The Ketsueki Quadrilogy: Majin Seiryu Ki

by iceangelmkx

Part 3 of the Quadrilogy. Earth is at war, and the awakening of a legendary demon is imminent. The chosen ones unite once more at a new tournament in the hopes of stopping their enemies, including one of their own. A Street Fighter, Mortal Kombat, Soulcalibur, and Tekken Crossover.

12. Chapter Eleven

A/N: Looong chapter ahead (longer than usual, I mean)! Have fun reading!

Chapter Eleven

Coastal Forces Headquarters, Chili-san, Lee Dynasty, Keisei

Two days ago, all of the chosen ones in Keisei, plus their allies, reunited in the city of Chili-san. They all knew that within the next few days, the Wind God Fujin would arrive to let them know that the time had come for them to be transported to Earthrealm. They would first try to use the man-made portal that Special Forces had helped the Coastal Forces build in the aftermath of the Universal War. It would be the first time that the portal would be used by the Keisei natives. If it failed, however, then Fujin would have to find other means of transporting them, more than likely through the deity portal.

After two days, Fujin finally made his arrival and had everyone gathered together at the headquarters of the Coastal Forces in the portal room. He was happy to see everyone he recognized accounted for; Hwang, Seong Mi-na, Siegfried, Kilik, Maxi, Xianghua, Ashrah, and Cassandra. Also with them were Yunseong, Talim, and Hilde. The few other soldiers in the room were only there to help activate the portal.

"I hope you are all well," Fujin greeted the group. "I imagine that everyone is prepared and ready to go."

"Of course," said Hwang.

"Though it's a shame we can't prepare everyone for the sights of Earthrealm," Seong Mi-na mentioned with a grin. "I can only say that they're in for a shock."

Cassandra giggled at that. "Truer words cannot be said."

"Yeah yeah," uttered Maxi. "Then it'll all turn out to be just nothing but exaggeration on your part."

Mi-na gave him a smug look. "Just wait until we get there."

"Weren't you on Earthrealm during the war too, Siegfried?" asked Kilik.

"Yes, but I was in a more isolated are with mountains and trees," Siegfried answered. "So I can't really say much more about it."

"There are some amazing places in that realm that's beyond comprehension," mentioned Ashrah. "I'm sure you will all find something that you'll like once you're there. Parts of Earth has similarities to Keisei depending on where you are."

Hwang turned to one of the soldiers then. "Start activating the portal."

"Yes sir," the soldier said before he and the others began to activate the portal, which was powered by a hand-cranked generator.

Fujin decided to mention something then. "There is something you should know... they'll be one other Keisei native who will join you on Earthrealm, but I had her go through a deity portal this morning as she didn't want to mingle much just yet. You'll see her around once she's ready."

"Who is it?" asked a curious Talim.

The Wind God took a deep breath before answering, knowing that there was going to be mixed feelings amongst the more-seasoned chosen ones. "Ivy Valentine."

"Really?" Maxi questioned with a raised eyebrow, not expecting to hear that name.

"Who's that?" asked Yunseong.

"Winner of the Blood Tournament," said Ashrah.

"And she's the former Empress of Outworld during the Universal War," Kilik replied. "But... she's also one of The Four... she actually helped save the universe by defeating Shao Kahn and ending the war for good."

Now it was Hilde's turn to raise an eyebrow. "I can see why most of you look like you can't decide whether you're happy or angry over that news."

"Considering the story behind why she was Empress and changed sides, I can say for certain that it's not entirely her fault," said Siegfried.

"Still, not everyone was thrilled with her even after that," mentioned Hwang. "I'm withholding judgment myself, especially now if Fujin trusts her enough to be with us chosen ones."

"As I said before, you probably won't see her too much around unless it pertains to the threat you'll be fighting against," spoke Fujin.

"It might be for the best," said Kilik. "I feel the same as Hwang does, but I'm sure even she knows that not everyone is going to be welcoming to her presence."

"Either way, I'll tell you the whole story once we're settled on Earth," Siegfried said to Hilde, who nodded in reply. By then, the portal was starting to activate as green hue began to form inside the steel, circular ring, the color indicating that it would indeed lead them to Earthrealm.

"The course has been set for Mishima Island, Earthrealm," one soldier announced.

Hwang nodded. "Just give it another minute or two. Then we'll head on through."

It actually took less than a minute, but soon the portal's humming sounds much louder, almost deafening everyone in the room. They were forced to cover their ears in order to shield themselves from the unnatural sound.

"The portal is activated and ready!" another soldier managed to shout over the noise.

"Good luck everyone!" Fujin yelled over the noise. "May the Heavens watch over you!"

"That would be you then!" called out Maxi.

And with that, all of the chosen ones began going through the portal to Earthrealm...

---

Senzaki Port, Nagato, Japan

The day to take the participants of the upcoming Shikoken Tournament from the city of Nagato to Mishima Island finally arrived. As of now, there were ten ferry boats parked at port ready to transport the fighters to the resort island. Out at Senzaki Bay, five more ferries were at stand-by just in case the current ten hit their maximum passenger capacity before everyone got on.

Lars Alexandersson was one of the first people intending to travel for the tournament to arrive at port. Showing up in the city three days ago, it felt good to be able to move on to the next destination. Looking at his surroundings, a part of him wondered if something... anything around him would trigger any old memories, even if it was only a little bit.

So far, nothing.

Next to him, the android Alisa Bosconovitch spoke up, breaking through his thoughts. "The distance between Nagato and Mishima Island is approximately five hours by ferry. The number of ferries present should be just enough to accommodate all fighters expected to arrive for the tournament."

Lars frowned a little. "Still, we got here early enough to where we shouldn't be left behind."

"Yes," Alisa agreed. "If there was still anyone left after all ferries departed, they would have to wait at least twelve hours before the ones being used are returned. That is unless the Mishima Zaibatsu gets another transport right away."

The older man ended up folding his arms in front of him. "Yeah..."

Noticing how distracted he seemed, Alisa turned her head in his direction with concern. "Are you all right?" she asked.

Lars bowed his head with some grimace as he shook it a little. "I'm starting to wonder if this tournament will trigger any memories for me at all. I mean, how close are we going to be able to get to the Mishima Zaibatsu?"

"Attending the tournament will bring us much closer to the Zaibatsu than any other current measure," Alisa reminded him. "Once we are on the island, I will figure out their security as well as where they may keep more private records. This is all we can do for now."

That boosted Lars' confidence, if only a little bit. A ghost of smile came upon his face as he craned his head towards Alisa's direction. "Well... it's a start."

That was when he noticed something at the corner of his eye. Turning to that direction, Lars looked to see what it was... only for his jaw to drop in surprise upon recognizing... white sails? In the sky? How? Sure, it could've been clouds, but the sky was completely clear this morning and there was something dark following just below those sails. Seeing it's curved shape, he realized what it was...

"What... is that a ship flying in the sky?" Lars asked.

There was a brief pause as Alisa analyzed the ship while gazing at it with her green eyes. "It's the Jita Victoire, belonging to a French pirate named Ruby Heart, one of the heroes of the Universal War. Looks like she may be attending the Shikoken Tournament."

Lars raised his eyebrow at that. "I see..." He then shook his head before looking up ahead towards the dock. "We better start getting in line for the ferry before it gets any longer."

Alisa nodded in agreement. "Right," she said before they began heading off.

On the Jita Victoire itself, Ruby Heart gazed down at the docks below, seeing the crowd starting to gather by the ferries. She knew that her fellow chosen ones would be gathering down there as expected... and perhaps she would've offered them a ride to the island on her ship, but considering the growing crowd of other fighters gathering at the docks, she realized quickly that maybe landing her ship at port wasn't the greatest idea right now.

"Sorry friends," Ruby Heart ended up saying, more so to her fellow chosen ones. "Last thing we need is some untrustworthy strangers trying to get on my ship. I'll buy you all some wine later."

She then continued her away towards Mishima Island...

Back at the docks, the group consisting of Chun Li, Lei, Christie, Yun, Yang, Maki, and R. Mika just began to arrive at the docks after enjoying a light breakfast at the hotel they were previously staying at. After checking out, the seven of them walked the two blocks to port while carrying their luggage with them.

"Hey, isn't that Ruby Heart's ship?" Chun Li ended up asking suddenly while gazing up at the sky.

Lei squinted his eyes for a moment while looking at what his wife was looking at before he recognized the flying ship against the blue sky. "Yup! ...And it looks like she's going straight for the island right about now." He then shook his fist with a free hand towards the direction of the ship. "THANKS FOR THE RIDE, HEART!"

"Oh she probably has her reasons," mentioned Maki.

"If that's the case, she better buy us some beer once we're all on the island."

"Oh yeah, like she can afford to buy us... um..." Yun started to say, but then thought of something. "Exactly how many of us chosen ones are there?"

"Hmm, good question," said Mika. "Maybe like... thirty of us."

