(Thank you all who reviewed.)
I don't own anything that is not mine.
Ermac slowly turned toward the crazed woman behind him. She had actually stabbed him. Why? There was no need. He was going to let her go. The green eyed warrior ran a gloved hand over his injured shoulder and felt immense pain run down the whole appendage. Ermac couldn't help but notice a strange feeling welling up inside him as he peered at the white clad woman standing only a few feet away from him. She was asking for a beating…
"Woman," Ermac said in a surprisingly calm voice. He didn't expect that. Maybe he wasn't as mad as he thought he was?
…The next thing Ermac knew Ashrah was flying dangerously through the air toward the closest river of lava, which happened to be a couple of hundred feet away. He frantically tried to think of a way to catch her before she hit the molten rock. Ermac concentrated on her body and held out his arms, generating enough energy to throw an elephant.
Then, with one swift motion, threw her back toward himself. Ermac felt all of his energy literally leave his body as he let his hold of Ashrah go. The warrior hadn't used that much energy in a while, and it had taken it's toll. He was having a hard time breathing regularly, something that occurred as soon as he put his arms back to his sides. Ermac hissed in a sharp breath as his shoulder began to sting. He felt blood run down his back and side, soaking a small strip of his clothing. Great. Just what he needed in the Netherealm.
Ermac looked up to see where Ashrah had landed.
…Or, where she was going to land. Which, funnily enough, was going to be on Ermac if he didn't move. Of course the telekinetic fighter couldn't move. That didn't stop him from trying, though. Ermac managed to weakly move his legs just before the woman's body slammed into his chest.
If the loud crack that shook his body didn't hurt, him hitting the ground sure as hell did. Ermac choked out some sort of cough as he tried to regain some sort of composure. To no avail, of course. His ribs were damaged, hence the loud crack that exploded in his ears a few seconds earlier. Ermac grit his teeth together as he pushed himself up with his elbows, allowing Ashrah to fall off of him.
Ermac looked down at the woman he had just saved. Was it really worth it? He now had an unknown amount of broken ribs, a gash in his shoulder and was drained of his power. All for some stupid she-demon who picked a fight with him. He knew he was a "good guy" but he had gone completely soft. How had he managed to end up injured while she hadn't a scratch on her? Ermac stiffened at a terrifying thought -
- Maybe that was her power. Maybe she only seemed to be annoying and slightly dense when she really was a genius fighter. She had tricked him into sparing her, then she somehow twisted it so he was the one who sustained injuries. Ermac felt his breath catch in his throat as the woman stirred. She was only a few inches from him and he was so weak he couldn't even stand.
The woman's eyes fluttered open, and she automatically sat up, throwing her head in all directions, searching for an enemy. Ermac still wasn't breathing. Maybe she couldn't sense him if he sat perfectly still…
"What are you staring at, demon?" She spat as she glared at Ermac's rigid form. She took a moment to study the man and her whole demeanor changed. "What happened? You're bleeding from your mouth."
Ermac hadn't noticed the blood dripping from his wraps and down his neck. It wasn't that much blood, but it had somehow made it's way down to his collar. He must have been hit harder in the ribs than he thought. The warrior swallowed, almost gagging. He had never cared much for the taste of blood. Ermac wiped a hand over his neck, then over one of his pant legs. He didn't have time to worry about his injuries.
He had to get away from that woman.
Ashrah, apparently not liking Ermac's silence, grabbed the warrior's collar and yanked him closer to herself. "Now I can settle the score."
Ermac found himself getting tired of hearing Ashrah's voice. That probably had something to do with the she-demon (for she was a demon and he was not a demon) always having something to say about some fight she had supposedly had with him, her stupid sword, and that Ermac was a demon. He had even saved her - well, after he had tried to kill her. But that wasn't exactly his fault…
In any case, Ermac was pissed off.
Ermac slapped Ashrah's hand away from his collar. As he was trying to regain enough energy to stand, he decided to say a few words to the crazy woman who wanted to kill him. "We are leaving now; do not follow and do not try anything. We will spare you if you do as we say." He paused as he gave Ashrah a meaningful stare. "We will kill you if you try anything." Surprisingly she didn't say anything as Ermac stood and began walking away.
The red clad warrior was, for reasons unknown, reminded of a certain time he had shared with Kenshi. The two had been training for two days practically nonstop. They would have gone on longer if Kenshi hadn't of started complaining about a "muscle cramp". Ermac had agreed to a break, however. Even he was feeling exhausted. There was a comfortable silence as they sat - well, that was until Kenshi started laughing. Ermac raised his head from his meditative state and simply stared, waiting for an explanation. When one didn't come, he cleared his throat suggestively.
The blind man laughed again before giving any sort of answer and Ermac felt like rolling his eyes.
