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Mortal Kombat 1 Behind the Scenes AU: Enlisting Outworld friends, p. 13 (General Shao & Sindel, IV)

Author’s note: The plan to murder the husband is a nod to MK11 Sindel's ending. I must say she and Shao Kahn are a surprisingly cute couple together so of course I needed to throw it into my AU. As in, Sindel and Shao are the best friends who may even be at some point romantically involved but due to Sindel's arranged marriage never could be together. The plan was a solution In case Jerrod turned out to be some abusive asshole and Sindel needed to eliminate him - Shao would gladly take the blame on himself if needed and would wage war on anyone who dared oppose so quickly "windowed" Sindel. So yeah, there is plenty of history between those two and of course Shao knows about Mileena and Tanya as Sindel complains about that to him all the time 🤣

[Earlier posts, from #1 to #137] [Picking up the right horror movie] [Noob Saibot] [Will anyone mind if I kick his ass?] [Will anyone mind if I kick his ass?, p. 2] [Enlisting Outworld friends, p. 1] [I really can’t leave you and him unsupervised…?] [Deep trouble] [Lin Kuei Shang Tsung] [But are you sure it was me, Bi-Han?] [Enlisting Outworld friends, p. 2 (Shao, I)] [Enlisting Outworld friends, p. 3 (Shao, II)] [Enlisting Outworld friends, p. 4 (Sindel, I)] [Enlisting Outworld friends, p. 5 (Li Mei)] [Enlisting Outworld friends, p. 6 (Li Mei & Sindel)] [Enlisting Outworld friends, p. 7 (Li Mei and Tanya)] [Enlisting Outworld friends, p. 8 (General Shao & Li Mei, I)] [Enlisting Outworld friends, p. 9 (General Shao & Li Mei, II)] [Brothers between filming (6)] [Dark Sub-Zero, p. 3] [Enlisting Outworld friends, p. 10 (General Shao & Sindel, I)] [Enlisting Outworld friends, p. 11 (General Shao & Sindel, II)] [Enlisting Outworld friends, p. 12 (General Shao & Sindel, III)]

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No doubt the biggest irony of Bi-Han's life, and not just in Liu Kang's New Era, but in previous timelines as well, as he was pretty much trapped his whole life. At the same time, I think this is what makes Bi-Han such an interesting character and one of the most persistent in the whole series, as no matter how many times he will be beaten down, shackled, brainwashed or even killed, he won't give up on his freedom. And it doesn't matter if he must rebel against the gods, world or tradition, he will endure, escape and attack again and again, until either he will get what he desires the most or die refusing to yield (what could be seen with Dark Sub-Zero, as he was given a chance to surrender but refused and this choice led to his death).

This is why I like so much Sub-Zero Kuai Liang’s intro dialogue stating that "Bi-Han's nothing, if not resilient". Because yeah, Bi-Han may be beaten but not broken and all gods be damned.

Bi-Han, an Imagery of Bondage

"One evening I sat Beauty on my knees—And I found her bitter—And I reviled her." Arthur Rimbaud, A Season in Hell

See below the images for commentary. Johnny Cage:

Nitara:

Ermac:

Shang Tsung:

Kuai Liang:

Mileena:

Havik:

Geras:

Sektor:

Liu Kang:

Have you noticed? There's a recurring motif in Bi-Han's trajectory in MK1 and Khaos Reigns. In fact, it's almost a running gag. Bi-Han wants absolute freedom for himself and his clan. His personal lexicon is thus filled with the closely intertwined themes of independence and servitude: "again kneel before you?", "shackle us, no", "to free the Lin Kuei from bondage", "captivity", "perfect henchman", "now that we serve ourselves", "I had broken the Lin Kuei free of Liu Kang's enslavement", "we were now masters of our destiny", "allowed to desire a better future", "I had gained the Lin Kuei's freedom", "[Liu Kang] wants to control", "we must tighten control", "submit", "no one leaves the Lin Kuei", "living in your sister's shadow", "I refuse to fight in your shadow", etc.

