From a Woman's Point of View

Blaze

Their arena was like an oven. Sub-zero wiped her face on her tunic after evading Blaze's attack. They were fighting in an open arena but the air around her was thick. The heat radiating from Blaze did nothing to help her. She whirled her sword around her, as if testing it, and ran towards Blaze. She jumped high up in the air and brought Taven's blade down on him. Before she could hit Blaze, however, Sub-zero was thrown back by a back pedal slap. She landed on her back. "Damn." Sub-zero groaned as she sat up, massaging her head briefly. As she did, Blaze situated himself a few feet from her and thrust one arm in front of him. Sub-zero's eyes widened as fire balls started appearing on his hand and shooting towards her. Still in a sitting position, Sub-zero crawled backwards while trying to deflect some of the fire balls that were sent her way. Ten or eleven fire balls later, Blaze stopped and jumped high up in the air. Sub-zero pushed herself up, evaded Blaze as he came crashing down on her, and slashed his arm. He roared out in pain, and to Sub-zero's surprise she, too, gasped in pain. She jumped backwards and saw minor burns on her exposed flesh. She looked at the gash on Blaze's arm.Lava was flowing from it. Great. Just perfect. She thought sarcastically. First, Reptile's saliva, now Blaze's blood? Will it ever end? She grabbed her weapon tightly as she slashed upwards, and Blaze somehow evaded it. How on Earthrealm is he even capable of evading, when he's larger than Onaga? She frowned. Blaze managed to dodge slash after slash. Sub-zero growled in annoyance. It was supposed to be impossible to move that quickly if one was larger than Dragon King. Sub-zero's next attempt was successful as she was able to wound Blaze. She froze the drops of lava which almost splattered on her bare skin. She lunged towards him, but he caught, with both hands, the blade inches away from his face. Sub-zero grabbed her sword with both of her hands and froze the sword with her cryomancer abilities. Blaze's hands started to grow darker, a sign that the lava in his hands was cooling. He tilted the blade sidewards, prying it out of Sub-zero's hands, and threw it high up into the air. Sub-zero blasted ice towards Blaze's face and, when he was distracted, leapt, grabbed her sword and slashed him across the chest as many times as she could. Blaze staggered back and roared once more before leaning forward and forming himself into what Sub-zero thought, looked like... "A ball?" Sub-zero voiced her shock out loud. It was so ridiculous. But when Blaze came rolling towards her like a cannonball, all thoughts of its being ridiculous were replaced by thoughts of getting killed there and then. She formed a wall of ice in front of her in hopes that it would be strong enough to block his attack. Her hopes let her down. Blaze destroyed her ice shield and Sub-zero was thrown off the arena. Sub-zero plunged her swoird into the side of the pyramid, to prevent her from falling a great distance away from the top. She breathed a sigh of relief as she reached upwards to grab on to the edge of the arena. She retracted her hand as soon as it reached the stone and looked down to find the man who threw the fireball at her. Her eyes found Kobra, who was tackled to the ground by Scorpion before he could throw more fireballs towards her. Sub-zero focused her attention to climbing back up. She pushed herself up and finally got back into the arena in time to see Blaze fighting Dairou. She wanted to go and get rid of him, but Sub-zero heard Taven yell in pain. She looked down and saw Mavado thrust his hooksword through Taven's shoulder. She wanted to go down and help Taven...but she promised him that she would fight Blaze. Two chained hooks appeared from behind Mavado and pierced his shoulders. The Red Dragon warrior, momentarily distracted, let go of his weapons and tried, in vain, to remove the claws from where they were impaled on both of his shoulders. Taven took this time to pull Mavado's (or Kabal's) hooksword from his shoulder. He put his hands on Mavado's chest and set him on fire. "Taven!" He looked up and nodded at her. Liu Kang, the one who had impaled the chained hooks on Mavado, threw him off the pyramid and watched in satisfaction as he screamed all the way down. "We can handle this! Just go and continue your fight with Blaze!" I doubt that. Sub-zero thought. He was injured badly. Taven could barely stand up a while ago. At least he has Liu Kang and Scorpion to help him. Sub-zero turned her attention back to Blaze, who had just thrown Dairou from the pyramid. Sub-zero did not even want to know how the man would look like after colliding with the ground. Blaze turned to her and raised his hands above his hand and formed