The white-haired monk stood atop the Shaolin Temple gate, staring down at Teshii, his sharp blue eyes unreadable. The wind blew through his snow-pale hair, strands dancing like wisps of frost. His expression was calm, yet chilling.
Below, Teshii stood alone in the snow-covered courtyard, breath fogging in the bitter air. His signature orange-red fleece offered little warmth against the mountain cold – but he stood firm.
Behind him, four of his teammates – Hikaru, Haruto, Moriya, and Ikazuchi – were completely frozen solid. Crystallized in blocks of ice, their expressions locked mid-surprise.
Then–
Teshii finally broke the silence.
"Hey! What was that for? You just attacked us outta nowhere!"
The monk didn't respond. His gaze remained fixed, icy and unmoved.
Teshii narrowed his eyes. He could already tell – this guy wasn't the warm, chatty type. His energy was different. Still. Heavy. Cold, in every sense.
Then, without warning, the monk leapt from the top of the gate.
THUMP!
He landed in front of Teshii, not even cracking the snow beneath him.
Teshii's eyes widened slightly. "Damn," he muttered under his breath. "That was cold."
"Who are you?" the monk asked, his voice like frostbite – sharp, calm, and completely devoid of warmth.
Teshii's jaw tightened. "No – f@%# that. Why did you attack us?"
The monk raised a brow, then sighed, brushing some snow from his robe sleeve.
"Strange things… have been happening here," he said, voice quiet but firm. "People tripping over nothing. Sacred scrolls being misplaced… and reappearing in random places. Something – or someone – is disturbing our balance."
Teshii raised his hands, palms out. "Okay, but it wasn't us. We literally just got here."
The monk didn't look convinced.
"How do I know you're not lying?"
Teshii looked around quickly, then turned to glance behind him – at the four frozen statues that were once his teammates. He sighed heavily and looked back at the monk.
"Fine…" he muttered. "We came here for you."
The monk's eyes narrowed. "Me?"
Teshii nodded "Yeah."
"We're with the Order of the Elements. And we're looking for people like you."
The monk tilted his head, skeptical. "Order of the Elements?"
Teshii gestured toward the frozen group behind him. "We're a team – recruiting warriors across the world who've awakened to elemental powers. There are ten of us in total. You… are one of them."
The monk said nothing. He studied Teshii with piercing precision.
Silence hung in the frigid air.
Teshii didn't waver. His stance remained calm, but his aura – his presence – burning with something the monk hadn't felt in a long time.
Heat.
Conviction.
A deep fire… beneath that laid-back grin and those crimson glasses.
The monk slowly closed his eyes.
He took in a long, measured breath.
The wind eased.
The frost in the air stilled.
And then–
"…Looks like you're telling the truth," he said at last.
Teshii let out a long, dramatic sigh.
"Thank god he believes me. I don't even know how I convinced him," he thought, blinking behind his crimson glasses.
He looked up at the monk and extended his hand for a handshake, grinning.
"By the way, I'm Teshii – King of Martial Arts."
The monk accepted the handshake firmly.
"My name… is Reito."
CHARACTER INTRODUCTION
Name: Reito
Age: 18
Hair Colour: White
Eye Colour: Blue
Height: 5'7
Weight: 157lbs
Occupation: Shaolin Monk
Teshii's grin widened.
"Well… it's nice to meet you, Reito."
They both turned their gaze toward the comical sight behind them: four full-sized ice sculptures that were, just minutes, ago, living, breathing teammates.
Reito tilted his head slightly.
"So… you didn't freeze."
Teshii gave a casual shrug.
"Yeah… my fleece has a built-in heating system. Keeps me toasty. Guess it didn't work for them though."
Reito narrowed his eyes, suspicious.
"Is that so?"
Teshii cleared his throat awkwardly and pointed a thumb at his frozen companions.
"Well, anyway… how long till the ice melts and they thaw out?"
Reito answered without hesitation.
"An hour."
Teshii nodded slowly, eyes closed.
"Oh, okay. An hou–"
His eyes shot wide open behind the tinted lenses.
"AN HOUR?!"
Reito nodded again, unbothered.
"Yes."
Teshii groaned, dramatically throwing his hands in the air.
"Well then… looks like we'll be here for a while."
"Yeah." Reito said, arms crossed.
Then–
Teshii clapped his hands together.
"Alright then. While we wait – let's talk, Sub-Zero."
Reito blinked.
"…Sub-Zero?"
Teshii smirked.
"Yes, Sub-Zero. From Mortal Kombat."
Reito stared, utterly lost.
"…What's Mortal Kombat?"
Teshii gasped as if he'd been personally insulted by the heavens themselves.
"Wait, wait, wait. You don't know Mortal Kombat?"
Reito calmly shook his head.
"Never heard of it."
Teshii dropped to his knees, clutching his chest like he'd been mortally wounded.
"I can't believe it… you, my friend… are missing out."
Reito simply stared at him in silence, his expression deadpan.
Then – Teshii jumped back to his feet, brushing snow from his pants and clearing his throat.
"Though… you are from a Shaolin Temple, so I guess it makes that you don't know."
Reito remained quiet, still trying to process the conversation.
Teshii, however, was already grinning again.
"Oh man, while these guys are frozen, I will be telling you the story of Mortal Kombat."
One Hour Later…
Teshii and Reito sat across from each other on two large stones, steam gently rising from Teshii's fleece in the freezing mountain air. They'd been talking for nearly an hour – well, Teshii had been talking.
