Tonight, you're speaking with Lady Shingetsu, Luna in her new aspect. She's an elegant lady, like all Lunas, but this one wears a dagger in her comb and has strong muscle beneath her silks. She came to see you almost immediately upon hearing you wanted to strike a deal.
"So," she says. "What is your request?"
"Make me a minor member of your celestial bureaucracy, and I will see to it that many great deeds are performed in the dark of the moon in your name."
"Oh, is that all? Granted."
You blink. "Really?"
"Most of my bureaucrats are incompetent and lazy. You at least have something to fight for in your Grey Rat Style. And I like you."
"Thank you, Lady Shingetsu."
"It's no issue."
You leave the meeting, and gather up your new-bought power. Asuka was about to have a duel, wasn't she? Let's put a thumb on the scales...
The one you choose for your exhibition duel is a braggart, one of the new junior students who thinks it's his place to shove you around as a senior student who supposedly hasn't advanced. He thinks you're a bad seed and that he's a good one.
You're going to teach him a lesson.
You come to the dueling ground with nothing. You wear simple, dark clothes, putting aside your warpaint. You wear your black hair tied tightly into a bun.
Your red-haired opponent comes in his ceremonial gear, richly embroidered. It's as if he doesn't expect to get dirty. He carries a long bo staff, deep mahogany with brass fittings.
"Ready!", calls the advanced student who you've called on to umpire.
You step into the ring, and bow to your opponent, mockingly shallow.
He bows back, precisely as deep.
Well then. That settles that.
"On three! One, two, three!"
In the first breath, he plunges at you with the staff, thrusting it at your gut like a spear. You sidestep.
In the second breath, he sweeps with the staff, trying to hit you in the side. You jump over it.
In the third breath, he looks around for where you've gone. Your foot connects squarely with his jaw.
In the fourth breath, you bring him down to the ground with one foot on his face and your other foot squarely in his gut.
You take a shaky breath, feeling your Cores shudder from the burst of Chi you just drew. You didn't need to draw this deep; you just had to demonstrate how thoroughly you outclassed him.
The advanced student claps.
"I always knew you had something stronger in you than another bad seed. Tell me, do you think you could beat an intermediate student?"
You step off of your hapless prey.
"I'll take anyone on. There's no shame in losing unless you die of it."
The advanced student narrows his eyes. "Alright. Taro, let's see if you can beat Asuka!"
An older, heavyset boy steps forwards with a swagger, iron knuckles on his fists. He adopts a fighting stance, one foot and hand forwards.
"Ready!", he calls.
You make ready, taking a loose, flowing stance with one palm forwards. You notice the advanced student blink; you're not using common techniques now.
"Ready," you call.
In the first breath, he steps forwards abd swings a massive haymaker at your face.
Grey Rat Flees The Hawk. You duck under, and feel the wind of his punch flash past your forehead. You press in and get inside his guard.
In the second breath, he sweeps low with his leg.
Grey Rat Climbs Over Corpses. You grab his shoulders and leapfrog him, leaving him staggered with his back open to you.
In the third breath, he turns and makes an elbow strike, aiming for your gut.
Nimble Grey Rat Dances In Moonlight. You pause a moment to let the strike pass, then step in like a dancer to hold him in your arms. Your grip is firm but insistent on his sweaty skin.
In the fourth breath, he jerks his head towards you, trying to hit you in the nose.
Grey Rat Is Kin To Thousands. You sense the strike coming, and duck your head into his shoulder. It looks for all the world like you're cradling a lover.
Your breath stutters, and so does his. A moment passes while you both regain your Breath - but you're quicker.
Grey Rat Eats Behemoth's Corpses.
In the first breath, you slam your knee into the older student's groin. He lets out a whimper, and collapses.
You let your remaining Breaths dissipate. The point has been made.
"Nice," says the advanced student. "But I saw your Breath stutter."
"So I'm only an advanced student."
He steps into the ring. "No, I'm an advanced student. Joren Rade. And if you can go a round with me, then I'll personally go to my master and beg him to make you an advanced student."
"You're on."
He explodes across the ring at you.
In the first breath, you sidestep, but he sidesteps with you, controlling his momentum well.
In the second breath, he jabs at your face. You dance backwards with Nimble Grey Rat Dances In Moonlight.
In the third breath, he steps in with an elbow strike to your mouth, but you duck it with Grey Rat Flees The Hawk.
In the fourth breath, he brings his fist down in a hammerblow to your head, but you twist aside again, and -
You have no fifth breath.
He does.
You can see the punch coming, but you can't force your damn stupid body to move.
So you dig deep. Very, very deep.
Consuming Cultivation Focus
The Core slams together and stabilizes in the gap between one breath and another.
In the fifth breath, you catch his punch, and throw him.
"Enough!"
Quite a crowd has gathered while you were focussed on combat. Not many were interested when you were just fighting a novice, but now that you're duelling one of the favored students, everyone has come to see. Enough people that it seems your Master has become involved.
