Scenes from the Empire

A series of vignettes from around the Empire of Rokugan.

Scenes from the Empire

By Brian Yoon and Rusty Priske

Edited by Fred Wan

Somewhere in the Scorpion provinces

“You must call a withdrawal, Demopen-sama,” the haggard Hiruma said. “The Destroyers will reach this town in a matter of hours, and they will leave nothing behind. Their numbers are much greater than we had expected and they will make short work of our forces.”

Hida Demopen stood at the top of the hill, one hand gently resting on the hilt of his tetsubo, and said nothing. Despite the proximity of the dangers, the village still continued to thrive. The peasants of the land did not want to abandon the place they called home, and they valiantly strived to continue their everyday activities. With the presence of the Destroyers, that would all change. The exact nature of that change hinged on his orders.

Bayushi Kosaku shook his head. “It is not yet time to withdraw. We can use the villagers’ help to build our trap.”

Doji Shikana smiled at the recent arrival. “Is there anything we can do to delay their arrival?”

“It is already being done, my lady,” he answered. “The Scorpion scouts are currently doing their best with harrying tactics, but the enemy will arrive at this village by the end of the day at the latest.”

Kosaku placed two fingers on the bridge of his nose and absentmindedly tapped the ridges of his mask. “Our forces are slowing their advance, but committing them further promises only their futile deaths, not further success. We are fortunate that it only appears to be an offshoot of the main army that is headed in this direction.”

“Fortunate?” Shikana spat, her voice laced with hostility. “If this group had not broken away from the rest of the Destroyers, we would not be facing this problem. Somehow this group broke through the battle lines. We should not be facing them at all, let alone with the limited resources we have available.”

“No one here is doubting the bravery of your people, Kosaku-san,” Demopen said.

“Is that so, Demopen-san? I wonder…” Kosaku mused.

“I do not doubt your bravery, Kosaku-san,” Shikana said. “However, rather than speak properly, I shall speak freely. Your plan is a waste. It will devastate these lands for no benefit.”

“That would be the logical conclusion,” Kosaku answered. “That is why the gaijin mind leading their expedition would never think we would dare do it. They will fall into the trap piecemeal.”

“How are you so sure it will work?” Demopen asked.

Shikana crossed her arms in front of her. “It will not work,” she said emphatically.

“The rice paddies are well irrigated,” Kosaku said. “It will hide the dragon’s teeth we can place throughout the land. We lace the land with oil and importune the fire kami nearby so that they may ignite at the proper moment. When the Destroyers arrive, they will be burnt to a crisp.”

“My shugenja warn me that calling that many fire kami to this area may cause them to encourage each other and rage on beyond our control,” Shikana warned.

“I know,” Kosaku said.

“The Destroyers will not enter your rice paddies without sufficient reason,” Shikana continued.

“That is why a group of Scorpion archers have volunteered to stay behind after we retreat,” Kosaku said. “They will goad the Destroyers into the trap and make sure they are caught without hope of escape.”

Shikana frowned. “There is no way those men can escape before the trap catches them along with the prey.”

“They have no such intentions,” Kosaku said. “They will make sure that the trap will spring exactly when needed.”

“You’re throwing away lives and valuable land for food on a gamble?” Shikana asked, her voice growing louder with each word.

“You don’t understand exactly what’s at stake,” Kosaku answered, his voice cold steel to counter her fiery anger.

Demopen spoke up, interrupting the pair. “It will wound them and that is enough reason to do it. We shall follow your plan, Kosaku-san, except for one change. Crab warriors will stand by your men and help draw them in to our trap.”

Kosaku smiled with little mirth in the expression. “I warn you. What we do here will not drive the Destroyers out for long,” he said. “As your Crane advisor tells you, there is no guarantee of success.”

“No, it won’t hold them for long,” Demopen agreed. “Still, if it will stop them for one week… if it destroys one of their units, it will be worth it.”

“Even if the cost is too great to bear?” Shikana asked hotly.

Demopen turned away from the others and began to walk toward the digging. “We’ve already paid it tenfold,” he answered over his shoulder. “The Crab only continue to pay it.”

Kosaku followed at his heels and placed a hand on the Crab commander’s shoulder. Demopen stopped and stared at the magistrate. “I will help you, Demopen-sama,” Kosaku said.

Demopen nodded. The two leaders joined common laborers as they dug and prepared the land for the brutality to come.

* * * * * * * * * *

Mirumoto Gonkuro felt the rock beneath his feet and smelled the air around him. There was an acrid hint to his environs. Fire had come to these mountains and it was not content to leave a swath of charred brush and blackened stone as if from a lightning strike. This fire was malevolent and would not stop until all of Rokugan was a cinder.

Gonkuro drew his blades and cleared his mind of all thoughts. He welcomed the void and the world fell away. He became one with the rocks and the trees. He became one with the fire.

Without warning he darts to his right, moving quickly across the rock face. He is as sure-footed as the Togashi that he has fought beside. He drops into a small gully and dashes down it, knowing that it is the quickest way to reach his destination but also knowing he would not want to be caught while still inside it.

He reaches his egress point unaccosted and he returns his wakazashi to its saya so he has a free hand to reach up for the tree root that breaks through the rock wall. With one hand on the root and one foot on the wall he vaults up until he crouches on the ridge, scanning the space around him. The scent was now stronger and it was impossible not to hear the Yobanjin as they made their way up the mountain.

