# carpedavid's Land of the Crane (Updated 11 May, 2006)



## carpedavid (Jan 27, 2005)

*Introduction*

All Tanayaran children learn about their relationship with the spirit world at a very early age. They learn about the spirits of the field that encourage the rice to grow, about the spirits of the heavens that bring good health, and about the spirits of the dark realm that cause misery and misfortune. They learn about the animal spirits that govern the cycle of years and about the ancestral spirits that bring them daily fortune. Above all, though, they learn of the spirits that guard Tanayari, who protect their homeland from the lizard-riding barbarian raiders and the savage warlords of Xin.

What they learn, primarily, is that, in order to keep the spirits happy, and thus, secure good fortune, one needs to make offerings on a regular basis. The spirits of the field require a cup of sake when the rice is sown, the ancestral spirits require daily worship, and the heavenly spirits require gifts of food and drink. The guardian spirits, though, expect far more: they expect every clan from every corner of the Land of the Crane to send emissaries to carry paper and jade and sake and rice to their remote, treacherous homes.

Thus, in the year three hundred and thirty seven of the Ito shogunate, every clan in Tanayari selected a group of their finest young samurai and shamans and honored them with the task of escorting an offering to Tsuru no Hi, the Great Fire Crane, guardian of the northern border. That Tsuru no Hi lived in an active volcano which continuously bellowed forth the great plumes of soot and cinders that formed the ashen desert responsible for swallowing entire armies of potential invaders was a minor matter, the daimyos assured their young emissaries.

After all, a treacherous pilgrimage to a distant, fiery mountain, fighting off shadowy ninja, rampaging oni, and hordes of ravenous bakemono all the while was a sure way to bring honor to the clan, and what young and impressionable samurai or shaman wouldn't want that? Plus, the daimyos thought to themselves, it was a small price to pay for the peace of mind it would bring; not having to worry about foreign invaders allowed them to focus all of their attention on how best to crush their neighboring clans.

Thus, three young heroes set out from the city of Kurosawa on 27 Sangatsu, 337 Ito, Year of the Fire Crane.

_First Up: Kakeru, the Shaman_


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## Graywolf-ELM (Jan 28, 2005)

I never would have stopped in, if I hadn't seen the author.  I liked your writing in the DM competitions here.  This isn't a genre of gaming I would normally read, but I'll be reading it anyway.

Cheers, and happy writing,
GW


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## BSF (Jan 28, 2005)

Ditto - I saw it was carpeDavid, and a brand new Storyhour, so I thought I would drop in.  It's much easier to catch a storyhour at the beginning.


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## el-remmen (Jan 29, 2005)

You didn't tell me you were doing a story hour. . .Something else to do at work now that you aren't allowed to IM, eh?

I'll have to check it out, even though you don't read mine. . . .grumble grumble


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## carpedavid (Feb 3, 2005)

Thanks for the kind comments from everyone so far. I'm going to attempt short but weekly updates (I'm aiming for Thursdays). We'll see how long that lasts  .

Without further ado, this week's update.

*Kakeru, the Shaman*

The three heroes set out from the city of Kurosawa equipped with a cart, a horse, a koku*  of rice, a few hundred cranes**, and little else. Kakeru, a young shaman of 16 years, sat in the front of the cart, holding the reins of Yagi, his horse.

As the only son of the daimyo's chief advisor, Kakeru was not surprised to have been chosen. His father had given him a very long speech about the honor he would bring to the clan, to his ancestors, to his mother, and to his six very silly sisters by embarking on this journey. He had sat patiently, smiled beatifically, and nodded. Honor was great, but he was excited to get out and see the world.

As he flicked the reins to direct Yagi, he looked over to his right. Floating next to him was the spirit of his grandfather***, Hiroshi, who was delivering a lecture on the proper way to greet those of higher station, lower station, the same station, and those whose station one was unaware of. Kakeru sighed and looked back over to his left. In the sky above him, he could see the albatross spirit, Wataridori, making slow circles around the cart.

Riding in the cart behind him were his two companions: Fukasu, his cousin on his father's side, lay with her large black wings curled up around her to ward off the cool morning air; Musashi, their childhood friend, sat in seiza****, diligently watching the road in front of them for any sign of trouble.

They rode this way for a day, saying little, each wondering what kind of adventures they were in for. By sundown, the city and the safety of the daimyo's castle were twenty miles behind them. They pulled off the road into a small clearing surrounded by red maple trees. Kakeru prepared a small campfire, set Yagi to graze, and prayed to the spirits of his ancestors to give them guidance and protection.

"How long will it be until we reach the monastery?" Musashi asked. The Temple of Thunder and Lightning was supposed to be the first stop on their journey. As the premier monastery in the Kurosawa lands, it had the privilege of sending an emissary with the party.

"Two days, at the rate we're traveling," Kakeru replied. Everyone sighed; being outside of the castle for the first time was exciting, but also nerve-wracking. "I'll take first watch," the young shaman offered.

Fukasu had already rolled over and pulled her wings in around her. "Good night, Kakeru-kun. Sleep tight, Musashi-kun," she said sleepily.

"Good night, Fu-chan," the shaman and the samurai replied in unison.

Musashi looked at Kakeru, "Are you sure you want to take first watch?"

"I'll be fine. I have Hiroshi-san to keep me company." He looked over at the spirit of his grandfather who had his eyes closed and his chin resting on his chest. He smiled beatifically at Musashi as Hiroshi began to snore.

Musashi was unable to see Kakeru's spirit guardians, so he shrugged and lay down next to Fukasu. "Watch well, Kakeru-kun," he said as he closed his eyes.

Kakeru settled into seiza and looked around. He couldn't see much with the fire going, so he contented himself to listen: the spring crickets chirped rhythmically, and the spirits of the wind rustled the leaves of the trees. After three hours of staring out into the darkness, Kakeru began to get bored -- this was not shaping up to be the exciting kind of adventure he had been expecting.

He yawned, and at that exact moment, a crossbow bolt flew from behind a tree and pierced his shoulder. Suddenly, Kakeru no longer had any reason to be bored...

_Next Week -- Fukasu: the Rogue_

*Notes:*
* A koku is a quantity of rice sufficient to feed one person for one year.
** The "crane" referred to here is the standard unit of currency in Tanayari: a square of rice paper stamped with the Emperor's seal, a flying crane.
*** Hiroshi is actually Kakeru's great, great, great, great, great, great grandfather, but it is customary in Tanayari to refer to any ancestor as "grandfather" or "grandmother."
**** Proper sitting posture: http://www.furyu.com/archives/issue6/Seiza.html

Edit: Fixed Fukasu's name.


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## carpedavid (Feb 3, 2005)

nemmerle said:
			
		

> You didn't tell me you were doing a story hour. . .Something else to do at work now that you aren't allowed to IM, eh?




I decided to start it on a whim, and then immediately regretted it when I realized how rusty I am at writing. Fortunatly, I think I can handle short but frequent updates without wearing myself out.



> I'll have to check it out, even though you don't read mine. . . .grumble grumble




*whistles innocently*


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## carpedavid (Feb 9, 2005)

*Fukasu, the Rogue*

An early update this week, since I got it done early. As a side note, the updates should get longer once I'm finished with the character introductions. I just wanted to give each character a post of his or her own. This week, we meet Fukasu, the half-oni rogue...

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Fukasu woke up to the confusing cacophony produced by Kakeru and Musashi both yelping in pain, Yagi snorting aggressively, and someone shouting "Charge!" Unfolding her wings, she looked up to see Kakeru clutching at a crossbow bolt sticking out of his shoulder, and Musashi pulling one out of his side.

_Uh-oh,_ she immediately thought, _ninja!_ Looking to her right, she saw two figures clad in black running toward her. She jumped to her feet, drew her ninja-to, and tried to focus on her training.

Yesterday, she had received a final lesson from her sensei - the only remaining member of the party that had scaled Tsuru no Hi sixty years ago*. After reminding her to watch her footwork (or in her case, hoof-work), he had admonished her to be careful.

"The world outside these walls is dangerous, and filled with those who have fear in their hearts," he said, solemnly.

_I'm six feet tall, breathe steam, and can fly_, Fukasu thought, _I can take care of myself_.

The old samurai cocked his head and pointed his finger at the young half-oni, "That's exactly the kind of attitude that's going to get you in trouble."

Fukasu started to object, but then grinned sheepishly and bowed - he knew her too well. Later that evening, as she wandered the halls of the daimyo's castle, she reflected on her sensei's words: "the world outside." The more she thought about that concept, the more worried she became. Finally, she sought out her uncle, Kakeru's father, who had raised her as his own.

"Uncle, I'm worried," Fukasu began cautiously.

"Fu-chan, what do you have to be worried about?"

"I've never been outside these walls. I don't know how people are going to react to me," she paused, "To what I am."

He grimaced. She was right of course - everyone in the palace treated his niece with great respect, but the outside world would be full of people who would fear and hate her. He took a moment to gather his thoughts, and then said, "The spirits of our ancestors will watch over you and protect you from harm."

"I know they will, but I'm still worried about how I should react."

"Ah," he paused and took a deep breath, "Well, the Daruma teaches that those who sow anger and fear will reap anger and fear, while those that sow compassion and happiness will reap compassion and happiness. You must treat others with the same tolerance that you wish to be treated with."

Fukasu nodded - it was a teaching she had heard a hundred times before, but one which she always found relevant. "Thank you uncle," she said.

Unfortunately, her uncle hadn't mentioned anything about ninja, so she only had her sensei's training to rely on, and he had trained her to kill. As the first black-clad figure approached, she made her figure as imposing as possible: expanding her wings to their fullest extent, drawing her six foot frame as tall as possible, angling her head so that her black ram horns caught the light of the fire, and exhaling deeply – sending a cloud of steam rolling up toward the night sky.

The ninja stopped in his tracks, and Fukasu could see the fear in his eyes. Seizing the opportunity, she closed the distance between them, and slid her blade between the ninja's third and fourth ribs. He gasped before collapsing at her feet. She breathed a sigh of relief, then looked over to see the second ninja rushing directly toward Musashi's katana. In the firelight, it almost looked like he was smiling.

_Next: Musashi, the Samurai_

*The Tanayaran calendar follows a sixty year cycle.


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## el-remmen (Feb 9, 2005)

Sweet, I really like the "flashback" format.

Keep up the good work. . .


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## carpedavid (Feb 9, 2005)

nemmerle said:
			
		

> Sweet, I really like the "flashback" format.
> 
> Keep up the good work. . .




Thanks, Nemm! So far I'm having a lot of fun writing this. I'm trying not to fret too much and just keep the story flowing. This is a great group to game with, and I've managed to stumble into some good stories, so there's a lot of good stuff to tell, which makes writing this easy.


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## carpedavid (Feb 15, 2005)

*Musashi, the Samurai*

Musashi couldn't help but grin as the ninja rushed toward him. Since he was old enough to hold a bokken*, he had spent the better part of every day training for battle. Now he would finally be able to test himself for real: on the field of battle, rather than on the tatami** of the dojo.

The last time he had drawn his sword, his father had been watching from across the room. As the daimyo's general, his father expected nothing less than perfection from his son, and often observed his technique with an extremely critical eye.

"Musashi!" he roared, as his son drew his katana, "Your feet are out of alignment. How can you possibly generate the power to cut down your enemy with your body held like that?" He roughly rearranged his son's stance, and gestured to him to continue.

Musashi attempted the maneuver again, and this time his father nodded in approval. "Good," he growled, "You learn quickly, Musashi. You have the potential to be an even greater swordsman than your brother; perhaps even greater than I."

"Yes father," he said, bowing deeply. _I will be the greatest swordsman of all_, he thought to himself.

"Musashi, you know of the pilgrimage that our clan must make to Tsuru no Hi."

"Yes father."

"You remember that your brother, Hiro, made the pilgrimage to Tora no Daichi***  seven years ago."

"Yes father."

"You remember that he brought great honor to our clan," Akuma smiled.

"Yes father," Musashi said, knowing full well what was coming. As the son of the daimyo's general, it was inconceivable that he would not have been selected to lead the pilgrimage this year.

"You, Musashi, now have the opportunity to bring even greater honor to our clan, for you shall be among those that deliver our offering to the greatest of the spirit guardians."

"Thank you, father," Musashi said, bowing deeply yet once again.

His father bowed in return (though not as deeply), and turned to leave. When he reached the door, he stopped and turned back to his son. "Musashi," he said sternly.

"Yes father?"

"If you fail, do not bother to come back."

"I will not fail." _It is not possible for me to fail_, he thought.

Musashi recalled this conversation as he waited for the ninja to reach him. _I will not fail. I will not fail. I will not fail._ He repeated those words to himself as time itself slowed down. Each breath came deliberately and seemed to last minutes. He could feel his pulse reverberate throughout his body – a bloody metronome ticking off the rhythm of his life. The interval between the footsteps of his opponent became infinitely and unbearably long. Finally, the man drew within range of his blade, and every muscle in his body tensed.

At the last possible moment, in one smooth motion, he drew his katana and slashed open the belly of his attacker. Time returned to its normal flow, and as the lifeless body fell at his feet, he turned his gaze to the third ninja. This one, who had ordered the charge, stopped in her tracks. After a moment of hesitation, she turned and ran.

Only when she disappeared back into the shadows did Musashi relax. He wiped the blood off of his katana as he sheathed it, and then he turned his attention to his friends. Fukasu was already attending to Kakeru as the young shaman healed his own wounds, so he moved the bodies of the two fallen ninja next to the fire.

After taking a few minutes to catch their breath, the three heroes burned the bodies. "Great spirits of fire," Kakeru intoned, "I command you to burn brightly." They watched as the fire consumed the remains of the two ninja, then, with the threat of the bodies spontaneously reanimating as undead removed, decided to return to sleep.

This time, Kakeru and Fukasu rested while Musashi took watch. As the young samurai sat in seiza, intently watching the shadows, he replayed the earlier battle in his mind. He had been strong, he had survived, and he defended his friends - that much was true - but something felt incomplete. He had let one of the attackers escape, and that simply would not do.

_I need to be stronger_, he thought, _I need to be much, much stronger_.

_Next: the Temple of Thunder and Lightning_

* A wooden training sword. While it isn't designed to cut, it can still be deadly in the right hands.
** Traditional straw mats that serve as floor covering.
*** Tora no Daichi, the Earth Tiger, guards the Eastern border of Tanayari.


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## Ivy Sylvan (Feb 17, 2005)

Well, this is my first post here, so I really don't know what to say.  I'm one of CarpeDavid's players in the campaign he's detailing in this story hour (I'm Fukasu).  I'm really enjoying watching this campaign get posted and read by everyone here.  It's been one of the most enjoyable campaigns I've ever played in.  Keep adding to the story!!!!!!!


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## carpedavid (Feb 18, 2005)

*The Temple of Thunder and Lightning*

Well, I've been having so much fun writing this up, that I've got a second bonus update for this week. A question to any readers out there: do you find footnotes in storyhours to be helpful or annoying?

--------------------------------

On the first day of Yongatsu, 337 Ito, Year of the Fire Crane, the three heroes reached the Temple of Thunder and Lightning. A stout stone wall nearly twenty feet tall enclosed the monastery, leaving the iron lightning rod on top of the temple's pagoda the only thing visible from the road. Kakeru maneuvered the cart up to the temple's massive wooden doors, and the three heroes hopped out.

While Kakeru and Fukasu looked at each other expectantly, Musashi walked right up to the doors and knocked loudly. Then, they waited. After five minutes, he knocked again. He could hear the sound of the knocking echoing beyond the doors, and looked back at his friends with satisfaction.

After ten minutes with no answer, Musashi began pounding on the door with the scabbard of his katana. After a minute of extremely loud pounding, he was rewarded with the sound of a creaky door opening somewhere beyond, the sound of footfalls on stone echoing from inside the compound, and then, a few seconds later, the sound of the door being unbarred.

The door swung open only far enough to allow the monk on the other side to poke his bald head through. He looked suspiciously at Musashi, then directed his gaze toward Kakeru. After a moment of examination, he turned to look at Fukasu, and his eyes opened wide in surprise.

"Oni!" he screamed, and promptly slammed the door shut. The party could hear the bar slide back into place, the sound of running, and then the creaky door being slammed shut.

"Well, then," Kakeru grumbled.

Fukasu sighed and hung her head.

Musashi clenched his fists and took a step back. "Is this how you treat the representatives of your lord?" he yelled with all his power. "Is this how you treat a samurai?" He fumed for a few moments before returning to pounding on the door.

After less than a minute, they heard the sounds of the creaky door opening once again. Footsteps followed, and then the sound of the door being unbarred. This time, it was thrown fully open, revealing a very old monk in saffron robes. "My deepest apologies, Kurosawa-sama*," he said, bowing very deeply, "I assure you that the young man who insulted you will be properly disciplined." He gestured for the group to enter, "Please come inside, I have been expecting you."

Musashi looked at Fukasu. She was silent for a moment, and then shrugged. "Thank you sensei," she said, bowing, "It would be our honor."

The old monk smiled and bowed once again, "I am Sanjiro, the kanju** of this monastery." Inside the stone walls lay a complex of wooden buildings, which Sanjiro deftly navigated the party through. He led to them to the back of the complex, to a large building which possessed a roof that reminded Fukasu of a lotus blossom unfolding.

"The students are engaged in their morning exercises," Sanjiro said as he opened the door for the party. An echoing cacophony of ki shouts, barked instructions, and occasional yelps of pain greeted them as they stepped inside. Hundreds of monks were engaged in various forms of physical activity: in one corner, several lines of monks threw punches and kicks in unison; in another, pairs of monks practiced throwing each other on the ground in various, painful ways; other monks practiced sparring, grappling, tumbling, and balancing throughout the building.

As the group walked past the students, Fukasu noticed them staring and heard whispers of "oni" filter through their ranks. For a few seconds, she contemplated doing nothing, but then she turned to look at them, opened her mouth wide, and exhaled a cloud of steam. The whispers stopped, and she smiled to herself. _Ha!_

After leading the party to the center of the room, the kanju motioned for the party to sit. "So," he began, "I understand that you are making the pilgrimage to Tsuru no Hi?"

"That's correct," Musashi said brusquely. "We require you to..."

"Ahem," Kakeru interrupted. Musashi looked sidelong at him, but said nothing, "Sensei, it would be a great honor for the Kurosawa clan if you would send a representative of your temple to accompany us."

"Yes, of course," the old monk smiled, "The fate of the Kurosawa clan is our fate as well. It would be a great honor for the temple to have someone accompany you."

"Thank you, Sanjiro-sensei."

_I wonder who I should send_, Sanjiro thought to himself as he looked around the dojo. _Toji? No – he's too good a practice dummy. Miho? No, too cute. Kazuko? Too industrious. Riku? Tomoe? Koyo? No, no, no. Who then? Who can I afford to lose for several months_, he thought, then looked at the three teenagers sitting in front of him, _or permanently?_  He mentally ran through the roster of his adepts for a few moments before settling on one name. _Ah yes_, he smiled to himself, _yes, he'll do... _ He turned and motioned to one of the young monks standing nearby.

"Yes sensei?" the monk said, bowing deeply.

"Bring me Takashi."

_Next: Takashi, the Monk_

*Notes:*

* When Tanayarans address each other, they almost always do so by employing one of the titles described below. Using no title indicates a level of extreme familiarity usually limited to siblings, spouses, or a parent addressing a title. When used, the title is added as a suffix to the subject's given name. For example, if talking to Takashi, one might address him as "Takashi-san."

Dono - used when addressing one's own daimyo. It is an elevated form of -sama.
Sama - used when addressing one's superiors, or when showing great respect for someone. It is the rough equivalent of "Lord or Lady." A commoner addressing a noble would use this title.
Sensei - used when addressing a teacher of any sort, or a "master" of an art form or trade.
San - this is the default honorific, used when addressing an equal or near equal. It is the equivalent of calling someone "Mr. or Ms."
Kun - used to address a male friend or close companion.
Chan - used to address a female friend or close companion.

** Head abbot of a monastery


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## el-remmen (Feb 18, 2005)

I love it!

And keep the footnotes.  I may be partial to them because I make extensive use of them in my own story hour - but they really are informative and don't break up the actual narrative with too much exposition.


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## el-remmen (Feb 18, 2005)

Oh, and do you plan to start a Rogue's Gallery Thread for these PCs?  

I would like to see their stats as they advance.


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## Ivy Sylvan (Feb 18, 2005)

I agree!  Keep the footnotes!


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## carpedavid (Feb 18, 2005)

nemmerle said:
			
		

> Oh, and do you plan to start a Rogue's Gallery Thread for these PCs?
> 
> I would like to see their stats as they advance.




Uh, well, I am now, I guess .

I do make the players fill out a clean character sheet each time they level up, so I've got records of all their stats. Therefore, I can post fairly detailed info about them at each level.

We play tomorrow, so I'll try to get their initial info posted somtime later this weekend or early next week.


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## carpedavid (Feb 18, 2005)

Ivy Sylvan said:
			
		

> I agree!  Keep the footnotes!




Well, two votes for footnotes works for me . Plus, I like them, too.


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## carpedavid (Feb 20, 2005)

I've added the three PCs introduced thus far into a Rogue's Gallery thread, found here: http://www.enworld.org/showthread.php?t=121369

I'll be adding the additional PCs as they're introduced, as well as the stats for any nifty bad guys the PCs run across.


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## BSF (Feb 20, 2005)

Having fun reading it so far CarpeDavid.  I like the footnotes because you use a lot of terminology that isn't always familiar to everyone.  Certainly, some words can be guessed at by context, but clarifying with footnotes is a good idea.


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## carpedavid (Feb 24, 2005)

*Takashi, the Monk*



			
				BardStephenFox said:
			
		

> Having fun reading it so far CarpeDavid.




Thanks, BSF! Without further ado, here's this week's installment:

------------------------------------------------------------------------

Takashi, a young man of 16 years, had come to the Temple of Thunder and Lightning under unfortunate circumstances. In the summer of his 13th year, a group of wandering ronin raided his village, slaughtering any who dared resist them. Takashi escaped with his life, but his parents weren't so lucky. Orphaned, alone, scared, and burning with rage, Takashi was taken in by the monks of the temple. They clothed him, fed him, and trained him in the Way of the Storm.

Unfortunately for Takashi, the monastic lifestyle did little to quell the rage he felt. He trained relentlessly, and refused to pull punches. He had broken a dozen noses, kicked twice as many groins, and smashed so many toes that most students refused to be his training partner. He had therefore been relegated to practicing with a wooden training dummy out behind the dojo. _If they would just learn to block correctly, this wouldn't have to happen_, he thought to himself.

Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted one of the youngest monks watching him. He punched the dummy one last time, hard, then turned. "Yes?"

"Takashi-san," the monk bowed apologetically, "Sensei wishes to see you."

"What? I did my chores!"

"I don't believe it has anything to do with your chores," this time.

"Fine," he sighed, and followed the monk into the dojo. He ran through the list of things he might be in trouble for, but couldn't think of anything that he'd done within the last few days. He was really thrown for a loop when he saw the group of non-monks sitting in front of Sanjiro: _a samurai, a shaman, and an...an... oni?_

The outsiders stared at Takashi as he approached. The samurai, in particular, appeared to be examining him, which made Takashi feel somewhat uncomfortable. He bowed to the visitors and to the kanju, then dropped into seiza.

"Takashi-san," the old monk said, "It is time for you to take the knowledge you have gained here, and practice applying it in the world." He gestured to the three visitors, "Our honorable guests are representatives of Kurosawa-dono."

"Uh, ok," Takashi replied, looking back at them. The shaman looked nice enough. The oni was a bit weird...well, a lot weird; but what really bothered him was the samurai. The guy kept staring at him. He decided to stare back, and the samurai scowled.

"They are taking the offerings of Kurosawa-dono to Tsuru no Hi. Their success will ensure good fortune for all of Kurosawa-dono's subjects, including this temple."

"Mmm-hmm," he said, continuing to stare.

"Takashi!" Sanjiro snapped. The young monk looked startled, and then returned his attention to the kanu. "Takashi, you have the great honor of representing the Temple of Thunder and Lightning on this journey."

"Huh? Me?" Takashi looked stunned, "Why me?"

Sanjiro paused for a second before answering. "I have meditated on this question for many days," he said, taking a deep breath, "and the spirits," he exhaled, "say that it should be so." _I'm going to pay for that_, he thought to himself.

Musashi, who was still examining the young monk, frowned, and then turned to the old monk. "This journey is bound to be very dangerous, and I am not convinced that this one has the ability to defend himself," he said, gesturing toward Takashi. "Perhaps we could arrange for a test of some sort."

"Oh, bring it on!" Takashi replied, jumping to his feet. Musashi looked shocked, but Sanjiro suppressed a smile; there were times when the young monk's extreme enthusiasm was endearing.

With a nod from the kanju, the monks of the Temple of Thunder and Lightning quickly fell into rank, and lined the edges of the tatami. One monk, who Musashi had guessed was the senior student, walked to the center, and motioned to both he and Takashi to take their places.

"Hold these," Musashi muttered as he handed his swords to Fukasu and Kakeru, "This will be over quickly." _At the very least, this will be a good test_, he thought as he took his place a few feet away from Takashi, _of my own skill_.

The two competitors bowed to each other, then turned to bow to the shinban*. Then, all three turned and bowed to Sanjiro, who nodded to them to continue.

The shinban pointed at Musashi. "Ready?"

"I am a samurai, I am always ready."

Next, the shinban pointed at Takashi. "Ready?"

"Let's do it."

Finally, the shinban brought his hands together, "Hajime!**"

As the two opponents closed, Takashi threw a short jab toward Musashi's face, just to see if he could get a reaction. To the samurai's credit, he didn't flinch. Musashi replied with a jab of his own, and Takashi smiled to himself. _Ok, it's on_, he thought.

The two circled each other for a moment, and then Takashi attacked. He led with a roundhouse kick to the head, which Musashi raised his arms to block. Doing so, though, left the samurai's midsection completely exposed, and Takashi seized on the opportunity, delivering a side kick to his ribs. _By my ancestors, he's fast_, Musashi thought as he felt the air rush out of his lungs.

