~ The Year 756 ~Month of the Hare, 756: The first month of spring brings heavy rains to Rokugan, resulting in heavy flooding across the Empire. The shugenja of the Empire do what they can to mitigate the damage but find that the imbalance in the elements has only grown stronger, hindering their attempts to draw upon the kami. Concern begins to spread through the Clans as an unprecedented number of young shugenja fail their gempukku, many of them falling to the ground and becoming ill after attempting to demonstrate their knowledge of the simplest prayers.
As the other Elemental Masters return to Kyuden Isawa, the Master of Fire calls a session of the Council to explain the results of her research into the Black Scrolls. Through her comparisons of the opened Black Scroll and the two sealed Black Scrolls - as well as her frequent conversations with the bound Isawa Meiun - Isawa Arya has come to believe that the Black Scrolls are sealing away the imprisoned soul of Fu Leng, and that each time one is opened, it weakens the prison fashioned for him by Isawa. The other Elemental Masters are less than pleased with the methods of her research but cannot refute her findings. After a long debate, the Elemental Council decides not to share the information with the Empire as a whole, for fear of the panic such information might cause. At the suggestion of Isawa Kenshin, a messenger is sent to Otosan Uchi to inform the Hantei and the Hidden Guard.
The Crane, meanwhile, send a messenger to the Sparrow Clan, informing them that due to an agreement brokered at Winter Court by the Phoenix, the Crane will once again be allowing the Sparrow access to their schools. Though the Sparrow are initially joyful for the news, those students who return to their Crane dojo find a cold reception waiting for them. Bullying and teasing run rampant with the Crane instructors turning a blind eye, leaving most Suzume students miserable within the first few days of their studies.
Further to the south, the Crab honor the treaties made over the winter by sending units of Kaiu engineers northward to begin construction on the Fortunes' Road project. The improvements to the roads of the Crab, Crane, Scorpion, Sparrow, Fox, and Hare will eventually prove to be a boon to their economic and military strength, as the roads provide for faster travel and frequent guard towers to detour bandits, but many peasants become upset upon seeing samurai working upon the roads while their fields remain flooded. The Kaiu also travel further northward to build a dojo within the lands of the Phoenix, which is to be headed by the noted engineer Kaiu Totoro, and to assist the Badger in their war with the gaijin with their siege engines. Unfortunately, the mud created by the frequent rains and the sheer distance of the Badger lands - as well as the political red tape in trying to move Crab siege engines through Lion lands - leave the siege engines stranded in the middle of Crane lands for the rest of the spring and summer seasons.
As the northern snows turn to rain, the Badger send their children eastward to the lands of the Crane, as per an arrangement worked out between the two Clans at Winter Court. Not even a day after leaving their fortifications the children and their escorts are ambushed by gaijin scouts, resulting in a bloody battle that wipes out the gaijin but leaves the Ichiro bushi tasked with escorting the children unable to travel under the weight of their wounds. Help arrives from an unlikely source when a small group of Fairuz ronin arrive, claiming that they had been investigating reports of gaijin in the area. The ronin shugenja heal the wounds of the Ichiro and offer to accompany them to the borders of Lion lands, which the grateful Badger quickly accept.
The main forces of the gaijin, meanwhile, surprise the Badger by sending forth an emissary bearing a tattoo of a massive flying lizard across his chest. In broken Rokugani, the emissary announces that they will cease hostilities if they are given an audience with the Emperor of Rokugan. The Badger respond by shooting the emissary in the face with an arrow, killing him instantly and plunging both samurai and gaijin back into their brutal war. Having been informed by Ichiro Mo that both the Lion and the Crab are sending reinforcements, the Badger gradually give ground to the gaijin, abandoning their homes and wounded in order to prolong the conflict as long as possible.
Akodo Misaki's army delays their march to assist the Badger, instead choosing to remain in Dragon lands while her elite troops escort the Hantei back to Otosan Uchi. The Dragon send messengers to the Lion Champion, requesting that she pay for the Dragon food being consumed by her troops but quickly withdraw the request when Misaki makes a comment about moving her army into Tonbo lands while she waits for the return of her elite troops.
With the return of their lands by the Crab and the gain of a significant portion of Crane lands during Winter Court, the Scorpion find themselves in charge of vast stretches of land but without enough troops to adequately patrol them. As the Crab forces withdraw from the southern provinces of the war-torn Scorpion lands, the Clan of Secrets moves a portion of its savaged military into the notorious (and relatively independent) pleasure city of Zakyo Toshi, offering protection from the snake-men in exchange for a portion of its yearly earnings. The merchants of the city are quite pleased with the arrangement, and the Scorpion do not so much as bat an eye at the various illicit activities taking place within the city's walls.
What does concern the Scorpion is the gathering unrest within their lands. Their heimin are quite unhappy with their lot in life, as many of them are without food and unable to work because of the heavy rains and flooding. Those in the newly annexed east lands had, until recently, been well-fed by their Crane lords, but now find themselves hungry and malnourished in the service of the Scorpion, while those in the reclaimed southern lands are bitter and jaded after two years of warfare, hunger, and Crab samurai taking advantage of their wives and daughters. With the lack of Scorpion bushi on the roads, and the Crane and Crab pulling out from the east and south, respectively, the rural areas of Scorpion lands soon become very dangerous places for samurai to spend any amount time.
Shortly after the return of Atsushi to Otosan Uchi, the head of the Brotherhood sends a series of letters to temples across the Empire, each one speaking of the piety and wisdom of the Phoenix, who had greatly impressed him at Winter Court. Emboldened by his words, hundreds of monks make pilgrimages to Phoenix lands to learn of this wisdom themselves. Just east of Ukubu Mura, however, a group of a little over two dozen monks are attacked by a madman wearing a demon mask. The monks fight back as much as they are able, but the masked man teleports across the battlefield with a thought, ripping off limbs and shattering bones with unnatural strength.
The monks are only saved by the sudden appearance of a half-drunk ronin, who manages to fight off the masked man's attacks with a skill far beyond his years. As the crazed madman teleports behind the ronin, the ronin spins around, burying his sword into the monk's side and drawing an inhuman cry of pain from whatever serves as a mouth behind the demon mask. The masked man grabs the ronin and disappears with him, leaving the monks both confused and concerned for their savior. When neither man reappears, the monks take the ronin's intervention as a sign of divine intervention and begin the construction of a temple at the site of the battle.
