Prologue

This is a reboot of Jax, Kano and Sonya Blade's back stories due to Fire God Liu Kang's new timeline. As of the time of this writing, their stories were not included in MK 1. This is in no way MK canon.

Chapter 1

Major Jackson Briggs and Lieutenant Sonya Blade stealthily positioned themselves in an abandoned, decrepit building across from the Black Dragon warehouse. The darkness of the night cloaked their cover as there were no lights above the building or on the street that could expose their hiding place. They silently watched the Black Dragon members gradually pass through the main entrance of the warehouse. Through her infrared binoculars, Sonya's eyes followed two large thugs that guarded the main entrance. She couldn't help but notice that they were packing some serious heat, unlike anything she had seen before, however, she recognized that it was surely Kano's handiwork.

Kano was infamously known as the leader of the criminal organization known as the Black Dragon. Wanted in over 30 countries, Kano was considered a high risk criminal and was the prime target of Special Forces. In recent years, he abandoned the mercenary lifestyle and reformed the Black Dragon with a sole focus on developing the most innovative weaponry. Due to his vast knowledge of technological warfare his style of weapons were always sought after; he had no issue selling them for the highest price across several black markets.

His business became so lucrative that Kano had moved his ventures outside of the U.S to operate on a much larger international scale. The Black Dragons had several warehouses based abroad such as in Australia, Bangkok, Beijing, London, Paris, the Philippines and Tokyo. They also had several US locations as well; the main branch was in Manhattan, however, they also had warehouses in Boston, Las Vegas, Los Angeles and Miami.

For about a year, Kano and the Black Dragon were laying low to avoid drawing attention to themselves. Jax, however, was given an anonymous tip that the Black Dragon were making noise in the New York underground scene by distributing new firearms and other arsenal to the major crime bosses throughout the city. Special Forces was called in to try to intercept these deadly weapons to try to minimize the threat they could pose to innocent civilians.

Jax and Sonya had several troops awaiting their command to rush into the warehouse. Sonya had radioed to her men, " Jax and I are going inside. Await our signal to enter." After putting the radio into her belt, she grabbed a gun out of her holster. She and Jax nodded in agreement that it was time to make their move.

Jax and Sonya quickly moved out of the abandoned building and crossed the street toward the warehouse. Sonya gave a hand signal letting their troops know to spread out and surround the warehouse. She and Jax went towards the back of the warehouse; Sonya noticed a window that seemed like a good entry point. After firmly tugging the window, it went up with ease. Jax climbed into the window first, Sonya followed after him with a small group of men. The remaining troops continued to spread around the building looking for any Black Dragon that could thwart their efforts.

Once inside, Sonya, Jax and their small team quietly made their way toward the basement level of the warehouse. There were several small glowing amber lights from the ceiling that dimly guided their dark path down the hall. They knew they were heading in the right direction as they could hear loud clanging noises of the weapons that were being manufactured. They slowly approached large wooden crates that offered an excellent cover, but still allowed them a generous view of the unsuspecting Black Dragon that continued to work unaware of their presence.

Two gang members had their backs to Sonya; she successfully pistol whipped each one without drawing attention to herself. Sonya grabbed her radio and quietly said, "Ready my signal." She then pressed a second button on the radio that relayed a specific frequency to the remaining Special Forces troops outside of the warehouse; this was their cue to enter. Meanwhile, Jax motioned to their surrounding team that it was time to leave their cover and take on the Black Dragon.

By the time the Black Dragon realized what was happening, Sonya, Jax and their team had rushed towards them to fight. The gang members started to shoot towards Sonya, but Jax deflected their bullets with his mechanical arms. Sonya then started to shoot rings from her energy bracelets as Jax rushed toward more men and crushed their heads with his hands. The Black Dragon began to race toward the small group only to be countered by the remaining Special Forces troops that had just arrived. At this point, the scene was completely chaotic as gun fire seemed to erupt from everywhere.

Just as Sonya felt that her team was getting the upper hand, she noticed a red light glowing from the corner of the room. The red glow was getting larger and before Sonya had time to react, a powerful red laser beam aimed toward the ground where she and her team stood. Kano's cybernetic eye beam was so fierce that it shattered the ground beneath where Sonya and her team stood knocking all of them to the ground.

