The scene cuts to Team S-F at the cockpit of their plane, currently in the air and heading towards the Sky Temple. Jacqui and Takeda are in the pilot’s seats, with Cassie and Jin at the computer screens just behind them.
CASSIE: We land in fifteen minutes. We’ll enter the Sky Temple from the terrestrial entrance.
TAKEDA: Why not go straight there?
KUNG JIN: It exists in a different quantum state, slightly out of phase from our reality. It can’t be reached by conventional means.
Takeda breaths out a heavy sigh, which Jacqui notices.
JACQUI: What?
TAKEDA: It’s just us. No one’s coming to help. We either pull this off or–
CASSIE: We WILL get it done.
Warning buzzers sound off through the plane. Before it looms the clouds that have been corrupted by the Jinsei. Cassie and Jin get out of their seats for a closer look.
KUNG JIN: By the… what is that?!
TAKEDA: Dunno. But it’s headed right for us.
KUNG JIN: Elder Gods have mercy.
As the cloud looms closer, it produces turbulence that rocks the plane.
JACQUI: Buckle up, people! I gotta put her down.
Cassie and Jin race back to their seats. The scene cuts to the forest near the temple. Jacqui has landed the plane without crashing, and Team S-F have exited without issue. The corrupted light from the clouds above them has given the forest a distinctly red hue.
JACQUI: Looks like the temple entrance is fifteen clicks that way.
She points off to the distance.
TAKEDA: A moonlight walk in the woods. Another time, it’d be relaxing.
JACQUI: I wouldn’t have pegged you for outdoorsy.
TAKEDA: My mother and I lived near a forest a lot like this. Really takes me back.
Jacqui smiles at this – it’s quite clear she’s warming up to Takeda’s charm.
JACQUI: After we wrap this up, we should go.
He looks at her and smiles back. They spend a brief moment staring warmly at one another, before looking over to Cassie and Jin standing on one of the plane wings, reparing the motor. Cassie slams down her tools in frustration.
CASSIE: Fuck me! We’re grounded. That shockwave fried the leads.
JACQUI: Then let’s get going. We’re almost outta time.
A portal opens up behind them. Kotal Kahn emerges, flanked by Erron Black, Ermac, Ferra/Torr, Reptile and several of his soldiers.
KUNG JIN: What are they doing here?
JACQUI: Looking for the amulet, I bet.
TAKEDA: We have to tell them about Shinnok. Call a truce.
Kotal spots Team S-F and does not look happy to see them. He points in their direction with his macuahuitl and addresses his soldiers.
KOTAL: Bring them to me!
His soldiers roar out battle cries and charge forward.
CASSIE: Or not.
JACQUI: The woods! C’mon!
They flee. The scene cuts to Kotal’s forces walking through the woods, searching for their prey. Cassie and Jacqui hide behind two large trees as the search party walks past.
FERRA: They quiet. Sneaky.
KOTAL: Ermac?
ERMAC: We sense them. But the forest teems with souls.
REPTILE: Yes… So close.
Explosions suddenly rock the forest around Kotal’s forces, throwing them into disarray. Two trees fall down, crushing several soldiers beneath them. Cassie chucks some grenades at the trees, Kung Jin shoots their bases with arrows and Jacqui uses her gauntlets to shoot plasma blasts at the tree bases. The end result is the trees continuing to fall on Kotal’s forces.
One of Cassie’s grenades lands at Reptile’s feet. He notices and leaps up into the air, just narrowly avoiding the explosion. The fallen trees catch fire, giving Kotal’s forces more issues to contend with. Ferra shrieks in fear at the flames.
KOTAL: Divine fire and earth!
He looks over the battlefield and spots Kung Jin shooting off arrows. Meanwhile, Reptile scurries high up a tree and spots Jacqui. She has her back to him and continues to shoot plasma bolts at Kotal’s forces.
REPTILE: I see you…
Takeda runs up to Jacqui and spots Reptile.
TAKEDA: Jacqui, look out!
His warning comes too late. Reptile leaps from the tree and lands on Jacqui, pinning her to the ground. Takeda charges towards him, but Reptile notices and spits a glob of acid into his face. Takeda screams in agony and clasps his face in his hands as the acid burns into it.
