Chameleon
Scarlett assisted her master, the high Arch-mage Shang Tsung, as he walked from one chamber to the next, the dark lord Shao Kahn behind them, inspecting the laboratory, the people in it, and their work. She had always feared the Emperor – any sane citizen of Outworld would – but now she respected him as well. Minutes ago, he had brought about the creation of an entirely new life form made exclusively from souls, a being they called Ermac. It was intelligent too, fully capable of speech and thought. Kahn had accomplished in moments what it had taken years for Tsung and his sorcerers, herself included, to do with Mileena…
And, she reminded herself, Mileena was a clone, grown to maturity from youth. An artificial birth, but nowhere near as artificial as what just took place back there. Truly, Kahn's magick can work miracles.
They arrived in the next room just then. And it looks like he's going work another one for us. Kahn had extracted a good amount of souls from the sorcerer in order to make his new warrior, but he had kept one, which at the moment wormed its way around the dark lord's finger. It's true that we'll only need one this time. This is a regular life form – strictly speaking. This creature they had created was at the moment not much to write home about, but if they were right, what they had created was a being of incredible potential power. Tsung had acquired tissue samples of some of Kahn's finest men, the new creation being one of them, and mixed it together with two samples of Earthrealm's Lin Kuei ninja.
And they added a touch of dead spirit for flavor, Scarlett thought wryly. How they did it, they were not sure, but they had what was apparently some type of spectral matter left behind when the dead spirit Scorpion had executed the first Sub-Zero. They had not been able to acquire any of the second's, and Scarlett had addressed Tsung about it. He had dismissed it, insisting that they had the basic genes, and should have the necessary powers. Indeed, Tsung had learned much in the ways of science during his time on Earth. It is a type of magick itself, Tsung had told her, years ago. There is much I have learned…and much that I could teach the 'scientists' there, had I any inclination to do so. Let them puzzle over, and die of, their diseases. I have all I need from them. He'd spoken generally, of course. Many illnesses the Earth-dwellers considered fatal had been cured ages ago on Outworld, when a part of it that had not been absorbed into it yet was still known as Edenia.
But that's not important now. This is, she thought, looking over at the stone slab in the middle of the room.
What lay there was essentially a big heap of translucent gel that was in a vaguely humanoid shape. It had almost no distinctive features whatsoever, but if one looked closely at it, shadows of internal organs could be seen. Had Scarlett not been involved in its construction, she might have thought it to be a giant form of dessert-sweet formed in the shape of a man.
"This?" said Kahn, in a low voice. Clearly, he sounded upset. "This…filth…is to be my ultimate warrior?"
"It is not yet complete," said Tsung, starting to regain his composure. Nevertheless, he did not withdraw his arm from her grasp. He was still very weak. She held him steady. "As our assistant said, it is in need of a soul."
"Then I shall provide it with one." He pointed his finger at the form, and there was a faint sigh as the green trickle of spirit flowed through the air from his finger to the form, and disappeared into it.
Nothing happened for a while, and the Emperor was about to rebuke Tsung for another failure when the thing on the slab began to stir. Its gelatinous skin rippled and shook, and finally held still-
And before the eyes of Kahn, Tsung, Scarlett, and the few sorcerers who had followed them into the otherwise inactive room, expecting another burst of life, the thing sat up slowly on the table, and turned its head toward them.
The sorcerers behind them began to murmur amongst themselves, praising Kahn – and each other – for a job well done. But the activity had caught the attention of the new creature, and it sprung from the slab to a position on all fours on the ground, hunched over, its head just barely noticeable as looking from one being to the other sharply.
The sorcerers backed away slightly, and the remaining guard was suddenly at Kahn's side, answering the dark lord's beckon.
"Acquire for me a humanoid training uniform. I will deal with this alone."
The guard gave a quick salute before departing, and the creature watched him go. It turned its gaze to Tsung and Scarlett, then Kahn, apparently sharing none of the previous creation's interest in itself.
Kahn stepped forward, and it instantly responded by crouching even lower to the floor, like a tiger ready to pounce.
"Can you speak?"
It did not move.
"Do you understand me?"
The creature's body shook, and Scarlett got the distinct impression that it was laughing silently.
