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thelegion2017-12-15 11:09 pm
legionnpcs) wrote in thelegion2017-12-15 11:09 pm
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Legionnaire Legacies: Aku
[The Legion World staff maintains a feed of all Legion-related media so Legionnaires can be kept abreast of any reporting that's done on them. Two women appear on the screen, sitting at a desk, their appearances altered by glam filters so that one is all pink hair and skin and sparkles, and the other is all in blues. They look pretty flashy and tacky but this is the future. Reporters don't exist anymore; they're "personalities" now.]
Shellee: Good evening, everyone. I'm Shellee Star!
Tammee: And I'm Tammee Tim!
Shellee: And this is a live episode of Legion Watch: Legionnaire Legacies! Tonight, we're taking a closer look at one of our most mysterious Legionnaires. He ruled an Earth very much like our own before joining the Legion and has an affinity for fire. Introducing the self appointed Shape-shifting Master of Darkness: Aku!
Tammee: Are his eyebrows really on fire?
Shellee: Sources say they are!
Together: Oh my gosh!
[The scene opens on a bustling dystopian mega-city. Futuristic neo-gothic spires reach into a dusky sky. Between them, space craft and flying cars swarm through the air like bees. The streets below are teeming with sentients of all walks of life native and non-native to the planet, organic and inorganic. There are alien gangs, robots, noisy dance clubs and children chasing each other in the streets with toy swords. Overlooking the streets are numerous screens that display the latest food and product advertisements and frequently feature Aku's face to remind all who is the master of this world. At the center of it all is a massive citadel that stretches for what seems like miles into the sky and resembles a spiky, defoliated tree.]
[A new scene opens on the silent void of space where a tiny star is burning bright. From that star, tendrils of darkness emerge and spread in all directions as an amorphous cosmic horror is born. Immediately, the creature hurdles away through space as its foes arrive through the same star moments later. They are the three ancient gods, Odin, Vishnu and Ra, each armed for battle with a divine weapon, and they pursue the nightmarish mass of darkness as it attempts to take cover in clouds of gas and star dust. With nowhere to hide, the creature turns to fight, lashing out with its bladed tendrils. But despite its ferocity, it's no match for the gods' divine powers. Every slash and strike of their weapons burns away more and more of the creature's mass until it is torn asunder and shredded.
However, while the gods are busy vanquishing the creature, a tiny shred of darkness escapes their notice. The fragment cartwheels through space for an indefinite period of time before reaching a faraway galaxy and then a solar system where it finally crashlands on planet Earth. The planet at this time is ruled by dinosaurs but as the impact occurs, it causes the start of a mass extinction. In the wake of the impact, the land is left devastated and skeletons are strewn in the dust. The earth itself has cracked open and pools of bubbling black tar erupt from beneath the ground. A lone dinosaur that has been mired in the muck slowly sinks to its demise. From the bubbling pool of darkness, a dead tree stabs upward toward the sky like a sharpened spike. Another rises soon after, and another until a small forest of tall, black spikes has grown up from the impact crater.]
[The forest has grown and it continues to creep toward living beings. Everything from Neanderthals to pet dogs are swallowed up by the bubbling pool of darkness as it spreads toward the dawn of civilization. Finally, in what appears to be the Edo period of Japan, an Emperor has decided he's had enough of this evil forest encroaching on his land and destroying homes. After receiving a magical elixir believed to be the key to sealing up the sprawling darkness once and for all, the Emperor, along with a unit of elite cavalry, rides into the forest toward the center where the heart of the pool lies. But the forest seems to know what's up. Dead trees erupt from the ground like spears to impale the Emperor's men as they ride deeper into the forest. One after another they meet their demise until the Emperor alone rides to the center of the forest.
There, he finds the heart of the pool and laces an arrow with the poison elixir. Uttering a mystical chant, he fires the arrow into the sky, where it catches fire from the sun before landing directly into the center of the pit. At first, the plan seems to have worked as the spikes start to retreat into the pool. However, something has clearly gone wrong when the earth begins to tremble and twin flames arise from the pool. It appears that instead of destroying the pool of blackness, the elixir has given it life! The Emperor's horse flees in terror as a truly colossal spike erupts from the pool, quickly mutating into a massive creature with six giant horns, flaming eyebrows and a body made entirely of darkness. Aku has been Awoken!
