#gera racing

[criminalmutantsins]

MK1 Characters Ages Headcanon

Vaeternus: 1 year = 6k years

Edenian: 1 year = 400 years

Draconian: 1 year = 250 years 

*For Vaeternus, I made these calculations based on a Nitara intro. I believe Kung Lao asks her how old she is and Nitara says that she was a little girl when humans discovered fire. There were many differing accounts on when that happened but I decided to pick the one that said fire was a widespread, controlled source 125,000 years ago. It was the second most recent account- first being 12,000 years ago. I chose 125k since I assume the intro I mentioned is meant to hint how much older Vaeternus is than most races.  

*Since the story confirmed that Kitana and Mileena were 10,000 years old, I used the number to find an estimated number of Edenian years that equals a single human year. I considered Kitana and Mileena to be 25 in human years since it divides 10,000 evenly and the sisters look close to that age- dividing those numbers equaled to 400 years. So, 400 Edenian years is equal to 1 human year. 

*In the story, Sindel confronted Shao and mentioned how she remembered the sickly boy he was. This is evidence that Sindel is older than Shao by a few years- ten years at minimum; however, in my opinion, Shao looks older than Sindel so I believe the Draconian species have a shorter life span than Edenians, but they are still much larger than human’s. Unlike with the Edenians, I decided to have 250 Draconian years be equivalent to one human year because of an idea of an estimated range.  

*Liu Kang is slightly older than the Big Bang in the New Era. I couldn’t calculate Geras’ age since he’s experienced a ginormous amount of timelines. Calculations over a trillion is too difficult for any calculator to compute. 

Ashrah: 29 (human years) 

Baraka: 22k (Edenian years), 55 (human years) 

General Shao: 12,500 (Draconian years), 50 (human years) 

Geras: Can’t Calculate

Havik: 27 (human years) 

Johnny Cage: 28 

Kenshi Takahashi: 28 

Kitana: 10k (Edenian years; canon), 25 (human years) 

Kung Lao: 24 

Jerrod: 20k (Edenian years), 50 (human years)  [If he were alive]

Li Mei: 18,400 (Edenian years), 46 (human years)

Liu Kang: 13.8 billion 

Mileena: 10k (Edenian years; canon), 25 (human years) 

Nitara: 150k (Vaeternus years) or 12k (Vaeternus years), 25 (human years) 

Raiden: 24 

Rain: 10,400 (Edenian years), 26 (human years)

Reiko: 26 (human years) 

Reptile: 29 (human years) 

Kuai Liang/Scorpion: 26 

Sindel: 19,200 (Edenian years), 48 (human years) 

Shang Tsung: 27 (human years) 

Tomas Vrbada/Smoke: 25 

Bi-Han/Sub-Zero: 28 

Tanya: 9,600 (Edenian years), 24 (human years)

[autisticdoomslayer]

Tarkatan Culture

OK General notes about Tarkatan culture so far, all of which have been gleamed through mk11. Note that some of these cultural values may not be 100% accurate, since most of them are gotten through Baraka's dialogue so some of this might just be his personality. So this is like 50% also a Baraka analysis, since he's the only Tarkatan I really have access to and I doubt he's a super reliable narrator.

This will probably be added onto later.

Okay, so just to get this out of the way - Tarkatan cannibalism is canon. I think we already knew this. It's mentioned casually in a couple intro dialogues.

Now we get into themes/topics, specifically values that I've noticed may be in Tarkatan culture.

1. - Honesty.

Baraka's brutally honest and straight to the point. Baraka says things that could very well spark anger or aggression even from his allies, and it doesn’t seem to be on purpose. In fact, sometimes it seems to be out of goodwill.

Baraka: I'd think twice about being Kotal's Bride. Jade: And why is that, Baraka? Baraka: If he betrays Tarkata, you will suffer.

He's warning her - this seems like less of a threat and more of a weird gesture of goodwill. "hey, we're mostly cool, please be aware that if your boyfriend double-crosses my people I will not react in a way you like". In another intro dialogue he tells Cetrion straight-up to "speak plainly" and stop speaking in the confusing virtue riddles she usually does.

Now, this might just be a him thing, but it makes sense for a Proud Warrior Race like the Tarkatans. Note that while while the Shokan are also a Proud Warrior Race, they are canonically very hierarchical and have a strict caste system, which means they are more likely to have social expectations of how to act around those of higher status (canon based on how Sheeva expects others to treat her). These social expectations are usually going to be more formal/less direct out of respect. The Tarkatans, however, have a very loose hierarchical system, that seems to be mainly restricted to two categories: tribe members and whoever is leading the tribe at that time. Leadership is not acquired through blood or caste, but through prowess.

Baraka: You challenge me for the tribe? Mirror Baraka: By the rules of Katka Rakatan. Baraka: I will feast on your flesh. (including that line for proof of cannibalism, which I don't think anyone needed but I'm doing it anyway.)

There's also no strict governmental system. The few "laws" Tarkatans have seem to be mainly just traditions, that, if broken, will cause a huge uproar.

Robocop: How are Tarkatan laws enforced? Baraka: With gnashing teeth and sharpened blades. Robocop: I would not call that justice.

The whole "rules of Katka Rakatan" thing seems to be enforced mainly out of compliance to tradition. The tradition is highly respected throughout Tarkatan culture, and on the off chance that someone tries to break that tradition, it will A) probably be seen as an act of cowardice, since most of the traditions are probably combat/challenge based and B) will end with the offending individual getting torn apart by the rest of the tribe.

It makes sense that, with this looser heirarchical system, Tarkatans don't feel any need to speak formally/respecfully. This point is strengthened by this dialogue:

Baraka: My people are skeptical. Kitana: I am not Shao Kahn, Baraka. Baraka: Words. We need deeds.

2. - Oppression

Tarkatans have canonically been an oppressed group for a while. Like, a long time.

Geras: Submit your tribe to Kronika. Baraka: Tarkatans do not submit, Geras. Geras: It is their entire history.

Now, let's talk fantastic racism real quick. We got Kotal's genocidal tendencies, but everyone know's about those. So let's talk about Rain sees everyone as lesser, that’s kind of his thing, but he seems to see Tarkatans as particularly inferior.

Rain: Kitana has made you a partner? Baraka: Her choice offends you? Rain: It disgusts me, Baraka.

Even Kitana seems to have some biases despite how she's portrayed in story mode.

Kitana: You soil every room you enter. Kano: Bloke's gotta mark his territory. Kitana: Even Baraka's more civilized.

It's not that bad compared to the shit Tarkatans have gone through, but it's still racism, damn.

There's also this line, but I'm pretty sure it's not canon.

Kitana: The flesh trade is banned. Baraka: My people won't starve, Kitana! Kitana: There will be no exceptions.

(I'm not entirely sure if "flesh trade" refers exclusively to human/sentient flesh or what, but that "my people won't starve" line doesn't paint Kitana in a great light. Again, probably non-canon though.)

Frost has two different dialogues where she insults Baraka, one of which involves her calling him low-born (more looking down upon Tarkatans) and a "cur" (which up until now I have never heard used outside of a Shakespearian context; for anyone wondering, it's pretty much synonymous with "mongrel"). She also calls him a coward, which, knowing Baraka, is probably the reason he sounds so pissed in the dialogue.

Tarkatans/Baraka seem to hate being looked down upon as dumber/lesser/primitive/uncivilized.

Baraka: Why come to Outworld? Erron Black: Why, to meet exotic folks like yourself. Baraka: By 'exotic', you mean 'primitive'.

Shang Tsung: Do Tarkatans have souls, Baraka? Baraka: Of course we have souls. Shang Tsung: Souls are more useful than service. (Baraka's so ready for an attempt to dehumanize (for lack of a better word) Tarkatans that he kinda forgets the problem with discussing souls with Shang Tsung, famous soul stealer.)

He also emphasizes his status as an equal to Kitana multiple times:

Baraka: Tarkatans are slaves no longer. Sindel: Kitana has made you servants. Baraka: We are allies, not servants.

Baraka: Join us against the Emperor. Mileena: And forever curtsy to my sister? Baraka: Better Kitana's partner than Shao Kahn's slave. (There's emphasis on Mileena's disgust at the thought of being below Kitana, and Baraka emphasizes that he and Kitana are partners. Equals.)

He also is notably very appreciative when people see him as an equal, or at least show him basic decency. This is shown in most of his dialogues with Jade and Kotal (in most of Kotal's dialogue Baraka makes it clear that just because he likes Jade doesn't mean he likes Kotal).

He also seems incredibly cautious of his allies, kind of waiting for betrayal.

3. Loyalty

Loyalty seems to be a value. I questioned if loyalty might have some importance with the amount of dialogues of Baraka swearing his loyalty to Jade & Kitana (so long as they don't betray him), but what makes me think it could be a cultural value is this line:

Baraka: If Kitana cheats us, Tarkata will rise. Jade: She's never shown disloyalty, Baraka. Baraka: Except to the Kahn who raised her.

Disloyalty to anyone, even to someone like Shao Kahn, is enough to make Baraka suspicious. The emphasis on Shao Kahn raising Kitana may also show a cultural respect for parental figures.

I might add onto this later, but this is what I have right now.

TL;DR - tarkatans are the jews of outworld.

[jellyshark-png]

MK1xF1 AU – by Shark :3

alright alright it is FINALLY HERE but before we get started in this big ass post, just a few silly disclaimers !!

expect some MAJOR inaccuracies (this is mostly for my diehard f1 fans hello :3),, i am by no means an expert, in fact i got into f1 VERY recently so pls bare with me

lets understand that, from a physique standpoint, tomas and kuai WOULD NOT REALISTICALLY BE IN F1– however we choose to ignore that for the sake of the brainrot teehee

not every character will be included, so pls don't get mad at me if your fav is not in this AU– its a working AU and these are all coming off the top of my head

anyways, enjoy me yapping!

just a few definitions to understand the positions and other terms i'll be using throughout this post :'D

Team Principal – basically owns the team, kind of self explanatory HAHA Race Engineer – these are the people that speak to the drivers while they're racing! now, realistically speaking, every driver gets their own race engineer, but in this case i haven't done that bc,,, well there's only so many characters :') Pit Lead – another self explanatory position, but this is the lead/manager of the pit crew! (is this an actual position ?? idk but we're going with it) Formula Series – so Formula 1 isn't the only race in the series, there's also F2 and F3– these are the races you basically go through before you get into F1! there's other races in the series, but these are the ones i'll focus on. Drive to Survive/DTS – this is a netflix series revolving around F1 and i will say its the most dramatic depiction of the sport + all the fake hate between racers shown ?? and using clips and such out of context ?? yeah you get the picture.

