Finally, something went right for Shibai. She followed the stairs up just as that Tarkatan said, passing by several floors filled with any number of insidious monsters and purposes... and they paid her no heed. Some even gave her a courteous nod as they passed each other. If she had to guess, she would say the armor and bloodstains marked her as a high-ranking guard on the way to report to Shao Kahn.
Whatever the case, Shibai made no arguments but as a precaution she slipped a cloth over her jaws to conceal her Tarkatan teeth. She simply kept going up, up, up, until she finally emerged into the throne room.
Despite his reputation, Shao Kahn's throne room was actually not much to speak of. Lit braziers lined the pillars and walls, revealing Shao Kahn's coat of arms on the floor before his throne. His throne was ornate and the pillars and walls were beautifully carved, but Shibai felt underwhelmed by the overall presentation. He did not even have banners hanging around the area!
What did this man do all day? All that power, all that authority, yet he could not hire an interior designer? Such a waste.
Oh well, let him do what he wants. Shibai's main concern was getting to the portal opposite the throne. The room contained Shao Kahn himself and a small gathering of warriors: a centaur; a striped Shokan; a scarlet-clad woman; a humanoid insect-like being.
None of them noticed her, so she stayed in the shadows and observed the meeting. With any luck, they would vacate the room and she would enter the portal with little trouble.
The centaur spoke first. "I am capable, my Emperor, and should be permitted to participate in the tournament!"
"You? A horse with no cart?" The Shokan laughed and addressed Shao Kahn directly. "I will eat their hearts, Motaro will merely chew the grass."
Shao Kahn smirked beneath his helmet. Such petty bickering always amused him, but he knew when to draw the line. "Enough, Kintaro. This is the final tournament needed before Earthrealm and that meddlesome thunder god bow before me. I will not risk such a close victory on your piteous pride! I am also not so foolish as to send my best warriors away and leave my realm open to attack."
"My lord, who would be foolish enough to attack us?" asked the woman in red. "You are almighty, all-powerful. We are but insects before you."
"Insects we may be," hissed the insectoid, "but This One stands above you, street urchin."
Shao Kahn and Shibai watched the debate with mild interest, the both of them silently hoping it would come to blows. For Shao Kahn it was simply to alleviate his boredom, but for Shibai it would provide a perfect distraction for her to get to the portal.
"D'Vorah, your sense of entitlement baffles me." The red-garbed woman twirled a dagger in her fingers. "How can a pitiful race like the Kytinn possibly be of use to Shao Kahn when he has a blood mage such as myself?"
D'Vorah bared her claws and said, "This One has no words for you, Skarlet, as the Kytinn do not give eulogies."
"Enough!" Shao Kahn rose from his throne and stood between the two. "You claim to be useful to me, yet you fail to spot our guest." He turned and faced Shibai directly, who stared right back in fear. "Come forward, wretch."
Well, it was a nice if brief life. Shibai took a deep breath and stepped out of the shadow. Would it better to make a run for the portal? The last time she ran, she was handily defeated.
As she walked, all four of the Emperor's warriors glared daggers at her, but she only smirked beneath her mask. It was their own fault they did not notice her, and it was Shao Kahn himself who pointed it out. How embarrassing.
She finally stood before the Emperor and felt utterly dwarfed by his immense stature and power. If he willed it, he could kill her with a single strike. Or have his minions do it for him. Whatever her fate, Shibai did not come this far just to cower. She looked him in the eye and said, "If I die, I die."
Shao Kahn did not reply. He simply looked her over, circling her like a predator would circle its prey. The others wisely moved out of his way, though Shibai spotted a slight shove from Skarlet to D'Vorah as they stood beside the throne. They certainly had it out for each other, but they found Shibai much more interesting for the moment.
"What name did the sorcerer give you?"
"Shibai."
"Shibai. You crawl from the Flesh Pits," said Shao Kahn as he continued circling her. "You kill my subjects, steal armor meant for my daughter, and fight your way to my very throne room." He stopped and planted his hands on his hips. He stared for a moment, then let out a mighty laugh. "Shang Tsung has done well indeed. And what was your intention? You were to assassinate me?"
Shibai's fists tightened by her sides. "I have no vendetta against you, Shao Kahn. I will go to Earthrealm, find Shang Tsung, and rip his heart from his body."
Shao Kahn laughed again, throwing his head back in dark mirth. Once he composed himself, he reached out and held Shibai's chin. "Such spirit. I offer a proposition. You may enter the portal and pursue this quest of yours, if you defeat Skarlet and D'Vorah in kombat."
Two of Outworld's greatest assassins against a clone of Outworld's princess. Shibai glanced at them. Skarlet wore a mask like Shibai but her eyes showed her intent to kill. D'Vorah unleashed four ovipositors from her back, their pronged tips dripping with venom. Shao Kahn returned to his throne, allowing room for Shibai's opponents to stand opposite her. Or rather, Skarlet made an effort to stand closer than D'Vorah, apparently disregarding the fact that they were supposed to fight together.
"I can smell your hybrid blood," said Skarlet as she readied a kombat stance.
Shibai rolled her eyes as she twirled her spear. "The mixture is unappealing?"
"No, it is enticing."
"FIGHT!"
The bout began with a series of failed strikes and lucky dodges. The three of them certainly received injuries, but nothing fatal as of yet. Shibai stayed on her toes, never staying in one place for more than a moment, while Skarlet and D'Vorah had no intention of working in tandem against their opponent. They attacked at every opportunity, but their lack of cooperation hindered them more than they cared to admit.
