Disclaimer:

This story is based on the cartoon 'Samurai Jack'. I do not own Samurai Jack or anything associated with the show. That honor goes to the folks at Cartoon Network and the shows creator, Genndy Tartakovsky. The only things I do own are all the original characters portrayed in my story. So to recap, Samurai Jack and all related characters and places © Genndy Tartakovsky and Cartoon Network, All original characters and storyline © Adriana Limon (Nanas, IceDancer).

Notes

I have pictures that go with this chapter…I just can't find them. Apparently I deleted them from my sites…but I swear when I find them I'll let you know. So with that. On with the show!

Unclouded Truth: A Tale of Fate

By: IceDancer

Chapter 12

"Mother… can it really be you?" Ikaya said, tears streaming down her face.

Everyone in the room was frozen where they stood, shock strewn across their faces.

"Mother, why do you just stand there, it's me, Ikaya." Ikaya cried, still walking closer to the confused Ikra.

"Ikaya wait." Jack finally said, grabbing Ikaya's arm, "That is not your mother."

"No, you're wrong…" she said, turning to him, "you're wrong, Jack."

By this time the shock that had taken over Ikra's face had turned into a more pensive expression.

"It seems the game has changed, Samurai." She said, jumping into the air and transforming into a large bird, but still keeping the face of Ikra.

"Stop, Aku!" Jack said, running to the large hole in the corner of the room.

"There is a large quarry on the outskirts of this city." She said, except now with Aku's own voice, "If it is a fight you are looking for, Samurai, I will be there."

The large bird flew away in a hurry; the shadow demon now waving from it's back.

Jack watched as the black figure disappeared over the horizon. He didn't understand what had just happened, and with everything that Aku was capable of Jack never thought that he would see the day when Aku left without so much as an attack from one of his mindless drones. And it was then that Jack remembered Ikaya.

He turned to face the shocked young woman standing alone in the center of the empty room. She was shaking slightly, her movements were rigid and stressed while she struggled to say anything that was floating through her head, but when she finally found her voice her cries were something that Jack will never forget.

"Mother! MOTHER WAIT!" Ikaya yelled, running toward the opening in the building next to where Jack was.

"MOTHER PLEASE, COME BACK!"

"Ikaya…" Jack said, trying to get her attention, to no avail.

"WHY ARE YOU LEAVING ME AGAIN? WHY ARE YOU LEAVING?"

"Ikaya listen to me!" Jack yelled, grabbing her shoulders, turning her to face him.

Her eyes were so wide and filled with confusion, Jack was shocked. He tried to relax Ikaya, but each attempt to calm her was met with a hard shove to the left or a push to try and get away. Her cheeks covered in her tears and she was nearly inconsolable while she fought Jack with all her strength, trying to turn toward the window again.

"LET GO OF ME! LET GO! MY MOTHER, SHE'S LEAVING!"

"IKAYA," Jack yelled louder than he could ever remember doing, "THAT WAS NOT YOUR MOTHER!

Ikaya finally stopped fighting to get away.

"That was Aku, in the form of the woman he named Ikra. I am sorry for all of this, but Ikaya you must listen…that was not your mother."

Ikaya gasped for air, the truth racing through her mind and even though she fought to keep it from setting in her eyes made it clear that it had done just that.

"I…I…" she gasped out, collapsing into Jack's chest, crying in a way she had never done before.

Her sobs were intense, her face buried in his torso. Jack wrapped his arms around her, a serene worry across his face while Ikaya continued to cry within his embrace and although it pained him to see her like this he knew that for the moment there was nothing he could do but hold her.

"Master…" the shadow demon said, as they flew toward the quarry in the distance.

"Yes, what is it?" Aku said his face unreadable.

"Why didn't you destroy them both there and then like you had planned to do to the Samurai? Why are you prolonging the battle?"

Aku looked up at the demon, an annoyed look across his face.

"I mean if you don't mind me asking, Master, I mean." The Demon said, slightly flinching.

"Because of what that girl said. If the female form I take is indeed that of her mothers, then this ordeal has just become more complicated than I had originally thought, but before I can make my move I must make sure that my premonition is correct."

"Yes, Master." The demon said, still unsure of what his master was speaking of as they continued to fly toward their destination.

Jack and Ikaya were now on the floor within the empty unfinished room. Jack kneeled as Ikaya's listless body lay against his for a moment while she calmed down. Her sobs now changing to quiet weeping as she clung to Jack, who still held his arms around her.

"Why would Aku do that?" She finally whispered through her tears, the past stress becoming clear in her tired voice. "Why would he take the form of my mother?"

"I do not know." He said, staring at the floor, "but there is a way that we can find out."

Ikaya looked up at him. Jack had a soft smile on his face, his hand reaching up to wipe away the damp tears from her cheek.

"What do you mean?" she asked, still in a hushed tone.

"I understand if you can not do this, Ikaya, but Aku is waiting just outside of the city…perhaps by accepting his battle request he will tell us why he chose your mothers form."

Ikaya stared up at Jack, her eyes still glossy and full of tears, which she quickly wiped away. She slid away from Jack and stood up, still rigid on her feet she walked over to her bag. She kneeled, putting back all the things that had fallen out of it when she came across her mothers letters. Ikaya paused before picking them up. She held the bundle in her hands, her fingers going over the place where her mother had written her name. A determined look came across her face as she stood up and straightened her composure.

