Still don't own Mortal Kombat. It will also probably be a while before I can update again. When I do get around to D'Vorah is next, then Shang Tsung, then Quan Chi.
Reptile took in a deep sigh as he prepared for tonight's guest. Ermac was a collection of souls melded together by Shang Tsung's sorcery, and as such had multiple lifetimes and personalities contributing to the unique blend that was Syzoth's friend and Kotal's second-in-command. Goro's brother Durak, Kartarka, the legendary Tarkakatan warrior who had slain 10,000 Naknadans; Linh, the fifteen-year-old prostitute from Earthrealm's 1971 South Vietnam (or was it Bob, the eighteen-year-old private who went AWOL from the US army after he met Linh?) ; all contributed unique slices to Ermac's personality. However, as of late….or more specifically since all the Kronika mess started….one personality dominated all the others—Jerrod, King of Edenia. Things had only gotten worse when his ex-wife Sindel was revealed to have been evil all long.
Ermac had taken to spending his days drinking, staying locked in his room for hours on end, ignoring Kotal's commands. The Khan had almost considered executing Ermac until one fateful day when he taken Ermac's neglect of his duty to the point of knocking down Ermac's door. Syzoth had been following closely behind Kotal at the time. What they saw when the door fell backward shocked them. A drunken Ermac, lying in bed moaning, "Sindel…Sindel…why?"
"Sir?" He had asked quizzically as Kotal and Reptile just stared at him. Kotal immediately shoved the threat of execution and commanded Ermac to take extended psychiatric leave. That had been three months ago. The doctors had only just cleared him to return to duty a few days ago.
Syzoth questioned the wisdom of having his friend who had just been through an intense psychological breakdown on a late-night talk show where Kombatants were often tricked into revealing their most embarrassing personal secrets, but he said nothing. Tonight's episode was a celebration of Ermac's return to normalcy and reemergence as Outworld's chief of state. As long as he was hosting, Reptile could steer the conversation away from Sindel. Maybe draw out the emotions of one of Ermac's other constituent hosts. He had not yet had the chance to get Ermac's Durak-infused perspective on Goro becoming Onaga's most recent host.
"Folks, our guest tonight is one of the creepiest Kombatants and a personal friend. Please give it up for Outworld's Chief of State, Ermac!"
The red garbed stealth assassin glided into the studio, turned his head to look at the audience, basked in their cheers and took a seat.
"How did you ever get the idea for this show, Syzoth?" the fused being asked him.
"If you want to blame someone, blame Johnny Cage for introducing mass media to the realms. I'm just taking something that's popular and running with it."
"And you hope one of the last two other Zaterrans is watching? Chameleon, wasn't it?"
"Actually, Khameleon."
"That's what I said."
"So it was." Syzoth made a mental note to himself, Don't mention Khameleon or romance or anything like that. It will get him started on Sindel. "But the show has grown beyond that. Now I get Kombatans to humiliate themselves for all the realms to see by tricking them into revealing there most embarrassing secrets."
"So you want secrets?" Ermac said. "I've got nearly a thousand lifetimes' worth."
"Yes, just exactly how many souls make you up?"
"I don't know. Some are louder than the others."
"Must be frustrating."
"And confusing. There is only one Ermac who has had a set of unique events happen to him after Shang Tsung created him—that's me but I get memories and feelings from…"Ermac stopped.
You are Ermac, not Jerrod, he told himself.
"All those minds running around inside yours…must be rough."
"Shang Tsung is a sadist is all I can say."
"I vaguely remember having Onaga in my head from another timeline. Can't believe Goro actually wanted that."
"Yes's Durak's little brother. In his defense, he was desperate to be taken seriously again. But I'd better not go there. Durak's feelings and memories are just those…his."
"Then let's talk about you, and not who's contributing to you."
"What is there to say really? I have a spooky voice. My eyes glow. I'm level-headed, a loyal second-in-command, and an uber-badass."
"Right," Reptile said, "What is the most badass thing you have ever done?"
"Standing up to my sister and telling her that she was not fit to be Khan."
"Which life was this?"
"This one!" Ermac bellowed. "Me, Ermac! The one where I was created by Shang Tsung! I was loyal to Mileena at first because Shang Tsung made both of us for Shao Khan. Then I realized what an incompetent khan she was and switched over to Kotal's side."
"That's amazing!" Syzoth said enthusiastically.
"Not really," Ermac, "Everyone knew Mileena had no leadership skills. I just blindly followed her out of familial loyalty."
"No, I mean this is the first time you called Mileena 'family.''
"Yeah, well I suppose she is. I mean, we were both made by Shang Tsung's sorcery."
"You're actually claiming a relationship based on your identity as Ermac. That's the first time I've ever heard you do it."
"Well, I am Ermac. I've spent enough time bemoaning the misfortune of people who contributed their souls to me."
"Well said."
"Where was I? Oh, yes, Mileena. The only things she could think about were sex, power, and revenge. She knew nothing about how to manage an economy or lead an army. What's worse is that she seemed to be incapable of realizing how much help she needed. I had to make a clean brake with her, and was the last to do so."
"Did you consider her family at the time you switched sides?"
"I don't really think the concept registered with me. I was more of an 'it' than a 'me' back then—at least that was how I saw myself—a collection of souls that Shang Tsung had pieced together. My only guiding objective was 'be useful to Outworld.'"
"Sounds simple. Boring, but simple. What changed?"
"I guess it was really having friendships outside of work. I had always been your colleague, but I didn't regard you or Kotal as friends until…"Ermac searched for a specific moment but couldn't grasp one.
