Kusamakura: The Journal of a Young Ox

[Kasuga Shinobu]

(ooc; In the tradition that was started with Taikan, though no talk of pillow book romance this time! )

I have lived my entire life up in the mountains and plains of the Ox clan lands. I have traveled recently through the lands of the Unicorn, Phoenix and Dragon, but many of those lands remind me of my own; cold, mountainous, with many wide open plains as well. The forest of the Phoenix were unlike anything I'd seen before, especially Isawa Mori, though I never went into the forest itself. Katai did not seem to like the look of it, and it seemed very enclosed and dark in there. Perhaps I will visit there another time and see the beauty that the Asako spoke of.

Oh, and before I forget, I saw the ocean for the first time! In truth I barely paid attention during my lessons at Shiro Shiba. My hosts seemed very understanding that I spent just as much time just looking at the ocean as conversing with them or assisting them in their duties. Few there seemed to understand the comparison I made between the waves and the wind blowing through the tall grasses of the Dragon Heart Plains, but it did me well to understand it none the less.

I have since moved on quite far, though it seems as if only a little time has passed. I went south to pass on a message to the Kasuga about the Alliance, but I continued on to Lion lands. I had gone west to cross at the river rather than go directly south from the Tortoise lands, and ran into a bandit patrol that seemed to have taken up Drowned Merchant River for an easy target. I managed to drive them away after a bloody battle, and found an elegant looking daisho with the mon of the Lion on it. I'd never been south of the River before, and Lion lands seemed quite strange to me, though the fields were lovely, and winter seemed much less harsh as I went more south.

I was directed, eventually, to the lands of the Ikoma. They appeared to have a lot in common with the Morito, though they weren't quite as short and seemed to have a different sense of practicality. None the less, my time spent in their Hall of Records was pleasant, and I was eventually led to Shiro Akodo, where I found the father of the man that lost the Daisho. He seemed pleased to have it back, but in a sad sort of way.

I felt glad to have the daisho returned, but I was immediately approached to find a lost member of the Ikoma. I was sent even further south, over the Spine of the World Mountains and down to Sparrow lands. It's warm down here still, and it was quite dry through Scorpion lands. In Sparrow lands I found evidence that I was to go even further south. I camp now at Kyuden Suzume after returning with a woman that was surrounded by yet more bandits that I rescued. I will ask her in the morning where to go from here, but... I know that no matter what she says, it will be yet a new adventure for me.

- Morito Shizuyo

[Bayushi Senshi]

(OOC: Gaaaawww, shucks.)

[kasuga]

Cheer!

[Kasuga Shinobu]

The woman I rescued had fallen ill, and I have been informed it is in my best interest to give her time to recover. While I would prefer to follow the trail given to my by the Lion while it is still fresh, it seemed I would do well to make myself useful elsewhere in the meantime. Besides, the land of the Suzume was taxing on me. The Golden Sun Plains below are lovely, but the place up in the hills that I was staying at was barren and dry.

Wanting to explore more, and to have a chance to get to know the other clan descended from the Unicorn, the Fox, though now they are only the Kitsune family of the Mantis. The Kitsune Mori is not quite the same as the Isawa Mori, but I still found it quite intimidating. Much like the ruins of Shiro Chuda not far from my home, the Kitsune Mori seems to me to have a lingering magical aura to it, as if great magic had been done there. The host I had in Kitsune lands told me it was from the strong connections the forest has with Chikushudo, but I know nothing of that sort of thing. Regardless, the forest is lighter, more lovely, and Katai seemed a lot more comfortable going in it, though I had to give him a few extra carrots when we stopped.

The Kitsune are a kind people, though they seem divided in mind. I can only account it to their recent joining to the Mantis. Many seem happy, optimistic even, and the Yoritomo and Moshi all over the city seem to share that feeling. However, I've seen others that seem to feel their independence lost is a loss to themselves. None said as such aloud, but at the Red Leaf Inn that I stayed at, I caught more than a few mistrustful looks at the tables of Yoritomo from the servants.