Gonkuro redraws his wakazashi as he runs along the ridge. When he reaches the end of it, he slides down a loose shale, directly into the end of the Yobanjin line, catching them completely by surprise and leaving two lying in their own blood – not dead, but certainly incapacitated.

Fighting to wound is not a strategy that Gonkuro approves of, but the Dragon knows of the Army of Dark Fire and knows what happens when these men, powered by the sorceries of the Dark Oracle of Fire, are struck down. He needs them to die slowly, to give him time to move clear.

Two more fall at his feet and Gonkuro knows that his hit and run tactics have borne fruit, but he also knows he needs to put the second part of his plan in action.

He leaps away from the remaining Yobanjin and dashes along the path to the spot where he knows he can scramble up a rock wall where his enemy cannot follow. It will give him cover from the flame that will soon engulf the area.

He has miscalculated. This is not the end of the Yobanjin line. As he turns away he is met by three more of the warriors bearing down on him. Distracted by his thoughts of escape, he turns into them to catch a spear in his left side, below his ribs. It finds its way through his armor and sinks deeply.

He tries to use his wakazashi to block the next thrust but his arm hangs uselessly at his side and his blade falls to the ground.

The second spear goes through his right leg. He will not be leaping up any more rock walls.

His katana sings as he swings it at his enemies but the ones behind him have caught up and one of them buries his sword deep into Gonkuro’s back.

The Dragon dies before he hits the ground.

Gonkuro felt the void and ceased the visualization. He moved on.

Without warning he darts to his left, moving quickly into the scraggly trees that mark the mountain face. He crouches as he runs, to better avoid the odd tree branch that obstructs his path. He still has to dash back and forth to avoid the lower branches. He could easily brush them aside, but he would prefer to leave them unmarked, in case the Yobanjin retain any of their skill as trackers while under the thrall of the Dark Oracle of Fire.

Gonkuro moves through the trees, already sparse and becoming more so as he gets closer to the end of the Yobanjin line. Soon he will have no cover.

He swings further to his left, hoping to minimize the number of the enemy that he will have to contend with initially. His goal is to move in, wound with the intent of having them bleed out onto the mountain stone, and get away before the fire takes them.

It will be difficult, as the fire will likely engulf his escape route. The trees will go up like kindling and he will have to be past them quickly. But the Yobanjin know that the Dragon prefer to fight them on open ground so surprise may be his ally.

He reaches the edge of the trees and maintains his crouch as he runs across the rock at his first target. His guess was correct and the Yobanjin are focusing their attention away from the trees, assuming no attack would come from there.

He has too much ground to cover, however, and he is spotted before he is half way to his destination.

As the Yobanjin calls out a warning he throws one of their deadly spears, but Gonkuro deftly avoids it. He moves quickly, but the other Yobanjin have moved in as well, and the Dragon is clearly outnumbered.

His swords flash and he leaves cuts across two midsections. The warriors fall to their knees, trying to keep their inner organs from tumbling to the ground.

He moves among them, picking up a nick or small cut here and there but they are no match for his technique, and even as limited as his strikes could be, he is still efficient and cold.

Then he turns at the sound of an approaching enemy and his katana sinks into the flesh of one of his foes.

Gonkuro immediately realizes what has happened and he tries to rush away from the dying man. He is unable to move as quickly as he would like as more Yobanjin rush to meet his attack.

He counts the time down in his head and realizes it has run out. The fallen Yobanjin explodes in a conflagration of magic fire. Gonkuro feels it strike his back with heat reminiscent of Tamori’s Furnace. He feels the flesh boil away from his bones and then nothing.

Gonkuro felt the void and ceased the visualization. He moved on.

Without warning he darts forward, moving quickly across the rock face, trees falling away to his left and a broken gully to his right.

It seems like a haphazard move, as he will be striking the center of the Yobanjin line single-handedly. He will have the advantage of being unpredictable, but there is generally a reason why people operate in predictable ways during war. The predictable ways are usually the ways that will more likely end up in their favor.

Gonkuro makes no effort to disguise his approach. There would be no point, and if he has timed them well, they will meet at the point of his choosing.

The Yobanjin see him, as expected, and start converging on his location, as expected.

The first of them reach Gonkuro as he moves past the long gully to the right. He moves with his back to the gully, which seems like yet another odd tactical move on behalf of the Dragon. He has intentionally limited his own range of movement. If he tries to retreat at any point, the Yobanjin can totally overwhelm him.

His attackers do not try to understand the odd moves of the Dragon, they simply try to take advantage.

Gonkuro’s edge in skill and speed serve him well, as he holds off the Yobanjin attack for a full minute. He wounds when he can and limits the nicks and cuts he receives, until the overwhelming force of his opponents is just too much. He eyes the numbers arrayed against him and realizes that he can wait no longer.

Gonkuro’s katana flashes and the head of one of his opponents falls at his feet. As the body falls, Gonkuro can see the light growing within it. The Dragon blocks a few more lunges and then steps backwards, into the gully.

As he falls, he rolls himself into a ball, tucking his head into his chest. He feels the explosion above him more than he sees it. He lands hard, his swords thrown clear as his armor clatters around him.

He looks up to see a wave of fire crossing the top of the gully. He hears further explosions as the blast catches more and more of the Yobanjin who had been drawn into to his irresistible bait. He lies still and counts the number, trying to estimate the number of Yobanjin who would no longer be threatening Rokugan.

He guessed around twenty and was satisfied with the number. He pulled himself back to his feet. His muscles ached from the foolhardy drop into the gully, but such pain seemed a small cost.