LOG START
[18:49:17] Master of Games
All Creation, Beneath the Sword
Session 25
The harvest is nearly done. While the shortage of labor due to war has eaten into it, the siege of Nathir ended just soon enough to avoid a serious food shortage, and the reopening of its port has allowed the Sword to supplement yields with imports, paid for from the imperial family’s own coffers.
With the end of the harvest and beginning of winter come Vaneha’s harvest festivals. In many regions, this is also a time of remembering the dead as winter draws in, and there is certainly much remembering to do this year. The exact date of the celebration varies by province, but in Jibei, it’s a three-day holiday, of which today is the third, and you are invited to the Maon compound for an audience with that clan’s twin gods, as arranged during the fall of Nathir.
As a clan not of the Sword’s inner circle, but in the Prince’s favor, the Maon estate is situated in the upper city. Its share of water from the sacred bounding aqueducts runs right through, bisecting the grounds like a miniature river, and the garden, more than a classical pebble garden, reminds of a stony beach, as the shores of the Maruto near Nathir. The buildings, too, are unconventional, incorporating sailcloth and decorations of fishbone and polished stones.
You’re not the only guests. Aside from celebrating Maon subjects, both nobles and commoners, dignitaries from other allied clans have been invited, but they are here to drink and socialize—the sharp-eyed might spot Zao Sweet and Bright of Clan Otaya among the crowd, clearly popular with the children.
[18:49:23] Master of Games
The evening’s agenda consists of drink and play, an informal poetry competition, and finally a ritual sendoff for those lost: both those lost this year and the longer dead who came to visit. While traditions vary across Vaneha, it’s said that the Maon, as a riverfaring clan with less agriculturally productive pronvinces, place more emphasis on this aspect than most. Their little boats ferrying loved ones down the aqueducts and back to the afterlife are a well-known sight in Jibei.
A Maon retainer greets your party at the gates with clear sings of having been awaiting you. They give you the choice of taking you to meet the twins immediately or showing you around first.
[19:03:52] Datei ma Kagemori
Kagemori has dressed up for the event, in a dark colored robe accented with red to reflect the joyful but somber atmosphere of the evening. He polite indicates that the retainer’s tour will be appreciated. “Though it is best not to make the gods wait, so perhaps it should be done at a decent pace.”
[19:06:59] Raizo
Raizo is… not wearing his armor for once, or the padding layer beneath it. Instead, he’s dusted off his clothes he wore back for special occasions from his days as a magistrate. It’s a reasonably fine robe as far as “nice provincial clothes” go but anyone fashion-conscious would almost certainly consider him under-dressed. “May as well look around first, yeah. I don’t know how I’m supposed to act here really.”
[19:08:51] Datei ma Kagemori
”I could provide a tutor if it is something you desire to learn. But for now, the celebratory atmosphere should make unspoken rules a bit more lax. If in doubt…Just follow my lead.”
[19:17:18] Raizo
”I can do that. Shall we?”
[19:25:47] River Snake
Snake is always fairly well dressed, but is as now better dressed than usual, living up to his front-job as the owner of a successful if modest sized trading company, though he probably looks more dressed for a business deal than a party, there’s enough overlap it isnt jarring enough. “I have no issues with a tour before business, unless the gods are in a hurry. Though I expect if they didnt want us to look around, they wouldnt offer”
[19:27:33] Master of Games
The retainer assents and takes the lead, going around the compound in a circle. “Ours is not a celebration that stands heavily on ceremony, as you’ll see, sirs. Your taste might be made fun of at the poetry competition, but even there, the wine will flow freely.” Which, of course, hardly means the place is free of politics. Zao and their son’s presence is surely tactical, as their Guild connections are highly attractive to the new lords of Nathir. As the retainer shows an annex seemingly dedicated to family keepsakes—particularly notable things fished from rivers across the centuries, including gems and the jaws of a fish that must once have been the size of a house—you walk past a bored-looking fellow in clearly foreign clothing and what must be his bodyguard, perhaps a diplomatic guest from afar. And speaking of unexpected guests, Raizo recognizes his band’s erstwhile landlord, Smoking Dragon, and her bookie among the crowd. They didn’t arrive with you, perhaps here privately.
[19:32:05] Datei ma Kagemori
Kagemori is impressed by the jawbone and inquires about its acquisition, or if they know anything about the creature it once belonged to.
[19:41:09] Master of Games
According to your guide, family lore has it the jaws used to belong to a creature named Dendan, capable of swallowing a ship and its crew in a single gulp. The twin gods, deities of river fishing, hunted it in times long past and the trophy has belonged to them since before even the founding of the Maon.
