Mortal Kombat Thief Quest #19

>A) Scout the enemy army

>>A) Scout the enemy army

Best thief in Outworld

>A)

>>A) Scout the enemy army
Good thing no one seems too freaked out that we've from 4 inches and have inreased muscle mass. Everything is totally normal

"I hunch."

"I'll get us out of the city," he tells Kaito.

"Take Jin, Frost and Fireseed with you."

Skarlet steps forward. "I will go on the scouting mission with Cao's team."

Kaito looks at her. "We could use you here," he tells her.

Kotal is not in agreement. "I do not think this creation of Shao Kahn should be so trusted."

Cao looks over at Skarlet; she does not immediately react to the Emperor's words, but he knows that she has no love for him. Kaito, however, seems to know her and wants to openly defend her. "Shao Kahn is dead. I'm sure she has no reason to want Onaga ruling Outworld, right Skarlet?"

"I do not," she agrees, though she remains silent about who she truly wishes to see as Emperor. Still, her eyes dart over to Kotal and the two stare at each other with suspicion.

Kaito dissolves the tension by continuing, "I want others out on the streets. Cassie, Jacqui, Tundra, Lex, you four will be one team. Everyone else will stay here and help coordinate the others."

>A) Take Skarlet
>B) Take Ashrah
>C) Keep the team as it is
>D) Take someone else (Write-in)
>E) Other

>>A) Take Skarlet

I think Skarlet is better suited for this then Ashrah

I miss those movies... Not the third one

>A) Take Skarlet

>not liking the sheer ridiculousness of the third movie
youtube.com/watch?v=pdC3DVZAIl0

Cao looks over and nods at Skarlet, who walks over. Kung Jin, Frost and Fireseed walk over as the other teams begin to form in the room. Jin looks at Skarlet and asks, "So, you're a blood construct, right?"

"Yes."

"I've read about beings like you before, but I've never seen one in person. Is it true that you can form solid tentacle-like constructs out of blood?"

She narrows her eyes and looks at him. "Do you want to find out?"

Cao is quick to get in the way between them. "I think we should leave as soon as possible," he cuts in. "Frost, Fireseed, are you two ready?"

They both nod silently. As the team moves to leave the room, Cao hears someone walk up behind him. He feels a hand on his shoulder and turns to see Erron Black. "Emperor wants to speak to you."

Cao looks over the gunslinger's shoulder and sees Kotal speaking with Sheeva.

>A) Leave
>B) Speak to Kotal alone
>C) Thank Erron
>D) Take the team over
>E) Other

>B) Speak to Kotal alone
>C) Thank Erron
It pays to be polite

>>B) Speak to Kotal alone
>>C) Thank Erron
Erron is a bro. We drank with the man.
>>E) Other
Interrupt kotal before he can say anything. Say we know not to trust skarlet and we'll keep an eye on her

>>B) Speak to Kotal alone
>>C) Thank Erron

Hey guys, you may not have seen yet , but the other day the mods made a board especially for quests.

Quests are supposed to go over there now. Most QMs that make this mistake leave their threads here up so people know they moved over, and there are already archives available on SupTG for it.

Thanks!

"Thank you," he says to Erron before speaking to his scouting party. "I won't be long."

They let him walk over to the area near the throne. Kotal tuns away from Sheeva to note Cao's approach, but the thief speaks first. "Listen, if this is about Skarlet, I know she can't be trusted. I'll keep an eye on her."

Kotal puts his arms behind his back. "No, I had not intended to speak to you about her, but I am glad you understand that her presence complicates things. She was a servant, a creation, of Shao Kahn."

"So was Mileena," Cao says.

"Shang Tsung created her, but under the orders of Shao Kahn, yes. It matters little; Mileena has done much to prove her loyalty to bettering the realm. Skarlet has not been seen for twenty years. As a practitioner of bloog magik, I know that she can be very dangerous, so I am glad that you are being cautious."

"Then what did you want to speak to me about?"

