S2E41: Ambition (Season Finale)

Podcast of the Five Rings

It suddenly made sense. Buro put the pieces together. The vacant stare, the quiet disposition, the resigned attitude. The woman threatening to kill him was not Kachiko— someone who looked remarkably like her, but not her. “What’s the meaning of this?” Buro asked.

The mystery woman introduced herself as Yogo Asami, Kachiko’s body double. She explained that her and Kachiko swapped places once Kachiko believed her arrest was imminent. Asami explained that Kachiko wants out of her life. She’s sick of the terrible things she’s done for the sake of her clan and her husband’s vision. Kachiko has fled the city and seeks a quiet life to raise her child. No one knows except her, Kachiko, and now Buro. “Kill me, never say a word to another person, and Kachiko won’t hurt another person,” Asami pleaded.

“I will not allow an innocent life to be taken,” Buro said.

“The only innocent life you’ll be taking is that of Kachiko’s unborn child. Kill me, and let her and her child live,” Asami countered.

Buro was conflicted. He didn’t want innocent blood to be spilled, but at the same time, he couldn’t allow Kachiko to get away without punishment for the things that she’s done. “I can’t allow that,” Buro resolved. “Kachiko must pay.” And with that, Buro called for the guards.

Asami struck at Buro, cutting him deep, but Buro managed to restrain her until the guards arrived. He explained the whole story to them. Tired of the Scorpion’s treachery, one of the guards slew Asami on the spot. Word spread, and messengers were sent out to find the real Kachiko.

Angry, tired, and wounded, Buro retired to his quarters to tend to his injuries.

Meanwhile, Tomo and Kenshi sought counsel with Isawa Ujina. They asked him what he had learned about the prophecy of Uikku which Shoju had produced as justification for his coup. Ujina was not certain, but as of yet, the scroll seemed legitimate. He believed there was a good chance this was in fact Uikku’s final prophecy.

As they spoke, Tomo was summoned to meet with the Crab leadership, and Kenshi was summoned for an audience with Kitsune Ryosei.

Seated before Kuni Fujiko, Hida Riko, and Hiruma Kage, Tomo was given an important mission. They wanted him to travel south and speak to Crab champion, Hida Kisada, as their clan’s sole envoy from Otosan Uchi. They believed he had proven himself a capable diplomat when he helped to negotiate a truce between the Crab and the Three Headed Alliance, and a good judge of character as he warned his clan about the treacherous Yasuki Taka as well as the machinations of the Scorpion. They also believed he was in a unique position to explain the events of Shoju’s coup due to his close personal ties with The Martyr Monk, Tsuruchi, Ryosei, his role as governor of Clearwater Village, and his experience being captured by Scorpion samurai. His mission would be to rally troops for the defense of Otosan Uchi, warn Kisada about Taka, and solidify an alliance with the Fox, Wasp, and Sparrow clans.

Tomo thought about Buro, Kenshi, Yoshi, and Akari. His friends who he traveled with all the way from the depths of the Shadowlands to the heights of Rokugani society. He would be leaving them in the face of an overwhelming enemy. But as a proper samurai, he chose to honor his duty to his clan. He accepted his mission. After an emotional goodbye, he left Otosan Uchi, traveling south to the Crab lands.

Elsewhere, Kenshi sat in audience with Ryosei and a handful of high ranking Fox samurai, including his sister Niao. “If we die tonight, I want you to die a true Fox. Not just in blood, but in name as well,” Ryosei said. In a makeshift but charming ceremony, Ryosei officially inducted Kenshi as a member of the Fox. He bowed his head as Kenshi, a wayward bard who had never known his home or his family, but rose as Kitsune Kenshi, samurai of the Fox clan.

Later that night, as Buro rested and healed, he was visited by Akari. She came to him and helped in whatever ways she could, changing his bandages and bringing him clean water. She told Buro that it’s a samurai’s fate to live so close to death. She lamented that so many times, if things had just gone a little bit differently, either one of them could have died. And for what? She wondered. Your lord’s honor? The code of Bushido? The duty of your clan? “Tonight,” she told Buro. “I want to live life.” Buro and Akari spent the night in each other’s arms.

Down on the streets of Otosan Uchi, in the cold, cold night, Kenshi entertained commoners as they fled the outer city and into the safety of the Ekohikei. The city was alive with commotion as refugees sought shelter and troops organized themselves into defensive positions.

