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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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Mad Jack

Lord Aku whirled around from watching his magic screen showing the fight with Eki and gave me a solid glare that sent a chill down my spine. I knew what he was thinking now that Ekirei had met her end at the samurai's hands. I didn't have any choice now but to face them and kill them both myself if I could.

If I didn't, then it would be Lord Aku himself who sent me to my end and that wasn't something I wanted. I'd been to the Pit of Hate enough times to know what became of those who'd failed him and had no intention whatsoever of me becoming one of them. If I was to fall this night, I would rather it be at the hands of my original than him.

Even though he had summoned me back into his presence, I was beginning to get the feeling that Lord Aku intended for me to fall at the hands of my original anyhow, and that this was just an incentive for me to go. He didn't have any further use for me now that I'd failed so many times before that it was a double-or-nothing situation now. I either destroyed my original and regained his favor or I would die at Minamoto's hands.

I knew that it didn't matter now what I did, whether I went or stayed, I was a dead man either way. It was possible to at least overpower my original, but not Lord Aku. He held my very life in his slimy claws and if he saw fit to destroy me, he could.

Perhaps he had intended all along to send us to our deaths fighting my original for him.

The Dark Elemental Circle was broken now and useless without Eki and the other three. I was the only one left to fight Minamoto now and while I hated my original with everything I was worth, I didn't know whether or not this fight was worth my life any more. Perhaps upon first reawakening, I would have gladly fought to the end for Aku, but it was becoming more and more apparent that I didn't have a future in his service, Minamoto or not.

Even if I managed to destroy my original, there was the distinct possibility that Aku would simply destroy me later when he grew tired of my failures or I'd lived out my usefulness to him. My only chance for survival now rested on destroying Minamoto and escaping to live as a fugitive running from Aku's service. It wasn't much of a life, but it sure as hell beat the Pit or death by the demon's hands.

I watched as he swirled into his Elemental form and walked over to me, eyes sparking with cold fury. He was pissed at the loss of the others and I knew it, and now that anger was going to come down on my shoulders. I'd be exceptionally lucky if he didn't kill me on the spot just to be done with it and deal with the samurai himself.

"Never send a woman to do a man's job. Fools, the lot of them, and they have all proven their worthlessness against the samurai. Will you bring me the samurai's head or should I destroy you now?" he asked, pressing the blade of his bisento up under my chin.

I coolly stared him down, unafraid of the blade that was pressed to my throat even though it could kill me in an instant if he saw fit. I didn't intend to fail, but there was always the possibility, especially now that Minamoto had the activated Star of the Elements within his possession. No, he wouldn't kill me now and fight my original so soon.

He wanted to see me fail before facing the white samurai.

Reaching up, I pushed the blade of the bisento away from my throat, tiring of his games and threats. It wouldn't get him anywhere to threaten me, much less encourage me to fight harder for his cause. I could see that he was not happy with my reaction, but I didn't care, not if it meant that I was going to die for him today.

"Destroying me now won't bring you the white samurai's head, my lord. If I fail to kill Minamoto, then he'll kill me and you'll no longer have to deal with my failures. Either way, you win." I remarked slyly.

For a moment, he appeared to consider what I'd said. I may have hated him in that moment, but I wasn't stupid enough to show him just how little I cared for his cause. A second after that thoughtful look had crossed his face, he wheeled around and leaned on his bisento.

"That may be true, but do not think for a moment that I would not consider destroying you if I thought you might not be entirely supportive of this." he warned.

"I wouldn't be going into battle for you if I didn't support you, my lord."

"Good. Keep it that way."

I gave a short bow, even though he couldn't see it, just out of habit and for the sheer formality of it. He began to walk out of the room and I raised my head slightly, giving a glare in his direction. Perhaps I couldn't destroy him myself, but if I survived the encounter with Minamoto, he'd do the job for me and all that'd be left between me and freedom was my damned original.

Chimitsu was of little consequence to me at this point. She wasn't anything more than Eki's original and expendable if it came to that. Delicious as she looked, she wasn't my type and I didn't want to see her seek me out in hopes of restoring the Light Elemental Circle.

