Epilogue

Those Left Behind

Xue Tianshi watched her brother mold the ice with care. He guided the beam emitted from his palms to form an elegant shape that resembled an altar with a domed top. He lined the foundation with spires like columns and completed the tomb with a final flourish that made it seem like a crystal shrine sparkling amidst the frozen land.

Sareena looked peaceful within tomb he forged for her. Her face was serene, her hands folded over her stomach, and she seemed to float in the ice that would preserve her so long as Arctika remained frozen.

Kuai Liang chose to bury her atop a narrow peak only accessible through the Lin Kuei Temple. The crevice was deep enough to stay out of the sun no matter the time of day, yet allowed a majestic view of the land beyond—mountains and ravines with a frozen river that stretched into the far distance where the ocean was barely visible through the soft mist.

Xue asked her brother why he chose this spot to lay Sareena to rest, as opposed to the lower catacombs of the temple, and he said he wanted her above ground in the open air. "She should be outside. Not in the dark."

With his task finished, he knelt before the shrine and bowed his head. She looked upon Sareena and wished she could've had a chance to know her. She didn't know what the relationship was between her brother and the demon, but her death clearly grieved him. Yet another blow to come after losing so much already.

"What was she like?" she asked.

"She was kind. Loyal. She had this way about her …" He paused. "She always seemed to think she needed to prove herself. That she was worthy of good things. I was often told to be wary because of what she was, but I always believed there was good in her. I hoped she would get a chance to surprise us all."

"I suppose she did."

Sub-Zero stood up, but his head remained low. His eyes were shut, and she saw pain etched on his face. "It shouldn't have been her," he said. "She should never have put in that position. I let her down. I failed her."

"No, you didn't," she said. "How could anyone have been prepared for what the Dragon King did? Scorpion said she fought bravely and without hesitation. And her sacrifice may have saved countless lives." She turned his head to look him in the eye. "Don't dishonor that by making her into a victim."

The pain in his eyes softened, and he offered a solemn nod. He placed his hand on the ice and said, "It's a strange thing. The old Lin Kuei marked me for death. Our brother becomes Noob Saibot. Smoke … Frost … of all beings and allies, it was the demon who proved the most loyal and true." He sighed and turned to her. "At least I have you now, Xue."

"Such as I am," she said with a smirk. "It's surreal to think the life and memories I know are just a dream formed by Onaga's actions. That the true me … from some forgotten timeline … was likely killed long ago. Did you remember me at all? Did Bi-Han? Was Xue Tianshi even my name?"

"That makes no difference to me," he said, placing his hands on her shoulders. "You are my sister, here and now. And regardless of the means, I am grateful to have you."

She smiled but winced as pain stabbed at her hand.

"What is it? What's wrong?"

She wished she didn't have to show him. She removed her glove and wristband to reveal the black mark in her left hand. It looked like a stain had formed below her knuckle and the surrounding veins were discolored and sickly, as if from an infection. It seemed to be spreading into her wrist.

"I didn't want to trouble you," she said. "But I was there when … when Bi-Han turned into that thing Saibot. He attacked me before he left the temple. He did something to my hand. I had hoped it was just a wound, but … it's getting worse."

Sub-Zero inspected her hand, and she was saddened to see the growing concern in his eyes. Her brother had been through enough. But she saw something else kindle there as well:

Anger and determination.

"No," he said. "No, I will not allow this."

"I'm sorry, Kuai Liang. I—"

"No. No more," he interrupted. "Listen, this is what we're going to do: we are going to find Smoke and help him. And we are going to find out what Noob Saibot did to you and cure it. I will not lose anyone else."

Xue saw the steel in his eyes and heard it in his voice. She almost spoke, more on reflex than anything to actually say, but simply nodded. They lost their brother again. His apprentice was beyond help. The Tekunin left the Lin Kuei in shambles. Sareena was gone. She understood her brother would not abide losing more of his loved ones.

"Then I guess we should go," she said, putting her glove and wristband back on. "After you, Sub-Zero."