All of a sudden, there was shouting. Incomprehensible commands were being issued from the Ekohikei’s gate house. Something seemed wrong. And before Kenshi had time to investigate, a terrible sound came over the city and the Earth trembled. An explosion of fire and smoke rose from the gate house which had been immediately turned to rubble.

As people looked on in horror, cries of anguish filled the air. The command was given, and everyone took their positions. It was starting.

Looking out over the city walls, illuminated by starlight and the faint flickering of torches, Kenshi saw Shoju’s army advance into the outer city. It was a surprise attack. The Lord of Whispers believed he could take the city while it was in a state of disorder. With no defenses set up for the outer city, the Scorpion easily took it. The army quickly secured critical infrastructure such as gates, bridges, towers, armories, and stables. Rank upon rank of archers deployed within the city, positioning themselves within buildings and on rooftops. The fate of those outside of the Ekohikei were now in the hands of the kami.

Volley after volley were exchanged between the defenders and the advancing army. Buro and a small retinue of shugenja rushed to the now destroyed gate. Through their prayers to the kami, they created a threshold barrier large enough to halt the Scorpion army from breaching the walls. Panicked by the assault, Buro unmasked. He withdrew beneath the walls, where he hid from the attackers. Meanwhile, upon the parapets, Kenshi directed the defender’s attacks toward key targets.

After an hour of intense ranged fighting, columns of Scorpion spearmen marched down the Road of the Most High, carrying large mats of wicker and straw, meant to protect them from volleys of arrows. Their goal was to secure the bridge separating the Ekohikei from the outer city and storm the destroyed gate. They were halted, however, by the threshold barrier which Buro helped to create. Confused, the ashigaru spearmen were sitting ducks on the bridge, exposed to archers on the walls.

Unable to retreat without breaking rank, the Scorpion held the bridge for another hour until reinforcements could be brought to the front. Thunder rolled through the city. Smoke clouds rose from the blood and rubble. The Scorpion wielded a new weapon. A weapon forbidden in Rokugan. Arquebuses. Evil weapons which belched fire and thunder, piercing the armor of even the fiercest samurai.

Standing tall on the wall, leading his samurai in the defense of their capital, Tsuruchi suffered a terrible wound. One of these vile weapons broke through his armor, lodging a bullet in his stomach. Connected by the supernatural powers of their yumi, Tomo felt the blow from this attack, and hurled forward on his horse. He knew Tsuruchi was in danger. Which meant Buro and Kenshi as well. He told his retainers to ride forward, but he had to turn around. Tomo reeled his horse around, and rode north as fast as he could.

Sensing the devastation which was unfolding in the city, the Miwaku Kabe, the walls of the inner city, came to life. The spirits of all the samurai who gave their lives protecting Otosan Uchi in centuries past were risen. They took positions along the walls and within the city, ready to protect the living, and die once again, as their duty commands.

Seeing a weakness in their attack, Kenshi called down to Buro hiding beneath the wall. He commanded him to strike the bridge. Without that, Shoju’s attack would be stymied. The attackers would be forced to retreat, and the Ekohikei would be saved.

Hearing Kenshi’s words, Buro came to his senses and made his way toward the bridge. Running past a quiet alley between two buildings at the edge of the city, he found a scorpion lying in wait. A shuriken came flying out from the darkness, barely missing Buro. Emerging from the shadows was Tsubasa. “How could you have sold out your clan?” He asked.

“What our clan is doing is wrong,” Buro replied. “But we could have been friends.”

“For you, that was never an option. You’ll pay for what you’ve done.”

Tsubasa struck at Buro with a sudden attack, glancing off of Buro’s armor. Buro countered with his own, which Tsubasa handily sidestepped.

“You’ve failed to live up to your name, you’re a failure Buro. And to align yourself with Shizue. Don’t you know that she’s the one who destroyed the investigation into her father. The Doji family have their own secrets.” Tsubasa said, trying to get under Buro’s skin. Enraged, he attacked Buro with a powerful stroke.

Buro used what remained of his energy to evade the attack, but he had had enough. He couldn’t withstand the onslaught. Defeated, he looked up at his attacker, noticing the ancestral blade with which he was armed. “What would your father think of the person you’ve become?” Buro asked.

“You can ask him. He’s the one leading the siege on the city.” Tsubasa replied. “But for you, no one will weep for another dead dog in the road.”

Those were the last words Buro ever heard...

