they were breathing heavily. The wind god knew just how to defeat them and used his powers to suck the air from their lungs. Suddenly deprived of oxygen, their air was turned into solid masses that struck them both with enough force to lay them flat on their backs, neither of them having the breathing capacity to continue fighting.
"Perhaps you should listen before you judge." Fujin remarked. Loading another energized bolt into his krossbow, the wind god took aim and struck the ice-encased Shang Tsung with a single shot. Spider-webbing cracks formed along his frozen prison until the ice sudden shattered into frosty fragments, freeing the sorcerer. Gasping for breath, Shang rubbed his cooled limbs for warmth.
"Thank you, Fujin." The sorcerer responded, seemingly genuinely.
"The storm is not yet passed." The wind god grimly told him, seeing Raiden and Liu Kang approaching. Neither of them seemed to be in a friendly mood, especially given the glower in Raiden's eyes. "We must speak with you, brother." Fujin urgently stated as Shang stood meekly by, offering no evidence of treachery or a desire for kombat.
"We, Fujin? Since when are you friends with this filth?!" Raiden questioned.
"I'm here to save you, Raiden." Shang bluntly told him. Pausing for a moment, Raiden eyed them warily and let them speak.
"We hail from your tragic future." Fujin explained. "In it, Liu Kang defeated Kronika but their battle destroyed her Crown." Thunder god and monk shared quizzical looks as they listened. "Without this, the broken timeline couldn't be repaired." Fujin then held up. The Soul Crown for them to see, an object currently unknown to them.
"Our only hope was to return here, steal the Crown, and make use of its power." Shang elaborated, carrying on the story.
"Now we can change the outcome of the fight against Kronika. We can defeat her and fix time!" Fujin concluded. Having heard their truthful tale, Raiden's gaze flicked back and forth between the two, Liu Kang's as well. Shang Tsung he did not trust, but if Fujin could correlate maybe there was some element of reality to their account. Finally, Raiden's electric eyes landed on his fellow deity.
"I had never thought you gullible, brother." He said in a low voice. "Shang Tsung's schemes only serve to benefit him... how could you fall for such lies?!" Seeing as there was a grave crisis afoot, Raiden made to act and removed Shinnok's amulet from his belt.
"Be rational, Raiden-" Shang quickly protested.
"Spread your falsehoods elsewhere, sorcerer! You will not deceive us!" The thunder god snapped.
"Lord Raiden!" Liu cried, stopping him. "We should listen. He may be telling the truth." He urgently suggested.
"There is only one way to find out." Raiden growled, his hardened gaze upon Shang Tsung. Snapping out his hand, the amulet unleashed a burst of demonic power that sent Shang sprawling across the ground, writhing and groaning in pain. "Now, Shang Tsung, the truth!" Raiden bellowed. Liu Kang could bear this no more and made to intervene.
"Raiden, stop this!" He begged, coming between them.
"Step aside, Liu Kang." Raiden ordered with a shove. But Liu refused to budge.
"Put down the amulet! It's darkness is taking hold of you!" The thunder god did not heed his pupil's pleas and promptly turned the amulet on Liu Kang, blasting him away with another rush of dark energy.
"You also betray me!" Raiden roared. "Have I no allies anywhere?!"
"This is.. not the way...!" Liu gasped from the ground. "Shang Tsung is not the enemy this time!" Raiden made to lash out again, only for Fujin to unleash a gust of wind that blew his hand aside and redirected the blast. Startled by his brother's interference, Raiden fixed Fujin with a simmering glare.
"The realms hang in the balance, and you form this unholy alliance?!" He snapped.
"Brother! Be reasonable!" Fujin cried in dismay.
"Our time has run out! I do what I must to save Earthrealm!" Raiden stated, thunder booming over head as his mood worsened. Back on his feet, Liu Kang joined Fujin and Shang Tsung.
"Lord Raiden, please! Let go of the amulet! Listen to what Lord Fujin has to say!" He begged.
"Do not force my hand, Liu Kang! Do not interfere!" Raiden growled threateningly. The amulet charged up with a glow, seemingly of its own accord.
"You would turn against us? Your friends?" A distraught Liu asked.
"To defend the realms I must command order!" Raiden shot back. "We have no place or time for sniveling snakes or treacherous allies!" Aghast, Liu Kang suddenly reached a terrible conclusion.
"I thought it impossible... but the revenants were right." He sadly realized in a quiet voice. "You cannot be trusted."
"I do not need trust!" Raiden roared, thunder booming and lightning crackling around him. "I demand obedience!" In time with his words, Raiden's blue lightning suddenly turned red, his eyes also shifting to the same crimson hue.
