The Day of Thunder

[Makime]

Makime had headed back out into the fields, this time with a more direct purpose. She had heard a few individuals of interest to herself might be out in this area at this time of day.

So the Lioness took to the prowl to locate them.

[Anjing]

Makime had headed back out into the fields, this time with a more direct purpose. She had heard a few individuals of interest to herself might be out in this area at this time of day.

So the Lioness took to the prowl to locate them.

Seek and ye shall find. Anjing was still pacing about even with the late hour, her weapon held comfortingly in hand.
The day had given her much to ponder and the night was usually good for that. Even if the persistent fog did turn passes bye into disconcerting blobs and shapes.

[Makime]

"Lady Anjing," Makime said as her shape resolved itself out of the fog, "Terrible ground to fight a battle on I am afraid. I was looking it over this morning."

Her own weapon sat in it's scabbard, but the Lioness's hand rested on it...ready to shift down and hold the scabbard if she had need to draw with her other.

[Anjing]

"Lady Anjing," Makime said as her shape resolved itself out of the fog, "Terrible ground to fight a battle on I am afraid. I was looking it over this morning."

Her own weapon sat in it's scabbard, but the Lioness's hand rested on it...ready to shift down and hold the scabbard if she had need to draw with her other.

"Makime?" Anjing blinks and then rests her club over her shoulder.

"I'd heard you were around." Shaking her head she motions the Lioness to come join her.
"The ground's crap alright, I'm hoping it doesn't come to a proper battle but hope probably won't cut it."

If Makime approached Anjing would offer a respectful arm clasp, one warrior to another.

"You still running everything in the Lion? Everytime I hear of a good idea from down that way your name comes up. Your family is well?"

[Makime]

"I work only to make Lord Akodo's will manifest. Which mostly means creating some sort of order from the chaos of mixing so many from such different tribes together. And I take pride in having done well so far." She answered dryly, taking the offered arm in a firm grasp. Truthfully she would have deferred to the bow, but the Lioness had been a simple guard once and was familiar with more then a few greetings. At least Anjing hadn't spit on her palm and offered to shake hands.

Makime looked out into the fog, "I can't claim all the credit on that front, however, my daughter has developed a talent for managing large projects...and I must confess is considerably more persuasive then I am when it comes to smoothing over bruised egos. Her road project was building quite a rapport before...the madness set everything on edge."

"Yoriie, my son, has found a place in the school of Lord Akodo. A talented warrior by all I have heard." She sighed at that. "But what of your own. Both family and clan."

[Anjing]

"I work only to make Lord Akodo's will manifest. Which mostly means creating some sort of order from the chaos of mixing so many from such different tribes together. And I take pride in having done well so far." She answered dryly, taking the offered arm in a firm grasp. Truthfully she would have deferred to the bow, but the Lioness had been a simple guard once and was familiar with more then a few greetings. At least Anjing hadn't spit on her palm and offered to shake hands.

Makime looked out into the fog, "I can't claim all the credit on that front, however, my daughter has developed a talent for managing large projects...and I must confess is considerably more persuasive then I am when it comes to smoothing over bruised egos. Her road project was building quite a rapport before...the madness set everything on edge."

"Yoriie, my son, has found a place in the school of Lord Akodo. A talented warrior by all I have heard." She sighed at that. "But what of your own. Both family and clan."

"If our children aren't able to surpass us we have been poor parents." She releases Makime's arm with a last squeeze.
"The road project was good one. It's hard to imagine the sheer size of it. I like the ambition."

She gestures behind her.
"You are welcome at my camp if you would like to stay a while. My family is well, some will lead the Hide, the others the Anjing. And they have their own strange ideas too. I don't understand all of them, but as I said, I like the ambition. The Clan is rebuilding, many are joining us from the mountains and hills of the north. Things are still hard, but we survive. If we can deal with the corruption there will be a future."

She scans the darkness herself.
"I don't suppose you have some extremely orderly and cunning plan to win a great victory?"

[Makime]

"If our children aren't able to surpass us we have been poor parents." She releases Makime's arm with a last squeeze.
"The road project was good one. It's hard to imagine the sheer size of it. I like the ambition."

