A/N: I want to hug Kara, in fact, all of her family. They're going through hell, though they aren't the only ones. I also want to hug Raiden, though I doubt my version, perhaps even him in-game would let me. I don't know. The tunnel was long, treacherous and dark, but it had to end at some point, and Kara would find the end...
Convalesce
The first few days after rescuing Kara were spent watching over her in the Jinsei Chamber. The Amakura's, Fujin, Johnny and Raiden alternated between keeping watch over her, and Sonya. Her skin was blistered, some charred, reddened significantly. She was bound in bandages and needed round the clock applications of topical antibiotic cream, and regular painkillers. They were strong, knocking her out for significant periods of time.
They were exhausted. Tiama looked through her daughter's mind, recoiling multiple times. A loop of turmoil, writhing in agony on the cold, dank cell floor she was in, losing all hope, and having the fight, her words beaten out of her. Shang wasn't as terrible as she first thought however. He did not harm Kara, Quan did, but not he. The goddess saw another vision, in which the black haired sorcerer warned his pale counterpart to avoid breaking too much of Kara's body. He needed her weakened so she couldn't fight back, not broken and bloody. Shao did not listen to this advice however, repeatedly smashing Tiama's daughter into his hammer and against the floor. She was all but dead when Shang got to her, and had to carefully scoop her up, and fast track his plans to steal her soul and siphon her power.
Tiama stopped the vision abruptly, a dizzy turn accompanied by nausea the cause. She stood up, dusted off her robes, and left the chamber as fast as she could. She got just outside the door before retching. She tried to walk further to the edge, to avoid vomiting on the stone. Her bleary eyed husband, who was jogging up the stairs saw her, stumbling blindly towards the edge of the floor. Beneath it was an ominous, deep drop. He snapped out of his sleepy daze and ran up to her. Her gagging made he himself feel sick, but he put that to the back of his mind. What mattered was her.
He patted her back, and swung his backpack from shoulder. He opened it and took out a water bottle. He'd had half of it already, but payed that no mind as he unscrewed the lid, and helped his wife drink the cool liquid. She coughed at first, but managed to keep it in her mouth before swallowing. She looked at him and nodded, leaning against a thick pillar for support.
"You don't look too good honey. Want me to take you home?"
Tiama looked at the chamber door. "I thought you were going to look after Kara for a bit, then Raiden said he would watch over her?"
Jakal nodded, then shrugged. "Raiden told me he'd take over my shift. I just wanted to see her, that's all. God". He grunted, trying to mask the emotion that wished to pour out of his eyes. Tiama forgot about herself and raised a brow.
"You still do that, even around me, your wife? If you wish to cry, cry. Why on Earthrealm would I judge you, hmm?"
Jakal sighed. "I know. I just, I need rest, but I can't. I can't. My baby is in there, almost dead and I can't do a damn thing about it!"
Tiama gave a much higher pitched grunt of her own and cupped her husband's face.
"I know, Gods, I know. Come home, just for tonight? Please".
She begged him. He sorely needed rest, his body ached with any movement he made. Even walking hurt his bones. He nodded and wrapped an arm around his wife.
"You don't need to ask, you never need too".
The pair left the Sky Temple and returned to their home, knowing Kara was in safe hands, but, still, they felt they should watch over her, protect her. They had failed her twice after all...
Raiden sat in-between Kara and Sonya's forms. Sonya was sleeping peacefully, Kara was not. Hers was fretful, her eyebrows furrowed, position taut, stiff. It was obvious something dark plagued her, and the Elder God knew he didn't need to think hard on what those dark things would be. Tiama hadn't shared her memories, though he knew what they'd be. Nothing but agony, a seemingly never-ending darkness, no light allowed to permeate it, dilute its inky blackness. Logic honed over millennia told him not to peer into her mind, unless with express permission from her.
And, since she was unconscious, he wouldn't be getting that any time soon, if at all.
He wasn't about to ask Lady Tiama either. She had enough on her plate. Her daughter being in a perpetual state of flux, on a thin wire between life and death tore her apart, along with her husband. Their wall of strength was crumbling around them, and they had no one to fall back on...
Or so they thought. Raiden and Fujin stepped in, not because they wanted glory for assisting the fallen warriors, but, rather, they kept true to their word. They would protect and serve, serve with care and attention, and protect with an iron fist.
