Sonya Blade took a deep breath as she stood outside of the conference room of the FBI headquarters. It was her first day back on the job, after returning from her alliance with the Black Dragon only a few days prior. As she had walked through the halls and greeted colleagues who excitedly welcomed her back; Sonya felt strangely out of place. For the longest time, this had been her dream job, one that she had excelled in and had provided her with a sense of purpose. Yet, as she waited outside of the conference room, she wondered why she felt so anxious to step back into a role that once brought her so many fulfillments.
Deep down, she knew the cause of her apprehension. She knew from the start that her alliance with the Black Dragon was limited and that this day would come. Yet she couldn't deny that she felt a certain freedom among the Black Dragon that she had never experienced while working with the FBI. While she was the highest ranking officer of her department, she had limited ability of how she could run her division as there was a hierarchy of officers that she ultimately answered to. With the Black Dragon, however, Kano gave her full reign to run his team her way. There was a freedom in not having to confine to a set of stringent rules; she wasn't sure if she was ready to let that go.
She was also hesitant because she and Kano had not really discussed the nature of their new relationship, if they could even call it that. Not even 24 hours after their first and only night together, they had led their teams into Outworld and literally hit the ground running to face off against the Titan. Whatever little time that they had together was spent on strategizing. Once everything was said and done, Sonya had been expected to return to her role with the FBI almost immediately.
Whatever was between them was left unsaid and Sonya was not ready to leave that behind her either. She wondered when they would see each other again, and if they would pick up where they left off. She also questioned the future of the Black Dragon and wondered if the FBI would still regard them as an enemy now that this alliance was over.
Sonya took another deep breath and paused before entering the room. Despite being nervous, Sonya appeared incredibly poised. She was dressed in a tailored form fitting black blazer, a grey-blue ribbed and sleeveless turtleneck blouse with a fitted pencil skirt that was just the right length to show off her sculpted legs in nude stiletto high heels. Her long blonde hair was tied back into a pony tail. It was a drastic change from the sexier tight fitting "uniforms" that she had recently become accustomed to wearing when she worked among the Black Dragon.
As she entered the room, she spotted Kabal and Stryker; they were sitting together at a long conference table directly across from their superior officer, Agent Shaw. Both Stryker and Kabal wore almost identical black suits and were impeccably groomed. Like Sonya, Kabal had also tied back his long black hair into a pony tail. Both men smiled at the sight of Sonya. "Special Agent Blade, welcome back. Please, have a seat,"Shaw said as he extended his arm to her seat. "Thank you, Commander Shaw, I am happy to be back," Sonya said as she sat down next to Stryker.
"Now that all of you are together again, let me start off by saying what a phenomenal job the three of you did handling this Titan threat. Special Agent Blade, I want to congratulate you specifically. I will be honest. When I initially learned of your partnership with Kano, I was concerned with your well being given your adversarial history. While a gutsy move, it turned out to be a beneficial alliance as you both successfully led our teams to victory preventing the Titan's catastrophic reign."
"What will become of the Black Dragon?" Sonya asked. "Funny you should bring that up. I had just met with Kano a little over an hour ago. The Black Dragon will be on our payroll; they will develop, produce and distribute arms to our agents." Sonya widened her eyes in surprise. "Kano agreed to this?" "That he did." Sonya was taken aback by the news. "Well that is an interesting development." Shaw grinned. "That it is. Moving along, we need to prepare ourselves for our next mission. Stryker, I am going to leave it to you to fill both Kabal and Blade in on the details. Please excuse my abrupt leave; however, I have another matter to attend to."
As their commander left the room, Sonya sat back in her chair. Stryker regarded her expression. "Are you ready to get back into action?" he said as he handed her a classified file containing the details of their latest mission. Sonya hesitated with a blank expression on her face. After a moment of silence, Sonya smiled. "Kurtis, I can no longer do this," she said. Kurtis sighed as he immediately knew where this was heading. "You want to go back to the Black Dragon, don't you?"