But at the same time, Bi-Han is also the most imprisoned being in the game. The most manhandled, tied up and chained (physically, spiritually and mentally); the one with the most moments of vulnerability and unconsciousness—but also the one who is most carried by others and touched by them. It is as if no one wants him to achieve freedom, and instead wants to keep him jealously for themself. Is it because he is the most gorgeous character in the whole franchise, but also one of the most talented and powerful, as if he had been blessed by the gods? They all want to sit his ethereal beauty on their laps and never let it escape. They all want to possess it, selfishly revel in it and manipulate it as they please like a doll, out of lust, resentment or pure wickedness.

Blessed by the gods, really? Yes, and no. For it is because of all these gifts that Bi-Han's also been the most cursed character in the game for just over 30 years. In reality, the gods are envious, greedy and vengeful, and the laws of the universe wantonly punish the mortals they have elected of all people to embody their divinity on Earth. This is the basis of all tragedy. (All screenshots by me, except for the Nitara ones: sources 1 & 2.)

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Kuai Liang & Bi-Han: Cold heart

Mortal Kombat 11

Kung Lao: A light heart lives long. Kuai Liang: But a cold heart feels no pain. Kung Lao: Are you certain of that?

Cetrion: Is there room for love in your heart? Kuai Liang: Love gets in the way. Cetrion: Love leads the way, Kuai Liang.

Cetrion: You drove Frost away. Sub-Zero: She was unworthy. Cetrion: Your heart is truly frozen.

Sub-Zero's Ending:

Once I gained the Hourglass, my first thought was to re-write history and redeem the Lin Kuei's honor. But then I thought of Bi-Han, his life consumed by evil. Before I could redeem my clan, I had to redeem my brother. With the Hourglass, I wound back in time to our childhood. I studied every second of Bi-Han's life to understand why... Why he embraced Sektor's corruption. Why he reveled in the vile power given to him by Quan Chi. Armed with that knowledge, I re-sculpted the Sands of Time. I changed Bi-Han's life and unfroze his heart. Now we are comrades, not rivals. Together as joint Grandmasters, we lead the Lin Kuei in defense of Earthrealm.

Mortal Kombat 1 (2023)

Sub-Zero: Expect no compassion, freak. Baraka: Such a cold heart, Sub-Zero.

Sub-Zero: That anyone could be so cold-hearted -- Ghostface: Are you really one to be throwing stones?

BONUS:

Mortal Kombat 11:

Scorpion: I still grieve my wife and son. Sub-Zero: I'm not so cold as to mock your pain.

Mortal Kombat 1 (2023)

Sub-Zero: Your mother's death is regrettable. Kitana: I consider you complicit, Bi-Han.

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Mortal Kombat 1 Behind the Scenes AU: Enlisting Outworld friends, p. 12 (General Shao & Sindel, III)

Author’s note: In my mind, Sindel is under a great political pressure and so of course it affects her relationship with Mileena. But above everything else, she is worrying a lot about her eldest daughter, both due to Mileena’s illness and being in love with Umgadi. Normally, Jerrod is the one smoothing the tension between mother and daughter, but when absent, Shao is there to talk - and if needed, challenge Sindel to let Mileena be herself.

[Earlier posts, from #1 to #137] [Picking up the right horror movie] [Noob Saibot] [Will anyone mind if I kick his ass?] [Will anyone mind if I kick his ass?, p. 2] [Enlisting Outworld friends, p. 1] [I really can’t leave you and him unsupervised…?] [Deep trouble] [Lin Kuei Shang Tsung] [But are you sure it was me, Bi-Han?] [Enlisting Outworld friends, p. 2 (Shao, I)] [Enlisting Outworld friends, p. 3 (Shao, II)] [Enlisting Outworld friends, p. 4 (Sindel, I)] [Enlisting Outworld friends, p. 5 (Li Mei)] [Enlisting Outworld friends, p. 6 (Li Mei & Sindel)] [Enlisting Outworld friends, p. 7 (Li Mei and Tanya)] [Enlisting Outworld friends, p. 8 (General Shao & Li Mei, I)] [Enlisting Outworld friends, p. 9 (General Shao & Li Mei, II)] [Brothers between filming (6)] [Dark Sub-Zero, p. 3] [Enlisting Outworld friends, p. 10 (General Shao & Sindel, I)] [Enlisting Outworld friends, p. 11 (General Shao & Sindel, II)]

