Year 6: Month of the Tiger, 29th day.
Kyuden Ikoma, was...a warriors home really. Despite the immense attached libraries, and the dutiful effort to make sure that most luxuries that the jaded courtiers of the Imperial Court needed were still available, it still had that air of a martial place. Too much of the castle was rooted in the mindset of the Lion, of war, of violence and blood.
Which had made it surprising in retrospect for how little of it there was this winter court. While there had been the usual scandals, duels, and at least one memorable snowball fight that had last for a week and ended with a formal treaty between the two sides...but nothing large enough to distract you from the normal procession of events and just having a relaxing winter court.
Your finely honed sense of paranoia was acting up. Although it was near the last day of the court you expected something to happen. What though eluded you as you sat on the dais overseeing the last of the fiddly details of court. Approving treaties, settling disputes, ignoring the none to subtle attempts of your mother to catch your eye with beautiful women.
She was being such a hypocrite about this, she only had you and her so why was she so pushy? You would have to ask her soon, this was getting to be too much. You loved your wife, and had no interest in having a concubine at this time.
The thoughts leave you as the door to the central hall slammed open with a thundering a crash. Cold bitter air filled the room as snow fell on to the immaculate stone. In the doorway stood a man you had thought had left Rokugan forever. Once Asahina Sekawa, now simply Sekawa keeper of the Five Rings, and the only man left alive that your Uncle had respected for his skill in the Void.
What was he doing here? The man was older, thinner, a legacy of his self imposed exile into the wilds with the heirs of Shinsei. Long white hair was tied back even as it contrasted with the black monk robes he wore.
You do not stand up for him, but you do sit at attention.
Sekawa strides in a loud clarion voice echoing through the hall. He does not kow tow to you, he does not bow, instead, he simply stares at you with white eyes.
"Toturi I am calling you to account for your crimes against the world! And you will answer or the Heavens will turn their sight from you."
He is doing what? He dares? You are the Son of Heaven, not him
"By what right do you do this Sekawa, you who have left this land to its own devices even as it fought against one of its greatest foes?" You demand.
"By right of it being your will that Sezaru the Wolf scarred the world, creating a whole in it to another realm. By the right of it being your lack of focus that has seen a blight fester, by your will that the Yobanjin have been wiped out. Your uncle by your command committed an offence against the Void Dragon and for that you must answer Toturi" Sekawa answers.
Your mind flickers to your uncle now departed, of that fateful night when you had made a choice, a choice that to this day you don't know if it was the right one. You had chosen to send your Uncle north and trust in his abilities, you did not know what he had planned, but you had had faith in him. Now this man before you declares that the faith was not only misplaced, that it had been some sort of blasphemy.
"Asahina Sekawa, you will explain yourself better than that in my court." You say, steel creeping into your tone.
"As you wish, Sezaru called upon the Void to erase Chandeyang from the world, in doing so he drew upon much of the Void Dragon's strength, and disrupted the dance of the elements. To this the Elemental Dragons have taken offence. Furthermore this disruption has allowed pieces of the other nine realms to come through, further upsetting the balance of the Heavens. It is for this that you are called to answer Toturi." Sekawa explains.
While you weren't sure you believed Sekawa...your uncle was justly famous for having done impossible things...and having very little restrain when he believed the Empire was at stake.
"My Uncle said he could handle it, and I believed him, if there are consequences such as you explain, then I will deal with them." You say.
"Very well" Sekawa says staring at you. "The Heavens require effort from you, to show your devotion and to make right what was wrong."
"And those are?" you ask staring back without flinching.
"You must close the rift in the Yobanjin lands,or reclaim Otosan Uchi. They are aware of the war you just fought, so they are willing to allow you a period of five years to accomplish these goals."
"Otosan Uchi is a blasted hellscape beyond redemption." You say. "And somehow I doubt that that closing the rift would be any easier."
"Correct, and yet that are the tasks you are given to choose from. So Toturi, which task do you stake your dynasty on?" Sekawa asks.
You narrow your eyes in thought. Both promise to be near impossible, but you are reasonably sure Sekawa is telling you the truth as angry as it makes you. There's a faint memory of looking north when the sun dies but you aren't sure you can apply it here.
You also aren't sure you can really afford another foreign venture.
Both will be challenging in their own way...all you can do is yet again make a choice.
[] Closing the rift
[] Reclaiming Otosan Uchi
[] Say you will do both
(And here we have the next arc more or less. It is possible to do both, its just a lot harder.)
