Topic: A Gift For Governor Helston Al-Amat

Kakure-Kai

Date: 2012-06-18 22:55 EST
Delivered by hand by a young Japanese man on a Honda motorcycle to the Governor's office, was a wooden storage box whose front panels are hand-painted with a marsh scene, complete with wading birds and water plants. Inside on the bottom of the box's shelves are two books, a parchment scroll, and a hand-written note. On the top shelf is a sake set and bottle of Chokaisan sake. The books are Sun Tzu's "The Art of War", and Miyamoto Musashi's "The Book of Five Rings". The scroll is a ukiyo-e print of two cranes on a snow-covered pine bough, by the artist Hiroshige. The note reads:

Ms. Helston Al-Amat,

I extend to you my heartiest congratulations on winning your second term in office. I look forward to seeing what exciting things you will accomplish as the elected leader of this fine city, which I have come to call my home.

I have sent these books in the hopes that you will find great knowledge and wisdom in them. They have helped me when waging war against my enemies and have helped strengthen my many friendships. Anyone in positions such as ours, where we find ourselves beseiged on all sides by those who work to bring us down and topple our accomplishments, often find solace in the words and thoughts of great men.

I would like to draw your attention to the most important bit of knowledge I have gleaned from years of meditation over Sun Tzu's writings. He wrote: "Unhappy is the fate of one who tries to win his battles and succeed in his attacks without cultivating the spirit of enterprise; for the result is waste of time and general stagnation." I take this to mean those who want to make sure of succeeding in their battles must seize the favorable moments when they come and not be afraid of heroic measures. What they must not do, and what will prove ultimately fatal, is to sit still and simply hold to the advantages they have got.

Good luck to you in the coming months and I hope that these gifts bring you comfort, wisdom, and great knowledge.

Yours,

Kotetsu Tokishido

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FioHelston

Date: 2012-06-23 12:16 EST
She eyed the box on her secretary's desk warily as she read the note that came with it for the third time.

"Trista, call Ed's folks, and Alain's. I want these things analyzed - and scryed if we can get a mage on it - figure out if we can follow the breadcrumbs back to the witch's house on this one. I think we just got a shot fired across our bow."

Fionna canted her head and leaned over the slip of notepaper, following the lines of the signature's loops and angles like she was tracing a map.

"And see what they can find out about this Kotetsu Tokishido. Where he lives, works, who he surrounds himself with, family, hobbies, blood type....I want to know how many time a day he scratches his nose."

Her mouth slanted, wickedly wry for a moment as she glanced up at her assistant. "Let's develop a spirit of enterprise."

FioHelston

Date: 2012-06-24 12:04 EST
It was ironic, the timing. She wouldn't have necessarily made the connection if they hadn't mentioned his name; RhyDin was, after all, a large city with a constantly shifting population. But the five young men in the inn were set on violence, on insult, on destruction - and they mentioned his name, jeering at Kai as they harrassed her.

"Helston al-Amat-chan," one of them approached her with a bow after they'd made a show of harrassing Kai. "Kotetsu sends his regards and asks if you enjoyed your gifts?"

She put two and two together quickly enough. "Ask Kotetsu-san if it is the custom in his homeland to follow one overture of friendship with five insults?"

They could have left. They could have done many things. In the end, they chose poorly.

And it was all on the security orbs.

"Do you see that?" When the bloodshed was over, she asked the man Salvador held very slowly in Common, pointing to a small glass orb in the corner of the rafters above the bar.

He followed her finger to the orb and nodded, perhaps a little gobbet of something icky landing in a neat splash on the bar's counter. "Hai."

She twisted her head around, sliding a hand through the captive Yakuza's hair soothingly, and tilting his head toward the orb so both of their faces were plainly visible. When she spoke, it was to the orb. "I am letting your man go. He may return to you. He may not. But he did not meet his death at our hands, despite the actions of this man and his friends, that brought us to this point. Thank you for your gifts. It is a pity they meant nothing, that you followed them with this."

His eyes grew large as he caught onto the purpose of the orb. More begging. More pleading directed at the orb. There were tears now mixed in with the snot and the blood.

