Inter-Realm Alliance
Outworld finds itself in a similar crisis—at least in the eyes of those not native to the realm. Familiar settings started to appear in the vast nothingness surrounding Shang Tsung's Island. Chan and OIA find themselves cornered by a few of the Seidan Guard, questioning what was occurring.
"We told you already," Jin said, "we don't know what's going on either!"
"Ignorance is no excuse, outsiders," one of the guards said. "Are those structures not made of Earthrealm design?"
"How can you even tell its Earthrealm design?" Cassie questioned. "It looks that same as anything made in this realm."
The castle of Shao Kahn doesn't even reach the heights of those!" another Guard argued, pointing to the skyscrapers in the distance.
"Great," Cassie whispered.
"We'll look into the disturbance, but I can assure you, this is not our doing."
"I'll hear you out," the same guard said. "Who is responsible for the chaos?" Jacqui remained silent, looking down at the man's feet.
"Wait a minute," Chan said, as he observed the buildings. "It seems as if Outworld is merging with Earthrealm somehow. It should be impossible by the laws of the Elder Lords. So what is it that's allowing the realms to be merged now?"
"Care to inform us of these laws?"
"The law that says Shao Kahn cannot merge with any realm without winning in life or death tournament known as Mortal Kombat," Chan explained. "However, there is a caveat when it comes to realm allied with Edenia after Queen Sindel's death. They must achieve 10 victories, one every century, before that can claim the opposing realm."
"And how many victories did they have?" he asked.
"Nine," Chan said. "Only nine. Knightwolf is the champion of Earthrealm, I'm told."
"Then can you explain how it is that the law of the Elder Lords could be defied so easily that the merger would still continue?"
"No," Chan responded reluctantly. "I made a deal with Shang Tsung to allow the merger if they were to help me with a mission to prevent...chaos from occurring in Russia. However, that agreement was deemed void when I disappeared from existence for fifteen years."
"Chan," Jacqui called. The boy stopped talking. Takeda sighs.
"I was thinking the same th—" Takeda was struck by the girl, prompting the guard to raise their weapons to her.
"What are you doing?" they questioned.
"It's a family matter," Jacqui says before giving Takeda a death stare. "Now if you don't mind, can you all put those things away?"
"Keep your own arms at bay, Miss Jacqueline," one of them responded. She sighs and turns to Chan.
"Now," she began, there's two flaws in your statement. One being that the rule was made for Shao Kahn who's no longer with us. The second being that Outworld itself is not allowed to merge with Earthrealm, but what if Edenia is?"
"Edenia is still Outworld."
"Under who's law?" Jacqui asked.
"You're talking in circles girl," the man said.
"You asked who did this," Jacqui questioned rhetorically. "We can't give a concrete answer, but there are three people who may be responsible: Kotal Kahn, Kitana, or Anomaly."
The guard begins to comment, but he's interrupted by a communication he hears inside his helmet. He looks at the buildings still appearing around Outworld before turning his attention to the Earthrealmers. He then looks up to the Castle of Outworld, seeing smoke coming from the inside. Chan and the crew see the same, knowing something was wrong.
"Chan," Takeda whispered. "open the portal to another realm immediately."
"What?" Chan responded.
"Now!" Takeda whispered harshly. Chan immediately turns around and spreads his arms wide. The ground of the courtyard glowed green before turning the floor into a portal itself.
"Stop!" the guard shouted, but the five of them departed from his presence already. As the move in on the courtyard, they find themselves flinging upward before landing on their backs. Cassie groans in pain as she hears a loud ringing noise in the back of her head. Chan looks at the guards as one of their captains approached: Dairou.
"Where do you think you're going?" he asked.
"Anywhere but here," Chan responded. "The portals have been reopened. You all can return to Seido."
"And where will you all go?" Dairou questioned. "Your home seems to be Outworld now, is it not?"
"It is not," Jin responded.
"You can't hold us here," Jacqui responded.
"We can," he said, "And we will." He orders his men to apprehend the young warriors, but they are blocked off by the arrival of Lui Kang, Kung Lao, and Kotal Kahn.
