Everyone has a story to tell. Whether it has a happy ending or…not…is entirely up to them.
I know that some may give up. Some may think that there's far too much stacked against them, that they'll never win in the game of life. But ultimately, it comes down to choice.
Will you keep fighting for what you believe in? Fighting for what is right? Fighting for those you love?
Or will you throw up your hands and say "I give! Screw this!"?
Will you simply "Curse God and Die", as Job's wife suggested in the Bible?
Will you blame others for your fall?
The choice is simple. Carry on…or fall behind.
What you choose is up to you.
But I want to tell you what I chose. Some choices were thrust upon me…And I know that when it came down to the finale, I made the right decision…
But what happened from the moment I was thrust into this new story to the moment I made the final choice that decided the fate of countless lives…that's a story that deserves telling.
And tell it…I will.
It all started from two perspectives, and what perspectives they were!
JACKIE CHAN ADVENTURES
LONG LIVE THE KING
PROLOGUE
It was December in San Francisco, and the Chan family was trying to relax. It had been quite a few summers since the chaos of fighting with Drago. The demons were sealed. The talismans were gone. No more threats. Jade was in high school now, in the first quarter of 9th grade, and all was normal and would stay that way.
Or perhaps not. You see…
Jade Chan was having bad dreams. Frightening ones.
As she slept unsoundly in her "Super Moose" pajamas and bed sheets, she tossed and turned. Her light brown eyes were shut tight as she groaned. Her dark, black hair, slightly messy right now from bed head, fell down in thick, beautiful locks. Her innocent, young face, normally filled with spirit and an air of cleverness, was now twisted into a degree of fear.
No, Jade Chan was not sleeping soundly.
Jade walked alone in a city. It was San Francisco, only…Everything was black and grey…frightening.
And worse still, she could feel someone watching her.
Jade ran down the streets, calling out "JACKIE! UNCLE! TOHRU!" over and over…but the echo that resulted, resounding from the farthest depths of the city, gave her a chilling answer…she was alone.
Jade shivered and wrapped her arms around herself, feeling small…and very coldl.
So very cold…
Then she felt something warm. A blanket. Wrapping around her shoulders. Instinctively she grabbed it and wrapped it around her body some more.
"There, there." A soft, whispering voice crooned.
She turned.
She saw someone. The voice had been that of a man. He had a dark, hooded cloak, as black as midnight, maybe even darker…and a golden rope belt wrapped around his waist.
But it wasn't a man in front of her. She could tell. Something about him…
Then she knew for sure when his cloaked arm reached out, and he gently stroked her cheek. It was a three-fingered hand, a scaly hand, a clawed hand.
A demon hand.
"Little one…" it whispered. It stroked a lock of hair free from her face and she could see golden eyes gazing deep into hers.
"I will come for you and your family very soon. I must do what I must do."
"What…what do you mean?" She asked, taking a step back. She fell down, but…OW…
It HURT.
But you don't get hurt in dreams, Jade thought. Unless maybe…this isn't a…
"You are correct. This is not a dream. It is more of…a vision." The demon said, reading her thoughts. "Quick thinking, little one. You are indeed the cleverest of the Chans." She had the faintest sense he was smiling at her. Suddenly he was kneeling, lifting her chin up. Now she was inches away from his chest, looking up into his hood, into his golden eyes.
"I have to secure my future, and this city of man has to be punished for breaking the deal that was set down in ages past. Your family has been chosen…and I will both enjoy and regret doing what I have to do…little one. Little jewel."
"Leave my family alone!" Jade suddenly shouted. The demon chuckled softly.
"I cannot do that. Your family and I have business…as does the city you now inhabit. Do not weep though, little one…it will all be over soon. Though the dark ones will soon break free, I want you and your family to know that…"
He stroked her hair a little. "I would never allow my chosen to come to harm…"
Jade shivered. "Who…just who are you?" she finally asked.