He nodded and offered a final bow before Sareena's tomb. He then turned to leave, but stopped and asked, "By the way … seeing as you're Lin Kuei now, do you want a codename of your own?"

Xue Tianshi put her mask on and thought it over. "I suppose 'Snow' with suffice."

And with that, Sub-Zero and Snow began their quest.


It didn't make sense. She shouldn't be here.

Harumi Hasashi gazed out upon the vast Netherealm wasteland—a barren, desolate plain lit by a dim golden sun that seemed to be dying. She felt its harsh wind flow through her unkempt hair, smelled the brimstone and ash in the air, and tried to understand what went wrong.

Her son had been right there. She felt his hand in hers. He was alive, and he said he would take her to a better place. He would bring her peace. And for a brief moment, she almost saw it. Through the blinding white light, she saw the paradise waiting on the other side. She felt its warmth and comfort.

But something happened. Her grip was torn away from him, and she remembered falling. What followed was a blur, but now she was in this hellish land. Still the undead creature Quan Chi had turned her into, and with no idea how she got there or how to escape.

She sank to her knees and felt a volatile mix of despair and anger fester. She wanted to scream and lash out. She wanted someone to blame and make them pay. She looked at her hands—still wearing clawed gloves—and hated what she'd become. She wanted her son. She wanted her husband. It wasn't fair this should be her fate.

Footsteps approached. Behind her were two creatures that didn't appear to be human. Demonic entities with gray skin and visible veins, they hissed and snarled in a barbaric language she didn't understand. Natives of the Netherealm, no doubt, but she wasn't sure if they meant her harm or were merely curious.

One of the oni drew an axe and shouted at her. The other revealed a barbed whip that it snapped on the ground in an attempt to intimidate her. She still didn't understand what they were saying, but their intentions were clear. Whether they were enforcers of the realm or simply predators on the hunt, the oni were a threat.

Harumi moved like the wind. She didn't think she could fly, but even she wasn't sure if her feet touched the ground as she glided about. She dismantled the first oni with a series of slashes—first to his legs, then moving her way up to his chest. When it fell to its knees, blank yellow eyes wide and confused, she plunged her claws into the sides of its face, crisscrossing through its brain.

The other oni, the one with the whip, was startled and backed away. It growled and snapped at her, but Harumi evaded the lash and leveled the creature with a running knee to its chin. Roaring, she drove her claws into its chest and tore its heart out. In the brief moment before the oni collapsed, she held its heart up and grinned.

Though her attackers were dead, Harumi felt on the verge of frenzy. She wanted more. She wanted a legion of enemies to come at her so she could cut them down one by one. She wanted to drown the world in an ocean of her pain and rage … an unending tempest of fury that would consume everything and everyone …

"No …" she said. "No, that's not who I am."

A chill went through her as she tried to push the rage aside and focus. She was Harumi Hasashi—wife and mother. She was neither a warrior, nor a killer. Combat was her husband's domain, and she had been content to leave it to him … until his way of life found its way to her and their son.

Is this what it was like for you, Hanzo? she wondered. Trapped with nothing but your anger?

That was what Quan Chi wanted. That was why he turned her into what she was, and she couldn't allow herself to go down that path. Now while her son still lived, for Satoshi was alive somewhere. She felt it in her heart, and she needed to find him. If Hanzo could endure the Netherealm and eventually escape, she could as well.

Harumi Hasashi would be reunited with her family and earn her rest. And woe to anyone or anything that dared stand in her way.


Sindel scowled and winced when she saw her reflection in the mirror. Her lip was split, and a dull bruise formed around her right eye. She turned away from the mirror with a hiss and paced around the filthy room in frustration.

She still wasn't sure what happened or even how she wound up in that damned pyramid. The pretender she was fighting had the upper hand—only for the moment, for Sindel was absolutely going to turn the tide of their battle—when they were both caught in a blinding white light. The next thing she knew, she was wandering the Outworld streets in a daze.

