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War Of Shadows	By : TurtleNinja Category: +S through Z > Samurai Jack Views: 3353 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Samurai Jack, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
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I felt so weightless, as if I was flying, as if the wind itself was carrying me away, beating with invisible wings. I could feel the cool, crisp, sweet-smelling night air dance across my fever-drenched body. I was ill. That blue orb...it cast illness of some kind upon me.

I could feel a comforting warmth wrap around me, almost like a mother's embrace, and instantly, I relaxed. I wanted to move, yet remained still, feeling too weak and ill to move much. I was weak, helpless as a newborn kitten, and hoped that I was not alone should Ekirei decide to return and finish me off.

Faintly, I could hear Chimitsu's voice speaking to someone else, but I did not know whom. They were speaking too softly for me to catch what they were saying or recognize any of the voices besides Chimitsu's, yet that alone made me feel better. I was among friends and could allow myself to drift away and recover.

Slowly, I drifted back within the depths of my mind, past the memories of my family and childhood, letting myself wander, drifting endlessly, not knowing where I was. Perhaps I was dying, but it did not really feel like death, not like how I had expected it to be. Not this quiet, gentle peacefulness surrounding me from all over. I sighed contentedly and closed my eyes, letting the feeling overtake me, too exhausted to fight the relaxing feeling for long.

Slowly, I opened my eyes, feeling another's presence nearby. It was warm, like a fire, and full of love like my mother. I had stopped floating and was now lying facedown on what I thought was the ground, what felt solid like the ground, but..was not the ground. It was...nowhere, really, just white, open, infinite mists. It was as if I had simply stopped floating while I had been asleep and was suspended here, although I could move quite freely if I wanted

I pulled myself up onto my knees, looking around into the mists for the source of the presence I was feeling. Soon, the mists parted, revealing a beautiful redheaded woman wearing an elaborate red kimono embroidered with silver phoenixes kneeling a few feet away. She looked up at me and smiled, her aquamarine eyes shimmering with the same kindness I had seen in Chimitsu's eyes. But she was not Chimitsu.

"Who...?"

She chuckled softly and seemed to float over to me, not once moving from her kneeling position.

"My name's Himoto and I am the Elemental of Fire."

Her voice carried a warm, twangy accent to it, soft and comforting. I was not certain if I was alive or dead, awake or dreaming, everything feeling so surreal to me at that moment. After all, if she truly was one of Chimitsu's sisters, she could not possibly be here, not when she was dead.

Not unless I, too, was dead, and the uncertainty of that thought was more than a little unnerving.

"The Elemental of Fire? But that is impossible. The Elemental of Fire is...is..." I began.

"Dead? Yes, I know. I died months ago, dear samurai, but the Elemental Circle has been broken and it can't be restored until you have completed your quest."

"The destruction of Aku, I know."

"Not just that. You must free us."

"Free you? But if you are already dead, then how are you not free?"

"All in good time, dear warrior. There's more that you must learn first."

I watched her take my hands and look at the palms, her soft, warm hands lightly tracing the little lines in them. I could hardly watch what she was doing, fascinated by her face and the way her phoenix earrings swayed from her lobes. She was more beautiful than anything I had ever seen before. Well, besides Chimitsu, that is.

"Asagi's going to be happy to see this. You have a warrior's hands, strong, powerful. I can feel the power radiating from you. Yes, the time has indeed come at last." she said, unaware of my awestruck staring.

"Time? What time?"

"For the power of the Star of the Elements to be harnessed. A bit premature, I must admit, but we have no choice now. Aku has started things that cannot be reversed and in order to stop him, we need your katana and the Star."

"I am sorry, but I do not have the Star of the Elements. Your sister, Chimitsu, has it."

She smiled a bit, a look of relief briefly crossing her face as she slowly released my hands, letting them drop back down into my lap.

"Ah, yes, our little sister. It's good to know that she's still alive with the Star, otherwise I'd be a bit concerned in activating its power." she said.

"Why would her life be cause for concern?"

"Nevermind that, samurai. What matters is that she's alive and the Star is still within her hands. So long as she's alive and has the amulet, then we still have a chance."

"I mean no disrespect, but what does this all have to do with me?"

She chuckled softly and reached up, brushing my hair out of my face. I caught a spicy sweet scent as she did this, realizing that it was cinnamon. But I could not be distracted by such sweet scents. Not when I still did not know why she was telling me all this now, when I could do nothing to use such information in my current condition.

"Everything. Without you, we can't win. I know it's a lot to put on your shoulders, but there is nothing we can do about it. I know Chimitsu's told you about Elemental Law already and how we Elementals can't harm each other." she said.

