Worth Fighting For

Summary: Some relationships are worth fighting for
Warning(s): Spanking; spoilers for Mortal Kombat 1 (2023); references to violence and canon character death; fighting scenes; AU
Author’s Note: Title and feel of this fic come from the song Still Worth Fighting For by My Darkest Days. I didn’t realise how much it fit until I was more than halfway through writing this

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When he woke up, Bi-Han wasn’t surprised, though he was irritated, to find he was locked up. He wasn’t in a dungeon, or even tied up. But the dark, dingy room he was in was locked from the outside. It had been the first thing he’d tried once he’d regained consciousness to find himself on the bed.

Looking down at his hands, Bi-Han curled them into fists. The source of his power, the ability that enabled him to control ice, was depleted. He’d fought against Quan Chi’s creation, the thing crafted from the souls of the dead. But he’d gone after his brother when Kuai Liang had run, which had resulted in a bitter fight.

He’d sliced down Kuai Liang’s face, leaving behind a scar that would forever mar his little brother….

Giving a firm shake of his head, Bi-Han forced those thoughts away. With them came a stab of pain to his heart, a tightness in his chest. Those feelings were a weakness. They made him weak. And he couldn’t afford to be that. Not when he needed to lead the Lin Kuei out from under Liu Kang’s control.

Slowly unclenching his fists, Bi-Han did another slow circuit of the room. He’d already checked for any possible exits three times over and had to admit that Kuai Liang had thought of every possibility. There were no windows in this tiny room. The only route out was through the door…and Bi-Han didn’t have any weapons on him. Until his power was replenished, he couldn’t get out.

Bi-Han’s head snapped towards the door as he heard the key moving in the lock. He clenched his hands into fists, dropping into a defensive crouch. He knew it would be fruitless, but he still reached inside for his ability, concentrating hard…but all he did was make his arms and hands grow cold. He couldn’t summon up enough ice to cover his own skin, let alone use it in an attack.

But he still had his training and his experience. He could still fight with fists and feet.

As soon as the door opened, Bi-Han launched himself at the opening, intending to use his weight to knock the other person down. Instead, he was met with a hard punch to his throat that left him gasping for air…and then a kick to his stomach that sent him stumbling backwards, the wind knocked out of him.

Kuai Liang stepped into the room, pulling the door closed behind him.

Bi-Han straightened slowly, narrowing his eyes and trying not to look at the scar that now covered his little brother’s face; the scar that he’d put there. He dropped into a fighting stance once more, raising his fists, and said, “Bringing me here was a mistake. Not killing me when you had the chance was a bigger one. A mistake I will make you regret.”

Kuai Liang’s eyes darkened, though the mask obscured the lower half of his face, meaning that Bi-Han couldn’t see the full impact of his words. “You still won’t listen to reason?”

“Reason?” Bi-Han spat the word like it was a curse. “What I intend to do is free the Lin Kuei from Liu Kang’s tyranny! To establish our people as one of the nations of Earthrealm, with all that entails.” He narrowed his eyes and drew his fist back, preparing to strike.

Before Bi-Han could make his move, Kuai Liang sent his rope dart out. It pierced Bi-Han’s shoulder and he grunted as he found himself abruptly pulled off balance, as Kuai Liang jerked him forward, off his feet.

Bi-Han expected a killing blow. He was pulled into Kuai Liang’s personal space, forcing him to look into his brother’s face; to see the deep scar that he’d left there. He knew it would be the last thing he saw.

And there it was again. That same tightness in his chest, resulting in him needing to catch his breath. That weakness held him back from fighting to seriously hurt Kuai Liang. He could have done so. Easily. But the pain that was like a dagger to his heart refused to fade away…and he was left unwilling, or even unable, to fight back as his body was bound with rope.

“This isn’t going to hold me for long,” Bi-Han ground out, glaring into Kuai Liang’s eyes and refusing to focus on the mark he’d left there.

