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Fronts in Gold
Fronts in Gold
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Five Paths and One Destination: A Tale of the Crab
By Hida Togeriso, Crab Clan Lore keeper
Five Days: The Kaiu
I look again and again over the scrolls in front of me, too tired to realize
that I can do no more tonight. Instead of getting a tiny amount of rest to
clear my mind, I ignore my weary body and drink another cup of strong tea.
The cha is cold now, but I force myself to drink it all before
returning to the challenge at hand.
I am a samurai of the Crab Clan assigned to logistics. It is I, along with
countless others, who ensure that there is a steady supply of jade powder,
food and weapons for the samurai along Kaiu Kabe. Though trained by the Kaiu
in all matters of logistics, I was fortunate enough to travel to the lands
of the Lion Clan and study with samurai who also deal with the materials of
war.
There are acceptable standards for how much equipment a samurai can call
upon during battle. Arrows for those with yumi, equipment for cleaning
swords, access to armorers and weaponsmiths...all of these factors must be
considered, then multiplied to account for an entire Clan of warriors. The
chain of supply is of vital importance to the Crab Clan, who is unique among
the clans in that they fight every day against the Shadowlands. From
scouting missions into the lands of Fu Leng to the siege engines that wipe
out charging armies of goblins and oni, the tactical importance of supply is
an overwhelming responsibility I face every day and is something that I have
strongly believed in for the past six years.
It is for these beliefs that I was selected for the task I now face.
Two days ago, I was presented with a challenge, or as I was told, a tactical
exercise based on the past. The terms of the challenge were simple to convey
yet difficult to execute.
During the reign of Hantei the 39th, the Crab Clan was faced with the unique
task of having to go to war with the other Great Clans of the Emerald
Empire. The Daimyo of the Crab at that time was the Great Bear, Hida Kisada
and faced with having to go to war against the Great Clans while already
fighting the growing forces of the Shadowlands, Kisada had to find a way to
fight a war on two different fronts.
His solution on the problems of supply was to remove one front. As many
samurai within our clan know, Kisada was persuaded by Kuni Yori to make an
alliance with the Shadowlands. In addition to gaining additional forces for
the Clan Wars, Kisada could now focus the entirety of the Crab's war machine
on battle with the other clans.
The challenge posed to me however, requires that I must work out a plan of
logistics on two fronts. The option chosen by Kisada is not available to me,
and as a further stipulation, I must come up with the logistical plans
within five days.
I have less than three days remaining and I have come up with nothing.
I call out for more tea and rub my eyes. I have an entire Clan depending on
my answers and sleep is a luxury that few Crab samurai are ever able to
afford. There is a solution and I will find it.
***
Underlying and Absolute: The Hida
The Oni was fast, tearing apart the first berserker who stepped in its way.
The samurai was able to at strike at least once before he died though, and
the Oni's deep scream told us that it was not immune to jade.
I attacked from one side, my tetsubo breaking bones along the side of the
Oni. Another samurai threw himself in front of the creature. Armed with two
tantos dipped in jade powder, he drove both blades into the creature's
throat and twisted.
The Oni dropped to its knees, its attack and fury forgotten as jade mixed in
and flowed into its body. It began to tremble and quiver, unable to stop me
from raising my tetsubo and driving it down. Once, twice, then silence when
the creature finally died.
A samurai with an ono sheared off the creature's head with two powerful
strokes, then both the head and the body were set ablaze. As two samurai
watched the body to ensure that it did not rise again, the rest of us
watched the remaining Shadowlands creatures flee from the Kaiu Walls. One
samurai in particular did not stop staring until there were only dark specks
on the shifting horizon.
"A fast battle, Hida Kiyane-sama," the samurai commented to me.
I shrugged. "They often are," I finally said. "Thankfully they did not press
their attack so I only lost one samurai."
"Do you lose many samurai under your command?" the samurai asked, and I
laughed at his bluntness. Two weeks on the Wall and he was finally learning
to say what was on his mind.
"We all lose samurai. Of this group alone, there have been forty casualties.
The Shadowlands are probing for weaknesses, and so their raids are taking
more of a toll then normal."
"I see," said the samurai. "And will they find a weakness?"
I turned and stared at the samurai. Lifting my tetsubo onto my shoulder, I
looked very hard into the samurai's eyes. Both of us knew the real question
on his mind.
"They will find no weakness," I answered. "No matter what happens, we remain
steadfast in our duty."
