Mileena had now been in containment for three days.
She was held in the containment cell W1C9 in the American military depot of Washington, and had remained silent for a majority of her confinement. Guards and security cameras had been overwatching her every movement, or they would've if she had moved at all since she was dumped there.
Kitana had been denied access to Mileena's cell wing and had sworn to approach her comrades about an agreement. She entered the strategy room and found Sonya Blade, Johnny Cage and the newly arrived Jax awaiting her.
She was offered a seat but denied it, preferring instead to stand at the opposite end of the table. "I have been denied to speak to Mileena, and I've come here to find out why" Kitana declared in a regal manner.
Sonya stood up and cleared her throat "Don't take it the wrong way, Kitana. We believe you when you said she attempted suicide". Johnny then added "We just feel that, if she is suffering any imbalances, we should keep her as calm as possible".
"I have seen the lengths your people have gone to imprison her. She has no hope of escaping" Kitana reassured. "You're missing the point, Kitana. We have faith in our security" Sonya replied, "We're more worried about the problems that you could cause".
Kitana fixed a stare upon Sonya, her blue eyes burning with suspicion as she asked "What's that supposed to mean?"
"Look, you have been a great help in Mileena's capture" Sonya commended, "But with the very personal relationship that you two have, it may end up jeopardizing any chances to gain information".
As much as she didn't want to believe it, the human woman was right to think this. Kitana was aware that she could let her emotions get the better of her, and that Mileena would do the same thing since she was her clon-.
Kitana's thought struck a chord.
"That's exactly why I should see her" Kitana announced. The three table occupants didn't respond, encouraging her to continue. "Mileena is my clone, so if there is anyone who would know how best to treat her, it's me".
Johnny leaned back in his seat and waved his finger as it pointed at the princess. "Nnn-nnn-nnot to be… on her side…" Johnny began, immediately earning a curious glance from Sonya, "But… she has a good point".
Kitana held her hands on her hips and began "Strangers had always been a problem for me, from my youth all the way to this moment. It took me a long time to trust you and your people of Earthrealm". The three humans simply nodded as she continued.
"Mileena is going to have this exact same problem. She will never cooperate with any of you… but there is a chance that she can cooperate with me". Johnny and Jackson were sold on this plan, but Sonya remained sceptical.
"We're willing to accept your proposal… as long as you can assure us that you won't do anything to agitate the prisoner". "Of course" Kitana simply replied as she turned to take her leave, offering the trio the chance to discuss their options.
Finally, as Kitana began wandering the military base for the lack of better and more engaging options, she noticed Cage and Blade approaching her. She turned and bowed respectfully to them, a habit adopted by her father's teachings, and awaited their offer.
"Kitana, we accept your proposal to speak with the prisoner" Sonya Blade announced, seeming to intentionally avoid placing a name on the subject herself. Kitana could tell that Sonya was attempting to create a professional and unbiased atmosphere on the situation. Kitana respected this.
"When can I speak to her?" she asked inquisitively. "Whenever you chose" Sonya replied as the three of them began walking towards the containment chambers. "We will be watching you two from the security cameras" Sonya continued, "if anything happens or the prisoner becomes distressed, we will have you removed from the chamber".
"I… understand" Kitana reluctantly agreed, irritated by the thought of being ordered around despite her royal position. The three of them were permitted clearance into the containment chambers and they made their way into the main room. Around them were the entrances to the many wings, within each being various rows of containment cells.
"We will make our way to the security room" Sonya explained, "Mileena is held in Containment Cell W1C9". With that, Sonya offered the princess a key card and pointed towards a chamber along the left side of the room.
With her task set before her, Kitana entered the chamber and made her way down the corridor. Along the walls were a series of large, steel doors with keypads beside them, each door sporting the initials 'C1' through to 'C16'.
