#oddball writes

However, the second guard tries to use this opportunity to punch Kuai Liang, who reacts by grabbing his left arm and forcing the guard to crouch with one hand flat on his back. The older Lin Kuei warrior notices the first guard getting back up and rushing towards him, which Kuai Liang takes care of with a hook kick, followed by grappling the second guard to the ground so he lands on his back. The older Lin Kuei warrior mid-strike when he feels cold metal pressed to the back of his neck. Kuai Liang slowly stands to his full height.

The Lin Kuei warrior then grabs the first guard by the wrist before slamming said wrist against his armored shoulder, lighting his hands ablaze just enough to cause first-degree burns, to disarm the guard. Kuai Liang then spins around to punch the first guard hard enough that teeth come flying out of his mouth. The first guard falls to the ground in a heavy heap with a fist-shaped burn on the side of his cheek.

It struck Kuai Liang how odd the state of the brainwashed guards' condition is. Despite being unable to hear at the moment, the Lin Kuei warrior thought they would be making some indication of their pain, whether it would be through muffled shouts or moving to cradle their injuries. Yet, both guards remain motionless on the floor, their unblinking, milky-white eyes staring at nothing, as if they were no more than dolls their master has briefly set down, presumably to pick up again.

'It's as if they're nothing but husks.'

Kuai Liang thinks to himself, finding a deep, primal part of him disturbed by the uncanny scene. That's when he's hit a cold splash of water, breaking him out of his brief stupor. The older warrior looks back out into the river to see Harumi's imposter giving him a literal sharp-toothed grin before she uses her hands to splash Kuai Liang in the face. The latter only blinks in response before raising a brow at the random, harmless act.

"Listen, whoever you may be, I do not wish to harm you-"

All Kuai Liang could get out as the one guard wraps their arms around the Lin Kuei warrior's legs, before the second one rips the cotton out of his ears. He's immediately greeted with an onslaught of noise everywhere, from the guards' heavy breathing to the waves crashing against the creaking pier.

"NO!"

Kuai Liang shouts before his hearing is over taken by the sweetest melody he's ever heard from Harumi's lips. He feels his heart warm at the sight of his oldest friend's gentle smile. Behind Harumi is her family's compound, where its legendary Fire Gardens drop their flame colored leaves onto the still and clear water below.

"My name it is Y/N. A sailor daughter's fair, and I have left my beloved pod so very far from here."

Harumi then reaches out her strong hands toward Kuai Liang, who outstretches his own hand toward hers. Faintly, he does wonder why he didn't take her hand sooner, but that thought is quickly swept away as Harumi continues to sing.

"Come all you pretty fair maids, whoever you may be. Who loves a jolly lover, that ploughs the raging sea."

Kuai Liang gently wraps his much longer fingers around Harumi's smaller hand, allowing her to drag him into the water.

...

"BROTHER! WAKE UP!"

Scorpion's eyes snapped open, and he immediately reached for his kunai, only to drop a crate onto the ground, where dozens of pomelo fruit rolled out. Now fully awake, Scorpion's vision comes into focus, revealing Sub-Zero holding him by the shoulders and shaking him. Sub-zero's eyes were wide with his brows deeply furrowed in concern. Standing beside him is an equally concerned Tomas, who was holding Kuai Liang's soaked flare.

"Bi-han? Tomas? Why am I holding a basket of fruit?"

Bi-han's expression softens upon hearing his younger brother's voice. The eldest brother's eyes narrow in deep thought.

"This creature, no, this siren, may be more troublesome than I initially thought."

...

On their third night at the fishing village, the Lin Kuei brothers decided to patrol together rather than separately. They started their patrol on the south side of the town, with beeswax prepared instead of cotton, as it provided better hearing protection. Thanks to Scorpion's and Smoke's first-hand experience with the creature, the eldest Lin Kuei brother is confident that they can capture this siren before dawn.

At least, that was what Sub-Zero felt toward the beginning of the evening. Unfortunately, a heavy fog started to roll in late into the night, which greatly hindered their sight of the village as a whole. On top of that, the siren refuses to show itself, leaving the Lin Kuei brothers chasing dead ends. Once, starting with a woman who was just singing along to a song on TV. The second was from a handheld radio some construction workers were listening to as they headed home for the evening. Sub-Zero lets out a displeased groan as he removes the beeswax from his ears, and his younger brothers follow suit.

"Perhaps, the siren is lying low, knowing that we're here."

Sub-Zero gives a hum of acknowledgement toward Scorpion's reasoning, yet that doesn't stop the frustration the Lin Kuei's Grandmaster feels growing inside him as the night continues on. Privately, Sub-Zero wonders to himself if he could somehow freeze the fog that blanketed the village just so he could get rid of the nuisance. Eventually, the brothers find themselves atop a roof on the tallest building in the town. There, they notice movement in the distance. Sub-zero reaches into the inside of his vest for his handheld telescope and raises it to his eye.

"What do you see?"

Scorpion quietly inquires. Just by eye alone, Scorpion could make out about a dozen or so people walking within the fog before they're seemingly swallowed up by the thick mist.

"It appears to be all the locals."

From about 73 yards away, Sub-Zero was able to make a large shadowy mass that reminded the Grandmaster of a distant memory of watching a group of ants descending upon a pastry he dropped as a boy. Only in this instance can Sub-Zero make out that the moving mass is actually composed of people. Yet, all those people appeared to be shuffling forward, and underneath the street lamps, their half-shut eyes seemed to be milky white with a glossy sheen. Strangely, a couple of the villagers appear to be holding what seem to be dark-colored boxes in their arms.

"If this siren really is just trying to survive, as you say, then explain to me why they would be hypnotizing the entire village?"

Sub-Zero whispers to Scorpion, eyes narrowed in suspicion. Scorpion observes the crowd as they wander into the fog before suddenly stopping and turning around, then shuffling out of the mist instead, only to seemingly change their minds again.

"I cannot say for certain, however, I believe Y/N's have mostly been defensive in nature rather than outright offensive. Tomas and I are strangers to them and a far bigger threat than any of the locals, but why leave us alive? Why just have us feed them?"

Sub-Zero glances back over to the crowd in the distance, which becomes denser as half-asleep civilians are led out of their homes by their hypnotized friends and family, into the presumed area of the siren's voice to also fall under their control. He then moves his telescope to observe in the direction the crowd is moving toward, the South Pier. As Sub-Zero expected, under the pier's lamplights, there was a blur of shiny scales and fins moving left to right in the water. The eldest brother then looks back over at Scorpion.

"Are you still under that siren's song?"

"Of course not!"

Scorpion is quick to snap back before quickly calming himself down with a deep breath.

"I am merely pointing out the facts that lie before us."

"Does it include how they're enough of a threat that Lui Kang felt the need to send us? Or how that boy was forced to murder against his will?"

Sub-Zero raises a brow in question. Underneath his mask, Scorpion's jaw clenches and unclenches.

"Yes, it does. To me, all these actions speak of a frightened person trapped, possibly injured, and lost in a new realm far from their home. Nevertheless, they are capable of reason if we're honest with our intentions."

Smoke glances away from the crowd, particularly a policeman holding a thin object with a ball-like shape on top, to address his older brother.

"As much as I want to believe that wholeheartedly, Bi-han still has a point here. They're still dangerous."

Bi-han gives a sound of acknowledgement to his youngest brother.

"Their desperation and fear only make them that much more. So, worst comes to worst, we must be ready."

An electric crackle echoes through the air, followed by a high-pitched ringing noise. All three Lin Kuei brothers flinch at the unfamiliar sound before their eyes are drawn to the source of the noise, where all of the controlled locals gathered in one large mass. Sub-Zero's eyes narrow as he observes a singular man in a tank top and sandals break away from the crowd, holding out a thin device with a sphere-shaped top. The Cryomancer's eyes widen when he sees a humanoid figure breaching the water near the man holding out the device.

Without hesitation, Sub-Zero raises his hands on either side of his head and ices both his ears shut, nearly freezing his entire head. His brothers both open their mouths to question their Grandmaster's seemingly irrational act, yet no words come out, as at the same time the siren starts to sing.

"la La La LA La La la!"

Their voice echoes from the speakers placed all around the pier and throughout the entire night air, filling the whole village with their hypnotic sound in an instant. Just like the rest of the town, Scorpion and Smoke's eyes glaze over, and without another word, they turn away from Sub-Zero to then jump from the ledge and into the fog.

"NO!"

Sub-Zero cries as he instinctively reaches out to grab his brothers, his fingers brushing against the back of their vests before they're out of reach. Bi-Han leans over the ledge to catch Kuai Liang and Tomas landing on another roof before running to jump onto a nearby roof, heedless of the fog. In under a minute, the large mass surrounding the siren parted like the Red Sea to allow both Lin Kuei warriors to stand before their new master.

The siren tilts their head in curiosity, microphone in one hand, as they squint their eyes they taking in both men from top to bottom. The Siren then swims a little away into the water and away from the pier, spreading their arms wide as they open their mouth again. When Kuai Liang is the first to take a step towards the edge of the dock, arms spread out as if for an embrace, that's when Bi-Han makes his move.

He hurls a ball of ice from his perch, which cuts through the fog toward the siren. Wasting no time at all, they dive out of the way simultaneously as a fireball instantaneously collides with the ice ball, reducing it into steam mid-air. Kuai Liang moved in front of the siren, his arms placed in front of them, yet most of his expression remained shrouded in the thick mist, which wasn't helped by the steam. Tomas also moved to stand beside Kuai Liang. When the Siren rises from the water again, both brothers stiffen as if they're nothing more than puppets on strings.

The Siren whips their head in Bi-han's direction, making direct eye contact with the Cryomancer. Bi-Han's gaze hardens as The Siren begins to wave their hands in front of them from the water, their mouth flapping at a million miles per hour, yet Bi-Han would hear none of it, nor could he read the aquatic creature's lips from the distance between them. The Lin Kuei's Grandmaster raises a leg to the ledge before pointing down at the Siren below, who still hasn't stopped flapping their mouth.

"Hear me, Siren! Or should I say, Y/N? I care not for your reason or plans! I will not allow you to control or harm any of my Lin Kuei! If I must end your life to ensure their safety,"

Bi-han then outstretches his hand to instantly create a pole made of ice before smashing it into the side of the building to turn it into a spear made of hard blue ice.

"Then so be it."

The siren stops flapping their lips as their expression goes from panic to a glare as cold as Sub-Zero's ice. They then left their arm to point in the Cryomancer's direction. Under their silent command, everyone, save for Kuai Liang and Tomas, turns their heads at the exact same time in the Grandmaster's direction. Then the locals move as a singular wave toward Sub-Zero, spurned on by the belicrose song that the latter couldn't hear as it filled the air.

"I don't know who you are or why you're here."

Sub-Zero jumps down from the roof he was perched on, ice spear in hand, and into the oncoming wave of locals.

"But let me make this one thing clear."

When he's just a few feet above the ground, Sub-Zero uses one free hand to create an ice slide beneath his feet.

"I've got people to protect. Sisters, I can't neglect. So I'm not taking chances, dear."

