#kuai didn’t get a choice by the way-

[suja-janee]

Bireena request: 1/5 (request from @/sareenademon)

[tiredfox64]

Can you write about the reader tagging along with Lin Kuei brothers on a mission and where they are us cold, which the reader hates and gets cold very easily and each opportunity the brothers would find a way to warm the reader themselves?

Ice Can Help

Prior notes: I would complain about the cold but I need to complain about the heat now. Tell me why it’s gonna be 80 tomorrow and almost 90 on Monday 💀

Pairings: Lin Kuei Bros x Gn reader

Warnings ‼️: You shall walk with no fear

And you thought home was cold. Forget it, you rather take that than this.

The finest fake fur can’t save you right now. Nor any thermal wear that covers your arms and legs.

Yet the brothers walk in this harsh blizzard with ease. Not a single goosebump rises on their arms from the snow that comes pelting at their skin. That same snow feels like it’s aiming constantly at eyes. You’re lucky it’s not sticking to the couple of inches of snow that is already on the ground. If it raises any higher you’ll be doing a weird march just to move forward.

Your teeth clattered together as you hug your body to keep yourself even the tiniest bit warm. You’re constantly trying to keep your snot in but your nose is so numb you can’t tell if it’s still leaking. Why the hell would Liu Kang send you out to help the boys? You already hate the cold. This just feels like torture or some sort of mental training. See how long you can last before you snap.

“What is taking you so long?” Bi-Han yelled at you from a distance.

You didn’t even realize how far behind you were until you looked up.

“It’s hard walking in this weather. It’s freezing.” You answered back.

“It is not. Why did you come if you cannot handle this mere weather.”

“Because I was freaking told to, Bi-Han! I ain’t have no choice!” If Bi-Han is gonna give you attitude you gonna send it back.

Tomas was kind enough to walk over to you to keep you company as you guys kept moving. His arm wrapped around to to bring you close. It’s incredible that he still can maintain his body temperature at a healthy level. You forget that these guys train to handle intense circumstances and weather counts as an intense circumstance. Now you’re grateful that his body was still very warm cause you started leaning into his more than you meant to. He noticed you actions and he decided to check on your temperature by placing the back of his hand against your cheek.

“Are you okay? You’re freezing. You can’t go on while you’re nearly freezing to death.”Did your mother possess Tomas, what the heck is going on?

He brings you into a hug, your face now shoved in his chest area. It actually helps to warm your face since it prevents the snow from pelting you. It gives you the change to warm your nose up so you could breathe properly. You can’t lie you could get used to this. His hugs are healing.

“What now?!” You heard Bi-Han yell once more.

Tomas started explaining that you were horribly cold. Bi-Han didn’t want to hear that complaint again today. Kuai Liang was the one who took it seriously and before Bi-Han could stop his brother from paying any mind to you he was already in front of you.

“You should have told me they were like this. I could have warmed them easily.”

Of course, Kuai Liang would be the best option here. He used his pyromancy to cause flames to ignite, forming a circle around you three. The heat that emitted from the flames was much more pleasing than the harsh cold the wind produced. For extra measures Kuai Liang decided to hug you as well. Him and Tomas basically sandwiched you to help warm you up. Oh and it was working. A moment ago it felt like your cheeks were about to lose feeling and now they are burn up like you had hot coals shoved inside your mouth. This works in your favor. Thank goodness the fur of your jacket helped hide that satisfied smile that naturally produced from this hug session.

The only one who is not satisfied is Bi-Han. Times being wasted and he wants to get a move on. You three seem to be happy just where you are. Even the snow can’t hide the smiles on Tomas’ and Kuai Liang’s face as they look down at you. You did look pretty adorable snuggling up to them. If only Bi-Han could get in on that action. But now’s not the time! Y’all have a mission to get it.

“Fine, if they need to be warmed up let me in so we can be done with this.” Bi-Han started to make his way towards you before Kuai Liang gestured for him to stop.

“No, brother, you are too cold. You will only reverse all the efforts we have made.” Plus, there’s not enough room for another man to cuddle you.

Oh so Bi-Han is the problem now. He’s just about done with this. So they think he will make things worse? He begs to differ.

You started to hear the cracking and squeaking of ice as it starts to formed around all of you. It formed into a dome and soon you were unable to hear the wind blowing. There is no more snow striking you as if it were blades.

Of course, an igloo. Why didn’t you think of that.

“I didn’t know you could do that.” Tomas stared in awe at the icey walls.

“Of course I can, Tomas. Never doubt me again.” He said it like he actually knew he could do this. He just did it out of pure anger.

You were feeling way better than before. You don’t have to worry about hypothermia taking one of your toes. Kuai Liang produced more fire to help warm you up while Tomas used his body heat to deal with the rest of your body. And Bi-Han…ah he’s a little grumpy. Leave him be but thank him for his amazing abilities.

By now you were able to feel every part of your body again. Nothing felt stiff or numb. You were even sweating a little from all the heat that was being trapped in the igloo. Kuai Liang and Tomas were happy to see some color in your face again that didn’t signify you were freezing.

“Thank you guys. I’m feeling much better. Maybe I should have you guys visit in the winter more often to save me some money on the heating bill,” you joked while looking at Kuai Liang and Tomas, “Okay, Bi-Han, I’m ready to move on.”

“Good, great, wonderful, come on!” He yelled the last part at you before kicking open a hole in the igloo.

He was already on the move, ready to get this mission over with. He’s gonna have a nice talk with Liu Kang about sending you out here with them.

You’ll do the same. You’ll let that fire god know that you won’t ever do another mission in the cold weather. You rather stay home with a bunch of blankets wrapped around you than deal with this hell. But you did get a nice cuddle session out of this. This won’t be the last time, you’ll make sure of it.

After notes: The state that I live in has summers that are like hell and winters where you are at the lowest part of hell and the devil is constantly flapping his wings. Maybe cause a sort of devil does live in this state. Whoops. Welp I hope you don’t mind that this was simple and short. Sorry if this isn’t what you want. Now I have to get goin, Adiós!

[click4rainy]

(Mk1) Flirty Intro Dialogues (part 3)

-Suggestive Content-

Bi-Han,Kuai Liang,Tomas Vrbada Peace Maker,Shao Kahn and Sindel

︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶

Bi-Han 🌨️

༶•┈┈⛧┈♛┈⛧┈┈•༶

★Y/N: “I’ve heard, contrary to your chiromancy, you’re actually not a chill guy, Bi-Han…”

-Bi Han: “And I’ve heard enough of your words.”

★Bi-Han: “Prepare for a cold loss.”

-Y/N: “Don’t tell me what to do, Frosty the snowman.”

★Bi-Han: “Liu Kang has never cared about your life.”

-Y/N: “And you do…?”

-Bi Han: *Scoffs, shaking his head* “you truly are blind….”

★Bi-Han: “You’re getting stronger with each fight, Y/N.”

-Y/N: “Rare of you to flatter me Bi-Han…”

★Bi-Han: “Your allure burns a fiery passion within my frozen soul.”

-Y/N: “Shang Tsung has definitely rubbed off on you…”

★Bi-Han: “If only you would listen-

-Y/N: “How dare you assume I would ever consider such an offer…?”

★Y/N: “I will never form an alliance with you….”

-Bi Han: *Scoffs* “Of course not, Y/N…”

︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶

Kuai Liang 🦂

༶•┈┈⛧┈♛┈⛧┈┈•༶

★Kuai Liang: “You have a fiery spirit, Y/N.”

-Y/N: “I can set your heart ablaze if you wanted~”

★Y/N: “What a hottie~”

-Kuai Liang: *Shakes head while chuckling*

★Y/N: “Is it getting hot in here? Or is it just you…?” *corny smirk*

-Kuai Liang: “Are you trying to charm me, Y/N?”

-Y/N: “Is it working?”

★Y/N: “You fan the flame in my heart.” (Didn’t know about Harumi until hanging out with Tomas.)

-Kuai Liang: “I am honored”

★Kuai Liang: “I couldn’t help but notice you and Tomas getting rather… close”

-Y/N: “Does that bother you…married man?”

★Kuai Liang: “Of course a woman (man/person) as stunning as yourself can fight just as adequately.

-Y/N: “I’m flattered, Kuai Liang”

★Kuai Liang: “Have you prepared for this, little spitfire?”

-Y/N: “No need to prepare when I’ve already won.”

︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶

Tomas 💨

༶•┈┈⛧┈♛┈⛧┈┈•༶

★Y/N: *whistles* “What a smoke show”

-Tomas: *smirking* “Very clever, Y/N…”

★Y/N: “I hope you’re ready to lose, Vrbada.”

-Tomas: “Whatever you say krásné.”

(Beautiful)

-Y/N: “Huh-?”

★Tomas: “This will not be an easy fight.”

-Y/N: “Tell me something I don’t know.”

★Y/N: “Johnny says you talk about me often…?

-Tomas: *Clears throat* “Yes…but only good things…”

★Tomas: “I won’t be holding back this time, Y/N.”

-Y/N: “It won’t matter either way, smokey.”

★Tomas: “pěkný…”

(Pretty…)

-Y/N: “Tomas, I have no clue what

you’re saying…”

★Tomas: “Lord Liu Kang talks highly of you.”

-Y/N: “And you are about to see as to why”

︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶

Peace Maker ☮️

༶•┈┈⛧┈♛┈⛧┈┈•༶

★ Peace maker: “Seriously…? How much kush do you smoke?”

-Y/N: “I have 20 bucks bro, sell me the sack.”

★ Y/N: “So if I just say ‘activate sonic-‘

-Peace maker: “do NOT-”

★ Y/N: “I’ve heard your actions are contrary to your message.”

-Peace Maker: “Dude, I’m just making peace, any way I can”

★Peace Maker: “Ready for this, sweet cheeks?”

-Y/N: *Rolls eyes* “Sweet cheeks…? And I thought Johnny was bad…”

★Y/N: “That helmet is certainly…”

Peace Maker: “Bad ass? I know right?”

★Y/N: “You and Kung Lao would get a long well.”

-Peace Maker: *confused* “What makes you say that?”

★Peace Maker: *smirking* “I see you checkin’ me out, cutie pie”

-Y/N: *lightly chuckling* “No, I’m judging your choice of uniform.”

★Y/N: “Naming your eagle ‘eagly’ is uhm…”

-Peace Maker: “Genius? I know, I know…”

︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶

Shao Khan 💀

༶•┈┈⛧┈♛┈⛧┈┈•༶

★Y/N: “You have single handedly ruined your reputation, skull face.”

-Shao Kahn: *Scowls* “How dare you state something so foolish!?”

★Shao Kahn: “I’ve done nothing but serve the out world just as my family has, for generations.”

-Y/N: “If causing treasonous conduct is a part of ‘serving’ out world, then I don’t want to hear it, general.”

★Y/N: “Tell me you have toxic masculinity, without telling me you have toxic mas-“

-Shao Kahn: “Silence! you incompetent-“

-Y/N: “And here you go, proving my point…”

★Shao Kahn: “Why must you keep attempting battle with me?”

-Y/N: “You can’t beat a person who won’t give up, general.”

★Shao Kahn: “Why spar, when I can detect your fear, Y/N…?”

-Y/N: “A true warrior isn’t immune to fear, she (he/they) fights it out of spite.”

★Shao Kahn: “You could be victorious, in condition you submit, and join me.”

-Y/N: “Better to fight you with the possibility of falling, than to live without hope, Shao…”

★Shao Kahn: “Foolish of you to assume you won’t die during battle”

-Y/N: “I would rather die, than bow at the feet of a king, wearing a crown, studded of jewels of every life he has ended.”

