Liu Kang and Kung Lao sparred inside their chambers in Shao Kahn's temple, honing their skills for the next stage of the tournament. The ninjas had vanished and the monks' only companions left were Raiden, Johnny Cage, Jax, Stryker and Kabal. The former three rested, and simply observed the fight, while Kabal continued to isolate himself. Each throw of Kung Lao's razor-rimmed hat or another blast of Liu Kang's fireballs peaked their interest; the tournament hinged especially on them and they all felt as though the outcome of this simple training regiment could determine who would be able to beat Kintaro and Shao Kahn. Exiting his room after a quick examination of his weapons, Stryker walked over to his comrades, noticing that another one was missing.

"Has anyone seen Kabal?" Stryker asked, and Jax nonchalantly pointed his thumb towards the balcony. Stryker looked and saw Kabal staring off into Outworld's moonlit sky. Stryker made a swift turn to the right, to avoid getting in between the monks' fight and walked straight towards Kabal. Jax looked around and noticed the doors in their chamber. He then remembered what Shao Kahn said a while back; that they were allowed to roam freely but not far from the temple.

Jax raised himself up, "Maybe we should take a break for now." he said. Liu Kang and Kung Lao stopped in their tracks, looking back at the Major.

Kabal stared attentively at the sky, his grip on the railing growing ever tighter. He suddenly could hear his already strained breathing growing louder, and he began to feel an odd tingling sensation followed by the smell of smoke. He raised up his forearms, seeing them coated in flames yet again. Kabal staggered back, petrified to see his own body burning once more. He wanted to run away, to extinguish the flames but he felt trapped, unable to move or put them out. The fire grew larger, reaching his eyes, his entire view suddenly shifted to one large, crackling flame and he could no longer see any of Outworld's infrastructure or landscapes.

"Kabal." A voice called out to him, it sounded awfully raspy with a distinct echo. No-Face, he thought. Kabal grabbed one of his hook swords and in an instant turned to slash at him.

"Woah! Woah!" No-Face cried out, though seemingly starting to sound less like the crazed pyromaniac. As if the flames had been put out in an instant, Kabal's vision came back to him and he could see Stryker standing in front of him, with his arms raised defensively with the rest of their allies watching from inside. Kabal noted the concerned looks from Jax, Cage and Kung Lao especially. His breathing began to slow down upon realizing what he did.

"Are you hurt?" Kabal asked.

"No, I'm fine." Stryker answered.

"What happened?" He asked. Kabal said nothing, pulling another hook sword from his back. Kung Lao slid his fingers against the rim of his hat, ready to throw it should Kabal choose to attack Stryker again. Kabal turned the hook swords around and slammed them together, edging them towards Stryker.

"Take them." He said.

"What?"

"Take them before I lose my shit again!" Kabal cried out. Stryker hesitantly grabbed the hook swords by the handles, trying his best to avoid being cut by the crescent guards or the back blades. Stryker then tossed the weapons aside and Kung Lao had let go of his hat shortly afterwards.

"Lord Raiden." Jax said, nudging at the thunder god to get his attention.

"Maybe we should give these two some space." Jax continued on. Raiden nodded his head in agreement.

"Let us finish training for now." Raiden said.

"You're all free to explore Shao Kahn's fortress for the time being." Raiden said, teleporting away. Cage left the room with Liu Kang and Kung Lao following suit. Jax followed close behind, turning around for a quick second to check on Stryker and Kabal before leaving. Kabal looked towards Jax and nodded at him. Stryker had also turned around to face the S.F. Major just as he gave off a smirk and nodded back, exiting the room. Stryker had then turned back towards Kabal.

"Mind telling me what's going on?" Stryker asked. Kabal looked away, trying to comprehend how to explain his situation to him. Despite how often he's done it as of late, it had hurt him to keep secrets from someone he deems as a close friend; that constant, nagging fear of what reaction he would gain the moment Stryker knew what was on his mind.

"Come on." Stryker uttered, "You've been awfully distant since your run in with Tasia and No-Face, I haven't been able to see you for a good month since your exile in Outworld." Said Stryker.

"If there's something that I can do to help, then I need to know what is going on." He went on. Kabal looked him in the eyes once more and took as deep of a breath as he could in spite of his impairment.

"You remember when I first joined the police force?" Kabal asked.

"Yeah, you had recently left the Black Dragon. You were pardoned for your crimes by the Special Forces, and then you joined the CPD." Kabal turned around, looking back at the sky.

"The other officers didn't take too kindly to my presence. Being an international criminal amongst their ranks clearly didn't sit right with them."

"Former international criminal…and what do they know?" Stryker exclaimed.

"You were….are one of the CPD's best officers. All those years, I couldn't have asked for a better partner." Stryker continued on, and Kabal still looked towards the horizon, unable to face Stryker yet again.

"You were the only one who believed that I changed." Kabal uttered back to him.