[19:44:21] Datei ma Kagemori
Kagemori seems suitably impressed. “The pair must be powerful warriors, even among the divine court.”
[19:46:58] Master of Games
Your guide visibly swells a little with familial pride. “They had help, of course. Fishing is not an endeavor of solitary heroes. But the rivers are our gods’ domain, and now ours to this day.”
[19:53:48] Master of Games
The tour guides you around the compound’s main building, festooned in sailcloth painted in geometric patterns, and at last leads you down the miniature river which cuts through the estate, where younger adults and children—one notes that women and the young outnumber men of military age, as they do across the city even after the troops’ homecoming—have gathered for shipbuilding and impromptu games. Among them, a group is skipping flat stones across the slow-moving water, and a pair of twins is showing the rest how it’s done, one picking up a stone and tossing it right down the canal, all the way to the estate’s borders.
[20:00:05] Datei ma Kagemori
”Twins in the domain of the twins. A fortuitous sight, perhaps.”
[20:00:48] Master of Games
”Oh, that’s them. At one of their favorite pastimes.”
[20:02:05] Datei ma Kagemori
”I see. Let’s go see the fruits of their tutoring of the others, shall we?”
[20:02:34] Raizo
”Lead on.”
[20:05:55] Datei ma Kagemori
Kagemori heads down to the group skipping stones.
[20:19:54] Master of Games
You’ve seen the evidence at the footstep shrine that Kamo and Moka of the Stony Banks were once infants, and so, gods or not, clearly they have aged. Yet at some point in young adulthood, they must have stopped, for the twins at the center of the small gaggle of stone-throwers appear as young women, sun-tanned and lithe as might be expected of river fishers. Their hair’s done up for the occasion with shells and gems, but perhaps Raizo needn’t have worried about being underdressed: their robes are hiked up to the knees and the sleeves casually tied back for wading through the water.
The group around the two is following their lead in skipping stones as you approach, with one young boy almost matching the twins’ distance. Clearly it’s a popular pastime for clan youth. Kamo and Moka turn around and grin at you as one. Their teeth are sharp as a carnivorous fish’s. “Ah! It’s Datei!” “Welcome on behalf of Clan Maon. We’re happy you could make it to our little party.”
[20:21:27] Datei ma Kagemori
”Thank you for the invitation, gods of the banks. How goes the stone skipping?”
[20:27:03] River Snake
Snake bows to the river gods before grabbing a stone and attempting a skip down the stream of his own.
[20:29:59] Raizo
Raizo does the same, not to be outdone.
[20:36:08] Master of Games
”Very well! There’s not a child in our family that doesn’t learn this.” “Not that any of them can hold a candle to us.” River Snake’s throw nearly, but not quite, matches the twins’, and draws oohs from the crowd and applause from Kamo and Moka. “Very nice!” “We have a standing promise that we’ll reward anyone who can beat us, you know.” “We’re not sure what with, but it’s not like anyone will—” Raizo picks up a particularly nice-looking rock and, in a moment of divine inspiration, it skips, and skips, and keeps skipping, and Moka’s bragging is interrupted as Raizo’s rock clears the estate’s boundary and continues skipping off into the aqueduct beyond.
[20:36:44] Datei ma Kagemori
”Quite the throws, my friends.”
[20:41:20] River Snake
Snake laughs “I wasnt expecting to win, but I like to skip a rock on occasion…” he stops to whistle at Raizo’s throw “Wow, hidden talents huh?”
[20:41:41] Raizo
”Hot damn!” Raizo hoots with a jump. “Daddy’s still got it!”
[20:42:00] Raizo
”I was the rock skipping champ of my village growing up.”
[20:42:29] Datei ma Kagemori
”I think you might be the rock skipping champion of the capital as well, now.”
[20:44:37] Raizo
”Yeah, uh, looks like it.”
[20:44:52] Raizo
”Better to be lucky than good, eh?”
[20:47:16] Master of Games
The assembled youth cheer. Someone asks if Raizo’s sure he didn’t fall out of a Maon crib as a child. The twins, briefly flabberghasted, join in congratulating him and then turn to the three of you. “Well then, you wanted to talk with us directly, didn’t you?”
[20:48:32] Datei ma Kagemori
”Yes. During the siege of Nathir I made a small discovery that I would like to discuss with both of you.”
[20:52:38] Master of Games
”This way, then!” “We’ll be back for the floating of souls at the latest.” The twins take their leave from the assembled clan members and… wade right into the center of the small stream, beckoning for the circle to follow.
[20:53:58] Datei ma Kagemori
Kagemori pauses, before deciding to trust the gods and following them in.
[20:54:44] River Snake
Snake follows after the twins, not worrying about getting his feet wet.
