Order of Light

The Order of Light is an order of monks in Earthrealm. They reside in the Shaolin Temples of the Honan province in China.
The Order of Light is an ancient sect, one of the earliest organized religious institutions on Earth. Monks of the Order represent diverse nationalities from all corners of the world. It is home to both warriors trained in the traditional martial arts of the Shaolin temple, and those who seek spiritual perfection, taking a vow of non-violence. Both groups strive to uphold principles of goodness, purity and honor, and to lead as examples of those principles for the people of Earthrealm.
The Order's property sprawls across a large section of Earthrealm. It contains the Shaolin Temple proper, where all monks convene for meditation and spiritual pursuits, and its own elite fighting school, the Wu Shi Academy. The Order has its own martial arts instructors and welcomes friendly teachers from other realms to pass their native skills on to the monks. Master Bo' Rai Cho of Outworld is one such mentor. High in the mountains to the east are the secret training grounds of the White Lotus Society.
The Order of Light co-founded the White Lotus Society with Raiden after the death of their champion, the Great Kung Lao, at the hands of Goro. It was decided that the Order would handpick individuals with exceptional skills in martial arts to defend the independence of Earthrealm from the threats of other worlds. While the Order is well known and welcomes religious seekers from throughout Earthrealm, its connection to the White Lotus is kept secret and only revealed to candidates deemed worthy for initiation. Consequently, many spend their lives in the Order using their fighting skills to protect only the Temple and the realm from native conflicts, knowing other realms only as distant names from tales. Also, as a result, both the Order of Light and the White Lotus Society may nominate the same champion to represent them in Mortal Kombat, if he is affiliated with both.
== In video games ==
The Order of Light's first mention is its nomination of Liu Kang, a Shaolin warrior monk, to represent Earthrealm in the first Mortal Kombat tournament in place of their favored candidate, Kung Lao, who refused. Kang's defeat of the Outworld sorcerer Shang Tsung places the tournament in the hands of the monks and saves Earthrealm from dominion by the Outworld emperor Shao Kahn. However, before another tournament can be held, Shao Kahn orders Baraka and the Tarkatan hordes to invade Earthrealm in retaliation for the loss. The mutants decimate the Order of Light, slaying dozens of monks and significantly reducing its numbers. The massacre also depletes the ranks of the White Lotus Society save for Kai, who left to wander the world. Liu Kang and Kung Lao depart for Outworld to avenge their fallen brothers, and Shao Kahn is defeated.
The devastated Order survives, quiet and inconspicuous, during Shao Kahn's invasion of Earthrealm, which centers on urbanized, industrial communities. After Liu Kang and the other Earthrealm warriors succeed in repelling the forces of Outworld, Kang rejoins his brother monks and searches the world for fighters, looking to rebuild the ranks of the Shaolin. The Order mourned the apparent loss of Kung Lao at the hands of Shao Kahn, inducting him into the ranks of his ancestors.
Though Liu Kang successfully expands the Order, including persuading the warrior Kai to return to them, the recruitment campaign is cut short when Shinnok and the forces of Darkness conquer Edenia and invade Earthrealm. Kang and Kai pursue the fallen Elder God and are joined by Kung Lao, who had hidden away from the Order to pursue nonviolence but abandoned the vow in the wake of the invasion.
The Order recovers its numbers following the defeat of Shinnok and once again becomes a prosperous community. But it suffers perhaps its most devastating blow when Liu Kang is murdered by the Deadly Alliance on the grounds of the Wu Shi Academy. The forlorn Order built the fallen monk a splendid tomb on the grounds, showcasing four large gold medals in recognition of his four successive Mortal Kombat victories. The Order is unable to prevent Kung Lao from once again abandoning non-violence, this time for good, and is left behind when he travels to Outworld to confront the Deadly Alliance and avenge Liu Kang.
The ultimate fate of the Order of Light since the events of Mortal Kombat: Deception and Mortal Kombat: Armageddon is unknown.
== Appearances in Other Media ==
=== Mortal Kombat (1995 film) ===
The Order of Light is featured in the opening segment of the 1995 film Mortal Kombat, where Liu Kang (portrayed by Robin Shou) visits his grandfather at the Temple. The monks urge Kang to not feel responsible for the death of his brother Chan at the hands of Shang Tsung in his absence. Raiden further attempts to convince Kang to set aside his desire for revenge but fails. Kang departs the Order to represent it in the tournament as a descendant of the Great Kung Lao.
The filming location was Wat Chaiwatthanaram in Thailand but referred to as China in the film.
=== Mortal Kombat: Conquest ===
The Order is featured in the television series Mortal Kombat: Conquest as the original home and sanctuary of the Great Kung Lao. While living in the city of Zhu Zin with Siro and Taja, Kung Lao often returns to the Order to consult the monks for advice, research the arrival of new enemies, or to train younger monks in martial arts. The Order is sometimes the target of attacks by humans or Outworld warriors, but Kung Lao fiercely defends his former home from conflict.
=== Mortal Kombat (2021 film) ===
In the 2021 film Mortal Kombat, the Order of Light is located in Raiden's Temple.
== Mortal Kombat: Shaolin Monks, Part II ==
The Order of Light was briefly mentioned as Kung Lao decided to have a powwow with the elder Monks at the Order of Light near the Temple. He mentioned to Aiko the Temple was part of the White Lotus Society but not actually connected to the Wu Shi Academy. Lu's grandfather was shown as a part of it along with the fellow monks; some were irritated over Lao's absence while others were relived. They were some of the first to witness Earthrealm merging with Outworld, and the sky suddenly churned crimson dark as Kahn's extermination squads attacked the Academy! Both Lao and Raiden assisted the monks on escaping preventing a lot of casualties. Along with the kid, Kung Jin, they're currently hidden in the Dragon Grotto.
== A Date and a Destiny ==
The Order watched Liu Kang leave for America to train future generations of monks. They also congratulated, and cooed, to Aiko in particular as she was having her first date with Kung Lao!
== Shinnok's Uprising ==
It was seen temporarily as they watched their prodigy, Liu Kang, return on the Yellow River, with Kai in tow. However, the reunion wasn't long as the monks bore witness to a tornado which was actually created by Fujin to evacuate Aiko and Kung Lao, then a meteor fell near the Bayan Har Mountains. The two monks began to investigate the latter incident.
== Return of the Dragon King ==
Just like the other monks, the Order was bombarded by attacks from Dark Raiden and his enforcer, Zombie Liu Kang! Kenshi urged Aiko to evacuate them to a nearby shelter, which she summarized the Dragon Grotto. They remained safe, even from the sudden, violent lightning strikes, courtesy of Ermac. They were then assured by the benevolent Raiden they're in good hands from now on after he electrocuted the doppelgängers!
== Final Kombat ==
They remained passive, even though they received news of the upcoming Battle of Armageddon via Aiko's hearts stored by the rest of the Shaolin and the White Lotus. Raiden confirmed this and they prayed for the heroes' safety and success. They achieved the unthinkable and the faction never changed even when they were grieving over the losses of Liu and Raiden, and soon blessed by the elder Liu's return; Kung Lao and Aiko still were full-time members of the White Lotus.
== Kontentment ==
The Order of Light was featured as Kung Lao began mental training as he reinstated with them. Everyone was still readjusting weeks after Armageddon as well as Liu and Raiden's sacrifices. Aiko soon broke the news after Lao's session that the elder time-hoppers bore a demigod, Cheung!
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