Thanks to evangeline/MiniJ19, who helped me iron out bits of this chapter. It wouldn't have been as great without her.
Six Months Later
Watching the two go at it from his place at the kitchen table, Johnny Cage had a newfound appreciation for two things in life.
He thanked God (or whatever other deity there was high above responsible for his situation) that he missed the draft by what few years he had.
Johnny also respected that he was not one Major Jackson Briggs, superior officer to Lieutenant Sonya Blade.
"Dammit, Jax, I can do this!" Sonya snarled as she slammed a fist on the tabletop, making Johnny flinch. Jax kept his cool (though his left eye had twitched just slightly) and kept his tone gentle.
"Sonya, I'm not letting you in on the program. You'll live without it."
"Give me two good reasons why I shouldn't be on the program," Sonya growled.
"One, you're twenty-four weeks pregnant; you've been on maternity leave for the past four weeks. Two, you're not even remotely interested in exploring Zaterra. You just want in on the program so you can sneak into your office and scare the recruits which, by the way, is something both the General and I don't appreciate. It's difficult enough to recruit young people into the O.I.A. We don't need you frightening them off to the Navy or the National Guard."
"As if Stryker's any more interested than I am!" Sonya exclaimed, though Johnny noted she didn't disagree about the terrorizing. "He can barely stand watching the Discovery Channel! How is he going to be able to sit around for days on end and wait for the diplomats to finish trade and peace agreements with the Saurians and another eternity for the scientists to be done with their science crap?"
"It'll give him some leadership experience," Jax told her, never losing his patient tone. "Plus the others in the team will have someone who knows about passing through realms, and the Saurians a somewhat familiar face to trust. Now, please, give it a rest. All the positions have filled."
Sonya huffed, glaring up at Jax. "Only because you begged Stryker to sign on two weeks ago in order to avoid this very argument, which you've failed to do. If he hadn't agreed, you'd have had to let me do this."
"No, we just would've had one less experienced man on the field," Jax refuted neatly, rising from his seat with his coffee mug. He rinsed out the dish, put it on the drying rack, and patted Sonya kindly on her shoulder. "Sonya, relax. You have three more months to go, and then you can join all the missions you want, short of you collapsing from exhaustion and neglecting your very wonderful family. Until then, enjoy your maternity leave, and take it easy. No more sneaking onto the base, alright?"
Sonya grumbled, and as Jax exited the kitchen he looked over his shoulder to wink at Johnny. The actor sighed; while Jax had managed to talk Sonya out of forcing her way into the O.I.A., he was now left with a very sulky pregnant woman who could easily snap his wrist if he tried too hard in making her feel better.
"C'mon, why don't we go see what Lil and Russ are doing?" Johnny suggested gently, taking Sonya by her elbow and breathing a sigh of relief when she followed willingly.
As they made their way to the playroom Sonya shot him a glare and said, "You know, if you hadn't messed up Stryker's relationship with Darcy and made me mad six months ago, and then proposed sex on your damn private jet as a way to cool my temper, I'd be on that program."
"You're the one who wanted to join the Mile-High club. I just obliged you, and it was a surprise for us that both our protections failed. Let's put that behind us and be happy we're going to have a new little boy in three months."
"Daniel Carlton Cage," Sonya nodded, rubbing her belly with a sigh. "I'm sorry. I just hate–"
"Being pregnant and not being able to do your job, I know," Johnny grinned. She smiled back, punching him lightly on his shoulder. "Did you decide what you want to buy for Sindel, yet?" Johnny changed the subject, referring to Liu and Kitana's daughter who was experiencing her very first birthday this coming November thirtieth.
"A new teddy bear," Sonya nodded. "Every child needs their very own teddy bear. But poor Kitana and Liu are having a hard time with Chow. Apparently Chow's not liking all the attention she's getting, poor little guy."
"We'll make sure to get Lilith to play with Chow, then," Johnny brainstormed. "It'll give him a playmate, and she'll distract him from Sindel. I'm not too worried, though. Siblings grow out of their resentment quickly."
Sonya nodded. "I think Russell's a little too young to play with Chow and Lilith, though. Maybe he and Elliot can team up and entertain Sindel."
Their musings were interrupted when they entered the playroom, caught off guard by the destruction they found in the room that had been immaculate when they left the children there a mere two hours ago.
