Disclaimer: I don't own the King of Fighters…

A/N: Hello. Thank you for reading, and I hope you like it. This time, a staple of the game gets his much-stated morals brutally tested with a sadistic choice. But enough teasing; let's get to it. And here … we … go:

The King of Fighters XV

Kim and Kang

SMACK! Kim was shocked into stirring by a sharp blow to the face, and quickly found that he was bound to an upright table by several metal bars. Further inspection revealed he was on a roof with no other discernible buildings around, and soon his eyes landed right in front of him … on his wife and sons bound and gagged near the building's ledge! There was some kind of electrical device on the metal ropes binding them, and all three of them were standing on some sort of platform…

"You're finally awake, huh? Took you long enough."

Kim looked around from the voice's origin, and saw the wild red hair and black-and-red uniform of Kang Baedal, the Hero of Tang Soo Do standing off to the side with his back turned…

As he pushed against his restraints, Kim angrily stated, "Loathsome villain! Release me! Let my family go! Or I'll…"

Kang hostilely interrupted, "Oh, cram it! Save your breath… Letting your family go would be counterproductive anyway. So, instead, you're going to let your family go."

"Wha… What?" Kim asked out of confusion, "Tell me what you're after!"

"In just a minute. But first: you tell me, Kaphwan Kim, Crown Jewel of Taekwondo…"

Kang slowly turned to reveal a small electronic device on his chest under his shirt, oddly corresponding to the one on Kim's family's bindings, and a gun in his hand…

Kang continued to ask before chambering a bullet with a cock of the gun, "What do you think about murder? How does taking a life rank into your moral code?"

Kim replied in fervor, "That's not even a question. Killing another person is the most evil of acts anyone can commit! It is inexcusable, irredeemable, and unforgivable!"

Kang laughed at the answer and said, "That's exactly what I thought you'd say. Listen up; this is my gambit: Right now, your family is positioned on a hydraulic catapult set to pitch them off this roof and turn them into sidewalk splatter art. The only thing that can stop it is the trigger right here on my chest which is directly linked to my heartbeat…"

The Hero of Tang Soo Do paused as he walked over to his adversary, unfastened Kim's right hand … and gave him the gun!

Kang finished as his words rang like a death knell, "To save your family … you're going to kill me."

"Master Kim!"

"Kaphwan!'

Having just found the area, Jhun Hoon and May Lee quickly came to Kim's aid, attacking Kang relentlessly. But the literally dead-set Hero of Tang Soo Do was not to be stopped: eventually, he pulled Jhun right out of the air to the ground, and stomped mercilessly on his kidneys before digging his heel in to drive home his fierce determination. Kang then caught a charging May Lee, not even bothering to block her attack, and punished her with a series of vicious knees to her gut. Again adding an extra injury to attack, he slammed her to the ground and drove his fist deep into her midsection.

Wanting to make sure the two would not interfere further, Kang took drastic measures to incapacitate them both. He first approached the fallen Jhun, placed his ankle in a hold, wrapping one arm around the ankle and grabbing the toes with the other hand, and with a forceful twist… CRACK! AHH! Kang had snapped Jhun's ankle, causing the White Tiger to hold his leg and yell in agony. Next, he approached May Lee, who was still writhing around on the ground, placed her arm in a hold, locking their fingers and wrapping his free arm around her wrist, and gave another powerful wrench… SNAP! GAH! The Hero of Tang Soo Do again used his skill in brutal fashion, this time snapping May Lee's wrist and forearm, drawing screams and tears of anguish.

Kim adamantly reacted to his friends being hurt, "Stop it! Stop this…!"

Kang reacted with significant agitation, "No! There's no stopping this! It's like I said before: to save your family, you must become unforgivable. It's up to you; are you going to stick to your zealous, self-righteous beliefs, and let me live while your family dies? Or are you going to cast aside your flawed, sanctimonious moral system and save the ones you love? Now choose!"

Growing increasingly distressed, Kim inquired, "Why… Why are you doing this?"

"Because you need to learn!" Kang raved in borderline madness, "Everywhere I go, I have to listen to you and your ignorant creed. Who are you to judge anybody on anything? It's people like you that rationalize genocide, that prosecute the innocent. It's people like you that tormented my father for defending my mother, for killing the man that was threatening her life!"

Kim, shaken by Kang's hysteria and his stunning revelation, stammered, "I … I'm sorry… I don't know…"

Kang interjected as his voice focused into intensity, "No; No, you're not! Not yet! You need to learn that life doesn't fit in your neat, little, ideal outlook. It's not neat and clean or black-and-white; it's messy, conflicting, and gray all over. You need to learn… Sometimes, you need to cheat to break the system that oppresses you… Sometimes, you need to steal to keep from starving to death… Sometimes, you need to kill to save a person's life. You need to learn, Kaphwan Kim, that sometimes what you call evil … is necessary. Now, do it! End my life, so you can you save theirs."

Kim started to panic, "I… I-I can't… I won't."

"Yeah, I thought of that, so I got a couple of helping hands for you."

Kang ripped off his shirt to reveal a bull's-eye painted around the trigger, and twisted the device like a dial until a '5' appeared on the front…

The Hero of Tang Soo Do continued resolutely, "You're going to choose one way or another, and to make sure… You have five minutes to make up your mind."

