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sp0o0kylights · 1 year

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Steve x Eddie Werewolf AU

Part One

Part Two

Steve hadn't intended to be the Alpha werewolf of a capitol P Pack.

Of course, he hadn't planned on discovering an entire hell dimension hiding under Hawkins either so it was safe to say most of his predetermined life plans had gone totally sideways.

Now, as he stood amongst his friends, his family, who were once again gearing up to fight something they shouldn't have too, he couldn't keep his eyes off the odd wolf out.

Except Eddie "the freak" Munson wasn't out of place--and that was the problem.

Steve watched as he tussled with Dustin, the serious edge that had been clinging to the younger boy's shoulders disappearing as Eddie tackled him to the ground, cackling.

It made them look their ages for once.

"Are you thinking about bringing him into the Pack?" Robin asked as she poured more gasoline into a bottle, ever observant.

Steve didn't bother playing dumb. No point, with her. "I was going to offer, yeah. Before we go back into the Upside Down."

Robin hummed softly, setting the bottle aside for a moment.

"Would give him way better protection against Vecna." Steve said, as if that was reason enough to claim Eddie, and not like he hadn't basically adopted the guy since the older wolf stuck a bottle against his throat.

Which in turn had made Steve's own wolf wake up and take notice.

He'd thought he was going to have to fight off the urge to shift, form his hands into claws and tear into Munson. Instead what he’d gotten was a confusing tangle of approval, admiration and his ever present urge to protect coming out in full force.

It wasn't his fault he'd immediately noticed the sheer fear rolling off Eddie, and how he'd overcome it to fight anyway.

How he trembled as he knelt down, his wolf staring out of his eyes, but never once lost control.

Listened to Dustin, and respected the kid enough to calm down for him, even though the younger boy was really the only person Eddie knew was truly friendly, let alone trustworthy staring him down in that shed.

Then came all the sass, how he lit up when Steve brought him his favorite foods. The dramatic way he'd crooned and hugged Steve, like the act of giving a box of honeycombs was akin to a proposal.

(Of course, for Steve, it was.

One that he and his wolf made together.

An offering of family. Of protection, safety and love.

The decision wasn't just his to make, though and he knew it.

It never had been.

Steve might have been raised by snide, old school Werewolves, born and bred to do things the traditional way, but all tradition had ever done was hurt him in ways he had sworn to never pass on to his own packmates.)

"It would also give him a home with people who know and understand what going through all this does to you." Robin added softly, leaning into Steve's side and putting her head on his shoulder. "I definitely needed that. After Starcourt."

Steve put the bottle he was working on down next to Robin's, then leaned his head atop hers.

"We all did." He agreed.

"Plus he fits in." Steve didn't have to see her face to feel her smirk as Eddie went to pull on Dustin’s underwear, cackling madly as Dustin shrieked and called him a cheater.

"But you already knew that."

Steve smiled. "The kids love him, yeah."

He got an elbow to the gut for that one.

"Not what I meant dingus, and you know it." She pulled her head back, only so she could look onto Steve's face. "That boys been flirting with you since you brought him beer."

Steve sputtered.

"I've had to bear witness to the Harrington charm before, don't think I didn't see it in action the other day." Robin poked him in the cheek with a finger. "Just because you're a bit more reserved when it comes to flirting with guys doesn't mean I didn't catch it.”

Nancy walked up the hill, coming to sit down next to them as Steve sputtered.

For once she didn't say a thing about how close Robin and Steve were sitting, instead opting to sit on Steve's open side.

"Are we discussing claiming Eddie as part of the Pack?" She asked, causing Robin to give her a delighted grin.

"We are indeed, my extremely smart friend."

"No arguments from you then if I offer?" Steve asked.

He wasn't going to bother asking the kids, he knew what their answer would be.

The decisions were made among the elder pack members anyway, and would be until the kids reached an age were they could make decisions that didn’t constantly end in half of them getting killed, but with Jonathan out of the picture in California it came down just to Nancy and Robin.

Nancy put her head in a hand, watching as Lucas and Erica became involved in the tussle with Eddie and Dustin.

"No." She said, after a moment.

'He's dominant, Nance." Steve warned, because the last thing he needed was to bring Eddie in only for a fight to break out over who would act as the Packs Second in Command.