"Yes. Only Aku has broken Elemental Law and sent everything off track into chaos."

"Ahh, you learn quick. Good. Then it's safe to assume that she told you about the Star and that sword of yours and how they are connected. One offensive, one defensive, yes?"

"Yes. She told me about the power within my blade and the power of the Star to protect me from Aku's attacks."

"Did she tell you that it has the power to lend you our powers, the protection of the Elements?"

"She did mention something like that, but never fully explained it."

She closed her eyes for a moment, taking my hands again, almost as if she was focusing on something. I could feel a warmth radiating from her, flowing along my veins through my body, but it was not painful. Finally, she opened her eyes and sighed softly, looking a bit sad as she released them once more.

"I see. She didn't have the time to explain everything that was necessary to you. She told you as much as she could, but missed a few things. I must hurry, then. Time is running out for you, warrior, and the world." she said softly.

"What is it that I need to do?"

"Only listen. I was given the first point of the Star to guard over, the Fire Point. It holds the power over fire and heat and from it, you can draw upon this power, but only when the Star is whole. These five Points were meant to work together, not alone, and can only give you any power when the amulet is whole, understood?"

"Yes."

"Good. This point that I guarded over, it can protect you from heat, from fire and if you wish it, it can give you the power to burn your enemies. Use these powers only if you must, though. To use the Elements too much means to throw things even further off balance and we don't need that. Also, a warning, dear warrior, for these powers have but one limitation. In addition to using one power over the others too much, you cannot use one Element against an opponent that bears the same powers."

This did not seem to make any sense to me. What did she mean by fighting someone with the same powers if there was only one Star of the Elements? I was beginning to have a bad feeling about all this.

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"You cannot use Fire on any Fire-related powers, Water on any Water-related powers, and so forth. Aku has created his Dark Elements, which are our opposites and you must choose carefully which Light Elemental power to use against each Dark Elemental."

"I see."

"Give me your hands again, warrior. I need to make sure that the balance is within you and the powers will accept you as their carrier."

I gave her my hands without hesitation and she took them, closing her eyes once more. I felt another, greater surge of warmth sweep through my body, almost to the point of burning me, but somehow, it never became painful, only comforting. Around our hands, I could see a red glow that pulsed with our hearts that beat as one, shining almost too brightly for me to look at.

We sat like that for a few moments, the pulsing of the energy and our soft breaths being the only sounds that I could hear. Finally, she pulled away and released my hands, the glow fading away until the only sign of it was a gentle warmth deep in my chest. I could feel the power welling up within me, a power that I never knew that I held before, something that only Himoto could have invoked.

"It's done. I can do nothing more for you now." she said quietly.

"But there seems to be something I can do for you."

"Indeed. There is but one last thing to do now."

She took my hands again and pressed hers to them in such a way that a surge of energy tore through my body almost violently. I gasped and almost jerked away, but something inside me kept me from it. There was no turning back or fighting it now.

In a rush, the power overwhelmed me and sent my mind and spirit reeling back dizzily into the depths of the Elemental's mind to her last moments...

Opening my eyes, I found myself as a spirit in an elegant palace decorated with various reds and silvers. Expensive paintings, statues, and the like were everywhere, filling every nook and cranny in the building that I could see. Even the floor looked expensive, a red-swirled marble that had been polished so well that I could almost see my reflection in it.

Just ahead of me, I could see a grand staircase made of the same sort of marble as the floor, winding elegantly up towards the far wall in the center, then splitting off into two sides. Statues of phoenixes in varying shades of red crystal adorned the Grecian-styled railings at the bottom of the staircase, frozen in place with their wings outstretched.

Never before had I seen such lavish decor and I walked over towards the railing, reaching up to touch the phoenix statues. They were both exquisitely carved and I was in awe of the detail each one held. Both looked so real that I expected them to take flight the moment my hand touched the cold stone and was disappointed when they did not.

I could hear the sound of someone's heels clicking against the marble in the hall above and looked up towards the top of the staircase. There, standing at the opposite railing, was Himoto, wearing an elegant red dress with a high-necked collar and a skirt that was quite short. It was not as short as Chimitsu's black skirt had been, but was enough to make me blush.

Her red hair had been pulled back and piled up with a few strands curling down around her face, almost hiding the silver and ruby phoenix earrings that she wore. I watched in awe as they swayed back and forth, not finding her to be any less beautiful than when I had met her only a few moments before. But my awe turned to cold unease as she turned my way.

"You...what are you doing here?" she asked, looking right at me.

I froze, my heart pounding wildly in my chest as I debated whether or not could see me.

"You know exactly why I'm here, Himoto."

My blood turned to ice when I heard that voice that haunted me, even in my dreams. Oh gods, I knew that voice, but what was he doing here?

