Of Scorpion Stings and Redemptions

A Hanzo Hasashi in Equestria Story

Chapter One ‘Peace?’

The room provided for him reminded him of the untouched parts of Shao Kahn’s Palace in Outworld. He’d been to the temple, long ago, when he was forced to be the bodyguard of Quan Chi. It in the untouched parts of the Palace that Princess Kitana tended to visit when she believed herself to be alone.

Curiosity had made him follow her out of the more lived in parts of the palace and into a part of the palace that shined as if it was a baston of purity. It was a complete opposite of what Hanzo believed Shao Kahn’s tastes to be like. That kind of purity, innocence, and tranquility seemed to radiate in this room as well. His father had once told him, “Only a fool believes there is absolute peace. Where there is life, there is conflict. The only peace that is known is in the tombs.”

Those words were true, even in his Clan. While all members of the Shirai Ryu were equal there was the occasional squabbles between houses. Most of it was nothing more than petty arguments held over from younger rivalries. Still, all of the Shirai Ryu would come together and work as a single force. Each house knew their place, each man of age knew his duty. The Clan was always first. The Clan was family, the Clan was brothers, sisters, husbands, wives, sons, and daughters.

That was the closest thing to peace he had ever seen, and yet they were almost always under the knife’s edge. That life, the clan’s world was always a mere breath away from war, devastation, and destruction. Yet, even in that life there was happiness. He had a son, a wife, a trade. It wasn’t common knowledge, but all of the Shirai Ryu were expected to have a trade. It made the clan self reliant, and it also allowed them interact with other villages beyond being either hunters or protectors.

Hanzo thought back to his own trade. He had been a weapon smith. He held the knowledge, and skill, to make and use the weapons of his clan. While his own trade was seldom seeked outside of the clan it was still a necessary one. His kunai, before it was turned into a living extension of himself, had been his final creation. It was perfectly honed, the edges sharpened to the point that it could, without a doubt, slice a fly in half while still in air.

The weight was perfect, and it was not brittle like the older kunai used by the elders of the clan. His kunai could bend, take punishment, and still be usable. It had been a testament to his skills as a weapon smith. He scratched the palm of his hand. The feeling of the living kunai writhing inside of him was always there. It was as if the kunai was a giant worm.was trapped inside of his arm. It didn’t hinder his movement, but it was always there. It was a constant reminder of what had happened to him, what he had become, and how he had fell for Quan Chi’s deception.

He traded his independence, his mind, and his soul to seek revenge upon Bi-Han. It was vengeance that wasn’t warranted. Instead Quan Chi had collected Bi-Han’s soul, transforming it into something darker, something worse, and in the end all Hanzo had ended up doing was giving the sorceror two slaves instead of one. The moment he learned the truth, in that moment he began fighting against the hold Quan Chi had on him. The moment he was free he planned on carrying out the vengeance his family deserved, but instead he found himself here.

It was difficult to understand why he would be brought to a place full of peace. He was no friend of the Elder Gods. none of them would have seen fit to intervene and bring him here. He had heard of the fates, beings as old as the Elder Gods, but he did not believe that they would send him here either. It left this as a mere chance that he was found by the ruler of this place. He thought of her again. She… She was different.

She reminded him, slightly, of Queen Sindel. There were moments, true moments, when Sindel’s true nature would come forth. He had heard of her kindness, and he had witnessed it on a few occasions, but it was quickly stripped away from her. The last attempt at an invasion he witnessed something he never believed possible. Sindel broke free of Shao Kahn’s control, and with the aid of those who fought alongside her daughter, she had reclaimed her world from the tyrant.

Perhaps her world would become as this one. He wasn’t sure, but she would be foolish to believe that there would not be a need for warriors. Even here, in what has to be the most peaceful place he had ever seen, there were guards. Under trained as they might be, but they were there to protect. That spoke volumes about this place. Celestia had said her land was mostly peaceful.

Were it up to him the guards themselves would be trained to be as silent as a tomb. Moving as fluidly as shadows on the wall, and able to blend in with any environment they encountered. They would be an extension of one another. Knowing that all carried the same goal in a mission. Should one fall nine others would remain to finish what was started. They would be trained as he was trained.

He glanced at the bed. He could allow his body to find solace in the mattress, but it would do little for his mind. Sleep, as he remembered, was something he rarely did. When he closed his eyes, when his mind relaxed, he was treated to the sounds of his wife screaming out for him. He was gifted the sounds of his son sobbing in agony as the flames licked his skin. He was rewarded the sounds, but never the sight, of his entire world being destroyed.

