Guardian: Fujin and Child Reader (Mortal Kombat)

Chapter Fifty-Five: High Priest

(Song: Eren the Zhayo by Hiroyuki Sawano.)

"Trying to stay warm here?" Fujin asks after he enters the library. Augustus looks up and nods, the hood of his toga up. "How are the others?" He asks.
"Excited to hear the rest of your story," Fujin states honestly.

Augustus looks surprised, then smiles. "I see. I'll be out in a minute." Fujin nods and exits, leaving Augustus alone. The man sighs and rises from his chair after a small break. You all are already back on the couch with drinks on the table.
Augustus is offered water as he sits back down, which he takes.
"Where was I?"

"The part about sexual favors, I think," Bi-Han answers.
"Right. When I realized my father had been slain, I wanted revenge. How dare those men of the Senate stab my father. I wanted them all dead, but knew I couldn't do it alone. Reluctantly, after much fighting, I asked Mark Antony to join me. He was also mad at Caesar's death, so I figured we had nothing to lose."

He pauses, thinking of the right words to say next.
"Myself, Mark Antony, and a man named Markus Lepidus formed the Second Triumvirate in order to defeat my father's assassins. We ruled the Roman Republic as a military dictatorship. We planned to hunt down Brutus and Cassius, two men who fled Rome after stabbing Caesar.
Over the course of several months, we ordered our armies to kill them. Mark Antony and I watched Brutus' army fall and Brutus stabbed himself, thinking he had lost."

"And what happened to Brutus afterwards?" Hanzo asks.
"Well, Mark wanted Brutus to have a proper funeral pyre, but I disagreed. 'You can't do that, Octavian,' I remember Antony saying, tears in his eyes. 'Only the birds will see to his funeral,' I said coldly. When Antony stormed off, I cut off Brutus' head, carried it with me back to Rome, and placed it at the feet of one of Caesar's statues as an offering. It's the least I could have done."

"I would have done the same, personally," Bi-Han nods, jaw set. Hanzo nods in agreement.
You're impressed as well, not realizing the gravity of the situation. "Cassius had also stabbed himself, if I recall correctly. But Antony and my relationship began to crumble. He was jealous of me, from what I could tell. 'You are only 21,' he would say teasingly. 'What do you know about controlling an army, sweet Thurnius?'"

"Thurnius?" You echo.
Augustus smiles, but you can see the pain in his eyes.
"Thurnius was a childhood nickname of mine. Antony would teasingly call me that, trying to insult me. I was more surprised he thought calling me such a name would offend me," he shrugs.
"I remember Antony," Fujin murmurs. "He was a stubborn, flirtatious man. Always quick to fight first, think later. Very much a womanizer, but also enjoyed teasing Julius' heir," he motions to Augustus.

"Why did he enjoy that?" Kuai asks.
Again, Augustus shrugs. "I cannot say. It might have been mere jealousy. Or, as rumor spread, he pushed away his true feelings for me. Either way, he later became my enemy as the Second Triumvirate fell apart. I chased him all the way to Alexandria, where he claimed that Julius and Cleopatra's child Caesarion was the true ruler. I was furious. Another way to tease me, perhaps."
"So what did you do?" You ask, curious.

"We ended up battling at sea. With Agrippa by my side, we cut off their supply route. Cleopatra and Antony fled after their army surrendered due to starvation. I had also learned that the Egyptian Queen and Antony had three children, no direct threat to my reign, but I still needed to do something. Antony had gotten a letter from his lover, stating she had killed herself. In his grief, much like Brutus, he stabbed himself. He had died in Cleopatra's arms."

Augustus rubs his eyes.
"I wanted to keep Cleopatra as my prisoner, parading her around Rome like Caesar did with Vercingetorix years earlier. But she also died purposely from a snake bite. With me now being the sole ruler of Rome, I ordered Caesarion killed along with Antony and Cleopatra's eldest son. But I took the twins, Alexander Helios and Cleopatra Selene with me. Had my sister Octavia raise them, then had Cleopatra Selene marry into an African royal family. Alexander would eventually fade into obscurity."

"Woah," Liu whispers.
"Interesting," Hanzo murmurs.
"I'm almost done...So, with Antony and Cleopatra dead, I went back to Rome and declared myself Emperor. My name was changed to Augustus, meaning the revered one. Then I would go on to marry Scribonia, have my daughter Julia, divorce Julia's mother, and marry again." He finishes, then drinks his water and sighs.

"That's a lot of events," Kuai admits. "But it was awesome."
"Do you know where Antony and Cleopatra are buried?" You ask.
Surprisingly, Augustus nods. "I do. They are buried together in a tomb in Egypt. Perhaps..." he trails off.
"What is it?" Fujin questions.
"I was thinking he could be brought back to life. But only Antony. I'd like to talk with him, I know where he is buried, after all."