"I merely wish to say that I wish you luck in your scouting endeavor. I have every confidence that you will succeed, as you have done so often. Onaga has issued his challenge, and he seems assured in his victory. If you can find anything, any hint of what he is truly hiding, I implore you to bring back this knowledge. Or, if you can, steal it away from him."

"Do you think that possible?" Cao asks.

He gives Cao a warm smile. "Were it any other thief, I would not think so."

Strangely, Cao is almost touched by the osh-tekk's words. His confidence in Cao is great to entrust him with such a task, just as he had with the matter of the Portal Stone. More than words would be needed. "If it can be done, I won't fail you."

"I know you will not."

>A) Ask Kotal some questions
>B) Speak to someone else before you leave
>C) Return to your team and discuss the plan with them
>D) Leave the palace
>E) Other

>>D) Leave the palace

>>D) Leave the palace
Lets bounce baby

>C) Return to your team and discuss the plan with them
also bloog magic sounds fun.

Kotal has a slut.

Slur!

Cao returns to the others and they proceed out of the palace through the quickest route. Takeda's team does not linger far behind, intent on following him to the city exit. "So, rubbing elbows with the Kahn, huh?" Jin asks.

"I'm not rubbing his elbows," Cao replies with a cocked brow.

"Right, of course not," Jin snickers. "But it seems like you're on his good side."

"He often has a weird way of showing it," Cao admits. "He killed my father."

"Oh," Jin says, surprised. "Well... That's unfortunate."

"So why don't you kill him?" Fireseed asks.

"I think I'd get bored without him," Cao says, speaking more honestly than perhaps he had intended. He quickly changes the conversation. "Come on, let's get moving."

As he leaves the palace and heads towards the nearest entrance of the aqueducts, they pass by many soldiers and kahn guards, preparing weapons and armor for the coming battle. Captains move about, organizing the soldiers, and hinparian scouts prepare to mobilize. Cao has never seen the palace grounds so active with guards; the last time he saw this many, they were chasing him out of Hideaway Alley.

He takes his team to a well. They climb down, and then Takeda's team follows after. They walk for a distance underground before coming to a split; Cao instructs Takeda on where to go to end up not far from the Kove. His Shirai Ryu friend nods, thanks him, and leads his team out.

Cao and his team take a southern passage, heading towards a sewer outlet, but as they walk, the thief's ears pick up the sound of tiny feet along the ground. He stops and watches as up ahead a small lizardfolk emerges; upon seeing Cao, Speelock exclaims his name and runs up to him. "Cao! Cao!"

"Calm down," he instructs the runt, kneeling to look at him. "Where have you been?"

"Reptile! Reptile!" Speelock exclaims. "Chief Reptile!"

"Reptile? What about him?"

"What is that?" Jin asks, but Speelock ignores him and speaks to Cao.

"Reptile gathering the lizardses! Reptile telling them to attack market!"

Cao scratches the side of his head. "Reptile? Do you mean Onaga?"

"Not dragon-man! Reptile! Reptile!"

"That's impossible," Cao says. "Reptile turned into Onaga. He can't be leading the lizardfolk if he's not Reptile anymore, why would they listen to him?"

"Maybe they recognize him inside Onaga," Frost shrugs.

"Not dragon-man! Not dragon-man!" Speelock insists. "Reptile!"

Jin offers an alternative. "Could there be someone pretending to be Reptile?"

Realization strikes Cao. "Chameleon," he whispers to himself. "He's taken Reptile's form!"

"Who?" Fireseed asks.

>A) Send Speelock to the palace with this news
>B) Tell Speelock to lead you to Chemeleon
>C) Tell Speelock to spy on Chemeleon; continue your mission
>D) Ask Speelock to elaborate on what Chameleon is planning
>E) Other

>>B) Tell Speelock to lead you to Chemeleon

Time to merc a nigga

>>B) Tell Speelock to lead you to Chemeleon
I hope he doesn't attack us with harmful chemicals

>B) Tell Speelock to lead you to Chemeleon

>E)
Have Speelok tell us where to find Reptile then off to the palace with him.
So we're thinking Khameleon?

