Looking To The Future

Summary: AU of the anime Mortal Kombat Legends: Scorpion’s Revenge. Sub-Zero is just as strong as Scorpion. And he has more to lose
Warning(s): Spanking; spoilers for the above-mentioned anime; AU; violence; sexual scenes between two men
Pairing: Sub-Zero/Scorpion

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Being impaled should have killed him. It certainly hurt enough to. He lay on the spike, his life’s blood bleeding out of him, and coughed, struggling to draw in a breath. His mask had slipped enough to obscure his vision, so he couldn’t see anything around him. But he could feel the agony of his chest having been sliced open. He could taste the thick copper in his mouth as blood bubbled up and frothed over his lips.

There had been a weight resting on him, pinning him down. But the weight was gone now. He placed one hand over the spike extending out of him and braced his other hand below, beginning to push himself up.

It was an achingly slow process. It wasn’t possible for the pain to get any worse but trying to lever himself up off the spike was easier said than done. By the time he managed to pull himself absolutely free, sweat was pouring down his face and soaking into his mask.

Dropping to his knees, Sub-Zero ran his fingers over the hole in his chest, fusing his skin together with ice. It hurt, the pain intense enough to cause him to hold his breath, worried that if he let it out, he’d start screaming.

When his skin was fully fused in place, he pushed himself wearily to his feet, only casting one glance back over his shoulder at the blood staining the spike before he started trudging towards the final battlefield.

Bodies littered the ground, many of them ripped apart. Blood saturated the grass he stepped on and by the time he reached the final building, his blue suit was stained with crimson splotches all over it. His breath came out in short, sharp pants as he reached the door, leaning heavily on the frame.

Thick, acrid smoke hit him in the face and flames came shooting towards him. His hands came up in a defensive posture and ice came shooting out of his palms. When it hit the fire, it melted to water and the flames shrank down to cinders.

Sub-Zero stumbled through the smoke and into the hall where Shang Tsung had nearly killed the mortal before the tournament had started. More blood stained the floor, though there wasn’t as much as there had been outside.

A man with flames where his head should have been stood with his back to Sub-Zero, dressed in Scorpion’s yellow outfit. He was standing over a dead, or perhaps unconscious, Quan Chi.

As Sub-Zero stumbled closer to the only surviving member of the Shirai Ryu, though he had to rethink that given the flames that were clearly visible, Scorpion turned. At the same time, he pulled his ninja mask back into place, so all that could be seen were his glowing eyes. “Take back your ice,” he ground out.

“You will destroy this whole island.” Sub-Zero’s voice only shook a little, betraying the pain that haunted him. His eyes were drawn to the wound in Scorpion’s own chest and he stumbled forward a few paces, hand outstretched. “That wound will kill you. But if you let me, I can seal it over. At least until you can receive proper medical treatment.”

“I’m already dead.”

Sub-Zero’s outstretched fingers brushed against Scorpion’s arm and heat flooded through his fingers. He took two more steps forward and pressed himself against the other man, brushing his hand against the wound.

Scorpion jerked back out of his reach. “Don’t touch me.”

“You owe me this,” Sub-Zero stated. “You owe me your life.”

Scorpion’s laugh was bitter. He took another step back, towards Quan Chi’s still form. “Attacking you was a mistake. I was deceived.”

Sub-Zero advanced another step towards him. “You believed me responsible for the destruction of your clan. I don’t know who was responsible for that deception, but I can’t blame you for being tricked.”

Scorpion stood like he was frozen, this time not pulling back as Sub-Zero stepped right back into his space. He shivered as the wound’s edges were sealed with ice. “I don’t have anything left. Not even my own life,” he said hollowly.

“You live now. Even if it’s not the life you were used to.” Sub-Zero let his hands ghost over Scorpion’s back, running down his spine. He pressed closer to the other man and lowered his face to Scorpion’s neck, shifting his own mask enough to uncover his face. He slid the suit off Scorpion’s shoulder, exposing the other man’s skin, and pressed his lips against the hot flesh. He called ice to his mouth and left a trail of cold along Scorpion’s neck and shoulder.

“What are you doing?” Scorpion’s voice hitched. “I need to destroy this place. I have nothing left. Nothing left to live for.”

“Your family and your clan wouldn’t want you to throw your life away.” Sub-Zero raised his hands to Scorpion’s mask. There was no heat coming from the material and he carefully pulled the mask free, revealing Scorpion’s true, human face…although his eyes were still glowing like two embers.

One of them moved and their lips met; clashed, really. The kiss was hard, almost brutally so. Sub-Zero’s hands moved to Scorpion’s hips and he pulled the other man in close, sliding his hands up under the tunic and rubbing over the bare skin of Scorpion’s back. He could feel the ridges of scars under his fingers, almost everywhere he touched. His fingers stroked over every inch, memorising every part of Scorpion’s back.

Scorpion pulled back from the kiss and out of Sub-Zero’s arms, giving a sharp shake of his head. “I have nothing to live for.”

“If you kill yourself like this, then there will be no chance for your clan to live again.”

“My clan is already dead.” Once again, Scorpion’s laugh was bitter. “And I’ve been killed already. I don’t deserve life. I failed.”

Sub-Zero glanced towards Quan Chi. The man hadn’t stirred, but that didn’t mean anything. Scorpion had been brought back to a semblance of life, after all. He stretched out a hand towards the other man. “This isn’t a conversation we should be having here.”