Sonya quickly got back on her feet to challenge her long time adversary. "Kano." He smirked as he saw Sonya ball her fists to her sides. "Hello love, it's been a long time. We have some catching up to do." Sonya's face was stern. "You're right, asshole. It's about time that I punch that smug grin off of your face."

With that, Sonya raced toward Kano and started to shoot rings at him from her energy bracelets. Kano was able to evade the rings, and pulled out one of his butterfly knives with the intention to swipe at her. Sonya high kicked the knife out of Kano's hand and it went flying across the room. Kano smiled. "Not bad, love, but you are going to have to do better than that to get the best of me." Sonya smirked. "Oh I am just getting started you bastard. "

Sonya started to fling her fists at his face, which Kano evaded again, this time he grabbed both of her wrists causing her to struggle. Sonya then kneed him into his groin which brought him down to the ground. As Sonya tried to kick him, Kano tripped Sonya and she landed hard on her back. Kano promptly used this opportunity to pin her down, with his knees securely holding her waist, and his hands were holding down her wrists. Sonya's body struggled underneath him.

"Hmmm... how I have missed this, baby. I should have my way with you right here and now." Kano then grabbed his knife and pressed it to Sonya's throat. He then trailed the knife gently down her neck and started to unzip her black jacket exposing her black tank top. "But killing you would be such a waste, when I can think of other things I'd rather do to you." He sensually kissed the side of her cheek to which Sonya grimaced. "If you don't get off of me..." Kano's good eye met her angry gaze. "What are you going to do, Blade?" he challenged her. As he continued to kiss her cheek he whispered into her ear, "Why fight baby when we can have a little bit of fun, hmmm?"

Kano was so distracted that he did not realize when Jax came from behind and lifted him to his feet. Jax then proceeded to punch Kano right in the jaw. Kano angrily lunged towards Jax with so much force that he was able to knock Jax right to the ground. The two men wrestled with each other and hurled fists at each others faces. Kano was able to get out of Jax's hold and quickly got back on his feet. He then kicked Jax so hard in the stomach that he knocked the wind out him.

Jax howled in pain as Kano grabbed him from the back of his head. He forced Jax to sit down on his knees. With his right arm, Kano pulled Jax into a chokehold. He lifted his neck upwards exposing his bulging jugular vein. Kano then aggressively pulled his butterfly knife with his left hand and pressed it hard to Jax's throat. Jax had absolutely no way to try to escape Kano's grip. It seemed that Kano truly had the upper hand in this moment.

Sonya screamed in such a way it caused the rest of her Special Forces troops and the Black Dragon to stop dead in their tracks. "KANO, LET HIM GO!" Kano had it out for Jax since he lost his right eye from a fight of theirs many years ago. Sonya believed in that very moment, Jax was likely to die. Sonya's Special Forces team also came to this realization and seeing the fatal outcome that awaited their commander, they all pointed their guns towards Kano. The Black Dragon pointed their guns in response to protect their leader.

There was dead silence as both groups stood prepared to blow each other into oblivion. Kano reveled at the scene as well as in Sonya's fear. Breaking the silence, he calmly spoke, "Sorry, love, but this is where you get to say goodbye." As Kano pressed the knife to Jax's throat, Sonya desperately yelled, "WAIT!"

Under normal circumstances, Kano would not even think twice about delivering the final blow to his opponent. Yet for some reason, Kano was halted by Sonya's outburst; he was intrigued by the desperation in her voice. He knew that Jax was more than just a colleague to her; she regarded him as her closest friend, family even. He had the feeling that she was willing to negotiate just about anything to save his life, maybe even offer him a large payday. "Alright, Blade, what is it?", Kano impatiently asked. While he looked at Sonya, he tightened his grip on Jax. The knife started to slightly cut his throat causing it to bleed.

Sonya's eyes were wild with fear, but she quickly realized that she could make a bargain that would save Jax's life. She was about to offer something that was so despicable that she could hardly stomach the thought, but the risk of losing Jax was too much to bear. She looked at Kano and said, "You can have me. Just let Jax go." Jax violently struggled at hearing this. "Sonya, WHAT ON EARTH are you saying?"

Kano looked at Sonya curiously. "Yes, love, exactly what ARE you saying?" Sonya approached Kano. "Let Jax go. It's really me you want." He watched her as she slowly trailed her hand along his bicep. Then she got close enough to him to whisper, "If you let him go, you can have your way with me, in anyway you that like..." She seductively looked him in the eye. "This is what you want, isn't it?"