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The Battle of Hoth by Rebecca Guay from Insider 29 (1996)

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Mortal Kombat 1 Behind the Scenes AU: Enlisting Outworld friends, p. 11 (General Shao & Sindel, II)

[Earlier posts, from #1 to #137] [Picking up the right horror movie] [Noob Saibot] [Will anyone mind if I kick his ass?] [Will anyone mind if I kick his ass?, p. 2] [Enlisting Outworld friends, p. 1] [I really can’t leave you and him unsupervised…?] [Deep trouble] [Lin Kuei Shang Tsung] [But are you sure it was me, Bi-Han?] [Enlisting Outworld friends, p. 2 (Shao, I)] [Enlisting Outworld friends, p. 3 (Shao, II)] [Enlisting Outworld friends, p. 4 (Sindel, I)] [Enlisting Outworld friends, p. 5 (Li Mei)] [Enlisting Outworld friends, p. 6 (Li Mei & Sindel)] [Enlisting Outworld friends, p. 7 (Li Mei and Tanya)] [Enlisting Outworld friends, p. 8 (General Shao & Li Mei, I)] [Enlisting Outworld friends, p. 9 (General Shao & Li Mei, II)] [Brothers between filming (6)] [Dark Sub-Zero, p. 3] [Enlisting Outworld friends, p. 10 (General Shao & Sindel, I)]

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Honestly Hydro and Rain could probably make their lives easier if they just bloodbend and caused their opponent's hearts to stop. I imagine it works better on one person rather than a group though.

But bloodbending may not be that easy to perform during a fight. It’s one thing to manipulate blood/water in someone’s still body with no distraction and another when under pressure of attack. If manipulating blood was easy, I imagine, any hydromancer would use it.

Also, despite having water powers, Hydro and Rain may have different skills. Rain controls things related to weather like water and lightning while Hydro’s fighting style may even be modeled on Sub-Zero’s cryomancy as “Blood and Thunder” comics series presented their attacks in similar fashion (as in, Hydro's attack has a lot ice green-ish and purple colors that were previously used for Sub-Zero's freezing abilities)

Thus I think water powers aren't necessarily identical and will depend a lot on warrior's individual fighting preferences and abilities. In that way, Hydro doesn’t need bloodbending anyone’s heart and just freeze it by manipulating water and/or blood’s temperature. But that of course is up to debate and expanding worldbuilding.

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Thanks for tagging me, @bi-hans!

I'm soo gonna cheer for Noob to free himself from control of both Quan Chi and Shang Tsung. And if he decided to kill the sorcerers, then good for him! The boy deserves some nice treat after the bullshit he was put in, double so, as he refused to grovel before others in the first chapter, dammit!

(Does Onslaught Game have any chapter focused on Noob Saibot being the protagonist?)

But in regard to Shang Tsung, I like the implication that Quan Chi is A) aware of his interest in Bi-Han/Noob and B) using Bi-Han as a way of winning Shang Tsung over. 

Alternatively, Shang Tsung demanded to receive Noob as "payment" for his cooperation and the “it was a gift” was a polite way to say he had the upper hand over Quan Chi.

bishang everywhere

also can we talk about quan chi gifting shang tsung stuff as well

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Shang Tsung Intro Dialogues + heart(less)

Kitana: Yours is a callous heart, sorcerer Shang Tsung: If you truly knew it, you wouldn't think so.

Shang Tsung: We're both small-town boys at heart. Raiden: Then why is yours so infected with evil?

Shang Tsung: We've done nothing to regret. Rain: What kind of heartless monster are you?

Sindel: You heartless, spineless worm! Shang Tsung: Heartless, yes. Spineless, no.

Ghostface: This'll end when I harvest your heart. Shang Tsung: Sorry, my friend. I have none.