She took shelter in an abandoned shop that stunk of age and dust. She needed rest—not that the pretender was actually winning; she had everything under control—but it sickened her that she should be reduced to hiding in some peasant's dive. She was a Queen and Empress, now thrown into a world and timeline she didn't understand. Robbed of her throne or retainers … beaten by some pathetic mirror image of …

I was not losing that fight!

After kicking some of the trash littering the floor and cursing, she placed her hands on her hips and took a breath. It was fine, she told herself. A minor setback she would easily overcome. The important thing was she still lived. She would recover her strength, learn what she needed, and reclaim that which was rightfully hers.

And as for Kitana … assuming her insolent child also lived … she was not finished with her. She would find her daughter and educate her in the ways of pain and suffering to such an extent that her humiliation on the Sea of Blood would seem but a dream. And this time, there would be no ridiculous alternate versions of herself to …

Dizziness came to Sindel. Throbbing pain formed in the center of her head so bad her knees buckled. She groaned, which gradually turned into a scream. Her vision blurred, and a horrific tearing feeling started in her head and traveled down her spine, as if she was splitting in two …

… …

Sindel stood up, disoriented and her breathing heavy. She looked around and didn't recognize where she was. The last thing she remembered was fighting a demented version of herself in Onaga's pyramid before being engulfed in a strange light.

She went to the nearby mirror and found her familiar blank eyes staring back at her. The black streak remained in her white hair, and she retained her ghostly appearance—as it had been since Shao Kahn resurrected her. A small price to pay to be reunited with her daughter, she supposed. She wasn't sure what happened, but it seemed she lived still.

Peculiar circumstances, but at least now she could be with Kitana again. Rubbing her eyes, she went to the door hoping to learn where she was, though judging by the dilapidated room, she guessed Outworld. Once she got her bearings she could—

And what is this nonsense?

The voice was clear. She turned sharply, certain there was someone in there with her. When she found nothing but an empty shop filled with dust and cobwebs, she assumed it was nothing.

Don't ignore me! What is this?! What's happening?!

Her blood ran cold. Not just because she was clearly hearing a voice in her head, but that the voice was her own. Reluctantly, she returned to the mirror and gazed upon her reflection again. It was indeed her face, but the black streak was gone, and hazel eyes glared at her with hate and venom.

"I don't understand," she said.

That makes two of us, replied her reflection. I had hoped to be rid of you.

Sindel's hand went to her heart as a terrible realization hit her. Somehow, for whatever reason, she and the evil version of herself had combined. Two minds—or perhaps even two separate souls—now occupied the same body.

"No," she said. "No, no, no … not this …"

I'm no happier than you are, the other Sindel said. It seems fate has played a foul joke on the both of us.

Despair came to her as she sank to her knees. It wasn't fair. She had been lost and adrift since Armageddon, seemingly forgotten and replaced by a mockery of everything she was. And now, when she finally had a chance to reclaim her life and be rejoined with her daughter, her every step was to be haunted by her doppelganger like a shadow.

A glare of light caught her eye, and she saw lying on the floor a shard of glass. As she stared at it, a troubling thought came to her. She was in control now, yes, but what if her shadow regained control of her body? What havoc would be unleashed before she wrestled control back?

And what of Kitana? As long as the evil Sindel existed, her daughter would never be safe.

It was cruel fate, she thought as she picked up the piece of glass. Once, long ago, she took her own life in despair. It seemed the only choice then, but since her resurrection, Sindel always carried some guilt. She promised herself she would never leave her daughter again, but it seemed the only way to keep her safe now was suicide once more.

"I'm sorry, Kitana," she said, holding the shard to her wrist. "I wish it didn't come to this again …"

Is that really your answer for everything? the other Sindel asked. I see now why Kitana prefers you.

"Do not speak of her," she hissed. "And I will gladly die before I allow you to hurt her again."

Are you sure you really want to do that?

"You're wasting your time trying to talk me out of this. When I die, you die with me, and Kitana will be safe."

Do we know that though?

