Okay, so I initially misunderstood RexBlazer1's original challenge. I did my own crossover with the MK characters playing the roles of the Avatar ones, when RB1's challenge was the reverse. :,D So here's my shot at the latter (I chose to have it follow the MK9 storyline).
"Where are the spirits, Avatar?"
The bloodied monk struggled to lift himself from the ground. Below, the battered and mutilated carcasses of warriors long gone were scattered at the base of the pyramid. Never before in his sheltered monastic existence had Aang witnessed such senseless violence.
And the one responsible stood only feet in front of him.
"They masquerade as dragons, but are mere toothless worms," Ozai gloated as he advanced towards his weakened prey, himself only slightly bruised from their struggle. But that was to be expected; the comet had increased his powers exponentially, compounded with the boost obtained from defeating the hellspawn.
"STOP!" Aang choked out, feeling the last of his energy begin to slip away from him. Ozai only chuckled darkly in response.
Having managed to bring himself to his knees, Aang noticed shards of precious stone scattered to his side.
His amulet; the one Avatar Roku had bestowed upon him as a way of keeping track between the order of the realms. Dazed but determined, Aang gathered the remnants of the medallion as quickly as he could, and began to chant in an unknown language.
"They did not deserve to live in this world," Ozai continued. "In my world!"
Desperately hanging on to the last opportunity he had to set things right, Aang recited the incantation more quickly as Ozai stopped in front of him.
"Prepare to join them," Ozai pressed on, effortlessly beginning to raise his war hammer. "Prepare to DIE!"
In the final moment before his demise, Aang's eyes lit up as he made his last message to his past self clear.
"He must win!"
His last words flew into the past before the Avatar met his end under Ozai's hammer.
A stunned Aang shook himself from his vision. Out of nowhere, he had been assaulted with a series of images involving himself and several other, unknown warriors fighting together; but against what?
"What is the matter, Aang?" came a familiar but disembodied voice. Aang immediately recognized it as Roku. Although the past Avatar spoke from beyond the physical world, Aang could hear him as clearly as if he was standing beside him.
"I'm not really sure," Aang admitted as he looked around to make sure no one had noticed his unusual reaction. He quickly recognized many of the fighters around him from his visions. Although to many throughout the realms the Avatar represented the pinnacle of worldly knowledge and sound judgement, Aang found himself at a loss to explain what had just happened. His vision had ended with an unnervingly disheveled version of himself giving him a frustratingly vague warning.
Who must win? What did any of this mean?
"Do not worry, Aang," Roku attempted to assure him. "Look. The tournament begins."
Disquieted, Aang resolved to push it out of his mind as he witnessed the initiation ceremony.
Up on stage, Long Feng scanned the crowd that had congregated this year. The infamous sorcerer was flanked on both sides by Princess Katara and her childhood friend, Toph Bei Fong, donning silk qipaos in blue and green, respectively, both of which were embroidered with the Fire Nation insignia. Both were legendary fighters in their own right. Ozai, however, had made Long Feng's duty not to let his daughter participate in the tournament by any means clear. On his other side was Prince Zuko, clad in the distinctive red and gold spiked armor of the Fire Nation.
Long Feng stood up to greet his victims.
"Kombatants!" he barked, earning the attention of all below, who looked upon the elderly sorcerer with a wide range of reactions, mostly expectancy (for those who had not seen him before). "I welcome you to Mortal Kombat! I am Long Feng, your… master of ceremonies. This is a historic occasion, indeed; should the Fire Nation emerge victorious, she will claim rightful authority over the Earth Kingdom. I thank you all for being so willing to leave your home nations. Some of you were brought here of your own volition. Others… by chance."
Apparently not too concerned about the initiation of ceremonies, a cocky warrior on the ground had begun to stir those around him for his own amusement.
"I'd say there's not a chance anyone but me's coming out on top," boasted a fighter from the Earth Kingdom.
"Sokka," came the harsh cry from a young woman to his side as the blue buckskin-clad warrior flexed his biceps for all to see. "Drop it."
"Take it easy, Suki," Sokka boisterously answered her, causing the heavily made-up warrior to hide her face out of embarrassment for being associated with such a fool in public. "They all know it. And so do you. You're gonna be right up there with me when I take home the belt, babe."
"Don't call me that," Suki replied, irritated. Unfortunately for her, Long Feng had heard their conversation, and unbeknownst to both of the quarreling combatants, a wicked grin crept onto his face.
"He who makes it through all of the others will face a final challenger," Long Feng continued.
"Me."