Near the end of the month, the Emperor returns to Otosan Uchi with his Shiba bodyguards and announces his engagement to Matsu Tokiyo, a warrior-poet of the Lion who has been traveling the Empire on Musha Shugyo for the past three years. There is much celebration within the Imperial City over the news and the impromptu celebrations and festivals last for over a week. That surprise turns to mild confusion as the Hantei appoints Ichiro Wattana, one of the few minor courtiers of the Badger, to the position of Imperial Chancellor. Those close to the Emperor whisper that the appointment came at the suggestion of the Hantei's eldest half-brother, Otomo Hiro, but others claim that Matsu Tokiyo made the suggestion to her future husband. Still others see the hand of the Imperial Advisor at work, claiming that the appointment of a weak Chancellor will allow Agasha Muizu more influence within the courts.
The month ends with the gathering of two separate coalition forces drawn from the Great Clans, one on the plains outside of Toshi Ranbo, and the second outside of Mura Sabishii Toshi. Both forces are a combination of Crab, Crane, Dragon, Lion, and Phoenix military units, with a number of smaller auxiliary units provided by the Sparrow Clan and Brotherhood of Shinsei. Operating beneath the banner of the Seppun family, these forces are the result of the pledges made by the gathered Clans to the Hantei during Winter Court, when he asked for assistance in battling the threat posed to the Empire by the serpentine creatures. The Scorpion are noticeably absent from the forces, having refused to take part in the campaign on account of their lack of military strength.
Month of the Dragon, 756: The rains and subsequent flooding continue through the month, ensuring that the harvests this year will be much lower than usual. All across the Empire, the Clans ration their rice supplies as best as they can, often shifting the burden of going hungry onto their heimin servants. Unrest grows among the peasant class as the month continues, until actual rebellion breaks out in Scorpion lands near the beginning of the month. It catches like wildfire, spreading from province to province as the hungry peasants raid the estates of their masters, seizing what food they can to feed their families. The samurai present in their larger cities, such as Ryoko Owari and Beiden, manage to retain order by freely sharing their reserves with the lower classes, but for the most part, the lands of the Scorpion are awash in chaos.
Any good cheer over the prospect of a new Empress is quickly dampened by the actions of the Otomo and Seppun families, who launch a ruthless purge of Otosan Uchi. Though ostensibly intended root out those complicit in the Gozoku conspiracy, they use the opportunity to cast their net wide, casting accusations at those who have in the past stood opposed to the will of the Imperial Families. Businesses that had been under the control of the Great Clans for generations are ruthlessly seized by the Otomo in a month of bloody attacks that spare only those proven to be allies of the throne. By the time the blood has washed from the streets in the spring rains, Otosan Uchi is once again firmly in control of the Imperial Families.
With their loyalty to the throne reaffirmed in the blood of their traitorous brothers and sisters, the Seppun return to their position as guardians of the Hantei, while the Otomo reclaim their position within the Imperial courts. Despite objections from Seppun Katoshi, the acting Seppun daimyo, the Hantei refuses to relinquish his Shiba honor guard, choosing instead to keep them on as his personal yojimbo. At the suggestion of Isawa Kenshin, a system is put into place wherein each yojimbo will serve for three years, with a yearly rotation of the honor guard to ensure that those guarding the Hantei do not become too comfortable with their positions.
Amidst the chaos of the Gozoku purge, Seppun Kato begins a purge of his own. Using blackmail obtained on the Hare Clan over the winter months, he forces the hand of Usagi Yukana, compelling her to command a number of her followers to give false testimony against his political rivals. None think to question accusations of blood magic from so many Hare samurai, and the resulting executions leave Kato with unparalled influence within the Imperial City. Though freed from her obligations to the ruthless Imperial, the resulting backlash from her Clan leaves many Usagi samurai distrusting of their new daimyo, who they now see as little more than a Scorpion pretending to be a Hare.
Meanwhile, the coalition forces gathered to protect the Empire from the snake men spread out from their two staging areas, breaking into small, mobile units that can easily redeploy when a serpent stronghold is discovered by scouting parties. The frequent rains and heavy flooding make the weeks spent in the field unpleasant for the bushi searching for the snake men, and few units see any actual combat. What small pockets of snake men the coalition forces do find are quickly rooted out by the tired samurai, though sightings become less frequent and the resistance more stubborn with each battle.
As the Lion assist in eradication of the snake-things, Hida Takumi, the commander of the Imperial Legions, moves his troops into Lion lands, providing defense for their lands while the Lion armies deal with the dual threats of the Gaijin and serpentine invaders. The presence of so many highly trained samurai in their lands puts an end to any thoughts of rebellion among the peasantry, who decide it better to suffer in silence. A large number of Lion samurai are offered positions within the Imperial Legions, swelling their ranks with orange- and brown-clad samurai looking to serve the Emperor more directly.
With unrest high in their lands, the Scorpion call upon the treaties they made during Winter Court, bringing military forces of the Mantis to their lands assist them in helping to tamp down the peasant revolts within their provinces. Working in tandem with the forces of the Minor Clan, the Scorpion begin the slow and laborious process of restoring order to their lands. Intending to show their peasantry just what happens to those who rebel, the Scorpion begin lining their roads with tall stakes, upon which the bodies of disobedient heimin have been impaled. The tactic is brutally effective and seems effective in curbing the armed resistance within their lands, though it does little to address the dissent and hunger of their peasantry.
Back in Dragon lands, Akodo Misaki's army finally begins its march westward as its elite units return from Otosan Uchi. Their path takes them through Dragonfly lands once more, where they assist the Badger in slaying a number of gaijin invaders who had cleverly disguised themselves as Tonbo samurai in order to infiltrate the Empire. Much of the Minor Clan - what is left of it, at any rate - flees into the surrounding mountains to hide, and Misaki continues onward to Badger lands. They arrive midway through the month, just in time to reinforce the failing Badger front lines and shift the tides of the the battle back in favor of the Empire. Bit by bit, the gaijin army begins to lose ground as the combined Lion and Badger forces push them back.