Musashi retaliated with a solid punch to Takashi's jaw. The blow was powerful, but he overextended, and left his guard open again. Takashi took advantage and snapped a backfist to the samurai's face. _Ow, he's strong_, Takashi realized as his face began to throb, _oh, he's going down_.

Takashi stepped in close. He placed his right foot just outside of the samurai's stance, pivoted his hips so that his back was now to his opponent, and reached his right hand under Musashi's arm. His left hand came up to trap the arm, and he squatted ever so slightly. Before his opponent could react, he popped back up while leaning slightly at the waist, and suddenly the samurai was in the air.

_What the... _ Musashi thought, as his feet left the ground. In the brief instant that his head cleared Takashi's shoulder, he looked down. _Wow_, he marveled, _the ground looks really far away_.

_Next: Musahi lands, and everyone pays visit to a haunted shrine._

Notes:

*The referee in a martial arts match.
**"Begin!"


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## carpedavid (Feb 26, 2005)

I've added Takashi's stats to the Rogue's Gallery thread. You can find him here: http://www.enworld.org/showthread.php?p=2063023#post2063023


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## carpedavid (Mar 4, 2005)

Musahi woke up in pain. He opened his eyes to see a very blurry Kakeru hovering over him, with what he could only assume was a look of concern. Realizing he was lying on his back, a very indefensible position, he tried to sit up. He only made it about halfway before a wave of nausea washed over him, forcing him to lie back down. "What happened?"

"You landed on your head," Kakeru answered.

"Hard," Fukasu added as she appeared next to Kakeru.

Musashi held his head and groaned. _That's right, I was testing the monk..._

"Satisfied?" Takashi asked as he, too, appeared in Musashi's field of vision.

"Yes, you've successfully demonstrated your ability to defend yourself in combat." He forced himself to sit up, suppressed another wave of nausea, and continued, "The Way of the Storm is powerful, and worthy of its reputation." _It is powerful, indeed_, he thought, _exactly the kind of power I could use to my advantage_.

Musashi suffered from a pounding headache for the rest of the day. While he relaxed with Fukasu and Kakeru, Takashi received final instructions from Sanjiro.

"Takashi-san," the kanju addressed his student, "Before you leave these lands, you must seek the blessing of Kadonomaro-shihan. Have you visited his shrine yet?"

"Yes sensei, I accompanied Kazuko when he took the offering last year." When Kadonomaro, the founder of the Way of the Storm, chose a location to build his monastery, he placed a place with great strategic value, but no esthetic appeal. When, in his last days, he chose the place where his shrine would be built, he picked a small valley a day's ride to the north, where a solitary cherry tree stood by a trickling brook.

The next morning, the four heroes left the Temple of Thunder and Lightning, and headed north. As before, Fukasu and Musashi rode in the cart, while Kakeru took the reins. Takashi walked alongside the cart; he liked walking, and he wasn't sure he trusted these people yet.

The group said little as the day progressed. Musashi, as usual, scanned the horizon for signs of potential trouble while occasionally throwing sidelong glances at the monk. Fukasu curled up in the cart and took a nap, while Kakeru ignored a lecture from his grandfather's spirit on the declining use of honorifics by the younger generation.

Near sundown, the group reached the valley that held Kadonomaro's shrine. The path that led down the hillside was too steep to take the cart down, so Kakeru offered to stay with Yagi while the others went with Takashi.

The new member of the group started down the hill, then stopped suddenly. The scene that confronted him was very different from the one he remembered: now the hillside was marshy and covered in reeds taller than he. His skin turned to gooseflesh as a strong breeze swept down the valley, carrying the pungent scent of decaying leaves.

"Something's wrong," he told Fukasu and Musashi, "this is different than I remember it."

"I'll take a look," Fukasu replied, unfolding her wings.

As she took off, Takashi looked at her with concern. _That's just not natural_, he thought to himself.

Fukasu returned after a minute, "The entire area is covered in standing water. I could see the shrine, though, and it looks like it's still intact."

Takashi considered the information for a second before responding, "I need to see what it looks like inside."

"I'll take the lead," Musashi said as he placed his hand on the hilt of his katana. The group cautiously advanced, watching for signs of trouble. Then, halfway down the hill, a movement off to Musashi's right caused him to signal the others to stop.

Out of the reeds emerged a dog or rather, the remains of a dog – all bone and gristle and dried skin that fluttered like paper in the breeze. Its eyes, where the soul of a canine should be found, were devoid of flesh, and burned the black fire of Yomi* itself.

Musashi regarded the skeleton with horror. He could tell that it was barking at him, but all that he could hear was the clack-clack-clack of its desiccated jaws snapping together. Then, just as a second skeleton appeared from the opposite direction, the first one lunged.

Musashi stepped to the side, drew his katana, and sliced at the first skeleton, but it was much faster than he expected something without the spark of life to be. At the same time, Takashi aimed a kick at the second skeleton, and discovered that he, too, had misjudged the creature's speed.

Fukasu drew her ninja-to and, following her training, slipped the blade between the second skeleton's ribs. She quickly realized that this tactic, which worked so well against living, breathing creatures, was utterly useless against the undead.

The second skeleton ignored Fukasu's attack, and focused on the young monk. With a disturbing silence, it began to maul Takashi; bite after bite drew fresh blood, and it was all the young monk could do to keep himself from taking a mortal wound.

Fukasu realized that she needed to intervene. She bent down, lowered her head, and slammed into the side of the skeleton with her horns. The sound of popping tendons and cracking bone gave her hope, and she pressed the attack.

Takashi freed himself from the distracted skeleton's jaws and stumbled behind Fukasu. He looked over to see Musashi having slightly more success. With two mighty swings, Musashi cleaved through the skeleton's torso, extinguishing the tainted spark that animated the creature.

The remaining skeleton barked soundlessly at Fukasu, but found itself unable to penetrate her defense. A moment later, it too became a jumble of bones, as the half oni smashed into it with all the force of a ram at a full charge.

"Ow," Takashi gasped as he fell into the mud.

"Kakeru!" Musashi called, "Takashi is wounded!"

Kakeru hefted his bulky frame out of the cart and hurried down the path. Mud squelched over his geta** as he ran. It took him only a moment to reach his companions, but it seemed like an hour to him. He was certainly not going to let anyone die on his watch, so every moment it took him to channel the healing power of the benevolent, honorable kami*** seemed like a moment too long.

Fortunately, he arrived in plenty of time, and the power he transferred was potent. Takashi thanked Kakeru, and then leapt back to his feet. "Ok, let's figure out what's going on," the young monk said before marching off.

Fukasu, Musashi, and Kakeru followed, splashing through a hundred feet of standing water to the small building that housed the shrine. The single-story building measured twenty feet on a side, with rice paper walls and roof of wooden shingles. The front was open to the elements, which allowed the four heroes to step up out of the water and onto the tatami, which were thankfully still dry.

Directly across from them stood a small wooden altar topped with a memorial stone, some offerings of rice and bean paste, and a brazier for burning incense. As they stepped forward, a mighty thunderclap shook the floor, the walls, and the air itself. Then an opaque mist bellowed out of the memorial stone and took the form of an angry, old monk.

"Who has defiled my shrine?" he bellowed.

_Next: more spirit-y goodness and an encounter with a wandering monk._

*Notes:*

* In the Tanayari cosmology, Yomi is the land of the dead. It is a realm of negative energy that gradually corrupts and consumes everything it comes in contact with, including the spirits of the deceased. This negative energy is responsible for animating undead and spreading taint throughout Tanayari.

All souls arrive in Yomi upon death, though very powerful souls may eventually make their way to Takama no Hara, the realm of heavenly spirits. Only the souls of the enlightened can circumvent passage through Yomi, by traveling directly to Takama no Hara.

** Wooden clogs.

*** Kami are Fenist deities, though they are neither omnipotent nor omniscient. They can represent natural phenomena, abstract concepts, or specific powerful historical figures. In general, the word "kami" refers to any spirit powerful enough to be worthy of respect.
The number of kami is not fixed, and, in fact, continuously grows as great mortals enter the spirit world. As a whole, they are known as _Yau-Yorozu no Kami_, or the Ever-Increasing Myriad Deities.

There are three categories of kami: _amatsukami_ are the gods of heaven, who reside in Takama no Hara. They are the guardians of the natural order, ensuring that the cosmos continues to function.

The _kunitsukami_ are the gods of the land, who reside in the Mortal Realm. These kami protect the land and people of Tanayari.

The _magatsuhi no kami_ are the malignant gods who bring disease, pollution, and disaster into the world. They are native to Yomi, the land of death.


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## el-remmen (Mar 6, 2005)

I am looking foward to more. . .


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## BSF (Mar 6, 2005)

As am I.  I am enjoying it a great deal.


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## carpedavid (Mar 10, 2005)

Thanks Nemm and BSF! Encouraging comments make me want to keep writing 

This week's been busy, so today's update is on the shorter side.
--------------------------------------------------------------

"Aaaaah! A spirit!" Fukasu screamed.

"Aaaaah! An oni!" the spirit of the monk screamed. Fukasu turned and ran out of the shrine at the same time that the sprit turned and fled back into the altar. After a moment, Fukasu poked her head around the corner, and the spirit stuck his head out of the altar. Kakeru rolled his eyes, and decided it was time to intervene.

"Oh venerable master," Kakeru addressed the spirit, "we are but humble travelers, sent by our honorable lord, Kurosawa, to deliver an offering to the great fire crane."

The spirit eyed Fukasu suspiciously, but re-emerged from his altar, "What business do you have here?" Fukasu shivered and decided that she'd had quite enough of spirits, so she fluttered up to the roof to wait.

"Kadonomaro-shihan*," Takashi said as he bowed deeply to the spirit of the founder of his monastery, "I am a student at the Temple of Thunder and Lightning, and I've been selected to represent our temple on this journey. So I have come to ask for your blessing."

"Ah," Kadonomaro nodded, "so you are not the ones who have defiled my shrine."

"Oh, no, no, not at all," Kakeru assured him.

"Hmmm, very well," the spirit grumbled. He looked around at the three travelers for a moment, and then grumbled again, "That does not change the fact, though, that my eternal resting place has suddenly become a swamp."

"Perhaps, venerable master," said Kakeru, "If we can figure out how to restore your shrine to its former state, you would see fit to grant us your blessing." He smiled reassuringly, though he had no idea whether or not they would be able to accomplish what he had just offered.

"Mmmm, yes, I would certainly offer you my blessing if you were to accomplish that," Kadonomaro replied.

"Shihan, can you tell us when this happened?" Takashi asked.

The spirit of the founder of the Way of the Storm closed his eyes and concentrated for a moment. Time becomes an unimportant concept to immortal spirits, and they often have great difficultly translating their experience into terms mortals can understand. "I believe it happened about a month ago," he offered.

"Thank you, shihan," said Takashi.

"We will do everything in our power to restore the sanctity of your shrine, venerable master," said Kakeru as he bowed deeply. The spirit nodded and then floated back into the altar.

Only when the spirit of the old monk was out of site did Musashi allow himself to react. _I don't like spirits,_ he thought to himself as he shivered visibly. _Fukasu had the right idea._

The four heroes regrouped outside of the shrine. Though night was rapidly approaching, they set off downstream, illuminated only by the golden glow of the setting sun. Tromping through the swampy muck proved to be both dirty and exhausting, though, so when Kakeru misjudged the solidity of a patch of ground and fell into a waist-deep pit of mud, the group decided to call it a night. Takashi, Fukasu, and Musashi found relatively dry places to curl up, while Kakeru decided to climb the hill and fetch Yagi and the wagon.

The next morning, everyone woke up damp, muddy, and covered in mosquito bites. Kakeru rejoined his three companions in the valley, and the four intrepid heroes pressed on. After an hour or so of slopping through the muck and pushing through the reeds, the party finally arrived at the cause of the backed-up stream: a dam built from bamboo, lashed together with rope, and sealed with pitch. The dam wasn't particularly large; it stood no higher than Musashi's waist and stretched only a hundred feet from end to end, but it was big enough to block off the stream.

Beyond the dam, lay, presumably, the reason the obstruction was built in the first place: a small, thatched-roof house that was not much bigger than Kadonomaro's shrine. Takashi hopped over the bamboo obstruction and headed toward the house. The rest of the party followed, but stopped short when a strange figure appeared from the opposite side of the house.

A samurai, or, at least, someone wearing black o-yoroi** armor and bearing a katana, began walking slowly toward them. Every inch of the figure was hidden under armor of some sort. Even the face was concealed from view by a black mask.

Kakeru stepped out in front of the group and began to speak, "Honorable sir, we are but humble travelers. We have come from the shrine of Kadonomaro, just upstream, and are concerned about this dam that you've built." The figure paused while Kakeru spoke, but then began advancing once he stopped.

Takashi decided that waiting was futile, so he leapt into action; he sprinted across the dry ground and threw a roundhouse kick at the samurai's torso. Musashi charged, his hand on the hilt of his katana, muscles tensing, waiting for just the right moment. To his friends, it seemed like he waited forever; he was mere inches from the black-clad figure when he planted his feet and transferred his momentum into a massive swing that slammed into the figure's chest.

Kakeru dashed toward the black samurai, and threw a punch of his own. The figure made no sound as it swung at Musashi. Fortunately for the young samurai, his own haramaki*** deflected the blow. Fortunately for Fukasu, the figure's swing left a small seam under his left arm exposed, and she took full advantage of the opening. She drew her ninja-to and plunged it directly into the seam. The figure stopped in place with a loud "klunk." Fukasu withdrew her blade and looked at her companions with a puzzled expression, "Klunk?"

_Next: the secret of the klunking samurai, landscaping, and that wandering monk I mentioned last time!_

Notes:
* "Shihan" is a formal title meaning, approximately, "master instructor." A "teacher of teachers."

** Great armor. The equivalent of full plate mail.

*** Leather-scale armor. It is lighter and much cheaper to produce than o-yoroi, and is the most common armor worn by beginning samurai and experienced foot soldiers.


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## BSF (Mar 10, 2005)

*klunk* ?

Cool!  This ought to be interesting.


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## Kiwifudgechocobo (Mar 13, 2005)

Well, just like Ivy, I also have no idea what to say here.

I, like her, am one of the players in Dave's campaign. I play the wandering monk Dave mentioned, but I'll keep the suspense and not give any spoilers for my character.

I've played with Dave for awhile now, and I must say, his campaigns keep getting better. Keep up the good work! Oh, and get to updating! I need new material to read while I'm stuck at work.


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## carpedavid (Mar 13, 2005)

Kiwifudgechocobo said:
			
		

> I play the wandering monk Dave mentioned, but I'll keep the suspense and not give any spoilers for my character.




Hi BJ! Actually, the group encountered a different wandering monk a couple of sessions before they ran into you. Just to avoid confusion, it'll take me several more updates until I reach the point in the campaign where your character gets introduced. However, that should just serve to increase the suspense .



> Oh, and get to updating! I need new material to read while I'm stuck at work.




I'm working on it. So far, I've managed to update at least once a week, and I'm hoping that I'll keep on track. Encouraging posts like yours keep me on task .

Oh, and to all my players who are reading: since the early stuff is being recreated from written notes that aren't as detailed as I'd like them to be, feel free to post corrections in this thread.


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## el-remmen (Mar 17, 2005)

When's the next update?


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## carpedavid (Mar 17, 2005)

nemmerle said:
			
		

> When's the next update?




I'm hoping to be done with it by early afternoon. So, check back around 2:00 EST.


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## carpedavid (Mar 17, 2005)

Fukasu poked at the figure with her sword. Nothing happened, so she poked it again. It stood, silent and still, frozen in mid swing. "Huh," she muttered.

Musashi stepped back from the figure, prepared to strike if it began to move again, "What is this thing?"

A voice from the direction of the house drew the party's attention. "Why have you destroyed my automaton?" a young, bald man dressed in a modest kimono asked as he descended the front stairs.

Kakeru's eyes widened. He had encountered automatons only a few times, and all had been gifts to the daimyo from very powerful sorcerers.*  _If he's powerful enough to build an automaton_, he thought to himself, _he could destroy us all with a single thought_.

"My honorable lord," Kakeru bowed deeply, "please excuse our transgression." He smiled sincerely and bowed multiple times as he continued, "We are humble servants of our lord Kurosawa, on a mission of great importance. We are passing through this area at the behest of the great spirit Kadonomaro, the founder of the Temple of Thunder and Lightning. We deeply regret fighting with your automaton, but it attacked us, and we were forced to defend ourselves." 

"Please, I am no lord," the man said as he bowed back, "Just a simple sorcerer of very modest power. My name is Isobe Goro." He gestured toward the defunct contraption, "And I'm sorry that my automaton threatened you. I'm not yet sure how to fully control it."

Kakeru introduced his companions, but then looked at Goro suspiciously. _Modest power?_ "Goro-san," he asked, "May I ask where you got this automaton?"

"Certainly. I came across it in my travels, and managed to figure out how to give it some simple instructions." He looked at the black samurai and frowned, "Apparently I missed a few things."

Musashi's patience was wearing thin. "Why have you chosen to build your house here?" he demanded of the sorcerer.

Goro raised an eyebrow, "Well, I thought it would be a pleasant, quiet place to meditate."

"And what of the dam?"

"Well," he continued, the confusion evident in his voice, "There was a stream that was flowing right through the middle of this valley." He shrugged his shoulders, "I couldn't very well build the house in the middle of a stream."

Musashi frowned. _I don't know why anyone would build their house in a valley,_ he thought to himself.

"The reason we ask," Takashi cleared his throat before continuing, "Is that the shrine to my temple's founder sits in this valley, and the dam you've built has flooded it."

"Oh," Goro looked startled. "I had no idea." He scratched his head, opened his mouth to speak, closed it, and then stared at his feet, "Hmmmm."

"Perhaps we could dig a channel to route the stream around your house," Kakeru suggested, drawing out the word "around."

Goro looked relieved, "That's an excellent idea, Kakeru-san." He bowed to the entire group, "Please enjoy what limited hospitality I can offer."

The group spent the rest of the day digging a channel to route the stream around Isobe Goro's home. While the work wasn't especially difficult, it was tiring and time consuming, so by the time they finished, the group was thoroughly exhausted. They all felt a tremendous sense of satisfaction, though, once the dam came down and the water began to drain.

The next morning, the four heroes thanked Goro for his hospitality, and then traveled back to the shrine of Kadonomaro. The difference in the environment was already apparent; most of the standing water had drained off, revealing the solid (albeit muddy) ground.

Musashi and Fukasu elected to stay outside the shrine while Kakeru and Takashi talked to the spirit of the old monk. "Kadonomaro-shihan," Takashi said as he placed a stick of incense on the altar, "We've found what caused the desecration to your site."

The spirit of the old monk billowed forth from the memorial stone. He looked over the shaman and the monk for a moment before breaking into a wide grin. "Takashi-san, you have made an old spirit very happy."

"Thank you, shihan."

"The temple could use more students like you," he laughed, "Of that I have no doubt."

_I doubt sensei would agree._ "Thank you, shihan," he said, and bowed deeply.

"Well, you and your companions have my blessing. May you possess the strength of thunder and the speed of lightning itself." As he retreated back into his resting place, he turned and spoke one last time, "I will be watching you, Takashi-san. Bring honor to our art."

"I will do my best, shihan."

The four heroes decided to wait for an auspicious day** to resume their journey, so they spent the rest of the day training. Kakeru communed with the spirits native to the valley; Fukasu spent the majority of her time sneaking up behind each of the others, jumping on them, giggling uncontrollably, and then running away; and Musashi convinced Takashi to introduce him to the basics of grappling.

By evening, Musashi felt comfortable enough with his new skills to want to put them to the test. He knew he wasn't quite the equal of Takashi yet, so he approached Kakeru. He knew that his childhood friend was physically strong and adept at unarmed combat on a basic level, so he had no hesitation in asking him to test his skills.

Takashi and Fukasu watched intently as the shaman and the samurai faced off. Both combatants circled around each other, tentatively grabbing at each other's clothing, unwilling to fully commit to an attack.

After half a minute of slapping at each other's heads, Musashi finally got a good grip on Kakeru's lapel. He stepped in, placed his right foot behind Kakeru's left, and pushed. The young shaman fell backward, landing awkwardly on his hip, but not before catching his opponent in his meaty grip. Musashi landed right beside Kakeru, but ended up with his left arm twisted backward under his body.

The two combatants tried to vie for position: grabbing, grunting, and looking for the necessary leverage to get the other on his back.

"Look at them," Takashi said to Fukasu, "Rutting around like pigs."

Musashi grunted and finally managed to roll Kakeru onto his back. When he tried to straddle him, though, the shaman kicked his legs and bucked him off. Musashi tried again, and this time, Kakeru managed to roll back onto his side. Both combatants strained to keep the other from gaining an advantage, and Kakeru's face was red from the effort.

Finally, Kakeru made a fatal error: he rolled onto his stomach, and Musashi wrapped an arm around his neck. With the samurai's weight pressing Kakeru into the dirt, the shaman was unable to fight back, and tapped out.

Takashi shook his head and sighed, "They've got a lot to learn."

By the next morning, Muashi's arm and Kakeru's hip were both sore, but the discomfort wasn't severe enough to prevent the party from getting back on the road. Aside from some stiffness in the joints, the day passed by without incident.

On the following day, though, the party encountered trouble. Yagi had just pulled the cart around a bend in the road when an ogre stepped out from behind a tree, and the party stopped short. The ogre's deep, brick-red skin seemed to glow in light of the spring sun. At nearly ten feet tall, he almost blotted out the sun in the eyes of the young shaman, samurai, ninja, and monk. In one hand, the ogre held a massive club that looked like a tree with the branches stripped off. In the other, he held two chains, each of which was attached to a metal collar that encircled the neck of a bakemono. The small, green, feral humanoids strained at the end of the chains, growling and barking at the group.

Musashi's hand went to the hilt of his sword, but otherwise did not move. Fukasu looked around nervously. Kakeru spoke softly to Yagi, in an attempt to keep him calm, and Takashi rolled his head from side to side.

The ogre flexed his muscles, shook his tree club, and spoke in a deep, gravelly voice, "You pay."

"Excuse me?" Kakeru asked.

"You pay, or no pass," the ogre growled through its massive tusks. It shook its club once again, "You pay."

Kakeru looked over at Musashi. "We kill him, right?" he asked quietly. Musashi simply nodded. "Ok," Kakeru shouted to the ogre in a high, sing-songy voice, "My friend will bring the money right over to you."

The ogre looked confused for a moment, but then shook his head and shrugged. Kakeru mumbled an invocation to the spirits under his breath, and then pressed a few cranes into Musashi's hand. A feeling of well-being washed over the young samurai as he climbed out of the cart, and he approached the ogre without fear.

Musashi walked right up to the big, red monster, dropped the money at his feet, drew his sword, and lunged. Unfortunately, he had to maneuver past the drooling and gnashing bakemono, so his sword thrust ended up completely off target. The ogre did not look amused.

Fukasu unfurled her wings, drew her ninja-to, and launched herself out of the cart. Takashi sprinted toward the melee, and Kakeru lumbered down out of the cart. The young half-oni targeted one of the bakemono, slicing open its throat with a back-handed slash. She then spun and thrust her blade deep into the second one's skull. _Nasty little creatures_, she thought to herself, as the second bakemono fell into the pool of blood spilled by the first one.

Takashi tried to distract the ogre as Musashi maneuvered into a better position. With the threat of the bakemono removed, he was able to open a deep gash in the ogre's abdomen with his katana. The blow was not enough to drop the monster, though, and it swung its massive club at the samurai's head. Musashi ducked the blow, but nearly knocked over Fukasu in the process.

Fukasu realized that she was not in the optimal position to use her training, so she attempted to tumble past the ogre. It reacted quickly, and though she ended up directly behind the big red creature, she arrived on the end of its massive club.

The ogre was quick, but Kakeru realized that it wasn't _that_ quick, so he dashed around the other side of it. After Fukasu fell off the end of the ogre's club, Kakeru dropped to his knees and poured the energy of life back into his cousin. She gasped, "Ow."

Musashi leveled his katana and thrust at the belly of the ogre again. This time, his blade struck true, and blood sprayed him in the face. The ogre roared in pain, and raised his club to swing at Musashi again. The samurai instinctively flinched, but instead of absorbing a massive blow, he watched the beast collapse.

Fukasu smiled weakly at him as she put her foot on the ogre's back and pulled her ninja-to out of its kidney. Kakeru placed his hand on her shoulder, and a blue glow washed over her body.

***​
Fukasu rested in the back of the cart while the party continued on. After a few hours, and around another bend, Musashi spotted a man dressed in monk's robes standing in the middle of the road. Unlike their last obstruction, this man was not red and ten feet tall. Rather, he was covered in russet fur and had the head of a fox.

_Oh, not again,_ Kakeru thought to himself as he brought the cart to a halt. "May we help you?" he asked the monk.

"My name is Shuudoushi Kitsune, and I am wandering the land looking for worthy opponents."

_Next: a face off with the fox monk, and sake -- lots and lots of sake!_

Notes:

* In Tanayari, arcane magic is fueled by the negative energy of Yomi, and using it taints the caster. By order of the emperor, all arcane magic users are to be killed on sight. The word _sorcerer_, in Tanayari, is always used to refer to psions – those who specialize in the study and manipulation of ki.

** According to the Tanayaran calendar, luck ebbs and flows throughout the six day week. The fifth day of the week, Tian, is when luck is at it's highest point, and is therefore the day traditionally reserved for starting new journeys or beginning new projects.


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## el-remmen (Mar 17, 2005)

Question:

Is this a particularly sparsely populated part of the world?  

I just noticed they haven't passed through and villages, towns, trading posts, other travelers, etc. . . and was wondering if we were going to be getting a broader view of the resident culture and the PCs' place in it. . .


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## carpedavid (Mar 17, 2005)

nemmerle said:
			
		

> Question:
> 
> Is this a particularly sparsely populated part of the world?
> 
> I just noticed they haven't passed through and villages, towns, trading posts, other travelers, etc. . . and was wondering if we were going to be getting a broader view of the resident culture and the PCs' place in it. . .




Yes, compared to other parts of the world, it is fairly unpopulated. Towns can be days apart (as you've seen here), and most peasants never leave the village they were born in at any time during their lives. It's the kind of mindset where travellers are, almost without fail, adventurers.