F1 TEAMS

MERCEDES-AMG PETRONAS F1 TEAM

Team Principal : Hanzo Hasashi (i know it says mk1 but shhhh) Race Engineers : Bihan Pit Lead : Syzoth Racers : Kuai Liang and Tomas Vrbada

Mercedes comes up as a long time rival to Oracle Red Bull Racing and Ferrari Scuderia– expecially with such a close bond between the brothers. Bihan started off as the team's strategist before his farther stepped down as race engineer, thus banding the baton to Bihan and making him the youngest race engineer on the grid. Tomas and Kuai are steady but strongly defensive racers, Tomas joining in a bit later in the game starting as a rookie reserve driver for Mercedes in the first half of the previous seasons. Now they fight on together in the world of F1 side by side as a strong unit.

extra! - i remember reading someone's headcanon abt kuai liang being taiwanese,,, so im gonna say bihan and kuai liang are half chinese half taiwanese (chinese dad, taiwanese mom), and so in this case, kuai liang would represent the taiwanese flag while tomas ofc represents the czech republic flag!

FERRARI SCUDERIA F1 TEAM

Team Principal : Jackson "Jax" Briggs Racers : Johnny Cage and Kenshi Takahashi

Before Oracle Red Bull Racing's renaissance in the new generation of F!, Ferrari Scuderia was at the top of their game for years and years. With Johnny and Kenshi being in the sport much longer than the newcomers, it's no denying that they are the winning classics of every race season– many looking forward to their assertion in the races. Johnny drives more aggressively, though with a lighter bounce in his step, a bit of bantering almost while he's racing wheel to wheel. Kenshi, on the other hand, is smooth and sly in the way he overtakes every racer, always sidling just behind a racer's line. Although they've raced for much longer, they still hold true as being one of the big three amongst Mercedes and Red Bull Racing.

extra! - 100000% johnny and kenshi do not work well at first when they become team mates, and people honestly would've preferred them as rivals in opposing teams– but over time they'd put aside their differences and slowly find out that they actually work really well together, despite their opposites in driving style and personality.

ORACLE RED BULL RACING F1 TEAM

Team Principal : Geras Race Engineer : Liu Kang Racers : Raiden and Kung Lao

Oracle Red Bull Racing saw its first golden age with now race engineer Liu Kang, setting the standard for F1 in his time and winning world championship after world championship, dominating each race until his retirement as a racer. Today, Raiden now follows in his footsteps, and alongside him his childhood best friend, Kung Lao. Starting out, they weren't actually in the same team– opting to race against each other in opposing teams to keep their rivalry alive once joining F1. Over time, and after many second driver switches, Kung Lao finally joins Raiden in Oracle Red Bull Racing, making them THE golden boys of this generation's Red Bull racing team– an absolute killer duo to fight against long standing Mercedes and Ferrari.

extra! - irl, red bull is NOTORIOUS for constantly switching out second drivers, and so kung lao would get a lot of flack– and his first year in red bull would not be as great until around the second half of the season :'))

TIMELINE

here, i'll be explaining the timeline of each of the racers' moves throughout the teams– this is going from 2020-2024 (and to preface, whenever i do talk abt mk1xf1 stuff, assume its all taking place in 2024 unless told otherwise). im gonna pray all of this makes sense HAHA

*also there's usually two drivers per team ofc, but i cannot be bothered to do any placeholder drivers for each team, so the second driver can be up to your interpretation!

2020

kuai and kenshi in aston martin (have been since 2019 as well, maybe 2018 i havent fully decided)

johnny has been in RB toro rosso for a year since 2019 (technically speaking its called visa cashapp rb now but like,,,, you guys that name is so awful LMAO)

raiden and tomas enter into their first year in F1 in williams

kung lao enters his first year in haas

TEAMS Aston Martin : kuai liang and kenshi takahashi RB Toro Rosso : johnny cage Haas : kung lao Williams : raiden and tomas vrbada

2021

kuai and kenshi stay in aston martin

johnny stays in toro rosso, and tomas makes the move to toro rosso

raiden moves to mclaren

kung lao stays in haas

TEAMS Aston Martin : kuai liang and kenshi takahashi RB Toro Rosso : johnny cage and tomas vrbada Mclaren : raiden Haas : kung lao

2022

kuai makes the move to oracle red bull racing (BY THIS TIME liu kang is actually still racing, and retires by the end of the 2022 season)

kenshi makes the move to williams, alongside kung lao

tomas and johnny stay in toro rosso

raiden stays in mclaren

TEAMS Oracle RB : kuai liang and liu kang Williams : kenshi takahashi and kung lao RB Toro Rosso : johnny cage and tomas vrbada Mclaren : raiden

2023

raiden moves to oracle RB after liu kang retires, kuai stays in oracle RB

kenshi stays in williams

kung lao moves to RB toro rosso to replace johnny, tomas stays in RB toro rosso

johnny goes to mercedes

TEAMS Oracle RB : kuai liang and raiden RB Toro Rosso : kung lao and tomas vrbada Williams : kenshi takahashi Mercedes : johnny cage

mid 2023 – 2024 (current)

johnny signs into ferrari in the middle of the '23 season

kuai liang signs into mercedes in the middle of the '23 season

kung lao signs into oracle RB, raiden stays in the same team

kenshi then signs into ferrari by the end of the '23 season

tomas signs into mercedes for the '24 season

TEAMS Oracle RB : raiden and kung lao Ferrari Scuderia : johnny cage and kenshi takahashi Mercedes : kuai liang and tomas vrbada

Misc. Stuff :D

this is where it gets super fun bc now i yap EVEN MORE abt the extra shit in this AU

the ages✨ bc i assume everyones curious abt this perhaps HAHA and this is in conjunction with being in the current year 2024 and these are all ranges bc,,,, im indecisive and dont know what age to actually make them

liu kang and geras : late 30s, very early 40s (maybe like,,, 37-41 ??)

hanzo hasashi and jax briggs : early 40s perhaps

kuai liang and johnny cage : late 20s, early 30s (so kuai around 27-29 and johnny 29-32)

kenshi takahashi and bihan : early 30s (maybe a year older than johnny ? like if johnny is perhaps 30 then kenshi would be 31– then bihan is liiike idk 32-33)

kung lao, raiden, and tomas vrbada : early-mid 20s

the rookie trio !!! lets get into it :333

raiden, kung lao, and tomas all entered into F3 around the same time! they moved up in the series and all entered F1 the same time as well (for my F1 fans, think of them as lando, george and alex)

as ages go, raiden is the oldest, then tomas, then kung lao being the youngest of the three :3 and for laughs– tomas 10000% holds it over lao's head that hes older than him (probably only by a few months too HAHA)

this isn't specific to the rookies, but theres a "twitch quartet" (twitch streaming btw) in the irl world of F1 (lando, george, alex and charles), and so in this AU, the twitch quartet would be the rookies + johnny cage bc i think that dynamic is absolutely hilarious HAHA

these three would be considered the new era of F1, whereas kuai, johnny and kenshi are considered the older bunch teehee

liu kang as a racer oooohhhh AUUUUGHFDK

liu kang would've been absolutely ICONIC during his time, think sebastian vettel– that's his kind of notoriety

so when he announced his retirement, it would've absolutely devastated the F1 community, even if you weren't a liu kang or red bull fan, it would still hit you where it hurts

he'd truly set the bar standard for what an F1 driver should be like idc idc

but when he announced his return as a race engineer for the oracle RB team, everyone cheered :3

the controversial era that is 2023-2024 + the hit netflix series Drive to Survive

i know for an absolute FACT that when kuai and tomas signed into mercedes there was a lot and i mean A LOOOOTTT of speculation and hate for them bc of the familial ties

and perhaps a similar issue with johnny joining ferrari bc i headcanon him to have some italian roots (so people would speculate that he had someone in the inside idfk LMAO)

but this would be CAAAANDY for the show Drive to Survive bro it would be HAVOC

speaking of DTS– once kung lao signed into Oracle RB, they 100000% villainized him and even made it seem as though he wanted to take raiden's spotlight as the first driver (which is not the case holy hell HAHA)

but with that, a lot of fans that came from DTS despised kung lao, and probably still do– they just refuse to see that they're literally childhood friends LMAO

some dynamics stuff and jumping between eras and whatnot bro this is getting way too long HAHA

at the beginnings of his F1 career, tomas would be EXTREMELY tense and even tone down his playful personality to come off as more "serious" and professional– but when he joins RB toro rosso with johnny, he aaaaabsolutely helps him out of his shell and proves to him that you don't have to be so serious in the sport. it would just be a lot of pressure on tomas' part to prove himself, esp with being in kuai's shadow :')

and in a similar note, when kung lao joins williams with kenshi, he kinda learns a bit of humility from kenshi and brings down his rowdiness, actually hone it to be a better driver in the long run. AUGHGHKDFJ dude kenshi and johnny as mentors heals my soul idc

kuai and kenshi in aston martin would have been KIIIILLLEERRR they would've put aston martin as actual competitors in the constructor's championship LIIKEKEK so iconic + they'd be the heartbreakers of their time with the two being at their prime and much younger UGH

LAST THING I PROMISE this is just a bunch of extra tidbits if you care to read– and if you've actually made it this far uhhh,,,, congratulations BAHAH

kenshi has sensitive eyes, so he has his helmet visor specifically tinted for that + does wear shades inside and ykw its a godsend the Ferrari is sponsored by Raybans HAHA

to tie to that, johnny just has AT LEAST two extra pairs of glasses on him, and he says its for himself but really its just in case kenshi somehow forgets his own shades somewhere or his own pair broke (ya gotta love them)

raiden and lao's rivalry is IIINNNSSAAANNEEE haters can hate all they want, but their on track fights are so incredible to watch and people think its a miracle that they're still as close as ever