Nancy smiled, looking gentle as she tucked her legs up underneath her. "If he wants my position he can have it. The kids listen to him better anyway."

“You're sure?” Steve asked. He knew she was, could feel through their bonds that she was, but he had to ask it. Needed to hear the confirmation.

Nancy rolled her eyes at him. “Yes Steve. Now are you going to go get him, or are we going to wait for Vecna to spring something on us? Because for once it would be nice to add a pack member without some kind of threat forcing it.”

Steve rolled his eyes back at her, but quietly agreed.

“Make sure Robin doesn’t blow herself up making molotovs, would you?.” He asked as he stood, dusting grass and dirt off his pants.

Robin flipped him off.

xXx

"Guys, I need to borrow Eddie for a second." Steve called as he approached, mostly to prevent anyone from turning on him at the last second and trying to physically drag him into their game.

"Fine Steve, but I want him back as soon as you're done!" Dustin shouted, releasing his hold on Eddie’s jacket.

The older wolf grinned. "Oh I'm sure Harrington will be gentle."

Steve rolled his eyes, but turned around when Eddie reached him, taking a meandering path back up to the winnebago.

"You can call me Steve, you know." He said as they walked.

Eddie just jostled him with a grin, playfully bouncing on his feet. "Aww, but that's just no fun, Handsome!"

Steve felt a blush burn at the tips of his ears, but kept kept it off his face. "Handsome works fine too."

"So what're we talking about? Is this more Vecna plans? Stuff kiddies ears cannot hear?"

Steve wobbled his hand back and forth. "Yes and no. It'll help with Vecna, but it's…more than that."

Eddie raised an eyebrow at him as the path Steve took them behind the van, well away from the kids and just out of sight of Robin and Nancy.

"Well spit it out man, you're blue balling me here."

"You're not part of a Pack, right?" Steve blurted out. It hadn’t been until this moment that he realized he'd never actually offered this to anyone, having always claimed someone either in an emergency or via the kids being pushy assholes.

Offering a place in a Pack was a big deal, but given the nature of his, Steve felt he earned the ability to say his was beyond special. The people he invited into it were as well, and they deserved to be asked properly.

Eddie deserved to be asked, properly.

The same Eddie who blinked at his question, then laughed.

It wasn’t a nice laugh.

“What do you think? No one wanted me before I was the town murderer, and even if I survive this shit?” He leaned in, like he was sharing a secret. “Absolutely no ones going to want me now.”

Steve frowned at him, startled.

Caught how Eddie’s scent changed right before he got a handle on it, reeling his emotions in before the sadness soaking his words became obvious.

”That’s not--no--right, okay.” Steve huffed, frustrated at himself. “Any Pack would be lucky to have you, Eddie. They’d be stupid to buy the murderer crap.”

Eddie scoffed. “I think you of all people should know anyone would be stupid to take me on.”

“Guess it’s a good thing I’m a dumbass then.” He responded, before mentally kicking himself.

He was fumbling. He knew he was fumbling, and a part of him wanted to groan aloud.

This was not how this was supposed to go. He was getting Dustin to write him a speech, stat.

On second thought, maybe he’d have Nancy write it.

"What?” Eddie asked, but it was flat, the playfulness gone. Now there was apprehension in those big eyes of his, and fumbling or not, proper or not, Steve wasn’t having it.

Not for the guy his kids adored. Not for the one who had leapt into a lake after him to fend off bats, and then complimented him after.

"I'm saying I want-- I'd love to have you in mine."

A pause.

"My uh, my Pack." Steve clarified in the growing silence, like it wasn’t obvious.

Eddie stared at him.

Steve was blowing this. He was absolutely and totally blowing this, and he was going to workshop a whole damn spiel the next time this happened. (Not that he ever wanted to claim anyone else. Damn Pack was already too big.)

"I'm offering to claim you." He added dumbly, when Eddie didn't say anything.

"I'm dominant, Steve." The older wolf deadpanned. "Not enough to gun for your position--and frankly man after seeing your warrior form rip those damn bats in half I don't think anyone in Hawkins is dominant enough to take you--but."

Eddie worked his jaw, looked away. "I'd definitely be a problem for your current rankings."

As if Steve hadn’t already figured that out.

"Nancy has agreed to step down as Second." Steve told him, glad he'd had the forethought to have an answer to a problem for once.