Sokka snorted in disbelief at the notion that their final test of strength would be against a curmudgeonly old man.
"Who, grandpa here?" Sokka spat out in haughty skepticism. He turned to Suki, waggling an eyebrow suggestively.
"I've got this one in the bag."
From his other side, a voice that had not been there a second ago spoke to Sokka, startling him.
"Looks can be deceiving," Long Feng retorted calmly before making his way back to the stage.
"…How did he?..." Sokka muttered, confused.
"Since you are so eager to prove your worth, young warrior," Long Feng taunted, taking his seat on the stage once more. "Perhaps you will be willing to start off the first round."
Long Feng snapped his fingers, giving the prince the cue to step forth.
"Your first opponent will be Prince Zuko," Long Feng announced. Members of the other nations in the crowd looked to the Earth Kingdom native, amused at his now nervous expression. Sokka, however, was not one to back down from a challenge easily, for better or for worse.
"Whatever," he scoffed in false confidence, striding out into the open arena for all to see. His opponent jumped off the stage in a brilliant display of flames, landing squarely in front of the Earth Kingdom fighter.
"Fight!" Long Feng shouted from the stage.
"I should warn you," Sokka boasted. "They don't call me 'Alpha Male' back home for noth-"
He was cut off by Zuko's sudden barrage of flame-enhanced punches. Luckily for Sokka, he jumped out of the way before any could connect, but his opponent proved to be much lighter on his feet, and managed to sneak around Sokka in time to swing his leg around and bring the boomerang-wielding fighter down to the ground. The battle had taken less than thirty seconds.
"Prince Zuko wins," Long Feng gloated darkly as the Fire Nation heir returned to his place on the stands.
Avatar Aang looked upon the situation in stoic silence, even as Sokka grudgingly picked himself up and shot the prince a look filled with burning animosity. Little did the Earth nation youngster realize that he seemed to be part of a prophetic vision which Aang was still not sure would come to pass. Nevertheless, he made a mental note to talk to him after things had settled down.
As a humbled Sokka returned to his place in the crowd, Long Feng scouted out his next pawn.
"Who is willing to be Prince Zuko's next worthy opponent?" he goaded the warriors on the ground. Suki, evidently disgusted with her acquaintance's poor performance and not willing to be associated with such a disgrace, stepped out into the open arena. Long Feng grinned as others in the crowd took notice of th heavily made-up warrior.
"Very well then, my dear," Long Feng said in response to her silent challenge, snapping his fingers as a cue for the prince to step out once more. Suki's indignation at the sorceror's condescending comment was plainly evident in her expression as Zuko stepped down into the arena, facing her. Knowing better than to waste time talking like Sokka, Suki immediately took out her steel fans, steadying herself into fighting position.
"Fight!" Long Feng bellowed.
This time it was Zuko's opponent who made the first move; Suki threw one of her fans like the boomerang Sokka never had the chance to utilize, forcing Zuko to jump out of the way or risk decapitation. In doing so he was forced into Suki's range, giving her the opportunity for close range combat. The geisha-esque fighter threw several swift hooks to the prince's head, one of which made contact and disoriented him as the force from the blow caused his skull to rattle in his helmet for a moment. Catching her fan as it returned to her, Suki swung around and delivered a hard roundhouse kick that sent Zuko stumbling backwards several feet until he lost his balance and hit the floor.
Many in the audience got over being stunned long enough to applaud the Kyoshi warrior as Zuko got up and wobbled momentarily before his balance returned.
Long Feng's expression seemed less than pleased, to say the least. He glanced at Zuko, and once the latter made eye contact, gave him a look that silently instructed the prince to end things quickly. Zuko, still slightly dazed, gave a curt nod that signaled he understood his objective. Seeming satisfied with his response, Long Feng faced back out towards the crowd.
"Round two," he called out. "Fight!"
It was now Zuko's turn to initiate the battle; acting quickly, the prince threw blazing punches in Suki's direction, maintaining a safe distance as she jumped around his barrage, which was easier said than done as the billowing green fabric of her robes proved to be an easy target for stray embers. Using her own tactics against her, Zuko continued to send a flurry of flames her way, indirectly guiding her into his range. Unfortunately for her, it worked; one misstep from her was all it took for Zuko to end the flashy display and deliver a crushing right hook to her cheek, knocking her swiftly to the ground.
"Prince Zuko wins," Long Feng declared proudly. Many Fire Nation citizens in the crowd cheered their prince on as Sokka made his disapproval over his (self-perceived) girlfriend's defeat clear. Ignoring the shouts from the crowd, Zuko waltzed back a few steps to give his foe room to pick herself up, which she did, slowly but steadily.