>B

Chameleon. The male equivalent

Cao looks back. "Another saurian. If he's like his sister, he can change. That must be how he's appearing to be Reptile."

"Reptile not Reptile?" Speelock asks.

"No," Cao says, turning back to the runt. "It's a Fake-Reptile. Take me to him."

"Not-Reptile down in the lizard pits! This way!"

"Lizard pits?" Frost says, slightly disgusted at what that might imply.

Cao nods. "Never been there myself. It's their spawning ground. They've been living there ever since Reptile lead them here from the Living Forest twenty years ago."

"I read about this," Jin says. "These lizardfolk are dumb, stupid things. Not like the true saurians." Speelock shoots him an irritated look. "Sorry... present company excluded?"

Speelock's expression quickly changes. "You bring presents?"

Frost manages to crack a laugh out of pity. "You weren't kidding."

"Speelock show you the way!" the little lizard says, taking them down a different corridor.

"What about our mission?" Fireseed points out.

Cao looks over his shoulder. "If Chameleon is going to have the lizardfolk attack the marketplace, that means they're after the food. Trust me, there's only ever one thing on their minds."

"If they steal all the food, the city will panic," Jin points out. "This might be a better idea to take care of now. But how many lizards are we talking, exactly?"

"All of them, maybe," Cao replies. "I don't know how many that is. Never had much a hang of counting."

"Many never come up before," Speelock says. "Many live down underground. Eat bugs and mushrooms that grow on walls!"

"Oh, lovely," Frost says. "So we have no idea how many there are."

"Watch out for their tongues," Cao warns them. "Last time I ran into a group of them, they managed to outnumber my sister and I and drag us away from each other."

"How'd you get out of that one?" Jin asks.

"With a little help," Cao says, looking back at Skarlet. She silently walks along as she has done so since the palace, keeping her hands on her twin blades.

Speelock takes them down a series of passageways that grow increasingly more cavernous in nature. They encounter no lizardfollk; apparently, they're all somewhere else.

"So, what's the plan?" Frost asks. "We killing this guy, or what?"

"Chameleon is a worshipper of Onaga and was a guardian of his egg. He might know a thing or two. Let's capture him."

"I'm up for some torture," she quips, her mood elevated by the prospect of violence. "And hey, they're not even really people, so that's a bonus."

"Careful," Jin advises. "That's a slippery slope of thinking."

Frost grumbles about using her icey powers to give him something to slip on when they come to another passage. "Quiet," Speelock whispers. "We need sneak past snappy-heads."

"Snappy-heads?" Cao asks. "What is that?"

"Guards lizard home," Speelock says. "Sometimes eats lizards. Throw him dead bodies; keeps snappy-heads happy."

They come upon a larger opening in the caverns and can hear a ravenous beast eating its meal. They approach a rock and poke their heads over it. A large beast, with a single body and four limbs, with a long and twisting tail, feasts on a dead lizardfolk. With several snake-like heads nipping at the flesh.

"That's not just a snappy-heads," Jin says. "That's a hydra!"

"Cool," Frost says, not intentionally making a pun.

>A) Sneak by the hydra one at a time
>B) Sneak by the hydra in a group
>C) Attempt to distract it with a rock or a projectile
>D) Have one of your group distract the beast while the others slip by
>E) Other

>>C) Attempt to distract it with a rock or a projectile

Oh god, it's time to roll dice

>C) Attempt to distract it with a rock or a projectile

>>B) Sneak by the hydra in a group
Never split the party

They duck behind the rock. "Alright, we need a distraction."

Fireseed moves to take out his bow, but Jin stops him. "Save your arrows, big guy, I got this one."

He holds up his dragon-headed bo and a silver string appears as he reaches for it to pull it back, having withdrawn an arrow from his quiver. He releases the drawstring and the arrow flies up and over the rock, hitting the wall with a clink and a small series of sparks. It gets the hydra's attention, but to their dismay, only a few of its heads look towards the arrow and the others scan around the room in all directions. They all quickly hide again.