Eddie gave him a disbelieving look. "Nancy, "more guns than sense--and she has a lot of sense" Wheeler agreed to bow out of being the Pack's second? For me?"

"For you." Steve agreed, knowing the implication that Nancy found him worthy to succeed her, would make Eddie blush. "If it helps though I think you're doing her a favor. I worry a lot about the kids and I think she's tired of riding herd on them. She's happy stepping down.”

"All of the power, none of the administrative overhead." Eddie agreed vaguely, fiddling with his rings. His hair swung down to cover part of his face as he stared hard at his hands.

"Which means of course, means you get to help cart around the kids." Steve tried to grin at him, hoping they were getting back onto firmer ground.

"I see how it is, you're bringing me in for my van." Eddie said, as if he hadn't ditched his vehicle halfway in the woods.

His voice was off though.

It wasn’t until Eddie made the mistake of glancing up that Steve saw how wet his eyes were. The tears he was holding back through force of will alone.

"I'm wanted for murder, Steve." Eddie whispered, voice pained. "I can't drag the kids down with me. I can't drag any of you down with me. I'm not worth that."

And oh, fuck that.

One hundred percent fuck that.

"You are absolutely worth it." Steve said fiercely, the hesitant, careful energy gone. Replaced entirely by the protective streak he was known for, the assuredness that had made him a good team captain and a better Alpha werewolf.

"And I hate to break it to you, but you're not even our first fugitive. So unless you can give me a solid excuse, Munson, then I expect you to accept."

That got him.

“You’re serious.” Eddie said, and it wasn’t a question. He stared full on into Steve’s eyes now, a challenge for a werewolf. This though, wasn’t one, and Steve’s wolf didn’t react negatively.

Knew instinctively, that he was being searched for any hint of a lie.

“When it comes to this? To you?” Steve found himself gravitating closer, honesty bleeding through every pore. “I will always be serious.”

A sniff, followed by a quiet huff of laughter as Eddie rubbed his eyes on his sleeve. "Shit, you sure know how to make a guy feel special."

"You are special.” Steve fired back. “That’s why I want you.”

It should have been we, as in we The Pack, want you, but Steve would examine where the “I” came from later.

“If--if you’re sure you won’t regret it…” Eddie trailed off, shyly holding out his hand as his face blushed scarlet.

Steve took it, offering a customary kiss to the hand with bare knuckles before tugging him closer. “I will never regret meeting you, Edward Munson.” Steve told him, eyes rolling gold as his wolf took a mental step forward.

Not to overtake him, but to combine with him, to put the two halves of his souls back together in a way that only the strongest could.

“You would honor us should you accept our offer to be Pack.” That was him and the wolf talking together, the formal way his wolf spoke taking over Steve’s more lax language.

“God you’re unreal.” Eddie choked out, a wobbly smile taking over his face. “Ask me again. Formally and shit.”

Steve grinned.

Formal he could do.

'Thank you asshole parents, for assuming I'd be an Alpha and making me take the etiquette classes.'

Left hand went on Eddie's shoulder, right hand brushed his hair back before going a supportive hold at his waist.

Eddie sucked in a breath, scent mixing both with awe and fear.

Steve's wolf didn't like the former, set about immediately to soothe.

'Mine.' It whispered in their head. Unusual, if only because it usually laid claim with a solid "Ours" but Steve wasn't going to question it.

Vecna had done a number on him, as a Pack leader. He'd earned his wolf being a bit odd for the day.

He opened the door in his h

"Edward Munson," Steve said, knowing his eyes were pulsating gently with wolf gold as he leaned forward to touch foreheads with Eddie.

"We ask you to aid this Pack as one of its members. Defend those bound to you, as they in turn will defend you, so long as you run with us?”

Eddie breathed in shallowly, once.

Twice.

"Yes." He whispered, as if speaking louder would make Steve take the offer back.

Steve pulled on the Pack's Magic, felt it build within him, an invisible pressure that flickered to life as yellow electricity dancing out of his eyes, down his teeth.

He moved to the point where Eddie's neck met his shoulder, fangs extending, long in his mouth.

“Through bite and blood, I claim you as Pack.”

