Nobody knew who he was, nor did he, completely. He was an unusually tall Japanese man in a white gi, his hair in a small bob and plain geta on his feet. On his belt was a katana in a black scabbard with a black and yellow grip and around his neck was a string, holding a pointed crooked tooth. When he came, he was surrounded in fantastic blue light, blinding all who saw it. When they dissipated, both the man and the audience could see the other. Their eyes saw this man who looked as if he were from feudal Japan while he saw another alien world. The road he stood upon was solid and black, the buildings around him made of stone and metal and the people! The people were dressed in bizarre and brightly colored threads with footwear that harkened to one of his previous adventures with a shoe store. One thing brought down his panic, however; they were humans. Humans, just like him. Such a fact comforted him after spending months on a planet populated with strange creatures. But it was not to last.

Before he could speak, he heard sirens wailing and covered his ears in response. From the corners of the buildings came a mobile transport the size of a small house. It was black with red streaks and no windows. On its sides were two robots that had a similar color scheme as the tank. They had no legs and instead hovered while their black heads and humanoid arms had red fire-like spikes. Their eyes matched their spikes in color and seemed fixed in an "angry" position. They didn't have any mouths but spoke through an unseen speaker. Its voice was male and deep, completing its attempt at intimidation. "Scanning anomaly." The man's eyes widened and he gasped, "Aku?"

"Scanning data banks," the other stated, "Aku: mythological demon in feudal Japan. Destroyed by legendary Son of Heaven, origin unknown."

"Destroyed?" The man's eyebrows were raised before looking to his sword, "So he truly is vanquished."

The scanning robot suddenly interjected, "Scan complete, subject has trace amounts of unknown energy. Further unknown materials include object on subject's belt and near neck. Subject is otherwise human. Conclusion: return subject to Mandark Industries for further analysis." The other robot then approached the man, its hand retracting into its arm and replaced with two prongs that coursed with electricity. "You will come with us. Failure to do so will be met with force." The man then quickly drew his sword and sliced the machine's arm off. It recoiled and then looked at its severed appendage before staring back at the man. "Subject is hostile, request assistance." The man was engaging what seemed like a fighting stance before looking at the people around him. Before the robots could begin any movement, the man ran to his left and jumped to incredible heights, bounding across blocks in single jumps. After reaching a patch of forest, he continued on ground, away from sight.

"Subject is lost." The intact machine noted, "Contacting Mandark Industries headquarters." Within the hour, similar robots came in droves, cordoning off the area and using strange vacuum-like devices. After a half hour of work, a black and red helicopter flew above the site and landed outside of the closed area. After the rotors died down, a teenage boy stepped out. He had black hair arranged in a bowl-cut and wore a white button-down shirt, a striped black and yellow tie, shorts, librarian-esque glasses and black shoes. The most ridiculous and eye-catching was the large maroon and red pointed cape on his back which looked like it could be wrapped around his svelte figure. His eyes were pointed into a cold stare and his mouth showed no emotion. He stepped out of the chopper and strolled to the nearest robot who greeted him with, "Greetings lord Mandark." The boy's voice was nasally, "What have the Mandroids found?"

"A creature appeared here during the anomaly. It was most definitely human, yet carried unknown objects. He damaged one of our units before escaping. Further analysis of the site has produced traces of tachyons, found theoretically in-"

"Time-travel." Mandark scowled before raising his clenched hands to the sky, "DEXTEEERRR!" He then looked towards a watch on his wrist and pressed a button on its side. It began beeping before a blue hologram appeared of a robot that looked similar to Mandark's horde. However, it did not have angry red eyes, but rather they were yellow and more ambiguous. Every part that was black was blue on this machine and it lacked any spikes. "Hello," its voice was more cheerful than the Mandroids but it was still male, "This is Dexlabs, building your future today! What would you-"

"Dexter. Get him. NOW."

"I'm sorry, but Mr. Schmidt is not accepting any calls right now. If you would like to make an appointment just-"

"Tell him that I know about his temporal experiments." The robot was silent for a second, "I see, very well." It disappeared, the blue light still apparent while soft Muzak played. Mandark tapped his foot and rolled his eyes as he waited. When the noise stopped, a boy around Mandark's age appeared as a hologram. His hair was a bright orange and he wore a white lab coat, black pants, black shoes, dark purple gloves and square glasses atop his pointed nose. "Mandark," he had an accent that seemed to be a mixture of Russian and German, "What do you want now? I'm very busy-"

"Cut the crap, Dexter. I know you have been experimenting with time travel."

"What? Where did you come up with that?"