He observed the young Lin Kuei acolyte shifting, yawning and an arm moving, to cover her mouth. He took her arm and placed it back on the ground. It seemed her sleep wasn't as deep as he thought, as deep as it should be. He sighed, and chanted the same spell Tiama had used to place her only child into a 'coma'. Kara stopped moving and let out a slow, calm stream of breath. The Jinsei moved with the man's hand, and it covered Kara in a womb-like bubble, shielding her from herself. She wasn't in her right mind to be up and about. She settled down, her chest stopping it's heaving motion. Raiden sighed.
One step at a time...
Except, that one step at a time became a leap. After six days, Kara woke suddenly with a start. She waved her arms about, screaming loudly. Raiden was there and this agitated him. He almost ran a hand through her matted hair, before he caught himself. She had been manhandled, wounded severely by men. He knew he needed to proceed with caution.
As much as he wanted to help end her misery, use the Jinsei's energy to calm, ease her troubles, he couldn't. Her recovery must be controlled in order for her mind to recover as well as her body. They had to be at similar paces in order for her to regain her humanity, a sense of normality. The Elder God knew Kara wouldn't see being controlled as being 'helped to get better'. She would see it as them trying to harm her further. Her body had begun to heal, but her mind was all over the place. Tiama showed him what Kara was seeing time and time again. The breath caught in his mouth as he saw Shao Kahn striking the young mortal down, blow after blow snapping bones, spilling crimson. That held breath came out as a growl and he snarled. Tiama caught that. She chose not to say anything, but she made another, worrying mental note.
Raiden was changing before their eyes, and it didn't look to be for the better...
Kara opened her eyes, though they were hazy, unfocused, cloudy from the crust of a long sleep and resisted tears she fought with all her might. Which wasn't much anymore, she wasn't allowed to weep, even silently in the palace. Her body would tremble, her form wracking. This would prompt a guard to enter her cell and knock her unconscious. Her eyes were sore and she found she couldn't move. White light flickered in her vision, she couldn't distinguish what it was, the source of it. She knew one thing however, she wasn't in pain, any pain. This formed a smile on her face as she drifted back off to a nightmare riddled sleep.
Raiden let out the breath he'd sucked in prior. She hadn't seen him, therefore, she remained still, relaxed. She didn't look angry, nor perturbed, merely lost.
A little lamb, lost in a vast field full of predators. Perfectly camouflaged, hidden from view.
The Elder God quickly got in touch with Tiama, who arrived in seconds, alongside Fujin. The two were pleased progress had been made, though slow, Kara waking up and her body healing meant they took a big step forward, not backward. They thought Kara was asleep. She wasn't. She woke up again, yawning, leaning up on her elbows. Watery vision meant she couldn't work out who was around her, but she wasn't frightened, she didn't feel the need to be. She closed her eyes again shortly thereafter, the glaring white light entering them blinding her.
Three months later
Tiama lay down next to her daughter, in an attempt to see if she could communicate with her. It had been such a long time since she had heard her voice, her own daughter's voice, and she sorely missed it. Even when she was being argumentative or crass. She dearly missed the rough edges Kara's voice had, the little sarcastic ditty's, the elevation in pitch when she grew frustrated.
Hell, she even missed when she folded her arms and pouted, like a little child would. She curled up, in an almost fetus-like fashion, and placed a hand on Kara's chest.
"Hello sweet one".
Kara opened her eyes and stared at the roughly hewn rock above her.
"Hmm? Mom?"
She tuned in and out, the voice she heard sounded muffled, as if her head was underwater. Though, she could breathe, so clearly wasn't submerged.
"Yes!" Tiama's face lit up. "Yes Kara!"
She spoke with her husband, who waited outside.
She recognises me.
Nothing could stop the large smile that Jakal wore after hearing that. A 'shit-eating grin' as he'd call it...
Tiama felt the steady beats of her child's heart and counted them in her head. After a minute, she sighed happily. It wasn't racing, nor was it struggling.
Kara, dazed and confused looked to her Mother, then around the room warily. She didn't know this place, where she was.
"What...where is this?"
"The Jinsei Chamber sweetheart. We rescued you from Shao's clutches. He won't be troubling you, us or Earthrealm again".
Kara blinked methodically, trying to gauge her surroundings. The gentle vibrations in the ground, the whirl of, energy? It was some kind of soothing energy she felt all around her. It didn't feel malicious, nor was it green. That thought made her bristle. Tiama caught that.
"Hush now little one. You'll be okay, I swear on my life you will be alright".
A chuckle slipping past her daughter's lips caught the goddess off guard.
"You still call me 'little one' huh".
Tiama burst out laughing until tears formed in her eyes. Jakal opened the door, having heard the sounds. He got mixed messages from them, and wasn't sure whether to be worried or happy.
