Chapter Seventy

Less Than A Mile From The Main Palace

Feeling out of breath, Heihachi Mishima and Kazuya Mishima stared down at one another as they stood just a few yards away from each other. In the background, they could still hear the large battle that was currently taking place. At this point, neither one of them were sure how long they've been fighting, but one thing was for sure… neither one of them weren't about to give up just yet.

Heihachi watched as his only son briefly wiped a small bead of sweat from his head with the back of his gloved hand. A smirk came over the older man's face.

"You know," he said. "You look tired. Just to remind you… you're not so young yourself anymore."

Kazuya wasn't phased by his words and said nothing. He straightened himself out a bit and was just ready to launch himself forward when he noticed something just behind Heihachi. He quickly shifted his eyes and he forced himself to hide his developing smirk as he noticed a guard coming up to the older man.

Heihachi smirked even more… as he saw another guard behind Kazuya as well.

The father and son continued to glare at each other as they both waited for the guards to attack. To them, they believed that the other wasn't aware of anyone being behind them right at this very moment.

Then, at the same time, they both turned themselves around, facing the guards who were suddenly surprised when they realized they were noticed. They were then met with powerful punches, knocking them a few yards back before coming to a stop. By then, they were already rendered out cold.

Once the guards were taken care of, Heihachi and Kazuya turned their attention back to each other. They glared at one another for another moment before they launched themselves forward at the same time, ready to fight some more.

Briefly, they found themselves on both offense and defense before Heihachi was able to get the upper hand by head-butting Kazuya in the forehead. The force made Kazuya rear back a few feet, giving Heihachi the chance to execute two quick double punches to Kazuya's chest. He then attempted to follow with a palm strike in the same spot, but Kazuya regained himself and managed to step out of the way.

Leaving his father open now, Kazuya took the opportunity to smash his fist into his stomach, causing Heihachi to keel over briefly. Kazuya then followed with a kick to his face before using his other leg to kick Heihachi up in the air.

Just as he was falling back to the ground, Heihachi managed to catch himself in time and was able to land safely on the ground with both feet. After straightening himself out, Kazuya attempted another kick to the face, but Heihachi quickly blocked the attack with his fist. He then followed with a short upper punch, which landed under Kazuya's chin. He then finished off with another uppercut with his other fist, knocking his son back.

A satisfied smirk came over Heihachi's face. I believe I know who will be victorious in this battle…

Portals

A sigh of relief escaped Wagner as he and Maxi finally reached the top of the hill where the portals were located. Throughout their walk to here, Wagner was sure that they were going to be attacked by someone from the opposing side, but it seemed as though they were too busy either fighting someone else or getting killed.

"I can take it from here," Maxi said to him as he pulled away. "Thanks for helping me up here."

"No problem," Wagner replied.

By then, Raiden approached them. "I'm glad to see you both okay," the Thunder God said. "Maxi, go through the silver portal, that will return you to Keisei. Wagner, go through the green portal at the end to return to Earth."

Maxi nodded to Raiden before walking over to the silver portal. After walking through the circled structure, he disappeared.

Raiden then noted that Wagner hadn't moved from his spot as he stared over at the green portal. "Something the matter?" he asked.

Wagner shook his head a little. "I'm okay… but I was wondering. Did Cammy happen to make it up here?"

Raiden frowned a bit. "As of now, I'm afraid not."

"I see… well, she'd kill me for doing this, but I don't want to leave until I find her."

"I understand," Raiden said. "Keep this in mind, however… with Jin Kazama missing, she may not want to leave Outworld right away until she finds him."

Wagner nodded to the Thunder God before he began his descent down the hill and back to the battle below.

Battleground

A loud, high-pitched scream was heard all around, creating a purple wave. Two guards and a tarkatan ended up getting caught in the wave and they suddenly found themselves floating forward, waving their arms around as they tried to get themselves out of the hold.