His dreams, if they were dreams, were fueled by the hellfire that filled him. The torment he carried was there to feast upon his unguarded mind if he allowed it to. Thus, he discovered there was no need for sleep. There was no need to dream. The memory of testing the theory was still fresh. A day, then two, then a week, finally three months went by and not once did he nod off. Instead he was alert, ready, his mind still fresh, still fully awake.

It had remained that way for years now. He leaned against the wall, and he studied the bed in the room. It was large, larger than the bed he had shared with his wife, and it looked to be well made, but at the same time, it seemed to simply draw the attention. Looking around the room there was various articles that stood out more than the bed. Everything seemed to lean more toward decadent. It all seemed to serve a purpose.

The nightstand, the water pitcher, and the washbowl all seemed to be created to gain attention far more than the bed itself. Yet, there was something that drew his attention to soft mattress, the inviting pillow, and the peaceful rest it promised. Without realizing what was happening he moved, crawled into the bed, and felt his body relax. He felt his eyes close, and almost as instantly he was drifting into the darkness.

“PLEASE NO! HANZO! HANZO HELP ME!!!” Mai’s voice screamed in the darkness.

He ran, following the voice, trying to find her, to protect her, to keep her from the harm that she was suffering.

“HANZO!!!” she screamed out.

Each scream was followed by a wet slap. He felt his rage building, his need for vengeance climbing higher. The darkness around him began to change, to take form. It slowly peeled away until he was no longer in the darkness. He listened, but Mai’s voice was gone. Instead there was only the sobbing of a child. It wasn’t his son. It wasn’t Yoshi, but instead it sounded like a girl. He moved, silently, until he was in a different room.

It was another being like Celestia, and her former student. She was weeping, and there was a mark stretching across her back. From here he could see what had happened. He moved, slowly, toward her only to hear a whip crack again.

“Quit yer crying. Yer a proud wife of the King of the Shetland Isles! Yer a damned Queen, and a Queen does not cry!” a raspy voice said.

“I… I don’t want to be a Queen,” she whimpered.

“Don’t… You little tart! Our marriage was not up to either of us! Do ye think I wanted to be saddled with ye! I wanted a go at that sister of yer’s, but instead I am stuck with yer ungrateful arse!” the whip struck out again, but it didn’t reach her.

She turned, and saw the pony like creature standing there. There was fire slowly leaking from his eyes, and with a strong pull she saw her former husband pulled into the light. He was just as she remembered him. Grizzled, angry, and smelling of whiskey. The Pegasus looked at the would be intruder.

“Ye think ye can come into ma house and stop me from disciplining ma wife?!” he shouted, “I’ll show ye! I’ll show ye and then I’ll treat ye like a we filly who just learned what it means to have ‘er backside buggered!”

The larger male rushed toward him, his weight and muscle would have been a concern, if it hadn’t been that he had no ability. Hanzo side stepped him, kicked out as he ran past, and caught him in the back of his knee. The larger male fell to the ground, and before he could get up the whip was firmly in Hanzo’s hand.

“To treat a wife as such is a disgrace,” he said before he struck out with the whip

The larger male screamed in agony as it caught his back and ripped flesh from it. Another lash found its place among his back before the larger male turned over. He was greated with one that stripped across his chest. He screamed out, and then the room changed. The young female became older, her features more pronounced, and she slowly circled him. Her eyes studying him as he studied others.

“Who are you?” she asked.

“I would ask the same question,” he replied.

“I am Princess Luna, Keeper of the nights, protector of dreams, and half of the diarchy which rules Equestria,” she replied.

“I am Hanzo Hasashi of the Shirai Ryu,” he replied.

“Neighpanese?” she asked.

He looked at her, trying to understand exactly what she had asked. Slowly, it clicked. She asked if he was Japanese. The addition of the Neigh made little sense until he stopped to consider it. They appeared to be of Equine origins. Celestia had referred to herself, and her subjects, as a pony. Thus, the realization of the phrasing made sense. He looked around them. The room, while different, was similar to what he had seen earlier.

“You notice, do you not?” she asked.

“It appears… differently,” he said.

A sad smile crossed her face.

“It is the same room, as it looks now. That night… was well over a thousand years ago. Ship Breaker, the stallion you stopped, was my first husband,” she breathed out slowly as she clenched her hands into fists, “He was an insufferable bully, a terrible stallion, but he was a fair and decent ruler to all of those that lived under him. He worked hard, very hard, to ensure that they were all treated fairly. His descendants do the same now.”

He looked to see another female with similar markings to the female was he talking to. She was walking into the room, her face set in determination, and her eyes focused on window leading to the outside.

“She looks like you,” he said.

“She is the last of my line, and it is her duty, as the ruler of the Shetland Isles, to find a Prince Consort to help rule and continue the line. It is a duty I fear she has no desire in fulfilling,” she said.