Far as I was concerned, it didn't matter whether either Circle was restored or whether the planet was plunged into chaos as a result of the imbalance. So long as I was free, I didn't care what happened to the rest of the world or the other so-called Elementals. Eki had been a wild, exotic treat while it had lasted, but she had failed for the last time and all I'd miss of her was the wild sex and that I could get anywhere if I wanted, especially looking like Minamoto as I did.

There were plenty of women who'd give their right arm for a chance to do the white samurai and I knew it.

Once Lord Aku had left the room for his meditation chamber, I straightened my leather jacket and headed on down to where Minamoto and his little angel were no doubt headed at that very moment. It'd certainly taken them long enough and I'd been growing bored waiting for them to show up. As I neared the room where I was to face them, I could sense that they were already there, but hadn't been waiting long.

It was time to give them a greeting they wouldn't soon forget.

"About time you two showed up! I was beginning to think you weren't coming." I snapped as I stepped into the room.

"I do not see how you could ever have any doubt that I would forget about you, futago. I would not have missed this for the world."

"Good! Then there's no reason to waste any more time talking, eh?"

He didn't answer, reaching to his left and withdrawing his katana from its scabbard that hung at his hip, holding it in front of him in a ready posture, which suited me just fine. I smirked and slid the leather jacket down off my shoulders before tossing it aside near the rocks. Slowly, I drew my katana from the special belt holster at my hip and held it in a ready position of my own.

I was going to enjoy every last fuckin' minute of this, especially if it ended in my original's death.

Without any further words, we charged towards each other, katanas clashing between us and sending up showers of sparks each time they met. I knew that we were usually evenly matched, but now that he'd gone and activated the Star of the Elements, he felt stronger. I didn't know if he or his little angel had it now, but it didn't matter when its power had harmonzied with him.

This was going to be a very interesting fight now that he wasn't the weak mortal he was the last time I'd fought him. He was going to be tougher to kill, that was certain, but I didn't really care. If I could manage to kill him when he possessed the power of the Star, then that would only ensure that I would regain Lord Aku's favor and be able to escape to freedom all the more quickly.

He began to fight harder and I grinned, letting him strike my katana and back me up towards the wall, pretending to let him get the upper hand. I knew that he knew I was only toying with him, but didn't care that he knew, waiting for the right moment. The moment he paused and appeared to let his guard down, I struck like lightning, backing him up towards the wall.

I could tell he was looking for a way out, but I wasn't about to let him go anywhere but backwards or through me. I knew that if I trapped him, it'd be certain death for him and even without being able to sense his thoughts along our connection, I knew my original well enough to know that he wasn't about to allow that. I raised my katana overhead and slammed it down onto his as hard as I could, watching as he dug his heels into the dirt, pushing back with as much strength as a mortal of his power was able to.

As expected, I was only able to push him back a few inches before he was able to stop my forward momentum. I chuckled low in my throat as he appeared to give beneath the weight I was pushing down upon his blade, knowing that if this was all he had to give, then he wasn't worth my time after all. As I was beginning to think that this was all too easy, he suddenly pushed up and forward, knocking me off balance onto my back.

I gave a roar as I flipped back onto my feet, watching as he took off running towards the wall opposite where we were standing. I didn't waste a second before taking pursuit, chasing him clear across the room towards the wall, wondering if the fool wasn't going to throw himself into the stone. To his credit, he dashed up the wall, forcing me to stop before I became the one to smash into it, halting my forward movement just inches away from the wall.

My original had already flipped over my head before I had recovered and I turned to face him before he had a chance to strike me from behind. Instead, his foot slammed into the side of my jaw and sent me facefirst into the wall with a snarl of momentary pain. I forced myself up onto my feet and whirled around to kick him in the chest, knocking him onto his back before following with an overhead stab to finish him off before he'd had a chance to recover.