"Leave now!" Kung Lao says as the three of them pulled the warriors to their feet.
"What about you three?" Chan asked.
"Are you the older brother now?" Lui Kang joked. Chan sighed and nodded.
"What about you?" Jacqui asked Kotal Kahn.
"I will remain here until I find another Portal Stone," he says. "I feel my father's presence in this realm. Anomaly's doing more than likely."
"Wait," Takeda said, "are you the one merging this realm with Earthrealm?"
"I have no such power," Kotal responded. "Only Shang Tsung and Shao Kahn knew that secret."
"Go!" Lui Kang yelled before kicking one of the guards. The five warriors ran toward the portal once more. Dairou raises his legs before slamming it directly onto the ground. However, his foot lands atop of Kung Lao's hat. The force of the stomp causes him to crush the hat, but the ground remains still. With a short hop, the five young warriors were gone.
"Will you two be okay guarding this portal alone?" Kotal asked.
"Do you really have to ask?" Lui Kang said. Kotal nods.
"Outworld owes you our thanks."
Kitana looks up to the burning castle of Outworld. Mass Panic and chaos spread around her. Numerous Seidan Soldiers directed many of Outworld's civilians away from the location. As she walks towards the castle, she is blocked off by two of the guards. The cloak and mask she wore kept her identity disguised from them.
"No one is to go beyond this point. Follow the path given by the other guardsmen."
"What is going on?" Kitana asked in a faux french accent she picked up from Earthrealm. "I am to work in the castle today."
"The realm shook and when we came to your emperor for answers, he ordered an attack on our people."
"And do you plan to send us to our deaths in response?" she asked.
"Are you insane?" the other guard questioned. "Retaliation against those who are not involved is against our laws." She knew this. She tried to pry a bit more, hoping to be able to sneak inside.
"Does your rules require civilians to be protected even when they don't want to be?" she asked.
"We are required to protect all civilians so long as they cooperate with us."
"But does it forbade me from walking into danger of my own volition?" she emphasized. The guard shakes his head.
"That would be very unwise," he remarked, "but...it does not."
"Please, allow me to pass," she asked. "I won't be long, and I'll stay out of the way." The guards looked at one another.
"Do you have identification showing you are part of the staff?" one of them asked.
"Right here," Kitana said, showing a card with an Outworld seal stamped by Kotal Kahn. The two men nodded and stepped aside. "I am grateful," she says as she walks pass them. "Truly."
"What the hell did you just call me?" Anomaly questioned.
"We know how your powers work, Aisa," he continued. "Lay down your weapon and accept your execution. We will make this worse if you resist."
What does that name mean?" Kreeya questioned.
"It is my real name," Anomaly responded looking back at Kreeya in surprise. "That was the name of an Outworld Slave, I go by Anomaly now." Anomaly shook her head. "Whatever Eunomia told you was a lie. Knowing my name alone is not enough to stop me." Anomaly's body glows gold. The power of the soulnados increase with intensity, beginning to claim the souls of many Outworld citizens. Suddenly, golden bolts of lightning depart from Japan's soulnado and strikes the ground beneath them. The Guardsmen begin to swing their naginatas toward Anomaly, which she defends herself against them. They fight her in an organized fashion, with her barely avoiding them. One of the men cut through her left leg, causing her to fall. The wound doesn't heal, as she expected.
"So long," one of the Guardsmen said bluntly. She raises his Naginata and forces it down toward the woman. The blade phases through the woman as her body flashes purple. She quickly moves aside before her power ends. The stunned guardsman is stabbed in the back by a sword. Not from the hands of Kreeya, but from a member of her race. Kreeya looks around at the gray skinned infestation of her race roaming the battle field to face off against the other races.
"What dark sorcery is this?" Kreeya questioned. She remembers the war between Shinnok and Raiden from centuries ago—a war she participated in. She remembers the final moments of that war when her children perished and their numbers were less than a dozen. Without warning, Shinnok resurrected her deceased members. However, they were only husks of their former selves. The woman fought back, but Shinnok declared her an infidel and struck her dead.