ALSO BRO madam bo would have 10000000% funded their karting career SHES THEIR NUMBER ONE SUPPORTER IDC WHAT ANYONE SAYS !!!!!!! she sponsors them too, is always in whatever commercials they do and theyre your typical cheesy but memorable asian commercials

random but with raiden and kung lao both being chinese, they both represent the chinese flag, and so did liu kang !!! you'd catch them all in cantonese– though unfortunately cannot speak much with kuai since he speaks mandarin HAHA

during their time in williams, lao and kenshi definitely taught each other their own language just a bit, but lao definitely learned most of the "bad" words in japanese LMAOF

johnny italian yes (cmon just look at his nose) ??? and he's fluent case closed– but also its funny to see his onboard videos of him gesturing to other drivers when he's angry

bihan has the same notoriety as toto wolff– he's the one mf everyone simps for and ISN'T AN F1 DRIVER

this has already gone for a long time LMAOKSJDFH but if you have any other questions or would like me to make some comparisons of the actual drivers vs. the characters, my ask box is open !!! anyways thank you for reading this LOOOOONNNGGGG post and i hope to make more mk1xf1 content :'))))

[laz-262]

Um I got bored and decided to try out writing by drawing similarities between MK characters and the planets (yes from that tiktok slideshow) so enjoy my incessant brainrot :]

sun - is alone but still shines (liu kang)

Like duh, he is the keeper of time in this timeline, he gave up his mortality to keep the rest of the universe alive, and yet he will never find anyone that is able to live alongside him in fear of his attachment to them and doesn’t want to face the grief of loosing them (the only exception being geras)

I feel like he would’ve contemplated reaching out to kung lao but he refrained from doing so cuz it wasn’t his kung lao, and kung lao already had raiden. And since raiden never intruded their friendship before (in previous timelines), he wanted to do the same out of respect. It’s not like kung lao would even recognise the man standing in front of him either.

mercury the forgotten planet (mileena/baraka)

This feels like a stretch, but it feels that many choose to focus more on kitana over mileena, especially when sindel tells kitana that sometimes she wished kitana had been borned first. maybe it was partly due to liu kang’s design, choosing to indulge in designing kitana over mileena, who in the previous timeline, was nothing but kitana’s clone.

People in the empress’ inner circle sometimes doubt her ability to rule outworld, and kitana and jerrod do provide valuable input, but having tarkat does not necessarily cloud mileena’s mind, at least not yet, and she is more than capable of showing outworld her capabilities that she is fit to rule, just like her mother.

Either that or baraka, a famed merchant with everything he wanted, had everything taken away from him. tarkat, the disease that ravaged his body, that left his family dead, that shunned him away from his race. He was exiled to the tarkat community, forbidden from stepping into Sun Do until recent events took place.

Between Baraka and Mileena, I feel like the common thread is their tarkat affliction that clouds people’s judgement, that causes people to forget the previous feats they were capable of. Which causes them to be seen as nothing but their disease.

venus - planet of love, destroyed by global warming (johnny cage)

The man, the myth, the living legend. he had everything, he still does, and yet he didn’t feel it was enough. He wanted more, and that was too much to handle. And because of his own gluttony and greed, he lost his wife, the person that loved him for who he was, not what he could become. Yet, when he finally achieved what he could become, perhaps he had lost himself in the process. Maybe he did feel grief for his now ex-wife, but the Johnny Cage everyone knows doesn’t cry, he smiles and laughs it off. Right?

But Johnathan Carlton, the person he is, the broken man he is, allows himself time to grieve, to let slip the tears he didn’t know were there for so long he thought they’d dried up. and when he finally dries them away, perhaps finally has the ability to properly move on from everything, and figure out what he truly wants.

earth - slowly destroying itself (kuai liang)

The younger of the biological lin kuei brothers, breaking the lifelong pact he formed with said brother, moving on to form a new clan. Despite feeling hatred and betrayal towards bi han, he also can’t help but feel.. disappointed that things turned out this way, that they couldn’t have worked together, that he and bi han couldn’t fix their relationship.

He partly blames himself for their falling out, with his hot headedness stripping away the one thing that his brother and him had in common, his lin kuei badge. His feelings of betrayal not just because of bi han, but towards the lin kuei, eat him up from the inside.

He know that he isn’t at fault, and the lin kuei are now set on his and tomas’ heads, but he can’t help feel that he should’ve done more, to convince bi han from listening to that conniving sorcerer. now he leads a newly formed clan alongside tomas, and even though the running of a new clan tires him to no end, the gnawing feeling of loss of his brother still sets him on the path of self loathing.

However, there also lies the foolish hope that still burns like a weak ember in his heart, that maybe his brother is not all lost, and something can still be done to salvage him.

moon - doesn’t shine by itself, its light is just a reflection of the sun (geras)

Everyone is so focused on liu kang’s revelation of being a keeper of time it is also easy to overlook the role of the keeper of the hourglass himself. While geras does not mind the relative lack of recognition, he too owes his life and creation to liu kang, with the purpose of his whole existence lying in the large glass object that keeps track of all time.

It’s funny, the duality of how geras can turn out while under different keepers, from a ruthless, unstoppable soldier under kronika to a gentle yet insightful partner by liu kang’s side. it almost reflects how the moon has different phases when the sun and earth are in different positions. who knows, perhaps he would turn out differently in another keeper’s timeline. But his purpose remains forever unchanging, to stand by the keeper’s side, and to protect the hourglass, within which all of reality resides in.

even mars once had water on its surface (syzoth)

Ok hear me out, syzoth, an outcast from his own species, and zaterrans were shut out by outworld themselves. One could’ve never fathom he would’ve found love, and yet he did. A wife and kid, whom he loved unconditionally, as they did he. Maybe he had finally found the happy ending he could never find in his hometown.

But when shang tsung broke the cruel news to him, maybe he did finally break, realised that fate just enjoys playing cruel pranks on him. And this time, maybe he’ll just laugh dryly in its face. And maybe the tears that prick his eyes when he thinks back on perhaps the only two people that loved him without hesitation will fill the dried riverbeds on the desolate planet that is his heart.

jupiter - supposed to be a star but failed (kung lao)

I feel like this is another given, kung lao was never meant to be the champion, at least in this timeline. He tried, he tried so hard to prove himself, if not to raiden but to himself, that he was enough, and yet he couldn’t even prove that his best was enough. forever a walking second place medal.

Yet there is so much about him he doesn’t see in himself that so many others can see so clearly, his jokes, his get going personality, his ability to light up the room, to get completely different people to work together. It feels like such a paradox, he gets caught up in both his perfections and flaws he doesn’t see the things that make him a truly enjoyable person to be around

saturn is slowly loosing its rings (raiden)

Guys let me cook pls. Raiden, the farmer boy that became earthrealm’s champion, obviously a lot of responsibility comes with the title. He goes on to become the shaolin’s newest master, and slowly more commitments start to get piled on him. But he still smiles, and graciously accepts the load given to him.

Nevertheless, a day only has 24 hours, and most of that time is taken up by these responsibilities. While raiden is grateful for the opportunities he’s given, he slowly looses out on time spent with his closest companions, with his family. His grip on his previous life in fengjian slowly loosens and gradually becomes nothing but the past. Even though he still visiting his hometown, he knows he can’t return in fear of endangering all those he holds dear there, with kung lao and his hat the only pieces that remind him of home.

uranus was once closest to the sun, but slowly drifted away (kitana)

Kitana, at least to liu kang, was prob his everything at one point, the love of his life, and yet he managed to fail to keep her safe, watching in broken arms as she slipped away from him. even now as keeper of time, he can do nothing but watch from afar as the kitana he knew was instead a completely different person, despite wearing t he same face.

Titan kitana, his kitana on the other hand, didn’t even know that her liu kang still existed outside of her timeline, so close and yet out of reach. she moved on, carrying out her duties as keeper of time as sand continued to fall in the hourglass. Only did she finally come face to face with liu kang, her liu kang, did she realise how much she missed him, and how long it had been since she saw him, always holding a secret flame of hope of seeing him again despite creating him in her own timeline, she, much like her liu kang, could do little in interfering with the timeline, to come undone and let all her emotions flood out to the person that wouldn’t even recognise her

neptune is slowly moving away from the solar system (bi han)

Bi han always wanted more, he wanted power over the realms, rather than merely safeguarding it. So when he decided to accept shang tsung’s deal, he thought he did what was right for the clan. But what he didn’t realise that by making a deal for everything, he had already lost it all.

The 2 brothers that stood by him in whatever war they fought, turned their back on him when they witnessed his endless thirst for authority. And by siding with shang tsung he had already lost any previous ally he had in the past.

While he initially thought that it was of little consequence, after shang tsung’s defeat, here he stood alone, with his clan, against the world. Of course, his clan was of no small scale, with cyrax and sektor by his side. but still he had never felt more alone

Though he would never admit it, he missed the presence of his brothers providing their unending support in their endeavours. he missed liu kang’s annoyingly good advice to their plans. Perhaps he believes that it is already too late to fix old wounds, now he faces his brothers’ new clan, leading the charge. There was nothing to do but continue moving forward, that’s just how the threads of fate works, time only moves forward.

pluto was too small to seem significant (tomas)

Tomas, the youngest of the lin kuei brothers, and not even by blood. While bi hans words stung, they were no doubt the truth, despite how much tomas turns away from it. He was an orphaned child, picked up by the clan that decimated his entire family and took him in out of sympathy.

They tried to treat him like he really was a lin kuei, or at least kuai liang did, but tomas knew he didn’t and will never belong there. and yet, he still forced himself to believe that they were his real brothers, and treated them as such. But it was when bi han turned his back on him and kuai liang, did he realise that he would never be enough to bi han, that bi han never thought of him as his equal, that he never saw tomas significant enough to be his brother, to be lin kuei.

But maybe, with the creation of the new clan, the shirai ryu, maybe this is where he will find his new family, one that will not shun him for not being enough, one that sees him for who he is, not what he could never be.

[cdr2002]

Mortal Kombat Odyssey Bio: Kronika

At the beginning of the universe, when the primal forces of the void gave birth to the Elder Gods, they were tethered to aspects of the reality which had spawned them.

One of these Elder Gods was Kronika, who had an affinity for the intricacies of time itself which far surpassed her fellows. As such, she was selected to be the embodiment of this very force, as was the Elder Gods’ way.

It was a practice she continued as she exercised the power over creation that the Elder Gods collectively shared, coalescing the ethereal force of darkness and the runoff energies of Elder Gods who had been slain by the One Being, effectively the energy of death itself, into her eldest child: Shinnok.