"Shoot," Jin says. "That thing's got too many heads. For that to work. Any other ideas?"

>A) Fire more arrows and lead it away
>B) Attempt a manual distraction
>C) Try to sneak by the hydra
>D) Just straight-up run past it
>E) Other

>C) Try to sneak by the hydra
If you got it, flaunt it.

>>C) Try to sneak by the hydra

Shit

Hi! You might not be aware, but there is now a board devoted entirely to quests >>>qst

Please take your shit there

Unless Veeky Forums allows threads to be moved, There's really nothing to be done until this thread runs out.

Don't reply to them.

We know /qst/ is a thing, and there's a reason we're here.

Let's have a 1d100+10.

Stubbornness? A blatant disregard for the rules?

Rolled 14 + 10 (1d100 + 10)

Rolled 99 (1d100)

Sneak sneakily

Cao leads them around the cavern, hoping to sneak by the creature. They take the long way around, hugging the walls as they make for the entrances. Despite keeping to the shadows and moving as one, the hydra is too wily for them. Perhaps it smells them or otherwise can hear better than anticipated, for one of its heads turns and hones in on them, then suddenly all of them are there, hissing and snapping in their direction. Several sets of eyes look upon them and its many jaws open, drooling as it draws near. Cao reaches for his sword, ready to hack off a head or two, but to his surprise, Frost steps in front of him.

He tries to warn her as the heads snap, but she raises both hands and blasts a cone of cold at the hydra. It hisses in surprise, recoiling from the biting, freezing wind and backing up. Frost does not relent. Cao and the others watch as she shouts and advances with it, keeping pace as she continually blasts the monster with her powers. Frost's eyes glow white for a moment as more and more ice forms on its scales. With a final roar from the white-haired girl, the hydra completely freezes over, forming a twisting ice-sculpture of many heads with icicles hanging from it.

She pants and looks back. "Okay. Let's move on, shall we?"

>A) Smash it
>B) Head on
>C) Compliment her
>D) Tell Fireseed to plant bombs on it
>E) Other

>>A) Smash it

Note that they are being removed. A thread discussing this topic was just deleted.

Report and hide their posts, don't reply. They will be removed.

>A) Smash it
Totally smashed, and not just the heads.

The group approaches the frozen hydra and quickly shatters it with a few attacks. Cao wants to bring out the Wrath Hammer, but keeps it hidden for now. They smash the heads, the body and the tail. This takes a bit of time, but unfortunately, also attracts some extra attention.

A lone lizardfolk scout, having heard the noise, approaches the cavemouth and peeks outside. He spies them and they him before he turns around the runs into the cave, intent on alerting his fellows! They drop the frozen chunks of hydra and charge after him!

>1d100 to stop him from warning the others!

Rolled 22 (1d100)

Spectral dagger to the throat

Rolled 8 (1d100)

One of the two archers needs to shoot him

Rolled 62 (1d100)

Chase it down

Cao is quick to throw a dagger and both archers fire at the lizard in the darkness, but it slinks away from them, narrowly dodging all three. "After him!" Cao shouts, leading the charge into the cave. They follow him but he runs ahead of them, determined to catch that slippery snake.

And catch him he does. Cao runs faster than any of the others and sees the lizard pausing at the edge of a slope. He charges up to him and tackles him from behind, rolling down the slope in a tangled heap with the lizard scout. They roll past several large mud huts and down into the lizard pit, two stories into a large, circular arena of mud, slime and scales. Every lizardfolk looks on as the thief and the scout crash onto the floor, having rolled through several small wooden fences.

Cao pushes the lizard off of him and looks up, right into the eyes of what appears to be Reptile. The saurian who he knows to actually be Chameleon was apparently speaking to all of the others, as he stands in the center of this ring on a small mound of mud. He knows the raptor recognizes him from when they last met in the Lava Shrine.

He points at Cao. "Kill him."

The lizardfolk all cheer and reach for their weapons! Cao's mind races. Perhaps if he can prove this isn't Reptile...

