Chapter VI
Agitators
After taking a gulp of water from his canteen, Scorpion poured some over his head to counter the heat. The temperature rose even as the sun went down, and the sky seemed ablaze in shades of orange, red, and pink. The small clearing in the deep woods offered no breeze, leaving the air humid and sticky. Having to carry Sareena didn't help.
"Where are you taking me?"
She sat on the ground, clutching her side and curled in an almost fetal position. Like Scorpion, she was sweating, though that was likely more to her wounds than the heat. She was pale, eyes sunken, and looked like she had the flu.
"North," he replied. "The Sky Temple."
"You're taking me to Raiden?" she asked, her voice weak. "Do you think that's wise?"
"I need his counsel," he said, sitting on a stone across from her. "Whatever is going on, he's the only one I can think of who might understand. And he might be able to heal you."
She frowned but didn't argue—probably because she had no better ideas. The injury on her stomach looked foul. When she first came to him, her wounds were red and turning purple. Now, they'd darkened to nearly black. Sareena wasn't human, so he didn't expect her to react to injury as one would, but this seemed deathly even for a demon.
"How are you holding up?"
"I feel like something is eating me from the inside. Like rotting fruit." She cringed and winced, making a sound like a dying animal. "Thank you though. For believing me."
Scorpion nodded and took another swig from his canteen. He was never much for conversation, and talking seemed to hurt her. His thoughts were occupied by Harumi and Satoshi anyway.
Before leaving home, he gave Takeda his orders. He wanted the Shirai Ryu on alert and prepared for anything. Although he doubted Sub-Zero wished for conflict, Frost's recklessness—which he felt certain was goaded by Ashrah's zeal—revealed how tenuous their truce really was. And even if the Lin Kuei itself wasn't a threat, who knew who else the White Huntress might turn to.
"One last thing, Takeda," he had told the boy before he left. "Once everyone has their orders, I want you to take Harumi and Satoshi. Tell no one where you're going. Avoid all roads. Keep them hidden and safe at all costs."
Takeda recognized the gravity of his commands and looked nervous. But he accepted them and solemnly said, "I will do my best, Grandmaster. But would they not be safer with the rest of the clan?"
Logically, they would. But Scorpion didn't think they were dealing with a logical situation. Whatever Sareena had stumbled into, whoever Ashrah was or represented, he felt in his bones the best course was keeping his family as far away from everything as he could. Dream or not, altered timeline or not, the last time he left his family unattended, Quan Chi happened.
"I need them where they would be least expected," he said. "Trust me. The safest place is where no one would think to look. Even me. I'll worry about how to contact you later."
Takeda accepted his orders, and Scorpion bid his farewell to his wife and son. He second-guessed himself a dozen times before he finished saying the words, and another hundred times as he took Sareena north—wondering if he should've brought them along after all or take some other course of action—every step of the way fearing he might not see them again.
"You're still worried about your wife and son," Sareena said.
"What makes you say that?"
"If you weren't," she said. "You would've been asking me questions and getting what information you could out of me. You've been quiet this whole time."
He could've offered an excuse about waiting until they found Raiden. He could've brushed her off and said there was little point if she didn't understand what was going on any more than he did. But she was right.
"It's only been a few hours," he said, sighing. "But I keep replaying our departure in my head and asking what I should've done differently. It's as if …"
"It's like our fates are already decided," she said. "Like you're already certain you made the wrong choice and played into someone's hands."
He stared at her, surprised by how well she articulated his dread.
"That's years of Quan Chi," she continued. "It was his greatest strength: creating a sense that no matter what you do, you're falling into his trap because he's always ahead. Believe me, I know."
"You're right. I think of how long I spent dangled on that bastard's string. Now, even free of him, he haunts me."
"Even though I'm with the Lin Kuei, I was always rooting for you to finally get him." She gave a slight laugh, though it seemed to hurt her. "I don't know if you knew, but I think you're the one person to make him feel fear. I liked that."
He smirked and found comfort in having someone to share his hatred of Quan Chi. He knew many had their own grudges, but his quest for revenge had always been a solitary on. The sorcerer was his and his alone to kill. "I suppose it's selfish of me," he said, "to carry on as though I'm the only one deserving of vengeance against him."
"Vengeance would be nice," she said. "I just wanted freedom."
"Perhaps he's the one behind this? Who knows? Maybe we'll both get a chance to take a piece of him before it's over?"
"A pleasant dream. But I'm no hero."
