Round 7

I woke up the following morning still in Cassie's bed. She herself was still fast asleep. I sat up as quietly as I could and looked around her bedroom. Yep, pretty much looked similar since high school except you know, not in Johnny's house anymore. Here's something you might not know, I mentioned it in passing last night to you. Sonya and Johnny were married and had Cassie right? But then they divorced a few years later due to SONYA. I know! That shit blew my mind when Cassie told me back then. I figured Johnny did something stupid to ruin the relationship but no, Cassie tells me he was a great dad. When Cassie was younger, her relationship with her mom wasn't great but it wasn't complete shit. Upside was that Sonya wasn't a demon from the fucking Netherrealm. I quickly shook my head in order to forget about the odd dream I had last night. Can't really remember exactly what happened but it involved a young woman attempting to save a baby or something. It's really weird and I can't explain why it happened. Cassie shifted and muttered something that sounded like "Icky Vicky mine." I pulled a face and then rolled my eyes. I should explain that quickly. She got it from a TV show about some kid with fairy godparents or something. I remember being at her house watching TV with her and that specific episode of that show came on when she was flipping through the channels. Right at the part where the boy band dude was singing the song of the same name. The look on Cassie's face when she realized was absolutely priceless. She was the only person allowed to call me that too. I recall her getting absolutely livid when someone else called me that in an attempt to flirt with me. It was at this point I realized I was still naked. Right. The fuck are my pants? Ahh! There they are! Wait…I had to do a double take when I saw them, along with a fresh shirt, folded neatly on a nearby chair. Along with my bottle of shampoo. How in the 6 realms did that get here? I sat there staring at it for a moment and then I noticed that the window was open and the curtains were blowing in the small breeze. Ahh, there we go. Fujin. Should have guessed. Hold on…did he know Cassie and I got intimate last night?

"That's creepy Fujin," I muttered to myself. At that moment, the wind blew again and I heard something else besides the blowing of air. "I respect your privacy." What a guy! I quietly got out of Cassie's bed and went to find the bathroom/shower with the bottle of shampoo in my hand. Wasn't hard. It was the only other door nearby that wasn't the closet. The feel of the cold tile floor on my feet jolted me awake a little more. I turned on the light and vent fan while humming softly to myself. For some reason, the song "3am" by Matchbox Twenty was in my head. Dunno why. It just popped in there. One of my mom's favorites as I remember her singing it while cleaning the apartment on early weekend mornings. I felt a pang of longing when I remembered the sound of my mom's voice. I missed her. A lot. She was so good. And I'm not just saying that because she was my mom, she was genuinely good. With the support of my step-dad, my mom had decided to put some of her own music out there and it was a little popular for a while. She had 3 self released albums which all sold pretty decently. It was the reason we were in an actual house by the time I was in freshman year. I remember seeing the memorials to her after she had died and a few dedicated fans visited her grave too. Anyway, back to taking a shower. First thing, turning the thing on. Now, let me tell you something, whenever I get naked in the bathroom, the shower gets turned on. BOOM! ZINGER! But seriously, turning it on wasn't hard. I know some people's showers require you to learn how to pilot the Starship Enterprise but Cassie's was easy. Turn it to the H area. Water came out of the shower head without trouble and within a few seconds, the bathroom was steamy just like my hot body! OH! ANOTHER ZINGER! I'M ON FIRE THIS MORNING! I stepped in the warm water and let it wash over me for a few moments. As I stood there, the verge to sing overtook me. Cliche I know but hey, can't beat the classics right? I started with some thrash and metal classics, keeping my voice at a softer volume so as to not disturb Cassie's slumber with high octane screams. After a quick rendition of "Silenced by Death," my mom's voice entered my mind again and I switched to the lyrics of "3am".

"And she says baby, It's three a.m. I must be lonely, When she says baby, Well I can't help but be scared of it all sometimes, And the rain's gonna wash it away I believe it," I sang out loud…and apparently to someone else.

"This morning is the best," Cassie's voice said from behind me. I jumped and turned to see her standing in the shower with me, naked, with her arms crossed and smiling.

"I don't seem to remember telling you to stop," she said, took a step or two forward and wrapped me in a good morning hug. I smiled and continued singing the rest of the song as Cassie ran her hands up and down my body. I even got another kiss after I was done singing. Awesome.

