. . "The gardens of the Crane were beautiful, even in the onset of autumn. Fumisato leaned against the balcony railing and admired the chrysanthemums and the bellflowers in the castle garden below. He had spent the first part of his life never noticing the glories that surrounded him, and then they had all been taken away \u2014 every graceful white-walled castle, every poem, painting, song, every garden. The loss had almost destroyed him, and it was then that he had fully realized that he was a Crane, and that no Crane could live without beauty \u2013even if all he ever did was kill in its name."@en . . . "Autumn Chronicles"@en . "The gardens of the Crane were beautiful, even in the onset of autumn. Fumisato leaned against the balcony railing and admired the chrysanthemums and the bellflowers in the castle garden below. He had spent the first part of his life never noticing the glories that surrounded him, and then they had all been taken away \u2014 every graceful white-walled castle, every poem, painting, song, every garden. The loss had almost destroyed him, and it was then that he had fully realized that he was a Crane, and that no Crane could live without beauty \u2013even if all he ever did was kill in its name. After a time Fumisato turned away from the view, reentered his study, and knelt down at his desk. There was plague all across the Crane provinces, the Destroyers were slowly inching towards the border, the Empress had called for Winter Court in the Mantis islands, and Daigotsu Rekai had been sighted again. The last problem was his. He once had a plan for dealing with her, months ago, but at the point where he was almost ready to move Rekai abruptly stopped her visits to the Crane lands. Fumisato laid out a clean sheet of paper, inked a brush, and started to write. It was time for a new plan. The House of the White Camellia was elegant in its construction, but the paint on the outer walls needed touching up two seasons ago and the withered garden had a slightly unkempt look. Daidoji Yaichiro looked it over and reflected that it was the kind of place he and Gempachi would have been found in, back when they were common soldiers. The loud parties going on in the south wing of the geisha house only emphasized the point. Beside him, Gempachi tilted his head slightly and grinned. \u201CEchoes of a season: shards of egg shells,\u201D he said. Yaichiro laughed. \u201CBest not to keep him waiting,\u201D he said, and started up the steps. \u201CWhy here?\u201D Gempachi complained. \u201CWith his status, he could get us into a much nicer geisha house.\u201D \u201CPerhaps he prefers not to be seen with us,\u201D Yaichiro said quietly. He gestured towards his shoulder, which bore the mon of the Daidoji family and not that of the Fourth Legion. \u201CThe letter specified that we be inconspicuous.\u201D Gempachi made no comment but a brief snort \u2014 he\u2019d already expressed his opinion of the letter\u2019s meticulous instructions. The two made their way inside and gave the hostess the name the letter had mentioned. She smiled, bowed deeply, and ushered them down the south hallway. Stopping at one of the rooms she opened the door, bowed them in, and slid the door closed behind them. \u201CGood evening,\u201D the man inside greeted them. He was old, with a deeply lined face and iron-colored hair. His wrists bore the mon of the Daidoji in ink that had long since gone pale and watery. \u201CGood evening, magistrate-sama,\u201D Yaichiro said, bowing. \u201CI am Daidoji Yaichiro, Taisa of the Fourth Legion, and this is Daidoji Gempachi, Chui of the Second Company of that legion.\u201D The man nodded and waved a hand. \u201CYou may call me Fumisato. Please, sit down. You brought the letter?\u201D Yaichiro nodded and after he and Gempachi had settled themselves he drew the scroll out of his obi and handed it to him. Fumisato glanced over it and then fed it to the coals in the brazier next to the table. \u201CYou must be curious about my business with you, so I will be brief,\u201D Fumisato said. \u201CThe two of you are to be temporarily assigned to me for a special mission. You are going to kill Daigotsu Rekai.\u201D For a moment the only sound in the room came from the parties in the rooms to either side of them. \u201CHayaku\u2019s lost voice,\u201D Gempachi finally said, \u201Chow can we do that? With the Destroyers pressing on the Crab in the south there is no way to get into the Shadowlands to find it, or even know if it has survived the new armies the Pit has spewed out.\u201D \u201CShe is not in the Shadowlands,\u201D Fumisato said. \u201CWhere she dwells is unknown, but she has been making forays into the Crane lands.\u201D Gempachi and Yaichiro exchanged looks. \u201CHas it been around Kosaten Shiro?\u201D asked Yaichiro. \u201CNot that I am aware,\u201D Fumisato said. \u201CMost of the sightings I have are in the Doji and Kakita lands \u2014 she is not visiting out of nostalgia, she is carrying out missions.\u201D \u201CWe are obedient to the orders of the clan,\u201D Gempachi said, \u201Cbut why us? And why only the two of us? A squad, or even a company would be more appropriate. Perhaps a Jade Magistrate or two.