"Long ago in a distant land, I, Aku, a shapeshifting Master of Darkness, unleashed an unspeakable evil. But, a foolish samurai warrior wielding a magic sword stepped forth to oppose me. We clashed for ages, but eventually, the fool defeated me. Before the final blow was struck, I tore open a portal in time, and flung him into the future, where my evil is law. Now, the fool seeks to return to the past, and undo the future that is Aku."
VI
The sound of motorcycle penetrated the landscape. With each passing second, it tore through the air, leaving a wake of noise which deafened Jack's thoughts. He liked it, as he couldn't think about whatever he was thinking about. However, something else concerned him.
Who was that, he thought, thinking of the apparition he saw in his dream. Should he fear its presence, because that was already what he did. Or should he be glad of its existence? Things were becoming more confusing. But Jack's thoughts kept getting interrupted by the sound of the engine, much to his amusement.
He didn't know why, but he had a sudden urge to stop. Looking around, he saw nothing more than a couple of boulders, a forest beside them, and between it all, a lovely grassy plain stretching out to the horizon.
But Jack knew there was something more to this place, something that grabbed his interest. He turned off the motorcycle and began walking around, investigating the rocks. As it turns out, there was a small crevice only big enough for Jack to fit through. Squeezing his way into a small cavern, Jack found a torch and lit it, only to be greeted with the beautiful ruins of whatever civilization came before. He traveled through the cavern, until he saw a giant room with nothing but a small little Japanese-style hut strewn in the middle of it all. Mist covered the floor, the same mist Jack encountered on his dream. He could feel a bit afraid of what was before him, but he crushed it down. Taking a big gulp, he entered the room, and walked toward the hut.
Inside, he saw a small room, filled to the edges with candles. I have a bad feeling about this, he thought to himself. His fears were confirmed true when the same shadowy figure appeared before Jack.
"Do you know who I am?" uttered the being.
"N-no. Who are you?"
"I am the result of your failure. I am your Omen."
A candle lifted by itself, and showed Jack the face of the being. Jack was completely aghast. The face was not unfamiliar. In fact, the face was Jack's own. Scars covered every inch of the face, and one eye had no pupil. The large beard covered whatever was left untouched by the scars.
"You have failed to regain your honor. You've failed your purpose. You never saved them."
Jack fell onto his knees. How could such a thing happen? What did he do wrong? What was going to happen to him?
The room began spinning, and all-around Jack, he could see the suffering of his father, his mother, everybody he knew and loved, and worse, it was all happening at the same time. He felt feelings of despair he never felt before. How foolish of him to even think there ever was hope. How could he, a human being, ever hope to go back to the past in a future where there is none? They were gone, he was here, suffering as punishment for abandoning them.
"STOP!"
The faces of the different people Jack knew appeared one-by-one, speaking to him.
"You have forgotten us!"
"You have abandoned us!"
"You were our only hope!"
"You were supposed to save us!"
"What happened?"
Samurai clenched his hair in his fists. No, he thought. This cannot be true. This cannot be real.
The Omen read him like a book.
"These people are very real. Your failure is real."
Jack screamed out. He couldn't take it anymore. He lunged at The Omen, punching him as hard as he could. None of them ever got past the armor.
The Omen grabbed Jack by the throat and picked him up. Jack, trying to reach for every breath of air, felt defeated.
"I shall give you time. But remember, every step you take. Every second that passes. Every person you save. You will know who I am."
The Omen dropped Jack, who at this point was afraid for his life. Jack scurried out, tail between his legs. It was the scariest moment in his life, yet he fought much bigger, stronger things. Why was this one different?
Jack didn't seem to care. He ran out, got on his motorcycle, and cleared out.
It was going to be a glorious day. The construction was completely finished, everything was decorated in an organized matter, and now the feast was about to begin. Eleanora began with a toast.
"Today, we celebrate an important victory for us! We are on the brink of a breakthrough. With this place as our new base of operations, we will be unstoppable!"
Everybody cheered.
Eleanora took a shot of whisky.
"Now, we dine for a- "
She completely stopped, clenching her heart while her breathing became heavy and labored. Meredith rushed by her side and held her in her arms.
"Mother, are you okay?" she asked.
Eleanora gasped for air, but even though she was worrying Meredith, she didn't want to.
"I'm fine…it's just…just…"
She collapsed onto the floor, and just stopped breathing.
It all happened so suddenly. Her death was not a long one, as the poison coursed through her veins like a raging wildfire. Now, it had reached her brain, which ceased to function.
Meredith, however, suffered a greater deal. She was washed with guilt over her mother. How she grew distant because of her training with Tatsu. Her lashing out at her mother. How ironic that only now she understood the actions of her mother, and why.
"Mother? Mother…"
She wanted to cry, but no tears came out. Instead, she felt an anger boiling inside her, an anger she could not contain.
Aku is everything…
She was a bit surprised by the new voice within her head, but she listened to it carefully.
Aku IS everything.
For one bit, she couldn't believe it. Her soul had been broken, her heart ripped from her chest.
For one bit.
"Aku is everything…"
She kept whispering those words until she got louder.
"Aku is everything."
She got up, leaving her mother on the ground, fists clenched in anger. She kept getting louder.
"Aku is everything!"
She went to the top of her lungs, to people who were almost horrified at what was unfolding before them.
Meredith was no more. She died at the hands of what she believed was Jack's doing. This couldn't be anyone here. It had to be Jack. Jack killed Eleanor. Jack was the evil one, one to be eradicated from this Earth. One that was the ultimate deceiver and would stop at nothing to obtain what he wants. Oh, she was angry. There couldn't be any other way to describe it. Furious would be an understatement. Meredith was lost, replaced by the person Tatsu trained, Pureisuto. Yes, this was to be her new name. Her new identity under One Aku.
"AKU IS EVERYTHING!"
With every repetition, she believed it more and more.
"AKU IS EVERYTHING!"
"AKU IS EVERYTHING!"
And at that point…
Aku became everything.