It was a grand time though. No horse training to speak of, just as in the Suzume lands, but I got to witness the Kitsune's special brand of magic. I also had the opportunity to meet at their court, which they still hold even being in the Mantis. They remember their ties to the Suzume and Usagi well, and thus their ties to the Minor Clans.

As I write this I've left those lands however. Perhaps I write of them so because I have made my way west to Shiro Kuni in Crab lands. I hold a lot of respect for the Crab. They have a practicality and sense of strength that I share, as do many Ox. The Kuni, however, are hardly typical Crab, from those I have met. My room is pleasant enough, but this castle has a chill to it. In the morning I will be studying with them to help with the Shadowlands, something they seem to present the option of to me with some humor. Even if I get little out of it, I will take all I can. After all, even the most surly Kuni can not drown out the spirit of a true daughter of Morito!

~Morito Shizuyo

[Kasuga Shinobu]

I look back at the last page I wrote and wonder that I could ever feel so bad about a place as I had with the lands of the Kuni. I admit that it is a shadow blasted place, and that the Kuni have every right to be unfriendly given their duty, but my eyes had many more things to see. Now, as I rest in a camp with only the dimmest of fire's for light, I realize the full extent of the duty the sons and daughters of Hida have upon their shoulders.

From Shiro Kuni I headed to the mightiest fortress in the Empire, Kyuden Hida. I had heard tales of the castle city, everyone has, but seeing it up close was something else all together. Columns of troops were constantly at practice, and I saw a contingent of bushi heading southwest, toward what I assumed was the wall. The citizens of the city, despite the obvious hardships, seemed happy, happier than any I had seen since Unicorn lands. Despite the flat terrain in the area, and the starkness of it, Hida lands felt a little more like home to me.

My time in Kyuden Hida were spent roughly, and they treated me like a true soldier. I practiced with them in their dojo, mostly Jiujutsu, but also with the Tetsubo. I also spent some time in their war college learning of the shadowlands, tactics used against creatures from there... all very mind opening. Though we get gaki and bloodspeakers from Shiro Chuda's ruins, I had never seen a Bakemono or an Oni before. Not before now at least. Before I left, I was even given the privilege of guarding the gates to the city. It was, the Hida beside me on duty informed me, a formal duty for honored guests; no large force had attacked the city in some time. None the less, a part of me had wished for action, to prove my worth to the decedents of the Kami.

I have proven myself since, but not in any glorious battle at the gates of the castle. After my last day in Kyuden Hida I journeyed to a place called Carpenter Pass. The mountains here are shorter than up north, but no less bleak. Yesterday I spent time with a mixed patrol of Hida and Hiruma, who looked stark and serious, but seemed quite skilled at tracking. We guarded the pass, patrolling it's length until we came upon Bakemono tracks. My blood is up, and I can hardly sleep. They assure me it will be easy in the morning when we ambush them, that it's a small patrol and that it's only Bakemono. Katai seems just as anxious as I am.

Tomorrow, I bring glory to the name of Morito, and slay the minions of the Shadowlands. May my Ono swing true.

~Morito Shizuyo

[Kasuga Shinobu]

May all I record remain to remind me of all I have seen and learned.

As I write this I can still hear gibbering and battle outside. My mind is filled with visions of things that I would never had imagined possible, things from nightmares uncounted. Despite that, I would be out there still, with the noise of battle and the visions of death, if it weren't for my leg being wounded. The shugenja present did what little they could before bandaging, but I have no doubts what so ever that their talents are needed on better samurai than I.

Looking back in this journal I see that I have not written since before the ambush in Carpenter Pass. I find it ironic that I was so excited to ambush the bakemono, to prove myself before the Crab. There was most certainly an ambush the next morning, but it was our company that was ambushed, not the Goblin. Their leader was a small, wiry thing, with the blasphemous cobbled together remains of Crab armor loosely draped over his form. We awoke to the shouts of one of our Hiruma night watch as the attack began, the goblin leader barking commands in their ugly language. Despite the fact that we were caught by surprise, all of the Hiruma and Hida present seemed to always be prepared at least a little. Only one bushi fell in the initial assault before the night guard rallied and pushed back the goblins enough for others to get their weapons and helmets on.