\u201D Fumisato shook his head briefly. \u201CI was at this point more than a year ago, and then she stopped coming to the Crane lands. Was her business at an end, or did she somehow learn about my trap? The fewer who know, the less of a chance for a leak. I have some experience in these things; two bushi with combat experience should be enough. Especially given that one has been trained by the Crab, and the other holds the Talisman of Chikushudo.\u201D \u201CGrandfather Sembi fought the armies of the Shadowlands at Shinden Asahina,\u201D Yaichiro said. \u201CI pray that I will uphold his legacy now.\u201D \u201CSembi?\u201D Fumisato said. He looked startled. \u201CSembi had children? Is he still alive?\u201D \u201CWe don\u2019t know,\u201D Yaichiro said. \u201CWhen he retired he shaved his head, took up a staff and robe, and walked away. He said, \u2018When I was a child I loved to sit and meditate. Now I\u2019m going to walk and meditate.\u2019 \u201D \u201CSembi lived to see his grandchildren\u2026\u201D Fumisato\u2019s voice broke off, and the two younger samurai politely looked away while he regained his face. \u201CWe should ask the hostess to move us to another room,\u201D Gempachi said, trying to change the subject. \u201CThis room is very noisy.\u201D \u201CI have paid a lot of money for that noise,\u201D Fumisato said. His voice had regained its normal tones. \u201CWhy\u2013\u201D Yaichiro began, and then finished, \u201Cthey are making it impossible to eavesdrop on us.\u201D \u201CMake no assumptions,\u201D Fumisato said. \u201CQuestion everything. But yes, it does make it very, very difficult.\u201D He pulled a scroll out of the stack beside him and rolled it out on the table. \u201CNow, there are things you need to know.\u201D It had rained during the night. It hadn\u2019t been enough to impair travel, but it had worsened her mood, and her mood was already sour. Daigotsu Rekai walked down the road, leading her horse and fuming to herself. If the old man wasn\u2019t a threat, why did Daigotsu care what he did? And if he was a threat, why not just kill him? Ever her idiot son could figure that much out. It only made sense if Daigotsu wasn\u2019t telling her something, and she loathed the idea that she wasn\u2019t worthy of an explanation. It was possible that the old man knew something about the Destroyers \u2014 but Rekai was fairly certain that a few heated irons would be a more efficient method of getting information. \u201CDamn him and his clever little plans,\u201D she murmured to herself. As she and the horse rounded a turn in the road a small fire came into view. Huddled over it was a bushi who looked up at the sound of hooves, then stood up and took a few steps forward. \u201CApologies, samurai-san, but this road is closed,\u201D he called. \u201CClosed?\u201D Rekai said, continuing to walk. Her travel cloak hid her armor, and in the pre-dawn dark it would be difficult for the sentry to see the more unusual aspects of her horse. \u201CWhy, has something happened to one of the bridges?\u201D \u201CThe bridges are fine, Daidoji-sama,\u201D the sentry replied, automatically responding to her accent and diction. \u201CBut there is plague in some of the villages on the road. No one is allowed to travel here, by order of the magistrates.\u201D \u201CAh, I see,\u201D Rekai said. She turned as if to go back, letting the reins slip from her hand as she did so. Then she made a clicking noise with her tongue, and the horse reared up and kicked the startled sentry. His shout of surprise and pain changed into a scream of terror and then abruptly cut off as the creature\u2019s teeth ripped open his abdomen. Rekai waited a few minutes as the horse slurped up the man\u2019s entrails, and then she took up the reins again and dragged it away. She didn\u2019t have time to let it chew up the bonier parts, as satisfying as that would be to watch. After mounting up Rekai touched the reins to the horse\u2019s neck and it took off at a brisk pace. A quarter mile from the dead sentry the road came to a bridge. Rekai ignored it, sending the horse down the bank to the stream and then back up again, finally plunging through a stand of bamboo that was not nearly as impenetrable as it looked. From the bridge, she knew, the road wound and looped about so as to visit three villages, four shrines, and a particularly decorative stand of birch trees. The hidden path ran arrow-straight to her destination. Smiling a little she sent the horse into a run, then let her cloak slip off. The rain was gone, and now at least she could glory in the rush of the wind. Fumisato\u2019s plan had several defects, in Yaichiro\u2019s opinion, but the one that bothered him the most was that it gave him too much time to think. He ran his fingers over the snarling face of his mempo. It was the Talisman of Chikushudo, and it gave him the ability to draw on the power of the Realm of Animals. It had been given to him by the Kami Ryoshun, to be used to inspire greatness in others. Fumisato intended to use it to kill Rekai. Yaichiro wasn\u2019t sure that this was exactly what Ryoshun had in mind, but it was very difficult to contradict the Crane Champion\u2019s special magistrate. Yaichiro didn\u2019t believe all the stories he had heard about the man, but he believed in the ones that said he was a dangerous enemy. \u201CI wonder who he really is,\u201D he said. \u201CWho?