Sindel looked at the mirror, and her counterpart stared at her with cold eyes. She was certain she was bluffing, but what if she knew something she didn't? "What do you mean?"

We don't really know what exactly happened to us, do we? her shadow replied. Are we two minds in one body? Two beings sharing the same space? All we know is that reality itself has been bent for us to exist at the same time.

"Or I'm just a madwoman talking to a voice in her head."

My point is: how do you know killing yourself will take me with you? For all you know, only you will die and leave me free to do as I wish.

Sindel frowned and pressed the glass shard to her wrist. Her counterpart was only interested in saving her own skin, but doubt crept into her mind. Loathe as she was to admit it, the other Sindel was right about one thing: she didn't know what she was dealing with.

Most likely, cutting her wrists would kill the both of them. But what if she was wrong? What if she really was the only thing between her shadow and Kitana? If may very well be a bluff, but was she willing to take that chance?

Her hand trembled as a thin stream of blood dripped from her wrist. She told herself to cut—that her shadow's efforts were just to save herself. She knew what her counterpart could do—had already done—to her daughter. She couldn't chance subjecting Kitana to that kind of pain and torture again.

But there was more than the doubt her shadow created. She had another reason to wish to live. In the end, gods forgive her, she wanted to see her girl again.

"Damn you," she said, throwing the glass aside.

Lovely. I guess we're roommates after all.

Sindel glared at the mirror, looking her evil counterpart in the eye. "I won't kill myself," she said. "Not this time. I will find a way to rid myself of you. However long it takes … whatever I must do… I will be free of you. And I swear to you: as long as there is strength in me, you will not touch my daughter again."

The evil Sindel stared back, a slight smirk on her lips. Know this, she said. You may have control now, but you will tire. You'll weaken. And when you dowhen I'm readyI'll take back control of my body. And I will make you sure you watch as I deal with my daughter. I will break her down, bit by bit, until her only escape will be to follow your cowardly example and take her own life.

She went quiet, and Sindel's true reflection returned to her in the mirror. Resting, no doubt, and waiting for her time to wrench control of their body away. A chill went through Sindel's blood, knowing the danger she now carried in her mind. Or even soul.

She left the shop to begin her quest. Pain came to her heart as she understood, until she found a way to get rid of her shadow, she couldn't risk going to Kitana again. Kitana mustn't even know she still lived. No one could.

Sindel prayed as she began her lonely journey. She prayed there would be a way to be free of her evil counterpart. She prayed for the strength to hold her at bay. And she prayed she would one day be reunited with her daughter.

"I won't you fail you again, Kitana.

"… I hope."


"What troubles you, my lord?"

The courtyard had become a dreary place. The merger with Outworld had reduced the once lush trees to skeletal twigs shedding dried, brown leaves. The statues that lined the outer edge—figures depicting his family's great ancestors—looked older and more decrepit, almost like ghosts. The sky above, a sickly mix of purple hues, was foreign and strange. The very air had a rancidness to it.

"Aside from the obvious?"

Kobalt hung his head and sighed without even looking at her. Despite the chaos that had consumed their home, he retained an elegant and regal appearance befitting an Edenian highborn. Clad in his blue and white nobleman's garb, his black hair was slicked back and neatly groomed. His face, tanned to a healthy dark brown, was clean-shaved and pristine—the face of a man who knew little hardship in his long life.

"I keep thinking of my sister," he said. "She should be here now. With us."

"I did find it odd she wasn't here," she said. "Your parents didn't mention her."

He looked toward the second floor of his family's home, where his mother and father's chamber windows were dark with the curtains drawn. He wondered what they were thinking now. Merging with Outworld had been stressful enough. Whatever happened between them and his sister almost seemed a breaking point.

"Something is wrong," he said. "After the battle and merger, my parents and sister had an argument. I don't know what it was about. I only know that by the end they were screaming at each other." He turned to her. "Jade hasn't been back since."

She nodded, though her face was partially concealed by the hood she wore. Her brown cloak swayed in the chilled wind, and she spared a quick glance over her shoulder, as if to make sure no one was listening.