>1d100 and an action!

Rolled 61 (1d100)

I'm at a loss to try and figure out how to reveal him, maybe we just punch him?

>Throw a spectral spear at him

Rolled 5 (1d100)

Try and get him to drop his disguise by shooting a fireball at him

Rolled 69 (1d100)

Shit talk chameleon while trying not to die.

Cao immediately stands up and holds out a hand, forming a lance through the use of Shao Kahn's magic. He steps and hurls it at Chameleon, who, still in the guise of Reptile, vanishes in a puff of smoke.

"What?" Cao says, watching the lance pass through the mist. It strikes the ground beyond where he had stood. He knows that Chameleon and other saurians could turn invisible, but to teleport away...

Chameleon appears behind Cao, and before the thief can react, he kicks him in the back. Cao hits the ground. The other lizardfolk cheer for their supposed leader. At that moment, Frost, Fireseed and Kung Jin burst onto the scene, wielding arrows and freezing blasts. This distracts the lizardfolk gathered around the pit.

Cao turns around as he watches Skarlet leap at the lizardfolk, slicing into them as she makes her way towards her master. He looks at Chameleon before bringing up a hand and blasting a fireball!

The fireball strikes Chemeleon, whose body bursts into flame! Cao shouts in triumph but then is silenced as he watches the fires die out around his foe and he stands unharmed with a wide, sepentine smile.

"How?"

"I am reborn in the fiery light of the Dragon King," Chameleon says, still speaking with Reptile's voice and maintaining the disguise. "I have powers you cannot begin to know!"

He holds up a hand, revealing a palm that splits open. A snake's head emerges from that hole, with clear, milky eyes. Its spear-like mouth opens up and it hisses before he launches it at Cao, the snake appearing as though a biological rope with no immediate end!

>1d100 and an action!

Rolled 2 (1d100)

Uhh pull of his disguise scooby doo style? That's how Saurians work right

Rolled 8 (1d100)

grab the snake by the neck and pull Chameleon in

Rolled 47 (1d100)

Grab the snake and pull him into an orge powered uppercut

Rolled 60 (1d100)

Cut the snake and then cut him

>Uhh pull of his disguise scooby doo style? That's how Saurians work right

You'd be surprised how close to the truth that is

Cao shouts at the spear-like head of the serpent bites into his neck, striking him quicker than he could react. Chameleon wastes no time in pulling Cao up to his reach and holding him aloft with one arm, displaying incredible strength.

"You cannot hide in the shadows anymore, little thief," he hisses. "The Dragon King rewards his servants, and all others shall burn."

Cao chokes and struggles in his grasp, grabbing him by the arm. "I know... who you really are!"

"You know who I was. I am dragonborn now, reforged in the fire of my king's power."

He turns and throws Cao to the side, hurling him against the wall. The thief falls down and quickly rubs his bloody and bruised neck.

Chameleon holds up his hands and prepares to launch a powerful green force ball at him, the sphere forming between his palms and bubbling with energy.

He launches it at the thief, who draws his sword. He turns and slices the ball in half, destroying it and causing it to erupt behind him. He holds up the blade and points it at Chameleon before charging at him and swinging. The saurian's movements are swift and he misses each strike, despite his own speed and skill. He recalls when last they fought; he's like a completely different person now. Stronger, faster, with stranger powers. What manner of gifts did Onaga bestow upon him?

Chameleon bends backwards as he tries to slice him in half, causing his blade to pass harmlessly over his midsection. The saurian bounces back up and spits poisonous acid towards his face!

>1d100 and an action!

Rolled 76 (1d100)

Dodge that acid with a flip of our own. Then a spray of thrown daggers

Rolled 92 (1d100)

dodge and slice

Rolled 60 (1d100)

Grab his head and suck his soul out

Cao sees the green mist of spit flying towards him and leaps backwards with a flip of his own, landing on the palm of his hand. His feet find the ground and with his body low, he springs back towards the saurian and slices at his face before he can react!

