#i know this part doesn't sound like any big discovery but i needed to lay the ground on which my take on lin kuei bros is build

[cienie-isengardu]

[MK1] Bi-Han & Kuai Liang. Good brother? Evil brother? Nah, just different reactions to trauma, part 2

With the first part, I hopefully established that within presented worldbuilding, 

A) characters being allied with the Good Side aren’t “perfectly pure” and may be involved in questionable actions,

B) the same as wishing to change prevailing traditions isn’t a sign of evilness, as tradition itself is not determinant of good and evil

C) there are little to no sources showing us that Lin Kuei benefits in any special way from its “honorable servitude” to Liu Kang and Earthrealm.

Before I will dwell more into details about Bi-Han, Kuai Liang and how Lin Kuei training affected who they are, let me established two more things:

First and foremost, we need to remember that during story mode Sub-Zero and Scorpion are affected by things outside of their control - frustration and grief respectively. So none of them are at their best (normal) mentally state.

Secondly, from on I’m gonna use words like “abuse” conventionally for Lin Kuei upbringing, not as I think their parents or teachers were abusive people on purpose but because installing in young children a traditional values is one thing and making them cold-blooded killers totally different matter and there is plenty to say - and condemn - about turning children into perfect soldiers (tools) to uphold someone’s authority or idea of a “greater good”.

The most vital question about the Sub-Zero and Scorpion is: how two brothers raised by the same parents, taught the same values and growing together in an isolated and hidden Lin Kuei clan could get such an opposite approach to tradition and authority?

As stated in the title, I do sincerely believe the conflict between Sub-Zero and Scorpion is not rooted in how morally or immorally characters they are at core, but how they deal with hardship (abuse) of being trained since childhood to be a secret weapon ensuring safety of Liu Kang’s Earthrealm and how this limited their life to one, dictated by someone’s else, purpose.

The game makes it clear the main theme of conflict between brothers is about tradition (father’s teaching), more precisely, whether Lin Kuei should follow the centuries old servitude or break with it. We could see this dispute between Kuai Liang, Tomas and Bi-Han twice, first when brothers were awaiting Liu Kang

Tomas: Were he here, Father would advise us to wait without protest. Bi-Han: But now he is gone and I am Grandmaster. Kuai Liang: His teaching did not pass with him. They should still guide us. Bi-Han: Guide us, yes. Shackle us, no.

and during the mission itself

Kuai Liang: We must honor his vision Bi-Han. Bi-Han: Vision is what he lacked. He was blind to our superiority. We settle for defending Earthrealm when we could help lead it. Tomas: Our clan doesn't govern. It serves. Bi-Han: That is our past. It won't be our future. 

The conflict was already ongoing issue between brothers to the point Kuai Liang feared at some point he would need to turn against Bi-Han to take control over the clan:

Scorpion’s Bio: But Sub-Zero's unprecedented moves to cast off the Lin Kuei's traditional duties have frozen Scorpion’s enthusiasm. He fears that he may one day have to battle his brother for control of the Lin Kuei's legacy.But Sub-Zero's unprecedented moves to cast off the Lin Kuei's traditional duties have frozen Scorpion’s enthusiasm. He fears that he may one day have to battle his brother for control of the Lin Kuei's legacy.

On another hand, the story mode suggests that despite those fears, Scorpion did not really believe Sub-Zero will ultimately go so far as to abbadon Earthrealm in need.

Story Mode, Kuai Liang: I knew Bi-Han's frustrations ran deep. But I never thought they could inspire such madness. We can't let his corruption spread.

The game keeps each brother’s reasoning as vague as possible, however Kuai Liang and Tomas does not provide any constructive argument beyond honoring father’s teaching. There is no given reason why exactly Kuai Liang and Tomas think Lin Kuei should still uphold a system that objectively speaking does not benefit the clan as far as sources are concerned, yet both are very firm about respecting tradition and fulfilling their original duty they were trained for since childhood. 

And so we have in story mode

Scorpion: We must chart a new course. One that both honors our Father's legacy and serves Earthrealm

or

Scorpion: "Glory? We fight for duty."

or

Tomas: We can't abandon tradition.

or

Liu Kang: As you know, Bi-Han and his Lin Kuei have abandoned their roles as Earthrealm's guardians. His brother Kuai Liang has agreed to build a new clan, the Shirai Ryu, to take its place. I must go aid his efforts.

while intro dialogues adds

Smoke: With you as grandmaster, our new clan will flourish. Scorpion: Only if we honor tradition.

or

Geras: We are both sworn to serve. Scorpion: May neither of us neglect our duties.

or

Sub-Zero: What is the point of your new clan? Scorpion: To fill the role the Lin Kuei abandoned.