"Don't play dumb. My sensors have positive affirmation that there are active tachyons in the area."

"What does that have to do with me?"

"Only you would be dumb enough to not cover their tracks, not to mention there was a human who came out. Interesting how it coincides with your ads seeking volunteers coming out at about the same time."

"As flattered as I am that you follow me like an obsessed fan, you forget there are other geniuses in the world. Not to mention if I were experimenting with time travel, the time I find applicants would be irrelevant. I'm also not so stoopid as to not give them a way to return; which that man clearly had not."

"How do you-"

"Unlike you and your pathetic need to show force, I had nano drones survey the situation. Now if you'll excuse me, I have work to do." Dexter disappeared and the watch shut off, leaving Mandark gritting his teeth in frustration.

Meanwhile, Dexter was in an expansive area filled with advanced technologies and machinery which gave off a slightly blue color. Behind Dexter were two robots identical to the receptionist hologram. They both flanked another robot that was vastly different from the two. It had an obvious female form, although its legs looked to be fused with a miniature hover device levitating her where her feet would be. Its face looked human, save for green, pupil-less eyes and atop its head was metal designed in a way that it looked like a 50's housewife cut. Its legs, chest and upper arms were dark blue while its hands, face and "hair" were light blue and its shoulders and wrists were silver. In its hand was a silver tablet that bore a striking resemblance to a clipboard. "Dexter?" Its voice matched its female form and sounded like it had emotion, "Is everything alright?" Dexter sighed, "Mandark is suspicious that we're experimenting with time-travel."

"Oh dear." Dexter began walking through an opened passage along a white corridor as his machines followed. "We can't let Mandark catch on, we're almost ready for trials and I can't let any data leaking to a competitor." They entered another previously sealed area to find large glass pods being observed by Dexter's drones. He then turned, "Computress, double all server scans and firewall checks until further notice." The feminine robot nodded. "Already done."

"Also order all outside Dexbots to restrict any non-authorized personnel. Especially Dee Dee, God knows what havoc she could wreak with this experiment."

"Of course." Dexter stared back at the machines, "I don't know who that guy was or what he did, but it's none of our concern, not when we're so close."

Three months later.

The sun slowly rose over a group of mountains as it bathed the forest in light. Eventually, the rays made their way to a wooden cabin, standing in a small, grass covered valley; no trees to obscure the star's majesty. Through an open window, the cabin began to be illuminated; inside was a broken refrigerator, a stove, a multi-colored rug and a bed with a hand-crafted wooden frame and a mattress. Atop the bed was the same man who arrived three months ago, still sleeping in his gi, his sword beside him.

When the light reached his head, his lids opened slowly, but not groggily. He then silently exited the bed and picked up his sword, placing it in his sash. He stood by the window and smiled at the sunrise, savoring its beauty. The man proceeded to exit the cabin and walk into the forest. For about an hour, he went to various places, checking on snare traps before hiding them again. After seeing no creature caught in them, he went to a bush where he picked wild berries, promptly eating them after taking an armful. Afterwards, the man came back to the field where the cabin was. He slowly unsheathed his sword and started to swipe at the air as if fighting an invisible enemy. He blocked, slashed and dodged for another hour before a cry rang out, scaring several birds. The man quickly sheathed his sword and ran to where the noise came from.

When he reached it, he found a brunette boy suspended from his ankle by a snare trap. He wore black tennis shoes, cargo pants and a tan long-sleeved shirt under a red short-sleeved shirt. "Uh, hey," he asked nervously, "do you think you could get me down from here?" The man bowed his head slightly, "I apologize, I did not mean to inconvenience you." He then untied the knot, causing the boy to fall to the ground with a thud. The boy rubbed his head before the man held out his hand, the boy taking it with a small smile. "Thanks. Oh." After the boy got up, he scanned the ground, grabbing a dark green backpack and putting it on. "So, what'cha doin' out here."

"Well, I came to this place three months ago. I do not know what I must do, so I have been waiting."

"Waiting for what?" The man put his hand on the back of his head. "I do not know. For so long I have tried to get back and destroy Aku, now that it is finished, I know not what I must do." The man looked depressed as he looked down to the forest floor, lost in thought. "Hey," the boy spoke up, "Why don't you come with me, we can talk to my friends and see what's going on." The man smiled, "Thank you, little one, I would very much appreciate that."

"No problem. By the way, my name's Mac, what's yours?"

"Jack."

"Well, nice to meet'cha, Jack. Come on, we're a while over there. It's also the best place for a signal."

"You wish to signal whom."

"Ah, you'll see when we get there." Mac led the way as Jack followed, not knowing what lay before him.