Hello, everyone! Sorry this chapter took so long! I've had ton of work to finish on other stories I'm working on. I promise future chapters won't take this long. So without further ado, let us meet the champions of Earthrealm!
Mortal Kombat 1: Chapter: The Gathering Part 2 - Earthrealm
The surrounding area of the Sky Temple in the deppest, most remote parts of far east Asia was currently experiencing severe thunderstorms. Most mortals would just shrug this off as bad weather, but most mortals were unaware of the existence of the realms, the gods and the Mortal Kombat tournament.
Fujin knew better, for he himself was the god of wind and the brother of Earthrealm's protector, Raiden, the god of thunder. The thunderstorms around his brother's temple could only mean one thing, his brother was in a very foul mood and with the tenth Mortal Kombat tournament on the horizon, he didn't need to think long to know why.
Earthrealm has lost it's previous nine tournaments to the forces of Outworld, specially Prince Goro. The shokan powerhouse was invincible for the past nine generations and if that doesn't change this time around, Outworld gains the right to invade and merge Earthrealm into itself. Raiden was never one to lose faith and hope. He inspired faith and hope in his followers, but 450 years of helplessness in the tournament might be able to break him.
Well, if Raiden's hope was beginning to waver, he will have to be the one to keep going. For the past year, he traveled around the world looking for warriors to recruit for Earthrealm's side at the tournament. There were some promising candidates, but today, they will have to decide who will be the eight champions who would travel to Shang Tsung's island to face Outworld's challengers in Mortal Kombat.
Fujin saw his brother standing at the Sky Temple's terrace, staring into the distance grimly. Not even the sounds of the lightning strikes around him were able to flinch him. As the god of thunder, he got used to it eons ago.
"Greetings, my brother!" Fujin said as he entered the terrace and bowed. Raiden turned around and raised his straw hat covered gaze to meet his brother's eyes before returning the gesture.
"Welcome to my temple, Fujin. Once again, the time has come." He then looked down dejectedly. "Perhaps for the last time." The wind god put a hand onto his brother's shoulder.
"Do not despair, Raiden. Remember, the night is darkest just before the dawn. Just like it was five hundred years ago." Raiden nodded. As an immortal, he remembered every single moment he lived through throughout the eons and the tournament five hundred years ago where the Great Kung Lao defeated Shang Tsung and saved Earthrealm was no exception.
The Great Kung Lao's victory made Raiden keep his eyes on the order that nominated him for the tournament, the White Lotus. For the last half millennium, they always nominated at least one warrior for the tournament. But none of them could match the one who saved the realm before them. They all fell to the new champion of Outworld, the relentless shokan, Prince Goro.
Fujin could definitely understand his brother's helplessness. Half a millennium of watching his friends falling by the hands of Outworld would have affected even the strongest of minds. He prayed that the Elder Gods would resurrect the faith inside him for Earthrealm needed it's protector now more than ever.
"Let us hope the dawn is coming, Fujin." Raiden nodded grimly. "Are our warriors ready?"
"Master Bo Rai Cho spoke very highly of his trainees." The wind god replied. "They are awaiting you at the Wu Shi Academy. Lead them to the port where the ship will depart to the tournament. I will gather the rest and accompany you as soon as I'm able."
"Thank you, my brother." Raiden said as he bowed to him. "May the Elder Gods aid you on your journey."
"May they aid us all." Fujin said, returning the bow before his brother disappeared in a crack of lightning. "Even though their aid proved futile many times in the past." Fujin sighed. He then lifted off the ground and commanded the wind to carry him away towards his new destination. "Perhaps it is time we placed our faith in the mortals we are guiding."
Master Bo Rai Cho sipped his rice wine as he watched his warriors sparred with each other intensely. In the past few months, he had been preparing them, training them, teaching them everything he knew. His work was done. Now it was up to them.
Suddenly, he heard the crack of a thunderbolt next to him, making him spit out his drink and nearly dropping his flask. Even though he knew he should have gotten used for this by now. It signaled the arrival of Lord Raiden arriving to meet the champions that will defend Earthrealm in Mortal Kombat.
