A Look at a Darker Earth: A Jack Adventure Ep: 150: A Forever Final
Far into the Future in a possibility locked in place due to a magical transference, a Samurai displaced in time gathers a team of some of the strongest warriors of the age to aid him in returning to the past. To perhaps undo the hellscape that the world has become, many times these warriors have saved countless lives and have done all they can to make the world better, but they can see the writing on the wall.
The dead lands grow ever stronger and invaders of all kinds continue to battle for control, to say that the world can be saved is something not even the most foolish of them can admit too.
The Flight was grim but smooth, no one can deny the "Air Wolf" was one of the best air ships around and her pilot, an odd man by the name of Puddin, was her builder and only pilot. The man who picked up Jack as he appeared in the Ruins of Aku City. Apparently he was one of the only people who still searched the city for him if he ever returned.
Finish his reminiscing he looks to the man in question, a bit dopy looking, but the fire in his eyes and wolf themed aviators cap did much to make him less odd looking.... for the most part.
"Don't you worry Jack, she's all good, you go talk with the others, if you ask me, they need it more then little old me. And if they say no, then know you still got two in your corner.
Jack nods solemnly and leaves the cockpit, heading to a dining area/meeting room, seeing his assembled allies and friends he has made in the five years he has been stuck in this new time.
" I am sure you are all wondering why I have called you together?" Jack questioned the assembled group.
"I mean I like get togethers Yo, but I would like to know what it is threatening stability now, is it the Ghosts or Demons, they have been acting all crazy Yo" Irwin trained by the infamous Hoss Delgado "The Butcher of Monsters" only to be beaten by Irwin many years ago, now using the Hunter's training to aid the remaining supernatural peoples of earth from the various threats of the world.
"I may have found a Shen Gong Wu that could help everyone with the coming doomsday." Spoke the stoic man plainly.
"Are you sure this rumour is true Jack, we've been on this kind of road before, an intact Shen Gong Wu is a rarity nowadays… like a lot of Magic" Spoke the group's magical expert, a strange creature from a far away realm who escaped its own devastation to a self proclaimed Master of Evil, Orko has aided the team in many ways over the years.
"I feel like I have to be the one who asks, but Jack who has it?" Asked Cooper, a Technopath of great skill and one of the last of the Plumbers after their near destruction by the Forever Knights.
Jack has a deep sigh and says simply "The Forever Knights."
"THE FOREVER KNIGHTS! Are you insane Jack their compounds are a death trap, What Shen Gong Wu would warrant this kind of risk" Shouted one of the oldest members of the team, his cybernetic enhancements the final gift of Doctor Venture, just so the old man can finally help the Warrior who showed him Hope, Yes Jerry Smith knows about what can be called dangerous in these dark days.
" It's the Sands of Time isn't it?" questioned a red haired warrior of unbreaking spirit, known as Suno to her friends and the Red Fist to the Heylin Empire, a wandering warrior bent on fixing the world however she can.
Jack simply nods and the group quiets, everyone knowing where such a artifact would be, the Forever Keep of New Camelot, the seat of power for the Forever Knights and most guarded place of the Americas aside from Gem Space.
"... Kinda like Neo Marzipan Yo." Jack grimaced at the name, far too many friends lost that day, Kind Lemonhope, who fought the Lich's worshipers to give the team time to deliver a correct power source to the cities defense grid. Wise Dr. Venture, the third of great scientific legacy who gave up his life to give Jerry a chance to aid them. And… Connie, a peer who fought with great skills in swordsmanship, it was Jack's own fault for her death, had he only been faster he could have caught her.
"Irwin that was uncalled for, none of us knew how bad Neo Marzipan would get, that is not on Jack." Jerry chastised at Irwin for bringing up
"Irwin was not saying it was Jack's fault, but the Forever Keep is just as much a death trap as that place was, the Forever King himself is there with Kami knowing what else they have. The Sands of Time is a powerful Shen Gong Wu and they have kept it from everyone who would try to use it for Thirty Years ." Suno spoke with the experience of hunting many Shen Gong Wu and one of the only people to have experienced the Forever Keep in person.
As the group argued, one man was silent throughout the whole argument, The Giant man of a simple nature who barely understood some of the things be discussed, but he knew one thing. "You can fix this if you get this sand thing right Jack?" The Question of Billy made everyone silent as the simple implication sunk in. If any one of them get's the Sands then they can fix everything.
"Dang Billy Yo, now I remember why I kept you around all these years." Irwin chuckled, "Guess I am in Yo."
