“I believe personally it’s because he was wiser then most. He knew better, he was smart with a strong sense of self preservation. But that’s just a guess, we need to visit the cult to be sure. We have to learn things more intimately then what the tapes give us.”
“That’s why I’ve been formulating this plan.”
“So how are we supposed to go about finding… The One?”
Aku grunted under his breath. It sounded as if they were playing matchmaker for the accursed hat. He hated it, especially since Black Hat would ultimately benefit from their efforts. But if it would entice the creature away from Azura…
“It’s only fair I show you something then. Let’s go back to my lab, I think it’s something you’re going to want to experience.” He stood, adjusting his coat.
A moment later, Flug and Aku appeared once again inside the lab. The demon waited for Flug to gain back his bearings after being teleported a second time, then addressed him quietly.
“If this thing you want me to ‘experience’ is another one of your concoctions, then I shall pass,” he said eyeing Flug warily.
“Nothing so violent.” He opened his desk drawer getting out a few items. A tape recorder and a journal.
“Aku, what you’re about to see and hear is pretty disturbing.”
When the tape had finished playing, Aku looked up from the pages of manic scribbles and photos. Unlike Flug, the demon lord found much of this to be more informative than disturbing. It was easy to pinpoint the moment when the person in the recordings had pivoted and then plummeted into madness.
“It seems this individual may have been chosen long before he realized,” spoke the demon. “The question is: what drew him to this man?”
“It’s only fair I show you something then. Let’s go back to my lab, I think it’s something you’re going to want to experience.” He stood, adjusting his coat.
A moment later, Flug and Aku appeared once again inside the lab. The demon waited for Flug to gain back his bearings after being teleported a second time, then addressed him quietly.
“If this thing you want me to ‘experience’ is another one of your concoctions, then I shall pass,” he said eyeing Flug warily.
“…A-aldo…You saw him in his final moments…” Was all he could muster in response to that.
Aldo. So that had been the host’s name.
“Indeed. I recall that he looked momentarily overjoyed before succumbing to panic and madness. And before you ask, no, I did not get a chance to speak with him.”
The man had been too busy screaming while his body fell apart to say much of anything. But the look in his eyes — rather, his eye — was clear: there was no stability left in his being.
“And when we do, I’ll buy her some new clothes, treat her to coffee, and take her to the park to play on the swings.” Because lets face it, she needs the down time. And this was his way of being romantic.
Under better circumstances Aku might have had something to say about that. But he was currently distracted by other thoughts. Truth be told, he’d never felt so worried before. It felt like a piece of him had been torn out and taken away.
After all, had he not been the one to severe Black Hat from his former host, they wouldn’t be in this situation. Had he slain the creature when it was still powerless instead of take joy in its suffering, this wouldn’t be happening. It was like he was cursed to always make the wrong choices.
Aku’s stony expression softened as hints of the worry he felt began to show.
“In the brief moments before his body turned to dust, I saw the previous host. He was not a sane man,” Aku recounted. “Assuming Black Hat will discard Azura in favor of a new host, how confident are you that she will… return to her former self?”
“I attempted to remove an Eldritch parasite attached to my daughter’s head by slicing it in two with the Samurai’s sword.
The parasite, not her head!”
The yokai pushed against his counterpart’s chest in an attempt to free himself.
“I WAS TRYING TO FREE HER, YOU FOOL!” Aku finally shouted in the other’s face. “The parasite is LARGE and mimics the shape of a hat. I would not have missed had it not taken her away! Now that they have escaped, she continues to be in danger!”
He was stunned when the other pushed back, yet he didn’t let go as his grip tightens. Despite the pressure of their chest pressed together, he was still the master shogun. “And what would you do if you accidentally killed her! Then what-?”
He declared. “Out of pity rage, you only act in rash decisions and didn’t think of what the consequences would be! If you truly care for her than you likely to think of a way than using domestic violence.”
It is evident from all the shouting. Aku was shaking beneath him with sudden worry for Azura granted.
Their horns clashed together as Aku ground his forehead against his twin’s, desperate to make him listen and make him understand.
“I used the SAMURAI’S SWORD. You KNOW as well as I that it cannot harm the pure of heart and it is the only sword capable of destroying…beings like us!”
Terror seeped into the demon’s expression and voice as he gripped his counterpart’s shoulders.
“If she is not freed, he will erase her mind! I- I can’t let that happen!”
“I attempted to remove an Eldritch parasite attached to my daughter’s head by slicing it in two with the Samurai’s sword.
The parasite, not her head!”
“You did what-!?”
Aku could feel his voice rising up from the thought of Azura in regards. The fact that he didn’t slice her head off was a relief, it didn’t add to the stress of the demon lord.
Suddenly, without warning. Aku grabbed the counterpart by his collar of the neck and yanked him close to face level. “WHERE IS SHE, YOU BETTER NOT DONE ANYTHING TO HER IF I FIND HER.”
Seems like he’s acting hysterical if not for the worry of what’s his.
The yokai pushed against his counterpart’s chest in an attempt to free himself.
“I WAS TRYING TO FREE HER, YOU FOOL!” Aku finally shouted in the other’s face. “The parasite is LARGE and mimics the shape of a hat. I would not have missed had it not taken her away! Now that they have escaped, she continues to be in danger!”
The Shogun of Sorrow 