A week had passed since Onaga's ultimate demise. It was a quiet week, things had calmed immensely. Rather than the panic and fear they felt during his uprising, there was instead much celebration and rejoicing! Whether it was Eartrealm, Outworld, or Edenia nearly all the realms were celebrating the Dragon King's death. They held parades, fairs, and other events. There was only one realm that showed a disdain for Onaga's loss. That realm was Seido, the realm of Order.

Yes, the royal Seidan guardsmen were actually rooting for Onaga. The Dragon King was a strict leader, one who appreciated plenty of the finer things in life and kept his men in order. To the Seidans, he was the perfect person to lead the realms. The leader of the Seidan guard, Hotaru, made his displeasure quite clear, "How could they kill such a brilliant leader? Do they not know the life they live is one of constant chaos and turmoil? If only he could have shown them the way, our way."

One of the guards sighed deeply, "It's as saddening as it gets, general."

"Just because he's dead doesn't mean his vision has to die with him," Hotaru said to his guard, "I think we can still bring it to life. The first thing that needs to be done is assassinating one of the greatest instigators of chaos throughout all the realms…Shao Kahn."

There wasn't a name in all the realms that the citizens of Orderrealm hated more than Shao Kahn's. Shao Kahn never invaded Seido once. Surprisingly he has not even set foot in the realm in his entire life. Yet the Seidans hated him just as much as Earthrealmers, if not more so. He was a leader who let his people live in complete anarchy, especially the Tarkatan. There were no real rules, no real boundaries. The only real rule was to never question Shao Kahn's rule. Other than that there was nothing keeping the people from rioting in the streets, robbing others blind, and committing murder as they pleased. One might think Shao Kahn's armies might've stopped such people, but no. Some of them even instigated such acts. Only one city remained free of such persecution and that was Lei Chen, a sector of Outworld controlled fiercely by the Seidans. Not even Kotal Kahn, in his more orderly ways, was allowed access to the supposed safehaven.

Actually there might be a name that riled up the Seidan guardsmen more than Shao's. That name was Havik. Now isn't the time to talk about him, but we'll get there soon enough…

One of the guardsmen walked in, dragging in a bald black man in orange sunglasses, "Hotaru, sir! We found this delinquent outside of the Seidan Prison. He was pacing around it in a very suspicious manner. Not only that, but it was after the curfew!"

Hotaru quickly recognized the man, "Darrius…what form of devilry are you up to now?"

Darrius did not reply. He only smirked at him and spat at his feet. Hotaru gave a deep disgusted sigh, "Spitting in public is worth five years dungeon alone, but spitting at the feet of someone of my stature is worth 500 years dungeon. I want this troublemaker taken away at once!"

Blades popped out of Darrius' wrist gauntlets and he stabbed the guard holding him in the side, "How many years is that? I'm curious!"

"Killing a member of the guard is worth one whole millennia of imprisonment," Hotaru told him, "that is, if the courts decide to have you executed." Hotaru grabbed his staff and aimed it at the rebellious rabble-rouser, "I've been waiting for this for a long time."

Darrius grabbed his naginata by the shaft, "Never bring a stick to a knife fight."

"I can assure you that this is no mere stick," Hotaru replied before he pulled the staff in, pulling in Darrius too. He tripped Darrius up and placed the tip of it against his neck, "I am normally a proponent for due processing, but for you I think I'll make an exception."

Darrius went in with a dirty move and kicked Hotaru in the crotch, "Due processing? That kangaroo court a' yours hardly counts as due processing!"

Hotaru fell onto the ground, writhing in pain. Darrius placed one of his wrist blades against the general, "Don't feel so good to be on the other side of it, does it?" He was ready to finish Hotaru once and for all, yet all of the guardsmen surrounded him before he could. They pointed all of their naginatas at him, "Damn…maybe we could finish this another time, huh?"

