Chapter 20: The Truth Comes Out
The room was quiet, the only sounds, barely, being their breathing. Her finger was still delicately running over his clothing. She dragged her finger down and the rough texture of his arm felt pleasant against her own skin. She looked up at him with half lidded eyes, admiring his physic. The burns, scars, and patchy skin seemed like a work of art to her. Ordinarily, she would have never been attracted to someone like him, but judging by her past two intercourses, this was perfectly normal.
Completely enveloped in her thoughts, she didn't hear him softly calling her name. "Alora? Babe? Heterochromia?" She blinked and looked up at his half masked face, gazing into his sea foam green eye.
"You alright? You're oddly quiet for someone who probably just had the best sex of their life." His eyes crinkled up in amusement, to which she sucked her teeth and rolled her eyes at him.
"Please, I'm surprised you're still functioning right. After all that hardcore lovemaking that I put you through." She smirked and winked at him, scooting in closer into his body.
"Oh really? Says the girl who was practically screaming my name out? Yea, ok." He retorted and sat up on his elbow, looking down at his lover.
"Shut up, you were just as bad me, so take your oxygen tank and shove it up your-"Alora was quickly cut off when Kabal suddenly planted his finger upon her lips, silencing her remark. When he pulled away, she had an eyebrow raised up at him.
"So, your way of saying I'm right is to silence me? Personally I would've preferred something else on my lips but I guess this is ok too." She wiggled her eyebrows up twice and half-smiled at him. Kabal half rolled his eyes and smirked again by the way his eyes creased upwards.
The peaceful moment was soon ruined, when an eerie voice, filled Alora's ears and made her freeze up against Kabal.
"Hello Alora." She quickly clutched the blanket to her chest and sat up, feeling her heart sink down to her stomach.
"No." Her voice was low and barely made it past her lips as she felt her body stiffen up from the familiar wraith that was standing at the foot of the bed.
Noob Saibot was standing there with his arms folded across his chest. His sharp white eyes bore into Alora's making a chill run down her spine. Kabal sat up also and narrowed his eyes at him.
"So, this is where you've been hiding? Should've figured that you be in the comfort of another freak." He jerked his chin slightly as Kabal, who was clenching his hand around the bed sheets.
"What are you doing here Noob? Last time I checked, this wasn't a threesome." Alora flicked her eyes at Kabal for a quick second then back at Noob. Here was a dangerous enemy, in the middle of the bedroom, who could possibly strike any second and Kabal is making comedic remarks? No, now is not the time for his cockiness to jump start.
"That is none of your concern mortal. This is business between me and my slave." He sneered at them. Alora felt Kabal tense up next to her and felt the covers under her sliding towards his hand.
"Slave? Buddy, you must be mistaken; Alora's not a slaveto anybody." He defended and started to reach behind him for the upper half of his mask.
"Oh really? She might as well be one; more specifically a sex slave." Alora, who was silent the whole time, felt her stomach lurch. This was the last thing she wanted, for Kabal to find out about her life back in Outworld.
"Sex slave? Alora what's he talking about?" Kabal glanced at her and was expecting an ornery comment, but to his surprise, she stood quiet.
"You see? She is too ashamed to admit her past to you. The woman you see now is completely different from the girl she first was 8 years ago. Tell him Alora; tell him all about your training and other hobbies." Noob urged her on, pushing her to the edge of her limit. He was finding this delightful, how he was throwing her past in front of her new partners face.
Alora's stomach was filling up with anger and rage, how dare he come and attempt to ruin her relationship with Kabal? Her breathing started to become heavy and her hands began to shake with fury. She could feel this thickness of the tension surrounding her, choking her. She didn't know where to look, so she glared down, her eyebrows furrowing together.
"Really Alora, did you honestly think that your past, me, would not come back to haunt you? You've either gotten naïve, or honestly did believe that." Noob remarked and smirked behind his mask. He could almost hear her heart racing and pounding in his ears. He snuck a glance a Kabal, who was waiting Alora's response. He chuckled darkly at his expression when she remained quiet.
Noob suddenly saw an open opportunity and quickly latched onto Alora's arm, yanking her off the bed and into him. Alora, startled, yelped and clutched the blanket to her chest and dragged it with her, leaving Kabal exposed until he grabbed a pillow and covered himself up. He clicked the top half of his mask and reached behind him for his hookswords, but Noob thought ahead and summoned a dark purplish ball and threw it at him. Kabal gasped roughly and fell sideways onto the bed, paralyzed.
"Kabal!" Alora yelled out. She tried to pull away from the wraith but he held an iron grip on her. He forcefully pulled her back into him and wrapped an inky black arm around her neck. He tightened his grip on her when she struggled against him. A choked sound escaped her mouth as she felt her air supply cut off, all while a defenseless Kabal watched helplessly as his lover was attempting to break free.
Noob chuckled darkly and ran his fingertips down her shoulder, feeling her skin breakout in goosebumps from his ghostly touch. He noticed the irritated look flash on Kabal's face and that made the moment even more enjoyable. "You see mortal, she bends at my very touch. She knows not to disobey, she already faced the consequences." To prove his point, Noob forcefully yanked down the blanket from her chest and placed his charcoaled hand under the jagged circular scar, as if showing off a trophy.