Kuai Liang said nothing. He reached out and grasped Bi-Han’s shoulder, using that grip to turn him round to face the bed. The next moment, Bi-Han felt a hard shove in the centre of his back. He stumbled forward, falling into a position that was unfortunately far too familiar to him…although this was the first time he was about to suffer punishment at his younger brother’s hands, rather than Kuai Liang bent over next to him because of one infraction or another.

The sound of a belt being pulled free made Bi-Han’s stomach clench. Growing up, the belt had never been used for minor infractions. That implement had always been reserved for those times, those very few times, that one of them had stepped over the line.

He’d sliced Kuai Liang’s face open with his own hands.

The first fiery snap of the belt, landing across the centre of his backside, wrenched an unwilling cry from Bi-Han’s lips. His trousers didn’t offer much protection as Kuai Liang continued to snap the belt down, making certain that no inch of Bi-Han’s bottom, from the crest down to mid-thigh, was left untouched.

By the time the strapping paused, Bi-Han was breathing hard, fingers twisting in the blankets under him. The rope binding his hands meant that he couldn’t throw one back to protect his burning backside. Tears were in his eyes, though none had fallen yet. However, they weren’t far off…and he couldn’t even blame the strapping for that. The truth was, the pain and tightness in his chest had grown, to the point of being overwhelming. He wasn’t facing his brother anymore, but it didn’t matter. He could still see Kuai Liang’s scarred face. Even when he closed his eyes to try and get away from it. And the knowledge of what he’d done to his little brother speared through him, hurting far worse than the blazing pain in his backside. Far worse than the pain of any injuries he’d sustained in any of his battles, up until now.

Bi-Han’s energy was slowly replenishing, causing his power to return to him. But all he did was allow ice to cover the rope that bound his hands, causing it to freeze and shatter, leaving behind shards of ice and wet blankets that should have been soaked with his tears. He made no attempt to call up ice to protect or even soothe his punished backside.

Breathing in deeply, Bi-Han held his breath as he listened for any sign of what Kuai Liang would do next. Would his brother leave? Walk out? Give up on him, finally, because Bi-Han hadn’t shown that he was worth anything else?

The thought filled him with a sense of dread. The guilt that had been bubbling up since he’d attacked his brother, since he’d hurt Kuai Liang, reached a point where it was too much. The tears began to fall, finally, and he reached his hands back; not to protect or cover his backside, but to pull his own trousers and underwear down; to prove to Kuai Liang that his brother was getting through to him. That he didn’t want to be given up on, even if he deserved to be. He finally let out his breath and whispered, “Kuai Liang…please.” Please punish me. Please forgive me. Please still love me. He didn’t speak the words, but he desperately hoped his brother would understand them anyway.

A hand came to rest on his lower back. The touch was gentle and Bi-Han’s breath hitched. He swallowed as he felt cool leather resting against his burning bottom and he pulled his hands away, clasping them in front of him as if he was making a plea.

Please don’t give up on me.

The first crack of leather to bare skin caused the tears to flow faster and harder. Bi-Han couldn’t concentrate on anything else. He couldn’t think of anything else. He concentrated on each throbbing stripe of the belt, accepting the pain and the punishment without fighting.

He’d lost count of how many times the belt landed before the first harsh sob was ripped from his throat. With one sob came more and it took only moments before he was slumped over the bed, all fight gone out of him, his tears soaking into the bed. The only thing that kept him grounded, that allowed him to hope forgiveness might be possible, was Kuai Liang’s hand still on his back.

Eventually, finally, Bi-Han realised the strapping had stopped. His brother was sitting on the bed next to him, one hand stroking Bi-Han’s sweaty hair out of his face. Bi-Han wanted to close his eyes and lean into the comforting touch, but he forced himself to look into his brother’s eyes…to look at the scar on Kuai Liang’s face. “I’m sorry.” His voice was a hoarse, ragged whisper.

Kuai Liang didn’t respond with words. He just wrapped his arms around Bi-Han, who wrapped his arms around Kuai Liang in return, and they just held onto each other.

For now, it was enough.

The End