Post by Bayushi Senshi on Jan 17, 2011 12:45:54 GMT -5
::Reposted from the old forums, written by Matt Henderson (Bayushi Matashi)::
Good afternoon to my fellow members of this glorious winter court, and I would like to thank our gracious hosts the great family Doji. I have been selected by our most glorious champion to petition my friends, allies and rivals as to the positions the scorpion feel are most viable as we enter the last month of court.
I would like first and foremost to discuss the most important policy discussion happening at this court, the possession of the black scrolls. There is no question that the Scorpion alone as capable of maintaining the secrets of the empire, as was our heritage given to us by the glorious emperor Hantei. It is undeniable that in the histories of Rokugan that the phoenix cannot be entrusted with the scrolls; during a very dark time in our lands, the Phoenix purchased a number of black scrolls from a single disloyal and dishonorable person who sought personal gain over the safety of the empire. Did the Phoenix seek these scrolls to keep them safe following the fall of a Scorpion Shugenja to the possession of the ninth Kami? No, they sought to open them, to study them, and to risk the destruction of our glorious empire for personal gain.
It is not the pervue of the Scorpion to seek scholarly knowledge, we have no such interest in having the scrolls opened to learn from them. We seek to keep them hidden and safe from the hands of those who might use them to gain the horrible power contained within them. During those dark days, it was not for scholarly pursuits that the fallen Yogo was possessed by the kami who must not be named, it was due to the influence of pure evil upon his soul that he was forced to open the first two scrolls. The Yogo understood that he was doing evil, he was not afforded the opportunity to resist his possession. He opened them for purely evil motivations, but understood that his actions would result in nothing short of the destruction of Rokugan.
The Phoenix, however, had no such reason for opening the scrolls in their possession; they felt that it was not merely wise, but good and for the good of their people that these scrolls must be opened. They did not open the scrolls because they were possessed by a purely evil force, they wanted to know what was inside. They were curious, they sought the knowledge and power held within them for their own gains. Is it worse to be forced into acting in an unforgiveable way, or to do so acting upon your own wishes? The Scorpion have made mistakes in the past, but we understand the truth behind the dangers of the Black Scrolls; can you all state without any hesitation that the Phoenix understand the same? If given the scrolls, can you know certainly that the scholarly shugenja of the Phoenix will not seek to master their powers once more?
Secondly, we must discuss the issue of peace in the central provinces between the Lion and the Crane. The scorpion feel that it is important at times for war to break out, as there are many positive elements to inter-clan combat (the glorious death of samurai, the economic boon for many resource-heavy provinces, and the political gains amongst those who might seek to influence the provincial borders following a glorious war), but in this case it is not for the benefit of the empire for this war to break out. There is no question amongst my fellow courtiers that the Spider have had their fingers in this issue since the very beginning; even insofar as there is little question as to the identity of the "Lion Bushi" present at three sides river on that fateful day. If it had been my brothers murdered on that day, there is no question I would be the first to seek vengeance on the field of battle; but is there any glory in seeking vengeance against a party who did not cause the initial offense? The Crane may desire blood for the loss of their brothers; but I have ehard that even they have seen the virtue in looking for the true perpetrator of this crime, and seek to maintain peaceful relations with the Lion.
There can be no allowance given to the Spider Clan for having begun this conflict in the first place; they have sought to influence this glorious empire for centuries, either by invading with the spawn of the kami who must not be named, or most recently through political means, infiltrating the clans, or disguising themselves in a most shameful way as a rival clan hoping to start a war that will give them an opening to influence the political ramifications without fear of retribution. We must not provide them this opening, we must keep the children of the Shadowlands limited to their realm, we cannot allow them to influence our Empire any more than they already have.
Third, we must explore the value of allowing the Mantis to explore trade routes in the Gaijin lands, most importantly the Ivory Kingdoms. It is the position of the Scorpion that this should be encouraged; there is too much to be gained from exploring this path to be quelched. We are living in an empire that has been scorched by invading forces, by deathly plague, and we stand on the precipice of war that will undoubtedly engulf every last samurai amongst us. It is the opinion of the Scorpion that the opportunity to learn from the Gaijin and to trade our resources for spices and goods from beyond the Shadowlands will loosen the grasp of poverty that has struck us plainly and it falls to the Mantis to ensure that those negotiations take place fairly and without corruption. Being already very influential within the economy of our empire, and boasting the greatest navy amongst our many clans, the Mantis alone are well-suited for this task, and if we are to deny them the opportunity, it will harm our relations not only with the Mantis, but deny us the opportunity to develop trade and diplomatic relations with the Gaijin. We have lived long enough under the shadow of the ninth kami; perhaps it is time that we learned to live alongside those outside our lands; providing our empire with resources, riches, and technologies that we may never have acquired and that may provide us with the opportunity to beat back the Shadowlands once and for all.
Lastly we must explore the ramifications of the recent invasion of Kyuden Tonbo by the Lion and the rebuilding process that is presently taking place. It is the position of the Scorpion that we must provide them with all of the help we can afford in order to ensure that the home of the Dragonfly can once again thrive as the principal border keep between the Samurai of the Lion and the Monks of the Dragon. If we cannot afford the resources to help rebuild a poor and ramsacked city, then we should be ashamed. The Tonbo did nothing to deserve the destruction of their lands; it is our honorable duty as samurai of the empire to help them as much as possible. Hopefully this battle can be put behind us, knowing that it will never be forgotten by those involved.
I thank you for this opportunity to speak on behalf of my brothers and sisters; let us enter this final month of Winter Court standing together on the right side of history. These are perhaps some of the most important political events that have occurred in many years, and to answer these vital questions wrongly could spell doom for the empire.
