Family Tradition

Dutch sighed at this development. She didn't know who these people were but she knew she didn't want any part of in whatever they had going on.

She sighed, going under the bed, she brought out a small box. Opening it up, she saw a small tablet.

This tablet was given to her by Lady bell. She was only able to use it in emergencies. She tapped the screen.

Soon a holographic screen floated in front of Dutch.

"Yes?" Lady bell's voice sounded from the other side.

"Well, given your calm demeanor I assume you haven't heard…." Dutch laid the tablet on the bed. She sighed seeing she was yet again not going to get any sleep.

"What?" Lady bell appeared to be in an office. She sat up in her chair, and tapped the table.

She looked to the side for a few seconds. Her facial expressions changed several times before settling on a frown.

"What did they say?" Lady bell sighed heavily. Her face grave.

"Well he wants me to allow his son to follow me." Dutch saw Lady bell face relax slightly. She held an impressed facial expression.

"Then he told me to tell you, that Mother G is in his care. Also to stop going after Madame Goa." Dutch finished off saying.

Lady bell no longer looked pale, she was more amused than anything.

"Those old fools made a move faster than I thought…" Lady bell spoke to herself.

"It's a family tradition, once you recommend someone to join the family, a high ranking member comes to evaluate them.

The person you fought, is showing his support. Of course marrying his son and giving him a seat of power… is just a cherry on top." Lady bell snickered at the end seeing Dutch's face.

"You want me to marry your nephew!?" Lady bell's snickering turned to a full on laugh.

"Well that's the only way you could possibly join the family, let alone become the next head." Lady bell calmed down and spoke softly.

"Head? What is up with you people?" Dutch didn't like why people kept on talking about taking over for them. She didn't even know them.

"Yeah you weren't my first choice, trust me… But like a gift you just showed up. Taking out Pablo, put a spotlight on you…. So I recommended you as leader. So this is your fault."

"So what if I had a spotlight?" Dutch didn't care about any of this. She knew with this meant Natasha would be in even more danger.

"Well if you don't like it you could just wait until the other potential leaders come to kill you." Lady bell shrugged.

"What is this a game to you?" Dutch frowned, her fist tightened.

"Yes, we had to go through all of this. The killing and destruction our family causes to pick a member of the family is… is glorious!" A crazed look appeared on Lady bell's face.

"Every position in our family is filled by blood especially the leader's postion. Last time the leaders position was open for grabs, cities fell." Lady bell face held a euphoric expression.

"You're so dramatic." Dutch rolled her eyes. She knew she was bad but this was another level.

"I know. The selections are in place. So you don't have to worry about anyone coming after you yet.

Every member of the family has the right to choose a candidate or show support for a particular party…." Lady bell stopped and looked at Dutch.

"Who exactly gave you the evaluation?" Lady bell paused to speak.

"I don't know. He kept saying, It doesn't matter with a cold expression." Lady bell frowned. She put her hand on her chin.

"what did he look like?" She spoke after a while.

"He was Chinese descent, slim with a muscular frame, he also had shoulder length hair. He wasn't six feet… it was more like 5'10. Early twenties looking." Lady bell sighed.

"Lui Kang." Lady bell muttered to herself.

"What?" Dutch tilted her head. She looked at Lady bell with hate. She knew he looked familiar, but couldn't think of any marvel characters that fit.

But now she wanted Dutch to go up against people from mortal kombat.

How much sense does that make. Although Dutch didn't know the game or anything, it didn't mean she hadn't played it at least once.

It wasn't her style, but she got the idea. Powerful warriors fighting literal gods. Dutch shook her head, this was to much for her.

"Don't worry, he doesn't belong to this earth. He stops by every now and then. Makes since though he wouldn't care who the leader was, as long as his son had a good position to speak freely." Lady bell shook her head. She was relieved.

"He's going to use his son to influence this earth?" Lady bell nodded.

"It's a common occurrence. In fact every member could recommend as many new people as they want.