He nodded and took one last sip of water before standing. The portal transporter was helpful, but it only took them so far before burning out for good. Now on foot, and carrying her, they wouldn't reach the Sky Temple for at least another day or two. Hopefully, Raiden would understand the meaning behind all this and know what to do. Scorpion was willing to fight for the righteous cause, but like Sareena, he was no hero either.
Just as he was about to pick her up, he heard something stir in the woods. On reflex, he grabbed his kunai and braced for attack. Sareena also sensed something near, and though wounded, took hold of the kamas she brought from his home.
He took a step forward, when suddenly his entire body began to glow with a green aura. He lifted into the air, and though he struggled to move, his body froze. Somewhere amidst the trees, he saw a figure appear with eyes that matched the aura holding him.
"No!" Sareena yelled, forcing herself to her feet. Despite her injuries, she held up the kamas, ready to fight. "Show yourself!"
Her body began to glow, too. But the energy that held them in place aggravated her wounds, and she screamed in pain as she was levitated off the ground.
Hearing her, rage took hold of Scorpion. Using all his might, he resisted the aura and managed to break free of its hold. With a roar, he hurled his kunai at the figure and heard a strange grunt as it hit.
He pulled on the rope, dragging into a view a ninja dressed in red and black he recognized as Ermac. He met their attacker with a punch to the jaw, which released Sareena. Ermac stumbled back but created a telekinetic shield to defend from the follow-up.
"Stop!" he said. "We mean no harm!"
Scorpion was eager to continue fighting, but upon hearing Sareena groan behind him, he checked on her. Her wounds weren't opened or made worse, but the levitation did her no good.
"Forgive us," Ermac said. "We weren't sure if you were friend or foe."
"What are you doing here?! What do you want?!"
"Unless I'm mistaken," said Havik, appearing with a bound Shang Tsung in tow. "We probably want the same thing."
Mileena's chamber wasn't as high up as Kitana's, so they were able to escape easily enough before Hotaru and his men broke down the door. There were ledges and portions of the roof they could climb to and reach the garden below. They avoided any guards patrolling the grounds, scaled the wall, and fled into the forest.
After several minutes of running, they stopped to rest by a creek deep in the woods. The night was crisp and silent save for the chirping of crickets. There was no visible moon, and the trees were thick with leaves, which made Kitana confident they wouldn't be easily found if the Seidan Guard pursued them.
She wondered, though, how much danger they faced with the Seidans. Strict as they were, as far as anyone should know, they were merely violating a curfew. Hardly cause to send out a garrison, she hoped. She had bigger problems to worry about as it was anyway.
"So what happens now?" Mileena asked, splashing some creek water on her face. "Where are we going?"
"We should head to the portal," she replied. "Then we go to Earthrealm and contact my allies there."
Mileena scowled like she'd been offered rotten food. "That's your plan? Run to Earthrealm and hope your heroes can save us?"
"Do you have a better idea? We still don't know what we're dealing with. We don't know how they've done whatever this is, and we don't know why. We need allies, Mileena. We need answers."
The sneer didn't leave Mileena's face as she grumbled and spat on the ground. "We should've made a stand in the palace. We could've beaten answers out of someone."
"Or gotten ourselves killed or worse," she said, crossing her arms. "For all we know, everyone else here is as caught in the dream as you were. They'd be in the dark, too."
"Or they're a part of it. How do we know whoever's responsible for this isn't …" She trailed off, and her eyes narrowed. "You think those are your real parents back there, don't you?"
Kitana hesitated. The question caught her off guard.
"That's the reason you don't want me to kill anyone: you think you can fix all this and keep your mommy and daddy at the same time, don't you?"
She felt flustered and exposed. Not just because Mileena was correct, but she spoke it like an accusation. "What if I do?" she replied, trying to shake it off. "You're not some illusion. You're the real Mileena. Why shouldn't I think that's the real Jerrod back there?"
"What if they are, and you're wrong about them? You happen to know just how you wound up a revenant in my timeline?"
A shiver went up her spine. She was told about the massacre her mother caused. But she had thought that was only because of Shao Kahn's spell. Because she never believed the real Sindel would ever do that. Her real mother would never …
"You do know," Mileena said, seeing her discomfort. "You know what happened between you and Sindel."
"Yes," she grumbled, barely audible.
"You know that Mommy beat you to death because you were so convinced she—"
"I know! You don't have to tell me, because I already know! I know what my mother is!"