Unfortunately, he was faster than I'd hoped and my katana drove into the stone where he'd been laying a moment before. I tugged it free as he got to his feet before leaping in at him again, striking rapidly before he could recover enough to block properly. He was tiring and I watched as my katana scratched over his skin repeatedly, drawing more and more blood with each strike.

He kept trying to block and counter, but I wouldn't let him. I knew how it had to anger him to know that a copy of himself was kicking his ass and that made it all the more delicious for me. If this was all the power of the Star of the Elements could give him, then I didn't really want to waste any more time than I had to.

Sure, he was stronger than the last time we'd met, but not much. He must not have had the Star activated at the moment or I knew he'd be more than a match for me. If he was foolish enough to not have it activated, then it was all the more to my advantage.

A split second after this thought crossed my mind, he pushed up and shoved me back a few steps with surprising strength. I allowed myself only a moment of surprise, but that was enough for him to take the opportunity to attack with unexpected speed. I hissed through clenched teeth as his katana bit into my arms and legs over and over again, reducing my shirt and jeans to little more than tattered shreds.

I managed to get an opening and slashed at him, not caring that he'd managed to block in a shower of sparks. Our twin katanas were crossed between us, the edges dangerously close to our necks as they'd been many times before when we had fought. A second later, we shoved apart and turned, dashing towards opposite walls, running up and springing off them, rocketing back towards each other for a midair collision.

We landed a second later, both on our feet on the stone and there was a moment of silence in which I wondered if I'd struck him or he'd struck me. I could feel hot blood rolling down my arm towards my elbow and knew he'd struck me, but I knew I'd struck him, too. I turned towards him to see him holding his side, where he was bleeding, but I could tell that I hadn't struck him as deeply as I'd hoped.

Our eyes met and I knew that he had to know that I couldn't use the link between us because now that he'd activated the Star, it burned me whenever I tried. Damn the Light Elemental for her interference. This'd be so much easier if she hadn't intervened and now I had to rely on all the training I'd done while he'd been with her, activating the Star.

We circled each other and I watched his eyes, trying to guess what he was going to do and who'd strike first. He beat me to it, striking over and over again, sending sparks flying about the stone cavern and dancing across the polished floor. He pushed me back before I growled and returned the attack, striking as quickly as he'd done, sending even more sparks dancing about the room, illuminating us in a flash of hellfire each time our blades met.

I could see that he was tiring and I'd hardly begun to break a sweat, much less tire. I knew that it'd take me awhile to get even half as tired as he was at that moment and knew that the first four fights had worn him down, which meant that Eki and the others had a use in their final moments after all. I slammed my blade down hard onto his, forcing him down almost onto his kneees until I was nearly leaning over him.

With a sudden burst of strength, he shoved me back and lashed out with his right foot, slamming the front of his sandal into my chin with a loud crack. I spun around and landed on my stomach on the ground, my katana clattering out of my hands a few feet away. Even though I was still stunned, I could hear him dashing forward to run me through and I quickly rolled out of the way, letting his blade bite into the stone floor instead of my gut.

He tried to pull it out, but I could tell that he wasn't strong enough and took advantage of it with an elbow to the side of his face, knocking him away from the weapon. I watched him spin around and almost crash into the wall before dashing forward to snap up the weapon before he could recover. The moment he'd regained his balance, I caught him around the waist with one arm, pinning his arms down, and used the other hand to bring his own katana up to his neck.

He struggled, but I didn't care. I enjoyed it, knowing that all it would take was one slash across the neck and it'd be over. The irony of knowing that I was about to kill him with his own katana was not lost on me at all, making this even more enjoyable for me.

"You just don't know when to give up, do you, futago?" I asked, jerking hard with the arm pinning his arms.

"You would like that, would you not? You would love to take my head while I am down or begging for mercy."

"Of course. Nothing would please me more than to see you reduced to pitiful begging, to see you dishonored before the eyes of your beloved angel."

"I have news for you, futago. I am not going to be giving you such pleasure."

Before I could react, he kicked up with his left foot, slamming the ball into my nose. I roared as I felt it break and stumbled back, dropping the katana and my original as I reached up to try and stop the flow of blood. I wasn't a healer by a long shot, but it would close soon enough, even though I'd just given my original the opening he needed.

