(RP) - Inside Shiro Saisei, a new fortress.

[Toku Hirotomo]

"I belive you said somthing about a gift horse, Bayushi-san." Kenpachi said with a smile after the Utaku introduced herself. "I am Toku Kenpachi, Utaku-san. A tainted army attacking the Gaijin?"

[Shoju]

For the travellers in the big stink

---

As the new Unicorn arrived, the outskirts of the city known as the big stink came alive. Things moving to and fro, no shapes could be made out completely, but there was a lot of movement. After a moment, on the road, a small Bakemono dressed in ill fitting armor, walking with a staff addressed the assembled group.

"YOU NO BE HERE! This land belong to the Bakemono, and you is trespassin' upon it. "

The Bakemono looked... old, and his grasp of Rokugani language, while rough, clearly marked him as intelligent, at least for a Bakemono. The rustling and movement around the road ceased as he spoke.

"We guard this city as our own. Your kind left it, and we took it. We not be tryin' to fight with you and come to your city. Why you thinkin' you can be coming to ours"

He stood firm in the middle of the road, his voice trying to sound angry, but coming out a little scared, a little defiant, and really more tired than anything.

"I be Onithu, da Elder Shaman, an you need to be speakin' to me about enterin' without a fight."

For Tadaka

---

Tinishi led Tadaka into the court of Shiro Saesei. "I am sure that my lord is the one that you wish to speak to. Though, Just between you and me Isawa-san, I wouldn't mention what you did to the Bakemono. While most of us find then a nuisance, he has a fascination with them. He surely doesn't see them as equals, but they are a prized pet of his, and they fear and revere him."

With that, they were in the center of the court, and Tinishi knelt. "Oronkohiro-sama, may I present to you Isawa Tadaka. A pursuer of knowledge."

The court is a round room. There is the entrance behind Tadaka and Tinishi, as well as one on each side of the round room to the left and right. At the front of the room, is a small Dais. On the Dais is seated Oronkohiro in a black Kimono. To his Right, and slightly behind him is an imposing being in black armor. To his Left, is another man, in what appears to be Scorpion themed attire wearing an ornate mempo.

Oronkohiro stands, and walks towards the pair. "Welcome to Shiro Saesei Isawa Tadaka. I am Chuda Oronkohiro, and this is my home. Pardon the construction, we are still finishing the outer portions of the keep. Is there something I can get you? Rice? Sake? Tea? I'm sorry that we don't have more opulent options, as you will find, we don't always need such things here." Oronkohiro nodded to the guard, and they stepped back to the edge of the room.

"Tell me Isawa-san, what knowledge can we impart upon you? Are you hear to learn from us? We have a great many things to teach those who are worthy."

[Shinjo Roku]

The journey was very taxing for Roku, as he could feel the waves of fear coming off of all 4 of the horses... He was trying his best to block out his "gift", but it was becoming harder with each passing day. At least his surplus of jerky was whittled down fast, as he was able to share it with the shitome that had joined them. No need to worry about tainted cow meat coming back to life.

Roku the focused on the matter at hand. A bakemono that not only could speak proper Rokugani, but was offering a chance to parley... Being the least experienced out of this group, he conferred to rest of the group quietly. "I'm pretty sure I can shoot him in the eye from here, if not, at least I'll get him somewhere in the face..."

[Shoju]

Oronkohiro nods, and points to a Bakemono who rushes off through a door and comes back with a bowl of fresh rice. "Pay no mind to the Bakemono Isawa-san. They can prove difficult if left to their own, but when they have the proper... motivation, they are fantastic creatures."

Oronkohiro smiled and walked back to the Dais. "My research Isawa-san, is an effort to strengthen the armies of my Lord. You have come at a time where there isn't any active work being done at the moment. The ritual is quite cumbersome, and exhausts many who work with it." Oronkohiro seemed restless. "I am of course hesitant to share much of my knowledge with you. How am I to know that you aren't here merely to gauge our strength, and then bring a force to crush us? How do I know that you are truly here to learn? Truly, you would have something that you can show me of your time in the City of the Lost?" Oronkohiro raises his head slightly, his glowing eyes shining through the reduced shadowed on his face.

"While I want to express hospitality to you, surely you do understand the precarious position that I find myself in? Prove to me that you are indeed here on a benign search for knowledge, and I will grant you access to Shiro Saesei without need for an escort, outside of the chamber.

Oronkohiro was watching Tadaka for a reaction.

[Bayushi Haruka]

Haruka in a seemingly strange gesture, motioned for Roku to be still. "I do not think it wisest to be hasty, but nice to know if the need arises." She looked to the other Unicorn, not having been formally introduced.

She then seemed to look to the Scorpion somewhat expectantly. The grip on her stallion's reins seemed steady enough causing the beast to keep cool for now. "Is it possible not to utilize this sort of fellow to a slightly more advantageous end. He seems to be certainly more afraid of us than we are of him." She smirked fairly keenly as she had noticed him shaking in their path and awaiting their response.

A bit strange for an Utaku's response, but she seemed happy to save her strength for when they might be neck deep in the fighting. A pathetic little goblin being seemed hardly worth the effort in truth, and one willing to talk was certainly a fairly uncommon occourance.