them into fists. He promptly brought them down on the ground, which caused Sub-zero to fall on her behind. The whole pyramid shook because of Blaze's attack. Sub-zero could hear the screams of those who fell from it. She stood up and turned around as she heard familiar footsteps behind her. Upon reaching the arena, Sektor extended one arm and shot rockets at her. Sub-zero raised her hands, froze the rockets before it hit her and jumped out of the way to evade Blaze as he came charging towards her. Sub-zero looked over to where Sektor was standing and saw Cyrax grab him from behind and both rolled down the pyramid while trying to hit each other. Blaze turned around and faced her. His face, which Sub-zero thought harbored the same expression all the time, looked like it was glowing. Sub-zero gulped. Blaze leaned forward and opened his mouth. Sub-zero's expression turned into that of horror as fire emerged from his mouth and shot towards her. Sub-zero raised her arms in front of her and shot ice to negate the fire. Yet, the ice turned to water because of the extreme heat. It frustrated Sub-zero to no end that Blaze was such a powerful opponent. Sub-zero's concentration broke when a knife hit her in the back. She dodged to the side to avoid getting roasted alive by Blaze's fire. She reached to her back, grabbed the handle of the dagger and pulled it out. As Blaze was momentarily distracted by Rain who blasted him with water, Sub-zero turned around to face her opponent. She was clad in leather, both black and red and her red hair was up in pig tails. Sub-zero ducked as she threw another knife at her, and froze the floor beneath Kira. She did her best to keep her balance but still ended up slipping and falling from the top. Sub-zero shook her head. She wasn't much of an opponent. She was staring at Blaze as he threw Rain from the pyramid, and was unable to dodge Quan Chi's attack. Sub-zero was sent plummeting to the ground, face first. Sub-zero pushed herself upright and faced the necromancer. "You!" she accused him. "You're the reason I'm like this!" she gestured to her body. The necromancer smirked and surveyed her body from top to bottom. Sub-zero felt violated as he did. "Well," he grinned at her manically. "Would you consider being my slave after this fight is over, then?" Sub-zero looked at him in disgust and formed her Kori Blade in her left hand as Quan Chi drew both of his swords. It wouldn't be fair to fight with only one sword while your opponent had two. Quan Chi charged towards Sub-zero and slashed downward with one blade and upward with the other. Sub-zero blocked both of his attacks, crouched and kicked his shin. The sorcerer staggered back, and glowered at Sub-zero. He threw something at her, (it looked like a green skull to Sub-zero) and she was thrown a few feet back as it hit her. Sub-zero rolled to the left as Blaze jumped and landed on the spot where she once was. He spotted Quan Chi and turned his attention to him. Sub-zero sat up and winced at the pain in her chest. She had been trying to ignore her broken ribs, but it proved to be a difficult task. She ran towards Quan Chi and slashed him from behind while he was defending himself from Blaze. It wasn't exactly what Sub-zero would call a 'fair fight', but the sorcerer decided to interfere with her battle and he needed to be dealt with. Quan Chi kicked her and, at the same time, stabbed Blaze with one of his swords. He backed away from Blaze and turned to Sub-zero as she called his name. "Quan Chi!" she growled, her patience growing thin. "I will give you once chance to get out of this arena and stop interfering with my battle." Quan Chi merely 'hmphed' at her and turned towards Blaze who was currently fighting a female Shokan. Her patience ran out. She jumped at Quan Chi from behind and the two rolled across the arena kicking and punching each other. Their swords were thrown a few feet away from them. Sub-zero ended up on top and she pinned Quan Chi firmly on the ground. She formed a dagger in her hand and tried to hit Quan Chi's head with it. The sorcerer moved his head away from the sharp weapon and delivered a punch to Sub-zero's face. He took this opportunity to pin Sub-zero down, reversing their positions. "As much as I want to know what is under your Lin Kuei uniform, Sub-zero," Quan Chi breathed, "I have no time for you. So I just have to-," "Quan Chi!" somebody called him. He turned his head only to be hit by a fireball. Sub-zero rolled away as Quan Chi's grasp loosened. Sub-zero stood up and glanced over to her savior. "That was for Orin." Taven smirked triumphantly but he fell to his knees. Sub-zero rushed to his side. "Are you all right?" she helped him up. "Just a little dizzy." Taven clutched his shoulder. Sub-zero frowned at his