What he saw made him immensely happy. Kara was smiling and giggling, Tiama was grinning and clutching her stomach from laughter...
And the General of the Lin Kuei? He was fit to burst with overwhelming happiness. Kara looked at him and smiled.
"Hey Dad".
The man in question ran over to his family, holding both like they were the air he desperately needed, the oxygen to help his lungs and heart function.
They were...
Fujin and Raiden waited outside, respecting the privacy of the family. Both gods were enjoying this sweet little moment, but, they knew it would be temporary. Kara's mind wouldn't just stop making her see what she went through over those months. Her mind would need time, a lot of it. They would give her all the time she needed to recuperate. Fujin patted his elders' back, and walked away.
Raiden knew Kara may never be like her old self again. For this, he wasn't sure whether to appreciate it or not. Her old self liked mischief, to have fun, not take things too seriously. And, whilst that was a welcome change to the drab, intense atmosphere of Outworld during the tournament, the man felt she lacked the skill necessary to hold her own. Her styles and moves may be have been swift, but they were not decisive, nor was her character.
If she were to fight? Had she fought in the kontest? She wouldn't have lasted long, a day at most.
That sent a painfully cold shiver down the man's spine.
But, Raiden smiled, he allowed himself a smile, a little ray of hope to cut through the overbearing, looming shadows ahead...
A week later
"Mom. How long have I been, here? There? Outworld?"
The fact that Kara's mind was still confused, scrambling around for information that was clearly misplaced saddened the goddess.
"Here? Four months. The palace?" She stopped, contemplating how to say this without aggravating her daughter's mood and condition. Honesty was the best policy she believed, but, right now, she was considering telling a lie, though it would be found out later. Kara would work out sooner rather than later that she'd lied.
"You were there almost six months Kara".
Kara's mouth gaped, her pupils were huge, dish saucer size. She ground her nails into the palms of her hands until it hurt, deep crescent shaped marks marring the skin.
"What? It's been almost a year? How?" She looked her Mother in the eye. "Why? Why leave me there?"
Tiama gulped. "Kara, we were significantly wounded in the fight to get you back the first time. By the time we'd recovered, Shao had already"...she petered off, unsure how to proceed.
"Tell me Mom. Tell me what he did".
"Don't you see it?"
The young woman shook her head. "No, I wouldn't ask if I did". Her tone was harsh, sharp. Tiama knew she didn't mean to be, though it stung her inside to hear that tone.
"Shang created a husk, which he used your soul to animate. She gained your abilities, and looked very much like you. She served the Emperor".
Kara bit back. "I saw him, and, me? No, it wasn't me. It was the husk you speak of. They were...Gods".
Tiama grimaced. "I know darling, I know. I looked into your mind. That wasn't you".
Kara bit her bottom lip, so hard it shifted from shade of pink to ruby.
"He may not have violated me, but Shang did. My privacy, using me for his own whims, his gains. What I wouldn't give too...".
Tiama cut her off. "He's gone Kara. He'll trouble you no more".
Kara interjected. "But he does Mom! He does! He still does! Fuck. I can't...I can't Mom. I can't! I can't think", she looked down at her frame, now once small, curvy figure now slender, bony, very slim, "what's keeping me alive here? I haven't eaten in months!"
Tiama shook her head. "The Jinsei's energy is life Kara, it gives life. It heals and rejuvenates, both body and mind. This is why you haven't needed sustenance".
Kara frowned. "Well, obviously I do! I'm a stick Mother, a fucking stick, and I don't like it, not one bit".
Tiama shook her head, more forcefully this time. "We can't take you out of here just yet. I need to see inside your mind, rid you of those thoughts, muddled up memories. And, also, you are seeing things that didn't happen to you. I know this as when I went to look again, they had changed. Even if that change was subtle, minimal, it means your mind is playing tricks on you".
Kara acquiesced, and lay back down.
I wish you didn't need to do that, delving into my innermost, private thoughts but, you're right.
Tiama perked up.
I heard that.
Kara turned her head towards her Mother. "Did you say something?"
Tiama's slight smile died. "Your body isn't taking in your abilities as I thought it would. You can't speak to me with your mind? Granted, I'm releasing the energy from the elemental stone steadily but you should be able to speak to me at this point".
Kara sighed. "No. I'm sorry Mom. I haven't used my abilities to do something, anything for a while, so I'm rusty. I haven't needed to exert myself".
She tapped her temple. "I'm going back to sleep. Could you look into my dreams and gauge how to go from there? I don't want to see any of it, but I know I need to face it in order to beat it".