She turned away and took a breath. Her heart beat faster, and her stomach fluttered. She didn't want to dwell on it, but Mileena planted the idea. Suppose her mother "woke up" as Mileena did and was the hateful, cruel woman she last encountered on the Sea of Blood?
Behind her, Mileena stared, hands on her hips, and a slight smirk formed. "No … don't tell me." She snickered. "You, too."
"What are you talking about?"
"That's why you were acting so jumpy around her," she said. "Something happened to you, too. I'm right, aren't I?"
"Just drop it."
She let out a mocking laugh that cut like a razor. "You can't lie to me, sister. What was it? She beat the hell out of you, too? Killed Jade? Slept with your boyfriend?"
"Don't make fun of me," she growled, shaking with anger.
"So you're telling me that even with Kronika screwing up the timeline, Mommy dearest still made you her dog." She cackled. "That's just sad."
The fan was drawn before Kitana even realized what she was doing. It whizzed past Mileena's face and embedded into the tree behind her. A few locks of black hair sunk to the ground at her feet, along with a drop of blood from the fresh cut on her cheek.
She felt her wound and looked at the blood on her fingers. She grinned, but it was only to mask the boiling rage behind her eyes. "Okay," she hissed. "We're doing this now, are we?"
Kitana took another breath, her fists clenched so tight her nails dug unto her palms, and tried to regain her composure. "I'm not fighting you, Mileena," she said with her eyes shut. "But don't push me."
"Don't threaten me," she replied, drawing her sai. "And don't think anything's changed between us. Regardless of what's going on or who's behind it, you and I still have unfinished business."
"Wonderful. Now you really are back to normal," Kitana grumbled as she retrieved her fan. "I should've gone to Jade. What was I thinking turning to you for help?"
Mileena frowned, and for a moment, she looked offended. "I didn't ask for this either. If someone remade the world, why wasn't I brought back in Outworld where I belong? I'm no Edenian. I never was."
Her voice was bitter and defensive, but Kitana detected something else. Almost wounded. She turned to say something, when five armed and armored soldiers sprang the from bushes.
The Seidan Guard had found them.
Havik sat at the campfire, somehow looking even more ghoulish with the crackling flames lighting his ravaged face. His blank eyes were eager and, as ever, he appeared to be grinning as he watched the small animal cook.
"That'll do," he said as he snatched it from the fire. Blood spurted out when he bit down and tore at the dead squirrel's flesh. It was a hideous sight with a worse sound.
Shang Tsung sat beside Havik, bound in chains and sulking, and seemed particularly disgusted by it. Ermac, bathed in his ominous green aura, hovered off to the side with his legs crossed like he was sitting. He floated a few feet off the ground, his eyes closed in meditative silence and paying little mind to his companions.
"Hungry?" asked Havik, steaming blood dripping from his chin.
Scorpion sat at the opposite side of the fire, his face set in a disturbed scowl. He glanced at Sareena next to him, and she seemed to make even less sense of the strange man (or creature) before them.
"I'll pass."
"Suit yourself," he replied with a shrug and another messy chomp. "Now, with that initial awkwardness behind us, might one inquire, fellow travelers on this lovely evening, where you are going?"
Another uncomfortable silence followed as Scorpion wondered what, if anything, he should tell them. He didn't think it coincidence they should cross paths, and he doubted they would be in league with Ashrah, but that didn't mean they were allies. Even aside from Havik, as far as he knew Ermac was one of Shao Kahn's deadliest enforcers and Shang Tsung's reputation spoke for itself.
Tsung, perhaps sensing his hesitation and having little patience, groaned and said, "We're going to the Sky Temple to find out what's happened to the realms. You don't have to trust us, but we are not the enemy for a change."
He looked at the sorcerer and, despite everything, appreciated the directness. "I'm taking Sareena to the Sky Temple. I was hoping Raiden might have answers or at least heal her."
"Excellent!" said Havik with a clap of his hands. "Now we're making progress. Tell me, what do you remember?"
"I don't—"
"I'm addressing the lady, sir," he interrupted. "Sareena, yes? Formerly one of Quan Chi's? I need you to tell me what you know."
"About what?" she replied, hesitant. "I don't … I was doing reconnaissance in the Netherealm for the Special Forces. They were occupied with Liu Kang and Kitana, so I was asked to keep a lookout for anything else going on down there.