Dark Raiden walked among them again.
"Enough of your madness." Liu stated, stepping before Shang and Fujin. "If you must die... so be it." He vowed, ready to fight once more.
But then... Raiden stopped.
The scarlet glow left his eyes as his mind was rocked by visions, ones more clearer than anything the thunder god had ever witnessed. These were not premonitions of what was to come... these were revelations of what had passed.
"This... Th-This has happened before..." He realized with a gasp, taking in each image as Raiden experienced a moment of anagnorisis.
On a rooftop in a destroyed city, master and student battled fiercely as Shao Kahn emerged from a portal in an effort to merge the realms...
In an unjust world where a Caped Wonder and a Dark Knight fought a Dark Khan, Liu and Raiden came to blows again over their differences...
On the steps of a ancient pyramid on the brink of Armageddon, a dark thunder god and a zombified monk fought tooth and nail for ultimate power...
Time and time again, they had fought, become divided, their causes no longer aligned. Over and over again, across millions of previous timelines regardless of how different the circumstances were, each one contained a singular moment shared across each and every timeline... the situation always boiled down to one thing: Raiden versus Liu Kang.
Flung from his visions, Raiden collapsed and fell to his knees before them all. Breathing heavily, the thunder god wrestled with the reality presented him. All at once, he'd seen it all: the truth behind Kronika's entire scheme and the reason for her past victories, the truth behind Fujin and Shang Tsung's words... and the truth behind Liu Kang's. Looking down at the amulet in his hand, Raiden's limb trembled for a moment as he felt the darkness creeping towards his soul, demanding to be let back in...
He slammed it down and left it to lie on the dusty ground.
The darkness abated and Raiden closed his eyes, the truth settling over him like calming water. "I am a fool." He breathed. Rising to his feet, Raiden stood and fixed Fujin with a sorrowful look. "I have allowed myself to become a slave to anger. I will not allow my temper to fracture our resolve any further." He apologized. Fujin nodded in acceptance as Raiden then turned to his pupil. "Liu Kang... I have been Kronika's puppet. We only battle because she wills it. I am truly sorry." Liu Kang's look was less apologetic and more... quizzical.
"I... do not understand, Lord Raiden. Your rage was caused by Kronika?" He asked. The thunder god nodded.
"Yes. I succumbed to her influence. But then, our confrontation... It unlocked memories. Memories not only from this timeline, but from timelines that have come before." Raiden explained, much to the surprise of them all.
"You mean there has been more than one timeline?" A curious Liu wondered.
"It seems Kronika has restarted time on countless previous occasions, using each timeline to learn and to perfect her plan." Raiden responded. "The details of each timeline are different. But in each one, events conspire to bring you and I into conflict, Liu Kang. And in each one... you die. Only Kronika has such power to control time and fate." He realized. Seeing the error of his previous ways, Raiden knew now that he needed to trust his brother... as well as Shang Tsung. His belligerence had cost them time and now they needed to make up for it. "Tell us more about what once was, sorcerer."
Later...
The champions of Earthrealm had gathered to hear what Shang Tsung and Fujin had to say, in addition to a visiting Magnus and Mileena. Suffice to say, it was a tale beyond words.
"Surely you jest, Lord Fujin!" Liu exclaimed.
"Not at all, Liu Kang." The wind god answered. "Raiden's power makes you a fire god."
"Of course it does." Kung Lao huffed, annoyed that his friend always received the power-ups instead of him.
"But... we almost won." Cassie pressed. "We came so close and then... just fell flat on our faces?"
"In a sense. You managed to retrieve the Crown from Shang Tsung's island, but Cetrion killed Takeda Takahashi and drove Jacqueline Briggs to the point of grief. That move caused the Jackson Briggs of the present to side with you and take the Crown, securing a victory." Fujin explained.
"Then... how did we lose it?" Liam asked.
"Kronika came here, to take Liu Kang after Raiden's revelation and prevent their power from working in tandem. She claimed her Crown in the process." Fujin answered.
"But now that we have altered the timeline, such events are now in question." Shang continued. "From this point onwards, we do not know how events will unfold or if any new challenges will arise."
"Yet this information gives us a key clue on how to succeed." Raiden mused.
"Lord Raiden... you said there have been previous timelines." Magnus pried, wishing to know more.
"Yes. I have seen visions of many previous occasions in which Liu Kang and I did battle as Kronika willed." Raiden affirmed. "They were strange, almost like a dream... of an unjust world somewhere in the multiverse." He described.
"Where a Caped Wonder and a Dark Knight did battle?" Kuai wondered. Raiden turned to him.