In game terms, I wanted to give the PCs a sense of isolation before they started interacting with the rest of the world. They're young and leaving home for the first time, and I wanted that sense of being out on their own to be palpable.

With regard to the story hour, though, the PCs are just about to enter the first town on their journey - you'll see that in the next update. From that point on, there's a lot more interaction with the "local wildlife."


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## Ivy Sylvan (Mar 17, 2005)

I think you should start making the stories a bit more detailed.  If not on this site, then you should do it as a personal writing project.  This campaign has a great flavor and some real potential.  Keep up the good work!!!!


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## carpedavid (Mar 17, 2005)

Ivy Sylvan said:
			
		

> I think you should start making the stories a bit more detailed.  If not on this site, then you should do it as a personal writing project.




I can certainly try to make them more detailed, though trying to remember the details of this far back in the past is sorta hard. It'll be easier to make it more detailed as I approach the present.

For those reading along at home - the events in the most recent post occured in session 3, which was played a little under a year ago. I'm writing up the posts from the written notes that I took in game, which contain details of the battles, cool quotes, and the broad actions of the party. I'm relying on my very faulty memory to fill in the details.

Fortunatly, I just recently picked up a voice recorder and have started recording the sessions. It's just too hard to do this group justice based on my sparse notes.

A question to the readers: what kind of details would you like to see fleshed out? Nemm would like to see more of the culture, obviously, and you should see that in the upcoming posts. What about the fighting? Am I glossing over things, am I droning on too long, or is it just about right?

How about dialog? I've tried to summarize the boring bits, but include the dialog that gives each character flavor. Am I succeding? Would you like to see more? Less?

Would you like to know the names of the specific spells that Kakeru casts, or is the description that I'm giving sufficient?

Any feedback would be much appreciated.


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## TDRandall (Mar 18, 2005)

Hmmmm.  I hadn't tried to really analyze any specific parts of it.  I'll try to keep an eye out for things in the future that I can clearly say "that was really good" or "this didn't work for me".

What I DO know is that I have been enjoying them.  Please continue - your writing skills will only get better through practice.  Might as well polish them up!


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## carpedavid (Mar 18, 2005)

TDRandall said:
			
		

> Hmmmm.  I hadn't tried to really analyze any specific parts of it.  I'll try to keep an eye out for things in the future that I can clearly say "that was really good" or "this didn't work for me".
> 
> What I DO know is that I have been enjoying them.  Please continue - your writing skills will only get better through practice.  Might as well polish them up!




Thanks! I do know that my writing skills are fairly rusty, but I've got a lot of material to cover, so I guess I'll have plenty of practice.

For those who are interested, I've updtated Fukasu, Musashi, and Kakeru's stats over in the Rogues' Gallery: http://www.enworld.org/showthread.php?t=121369


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## carpedavid (Mar 24, 2005)

It's been a busy week at work, so this week's update is on the short side.

------------------------------------------------------------

Musashi's hand went immediately to the hilt of his katana, while Fukasu simply rolled over and groaned. Kakeru cleared his throat and sighed inwardly, "Define 'worthy opponents.'"

The fox monk bowed slightly, and then said, "I am a monk from the Temple of the Fire Monkey, and I have been wandering these lands looking to improve my skills by facing other warriors in combat."

Kakeru nodded, "Are you looking for lethal combat?"

Kitsune frowned and looked uncomfortable, "No. Though the power of the Fire Monkey is extremely formidable, the members of our temple have vowed never to take a life intentionally."

_That must be why I've never heard of it_, Musashi thought as he relaxed his grip on his sword ever so slightly.

Takashi stared at the other monk while he and Kakeru spoke. _He doesn't look that tough_, he thought to himself, _and I'd like to see how the Way of the Storm measures up against other styles_. "Ok," he said, stepping forward, "I'll take you on."

"Thank you," Kitsune said, and bowed deeply. Kakeru and Musashi looked at each other and shrugged, then hopped out of the cart, walked over to the grass by the side of the road, and took up positions at the opposite corners of a twenty-foot square.

Fukasu propped herself up in the back of the cart and watched as the two monks walked to the center of the improvised ring. "Go Takashi!" she yelled, then blushed slightly when he looked startled.

The two monks bowed to each other, then assumed fighting stances. Takashi held his fists at the level of his shoulders, and shifted his weight from foot to foot. His posture was deliberately straight as he tried to make himself appear as tall and imposing as possible. Kitsune, by contrast, assumed a hunched posture, and moved erratically, bobbing and swaying, even as he stood in place.

After a moment, the fight began without a word. The fox monk sidestepped toward Takashi with a bouncing gait, his arms swinging wildly from side to side. Within a second, he had closed the distance to his opponent. He planted one foot firmly on the ground and let the momentum he had generated spin him around. As he spun, he released a powerful kick directly at Takashi's chest.

Takashi stepped back and twisted his torso out of the way. Then, realizing that Kitsune had left his leg extended an instant too long, he wrapped an arm around the extended calf, trapping it against his ribs. Next, he stepped forward and buried the knuckles of his other hand deep into the exposed soft tissue of his opponent's inner thigh. Kitsune grimaced as every muscle in his legs spasmed at once.

The fox monk summoned his inner will, forcing his ki to concentrate in his left arm. His first burst into flame, and he swung at his opponent's chest. Unfortunately, Takashi anticipated the blow, and twisted at the waist. Kitsune's _stunning fist_ struck him in the thick, tough lats, and dissipated harmlessly.

Takashi continued to twist, and, once he had his back to Kitsune, crouched slightly and hooked his other arm under the fox monk's leg. He twisted, bent forward, and lifted all at the same time, which sent his opponent flying over his shoulder. When Kitsune reached the apex of the throw, Takashi kicked his rear leg back and yanked downward. The fox monk didn't even have time to brace himself for the fall; he hit the ground face first.

Kakeru let out a low whistle, while Musashi grimaced. Fukasu threw her arms in the air and yelled, "Woohoo!" Even from her vantage point, it was obvious that Kitsune was out cold. Takashi stood up and smiled, "Ha!"

After congratulating Takashi, Kakeru knelt down, placed his hand on the fox monk's chest, and uttered a life-giving prayer. Kitsune coughed and gingerly rolled over onto his back, at which point Musashi extended his hand and helped the fallen monk to his feet; he remembered all too well what it felt like to be at the wrong end of Takashi's throws.

Over the next few hours, the four pilgrims and the wandering monk sat by the side of the road and shared some food, some sake, and what few exciting stories they had.

"Kitsune-san, what other warriors have you faced?" Takashi asked Kitsune after a few cups of sake.

"Sadly, not many. I began my pilgrimage only a few months ago, and have met only three warriors who were interested in fighting me, including you." He sipped at his cup of the sacred liquid, and then took a bite from the rice noodle and rabbit stew that he cooked for the rest of the group.

"Ah," Takashi nodded, "How many have you won?"

Kitsune fell silent for a moment, then sighed, "None." He smiled wanly, "But I'm confident that I'm learning."

The group slurped at their stew for a moment before Kitsune spoke again. "I did meet one very interesting monk from the Temple of the Silent Lake. He had a very defensive fighting style. I couldn't get in a single hit on him. But he was strange-looking."

Kakeru couldn't help but note the irony in the fox-man labeling someone as "strange-looking," so he asked the obvious question, "What made him strange-looking?"

"He was a human, but his hair was the color of straw, and his eyes like a sapphire. I've never seen anything like it before."

Musashi felt a sense of fraternity with Kitsune, since he was the only other person he knew who had been dropped on his head by Takashi. "Kitsune-san," Musashi said, "Would you care to join our pilgrimage? I'm sure that you would be able to encounter a fair number of warriors against who you could test your skill."

The fox-monk slurped loudly from his bowl and chewed for a moment. "I am honored that you would ask me, Musashi-san, but I think my fate lies elsewhere."

Musashi nodded, and chewed on his own noodles. While he knew that the Itsutsu Shukumei** gave each person their own fate to fulfill, he couldn't help but feel a bit disappointed; he was fond of the wandering monk.

Before nightfall, Kitsune bid the party farewell, and continued on his musha shugyo*. The group spent the next few days traveling; Kakeru, Musashi, and Fukasu tried to rest along the way, but each ended up being used by Takashi as a practice dummy.

On the afternoon of the 9th day of the 4th month of the year 337 of the Ito shogunate, the four travelers from Kurosawa crested a grassy hill only to see a creature that looked like a cross between a lobster and a squid, but nearly twenty feet from the end of its fluked tail to tips of its hooked tentacles, locked in combat with four other adventures.

_Next: Oni! And all that sake I mentioned last time..._

Notes:
* The musha shugyo, or "warrior's pilgrimage," is a Tanayaran tradition whereby young warriors of all stripes leave their families and monasteries and travel the land, fighting in duels to hone their skills and promote the names of their martial schools or fighting styles.

** The five celestial dragons known as Itsutsu Shukumei are the guardians of fate. They determine the events that affect the lives of every living creature, and dispatch their spirit servants to affect these events.

When each living creature is born, the five fates create an urn, into which they place stones engraved with magical kanji, each of which represents an event that will occur in the creature's life.


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## carpedavid (Mar 24, 2005)

I've added Takashi's 2nd level stats and Shuudoushi Kitsune's stats to the Rogue's Gallery thread here:

http://www.enworld.org/showthread.php?p=2118299#post2118299


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## TDRandall (Mar 24, 2005)

Oni, automatons AND Hengeyoki?  Oh my!

I figured you weren't limiting yourself to a published campaign world or some direct derivative of a published set of rules, but the mix already shown here proves that I'll never know for sure what is "out of bounds" in theses lands.  I'm not complaining, discovery is a significant part of the fun.  (So I guess I'm wanting more details of culture too, or at least a primer of some things - what races ARE there, how many temples/religions?)  Is there a half-oni template out there or did you make that one up yourself?

I'm surprised Musashi didn't step up first.  After all, Kitsune just said "warriors".  Even if he later clarified "unarmed" I would think Musashi would want to try (maybe that's exactly what "not lethal" meant and I missed it).  Only after he was on the ground and Kitsune said something slighting (yet now quite dishonorable) would the big gun Takashi face-off.  Still, that's player choices rather than yours.

For the battle, how long did it actually last?  It sounds like one attempted attack by Kitsune and one response by Takashi and that was it.  If it was very short, then I think you filled in the details for color very nicely.

So that's something good from last story post, now to try to balance it with something to improve.  Let's see ... the paragraph about sharing sake and stories feels like it glossed over a lot.  You missed a perfect opportunity to either fill in the detail of your world or even foreshadow a bit by sharing something from Kitsune's experience.

BTW, is this trip supposed to be the musha shugyo for Musashi and/or Fukasu, have they already done that, or is the focus on "fighting styles" intended to mean that only monks realy do this?  

Keep using the terms.  It make it feel more alive and unique and outright oriental as a result.  Make sure when you note something that you give enough down in the note itself to refresh the reader exactly what you are noting about.  Then I can feel safe in just reading through and knowing the mystery will be made clear later.  Otherwise I've got to scroll up and down again.  You did it fine in the last couple of posts, but "begin", "great armor", "wooden clogs" and "wooden training sword" on earlier ones had me scratching my head enough to scroll back up to see what exactly the word you used was in the story.

Thanks for the update even when you're swamped.  Shows your dedication, either to your craft or to your fans.  If only other SH writers (who will remain nameless to protect the guilty) would take a page from your book!


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## carpedavid (Mar 24, 2005)

Wow! Thanks for the great comments TDR.



			
				TDRandall said:
			
		

> What races ARE there, how many temples/religions?  Is there a half-oni template out there or did you make that one up yourself?




The racial makeup of Tanayari's "civilized races" is about 70% human, 25% vanara, and 5% everything else, which includes hengeyokai, half-oni, and another antopomorphic race of my own creation called "khelreth." Additionally, to the south of Tanayari is a vast area ruled by lizard-riding, kobold barbarians, so you may at some point see a stray kobold running around.

With regard to religion, pretty much everyone in Tanayari is a practices a mix of Fenism, which is a fantasy version of Shinto, and Daruma-do, which is a fantasy religion with a "hint" of Buddhism. There is also a fantastic version of Onmyodo, a mystical tradition, which is what the shugenja in this setting practice. Most monks are strict followers of Daruma-do, and their temples are numerous. You can throw a stick and hit a monk pretty much everywhere.

The half-oni is actually a full-fledged race that I created for another campaign world and adapted for use in this setting. It was originally a half-demon, and became a half-oni in translation.



> I'm surprised Musashi didn't step up first...Still, that's player choices rather than yours.




There's actually a meta-game reason that he didn't, but that might be pulling back the curtain too far . Additionally, though, Musashi is the one who steps up to defend the honor of the clan time and time again. Takashi likes to test himself against other warriors. Hopefully that characterization will become clearer in future updates.



> For the battle, how long did it actually last?  It sounds like one attempted attack by Kitsune and one response by Takashi and that was it.  If it was very short, then I think you filled in the details for color very nicely.




It lasted five rounds, but most of those were filled with misses. I edited the fight down a bit to prevent boredom.



> So that's something good from last story post, now to try to balance it with something to improve.  Let's see ... the paragraph about sharing sake and stories feels like it glossed over a lot.  You missed a perfect opportunity to either fill in the detail of your world or even foreshadow a bit by sharing something from Kitsune's experience.




Ah, that's a good point.



> BTW, is this trip supposed to be the musha shugyo for Musashi and/or Fukasu, have they already done that, or is the focus on "fighting styles" intended to mean that only monks realy do this?




This is a pilgrimage that the PCs are undertaking at the behest of their clan. I think both Musashi and Fukasu seize the opportunity to improve themselves, but there's an overriding sense of purpose for them. You'll see both samurai and monks engaged in the warrior's pilgrimage in later updates.



> Make sure when you note something that you give enough down in the note itself to refresh the reader exactly what you are noting about.  Then I can feel safe in just reading through and knowing the mystery will be made clear later.  Otherwise I've got to scroll up and down again.




Another great point. I'll make sure to keep this in mind in the future.



> Thanks for the update even when you're swamped.  Shows your dedication, either to your craft or to your fans.  If only other SH writers (who will remain nameless to protect the guilty) would take a page from your book!




I feel somewhat bad that some of the updates are short, but I'm happy that I've been able to update regularly this long.


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## carpedavid (Mar 29, 2005)

As a pre-update, I've edited in the conversation between Kitsune and the other characters into the last post. The new update should be posted on Thursday or Friday.


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## Kiwifudgechocobo (Mar 30, 2005)

Yay!


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## carpedavid (Mar 31, 2005)

"Oni!" Takashi exclaimed.

"We should help them," Musashi replied, and the monk and the samurai took off running down the hill, followed closely by Fukasu. They could see another samurai slashing at the creature's left claw with a katana; a man who moved like a monk, but who was dressed in elaborately embroidered, sky-blue robes, bashing the other claw with a pair of escrima sticks; a third man in a peasant's outfit jabbing the creature in the tail with a ninja-to; and a woman wearing the vestments of an onmyoji* standing atop the next hill.

Takashi reached the beast and slammed his fist into its chitinous exoskeleton. A second too late, he realized that the oni's carapace was covered in thousands of tiny, hooked barbs. He grimaced as chunks of his skin ripped away from his fist, and tried to fight off a wave of nausea to no avail.

The samurai swung next. Musashi caught a glimpse of the man's sword when he slashed through the tip of the creature's left claw. _That sword looks familiar_, he thought as he stepped in close. After dodging one of the creature's tentacles, he looked over at the other man, and realized why he looked familiar. "Hiro-san?" he said, in shock.

The samurai looked over to see his younger brother's look of surprise, and then past him to see a young half-oni girl jab her ninja-to into a gap between two chitinous plates. Green blood squirted out and hit her in the face, and he suppressed a smile. "Musashi-san? Fu-chan? What are you doing here?"

The onmyoji woman pressed the tips of her index and middle fingers to her lips and then whispered a mystic phrase. The words flew from her mouth and swirled above the oni, like bats in a feeding frenzy. Then, suddenly, a pillar of flame erupted from the middle of the swarm and struck the middle of the tentacled creature, causing it to spasm twice, then die.

The man in the exotic robes looked over at Fukasu with surprise, and then shouted something in a language that she didn't understand. In response, the man in the peasant outfit tumbled out from behind the carcass of the beast, and rose to a fighting stance, while the female onmyoji pressed her fingers to her lips again and began to whisper.

Hiro looked around at the activity of his partners, looked at Fukasu, and then waved his arms frantically. "No, no, no!" he shouted, and then barked out something equally frantic in the foreign language he had used earlier.

The onmyoji paused, and the two men looked at Hiro suspiciously. "This is Fukasu," he said, pointing to the young ninja, "She is a half-oni who was raised in my daimyo's palace." He smiled and patted her on the back, "She's ok!"

The man in the blue robes slid his escrima sticks into his belt, placed his right fist against the palm of his left hand, and bowed deeply; the man in the peasant garb sheathed his ninja-to, smiled broadly, and swaggered up to the young heroes; and the onmyoji woman stepped into the shadow of a tree and emerged from Hiro's shadow. She placed her hand on the elder Kurosawa samurai's shoulder and smiled cattily at Fukasu.

"This is my little brother, Musashi," Hiro said with a smile. Musashi bowed to each of his brother's companions.

"You've already met, Fukasu," he laughed. Fukasu smiled nervously and bowed.

"That's Kakeru," he said, pointing to the young shaman who was just now pulling the cart up to the scene.

He turned toward Takashi, "I'm sorry, my brave friend, but I do not believe we have ever been introduced."

"I am Takashi," the young monk replied, "of the Temple of Thunder and Lightning."

"It is a pleasure to meet you, Takashi-san." Hiro said, and bowed just enough to be appropriate. Samurai never bowed deeply to those of a lower class. He turned to his companions and introduced them to the four pilgrims. Li Cao, the man in the exotic robes, turned out to be a monk from the lands of Xin, far to the east of Tanayari. The man in peasant clothing was named Isobe Jin, and was apparently a ninja in disguise. The onmyoji woman introduced herself as Yamashira Taka.

With introductions complete, the two adventuring parties sat down to rest. Hiro looked over at his brother and asked, "So why are you all out here?"

"We're taking the clan's offering to the Fire Crane."

"Oh, that's right," he nodded, then laughed, "I forgot what year it was." He turned to his companions, "I led the party that took my clan's offering to Daichi no Tora, what was it, six years ago?"

"Seven," Taka corrected him.

"Thank you, Ta-chan," he winked at her, "Years and dates really aren't my strong point."

_Or numbers, or words_, Musashi thought to himself in a fit of sibling rivalry, "What have you been doing lately, Hiro-san?"

"Hunting oni," he replied with a satisfied smile.

Fukasu looked over at him, eyes wide and mouth agape.

"Oh, uhh, that is," he stammered quickly, "Only bad oni."

Fukasu cringed and Hiro sighed, "At any rate, we're on our way back to Kurosawa. I'm going to introduce Ta-chan to father." The onmyoji woman blushed and smiled, then gazed at Hiro with adoration. "We're going to be married," he whispered.

"I'm sure my father would be happy to perform the ceremony," Kakeru offered.

The two groups talked for a few more hours before moving on. Hiro, Taka, Jin, and Li Cao set to the task of burning the dead oni's body, while Kakeru, Fukasu, Musashi, and Takashi climbed back into the cart and pressed on.

The four heroes from Kurosawa spent the next few days riding along the road, stopping each night to camp in fields filled with wheat and barley – some of the few fields in Tanayari that grew grain other than rice. The peasants who worked the fields bowed and prostrated themselves to the heroes as they passed by. Musashi nodded to them as they passed. _It's good that they know their place_, he thought to himself.

On the 13th day of Yongatsu, the heroes left the fields behind and rode into the rice paddies surrounding the town of Takayama. On either side of the road, the ground sloped down several feet, at which point it was covered in a foot of water. Beneath the water grew the life-giving rice that over ninety-five percent of Tanayarans depended upon to live.

Suddenly, the sounds of shouting and barking startled the group. Fukasu looked over to her right only to see a farmer wielding a sickle chasing a pack of snarling, snapping, drooling bakemono directly toward them.

_Next: bakemono, sake, and oooooh - ninja!_

Notes:

* The onmyoji are mystics whose main area of concern is the balance and harmony of the elements. Most are of noble birth, and often act as advisors to their local daimyo. Kakeru's father, Nobu, is an onmyoji. Mechanically, onmyoji are equivalent to shugenja.


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## Ivy Sylvan (Mar 31, 2005)

Why's she being all catty with me?!  I'd like more details on these people.  Again, if not in here then out of this post.


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## carpedavid (Mar 31, 2005)

Ivy Sylvan said:
			
		

> Why's she being all catty with me?!  I'd like more details on these people.  Again, if not in here then out of this post.




If I remember correctly, she took the young, attractive, exotic girl that her betrothed knew so well to be a potential threat. The conversation in the post does represent about how long you guys spent talking to them, so there wasn't much in the way of information that you got out of them.

What kind of details would you like, though?

Edit: You may have missed that session, which would explain why you don't remember much. I really need to keep track of which *players* are present at every session in addition to all the character and story stuff.


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## Ivy Sylvan (Mar 31, 2005)

Was I there for this?  I so don't remember it.  I'm sorry!!!!


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## TDRandall (Apr 1, 2005)

Another great post, Carpedavid!

This description: "thousands of tiny, hooked barbs. He grimaced as chunks of his skin ripped away from his fist, and tried to fight off a wave of nausea" was delightfully gruesome, and yet not overdone.

This description: "The words flew from her mouth and swirled above the oni, like bats in a feeding frenzy. Then, suddenly, a pillar of flame erupted from the middle of the swarm and struck the middle of the tentacled creature" I thought was very evocative (oops, is that a pun?)

"It's good that they know their place" is so .... Samurai.  Fits in well to the aura of the land, is stated so matter-of-factly and couldn't help but raise the American "freedom and fairness" hackles on the back of my neck.

Nice setup for possible recurring characters and relationship situations.  Depending on how long the delivery of the offering to the Fire Crane actually ends up taking, they could find a very different situation back home from what they left!

OK - "world" questions!  (if they won't spoil anything, of course)

I don't remember Shugenja developing a shadow walk ability.  Something I overlooked/forgot?  An addition for your world?  Or is Taka hiding another class somewhere in her past?

It's from the prior post, but what race is Mr. Straw hair/sapphire eyes?  

Some odd/funny things (just my brain misfiring, most likely!)

If a ninja in disguise can be positively identified so easily, then perhaps he's not much of a ninja!  Why did the group think Isobe Jin was one in disguise?  Did they actually state that in game (which would seem to be incredibly dishonoring if he wasn't a ninja, and incredibly foolish if he was since it seems like he should eliminate a threat to his secrecy) or was it just the group's general consensus after the fact?  How prevalent are ninjas in the land, in actuality and in story?  (Could they be mislabeling him based simply on the fact that he "seemed" shadey or not-forthright so he "must" be a ninja according to conventional "wisdom"?)

The conversation and even the noticing the familiarity of the sword DURING the battle was a bit strange.  Maybe on the run down to the battle or after it's all done and everyone is catching their breath, but once all attention should be on defeating the enemy it seemed out of place.  Almost ... superheroish?

I checked the internet on what escrima sticks were, so NOW I know.  But I'm far from being a martial arts lingo expert, so when I was first reading through my neurons misfired and saw "eczema".  Oy Vay!

I'm intrigued about the setup for next time.  Are the bakemono running away from the farmer because he routed them?  Or is he's chasing them trying to get something back?  Or could he actually somehow be their leader and he's hearding the group to take on our stalwart PCs?  I know I know, I'll just have to wait like the rest of the peanut gallery.

Oh, I'm looking forward to some more character development/back story.  Kakeru in particular seems to be fading into the woodwork - is he an active PC, inactive PC, or DM run NPC at this point in the story?


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## carpedavid (Apr 1, 2005)

TDRandall said:
			
		

> Nice setup for possible recurring characters and relationship situations.  Depending on how long the delivery of the offering to the Fire Crane actually ends up taking, they could find a very different situation back home from what they left!




Thanks for the kind comments, TDR. As you'll see from future updates, the party has done a number of things that will make the situation back home very different from what they left. But all in due time. 



> I don't remember Shugenja developing a shadow walk ability.  Something I overlooked/forgot?  An addition for your world?  Or is Taka hiding another class somewhere in her past?




You may see more of Taka later, so I'll leave that a mystery for now.



> It's from the prior post, but what race is Mr. Straw hair/sapphire eyes?




By "race," I'm guessing that you mean "ethnicity," since Kitsune mentions that the monk was human. Mr. Straw hair is the yet-to-be-introduced 5th PC in the group, and his player doesn't actually know what ethnicity he is yet - few people have ever seen someone that looks like him. However, all that information is going to come out in game in the next few sessions. In case you don't feel like waiting 'till that point in the story hour, you can check out the spoiler below:



Spoiler



He's a member of the Ainu tribe, the original inhabitants of eastern Tanayari. They were almost completely wiped out by the ethnic Tanayarans as they spread east and by the Xin warlords as they spread west. At present, only a few thousand Ainu remain, mostly in isolated villages in eastern Tanayari.





> If a ninja in disguise can be positively identified so easily, then perhaps he's not much of a ninja!  Why did the group think Isobe Jin was one in disguise?  Did they actually state that in game (which would seem to be incredibly dishonoring if he wasn't a ninja, and incredibly foolish if he was since it seems like he should eliminate a threat to his secrecy) or was it just the group's general consensus after the fact?  How prevalent are ninjas in the land, in actuality and in story?  (Could they be mislabeling him based simply on the fact that he "seemed" shadey or not-forthright so he "must" be a ninja according to conventional "wisdom"?)




I'm using the term "ninja" rather loosely in this campaign, as a flavor-appropriate way to describe pretty much anyone of the rogue-ish persuasion. While there are distinct ninja-clans (which you'll see a lot of later), the term, as I'm using it, is not exclusive to their members. "Historically" accurate? Not really, but then neither are giant lobster oni. 



> I checked the internet on what escrima sticks were, so NOW I know.  But I'm far from being a martial arts lingo expert, so when I was first reading through my neurons misfired and saw "eczema".  Oy Vay!




