Chapter 11 – Scorpion

Scorpion was down due to the beatings done by (either Sub-Zero or Freezer). He got up and found himself on Xaa's palace's rooftops lit with an eerie twilight glow. Light glittered off the roofs of houses in the city below, now unscathed.

"What is this place? Is this real or is it just me?" Scorpion thought grimly.

"You are in the mental realm."

"What?" he gasped. "Who?"

He saw the same Pharaoh (which in actuality was Quan Chi's disguise) he encountered in Egypt, standing before him.

"I offered you power and this was how you repay me? So be it! Join your family in the Netherrealm!"

The "Pharaoh" had lost none of his fighting skill over the years, but the youthful agility he possessed in his earlier bout against the ninja had not fared so well. The fight was intense and close, but in the end it was Scorpion who proved the victor this time around.

"That ends now, Quan Chi."

The body faded.

"What the… a decoy? An illusion? No way I'm believing that."

He saw a woman and a little boy. With relief he recognised lost woman and child, and ran eagerly forward.

"Father?"

"Why did you choose to be aggressive? This is so not you."

"Satoshi?"

"You are cruel when you killed Sub-Zero. He did not do this."

"Wait!"

"Stay away from me! You are not my father anymore."

Satoshi turned away.

"No, Satoshi, don't leave me!"

He turned to see Lucifer. He seemed enraged by the lost of his position in the Netherrealm.

"You should have served me willingly."

"Like I said, I'm not in to your nasty things." said Scorpion.

"Again you denied me. I wanted to help you. I gave you fuel to your anger and aggression. You denied me. You refused to serve me. Now, I will teach you the meanings of refusal."

This led to combat between Scorpion and Lucifer. The former ruler of Netherrealm proved to be the most concentrated fight of Scorpion's life. It took everything Scorpion had left in him to remain in the battle, but he eventually managed to fight his way through Lucifer's defences and took the melee to him. Finally, the mighty Lucifer fell to Scorpion's onslaught.

"We have our rights to refuse submission."

"Not yet."

Just before Scorpion was completely consumed, the spirit of his wife, Harumi, appeared. Realising, Scorpion glumly hugged her, their son and the love-filled reunion purged his hatred within. He apologised for failing them.

"I've failed. I failed all of you."

"There is still hope for you to make amends with the Lin Kuei, the Tengu, the ninja called Karasu, Sub-Zero and Freezer."

"But… no, Sub-Zero's brother killed you all."

"You were deceived into believing Sub-Zero was the murderer. Peron has been playing you as her puppet."

"How?" asked Scorpion.

"She poses as a Shirai Ryu as means to make you evil."

"Peron serves me on several occasions."

"I remembered how you accepted her to rebuild your clan. She played with your feelings, she made you gain her trust, plus she tried to kill Sub-Zero's sister called Freezer on several occasions. In fact, she is a double agent for Shinnok. She too fuels your rage. Now, Hanzo, dear, it's your chance to reconcile with the past. Look at this!" said Harumi.

Harumi showed Scorpion an orb which showed Peron's true allegiance.

"You did well, Peron. Scorpion is now with you."

"I was merely getting him to be on your side, Lord Shinnok!" said Peron.

"You did your part in the overthrow of Lucifer."

"I was given instructions to help you and Quan Chi rid the Netherrealm of Lucifer. Scorpion's rage and aggression would be my tool to help me to help you ascend towards your throne." said Peron.

"You served me well, Peron. For that, you keep Scorpion busy and I will have a little game with the Lin Kuei and therefore Raiden. And Scorpion will be dedicated to me forever."

"It will be done. And what of your son?"

"Shao Kahn? He was blinded by rage. He should have won. I schemed everything from defeating Lucifer, the deaths of the former defenders of the realms and my army to besiege Earthrealm." said Shinnok.

Scorpion felt utterly conflicted by this revelation. He conceded.

"If that what you said is true, then I will do my best." said Scorpion.

"You mean that?"

"So be it, I will see to it that my principles are reconciled with the Lin Kuei, the Tengu and Karasu."

"Hanzo," her voice begged, "leave this place! You don't need to be a slave of this dark, cruel place. Those that you think are good are in fact erasing your morals. Stand up!"

