Chapter 1 : The Rebirth of Evil

Summer began on a hot day that year, with the sun shining brightly, announcing even hotter days to come. A group of people made their way to their destination : a lonesome hill with an ancient prize sitting upon it. For decades, the prize was standing proudly, eating the sunrays which shone at its dark face, but for another couple of decades it was obscured by the mud that hid it from the eyes of men. Earthquakes settled the deal many years ago and hid even the tallest of black spikes ; but it was also the earthquakes that finally exposed the spikes to the light of the sun once more.

Whenever they were visible, the spikes sent fear into the hearts of people who saw them. Humans had many names for the mysterious anomaly which stood on this hill, the true origin and purpose of it long forgotten. Legends had been shared through the centuries, as had been the names. But one name remained. People named the anomaly The Dark Tree, as it mostly resembled a twisted, dead tree that was snapped at the trunk, with roots still greedily intertwined with the dirt and the remains of the bark still greedily yearning for the sunlight. It was black and had many spikes, which made people reluctant to approach it and see what it actually was. Nothing grew in its midst ; this fact sparked even more terrifying legends about the curse that struck the land in days long past. Legends of a monster buried and sealed into the darkness below the ground.

But the days of legends were over. When the Dark Tree emerged again, humanity was all grown up and ready to investigate on that hot first day of summer. A group of people settled around the Tree, approached the spikes that protruded from the ground and began unpacking their equipment. Not more than half an hour later, chatter filled the air and was mixed with sounds of digging. The heat made the dirt dry and crispy ; it was breaking under the shovels and made the work harder than it should have been. The team persisted nonetheless. To be there and to investigate an ages old mystery was an honour and the time had finally come to understand what the Dark Tree truly was.

One person in the team, an agile middle-aged woman, was overlooking the operation. Mysteries of the past like these were one of the reasons she got interested in archaeology in the first place. Now she had the opportunity to study and uncover them. With a smile on her lips, she made sure that the workers were careful and that there was progress ; slowly, she began seeing bits of the Tree's roots. As the woman stood and watched, her only regret was that she couldn't be with her daughter, even though she knew the girl would be spending her birthday with her friend. The lead archaeologist sighed and knew her child would understand ; this was a discovery of a lifetime. With eagerness in her heart, the archaeologist joined the workers.

"There seems to be no materials around the Tree," one of the younger workers informed her.

"That is interesting," she noted. "We were never truly sure if the Tree was man-made. The fact that there is nothing man-made around it could mean it is not. However, it could also mean a variety of other things," she added cheerfully.

She could name dozens of legends about the Dark Tree, on the top of her head. Each was more interesting than the previous one and, while she was digging so close to it, she felt so proud to be there. The roots were so firmly fixed into the ground she could hardly believe this was a natural occurrence, especially since the Tree didn't feel like anything natural to the touch. One thing was certain : it was most definitely not a tree.

The archaeologist teemed with excitement as they uncovered more of the mystery. Even as the dark material of the Tree reflected the heat of the sun and made everyone tired and weary, they dug on. Spikes started showing from all sides, glistening in the light after so many years in the dirt. For a few moments, the archaeologist thought the Tree was breathing in its first breath of air in a long time. It was remarkable how well preserved the whole thing was. She made sure to write down all of her observations in her journal. One of the most important ones was how the Tree didn't seem to be made of any natural material and that it therefore must be man-made. But what was it? She asked herself this while holding the journal in her hands, looking at the Tree and shielding her eyes from the sun behind it.

Someone on the other side of the Tree called her all of a sudden and she hurried to see what it was about. Maybe they just found something that would allow them to place the thing in a time period, or maybe tell them at least something of its purpose. So far, the only thing she could think of was the possibility that it was a grave. But a grave for who? Or what? Chills ran down her spine as she remembered some of the more terrifying legends and then arrived to the other team. She looked at them as they were all standing away from the Tree, with the exception of one worker who was trying to pull a pickaxe from one of the Tree's roots.

"What happened here?" the lead archaeologist asked.

"The root just appeared out of nowhere," the worker said, still trying to pull the pickaxe out.

The lead archaeologist wasn't happy about this, but mistakes happen on all archaeological digs. Things get accidentally hit, thrown, broken or forgotten. She hurried to help the worker get his pickaxe out of the root and they grabbed the tool together and pulled. On their fourth try, the pickaxe left the root and the archaeologist came closer to see the damage. There was an almost invisible little crack in the root. The archaeologist was about to move and tell everyone to get back to their positions when the root twitched. The woman gasped in surprise and stumbled back. She looked to the right and to the left and thought that perhaps the sun was making her dizzy, but the other roots were also twitching. This previously inanimate object began spasming and retracting its roots, like a wounded animal trying to outrun the hunter's dogs.

The archaeologist heard the commotion behind her and stumbled again, trying to understand what was happening. She found nothing in her memory that would explain what she was seeing. Slowly, like in a dream, she paced around the Tree, which was shaking, and returned to her previous post. Everything was the same there as well. Something that stood silently just moments ago was now cracking the dry dirt, pulling its body away from the ones who meddled in it and touched it. The workers already left the pit that housed the Tree that awoke from its slumber, but the lead archaeologist could not. She was petrified in curiosity and terror, a combination that couldn't lead to anything good. The unknown dark being was still twitching and retracting the roots until none were visible and then, as if using them for legs somewhere deep beneath the ground, it started growing, expanding into the air. As it grew, the archaeologist followed it with her gaze as it turned into a black tower which rose and blocked the sun. The woman finally moved, stumbling backwards as if she had forgotten how to walk and left the pit when the black tower stopped growing.

Up above everyone, a dark towering presence suddenly felt more alive than anything anyone had ever seen. It was not a tree and it was not man-made. It was a monster with a crown of horns. What used to be its roots was now like the flowing bottom of a cape. What used to be a tree trunk with broken bark now looked like the slender body of a giant. The archaeologist couldn't utter any word ; only silence engulfed them all until the giant moved, turning slowly, almost lazily. For such a titan, it was eerie how silently it moved. Gasps followed when it finally turned to see the ones who struck its home. The archaeologist saw a face of legends, a character from a tale her father told her when she was a child and that she in turn told her own children. It was a story, only a story, about evil. A story taught to children so they would behave. A story like any other, a remnant of the past when humanity still believed in monsters. But then this monster spoke with a voice that made it clear there were no stories this time.

"Once again, I am free to smite the world like I did in days old past," it said as the archaeologist observed the distracting flames flickering above its eyes and the teeth like those of ancient masks that were meant to scare the enemy. "I am A-…"

"Aku," the archaeologist finished with a whispe, alongside the monster that spoke, apparently, to no one in particular. But it heard the woman who stood in the dirt.

"Who dares interrupt Aku when he speaks?" the monster asked, angry or curious, she did not know.

It looked down and observed the woman. Now it definitely looked like the monster was curious, but before any more words, the archaeologist heard the footsteps of people behind her, running. No, no, don't run, he can kill you anyway, he will kill you! She thought, surprised at how clearly she remembered the tale. The monster extended its arm ; she heard the ground splitting behind her and then screams.

She did not turn to see. It was clear enough; the legends were true. The Dark Tree was a prison for evil and they set it free.