As Scorpion’s Bio says “Like his cherished father, Scorpion is dedicated to the Lin Kuei and its defense of Earthrealm. “, the Earthrealm’s safety is an important matter to Kuai Liang, although whether this dedication comes from his deep sense of duty alone or he actually cares for other people is up to debate. Mainly, because the sources don’t provide an insight into his motivation beyond loyalty to cherished father, his teaching and “legacy”.

Out of three brothers, Tomas was the most sidelined character, but despite sharing with Kuai Liang a similar dedication to their father, intro dialogues at least directly address his desire to save people, so we may assume for Smoke, the duty to Earthrealm is not just matter of principle but a real care for others - something most likely tied to his survivor’s guilt / trauma after losing biological family:

Sindel: It's impossible, Smoke. We can't save everyone. Smoke: Then I'll save who I can to make up for the ones I can't.

In contrast to Kuai Liang, the sources add a lot of insight into Bi-Han’s motivation. Alongside his desire for making his clan stronger - and eventual expansion of Lin Kuei’s political-economic standing, the thirst for independence and freedom are the most frequently mentioned things and such repeated theme make it clear that for Sub-Zero the cherished by Scorpion and father’s tradition was nothing more than enslavement.

Story mode: 

Kuai Liang: His teaching did not pass with him. They should still guide us. Bi-Han: Guide us, yes. Shackle us, no.

and

Shang Tsung: I know that you wish to break free of Liu Kang’s control…

Sub-Zero’s ending:

“I had broken the Lin Kuei free of Liu Kang’s enslavement. We were now masters of our destiny and could take our place among Earthrealm’s greatest nations.”[...]

Intro dialogues:

Liu Kang: You have forsaken your family. Bi-Han: To free the Lin Kuei from bondage.

and

Liu Kang: Come in from the cold, Bi-Han. Bi-Han: And again kneel before you?

and

Havik: You let yourself be Liu Kang’s slave. Kuai Liang: An opinion shared by my brother.

or

Sub-Zero: I've gained the Lin Kuei's freedom. Smoke: You've only earned them infamy.

(the screenshots can be found here)

This visible difference between brothers gives us the first clue to understand the motives behind their choices and what kind of people they are. 

Whatever Kuai Liang experienced as a child, he fully embraced father’s authority and build his life around the duty to Earthrealm - to the point he never wished to be anything else than Lin Kuei

Raiden: Did you ever want to be an Earthrealm champion? Scorpion: I have only ever wanted to be Lin Kuei.

even if he clearly does not enjoy the fighting the way Bi-Han does

Sub-Zero (Scorpion and Smoke): You're both unharmed? Scorpion: We are, brother. Sub-Zero: Good. After years of idleness, it pleases me to again face kombat. Scorpion: I will be pleased when we complete our mission.

and actually may not like kombat that much in general

Scorpion: As Time’s Keeper, you could have abolished kombat. Liu Kang: Even a Titan’s power has limits.

Mind you, a timeline in which fighting is abolished is a world where there is no need for Lin Kuei, as the clan's purpose is tightly tied to kombat. What gives an interesting detail about Scorpion and his dedication to duty, even at the cost of his own comfort.

In contrast, Bi-Han questions everything

the purpose of Lin Kuei

Sub-Zero’s BIO: As the Lin Kuei's Grandmaster, Sub-Zero leads his ancient warrior clan in defense of Earthrealm from external threats. For centuries, it has been their solemn task. But Earthrealm hasn't been threatened in generations, and Sub-Zero see no point in limiting his clan to preparing for dangers that may never come. Under his leadership, the Lin Kuei will come out of the shadows and fight for its place as one of Earthrealm's great nations.

the authority and wisdom of father

Story mode: Vision is what [father] lacked. He was blind to our superiority. We settle for defending Earthrealm when we could help lead it.

and

Scorpion: Father would be ashamed of you. Sub-Zero: Only because he lacked vision.

and

Sindel: I knew your father. He was a great man. Sub-Zero: Yet he never understood the Lin Kuei's potential.

and

Sub-Zero: My father was a fool to follow you. Liu Kang: He wisely honored Earthrealm with his service.

the authority of Liu Kang

Sub-Zero: Earthrealm isn't yours to rule. Liu Kang: Nor has it ever been, Bi-Han!

and

Sub-Zero: I don't recognize your creator's authority. Geras: Denying facts makes them no less real.

and

Kenshi: Why do you so resent Liu Kang’s authority? Sub-Zero: Give it time. You will understand.