[20:55:20] Raizo
Raizo follows along with a briefly raised eyebrow.
[21:00:05] Master of Games
The stream is shallow and gentle, safe to wade through, but it does get your feet wet. As you follow the gods, you wade for longer than you might expect given its size—it’s not as though it’s a real river, just the same aqueduct water flowing through every clan estate landscaped to look like it. But the Maon estate fades away and you find yourself standing on stones, shin-deep near the shore of a briskly flowing river under a cloudless noonday sky. Kagemori has likely stepped into the cloudy pond on the Datei estate before to enter Nazubi’s sanctum—this is the divine domain of Kamo and Moka of the Stony Banks.
[21:01:01] Master of Games
The twins wade to shore and wave for you to follow. “Here we can speak in private.” “We’ll also serve you some food, if you like.”
[21:02:35] Raizo
”My parents always said don’t take handouts. Then I had enough nights starving to realize, I should never turn down some food.”
[21:05:18] River Snake
Snake wades ashore “Well, this is a new experience, divine powers never fail to impress.”
[21:07:22] Raizo
”Can’t say I’ve ever been in a god’s domain before, though.”
[21:07:45] Datei ma Kagemori
Kagemori wades to shore. “Your hospitality is appreciated. Should I start at the beginning, or do you already have an idea what we are here to discuss?”
[21:15:08] Master of Games
You’re led to a campsite on the shore with a fire, cooking and hunting tools, and behind it, the fresh body of a fish gigantic enough to be the original owner of the jawbones you saw earlier. The cooking implements aren’t used directly, rather the twins handle a dark, shiny substance and produce dishes of grilled fish, freshwater clams, and more from the fire as if conjuring them fron thin air.
”Maybe start at the beginning. We’re not sure what your discovery is, exactly.”
[21:16:06] River Snake
Snake stares at the giant fish. “Wow”
[21:16:35] Master of Games
”It’s dead, don’t worry.” “Never been alive, actually.”
[21:16:57] River Snake
”Is it some kind of divine idea of giant fish, or something?”
[21:19:06] Master of Games
”You could say so.” Kamo thinks. “We make our decor with the essence from the mountain, and the prayer of our clan. All the gods shape their own realms in the city that way.”
[21:19:27] Datei ma Kagemori
”Fortunately, it is not a very long story. During the siege, I found a long abandoned shrine on the edge of the river. The murals seemed to depict you two, but as newborns. And a figure I assume to be your mother. This would be a curiosity on its own, but it happens the shrine also includes the grave of a relative of mine.”
[21:20:22] River Snake
Snake rubs his chin “Makes sense…Though I’d love to ask more we’re not here for that tonight”
[21:22:22] Master of Games
The twins look puzzled, and some back and forth ensues to clarify the location of the footstep shrine and the murals there, at which point they seem to know what Kagemori is talking about, and be surprised about it. “That old thing is still around? I haven’t thought about it in centuries.” “Me neither. I assumed it collapsed in a landslide at some point…”
[21:23:20] Datei ma Kagemori
”It certainly did not look inhabited for centuries.”
[21:23:52] Raizo
”Looks a little more inhabited now.”
[21:24:08] Master of Games
”What, did the water elementals move in?”
[21:24:34] Datei ma Kagemori
”Longterm, at least. It did, apparently, provide relief to Datei ma Sakamori in his last days. For that, I guess I owe you or the shrine-builders some gratitude.”
[21:26:25] Raizo
”No, I mean we cleaned some things up a little. ‘The’ water elementals? Did you expect there to be any?”
[21:28:14] River Snake
”The lions are there too”
[21:31:15] Master of Games
”I guess it goes to show, it’s hard to find something if you don’t think to look for it.” Moka formally bows to Kagemori. “Thank you for informing us of this. You’re right about the figure being our mother. That shrine’s actually our birthplace.” Kamo looks at Raizo and shrugs. “Yes, a lot live around the confluence. We’ve been reconnecting over the past month and change. Wouldn’t be odd if some decided to squat an abandoned shrine.”
[21:32:57] Master of Games
”Like, jade lion-dogs?” One of the twins whispers something to the other at this.
[21:33:31] Datei ma Kagemori
”Yes. A door to heaven is located within.”
[21:33:44] River Snake
”I thought that was normal for shrines”
[21:34:10] Master of Games
”Figures you’d have found out about that. That means that’s even still operational, then.”
[21:34:12] Datei ma Kagemori
Kagemori was unsure if they would have known this or not - it is also possible they did but did not want to reveal it to Kagemori if the lions were gone and he had not figured it out.
[21:34:53] Datei ma Kagemori
”The two were quite polite. If a bit imposing.”
