The sun had already past its highest point in the sky when Ashi, still dressed in her green kimono with the blood stain on her back, finally reached a large clearing at the heart of the dark forest. "First you must travel to the very center of the woods until you find Aku's temple." It was just as the wolf had described: A black and red pagoda that stood five stories tall alone at the center of an empty crater. At the very top of the temple was a large orange flame that seemed to hover above the sōrin.

"It will be very frightening inside the temple and Aku will try to trick you into speaking but no matter what happens you must mind your tongue and not say a word." The wolf's guidance still echoed in her mind. "You'll know if it's safe to go in by looking at the flame above the temple. If the flame is big that means Aku is inside but if the flame grows smaller that means the temple is empty."

Ashi walks towards the end of the crater, hops over the edge and slowly makes her way towards the temple. At that moment, the ground began to shake, a large black mass flew out of the top floor window of the pagoda and headed east. The flame on the sōrin grew smaller in size, Ashi took this chance to run towards the door and close it behind her. Inside Ashi saw the walls and floors were shaded with different hues of red, orange, yellow and black. There was one set of stairs to the side and on the other side of the room facing the door, there was a giant red–golden chair that was carved to look like flames.

"Once you are inside, go to the giant chair which should be straight ahead of you." The wolf's voice said.

'The giant chair, that must be it right there.' Ashi thought as she ran to the chair.

"At the right side of the chair, you will see a door with a slide lock. Inside is Aku's private treasure room. At the center of the room, you'll see a metal chest, open it and remember not to speak even if you think you're alone." The wolf had told her previously.

Ashi found the large slide lock, opened the door and inside she found strange objects hanging along the walls but the one thing that stood out the most was a porcelain mask with a pair of red lips drawn in a neutral expression now stained with blood and cracked slightly. She had almost completely forgotten about her priestess and felt sad over the death of the other servants but she didn't have time grieve, she needed to finish her quest. At the center of the room, there was a large metal chest the size of a coffin, Ashi quickly opened it and saw gold coins and glittering jewels of all the colors of the rainbow inside.

'Look at all these jewels.' Ashi thought. She was about to shout in amazement but stopped herself right away by pressing her hands against her mouth. 'You can't say a word you fool or you'll never get out of here alive.' She started digging through the treasure.

"There is a special key hidden among the jewels, its handle is shaped like a crescent moon. You must find this key before you do anything else." The wolf said in her mind.

Ashi wiped her brow, 'How am I supposed to find a special key in all this?!' Ashi thought as she continued her search.

Meanwhile Outside the Pagoda...

Once Ashi closed the doors of the pagoda, the flame above the sōrin had gone from bright orange to neon blue, the hōju absorbed the blue flame till the whole sōrin looked like a lit matchstick. Then the sōrin itself began to change shape, it took on a more humanoid form, a long black cape grew from the back with a bright red color inside, and two blue eyes opened on the black surface of the hōju, as well as a grinning fanged mouth. Within the head of this being a popping sound came as little black bubbles were now visible. It was like the inside of a pot of boiling water. The figure stretched out its arms over his head and yawned as if waking up from a long sleep, allowing his cape to flutter behind him. After this, he felt a sudden jolt that traveled from his feet to his flaming head and then he took a little sniff in the air. He smiled gleefully.

"Well well well, it seems we have an unexpected visitor in my master's temple." He sneakered to himself. "I better give them a proper welcome." He laughs.

He then tries to pry his fastened feet from the roban until they snapped free with small splinters flying off and he started to climb along the railings to the ground swiftly. He made his way to the door just in time to see someone walk through the door under Aku's chair.

"Hmmm... very interesting." He said to himself quietly as he walks towards Aku's throne.

Ashi continued her search, biting down her lip to prevent herself from groaning out loud until she finally managed find to a black key with a handle shaped like a crescent moon.

'I found it.' She thought and nearly voiced that statement until she stopped herself. 'Can't I keep my big mouth shut?'

Just then she heard a series of chuckles coming from behind her. She turns around to see a shadowy figure with blue flames on his head and wearing a cape. He stood in the doorway but walks towards Ashi slowly.

"Well hello there. I; Demongo could've sworn I smelled a wolf lurking in here but, instead I find a mouse." Demongo said smiling, his face suddenly changes to make himself look more frightening.

Ashi was almost about to scream but she quickly covers her mouth with her hands.

"Not a word, don't even scream or all is lost," The wolf's voice went on in her head. "Be brave, you can do it."

"So you thought you could make off with Aku's treasure, did you?" Demongo said as he readied to grab her but instead, he was struck in the face by a handful of coins and jewelry. While he was temporarily distracted Ashi made her way out the door and locked it from the outside with the slide lock.

"Once you retrieve the key make your way up the stairs till you reach the fifth floor." She hears the wolf's voice in her mind as she looks up the stairs.

