Chapter Sixty-Seven
Near The Palace Grounds
It was the change in the air and the color change of the sky that brought Noob Saibot and Sektor out of their current hiding place. They had been hiding in yet another cave about a half hour from the tournament grounds.
Once they stepped outside, they were able to hear what sounded like a war, the faint sounds of screams, cries, and clashing metal reaching their hearing. Sektor used his hearing sensors to detect the location of the battle and Noob followed.
After some time, the two walked over a tall hill. They were soon on the top and found themselves looking down at a large battle that was taking place near the main palace.
Noob narrowed his glowing blue eyes at the battle. "I am not surprised that this is taking place," he said out loud. "I suspect Shao Kahn himself is behind this."
"Affirmative," Sektor replied. "Shall we initiate our own attack?"
Noob nodded. "This is the perfect opportunity to recruit another for our plans… and if Sub-Zero and his allies happen to be down there as well, this may give us another chance to eliminate them once and for all."
Sektor nodded. "Then let's engage."
With that, the two of them began heading down the hill and towards the fight below.
Shang Tsung's Palace
For a while, darkness surrounded Li Mei. She wasn't sure exactly how long it was before she finally began to open her eyes. The young woman saw nothing but blur, but after opening her eyes more and blinking a few times, the view in front of her became more clear.
Once her vision was clear, Li Mei was able to make out what looked like a ceiling. A couple of lit lanterns hung above her just off to the side.
Where am I? she asked herself as she tried to figure out what happened before losing consciousness.
Li Mei then attempted to sit herself up. However, she was surprised when she realized that something was holding her arms and legs back. "What?!" she cried out as she looked over at her left arm. Her eyes widened in surprise as she realized that it was chained down.
At that point, she realized that she was on a bed.
She whirled her head in the other direction and saw that her right arm was also chained down. The young woman then looked at her legs and saw that ankles were chained down as well.
That's when Li Mei heard the door slowly swing open. She turned her head in the direction of the sound. Aside from the lit lanterns, the room was mostly dark so she wasn't able to see who came in just yet.
Soon, the figure showed up in Li Mei's view… and her green eyes widened more upon seeing the sorcerer Shang Tsung!
Now she was remembering how she got here to begin with…
"I'm pleased to see that you're finally awake," Shang Tsung said as a sadistic smirk appeared on his face. "I hope that you are resting comfortably."
Li Mei narrowed her eyes at him. "Where's Alex?!" she demanded.
"There's no need to worry about your friend," Shang Tsung answered. "She too is resting comfortably in her own room."
"My friends will find us!" Li Mei called out with confidence. "And when they do, they'll kick your ass."
The sorcerer sneered in reply. "I'm afraid that won't be happening my dear. You see… Shao Kahn has already sent his warriors to… take care of them. Their souls will soon belong to him."
Shang Tsung's grin grew wider as a thought came to him. "While we're on the subject of 'lost friends,' I guess it'll be a good time to tell you something."
Li Mei looked up at the sorcerer in silence. With his grin, she could've sworn that she was now looking straight at the devil himself as the grin reflected his yellowish eyes.
"First off… I want to send my 'sympathy.' It must've been quite unfortunate for the Sun Do villagers to lose their lives the way they did… quite unfortunate indeed."
Li Mei felt confused for a moment as to why he even mentioned the Sun Do massacre... then it hit her…
"You orchestrated their deaths, didn't you?!" Li Mei yelled. "It was YOU who killed my people!"
"It gets better my dear," Shang Tsung said. He then shape shifted into a young woman with long black hair and wearing a dark brown cloak. Her eyes then glowed a green color. Li Mei instantly recognized her…
It was the same woman who had killed Ibuki many days ago…
Then quickly, Shang Tsung switched back into his normal form. "Ibuki's soul isn't as strong as the many others I possess… but it is useful."
At this point, Li Mei was lost for words. First she found out that Shang Tsung was responsibility for the massacre of her people… now she just found out that Ibuki's death was at his hands as well.
"I saw you that day, Li Mei," Shang Tsung said. "I had been out looking for a soul to devour when I saw the two of you walking through the woods with your little baskets. You two had separated just as I had hoped. I thought of going after you, but at this point, the Sun Do massacre hadn't occurred yet and I wanted you to stay alive long enough to see the corpses of your loved ones… that's why I went after Ibuki instead…"
Shang Tsung then turned his back towards Li Mei and began walking out of the room. As he disappeared into the darkness, he spoke one last time to her…
"Don't not worry about your pain," he said. "I promise… by the end of the night… you will be a different woman…"
With that, he walked through the opened door and slowly closed it behind him. As soon as the click was heard, Li Mei turned her head a bit, letting the uncontrollable tears fall down her face…
Near the Palace Grounds
After receiving a kick in the back, Kilik found himself stumbling a few feet before stopping himself. Quickly, he turned around and saw a guard with a Kwan Do in hand running towards him. The guard then swung his weapon at Kilik, who quickly blocked the maneuver with his staff.