"These are dark days," she said. "We're all stressed. I'm sure whatever it was will mend in time."

Her words were soothing, but he sensed something in her tone. "You don't sound so certain of that."

"I would not speak ill of your sister, my lord."

"No," he said. "Speak. I want to understand."

"I realize this will be difficult for you to understand, Kobalt, but the truth is you sister is not what you think. Nor is our Princess. Though they are Edenian by blood, they are not … true Edenians as you and I are."

He frowned but couldn't deny seeing it himself. He did find it odd Jade should have such a liking for a foreigner like Kotal Kahn. And though the days before the attack and merger were happy and peaceful, he did sometimes sense something amiss with his sister. Something intangible that separated her from himself and his parents.

Even Princess Kitana troubled him at times, and he would lie if he said he wasn't suspicious of her strange disappearance just before they were attacked. Now she returns just as mysteriously with no word yet of the King or Queen or even her own sister.

"There is something," he said. "Something … foul. I can't place it, but I feel it in my heart."

"Trust your instincts, Kobalt," she said. "Our Princess has many secrets. Darkness surrounds her and taints all it touches."

"Even Jade?"

She sighed and hung her head. "You ask why Jade isn't here," she said. "You ask why she would shun you and her parents. Though it pains me to say it, I'm afraid the truth of the matter is Jade will always choose Kitana over all else. Her country … her kin … she will always pick her princess." She lowered her hood and looked at him. "I know better than most."

A chill went through him upon seeing her eerie white eyes. "What happened to you?"

"That, my lord, is another long, sad story. Suffice to say, I know what it is to be betrayed by our Jade."

Anger brewed in Kobalt's heart. Jade may be his kin, but he didn't approve of her behavior. Their family was a great Edenian legacy. The gems of nobility. Loyalty to the crown was one thing, but blood was more important—especially if the one wearing the crown proved unworthy.

"I pray we're wrong," he said. "But if Princess Kitana is … if she should be proven unfit to lead our people, she must step aside. And if I must be the one to do it, then so be it."

"And what of Jade?"

"She has a choice to make: to stand with Kitana or her own blood. If she will only ever side with the Princess, as you say, then I have no sister." He paused, letting his words sink in. A brief feeling of hesitation came, but upon thinking of Jade and their parents shouting at one another—the angry tears in their mother's eyes—he felt his resolve. "Come. We have work to do."

He left the courtyard. Behind him, Tanya smiled.

"I am at my lord's service."


Pain stung Khameleon's arm. Hanging in the sling tied over her shoulder, it was mending well enough. But every so often, she forgot herself and overextended or tried to use it and was reminded of her battle with Shang Tsung.

Cringing, she sank to one knee and waited for the flare to pass. One of her Saurian brethren, a youth name Niltysh, stopped to attend her. "You mussstn't overwork yourself," he said. "You are ssstill injured."

"Thank you," she replied. "I'm fine. I jussst need a moment."

He nodded and resumed packing. Nearby, the remainder of their people marched into the swirling portal that would take them to Zaterra where more of their kind were waiting. Khameleon was eager to be done with it. Though there was no evident threat at the moment, she didn't wish to linger.

"My lady," said Niltysh. "Are you sure we shouldn't ssstay? Would the Dragon King not have—"

"The Dragon King meansss nothing," she interrupted. "He may have revived our people. He may have ressstored our home, and for that we owed him our ssservice. But make no mistake: he was another Shao Kahn and the realmsss are no poorer without him. I've no need for vengeance or grudgesss. Once we're home, I would have no dealingsss with the humans again."

"Underssstood," he replied. "But what of Lord Syzoth?"

She hesitated. Since his death, Reptile was becoming hailed among their revived people as a hero and martyr. Though she kept it to herself, there was no denying she had conflicted feelings. They didn't know the Reptile she did—the creature dutiful to Shao Kahn even as their people were driven to extinction. Who betrayed her when she tried to turn him against his Emperor.