I whirled around, expecting to see Aku, but instead, I saw the man from my vision, the one with the long hair almost to the floor. It was not in a braid this time, but pinned back with some sort of ribbon in the middle, hanging so that the end of the odd ponytail touched his heels.

Once again, I froze, confused. He was hardly what I had expected, not looking at all like the shadow demon I knew, but a young human, perhaps mid thirties or so. I furrowed my brow as I studied him carefully, sensing a dark, chilling aura about him, but it was not enough to convince me that he was Aku.

"If you're here for the Fire Point, you're already too late. It's out of my hands and you'll never attain it." she said.

"A pity, Himoto. You could have spared yourself a great deal of pain by simply handing it over."

"Oh, yes, and allow the world to fall into suffering at your hands. I think not. You're getting pretty predictable in your old age, Aku, y'know that?"

"We shall soon see just how predictable I am, Fire Elemental."

I looked between the pair, watching as Fire brought out a pair of nasty looking sai. They were larger than usual, the prongs much longer than any pair of sai I had ever seen. I turned to the one behind me, looking at him carefully.

It was creepy to see this guy talk with Aku's voice when I KNEW that Aku was a shadow demon, not human. I looked between the two, watching them prepare for battle with each other, feeling sweat trickle down along my jaw as I tried to figure this out. Aku was a powerful, shapeshifting, shadow demon. Why did this guy have his voice and why did Himoto call him "Aku"?

The only explanation I could think of was what Chimitsu had told me about him being the Dark Elemental. If that was true, then that meant that the shadow demon was only a shift and this was his real form. I swallowed hard, realizing what Chimitsu had meant when she had said I knew little of his powers.

I watched as he brought out a large bisento, glancing back towards Himoto and her oversized sai. My heart pounded in panic when I realized that there was no possible way she would be able to get in close enough to strike, even if those sai were larger than normal. His bisento would keep her far enough away unless she wanted to risk being killed.

She walked down the steps, her heels clicking against the marble as she descended. I swallowed hard, not wanting to see this, but I knew that I could not stop it when neither of them could see me. This was all a memory, invoked and shown to me by the Fire Elemental's spirit and it would play out until the end, whether I liked it or not.

They readied themselves before Himoto charged at him, running at full speed. I drew in a breath, knowing that she was going to be instantly impaled upon the blade of the bisento Aku carried. Yet even the fiery Elemental was not stupid when it came to combat.

She ducked low, going underneath the blade, catching the handle in the prongs of her sai. I was impressed with the skill and speed she held, realizing then why the sai were so large. She was used to fighting against polearms as well as blades with them.

Without missing a beat, she drove the other sai into his shoulder with such a vicious force that I took a step back, wincing. That HAD to hurt, yet Aku did not flinch or fall in pain as I had thought. Instead, he laughed and shoved her back, sending her skidding across the marble floor.

He tore the sai from his wounded shoulder and flung it at her, just barely missing her foot as she rolled out of the way. She tore it out of the marble and got to her feet, watching him carefully. He brought the long bisento down and she caught the heavy blade between the crossed prongs of her sai before kicking him in the chin with her heeled shoes, making a resounding crack as the blow connected.

Aku may have been my sworn enemy, but even I had to wince at the thought of being kicked in the face with a pair of those.

He stumbled back and she readied herself again. They took turns circling and swatting at each other, keeping their distance from each other for awhile as I watched helplessly. On occasion, they would appear to make a strike, but it was only a feint in an attempt to bait the other into attacking.

Finally, Aku swung down in an overhead arc towards her, forcing her to duck down and roll. My heart froze in my chest as a few strands of red hair fell to the marble floor as she dove and rolled away, but she had escaped otherwise unharmed. As soon as she had come out of the roll, however, she lashed out with one of her sai, throwing it lefthandedly at Aku, a move that once again impressed me with the level of skill she held. It had to have taken her YEARS to learn how to do that.

He roared and stumbled back as the sai buried itself up to the double prongs in his chest, the other, longer prong protruding from his back. I almost felt sick to see that, knowing that had he not been an Elemental, the move would have instantly killed him. Of course, that was one of the advantages of being immortal.

Again, he tore the weapon from his body, the wound slowly closing after it sluggishly, as if his body was having difficulty in healing itself. Of course! I realized that because he was the Darkness Elemental, the clash of such opposing forces would make it difficult for him to heal. I almost had to pity him, though, knowing that such a wound just HAD to hurt like hell.

Throwing it aside into a wooden pillar, he once again stood ready. Himoto was now down one sai and could not take the time to go after its lost mate, even if she was doing so well against him. So far, she had not been wounded even once, and three times she had struck him hard enough to slow him down, but not much.