The two exchanged hits for a minute before Kilik managed to jab the end of his staff at the guard's stomach, causing the wind to be knocked out of him. Then Kilik spun his staff to knock the guard a couple of yards away. Once the guard landed, he was surprised to see a ninja in all-black take a kunai and stab the guard in the chest, killing him.
…That takes care of him I guess, the young man thought.
Kilik then happened to turn his head in time to see his friend Maxi get knocked down to the ground. Maxi clenched his teeth in what seemed like pain as he held on to his left arm, which had recently received a bad cut. The guard Maxi was fighting approached him with his sword in hand. Kilik then realized what the guard was about to do…
Quickly, the young Keisei native ran over to the guard. He then jumped up and delivered a flying kick at the guard, sending him flying back a few yards away, soon becoming lost in the crowd of combatants.
Maxi looked up at his ally. "Thanks pal," he said.
"My pleasure," Kilik replied as he reached for Maxi's stretched out hand and pulled him back up on his feet. "You're still weary from last night's fall. Get yourself out of here while you still can!"
"Not yet," Maxi retaliated. "Where's Xianghua?"
That's when a screaming guard flew passed the space between them. The two of them watched him fly away from a moment before turning in the direction he came from. Their eyes widened in surprise as they saw Xianghua just a few feet away from them.
"Serves you right!" she called out, sounding pissed. A second later, their other friend Mi-na flew towards Xianghua from her right and crashed right into her, knocking her down to the ground, the both of them letting out a surprised-like cry.
Kilik and Maxi ran over to the two girls to see if they were all right. Mi-na was already getting herself up, looking frustrated.
"Damn it!" she cried out. "I'll kill that guard for that! And the worst part is that I lost track of Hwang just a minute ago!"
"Don't worry," said Xianghua as she began to get herself up. "He's a good fighter, I'm sure he's fine."
"He better be," Mi-na said with a slight growl.
Once he knew that the girls were okay, Kilik looked up at Maxi. "Get out of here… don't worry about us. We'll try to leave Outworld as soon as possible."
Maxi sighed a bit. He didn't want to leave his friends, but he knew that he was still weary from his fight with Astaroth last night.
"I owe you one," Maxi said to him, acknowledging the fact that Kilik had saved his rear a moment ago. He then began to make his way towards the activated portals, hoping that this wouldn't be the last time that he saw his friends…
On the other side of the battle, Vega was having the time of his life. He fought his enemies left and right, killing them after only a few seconds. Behind his porcelain mask, he was grinning with pleasure. He only wished that he could take a moment to taste the blood that his collected on his three claws.
I could do this all day, he thought to himself.
After killing yet another enemy, he happened to turn his head in time to see Sagat fighting an opponent who was just about Vega's height. Wanting to receive more glory for the hell of it, the matador rolled himself forward towards Sagat's opponent.
When he was close enough, he stretched himself out, extending his arm which had the claws on it, and managed to stab the man's neck with two of the three long metal claws. The man stood there in shock for a moment as he began to choke on his own blood. Then, he fell forward into the ground, his body briefly going into convulsions before finally staying still.
Sagat sighed to himself once he realized who was behind his opponent's death. He looked over at Vega and the two of them stared at each other for a moment. As they did, Sagat noted that Vega's blue eyes seemed colder than ever.
Obviously, he was enjoying the killing spree very much.
"Are you having fun, amigo?" Vega asked him.
Sagat narrowed his single eye a little. "I've had better."
At that moment, Sagat was attacked by a smaller man, forcing him to fight back. Vega leapt away, intending on continuing with the bloodshed.
For a while, Sagat and the unknown fight exchanged attacks. It didn't take long before Sagat had the upper hand and he continuously beat the man down with his various Muay Thai kicks. Soon, the man found himself dizzy and it gave Sagat the chance to perform one of his deadly moves.
'Tiger Genocide!' he called out as he leapt forward with his left knee up. He managed to hit his opponent upward before performing two uppercuts in midair. Afterwards, Sagat landed back on the ground safely and waited for his opponent to crash back to the ground.