"Raiden! My friend!" The obese master spoke as he stood up and walked over to the thunder god, rather clumsily in his intoxicated state. But Raiden didn't mind. Bo Rai Cho had his flaws but his skills and loyalty to Earthrealm's cause were undeniable. "A pleasure to see you again!" He spoke, trying to bow but quickly having to recoil to prevent himself from falling over.
"Likewise, Master Bo Rai Cho." Raiden replied, bowing in a much more dignified manner. "Are the new warriors ready for the tournament?" Bo Rai Cho grinned heartily.
"That they are! I have known and trained some of them personally since their youth. They are very promising!" He bellowed before his expression hardened. "Then again, so were the previous nine generations." Raiden nodded sombly, sharing the master's grief for the soul of those lost. "But this time, it will be different. I can feel it!"
"It has to be." Raiden added. "Is it true that the Great Kung Lao's defendant also participated this time?"
"Oh, it is!" The master replied. "But there was someone among the White Lotus who managed to surpass even him." As a god, Raiden was seldom surprised, but that caught even him off guard. The Great Kung Lao was the best Earthrealm warrior he has ever seen. If his descendant was beaten by this warrior, then he must be something special indeed.
"Then let us not delay." He insisted. "Take me to them." Bo Rai Cho lead the thunder god to the training area, which was a large cricular platform, suspended over a lake by four giant statues and Raiden saw four men lined up in front of him. He immediately recognised recognised the warrior he was looking for who bore the insignia of the White Lotus on his belt. He was a Chinese man with shoulder length black hair wearing a red headband, black arm bracers with spikes, black pants and boots with red string tying them up.
"What is your name, warrior?" Raiden asked as he approached him.
"I am Liu Kang, Lord Raiden." The man spoke, bowing with his fist placed inside his palm. "I am the chosen of the Shaolin to represent the White Lotus and Earthrealm in Mortal Kombat." Raiden examined him thoroughly. He looked into his soul and saw a humble and noble warrior. His soul was pure but his combat skills will have to vouch for themselves in the tournament.
"Greetings, Liu Kang." He said, returning the bow. "May the Elder Gods watch over you in the struggle ahead of us." He then moved onto the next champion. A Japanese man with a sword on his back and red bandages over his eyes, which Raiden found most peculiar.
"A blind swordsman?" He wondered.
"A blind swordsman who bested twenty other warriors with perfectly good eyesight to earn his place, here, Lord Raiden." The man replied. "My name is Kenshi Takahashi." Raiden wasn't entirely convinced.
"And what is your purpose in this tournament, Kenshi Takahashi?" He asked, folding his arms. Though his eyes were covered, Raiden could see the anger in his expression upon the question.
"That snake, Shang Tsung. He tricked me. He promised me to help find the sword that contained the souls of my ancestors. But when we did, he drained their souls from it and left me for dead, blinding me in the process. Now my only purpose is to slay him and free their souls from his control."
"Forgive my choice of words but if you allow yourself to be blinded by vengeance, you will not make it far in this tournament." Before Kenshi could voice his surprise upon the god of thunder using a pun, Raiden moved on to the next champion. A champion that surprisingly, he quickly recognised.
"Shujinko!" He greeted the middle aged man in the samurai armor.
"I am pleased you remember me, Lord Raiden." Shujinko replied as he bowed.
"You know him, Lord Raiden?" Bo Rai Cho asked.
"We have crossed paths years ago." The thunder god replied. "He was about to leave Earthrealm through a secret portal that no mortal should know about. He claimed to be the Champion of the Elder Gods."
"Champion of the Elder Gods?" The master laughed, turning Shujinko. "So that is why you disappeared all those years ago during the middle of your training?" Shujinko nodded guiltily.
"Forgive me, Master Bo Rai Cho, but I couldn't turn down the Elder Gods. Though Lord Raiden needed some convincing that I truly was their champion." Raiden quickly felt humbled as he recalled that day. The warrior was much younger when they first met, but he still managed to get the best of him. He knew perfectly well how strong and skilled Shujinko was. He would be a great addition to Earthrealm's champions.