Just behind the wave, Sindel waited until all three were close enough. She then lifted a leg and performed a high spin kick, knocking all three back. At that point, another guard came from her left. Quickly, she whipped her long hair out, making it extend enough so that it wrapped around the guard. Then she quickly pulled away, causing the guard to spin in fast speed. She waited for a moment before he stopped spinning. Afterward, the Queen of Edenia kicked the guard in the head, sending him flying back.

After that was taken care of, she briefly looked over where her daughter Kitana and her friend Jade were fighting. Both were fighting off some guards and seemed to be doing well on their own, just as Sindel expected. Afterward, she continued with fighting as more guards approached her.

Meanwhile, Kitana and Jade were able to quickly take down their foes with ease, fighting with their respective weapons. At one point while Kitana was fighting, she noticed something pink from the corner from her eyes. Quickly, she turned her head to get a better look. Anger suddenly took over her as she suddenly came face to face with Mileena, who stood just a few yards away. Memories of her days as an assassin flooded through her mind, memories she no longer wanted to remember…

After a few moments of staring down at each other, the two immediately ran over to each other and quickly began their long-awaited fight.

Not too far, Jade happened to notice Tanya not too far from her. She was someone the green-clad woman recognized immediately. For years, she had been wanted for crimes against Edenia, which including letting in a former God and his forces, disguised as Outworld 'refugees' to wreck havoc on their realm.

In Edenia, Tanya was wanted dead or alive. Jade always believed that it would be too dangerous to keep Tanya alive.

Tanya had been fighting off another combatant when Jade decided to approach her. She ran until she was able to get close enough to swing her bojitsu weapon at her. However, Tanya was able to see the attack coming from the corner of her eye and she was able to quickly duck under the weapon.

Afterward, the yellow-clad woman stepped a couple of feet away before turning her attention to Jade. Tanya instantly recognized her as well as a good friend and protector of the royal Edenian family… and she knew exactly why she had approached her.

"So, you've come to kill me, haven't you?" Tanya sneered as she drew out her two kobu jutsu weapons, holding one in each hand. "I dare you to get rid of me."

Jade narrowed her green eyes at her. "With pleasure!"

From there, the two began their combat.

Nearby, Kitana and Mileen fought viciously against each other. At one point, Kitana jumped up and quickly perform three kicks in a row, which Mileena managed to block. Then, as Kitana fell back to the ground, Mileena jumped up before executing a diagnol kick. The kick managed to connect at Kitana's face, knocking her back a few feet.

Mileena landed back on the ground and she and Kitana charged after each other. Once they were in reach of one another, it was Kitana who immediately received the upper hand as she landed two punches to Mileena's face before lifting up a leg, hitting her foot just under Mileena's chin, causing her to rear back just a couple of feet from her.

Quickly, Mileena shook the pain away and as Kitana attempted another attack, the pink-clad woman crouched down low to the ground before executing a forward roll. The roll managed to hit Kitana's feet, causing the Princess to trip forward and she landed on the ground with a loud thud.

Mileena stood back up on her own feet before dusting herself off a little. "When I'm through with you, I will finally take my rightful place in the Edenian throne!"

Kitana managed to get herself back up. "Your wishful thinking will only lead to more disappointment than you already have endured since you were created!"

Quickly, Mileena drew out her two sais. With a loud growl, she ran back towards Kitana, who drew out her two fan blades and ran over to her as well.

Nearby…

Using a free hand, Smoke managed to grab a hold of the back of one guard's neck. He then lifted up his right knee, aligning it with his hip before smashing the guard's face into his knee. After being released, the guard screamed in sheer pain as he held on his nose, which was now bleeding profusely. Smoke watched him for a moment before kicking the guard away.

Nearby, Ashrah was busy fighting off two guards. Eventually, she was able to knock one of them out cold and was now able to concentrate on the other. As he approached her, Ashrah quickly spun herself, now surrounded by a few spinning white auras. By the time the guard saw this, he didn't have time to back away before being hit, the force knocking him back into the crowd around him.

