Creation began on 05-20-23

Creation ended on 08-03-23

Attack on Titan

Attack on Titan: Learning More

They could see from behind some rocks a man sitting at a large table adorned by enough food to feed a large number of people, and Sasha frowned at who he was. Away from him, sitting on some sort of throne was a man…or creature the likes of which they had never seen before…and it left them bothered.

"Unlike some people," they heard the man say at the table, "I prefer a fair fight. A traditional fight. One-on-one, man-to-man, hand-to-hand. Exactly like my old man taught me before I killed him in his sleep. But what I saw out there…didn't seem fair or traditional at all."

"That's Kano," Sasha told Eren and Mikasa as they stayed hidden from sight.

"Nice to know who it is you're pissed off at," went Eren, "but who's the other guy?"

"He looks like a monster," says Mikasa, watching Kano take a bite out of a chicken drumstick.

"So…he freezes the guy…and then he explodes on impact with the wall. All but his head were iced and scattered about. I could see his guts and everything," Kano tells the person on the throne. "I honestly thought I was going to puke."

"Grrr…disgusting," they replied in a male voice, gesturing towards Kano with their right hand.

"You know more about Shang Tsung than I do right now, so can you tell me something about him? I mean, if he's so great and everything, then why is his boat that we came here on so ancient and in need of maintenance? I got nothing against it so long as it didn't sink, but every time he talks, he gives me the creeps. "Treasure these moments as if they were your last". It sounded like a threat."

The other guy then stood up…and Eren, Mikasa and Sasha could see that not only did he stand over eight feet in height, but possessed two pairs of arms, each ending in three fingers.

"Grr, that was his intentions," they spoke to Kano. "Shang Tsung is a great sorcerer. The wise cultivate his favor. Those who challenge his power…become his slaves."

"Impressive…but I didn't see any of them on my way here," Kano responds. "Are they hidden, lying in wait for his command?"

"You fool. You know nothing of how he enslaves. He enslaves souls. He learned the black arts from the emperor himself."

"That's an incredible feat to achieve, being taught by a ruler. You're said to be royalty yourself, right? Just who are you?"

"I am Goro!" They revealed. "General of the armies of Outworld and prince of the subterranean realm of Shokan."

"Subterranean? That's…the underground, right? An entire world beneath the surface?"

"Yes. Exactly."

"It basically makes you an underworld boss of sorts. I'm also an underworld boss myself back home. I look forward to seeing what makes you the champion of this tournament."

Goro approached the table and knocked over a goblet onto Kano's lap.

"Oh, you do?" He questions.

"It's true," they all heard Shang Tsung's voice as he appeared on some steps leading up into a dark blue light. "Prince Goro. Why else would I bother recruiting a disreputable cretin like this? Look at him. He has no dignity. He has no manners. And yet, even in Earthrealm, men like him can amass great wealth and wield an almost god-like power over others."

Goro growls in acceptance of this fact.

"So, what do we owe the honor of your visit, Shang Tsung?" He asks the man.

"Just to inform you that three of the invited fighters are the ones you need to take caution against in the tournament," he tells him.

"You mean, that Eren Yeager, Mikasa Ackerman and Sasha Blouse that I saw in the grand hall. If you'll let me, I'll take down all three of them at once."

"No, I have plans for Sasha Blouse. And as for Eren Yeager, he's blinded by vengeance. However, there's one other reason for why I'm here to warn you: Historia Reiss."

That name seemed to make Goro gesture with some concern.

"The emperor's younger adopted daughter?" He went. "Why must I worry about her?"

"She's nearly two-thousand years old and the rightful heir to the throne of the Kingdom of Fritz," Shang Tsung told him. "The only reason she hasn't tried to get away from us is because she won't risk the life of Ymir, someone she values more than her own life. No matter what happens, we can't allow her or Kitana to join forces with the people of Earthrealm, especially those three."

"What's so special about any of us?" Mikasa asks Eren.

"I wish I knew," he responds.

"Let's get out of here," Sasha suggests, and they start to move away.

Rumble. The sound of rocks tumbling around made Shang Tsung look away from Goro.

"What?" Kano questions. "What is it?"

"We're not alone here," he responds.

-x-

Once they were away from that chamber, Eren stopped and told the girls they needed to process what they knew now.

"That thing was Goro," he utters, "and he's the reigning champion of the Mortal Kombat tournament. I don't see how anyone can face him."

"I don't think anyone can face him," Mikasa responds. "He's a monster. A real one."

Sasha looked down a tunnel to her left and saw the girl from before, holding a torch.

"Isn't that her?" She asks them, pointing to the girl referred to as Historia Reiss. "Is that Historia Reiss down there?"

They turned to look and saw the girl look back at them before going down another tunnel.

"I think she wants us to follow her," Mikasa states.

"I'm not sure about that," went Eren.

"You heard Shang Tsung, the girl's not really in league with him or this emperor they live under."

"Yeah, but she's also close to two-thousand years old," Sasha reminds.

"Who cares how old she is?" Mikasa questions as she goes down the tunnel.

"Mikasa!" Eren calls out to her. "Wait!"

But the girl left them to follow the blond-haired girl.

-x-

Somehow, Mikasa wandered from a dim-lit tunnel…and stumbled upon a dark cavern with strange curves that didn't look like they were made naturally. She wasn't sure how she lost track of Historia, but the girl was gone, and she was lost herself.

"Dammit," she whispered to herself.

"Stay," a whispering voice uttered, and Mikasa looked to where she thought it came from, seeing a space that looked different from the rest of the cavern. "Stay…"

Looking closer, she thought she was looking at a curtain. A clear curtain, see-through and everything, but something was off.

"Stay…" The voice continued to whisper as she got closer it.

"Who's there?" She asks, and suddenly saw something move towards her.

Hiss! Something shaped like something else spat a mist in her face that stung at her eyes and nose, sending falling backwards!

"Aaaurgh!" She screamed as she grabbed her face. "Aaaugh!"

"Stay away from Historia!" The voice uttered as she barely saw the shape as it moved away. "Stay away from her!"

"Aaaurgh! Aaugh!"

"Mikasa!" She heard Eren's voice call out to her.

"Aaaurgh! Over here!" She replied and was then helped up by him as her vision cleared. "There's something here. I think it's following Historia. It told me to stay away from her."

"What was it?" He asks her.

"I don't know."

"Come on, Sasha and I found a way out of here."

She followed them as Eren led her away from the cavern, unaware of the creature that attacked Mikasa was watching them from the shadows.

"Stay away from her…please," it uttered.

-x-

"…Do you know where this tunnel goes?" Mikasa asks Eren as he pulled away at some old cobwebs that covered the tunnel they were using.

"No," he answers her, "but I'm hoping it leads to that room we saw earlier (he stops and turns back to face her and Sasha). It's better than being lost in caves."

"Yeah," Sasha agrees with him.

Two minutes later, the trio were in the chamber from earlier, except it was empty. There wasn't a single person present. The large table was still packed with food, but Sasha, who went over to it, frowned at it.

"I wish Kano was here right now so I can shove this all down his throat and watch him choke on it," she tells them.

"You have got to work on your attitude," Eren told her.

To be continued…

A/N: The next chapter will include the three fighting. Just so that you know, it was Ymir in her Titan form that attacked Mikasa, but there's more in store because there's going to be a Historia/Ymir pairing in this story, just as there's an Eren/Mikasa pairing. Ymir is basically the AoT version of Reptile, but will not face the same fate.