"How'd you sleep," I asked her. I had already washed my hair so I could just focus on holding Cassie.

"Great. It was even better when I heard and saw there was a hot guy in my shower," she responded.

"Oh, so I've been promoted from cute boy to hot guy now?" I asked. Cassie grabbed my ass.

"Yep," she said. "If you don't like it, tough." I responded by grabbing her's. She let out a small noise that sounded like a squeak. I stifled a laugh.

"Shut up," she said.

"Make me," I responded. "I just remembered I forgot to say that I love you too." Cassie gave me a warm smile and kissed me again. I meant it too. Seeing her again reignited all those old feelings from when I was in high school. If you remember, I was a bit winded (hah!) after last night's events.

"Oh? The man that I love wants me to make him shut up? Challenge accepted," Cassie whispered. Lemme tell ya, she did. I mean daymn. Smash cut to about 15 minutes later when we were both dressed.

"Ready?" I asked when Cassie came around the corner dressed in her Special Forces attire. She nodded and threw me my freshly dried jacket. Now my getup didn't change much when I was added into the Special Forces. I just lost the mask. Still kept the glasses, boots and jacket. I also still tied my hair in a ponytail in order to keep it out of my face. I was outfitted with more of a protective underlayer though so that was nice. I pulled my jacket on and Cassie gave me another hug.

"One more time before work. Bad idea to do PDAs around my mom. Even though she's a big hypocrite when it comes to that," Cassie said.

"As you wish ma'am," I responded and returned the hug. Cassie let out yet another sigh of happiness.

"You sure you're gonna be able to handle calling me ma'am while keeping your pants on?" she teased. Real quick, Cassie was a higher rank than I was. I was given the rank of Specialist after a preliminary evaluation of my skill set. And, technically, not an official part of Cassie's squad so the whole dating thing should be ok. Regardless, two can play at the teasing your lover game Cass.

"That depends," I began and flexed. As expected, Cassie went "oh!" I smirked at her. "Can you handle when I just flex at random without you being able to touch me?" Cassie smiled back and opened the front door.

"Truce, come on. I'll drive," Cassie said and reached over to grab a pair of car keys. I stopped her with one hand and started waving my other hand through the air, willing the winds to form something.

"You and I should arrive in style," I said and motioned to the air constructed motorcycle. Now you might have had the same question since you first met me. How do the constructs work? Are they even solid? Yes, they are solid as I use them as weapons often. As for how they work/look, imagine like a cloud right? Shape it into something and make it tangible. Boom, there ya go. Cassie grinned at the sight of the sports motorcycle, walked over to it and climbed onto the back seat. I followed her (after locking her condo's door) and pulled myself over the front part of the seat. This didn't exactly need a key but I mimed putting one in anyway and the bike roared to "life." It didn't sound like an actual motorcycle but I could still "rev" the "engine" to make the air in the area gust really fast. I felt Cassie wrap her arms around me. With another grin to myself, I willed the bike to go forward towards the Special Forces base.

Later

Cassie and I arrived at the Special Forces base about 20 minutes after departing her house. I may have taken a few shortcuts in order to shave off some time. And by shortcuts I mean making the bike levitate high off the ground. I was in complete control and judging by the shouts I was hearing behind me, Cassie enjoyed it. I pulled up to the front gates and the both of us got off the "bike" which disappeared with my mental command. The guard looked up.

"Ahh, Sergeant Cage and…Specialist Harris right? Formerly known as Thrash? The FNG?" he said, reading a clipboard.

"Yes sir," I responded. The guard buzzed us in.

"General Blade needs to see you Sergeant. Specialist, you are being summoned by Grandmaster Sub-Zero," he informed me. I recoiled a little upon hearing this. Sub-Zero specifically asked for me? Interesting. I turned to face Cassie who was texting someone on her phone. Probably Jacqui or something. Hopefully she wasn't divulging too many details about last night. She caught me looking, smiled and said "Your place tonight ok?" I nodded without really thinking about it. I knew for a fact Fujin wouldn't mind. As soon as he found out Cassie and I used to date, he'd been secretly playing matchmaker. Five bucks he knew I had infiltrated the SF base and arranged a meeting with Cassie just so he could push her into talking to Thrash. I got a quick hug before Cassie walked off towards the command building. I stood there for a few moments before the gate guard said "Oh yeah, sorry. Sub-Zero's over that way. You'll see him." He pointed off in a direction behind me. I gave him a nod of thanks and started to walk off in that direction. I passed a few soldiers on my way there, a couple of which nodded at me in acknowledgement. Save for one. This one got right in front of me and narrowed their eyes.