Tiama remained solemn, a nod the only reply she could offer. Her daughter closed her eyes, giving in to a slumber most disturbing.
Kara, tonight was subjected to another night in her cell. This time, manacles had been placed around her ankles. She sat on the chilly ground and could not move very far from the spot. She also couldn't reach the bed, and had to sleep on the floor. She couldn't. Back at home, Kara would have at least two covers over her when in bed, or a duvet if it were Winter time.
In here? It was Autumn, but that didn't mean there wasn't a chill in the air.
And she felt it. She knew everyone else down there would too. She'd have to grin and bear it.
If ever there was a time, where she needed to not act like a toddler, it was now.
She sniffled, liquid threatening to come out of her nose. She coughed, swallowing the mucus buildup in her throat. The bitter chill made her nose run, her eyes sting. She cursed aloud, uncaring whom heard it. A few prisoners shouted or groaned, whether in response or from addled minds she could not distinguish. Their sounds caused anxiety to spike on her veins, her fight or fight instinct kicked in. She could not fight, nor could she flee.
She was helpless, utterly so, devoid of confidence, her optimism fizzling away. The sour taste and smell of not being able to wash hit her nose. She grimaced, using a hand to try and detangle the knotted, once straight locks that were her hair. She missed even the smallest comforts.
The thick flower print blanket that her Gran knitted for her.
Her comb, there was something therapeutic about gliding that through her hair, freeing it from tangles and knots.
The soft, cool breeze that accompanied hot Summer days and nights, the leaves becoming orange, burnished bronze and amber, signalling the coming of Autumn.
Hell, she even missed being shouted at. She knew when her peers did so, it wasn't to demean or terrorize her. It was to let her know she was doing something wrong, help her move past it.
When her enemies shouted at her, especially Shao, Kara knew it was to demean her, to drag her down, to have her mood swing so low, she'd actually considered committing suicide.
Those thoughts made her bristle. Even when Smoke attacked her, seemingly out of nowhere, she hadn't gotten to that point, the point of no return, no second chances.
Never had she felt so alone and afraid. It permeated every cell, fibre of her being, at no time lessening its grip on her body, mind or sanity. She could no longer tell if wanting to scream told others she was petrified or slowly going insane.
Or which of those were which any more, when she laughed, cried, groaned or screamed her throat raw. She spat up blood at one point, trying to convince herself it was a small tear in her throat that was the cause and not some horrid disease, burrowing it's way inside her.
By the time Shang came for her, this was the day that she 'died', she borderline welcomed the punishment awaiting, for being foolish and getting caught in the first p;ace. The sorcerer's and Emperor were not about to play house with her.
So, to be putting into a death-like sleep for over half a year? This she wasn't expecting. This carried on the torture. It shifted from physical to mental.
When she woke up, she felt nothing, no energy, no emotion, she was dead inside. Voices in a silent chamber faded in and out of her ears as she tried to focus on placing them. She knew one was friendly, she just knew, her gut telling her so.
Then, another deeper, rougher tone came, and at first she thought it was Shao. She tried to shoot back, frightened of this new voice.
It turned out to be her Father however, and Kara felt ashamed that she didn't initially recognise his voice, and tried, well, attempted to flee from him.
A 'new' voice greeted her softly, a little less gruff than her Father's. This one she knew, but couldn't place his name. The man introduced himself as Fujin. A light bulb went off in the young woman's mind.
Fujin, God of wind. If he's there, then...
The last voice she heard didn't sound like she thought it should. It was Raiden, that she knew, but his voice carried an edge she hadn't heard before. It gave off exasperation, and something else she couldn't place.
She left it, for now. She'd speak with him another time.
Six weeks later
Winter began worming it's way through the Sky Temple complex, and despite being trained up a mountain, in blizzard-like conditions, Jakal walked up the stairs with a thick fur-lined jacket tightly wrapped around him. He walked to the Jinsei chamber door, kicked the snow off his boots and opened it. Kara sat up when she saw him, looking much more like her usual, perky self. The warmth that filled the man's chest made him take the jacket off. He no longer needed it.
"Hey there, cub".
He sat beside her and rubbed her back.
"How are you feeling?"
Kara tilted her head and half-shrugged. "I feel okay. Mom's helped rid my mind of the delusions". She sighed. "I feel crazy just saying that. Am I crazy?"
Jakal shook his head. "No sweetheart, you wouldn't know if you were. You've been through a lot, your brain was trying to process it all. Of course it could get muddled up".
Kara had something to say that she wasn't sure she should say, her Father knew her that well.