"No way!" called out Lei. "More like over ninety... at least that's how it felt."

"We'll do the official count once we're there," Chun Li suggested. She then turned her attention towards the waiting ferries. The sight ended up reminding her for the morning she and Lei arrived at the docks to take the ship to the Blood Tournament in Outworld. "Eh... is it me, or is this deja vu to anyone?"

"In a way, yeah," Lei agreed. "Except we were back in Hong Kong and... I wasn't carrying all five of your suitcases."

"Hey, you offered that morning!" the detective reminded her husband.

"Yeah, well... say, that reminds me, why the change of heart this time around?" Lei ended up asking. "You're only carrying one large suitcase and a backpack this time."

Chun Li gave him an amused smirk. "Now that we know where we're heading, all my paperwork is now in a USB drive in the left little pocket of my backpack."

Lei sighed at that. "Amazing how three suitcases-worth of work can fit into a pinkie-sized device these days..."

"So I'm guessing this is what it was like heading for that tournament you went to two years ago?" asked Christie as she realized what the couple were talking about.

"Sort of... actually, these boats here are twenty times better than the last ones. The lasts ones were... pretty ancient looking, like they were from the B.C.-era or something."

"Yeah, I'm surprised those ships didn't have termites either," mentioned Yang.

"Speaking of old times," spoke up Mika. "If it all right, Maki and I are gonna wait a bit to see if we can spot our friends."

"All right, but don't wait too long," suggested Chun Li. "Last thing we need is you two to miss the boat."

"We won't," Maki promised as she quickly gave Yang a quick peck on the cheek. In response, Yang ended up smiling and Maki giggled once she swore that she saw his cheeks turn a little red.

"Ugh, get a room," Yun uttered after witnessing that.

"That reminds me," Yang started as he turned to his twin. "Where's Hoimei?"

"She said she'll be a few days late to the island," Yun said as he and his brother started to follow Chun Li, Lei, and Christie to the waiting line for the ferries. "Her parents needed her to take care of a few things at the market stand before she can take a vacation."

Yang took his brother's word for it, but at the same, he had a very, very small feeling that there was a possibility that Yun left Hong Kong without inviting his girlfriend to the tournament. Even if that was the case, something told Yang that Hoimei would show up to the island soon enough...

As the twins, the two detectives, and Christie left to get in line, Mika turned to Maki. "So... looks like we're about to experience old times again, huh?"

Maki nodded in reply. "Yeah... and hopefully, it'll be a lot better. Last time, we were all together during a huge war, and the time before that, we've lost friends..."

Mika frowned at that. "I know what you mean. Hey, maybe if we're lucky, we'll be able to stop this new threat before it gets really bad."

"I hope you're right, Mika."

That was when they suddenly heard their names being called out with excitement. Realizing at least one of their friends arrive, Maki and Mika turned in the direction towards the noise, and they soon had big smiles on their faces as two of their friends came running towards them.

"Sakura!"

"Asuka!"

The four friends met halfway before throwing themselves into a group hug and they ended up yelling and giggling with excitement over the reunion. There were some peculiar stares from those who witnessed the reunion, but none of the girls cared.

"Now THIS is a reunion!" called out Sakura.

"I couldn't agree more," said Maki.

Suddenly, Mika gasped as she looked past Asuka's shoulder. "Eh, guys... not to alarm you or anything, but... there's a panda right behind you!"

Sakura and Asuka ended up laughing at Mika's reaction before Sakura said. "It's okay, that's actually a friend of ours."

"...You made friends with a panda?" asked a confused Maki.

"What's wrong with being friends with a panda?" questioned Asuka, though she gave her friend a teasing grin.

"Oh, nothing!" Maki called out. "I was just... surprised. That's all."

By then, they realized that the panda had two riders on their back, a young Chinese lady with her black hair tied in pigtails and a Japanese girl with short auburn hair. Along with the two were was a tall woman with chocolate skin and white hair and one who was shorter with pale skin and short-cropped black hair. All of their luggage, plus Asuka and Sakura's, were being carried by ropes strapped to the panda accompanying them. The large animal didn't seem to mind, however, as she looking over her surroundings with curiosity, not bothered by the extra weight on her back.

Asuka walked over to the group before pointing to her two blond-haired friends. "Everyone, this is Maki Genryusai and 'Rainbow' Mika Nanakawa, our friends from both the Blood Tournament and the Universal War." She then pointed to her newer friends. "This is Elena, Makoto, Xiaoyu, and Xiaoyu's pet panda... Panda."

"Hi," everyone greeted almost at once.

Xiaoyu spoke up then. "And behind me is my best friend since high school, Miharu Hirano."

"Hello," Miharu said a little meekly.

"I assume you're all attending the tournament, too?" asked Mika.

"Uh, yeah," Makoto replied.

"Of course," Elena said cheerfully.

"Definitely," answered Xiaoyu.

"How about you, Miharu?" asked Maki after a brief pause.

"Eh, I dunno," Miharu said with a shrug. "I mean, I've known Baguazhang and Piguaquan since childhood, but... I've never really been much for competition."

"I'm trying to convince her to participate," Xiaoyu mentioned. "We'll see what I can do before tomorrow night."

"Well don't put too much pressure on the poor girl," said Mika.

"Thank you!" called out Miharu. "I've been trying to tell my friend that since day one!"

"Hey!" cried Xiaoyu. "I'm not pressuring you! I haven't asked you all THAT much."

"But you've been begging me to participate for over a week now! I agreed to at least be a spectator and cheer on for you, which is why I'm here in the first place."

That was when their conversation was interrupted by a new voice. "Well well well... fighting already and we haven't even left the mainland yet."

The eight friends plus Panda turned to the voice, only to see Lili and Karin standing a few feet away from them, both staring. Behind them, their personal butlers, Sebastian and Ishizaki respectively, were carrying their suitcases and waited patiently for the two ladies to finish their conversation with the others.

Asuka narrowed her eyes at Lili. "You..." she growled.

"Hi Karin!" called out Mika. Karin replied with a wave and a smile.

Lili responded to Asuka then. "I guess they'll let anyone into a tournament these days..."

"Yeah..." Asuka growled as she glared at her enemy. "Tell me about it..."

Before Lili came up with a response, someone in a brown cloak suddenly bumped into her, nearly knocking her off her feet, but she was able to keep her balance regardless. "Hey!" she yelled.

"Sorry," a male voice said meekly as he turned to look at the young woman.

"Watch it or-" Lili called out in annoyance, clearly not hearing his apology, but then she quickly stopped upon seeing the face of the one who bumped into her. No one missed the fact that her face went from subtle smugness to horror in almost an instant. Whatever she saw in the stranger's face, it shocked her.

"S-Sebastian!" the Monaco native squeaked as she quickly turned her back to the stranger. "To the ferry. Now!"

"Yes, Lili," Sebastian replied just as the young lady hastily walked off. Gripping onto her luggage, the butler began to follow her.

Asuka turned her attention to Karin. "And here I thought you two would be taking your own yachts to the island."

"Apparently her yacht broke down and my parents' took their yacht out for the weekend, so... here I am."

"Oh, poor thing's gotta ride with us commoners," teased a giggling Sakura. "How tragic."

Karin actually smirked in amusement at that. "It's so funny... I would've thought 'woe is me,' two years ago if it wasn't for the last war humbling me... still, it won't be pleasant, I imagine."

"Just a quick advice," began Mika. "Stay next to the window. Trust me, when you're stuffed in a place like a can of sardines, you'll be thankful for windows."

"Noted," Karin said. "I'll see you later." She then turned to her butler. "Let's go, Ishizaki."

"Yes, Karin," Ishizaki said as he followed her to the ferry line.

Once the two girls were gone, the others noticed the stranger still near them. With the brown cloak still over his head, the stranger crouched low to the ground and kept his back away from the girls. Eventually, it was Sakura who chose to approach him in order to see if he was okay after not moving for a while.

"Hey, are you okay?" she asked the stranger with concern.

"Don't look at me!" he yelled out in fear, almost making her jump back in surprise. "I'm hideous... I should've never came here..."

However, his voice only made Sakura's head tilt as though she thought it familiar to her. Unsure of whether the stranger was who she thought he was, she decided to give it a try anyway.

"Jimmy-san?"

That made the stranger turn his attention to Sakura, almost with suspicion at first. However, upon looking at the young lady's face, his fear quickly relaxed to a smile, baring his sharp teeth he knew she was not afraid of.

"Sakura!" he called out, his somber mood quickly turning happier. "Long time, no see!"

"Same here," she said as the two shared a brief hug, the man's huge form seemingly overtaking Sakura's.

"I didn't know you had a boyfriend, Sakura," teased Mika, making the other girls giggle.

"He's not my boyfriend!" Sakura called out as she pulled away from him. "He's a friend I met a few years ago when I was still in high school. This is Jimmy, but you also call him Blanka."

"Hi," some of the girls greeted.

