Welcome to Outworld pt. 2

They walk into the main plaza of the marketplace, where a crowd has gathered to watch a public event. A soldier on a raised platform addresses all present, reading from a scroll.

"In these times of war, we are required to view every resource as a weapon for our Emperor to use at his discretion."

The scene cuts to a closer view. A man has been bound in the stocks, and two soldiers pull him out and restrain him.

"To take without his leave is to steal from the hand of Kotal Kahn himself."

Kung Jin stops to take in the scene, with mounting horror clear on his face. Alex is equally appalled given his own criminal status

"Therefore, having been found guilty of theft, you shall be put to death."

The thief cries out

"I was hungry!"

He is slammed onto a headsman's block. The soldier continues

"Your sentence will be carried out... immediately!"

Jin turns to Erron asking

"Death? For petty theft?"

"Remember where you are."

Kung Jin defiantly pushes his way through the crowd. Cassie is shocked and exclaims

"Jin?!"

Erron pulls out a revolver, intending to shoot Kung Jin in the back. Cassie grabs his arm and throws him down, causing the shot to go wide. Takeda and Jacqui begin fighting the soldiers as well. On the platform, a soldier holds a macuahuitl - an Aztec (or in this universe, Osh-Tekk) spiked war club - over the thief's head. As he prepares to swing it downward, an arrow pierces his shoulder, sending him down in pain. Jin puts down his bow-staff and charges in. Alex hangs back, shaking his head frozen by an inner voice in his head.

Three soldiers pull their swords and meet Kung Jin in kombat. The Shaolin warrior easily blocks the first's attacks with his staff and hits him in the side of his helmet. Jin hits another strike to his stomach and knocks him down with a bash to the back of his head. He blocks two strikes from the second soldier and sends him sprawling with a staff hit to the face, then repeats the motion to the third soldier before he can even finish his attack. Behind him, other Outworld citizens begin attacking the soldiers as well. Alex makes his choice, picking up a fallen blade and joins the Outworld soldiers in attempting to keep the peace.

Elsewhere, Erron blocks a high kick and a punch from Cassie, and she blocks two of his attempts to shoot her and ducks a pistol whip. He counters another strike from her by bashing her in the forehead with his revolver. Alex turns his head to see Cassie on the ground stunned as Erron Black dashes away from her and from the growing conflict around them. Alex growls at the sight of seeing his beloved hurt but is too busy preoccupied as he is swarmed by a few Outworld villagers who mistake Alex as one of the soldiers.

The soldiers now have a full-scale riot on their hands. One is tackled off the platform by an Outworld citizen, while a second is pushed off by another citizen, allowing Jin to run up and free the thief from his binds. Alex can not believe what he hears

"Get outta here! Go!"

The citizen helps the grateful thief to his feet. Jin turns around and walks off the platform, coming face to face with Erron Black. Alex grew increasingly frustrated, and perhaps feral; though the chaos around him and his team began to affect Alex mentally, he is able to keep as calm as mind as possible, merely knocking out the civilians rather than kill them. Before more civilians began to circle him, Alex turns to watch

"I knew I shouldn't have listened to you."

"A lesson in trust... from a mercenary."

"Here's another learning opportunity."

They fight. As deadly and pragmatic a fighter as Erron Black is, Kung Jin exhibits equal skill and speed with his own weapons. After a hard-fought battle, the Shaolin student leaves the mercenary flat on his back. Alex is impressed. He stands aside as Kung Jin says

"I'm a quick learner."

The soldiers surrounding the rest of Team S-F are quickly defeated. Alex, growing weary of the civilian strife, stands aside as one of the soldiers traveling with them, the Outworld guard in Spartan armor pulls him aside. Alex looked terrified before the Spartan says

"Arishokost. Maraas shokra. Anaan esaam Qun."

Alex recognized the words, relaxing his stance. He did not know what to say as the soldier continued

"That was very brave standing up to your teammates, braver still standing with us guards. Who are you?"

"Alexander Valkyrie Darkov. Member of the Black Dragon."

Alex admitted and the guard removed his helmet revealing Ebony locks much like his own, but his eyes were like Cassie's a baby blue.

"Commander Ryker Ares Darkov. Darkov is not a common name. So, mind telling me why you are using my family's name?"

Alex looked scared and stuttered

"I-I-I did not know. It-it is engraved on the back of a pendant I wear."

Ryker's baby blue eyes narrowed in suspicion. He growled

"Show me."

Alex obeyed if only for his own sake and that of his team as they dealt with their own troubles. He took the necklace off and handed it over to the commander. His eyes first looked of recognition, then to sadness, then registered a fleeting bit of hope before anger returned.

"Where did you get this?"

"It was given to me when I turned sixteen. I was told it was around my neck as an infant."

Commander Ryker pocketed the necklace as "evidence" before he grabbed a length of rope and tied Alex's hands behind his back. The young twenty-three-year-old Black Dragon's shoulders and face hung in defeat. Commander Ryker noticed the Black Dragon's weariness. The Guardsman sighed

"The priestess medallion belonged to my sister. She got it engraved with her son's name not too long after his birth. It is strange and more than coincidence that someone who looks a hell of a lot like Shao Kahn and Rena combined shows up and shows me these two medallions as only guards have those, the other medallion on that necklace. That aside, regardless of your allegiance, you chose well in doing what you can to end that civilian uprising. You have potential and you have a good head on your shoulders."

Alex looked up, a faint smile on his tired face as the Spartan guardsman, along with other Outworld guards, ushered Alex off to unknown whereabouts, away from the rest of Team S-F.