Shibai almost laughed. The duo were formidable, no doubt about that, but their hubris was Shibai's saving grace. It helped that Shibai had more experience with group battles than one-on-one kombat. If it were the latter, she doubted she would be doing as well as she was.
At least she was doing well at all. Perhaps that Saurian was just a fluke? Shibai had been caught off-guard and she was still relatively fresh from the Flesh Pits. And that coward turned invisible! No matter; if he crossed her again, she would kill him nice and slow.
Whatever excuse Shibai told herself did not change the fact that she was losing focus. D'Vorah rewarded this foolishness with a fist to the gut, followed rather rudely by Skarlet's knee to Shibai's back.
Cooperation or not, their combined attacks would shred Shibai apart in seconds if they connected. Shibai made liberal use of her wind push technique, but she needed more than just a gust of air. She needed them to attack each other, leave them open to her own attacks. Simple taunts would just enrage them against her, but if she adjusted her footing and spear-work...
There! D'Vorah lashed with her ovipositors. In one fluid motion Shibai ducked, pulled the smithing hammer from her sash, and brought it down hard on the Kytinn's foot. D'Vorah screamed, and Skarlet screamed as well when she was pierced in the shoulder by D'Vorah's ovipositor.
"You fool!" Skarlet screeched. Whatever else she was going to say was cut short by Shibai's hammer swinging into her cheek. The force of it knocked her off her feet, wrenching her free from the ovipositor in the process.
Shao Kahn laughed and called out, "Outstanding!"
D'Vorah clutched her injured foot while hopping on the other. Shibai pulled her mask down and pounced, offsetting D'Vorah's balance and sending her to the floor. Straddling the Kytinn, Shibai sank her fangs into D'Vorah's neck and wrenched a piece of flesh away.
Shibai spat the chunk of insectoid meat aside and gagged. The taste was revolting! So acidic and vile, and its pale blue color stained Shibai's clothes. She made to get up, but D'Vorah caught her by the front of her tunic. The Kytinn's ovipositors shot out and and pierced into Shibai's sides, staining her tunic a deep red.
With a pained yell, Shibai swung her hammer down and a loud crack! marked the breaking of D'Vorah's jaw. Her eyes rolled into her head and her fingers limply released Shibai's tunic, allowing Shibai to stand.
D'Vorah still lived but she was officially out of the fight. Skarlet, on the other hand, had no intention of going down so easily. Her mask had been knocked off, revealing a gash in her cheek from Shibai's hammer. A pity; she was rather beautiful, all things considered.
"Scars add character," said Shibai. "Nothing to be ashamed of."
Skarlet spat at the floor. "I'll heal the damage with your blood."
"I'm not your type."
"ENOUGH!"
Shao Kahn rose from his throne and stood between them, much as he did earlier with Skarlet and D'Vorah. "I have seen enough. Shibai wins."
"What...!" Skarlet stepped forward, bowing her head. "My Lord, I am more than capable—"
"Of being silent when I am speaking!" Shao Kahn nudged D'Vorah with his foot. "Impressive. You fight with the savagery of Baraka and the grace of Kitana, yet you are inexperienced. Overconfident and undertrained. I have killed soldiers for less."
Shibai braced herself. If this was to be her end, then she would make it such an end worth remembering.
"Still..." Shao Kahn circled her once more, taking in her wounds and injuries with a critical eye. "Even the mightiest warhammers in my arsenal were once soft and useless metal. Skarlet herself was once a hungry child in the streets of Outworld. Weak, pathetic, barely worth the effort of killing her. Now she is among my deadliest warriors." He laughed mid-stride, sparing a glance in the aforementioned blood mage's direction. "And she has been bested by one of Shang Tsung's experiments."
"I have not been bested," Skarlet protested. "Please, Emperor, I humbly request—"
The back of Shao Kahn's hand met her jaw. "I do not warn twice, Skarlet." He returned his attention to Shibai. "A deal is a deal. You have proven yourself worthy and may journey to Earthrealm. Kill Shang Tsung and I may have a place for you here."
Shibai held her breath. Was that it? He was just going to let her go? Deciding it prudent not to test his patience, Shibai bowed to the Emperor and hurried through the portal. She would tend to her wounds later, once it felt reasonably safe.
Skarlet wiped the blood from her lip and snarled, "I will rend her apart, muscle fiber by muscle fiber."
"You will do nothing," Shao Kahn ordered. "You have failed enough for today. Go through the portal and carry out your own mission, and do not let your pride keep you from it."
"I..." Clenching her jaw, Skarlet bowed her head. "As you command, Emperor."
"Kintaro, take D'Vorah to the soul chamber and see that she is healed." Shao Kahn was not one to be labelled 'merciful', as it was clear he only wished to aid D'Vorah so he would retain her services as a warrior.
As the Shokan left, Motaro huffed. "What of the hybrid?"
Shao Kahn chuckled as he returned to his throne. He rested his chin on one armored fist, the greenish light of the portal reflecting off his burning red eyes. "She is the sorcerer's problem now. Either he kills her or she kills him. No matter the outcome..." He leaned back with a dark sneer on his face. "I win."
Author's Note: I just wanted to mention that I have no immediate plans to ship Shibai with anyone. Maybe I will as the story goes on, I dunno. But I promise that the majority of canon ships are staying. Liu Kang/Kitana, Johnny/Sonya, Kano/himself, etc.