~08: Kombat Begins~
The first battle was just off the beach, in an arena delineated
by dirt darker than the surrounding sand. At one end was Shang Tsung's pavilion,
under which he was seated in an ornate throne. The other fighters surrounded the
arena, the two sides facing each other. Rayden appeared in a burst of lightning
at the end opposite the pavilion.
He glanced at his fighters, then looked harder. Lioness was not
there. The lightning god scowled; the sky distantly rumbled.
The leaves of the thick tropical forest behind him rustled and
a black-clad figure emerged. Rayden thought that it was another of Tsung's
abominations until it moved toward the Earth side of the battleground. Then
he saw that the hood was looser, and the face mask was only cloth, not shaped magic.
The mask and colored wrap were deep purple, so dark a hue that it would have appeared
black against a background that was not itself black. None of these colors were
much darker than the wearer's deep brown skin, visible on hands and bare feet. As
Lioness took her place at the edge of the arena, she let the hood fall back,
revealing the purple ends of the face scarf and her hair, its braids knotted into
a ponytail near the top of her head. She folded her arms, looking completely
comfortable.
Rayden inwardly groaned and the sky growled again. The girl was
pushing her luck. Really pushing her luck. She seemed to belong to Shang Tsung
as much as any of his minions, were it not that she fought for Earth.
He turned his attention to the impending fight as the combatants
entered the arena. Representing Earth was an Arabian bodyguard, trained as well as
any assassin. His opponent was one of the red warriors.
The battle was quick. The red warrior lunged at the bodyguard,
who flipped backward, scooping up a handful of sand on his way up and flinging
it at the enemy. While the warrior was stunned he swept his feet out from under
him, then politely stepped back. As the warrior arose, the bodyguard swung at him
-- the warrior caught his arm and twisted, flipping the guard and breaking the
arm at the same time. Without letting go, he stomped on the guard's back, breaking
it and paralyzing his victim from the neck down. He dropped the arm and stepped
away, then turned and bowed to Tsung.
The sorcerer descended to the field, smiling as he approached
the slightly living body. "You have been defeated," his greased voice purred.
"Your soul is mine." He stood over the guard, one hand outstretched.
Lioness glanced at Rayden, surprised to see him looking away.
A strangled cry from the loser made her look back -- a glow encompassed his body,
then a slow stream of red fire began to flow into Tsung's hand. The guard screamed
once, tossing his head, unable to do anything else. Then the flow ceased and Tsung
stepped away, looking very pleased... satisfied. The body was nearly colorless.
"You're next," the magician said to Yan as he passed.
He smiled unkindly.
Two of the other red minions dragged the bodyguard's body
away as the winner was rauccously welcomed back to his group.
Next to the pavilion, Scorpion stood, statue-like. He turned
his head slightly, catching Lioness' eye. She remembered what he'd told her he
wanted her to do.
Kill me.
He nodded to her. She was to fight him in her second battle,
should she win. He knew she'd win, when her turn came. Tsung didn't.
Kill me and keep my soul from him.
"Begin," Tsung said, drawing her attention back to the field.
Yan faced his opponent, an ornately dressed soldier. An imperial
guard, Lioness decided. The guard wore a golden oriental lion mask and a jewelled
belt over brightly striped balloon pants. Yan bowed to him, and he likewise bowed,
flourishing a jewel-encrusted scimitar, which he then stabbed into the ground at
the edge of the arena.
The glittering guard sprang gracefully into the air and landed a
solid kick to Yan's chest. Yan -- a "sumo wrestler", she'd learned -- didn't
even flinch. The blow had no effect. The guard fell to the ground, surprised,
then quickly rolled out of the way as Yan stomped at his legs. The guard jumped
up and danced toward Yan, then began a series of lightning-fast punches with
pointed fingers. Yan blocked the stabbing hands with his beefy arms and advanced;
his adversary tripped backward, then rolled until he was behind the wrestler.
He struck a double-fisted blow on the back of Yan's neck.
The wrestler staggered forward, then turned, slightly annoyed and
rubbing his neck. He shot out one hand faster than he should have been able and
caught the guard across the cheek. The guard reeled, but didn't fall. Yan
snatched the puny opponent in a bear hug; Lioness heard the man's ribs crack,
then shatter. He was dead before he hit the ground.
Yan bowed to Shang Tsung and triumphantly left the battleground.
Tsung was not amused. "The Emperor will not be pleased," he muttered. "You are
next," he snarled, pointing to Lioness.
Lioness glanced around her. No, he was definitely pointing at
her. She smiled and stepped into the ring.
Someone started clapping. Rayden. She turned and bowed to him,
then turned to face her challenge.