This leads me to see Kuai Liang as a believer (follower of Liu Kang and father’s authority) that wants to uphold the status quo because it was so drilled into him and/or without Lin Kuei he has no purpose or identity to cling to, while Bi-Han is the man questioning the system and purpose imposed on him. A purpose that without an external threat could turn out to be a wasted life. 

That Sub-Zero question authority is nothing surprising, as all major cryomancers have a rocky relationship with it, including previous timelines Kuai Liang. From in-universe perspective, this could be a reason why Liu Kang on purpose changed Kuai Liang into pyromancer, as I believe that cryomancer Kuai Liang would be much more supportive of Bi-Han’s independence streak than his fire counterpart is. 

This is solely a ground on which in next part(s) I’m gonna exploit more all the nuances between brothers and from where comes their different approach to tradition, authority and their duties. 

#mortal kombat #bi han #sub zero #kuai liang #scorpion #tomas vrbada #smoke #as the text grows longer i decided to cut it down in smaller parts both to make it easier to read and to focus on individual matters #but also to not keep everyone wait too long #sorry for that! #i know this part doesn't sound like any big discovery but i needed to lay the ground on which my take on lin kuei bros is build #hopefully the future parts will be more interesting :P

[reynahermione]

HI... I love your Apollo x reader so bad I'm crying aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa. Can you make another Apollo X Reader where reader is like going on a quest w Percy and reader got wounded and Apollo who have a crush on reader but pretends that he doesn't have a crush on reader get super worried and like confessed to reader uwu. I'm sorry if it's confusing, anyway LOVE YOU

HI! Thank you so much for reading and requesting this, I really hope you love it!

pairings: Apollo X Reader | Percy Jackson X Reader (platonic)

warnings: near-death experience 

You were having a wonderful day. The sky was clear, not a cloud in sight, there was a nice slight breeze flying by, the strawberries were growing nicely, everyone seems to be in a great mood, nothing could ruin your day. Or so you thought. When you arrived at your cabin, you spotted your best friend since middle school, Percy Jackson. You both arrived together at camp all those years ago and have been by each other’s side since. But from the smile on his face, you knew he was about to ask for something. 

“Wanna go on a quest?” He smiled as you stopped by the steps of your cabin. 

You crossed your arms over your chest, “Wow. Hey Y/n, how are you today? Oh! Hey, Percy! I was having such a great day, thanks for asking.” 

He dramatically rolled his eyes, “Hey Y/n, I’m so happy you had a great day. Wanna go on a quest with me?” 

“Sure, what are we doing?” You asked going up the steps of your cabin, heading to the door. 

“Hermes is down so Demeter wants us to give Persephone something.” He held up a small wrapped package.

That doesn’t sound very hard. This quest could very possibly only be a day or two long. 

“Alright. Give me a minute to pack.” 

You entered your cabin and went straight to your bunk. Grabbing your bag from the trunk by your bed, you quickly started to shove in your quest essentials: your extra toothbrush, toothpaste, clothes, deodorant, drachmas, money, and your emergency dagger that y/g/p gave to you on your sixteenth birthday. After you close your bag, you put it on just as the door was opened. You turned to see your little sister, Ginger, walking in, with a bright red face and goofy smile.

You smiled at her, “What’s with the smile Ginger?” 

She giggled as she rushed over to hug you. You bent down and caught her in your arms, picking her up and tightly hugging her. 

“Apollo is outside and he says I look radiate.” She giggled. 

Apollo is outside? Well, that’s not really shocking. Ever since his punishment ended he has been visiting Camp more often and hanging out with his children. You would be a liar if you said you hadn’t fallen for the sun god. How could you not? During his time as a mortal, you realized your crush on him. He had unquestionably grown as a person and it made your heart flutter whenever you two would hang out together. Part of you selfishly wanted him to remain mortal so the two of you could be together, but you accept the fact that he probably only saw you as a close friend. Apollo has been hanging around some of the other campers lately and has become a bit distant.