Reptile turns back to Jacqui, who is still struggling in his grip. He raises one claw to smash her face in, but Jacqui rallies and punches him in the chest. She follows up with a headbutt and throws Reptile off her. They both rise to their feet.
JACQUI: You hurt him, you answer to me!
They fight. While the Zaterrean’s speed and fighting abilities are not trivial threats, Jacqui fights with a rage that he is unable to overcome. Utilising her specialised gauntlets to their full potential, she unleashes a beatdown on Reptile that does not stop until he is unconscious at her feet.
JACQUI: Go crawl back under your rock, Reptile.
With Reptile down, Jacqui rushes back to Takeda, who’s still trying to wipe his face with his hands.
JACQUI: Stop! You need water.
She produces an emergency hip flask.
JACQUI: Lean your head back.
He does so and she pours the water onto his face. It does the job of clearing his eyes.
JACQUI: Can you see?
TAKEDA: Yeah, yeah. It’s fuzzy, but–
She pours more water on his face.
JACQUI: Better?
The scene switches to show from Takeda’s perspective. The blurry visage clears up quickly into a close up of Jacqui’s face.
TAKEDA: Beautiful.
As the scene shifts from his perspective, their tender moment is interrupted by Ermac – levitating a considerable distance above ground level – uprooting the tree that Takeda was resting by.
JACQUI: Hold that thought.
They flee just as Ermac brings the tree down where they were standing. He flies after them, shooting blasts of soul energy as Takeda and Jacqui dodge as best they can. After a while, it seems like they manage to outrun him – but then they come face to face with Kotal Kahn and his soldiers. Ermac soon floats into view behind them.
TAKEDA: Lady’s choice.
JACQUI: I’ve got Ermac.
As Takeda rushes Kotal, Jacqui charges at Ermac. She shoots off a plasma bolt that hits Ermac to no effect. In response, he telekenetically lifts her into the air and slams her into a tree. She struggles to rise as Ermac floats down to ground level.
ERMAC: You are spawn of Jackson Briggs.
JACQUI: And damn proud of it! I know what you did to him.
ERMAC: We took your father’s arms. We will take all of you.
They fight. The battle proves to be one of the toughest of Jacqui’s life, as Ermac brings the power of a thousand souls to bear against her. But hardened by resolve and the will to avenge her father’s maiming, Jacqui takes the fight to the Outworld construct. After a fierce battle, she manages to emerge victorious against Ermac.
JACQUI: That was for you, Dad.
As Jacqui rushes back to where Takeda is fighting Kotal, Ferra/Torr jumps into her path. Ferra laughs and Torr roars, taking a massive swing at her with his meaty fists. Jacqui dodges two swipes and barely escapes as Torr almost pounds her into the ground. He manages to grab Jacqui and lift her into the air with both his hands round her waist.
FERRA: Squeeze, squeeze, Torr!
Torr complies, and Jacqui’s bulletproof vest begins to crunch under the strength in his hands.
FERRA: Your eyes, so bright.
She readies the metal claws on her wrist.
FERRA: Gonna carve ’em out!
She slowly brings the claws towards Jacqui’s face. In the nick of time, Jacqui’s gauntlets finish charging up. She unleashes a plasma blast that rocks Torr backwards, letting her loose of his grip. He doesn’t fall though, and neither does Ferra.
FERRA: Trickery! Deceit!
Jacqui shoots off a plasma bolt, but it isn’t charged and doesn’t faze Torr. He throws two more meaty punches that Jacqui barely avoids. She gets into a fighting stance.
JACQUI: No more tricks. Just a straight up beatdown.
They fight. The sheer power and brutality of Ferra/Torr force Jacqui to use all of her kickboxing skill to avoid their mighty attacks. She proves to be up to the challenge, and with the help of her charged gauntlets she lands multiple blows on the two Outworlders. After a long brawl, they eventually fall unconscious at her feet.
JACQUI: Two for one. I’ll take it.
Back with the rest of Team S-F, Kung Jin blocks the sword of a charging soldier with his staff, and Cassie kicks him in the side, staggering him long enough for Jin to put an arrow through his brain. He swings his staff around just in time to parry a sword blow from another soldier trying to cut down Cassie, allowing her to kick him in the stomach and smash her knee into his face, knocking him out.
A third soldier charges Jin, who again blocks the sword strike with his staff-bow. Cassie punches the soldier in the kidney twice and knocks him down with a right cross, and Jin swings his staff-bow around and fires an arrow straight through the head of a fourth soldier, causing him to backflip from the force.