The latter of these acts was questioned by her fellow Elder Gods and viewed as a potential desecration of their fallen comrades. Kronika cited the importance of continuing their race to justify herself, and in time the matter was put to bed.

Kronika’s power over time and the tactical prowess of her son made them invaluable in the struggle against the One Being, accelerating or slowing time to catch the One Being off guard, creating openings for the attacks of the other Elder Gods.

Shinnok meanwhile used his divine powers to forge the seventh of the Kamidogu, a powerful amulet that when united with its six predecessors could create a power to rival the One Being.

Ultimately, this power would prove unnecessary, as the Elder Gods were victorious against the One Being and as the spoils of victory, witnessed the birth of a new universe. Shinnok remained curious as to the potential of that power, but Kronika convinced him to forget about it, even in spite of her own curiosity.

As the new universe would take shape and the Elder Gods decided upon their role as distant guardians of the life that began to form within the myriad realms, Kronika was inspired to create an embodiment of life and the elements of these realms, which took shape in her daughter, Cetrion.

As the Elder Gods decided how they would handle their duties as supervisors of the realms, Kronika advocated for the oversight of time itself as an aspect of their responsibilities. The rest of the Elder Gods came to agree, and offered some assistance as she began to architect what she would to go on to consider her greatest creation: the Hourglass.

Immense temporal energies, the essence of time itself, was coalesced into a singular vessel which had the ability to survey all of time, from the very beginning, to the end of all things.

Kronika was fascinated by the possibilities of her new creation, and made another to compliment it: a being known as Geras, who would serve as Kronika’s immortal sentinel within the realms themselves, gaining a firsthand perspective on how things progressed, but with an insight into time imparted from his mother. She felt that the input of Geras would add a more personal touch to the Elder Gods’ observations, and prevent them from becoming overly detached from the mortals they wished to safeguard.

However, as Kronika began to peer into time itself, seeing all that had come before and all that would come after, time would become her obsession.

In the futures of the mortals, Kronika saw suffering. Death. War. Pain. Trillions of lives extinguished over the course of time, and so many different ways each event could play out. So many crises which could occur, perhaps would occur.

As she explored the depths of creation’s abilities, she discovered that through the Hourglass, time could be manipulated. Events altered, lives reshaped. History able to be rewritten.

Through this power, Kronika saw the means to achieve perfection. An end to the suffering of every being in the universe, by way of intricately crafted idealized destinies.

When she presented her plan to the other Elder Gods, she was met with reactions of horror. The Elder Gods saw a fatal flaw to Kronika’s vision: the total eradication of free will.

Kronika thought this to be an acceptable sacrifice, as all those under sway would still believe that they made their own choices. And at this point, she was hellbent on preventing the suffering that she had seen.

Kronika attempted to act, but was detained by her former comrades.

Convinced that she was extremely dangerous, the Elder Gods decided that something needed to be done. Unwilling to kill Kronika, they elected to strip her of her power and status as one of their number, transforming her into a mere mortal, albeit a very long-lived one. Going even further, they removed her memories and cast her into the realm of Seido to live a new life, effectively reincarnated.

Fearing the temptation of power over time getting to them as well, the Elder Gods elected to seal the Hourglass within Kronika’s keep, a small location within the void which she had created. They did not destroy the device, concerned that the release of temporal energy may destabilize the realms.

As a precaution against the Keep being reached, the Elder Gods added safeguards to the Hourglass using implements formerly in Kronika’s possession: an amulet, which would access the device, and her crown, which gave precision when wielding time. These implements were cast out into the realms, hidden so that they would never be found, and so that the Elder Gods themselves could avoid the temptation.

The word on Kronika’s fate was given to Geras last, catching him with complete shock. Deeply disillusioned, he resigned from his duties to the Elder Gods, left almost entirely directionless. Though Cetrion wished to offer him sanctuary in the Heavens, the council of the Elder Gods ultimately decided to leave Geras in the mortal realms.

Ironically, his feelings of aimlessness matched those of his creator.

In her new life, Kronika would be plagued by the feeling that something was missing… that there was something she was meant to do. Something pulling her in a direction she didn’t understand. Something struggling to get out.

A mystery that seemed like it would last an eternity…

[horizoncountdown]

Character Dossier: Aloy (Countdown ‘verse)

Aloy

Culture:

Nora (raised)

Mixed (adopted)

Birth:

April 4th, 3021 (age c. 19)

ELEUTHIA-9, All-Mother Mountain, The Sacred Lands

Gender:

Female

Eye Colour:

Green

Hair Colour:

Red

Affiliation(s):

Talanah Khane Padish

Carja Hunter’s Lodge

Avad

Carja Royal family

Vanguard

Petra Forgewoman

Vanasha

Uthid

Sylens

Aratak

Aratak’s Werak

CYAN

GAIA

GAIA Gang

Beta

Hekarro

Tenakth Marshals

Jurassic Pack (Blue, Charlie, Delta, Echo, Lil’ Beta and Vicki)

Solarflare

Tidebreaker

Seyka

Gerrit

Seyka’s family

Khita

Khita’s family

Profession:

Huntress

Machine Hunter

Position:

Outcast (formerly)

Brave (before appointed Seeker)

Seeker

Anointed of All-Mother

Thrush of Sunhawk Talanah Khane Padish (shared with Milu)

Banuk Werak Chieftain (temporarily)

Alpha Prime of Project Zero Dawn (joint)

Leader of the GAIA Gang

Hekarro’s Champion

Family:

Elisabet Sobeck (genetic blueprint)

Rost (Guardian/father)

Beta (Genetic twin)

Seyka (Partner)

Kina (adopted sister)

Khita (adopted aunt)

Aliases:

#LK1A1-4510

Aloy of the Nora

Aloy, Despite the Nora (Nickname for herself and used by Talanah)

Aloy Machinehunter (Nickname for herself with Petra)

Flame-Hair (Nickname by Petra)

Little Spark (by Gera)

Little Huntress (by Vanasha)

Anointed of the Nora (by the Nora)

The Saviour of Meridian (by the Carja)

Red (Nickname by Salma and Delah & Boomer)

Troublesome Redundant Copy (by Gerard)

Commander (by Kotallo)

Hekarro’s Champion (by the Tenakth)

Blood Hair (by the Tenakth)

Desert Flame (by Drakka)

Wall-Breaker (by the Sky Clan)

Living Ancestor (by the Quen)

She Who Flies on the Wings of the Ten (by the Tenakth)

Ginger Avenger (by Walter Londra)

Sunwing (Petname by Seyka)

Darling (Petname by Seyka)

Aloy, Daughter of Rost (Quen familial name)

Sis (by Beta)

Arms and Armour:

Armour/Outfits:

Main;

Nora Thunder Warrior - Main battle armour. Made by Aloy.

Nora Tracker - Main hunting attire/flying attire. Made by Aloy.

Nora Huntress - Main casual outfit. Mede by Teb.

Other;

Tenakth Tactician and the First face-paint (Hekarro’s colours) - Gift from Hekkaro for stopping Regalla

Utaru Protector (Early Autumn) - When in Utaru territory

Carja Blazon (Blood Dusk) - Gift from Talanah. When in the Sundom

Nora Anointed – For official business with the eastern tribes.

Has but doesn’t wear much;

Oseram Artificer – From Salvage Contracts

Weapon(s):

Death-Seeker’s Shadow - Won from the Arena

Iriv’s Downfall - Won from the Arena

Carja’s Bane - Won for winning the Gauntlet races

Legacy’s Reach - A gift of thanks from Legacy’s Landfall.

Brawlbreaker - Made by Petra on commission.

The Tie That Binds - Traded for from Fleet’s End.

Champion’s Spear - Token of Gratitude from Sun-King Avad

Specter Gauntlet - Retrieved from Zeth, and upgraded after killing Pirik

[mjparkerwriting]

Find the word tag

Thanks @jasminewalkerauthor for the tag! I haven't done one of these in a long time.

I'll be using my most recent WIP: tech/UTBS. My words are light, wander, imply, and moment.

light

Raithe’s light hands slid up Gera’s chest and around his throat. “I could choke you out right here. Leave your boy to find your body.”

wander

Why else would he want to see her? Bellamy let her brain race and wander into places she hadn’t allowed it in before.

imply (no imply, but I had simply twice)

Rahel was no longer a future miner or mother or anything. She was simply a Disturbance.

moment

It was a war Gera himself had fought in to win the title of Commander. In those five years between that war and this moment, Gera had brought back the thing he believed maintained the peace he remembered as a boy.

Gently tagging: @sunlit-gully @toribookworm22 @dandelion-jester @sugar-phoenix and @talesofsorrowandofruin

Your words are: leaf, maybe, commit, and doubt

[ruckis-vandalizes]

@6clawdy6 couldn't think of anything for an Atlantian form Furhn (Atlantians being a race in my story) so I offered to help her out. Turned her boyo into a sea dragon. Also Atlantian form Gera is a gooby lil fella fhdhfsd

[bozers]

What the MK1 Cast Does When Placed With This Dog^

Kitana: Doesn’t pet it immediately. Was taught that strange dogs could bite or have diseases. Once she sees that it’s friendly she will give it food and try to find a home for it.

Mileena: Doesn’t pet it because it might smell the tarkot and bite her. If it comes up to her and is friendly she will play fetch and take it out for a jog. She is the queen, so no one can tell her she can't keep it lol

Tanya: Whistles for it and if it comes she will praise it and call it a good dog before having someone take it away from the palace before it makes a mess. Will immediately fold and let it stay when Mileena says she wants to keep it.

Sindel: Glances down at it and smiles but doesn’t try to pet it. Will order a servant to get it back to it’s owner.

Li Mei: Checks to see if it has a collar with an ID tag of some kind. If it doesn’t she will put up missing posters. In the meantime she has the dog help her sniff out and locate contraband being snuck into outworld.

Shao: Says something like “Scram, dog!” 

Reiko: Immediately starts teaching it commands and has it running drills by dinner time. The dog is glued to his side and fights alongside him during battles.

Rain: Doesn’t pet it because he was also taught that most animals on the street are unsafe, and he is a slight germaphobe as it is. If it follows him and seems friendly, he will give it a tentative pat if no one is looking.

Havik: Is happy to see a healthy dog and is hesitant to scare it away. But the dog loves the way he smells and starts licking him like crazy, almost knocking him over. He laughs and lets the dog chew on his arm. 