After holding his gaze for a moment, Kano seriously contemplated her offer. He knew that she must have been absolutely desperate to offer herself in such a way. She found him to be absolutely abhorrent. Yet, Kano knew that he would be insane to turn down such an opportunity. He knew that in a thousand lifetimes that this was the only way that he could ever have Sonya Blade. "You are serious then? You would freely give yourself to me, so that this bloke can live?" He admired her loyalty. "He is worth that much to you?" She glanced over at Jax and then back at Kano. "Yes, he is. Do we have a deal?", Sonya anxiously asked.

Kano slyly smiled. "Oh, yes...we have a deal...Tell your men to stand down. They can take Jax and go." At this, he released his tight grip on Jax which made him fall forward to the floor. Sonya scrambled to Jax to lift him back up. Jax looked at her. "Sonya, what the hell did you just do?! Nothing on Earth is worth what you just offered Kano." Sonya looked at him and said, "Jax you are my family, you are worth that and more. Please don't worry about me. I will be able to handle myself against that piece of shit, scum."

Jax looked back at Kano who was twirling his knife out of impatience. "Are you sure about that?" Sonya hesitated, "I am not about to back out on what I agreed to." She looked at their men who were anxiously waiting on her next orders. "Everyone, stand down." Her troops lowered their weapons at her command.

Kano looked back at his men and with the gesture of a nod, they did the same. "Alight folks, the show's over. Everyone will live to fight another day, eh?" At this he looked at Sonya and said to a couple of his men, "Take Sonya to my quarters. She will be staying as my special guest for a little while." Jax started to lunge at Kano, however, Sonya held him back. "Jax, I will be alright, I promise! Please stand down!" Jax then stopped. He angrily looked at Kano. "If you hurt Sonya in any way, I WILL KILL YOU."

Kano smiled. "Relax mate. I assure you, I won't hurt a hair on her pretty head." He took a few strands of Sonya's pony tail and delicately twisted them through his fingers. Then, just to bait him, he continued, "Besides, don't worry...Sonya and I are going to have a lot of fun together.." Jax felt sick to his stomach as his instinct was to bash Kano's face in. Yet, he knew for Sonya's sake, he needed to restrain himself. "You son of a bitch. I will finish you if it is the last thing I do!" Kano coldly smiled, "Looking forward to it, mate." Then he turned toward the Special Forces troops and said, " You boys can see yourselves out."

The troops took one last look at Sonya, as if they were waiting for her approval to leave. She nodded to them and then they left. Jax painfully looked at Sonya and after a brief hesitation, he reluctantly walked away. Sonya stood in silence as she watched her comrades leave the warehouse. Then the realization of her bargain with Kano began to make her stomach churn. While she felt instant anxiety, she refused to let Kano see it on her face. She looked at him with no emotion as his men started to lead her upstairs towards his room.

Chapter 2

Sonya stared at her reflection in the mirror. She had locked herself in Kano's bathroom for what felt like an eternity; the reality of it being only 20 minutes. She was stripped down to her black lace bra and matching low rise bikini panties. Her long blonde hair was wavy and loose and stopped just above her waist. Kano had requested for it to be loose; she typically would wear her hair in pony tails or braids since it was more functional for work.

She was also wearing makeup at his request. Her brown eyes were accentuated with black eyeliner, mascara and smokey brown eyeshadow tones. Sonya had just finished applying a dark red gloss to her lips. Simply put, Sonya looked absolutely gorgeous, far more than what Kano deserved. Yet, she equated herself to that of a whore for what she was about to do.

Sonya was facing down toward the sink and gripping its sides. Her breathing was heavy and she was nauseated; she felt like she was about to have a horrible anxiety attack. She couldn't bring herself to the idea that she was about to have sex with Kano. The most that she was willing to touch him would be to choke the life out of him.. She absolutely detested the man; he had been her enemy for years. Yet, there was once a moment a long time ago, that she had thought of Kano very differently.

Sonya thought back when they first met. It had been many years since she was first assigned to the Black Dragon case. While Sonya was considered a rookie with Special Forces, she had shown great promise as she had earned a reputation for her interrogation skills. She, however, had no idea as to what she was about to get herself into.

