A/N: Grit and darkness aplenty here, won't be an easy read for some. And it's about to get even darker from here on out. The light at the end of the tunnel seems ever so far away...
Breathe Out...
Viper squirmed on the Emperor's lap. He'd pulled her onto it when she'd gone to speak with him about something. That something was long forgotten when he mischievously bit her collarbone. She yelped. He was on the throne, the throne, and yet, he was acting like he did in his, no, their bedroom.
Paced, quiet footsteps alerted Viper, who tried to scurry off the man's knee. Someone was about to enter the room. She couldn't pinpoint who exactly, but everything stilled with this intruder's presence. That concerned her. Shao was preoccupied with her being in a rather compromising place. Viper learned his tricks and played along, but still resisted him, just a tad.
Instead of letting this ail him, he continued to ravage the pale flesh in front of him when his head snapped up. His ears picked up on footsteps outside the throne room. Viper was looking at the entrance way too.
When the pair saw who it was, Shao growled. That perplexed Viper, but she felt his body stiffen with frustration. She looked at him and saw rage flicker in his eyes. She cooed to him, twirling one of his bone necklaces with her slim fingers. This did nothing to placate the man.
His hold on her tightened when the intruder walked into the room. The intruder riled him to the core.
A deserter, a traitor. And, in response to what they saw? The intruder simply smirked...
One week ago
Viper sat on her knees on Shao's bed, wrists bound to the pillars either side of her. Their 'little spark' was fast becoming a fully fledged storm. They'd gone from being together a few times a month to sleeping together every night, in the space of six months. She was sore but happy, even more so when she saw the Emperor, and the damage she had inflicted on him.
She'd ripped at his back, ending up with blood under her nails. Instead of harming her, the man seemed to love that she was fighting back, not just laying there and letting him get on with it. She'd bled a few times too. Somehow, the sting that radiated from little thread-like cuts made things much more interesting. It was a haze, a blur of pain and passion, a mix that she believed wouldn't gel, and yet, they did.
Shao caught her off guard a few times, when he wouldn't throw her around, dominate her. He'd let her take the lead, or take a slower, more intimate pace. This made her uncomfortable at first, looking into his eyes, as if one did a lover, who meant much more than they care to admit. Viper would like to think she had him wrapped around her little finger...
But, was that really the case, or did Shao have her wrapped around his?
Quan walked into the throne room cautiously. He had deserted the Emperor after all, and knew full well that would incur the bulky man's wrath. His 'toy' walked in behind him, heckles raised, in case the proverbial shit hit the proverbial fan, and they had to fight.
Quan stopped, and bowed. He gestured for Scorpion to follow his lead, but he did not. The sorcerer glared, meaning to hold back his tongue, when Shao spoke. His attention wasn't on the soulless man, but rather on him.
"How dare you return here".
Shao's threatening tone no longer bothered Quan, but decided it would be prudent to acknowledge the man's anger.
"My apologies Emperor, but if I did not flee, I would have been struck down by Raiden. He murdered Shang".
Shao blinked, partially stunned for a moment.
"Raiden murdered Shang? This is", he smirked, "troubling news for Earthrealm, once this gets out".
It blew the two men away when they discovered that little nugget of information. They could and would use that against Earthrealm, turn them against their so called 'protector'. Their God was nothing more than a callous murderer. The irony was not lost on the two men however, that they too were callous murderers...
The Earthrealm warriors would have to fight them as well as Raiden in that case. They would have no choice but to surrender, to be brought to Outworld and paraded around, like trophies, to mark the Emperor's success.
Scorpion's swirling, dull, cloudy white eyes eyed the new 'addition' warily. Viper glared back, fighting an urge to childishly stick out her tongue.
Shao nudged Viper, who, as gracefully as she could extracted herself from his lap. She almost tripped over the cape of her dress, but quickly regained her footing, and walked off, beet red. She felt a surge of heat radiate from the black and yellow robe clad man. Shao seemed to know the pasty faced man, but didn't acknowledge the other man. She did, and felt waves of anger rising within him. It was only a matter of time before the puppet attacked his master, the puppeteer...
"Viper".
Viper's head shot around, and she looked at ghost-face. She bit back a snicker at the nickname.
"Yes? And who are you?" She looked at Shao, then back to Quan. "You seem to have annoyed the Emperor too, which I do not advise. I'd tread lightly if I were you".