"How could you possibly know my dream?" He asked.
"That makes sense. A lot of sense, actually!" Magnus realized.
"Do explain, Magnus Shadrix." Raiden prompted.
"When Kronika approached me to ask for my aid in her plan, she showed me previous timelines in which some terrible fate befell me. Either I was turned into a revenant, the revenants one with the aid of an undead Shao Kahn, or Mileena and I fell apart over the death of our daughter." The electromancer explained.
"She would weave such terrible destinies for us?!" Mileena exclaimed with a gasp. "Lord Raiden, this cannot be allowed to persist!" She wanted her family to live peaceful, happy lives. Not to be the playthings of some temporal mistress.
"It will not, Mileena Kahnum. Rest assured, Kronika controls us no longer." The thunder god promised her. "I cannot transfer my power to Liu Kang just yet, but we remain the key to finishing Kronika once and for all. I must seek out his revenant first."
"That time will surely come, brother." Fujin told him. "Likely when we are due to battle at Kronika's Keep."
"What more can you tell us about the final battle, Fujin? We must use every advantage." Raiden implored. Fujin opened his mouth to speak, only to be halted when a sandy whirlwind swept up all around them. The group, momentarily blinded, struggled to stay awake and alert. But for many, it was hopeless. Liu, Cassie, Liam, Kuai and Scorpion were all frozen in time, reduced to nothing more then still statues as the others found their footing and persisted through the sandstorm. Raiden, Fujin and Shang could spot a single vortex appearing before them. Mileena, Magnus and Kung Lao could see it too, and approached it warily as the vortex took on a shape and the sand died down.
There, standing before them, was Kronika.
"Lord Fujin. Shang Tsung. I trust you are enjoying your travels?" She wondered, alighting before them.
"You have already been defeated once, Kronika!" The wind god responded.
"Of course, Fujin. How else could you have escaped the Void?" Kronika remarked.
"If you know this, then accept the inevitable! Surrender!" Raiden ordered.
"But clearly my loss was not your victory, Raiden." Kronika countered. "If your future 'savior' had gained full control of my Hourglass, we would not be here. This timeline would no longer exist."
"Then rest assured, we will improve our course of action this time." Raiden retorted. Kronika chuckled softly.
"The number of times we've had this conversation, Raiden... I've lost count." She wistfully stated.
"I see no harm in confirming your suspicion." Shang mused.
"Even if you defeat me, what then? Who claims the Hourglass?" Kronika asked them all.
"Your serpent's tongue will not divide us, Kronika!" Mileena stated, drawing her sais.
"Our alliance is a united front against your schemes." Magnus added as he and Kung Lao assumed kombat-ready stances.
"Surely you realize that Shang Tsung will break your alliance." Kronika said.
"We are prepared, Kronika." Fujin simply replied.
"Are you?" The Keeper wondered. "Have you wondered why Shang Tsung knows so much about my Crown?"
"Because he did your bidding, gathering souls to fuel it." Raiden answered.
"Shang Tsung is far too modest." Kronika laughed. "The Crown is not my design... but his."
All eyes were suddenly upon the sorcerer, anticipating treachery and trickery. Had he been fooling them this entire time? Was now the moment his personal plans came to fruition? Fujin and Raiden turned on Shang with angry glares, realizing this entire plan now hinged on one of his machinations. Finally, the wizened old man finally regarded them all.
"Had I told you, Fujin, we would still be marooned at the beginning of time bickering among ourselves." He stated in defence.
You must decide, Raiden. Who do you wish to keep time for all of creation?" Kronika asked the thunder god. "Me? Or Shang Tsung?"
"Neither, Kronika!" Raiden boomed. "You will be beaten by the united forces of the realms! And if Shang Tsung betrays us, we will finish him too!" Together, everyone took a stand against Kronika prepared for kombat. The Keeper eyed them with a simple, unimpressed look.
"Fools follow fools into oblivion." She mused, summoning her Sands again. "Your unity will be made meaningless. Behold what your actions have wrought!" Two more vortices were whipped up by churning sands, the bare outlines of three figures made visible within them. The champions focused on the newcomers, watching as more features were revealed until all three stepped into the light.
The looks of horror on their faces delighted Kronika.
Kung Jin, clad in a white and armored version of his Shaolin garb, had an arrow already fitted into his bowstring, stepping forward to reveal the signature white and gold-trimmed attire of Kronika's servant. Kung Lao stared aghast at the sight of his cousin, alive and well... in Kronika's employ.
