With Smoke as his template, Noob Saibot planned to return to the Netherrealm and use Smoke's nanotechnology to create an army of cyborg demons. He was unaware that they were followed by someone Noob had not seen since before he became a wraith. Smoke instantly recognized their visitor. He was an echo of their past. He was Sub-Zero, Noob Saibot's brother. Noob Saibot was surprised to see how much stronger his brother had become. If he were still Lin Kuei, still human, he would probably have shown some degree of pride. But as Raiden had revealed during the ordeal with Shinnok's Amulet, his soul had been tainted when he died at the hand of Scorpion. Noob Saibot, the original Sub-Zero, had descended into the Netherrealm free from compassion. He ordered Smoke to assist him in slaying his brother- his first act as ruler of the Netherrealm. Fortunately, Sub-Zero was saved by the demon Sareena.
Noob Saibot was not originally a demon, which might explain why Ashrah sensed such great evil in him: He had to earn his place in the Netherrealm. He actually desired to remain there. His companion, however, seemed to be having a problem adjusting. Perhaps there was some good left in the cyborg. Whatever the case, Noob would have to face Ashrah alone. Ashrah defeated Noob Saibot and finally earned her ascension from the Netherrealm.
Onaga seemed invincible. The races of Outworld were in disagreement over how to deal with this threat, and Baraka's hordes were sweeping the land. Bo Rai Cho had almost given up hope when he was visited by the spirit of his greatest student, Liu Kang. Their roles now reversed; Liu Kang gave Bo Rai Cho the inspiration necessary to continue the fight. Bo Rai Cho's soul was invigorated! He met with Outworld's many leaders to forge a temporary truce. Kitana gave him command of what remained of her army, and he led them to battle against Baraka's mutant foot soldiers. The new army of Outworld crushed the Tarkata vermin, and Baraka himself was bested by Bo Rai Cho's attack. The victory inspired the people of Outworld to rise up against the Dragon King.
Because it was widely believed that Princess Kitana had slain her many years ago, none were suspicious of the veil Mileena wore to conceal her Tarkatan features. It was not difficult for her to assume the identity of the princess and take control of her alliance. To further conceal her deception, Mileena gave command of the armies to Bo Rai Cho, and instructed him to lead the attack against Baraka's diversionary forces. Baraka's militia had failed to divert the enemy, and to her surprise, was decimated by Bo Rai Cho's forces. She then realized that she was in control of the most powerful military force in Outworld and Edenia combined.... She had finally achieved her true purpose, her destiny. But Mileena could not continue her charade indefinitely - not as long as Baraka knew the truth. She ambushed him in the ancient Beetle Lair and fed him to a swarm of flesh-eating insects. All hail Princess... Kitana.
Baraka assumed that the treacherous Mileena had given her armies a powerful magic. They fought with savage brutality, but he could not stop their advance. He vowed that Mileena would pay for her betrayal. Baraka's warriors brought word that she had agreed to meet with him in an ancient lair, but Baraka was no fool... He sent another in his place... Baraka's scouts reported that the Earthrealm warrior Sub-Zero was near. He allowed his remaining militia to deal with him.
In an outer chamber of the Dragon King's throne room, Ermac did battle with Liu Kang's enslaved comrades. Ermac was more than a match for the five warriors, but their defeat was not his objective. Liu Kang materialized and, one by one, freed their souls while Ermac occupied the rest. Eventually, all five were awakened from their enchantment and freed from Onaga's control. Ermac was pleased that his warrior skills could for once bring about a noble outcome. He sensed, however, that an ominous force still shaped the destiny of the realms. It was everywhere. He could feel its influence on Onaga, though the Dragon King was oblivious to its manipulation. Time was running out. Ermac feared the celebration of this latest victory would be short-lived.
The Elder Gods had transformed Scorpion into their weapon in order to defeat the Dragon King before his plans of domination unmade the realms. With his enhanced abilities, he tirelessly tracked Onaga through the realms.
