Chapter 3
After Rayden had made his speech, he moved to the waters edge, and began to wave his hands around in front of him, as if he was trying to lift some invisible object. Then all of a sudden, something began to emerge from the ocean's depths. It was a huge old ship. Sonya recognized it as the one that had transported them to the island for the very first tournament. As Rayden raised the ship, Sonya realized something. For the first time, she had no plan of attack. She had no idea what to expect. Johnny walked over to her and put his arm around her.
"How you doin'?" He asked.
"I don't know. I just can't believe it."
"Which part?" He grinned.
"Well, all of it. We've always had a hard enough time trying to beat either of them, and now we've gotta deal with them both. And Liu..." She lowered her head, sighing. "I can't believe he's gone. This whole time, we've always relied on him to beat the bad guy. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed being the side kick. Takes the pressure off." Johnny smiled a little.
"But if he couldn't do it, how can we? What are we supposed to do?" She turned to look up at him.
"Our best." He said solemnly. Sonya hugged her husband.
"I love you."
"I love you too."
Kung Lao walked down onto the beach. Sonya broke from the hug and walked up to him.
"Kung Lao, I'm so sorry. I know you two were close. Are you okay?" She asked the Shaolin warrior.
"I found him." He replied quietly. Sonya's eyes widened in shock. "I left him to train for five minutes, and when I returned, he was lying in the center of the training arena. At first I thought he was resting, or playing some kind of joke."
Sonya rubbed his arm to comfort him.
"His neck had been completely snapped in two."
"God, I'm so sorry." She said, feeling more tears coming. She tried to hold them back, but it wouldn't work.
"The thought of his soul being trapped within that man makes my blood boil. I will make Shang Tsung pay for what he has done. I swear to you." Kung Lao promised.
Rayden finished raising the ship and everyone boarded. As the ship moved off and everyone settled, Sonya and Johnny went to talk to Rayden.
"Where are we going?" Sonya asked. "I thought we destroyed all of the portals?"
"There is another. The same portal that Shang Tsung and Quan Chi used to travel here."
"How come you never told us that you were no longer an Elder God?" Johnny asked.
"I just did Johnny. The Elder God's knew what was going on, and yet they did nothing. They were adamant about not interfering. But I could not. They don't know what it is like to be down here, fighting alongside you all. They don't understand. I do however. The time has come for us to take matters into our own hands. We will make them pay for what they have done."
When they arrived at the portal, Rayden lined them up and began to instruct them of the portal's rules.
"In order to be worthy to cross this portal, you must face a challenge. You must confront your most dangerous adversary. Who would like to go first?"
"I will." Sonya said stepping forward.
"Are you sure?" Rayden asked.
"Yeah. I mean, if I can't do this then chances are I won't be able to do much in the tournament so, bring it on."
"Very well. Stand in the center of the arena, and we will begin."
Sonya walked to the center of the portal arena and began to warm up. She wondered who he would be fighting. She was expecting Kano, or even Frost. There was something about her that Sonya really didn't trust. Then she heard footsteps behind her. She slowly turned around and was faced with her challenge.
"Who the hell are you?" She asked the man facing her. He was a little taller than her, and dressed all in black. He turned to bow to Rayden, and when he did, Sonya saw a pattern on his back. A red dragon.
"Sonya, this is your challenge. His name is Mavado. He is a member of the Red Dragon." Rayden told her.
"You ordered the attack on the Agency." She snarled.
"He cannot talk Sonya. He is merely a vessel. You will be able to meet the real Mavado in the tournament."
Sonya faced off before her opponent. He did the same.
"Fight!" Rayden boomed.
Sonya wasted no time. She quickly hit the false Mavado with a right jab and a left cross. She then followed with a right back kick and a left aswell, taking Mavado's balance. She took the opportunity to hit him with a flying kick to the chest, knocking him to the ground. She looked over to Rayden.
"This is supposed to be my most dangerous adversary?" She scoffed. A noise by her feet made her look down. She saw some kind of hook stuck in the ground. Connected to it was some strange rope thing, which was connected to Mavado. She looked up at him to see him flying towards her. He hit her in the chest with both feet, sending her flying backwards. It felt like she was moving in slow motion, until she hit the ground and came skidding to a halt. She got to her feet and brushed herself off, remembering what it was like to be hit like that again.