"This just shows how much of an effect I have on her." Kabal flickered his eyes to Alora's and felt a lurch in his stomach when she closed her eyes and turned her head slightly away from him.
"It somewhat pains me to see you so…blinded from the truth. Can you really not see what is going on?" Noob mocked and squeezed Alora's arm in his hand. She drew in a faint breath of air and opened her eyes, locking with Kabal.
"Alora…what's he talking about?" Kabal cautiously questioned.
Her body started to become numb with all the emotions racking her mind. This wasn't supposed to happen; this was never supposed to happen!
"I…I'm so sorry. T-this…you were never supposed to-ah!" She squeaked when Noob harshly pinched her skin in between his fingers and grinned wickedly behind his mask.
"Now now Alora, no need for stalling. Just get on with it so you can fulfill your duties to me." He chuckled lightly and raised his eyebrows in amusement.
"Duties? A-Alora…please tell what he's saying isn't true. Tell me it isn't true." His eyes pleaded behind his mask, to try and search for any hints of lying on her face, but when he saw that small shaky breath escape, his heart lurched in his chest and all feeling of breathing left his body.
The wraith laughed wickedly at seeing his former student struggle, finding difficulty at forming words. When the first sound came out of her mouth, he quickly summoned a dark portal next to him and placed one foot inside.
"Did you really think that someone like her would even consider being in a relationship with the beings of you? Look at you, a mess, disturbed, and a complete utter disgust. This was all a repayment, a mere favor for her life being spared." And with that Noob Saibot walked into the portal with Alora locked in his grip, while Kabal watched helplessly from the bed.
Landing in the middle of an empty street, when Alora felt her feet hit the pavement, she quickly turned around and socked Noob Saibot in the side of his jaw. He staggered slightly and caught her fist before it struck him again. He grinned cockily behind his mask and yanked her towards him. She narrowed her eyes and brought her knee up to his chest but he quickly sidestepped and used his leg to sweep her from behind. Alora clutched the blanket tighter to her chest as she felt her back touch his leg while he laid her on top of it. Noob raised his eyebrows in amusement and dragged on finger down her cheek.
"Now now my dear Alora, why would you go and fake your death? Were you not happy with our relationship?" He taunted her and felt her body tense up and smirked at her vulnerability.
"You ruined everything. I was finally away from that shit life in Outworld and you had to show up ruin everything. Why am I so important Noob. Why." It was more of a statement than a question. Noob clicked his tongue against the roof of his mouth and looked off to the side as if pondering an answer. When he looked back at her, Alora felt chills go down her back.
"You're not. As always, you have an oversized ego. I'm just here because I didn't give you permission to leave." He remarked coldly and felt a small shake escape from her body.
A small breeze passed and fluttered the blanket that Alora was holding onto for dear life. She grasped onto it tighter, so hard that her hands started to tremble. Noob brushed his inky fingers along her cheek, then suddenly grabbed roughly onto her hair. Alora uttered a silent cry before being yanked upward. While still holding on to her tresses, Noob peered into her eyes and leaned close into her ear.
"I own you, as seen by this…'mark'." Noob then slowly pulled away and while never taking his eyes off hers, pulled down the blanket from her chest with painful slowness and pointed a charcoal finger at the scar.
"This was just to show how much I care about you. Would I put you through such torment if you meant nothing to me?" For an instant, a flash of shock wavered over Alora's face, but in that same moment it appeared, it was gone but that one second was all Noob needed to keep going.
"My life just isn't the same without you Alora. I miss our little rendezvous late at night; those mild flirtatious comments that we pass each other, and let's not forget the bond that we both know still exist between us." It was small, but Noob took note of the lump that she swallowed to keep her nerves calm.
"Come back with me, we could relive all those fantastic moments we shared. Except there would be no one to rule over us. Emperors and sorcerers would cease to exist, no one would judge you for your past mistakes, then again there would be no one except the two of us." He ran a hand down her delicate cheek to increase the tension. He felt a small amount of heat radiate from her face and knew that she was caught.
"I know that you do not really love that freak back at the apartment. Why else would it take Kano to fake your death for you to go and do this utterly ridiculous mission for him?" He raised his eyebrow in amusement when her eyes went as wide as dinner plates and her lips parted slightly.
"Ah, you didn't think I would know how exactly you survived? I knew that Kano was up to something; at first I could not quite put my finger on it. But then it dawned on me that he was the last person to train you and when saw your powers put into action, he suddenly peeked interest in you. I had suspicions that he intended to use you for…other purposes, but then realized that Kano is all about power…not ." He looked up past her and then back down.
"But enough about the past, what matters now is that you are coming home with me. Isn't that the most important thing now?" Before Alora could react, Noob pulled down the lower half of his mask and placed a forceful but firm kiss on her lips. Alora's heart stopped momentarily and found herself pushing against his lips, relishing in that taste that she used to crave for back in her training. Her heart was pounding in her ears and everything seemed to be rushing past her. She couldn't concentrate on anything and didn't notice the wraith's hand slowly drifting its way in between the sheets and up her leg.