"When I returned to Earth," she continued. "I don't know. Something happened. I remember a bright flash and then … I was in Arctika." She winced and held her stomach. "When I went back to the Lin Kuei, no one remembered me. Some woman named Ashrah convinced them I was a threat and attacked me."
"Ashrah, eh?" Havik said, tapping the bare bone of his chin. "I might've known."
He exchanged a silent look with Ermac, leaving Sareena to glance at Scorpion in confusion. "Who is she? Why is she trying to kill me?"
"Ashrah was once like you," Ermac said. "A demon of the Netherealm and servant of Quan Chi. The sword she wields is a holy weapon. It purifies her the more she uses it to slay evil."
"Evil?" Tsung scoffed. "According to whom?"
"Who can say?" said Havik. "Ask the Vampires, they'll tell you the sword is called the Datusha and that it warps its wielder's mind. Either way, the Lady Ashrah is quite dedicated to her cause. I'm not surprised she's been recruited by our enemy."
"Do you plan on explaining what's going on and who this enemy is anytime soon?" Scorpion demanded. "How my wife and son are alive or how Quan Chi apparently doesn't exist anymore?"
Havik took one last bite of his bloody meal and tossed the bones into the fire. "Onaga," he said. "The Dragon King. According to legend, he was the Emperor of Outworld before Shao Kahn. After Kahn killed him, it was prophesied he would one day return to reclaim his throne and impose his dominance on the realms.
"And it would appear," he continued. "Somewhere amidst the battles against Shinnok, the Kahns and Kronika, the prophecy has finally been fulfilled. The Dragon King lives again, and he's somehow found a way to reshape the realms as he sees fit."
Silence fell over the camp. Scorpion looked at Sareena, who stared at Havik. They had both suspected the explanation would be something like this, but to hear it outright was another matter. Changing time was a daunting idea in itself. For something to literally rearrange reality was something else.
"And this is the result," Tsung said with disdain in his voice. "A seeming utopia—free of evil and knowing only peace."
"Thus, you've been rid of your bane and blessed with your living family. I suspect there's no sense in running down individual by individual, but I'd wager many of your contemporaries have been granted similar blessings. Power, wealth, lost loves, status … a world where their deepest dreams have come true."
He listened and was disturbed to realize he'd been right after all. His family and clan returned, Grandmaster of the Shirai Ryu, peace with the Lin Kuei, respect from the Thunder God and Earthrealm's defenders … since waking up, he'd feared it was all too good to be true.
"Could …" Sareena said. "Could that be why Bi-Han is alive? Not for Scorpion, but … Kuai Liang?"
"Yes," he said before Havik replied. "He has his brother back, and as a better man than he was when he died. His friend Smoke. His apprentice. We've all been given what we most desire." He scowled. Even if it was everything he wanted, it was manipulation all the same—no different than Quan Chi. "But what for? And why us?"
"I cannot say," he said. "But make no mistake: whatever his reasoning, Onaga is not a benevolent ruler. Unlike his successor, he lorded over his domain with the strictest order. Sedition of any kind was not and will not be tolerated."
"So how does Sareena fit into this? Why didn't she get what she wanted?"
"She is a demon. Unnatural, like the rest of us. Ermac was forged by Shao Kahn's magic. Shang Tsung is also a demon. We fell through the cracks and exist outside Onaga's utopia. That's why we remember the world as it was and have no place in this new one."
"And you?"
"I've lived too long in the Chaos Realm. It … changes you."
"There may be others," Ermac added. "Because we don't fit into our enemy's new world and can't simply be erased from existence, we have been deemed a threat. Ashrah was sent for you. We've been stalked by Reptile and his kind. The Lin Kuei cyborg Sektor was kept around only long enough to be used against Shang Tsung. If there are others, Onaga has his agents hunting them as we speak."
The ground rumbled. Trees swayed and looked ready to fall over. Birds scattered to the night sky, and in the distance, wolves howled. When it ceased, an eerie silence fell over the land. Scorpion and his companions exchanged looks, each fearing the same thing without saying it aloud: that wasn't a coincidence.
"The realms are unstable," Ermac continued. "Whatever Onaga's doing to reshape reality, it cannot be sustained like this. Unless he's stopped, he'll remake reality again and again until he gets it right or the realms cave in on themselves."
"The world is broken," Havik said. "Between Raiden and Kronika's tampering with the timelines and now this, all of existence stands at risk. We're not talking about chaos, my friends. This is oblivion we're facing."
He let that last point hang, and Scorpion knew it was an invitation to join their cause as much as a warning. "How do you plan to stop him?"