Not too far, Matrik had just finished off fighting a guard when she noticed something about a few yards away. She turned her head to get a better look… and suddenly felt frozen upon seeing her former master Sektor standing there, staring right at her.

For a moment, the two cyborgs had a stare down from where they stood. Eventually, Sektor quickly shot out a missile from his chest, forcing Matrik to duck down. As the missile passed over her, she rolled herself forward so that she got herself closer to Sektor. After getting up, she covered the remaining space between them and began their own battle…

A few feet away, Sub-Zero found himself fighting a guard. They fought hand to hand for a moment before Sub-Zero's roundhouse kick rendered the guard unconscious. He then looked around, expecting another one of Shao Kahn's forces to come after him.

"Sub-Zero!" a deep, demonic-like voice suddenly said from behind him.

Immediately recognizing the voice, Sub-Zero turned around and soon came face to face with his own brother Noob Saibot.

Or rather yet, was his brother.

"I've waited to confront you yet again," Noob said to the ice ninja. "This is the opportune moment, don't you think?"

"I won't ever understand what turned you into a wraith," Sub-Zero replied. "But it's no matter now. What matters now is putting you to rest once and for all."

"I dare you to try," Noob said as he got himself in a fighting stance.

Immediately, Sub-Zero raised one arm above him and an icy projectile shot up, maneuvering itself over Noob before dropping down. In retaliation, Noob quickly teleported away, bringing himself closer to Sub-Zero. He then executed one punch, following it with a double kick, all in which Sub-Zero managed to block.

After the kicks, Sub-Zero managed to find an opening and struck Noob with two palm strikes. He then attempted a forward kick before Noob teleported himself behind him. Sub-Zero tried to search for the wraith, but soon realized where he was upon feeling a pair of arms wrap around his waist before behind lifted from the ground as Noob performed a suplex. Soon, Sub-Zero made a painful contact to the floor on his back. From there, Noob released his hold on him and straightened himself back up.

Soon, Sub-Zero slowly rolled back before getting on his feet. He and Noob ran to each other again to continue their fight…

Cathedral

A loud crash was heard as one of the glass cathedral windows shattered into countless pieces. The cause was from a fireball projectile which came from a current battle between Evil Ryu and Devil Jin.

As the fight continued, Devil Jin attempted to knee his opponent in the stomach, but Evil Ryu managed to catch the maneuver with a single hand. He then attempted to elbow the winged demon in the face, but Devil Jin bend himself back, letting the elbow pass him.

Once Evil Ryu's elbow was away from him, Devil Jin's arms rapidly filled with red electricity before he executed two punches, both which Evil Ryu blocked. Devil Jin then delivered an axe kick, but Evil Ryu step sideways, avoiding the attack. He then crouched himself down low with a single fist ready to strike.

"Shoryuken!" he yelled as he leapt up. He managed to catch Devil Jin under his chin and the two of them ended up flying up in the air.

Evil Ryu landed safely on the ground. He expected Devil Jin to come crashing down, but after a bit of a delay, he eventually looked up…and found him still in the air, flapping his black, feathered wings.

A sadistic smirk appear on Devil Jin's face as a red glow developed on his forehead. Then, unexpectedly, a red laser shot out from it. Evil Ryu found himself rolling out of the way and he barely did as the laser burnt a lined-hole in one of his pant legs.

After recovering, Evil Ryu quickly jumped up so that he was at the same height as Devil Jin and quickly shot out two blue projectiles. Devil Jin managed to dodge out of the way before swooping over to Evil Ryu. He delivered a few punches, which Evil Ryu managed to dodge.

Devil Jin then attempted a kick, but Evil Ryu was able to catch his ankle. Without hesitating, the Ansatsuken demon spun the winged demon once before letting him go, forcing Devil Jin to fly diagonally downward before crashing into one of the many statues in the room. The force of the crash shattered the statue into pieces.

Evil Ryu landed back on the ground. As Devil Jin stood himself back up, Evil Ryu's eyes glowed a blood red as a sadistic grin came over his face.