"There you are, Jimmy," another familiar voice was heard, and it didn't take long for Dan Hibiki to arrive at the scene. "We almost lost you."

"I was wondering where you were," the woman added as she approached the cloaked man. "You almost had me worried."

"Sorry, Mama," Blanka said. "I was busy looking at the view to pay attention to my surroundings. It's... nice here."

"It's all right, Samantha," Dan assured Blanka's mother. "I think Jimmy's excited about the new sights."

"I figured that was the case," Samantha said with a smile.

Dan gazed at the group staring at them and realized that he knew half of them. He gave them all a goofy grin before waving to them. "Hi girls! Long time, no see!"

"Hi Dan," replied Asuka as the others waved.

"I'm surprised you're going to the tournament, Jimmy-san," mentioned Sakura.

"I convinced him to come along with me," Dan said. "He and Samantha have been spending time with me and my family in Hong Kong since this new war started.

"Yeah," Blanka began, feeling a little down again. He pulled on the hood of the cloak more to cover his face. "Except someone saw my face just now... she was frighten of me."

"Oh that's just Lili, she's like that to everyone who isn't rich," Asuka mentioned. "You pay her no mind."

"Yeah, Jimmy," said Maki. "We like you already, you seem very nice."

"That's 'cause you haven't seen my face yet."

"Oh Jimmy-san," spoke Sakura as she patted his shoulder. "Not everyone is afraid of green skin, orange hair, and sharp teeth."

"Really?" Makoto said curiously. "You have all that?"

"Yeah, it's actually really cool," Dan said. "He's almost like The Hulk, but less angry and more green."

Now everyone was staring at Blanka in silence, almost in anticipation. He realized that the girls were waiting for him to pull back his hood to show his face. Deciding to get this over with, he only pulled his hood back just enough for his face to be shown. At the same time, he shut his eyes tight, not wanting to see their immediate reactions just yet.

It was expected for the girls to widen their eyes in surprise once they saw his face, but at least they were prepared enough to not react any more than that. When he didn't hear any screams, Blanka opened his eyes, and instead of seeing horrified looks, he only saw curiosity, which almost confused him.

Then Elena spoke up with a smile. "Aww, you're actually pretty cute. You're not scary at all."

"I agree," said Xiaoyu while the others nodded. Even Panda nodded in agreement. This all earned a timid smile from Blanka, feeling a bit better now. Still, he kept his hood over his head, just in case.

"Hey!" Maki suddenly called out. "We better all get in line before we miss the boat."

"Let's go then!" called out Dan, and everyone began heading towards the lines.

As they did, Mika ended up whispering to Maki, "You think they'll allow Panda on the ferry?" Maki could only shrug in response.

Meanwhile, Kitana, Sindel, and Jade had just arrived at port. Initially, when Fujin came to Edenia earlier, just days after Liu Kang's visit, he offered to transport them straight to Mishima Island. However, that morning, Jade received a request from Heiwa, the leader of the Manji Clan's Edenia Faction, to deliver a message to the main Earthrealm Faction at Mount Fuji. The current faction leader there, Seiji, received the message concerning the status in Edenia. Once that was done, the three women went on their way to Nagato, where the ferries would be leaving for Mishima Island.

The three dressed as appropriate as possible for the realm itself, but their lavish clothing still draw attention to the Earthrealm natives who noticed them. Still, they managed to ignore them as long as they didn't start heckling them.

"I have to admit," Jade suddenly started after some long silence. She turned her head towards the Princess. "I've been curious about something ever since we were told about this new threat."

"What about?" Kitana questioned.

"...I don't mean to be bold, your highness, but... I've been curious about your reaction when Liu Kang showed up at the palace a few days ago. Your reaction was... not much of a reaction as I expected. If I may ask, why is that?"

Kitana narrowed her eyes at the General. "That is bold, Jade."

"Oh come on, my dear daughter," Sindel said. "Even I'm curious about that."

"Mother!" Kitana cried, which only made the older woman smile almost innocently at her daughter.

Kitana decided to ignore the Queen and continued to speak to Jade. "Wouldn't you go into shock too if the person you thought dead for over two years suddenly showed up at your palace?"

"I see," Jade said, understanding now. "I guess I would go in shock too if I were in your shoes."

"I probably would faint myself if Jerrod came back suddenly..." Sindel ended up uttering, mostly to herself as she frowned over the thought of her deceased husband.

"To be honest, I'm STILL in shock, and I probably will be for a little bit longer," Kitana admitted. "Sometimes, I still can't believe it, and I keep wondering if it was all a dream..."

"You did smile at him at the end of that meeting there," Jade reminded her.

Kitana nodded, remembering that. "Yeah... he always had that effect on me." She then quickly shook her head, deciding to change the subject. "I assume the line for the boats start over there..." she said while pointing at the forming group of people off to their right. "We should get in line before it gets longer than it already is."

"These boats do look nice than the ones that took us to Outworld, that's for sure," said Sindel as the three marched forward while carrying their luggage.

"That's Earthrealm tech for you," Jade mentioned.

Not too far from them, a limo showed up at the edge of the docks where the road started. After parking, the driver got out of the front seat before opening the back door facing the dock. A young woman in a navy blue business suit stepped out out of the limo. Once outside, she Right after her was her boss, Lee Chaolan.

"The ferries should be departing in two hours," Chieko began as she looked over today's agenda on her tablet. "It'll take five hours for the ferries to reach the resort, your grand suite is waiting for you at the Mishima Hotel, and you have dinner reservations at Pierce's, a British-themed restaurant. That's your only agenda for today."

By then, the limo driver took out the four luggage pieces from the trunk and set them aside next to Lee and Chieko. Once that was done, without looking at the driver, Lee handed him four ten-thousand yen bills that was held between his index and middle finger. The driver took the bills and Lee didn't bother to look at the stunned gaze on the driver's face. The driver gave Lee a quick 'arigatou' before heading back to the front seat of his vehicle.

"Excellent," Lee soon replied just as the driver began to depart. He smiled at his secretary as they began to walk forward, pulling their respective luggage that had wheels on them. "After such a long trip, I look forward to some rest, and I imagine you do too. I'm surprised you took up on my offer to accompany me to Mishima Island."

"Well, I figured it'd be nice to visit a resort for once," Chieko said. "All of my previous vacations have been to visit family. It'd be nice to do something for myself while you attend the tournament."

Lee nodded before his face changed into something more solemn. "I do have the feeling that the Mishima Zaibatsu knows of my presence by now..."

"Something tells me they've known since you booked your flight to Nagato," Chieko guessed. She then noticed the ferries and had an idea. "Do you want me to book a ship or a helicopter to take you to the island? It'll get you there much faster."

"That won't be necessary, Miss Umeda, but thank you," Lee said as a smirk came upon his face. "I'd like to try to... blend myself into the crowd this time around and see how long it takes for anyone in the Zaibatsu to notice I'm here now."

"As you wish, sir."

Meanwhile, Hakan, his wife, and their seven daughters had just arrived. Hakan took a moment to take a deep breath, enjoying the smell of sea salt in the air. "Ah, you smell that, Harika?" the oil tycoon asked his wife. "I mean, don't get me wrong, the Sea of Marmara back at home is nice, but the saline is all the way at the bottom. There's something really nice about the smell of sea salt in the air."

"It is nice," Harika replied. "I'm sure we'll smell this a lot once we're at the resort."

"I imagine so."

"Daddy!" called out his second daughter, Bellceez. "Are we there yet?"

Hakan laughed in delight as he patted Bellceez's head. "Not yet, my dear. "We just have to take the boat to the island, and then we'll be there."

"There you are, Hakan!" a familiar voice called out. Hakan turned his head in the direction of the voice, soon recognizing E. Honda approaching him. "I was wondering if you would show up."

"I said I would be there, Edmond," Hakan replied as the two shook hands with enthusiasm. "Good to see you again, even if it's only been less than two weeks since you were in Istanbul."

"Hi, Mr. Honda!" some of Hakan's daughters shouted.

"Hello, girls," Honda responded with a smile. He then looked at Hakan's wife. "Hi, Harika."

"Hello, Edmond," Harika greeted. "I assume you're ready to show off the sport of Sumo at the tournament?"

"Don't encourage him, dear," Hakan muttered to her.

"What's wrong, Hakan?" Honda started with a smug grin. "Still afraid my sumo is far superior than your Turkish oil wrestling?"

"Bah, we'll see about that once the tournament begins!" Hakan replied while wagging his finger at his friend. "We've only just begun this contest, my friend. You still have a long way to go before this is over... which reminds me, I wanted to ask you about your oils here in your native land."

It was almost as though their rivalry was suddenly forgotten as Honda gave his old friend a genuine smile. "Ha! That's funny because I was gonna mention about the oil store that's on the island. Found out about it myself while exploring the resort over the internet."

"Oh good, that's very convenient!" Hakan said almost excitedly. "I'll have to give that place a visit once we're on the island."