Placing Ginger down, you ruffled her curly brown hair, “He’s a bit too old for you Gin, like a couple of centuries too old. I don’t think y/g/n is gonna approve of that.” She playfully rolled her eyes, unraveling herself from your hold. 

“He’s talking to Percy outside. He told me to tell you to hurry up.” She skipped away further into the cabin. 

Walking to the door, you stop about a foot away from it and fixed your clothes, and smoothed your hair out with your hands. You hoped that Aphrodite would give you a quick blessing before opening the door and stepping out, seeing Percy and Apollo speaking to each other on the steps of your cabin. 

“Morning Apollo!” You smiled as they both turned to look at you. 

“Morning Flower! Are you going somewhere?” He asked motioning to your bag. 

You nodded, “Yup, I’m going with Percy to giving something to Persephone.” 

He gave Percy a look, it almost looked judgemental to you. Why would he give Percy that type of look? 

“Did you ask her to go with you?” He questioned Percy, in an off-putting tone.

“Uh-yeah. Persephone likes y/n. I figured bringing y/n along would make Persephone happy.” Percy shrugged. 

“Why would you care if he asked me?” You defensively asked, crossing your arms over your chest. 

He looked at you again, opening and closing his mouth, trying to formulate an excuse.

“I-I-I didn’t-I didn’t mean it like that!” 

“Yeah whatever,” you scoffed, “come on Perc. Let’s get this over with.” 

You grabbed Percy by his arm and dragged him away from the bumbling God who was yelling out apologies. How dare he even ask something like that? You helped save Olympus for crying out loud! If saving Olympus wasn’t good enough for him, you were going to show just how well you could handle yourself on a quest. Here you were thinking that he had changed into a better person/god.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The train cart was quiet as it went to its destination, Washington D.C. Why Persephone was there was beyond you, but you couldn’t wait to see your old friend. Percy sat in the seat across from you, staring out the window. He had been quiet since you left the camp. You assumed he was letting you cool down.

“He didn’t mean it that way, ya know.” 

You looked at your best friend. He was still staring out of the window, arms loosely folded across his chest. 

“But why would he even ask that? Like-I helped save Olympus for crying out loud. Does he not think I can handle doing a quest?” 

Percy chuckled as he shook his head, a smile on his face, “You’re so blind.”

You scoffed, “Blind about what? He’s an asshole.” 

“Y/n, he has a crush on you.” 

You stared at Percy in shock. He what? Apollo has a crush on you?

“Apollo has had a crush on you since his punishment. You never noticed how he would literally agree with everything you would say, laugh a little too hard at your non-funny jokes, and wanted to hang out with you every second of the day?” 

You had to think about that. Honestly, you didn’t see it as him wanting to be closer to you because he liked you. It just felt as if he just wanted to be around someone he was familiar with. Him having a crush on you was the last thing you expected. 

“Look, he told me to give this to you when you’re in a better mood. Apollo can be an idiot, but I can tell that he wants to make things better with you.” 

Percy handed you a folded up piece of paper. You slowly took the piece of paper and looked at it. Your name had been written on the top in elegant cursive writing. Glancing up at Percy, you see him leaned back on his seat, eyes closed, getting comfortable in the seat to take a quick nap. Looking back down at the folded note, you open it up and see many attempts at haikus filling the page. Many of them were crossed out, and some were unfinished with self ridiculing comments written around them. Why would he send you a page filled with unfinished haikus? You turned the page and saw that he had another unfinished haiku written, but this one was different. It had arrows pointing towards it and little hearts and stars surrounding it. 

‘Little Flower

My little flower

Blooms under the starry night sky

And that’s all I have…’

Your face felt hot as you reread the title and unfinished haiku. As far as you knew, you were the only person that Apollo called ‘flower’ and he had never called you his little flower. Maybe he did have a crush on you.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The beginning half of the quest had gone well. It took you a minute to regain yourself from the discovery, but you had to put it aside to focus on the quest. You swore to yourself that you would speak to Apollo as soon as you got to Camp again. 

After delivering the package to Persephone, she asked for you both to take her young demigod son Timothy with you to Camp. Taking Timothy with you, both of you heightened your awareness. The most powerful son of Poseidon, the child of y/g/p, and the young son of Persephone was a bright neon sign calling out to monsters to come eat them. That’s how you got into this situation, running away from five echidnas and two harpies who were hot on your trail. You held little Timothy in your arms as you ran through the woods, ducking and jumping over tree branches, heading to Camp. Percy ran beside you, trying his best to block any attacks from hitting you or Timothy. Once you saw the border guards, you began to scream at them for help.