Steve gently kissed the spot once, before sinking his fangs deep. Channeling the magic he’d built deep into Eddie’s skin, directing it instinctively down and around Eddie’s chest. Arks of energy engulfed them both, a vibrant red magic rising to meet Steve’s yellow.

Eddie arched into the contact, but his neck remained in Steve;s mouth, body language submissive.

Magic pulsed like a live wire, growing visible around them in Steve's signature yellow, cackling across his skin to Eddie's and back. The two colors danced together for a moment, weaving and combining, until a bond was forged to the Pack.

The bond finished and Eddie went limp, knees giving out underneath him.

Having been prepared for just that, Steve held him close, before lowing them both to the ground.

Slowly he removed his fangs, the pack magic sealing the wound it left behind, with one long, careful lick.

“I’ve got you." He murmured as Eddie shook violently for a moment, gasping like a drowning man seeking air as the bond settled. “I’ve got you.”

For now, and for as long as Eddie would have him and his Pack.

#annnd we're officially goin out of order LOL #its cool its just like the Duffer Bros Two Days Later time skip!#steve harrington #werewolf steve harrington #Hungry verse #eddie munson #werewolf eddie munson #werewolf AU #not a/b/o #more paranormal romance #steddie #steve x eddie #claiming #claiming through a bite #hurt/comfort #sorta #0o0 fanfics

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cienie-isengardu · 3 months

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[MK1] Bi-Han & Kuai Liang. Good brother? Evil brother? Nah, just different reactions to trauma, part 3

part 1, part 2

The previous part helped me lay a ground to establish the main difference between Kuai Liang and Bi-Han. Scorpion, as a dedicated follower of father and Liu Kang’s authority is what I had called the Believer. He does not question the nature of Lin Kuei duty, as he built his life around it. Bi-Han on another hand is definitely a Questioner, as he questions and undermines not only the wisdom of Fire God or even his own father but also the reasons why his clan should serve Earthrealm in the first place as he sees such servitude as enslavement. So one brother follows orders of those he considers to be his superiors while the other, the same as all know to us major cryomancers, has a rocky relationship with authority.

Being the sons of Grandmaster definitely influenced their life by how they were raised, because beside the hardship of physical training they, as heirs, needed to be prepared for their future duties to the clan. As the eldest, such additional education was aimed primarily on Bi-Han, and depending on how big is the age gap between brothers, he could be more involved into clan politics - and in result more aware of the inner working of Lin Kuei and the unrest of his people than Kuai Liang or Tomas were. I will expand this thought soon, for now let's talk about the Grandmaster and Mother, as the first authority figures that shaped and influenced both brothers.

FATHER

There is no doubt that their father played a great role in shaping Kuai Liang and he meant a lot to the younger brother. During story mode we had 6 main scenes in which Lin Kuei brothers interacted with each other:

waiting together for Liu Kang

before infiltrating Fortress

after Bi-Han defeated Nitara and Ermac

before brothers separated to carry on their parts of mission

Bi-Han’s betrayal

the second confrontation between brothers that lead to Kuai Liang and Bi-Han fight + Kuai Liang and Tomas talking over unconscious body of Sub-Zero

Out of 6 examples, four was focused on the ideological conflict between Sub-Zero and his brothers - and in all of those scenes, Kuai Liang was talking about father in one way or another

“His teaching did not pass with him. They should still guide us." “We must honor his vision Bi-Han." “Bi-Han!! How could you?! Father would turn in his grave if he saw this!" "We must chart a new course. One that both honors our Father's legacy and serves Earthrealm."

but outside the importance of father and his teaching, had almost nothing meaningful to say in the presented interactions. What is frankly a pretty alarming detail. Not only because Kuai Liang barely interacted with Tomas before he needed his support (6th interaction scene), but also he does not contribute much to the mission - the only one time he does say anything relative to the job at hand is when Smoke is out of the picture.

In contrast, Bi-Han and Smoke talked about how to process the mission on two separate occasions - before and during infiltrating the fortress, even though Tomas is the least battle experienced out of the three brothers (confirmed by his BIO and the falling scene) and the one about whom frustrated Bi-Han said to not have Lin Kuei blood.

And this is very surprising choice of creators, as it was Kuai Liang to whom other characters will look up for leadership during battle to close the portals, so A) he doesn’t lack the skills and self-confidence to lead a mission and B) he was no afraid of Bi-Han nor Tomas as he spoke his mind openly around his brothers.