Ah, that's a good point. I'll make an effort to describe any exotic weapons beyond the katana, wakazashi, and ninja-to.



> Oh, I'm looking forward to some more character development/back story.  Kakeru in particular seems to be fading into the woodwork - is he an active PC, inactive PC, or DM run NPC at this point in the story?




Kakeru has always been an active PC, but, as a shaman in a party with a samurai and soon-to-be two monks, he's chosen to play a supporting role in combat. You'll see that he gets a *lot* more face time when we get to the social-interaction parts of the campaign.


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## carpedavid (Apr 6, 2005)

*Bakemono Mambo*

An early update this week. If I'm lucky, perhaps another on Friday.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Long cords of saliva streamed from the bakemono's mouths as they leapt and bounded across the watery terrain. Takashi and Musashi jumped down out of the cart and charged toward the pack of small, green goblinoids, running part of the way and splashing the rest. Upon reaching the lead creature, Musashi drew his katana and swung it in an overhead arc, rising quickly and then descending powerfully. Unfortunately, all he hit was the water at his feet when the bakemono dodged out of the way. _Damn, these things are quick_, he thought.

Fukasu, in turn, jumped from the cart, unfurled her wings, and caught an air current in one fluid motion. With two mighty flaps, she covered the distance to the snarling pack, and then splashed down into the rice paddy, grimacing as she sank up to her ankles in the soft earth. She lashed out at the nearest barking bakemono with her ninja-to, but it was too fast for her blade.

Upon seeing the inefficacy of his companions, Kakeru closed his eyes and projected his will into the realm of the spirits. "Great ancestors," he intoned, "please guide the blades and fists of my companions." He opened his eyes to see the faint outlines of his ancestral spirits as they shimmered in the midday sun. The spirits were watched the fight over the shoulders of his companions, and, he noticed as it progressed, would occasionally bend down to whisper advice in their ears.

_I hope that helps_, the young shaman thought to himself, _but I better get over there just in case_. He hefted himself down from the cart, and felt the mud squish over his geta and between his toes. It was a feeling he was becoming all too familiar with, all too quickly.

As the rest of the bakemono pack closed in on the party, Takashi kicked ineffectually at the bakemono closest to him. It lunged and clawed at his chest, scraping and tearing at the skin that was only minimally protected by his robes. A second of the vicious, green goblinoids cut deeply into Fukasu's midsection with its hard, black claws, and a third clamped its jaws down on her forearm. She screamed, and managed to shake the creature off, but not before it had severed her flesh and cracked the bone beneath. She stumbled backward, adrenaline the only thing keeping her from blacking out from the pain, while the bakemono shook its whole body in a blood-fueled frenzy. Like a dog shaking off water, it flung a mixture of its own drool and Fukasu's blood everywhere.

Musashi took a deep breath, filling his body with power and energy, and swung his ancestral blade once again. This time, the only thing that hit the water at his feet was the head of the bakemono in front of him.

Kakeru sprinted over to Fukasu, his legs pumping furiously as he fought against the mud. With a whisper and a touch, he channeled the power of the spirits and mended her wounds. Fukasu looked at her now whole arm in surprise and then glanced over at Kakeru. _That's still really strange_, she thought.

She then looked up to see that Takashi was surrounded by three of the creatures, while Musashi and the farmer held off the remaining two. Takashi was a whirlwind of kicks and punches, and while it didn't look like he was hitting any of the creatures, he was successfully keeping them from piling on top of him. Now fully healed, Fukasu charged back into the melee, dodging past Musashi's shining katana and taking a position directly behind one of the three green goblinoids that was threatening Takashi. With a flick of her wrist, she slid her ninja-to into the back of its neck, severing its spinal cord.

Unfortunately, she was not quick enough to prevent the other two bakemono from opening up Takashi's stomach. They growled and snarled and gnashed their teeth as they tore into the monk's midsection, and Takashi screamed in pain. He took one look at the blood spilling out of the gashes in his belly and he turned and ran toward Kakeru.

Meanwhile, Musashi and the farmer slashed at the other two creatures with katana and sickle. One bakemono fell to the peasant's blade, but the second proved particularly jumpy, which made it hard for Musashi's powerful blows to hit.

Kakeru met Takashi halfway and implored the spirits to heal yet another of his friends. A blue glow washed over the monk's torso, and he immediately turned and ran back into the fray. Unfortunately, he ran back into the waiting claws of the two bakemono who had injured him previously. Takashi yelled as the two beasts dragged him down into the water.

_Oh no_¸ Kakeru thought. Water and mud splashed everywhere as the two creatures tore at Takashi's limp body. "Hang on Takashi!" he yelled as he charged the bakemono nearest to him. His powerful legs carried him across the distance in less than a second, at which point he planted his front foot, and punted the creature with his back foot, instantly breaking its neck. Fukasu screamed in fury and jabbed her blade repeatedly between the shoulder blades of the other creature, until it, too stopped moving.

Musashi's blade finally found its target, and the last of the bakemono fell in a lifeless heap. He turned to see Kakeru desperately healing Takashi. Waves of blue energy poured out of the shaman's hands and into the young monk's limp body, and after a few moments, Takashi coughed, spat out water, and groaned.

With Takashi out of danger, the group turned their attention to the farmer who had originally been chasing the bakemono. Musashi looked at him and raised an eyebrow, which was enough for him to begin bowing furiously. "Thank you, Kurosawa-sama, thank you, thank you, thank you," he said, grimacing with each bow.

Musashi nodded back, and then wiped the blood from his katana as he sheathed it. He paused for a second, frowned, and then asked, "How did you know we were of Kurosawa?"

The farmer kept his eyes focused on the ground, "I have seen our great lord's samurai pass through Takayama on occasion. Their armor is the same as yours."

"You're very observant for a peasant," Musashi remarked.

"Oh! Thank you, Kuraosawa-sama," the man smiled broadly, but kept looking at the ground.

Kakeru interrupted, speaking to the man in a tone much less harsh than his samurai companion, "Why were you chasing these bakemono? They're very dangerous creatures."

"Oh, yes," he looked at the bodies of the dead bakemono with contempt, "Over the past few days, they have trampled through my rice paddies, killed off a number of my chickens, and frightened my wife. I was getting a great deal annoyed."

"Ah," Kakeru nodded, "I am Kurosawa Kakeru, and these are my traveling companions, Kurosawa Fukasu, Kurosawa Musashi, and Takashi. And you are?"

"I am Korgusai*," he said, bowing so far that his torso was parallel to the ground, "I thank you all for ridding me of these terrible creatures. Now, perhaps, my wife can sleep soundly at night."

_Oooh, sleep_, Fukasu thought to herself, remembering the soft, down-filled futon she used to sleep on back in the daimyo's castle.

Takashi also thought about sleep, but he remembered the hard wooden bench he slept on at the monastery. _At least I wasn't in danger of being eaten by bakemono_, he thought to himself.

"If it would not offend you, Kurosawa-san," the peasant said as humbly as he possibly could, "You would honor me greatly by accepting my hospitality this evening."

Musashi, Kakeru, and Fukasu each looked at each other and shrugged. Takashi merely groaned from his spot on the ground. "Accepting your hospitality would be a fitting tribute to our lord," Kakeru said. With that, the farmer led the four travelers to his home: a square, wooden hut with a vaulted, bamboo roof. Behind the hut were a couple of smaller wooden structures, including a shed and a chicken coop.

The farmer introduced the party to his wife, Etsu, who greeted them with as much bowing and self-deprecation as her husband had. She apologized for the small size of their hut, for the poor quality of the chicken and rice stew she had prepared for dinner, for the dampness of the tatami, and for the trouble that her thoughtless husband had imposed upon them.

Kakeru made sure to complement the woman on all of the things that the apologized for. The hut was "roomy," the stew "delicious," the tatami "of very nice quality," and the trouble "our sacred duty as defenders of the Kurosawa lands." Musashi, by contrast, spent the evening looking and feeling uncomfortable. _I'll never understand why peasants choose to live like this_, he thought.

The next morning, Kakeru, Musashi, Takashi, and Fukasu bid farewell to their hosts and resumed their journey. Within an hour, they were in the center of the town of Takayama. "Where are we heading?" Fukasu asked.

Kakeru looked at her and grinned, "To the brewery!"

_Next: All the sake that Kakeru can ever drink... Oh, and the ninja I mentioned last time!_

Notes:

* Noble Tanayaran names are composed of a family name followed by a given name (e.g. Kurosawa Kakeru), while commoners are not permitted to use family names (e.g. Takashi). Some adventurers give themselves descriptive titles that take the place of their family name (or lack of family name, in the case of non-nobles). For example, the fox monk seen previously in the story introduced himself as Shuudoushi Kitsune. "Shuudoushi" means "monk."


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## HalfOrc HalfBiscuit (Apr 8, 2005)

I found this storyhour just yesterday, and have been avidly reading it during "free" time at work (OK, I'm bored, and the noise from roadworks outside is making it difficult to concentrate on actually writing ...).

I just wanted to say to Carpedavid, that I'm thoroughly enjoying the tale. It has a genuinely individual flavour, and a nice blend of action and humour.

To follow up on one or two other comments, I would say that while you may be missing out on some opportunities to expand on personal history/campaign background information, I don't think that it's detracting from the story in any way. The background and culture is emerging gradually, rather than being forced out, which is no bad thing. And, by the way, keep up with the Japanese words/references, it all helps the flavour (if I have one minor criticism it's that "exotic" words from other cultures - like the escrima sticks - perhaps detract from the effect being created by the rest).

Just keep doing what you're doing, and I'll keep reading. Better still, just keep doing what you're doing, but do it more ...


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## carpedavid (Apr 8, 2005)

Thanks, HalfOrc! I'm glad that you're enjoying it so far. I'll keep doing what I'm doing as long as people seem to have an interest in reading it.

In next week's update, things start to get mysterious (insert "ooo-eee-ooo" sound here)...


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## Arkhandus (Apr 9, 2005)

Cool storyhour CarpeDavid!  Reminds me of my Oriental Adventures campaign last year, only this is much better.    And you've used a few terms I wasn't familiar with before to boot, or at least didn't know the translation of......that's cool.  I like the way you handle things, particularly with the way spirits and monks are worked in.  And using psions as ki channeler "sorcerers" is just cool beans.    I'm looking forward to reading more of your storyhour.


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## carpedavid (Apr 12, 2005)

*Takayama & Tsumago, Part 1*

For ten generations, the twin towns of Takayama and Tsumago have produced the finest sake in Tanayari. Samurai and shaman, noble and peasant, human and vanara alike have coveted the amakuchi, or sweet sake, of Takayama and the karakuchi, or dry sake, of Tsumago. It was only fitting, then, that a cask of each of Kurosawa's most valuable exports be offered to the fire crane, Tanayari's most potent spiritual guardian.

With his uncanny ability to track down sources of alcohol, Kakeru led the group directly to the Takayama brewery, at which point they introduced themselves to Takayama Takezo, the kuramoto.

"Welcome to Takayama sakagura, Kurosawa-sama" he said as he bowed to the four representatives of his lord. "It brings us great honor to be able to offer our sacred spirit to the fire crane."

"It is our honor to be the ones to deliver this offering," Kakeru replied.

Takayama gestured to a short, elderly man dressed in a tattered headband and sweat-stained peasants' clothes. "Allow me to introduce Kenji-toji*, our head brewer."

"Please, forgive my appearance, Kurosawa-sama," Kenji said with a wavering voice as he bowed deeply, "It is hot and very humid inside the brewery."

"Think nothing of it."

"Kenji-san has been with us for a very long time," Takayama interjected, "Even before my father ran the brewery."

"Yes, indeed," the old man smiled, "I started as an apprentice when your grandfather was the toji. He was the finest brewer I have ever known."

Takayama took a moment to smile to himself before continuing. "Oh! Perhaps Kenji-san would be so kind as to take you on a tour of the brewery. Would you like to learn about the process of brewing sake?"

"Absolutely!" Kakeru almost blurted out, before catching himself and responding with a considerably more polite, "It would be our honor."

Kenji spent an hour leading the four young travelers though the sake-making process. He began in the mill, where the hard husk of the rice was ground away, leaving only the pure starch center. Then he walked them past the springs, where the residue left from the milling process was washed away. Next, he showed them the shikomi: large wooden tanks where the rice mash fermented for nearly a month. At each point, he spent several minutes discussing the intricacies involved in getting each step just right. While Musashi, Fukasu, and Takashi listened politely, Kakeru hung on every word.

Finally, Kenji ushered the group into a small room that was warmer and far more humid than the rest of the brewery. Stacks of wooden trays lined the walls of the room, and the old toji tottered over to one stack. He deftly lifted the top of the stack and removed one tray from the center. "This," Kenji said with a smile, "is the secret of our sake."

He held out the tray to show the group. Inside was a layer of rice that looked like it was covered in a soft, black fur. "This is koji - rice that we have cultured with a very special mold. This is what is added to the rice and water mash that causes the fermentation."

Musashi looked at the moldy rice with disdain. It looked neither clean nor proper - certainly something a samurai would leave to others to employ.

_That's where sake comes from?_ Takashi thought to himself with alarm.

_Cool_, thought Fukasu.

"Would it be proper for me to bless the koji?" Kakeru asked.

"Oh, that would be most gracious of you," Kenji replied, then put the tray back in its place in the stack.

Kakeru stepped forward, held his hand out in front of the stacks of koji, took a deep breath, and thought of all the wonderful sake that would eventually be produced. _So much sake_, he thought to himself. He imagined how long it would take to drink all of that sake, and realized with glee just how very, very drunk he could be the entire time. _That could take years._ The thought made him giddy.

"Um, Kakeru-kun?" he heard Fukasu say, "You're just standing there with your eyes closed."

The young shaman snapped out of his reverie. He wondered how long he had been dreaming about the sake, decided it was best not to ask, and cleared his throat, "Great spirits, honorable ancestors, please protect and bless this sakagura, the people in it, and the sake it produces." _Especially the sake._

Kenji was delighted. He smiled and clapped his hands. "Thank you Kakeru-sama," he said with a bow, "We can use the protection of the spirits with what's been going on here recently."

Musashi raised an eyebrow, "What's been going on?"

Kenji sighed, "Someone has been salting the rice fields."

Musashi knew little about farming, but he was pretty sure that wasn't good. "What effect does that have?"

"It kills off the rice and prevents the land from being used for a very long time."

"An assault upon these lands is an assault upon Lord Kurosawa himself!" Musashi cried.

"More importantly, an assault upon these lands is an assault upon the sake!" said Kakeru, aghast.

"Yes, I'm afraid so, on both accounts," the old man replied.

Musashi looked askance at Kakeru, and then asked, "Do you have any idea what kind of dishonorable dogs would do something like this?"

"Yes," Kakeru continued, "Who would try to harm the sake?"

Kenji just shrugged, "I can't imagine. Who doesn't like sake?"

With that, the head brewer of Takayama sakagura ended his tour. The four heroes talked to the kurabito, or brewery workers, for another hour before heading to the kuramoto's manor. "Kurosawa-sama," he greeted them, "I trust that you enjoyed your tour. Please join me for dinner."

"I like dinner," Takashi quipped.

Takayama introduced the four heroes to his wife, Keiko, and his teenage son, Ichiro. Both parties exchanged pleasantries for a few minutes before sitting down around a low, round, ebony table. Takayama's servants brought out bowls of steaming-hot rice, plates of pork cutlets, and dozens of wooden bottles of sake.

While Fukasu, Kakeru, and Takashi attacked their dinner with zeal, Musashi simply frowned and pushed the rice from one side of the bowl to the other. Finally, he could hold his tongue no longer. "Takayama-san," he said, "Why are your fields being salted?"

The kuramoto nearly choked on his rice as he looked at Musashi in surprise. "Who told you of this?"

"Kenji-san," Musashi replied, coolly, "He is concerned about the dishonor that this sabotage brings to our lord."

"And to the sake," Kakeru added in between bites of rice.

"Um, well, I" Takayama stammered.

"Do you have any idea who would dishonor our lord like this?" Musashi asked. "Could it be a peasant uprising? Perhaps a rival clan seeks to harm us?"

Takayama's son, Ichiro, slammed his bowl of rice and pork down onto the table. "It's obviously Tsumago-san!" he exclaimed. "That dog seeks to destroy us, I know it!"

"Ichiro! Mind your tongue!" the kuramoto said as he rose to his feet. He grabbed his son and ushered him out of the room. Keiko stood up, bowed politely, and exited the room, sliding the paper screen closed behind her.

The four heroes from Kurosawa looked at each other in confusion, and then they heard the three members of the Takayama family begin screaming at each other. After less than a minute of listening to the argument, Fukasu set her food down. "I don't think I'm hungry any more," she said softly.

After nearly a half an hour, in which Musashi, Kakeru, Takashi, and Fukasu all sat in uncomfortable silence, Takayama returned to the table. He bowed his head, "I am sorry that you had to witness that. My son believes that Tsumago-san is trying to sabotage us, but that explanation doesn't make sense to me."

"Why is that, Takayama-san?" said Kakeru.

"Tsumago-san and I have been on very good terms for many years, and we're not really in competition."

"Have you set out to catch these criminals?" Musashi asked.

"Well," Takayama looked uncomfortable, "I have asked the farmers to keep a lookout, and to report anything suspicious."

"This is no job for a peasant," Musashi said in disgust.

"Perhaps we can investigate this situation for you, Takayama-san," Kakeru offered. "Earlier, I took the liberty of asking the kurabito where this vandalism was taking place. They said that it was happening in your northern fields."

"That's correct."

"We can stake it out tonight and hope that we get lucky," Fukasu suggested.

"I would greatly appreciate that, but I can't ask you to put yourselves in the way of danger."

"You do not need to ask," Musashi said firmly, "We will do this for the honor of our clan."

"We will do this to protect the sake," Kakeru added. Everyone stopped and turned to look at him, and after a moment, he added, "Err, and to bring honor to the clan."

Later that evening, as the crescent moon reached the apex of its journey through the clear night sky, Fukasu, Musashi, Takashi, and Kakeru took up positions hiding alongside the raised roads of Takayama's northern fields. Each minute seemed to take an hour, as the four travelers strained to see the source of every flickering shadow and every fleeting sound.

Fortunately, they didn't have to wait long. Within an hour, three horse-drawn carts rattled down the road, each piled high with burlap sacks. The carts stopped in the middle of the field, and three black-clad figures descended. After a moment of whispered conversation, they began to unload their cargo. When the first figure sliced into a bag and dumped its contents into the water, the four friends nodded to each other in agreement.

"Fukasu and I have the best chance of surprising them," Takashi whispered. Musashi and Kakeru nodded in agreement, and Fukasu readied her ninja-to.

"Ok," the young half-oni ninja whispered back. "Let's go kill the bad guys."

_Next: Ninja-y goodness!_

Notes:

* A brief sake glossary:

_Sakagura_ - a sake brewery. There are hundreds of local sake breweries throughout Tanayari, but the breweries in Takayama and Tsumago are among the largest.
_Kuramoto_ - brewer, head of the sakagura. He is the noble in charge of the operation of the brewery and the town that supports it.
_Toji_ - the head brewer. He is responsible for making sure the brewing process is carried out correctly.
_Koji_ - the rice cultured with mold.


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## carpedavid (Apr 12, 2005)

Arkhandus said:
			
		

> Cool storyhour CarpeDavid!  Reminds me of my Oriental Adventures campaign last year, only this is much better.    And you've used a few terms I wasn't familiar with before to boot, or at least didn't know the translation of......that's cool.  I like the way you handle things, particularly with the way spirits and monks are worked in.  And using psions as ki channeler "sorcerers" is just cool beans.    I'm looking forward to reading more of your storyhour.




Thanks Arkhandus! I'm glad that everyone seems to be enjoying it so far. This update was a bit exposition-heavy, but neccessary to set up the events of the next several sessions. Since this happened a while ago, and my notes from that period weren't the best, I've had to fill in what I don't remember. My players can always feel free to note any corrections that I need to make directly in this thread.

Here's a brief, spoiler-free tease containing the titles of the upcoming "chapters" in the game to date:


Takayama and Tsumago
Valley of the Spiders
The Bells of Izawa
Fuse Onsen
The Shrine of Five Gates


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## Ivy Sylvan (Apr 13, 2005)

I just have to interject that eventually the posts will contain a lot more of the dialogue between the players and NPC's.  This should make the story hour a little more interesting from the standpoint of seeing how we all interact.  (Dave got a new toy to help out with this one.)  Hopefully it will convey the real chemistry our group has both with each other and with the setting that CarpeDavid has created.


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## carpedavid (Apr 13, 2005)

Ivy Sylvan said:
			
		

> I just have to interject that eventually the posts will contain a lot more of the dialogue between the players and NPC's.  This should make the story hour a little more interesting from the standpoint of seeing how we all interact.  (Dave got a new toy to help out with this one.)  Hopefully it will convey the real chemistry our group has both with each other and with the setting that CarpeDavid has created.




Three words: Digital. Voice. Recorder.


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## TDRandall (Apr 14, 2005)

Back from vacation, and delighted to find another installment of this great story.  No specific comments on this one, I enjoyed it all around.  Looking forward to see the promised carrots dangled before our noses in action, along with the body to go with those tempting titles.

Just one thing to repeat...

That's where sake comes from?

(ew!)


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## ChewManPhoo (Apr 14, 2005)

carpedavid said:
			
		

> Three words: Digital. Voice. Recorder.



The good part:  More accurate capture of our conversations in-character.

The bad part:  Hard evidence of exactly how much time we waste.


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## carpedavid (Apr 14, 2005)

ChewManPhoo said:
			
		

> The good part:  More accurate capture of our conversations in-character.
> 
> The bad part:  Hard evidence of exactly how much time we waste.




I give my group credit for getting past the initial waving-at-the-camera-type-reaction to being recorded fairly quickly .

For those interested, here's a quick matchup of players to characters:

Ivy Sylvan - Fukasu
ChewManPhoo - Takashi
KiwiFudgeChocobo - Kyoji (about two to three more posts before he gets introduced)

Musashi and Kakeru's players have not made their presence known yet.


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## HalfOrc HalfBiscuit (Apr 14, 2005)

I said that if you kept doing just what you're doing, I'd keep reading, so I thought I'd drop in to say that I found that last update very enjoyable, as always ... and educational too!


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## carpedavid (Apr 18, 2005)

*Takayama and Tsumago, Part 2*



			
				HalfOrc HalfBiscuit said:
			
		

> I said that if you kept doing just what you're doing, I'd keep reading, so I thought I'd drop in to say that I found that last update very enjoyable, as always ... and educational too!




Sweet. Now I can say "It's not just _enter_tainment, it's _info_tainment!" Or, something like that...

Early, early update this week.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Wait, Fu-chan," Kakeru suddenly said, "Let me go with Takashi." Fukasu looked at him, puzzled, and he replied, "You can fly over there quickly, but it'll take me longer to get there. So I should probably go first."

"Ok, we'll cover you."

Kakeru nodded, and he and Takashi crawled up over the road, down the other side, and began wading slowly through the rice paddy. Every time one of the saboteurs paused, Kakeru and Takashi paused as well. Kakeru could feel his heart pounding in his chest, and his own breathing sounded like a hurricane in his ears. Musashi and Fukasu struggled to control their own breath as he readied his bow and she drew her ninja-to.

Takashi closed to within striking distance a moment ahead of Kakeru. He braced himself, took a deep breath, and lunged at the closest black-clad figure. The ninja looked up just in time to dodge out of the way of Takashi's powerful fist. Unfortunately for the young monk, this gave the ninja the perfect opportunity to jab his blade into his opponent's ribs. _Uh-oh_, Takashi thought, as the ninja-to pierced his side.

Now aware that they were under attack, the other two ninja reacted. One identified herself as the leader by barking out orders to the other, who rushed Kakeru. The ninja slashed at the young shaman, but missed wildly. Emboldened, Kakeru projected his will into the spirit world and beckoned the dancing spirits of flame and fire to come to his aid. He could see them dancing toward him, scurrying across the hazy terrain of the sprit world, when he felt a stabbing pain in his torso.

His vision snapped back to the material world, and he looked down to see a ninja-to sticking out of his stomach, right above his navel. The ninja smiled and ripped the blade out, sending a spray of blood out across the water. Kakeru coughed once, spit out a mouthful of blood, and collapsed.

"No!" Fukasu screamed as she launched herself into the air. Her powerful wings sent a spray of water out around her with each beat. Musashi nocked an arrow, drew the bowstring, paused to let his breath synchronize with the beat of Fukasu's wings, and then let fly. The arrow zipped across the water, passing just under the half-oni's right wing, before missing the lead ninja's head by less than an inch.

While the shot missed its target, it provided Takashi with the distraction he needed, and he slammed an open palm into the leader's solar plexus. Even from his potition across the water, Musashi could hear the breath burst from her lungs. _Should I charge?_ he wondered for a moment. _No_, he realized, _crossing the water will take too long. I will better serve my friends from here._

The ninja followers tumbled into position to flank Takashi, and were just about to strike when Fukasu swooped in from above. She landed in the middle of the group, which caused the two followers to cower in fear, and then tumbled behind the leader.

The first ninja, who Takashi had jumped, screamed and swung wildly, catching the young monk in the side of the face. "Ow!" Takashi cried as blood poured down over his chin. _I can't take many more of those_, he thought. The ninja leader swung at Takashi as well, but a well timed gust of wind from Fukasu's wings threw off her aim.

The monk from the Temple of Thunder and Lightning looked to his left to see one of Musashi's arrows pierce the second ninja's neck. The young man collapsed, his arterial blood creating a slick on the surface of the rice paddy. Takashi looked back to see the ninja leader staring at her fallen companion, and he took the opportunity to slam an elbow into her nose, causing her to yelp in pain.

"You die!" she screamed as she swiped at Takashi once again. This time, he easily sidestepped the wild swing, but he ran right into the first ninja's blade. Blood poured out into his robes as the blade was withdrawn, and he began to feel woozy. _Concentrate, Takashi_, he warned himself.

"You motherless dog!" the lead ninja screamed at Takashi. He raised his arms in an attempt to defend himself against another slash, but watched her face contort in pain instead. She gasped, gurgled, and fell face-forward into the warm, copper-colored water. Fukasu placed her foot on the woman's back and pulled her ninja-to from between the corpse's shoulder blades.

