Snippet: Bored Now.

["sochankitsune" <annelise@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

"I entrust this to you," Rayden's eyes fixed Quan Chi's with silent 
determination. "You must take it for me to my father... I cannot 
remain."
"You must leave so soon?" Quan Chi frowned. "I had hoped..."
Rayden shook his head. "The time of Kombat is at hand; I must seek 
out the most able of Earth's warriors. It is my duty to prepare them 
for their most difficult task."
"I envy you not, my friend." Quan Chi looked down at the sacred 
amulet which he now held within his palm. "I will take this to 
Shinnok at once, though I doubt not that he will be glad to see me."
Rayden smiled. "He is rarely glad to see any of us." Lightning 
flickered and Rayden disappeared.
Quan Chi continued to stare down at the amulet in his hand.

*

The storm thundered overhead, pouring rain that kept the Slayer 
from venturing forth.
"You seem happy."
Buffy looked up as Dawn sauntered into the kitchen. "Isn't it 
allowed?" she asked with a mock-pout for her younger sister.
Dawn smiled. "I guess so. Rain stopped play?" She peered out at the 
thunderstorm.
"Yep!" Buffy leaned against the kitchen counter. "No evil-bashing 
for me, unless they decide to turn up on the doorstep."
Lightning flickered, and between the flashes a tall man with white 
hair and an oriental hat appeared in the kitchen.
Buffy rolled her eyes and grumbled in the general direction of the 
Powers That Be. She cast around for an available weapon.
"Buffy Summers," the stranger smirked. "You can't hurt me with items 
of Lore. I am beyond such."
Buffy nodded, after the third attempt to pierce Rayden's arm with a 
kitchen knife. "No fair." A sudden thought flitted through her mind.
"Willow!" She shouted. "Get your cute ass down here."
A muffled 'Coming!' came from somewhere upstairs.
"Listen to me, insolent whelp!" Rayden commanded with no 
appreciation of how to handle this particular Slayer. "You've been 
selected to fight for the world in a tournament of martial prowess."
"Really?" Buffy seemed amused.
"Yes, really." Rayden sighed. Even Liu Kang didn't need this much 
ego-massaging.
"But... I'm the Slayer. I'm not some great fighter. My powers are 
rooted in magic." 
Rayden nodded sagely. "Such is allowed."
"Cool!" Buffy whirled to face Willow. "If magic's allowed, here's 
your girl!" She whisked Willow in front of her like a shield.
"Eep!" Willow blinked and gulped. "I'm trying to give it up, 
remember." She said in a half-whisper to Buffy.
Rayden sighed. "There is precedence... Shau-Kahn tried to win the 
tournament by use of his magical powers alone," he said.
"Shower can?" Buffy seemed nonplussed.
"Shau-Kahn. An evil sorceror. He had some limited martial prowess... 
But he was bested by a fighter from this realm with no magical 
ability at all..." And a shitload of luck, Rayden thought. "You, 
however, possess both. That makes you a desirable member of Team 
Rayden."
"Team Rayden?" Dawn asked.
Rayden shrugged. "Food costs, you know. I had to take on some 
sponsorship."
"Oh, okay."

*

Quan Chi glanced down at the amulet he held within his greedy 
fingers. "The seal," he sighed. "I control the seal between the 
realms. Soon I will be master of them all!" he laughed maniacally for 
several minutes, until the laughter became a coughing fit, and he had 
to stop for a drink of water. He looked down at his Art Attack 
project. A replica of the original amulet and seal of power. "Yes!" 
he cried. "This will beguile that fool Shinnok... He'll believe it to 
be the original and true! Muwahahaha!"

*

Rayden, Buffy and Willow appeared in Xander's bedroom. Xander, 
performing a male natural function, wigged. He wigged further when he 
saw that Rayden had materialised on top of his expensive Ray-bans.
"Hey," he said. "Those were five hundred dollar sunglasses, asshole."
Rayden shuddered. "Get dressed," he said and sighed. "Don't you 
just love the feeling of dimensional travel?" he asked as he turned 
to Buffy. "The way it makes you feel so... Oh!" Buffy and Willow were 
happily french-kissing. "I guess you did feel it, then." He folded 
his arms and waited.
Xander struggled into his trousers.
"Who are you?" he asked.

*

End Snippet.