The samurai nodded and said nothing else as we continued to patrol Kaiu
Kabe.
***
Clarity: The Kuni
It was heavy in my hands despite its delicate looking appearance. I wrapped
it in several layers of silk, placed it on one of my tables and then sat
down to think of what to do next.
The choice had seemed so easy when I had begun the journey, but now I was
unsure. As the days passed during my travels, the rumors spread across the
land. Some merely accepted it, while others began preparations...just in
case. I was one of those who felt that all options had to be explored, even
options that had been tried before.
It had not been as confusing as my mind felt now. Things had been very clear
as I had sought out what now lay on my table. They needed to be reminded of
what we protected them from. They needed to see that we did not have time
for their petty games. They needed to see what we had to concern ourselves
with.
Of course, there would be those who would disagree with my point of view. My
argument was one that had been brought up before in the past, and each time
then it had ended in disaster. My thoughts on the matter were that maybe
there should be a disaster. Let them see what happens when they pester us,
and they will scramble to leave us alone. Let them see what happens when
they try to take from us.
I stood up, and walked towards the table. I peeled back the silk and stared
at the object in my hands. Despite being centuries old, the porcelain shone
as though it were brand new. No signs of cracking could be seen, and the
suggestion of a smile gave it an aspect of life.
My doubts disappeared as I felt the clarity of insight open in my mind. This
object had the potential to save the Clan I served. It was my duty to
explore this potential and determine whether it could be used against our
enemies. I stared once more at the object, and then decided that it was time
to perform experiments.
***
Pressures, Pyres: The Yasuki
I apologize now for the poor quality of this writing. It is because my hands
are shaking, and my hands are shaking because I am slowly dying.
The wound is quite small. A simple thrust in the right side of my body. It
bleeds slowly, and has been doing so for several minutes. I have not cried
out since having the wound inflicted upon me. Tell that to my son when you
give him my swords that accompany this letter delivered by my yojimbo.
Perhaps Tozawa will be proud of me after all and forgive me for sending you
all home before it came to this. It will take some time for me to die.
I have learned a few things since you have left to return to our ancestral
lands. Three others, myself being the fourth have been under similar
pressures. I am proud to say that none of them gave in, though their lives
were swiftly taken soon after. Magistrates assigned to each incident have
dismissed it as a rash of banditry.
I do not think it will take as long to die as I thought. Yusai has just told
me that they are nearby.
My wife, I will wait for you in the Heavens. If our child in two months is a
boy, send him to his uncle in the Hida family for training when he comes of
age. If we are blessed with a girl, I leave her training in your capable
hands.
Let the Crab know that they have nothing to fear. As soon as Yusai and Tono
leave I will put the warehouse to flame. If my clan cannot have the supplies
contained within, then neither shall they.
It will be a grand sight. The flames might even consume the nearby warehouse
belonging to Jingao. A final strike at him would please my soul.
Good bye.
***
The Feel of a New Land: The Hiruma
For the second time today, Hiruma Nitobe vigorously shook his head and then
looked out over the lands before him. It was a habit he did when he wished
to rid his mind of all pestering thoughts, and today was proving to be a
difficult time to remove the thoughts on his mind.
Coming into focus after considerable effort, Nitobe began to tap into the
mental training taught to him by the Hiruma Family and surveyed the land he
was gazing at. It was a process that involved several hours of sitting and
staring at land, and was somewhat different from the quick gaze and memorize
process he was used to. Hiruma and Kaiu engineers could perform more
accurate surveys, but that involved equipment, several days of supplies and
a small group of samurai. Instead, several Hiruma scouts were sent out and
doing the same thing that Hiruma Nitobe was doing-staring and memorizing
large expanses of land while in a near-perfect state of motionless. Once
every feature was mentally recorded, the Hiruma scouts would use all means
of stealth to return to the provinces of the Crab and update maps.
It was the third such survey within the past two weeks for Hiruma Nitobe,
and it was becoming more and more difficult. On this survey alone, Nitobe
had avoided contact with patrols twice, and he was sure that it was no mere
coincidence.
Finally, after six hours of surveying, Hiruma Nitobe slowly raised himself
from his cover and began the journey back to the Crab lands. He was pleased
with the difficulty he was facing these past two weeks and proud of his
skills in evasion and stealth. Perhaps his next mission would
require him to travel even farther into the lands of the Crane.
END, P. Thorgrimson