★Shao Kahn: “You earth realmers, provoke me”

-Y/N: “Sounds like someone’s mad cause bad.” *smirks* “You mad cause bad Shao Kahn?”

︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶

Sindel 🔊

༶•┈┈⛧┈♛┈⛧┈┈•༶

★Sindel: *snickers* “How quaint…I’ll be sure to enjoy this spar.”

-Y/N: “As will I, Empress.”

★Sindel: “I do hope you’ll be able to sustain during this battle”

-Y/N: *smirks* “I’ll be able to sustain, and then some, queen Sindel.”

★Y/N: “I just have to say, it’s an honor sparring with a beauty, such as yourself empress.”

-Sindel: *lightly chuckles* “Quite the flatterer, I see.”

★Sindel: “Aren’t you a bit young to be flirting with me, earth relamer…?”

-Y/N: “Heheh—It’s not about the age… it’s about the mileage, empress.”

★Y/N: “So what’s this ‘royal treatment’ I keep hearing about…?”

-Sindel: “Come over here and find out, my dear…”

★Sindel: “Liu Kang tells me you’re quite the formidable fighter.”

-Y/N: “And I’ll prove his case with this battle, your majesty.”

︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶

Part four here

[bihanspookies]

Can you write about Smoke x reader, the reader gets injured by an enemy and Smoke looses it and attacks the enemy, saves the reader and treats the wounds?

Love me a “who did this to you?” moment 😩✨ except Tomas is there to witness it so he knows damn well exactly who.

Warnings: Blood lmao

Tomas could immediately sense that something was wrong as soon as you two got to the clearing in the forest, the surrounding air not seeming right, like a heavy blanket of tension weighing down on the area. He didn’t want you to panic, no sense in causing you stress especially when he had brought you out here for a little bit of light training. He very calmly observed the trees, searching for anything that seemed out of place while you stretched and prepared yourself.

“What’re we learning today?” You asked, your voice carrying across the field.

“Defense. Your reflexes are… sub-par, můj miláček.” You stopped your stretching and narrowed your gaze at him. Even when he was wearing that mask, you could see the corners of his eyes just faintly crinkle in.

“Hey, I’ve improved—“ He put his hand up, signaling you to stop.

“Instead of talking, why don’t you show me?” He gets into a fighting stance, waiting for you to do the same. You let out a breath through your nose, shaking your hands out and then getting into a position you deemed okay. Tomas quirked an eyebrow, opening his mouth to say something until—

“Tomas!”

Your call had him turn around just in time to barely block a kick to his head, the force sending him back several feet. It takes him less than a second to fight back, his instincts kicking in. He wants to yell at you to go run and hide, to run back to the temple to grab Kuai Liang or Bi-Han in case there were more but he never got the chance because the one attacking him sent a flurry of hits towards him. He had no choice but to focus his attention on protecting himself and when he finally saw an opening he delivered a devastating kick to the enemy’s stomach. The man staggered back and Tomas took out his knife to stab him in the throat, ripping it to the side and making blood spray out onto his face.

He turned around to run to you but witnessed the moment another enemy appeared and slashed a knife right into your calf. Blood spurts from your wound and paints the snow, your scream ringing painfully in his ears and the world around him starts to blur. You fall to the floor but manage to turn around and kick the perpetrator hard in the shin with your other leg, feeling something pop beneath your foot. You start to crawl away but the enemy snags onto the back of your shirt with his fist reared back, preparing another hit to you.

But it doesn’t come.

All you see is a flash of grey and suddenly Tomas is on top of the man, yelling words in his native language as he starts to attack him.

You tried to stand and hobble to him but couldn’t, the gash in your leg far too painful. You fell to your knees, more blood pouring out and seeping through your pants and sinking into the snow. You could only watch with horror as he furiously beat down the enemy.

You have never seen Tomas so angry, so merciless, it almost scared you the way he seemed to turn off all thoughts and just hit hit hit.

“Tomas!”

He doesn’t hear you and you have no choice but to try again and make your way towards him. By now the enemy was barely conscious, groans and whimpers passing his lips as Tomas continued to fight him until eventually the man was rendered permanently silent.

“Tomas stop! He’s dead!”

Your fingers just barely brush against his shoulder before you collapse onto the ground, your calf throbbing and burning. It seems to snap him out of it, making him drop the enemy before getting to his knees next to you.

“Please— můj miláček, you need to sit still—!”

But you couldn’t, not with how much pain was searing through your body. You hissed through your teeth, taking in his bloody and disheveled state as his shaky hands attempt to look at your wound.

“It hurts.” You whimper, the snow burning on your skin but in an oddly relieving way.

“I know I know, I’m going to have to carry you back to the temple okay? I can’t properly tend to this until we’re back home, okay moje láska? You’re going to be fine, everything is going to be fine.”

You nodded, clenching down hard on your teeth as he grasped your hand and helped you stand up. As you climb onto his back, Tomas takes one more look around the area to make sure there weren’t anymore enemies. He looks over his shoulder to you, using his hand to remove his mask briefly.

“Miluji tě, teď jsi velmi statečný.” He smiles at you, reassuring you before slipping his mask back on.

It takes you a few moments to translate what he said, his words temporarily making you forget the awful pain in your calf.

You say nothing except rest your cheek on his back, closing your eyes and silently thanking the Elder Gods for gifting you the blessing that is Tomas Vrbada.

———

můj miláček: my darling

moje láska: my love

miluji tě, teď jsi velmi statečný: I love you, you’re being very brave right now.

[cienie-isengardu]

There's some people who simply think Bi-Han never really loved Kuai in either timeline. Some people say Kuai adored Bi-Han but Bi-Han simply didn't feel the same way and that their relationship was one-sided, where Kuai loved Bi-Han where Bi-Han...simply didn't.

I don't believe that but I think the writing could use a bit of work here because in story mode Bi-Han's interactions with his siblings are pretty much him telling Tomas he's not one of them and then saying 'btw I let Dad die' to Kuai in some deluded hope that his brother would see his point of view. The only noticable moment he shows concern is when Nitara ambushes Smoke from above when they are scaling the walls and most say that doesn't count because he seems to have kicked that rock at Smoke whilst he was scaling the wall.

The falling rock while someone is hanging over the abyss is so popular I can’t even remember a similar scene not using this motif to present the sense of tension/danger. So I guess there is no point in blaming MK1 for going with that visual storytelling choice - though if it was intentional choice of creators to cast a doubt on whether Bi-Han on purpose kicked the rock or not, it is impossible to say. Definitely that moment could be better presented to avoid the confusion, especially since Bi-Han’s foot is clearly placed on the ground before the rock is even shown,

so it is rather impossible for him to kick it on purpose? I mean, the rock would need to start failing before Bi-Han stopped in his tracks, as kicking requires movement of the whole leg and as can be seen,  Bi-Han’s boot was firmly touching the ground while the rock itself appears a few seconds later, like out of nowhere (and in later scene, there is no rocks only snow around Bi-Han's feet, especially compared to where Kuai Liang was standing?) I assume, when Sub-Zero was leaning out, his weight must have caused the loose element to slide, especially since he was the one standing the closest to the edge and once rock slid, he took a step back.

(Yes, I’m that dedicated to do the slow motion rewatch to make sense of what really happened.)

But you know what is more surprising than the rock failing scene? The whole fact that a man who mastered magic and was capable of using his powers to literally fly didn’t use the same powers to save himself, instead panicked and relied on his hands (failed attempt) and knive - and the game subtitles literally describes Tomas' struggle as “panicked screaming”.

So if Bi-Han (and Kuai Liang) rushed over the edge and may accidentally cause a rock to fall, I think him being concerned for a brother who could die is enough good reason to give Bi-Han the benefit of doubt he did not do that on purpose. If he didn’t care, he would not bother to come there in the first place, especially since the enemy was already out there to get them all. Frankly, there is a lot to say about Bi-Han’s claims about Tomas (your blood will never be Lin Kuei), Tomas actually panicking to the point he was unable to use his magic and the fact that Sub-Zero still took him on this top priority mission when he quite likely had more warriors with real battle experience and skills than untested Tomas. On one hand, we could argue Tomas joined because Liu Kang said so, but the Fire God literally not even once acknowledged Tomas in any specific way and as the meeting scene proved, Bi-Han had a say in who is allowed to accompanying him for the mission, as he refused take Kung Lao and Raiden while Liu Kang did not try to force them on him. So I tend to assume that whatever Sub-Zero said about Tomas in regard to his Lin Kuei status did not stop him from including the adoptive brother in his duties. And the falling scene proved he had a point about Tomas’ training and battle experiences (or lack thereof) - even if voiced in a brutally straight up way. 

Generally speaking I think what (and the way) Bi-Han speaks should always be compared to his actions. Tomas not having a true Lin Kuei blood =/= taking him on top priority mission commissioned personally by worried Fire Lord.

That said, yes I agree that story mode should handle better both Bi-Han as character and the whole brothers dynamic but for that the story would need to give them more focus and screen time to establish well written balance between their flaws and virtues instead of the more or less one-dimensional characterization game started with (Bi-Han the angry & ambitious/power-hungry brother, Kuai Liang the honorable “never did anything wrong”, Tomas the loyal sidekick, basically). As the Lin Kuei subplot seems to exist solely to set up the conflict between Sub-Zero’s clan and Scorpion’s Shirai Ryu, I assume that was the authors' goal to achieve, but with such approach to klassic characters can’t say I’m surprised by fandom negative opinions about Bi-Han. 

I can understand the never-ending fan dispute about how much Bi-Han truly loved Kuai Liang, as Mortal Kombat lore is more than three decades old already and we still only got glimpses of their relationship from Bi-Han’s perspective. Considering how many games, books, comics, movies, animations and cards the series spawned in such a long time - and how different media present different “timelines”, it is both impossible and unfair to demand from new fans (or any fans in fact) to be familiar with all possible nuance, details and stories almost forgotten before they will speak their mind. Not everyone has the opportunity, time, energy or interest to expand their knowledge about characters and that is fine, even if we don’t agree with said opinions. I know it is hard to be Bi-Han’s fan, as the man, both as Sub-Zero and Noob Saibot barely gets the proper recognition, be it from fans or source material and this has been happening for many years now - even though he is the first Sub-Zero on whose popularity Kuai Liang grew to be character in his own right. 

I do not have a doubt that Bi-Han and Kuai Liang shared true brotherhood and I’m right now truly tempted to write an essay on why elder Sub-Zero is not - and in fact has never been - inherently evil character and why we should not doubt that Kuai Liang’s love to him is not grounded in some delusioned idolization but for now I wish point out to all doubters this: original Bi-Han and cryomancer Kuai Liang were first and foremost survivors above any simplified fan idea of good or evil nature. The only person that tried to give them a normal (safe) life was a mother and the woman was presumably killed alongside their youngest sister by their own father. Ice brothers were just kids when that happened - and even if the mother somehow managed to save herself and the daughter and hid from Lin Kuei, she was still removed for good from her sons’ lives. They were abducted by their father, brought from America (their place of birth) to China, a totally different land and culture, to be raised in secrecy and isolation from the world they knew. None of them choose to be raised as assassins and as their respective stories showed, Lin Kuei would easily turn against them at any moment if any stepped out of line. In Mythologies, Bi-Han was called the most cunning assassin of Lin Kuei, but in the same game Sub-Zero outright said if he did not fulfill the task, he would be killed for failure. This comes from a man who was openly praised  by the Grandmaster personally and yet his life was the constant fight for survival, the “perform perfectly any impossible task” or “be killed”. If to survive Bi-Han needed to be a cold-blooded person he became one. If because of that he won’t fit into the cozy fan ideas and the silly labeling either “good" or "evil” without taking into account what shaped said character in the first place, then frankly, that is the problem of fans, not Bi-Han.