For the majority of Bi-Han’s chapter, literally all Scorpion has to say was to critique Sub-Zero even for things not worth the scorn[1] or bring father into discussion despite perfectly knowing this will only frustrate his elder brother more.

Again for contrast, during the same chapter Bi-Han spoke of things not related to his father or ambitious plans for Lin Kuei’s future. As in:

discussing mission with Smoke on two different occasions

enjoying the fight for his own personal reasons (glory, testing his skills against worth opponents)

childhood memory - hearing the stories about Nitara’s people as a child

Sub-Zero’s chapter alone gives us a good hint of differences between Bi-Han and Kuai Liang. Scorpion is all about father and tradition to the point he barely interact with Smoke despite his own assurance “We may not share blood, but we are brothers” and has little to nothing nice or supportive to say to his elder brother despite their close bond (as provided by intro dialogues: Kuai Liang believing their bond couldn’t be broken and Bi-Han wishing to rule with Kuai Liang at his side).

In all fairness there is something almost fanatical in the way Scorpion acted at this point in story mode and it would be easy to claim this blind-like dedication to father is what Kuai Liang was at the core. However, like I said in the previous part, the same as Bi-Han’s behavior was influenced by emotion out of his control, the frustration we were told by Scorpion and shown through Sub-Zero’s angry gesticulation, the same assumption should be made for Kuai Liang. The best hint comes from the interaction between brothers before they attempted climbing on the wall.

Sub-Zero: “We must find a less guarded section before attempting an ascent. Finally we face a worthy foe. Victory will bring us glory." Scorpion: “Glory? We fight for duty." Sub-Zero: “Does our Father's ghost possess you? All I hear is his voice."

Saying someone is possessed is a strong way to emphasize how a person is acting differently than usual. By Bi-Han’s frustrated reaction we can assume that the way Kuai Liang behave and speak mimic the behavior of their parent - and if Sub-Zero was constantly rebuked by father the way he is rebuked by his younger brother over everything, whatever big or small matter, it could be the origin of his growing frustration.

However we need to keep in mind that Kuai Liang was deeply affected by the unexpected death of their father, so this event could influence the way he interacted with his brothers, especially with Bi-Han. There is no reason to doubt they were once close, but I think the moment when Kuai Liang lost not just a parent but the most important authority figure, he started treating father’s wisdom not as just a guidance but some sort of Sacred Laws he - and his brothers - needs to follow to the letter.

At first in story mode Kuai Liang only says “His teaching did not pass with him. They should still guide us” to which Bi-Han replies that father’s wisdom can guide them but not “shackle” (limiting). But the more conflict escalates, the more Scorpion insists “We must honor his vision Bi-Han” yet he does not provide any real argument why they must do it actually. Like yes, sons should respect their father and be obedient while tradition is an important part of one’s culture, but Kuai Liang never goes out of his way to provide any example of what is good about that wisdom in the first place.

In contrast, the more tense became their interaction, the more vocal Bi-Han was about why he reject their father’s teaching:

Sub-Zero: "Vision is what he lacked. He was blind to our superiority. We settle for defending Earthrealm when we could help lead it."

and later, at his breaking point,

Sub-Zero:"He was doddering old fool! He did us a favor, having that accident. And I was right to let him die.[...] Father had doomed the Lin Kuei to mediocrity. Now we will achieve greatness."

At the same time, despite the harsh criticism toward father and considering his death as “favor” done to Lin Kuei (brothers) and having no regrets for letting him die, Sub-Zero’s relationship with his parent is not so one sided as it may look at the first glance.

Through intro dialogues, Bi-Han still considers his father a foolish, short sighted man

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

and

Smoke: Father wanted us to be brothers. Sub-Zero: Yet another of the old man's foolish dreams.

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

but at the same time he does not completely reject the notion of the father’s greatness

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

or that the man’s wisdom had some merit

Sub-Zero: Father was right about one thing: never trust a sorcerer. Quan Chi: Truly, he was a wise man.

nor Sub-Zero's action was motivated by hate or spite

Reiko: Is it true: you let your father die? Sub-Zero: What war's ever been won without losses?

Ashrah: What kind of son betrays his father? Sub-Zero: One who sees his father's time has passed.