But of course only one for leader. This way they could have more say and influence in other branches as well." Dutch nodded. This wasn't a bad idea.

"Ok, I understand." Dutch nodded while yawning.

Lady bell nodded, "we'll talk more on another note. You should get some rest.. also your still getting compensated for the jobs you did… thank you for that." Lady bell knew how hard, it was to convince Dutch to go along with her plans.

Dutch nodded before tapping the tablet. She put it back in the box ready to lay down.

**********

Three days later

Dutch stood in the middle of a room. She held a short sword in her hand, as blood dripped from her body onto the bodies that laid dead at her feet.

Her breath heavy as her eyes locked in a fierce gaze with a tall burly man. He looked exhausted. Wounds covered his bare chest. He stood straight up.

Swoosh

The man was surrounded by a light green energy that empowered him.

With a sudden burst of energy, they both lunged forward, unleashing a flurry of lightning-fast strikes. Each movement was precise, calculated.

Dutch decided to go with her original plan. Like one of those assassins who never end the contract no matter what.

Punches landed with resounding thuds on Dutch's blade, kicks soared through the air, and bodies twisted and turned in a display of agility and strength.

Dutch moved from offense to defense to offense again. She didn't account for either The Red Dragon or The Blue Lotus to bring out such powerful figures out so soon.

The fight seemed to defy gravity as they leaped and flipped, evading attacks with acrobatic ease. Each strike carried the weight of their past training and experience.

Sweat and blood mingled on their bodies, proof of the brutal contest unfolding before them. Despite the fatigue setting in, neither showed any signs of faltering. They pushed themselves to the limits.

Dutch saw a major flaw in the man's technique. She smiled.

Then, as if in slow motion, the man staggered backward, his defenses finally breached. Dutch dropped to one knee, breathing heavy. She supported herself with the sword.

Tonight was especially tough. Dutch's plan was moving faster than expected.

Dutch arrived in a back room. She moved a random painting from a wall a safe appeared.

With a sigh, she raised her sword.

Screech bang

The door to the safe fell off. She saw a black box and a stack of cash. Taking the box she left the cash.

*********

Sitting down at an empty table at the back of a restaurant, Dutch sighed.

She opened the box. It was a small piece of bone. "You know, you guys seem to really care about this fossil." Dutch closed the box and spoke to no one in particular.

"You're really a pain in the…" Two men appeared out of nowhere.

Dutch ignored him and looked around the restaurant. Everyone who was just in here disappeared.

"Oh if your looking for everyone then you might as well give up." The taller of the two men spoke.

He pulled out a small remote. Clicking a button the people appeared in the restaurant again as if they never moved. Dutch frowned.

"You see, we came to a little agreement. Kill you and finally bring peace to our triads." The man spoke again. He clicked the remote again, the people disappeared.

The men sat down at Dutch's table.

"Lee Hong, nice to finally meet you." Dutch smiled looking at the man to her left. She turned to the one to her right. "Lam Fung, I had a feeling you were in charge." Dutch smiled.

"This is kind of anticlimactic. I mean I was hoping to fight your army of warriors and in a last ditch effort, you both join hands to fight to your deaths." Dutch sighed as she thought about it.

She quickly snapped out of it thinking she looked like Lady bell.

The men frowned, "if you think you can kill us like our men, you are sadly mistaken." They both jumped out of their seats.

A sword appeared in Lee hong's hands. Lam got low into a fighting stance. He was using his fists.

Dutch held a look of disappointment, "no you both ruined it." She had spent two days to plan this.

She was cutting off both their escapes slowly. They would only be able to turn to eachother for help. They would both hide out in the red dragons mansion, surrounded by their most powerful guards.

She sighed looking at both of them. She raised her hands.

"Madame B always said not to go anywhere without knowing your exits. If there isn't any…. then create one." Dutch said this because when Lam pressed the remote all the exits sealed themselves.

This is why Dutch frowned. She waved her hands.

Swoosh Swoosh Swoosh

Small knives shot out from all directions. There targets Lam and Lee.