Kano was a key informant in their case, and Sonya worked closely with him over the course of one year for intel on the Black Dragon. Upon their first meeting, Sonya was immediately attracted to him, as he didn't have his cybernetic eye then, and she found his handsome looks to be incredibly distracting to the task at hand. His physique was incredibly masculine. His chiseled arms were wrapped by black serpentine tattoos. The tight muscle shirts that Kano wore defined his chest and ab muscles. Yet for Sonya, the most alluring thing about him was his Australian accent. It was the icing on the cake for her as she found it so incredibly sexy that she couldn't get enough of it.

After a while, Sonya would secretly look forward to their interrogations together as they were rather enjoyable. Kano seemed to be more than cooperative and would tell her everything that she wanted to know about the Black Dragon. He would also turn up the charm and would shamelessly flirt with her. Sonya was every bit the professional and maintained her composure, but would on occasion, engage with him in mild flirtation.

Their final interrogation however, took a completely different turn. Their last session had gone into the late hours of the night. Sonya had turned off the camera that recorded their sessions and started to pack up for the evening. Kano came from behind her, put his arms around her waist and kissed her cheek to say good night. That kiss became more than just a peck on the cheek. The next thing she knew, Sonya was laying half dressed on the table, kissing him with her legs wrapped around his hips. Just as they were about to become intimate, Kano withdrew from her, apologized for his conduct and abruptly left.

At the time, Sonya wondered what she might have done for Kano to react the way that he did. Then, a couple of days later, Sonya's entire world changed. It turned out that Kano was not just any Black Dragon, he was in fact their leader. He had fed Sonya nothing but lies during each of their interrogations. He had led Sonya and her team into an ambush; they had barely escaped with their lives but there were some others that were not as lucky.

Kano's betrayal was too much for Sonya to bear. She was heart broken because she knew that she had fallen for him. She had tortured herself by questioning if any of it was real; did her ever care for her or had he used her the entire time? Add that to the guilt of losing her teammates lives because of his cruel ruse. Sonya had felt directly responsible for their deaths. After some time, Sonya's heart break turned into a bitter rage. Kano had become her most hated enemy since.

As a result of his betrayal, Sonya's faith in men completely faltered. It was rare she allowed herself to get close to anyone, and if she did, those relationships did not last long. Her relationships would suffer due to her trust issues, as well as her inability to put a partner first. Sonya was married to her Special Forces career; and she prioritized her job over everything in her life. She had yet to meet a man that could understand her responsibilities, nor did she seem to care.

Reflecting on those painful memories awakened feelings that Sonya thought were long since buried. Tears started to flow down her cheeks as she realized that despite everything that they had been through, she knew that deep down, she had never really gotten over him. In her heart, no man had ever come close to what he meant to her. What was worse was that she wondered if she had ever meant anything to him at all, or if he just saw her as a toy to be played with.

Sonya questioned if deep down Kano even felt a shred of something for her after all of these years. Was there any part of him that was still the man that she once loved? Or was he just the cold heartless bastard that she now knew him to be?

She wondered about Kano's expectations for their night together. What if he only cared about satisfying his own needs and did not care for her comfort? What if his version of love making was just as brutal and rough as their past fights had always been? She had not considered this possibility. The thought that he could be so abusive toward her even during the most intimate of encounters was disturbing.

Kano was laying in his bed waiting for Sonya. He started to call out, "You alright in there, love? You have been there a long time." Sonya swallowed hard but answered, "Yes, I will be out in just a second." Sonya looked at herself in the mirror one last time to make sure that her makeup was properly set. She was not sure as to why she cared. Probably a force of habit, or an attempt to make this situation feel somewhat normal. After wiping the tears off of her face, Sonya took a deep breath and opened the door into Kano's bedroom.

Sonya had envisioned Kano's room to be just as dark and danky as the rest of the warehouse. It was quite the opposite. The walls were two toned with beige and taupe shades. The room was dimly lit with tall pillar candles and had a grand chandelier hanging from the ceiling. One end of the room featured a seating area including a leather black sectional chair, a raised 50 inch flat screen tv with an active fireplace directly beneath it. The other end of the room featured an inviting king size bed; complete with cream colored silky sheets and fluffy pillows. There was hardwood floor throughout the room, with the exception of the cream colored area rugs beneath the bed and sectional chair.