(And there is something really weird how Reiko bothers to ask Bi-Han about his father’s death yet Fire Lord, who praised the previous Grandmaster as a wise man to serve Earthrealm, has nothing to say about the matter? No anger, no rebuke, not even a simple comment for what Bi-Han did? When he expressed regret on various occasions for the ill fate of Sindel and her husband? I guess this could add to the pile of reasons why Bi-Han resents Liu Kang’s authority for not treating his Lin Kuei allies with the same or similar level of respect he express toward Outworld Royal Family).

Scorpion in his intro dialogues does not question father’s authority at all. He does speak about him with

Sindel

Scorpion: Your husband's murder haunted my father. Sindel: All those close to Jerrod were devastated.

and

Sindel: Both your parents were excellent fighters. Scorpion: I can only hope to live up to their example.

Geras

Scorpion: I want to see the moment my father died. Geras: You are not ready to receive that knowledge.

and Bi-Han (“Father would be ashamed of you”) however I didn’t find any example he directly mentioned father to Smoke, who, like Sub-Zero, had a more complicated relationship with the man[2].

He also expressed to Johnny and his mirror match burning anger at Bi-Han for father’s death:

Johnny Cage: Bi-Han's got you all fired up, eh? Scorpion: He'll burn for betraying my father.

and

Scorpion: I won't be consumed by vengeance. Scorpion: How can your father's death not burn you?

This fierce reaction to father’s death is understandable, as Scorpion’s Bio said,

Like his cherished father, Scorpion is dedicated to the Lin Kuei and its defense of Earthrealm. When his father died, Scorpion was bereft.

Now, let’s focus on the choice of words. According to Merriam-Webster’s dictionary, bereft means:

suffering the death of a loved one but also being deprived or lacking something needed, wanted, or expected.

Which is why I think the loss of a father is for Kuai Liang something more than just missing a beloved parent. He also lost the guidance that was constant in his life since he was a little kid and he tries to fill the emptiness by honoring and in result, mimicking the authority figure he built his life around.

Kuai Liang’s character theme is HONOR

and as much as it is about his integrity and loyalty to father’s teaching (protecting Earthrealm), I think this is also a keyword to what Scorpion dedicated his life: to honoring the past but only through father’s idea of tradition, duty or his legacy[3].

Story mode: "We must honor his vision Bi-Han."

and

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

and

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

If we agree that Father was the authority Kuai Liang followed and built his life around, then he did not just lose a parent but also a central part of his world, a source of comfort and security. And Bi-Han, the closest remaining blood-relative, the eldest sibling is NOT PROVIDING THE NEEDED COMFORT and/or STABILITY because Sub-Zero does not follow father’s teaching anymore and slowly is building his life around different values and goals than were accepted by previous Grandmaster.

Which is why I believe Kuai Liang so desperately clings to it, and honors the man’s teaching like it is some sort of sacred code and can’t anymore interact with elder brother the way they used to. Because he is afraid to lose the last connection to cherished father - if Bi-Han casts away their father’s teaching, they will be forgotten with passing time and then lost forever. And the dislike of changes father would not approve and fear of being forced to act against his own brother are part of Scorpion’s BIO:

[...] he took pride in knowing that his brother, Sub-Zero, would succeed their father as the Lin Kuei's grandmaster. But Sub-Zero's unprecedented moves to cast off the Lin Kuei's traditional duties have frozen Scorpion's enthusiasm. He fears that one day he may have to battle his brother for control of the Lin Kuei's legacy.

- even if Bi-Han prior to his betrayal scene did not do anything that cast off the tradition. We could hear him talking about his ambitions to change Lin Kuei, but only between his closest family and never openly questioning or challenging Liu Kang’s authority. Like yes, Bi-Han was frustrated and lacked patience for back talks of Kung Lao who still didn’t figure out Lin Kuei pulled out their punches and acted violently once Johnny grabbed his arm - and how much it was a learned reflex to respond with violence and a simple excuse to hit him is up to debate. But each time Liu Kang got involved in the “conflict” Sub-Zero fell back to his place and obeyed. The same as he did not argue about the mission he and his brother undertook on Fire Lord’s order.