"What is so funny?" Ermac had asked. Kenshi chuckled as he turned his head in Ermac's direction.
"You're just so…I don't know. Easily ruffled. You wouldn't think it, the way you meditate all the time, but you are." He paused and laid back against a rock behind him. "I'd hate to really piss you off is all." Ermac stared, wide eyed, at his blind companion.
What did that mean? He had never been the one to be blinded by rage. Ermac, even though wanting more of an explanation, let it lie. He had a lot to teach Kenshi and sitting around talking wouldn't accomplish anything.
Of course, later in their time together they would spend whole days doing nothing but talking about each other's past experiences. Kenshi was Ermac's first actual friend. Something that could never be gained while under Shao Kahn's rule.
We need to leave this place, he thought as he noticed how numb he was. There wasn't really any time to be thinking about the past when he needed to focus on the present. Ermac had forgotten how much the Netherealm drained him. Especially when he had to fend off some crazy woman with an even crazier hat…
"Wait," Ashrah's voice cut through the air and Ermac flinched. He was not going to turn to her. He wasn't. If he did, he would do everything in his power to kill her. So, he continued to walk. Ermac needed to find a way out of there as quickly as possible or he would pass out and be at the mercy of whatever was in the Netherealm. Which, as he imagined, would be the end of him.
The she-demon said something else but Ermac blocked her voice out of his head. He didn't want to fight her again. Actually, he doubted he even could fight her in the condition he was in. He had a feeling however that if he had to, he would find a way to finish her off. She had grated on his nerves enough. More than anyone had in a long time when he thought about it…
"Ermac," Ashrah yelled, causing the warrior to stop. A mistake he realized as he began to fall to his knees. The woman was running toward him which, to put it simply, made Ermac prone to panic. He somehow stopped himself from falling and stood in a fighting position. He didn't need his powers to defend himself. He would do it the old fashioned way.
Ashrah had no idea why, but she had been saved by a demon. Well, she thought he was a demon. He said he wasn't, but it could always be a lie. He didn't look to be the honest type. She at first didn't care that he had saved her and was going to kill him anyway. He deserved it for defeating her before. Then, after he swatted her hand away, she noticed how much blood he had on him. Her hand was covered in red, along with the cuff of her sleeve. He had gone that far to save her? Even though he was the one who put her in danger, he was the one who had saved her. Ashrah then decided, in a split second decision, to find more out about the demon Ermac.
So, she started to try and get his attention. When that didn't work with words - even though she saw him pause momentarily when she first started to yell - Ashrah thought that the physical approach would work. Well, she yelled his name, which got his attention and even made him stop walking away. As she started running toward him however, he turned around and crouched into a fighting stance. Ashrah stopped and held her hands up defensively, even though she knew she could easily over-power him at that moment. He seemed completely drained of energy.
"I don't want to fight," she started, cautiously stepping forward. "I just want to ask you some questions." Ermac's eyes narrowed and Ashrah decided to wait to take another step.
"Really? If you did not want to fight, then why did you attack us?" Ashrah carefully thought of a response that wouldn't give the man a reason to attack.
"I…was alarmed when I saw you with my sword and…" She paused as she realized something. He still didn't remember the time they had fought. The nerve! "Wait, you don't remember our battle?"
Ermac sighed and lowered his arms weakly. "No, we don't remember ever fighting you."
Ashrah felt her eye twitch. The cocky bastard! "Oh, I see. I guess it would be hard for someone to remember a fight they had won so easily." Ermac cocked a dark eyebrow, but said nothing. She wished he would say something instead of standing there, looking stupid. "…That's it! I don't know why you just saved me, but it doesn't matter! I'm going to end your life!"
"Oh, really?" Ermac started as his expression changed from confused to angry. "We do not know why you keep insisting that we have ever fought you! Why are you attacking us? We don't want your sword and we don't want to waste our time fighting you."
There was a silence. Ashrah was so insulted she could do nothing more than stare with her mouth open. Ermac sighed tiredly and began to turn around to start walking again. Ashrah was not having that, however. She threw an energy sphere - a move she called heavenly light - and watched as it hit Ermac in his back. The warrior cried out as he fell forward.
Ashrah walked over to the unconscious figure and knelt down to finish what she had started. This was it! She would finally kill the demon -
"Don't even think about it," a voice hissed in her ear. Ashrah was shocked that someone had gotten so close to her without her noticing. The woman felt a cold blade press against her neck. She glanced down at the weapon and noticed it was a katana.
"Who are you?" Ashrah hissed back, almost just as hatefully. She was so close…
"I'm Kenshi," the stranger started. "And this is my friend, so I suggest you keep your hands off of him."
(I know Kenshi probably doesn't act exactly like that, but I like him like that and he'll stay that way in this story. Ha ha ha. I think it's cool!…*ahem* Anyways, I hope you enjoyed it. :D)
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