\u201D Gempachi said. \u201CFumisato. He appears to be one of our kin, but where did he come from? In all the rumors that go around him, no one ever names him as part of a family. No one claims him as a father, or a brother, or an uncle.\u201D \u201CPerhaps he has no family,\u201D Gempachi said. \u201CIf he is the last of his line, no one would be so rude as to speak of it.\u201D \u201CThat is true,\u201D Yaichiro said. \u201CI had not thought of that.\u201D Gempachi made no answer; the thought had come naturally to him. His family had nearly been wiped out during the Clan Wars, and since that time the survivors had been in a constant scramble to retain and advance their status. Sembi\u2019s glory had allowed him and his children to marry well, and Yaichiro moved through life with his path smoothed by a web of helpful relatives. \u201CAt least he will never lack for rice,\u201D Gempachi said finally. \u201CLady Doji may be a hard lord, but no one has ever called her cheap.\u201D \u201CShe brings great honor to her ancestors,\u201D Yaichiro agreed. \u201CAs will we, when we kill that creature.\u201D Honor, Gempachi thought, but no glory. It vexed him. In all the dangers he had faced in his life he had always been supported by the knowledge that whether he lived or died, his kin would profit from his actions. But the shame of Rekai\u2019s fall was so great it literally could not be spoken of, and so no one would ever praise the samurai who had finally ended it. Bushido demanded that he act regardless, but Gempachi\u2019s observance of bushido, like his friendship with Yaichiro, had begun with an eye to its practical advantages. Yaichiro glanced over at his friend and then turned away, fingers tapping absently on the mempo. Silence descended between them for a while, then Gempachi raised a hand. \u201CSomeone is coming,\u201D he said. Yaichiro nodded and put the mempo on. The rope had been strung across the path at the height of a horse\u2019s shins and carefully colored to blend into the surroundings. Rekai deduced this while flying through the air, having been thrown when her horse had run into it. As she hit the ground and rolled back to her feet she hoped that it was not damaged too badly; it had taken her years to get the thing trained. She put the thought away quickly; this was a trap. Yaichiro and Gempachi stared at her. The plan had been that they would rush Rekai before she recovered from the fall, but her presence held them fixed in place. They had been told that she had recovered the beauty of her youth, but they were not prepared for the overwhelming vitality of her. Her spirit blazed up in their faces; the clearing could not contain it all. \u201CWhat?\u201D Rekai said, looking around. She saw two Crane bushi waiting for her, both armored and bearing yari; one was wearing a mempo cleverly shaped like a bear\u2019s face. \u201CThere are only two of you?\u201D \u201CTwo is enough,\u201D Yaichiro said, \u201Cwhen honor strengthens them.\u201D Rekai laughed. \u201CWhat honor do you have, Daidoji?\u201D As she spoke she raised an arm with the forearm vertical and the back of the wrist facing out: the gesture of a Daidoji displaying their tattoo. Gempachi made a slight hissing noise, nothing more, and glanced out of the corner of his eye towards Yaichiro. The other man gave a tiny nod and then the two were in motion, each charging Rekai from a slightly different direction. The Lost woman studied their approach for a few seconds, and then she drew her blade and ran to meet Gempachi. The one in the mempo, she thought, was clearly insecure in his skills and could be dealt with second. Her target was adept with a yari, but that bothered her not at all: she recognized the forms he used even as he began them and used her quickness to slip in between the strikes. As she came in for a cut Gempachi dropped the yari and drew his katana. It had not totally cleared the sheath when Rekai\u2019s blade crashed into it, and he backpedalled furiously to get the room he needed. Rekai watched him go with an expressionless face that blossomed into a smile when her crippled horse rolled over and tried to bite the Crane on the leg. Rekai left them to each other and spun about to catch Yaichiro\u2019s yari on her blade and guide the strike away from her. They circled each other, watching, and then began to cross steel. Rekai made several attempts to get past Yaichiro\u2019s guard, only to be forced back. She frowned to herself in irritation. Such a reliance on defense was usually the mark of a weak or cowardly fighter, but her opponent\u2019s motions were precise and economical; the sign of a mind fully in control of itself. This, she realized, was another layer of the trap. Rekai swung around and was confronted with the largest bear she had ever seen. While she blinked and wondered how the Daidoji could have arranged