The first ninja screamed again as his leader's lifeless body joined that of his friend, and he slashed wildly again. Takashi tried to move, but the loss of his own blood slowed his reactions, and the blade cut deeply into his chest. _Oh, hell_, he thought as the world went gray.

Fukasu ignored the half-mad ninja and dove to the ground next to Takashi. She placed her hand against his neck to check for a pulse and found one, albeit weak. _Thank you, great ancestors_, she thought, _for keeping my friend alive_. She looked up at the remaining ninja and wondered if she would have to kill him next.

A third arrow from Musashi answered that question. The man cried in pain as the arrow sliced through his thigh. He turned and started to run, screamed in pain again, and hobbled as quickly as he could move. Fukasu turned her attention back to Takashi and Kakeru, and she began ripping off pieces of her robe to bind their wounds.

As she tightened the first of the makeshift bandages, she heard another scream, followed quickly by a splash, and looked up to see Musashi standing over the body of the last ninja, the string on his bow still quivering.

"Fu-chan? Are they still alive?" Musashi yelled as he sprinted toward Fukasu, who he could see was hurriedly bandaging their two fallen companions.

"Yes, but we need to get them back to town."

"Will they make it back?"

"They're stable, at least for now," she said as she picked up the young monk's body and placed it on the first cart. "Help me with Kakeru-kun," she said as she grabbed the young shaman's feet. Musashi knelt down and grabbed his childhood friend around the shoulders, and then grunted as they lifted his substantial weight.

"We need to burn the bodies," Musashi said, nodding toward the fallen ninja.

"We should probably save one to see if Takayama-san can identify it."

"Good idea," Musashi grunted as they set Kakeru down. "Let's burn the two of them, and then I'll stay here with the remaining one."

"Why not bring it with us?" Fukasu said, puzzled.

"I would not disgrace Takayama-san by bringing the corpse of a criminal into his town," Musashi said, indignant. "Once you get Kakeru-kun and Takashi-san taken care of, you can ride back with him. He may also be able to identify anything out of the ordinary about this area."

"I'm not convinced, but this isn't time to argue," Fukasu shrugged.

The two travelers from Kurosawa pulled the corpses of the ninja onto the road. They poured lamp oil over two of them, and then Fukasu ignited them with a spark from a set of flint and steel. They watched the corpses burn for a minute, hoping that it would be enough to sever the tie between the bodies and Yomi, the realm of the dead.

"Will you be ok?" Fukasu asked as she climbed into the cart with her unconscious friends.

"Yes, Fu-chan," Musashi replied, seemingly without concern, "Just hurry."

***​
Fukasu entered Takayama's manor with as much bluster as she could manage. Rice-paper doors slid open all over the house as the young half-oni carried Kakeru and Takashi's unconscious bodies inside, shouting for Takayama all the while.

"What's going on?" Takayama yelled as he ran toward the group. Various servants crowded the hallway, and it took him a minute to push through. "Oh, great ancestors!" he exclaimed once he saw Fukasu standing over the limp bodies of her companions.

"Do you have anyone that can help?" Fukasu implored.

The kuramoto of Takayama sakagura stared at the scene mutely for a moment before answering, "What? Oh yes, of course!" He turned to one of his young servants and said, "Go fetch Chuichi-san. Quickly!" The servant ran out into the village, and Takayama knelt down next to the three adventurers. "What happened?"

"We ran into three of the ninja that were salting your fields," Fukasu said.

"Ninja?" Takayama looked shocked.

"Yes, ninja," Fukasu said matter-of-factly, "This is the work of someone dedicated to hurting you."

Takayama stared at the two bloody bodies at his feet and let out a great sigh. "This is unbelievable," he said, shaking his head. "Wait, where's Musashi-sama?"

"He's waiting back in the field. We need you to come back with us to see if you can identify the any of the corpses of the dead ninja."

Takayama looked disgusted, "Why would I know any ninja?"

Fukasu shrugged, "We're just trying to eliminate all possibilities."

After a moment, the servant returned with a middle-aged man dressed in robes similar to Kakeru's. "Chuichi-san," Takayama stood up to greet him. "Fukasu-sama, this is Chuichi-san. He is our town shaman. Please allow him to help."

Fukasu nodded as Chuichi knelt down next to her. He looked at the bodies of her companions, and then looked over at her and nearly jumped out of his skin. Fukasu sighed, and patted him reassuringly on the shoulder.

"My apologies, Fukasu-sama," the shaman said as he recomposed himself.

"It's ok - just help my friends."

The shaman nodded, and Fukasu watched as he summoned the same blue energy that Kakeru had always used to heal her. Less than a minute later, both of her companions were up on their feet. While Fukasu filled them in on the events that had transpired after they had been knocked out, Kakeru looked down at the hole in his robes. He poked one finger through, and gently rubbed his belly. _Well_, he thought, _that didn't work out too well_.

***​
Musashi leaned against one of the remaining carts. _I hope they get back soon_, he thought, _it's getting cold out here_. A chill ran up his spine, and he shivered involuntarily, which caused him to look around. He couldn't see anything out in the darkness, and he couldn't hear anything splashing through the field, so he took a deep breath. _Get control over yourself_, Musashi. _Fear is not an option for a samurai_.

The wind whipped across the fields, rippling the standing water. The horses snorted nervously, and a low, deep drone, like a tree groaning in the wind, caught his ear. He looked around in alarm. _I can't see any trees_, he thought. _Was that one of the horses? What was that sound?_ He looked at the cart he was leaning against, at the corpse of the ninja rising to its feet, at the road stretching off into the darkness, at the two horses, and then back at the reanimated corpse... _What the? Oh, great ancestors!_

_Next: ghoulish ninja, more sake, and the introduction of Kyoji!_


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## Kiwifudgechocobo (Apr 19, 2005)

Yay! I'll be a real person soon!


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## BSF (Apr 19, 2005)

Excellent updates Carpedavid!  I am happy to have finally had time to catch up on all of them.


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## HalfOrc HalfBiscuit (Apr 19, 2005)

*Applause*


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## Emperor Valerian (Apr 19, 2005)

Just found this SH... and now I'm hooked!  Keep up the good work!


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## carpedavid (Apr 19, 2005)

Thanks for the kind comments BSF and HalfOrc! Welcome Emperor Valerian! I'm glad that you're enjoying it so far.

I took a look at my game notes, and realized that what I've written up comprises only about 1/6th of my total notes, and my notes have gotten sparse recently because I've been doing the voice recordings. In other words, I've got a lot more to write up.

Which leads me to a question - one of my players read the writeups and mentioned that there might be too much detail. I'm trying to avoid getting bogged down in the description of combat, and was just wondering if I'm being successful or not.

By the way, if anyone is interested in read what I'm trying to avoid, you may want to check out the first story hour I wrote. It's unfinished, since I ended up getting to the point where I felt like I was spinning my wheels rather than improving as a writer or a storyteller. I may go back and finish it at some point, since the campaign ended well, but that won't likely be for a long while.

http://www.enworld.org/showthread.php?t=26550 - Don't say I didn't warn you


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## Fimmtiu (Apr 19, 2005)

carpedavid said:
			
		

> Which leads me to a question - one of my players read the writeups and mentioned that there might be too much detail. I'm trying to avoid getting bogged down in the description of combat, and was just wondering if I'm being successful or not.




I think you've been doing fine on that score so far, actually. Feel free to drag the combat stuff out for really important fights, but for "ambush by gang of random ninjas", that's fine. My only real criticism would be that there's not a lot of inter-character banter. But remember, you can't please everyone, so make sure you're pleasing yourself first and foremost!


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## HalfOrc HalfBiscuit (Apr 20, 2005)

What Fimmtiu said.

So far I haven't noticed myself thinking either  "This combat's going on forever and getting really tedious" or "That was quick, there didn't seem to be any real combat at all". Which either means you're getting it pretty much right, or I'm thoroughly undiscerning as a reader. While both are obvious possibilities, I know which one I'd rather go with ...


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## carpedavid (Apr 22, 2005)

Hi Fimmtiu! Welcome, and I'm glad that you're enjoying the story so far. Based on your and HalfOrc's comments, I'll just keep doing what I'm doing with regard to describing combat.



			
				Fimmtiu said:
			
		

> My only real criticism would be that there's not a lot of inter-character banter.




This is a criticism I have myself. It's mostly a result of trying to write up the year-old bits with notes that pertain mostly to combat. I can remember some of the good one-liners that my players came up with, but I don't want to overly fictionalize large sections of dialogue. Fortunatly, I've started recording the sessions, and, having started writing up portions of those, I can tell you that there will be a lot more inter-character banter.

Next week's update is likely to be early again, since I think I'm only going to have a chance to work on it over the weekend.


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## Attila the Bum (Apr 25, 2005)

carpedavid said:
			
		

> I've started recording the sessions, and, having started writing up portions of those, I can tell you that there will be a lot more inter-character banter.
> QUOTE]
> 
> While I haven't heard the tapes, I think 90% of the so-called "banter" is gonna be unusable- I read those T&C's.


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## carpedavid (Apr 26, 2005)

Attila the Bum said:
			
		

> While I haven't heard the tapes, I think 90% of the so-called "banter" is gonna be unusable- I read those T&C's.




Ladies and gentlemen... Kakeru's player! To update the list:

Ivy Sylvan - Fukasu
Kiwifudgechocobo - Kyoji
ChewManPhoo - Takashi
Attila the Bum - Kakeru

As to the banter, a portion isn't quite appropriate for public consumption, that is true. However, the majority of it does seem to be usable, and the OOC stuff I try to summarize anyway.


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## carpedavid (Apr 26, 2005)

*Takayama and Tsumago, Part 3*

This week is going to be quite busy, so I bring you a short update:

----------------------------------------------------------------

Animated by the black fires of Yomi, the corpse of the ninja rose out of the water. In the brief span of time since its death, its skin had turned the color of ash, and its eyes had sunk into dark hollow pits. It groaned again, then turned its gaze toward Musashi. After a few hesitant steps, it grinned at the young samurai, and charged.

Musashi fumbled for his katana as he stumbled backward. Instead of the broad, powerful slash he had been trained to perform, he barely managed to draw the blade from its scabbard without cutting himself. Within a second, the ghoul was upon him, and, as it raked at his flesh, he felt a wave of cold wash over his body, like falling through ice into a frozen lake. His breath was blasted from his body as every muscle seized up at once. The edges of his vision began to go dark, and he screamed inwardly.

Musashi pulled himself from the dark depths of the frigid abyss through sheer force of will, coughing and gasping for breath as he emerged. "What in Yomi?" he exclaimed. Then, fueled by fear, he swung wildly at the ghoul. His katana bit deeply, lopping off part of the creature's face, and forcing it to shuffle back.

Black blood poured from the ghoul's missing flesh. It threw back its head, opened its damaged jaw, and let out an unearthly howl. Musashi stepped back out of its reach and shivered in spite of himself. _Great ancestors, protect me_, he thought.

The ghoul shook its head, sending a spray of black ichor everywhere. It growled, then lunged, gnashing at Musashi with its supernaturally sharp teeth. The young samurai felt the wave of paralysis wash over him, but this time he knew what to expect, and was able to shake it off with ease.

He took a deep breath and raised his katana overhead. _Steady, Musashi_, he told himself as he stepped forward. Summoning the strength of all the Kurosawa samurai that had come before him, he let out a great shout and slashed downward in a mighty blow. The ghoul took one step backward, and then split in two, from its right shoulder to its left hip. The torso toppled off into the dirty water, followed by the collapse of the legs. Both halves twitched for a second before laying still.

Musashi poked at the remains of the ghoul with his katana. They didn't move, so he poked them again. Once he was sure that they weren't going to get up and try to eat him, he sheathed his sword and breathed a sigh of relief.

When Kakeru, Fukasu, and Takashi returned with Takayama in tow, they found Musashi sitting in seiza, reflecting upon the lessons he had learned. Fear, he realized, was a powerful force. _If I can learn to harness this fear, to make it my ally instead of my enemy, then I will be strong indeed._

Fukasu immediately noticed that the scene had changed significantly since she had left. "Musashi-kun!" she yelled, "Are you ok?"

The young samurai nodded toward the two halves of the fallen ghoul. "That one..."

"Yes?"

"It got back up."

Kakeru hopped out of the cart and examined the twice-dead ninja's remains. _Hmmm_, he thought, _it shouldn't have reanimated that fast. Something else must be going on._

"Takayama-san," he beckoned to the kuramoto, "can you come here and look at this?"

The kuramoto climbed down out of the cart, and waded through the water toward Kakeru. When he got within five paces of the body, he turned around and vomited. "Pardon me," he mumbled as he wiped his mouth off on the hem of his kimono.

"Take your time," Kakeru replied.

Takayama spent a moment with his back turned, then took a deep breath, and walked over to the body. He squinted at the face of the young man, and then shook his head. "I'm sorry, I don't know this man."

"He's not from Takayama?"

"No."

"Would you know him if he were from Tsumago?"

Takayama considered the question for a moment, and then shook his head. "I would think so, but I can't be positive."

Kakeru sighed inwardly - things were rapidly becoming complicated. "Thank you, Takayama-san. We should probably return to town."

The kuramoto nodded, "I'll have the farmers take care of these wagons tomorrow." With that, the four travelers from Kurosawa returned to town, took a bath, and promptly fell asleep.

The next morning, after a traditional breakfast of miso soup and natto*, the four travelers from Kurosawa set out for the town of Tsumago. "We will find the men responsible for sabotaging your fields," Musashi promised Takayama.

The group had traveled for less than half an hour when they spotted a young man in red monk's robes walking down the road toward them. Each watched the figure warily, but Fukasu was the first to notice that something was odd about him. "Uh, hey, guys," she said.

"What in the world?" whispered Kakeru.

"What in Yomi is that?" Takashi asked no one in particular.

"It's that monk that Kitsune-san was talking about," said Musasi, for the young man walking toward them did not look at all like a normal Tanayaran. Instead of the black hair and brown eyes that were characteristic of every human they had ever met, the monk had hair the color of straw and eyes that resembled sapphires.

"Hello," the monk waved cheerily as Kakeru brought the cart to a stop. He bowed to the group, and then smiled, "I'm Kyoji."

_Next: Kyoji, the Monk_

Notes:

* For those unfamiliar with Japanese cuisine, miso is a paste made from fermented soybeans, salt, and some type of grain. Depending on how long it is fermented, the concentration of flavor can range from very mild (about a month) to quite pungent (three years).  The taste is also affected by what grain is used. Takayama's miso is made with rice.

Miso soup is traditionally made from a combination of miso paste and dashi, or fish stock. Since Tanayari is almost entirely land-locked, Takayama's soup would be made with a chicken stock. Miso soup is the traditional breakfast food of Tanayarans of all social classes.

Natto is also made from fermented soybeans, but its texture is thick and sticky, and its appearance is best described as mucous-covered beans. Stirring the stuff produces spiderweb-like strings, and it has a smell that is often compared to very strong cheese. Despite the texture and smell, it has a pleasant, nutty flavor, and is traditionally enjoyed as a breakfast food.


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## Fimmtiu (Apr 26, 2005)

carpedavid said:
			
		

> Despite the texture and smell, it has a pleasant, nutty flavor, and is traditionally enjoyed as a breakfast food.




What you really mean to say: "As long as you close your eyes and hold your nose, it's not too bad! Back before refrigerators were invented, people had to eat this foul stuff every freakin' day."


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## Kiwifudgechocobo (Apr 27, 2005)

Natto can be quite delicious if accented with the proper ingredients. In fact, many adventurers already carry the supplies needed. And if not, Survival can be used in a pinch to find local herbs/roots/spices to suit your tastes.

*rummages in pack*

(This is my personal favorite, feel free to experiment with your own combinations)

1st - Get yourself a helping of natto.
2nd - Pull out any trail rations you may have. If you have any water, get that too. But sake is really better, right Kakeru?
3rd - Ask your resident holy person to bless the assorted ingredients.
4th - (This is the important part) Chuck the natto. Into the fire, behind you, at random ninja...
If questioned on this behavior, politely explain that no amount of blessing can cleanse that kind of evil.
5th - Enjoy your trail rations and water/sake.


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## HalfOrc HalfBiscuit (Apr 27, 2005)

First, let me say, thank you to Carpedavid for another enjoyable and educational post   .



			
				Attila the Bum said:
			
		

> While I haven't heard the tapes, I think 90% of the so-called "banter" is gonna be unusable- I read those T&C's.




When I first saw this post, I read your username as "Attila the Bun" and I must confess to a certain disappointment when I realised my error  ... These boards need more bakery products!!


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## carpedavid (Apr 28, 2005)

*Which do you like best?*

The Mikado's Imperial Seal is an image of a flying crane above the kanji for "Aono" - the Imperial name. I was experimenting in photoshop to come up with a visual representation of the seal, and I produced the following variations:

1. 
	

	
	
		
		

		
			





2. 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




3. 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




So the question is, which one do you like the best? Whichever option gets the most votes becomes the new official seal for the Emperor of Tanayari.


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## BSF (Apr 29, 2005)

I prefer the 1st one.  But I would ask if there is a deeper symbolic meaning in the second with the inclusion of the red sun?  I am not as keen on the third one.


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## Arkhandus (Apr 29, 2005)

I prefer #2.  #3 is my second choice, as it is after all the Fire Crane that is their chief protector spirit.

I'll comment more substantially later, dinner's here.


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## Emperor Valerian (Apr 29, 2005)

I like the second one more.


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## HalfOrc HalfBiscuit (Apr 29, 2005)

My vote goes for No. 1. I like the simplicity of black & white.


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## carpedavid (Apr 29, 2005)

Two votes for No. 1 and two votes for No. 2 so far. Hmm. I obviously need an odd number of readers to make this work 

To answer your question, BSF, the red sun doesn't currenly have any special symbolic meaning attached to it. In fact, I was sorta worried that people would interpret it as being a simple copy of the Japanese sun disc icon.

Right now, the differences in the seals are mostly cosmetic. I like the minimalism of number one, but I also like the bold imagery of number 2. Number 3 is basically an alternate version that I sort of envision as what you'd get with an ink stamp.


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## Kiwifudgechocobo (May 2, 2005)

I agree with HalfOrc, the black & white of #1 just seems to click more.


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## TDRandall (May 3, 2005)

Great, here's another (different) opinion to toss into the mix.  I prefer the two colors juxtaposed in #2.  But you're right, the red dot DOES shout "Japan" to me.  

What is the effect if the colors are reversed?  Then you get the red crane, have the bold dark circle behind it and dark lines on the end, the kanji is in red (representing blood?) ....  whoops, never mind, you didn't ask for a #4


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## carpedavid (May 4, 2005)

Hmm - three for #1 and three for #2. Drat. At TDR's suggestion, though, I whipped up a #4


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## Ivy Sylvan (May 4, 2005)

I like #4.  And no, I'm not trying to be difficult.  Sorry, hon.


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## carpedavid (May 5, 2005)

*Kyoji, the Monk*

Sixteen years ago, in the dead of night, a newborn baby was left outside the front gate of the Temple of the Silent Lake. Upon discovering the crying infant the next morning, the monks of the temple reacted with surprise.

They were not surprised that someone had abandoned a child in the middle of the night – three hundred years of unstable shoguns, constant warfare between rival clans, droughts, plagues, and the hard life of being a peasant all produced enough abandoned children to fill all of Tanayari's monasteries twice over. They were not surprised that the child was left without any word of explanation – for none ever were. No, the monks of the temple were surprised by the features of the abandoned child, for he had hair the color of straw, and eyes that resembled sapphires.

The monks took the infant into their care, named him Kyoji, after the legendary shodo* master, and raised him alongside the dozens of other abandoned and orphaned children that showed up outside their gate every year. Though the kanju of the temple decreed that the strange-looking infant should be treated no differently than any other child ("He is either blessed by the spirits, or cursed," she said, "It is not up to us to decide which."), Kyoji couldn't help but hear the whispers and feel the stares of the other children as he grew into a monk-in training.

Over the years, he formed close friendships with a select few others who were considered "strange" for one reason or another: Sakio, a girl who could see spirits; Dosan, a boy who never stopped talking; Akiko, a slender girl who was at least a head taller than all the boys by the time she was 8; and Issai, a boy who weighed more than all the other boys combined by the time he was 8.

Apart from spending time with his friends, Kyoji poured himself into the study of the Way of the Tortoise and the teachings of Zenigame Kamiko**, the temple's founder. He practiced the defensive fighting inspired by the tortoise during the day and read from the sacred scrolls that illustrated the danger presented by the tainted forces of Yomi at night.

On the sixteenth anniversary of Kyoji's arrival at the temple, the kanju approached him as he was training with Akiko. "Kyoji-san," she said as she bowed.

"Yes, sensei?" the young monk replied as he, too, bowed.

"It is time."

Kyoji nodded, bowed to his training partner, and then followed the kanju as she turned to walk out of the dojo. They passed statues of the temple's greatest leaders, murals depicting battles between the temple's monks and armies of oni, and the multitude of tortoises that freely wandered the temple's halls before emerging onto the balcony that overlooked the placid lake for which the temple was named.

The kanju took a moment to look out across the lake. At the far end, a crane clicked its beak, and then splashed around, looking for frogs. "You've been an exemplary student, Kyoji-san," she said.

"Thank you, sensei."

"The time has come for you to embark on your pilgrimage, and I have the highest confidence that you will become a remarkable warrior."

Kyoji blushed, but bowed. "Thank you, sensei."

"The world outside these walls is complex," she said as the crane's head emerged from the water, a struggling frog clamped firmly in its beak, "and the forces of Yomi will conspire against you."

"Yes, sensei," Kyoji watched as the crane tossed back its head and swallowed the frog whole.

"Remember the wisdom of the Zenigame as you fight against the spread of taint, Kyoji-san. It is your greatest weapon."

"Yes, sensei."

"Kyoji-san."

"Yes, sensei?"

"As of today, I am no longer your sensei," the kanju of the Temple of the Silent Lake said with a sad smile.

The young monk fell silent for a moment as those words rattled around his brain. He could hear the click-click-click of the crane's beak in the distance, and feel the gentle breeze of the east wind as it danced across the surface of the lake. He wondered when he would hear that sound and feel that breeze again – the thought frightened and excited him simultaneously.

Finally, he took a deep breath, smiled, and bowed deeply, "Thank you, Midori-sama."

On that day, Kyoji bid farewell to his friends, gathered what few items he possessed, and walked out the front gate of the Temple of the Silent Lake. He wandered south, and, after a few weeks, found himself in the sake-producing town of Tsumago. After enjoying the kuramoto's hospitality for a week, he wandered south, where he encountered a group of fellow travelers.

"I am a disciple of the Way of the Tortoise," he said as he bowed, "and I am on a musha shugyo."

The fat traveler – the one driving the cart – smiled at him and spoke, "We are travelers from Kurosawa. We are on a pilgrimage as well, to take our offering to the great fire crane." He pointed to himself, "I am Kakeru," then to the others in turn. Musashi bowed slightly when Kakeru introduced him. Fukasu smiled, waved, and then bowed.

Takashi shifted his weight rapidly from one foot to the other as he bowed. Fukasu looked over at him, and realized that he was nearly vibrating with excitement. _This should be interesting,_ she thought.

The monk from the Temple of Thunder and Lightning stepped forward, smiled, and said "Want to fight?"

_Next: the Way of the Storm vs. the Way of the Tortoise_

Notes:

* Shodo, the "way of writing," is more commonly known as calligraphy. In Tanayari, it is performed with a bamboo and animal hair brush on _washi _ (a paper made from plant fiber that is thicker and tougher than that made from wood pulp). The ink used for shodo is known as _sumi_, and is produced from charcoal. Shodo masters are considered the greatest artists in Tanayari.

** Zenigame Kamiko was born into a samurai family, but took on the life of an ascetic monk on her sixteenth birthday. She abandoned her family name and took on the title of "Zenigame," which means "pond turtle." Over the next 8 decades, she developed the defensive fighting style known as the Way of the Tortoise, authored over two hundred scrolls detailing the most efficient way to defeat the forces of Yomi, and founded the Temple of Silent Lake.


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## carpedavid (May 5, 2005)

Ivy Sylvan said:
			
		

> I like #4.  And no, I'm not trying to be difficult.  Sorry, hon.




For those readers that are wondering, Ivy Sylvan is not only Fukasu's player, but my fiancee 

So - the tally this far for the Mikado's seal is:

#1 - 3 votes
#2 - 3 votes
#4 - 1 vote

Anyone else want to submit their opinion?


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## Ivy Sylvan (May 5, 2005)

Oh blargh.  I can submit a vote for an original entry if you want...since technically #4 wasn't in the original running.


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## carpedavid (May 5, 2005)

Ivy Sylvan said:
			
		

> Oh blargh.  I can submit a vote for an original entry if you want...since technically #4 wasn't in the original running.




You're more than welcome to break the tie.


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## Ivy Sylvan (May 5, 2005)

Then I vote #1.  I like the simplicity of the black with the added emphasis of the red bordering it.


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## carpedavid (May 5, 2005)

By a vote of 4 to 3, the Imperial Seal of the Mikado of Tanayari:


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## carpedavid (May 10, 2005)

*Takayama and Tsumago, Part 4*

_Sweet!_ Kyoji thought to himself. "Yes, I would very much like that," he replied with a slight bow.

"Takashi-san, Takashi-san, Takashi-san!" Fukasu chanted. Everyone turned toward her, so she gave them an indignant look, "What?"

Kakeru and Musashi took up positions at the corners of an imaginary ring, and the two monks walked to the center. After bowing to each other, they assumed their fighting stances. Like he had done in the fight with the fox monk, Takashi held his fists at the level of his shoulders, and shifted his weight from foot to foot, all the while trying to make himself appear as tall as possible.

Kyoji, by contrast, stood extremely still. His feet seemed almost to sink into the earth as he settled his weight into his lower torso. He raised his fists to the same level as Takashi, but held them close to his body.