Clang

Lee swung his sword knocking the knives away from him. Lam took a deep breath. A red glow formed in his eyes. A red energy glowed around him.

Bang

He moved, the energy empowering him. Throwing out a fist, he knocked the knives back.

Swoosh swoosh swoosh

Dutch watched as they swung, punched, kicked there way out of the way of the knives.

"You see, we're not like those little weaklings, you're used to fighting." Lee Hong spoke arrogantly.

"Your interesting, I'll give you guys that." Dutch stood up. She walked towards them.

She had fought several chi users in these three days. She was all to used to them.

Dutch stopped not far away from them. Lam's green energy swirled around him. He took a different stance as his chi took the shape of a sword.

Dutch huffed, that was something new. She looked to the side and grabbed her short sword.

She knew they were both skilled swordsmen. She sighed as she looked at them both. This might be harder than she thought.

The two men moved, their movements synchronized and precise, launched a coordinated assault on Dutch.

Their swords danced through the air, a seamless combination of slashes, thrusts, and parries. Dutch though outnumbered, refused to yield, her own blade a steady extension of her will.

Lam, a old figure with a slim build, unleashed a flurry of powerful strikes. His sword whistled through the air. Dutch deflected the onslaught with parries, but the sheer force behind each blow pushed her back.

Simultaneously, Lee, more agile, employed a different strategy. He darted around the Dutch, his movements quick and elusive.

His blade became a blur as he launched a series of rapid strikes from unexpected angles, seeking to overwhelm his Dutch with speed and precision.

Dutch, her focus split, struggled to keep up with the relentless assault.

Despite the relentless barrage, Dutch refused to falter. With a display of impeccable footwork and timing, she managed to evade some strikes, while blocking others with calculated parries.

As the fight wore on, the strain began to show on the Dutch. Sweat glistened on her, and her breathing grew labored.

Seeing an opening, Lam launched a powerful overhead strike, aiming to deliver a crushing blow.

Dutch, though fatigued, summoned her remaining strength and executed a desperate parry, narrowly deflecting the attack. The impact reverberated through her arm, sending a jolt of pain up her shoulder.

She saw it clearly. The green chi was sending waves through her blade to attack her body. This is why she was getting tired faster. Her healing was taking to much energy.

Knowing this was useless. She couldn't do anything about it. Without her healing this much the chi could possibly corrode her body.

Lee, unleashed a flurry of rapid strikes, each one aimed at exploiting the Dutch's waning energy. Dutch fought back as hard as she could.

Finally, with a series of well-timed strikes, Lee and Lam managed to land severe blows on the Dutch. Her defenses faltered, and the pain seared through her body. She staggered, her grip on her sword weakening.

Realizing their advantage, they capitalized on the moment. Striking blow after blow, their swords finding their mark with ruthless efficiency. Dutch, battered and bloodied, fought on.

Dutch summoning every ounce of her remaining strength, she managed to land a powerful strike on Lam, momentarily shifting the momentum.

However, Lee, fueled by fury, retaliated with a devastating blow that brought the Dutch to her knees.

"I told you, we're nothing like those weaklings." Lee hong walked towards Dutch, who was supporting herself with the short sword.

"No, you're weaker." Just then, Dutch moved.

She pushed off the ground towards, Lee. Not expecting this Lee tried to move backwards in response.

Swoosh thud

Dutch stood standing in behind Lee. She heard something fall and roll behind her. She slowly turned around with a cold expression.

She saw Lee's body standing straight up, his head on the ground. She squealed at this.

"I've always wanted to do that! Hey, did I look like one of those guys from the Chinese movies?" She turned to Lam's still dody.

She saw him peek out of one eye, before shutting it tightly. She shrugged, and walked over towards him.

Swoosh

"Nooo!!" She cut off his head.

"You should have answered me sooner." Dutch heard a laugh and turned around.

She saw Lady bell sitting at the table she was at before.

"You sound just like me!"