Kano was laying down on his bed shirtless and wore silky red pajama pants. He slightly rose as Sonya approached him and he grinned. "Wow, you clean up nice, Blade." He then patted on the bed. "Come over here and lay down." Sonya felt like her feet were glued to the floor and she was unable to move. Kano regarded her for a moment. He pondered the thoughts that must have been running through her mind and the emotions she must have felt. Given their complex history, it made sense she was hesitant and he would not expect less.

He rose to his feet, leaving his bed to approach Sonya. He started to walk behind her, and placed his hands on her waist towards her belly. Then he moved a little bit of her hair and started to sensually kiss her neck. Sonya wrestled with the conflicting signals that her body was giving her. Between how he was touching her and kissing her neck, she was fighting the urge not to enjoy what he was doing. She mentally chastised herself for liking it and then tensed up. Attempting to ease her tension, Kano softly said to her, "Baby, relax." As he gently kissed her neck he said, " Lay down, love."

Sonya slowly walked toward the bed and laid down on her back. She stared straight at the ceiling, and wondered how the hell she was going to go through with this. She tried to hold back the tears that were building up in her eyes but she refused to let Kano see her cry. Instead, she closed her eyes and silently wished that this would be over quickly.

Kano slowly approached Sonya and leaned over her body. He proceeded to kiss her neck again. At this, Sonya's body started to anxiously tremble. Kano stopped and looked at Sonya's face. "Open your eyes, love." Kano started to caress Sonya's face and she opened her eyes to look at him. "Sonya, I am not going to hurt you. Relax, baby." He kissed her lips gently. Then he whispered to her softly, " I want you to enjoy everything that we are about to do."

In this moment, Sonya realized that Kano had no intention of mistreating her. He was fully cognizant of what she felt and was doing his best to comfort her. Looking into his eyes, she softly smiled. At this, he slowly, then passionately kissed her lips. Much to Sonya's surprise, she felt the need to draw him in closer by grabbing his face and kissed him back.

She could feel the heat build throughout her body. Sonya felt as though she was in a trance; she absolutely loved how he felt. She decided to shut off all of her thoughts and enjoy this moment. Sonya closed her eyes again, but this time it was out of bliss. She let herself give in to his trail of kisses down her neck...her chest...her stomach...and she gave him no objection as he moved his face lower in between her thighs...

An hour later, Sonya laid her head on Kano's chest; he was gently rubbing her back with his fingers. Both of them laid together in a comfortable silence. Sonya couldn't deny that this was the most incredible sexual experience of her life. Kano turned out to be an attentive lover; he satisfied her every need in ways that she certainly didn't expect. His desire for her to enjoy herself allowed for her to fully reciprocate his efforts.

Sonya laid in Kano's arms feeling guilty for allowing herself to enjoy sleeping with him. She felt like she didn't have a right to. Kano decided to break the silence. He looked at Sonya and asked, "How are you feeling, love?" Sonya gave a small smile. "I honestly don't know how to answer that." As if reading her mind, Kano said, "Stop feeling guilty about this. There is nothing wrong about enjoying what we just did." Then he gave her a big grin. "In a way, it's your fault; you are absolutely fantastic in bed."

Sonya couldn't help but laugh. "Fantastic, huh?", she chuckled. Kano smiled, "Uh, huh. This was bloody amazing if you ask me." "Yes it was," Sonya said. "That's the problem." Kano looked at her seriously, "It doesn't have to be, baby. You and I can keep this thing going for as long as we both want to."

Sonya sat up in the bed. "I don't know if that is possible." She looked at him with pain in her eyes. "For years I wondered why you did what you did. You fed me nothing but lies, and for what? What was it all for? Was your glory worth the pain that it caused me and my team? " Then she hesitated for a moment before continuing. "What has also haunted me was that night between us...I need to know...What was I to you? Did you ever care for me at all? Was anything between us real?"

Kano was speechless at her words; Sonya stared at him in silence waiting for a response. Finally, Kano looked into her eyes. "When I first started those interrogations with you, I admit, I saw you as an easy target. I initially thought that it was going to be the easiest job I had to do...that all I had to do was butter you up, and tell you everything you wanted to hear..."