Quan blinked, offering a hand. Viper squinted. He was up to something, that she knew. She wasn't about to shake his hand with him thinking he had the upper ground, the advantage. So, she called his bluff.
"Ah, You must be the 'deserter' my Emperor spoke of. Tut tut, Quan, right? How dare you disgrace the realm and his name!"
Shao growled his approval, mixed with rage.
"Viper is right Quan. Tread carefully and swiftly, I've no time for talk of your petty feuds with Shang when he was alive. Unless you speak something useful, then I suggest you get out of my sight".
Quan coughed. "Of course Emperor". He took a deep breath. "Earthrealm is weak, it's defenses all but number zero now. Raiden has given up, so have Sonya Blade and Johnny Cage. Even Kara's family left their own daughter here to rot, wilt away slowly but surely. We must attack soon. The time is nigh. We cannot miss this opportunity to seize Earthrealm and the Heavens".
Shao's eyes gleamed with wonderment, excitement, almost like a child on Christmas Day, eagerly awaiting to be given a present to open.
That present, currently was Viper, who looked at him, an evil smile decorating her lips.
"Emperor? If I may be so bold, I believe Quan is right. Imagine it", she looked at the ceiling and waved her arms around slowly. "All that power, the realms, their lands, the people, the money. All those gains, yours. Oh, the glory!"
Shao smiled, an earnest one. That caused slight confusion in the sorcerer, before his brain put two and two together.
The Emperor didn't just like Viper.
No, it was vastly greater than that. Mere like wasn't good enough.
Oh Shao, fawning over this, thing? You've changed Emperor. You've been blinded by her, she is consuming your mind, stealing your thoughts and giving you what you crave. But, she isn't a gain Emperor.
She is your weakness. To be exploited, used. An asset to be played with, until the time is right to get rid of her. Blindness would be replaced, would consume you with grief.
Quan let out a breath and bowed, before taking his leave. His jaw hurt from the sneer and contempt he held for the man on the throne as he walked away with Scorpion in tow.
"Shang created Viper to divert the Emperor's attention from what we were doing, and it worked. And there was me, calling the man a fool. Yet, he succeeded". Quan laughed. "We strike soon Scorpion. You will defeat Viper and I Shao. But", he paused, prodding a long, slim finger against the other man's chest, "bring her to me, alive".
Scorpion nodded, though began feeling off. Ever since he had killed Sub-Zero, the second incarnation of him, he'd began feeling guilt. This confused the hell-spawn specter, who believed that the man standing beside him had eradicated any trace of feeling, humanity.
He ignored these troubling thoughts, that burrowed inside his mind like a tick, and followed the grey pallor man down the hallway.
The next day.
Raiden's home, The Heavens
Jakal strapped on his gauntlets and laced them up, before grabbing his greaves.
"So, we enter the palace, Shao will have guards dogs, so we must deal with them first. Then, we fight our way through to find Viper, defeat her, and regain Kara's soul. Then, we travel to where she is, and return her soul?"
Tiama shook her head. "Yes and no. The Emperor won't just let us waltz in there. We must divert his attention, and avoid Shang in the process. One of us will have to fight him if need be. Two will have to fight Viper, as she has proven that one won't be fast enough to take her down before she poisons them".
Johnny walked into the room and grimaced.
"Yeah, don't remind me, was puking green stuff for days after that. My guts were in agony".
Sonya strapped on a gun and shot him a look. Over the months he had been recovering, the others had seen a shift in her demeanor toward him. Yes she would still shout at him, or occasionally slap him, but she'd calmed considerably. Tiama knew the note in the change, the catalyst was Johnny, almost dying in front of her. She could deny it all she wished, but it became obvious rather quickly after the incident that she had affection for him.
"You're fine. It's Kara we have to worry about. She isn't okay, and if we don't get to her"...
Jakal cut her off. She stopped and shook her head apologetically.
"Tiama may not be able to sense her anymore, but I'm willing to bet she is till alive. Otherwise, why not attack us when this 'Viper' is at full power? To be at full power, they'd have to", he stopped abruptly, coughing gruffly, "well, you get the idea".
A quiet presence entered the room, alongside Fujin. He placed a hand on the older man's shoulder and nodded in determination and trying to lift the dire, somber mood.
"We must prepare for all eventualities. Shao hasn't yet tried anything, he cannot breach Earthrealm's protection, no matter how hard he tries. If his men find a way in? We will defeat them.".
