Cyborg

Cyborg (shortened form of cybernetic organism) is a term to classify characters who have either augmented their living bodies with mechanical upgrades or machines with living tissue existing on or inside of their bodies.
In Mortal Kombat, some characters have been turned into robots to improve their performance. The procedure began when the Lin Kuei clan decided to automate their warriors. The designs of the cyborg warriors were influenced heavily by the Predator's appearance in the eponymousfilms, and by Star Wars's Boba Fett.

Sektor (unit LK-9T9) was the first to undergo this process ofroboticization, and he would prove to be their biggest success. The Lin Kuei programmed the cyborgs to do their bidding, and Sektor's main objective was to seek out and kill Sub-Zero, who left the clan after refusing to be transformed into a machine. Sektor was devoid of a soul, lost all human emotions, and has never succeeded in his mission. After turning his back on the Lin Kuei, he ventured to Japan and formed his Tekunin faction.

Cyrax (unit LK-4D4) was another of the Lin Kuei members turned into a cyborg. He was also programmed to seek out Sub-Zero. However, Cyrax was captured by Sub-Zero, reprogrammed, and permanently malfunctioned. He was then captured by Sonya Blade and Jax Briggs, and was partially returned to his human state. In gratitude, Cyrax joined the Special Forces.

Smoke (unit LK-7T2) was the third of the Lin Kuei warriors to undergo roboticization. After returning from a mission, he and Sub-Zero learned of the Lin Kuei's plans to transform their members into robots. The two fled; Sub-Zero escaped, but Smoke was captured and forced to become a cyborg. He was later captured inOutworld by Shao Kahn's army. Hopelessly imprisoned, he chose to shut himself down. Afterwards, Smoke was found by Noob Saibot and reactivated, along with some tampering of his machinery. As of now, Smoke is torn between serving his new master and searching for his lost humanity.

It has never been clear as to how mechanical the automatons truly are. In Mortal Kombat 3, a damaged cyborg sparks and the skeleton is revealed. The skeleton is almost completely mechanical, aside from the rib cage and skull. The rest of the body is filled with odd mechanical parts and wires. This was about as complex as the cyborgs were at the time. In Mortal Kombat Gold, it was revealed that the cyborgs wore helmets and retained their faces underneath; Cyrax's alternate outfit and ending revealed this. His face had several implants on the eye and chin (which were removed in Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance). Although Cyrax claimed to be human again in hisGold ending, he is still clearly mechanical as demonstrated by his abilities in Deadly Alliance. In Mortal Kombat: Deception, however, Smoke's appearance does not allow the possibility of retaining flesh. This is most likely due to being remodeled from the nanomachines in his body. Sektor's level of cyberization has never been elaborated on, although Cyrax's Armageddon ending implies that it is possible for him to return to his human form. In Mortal Kombat (2011), performing an X-Ray move on a cyborg character reveals a human skeleton and organs.

Sektor eventually creates his own clan of cybernetic warriors called the Tekunin. They are featured prominently inMortal Kombat: Armageddon's Konquest mode, where Sektor captures the protagonist Taven and brings him aboard his Tekunin warship.

Jax, in his Mortal Kombat: Armageddon ending, was turned into a cyborg by Sektor, thanks to his careful planting of a neural chip in Jax's brain.