Mortal Kombat Fan Fiction ❯ Of Serpents and Sirens ❯ The Forbearer ( Chapter 22 )

[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]

È Mèng continued to look at her in disbelief. "How can you bear that power? When I ripped your soul out the power should have come with it!"

Lily shrugged, "I don't know. But I do know this...you're not getting this baby."

She gave a tug and flung herself forward into È Mèng, spinning at the last second and landing a kick square in her chest, knocking the tether free of the spirit's grasp. It retreated back into her body, causing the green aura to flash.

"NO! I will have that power!"

È Mèng raises her hands and slowly brings them together in front of her, pulling energy in from around her.

Shang Tsung grips the urn tightly and rushed towards the center, a hand flying out, sending a flaming skull at her but the growing power flings it back. He dodges, rolling to his left away from it.

"Lily, she must not complete that spell! Stop her!"

Lily looks down at him and for a split second time stops and she smiles softly at him before her face hardens. And when she turns back to È Mèng running her palms over each other, rotating them against each other and throws them out stretched towards the specter, releasing a wave of energy at them.

The energy connects with the light held within È Mèng's hands and it explodes, flinging Lily back but before she hits she maneuvers her feet down and crouches momentarily, using the momentum to push herself up into a flip, landing on the floor in front of Raiden and Shang Tsung.

He rushes, sweeping her up into his arms. "Lily!"

She wraps her arms around his shoulders and buries her face in his neck. Pulling back from him she smiles placing a hand over her stomach. He places a hand over hers and smiles back. An unspoken agreement passing between them.

"Well, this all bites."

"You certainly do know how to make a situation better."

He eyes her naked form appreciatively and she rolls her eyes at him. 

"Now is not the time for that look, Shang!"

He motions to her lack of clothing with an arched brow. "Forgive me, but you are not clothed, dearest."

She threw her hands up, "Well your the sorcerer, can you do something about it?"

He chuckles, "I may be able to. Hold still."

A scream cuts through the air and green flame explodes in the center of the room. È Mèng is kneeling, a small ball of green magic held close to her chest. Her skin cracking with tiny fractures over her face.

"NOO! I will not be defeated! Least of all by you!"

Lily turned and her eyes flashed brightly, "Oh she is so annoying! What did you ever see in her?"

The soul sorcerer gave a long-suffering sigh to his lover, "It was an arranged marriage ten thousand years ago, hehua. Give me the benefit of the doubt."

She shakes her head, "We'll talk about it later. Clothes?"

He waves his hands in a complicated pattern and pushes his magic towards her, letting it flow over her body.

And as Lily turns to face È Mèng, black shoes appear on her feet, dark almost blood red pants forming up her legs from them. A simple long sleeved black shirt blooms out from her chest fitting tightly over her breasts and a long white translucent short sleeved robe materializing over that. Then a large red and black band wraps around her waist, the symbol of a golden dragon snaked across it and up over one breast, across her shoulder blades, resting it's head on the opposite shoulder. 

Raiden nods, "It suits her."

Shang nods, "that it does. Now Lily, we must get È Mèng close to the urn. I will take care of the rest."

"But I thought the urn was only a prison?" Fujin questions.

"I led her to believe that, but this urn is her, the clay formed from her very ashes. It is the strongest binding magic I know. If we can capture her back inside it..."

"You can then destroy it and her at the same time." Raiden finished.

"Yes. But I will have need of your lightning and your power as well, Lily."

He looks back at Lily and when she nods, he smirks, a small part of him proud of her, of her willpower.

"We must get her to retreat back into the urn. With your power, Lily that should come easy."

"I've not done much fighting...I mean I've sparred with my brother but I'm no where as good as he is."

He leans forward and captures her lips gently, his hand resting over her abdomen.

"I will be beside you. Both of you."

She breaths in sharply, holding back a sob, "Then lets get this bitch."

He grins and as he turns to stand at her side, his shirtless form fades and he is wearing a sleeveless dark plum and gold outfit replete with golden clawed gauntlets.

"Agreed."

È Mèng flicks her gaze to them both and smiles...her lips sagging as if melting.

"You wish to fight me?"

She stands to her full height and pulls at her robes and flings them to the ground. Revealing a pitch black tunic and pants.

She dropped into a low fighting stance.

"Then so be it."

Shang drops into his snake stance as Lily raises her fists, settling into a similar stance to Cassie.

For a moment they stood like that, waiting for the time to strike.

Then suddenly È Mèng bursts forth at the same time Shang does, but she drops under his strike, sending a kick into Lily's chest, knocking her back a few feet. She claws wildly at him backing him up as he dodges left and right, before he drops, sweeping at her legs.

She jumps over him just in time for Lily's kick to connect, sending her falling to the floor with a hiss.

È Mèng spins and kicks herself up standing. She rushes forwards, her attacks being blocked back and forth by Shang and Lily. She feints one hit and then claws Lily across the chest, who returns the attack with an open palm strike to her shoulder. Then Shang Tsung intervenes with a spinning back kick that sends her flying into the pedestal.

È Mèng screeches in rage, hurtling a ball of green flame at Lily.

She throws her hands up and her power flares and flickers, effectively absorbing the flame.

Shang stops beside her, watching the fire be absorbed and he smiles, motioning her closer, "I need you to repeat my movements, hehua. Focus your thoughts on the green flame. Imagine it held in the palms of your hands. Can you feel the heat?"

"Yeah. I can!"

He twists and rotates his hands out in front of him and Lily slowly watches him, repeating the movements. He grins.

"Now throw it towards her!"

Lily does and she watches in amazement as fire explodes from her palms and flies at the specter, hitting her square in her chest.

"It seems that you have some magic capabilities as well, my sweet."