"Okay, I brought that on myself." She grinned. She shook it off and ran for her opponent again. When she got near him, she used his leg as a step, allowing her free leg to kick him in the head, sending him back yet again. Sonya didn't allow him to recover. She hit him with a right axe kick, and then hit him again as she brought her leg down. Not stopping she spun around and hit him with a left back kick. Mavado staggered back a little and reached behind his back. Sonya watched as he pulled out two Hookswords. She didn't give him the chance to attack, she quickly hit him with a right hook, followed by a spinning left elbow. While she was hitting him with her elbow, her free hand reached into a small pouch she carried on her belt, and pulled out some pink dust. As soon as he revealed his face, she blew the dust in his eyes, blinding him momentarily. She used the brief pause to grab one of the Hookswords, which she pulled, revealing his arm. She quickly slammed her elbow into his arm, causing him to let go of the deadly blade. Sonya then spun around and took his legs out from under him with her left leg. Mavado hit the ground face first, stunning him. Sonya took the opportunity to drive the Hooksword into the back of his neck, killing him instantly. The body of the fake Mavado burst into ash, and the blade in her hand disappeared. Sonya looked over to her teammates.
"Well, I guess that means I win." She smiled, breathing hard.
"Well done Sonya. You have passed the test, and are granted entry to the Outworld." Rayden smiled. Sonya rejoined her team, and stood by Johnny.
"Ah, it was nothing." She grinned. She then turned to look at Johnny and mimed the word 'Ow'. He suppressed a grin as Frost stepped forward.
"That was too easy. If that was supposed to be a challenge, she obviously isn't that strong." The female ninja said walking into the arena.
"What have you got for me?" She asked Rayden. The thunder god smiled and waved his arm in front of him. The group followed his gaze to see Frost's adversary. Sub-Zero. Sonya noticed the suppressed look of shock on the young ninja's face.
"Good luck." Sonya said with mock intent.
"Pfft, simple." Frost said, trying to hide her nervousness. The two ninja's bowed once to Rayden, then to each other before going into a fighting stance.
"Fight!"
Frost lept at Sub-Zero, throwing a punch, which Sub-Zero caught and slammed his fist into her gut, causing her to double over. Frost seemed to ignore the pain and hit him in the face with her boot, before standing back up and uppercutting him. Sub-Zero staggered a little, allowing Frost to throw a right round kick. She tried to follow up with a left back kick, but Sub-Zero stepped to the side and grabbed her leg. He spun her around and threw her to the side, causing her to skid across the ground. Frost lay there for a moment while Sub-Zero approached. He bent down and picked her up by the throat. Frost struggled for a moment, before putting her hand in his neck. All of a sudden, the false ninja began to freeze, a thin layer of ice forming over his head and shoulders. Frost broke free from his grasp and pulled what looked like a handle from a small dagger from her boot. Then a blade of ice formed on the end. Frost used the makeshift dagger to pierce the heart of the half frozen ninja. However, she didn't stop at one. She punched the ninja to the ground and repeatedly stabbed him in the chest, until he burst into ash, knocking her backwards and cutting her thigh on the blade.
"Congratulations Frost. You have passed the test. You may step down now." Rayden said. Frost limped back to the team and stood by Sub-Zero, who dressed her wound and scolded her for her lack of discipline. Frost looked over to see Sonya smiling. Sonya tried to cover it and looked away, but it was a poor attempt.
"Swing and a miss for the rookie." Sonya said just loud enough for Frost to hear. She could see that the ninja wanted to reply but her master held her back. Sonya knew she was acting childish, but she didn't care. People like Frost irritated her. And there was definitely something amiss with the young warrior.
Johnny was up next. He stood in the arena and jumped around a bit, warming up.
"Who've I got?" He asked Rayden. The former Elder God again motioned behind Johnny and to everyone's surprise, Johnny's opponent was, Johnny. There stood an exact double of Johnny Cage.
"You've gotta be kidding me." Johnny said looking at himself. "I'm my own worst adversary?"
"Makes sense, honey. I've been telling you for years to get over yourself." Sonya called from the sidelines.
"Thanks" He said rolling his eyes.
"Are you ready Johnny?" Rayden asked.
"Yeah, let's get it done."
"Fight!"
Johnny immediately opened with a shadow kick, hitting the fake Johnny in the gut and making him double over. He quickly followed with a left cross, knocking his opponent to the ground. Johnny went to slam his foot down on the back of the impostor's neck, but he rolled out of the way, avoiding the death blow. It then hit Johnny in the back with it's right boot. Johnny stumbled forward, but quickly turned and threw a forceball at the fake's head, knocking it down. Johnny pulled out a pair of Nunchaku's and wrapped them around his double's neck, before snapping it and causing it to burst into a pile of ash. Johnny raised his arms in celebration and ran over to Sonya, hugging her.
The fight's went on until everyone had had their go. Jax fought and beat Hsu Hao, and Sub-Zero fought Scorpion. When they were all done, Rayden asked them all to stand in the middle of the arena, under a big blue glowing orb. Sonya was wondering what was going to happen until a huge beam of light shot down, engulfing them and forming a portal, that preceded to suck them in to once again face the perils of Outworld.