The armies of the Empire are not the only armies on the march, though. Since the first thaw, the military forces of the Crab have been stretched thin, with a significant portion of their miltary forces having been committed to the coalition effort to wipe out the snake men that had attacked the Empire the previous fall and a number of Kaiu sent throughout the Empire to assist their allies with various construction projects. To make matters worse, their supplies are stretched thin, due to a significant portion of their funding having been rerouted towards funding those construction projects. The undead general Tsukuro at first suspects a trap, but when his first tentative raids against Shiro Hiruma find its guardians conserving their ammunition and standing double shifts on the castle walls, he begins to realize that the Crab have indeed left themselves vulnerable to attack. The armies of the undead begin to gather south of Shiro Hiruma as the Crab pull what forces they can from the Wall to reinforce their newly captured stronghold.
As this is happening, Suzume Wara travels to Kyuden Kasuga and confronts the Tortoise Champion about her role in the attempted assassination of the Emperor and her Clan's use of gaijin powder. Kasuga Fang Hua laughs at his accusations, but Wara takes this as an insult to his office and challenges her to a shi duel in order to sate his honor in an attempt to punish her for her role in the conspiracy. Fang Hua accepts the challenge, but as the Emerald Champion falls into his dueling stance, she draws a pistol from her belt and shoots Wara in the chest. The dishonorable attack mortally wounds the Sparrow but also proves Wara's suspicions. With his dying breath, Suzume Wara lunges forward and cuts Fang Hua in half.
Faced with a dead Clan Champion and Emerald Champion, the Tortoise have their eta deal with the bodies as they try to manage the chaos left in the aborted duel's wake. A week later, after repeated inquiries from the Emerald Magistrates as to Suzume Wara's status, the Tortoise present the ashes of the Emerald Champion and Tortoise Champion to the Emperor, claiming that both samurai were slain in a kharmic duel over a matter of honor. Many courtiers present for the announcement suspect foul play on the part of the Tortoise, but none wish to speak out against the protected Minor Clan.
Month of the Serpent, 756: The spring rains finally cease, allowing the land to dry and the peasants to slowly return to their fields. A Bayushi magistrate investigating the riots within their lands discovers that they are being instigated by the ronin known as Aika, who had previously claimed to be the daughter of Hantei XXII. Showing just how much faith they place in such rumors, a group of Bayushi and Soshi samurai ambush the woman, killing her peasant honor guard and dragging her back, kicking and screaming, to Ryoko Owari. Her public trial and execution are talked about all throughout the Empire, and gradually the lands of the Scorpion begin to return to peace.
The morale of the Scorpion is further improved as Soshi Kwan emerges victorious at the Topaz Championship. Though he does not win the iaijutsu competition, Kwan's high scores in the other events make up for his less than perfect swordsmanship. It comes as little surprise to those present when he announces that he will be accepting an offer to training as a yoriki alongside an Emerald Magistrate. The winner of the iaijutsu portion of the tournament, Kakita Rinto, stalks off the field, seemingly quite annoyed with his failure to achieve victory.
That is not the only cause for concern among the Crane, for back at Kyuden Doji, the Katogama vassal family arrests a number of high-ranking samurai for questioning regarding their involvement with the late Imperial Chancellor, Doji Masato. Most alarmingly, a number of Doji Shiai's closest advisors are among those arrested, casting doubt onto the loyalties of the Crane Champion herself. Amidst the ever-widening scandal, Shiai appoints Asahina Moriko to the position of Asahina daimyo. The morose young woman was among those present at Shiro Asahina during the Bloodspeaker War, and while some question whether she is suited for the position, most are happy enough to have the former daimyo gone that they do not raise many complaints.
The Scorpion capitalize upon this chaos by using information acquired from the geisha patron Shosuro Rikanahime to blackmail hundreds of Crane samurai. With the loss of Doji Masato in the courts, and so many of their most prominent courtiers silenced for fear of having their secrets exposed, especially during an ongoing investigation into corruption by the Katogama, the Crane find themselves unable to prevent the Scorpion from rising to newly found positions of power within the courts.
Further north, the war against the gaijin invaders - now dubbed the War of Red Mountains by the Ikoma Historians - continues, with the forces of the Empire succeeding in pushing the gaijin back beyond the shattered northern walls of the Badger. The death toll among the Badger is high, but not crippling, due to the timely assistance of the Lion. Fearing reprisal from the gaijin, Akodo Misaki camps her army out in the rocky Badger mountains, ensuring that the northern border of the Empire will be will defended for the rest of the year.
Those Lion not serving alongside their Champion have been busy as well, and midway through the month the Akodo finish moving a skeleton crew of servants and bushi into the recently acquired Morikage Toshi. With the ruins of Shiro Akodo still abandoned and corrupted from the opening of the first Black Scroll, the Akodo move the seat of their Clan's leadership to the ancient castle. Many Lion samurai are displeased with the move, claiming that the Clan should purify and rebuild Shiro Akodo, rather than simple abandon it to move into what they still see as a Phoenix castle.
Meanwhile, the battles against the snake men - dubbed the War of Broken Fangs - continue throughout the Empire, but become fewer and further between as the creatures begin to adapt to the battle tactics of the samurai. Many fall back into the ocean or beneath the great lakes of the northwestern unaligned lands, but far more are cut down by the coalition forces.
Far beyond the southern borders of the Empire, Tsukuro launches his attack against the Crab at month's end. Rather than attacking Shiro Hiruma, he blockades the Crab stronghold with zombies and fearsome siege weapons and marches his more mobile troops northward, intending to attack the Great Carpenter Wall itself. Hiruma scouts race ahead of the army, warning their cousins on the Wall of the army marching on their gates.
The events of the Festival of Dolls GenCon module take place at this time.