"We must first learn how Onaga is doing this," he said. "I have a theory, and I hope the answers may be contained in the Sky Temple."
Scorpion looked to Sareena, and although she insisted she was no hero, there was no question as far as she was concerned. But despite everything, he remained reluctant. Aside from never being much of a joiner outside his clan, it was difficult to feel confident aligned with a madman missing half his face, Shao Kahn's enforcer, and a treacherous sorcerer. And that wasn't counting his own demon companion.
What a sorry lot this is.
"I'm taking Sareena to the Sky Temple," he said. "Beyond that … we'll see."
"Fair enough," Havik said. "We're not unreasonable. Strange times make for strange bedfellows, no?"
The five Seidan Guards were each armed with a naginata and wore their traditional gold and black armor, complete with helmets that obscured their faces. They surrounded Kitana and Mileena and held their weapons up, poised to attack if need be.
Mileena drew her sai and looked eager to respond in kind. Kitana, however, was taken aback. She expected this escapade with her twin would rile up Hotaru and his men. She knew the Seidans responded harshly to even minor transgressions. But five armed and armored soldiers ready for a fight?
"Princess Kitana," said the center guard, likely the leader or Captain of this outfit. "Princess Mileena. You are to return with us to the palace at once."
Mileena hissed in response. Kitana, though still on edge from their argument, thought to at least attempt reason. "For what?"
The Captain stood at attention and, like reading from a report, replied, "Princess Mileena is in fracture of her punishment for breaking curfew. Princess Kitana, you are charged with aiding Princess Mileena in breaking said punishment and assaulting two Seidan officers. Princess Kitana and Princess Mileena, you are both charged with vacating the palace through an improper exit, leaving palace grounds without permission, breaking curfew again, stepping off the assigned road, questioning the orders of the duly designated—"
"Never mind."
She charged and rammed the Captain with a running knee to his faceplate. The mask dented with a loud clang, and he fell flat on his back. She drew her fans and snapped them open as the remaining guards to her left and right prepared to attack.
The one on her farthest left grunted when Mileena hit with her Teleport Kick. Without hesitation, she plunged her sai into the back of the next guard. He yelled in pain, but the blades did little damage through his thick armor. He turned and swung at her with his naginata while his fellow guardsman did the same.
With Mileena occupying those two, Kitana turned her attention to the others. She played defense at first, knowing Seidan armor was too thick to puncture in a straight fight. As she recalled from her years serving Shao Kahn, Seidan Guards were best handled with ambushes and precision attacks. Without the element of surprise, her best chance would be to exploit their armors' weaknesses.
She left one floating in the air with her Fan Lift and attacked at the other guard's joints. She managed to find a weak spot by his knee that dropped him to the ground with a quick slice. He tried to scramble back up, but his armor left him slow and unable to defend when she snatched his helmet off.
Instinct and reflex told her to cut his exposed head from his shoulders. But she instead knocked him out with a stiff punch to the back of his skull. Despite her distaste for the Seidans, she didn't know if they were truly her enemy yet.
The remaining guard finally dropped when her Fan Lift dissipated. He hit the ground in a heap, his armor sounding like pots and pans. Like his comrade, it left him too slow to get back up in time to defend himself. She kicked him so hard his helmet flew off his head and into the woods. One final blow finished the job, and both guards were unconscious at her feet.
Her twin, on the other hand, didn't share her caution or mercy. When Kitana turned to look, one guard was already dead—a sai sticking out of his neck—and the other didn't last much longer before Mileena plunged her weapon into his helmet's visor. Blood poured down his chest like a waterfall, and he collapsed to the ground twitching.
"What?"
"I told you we shouldn't be so quick to kill here," she said. "Suppose there isn't some dark secret behind all this. What if it turns out this is the work of some benign force that really just wanted us to have peace? Now you're a murderer."
"Like I give a damn," she said, collecting her sai from the two bodies. "Even if that does turn out to be the case, this place isn't for me. I don't belong here." She wiped the blood off her weapons and sheathed them. "And what do you care either way?"
Kitana shook her head and sighed. "Whatever," she said. "Let's get going before …"
She trailed off and looked at the downed Seidans. Again, she found it odd five guards chased them into the woods looking for a fight. Also strange they caught up to them so quick, given she and Mileena only just fled the palace that night.
Unless they do know more, she thought.
"What are you doing?" Mileena asked, while she picked up the Seidan Captain and stirred him awake.