As the story mode provides, the clan was more than ready to reject the past because only Kuai Liang and Tomas refused to follow Sub-Zero’s leadership. Which speaks a lot both about Lin Kuei as a society and Kuai Liang’s dedication for tradition and father. The story mode really made him look to be in the minority in that matter. To the point that he openly admitted to Smoke how small are chances for him to replace Bi-Han as the Grandmaster even though he is the second in line to that title:

Smoke: “What are you doing? Once he's exposed, won't you be made Grandmaster?" Scorpion: "You forget Cyrax and Sektor. Their loyalty to Bi-Han is absolute. They'll sooner abet his corruption than follow me."

At his breaking point, Bi-Han explained to brother he lied about father’s death because

"[...] you couldn't, and still can't, face the truth. Father had doomed the Lin Kuei to mediocrity. Now we will achieve greatness."

what is of course a very subjective opinion, but considering how sources presented Kuai Liang and how narrow-minded he can be, especially during mourning father, I’m willing to give Sub-Zero some benefit of doubt. Not if father worsened the Lin Kuei situation or not, but about Scorpion and his inability or lack of will to face the truth. Lin Kuei has changed and Bi-Han alone is not the source of problem, because he is the clan leader for relative short period of time while the whole clan rejected the centuries old traditions honored by Kuai Liang’s father despite knowing it puts them on the collide course against Liu Kang, Earthrealm and Outworld. What is more, just because the previous Grandmaster died, it does not erase all the older members who served Earthrealm longer that Bi-Han or Kuai Liang lived and they too support Bi-Han’s independence streak as far as sources implies. Would they reject Sub-Zero if they knew about his part in Grandmaster’s death? Maybe or maybe not, all depending how long and how deeply the dissatisfaction about the Lin Kuei situation runs. Something that Kuai Liang may not be aware of - or quite the opposite, he was in fact painfully aware about it and this is why he feared Sub-Zero's desire for change, because he knew the clan will gladly support it.

The same as for tradition, brothers have a different approach to their father and what he symbolizes in their life. For Kuai Liang the man was a cherished family member and moral guide, the first and final authority while for Bi-Han a source of frustration and limitation. Understandable then, they have an opposite reaction to his death, one is heartbroken and the other sees it as an opportunity for his own growth and realization of ambitious plans.

The Lin Kuei brothers’ feelings for mother though are drastically different matter and this will be the subject of the next part.

SIDENOTES

[1] The best example happened here:

Sub-Zero: “We must find a less guarded section before attempting an ascent. Finally we face a worthy foe. Victory will bring us glory." Scorpion: “Glory? We fight for duty."

as Bi-Han can’t even express the joy he finds in fighting without Kuai Liang cut in and bring it down again to duty and in the wider perspective what father trained them for. An excitement that in itself is not inherently a bad thing, especially since the Sub-Zero’s quotes after losing the fight against Nitara or Ermac shows how Bi-Han would graciously accept defeat and praise his enemy (“You are a superb adversary. More than worth the wait” and “You are as formidable as promised. Let’s continue.” respectively) thus his attitude is about something different than bloodthirst or fun. Sub-Zero was warned about the danger Nitara and Ermac posed:

childhood stories about Lin Kuei's effort against Nitara’s people: “As a boy I heard tales of battles against your kind.”

Liu Kang’s warning about Ermac: “You are Quan Chi’s creation. Liu Kang warned about you. I had hoped for the chance to battle your dark magic.”

and so Bi-Han hoped to face worthy opponents against whom he could test his skills. And though it may sound selfish, we can’t forget that Sub-Zero was raised as a warrior - only facing strong opponents and overcoming the danger allow a warrior to make progress. Lin Kuei warriors were always striving for perfection, and if this mindset did not change in Liu Kang’s timeline, it is understandable why the prospect of facing danger after years of idleness pleased the Grandmaster.

Bi-Han looking out for a chance to perfect his abilities, wishing to test himself and earning a recognition for fighting skills he dedicated his whole life doesn’t sound as something deserving such a negative reaction. Especially since Bi-Han at this point has never done anything that put the mission or his brothers at risk. And though he was frustrated about his and Lin Kuei's situation, it never stopped him from doing his duty - until the capture and Shang Tsung’s offer scene. An offer he wouldn’t be otherwise interested to listen to, as was seen during his fight with sorcerer

and Sub-Zero’s intention to eliminate the enemy for good (even if Liu Kang clearly said to capture the sorcerer not to kill him).