"The Heylin have tried for years to get the Sands, to show them up is all I need." Suno proclaims with zeal.
"To get a chance to fix everything, that's more than enough, I will aid" Orko says with a hint of pride.
"Well I may not know too much about the Forever Knights, I think I can help," Jerry said a little timidly.
All eyes turned to the final member, Cooper who sighed "I was going to have to deal with them one day, why not do it for the future, I'm in."
With the group in agreement, they began to plan an attack on the Forever Keep.
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The battle has been grueling but so far the plan has held, with Cooper hacked into the Mainframe of the base, the team had full means to reach the Sands. Of course they all had to split up to make this all work, Suno had decided to remain on the main staircase to the lower levels and keep the Forever Knights from advancing. Puddin was keeping any enemy reinforcements busy in the air.
Yes so far the plan was going well, but dear friends as we all know, in this dark world, good things happen only for so long.
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On the way throughout the facility, Jack's radio turns on, Puddin must be having issues. As he tuned in he could hear the Airship breaking apart and Puddin trying his best to keep her air born
"Jack...i'm not gonna make it, don't beat yourself up bout it, my luck was bound to catch up someday, just promise me this Jack, you fix this right, you make sure the world does not go to hell like this." The Voice of Puddin was a sign, the mad pilot never gave up and never made claims like this, the team was hearing the final words of a friend.
"I...I Promise my friend."
"Heh...good, now TIME TO SHOW THESE KNIGHTS WHAT THE AIR WOLF CAN DO HAHAAHAHAHAHAHA-" the sounds of gunfighting are drowned out by Puddin's laughter until it cuts out and a loud explosion is heard from outside.
Without time to grieve, Jack, Jerry, Orko, Irwin and Billy kept moving forward.
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Deeper in the complex's main computer room, a blond man sat amongst broken tables and beaten Knights. Small fires started by the fighting were still going on.
Cooper was sure his arm had broken, but he continued his hacking into the main computer of the facility, his powers in full swing tearing apart the metal and technology in the walls to bash away Forever Knights trying to stop him.
The Smoke was starting to sting a little, but that did not matter. He still had to get the Tram to the position, and keep jamming Knight Communications. The team was counting on him and he wouldn't let them down.
His power alerted him through the buildings sensors, that a "Old Friend" was coming.
Turning with great haste he sees the Giant form of the Forever King, his silver Armor marred by signs of battle . The Symbol of the Forever Knights emblazoned on his chest plate alongside the number Four, He never could let go of that number even now. By his side he can see a Cyber Knight, some kind of new thing he was trying, to make the Forever Knights more effective.
"Wallace" Cooper spat out the name
"Cooper…. You don't have to die this day, face reality for once and see that the Plumbers are dead."
"And what? Join you and your butchers, what happened to you Wally? You were always extreme but all of this, you still can't think you are the hero."
Cooper watches as the helmet comes off the scared face of the man he once considered a brother in arms, the once wild Blond hair now near shaven and his eyes tired.
"Cooper you have seen what Aliens and others like them have done to the world, the Plumbers could not save us and now we have the chance to keep earth safe. Please see reason, you have fought against many terrors and have always tried to save people, that much I have admired. But you are smart enough to see how pointless you way is."
At first all was quiet, before Cooper reached out with his powers trying to stop Wallace's suit, but he was not fast enough, the clawed gauntlet clamped down on his head. He struggled to free himself and reach out with his powers to Wallace.
"A poor decision Cooper, I wish this was less painful."
He could not even scream as the electricity flowed through his body, his final thoughts were directed at his powers to keep pushing the tram forward. To keep his team alive and to make this worth-
And then all he saw was darkness.
"Goodbye Cooper, I hope you can rest now"
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As Irwin and company made their way past many artifacts of the vault, his enhanced sense told him something was coming "Duck Yo" he yelled out as Shots rained down from the top of one of the displays. As a differently dressed Knight came down in Black Armor with many Hunting Knives and Guns on his person.
Taking out his own knives Irwin shouted out "You all keep moving, I got this clown Yo" and rushed at the Forever Hunter
The Group rushed through the opening Irwin gave them and the two began to fight.
A minute into the fight Irwin could tell that this guy was a supernatural Hunter, a lot of them around these days, spurred on by groups like the Forever Knights to kill anything not human.
As if to prove his point this one carried silver daggers and was starting to be a pain in the ass. Suddenly faster than Irwin could blink he felt the air as the knife was coming for his head.