It would have been a one sided battle if there had been less goblins. The bragging of the day before about the weakness of a bakemono had proven true. It had not been mentioned to me however that they never, ever attack alone. I had expected a small patrol, and I believe so had the Crab, but the force that ambushed us numbered at least three times ours, though in the chaos of battle I could not count. I know I got two by my own blade, if for no other reason than I was told after the battle to keep the heads. We lost a few more bushi before the battle was done, but we killed all the goblin, and the only one unaccounted for was that small commander I saw at the start.

After burning the dead and sending a messenger off with the armor and weapons of the three fallen, which I allowed them to use Katai to carry, I was lead past the wall into the Shadowlands. things were slow on the section of wall we passed through, though there were enough samurai posted on top and in front of the wall that I knew they expected an attack at any moment. Peasants lined the wall patching up holes that looked burned, or wiping off slime and other things I couldn't even begin to describe. The land around was hard to describe as well as we made our way south. It looked in many ways like the rest of the Crab lands, barren and flat, but this was different. I was informed when I got to Shiro Hiruma that this was the effects of the taint on parts of the landscape.

Shiro Hiruma itself is like a splash of color in another realm. We had to hurry inside between attack waves of some Oni forces coming up from the south so that the gates could be barred again. While Daylight Castle was painted a bright while and blue, there was no cheer inside, no time for merriment or mirth. The peasants seemed perpetually caught up running food, water and supplies this way and that, and the Hiruma seemed to be going off from one wall or barrack to the next at the same pace. Only once I reached the inner castle did things seem calmer, but they were still tense and morose.

My guide to the keep was one of the Hiruma I had traveled with, a young woman named Hiruma Eriko. She was more approachable than her fellow family members, but her humor was dark, and she was even more quiet than I, and much more taciturn and morose. She explained to me on the trip here with a faint smile that it was the fate of the Hiruma to never truly find peace and happiness so long as the Shadowlands stood. I took that to mean they would never truly be happy.

Eriko got me permission to train in the Hiruma dojo as soon as we arrived. I had expected long lessons on shadowland creatures and use of jade, but it ended up being a lot like my time in the Hida dojo, with jiujutsu practice taking up much of my time. Eriko was my main sparring partner, and I only managed to down her once. I promised her I would practice so that next time we met it would be the reverse, but she just laughed and shook her head.

After that the sounds of the attack became strong, and we were interrupted to ask if we would assist on the castle walls. I was not asked originally, but I insisted that I would think no less of their family if they would accept my help. I took my bow and went up on the walls where I was faced with those sights that still seer my mind now. You are always told that Oni are evil, that they are abominations... you are never told the horror one can find just looking at one. The battle seemed endless, and I know more than a few Hiruma fell, though they were immediately replaced on the ramparts. It was during this that I hurt my leg, though thank the Heavens that it was only a rock knocked loose and not the tainted claw of a shadowlands beast.

Even as I lay here I look over at Eriko, who was also hurt but worse. She had pushed me out of the way of the stone and took the brunt herself. Though she will likely live, looking at her pale sweat covered face reminds me fully what I have seen the task of the Hiruma to be. No duty will ever compare to the one the Crab have taken upon themselves, ever.

~Morito Shizuyo

[Kasuga Shinobu]

As I write this entry, I am set to leave Kyuden Hida and once more travel into the Shadowlands. Only a few days ago I would have hardly believed that I would willingly do so, laying on that bed in Shiro Hiruma. Still, a lot can change, and I've become a different person now than I was then.

The battle went on another full day before the demons were driven away. My wounds healed, as did Eriko's, though hers took longer. I stayed only another day to help before I was approached to see ig I would help the Hiruma out once more. I was still somewhat reluctant at that point, but my resolve hardened and I was out of the walls soon enough.

We went south, deeper into the Shadowlands, for how long I'm not sure. It had only been a day when we got back to Shiro Hiruma, but it had felt like a week. The terrain around us looked ill though not dead like I expected. Bright reds and yellows burst forth on black limbed trees, gnarled and twisted, and the water changed from blue to green to red even as I looked at it once. The air was hot, even if this winter, and the air was foul.