To be continued...
After Rayden had made his speech, he moved to the waters edge, and began to wave his hands around in front of him, as if he was trying to lift some invisible object. Then all of a sudden, something began to emerge from the ocean's depths. It was a huge old ship. Sonya recognized it as the one that had transported them to the island for the very first tournament. As Rayden raised the ship, Sonya realized something. For the first time, she had no plan of attack. She had no idea what to expect. Johnny walked over to her and put his arm around her.
"How you doin'?" He asked.
"I don't know. I just can't believe it."
"Which part?" He grinned.
"Well, all of it. We've always had a hard enough time trying to beat either of them, and now we've gotta deal with them both. And Liu..." She lowered her head, sighing. "I can't believe he's gone. This whole time, we've always relied on him to beat the bad guy. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed being the side kick. Takes the pressure off." Johnny smiled a little.
"But if he couldn't do it, how can we? What are we supposed to do?" She turned to look up at him.
"Our best." He said solemnly. Sonya hugged her husband.
"I love you."
"I love you too."
Kung Lao walked down onto the beach. Sonya broke from the hug and walked up to him.
"Kung Lao, I'm so sorry. I know you two were close. Are you okay?" She asked the Shaolin warrior.
"I found him." He replied quietly. Sonya's eyes widened in shock. "I left him to train for five minutes, and when I returned, he was lying in the center of the training arena. At first I thought he was resting, or playing some kind of joke."
Sonya rubbed his arm to comfort him.
"His neck had been completely snapped in two."
"God, I'm so sorry." She said, feeling more tears coming. She tried to hold them back, but it wouldn't work.
"The thought of his soul being trapped within that man makes my blood boil. I will make Shang Tsung pay for what he has done. I swear to you." Kung Lao promised.
Rayden finished raising the ship and everyone boarded. As the ship moved off and everyone settled, Sonya and Johnny went to talk to Rayden.
"Where are we going?" Sonya asked. "I thought we destroyed all of the portals?"
"There is another. The same portal that Shang Tsung and Quan Chi used to travel here."
"How come you never told us that you were no longer an Elder God?" Johnny asked.
"I just did Johnny. The Elder God's knew what was going on, and yet they did nothing. They were adamant about not interfering. But I could not. They don't know what it is like to be down here, fighting alongside you all. They don't understand. I do however. The time has come for us to take matters into our own hands. We will make them pay for what they have done."
When they arrived at the portal, Rayden lined them up and began to instruct them of the portal's rules.
"In order to be worthy to cross this portal, you must face a challenge. You must confront your most dangerous adversary. Who would like to go first?"
"I will." Sonya said stepping forward.
"Are you sure?" Rayden asked.
"Yeah. I mean, if I can't do this then chances are I won't be able to do much in the tournament so, bring it on."
"Very well. Stand in the center of the arena, and we will begin."
Sonya walked to the center of the portal arena and began to warm up. She wondered who he would be fighting. She was expecting Kano, or even Frost. There was something about her that Sonya really didn't trust. Then she heard footsteps behind her. She slowly turned around and was faced with her challenge.
"Who the hell are you?" She asked the man facing her. He was a little taller than her, and dressed all in black. He turned to bow to Rayden, and when he did, Sonya saw a pattern on his back. A red dragon.
"Sonya, this is your challenge. His name is Mavado. He is a member of the Red Dragon." Rayden told her.
"You ordered the attack on the Agency." She snarled.
"He cannot talk Sonya. He is merely a vessel. You will be able to meet the real Mavado in the tournament."
Sonya faced off before her opponent. He did the same.
"Fight!" Rayden boomed.
Sonya wasted no time. She quickly hit the false Mavado with a right jab and a left cross. She then followed with a right back kick and a left aswell, taking Mavado's balance. She took the opportunity to hit him with a flying kick to the chest, knocking him to the ground. She looked over to Rayden.
"This is supposed to be my most dangerous adversary?" She scoffed. A noise by her feet made her look down. She saw some kind of hook stuck in the ground. Connected to it was some strange rope thing, which was connected to Mavado. She looked up at him to see him flying towards her. He hit her in the chest with both feet, sending her flying backwards. It felt like she was moving in slow motion, until she hit the ground and came skidding to a halt. She got to her feet and brushed herself off, remembering what it was like to be hit like that again.