Nearby, Sagat had just shown up at the docks and began to head towards the ferry line. While he did, he adjusted the dufflebag he carried over his shoulder since he left his childhood village back in Thailand. Although he enjoying the travel since his departure, now that he was close to the resort, he was looking forward to checking into his hotel to relax a bit before he focused on his training prior to the tournament's start.

Maybe I can make reservations at the hotel's massage parlor for tomorrow morning, Sagat ended up thinking. I haven't treated myself to that since-

His thought suddenly stopped as accidentally bumped into someone. At first, Sagat felt annoyed, but he quickly calmed himself down before he turned to see who it was he ran into.

Standing there was fellow chosen and the Kempo warrior, Feng Wei. Though Feng Wei had mostly kept to himself during the Universal War, he and Sagat had formed a mutual respect for each other back in those dark days mainly due to being impressed by their warrior spirits. In a way, the Muay Thai fighter was glad to see that he had accepted Liu Kang's invitation to help fight this new threat against the universe once more.

"Glad to see a familiar face for once," Sagat admitted in which Feng Wei nodded in agreement. After a brief pause, Sagat continued. "What you think about this whole thing? I mean, the war and all..."

"I'm reserving my judgment until we get the whole story," Feng Wei replied. "I'm sure Kazama had his reasons for starting this war to begin with."

Sagat nodded to him. "And yet, this war is threatening the universe again, apparently. Whatever it is, do you think Kazama knew this would happen? Seems ironic that he would help save the world just a year ago, only to do the complete opposite now..."

Feng Wei shrugged. "That's hard to tell... I guess it depends on whatever this threat is about."

"I'm sure we'll hear that whole story tonight or tomorrow," Sagat said. He then tilted his head towards the growing crowd not too far from them. "Best to get in line now before we miss the boat."

Feng Wei agreed with that and the two began to head over to the ferry line.

Not too far from them, Jax Briggs, Sonya Blade, and Cyrax showed up at port and immediately began to head over to the ferry line. The group also consisting of Cammy White, Lita Luwanda, Steve Fox, and Juni arrived at the same time just a few feet away from the Special Forces group. It didn't take long for everyone to spot each other.

"Hey, you're all here," Lita greeted the Special Forces group as everyone approached each other.

"I'm glad to see you here, too," said Sonya as she smiled at everyone.

"It's nice to see some more familiar faces before we dive into what chaos is happening," mentioned Cyrax.

"Indeed," agreed Steve.

"It's nice for you to join us this time around, Briggs," said Cammy as she gazed up at the Colonel.

"Yeah, I figured I might as well see what this whole 'chosen ones' fuss is about this time around... those last time, I... couldn't really help even if I wanted to..."

Cammy frowned at that, knowing he was talking about when he was brainwashed to serve Shao Kahn during the Universal War. "I'm sorry, Briggs."

"Don't be," Jax assured her. "To lighten the mood, the reason I didn't attend the Blood Tournament was because it happened to land around the time my wife Vera was due to give birth to our daughter. Jacqui will be turning two near the end of next month."

"Awe, that's sweet," said Juni.

That was when Cammy suddenly heard her name being called out by a familiar male voice. Recognizing it, she turned around and soon saw both Wagner and Guile approaching the group.

"There you are!" Cammy called out as she met them halfway.

"What, you thought we wouldn't show up?" Wagner joked as the two of them shared a quick hug.

"I knew you would," Cammy said just as they pulled away. "But you know how it is out there these days..."

Wagner nodded with a frown. "Yeah, it's pretty bad..." He quickly shook his head before turning his attention to everyone else in the group before grinning. "Hey guys!"

"Hi Scott," Sonya greeted with a smirk.

"Dammit, not the first name thing again..." That earned a chuckled from some of the others.

"Anyway," Guile stepped in. "I'm sure we have a lot of stories to share over this war and what to expect on this mission."

"I'm sure we can also trade notes while we all stay on the island," said Jax.

"That's not a bad idea at all," Cammy mentioned, liking the idea. "Hopefully this time, all the paperwork will be more organized and completed faster, unlike when we were in Outworld."

"Well luckily, we have computer access this time around," Guile pointed out. "That should make it a little bit easier."

"...That is true."

"That or I can store all the data into my system," suggested Cyrax.

Wagner then spoke up. "Not quite the reunion I had in mind but-"

The Lieutenant was suddenly cut off as a pair of hands gently cover his eyes. For a split moment, the gesture confused him and he could only wonder who just showed up to say hello to everyone... that or some weird stranger decided to play some odd game with him.

"Guess who?" a familiar female then voice whispered behind him.

Wagner grinned then and his heart sang with happiness as he realized that it was Juli who was behind him. Still, he decided to have some fun and go along with her little game. "Um, gee... the name is on the tip of my tongue, but I can't quite remember..." He started to snap his fingers near his head as though trying to remember.

"Oh stop it," Juli said as she forced him to turn around, his grin still remaining. Next to him, Abel had accompanied her to the trip and was currently chatting with Guile, but neither one of them bothered to listen in on what they were talking about. Instead, they shared a brief kiss before pulling each other into a tight embrace, not caring who was watching.

"Nice to see that these two kids are still together," quipped Cyrax after a few moments of silence.

"Oh... no... no..." Sonya suddenly uttered as she shook her head in disbelief.

"Hey, it's a sweet thing to see, don't be jealous!" called out Lita.

"No, not that!" Sonya called out. She then pointed past Lita's shoulder as she placed a hand over her forehead. "I meant that."

The others began to turn to see what Sonya was looking at. Not too far from them, two men just stepped out of the limo with their luggage. Abel was the first to recognize them, but didn't saying thing right away as he suddenly became too star-struck, his eyes widened and mouth gaping in shock.

"Oh ...hell... no," Jax suddenly uttered once he realized who one of them was.

"Aren't those the two actors, Johnny Cage and Fei Long?" Steve ended up asking. Abel ended up nodding enthusiastically in reply.

"Fei Long!" Cammy suddenly called out as she waved her arm in the air to get his attention.

"You... didn't just draw attention to us, White," Sonya said in almost defeat.

Cammy raised an eyebrow at her. "What's wrong with that exactly?"

"Long time, no see, Cammy," Fei Long said just as he and Cage approached the group. He then turned his head to Guile and nodded. "Hello, Guile."

"Hello Fei Long," Guile greeted.

"I didn't know you two knew Fei Long," mentioned Steve.

"We both attended the World Warriors' Tournament a while back," Cammy explained.

"That explains it," said Lita.

While this was going on, Johnny ended up turning his head to Sonya... the first time he was seeing her since the end of the Netherrealm War. She was just as beautiful as he remembered her... and then, it was almost as though she never really died like he heard about two years ago. He almost wanted to take her into his arms and hold her close, but knew that now wasn't the time to do such a thing.

When she made eye contact, Sonya's blue eyes only softened slightly, but they still showed some defiance, especially when she folded her arms in front of her. Still, Johnny gave her a smile and it felt good when she returned it, even if it was a small one and close-mouthed.

"Hi Sonya... it's... been a long time," Johnny said.

"Yeah... it has, Cage," Sonya replied, her voice low but neutral.

"I'm sure we have plenty of time to catch up with this tournament and all," Johnny said. "Who know how long we'll be on the island for."

Sonya shrugged a little at that. "We'll see."

The conversation suddenly ended then when Johnny noticed the yellow cyborg with Sonya standing a little too close to him. Johnny took a single step back, more for his personal space, before he turned his head to him.

"Well hello to you too, Bumblebee," Johnny said with a quick wave of his hand.

"You owe me eight bucks, asshole!" Cyrax told him with seething hatred.

Johnny raised an eyebrow at him. "For what?!"

"For wasting it on that godawful Ninja Mime of yours!"

"...That movie came out in theaters years ago!" Johnny called out. "And seriously, it's not my fault you chose to see it!"

"Hey Cyrax," Jax stepped in. "I think he actually owes you twelve dollars nowadays... inflation and all..."

Cyrax chuckled at that. "I think you're right!"

Johnny glared at the Special Forces Colonel through his sunglasses. "That's just cold, Briggs... besides, if you want it THAT badly, you're gonna have me fight me for it."

"Oh trust me, I will... when the right time comes," Cyrax promised. He then started to walk towards the ferry line with most of the others behind him, but then said, "You just won't know exactly when that will happen... it may happen in a few minutes... tomorrow... end of the tournament... I'll know when the mood strikes me."

That statement, for some reason, quickly made Johnny nervous. This was going to be a long tournament for sure...

While all this was going on, T. Hawk had arrived at dock as well not too far from the military group. With only a large dufflebag in hand, he started to head to the ferry line when he noticed a couple hugging about twenty feet away from him. He saw the girl's face then just as she pulled away to gaze up at her lover... and T. Hawk's eyes widened in surprise when he realized that the girl he was looking at was his beloved Juli!