He cuts through the saurian's jaw, the head of his dadao blade taking off the creature's chin. His yellow eyes grow wide as green blood leaks out and his hands grab his face as he gurgles in pain. Cao lands alongside him and turns to look as Chameleon hobbles away.

"What's the matter? Tigrar got your tongue?" Cao asks with a smile.

But his smile fades when he hears the raptor's laughter. Chameleon straightens and points his face at Cao, revealing that his chin is regenerating! The saurian laughs as the flesh grows back at a rapid pace.

His mouth opens and his long tongue emerges, shooting out towards Cao.

The tongue wraps around his hands and pulls, but the thief holds his ground! Skarlet then dives into the arena, her blades green with lizardfolk blood, as the others continue to battle with the small horde. They continue to struggle against each other as Skarlet charges towards Chameleon!

>1d100 and an action!

Rolled 24 (1d100)

apply fire to face

Rolled 81 (1d100)

pull his face into the bottom of foot

Rolled 6 (1d100)

slice his tongue in half

With his free hand, Cao raises it and blasts it into Chameleon's face, but again the saurian shrugs it off. Skarlet charges in and slices at him, but he sees the red woman coming and releases Cao's grip. He flips up into the air over her as she attacks, landing behind her and tripping her with a sweeping attack. As she hits the ground, Cao runs up.

He leaps, spins and smashes Chameleon in the face with his foot, sending the saurian dashing off to one side. The raptor's palms help him flip away as he shakes his head.

Frost and Kung Jin are back-to-back, using their abilities to fend off the lizardfolk. Nearby, Fireseed opens up with an automatic rifle, peppering the ground where Chameleon stands. A few bullets strike him and draw green blood; the saurian teleports away again in smoke. Fireseed takes a moment to reload before planting his boot on the face of a lizardfolk and stomping his skull into the ground.

Skarlet gets back up as Cao turns around. He sees Chameleon reappear nearby, once more shooting his tongue out towards him. He swings his sword and tries to cut the tongue in half, but it wraps around the hilt of his dadao and wrenches it out of his grasp. Chameleon takes the sword for himself.

Suddenly, Speelock leaps atop the false-Reptile's head, stabbing him with his tiny stone knife! Chameleon is distracted by the runt's sudden attack!

>1d100+10 and an action!

Rolled 68 + 10 (1d100 + 10)

Sweep the legs and then drop a heel on his nose

Rolled 44 + 10 (1d100 + 10)

Impale him with a spear, followed by a decapitation.

Cao charges at Chameleon as he tears Speelock off and tosses him to one side. He turns and sweeps, deftly taking the saurian off his feet, before using his other leg to raise and smash the pretender in the face. Chameleon groans in pain and his disguise drops.

Speelock starts to jump up and down, shrieking, "Not Reptile! Not Reptile!"

The nearest lizardfolk stop and look on. Cao points at him. "He's pretending to be Reptile! He's fake! Look!"

Chameleon pushes Cao off and rolls to one side. He looks at the lizardfolk, who almost all stop fighting, confused. They aren't sure what to make of this new saurian.

"Fight, you fools!" he shouts. He looks around at them. "I said fight them!"

"Not Reptile! Not Reptile!" Speelock chants. Others start to follow his example.

Chameleon looks at Speelock, his green eyes burning with emerald fire. He looks upon the lizard who led these thieves here and raises Cao's sword high, intent on throwing it at him! Before Cao can stop him, he brings it and and throws it!

>1d100 to stop the blade!

Rolled 36 (1d100)

Oh god

Rolled 14 (1d100)

Rolled 64 (1d100)

"Speelock NO!"

Rolled 60 (1d100)

nooo

Cao leaps forward, attempting to grab the hilt of the blade as it flies towards the small lizard, but his fingers only graze the metal. Speelock, shouting about the fake Reptile, is suddenly silenced with a painful squeak as the dadao meets his stomach. He is impaled as the head of the blade meets the ground behind him, holding him upright.