Month of the Horse, 756: As the month begins, Imperial agents arrive in Sparrow lands, following up on a treaty made during Winter Court that allowed the Imperial Families some measure of oversight in Sparrow dealings. The Suzume quickly learn that the Imperials are well aware of the blackmail that Seppun Kato has on their daimyo and a number of their more prominent samurai, and that the Imperial is prepared to brutally shame their Clan should they not cooperate fully with their desires. The Sparrow have little choice but to bow their heads to the Imperials, who set up an office within Kyuden Suzume so that they are nearby to offer their "suggestions" on all major items of Suzume policy.
Embroidered in a scandal that only continues to grow worse and worse, the Crane nevertheless honor their treaties and send a unit of Daidoji north to assist the Phoenix in their reclamation of Kyuden Asako. They find the castle still swarming with slaughter spirits and make some initial progress in beating the spirits back, but in the end the resilience and bloodthirst of the slaughter spirits - combined with the majority of their best bushi being otherwise occupied with the War of Broken Fangs - proves too much for their forces and they are forced to fall back, leaving the castle in control of the spirits.
The underwhelming War of Broken Fangs continues as battles fought along two fronts: along the coastlines of the Crane, in a series of small, grueling battles fought in wet sand and half-flooded caves, and at the southern edge of the Shinomen forest, which proves to be the military equivalent of kicking a hornet's nest. The southern coalition forces fall back, awaiting reinforcements as they resupply and recover from the fierce resistance from the snake-creatures within the forest.
Within Shiro Hiruma, the samurai standing guard over the portal to Yomi within its halls are surprised when the heavy doors open, allowing one of their ancestors to return to Ningen-do. In life, Hiruma Kazuma was a legendary scout and a friend to the Nezumi, a man of undeniable loyalty to the Crab, even if his fondness for ratlings was a bit...strange. Kazuma explains to the trapped Hiruma that he has returned to assist them in their time of need, and the Hiruma - in the third week of their blockade - are all too happy for the boost in morale that the ancestral spirit-made-flesh provides. With Kazuma's assistance, a small unit of scouts manages to escape the castle using its underground tunnels and contact the Hundred Eyes Nezumi tribe. The tribe's Remember, Chu'luk'ti, recalls stories of the legendary "Ksoo'ma" and pleads with the chief to assist "Ksoo'ma's tribe." The chief reluctantly agrees, and fifteen days after they left, Kazuma, his scouts, and the bulk of the Hundred Eyes tribe descend upon the zombie army, cutting, ripping, and tearing it apart as the Crab stationed within Shiro Hiruma charge out from the castle. Caught between the two armies, the undead are destroyed, ending the blockade.
All is not well, however, for the main bulk of Tsukuro's army reaches the Great Wall and begins laying siege to it. Many of his slower siege weapons were left behind at Shiro Hiruma, but his incorporeal undead take a heavy toll upon the defenders of the Wall as his more corporeal troops begin fashioning crude battering rams from the remains of their fallen allies. On more than one occasion the undead breach the gates, only to be turned back by jade fire or counter-charges from the Damned. Both armies grind against each other, but Tsukuro's maho-tsukai continually reanimate their fallen troops and ensure that the weight of attrition is on their side.
Month of the Goat, 756: On the first day of the month, the Phoenix perform the proper ceremonies to dedicate the temple outside Ukubu Mura to Bishamon, the Fortune of Strength. As the first monk sets foot in Kyoujaku Seido, Bishamon appears within the temple and speaks with a great, booming voice to offer his blessings upon it and those who visit it to honor him. Rumors of the Fortune's appearance spread like wildfire, and soon there are great lines of people from the surrounding city and villages outside the temple, each one hoping to gain a small fraction of Bishamon's favor.
The
~ Naga War ~ forum game takes place at this time.
The coalition forces gathered outside the Shinomen Mori reorganize under the leadership of the Lion Shireikan Matsu Kassenko, a brutal commander with a reputation for achieving victory at any cost. Though some are skeptical of her methods, Kassenko's tactics carry the coalition forces through a number of early victories in the Shinomen as she captures the Naga strongholds of Nirukti, the Shinomen Mandira, and Siksa. At Siksa, the Empire forces are approached by a Naga general and a legion of her troops, all of whom wish to betray their own kind and join with the Empire forces. Though initially skeptical of The Tausha's motives, Kakita Nadeshiko, Ikoma Nishiko, Otomo Ryuuta, and the monk "Old Man" Gendo all meet with the Naga warlord and determine that her motives are pure. When the coalition forces meet the leader of Siksa's defenses in battle the next day, The Tausha's legion of Naga come to the aid of the Empire, much to the surprise of the loyalist Naga.
With the area pacified, Matsu Kassenko leaves The Tausha's legion of Naga behind them as the coalition forces press forward, essentially placing her in command of the entire Asp bloodline. While many of the samurai within the coalition forces are dubious as to just how much they can trust those who would betray their own kind, Ikoma Nishiko works hard to spread the story of The Tausha throughout the Empire ranks, painting her as a Naga "princess" whose honor had been slighted after the leader of Siksa had defeated her in a duel and refused to take her life, as was the custom. With her story framed in such a sympathetic manner, the general opinion of Tausha and her legion of Asp warriors gradually improves as the campaign progresses.
The Emerald Championship takes place on the Plain of Thunder, drawing the most important samurai from all across the Empire to within striking distance of the Shinomen Forest. Because of this, a portion of the Imperial Legions stationed within Lion lands are redirected southward to guard the Emperor and his guests. Fortunately, the Naga are either unaware of the tournament or unable to mount an attack due to the coalition army marching upon their ancestral lands and the tournament concludes without incident. Despite a few early matches with questionable outcomes, the tournament is eventually won by Kakita Seiko, the daughter of former Emerald Champion Kakita Isora. Her victory is a boost to the flagging morale of the Crane, kicking off large celebrations within their provinces as soon as the Miya bring them word of her victory.
The Crane stationed at Toshi Ranbo have less reason to celebrate, as an Ikoma messenger arrives and informs them that the Lion are reclaiming the city as their own and giving them a single day to set their affairs in order and depart peacefully. The Crane use this time to move their noncombatants from the city as their samurai work to prepare its defenses, but it proves unable to keep the Lion at bay. After a brutal day of fighting in the streets, the Lion manage to successfully recapture Violence Behind Courtliness City.