Darrius leapt up above the guards, running across their heads. He ran for as long as he could. Finally he escaped their pursuit in minutes. He paused, "So Hotaru wants to go after Shao Kahn, huh? I see a chance for an alliance…"

Yet as said before, not everyone was upset with Onaga's demise. Back in Outworld, the festivities still continued even a week later. Kotal Kahn along with his lieutenants was attending a festival celebrating the Dragon King's death. The Tarkata, Shokan, Centaurs, and other races were all united in one in this festival. None of them really liked the way Onaga ran things. Yes, the Tarkata felt he was too strict. They were a naturally chaotic race and as such they could not stand being led in such an orderly way. The Shokan felt Onaga took away Sheeva's presence on the Outworld council. Under Onaga, there practically was no council. The Shokan had no word in his activities. The Centaurs felt the dragon blood that coursed through his veins made him too much like the Shokan, who were direct descendants of the very race Onaga was from. Yet they all still listened to him, they had no choice. They had no chance against him.

Yes the parade marched across the street proudly, all the races of the realm felt like one single group for the first time. All united in their hatred for the Dragon King. Kotal Kahn watched the parade from atop watchtower in the middle of the crowded streets. He smiled at his people, "I've never seen the people of this realm so enthusiastic."

In the roads below, Kotal's lieutenants marched in the parade, waving at the crowds. Soon a giant dragon float emerged, breathing fire everywhere. Reptile, Skarlet, Erron, Sheeva, Ferra, and Torr pulled out six cardboard cutouts shaped like the Kamidogu. After that, the dragon float exploded into confetti that rained down on the crowds. Yes, it was the happiest day Outworld had seen in years.

Still though, trouble plagued Kotal's every thought. He slumped in his seat, gazing off into space. He couldn't help but wonder who could have shattered the Kamidogu. The Earthrealm heroes were brought back to Earthrealm before any of them could have, as were the Edenians. But nobody in Outworld's forces would have reason to break them. It was a complete mystery. A mystery he couldn't help but think about. What motivation could there be? Was it truly because whoever did it wanted to make sure they could never fall into the wrong hands again? Or was it rather because they wanted to make sure the powerful artifacts couldn't get in the way of their own plot?

Kotal's deep thoughts were soon interrupted by one of his own soldiers, "Uhhh sir? Sir?"

Kotal snapped out of his trance at that, "Wha…what is it that you need?"

"Would you like your fortress to be rebuilt the way it was before or would you prefer to oversee the development of it yourself?"

"Don't fix what isn't broken," Kotal replied, "I must admit, for all the trouble he caused us, I do admire Onaga's idea to put a death trap around the throne room. I want that kept in, got it?"

The soldier nodded, "Of course. And while your fortress is out of commission, Li Mei has offered you a place in her seaside village after all you've done for her. You did help liberate her town from enslavement."

"I'll take her up on that offer," Kotal graciously accepted, "I do need a place to stay after all. Oh and don't bother thanking her as I want to do it in person."

The warrior bowed before his emperor, "As you wish, I'll tell her that you'll be arriving by tonight."

Kotal continued to watch the parade after that, with an ever growing concern of a bigger threat sitting in the back of his mind. He thought this was just paranoia yet he still couldn't shake it. He knew that he had to prepare for whatever he felt was coming.

Edenia too was celebrating the defeat of the Dragon King with a massive dinner feast in Shao Kahn's castle. Everyone was invited to come, from the villagers to every member of his infantry. Also attending was Kitana, who wanted to catch up with her best friend, even if it meant having to deal with her 'father.' With her there, tensions were quite high.

Shao Kahn started the ceremony off with a speech, "We as a realm have come quite far in such little time. We, along with Earthrealm and Outworld, have managed to conquer the Dragon King and his forces! Even with his godly power, he was no match for us! As many of our warriors saw, I slew that dragon with my bare hands! I mean with a little help from the Elder Gods and our allies of course. With his death, comes celebration! That is why we are having this banquet. This is a new day in our realm. Even still, we cannot remember him as a mere tyrant. I knew him personally as my emperor, before I saved it from his—"

Kitana cut his long speech off, "I haven't been here for more than five minutes but I already can't stand it! You saved nothing! If you were any better than the Dragon King, it was only marginally at best."