The monster takes a moment to stretch his arms and flex his claws as he acclimates to his new form. It's immediately apparent that this is the first time he's possessed sentience or the ability to communicate through speech but he is quick to catch on. Like a newborn evil, he looks around at his surroundings for the first time and then notices the Emperor, his creator, below.]
[Determined to undo his mistake, the Emperor fires arrow after arrow into the monster he's accidentally created. But Aku merely blocks the arrows with his hand and absorbs them into his body. Though the arrows don't seem to have caused any damage, they still cause him pain and great annoyance.]
[His arrows gone, the Emperor attacks Aku head on with his sword and tears a slice into the base of the tall figure. But again his efforts are in vain as the darkness mends itself instantaneously and the sword rapidly melts. Now he is left without any weapons.]
[With a wave of his finger, Aku remotely commands the black sludge to capture the Emperor and drag him into the pit. But unlike those who met their demise in the pool before him, the Emperor is bound to the trunk of a massive dead tree that sprouts from the pit from which he is unable to escape.]
[After the commercial break, the show is back. The Emperor is still bound to the tree, his body limp with despair, but soon a white mist comes to his aid. It seals up the pool of darkness and frees the Emperor. This mysterious white mist then takes the form of Odin's horse and carries the Emperor to a temple in the clouds where he meets the gods, Odin, Vishnu and Ra. From the Emperor's soul they extract pure righteousness of the human spirit and craft it into a magical sword. The Emperor is then given the sword, new shining armor and a flying cloud to carry him back to his palace. As the sun rises, he engages Aku in battle, drawing the giant demon's ire. Aku takes many forms in his efforts to destroy the Emperor but the magic blade is a powerful weapon against him, burning away his darkness with every slash. Even when Aku splits himself into an army of soldiers, he is eventually defeated and absorbed into the blade of the sword, turning it black.
As the Emperor plunges the blade into the earth to seal Aku away once again, the demon vows to return. A tree erupts from the ground in which Aku is imprisoned, a reminder to all that he is neutralized but not gone for good. When the deed is done, the Emperor turns to his wife and newborn son. Holding the child in his arms, he declares to his wife that they must be prepared if Aku ever returns.
Fast forward eight years later. The sun hangs low over the tree in which Aku is imprisoned while the moon crosses over it in a total solar eclipse. In the path of totality, the seal is broken and Aku is released. As the eclipse ends, he emerges once again from the earth and his towering silhouette faces the sun. Black tendrils ripple at his base in the wind as the demon stands tall and silent over a desolate landscape. He then turns slowly away from the sun but before he can speak, the footage is inexplicably lost.]
[On the screen a still image appears of a young woman dressed in a wardrobe made entirely of leaves. The subtitle reads: 'Ashi', Daughter of Aku.]
[Another image appears on the screen, this time a bearded man in armor. An observant viewer might notice that his eyes bear a strong resemblance to those of the Emperor shown previously.]
Shellee: Good evening, everyone. I'm Shellee Star!
Tammee: And I'm Tammee Tim!
Shellee: And this is a live episode of Legion Watch: Legionnaire Legacies! Tonight, we're taking a closer look at one of our most mysterious Legionnaires. He ruled an Earth very much like our own before joining the Legion and has an affinity for fire. Introducing the self appointed Shape-shifting Master of Darkness: Aku!
Tammee: Are his eyebrows really on fire?
Shellee: Sources say they are!
Together: Oh my gosh!
[The scene opens on a bustling dystopian mega-city. Futuristic neo-gothic spires reach into a dusky sky. Between them, space craft and flying cars swarm through the air like bees. The streets below are teeming with sentients of all walks of life native and non-native to the planet, organic and inorganic. There are alien gangs, robots, noisy dance clubs and children chasing each other in the streets with toy swords. Overlooking the streets are numerous screens that display the latest food and product advertisements and frequently feature Aku's face to remind all who is the master of this world. At the center of it all is a massive citadel that stretches for what seems like miles into the sky and resembles a spiky, defoliated tree.]
Tammee: I guess you could say his Earth does look a little like ours. But if you're like me, you're probably wondering what exactly is Aku? Where did he come from? And how did he come to be Earth's ruler?