Meanwhile, Takeda is still fighting Kotal Kahn one on one. He smashes Kotal in the face with a right hand, but the Osh-Tekk kicks him in the stomach, forcing him back. Takeda holds back for a moment, allowing Kotal a chance to speak.
KOTAL: We know D’Vorah is here. Where is the amulet?
TAKEDA: Kotal Kahn, the situation has changed–
KOTAL: Do not fling your spittle at me.
He charges at Takeda and attacks. Takeda blocks his punches, but takes a kick to the chest that knocks him down. He rolls to his feet and fires off one of his whips, ensnaring Kotal by the wrist. Kotal merely takes a firm grip on the whip and pulls, whirling Takeda around him. Takeda manages to stay on his feet, but is forced to retract the whip. Jacqui runs up to them both.
JACQUI: You tell ‘im?
TAKEDA: Not yet!
JACQUI: He needs to kno–
TAKEDA: Busy!
KOTAL: I will kill you both.
JACQUI: Shinnok’s been freed. He’s at Raiden’s Sky Temple. He’s already infected Earthrealm’s life force.
She gestures to the sky. Kotal looks up at the red clouds and realises the truth of her words.
KOTAL: The heavens boil… Earthrealm is lost!
JACQUI: Not if we hang together!
Kotal draws his macuahuitl from the scabbard on his back and readies it for kombat.
KOTAL: I will appease Shinnok. Bring him your heads. Gain time to bolster Outworld’s defenses.
He swings the weapon at Takeda, who barely ducks in time. Kotal backhands it towards Jacqui, who blocks with her gauntlets. Kotal holsters the macahuitl as Takeda throws a punch that he blocks, before he punches him in the kidney and kicks him in the ankle, knocking him to the ground. As Takeda rises, Ferra/Torr charges straight towards him. Takeda ducks under Torr’s attempted grab, but the behemoth slaps away his follow up kick.
While Takeda fights Ferra/Torr, Jacqui now goes up against Kotal Kahn alone. She deflects one of the Kahn’s punches and one of his roundhouse kicks with her gauntlet, and shoots off a blast of plasma that stuns him for a moment.
JACQUI: You need to help us, Kotal Kahn!
KOTAL: It is too late for Earthrealm. Shinnok is now it’s master.
They fight. With both kombatants fueled with desperation for their realms, the battle proves to be a long and hard one for Jacqui. The Emperor of Outworld brings everything he has to the fight, and Jacqui only barely manages to defend against it. Calling up on her last reserves, she throws everything she has right back at Kotal Kahn and amazingly manages to defeat him.
JACQUI: You should’a been with us.
Kotal rises to his feet, growling impatiently. Erron Black steps in, flanked by soldiers, and aims one of his revolvers right at her.
ERRON: That’s enough.
Kotal’s forces slowly back Jacqui, Cassie and Jin towards each other in a clear part of the forest. Cassie tries to shoot her pistol, but she’s out of bullets. She holsters the gun and readies her fists.
CASSIE: Fuck me!
Ferra/Torr stomps back into the fray, with Takeda’s bound body in Torr’s arms. Torr lifts him up and throws him toward the clearing. He lands hard as Ferra laughs, and Jacqui helps him to his feet. Team S-F are now completely surrounded on all sides, and have all backed into one another.
JACQUI: Don’t know about you guys, but I’m living the dream.
TAKEDA: You have odd dreams.
KOTAL: Chattel. You die tonight.
He calls to his soldiers in the Outworld tongue and they begin to close in. Ferra/Torr charge forward… and are frozen solid by an ice blast. More blasts follow, freezing the soldiers who come too close to Team S-F.
Sub-Zero walks into the clearing, flanked by his Lin Kuei disciples. The warriors charge into battle without hesistation, forcing Kotal’s forces to engage them. Team S-F break free and make a run for it, stopping as Sub-Zero walks towards them.
SUB-ZERO: You stood together against formidable odds. Lesser warriors would not have fared so well.
CASSIE: Thanks, Grandmaster.
SUB-ZERO: I will remain here to push Kotal Kahn back to Outworld. Proceed to the Sky Temple. Earthrealm’s fate lies with you.
They head off as Sub-Zero walks toward the battle.