Syzoth: He is used to most animals keeping their distance, so is curious as to why this one isn’t running away. Will let it sniff him to see if it wants to be friends. When it licks his hand, he grins and feels an instant connection. He runs around in his lizard form on all fours, the two of them racing around all day. They end up curling up in a dog pile to nap. 

Ashrah: Thinks it is cute and goes right up to it. She can see the purity of its soul and is impressed with its tenacity. Decides that it would make a wonderful companion, and so, she gets it a nice new collar and names it something like "Angel". She feels contented and very happy with this new addition to her family.

Shang Tsung: Ignores strays because they were such a common sight in his past. But if this dog looks healthy he might consider experimenting on it, but will end up just keeping it around the lab to be a watchdog/vermin catcher. He will talk to himself when working through a hypothesis, and will sometimes absently scratch the dogs head while deep in thought. (the dog had learned to stand by his side when he gets deep into research)

Quan Chi: Ignores it. He has no use for such creatures.

Liu Kang: His godly façade crumbles immediately. He gives the dog lots of pets and scratches, and when it gives him a kiss he giggles like a school boy. Likes to watch it play in the yard in front of the fire temple, taking comfort in this simple joy.

Geras: Is fascinated by the dog and takes a few moments to study it. When it comes over to investigate, he gives it a little pat on the head and deems it a “good boy”.

Kung Lao: Immediately goes to pet it and gets it all riled up to play. He immediately comes up with a name and has it following him around the village. Sneaks it dumplings under the table when Madam Bo isn't watching.  

Raiden: Puts his hand out to let the dog sniff before trying to pet it. He makes sure the dog is healthy and well fed. Hopes that it will want to come sleep on his bed with him.

Kenshi: Will call out to the dog to see if it is friendly. If the dog comes up to him he will pet it, but won’t allow himself to get attached to it. (he get's attached to it)

Johnny: Takes a picture with it and snaps a few more cute dog pics. Gives it treats and will see if it knows any tricks. If it doesn't, he Teaches it "high five". Makes the dog it's own Instagram account and it gets 1M follows by the end of the day.

Bi-Han: Will demand to know who let the dog into the compound, stating that it is forbidden to have pets in the Lin kuei and whoever is responsible will be punished. In the meantime, he keeps it in the training yard until he can decide where to send it away. He makes sure it has food, water, and shelter. No one catches him giving scratches and cooing at it. 

Kuai Liang: Is suspicious that a random dog is wandering around the compound but that doesn’t stop him from kneeling down and petting it. He smiles but his heart aches because he cannot have a pet. Makes sure it finds a good home.

Tomas: Gets really excited because it reminds him of his childhood family dogs. He grew up helping his dad train their hunting dogs and so has a soft spot for all canines. He knows its not allowed on the compound but still sneaks it into the kitchen to get some scraps. 

[malicedragoness]

MK OC Titan Template

So this is something I’ve been working on since we have a lot of lovely OCs in the Mortal Kombat fandom on tumblr. And I love to see them. ☺️

This is a fun writing exercise if your OC became a Titan! You can write as much or as little as you want. If one of the topics doesn’t fit your OC, please feel free to skip it. The purpose of this is to have fun and get the creative juices flowing!

So let’s see some OC Titans!

Please either reblog or give me a mention for the credit of the template. And so I can reblog your lovely work and hope it spreads to more people of our community and fandom. 😊

Have fun writing! (Here’s mine if you wanted an example.)

- - -

Title: What is their title, if you wish to give them one? (God, Goddess, Lord, Lady, War chieftain, cleric, etc.)

Motto: (Do they have a motto/any particular saying?)

Powers: Raiden had lightning, Liu Kang has fire. What is theirs?

Realm they favor: Which Realm do they tend to stay in/favor/protect?

Places of worship: Do they have any shrines/churches/places where people pray or worship them?

Consort: If they have a consort, who is it and how do they play into their story? From the old timeline where your OC was mortal to the one they created.

Physical appearance: Has their physical appearance changed in anyway now that they’re a Titan? (Liu Kang has white glowing eyes, etc.)

Armor/Style of clothing: Show us or explain how their clothing/armor looks like.

Weapons: What weapon(s) do they have if any?

How does Geras help them/regard them: Geras is the servant of whomever is the Keeper of Time. How is he with your OC? What is his role? How does his appearance change now that your OC is a Titan and the Keeper of Time?

Any characters or events that have drastically changed that you would like to mention?: (Tarkat is a disease instead of a race, Mileena and Kitana as actual sisters, etc.)

Backstory/Notes/Tidbits: Anything else you wish to write about/mention?

[adelphiafox2]

You're mine,no one else's

(part 3,the end,I will be writing to endings bad and good and I know Geralt will never do this)

{warning: suicide, graphic writing,mention of rape,sexual assault}

I was devastated,it happened so quickly him killing Kane and how his head fell on the ground and how his hands roamed my body,I can still feel it and I feel so so disgusting and oh so dirty,to think I lost my virginity to a man I don't even love I don't even know the man and he wasn't even slow he went rough and fast,after he was done he dressed me then threw me over his shoulder and brought me to his horse,I felt him place me on the horse then he got on his horse then he galloped away from the hut I looked at it and saw it getting smaller and smaller till I couldn't see it at all,it was a very quiet ride which I hate I don't even want to be here and if I run he might do it again so I'm not even gonna try,we were riding for hours and it was really dark which wasn't safe at all,all the stories I read about the monsters that lurk in the night,some were harmless some weren't at all,I felt the horse suddenly stop making me snap out of my thoughts,"we'll camp here" "but what about the monsters?" "What about them?" "Some lurk at night so shouldn't we find a village and town and ask if we can stay there for the night?" He got off his horse "no,this is the safest area no monsters will come near us all we have to worried about are the Bandit's" he held out his hand for me making me slowly take it I jumped off the horse and landed on my feet then I felt him let go of my hand, "stay here I'll go search for fire wood and try to escape again, I'll make you wish you hadn't escaped again" I nodded 'im not even gonna try' I saw him walk away amking me walk over to the horse and I started to pet It's head.

After a while he came back with the fire wood then I saw him start the fire,I looked at the fire and saw the flames build up I suddenly felt someone sit beside me making me jump a bit and I looked to my right and saw him,I then felt him put his arm around me making me get chills down my spine,"what did Kane tell you?" "Excuse me?" "What did Kane tell you?" "Nothing" "I'm not stubid what did he tell you" he said then I felt him grab my shoulder tightly making me hiss at the pain "h-he told me that you were selfish" "that's all?" I nodded slowly then he let go of my shoulder making me sigh in relief,it was silent for probably two minutes till the horse started to freak out,I saw Geralt get up and grab his sword,Suddenly jumped five Bandit's out of the bushes,making me gasp then I felt a bandit grab me from behind I screamed in fear but he held my mouth shut,I saw Geralt glare at the bandit.

good ending

"ain't this a beautiful sight" said a bandit smelling me making me glare at the bandit "let her go" said Geralt with gritted teeth.i saw Geralt walk up to the bandit but I gasped as I felt a cold kinfe hit my knife lightly"not one step closer or she dies" Geralt stoped in his tracks "now give us all you got then we'll leave you two be" said another bandit geralt glared at him "we don't have any gold" said Geralt through gritted teeth "oh,really?" I then felt the knife go deeper into skin "no!" Shouted Geralt"tell us the truth or she dies!"I felt blood start to drop from my neck,my heart started to race "I just told you!we don't have any gold!" "Search them" commanded another bandit"yes boss"I saw the bandits look through Geralt's stuff,then I felt another bandit start to touch me making me start to scream but it came out muffled, I saw Geralt's knuckles turn pale,I then suddenly felt the bandit grab my ass,making me gasp but then I saw Geralt stab the bandit making him fall on the floor dead,then I felt the knife suddenly leave my neck and I looked beside me and saw the other bandit dead,"get him!" Shouted a bandit then they suddenly charge at Geralt,I then decided to find the knife that the bandit had,I saw it and grabbed it,I then saw all the bandits dead on the floor then I saw geralt face me,"what are you doing?" I raised the knife "no!" But it was to late I felt the knife go inside of my stomach then I felt blood drip from my mouth,then I fell to the floor but before my body could hit the surface I felt someone catch me "no!no!" I smiled as I felt weaker and weaker "stay with me!" But then I closed my eyes and everything went black.

Bad ending

"ain't she a looker"said a bandit "let her go!" Growled Geralt angrily the bandits laughed "ain't you the protective type" said a bandit smirking "I said let her go" "or what?" "Yeah if you do anything she dies" said the one who held me I then felt the knife go deeper onto my skin,I saw Geralt gasp as he saw the knife cutting my neck,"no! "Search them" commanded a bandit,I saw the bandits search Geralts stuff then I saw another bandit come over to me,I felt him search my body making me start to shake,"ain't this a shy one?" Said the bandit smirking reaveling his yellow teeth,I looked over at Geralt and he was glaring at the bandit,I then suddenly felt him touch my area,making me gasp then I suddenly kicked the bandit then I saw him get stabbed making me gasp then I saw Geralt push his sword out of the bandit,then I saw the other Bandit's try to attack Geralt but he sliced all thier heads off,then I suddenly felt the other bandit let me go,I saw him try to run away but a sword him in the back maki g me gasp as he fell on the floor clearly dead,I started to shake then I suddenly felt someone hug me from behind making me start to shake,"you are save,no one will ever hurt you again"I felt him smell my hair making me start to shake "you are mine,no one else's" 'this is my life now...if I just grabbed the knife'

_______________________________________

I hope you enjoyed these 3 chapters,and I hope you have a great day :)

[burstofastar]

MK — Random thoughts

In the MK1 storymode, there is a phrase that caught my attention in a conversation between Geras and Liu Kang:

"Titans, once destroyed, cannot be revived."

But shortly later, they both start to look for "titans" from other Timelines to help them. And I was like... Wtf? 🤔

It wasn't supposedly that Titans were a race of ancient, powerful beings, such as Kronika, the cosmic lady with a crown, that creature with tentacles and those others that appeared in MK11 Shang Tsung and Scorpion's endings?

It might be just a mistake, probably, but I truly think that there is a big difference bewteen a Titan and a Keeper.

Titan is an ancient and powerful beings that is rooted to some of the aspects of Existence/Universe, such as Time, Space, Reality, etc. A titan usually takes the role of a Keeper due their nature.