Russell had discovered painting on his birthday four months ago, courtesy of his Uncle Liu, and hadn't let his child-safe finger-paint collection out of his sight since. In spite of only being two years old, Russell had managed to figure out a way to unscrew the caps of the paint jars (Sonya and he decided Lilith had a hand in helping her brother) and use his hands to leave globs and smears of reds, blues, yellows, and all the other colors throughout the house. Johnny found himself either hiring a maid or cleaning up the "masterpieces" and the causal damage himself daily, and Russell seemed no closer to understanding that painting was to be done on paper canvases, not on the walls.
Lilith was no better. Four years old, inquisitive as ever, and now understanding that she actually could reach high places if she stacked up enough sturdy things, Lilith had evidently been able to maneuver around, under, through, and/or above the partitions in the playroom to find Johnny's toolset on top of the master bedroom closet, two doors away. Johnny suspected that if he went into the master bedroom, he'd see a chair set up next to Russell's old highchair in a mockery of a staircase, several books on top of the highchair's table, and a few of Sonya's child-proofed (and thief-proofed) briefcases put on to p of the books, all together stacked in front of the closet. If Sonya and Johnny hadn't been so horrified to find their daughter with hammer in hand, they would have been proud of their daughter's ingenuity.
She now busied herself by taking apart an emptied, hand-crafted toy chest inexpertly, resorting to a hammer or wrench if something didn't pop out immediately–which was quite often, if the dented wood was any clue. In addition to the toy chest, a Barbie doll had been taken completely apart and made very-near bald, a remote-control truck was demolished, and a toy house was gradually falling apart from a lack of screws and (more importantly) sturdy walls.
The two parents watched their children wreck havoc on the playroom, both uncertain whether to laugh or shout. Johnny finally turned to Sonya and said, "I think they have a little too much energy."
"Outdoor skate rink?"
"Outdoor skate rink."
Next Day
Sonya answered the door, smiling demurely as she saw Stryker on the other side. "Hey, Kurt. Come in."
The other man did so in trepidation, taking care to give Sonya some space. "So, uh, you called?" At five in the morning for something? Hopefully not along the lines of threatening me with bodily harm if I don't drive you to the O.I.A. immediately? Because Jax already told me I'm to refuse staunchly and will have all medical bills paid if and when you do hit me, or else face janitorial work for the next three months."
"No, I'm not going to ask you for that," Sonya frowned, thinking to herself, Damn. There goes that plan. "Let's go to the kitchen. You want some coffee? It's going to be decaffeinated, unfortunately, since Johnny didn't take any risks and threw out all the caffeinated beverages we had once we had the pregnancy confir–goddamn it, Raiden!"
The Thunder God grinned from his place at the coffeepot, giving them both a wave. "Morning. And I'm a little busy pouring myself some coffee, so you're going to have to damn whatever 'it' is yourself, or get a different god to do the damning for you."
Sonya scowled at the god even as Stryker gulped and edged further away from the temperamental woman. "You scared me. Don't you have your own coffee up in the Heavens? Or at least your own money to buy coffee elsewhere?"
Raiden sniffed, replacing the coffeepot in its station. "My fellow gods and goddesses are reluctant to branch away from ambrosia–caffeine's a rare substance up there, much less coffee. And why waste my energy creating little slips of currency when I can get it for free here?"
"He's got a point," Stryker agreed, wincing as Sonya turned her glare back on him.
"You're not helping," Sonya growled, and switched back to addressing Raiden within the same breath. "And that's decaffeinated, Raiden. In order to avoid any mishaps with my pregnancy."
Raiden sipped his drink, completely unaffected by her statement. "Not this cup."
Sighing and realizing she wouldn't be able to kick the Thunder God out of her house unless he willed it, Sonya told him, "Fine, then you can sit down and answer the same question as Stryker–"
"I'm not opening a portal into your office in order for you to avoid all the security and Jax's watchful eye," Raiden interrupted smoothly, taking a seat at the table. "For one thing, Jax would notice a portal opening with all that portal-detecting technology in the O.I.A. For another, I'm in no mood to entertain Johnny's temper if I did."
Dammit! How many of my alternate plans am I going to have to go through? All the way to Plan N? "I never asked Stryker to let me into the O.I.A., Raiden. And Stryker, did you want any coffee?" Sonya said in an overly-polite tone.
"Uh, I already had some," Stryker replied, sitting down cautiously on a chair to Raiden's right. "So, er, if you didn't want to ask me about breaking into the O.I.A.–"
"It wouldn't be breaking into," Sonya muttered.