Just as he was coming to a stop, Sub-Zero manifested pillars of ice all around him, knocking a plethora of villagers out of his way. He then uses his spear to pole vault over a dozen or so locals, landing safely with a midair kick to the first person unfortunate enough to be in the way of his heel. However, as soon as Sub-Zero was on the ground, he was grabbed from only to be caught from behind with someone locking their arms under his, and three more attempted to grab at his legs. The Cryomancer responds by kicking two of them back, causing both to knock over the third, before dropping his weight to knock the grappler off his balance, and following it up with a headbutt to their nose. Sub-Zero paid no mind to the spurt of blood that landed on the back of his neck, as he encases his fists in a layer of hard frost to punch the next person, following it with a hard front kick to their chest to send them flying into even more people. Not wasting this brief moment of reprieve, Sub-Zero creates another ice pole from the ground, which he then swings the heavy end straight into another man's chest, causing him to expel all the air from his lungs and subsequently crumble to the ground. The rest of the hoard of mind-controlled villagers didn't even flinch at the sight of the newly sharpened ice spear and marched forward against their singular target. Fortunately, for them, their target had no interest in immediately taking their lives.

"If you make one wrong move, then you're done for! "

Sub-Zero used his newly created spear to beat back the never-ending wave of people around him, even sending one woman vertically into the air before she knocked down her mind-controlled neighbors as she fell. The Cryomancer occasionally had to spin his spear around his body to beat and scratch up the mob around him. One particularly bold elderly woman, in her pink slippers and teddy bear-themed robe, tried to ambush him from behind. Yet, Sub-Zero noticed her quick enough to bat her through the window of a local bakery. Nonetheless, the Lin Kuei's Grandmaster still progressed through the Siren's minions, swatting them away as he made his way about halfway toward his target. The Siren swings both their clawed hands forward as they send out another silent command to their blindly obedient army.

"Anything I don't approve of, then you're done for!"

Sub-Zero just barely turns around in time to block a sledgehammer from caving in his skull, which he follows up with an ice-encased uppercut that sends the perpetrator flying into the crowd behind them. Yet, the front remains just as dangerous, as more and more people start attacking the Cryomancer with various tools, including scythes, machetes, gardening hoes, and leisters. Sub-Zero is attacked simultaneously from his front and back, but the person in the back misses as the cryomancer drops to the ground, which he follows up with a high kick to the side of their face, sending them crashing through a wall of a nearby building. Not wasting his momentum, Sub-Zero uses his spear to knock the person in front of him off balance. It's more than enough for the Lin Kuei's Grandmaster to then reach for their leister with his free hand to then use it against its wielder, knocking them into more people, causing them to drop their weapons on impact.

Sub-Zero spots the Siren once more and grits his teeth at the sight of them sitting between both his younger brothers, having hauled themself enough to rest between them as they stood as their stoic sentries. The cryomancer barely noted when another liester gets thrown at him and grazes his arm, as Sub-zero's attention was on the Siren and his captured brothers. He throws up a wall made of ice that resembles fangs reaching toward the sky. At the same time, Sub-Zero starts to run towards them, creating another ice slide underneath him to pick up the pace.

"I could put a spell on you and you're done for!"

The Lin Kuei's Grandmaster almost stumbles as he reaches the end of his ice slide on account of not initially hearing a heavy-set man in flannel with a chainsaw before appearing out of the heavy fog. He tries to swing at Sub-Zero's head with the heavy tool, only for the chainsaw's many teeth to tear into the cryomancer's ice spear instead. Without a moment's pause, Sub-Zero uses his spear to grapple the chainsaw to the ground, causing the heavy man to stumble forward. The cryomancer then follows up by stabbing his spear into the tool, rendering it useless, before then grabbing the heavy man by both sides of his head to use as a pivot to flip right over the man, simultaneously freezing both sides of the civilian's head.

Rather than turn around and uselessly flail around a defunct chainsaw, the heavy-set man instantly collapses to the ground like a sack of pomelos. Sub-Zero was only able to give a momentary glance behind him at the sensation of the man falling to the ground before the cryomancer was suddenly struck with a white-hot searing pain in his left deltoid. Sub-Zero lets out a grunt and grits his teeth at the sight of a line of policemen standing shoulder to shoulder with their pistols drawn. In another second, all of the brainwashed officers of the law fire upon the cryomancer.

Fortunately, in a fraction of that second, Sub-Zero was able to raise both arms to create a shield of ice. The officers' bullets embed themselves in the thick ice, unable to penetrate it. Sub-Zero briefly lowers his shield, enough to raise his less injured arm to create a wave of dulled ice shurikens to cut through the fog and towards the gunmen. They instantly freeze parts of the policemen and their guns upon contact, slowing their movements. However, seeing as they don't pause in their movements despite the cold, the Lin Kuei's Grandmaster manifests a sphere of pure cold to then toss at the police's feet. In a flash of pure white, all of the officers are encased in ice, ceasing to move completely.

Yet, there was no time to celebrate or for Sub-Zero to move even an inch before he was beset with a barrage of harpoons from both sides of the street. The Lin Kuei Grandmaster quickly rolls forward to avoid the initial harpoons, flipping over the guards to dodge the rest of the harpoons. Just as he lands, Sub-Zero raises his shield again to block another harpoon. The cryomancer throws his harpoon and bullet-covered shield at the lone woman atop a laundromat, knocking her off the building and, by the sounds of metal clanging and plastic crunching, landing inside a dumpster.

'How many people are there in this small village?'

Bi-han thinks to himself, disgruntled. The Cryomancer then lets out a gasp, audible for everyone but himself, as something like an iron hot poker was just shoved through his guts, searing the deepest parts of him. Without giving himself time to fully process the burning pain flaring within, Sub-Zero throws a sphere of ice at the other woman opposite the first, who is knocked right off her feet to the concrete of the rooftop. The Cryomancer grits his teeth as he looks at the harpoon impaled in his abdomen, a small trickle of blood dripping out from around the shaft.

'If she were closer by a few centimeters, she would've severed an artery.'

Sub-Zero then touches the shaft of the harpoon with a finger, freezing it for an instant and shattering it with a flick of his finger in another.

'Fortunate that none of the locals are worthy fighters.'

The Cryomancer then holds his hand over the wound, freezing the flesh closed over the still frozen spearhead before doing the same for his deltoid and other wounds. Bi-Han then turns his gaze back over to where the Siren held his brothers captive under their song. He snarls with his teeth fully bared at the sight of the Siren's cocky smirk as they caress both Kuai Liang and Tomas by the cheeks. He sees their lips start to move, but doesn't care to read their boastful words, only that they hear his words over their incessant singing.

"Boy, you'd better run or soon you will be done for!"

"ENOUGH of your mind-controlled minions! Fight me yourself, you cowardly wench!"

All at once, a tidal wave of locals befalls Bi-han, having made their way around the ice walls the cryomancer created and the buildings. Sub-Zero himself is nearly beaten into a pulp when a group of civilians swing their respective sledgehammers and shovels toward their singular goal. Yet, the Lin Kuei Grandmaster parries their attacks, freezing the ends of their weapons before shattering them into a million frozen pieces. Sub-Zero grapples a sledgehammer out of a man's hands before freezing him on the spot, encasing it with ice to then use it to swing back three more villagers that attempt to grab at him.

'I can't fight that Siren if they keep sending their minions after me! Unless,'

The Cryomancer freezes those three to the side of a building before entering said building with the rest of the mob not too far behind. Sub-Zero freezes a wall before shattering it with his makeshift war hammer, and then encasing the entire adjacent room with hardened ice. Not wasting any time, Sub-Zero charges through the hole with the villagers close behind. As the Cryomancer predicted, many of the villagers slipped and fell on the ice he created, unable to gain any traction. This gives Sub-Zero enough of a chance to continue to make his way forward through more walls and freeze over entire buildings, including creating high ice walls that block any alleyways in between buildings as he passes through. However, the villagers who slipped were used by the rest of the horde alongside overturned tables as makeshift sleds to once again gain speed on the cryomancer.

The latter, who predicted something like that would happen, was prepared when the locals attempted to tackle him from behind. Sub-Zero became a blizzard as he turned around to grab one woman in midjump and used her momentum to slam her face into a wall, shattering some of the ice it's encased in, before using his ice hammer to swipe away the rest that followed. Thanks to the more enclosed area that Sub-Zero himself reinforced, the brainwashed mob wasn't able to effectively surround him without climbing over one another. It made it much easier for the Cryomancer to freeze greater clusters of people in place, simultaneously safely incapacitating them and creating a makeshift wall that the rest of the villagers could only futilely hammer away at. Sub-Zero didn't need to worry about any stragglers breaking through the other walls or windows, as he made sure to encase the rest of the openings in thick ice.

The Lin Kuei's Grandmaster then makes his way into the back of the store he's in before making his way up toward the roof, his footsteps muffled by the dozens of people still trying to chip away at the ice that traps them. As he exited the building onto the roof, Sub-Zero stopped to freeze the door behind him shut, just to be safe. The Cryomancer then crouches low as he stalks his way towards the ledge. Below him, now only a few yards away, is the wretched Siren. They watched the building Sub-Zero was just in, unaware that their target managed to slip past their mind-controlled hoard and waiting for them to drag out the Cryomancer's beaten and bruised body.

Bi-han observes the Siren in the water, noting that there's no sign of his brothers. The eldest brother hopes that his brothers are merely hidden in the fog, rather than at the bottom of the river. Sub-Zero grits his teeth as he mentally berates himself to snap out of his thoughts and focus on the mission at hand. Thanks to decades of training and practice, The Cryomancer walks back from the Siren with foot steps so light that not even the most minor crack appeared on the ice he conjured. With his weapon still in hand, Sub-Zero sprints off the roof as if the ice beneath his feet were just regular ground, ice hammer raised over his head and full of murderous intent. Unaware of the death's cold hand about to rain down on them, Y/N the Siren continues to sing.

"I've got people to protect, sisters I can't neglect. So now there is no turning back."

"GET OVER HERE!"

Came an enraged cry concurrently as a roped kunai springs from the thick fog and wraps around Sub-Zero's Weapon, pulling him away from the Siren mid-air and slamming him onto the wooden docks. The chain then pulls the weapon into the fog, where a blazing inferno lights up through the mist to show the gun being melted down and burnt to ash. Sub-Zero was just able to get back on his feet before he felt the air shift behind him and instinctively flipped forward, leaving an ice clone behind, which was then shattered with a powerful stab from a familiar karambit. Bi-han is only able to get a glimpse of Smoke before he drops a smoke bomb, becoming nearly indistinguishable from the rest of the fog.

"You've made your one wrong move, now you're done for!"

"I see what you're trying to do, Siren! I know my brothers and I know well enough that they don't need me to hold back!'