"It is an honor to fight by your side this time." Raiden said as he bowed to Shujinko before making his way to the final warrior. When he saw him however, he frowned in disgust for it was a face he hoped he'd never have to see again.
"Bi-Han." He snarled to the masked warrior wearing blue and black gi. He seemed to be completely unaffected by the thunder god's obvious contempt.
"Lord Raiden." He greeted indifferently.
"I see the Lin Kuei's reputation preceeds them." Bo Rai Cho said
"I could not care less for the Lin Kuei." Raiden replied to him. "But this fool was an instrument to a great evil almost rising to power in the past. Now he would aid in Earthrealm's protection?" He turned back to Bi-Han. "What is your master's agenda this time? I know well that you Lin Kuei do nothing out of the kindness of your black hearts."
"The Lin Kuei was contracted to assassinate Shang Tsung." Bi-Han answered. "Naturally, such a task requires their best warrior and as such, I will aid you in Earthrealm's defense as long as it benefits my mission."
"How typical." Raiden scoffed. "Greedy, shortsighted, narrow minded fools. Regardless, you fought your way through the Netherrealm to reclaim Shinnok's amulet and atone for you mistake. Your warrior skills are unquestionable so as long as you know your place, I will tolerate your presence." Bi-Han merely nodded in acknowledgement. With his examination over, Raiden stood back to address all four of them. "Follow me, combatants. We shall make our way to Shang Tsung's ship."
"What about the other warriors?" Bo Rai Cho asked. "These are only half the champions."
"Fujin is recruiting them as we speak." Raiden answered. "From what he told me, they are not aware of the existence of other realms. They will take other means of persuasion."
Johnny Cage was not having a pleasant day to put it mildly. There was no reason for him to feel as frustrated as he was. Everything was going great for him. His latest movie was a smash hit, he was on his way to become a bigger star than ever and he had more money than he could ever have dreamed.
So why was he so angry? What bothered him so much? Because no matter how hard he tried, no matter how good he was, people still believed him to be a fake! His hands shook in anger as he read the latest issue of a tabloid that supposedly "exposed" him as a poser. He tore the magazine in half before storming off toward the built in gym of his mansion.
He did what he always did when he felt angry. He hanged up a sandbag in the middle of the room and began to practice on it. He punched and kicked and even headed it with as much force as he could muster and he wasn't ashamed to admit that it was one of those pesky journalists that he was beating to a bloody pulp.
How he wished they could see this. If they witnessed how fast and agile he moved, how perfectly he recreated those exact same moves they saw in his movies, surely none of them would doubt him ever again. And that was only the half of it.
Once Johnny was done taking all of his frustration out, he stood back and pulled up his left leg. The air around him began to vibrate as his body lit up with green energy before his body rocketed forward in the blink of an eye and he kicked the sandbag so hard it crashed against the wall so hard it exploded.
"I'd like to them dismiss this as fake." Johnny growled. He was about to hang up another sandbag when he heard the doorbell ringing. He groaned.
"I swear, if this is another one of those journalists, I'm gonna take his notebook and shove it up his ass so far his colon will write on it." He growled as he made his way to the door. However, the man he saw when he opened it was certainly not a reporter.
"Greetings, Johnny Cage." Said a white haired man with no pupils and dressed like an waitress in an Asian restaurant. Johnny didn't recall ordering any Asian food and he really didn't feel like being bothered by a loony fan right now.
"Sorry, buddy. I only give autographs at public events." He said curtly before shutting the door. He then went to the kitchen to make himself a cocktail and made his way to the balcony to have a relaxing sunbathing session, but when he got there, the door slammed open by a massive wind and the white haired man from before floated in from outside before landing in front of the stunned Johnny.
"Okay, nifty effect but I don't need it." He told him. "Contrary to popular belief, Johnny Cage does all his stunts himself. No wires or CGI. So try to sell it to someone else. I think Van Damme could use it."
"My name is Fujin." The man spoke, completely ignoring his rant. "I am the God of Wind and one of Earthrealm's protectors." Now that caught Johnny's attention. He may look like it and he certainly acted like it, but he was not a fool. He remembered his masters talking to him about the realms and the gods of Earthrealm. He never saw one himself, but if this guy knew about them, he certainly had some connection to them. Fujin smiled when he saw the realisation on his face.