The other lizardfolk go quiet. There was never any love for runts of the little among their community, but Reptile loved all of them. Reptile was kind to all of his little brothers and sisters, because they were of his blood, made from his own genetic makeup. Even if they were not true saurians, Reptile treated them all as such.

This was not Reptile.

"Not-Reptile! Not-Reptile!" they chant, shouting and hissing at him. Chameleon looks around as they all point and scream.

"What are you fools doing? Fight them! Kill them!" One of them spits acid upon his back, burning him slightly. He turns around. "Who did that? Which of you filthy half-breeds dies next before you fall in line!?"

Cao ignores it all, crawling over to Speelock, who is choking. As the lizardfolk turn on Chameleon and come after him, he reaches out and touches the small lizard's hand. His small body is almost as large as the blade is long; his tiny organs and body won't survive this attack.

These are his final moments.

"Friend..." Speelock says weakly. "Did Speelock... do good?"

>A) Tell him it's going to be alright
>B) Tell him he did very good
>C) Tell him he's going to see Hua soon
>D) Say nothing
>E) Other

>>A) Tell him it's going to be alright
>>B) Tell him he did very good

Ah fucking hell, can anyone heal?

B

:,(

...

>>A) Tell him it's going to be alright
>>B) Tell him he did very good
In our eyes, he's the greatest saurian ever

>B) Tell him he did very good

"You did good," Cao says, holding his hand. "Everything's going to be alright..."

Speelock doesn't look at the sword as he tries to keep breathing. It comes in short, small gasps. Cao can almost feel his small heart beating fast, but growing faint.

Nearby, the other lizardfolk attack Chameleon, who teleports away. Fireseed, tracking his movements, shoots an arrow at him. The nimble saurian catches it, thinking him the superior warrior, only for it to blow up in his hand and send him hurtling away.

The runt, his friend, speaks up, his voice a whisper. "Nobody like Speelock... Everyone kick Speelock..."

"Not me," Cao says, struggling to hold back powerful emotions welling up within him.

"Not you... You give Speelock koin! You... friend!"

He reaches up and gives Speelock a final affectionate pat on the head. The lizard smiles and closes his eyes before his hand goes limp and falls from Cao's grip.

Cao draws in a sharp breath and his shoulders buckle. A flash of events flies before his eyes; meeting Speelock, introducing him to his sisters, tracking down Hua with his help, getting stranded on Shang Tsung's island, to now. Throughout it all, he had been helpful and friendly, because Cao had done the same for him.

He can feel the tiny soul leaving the body. His magic allows him to sense it... even capture it, should he so choose.

>A) Let Speelock go
>B) Capture his soul
>C) Other

>A) Let Speelock go

>>A) Let Speelock go

Goddamnit man, I didn't need to tear up like this.

>A) Let Speelock go
Fuck taking his soul. He died and we have to let him go. Also step on Chameleons head several dozen times.

>A) Let Speelock go
No one will ever kick him again

Cao lets go and feels the soul slip away. Speelock's soul is small and light; it floats away like a flower petal caught in the breeze. As carefully and respectfully as he can, he takes the sword and holds Speelock in place while he withdraws it. The blade is green with his blood and as he holds it, his hands tremble. They tremble with despair, and rage.

At the opposide end of the chamber, Chameleon realizes how south this situation has gone. He teleports away in a cloud, out of the chamber, turning invisible and scampering away.

The lizardfolk attempt pursuit but all trail of him is lost as he continues to teleport away. his justice will have to come later. Fireseed, Jin, Frost and Skarlet gather near Cao.

The lizardfolk who remain watch them in silence, not wanting to attack. The few lizardfolk elders of this community, the oldest among them, gather nearby and witness the outworlder holding the runt's body. Cao holds Speelock's frail body in his arms as he grits his teeth and tries not to shout.

>A) Leave him here
>B) Bury him
>C) Take him with you
>D) Tell them to treat their runts better
>E) Other

>>B) Bury him
>>D) Tell them to treat their runts better
>>E) Other

Hold back the tears

>C) Take his body
Deserves an honorable burial