AN: Haven't updated since *checks date*

March, huh?

Well, shit.

Anyway, here's the new chapter. More info on why this wasn't updated in a while at the bottom.

Chapter 15: Old Souls, Part I

Outworld, Edenian Caves

As Kung Lao, Kenshi, and Izuku stepped into the cave, they were greeted by the sight of Kitana running toward them.

"Did you find her?" She asked.

Izuku shook his head. "No. Skarlet, or whatever her name is, tried to ambush us after disguising as Mileena. I was able to make her reveal herself before she had the chance to stab us in the back."

"You're telling me Skarlet has the ability to disguise herself now?" Kitana asked, incredulous.

Izuku stared at her, confused. "Wait, you're telling me she's never had this ability before?"

"I…do not believe she used to. Skarlet is very secretive. The only reason I know as much as I do about her is because of her and Mileena's rivalry. I used to believe that Skarlet hated Mileena because Mileena was the only one I'd trust besides Jade to stand by my side in battle, but now…"

"Looks a lot like the reason Skarlet hated Mileena was because she was the favored creation. At least, until now."

"Yes. Maybe. Either way, were you able to find a clue, a lead, anything that could lead to her location?" Kitana asked.

"No." Izuku growled. "The only thing we achieved was wasting our fucking time."

Suddenly, the entrance to the cave began to open. Izuku froze, before quickly turning to Kitana

"Anyone else head out while we were on our rescue mission?" Izuku asked, digging his pistol out of his jacket.

"No." Kitana replied, taking out her bladed fans.

Izuku cursed. "We must have been followed. Everyone get ready!"

Kung Lao nodded, spinning his bladed hat. Meanwhile, Kenshi made the motion of grabbing his blade, before he froze.

"What're you doing?" Izuku asked.

Kenshi's hand began falling off the hilt of his sword.

"Something tells me we won't have to worry about this one."

"What'dya mean?" Izuku asked, before the entrance parted. Standing by the entrance was the dark figure of a hooded man.

Kitana glared at the man, before pointing her fans at his head.

"Halt! How did you find this place? Speak quickly, before I decide you are a threat!"

The man raised his hands into the air.

"I mean you no harm." he said, his voice calmly echoing through the caves.

Izuku frowned. That voice…sounded so familiar, but for the life of him, he couldn't remember.

Kitana huffed. "I will be the judge of that."

The man chuckled. "Gods above, I'd nearly forgotten how much of a temper the women in the royal family had."

Kitana froze in shock.

"Wait…the royal family? What are you talking about?!"

The man began to take off his hood. As the light shined on him, Kitana and Izuku gasped at the sight of him.

Earlier

As Bob walked to Kuai Liang's residence in Sun Do village, he was greeted by Li Mei.

"Oh, hello there, Bob!"

"Hello." Bob replied.

"Heading to Kuai Liang's room?" She asked. Bob nodded, showing a bag full of meat.

"Thought Ice Boy'd appreciate something more than just vegetable soup."

Li Mei smiled. "And just how did you manage to get that meat, while Shao Khan hoards most of the food that Outworld is producing?"

Bob's ears burned. If he revealed that he had spent all of the Koin he'd acquired from his construction of the Coliseum to acquire supplies from his Tarkatan contacts for Sun Do Village so that they wouldn't suffer a famine, he'd never hear the end of it. The idiots of the village would hail him as a hero.

And as Bob stared at the scar tissue on the back of a child nearby, he was reminded why they could never think of him as such.

Look at how pathetic you truly are. So afraid of death that you'd maim a child of your own realm, just for the meager chance to survive. Meanwhile, a human charges through an inferno and almost sacrifices himself for people not even from his own realm.

Li Mei, taking notice of what Bob was staring at, turned to face him. "You still feel guilt for what you did?"

Bob didn't answer.

Li Mei sighed. "Look, Bob. What you did in the beginning was wrong. I won't deny that. But look around. When it became clear that we couldn't be pushed any further, you went and got us food."

"Only because Kuai Liang was threatening to kill me."

"Really? Because from what I remember, Kuai Liang never threatened to kill you. He just offered you another way to finish the Coliseum. And when you were offered that other way, you did everything you could to help us."

Bob was about to retort, but then an explosion of green energy greeted his vision from the corner of his eye.

"What was that?!" Bob shouted. "Are we under attack?!"

"I don't-"

The door flew open, and Kuai Liang quickly staggered out, adorned in his brother's armor.

"What's going on?" he asked, his voice muffled by his resperator. His hood had been torn to pieces by Sektor's attack, leaving him with only the resperator to hide his identity.

Li Mei quickly looked over the railing of the house, before frowning.

"If we were under attack, the sentries would be ringing the alarm. I fear this may be something else."

"It might be. The first time I came to Outworld, there was one man that could manipulate energy of that color."