"You think that just because you're part of the Special Forces that means we all like you?" they said. Voice sounded more masculine than I anticipated due to how short this guy was compared to his buddies.

"Pal, if I left my house everyday expecting everyone to like me, I'd be a sad man," I responded. The soldier got right up in my face. A feat as they were about 3 inches shorter than me, and I'm only like 5 foot 10ish inches.

"I'm watching you buddy," they threatened. I cocked an eyebrow.

"Look at how scared I am," I said sarcastically. What this douche didn't know was that I was secretly writing a message on their back in neon. His buddies noticed and they were doing their best to not laugh either. It was just a basic "Kick Me" sign. Classic.

"Can you move please, I have a meeting to attend to," I said. The soldier didn't move.

"Make me," they said. I sighed.

"As you wish," I said and used the wind to shove them aside more violently than I needed to but not violently enough to cause damage. Home slice went face first into the ground.

"I give that dive a three actually," I said as the other soldiers were roaring with laughter. Chuckling to myself, I eventually found Sub-Zero along with 2 other figures dressed in blue near the vehicle depot. Sub-Zero turned at my footsteps and I immediately responded with a bow of respect. He returned the bow.

"Greetings Victor Harris," he said.

"You can just call me Vic," I responded.

"And not Thrash?" he replied with a smirk. Great. So he knows too. Makes sense. Only the general public don't know my real name.

"I believe that time of my life has passed," I said. Sub-Zero nodded once.

"I have summoned you because of your unique ability of sensing those from the Netherrealm. My sources tell me that Bi-Han is indeed in the area," he informed me. I gulped. This Bi-Han guy was here? Shit. That was bad. He'd beaten Fujin once, so he could totally end me without even thinking. Doubly so because of the whole Netherrealm corruption thing. Sub-Zero put a consoling hand on my shoulder.

"You need not fight him. That is a task designed for me," he told me. "I just need your assistance locating him." That wasn't the only reason I was a little on edge right now.

"What if my father's with him?" I said before I could stop myself. Sub-Zero pulled a face.

"Why would your father be with Bi-Han?" he asked.

"My dad's…sort of the reason all these demons are attacking the city sporadically," I explained quickly. "Fujin's been looking into why."

"If you are afraid that I will view you as a threat, you need not fear. I happened to witness you save Cassandra Cage on multiple occasions and the rumor is you won her heart for the second time in your life recently," he told me.

"How…how did you know that?" I asked. Wait. I might have an idea…

"Sonya Blade," he answered. Yep. Figures.

"Come Vic," Sub-Zero said after a few moments. "Let us see what Bi-Han is doing in Earthrealm."

2 Hours Later

Locating Bi-Han in a city of this size was rather taxing. As I stated, my demon sensing ability only went about 3 blocks at max. Sub-Zero and I jumped from rooftop to rooftop searching for any trace of this Bi-Han guy but the only hits we got were just stragglers which were easily dispatched. This song and dance kept up for a few hours until a large "signal" made itself known. It was so powerful, I needed to steady myself on a nearby HVAC unit.

"Are you alright Vic?" Sub-Zero asked. I pointed off to the left.

"Big presence…over there. Powerful," I said. Sub-Zero and I quickly made our way to that location while my demon sense constantly was telling me to not do that. Soon enough, I looked down into a clearing and saw a humanoid figure in all black. Like I'm talking the hood and everything. This guy wouldn't be out of place at a Norwegian Black Metal concert except he needed some white face makeup. From what I could tell, he was dressed kind of like an armored ninja with the aforementioned hood. A handle was sticking out over his shoulder and that was attached to the sickle lodged in his back. Great. Just what I need. I looked over at Sub-Zero.