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Mortal Kombat 1 Behind the Scenes AU: Enlisting Outworld friends, p. 10 (General Shao & Sindel)

Author’s note: Time to finish the Outworld Champions arc. Shao is here to get both sisters on the film crew, whether Sindel likes it or not (and yes, she wanted Kitana to go alone to Earthrealm). If he has to cause a scandal to do so, then it is Sindel’s problem, not his 🤣

[Earlier posts, from #1 to #137] [Picking up the right horror movie] [Noob Saibot] [Will anyone mind if I kick his ass?] [Will anyone mind if I kick his ass?, p. 2] [Enlisting Outworld friends, p. 1] [I really can’t leave you and him unsupervised…?] [Deep trouble] [Lin Kuei Shang Tsung] [But are you sure it was me, Bi-Han?] [Enlisting Outworld friends, p. 2 (Shao, I)] [Enlisting Outworld friends, p. 3 (Shao, II)] [Enlisting Outworld friends, p. 4 (Sindel, I)] [Enlisting Outworld friends, p. 5 (Li Mei)] [Enlisting Outworld friends, p. 6 (Li Mei & Sindel)] [Enlisting Outworld friends, p. 7 (Li Mei and Tanya)] [Enlisting Outworld friends, p. 8 (General Shao & Li Mei, I)] [Enlisting Outworld friends, p. 9 (General Shao & Li Mei, II)] [Brothers between filming (6)] [Dark Sub-Zero, p. 3]

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Interesting theory and one very possible. In general, Bi-Han seems to have a rocky relationship with traditions and laws that are forced on him (and his people), so I could picture him trying his hardest to avoid being trapped into loveless and/or out of obligation marriage. If I may add, this resentment could be related to his mother who, as far as I researched the sources, is never really referred as "Grandmaster's wife", only as mother/parent of Bi-Han, Kuai Liang and Tomas or just warrior. What in itself is not proof about them not being a married couple, but more how little she matters from the political standpoint. And considering how she died at some point before the main story - presumably on duty - while majority sources claim that Lin Kuei lived in relatively peaceful times before MK 1, brings a lot of questions about her role and social/political position within the clan. I like to think a lot of Bi-Han's current mindset was shaped by his relationship with mother - something I talked more about in one of my older posts.

(Bi-Han the mama’s boy FTW!)

If Lin Kuei is so traditional, Bi-Han as an eldest son and heir should already have a child on his own to secure the line of succession (the same way as Mileena is nagged to marry and get pregnant after Sindel's death). Especially considering the nature of Lin Kuei life when one can't be sure when duty will call and the mission ends in the worst way. The fact Bi-Han has younger brother* probably saved him from the worst of pressure, but if his mother was forced to bear another child as a "spare heir", he and his potential wife could be pressured into having more children as soon as possible too. With Sektor not being his official wife, her freedom is more secured which I think may be one the main reasons why Bi-Han and Sektor didn't marry each other yet.

You may be right about the not proper social status of Sektor when Bi-Han's father lived, but as the sources imply that all Lin Kuei support Bi-Han, even Cyrax's own family, we can assume he is free to make his relationship with Sektor an official engagement. But as both focus on securing their clan and fulfilling their great ambition, they don't strike me as people interested in having children, at least for now. So being in an unofficial relationship works the best as none of them is trapped by tradition and the expectations associated with it. I mean, Sub-Zero likes independence so it seems accurate to assume Sektor's own independence is important to him too.

In intro dialogues, no one has a doubt about Sektor and Bi-Han being close to each other. Liu Kang himself acknowledged Sektor will do everything to save Bi-Han during Khaos Reigns and even appoint her as the new Grandmaster and Sub-Zero/Noob is very protective of her, but they don’t need to be officially called wife and husband. Such titles and labels won't change what they are to each other or for clan's future. And I think this is an interesting contrast to Harumi and Kuai Liang - another happy couple - who officially married following the tradition and “social norms” that at least Kuai Liang is so dedicated to uphold.

*There is Kuai Liang and Tomas, but as Tomas is of no Lin Kuei blood, I don’t think he is even taken into consideration when it comes to line of succession.