"Who was it?" Li Mei asked. Bob shook his head.

"Not who. What. There's no way that thing could ever be considered an actual person."

"Who are you talking about?" Li Mei asked, frustration clear in her tone.

"He's….huh. Never got his name." Sub-Zero remarked.

"I have." Bob whispered, his tone clearly frightened. "Ermac. One of Shao Khan's most powerful enforcers."

Sub-Zero winced. That night, he had thrown the strongest ice he could conjure against that inhuman spectre to assist the two military types that were about to be killed, and Ermac has effortlessly broken through it. He had no doubt that if he hadn't escaped, he would have died.

And that was at his peak strength. How would he fare in his condition now?

As Li Mei and Bob began to debate on what to do if the monster truly had come to the village, Sub-Zero made up his mind.

"Li Mei. Bob. Bring every warrior you have in this village. We need to investigate this."

"What? Are you sure? You're still recovering." Bob asked.

"If it's nothing we need to worry about, then we can all sleep better tonight. If it's something we have to worry about, then it's better to take care of it now, rather than let it surprise us."

"But this is Ermac! Are you even listening to me?! He's one of the strongest fighters of Outworld, a being comprised of some of the greatest warriors of this world! If he truly is coming after us-"

"I have been listening, Bob. Hell, I even fought him once, and barely escaped. My opinion still stands. If it really is Ermac out there, then we need to at least try and resolve this situation."

Li Mei nodded, before heading inside the house. Sub-Zero turned to Bob.

"Bob, listen. If you want to stay behind in the village, then I won't stop you. All I ask is that you look after the people of this village."

Bob was about to ask what Sub-Zero was talking about, before the door burst open again. Li Mei strolled out, holding a Dao sword.

"What are you doing?" Sub-Zero asked.

"I'm coming with you."

'What."

"You heard me."

"But…"

Li Mei glared at Sub-Zero, daring him to contradict her statement.

He sighed. "Alright, alright. Don't have to keep glaring at me."

The two fighters quickly gathered the village's meager forces to investigate the bright disturbance. As they left the village gates, neither of them noticed Bob's clenched fists.

The Living Forest, Outskirts of Sun Do Village

As Li Mei and Sub-Zero walked across the Forest, a rare scowl greeted Li Mei's features.

"Gods above, I detest this place."

Sub-Zero chuckled. "I've been to plenty of forests before, but one's strung up with dead bodies and trees that hunger for human flesh? Pass."

As the group began searching for the clearing, Sub-Zero and Li Mei began to get frustrated.

"I swear I saw that beam of light come from over here." Sub-Zero muttered.

"It can't be far from here." Li Mei replied. She turned to the village guards.

"Everyone spread out! We need this situation resolved quickly!"

The guards nodded in confirmation, before splitting up to cover more ground. As the guards walked away, Sub-Zero turned to face Li Mei.

"This area looks like it's clear. Do you have any idea where we can look?"

"A few. Follow me."

As the two fighters walked next to each other, Sub-Zero found himself breaking the silence first.

"How do you think Bob's doing right now?" he asked.

"He's not doing well. I'm fairly certain that he still feels guilty for pushing us to the point of exhaustion the day he took over. It doesn't help that his sibling is one of the most accomplished fighters among his species."

Sub-Zero stopped in his tracks.

"Wait, Bob has a sibling?!"

"What's so shocking about it? Tarkatans don't just spring into existence. They're mostly like us, except for the arm blades and teeth."

"And eyes."

"...And eyes. Either way, Bob was born into a small family, with a rather overprotective sibling. It probably doesn't help that said sibling went on to become one of the Tarkatan's most legendary warriors in over a century."

As Sub-Zero digested that particular revelation, his mind couldn't help but wander back to a memory that had occurred almost ten years ago.

"I told you this was not a good idea, Kuai Liang! Why did you insist on doing this!"

"Him too, huh?" Kuai Liang mumbled to himself.

"Did you say something?" Li Mei asked.

For a few moments, an uncomfortable silence filled the air. Kuai Liang sighed.

"It's nothing. Forget it."

As the two walked through the forest, Kuai Liang couldn't help but think about his strange friend and how similar their stories were. A long time ago, Kuai wished to follow in his brother's footsteps. He was willing to do anything to stand by his brother's side.

And then the Grandmaster had ordered him to kill Tomas.

That experience, along with Bi Han's encouragement to follow a path away from the Lin Kuei, made him the man that he was today. However, he couldn't help but wonder, what would his life be like if he hadn't forced Bi Han to take him that day? What would have happened if he had never been forced to fight to the death to prove his worth to the Lin Kuei? Would he still follow the path he was on now, or would he be like Bob, angry at his weakness and miserable over the people he hurt?

Suddenly, Sub-Zero and Li Mei heard a rustling noise nearby. The duo instantly raised their weapons as a warning.

