Chapter Forty-Three: Planning

Arriving in Earthrealm, Tomas managed to stand upright as he was transported back to the medical bay. It took a minute for him to catch his breath, but besides that, that last teleport was not as bad as the first. Thank the gods for Cyrax. Too bad that neither the cyborg or any of Smoke's other comrades were around. Looks like he would have to search for them throughout the base.

Tomas opened the door and stepped out of the bay, but he was not alone in the hallway. Standing outside the doorway was Raiden and accompanying him were the two monks Liu Kang and Kung Lao. The last person Smoke had expected to see when he returned from Ourworld was the thunder god.

"Lord Raiden. What brings you to the base?"

"I am here due to Sub-zero's disappearance from the Wu Shi Academy. Master Bo Rai Cho and Li Mei contacted me and asked for me to locate him, and therefore, I was lead here."

Thinking back, Tomas felt guilty about not informing the academy that Kuai was alright. They had been in such a hurry to get to the Special Forces Base that that thought had not crossed his mind.

"Scorpion was the one who took him."

"Is that so?"

"Yes, but Sub-zero is alright. Scorpion's plan did not work as he had hoped."

"That is good to hear. Where is he now?"

"I do not know. I just returned from Outworld."

Liu Kang and Kung Lao suddenly looked confused and Raiden uncrossed his arms to let them fall at his sides.

"You went to Outworld alone? For what purpose?"

"I needed to take a little girl back to her home in Outworld. Somehow she made it to Earthrealm by mistake. And…I was also in need of information."

"What sort of information?"

"I will explain, but I think it may be better if everyone was here."

As if on cue, the sound of footsteps became audible and coming down the hallway were Raiden's other champions with Kuai and Cyrax in front. The group started to slow down once they noticed the thunder god was with Tomas, as well as the two Shaolin monks. Liu Kang eyes brightened when he saw Kitana, who immediately went to the monk's side. While her best friend was with her lover, Jade decided to check on Smoke along with everyone else. She was just as excited to see him as anyone. She even gave Tomas a small hug as she approached him.

"Are you alright? No one saw you, did they?"

"Fortunately, no. And thank the gods for that."

Seeing the worried look on Smoke's face, Raiden urged the silver-haired man to tell him what was going on and Smoke soon proceeded to do just that.

Thirty Minutes Later…

"So…if is just as I feared. Shao Kahn is indeed alive."

Raiden gripped his chin and looked down in thought. Everyone else shared looks of confusion and anger from the news. They all hoped that Scorpion had just been toying with them, but they knew deep down that he had been honest about Shao Kahn. Out of everyone, Liu Kang was the most upset and frustrated. He looked as though he wanted to punch a wall, but it was reasonable. The monk truly had believed that he had ended Shao Kahn for good, and now he had been told that the tyrant was still drawing breath. Was there really no way to defeat the emperor?

Liu Kang glanced at Kitana and saw that she was clearly disturbed, but it also seemed that she was not surprised about her father being alive. Like she knew that Shao Kahn was not finished and would return. He could only imagine the thoughts running through the princess' head. Jade too was worried about her sister, but she was more concerned about what they all should do next.

"Tomas, you said that Shao Kahn planned the invasion two days from now, correct?"

Tomas nodded in confirmation.

"Quan Chi needed more time to gather some materials for some sort of spell."

"Alright. Then we need to use that time to prepare."

At that, Raiden's head jerked up as a thought occurred to him. He thought back to an earlier vision he had when he convinced Kitana to turn against Shao Kahn. The thunder did not think much of it at first, but now, it makes sense.

"Lord Raiden?"

Not realizing he had spaced out, Raiden looked at Kung Lao, who had called his name, and noticed that everyone's eyes were now pinned on him. The god decided to tell his champions what he was thinking about.

"As I have told you all before, there is a barrier that prevents Shao Kahn from entering Earthrealm. It was created by Kitana's mother, Sindel."

Everyone nodded to show they were following what Raiden was saying.

"In order for this barrier to made, a sacrifice was required. Sindel killed herself to provide protection for Eartrealm using her own body as a shield. For that reason, Shao Kahn has not attempted to invade Earthrealm."

"So what's changed?"

Johnny asked the question everyone wanted an answer to. Why would Shao Kahn suddenly choose to invade Earthrealm knowing he physical cannot? Raiden shook his head.

"The only thing preventing Shao Kahn from invading is Sindel. In her current state."

Looks of confusion passed through the group, but realization hit Kitana instantly and she clenched her fists so tightly until they were shaking.

"They would not dare…"

"Kitana? What is it?"

