[D1 EA] Blessings of Peace

[Kuu]

Kuu sat in silent contemplation of the fortunes for a long while. He was not seeking any answers or questions, but simply trying to be mindful of himself. It didn't go as he had hoped, finding his mind abuzz with thoughts of the wedding later. For now he stood and visited each of the shrines one by one to offer prayers.

D1 EA, Meditation/Void, TN 20: 6d10o10k3 18

[Hisomu Kuni]

At the shrine to Benten, he would have come across a troubled Kuni.

[Anjing Sagara]

Sagara sat in meditation in the shrine to Benten. She mentally prepared herself for the evening events that were to come. Counting with the help of the Fortune Benten seemed to be one of the best options for the samurai-ko of the Crab clan. The samurai-ko breathed in the aroma of the place, filling her lungs with the peaceful essence of the shrine, trying to obtain the ideal mindset for one who is to be in presence of the court.

After a while her eyes opened and she bowed to the shrine before looking about.

Meditation/Void. TN20: 30 - Success

[Kuu]

Approaching the Spider, Kuu greets Kuni. "I hope that Benten blesses you today. I'm no fortune, but is there anything I can help you with?"

[Hisomu Kuni]

Kuni gives a small bow to the monk. "I am not sure. I am to give gift at the wedding but.... well, I didn't join the Spider because I was I was a master speaker. I came to pray to Benten that she would give me guidance to at least not make a fool of myself."

[Kuu]

"You know what I do when I don't want to embarrass myself?" he asks rhetorically.

"I take the risk anyway. Stories that are passed down about the fortunes tend to show that they favor the bold. Just speak from your passion and experience."

"Benten is surely one we hope to bless us when it comes to speaking, but do not forget to ask Fukurokujin as well. He is just as important when we wish to display wisdom. There are a lot of long winded boring people, like myself, that we listen to none the less in the hopes of gleaning insight. Share your insight and impress with knowledge."

[Hisomu Kuni]

Kuni chuckles. "That is my concern. I tend to get too passionate about things. I can talk easily enough, it is stopping that tends to be my issue. But it is important. The darkness that existed down south is gone. There is a whole Realm of it. We cannot allow our victory to cause us to underestimate it. We must always be on guard." Kuni realizes what he is doing. "See. This is what I mean. Maybe I should have made the couple matching kimonos."

[Kuu]

"And deprive them of the truth of you? There are times to speak, times to act, and times to stand aside. They have invited us to share with them this day, to speak your heart to them. Do not avoid being who you are. You are you and you are here because you are you," Kuu says with a smile. "Embrace it."

[Anjing Sagara]

"Those powers in the south" she interjected, "they destroyed my home town and village. I am originally from the Twilight Mountains, and those hordes crossed the borders when I was but a little girl, rampaging through my home and killing my people, I am but what remains. There can be no underestimation of them, not one of them should be allowed to enter our Empire."

The samurai-ko had interrupted the conversation and realized too late that she had yet to introduce herself. "Excuse me, my name is Anjing Sagara."

[Hisomu Kuni]

Kuni gives a bow. "Hisomu Kuni." Did he not tell the monk his name? He just wished there was something he could Jade Strike.

"I understand too well. Though there are no tales of me, I went on the rescue mission to save Hisomu-kami. I have devoted my life to studying the darkness so we will be prepared for it. I would be interested in hearing more of the creatures that attacked your people."

[Anjing Sagara]

The samurai-ko drove her mind to her memories, dark memories that haunted her at night at times. "It was over 15 years ago, I was barely a child of 14 years old, so please forgive me if I am not as accurate as I would had been then. They were giants, much taller than anything I had ever seen, with the shape of a human but bulkier and robust. With wild hair growing from their heads and body, with pale skin and horns growing from their heads. Their mouths were large, the lower jaw protruding from their face because of the large fangs sticking out. The ran into the village with large branches to open their path, destroying our homes and pillaging all they could find. They killed everyone they saw, even if they were not fighting back the plunder. During the fight, a fire started." She reached to her face, where the burning scar, the last and only thing she had remaining from her home, rested. "The fire found those that were hiding. Their screams were heard through the town and caused our morale to die. All I remember after that is the Earth engulfing me and falling asleep till the next day."

[Kuu]

Kuu listens attentively, then speaks after. "I am Kuu, of the Order of Heroes. From the stories I am aware of, they sound like the creatures that killed the hero Taochusu. They were called ogres, but that is all I have heard about them, a description and name. I am glad that you are alive to carry on in the memory of those who came before you, Sagara."

[Anjing Sagara]

"I am so thankful of your words Kuu-san. I have not been blessed with the opportunity of vengeance, and by now I don´t think I could recall the grotesque features of those that were the ones that destroyed my village. But it has awoken in me a desire to fight and maintain these creatures away from our Empire, far from causing pain to any others like they did to me."

[Kuu]

"I know nothing of fighting such creatures, at least not beyond my martial arts training. But I am glad that there are people in the empire that seek the means to fight such enemies. Even with Heaven's blessing, it is still up to us to take action in defending our lands."

[Hisomu Kuni]

Kuni considers the tale and the monks words. "I believe you're right, in a way. Ogres are merely a people like humans and Nezumi. However, the ones that attacked your village sound like they have been Tainted. The most insidious part of Jigoku is that it can become a part of us and twist us into a mockery of what we once were. Jade is key. It's purity will grant some measure of protection onto the wearer and can inflict damage on the Tainted."

((Fluff roll: Lore: Shadowlands/Intelligence: 8d10o10k3 21))

[Anjing Sagara]

"So you are saying that there are some amongst the ogres that are free from the dark influence of the realm of evil? That these creatures that attacked my home were influenced by the dark realm?" The information caused shock in the woman, it had changed her perception of the attack. She had thought that these creatures were from evil, beasts and barbarous savages created in the worst of realms to torment the world of NingenDo, but if they could be like the Nezumi, if they could be beings capable of good, then she could not just take retaliation towards the whole race. "The power of Jigoku, and the Jade to resist it...Could it be true that these creatures could do good?" She thought out mostly to herself after remembering their faces and bodies.

[Hisomu Kuni]

Kuni nods. "I believe so. Though how much of their race fell to the Taint and how much escaped it is unknown to me. Though I do remember a half-ogre who went down to rescue Hisomu-kami with us, so some must have escaped it."

[Kuu]

"That half-ogre is also the woman that helped her tribe become the Ongaku family, accepted by the emperor into our society. I have seen members of that family here in the Imperial city, with their horns giving away their heritage," Kuu says with a nod. "I'm no expert on the realm of evil, but the stories of the expedition mention things like misshaped or overly large predators and animals, even though animals are not naturally evil. It makes sense that ogres may be the same."

[Anjing Sagara]

"A mixed race? Interesting. Maybe I should try to get to meet one of the family to change my perspective on their family and gain some more knowledge on their race."

A race of ogres that were peace keepers... if the Emperor had made an imperial family of the race, did it mean they really were trustworthy?

"My memories of their type are not good, but it could be because of the tainted ones."

[Kuu]

"If they are intelligent creatures, then they likely must be measured by individual actions rather than as a whole. We might say that all Nezumi are furry, but if there is one that shaves, or a tribe that has no fur then we are not entirely correct. Jumping to conclusions based on limited interaction can lead to misunderstanding and distrust that might harm us more than keep us safe."