Sonya nodded. "I feel at home there, more than I could ever feel here. I know that sounds odd, but, this is no longer the right thing for me." Stryker smiled. "There is more to that…you fell for him." Sonya blushed. "I know you don't get it, I know I certainly wasn't expecting it, but yes, it's true. I am not ready to walk away from him and everything we built together."
"Eh, he is not that bad of a guy," Stryker said. "I initially thought he was a prick, but after working alongside him and seeing him in action, I get it." Both Stryker and Sonya looked toward Kabal. "Well I still think Kano's a prick…but I approve," he said with a big grin. Sonya laughed out of relief. "Well, you better catch up with Shaw and let him know that you're resigning," Stryker suggested. "Right, let me go. I will catch up with you guys soon," Sonya said as she gave both men a hug and then hurriedly left the room…
Twenty minutes later, Sonya walked outside with a smile on her face. She took off of her jacket to allow herself to feel more comfortable as it was close to 90 degrees outside. As she approached her truck, she saw Kano leaning against the driver's side door. He flashed a smile. "Damn you look good baby," he said biting his lip as he looked at her. "Sonya laughed. "What are you doing here?" "I had a meeting with your commander about an hour ago, he offered me a job." "So, I heard, the Black Dragon was hired to produce our arms. That's a big deal," Sonya said.
"Aye, a very lucrative one. Shaw was impressed with the arms I gave his boys during the Outworld mission. Gave me an offer I couldn't refuse, so I accepted. After our meeting, I decided to stick around as something told me to wait for ya... So how did it go up there?" he asked.
"You're looking at the FBI's liaison for the Black Dragon," she said with a wink. "Really? How'd that come about?" Kano asked. "I sat there in that conference room and realized that I no longer belong here. Right after our meeting, I marched into Shaw's office to give him my notice. He said that the FBI couldn't afford to lose someone of my talents so that was when he offered to keep me on in a different capacity. Officially, I can keep my current priveleges but will continue to work with you," Sonya said.
Kano smiled. "Well that is the best news that I have heard all day," he said as he put his hands on her waist drawing her closer to him. Sonya wrapped her arms around his neck. "So where do we go from here?" she asked him. Kano leaned into her face and slowly kissed her lips, while sliding his hands down her back side. "Back home, love." "That sounds good to me," she said with a smile. "Let's get out of here, then," he said after a quick slap to her butt, making her yelp. She happily laughed as she embraced him for one last kiss before the both of them got into her truck to head back to the Black Dragon base…
With a smile on his face, Liu Kang watched the image of Sonya and Kano driving away from the Hourglass. Geras approached him. "What amuses you Lord Liu Kang?" he asked. "I find it ironic that of all of the timelines that Sonya and Kano's variants have existed in, this is the first and only timeline that they have a healthy romantic relationship." "Did you not forsee their pairing when you suggested their alliance?" Geras asked. "No. I was able to forsee that their alliance would have benefited our efforts to stop Titan Havik, but even then I could not have forseen this outcome. This was a genuine surprise." "Indeed it is," Geras said.
"I suspect that you did not pay me a visit to discuss pleasantries. What troubles you Geras?" Liu Kang asked. "I am sorry my Lord, but I bring news of another impending threat," Geras said. Liu Kang's smile faded. "What news do you have my friend?" "I have discovered another more powerful Titan that poses a threat to the Hourglass…Titan Quan Chi. He is preparing an army of revenants from the Netherrealm, unlike anything we have seen before. His revenants are not only from his current timeline, but other variants from other timelines as well," Geras said.
Liu Kang's eyes widened. "How can this be?" he asked. "I do not know. I suspect in your attempt to restore the Hourglass, a small number of powerful variants somehow had knowledge of shielding themselves from the effects of the reset and therefore were unaffected by its changes. We were able to stop Titan Havik, but I believe that Titan Quan Chi, while our latest threat, will not be the last." Liu Kang sighed. "How soon before they try to invade Earthrealm?" "It is likely within the next day or two,"Geras said. Liu Kang placed his hand on Geras' shoulder. "Then it is with a heavy heart that I must gather my champions to defend Earthrealm from this next great evil…"