Liu Kang grabbed Kitana's shoulders and made her look at him. Jade also ran to her friend's side, concerned.

"Necromancy."

Tomas whispered this to himself, but Kuai heard him and the cryomancer soon realized what his comrade meant. Wanting to confirm his suspicions, Smoke spoke up.

"Lord Raiden, if Shao Kahn has found a way to…resurrect Sindel...then the barrier she created will be destroyed, yes?"

Raiden stayed silent, but after a moment, he nodded. That was all the confirmation Tomas needed. Jade started to speak but looked down at the floor as she did.

"Quan Chi is a very powerful necromancer. It is possible that this spell of his has something to do with…"

"How dare he!?"

Kitana's outburst surprised everyone, including Liu Kang. She was so upset that she no longer had the strength to keep herself standing and would have fallen to her knees if Liu Kang had not been holding her. The princess could not even hold back her tears and allowed them to flow down her cheeks.

"Hold on a sec."

Johnny Cage step closer to Kitana with a frown on his face.

"This is your mom we're talking about. I mean yeah, if she's alive her spell stops working, but you get to see her again! Isn't that gr…?"

"Johnny."

Cage turned to face Smoke and when he saw the serious expression the silver-haired man wore, he shut his mouth. That is when Tomas began to explain the problem to the actor.

"Quan Chi has the power to resurrect the dead. Scorpion is one of the people he has brought back to life. But his new life comes with a price."

"A price?"

"Once Quan Chi resurrects someone, they are tainted with his dark magic. Corrupted. If Quan Chi brings back Sindel…she will not be the same as she was before her death."

"So…what you're saying is that if she comes back, she'll be working for Quan Chi? Like Scorpion?"

Smoke nodded.

"...Oh."

Now Johnny felt stupid about what he said to Kitana. No wonder she did not want Sindel to be brought back, even if she was the princess' mother. She would be a slave to Quan Chi and the spell she had cast to protect Earthrealm would be destroyed. To put it frankly, they were all screwed if Sindel was brought back to life.

"There's still time."

Sonya Blade was filled with determination as she spoke up.

"This is all just a theory right now, but better safe than sorry, right? What if we got to Sindel before Quan Chi does?"

Sniffing, Kitana raised her head up and stared at Sonya with wide eyes.

"What are you saying, Sonya?"

"I know you may be against what I'm about to say, but please hear me out, Kitana. Quan Chi would need to know where Sindel's body is in order to resurrect her, right?"

"As well as her soul."

Raiden added as he stood beside Sonya.

"Sindel's soul was sent to the Heavens as judged by the Elder Gods. Quan Chi gains warriors by using the damned souls of mortals who are fated to go to the Netherrealm. Stealing a soul from the realm of the Elder Gods is difficult, but not impossible. And even if he has Sindel's soul, you are right, Sonya. Quan Chi still needs a body to resurrect her."

"Exactly, and…"

"But that does not necessarily mean he needs HER body. With Shang Tsung's aid, I am sure they will be able to create an artificial body to place Sindel's soul."

"...Shit."

Sonya shook her head looking defeated. But Raiden said something that surprised her.

"If I explain the situation to the Elder Gods, perhaps I can speak directly to Sindel."

Kitana's eyes widen even more and she stepped closer to Raiden with a sliver of hope in her heart.

"You will be able to see my mother?"

"I am not sure, but I will do what I can. And if possible, you may accompany me if you wish, Kitana."

The princess could not believe what she was hearing. There was a chance that she could see her mother again! Kitana felt so elated that she though she was going to cry again, but she restrained herself and nodded. Raiden nodded back and then turned to Liu Kang and Kung Lao.

"I need you two to seek out Nightwolf. His assistance may be needed."

Liu Kang was bit reluctant about Raiden's order. He would rather go to the Heavens as well to look after Kitana, but before he could say anything to the thunder god, Kung Lao spoke first.

"As you wish, Lord Raiden."

"While you guys do that…."

Sonya held out her hand to Tomas.

"Why don't we see what's on that flash drive you got."

Smoke had almost forgotten about the drive. He pulled it out of his pocket and handed it to Sonya, who took a minute to examine the flash drive before motioning everyone to follow her down the hall to another room. This one was filled with computers and a huge projector screen in the middle of the room. Sonya plugged in the flash drive into one computer and scanned the files that it contained.

"And you said you took this from a member of the Black Dragon, Tomas?"

"Yes. I remember Kano calling him "Kabal.""

"Kabal?"

That name sounded oddly familiar to the blonde. But she quickly shook it off. These files were what she needed to focus on now.

"Alright, Kano. What are you up to?"