Mortal Kombat - Smoke Ch. 01

Sub-Zero nods. "Yes."

I swallow and nod slowly. "So tell me, why the hell did you come all the way out here to Vegas?"

The car is silent for a moment, then Stryker speaks up. "I had someone I needed to see down here. It's was a family emergency."

I close my eyes and sigh. Theses three men -- an emotionally damaged Cryomancer, a slightly-mental ex-Marine and a quiet ninja with an enenra attached to him -- are going to help me kill Quan Chi and stop Shao Khan. I take a deep breath and send a small prayer of safety to my gods, hoping they'll be able to watch over the four of us long enough to make sure we don't end up killing each other out of frustration.

We fight for the souls of living and the memories of the dead. You'll be saving countless lives because of this.

I open my eyes and readjust my rearview mirror, looking into it as I release the brake to make sure I don't plow into anyone. The instant I look into the glass, I slam my foot on the break, making all four of us jerk violently. The men all mutter angrily to each other about my lead foot; my eyes remain glued to my mirror.

Stryker notices my silence and reaches over to tap my shoulder. "Sara?"

I continue to stare at the mirror. Reflected in the glass in an image of two tall, bald men walking towards us from across the parking lot. They're both dressed in loose black pants, metal shin guards and white v-neck shirts with red and gold embroidery. Both men have hideous scarring and abrasions along their forearms, and their eyes are a bright, glowing gold. But the worst part of their appearance isn't their eyes, it's their mouths -- they have scalpels for teeth.

"Mother of fuck." My lip trembles as I whisper the words.

Stryker's eyes widen in concern as I stare at the mirror. "Sara? What it is?"

I draw in a sharp, fearful breath, my heart pounding and my lungs failing to work at full capacity. All the effort, all the time I spent trying to get these men out of harm's way has backfired. Despite never seeing us escape, Scorpion must have sensed Sub-Zero's presence in the store and alerted his fellow hunters. I've failed to protect them, and now every single person in that store is a target.

"Tarkatans," I whisper. "They've found us."

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So that's the end of chapter 1. I hope you enjoyed this story, because I do have plans to continue it. Tell me what you think in the comments section, and I'll continue working on whatever messed up ideas pop into my head.