for it to sneak up behind her it roared and struck out at her with one immense paw. Reacting with pure, unthinking instinct Rekai attempted to bring her sword up to block. The bear\u2019s claws raked her arm, splintering armor and gouging flesh, and the katana flew from her hand. Yaichiro lunged in from behind with a yari strike. Rekai\u2019s armor held against it, but the blow threw her back towards the bear. The animal struck again, this time damaging the armor on her torso. Rekai howled in anger and pain. Twisting about she evaded Yaichiro\u2019s next charge and seizing the yari shaft she sent him in towards the bear. While Yaichiro was trying to recover his balance Rekai rammed her elbow into the side of his face, putting her whole body behind the blow. Yaichiro stumbled back, stunned. Rekai drew her wakizashi and rushed the bear, stabbing it where she guessed its heart was. The animal made a loud anguished groan, took two shuffling steps back, and disappeared. Rekai stared for a moment, and then she began to cast about for her katana. She did not know if there was a connection between the bear and the mempo that had its likeness, but she was sure that killing the man who wore it would improve the situation. Across the clearing Gempachi did for Rekai\u2019s horse by running his yari through its neck and pinning it to the ground. He backed away from its death agonies, swearing profusely. When he left the Wall he had thought he had put its horrors behind him, but it was becoming clear that his clan considered him a solution to any horrors that made their way to the Crane lands. It was a disheartening thought. He looked around and saw Rekai, bloody but still dangerous, stoop to pick up her sword. His stomach clenched at the idea of having to face her again, but she didn\u2019t even look at him. Instead she began walking towards Yaichiro. His friend was on his hands and knees, shaking his head as if to clear it. Something attracted Yaichiro\u2019s attention and he looked up to see Rekai\u2019s approach. He\u2019d let Yaichiro fight her, Gempachi decided. Being one of a Kami\u2019s darlings had to be worth something, and even if Rekai killed him she would be worse for the fight. Gempachi glanced about, looking for the bear, and then looked back over to his friend. Yaichiro had not moved; he was still watching Rekai with a level gaze, blood dripping down the bruised side of his face. The mempo was on the ground beside him, so close that his fingertips brushed it, but Yaichiro ignored it. He\u2019s stunned in the head, Gempachi thought. Then he was in motion, charging across the clearing with his sword ready. \u201CDAIDOJI!\u201D he screamed as he ran. Rekai turned around and gave him an annoyed look. She blocked Gempachi\u2019s first two attacks with ease and then went on the offensive, landing a blow so heavy it almost made him drop his katana. She was preparing for a follow-up when suddenly she spasmed, dropped her weapon, and screamed. She staggered sideways, allowing Gempachi to see the arrow sticking out of her side. Rekai twitched twice more, sprouting two more arrows in her back, and then collapsed. Gempachi traced the path of the arrows to their source and discovered Fumisato at the other end of the clearing. The special magistrate was pale and sweating, but the hand that held the bow was steady. \u201CYou took your time, Fumisato-sama,\u201D Yaichiro said. He slowly got up, holding the mempo in his hand, and started to walk towards Gempachi. \u201CI am an old man,\u201D Fumisato said. He stopped to take a few breaths. \u201CClimbing out of a tree takes time.\u201D Gempachi looked at the two of them in turn. \u201CYou knew he was here?\u201D he asked Yaichiro. \u201CNo,\u201D Yaichiro said, \u201Cbut \u2014 \u2018Make no assumptions. Question everything.\u2019 There was no reason to think that he had told us everything, and many reasons to think otherwise.\u201D \u201CYou could have said something to me,\u201D Gempachi said. Yaichiro grimaced slightly, then bent over to spit out blood and teeth. \u201CApologies,\u201D he said. \u201CThere were no parties handy.\u201D Gempachi snorted and then looked over at Fumisato. \u201CWhat now?\u201D \u201CWe dispose of the body,\u201D Fumisato said. \u201CAnd forget that she ever existed.\u201D There was sun in the garden, but Fumisato did not go to look at it. Dressed in his warmest kimono, he sat at his desk with several lamps nearby to take the chill out of the air. In an alcove across the room sat an ikebana arrangement of chrysanthemum flowers and bare twigs: a reminder of what he was missing. He contemplated having it removed, but rejected the action as petty. The problem was that he was old, very old, and the hours he had spent in the cold waiting for Rekai had simply underlined the fact. Slowly, reluctantly, Fumisato reached for the inkstone and started to prepare some ink. He could retire now, or he could, like Rekai, become a liability to the clan he had sworn to protect. It was not an attractive choice, but there was only one answer. He laid a clean sheet of paper down and began to brush out a letter to Lady Domotai."@en . .