Her eyes flung open and she used all the force she could muster up and pushed him away. He staggered back a little before narrowing his blank eyes at her, and then having a small smirk play on his lips.
"Ohh, I see. Now that you've had a taste of mortal, I no longer satisfy your qualities." He chuckled briefly before latching on to her shoulder and his fingernails into her skin.
"Listen to me you harlot, you do not run away and not expect consequences." He tightened his grip and pulled her closer. "You are coming with me back to Outworld, back to Shao Kahn, and more importantly back. To. Me!" In one swift motion, Alora lowered her glare at Noob and a low grumbling noise was heard. Noob barely had time to react when a root came from the side and struck him, sending him skidding down the road. He groaned and lifted his head up to see Alora, with coal black eyes, slowly stalking towards him with a weapon made of branches and roots.
He swirled his hand quickly towards him and sank into a dark portal in the ground. Alora stopped momentarily before hearing a whoosh like sound behind her. She swung her staff with one arm in a diagonal arch and caught nothing but air. Backing up cautiously, she listened intently for a sound, anything indicating Noob's presence. What she got instead was a fierce blow to the back of her head and was sent to ground. She landed on her shoulder and hissed silently at the burning sensation. Noob loomed over her and reached out a hand towards her neck but Alora rolled onto her back and kicked his chest. Noob grunted out in pain and summoned a dark purple sphere and launched it towards her. Alora scrambled out of the way and ran towards an area full of large hedges and bushes.
The wraith raised his eyebrows and crept his way to her. When a rustle wasn't heard, he brought out Saibot and signaled him to search around the perimeter. They looked around, making sure not to alert her of their presence. They created small portals over some hedges, acting as extra eyes for them. Noob was about to recall Saibot when a very small shift was heard. Quickly, the two snuck towards the sound and came to stand in front of a tall hedge, covered with hydrangeas.
Noob pointed a finger at one side and gave quick nod. As they jumped to the other side of the hedge, both eyebrows were raised when they discovered that it was undisturbed by any presence. The two wraiths looked at each other and narrowed their eyes at the trick played. Just as they were about to leave, the front of the hedge shifted and two hands grabbed the skulls of the wraiths and knocked them against each other, rendering them unconscious.
As their bodies fell to the floor, Alora stepped out from inside the hedge and swallowed the giant lump that was cutting off her air. She twisted the corners of the blanket in between her fingers and stepped over their bodies, never taking her blue-green eyes off of them.
Her eyes flicked between them before cautiously backing up. When she was far enough from the hedges but still able to see their bodies, Alora sank to her knees and stared at the ground with wide eyes. Her heart was beating in her ears and her stomach felt as if there was a cement block weighing it down.
For a few moments, all she did was gaze at the ground, her own breathing becoming numb to her ears. She replayed everything in her mind, from the moment her and Kabal made love to the heart wrenching moment when Noob showed up. She thought every detail, every little movement, and every little sound that happened in that whole scenario, thinking that somehow someway; she could have changed the outcome. But she couldn't. No matter what way she saw it, Noob would come either way and destroy the thing that mattered most to her.
Her mind flickered back to Kabal and remembered that he was still paralyzed from Noob's sphere. She stood up and was about to run back to him when she realized two things: One being that she didn't know where she was at, seeing as her location being an abandoned street with nothing but vacant buildings. The second being that Kabal now knows the truth. How could she go back and face him when he thinks that everything that happened between them was all because of some repayment?
A bitter laugh escaped her lips, and she shook her head. Even that sound ridiculous in her mind, everything that did happen between them was based on a deal. But that didn't mean that it didn't grow into something true. Yes, at first it was all pretend but as the time passed, she found herself growing fond of him and eventually loving him…for real.
Now how was she to go back and expect him to forgive her? There was no way in hell that he would ever trust her again. Looking up at the sky, she pleaded silently that hopefully Kabal would forgive her. Maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow, but just one day, he would see that she grew to love him despite it all being fake in the beginning.
When she looked back down her heart froze in her chest. Noob Saibot was gone and all that was a left was a tar-like puddle in his place.
Panic settled in and she did a full 360 before turning left and breaking out into a full sprint. Clutching the blanket to her chest, she ran towards, hopefully the right direction, the one place she thought she would be safe for now.
The Black Dragon Base.
Guys….honestly…I do not even now why it took me almost two months to write this chapter. I would write a little here and there but other than that, I kept putting it off. :/
Sorry guys, know this isn't my best chapter, heck it's probably not even what you guys expected it to be but I didn't want you to go any longer without having
somethingto read. This is just a filler because what I had originally was waaay longer than this but like I said this is just a filler for you guys.
I have to thank Poe's Daughter though for motivating me to write more and making me feel less guilty about not updating for almost two months.
This is the only question I can think of for this chapter so:
-If you were in Kabal's shoes, what would you do?
I understand if you guys won't review right away because you're all probably going 'Uh now she decides to update!? Pssh….well since she kept us waiting I'm gonna keep her waiting by not posting a review yet! Meh!'
Yea I know most (all) of you won't say exactly that but hey, it's around the general sense right?