Come to think of it, it's possible that one of the reasons Bi-Han holds such a grudge against his father and the tradition he represents is his relationship with Sektor. Personnally, I'm not sure that Bi-Han's father looked kindly on his romance with his armorer's daughter. After all, Longwei, Sektor's father, essential though his role was; and Madam Bo, although considered one of the most powerful warriors of her time (as Sektor's bio makes clear), are probably not of aristocratic birth like Bi-Han's family, in which case Longwei would be more than just an armorer. Thus, it was probably customary for the future grandmaster of the Lin Kuei to marry a woman from his clan, or from one of its sub-clans, or from another clan altogether, but who was also of noble descent. What's more, Bi-Han appears to be in his thirties. Having reached such a decade of life, it would be astonishing if his late father hadn't already tried to find him a wife among the clan aristocracy at large. Could Bi-Han have managed to avoid this for years until, finally backed into a corner, he seized the opportunity of his father's accident to let him die and thus escape an imminent forced marriage? After all, Sektor is just one of his employees; hierarchically speaking, he's her boss, so they're not on the same level at all, and it would therefore be inconsistent for the Lin Kuei's aristocratic tradition to allow its grandmasters to take any woman as a spouse. And, for my part, I don't believe that Bi-Han and Sektor are married; it may be disingenuous of me to assert this, but I don't get the impression of a husband-and-wife dynamic between them, but rather of diabolical lovers and concubines (1). That's why, once rid of his father, Bi-Han was able to throw off the tradition the old man materialized, and, in so doing, maybe decree that he'll marry whomever he likes, that is, Sektor, the armorer's commoner daughter.

What's also interesting, on closer inspection, is this dialogue between Mileena and Kitana at the festival, where Mileena, after openly flirting with Tanya while the crowd's eyes were on them, is rebuked by Kitana about the risks of publicly flaunting such an affair:

Kitana: Careful, sister. Entanglements with Umgadi are forbidden. You know their vows. Mileena: Who told you? Kitana: No one. I have eyes. As do the snakes at court who would cheer your downfall. Mileena: The Umgadi's rules are ridiculous. Kitana: And you can change them when you are Empress. For now, you cannot jeopardize our ascension.

For the conflict between free impossible love and the tyrannic binds of tradition in which Mileena finds herself mirrors that in which Bi-Han may have found himself prior to his father's death.

(1) Which is a common trope and archetype in fiction. Also, for that matter, it's worth noting that General Shao refers to Sektor as Bi-Han's "woman", but not as his wife:

General Shao: Sub-Zero sends his woman after me? Sektor: He sends his most skilled warrior.

Admittedly, this choice of vocabulary could simply be part of Shao's crude and contemptuous way of speaking, especially as the word woman, in this context, could very well mean wife:

But this overlooks the fact that the word "wife" is used by other characters a total of 9 times in all the intro dialogues, so Shao could well have used it too (well, I'm not going to get into an analysis of MK1's lexicon, but I think you get my point…).

On the other hand, in MK1's story mode, Kuai Liang reminds a forgetful Tomáš that he won't be able to replace Bi-Han as grandmaster, because Cyrax and Sektor's "loyalty to Bi-Han is absolute", and for this reason, "they['d] sooner abet his corruption than follow [Kuai Liang]". Thus, if Sektor was officially married to Bi-Han, how could Tomáš not have remembered that, as the grandmaster's wife, she would have been perfectly legitimate to act as regent (provided the clan's rules allow it...), or simply oppose her brother-in-law's accession to the throne due to serious ideological differences, but also because it would be expected that she remains faithful to her husband and his vision? Therefore, the fact that Tom didn't even think of it in the first place would seem to indicate that Bi-Han and Sektor's relationship, while likely an open secret within the clan, was nevertheless neither really official; and even less sanctified by the bonds of marriage.

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CASTAWAYS OF ENDOR - Hyperspace-exclusive written by Daniel Wallace & Amy Pronovost, illustrations by Amy Pronovost (2008)

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Mortal Kombat 1 Behind the Scenes AU: Dark Sub-Zero, p. 3

Author’s note: Dark Sub-Zero came back to complain more about Liu Kang's timeline.