"Okay, spill".
They laughed. "Could I join the Lin Kuei again?" She said that quickly. She backtracked. "I mean"...
Jakal wasn't sure how to answer that. He looked beside her at Sub-Zero's body, his mouth forming a thin line.
"When you're better, right? Well, it depends on how Sub-Zero is doing. He looks like his usual self again, but his mind may not be what it used to be".
The caused a somber, staccato note in the vast chamber. Kara tried to lift it.
"My telekinesis is back".
Jakal smirked. "Oh great. ow you can go back to talking about me behind my back".
Kara laughed. "You know it. Seriously though. I've missed it. I know it sounds invasive and intrusive, but I always appreciated it, you know? Sometimes I'm useless with words, getting my feelings across usually involves a barrage of swearing. But, using my mind, I can get across what I want to, what I need to".
Jakal shook his head. "It's only invasive if you do it without the other person knowing, and or without their permission".
His daughter snickered, unable to resist a dig.
Have you abandoned your razor? It looks like you've glued some carpet to your face. Mom can't possibly like that, can she?
Her Father grinned, perturbing her slightly.
She does actually.
Kara shook her head. "No she doesn't".
Jakal nodded. "She does".
Kara interjected. "No Dad, she really doesn't".
Silence came after that, then loud laughter, which awoke Sub-Zero. The man beside them yawned, opening sky blue eyes. He wiped the sleep from his eyes and sat up.
When he saw Kara and Jakal, he smiled. He'd lost so much in a short space of time.
At least they were still alive...
Seven weeks later
"Kara".
Kara woke up and stretched. Lord Raiden stood before her. She clicked her neck and each area of her body in succession. This was the chance she had to speak with him, question the inflection she could hear quite clearly in his voice.
"Good morning Lord Raiden. I've been meaning to speak with you".
Raiden nodded. "And you. I wish to apologise for my coldness, my reluctance to be here. It wasn't that I did not wish for your recovery, I assure you".
That tone was there, it remained. Was it worry? Was the man unsure?
She nodded. "I know, Lord Raiden. You don't need to assure me. You've seen enough suffering as it is, you didn't want to see someone else suffering. I get that. I don't hate you, if that's what you're getting at".
A slight, almost missed by Kara's ears tremble in pitch caused worry to plop itself in her gut.
It was anxiety, nerves fluttering around, that he tried to swallow down.
"No. You should Kara. I've failed you, I failed Earthrealm, I failed in my vow to protect it. We've only recovered a few souls. The others are hidden from us, no doubt in Quan's possession. He shouldn't have been missed, we allowed him to flee".
Kara doubted that. "You wouldn't just let him waltz off like it's nothing. If he got away unscathed, it's because there was a diversion, right?"
Raiden would have nodded, but caught himself.
Yes. Viper...
Kara looked at him, expression torn between wanting to be pissed that he wouldn't tell her his version of what happened, the truth of the matter, and wanting to console him. He looked like he needed it. He wouldn't voice it, but she wasn't born yesterday. She could see that he did.
"I know about it all Lord Raiden. You don't ave to hide it from me. Yes, it still makes me feel violated and sick when I hear it, or speak of it, but it's over, and has been for quite some time. I'll be okay, more importantly, Earthrealm will be too. We'll rebuild it from the ground up. Shao's gone, we don't have to worry about any power struggles as far as I know. Breathe, okay? You're allowed to do that too you know".
This caused a smile, which Kara approved of.
"You're also allowed to smile too. Besides, it uses less muscles than frowning. Don't want frown lines now, do we?"
That smile widened, so did his eyes. Kara belly-laughed, ending up haphazardly on the floor, limbs flailing in every direction. Raiden shook his head.
Her childish side was still there, and yet, with all she had been through, all she had fought past, he greatly appreciated that Kara still had impish innocence about her...
A light rapping on the entrance took his attention. Kara hadn't heard it, she was still giggling, now bright red in the face, clearly enjoying her little 'joke'.
It opened, and in ran Johnny. He skidded to a halt and took some time to get his breath back.
"Lord Raiden. Sorry to disturb".
Raiden motioned for him to continue.
"We've found and recovered Liu Kang's, Jax's and Kung Lao's bodies. We have their souls too".
At that moment, Tiama, Sonya and Jakal walked in. Three bodies floated by them, and Tiama held three swirling white orbs in her hands.
Their souls...
Raiden's heart skipped a beat, then several more. It suddenly jumped around, as his brain scrambled to process the news.
The two men he thought of as family? They were back...