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From: yol@lams.lams.losalamos.k12.nm.us (Jonathan)
Newsgroups: alt.games.mk
Subject: 'The Scorpion Saga" (part 5 of ?)
Date: 24 Jul 1994 22:50:09 GMT
Organization: Los Alamos National Laboratory
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Part V
		Departure
			by Jonathan Harrell


	I let out a sigh of relief.  Liu Kang lets out a cry of
victory.  I emerge from out of the shadows. 
"Congratulations, Liu Kang!" I say happily.  I am glad that
Shang Tsung is finally dead, and that both our goals have
been met.  "You've won the tournament," I say,
mocking the newspaper reporters, "what are you gonna do
now?"
	"I am going home," he says, with out the least bit of
humor.  "I am going to see my fellow brothers and Master Wu
at my temple.  And tell them of my victory in this
tournament.  Then, together, we will all restore the true
pride of this competition."
	I smile.  It sounds like a good plan.  Not like mine. 
I do not know what I shall do now that this tournament is
over.  I cannot go back to family.  I cannot die.  I have to
nothing to remain on earth for now that this tournament is
finished.
	"What are you going to do now that this evil is over?"
he asks.	
	"Oh," I say. "I really don't know."  Which is true. 
For I really don't know.
	Kang smiles and exits Goro's Lair.  I follow.  It is so
nice to be outside that place.  To see the bright, blue sky,
the birds chirping happily.  This whole island has a happy
appearance to it, now that Tsung has been defeated.  I see a
lone figure running up to us.  Liu Kang sees it too.  It is
a male, standing about two meters high, clad in black, skin-
tight pants and a leather motorcycle jacket.  I pull out my
spear.  Liu Kang gets into a fighting stance.	
	"Wait!" the man shouts, panting as he approaches. "It's
me."
	"Who?"
	"Carlton.  John Carlton."  He reaches us and
breathlessly says, "I heard you killed Goro and Tsung,
Kang."
	Liu Kang nods.
	"All right, man!" Cage raises his hand to give Kang a
high-five.  Liu Kang looks at him quizzically.  "Hit my hand
like this, man," Cage slaps his right hand with his left to
demonstrate to Liu Kang the process of giving each other
"five."
	Liu Kang hits his hand, hard.  "Ow, man!" Cage clutches
his hand and laughs.  I laugh too.  Kang sort of smiles, not
really knowing what this high-five business is all about.  I
take it he has never been to America.
	"Listen," Cage says to me, "I want to kinda thank you
for sparing my life."
	"Well. . . ," I say shrugging, "I didn't want to see
you die at my hands, and besides, I liked your movie."
	"What's that?"
	"Your movie.  I liked it."
	"Movie. . . Oh, right," he says. "Which one?"
	"The Dragon Fist," I say.
	"Oh, right.  Good.  Watch the sequel."
	"There's a sequel?"
	He nods.
	"Hey, uh, Scorpion, would you by any chance be
interested in my, uh, autograph?"
	I look over at Liu Kang, who shrugs as if to say, your
choice.  I'm not in this.
	"I guess. . . " I say.
	"Great!" he whips out a photograph and scribbles
something on it.  "Here ya go, fan!" he says, handing it to
me slowly and skilfully.  Just like a moviestar.  I look at
it.  It is a picture of himself wearing dark sunglasses and
smiling, showing off his spotless white teeth.  Scribbled
near the bottom of the picture in blue ink is "To my fan. 
Love, John Carlton" with a five-sided star to the right of
it.  
	"Thanks. . . . ."
	"No prob!  Liu, ya want one?" Liu Kang shakes his head. 
"C'mon!" Cage says. "For me!" 
	"No thank you," Kang says.  Cage appears crushed.  But
he suddenly perks up and says excitedly, "Hey you guys need
a ride?  My private helicopter should be landing here soon. 
I'm sure the pilot would be glad to take you  wherever you
guys are going.  China, right?"
	"Honan Province," Liu Kang says. "I'll walk."
	"Scorp?" he looks hopeful. "You can watch Dragon Fist
II in the chopper. . . "
	"Err. . . aw, what the hell.  I guess."
	"Great!" he says. "Great.  You sure you don't want to
come along, Liu?"
	Kang shakes his head, "I would prefer to walk to greet
my Shaolin brothers."
	"Okay," Cage says. "Well say hi for me.  Ready Scorp? 
What's your real name, by the way?  I don't feel right
calling you Scorpion.  What's your real name?"
	"I don't remember." I say honestly.
	"That's great," he says, not hearing. "Just great. 
Well c'mon."
	"Goodbye, Liu Kang," I say.
	"Scorpion," he holds me back. "You said you were in
this tournament for revenge.  Against whom?"
	"Sub-Zero," I reply.
	"What did he do to you?"
	"He killed me," I say.
	"Huh?"
	"It's a long story," I say.  I'll tell you on the way
back, in the helicopter.
	"Oh, all right," Liu Kang gives in, and we both follow
Johnny Cage to the beach.


	We have landed.  We are now on the beach of the Yellow
Sea.  "You sure you want to walk all the way to your temple
from here, Liu Kang?" Cage asks. "We can give you a lift."
	Kang shakes his head, "I'll walk, thank you."
	"Scorp?  Do you even know where you're going?"
	"Thanks," I say. "And no, I don't know where."
	Cage laughs. "That's great.  Just great.  Later!"  He
closes the door, and the helicopter flies off.  
	Something falls out of Liu Kang's pack he carries over
his shoulder.  I pick it up.  It is a roll of paper with
writing on it.  "What's this?" I ask, indicating the paper.
	"That," he says, reaching for it, "is my journal.  I
kept one throughout my stay at the tournament."
	I nod, reading his final entry. "Why does it say that
Johnny Cage was the last human you saw before you left.?"
	"Because he is.  According to the story you told me on
the ride, you are not human."
	"Oh."
	I told my story to Liu Kang on the ride here.  Cage
heard some of it too, but he was only half listening, so he
didn't react much as Liu Kang did when I told them that I
was undead.  Cage was too busy pointing out different parts
of The Dragon Fist II to listen to me.  Every now and then,
he would point to the screen in the rear of the helicopter
and say something like, "Oh, and here's where that guy tries
to shoot me, but what he's really shooting at is my
reflection, and I'm really behind him.  And then I attack
him, and oh, look at that!  Did you see that?  What do you
think of that awesome move I just did?  You like that?  And
there's no trick photography here either, people.  I really
did do that move.  Oh, and now look.  Now I have the gun. 
Oh, did you see me shoot that guy?  You see all that blood? 
Watch, lemme tell you how we did that scene. . . . "
	As good as the movie was, I found that I liked the
first Dragon Fist better.
	"Well, I guess this is goodbye, then," Liu Kang says,
as he starts up a dirt path leading up a hill.  He waves at
me.  I wave back
	"Goodbye, Liu Kang," I say.  He bows and continues on
his way.  I walk away, still not knowing where I shall go.


Next. . . . . . . . .  'The Second Tournament'-- part VI in 'The Scorpion Saga'
Author's note:  Sorry about the long waiting period between
'The First Tournament' and 'Departure.'  'The Second
Tournament' is still in the works, so I'm afraid that there
will be another waiting period between this part and the
next (I'll probably have to post it in a whole bunch of
different parts, though because I have a feeling it's going
to be as long as 'The First Tournament,' if not longer).

Jonathan