Irwin had to give it to this "Forever Hunter" whoever they are, they got good moves. Of course, Irwin's got better ones, hitting his boot on the ground, a blade slides out of the front and he swings the blade upwards right at the point of the Hunter's hand.
When suddenly mid-way through the swing the Forever Hunter Jumped Backwards Three times. Irwin's eyes widened seeing the Hunter perform that move, the Hunter seeing the shock rushes Irwin hoping to catch him off guard, only to have his arm caught by Irwin, stopping the momentum with a lot of brute strength.
"Hold on now Yo, you're gonna tell me how you know The Hoss Triple flip now, or we are gonna have a problem Yo."
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Billy was not a smart man, he had known that for a long time, but something in his gut told him that Irwin needed his help. And the last words his dad told him was "
Always trust the Gut Billy, it's the one truth teller in the world" Words he has lived by ever since Endsville. And despite what some people may say, he's not unobservant...well not anymore at least, living out in the American wastes makes it hard to do that.
He drops his equipment, which causes Orco, Mr Smith and Jack to look back at him.
"Sorry Jack, Mr Smith, Orco, I can't leave Irwin behind."
He knows Jack is going to try and reach out, he's a good guy, but Mr Smith is probably going to get him to focus. Billy liked Mr Smith, he was smart and always told the best kinds of jokes just like Orco.
Before anyone could stop him, he ran down the hall, barreling past many in his way.
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Irwin coughed up some blood, the silver knife stung like hell, but the kick he gave to the bastard was worth it.
"Damn Kid, for a freakish monster, your Kick was still as good as I remembered." The man himself Hoss Delgado, thought to have died twelve years ago in the second hell war, standing here, old as all hell but still standing. The Kick having knocked away the mask.
"How you still alive Hoss, I figured kicking you down into hell where you belong would have done the trick Yo" Outwardly Irwin was as cool as they come, but inside he was terrified, Hoss was the toughest fight of his life and he only just managed to kick him down the hell pit with the help of some good old fashioned Grandpa Drac Help, but the old coot is not here, he's off somewhere with one of the other Dracula's doing some poker games.
"I'll be honest Kid, for a while I thought I was dead, real angry about that, but see one day these fine folks of the Forever Knight found the hell pit you threw me in and found me, fixed me right up. Old Age is a killer for any good Hunter." He walks and talks, all nonchalant before quickly throwing another dagger at Irwin who barely dodges it.
"As you can see Kid, they did good work, gave me a whole speech about what they wanted and to me, it sounded pretty damn close to what i want, so i joined up. And let me tell you it's been a good time finding all the monsters of the world and killing them again, which reminds me, you still got vamp and mummy blood in you"
A Tense silence came over the two "Heh Thought so." and the two prepared to continue their fight before a loud sound.
"IRWIIIIIIIINNNNN" A Familiar screeching yell interrupts the two as a giant of a man bursts in and crashes into Hoss, knocking the hunter down to the ground and skittering across the floor.
"I've come to help you buddy"
Irwin blinked a few times before shouting "Billy, I thought I told you to go and leave this clown to me Yo"
"Ah come on Irwin, you can't do anything without you good pal Billy, Remember?"
A Scream of anger alerted the both of them that Hoss was not done "So two on one eh, hahaha best of luck to you both, cause Hoss won't go down to anyone." He rushes the two men who quickly dodged out of the way
"Woah, alright Yo, we can talk about this after we show this fool how we do thing in the wastes, right Billy Yo"
A fast nod is done by Billy "Right Irwin, imma gonna smash this guy"
And with no other words the three charged at each other, Later no one would find any bodies at the scene and questions would arise of what happened in those tunnels.
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"Damn Knights don't know when to quit"
These were the thoughts of the Red Haired martial artist as she elbowed another Forever Knight in the face, shattering the armor, and then throwing the unconscious Knight into another. The main staircase filled with the groaning and unconscious bodies of Forever Knights.
Noise alerts her to more incoming Forever Knights, but they sounded calm and… she brought up her guard as three figures stood at the top of the stairs, two normal forever knights and a sight which chilled her.
The Forever Berserker, a blue clad monster of a weapon the Knights had found in their exploitation of the American wastes, it's rampages were legendary for those who the Forever Knights have toppled because of them. Warlords such as The Brain Freezer and his Kingdom of Ice, the Forests of the Beast and the most notable claim to fame, the destruction of Superjail.
It was a silent moment as Suno waited for the first move by the Berserker or it's handlers, A silence broken by the Knights.