Syzoth interjected with complete sincerity, "I think that's most touching moment we've filmed on this show."
"Probably," Ermac said. His friendships with Reptile, Kotal Khan, Ferra, Tor and, even Erron Black to a certain extent, anchored him in his present identity. His constituent souls felt very far away until he heard a sickeningly familiar voice call, "Ermac?!"
"No," he whispered, his body becoming tense. "Not her."
Syzoth recognized the voice too.
"Get out of my studio, Sindel!"
A white and black haired Edenian woman stood in the audience.
"I'll leave, but there's something I must do first," she said.
"You've done enough!" Ermac said, paralysis giving way to anger. "Three months on psychiatric leave…that's time I'm not getting back!"
"Yes," Sindel said slowly as she walked toward the set. "I have done great wrong to Ermac, wrong which I previously did not even recognize."
"As good as it was for my ratings, it was disastrous for my friend's emotional health," Reptile hissed.
"Yes, I saw that episode. I'm sorry for what both of my counterparts did," Sindel came to a stop just within camera range.
"Oh no," Ermac started to message his forehead. "Now there are three of them!"
"Actually, there's one of me from each iteration of the timeline."
"Not helping," Ermac said.
"I'm the Sindel from the timeline where Shao Khan killed everyone on the pyramid,"
"Don't care!" Ermac cupped his fingers around non-existant ears.
"Listen, I was evil, and Shao Khan's willing bride in my timeline, but.."
"'But' nothing!" Reptile insisted, standing up. "This is my buddy Ermac's episode. If you want me to interview a third Sindel you can talk to my producers. Otherwise Ermac and I will face you in tagteam Kombat right now."
"Kombat happens quiet regularly on your show doesn't it?" Ermac also standing and assuming a battle posture.
"Oh yeah. I'm going back on active duty as a Kombatant when this season is over."
"Good. Let's take her!" Ermac's eyes burned with green soul energy.
As Kotal's two hench approached Armegeddon timeline Sindel, the Endian Queen threw up her hands to protest.
"Boys, this is completely unnecessary!"
"Feel my rage, Sindel!" Ermac loosed a telekinetic surge that did to Sindel what he had done to Jax some twenty years before.
The armless queen fell to her knees as blood spurted from where her arms had had been.
"Mother!" a voice shouted from the audience.
Ermac and Syzoth looked up from Sindel to see a blue-clad Edenian woman, Kitana from the previous timeline, rush toward Sindel. Cradling her mother, she looked at Kotal's henchmen.
"You monsters! She was trying to apologize to you."
"What?" Reptile said in genuine confusion.
"Her best apology to me would have been to just leave me alone."
"She had to see you," Kitana insisted. "She regretted all of it, the treason, the murder all of it!"
"Then she should be apologizing to Jerrod. I'm Ermac."
"But you have his soul. You're all that's left of my father," Kitana insisted.
"Shouldn't she be talking to the Ermac from her timeline then?"
"He still works for our Shao Khan," Kitana said.
"So she betrayed husband no.2 as well?" Ermac asked.
"No," Kitana shook her head. "I spared her after Liu Kang beat him."
"If Liu Kang killed your Shao Khan, shouldn't my counterpart be free?" Ermac asked.
"I said 'beat,' not 'killed.' He was heavily injured and several realms he conquered unmerged from Outworld."
"Was Zaterra among them?" Reptile asked hopefully.
"No," Kitana said.
"Figures."
"I took her to Edenia with me, and she was grateful for my mercy," Kitana said. "She became a better person—even saved me from Onaga's influence."
"I'm happy for you," Ermac said, "But what in the slightest does this have to do with me?"
"Over the years she came to regret what she did to Jerrod. When she learned that you had his soul…"
"So this was just to make herself feel better? Sounds like the same Sindel from our timeline if you ask me."
"You bastard!" Kitana said. "She regretted what she did you."
"She didn't do anything to me other than trigger an identity crisis. All the murder and betrayal happened to Jerrod." Ermac paused, "Come to think of it, this Sindel didn't even trigger my identity crisis. That was our Sindel, who's still evil."
"Evil? And what do you call yourself, monster?"
"Neutral-neutral, the rarest alignment."
"Oh?" Syzoth said, surprised, before shaking his head and saying, "No, you're right, that fits you. I'm more lawful neutral." Then he shook his head again, "No, with your loyalty and honor you're lawful neutral too."
"Perhaps," Ermac said.
"What do those terms even mean?" Kitana said.
"Wait," Reptile said, ignoring Kitana, "You did just rip off this Sindel's arms because of something an alternate version of her did to you. That's pretty chaotic."
"I suppose so," Ermac turned to face Kitana, clasped his hands and bowed. "Princess, please forgive my outburst toward your mother. You can take her to our soul chamber to heal wounds and we can get you in touch with the Tekunin for some synthetic arms."
"Why you…you're helping?" Kitana's voice went from enraged to confused in two heartbeats.
"Yes. I'm at fault here. I mistook the evil version of your mother that actually turned good for the evil version of your mother that just pretended to be good for a while. It was still probably a bad idea for her to come here tonight, but the blame is mine." Ermac's tone was completely matter-of-fact.
"Why the Tekunin? Why not Special Forces?"
"Because Sindel is not U.S. military or a U.S. tax-payer. Sektor needs money and has a black-market cybernetic organ trade."
"I think I'll just stick with the Special Forces from my timeline. There Edenia is an Earthrealm ally."
"Still sorry about what I did. I will pay for the surgery."
Syzoth rubbed his forehead. Yep, definitely lawful-neutral.