Bayushi Matashi, first amongst Scorpion Courtiers ::Edit:: And Bayushi Family Daimyo
Good afternoon to my fellow members of this glorious winter court, and I would like to thank our gracious hosts the great family Doji. I have been selected by our most glorious champion to petition my friends, allies and rivals as to the positions the scorpion feel are most viable as we enter the last month of court.
I would like first and foremost to discuss the most important policy discussion happening at this court, the possession of the black scrolls. There is no question that the Scorpion alone as capable of maintaining the secrets of the empire, as was our heritage given to us by the glorious emperor Hantei. It is undeniable that in the histories of Rokugan that the phoenix cannot be entrusted with the scrolls; during a very dark time in our lands, the Phoenix purchased a number of black scrolls from a single disloyal and dishonorable person who sought personal gain over the safety of the empire. Did the Phoenix seek these scrolls to keep them safe following the fall of a Scorpion Shugenja to the possession of the ninth Kami? No, they sought to open them, to study them, and to risk the destruction of our glorious empire for personal gain.
It is not the pervue of the Scorpion to seek scholarly knowledge, we have no such interest in having the scrolls opened to learn from them. We seek to keep them hidden and safe from the hands of those who might use them to gain the horrible power contained within them. During those dark days, it was not for scholarly pursuits that the fallen Yogo was possessed by the kami who must not be named, it was due to the influence of pure evil upon his soul that he was forced to open the first two scrolls. The Yogo understood that he was doing evil, he was not afforded the opportunity to resist his possession. He opened them for purely evil motivations, but understood that his actions would result in nothing short of the destruction of Rokugan.
The Phoenix, however, had no such reason for opening the scrolls in their possession; they felt that it was not merely wise, but good and for the good of their people that these scrolls must be opened. They did not open the scrolls because they were possessed by a purely evil force, they wanted to know what was inside. They were curious, they sought the knowledge and power held within them for their own gains. Is it worse to be forced into acting in an unforgiveable way, or to do so acting upon your own wishes? The Scorpion have made mistakes in the past, but we understand the truth behind the dangers of the Black Scrolls; can you all state without any hesitation that the Phoenix understand the same? If given the scrolls, can you know certainly that the scholarly shugenja of the Phoenix will not seek to master their powers once more?
Secondly, we must discuss the issue of peace in the central provinces between the Lion and the Crane. The scorpion feel that it is important at times for war to break out, as there are many positive elements to inter-clan combat (the glorious death of samurai, the economic boon for many resource-heavy provinces, and the political gains amongst those who might seek to influence the provincial borders following a glorious war), but in this case it is not for the benefit of the empire for this war to break out. There is no question amongst my fellow courtiers that the Spider have had their fingers in this issue since the very beginning; even insofar as there is little question as to the identity of the "Lion Bushi" present at three sides river on that fateful day. If it had been my brothers murdered on that day, there is no question I would be the first to seek vengeance on the field of battle; but is there any glory in seeking vengeance against a party who did not cause the initial offense? The Crane may desire blood for the loss of their brothers; but I have ehard that even they have seen the virtue in looking for the true perpetrator of this crime, and seek to maintain peaceful relations with the Lion.
There can be no allowance given to the Spider Clan for having begun this conflict in the first place; they have sought to influence this glorious empire for centuries, either by invading with the spawn of the kami who must not be named, or most recently through political means, infiltrating the clans, or disguising themselves in a most shameful way as a rival clan hoping to start a war that will give them an opening to influence the political ramifications without fear of retribution. We must not provide them this opening, we must keep the children of the Shadowlands limited to their realm, we cannot allow them to influence our Empire any more than they already have.
Third, we must explore the value of allowing the Mantis to explore trade routes in the Gaijin lands, most importantly the Ivory Kingdoms. It is the position of the Scorpion that this should be encouraged; there is too much to be gained from exploring this path to be quelched. We are living in an empire that has been scorched by invading forces, by deathly plague, and we stand on the precipice of war that will undoubtedly engulf every last samurai amongst us. It is the opinion of the Scorpion that the opportunity to learn from the Gaijin and to trade our resources for spices and goods from beyond the Shadowlands will loosen the grasp of poverty that has struck us plainly and it falls to the Mantis to ensure that those negotiations take place fairly and without corruption. Being already very influential within the economy of our empire, and boasting the greatest navy amongst our many clans, the Mantis alone are well-suited for this task, and if we are to deny them the opportunity, it will harm our relations not only with the Mantis, but deny us the opportunity to develop trade and diplomatic relations with the Gaijin. We have lived long enough under the shadow of the ninth kami; perhaps it is time that we learned to live alongside those outside our lands; providing our empire with resources, riches, and technologies that we may never have acquired and that may provide us with the opportunity to beat back the Shadowlands once and for all.
Lastly we must explore the ramifications of the recent invasion of Kyuden Tonbo by the Lion and the rebuilding process that is presently taking place. It is the position of the Scorpion that we must provide them with all of the help we can afford in order to ensure that the home of the Dragonfly can once again thrive as the principal border keep between the Samurai of the Lion and the Monks of the Dragon. If we cannot afford the resources to help rebuild a poor and ramsacked city, then we should be ashamed. The Tonbo did nothing to deserve the destruction of their lands; it is our honorable duty as samurai of the empire to help them as much as possible. Hopefully this battle can be put behind us, knowing that it will never be forgotten by those involved.
I thank you for this opportunity to speak on behalf of my brothers and sisters; let us enter this final month of Winter Court standing together on the right side of history. These are perhaps some of the most important political events that have occurred in many years, and to answer these vital questions wrongly could spell doom for the empire.
Bayushi Matashi, first amongst Scorpion Courtiers ::Edit:: And Bayushi Family Daimyo