"Round three," Long Feng announced one more, barely giving Suki enough time to stabilize herself. "Fight!"
Again Zuko took the initiative; he tried a similar technique again, sending another wave of fire in Suki direction. This time, however, she reacted quickly, using her fans to extinguish the flames in their paths. Unperturbed, Zuko continued to send a barrage of flaming punches her way, but quickly grew frustrated with the futility of his attempts as Suki effortlessly blew them away with her fans.
Incensed, Zuko extinguished the flames himself and charged at Suki, who stood waiting for her next opportunity. It came when Zuko lunged at her, fists ablaze. Analyzing the situation quickly, Suki quickly sidestepped her opponent, who went swinging blindly past her, giving her the chance to snag his cloth waistband, grab his free arm, and with precision speed tie up his upper limb with his leg, sending him hobbling on one foot.
Pleased with her handiwork, Suki watched Zuko along with the audience, who laughed as the scarred prince wobbled dangerously in his ridiculous position. Zuko, however, not one to take amusement at his expense lightly, suddenly broke out of the waistband's hold, using his momentum to swing into a large, sweeping roundhouse kick that sent a wave of fire in Suki's direction. Not having expected the retaliating attack, the Kyoshi warrior barely managed to protect herself with her fans in time before the force from the wave sent her flying backwards, knocking her down for the count.
There was more applause for Zuko as he walked back to Long Feng. It was clear he had emerged the victor in this match.
"Prince Zuko's victory marks the end of the tournament for today," Long Feng announced. "I hope to see you all return tomorrow."
With that, many in the crowd began to disperse, having been dismissed. A select few stayed behind, namely Sokka, who rushed to tend to Suki, and Aang, who had waited patiently for his opportunity to speak.
"Suki!" Sokka exclaimed, dashing to her side. "Are you okay?"
"I'm fine," she grunted, slapping his hand away and dashing his hopes at playing her knight in shining armor. "Let's get out of here."
"Sokka, is it?"
The Earth nation warrior turned around to see who was addressing him, surprised when he noticed the bald, tattoed figure in bright orange robes draped over one shoulder standing above him and Suki. He recognized the garb of the Air Nomads and immediately knew he was facing the Avatar.
"Yeah?" Sokka asked unsurely, wondering what such a renowned figure wanted to do with him.
Aang succeeded in keeping his apprehension from seeping into his expression, but secretly began to doubt himself. He had just witnessed this boy swiftly, for lack of a better phrase, get his boomerang handed to him. He wondered what place he had in his visions, but resolved to follow his instinct as best he could.
"I couldn't help but notice your... tenacity out there," Aang started, trying to keep any nervousness in his voice at bay. "It's good to see Earth nation citizens fight with such resolve in the name of defending their homeland."
Sokka raised an eyebrow, wondering what the Avatar was trying to insinuate.
"What do you want?" Suki interrupted out of irritation, apparently still smarting enough from her defeat to be willing to discard etiquette in the presence of the Avatar. Luckily for her, Aang tended to be more understanding than others who had once held his position, and let the comment pass.
"I can't quite explain to you why or how," Aang responded, deciding he would simply have to get to the point. "But I've received information that seems to imply this tournament isn't quite like the others. The Earth Kingdom is in serious danger of losing to Ozai. And something tells me that you two have what it takes to help protect her."
The two youngsters on the ground gave Aang odd looks, causing him to worry that he was coming off as some sort of crazed visionary.
"Uh," Sokka stammered, glancing back at Suki. "Well, we appreciate the compliment, but I don't think me and my girl here are really 'protector' material," he replied, earning a nudge from Suki for the 'my girl' comment. Sokka continued, undeterred.
"So, thanks, but no thanks. Try someone else," Sokka told Aang, helping Suki up. He attempted to sling his arm around her shoulders as they started to walk out of the arena, but was only swatted away like a fly by the irate Kyoshi warrior.
Aang, meanwhile, watched the two Earth nation natives walk out of the arena with a heavy heart. His vision seemed urgent; he feared what would transpire should they come to pass and he was unprepared. All he knew was that he had to think of something, quickly.
He was already running out of time.
So there's my attempt. :P I figured some characters would be rolled into one, like Sokka, who will represent both Johnny Cage (because of his personality) and Sub-Zero (because of his rivalry with Zuko/Scorpion). Like with the last one, I'm most likely going to pass it on to someone else from here. Thanks to RexBlazer1 again for the inspiration; I had a lot of fun with this.