Shellee: All of these questions and more will be answered tonight because Legionnaire Legacies has obtained rare, never-before-seen footage of the origins of Aku. I would like to take this time to warn our viewers that some of tonight's footage may be graphic.
Tammee: It all started deep in outer space...
[A new scene opens on the silent void of space where a tiny star is burning bright. From that star, tendrils of darkness emerge and spread in all directions as an amorphous cosmic horror is born. Immediately, the creature hurdles away through space as its foes arrive through the same star moments later. They are the three ancient gods, Odin, Vishnu and Ra, each armed for battle with a divine weapon, and they pursue the nightmarish mass of darkness as it attempts to take cover in clouds of gas and star dust. With nowhere to hide, the creature turns to fight, lashing out with its bladed tendrils. But despite its ferocity, it's no match for the gods' divine powers. Every slash and strike of their weapons burns away more and more of the creature's mass until it is torn asunder and shredded.
However, while the gods are busy vanquishing the creature, a tiny shred of darkness escapes their notice. The fragment cartwheels through space for an indefinite period of time before reaching a faraway galaxy and then a solar system where it finally crashlands on planet Earth. The planet at this time is ruled by dinosaurs but as the impact occurs, it causes the start of a mass extinction. In the wake of the impact, the land is left devastated and skeletons are strewn in the dust. The earth itself has cracked open and pools of bubbling black tar erupt from beneath the ground. A lone dinosaur that has been mired in the muck slowly sinks to its demise. From the bubbling pool of darkness, a dead tree stabs upward toward the sky like a sharpened spike. Another rises soon after, and another until a small forest of tall, black spikes has grown up from the impact crater.]
Tammee: So that's how the dinosaurs went extinct?
Shellee: I've seen so much and yet I still know so little. Fast-forward 65 million years later...
[The forest has grown and it continues to creep toward living beings. Everything from Neanderthals to pet dogs are swallowed up by the bubbling pool of darkness as it spreads toward the dawn of civilization. Finally, in what appears to be the Edo period of Japan, an Emperor has decided he's had enough of this evil forest encroaching on his land and destroying homes. After receiving a magical elixir believed to be the key to sealing up the sprawling darkness once and for all, the Emperor, along with a unit of elite cavalry, rides into the forest toward the center where the heart of the pool lies. But the forest seems to know what's up. Dead trees erupt from the ground like spears to impale the Emperor's men as they ride deeper into the forest. One after another they meet their demise until the Emperor alone rides to the center of the forest.
There, he finds the heart of the pool and laces an arrow with the poison elixir. Uttering a mystical chant, he fires the arrow into the sky, where it catches fire from the sun before landing directly into the center of the pit. At first, the plan seems to have worked as the spikes start to retreat into the pool. However, something has clearly gone wrong when the earth begins to tremble and twin flames arise from the pool. It appears that instead of destroying the pool of blackness, the elixir has given it life! The Emperor's horse flees in terror as a truly colossal spike erupts from the pool, quickly mutating into a massive creature with six giant horns, flaming eyebrows and a body made entirely of darkness. Aku has been Awoken!
The monster takes a moment to stretch his arms and flex his claws as he acclimates to his new form. It's immediately apparent that this is the first time he's possessed sentience or the ability to communicate through speech but he is quick to catch on. Like a newborn evil, he looks around at his surroundings for the first time and then notices the Emperor, his creator, below.]
Aku: YOU! [He points a sharp finger down at the horrified Emperor.] Thank you!
Emperor: No! My intention was to destroy you!
Aku: Oh? But it was your poison arrow and your hocus pocus that set me free! [He delivers what can only be described as a classically villainous laugh.]
[Determined to undo his mistake, the Emperor fires arrow after arrow into the monster he's accidentally created. But Aku merely blocks the arrows with his hand and absorbs them into his body. Though the arrows don't seem to have caused any damage, they still cause him pain and great annoyance.]
Aku: Fooool! [He seethes.] Nothing of this world can harm me, for I am Aku, the Shogun of Sorrow, the Deliverer of Darkness, your New Master, and you WILL bow to me!
[His arrows gone, the Emperor attacks Aku head on with his sword and tears a slice into the base of the tall figure. But again his efforts are in vain as the darkness mends itself instantaneously and the sword rapidly melts. Now he is left without any weapons.]