He should've known Juli would be here to attend the tournament... she did mentioned her trip was to help with the war after all. Then again, he didn't tell her where he was going either, so they were both even on that.

Recognizing the man she was with from the picture she showed him at the hospital, T. Hawk wasn't sure whether to be happy or jealous right now. He knew the latter thought was especially selfish, but despite that, it was still hard for him not to even somewhat feel that way. At least the thought of her being happy did comfort him... somewhat.

For now, he decided to keep his distance from the two, not wanting Juli to know that he was here just yet. He was confident that they would run into each other again during their stay on the island...

Nearby, Raven had arrived at the docks with one luggage over his shoulder and a cup of coffee in one hand. Taking a quick sip from his drink, he took a moment to savior the bitter taste of the hot liquid... just the way he liked it.

Before he walked forward, he heard a young girl call out, "We're almost there, Mommy! I'm so excited!"

Turning his head, Raven saw the girl in question standing a few feet away as she looked at the dock in wonder and amazement. Behind her, an older woman with yellow sunglasses and long dark pink hair tied back in a single braid patted the young girl's shoulder, a small smile on her lips as well. Raven soon realized that he was looking at the CIA agent, Crimson Viper, who was well-known to his superiors for some of her field work.

"We just have to take the ferry across the water and we'll be there in no time," Crimson Viper said to her daughter, Lauren. "When we get there, we'll take a little rest and then we'll have dinner at one of the hotel restaurants. Does that sound good?"

The girl nodded with more excitement. Taking their luggage in hand, the two began heading towards the ferry line.

Raven was just about to do the same when he almost ran into someone. He stopped himself before he rammed into the person – and thankful that none of his coffee spilled in the moment. He then shifted his head in the direction of the person he nearly bumped into, his eyes glaring at them from

That was when he recognized the SPETSNAZ soldier, Sergei Dragunov.

Dragunov had also stopped in his track to look at Raven, soon recognizing the agent as well. For a moment, the two glared at each other as memories of the Universal War came over their heads... a time when two enemies were forced to work together in order to survive the Russian blizzard during the first five weeks of the war. The two were still far from 'pals,' but the events, as well as learning to trust one another, did earn their respect for each other.

But at this point, did that respect remain a year later?

The moment was suddenly disrupted as they heard someone yelling. "Soldiers! In less than two hours, we will boarding the ferries to Mishima Island. The journey will take five hours. Once we are there, we'll settle in. Tomorrow, our mission begins! Remember, men, I expected nothing less than one-hundred and ten percent of your efforts! Move out!"

Raven and Dragunov had turned their attention to man addressing his soldiers, not knowing that this was Rolento Schugerg. His loud speech had earned the attention of those within the group's proximity... Rolento didn't exactly make it all that hard to get himself noticed after all..

At this point, Raven wasn't sure what would've be worse last year in the Russian blizzard – spending time with a mute soldier or a loud, obnoxious one...

Meanwhile, Marduk stretched his limbs out after taking a taxi ride to the docks with King. "Ah, finally!" he called out. "I thought this trip would never end!"

"It wasn't that bad of a trip," King mentioned.

"Are you friggin' kidding me?!" Marduk called out. "You have any idea how cramped I felt during that twelve-hour flight to here? Unless we sat in first class or even the exit rows, planes these days don't exactly accommodate well for a big guy like me. I was lucky I could even buy two seats next to each other so I can stretch my legs."

"Well that's what happens when you make last-minute plans involving air flights," King said.

"Not my fault this tournament was announced three weeks in advance," Marduk pointed out. "You know, I've always wondered something since we became world-famous as a tag team and I figured now's a good time to ask... how did you manage to pass security with that mask on? I was sure they would've made me take it off if I had one... shame really, I was looking forward to seeing your mug."

"Unfortunately, it's an advantage I have as a world-famous wrestler," King replied.

"Why is it unfortunate?"

"Because no average citizen could've got away with it... but I take advantage of this particular shrug-off anyway since you know how I am about my mask in public..."

"Yeah yeah, kayfabe 'til the end." Marduk then saw the growing crowd in front of them and sighed. "Wonder if there's enough boats to fit us all in."

"Well if we get in line now-" King started.

"Well, well, well, look who decided to show their ugly faces," a familiar female voice called out.

Immediately Marduk rolled his eyes. "Great... the symbiotes from Vegas are here," he mumbled as turned to face Poison and Hugo.

Hugo, who was following Poison, spoke up. "Eh, Poison, shouldn't we get in line for the ferries?"

"Not yet!" Poison said. "I want to 'talk' to these two first."

"Wait a minute," King spoke up just as the duo showed up. "How do you know that I'm ugly?"

"Why else would you wearing that mask over your head?" Poison mentioned. That comment forced Marduk to fight with every fiber of his being to keep himself from laughing at that comment.

"...That's just cold," King proceeded. "I think you're still mad about your loss back in Vegas."

"You're damn right I am!"

"Sorry guys," Hugo suddenly spoke up. "I told Poison I didn't want to fight anyone until the tournament..."

"Don't apologize to them, Hugo!" Poison called out. "You can't be apologetic to your enemies!"

"Eh... 'enemies' is a pretty strong word in this case," King mentioned.

"I don't know about you," Marduk said. "But as far as I can tell, the big'en here is smarter than he looks."

Hugo smiled. "Yeah, Mama always said I was smart."

That got a raised eyebrow from Marduk. "Eh... I'm sorry to break it to you, but I think almost all mothers think their kids are smart, even if... yeah..."

"Even if what?" Hugo asked, genuinely confused by that statement.

"Don't mind Hugo, he's always been a Mama's boy," Poison mentioned before Marduk could answer. She then scowled a bit. "Oh great, I lost track of what we were talking about..."

"Apparently, you're mad because Marduk and I decided to show our ugly mugs," King reminded.

"That's right..." Poison uttered.

Before she said more, King spoke over her. "I'll be frank with you... I'd worry more about the aftermath of this tournament then being mad about you losing in Vegas."

Poison tilted her head as her face scowled more. "What the hell are you talking about?"

"Let's just say that this whole war is threatening to swallow the universe, just like it almost did last year."

That made Hugo's eyes widened in near horror. "Really? Is that true?"

"Don't listen to him!" Poison called out. "He's just trying to scare us! Why would even mention such an insane lie?!"

"...Because it's true?"

"You're crazy!" she yelled out. "I don't know what your game is, but it's not going to work on us!"

"Eh, Poison," Hugo cut in. "Remember how you didn't want us to attend that tournament I was invited to two years ago because you thought it meant nothing, only for it to be a big something...?"

"That was different!" Poison called out. "Come on, Hugo, let's go before I get an even bigger headache than I intended!" She then walked off. Hugo briefly stayed behind for a moment, turning his head between her and the tag team duo before following his manager to the ferry line.

"That... was weird," Marduk said once they were out of earshot. He then turned to King and slapped his arm. "And why the hell did you tell them about the threat?! We don't even know exactly what this threat even is!"

"I mentioned it in the hopes of making her realize there's more important things to worry about whether she believes me or not," King explained.

"Yeah and look where that went," Marduk said. He shook his head. "Well... at least she thinks you're crazy."

"But she still thinks you're ugly," King pointed out.

The Vale Tudo fight eyed his tag team partner. "Funny... real funny..."

Unknown to anyone while this was going on, Armor King glared at the scene before him, wearing a black hood over his head to conceal his leopard mask. Even thought he was outwardly calm, he could feel the rage boiling in his blood and it took all his energy not to clench his fists at his sides. It took even more energy not to launch at Marduk, grab for his throat, and slowly cut off his air supply until he was head. Of all the men in the world who deserved a slow, agonizing death, it was Craig Marduk.

For now, he would force himself to hold back, at least until the tournament was underway. Armor King growled underneath his breath before heading towards the ferry line...

On the other end of the docks, Yoshimitsu and four other members of the Manji Clan, all chosen to accompany him to Mishima Island, just arrived. Around the same time, the Lin Kuei group consisting of Sub-Zero, Smoke, Sareena, and Matrik had already reached the area and it didn't take long for both clans to spot each other.

"And here I thought we'd run into you at the island itself," said Smoke.

"I think the fact of a matter is that they'll be less people attending this tournament compared to the Blood Tournament," Yoshimitsu replied.

"It is only because this is Earth-based rather than universe-based," mentioned Matrik.

"Especially with that bounty," Sub-Zero added. "I bet more people would've arrived if this tournament was anything like the Blood Tournament in Outworld."

"That is true," Yoshimitsu agreed.

"Who are you allies?" the Lin Kuei Grandmaster inquired.

The Manji Clan leader turned to his crew. "This is Zivis... believe it or not, he was with me during the Universal War."

"I bet that was fun," said Smoke.