"Who's there?" Li Mei asked, the tone of her voice making it clear that she was in no mood for games.

A pair of spiked forearms raised into the air.

"Hey! Hey! Hey! Watch it! I'm friendly!" Bob exclaimed.

Sub-Zero aimed his dagger away from the Tarkatan.

"Bob? How'd you find us?"

"Well, first I heard you two lovebirds talking with each other when I got here, then after you stopped talking, I saw a trail of icy bootprints left on the ground. After that, it was pretty easy."

Icy bootprints?

Sub-Zero looked away from Bob, before sighing. Behind Bob, he could see a glowing trail of ice in the shape of his boots leading to his location.

Well, that kills any notion of me being an assassin, doesn't it? "How did you find the killer, officer? Oh, it was easy. The idiot left a trail of ice in the shape of his Nike's on his way to his hideout."

Li Mei turned to Sub-Zero.

"How'd that happen? I've never seen you leaving a trail like this before."

"I don't know. I was just thinking about my brother and how my life could have possibly been different across certain periods in my life. Perhaps that affected my cryomancy?"

"Wait, you have a brother, too?" Bob asked.

"Had. It's the reason I'm even fighting in this tournament anyway. My brother's killer is fighting in this tournament, and this will be my only chance to avenge hi-"

Sub-Zero paused, before groaning in frustration. "Why am I even telling you this right now?! We need to find Ermac!"

At that moment, a guard came through the bushes.

"We found him!" the guard exclaimed.

The trio stood there in silence for a few moments.

Bob was the first one to break it.

"Well, that was easy."

A Few Minutes Later

Sub-Zero, Li Mei, and Bob walked into the clearing where the guard had stated that he and the others had found Ermac. In the distance, they could see a man clad in black and red lying down on the ground, immobile.

"So, what's the plan?" Bob asked.

"I don't know. I was kind of expecting a fight as soon as we saw him. Not…this." Sub-Zero replied.

"I didn't think the monster could even sleep, let alone fall unconscious." Bob muttered.

"Well, he's unconscious now. So, what do we do?" Sub-Zero asked.

Li Mei observed the sight of the fallen Kombatant for a few moments, before she began to walk up to him.

"What the-what are you doing?!" Sub-Zero exclaimed.

"He's incapacitated. If he becomes a threat, you can freeze him, right?"

"Probably, but with you in such close proximity…"

"I'll be fine. Just keep an eye on him."

Standing over the man, Li Mei knelt down to his position. Suddenly, the man coughed.

Ice leaped up Sub-Zero's arm, ready to release a cryo blast.

"W-water." the man gasped, before going into another fit of coughing.

Sub-Zero stared at Li Mei, wondering if giving the man water would be the wise thing to do. Li Mei nodded.

Sub-Zero sighed, before walking up to the man.

"Hold still." he stated, conjuring up some ice and commanding it to melt over his hands. Sub-Zero poured the water from his palms to the man's mouth.

"T-thank you." the man whispered.

Li Mei hummed, before facing the man.

"Who are you?" She asked.

The man stared into the sky, refusing to look at them.

"I…I don't know. There are so many names, so many identities, so many memories rolling around in my mind. Yet as soon as I glimpse one, it scatters away, like grains of sand amidst a dust storm."

"Hmm. If this guy is who we think he is, then he's rather eloquent for a monster." Sub-Zero couldn't help but think.

Li Mei frowned, her expression one of pity. "There must be someone in there you could name. Someone whose memory still remains."

The man continued to stare into the sky.

"Shao Khan…he made me into this…and gave me the name of Ermac. I killed for him. I…"

The man stilled, before turning to Li Mei.

"I am not Ermac. I'm…something else. Someone else. Who am I?"

"That is for you to decide." Li Mei replied.

The man stared at the ground for a few moments, before speaking.

"There is one memory that stands clearer than the rest. One that refuses to disappear. A woman calls out to me, begging me for…something. I don't know what it is she asks for, but I know what she calls me."

The man turned to face Li Mei again.

"Jerrod. She calls me Jerrod."

AN: And finally, end of the chapter!

Goddamn, this took a long time. A lot of stuff happened, and I don't like bloated AN's, so here's a list of what happened after I updated "The Commander's Brother"

Writer's Block. This chapter was supposed to be three times bigger. I decided to split it into 2-3 parts.

Took two month-long summer classes in college

Got a paid IT Internship. That, along with the classes, chewed up most of my time

Went on a cruise with my family. Ended up celebrating my 21st birthday on the ship. Didn't have internet access.

Uncle came to visit

Cousin came to visit

Went out of town the whole week both times they visited

Had a long debate with my dad to convince him to get my younger brother an Xbox Series X

That's all I got for now. Hope you enjoyed the chapter!