Jade wrapped an arm around her friend's back in an effort to calm her her, "I know you hate him, I do too, but this is the first time this realm has ever been at peace in such a long time. Don't ruin it."

Kitana stood up from her chair and gently moved Jade's arm off, "You're my best friend Jade. I know you mean well, but as long as that monster remains in the throne this realm can never truly be at peace."

"I wasn't finished with my speech," Shao Kahn said to her with his patience quickly wearing thin.

The former princess still stood defiantly against the king, "The speech is the least of your worries. I can't believe it, he's got you all suckered into buying his act. Can't you see this is Shao Kahn? He's the one who had our realm merged with Outworld, he killed the true ruler of this realm, and he's committed countless atrocities. I refuse to stand still and watch him desecrate Edenia!"

Shao Kahn growled at her, "If you don't silence yourself, I'll have you sent to the dungeon immediately!"

Jade too stood against the king now, "I already lost my best friend once I'm not going to do it again. If she goes, I go too."

"You cannot truly agree with her can you," Ermac questioned, "she is an instigator of rebellion. She'll destroy this realm by questioning Shao!"

Jade shook her head in disappointment, "I'd hate to have to fight you Ermac, but I do agree with what she's saying. She's saying what I've been wanting to for a long time."

Shao Kahn stomped his foot in rage, "Rain, Tanya, have these two escorted to the dungeon immediately!"

The construct of souls pleaded with his master, "Wait! There surely must be a lesser punishment for these two. They do not deserve the dungeon for they have done no crimes!"

"I will not have anybody try to cause an uprising," Kahn replied as sternly as possible, "doing so is a crime in my rulebook. As king, I make the rules as I please."

Rain and Tanya grabbed the two native Edenians. They did not put up a fight, almost as if they didn't need to.

Ermac picked both of Shao's enforcers up with his telekinesis and shoved them against the wall, "Kitana, Jade, run!"

Both of them vanished in green smoke, leaving nothing behind. Shao Kahn was most angered by this action, "What have you done?! You've allowed them to escape! Those two will lead us into another civil war!"

"Good," Ermac simply replied. It took quite a long time but Ermac's eyes were finally open. He could now see how truly terrible Shao Kahn was. To think, he had unquestioningly served him for so long. All the things he did for him. He realized that he was a contributing factor in bringing Shao back into power. But perhaps there was still time to fix what had gone wrong…

Shao Kahn was actually surprised by that response. Not once had Ermac ever disobeyed him. He hardly even questioned him! Maybe deep within his being, Shao Kahn was even saddened by this turn of events. Ermac was the only one who said he would serve him no matter what just a week ago. But now he had betrayed him. He now knows what it was like when he turned his back on Onaga so many years ago. With all that in mind, he still had to do something. He couldn't just let this traitor go free. What kind of example would it set?

"To the dungeons with him," Shao Kahn demanded, "he'll learn his lesson down there!"

The guards hesitantly approached Ermac, They knew how powerful he could be, but perhaps their greater numbers would allow a win nonetheless. Ermac calmly raised his hand, causing them to pause, "We will go to the dungeon without a fight."

Shao Kahn stopped him. He had an offer for his creation, "If you realize the error of your ways and pledge to never disobey again…perhaps I'll allow you back into my ranks."

Ermac turned back to him. He gave a heavy sigh, "We do realize the error of our ways. Why do you think we let them go?"

The guards hauled him off to the dungeon. Shao Kahn slumped into his seat, the celebration had been ruined. It was evident that there was no fixing it either. So he had it called off, "This dinner has been cancelled. Everyone leave immediately."

"Does this make me your second-in-command now," Rain asked before leaving.