"–then what did you want to ask?"
Hesitantly, Sonya took a seat across from him and to the left of Raiden. She said, "It's. . . somewhat personal, but since Jax is at the O.I.A. and won't let me anywhere within a hundred-yard radius of the facility–"
"With good reason," Stryker interjected, recoiling when Sonya glared at him. Raiden chuckled, making Sonya turn her gaze at him. His chuckles stopped abruptly.
"–and I don't want to talk about this on the phone, and I thought it'd be better with someone I've known for a while, which leaves out Ruby, so you were the only one left. And Raiden," she added with a nod to the god.
Wondering what Sonya was fretting over, Stryker mentally eased his tension and prompted, "And the question is?" Raiden cocked his head to the side, also curious.
Biting her lip, Sonya asked, "Do you guys think Russell and Lilith are spoiled?"
Having not expected this topic, Stryker took a while to comprehend the question and formulate an answer that wouldn't result in a quick but painful emasculation. Raiden gave him a moment to recover, asking, "What brought this on, Sonya?"
Scowling, Sonya recalled the events of yesterday in the skating arena. "Johnny and I took them out to the ice-skating rink, so they could burn off some energy and not tear down the house around our ears. We let Lilith talk us into getting some sweets for them both, and I heard a couple with a few older children say how we were spoiling the kids."
"Just buying a few sweets made them think they were spoiled?" Stryker frowned.
Tapping her fingers together, Sonya added, "Lilith and Russell were both dressed in some . . . trendier clothes that Johnny insisted would make the kids look better. That might have helped the image some." At Stryker's and Raiden's doubtful stares, Sonya finished, "And Lilith was talking about everything that their uncles and aunts let them do. Like how Kitana bought Lilith that parakeet last year–"
"The one she was allergic to and had to let go," Stryker nodded in remembrance.
"–and two Christmases ago, when you got Russell his own functioning toy convertible, Raiden. And, well, I guess the couple might have been right," Sonya exhaled resignedly. "I wanted someone else's opinion, though. That's where you two come in."
Stryker and Raiden exchanged looks, both slightly wary. Stryker told her, "Sonya, you've got to take into account what kind of upbringing Lilith and Russ have. I mean, sheesh, for starters they have an A-list celebrity for a father who has an ego the size of–er, where is Johnny?"
"Toronto, for the shooting of his next movie," Raiden answered. At the mortals' uplifted brows, Raiden hitched a thumb to the refrigerator behind him. "He left a nicely blue-inked post-it note. You are also out of orange juice, eggs, Tabasco sauce, and little green army-men toys."
Blinking, Stryker asked quizzically, "How can you run out of army-men toys?"
"Lilith's taken a liking to flushing them down the toilet," Sonya told him. "Makes for one hell of a plumbing bill. You were saying?"
"Ah, right. Again, an ego the size of Texas, and their mother is a Lieutenant in the Special Forces who can kick ass like none other."
"And then," Raiden picked up where Stryker left off, "one needs to understand they have an aunt who is acting-Queen to the throne of the entire realm of Edenia. She's also married to the Champion of Mortal Kombat, who can change into a dragon if the situation warranted it."
"They have an uncle who is Grandmaster of the Lin Kuei and can ice over–literally–any boyfriends or bullies who pick on his surrogate niece and nephew," Stryker ticked off the thumb of one hand, having counted all five on his hand for visual effect.
Raiden nodded, adding, "Another uncle is shaman of his tribe and a technological genius, which is a pretty good double threat in this day and age. They have their Uncle Jax, who is a Major in the Special Forces, has arm implants to advance his strength, and has a former spy as his wife."
"And then they have me," Stryker added with a complacent shrug. "Their not-quite-as-impressive but highly approachable uncle who has connections to all the legit and less-than-lawful sides of New York society."
"And the cream of the crop, me," Raiden finished simply, tossing back the last of his coffee in one go. He rose and refilled the mug. The mortals saw him do nothing in particular with the coffee, but when he returned to the table he drunk the sustenance contentedly.
"Yeah, what he said," Stryker nodded.
Sonya thought over what the two said. "So . . . they have the potential to be spoiled thoroughly."
Stryker sighed, and Raiden let his eyes roll heavenward as he said, "Sonya, they have an incredibly good life, surrounded by adults who will look after them constantly. Whether or not they grow up thinking everything is meant to be easy for them and they can do no wrong is up to you and Johnny."