So far, to him, this was a worthy battle. In the end, however, Evil Ryu knew that he would emerge victorious, which came with a prize… Devil Jin's power.

Meanwhile, Devil Jin's bright eyes glowed as a thought came to him. Soon… your soul shall be mine for the taking!

The two then ran towards each other and proceeded with their battle…

Near The Main Palace

"Cannon spike!" Cammy called out as she spun her body forward and low to the ground, aiming her feet at Viper's ankles.

When it seemed that Cammy was going to get the hit, Viper quickly jumped over her. Cammy used her feet to stop herself before getting back up. By then, Viper was running over to her, forced to brace herself for more attacks.

Just a few feet away, Viper jumped forward hands first and spun herself around, a backwards version of the cannon spike, only a few feet higher in the air. Quickly, Cammy stepped out of the way and quickly performing an axe kick to Viper's back. A small surprise-like cry escaped Viper's throat as he was slammed down to the ground.

Viper gave herself a moment to recover from the attack before rolling on her back and attempted to trip Cammy with her foot. Cammy quickly backed away before being hit. Afterwards, Viper rolled back before getting back up.

The two blondes ran towards each other and continued their hand-to-hand fight. It didn't take long before Cammy got herself on complete offense, delivering two jump kicks, forcing Viper to move away. After landing, Cammy then attempted a round house kick, but Viper managed to grab her leg and spun her around.

Before Cammy was able to catch herself however, Viper managed to land a few punches on Cammy's face and stomach before landing a kick to her chest, the force sending Cammy flying back a few feet before sliding on her back in the ground.

"Owe…" Cammy uttered as she found herself coughing a bit. As she attempted to recover from the blow, she realized that she was right next to the hill which lead to the portals.

Viper approached Cammy and stopped just a couple of feet away. "It's time to die, Killer Bee!"

Cammy's eyes widened in surprise upon hearing a 'nickname' she hasn't heard in a long time. How does she know? she thought.

She then looked up into Viper's blue eyes… and suddenly made a connection.

"Lisa Wagner?"

Viper seemed to hesitate for a moment upon hearing her true name. She then seemed to shake the thought out of her mind as an anger look appeared over her face.

"That is not my name!"

Suddenly, someone came up to Viper from behind and got on her shoulders with her hands. Just before a large purple energy took her Viper's head, Cammy instantly recognized Rose.

"What the…" she tried to say. As the purple energy glowed, Cammy was forced to shield her eyes with her arms and she could hear Viper's screams.

She's not killing her is she? she thought.

Soon, the purple energy disappeared and the screams ceased. Rose released her hold on Viper, who soon lost consciousness. Rose managed to catch the young woman before she was to land on the dirt ground.

Cammy blinked for a moment, feeling a bit confused as to what just happened…then, she remembered some of her old dreams and realized what she just saw was exactly from her dreams.

She looked up at Rose. "… I think I remember something… you were the one who did this to me as well…"

A frown came over Rose's face as she set Viper down. "I never wanted you to find out, Cammy… but yes, this is how I was able to free you from Bison's control over you." She then looked down at Viper. "When Lisa wakes up from her sleep, she will be herself once more… and like you, she won't remember ever being Viper."

"Cammy!" a male voice suddenly called out.

Cammy turned her head and found herself sighing of relief as she spotted Wagner and Lita running over to her. Slowly, she stood herself up and ran the rest of the way towards them.

"Thank goodness, you're okay," Lita said to her. "Wagner and I found each other just a few minutes ago and we went looking for you."

"Where's McCoy?" Cammy asked.

Wagner shook his head. "I'm sorry Cammy…"

Sadness came over her upon hearing this. "Wolfman's gone too…"

"It's just us now," Lita said.

As they continued talking, Wagner managed to turn his head and noticed Rose kneeling over the one person he never expected to see…

Quietly, Wagner walked over before kneeling down to Lisa, who was in a deep sleep. Even with her right in front of him, he still couldn't believe that she was right here. He was already feeling relief and other emotions building within himself.