Soon, a figure did crash down…but it wasn't the man Sagat was fighting just a few seconds ago. Instead, it was a young girl… a girl who looked no older than twenty years old…
Sagat looked around quickly and soon found his previous opponent just a couple of yards away. Obviously, he had jumped away just before receiving the blow and the girl, who had been fighting her own battle, happened to be right behind him. He waved at him with cockiness, obviously proud that it wasn't him who received the bad end of Sagat's attack… well, at least until Sagat saw a sword stab him through his back and out his chest, killing him almost instantly.
The Muay Thai fighter decided to take a moment to check on the girl to see if she was okay, especially since he never had any intention of hurting her. When he reached her, he bent himself down to her and immediately checked for her vital signs…
There was none…
A grim look appeared on Sagat's face. Time seemed to sudden slow as thoughts raced through his mind.
What have I done… he thought to himself.
He knew what got him to Outworld in the first place… his own selfish ambitions… and it all began when he lost to Ryu in that tournament all those years ago. He had been so desperate to redeem his own honor that he joined Shadaloo as they promised him that he would have a rematch with him. Instead, he became nothing more than a lackey to them.
Now here he was in Outworld with Vega… and for what? A powerful, ancient artifact that would just boost their inflated egos even more?
His head had been in a cloud this whole time… and because of this, the young girl at his feet was now dead…
Straightening himself up, Sagat looked over at the yellow beam that was shooting up into the red sky. He was already told that it was the signal. There were portals in that area which would lead everyone back to their respective realms.
Sagat briefly looked over at the battle. Serving Shao Kahn was nearly similar to serving Shadaloo's leader Bison… he was given a promise that was never fulfilled and he was nothing more than another lackey for another's ambitions.
I've had enough, the Muay Thai fighter thought bitterly. It all ends here…
While his supposed 'allies' fought against their 'enemies,' Sagat began taking his leave, intending on returning to Earth…
Outworld Docks, A Mile From The Palace Grounds
Heihachi Mishima's eyes snapped open as he laid on his back against the small wooden boardwalk. In the distance, he was able to hear what sounded like a war. He blinked a couple of times as he suddenly noticed the sky.
"What the-" he muttered as he sat himself up. He looked at his surroundings, remembering how he got here to begin with… early this morning, he decided to come here, the area where the ships that took the tournament participants had dropped them off after leaving their respective realms.
Heihachi had previously arrived in Outworld through his own portal at the Mishima Zaibatsu. The portal took him to any realm he wished… however, the downside was that he wasn't able to develop a way to return to Earth.
So that he got the best cabin, Heihachi arrived here bright and early… when the sky was originally purple.
Since then, he had fallen asleep and when he woke up, he thought he was dreaming for just a moment.
Once again, Heihachi listened in on the battle cries nearby. It could be anything…a large battle, a riot, or even some sort of celebration… that he scratched off from his mind as he realized that the cries seemed more desperate than happy.
For a moment, Heihachi wondered whether or not to check it out. For one thing, he didn't want to leave his spot as the first in line to leave Outworld.
As he tried to figure this out, a voice suddenly spoke from behind. "Don't even wait… those ships are never going to arrive."
Heihachi raised an eyebrow as he realized that the voice was eerily familiar. He slowly turned his head and soon came face to face with the last person he expected to see, his eyes widened in surprise upon recognizing his son, Kazuya.
After regaining his composure, Heihachi narrowed his eyes. "Why aren't you dead!?" he demanded.
Kazuya smirked, amused by his father's reaction. "Because you can't kill a man twice."
Heihachi realized that it was a twist on the old saying… Kazuya had died once many years ago and he tried to kill him again not too long ago… now here he was, well and alive… again.
"Do not worry about that grandson of yours either," Kazuya continued. "He's… out of the way."
The older man wasn't phased by those words. "How did you get here?"
"Your Mishima portal of course," Kazuya replied proudly. "I've been watching you ever since I got here three weeks after the tournament began."
A thought came to Heihachi then… a while ago when a tarkatan attacked him at the palace, a knife had flown from nowhere, killing the mutant. Heihachi was never able to figure out who was behind the knife… at least until now.
"I see…" Heihachi said as he stood himself on his feet.
Kazuya narrowed his eyes then, his left eye glowing in a blood red color. "You know my intentions… to eliminate you once and for all… and it's best to get it down now. You hear those cries in the distance? A battle is taking place between two sides. What the reason for it is none of my concern…" the younger man then got himself into a fighting stance.
"Very well then," Heihachi nodded as he got into his own stance. "You say that I can't kill a man twice… but third time's a charm…"
Immediately, Kazuya jumped forward, intending on attacking his father. Heihachi jumped after him as well. Soon, the two reached each other and delivered their attacks at one another.