Right after Bi-han makes his declaration, Scorpion swings his kusarigama at his older brother's neck. Sub-Zero ducks in time, but just when he rises back to his feet, he's met with two kicks straight to his sternum courtesy of Smoke. The youngest brother follows this with a swing of his karambit, fully intending to gut Sub-Zero, but the Cryomancer manifests an ice-battle axe in time to parry the blow and push back his youngest brother. Smoke then launches a barrage of swipes so fast that the average man would've been gutted with just three cuts, but Sub-Zero is just barely able to keep up and block each and every blow. The Cryomancer thought that he was guaranteed victory when he managed to disarm Smoke, sending his signature knife falling toward the water. However, Smoke just used his power to bring his knife back to him like it was a boomerang before it hit the water, then swung it at Sub-Zero's neck the second it was back in his hand. Fortunately, Sub-Zero saw this coming and was able to block the blow, protecting his neck. Unfortunately, Sub-Zero is so engrossed in his fight with Smoke, and with his hearing blocked, he's unable to hear the sound of a roped scythe cutting through the fog and embedding itself into Sub-Zero's side.

"I will be the one to prove that you're done for. Not even ice saves you, 'cause you're done for!"

Sub-Zero lets out a cry as Scorpion yanks the rope to knock his older brother off his feet and drag him directly into his waiting fists. Sub-Zero reinforces the thick ice on his fists to lessen the impact of the flurry of punches that Scorpion rains down on him. However, at the sight of Scorpion pulling out his kusarigama to, undoubtedly, take his head, Sub-Zero rolls out of the way and jumps back to his feet to perform a front sweep kick on Scorpion, just as he swung his weapon down. This works to unbalance the Pyromancer as he ends up falling on his back.

Sub-Zero stands back up with an iceball in hand, but the Cryomancer is interrupted when Smoke jumps over Scorpion's fallen form to deliver two kicks to Sub-Zero in midair. The Cryomancer is sent stumbling back as thick smoke then fills his vision, and sharpened steel cuts through the fog, then into the Cryomancer's flesh. Smoke is only able to make a few deep cuts into his older brother before the latter flips backwards, leaving a trio of ice clones in his wake. Sub-Zero pants heavily as blood starts to drip from his numerous injuries.

'What was that, Bi-han?! Why are you holding back against your brothers? You know that they're strong enough to take whatever attack you throw at them!"

Bi-han clenches his teeth and grunts in frustration, before ripping off his mask to then wipe the blood off his lip. He looks down at the considerably large smear on his frozen fists, his furrowed brow loosening in realization.

'They only attack because they can hear the siren's song.'

Sub-Zero hastily freezes his wounds closed at the familiar flames lighting through the fog, but finds his gaze shifting to the sides for the slightest sign of movement in the mist. The Cryomancer's fists tighten in anticipation.

"Oh, you'd better run, or soon you will be done for!"

Sub-Zero launches a flurry of iceballs into the fog in Scorpion's presumed direction. As the Cryomancer predicted, the younger Pyromancer swings his kunai and rope in a propeller-like motion to block the icy attack. When there were no more projectiles to worry about, Scorpion then launches his kunai at Sub-Zero, who, with a simple motion and some chants engraved in his soul, raises a thick spiked wall of ice. The Lin Kuei's Grandmaster was no fool; he knew that Scorpion's fire blazed as hot as his own ice was cold, and could even burn through his ice under the right conditions. One of those being Sub-Zero's ice wall just barely slows down the flaming kunai enough to come to a stop with its tip pointed right between the Cryomancer's eyes, but Sub-Zero just glared at it with a coldness matching the ice and snow that he wields.

Just as the Grandmaster predicted, thanks to extreme heat and cold coming into contact, a wall of steam replaced the ice that Sub-Zero summoned. A perfect smoke screen for any stealthy attacker. An attacker that the Cryomancer knew well enough to create an ice spear to swing behind him, just as Smoke was in mid-air with his karambit raised. Smoke's milky eyes widen in surprise. Sub-Zero used the momentum of his swing to throw the youngest brother to the ground. Smoke's knife clatters to the ground, which the eldest brother kicks into the water before its owner can grab it. Smoke holds out his hand to try to summon his karambit back to his hand, succeeding in raising the knife out of the water. Only for Sub-Zero to intervene by icing Smoke's hands to the wooden boards of the pier.

"What good is summoning your knife if you can't wield it?"

Smoke's sneer was the Cryomancer's only warning before, in a flash, he aimed a side kick toward Sub-Zero. The Grandmaster backs away with only a centimeter between his chest and Smoke's heel. But this leads him directly in line for Scorpion's flying kunai. In a blink, Sub-Zero ducks to the ground, with one hand held out, summoning ice below Scorpion, which instantly freezes his entire lower half, including his hand to his scythe.

Knowing that he only has a few seconds before Scorpion breaks himself out, Sub-Zero freezes Smoke's legs in place just as he tries to kick him again. He then kneels down next to his youngest brother, who thrashes against his icy restraints, before the Cryomancer grabs both sides of his brother's head and ices the sides of his head. Without the Siren's song in his ears, Smoke's head collapses to the ground with his eyes shut. Sub-Zero's gaze softens ever so slightly at Tomas's unconscious form.

'I'll be glad to have you back when you awake, Tomas'

Sub-Zero looks up from Tomas to the fire that lit the wooden pier ablaze and to the one responsible for the fire, Scorpion. Not wasting any time, Sub-Zero grabs an unconscious Smoke, breaking the ice below him. The Grandmaster then tosses his brother over his shoulder, before creating a wall of ice in front of him to give him cover from the blazing scythe fired at him. Wasting no time, Sub-Zero creates three ice kunai to throw at Scorpion, who runs towards him with his scythe whirling like a propeller to block all of them. Nonetheless, Sub-Zero successfully jumps from the pier and back onto land, to place Tomas behind some crates before circling around back to the part of the pier not yet burning.

However, that might not be the case for long as Scorpion's flaming scythe flies through the air, its red-hot steel seemingly eager to cut into the Cryomancer. Sub-Zero dodges the blade before following the attack with his own weapon, an ice battle axe, to grapple the rope attached to the scythe and wrap it around the handle of the ax. The Cryomancer then simultaneously stomps his foot onto the ground, frosting over the entire pier and putting out the fire, and gives a mighty yank that pulls Scorpion's entire body forward.

"Let's continue this fight, OVER HERE!"

Sub-Zero shouts as Scorpion practically skates towards him, the bespelled ninja unable to even dig his heels into the icy ground to avoid the Cryomancer's waiting ice-encased fist. Yet, that didn't mean that Scorpion was utterly defenseless, as he still held his favored kunai in his free hand. When Sub-Zero pulled him in close enough, the Pyromancer flicked out his kunai and stabbed it deeply into his brother's collarbone a split second before he could give the finishing blow. However, without Sub-Zero's fist to stop Scorpion right then and there, the Pyromancer ends up sliding off the pier entirely. Yet, Scorpion doesn't immediately fall into the river.

He grabs onto the rope; his kunai is still attached to it, which is still embedded in Sub-Zero. The Grandmaster lets out a strangled yell as Scorpion's entire weight causes him to stumble forward, while using both hands to grab onto the kunai's rope. He has to switch to one hand just as he came to the edge of the pier, which he uses to hold onto a nearby wooden pillar for support. Glancing down, Sub-Zero saw Scorpion encasing his free fist with one hand, his milky eyes narrowed with murderous intent toward his brother. Acting a second faster, the Cryomancer takes a gamble as he lets go of the wooden pillar to knock Scorpion off balance, before using the hand that was holding on to the rope to throw an ice ball at his brother's head. It does the trick to make Scorpion let go of the rope and fall headfirst into the water below.

The Pryomancer isn't completely submerged as Sub-zero grabbed onto his ankle at the last nanosecond before he was, his feet wrapped around a nearby pillar. The Cyromancer could feel his brother go limp under his hand, the water in his ears dampening the Siren's call. However, in the next few seconds, Scorpion starts to thrash under him as his body finds it difficult to breathe in that same water. Sub-Zero grits his teeth in both exertion and frustration as he painstakingly rips the kunai out of his body. He then uses the rope that's attached to tie around his brother's ankle, which was not made easy by Scorpion's flailing, yet Sub-Zero managed to make it as secure as he could. After getting up and tying the other end of the rope to a nearby wooden pillar and freezing his newest stab wound closed, Bi-han approaches the ledge of the pier to check on Kuai Liang.

His brother looked at him with color having returned to his gaze, which was filled with confusion and primal panic. Bi-han held out his hands in a silent, placating gesture before pointing to his iced-over ears, miming to plug them closed. Scorpion stops struggling as understanding dawns on him. The Pyromancer then reaches into his pouch to stuff his ears with beeswax, with his head still submerged in the water. Once Kuai Liang gives Bi-han the all clear, the latter then creates an ice knife to cut his brother loose. As he falls into the River, Sub-Zero turns his attention back toward where he saw the Siren last.

He spots their E/C eyes staring back at them with the fins on either side of their head raised in surprise, their mouth open mid-gasp, putting their fanged teeth on display. Sub-Zero starts running towards them, to which the Siren then turns around to dive into the river.

"There's no use running, Siren!"

The Cryomancer jumps off the pier and onto the river, freezing the water beneath his feet in an instant. In the wake of Sub-Zero's ice, the waves freeze mid-collapse, the fish caught in their last moment of movement. The Siren, not wanting to be frozen at the bottom of the ocean and drowned in ice, rises to the surface as quick as they could, with each flip of their fin causing a sensation similar to walking on glass. They breach the surface of the water, only to find Sub-Zero still in pursuit as he continues to walk on the water, each step becoming an icy platform that he can traverse with ease.

Again, the Siren tries to swim away, but they can only go so far. All the while, Sub-Zero can quickly gain speed to catch up with the Siren. Y/N's sharpened teeth begin to involuntarily chatter as the edge of the Cryomancer's ice nips at their tail fin. They try to flip their tail fin again, pain be damned, but, to their horror, they couldn't move their f/c fin at all!

Y/N's eyes widen as the ice begins to spread across the water they're in. The siren futilely tries to swim again, but they might as well have been trying to swim through the thickest patch of kelp possible.

"NOOOOOOO!!!!"

Y/N screams as Sub-Zero's frost completely encases her, its chill biting at their f/c that was never meant for such extreme cold. The frost completely surrounds them from the bottom of their ribs, stealing the breath out of the Siren, which they can see clashing with the sudden colder air. The Siren tries to use their webbed claws to dig at the slippery ice in a blind panic, but is unable to break through the thick substance.

Standing just a few feet away is Sub-Zero, standing by to watch the treacherous creature struggle to escape. Sub-Zero starts to walk toward the Siren, who looks up from their clawing to give a loud hiss. They bared their fangs, narrow their E/C eyes, spread out their H/C "hair" (which are actually prehensile whiskers) to the best of their ability, extended their webbed ears and the spikey fins on their back, going all out to look big and scary. Yet, none of these phases is the Lin Kuei's Grandmaster.

Sub-Zero holds out his hand to manifest an ice kunai then, faster than Y/N could react, crouches down to hold the weapon against the Siren's throat. Y/N immediately stills, now wholly focused on Sub-Zero.