He reclaimed his katana and spun it around in his hand as he advanced, watching as I stepped back, still trying to regenerate my broken nose. I was going to make him pay and summoned my katana to my free hand before slashing at him point blank. He jerked out of the way in time, but I'd still struck him, seeing a thin line of blood trickling down his cheek where the point of my blade had grazed him.

I grinned nastily and at the same time, we kicked up, sending our respective blades flying from our hands. Mine buried itself into one of the stone walls, while his skittered across the stone floor towards where his angel had hidden herself and was still watching from behind a rock. I looked back to him and grinned, knowing that we weren't unaccustomed to fighting empty handedly, as ready for it as he was.

I wasn't about to let him attack first this time and dashed in, punching furiously, forcing him to block. I threw one punch and then another, watching as he blocked them both as quickly as I'd thrown them. Instead of backing up and letting go, I pushed forward, trying to push him away from me, but he hung on tightly, staring me down as intensely as I'd been glaring at him.

I hated him with every pore of my being and I could tell that it'd unnerved him to see his face wearing an expression of such hatred. I enjoyed seeing his discomfort and leaned in closer, grinning nastily in hopes that he'd lose his concentration and his grip. Nothing would please me more than to see him falter so I could be rid of him and his little angel once and for all.

For the moment, however, we'd remained in the same position, both an equal match to the other, unable to gain any ground on the other. I began to feel the exertion wear on me, but not as much as it was wearing on my original. He was covered in cuts and bruises from previous fights and the sweat rolled down his brow, his breathing heavy with exhaustion.

He was tiring rapidly now, losing his strength with each second that ticked by and I knew that he'd had to be regretting not letting his angel heal him before coming to fight me. It wasn't my concern, though, only his loss, and one that would cost him dearly if he continued to try and overpower me with strength alone. So long as he was tiring and I was relatively unexhausted in terms of energy, he didn't have a chance.

His legs were shaking, just barely keeping him upright as I continued to press down, trying to force him to his knees. I could hardly contain the anticipation that'd been rising in my chest, knowing just how close I was to destroying him. Just a few more seconds and it'd all be over and I'd be reporting a victory to Lord Aku.

Yet he had more guts than I'd taken him to have and he slammed his forehead into my healing nose, shattering it once again.

I roared and staggered back, holding my nose again, swearing profusely under my breath at the knowledge that he'd broken it again in such a short period of time. I heard him spring into the air overhead a second before his foot connected with the back of my head, sending me sprawling down onto the stone floor again. I groaned and lay there, feeling my head reeling from the blow, unable to pull myself up to my feet right away.

Damn him! I'd had him and I knew it, but he'd still managed to get the upper hand so quickly. This wasn't good at all and I knew it, which meant that I'd have to regain control of the situation or die trying. Anything to avoid Aku's wrath and the Pit of Hate.

I forced myself up onto my feet and ripped my katana from the stone wall where it had imbedded itself earlier, turning to rush towards him. He'd turned his back to me in favor of reclaming his own katana, a move I knew would be fatal for him. I dashed forwards towards him with my katana in hand, grinning in the anticipation of cutting him down before he'd had a chance to strike.

Everything seemed to move in slow motion as I ran towards him, feeling his desperation as I drew near. I'd longed for this moment, to see him fall beneath my blade and leave this world forever. There wasn't going to be any escape for him this time, none whatsoever.

As I neared, he swung around with such speed that I hadn't a chance to see the blow coming, much less feel it. For a second, I stood there in shock, not certain what had just happened when he'd turned around. A second after that, I felt an incredible pain rush through my body to the very core, like what I'd felt when he'd returned from the Light Elemental's castle, only increased a hundredfold.

I couldn't believe it. He'd swung around point blank and sliced me in half with his katana so quickly that I hadn't seen or felt it. A second after that, another, more intense pain ripped through my agonized body and then...

Oblivion...
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War Of Shadows