"Then let's go to him." She said, walking over to where her staff lay.

"Are you positive this is what you want to do?" Jack said, placing his hand on her shoulder.

"I've been searching for so long, if facing Aku is the only way to find out what happened to my mother then I will."

"If that is how you feel." He said as they rushed out of the room and made their way toward the outskirts of town.

Aku stood atop one of the high quarry walls, standing perfectly still just as Ikaya and Jack ran up to the base of the wall.

"AKU!" Jack yelled up to him.

"Samurai, you accepted my invitation, I can not say that I am surprised. I was beginning to worry though, you did take longer than I expected."

"No more of your games, Aku!"

"Yes, I understand Samurai. The young woman wishes to ask something of me, yes?"

"Where is my mother? Why did you take her form?" Ikaya yelled up to Aku, throwing her cloak to the ground.

Aku made no movement but did take notice of the jewel in Ikaya's chest. He stared down at the two of them, his face unreadable.

"Aku! Please, I need to know!" Ikaya yelled again.

"Perhaps someday you will know, child." Aku said, his gaze blank, "But until then…"

"Ikaya, behind you!" Jack yelled, barely blocking a strike from one of Aku's drones.

Almost instantly the land around them was covered with Aku's mindless insect drones, seemingly multiplying in the blink of an eye. Jack and Ikaya slashed in all directions trying in vain to cut down their attackers numbers. Instead each destruction of an enemy seemed to result in two more attacking them. The two of them struggled to keep the other in sight as if the drones were trying their best to separate the two of them.

"Master, destroy them now, when they are occupied with your drones, destroy them!" the Shadow Demon yelled, enjoying the scuffle below them.

"Ah, Demon, if only that is what I planned for them. I would step away from the edge if I were you."

The Demon looked up at his master, completely unaware of what was going on when Aku's eyes began to glow.

Ikaya suddenly let out a shallow cry before falling to her knees.

"Ikaya!" Jack yelled, trying to go to where she kneeled on the floor.

'What's happening?' Ikaya thought, the throbbing in her stomach now traveling up to her head.

Ikaya reached up and placed her palms on the outside of her head. Each beat of her heart seemed to make the pain worse. Her eyes were wide, she knew this feeling and she fought desperately to keep it in!

Her body ached and beads of sweat fell down her face. She needed to get away, she needed to keep away from Jack but the pain she felt made that an impossibility. She clenched her teeth and closed her eyes and with one last burst of effort called out to her companion.

"Get away, Jack!" She yelled.

"No, I will not leave yo…"

"JACK!" she yelled again, "GET AWAY, NOW!"

Ikaya raised herself to the sky and instantly a burst of energy shot out from her chest. Jack turned and was able to take cover behind a large boulder just as the wave of power coming from Ikaya destroyed every single drone that had attacked them.

The shadow demon was thrown back a few feet from the blast below them. He landed with a hard thud and quickly scurried to hide under the rocks behind him and his master who stood at the edge of the wall looking at the events happening below him.

"IKAYA?" Jack yelled out to her, "IKAYA!"

Jack reached his hand out from where he hid and quickly brought it back in. The pain that engulfed it was something that he had never felt before. Jack held his hand close to him but quickly forgot about his own injury when he heard the screams coming from Ikaya. She was in such pain and he knew that he had to do something, anything.

Jack grabbed his sword and stood up from where he was protected from her power. The light that engulfed him was so incredibly painful that he almost fell to the safety behind the boulder again, but managed to take a few steps forward.

'What is the samurai doing?' Aku thought, 'He will be destroyed.'

Jack began to falter, his knees felt as if they would break any second, but he persevered. Jack clenched his teeth and raised his sword in front of him. Instantly the power exerting from Ikaya grew fainter around the sword, not by much but it was a noticable difference. Jack inched toward, slowly making his way to the screaming Ikaya, whose body arched back in agony.

Each step being harder than the last, but Jack refused to stop, taking another step that he felt would be his last when he finally made it to Ikaya. Jack reached out and grabbed Ikaya by the wrist, instantly engulfing himself in the excruciatingly painful power that Ikaya herself felt.

Jack began to scream and fought the need to let go with all his might.

Ikaya was unable to do anything to help him, the pain that she felt all this time was taking a toll on her body. She felt as if she was about to explode when she felt a weight around her. The sting that she felt before began to slowly fade, and although it was still there it was far less intense. Ikaya opened her eyes and realized that Jack had her in his embrace, taking on half of the power that was shooting out of her jewel. His sword was placed between them and Ikaya realized that it was that sword that kept him from being destroyed.

Ikaya looked at Jack, who was using all his strength to keep from passing out. With a painful gesture, Ikaya reached her arm around Jack and placed the other hand upon the sword in between them. Instantly there was a burst of white light and the two of them were thrown from where they kneeled, landing hard on the ground.

The dust was beginning to settle when Ikaya managed to open her eyes and look over at Jack, who lay unconscious some distance from where she herself lay. Her vision was blurred and it was hard for her to breath. Her body ached and was so weak she found it surprising that she herself was still awake, even if she could feel herself going under.

The sun was beginning to set in the distance and the sky was a beautiful shade of gold and orange. Ikaya began to fall unconscious when she heard footsteps coming toward her. Slowly she moved her head to try to see who was coming, her vision growing even more blurry by the second, and just before she fell unconscious she saw the figure of a man that she had only seen once before, and then nothing but black.