Mortal Kombat: The Phoenix Verison

Chapter 11: Farm Bound

"Where were you two? I saw some smoke." Cage asked as Kenshi and Ember returned to the camp. Putting two and two together, a smirk grew on his face as he faced the pyromancer. "Still burning forests I see."

Quickly, Ember retorted, "Still being a talentless dick I see." Before walking past the older man.

Shooting Kenshi a glare for snickering, Johnny called out to her, "You should go see Sonya, I think she has something for you."

"I'm not apologizing to her if that's what you want." She replied but didn't wait for another word and went to the general.

There was still tension between the two, thick enough one could cut through it with a knife. "Sergeant Cage and her team are returning from a mission in Outworld soon, you'll be joining them on their next mission there." Sonya explained.

"After this, am I allowed to return to my clan?"

Surprisingly Sonya didn't grunt in annoyance and instead kept her tone as neutral as normally. "That'll depend on how well you follow orders on this operation."

The reminder agitated Ember, but to her credit she tried to keep the anger down and not start a fight with the general. Instead she silently nodded.

There was a strange look in Sonya's eyes, a look that wanted to ask the woman in front of her something but she refrained.

It was a touchy topic and even before her death the mere mention of his name set Ember off in a fury. Sonya could only imagine what saying his name now would do.

"I need you to go to Cage and retrieve a report he was given while you were out." Sonya orders instead, clearing her throat to make the command clear.

Ember huffed but said nothing as she returned to Johnny to ask for said report.

"I swear she's got nothing better to do than to boss everyone around." Johnny groaned. "Forget it, Ember, I'll give it to her myself."

Upon reaching Sonya he rolled his eyes as the first thing she said was "What's your update from Colonel Flagg?"

"He said, 'Why are you bothering me?' And I said, 'Because my ex-wife is a pain in the-" but before he could finish his remark, Sonya dismissively raised her hand and turned from him. "Where are you goin'?" Johnny called out, following after her and her fast pace. "You can't just walk away, I'm in this too."

"Not my decision. Thank your buddy, Secretary Blake." Sonya bit back.

Biting his cheek, he shook his head. "This is what split us up in the first place. You disappear in your work. Never time for me and Cassie."

"I had responsibilities. Sorry you couldn't be the center of attention."

Johnny, refraining from saying something that would make this worse, took a moment. "There was a time when you cared more about your family than your job, General."

He stormed off.

Before he got too far, Sonya shouted " I'm leaving soon to find Jax. I want him back working with us."

"Why do we need to bring Jax into this?" Johnny asked, still upset from their argument.

"Because we need information on Quan Chi, and he's the one who can give it to us."

Not that far away from the argument, Ember had hidden herself behind a cargo container, blending in with the dark, listening. Her attention was raised at the mention of Quan Chi, the insufferable bastard who took everything from her. A fire lit in her eyes.