Aku: Hee heh heh heh. [The demon's laugh is taunting and devoid of mirth.] Human fool. I see that I must show your world who is Master.
[With a wave of his finger, Aku remotely commands the black sludge to capture the Emperor and drag him into the pit. But unlike those who met their demise in the pool before him, the Emperor is bound to the trunk of a massive dead tree that sprouts from the pit from which he is unable to escape.]
Aku: Now gaze your eyes upon the full wrath of the Mighty Aku! [In a single leap, Aku streaks through the sky and arrives at the Emperor's palace.]
Emperor: NOOOOO! [He screams and tries to free himself from the tree but it's no use and he's forced to watch as Aku sets fire to the palace.]
Shellee: I've got to admit, Tammee. This isn't the kind of past I was expecting a Legionnaire to have.
Tammee: So true, Shellee. Can good really come from all this darkness? There's still much more to see after these messages from our sponsors!
[After the commercial break, the show is back. The Emperor is still bound to the tree, his body limp with despair, but soon a white mist comes to his aid. It seals up the pool of darkness and frees the Emperor. This mysterious white mist then takes the form of Odin's horse and carries the Emperor to a temple in the clouds where he meets the gods, Odin, Vishnu and Ra. From the Emperor's soul they extract pure righteousness of the human spirit and craft it into a magical sword. The Emperor is then given the sword, new shining armor and a flying cloud to carry him back to his palace. As the sun rises, he engages Aku in battle, drawing the giant demon's ire. Aku takes many forms in his efforts to destroy the Emperor but the magic blade is a powerful weapon against him, burning away his darkness with every slash. Even when Aku splits himself into an army of soldiers, he is eventually defeated and absorbed into the blade of the sword, turning it black.
As the Emperor plunges the blade into the earth to seal Aku away once again, the demon vows to return. A tree erupts from the ground in which Aku is imprisoned, a reminder to all that he is neutralized but not gone for good. When the deed is done, the Emperor turns to his wife and newborn son. Holding the child in his arms, he declares to his wife that they must be prepared if Aku ever returns.
Fast forward eight years later. The sun hangs low over the tree in which Aku is imprisoned while the moon crosses over it in a total solar eclipse. In the path of totality, the seal is broken and Aku is released. As the eclipse ends, he emerges once again from the earth and his towering silhouette faces the sun. Black tendrils ripple at his base in the wind as the demon stands tall and silent over a desolate landscape. He then turns slowly away from the sun but before he can speak, the footage is inexplicably lost.]
Tammee: [She looks like a deer caught in the headlights, eyes wide and shifting about.] ...Uh, we apologize, everyone, but we seem to be experiencing some technical difficulties!
Shellee: Yes, we're very sorry about that but while our crew sorts things out, we can talk about some upcoming segments in our show tonight! For instance, did anyone else know that Aku has a daughter?
[On the screen a still image appears of a young woman dressed in a wardrobe made entirely of leaves. The subtitle reads: 'Ashi', Daughter of Aku.]
Tammee: I definitely had no idea, Shellee. This is a perfect example of the kinds of mysteries we'll be uncovering tonight as soon as our equipment is up and running, which I'm sure will be very soon—! [Her gaze darts from the camera to somewhere offscreen as she touches a nearly invisible earpiece. But whatever message she's receiving through it doesn't seem promising and her forced smile doubles almost unnaturally in size.]
Shellee: ...Right! We've also discovered that Aku has an arch nemesis named Samurai Jack, a man whom sources say was teleported one thousand years into the future by Aku himself.
[Another image appears on the screen, this time a bearded man in armor. An observant viewer might notice that his eyes bear a strong resemblance to those of the Emperor shown previously.]
Tammee: Apparently, time-travel may cause unexpected side-effects such as— [She cuts herself off with a gasp as a member of the recording crew rushes through the shot behind her chasing after something small and unseen by the camera. However, when Tammee catches sight of the whatever-it-is that's off screen, her face pales in terror and she springs up from her chair.][Suddenly, the screen flickers and goes black as the video feed is lost completely. A solid minute passes before the void in programming is filled with a previously recorded top news story of a baby panda sneezing adorably. Whatever anomaly that's been effecting the equipment has finally brought the show to an early end. And that, as they say, is that!]