MARKUS X'S POV

I had been allowed by Sonya to get a close look at the armor of Sub-Zero, and even now, I was seriously impressed by the design. Evidently, the Lin Kuei were far more advanced with their armor designs then even the man I had purchased my original armor from. The build quality and materials used for this exoskeleton-like suit were far superior to any known body armor in the world today.

Though the armor appeared to be designed to directly integrate itself into cybernetics that had already been put into a human body, it could function as power armor just as well without them. The design was sleek and modernistic, with several weapons located primarily in the chestplate.

Taking the armor with me to a secure testing room inside the complex, I slowly but surely put it on, the cold metal fitting on my frame in a very bulky way, though I still was able to fully move my arms and legs while wearing it.

The HUD inside my armor activated, glowing a light blue as it ran through the system checkup. As I waited, the screen turned red, an override occurring... Jax's key was still functioning, and if it wasn't that, it was mine. After about ten seconds, the override cleared and I could fully see and hear everything around me.

"Woah... This is pretty cool..." My voice now held a distinct metallic ring to it. "Now let's see what kind of toys this thing has for me to play with."

Raising my arms to virtually scroll through the semitransparent holographic interface, I noticed that there was one problem with the armor.

"Um... Can you please reset to English? I don't read Chinese that well."

The HUD briefly flickered off before returning, this time with all characters in English. I immediately noticed the reference to the former cyborg's identification. "Lin Kuei unit LK-52O..."

Scrolling once again through the interface, I looked through the weapons in the suit's arsenal. "Ice Beam... Cryo Bombs... Teleport... Self-Freeze... Ice Sprayer... Shuriken Thrower..."

Crossing my arms, my face would have revealed frustration. "I wanted fire and explosions in this armor... Not ice attacks! Those aren't as awesome..."

Sighing, I checked through the movements and motions I would need to do in order to activate certain features of the armor. It was like a blasted XBox Kinect game, but much harder. I had to have my arms and legs in the exact correct position in order to properly use the armor's weapons correctly, and wasting my time doing that wasn't going to help me fight through hordes of Outworld warriors in order to get to Mileena.

Turning away, I went to go and remove the armor when Sonya stopped me.

"Keep that on. Some Lin Kuei cyborgs showed up on our doorstep, evidently wanting to surrender. My men are bringing them here for interrogation, and considering that armor you're wearing, I think it's a good idea for you to come with me. Hope you're a good impersonator..."

SONYA'S POV

Markus merely nodded at me as the 'Lin Kuei cyborg' followed my lead. I hoped that this would work, but if it didn't, we'd be in a hell of a lot of trouble with dozens of heavily armed cyborgs in our base.

Turning the corner, I spotted Cyrax, the yellow cyborg we had encountered several times before. He was currently detained by a pair of Special Forces soldiers that had him by the arms. Though I knew he could easily free himself, he chose not to, raising my hopes of his sincerity.

As the two soldiers released their grasp of his arms, the yellow cyborg stepped forward and gave me what I knew from Smoke and Sub-Zero was the Lin Kuei salute. Looking at me with his emotionless robotic lenses, Cyrax stared at me before beginning.

"Major Blade, I am most humbled that you would accept the surrender of us former Lin Kuei."

I raised an eyebrow. "Former Lin Kuei, Cyrax? The last time I saw you, you were trying to kill the Earthrealm warriors, including me."

He nodded. "This group has left the Lin Kuei. With their forcing us into these mechanical shells, we have no reason to retain loyalty to the clan now that our personalities and free will have been restored, though we still follow their beliefs. I come here to ask for your help in removing as much of our cybernetics as you can. I know that I at least do not wish to remain inside this cold and soulless shell, and I firmly believe that most of the others feel the same way. In exchange for your assistance, we grant you and the Outworld Investigation Agency our loyalty and service as operatives, spies, and warriors."

I quickly thought over his offer. Their technology could prove to be useful to the Special Forces, but I was still wary about how this deal sounded too good to be true. I was about to make my decision when Markus stepped forward and offered his opinion.

"I think it's a wise idea to accept their offer, Sonya. I doubt anyone with bad intentions would show such a level of sincerity when they could easily snap the necks of your soldiers and kill everyone in sight with the blink of an eye."

Pausing, I nodded, but noticed Cyrax's apparent surprise at seeing Markus in Sub-Zero's armor. Murmurs were heard in the crowd of ex-Lin Kuei as the mustard-colored cyborg spoke.

"Kuai Liang?"

MARKUS X'S POV

Hearing the comment directed towards me, I turned and looked at the yellow cyborg. "Yes, Cyrax?"

The ex-Lin Kuei seemed surprised to see me."I thought you died when Sindel attacked the Temple... No matter. It is good to see you again, Sub-Zero."

I gently nodded in response. "The feeling's mutual."

Turning back to Sonya, I waited for her response to Cyrax's offer. After a moment contemplating her actions, she responded.

"Alright, Cyrax, you have a deal. Our med teams will get to work as soon as possible on removing the armor of all who want it off. You should be feeling more human by the end of the week."

Cyrax gave her a gentlemanly bow. "Understood, Major Blade."

As the new comrades-in-arms began to discuss their next plans, I noticed someone I recognized from my last tenure in Outworld.

Neksus...

Unable to contain myself, I pointed to the fully-human ninja standing in the rear of the crowd. "Neksus, get over here!"

The reluctant ex-Lin Kuei stepped forward, facing me as he watched my motions carefully.

"I haven't seen you since my time in Outworld, when I beat you down just so I could start my relationship with Mileena."

I saw his eyes explode in shock as he began to sputter.

"T-T-T-T-Trojan!"

With a quick pull, I removed the front of my helmet, revealing my face to the shocked former enemy. Cyrax himself was disconcerted as well.

"You are not Sub-Zero!"

I smiled. "Nope. I was just given his armor after he evidently died at the hands of this Sindel woman. From what I can guess, his body was buried as that of a man, not a machine. He was an honorable warrior who served his cause well."

The confused case assigns could only nod in kind, incapable of saying anything else in that situation. I used this as a chance to break away from the group.

"If you'll excuse me, guys, I need to make some modifications to this armor. If I'm going to use it, I'll need to set it to my likings..."