The two others stood side by side, the man young and handsome, long black hair tied back with Tarkatan blades sprouting from his arms as his catlike blue eyes shone brightly. Beside him, his sister was a beauty, surely the envy of every woman in Edenia and the prize of every man in all the realms. Her black hair tied into a ponytail, her eyes were identical to her brothers' in every regard. Her cheeks lined with Tarkatan teeth, she wore white and gold-trimmed attire like her brother as well... to Magnus and Mileena, there was no mistaking the adolescent Arashi and Soren.
"Please tell me this is a hallucination." Magnus bemoaned in desperation. Mileena was equally distraught.
"This... Th-This must be a vision." She worriedly determined, silently begging for it to be true.
"No, Mileena Kahnum. It is quite real." Kronika stated simply.
"Damn you, Kronika." Magnus seethed. "If I don't kill you for this-"
"And you won't, Magnus Shadrix. In all the previous timelines, you never have." The Keeper boastfully declared, her superiority evident even in her voice.
"You go too far this time, Kronika!" Raiden told her.
"I do what I must to preserve the order I will create." The Keeper answered him. "Now, I believe Lord Fujin has something of mine." She mused, seeking to reclaim her crown. Her gaze turned to her servants. "I will handle these three, deal with your familial counterparts." She ordered them. Without a word, the three advanced, cousin dealing with cousin as father, mother, son, and daughter met.
"Jin... It's me." Kung Lao implored.
"I know who you are, Kung Lao. And... I-I have to do this. You... your fate... it's-"
"I know my fate. And I know what caused it. My own hubris left me blind." Kung Lao answered.
"No, dammit!" Jin cried. "Raiden just stood by as that bastard Shao Kahn snapped your neck!" He exclaimed. "Don't you get it? I have to do this. I have to stop him... to save you!"
"You are believing Kronika's lies. She's turning us against one another!" Kung Lao implored. "Does that seem like someone who cares about you? She doesn't. You're just her tool!" But Kung Jin refused to listen and was already moving to attack.
Magnus and Mileena had their own problems to contend with, Arashi and Soren moving towards them. Their children did not have a wrathful look in their eyes, only one of diligent obedience.
"Soren! Arashi! Please, stop this!" Magnus begged them.
"Father... we must." Soren answered, rippling electrical energies flowing down the length of his arm blades. "Kronika knows the future, she can save all of us, keep our family whole. We just have to stop Raiden." With that, he thrust his arms forwards, blue bolts of energy flying out and striking Magnus' electrical shield.
"She's just saying that to use you!" He cried. "Soren, I beg you, listen to me... your father." But Soren would not listen and, with electrical power surging through his blades, the wayward son attacked his father as Magnus brandished his own weapons to defend himself. Arashi then approached her mother.
"My brother is right. Kronika will keep us whole in the New Era, but Raiden must go." She told the Empress.
"An imperfect world is better than controlled perfection, Arashi." Mileena countered. "Please, stop this. Come home with us." Arashi bore a mournful look.
"I cannot, mother. I have to." With that, she attacked with a sideways lunge kick, Mileena parrying it with her hands as her daughter attacked.
Kronika, meanwhile, had engaged Fujin, Shang and Raiden immediately, rebuffing their powerful attacks with her own. Despite Raiden's powerful lightning, Fujin's equally powerful winds, and Shang Tsung's rapid-fire bolts of magick, Kronika rebuffed them all and conjured a shady vortex to engulf all three... the Crown knocked from Fujin's belt in the process.
"Fujin! The Crown!" Shang urgently cried. The wind god made to retrieve it, crawling forward on his hands and knees as he attempted to withstand the unrelenting sands. But despite being a god, it was a frought effort.
"It is a mistake, challenging a Titan!" Kronika boomed. "Now I end your existence!"
But before she could reduce Fujin to sand, the wind god claimed the soul Crown and donned it.
Immense power flooded him, unlike any relic he'd ever touched in his entire life. The will and power of a million-billion souls surged through his body and enhanced Fujin to a level equal that of Kronika. He rebuffed her latest strike, shattering her concentration and putting an end to the vortex. Shang and Raiden were on their feet in a flash as Fujin summoned his most powerful divine winds.
"You are vulnerable, Kronika." He stated. On cue, Shang Tsung conjured a hell portal beneath the Titan, a trio of demons surging through and grabbing her by her legs, dragging her down to the underworld. Fujin whipped up a mighty hurricane around her, stunning Kronika with a storm soon amplified by Raiden's divine lightning, multiple strikes shattering Kronika's defences as the three powerful kombatants sought to overwhelm her.
Without the power of her Crown, Kronika was truly weaker than the might of Shang, Fujin and Raiden combined. As the demons dragged her down into the portal, unable to fight back against the divine powers of both Earthrealm deities, Kronika vanished as abruptly as she had appeared, taking all evidence of her presence with her.