"You've lost, Siren. Lord Lui Kang wants you brought in alive, but he also gave me permission to end your life should you prove too unreasonable."

The Siren gives the Grandmaster a glare, but stops their threat display, allowing their hair to go limp and putting away their claws and fangs. Sub-Zero lets out a grunt of approval.

"Good. It would be a great shame to end someone so rare as you."

Y/N continues scowling at the Cryomancer as he then stands back up, lengthening the kunai in his hand into that of a sword to keep pointed toward the Siren's throat. Using his free hand, Sub-Zero takes out the flare that Smoke gave him, noting out of the corner of his eye Y/N tensing as if readying for another fight. The Cryomancer doesn't say anything as he manages to uncap the flare with one hand before dropping it to the iced platform below his feet. Y/N gazes up at the pillar of bright blue smoke climbing up into the sky, now lightened by the impending dawn.

As the first rays of dawn began to peek from the horizon, Bi-han could make out the frozen aquatic life beneath his feet. He gives a quick glance with muted fascination at his power before trailing it to where the Siren's frozen lower half is, which had a metallic gleam in the early morning light, before landing back on the Siren's guarded expression.

'Scales don't shine like that.'

Bi-han's brows furrow as he takes another look at the Siren, specifically their frozen tail. Their tail, as expected, strongly resembled a fish's, the scales being a mesmerizing mix of F/C and F/C with sheer wing-like fins on either side of their hips. At the end of where the tail and caudal fin meet, there was a thin three-foot harpoon embedded within the flesh, with the spearhead poking out the other side of the fin.

'That would explain why the Siren acted so aggressively...'

Bi-han looks from the speared tail and back toward the Siren, then back toward the tail again. The Grandmaster's eyes narrow as the gears in his head begin to turn and spin while weighing his options. On one hand, Y/N hasn't killed his brothers, but on the other hand, the same siren killed two others and just tried to kill him as well. Lord Lui Kang has given him permission to kill the Siren if they prove to be too dangerous, which they have demonstrated with the exhilarating power Bi-han experienced firsthand.

The Cryomancer wasn't lying when he said that it would be a waste if he had to kill Y/N, who pushed his abilities and skills more than anyone has for a long time now. Truth be told, Bi-han is impressed that Y/n proved to be a worthy adversary, who managed to mind control an entire village with their voice alone, while suffering from an apparent debilitating injury. Fortunately, Y/N isn't some mindless brute and seems more reasonable than Bi-han initially thought them to be, which means they can be bargained with. The Grandmaster turned his attention toward the ice sword, tighening his grip on it as he came to a decision.

Kuai Liang and Smoke, both having now blocked their hearing, took their first step onto the frozen Tha Chin River when they caught Bi-han, his back to them, raising his ice-made sword over the trapped Siren. Y/N themselves glared defiantly at the weapon, seemingly accepting that they're going to die right then and there. Kuai Liang, despite knowing that Bi-han couldn't hear him, let out a shout.

"Bi-han! WAIT! WAIT!"

Then starts to try and run towards the Siren, hoping to avoid unnecessary bloodshed, but is grabbed by the bicep by Tomas, who shakes his head at Kuai Liang. Tomas shared the same sympathies as his brother, recognizing Y/N's behavior to be more defensive and scared than outright malicious. The Siren even said as much after bringing them to the pier earlier, to show them the harpoon stuck in their tail. Yet, the last thing Tomas recalled before waking up in ice was Kuai Liang deflecting an attack from Bi-han while standing in front of the siren to defend them. It doesn't take a genius to figure out, from the state of the frozen village and damaged pier, that Y/N then used Tomas and Kuai Liang to try to kill their eldest brother and Grandmaster. Smoke trusts that Bi-han has more than enough reason to kill the Siren, having no doubt taken all of their attacks.

Yet, to both Kuai Liang and Tomas' surprise, rather than ending Y/N's life, Bi-han instead smashes the ice sword to the ground. The Cryomancer then holds out his hand to forge, not a weapon but a tool resembling an ice pick. Y/N, Kuai Liang, and Tomas all shared a look of bewilderment as Bi-han then crouched down in front of Y/N and began to chip away at the ice surrounding the siren's tail. They then look over Bi-han's shoulder to make eye contact with the Tomas and Kuai Liang, who both just shrug at Y/N's silent question.

The younger Lin Kuei brothers are the first to recover from their shock and make their way to their Grandmaster's side. Sensing their footsteps on the ice, Bi-han looks up from his work before addressing Kuai Liang and Tomas, making sure that both brothers could see his lips.

"I am glad to see you both as yourselves again. Now, help me release the Siren."

Bi-han pauses as he then turns his attention toward the Siren in question.

"Unless you would rather we end your life instead of bringing you home?"

Y/N ear fins perk up at the Cryomancer's words, their E/C eyes softening with trepidative hope.

"Wait, you can return me home?"

Kuai Liang answers for Bi-han, crouching down to use his fire to melt away the ice surrounding the Siren.

"Lord Lui Kang, Earthrealm's protector, has the power to return you from whatever realm you hailed from, should you allow us to bring you to him."

Y/N pauses briefly, considering the validity of the newcomers' statements. Although they remain wary of them, Y/N realizes that whether or not they're telling the truth, they're no closer to reaching home by remaining in the river than if they went with the people who could get them home.

"If it means returning to my sisters, then I'll gladly meet Lord Lui Kang."

Tomas, who was initially wary of being within grabbing reach of the Y/N, finally joins his brothers in their task with his trusty knife in hand, assured that the Siren wouldn't try to harm them any further. If he's being honest, Tomas sympathizes with Y/N's plight. Gods knows that he would've done anything if it meant reuniting his own sister. Yet, the youngest brother still had a question that had been persistently nagging him at the back of his mind.

"How DID you get here in the first place?"

Y/N turns their attention toward Tomas, their inner lids blinking sideways, which takes him slightly aback. Given Y/N's mostly humanoid appearance sans the tail, Tomas could almost be mistaken for the Siren as a beautiful person, one of the most beautiful people he's ever met, if he's being honest.

"As the strongest Siren, it's up to me to ensure the health and safety of my pod. My sisters and I were swimming during a violent storm, seeking calmer waters. I must have been caught by a stray current because I remember barreling through torrential waters, not knowing which was up or down as the storm blocked out the Sun. Out of nowhere, bright as the sun itself was a swirling pool of light!

"It was a strange portal that brought you here?"

Y/N shrugs, having no idea what a portal is before Tomas brought it up, but they could easily put together that he's referring to that strange light.

"I suppose. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to avoid this portal, so I ended up here. I swam for a while in these unfamiliar waters, trying to find some way back to my pod, hoping they made it through that storm alright. I was hunting for fish around here when I was suddenly struck. The Surface Walker that attacked me had these obstructions over his ears,"

The Siren puts their hands over their ears, miming some headphones, which Tomas couldn't help but let out a choked chuckle at before quickly masking it as a cough. Fortunately, Y/N doesn't appear to notice.

"So, he couldn't hear when I tried to sing to make him go away. Since that Surface Walker couldn't hear me, I simply sang louder to get someone who could to end him before he could end me."

The Siren taps at the ice, which the Lin Kuei brothers had just begun digging out, right above where their tail is. Kuai Liang inspects Y/N's tail, having only been given glimpses of the injury, thinking back on what he heard about Apichai from one of the locals.

"That's why you had people like Narin kill Apichai."

"I wasn't going to take any chances, after what happened the first time I arrived here!"

Y/N barks, their dorsal fin twitching in repressed anger, which has Tomas pulling out his Karambit in response. Fortunately, one icy glare from Bi-han made them immediately settle their fin and take a breath before anything escalated. Kuai Liang, however, couldn't fault Y/N for being defensive, although that doesn't mean the Siren did nothing wrong.

"I can understand your actions after the first man, but the rest of your kills sound completely unnecessary. Narin is in jail for what you made him do to Apichai. "

"We Sirens are warned from youth to avoid Surface walkers at all costs, otherwise they will capture us to either eat as a rare delicacy or to keep us in cramped tanks and force us to perform for their entertainment. Should I be so trusting after a Surface Walker here greeted me with a weapon that now makes swimming agony?"

Kuai Liang opens his mouth to argue, only to be stopped with a hand on his shoulder from Bi-han, who shakes his head as if to tell Kuai Liang to just drop it. Kuai Liang tries to speak again, only for his Grandmaster to tighten his hold on his shoulder, at which the Pyromancer finally relents. Bi-han then addresses Y/N.

"You are wise to strike before any of the villagers could."

"Bi-han!"

Both Kuai Liang and Tomaas shout, only to be silenced with a raised hand from their Grandmaster. They're then instructed to finish digging the Siren out, with Tomas responsible for chiseling away the ice and Kuai Liang for melting it. The latter has just gotten Y/N's tail free when Bi-han places a hand on their tail fin, right next to the harpoon. The Cryomancer doesn't flinch when the Siren hisses and bares their teeth in response, yet Bi-han's next words catch them off guard enough to stop hissing.

"You were right ot have attacked me as well, as I made no effort to show that I wasn't an enemy. However, "

Bi-han then grabs the spearhead of the harpoon, instantly freezing it upon contact before shattering it with his hands. Y/N tenses when the Cryomancer grabs the shaft, which in turn had Kuai Liang and Tomas subconsciously reaching for their respective weapons; fortunately, besides their "hair" writhing, as if deciding whether or not to attack, Y/N doesn't stop Bi-han from pulling out the rest of the harpoon.

Nonetheless, the Siren lets out a scream so piercing that, if the Lin Kuei brothers were to hear it, they would've been writhing on the ground with their ears bleeding. Y/N continued to scream as Bi-han then froze over both gaping wounds on their tail, patching them up for the time being until he can get them better medical assistance. The Siren takes in deep breaths to regulate the pain, although admittedly, the chilling frost from the Cryomancer helps numb the intense pain they usually feel.

"I lead too, and thus have to be the strongest to defend my brothers and my clan, just as you with your sisters."

Bi-han looks over at his brothers, who stand at the ready, awaiting an order from their eldest brother and Grandmaster. Kuai Liang doesn't contradict Bi-han, seeing as it appears his agreement with the Siren is keeping Y/N at ease.

" It's completely rational to have done what you must to survive."

Y/N stares wide-eyed at their tail, lifting it up for a better look at its unpierced state. They then stare back at the Lin Kuei's Grandmaster as they're overcome with a lightness they haven't felt for many moons. They let out a small yelp when Bi-han then scooped them up, bridal style, as if he's done this many times before. The Cryomancer then looks towards the village, back at the shore, noticing movement behind the frozen windows and on the streets.

"Now let us leave before there are too many eyes on us."

Kuai Liang and Tomas nod in agreement before following their Grandmaster's lead; their mission is accomplished.

/

Just outside Lui Kang's Fire Temple was a small pond, which was home to koi fish so vibrant that one could mistake the pond for holding fire rather than water. It is here that Y/N the Siren is given temporary residence until they can fully heal. While Y/N finds it to be smaller than their beloved ocean or the Tha Chin River, they didn't mind knowing it wouldn't be permanent. It helps as well that the Fire God has also allowed them (within moderation) to eat the koi in the pond.