Scorpion took another step back. “Leave, Sub-Zero. I’m glad you clawed your way back to life. I’m glad I didn’t kill you. But I don’t deserve to live after I failed them all. I couldn’t save my wife. I couldn’t save my son. And if I cling to this semblance of life, to this cursed existence, you’ll die. For real this time.” He moved to Quan Chi’s side. “Leave. I’ll wait until you’re safe before I burn this whole place down.”

There was no point in talking. Scorpion wasn’t listening. And leaving him behind wasn’t an option. So instead of walking away, Sub-Zero stepped forward. He reached for Scorpion’s arm and pulled the other man forward off balance. And his other hand connected smartly with Scorpion’s backside in a resounding smack that echoed through the hall.

Scorpion froze. “Did you just…?”

“I swatted you,” Sub-Zero said. “You’re leaving this place with me. Set it on fire when we’re both safely away. And when it’s just us, I’ll spank you properly.”

“What…makes you think I’ll even let you do that? I don’t need you to spank me. I’ve had worse pain.”

“Yes, but that pain has left you with scars and had nothing to do with teaching you not to throw your life away. Or that you’re cared about.” Still holding onto Scorpion’s arm, Sub-Zero began heading towards the door.

“You can’t care about me, Sub-Zero,” Scorpion said. “The only interaction we’ve had is me trying to kill you.”

“I know our attraction is mutual. You didn’t push me away. You let me kiss you. Touch you.” Sub-Zero continued walking, heading back outside. “We’ll go down to the docks. Soon as we’re safely on a boat, you can blow up the island. I figure everyone else who was able to leave under their own power is gone.”

Scorpion didn’t pull away, instead walking alongside Sub-Zero. Whether because he was struggling or because he simply wanted the contact, he listed into Sub-Zero, his breathing shallow.

By the time they reached the docks, Sub-Zero’s own wound was throbbing and he was just barely keeping himself up, let alone supporting Scorpion. A small white motorboat was tied up to the docks and Sub-Zero reached over to freeze and then shatter the rope before he carefully climbed in.

Both of them more or less collapsed in the bottom of the boat, strength spent. It took a few moments before Sub-Zero could start the engine on the boat so they could leave behind the vicious island. He sat down carefully, rubbing at his chest, before looking towards Scorpion. “You do what you need to.”

Scorpion leaned forward, face creasing in concentration, and a few moments later, there was an audible explosion and flames erupted from the island.

Sub-Zero sank back in the boat and sighed deeply. “At least Shao Kahn can’t invade any of the realms for another decade.”

“That doesn’t mean he won’t try.”

Sub-Zero crawled over to where Scorpion was half-collapsed in the boat. He pressed a kiss to the other man’s lips and then slid his hands down to cup Scorpion’s waist.

The sound that escaped Scorpion’s mouth was nearly a groan. He pressed against Sub-Zero, before muttering, “This is wrong.”

Sub-Zero pulled back slowly from the kiss and sighed. “I know you’ve lost people. I’ve lost people important to me too.” He squeezed Scorpion’s wrist and then leaned back against the side of the boat, using his grip on Scorpion to pull the other man across his lap.

Scorpion didn’t fight, instead staying still and limp in place as Sub-Zero pulled his pants and underwear down, baring his backside. He only tensed up a little as Sub-Zero brought his hand down firmly on his bare backside, letting out a tiny groan as a matching swat was delivered on the other side.

Sub-Zero smacked at a slow, steady pace, working his way from the crest of Scorpion’s bottom down to his thighs. It didn’t take long before the other man’s bottom began to grow pink and warm under his palm as Sub-Zero smacked steadily for three full circuits and then began to rub Scorpion’s bottom. “I’m sorry for what happened to your family. I’m sorry for what happened to your clan. I can’t imagine how much that must have hurt you. But they wouldn’t want you to throw your life away, whether because of revenge or out of a sense of guilt.”

“I let them down!” Scorpion’s voice was strained. “I couldn’t save even one of them. I let them all down.” His voice hitched.

Sub-Zero brought enough cold to his fingertips to wet his hands and then began to rub the moisture into Scorpion’s bottom and thighs. When he began to smack again, Scorpion began to squirm, his legs jerking.

It didn’t take long before Scorpion was whimpering, his whole body shifting from side to side. Sub-Zero simply followed each movement with the stinging smacks, the other man’s bottom turning red and hot under his hand. “You can’t keep blaming yourself. Maybe you can’t bring your family back, but you can continue living for them. That’s what they would want.”

“So…does…that…mean…living with you?” Scorpion managed to get out.

“I’d like that,” Sub-Zero said honestly. “I can’t take the place of your family and I wouldn’t even try. But I can help you heal from that loss. No matter how long it takes.”

“Hanzo Hashashi,” Scorpion whispered.

“What?”

“My name.” The other man cleared his throat. “If we’re going to be together…my name is Hanzo Hashashi.”

“I’m Kuai Liang. That’s my name.” Sub-Zero rubbed the other man’s bottom a few moments and then carefully helped Hashashi up into his arms. He wrapped them tight around the other man and then kissed him firmly.

Hashashi let out a quiet, almost whimpering sigh and pressed firmly into the kiss.

Behind them was nothing but chaos. But in front of them, for now, was peace.

The End