Her face changes from uncertainty to determination as she quickly makes her way up the steps, all the while the door to the treasure room keeps banging loudly. Demongo tried desperately to break down the door but had no luck against the lock until... The door bursts open, crashing against the wall (the door singed slightly) and a panic–stricken Demongo comes out. He looks towards the front door to find it still opened, he began to fear the worst until he heard wood cracking from up above. He looks up to see Ashi already on the second floor and he smiles.

"Where do you think you're going, my dear?" He said shapeshifting his hand into a spear. "You think you can get away, how futile."

Ashi ignored him and kept running as fast as she could, already on the third floor.

"You know something, my dear, you're going to be my first victim." Demongo said as he carefully aims for his target. Ashi eyes widen but did not stop running. "No one else has ever made it this far into my master home so I've never had the chance to kill anyone myself. So you can only imagine how much fun I'm going to have once I get you... to... SCREAM!"

At those final words, Demongo throws the spear towards the last steps of the fourth set of stairs while Ashi was still on it and it collapsed. Ashi felt the floor fall underneath her but Ashi managed to grab the wood of the fifth floor with her hands before she fell midair. She would have screamed but before she could, however, she bit down her lip hard (almost to the point of bleeding), 'Don't scream, no matter what!' Ashi thought to herself as she dangled over the ledge.

"Damn" Demongo said aloud. "Not even a shriek!" he was annoyed by this girl's lack cooperation but then he realizes, "Well, so long as you're just hanging there." He said smiling. He quickly runs for and up the stairs towards her, laughing along the way.

Ashi realized what was about to happen and quickly tried her best to pull herself up. She had just managed to pull her upper body over the edge when Demongo reached the top of the third–floor steps.

"Ready or not, here I come~!" Demongo says in a sing–song voice, already making his way up the fourth floor.

Ashi quickened the pace and kicked her feet in the air in panic when Demongo was just a few steps away. Demongo saw her struggles reaches out and, through a moment of carelessness, grabs Ashi by the ankle. When he did, however, his hand turned white and he felt a horrible burning sensation course through it. It was an experience similar to grabbing on to a red–hot poker with your bare hands. He quickly pulled away and tried blowing on his hand to relieve the pain not noticing Ashi's foot until she kicks him square in the face. As he groaned in pain after falling on the floor, Ashi continued using her strength to pull herself up until she was finally standing on the fifth floor. She looks around and sees that there were twelve locked doors on this floor, three on each of the four walls around her.

"The key opens one of the doors on the fifth floor and inside the room, you'll find a katana. Bring it to me and my curse will be broken." She heard the wolf's words again. "And remember whatever happens do not say a word."

One by one Ashi tried in vain to unlock the doors with the key but there were too many of them and she was running out of time. 'It's no use. I'm trapped.' She thought to herself trying to force the doors open.

Demongo used his powers of manipulating burning wood to fashion himself a makeshift latter and he was now on the fifth floor with Ashi but he didn't make a run for her. Demongo knew he had to be careful about this; he couldn't physically touch her until she talked or screamed and she hasn't. If he tries anything beforehand it could cost him his own life so if he couldn't attack her directly... he looks towards one of the burning torches on the wall.

"Then I'll just have to improvise." He said smiling and forcing the fire from the torch fly into his own hand and turned it blue.

Soon enough all the torches on the fifth floor turned blue, Ashi stopped in place as she noticed this. Suddenly Demongo's voice started to echo and it seemed to be coming from the torches. "That's right my dear. I have more control over this pagoda than even Aku could ever know. He may be MY master but truly I am the king of this castle!"

The blue flames then grew brighter and hotter that it nearly hurt Ashi just to be near them. Suddenly one door opened for her and she ran through it quickly to find another door open for her and then another, and another, and another, and another. Suddenly Ashi found herself in an endless corridor of doors, all of them identical and all of them opened to her.

Ashi could only go on for so much longer until she stopped running for a moment to catch her breath.

"Do you want it to stop?" Demongo's voices echoed through the hall of doors. "Just voice it out and I'll make it so."

She almost considered giving in until she looked again at the key in her hand. An image of the wolf's face appeared before her eyes.

'No, I mustn't give up,' Ashi thought. 'I got to find that katana no matter what.' She shook herself of her weariness and just ran straight ahead.

She continued to run until she actually saw a door that wasn't identical and stayed closed until she turned the handle herself, opened it, and slammed it behind her. She just stood there for a second before opening her and taking a look at her surroundings. This must have been one of the unused rooms in the pagoda because all that was in there was a twin size bed, other furniture with clothe blankets draped over them, and a large window. Ashi went to the window only to find it was barred shut from the outside. She looked out to see the edge of the forest where she came from and thought about her friend who was counting on her, she began to sniffle. Dreading for her possible failure.