Keeper is a role that any being can take after being granted with its powers, taking charge of a Titan but not necessarily turning them into one. Because naturally, this new Keeper wasn't born as Titan but a mortal or a deity of any rank (be it Elder Gods or Demigods). Of course they'd become powerful, but without their source and power of Keeper, they'd turn back to their original "form".

So I could understand the fact that they refer to other Keepers as Titans, because Titans are/were mostly known for their positions as Keepers. But I think is a mistake to take as Titans to those Keepers.

It's almost like when Raiden became an Elder God once, but he did quit to keep being Earthrealm's protector, in those times were MK wasn't that deep in terms of Deities and we all thought that Elder Gods were creators of the Universe and Realms.

Anyway, this is just a headcanon/random thought. A patch for the plot holes of MK story...

What do you think?

[creatorofstarrealm]

All possible timelines from Mk11 Kombat League (Part 22 Finale)

Saurian Great Kung Lao (Shinnok never attacked Earthrealm so the Saurians never left. The lizard people are the dominating race and so are the ones fighting in MK Tournament . The Great Kung Lao is born a Saurian. )

Edenia Geras ( In the same timeline as enslave general Shao, Geras is the one manipulating Sindel, giving her advice and twisting her into monster she became.

Edenian Kuai Liang ( The Lin Kuei were never banished and Sub Zero serves his Queen. )

Shirai Ryu Reptile ( Reptile joins the Shirai Ryu. )

Saurian Jade (Jade is a shapeshifting Saurian that disguise herself as the green edenian ninja. )

Edenian Shao Kahn ( Sindel stops Outworld from conquering Edenia and turns Shao into her slave. But she soon developed a taste for conquer and turns Shao into her general. )

Wraith Reptile ( Reptile dies at some point and is brought back as a Wraith. )

[summerwritesfics]

🗺️You Are The Future, Little Extremophiles

Pairing: Hanzo Hasashi/Kuai Liang Length: 1032 Words Rating: Mature Warnings: Canon Divergence, Titan!Hanzo Hasashi, Titan!Kuai Liang, Creation, Creating the universe, Maybe some hints towards future Hanzo/Kuai/Geras, Fluff AU-Gust 2024 Day 30: The Beginning Of The World

AU-Gust 2024 Masterlist

Notes: Back to Canon Divergence, what about a timeline where Hanzo & Kuai become the Titan’s of Time. Ngl, as I was writing this I started becoming kinda fond of the idea of eventual Hanzo/Kuai/Geras. ;_; So… That’s a new ship I never thought I’d have but anyway. Title is from Ride The Comet by Ayreon (it’s a song about a race of intergalactic beings kickstarting the human race, how was I supposed to not use it for this fic???)

Kuai Liang bent down, looking at the large rock in front of him. He couldn’t see the millions of tiny organisms upon it, but he knew they were there. It was so hard to believe these beings were going to be the foundation of all life amongst the realms.

“You are all going to grow to do such amazing things,” he whispered, as if they could understand him. “I’m rooting for you.”

“Are… Are you talking to the extremophiles?” Hanzo suddenly asked, and Kuai stood back up, turning on the spot.

“I just want our children to know I’m proud of them,” Kuai said with a pout and crossed his arms in front of his chest.

Hanzo chuckled, and walked over, putting his hands on Kuai’s waist and pulling him close. “You really are so soft hearted.”

“Maybe,” Kuai replied with a shrug, smiling ever so slightly. “But you love that about me.”

“I do.” Hanzo lent in to kiss him, and Kuai Liang happily reciprocated. He wrapped his arms around Hanzo’s shoulders, standing on his tiptoes to better reach him. 

Becoming a titan had the added bonus of making him slightly taller than he had previously been. Unfortunately that also applied to Hanzo, so their height difference had pretty much stayed the same. Which seemed incredibly unfair to Kuai Liang, he finally knew what it was like to be six foot tall, but then Hanzo had to ruin it by being a fucking giant.

“Everything is ready to- oh.”

They broke the kiss to turn around, finding Geras stood off to the side, seeming incredibly flustered. This wasn’t the first time he’d walked in on them having an intimate moment. It probably wouldn’t be the last either. That didn’t mean Kuai didn’t feel bad for him every time it happened.

“Sorry, Geras,” Kuai chuckled, pulling away from Hanzo, as much as he didn’t want to. “I assume you wanted to tell us we should be ready to go?”

“Yes, you are free to go ahead,” Geras replied, walking up to stand next to them. He still looked a little frazzled, but as he took his place beside Kuai Liang, he looked at the rock and smiled. “All you need to do to turn this into a comet. Hitting the central point should make it split up and cause the formation of the realms.”

“And if it doesn’t do that?” Hanzo questioned, rubbing the back of his neck. “For example, if we miss our target?”

“Well…” Geras tilted his head ever so slightly. “If that happens, you could just rewind time and try again.”

There was silence between the three of them for a couple of seconds, before Kuai began to giggle to himself. Hanzo gave a dramatic sigh, running his hand down his face.

“Right, of course, the whole… Titans of Time thing.”

In Hanzo’s defence, it was still a strange thing to get used to. When they had first taken down Kronika, only Kuai Liang had absorbed the power of the hourglass. Hanzo had initially urged him to reset time, start again and make a new world. But Kuai couldn’t let things end between them like that. After everything the universe had put them through, didn’t they deserve their happily ever after?

So, he had worked out how to give half of his power to Hanzo, and together they had vowed to create a better universe.

They were surprised though, upon resetting time to its very beginning to find Geras, confused and unshackled from his attachment to Kronika. In the end, they were grateful he had been there. Having done everything thousands of times before, he knew exactly what they had to do. Kuai wasn’t sure they’d have been able to figure things out without him.

“Well, we won’t know if we don’t try,” Kuai announced, holding his hand out. 

The rock began to glow blue as he channelled his new powers in it. Hanzo took a hold of Kuai’s free hand, before using his other hand to do the same. Slowly, the rock began to rise off the ground, and was floating in front of them.

“Three, two, one.”

As Hanzo’s count reached one, the pair of them threw as much of their energy at the now comet as they could. It went hurling off, out into the stars. Kuai watched with bated breath, holding his fist to his chest. He felt Hanzo’s grip tighten, the comet getting smaller and smaller as it flew away into space.

There was silence, then all of a sudden, a bright flash that made Kuai cover his eyes with his arm. Followed moments later by a very loud bang. He slowly lowered his arm, just in time to see the bits of the comet flying off in different directions.

“We did it?” Kuai questioned, glancing towards Geras. He was wearing a proud smile on his face, so Kuai could only assume that was a good sign.

“You’ve done it,” Geras confirmed, looking back out to the universe. “Expertly done, might I add.”

“You are too kind,” Kuai giggled, before turning to look at Hanzo. He was also smiling looking out at the world that was unfolding before them. “Hanzo?”

“I know the path ahead will be a long one, things will not always play out how we hope.” Hanzo once more squeezed Kuai’s hand. “But there is no one else I would want to traverse it with.” Hanzo lent in to kiss Kuai on the cheek, before moving his head a little to look past Kuai Liang and at Geras. “That includes you too, by the way. You’re stuck with us now, I’m afraid.”

Geras chuckled, before sighing “I think I can live with that.”

Kuai Liang held out his free hand to Geras. The other man shyly accepted it. All three of them turned back to witness the beginning of all life. It’d be a while before the realms would begin to resemble those that they knew, but Hanzo was right. Kuai Liang could think of no two people he would want to share this journey with.

Together, they would do their best to make this timeline a good one for everyone.

[thetruearchmagos]

You asked me a bit ago about my naval plans in my WIP, and the truth is I don't have much, so can I ask for your help in creating some? What sort of shenanigans could a semi-modern navy (think cruisers, battleships, a very few capital class battleships, submarines) get into with officially neutral ports, trade ships, and passenger ships?

I'm thinking most of the naval stuff will involve not the warring major nations, but them fighting over supplies and shipments from other nations. Help me friend!

Well, well, well! Now that is quite the conundrum you've got there, and certainly filled with opportunities for some very interesting scenarios. I'm going to search in my head for some IRL examples of interesting non-total-war uses of naval power in the period, and you can tell me if anything helps!

Here, I've compiled a short list of some interesting naval-related incidents in world history, mostly from the approximate era relevant to Mortal Sparks. I hope they might give some inspiration!

The Tangiers and Agadir Crises: Sea Power, Short Of War

These two incidents, taking place in 1905 and 1911 respectively, were among the defining incidents in European great power politics in the lead up to WW1, and are sometimes touted as possible alternative inciting incidents for what would become the Great War. Both principally concerned the political status of Morocco, but would become stages on which France and Germany would test the influence of themselves and their respective alliances against one another. The naval aspect of the affair was most obviously shown in the second crisis, which saw a German gunboat dispatched to Morocco as a sign of their willingness to back their position with force, soon followed by the gunboat's replacement with a cruiser.

While France, Germany, and the UK would end both crises at the negotiating table, Germany's Kaiser Wilhelm II in particular would feel particularly slighted at having come out on the losing end twice. Meanwhile, France and the UK would solidify their burgeoning entente with the signing of further naval treaties specifying either ally's role in the event of a full war with Germany.

South American Naval Arms Race: Ships For Sale?

This is less an example of great powers competing through the naval domain, and more an example of the shenanigans that great naval powers can be involved in even if they themselves have no intention of firing a shot in anger. Taking the form of a three way competition between Brazil, Chile, and Argentina from the late 19th century and into the 20th, it would see these countries massively expanding their respective navies. However, as none of the three regional powers possessed the industry and infrastructure to construct modern warships themselves, their fleets would be made up of dozens of ships built and designed by foreign, predominantly British, shipyards. The whole crisis would be considerably exacerbated by the creation of HMS Dreadnought, which single handedly rendered all existing battleships practically obsolete and spurred on demand for existing capital ships to be replaced rapidly across the board. In fact, Brazil's own exceptionally ambitious reaction to the affair would lead to it acquiring its own first dreadnoughts, of the Minas Geraes class, before Germany, France, Russia, or Japan would, built by the British companies Armstrong and Vickers, and in many ways superior to the first existing British and American dreadnoughts.