Further south, the battle between the undead legions of Tsukuro and the Crab grinds onward. The undead breach the gates of the Carpenter Wall multiple times, but each time they are pushed back by its Crab defenders. The numbers of attrition are on the side of the undead, however, as each warrior that falls on either side of the combat is swiftly reanimated by Tsukuro's maho-tsukai, forcing the Crab to decapitate each enemy they strike down. The lack of supplies along the wall - some of it having been directed northward to assist with the building of roads within the Empire - forces the Crab to fight on minimal rations, often with little in the way of medical supplies. The disharmony in the elements prevents the spells of the younger Kuni shugenja from being of much use, forcing them onto the front lines with the undead as the more experienced shugenja force the earth kami to strike out at the undead through sheer force of will.
During the fighting, Kaiu Osamu perishes in battle with a Gashadokuro, a forty foot tall skeletal creature that plucks him from the wall and bites off his head with a single chomp. The Kaiu take their revenge by pelting the huge creature with no less than three catapults, and the jade-coated boulders shatter it into hundreds of pieces. A strike team forces their way out beyond the wall, fighting back the hordes of undead to retrieve Osamu's corpse and return it to the Wall, where he is given a rushed funeral ceremony before being tossed onto the mass pyres.
Month of the Monkey, 756: The coalition forces under the command of Matsu Kassenko push further into the Shinomen Forest, defeating the Naga in multiple engagements and capturing the ruined cities of Vyrakarana and Iyotisha. The Naga manage to fight back the samurai of the Empire long enough for their leader, the Qamar, to escape into the forest with his honor guard, but the delaying tactic costs the Naga dearly. Their military might is shattered by Kassenko's forces and those that attempt to flee are cut down in a wave of savagery. In the week that follows, the coalition forces execute thousands of sleeping Naga found within the city and destroy hundreds of egg clutches in what will later be regarded as the final moments of the War of Broken Fangs.
The Empire sees another victory against its enemies early in the month as Hiruma Kazuma's reinforcements arrive from Shiro Hiruma to outflank the undead forces of Tsukuro. The nezumi of the Hundred Eyes Tribe had made contact with those of the Stained Paw and Shadow Runners tribes and united under Kazuma's leadership. The arrival of the Nezumi caught Tsukuro and his legions off guard, and as they wheeled in an attempt to deal with this new threat, the beleaguered Crab launched a counterattack from the gates of the Carpenter Wall. The fighting was brutal, but eventually the tide of battle shifted in favor of the Crab. The Hida 27th Heavy Infantry is credited with having forced their way to Tsukuro's command squad and cutting down the undead general, a glorious task that unfortunately resulted in their deaths at the clawed hands of the undead around them. In the aftermath of the battle, Hida Kame announced that their unit would be permanently retired from service in memory of those samurai who gave their lives to protect the Empire.
In the hopes of pleasing Inari, the Fortune of Rice, and encouraging him to bless their waterlogged lands with a good harvest, the Scorpion arrange for multiple festivals to be held across their lands in his honor. The festivals in the larger cities - those with large samurai populations - are quite elaborate and are one of the highlights of the spring season within the Empire for those who attend, creating good will for the Clan that lingers for the rest of the year. In the more remote parts of their lands, however, the funds sent out to finance these festivals more often than not end up instead lining the pockets of local governors or Mantis mercenaries who are not above a bit of good-natured banditry to supplement their wages.
Further north, the Dragon seer Agasha Mokushi makes a startling announcement that one of the southern volcanoes in Mirumoto lands will soon erupt, covering the sky in ash and flooding a significant portion of their farmlands with molten rock. Communion with the slumbering fire kami beneath the volcano fails to uncover any sort of activity that would suggest such a thing, but Mokushi is adamant about his visions and claims that the only way to appease the spirits is through a sacrifice of ten pure maidens. Debate rages among the Dragon families as to whether sacrificing ten lives to save thousands is ethical or not, while Mokushi's prophecies of doom and devastation grow more and more vivid. Eventually, ten young samurai-ko - four Mirumoto, three Agasha, and three Togashi - step forward and volunteer themselves as sacrifices to save the farmlands of the Dragon. A solemn ceremony takes place at the lip of the volcano before the women leap to the deaths, at which time the relieved Mokushi pronounces that the spirits of the volcano have been appeased and that the danger has been averted.
Meanwhile, small skirmishes continue in Badger lands as the gaijin barbarians attempt to recapture the lands of the Badger, but the combined forces of the Lion and Badger ensure that they gain no ground. Akodo Misaki allows her officers to pursue the fleeing gaijin into the mountains, where many of them are ambushed by gaijin reinforcements hiding in the uneven terrain. The Lion fall back to the broken walls marking Badger lands and consolidate their strength as Akodo Misaki and Ichiro Gacho argue over the best way to break the strength of the barbarians.
Near the end of the month, an assassin manages to make it past security in Otosan Uchi and get within striking distance of the Emperor, only to be cut down by his Phoenix honor guard. An inspection of the would-be assassin reveals Crane-minted koku, casting further suspicions upon the disloyalty of the Crane Clan to the throne. The Seppun on duty commit sepukku for their failure as their superiors vow to find those responsible for the assassin but find their search hijacked by Kakita Seiko, who takes control of the investigation herself.
Month of the Rooster, 756: Autumn begins on an inauspicious note as Ikoma Sayuri, the Ikoma daimyo, is shot with an arrow by a hidden sniper during the Kanto festival. She dies before a healer can tend to her wounds, and the unseen assassin manages to escape in the following chaos. Her successor, Ikoma Furatto, vows to bring her mother's murderer to justice, but she is soon overwhelmed in the duties of her new office. Her new husband, the former Shosuro Takeda, takes over the investigation of Sayuri's murder in her place, but even he admits that the trail has since gone cold.
In Phoenix lands, the Elemental Council meets to discuss the prophecies of Isawa Meiun, the acolyte who was corrupted in opening the Dark Divination scroll. Upon going through the transcripts of her ravings, Isawa Arya finds that a number of them were accurate predictions as to events that have occurred in the past few months. The council debates whether or not to give credit to these potential prophecies but eventually decide that any information gained from one who has been corrupted by Fu Leng cannot be considered reliable. Instead, the Council decides to put their efforts towards purifying the Black Scroll itself, in the hopes of recovering the original divination spell that was twisted in the process of binding Fu Leng within his prison. The task is given to Isawa Arya, and discussion soon turns to the study of a number of magical pearls that were recovered from the Naga during the War of Broken Fangs.