She finds herself stunned. She was unfazed by the numerous bullets, blades, and claws striking against her body. All around her, she saw the undead of her kind fighting against the enemy. Flashbacks kept creeping into her mind. Finally, one of the Saurians spits acid in her direction. She moves her head to the side and the acid lands on the face of a Tarkatan warrior. As he screamed in agony, Kreeya's anger grew. She slams her hand atop of the Tarkatan's melted head, scattering it around her. The others remained fearless and continued to face her. The woman grabbed one of them and snaps their back in half. She cuts down many of the men with a series of kicks.
While she was successful in her battles, her daughters were not so lucky. Over and over, Kreeya's allies fell. The woman's strength grew as did her anger. Anomaly did her best against the Seidan Guard as the Soulnado claimed more and more souls of the fallen. Blood painted Kreeya's face and body as she pushed through the crowd. Cries come from around them as the families of those she's killed watch her rampage. She tried her best to muffle the noise, but it was overbearing. A tug on her wrist tried to take her attention, but she pulled away still striking against the foreign warriors. Another tug, and she pushed the figure away. This time, she was indiscriminate in her attacks, even striking the other Kreeyans assisting in the fight. Once more, a tug came to her.
"ENOUGH!" Kreeya yells. She swings the back of her fist against Anomaly's face. The woman's head flies off of her shoulders and disintegrates into ash. As the souls repair her head, the woman's fists tighten.
"Did you just?" Anomaly waves her hand across Kreeya. It did nothing but anger the woman even more.
"I'm not one of your illusions, child," she said. Anomaly had a frightened look on her reddening face. "You saw me for a fool like these humans?"
"You died. Your soul was cast into oblivion. How are you here?" Anomaly questioned. As her mind raced, the livelihood of her army became nonexistent. And then there were two: herself and Queen Kreeya. Anomaly backed away from the woman. She looked around at the many confused warriors. Her arms trembled as she held her two kobu jutsu.
"This is my war now. You obey me. You live by my rules," Kreeya said. Anomaly recalled her time in servitude under Onaga. She ran toward the active portal leading away from Earthrealm. Kreeya did not pursue her. As Anomaly stepped through, she looked back at the woman.
"You want this war? You can have it," Anomaly responded. "Fight until you drop dead." Anomaly clasps her hands together, and the portal to Earthrealm closed. She destroys the portal leading to Earthrealm ensuring no one could ever get in or out. This time permanently, as she destroyed the gate in the Nexus. She walked to the center and observed the four Kamidogu she had lying on their respective pillars. Those of Outworld, Edenia, the NetherRealm, and Shinnok's Amulet. All she needed now was those of Seido, the Chaos Realm, and Earthrealm. The last one no longer residing in Earthrealm After all.
End of Chapter 6
This brings us to the end of the first arc. This is probably the toughest section to write as I was unsure of how I'd handle the scope of a fullscale war in Earthrealm without making the main protagonist seem overpowered. Anomaly was always writing to be somewhat of a powerful sorceress on the same level as Shang Tsung or Quan Chi, but not an indestructible force. Another issue I've brought forward was resurrecting so many deceased characters. The intention was due to not knowing exactly how large Anomaly's army would have to be to progress the story logically, but as the road drew clearer, I found some of the characters to not be needed anymore, hence why some still have not appeared yet. I won't leave them in the void of unresolved plots. Everyone who was name dropped at the end of Reklaim WILL RETURN in a future chapter/arc.
The next arc will take place in Seido, and will be the second longest arc in this story. I can't wait to showcase what's in store for that storyline as the process should be much faster due to the more self-contained/streamlined plotpoints involved in that arc. The complexity of writing future arcs (if described on a graph) would be shaped like a 'U' where the workload will get easier up to the mid point before becoming more complex to write as I start returning to the climax. This is why I decided that breaks would be needed between arcs in order to prevent writing burnout for myself. I shall be returning with the seventh chapter next month, est. September 2nd, 2022.
(Upcoming—The Stars That Fall)