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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Black Omega" data-source="post: 741367" data-attributes="member: 79">The group had to ride fast to catch up with the wagon where Mir was being held.  Guided by her Thrush and pushing their horses to the limit non-riders like Volar and Mindra could manage, the group came up on a wagon guarded by six ronin.  Toshiro yelled out a challenge and that was all it took.  Mir heard Toshiro’s words and relayed that through Thrush.  And the fight was on.  The guards were skilled and competent as fart as wagon guards went.  But they stood no chance against such experienced samurai and spell slingers.  Only one of the mounted guards escaped, and another was captured and Charmed by Mir, once she was released from the wagon.The guard told an interesting story.  Buka was behind the kidnapping attempt all right.  He had done well for himself in a less lawful town like Ryoko Owari and had a private home to the north of town.  A very nice residence with a walled garden.  And more guards, of course.  Several more guards.  One didn’t make money in Ryoko Owari without gaining enemies.  And Buka had left very specific instructions on how to handle Mir.  She was to be disarmed, gold, items; everything put in a separate box and brought to him.The group could have returned to Ryoko Owari and gotten on with the mission, but this was a matter of principle.  Attack someone in the group and you pay for it.  Mir was even planning to look up those cheap punks later for a little payback. But now the real question.  How to get close enough to get Buka without him running.  Their Charmed buddy was able to reveal there were probably six more guards at the estate.Finally the plan was made.  Verick would use his amulet to look like one of the guards while others hide in the wagon for their chance to strike by surprise.  And Mir was back to being a prisoner, if only in name.  The trip to Buka’s estate took another hour and Verick whispered back to the others that there were only two guards out front.  Then he was off, leading a not really tied up Mir into Buka’s stately manor past the guards.Buka wasn’t expecting trouble, as far as he knew everything was going according to plan, and his eyes positively lit up when he saw Mir brought into the room. “Wonderful!  Oh, she’s just perfect.” The pudgy man positively beamed.  “You may go.  I don’t wish to be disturbed for a while.”Verick turned to go but only made it as far as the door before he drew his katana out in a flash and cut down the guard by the door.  Mir tosses off her bonds and gestured before shouting at Buka “Die!”  and with a strangled cry Buka fell back, laying still.Hearing the disturbance inside, the group charged into battle.  Toshiro and Kaz ran inside to catch the guards who had been at the door.  More cautiously, Mindra summoned a brown bear inside the manor and let it run loose, though it never actually came near the battle.  Buka’s guards recovered from the surprise quickly and the battle turned more bloody.  Buka snapped back to surprised awareness after the Command Word had worn off and he was up with surprising speed, ready to flee.  But Mir tackled him down again and the two started wrestling, a situation that distracted Buka from his plans for escape.While Mindra’s summoned brown bear chased servants out the back of the building the guards were trapped between Toshiro, Kaz, and Verick.  Finally they surrendered while Buka was still enjoying his wrestling with Mir and Verick came over to lay his katana’s edge on Buka’s back and ordered the stout fellow to give in.  Buka had no choice but to surrender and then cravenly beg for mercy.  Mir questioned him, but there wasn’t really much worth learning.  No one had put him up to the kidnapping.  He worked for Yasuki Nobuko, but she didn’t know anything of his lustful obsession.  He had contacts and had checked around to see who might be willing to handle catching Mir and he had easily found some help.While Buka as questioned, the others looked over the house.  It was more Luv Nest than vacation home.  Large amounts of wine and other luxury items.  And as Volar’s sharp elven eyes found, a secret room deeper in the house.  Recruiting Verick to open the door, they found a shrine to Mir filled with many items.  A rather scandalous painting of Mir, a book from the Western Kingdoms about the worship of the Oak Father, a scrap of cloth from Mir’s kimono, even a splinter of wood from Mir’s staff.  This was a very serious obsession indeed.  Volar is also pleased to discover a large pounce of koku, Rokugani gold coins with square holes through the middles.Buka’s fate is left up to Mir, who was not in a merciful mood.  At least his end was fast, unlike the fate he had planned for Mir.  The guards are released after some debate.  They are pros, their meal ticket’s dead and there’s no money in revenge.  By the time they were done, it was getting into the evening and the group decided to wait until early the next morning before starting back for their confrontation with the Strong Arm Firemen.  It would be a two-hour ride so they’d have to leave early, but they could not miss that battle.~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Sorry for the short update, but the words aren't flowing too smoothly right now.  Rest assured though, the action is just about to start picking up.<img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f642.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":)" title="Smile    :)"  data-smilie="1"data-shortname=":)" /></blockquote>

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