carpedavid's Land of the Crane (Updated 11 May, 2006)

[Ivy Sylvan]

Well, this is my first post here, so I really don't know what to say. I'm one of CarpeDavid's players in the campaign he's detailing in this story hour (I'm Fukasu). I'm really enjoying watching this campaign get posted and read by everyone here. It's been one of the most enjoyable campaigns I've ever played in. Keep adding to the story!!!!!!!

 

[carpedavid]

The Temple of Thunder and Lightning

Well, I've been having so much fun writing this up, that I've got a second bonus update for this week. A question to any readers out there: do you find footnotes in storyhours to be helpful or annoying?

--------------------------------

On the first day of Yongatsu, 337 Ito, Year of the Fire Crane, the three heroes reached the Temple of Thunder and Lightning. A stout stone wall nearly twenty feet tall enclosed the monastery, leaving the iron lightning rod on top of the temple's pagoda the only thing visible from the road. Kakeru maneuvered the cart up to the temple's massive wooden doors, and the three heroes hopped out.

While Kakeru and Fukasu looked at each other expectantly, Musashi walked right up to the doors and knocked loudly. Then, they waited. After five minutes, he knocked again. He could hear the sound of the knocking echoing beyond the doors, and looked back at his friends with satisfaction.

After ten minutes with no answer, Musashi began pounding on the door with the scabbard of his katana. After a minute of extremely loud pounding, he was rewarded with the sound of a creaky door opening somewhere beyond, the sound of footfalls on stone echoing from inside the compound, and then, a few seconds later, the sound of the door being unbarred.

The door swung open only far enough to allow the monk on the other side to poke his bald head through. He looked suspiciously at Musashi, then directed his gaze toward Kakeru. After a moment of examination, he turned to look at Fukasu, and his eyes opened wide in surprise.

"Oni!" he screamed, and promptly slammed the door shut. The party could hear the bar slide back into place, the sound of running, and then the creaky door being slammed shut.

"Well, then," Kakeru grumbled.

Fukasu sighed and hung her head.

Musashi clenched his fists and took a step back. "Is this how you treat the representatives of your lord?" he yelled with all his power. "Is this how you treat a samurai?" He fumed for a few moments before returning to pounding on the door.

After less than a minute, they heard the sounds of the creaky door opening once again. Footsteps followed, and then the sound of the door being unbarred. This time, it was thrown fully open, revealing a very old monk in saffron robes. "My deepest apologies, Kurosawa-sama*," he said, bowing very deeply, "I assure you that the young man who insulted you will be properly disciplined." He gestured for the group to enter, "Please come inside, I have been expecting you."

Musashi looked at Fukasu. She was silent for a moment, and then shrugged. "Thank you sensei," she said, bowing, "It would be our honor."

The old monk smiled and bowed once again, "I am Sanjiro, the kanju** of this monastery." Inside the stone walls lay a complex of wooden buildings, which Sanjiro deftly navigated the party through. He led to them to the back of the complex, to a large building which possessed a roof that reminded Fukasu of a lotus blossom unfolding.

"The students are engaged in their morning exercises," Sanjiro said as he opened the door for the party. An echoing cacophony of ki shouts, barked instructions, and occasional yelps of pain greeted them as they stepped inside. Hundreds of monks were engaged in various forms of physical activity: in one corner, several lines of monks threw punches and kicks in unison; in another, pairs of monks practiced throwing each other on the ground in various, painful ways; other monks practiced sparring, grappling, tumbling, and balancing throughout the building.

As the group walked past the students, Fukasu noticed them staring and heard whispers of "oni" filter through their ranks. For a few seconds, she contemplated doing nothing, but then she turned to look at them, opened her mouth wide, and exhaled a cloud of steam. The whispers stopped, and she smiled to herself. Ha!

After leading the party to the center of the room, the kanju motioned for the party to sit. "So," he began, "I understand that you are making the pilgrimage to Tsuru no Hi?"

"That's correct," Musashi said brusquely. "We require you to..."

"Ahem," Kakeru interrupted. Musashi looked sidelong at him, but said nothing, "Sensei, it would be a great honor for the Kurosawa clan if you would send a representative of your temple to accompany us."