You step away from Joren, and bow.
He picks himself up, and bows as well.
"Well done," the Master says.
You blink.
"You've cultivated in five years what takes most students ten. And if I'm not mistaken, you formed a new Core in combat just now, did you not?"
You nod. "I did."
"Then you're deserving of the rank of an Advanced Student, no matter how distasteful your methods may be. I know not to throw away a good seed when I see it."
"Thank you, Master!"
"You are dismissed. And the rest of you, don't you have katas to be doing?!"
The crowd hurriedly breaks up.
Joren offers his hand to shake. "Good duel."
You shake it. "Good duel."
"I'll see you again, right?"
"If I don't get thrown out of the sect, yes."
"Good luck with that."
"Thank you."
He walks away, leaving you staring after him.
Well. Your master is right. You ought to be doing katas.
Adare Kaname, Bureaucrat of Grey Rat Style
Fisher King: You take on the properties of the Style you're responsible for reflexively. Your personality feeds the style, and vice versa.
Cultivator 2
Legendary 2
Lunar 2
Wyld 2
Hunter 2
Warrior 1
Assassin 1
Artisan 1
Alchemist 1
Rich 1
Worldly 1
Prepared 5
Alert 3
Tranquil 1
Disreputable 4
Cowardly 3
Impolite 1
Vicious 1
Ghoulish 1
Style: Grey Rat Cheats The Heavens
Rigorous 2
Style of Legend 2
Yin Style 2
Chi Style 2
Beast-Killing 2
Killing Intent 1
Assassination 1
Artisanal 1
Alchemic 1
Varied Techniques 1
Strong Fundamentals 1
Survivalist 5
Rapid 3
Pacifist 1
Disreputable 4
Evasive 3
Difficult 1
Dangerous 1
Taboo-Breaking 1
Techniques:
Consuming Cultivation Focus
Grey Rat Persists On Corruption
10,000 Grey Rats Gather In Moonlight
Nimble Grey Rat Dances In Moonight
Grey Rat Is Kin To Thousands
Grey Rat Eats Behemoths' Corpses
Grey Rat Climbs Over Corpses
Grey Rat Flees The Hawk
Grey Rat Endures The Storm
Grey Rat Striking Method
Grey Rat Kicking Method
Hero: Asuka Veran
Grey Rat Cheats The Heavens 5
Good Seed: +20 to Cultivation rolls.
Protagonist: +20 to Cultivation rolls.
Dead Hand: +10 to Atma rolls.
Bone Whistle: +10 to Cultivation rolls.
Goldfur Robe: +20 to Atma rolls, -1 Voracious
[ ][Asuka] Continue to train in Grey Rat Cheats The Heavens and develop another Core. Cultivation Check against DC 80, failure = injury or death.
[ ][Asuka] Work on developing Grey Rat Cheats The Heavens. Cultivation check at DC 80, success gains an additional technique for the Style. Failure = injury.
[ ][Asuka] Focus on making more Charms from the dead criminal's bones. Atma check at DC50.
[ ][Asuka] Try to impress your Master with a demonstration of what you can do. Cultivation check at DC??
[ ][Asuka] Try to gather a following amid the Sect who are willing to learn Grey Rat Style from you.
[ ][Domain] Encourage the students who saw Asuka fight to look up to her as an idol and start cultivating Grey Rat Style.
[ ][Domain] Encourage Asuka's master to begin experimenting with Grey Rat Cheats The Heavens.
[ ][Domain] Encourage Taro to start using Grey Rat in an effort to outdo Asuka.
[ ][Domain] Encourage rumors about the new style to spread outside the Sect and attract new students.
[ ][Style] Nimble Paws of the Grey Rat
Develop a strong understanding of footwork and kicking techniques, allowing practitioners to scurry around the battlefield with ease. Build Path: Fundamentals
[ ][Style] Grey Rat's Black Claws
Develop the ability to manifest black claws of Death Atma that kill what they touch. A hellishly dangerous technique. Build Path: Style of Legends.
[ ][Style] Grey Rat Scurries In Darkness
Develop the style's stealth and night-sensing capabilities. Ideal for messengers, spies and assassins. Build Path: Assassin
[ ][Style] Grey Rat Bites The Cat
Develop techniques specifically specialized to fighting stronger opponents, making the style a desperation weapon. Build Path: Hero-Killer
[ ][Personal] Try to renegotiate your deal with King Death for gentler terms.
[ ][Personal] Train to remove one of your personality faults and thereby improve the style you're responsible for. (Write in a fault.)
[ ][Personal] Spend some time crafting a Treasure for Asuka using materials hunted from Demon Beasts.
[ ][Personal] Use your influence over Grey Rat style to encourage its discovery by a larger group of practitioners.
[ ][Personal] Continue cultivating and attempt to form a second Core. Cultivation DC40.