"It is good to see that you still have some fighting spirit left in you, Himoto." he said.

"I always have fighting spirit, Aku, at least when it comes to badass Elementals like yourself."

Aku laughed at her words and attacked, slicing down diagonally at her to cut her in two so quickly that I was certain she would not be able to dodge it in time. Effortlessly, she blocked with the remaining sai, twisting it in her hand to try and snap the blade, straining with the effort. I watched helplessly, knowing that it was useless for her to try such a thing, but not knowing how to tell her to stop when this was all just a memory. Unlike the blade of a katana, a bisento's blade was larger and thicker and even her oversized sai would not be able to break it.

She kept going, straining with all her strength while Aku simply stood there, watching her amusedly while I watched tensely, waiting to see what the outcome would be. Eventually, she pushed her weapon to its limits and the prongs shattered to pieces as if they had been made of glass. She quickly backed away in surprise before Aku could strike again, swearing in a language that I did not recognize as she tossed the broken weapon aside.

I swallowed hard, knowing that she was defenseless now, at least against the bisento. Yet, even then, I knew that she was not completely defenseless, simply restricted to hand to hand combat. Even barehanded against a bisento, I was certain it was within her abilities. Like the others, she knew more to fighting than I ever would.

"You still have a chance, Himoto. Give me the Fire Point and I may just let you live." Aku said.

"No. I will not give you the Fire Point. Even if I gave it to you, you would still have to destroy me because it won't work for you so long as I am alive."

"Very well then. So be it."

He readied himself and then charged towards her full force with the bisento out in front of him. By the gods, he was going to tear her apart!

I dashed forward to try and stop him, not caring that this was all a memory and that I could not change anything. I did not want to watch him cut her down and leapt at him, passing right through and rolling to the floor. I swore in frustration as I got to my feet again, watching him continue on his way towards the lovely Fire Elemental.

Himoto stood tall as he charged in, not once flinching at the sight of the bisento coming her way. I stood there, frozen in horror, knowing that I was powerless to stop whatever was going to happen. I wanted to stop him myself, to use my katana while he was distracted, but I knew that I could not, that it was impossible.

At the last moment, Himoto brought up her hands and fired off a redhot fireball. Magic! Of course! She WAS an Elemental after all, and entitled to her own Elemental Magic. I was relieved to see this attack, but would that be enough to stop Aku in his tracks?

He spun the bisento around, absorbing the fireball, much to my and Himoto's horror. I had no idea that he had such power within him. That fireball was nothing to him and now Himoto had no chance to dodge or fire off another attack as he continued to charge towards her.

"HIMOTO! HIMOTO!"

I dashed forward, even though it was useless, once more trying to stop the combat before it was too late.

Everything moved in slow motion as Aku charged in towards the stoic Himoto, bisento held out in front of him. At the last moment, he slashed down, tearing her in two and killing her instantly as I reached out, tears of frustration stinging my eyes as I watched her fall. My heart broke at the sight of her body lying on the marble floor, her blood staining the pristine white and red.

Aku stood triumphantly over her, laughing that hideous, chilling laugh of his before he disappeared in a swirl of shadow. I knelt down next to Himoto's fallen form, my body trembling with shock at what had just been shown to me. I had known Aku to be cruelly brutal before, but never had I imagined that he could be this brutal.

I reached down to try and touch her still, form, forcing myself to hold back the pain I felt rising in my chest. She had died trying to keep him from getting to the Fire Point and had fallen at the cruel demon's hands, her fiery beauty frozen forever in the moment of death. And for what? All because of Aku's lust for ultimate power?

Knowing that there was nothing I could do, I bowed my head and clenched my fist at my side as I slowly stood once more.

Was this her fate for protecting the Fire Point?

Suddenly, a flash of light burst from her chest, swallowing me up before I had a chance to back away, feeling as if I was being torn away from Himoto's memories...

I opened my eyes, finding myself on a bed, thick blankets wrapped all around me. My head spun as I looked about weakly, sweat beading and rolling down my face. Where was I? Where had Himoto gone?

I could see a pair of wings not far away from where I lay, slowly realizing that I was looking at Chimitsu's back. She was standing at a table, looking at something, but I did not know what. I wanted to move, to reach out to her, but I could not, my body aching and weak all over.

"Look at this...the Fire Point is glowing." she said.

"Well, I'll be. I wonder what makes it do that."

I heard another familiar voice closeby, but the strain of trying to place it was too much. I could feel myself slipping again, though I struggled to stay conscious, not wanting to go just yet. I reached out weakly towards her, wanting to tell her about the Fire Point, about...

Himoto...
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War Of Shadows