Aku frowned to himself as he stared through the windows he conjured up for himself, watching as the accursed Samurai continued to grow in strength, skill, and effectiveness. Aku had encountered the Samurai several times, and in each encounter where Aku had engaged the Samurai directly, he had been nearly overwhelmed, only random circumstance or the actions or needs of others present enabling Aku to escape with his life. He wanted to say it was simply because of the accursed Sword, made specifically to kill him...but he knew better. The sword is what enabled the Samurai to harm him, but it was the Samurai's skill that made it so deadly in his hands. If Aku was to prove triumphant against the Samurai, something had to change.
One other thing the Samurai had that consistently proved both frustrating and perplexing to Aku: allies. Wherever the Samurai went, he would render aid to others at whatever expense to himself, and somehow that would always come back to aid given to him. Many a time Aku had almost had the Samurai beaten, only for someone he had 'befriended' to come to his rescue. This was something Aku could not conceive of. Mortals were motivated first and foremost by fear, specifically the fear of death. This was incontrovertible fact. How could the Samurai make these mortals overcome this limitation? It defied comprehension. Still, the Samurai's ability to make the strength of others his own only compounded the threat…
"That's it!" Aku declared excitedly, his reedy but powerful voice carrying tones of eager malevolence. "He makes the strength of others his own? Then so too shall I! And I know just where to begin!" Turning from the view of the Samurai's exploits, he called forth new windows. These windows looked not upon the world of Aku, but other worlds, ones he had a connection to. "The Great One from whom I was born was not originally of this world. It is but one of many he sought to leave his mark on...and in each world, a piece of himself was left behind as a vessel of his power and will! If I can find other pieces, I can make their power my own and grow far stronger…" He hesitated as he turned this plan over in his mind, considering the possible consequences. "...but not too much stronger," he decided finally. "Strong enough that I no longer need fear the power of the Sword, but not so strong I draw the attention of the Gods that slew the Great One. I shall have to be...choosy, which fragments I seek out. If they are too weak, I will need to take too much to achieve a proper difference. Too strong, and I may be the one overwhelmed. Hmm...this will take careful planning…"
He looked through the windows, observing the worlds the Great One had left shards of his being on. First, he eliminated any worlds on which the Shards had not awakened on their own yet, as their power would still be dormant and of no use to him. This drastically reduced the number of worlds to check. The next culling was of those worlds where the Shards had already been bested - or were in the process of being bested - by that world's heroes, the equivalents of the Samurai. This further reduced the available choices, bringing it down to a manageable number.
"Let me see now," he murmured as he went through the worlds one by one, seeing which Shards were viable choices. "No...no...too strong...too weak…" He blinked as he came across one particular world that was simply...odd. "Too strange...seriously, evil clothing? What was the Great One thinking?" He thought about all the worlds he'd already culled from selection. "Then again, with how many Shards are out there, originality will have to go to some strange places eventually. Still, it would have been nice of the Great One to leave me some of whatever stash he used to come up with that." He flicked through a few more worlds...and paused on one that peaked his interest. "What is this? Beasts of shadow hunting the living? Humanity barely surviving? This world intrigues me…" He delved deeper...and found the Shard. "Oh ho! A Queen of darkness and deception, a Shadow Witch commanding the hordes of Grim Beasts...using humans as puppets to bring about their own downfall? Now this is power I can use...and because it is spread in such a wide net, the difference will be enough to void the sword's threat, but not so much as to draw the eyes of the Gods! And then I can have two worlds to reign over as the Empire of Aku!" Grinning widely, he checked things over in his empire to ensure nothing too dangerous could happen while he was away, and opened a portal to that world at a point where he could encounter the Shard without tripping over that world's heroes. After all, he'd seen that one of the heroes possessed a power within her similar to that of the Sword, so it would be best if he entered the world before she learned of that power.
Aku slowly took form as he arrived in the new world, gazing up at the broken moon that hung in the sky above him. "Ah...she has already done such wondrous work." He took a deep sniff of the air, tasting the world. "Shadows all but consume the light, and the beasts stalk everywhere. But this far from the sources of my strength, I will need to sustain myself…"
A growl caught his attention. Turning, he spotted a massive beast of living shadow approaching him, its shape somehow maintained by a white mask that it used as a face.
"That will do," Aku observed calmly as the beast roared and lunged. Changing shape, he lashed forward and caught the beast, lifting it into the air. "Beast of shadow, you shall be my sustenance. Feel honored that you are the first of this world's darkness to become part of the Great Aku." With that, he opened his jaw wide and bit the beast in half, chewing the half with the mask until the entire thing dissolved into shadows he absorbed. "That was...satisfying," he purred pleasantly before snaking off into the shadows. He would find the Shard easily. Darkness knew its own…
It wasn't long before Aku found the Shard's stronghold, a dark castle hidden deep in the untamed wastes and wilderness of the world's shadows. Snaking in, he found his path barred by two figures. The first seemed to be a human with a scorpion tail, while the second seemed to be half-giant at least. Aku did not consider their appearance important beyond that. Since they were plainly waiting for him, he took shape at human height before them. "And who might you be?" he demanded cruelly. "Pawns and puppets of darkness? Or wandering heroes who will meet their end?"
"Why don't you take a guess and find out?" the scorpion-man taunted as he licked one of his wrist-blades, plainly eager for combat.
"It matters not to me," Aku countered cruelly. "I have business with the master of this domicile. You will stand aside or be destroyed."
The giant braced himself in a combat stance, pulling odd crystals out of his pockets. "Lady Salem said she felt something eat one of her Grimm," he said calmly. "She called us back in case whoever it was came for her as well. Was that you?"
"Indeed it was," Aku confirmed. "I had need of sustenance, and it was but the first of the dark of this world I shall consume."
The man lifted the crystals. "I don't think you'll be going-"
Before anyone could say anymore, tendrils of shadow leapt up out of the ground and smacked the two defenders aside, slamming them into walls and binding them in wreathing shadows. "I grow tired of this discussion," Aku growled irritably before snaking his way forward. Slipping into the next room, he raised himself to tower over the figure there.
The Shard was as he'd seen her. Moon pale skin with crimson cracks in her flesh, revealing the shadows beneath. White hair tied in black ribbons framing her head like a crown. Crimson eyes around black pupils. A black and red dress that framed her figure flawlessly, seeming to indicate a promise of sensual delights in an embrace of death. As she stared up at him, he raised his voice. "Queen of this world's shadows, know that your time of power is at an end, for now your power shall belong to me-"
The woman's expression changed from cruel, playful dominance to an almost girlish glee. "Aku-sempai!" she screamed out excitedly before hurling herself forward, snaking across the ground to glomp onto him.
Aku stared down at the woman clinging to him and squealing girlishly, uncertain what to do now or how to react. He had expected her fighting him to prevent his taking her power, or perhaps subservient surrender with the knowledge she stood no chance, not...this. "Uh…" he began, uncertain what to do now.
The scorpion-man laughing like a hyena while the giant repeatedly banged the back of his head against the wall did not help.