[summerwritesfics]

🗺️For Hope I’d Give My Everything

Pairing: Hanzo Hasashi/Kuai Liang Length: 2272 Words Rating: Mature Warnings: Fantasy AU, Violence, Fights, Bombs, Accidental Baby Acquisition, Baby!Takeda Takahashi, Warrior!Hanzo Hasashi, Thief!Kuai Liang, Attempted Kidnapping, Kuai Liang is AMBB (Assigned mom by baby) AU-Gust 2024 Day 9: Accidental Child Acquisition

AU-Gust 2024 Masterlist

Notes: Don’t you hate it when you go to rob a guy and end up accidentally adopting a baby with him instead? NGL to you guys, this is the one I’ve been most excited to share since I wrote it 😂 Mostly because this is actually one of my favourite tropes and I’m super surprised I’ve never really written it until now lol. I might continue this if only because I want to write Mama Bear Kuai Liang. I’m still ill but I think I’m on the way to recovery now. At the very least, I’m not coughing quite as much as I was yesterday. :) Title is from Nemo by Nightwish.

Hanzo wasn’t entirely sure how he’d ended up in this position.

One minute, he was living alone in the forest. A lonely but peaceful life, where he went down to the town maybe once a month to replenish his supplies. It was far from his past life as a warrior, but it was what he needed after Harumi and Satoshi’s deaths.

Then, everything changed. He awoke to the sound of a baby crying, finding little Takeda in a basket on his doorstep. And before he could even consider what he was going to do with the child, his home was attacked and he’d had to flee.

He had no idea what The Red Dragon wanted with this child, but he knew he could not let them have him.

His current plan was to get to the Sky Temple. The Thunder God, Lord Raiden, owed him a favour from some past actions. Taking in this child and helping to protect him seemed like a fair reason to cash that favour in. The trouble was getting there. It was a long journey from where he had been living, and he couldn’t trust anyone right now, so finding reliable transport was out. He just had to make do moving town to town, doing odd jobs along the way to keep the baby fed.

This cliffside path was not an ideal spot to walk along. It was narrow, and even walking closest to the cliff wall was far too close to the edge. Still, it was the only way past this particular mountain range, he had no other choices. That didn’t even account for the weird feeling that someone was watching him.

Takeda began to fuss in his arms, and he bounced the child slightly. “Shh, little one. We won’t be here long.”

He was cut off by a strange rumbling sound. A small rock came tumbling down from above. Luckily, it was a little way in front and didn’t hit them. But something about it made Hanzo’s hair’s stand on edge. He glanced up the cliff, and his eyes widened at what he saw.

A figure was crouching on a small ledge.

Instinct took over, Hanzo turning to find a small crevice in the cliff. He quickly placed Takeda inside, but wasn’t able to do much else before he found something hitting him at full force. Even though he fell to the ground, he raised his fist and punched, hearing a gruff groan. He found the chance to pull his legs up, kicking the person off him. As he jumped up to his feet, readying his katana, he saw them skid across the floor.

The figure stood up, revealing himself to Hanzo. He was… surprisingly short if Hanzo was being honest, wearing a fur lined cloak, and holding a hunting knife in his hand. He had short hair, a trim beard and a long scar over his right eye. But what was most intriguing were his eyes, one a deep brown and the other a bright icy blue. He didn’t ponder it too long, pointing his katana at the man who readied his knife.

“Give me all your money and whatever item you hid in that hole,” the man growled, swiping his knife as some form of threat. There was a slight relief that the man seemed to just be a common thief rather than a Red Dragon grunt. Still, Hanzo wouldn’t just give in, not when he had Takeda to protect.

“I'd recommend you back down now and find someone else to rob, thief,” Hanzo hissed, baring his teeth. “I will not back down.”

“Then you are a fool.”

The thief ran forward, slashing his knife at Hanzo. He jumped backwards, holding up his katana to defend himself. Using his weight to push the thief away, Hanzo attempted to strike. The attack was blocked, but that didn’t stop Hanzo from slashing again, and again. The thief stumbled trying to keep up with his attacks. Eyes widening as if he realised he’d made a mistake.

Too late for you to regret it now.

Hanzo heard something falling down the cliff again. He didn’t pay much attention to it, until he heard a beeping. The thief and him shared a look, where they were both trying to figure out if the other was responsible. Then, in tandem, their heads turned to where the beeping was coming from.

Down by their feet, lay a small bomb, flashing red.

“Shit-”

Before Hanzo could dive away, the bomb went off, knocking him backwards. He hit the floor hard, and groaned at the way his body cracked. When he felt around, he realised to his amazement he was still on the path.

He sat up, noting that the part of the path he’d previously been stood at had crumbled, leaving only a drop below. The thief was on the other side of the gap, lying on the ground, and Hanzo hissed when he realised that was also the side Takeda was on.

Someone came zipping down the cliff, landing on that side of the pathway and Hanzo snarled.

“Mavado,” Hanzo screamed as he stumbled to his feet. Mavado responded with a chuckle, recalling the ribbons he’d used to scale down the cliff.

“Looks like this is where you say goodbye to the brat, Mr. Hasashi,” Mavado smugly told him, walking over to the hole and pulling a crying Takeda from it.

“Don’t you dare,” Hanzo roared storming forward. The path crumbled further, stopping him in his tracks.

“And what else do we have here?” Mavado walked over to the thief, using his foot to kick him onto his back. Mavado smirked as he looked over the man's form. “The last Lin Kuei. Well, I have two for two, now don’t I?”

Lin Kuei? That clan had been hunted down many years ago. Hanzo found it unbelievable anyone could have survived that level of persecution.

The Lin Kuei looked up at Mavado before spitting out “go to hell.”

“Is there really any need for such hostility, Kuai Liang?” Mavado pressed his foot down hard on the man's chest, making him wheeze. “Lord Daegon will be so pleased to see you.”

With Mavado distracted, Hanzo decided this was his chance. He took a few steps back, and began to run again. Once his foot hit right by the edge, he leapt, and all that was going through his head was the hope he’d make it and he wouldn’t fall to his death.

As his feet thankfully hit the floor, he darted forward, knocking Mavado off balance. Unfortunately, he hadn’t accounted for Mavado letting go of Takeda in shock. The baby was thrown off towards the cliff’s edge. To his surprise however, Kuai Liang managed to dart to his feet, throwing himself towards the edge and catching Takeda in his arms.

Hanzo was forced to return his attention to Mavado however, when the other man attempted to punch him. He dodged, before forcing his elbow into Mavado’s face. As he stumbled back, Hanzo turned to see where Takeda was, only to find Kuai Liang gone. He went cold, thinking that the thief had absconded with him.

Until he noticed fingers clinging to the edge of the cliff.

A black blur from the corner of his eye yet again prevented him from going to their aid. He once more managed to pull back, grabbing his katana and striking Mavado in his stomach. The man made a pained gasp, skidding to a stop and staring down at himself. Red began pouring from his midsection. He looked disgusted for a second, before taking a step backwards.

“Damn you,” he hissed, before throwing his hands up towards the top of the cliff. The elastic ribbons caught something up there, and he prepared to jump. Hanzo wasn’t able to catch him before he zoomed up the side of the cliff. All he could do was stand and watch Mavado disappear.

His head snapped back around, remembering that Kuai Liang and Takeda were still in danger. Except the fingers were now gone.

“No,” he whispered as he rushed to the edge and peered down. His eyes widened at what he saw.

Kuai Liang, glowing blue and floating in the air, holding Takeda to his chest and wearing an extremely confused look on his face.

“What the-” Hanzo whispered, but put that aside when he noticed Kuai Liang was starting to ascend.

He floated back up to the edge, before settling to sit on the path. The blue glow disappeared, and Kuai Liang still looked like he had no idea what just happened.

“You’re a telepath?” Hanzo questioned, wondering if that were the case, why he wouldn’t have used those powers sooner. But when Kuai Liang looked at him like he’d grown a second head, he realised this was not the Lin Kuei’s doing.

“No. No I-” He paused, before shifting slightly and staring down at Takeda, who happily babbled in his arms. “I’m not a telepath.” The implication was clear. But if it was right, then it brought up even more questions. “Um. Why exactly is the Red Dragon after your son?”

“I don’t know. Or at least I didn’t. This might explain it.” And if that was the case, Hanzo actually had a friend who was a telepath, for as rare as they were. But he swore to god, if Kenshi had anything to do with all of this, he would fucking kill the man for dumping him into it. “And he isn’t my son.”

“Wait.” Kuai Liang pushed himself up to his feet, looking at Hanzo with a raised eyebrow. “So you’re just journeying with a random kid that isn’t yours?”

“He was left on my doorstep, and then the Red Dragon attacked,” Hanzo explained with a huff, feeling like he was being judged for something that wasn’t his fault. “I’m trying to get to the Sky Temple to see if they can help.”

“Good luck with that,” Kuai muttered bitterly under his breath. Hanzo understood his scepticism, a man whose people had been persecuted to the levels The Lin Kuei had been would have no reason to believe in the Gods. Still Kuai held out Takeda to Hanzo to take him.

The second that Takeda was returned to Hanzo’s arms, he began to absolutely bawl his eyes out. Hanzo bounced him, desperately trying to calm the child down. His eyes were shut tightly, but his little hands were reaching back in Kuai’s direction. Not only that, but Kuai’s legs were glowing blue, keeping them basically bound together and preventing him from leaving.

Takeda doesn’t want him to go. It was weird, and honestly, Hanzo couldn’t help but feel a little bit insulted. I’ve been protecting you for weeks now, but this guy throws himself off a cliff once to save you and he’s all you want. He knew that was a jealous and ultimately very petty line of thought though. Maybe Takeda sensed something in this man that Hanzo couldn’t.

“Right, fine,” Hanzo huffed, passing the baby back to Kuai Liang, whose eyes widened to a comical degree. But as Hanzo suspected, Takeda immediately stopped crying, and the blue glow faded. “Take the baby. You’re coming with us.”

“Wait. What?” Kuai exclaimed looking between Hanzo and Takeda.

“The baby’s chosen you,” he claimed, wandering around the area and making sure he wasn’t missing anything. “Therefore, you have to come with us, I don’t make the rules.”

“I just tried to rob you, and you’re trusting me with a baby?” Kuai questioned, like somehow Hanzo was the unreasonable one in this situation.

“I’m not trusting you with the baby, but Takeda sure seems to trust you for some reason.” He shook his head as he returned his katana to its hold. “Besides, you wanted my money and whatever was in the crevice, this way you get both.”

“I didn’t think what you’d hidden was a baby, I thought it was treasure or something,” Kuai claimed in an exacerbated tone. His eyes flicked down to Takeda, who was again making small happy noises to himself and playing with the fur on Kuai’s cape. Despite himself, Kuai smiled down at Takeda. “If I had realised you had a baby with you, I wouldn’t have tried to steal from you at all.”

Hanzo sighed, “look. The way I see it, if you come with us, it'll benefit you as well.” Kuai glanced up just enough as though to demand an explanation. “The Red Dragon are after you too, correct? If you come with us, we can find a way to stop them.”

Kuai was silent for a few seconds, before his gaze landed on Takeda again. His expression softened, bringing Takeda up close to rest their foreheads together. Kuai closed his eyes, and let out a breath.

“Okay. Fine. I’ll come with you.” He pulled Takeda away. “You’re very lucky you’re so cute.”

“Excuse me?” Hanzo baulked, feeling his face go hot.

Kuai looked at him incredulously, “I was talking to the baby.”