Y/N was basking on the edge of the pond, Earthrealm's sun high in the sky, and sinking their fangs into a nice plump orange koi when a shadow fell over them. Instinctively, they clamp their jaws down on their meal before pushing themselves back into the water. They then maneuver themselves to turn around to see a familiar blue figure standing at the edge of the pond, their voice muffled under the water.

'What could he, of all surface walkers, want with me?'

Y/N ponders. They briefly wonder if they could just wait at the bottom of the pond until Bi-han lost interest, but then remember the biting chill that encased nearly their whole body and thought better of it. They cautiously peek their head out of the water, curious E/C blinking their second lids at Bi-han, who stood straight as a board with his arms on either side of him, his gaze focused entirely on Y/N. They then take a bite from their meal, displaying their shark-like teeth, before speaking.

"Is there something you seek from me, Bi-han?"

"As a boy, I have heard tales of sailors being led to their deaths from your kind's song. However, I have also heard that listening to a siren's song and living can grant the listener greater wisdom. My brothers were fortunate to be given this gift, and now I wish to hear your song so I may be a wiser Grandmaster for my clan, for my brothers."

"Mmmmhhh..."

Y/N then takes another bite of their meal. They, too, have heard similar tales from their own kind; they aren't too sure how true they really are. Nonetheless, Y/N understands all too well that doing whatever it takes to strengthen their people. They then flapped their fin, the muscles still sore around that point, which is nothing compared to the agonizing months they spent trying to swim around with that harpoon still stuck in their tail. Y/N probably would've spent far longer with the pain if it weren't for Bi-han finally getting rid of the damned harpoon.

"Very well then, I will sing for you."

Y/N then swims up to the pond's shore, placing their unfinished meal on land before planting their hands to haul themselves up. This turned out to not be needed as Bi-han crouches down and easily lifts them up from under their armpits. Y/N's finned ears begin to twitch as their face warms at the display of strength.

"You have my gratitude, Y/N."

Bi-han then gently sets them down onto the ground. The Siren then stares up at the Cryomancer, who was still standing, arms now crossed in front of him. Y/N notes how, at the angle they're looking at, Bi-han is quite handsome for a surface walker. Said surface walker then takes a seat beside Y/N, crossing his arms and legs. He turns his head to throw an icy glare at the Siren beside him.

"If you try ending my life, expect no hesitation from me, Siren."

"The same is true for me, Surface Walker."

The Siren grins while displaying their many sharp teeth that could rend Bi-han's flesh from his bones should they sink into him. The corner of Bi-han's lips flickers as he turns his gaze towards the pond in front of him. Y/N then takes a breath and begins to simply sing.

"Hear my voice beneath the sea..."

Despite Y/N not actively using their siren spell to bewitch the Cryomancer, Bi-han couldn't help but be enchanted by Y/N's beautiful voice.

Playlist while Writing This

“Siren Song” by Sara Singer

“My Jolly Sailor Bold” feat Ashley Serena

“Siren” by Kailee Morgue

“Cala Maria’s Song” made by Ego Plum

“Fleeting Lullaby” by Ado

"False Hydra Lullaby" by EmpathP

"Suffering" From Epic the Musical

Blood starts to roar in your ears, the night's shadows lengthen as horrible thoughts begin to creep into your mind unabated.

'Did something happen to him?'

'Is he hurt or lost?'

'Did the hunters capture him and torture him as I stand here?'

'I should have gone with him to our birthplace.'

'No! He should have never gone there in the first place!'

'Where did he go? Where did he go? Where did he go?'

'Why can't I find him?'

'Is the Blind Man with him? What happened to him?!?'

You collapse to the ground, tightening your miscolored limbs into a ball before rocking back and forth on the cold ground, eyes shut tight as you desperately try to banish the tempest in your mind. You gripped the sides of your head tightly enough that just a quick tug could rip out chunks of your H/C, including the white stripe that matched your friend's own.

You don't know how long you remained in such a state; it could've been years for all you knew. Your companion was is always so good at pulling you out of these spirals, always knowing how to put your mind at ease.

Eventually, you uncurled from your ball and stand back firmly on your two feet. You look in the direction of your companion's trail, now covered with more snow, your E/C set in a determined gaze and lips in a firm line. With renewed determination, you set out on your long search to find your friend; perhaps then, everything will be alright again.

You spent a few more days searching for your Companion in the immediate area around the homestead. Only returning once to your former sanctuary when coming upon a peculiar sight.

You watched from the trees as the family wept over two bodies covered in bandages, not unlike the ones around you and your companion's wrists. You knew that their sorrow came from the kind elderly man who welcomed you and your companion, two strangers, with open arms. You would be a liar if you said you didn't share that sorrow, along with a nagging feeling that nips and bites at your heart for not doing more for the blind man who has been nothing but kind to you and your shadow.

The second body is, undoubtedly, one of the hunters killed during the night the wolves attacked the Blind Man. Although, you could not recall if it were you or your companion that took his life. If there's any solace that you could find while watching the grieving family lower the bodies into the open graves, it is that at least the Blind Man would not be alone.

You watched as they clasped their hands and bowed their heads over the graves, marked with wooden crosses. You watched as the older woman placed some dried flowers on both freshly made graves. You watched as, one by one, each member of the family left the two graves to return to their hovel. When the last one finally left, you gathered your courage and left the shelter of the trees to pay your respect to your departed friend.

At first, you just knelt in front of the wooden cross. There was so much you wanted to say to the Blind Man, yet you were not sure if any of them were enough to convey everything you wished to express. Eventually, you pressed your forehead against the grave marker, imagining it to be the Blind Man's own.

"Forgive me."

You whisper, so low you barely hear it, so you repeat it again. You then take a shuddering breath.

"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. I'm so so so sorry."

You grip the makeshift fleece around your shoulders, made from the soft sheep you quickly grew fond of when you first arrived at the hovel. The wool, now stained with your dried blood, serves as a reminder of your failure to protect innocent life.

You then reach into the pocket of the old coat you took from, what you now know, as a battleground during your first days of freedom. You then pull out some dried daisy flowers, the stems snapped in half with the petals detached. They were once offerings from the family who left them to "The Spirit of the Forest," not knowing their good fortune came from you and your friend. Nonetheless, you leave them on the Blind Man's grave.

You wrapped your arms around yourself and began to hum. Once, you asked your elderly friend about the noise he sometimes made with his mouth that wasn't words, which he kindly explained was a "hum". Something he did when he felt content, such as when he's around you and your friend. Just as he had with words and books, the Blind Man taught you and your companion how to hum. Through humming, you learned about songs similar to what birds chirp, then about music.

"... The sounds of birds chirping with bells,

drawings of plums, two bags of shells..."

You were nowhere to be seen in the morning, although the family's young daughter, Anna-Maria, would tell her disbelieving parents that last night she saw the Spirit of the Forest sing over her grandfather's grave.

...

Days quickly melded into weeks as you stumbled your way through the countryside. While you traveled through the forest, you were mostly free to move about in the day and rest at night. However, as you exited the shelter the trees offered, you quickly discovered just how exposed you were in the open fields. The day became too risky for you to travel, considering the number of horse-drawn carriages you've come across. You dared not risk confrontation or hinder your search for your companion, so you resigned yourself to travel by moonlight.

During the late nights, you walk for however far your legs can carry you until they physically cannot anymore. All the while, you tried to cling to memories of your oldest friend and the Blind Man to get you through the coldest nights, when the wind howls into the air as if it too is calling out for something lost long ago.

You think of the walks you and your companion would take with the Blind Man through paths lined with pretty white flowers. You recall the first time you and your companion shared a loaf of bread as the sun rose from behind the horizon. You think about the sound of the Blind Man's laughter after your companion described, through his own laughter, the funny way your face scrunched up after trying brandy for the first time. You remember how safe and secure you felt in your companion's arms as the two of you hid in the walls of the family's home.

When those memories aren't enough, you would hum to yourself or sing snippets of songs the Blind Man taught you. He once told you that your voice had a natural musicality to it, although you didn't believe him at first when you startled him in your attempt to mimic the birds outside his home. You're more grateful than ever to have been taught how to hum, as it serves as the kindling in your soul that keeps you marching forward in your goal. Otherwise, you're certain that you would have succumbed to the quiet nights when nothing stirs save for the howling winds. It is those nights that you remember that for the first time in your entire existence, you were completely alone.

When you awoke, you were only wrapped in your furs and arms with no one to greet you in the morning, happy that you exist. You stood alone as you took in the morning sun's rays, feeling as if those rays could never penetrate the gaping hole inside you where your Companion resided. The few morsels of food you could find tasted like ash and dust on your tongue, but you swallowed them anyway.

It made no difference to you when you were fortunate enough to start a small fire. For no matter how close you sat to the orange flames, or how close you came to touching the hot light, none of it was enough to bring you warmth to your body. Warmth that only your companion's presence could bring you.

You would have given everything that you are and have if it meant seeing your dearest friend again and hearing his deep, soft voice, rumbling assurances into your ear. For now, you had the memory of your last morning of peace with your dear friend for those cold, cold nights.

Sometimes, you wonder if what you're experiencing is what Lucifer went through when God cast him out of Heaven and into Hell.

...

Hope, such a stubborn little spark you think to yourself when, for the first time in what felt like forever, it began to flare again. All thanks to you stumbling across some travelers by complete chance.

You were going about your seemingly endless wandering and humming to yourself when you heard a voice not your own making itself known in the dark of the night.

"Who's there?"

You stop mid-hum and instinctively duck behind a nearby tree. Soon after, footsteps could be heard crunching through the snow, growing louder with every step. You held your breath as a sharp chill made its way down your spine. Surely, you thought, you would be found and sent into oblivion once more. Miraculously, this would not happen.

The first voice would be called away by a second voice, urging them to come back to camp as they finally got a fire going. Even when their footsteps began to fade from the distance, you dared not move an inch. This would be a blessing in disguise, as you were made privy to their conversation.

When they spoke of rumors about a large, hulking creature covered in stitches, you covered your mouth with both your own stitched hands lest you reveal yourself from bursting out in jubilation. You spent the rest of the night listening to them debate whether or not the Creature they heard about could sing or hum, or perhaps a ghost haunted the woods. Late into the night, you came to a decision.

If you are to continue to have any hope of finding your companion, then you would follow those travelers who claimed they're heading in the same direction the stitched creature was seen. So, as the Sun greeted the world once more and the two travelers made their way back to the dirt road beyond the trees, you would join them on their journey, hidden.

That is, until you came across another traveling group that also spoke of a stitched creature. So you would then follow that group until they encountered someone else who spoke of the same creature, and so on.

If you're being honest with yourself, you thought that you may as well have been chasing a ghost that those first travelers spoke of. You felt you were no closer to finding your companion than when you first started your search. Still, you had no other lead than the whispers of rumors from other travelers. So, you forced yourself to keep moving one foot in front of the other foot because you knew in your heart of hearts that your dearest companion would have continued searching for you until the oceans touched the clouds themselves.