She gestures behind her.
"You are welcome at my camp if you would like to stay a while. My family is well, some will lead the Hide, the others the Anjing. And they have their own strange ideas too. I don't understand all of them, but as I said, I like the ambition. The Clan is rebuilding, many are joining us from the mountains and hills of the north. Things are still hard, but we survive. If we can deal with the corruption there will be a future."

She scans the darkness herself.
"I don't suppose you have some extremely orderly and cunning plan to win a great victory?"

"If the enemy were to reveal an army, myself and Lord Akodo would see it dully crushed." Makime answered with a slight hint of a smile. "But alas our enemy deals in battlefields I can not yet gather up my warriors and march to."

She likewise looks back out to the darkness. "Your people are stubborn, if the corruption claims your Clan...then I dare say all else would have long been eroded to nothing." Her tone is a sincere one.

"I wish we knew more about what is happening. At present it feels like we are left swinging at...well this fog. Something is there but slips and wraps and coils around every blow. Flowing away and back as it wills while we can do nothing to stop it."

[Anjing]

Snip

"Ha! Stubborn enough we could live in a house with no walls and the roof would stay up. I suppose there are worse things to be known for."
She thinks back on her family, her expression hardening. "It won't come to that. Armies or no we will stop it here."

Then Anjing glances over at Makime. "It's insidious, isn't it? Cowardly but cunning. Creeping into everything and then fleeing after the damage is done."
A deep sigh. "Everytime another realm intrudes onto ours, chaos and suffering occurs. And then it is up to the mortals to set it right. Not gods, not spirits or demons. Just people. It is frustrating to think that my husband's strength or your Lord's blade or the...many good qualities of the Emperor are not able to set it right."

Cocking her head. "But also empowering, in a way."

[Makime]

Snip

"One must adapt to the foe you face if you seek victory," Makime answered with a sigh, "It is true for us and it is true for the corruption. Right now it has bettered adapted, what we might call cowardice is what it sees as the path to victory. But the war is not over yet."

She presses her lips into a straighten line, "I believe quite a few would prefer the surety of the Heavens over the feeling of empowerment. Personally I care little either way. The gods or man, there is a problem and a solution is needed. Let the philosophers, navel gazers, poets, and storytellers fawn over the how the solution was achieved. I just want this damnable foundation we have spent 25 years building to hold up so our children can make something of it."

[Anjing]

Snip

"It's the navel gazers and poets who write history. But I agree, things are dire enough that everything we have could be stripped away. It can't happen again."

Anjing's fists clench at the thought, knuckles white and angry against her skin.
"All that chaos at the Winter Court and still, we just let the corruption spread. Where has Shinsei been? What has he been doing?"
She takes a breath and relaxes her hands.
"I mean, I know what he's been doing. But it would have been nice if he'd at least nominated someone else to do the work in the meantime. We have left things very late indeed."

[Makime]

Snip

Makime's jaw clenched at the mention of court. "Not one but two of those creatures in the presence of the Emperor himself. A disgraceful failure on the part of a great many. My daughter among them, a pity she had to feel so painful a lesson...I would have preferred a gentler one."

She shakes her head, "Shinsei...the stormcrow. For a man deemed so wise, he seems incapable of sharing that wisdom in a meaningful way. That we are left having to trust his insight is...infuriating to me. I will strangle the life out of him with my bare hands if his foolishness gets us all killed."

[Anjing]

Makime's jaw clenched at the mention of court. "Not one but two of those creatures in the presence of the Emperor himself. A disgraceful failure on the part of a great many. My daughter among them, a pity she had to feel so painful a lesson...I would have preferred a gentler one."

She shakes her head, "Shinsei...the stormcrow. For a man deemed so wise, he seems incapable of sharing that wisdom in a meaningful way. That we are left having to trust his insight is...infuriating to me. I will strangle the life out of him with my bare hands if his foolishness gets us all killed."

"Let us hope she understands the right lessons from that experience then. I cannot imagine what the court is like, but doubtless everyone is very polite."