"Like that one moment when I had to distract a bear with our supply of fish while Yoshimitsu hacked into the computer system at a Mishima Zaibatsu base," Zivis brought up. That earned an odd look from the Lin Kuei group, and Zivis's sighing at that. "Long story..."

"Anyway," Yoshimitsu cut in. "This lady with me here is Tajna. You've already met Sakon, and this is his twin brother, Ukon. Both had volunteered to travel with me for this tournament from Keisei."

"Mostly to look after our little 'brother' here," Ukon joked as he patted his leader's shoulder.

That earned a head tilt from Sub-Zero as he realized what Ukon just said. "Little brother?"

Sakon began to explain. "It's sort of an inside joke. The Yoshimitsu that led the clan before this one here had raised him like his own... my brother and I looked up to our original master like a father when we served under him."

"So it made sense to us to consider this Yoshimitsu our little brother," Ukon finished.

"And before you ask Sub-Zero," Yoshimitsu started. "The twins had joined with me on that little longevity wish I had with that certain relic I obtained four hundred years ago... needless to say, these two are the last surviving members of the clan when it was founded all those years ago."

Sub-Zero nodding, understanding what the Manji Clan leader meant. "I see," was all he said.

"Gee, all that talk makes me feel inadequate," Tajna spoke. "I didn't join the clan until right after the Universal War, so I don't have much of a history just yet. Hell, Master, I'm surprised you even asked me to come with you to this tournament."

"I'm sure you're a formidable warrior if Yoshimitsu has asked you to accompany him on this mission," Sub-Zero said to her.

"He's right," Yoshimitsu added.

Tajna nodded solemnly to the both of them. "I... appreciate that."

"I think we should get in line for those boats," Sareena suggested.

"That's a good idea," Yoshimitsu said and the seven of them began walking forward...

The line to the ferries was getting even longer by the time Balrog arrived at port. Keeping the hood of the dark blue hoodie over his head to conceal his identity from those around him, (just in case someone recognized him... he thought he saw Sagat moments ago, but he wasn't quite sure), the former boxer looked around, feeling unimpressed by what he was seeing so far. Most of the supposed 'fighters' planning to attend the tournament seemed like posers to him, and much more desperate than he was to get their hands on the bounty. Thinking about the money only made Balrog's mood more sour.

This sucks... he ended up thinking. If my funds weren't so damn low, I would've taken my own ship to the island. Instead, I'll be crammed with everyone else on these boats like sardines!

… Then again, at least taking the ferry to the island was free...

Not too far away, the Manhattan-based wrestler Alex had just arrived at port. Adjusting the straps of his backpack, he began to walk forward to the beginning of the ferry line, pulling his second suitcase which rolling on it's wheels behind him. Taking in his surroundings, Alex noticed the two bays on either side of him; Senzaki Bay on the right, where the ferries were parks, and to the left was Fukawa Bay. There weren't too many buildings near where he was, but he could clearly see the green mountains on both mainland beyond Nagato and on Omi Island... a sight he wasn't too used to considering how he lived in a dense city his whole life, not getting out too often.

Perhaps it was because he wasn't used to his surroundings, but already, he was missing New York. At least he was here for a good cause, so it wasn't all that bad. Plus, he wouldn't be alone on the island for very long. Within two to three weeks, Tom and Patricia would join him.

Just before he reached the line, Alex happened to turn his head and suddenly stopped when he saw the familiar face in the crowd – the former wrestler and Mayor of Metro City, Haggar!

Okay, this is awesome! Alex thought with excitement. I didn't think I'd run into him at all during this tournament!

Even though he was sure that they'd both be on the island for the tournament, Alex decided that he didn't want to miss the opportunity to meet one of his favorite wrestlers from childhood. Before he would lose the mayor in the crowd (which wasn't all that hard considering Haggar's towering height), he began to make his approach.

Before reaching Haggar, Alex noticed that he was with four other people; three blondes, two women and one man, and one Japanese male, all carrying their own luggage and heading towards the ferry line. They eventually noticed the young man coming up to them and they stopped walking, wondering what this was about.

"Excuse me," Alex began, stopping in his tracks he looked at the mayor. "I don't mean to bother you, but... aren't you Mike Haggar?"

"Yes I am," Haggar confirmed.

Managing to keep his star-struck excitement at bay, the young man extended a hand out. "My name is Alex," he said as Haggar reached his own hand out to shake his briefly. "I'm... I've been a fan of your wrestling career since I was a kid and you've been one of my influences for my own career. I'm only an indie wrestler in Manhattan right now, but I hope to get into the professional circuit someday. I mean, not to undermine your political career, even though it's not my thing, however-"

"If it makes you feel better, I feel the same way about politics myself," the blonde man with Haggar cut in.

"Cody!" called out of the two women, one with longer hair, as she gently slapped Cody's upper arm.

"What? It's true."

"It's all right, Jessica," Haggar spoke up. "At least Cody knows why voting at the polls can make a difference in the lives of citizens."

"Speaking of politics," Alex continued. "I want to say that I think it's awesome how you stepped down from the presidential race to fight against this war. I don't think any other politician in the world would have done the same thing, especially after your past heroic efforts in your city."

Haggar smiled, glad to hear that someone else agreed with his decision. "The more I hear that encouragement from people, the more it makes me feel better about my decision. I'm also glad to see more people entering this tournament for more than just the bounty."

"The bounty's nice, but that's not my focus here."

Haggar nodded in approval before he turned to his four allies. "I'm sure we'll run into each other during this tournament, so allow me to introduce everyone." He pointed to the young woman with long blonde hair first. "This is my daughter, Jessica. She volunteered to accompany me to the tournament." He then pointed to the other blonde woman, who's hair was much shorter. "This is Lucia Morgan, a good friend of mine from the Metro City Police Department who will be participating in the tournament. And these two men with me are Cody Travers and Guy Hinato... I'm sure those names might be familiar to you since you seem to know of my past heroics for my city."

Alex nodded, remembering the news reports from his adolescence involving the take-down of the Mad Gear gang. "I think that's a story people still talk about to this day, at least in my neighborhood."

"More than the Universal War?" Cody asked, half joking.

Alex chuckled at that. "Nah... maybe the second-most talked about... maybe."

"Good enough."

"And it makes sense," said Lucia. "Especially with both our respective cities in very close proximity from each other."

"A little too close I think sometimes," added Guy.

"Anyway, it was nice meeting you, Alex," Haggar said. "I'm certain we'll see each other quite a bit during the tournament. If you're lucky, we might face each other in a match."

"If that happens, I look forward to it," Alex replied. He gave the group one last wave before departing.

"Nice kid," Cody said. He grinned. "Definitely a fanboy of yours, Haggar."

"Nothing wrong with that as long as he's healthy about it, which he seems to be," Haggar answered.

"I recall you've had worse encounters, sir," Lucia mentioned.

"Like that one strange woman who once sneaked into your apartment in the middle of the night to try to gospel you into her specific political party because she was in love with you and wanted you to join 'the correct side,'" Jessica brought up.

Haggar shook his head at that memory. "Don't remind me..."

"When did that happen?" asked a curious Guy.

"About four years ago," Haggar said. "Luckily, I wasn't home at the time, so I didn't have to meet her face to face. At least the restraining order is working so far... then again, I am the mayor..." He shook his head again and decided to change the subject. "When does these ferries leave for the island."

"Less than two hours from now," Lucia responded.

Just a few feet away, Dudley couldn't help but shake his head upon seeing most of the people he was sure were going to be attending the tournament. "This is simply preposterous," he ended up uttering.

"What is?" his friend Eagle asked.

Dudley tilted his head in the direction of the crowd to indicate to Eagle what he was talking about. "Look at them... are most of these people in this crowd even 'fighters?' Are they not here to help to fight against this war... or at the very least have a passion for a good fight?" He shook his head a bit more as he clicked his tongue a couple of time in disapproval. "It's clear that they're only here for nothing more than the bounty."

"And... you can tell just by looking at them?"

"A true fighter with years of experience can tell by looking if another is truly dedicated to the fight."

Eagle ended up shrugging at that. "Whatever you say, old friend. Just do me a favor and keep this in mind... not everyone are what they seem. Even the ones who may look like hellions may prove to be much more capable than you realize."

Dudley ended up nodding in agreement, realizing that Eagle was right. Even after years of trying, he still had the habit of judging a book by its cover. He would especially need to shove that habit away if he wanted to win this tournament... the last thing he needed to do was to underestimate his opponents.

"I suppose your correct," Dudley concluded aloud. "Come now, let us get in line for the ferry." From there, the two allies began walking through the docks with their luggage in hand.

Not long after, Hwoarang and his teacher, Baek Doo San, showed up at the docks. Both carrying their respective luggage, they began heading over to the beginning of the ferry line. Still a bit sleepy after their flight here, Hwoarang was looking forward to getting some sleep.

"Good thing we ate before we got here," Hwoarang said out loud. "Last I checked, it's gonna take a while for our ride to reach the island."