This leads me to think Kuai Liang’s rebuke was uncalled for but also supports my feeling mentioned in the previous part - Scorpion did not enjoy fighting but was doing it because tradition (father) demanded that from him.

[2] Tomas’ complicated feelings toward Lin Kuei Father are rooted in his trauma - it was Grandmaster’s own people who killed his mother and twin sister. As much as an adult Tomas respect his adoptive parent and maybe even became emotionally close with he man over the years, there is still something in the way he spoke about the past events that indicates it was not always the case - and maybe he still feels some resentment to the man that at least indirectly destroyed his childhood

Kitana: You are Kuai Liang's adopted brother? Smoke: His father's honor demanded that he take me in.

and

Reptile: Lucky for you, Kuai Liang's father took you in. Smoke: It didn't feel that way at the time.

And I guess this is just the nature of intro dialogues, but it feels off to me that when Tomas is talking with non Lin Kuei characters, the father is always connected down solely to Kuai Liang (and not for example to both brothers) and Tomas never corrects them or say anything implying that despite not sharing the same blood, the man became his father too. There is also something to say how Tomas twice brought father in his dialogues with Bi-Han:

Smoke: Father wanted us to be brothers. Sub-Zero: Yet another of the old man's foolish dreams.

and

Sub-Zero: You were never truly one of us. Smoke: Were Father here, he would disagree.

None of the brothers adds “my” or “our” father - and Bi-Han could do so, if he didn’t consider Tomas part of the family. Interestingly Sub-Zero only once said “my father” in his intro dialogues and between the three brothers, Sub-Zero's ones revolve the most around the man (I counted 8 separate, direct intro dialogues), while Kuai Liang does not talk directly about father with Tomas at all in their pre-fighting interactions. Which is quite surprising, considering how important father is to Kuai Liang and how often Smoke brought the man’s authority in story mode and intros.

[3] At this point I think it is not the burning anger that Kuai Liang shares with the original Scorpion that should concern other characters (and us), but his “blind” clinging to the past that brought Hanzo Hasashi a lot of suffering and made him an easy target for manipulations. Now, I know this may sound too harsh, especially at such an early stage of exploring a new timeline and having no clue what is NRS’ final goal for his character development but hear me out. Kuai Liang’s Shirai Ryu is not an improved version of Lin Kuei, but it's replacement. For now Scorpion needs to find and train willing adepts to secure Earthrealm and his new clan’s safety, so it’s understandable his focus is set on the most urgent matters at hand, but if he is not willing to closely examine past and question it - be it father’s teaching or what lead Lin Kuei to follow rebellious Sub-Zero than following their traditional duties, he will recreate the system that objectively speaking is unfair to people born into it. As far as we know, Lin Kuei members weren’t paid for their dutiful service, they lived in isolation and secret, forced their children to endure hardship since childhood to turn them into superb soldiers (tools) so Liu Kang’s Earthrealm could be safe and sound and even in times of peace, the warriors could die for unspecified reasons that aren’t related to natural death out of old age (presumably what happened to mother). There is much more to talk about, so I’m gonna leave this matter for another part. Just signaling that Kuai Liang’s fierce loyalty to father (past) can be as dangerous as Bi-Han rejecting it.

#mortal kombat #bi han #kuai liang #tomas vrbada #sub zero #scorpion #smoke #lin kuei #my analysis #that kinda get out of control #sorry folks as much as i'm dying to talk about lin kuei bros' mother i needed to cut the text here #as it something around 9-10 pages already lol #i won't lie writing about pyromancer kuai liang is so painful and i tried my best to not be harsh on him #for being so narrow minded character that like barely provides any arguments or explaination for his cause #especially in contrast to bi han who though is painted as the “powe hungry brother” he has some good points and at least give me #something to work on and analyze #while kuai is mainly father this tradition that #and it is so weird bi han and tomas have more intro dialogues about father than kuai liang and tomas have #it is not character flaws nor their fault just storyline and how story is structured and so on #but it is so weird sometimes #i'm here for scorpion being affected by grief over father and fear how the world he knows is falling apart to explain why brothers #were so frustrated and bad at communication #the same way i feel bi han's frustration influenced his behaviour

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