Shao Kahn nodded, "If nobody else wants to take the role."

The half-god victoriously raised his fists in the air, "Yes!"

"Now get out," Shao Kahn demanded. The room cleared out, leaving Shao Kahn alone. The candles died down after a few minutes. He still did not get up to leave. He sat in the darkness, thinking about what Ermac had said. Normally when Shao was betrayed, he expected it. To him all of his servants were all maggots who wanted to feed off of his power. But Ermac was different. He did not betray him for power, rather he betrayed him for morality reasons. Since when did Ermac have a conscience?

He pondered this for quite some time. Shao may've even felt guilty over it, but he couldn't feel guilty could he? He slammed his fist down in his armrest, "Bah! It's nothing! Ermac was just another pawn in my ranks! He's easily replaceable like the rest of them."

He then came to a terrible realization. The realization that perhaps his time as Edenia's ruler and serving the Elder Gods has made him weak, "Could it be possible that that I'm growing soft? No, that's impossible! I am Shao Kahn the Konquerer, I feel sympathy for nobody! But the old Shao Kahn would have killed Kotal where he stands right away instead of working with him. I would have killed the Dragon King alone!" Then he remembered that he did try to take Onaga on alone…and nearly died because of it, "Hmmm…perhaps it would have been better to have died alone."

He looked out the window of the banquet room, seeing the village below his castle. The people there looked quite joyous. He sneered at them, "Look those peasants. Not a care in the world..." soon he fell asleep in his chair.

As he slept, he dreamt of the day after Onaga had died for the first time. It was a dreary day, the clouds were black and it seemed a storm was brewing. He sat in Onaga's throne, which was now his. He relaxed in it, "Outworld belongs to Shao Kahn! I will go down as the greatest ruler this realm has ever known!"

He got up from his throne moments afterwards, looking down at the people. They were happy that Onaga was slain. In fact they were much like the Edenian people now. He smiled at them, "These are now my people. I will do what Onaga didn't do. I will give my people the freedom they so deserve."

One of the guards walked in, "Excuse me, my emperor. But someone is here to see you." A young King Jerrod walked in, dressed in a fancy robe. Jarrod beamed at the new emperor, "Greetings Shao, I see you've made yourself at home."

"Jerrod," Shao greeted, "I haven't seen you since the war between our realms."

Jerrod brushed it off, "Yes, yes, the war you rigged against Onaga. A brilliant tactic, might I say. He must have been furious when he found out you 'lost.'"

"Oh he was," The newly crowned emperor confirmed, "I think he was half tempted to go into the realm himself, but he chose not to. Of course, he'd rather me do that for him instead."

The Edenian king chuckled lightly, "I'm glad he didn't, I doubt our forces would have what it takes to fend him off." He paused, remembering that he had reason to be there, "Oh right, right, before I forget I'm here for a reason. I wanted to put the past behind us and make peace between our realms. There is no need for a war, is there?"

Shao shook his head, "Absolutely not. I think our realm could become strong allies, even."

Jerrod stroked his chin, "You might be on to something, Shao. I think I'd like that."

The two forged a strong friendship. Jerrod even lent a hand when the Zaterrans invaded Outworld little over ten years later. Unfortunately their alliance was not to last forever. Shao Kahn changed after that invasion. He felt the power being emperor gave him when he sent the reptillian armies back into their realm with their tails between their legs. Yet he wasn't finished. He soon performed a counter invasion.

Shao's dream soon flashed back to the day they met over that invasion. Jerrod walked into his throne room with much concern, "Invading Zaterra is a bad idea, you know."

"What? They attacked us first," Shao justified, "I'm only doing to them as they did to us."

Jerrod sighed, "But perhaps if you left them alone, they'd make for great allies later on down the line."

The past Shao Kahn laughed at such an idea, "I'm just giving them a taste of their own medicine. Besides, I'm doing a great thing for my realm. By keeping them prepared for war, I'll make sure our army is unbeatable. And if I merge Zaterra with this realm, that just means more land for my people and the Zaterrans get me as a ruler. It's a win-win for everybody."