"Yes, that is true," Baek agreed. "And by the looks of this crowd, let's just say it's your lucky day... training won't be necessary until after dinner."

That got a raised eyebrow from the young red head. "I was almost sure you'd want to me train on top of the boat cables during the ride."

"Don't get smart with me, unless you want me to change my mind," Baek balked, though he tried to hide the smirk that tried to form over his lips.

"Yes, sir," Hwoarang sighed.

As the two reached the ferry line, they both heard loud laughing from the trio standing at the end of the line. Hwoarang saw that two of them had black hair and the second had blonde hair that was gelled upward with all their strands standing over a foot on top of their head... a hairstyle Hwoarang instantly recognized and hasn't seen in months.

"Hey, is that you, Paul Phoenix?" Hwoarang called out just as he reached the back of the line behind them.

The trio stopped laughing then as they turned to face the two Korean men, briefly confused for a moment over who called Paul's name, but once they got a look at the student and teacher, the blonde and the older brunette's eyes widened in recognition.

"I remember you," Paul greeted. "You're Hw... Hwa... Hwe... eh... I swear I know your name, but I could never pronounce it right without hearing it."

"Hwoarang," Marshall Law corrected for him.

"Yeah," Hwoarang sighed. "I get that a lot..."

Paul rubbed the back of his neck with embarrassment. "Yeah, eh, I'm sure I won't forget this time... again..."

Marshall then looked over at Baek. The two stared at each other for a while with nothing being said between them. Eventually, it was the Tae Kwan Do practitioner who decided to say something.

"It's been a long time," Baek said as he extended a hand out.

"It's funny how things can change between two people over the years," Marshall replied as he shook Baek's hand. "Starting off as bitter enemies... develop a mutual respect later down the road. Back then, I thought I'd never forgive you all those years ago."

"Sometimes, I wonder if I should even forgive myself," Baek mentioned. "I'm sure we would've talked about it after the Universal War, but... you know what happened to me at the time..."

"I'm sure this tournament will give us that chance this time around," Marshall said. "I'm just glad we started moving on from it when we started talking to each other a few years ago."

The entire conversation only left Hwoarang confused, unsure of what they were talking about. "Um... am I missing something?"

"I'll tell you about it later," Baek promised. "But let's just say that Marshall and I had shared a dark chapter more than twenty years ago." He turned back to his former enemy. "Is this your son, Forest? I recall you mentioning him a while back and the family resemblance is uncanny."

Marshall nodded with a smile. "Yes, this is Forest. He'll be attending the tournament with Paul and I. I'm sure we could use more chosen ones in whatever we're fighting against this time around."

"Yes, we've had a similar conversation with Liu Kang a week or so ago and I decided to fight in one last tournament thanks to his visit," Baek explained. "Speaking of which, have you met with anyone else yet?"

"I thought I saw Ermac a few minutes ago," Paul spoke up. "But then, I thought, 'nah!' I'm just seeing things."

"Isn't he the one with all that green energy who speaks in third person?" Hwoarang asked.

"Yup... but other than that, I haven't seen anyone else yet. We just got here ourselves."

"I'm sure it wouldn't be long before we see everyone again."

"I don't doubt that," said Marshall.

Arriving not too long ago at the docks, Ganryu was walking towards the ferry line carrying only a large duffelbag with him. Having only drank a cup of hot tea this morning, he was regretting not eating anything beforehand, especially now with knowing that the journey through the waters was going to take five hours once the ferries set sail.

A Dim sum breakfast sounds very good right now, Ganryu thought. Too bad it'll be too late once we get to the island. I can always enjoy that tomorrow morning... then again, some ramen for lunch wouldn't be too-

His thought suddenly stopped the second he found himself spying the familiar, beautiful face he hadn't seen in a while. He halted his walk as well, leaving himself a few yards away so that he wasn't noticed. Even with the crowd surrounding them, it wasn't difficult for him to continue laying his eyes on her, never noticing the two men who walked on either side of her.

It's, it's... Julia... Chang, Ganryu thought. "It's... really her... she's here at the tournament... of all the luck... wow..." If it was possible right at the moment, he would be soaring in the air as much as his heart was.

"Wait, no, NO!" Ganryu cried out while shaking his hands in the air before smacking his own head a couple of times. "Don't be a fool, Ganryu! Remember why you are here! You are here to promote Chanko Paradise! Then again, if I win this tournament and beat the head honcho himself, it would impress her... oh! And I could buy anything she wants with all that bounty money I'll win and-"

"Eh, sir?" a female voice suddenly spoke from behind him.

Startled suddenly - and mentally slapping himself for speaking out loud to himself again, Ganryu whirled around to see a young fighter standing a few feet away. The observer, Leo Kliesen, tilted her head a bit as she continued to give Ganryu an odd gaze. "Are... you okay?"

Ganryu gave Leo a goofy grin before waving at her. "Ahaha! Don't mind me, I've gone a bit... well... I'm sure you figured it out by now. I'll go now!" And before he let her reply, Ganryu quickly scurried away and got himself lost in the crowd.

Leo shook her head to herself once Ganryu was gone. "That... was strange..." she uttered to herself before heading to the ferry line...

Meanwhile, not knowing what happened a few yards away, Ryu, Julia, and Ken were walking through the docks with their respective luggage in hand. At this point, the crowd was getting thicker, so walking wasn't as easy as it was before, mostly finding themselves in a stop-and-go motion... mostly stops.

"Gee, people really must want this bounty," Julia guessed. "Hopefully there's room for all of us to get on the ferries."

"Well if we do miss out, I can always rent a boat and take us to the island myself," Ken said.

Julia smacked her forehead and chuckled. "We should've done that in the first place!"

"Well, too late now. Then again, I would've taken the yacht I left back in San Francisco, but that requires me to take it across the Pacific Ocean... aaaaand I don't think it would have enough gas to even get a quarter way to Hawaii."

"Speaking of your home," started Ryu. "When did your wife say that she and Mel would arrive on the island?"

"Within two to three weeks," Ken confirmed. "Eliza's sister Jane and my nieces, Amy and Chris, will also go with her then. Guile confirmed that info to me the other night." He then looked around at the crowd. "Wonder if he's around here yet."

"I'm sure he is," said Ryu. "And even if we don't see him at the docks, I'm certain we'll see him some time today or tomorrow on the island."

"In the meantime, there are other old faces to reunite with," mentioned Julia. Her brown eyes quickly widened as she spotted something in the crowd "Like those two!" she suddenly began walking forward, being careful not to bump into anyone.

"Who did you spot?" Ken called out as he and Ryu began following her, also while trying not to slam into anyone.

It didn't take long for Julia to reached the duo she spotted within the crowd. Though their backs were turned to her, it wasn't hard for Julia to recognize the crimson blindfold from the back of one of their heads.

"Well, if it isn't Kenshi and Alex Walker," Julia spoke aloud as a big smile played on her face once she was close enough for them to hear.

That got the duo's attention as they turned to face Julia. Upon seeing Julia's face, Alex gave her a warm smile. "Hey there," she greeted as they both shared a brief hug before pulling back.

By then, Ryu and Ken had caught up to them and noticed who Julia spotted. "It's good to see you both again," she said.

"Same here... figuratively," Kenshi deadpanned.

"Ugh," Julia groaned as she lightly smacked her own forehead. "I did it again... last time, it was, 'You're a sight for sore eyes.'"

Kenshi waved a hand at that. "And I recalled last time that I told you I was used to it."

"I recall that too," said Alex with an amused smirk.

Kenshi turned his attention to Ryu and Ken. "Too bad this reunion didn't happen in San Francisco as planned," the swordsman stated. "It would've been nice, I'm guessing."

"I didn't know you felt that way," said Ken.

"You'll have to forgive my reservations during the Universal War. I'm sure you've figured out why by now... and its about more than just our time at the Rockies."

Ken knew what he meant, but decided to move on from the subject, especially after seeing the sudden distant look on Alex's face. "Wagner told me you two moved to Japan last summer."

"Well, more like a move for me, and a return home for Kenshi," replied Alex, seemingly shaking her head from whatever thoughts ran through her mind. "I figured it would be good for me after the war... take a break for a while, though I haven't decided whether to re-activate my military commission in the future just yet. I'll see how I feel in a couple of years."

"We all need a break once in a while," assured Julia. "It's healthy for us to do that."

"Yeah..."

Ryu looked at his blind ally and spoke only low enough for them and the other three to hear. "So Kenshi... what are your thoughts about all this... I mean, about Jin..."

Kenshi didn't hesitate to answer in the same voice volume as Ryu's. "Jin started this war and he needs to to be stopped, one way or another. It doesn't matter if he was an ally or one of The Four like you and I in the past."

"Don't you at least want to know why he started this war in the first place after everything he's done the past couple of years?"

"...I'm sure I'll figure that out once we meet face to face with him... if it gets to that point."