They had begun their own combat…
Near the Palace Grounds
As the large battle between two sides continued, three guards attempted to gang up on Nightwolf. Quickly, he used his inner chi to create a green aura in shape of a bow and arrow. He aimed at the closest guard before releasing the arrow from his hand, the sharp object flying forward before plunging itself into the guard's chest, the force knocking him back a few yards.
Nightwolf then turned his attention to another guard, who had just thrown a knife towards him. The shaman surrounded his body with a green aura and before the knife could hit him, the energy reflected it off and began heading back to the guard, eventually plunging through his forehead, instantly killing him.
After the green aura disappeared, Nightwolf then raised his hand up and a bolt of lightning hit the third guard, knocking him away.
Not too far from him, Reptile happened to witness the three guards being taken down by Nightwolf. Noting that he was indeed a powerful warrior, Reptile decided to take the opportunity to try to take him down himself. He quickly leaned his head forward and spat out a gob of green acid.
Lucky for Nightwolf, he saw the acid heading straight at him in time and dodged out of the way. The acid ended up hitting yet another guard who happened to be running by. Upon being hit, the guard screamed in terror and agony as his skin burnt off his bones before falling to the ground dead.
"Damn it!" Reptile yelled out, realizing that he accidentally killed one of his own.
Nightwolf turned his attention to Reptile. His body once again was surrounded by the green aura and, with his shoulder out, glided towards Reptile in fast speed before ramming him back. Reptile managed to catch himself by rolling back before getting back on his feet.
The two ran towards each other and engaged in combat. They exchanged some punches and kicks for a few seconds before Reptile attempted to crouch himself down and perform a forward roll in an attempt to trip his opponent. However, Nightwolf managed to jump over him in time. They then straightened themselves out, turned around to face each other, and began fighting once again.
At point, Nightwolf managed to get the upper hand. Once he did, he kicked his leg up, smacking Reptile under his chin, then kicked down again, hitting the top of the lizard's head. The shaman then followed it with a back kick, causing Reptile to stagger back a few feet.
After regain his composure, Reptile covered the distance between the two and continued fighting. The two were once again even for a minute until Reptile gained the upper hand by throwing three punches at Nightwolf's face. He then followed it with an elbow jab before performing a kick, knocking Nightwolf back.
Time to end thissss, Reptile thought as he slowly took out his Kirehashi sword.
Nightwolf slowly got himself back on his feet. He then began turning around to face Reptile… but was instead met with a sword, which quickly plunged itself through his stomach.
Reptile watched Nightwolf's surprised reaction with satisfaction. He kept the sword in his stomach for a moment before quickly pulling it out. Once released from the sword, Nightwolf fell back into the ground.
Just a few feet away, Dan was fighting a guard when he happened to witness Nightwolf being stabbed by Reptile. Quickly, he knocked the guard back before he ran over to his mentor to check on him.
"Nightwolf!" Dan called out just before bending down next to him. The shaman was still awake, but his short breaths indicated that death wasn't too far from him…
Nightwolf looked up at his pupil as he slightly began to cough up some blood. "Do not… forget my… teachings to you… use them… wisely… as you… journey through… your life…"
Dan frowned, realizing that his mentor was accepting his own demise.
"I will… thank you for everything," Dan said to him.
Nightwolf nodded a little. "There is… something you need… to know… I fear that… something will… happen after… this battle… is over… leave Outworld… while you can…"
Dan was about to say something, but stopped once Nightwolf closed his eyes and ended up letting out what would be his last exhale…
Dan looked down at him for a moment as the battle continued around them. A grim look appeared on his face as he stood himself up. Nightwolf had taught him a lot since they arrived here in Outworld. Now he was gone… and now Dan had the responsibility to carry his teachings…
"I hope you don't mind," Dan began to say. "But I'm going to fight a little longer…"
With that, the pink-clad man turned around and returned to the fight…
Portals
The first batch of fighters arrived at the portals. Raiden and Rose let those on their side pass them while fighting off Shao Kahn's forces, rendering them all unconscious.
At this point, not many had approached the portals. A thought came to Rose and she turned to Raiden. "I wonder how long it will take before things start to get really crowded."
"Bet it won't be long," Raiden replied. "Continue keeping a lookout."
Rose nodded and proceeded to look around the area for more allies or of Shao Kahn's forces. Some time passed before a very tall figure emerged from the trees. Rose kept a watch on him, wondering who was coming.
Once he was in completely view, Rose was very surprised to see Sagat approaching the portals. She hasn't seen him since the last Street Fighter tournament…
What is he doing here?! she thought to himself.
Sagat soon noticed Rose and the two found themselves staring at each other for a moment. Rose took the moment to try to sense what he was feeling…and was quite surprised to learn that there was some good within him.