Nightwolf had traversed realms and fought many demons to get to this place deep within the Netherrealm. Using knowledge passed to him from his forefathers, he drew a binding symbol on the ground and chanted the ancient words that would draw the spirit of the Dragon King to this wicked place. Nightwolf had carried the burden long enough. He released the sins of his people into the mystic symbol, and their weight bound Onaga to the Netherrealm. Free of the corruption he had harbored for so long, Nightwolf was expelled from the depths of the Netherrealm and into the unknown.
So that Shujinko would be able to defend himself during the quest to find the Kamidogu, Onaga had given him the power to absorb the fighting abilities of any warrior he encountered. But this 'gift' would prove to be the Dragon King's undoing. The warriors in Outworld were in disarray. Heroes were not focused on the true threat of Onaga, and villains were unaware that they were bringing about their own destruction by serving him. Shujinko united them, and in one moment, absorbed their combined fighting power. Shujinko then shattered each of the Kamidogu, the source of Onaga's invulnerability. This weakened Onaga, and Shujinko attacked him without mercy. Onaga's mortal form was no match for a kombatant infused with the powers of so many warriors. The Dragon King was finally defeated. The realms will remain as they have since the beginning.
Liu Kang's friends had been freed. Onaga had been defeated, and the realms were secure once more. But there was one battle that remained. Liu Kang's body had been used by some unknown force as a tool of destruction. It had left death in its wake and needed to be stopped.
Sub-Zero returned to Earthrealm only to find many of his clan slain by Frost. She had come back to the Lin Kuei temple with the intention of killing only him, but she was now delirious and saw Sub-Zero everywhere. Sub-Zero blasted her with intense cold, freezing her until she could be revived and cured of her dementia. He laid her on an altar in the chamber of fallen Lin Kuei and sealed the room with a wall of ice. Frost will one day recover. When that day comes, she will have to answer for her crimes against the Lin Kuei.
Blaze had completed the first of his duties. Soon he will begin the second: to lure warriors to the Final Battle. There they will challenge him, hoping to attain godlike power from his defeat. The arrogance of these warriors will be their downfall, for only a son of Edenia can unleash the true purpose of Blaze.
With the Dragon King destroyed, Kitana made her way home to the realm of Edenia. During her journey she was met by a being made of fire! He informed Kitana that her premonition of a looming conflict was correct, and that she must unite the forces of good for a coming battle to preserve the realms. Disheartened, Kitana fell to her knees. 'When will it end?' she cried. 'Every victory leads to more conflict and greater adversaries!'. Blaze simply replied, 'If all goes as planned, your enemies will be destroyed'.
"Storyline Legends"
As Sub-Zero and Kenshi trekked across Outworld, they strove to keep themselves hidden, only traveling at night. But as they neared the portal to Earthrealm, the Dragon King zealot Hotaru attacked with a blast of glowing energy that temporarily blinded Sub-Zero. Kenshi's sense of sight is of a spiritual nature, thus, he was unaffected by the intense flash of Hotaru's projectile attack. In the dark, Kenshi had the advantage. However despite being wounded Hotaru tried to attack Kenshi. Sub-Zero then aided the swordsman in defeating Hotaru.
Quan Chi managed to survive Raiden's suicide attack on Onaga thanks to Shinnok's interference. After torturing the sorceror with his recently reclaimed amulet, Shinnok then commanded Quan Chi to gather the Forces of Darkness for the upcoming Armageddon battle. Shinnok had also resurrected many warriors to aid the Forces of Darkness. The warriors include:
Drahmin and Moloch - Oni who were killed in the explosion of Shang Tsung's palace by Raiden's blast and revived on the condition that they would settle their score with Quan Chi.
Motaro - A Centaur revived to settle his score with Sheeva only to later become a Minotaur along with his fellow Centaurs who were cursed by the Shokan.
Sheeva - A Shokan revived to settle her score with Motaro.
Hsu Hao - Red Dragon spy revived to settle his score with Jax.
Mavado - Red Dragon member revived from his injuries at the hands of Kabal. Mavado hopes to one day get revenge on Kabal with his own Hookswords.