Before Ryu could ask him what that meant, Kenshi suddenly lifted a hand up as though asking everyone around him to stay quiet. For a moment he barely moved, the creases on his forehead indicated him furrowing his eyebrows in concentration behind his blindfold. He then craned his neck a little to the right as though trying to get a good listen on what he was trying to figure out.

"What is it?" asked Alex, realizing that something was up.

Kenshi was silent for another moment until he realized exactly what caught his attention as well as Sento, his sword which contains the souls of his ancestors. Just a few feet away, a lone figure stood alone amongst the crowd, but the swordsman didn't miss the tight grouping of countless souls within the being's body, and his mind's eye saw the green orbs representing each of those souls. There was only one being he knew of these days who possessed all these souls.

"Ermac," the swordsman said simply to get the figure's attention.

To the surprise of the other four with him, the enigma Ermac was standing just a yard away. Though he was wearing a heavy brown cloak, his face concealed by its hood as well as the black wrappings around his face, the one indication that this was indeed him was the glow of his green eyes from the hood's shadow. Those eyes looked at the five mortals once he heard his name.

"It was a matter of time before our presence was known," Ermac said, his voice echoing due to the unison of the thousands of souls within him. "We didn't anticipate meeting with you until all of of us chosen ones were on the island."

"Last we heard of you," started Ken. "You fell into madness from the yellow light that blasted through the battlefield in Outworld last year. As far as I know, no one's heard from you since."

"What happened to you?" Julia added.

Ermac decided to give them a very short explanation. "We became... unbound... after the demise of the Emperor."

"Shao Kahn," Ryu spoke in a matter of fact.

"It makes sense considering he was one of your two creators," mentioned Alex. "How did Liu Kang find you?"

"We remained in Outworld after Shao Kahn's war. There, it was actually Fujin who sought us out for our assistance in your war," Ermac answered. "This was after we've... regained some control... it is difficult to explain."

"I think I might understand what's going on," Kenshi mentioned. "But we can save that conversation for once we're all settled on the island. I'm sure you'll have plenty of time to explain your absence to everyone then."

Ermac nodded to the swordsman. "In that case, we will see you on the island." Adjusting his hood more, the enigma began to depart and walk further to port... away from the ferry line.

"How are you gonna-" Julia called out once she realized the direction he was going towards, but by then, Ermac had disappeared into the crowd.

"...Don't tell me he's gonna try to fly to the island," wondered Ken.

"Stranger things have happened," answered Ryu.

"Either way," Kenshi began. "The souls within his body seem to be... how do I explain this... without guidance. Most have quelled themselves, but there are souls within trying to fight for dominance. There's also a lot of confusion, as though they're lost on how to proceed... probably why he's having trouble explaining what happened after our fight in Outworld."

"He's also half the man he used to be," mentioned Alex.

"The mind and the souls within aren't that deteriorated-"

"No. I meant literally. Even with his cloak on, I noticed he's lost a lot of weight since we last saw him. I mean, it makes you wonder; did he decide to go on some weight loss plan, or does it really have anything to do with what happened to him?"

"...Now that you mentioned it Alex, I know what you mean," said Ryu.

"I think he means well or else he wouldn't be here right now," Kenshi brought up. "And I'm sure Fujin would not have invited him to this tournament if something was truly wrong. Still, I wonder about the turmoil amongst the souls within him... I'll need more time to analyze it."

"I guess you're right about that," Alex agreed.

"I swear Kenshi," Ken started. "You somehow have some kind of sixth sense with trying to figure out what's going on in people's heads.."

Kenshi gave him a ghost of a smile. "I have to compensate for my lack of sight somehow."

"Well I guess that's... wait a minute... did you of all people just make a quip?"

"I think we should get in line before we miss the ferry," Julia quickly suggested. "I don't want to end up being left behind just because we didn't get in line in time."

"I said we should rent a boat if that's the case," Ken reminded her.

Meanwhile, a group consisting of Bo' Rai Cho, Li Mei, Kung Lao, Kai, and Zafina showed up and began to get in the ferry line. Bo' Rai Cho and Li Mei had arrived on Earthrealm the evening before and were lucky enough to run into their ally, Kung Lao, who was accompanied by Kai and Zafina for the trip to the island.

"So for the most part," Kung Lao said as part of what he's been up to since the end of the Universal War. "The White Lotus and I have spent the majority of the year providing care for those who've lost much... though a lot of it would not have been possible if it wasn't for some of the assistance we received from the Manji Clan. The clan's been a huge help with rebuilding and recovery overall."

Bo' Rai Cho beamed at this story once the Shaolin Monk was finished. "It elates to me to know that you've kept your promise to me since last we saw each other. I'm very proud of you, Kung Lao."

Li Mei took a deep breath, taking in the smell of sea salt in the air. "I admit, as much as being in Outworld has been a learning experience for me since the last war, it feels really nice to be back in Earthrealm."

"I couldn't agree more," Bo' Rai Cho replied. He then turned his attention to Kai. "Kung Lao was telling me this morning that you once trained under Liu Kang."

Kai nodded. "Yes, I was training under him around the time of Shinnok's Netherrealm War."

"Fujin mentioned to me that he's the Earthrealm Protector now." The old Outworld native gazed down at his feet as memories of training the Mortal Kombat Champion years ago filled his mind. "It will be strange to see him again... especially after what happened to him more than two years ago."

"It was strange for the both of us, that's for sure," Kung Lao said referring to himself and Kai. He then pointed to the young lady with them. "Zafina here practically summoned him back at the temple."

"Not really," Zafina corrected. "He chose to show himself to us that day."

"It's true," added Kai. "Kung Lao just likes to exaggerate on things."

"I knew that," Bo' Rai Cho replied, making Li Mei giggle a little.

Kung Lao rolled his eyes at that. "You guys can be mean sometimes."

"Either way," Zafina started. "I'm confident that Liu Kang's presence would not have happened if it wasn't for this threat to begin. He merely waited for me because I had a connection to what is happening thanks to this war Kazama started. As I'm sure was promised, the entire story will be explained once we're all united and settled."

"I imagine you three know the whole story of what's going on with this threat then," spoke Li Mei.

"As she hinted at, Zafina's the one who knew what was going on to begin with," Kung Lao mentioned. "But like she said, everything will be explained once all of us chosen ones are reunited."

"Hopefully it'll be later tonight on the island," Zafina added.

As this conversation was going on, there was one thing that Zafina was able to detect in her mind... the sense of the strong spirit between her four new allies, three in which saw the end of the Universal War as one of the chosen ones. If the spirit of these four were strong as it is, even from a newcomer like Kai, she could only imagine what that would feel like once they were united with all of the chosen ones, including three of The Four who saw to Shao Kahn's end last year.

Maybe they had a chance to end this threat after all...

---

In the distance above Omi Island, Liu Kang was watching the crowd gather at the docks, waiting patiently for the ships to depart Senzaki Bay. At one point, he felt a strong gust of wind blow to his right... he didn't have to look next to him to know that Fujin had just arrived.

"Everyone we've both spoken to here on Earth have arrived," Liu Kang confirmed after a moment of silence. "As well as the Edenians."

"Good," Fujin replied. "In that case, everything is beginning to set into motion. And be sure to let everyone know the whole story by tonight, just in case anyone wants to opt out of this mission before the tournament gets underway."

"I will. There is one thing, however... about one of the chosen ones" Liu Kang fell into confusion as he craned his neck to Fujin's direction. "Ermac... I recall that no one has seen him since immediately after the Universal War, and yet here he is now..."

"I found him in the Outworld city of Z'unkahrah, which is currently being rebuilt by the surviving citizens," Fujin began to explain. "I'm not quite sure myself why Ermac was there, but one thing is for sure... there's much turmoil amongst the thousands of souls within him. I suspect they've been unstable since Shao Kahn's demise. Whatever the reason, even I'm not sure of, but things seem to be... much calmer than it was last year. Not that I suspect anything, but... keep an eye on him, just in case."

Liu Kang nodded. "I'll do that."

"At this point, my job here is finished," Fujin started. "You and Zafina will be guiding the chosen ones on this mission from this point forward. Should you need guidance, seek me out, if not the other Elder Gods.

"In the meantime, I suggest you head to Mishima Island right away. I just sent Ivy through the portal before arriving here and she should arrive on the island soon. It's best that you meet with her before someone who may recognize her face spots her."

"And Scorpion?"

"He's already settled on the island in a secluded location. The ones from Keisei are also there as well. You should be good to go."

Facing the Wind God fully, Liu Kang placed a fist on top of the open palm of his other hand before bowing to his comrade in respect. "Thank you, Fujin. I will not fail you."

Fujin returned the gesture in kind. "Good luck, my friend... the Elder Gods and I will be watching over you."

Another large gust of wind hit the surroundings before Fujin disappeared, heading back up to the Heavens. Liu Kang gazed down at the crowd before one last time before leaving the scene in a burst of flames, heading towards Mishima Island...