"Not everything I told you was a lie. All of the personal things I told you about myself, all of that was true. As for what happened with us that night..." Kano, hesitated before he continued. "I never intended to get involved with you; that was not a part of any of my plans, but I started falling for you. Hard." He looked at Sonya directly in her face. "It took all of my strength to walk out of that room, when all I wanted was to make love to you. I knew though if I did, that I would never have gone through with any of it. At that time, while I knew that I wanted you, I selfishly wanted glory more, no matter what the cost."

Sonya's eyes widened at his revelation. Kano knew that he was at the verge of losing her but he continued, "I also realize that what I did completely changed you. I messed up Sonya and you have every right to hate me. I can't undo everything that I did, but from this night forward, let me make it right."

At this, he pulled her close and kissed her. Sonya was torn; as hurt as she was by the truth of his words, she felt herself surrender to his kiss. In this moment, she loved how good he felt. She wanted to hate him but knew in her heart that she couldn't. Sonya knew that for once, Kano was being truly sincere with her.

"Ok then." Sonya said after awhile. "So where do we go from here?" Kano held her hand. "Let's take it one step at a time...but you should know, love... I have no intention of letting you go anytime soon." Then, he gently laid her on her back and started to kiss her again. "Let's go for round two," he said with a raised eyebrow. Sonya giggled and happily gave into his request. Sonya honestly didn't know what to expect from this point but she knew that she owed it to herself to see this through no matter where it led her.

Chapter 3

Jax had planned a surprise raid on the Black Dragon warehouse three days after Sonya made her dreadful bargain with Kano. When they stormed the the warehouse, they learned that Kano moved his operations; he and Sonya were nowhere to be found. Following the failed raid, Jax searched leads which often led to dead ends. It also seemed that the Black Dragon activity had grown stagnant, which made them extremely difficult to track.

However, recent developments forced Jax to put his search for Sonya on hold. Special Forces had been tasked to investigate supernatural attacks on innocent civilians. These investigations lead Jax to a chance encounter with a warrior named Kenshi. Eventually, Jax and Kenshi would go on to form a new branch of Special Forces known as the Outworld Intelligence Agency or OIA. Despite his newfound duty, Jax had never given up hope of finding Sonya.

Fate would have it that an unlikely ally would help him resume his search for her. Fire God Liu Kang made contact with Kenshi and Jax for a new mission. Liu Kang had filled them in on a dangerous new threat. Titan Havik had begun his quest to start invading realms to spread chaos and mayhem; Earthrealm was his latest target. Liu Kang was seeking out Kano as he had learned that he had developed a weapon with a powerful technology that would aid them in destroying Titan Havik whom was rumored to be impenetrable. Jax was anxious to get started as he knew that finding Kano would lead him to Sonya.

"I have been searching for Kano for months and have hit nothing but dead ends. How are you able to find him?" Jax asked Liu Kang. "You forget that I am a God, Jackson Briggs. I have my ways of finding him." Jax hesitated. "Liu Kang, he has my partner, Sonya. The last time I saw them...the circumstances were not the best. My only interest in finding Kano is to find her. Are you able to tell me if she is ok?"

Liu Kang smiled. "I understand your concern for your friend. Sonya Blade is alive and well...but Jax, I must prepare you. Sonya is much changed. She is not the same woman she was when you last saw her." With that, Liu Kang made a circular motion with his hands to create a fiery portal. "Come Jax, this portal will take us to Sonya and Kano." Jax looked at Kenshi. "You can hold down the fort, right?" Kenshi nodded. "I'll be fine here. Go and find your friend. Good luck."

Upon stepping through the portal, Jax and Liu Kang found themselves in the Little Havana section of Miami, Florida. The aroma of Cuban food flooded the night air. People joyously were dancing to salsa music and children were happily running in the streets. As Jax and Liu Kang made their way through the crowds, they took notice of a few thug like looking men with distinctive dragon tattoos. Jax immediately recognized them as Black Dragon members.

Jax and Liu Kang watched the men as they laughed over beers and cigars. After a few moments, the men started to leave. At this point, Jax and Liu Kang followed the men while keeping their distance to avoid being seen. After walking a few blocks, the men arrived at a restaurant bar. Walking through the restaurant, Jax and Liu Kang followed the men toward the roof top. It was there that they saw Kano and several Black Dragon enjoying dinner and drinks.