While I kept expecting Oni, no more showed up. We were making our way toward a place called the Big Stink, and I ended up smelling it before I saw it. It almost looked like a city on the horizon, but the closer we got to the pile of rubble and refuse the more I wondered what it really was. We weren't about to head inside the city; even from a distance it looked like there could be more goblins in the city than samurai in the Crab lands. Instead we found another scouting party, this one heading north toward the Carpenter Pass likely, or Shiro Hiruma. This time, unlike the first time I had met Bakemono, we got the drop on them.

It was a larger pack, so I expected things to be more difficult, but I had forgotten that I was with more men this time, and I had no idea how much being ambushed would affect their morale. I would have lost count before too long if I hadn't been told to keep the heads. I ended up with 25 to my name, though not without consequence. Katai killed two goblins himself before one of the nasty things stabbed him. I burned his body before we headed back north, a friend I have had for many a year. It will be very hard replacing him in battle, even harder in my thoughts.

When we got back to Shiro Hiruma, I found that Eriko was better. She seemed only lightly surprised that I had taken the heads of 20 goblin, and urged me to take them to Kyuden Hida for the 20 goblin winter, even if I weren't going to leave my clan for her own. While she didn't accompany me north, I will remember her as the true spirit of the Hiruma.

When I arrived here in the castle of the Hida, I had a small ceremony for bringing the heads, though nothing too formal. I think I gained more respect than anything else, and perhaps next time I come down here to Crab lands on business, I will have allies ready.

I say next time, but as I said to start, I'm not about to leave yet. I've had a few days rest, but I've been told that a small group of scouts is aiming to track down some Lost in their City in the Shadowlands. It has rarely been seen, and it will be dangerous for certain, but I know I will have Crab around me, so I will want not at all for allies.

~Morito Shizuyo

[Kasuga Shinobu]

(I failed twice, so I ran out of light infantry before I could get the mission done. -shakes fist-)

I had thought we would be leaving for the City of the Lost soon, but it seems other plans came up. Word came to Kyuden Hida that a sizable force of the Shadowlands had attacked first, up north at Shiro Kaiu. Since they needed reinforcements fast, I was asked to come along. I was truthfully relieved about not goin back into the deep Shadowlands, even if there was the chance I would see more Oni up north.

The journey was quick as we rode the Crab horses to exhaustion, stopping only to get new steeds from Shiro Kuni along the way. By the time we reached Shiro Kaiu, the battle was already well under way. Rather than dismount, I found to my surprise the Crab I had ridden north with charged in with Tetsubo swinging. I only learned afterward they were a specialized unit called Tsuru's Legion, one of the only Crab cavalry contingents. Regardless, I was more than happy to have the chance to fight on horseback once again, even if my horse was unfamiliar to me. I lost him, just as I had Katai, though he took an Oni by surprise long enough in his death that I finished the beast off with my Ono.

The highlight of the battle was right near the end. While I was hardly in any danger anymore because of the cavalry routing the nearby enemies, I still had a few stragglers to finish off as I moved. The battle was still thick by the gates when suddenly a horn sounded from the north, the direction of Razor of the Dawn Castle.

To interject, I can speak of this now from what I discovered later, but the war up north in Unicorn lands had taken many Crab from the wall, which was one reason why the battle had been so hard. It was a large force, but one that normally would have been dealt with in a few hours.

The horn heralded the end for the demons though, as from over the hills came the Hida Elite guard, riding Unicorn steeds, supposedly suppled to help speed them south for the attack as a favor from the Unicorn. At their front rode one of the largest men I had ever seen, covered from head to toe in the grey-blue armor of the Crab. The banner that rode with him said it all; that was Hida Setsuro, the Crab Clan Champion. As soon as the Elite Guard hit the flank it was like a keen blade through a grass stalk. The demons at the wall were driven into the pincer of the remaining Tsuru's Legion, and those that would not yield were smashed down like stubborn boulders under the hammer of Hida himself.