Kakita Seiko arrives at Kyuden Doji and questions the Crane Champion about the assassin who attacked the Emperor. Doji Shiai is evasive on certain points, but Seiko eventually leaves, convinced that the Crane had no hand in the assassination attempt. Before she goes, however, she warns Shiai that the Imperial Families are quite displeased with the Crane following the actions of Doji Masato, and that this new assassination attempt is only adding further weight to the voices calling for the punishment of the Crane.
Further south, the Crab continue to hunt down the last stragglers of Tsukuro's army. The funeral pyres burn nonstop throughout the month as fallen Crab and undead alike are burned to ash in clouds of smoke so thick that it can be seen from the southern portions of Scorpion and Crane lands. The fighting has cost the Crab dearly in terms of supplies and manpower, but the strength of the Shadowlands seems to have been broken, at least for the time being. As the Yasuki attempt to rebuild the depleted jade reserves of the Crab, however, they find that the Lion have already made advances in that same direction, purchasing much of the jade within the Empire in order to being testing their own troops for the presence of the Shadowlands taint. A fierce bidding war soon erupts between the two Clans, driving the price of jade to nearly four times its normal worth.
On an happier note, the Crab siege engines which had been halted in their progress to Badger lands earlier in the spring finally begin to roll northwards as the mess of red tape preventing their progress is finally negotiated. They are accompanied through Lion lands by one of the Imperial Legions in a stipulation requested by the late Ikoma Sayuri, thus ensuring that the siege engines reach their destination safely.
Month of the Dog, 756: The daimyo of the four Crane families - Doji Shiai, Kakita Takeshi, Daidoji Kenta, and Asahina Moriko - travel with their entourages to Otosan Uchi to speak with the Emperor. The Imperial Families initially attempt to keep the Crane from speaking with the Hantei, but once the Emperor learns of their presence and asks to speak with them, there is little that the Seppun or Otomo can do to prevent the meeting. After preparing themselves, the Crane meet with the Hantei and claim that they are being unjustly punished for the actions of Doji Masato, a man who had held his position as Imperial Chancellor longer than any of them had been alive, and that they were dealing with the matter internally. Midway through the Imperial Advisor's counter-argument - that the Crane could not be trusted to deal with the Gozoku themselves - Doji Shiai passes out from blood loss, at which point the other daimyo reveal that they have already committed kanshi in protest for the Hantei's unjust punishment of the Crane for Masato's actions.
Shocked by the display, the Hantei watches, ashen-faced, as the leadership of the Crane dies in front of him, their blood pooling at his feet. When the Imperial Advisor begins to speak, the Hantei silences him with a gesture and announces with a shaking voice that Doji Masato was no longer a Crane when he died, and that his shame was not that of the Crane Clan. The investigation into the remaining members of the Gozoku ends along with the Imperial purge, and the Emperor secludes himself in his quarters for the rest of the month.
With the northern barbarians forced out of Badger lands, Akodo Misaki leads her army back south, towards her own lands. While many of the gaijin barbarians still lurk in the northern mountains, their morale seems to have been broken, and the Badger are eager to regain full control of their own lands without having to rely upon the Lion for assistance. A priority is given to repairing their northern walls, but an early snow in the mountains leaves the project unfinished with many gaps yet remaining in the Empire's northern defenses.
Meanwhile, the Phoenix face the first of several set backs in their attempts to purify the Dark Divination scroll as three of the acolytes assigned to its study are corrupted by its power and attempt to claim the scroll for their own. They are quickly slain by the attending Inquisitors, but not before one of the acolytes is able to summon a twisting creature of blood and mist that destroys over three dozen of Isawa Arya's most valuable research scrolls. Further research resumes later in the month, this time within a small village near Kyuden Isawa, rather than within the castle itself.
Elsewhere in Phoenix lands, a small group of Asako monks travel to the haunted ruins of Kyuden Asako in the hopes of pacifying the spirits within. The monks enter the castle while chanting one of their order's most calming prayers, filling their hearts with peace and love in the hope the doing so will serve as a counterbalance to the mindless rage of the Toshigoku spirits and weaken their presence in the mortal realm. The monks are horribly butchered by the uncaring spirits, and in the aftermath, Shiba Esai declares the ruins off-limits to all further visitation.
The Master of the Four Temples and nominal head of the Brotherhood, Atsushi, leaves Otosan Uchi on a pilgrimage to the recently built Kyoujaku Seido in Phoenix lands. As he travels, a steadily increasing number of monks join him on his journey, until the road is so filled with traveling holy men that they are mistaken for a marching army by the heimin harvesting the fields. Though they do not reach the temple until midway through the next month, the unexpected pilgrimage nevertheless manages to inspire many authors and poets as they prepare for their winter courts.
With over a fifth of her Clan having starved to death since last winter, Tonbo Mariko takes careful stock of her Clan's chances of surviving another unprovoked assault from the Lion. With no access to the trade networks of the Empire and few allies after the Dragonfly delegate sent to Winter Court last year was revealed to have been a Bloodspeaker, the Tonbo are in dire straights. Heeding the warnings of her divinations, Mariko reluctantly petitions the Dragon Clan for their protection, and the Dragon accept. On the last day of the month, Tonbo Mariko swears fealty to Togashi Motaro in a somber ceremony and the Dragonfly Clan is absorbed into the Dragon Clan.
Month of the Boar, 756: Bayushi Yuuto and his entourage arrive at Kyuden Ikoma, the site of this year's Winter Court, nearly a week earlier than expected and demand that their Yogo shugenja be allowed to place magical wards throughout the castle. The Lion refuse, claiming that their own magical protections are more than enough to protect the Emperor, at which point Yuuto points out that their wards were unable to protect his wife, who was assassinated within Kyuden Ikoma the year before. The Lion are unable to refute his argument and reluctantly allow the Scorpion to weave all manner of unknown enchantments upon the castle.