_He's going to be hard to take down,_ Takashi realized. _Defensive posture, strong stance. Oh well, I'm faster._

Kyoji nodded, and the fight began. Takashi moved in quickly, and made a grab for his opponent's robes. Kyoji deflected the grab with his arms, stepped forward, and slammed his shin into Takashi's thigh. _Ow_, Takashi thought as he took a step backward, _his shins are pointy!_

The monk from the Temple of Thunder and Lightning decided to press the fight, and attempted a thigh kick of his own. The monk from the Temple of the Silent Lake blocked the kick with his shin. _Again with the shins!_ Then he slammed the side of his hand into Takashi's neck.

Musashi and Kakeru watched Takashi's face contort with pain as Kyoji's ridge-hand strike slammed into the young monk's neck. Takashi backed away and the two monks circled each other for a moment. Takashi bobbed and weaved outside the range of Kyoji's strikes, then darted in with a jab to the head. Kyoji deflected the blow again, and tried to retaliate with a punch of his own, but this time the disciple of the Way of the Storm easily dodged it. The disciple of the Way of the Tortoise advanced, and threw a thigh kick at the same leg that he had hit before.

_Oh, no you don't,_ Takashi thought to himself as he dodged out of the way. The adrenaline coursed through his body, and he was pretty sure that it was the only thing keeping him on his feet at this point. He circled Kyoji for another moment, then decided his best bet was to try to grapple again. He stepped in and reached for his opponent's robes, extending his arms, and, unfortunately, exposing his ribs.

Kyoji saw the opening, stepped forward, deflected the grab attempt, and smashed his fist into Takashi's ribs. The young monk from the Temple of Thunder and Lightning gasped, then dropped to the ground. Kakeru and Musashi looked at each other with surprise, while Fukasu grimaced.

Musashi stared at Kyoji with admiration. _He never got touched. He avoided Takashi-san's throws._ He smiled to himself, _he is powerful indeed_. Kakeru strolled over to Takashi, knelt down, and healed the loser of the match – it was a routine that he was becoming accustomed to.

"Kyoji-san," Musashi said as Kakeru helped a groggy Takashi up off the ground, "the pilgrimage that we are undertaking is certain to be filled with great challenges. Perhaps you would be interested in accompanying us? I have no doubt that we will find many warriors for you to hone your skills against."

The straw-haired monk looked around at the group of adventurers. _They seem upstanding enough_, he thought, _perhaps this is what the fates have in store for me_. He bowed to Musashi, "Thank you, Kurosawa-sama. That sounds good." _And if they turn out to be not upstanding, I can use them for practice._

Takashi looked over at Musashi and frowned, but said nothing.

"Well," Kakeru said, "We're headed to Tsumago to get some sake for our offering."

"Ah," Kyoji replied, "I just came from there. Tsumago-san was nice enough to put me up for a few days. I can introduce you to him, if you want."

"Really?" said Kakeru, "Hmm. We're also investigating the sabotage of Takayama-san's fields by a ninja group of some sort. Have you seen anything suspicious while you were there?"

Kyoji thought for a moment, "Actually, there were a group of mysterious people that kept coming into and out of town."

"Mysterious?"

"Yeah, the other townspeople didn't really talk to them, but they acted like they belonged there."

"Interesting," Kakeru said as his mind began to race.

"Were these people ninja?" Musashi asked, "Did they meet with Tsumago-san?"

"Uhhh," Kyoji paused for a second before answering, "I haven't had much experience with ninja, so I can't really say. But they never talked to Tsumago-san while I was around. He doesn't seem like the type of guy who would associate with ninja."

_What's that supposed to mean?_ Fukasu thought as she stuck her tongue out at the straw-haired monk from behind his back.

Kakeru smiled, and then continued his questioning, "Can you think of anything else out of the ordinary that you might have observed?"

Kyoji contemplated the question for a minute before answering, "Come to think of it, the brewmaster, Mieko-toji, seems to be very taken with Tsumago-san, but he doesn't seem to notice."

"Is he married?" Fukasu asked, and quickly stuck her tongue back in her mouth as Kyoji turned to face her.

"No, he's never taken a wife, from what he said."

"I'll bet a cask of sake she has something to do with it," Kakeru mumbled to himself before turning his attention back to group. "We should go," he said as he walked over and climbed back into the cart, "I'd like to talk with Tsumago-san and this Mieko-toji." _And some sake wouldn't hurt either._

"You should really drink less," Kakeru's grandfather scolded him as the group continued on to Tsumago. "Sake may be sacred, but it is still an intoxicant, and capable of causing very dishonorable behavior." Kakeru rolled his eyes and made a mental note to ask Tsumago for an extra cask of sake - he was pretty sure he was going to need it.

***​
Twenty minutes later, the group of five adventurers entered the town of Tsumago. In nearly every way, it was the twin of Takayama: small, surrounded by rice fields, a sparse main street with the kuramoto's residence at one end, and a very busy brewery. This time, the group didn't need to rely on Kakeru's keen nose for sake – instead, Kyoji directed them to the brewery.

Kakeru, Fukasu, Musashi, and Takashi looked around suspiciously, but followed Kyoji as he led them into the brewery. They wandered for a minute, before the straw hair monk stopped and bowed to a middle-aged man in a silk kimono, "Hello, Tsumago-san."

The man smiled and returned the bow, "Kyoji-san, to what do I owe the pleasure of your return?"

"I encountered a group of travelers from Kurosawa right after I left," Kyoji replied. Then he turned to the travelers from Kurosawa, "Kakeru-san, Musashi-san, Fukasu-san, Takashi-san, please allow me to introduce the kuramoto, Tsumago Akira."

Tsumago turned to look at the young travelers, and then bowed deeply. "Kurosawa-sama, it is my great honor to welcome you to Tsumago Sakagura."

"Thank you, Tsumago-san," Kakeru said as each of the daimyo's representatives bowed slightly.

"Allow me to take you on a tour of the brewery," he smiled.

Kakeru nodded his assent, and the kuramoto led them through the process of making sake. Almost every part of the process was identical to what they had seen at Takayama, so each of them spent their time watching the brewery workers, hoping to see something suspicious. Tsumago regarded their attention to the surroundings as interest in the brewing process, so he went into great detail at every step.

When they reached the shikomi – the large wooden tanks where the rice mash fermented – Kakeru noticed a stiff, middle-aged woman staring intently at the kuramoto. She followed his every movement with her eyes: every step he took, every hand gesture he made. She even seemed to watch his mouth form each syllable. Kakeru shuddered internally. _That's just creepy,_ he thought. 

After a few minutes, Tsumago turned to the woman and beckoned her over. As soon as he turned his attention to her, her countenance became radiant: she smiled and her whole body appeared to relax. _She looks ten years younger,_ Kakeru thought.

"Kurosawa-sama," Tsumago said, "Please allow me to address Mieko-toji, our brewmaster."

Mieko blushed, then placed her hands on the front of her kimono and bowed deeply. "It is a great honor to have our sake offered to the fire crane," she said demurely.

Tsumago nodded, then motioned to the group to continue on. As he led the group away, Kakeru watched the toji out of the corner of his eye. She gazed longingly at him as he walked away, and, once he was out of sight, her face contorted and she turned away. _There's definitely something going on there,_ thought Kakeru.

The kuramoto continued the tour for another half hour, then invited the group to dinner at his manor. "Tsumago-san," Kakeru began, "In addition to collecting the sake for the offering, there is another reason that we are here."

"Have you hired ninja to salt Takayama-san's fields?" Musashi blurted out angrily.

"What?" Tsumago exclaimed.

Kakeru sighed inwardly, "Tsumago-san, someone has been sabotaging Takayama-san's fields, and we're trying to track down the culprits." He smiled beatifically, and interspersed himself between Musashi and the kuramoto before continuing, "Obviously, we do not believe that you would do such a thing..."

"I should hope not. Takayama-san is no rival of mine, and we have always been on good terms."

"Oh, of course," the young shaman continued. "We're just trying to eliminate all possible suspects." Musashi frowned and turned away from the conversation.

"Ah, I see," Tsumago nodded, "Is there anything I can do to assist you?"

"Well, would you mind if we talked to your workers?"

"You do not need my permission, but of course," Tsumago said, bowing. "Please, take your time. I will arrange for dinner to be ready after sundown." The group returned his bow, at which point the kuramoto took his leave.

The group spent the next couple of hours talking to the brewery workers. From what they could gather, Kyoji's suspicions and Kakeru's own observations about Mieko's feelings for Tsumago were correct: according to nearly everyone, she loves him, and he is oblivious to her affections. 

Additionally, several of the kurabito mentioned the strange workers they Kyoji had noticed. No one was sure where they came from, but no one felt that it was their place to ask about them. _As well they shouldn't,_ Musashi thought, _peasants shouldn't be questioning their superiors._

On the way to the kuramoto's manor, the group discussed their findings. "So you believe that the saboteur is Mieko-toji?" Musashi asked Kakeru.

"I think so. Do you think she would attack Takayama in order to impress Tsumago-san?"

Fukasu thought about the woman's behavior and shuddered, "Yeah."

"Probably," said Takashi.

"Shall we tell Tsumago-san?" Musashi asked.

"Hmm, no. Not yet, at least. I think we need more proof," Kakeru replied as they arrived at the manor.

***​
Tsumago proved a more than able host. The five heroes enjoyed a dinner of yakitori and rice which they washed down with lots and lots of sake. By the end of the meal, each of the travelers had at least ten empty skewers of the sweet, grilled food scattered around his or her plate, and had had at least ten cups of the sweet, sacred intoxicant. Kakeru, Musashi, and Kyoji had gone after the chicken with gusto, while Fukasu and Takashi had filled their bellies mainly with the shiitake mushrooms. _Mmmmm, mushrooms_, Fukasu thought to herself. After dinner, the group retired for the evening, vowing to investigate further in the morning.

While the other adventurers got ready to soak in the hot baths, Fukasu wandered around her room restlessly; all the activity in the past few days had jangled her nerves, and she felt the need to get out. She slid open the rice paper door to her room and padded out into the hallway. Kakeru emerged from his room at about the same time, and, when he cocked an eyebrow at her, she shrugged. "I'm too wound up right now," she said, "I'm going to go stretch my wings for a bit."

Kakeru nodded, "Be careful, Fu-chan."

"Don't worry, Kakeru-kun," she smiled, "I'll be fine." _He always worries about me_, she thought.

As the young shaman turned to walk to the baths, he shook his head. _She always worries me_, he thought.

Fukasu tiptoed outside, so as not to attract attention, stretched for a minute, and then launched herself into the air. The powerful beat of her wings carried her aloft, and within seconds she was gliding in circles around the kuramoto's manor. As the cool spring air washed over her face, she felt herself beginning to relax. She sighed, and delighted in the feeling of flight; circling town, she swooped down over rooftops, danced upon the air currents, and tumbled over the tops of trees.

After an hour, she felt ready to return to the baths, and winged back toward the manor. As she approached the residence from the rear, she spotted Tsumago outside, talking to a young peasant. She couldn't make out what they were saying, but she did see the kuramoto hand the man several cranes and a sealed letter. The peasant bowed, lit the paper lantern he was carrying, and headed off into town.

_Well, well_, Fukasu thought to herself, _that looks pretty suspicious_. Catching an air current, she circled around to follow the peasant. As the man walked through town, she fluttered from rooftop to rooftop, as silent as a leaf on the wind. She followed him until he passed through town and began walking south on the road that led to Takayama.

_Oooh, this should be good_, she thought, _I'd better go get the others_.

_Next: a note, more ninja, and an unexpected confrontation..._


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## Attila the Bum (May 11, 2005)

I haven’t caught up on this for awhile, but I really enjoyed the last several posts.  Your sense of pacing- in terms of the dialogue and the action- keeps getting better.


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## Kiwifudgechocobo (May 11, 2005)

Yay! Update!

And I agree with Attila, you're doing a great job, and getting better.

Though I didn't think my shins were *that* pointy...


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## BSF (May 11, 2005)

I really enjoyed reading the introduction for Kyoji.

Ivy Sylvan and Carpedavid, congratulations on your engagement.


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## HalfOrc HalfBiscuit (May 11, 2005)

Good update as always, Carpedavid.

So how come Kyoji beat Takashi so easily? Just the luck of the dice? Or something more?


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## carpedavid (May 11, 2005)

Thanks for the kind comments, everyone. I'm still having fun writing it, so I'll keep plugging away. I also find that meeting the personal challenge of updating every week is quite satisfying - so I plan to keep updating at that schedule. Busy weeks end up with shorter updates, while not-so-busy weeks get slightly longer ones 

Specific comments and answers:



			
				Attila the Bum said:
			
		

> Your sense of pacing- in terms of the dialogue and the action- keeps getting better.




Cool. I've been trying to work on the dialogue lately. Hopfeully the improvement is a result of that.



			
				Kiwifudgechocobo said:
			
		

> Though I didn't think my shins were *that* pointy...




For those following allong at home, Attilla the Bum, ChewManPhoo, Kiwifudgechocobo and I all took jujitsu in college together. I maintain that my description of his shins is dead on  .



			
				BardStephenFox said:
			
		

> Ivy Sylvan and Carpedavid, congratulations on your engagement.




Thanks! We've been engaged for about three and a half years at this point, and, to answer the inevitable follow-up question, we're due to get married once we get around to planning a wedding. We're bad at planning .... Okay, I'm bad at planning 



			
				HalfOrc HalfBiscuit said:
			
		

> So how come Kyoji beat Takashi so easily? Just the luck of the dice? Or something more?




From what I recall, it came down mainly to the luck of the dice. Kyoji's player rolled really well, and Takashi's player flubbed most of his rolls. Here's the transcription of my actual notes from the fight:

Ky - att T for 4
T - tries to grab, miss
Ky - hits for 5
T - att, miss
Ky - tries backhand, miss
T - miss
Ky - att
T - miss
Ky - punch to chest, KO

If Kyoji or Takashi's players remember anything in particular that made a difference, it would be interesting to hear.


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## Kiwifudgechocobo (May 16, 2005)

Well, Takashi is built around grappling, while I built Kyoji around not getting hit. 

But seriously, Dodge helps alot when Attack bonuses are low, and Improved Initiative always helps.

And I would like to point out that it was CarpeDavid rolling for Takashi, as ChewManPhoo was unavailable to play that day. Though it was ChewManPhoo who, when asked via phone, stated that yes, Takashi would challenge Kyoji.

We now return you to your regularly scheduled Story Hour.


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## carpedavid (May 16, 2005)

Kiwifudgechocobo said:
			
		

> And I would like to point out that it was CarpeDavid rolling for Takashi, as ChewManPhoo was unavailable to play that day. Though it was ChewManPhoo who, when asked via phone, stated that yes, Takashi would challenge Kyoji.




Ah! That's right. I forgot about that. It explains a lot, too - I seem to have a track record of rolling poorly for the characters when the players aren't there. Nothing malicious - since I roll out in the open - but significant enough to mention.


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## meleeguy (May 17, 2005)

Just wanted to say I'm enjoying your story hour - and I'm a die hard Western European kinda guy. 

Nice pacing.


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## carpedavid (May 20, 2005)

*Takayama and Tsumago, Part 5*

Thanks Meleeguy! I'm glad that you're enjoying it, especially since it's not your prefered genre. In honor of your post being the 100th reply, I hereby dedicate this update to you.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Fukasu found her companions soaking in the kuramoto's baths. Kakeru had his head tossed back and his sake jug pressed to his lips when she entered the room; Takashi and Musashi were both in a state of deep relaxation; and Kyoji was in the process of putting his robes back on. Everyone turned to look at her when she slid open the rice-paper door.

"Guys, I just saw something suspicious," she began excitedly, "I was out flying around and I saw Tsumago-san..." She stopped, slid the door to the bath shut, and continued in a whisper, "I saw Tsumago-san give a peasant a note or letter of some sort, and then I followed the peasant through town. He's headed south toward Takayama."

Kakeru dropped his sake jug, "That's definitely suspicious."

"We can go catch him," Kyoji said to Fukasu as he knotted his belt. Then he turned to the Kakeru, Takashi, and Musashi, "You guys catch up."

The winged half-oni and the straw-haired monk took off into the night, leaving the samurai, the shaman, and the bald monk to hurriedly fumble with clothing and armor. After a few minutes of running and winging, Kyoji and Fukasu caught sight of the peasant's lantern bobbing in rhythm to his step. They slowed their pursuit, and followed well out of sight as they waited for their companions to arrive.

It didn't take long before they heard the clack-clack-clack of Musashi's armor approaching in the darkness. Once the group was reunited, they rushed the peasant, surrounding him within a few seconds. The man stopped in his tracks, shrieked in fear, and dropped his lantern.

Musashi stepped forward, hand on the handle of his katana, and glared at the peasant. "We are the representatives of our Lord Kurosawa," he growled, "You must do as we command." The peasant cowered before the man who had the power and right to end his life at any moment.

"Give me the letter," barked Musashi. The peasant extended a quivering hand, and Musashi snatched the letter away. He broke the seal and began reading the contents. After half a minute, he stopped, looked at the peasant, and frowned. "It's a love note," he said with disdain as he flipped it over to read the name of the addressee.

"Matsu," he read, and then looked at his companions, who simply shrugged. "Who is Matsu?" he growled as he thrust the letter in the peasant's face.

"I don't know," the peasant quailed.

"How can you not know?" Musashi spat

"I mean...she's just a servant. But I've never actually met her."

_A kuramoto having an affair with a servant? How vulgar._ Musashi leaned in close, "Then how do you deliver the letter?"

"I...I...I just slide the letter under one of the doors in Takayama's house."

Kakeru sighed and rubbed his head, "I thought we had something."

"I'm sorry, everybody," Fukasu said glumly. Steam rolled out of her mouth and rose into the cool night air as she grumbled to herself.

"It's ok, Fukasu-san," said Takashi, "We all thought this was going to be the big break we needed."

"Unless," Kakeru said, "Mieko-toji knows about the affair, and she's trying to destroy Takayama because she can't get to the woman herself." His speculation was greeted by a round of "Aahs" and "Hmmms," but the group came to no particular consensus.

Musashi refolded the letter and handed it to the peasant, "If anyone asks why the seal is broken, tell them that you were clumsy and that you dropped it."

"Yes, Kurosawa-sama, thank, you."

The group watched the peasant's lantern bob and sway as he hurried down the road. Once the light had shrunk to little more than a pinprick, they began the trek back into town. Kakeru rubbed his head, Musashi watched the fields for signs of movement, and Fukasu kept herself occupied by kicking a small stone down the path.

None of the adventurers felt up to making conversation, so they walked in silence – their only stimuli the cool breeze that blew across the fields, the sound of dirt crunching underfoot, and the rhythmic thunk, thunk, thunk of the stone skipping down the road. After a few minutes, Fukasu inadvertently kicked the stone into another rock, which caused it to skip off into the fields. It made a small splash as it hit the standing water, and then all was quiet again.

As the group continued their slow journey, they approached a small copse of trees that stood just to the side of the road. Musashi stared intently at it, but spotted nothing out of the ordinary. The five heroes had nearly passed the trees when a flurry of movement startled them; four black-clad figures jumped out of the shadows and drew their ninja-to.

Kyoji was the first to react. Ninja or not, these were still human beings, and he wasn't willing to commit violence without giving them a chance to surrender. "Lay down your weapons and leave now," he offered, "and we'll spare your lives."

_Those who attack my lord gain no quarter from me,_ Musashi thought as he charged the nearest figure. The combination of his momentum and the speed of his blade sent the ninja's head flying through the night air. A thick gush of arterial blood coated the young samurai's face in the second before the man's body realized that he was dead.

Upon seeing their companion fall, the remaining three ninja sprang into action. The tallest of them revealed herself to be the leader when she pointed to Kakeru and yelled, "Kill the shaman, first!" The two remaining followers tumbled past Fukasu and Takashi, who in turn charged the leader.

Kakeru gasped as the first ninja's sword opened a gash across his belly, then howled in pain as the second one pierced his kidney.

While the ninja took turns shoving their blades into the young shaman's midsection, the half oni and the bald monk pummeled the leader. Takashi drove his fist into the woman's plexus just in time to see Fukasu slide her ninja-to between the woman's ribs. The assault was too much for the leader, who tumbled backward out of their reach.

Once she was out of their reach, she grabbed a bamboo vial from her belt and gulped down the contents. Kakeru followed suit. He staggered out of his opponents' reach and invoked the healing power of the spirits. A warm blue glow washed over his body, sealing the gash across his torso.

"I gave you a chance to surrender," Kyoji said sadly as he charged the first of Kakeru's attackers. Musashi followed, and the combination of the monk's fist and the samurai's blade sent the man crumpling to the ground.

Takashi closed the distance between himself and the leader, lowered his torso, and rammed his shoulder into her midsection. As his momentum carried him forward, he placed his hands behind her knees and yanked upward. The combination of the two forces jerked her off her feet, and she slammed onto the ground with a loud thud. Takashi landed on top of her, deflecting her weapon hand with one arm, and grinding an elbow in her face with the other.

Fukasu turned to see the remaining ninja facing off against Kyoji and Musashi. Realizing that he was distracted, she charged across the dirt road. _This is what you get for attacking my cousin,_ she thought as she buried her ninja-to in the man's back.

He yelled in pain as the blade sliced through his chest, and then gasped for air as his lung collapsed. He stumbled forward, pulled out a bamboo vial of his own, and gulped down the healing liquid contained within. Fukasu glared at the man, and lunged again, yelling, "You get away from him!" He screamed again, dropped the vial and ninja to, and clutched at yet another hole in his chest.

Realizing that a blow from his katana could conceivably kill the man, Musashi sheathed his blade, stepped forward, and punched him in the face. The ninja wobbled for a moment, then his eyes rolled back into his head, and he crumpled.

Kyoji turned to see Takashi choke out the leader with her own arm, so he took a moment to survey the surroundings for other potential threats. Finding none, he turned back to his companions. "Is everyone ok?" he asked.

"Are you ok, Kakeru-kun?" Fukasu asked worriedly.

"I'm fine!" Kakeru said unsteadily. He bent over, placed his hands on his knees, and vomited. He looked up to see the spirit of his grandfather standing over him with a look of disdain.

"Too much sake!" his grandfather chastised him.

The five heroes bound the two unconscious ninja to a tree, then placed the other two bodies in a pile in front of them. "We've only got one head," Fukasu pointed out as they doused the bodies with oil.

"I found it!" Kyoji said, as he used a branch to fish the missing cranium out of the paddy. He gently set it down in the pile, and then Kakeru used a minor bit of magic to revive the unconscious saboteurs. A second later, Fukasu ignited the bodies. She found the warmth of the flames to be a welcome, if unexpected comfort.

The two ninja sat - bound to the tree - while they watched their companions slowly turn to ash. After the fires died out, Musashi turned toward them and spent a minute in contemplation. "Who hired you?" he finally asked the woman, confident that, as the leader, she would know more than her companion.

"I can't tell you that," she said defiantly, then spat at his feet. Her companion smiled smugly.

Musashi smacked her across the face with the back of his fist, splitting her lip, then repeated his question, "Who hired you?"

"A Kaga ninja never reveals the secrets of her employer," she said a little less confidently as blood poured down over her chin. Her companion stopped smiling.

Musashi leaned in close and drove his heel into her outstretched ankle. He was pleased to see tears well up in her eyes, so he repeated the action. This time she yelped, but said nothing. He frowned, stood back up, and drew his katana. As he raised it slowly above his head, the woman began to whimper, and her partner began to hyperventilate. As his blade reached the apex of his swing, he was fully prepared to cleave the woman's skull in two, but she finally spoke.

"It was Mieko-toji," she blurted out, then gasped for breath, "the woman from the brewery." She looked up at the young samurai as tears began to run down her cheeks. "Please don't kill me," she said as she began to sob, "Please, please don't kill me." Her partner's breathing was quick and shallow, and he was visibly shaking as he struggled against his bonds. She looked at the five heroes who stood in judgment of her, then looked at her partner before returning her gaze to Musashi, "Oh, gods, please don't kill me!"

"Very well," Musashi said as he lowered his blade. "You will go back to your clan, and you will tell them that the Kaga are not welcome in Kurosawa lands."

Kakeru untied the woman and helped her to her feet. She looked around nervously, then bowed to Musashi. "Thank you, Kurosawa-sama," she said between sobs, "Thank you. Thank you. May the spirits bless you and keep your clan safe." She glanced briefly at her partner, who still sat bound to the tree, then took off running into the cold, dark night.

Musashi paused for a moment as the remaining ninja looked up at him with wide, wild eyes - but only for a moment. A second later, he took the man's head.

"Well, then..." Kakeru said.

"Yeah," Takashi agreed.

The party burned the last body, and then quickly ran back to town. As they approached the kuramoto's manor, they spent several minutes discussing strategy. From what they had observed, Mieko slept in a room on the far side of the manor, and they figured it should be easy to march right in and subdue her.

"So we go in, grab her, and then present our evidence to Tsumago-san?" Takashi asked.

"Yeah, that's the plan," Kakeru replied.

"Ok," said Fukasu, "We just need to make sure that there aren't any more of those ninja she hired hanging around."

"Good point, Fu-chan," Musashi said.

Once they reached the manor, the five heroes became very cautious. Kakeru and Kyoji scoured the surroundings for signs of potential attackers, but found none. With Musashi in the lead, they crept down the hallway, trying to avoid awakening anyone who might get in the way. When they reached her room, the party fell into formation. Fukasu and Kyoji flanked the door, Kakeru stood back to the side, and Takashi hovered behind the young samurai, ready to tumble out of danger.

Musashi took a deep breath to steady himself, slid open the door, and charged forward. Though ready for a horde of ninja to jump out of the shadows, he was fully expecting to find the toji slumbering on her futon. Instead, what he saw chilled him to the bone: Mieko was standing on the other side of the room, in between two smoldering braziers. At her feet was an iron bowl that was emitting a sickly green smoke, and in her hand was a dagger.

As the young samurai dashed forward, she sliced open her palm with the dagger. Blood tumbled from her hand, cascading in rivulets toward the iron bowl at her feet. Musashi reached for his sword, but gravity was quicker. Mieko looked up at him and screeched as the braziers on either side of her burst to life, "I won't let you take Akira from me!"

_Next: Blood magic, more blood magic, and an unexpected twist..._


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## Kiwifudgechocobo (May 22, 2005)

So I just read the update, and I must say, Great!

One question though. Was it Kyoji and Fukasu who ran ahead, or Takashi and Fukasu?