"Yes, that is him," he whispered. "This confirmed he survived being kicked into that Soulnado." Soulnado? The fuck was that? Other than a KICK ASS name for a metal song or something but knowing how this world words, it was actually something bad. Bi-Han had his back to us and looked as though he was surveying the street. Sub-Zero leaned down and narrowed his eyes for a moment before I was suddenly shoved away multiple feet. I saw why right before I hit the ground. Another dark figure had emerged from a portal right near where my head was moments ago. The figure had swung a sickle at the place where my neck was too. I got to my feet as the dark figure turned to face us. It was Bi-Han. He had white eyes and black skin. Then he spoke to me in a voice that sounded like what the depths of hell itself would sound like.

"Victor Harris. Your father sends his regards," he said and pointed at me. All of a sudden, a shadowy figure emerged from Bi-Han and sprinted full speed at me. An ice ball struck it before it got within tackling range. Bi-Han averted his gaze from me and focused on Sub-Zero.

"Still using my name Kuai Liang?" he asked menacingly.

"It was grandfather's first," Sub-Zero responded. "He would be ashamed of what you have become."

"As I told you years ago, I am perfect. I have no flaws! I am no longer Bi-Han or Sub-Zero! I am Noob Saibot!" Bi-Han declared. Really. REALLY?! That's his name now? Fucking Noob?! What, am I playing an FPS online or something?

"Your name is Noob? Are you fucking kidding me? Is the guy who gave you that name called something like Quan Cheesy perchance?" I retorted. Sub-Zero shot me the slightest smirk.

"Speaking of Quan Chi, did you know your ally was in the service of Quan Chi at one point too boy? Like your father," Bi-Han…no Noob. I'm calling him Noob because it's really funny to me that a guy that looked like that is named fucking NOOB. Anyway, WHAT?! No I did not know that! Thanks for telling me Sub-Zero! I rounded on him before I noticed the ice cold look he was giving Noob at the moment.

"I, unlike you, know how to feel remorse," he countered. "Vic here is not so easily corruptible. Or defeated." Hearing Sub-Zero praise me made me forget the anger I had towards him at the moment. Noob studied me for a second and I saw him start to laugh.

"An aeromancer?!" he said. "Like the ones that I watched get slaughtered by Tarkatans?!" Ok. NOW I'm fucking PISSED! This motherfucker watched my uncles die?! HE'S MINE! The winds around me felt more angry than it used to be too. I would form the sharpest blade in existence to skewer this former thing that used to be a man. Sub-Zero had ulterior motives though. He put an ice puddle in my path which I slipped and fell on.

"You served your purpose Vic. Return to the safety of your allies," Sub-Zero ordered. "I will handle Bi-Han." In his eyes, I could see he was also saying "for your uncles."

"Bold of you to think I came alone," Noob responded. "I now have my own underling." Smoke began billowing from the ground in front of me. It rose skyward and took the shape of a man wearing gray ninja attire similar to Sub-Zero's along with gray skin. The figure's glowing eyes focused on me.

"Look familiar little brother?" Noob asked a now enraged Sub-Zero. "Enenra, Kill the aeromancer."

"Yes Master," Enenra answered and disappeared. I panicked.

"Ready to watch another of your allies die brother?" Noob taunted. Sub-Zero finally attacked Noob with what looked like an incredibly painful front kick.

"We share blood. We are not brothers." Sub-Zero growled and engaged Noob in furious combat. Suddenly, Enenra reappeared behind me and punched me right in the small of the back. I was rocked forward a few feet but recovered in time to block Enenra's following kick. Then he turned into smoke again. Really? He sent the guy that turns into smoke after me? Man this Noob guy was a moron. Didn't he just realize I was an aeromancer? I sent a small gust of wind through the smoke cloud. It dissipated just like I thought it would and Enenra became solid again. He looked disoriented too which is just what I wanted. A well placed punch kick combo knocked him to the ground. He recovered with a backwards roll just in time to avoid a potentially neck snapping heel kick. Enenra decided to throw a smoke ball at me and I tried to catch it with my own powers. Didn't work but I still managed to dodge it. What I didn't dodge was the three hit combo that launched me in the air as well as the following spin kick to my torso. I decided that it was time to introduce Enenra to a different kind of aeromancer. I quickly formed a few knives as I got to my feet and hurled them at Enenra. I guess he expected the air to go right through him because he didn't bother to dodge. All 4 of the knives I threw were lodged in his shoulder and chest area. I smirked and snapped my fingers which caused all of the knives to explode in neon blue and sent Enenra flying. I then formed my trademarked sword and rushed forward. I swung the blade at him but he turned into smoke at the last possible moment to avoid getting sliced into bits. I then felt an extreme pain in my shoulder and turned to see that there was a spear lodged in my back near the shoulder blade. I couldn't see Enenra's mouth, but I knew he was smiling wickedly as he jerked me towards him. The resulting uppercut to my jaw hurt like an absolute motherfucker. As I lay on the ground, I at least saw that Sub-Zero was easily beating Noob. But he wasn't going to be able to assist me at the moment. Enenra picked me up off the ground by my shirt and held me in the air.