"…and then, after that, all the kombatants were dead. Only Raiden and Shao Kahn remained. Shao Kahn was absolutely beating poor Raiden into the ground. But then, Raiden sends memories back to his past self, all the way to the beginning of the timelines – restarting the whole series…"
As Teshii continued his dramatic retelling of Mortal Kombat's storyline, Reito stared at him blankly. His posture remained composed, but it was obvious: he'd checked out of the story a while ago.
Then–
"DAMN IT!"
Both Teshii and Reito turned to the sudden outburst.
Ikazuchi had thawed first. He was on one knee, steam rising off his body, face twisted in fury.
Behind him, Hikaru gasped and stumbled forward, shivering violently. "Th-that… was too cold," he groaned.
Haruto shook off the last of the melting ice.
"That was awful."
Moriya, ever stoic, brushed ice crystals from his hair with a calm expression.
"That was… unpleasant."
Then, all four of them turned as one to face Teshii – who remained seated comfortably on his rock, grinning like nothing was wrong.
"T-Teshii…" Hikaru said through chattering teeth.
Teshii casually waved. "Yo!"
Hikaru then glanced at the unfamiliar figure beside him.
"Um…"
The monk gave a slight bow. "Reito."
Teshii clapped his hands together. "Yes, my friends! This right here is Reito – the Element of Ice! He's a pretty chill guy. No pun taken." He smirked, proud of his own joke.
Right as Hikaru was about to speak again–
"DID YOU SERIOUSLY HAVE TO FREEZE US?!" Ikazuchi shouted, his voice echoing off the temple walls.
Reito flinched slightly from the sheer volume.
"Um… uh… sorry?"
Ikazuchi glared at him through clenched teeth, still visibly shivering, but chose not to say anything further – possibly because his mouth was too cold to form more insults.
Meanwhile, Haruto was practically glowing with admiration.
"Whoa! An actual monk is right in front of me." His eyes gleamed with excitement as he stepped closer.
"So what do you guys eat? How do you train? What's the schedule like? And, and, do you really meditate upside-down under waterfalls?!"
Reito stepped back, visibly overwhelmed by the sudden fanboy barrage.
Then–
"HOW THE F@%# ARE YOU NOT FREEZING IN THIS COLD?!" Ikazuchi snapped again, pointing directly at Reito's robe.
Still blinking from the onslaught of attention, Reito looked between them, clearly unsure how to respond.
Hikaru crossed his arms and glanced toward Teshii, his brow twitching. "So… does this mean he's willing to talk?"
Teshii threw casual arm over Reito's shoulder with a proud grin. "That's right! Sub-Zero here is open to chatting and joining the team."
Hikaru raised an unimpressed eyebrow.
"Sub-Zero? That's the nickname you gave him?"
"Yep!" Teshii nodded like it was the most brilliant thing he'd ever come up with.
Hikaru sighed and turned to Reito.
"Reito, whatever you do, just… ignore him."
Reito tilted his head slightly, confused.
"…Right."
Behind them, Ikazuchi wrapped his arms tightly around himself, teeth chattering aggressively.
"HEY! IT'S COLD! CAN WE NOT STAND HERE AND FREEZE TO DEATH?!"
Moriya nodded quietly, his breath visible in the air.
"Yes… I agree. Let's please go inside."
Reito gave a respectful nod.
"Very well. Follow me."
And with that, the newly found Element of Ice led the shivering, half-thawed group of Elements and their eccentric guide into the warm halls of the Shaolin Temple.
Meanwhile…
The wind howled gently across the snow-draped mountains, brushing over jagged cliffs and frozen trees like nature whispering secrets through the air. Two hikers – bundled in thick jackets, their faces red and windburned from the cold – trudged through knee-deep snow. Each breath came out in frosty puffs as they moved, boots crunching against the icy terrain.
"Hey… what's that?" one of them said, pointing through the swirling snow.
Half-buried in a drift just off the narrow trail was something out of place – a sleek, black SUV. Its polished surface shimmered subtly under the filtered sunlight, untouched by snow despite the heavy flurries around it. Not a single snowflake clung to it. No tire tracks surrounded it. No footprints. It sat still, untouched. Too still.
It was Teshii's Black SUV.
"A car? All the way up here?" the hiker whispered. "But… no tracks?"
They exchanged wary glances. Curiosity – and their exhaustion – quickly outweighed caution. The two began moving toward it, step by hesitant step, drawn by mystery and the faint hope of supplies or shelter.
"Maybe someone left gear inside," one muttered, already tugging at the door handle.
The moment his fingers made contact–
ZZZZZZT!!
A violent crackle of electricity erupted from the handle. Bright arcs of lightning leapt through the air, snapping like the jaws of a wild beast. The hiker shrieked – limbs stiffening as the current surged through him – and was instantly flung backward into the snow with a heavy THUD.
"Whoa! Are you okay?!"
The second hiker panicked, stumbling forward to help his friend. In his haste, he grabbed the same handle–
ZZZZZZZT!!
Down he went. Flat on his back, twitching, a light trail of steam rising from his sleeves.
And then…
Silence.
Only the whisper of the wind and the soft fluttering of falling snow remained. The SUV remained motionless. A faint electrical hum thrummed through the air like a living warning.
The mountain reclaimed its stillness. The defense system of the mysterious black SUV still buzzed faintly, keeping intruders at bay.
Back at the entrance of the Shaolin Temple…
Reito continued to lead the Elements and Teshii through the sacred grounds, the air inside warmer now that they were within the temple's boundaries.
Teshii suddenly blinked. His ear twitched.
He looked around.
"…Hmm." He scratched the side of his head thoughtfully. "Why do I feel like something just happened…?"
No one answered. Reito led them onward, while the others were still too cold – or too curious – to care.
But Teshii?
He smirked to himself.
"That security system's working perfectly."
TO BE CONTINUE!!!