Rose looked up at him. "She'll be just as she was before Shadaloo took her," she assured him.

Wagner could only nod as he took his sister in his arms before standing up. He realized that she had lost ten years of her life and knew that much healing was needed for quite some time for her.

You're okay now Lisa… he thought.

Slowly, Cammy approached Wagner. "I know you want me to go with you back to Earth," she said. "But don't worry about me… I don't want to leave until I find Jin. You get Lisa out of here."

Wagner turned his head to her. "I just got my sister back… so you make sure you come back…" A smirk came over his face. "Sis."

Cammy smirked as well. "Catch you later, bro."

Wagner nodded before looking over at Rose. "I don't know how I can repay you…"

"Don't worry," Rose replied. "Just get back to Earth."

"I will," he said before he began making his way up the hill with Lisa in his arms.

Lita walked over to Cammy. "I'll help you… there's no way I'm leaving without you either."

"Thank you," Cammy replied.

"Be careful," Rose said to them. "If things start to get unstable… please leave this place."

The two women nodded to the soul psychic before departing back into the battle.

On the Other Side Of the Battle…

Sektor and Matrik continued with her battle, the two mainly fighting hand to hand. At one point, they stood in their stances a few feet away from one another as they waited for the other to make the next move.

"It ends here Matrik!" Sektor called out. "Return to the Tekunin clan or face death!"

"I'd rather die before I join with you again!" Matrik shouted before extending her right arm out. A compartment in her palm opened up before five small bombs shot out towards Sektor. In retaliation, Sektor shot out yet another missile from his chest, which shot towards the bombs before they all exploded.

Matrik ran over to Sektor and the two exchanged maneuvers yet again. At one point, Sektor managed to punch her in the face, causing her to stagger back a couple of feet. He then tried to attack again, but Matrik quickly performed a round house with the running saw extended out from the bottom of her foot, forcing Sektor to jump away before being hit.

The two then proceeded with more hand-to-hand attacks before Matrik was able to receive the upper hand with two palm strikes to Sektor's chest. She then performed another roundhouse which Sektor backed away from before leaning herself forward to punch him in the chest.

However, Sektor managed to block her punch with his hand. And before Matrik was able to pull back, he used his free hand to rip some wires apart.

Suddenly feeling an out-of-control surge, Matrik reared herself back as sparks appeared around her damaged arm.

"You… cheap… bastard!" she said in between circuits.

Taking the opportunity, Sektor jumped over to her and delivered a palm strike to her face before following with an elbow in the same spot. As she staggered back again, he took the opportunity to rip apart the wires on her torso.

As Matrik's cyborg form shook with sparks all around her, Sektor watched from a few feet away. "You're too easy to beat. Perhaps when you return to base, I'll make you stronger than you could ever imagine."

Once he finished his sentence, Matrik fell back to the floor as black smoke sizzled from her. Sektor then took out one of his red pulse blades and walked over to Matrik, who was only able to mover her fingers.

"Now to finish you off!" Sektor yelled out.

Before he was able to strike down, he was suddenly tackled to the ground. Moments later, Sektor was able to kick the attacker off his back, sending him flying a couple of feet away. By then, Sektor was able to recognize the attacker.

"I see you came to help your friend, Smoke," he said as he got back on his feet.

Smoke stood himself up and glared at the red cyborg. "The way you took down Matrik… you don't deserve to be Tekunin's leader."

Sektor took out his other pulse blade and got into a stance, ready to fight Smoke. "Enough! I will make sure you return to Noob Saibot as he wishes."

"Save yourself the trouble," Smoke said. "Just recently, a part of my memory data was uploaded… from when I was being controlled by Noob. I have information you might want to hear… so now that leaves you with a choice…"

Sektor stood there for a moment, trying to decide on what to do next. However, moments later, Smoke made the decision for him.