"Judging by your expression, I assume you understood. Master Boyd always spoke highly of you. He said you were his best student."
"Did he now?" Johnny scoffed sarcastically, recalling his master's exhausting lessons and strict demeanor. "That's not the impression I got. So what did the old fart send you for? Did I forget his birthday or something?"
"I'm afraid you misunderstand." Fujin replied as his expression became much more grim. "I am not here on the behalf of Master Boyd. I am here on the behalf of all of Earthrealm." Johnny scoffed again.
"Well, I can't keep tabs on the birthdays of all of Earthrealm. Besides, they think I'm just a poser of a douche movie star. What can I do for them?" Fujin sensed Johnny's frustration and quickly realised how he could use it to his advantage.
"You wish to prove it to them that you are indeed a martial arts grandmaster, not merely an illusionist. You save the world for the cameras, Johnny. But I can offer you a an opportunity to save the world for real and silence all who doubt you."
Johnny raised an eyebrow. The fact that the guy was the God of wind he could buy, he's seen some weird stuff. But he still couldn't understand where his fighting skills came into the picture. Regardless, he was intrigued. The chance to finally shut those naysayers up for good and show them who he was was just too tempting for him to ignore. Fujin was appealing to his desire for personal glory and as shallow as he knew it was, it was working.
"Alright, God of wind." He replied, lowering his sunglasses to reveal his eyes to his guest. "You have my attention."
Two people made their way through an underground cavern littered with bodies, guns and bullet shells. They were a blonde woman wearing her hair in a ponytail and under a beret, a white top, brown trousers and combat boots, and an African-American man wearing a black jacket, black trousers and the same type of boots.
"Damn it, Sonya!" The man cried out in frustration. "Now we won't be able to get anything out of them!" The woman merely kept walking forward with a look of pure anger.
"We don't take Black Dragon as prisoners, Jax! Even if we did, what makes you think they'd tell us anything?" She shouted back. The man named Jax had a hard time keeping up with her.
"Slow down, will you?! You're gonna walk into another ambush!"
"Let them come! Nothing and nobody will keep me away from Kano!" Jax had to restrain himself from groaning.
"Your obsession with him is going to be the end of you!" Before Sonya could answer, another male voice beat her to it.
"Right you are, mate! Too bad it'll also be the end of you too!" They turned towards the end of the tunnel to see a man standing in front of them dressed in a black suit with red outlines and a dragon tattooed across his right arm, but by far his most distinguishing feature was the metal plate he was wearing on right side of his face around a bright red eye. Sonya and Jax glared at him hatefully as they aimed their weapons at him.
"You son of a bitch!" Jax shouted angrily. "Do you have any idea how many special forces operatives died when you busted out the rest of those scumbags?!" Kano merely scoffed before spitting on the ground.
"Obviously not enough if you two are still here sniffin' around!" He replied casually. "'Sides, I believe the number of my mates you put down makin' your way over here more than makes up for it."
"You will only make up for it once you're dead, you bastard!" Sonya snarled, aiming her machine gun at him, but Kano merely chuckled.
"I don't think so!" His red eye then lit up and before Sonya could fire, he shot out a laser beam towards the woman, knocking the weapon out of her hands and blasting her against the wall.
"Sonya!" Jax shouted in panic as his partner fell on the ground. "That's it, you scumbag! I'm gonna..." Sadly, Jax also didn't get the chance to fire as a huge knife came flying at him and managed to disarm him as well.
"You're gonna what, mate?" Kano retorted, firing up his laser eye again. "That's the issue with caring for others, your concern for them makes you careless." Kano fired another laser beam, but Jax managed to roll out of the way before it hit him. He quickly recovered his weapon and aimed it at Kano again, but to his horror, he saw that the criminal now had his partner in his grasp with another knife held against her stomach.
"Let her go!" Jax shouted, raising his weapon.
"Nope. I don't think I will. Why don't you put that down instead? It'd be a shame if I had to cut this pretty face."