"For Master Saibot," he growled and raised one of his hands. "Where there is smoke, there is fire." I could see that smoke was engulfing his fingers and I could just tell that that shit was going to burn me if it got into contact. Running out of options, I inhaled and blew out a long breath. I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw that my breath made most of Enenra's arm disappear. Because, you know it was basically smoke? As he stared at it in disbelief, I was able to kick him square in the face. He fell backwards right into Noob and both of them squared off with me and Sub-Zero who I just realized was right next to me.

"Friend of yours," I asked Sub-Zero and motioned towards Enenra. Sub-Zero didn't answer. In fact, he looked more pissed than ever. Note to self, never get on his bad side.

"Sareena would never approve of what you have become. A wraith fighting against the realm you swore to protect," Sub-Zero growled. Saying the name "Sareena" actually got Noob to lose his arrogant demeanor.

"Do not speak her name!" Noob shouted and threw his sickle carelessly at Sub-Zero. Sub dodged it. Like an absolute badass.

"This is how you repay her for helping you escape the Netherrealm? Allying yourself with that same realm?" Sub-Zero asked.

"Allying with the Shirai-Ryu is how you defile my name Kuai Liang?!" Noob shouted back.

"Sektor corrupted you," Sub-Zero stated. "You know this and I know this. Sareena made you see some sort of sense."

"CEASE!" Noob shouted and threw another sickle at Sub-Zero. Again he dodged. Sub-Zero then nodded to someone off to the side. One of those people I had seen back at the SF base emerged from the shadows. They took off their hood revealing the face of Sareena. Huh. She must have been following us too. Whether on Sub-Zero's orders or not, I don't know. I'm trying not to get murdered right now! And that involved sticking close to the Grandmaster with far more combat experience than me. Sareena faced Noob and addressed him by his real name.

"Bi-Han," she said calmly. "Stop this." Y'all, I swear I saw Noob fucking flinch. I am not kidding. Enenra looked at his master in confusion.

"You saved me from Quan Chi all those years ago, only to fall victim to his tricks," Sareena asked.

"Quan Chi is DEAD!" Noob shouted. Very faintly, I could hear a change in his voice.

"Then let me help you. Let your brother help you," Sareena pleaded. Noob almost gave in. I say almost because he realized I was still there and before I could do anything, he hurled a shadow clone at me. The clone rugby tackled me and raised its own sickle to impale my chest. Fuck. This was gonna hurt. I closed my eyes ready for the impact but instead, the sickle was blocked by an ice ax. I looked up to see that Sub-Zero had thrown said ice ax and it also had dissipated the shadow clone. Noob and Enenra however were nowhere to be found. Sareena was still there too and she looked rather upset. Sub-Zero helped me to my feet.

"Damn, he got away," he muttered. Sareena sniffed. I decided to say something.

"He knows you're alive. He still remembers you. Did you see him flinch when you spoke to him?" I said to her. Sareena jerked her head in my direction. I saw her eyes widen with recognition.

"I'm his son," I said quickly because I knew what Sareena was thinking. She must also know my father.

"You must be just like him," Sareena growled and raised her fist.

"I barely knew him," I said quickly. Sub-Zero again intervened.

"Sareena, think about what you have witnessed this man do," he said. Sareena studied me for a few seconds.

"You…you saved that sergeant and her team didn't you?" she asked. I nodded.