And her disappearance had a profound effect on her allies.
Kung Jin's arrow Marlow missed Kung Lao's head, the monk having disappeared into the ground and teleported up behind his cousin, grabbing Jin's bow and trapping him in a chokehold. "You could've killed me with that shot... and you'd be no different from Shao Kahn!" He exclaimed as he struggled with his cousin. "And for what? For Kronika?" Jin's struggling suddenly ceased, his hold on his bow limp as all fight left him. A sudden clarity overtook his mind as he understood the truth behind Lao's words. He'd made a terrible mistake.
"L-Lao..." He stammered, weakly turning to face his cousin. His writhing expression belying his inner turmoil, the troubled young man broke down and embraced his living cousin. "Oh gods, Lao!" He cried. Kung Lao returned the hug.
"It's okay, Jin." He quietly promised, patting him on the back. "I'm okay." His nerves lessened and his body no longer taut in kombat-readiness, Kung Lao breathed a sigh of relief that this battle was over.
Mileena had managed to trap both of Arashi's hands within her own, holding her daughter at bay and preventing her from fighting. "Kronika just wants to use you, she's lying to you, Arashi!" Mileena cried. "Please... don't do this... you're my daughter. I love you." The once stubborn determination suddenly left her daughter's eyes as a realization overcame Arashi. She quit fighting, her arms dropping as her shoulders slumped. She eyed her mother with a forlorn, weary and sorrowful gaze.
"I... I-I love you too, mother." She whispered with a trembling lip. Suddenly overcome with emotion, Arashi fell into her mother's waiting arms and burst into tears. Soren did similarly, suddenly backing away at his father and look down at his arm blades with a horrified look on his face, as though he were aghast by what he had become. Magnus paused, watching as his teenaged son looked up in distress.
"F-Father?" He wondered breathlessly.
"Son..." Magnus breathed, stepping closer and offering his hands as he realized Soren was now freed from Kronika's curse. Taking a few wobbly steps forward, Soren collapsed into the strong arms of his father with a shuddering exhale. "It's okay, son. I've got you... my baby boy." Magnus whispered, stroking Soren's hair as he hugged his son.
With his power spent, Fujin collapsed to his knees mere moments after Kronika vanished, the Crown falling from his head and rolling across the ground. With the Titan gone, the frozen champions of Earthrealm were suddenly restored as they were thrust into real time again.
"Brother! Are you alright?" Raiden urgently wondered as he helped Fujin up.
"Yes... but, the Crown..." The wind god answered, looking around to see where it had rolled to. Turning around, both gods suddenly discovered the relic within the hands of Shang Tsung, the sorcerer eyeing his creation with a fondness in his wizened eyes.
"Truly, my finest work." He mused, feeling the warmth of its power within his hands. Raiden and Fujin approached him warily, expecting imminent treachery. But, to their relief, Shang looked up and turned the Crown over to Raiden. "There are some things I must do still, but I will instruct you in its ways. This may also be key to finishing Kronika." He said. The champions darted over to them, confused and curious.
"What just happened?" Liu asked Raiden.
"Kronika came here to retrieve the Crown." Shang answered.
"And she brought plenty of help." Lao added as he approached them with Jin under his arm. Cassie and Liam's eyes lit up at the sight of their old teammate alive and well again.
"Jin?" She breathed. "You're... You're back." Jin offered them a simple yet tired look, then nodded in affirmation. He had very little knowledge apart from what Kronika had told him about this future, but apparently he'd done some work with the Special Forces. Magnus and Mileena then approached with their weary teenaged children under their arms.
"She tried to divide us." Magnus realized. "She thought that pitting family against family would weaken our alliance."
"She has merely proven the opposite true; our desire to destroy her has never been stronger." Mileena vowed, her eyes ablaze.
"Yes. We proved as much by forcing her to retreat." Shang agreed.
"Then we must strike while she is weakened." Raiden determined. "Scorpion? Will Kharon ferry us to her Keep?"
"Kharon is readying his ships as we speak." The spectre answered.
"Then let us go about our necessary final preparations, and make haste. Kronika is weak, now is our chance to storm her isle and take command of the Hourglass." Raiden told them. "Shang Tsung, return to Outworld with Mileena Kahnum and do what you must. Then return and instruct us in the Crown's use."
"Such was my plan from the beginning." The sorcerer responded simply.
"The rest of you, get some rest. We depart for Kronika's Keep at daybreak." Fujin told the Earthrealm champions. "The fate of all the realms rests on our final move."