It's also notable that, despite the UK's own yards supplying the ships that manifested this crisis, the British government would repeatedly attempt to defuse tensions in order to preserve its valuable trade relations with the region. Interestingly enough, when WW1 did break out, many of these ordered dreadnoughts would still be under construction in their British yards, and either by seizure or purchase be acquired by the Royal Navy, alongside, interestingly enough, battleships under order for the Ottoman Empire.

Anglo-German Ocean Liner Race: Battles With Bling

An edge example, but I thought it'd be an interesting one since you did mention passenger ships! While the Anglo-German Naval Arms Race gets a lot of attention with its contributions to WW1, a similar competition in the sphere of commercial success and national prestige was playing out between the shipping lines and yards of the two great powers of the early 20th century. Size and luxury substituted firepower and protection when it came to key design features, but speed was of equal importance to both. If I were to make a larger point with this example, it would be that states which can raise and support large navies with the relevant infrastructure, technology, and skilled labour often have sizeable civilian maritime sectors as well. The usage of ocean liners as troop transports, on the other hand, shows how civilian assets in peacetime can be mustered for wartime service.

Beware, Arch deserts from his commitment to sticking to a specific era in the content below. Read at your own risk.

The Altmark Incident: Neutrality Not Withstanding

A touch past the scope of the designated era, and close to being an 'actual' war scenario of the sort I'm supposed to be avoiding, but it's honestly such a fascinating incident that I couldn't not include it. The crisis takes place during the so-called 'Phoney War', a period usually defined as spanning between invasions of Poland and of France and the Low Countries. A crucial point in the events of the crisis, and what ultimately made me decide to include it in this list, was the fact that Norway itself was still a neutral nation at this point, with ties to both Germany and the Western Allies.

The inciting event of the whole incident surrounds the German auxiliary vessel Altmark. Sailing back to Germany from the Atlantic down the coast of Norway, she carried three hundred POWs taken from British shipping by the 'pocket battleship' Graf Spee on her convoy raids. After the latter's destruction, she'd fled British and French naval forces, and at this stage relied on the neutrality of Norway and its territorial waters to safeguard herself and her cargo. A series of events I lack the ability to summarise would occur between the auxiliary and Norwegian authorities, which resulted in Altmark being allowed passage through a specially protected zone of Norwegian waters around Bergen to avoid an international incident.

The British government, finding about the matter via its embassy in Oslo, had other ideas. A force consisting of a light cruiser and five destroyers was immediately dispatched to intercept Altmark. The flotilla would make contact with the auxiliary while she was still under neutral Norwegian escort. The British would make increasingly brazen attempts to isolate Altmark as the collection of ships approached Germany, and when she finally ran out of space to manouevre the German vessel entered a fjord and ran aground on its ice, trapped. The British commander on the scene requested that their POWs be released, his Norwegian counterpart stated that he would refuse any British boarding attempt with force if he had to, and after seeking permission from the Admiralty HMS Cossack stormed into the fjord and, just avoiding a last ditch ramming attempt by the Altmark, boarded the auxiliary and freed the prisoners.

The sheer political fallout from the whole affair was immense. Norway, of course, protested the brazen breach of neutrality that had just taken place, while the UK criticised Norway for allowing a ship carrying POWs to pass through its waters. The applicability of any of these events to your worldbuilding is something I can't predict, but at least it might give you an example of the shit storms that can come about even with neutral states.

The S-363 Incident: Whiskey On The Rocks

If you thought the last example was a strange one, you ain't seen nothing yet! This affair, often referred to as the "Whisky On The Rocks" Incident, is probably one of the most personally fascinating Cold War events I can think of, and with some slight tweaking could fit in with any time period.

The incident centers on the Soviet diesel electric submarine S-363, of a type referred to under NATO terminology as the 'Whiskey' class. Whilst conducting a surveillance mission on a major Swedish naval exercise, the submarine ran aground in Swedish territorial waters. An unarmed Swedish officer was sent to board the boat and question her captain, who blamed serious failures in navigational equipment as reasons why his submarine had traversed numerous fjords and islands to come aground so close to the major Swedish naval base of Karlskrona.

The Soviet captain was removed from the boat for interrogation in the presence of Soviet officials, while Swedish authorities searched the submarine. In the meantime, a sizeable Soviet naval task force was assembled and put to sea in the Baltic, approaching Swedish waters. Using radiological equipment, traces of uranium were found in the boat's torpedo tubes, suggesting the presence of nuclear torpedoes aboard S-363.

A storm swept over the region, leading the grounded submarine to send out a distress signal. Soon afterwards, two unknown vessels were detected entering Sweden's territorial waters from the last known point of the Soviet flotilla, heading straight towards Karlskrona, and the crisis reached its height of tension. Swedish aircraft were armed and ready to strike, and coastal batteries were put on full alert. Finally, it would be revealed that the two vessels were actually a pair of German merchant ships.

The crisis would end ten days later with the return of the submarine to Soviet authorities, but marks one of the most tense periods of the Cold War, a 'conflict' which on the whole saw little open fighting between the major powers involved in it.

[jinmukangwrites]

Weep Little Lion Man (1.5/14)

First - Previous - Next Fandom: Jedi: Survivor/Fallen Order Rating: T Warnings: minor wounds, angst Notes: this fic will primarily be in Bode or Cal's POV, I just felt that some insight on what the rest of the Mantis Crew is up to is needed. There's some things that I think definitely change from canon with Bode's betrayal happening early. So, I hope you enjoy this chapter. Ao3

Summary: After defeating Dagan Gera for a third and final time, the Compass ends up in Bode's hands without a scratch. He could go back to Jedha with Cal... but he's holding what he wants. He doesn't see the point in pretending any longer. He makes a split-second decision. Or: Bode's betrayal goes a bit differently. ~~~•~~~ "Friendly Fire" for Bad Things Happen Bingo!

-o-o-o-o-

Merrin never paces.

But, if she did, she's sure there would be a hole worn into the floor of the Stinger Mantis.

However, she instead sits quietly near the holo-table, glaring at the planet placed neatly at the center; their current destination.

Jedha.

It all feels like a blur; BD-1 rushing back into the saloon alone ranting in barely understandable binary about... about Dagan's death. Bode's betrayal. Cal's capture. The message to imperial forces with coordinates to the Archive. She almost didn't believe it, not until BD-1 showed them a hastily recorded hologram of the events.

She can hardly remember the argument that happened immediately after between her, Greeze, and Bd-1. Clearly, something had to happen, and the more they argued the more the rift between what they want to do, and what they have to do, became too gaping and too wide to ignore.

Leave Cere to defend and evacuate the Archive without them to attempt to rescue Cal when, first of all: they didn't know for sure where Bode has taken him, and second of all: even if Bode has left towards Tanalor, he took the only way to get there with him, and for all they knew Cal could be completely, utterly, currently out of reach.

Or, they could abandon Cal and rush to Jedha hopefully before the Empire closes in on them to help evacuate.

"Cal would want us to help Cere," Greeze had said, defeated in his tone, posture, soul.

BD-1's angry flurry of beeps and the stomping of his feet made it very obvious what he thought of that statement. "That's exactly right, and that mindset might kill him this time."

Ultimately, it was decided there's... nothing they can do for Cal yet.

It felt like fire in her veins. This helplessness.

So she did the only thing she could do, focus on the task ahead. She made communications with Cere and warned her of the situation. If Cere felt troubled over Cal's abduction, the loss of the Compass, Bode, she didn't let it waver her voice as she said she may need their help completing evacuations. It truly didn't waver in her voice, but Merrin has known Cere long enough to recognize her perfectly disguised worry and remorse better than nearly anyone.

Yes, Cal would want them to help Cere instead of him, but Cere deeply would wish the opposite and she cannot bring herself to say such things in an emergency such as this.

So here Merrin is, sitting, glaring a hole into the center of the holographic Jedha.

They can only hope they get there on time, because if the Empire arrives first and they lose... not only will Merrin never forgive herself, but she knows Cal would never forgive himself either once they do get him back.

Because they will get him back. If there was one thing BD-1 could confirm, it was that Bode wouldn't kill Cal. For whatever reason, he wants Cal alive.

For now.

Her fists clench; once Cere and the acolytes are safely relocated, Merrin will make sure Bode regrets even laying his eyes on Cal in the first place.

-o-o-o-o-

The Archive has never been so busy. Acolytes of all races, sizes, ages, genders, rush the halls gathering books, papers, data-pads. Some focus on gathering personal items, others supplies, but the focus is in the Archive. The Empire could never destroy hope, but they certainly could destroy information. Ancient Jedi teachings litter these halls, teachings the Emperor would see burned. Cere couldn't let that happen. She cannot let them have that victory.

She stands in the main archive room, bent over a desk helping gather various instruments that Cordova uses for his endless research to keep herself busy enough to keep from looking up at the blinking blue lights of the past, of knowledge, and feeling despair over how long this is taking. Who knew years of collecting would take more than a few minutes to relocate.

It takes more focus than what she's willing to acknowledge to not let her hands shake. There's a pit in her stomach, one she cannot quite fill with being busy. One she cannot brush off or ignore.

But she must.

So she works, packing, instructing, leading. These people are counting on her, and if she allows herself to slip now, there's no telling what the consequences will be.

Or well, she can make a guess on what one of the consequences will be. There's tension in the Force, and there has been since the moment Merrin had told her the Inquisitorius had been alerted to this location. There's something dark lurking, something stomach-churningly familiar.

She almost welcomes it. Almost wishes he would arrive quicker, that way she could work out her frustrations.

She shakes her head. Thoughts like that won't help anyone... let alone...

"Cere," a voice says, one that carries decades of wisdom, understanding, light. A voice she's known well and has looked up to for nearly her entire life. She glances up from her gathering and pauses, Master Cordova stands beside her, his eyes filled with concern. "It's okay to worry about him."

Trust Cordova to know Cere too well.

Cere shakes her head again, returning to her work. "I have to remain strong," she says, "Force willing, it will all work out in the end."

"Yes," Cordova agrees softly, placing a hand on her shoulder. "But he is your apprentice. I know you care for him as I care for you."

Curse him, Cere thinks, blinking heavily. Curse him. She's not sure who those thoughts are meant for.

"Cere, please look at me."

She takes a deep breath, feeling like a child, looking up at the same man but with more hair, less wrinkles, the same wisdom and purity that it's intimidating.