[21:38:13] Datei ma Kagemori
”I will get to the point. I wish to care for the shrine, due to its surprise connection to my family. I would…Also like to be aware if a visitor from Heaven suddenly comes or goes. Would this be something you would object to? I understand you likely have your own ideas for the place.”
[21:43:05] Master of Games
”Sounds like lion-dogs.” To River Snake, Kamo says, “Not at all, there’s only a bit over sixty in all the world. Or were, last time I knew.”
Kagemori’s proposal draws the twins’ attention, and briefly they both consider him like a spearfisher might a fish swimming beneath the surface. “Understandable. We know the story, of course.” The two murmur to each other back and forth. “Suppose you became aware of visitors from Heaven. What would you do?”
[21:45:45] Datei ma Kagemori
”Try to ensure I know their location and objectives. I do not see it any different from wanting to know if someone powerful arrived in town by boat or by horse. It would be unwise to make an enemy of them without good reason, but only a fool would let them pass unobserved if able to do otherwise.”
[21:46:55] Datei ma Kagemori
”In practice, this may be harder than I make it sound, but that’s an implementation issue.”
[21:53:26] Master of Games
”That’s pretty reasonable. In fact, maybe we should let the rest of the Stars know that the gate is still functional as well, now that it’s part of Vaneha.” Both the twins watch Kagemori’s reaction intently.
[21:58:27] Datei ma Kagemori
Kagemori pauses, considering this. “Do you think any of them have want or need to use it? I thought the Stars enjoyed their residence in the capital.” He tries to present a calm, humble attitude. He is speaking to a pair of gods, after all.
[22:01:32] River Snake
Snake despite his casual appearance, doesn’t like being left out of what’s going on and immediately shifts his mental focus to trying to listien in on the whispering, and generally figure out if the twins are more likely to be friend or foe in general.
[22:18:03] Master of Games
The twins have a thousand and more years practice at closing ranks and strategizing among themselves, but River Snake’s and Kagemori’s senses flow with the essence of the Most High.
Snake can hear Kamo bringing up Kagemori’s sponsorship of the House of Thirty Seals to Moka, and Moka raising concerns about the heavenly gate to Kamo. They apparently consider the gate a threat more than anything, and even float the idea of closing it for good.
Kagemori finds the twins’ proposal to be fishing for a reaction more than a serious idea. They have no interest in telling anyone about the gate, but likely figure that if Kagemori tries to talk them out of it, that might be revealing as to his true intentions. “Oh, we do. But like you say, isn’t it best to be aware if someone powerful arrives in your land?”
[22:32:18] Datei ma Kagemori
”Quite. Now, I generally believe a hidden knife is more valuable than one worn openly. There can be value in holding a weapon openly, to let the imaginations of others run wild, but surely everyone present can benefit more from that later on.” He figures it is best to play into their appeal just a bit. “I’d love if we could tax its use, but I think the lion-dogs and heaven would disapprove. Hence my desire to simply observe. Too much excitement in the area might draw attention where a simply dilapidated shrine might draw continued neglect.”
[22:39:25] Master of Games
”Hmm.” The twins look at each other. “You speak sense, I suppose. It is also still an important site for us, so why not care for it jointly then? The river spirits will help to monitor it for sure if we ask them.”
[22:42:16] Datei ma Kagemori
”I have no means of stopping you, so I find this acceptable. Do you mean personally, or are you bringing in Clan Maon?”
[22:44:42] Master of Games
”Well, it’s for a priest more than a god to take care of a temple, no?” “We can pick out a chosen few who can keep quiet.”
[22:48:13] Datei ma Kagemori
”You have foreseen my next line, then, wondering if the clan would be fine sharing. I have no objections, then. If my usage of the space is not obstructed, I will offer none to your own. I will also pledge to honor you - or your mother, I suppose? - as is deemed appropriate when I use the space, if your priests respect the rest of Sakamori.”
[22:50:28] Master of Games
”Sounds like a deal to me.” “And to me.” “You’re free to pray to Mama, but the prayer won’t go anywhere.” Kamo lies down and idly rests her face on her hands. “I don’t suppose her name was recorded anywhere?” In fact it was not; having long worn out of any place that might have held it.
[22:50:49] Datei ma Kagemori
”No. I even asked the lion-dogs and they did not know it.”
[22:51:09] Datei ma Kagemori
”I had intended to ask you, out of curiosity.”
[22:52:24] Master of Games
”She was swallowed by the Wyld about… how long ago was it now?” “Eight hundred years ago,” Moka supplies. “That’s about all we, or anyone, remember of her.”
[22:53:36] Datei ma Kagemori
”I see. I feel for your loss. Perhaps, when properly maintained, the murals will be a good monument to her memory.”