"Yes, of course," the old monk smiled, "The fate of the Kurosawa clan is our fate as well. It would be a great honor for the temple to have someone accompany you."

"Thank you, Sanjiro-sensei."

I wonder who I should send, Sanjiro thought to himself as he looked around the dojo. Toji? No – he's too good a practice dummy. Miho? No, too cute. Kazuko? Too industrious. Riku? Tomoe? Koyo? No, no, no. Who then? Who can I afford to lose for several months, he thought, then looked at the three teenagers sitting in front of him, or permanently? He mentally ran through the roster of his adepts for a few moments before settling on one name. Ah yes, he smiled to himself, yes, he'll do... He turned and motioned to one of the young monks standing nearby.

"Yes sensei?" the monk said, bowing deeply.

"Bring me Takashi."

Next: Takashi, the Monk

Notes:

* When Tanayarans address each other, they almost always do so by employing one of the titles described below. Using no title indicates a level of extreme familiarity usually limited to siblings, spouses, or a parent addressing a title. When used, the title is added as a suffix to the subject's given name. For example, if talking to Takashi, one might address him as "Takashi-san."

• Dono - used when addressing one's own daimyo. It is an elevated form of -sama.
• Sama - used when addressing one's superiors, or when showing great respect for someone. It is the rough equivalent of "Lord or Lady." A commoner addressing a noble would use this title.
• Sensei - used when addressing a teacher of any sort, or a "master" of an art form or trade.
• San - this is the default honorific, used when addressing an equal or near equal. It is the equivalent of calling someone "Mr. or Ms."
• Kun - used to address a male friend or close companion.
• Chan - used to address a female friend or close companion.

** Head abbot of a monastery

 

[el-remmen]

I love it!

And keep the footnotes. I may be partial to them because I make extensive use of them in my own story hour - but they really are informative and don't break up the actual narrative with too much exposition.

 

[el-remmen]

Oh, and do you plan to start a Rogue's Gallery Thread for these PCs?

I would like to see their stats as they advance.

 

[Ivy Sylvan]

I agree! Keep the footnotes!

 

[carpedavid]

Oh, and do you plan to start a Rogue's Gallery Thread for these PCs?

I would like to see their stats as they advance.

Uh, well, I am now, I guess .

I do make the players fill out a clean character sheet each time they level up, so I've got records of all their stats. Therefore, I can post fairly detailed info about them at each level.

We play tomorrow, so I'll try to get their initial info posted somtime later this weekend or early next week.

 

[carpedavid]

I agree! Keep the footnotes!

Well, two votes for footnotes works for me . Plus, I like them, too.

 

[carpedavid]

I've added the three PCs introduced thus far into a Rogue's Gallery thread, found here: http://www.enworld.org/showthread.php?t=121369

I'll be adding the additional PCs as they're introduced, as well as the stats for any nifty bad guys the PCs run across.

 

[BSF]

Having fun reading it so far CarpeDavid. I like the footnotes because you use a lot of terminology that isn't always familiar to everyone. Certainly, some words can be guessed at by context, but clarifying with footnotes is a good idea.

 

[carpedavid]

Takashi, the Monk

Having fun reading it so far CarpeDavid.

Thanks, BSF! Without further ado, here's this week's installment:

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Takashi, a young man of 16 years, had come to the Temple of Thunder and Lightning under unfortunate circumstances. In the summer of his 13th year, a group of wandering ronin raided his village, slaughtering any who dared resist them. Takashi escaped with his life, but his parents weren't so lucky. Orphaned, alone, scared, and burning with rage, Takashi was taken in by the monks of the temple. They clothed him, fed him, and trained him in the Way of the Storm.

Unfortunately for Takashi, the monastic lifestyle did little to quell the rage he felt. He trained relentlessly, and refused to pull punches. He had broken a dozen noses, kicked twice as many groins, and smashed so many toes that most students refused to be his training partner. He had therefore been relegated to practicing with a wooden training dummy out behind the dojo. If they would just learn to block correctly, this wouldn't have to happen, he thought to himself.

Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted one of the youngest monks watching him. He punched the dummy one last time, hard, then turned. "Yes?"

"Takashi-san," the monk bowed apologetically, "Sensei wishes to see you."

"What? I did my chores!"

"I don't believe it has anything to do with your chores," this time.