"Shao look out your window," Jerrod asked of him. Shao obliged and what he saw wasn't pretty. The Tarkata were getting restless. So they took to raiding the nearby village. People were running and screaming from their hordes, yet they did not relent. Jerrod motioned to the carnage, "If your armies were here instead of invading Zaterra, all those lives could have been saved. Instead they had to die because you wanted to get revenge."

Shao shrugged, "I can't just stop the Tarkata from doing as they please. I granted them freedom from Onaga's camps and if this is what they want to do, then so be it. That's the price of the ultimate freedom. Besides, maybe those villagers should have been prepared for those mutants. It's not like their riots are uncommon."

"That's the problem, Shao," Jerrod retorted, "Tarkata riots are on the rise! You need to do something about them!"

Shao agreed, "A fair point. How do you think they'd do in the war against Zaterra?"

The king was utterly disgusted by him even suggesting that, "They'd brutally slaughter the Zaterrans! Those poor reptillians would have absolutely no chance, even the innocents would be razed by those half-breeds!"

"I'm drafting them into the invasion," Shao Kahn replied, "I can't just lose this war, Jerrod. I can't give up. I need to set an example to prevent more realms from invading ours. If we let the Zaterrans off, then what will the other realms think?"

"The other realms would think nothing of it," Jerrod replied in a near pleading tone, "you can't possibly think this act of barbarism will make the other realms suddenly think you're a great leader. They'll think you're just a common monster just like Onaga."

Shao Kahn drew great rage from that comparison, "You dare compare me to my old master?! I'm nothing like him and you know it. I run things entirely different to him."

"You run things differently, not better," Jerrod clarified, "you might even be worse."

The still relatively new emperor only grew more impatient with his friend, "Worse?! Look out there, Jerrod. While those villagers might not like what's happening, the Tarkata are happier than they have been in years. Who am I to intercept in what brings them joy?"

Jerrod sighed yet again, his disappointment becoming stronger, "The Tarkata are a vile bunch of savages. While I did not approve of Onaga's internment camps, I can't say they're making a stronger case for themselves. The helpless people need you militia. Please bring your soldiers back, only they can set things right."

Jerrod was right, the infantry needed to come home. Shao Kahn realized this, "You're right I've been such a fool. I don't need my men in Zaterra."

Jerrod smiled, quite pleased that his friend wasn't lost, "I knew you would listen to reason."

The Edenian King had no idea what Shao was about to say next, "I'll do it myself. My men have been doing a poor job. I on the other hand will single handedly crush those reptilian mongrels beneath my feet!"

"You…you've gone mad with power," Jerrod said in a hushed tone while backing out towards the exit of the throne room, "you can't take on the entire Zaterran army by yourself! You'll die out there!"

Shao Kahn's true bloodlust had awakened for the first time, "No, Jerrod. The only ones who'll die out there will be the Zaterrans."

Jerrod felt two strong emotions at this moment. One was powerful sorrow, it was clear he lost a good friend this day. The other he felt was great fear of the monster that had been unleashed upon the realms, "Shao please listen to reason! This Zaterra invasion will be the end of you!"

"No," Shao replied with his ego starting to shine through, "it will be the real beginning of my reign. I can feel it, this is my destiny. It is almost as if the Elder Gods themselves are leading me to take Zaterra as my own."

"You're insane! The Elder Gods would not approve of merging any realm! You are no crusader of the gods, you're a delusional fool!"

Shao Kahn cackled at his insults, "You have the gall to call me a delusional fool? You're the one who thinks a realm can be led by peace alone. One of these days, your realm will fall. It will all be because all you ever thought to have protecting you and your realm are the emerald guards."

Jerrod crossed his arms, "I don't take thinly veiled threats to my people lightly, Shao."

