Eta Compound near Soft Wind Village, Beiden Pass [map]
Early Afternoon (Hour of the Horse)
"Evening Day" in High Week, 3rd of Long Month [calendar]
Weather is mostly pleasant and clear
The party ponders the scene from afar, not wanting to interrupt. The religious quietly formulate prayers for the dead. The death of such a lowly serf, whose life value is not even comparable to yours, lays bare the unfathomable mysteries of the Great Cosmic Wheel. This funeral is not the end for this serf, but only the start of new life in another time. Perhaps he was a noble animal in the last life; if he lived well, perhaps he will be born into a higher station in the next. Perhaps he managed to utter the secret mantra of Koharu Buddha, who shuns the slow steps of the Wheel, and is now already a saint in the Pure Land.
Your thoughts of a better next life do not last long: when the ceremony is over and Koga approaches with a humble command of his station, you see the dead man's clothes carefully folded next to the pyre. You recognize them immediately as the clothes of the senile practitioner of black magic you encountered so briefly yesterday, before his horrific demise in the hands of Gekido.
As you make yourselves known, the villagers are taken aback and practically cower, throwing themselves to the floor and covering the animistic talismans of their peasant religion. This reaction is expected: usually, the only reason samurai have go visit an eta slum is to tax and execute until their honor is satisfied. A gnarled middle-aged man, with skin so harsh you imagine you could grate radishes with it, finally takes the initiative and greets you nervously. His uncouth accent is nearly impenetrable, and you aren't even sure you're speaking quite the same dialect.
The ball is in your court. The eta will simply lie prostrate without even deigning to ask who you are or why you are there, knowing that many samurai have a very broad view of the law codes that allow them to execute eta on the spot for the "crime of presumption."
Actions?
登場人物
- Kenta, monk: TN10, Init +2, naginata 7k4 (DR 6k3) | Hnr 2;7, Wnds (6) 0;0 | Void Pts 2/2
- Kitsune Shōe, Fox shugenja: TN10, Init +2, wakizashi 5k3 (DR 4k2) | Hnr 2;5, Wnds (4) -0;0 | Void Pts 2/2 | Spells: F2 - A2 - W2 - E2
- Mirumoto Koga, Dragon bushi: no armor+daisho (TN15), Init +2, daisho 2k2/6k3 (DR 5k2) | Hnr 2;7, Wnds (4) 0;0 | Void Pts 2/2
- Mirumoto Aiko, Dragon bushi: no armor (TN20/5), Init +3, daisho 5k4/6k3 (DR 4k2) | Hnr 3;6, Wnds (4) -2;0 | Void Pts 1/2 (crippled left arm; double heal rate)
- Yoshida Osaru, ronin: no armor (TN15), Init +3, katana 6k3/6k3 (DR 5k2) | Hnr 2;7 Wnds (4) 0;0 | Void Pts 2/2