Another flame approaches her but at the last second it diverts away from her, slamming straight into Shang's chest and he is blown back into the wall with a sick thud, crumpling to the floor.

"Shang!"

"He was always so easily distracted. Oh well. Now its just you and me, pest. I hope you have had your fill of fun because now its time to give me what is rightfully mine."

Lily shook where she stood, her eyes focused on Shang Tsung. He was not moving. Her eyes filled with tears. 'No. Get up Shang. Get up!'

A strange feeling settled over her at that time, like a warm blanket in the cold. She felt safe. She was confused. Where was this feeling coming from? She looked down at her self and noticed the golden dragon on her clothes was glowing. Shang.

'The baby. I have to protect the baby.' 

She closes her eyes as tears flowed freely down her cheeks, dripping from her chin.

She shook her head violently.

"No. No more. You will not touch him again and you will not touch our child!"

She growled low in her throat.

È Mèng threw her head back and cackled. "You can cry and plead all you want but it is done. There is nothing more you can do. You are too weak."

She threw a finger out towards her but Lily was gone.

As she turned a fist slammed into her face and she blindly lashed out which Lily dodged before gripping one of her wrists and twisted it, pulling the specter forward and over her shoulder. As she flipped over, Lily kicked out and up, both kicks hitting her and sending her flying back.

The specter screamed and rushed at her again.

The green glow surrounding Lily began to shift, her hair slowly changing, floating in the air above her, undulating like fire.

Fujin grabbed Raiden's arm, "Brother look!"

Raiden was shocked, "Could it be?"

The dragon detached from her shoulder and flitted around her. Time slowed as È Mèng lifted a fire ball to throw and Lily's eyes snapped open, burning with pure white fire.

She screamed, throwing her arms out and engulfing È Mèng in a brilliant white flame.

È Mèng lurched as it hit her, she looks dazed as her eyes shift to watch her hands slowly turn black and crumble. She shakes, fear and disbelief warring on her features.

"No! What is this? What is this?! What have you done?!"

Then Lily spoke but it wasn't her voice.

The gold dragon flitted around, somersaulting through the fire that surrounded her. She reached out and let the dragon nuzzle against her hand.

"You have done enough damage, È Mèng. No more! She is my disciple. My chosen one."

The eyes of pure fire turned to Raiden and Fujin.

"Retrieve the urn. My power combined with yours will be sufficient for this."

Raiden bowed, "Very well."

The thunder god made his way to Shang's fallen form and shook his head sadly. 'In the end, you found something truly worth fighting for, Shang Tsung.'

He carefully rolled him over and grabbed the urn.

When he held it up, Lily motioned to the pedestal.

È Mèng shuddered in terror, "No! You cannot do this! I will not be imprisoned again!"

The brilliant white eyes of Lily turned at her and it was in that moment that she understood what her fate was going to be and she screeched and screamed and sobbed. She lifted her crumbling arms, trying to summon forth her magic but found that none would heed her call.

When the urn touched the pedestal, she arched in pain. "Please my lady! Please do not do this! Let me be imprisoned."

The creature that was wearing Lily's form chuckled deeply. 

"And allow you another chance of harming my chosen one again? No. I do not give second chances lightly and least of all not to ones like you."

She scrambled to her feet and looking frantically around the room she noticed the door was missing. She ran for it, hoping to flee from the fire creature. But before she could touch the doorway the golden dragon flitted in front of her face, hissing and flicking its tail at her.

"My thanks Xiǎo huǒ."

Then fire wrapped around her and she screamed in agony, scrambling for purchase but her arms crumbled more with each movement.

"We are ready, my lady."

Lily flicks her hand violently and È Mèng is wrenched back to the center of the room. Her cries pulled the attentions of Johnny and Cassie to the room and when they stepped inside, they were both stunned at what Lily looked like.

The not-Lily turned to them and smiled softly, "Ah yes, the other ones. Good. She will need much help in the months to come."

The figure bursts into white fire and directs it at the specter and motions to Raiden.

He summons his lightning to him, it striking the ground around him and he threw it at the urn.

"NOOO!"

È Mèng cries out one last time as the combined fire and lightning shred her form and rend it to ash along with her urn. Green wisps dissipate into the air and the lightning fades as the fire pulls back into Lily's hands.

The white eyes search the room and land on Shang Tsung and they drop in sadness.

They kneel down beside them, and brush the hair from his brow gently, golden tendrils flowing from her touch throughout his form, pooling in the center of the wound in his chest.

"Wǒ shuàiqì de shé, wake up. This is not yet your time."

Then there is was, a slight twitch from his hand and she breathed a sigh of relief. The tendrils pulled, knitting the flesh together.

"Shang Tsung."

He groaned and slowly opened his eyes, and when his gaze fell on Lily, he was silent.

"Shang Tsung. You have done well to protect her. Now you have another task to complete."

"You are not Lily."

The figure shakes their head, "No."

"What task do you place on my shoulders then?"

"Live. With her. Embrace happiness for once."

He struggled to sit up, shocked by her words.

"What?"

They traced a finger down his cheek. "This is a second chance, sorcerer. Do not refuse it."

"Who are you?"

The dragon perched on her shoulders and gave a yawn before shaking itself, nuzzling into her neck.

"Xiǎo huǒ here will keep an eye on her. Consider it a gift from her forbearer."

"Wait! The child? Are they still..."

He trailed off, looking at her abdomen.

She placed a hand over her stomach. "Your protection spell worked. Your son is safe."

His eyes snapped to her in shock, "My son?"

She laughed airily, "È Mèng wasn't the only one with a plan."

The fire dissipated slowly from her eyes and her hair fell back down around her shoulders and she tipped forward, collapsing in his lap, uttering only one word.

"Shang."

He clutched her to him.

"Hehua!"