pain. "Blood loss." Sub-zero did notice that he was bloody from head to toe. "Maybe you should-," "Rest?" Taven finished for her. "Think again, warrior." He grinned at her. Sub-zero shook her head at his words. They were almost the same as what she told him when he invaded the Lin Kuei Temple. "I will take care of Quan Chi. You take care of Blaze." Taven turned to the half-burnt necromancer. He picked up his swords and charged towards Taven. Sub-zero picked up Taven's and her swords and waited till Blaze finished off Sheeva. He swept her off the arena with one long arm. Blaze turned towards her and Sub-zero readied her blades. He roared before running towards her. Every step he took shook the pyramid. Blaze brought his right arm down at Sub-zero and she raised both of her swords to block it. He withdrew his arm and proceeded to punch her using his left one. Blaze's arm managed to scrape Sub-zero's arm because of its rough exterior. Sub-zero crouched as Taven's fireball almost hit her and jumped up as Quan Chi tried to sweep her off her feet. "I thought you were going to take care of him?" Sub-zero asked Taven as he sprinted to her side. "I just did." He nodded at Quan Chi's half-burnt body. Taven's fireball found its mark on Quan Chi as the sorcerer was distracted by Blaze's sudden appearance beside him. Blaze grabbed Quan Chi and crushed him in his hands. The sorcerer passed out and he was cast aside by Blaze. "Continue your fight." Taven gave her a light slap on the back and ran (limped quickly) back to where he was fighting off those who were climbing the pyramid. Sub-zero tightened her grip on Taven's blade and froze it. She charged towards Blaze. She ducked as his arm came swinging towards her head and jumped as the other tried to knock her off her feet. She crossed her blades and proceeded to cut Blaze across his chest. The ice coat in both of her blades cooled the lava, not letting any splatter on her. She jumped backwards and frowned at the 'X' mark on his chest. He has to have a weakness. A heart...or something. She thought as she jumped high in the air and impaled her sword on Blaze's head. He roared in pain and grabbed Sub-zero. He threw her across the arena. She landed on her feet, this time, and smirked triumphantly as she did. Maybe... Sub-zero ran across the arena, directly towards Blaze and with a forward spinning jump to avoid his arms, she plunged both of her swords into Blaze's chest, right in the middle of the "X" mark. As Blaze roared out in pain, Sub-zero focused all her energy and proceeded to freeze (or cool) Blaze's blood using her swords as a medium. She heard Taven's screams of agony as a sword slid through his stomach; Scorpion's yells of pain; Liu Kang's growls of annoyance. She focused her powers on freezing. When she saw that Blaze's chest was darker than the rest of him, she tightened her grasp on both of her swords and dragged them down his chest. It's like cutting through rock, Sub-zero thought. As the both blades reached the end of his chest, Sub-zero took them out and kneeled to evade Blaze's final attempt to injure her (not that his previous attempts didn't work). Blaze was shaking uncontrollably by now. Sub-zero could not determine what was happening until he let out a thunderous and prolonged "NO!" and exploded into tiny pieces. Sub-zero yelled as she felt Blaze's power pass through her. It was as if she were being burned alive. She let out a gasp as the energy passed through the entire crater. She breathed heavily and stood up as she heard somebody running towards her. She turned and saw Taven, looking exactly as he was when she first saw him. He was drenched in blood a while ago so how'd he get so clean? Taven bowed at her. "The forces of Darkness have gone back to their respective realms. Though that war isn't over yet, this battle has clearly been won by the Forces of Light." He told. "How'd you get so clean?" Sub-zero asked him. It was a random question, but she could care less. He smiled at her widely. "As the power Blaze's passed through my armor, I became a full god and my clothes became clean again." He laughed, and then abruptly, his expression turned confused. "Though I wonder why I became the full god and Protector of Edenia, when you defeated Blaze." "I'm human!" they heard someone say in surprise. Looking down, they saw Scorpion a few feet below them, feeling his flesh. Then, someone from below called his name. He looked down and gasped. "My clan!" he sounded genuinely happy. True enough, Sub-zero and Taven saw a multitude of people in yellow at the base of the pyramid. "How is this possible? Blaze's power should give you something you want." Taven turned to her as they heard Kitana squealing in joy at Liu Kang as he reverted back to his normal self. Somewhere below