"Okay, I brought that on myself." She grinned. She shook it off and ran for her opponent again. When she got near him, she used his leg as a step, allowing her free leg to kick him in the head, sending him back yet again. Sonya didn't allow him to recover. She hit him with a right axe kick, and then hit him again as she brought her leg down. Not stopping she spun around and hit him with a left back kick. Mavado staggered back a little and reached behind his back. Sonya watched as he pulled out two Hookswords. She didn't give him the chance to attack, she quickly hit him with a right hook, followed by a spinning left elbow. While she was hitting him with her elbow, her free hand reached into a small pouch she carried on her belt, and pulled out some pink dust. As soon as he revealed his face, she blew the dust in his eyes, blinding him momentarily. She used the brief pause to grab one of the Hookswords, which she pulled, revealing his arm. She quickly slammed her elbow into his arm, causing him to let go of the deadly blade. Sonya then spun around and took his legs out from under him with her left leg. Mavado hit the ground face first, stunning him. Sonya took the opportunity to drive the Hooksword into the back of his neck, killing him instantly. The body of the fake Mavado burst into ash, and the blade in her hand disappeared. Sonya looked over to her teammates.
"Well, I guess that means I win." She smiled, breathing hard.
"Well done Sonya. You have passed the test, and are granted entry to the Outworld." Rayden smiled. Sonya rejoined her team, and stood by Johnny.
"Ah, it was nothing." She grinned. She then turned to look at Johnny and mimed the word 'Ow'. He suppressed a grin as Frost stepped forward.
"That was too easy. If that was supposed to be a challenge, she obviously isn't that strong." The female ninja said walking into the arena.
"What have you got for me?" She asked Rayden. The thunder god smiled and waved his arm in front of him. The group followed his gaze to see Frost's adversary. Sub-Zero. Sonya noticed the suppressed look of shock on the young ninja's face.
"Good luck." Sonya said with mock intent.
"Pfft, simple." Frost said, trying to hide her nervousness. The two ninja's bowed once to Rayden, then to each other before going into a fighting stance.
"Fight!"
Frost lept at Sub-Zero, throwing a punch, which Sub-Zero caught and slammed his fist into her gut, causing her to double over. Frost seemed to ignore the pain and hit him in the face with her boot, before standing back up and uppercutting him. Sub-Zero staggered a little, allowing Frost to throw a right round kick. She tried to follow up with a left back kick, but Sub-Zero stepped to the side and grabbed her leg. He spun her around and threw her to the side, causing her to skid across the ground. Frost lay there for a moment while Sub-Zero approached. He bent down and picked her up by the throat. Frost struggled for a moment, before putting her hand in his neck. All of a sudden, the false ninja began to freeze, a thin layer of ice forming over his head and shoulders. Frost broke free from his grasp and pulled what looked like a handle from a small dagger from her boot. Then a blade of ice formed on the end. Frost used the makeshift dagger to pierce the heart of the half frozen ninja. However, she didn't stop at one. She punched the ninja to the ground and repeatedly stabbed him in the chest, until he burst into ash, knocking her backwards and cutting her thigh on the blade.
"Congratulations Frost. You have passed the test. You may step down now." Rayden said. Frost limped back to the team and stood by Sub-Zero, who dressed her wound and scolded her for her lack of discipline. Frost looked over to see Sonya smiling. Sonya tried to cover it and looked away, but it was a poor attempt.
"Swing and a miss for the rookie." Sonya said just loud enough for Frost to hear. She could see that the ninja wanted to reply but her master held her back. Sonya knew she was acting childish, but she didn't care. People like Frost irritated her. And there was definitely something amiss with the young warrior.
Johnny was up next. He stood in the arena and jumped around a bit, warming up.
"Who've I got?" He asked Rayden. The former Elder God again motioned behind Johnny and to everyone's surprise, Johnny's opponent was, Johnny. There stood an exact double of Johnny Cage.
"You've gotta be kidding me." Johnny said looking at himself. "I'm my own worst adversary?"
"Makes sense, honey. I've been telling you for years to get over yourself." Sonya called from the sidelines.
"Thanks" He said rolling his eyes.
"Are you ready Johnny?" Rayden asked.
"Yeah, let's get it done."
"Fight!"
Johnny immediately opened with a shadow kick, hitting the fake Johnny in the gut and making him double over. He quickly followed with a left cross, knocking his opponent to the ground. Johnny went to slam his foot down on the back of the impostor's neck, but he rolled out of the way, avoiding the death blow. It then hit Johnny in the back with it's right boot. Johnny stumbled forward, but quickly turned and threw a forceball at the fake's head, knocking it down. Johnny pulled out a pair of Nunchaku's and wrapped them around his double's neck, before snapping it and causing it to burst into a pile of ash. Johnny raised his arms in celebration and ran over to Sonya, hugging her.
The fight's went on until everyone had had their go. Jax fought and beat Hsu Hao, and Sub-Zero fought Scorpion. When they were all done, Rayden asked them all to stand in the middle of the arena, under a big blue glowing orb. Sonya was wondering what was going to happen until a huge beam of light shot down, engulfing them and forming a portal, that preceded to suck them in to once again face the perils of Outworld.
To be continued...