“Help!” The two closest guards jumped at the sound of your panicked voice and immediately ran over to help out. 

“You’re mine child of y/g/p!” 

Before you could cross the border, a searing pain came from near your left collar bone area and you watch as a spear came out through your body-your blood coating the tip of the spear. Timothy screamed in horror as you fell forward, your eyes rolling to the back of your head as you fell unconscious. His tiny hands clutched your shirt as his screams drew the attention of other guards and campers passing by. One such camper being Will Solace, son of Apollo. Running up the hill, he stops when he sees the scene before him. You laid unresponsive on top of a small child who was screaming for help and a bloody spear stuck out through your body. He felt his blood turn cold as he prayed to every god and fates that you weren’t dead. He bolted to your side and carefully took Timothy out from under you, handing him off to another camper that came to help. 

“Stay with me y/n.” He tried his best to put pressure on your wound but it wasn’t much help. He was going to need the big guns. His dad.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Nothing felt different. You slowly woke up without an ounce of pain rushing through your body. Your throat didn’t feel dry, your collar bone area didn’t hurt, and your head didn’t hurt either. Everything felt normal. Well, except for a strange presence laying between your legs. Carefully lifting your head, you look down at your legs and see a little body cuddled in between your legs. It was Timothy. He had a tight grip on the blanket covering you.

“You swore you would keep them safe Percy!” 

You slowly turned your head to the loud voice and tried to focus your eyes on the two people standing by the door. It took a moment before your eyes adjusted and you saw Apollo and Percy. 

“I tried! We can’t help it that monsters want to kill us Apollo, I let y/n run while I took them on. I thought they were safe.” Percy’s voice cracked as he defended himself. 

“Well, they’re clearly not,” Apollo turned to point at you but he froze when he saw you staring right at him. “Y/n!” 

He dried his tears and ran to your side, dropping down next to your cot. The god had more tears in his eyes, his once golden skin and breathtaking blue eyes were blotchy and dull. He gently grabbed hold of your hand closest to him while you laid your head back on the pillow. 

“Do you like me?”

 Of course, that is the first thing you ask after almost dying. 

Apollo let out a laugh as he brought your hand up to his lips and placed a gentle kiss on the top of your hand. Tears ran down his blotchy red cheeks as he lovingly stared down at you.

“You’re seriously asking me that?” He asked. 

“I need a solid answer-,” 

Apollo kissed you. You were momentarily shocked but quickly reacted by kissing him back. You could’ve never dreamt of a kiss like this. Albeit a gentle kiss, you felt all of the passion and love he was putting into it. His kiss had you forgetting about the world around you and made you feel like you were his world, because to Apollo, you were just that. His world. His everything. The person he wanted to change for and give them the world. 

When he heard Will’s prayers, he felt as though his entire world crumbled. He rushed down to the infirmary and did everything in his power to heal you. He couldn’t lose another love, especially if he could stop it. Blocking off anyone from going near you (except for Timothy. Apollo could bare to say no to his little puppy dog eyes), he acted as your bodyguard, monitoring you, feeding you nectar, telling you about his day, singing random hymns and jingles. He wasn’t going to lose you. Not before he even had you. 

The kiss was short, but it gave you your answer. Apollo was head over heels in love with you and you felt the same way about him. Looking at the god, you saw a new set of fresh tears forming and him smiling down at you. You smiled back at him while reaching over and drying his eyes with the hand he had been holding. 

“Can I tell you something?” 

He frantically nodded his head while drying his face again with his hands, “You can tell me anything you want my little flower.”

You smiled, “The second line of your haiku had eight syllables.”

For a moment, you both stared at each other before erupting into loud laughter, only stopping when a tiny groan came from the sleeping toddler laying between your legs. You looked at Apollo, admiring him as he did the same to you. His little flower. 

“Can I read you the updated version?” He asked, pulling something out of his pocket. 

You excitedly nodded. He opened the folded piece and cleared his throat as his eyes scanned the paper, 

“My little flower

Blooms under the starry sky

Calling me, her love.”

#percy jackon and the olympians #pjo imagines #pjo/hoo #percy jackson #percy jackson imagine #apollo imagines #apollo imagine #apollo x reader #percy jackdon x reader