I wish I had had the chance to speak to Setsuro-sama, but it seemed that even as things were being finished after the battle, he was once again needed elsewhere. It appeared he and his guard rode to the northeast. Perhaps to the capital, though no one I spoke to knew for sure. Regardless, I was once again well treated for all the help I was able to provide; I was even bestowed a Kaiu Blade after visiting the smith works that take up a good bit of the Castle. The honor is incredible, and I hope I never need use the blade lest I mar it's perfection.

After spending a little more time speaking with the Kaiu about the siege and the particulars of siege warfare, I was told that with the favor I'd earned, I should go north to the Razor of the Dawn castle. I set off almost immediately, this time on foot, not wishing to exhaust any more horses from the Crab. The journey took a good bit longer, but it gave me time to talk with my guides, and to appreciate the look of the castle as we approached. Not that it was particularly lovely, but I had a good view why the Castle had never fallen.

As I write this new entry I feel exhausted. I had only arrived last night, but I was immediately taken to the Dojo of the Razor's Edge when I'd awoke. I had grown so used to training with the Hida and the Hiruma that I'd expected a rough Jiujutsu session. The Dojo of the Razor's Edge was much, much different however. I had heard tales of the Berserkers, as everyone has, but I had never imagined the noise, the fury, the raw unbridled rage they possessed. I was taught a few basic techniques on my own, how to tap into my rage and anger, but I was not allowed to train with the students, for my own safety they told me. After how exhausted I felt trying to push myself with rage all day, I pray a time never comes where I need to worry about facing a Berserker in battle. That day I will surely meet my ancestors.

~Morito Shizuyo

(ps; Hope your cameo was grand enough Setsuro! If anyone else wants a cameo in the journal, let me know where you are, and when I pass through I can let you know!

[Kasuga Shinobu]

The lands of the Ox are beautiful beyond compare. Mind you, my travels have taken me some very lovely places, from the balconies of Kyuden Asako, to the sheer majesty and awe of traveling through Dragon lands, to the lovely open prairies of Unicorn lands. None the less, the mixture of high mountains, babbling rivers, and rolling plains that make up the Morito lands are hard to match.

I tell myself all this because, despite their flat, dull nature, and the fact that so much of them are tainted from the touch of the shadow, I find I miss Crab lands. In a sense, it is not the land itself, but the spirit and determination of the people that live there that has caused me to miss it. I write now from the Great Hall of Records in Lion lands, which is also a lovely land, but I do not know the Lion as I do the Crab. Not yet.

It seems like it was ages ago that I was in Razor of the Dawn Castle, sore from training. I'd spent a little more time there after what it seems I recorded, a few days at most I believe. There had been a lot of mercenaries that had helped out at the battle at the wall, ronin that were always traveling Crab lands it seems, trying to prove themselves. I gave them all a look over, at the suggestion of my host, and I pointed out a few of them that had horses that I thought seemed competent. I don't believe it was that easy, but I think a twenty goblin winter would be enough to push anyone that fought at Razor of the Dawn Castle to be allowed to take a Crab name.

I was sent off to a small tower to stand guard day, one called Lone Candle Keep, but it seems the reasoning was more that I was to meet a Hiruma messenger, which happened to be Eriko-san. We caught up with each other before she handed me a note from the Yasuki family, one urgently asking for my presence. I excused myself, and knowing it was a long way south, started off on another borrowed horse immediately.

I switched horses a few times, and it took at least 4 or 5 days to get down to Yasuki Yashiki. I've never been in Crane lands, but it was easy to tell that the Yasuki had not always been Crab by the sheer grandeur of the city. The grey blue with white accents was lovely, and though there were high walls just like elsewhere in Crab lands, inside was abustle of activity. No where in Crab lands had things looked so lively and prosperous, which at first was a strange adjustment.

None the less, when I made my way to the keep I was shown to a room containing the peasant woman that I had last seen in the Wall above the Ocean Mountains. I had thought I'd sent her off to Kyuden Kitsune to be looked after until my return when I'd found a lead, but it seems she'd come this way. When it was found she had no papers, and had instead a scroll full of very lovely haiku poetry, I realized she'd likely had it with her all along, and she had no idea what to do besides flee with them.