The arrival of the Emperor and his retinue is a cause for much celebration from the Lion, though his meeting with the new Ikoma daimyo becomes somewhat awkward after Ikoma Furatto becomes a bit too complimentary of the Hantei in her excitement. Ikoma Takeda, her husband, manages to salvage the meeting with a light joke at his wife's expense, but the Emperor's fiance, Matsu Tokiyo, is noticeably not amused by Furatto's behavior.
A much different winter court takes place at Kyuden Miya this year, as a small group of Naga from Tausha's Legion are allowed to attend the court as guests of the Empire. It proves to be a tense first month as both groups adjust to the culture shock of the other civilization, but there is a genuine wish for peace on both sides and most of the misunderstandings are quickly smoothed over. The issue of diet becomes a particularly sticky topic, as the humans are just as disgusted with the Naga habit of eating small rodents as the Naga are with the concept of eating eggs. The heimin cooks fret for days to find a common middle ground before finally settling on a menu that consists almost entirely of seafood, fowl, and a bit of rice, which seems to appease both groups.
The much smaller winter court taking place at Shiro no Soshi is rocked with early scandal as Agasha Hiraku, a minor shugenja, dies midway through an evening meal with Shosuro Uruwashii. The Shosuro daimyo is noticeably upset by the experience and retires from court for three days to recover from the shock of Hiraku dying in front of her. In her absence, the investigating magistrate determines that the meal they had been eating had contained improperly prepared fugu and that Hiraku's death no doubt saved Uruwashii's life, in that it prevented her from partaking of the unintentionally poisonous meal. The Scorpion make some generous concessions to the remaining members of the Dragon contingent and publicly execute their entire cooking staff for the unacceptable failure.
Things go much better at Kyuden Doji, where the new Crane Champion, Doji Etsuo, makes his first public appearance since the position passed to him from his cousin, the late Doji Shiai. Though trained as a bushi, Etsuo is a well-known patron of the arts, and it becomes clear early in the court that he favors a more traditional approach to such things, as there is little of the popular "modernist" style on display within the castle. There is a brief moment at the start of court when one of the Hida delegates mistakes the effeminate Etsuo for a woman and asks if the Champion's husband will be joining them, but much to the relief of everyone present, Etsuo laughs the matter off and spends the rest of the day amusing the court with light, self-deprecating references to the faux pas. Realizing that his fate could have been much worse, the embarrassed Hida Kujiku makes it a point of speaking well of the new Crane Champion for the rest of the winter.
The Phoenix, meanwhile, are surprised to find that the Jade Champion, the ronin Fairuz, has accepted what they considered a perfunctory invitation to spend the winter with them at Kyuden Isawa. Fairuz and his entourage of ronin receive a frosty reception from the Phoenix, and within the hour it becomes clear to the Jade Champion that he has likely chosen poorly with regards to his winter planning. Nevertheless, he and his people do their best to be polite guests and remain low key, something that becomes difficult when the other delegates shower them with attention and questions. After a single meeting with the Jade Champion, Isawa Arya orders that the acolytes studying the Dark Divination scroll be moved further from the castle to ensure that neither Fairuz nor his minions learn that the Phoenix are studying what is, technically, a maho scroll.
Month of the Rat, 756: Matsu Shikyo surprises those attending the Imperial Court at Kyuden Ikoma by appearing in public without the many bandages she had been wrapped with since the end of the War of Hidden Honor. When questioned about her miraculous recovery, Shikyo reveals that she was healed by sacred water brought to her by Ikoma Nishiko, who discovered a healing spring deep within the Shinomen Forest. The court is amazed by the story, and Nishiko spends much of the winter retelling the tale of how she came by the water to various courtiers and dignitaries.
Another startling recovery takes place within Otosan Uchi, where the monk Turong gives a drought of water taken from the same healing spring to Seppun Kato, the Emperor's younger brother. The burns and scars that Kato had carried since he was a child are healed by the sacred water, restoring the ambitious Imperial to full health. Kato is so surprised by the gesture that he makes a very generous donation to the Brotherhood from his private funds, much to the surprise of nearly everyone at court.
Meanwhile, tensions flare at Kyuden Hida as the Crab and Lion delegates get into a heated argument over the jade deficit caused by the Lion Clan's attempts to purchase thousands of pounds of jade that might otherwise have gone towards restocking the depleted reserves of the Crab Clan. The situation is temporarily defused by courtiers, but flares up many more times across the winter, until it seems that the only topic being discussed at Kyuden Hida is jade supplies.
Back at Kyuden Ikoma, the Centipede approach the Emperor and ask for his opinion on a difficult matter. During the War of Broken Fangs, one of their samurai, the late Moshi Makoto, rescued a ronin who claimed to be the last descendant of the legendary Sun family. Makoto convinced Sun Gang to travel to Moshi lands and swear fealty to the Centipede, but the Moshi were uncomfortable with the idea of allowing the respected Sun name to die out in such a manner without first receiving approval from the Imperial Families. The Hantei considers the matter and decides that those who follow the ronin will be allowed to retain the Sun family name while serving the Centipede, essentially granting the Minor Clan their first vassal family.
At the end of the month, Dragon delegates across the Empire make the announcement that one of their number, Togashi Myo-en, has made contact with the distant Kirin Clan, who now call themselves the Unicorn. That the children of Shinjo yet survive is shocking enough, but the Dragon further announce that the Unicorn are in the process of returning to the Empire. Chaos breaks out in nearly every court to receive such news as the Clans attempt to adjust to such a revelation, and speculation runs rampant as to just how the presence of another Great Clan will affect the Empire.
Month of the Ox, 756: The confusion surrounding the return of the Unicorn Clan continues as courtiers across the Empire attempt to draw more information out of the Dragon delegates at their winter courts, with little success. The Dragon sent extra delegates to the lands of the Lion and Imperial Families in an attempt to smooth over what they assume will be unpleasant reactions to the news, but Akodo Misaki seems relatively unconcerned with the news once she learns that the Dragon do not know when, exactly, the Unicorn are due to return. The Imperial Families are more concerned with the news, until Otomo Hiro, the Emperor's eldest half-brother, suggests that there might be a way to levy back taxes against the Unicorn for the seven centuries they have been absent from the Unicorn, which has the effect of quickly turning the apprehension of the Otomo family into something approaching outright joy.