Hanzo paused, and cleared his throat. “Right. Of course.”

He didn’t say anymore, just started to walk off, hearing Kuai Liang giggle as he followed him. He swore he could hear Takeda laughing too. With him being a telepath, how likely was it that he understood more of what was going on than an average baby? He shook his head, that was a ridiculous line of thought. He was better using his mind to map out their road to the Sky Temple.

He just hoped Lord Raiden would be able to offer the salvation that they sought.

[jackiejack8e]

You Are My Warmth || 1

Part 1

WARNING! MENTIONS OF PARENTS DEATH! VIOLENCE! (duh) BEING BROKE! BEING A VICTIM OF RACISM! FEMALE READER!

"Love is like the wind, you can't see it but you can feel it" - Nicholas Sparks.

You were broke. One of the peasants. and you want to know what is even worse? You were a mixed breed of Earthrealmer and sorcerer!

But being a sorcerer here is basically a normal civilian. So you started taking from the rich and giving to the poor. Today, you were lying low, acting as if you wasn’t a good for nothing thief.

“Good afternoon sir, do this store serves bread?” You asked, holding onto your hand bag that carried around $20.54/¥3,321.59. “Bread? It is down that aisle… if you had looked before asking.” The worker groans, he was clearly angered before you even arrived here.

Something mostly had happened while you were either walking here or before you even left your home. He was normally not angered when you asked that question, and if you have asked it so many times, how come you can’t find it on your own?

You can, but they always changed it once a week, last week it was in the front so you didn’t have to ask, but now it is in the back.

“My apologies, sir.” You simply replied, walking through limited choices. You grabbed two loaves of bread, costing $13.48/¥2179.89. “Is that all?” The man asks, calculating the price of the bread you had just bought.

“Yes, that will be all,” You reached into your hand bag, grabbing the exact price for the bread, “thank you.” you grabbed the bread and walk out, of course this was a weekly thing, you buy food for the village, but once again you have to lie low.

The guards have slaughtered your parents for creating a half breed. Not just that, a forbidden half breed. You walked past beautiful houses, walked past a pinkish white, blooming flowers.

Before you can even make it past the gate for the hills, you have been blown back by a cold blast. The food was blown out of your hand too, but you wasn’t the only victim, so was a couple of riches and… Kuai Liang? Isn’t he apart of the Lin Kuei?

Whatever, you had to leave… like now! Screw the bread, you’ll just make a homemade salad with the leaves, beautiful fruits and that new sauce Mr. Chikafuji sells for a cheap price.

You obviously tried to get up with the others, only for a heatwave to keep you guys down. Sure, none of the attacks were for y’all, obviously. But you guys were in the area at the wrong time. Some managed to run away, lucky them.

You couldn’t really run away, only because they were in the way of your home! And plus you can’t really get risked being caught by the guards, can you? Some civilians have either gotten hurt or killed due to this deadly fight.

After the fight, Kuai wins and walks away. Being the kindhearted person you was, you had went over to see is Bi-Han was okay. “Hello, sir? Are you okay?”

You knelt down to his level, “What do you want? You want to finish off what he has left?” Bi-Han looks up at you with a cold look in his eyes.

“What?! No! I have no business with whatever problem you both are having!” You exclaim trying to reason with the man. “If so… why are you here?” “I’m here because I can’t let you be hurt! Plus you are kind of in the way of my path home. Say, since my home is close by, I can either bring you home for you to heal, or I can run home and find supplies while you are out in the open.”

You only wanted to help him because he can pay you! Meaning, you have wasted the money you bought for the bread that flew away, and he is wasting your products. It should be enough for you to eat for at least 3-4 weeks.

“And what are you going to do, woman? Kill me after?” “By the elder gods, no! I’m only trying to care for your wounds, nothing more!”

Bi-Han sits there for a second, he knows he shouldn’t trust a random stranger, but then again, you look like you don’t train. So, if you try something, he could always defend himself.

“Fine then, take me to your home. Tend to my wounds and nothing else.”

Bi-Han simply stated, making you give him a smile.

“You won’t regret this.”

You help him up and bring him to this house of yours for him to heal.

Part 2

[liabloodx]

Mod: So I found out that Bi-Han and Ermac exist so that gave me an idea for their child. Her name is Nu Ying, the goddess of the Xiang River. Pretty interesting. Anyways, this does has Mpreg in it so if your uncomfortable with it, don’t read!

Bi Han held his newborn daughter in his arms, he was in a mess right now. Sweat was all over his body, his pants and boxers were soaked in blood and water, and he was panting heavily. Bi Han was sent on a mission while pregnant, which caused an early labor, but he didn’t know what to do with her, he didn’t want the elders to find out about her so he’ll hide her.

Bi Han was captured by a overworld weapon name Ermac. Ermac has so many spirits in him, which was crazy to say at the least. Apparently Ermac read about the Lin Kuei and took a liking to Bi Han aka Sub Zero. Bi Han heard about him and took a liken to him as well. Ermac kidnapped him but that led to Sub Zero sneaking out at night to meet with Ermac. Eventually, the two ended up having sex, unprotected, which lead to Bi Han getting pregnant. Kuai Liang was the first to find out, next was Smoke, Cyrax, and last was Sektor. Of course they didn’t tell the elders at all about sub zero getting pregnant.

Bi Han sighed as he looked at his daughter suckling on his nipples, drinking milk. He had two choices. One he could give her to someone else or two he could take her on missions and have her be inside his ninja uniform while he does his job for the Lin Kuei. “I’ll name you Nu Ying, it definitely suits you.” Bi Han said with a smile under his mask. He just hopes he doesn’t come across Ermac.

Kuai was allowed to be on a mission with his brother. Bi Han went on a different way then his brother, while running, he felt something in his chest, he made sure no one was around before opening his uniform, only to see Nu Ying suckling on him. “Your hungry aren’t you?” He asked as Nu Ying stopped and looked up at him with her blue eye, her white eye being covered by a bandage. Bi Han heard footsteps before closing his robe. Nu Ying didn’t know why she has to hide. Bi Han grabbed his scythes. “Bi Han.” A voice called to him, Bi Han went wide eyed, turning around before noticing who was infront of him, Ermac. “We had no clue where you were, so we looked around until we saw an ice trail.” Ermac said as Bi Han cursed underneath his breath. “Where we’re you?” Ermac asked, Bi Han sighed. “I was..busy one missions.” Bi Han said, he knew that was a lie. “Missions? We didn’t see you at your missions.” Bi Han stood there as Ermac used his power on Bi Han. “Mama?” Came a little voice, making Ermac stop while Bi Han cursed to himself. Ermac looked at him, “who said Mama?” Bi Han sighed, “alright, I guess it’s time to take off the bandaid.” Bi Han said as he undid his uniform, Nu Ying popped her head out, looking at him. “Mama!” She said making Bi Han chuckle as he pet her head. “Who’s child is this?!” Ermac yelled, starling Nu Ying, a green glow appeared on a rock before it was thrown to Ermac. Bi Han gasped and ran to Ermac, “look the reason I was gone was because I was pregnant with your daughter.” Bi Han said as Ermac looked at him with a shock expression. “We have a daughter?” Ermac asked as Bi Han nodded, helping his daughter out of his uniform, holding her, he took his mask down. “I named her Nu Ying, she’s like you and me, she has our powers.” Bi Han explained as Ermac held his hand out, see Nu Ying grabbing it with her tiny hands. Ermac smiled as he kissed Bi Han. “We want to be there for her.” Ermac said as Bi Han smiled, holding Nu Ying. The three sat together, talking while Nu Ying fell asleep on Bi Han.

[gloomiebearwritings]

Hello, I was wondering if you do one for me? I was thinking of how Hanzo, Kuai Lang, Kabal and Erron Black reacts when their s/o explains why they do not drink because of their alcoholic parent (violent drunk) and is afraid they will be the same way. If so this would be cathartic for me having substance abuse on both sides of my family.

Hey there! Sorry, this took a bit, I wasn't sure how to tackle it- but I hope I handled it well! I don't know what possessed me to make Kabal and Erron's so long, but I couldn't help it 😭

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hanzo

He wasn’t much for drinking himself, not finding the feeling of his senses being altered to be tolerable

He’d seen those around him drink, seen their actions become sloppy or aggressive, and seen a fight or two because of it

For him it was something that’d disrupt his routines and peace, so he only ever tried a drink or two in the past but never drank again

One night at dinner you’d told him why you never drank, about the violent drunk of a parent you had growing up, and how you’d never drink even a sip in your life. He sat quiet for a moment as he listened before setting his things down to speak up; telling you he was sorry you had to experience all that you did, promising you that he never drank himself so there was nothing to fear with him. He respected your fear of being the same, and promised he knew you were not that kind of person- that you were the better, stronger person for taking the responsibility to never drink. Inside he felt some level of guilt for not stepping in sooner when others would begin to nag you to get you to drink- which he quietly apologized for.

Kuai Liang

He’d only ever tried a drink once, finding the taste insufferable and chose to never drink again- especially after seeing another get drunk once and almost get his lights punched out

Any time a gathering involved drinking he felt out of place as others would get tipsy, or when arguments would threaten to become fights

He found comfort in the fact that you never drank, though he never pressed as to why since he knew that was none of his business- your choice was your choice, regardless of why

After you two had left a get together that’d turned sour due to an argument between family members you decided to tell him. He was stunned at first, a bit ashamed that he didn’t step in sooner when the argument was getting out of hand, apologizing for not getting you out sooner. As you told him about the aggression and violence at the hand of the drunkard parent he sat quietly, looking up at you as you paced with a soft but sad expression. When you were done, he had you sit next to him where he said he understood what happened, that it hurt to hear someone he loved so dearly had to go through all of it.

Erron

He knew it all too well from his own upbringing, the fights, the yelling, the cheap shots at the walls

Though he’d drunk a bit in his late teens he came to stop when he realized he hated how it made him feel- since then having never drank again

He avoids all the gatherings he can that involve drinks, not wanting to be around others who might try nagging him into drinking with them

On one such night in, having avoided another outing he sat at his work bench, cleaning up his tools and sidearms. It didn’t bother him that tomorrow everyone would be nagging him for not going out despite them all having a hangover of some intensity. When you’d come over to leave him something to drink, he happened to pipe up how he finds the others’ drinking habits frustrating, especially when they’d poke his ribs for refusing- saying he was thankful you didn’t drink, wondering aloud why you chose not to. Speaking up you explained a bit of it, seeing his face drop to an expression of regretting mentioning it, worried he struck a nerve in you. He apologized profusely until you gave him a kiss to shut him up- though hours later he was still apologizing, saying he was now even more thankful his ass stopped drinking.

Kabal

He was used to seeing and being around people drinking, sometimes joining in but more often than not just ignoring it

Drinking never really appealed to him, finding most alcohol Kano would bring to be like drinking battery acid

He chose to often just leave and go somewhere else when the drinking picked up and bickering started, not wanting to have to be a referee

 Standing with his back to the wall, letting the hot water wash over him in the shower he heard you enter to leave him his towel that he’d forgotten; he apologized for forgetting it again with a tired groan. Without really thinking about it he wondered aloud if he smelled of alcohol when he came home even though he didn’t drink any, saying to himself that he was around a lot of people who were drunk. He was aware that alcohol was something you were uncomfortable with, hoping he didn’t make you uncomfortable by coming home and possibly reeking of it before he got cleaned up. When you spoke up to alert him you were still in there, he jumped a little, apologizing again- though he did finally ask why it was that you avoided drinking. As you told him he began to regret asking, feeling like he made you uncomfortable even without seeing your expression. After you finished, he sheepishly looked out from behind the curtain to apologize, saying he didn’t realize it could be such a sore topic for you; but said he appreciated that you didn’t drink, so you two could just ignore parties together.