"Forget about me, Jax!" Sonya yelled, struggling in vain to get free. "Put the bastard down!" Jax couldn't believe his partner was willing to be caught in the crossfire if it meant Kano's death, but when he remembered all the atrocities he committed, all the lives that he took, he felt tempted to comply with her request.
Before he could decide however, a huge breeze swept across the cave that was strong enough to knock all three of them off of their feet. Jax's weapon and Kano's knife flew out of their hands into the center of the tunnel where the wind was beginning to take form. The form of a man to be precise.
"That is quite enough." Fujin spoke as he materialised in front of the three combatants. "I believe more than enough blood has been spilled by your feud already." Sonya, Jax and Kano only stared in astonishment at the unbelievable sight. The laser eyed criminal was the first one to snap out of his stupor.
"My hideout is getting way too many unwanted guests today for my liking." He snarled as he lit up his laser eye again in an effort to intimidate the new arrival. "Who the hell are you?" But Fujin was not intimidated in the least and that clearly annoyed him.
"Sonya Blade, Jackson Briggs, Kano, I am Fujin, the God of wind. And I am here because Earthrealm needs your aid."
"Now, hang on, mate." Kano replied, making a time out gesture with his hands. "I don't know about this Earthrealm thing, but if you want aid from a Black Dragon, that's gonna come with a heavy price tag, you know." Fujin's gaze hardened. As a god, he had the ability to look into any mortal's soul and to say that Kano's was pitch black would be an understatement. But he knew how to persuade him.
"If we will be successful in our endeavour, your reward will be greater than you can imagine." Kano smirked at that.
"You don't say. Well then, I'll be all too happy to..." He never finished that sentence as the sound of gunfire cut him off. Sonya managed to recover enough to take the still stunned Jax's weapon and fire it at the criminal, but to her shock, the bullets stopped mid-air and and flew into the palms of Fujin.
"My sincere apologies, Miss Blade, but as one of Earthrealm's champions, Kano is under the protection of it's gods. As are you."
"Talk about friends in high places, eh?" Kano chuckled, enraging Sonya even further.
"I have no idea who are you, how you got here or what the hell is going on! All I know is, if you hire Kano, then you are just one more criminal!" Sonya raised her fist to punch Fujin, but the wind god didn't even flinch and merely blew the woman back towards her partner with his wind.
"One would assume the Special Forces would be more dedicated to their world's protection." Fujin lamented, turning to Jax. "Major Briggs, I assume you are the voice of reason in your duo."
"That I am." Jax replied. He was suspicious about Fujin as well, but he had the feeling there was something more in the background than he was seeing. And his feelings were usually right. "So what's this thing about Earthrealm's champions and our world's protection?"
"Come on, Jax!" Sonya yelled at him in disbelief. "Don't tell me you're gonna play along with this!" Jax sighed as he turned to her.
"In case you haven't noticed, the guy literally blew our asses away, Sonya! I don't like it any more than you do, but I'm getting the feeling the things that are happening here are way beyond our control. We're gonna have to play along."
"I don't have to do anything that involves him!" Sonya screamed pointing at Kano with hatred.
"Aww, you're hurtin' my feelings, love." Kano replied with his voice dripping with sarcasm. Sonya was about to lunge at him, but Fujin once again prevented that.
"Please, Miss Blade, save it for the tournament."
"Tournament?" Jax asked, rasing an eyebrow. "What tournament?" Fujin sighed. He was uncertain how successful he will be in making the three of them believe the story behind the Mortal Kombat tournament, but he wouldn't know until he tried.
"Allow me to explain on the way..."
Well, I hope you enjoyed this chapter! If did, please leave a review and follow me on this journey!
Next time, the journey begins to Shang Tsung's island where the tournament will take place as the champions get to know each other. Until then...
Character designs:
Raiden: MK9 - Default
Liu Kang: MK9 - Default
Sub-Zero: MK1 - Default
Johnny Cage: MK Trilogy
Sonya: MK vs DC
Jax: MK9 - Alternate (with normal arms)
Kano: MK9 - Default
Kenshi: MK Deadly Alliance - Default
Shujinko: Middle Age design from MK: Deception - Konquest
Fujin: MK11 - Default
Bo Rai Cho: MKX - Default