"I am-"
But Kahn was cut off as the creature leapt, with such speed and agility that she was unaware of what had happened until she saw it struggling in Kahn's grip, one hand locked around its throat. It flailed and thrashed, making no sound. Kahn tightened his grip, and the struggling slowed. When it had stopped, the Emperor let go, and it scurried backwards, a hand to its neck.
"As I was saying. I am your master. The Emperor Shao Kahn of Outworld. Swear your allegiance to me."
The creature did nothing for a moment. Then, remarkably, it raised its right fist forward, and bent it at the elbow, allowing the fingers to fold out as it did so, to come with a soft thud on its chest.
A perfect imitation of the salute of Kahn's soldiers.
At this time, the guard returned, a fresh new outfit held aloft in readiness for the creature.
"Excellent. Make yourself known to me. What are your abilities?"
After a moment more, its skin shimmered, and began to change. In seconds, the onlookers gaped as its body changed form to match the outfit, loincloth and all. Finally, as the guard held the mask up at Kahn's insistence, so did its head. Just then, its body abruptly lost its gelatinous quality, and became solid. It looked down at itself then, apparently just as surprised by this turn of events.
Fascinating, thought Scarlett. It's as though it's mutating from a shell to an adult, like an insect.
Then a thought struck her. What if it's mutating from a newborn into a shell – albeit a moving shell, capable of thought and decision? If so, what will the adult be like? The thought disturbed her, so she shook her head to clear her mind. She focused back on the creature itself, in the present. It was as solid as any living creature she had seen, but there was still that shimmering quality about its skin, sometimes bordering on invisibility, as though it were fading in and out of existence.
Kahn had another experiment to perform. "Follow after me," he said. He raised his hand again, and in it, formed a pulsating ball of energy.
The creature did the same, copying everything down to Kahn's intimidating pose.
"Good," said Kahn, letting the ball disperse. "Now continue. What else can you do?"
It seemed to consider for a
moment. It then transformed itself into a whirling mass of smoke, and
disappeared. It reappeared later in its humanoid form, a meter or so away. It
then raised both of its hands, palms facing toward itself.
One hand crackled with electricity that changed quickly into a roaring flame.
The other formed a green, liquid ball that froze solid, to fall with a crash
onto the floor, dispersing into a dark black substance, which it then absorbed
back into itself, through its foot.
The Emperor laughed audibly. "Excellent, most excellent. You are truly a fast learner, and a marvel to behold. Can you fight?"
As if to answer, the creature snapped out three quick kicks from one leg, and held its pose, leg extended above its head. Slowly he brought it back down.
Kahn applauded, and turned to Tsung. "All your past failures, Tsung, I will never forget…but I can now place them out of my mind, for a while. You have my blessings for the time being." He turned back to the entity, and pointed his finger at it.
"You, who change your appearance, and abilities, just as a chameleon, you shall be my personal bodyguard from this day forth. Come," he gestured. "Walk at my side."
Chameleon did as he was told, falling into position next to the Emperor.
Incredible, thought Scarlett again. Absolutely astounding. It hasn't lived for more than five minutes, and it already has a grasp on our language. Perhaps it is telepathic? Even so…its capacity to learn is incomparable to anything Outworld has ever seen...
Tsung gave her an ominous glance that showed he was thinking something very similar. She raised her eyebrows briefly, and they turned their attention back to the Emperor.
"Well, Tsung? Have you anything further to show me?"
There was satisfaction in that tone, but there was also a hint of something else, too. It implied something was missing. "Yes, my Lord, I do." He removed his arm from around Scarlett's neck, apparently able to walk under his own power now, albeit slowly. He turned to her. "Scarlett, make ready a room for our new comrade. This is something that must be discussed in private."
"Yes, Master Tsung."
"Scarlett? You are she who testified at my daughter's trial?"
Scarlett's eyes widened. He's addressing me! She straightened her posture, and turned to look her lord in the eye, mustering as much courage as she could. If he was following the trial, he knows about my offer to Kitana… Decades back, Scarlett had offered to teach Kitana some of the black arts of sorcery. She had refused. That stuck-up, foolish child…so much potential, wasted…I hope that didn't upset him.
"Yes, my lord, I did."
I heard about your proposal to Kitana shortly after you made it, you realize."
""Undoubtedly, my lord."
"You know that is an offence to tutor anyone outside the Guild in the dark ways."
"…yes, I do, my lord."
"We may dispense with the formalities of royalty for the time being. Tell me, even knowing so, why did you do it?"