Tiama braced herself. "If he murders my daughter, he can. I won't let that happen".
Raiden suddenly sprung to life, turning from impassive, stone-faced mannequin to animated being in seconds.
"None of us will allow that to happen Tiama".
Tiama realised she hadn't quite said what she wanted too and sighed.
"I'm sorry. I know you will all help get her back. I just, I'm confused. I know we have to kill many people to get to where we want to be, and I dislike that, strongly. But", she heaved another sigh, "I know we have too, so, I won't stand in your way".
Sonya walked around her and towards the front door.
"Fujin is right, anything could happen at the palace. We need to be ready for that". She grabbed an ammo belt and slipped it over her shoulder, wrapping it across her body. "Right. Is everyone ready?"
One by one, her fellows nodded. Jakal didn't, until after he grabbed his Bagh Naka gloves.
The six headed out of the home and away from the relative safety of the Heavens...
The Palace
Viper finished her morning run, and jogged up the stairs. Breakfast couldn't come soon enough, her stomach growled loudly, it sounded like a vicious dog with how loud it became. She hurried to her room, and found Arielle, making her bed and folding her freshly washed clothes. The smell of caramel wafted through the hallway, making both women ravenous.
She gave the maid a curt nod, before stripping and jumping into the shower.
When she finally got to eat, hot, buttered waffles to be exact, she only had a single bite, before Shao perked up, looking towards the large door at the end of the chamber. The woman didn't want to be disturbed, her meal to be ruined, so she picked up some of the waffle n hr fork, inching in near her lips, when a gust of wind blew through the room. She glanced around and saw a few windows open. She thought nothing of the matter. This was her first mistake.
Her second was ignoring the ever darkening skies, clouds shifting from soft, fluffy white, to dim shades of grey, right before her eyes. Shao noticed this, but did not comment.
Viper finally got to eat her waffles in peace, and savoured them, devouring three, and drinking what was claimed to be the, 'finest coffee in the realm'. She adored it. It wasn't overpowering, though not subtle either. It had the perfect middle ground. A croissant on a platter beside her plate looked enticing, though she did not take it. She felt full, so she left it, choosing to peruse a newspaper.
This was her third mistake, and Shao's first, though the servants in the room noticed a flash of purple light, right outside the east wing door. It was only there for a split second. It could have been a trick of the eye perhaps?
Viper looked at the servants, and followed their gaze. The quickly lowered their eyes to the floor. She didn't see anything, so she went back to reading, an article about the harvest, and how they were failing by the dozen. She stifled a yawn, unfazed by the news. She'd bet her last koin on how much the people would whimper and beg for the food that was on the table in front of her. This caused a giggle to slip past her lips. Shao took note, and put down his mug.
His second mistake. The sound of the woman laughing and the dull thud of the mug hitting the table masked a tapping sound, outside the room. It was light, almost inaudible. The tapping was someone rapping on the door, ever so slight, The person tapping was a guard, who slumped down dead seconds later. He was caught before he hit the ground, as to not make any other sound...
Minutes earlier
Palace hallways
Jakal cursed as the guard he thought he'd killed scampered off, tripping as he did so. He ran after the man, and covered his mouth, stabbing him with a claw of his glove.
He knew that behind the thick wooden door was Shao, and, Viper...
He bit back a growl. Tiama and Raiden had gone to the chamber Kara resided in, as he, Johnny, Fujin and Sonya cleared the hallways of patrolling guards.
They were to rendezvous to make sure everything was going according to plan, and that no one was seriously injured.
After double-checking the halls were indeed clear, Jakal raced downstairs and to the main walkway to the throne room. He met a white faced Tiama there, and a slightly less peaky looking Raiden. Fujin and Johnny appeared soon afterward.
Johnny looked around, a little puzzled as he regained his breath.
"Where's Son?" He knew she'd be okay, she was one tough cookie after all. He snorted. If she heard him call her that, she'd have slapped him. Playfully though, not meant to cause injury or offence.
Tiama grimaced. "I can sense her, she's fine. Kara though?" She sucked in a breath. Pain in her lungs made her cough. She spluttered saliva and started tearing up. "She...the energy she gave off. It was like a flame, just before it goes out, sputtering, fragile. I could barely feel it at all. I'd have to put her in a coma to be able to fully assess the damage, surround her in a cocoon".
Jakal nodded promptly. Whatever would get his little girl out of this hellhole safe and alive, he'd be willing to try.