Finally, your relentless efforts bore fruit. At least, you hoped it did as you came upon a large building. Joyful music could be heard echoing from within the grand halls into the winter air, almost as if the music itself could drive away the falling snow. Toward the front, there were at least dozens of gilded horse-drawn carriages depositing men and women dressed in the finest linen and silks. You hid within the immaculate shrubbery as you took in the building so opulent that you thought it must have been a castle, similar to the ones illustrated in the books you used to read to your blind friend.

You felt your spirit wane at the thought, causing the hollow ache in your chest to flare. Sometimes, when you read to the Blind Man, your companion would rest his chin atop your head to follow the words as you read them. You acted annoyed that he was taking advantage of his greater height, but it was all in good fun.

'I wonder what he-'

Your thoughts come to a complete halt as you glance over at one of the many windows.

'No, it couldn't... Could it?'

You asked yourself as you focused in on the window, its warmth from within glowing in defiance against the cold night. Without a second thought, you stepped out from the shrubbery, hoping that your eyes weren't deceiving you.

Fortunately, they weren't. Behind one of those windows was a face you never thought you would see again after your creator left you and your dearest friend for dead.

"Elizabeth."

You whisper into the air as if in quiet prayer.

Your eyes then dart from her figure, dressed in white, to the roof below the window and back to her again. You close both your hands into fists as you look toward the lavish building, knowing what you have to do.

Unbeknownst to you or Elizabeth, or even Victor Frankenstein himself, on that same night, but at a different time, your Companion would finally arrive at the Frankenstein Estate. Carrying within him guilt and hope.

Guilt for not immediately finding you upon awakening from his death, the day your shared friend perished at the jaws of the wolves. Guilt for heading to Victor's location, a man you feared and despised for the pain he put you both through. Still, he held on to some hope that perhaps his Creator would grant him his one request, to help find his dearest companion so they may be reunited.

Somehow, although the Creature couldn't explain it, he knew deep in his soul that he would find you again if he went to your shared Creator.

...

You nearly fell only once. Unfortunately, the stone that made up the building was more slippery than you initially thought. You could still feel your stomach dropping after your near fall, despite how you prevented it by grabbing onto a statue. Nonetheless, you were able to make it to the ledge just outside Elizabeth's windows.

You wiped away some of the frost from the window for a better look inside. Sitting at a table with an oval mirror is indeed Elizabeth, dressed in all white, with sleeves similar to the bandages you and your friend wore on your wrists and ankles, but far cleaner and prettier. In fact, if you could, you would tell Elizabeth that she looked as pretty as those white flowers you often saw on your walks with the Blind Man. However, you wouldn't get the chance when he walked into her room.

You quickly ducked out of sight when you spotted Victor approaching Elizabeth, cupping your cheek as phantom pain flared across it.

Dark thoughts, filled with memories of rattling chains, furious shouting, fire, and water, start to creep to the forefront of your mind again. You shut your eyes, shaking your head to banish these thoughts, for now. Taking a breath, you dared to take a peek inside Elizabeth's room in time to catch her slapping Victor across the face.

"Leave!"

She shouted, her disdain for your creator clear as day. You felt yourself smiling at the sight of your Creator, getting a taste of the pain just as he would inflict it upon you and your companion. Even still, you waited until you saw and heard Victor leaving the room entirely to rise from your hiding spot.

You raised a miscolored finger, intending to tap at Elizabeth's window, when a stray thought flashed in your mind.

'What if she doesn't wish to see you?'

Your finger pauses, just an inch away from the glass. Again, those horrible thoughts begin to skulk their way into the forefront of your mind. However, unlike before, you tried to deflect them away with better thoughts.

'What if Elizabeth screams at the sight of you?'

'She won't. She did not scream when she first laid her eyes on me.'

'What if she tells Victor you are still alive?'

'Elizabeth is not Victor. She is warm... tender... she will not hurt you.'

'She will not hurt you.'

You mumble that last thought out loud, as if saying so will turn it into truth. At least, it's enough to finally tap at the window.

Tap Tap Tap

Predictably, Elizabeth jumps in surprise as her attention is drawn away from whatever she's looking at in her hands. In response, you wave your already raised hand in a stiff motion, giving what you hoped was an assuring smile.

"It's you."

Elizabeth breathes in disbelief. Just as she did when you and your companion were still chained, she looked at your deformed figure with bright and welcoming eyes.

She's quick to put down whatever she held earlier onto the table before rising from her seat, gently urging you inside.

"Come in! Come in! We wouldn't want you to catch your death out here, would we?"

She held out a hand, which you graciously took, as she guided you out from the cold and into her world. Without either you or Elizabeth's knowledge, just as you entered through the kind woman's window, your missing companion, turns a corner around the grand building. He was backed to the wall as he carefully made his way to the window leading to where he knew you shared Creator's location, whose room faced opposite to Elizabeth’s.

...

"I can hardly believe it, you're alive!"

Elizabeth clasps her hands over your paler ones, her relief and jubilation palpable in the air. You give her a hesitant but genuine smile, finding her own to be almost infectious.

"I thought the worst had happened after Victor..."

The bride-to-be trails off as her gaze moves behind your form, undoubtedly searching for your ever-present shadow. Your smile drops as you peek over your shoulder, knowing to whom Elizabeth is searching. The kind woman's expression soon mirrors yours as a forlorn look settles on her soft face, similar to the one she gave you and your friend before she departed.

"Where is your friend? Is he-"

You firmly shake your head, lips set in a determined line. Brightness returned once more to Elizabeth's eyes.

"No? That is good, very good indeed. Do you know where he is?"

You carefully remove your hands from Elizabeth's much warmer ones to grip the fleece on your shoulders before turning your head again towards the window with a mournful frown. The familiar cold winter air bites at your cheeks, sending more snow on your person. Elizabeth then moves to shut her window, not wanting you to bear the cold any longer than necessary.

"I am so sorry. I cannot begin to imagine how awful you must feel."

Despite the sincerity to which Elizabeth spoke, your mind still attempts to whisper poison in your mind. You felt your innards twist in ways that had your throat close up, hating that even now, you had such doubts. Yet, you knew that if you wished to put your mind at ease, you had to use the words you've learned alongside your Companion to voice your thoughts. You gulp before you begin to stutter, bearing no mind to how wide your old friend's eyes became, having never heard you nor your dearest friend utter a single word until that very moment.

"Ar-are you going to hurt me?"

You ask as a starving beggar man would for the barest scrap of food, having gone far too long with an empty belly while forced to live on the cold and unforgiving stone of the streets, he's forced to endure. But fully accepting that he may just be ignored and left to starve.

Elizabeth didn't know her heart could ache even more than when she left both of you in that cold, damp cell, but the seemingly bottomless well of despair in your gaze has deepened the ache in her heart to the point that she fears it may shatter.

"No. "

Elizabeth states in a tone that leaves no room for argument, but upon observing the way you ever so slightly flinched, she repeats her answer in a tone softer than the flutter of a butterfly's wings.

"No,"

The kind woman then carefully raised both hands towards your cheeks, only cradling them when you leaned toward her touch.

"I would never hurt you or your friend. You have my word."

You give a barely audible sigh as if you were finally granted a source of warmth from a never-ending winter. You no longer held any doubts within your weary heart. A smile graces the young woman's soft features as her thumbs gently rub against your cold cheeks, leaving them with her warmth in its wake.

It's enough for you to let go of your fleece, then lift your hands and finally reciprocate Elizabeth's kind touch, finally unbound by any chains around your wrists. The kind woman's pink lips widen even further at your touch, feeling the delicate care held within the stitched-together fingers.

But your attention is soon drawn elsewhere by a flash of vivid orange in the corner of your eye. You curiously tilt your head as you look past Elizabeth to the table behind her. On that table was a single leaf, bright as candlelight, and beside it, a small stone with a bit of white streaked across its grey palette.

You then turn your attention back to Elizabeth, mouth slightly open in incredulity.

"It's his leaf."

"As you can see, I kept your gift as well."

The young woman proudly gestures to the ordinary pebble. A pebble you initially found fascinating because, when you pressed its surface against similar rocky surfaces, it left white lines in its wake. Of course, to Victor, the lines may as well have been gibberish, seeing as you could only make jagged lines and abstract shapes.

"This whole time?"

You quietly asked as you then approached the small table to lift the small stone, turning it in your hands as you once did for endless hours. A fond look settles on Elizabeth's face as she sees that, while some things about you might have changed, the curious and innocent way you explored the world around you hasn't truly.

"Of course."

However, when your attention turns to your companion's gift, Elizabeth's mood seems to dim. She watches as you begin to trace the leaf's visible veins, barely touching the delicate foliage, as her mind starts to wander.

How long have you been alone? Even when he had you chained in a cell, you at least had your companion by your side. Just thinking about the duration of your plight twisted something inside Elizabeth's chest in such a visceral way that it nearly overwhelmed her. Yet, it's also this intense feeling that assists her in coming to what most of her peers would see as a rash decision. But to hell with them!

"If you like... You and I could search for your friend, together."

You look up from Elizabeth's gifts, bewildered.

"Do you truly mean that?"

You question with a bright hope in your gaze, brighter than they have been for a good long while. Elizabeth gives a confident grin as she speaks again, this time, with more assurance.

"With all my heart.”

The kind woman is made even more assured in her decision as she watches an eager smile split across your patchwork face.

“We can leave-"

Elizabeth’s words are abruptly cut off by a loud crash both of your could hear echoing from outside her chambers. Without hesitation, she sprints out of the room with you following close behind. The thin gossamer fabric that hangs around her arms floats in the air behind her, as if her back sprouted snow-white wings, as she rushes across the hall. You barely pay any mind to your surroundings, solely focused on the back of Elizabeth’s white figure. When you two came to a pair of darkly colored doors, at the sound of another loud clash followed by a lighter rain of tinkling, you moved an arm in front of the smaller woman.

However, you don’t prevent her from throwing open the doors upon the last sight you expected to greet you tonight.

...

The instant you locked eyes with your long-lost friend, time seemed to have come to a halt, leaving just you three in that moment. With complete candor, you barely noticed the aftermath of what your companion did to your creator, who lay only a few feet to your right, surrounded by shattered glass and splintered wood.

Some part of you, in the back of your mind, was shocked at what you saw, seeing proof of the violence that your companion, someone so gentle to the smallest of mice, has wrought. However, you were mainly astounded to be able to lay your eyes on your closest friend, who now stood before you after all the time you spent searching for him.

Your companion's hair had grown by a few inches. His form appeared bulkier upon an initial look, but you quickly realized it was because of the extra fur pelts he wore. No doubt, to keep the cold at bay.

His gaze is hardened, with his breath coming out in harsh pants. However, upon laying eyes on you and Elizabeth, his features softened into a mix of disbelief and profound relief. Your companion's breathing became less erratic and evened out as you took a step toward him.

While it initially appeared that you were rooted on the spot out of fear, you immediately spring into action when Elizabeth takes a soft but assured step forward. You sprinted past the bride-to-be to barrel straight into your larger friend, who embraces you as if to do so is as if you're the last light he'll ever see.