Her mouth felt very dry all of a sudden. "I saw a great potential in her. I felt it would be a shame if someone of her prestige did not have the skills of sorcery behind her. Please, forgive me."
Kahn regarded her for a moment. "You testified well at Kitana's trial, and I can see that you are a great asset to Tsung. He has informed me of the skills and promise of his pupil. That which benefits Tsung, benefits me. You have my pardon."
She could have squealed with glee. She settled for a mere broad grin, instead. "A thousand thanks, my king. But what of-"
"The Council?" he finished for her. "Pay it no mind. I will speak with them. There will be no hearing, nor shall you be placed on trial."
Scarlett bowed low. "I can never repay you for your services, lord."
Kahn merely nodded. That was her signal to leave. She summoned for the newborn creature to follow her, which it did after a moment's pause. She spared one brief glance back, as Kahn – not Tsung – led the way to the rearmost chambers of the laboratory.
"You have done well here, Shang," Kahn remarked. "This new warrior pleases me. Had I known how much progress you had truly made, I would perhaps have not been so hasty in my judgement earlier."
Tsung almost smiled, somewhat surprised by the familiarity of his name. "My lord flatters me."
"However, I have not yet seen that which I truly came for. The progress you have made in those things that I have requested of you specifically – they, and they alone will determine your final fate. Where are they?"
Tsung paled, and it would have been quite visible had it not been for the poor lighting the chambers offered. He opened a nearby door, which showed a flight of stairs leading down into darkness, barely lit by torches.
"Down this way, lord. We have kept them in different chambers, of course- we cannot run the risk of having the latent life force energies interfering with each others' revival processes, specifically those of your former queen."
The Emperor nodded, slightly. "Indeed. Her return is especially important – not only for me, but for all of Outworld. But allow me to behold my daughter first."
"At once, master." They arrived at the bottom of the spiral stairwell, and Tsung opened the door immediately to his left.
They stepped in, and beheld another figure lying upon a stone slab, being attended to and monitored by shadow priests, highest-level sorcerers clad in black robes and hoods. This figure was female, dressed in the simple uniform of Kahn's top assassins. A purple veil covered the lower half of her face. Kahn's daughter, and Princess Kitana's clone, Mileena, was motionless. Her head had been reattached to her body, and through sorcery, the mark of decapitation erased, as well as the degree of decay which the corpse had undergone. She looked to be merely asleep.
"All that is required, my lord, is to locate and resurrect her lost soul."
"You speak as if this were an easy task."
"I am aware that it is nowhere near such, sire. My apologies."
That is an understatement, Tsung thought. To bestow life upon a newborn creation was a simple matter, at least for the Emperor, who had but to breathe the breath of life into it, as he had just done with Ermac, and the amalgamation. But to restore one of the dead to life was another matter entirely. It was almost never attempted. The soul had to be located by Tsung's elite sorcerers in the very depths of the Netherrealm itself, and with the personal assistance of the Emperor, drawn back from the realm of death, into the body. This was an immense strain, not only for Tsung and his sorcerers, who had to concentrate for days at a time to locate the one they sought, but especially for the Emperor, who would have to breach the barriers dividing the two realms, and pull the soul back. This would leave him drained for some time.
"It will be no simple feat," Kahn muttered, as though reading Tsung's thoughts, "But it is my will that she be returned to us. She is my true daughter."
Tsung pondered the possibility that one such as the Emperor might have the ability to feel affection for anyone or anything save power, and its own acquisition. Kahn having a daughter he loves dearly? Rubbish. If he wants her back, it is for no other purpose than that she may be of some further use to him.
His thoughts were interrupted by the Emperor turning his gaze onto him. "Again, Tsung, your efforts please me. Inform me when her essence has been located. Now, show me my queen."
"At once, my lord."
They left the chamber, doors swinging silently closed behind them, and walked down the hall to one final room. The guards before the doors made way, and they entered. The room was sparse, save for the ever-present priests, and the small but unmistakeably feminine figure floating in the center of the room, surrounded by a faint mauve glow.
Kahn strode silently up to the lithe figure, and stretched one dark hand towards it. It passed through at the waist. This was merely the eyes and mysticism of the shadow priests at work, supervising the body across realms to make certain nothing had happened to it, their silent vigil lasting for centuries now.
"You have preserved her body well," said Kahn. "And her soul?"