"That's what I'm worried about," Sonya admitted. "That they'll think everything and everyone will simply bend over and let them do what they wish when they grow up. Dammit, I didn't think like this before."
"It's probably just the pregnancy talking," Stryker shrugged. "But, hey, if they do grow up spoiled rotten, you could always do what my dad did."
"What's that?" Sonya arched a brow.
"Drop them off in some huge city with ten bucks and leave them there to fend for themselves."
"Your father did that to you?" Sonya asked skeptically.
Again, Stryker shrugged, smiling mysteriously. "Maybe I'm lying through my teeth. Maybe a chapter in my memoirs will detail the epic struggles I had to go through in the ghettos of New York after my family spurned me. Either way, what I'm trying to say is Russell and Lilith are good kids, and they'll survive wherever their futures take them, spoiled rotten or not. They'll survive, because they know you and Johnny love them and that's all that matters."
Sonya flickered her eyes to Raiden to see if he suspected any bullshitting in Stryker's story, but Raiden's face was a blank mask. She had expected as much–Raiden preferred to keep what he knew of his mortals secret, as a goodwill gesture toward them. He only meddled when he felt necessary, and usually under the right circumstances. Or whenever he felt particularly spiteful, a side of Raiden which they all did their best to avoid setting off.
Choosing to take comfort in their words, which she had known herself, but needed some moral support from others, Sonya smiled her gratitude. "Thanks. I feel much better now."
"Good," Stryker nodded perfunctorily. "Wouldn't want Cage Shadow Kicking my ass for making you feel like crap, since Raiden can teleport and leave me to suffer alone. Now, is that cheesecake I see on the counter?"
"You won't want that," Sonya told him as he got up to investigate the dessert, rising with him. Raiden looked over from his seat, his curiosity piqued but not enough to warrant leaving his coffee. She brought down a plate for herself and retrieved a sharp knife and fork.
"Why not?" Stryker asked, sniffing the cheesecake. "Smells good."
"It's apple-mayonnaise cheesecake," Sonya informed him nonchalantly, cutting herself a slice.
Gagged spluttering alerted the mortals Raiden had choked on his coffee in surprise. Taking an abrupt step backward, Stryker tried not to vomit in his mouth as he demanded, "Who the hell makes an apple-mayonnaise cheesecake? That's not even a flavor!"
"Johnny hired a chef who's extraordinarily creative," Sonya replied, swiping a piece onto her fork. "The baby wanted apple-mayonnaise cheesecake, so the baby gets apple-mayonnaise cheesecake."
Lips drawn in a firm line to prevent himself from gagging, Stryker left the kitchen resolutely. Finally rising from his seat in order to better peer at the cheesecake, Raiden shuddered and followed Stryker–after refilling his mug for the third time. Pausing, Sonya shrugged and continued to eat her cheesecake in contentment, trailing after them while asking Stryker, "Hey, Strike, do you know if Sergeant Brocker is on duty Friday? And if he finally bought that Plasma screen television he was mulling over?"
I'm fairly certain there is no apple-mayonnaise cheesecake in the world. I am also not knowledgeable in matters of pregnancies (and what women really crave). However, I was trying to think of something that Sonya could be craving (being pregnant and all) and I recalled a little community dish I had in a Korean restaurant that my mother said was apple slices covered in mayonnaise. It wasn't terrible . . . but I wouldn't have it in my cheesecake.
For those wondering (or possibly hoping? 'shrugs' too bad) when the end will come, I have at the very least three scenarios planned, two of which are partially written. After the children are all (mostly) grown up, the end will come, or at least be very near. Sad, but necessary I'm afraid.
If you're confused by the time continuity in this fic (because, admittedly, I was for a good while) I've done what I could to make a timeline, using birthdays of the children as reference points. The years serve only as placeholders; it could be further in the future or past, depending on your preferences. Updates will occur later in the fic as needed.
Oct. 24th, 1999–Lilith Cage is born; events of Chapter 1 occur
Jan. 18th, 2000–Chow Kang is born
Aug. 26th, 2001–Russell Cage is born
Sept. 5th, 2002–Elliot Briggs is born
Sept. 2002–Events of Chapter 2 occur
Nov. 30th, 2002–Sindel Kang is born
May, 2003–Events of Chapter 3 occur
November 2003–Events of Chapter 4 occur