The demon shook his head slowly. "I cannot tell you that…yet. But when the time comes, I will tell you everything. I promise. Until next time, little one."
He leaned in towards her. She opened her mouth to scream as his hood began to cover her head. She felt something scaly on her cheek. Then a quick little kiss.
She awoke.
"JACKIIIIIE!"
MEANWHILE…
Nick brushed his brown, slightly curly hair back. It was August 1st, 2003, and he was going on a little hike to the local reservoir which just happened to be down the road and up aways.
He had on his usual white sneakers and jeans, and was wearing a black t-shirt that read "This Is What Cool Looks Like" on it, with a blue vest. He liked the t-shirt a lot. Merely looking at the writing made him smile a little. And the vest felt…natural.
His necklace hung around his neck, the color-changing (though usually blue) circle in the middle feeling even more natural, as if it was meant to be on his chest.
It was a nice day for a hike. Early in the morning. He'd eaten a chocolate chip muffin that he had bought the day earlier from the local DB Mart down the street and down aways, along with some juice and a banana. He had to remember to let Jessica out. So now he had some time before his brother (who had been up till 11 forty-something) woke up, and his mom was asleep as well, or at least trying to squeeze in a few more precious minutes of peace before Jessie wanted to play with her.
Nick had his Grandpa's walking stick with him today, as well as a backpack. Though he wore "The Watch" on his wrist he had also brought his cell phone and his GBA, as well as his wallet which was in his back pocket, with 25 dollars in it, along with a gift card to EB, a student ID and his social security card. He was planning on getting an ATM card soon now that Mom had set up his own bank account.
He had returned back home to let Jessica out, since he'd already fed her. Now he stood on the porch, taking in the simple view of his neighborhood. He breathed the air in deep as Jessie did her business. He walked down the steps, putting his backpack and stick down, and walking over to the table and stools that were always out on the brick porch. They'd been there ever since his Mom and Dad had bought the house. He sat down on the stool, sighing happily.
BGM: Tune of "Mountain Town", from the Soundtrack of the South Park Movie
"There's a bunch of birds in the skyyyy,
And my dog just went running byyyy,
Ohhh, the clouds are pure white on my earth rich
and brownnnnn, just…a…nother Sunday morning
in my nice New En-gland…"
He stood up. "TOWN!" He lets Jessie back in and picks up his stuff and walked to the edge of his backyard, going into Farmer Tueller's field, still singing.
"The sun is shining and the grass is green,
Under the 2 feet of the hay I mean,
This is a day when its hard to wear a frooowwwwn!
And if people were here they'd say "hello"… even though the sun's still pretty low,
It's a perfect Sunday morning in my quiet little nice New England town!"
He reaches the road and steps onto the side, walking down it. He sees a kid biking by and suddenly thinks of David.
"My brother Dave was once so nice and mild,
now he's a cynical, jerky child…
But this is one day he's not gonna bring me doooowwwnnn!
Of this my heart is sure…
I'm glad that I'M still pure!
Thank God I live in this peaceful, quiet nice New England town!"
Nick eventually reaches the DB mart. He smiles at Mrs. Kan, the co-owner of the store after going to the aisles and picking out what he wants.
"I'm gonna get two chocolate chip muffins, a mini bag of pop-tarts, along with some apple juice, Mrs. Kan." He says. She smiles and nods. "You go ahead, it's $7.26." Nick hands her a ten dollar bill. She hands him back his change.
"It looks like today's gonna be a beautiful day, Mrs. Kan!" He says happily. She smiles and nods. "Oh yes, Mushtaqa thinks so too. He's out back with the truck, bringing in new Gatorade."
Nick nods. "All right. I'll see you later, Mrs. Kan! Have a nice day!"
"You too, Nick!" She says cheerfully as he leaves the store. Nick walks out the door and heads back towards where he was coming from. He notices two things: pollen floating around and a speeding SUV is approaching his way.