Warmth swims through the air around him, silky and comforting and tugging on her emotions. He smiles softly at her, eyebrows pinched. "I know what happened to Trilla has never left you," he says, and that child within her wants to cringe away and hide. "I know it still haunts you, and I know you're terrified of the same happening to Cal."

"Vader isn't after him," she says tightly. "It's the archive he wants, we should continue-"

"Let me finish."

Her lips press together.

"You're afraid that the others coming to help you will doom him," he says, "that if the worst happens, then it will be your fault."

The pit in her stomach turns into a sharp, stabbing agony, like a lightsaber driven through her gut. Her words waver for the first time, choking at her throat. "What if I've failed him?"

She feels just like the ruins around them, composure finally crumbling under the weight of wind, sand, time. It feels like shattering; a vase she's worked hard to repair with lines of gold only to see it destroyed once again in front of her very eyes.

"You have never failed him," Cordova says, "he is the man he is today because of you."

She clenches her hands, fighting off trembles. "Is that a good thing?" She whispers. "His warrior attitude, his bold-headed arrogance to go head first into every battle? Help every person? Sacrifice himself in the process? Sometimes I wonder if finding him on Bracca ripped him away from old age."

"From what I understand, if you hadn't come for him, he'd be in the hands of the Inquisitorius."

"Trilla was who found him," she whispers.

He tightens his hand on her shoulder. Not painfully, but firmly. "Then some other Inquisitor would have found him. The Empire would have come for him whether or not Trilla was one of them. You pulled him out of there, gave him purpose again. You had him follow in my footsteps, and he reconnected with the Force and gained a greater understanding of himself and forgive himself for what happened to his Master. You gave him a life worth living."

Her lips tremble for just a moment. "He thinks his life is only worth living if he's a weapon in use."

"I don't believe that's entirely your doing," he says.

That, Cere could almost agree with. The phrase hold the line leaves Cal's lips far too often with far too much meaning to be something he coined himself. However, she's never succeeded in convincing him out of it. She's positive that Jaro Tapal never meant to make that his life's motto, never meant to make him feel he's a one-man army, and if he's not fighting the Empire then he's betraying his Master's legacy. Cere is sure that if Master Tapal still lived and saw Cal as he is now he'd be furious. No one ever realizes the words they speak with dying breaths hold more weight than if you were to condense the entire Galaxy to fit within the palm of your hand.

Her next breath quivers. "I need him to be okay."

"He will be," Cordova assures. "He's your boy, he's strong like you. Just how you will always be my little girl, and that I know you are strong like me. It's good to feel that fear for family, but you cannot let it control your actions from here. Do not suppress it, accept it, channel it into helping these people around us, evacuating the archive and saving what little history we guard. Once we are safe, then we can get him safe. You cannot let this shake your value for your own life and what we do here. We both know what's coming and what hangs in the balance in these next few days."

Morbid silence settles between them. Cere closes her eyes and lets her worry for Cal wash over her, pass through her. She takes a moment longer to still her heart. Her hands finally feel steady.

"Cere," Cordova continues suddenly, his voice a touch grimmer than before. "If he comes, I need you to run. We cannot face him, and you know that."

She tears her eyes from him, then looks at the room around her. Suddenly, the evacuation no longer seems so daunting.

"Very well," she says. And she means it.

-o-o-o-o-

The Mantis arrives just as the Empire does. Most of the Archive had already been evacuated before the alarms even sounded.

However, it's still chaotic. There are plenty of Anchorites determined to grab anything left behind, fighting for it if they must, Sister Taske being a major unwavering force in this mentality. Cere and Cordova had already given their best shots at convincing the stragglers to leave, but as the Mantis lowers into the hanger and explosions rumble outside, Cere now knows she's no longer responsible for a single person here. They've chosen their paths, and she must choose hers.

"Cere! Are we ready to go?!" Greeze is shouting the second the ramp lowers, Merrin at his side with a dark look over her face.

"Keep the engine running," Cere replies, "go back to the controls. I cannot leave without the Hidden Path's contact codes."

"I'll go with you," Merrin says, but Cere shakes her head. She can feel him, like an emerging migraine.

"No, Merrin, I need you to stay here and protect the Mantis."

She pauses. Then turns. "BD, go with her."

It's strange seeing BD-1 run down the ramp without his other half. Something clogs in her throat and her eyes travel up towards Cordova's—who's already entering the Mantis. His eyes meet her's, and that's all she needs to hear. She'd better come back. For him. For herself. For the Stinger Mantis. For the Archive.

For Cal.

She nods, then turns to begin walking away. "We won't be long."

-o-o-o-o-

When she sent BD-1 away, she fully intended to adhere to Cordova's gentle command. Come back.

However, he came sooner than what she expected. She knows she cannot run now, he will easily chase them all down.

So she does what she must.

Darth Vader fights like an unstoppable force, and she knows immediately that she's no match for him. He's toying with her. Playing with his food. This, she thinks bitterly, must be fun for him. She must be the first Jedi to put up a decent fight for him in years.

She uses that against him, fighting back with all she's got and doing her best to surprise him when she can. She never lands a hit, but she's not expecting to. She just needs a window, a moment, for him to corner himself for a heartbeat... and then it happens.

She grabs the flaming shelves above him with the Force and slams it down on top of him.

Then, she doesn't waste a moment checking to see if she's done any damage to him. Her heels turn, her torso and head follow, and she runs.

-o-o-o-o-

Cere bursts into the Mantis looking like a Gorgara out of hell. Merrin is on her feet immediately, even as Cere brushes past her and screams at Greeze to get them out of here.

The Mantis is rising before the ramp can even close. She finds herself looking out into the temple, and her eyes fall on an approaching form, black as night, cape and robes singed with fire, still glowing.

Merrin has never faced this man, but she's heard the stories.

He reaches out a single hand, and the Mantis jolts, thrusters running but not going anywhere. BD boops frightfully as the walls begin to creak, the air thickening like she's drowning. Choking.

You're not escaping this time.

She feels the pressure around them, holding the ship in place, and she pushes herself through it, grabbing onto the wall for support as she looks out through the open ramp and finds a suitable chunk of ceiling above their attacker.

Green flames burst from her hands, hitting the ceiling in loud booms. The pressure on the ship suddenly vanishes as Darth Vader is forced to release his grasp and retreat out of the way of the falling ceiling. By the time the dust settles, the Mantis has already risen up past the hanger, into the open, dust painted sky.

The ramp closes, and Merrin lets out a ragged breath.

Silence settles around the inhabitants of the Mantis. The sky outside brightens into a sliver of white until endless black speckled with seemingly more endless stars welcome them.

Greeze is the first to speak. "Somebody has to do something about that guy."

The tension melts.

Cere releases a sigh and sits down, looking equal parts exhausted and high on adrenaline.

"So, captain," she says, voice teetering between composed and breathless. "Where to next?"

Greeze's hands still on the controls. He swallows. "We don't know," he finally says, honestly. "That traitor left Koboh, but according to BD-1's scans, he didn't leave in the direction of Tanalor. BD has been trying to track Cal's location through a locator Cal should have on him. It was paired with a matching tracker that he gave Bode, but BD thinks he can hack the signal given time."

"What about a tracking fob?" Merrin asks, and all eyes turn to her. "Cal has a bounty, we can use a fob to track him, bode could have removed the locator."

"Bounty hunting guilds handing out those fobs will know who we are," Cere interjects. "It will not be easy to get our hands on one."

Greeze snaps a finger. "Caij!"

Cere startles. "What?"

"She's a frequent at the saloon. She used to be a bounty hunter I think, but she's been working with Cal to get the drop on Haxion Brood bounty hunters. He gives her his fobs, and she trains him or something."

"Will fobs track on Tanalor?" Cordova suddenly asks, startling everyone out of the previously three-way conversation. Merrin almost can't help but stare at him as he paces the Mantis. If she's honest, seeing him here on the ship feels off; like a living legend standing in a place too below them to stand. It's stranger than when she had first met him on Jedha, and she cannot figure out why. His eyes are full of curiosity at the surroundings, but his tone is patient and to-the-point with the conversation. His hands brush against various items on various countertops, as if he's trying to sense the memories here's although Cal's the only one who can do that.

BD-1 makes a few strings of beeps and boops, and Cordova nods. "I see. Cal has only said communications wouldn't work, not anything else. Besides, the technology of Dagan Gera's time are quite ancient in comparison to our own, perhaps our newer technology would withstand better."

"I think it's worth a shot," Cere says. "BD-1 will attempt to track him through his locator, and once we arrive at Koboh we will request a fob from this Caij. It's good to have fallbacks."

"To Koboh it is!" Greeze says, hands flying to the controls. "Good thing too, whatever that Darth Vader guy did to grab us it did some damage to the exterior of the Mantis. It'll need patching up before we try to go anywhere else."

Cere smiles. "Sounds like a decent plan to me. Besides, it's about time you tour me the Saloon."

Greeze smiles back at her, but... it doesn't quite reach his eyes. "It is. I just... imagined it happening under different circumstances. I'm sorry about Jedha. And..."

The I wish Cal was here goes unsaid, but everyone hears it anyways.

Cere shakes her head, placing a hand on his shoulder. "I should have visited the moment you established it. The circumstances don't matter, it's important to you, I'm excited to see it regardless."

Greeze chuckles. "It's good to have you back, Cere."

"It's good to be back," she replies, sincerity lacing every word.

While the Mantis enters hyperdrive, the occupants eventually separate to do their own things. Cere sits down with Cordova to tell old stories of the Mantis in it's hay-day while Greeze flies the occasionally-rattling-Mantis through mesmerizing streaks of light. BD-1 sits persistently at the holo-table, his scomp hooked into the system as he searches for Cal. And Merrin... a deep exhaustion pulls at her bones. She excuses herself quietly and finds herself walking into the engine room. Everything is exactly how Cal left it; the cot untouched, various tools scattered on the work-table at the back. She breathes in, and she can smell faint traces of him. It tugs on her heart.

She will get him back. There's no doubt about it.

However, it doesn't stop her from sitting down on his cot, grabbing his makeshift pillow and burying her face into it. She will get him back, but it doesn't stop her from wishing he was here in the first place and didn't need rescuing.

She hopes he's alright. Fed. Wounds tended. He better be in pristine condition by the time she has him back, because if he isn't, she will make sure Bode suffers ten times Cal does. No, one-hundred times.

However, maybe even that would be going easy on Bode.

She will make him regret taking Cal, and then she will make him regret being alive.