"You..."

Shortly after, Elizabeth gets between you and your larger friend. You hardly mind this since the kind woman then cradles your companion's entire face with both her hands before she uses one of her hands to cradle the side of your face.

"You... It's you..."

She gives a teary-eyed smile as she looks between both of you, while brushing your cheeks with her thumbs. Your Companion hunches so that he may be more level with you and Elizabeth, a large hand placed on both her and your backs as if to confirm that you're both here in the flesh. You briefly ponder if this is what paradise from the Blind Man's book is like, but you're soon pulled from this foolish thought at the sound of a metallic click.

At the same time, Elizabeth pulls away from both of you to pull away from the man you had hoped to NEVER see again. Victor's face holds a deep scowl, his dark eyes wild with a frenzy that you find disquieting. In his hand, is what you recognize all to well as a gun, which he had pointed at your dearest friend.

"Elizabeth! Move away from them both!"

"NO!"

Elizabeth turns around with both her arms held out in front of you and your companion at the same time that Victor's finger-

BANG

Time comes to a crawl as her last shout seems to echo throughout the cavernous room before she fell into your and your companion's arms. He instantly wrapped an arm around Elizabeth, as if hoping to shield her smaller form with his much larger one.

You and your companion's expressions mirrored your creator's face of pure shock at what he had just done. But you and your friend are broken out of your shared stupor by Elizabeth's sharp gasp.

Swiftly, you and your dear friend lay Elizabeth on the nearest surface with you covering either side of her form, which your companion held within his secure embrace. You hardly noticed the sound of thundering footsteps, nor your Creator bellowing his lies over the insistent drumming of your heart.

"They attacked her! They attacked her!"

When your companion rose from Elizabeth's side to face the group of men that entered the room, you too rose to stand over the woman who had shown you and your companion nothing but compassion and concern. Remembering something you once saw back at the family's Mill, you put your hands over her wound, which now bloomed with a deep crimson, staining her white dress.

"What should I do? What should I do? What should I do?! Elizabeth, please!"

It becomes harder for you to draw air into your body as you try harder to stop the bleeding, and the more your hands become stained with blood. You looked up from your self-appointed task at the sound of your companion's roar just in time to see him sending grown men through the air, crashing into mirrors and shelves, as if they weighed less than a mouse.

Despite the brutality you just witnessed, you didn't stop your friend, whom you knew to be the gentlest soul otherwise, from picking the latter up. You stood close enough to them both that you could hear the kind woman's barely audible request.

"Take me with you."

Elizabeth hoarsely whispers into your friend's ear, as if just the mere act of speaking was a Herculean labor. Seeing no reason to deny her, all three of you take your leave, ignoring Victor's presence altogether.

None of the decadent guests or servants stopped you and your oldest friend from leaving with Elizabeth. You walked side by side in a solemn march, with you glaring at anyone in your path, silently challenging them to just try and obstruct your path.

Your friend was too engrossed with fulfilling Elizabeth's request to inquire why you grabbed the white flowers that lined the stairs and entrance of the ground estate. Although those flowers don't remain white after your bloodied hands leave their mark on their soft petals. The same blood that covered your hands leaves a trail behind you and your companion, staining the blinding snow just like the once white flowers.

Entering a cave, your dearest friend sets Elizabeth's body down on a stone slab with all the care within his soul. Afterward, you use the flowers you gathered to decorate her long tresses and around her small form. Using the last of her quickly waning strength, Elizabeth speaks.

"My place was never in this world... I sought and longed for something I could not quite name."

The Creature places a hand over Elizabeth's heart, feeling as its steady pulse becomes slower and weaker with each passing moment. You put your hand over your companion's larger hand as both of you upon her pale face. Even now, though, she looks at both of you with all the tenderness in her heart.

"But in you both, I found it.

"Shhhh..."

Your companion quietly shushes, as if to encourage Elizabeth to save her strength, while cradling the side of her face, finally able to reciprocate the love and affection she freely gave you both. You, too, gift the kind woman a loving touch by patting at the top of her head, not wanting to stain her skin with more of her blood.

"To be lost and to be found, that is the lifespan of love... And in its brevity... its tragedy..."

Elizabeth gulps, trying to gather some reserved strength in the furthest reaches of her soul, to share these last words with the two pure souls who never asked to be made from the whim of a madman.

"This has been made eternal."

Her breathing becomes shorter, and neither you nor your companion can do anything about it.

"Better this way... to fade.. with your eyes gazing upon me."

After that, there were no more words. You began to hum to Elizabeth, hoping, just as you did for yourself on the coldest winter nights, to bring her some levity, however brief. Your Companion soon joins in, hesitantly at first, his baritone breaking from the rising grief that threatened to steal his voice entirely were it not for Elizabeth's weak smile encouraging him.

The dying woman continues to smile, even as she feels her grip on life loosening, for she is surrounded by the pure love and the sweetest music she has ever heard. For one brief moment so bitterly sweet, Elizabeth felt whole for the first time in her life.

As the light begins to fade from Elizabeth's eyes, with darkness beginning to consume everything around her, she thinks to herself,

'Such beautiful voices.'

Then she's gone.

...

You don't know how long you and your companion sit side by side in silence, sitting vigil over Elizabeth's corpse. Both of you barely pay any mind to the falling snow descending from the opening above you. You still remember when the kindly Old Man once told you that snow makes the world clean and new. You hoped that what he said was true as the snow began to descend on the bloodied flowers you picked for Elizabeth.

At the sound of your companion's whimpering, you carefully lay your arm over his shoulders to not startle him. Your friend leans into your much smaller form, greedily drinking in the meager comfort you offered. You, just as parched, lean against your other half, never once taking your gaze off of Elizabeth's corpse. However, after another drawn-out moment of heavy silence, you dared to look down at your free hand. It has mostly dried up, leaving a brownish color that still stains your hand.

You think to yourself about all that just transpired. About your endless isolation miraculously coming to an end, but at what cost? You think about Elizabeth welcoming you with open arms, about the warmth of her blood escaping her body. You recall how your fingers, hands, and will can do nothing to stop the crimson life that spilled from her. Thus, your encounter is tragically brief. Your eyes begin to sting from the tears that demand to be shed for everything that has been lost.

The sheep... The Kind Old Man... now Elizabeth...

How did it all come to this? Will there ever be an end to all the suffering you and your only friend are forced to endure in all its brutality? You knew this to be the way of the world... That it would hunt you and kill you just for being who you are... You knew violence to be inevitable in life, but you are also aware that it's not always out of pure malice.

The wolves that killed those friendly sheep only took their lives so that they may survive. But do they spend agonizing nights struck with guilt, or do they return to where they came from, with full bellies and sleep with their pack knowing they have fed each other? Do the hunters that attack you and your friend find themselves losing their minds for drawing your blood, or did they learn brutality to save their more vulnerable family from death? You killed those wolves and hurt the hunters, not because you wanted to spill their blood, but so they would stop hurting your friends. But Victor-

Victor...Victor... VICTOR...

VICTOR

HE only inflicts pain for cruelty's sake... He acts so blind to the agony he has not only caused you, but those you hold near and dear to your wretched heart!

Now his cruelty has expanded toward Elizabeth, sweet Elizabeth, whose care for you and your companion was enough for Victor to condemn her to death.

From there, a dark thought began to form within your mind, a dangerous idea. However, unlike those other times, you don't try to resist it or turn away from it. This time, you let it enter to the forefront of your mind loud and clear...

You wanted him gone, forever.

You needed him gone.

For too long Victor has been that held the knife over all of you. So now, its his turn to have that blade turn back on to him...

You will make Victor bleed. You will make him humble. You will empty out whatever remains inside that shriveled heart of his, so he may feel a FRACTION of the pain he's caused. Only long after has he pleaded for you to grant him mercy, will you finally take his life.

For Elizabeth. For your Companion. Then at least, you both may know peace. So at last, you two can be free.

...

Speak of devils, and they shall appear. It seems Victor has chosen to pursue you and your Companion toward Elizabeth's final resting place.

Playlist While Writing this:

"Ciao Papa" From Guillermo Del Toro's Pinocchio

"Wolf In Sheep's Clothing" By Set It Off

"A Beautiful Delusion" By Peter Gundry

"Long, Long Time Ago" From Pan's Labyrinth

"Fish Inside a Bird Cage" By Fish Inside a Bird Cage

Hanzo: Sub-Zero would've benefited more if he had a student like my daughter.

Frost: Why would I want to be anything like Miss Nepotism?

Hanzo: It's not nepotism that made you lose to D/N repeatedly.

/

Frost: To kill you, I'll kill your wife and daughter first.

Hanzo: Lay so much as a cold finger, and my fire won't even leave ashes behind!

Frost: They make your fire weak.

/

Shang Tsung:

Hanzo: Y/N helped me kill Quan-chi.

Shang Tsung: I always knew Quan-chi couldn't keep control of his spawn.

Hanzo: Perhaps I shall give her the honor of beheading you.

/

Shang Tsung: Your wife is quite the rare gem.

Hanzo: You will not lay a single claw on her, Shang Tsung.

Shang Tsung: I'll have both her beauty AND her power.

/

Shao Khan:

Hanzo: Why do you question my wife's realm of origin?

Shao Khan: I see none of its fire burning within such a pathetic excuse for a demon.

Hanzo: Only because you're fortunate has none of that fire been directed towards you.

/

Shao Khan: Your wife would do better as one of my assassins.

Hanzo: As if Y/N would ever let herself be subjugated again.

Shao Khan ominously: She will if she ever wants to see her husband and clan again...

/

Noob Siabot:

Hanzo: For some reason, that's beyond me, Y/N pities you.

Noob Saibot: The shadows do not NEED her pity.

Hanzo: Then by some miracle, we are of the same mind.

/

Noob Saibot: Y/N wastes her potential with the Shirai Ryu.

Hanzo: She realized her true strength with her real family.

Noob Saibot: What strength can be gained from an inferior clan?

/

Kano:

Hanzo testily: Why such a keen interest in my daughter?

Kano: She got all her mum's finest features and less demonic drama.

Hanzo: Then I'll send you to the Netherrealm myself.

/

Kano: I can't decide who's more of a beaut, your wife or your Sheila.

Hanzo: You are not worthy to even lay an eye on them!

Spawn

Y/N: I left the Netherrealm for a good reason.

Spawn sympathetically: I'm afraid the Netherrealm is not through with you.

Y/N with a demonic reverb: It shall NEVER have me again!

/

Spawn: You remind me of someone I loved.

Y/N softly: Did you lose her?

Spawn: She's lost to me for all eternity.

/

Y/N: You were sent back to the mortal realm because you wanted to see your wife again?

Spawn: Just as you cut ties with your father and Hell to be with your husband.

Y/N: Now, we're both free to choose our destinies.

/

Spawn: You've escaped the Netherrealm while all its strongest fighters were after you?

Y/N: As my scars can attest, I almost didn't.

Spawn: You're lucky, then, that you didn't have to make a deal with the Devil to escape.

