KITSUKI AKANO<br/><br/><div class="quoteheader"><div class="topslice_quote">Quote</div></div><blockquote class="bbc_standard_quote">"What I am about to tell you, you must not repeat, at least not right away. It appears that we have <em>maho</em> and <em>oni</em> to deal with. We have three other Magistrates working on this. Come, we have work to do."</blockquote><div class="quotefooter"><div class="botslice_quote"></div></div>The Scorpion backed across the narrow wooden landing towards the doorway, indicating I should follow, though her body language indicated a slight mistrust still.<br/><br/><em><span class="bbc_u">Maho</span>? <span class="bbc_u">Oni?</span> I see.</em>I nodded deferentially to the<em>samurai-ko</em>,<strong>"Do not doubt me. I have given my word. I am a Dragon. Our clan may seem perfidious and confusing to some, distant and cold. But before I am Dragon, I am <em>samurai</em>. You have my word, Shosuro-sama."</strong><br/><br/>Truth be told I was glad to be off that staircase...<br/><br/>The woman led me up the steps and through the door adjacent to a spectacularly shattered hole in the wall that looked like a Unicorn horse archer had galloped through it. Glancing at the damage and the timbers<em>inside</em>the room beyond I was glad that the thing that made the hole had<em>entered</em>this room and not<em>exited</em>. That indicated it was someone alongside Shosuro-sama.<br/><br/>Following the Scorpion through the room which had the appearance of an outer office or guard room, I encountered another smashed down door before us. Stepping through this opening I found myself in what looked to be one of the secure shipping rooms with a cordoned off area behind bars usually used to contain bonded goods that await the payment of taxes before they can be trans-shipped onwards. Within this room were five more samurai, a female<em>bushi</em>obviously a Crab from the style of her armour and weaponry, a person who looked like a lady merchant, another pair of Scorpion<em>bushi</em>- males and... to my great surprise a Dragon. Another Dragon, here in this forsaken city.<br/><br/>Wonders will never cease.<br/><br/>Heads turned as I entered. I looked around meeting gazes and nodded deferentially once more,<strong>"Forgive me, I will explain myself when we have a more opportune time."</strong>I glanced within the secure area to see another body. I waited to see what the Magistrates would do.<br/><br/>Six Emerald Magistrates. I could not recall the last time I had seen<em>six</em>magistrates in one room outside of Otosan-Uchi. Shosuro Hyobu would need to tread carefully now. Most carefully.