(The Enlisting Outworlds Friends arc is almost done so I decided to wait with posting until I will finish the current sub plot)

[Earlier posts, from #1 to #137] [Picking up the right horror movie] [Noob Saibot] [Will anyone mind if I kick his ass?] [Will anyone mind if I kick his ass?, p. 2] [Enlisting Outworld friends, p. 1] [I really can’t leave you and him unsupervised…?] [Deep trouble] [Lin Kuei Shang Tsung] [But are you sure it was me, Bi-Han?] [Enlisting Outworld friends, p. 2 (Shao, I)] [Enlisting Outworld friends, p. 3 (Shao, II)] [Enlisting Outworld friends, p. 4 (Sindel, I)] [Enlisting Outworld friends, p. 5 (Li Mei)] [Enlisting Outworld friends, p. 6 (Li Mei & Sindel)] [Enlisting Outworld friends, p. 7 (Li Mei and Tanya)] [Enlisting Outworld friends, p. 8 (General Shao & Li Mei, I)] [Enlisting Outworld friends, p. 9 (General Shao & Li Mei, II)] [Brothers between filming (6)] 

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Ghostface: You died once. Wanna do it again? Noob Saibot: If needed to kill you, yes.

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Mortal Kombat 1 Behind the Scenes AU: Brothers between filming (6)

Author’s note: Taking a small break with the Enlisting Outworld friends arc. In meanwhile, as Bi-Han picked the "Noob Saibot" for Cage's Halloween party (and freaked Liu Kang), so of course his brothers went as Saibot(s)/Shadows. The animation is MK11's Noob Saibot Friendship. Looks like I needed some silly brotherhood moment for Bi-Han, Tomas and Kuai Liang before I will start posting again more serious arc.

[Earlier posts, from #1 to #137] [Picking up the right horror movie] [Noob Saibot] [Will anyone mind if I kick his ass?] [Will anyone mind if I kick his ass?, p. 2] [Enlisting Outworld friends, p. 1] [I really can’t leave you and him unsupervised…?] [Deep trouble] [Lin Kuei Shang Tsung] [But are you sure it was me, Bi-Han?] [Enlisting Outworld friends, p. 2 (Shao, I)] [Enlisting Outworld friends, p. 3 (Shao, II)] [Enlisting Outworld friends, p. 4 (Sindel, I)] [Enlisting Outworld friends, p. 5 (Li Mei)] [Enlisting Outworld friends, p. 6 (Li Mei & Sindel)] [Enlisting Outworld friends, p. 7 (Li Mei and Tanya)] [Enlisting Outworld friends, p. 8 (General Shao & Li Mei, I)] [Enlisting Outworld friends, p. 9 (General Shao & Li Mei, II)]

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I imagine outworlders age differently from regular people so it results in this.

Person: How old are you ma'am?

Jade: Biologically or physically?

Person: What?

Smoke: She means she's twenty four years old.

In reality it's more 10,000 years old but Jade looks twenty so you can imagine which one Smoke would gun for in average conversations.

With such a long lifespan, it’s very likely the Outworlders age differently. I mean, if Nitara claims to be a girl in Earthrealm’s prehistoric times,

Smoke: Just how long have you lived? Nitara: I was a girl when you Earthrealmers first mastered fire. 

and Sindel claims Edenians are touched by the divine that allow them live long

Smoke: Why do Edenians live so long? Sindel: We are touched by the divine, Tomas.

I would not be surprised if 10 000 years for Outworlder is considered as teenage or early adulthood. Though of course how fast Edenians mature is up to debate. For example, the earliest “timelines” never made me doubt in 10 000 years old Kitana’s maturity but within the alternative timeline, she came out as pretty spoiled and maybe even childishly naive at times, I think? While in the New Era, Kitana and Mileena are trained since childhood to fulfill their duties as princesses but the way Sindel is worrying/nagging their daughters about romantic and/or sexual relationship (for example being concerned about Johnny interest in Kitana) and the way Kitana is questioned as the commander of Outworld Army (albeit mainly by her enemy)

Reiko: You?! In command of Outworld's army? Kitana: It's a much better fit than you think, Reiko.

could put a nice twist on perception of their characters. As in, they are actually mentally much younger than Earthrealm Champions (and us, the viewers) considered them to be, as their age is misleading.

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