*Dated to Halloween morning*

[lt_blade]

It was the stench that hit her first, right after she and Max found themselves surrounded by fog: the smell of the dungeon, of death, of Outworld. It had been over a year since she'd arrived from there, but it was still in her memory, in her nightmares. Only this time, it wasn't only the stench that had returned, Sonya could also feel the pangs and her skin itched and her wrists bleed from being chained for so long. Looking at herself, her clothing was replaced with her army pants and tanktop, though of course they didn't fit her after loosing so much weight. Her engagement ring was also gone, but somehow it didn't surprise her. It was as though she had never left, even the screams of the other prisoners hadn't changed-not that she expected otherwise.

This couldn't be happening, she thought, looking around, fighting against the lethargy that was so familiar to her in Outworld. Maybe the island sent her back after all, or maybe the whole thing was some sorcery induced dream after all.

She felt something nudge her waist and felt relieved when she saw Max still at her side. The direwolf's heckles were raised as he sensed along with her that something wasn't right, and he nudged her to the cell door. In the small cell, it was only a few paces before she reached, giving it a gentle nudge, and was surprised when it not only opened, but instead of the dungeon corridor, it revealed the Outworld wasteland: hot, barren and littered with impaled corpses. Her feet felt heavy as she continued onward, unable to explain why, but knowing she had to walk.

It's when she gets closer that she recognizes that the screams are coming from the corpses-they weren't dead, they were still suffering. Sonya felt herself sicken when she recognized their faces, some from home, some from the island-she had to help them. Her footsteps kept getting heavier as she tried to go over to them-she had to save them. Why was it so hard to move?  Sonya heard laughter and chatting behind her, and her stomach clenched as the wind changed and she could smell food. Max started to growl and when she followed his line of sight, she could see why.  Ten feet away  was the Emperor Shao Kahn and his warriors, sitting at a long banquet table as though the sight of her friends' suffering was a sort of dinner theater.

The Emperor stood from where he sat. "Ms. Blade, so glad you could join us."

Sonya opened her mouth to refuse, but nothing came out and her throat felt hollow. She then turned to make a run for it, but a chain shot out from nowhere and wrapped itself around her right leg, causing her to fall onto the ground. Sonya struggled against it, and even Max tried to pull her free, when another chain grabbed at her other leg and started pulling her towards the table. She tried to claw at the ground, but the ground was slick and soaked in blood.

Blood?

She looked up. The tree stumps that her friends were impaled on had blood streaming from them and soaking into the ground, even as they were crying out. Sonya struggled harder to gain purchase, even as more chains pulled her arms back.
This time, Shang Tsung granted her a spot with them at the table.

Sonya could only cry out as she futilely struggled against her bonds. 

Comments

[lt-blade.livejournal.com]

Max was the first to respond, barking to let Harry know where they were. Unfortunately, it also meant that Sonya didn't have his leverage to help her break free and without even a long sleeved shirt, she had to keep moving to keep from freezing.

Harry's shouting also alerted the Emperor, who along with his other warriors didn't even notice the cold. He stood up from his great chair in the middle of the table and raised his right hand.

"Finish him." He didn't shout, but somehow his voice was able to be heard even over the sounds of artilery.

She couldn't look away even as she saw several Outworld Mutants, with their fangs and three foot blades projecting from their forearms, starting running towards him. Her struggles became stronger even as the chains seemed to pull her with more force, fear raising at the thought that she'd have to face the execution of yet another one of her friends.

Sonya yelled out, this time from anger as she kicked herself from the tree, the force enough to break off the chains' hold on her.

[realnicetrip.livejournal.com]

When the monsters came running for him, Harry acted on autopilot, swinging his gun down off his shoulder and firing off several bursts. (Never mind now how he'd got that with him or how it was loaded.) He alternated between firing and running, taking what cover he could behind those trees that were still intact. The monsters weren't going down easily, though, and then to add insult to injury, his firearm jammed.

"Fuck!" Harry yelled. He needed to get round to Sonya, if he could just get near her and then get the hell of there they'd be fine, he was sure. He saw her break free from her chains at last.

"Sonya, grab a weapon and get over here!" he called to her.

[lt-blade.livejournal.com]

Somehow, Sonya found herself thinking of a line she'd heard from a movie: something about 'fear leading to hate, leading to anger'. Sonya did indeed fear for Harry's life, and she sure as hell hated the mutants.

She ran over to him, adrenaline keeping her from noticing the cold or the fact that the chains, while no longer attached to the tree, were chafing her already sore wrists and weighing them down. When she heard him tell her to get a weapon, she nearly laughed: she WAS a weapon.

The mutants were in her way and while running through the snow was no easy task, she had to keep them from getting to Harry.

When she was close enough, Sonya grabbed part of the chain on her right arm and swung it in the direction of the mutant closest to her. Her action brought their attention to her and one of them slashed a blade at her. Sonya ducked, barely avoiding the cut, her action simultaniously bringing the other mutant forward and having him stabbed by the other's blade. Instead of getting up, Sonya sweeped her leg, tripping them both. The movement loosened the chain and when she reached to grab it, the chain suddenly turned to a curved, chinese broad sword.

She didn't ask how or why, the only coherant thoughts she had were making sure these monsters spouted blood. She parried an attack from another mutant, retaliating by quickly slashing its torso open.

Had it not been for the sudden burst of artilery, Sonya would've kept fighting, but the attack was so close that it reminded her of her true objective: getting to Harry and getting the hell out of here.

She turned and ran over to him, using the other chain and sword to clear her way. The mutant blood sticking and freezing to her bare arms: why the hell did those freaks have to take her jacket?

Sonya finally reached him, noticing finally that the trees weren't bleeding anymore, though the smell still remained.