[Toku Hirotomo]

Kenpachi stepped forward with a hand on his ono. "I am known as Toku Kenpachi, Onithu." Kenpachi said after a moment of stairing into the creature's eyes. "We seek no fight with you. We are looking for a human who calls himself Oronkohiro. He may be with other humans that are dead but not dead." Toku raises his left hand in a gesutre of trust. "We do not want this land. We only want Oronkohiro."

In High Rokugani Kenpachi addresses the others. "If the tree sways with the wind, the wind takes us where we are needed. If the tree stands defiant, it falls eventaully."

OOC: I hope my pretty talk was easy enough to get. The thing speaks Rokugani, but lacks a cultural understanding of sayinh something without really saying it.

[Bayushi Senshi]

Yosuke sighed, impatience getting the better of him as the magistrate decided to play along with the insignificant animal. He muttered under his breath to the two Unicorn, "This will get us no where... its a thing not a person. Just because it talks doesn't afford it any respect."

Though he was itching to continue, he offered the monkey the time he needed to carry on. All the while mentally running through a list of possible spells and efficient ways of killing the thing. Rejecting each as 'too frivolous an act for such a simple threat.'

[Shinjo Roku]

Roku nods in understanding to Kenpachi, but still instinctively keeps a hand on the strap that fastens his dai-kyu to his saddle. And in response to Yosuke he said: "If this goblin knows anything about the whereabouts of this maho-sukai we are hunting, it will reduce the amount of time we spend here. Even I, a Shinjo Scout, am losing my sense of direction in this kami forsaken land..." And with that, Roku removes his hand from his horse bow and retrieved a new piece of jerky, closely inspecting it for taint before biting a piece off.

[Shoju]

For Tadaka

---

Oronkohiro smiles, and then walks towards Tadaka. "And that is what I was hoping for. You have a fire in your soul. You have spoken wisely, and understand the situation flawlessly." Oronkohiro motioned to a guard, who escorted all but the two on the dais out of the room. "Isawa Tadaka-san, You have shown me all I need to see. You are welcome to explore Shiro Saesei without impunity. That is, all of Shiro Saesei but my personal chamber. For reasons that you will understand soon enough, access to that will have to be with me. Make yourself at home. There is a chamber down the left hall where you can rest if you like, or you may stay with Me here in the court, and we can discuss my research and work now. Sadly, there wont be much to show you until the morning. Even if I had your assistance, we would need at least 2 more for the ritual, and I'm afraid I have worn them out."

Oronkohiro started walking back to his dais.

For The Travelers

---

Onithu looked past the samurai with the large Axe, at those behind him. He could sense the contempt for him.

"You seek the warmonger.... I know Oronkohiro. He is da reason that Big Stink is fightin'. Der' be Bakemono who follow me, and we lookin' to make our place in this world better. And der' be those who followin' the warmonger. Its a fight we gotta win if we be wishing for our people to be safe."

Onithu walked past the Monkey, and towards the ones behind him. "I can get you to the warmonger. But I not goin' inside his fortress. The Bakemono who go in, they come out even worse." Onithu looked at the shinjo scout munching on jerky. "Why you look at your food like it going to eat you silly? That's not the way this place be working." And with that he lets out a large laugh. A laugh that almost seems too big to come from such a small creature.


Onithu lets out a sharp whistle, and from the sides of the road, more than 100 Bakemono emerge from behind rubble and shadows. "We be takin' you to Oronkohiro. but we go no farther than the Rock. You know Rock when you see it."

[Shinjo Roku]

Roku narrows his eyes at the... chieftain's(?) remark, and made a mental note of its laugh. After the horde revealed themselves, not only was the scout surprised that he only noticed so few of them beforehand, but he also realized that this was gonna make the horses even more skittish... Man, this is just keeps getting better and better... he thought to himself sarcastically.



(OOC: Stop ruining my dreams of zombie jerky!!!! )

[Shoju]

(OOC) I have plans for your zombie jerky actually.

[Shinjo Roku]

(OOC: EPIC. WIN.)

[Bayushi Senshi]

An idea coming to mind, Yosuke spoke, "How far from the Rock is Oronkohiro? And have your followers ever made it past the rock in great numbers?"

If Yosuke was right, there may be an opportunity here to surprise the ronin sorcerer.

[Shoju]

"From Rock, you see where he is. It take hour or two to get to rock. from rock maybe hour to him." The Bakemono looked uncomfortable with the topic. "Once you get past rock, Warmonger has scouts. Scouts look for people to take to warmonger. He is makin' people who not be dying when you kill them. They fall to ground and then they get back up. But sometimes...." The bakemono looked around and then leaned in "Sometimes, when dey get back up, there is more of 'em den when they fell."

The Bakemono shuddered, and started walking towards Big Stink. "I get you there, but we taking many with us. We get you to Rock, and you on your own. "

The Bakemono let out 2 quick whistles, and the bakemono around the road fell into a shoddy looking infantry unit, and started moving.

[Shinjo Roku]

Once they started moving again, Roku turns to Haruka, slightly bows to her and says: "Shinjo Roku by the way, Emerald Magistrate." After which he extends his hand out, offering a piece of jerky. "Are you a fan of jerky?"