[hey-michael-young-history]

How would the lin kuei react if take them to go see the lion king movie ❤️❤️ Cause my little mind has ideas

So for this example, let’s say it’s in our Happy Lin Kuei AU. Resident Team Dad Bing Yun is taking his boys out to see a rerelease of The Lion King for some bonding. Sounds like a heart warming good time, right?

His “boys” are all over eighteen.

“You have to calm down.”

Hydro put out his cigarette and turned to his annoyed friend.

“I have better things to do. There’s a whole list of tasks I need to complete before I earn the title of Sub-Zero.”

“Yeah, but it’s a break and a free movie. Plus, I’m sure if we’re extra good, your dad will take us for ice cream afterwards.”

Bi-Han swung but Hydro stepped out of the way with ease. He grabbed Bi-Han’s shoulders and pushed him out of the alley to the front of the theater, where the rest of their little party was.

“We’re seeing The Lion King,” Cyrax told them, handing them the tickets. It wasn’t exactly his first choice. Being eighteen, it would have been nice to see something more mature, but… he was always the one who disagreed and made waves. Today, he was going to just relax and be okay with it. Besides, it would be nice to see “home” again, even if it was a cartoon. And not quite his country. And also filled with talking animals.

“No,” Bi-Han demanded.

“We already have the tickets,” Sektor grumbled. “Your father is the one who chose it.”

Sektor was wary of the elder cryomancer for many reasons but he was pleased to see this movie. Scar was his favorite character. He devised a plan for the good of the clan and saw it through. Sektor admired that.

“Can’t argue with that. Or probably shouldn’t, anyway,” Hydro reasoned, ushering the younger Lin Kuei into the theater.

They found Bing Yun, Smoke, and Kuai Liang at the refreshments.

If there was no other bright side, at least this outing forced his father to wear a shirt, Bi-Han realized.

Bing Yun smiled as his little gang approached. “Glad you brats could join us.”

“We need to find good seats,” Smoke complained. He had an armful, popcorn, candy, and a drink. This was a fantastic day for him and he wasn’t letting anyone ruin it. After being orphaned and kidnapped, good things didn’t happen to him very often. Going to the movie theater was a new experience, seeing a cartoon…! With his “brothers” and his “father.” Kuai Liang said that he had seen the movie when he was a child and it had singing and funny animals and fighting. He didn’t understand why the others looked so bothered.

“He’s right. Find us some seats while I finish up,” Bing Yun said.

“Wait, what about our snacks?” Hydro asked.

“Shouldn’t have been outside ‘looking cool.’ Go,” Bing Yun ordered.

Smoke led the older boys to their screen. When they were gone, Kuai Liang asked his father, “Why are you doing this?”

“Why? You don’t want to see the movie?”

Truthfully, Kuai Liang was indifferent. There were other things he had planned for the day but he always tried to honor the wishes of his parents.

At that, Bing Yun looked at his son, his cybernetic eyes dilating as he smiled. “We used to do things like this when you guys were younger… The older you get, the harder it’ll be to get you guys together like this. Especially when…” You start killing.

He smiled, a little more sadly. “Someday, you’re all going to have your own things going on… goals, missions, maybe even families. Life gets more complicated and even when you look at each other differently, you’re Lin Kuei, no matter what. When things are hard, I want you to have memories like these to focus on. Remember to focus on the good times, my son.”

Kuai Liang nodded, solemn. Bing Yun laughed and handed him a bag of popcorn. “Come on brat, let’s head in before we miss anything.”

[tiredfox64]

Can you write about the reader would watch Tomas train shirtless everyday in secret to avoid being embarrassed by someone until one day Tomas catches her? 😉

You will see such Wonderful Things

Yip notes: If only I could do that, I’m blind af. Never ask me to look at something I’ll lie and say I see it

Pairing: Tomas x Afab reader

Warnings‼️: Suggestive

From spring to summer, the changing of the seasons is a wonderful time. The cherry blossoms bloom before turning into healthy green leaves. The wind is warm as it blows the grass. The butterflies and bees play around with the flowers as you walk by. You must be on a nature walk. Why else would your eyes be shifting around?

What? You’re not on a nature walk? Then what are you looking—oh…

You’re looking for Tomas, of course.

Since it’s been getting warmer, it’s been harder to stay cool during training. Tomas is used to it constantly being cold but since he isn’t in Arctika anymore he’s been struggling with the heat. Even if it’s only up to 75 degrees Fahrenheit he feels like he’s being suffocated. So with the weather being up to 80 degrees he had no choice but to go topless. It’s the most he could do to stay to stay cool.

Tomas would usually feel embarrassed training without a shirt which is why he trains in a somewhat secluded area. He goes to a clearing in the forest near the Shirai Ryu temple. He’s only told Kuai Liang where it is since he didn’t want the rest of the clan to know about it, especially you.

It’s nothing against you but he would feel a little embarrassed if a girl saw him shirtless. He’s not ashamed of his body, he has a well-built body. Even you have said it yourself. You made that statement very clear since you always liked to touch his muscular arms. You even mentioned that Tomas had bigger muscles than his brother, which he denied even though it’s true. Just the thought of you seeing him shirtless and finding many ways to praise him makes his head spin. His mind and body could not handle all of that. It’s best that you didn’t know.

OH BUT WAIT YOU DID KNOW!

It was an accident; you swear it. You didn’t mean to stumble upon Tomas while he was training. You were just trying to look for him so you too could spar with each other and well…that happened. The first was an accident, no biggie. But the other times, that’s a different story.

After that, you started wandering off into the woods to check if Tomas was there all the time. And he was! You would watch as he grew hotter until his breathing got heavy. Only then would he take his shirt off. Oh gosh, how were you so lucky to be blessed with such a sight? You wouldn’t trade this for anything, not even a view of Niagara Falls. The sight of him like this makes you fall for him even more.

Alright, maybe you were a little boy crazy right now, but Tomas has really put a spell on you. It’s like the sunlight knows his body is magnificent so it’s always shining down on him. It calls for your attention. You can’t rip your eyes away from him. It doesn’t make it any better that he grunts every time he attacks the training dummy. It drives your hormones wild and gets your mind going. Relax your fist, woman! The ground didn’t do anything to you! Why must you grip it so tight?!

This day was no different. You found the perfect spot for hiding, right behind a small boulder with a tree next to it and shrubbery in the front. There was no way Tomas could see you, but you could see him perfectly. At this point, there was an indent in the ground where you usually kneel. This day sure was hot which meant a better show for you.

By the time you got there he was already pretty sweaty and his top was off. His breathing was heavy and he was even letting out a few whine due to the heat. Poor thing, he is out of his element. He wiped the sweat off his forehead before continuing to train. You watched him slash and kick the training dummy. His grunts were loud and clear to you. He was doing good for about five minutes before he needed another break.

He walked over to the shade that was provided by the trees. He lays on the ground to relax his muscles and catch his breath. You had to peek your head up a little more to get a view of him. Your heart started beating like crazy just looking at him. He even started pushing his pants down a little to reduce the feeling of being suffocated by his clothes. There goes your mind running wild again.

Girls can have dirty thoughts as well. You shouldn’t feel guilty for staring at him and wondering if that’s what he would look like if you were riding him. All hot and bothered, getting all sweaty and breathing heavily. You’d wonder if he would groan or if he would whimper. You can imagine both. He’s a tough guy but he can also be a softie. You would do anything just to get him like that in bed. That’s if you could get him in bed. You haven’t asked him out.

No matter, if this is the most you could get so be it. You just can’t risk getting caught.

Snap

Uh oh…

You ducked down immediately when you heard the snap of a twig. Tomas heard it too and immediately turned in your direction. When you looked down you saw your knee on top of the broken twig. How could you have missed that?

You heard the sound of grass being stepped on and knew Tomas coming your way. You crawled like your life depended on it. You crawled back in the direction you came from until you were a good enough distance away. Only then did you get on your feet and run out of there. By the time Tomas looked over the shrubbery and the boulder you were gone. Not a trace of you was left. Except there was. On closer inspection, he saw the indent in the ground. He immediately knew someone was watching him. But who and why? He can’t leave this unsolved. Though he might have an idea of who it is.

══💤══╡°˖✧🦊✧˖°╞══💤══

Well, no wonder your uniform was always dirty.

The first thing Tomas noticed when he went back to the temple was that your pants were dirty. The dirt was specifically on your knee area. How suspicious.

He played it cool. He didn’t want you to suspect him of anything. He acted normal throughout the day, talking to you about mundane things like it was any other day. You fell for his act. You believed you got away with it. He didn’t know you were the one taking a peek at him. Oh, but he knows. He just needs to prove his theory right.

The next day came and you were walking into the forest by instinct. You’re like a teen going into the woods to smoke weed to avoid being grounded by your parents. You needed to go and get your fixing.

Your beautiful man was already there. He had his shirt off as usual though it wasn’t all that hot. There was a nice breeze that shook the leaves. It felt like it was 65 degrees outside. But you paid no mind to that. All you cared about was looking at Tomas. You got to your usual spot and knelt down.

All was going well until five minutes in. You saw Tomas take something out of his pocket before smashing it onto the ground. Smoke, it was a smoke bomb. He was gone in the blink of an eye. You expected him to show up again after a second but he didn’t. Where did he go and why do you feel eyes on you?

“Heh, I guess I was right.”

You heard Tomas’ voice behind you. You were caught. Game over man!

Your face burned hotter than the day. That 65 degrees felt like 90 now. You turned around and saw Tomas standing there. His arms were crossed and he looked somewhat intrigued. He looked like he was waiting for an explanation from you. You watched his lips twitch a little as he held himself back from smiling.

He’s happy that you aren’t some assassin but seeing that it’s you, it’s kinda funny. He finds it even sillier that you are struggling to give him an explanation.

“I…I was…so what I was doing was…” You don’t have the right words, you may never have the right words.

Because how else are you gonna explain that you’ve been watching him every day? The ground doesn’t lie, the evidence is in the indent. You were a peeping tom who watched him take his top off every day.

“I’m still waiting for an explanation.” He said.

You knelt and bowed your head to apologize to him. Your embarrassment prevented you from telling him the truth. All you could manage to do was apologize and wonder if he would see you in a bad light now. The truth is you are a pervert there is no way around that. Your behavior is unacceptable hence you are a pervert. There should be no surprise that Tomas would think the same way.

“You’re a strange girl, you know that right? I would have preferred you to be upfront about this.”

…I have a bad read on these characters.

You lifted your head up to look at him with a mixture of shock and awe. The awe was because of the angle you were getting. I mean, good lord, you wouldn’t mind being on your knees aga—

“So…does that mean I can stay?”

The only response you got from Tomas was a head shake with a smile on his face. He walked past you to get back to training. He turned back once he realized you didn’t move from your spot.

“Are you coming or are you staying behind the rock like a pervert?” He yelled to you.

Well, I guess he does see you as a pervert. But it seems like he doesn’t mind all that much. So get off your knees and get a front-row seat.

Yap notes: My brain is mush and there is too much fruit in this damn den 🍊🍓. Adiós!

[seventhstrife]

Know Your Enemy PT.3

💙💛SubScorp Week 2022 - Day 1- Vampire AU💙💛

Link on AO3~

RATING: Mature

PAIRINGS: Kuai Liang/Hanzo Hasashi

TAGS: Alternate Universe - Vampire, Enemies to Lovers, Vampire Hanzo Hasashi, Hunter Kuai Liang, Angst, hanzo’s in this of course there’s angst, Canon-Typical Violence, POV Kuai Liang

@subscorp-week

Chapter 3/?