"There she is, go on get her" One of the Knights yelled, the other one turning to smack them "You idiot we can't orde-" he is interrupted as the Berserker hits both of them aside and rushes Suno despite the readied strike.
The Forever Berserker didn't even flinch as the strike which could shatter a Bolder with ease hits her square in the stomach. And faster than Suno can even see, raises a hand and smacks the red haired warrior away.
She breathed heavily, she knows she can't win, not against this thing. For a single Moment fear grips her heart, but she remains, remembering the words of her Teacher, as much as the thought of that monster hurt, he is one of the strongest warriors of the Age for a reason
"Remember Suno It is not the strongest opponent who wins, but the strongest will."
With determination she looks at the brute of an opponent and thinks she is nothing to that man's training. And readies herself for it's attack.
She did not have to wait long as it rushed her hoping to cleave off Suno's head with a earth shattering kick, only to miss with that attack as Suno doges under it and gets a solid hit on the masked face of the Berserker, shattering a part of the mask.
Quickly jumping away from close range, she looks at the shattered Mask of the Forever Berserker and sees giant Blue eyes filled with rage staring back at her and in a moment with a speed unthinkable to Suno it was gone. But noise from behind told her it was behind her.
She quickly tries to turn to face her opponent, but a Red Flash and searing pain stops her movement. Her momentum throws her to the ground as the Berserker pounces onto Suno, the weight crushing a few bones. In Suno's final moments she again sees the face of the Berserker, tufts of Blond Hair peeking out from the broken piece of helmet. And with a desperate last attack Suno struck again at the broken mask hitting the eye and clearly doing damage and with another last act she called upon her Ki to force the beast off her. But it was to no avail, and with nothing left to give, Suno died to her injuries, denying the berserker the kill.
And with clenched fists and a scream of hate, the Berserker beats into the dead body of the Martial artist. Who after only a few hits, was a smear on the ground.
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The Trio kept running to where Orko felt the Shen Gong Wu, a hard skill to learn but one that was useful in the early days, before Shen Gong Wu became more and more drained of what kept them powerful.
Like so many other Magical things in this day and age he was fading and quickly. He figured he only had a few more years of magic left in him. And quickly it became clear that was an overestimation.
The sounds of Forever Knights rushing down the halls was apparent. "Jack, Jerry, they are coming, I will hold them off. You both Keep going."
"Orko you can't-" Jack Began, but Jerry pushed him along "We can't argue this Jack come on" and the two continued to run.
Orko took a deep breath and started gathering his magic, The Knights running down the hall started to stand and take potshots, all missing the ever swift mage, he could feel his strength leaving his body, his flying became harder to maintain, but he had to keep going, he had to get rid as many of them as he could.
Feeling like if he added anymore he would die on the spot, Orko let loose the beam of magic, frying the hallway and the many Forever Knights in it, in fact he could see that it ripped through the building itself, he's lot stronger than he thought, one of his las coherent thoughts was that the others back home would never believe it
Drained and feeling like he just got hit by a train, Orko fell from the sky. The ground slightly scourged where he fell.
"Cyber Knight, cut this annoyance down and stop the Samurai" a voice coming from down the hall as a marron blur passes by Orko.
He did not even get to say one last thing before the Cyber Knight cut him in half.
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Jerry tried to keep up to Jack as he rushed through the hallways, the light they both saw could only have been Orko and everyone knew he did not have much left in him. Things were really going down hill, he was sure he and Jack were the last ones and that really was not good.
The two ran into a corner to catch their breaths and Jerry knew he needed to do something and fast "Jack we need to think about this and-" he is cut off by Jack
"No we can still do this together, you don't need to…" It's hard seeing the stoic Man so close to breaking, he's the one who's supposed to be the one losing it, not the badass time traveling samurai who fight demons.
"We both know that unless I distract them, they will catch us and besides I've lived a long life, now it's up to you to make sure it's a good one by fixing this damn mess in the past." Jack takes a deep breath and nods before rushing off.
Jerry also takes a deep breath and holds onto a special tool the Doc gave him before he passed, some kind of detonation for his power cells, hopefully making them all go off will be enough.
He shouts out "Hey you Forever Assholes come and get me." and ran towards a group of them and brutally beat them.
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A Few minutes later, Jerry stands before a hallway full of Knights and the King Himself.
"You dare stand in my way, who are you to try and stop the Forever King?"
"Ah me, I'm just a guy who had a life filled with bad decisions and who does not regret a single one" He pulls out the power core, he admits it's kind of nice seeing these knight bastards freak out and run as he pushes the button.