With renewed confidence from hearing the story of how the Shirai Ryu started by his ancestors which was passed down onto his grandfather and his father who did not want him to live his life as a Shirai Ryu.

The image flashed to a huge platform with jagged edges

Scorpion found himself on the surface of a raised circular platform which was at the opposite direction of a huge mountain with lava pouring from it till it reached the foot of the cliffs. At the foot of the cliffs was a vast ocean of lava. These giant rocky platforms at the cliffs were floating because they were forever suspended by the concentrated dark magical powers of Shinnok. Scorpion was impeded by Moloch and Drahmin.

"You've been tormented once." said Moloch.

"And we will ensure yours is perpetual." said Drahmin.

The fight between Scorpion and Drahmin with Moloch took place in the Netherrealm Cliffs. Scorpion recalled Moloch being the hardest one to face. He managed to single Drahmin from Moloch and dealt with the giant blue beast. With these two out of count, Scorpion tossed the two oni into the ocean of lava.

He leaped for a circular platform down below, and found himself now on a similar sized platform made of solid stone, this in a castle chamber. Pillars ringed a tragically familiar spiral design on its floor. As he moved in slowed motion and leaped for it he landed back in the ethereal neverworld.

He was then confronted by Shao Kahn and N26.

"Peron failed to tame you. Now, you will obey me the hard way." said Shao Kahn.

"My master, Shao Kahn promised me a reward for your head."

Scorpion fought Shao Kahn and N26. As powerful as they were, they were little match for Scorpion and his now composed attacks. After a brief battle, the ninja soon had Shao Kahn and N26 knocked out on the ashen grounds. He kicked them both.

He had no time to rest since Havik stemmed to confront him.

"Havik."

"I should sow more chaos and mayhem. Chaos is indispensable or else devoid of it, it gets mind-numbing."

The fight between Scorpion and Havik started. He should be wary of the cleric of Chaos due to being unpredictable. Scorpion finished Havik.

These visions from his disturbed mind were surely an attempt to unsettle him, to detach him from reason and logical thought. Now he climbed stairs but in a flash was at their foot again, his path in the opposite direction. It was impossible to keep his bearings, and there was no escape; he must simply keep pressing on in this world of warped dimension, and hope somehow to find an end to it. He came on the Toisarus, framed in a cascade of globules of light that flowed to infinity and streamed fast at his feet on the stage. He confronted his tormentor.

"Your soul will find no rest in the Netherrealm while mine has. I have won 150 fights during my time in Constantinople. Almighty Mars, guide me!"

"There'll be no one to guide you."

The fight between Scorpion and Toisarus took place. Toisaurus remained a dirty and dangerous Byzantine fighter as ever, with his skills in swords and wrestling. But Scorpion had beaten him before and knew his tricks, and helped by the anger he felt at Toisaurus' words, he has no trouble overpowering and finishing the Byzantine wrestler once again.

The burnt body of Toisaurus morphed to that of Quan Chi and that of Scorpion's father.

"Father? What have I done? NO! I couldn't have."

This broke his morale.

"I had enough of this." sighed Scorpion.

There seemed no way out of this mental realm.

The area flashed white. Scorpion found himself in a red-lit circular arena with cobblestone floor, skull eyehole-shaped windows and below them was a skull nose-shaped window. Outside the windows was an insidious red sky and flames. He looked behind and noticed a scorpion design etched at the opposite direction of the eyehole-shaped windows. Below the mouth was a deep fire pit. At the right cheekbone, it contained seemingly endless, randomly arranged networks of wooden bridges and scaffolds, along with the skeletons and weaponry of dead combatants. Fire brands guttered across the curved wall. This was Scorpion's Lair.

Baphomet tackled Scorpion.

"Baphomet! I demand for a way out."

"The way out can be achieved by fighting me."

"Really? I fought too many combatants and there seemed no way out."

"You can try." said Baphomet.

The fight between Scorpion and Baphomet started. The demon was nearly on Moloch's level, but not as invincible as he was. Scorpion kicked Baphomet into the mouth-shaped fire pit. He looked at his opponent falling from such height and into a huge ocean of lava.