Her enemy was around seven feet tall, and all muscle. She shrugged
-- at least he was relatively human.
Tsung licked his lips. "Begin."
The giant made an awful face and roared, spitting at her as he
flexed his muscles. His side cheered.
Lioness couldn't help but notice that her side remained silent.
She dropped into a crouch, touching the ground only with her toes but with her
knees bent under her.
The giant advanced and swung at her.
Lioness leapt strait into the air, arms outstretched, both legs
pulled up together. Just above the giant's head, she twisted in the air, unfurling
her left leg and hooking it around her adversary's neck on the way down. Before he
could fall backward, she pulled hard with the hooked leg and pummeled the base of
his neck with her right knee. There was a loud snap.
The giant fell limp to the ground, lifeless. Lioness extricated
her left leg, brushing off the sand. That part always hurt. She noted that when
she removed her leg, the head was left at an impossible angle to the body, turned
nearly backward by her removal. She stood and bowed infuriatingly to Tsung, then
left the field with only a very slight limp.
"Flawless Victory," Rayden crowed, grinning at the sorcerer. The
Earth fighters were cheering now, slapping Lioness on the back. She tried to duck
away, but it was to use now, they had faith in her.
In the melee, she didn't notice Tsung giving a command to Scorpion.
The yellow warrior nodded once and disappeared into the woods.
Tsung stood and pointed a somehow accusatory finger at Lioness.
"You are not finished!"
"Rules!" Rayden countered. "A fighter cannot compete in two
consecutive battles. There must be at least one other in between."
Tsung cocked his head slightly, as though he had been struck.
"True," he admitted. He looked to the side of the platform at something none of
the Earth fighters could see. He nodded, then looked to his enemies. He indicated
a cholic Greek boxer from Earth's ranks. "You."
The Greek strolled into the center of the ring, hands on his
hips. "What hellspawn have you for me, sorcerer?" He called boisterously. "My
people invented this sport of fisticuffs! The creatures you have sent so far are
no match for me." He gestured insultingly with his wrapped hands.
Shang Tsung smiled, near to laughing.
A tiny, lithe figure emerged from the Outworld ranks -- the
slave girl who had served Lioness that morning. She was now clothed in a
maroon halter top that hung over one shoulder, and matching arab pants belted
with black, but she was still barefoot. Her still matted hair had been bound
away from her face with a black scarf. She made her way into the ring and
stood in front of the Greek, and bowed. The Greek scowled angrily over her
head at the wizard.
"Fight," Tsung commanded. Rayden made a disgusted noise.
The Greek swatted at the girl once, lightly. He caught the edge
of her face and knocked her aside. "You insult me!" He yelled at Tsung.
"Don't be silly, I gave you a worthy adversary," he calmly called
back, the edges of his mouth uncontrollably twisting upward. "Ruby is one of
my most promising pupils."
"So much so that you kept her a secret?" Rayden cried. "She is
too young, Sorcerer! This is an outrage!"
"There is no rule for age, lightning god!" Tsung spat. He directed
his attention back to the ring. "If she is so easy, finish her!" he commanded.
The little girl -- Ruby -- got back up and calmly walked around
the Greek so that he was between her and some of the ruins at the edge of the ring.
She stood still and straight, rigidly holding her hands in front of her, elbows at
her waist. Her face was emotionless.
"Yield to me, girl," the Greek sighed, shaking his head.
Instead, she only stared into his eyes, her own blue eyes full
of innocence. The air between her hands shimmered slightly. If you looked closely,
a rippling golden sphere seemed to be forming. The Greek didn't see.
"Force Ball!" Ruby suddenly shrieked, thrusting her hands out
in front of her. The sphere flew, expanding rapidly. It struck the Greek in the
stomach and carried him through the air as it continued to expand, slamming him
into a wall of the ruins. He was crushed to a pulp upon impact; only then did the
force ball dissapate. Sand sifted down from the shaken wall onto the bloody mass.
Ruby turned and bowed to her master, then lightly stepped back
into the crowd. Rayden had covered his face; most of the Earth forces were making
various horrified noises.
"Fatality," commented Tsung. He was quite pleased. "Now you,
if you please," he said to Lioness. "In the forest."
Lioness pulled herself away from the others, and walked forward to
stand in front of the center of the magician's platform. "Which way?"
"That way." He pointed to his left.
She smiled and tilted her head at him in thanks, noticing that he
didn't smile back at her anymore. Slimy lizard. She took a step toward the trees,
then turned back to her sudden comrades. "I'll be back soon," she said confidently.
The majority of them gave her words of acknowledgement and encouragement -- whatever
Tsung had waiting would be no match for her. She saw that Rayden wasn't smiling
anymore, though -- he looked afraid for her.