"You'll get through to him," I said. "I know what his essence feels like now. You're an ally to the SF so I'll contact you directly if I run into him again. I promise." Sareena looked into my face with a look I knew all too well as it was the same one Cassie gave me when she asked if we wanted to be a couple again. She did love the real Bi-Han and truly wanted to help him return to the light and be with her.

Much Later. That Evening in Fact.

As stated earlier, Cassie and I went to my place for the evening. I'll be honest, I expected Fujin to be there but no. Instead I saw a note on the door that read "Out with Ammy. Do not wait up."

"Ammy? Who's Ammy?" Cassie asked. It was my turn to smirk about something I knew.

"His girlfriend," I whispered. Cassie gasped.

"No fucking way," she said.

"Oh yeah. Between you and me, I sometimes saw the 2 of them dancing through the clouds in the early morning. Pretty sure it's Amaterasu that he's been seeing. Sun's often brighter after they spend time together," I said. "Remember that time where it was dark and cloudy for a week? Blame Fujin. My man forgot about their anniversary." Cassie giggled.

"No wonder he's always in a better mood than Raiden half the time," she said. I opened the door to Fujin's temple. Now he had many others all around the world, but this is the one I obviously called home. You know about my room already but it was also equipped with a sparring area, garden and viewing balcony. Fujin told me that most of my ancestors lived in this area and had built a temple in his honor. Made sense. Remember the mural on the wall? Well Cassie had spotted it and was looking at the other members of my family. She paused when she got to the carvings of my uncles.

"You had uncles?" she asked. I nodded.

"I never knew them. I was told they died when my mom was young," I answered. I decided to make Cassie really happy and pointed to the carving of my mom and baby me. She stared at it for a few moments before realizing who the baby was. I saw her get a little glassy eyed when she looked at my mom's figure. Cassie liked my mom and in turn, my mom liked Cassie. My first few girlfriends didn't leave such a lasting impact as much as Cassie did. My mom was the one that let Cassie in and in turn helped her sneak up on me while playing my guitar.

"Look at the wittle baby!" Cassie said and pointed at baby me. "I like the older version better, because he's right here." She hugged me while still staring at my mom. I guess she was trying to tell her spirit that she still loved her son with all her heart.

"It's not much," I said and motioned around the area. "But it's…it's home." Cassie responded to this by kissing my cheek.

"When have I ever made fun of you for how many expensive things you have?" she asked. I smiled.

"For that? Never. For being named Victor? All the time," I answered.

"Icky Vicky," she whispered.

"Cass-hole," I whispered back. She jumped into my arms and kissed me again. I carried her to my room. Yes douchebag, it was clean. God, you sound like my mom! Alright, I had some clothes on the ground but it's not like the place was littered with empty pizza boxes! Cassie looked around my bedroom and smiled at the posters on the wall and my electric guitar leaning on its stand in the corner.

"Yep, pretty much just like I remembered," she said. "How'd your mission with Iceman go?" I hesitated.

"Found his brother," I began. Cassie gasped.

"What?!" she exclaimed. I felt her grip my arms tighter than usual. Ow. I gave her a look and she let go a little.

"He wanted me to help him track him. That worked. Sub fought him while I had to deal with his minion Enenra or whatever," I explained.

"Man, talk about a reunion. I've heard Enenra used to be Sub-Zero's best friend," Cassie said. Ahh, that tracked. Good. Fantastic.

"Did you beat him?" Cassie asked.

"No, I got killed by him," I answered very sarcastically. Not a great time there Vic. Dumbass. Cassie gave me a "don't joke about that" look and I grimaced.

"I mean, I held my own. Fought to a draw. Then Sub pulled his trap card and used Sareena to get Noob to attempt to reform. But Noob bailed shortly afterwards," I explained quickly. Cassie bought it. Mainly because it was the truth. Thank goodness.

"Need a drink? I think I remembered to hit the store a few days ago," I asked. She nodded and took off her overnight backpack.

"Water please," she said and pulled out a pair of sleep pants. I walked over to the minifridge (again, thank you Fujin for knowing how mortal appliances worked) and pulled out a bottle of water. I turned to face Cassie who looked as though this was her dream come true. I tossed the bottle to her. She caught it and then took a long swig from it. I walked over to her and gave her a hug. She sighed with contentment.

"You're not losing me again," I said after a few moments. "I promise."