She was asleep when I arrived, so the Yasuki offered me rooms. One of their numbers approached me for diner, and we worked out minor trade notes while we ate. I told him more than once that the Ox have little to trade, and that there was much I could not authorize. He just gave me a wide smile at that and assured me things would turn out okay. I believe it was something like silk north for kimonos, in exchange for rice or barley south, whichever we had and could afford. Me head still spins trying to remember, it all went so fast.

In the morning the same man brought me to the courts, where he soothed the last of my complaints by officially signing a merchants charter for me. He said I would need the signature of the Morito as well, likely of Ryohei-sama, but that it allowed me to conduct trade on behalf of my clan barring that. Trading leaves a sour taste in my mouth, but I thanked the man none the less.

The journey north was made all the easier by the acquiring of another horse. Unlike those borrowed from the other families, the Yasuki were more than happy to let me choose one to keep, in exchange for the trade deal, and perhaps something else at another time. The horse wasn't an Utaku steed by any measure, but he was a strong one, and I've called him Kenbou, knowing that one day they will call a debt from me for him.

When I reached Lion lands, the haiku were as good as travel papers until I reached the Great Hall of Records. The man in charge, an Ikoma named Kouji-san, was quite happy to finally see the last pieces of Akodo Shintachi's works. He told me I would always have an ally in the Lion by my deeds, and I was reminded of my aquiring of the daimyo for the Akodo, as well as my time praying at the Kitsu Tombs, and training with the Matsu. It all seems like so long ago, but the more I look out over these lands, the more I realize the Lion have been like brothers and sisters to me, just as much as the Crab.

I plan on staying here a little longer before I set off once more. With all I've learned, I plan to do some research, most likely into the nature of the Yobanjin. If I find anything out, my return north to my home for the charter's signing would be much more worthwhile.

~Morito Shizuyo

[Kasuga Shinobu]

It seems that there is a lot more to the war up north than my quick tour through Unicorn lands had originally made my believe. Not only are the rumors in all the sake houses saying the entire Yobanjin nation is attacking, there's a rumor that the Shogun has called troops for a full state of war.

Not that I'm going to the front, not yet. My research in the Great Hall of Records turned up something interesting; a reference to Yobanjin Mura, the Phoenix holding north of Morito lands. After finding out what I could I reported back home to Shiro Morito. Our Champion was off on the war front, so I let the information be known to messengers that could get to him. In the meantime, I was told we had orders to help the war effort, and that it was taking place in part in Dragon lands. I went north through the mountains until I reached a place called Great Falls Castle. It was a hard journey that took me through some steep mountain passes, and it's no wonder since Great Falls Castle seems to be built onto the side of a mountain with a long bridge over a deep gorge.

The Castle is controlled by both the Kitsuki Family as well as the Mirumoto, and when I was greeted I was told I should train at the local dojo, Great Falls Dojo. I insisted I wasn't a magistrate by any measure, but apparently the merchant charter I had, as well as the favors I had done for the Dragon before, earned me enough respect to at least watch. I've seen a few magistrates before, from the Yasuki lands to the Asako, but none so martial as the ones here. I had heard of the Kitsuki Method, practical yet unorthodox, but I never knew it had more than just evidence to it.

As soon as I was done training at the Dojo, I presented a gift from the Ox Clan to the Dragon of swords. It seems that many of the weapons stockpiled here are being sent to the front, and the Morito don't use many swords, so the Dragon were quite grateful for the assistance. In turn, a few items of need were sent from the Dragon stockpiles to the Ox clan troops on the front. I think they were quite glad for my clan's smaller size when I said I wished help.

I was told that there were other ways I could help the effort, so I was sent to Tetsu Kama Mura, also known as Iron Mountain Village. Where Great Falls Castle seems built into the side of a mountain, Tetsu Kama Mura looks to be built on top of one. the entire village seems dedicated to mining, and all my time here has shown me nothing but miners, those that deal with ores, and smiths.

I just arrived, and I aim to help recruit troops and train them for the Dragon. The air is thin up here, and the winter is quite bad, so I am happy for the chance to rest after wandering the mountain passes for so long.