"Fine," he sighed, and followed the monk into the dojo. He ran through the list of things he might be in trouble for, but couldn't think of anything that he'd done within the last few days. He was really thrown for a loop when he saw the group of non-monks sitting in front of Sanjiro: a samurai, a shaman, and an...an... oni?

The outsiders stared at Takashi as he approached. The samurai, in particular, appeared to be examining him, which made Takashi feel somewhat uncomfortable. He bowed to the visitors and to the kanju, then dropped into seiza.

"Takashi-san," the old monk said, "It is time for you to take the knowledge you have gained here, and practice applying it in the world." He gestured to the three visitors, "Our honorable guests are representatives of Kurosawa-dono."

"Uh, ok," Takashi replied, looking back at them. The shaman looked nice enough. The oni was a bit weird...well, a lot weird; but what really bothered him was the samurai. The guy kept staring at him. He decided to stare back, and the samurai scowled.

"They are taking the offerings of Kurosawa-dono to Tsuru no Hi. Their success will ensure good fortune for all of Kurosawa-dono's subjects, including this temple."

"Mmm-hmm," he said, continuing to stare.

"Takashi!" Sanjiro snapped. The young monk looked startled, and then returned his attention to the kanu. "Takashi, you have the great honor of representing the Temple of Thunder and Lightning on this journey."

"Huh? Me?" Takashi looked stunned, "Why me?"

Sanjiro paused for a second before answering. "I have meditated on this question for many days," he said, taking a deep breath, "and the spirits," he exhaled, "say that it should be so." I'm going to pay for that, he thought to himself.

Musashi, who was still examining the young monk, frowned, and then turned to the old monk. "This journey is bound to be very dangerous, and I am not convinced that this one has the ability to defend himself," he said, gesturing toward Takashi. "Perhaps we could arrange for a test of some sort."

"Oh, bring it on!" Takashi replied, jumping to his feet. Musashi looked shocked, but Sanjiro suppressed a smile; there were times when the young monk's extreme enthusiasm was endearing.

With a nod from the kanju, the monks of the Temple of Thunder and Lightning quickly fell into rank, and lined the edges of the tatami. One monk, who Musashi had guessed was the senior student, walked to the center, and motioned to both he and Takashi to take their places.

"Hold these," Musashi muttered as he handed his swords to Fukasu and Kakeru, "This will be over quickly." At the very least, this will be a good test, he thought as he took his place a few feet away from Takashi, of my own skill.

The two competitors bowed to each other, then turned to bow to the shinban*. Then, all three turned and bowed to Sanjiro, who nodded to them to continue.

The shinban pointed at Musashi. "Ready?"

"I am a samurai, I am always ready."

Next, the shinban pointed at Takashi. "Ready?"

"Let's do it."

Finally, the shinban brought his hands together, "Hajime!**"

As the two opponents closed, Takashi threw a short jab toward Musashi's face, just to see if he could get a reaction. To the samurai's credit, he didn't flinch. Musashi replied with a jab of his own, and Takashi smiled to himself. Ok, it's on, he thought.

The two circled each other for a moment, and then Takashi attacked. He led with a roundhouse kick to the head, which Musashi raised his arms to block. Doing so, though, left the samurai's midsection completely exposed, and Takashi seized on the opportunity, delivering a side kick to his ribs. By my ancestors, he's fast, Musashi thought as he felt the air rush out of his lungs.

Musashi retaliated with a solid punch to Takashi's jaw. The blow was powerful, but he overextended, and left his guard open again. Takashi took advantage and snapped a backfist to the samurai's face. Ow, he's strong, Takashi realized as his face began to throb, oh, he's going down.

Takashi stepped in close. He placed his right foot just outside of the samurai's stance, pivoted his hips so that his back was now to his opponent, and reached his right hand under Musashi's arm. His left hand came up to trap the arm, and he squatted ever so slightly. Before his opponent could react, he popped back up while leaning slightly at the waist, and suddenly the samurai was in the air.

What the... Musashi thought, as his feet left the ground. In the brief instant that his head cleared Takashi's shoulder, he looked down. Wow, he marveled, the ground looks really far away.

Next: Musahi lands, and everyone pays visit to a haunted shrine.

Notes:

*The referee in a martial arts match.
**"Begin!"