/

Noob Saibot

Y/N softly: I offer you mercy, Bi-Han.

Noob Saibot angrily: You think I need your pity?!?

Y/N: For you to be at peace, I have to free you of your shell.

/

Noob Saibot: You and your daughter fear the darkness within you.

Y/N: Shinnok and Raiden have shown me more than that absolute power corrupts absolutely.

Noob Saibot: You are both fools for not embracing your true potential.

/

Y/N: Sareena still speaks highly of you, Bi-han.

Noob Saibot: I am NOT the one she speaks of anymore.

Y/N: I know, so she'll be relieved to have you gone.

/

Noob Saibot: You married the man who killed me?

Y/N: I did, but I know what Hanzo did to you was unjust and unwarranted.

Noob Saibot: Then I'll take your life as retribution for him taking mine.

/

Cetrion

Y/N: Were my prayers ever heard?

Cetrion: Even from the Netherrealm, I could hear a small girl's pleas for a better life, but I could not intervene.

Y/N lowly: Then you know why I am here...

/

Cetrion testily: You assisted your husband in killing your father.

Y/N angrily: Quan-chi has been dead to me long before Hanzo took his head.

Cetrion: It is not surprising that a demon has no remorse for their sin.

/

Y/N: What makes you worthy of my worship?

Cetrion: I know you seek salvation for your compliance with Quan-chi's schemes.

Y/N: I will not seek that from someone who is compliant with Kronika's plans.

/

Cetrion: Your love and appreciation for life is virtuous.

Y/N: Then why are you so determined to end all of it?

Cetrion: Not end it, Kronika will start anew to restore balance.

BONUS: Shinnok

Y/N: Why in the 10 hells would my daughter ever serve you?

Shinnok: Because of your husband, it is her birthright to take Quan-chi's place.

Y/N with demonic reverb: D/N will not be yours to control!

/

Shinnok: Quan-chi should have beaten you as a child.

Y/N: What makes you think he didn't already try his best to break me every other way?

Shinnok: Obviously, it wasn't enough.

/

Y/N: All you have ever taught me about Death is false.

Shinnok: Then I have but one more lesson to teach you.

Y/N growling: I am DONE with your lessons.

/

Shinnok: Quan-chi's little songbird.

Y/N: I am neither his nor your pet bird any longer!

Raiden

Y/N: Are you aware that Madam Bo's special tea is local around my canton?

Raiden: How in the world did she acquire it then?

/

Y/N: I would’ve paid all the koins in Outworld to have seen you absolutely humiliate Shao.

Raiden: I sense you and him never got along.

/

Y/N: I can confidently say that you’re healing up nicely since we fought the Dragon Army.

Raiden: I’m not sure I would’ve survived without your medical care.

/

Raiden: It must be hard being The Colony's lead Healer.

Y/N: Everyone who dies under my care is a blow to my soul.

/

Raiden: Why is there a statue of Kung Lao in the Wu Shi’s Courtyard?

Y/N shrugs: Kung Lao mentioned how he always wanted a statue of himself.

/

Raiden: You’re very different from how your Titan self acts.

Y/N shivers in disgust: I should thank Liu Kang for not having me predestined for Shang Tsung.

/

Raiden: You only have yourself to blame for missing your chance with Y/N.

Shang Tsung chuckles: You say that as if I don’t still have a chance to win them back.

Kung Lao

Y/N: So far, I don’t see any signs of Tarkat but there’s still a chance you could spread it without apparent symptoms.

Kung Lao: You are not putting my mind at ease, at all.

/

Y/N: You’re inviting me? I don’t even know if I’m able to stomach regular food anymore.

Kung Lao: It would be a crime if you didn’t get to try Madam Bo’s cooking at least once!

/

Y/N: How did you not loose any fingers when you first made that hat???

Kung Lao smugly: Through much practice and much skill

/

Kung Lao: I beaten you in our last fight, so what will change here?

Y/N mischievously: This time, I’m not holding back.

/

Kung Lao: Can you believe that the Wu Shi have a trap dungeon?

Y/N hisses in amusement: Who knew the Shaolin were so diabolical?

/

Kung Lao: You and Baraka aren’t a couple???

Y/N sighs wistfully: How I wish that to be true…

/

Baraka: I don’t always understand what Y/N sees in me.

Kung Lao: You definitely have something more than Shang Tsung.

Kenshi

Y/N: I am sorry I couldn't have saved your sight.

Kenshi: You did the best anyone could in that situation.

/

Y/N: What is it like using Sento to see?

Kenshi: It’s like when you stare at a flame and look away, you see the light of the flame even though it’s gone.

/

Y/N: According to Earthrealm myths, the closest to describing my current form is a “Gorgon”.

Kenshi: Perhaps that’s because there have been other gorgons before.

/

Kenshi: I don’t know Y/N, that seems a bit excessive even by the Yakuza’s standards.

Y/N: You and Kitana think a bit of food tampering is too much.

/

Kenshi in surprise: You and Shang Tsung weren’t just lab partners?

Y/N angrily: I was a fool to fall for his charmssss in the first place!

/

Kenshi: Given how you both act around one another, I'm surprised you and Baraka aren't together.

Y/N: I'm grateful to have him in my life.

/

Kenshi: The Colony is fortunate to have you and Y/N.

Similarly to Raiden, Sonya was initially wary of you since she thought you were just another Quan-chi minion, never mind that you shared blood with the Necromancer. At the first Mortal Kombat tournament she attended, Sonya barely paid you any mind as she was too focused on saving Jax. Her opinion of you wasn't better when you fought against Earthrealm in the realm's war against Netherrealm. To her, you weren't a tragic friend turned enemy but an enemy she had to take down to ensure her home realm's safety. Yet, she later learned from Raiden that it's thanks to the info that you willingly gave the Thunder god that Johnny is still alive and Jax, Kuai Liang, and Hanzo Hasashi were revived. While Sonya is thankful for your assistance in saving both Johnny and Jax, that didn't mean she still wasn't suspicious of your intentions. Yet, the Special Forces Soldier did see a potential opportunity with you to become a valued ally against the Netherrealm, similar to Sareena.

Said potential opportunity came to fruition when the Special Forces opened communications with the Shirai Ryu, and you were at the head of delegations. You looked healthier and stronger, and the Shirai Ryu's colors complimented you well rather than the monotone black, greys, and hints of red you used to wear. If Sonya didn't know better, she could almost have mistaken you as human from a distance. But, just because you seemed to have turned a new leaf by renouncing Quan-chi, which Sonya respects, and settled with Grandmaster Hasashi with a child on the way doesn't mean Sonya would invite you to the next Fourth of July Potluck. However, the Special Forces soldier does have some sympathy for you, surrounding how you escaped the Netherrealm. She knew Quan-chi was a cowardly bastard, but for the Necromancer to send her former friends and allies to kill his own daughter was just a whole new low. Son of a bitch didn't even care enough to look at you as he did it. Still, despite knowing of your history, Sonya sorta saw you to be weak. Not in terms of power, given you could go toe-to-toe with Raiden and Fujinn, matching them blow for blow; there's also your shamisen, which you could make SIndel's Sonic Screams look like whispers and THEN some.

Yes, Sonya recognizes you don't like to abuse your power, but it wouldn't kill you to use it more than how you usually do when it means saving more lives! Sonya isn't assured that such power is in her capable hands when you listen to Johnny Cage, who takes your ignorance of the world outside the Netherrealm to mess with you and get on her nerves. However, General Blade changed her mind when Shinnok returned after two decades imprisoned in his amulet. While she, Johnny, Kenshi, and Hanzo were weakened and swiftly defeated by Shinnok, you did not go down so easily. Granted, Sonya didn't see much of the fight, having been knocked unconscious. Still, the little she did see was a 9-foot draconic-looking demon trying to sink its fangs into the Fallen Elder God, who kept its jaws open with two giant skeleton hands. It wasn't until later that General Blade learned that you and that draconic demon are one in the same. While Sonya did gain some newfound respect for you going all out to fight your former master, she still hasn't forgotten how you and Grandmaster Hasashi attacked the Special Forces compound where Quan-chi was being held. However, considering no one was killed and for your effort in fighting Shinnok, Sonya is willing to let it slide, just this once.

Lui Kang

You never met Lui Kang when he was alive. Of course, you knew about his victories in the Tournament you attended and against Shao Khan. Shortly after Lui Kang was felled by a mixture of his fire and Lord Raiden's lightning and his following resurrection, you officially met the Shaolin monk. Upon his resurrection, he was so furious that he cursed Raiden's name to the Heavens. Unlike with Scorpion, this undead spirit frightened you. Maybe because, while Scorpion was made into a Wraith, Lui Kang was made into a Revenant, a being that's more mindless than a Wraith that "lives" to serve their new master/s. Your father, Quan-chi, informed you of the circumstances surrounding every new Revenant's death, albeit with a few details twisted here and there. Quan-chi assured you that while he did resurrect them to serve Lord Shinnok, the latter will ultimately bring them justice for their deaths. So, despite your misgivings, you sympathized with the monk and his fellow Revenants and set out to treat them as you had treated Scorpion. Since you were technically ranked above him, Lui Kang treated you in the same cordial manner as your father, minus the reverence. The former monk was sometimes tasked with guarding you or escorting you to different places as all of you moved to hide away from Earthrealm's watchful gaze throughout the Netherrealm. Lui Kang only really spoke with you if you talk first, keeping his answers short and curt unless Raiden is somehow brought up. Then Lui Kang goes into a passionate tirade, which seems to bring the former Earthrealm Champion to "life" the most. While deep down, some part of him recognized and appreciated your kindness for him and his fellow Revenants, the former monk was far too gone from Quan-chi's corruption and his rage to care.

That's why, when Quan-chi ordered him and his fellow Revenants to kill you, Lui Kang obeyed without a second thought. The former monk had his suspicions about you, seeing how you tired throughout the day despite claiming to have been in your quarters all night. Those suspicions only grew when he saw you staring off into the distance with a smile and a flower in your hand despite no flowers in the Netherrealm. Lui Kang tried to warn his Lord about your nightly absences and behavior, only for Quan-chi to dismiss him. The Necromancer assured Lui Kang that he raised you to obey your father, so what if you sneaked off for fun? You always return to him in time, yet you ultimately proved to be a traitor. In his mind, it only served you right for betraying your Lord and your father for Earthrealm. In fact, it was Lui Kang that nearly killed you, leaving you with a giant burn scar on your chest over your heart. He had you pinned down, finally catching you after a long chase through the Netherrealm. The Revenant then placed his fist over your heart, slowly heating it up until it was glowing white, his body an immovable wall that you could only squirm against as your flesh began to sizzle and it became harder to breathe. The worst part of it all? His smug, shit-eating grin as he reveled in your slow death, unbothered by your wails of agony. Lui Kang happily announced how, without you, he would now be Quan-chi's right hand rather than you and would no longer have to be subservient to a weakling like you. Luckily, Sareena came to your rescue, knocking Lui Kang off of you before dragging you to a portal to Earthrealm.