He was relieved to see his family from ancestors to his son. They left up stairs to bright light, yet as Scorpion moved to follow Noob stood in his way. Scorpion struck out. The spirit broke into two, each as the first. Noob gave out a burst of laughter.

"You killed me, now you're welcome." rang an echoing taunt.

Noob was joined by Ermac.

Scorpion and Noob (with Ermac) squared off each other. Noob gained immense new powers following his death and enslavement by Quan Chi. Scorpion's skills and experience in battle gave him the edge in the fight, and eventually victory.

"The Lin Kuei…"

"The Lin Kuei what?" interrupted Noob.

Scorpion struck again and now there were four mocking forms, then eight, then forty-eight, and more, multiplying over and over, as quickly as he cut them down with his Mugai Ryu.

"That worked well, all you have to do is accept me!" Noob said.

"Accept us!" corrected Ermac.

Was Scorpion now totally mad? He brushed past the crowd of demons, determined to follow his family away from this hellish place. He saw that the chamber of pillars housed not one but five rooms within a Japanese looking house with tatami mat. One ice solid and stately, one green-lit, one blackened, one had acid bubbled and one scorched. The left side and the right side, the ice and the fire.

His wife and his son had led the way up the stairs between. Scorpion started after.

"Running away won't save you. Come down! Accept me! Accept the truce with the Lin Kuei, Tengu and Karasu!"

Scorpion stopped. This was too much. He expelled a vast wall of fire at Noob and Ermac which made it extremely hard to avoid or extinguish. As the fires took fifty-five minutes to fritter away, Noob and Ermac seemed to multiply in form. Scorpion became exhausted as he cut down each Noob and every Ermac, he wrestled with his emotions. Every instinct told him he could not leave Noob and Ermac to their intentions, and he returned to try a last time to vanquish the spirit, whatever its purpose.

"By all means stay and fight," Ermac declared. "I… I mean we on the other hand, am getting stronger. The more you fight, the more we spread."

As he struck the apparitions again, it split and divided into identical form, again and again on each blow until he was faced with a host of cruel mocking demons. He hacked and slashed, whirling among them to send each to oblivion, yet still they multiplied, and still they mocked.

Scorpion father's voice called to him.

"Hanzo!"

"But, father? I didn't…"

"You didn't kill me. It's all in your head. Put the past behind you, son. You are a better man than this. Snap out of it! Revenge won't do you good. Reform the Shirai Ryu!"

Scorpion stood exhausted, surrounded by mocking forms, gesturing him to attack. As much as he fought, combat achieved nothing. Over and over he struck out with the same useless result. Finally spent, Scorpion came to a realisation: this enemy could not be overcome, for it was the enemy inside him, product of his own tortured mind.

If he fought he fought only those figures, and there could be no victory there. Scorpion turned for the stairway to reunite with his late family.

"No! What are you doing?"

As Scorpion stepped into the light, he snapped out of the trance and found himself back in the realm of Xaa. Feeling exhausted and tormented by the memories, Scorpion felt his resolve shaken. He noticed Peron next to him.

"Peron?"

"Oh, that's a relief. I was worried that you were dead. Looks like Noob tormented you really badly." Peron sighed with a relief.

"I never had nightmares like this."

"More like visions. Shinnok, I beg you…" she whispered to herself.

Suddenly, Scorpion jumped with a growl and strangled her.

"What are you doing?"

"You serve Shinnok." Scorpion realised.

"Me? What are you talking about?" Peron was confused.

"I just heard you say Shinnok, I beg you." said Scorpion.

"You don't understand. I need him to help me reform the Shirai Ryu."

"Reforming the Shirai Ryu by having Shinnok's minions mingle with us?" Scorpion advanced on her purposely.

"We were doing this to reform the Shirai Ryu. Isn't that what you want?" Peron reminded him.

"I want that, but not living a lie."

Even with her swift abilities, Peron was no match for the skill, speed and powers of Scorpion. Fighting with a fury not seen since he snapped out of Quan Chi's lies, Scorpion left Peron in a broken mess on the ground before him.

"You may have thought of reforming the Shirai Ryu for me. But your intentions were meant for Shinnok."