"I can see pollen hanging in the air,
I see redneck jerks-"
BEEP-BEEP!
"Ha-ha! Queer!"
Nick sticks his tongue out at them and walks on.
"But I just don't care!
I'm in a sea of smiles, in which I would love to drowwwwwwn,
Cuz if the sky is blue and clear…
Then I have nothing to fear!
It's a lovely perfect Sunday morning in my
liberal, peaceful, quiet, friendly, nice New England tooooowwwwwwn!"
He walks up the road and gets on the left side, whistling a little. He sees a hawk and waves at it. Then he suddenly stops. A deer is to his right, eating. He watches it, and it watches him. He doesn't say anything, then smiles and gives a nod, then resumes walking. The deer blinks a few times then goes back to eating a patch of grass. Nick starts singing once again.
"Off on hikes is where I go,
Where I learn deep things I gotta know,
Because Life teaches me what adults don't know how to saaaaaayyy!!!
And I think right now my world's complete…
Because my life is really sweet…SUPER sweet!
So…I…Thank…God I live in a cliquey, random, romantic, liberal, peaceful, quiet, friendly, nice and not-white-trash, kick-ass U…S…AAAAAAAAAA!"
He twirls around, then stops, arms stretched out and sighing happily.
(Music ends.)
Nick then looked down at his special watch.
"Mahalo plenty!" He told it as he twirled the walking stick he'd brought with him.
It was his Grandpa's stick, and it was special to him. It had a bronze metal cap on its top, but otherwise was a plain ordinary handmade walking stick. The bronze bit had been screwed in at the top. Nick felt the top with his hands, thinking about Grandpa. He still really missed him, and got the willies every time he thought about him.
"I wonder if you're happy, Grandpa." He thought out loud. "I sure hope you are. And…I'm…" He sniffled a bit. "I'm sorry for…for…"
He couldn't say the rest. He simply walked down the path, not turning on the watch. Not now. Normally he'd listen to some nice Nobou Uematsu instrumental music that would fit like perhaps "Dark City Treno" or "Daguerrero, the Hermit's Library" or even "Descendant of Shinobi", but not this time.
Eventually he found it. The gate. It read "Do Not Enter", but the gate was open. That was because in the hottest days of the summer the reservoir was a, believe it or not, nudist colony.
Luckily nobody was there, but the gate remained open in the summer, although there was a big gap between a tree to the right and the gate, so anyone could sneak in anytime they wanted.
Nick walked through the gate and past the little red checkpoint house that nobody was using, and looked up at the tall, flower and tall grass-covered hill. He looked down and saw his favorite flower, a dandelion. He picked it up and twirled it in his fingers. He was feeling pretty silly today, so he stuck it on top of his right ear, wearing it like a fashion accessory.
Nick then walked up the hill bit by bit. "The view should be really nice since the sun hasn't completely risen yet." He thought. "And it'll be nice and quiet, so I can practice my Latin!" Nick had his Latin & English dictionary in his backpack, and he'd been practicing his Latin quite well. Mostly so he could know the basics AND be able to swear, but at least it was SOMETHING.
Still, the real reason he was going to the reservoir was the beautiful, radiant view that would be there today…
But when he got to the top he didn't see a beautiful, clear reservoir.
He saw a reservoir that contained…what looked like red water. Mixed with yellow trails, the red water had an orange tinge near its bottom. It was frightening. Chilling. Kind of like something from a horror movie.
Nick knew that he shouldn't, that he really, REALLY shouldn't approach the reservoir, but curiosity got the best of him. He walked up to the water and poked it with the walking stick…
He was sucked in a moment later. He didn't even have time to scream…
Then all was darkness.
OPENING CREDITS!
BGM: Heaven Open Your Eyes, by Everlife
Trust in love…
(Scene cuts to Nick, alone in a field. He's sitting down. He stands up, looking forward, at the sky. He holds up one hand and counts off. )
"One, two, three, NOW!"