It really was kinda peaceful in these last moments, remembering all the good and bad times of his life, seeing his family, even Rick the old bastard, heh like he can say that now.
His last thoughts were the first memory he had with Jack.
"So what you're saying is… you're a samurai?"
"Um...Yes"
"Well then… want a drink, I found some good wine in my cellar"
In his last moment Jerry smiled at the memories" I think I did a good job Beth, I hope you're proud."
The explosion ripped through the hallway and hit the back of the Forever King. Collapsing a good chunk of the hallway and ending the life of Jerry Smith.
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As Jack entered the chamber, he allowed for one moment of grief. Of disappointment in himself for letting more good people die. But here he was in the room which had the means to fix everything.
He turned to face the Shen Gong Wu, seeing it in the center of this empty room upon a pedestal, he moved quickly and cautiously to the pedestal and reached for the mystical artifact.
But the sound of metal made him retract his hand before a throwing dagger hit the pedestal where his hand would have been. Quickly turning around, Jack manages to block an attack from presumably a hire by the Forever Knights, their maroon armor not having any symbols of their order.
Both warriors jumped away from each other and prepared for another attempt to strike at one another, the two fought for what seemed like hours, neither gaining an inch on the other. But as the fight went on it became clear that whoever this person was, they knew Jack's style of fighting. And several times it became clear that Jack knew her style of fight as well, having spent many times sparing with it.
"SHOW YOURSELF" Jack was surprised at the rage in his voice but it had to be known, it could not be possible. He could feel the tears in his eyes as the face before him confirmed his worst fears, seeing the scarred face of Connie as the Cyber Knight took off her Mask
"W...Why...how?" The question came pouring out of Jack at the sight of a supposedly dead friend.
"She can't speak, lost her voice during the rebuilding process, and before you think we did anything. She joined us willingly and without question, it seems she has lost much to the invaders of other worlds and thinks our methods are quite preferable to annihilation."
Jack turns to see the Forever King, armor scorched and bits broken, with the Forever Berserker by his side, twitching in inaudible rage, blood still dripping from her clenched hands.
"Now I ask you the same as I asked her, will you join the Order Jack, will you throw away this notion of changing what has happened and taking away what has given mankind a united purpose? With your skills we can take the fool Mandark down and claim his city for ourselves, we can destroy the Lich and his deadlands and push back the monsters and demons of hell." The Forever King spoke aloud, Jack remembering what Cooper had told him about this man and how despite all that he has done to many innocent people, he still sees himself as the hero.
Jack Steeled his gaze at the Forever King, at the Forever Berserker and at Co….at the Cyber Knight. He thought of all the people he has saved in the five years he has been here, learning of all the new things that have gone wrong, of the Warlords and Monsters. The Invasions. He could see why they all have turned to this extreme, but he can also see where they have gone wrong.
Without a word he raises his sword to the trio.
"I see… Cyber Knight, execute this fool" Without a word the Cyber Knight rushes Jack.
It was a moment of tranquility, a moment of knowing what must be done and the will of the earth itself pushing him forward as he ducked under the Knights swing and ran to the Sands. The Berserker tried to stop him fully expecting to take whatever he could dish out.
But the Sword of the Samurai is no mere Blade so it cuts the arm of the forever Berserker, giving it true pain and stopping it's charge for a moment. Which was all that Jack needed as he reached the pedestal and grabbed the Sands of Time
"NOOOO" The Forever King rushes to the otherside of the Shen Gong Wu "I will not let you destroy the chance for Mankind to retake the world Samurai, this is one of the only ways for Mankind to survive and i will not let it fall from my grasp." The floor around them falls away as they are both taken into Time. Holding onto the Shen Gong Wu.
Events in history unfolded around them, events that are, will be and have been always occurring and at the same time not. The two warriors struggled to keep hold of the Shen Gong Wu.
"You and your order have brought nothing but pain to the world,, survival means nothing if you sacrifice what it means to be human to do so." And with a slash of his sword into the gauntlet of the Forever King, sparks go flying as it was far deeper than Jack had meant to slash, cutting the hand off and sending the Forever King falling into the time stream.
A Howl of rage is the only thing Jack can hear from him as he plummets. He kept holding onto the hourglass for what felt like an eternity before a voice seemed to cut away the confusion
"Now then, it seems you are very late Mr Jack or would you prefer your actual name, it does not matter, i'm not one for my real name either, Oh my apologies would you Like a gumball?"