Shao Kahn pointed to the exit. In what would later become a rare showing from him, Shao gave Jerrod mercy, "Be gone, then."

Jerrod left in a hurry. In an oversight on his part, Jerrod thought that Shao would surely die at the hands of the Zaterran army, which is why he chose not to prepare his emerald guards for what was to come. Hindsight tells us now that that's a bad idea. You must remember however that back such a long time ago, it could only be assumed Shao would die. A single man taking on a whole army was nearly unheard of, especially some new guy that most of the other realms didn't know the name of.

After Jerrod exited the throne room, Shao awoke from the dream. He was still in the palace banquet room, the same place he had been for hours now. He looked out the window again, seeing the people still as merry as ever. He did not have an observation this time. He got up from his seat at the table and made his way to the throne room. It was a quiet day the whole way through, which was unheard of in his Edenia.

Yes, while the emperors of both realms were feeling stressed even in this peaceful time, Fujin wasn't so concerned. Still he went to the Elder Gods to speak with them in these not so troubling times.

"Onaga has been killed yet again," Fujin began, "and the Kamidogu have been destroyed with him. Nobody will ever use their power for evil again."

The Elder Gods were satisfied with this development. They all spoke in unison, "Yes, as we are aware. However there is a catch to your victory. Yes, the Kamidogu being destroyed has a great consequence. We created them to keep the realms in-check. Without their power, the universe will be thrown into a great imbalance."

Fujin grew nervous at their mention of a great imbalance, "What do you mean by a great imbalance?"

"The realms will fall into greater harm," one of them answered. Another one added to that, "The imbalance will cause the realms to grow out of control."

"I see," Fujin noted, "how do I prevent these imbalances?"

The Elder Gods looked to each other and then to Fujin. They all replied collectively, "There is no preventing the imbalances. The Kamidogu were the only things keeping the imbalances in check. Without them, there is nothing you can do."

Fujin was extremely frustrated by this, "Why didn't you tell me this before?! Why didn't you tell Shao Kahn?! You should have warned us, so that we could have prevented this!"

The Elder Gods were as emotionless as ever, "Do not blame us for what is your fault. You were the one who allowed them to fall to Onaga in the first place. And was it not you who chose not to keep a better eye on the Kamidogu during that very confrontation?"

Fujin's irritation grew further by them placing the blame all on him. Is this what Raiden had to deal with all the time? If so, it's a miracle that he did not turn to darkness sooner than he did. Fujin deeply sighed, "I realize my mistakes, but the Kamidogu were a flawed way to keep the realms in balance! It was only inevitable that they would fall into the wrong hands!"

"We realize that the Kamidogu were going to fall into the wrong hands eventually," the Elder Gods replied, "which is why we have a failsafe for all the realms."

"What do you mean a failsafe?"

The Elder Gods only gave him a vague reply, "The answer to your questions will come in time. Have faith, all will work out for us in the end."

Fujin couldn't even ask what they had meant by that, as they had sent him away before he could ask. He awoke from meditation, feeling confused from his conversation, "What could they possibly mean by all that?" He couldn't even ponder the question, as he felt a rumbling in the Sky Temple.

He gasped, "The Jinsei! This must be the imbalance that they had spoken of!" He made his way up to the Jinsei Chamber, to see a shocking sight. The Jinsei was rumbling and shaking violently. He could see a shadowy figure standing in the blinding light of Jinsei.

"I don't know who you are, but if you don't step away from the Jinsei I will be forced to use lethal force," Fujin threatened, stepping closer to the shadowy figure.

The figure turned around, its eyes glowing white, "I don't think you'll want to do that."

Fujin stepped ever so slightly closer, "I mean it! Whatever you plan to do to it won't work while I stand guard."

"I plan to do nothing with it," the figure replied in a calm manner. Whoever this was, it was approaching Fujin with his hand out, "This is no time for fighting, old friend."

Fujin's eyes went wide when he could finally make out who it was he saw. He gasped and said under his breath, "Raiden…?"