(He runs through the field, wind blowing his hair back. He laughs, and suddenly the scene cuts to him, going to the reservoir. He pokes his stick into it and is sucked in.)
You've got another question eating you up inside!
And needing some direction…it's too hard to decide!
I have a place for you that has the answer you need…
It's waiting by the doorstep, are you ready to proceed?
You've been trying to find all your liiiiiiife…
The One who's always been by your siiiiiiiide!
(As the music plays, heroic shots of Jackie, Jade, Uncle, Tohru, El Toro, Viper, Paco and Captain Black are shown, with their names above each of them. Finally a shot of all of them together is shown, and they all smile at the camera.)
Let heaven open your eeeeyeeees!
Tell ya what you've been missin'
Show you what you can't live without!
Let heaven open the skiiiiiiiies!
Pour upon ya the reason
To live your life without any doubt!
(Shot goes to Jade, who's sitting on top of the roof of the Antiques shop, wondering. The stars twinkle. Meanwhile, a certain Sky Demon is also looking at the sky, sighing.)
Is there any other question, maybe a mystery?
A personal objection, or curiosity?
A message to your Maker, who's ready to replyyyy!
Are you lookin' for a savior?
He's not inside of that guy!
(Now the scene cuts to Nick facing down every single one of the Demon Sorcerers in the realm they've been banished to. He gulps, then flies off, and they give chase.)
You've been trying to find all your liiiiiiife…
The One who's always been by your siiiiiiiide!
(Shots of each one of the demon sorcerers are shown, all chasing after Nick through the air. Their names are shown above them.)
Let heaven open your eeeeyeeees!
Tell ya what you've been missin'
Show you what you can't live without!
Let heaven open the skiiiiiiiies!
Pour upon ya the reason
To live your life without any doubt!
(Scene cuts to San Fran, to two people on two separate benches. Drago is having a cigarette. He sneers at the camera and tosses it away. A cloaked figure next to him makes his own golden eyes glow.)
You will find a little piece of mind,
Gonna make your life so much better!
Let heaven…
(A long and black-haired youth next to a blond-haired, blind boy looks at the camera from the other bench and both smile, and then begin tussling playfully.)
Walk the way you wanna live today,
You know the pain you wanna give away…
Is holding you from hoping…
Let heaven open your eeeeeeyyeeeeessss!
(Nick suddenly bolts by them, and they run after him, along with the good guys and all of the demon sorcerers.)
Oh yeaaaaah!
(They stop at the edge of the city. The sky has split open, it's turned blood red, and the clouds are black. Uncle goes "Aiyaaah!")
Let heaven open your eeeeyeeees!
Tell ya what you've been missin'
Show you what you can't live without!
Let heaven open the skiiiiiiiies!
Pour upon ya the reason
To live your life without any doubt!
(A shadowy, dark figure appears above, and armies of heaven and hell are poised in front of them, ready to clash upon a wide plain.)
Let heaven open your eeeeyeeees!
Tell ya what you've been missin'
Show you what you can't live without!
Let heaven open the skiiiiiiiies!
Pour upon ya the reason
Show you what life's all aboooouuuuut!
(Nick points at the space in between both armies, yelling "CHARGE!". Everyone rushes at the space, just as the two armies rush towards each other.)
Let heaven open your eeeeyeeees!
(Fight scenes of all characters!)
Show you what, show you what life's all about!
Let heaven open the skiiiiiiiies!
Show you what, show you what life's all about!
(Scene cuts to a forest. A golden bell in the middle of a clearing lets out a single loud ring, and everything suddenly shatters, like all reality is a mirror…)
Yeah, yeah!
Oh yeah, yeah!
(Scene suddenly cuts to a hill overlooking San Fran. Everyone's gathered there, behind Nick, who sits up, and then salutes with his middle and pointer finger, grinning in a happy fashion. The title of the show/story appears above everyone, along with the words "SEASON ONE". Music ends.)