From the many doors, several different and peculiar sounds would often emit. Screams, curses and psychopathic laughter could all be heard amongst these sounds. Kitana began to wonder what exactly happens behind these cell doors, and by extension, what methods were used by her allies to obtain information.
Ignoring this thought, she finally arrived at the door marked 'C9'. She inserted the card and the door's lock emitted a loud 'click'. She carefully pushed the door open and found herself in an obnoxiously white room, the light gleaming upon the white tiling on the walls and floor. Definitely a stark contrast to the dark and grainy tone of the rest of the building.
Across the room was a glass pain, connected to a second room with the same appearance as the first. Before window was a series of holes, clearly for enhancing communication between the two rooms' occupants. The opposing room had very few furnishings; an installed wall mirror and a simple bed, and on the bed was-
Kitana could finally see her, her 'sister'.
Mileena sat on the bed, facing away from the window with her head lowered. She was silent and still, and her breathing could only barely be heard by the princess. Her arms were crossed together from within a strange white coat, the coat sporting a series of belts protruding from the back. Quite a peculiar design of outfit that these prisoners must wear.
Kitana stood before the glass and sighed, attempting to relax herself to overcome how nervous she was. "Mileena" she began, but found herself unable to continue her sentence. She decided to wait for Mileena to respond to her awkward greeting.
Mileena responded as her head turned further away from her consultant.
"You didn't… let me die" Mileena stated, her voice sounding even more worn and strained that their previous encounter. Mileena's head raised as she asked "Why did you save me?"
Kitana decided to handle this professionally and answered "You have worked with fath-… Shao Khan's allies in the past. The black dragon clan, Quan Chi's cultists". Kitana then explained "Whatever information you have about them can be useful to us".
Mileena shrugged indifferently, that simple action speaking louder than anything she could have otherwise said. Kitana sighed again and informed "Alright, I've told you why I let you live". She leaned closer to the glass and continued "Now I want you to tell me why you tried to kill yourself".
Suddenly, Mileena swung her head around and screamed "WHY THE HELL WOULD YOU CARE!?"
Kitana was surprised by this outburst, but was even more surprised by the sight of Mileena's face and her arms. Her mouth was restrained beneath a plastic mouthguard, perhaps to prevent her from using her teeth, and her arms were bound into a crossed position by the jacket she wore. She was rendered entirely harmless.
Though her mouthguard restrained her from biting, the plastic was clear as glass and exposed her monstrous jaws in all their glory. Kitana was deeply disturbed by the lengths that were made to prevent Mileena from doing… well, anything at all.
Kitana stared indignantly at Mileena's face as the latter suddenly gasped in horror and turned her head away from her sister. "NO! No no no no! Stop looking! Don't look! Get out! Get away…" Mileena began screaming hysterically.
And then something unbelievable happened, something that Kitana would never have expected from this monstrosity that claimed to be her sibling.
Mileena began sobbing.
Kitana listened to her cry quietly to herself, taken aback by the sound she heard. She remembered the times that she had cried in the past, and Mileena's weeps resembled her own much more than she wanted them too.
There was nothing else she could do. Mileena would definitely not be willing to negotiate in her current state, so the only thing Kitana could do was wait. She made her way towards the door and took her leave, no words spoken between the two.
As the door sealed shut behind her, Mileena placed both of her legs on the bed and crossed them together beneath her. She hung her head as she shifted to face towards her pillow. Her tears had let up as her sudden explosion of distress and panic had finally relented.
How did it come to this? She could've died. Kitana could've let her kill herself. She wouldn't have been a problem for her enemies anymore. So why were they so intent on keeping her alive?
Then she remembered. She turned to face her mirror and saw herself, this monstrous creature that is neither an Edenian nor a Tarkatan. The mirror was there to remind her that she was nothing but this abomination that shouldn't be alive, so why would they keep her alive?
They enjoyed tormenting her.
This was hell.
This was her punishment.
I was wrong in my last chapter. This will definitely not be the final part.
So stay tuned for the next one.