"We won't get anywhere if Hanzo won't listen."

Takeda said this with barely-veiled frustration. He huffed at the ground, knee bouncing in agitation.

They were at a stalemate. The only way the hunt could be lifted from this city would be if they plead their case directly to the Grandmaster, but Takeda wouldn't go without Hanzo, and Hanzo had made his stance on the matter abundantly clear.

How Takeda managed to sneak away again when Hanzo no doubt had his eye on him was a mystery, but when Kuai Liang and Tomas had returned to the meeting spot—not with any real belief the vampires would be there, but finding it necessary to check just in case—they'd found an envelope waiting for them. Plain, white, with only a scrap of paper inside with a hastily scrawled address.

It was only too obvious it had been meant for them and they had followed the directions here, to the far side of the city where a modest dock lay. Deserted at this time of night, which suited their purposes perfectly.

Takeda had perched himself on the blunt head of a wooden beam that supported the dock, seemingly unconcerned that two hunters stood feet from him.

Was he brave, or foolish? He made it hard to tell at times.

"Then the hunt must be honored."

To Kuai Liang's surprise, Takeda rolled his eyes.

"Yeah, like you're gonna hunt me."

Kuai Liang narrowed his eyes. "Excuse me?"

"You don't want to hunt me," Takeda said, like Kuai Liang was being dull. "Not anymore."

It was true, but—

"And what makes you think that?"

For a second, Takeda just stared at him, brow knitted with perplexion. Then his expression cleared.

"Right," he said. He raised his hand and wiggled his fingers near his temple in a vague gesture. "Telepath."

Kuai Liang did not consciously choose to react, but whatever his face did made Takeda quick to add, "Don't worry, it's not like I'm reading your minds all the time! I'm more sensitive to emotions anyways. I really have to dig for actual thoughts. The first time we met, I kept an ear out, so to speak. Once you stopped wanting to kill me, I didn't have a reason to look anymore."

A mind reader. No wonder he had been so quick to end their fight and meet with them. He had the confidence of knowing their very thoughts.

Kuai Liang exhaled harshly, trying to push past this latest, grating revelation. It was in the past and nothing could be done.

Kuai Liang approached Takeda, an odd cross between annoyed and exasperated to see how the boy didn't even flinch. Just two nights ago, Kuai Liang had come perilously close to driving a stake through his heart.

He knelt before Takeda to put them at better eye level, arm braced on one knee.

"Well, it would seem you have the advantage of knowing our character," he said with some irony. "So maybe you're willing to indulge our own questions."

"Uh, sure," Takeda said, glancing up at Tomas and back to Kuai Liang. "Shoot."

Kuai Liang turned up his palm in a casual wave. "What is your story? How is it you and Hanzo are so different from the vampires we've encountered?"

Tomas drifted closer too, just as curious, but his rigid posture had relaxed now that there seemed to be no pretense among them.

"Oh, well..." Takeda trailed off, glancing aside. His leg kicked out and swung lazily. "I'm like this because of Hanzo, really. When I first turned..." His brow furrowed. "It's all kind of a blur, to tell you the truth. But I was probably like any other vampire. I remember being angry. And hungry. But Hanzo pulled me out of it. Helped me remember who I was. I think—I know now, after what he said last night—he still feels guilty. For turning me. But he didn't have much choice."

Kuai Liang frowned. Turning someone—that was a choice, no matter what someone might say. How could he be forced to do something like that?

"What do you mean?"

"I was dying," Takeda explained simply. "My father had enemies, and they found me and my mom. They killed her," and he said that so flatly Kuai Liang knew the memory still pained him, "and almost killed me before he got there, but I was...badly injured." Takeda's eyes had gone distant as he spoke and his hand drifted to his stomach. "Apparently, my dad saved Hanzo's life once upon a time. I don't know, they won't tell me what happened, but I do know my dad brought my body to Hanzo and reminded him of that owed favor. So, yeah." Takeda shrugged. "No choice."

The mysteries only seemed to multiply with each layer these vampires revealed of themselves.

"That still doesn't explain why you're both so odd," Tomas pointed out, brow raised.

To Kuai Liang's never-ending dissatisfaction, Takeda merely shrugged again.

"I don't know. You'd have to ask Hanzo."

Right back where they started.

"Hm." Kuai Liang considered that, then rose. "I think I will."

"Wait, what?"

"I'll make you a deal," Kuai Liang said, warming up to the idea. "If you can arrange to have Hanzo meet me, I will convince him of your mission."

Takeda and Tomas stared at him as if he'd lost his mind. Kuai Liang fought the urge to smile and merely met Takeda's gaze patiently.

The gaping mouth snapped shut and Takeda nodded quickly, eyes wide.

"Y-yeah, okay. I'll, uh. I'll talk to him."

Kuai Liang inclined his head. "Then I'll be here tomorrow night."

Without another word, he walked away, heard the belated, quick pace of Tomas catching up with him.

"You seem confident," Tomas said dubiously. "That man hates us, you realize?"

Kuai Liang was counting on that.

"I can be very persuasive."

💙💛

Tomas had been less than pleased when Kuai Liang announced he would be meeting Hanzo alone, but it was a necessary evil. Hanzo already detested hunters and the sight of Kuai Liang would set him ill at ease, but he could at least mitigate a small fraction of Hanzo's wariness by coming alone.

"Do not die," Tomas had half-threatened, half-pleaded. "I'm the one who will have to explain your actions if you do."

And Hanzo was indeed there, no Takeda in sight, when Kuai Liang arrived at the docks just shy of midnight—making him certain his decision to have Tomas stay behind was the right one.

He was dressed just the same, all black combat gear, masked, hood pulled up to shadow his face—though it did nothing to lessen the intense, glowing white of his eyes, shifting bright the very moment Kuai Liang came into view. He stood inhumanely still, a wrathful, deadly monolith, as dark and ominous as a reaper.

Each time Kuai Liang saw him, his heart sped up with remembered excitement. He wondered if it would ever stop.

"You came," Kuai Liang observed, stopping a generous distance away. Every inch of Hanzo's body language declared deadly intent. "Are you willing to listen to reason?" he asked.

"I am here to threaten you with certain death if you do not leave the city," Hanzo said.

Kuai Liang crossed his arms, unimpressed. "And if I refuse?"

In answer, Hanzo rushed him with superhuman speed, in Kuai Liang's space and attacking whip-fast in the blink of an eye.

But this time Kuai Liang was ready, was prepared for him, and he blocked the brutal blow, deflecting it with conjured ice.

They did not speak for a long time after that.

Hanzo fought just as he had before: with every intention of ripping Kuai Liang's heart from his chest. He never hesitated, never faltered, and each strike spoke of skill honed nearly to perfection.

But Kuai Liang was better equipped this time, armed with the knowledge of how Hanzo moved, knew Hanzo was armed even when he didn't have a weapon in his hand, and he kept his focus, patient as they moved across the docks, lighting the air with fire and ice.

And at long last, when Hanzo had to duck to avoid the long reach of Kuai Liang's ice spear to protect his side, Kuai Liang seized the opportunity, sending a burst of frost to lock Hanzo's leg in place—just long enough to tackle him to the ground.

Hanzo bucked, eyes creased in a deep scowl, but he froze when he felt a blade pressed to his throat.

"Have you gotten it out of your system?" Kuai Liang fought for a level tone of voice, in direct contrast to his madly racing heart.

Hanzo's eyes widened, then narrowed again in renewed anger.

"Is this a game to you?"

"You are the one acting childishly," Kuai Liang retorted, and he was forced to press his blade even more firmly when Hanzo jerked in an aborted move of mutiny. "Takeda has been very brave and risked a lot to see a better future for the both of you; you should see the wisdom in his actions."

"What is the point in begging a butcher not to do his job?" Hanzo asked caustically. "Takeda is young. He does not understand how the world works."

"I've had plenty of opportunities to kill you both," Kuai Liang said with a pointed tap of his knife. "Yet I haven't. What pessimistic explanation do you have for that?"

"It is a trap—"

"It is not," Kuai Liang pressed. "I would not waste my time luring you back when killing you on the spot would be both quicker and easier. The risk of giving you the location of our base makes that plan foolish at best. If nothing else, trust in that."

Hanzo glared up at him but did not seem to have some ready rebuttal.

"If you and Takeda truly are what you claim to be, I have no wish to kill you," Kuai Liang said honestly.

"Why do you care?" Hanzo threw back. He sounded as angry as ever, but his eyes gave him away, the glowing white leaking away until they were dark once more. This close, Kuai Liang could see they were a rich brown. "We are still vampires, no matter what you say. Your natural enemy."

"I care because I've met you. Seen you. And I believe the evidence of my eyes. Takeda is right; you are men of principle." Ever so slightly, Kuai Liang pulled back the razor-sharp edge of his knife. "What more reason do I need?"

They stared at one another. Hanzo's glare against Kuai Liang's, neither backing down, neither willing to blink.

Slowly, the anger leaked out of Hanzo's gaze to make way for something far more uncertain, until at long last, he turned his head aside.

"...Get off of me," he finally said, flat.

Wary, Kuai Liang hesitated, but Hanzo didn't look to be readying another attack, so he dispelled his ice and rose. When he stood, he offered Hanzo his hand.

Hanzo had pushed himself up into a sitting position, but paused when he saw Kuai Liang's outstretched palm.

There was something about those defiant eyes that never ceased to compel Kuai Liang's singular, undivided attention. He might never tire of it.

Hanzo's gaze fell to Kuai Liang's hand and he stared at it, brows furrowed, as if contemplating the deepest mysteries of the universe.

Then, at long last, surprising Kuai Liang even though he'd been the one to offer, Hanzo clasped his upper arm.

Automatically, Kuai Liang hauled him up, unoffended when Hanzo dropped him almost before he'd fully risen. Getting even that was more than he'd expected.

"...Fine," Hanzo said unhappily. "I will...consider...this idiotic plan."

Kuai Liang fought the urge to smile as victory suffused his veins. Fighting seemed to be the only language Hanzo spoke and he felt more than gratified his gamble to earn his respect this way had paid off.

"That's all I ask."

Hanzo stared straight into his eyes, fierce and distrusting and fearless.

"If you are lying, I will kill you."

Amused, Kuai Liang replied, "I wouldn't dare."

Hanzo watched him for another beat, suspicion screaming from his very pores. He seemed unsure what the make of Kuai Liang's response.

Abruptly, Hanzo turned around and walked away, a black shadow that disappeared into the darkness. Kuai Liang watched him go, and when he was completely alone, he took a deep, deep breath, and let it out very slowly.

Hanzo was gone, but he didn't feel as if the danger had passed at all.

...He tried to remind himself that was not a good thing.

[mortal-kombat-stuff]

¤First Kiss¤

Baraka

Your first kiss with Baraka caught him off guard, you were watching as he sparred with another Tarkatan that began to pick a fight with him. You, of course, were worried but didn't want to interfere since this has happened before and, as always, Baraka remained victorious as the other Tarkatan limped away. After pestering him back into your shared tent, you looked over him for any injuries. Baraka, enjoying the attention from you, let you do as you pleased to make sure he was alright. After tending to a minor injury, you placed a kiss on his right cheek and expressed how worried you were about him. He remained in a daze, having never experienced a kiss from anyone, before asking you what that was. Stopping mid-rant, you explained it was a kiss before returning to your worries but before you could Baraka pulled you by the waist close to him and asked for another one. Needless to say, kisses have become one of his favorite things about having a human mate.