With that, the countdown on the device started… Kim was left staring at the gun, his mind racing from the situation. The Tae Kwon Do master, in response, found himself naturally and incredibly conflicted. To murder someone would shatter his every belief and principle, everything he stood for, everything he was. Even still, it would be tragic and earth-shattering for his family to die like this. Once more, he tried to find some other way off the table and out of the situation, anything at all. But it was to no success; there was no escape, only the choice…

Already frantic, Kang raved, "You're so pathetic. Don't let your family die. 4 minutes…"

Kim paused, eventually rambling, "This… justice… It isn't…"

Kang interrupted, his rage rising, "You don't know what real justice is! 3 minutes…"

Kim paused again before again rambling, "It's not right… Revenge … isn't…"

Kang corrected him, his fury rising further, "It's not revenge if you're saving a life! 2 minutes…!"

As his time dwindled, Kim's dread amplified. His armed hand shook. His whole body trembled. He started sweating profusely. His heart raced as if it were being boiled. All this made his breathing very heavy…

Finally, Kang erupted along with his wrath, "What is wrong with you? Forget your stupid code and do the right thing! Pull the da- trigger! 1 MINUTE!"

The tension was palpable. Tears rolling down their eyes, Kim's wife and sons quivered in fear and dread as their lives hung in the balance. May Lee and Jhun averted their eyes, unable to say anything or even watch the coming conclusion. Kang eagerly awaited, basically shaking. Meanwhile, the sufferer of the situation, Kim continued to shake and agonize. It all added up for a torturous wait…

Completely livid at this point, Kang counted aloud, "30 seconds… 20 Seconds! Come on… 10 seconds! 9! 8! 7! 6! 5…"

BANG! The device shattered upon impact with light blood spray mixed in with the scattering debris. Kang's face took on an absent look. All the others couldn't help but open their eyes wide with shock. Released from the situation but still thunderstruck from the ordeal, Kim absently dropped the still-smoking gun to the ground. But it was over. Kang flashed the briefest of smirks before falling to the ground like an axed tree. The restraints on Kim's family loosened and fell away, and the platform they were standing on settled with a hiss of the air pressure releasing. The metal bars around Kim receded as well, but his body slumped from the just passed trouble.

Myeng Swuk, Dong Hwan, and Jae Hoon eagerly left the platform, racing to Kim, and the Crown Jewel of Taekwondo stood up upon seeing them free. Myeng tightly wrapped her arms around her husband's chest, and the boys embraced their parents about the waist from either side. Kim rubbed his sons' heads and kissed his wife on the forehead before hugging the three of them close. Safe and secure, the family dried their tears, while Kim, shaken but relieved to have his loved ones back, shed tears of his own. The ordeal past and their pain lessening ever slightly, the two injured Taekwondo practitioners breathed sighs of relief and dragged themselves up, May Lee holding her broken arm and Jhun getting all his weight on his healthy leg.

Finally, they all started to leave albeit very slowly, May Lee helping Jhun walk on his well leg with her well arm. Meanwhile … Kang's hand steadily clenched! The device on his chest was obliterated, and the bullet had broken through his chest and penetrated his heart, but it didn't go completely through as expected. The result was that instead of an instant expiration, his death would be slow as his insides were gradually turned crimson. Slowly, he made his way up and ambled toward Kim. Jhun looked back first … and his eyes promptly expanded to their limits when upon seeing essentially a walking corpse. Myeng, the boys, and May Lee soon followed suit. Without hesitation, Kim threw out a kick behind himself and connected right with Kang's jaw.

Kang stumbled backward from the surprise attack all the way back toward the ledge, prompting Kim to rush after him. The Hero of Tang Soo Do soon tumbled over the side, and the Crown Jewel of Taekwondo dove … and caught Kang's arm just in time.

Dangling with only Kim to hold him, Kang said in an oddly serene tone, "That a boy, Kaphwan. It took you a while, but you made the right choice."

Confused and dejected, Kim said, "You got what you wanted … but why this way? This didn't have to result in you dying."

Kang retorted frankly and honestly, "Yes, it did. Did you heard me up there? Did you know the lengths I went through to do this? I had to die. Besides, with how damaged and miserable I've been, how I mistreated Jung, my only friend… air and a heartbeat is wasted on me, trust me."

Almost distraught, Kim expressed, "Still, that doesn't absolve me of my guilt. I brought this upon my loved ones; it was …"

Kang again interjected, this time with a calming tone, "Stop right there. That's the second part of this: don't ever regret making the right decision even if the action you needed to take was drastic. And don't let anyone shame you for it, not even yourself… Now, what have we learned?"

Kim paused for a while before finally saying, "I … forgive you."

Kang looked up in surprise, and said with relief, "Well, I wasn't expecting you to learn that lesson … but I guess that's the right one nonetheless. Be sure to take that to heart … or else I'll haunt you for the rest of your life."

Kim gave Kang a very confused look for the odd comment, and the Hero of Tang Soo Do finished the job; he ripped his arm away and plunged into the darkness below, even as Kim was left reaching. After a moment, the Taekwondo master got up and gave everyone a look that could only indicate that Kang was gone. Kim, the previous nightmare and its implications baring down on him, sat on the ledge with his elbows on his knees, and soon buried his face in his hands as he tried to keep from sobbing. His wife and sons sat next to him, and held him to give all the comfort they could give. Jhun and May Lee could only look on in sympathy and regret. Doubt and misery abounding, the once iron beliefs of the Crown Jewel of Taekwondo had been beaten beyond recognition.

End Chapter

A/N: There you have it. Thank you for reading and I hope you liked it. We're getting close to the end; there are only two chapters left. Next time, we'll see the fate of the war in SNK's most famous city, Southtown. Again, thank you for reading, I hope you enjoyed it, and I hope you come back to read more. Please R&R, and as always, Rant, Rave, and Review.