See below:
"We can go catch him," *Kyoji said to Fukasu* as he knotted his belt. Then he turned to the Kakeru, Takashi, and Musashi, "You guys catch up."

The winged half-oni and the straw-haired monk took off into the night, leaving the samurai, the shaman, and the bald monk to hurriedly fumble with clothing and armor. After a few minutes of running and winging, *Takashi and Fukasu caught sight* of the peasant's lantern bobbing in rhythm to his step. They slowed their pursuit, and followed well out of sight as they waited for their companions to arrive.

I only ask since I can't clearly remember the entire gaming session.

Other than that, good job, keep up the good work. Now I'm gonna get back to work...ugh...


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## carpedavid (May 22, 2005)

Kiwifudgechocobo said:
			
		

> So I just read the update, and I must say, Great!
> 
> One question though. Was it Kyoji and Fukasu who ran ahead, or Takashi and Fukasu?
> 
> ...




Ah, good catch. It is, in fact, supposed to be Kyoji and Fukasu. I'll fix that in the post.


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## carpedavid (May 26, 2005)

*Takayama and Tsumago, Part 6*

Mahou – the forbidden magic. Tainted magic. Blood magic. To command the all-consuming, primal forces of Yomi, a practitioner must make a sacrifice of life energy – most often her own blood. Even for those willing to make such a sacrifice, mahou carries a high price, for the negative energy that fuels the magic inexorably corrupts the user, eating away at the body and twisting the soul.

Because it had been outlawed by the Mikado – the penalty for practicing it is death – and because of the deleterious effects caused by its practice, mahou had always been the province of the evil, of the insane, and of the desperate. Standing before the party with wild eyes and a malevolent grin, blood pouring from the gash in her palm, the lovesick toji of Tsumago Sakagura appeared to be all three.

Fukasu was the first into the room after Musashi. She darted in ahead of Takashi, and, in order to avoid running into the samurai, had to tumble into one of the braziers. As she rolled up to her feet, she reached out to grab the iron plate, but the brazier slipped off the end of her fingertips. The flaming coals spilled out onto the tatami and set the rice paper wall behind Mieko ablaze.

The toji ignored the wall of flame behind her and began chanting in an unknown tongue. The effect, to Musashi, was like the drone of a hundred-thousand flies. The buzzing reverberated inside his head, drowning out the voices shouting around him. At the same time, his field of vision contracted, causing the room and his companions to disappear. The only thing he could hear, the only thing he could see, was Mieko.

"Get out of my head!" the young samurai yelled as he broke free of the woman's hypnotic spell. He stepped forward, drew his katana, and slashed at Mieko, who crumpled under the force of the blow.

"Sprits of water and rain," Kakeru implored as he dashed forward, "come to my aid." A second later, a gush of water burst from his fingertips and smothered the coals and the flames. Only once the last ember had completely faded did Kakeru allow himself to relax.

"Well...that was unexpected," Takashi put words to everyone's thoughts.

"Yeah," Fukasu replied.

"Hmm," Kakeru said, then bent down and checked on Mieko's condition. Her pulse was weak, and her breath shallow, but she seemed stable for the time being. "She's still alive," he said grimly.

"Should we finish her?" asked Fukasu. She looked around at her friends, but nobody volunteered an answer.

"I'll go get Tsumago-san," Kyoji said quietly.

After the straw haired monk returned with the kuramoto, the group spent several minutes relaying their encounter with the ninja and their attempt to confront Mieko, though they specifically avoid mentioning their encounter with the peasant and their subsequent reading of the love note.

"What should we do with Mieko-toji?" asked Musashi.

The kuramoto spent several minutes glaring at the unconscious body of his brewmaster. "She's a witch," he said, finally, "Finish her."

***​
The fire burned with the fury of a woman scorned. After Musashi had removed Mieko's head, Tsumago's servants had hastily constructed a pyre in front of the manor. The five heroes had searched her room, finding a diary that chronicled her obsession with Tsumago, a contract with the Kaga ninja clan for the salting of Takayama's fields, a scroll inscribed with mahou spells, and a sheaf of recipes for brewing poison.

"Well, now we can tell Takayama-san what's going on," Kyoji had said. The other four pilgrims nodded their heads solemnly, then filed outside to join the servants, various kurabito, and curious townspeople to watch Mieko burn.

The blazing fire lit the night and cut the spring chill as it consumed the fallen toji's body. Her hair withered, her skin charred, and the fat in her flesh sizzled when it met the flame. Mieko's body was virtually unrecognizable when Kakeru noticed movement coming from within the pyre. He watched in awe as the woman's spirit emerged. Gaunt, translucent, and wearing the same wild expression that she when she died, Mieko's spirit clawed her way out of her carbonized body.

She screeched and wailed as she emerged, though Kakeru couldn't hear her, and once she was free from her corpse, she began floating up toward the night sky. The young shaman wasn't sure how to react, since he's never seen this sort of behavior before – indeed, he'd never actually seen a spirit leave its body. _Is this because she was tainted?_ he wondered.

Suddenly, he had his answer, for out of the fire emerged two huge, black-skinned oni. His face blanched as he watched the creatures of the netherworld grab Mieko's spirit and drag it, clawing and screaming, back down into the burning pyre.

Fukasu looked over to see her cousin's ashen face. "Kakeru-kun, what's going on?" she asked.

Kakeru shook his head slowly, "You don't want to know." He grimaced as the woman's spirit disappeared from view, and he looked away.

To his surprise, a small, blue-skinned, childlike spirit stood next to him. He was watching the spectacle, and Kakeru could see that his large, black eyes were filled with tears. _What? Oh, it's a house spirit._ He leaned over, "Why are you crying, little one?"

The spirit looked up at Kakeru, who was easily twice his height and ten times his weight, and sniffled as a tear ran down his cheek. "It's very sad," he said in a voice like a butterfly whispering.

"Why is it sad?"

"She was very nice to me," he said, bashfully, "She would always feed me some of her natto at breakfast."

"Oh." Kakeru paused for a second as he began to second-guess himself, "Did you know she was using bad magic?"

"Yes," he said as a tear ran down his face, "It was a terrible thing. But it is still very sad."

Fukasu watched Kakeru talk to the empty air and frowned. _Is he ok?_ From what little of the one sided conversation she could overhear, it sounded like he was talking to a spirit. _A spirit?_ She shivered, _those spirits are everywhere!_

"Yes, it is very sad," the young shaman reached out and patted the little, blue spirit on the head.

***​
The next morning, the five heroes left to return to Takayama. "Welcome, Kurosawa-sama," the kuramoto greeted them from behind the table where they had shared a number of meals. "Forgive me for not standing, but I'm feeling unwell this morning."

"I'm sorry to hear that, Takayama-san," Kakeru said diplomatically as he and his friends took their seats around the table.

In truth, he looked like a different person than the man they had left the previous morning. His face was gaunt, his skin sallow, and his eyes sunken. He turned and coughed violently for a minute into a silk handkerchief, then motioned to Kakeru, "Please, have you found something?"

"Yes," the young shaman looked over at Musashi, who shrugged, "Well, there's no easy way to say this. It appears that Tsumago-san's brewmaster, Mieko-toji, was the one who hired the ninja."

"Really?" Takayama looked stricken.

"But Tsumago had no knowledge of her activities," Kakeru added quickly.

"I see. Do you know why she might have done this?"

"It appears that she had an extreme infatuation with Tsumago-san, and was doing this to try to improve his station."

"I had no idea."

"Well, neither did Tsumago-san, which was the problem."

The kuramoto launched into another coughing fit, and this time Takashi noticed him wipe a trickle of blood off his lip when he finished. "Are you ok, Takayama-san?" the young monk asked.

"I'm fine, really," he waved off Takashi's concern. Turning back to Kakeru, he asked, "What is to be her fate?"

At this question, everyone fell silent. After a moment, the young shaman took a deep breath, then exhaled, "Well, it turned out that she was a mahou user. She tried to cast some sort of tainted spell on Musashi-san."

"By the spirits!" Takayama exclaimed.

Musashi entered the conversation, "She was dealt with as the Mikado has commanded all mahou users be dealt with."

Takayama nodded soberly, "That's very unfortunate."

"Indeed," said Kakeru. "At least, though, you won't have any more problems with your fields being salted."

"Well, I thank you for that," Takayama half bowed from his sitting position.

"Oh, by the way," Kakeru added as an afterthought, "we discovered that Tsumago-san is having an affair with one of your servants."

"Really?" Takayama raised an eyebrow.

"Yes, he's been paying one of his peasants to deliver love notes to her on a regular basis."

"Well, well," the kuramoto said with a half smile, "that's an interesting, if ironic, bit of gossip." He chuckled to himself, which initiated a bout of coughing, but then continued, "Just out of curiosity, did you find out which servant it is?"

"Matsu, I believe it was," Kakeru looked to Musashi, who nodded in agreement.

Takayama's smile immediately disappeared, "What was that?"

"Matsu."

The kuramoto paused for a long moment before continuing, "Are you certain about that?"

Musashi nodded, "I saw the note myself. Why?"

"Matsu...Matsu...is my wife's childhood nickname," Takayama sputtered as his ashen face turned red. He pounded his fist on the table, and the room fell silent. Kakeru looked at Musashi with eyes wide and mouth agape.

_Uh oh,_ thought Fukasu.

_Oh crap,_ thought Takashi.

After an awkward minute, Takayama stood up from the table. The heroes could see that every muscle in his body was clenched, and though he was shaking with anger, he managed to bow politely. "Excuse me, Kurosawa-sama," he said through clenched teeth, then turned and left the room.

Kakeru held his head in his hands as the sounds of an argument issued forth from the hallway. Fukasu groaned, and slumped onto the floor. Musashi remained stoic, but the two monks simply shook their heads at one another. Takayama, his wife, and his son yelled at each other for nearly half and hour, while the group became progressively more uncomfortable.

Finally, the rice-paper door slid open, and the five heroes composed themselves. Each expected Takayama to re-enter the room, but instead, his wife stormed in. "You have ruined everything!" she screamed as she pulled a tanto from beneath her robe.

"Whoa!" Takashi said as he jumped up from seiza, "There's no need to do anything crazy."

Takayama Keiko, the kuramoto's wife, glared at Takashi and then sliced her palm with the blade. The temperature in the room dropped ten degrees as a crackling, black bolt of energy appeared in her hand. "I will kill you all!" she screamed, and then pointed at Musashi.

_Next: the final resolution..._


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## HalfOrc HalfBiscuit (May 27, 2005)

Nice twist there, Carpedavid. And an enjoyable update as always ... keep 'em coming.


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## carpedavid (May 28, 2005)

HalfOrc HalfBiscuit said:
			
		

> Nice twist there, Carpedavid. And an enjoyable update as always ... keep 'em coming.




Thanks, HalfOrc. Things get even slightly twistier in the next update


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## carpedavid (Jun 1, 2005)

*Takayama and Tsumago, Part 7*

A shorter update this time, since I'm running the Spring 2005 Iron DM tournament  over in the General Discussion forum.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The bolt of black, cracking energy leapt from Takayama Keiko's hand and sailed through the air toward the young samurai. Musashi was too stunned to move, so he watched in horror as the tainted magic arced toward him. He gasped as it narrowly missed his face and then shivered when it slammed into the wall behind him.

Kakeru vaulted the table, scattering teacups, bowls, and chopsticks as he dashed toward Keiko. He slammed down on the tatami on the other side of the table, and used his considerable momentum to smash his fist into her face. Her nose crumpled from the force of his blow, and she tumbled backward, landing unceremoniously on the back of her head.

The young shaman remained on guard for a moment, though the blood gushing from her nose and her glassy eyes indicated that she was no longer an immediate threat.

"What in Yomi?" Takashi exclaimed, "Are all women evil, magic-using witches?" He looked sidelong at Fukasu, who frowned.

_Well, at least I didn't set the house on fire, this time,_ she thought to herself.

Kakeru looked up to see Takayama and his son watching from the hallway; the kuramoto was slumped against the wall, his son was crouched beside him, and each had a look of horror on his face. The young shaman hurried over to the elder Takayama, and, as he knelt down beside him, realized that the kuramoto appeared to be paralyzed. "Takayama-san?"

"What did she do to him?" Takayama Ichiro implored, "He's cold, and he's not moving."

Kakeru reached out to touch the man's shoulder, and recoiled in horror, for his flesh was nearly as cold as that of a corpse. _Paralysis, frigid flesh...it must be hadazawari gaki, the ghoul's touch._ The kuramoto's breathing was short and shallow, but he was still alive, for which Kakeru was thankful. "Hang on, Takayama-san," he said as he placed his hand back on the man's shoulder, "the effects of the tainted magic will fade quickly."

Musashi remained sitting in seiza, shocked by what had just occurred. _How could I have just sat there? _ He replayed the scene in his mind a dozen times in the space of a minute. _I should have been able to react to that! Why did I just sit there? Damn it!_

Finally, the mahou keeping Takayama broke, and the kuramoto was free to speak again. "My wife," he stammered, "a witch." A tear rolled down his cheek, and he gasped, "How could I have been so blind."

"She deceived us all, father," Ichiro said bitterly, "It's all Tsumago-san's doing."

"Ichiro!" the kuramoto bellowed, "You are not to take any action against Tsumago-san."

"He brought dishonor on our family!" Ichiro yelled as he rose to his feet.

"No, Ichiro!" the elder Takayama yelled, "Your mother, my wife, brought dishonor on our family!" The animated exchange caused the kuramoto to fall into another fit of coughing, and Kakeru waved the young man off.

Fukasu watched the younger Takayama's eyes blaze with anger as be bowed curtly. He turned and stormed off, without so much as a second glance toward his mother's unconscious body. _There's something very strange about him,_ Fukasu thought.

"Perhaps we should take a look at your wife's belongings," Kakeru said quietly, "while your servants prepare a fire."

Takayama nodded between coughs, and, as Kakeru helped him to his feet, said, "Once you are done, burn whatever you find. I have no more need of it."

While Takayama Keiko's funeral pyre was being constructed, Musashi insured that she would never cast another spell again. The rest of the party searched her room, and found a collection of love notes from Tsumago, a spellbook, and a diary.

"Hey," Fukasu said quietly as she flipped through the notes, "Did any of you notice something odd about Ichiro-san?"

"Other than the fact that he's crazy?" Takashi replied as he paged through the diary.

"Actually, yeah, there's something bothering me about him, but I can't put my finger on it," Kakeru replied as he gingerly examined the spellbook. _Let's see, hadazawari gaki, datsuryoku no kashikousen, and densenbyou. Densenbyou? Ah._*  "Did you find anything?" he asked the others.

"No," Fukasu replied, tossing her stack of letters on the floor, "It's all pretty lovey-dovey."

"These are as well," said Kyoji, as he dropped the stack of letters he had been riling through on top of Fukasu's.

"Well," Takashi interjected, "How does, 'My poor, innocent Akira-chan. How horrified he would be if he knew what I was up to. All the more reason to love him. He's not like that impotent old fool I had the misfortune to marry. Soon, I will be rid of him, though, and my Akira-chan and I can be together forever. Let's see how he likes a bout of kekkaku.**'"

"That explains this," Kakeru said, pointing to the spellbook, "The spell, densenbyou, looks like it causes disease."

"Ick," said Fukasu as she wrinkled her nose, "So that's why Takayama-san is sick?"

"I think so."

"We should go tell him what's going on," said Kyoji.

After explaining to Takayama that his wife had been planning to kill him (an explanation that, considering the circumstances, he took fairly well), the group added the evidence of the affair to the funeral pyre.

The senior Takayama stood behind his son as the fire was lit. The amber flames illuminated the men, and everyone in the party could see the tears in the elder man's eyes, and the hard, bitter stare of the younger man.

_What is it about him?_ Fukasu wondered as she looked at the younger Takayama. She shifted her gaze to his father, and then quickly back to the son. She looked intently at Ichiro's eyes, and then at his father's. _Oh no,_ she thought, as she finally figured out what had been bothering her about the young man. _Oh, no, it couldn't be._

She turned to Kakeru, and, by the look on his face, she knew that he had just come to the same realization. Her heart sank, and she turned to whisper her observation to her friends. Kyoji grimaced, Takashi silently cursed, and Musashi simply shook his head in dismay. The five heroes looked at Takayama Ichiro in shocked silence, for each could now see that he looked far more like Tsumago Akira, than like the man who called himself his father.

"I think we should go," Kakeru whispered to the others. "We've done enough damage here."

***​
After defeating Takayama Keiko, the group quietly loaded up the sake for the offering and rode to Tsumago, where they filled the kuramoto in on the recent events. He took the news that his love was not only dead, but a mahou practitioner, considerably less well than Takayama. After handing over the sake for the offering, he quietly retired to his room and did not reemerge.

The party availed themselves of Tsumago's hospitality for the evening, and the next morning piled into the cart. On the 17th day of Yongatsu, the five heroes resumed their pilgrimage to Hi no Tsuru, the great spiritual guardian of Tanayari.

Rice paddies gave way to fields of wild grasses and flowers as the group neared the northern border of Kurosawa's lands. They followed the winding road through the fields and into a grove of trees. Kakeru was contemplating how long it would take him to drink through the sake they had just picked up when he saw something that caused him to pull hard on Yagi's reins. The cart skidded to an abrupt halt.

A lone samurai, who was easily ten years older than anyone in the cart, was striding down the road toward them. He sneered when he saw the young pilgrims. "You there! Move aside and let me pass," he gestured to the side of the road, "for I am Namakura Uzumaki!"

_Next: Uzumaki!_

Notes:

* The contents of Keiko's spellbook included the mahou spells _hadazawari gaki_ (ghoul touch), _datsuryoku no kashikousen_ (ray of enfeeblement), and _densenbyou_ (contagion). Datsuryoku no kashikousen was the black, crackling ray of energy that she threw at Musashi.

** Kekkaku is the Tanayaran term for tuberculosis.


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## HalfOrc HalfBiscuit (Jun 2, 2005)

carpedavid said:
			
		

> "What in Yomi?" Takashi exclaimed, "Are all women evil, magic-using witches?"




He has to ask?


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## carpedavid (Jun 3, 2005)

For those of you who enjoy visual representations, the following is a commissioned portrait of Fukasu. It's an anime-styled interpretation by the immensely talented Messa. Enjoy!


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## BSF (Jun 3, 2005)

CarpeDavid,
I cought up on the last 3 updates last night.  Very nice!  I enjoyed it very much.  Thanks


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## TDRandall (Jun 8, 2005)

LOL, half-orc!  I thought the same thing, but would never be brave enough to acually permanently record the thought.

As for the picture of Fukasu, I had expected a darker and more foreboding external to contrast with the lighter internal spirit.  A lesson not to judge a book by its covers.  But then again in anime ALL non-crones are spritely bright eyed teens, right?


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## carpedavid (Jun 8, 2005)

TDRandall said:
			
		

> But then again in anime ALL non-crones are spritely bright eyed teens, right?




Yeah - it's definitely an _anime_ version of Fukasu. If anyone out there feels inspired to create something a bit more realistic, I'd love to see it  .


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## Kiwifudgechocobo (Jun 8, 2005)

I think we might all have a more dark image of Fukasu in our minds. Though at the same time, some of her comments/actions are definitely more scary if you picture the light-hearted anime version of Fukasu doing them...

Great, now I have an image of the anime Fukasu calmly stabbing a ninja's kidney out, flashing a smile, and giggling like a cheerleader...


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## carpedavid (Jun 8, 2005)

Kiwifudgechocobo said:
			
		

> I think we might all have a more dark image of Fukasu in our minds. Though at the same time, some of her comments/actions are definitely more scary if you picture the light-hearted anime version of Fukasu doing them...
> 
> Great, now I have an image of the anime Fukasu calmly stabbing a ninja's kidney out, flashing a smile, and giggling like a cheerleader...




...or holding up the severed head of an enemy, flashing the "cute anime girl face," and exclaimaing, "Kawaii!!!!!"  

As an aside to my players, I'm probably going to commission the same artist to do a portrait of Keiko (Note to readers: not Takayama Keiko, the evil witch who just got killed, but a young character yet to be introduced here). I think her style would fit the little girl quite well.


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## Ivy Sylvan (Jun 9, 2005)

Yeah, that is so not the picture of Fukasu that I have in my head.  I was very disappointed in her rendering, but I guess that's what anime's all about.  Given your latest imaginings though, she could grow on me.


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## carpedavid (Jun 30, 2005)

*Uzumaki*

Now that Iron DM is over, we return you to our regularly scheduled updates!

---------------------------------------------------------------------

Kakeru groaned. _Why Nakamura? Why now?_

For over three hundred years, the Nakamura clan has been the largest producer of jade in all of Tanayari, controlling nearly fifty percent of the total supply. For just as long, they have coveted the Watanabe clan's tiny, mountainous han, which produces about five percent of the jade in circulation*. And, for just as long, Kurosawa has sent troops to aid Watanabe in the defense of its borders.

The Kurosawa dynasty has aided Watanabe for two reasons. Superficially, a loose alliance was formed between the two clans when a distant cousin of the first Kurosawa daimyo married a distant cousin of the first Watanabe daimyo. More important, though, is the fact that the Watanabe lands lie directly between those of Kurosawa and Nakamura. The tiny, mountainous han acts as a very convenient shield against Nakamura's constant warmongering.

"You are not welcome in these lands, Nakamura-san," Musashi said forcefully as he climbed down from the wagon.

Uzumaki scowled at the young samurai, "I do not care if I am welcome or not." He waved toward the side of the road, "Now move aside."

"Nakamura-san," Musashi punctuated each word with a pause, "You are not welcome in these lands." As he closed the distance toward the other samurai, his hand moved toward the hilt of his sword.

"Kurosawa dogs, your very presence insults my ancestors!" Uzumaki spat.

Musashi's face turned bright red. "Enough!" he shouted as he drew his katana and charged. His iron blade shone in the mid-morning sun, but the other samurai was quick, and the edge of his blade glinted as well.

Uzumaki met the young warrior half-way, his own sword raised high above his head. When the two samurai closed within striking distance, Uzumaki dropped his weight into his lower torso, and slammed the katana down into Musashi's shoulder.

The young Kurosawa samurai suppressed a scream as the razor-sharp blade cut into his flesh, but the pain caused him to panic, and he swung reflexively. As a result, the blow glanced harmlessly off of his opponent's armor.

_Oh, crap!_ Takashi thought as the rest of the party tumbled, climbed, and jumped down from the wagon. While the heroes rushed to their friend's aid, Uzumaki once again slammed his blade into Musashi's torso. Takashi crashed through the trees, snapping off branches and catching leaves in his robes as he circled outside the range of Uzumaki's katana. Fukasu used her wings to loft herself into the air, and then tumbled over the older man's head, landing only a few paces behind him.

Kyoji edged past Musashi and threw a roundhouse kick at the Nakamura samurai's head. Uzumaki saw the kick out of the corner of his eye and ducked. While he watched the kick sail over his head, Fukasu took advantage of the distraction, and plunged her ninja-to between the tiles of his ceramic armor. Takashi burst through the tree line in an explosion of leaves and twigs and slammed his fist into Uzumaki's side. The Nakamura man grunted, but stood fast.

Kakeru dashed up behind Musashi and placed his hands on the center of his back. A bright blue flash of light swirled around the young samurai as the ancestral spirits of Kurosawa restored his vitality. Musashi raised his katana high over his head, let out a great kiai, and smashed his blade into his opponent's shoulder.

As Uzumaki thrust his blade toward Musashi's chest, Takashi jabbed him in the ribs. As a result, the blade sliced shallowly, instead of penetrating deeply. Fukasu followed with another precision strike, and then Kyoji stunned the Nakamura samurai with a ki-powered blow.

Musashi stepped forward, prepared to deliver the killing blow, and stumbled over a rock. His katana hit nothing but the ground at his feet. Fortunately, Takashi followed his strike with one of his own: a snap kick to the side of Uzumaki's head sent him sprawling to the ground. The young Kurosawa samurai let out another great kiai and buried his katana in the unconscious man's chest. With that, Nakamura Uzumaki was dead.

"Burn him," Musashi growled as he yanked his blade out of the corpse.

Hours later, the five heroes from Kurosawa left the lands controlled by their clan. The environment didn't look any different from that with which they were familiar, but it certainly felt different to each of them. Musashi entered a state of hyper-vigilance, nearly flying out of the cart at the movement of every bird and branch. Fukasu fidgeted nervously in her spot in the back of the cart, and occasionally took to the air to stretch her wings. Kakeru's thoughts were consumed by the newly acquired sake, and hoped that no bandits would attempt to steal it.

Over the next few days, the company encountered an ogre, which they dispensed with summarily, and little else. Their time was spent riding, resting, and worrying. On the 20th of Yongatsu, Kakeru reined in Yagi when the came to a fork in the road.

Sitting in the lotus position directly in the middle of the fork was an elderly man, whose visible flesh was covered in a thick, gray fur. As the cart stopped, he looked up and smiled broadly, whereupon the group realized that he was one of the vanara - the capricious race of ape-men. He bowed respectfully to the group, and said in a wizened voice, "Welcome travelers."

"Greetings, venerable sir," Kakeru said as he returned the bow from his perch at the front of the wagon, "We are humble travelers from Kurosawa, on our way to deliver an offering to the Fire Crane."

"I am Hanzo," the vanara answered, "and I am here to offer you guidance."

"Guidance?"

"On which path to take."

"Ah," Kakeru replied as he scratched his head in confusion.

Musashi nervously shifted his weight from one leg to the other, for he could feel an air of extreme power emanating from the old man, despite, and perhaps because of, his serene countenance.

"I act as a guidepost of sorts," the old man grinned.

"Ok," Kakeru replied, "Well, what's down the left path?"

"Ah, to the left is the Valley of Spiders. Very dangerous."

"I see," Kakeru said without any trace of confidence, "I preseume that it's filled with lots of spiders?"

"Oh, yes, quite."

"Hmm. And down the right path?"

"To the right is the City of Pillars. Also, very dangerous."

_Where have I heard of that,_ Kakeru thought to himself. _It must have been one of Grandfather's speeches._ He spent a moment trying to recall what he had only half-paid attention to originally. _Oh,_ he finally remembered, _that's right. It's supposed to be filled with undead naga._ "That's the place with the undead naga, isn't it?"