Erron Black:

Your first kiss with Erron happened after he surprised you by arriving home after a two-week job that required him to do some traveling. You were in your pajamas and laying on the couch, watching your favorite movie when he came in. Immediately, you jumped up and ran towards him in a hug not caring about the dirt that covered him. Erron greeted you with open arms as he returned your embrace, missing your warmth. Not thinking, He lifted your chin and kissed you before mumbling an 'I missed you, Darling.'  After you both pulled away for air, Erron went back for another kiss until you stopped him as he frowned, you explained that you may have enjoyed the kiss but if he wants another then he's going to have to shower first, you ushered the cowboy to the shower with the promise of continuing after he was cleaned.

Fujin:

Your first kiss with Fujin happened during a walk on the shoreline to wrap up your beach date, the two of you were sharing stories of your life and laughing at one of Fujin's stories. You admired the smile that adorned his face as he spoke of his friends and comrades, you found Fujin's outspoken personality to be one of his most attractive features as well as his loyalty to those he cherishes. As you grabbed hold of his hand to stop him, you pulled the Wind God down towards you as you placed a kiss on his cheekbone before letting go. Fujin's eyes brightened as his smile widened, pulling you towards him to thank you and exclaiming his happiness by bouncing a bit which reminded you of a puppy before returning the action as he continued to smile for the rest of the walk. From then on Fujin goes out of his way to make sure he can sneak a kiss from you whenever the two of you are in the same vicinity.

Kung Lao:

Your first kiss with Lao happened during one of your movie nights, you were snuggled up next to Lao in one of your fluffy blankets with his arm draped across you, after one of the scenes in the movie you both began a little debate about which character would win in a fight. Lao looks at you with a hint of amusement and pride as you rested your chin on his chest, a small fire in your eyes as you explained why your favorite character would win. Honestly, Lao stopped caring about who would win but his eyes remained fixated on your lips. After a few moments, Lao decided to be brave and captured your lips in a kiss. It was soft and full of love as he cupped your face, both of you pulled away as your faces turned a bright red. From then on, kisses become a daily routine and, unlike his training with the monks, Lao never misses a day.

Raiden:

Your first kiss with Raiden happened at his Temple, the two of you went walking outside on the open balcony because you wanted to go out and get some fresh air with him. While the two of you relaxed, Raiden began to share his most memorable stories as you listen intently. The Thunder God grew flustered at how close you both were and froze in his spot with your faces inches from each other. As you made the move to connect your lips, Raiden was unsure of what to do and let you take the lead trying to copy your movements.

Dark Raiden was startled at first when he felt your lips press against him, but he slowly grew confident with the kiss before he took the lead, pressing you flush against his chest as he placed his hand on the back of your neck to get better control of the kiss. He may not have had much experience in this department, but he's a quick learner and refused to be outdone by anyone, not even his S/O. Needless to say, both learned to enjoy this form of affection from you as well as return the gesture.

Scorpion:

Your first kiss with Hanzo happened during one of your naps in the Fire Garden. As Grandmaster, Hanzo doesn't have much free time but when he does it’s always spent with you. During his break, he was worried when you didn't show up as you usually would around whenever he had spare time. So, he went out to look for you and after a few minutes, it was then that he found you asleep on a pile of leaves under the shade of one of the trees. Hanzo smiled softly before picking you up and bringing you to your shared bedroom, as he set you down you woke up and, in a sleep state, placed a kiss on his cheek as Hanzo grew warm with his usual grumpy face turning soft as he smiled before returning the favor.

Sub-Zero:

As I mentioned before Kuai is touch starved and is easily flustered when it comes to physical affection, and a kiss? Kuai.exe. has stopped working. When the two of you share a kiss his face and ear flush red as he's frozen in his spot. Your first kiss happens when the two of you are in bed and Kuai confesses his doubts about himself and his abilities. You, upset over hearing Kuai doubt himself so much, embrace the Cryomancer before placing a tender kiss on his lips, showering him in praises and listing all of the things you love about him especially his strength, both physical and intellectual, as well as his kindness, etc. Kuai froze for a moment, as his face grew warm at your praises and choice of affection but he allows himself to relax in your hold. And whenever Kuai's confidence wavers a quick kiss usually never fails to ease his worries, which makes him all the more grateful and lucky knowing that he has you in his life.

[archived-zombbean]

Kuai, Hanzo, Cyrax, Smoke, and Kabal teaching their S/O to kill

Kuai Liang

"It's never easy," Kuai says as he holds the small creature in his hands, a bunny he'd captured specifically for this lesson, "But it is necessary that you learn, for I may not always be there to protect you,"

He holds the blade in his hands before turning it over to you. A tightness in your throat makes the act that much harder.

Looking from Kuai to the small creature you can't help but shake your head. No. No you couldn't... You wouldn't.

Kuai's eyes soften. He understands. He knows your afraid. He knows it hurts to harm a living creature no matter how small.

He cups his hands around yours.

"Remember to make the strike quickly, it won't feel a thing," he speaks calmly, although it's tearing him up inside.

He never wanted this for you. But he knows there's no other choice. You have to be prepared.

With a swift strike, he brings his hands down with yours. Not a sound was made.

Tears bubble in your eyes and it breaks his heart. He feels your pain.

Cradling you in his arms he rubs your back, "You did so well dear heart, I promise it didn't feel a thing,"

Hanzo Hasashi

Hanzo brings a rabbit and settles the small creature infront of you. His eyes are stern, but his posture tells you he is uncomfortable with the idea. You'd insisted on learning to kill, in case the need ever arose.

"This is not an easy task," he reminds you, and you understand this clearly.

It doesn't stop the nervous thud of your heart. You didn't know what to expect when Hanzo agreed to teach you, but a defenseless rabbit was not what you'd intended.

"You mist remember all life is precious," he adds, pulling out a kunai and handing it over to you, "Everything you kill comes with consequences, and although it gets easier with time, you will only gain more blood on your hands,"

He waits. Watching you. His eyes fixated on your movements.

You decide it's time to try.

Bringing the blade down, a horrific scream drowns your ears. Panic bubbles up in your chest.

It sounds human.

Hanzo's eyes are harsh, "You started this, finish it!" you can tell it pains him. You can tell he doesn't wish any of this.

Another swipe of the blade and the screaming stops.

Hanzo pulls you into a hug. He doesn't let go.

"That is what you'll have to face. The screams will never stop. The guilt will never fade. You have to accept this to kill,"

Kabal

Kabal is against the idea from the beginning. Him killing? Sure. You killing? That's a problem.

He doesn't know where to begin. He rattles his brain until the opportunity presents itself. Dinner.

He'd gotten a fresh rabbit from the woods near the hideout and left it alive. You wanted to learn to kill? This was the best way.

He approaches you and pauses, rubbing the back of his head. He's never had to explain how to kill before. Everyone just knew how.

He holds out his hooked blade, "Take it, hold it in your hands for a minute,"

It's heavy. You can hardly balance the blade in your hands before Kabal speaks again.

"Ya feel that? That's the weight of your sins when ya kill somethin'. It gets lighter the more ya kill, because practicing makes you better at it,"

He pulls the hare from a small bag, and lays it out infront of you. The terrified creature looks up at you, and you have to pause.

"Don't back out now," Kabal warns, crossing his arms over his chest, "Everything has value, even the dead, this, for example, is dinner,"

He motions for you to move closer. The weight of the blade in your hands feels unbearable. You swallow and close your eyes.

THUNK!

It cuts clean through.

Your hands shake as you drop the sword, hands coming up to hide your tears.

Kabal pauses. He knows what it's like. To kill for survival. A lesson he learned early.

Grabbing your shoulders, he makes you look at him, "Good job princess, just like that. Never hesitate and you'll never have to worry about being harmed again,"

Cyrax

He's been trained to kill. It's honed his skills. But when you approach him with the idea of learning to kill, his mind goes blank. How do you teach someone beyond a child's age to kill?

He stops and ponders how to go about it. Finally he finds an answer.

He takes you to the outskirts of the temple, where the rabbits roam the wild. It's an easy way to learn, and an easy way to teach stealth.

"It's something you need to learn to do, you won't always get the chance to strike back, so strike first," he nods to you, handing you his blaster.

It's just like a gun right? Nothing too hard right? Except you've never held a gun. You've never held the life of another creature in you hands.

"Just aim for the body. It's so small, it's death should be instant," Cyrax reassures you, but it doesn't feel reassuring at all.

You aim the blaster on your wrist, and shoot a hole right through the poor creatures body.

You fall back on your rear, dirt settling in your fall. You killed it. It looked so gruesome. It looked horrible.

Your chest squeezed tight before a pair of arms wrapped around your shoulders, small kisses being placed to your skull. Cyrax knows you wouldn't handle it well. He knows how much it hurts. He knows that jist because you can push a button to kill, it doesn't make it easier.

"Shhh, shhhh, it's alright, I've got you," he says, rubbing small circles on your back, "You must brave through it and try again, til the pain dulls and you're able to stand on your own,"

Tomas

Death. Something he, himself has faced. Something he never wished to expose you to. He's explained the process to you, explained how to do it, and even had you practice beforehand. He knows its an unpleasant experience for those who have never killed before, but he can at least make the experience easier.

He needed to teach you how to kill. There was no work around it. Fate may one day bring you to have to kill his demons. Or your enemies.

He's sure to give you a sharp blade, he doesn't want any mistakes. He's never been perfect, but for once he wishes this would go smoothly. He's helped teach children the same things, and now, for some reason, he struggles with you.

He holds the rabbit in his hands. He explains vital areas. He points out places that would render it dead quickly, places to avoid, and areas that would render the animal immobile.

he knows you would choose to kill it quickly.

He feels your pain as metal cuts through flesh, and blood stains the sharpened blade. You weren't expecting a rabbit to be the thing you had to murder.

Tomas holds your hands. He praises you for a job well done. He comforts you should you need to cry. He understands.

"Death is never easy, but we can at least make it as painless of an experience as possible,"

[chaosrealm-mk-imagines]

How would Fujin, Quan chi Shang tsung Kung lao and Kuai Liang purpose their s/o? 💍

Thats a good one! I hope you like it, thanks for the request!

Fujin

- Needed some time to understand about marriage and what it meant between mortals, he takes the idea very serious and will only propose if he truly wants to remain the rest of his times with his beloved. Fujin used to think that a god would never be allowed to have such joy, but he understood with time that he was the one who made his own choices and not some elders who didn’t even cared for mortals.

Fujin approaches slowly, he has asked his S/O in a date. They were at the place they first meet, his beloved thought it would be something special indeed but had no idea of what was coming. He stops in front of his loved one, holding their hands and looking at their eyes in a sincere passionate glaze. Fujin’s silence is broken by his soft words, they shaken a little at his clear nervous state but by no means stop being honest.

“I’ve been known you for time enough to be sure of this, there is no problem if you don’t want to...” He gets in his knees, still holding his S/O hands “Would you marry me?” His eyes are the ones of a puppy, with a frown and an evident fear of rejection at his sharp features, still he would accept a no for an answer, Fujin has all the time in the world for getting married.

Quan Chi

- Marriage is something that the Necromancer never thought to be possible for him, at Netherrealm such things are frowned upon and mocked by most of the demons as they torture lost souls. The idea of spending eternity with his loved one is indeed tempting, be he’s not sure if they would accept it.

Quan Chi is at the throne room, drinking from his skull chalice as he awaits his servants to bring his loved one to him. He asked his undeads to scout his S/O in safety to Netherrealm, making sure they were not mistreated. When they arrived with his dearest along, the necromancer couldn’t help but smile a lot at it as he dismissed his servants and raised from his seat. Quan Chi stepped down and walked in a slow and silent pace until reaching his S/O, offering them his hand.