Perhaps he's trying to redeem himself from his old ways… she thought.
Rose took a deep breath. "The green portal at the end will lead you back to Earth."
Sagat only replied with a single nod before heading to the portal. Once he reached it, he stepped through it, disappearing from Outworld.
"I have an idea," Raiden suddenly said afterward. "Why don't you go down to the bottom of the hill and keep a lookout. That way, it'll be easier to keep a lookout."
Rose wasn't into the idea, but she would do anything up to this point to make sure everything goes smoothly.
"Be careful," she told the Thunder God before making her way down the hill.
Shang Tsung's Palace
The tears had long stopped as two guards entered Li Mei's room. She let them release her from the chains' hold. After getting out of the bed, the two guards began to escort her out of the room and began walking down the hallway.
"Where am I going?" Li Mei asked the guards after a few minutes.
"You stay quiet," the guard on her right said. "You'll know soon enough."
Li Mei stayed quiet as she continued walking down the hall. As they turned a corner and began walking down yet another hallway, Li Mei realized that no one else was in sight but the three of them…
Now was her chance…
Quickly, she used one foot to slam it against one guard's shin with enough force to pull back in pain. This made the other guard pull back by surprise, letting Li Mei go from his grip. The young woman rapidly performed a forward flip kick, knocking him a few feet before she began flying forward and attacked with multiple punches. The last punch sent the guard flying into the wall, rendering him unconscious.
The second guard had already drawn out his own sword. In retaliation, Li Mei extended both of her arms out in front of her. Two purple energies shot out, one from each hand, and they managed to hit the guard, the force pushing him back and knocking him out cold as well.
Now that the two guards were out of the way, Li Mei had an objective… find Alex and get out of here. Not knowing where else to start, she began heading back in the direction she came from, hoping that there would be another room her friend was being held in.
For a while, Li Mei ran around the palace. A few times, she was forced to hide herself from guards who ended up walking by in her direction. Once they were out of view, she emerged from her hiding place and continued with her search.
Eventually, Li Mei found herself going down a long hall with no place to hide. She was beginning to feel the adrenaline rush through her, realizing that there could be a chance that a guard could turn a corner and catch her.
After what seemed like forever, Li Mei finally reached the turn. Just as she was going around it, she suddenly bumped into someone, letting out a scream in both surprise and horror.
"Whoa, Li Mei!" a voice said, sounding surprised as well. "It's us."
Li Mei pulled herself back. Extreme relief rushed over her as she recognized Guile. Behind him were Kenshi and a man dressed in black and red-orange whom she didn't recognize.
"Oh thank goodness!" she said in relief. "I knew someone in the cave would come, but I was beginning to lose hope…"
"Well, we're here now," Guile assured her.
"Where's Alex?" Kenshi asked her.
"I don't know," Li Mei replied. "I was looking for her after I escaped. The only thing I know is that she's definitely still alive."
Ermac stepped in at that point. "The best thing to do is to get you out of here," he suggested.
"I'll get her out," Guile said.
"I'm not leaving!" Li Mei retaliated.
The three men turned their heads to the young woman. "It's for the best Li Mei," Guile said. "Kenshi and Ermac will continue looking for Alex-"
"I know they will," Li Mei said. "But Shang Tsung needs to be killed once and for all! He killed my people and he killed Ibuki!"
The men were silent for a moment upon learning this. Eventually, Kenshi spoke. "Shang Tsung has affected countless lives throughout his lifetime, I'm sure of that."
"We'll see to it that the sorcerer is eliminated," Ermac promised.
A frown appeared on Li Mei's face. Although she wanted to help in finding Alex and kill Shang Tsung, she realized that it may be best to get out of here while she had a chance. Besides, she was beginning to have fate in Kenshi and Ermac that they would take care of things.
"If anything," she began to say. "Please rescue Alex. I don't want to lose another friend."
The two men nodded to her as Guile tugged on Li Mei's arm. "Let's head out," he suggested. He then looked over at his other allies. "Good luck."
Li Mei stared at the swordsman and the enigma for a moment before she reluctantly followed Guile to the pathway out of the palace…
Shao Kahn's Fortress
Sitting at his throne, a small smirk appeared on Shao Kahn's face. Moments ago, a Shadow Priest sent him a message written in a scroll which he was currently holding in his hand. In it, it tells him the current process of the onslaught…
So far, they haven't lost anyone significant in his army. Also, nearly a quarter of their enemies have been slain, making the Emperor the owner of their souls.
Upon realizing this, Shao Kahn's smirk slowly changed into a grin underneath his helmet. So far, the battle was going exactly as he planned it…