Kintaro - Rumoured to have been killed in the past, the Shokan warrior Kintaro returns to regain his honour...
On his travels, Quan Chi encountered Dairou with the injured Hotaru. After healing Hotaru with his magic, Quan Chi told Dairou the truth about his family's death and tipped Hotaru off about Darrius's plans for the Seidan government in an act of kindness. He also mentioned how the prize can allow them to rid them of Darrius and Havik. Quan Chi also told Havik about the prize and the Chaos cleric relayed the news to Darrius. Quan Chi traveled to the Netherrealm, healed Noob Saibot from his injuries at the hands of Ashrah and told him he would see to it that Noob's plans to become the Netherrealm ruler with Smoke's cyber demons would be achieved with the prize.
Kabal, Kira and Kobra witnessed Shujinko's power and victory over Onaga and decided not to go through with their plan to attack him and the heroes. Meanwhile, Havik saw Shinnok's amulet on Reptile's body where Onaga was last seen as the Red Dragon appeared to reclaim it. The new Black Dragon later learned about Mavado's recent activities with the Red Dragon.
Sindel and Jade, on their way to find a way to save Kitana, discovered a scroll with a spell that could help free Kitana from Onaga's spell. Sindel and Jade are then ambushed by Tarkatans led by Tanya. As Tanya escaped from Jade's wrath, Ermac arrived with Liu Kang's spirit and saved them. Afterward, Sindel gave Ermac and Liu Kang the knowledge needed to free Kitana and their Earthrealm allies.
Shujinko recruited many warriors to help in the fight against Onaga including Sub-Zero, Kenshi, Ermac, Kitana, Sonya, Kung Lao, Johnny Cage, Jax, Sindel, Jade, Bo Rai Cho and Li Mei. Scorpion arrived at the same time fighting through Onaga's allies as Shujinko absorbed everybody's fighting styles as well as the Outworld and Edenian armies, Kabal, Kobra, Kira, Havik, Darrius (on Havik's request), Shao Kahn and Goro (unknown to everybody). While Shujinko battled Onaga, Li Mei struggled with her temptation to join the Dragon King's cause. After the battle, Li Mei vowed to fight for persecuted souls everywhere.
Unbeknown to everyone, a mysterious warrior Chameleon heard about the prize while camouflaged from a group of warriors. Elsewhere, Meat also heard about the prize and thought about his goal.
The Forces of Light gathered by Johnny Cage and Kitana included:
Kai - A warrior who had wondered the world for years. Kai had recently lost his Machete weapon to Kobra in a fight in the Botan Jungle which resulted in him falling into a waterfall only to survive.
Kurtis Stryker - A cop who learned that Kabal was responsible for the deaths of his fellow cops.
Cyrax - Former Lin Kuei cyborg turned Special Forces agent who had worked undercover with Sektor's Tekunin and helped Jax escape his captivity from his old ally.
Sindel - Queen of Edenia who was one of the select few who was aware that Mileena was alive and could be posing as Kitana in Outworld, only to be distracted by reports of the latest conflicts between the Shokan and the Centaurs.
Jade - Kitana's friend who was also aware of Mileena posing as Kitana. Before she and Sindel could do anything, Jade was distracted by reports of sightings of the Edenian traitors Tanya and Rain.
Mokap: A motion capture artist who has been getting stranded throughout the realms and as a result of his travels through the portals gained new powers.
Meanwhile, the Forces of Darkness gathered together and included:
Tanya - Edenian traitor who encountered Quan Chi and learned of the prize. She plotted to use the prize for her ambitions for great power.
Frost - A Lin Kuei traitor who also encountered Quan Chi after escaping the Lin Kuei temple during Noob Saibot and Smoke's attack. She learned of the prize and agreed to join the Forces of Darkness, hoping to use the prize for herself to get the Dragon Medallion.
Reiko - The warrior Reiko was ordered by his master Shao Kahn to seek out the Elite Guards scattered through the Realms. As soon as he succeeded, Reiko was given new orders to protect Shao Kahn's new allies including Quan Chi.