Rage went through Jax at the sight of watching Kano laughing without a care in the world. Without a second thought, Jax abandoned Liu Kang, and started to push through the crowd to get to Kano's table. Kano had his back facing Jax so he did not notice him coming through the crowd. Before Kano's men had time to warn him, Jax violently grabbed Kano from the back of his shirt to lift him up." HEY ASSHOLE!" Jax shouted as he punched Kano right in the face.

The chatter in the restaurant went silent as they saw Kano fly back backwards onto the table knocking everything including himself onto floor. His men immediately drew their guns to shoot Jax. The patrons of the restaurant began screaming and started to flee. Kano got back onto his feet and rubbed his jaw. "That was a bit uncalled for, mate." Jax started to scream, "WHERE'S SONYA?! WHAT HAVE YOU DONE WITH HER?!" Kano devilishly smiled. "Relax mate, Sonya's fine. She and I have been having a great time, if you know what I mean."

"YOU SON OF A BITCH! I WILL KILL YOU!" Jax's rage got the better of him as he started to lunge for Kano again despite the fact that his men had their guns pointed to him. As Kano's men started to cock their guns, Jax heard a familiar voice shout, "STAND DOWN!" At her authority, Kano's men dropped their weapons, which took Jax for surprise. His heart stopped at the sight of Sonya standing at the entrance of the room with a mojito in her hand.

Jax almost didn't recognize her. Sonya almost never wore makeup; however, tonight her face was made up with smokey eye makeup and a dark red lip gloss shade. Jax was also used to Sonya in military uniform. Instead, she wore a plunging dark red halter top that stopped just above her belly; tight black leather pants and nude stiletto open toe shoes. Her long hair was loose instead of in the pony tails that she was accustomed to. She also never painted her nails, however, her manicured nails were of a crimson shade.

Jax also couldn't help but notice a five carat princess cut diamond and matching band on her ring finger. Kano face lit up at the sight of her. "Hello, baby," he said. Sonya walked directly to Kano and gave him an annoyed look. " Really?! What the hell is all of this?" she asked as she pointed to his men. Kano grinned. "I am sorry, love. We got a little carried away. Honestly." Caressing her chin, Kano gave Sonya a kiss on the lips and looked Jax directly in his eyes when he did it.

At the sight of them together, Jax became furious. "Sonya, are you going to tell me what the hell is going on here? I have been worried sick about you!" Sonya shrugged. "About that Jax, I can explain..." The look in Jax's eyes was dangerous. "You better explain! What the hell is going on?"

Sonya hesitated for a moment and then she looked at Kano. He started to grin. "Are you going to tell him, love, or am I?" She looked at Kano. "No...that won't be necessary. I will," she said. Then she turned directly to Jax. "I know you are not going to understand this and for that I am sorry", she started to say. "We fell in love. Kano and I...," she hesitated. "We were married last month."

Chapter 4

"WHAT?!" Jax was enraged. "ARE YOU INSANE?!" Jax started screaming at Sonya. "Have you LOST your mind? You are MARRIED to him?" Sonya tried to plead with Jax. "Please Jax, I can explain." Jax continued to yell. "YOU DAMN WELL BETTER!" He angrily stared at Sonya. "Are you serious? All of this time, I have been worried about you, assuming the absolute worst! Instead, you've been playing house with this fool! I mean do I need to remind you of who your HUSBAND is? He is a conniving, murderous, son of a bitch! This man is supposed to stand for EVERYTHING you hate!

Then Jax continued, "And did you forget who YOU are? You are Lieutenant Sonya Blade of the United States Special Forces Unit! Your job was to hunt down this piece of shit, not MARRY HIM! I mean, seriously, did you lose some of your brain cells when you were in bed with him?!" Kano's right eye started to glow. "That is NOT how you talk to my woman", Kano angrily said.

The Black Dragon started to cock their guns at Jax again. Sonya touched Kano's arm and said, "Kano, calm down. Jax has a right to be pissed off, this is a lot to take in all at once." Sonya motioned to his men to lower their weapons at which they complied. This earned a curious glance from Jax. Suddenly he realized that they were used to taking orders from her. "You are second in command of the Black Dragon."

"Yes, I am," Sonya flatly said. Jax looked at Sonya as if she had gut punched him. "I don't believe this. You are willing to throw away everything you worked hard for, betray all of your ideals, just to live a life of crime with him?" "I would never do such a thing," she stated. "The Black Dragon are completely reformed. Even down to the arms dealing. We have a strong focus on research and development of weapons technology. The distribution of our weapons no longer go through illegal channels. Our operations have been completely legitimized."