"It may be a cliché." Came Demongo's voice from behind. Ashi turned around to see him standing in the doorway with that evil smile. "But I cannot stand to see a woman cry... unless of course, it was my doing." He then grabs the door handle and shuts it behind him, not once prying his eyes off Ashi. "Well enough crying, time for some screaming, because I'm going to frighten you like nothing that has ever frighten you before." He shot three balls of blue fire from his hands towards but they missed each time by just an inch and she still would not cry out. "And if that won't make you talk perhaps my naginata will." He created one from his hand and aimed its blade towards her. "Of course I saved the best for last for you, my pretty little mouse."

Ashi grabbed the first thing she could find which turned out to be an old vase and held it out defensively. Demongo merely laughs at this and raises his weapon only to be caught off guard as Ashi suddenly throws the vase, hitting him on his stomach, and causing him to gasp. She then grabs a long cloth off a large glass case and throws it on Demongo. She was about to grab for something else but when Ashi looks back at the box she sees a sword inside. But not just any sword, a katana! The glass case had huge chains wrapped around it with one lone lock attaching it, the lock had an engraving of a crescent moon on it.

'It matches the key! This must be the wolf's sword!' Ashi thought.

She quickly inserts the key inside the lock and turns it. The lock snaps open releasing the chain and the box suddenly opens for her. Ashi grabs the sword by the hilt, it started to glow magically at her touch, and she holds it in front of her. She then looks back at her attacker still struggling with the clothe until he finally rips it apart. But when he sees Ashi now with the katana in her hands he is soon filled with fear.

"Impossible" Demongo said, with a worried voice.

Noticing the fear written on Demongo's face, Ashi smiled rather mischievously. 'What was that you said before?' she thought looking at him, 'Something about having fun?'

As if reading her thoughts, Demongo raised his naginata again and yells in anger trying to mask his fear, "That's it! I don't care if I get burned, it will be a little pinch compared to what Aku will do to me if I let you escape with that sword!"

With that said, he charges for her with his weapon and Ashi does the same with the katana in silence. She uses the blade of her sword to maneuver the naginata away from its target and swiped the katana towards Demongo.

Swipe

They stood there back to back of each other when Demongo suddenly fell on his knees, drops his weapon, and clutching where his stomach would be. Ashi looked back at him with a stern look on her face and watched him turn his head towards her. To her surprise, Demongo starts laughing, with black ink dripping out of his mouth, and his flame started to flicker and slowly lose its color.

"Congratulation little mouse." Demongo said, smiling that sinister smile of his. "You've killed me... but know... that my master shall return soon enough and discover what has happened here." He coughs up ink as he continues to speak. "He will catch you... along with that pathetic mutt in the forest... and I shall die gladly knowing that your fate will be far worse than my own." At these final words, Demongo's whole body exploded in smoke and ink that splattered on Ashi. When the smoke cleared and she wiped his 'blood' off her face and hands, Ashi saw a grey sōrin that was cut in half at the center, its hōju burned and surrounded in a pool of black ink.

Ashi would be lying if she said that Demongo's words didn't shake her but she didn't have time to dwell on it. When she opened the door out of the room she found herself back on the fifth floor with the broken stairway in front of her. Ashi used Demongo's latter down the floor, continued her way down the stairs, and out the front door as quickly as she could. With the sword still in her hands, she made her way straight towards the forest. Luckily, she did not have to go too far as the wolf was waiting for her among the trees less than a few meters away from the clearing.

"Wolf!" she shouted happily and kneels in front of him. "Your sword" she places the katana down.

The wolf places his paw on the katana's hilt and suddenly his whole body began to glow brightly. So much so, that Ashi had to shield her eyes with her arms. A moment later she felt a hand grab onto her own.

"Thank you very much, my beautiful friend." The voice of the wolf spoke.

"Wolf, what happened?" she asked opening her eyes.

She looked up to see a man standing before of her. Ashi's eyes widened and she gasped in surprise. He was fairly tall, he looked like he was in his early to mid–twenties and of Asian descent. He also had long jet–black hair that was tied in a Japanese chonmage. His clothing consists of a simple white and gray gi, a white obi around his waist, and a pair of wooden getas.

He helps Ashi up to her feet, "Well I'm glad you recognize my voice but I'm not really a wolf, I am the son of an Emperor whose kingdom was attacked by Aku. I don't think I could ever thank you enough Ashi." He gently tightens his grip on her hands.

Ashi smiles, "I knew it. Please tell me your name." she asks, a slight blush now visible on her cheeks.

The man smiles back and answers. "They called me–"

"SAMURAI JACK?!"

Author's Note:

It took me a long time to figure out what to write in this chapter. Then I remembered Demongo and how much I loved his design but I thought he seemed a little downplayed in terms of personality. I thought he could be more intimidating on his own if he didn't need to rely on his warriors. So I wrote him as the fighter and I'm very pleased with myself.

One last chapter is on the way. See you then