Arc 4, Session 21, L5R
Private Records of [ILLEGIBLE], April 6th, 1119
This morning brought news most grave: the Badger has survived the night. At least it seems he'll likely be out of commission for a bit. Though if that shuts him up any, I will be surprised...
The Tortoise paid him a visit & the two spoke for some time. As he did so, the Crab went over the upkeep of his equipment. Where the Scorpion slipped off to, I could not find.
Kakita Maru did in fact press a duty upon the Unicorn & the Lion. Out of what I can assume is spite, she had them fitted in beautiful clothes bearing the colors & mon of the Crane- with each samurai's own mon in a place of pride, naturally. A fool's ploy in my opinion. What manner of samurai would allow themselves to be rankled by this?
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Ikoma Haru was rankled by this.
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Private Records of [ILLEGIBLE], April 7th, 1119
I am writing this entry by the light of the moon. The expedition into the Lion Clan's tunnel has returned, thankfully with no loss of life. They were able to open the Seal of Air by dint of the Tortoise's wisdom. Are these samurai particularly skilled, or has the age of the Seals revealed their poor quality? A thought for another time.
The room beyond the Seal was full of abandoned junk. All scrolls, books, or parchment. Evidently, the horde was so large as to create lumbering mounds blocking both vision & movement. Unusual, but not threatening. Yet...a mass of peasant corpses littered the floor of the room between them.
From two of the piles arose strange figures. Roughly human-sized dragons, created from living paper: Kyōrinrin.
Though their ability to stretch their limbs is unsettling, their true danger is not physical. It is said a Kyōrinrin can reach into a target's mind, blinding them with a vision of their greatest fears. The legends state there is a risk of being subsumed by the illusion entirely. An individual so possessed will lash out at their allies with wild abandon.
Such magic is powerful, but not without fail. The Crab was able to resist the spell as he engaged one of the Kyōrinrin in single combat. The rest of the samurai moved to take on the other yokai as it peppered them with raking claws from across the cavern.
The Unicorn climbed atop one of the mounds for a better vantage point. She, the Tortoise, & the Mantis used their bows to hem in their foe, while the Lion pair closed the gap bodily. The Lion teacher fell briefly under the pall of an illusion. The strike he dealt to his student caused no lasting damage- physically. The Centipede contributed as she was able, while the Scorpion? No one saw her contribute a single strike.
Still, at least she seemed to be supporting her companions with her presence. I am told that Ikoma Haru lagged at the back of the group, not even drawing his blade. A coward as well as a fool, then.
Even a Tetsubo can rend living paper asunder, with enough swings. As the Crab's enemy began to fall, its fellow enshrouded the cavern in a spell of unknown providence. Whatever its effects, the warriors pushed through to victory.
As the second Kyōrinrin died, the sound of the second lock shattering filled my ears. It had been my hope until now that the prisoner may have long since passed, or that the spell binding her had become permanent. Yet as soon as this fetter snapped, she reached out.
Rushing winds congealed into a hulking mass at the center of the chamber. One of her summoned familiars: an Air Kami made Manifest. Ikoma Haru nearly took the brunt of its ire, until his brother-in-law intervened.
Clan loyalties were set completely aside as the group moved as one to confront the being. Arrow, blade, spear & club were brought to bear against the living tornado. Without magic, the attacks themselves did little individually- but even a flock of starlings can take down an eagle.
Ikoma Haru finally deigned to draw steel, making ready to land the finishing blow. I have no doubt this was deliberate planning on his part. His katana rose above his head in a two-handed stance as his knuckles turned white with the force of his grip. A battle-cry began to form deep within his chest in anticipation of his glorious strike.
And then the Tortoise shot the Kami with a sunlight-infused arrow, dispersing it instantly.
There are some things thus far I regret not being able to have seen occur in person...Ikoma Haru's face at this moment is one of them. He left while attempting to feign indifference, leaving any remaining work to his allies.
Further examination of the room revealed two unsettling pieces of information. A count of the bodies tallied up to no less than 75 dead Lion peasants. Each one held in their hands a torn scrap of paper- the same torn scrap of paper. Every brushstroke, each ripped seam, copied endlessly. Each depicted the Lion's tunnel, marked as if an untold treasure lay buried deep within it.
Meanwhile, the Tortoise examined the scrolls heaped everywhere. Most were so old they crumbled into dust when touched, but a few held barely legible traces of ink. Enough that I am sure they have learned something about the prisoner, no matter how small. While I understand the desire to preserve the records scrubbed from our history, perhaps fire would have been preferable.
While the others retired after the battle, the elderly Lion paid another visit to Ikoma Haru. A righteous & well-deserved dressing down followed. Few of our sources were willing to repeat any exact words- koku can only bend clan loyalty so far- but it seems that Ikoma Haru had found some of the "treasure map" pieces himself much earlier. He had then started sending peasants off alone into the tunnels to search for it. When one did not return, he simply...sent more.
Despicable. May their souls experience a better karma upon the wheel. Perhaps one where they do not find themselves under the heel of the Lion clan.
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Lady Amaterasu has risen upon an exodus. The nighttime argument must have had quite an effect, as the entire Lion encampment has begun to leave Orakamono no rōgoku. I can only guess as to the reasoning behind the decision, but their route looks to be taking them back to their lands. And so the defeated Ikoma leaves.
This bodes both good & ill: there are less bodies for [ILLEGIBLE] to corrupt, but there are also now less swords to stand against her.
The Crane were enthused at this turn of events, for obvious reasons. This led to some friction with the elderly Lion when he & the Unicorn gave Kakita Maru a full report. For now, at least, the Crane seem to be staying.
While this was happening, the Scorpion & Tortoise checked in on dear Fureshehu Garou again. He eventually led the pair on a guided tour of his stake- though I am told he looked unhappy with this arrangement.
Here, I must apologize for an unforeseen failure. I have no idea where the Scorpion disappeared to during this trip. She was gone long enough that the Badger returned to his camp out of boredom. The Tortoise lingered in the tunnel, as if he were waiting for something...
I could not determine the Scorpion's location until nearly an hour later. She returned to the group's camp alongside the Tortoise, & a stranger. Where could he have been hiding all this time? His clothing bore no identifiable symbols of allegiance, & he did not appear to be aligned with any of the clans present.
The meddlers are still speaking with him at this moment. I am loathe to do so, but this seems like a good reason to use one of my remaining scrying scrolls. When next I write, I shall know more.
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A tengu! The "man" is a tengu. What's more, it seems he's the one who released the Zokujin from the Seal of Earth. I am grateful he has been protecting them as he has. Their deaths would make the barrier spell even weaker than it already is.
The group seems in agreement that it would be dishonorable to walk away from the problem as it now stands. It is...perhaps unusual for me to say this, but I feel a sense of pride & gratitude with their decision. It may be that our battles are best faced together, rather than in secret. There is little I can do now, save watch & pray.
Unless...
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