Tsung sighed with relief, and did not attempt to hide it. "It has been a work many centuries in coming – but it pleases me to report that the…adjustments…are almost complete."
"Your meaning?" Kahn did not like to mince words.
"Her soul is now irrevocably bound to Outworld, and should she return to our plane of existence, she will remember you as her king, and no other."
That had been a most confounding task, Tsung thought. First, reaching into the heavens to reclaim her soul – that required the efforts of hundreds of skilled shadow priests and sorcerers alike. Many lost their lives in the attempt, he recalled, the memory of the skin of his colleagues wrinkling and evaporating into nothingness almost making him shudder. We stole our way into the realm of the gods, and paid for it in blood. But at least we acquired what we needed. And if that wasn't enough, we spent almost eight thousand years altering her soul, corrupting it to Shao Kahn's will. And since that proved successful, we have been trying to find a way to revive her on the Earthrealm, while still bound to Outworld.
Another matter which displeased him, but a needed measure. Kahn had long had a contingency plan of sorts, should Mortal Kombat ever fail; he would use the ancient rites of a King and Queen as being inseparable beyond worlds to his advantage. It was a King's duty to cross boundaries and claim his Queen in such a situation. Long ago, after the Queen's…unfortunate…demise, her body had been transported to Earthrealm, and buried in a temple deep underground. Thanks to a simple incantation, it would not rot, but stay in perfect stasis, ageless, and would remain dormant until the time was right. Should she ever be resurrected on that realm, while her soul was still bound here, that would create a gateway through which Kahn could bring his hordes, to claim his Queen by right…and take whatever souls he so pleased.
"And the location?"
"That is the part as yet incomplete, lord. We cannot send her soul through any standard portal without unbalancing the furies, and I suspect that this is due to its time in the heavens. If we could create a gateway where we could, your plan would be complete. We have tried, and although we have made some small progress, all attempts have ultimately failed. For now, we can do nothing without incurring the wrath of the gods."
"You cannot remove the traces of…divine presence?"
"If we alter her soul any more than we have, we may destroy it. It is too much of a risk. It is better to attempt a different method of transport."
Kahn seemed pensive. At last he turned to stare Tsung in the eyes. "You believe you have a way to do this? Create a special portal?"
"…theoretically, yes. It is possible. But, as I stated, we have not the ability to do this thing. The energy needed alone-"
Kahn stopped him with an upraised palm. "If you had the power…how long would it take?"
"At best…perhaps a matter of weeks, or merely days."
"I will grant you, Shang, the energies you require – as a means to an end, and also as a reward for your successes here. However, this will not be permanent. After you have accomplished this…assuming you can…these powers will fade. But not entirely. Indeed, after this ordeal is completed, you will be far more powerful than you were when you fell to Liu Kang at my tournament."
Tsung was about to say something grateful, but Kahn continued. He leaned in as he spoke, voice going lower than Tsung would have believed possible.
"But be warned, worm. If you fail me in this endeavor, if you fail to destroy Liu Kang when next you meet him…I will take away your mortal form, and deprive you of your ability to feed on souls, but not your hunger for them. You will live out existence in a cage, as you slowly starve over the aeons. Am I clear?"
"Perfectly, my lord," said Tsung, head bowed low.
One day, 'Emperor', you will pay for these humiliations. Give me your power, it will add to my own on the day I cast you from your throne…
Kahn raised his palm, and extended his fingers toward Tsung. A thin red mist flowed out from them, and into Tsung's chest, nose, and mouth. He inhaled deeply, and was unable to repress a smile as he felt himself become all the more powerful. But all too soon, the transfer was over. Tsung opened his eyes and beheld the visage of his Emperor.
"It is done," he said. "Use this power well, Tsung, and wisely. Carry out my will, and Earthrealm will be at your feet, after mine. Fail me…"
He did not need to complete the sentence. He merely turned, and walked from the room, shadow priests moving to get out of his way as he did so.
Fool, thought Tsung as he left. You begin your day in readiness to destroy me, and instead reward me. Truly, the passage of so many years must have dulled your mind. You will regret your actions eventually, so I swear.
But he was still not strong enough, and for now he had work to do. Sparing a glance over at the feminine mirage, he turned to his priests, and they set about attempting to find the means to resurrect the long dead Queen Sindel on the planet Earth, rather than on Outworld.