A vision took the goddess away from the moment, and at the most inopportune if moments. She saw Sonya, being burned by a man she did not recognise. She shot awake, eyes wide in terror.
"Wait, who's that? He's immolating"...
A horrific scream was heard not too far from where the group were. Johnny immediately wretched, struggling to keep his throat from springing free of his mouth. He covered it with a hand, and ran to locate the source of the sound.
What they found had the actor feeling bile rising up his gullet, and he wasn't too sure if he swallowed it, it would stay down...
Sonya lay on the ground screaming. She rolled around on the stone, desperate to put out the flames that scorched her skin, killing her slowly, from the outside inward. The smell of burning flesh tinged the air, causing dry heaves from her friends.. She screeched herself hoarse, her throat raw and face wet with tears. Johnny swore, and ran over to help her. Tiama stopped him, stopping the specter in his tracks freezing him. She sent a wave of healing energy over to the flailing blond, and it put out the flames.
The man growled, a sound the group hadn't heard before. It sounded territorial, something Jakal would do when he was protecting his family. Like a lion at the head of a pride, Johnny wanted, needed to protect Sonya from further harm.
Tiama begged him. "No! He's too strong! Look, I understand how you feel".
He shook free of her grasp and cursed. "No, you really don't".
Jakal shot him a look and defended his wife.
"Johnny, breathe. We will help Sonya, we will help you defeat Scorpion too, Lets not argue, we need to be a cohesive unit here".
The man shook his head in apology. Raiden blasted Scorpion with a bolt. He groaned and stumbled backwards. That was Johnny's chance. Whilst his guard was lowered, the actor ran in and punched under his chin. Scorpion hit the floor hard, groggy from the hit. He rolled away and pushed himself up, onto his knees, shaking his head of dizziness. Johnny didn't give the man any chance to recover. He grabbed the collar od his robe, yanked him forward and punched him repeatedly in the face.
He stopped suddenly, and turned.
"Get Sonya out of here".
Sonya started gurgling. He dropped Scorpion and dropped to his knees, unable to walk anymore. He crawled over to her, propping her up, against his knee.
She lay in Johnny's arms, struggling to keep her eyelids from shutting.
"Hey...", he shook her gently, "Hey, Son. Hey!" He gulped. "Don't do this to me". He cursed and whispered. "I care about you, dammit".
Sonya made a pitiful snort. "No you don't Cage".
"Son, I'm serious".
She blinked, tears appearing om her eyes. "Wait...you are aren't you?"
The actor nodded several times. He turned back to Tiama and Raiden and begged again.
"Please, get her out of here".
He too was tearing up. He couldn't pick the woman up, her skin was raw, bloody. Tiama ran over, and put her in a cocoon of telekinetic energy. Johnny looked away, sniffed and looked back, nodding in thanks.
It all went quiet for a short period so the group took the opportunity to catch their breath. Fujin took Sonya back to the portal, and to the Sky Temple. Raiden, Tiama, Jakal and Johnny remained in the room, rapidly coming to the realization that as Tiama could not sense her daughter's presence at all, she very well may be dead...
The woman in question shook her head, fighting to keep positive, and upbeat. She had broken several times before prior to this day, and was not about to let herself break again. She was going to find her child, defeat Shao and Viper, and nothing would stop her.
"Someone's coming".
Jakal looked and growled. "I'll fight them, Go, find Shao and Viper. End this".
He pulled his wife towards him and kissed her, placing both hands on her face. He held her, feeling their heartbeats clash, her's calm, his rapid, creating disharmonious chords in an already terrible melody.
Quan walked around the corner, and the sight the greeted him, the group of Earthrealm warriors, and, more specifically, Scorpion, motionless on the floor made him growl. Jakal bellowed, getting ready to fight the sorcerer.
"GO!"
The two gods and Johnny ran from the room, down several sets of stairs, and to the chamber, where Kara's body lay. It was quiet, eerily so. Too quiet.
Raiden stopped the others from walking into the room.
"Something's wrong".
The four heard clapping. Raiden's heart stopped beating, Tiama's stomach dropped, and Johnny swore, feeling weary, done with it all.
Still, they had a job to do, and he'd help see it through.
A small, but malicious voice greeted them, before they saw whom spoke the words.
"I thought I sensed some", Viper appeared and walked in front of them and Kara's body.
She smirked.
"Rats"...