them, Kenshi was expressing his utter disbelief at being able to see again. Sub-zero took off Scorpion's mask and smiled at him serenely. "It's quite simple..." she said. "I wished for my friends' happiness." Taven's mouth formed into an 'O' and after his shock faded away, he hugged her. "But...what about you?" he asked her. She shrugged. "I'll live." "You're not a man?" she heard Scorpion say from behind her. She whirled around to face him. He slowly walked to where she was standing. "You're clan's back." She didn't answer his question. It was rhetorical anyway. "So they are." He answered. "Good for you." Sub-zero's knees buckled as she if the fatigue from her battle simply crashed on her shoulders. She fell forward. Before hitting the ground, however, Scorpion caught her. "Sub-zero. Are you all right?" he asked her. The world was spinning. She was so just so tired, so worn out. "Grandmaster!" Hanzo approached the two of them, one hand on his still bleeding stomach. "Is she all right?" "I don't know kid." Scorpion set her on the ground. Sub-zero forced her eyes open. She saw Hanzo peer at Scorpion's unmasked face and heard him gasp. "Hanzo-aniue?" he sounded surprised. Sub-zero had no idea what this "aniue" might be, but Hanzo obviously recognized Scorpion and he was taken aback as well. "What? What did you call me?" Scorpion answered him in the same tone. "Ha-Hanzo aniue...you...are you, my brother?" he asked him. Hanzo took his mask and ninja hood off. Scorpion's eyes widened as he saw him. His jaw was hanging from his mouth. "Ryu?" At that moment, Sub-zero thought that the two would hug each other and cry. She was wrong. "You idiot!" Scorpion hit Hanzo's head. "What the hell were you thinking, becoming a Lin Kuei?" "It wasn't my fault that mother and father died! I had nowhere else to go!" Hanzo returned the jibe. "You're a part of the Shirai Ryu clan! If some of the other Lin Kuei had found out, you could have been killed! Don't you use your brain at all?" "I'm not a little kid, Hanzo aniue! Plus, I had no idea I was part of the clan!" "Really now? You're still my younger brother." He emphasized. "And to think you accused me of killing your parents when they're mine, too!" "How should I know that you didn't?" "Well, how do you know it wasn't her?" Scorpion pointed at Sub-zero. "Or him?" he pointed at Taven. "You can't just guess. I could've killed you!" "No. I could have killed you." Hanzo countered. "You're far too inexperienced to defeat me." Scorpion folded his arms. "Besides, you have little control over your fire powers." He sighed. "I don't even know why you have ice abilities." "Oh? You want to settle this here and now?" Hanzo challenged him. "It wouldn't be a fair fight." Scorpion glanced at his still bleeding stomach. "Hmph. You're just afraid I would be able to beat you." Scorpion rolled his eyes at him and Hanzo did the same thing. "I knew you two were related." She breathed. The pain in her chest was unbearable. She was also tired to the bone after fighting Blaze. "By the way, why haven't you turned back into your old self?" Scorpion asked her after Fujin had called Hanzo. "Because...I wished for my friends' happiness..." Sub-zero let a small smile grace her features. "Not my own-What do you think you're doing?" she asked as Scorpion lifted her up in his arms. "I am carrying you, is that not obvious?" he cocked an eyebrow at her. "Don't you even care what your wife thinks?" she asked him. "My clan was resurrected, not my family." "But, but I wished for your happiness! They, too, should have come back." She looked at him guiltily. Scorpion looked directly at her. His pupils were back. They were dark brown in color. "Maybe, my family isn't what I need to make me happy." He told her simply. "Then what..." she trailed off as she noticed the look in Scorpion's eyes. "No..." "Why not?" "Because I was once a guy, I'm the grandmaster of the Lin Kuei and most of all, we're sworn enemies!" Sub-zero exclaimed to him, a tinge of pink appeared on her cheeks as she ticked her fingers. Scorpion leaned towards her, his lips almost touching hers. She could feel his warm breath on her face, and it enhanced the blush on her face. "Frankly, my dear," he smiled that smile she longed to see on his face. "I don't give a damn." He closed the gap between their lips. Timidly, Sub-zero returned the kiss. As she leaned her head against Scorpion's chest, and watched the sun set behind the mountains, she knew that even though she had wished for her friends' happiness, she felt as if she was the happiest one among them. She closed her eyes contentedly. Before she slept, she heard Scorpion whisper to her. "You make me want to be a better person." Then he kissed her forehead. A smile graced Sub-zero's features. "I love you, too."