"Who are you working for?" Kitana demanded. When he only stared at her in silence, she added, "You people coming here isn't just diplomacy. You were sent here to keep an eye on us and make sure we stay in line. That's it, isn't it?"
"I only follow the orders of my Lord Commander Hotaru," he replied. "I was told to bring you two back to the palace."
"Five guards chasing two runaway princesses over a curfew? I don't buy it. Maybe you don't know, but I'm sure Hotaru does."
"Kitana, what are you talking about?" Mileena asked.
"They are involved," she said. "Whoever's behind this … they had the Seidans come to Edenia to make sure we don't act up." She turned back to the Captain. "What are your orders? What were you told to look for? Did you see something with Mileena, and that's why you had her confined to her chamber?"
"I know nothing that my commander doesn't tell me." His face darkened. "But you should've accepted this, Princess. Our master gave us all what we wanted."
"Kitana …"
"Who is your master?" she demanded. "How did they do this? What are they after?"
Another quake rumbled through the land—a longer and more violent tremor than before. Birds and animals were stirred from their slumber and sent running. Kitana nearly lost her balance, and the ground beneath her feet actually cracked.
And then Mileena started screaming.
It was a bloodcurdling shriek that made Kitana's heart jump. When she turned, Mileena was clutching her face and stumbling about. She looked as though some invisible force had grafted onto her and she was desperately trying to pry it off.
"Mileena! What is it? What's wrong?!"
"It hurts!" she shouted, crumbling to her knees. "It … it hurts! Oh god, WHAT IS IT?!"
Her screaming got louder and more piercing. Kitana could only watch in horror. In spite of everything they'd been through, watching Mileena writhe in pain all she wanted was to help her and make it stop.
The screaming finally died down. Mileena held her face in her hands, curled in a ball on the ground. Dull whimpers could be heard as she tried to stand.
"Mileena? What … what happened? What was that?"
She rose with her back to her. Her breathing was hoarse and ragged. "No," she muttered, touching her face. "No, no, no … it can't be …"
She rushed to the creek and looked at her reflection in the water. A noise unlike any Kitana had ever heard from her came out. A broken, wounded sound that made her think of the Sea of Blood. Without yet seeing it, she already knew what happened.
"Mileena … I'm sorry."
She turned, revealing her face and confirming what Kitana guessed. Yellow eyes burning with rage, and her cheeks were a torn ruin with enlarged, razor teeth protruding out. Her front teeth had become fangs, and her jaw resembled the deformed grin of a Tarkatan.
"Look!" she barked. "Look at me! You did this!"
"I didn't—"
Kitana didn't even have a moment to fully process what happened before Mileena tackled her. Her clone grabbed and clawed at her face, screaming, "You did this! You always take everything from me! I hate you! I hate you, I hate you, I HATE YOU!"
"I didn't do this to you!" she shouted back, struggling to force her off. "Mileena, I swear, I don't know why this happened!"
She snarled in response.
"I am not your enemy! I promise! Together we can find who's responsible for this and make them pay!"
Kitana felt her breath against her face. So close, she could see every detail of the returned Tarkatan teeth. Hands gripped around her throat, Mileena's eyes were filled with hate and fury, yet glistened with tears.
In the heat of the moment, she wondered: Should I have let her stay asleep?
A shadow came over them. They both looked up to see the Seidan Captain back on his feet with a naginata in his hand, ready to plunge it through Mileena's back and likely into Kitana's chest.
"In the name of the Dragon King," he shouted. "Die, the both of you!"
In a flash, Mileena's grip around Kitana's neck released. With a roar, she pounced on the Captain and sank her teeth into his neck. He let out a high-pitched shriek as he collapsed with her on top of him. His scream devolved into a gurgle as hideous tear sounds emerged with a splatter of blood.
Kitana backed away, holding her throat with one hand, but keeping one of her fans in the other. When Mileena finished, she simply sat on the dead soldier's chest and stared toward the sky in silence. Her breathing was deep but controlled as blood dripped down her chin and neck.
Kitana waited, unsure whether to expect another attack or not. Her own breathing hoarse, she choked out, "Mileena … I didn't—"
"When this is over," she interrupted, her voice deeper and eerily calm. "After we've dealt with whoever or whatever is responsible … you and I are going to settle things between us. Once and for all." She looked at her, her eyes now cold and focused. "Understood?"
Unable to think of anything to say, Kitana simply nodded. "Understood."
End of Chapter VI