But, in the end, he died to save her life. He tried to do right by her. If he had lived, perhaps he could've been a better Saurian than the one she knew? Was it fair to take her people's hero away from them? And did she not still care for him, even after everything?

"Syzoth was …" she said. "… complicated. He didn't always make the bessst choice. He made many missstakes. But …" She looked at Niltysh and forced a light smiled. "He alwaysss wanted what was best for usss. We will honor him."

Niltysh nodded and left her. She reached into the pouch she wore attached to her belt and removed the smooth oval object she kept within. She supposed she would mourn Reptile after all, despite all his flaws and mistakes. But, gazing upon the egg in her hand, she felt hope for the future—maybe for the first time in ages.

Your hatchling will rise where you fell, Syzoth, she thought. Stand where you knelt and be the Saurian you could've been. I hope you find peace in that, wherever you are now.

Placing the egg back into the pouch, she got to her feet and approached the portal where only Niltysh and a handful of her kind waited. "Is this everyone?"

"Yesss."

Niltysh and the last Saurians went through the portal. She took one last look back at Outworld and felt no regret leaving it behind, even if it was the only home she knew her entire life. With luck, she prayed, she and her people would be forgotten and left alone once the gateway was closed. The danger she smelled in the air and felt in her blood wasn't her concern.

Khameleon entered the portal and left the humans to their fate.


Darkness was nothing new to Chow Kang. Not for a long time now. He'd come to prefer it in fact. Where others feared the dark and believed it obscured and deceived, he found enlightenment and clarity in the black.

He sat meditating deep in the woods. His stringy, white hair stood and was receding despite being younger than his brother. His shirtless torso revealed a map of scars and a thin, wiry physique as if his muscles were taut wires. His eyes, es ever, were a scarred ruin, and the vacant, placid smile never left his face.

He wasn't always this way. There was a time when he was Liu Kang's humble brother—young, healthy, and even handsome. The other orphan whose place was to watch and support the destined Chosen One on his path to defend Earthrealm from the forces that would threaten her.

Though they both trained as fighters, Liu had been the spiritual one—which was perhaps why he was better suited to combat the evils of Outworld and beyond. Chow, on the other hand, was the thoughtful and curious—more interested in books and study. Liu was the one who would face evil head on. Chow would be the one who'd try to understand it.

Looking back, it seemed disgustingly obvious he was doomed to an early grave following that path. How easily would it have been for him to be the useless sidekick like Kung Lao or that Cage imbecile from America? Or be murdered by his brother's enemies as a message? Maybe it wasn't envy that led him astray after all? Perhaps he sensed there was nothing for him standing by Liu's side.

Chow began his own quest in search of his own destiny. Most assumed he made an ill-conceived attempt to challenge Shang Tsung only to perish. But in truth he sought deeper secrets. Knowledge beyond even the Elder Gods—hoping there might be some answer. Some hidden truth to Mortal Kombat and the cruel fates that governed their lives that would make sense of the eons of blood and suffering.

His path took him on dark routes few dared to tread. He couldn't say he found the answers he was looking for, but he did find … something. Things in the dark that watched and waited, biding their time. Things drawn to the misery and grief that revolved around Mortal Kombat and the damned souls ensnared within.

To understand them and what they craved was to know pain. And for many years, while his brother and his friends fought and died and lived to fight again, Chow existed in his own personal hell. He tore out his own eyes, but the rest was them. He needed to be broken down before he could be reborn.

And now, at last, he was ready. His masters hungered, and they were ready to feast. Now it was Chow's time to fulfill his purpose as their Champion and herald. To prepare the realms for their arrival.

The scent of wine came to him, and he smiled. The drunken oaf had come as expected. His heavy footsteps trudged down the dirt path, on his way to the Shaolin Temple or some other errand. It didn't matter. Bo' Rai Cho would be the first sacrifice.

It's all for you, brother, Chow thought. I will take them all, one by one. Kung Laothe actor and his soldier brideKai your precious Princess all of them. And when it is done, you will understand as I do.

The world was broken. All that remained were the pieces to be consumed.

End