~Morito Shizuyo

[Kasuga Shinobu]

What is a journal? Do the memories in here belong to me, or are they the dreams of another? Things flow in and out like water through a cup with a hole in the bottom onto an already soaked cloth.

I remember reality, remember being at that place, the mines. Many people, eager to die, to truly live, came to me, asked me to teach them to die slower. I showed them how to stay on this realm longer, to wear the shell of heavy armor. Others gave them polearms and patches with a dragon on them and called them soldiers. To me, they still appeared miners, like fish in a turtle shell.

As I finished one thing, another came, the flow of time never stopping. She called herself Togashi Shizuyo, called me another name she said was her own, Morito Asayo. Perhaps I questioned it then, perhaps I still do now. She was short (or was she tall?), bald with an easy smile, bright tattoo everywhere. She said she had not heard of me but that she knew me, only as well as I knew myself. She presented a letter asking me to follow, to keep who I was even as I shed it away. I did not understand, neither did she, but none the less we traveled.

Time passed, the scene changed. Always mountains, but now set against a place called the High House of Light. It seemed as if the highest reaches pierced the heavens themselves, reaching high into the sky. I remember little else as we went inside. The halls of that place are dark while bright with wonder, secluded while open to possibility. My room, the room of all like me, was simple, but I did not stay long inside. I was told that I would first visit the artist. I was not told what kind, but I knew all along, my body knew. Even now as I write at this simple outpost I can feel the Ox tattoo on my back, broad and strong like the man that founded my clan and was once a Unicorn at the same time.

Time seemed different after the tattoo artist finished giving me what I was always to have. I remember praying after, like I had before but never once there. Mountain Summit Temple it was called, and my prayers blended into the prayers of others. Had I ever felt prayers like I did there?

After that, I was taken to the Ise Zumi training grounds. Not all was prayer, and they wished to see if I could fight as they do, with hand and foot and mind. I remember the training I had with the Crab, remember the view I had of the ceiling. I had that again, but different. All ceilings look the same, but you can get different things looking at each. The monks bowed and told me I had fought and won well, even as I never downed one of them, and I understood.

Now, I am no longer with them. I have been stopped at a guard checkpoint near Mountain Watch Keep...when did I get to Unicorn lands? My mind seems a little more clear, but my tattoo still pulses on my back, and things still seem so much different. Is it bad if I remain just as I am now, or is it worse if I go back to the way I was?

~Togashi Shizuyo? [/font][/color]

[Kasuga Shinobu]

My mind has cleared some, though looking back at all I experienced, I feel I am still a changed woman. The tattoo still throbs on my back, and I feel more at peace with myself than I ever have.

It has had to clear because of all the events I have been caught up in. I had last written that I was at a guard checkpoint near Mountain Watch Keep. It was only a day more before I was allowed on to the Keep itself. I'd heard word that my Daimyo was there, but I saw no sign of him. Instead, I was directed to a gathering place for veterans and novices alike. Patrols moved over the hills surrounding the Keep, but there were still many inside as well. Word was that the early battles at the Keep had been pushed back to the north, into an area called the Northern Steppes. Many of the heavy bushi, both cavalry and infantry men, were off in the north fighting pitched battles, or holding lines.

I quickly found out through the shared tales that there was a need for mounted scouts to track down further camps of Yobanjin. I signed on, joined mostly by Shinjo, though a few Akodo were in the small company as well. We started first near Mountain Watch Keep, through the sparse forests and rolling hills of the western Unicorn lands. We found no real sign of the enemy, though we managed to chase down one or two scouts. All signs seemed to be leading us north, up to the Steppes, where the battle was.

Despite my thoughts that we would just join the front, I had no idea that the Steppes were so large and treacherous. We could see the path the main army had taken, but there were many other passes, and our company took one of the others. Tracking through the hills was hard work on the horses, and Kenbou was proving to be a southern horse, even if he was strong. I had to rub him down with my blanket when we paused to rest; I'm not sure if he's cut out for this, though his spirit is strong.