“Darling, I’d like to propose to you.” He says with his evergloom voice, caressing the knuckles of their hand with his fingers as he looks them in the eyes “Eternity is a monotonous existence when alone, but with you every day would be perfect. Please, let me love you to death.” Quan Chi is a patient man, rejection is something he alredy expects and that makes him never be afraid to speak his mind. 

Shang Tsung

- Being born and raised within Earthrealm customs had lead Shang Tsung to believe marriage as a fake idea, when he left to Outworld he almost forgot about how humankind was deluded with the idea of loving someone to death. He never thought that this idea would pass through his mind flooded by evil plans, but the soulstealer saw himself with a growing desire for proposing to his beloved.

The island was stunning then ever, the magic that raised the place seemed to be stronger. The flora was radiant, the sky bright and with a beautiful rainbow crossing it. Shang Tsung was at the courtyard of his fortress, bringing his beloved to him by magic. They were surprised by being brought for a visit, looking with him with doubt. He had thought enough about it to be sure of his decision, he wanted to spend the rest of his life with someone he truly loved and that was his first and maybe last chance of finding true happiness.

“Care to listen to a sorcerer’s pledge?” He asked, walking in circles around his S/O, watching every reaction they could have “I used to think that love was a lie, and marriage as well. After meeting you, I felt things within my soul that not even eternity was able to provide me. Would you accept marrying me?” The wizard stops in front of his beloved, showing them a beautiful ring in form of a serpent with sapphire eyes that seemed to glow. He smiled, allowing a soft expression full of hope to appear at his face, the mistery was killing him.

Kung Lao

- Being married was never an option for Kung Lao, monks had their duties and wouldn’t allow themselves to be distracted by mundane things such as love. Kung Lao desired from the deep of his heart to one day be able to meet someone who would make him feel special, but with time he accepted that such love was not meant for him, as he was no ordinary man but instead a warrior who had sworn to protect Earthrealm. It all changed when he meet a special someone who made him relieve those old desires. He’s confident at his skills as a fighter, but is afraid to propose as he doesn’t think to be an ideal lover.

The shaolin monk was unusually quiet that day, his S/O was worried that something bad had happened, asking him what was wrong. Kung Lao remained silent for the rest of the day, leaving a grim mistery surrounding his beloved. When night falled upon them, he brought his loved one to the top roofs of the temple, joining them in stargazing.

“See those stars? They are not as bright as your smile.” He starts, smiling a lot and trying to be serious for once “I’m sorry for today, but there is something that I’ve been wanting to ask you for a while...” Kung Lao cleared his throat, needing some seconds to remember what he planned saying but his mind went blank so he had to speak from heart. “I love you. Please, let me be your chosen one... I mean, husband...” He can’t believe what he just said so he starts laughing, Kung Lao feels miserable in a weird good way and no matter the answer he gets, he will still love them.

Kuai Liang (Sub Zero II)

- Marriage is something Kuai sees as very serious and important, he would never propose without being truly in love and sure of his words. As a traditional man, he may be the vanilla kind of lover but always romantic indeed. For the Lin Kuei marriage is more than just a civil engagement, they see it as a honour that shall endure for the nexts generations as a new family joins their clan.

Sub-Zero was overthinking again about marriage, he wanted to propose but was too shy for doing it without looking ridiculous, so he decided to write a poem. Kuai took a long time creating his love letter, it not only was about his love for them but also about their qualities and beauty from inside to outside. When he was done, he started thinking of how to delivery it. Kuai Liang was at the courtyard of the temple, he had called his S/O for an important subject there, but when they arrived he was simply building a snowman.

“Darling, care to help me?” He asked, smiling and allowing them to come closer.

As his beloved helped him with the snowman, he growned anxious. “What is this?” He pointed, it was a paper edge that was getting out of the snowman head. As his loved one pulled it, they got an envelope in hands. Kuai smiled and they got the message that it was to be read. A ring was also inside the envelope and as his S/O read the letter his heart beated faster. When they finished, he was flustered and embarassed by his idea, they holded the ring and were shocked by the proposal at such cute moment. Kuai remained silent, waiting for their answer as his anxiety growned.

[cienie-isengardu]

Your latest post has finally spurred me into asking you this. Based on his bio, his intros with Liu Kang, and everything else you brought up, what do you think about Tomas being the traitor instead of Bi-Han? Or, if NRS really wanted to go all out with the 3D era references in MK1, both Bi-Han and Tomas being traitors, and being the New Era Noob-Smoke? Or Sub-Smoke, rather, due to Bi-Han being Sub-Zero.

Tomas being the traitor for sure would create more surprising plot twist than what we got with not-so-subtly choice of Bi-Han, as Sub-Zero’s betrayal was hinted in his and Scorpion’s biographies way before the full story mode was revealed:

[...] Under his leadership, the Lin Kuei will come out of the shadows and fight for its place as one of Earthrealm’s great nations.

and

But Sub-Zero's unprecedented moves to cast off Lin Kuei's traditional duties have frozen Scorpion’s enthusiasm. He fears that he may one day have to battle his brother for control of the Lin Kuei's legacy.

A hint also supported by the earliest officially shared Liu Kang vs Sub Zero intro dialogues, especially the “Your actions cost lives, Bi-Han!” and “Earthrealm isn't yours to rule”.

So, in all fairness, the most surprising choice of the Lin Kuei subplot wasn’t Bi-Han’s betrayal per se but rather showing us mainly the already tense relationship between brothers, which in my opinion didn’t fully use the emotional impact the shattered brotherhood could otherwise have had. Of course, the game's storyline is a specific medium and with such a big cast, there is limited space to explore in depth characters’ psyche and thus some plots feel rushed to fit the greater scheme of things. Granted, the storyline and intro dialogues provided us enough nuances to know the conflict between Lin Kuei brothers is not so one-dimensional, even if so far only Bi-Han’s desire for freedom and independence is flashed out, while Scorpion & Smoke’s desire to uphold tradition seems to be solely the “good guys” thing. And don’t get me wrong, characters who have a strong moral sense are cool and inspiring on their own, but Kuai Liang and Tomas through the story mode have never given any real counterargument why the tradition should be upheld in the first place or how it benefit the clan, besides it was their father’s teaching.

(And I do find the “Lin Kuei only serves” mindset disturbing, when one remembers the clan members are trained from childhood to fight, to kill, and if needed to die for Earthrealm and doesn’t that resemble the Umgadi system whose members are denied any ties to family as their  main purpose is to serve the Royal Family? There is a huge difference between an adult person choosing on their own to dedicate their life to service in greater good - a very admirable trait! - and teaching children they are destined to be someone’s servants, because it’s the great “honor” and “tradition” that must be upheld. Just saying.)

Now, Bi-Han as the traitor (more or less) makes sense within the provided storyline, especially if we add the expanded knowledge about his motives and goals coming from intro dialogues. In contrast, Tomas is pretty much sidelined through the course of story mode and really, if not for the direct ties to adoptive brothers and intro dialogues, he could as well not be in the story at all. 

If the story played as it played, I fear Smoke’s choice to betray would not have that big impact, unless the truth about Liu Kang’s role as Keeper of Time came out (and with that his part in Smoke’s family death) or Shang Tsung managed to play on his desire to be seen as a true Lin Kuei while he is constantly denied the respect and omitted by other characters. Bi-Han is just a tip of the iceberg in that regard (and yet not once he denied Tomas right to consider himself the son of the late grandmaster or even his or Kuai Liang’s brother). In all fairness, Liu Kang contributes a lot to how Tomas is treated, as Fire Lord, despite the close relationship to Lin Kuei and being implied to be responsible for orphaning Tomas, literally did not acknowledge him in any meaningful way through the whole story mode. He has never called Smoke by his name, nor called him alongside the Sub-Zero and Scorpion (chapter 1 & 2) and despite Tomas’ fulfilling his duty to Earthrealm and helping in direct way to established Shirai Ruy, his deeds are still omitted in favor of Kuai Liang. 

Frankly, despite being one of Grandmaster’s sons, Smoke is never taken into account when it comes to holding any title within Lin Kuei, as Kuai Liang is treated as obviously choice, both as the next Grandmaster of Lin Kuei (after Bi-Han) and the new leader of Shirai Ryu (and let’s not forget Scorpion was the strategist/leader during battle, even if technically this was his first war and there were more experienced characters, including Ermac/king Jerrod.) Kuai Liang is a great warrior, no question about that, but it really feels like Tomas is acknowledged only by his adoptive brothers. 

So, if played right, Shang Tsung (or even Bi-Han?) could talk Tomas into joining “the Liu Kang’s opposition”, as he holds resentment for Fire Lord over the death of his family (though that one works best AFTER the big revelation). Intro dialogues also provided information there was a time he did not consider being adopted into Grandmaster’s family as anything good, which of course is understandable, considering it was Grandmaster's men who killed Tomas’ mother and sister for a simple accidental trespassing on Lin Kuei land. 

Not to mention he was not adopted because of compassion per se, but because of Grandmaster’s guilt. Considering how Tomas went from disliking the man and/or situation he was forced into to almost blindly holding to “tradition this”, “traditions that” mindset, I wonder if we should consider him as a potential victim of Stockholm Syndrome?

Also, what is interesting, Smoke looked up to Bi-Han ("And to think I once idolized you."). Granted, we don’t know how young Sub-Zero acted back then, besides being cold to Tomas, as intro dialogue pointed out, but I think there is something to say about Tomas idolizing the one brother that openly challenged their Father’s ideas. We have of course only evidence of Bi-Han’s criticizing Lin Kuei old politics in current story mode however as Sub-Zero’s “frustrations ran deep”  it is possible he was outspoken about the issue before. So it makes sense to assume the idolizing happened back in the days when Tomas (most likely) resented the man that decided to adopt him after his men murdered his mother and twin sister over a trivial matter - and maybe Sub-Zero’s headbutting with Father was what impressed Tomas the most? As in, however cold Bi-Han was, at least he didn’t pretend everything was okay?

Smoke’s BIO gives him the LOYALTY as a main theme

- and despite what happened between the brothers, he still hope for reunion with Bi-Han and refuses to give up his estranged brother to anyone outside Shirai Ryu for judgment, so we can’t say he and Bi-Han had never been on good terms. 

Frankly, the visual side of story mode adds a lot to this feeling, as with exception of like two scenes (awaiting for Liu Kang/meeting room and joining Kuai Liang and Bi-Han after Sub-Zero’s fight with Nitara and Ermac), Smoke is the one standing at Bi-Han’s right side, not Kuai Liang - the de facto second-in-line of succession. 

I won’t lie, this is pretty surprising detail - and who knows, maybe Smoke is supposed to have soome importance after all and/or is the middle child, thus occupying the more symbolic (prestige) place, the same as Bi-Han was usually placed at Liu Kang’s right side, implying his higher status as Grandmaster.

I, for one, would love to see Tomas either betraying Liu Kang on his own or joining Bi-Han, so we could have a new take on the Noob-Smoke team, this time without Smoke being cyberized and cut from memories but also challenging Keeper of Time's choices by characters that weren't the main villains in previous timeline(s). My heart would be bleeding for Kuai Liang as his friendship with Tomas is a great part of Lin Kuei lore but then Tomas, story wise, had valid reasons to resent Liu Kang (death of family, never being acknowledged). I wouldn’t cross out the possibility of Smoke  joining Bi-Han in later events (or pretending to join to spy on him, because you know, Tomas is the master of stealth, so he should be good at that stuff) but I fear NRS is not gonna give him any meaningful focus anytime soon. Johnny was joking how Tomas “got the wholesome sidekick thing down cold.” but looking at MK1’s story mode this is not a joke, just a truth.