Getting a little more animated now. "How about we agree to split the job? Or if not we'll simply find other wise monks and start going through them until one of them can provides some useful advice. It can't all be cryptic lessons."
Well, it could, but most of them were certainly annoying!

"I did meet a disciple of his earlier. A kind woman who was actually properly dressed. Apparently she travels around providing medical care and construction aid to village across the empire. I was shocked! Have you heard of anything like it?"

[Makime]

Snip

"Ayano-chan has a many failings but rarely any of the mind. She understood the lesson." Makime crossed her arms and managed a small smile. "We can swap between koans. See how many we shake loose before he expires, eh?"

More seriously she adds, "I have heard of a few taking practical lessons from his teachings. So perhaps it is not all a waste."

[Anjing]

Snip

"Mmmmhm, perhaps the Shinsei of legend can inspire good in the world. Even if the Shinse of the world is a legendary degenerate. Huh, that's sort of philosophical, maybe we can include that in the Tao, an extended edition maybe."

There's a slight smirk at the idea.

"Hmmm. I forget that in as many ways as our Clans are different, what is important remains the same. It is a pity we are not as close with you as we are with our northern cousins."

[Makime]

Snip

"Close enough that we would march to your aid if something beyond the strength of any one clan came down from the north." Came her reply, "And my daughter wishes to extend her roads to your homes as well."

Another small smile, "I should probably be upset with your clan, given the number of hours she has spent pacing her chambers at night contemplating the issue with her wife. Of course it would be unfair to hold a grudge over something not of your doing."

"I would not be adverse to sending excess grain to your clan, our lands are proving good for growing it, but I fear such would rot in the storehouses at the foot of a mountain as only a tiny flow manages the paths north."

[Anjing]

Snip

"If a foe arrived that was a match for even the Lion the smart decision would be to retreat to our castles and hills and wait them out. But I do not think we would make the smart decision. Some fights are worth losing."
Her expression is wry.

"If by some stroke of the fortunes we both survive this." She gestures at the fog. "You might want to hear about some of my children's new ideas. Lion roads could play an important role which would benefit both our peoples'...but I would not want to put the cart before the horse. We can think about tomorrow if there is a tomorrow."

Raising an eyebrow.
"Can't imagine where your daughter could have gotten into the habit of pacing her chambers all night trying to solve all the empire's problems."

[Makime]

Snip

"Children's ambitions. I just wanted to solve all of Lord Akodo's problems." Makime rubbed her temple.

She nodded, "When there is a tomorrow. I may not be as stubborn as your people but I refuse to let my people's future threatened. If it kills me, I'll drag myself back from the afterlife if I have to."

"Ah...personally I would choose the castle and sip tea while my enemy starves to death in the mountains. But I am aware of the Crab's skills. Most build castles from stone, your people use their own bodies."

[Anjing]

Snip

"He should stop finding new problems then." Although she reflected that was not exactly in his nature.

Sounding a little irked. "My people have built many fine castles, roughly twice as many as any other Clan. We have built outposts at the tops of mountains that most wouldn't even dare to climb. The work was not easy."

Anjing takes a deep breath.
"But I understand your point, we have always found a way despite our resources. Although we never built anything like the boats I hear you ordered under construction."

[Makime]

Snip

"With supply lines stretched the breadth of the Empire no less. The entire northern border...a remarkable feat regardless of who measures it." Makime nodded sympathetically. "Assuming any bothered. I fear far few care to."

Her eyes shifted back to the fog, "Boats...yes apparently some alliance was formed from former river tribes spread across the Lion, Unicorn, and Scorpion. I have allowed them a home at Shiro Makime. Of course if you mean Lord Akodo's fleet."

She takes a breath, "Lord Akodo's wife came from the sea, a ningyo. And to the sea has she drawn his attention. Already we have begun to move goods and warriors up and down the coast. And when combined with the river boats...well I forsee much wealth in the Lion's future."

[Anjing]

Snip

"Ah, I remember. The Kami have a great fondness for non-humans. I hope their marriage is blessed and I pray her people and yours never see conflict. But if it should happen we can make space in the mountains."

Curious despite herself. "It's hard to imagine something that large just floating around. How did you design them anyway?"