Jax was surprised. "Is this true?" Kano nodded. "All of it. Sonya would never have agreed to be with me unless I stepped away from that life...It also turns out that our business is more lucrative than ever." He winked at Sonya, "I guess it does pay to be on the up and up." Sonya turned to Jax. "It was my intention to tell you this sooner. I never meant to keep this from you. I am truly sorry."

Suddenly, Liu Kang appeared before them. "Well I see that you are all acquainted again. Sonya Blade, Kano, at last we meet and not a moment too soon. We are in need of your services." Kano looked at Liu Kang suspiciously. "Who are you?" Liu Kang's eyes started to glow more brightly causing Kano to step back; he guarded Sonya with his arm. "Bloody hell, what is up with this, wanker?"

Liu Kang smiled out of amusement. "Kano, Sonya, you do not need to fear me. My name is Liu Kang, I am the God of Fire. I have been tasked with assembling Earthrealms greatest warriors to defend it from a most powerful enemy. You two have been chosen along with Jax to assist in these efforts." "What are we up against?" Sonya asked.

Liu Kang continued. "The Titan Havik of Chaosrealm has already started to invade Earthrealm and seeks to make slaves of its people." Kano scoffed at Liu Kang's words. "This Havik guy you speak of, reminds me of someone I crossed paths with awhile back that was really bad news."

Kano crossed his arms. "You mentioned that you were in need of our services. What exactly did you have in mind?" Liu Kang smiled. "You recently developed a weapon that amasses a unique firepower. Havik is known to indestructible and can not succumb to physical pain. I believe that this weapon may be what we need to lower his invincibility to deliver a fatal blow." Sonya looked toward Liu Kang. "We will help you in any way that we can."

After a twenty minute ride, the four of them arrived through an iron gate to enter Kano and Sonya's mansion. The property was secluded with no neighboring houses in sight. Jax and Liu Kang followed Kano and Sonya toward the back of the property which had a patio under a lit gazebo, a firepit, and a large in ground pool that overlooked an incredible ocean view. "Wait here while I go fetch what you are looking for," Kano said as he entered inside the house.

A few moments later, Kano returned with a small black case. He sat down with Sonya who had just finished serving Jax and Liu Kang drinks while they were waiting. Kano handed Liu Kang the small case. Liu Kang opened the case to see four small black glass orbs. "What is that meant to do?" Jax asked. "The energy inside of those orbs works against blood magic. Get close enough to Havik, the orbs will work on their own. It should temporarily stun Havik, then it can be used to incinerate him."

Jax looked at Kano with interest. "How are you familiar with blood magic?" "Long time ago, when I worked in Outworld; my employer was a dangerous fellow named General Kahn. Wasn't long before I cut ties with him, he was a bit radical even for me. During my time there I encountered many interesting folk. Learned a lot about blood magic and all sorts of stuff. The knowledge I gained has been used to enhance the weapons that I develop."

"Sonya and Kano, thank you for your hospitality and for this incredible weapon. This will greatly improve our odds of defeating Havik." Liu Kang rose from his seat. "I will be returning to the Shaolin Temple where my champions await. Jax, Kenshi will be joining me however, you are more than welcome to accompany us." Jax agreed. "I think I will do that. I'd like a chance to pound this Havik guy."

The rest of them stood up. "I guess that this is good bye," Jax said to Sonya. "I guess so." She tightly hugged Jax. "It was so good to see you." Jax looked at her with a smile. "Yeah, you too. I am just glad that you didn't completely lose your mind and are still working on our side in some way." He sternly looked at Kano. "You better treat her right or I am coming for you." Kano nodded. "I sure will, mate." Jax looked at them both. "I am still adjusting to the idea of you two, but as long as he makes you happy than I am happy for you."

Jax turned to Liu Kang. "You ready to roll, Liu?" "That indeed, Jax. It's best that we head on our way." Liu Kang then moved his hands in a circular motion to create a fiery portal. Jax took one last look at Kano who was holding Sonya in his arms. Jax read her lips as she silently said to him, "Love you." He smiled back at her. "Love you too," he said and then he followed Liu Kang through the portal.