"I didn't need much convincing. I could see your desire to do what's right." Stryker said. Stryker edged closer to Kabal, noticing that he began to tightly grip on the railing again.

"I take it your recent run in with your old comrades has got you questioning things." Stryker said, resting his arms along the railing beside Kabal. At long last, Kabal looked towards him. Though Stryker could only see the mask that covered his burnt face, he could still sense that feeling of despair that overwhelmed his friend, much less envision a saddened expression on his face.

"Well….let's just say my mind hasn't been going to the best places. Well more than usual."

"Even with our recent involvement with S.F and Outworld, I thought that I could finally put my criminal past behind me."

"But despite the scorn I've gotten from the other cops—scorn that even seeped its way towards you—I also ended up being burned by people who I once called family." Kabal went on.

"Pfft, then again, I did practically betray them the moment I left the clan. It's just….Kano really lost his mind. The Black Dragon weren't the most sane individuals but we tried not to cross too many lines. Sure, we killed, we stole, we sold drugs and firearms. But then Kano….decided to pick a fight that he could never win. He became the prime target for the Special Forces and put the entire organization at risk. The nail to the coffin was when he began to sell nuclear weaponry, and then kidnapped and tortured Sonya Blade's father and brother to death. Some of the old guard, and I, didn't agree with what Kano was doing and so one-by-one, we began to leave the clan."

"I've honestly begun to wonder whether I even made the right choice….leaving the Black Dragon." Kabal continued on and Stryker's eyes widened in shock.

"Between being ostracized and then being burned alive, was it even worth trying to reform if this is what I get in return?" Kabal asked.

"Crime was all I've ever known from an early age. I grew up homeless in the Bronx, having to fend for myself against rival thugs and the Five Families. I took on some jobs for them whenever I got desperate, usually it was to whack someone but that only put a bigger target on my head." Kabal sighed.

"What I went through, well…it's not something that can easily be forgotten. I have moments where I see my body coated in flames, and everyone around me begins to look and sound like those fuckers who disfigured me. That…is why I attacked you. I never meant to, I didn't want to, it's just–"

"You couldn't recognize me at that moment." Stryker interjected, wrapping his arm around Kabal's shoulders. He could practically hear Kabal sniffling, the sounds coming in a metallic echo.

"I didn't mean to be so distant from you lately, Kurt." Kabal said, choking on his words.

"I didn't want you to doubt our friendship but…I feel as though I've been nothing but a burden to you, like I've made your life as bad as mine." He went on.

"Well, let's look at things logically for a sec. Despite your upbringing, you went through an honest effort to reform."

Kabal scoffed, "Tried to reform."

"No you did!" Stryker exclaimed.

"Despite everything that's happened, you've continued to fight for what is right. You could've abandoned all of us, stay exiled in Outworld or even return to a life of crime but you didn't. You're here fighting with us against Shao Kahn." Stryker went on.

"A lot of officers back in Chicago gave you shit but they never bothered to see past who you once were. I've seen cops abuse their position and get away with the most vile, deranged shit imaginable, while you've repeatedly tried to be fair and just. You have a greater moral code than most of the guys in our department." Kabal raised his head up, looking back at the sky.

"So cut yourself some slack. You've been through too much already, and I'm not gonna' let you relapse because of it. We're partners till the end and if you find yourself going back to the edge, I will be there to pull you away from it!" Stryker exclaimed. Kabal chuckled and turned to face Stryker.

"And if I relapse back into my old habits?" Kabal hesitantly asked.

"You better be damn sure that you're hitching a ride on the back of my cruiser and I'll do everything in my power to bring you back to the straight and narrow." Stryker said, nudging him by the shoulder, making Kabal laugh.

"I'm not giving up on you, old friend." Stryker sternly said.

"I know you might feel exhausted, but I'll keep fighting to ensure you're in the right head-space. Don't let everything the S.F, Li Mei and Bo Rai'Cho did be for nothing."

"Alright." Kabal uttered.

"I'll keep fighting, and I'll make sure Kano and his cronies get what's coming to them." He went on.

"I hope it will give you some closure." Stryker added.

"If not, then it will at least rid the realms of three fuckin' scumbags." Kabal exclaimed.

"Thank you…for everything, Stryker."

"Call me Kurtis." Stryker scoffed.

"We're not currently on patrol in Chicago." He jokingly remarked, making Kabal laugh yet again.

"Nope." Said Kabal.

"We're somewhere crazier."

To avoid confusion for anyone, I've decided recently that I will not be writing this in chronological order as it's easier for me to write chapters within differing story arcs if I'm in the mood to focus on a specific plot point or character, and Kabal [and Stryker to a slightly lesser degree] is one of those characters that I aim to focus on a lot as I've been frequently disappointed by his characterization and wanted to focus on his redemption arc and perhaps even his mental state after getting disfigured.

While I'm mostly staying true to his MK9 incarnation, I've, of course, taken some creative liberties regarding his backstory, the cause of his disfigurement, etc.