"Let him go, Salvador," she sighed.

"And what should we do with this one?" David Lo asked, over the unconscious body of another of the men.

"Let his friend take him, if he will. If not, we'll send him home to his employer."

((Adapted from play in the RDI, with many great writers, including but not limited to those of the Kakure-kai, David Lo and Delahada. Thanks to all who participated!))

Kakure-Kai

Date: 2012-06-25 11:00 EST
A small group of higher echelon yakuza and hangers on were collected in Kotetsu's office in the Social Club. In addition to the wakagashira, two of his lieutenants, one kyodai, and three bosozuko were present. The bosozuko were kneeling on the floor at Kotetsu's feet, their heads bowed so deeply that their chins were pressed firmly against their chests.

The small group had just finished watching some marvelous crystal orb play back the fight that had occurred at the Red Dragon Inn earlier that day. Kotetsu had watched the entire thing in a state of silence, his face giving away none of his thoughts on what he was seeing. The other yakuza exchanged quiet gasps of surprise and muttered even quieter opinions on what they were seeing, and the bikers remained just as silent and still as the wakagashira.

When the playback ended, Kotetsu remained silent for a span of five minutes. The bikers squirmed under his gaze, which they couldn't see but could certainly feel. Finally, the old man said, "Who began this descent into idiocy?"

The bikers were silent until Kotetsu nodded to the kyodai, who stepped forward and planted his boot into the middle of Ryota's back, shoving him forward. The biker caught himself before he face-planted and he hastened to say, "I did. It was my idea to visit the place. "

Kotetsu nodded to one of his lieutenants, who stepped forward, speaking for the wakagashira now. "Despite orders to stay away from this place. Despite orders to leave the gaijin alone. Despite orders to leave Helston-san alone. " The shateigashira didn't bother keeping the anger from his voice as the Boss had.

"Hai, Akito-sama," Ryota answered. He knew better than to offer an explanation. It would only sound like an excuse now and there was no point in trying to worm his way out of the consequences of his actions. It would only prolong the inevitable.

Akito glanced towards Kotetsu, who inclined his head the smallest fraction of an inch. Akito bowed, letting the Boss know he understood what must be done. Then he turned to the kyodai who was standing behind the bikers. A moment of silent communication passed between them before the kyodai withdrew a silenced small-caliber pistol out of a shoulder holster, pointed it at the back of Ryoto's head and pulled the trigger. The gun discharged with a little cough and the leader of the biker gang convulsed forward onto his face, blood trickling from the entrance wound at the bottom of his skull. The two other bikers flinched, unable to control the look of abject terror their faces now wore.

The kyodai turned the gun on the one who had brought the orb back to Kotetsu and fired again. Another body, more blood on the bamboo floor mats.

Kotetsu nodded to Akito, who said, "Take out the rubbish. Leave it for Helston-san to find. " The kyodai hastened to call the guards at the door in and the three dragged the bodies away, arranging to have them show up in a very public place.

The remaining biker, the one who had brought Ryota back to Kotetsu, couldn't quite believe his luck. He'd escaped judgment. He risked a look at the Boss and met a thunderous expression on the face of Akito instead. "Kotetsu-sama has need of a messenger. You will do nicely. Go to the factory on Nishijin Street. Ask for Nakamatsu-san. He will give you instructions. " The bosozuko nodded and scrambled to his feet, overjoyed to be escaping the social club with his life. He fled the club, ran down the stairs to where his bike was parked, and drove to the small industrial area of Little Tokyo.

Four hours later, an explosion rocked the quiet residential area of Yi Jing Way, in Chinatown. Though no by-standers died in the blast, pieces of a body were recovered. It was dressed in black, green, and white leather and had parts of a motorcycle imbedded in it.

Early the next morning, the bodies of two young men of Japanese descent were discovered on the steps of Rhy'Din's City Hall. They were naked and each had died from a single gunshot to the back of their heads. One had a sign safety-pinned to his chest. The sign read, "This is what happens when children do not obey their parents." Whether it was a warning for the citizens of Rhy'Din or an oblique message to someone in particular was unknown and left to the Watch to answer.