Ikoma Takeda concludes his investigation of his former daimyo's unfortunate death, claiming that the murderers were likely ronin with Daidoji training. When the Crane object to this conclusion, Takeda reassures them that the Lion do not believe that those responsible were still working for the Crane, as such an activity is surely the work of those who were banished from the Crane for their dishonorable behavior. At the Emperor's request, both Crane and Lion agree to work together to bring the murderers to justice, though it is clear to everyone at Kyuden Ikoma that there is likely to be little progress made on such a joint investigation.
Tensions cool somewhat as the Crab present a sumo demonstration to the Emperor and his court. The competition is fierce among the wrestlers, all of whom want to prove their skills in front of the Emperor, but Matsu Togu eventually emerges victorious in a narrow victory over his Crab opponent. The Emperor is quite taken with the demonstration and asks his advisor, Agasha Muizu, why the sport is not more popular among the other Clans. When Muizu expresses his inability to answer the question, the Hantei gives the task of forming an Empire-wide Sumo League to one of his attendants, a young man by the name of Seppun Itsuki. Though he knows nothing of the sport, Itsuki quickly begins learning as much as he can about sumo as the Clans scramble to make arrangements to participate in the fledgling league.
A new pillow book claiming to be authored by the noted satirist known only as "The Gardener" turns up at Kyuden Bayushi, sparking both rumor and scandal throughout the court. The style is notably different from the Gardener's other works, however, with less of an emphasis on wit and clever wordplay and more on the steamy meetings of various supposed lovers, and by the end of the month most of the court agrees that the book is clearly a fake. Suspicion falls onto Shiba Kichiko once a Scorpion courtier casually points out the similarities in the calligraphy styles between the pillow book and the former Imperial's letters, though Kichiko fervently denies having anything to do with such scandalous rumors.
The research of the Phoenix into the Black Scroll known as Dark Divination suffers a setback when four of the acolytes researching the scroll manage to overpower their Inquisitor guards with a summoned oni. The demon quickly devours the heimin of the village and begins spawning smaller versions of itself, but further disaster is averted when Isawa Arya and Isawa Kibou arrive on site and burn the oni and corrupted acolytes into ashes. The Black Scroll survives the fires unharmed, but it is clear that those researching the scroll will need more supervision than was previously thought. Not wanting to bring the Black Scroll back to Kyuden Isawa - especially with the Jade Champion in residence - the two Elemental Masters instead take the scroll to Shiro Shiba, trusting that the presence of so many Shiba should be its own protection. Research resumes once again at the end of the month with a fresh batch of eager acolytes.
Far to the south, in the depths of the Shadowlands, the defeated generals of Tsukuro's army gather to discuss their future plans. The discussion over who should take control of the shattered remains of his army quickly turns heated, until it is decided that a grand tournament - a mockery of the Emerald Championship of the Empire - will take place to determine which of their number is best suited to lead them into battle. What follows is a brutal competition that eventually ends in victory for a maho-tsukai named Kiyoshi, whose corrupted magic allowed him to easily dispatch those who placed their faith in martial strength. Declaring himself the Onyx Champion, the former Miya leads his remaining forces deeper into the Shadowlands to begin plotting against the Empire.
Month of the Tiger, 756: The tensions which had gripped Kyuden Hida finally reach their breaking point as Lion and Crab courtiers come to blows over the issue of their Clans' need for the Empire's limited amount of jade. Apologies are made in the aftermath, but it is only a formality and neither Clan believes the matter to be settled. The Lion depart from Kyuden Hida three days later, and though peace returns to the castle, the specter of future conflict between the Clans hangs heavy over the rest of the court.
Meanwhile, scandal erupts in Kyuden Miya as a Scorpion bushi, Yogo Kitahachi, reveals to the court that Doji Kazuki, a minor courtier, has been courting one of the visiting Naga dignitaries. The announcement leads to Kazuki's official censure from his superiors and a similar, if more private, reaction from the other Naga with regards to the one they call The Mara. Doji Kazuki eventually commits sepukku to cleanse his family of the shame of his actions, shocking and confusing the Naga delegation, who were unaware of that particular human custom.
An outbreak of Swamp Lung strikes Kyuden Ikoma, sickening nearly two dozen courtiers, bushi, and servants across the various Clans. The sick are quickly contained, and upon the suggestion of Bayushi Yuuto, the Emperor and his entourage return to the capital earlier than expected. The Hantei's rapid departure catches much of the court by surprise, but none can fault his reasoning and many others leave as well, taking advantage of the early thaw as best they are able. Fortunately for the Lion, the Swamp Lung disease spreads no further, though their healers are unable to save any of the infected from very painful deaths.
As the temperatures improve, the Agasha researchers at Kyuden Agasha make a test run of their new creation, a series of over two dozen gigantic crystal lenses. According to their theories, when properly focused and magnified through the various lenses, the Dragon will be able to shine the holy light of Amaterasu down upon their crops throughout the year, thus allowing them to keep their fields warm during the cold winter months. The test run down not go as expected, however, with the focused beam of light cutting a deep groove in the side of a distant mountain before the crystal lenses overheat and explode, showering the researchers with superheated crystalline shards. Those that survive deem the experiment a failure and order the intact lenses to be destroyed.
At Shiro Matsu, the winter ends in an argument between Akodo Misaki and her advisors, the latter of whom claim that it would be improper to declare war on the Crane in the same year that she married one of their samurai. Misaki eventually relents and tears up her plans, but her fiance, Doji Riku, jokingly offers to allow her to take a swing at him if it would help her to ease her mind with regards to his Clan. Misaki takes him up on his offer, much to the surprise of the entire court, and knocks Riku to the floor with a single punch. The court falls deathly silent, but Riku merely stands up, rubs his cheek, and compliments his soon-to-be wife on her right hook. His reaction seems to improve his measure in Misaki's eyes, and by the end of the day the young Lion Champion is eagerly discussing her wedding plans with her confused advisors.
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