"Oh, yes, you are quite correct."

Kakeru sighed inwardly - this wasn't going to be easy.

Musashi took advantage of the lull in the conversation to ask his own questions. "What's to the west of here, off the path?"

The vanara looked off to his left, "Those are uninhabited lands. Much too dangerous."

"And to the east?"

The vanara turned and looked off to his right, "Too far that way, and you will encounter the Warlords of Xin. Also, much too dangerous."

"Well, I guess those are out," Musashi said dryly.

"That leaves the Valley of Spiders or the City of Pillars, doesn't it?" Fukasu asked. Kakeru and Musashi nodded grimly.

"So," Takashi asked as he turned to the others, "Which flavor of certain death do you prefer?"

_Next: A blind taste-test. Of doooooooooom..._

Notes:

* Watanabe is famous for its Shirohisui River, which carries pebbles and boulders of white jade with it as it flows down from the peak of Mt. Nantokakantoka


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## carpedavid (Jul 5, 2005)

Just to let those of you who are still reading out there (I think there are still a couple of you  ) know, I've decided to try to adapt the Land of the Crane to the True20 system (published by Green Ronin) in order to submit it for their True20 Setting Search. As a result, updates may be sparse whilst I pour my creative energy into that. And yes, I'm not a publisher - yet. I'm working on putting together some .pdf adventures that might seem somewhat familiar (or will seem familiar, if you keep up with the story).

Other than lots of writing, it's going to require excising some of the WotC stuff. Fortunatly, I think my group and I are already pretty far along as far as that goes.

If anyone has any questions about the conversion, what's likely to be included, etc, I'd be happy to answer them here. Thanks to everyone who has been keeping me writing so far, and stay tuned for the further adventures of Kakeru, Fukasu, Musashi, Takashi, and Kyoji.


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## carpedavid (Aug 16, 2005)

*Valley of the Spiders, Part 1*

Hi folks,

Well, the setting is complete and has been sent off to Green Ronin, and first two products I've produced are on sale at RPGNow. Oh, and IvySylvan and I got married! Yep, we eloped. So, I guess that means it's time for an update!

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

After several minutes of discussion, the party decided that killing spiders sounded easier than killing undead naga. After all, they had each killed spiders before; one swift stomp equals spider goo, right? They certainly hoped so.

They set up camp near the entrance to the valley, and bedded down for the night. The next morning, Kakeru hitched Yagi up to the cart, everyone climbed aboard, and the group pressed on. The fields and forest quickly disappeared as they entered the valley. _It's more like a canyon_, Kakeru thought as the cart bounced and rattled over the rocky ground. The rocky walls of the valley rose steeply on either side, casting long shadows in front of them.

Musashi examined the terrain. He quickly realized that they were in a strategically poor position. Fukasu would be able to fly out, but the rest of them would be trapped at the bottom of the valley. He suspected that the monks might be able to climb out, but not quickly, from the look of it. _Well, if we can't get out that way_, he thought, _we'll just have to push through._

Directly in front of them, stood two huge, rock outcroppings, and between them, spider silk drifted lazily in the breeze. Kakeru brought the cart to a stop, and Kyoji hopped out. "I'll take a look and see what's ahead," he said stoically.

He was unsure what he might encounter, but he didn't want any of his new friends to accidentally wander into a nest or get jumped on by those little, furry, grey spiders that occasionally fell on him while he slept at the Temple of the Silent Lake. _All those eyes and legs and the creepy crawling across your skin;_ the thought caused him to shiver, but he shook off the feeling as he crept carefully toward the outcroppings.

Suddenly, a ten-foot diameter section of rock and dirt burst open at his feet, and a spider the size of a horse lunged out from below. It narrowly missed his head with its foot-long fangs, which were dripping a thick, amber liquid. "Holy !" he screamed as he reflexively punched it in the middle of its eight, black, saucer-sized eyes.

"Ahhhh!" Fukasu screamed, "Kill it! Kill it! Kill it!"

Musashi drew his katana and charged, only to see three more monstrosities appear over the top and sides of the outcroppings. _Ancestors, protect us_, he thought to himself as he cleaved through the carapace of the trap-door spider. Black ichor sprayed everywhere as the spider twitched on the end of his blade.

"Look out, Musashi-kun!" Fukasu yelled as the spider on the right-most outcropping turned and pointed its hindquarters at him. The young samurai looked up just in time to see a thick rope of spider silk slam into him. He tried to wriggle free, but the webbing stuck fast, and he quickly realized that his struggles only served to entangle him more.

One of the two spiders on the left outcropping threw its silk at Kyoji, but the young monk was quicker than Musashi, and was able to dodge out of its path. Takashi dashed forward, but stopped short, since all three of the monstrous spiders were well out of his reach.

Kakeru took a deep breath, closed his eyes, envisioned the spiders in front of him, and intoned, "O, great ancestors, please fill our enemies with confusion and doubt. Prevent their fangs from finding purchase and their silk from sticking." He wasn't sure if monstrous spiders had intelligence enough to be confused, but he figured that invoking the spirits of his ancestors couldn't hurt.

Kyoji began to climb the left outcropping, in an effort to reach the nearest spider, but wasn't able to get very far before Fukasu swooped in. She attempted to stab the arachnid with her ninja-to, but only succeeded in annoying it enough to move; unfortunately, it had only one place to go - it jumped right onto Kyoji, knocking him to the ground. "Wah! Sorry Kyoji-san!" Fukasu yelled as the spider chomped down on the monk's neck.

Kyoji could feel the poison course through his veins, burning and numbing at the same time. He tried to push the furry creature off of him, but he immediately realized that the venom had sapped his strength.

Musashi gave a great shout and managed to wriggle his arms free enough that he could cut through the webbing with his katana. He was in the process of shoving the sticky silk off of his legs when the second spider on the left outcropping jumped to the ground. It didn't land on him, but it did land close enough to lunge forward and catch him with its fangs. He grimaced as the poison pumped into him, but the large geyser of blood that spurted out of his shoulder when the spider drew back carried the poison right back out.

Takashi and Kakeru both joined the fight. Takashi pushed past Musashi and slammed an elbow into the spider threatening the samurai, while Kakeru slammed a palm into the spider on top of Kyoji. The momentum added by Kakeru's blow was enough to allow Kyoji to push the spider off of him and tumble back up to his feet.

Fukasu fluttered to the ground behind the spider, and managed to slice off one of its legs. Black spider goo spurted out of the wound, but it remained upright. A kick from Kakeru's gata-clad foot finished it off, caving in its carapace and sending it tumbling to the ground.

The remaining two spiders concentrated their efforts on Musashi. He slashed at one and then the other as they repeatedly lunged at him, trying to impale him with their fangs. Takashi ducked and tumbled under the samurai's katana as he, too, attacked both creatures. Sword and fist, fist and sword, the two warriors kept the spiders from advancing.

As Kakeru, Kyoji, and Fukasu moved in to help, the spider that initially entangled Musashi fell to the young samurai's blade. The remaining spider did not go down easily, though. While Musashi hacked at it with his katana, Takashi pounded it with his fists. Fukasu flew over the group and flanked the spider, hoping to distract it, while Kyoji tumbled through the narrow space between the spider and the outcropping in order to get in position from which he could attack.

Kakeru, realizing that spider was flanked front to back by his four companions and side to side by the rock outcroppings, did the only thing he could think of: climb. He scrambled up the side of the rock as the spider once again brutally attacked Musashi.

While the monks, the samurai, and the ninja hit and slashed and jabbed the spider, the young shaman hefted his bulk up into position on top of the outcropping. The spider bit into Musashi again, and Kakeru knew that his childhood friend wouldn't be able to take much more punishment. He pushed himself up onto his feet, then turned, took a deep breath, and jumped onto the back of the spider.

As he slammed into the creature with his fist, driving his full weight into the creature's abdomen, he was rewarded with a sickening crack. The spider's exoskeleton exploded under his bulk, splattering all of his companions with chitinous shards and a viscous, black goop. Kakeru looked up and smiled.

"Nice," Takashi nodded as he looked at Kakeru with a newfound respect.

"Sweet," Kyoji said, as he offered the young shaman a hand in climbing out of the dead spider's remains.

"Thank you, Kakeru-kun," Musashi bowed as he sheathed his katana. He wobbled for a moment, and then fell to one knee.

Kakeru rushed to the young samurai's side. He could see that Musashi had sustained numerous wounds, and, despite the coating of spider guts, that he was covered in far too much blood. He placed his hands on Musashi's shoulders and called upon the benevolent spirits of Takama no Hara to heal his friend. A familiar blue glow washed over Musashi, sealing his wounds and renewing his vitality.

"Is anyone else hurt?" Kakeru asked. 

Fukasu and Takashi both shook their heads, but Kyoji nodded. "I think that spider poison affected me," he said shakily.

_Hmmm_, Kakeru thought, _I wonder if I can fix that?_

As the shaman meditated on which spirits he would need to call, Fukasu surveyed the scene of the battle. While the one spider was completely destroyed, the legs and mandibles of the others were still twitching. _Ugh, how creepy_, she thought. Then she looked down at herself. _Ewww, I'm all covered in spider guts!_ She caught the twitching of one carcass out of the corner of her eye, and a chill ran down her spine, so she turned her attention back to her friends.

Several minutes later, Kakeru walked over to Kyoji and placed a hand on his shoulder. He could feel the ground tremble slightly beneath his feet as the spirits of the mountain rose up to renew the young monk.

"Thank you, Kakeru-san," Kyoji said as he felt his strength return.

"Think nothing of it."

With everyone healed, Kakeru retrieved Yagi and the cart, and the party pushed on. As they rumbled away, Fukasu meekly tapped her cousin on the shoulder.

"Kakeru-kun?"

"Yes, Fu-chan?" Kakeru replied.

"Are they still twitching?" she asked, trying to avoid looking back at the spider carcasses.

Kakeru craned his neck to look behind them. "Yep."

"Ewww," she said with a shiver.

The rocky terrain made movement slow, as Kakeru had to be careful to choose the path that would put the least strain on the cart's wheels. Thirty minutes of heightened vigilance later, the five pilgrims from Kurosawa had navigated several twists and turns of the valley, and now stood in front of a natural bridge that spanned a wide chasm.

The five heroes climbed out to survey the scene. Kyoji, Fukasu, and Musashi peered down into the chasm, and collectively gasped in horror. The fifty feet of empty space was filled from wall to wall with gigantic spider webs. Moreover, they could see movement down there – lots of movement, down beneath the dozens of layers of silk.

"How many do you think are down there?" Fukasu said quietly.

"Too many for us to fight," replied Musashi.

Meanwhile, Kakeru and Takashi examined the bridge. Kakeru thought it looked stable enough, but it was barely wide enough for the cart to fit. He would have to be very careful.

"Kakeru-san," Takashi whispered, as he craned his neck to get a better look at the underside of the bridge, "We may have a problem."

Kakeru walked over to where the monk was standing, and immediately saw what Takashi was referring to: hanging underneath the bridge were hundreds upon hundreds of giant egg sacks, each attached by a thin silk thread. He realized that careful was right out – they would have to cross as fast as possible.

The five heroes regrouped and shared their findings. They all agreed that trying to get across as quickly as possible was the best plan. Fukasu would fly, while everyone else would ride in the cart. Kakeru led the cart up to the edge of the bridge, and then leaned down to whisper to his horse, "Okay, Yagi, let's make this quick."

He nodded to Fukasu, who took to the air, and then snapped the reins. Yagi took off at a full gallop, and the cart raced across the bridge. It bounced and rattled and slammed its occupants against each other as it rumbled over the uneven ground. Kakeru gritted his teeth as he urged Yagi on, hoping to make it across before they were noticed.

Underneath the bridge, however, the vibrations caused by Yagi's gallop and the bouncing cart caused the egg sacks to sway to and fro, stretching the silk used to hold them up. Strands of spider silk ripped and tore as the sacks were jostled. Then, at just about the point when the cart reached the center of the bridge, the egg sacks began to fall, tumbling briefly through the cool spring air, before slamming into the spider-filled mass of webbing below.

_To be continued..._


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## Fimmtiu (Aug 16, 2005)

Yay! Welcome back, and congratulations on getting hitched.


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## carpedavid (Aug 17, 2005)

Fimmtiu said:
			
		

> Yay! Welcome back, and congratulations on getting hitched.




Thanks, and thanks again, Fimmtiu!

We highly recommend the "elopment" method, for any readers out there who may be contemplating marriage. The total elapsed time from the decision to get married that day to the end of the ceremony was about three hours .


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## Eeralai (Aug 17, 2005)

Congratulations!  Both on getting married, and on getting your setting sent off to Green Ronin.  Oh yeah, thanks for the update too.  

*laugh*  Oops, my wife wsa still logged in.  This is BardstephenFox.  But Eeralai wishes you well also.


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## carpedavid (May 11, 2006)

Ok, to summarize the activity that was lost in the Great Database Crash of May 2006:

Land of the Crane was fully developed for the True20 system, and will be published by Green Ronin in the True20 Worlds of Adventure book this summer.

As a result of converting to a new system and of the maturation of the setting, some of the terms have changed from what you're familiar with here. The spirit of the setting remains intact, so I'm not going to go back through and edit the previous posts. Instead, I'm going to use the new terms going forward. Here's a handy dandy translation guide in the form [Old Term] = [New Term].

_Tanayari = Tsurukoku_
Tanayari is a created name that was a throwback to my old homebrew campaign. It predates the "Land of the Crane" concept, so, when the setting was finished, it deserved a name of its very own. Tsurukoku literally translated means "Land of the Crane."

_Shaman = Shinkan_
Since we're not in OA anymore, use of the term "shaman" doesn't really make sense. Shinkan is the term for a shinto priest, and here it's used to refer to Fenist priests (Fenism being the fantasy analogue of shinto).

_Mahou = Kido_
Mahou is OA's blood magic. Kido means "oni magic," and reflects empowering your supernatural abilities with the tainted energies of Yomi. It fills the same role as Mahou (tainted magic), but is a different mechanic and in-game concept entierly.

Those are the big changes in termanology that you'll see. If you notice any others, don't hesitate to ask for clarification.


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## carpedavid (May 11, 2006)

Well, I'm fully caught up with where I left off the last version of the Story Hour, so updates will inevitably come more slowly. Also, bear with me as I try to regain my writing skills. It's been a while.

*Valley of the Spiders, Part 2*

The sound of Yagi's hooves echoed like thunder though the canyon.

Fukasu looked down and saw, to her horror, that a dozen spiders, ranging from the size of a large dog to a large horse, were climbing the sides of the chasm. "They're coming!" she screamed to her companions, "Hurry!"

Kakeru focused on the other side of the bridge, and urged Yagi on, but he knew that they couldn't go any faster without the risking the cart sliding off the bridge. "Get ready," he yelled to his passengers, as the spiders reached the top of the chasm.

Just before they reached the end of the bridge, Kakeru pulled hard on Yagi's reins, and the cart skidded to a halt.

***

When Tsurukokan peasants huddle together in their bamboo huts, trying to keep themselves dry during any of the hundreds of rainstorms that wash over the Land of the Crane each year, their thoughts invariably turn to Lord Inazuma and Lady Raimei – the spirits of Thunder and Lightning.

Though they collectively rule the skies from their floating sanctuary in Castle Raiden, Inazuma and Raimei's marriage is anything but tranquil. Both are possessed of a fiery temper and a fierce disposition, so any discussion ultimately devolves into a furious argument. Their arguments always begin quietly, with a quiet rumble and a brief flash of light. As their tempers rise, the sky explodes with bolts of lightning and great cracks of thunder.

Raimei's sonic fury shakes the air while her husband's anger scorches the earth, while, in their huts, the peasants of Tsurukoku quake and tremble. Silently, they pray for the two great spirits to resolve their differences, and to spare them from the effects of their anger.

Eventually, the spirits of Thunder and Lightning calm themselves and make peace once again. The bolts of lightning become bright flashes of light, which flicker and dim, and then fade altogether. The cacophony of thunder subsides, quieting to a dull rumble before subsiding altogether.

In the clam rain that follows, the peasants relax and thank the spirits for sparing them. Some may offer a bit of sake, while others offer a bowl of rice, in the hope that the next time the two lovers quarrel, they keep it to themselves.

***

Like the spirits of Thunder and Lightning, the swarm of monstrous spiders and the group of heroes collided with a sound and fury that shook the earth and rattled the soul. Kyoji, Takashi, and Musashi leapt out onto the bridge, while Fukasu swooped down from above.

One of the spiders jumped onto Yagi, who reared up and swatted at it with his tail. Kakeru grabbed onto his horse's reins in an attempt to keep him from charging off the bridge. As a result, he was completely defenseless when two others jumped up to attack him. "Ancestors, protect us from...aauugh!" he screamed as both spiders pumped their poison into his veins.

Fukasu and Takashi pounded on one of the smaller arachnids. It bit the young hanyo, who suppressed a shriek, and then retaliated with the point of her blade. Takashi followed up with a kick, cracking open the creature's carapace as it tumbled back off the bridge.

Meanwhile, Kyoji and Musashi had their hands full with spiders of their own. The straw-haired monk and one of the smaller spiders traded wounds. He smashed his first into its mandibles, and the spider slashed open his arm with its fangs.

One of the horse-sized spiders lunged at Musashi, who dodged its attack, and then sliced into it with his katana. It clicked its mandibles angrily, and then lunged again.

Back in the cart, Kakeru flailed his left fist at the two spiders surrounding him, and held on tightly to Yagi's reins with his right. The spiders easily avoided his blows, and darted in and out as they scuttled around him, biting and tearing out chunks of his flesh. He grunted as Yagi strained at the reins, himself trying to shake off a spider.

Kyoji cried out as one of the horse-sized spiders pierced his shoulder with its fangs. "Hang on Kyoji-san!" Fukasu yelled as she vaulted several of the smaller spiders to aid her friend. Jamming her ninja-to into its abdomen provided enough distraction that the spider let go of the monk, and turned its attention toward her.

Blades and fists and fangs flew furiously in the morning sun. As several of the smaller spiders swarmed over Kakeru and Musashi, Fukasu and Kyoji finished off the giant spider between them. Takashi summoned all of the fury of Lord Inazuma and Lady Reimei, and was able to pound another of the giant spiders into a mess of chitin and spider guts.

Kakeru tried to keep Yagi in check, even as his vision began to narrow. Musashi felt himself growing terribly weak, between the effects of the spider venom and the loss of his own blood. _I must remain strong_, he thought to himself, _I must not give in_.

The sounds of carapaces cracking and heroes yelping echoed off the cavern walls as the party and the spiders slowly whittled each other down. With the biggest, and most dangerous of the spiders out of the way, the party raced against the poison in their veins.

Fukasu began distracting some of the smaller creatures, which gave Musashi the opportunity to make calculated, powerful strikes. Takashi and Kyoji punched and kicked at the spiders still biting into Kakeru, finally succeeding in freeing their friend from the embrace of the arachnids.

As the last of their strength faded, the party was left with one opponent: a particularly tenacious spider the size of a large dog. It had sunk its fangs into nearly every one of the heroes more than once, and half a dozen times into Kakeru. Fukasu attempted to distract it, while Takashi threw a heel kick. His blow was slowed by the poison, though, and he missed wildly, nearly falling off the stone bridge in the process.

Kyoji followed up with a low roundhouse kick of his own, which the spider dodged easily. Fortunately for Musashi, and unfortunately for the spider, it dodged right into the path of his katana. "Die!" he yelled as he slammed his blade into the arachnid's abdomen. The spider paused for a second, clicked its mandibles, and then slid neatly in half.

"Ho. Lee. Crap." Takashi said between gulps of air, as he stumbled over to the side of the canyon.

"I. Hate. Spiders." Musashi panted as he sheathed his katana, "They. Have. No. Honor."

"Wow. I can't believe we didn't die," Fukasu replied as she dropped to her knees.

"Close. We got very close," Kyoji said as he leaned on the cart, trying not to fall over.

"Very. Close. Indeed," Kakeru gasped, and then promptly collapsed.


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## carpedavid (May 11, 2006)

I think I'm on a biweekly updating basis now, though this one's going to be on the shorter side.

*Valley of the Spiders, Part 3*

"Kakeru!" Fukasu yelled as she jumped back to her feet and climbed into the cart. She quickly checked for a pulse, and finding one, breathed a sigh of relief. "He's alive, but barely. We need to take shelter."

"There's a large outcropping up ahead," Musashi said as he pointed toward two stone pillars about a hundred yards farther into the valley, where it took a sharp turn to the west.

"We'll check it out," Kyoji said as he motioned to Takashi. The two monks began to scout ahead as Fukasu ripped strips from her kimono to bind her cousin's wounds. _I'm going to be naked by the time we get to the fire crane, at this rate_, Fukasu thought to herself. She giggled, and Musashi looked up with a start.

Fukasu smiled wanly, "I'm going to need a new robe soon."

The young samurai nodded, then, after a minute, "Is he stable?"

The young ninja tightened the last bandage and then sighed, "He should be ok, though he's not going to be very happy when he wakes up."

Musashi grabbed Yagi's reins, and slowly led them down the valley to where the two monks were waiting. As they creaked along, he remained vigilant. _It would be like those dishonorable vermin to take advantage of us while our forces are split._

Just before they passed behind the outcroppings, Musashi looked left and caught a glimpse of the obstacles that still remained in their path. _This is not going to get any easier._

***

A few minutes after midnight, Kakeru awoke with a start. "Wha! Spiders!" he yelled as he sat bolt upright. "Is this Yomi?" he asked, panicked.

"It might as well be," Takashi mumbled as he rolled over, trying to get comfortable on the rocky ground.

"Ugh. I obviously need more sake," Kakeru groaned as he lay back down.

"No, you need rest," Fukasu said as she adjusted his blanket.

"Okay, Fu-chan," he said grudgingly.

"Rest well, Kakeru-kun," Musashi whispered, "For we will need your strength tomorrow."

"Tomorrow might be a bit early," Kakeru groaned.

"Well, soon, then," the young samurai replied.

The next day, Kakeru spent most of his time summoning the benevolent spirits of the earth to heal himself and his companions. Musashi kept watch while the two monks sparred and Fukasu fussed over her cousin.

"You're not well, lay down," Fukasu said.

"I'm fine," Kakeru replied weakly.

"No, you're not."

"Okay, I'm not, but I'm still not lying down."

"Kakeru-kun!"

"Okay, fine."

That night, the five heroes rested, preparing themselves for the challenge that lay ahead. As Musashi lay on the hard stone of the valley floor, he envisioned slicing through his enemy, rending limb from body, finding the joints in their exoskeletons, cleaving through their carapaces. He shivered. _I'm nervous_, he thought, _that is unacceptable_. He tried to suppress the butterflies in his stomach by clearing his mind and focusing on the task at hand, but after a minute he smiled to himself in the darkness. _No, not nervous. Not nervous at all._

_Excited._

***

As the sun rose on the 23rd day of Shigatsu, year 337 of the Ito shogunate, the party prepared themselves for the upcoming fight. Kakeru snuck a glimpse of what awaited them and groaned.

"Ok, Takashi-san," the young shinkan said as he tried to figure out what spirits to call, "since we got the worst of it last time, I'm going to ask the spirits for their aid." He projected his will into the ethereal realm where spirits dwell, and called out for the poison-eaters.

Sightless, possessed only of a pair of antennae and very long tongue, and resembling something close to a bright-yellow, foot-long slug, a pair of poison-eaters slithered through the mists toward the group. When they reached the shinkan and the monk, the supernatural gastropods began to climb up their legs toward their abdomens.

Kakeru had never seen the poison-eaters do what they were about to do, but he had read about it in the sacred scrolls, and he was very glad that Takashi would not be able to sense what was happening. When the poison-eaters reached their abdomens, they paused for a second, and then quickly jammed their long tongues into Kakeru and Takashi's navels. Within a second, they had squished themselves through the hole that they had created inside the mortals' spirit bodies.

The young shinkan shook his head. Takashi looked at him quizzically, but Kakeru just smiled and continued to shake his head.

Musashi drew his katana and wakizashi and looked at his companions. "Ready?"

"Let's do it," Takashi replied.

The five heroes from Kurosawa stepped out from behind the giant stone outcropping and began cautiously moving deeper into the valley. The long shadows cast by the morning sun fell over colossal nets of webbing which stretched a hundred feet from one wall of the valley to the other. Thousands of birds and bats flapped and squawked and screeched, having been caught in the nets, and the movement and sound had attracted monstrous spiders by the dozen.


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## Gold Roger (May 11, 2006)

Very nice describtion of a shamanistic spell (I take it was a lesser restoration?)


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## carpedavid (May 11, 2006)

Gold Roger said:
			
		

> Very nice describtion of a shamanistic spell (I take it was a lesser restoration?)




Thanks, Roger! The spell in question was a _delay poison_, actually.


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## Kiwifudgechocobo (May 24, 2006)

Yay! Updates!


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## Serenity (May 30, 2006)

carpedavid said:
			
		

> "An assault upon these lands is an assault upon Lord Kurosawa himself!" Musashi cried.
> 
> "More importantly, an assault upon these lands is an assault upon the sake!" said Kakeru, aghast.
> 
> ...




I just found this story hour and had to tell you that when reading through Takayama & Tsumago, Part 1 I laughed aloud when reading the preceding quotes.  I could just 'see' pudgy Kakeru's horror at the thought of an attack upon his beloved sake.  Which I guess makes sense considering his entire life revolves around 'spirits' (of one kind or another).  
I am truly enjoying this story hour.  I will post again when I catch up or something else makes me laugh out loud.  
Thanks for the entertainment!


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## carpedavid (May 30, 2006)

Heh. Thanks, Serenity. I try to include the funny bits along with the serious bits, and both Kakeru's player and Takashi's player are pretty skilled in delivering well-timed quips.

Should be an update this week!


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## HalfOrc HalfBiscuit (May 30, 2006)

Haven't dropped in for a while. Great to see you're still progressing with the story, Carpedavid. Looking forward to more ...


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## Murasame (Aug 15, 2007)

*What up, Holmes?*

Say, what ever happened to this great story hour??  I wanna know what happened with the spiders, dang it!


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