“Desire has no place in it,” he replied.

She looked at him.

“As a member of the Shirai Ryu Clan I understand duty and desire very well. Our duty, was to the clan first. Our families, our loves, our children, were part of the clan, so it was only natural that we would want to serve and protect it. Yet, if an elder of the clan said that in order to prove loyalty you must be willing to destroy all you hold dear, you would do so. You would do so knowing that it was the will of the Clan to do so. The desire you might have fell second to the duty you did have. If she is a good ruler she will understand this, and she will do what must be done,” he said.

The room disappeared completely, leaving them standing in what appeared to be a very long hallway covered in mist. He noticed that here, here he could see the fight of the hellfire escaping him. It illuminated the area around him, showing rippling pools of light that looked almost… door shaped. Luna moved, and he followed. The two of them walked until they reached a door that was shaped differently from the others. Luna touched it and she pulled back.

She reached out, gently touching it again and he head Mai. Her screaming, her wailing, and the sounds that always happened while she was screaming. He watched as she pushed into the door, and he found himself once again in the darkness. Only now there was a beacon of light. It glowed brighter, and brighter until everything was lit.

He saw Mai, backed into the corner. Her eyes full of fear, and before her was Quan Chi. The sorcerer chuckled, darkly, as dark green energy formed around his hand. He started to strike out against her only to stop and look down at a Kunai sticking out of his chest.

“GET OVER HERE!” he roared.

Quan Chi started to chant but a sai rammed through his chin, exiting the crown of his head. Hanzo looked the Sorcerer in his eyes and slammed him hard against the wooden wall

“Had I known that it was you sorcerer, Had I known what you had done to my wife, to my son, to my entire clan! Sorcerer, what you face now is nothing, nothing compared to what you will face when we really meet again,” he said before he broke his neck letting the dead body fall to the ground.

He looked at Mai who was weeping, trying to hide herself from her husband.

“Mai,” he said softly.

“I am soiled!” she screamed

“You are my cherry blossom. My perfect cherry blossom. You could never be soiled,” he whispered.

Taking her into his arms he felt her hug him back. She buried her face in his chest.

“Thank you,” she said through her tears.

“I could do no less for you,” he replied.

He looked at her to see her form changed. She was no longer beaten, scared, or upset. Instead her form was more ethereal. She kissed his cheek and moved back.

“You’ve freed us. You’ve stopped the curse Quan Chi placed upon us. Hanzo, please, do not let your hate consume you. I do not wish to be separated from you for all eternity,” she said before she disappeared.

The room changed. There was a mist around him once more, but it wasn’t the hallway either.

“I believe that your body is preparing to awaken. I am certain that my sister has already welcomed you, but Hanzo, welcome to Equestria. Please, attempt to find the peace here that was denied you before,” she said.

Slowly his eyes opened he looked at the ceiling. He sat up, looked at the wall, and then stood. Walking to the door he opened it to see one of the maids cleaning the wall.

“Oh, you’ve…” she stopped as her eyes shrunk to pinpricks. She nervously wrung her hands and looked around.

“Ummm… I… I…” she stuttered.

“I wish to speak to Princess Celestia,” he said.

“O….Okay,” she whimpered.

“I do not know how to find her,” he replied.

“okay,” she whimpered again.

“I need for you to either lead me to her, or direct me where to go,”

A barely audible squeak came from her before she fainted.

Moving quickly he caught her, lifted her upon his shoulder, and looked around. Perhaps finding a guard would be easier, at least when asking for directions. He moved down the hall, uncertain of what to do with the honey colored coated mare which was draped over his shoulder. He considered passing her off to another, but quickly decided that if he was to do so it most likely should be a guard. They, at least, hadn’t seemed frightened of him to the point this female, or Celestia’s ex student had been.

He found a set of doors, opened them, and stepped through. There was the sound of laughter coming from down the hall, and he moved, silently, toward the sound until he saw two males. They appeared to be guards, but they were different. Their wings appeared to be that of a bat, and their eyes were slitted. He moved toward them, and one of them stopped, studied him, and prepared his weapon.

“Identify yourself,” the guard said.

“Stand down Sergeant wing. He is a guest of my sister, and of myself,” a familiar voice said.

“Of course Princess Luna,” he said.

She stepped out. The flowing dress she wore hugged her, much like in the dream, and her eyebrow lifted.

“It appears you have been busy,” she said.

Author's Note

And finally, after so long a real, A truly real second chapter is up. First, sorry for it taking so long to get this out here.

That said, thanks to everyone who's reading it, and of course if you like it, give it a like. Also, please I love to get feed back on my work. So naturally, I'd love to hear what you guys and gals think of the story, things I could improve on, things that are good, and things that could be better.

• RJP