Regardless of our pauses and hard time, many of the Shinjo knew the basics of these lands, and the fortune's smiled upon us. A few days in we found a sizable camp of the Yobanjin. It wasn't a forward line camp, but instead it seemed to be a relief post, where supplies could go up and the wounded back. We are now camped in the hills overlooking it, well hidden. I doubt we will end up fighting them, they are too many in number and we are too few. Only time will tell what this opportunity will present to us.

~Morito Shizuyo

[Kasuga Shinobu]

(I'm starting to get enough fate I can get things done faster, so this will be a longer entry)

I have not updated this in some time, but things have been moving so fast it's hard to keep up. I have said much about various lands, from the Dragon to the Lion and the Crab. I have remarked on the Utaku lands, but I have recently spent more time in southern Unicorn lands, and I can see why the Ki-Rin have always called this their true home.

I had thought my next entry would be a longer talk about how the battle against the Yobanjin had went. Truth told, I spent a few more days there in the camp observing their own, but I left before anything of great import happened. The only thing even really worth noting was the night an Soshi that was with us helped me and another scout sneak into the camp to get a closer look at things using the magic of the kami. It was a strange experience for certain, but we only found out a little. We could see sentry all around, but we never got close enough for it to be a large problem.

The next day I was told to report back to Mountain Watch Keep with where this camp was and find out what they wished me to do next. The ride back was a sprint, and the news was well received by those in charge. I had only a nights rest before I was asked to go to the south with a message for the small Horiuchi family to ask for their help. It seems the Iuchi had joined the younger and smaller shugenja family of the Unicorn further north in case their help was required, and there was a need for more in the north.

The ride south was more pleasant and a little more paced, though I was still in a rush. I had traded Kenbou for another horse, leaving him with a contingent of Hida was were on their way back from the front. He was a good companion for a while, but he was no horse for the fierce battles in the cold up north. My new steed is already gone, left here in the stables of the Ide... but I get ahead of myself.

Shinden Horiuchi was a pleasant sight after the journey through Moto lands south. I am sure it is all a lot more lovely in the summer, but the winter is harsh this year, and the plains allow for a good amount of wind to whip around. There are a few small forests near Shinden Horiuchi, but nothing to stop much of the wind. The keep was really more of a temple than a castle, and it seemed the Horiuchi was deeply religious, thankful for all that the Fortunes had given them despite their hardships. I spent only a little time there, watching the Shugenja practicing before they departed, but it seemed that only a small contingent was there, so they asked that I keep the message and take it to Shiro Iuchi instead.

The journey south was one of the worst I'd had this season. I mentioned the winds coming through Horiuchi lands; it was ten times worse in Iuchi lands. The Spine of the World Mountains channeled wind down in great gusts, and with only rolling hills and no real forests to speak of, the snow blew all over, whipping into me and almost tearing me from my saddle more than once.

The keep itself was a simple city, not a temple like Shinden Horiuchi, but still modest. The walls were a little higher than most small cities, but it helped keep the wind out. I was told to bring the note directly to the Daimyo of the Iuchi, but it seemed that she was not in, so I left it with her Hatamoto. I spent some time watching the Iuchi train their young, something I was told later was a true honor that few were given. Perhaps it was the fact that the Morito are decedents of the Unicorn, perhaps it was was word of my deeds in their name. Either way, I assisted as I could, and took an extra day to warm up.

I was told there was no need for me to take any more notes off to the north, so I was free to do as I wished. I thought about going back to the front, but I decided to pay a visit to the last of the Unicorn families, the Ide. Having received a scroll from Ryohei-sama that I was now officially a Hatamoto, and one from the Minor Clan Alliance asking me to represent their military, I decided a visit was in good order. The Ide lands were not as windy as the other lands of the Unicorn, and their keep was lovely, even if not practical for defensive purposes.

I was greeted at the courts, and the news I brought from the front was more than welcome. I didn't have any news about the Minor Clan Alliance, other than to note that many forces were already up north and more were on their way. Now I am sitting in their main courts, watching the unique courtier training the Ide go through and giving what advice I can, as well as being an occasional test subject for the students. I plan on staying her one more day before I head off once again.

~Morito Shizuyo