Riding north, Tomo came upon the Scorpion encampment positioned outside the city. He saw the destruction rampaging in the city. The young samurai knew he had one option. He quickly rode straight to Shoju’s pavilion. Guards tried to seize him, but he rode too fast. Archers fired at him, but their arrows glanced off his armor. Once inside Shoju’s pavilion, samurai drew their swords and struck at him, but he pushed through their attacks to stand a mere stone’s throw away from the Lord of Whispers. His yumi drawn, he knocked one of his poison arrows. “You’ve got this,” he could hear Tsuruchi saying, and his posture corrected into a perfect stance. He fired his arrow at The Great Deceiver, the one who killed the emperor, the one who brought destruction to Rokugan.

And he missed…

Knowing time was short, Kenshi ordered fire and pitch upon the bridge. Within minutes, it was ablaze, and the Scorpion were forced to give up their position. They had suffered heavy casualties and their only way into the city was destroyed. The Scorpion retreated from the city to regroup and form a new plan.

Soon, the sun began to rise over the bay. The day was won. Otosan Uchi stood with the defenders.

As the defenders sorted out their dead and wounded, Kenshi made a prayer to the kami, suddenly feeling so small being surrounded by so much death. Before him stood Buro, now a spirit of the void. The two said their goodbyes, and as a parting gift, Buro gave Kenshi the location of Tsubasa’s hiding place. Within moments, samurai were dragging Tsubasa out into the streets. Without words, Kenshi slew Tsubasa with his own father’s sword. As Buro’s spirit departed, he rejoined the spirits of the samurai who fought and died to protect Otosan Uchi. He became one of the guardians of the Miwaku Kabe.

Buro’s body was recovered. Before his burial, Akari caressed the wounds which she had helped him mend just the night before. A breeze passed by, and she could feel the knot of her blindfold tighten just a little bit.

Back in the Scorpion camp, Shoju held an audience with his closest advisors. Beside him were Hiruma Miroke and the newly captured Kaiu Tomo. Across from him, set up on display was the armor of Togashi Yoshi. “It’s good to speak with you again,” Shoju starts. “I can make you a God.”

The Crab revere Yoshi as an icon. Shoju explains that if Yoshi agrees to ride south to the Crab lands and tell Hida Kisada that he supports Shoju’s claim as emperor, then Shoju will declare him the Fortune of Martyrdom. If he refuses or speaks ill of Shoju, Shoju has something which he assured will fall into Kisada’s hands. The Lord of Whispers then produced a letter.

The letter is addressed to Kuni Yori and describes the ritual which was used to put Yoshi’s spirit back into his armor. The ritual is described as a major breakthrough in their understanding of the relationship between spirits and the material world. The writer believed this could lead to ways of communicating with kansen without the need for blood sacrifice which might prevent spreading the taint. The letter is signed by Akari’s father, Kuni Chiyagi.

It then dawns on Yoshi and Tomo that this is the letter Tsubasa intercepted from Bright Spring Fort. He must have read it and brought it directly to Shoju. If this were to fall into the hands of Kisada, it would implicate the Kuni family in intentionally trying to communicate with kansen, a deeply heretical act.

Shoju then reveals that Hiruma Miroke’s real name is Yogo Kanbaru. She was an agent of the Scorpion living undercover in Otosan Uchi, manipulating the politics at court from behind the scenes. Kanbaru, Shoju said, will travel with Yoshi and put the letter into Kisada’s possession if Yoshi refuses to support Shoju’s claim.

“And if that isn’t enough, we also have your friend Tomo,” Shoju reminded Yoshi.

“If I do what you want, can you let my spirit rest?”

Shoju admitted that he doesn’t know of a way to remove the taint from his armor or to split his spirit from his armor. Shoju believed his best bet would be to return to The High House of Light, Togashi Monastery. Shoju promised that if Yoshi supports his claim to Hida Kisada, then he will ensure his passage to the Dragon lands.

Needing to think things over, Yoshi decided to meditate. In a deep, trance-like state, he sees a light shining from the north. Like a beacon calling home. Yoshi then heard the voice of Togashi Kaiae beckoning him. “We’ve been waiting for you, Yoshi. Come home.”

Credits

Art by Dylon Munoz

Music by Brandon Spain and Podcast of the Five Rings

Artwork by Dylon Munoz

Music by Brandon Spain & Podcast of the Five Rings