Mortal Kombat

This story is in no way intended to infringe on the established copyrights and trademarks of Midway Manufacturing Company. It is for entertainment purposes only and is not intended for sale. It may be freely distributed providing that no alterations to the story are made.

The characters and incidents portrayed and the names in this story used herein are fictitious and any similarity to the name, character, or history of any person, living or dead, is purely coincidental and unintentional.

And now for a taste of things to come.

MORTAL KOMBAT

by Eric J. Juneau

PROLOGUE

TIME: 500 YEARS AGO

The Great Kung Lao stood before his mirror and did a final check to see if all his clothes were secured so that they would not interfere with his agility. His tan, cotton pants felt loose and a thin, worn strap of cloth was tightly strapped to his head, once thick with black hair, now smooth as a pebble along the shore.

In his reign as Grand Champion he hadn't needed to fight a single soul for 700 years. All this time he had spent was used for developing his skills in case anyone chose to challenge him. No one had ever come close to his fighting abilities in all his time on the island.

But for some reason the one named Goro had challenged him to single kombat on his own grounds. Goro, it was told, was a member of Shokan, a warrior race which were rumored to be half-human, half-dragon, living beyond the boundaries of the Earth. Lao had never heard of the race of Shokan. As the overseer of the tournament he had seen a number of unusual races compete for his title, but none of them had wanted to challenge the Grand Champion. Kung Lao continued to wonder who he was as he climbed into his hooded carriage and let his servants carry him to the courtyard.

As Lao stepped out of the vehicle he was startled by the enormous roar of the crowd of spectators sitting in the bleachers. They were a variety of people from all around the world, some friends, some enemies, all gathered here to watch what could be his greatest triumph. From the enormous intensity of the cheers it seemed like world's complement was here and Lao was never comfortable around crowds too large, but he had invited them and managed to bow to the people on both sides of the arena.

Then, from out of the shadowed section of the stands, stepped a hulking, yellow-skinned, behemoth monster of a man with beady red eyes. He stood about eight feet tall and probably weighed more than 500 pounds, all muscle. The crowds cheered for him as much his opponent.

Lao's eyes widened, but he remembered the philosophies of his training: It is not size that matters; skill, cunning, and knowledge will prevail in the final battle. As it was his duty to do as Grand Champion, Kung Lao lifted himself up and commanded:

"Let the final battle begin!"

Goro leaped forward and started by grabbing the puny human by the throat and slamming him into the ground. Lao was surprised at how fast the Shokan could move as the blood from his lip dribbled down his chin. The Great Kung Lao tried to kick high at Goro, but the monster only laughed, grabbed his leg as it came sweeping towards him, and smashed him in the face, breaking his nose. Goro's hand began to glow a bright green until he thrusted his fist out toward Lao. The glow shot forward and took the form of a fireball. It struck him in the chest and his arms flailed as he staggered back and fell. The Grand Champion summoned all his strength to lift himself up, but dropped back down like a rock from exhaustion. Goro picked up the limp form with his two powerful arms as the crowds fell silent and the sky darkened.

Lao's mind raced and spun with fear and fatigue. Staring blankly at the massive giant as he swayed dazily, he calmly reassured himself that he could have done nothing to prevent this loss. Goro's face grew stern before the crowds of people. He took Kung Lao's head in his hands and squeezed with all his might. A crunching noise was heard followed by a distinct squishing sound as Lao's skull was crushed to a bloody pulp. The crowds cheered at the gruesome victory. The new Grand Champion had been chosen for Mortal Kombat.