"Noob only used you for his own gains," the gray cyborg revealed. "Once he was done building his cyborg army, he was going to reprogram you so that you serve him as well."

For some reason, Sektor wasn't surprise… perhaps because he had expected something like this from Noob since the beginning of their 'alliance.'

Slowly, Sektor placed his pulse blades away. "Then there's no longer a purpose to stay here. Very well then."

With that, the red cyborg teleported away, leaving Smoke to tend to Matrik, who was now completely out.

Not Too Far…

With their weapons, Jade and Tanya continued with exchanging maneuvers. They would normally switch between offense and defense during their fight.

At one point, Tanya spun her elbow blades rapidly as Jade was forced to jump back. With the distance between them, Jade took out her boomerang and threw it at Tanya's head. However, the yellow-clad woman ducked under it before being attacked and the boomerang smacked into a nearby tree instead.

Afterwards, Tanya extended her arms out and shot out a fireball. Jade quickly jumped over it and the two fought weapon-to-weapon again. Jade soon got the upper hand and spun her bojitsu around, at one point hitting Tanya in the stomach, forcing her to keel over. Jade then tried to bash her in the head, but Tanya managed to move out the way beforehand.

Soon, Tanya got back closer to the green-clad woman and delivered a kick to her stomach, causing Jade to stumble back. As Tanya attempted to attack again, Jade lifted up a leg and glided forward, leaving behind green shadows. She managed to land her foot at Tanya's head, the force causing her to spin in the air before landing hard on the ground.

Jade looked at Tanya for a moment and a smirk came over her face as she realized she didn't move.

"Seems I knocked you out cold," she said as she approached her. "It's time to finally be rid of you…"

Before she was able to do anything, however, three tarkatans suddenly surrounded her. Jade looked at them for a moment, frustrated that this had to happen now of all times. Nevertheless, she lifted her bojitsu in front of her and began attacking the tarkatans.

As Jade was busy fighting the mutants, Tanya, who was actually faking being knocked out, lifted her head. She felt a headache come to her from the kick, but she didn't care right now… what mattered was that she was alive and the tarkatans practically saved her from death.

"Sorry my dear," Tanya said. "It's not my time to die just yet."

With that, she slowly stood up before making her escape…

Shao Kahn's Fortress

The battle continues on… I can feel the new souls present here…

Thoughts came to Shao Kahn as he rested on his throne. In a way, he wished that he was actually there in the battleground watching everything unfold…however, it wasn't his place to do so.

Then again, he was indeed looking forward to the aftermath of the onslaught…because by then, his army would be completely built and he would then proceed with his plans to dominate the realms once more as he did in the past.

Soon, the universe shall be mine.

He was then suddenly brought out of his thoughts as the door to the throne room suddenly swung open with force. The Emperor stood up, grabbing his hammer in the process.

"What the hell is going on?!" he yelled out.

However, the two guards who were originally guarding the doors were thrown into the room, crashing into the walls before falling to the floor. Shao Kahn then noticed their battered, bloody forms and realized that they were dead.

Then, footsteps were heard and Shao Kahn noted a shadow on a wall. He stood where he was and soon the person entered the room… a person dressed in dark blue armor.

"Who are you?" Shao Kahn asked.

Quietly, the figure walked towards him. Shao Kahn then noticed his weapon…he knew it was Soul Edge, having heard the legends about it for many years. The sword consisted with a realistic-looking eye, which seemed to stare right at him.

Why is that eye familiar? he suddenly asked himself.

Moments later, he came to a realization… the eye looked just like the eye on Chishio No Me!

That's why the medallion is so powerful!

"So… you're the power behind Chishio No Me," Shao Kahn said. "And you must be Nightmare… the wielder of the infamous Soul Edge." He then lifted up his hammer. "It no longer matters, however… that great power of yours shall be mine to take."

Nightmare raised Soul Edge a bit with a single hand. "This place… shall be you're grave!"

Letting out battle cries, the two charged towards each other, intending on kill the other and taking their power for themselves.