As the fourth expansion begins, the eyes of the Empire turn to the lands of the Crane.

Beset by the Shadowlands Horde, the Crane bushi have given much ground, but have in turn learned much of their foe. Crane samurai from across the Empire have returned to aid their kinsmen, and the coffers of the clan have been emptied to recruit, arm and equip a mercenary force lead by the man named Yoritomo, the Son of Storms. Where Yoritomo once boasted that he could field nearly 100 men, the legions that now bear the mon of the Mantis stretch farther than the eye can see.

The False Hoturi, leading the Horde through the final pass before the Valley of the Ashahina believes that this will be the final conflict - the Crane will die here, in a region of the Empire that has never seen conflict in the 1,000 years since the Founding. As the Horde crosses the final rise, The False Hoturi is stunned to see not the demoralized and broken remnants of the Crane army he has been pursuing for months, but instead a razor-sharp line of infantry prepared to charge across the prepared ground and engage his forces!

The battle that day was epic. Many heroes died on that field, and many legends were born. Of them all, the story that will resonate the longest is of Doji Hoturi, weakened but determined to end this foe who sullied the name of the house of Doji. The real Hoturi reached the False in the middle of the melee, and issued the ancient challenge. Two blades flashed, but only one struck true. And in moments, the threat to the Crane was dead, cleaved entirely in two by Hoturi's lightning fast stroke.

A roar arose from those nearby, and the mercenary army, the Crane stalwarts, and young Hoturi himself smashed into the wall of the Horde with renewed vigor. No matter what the storytellers say - know this. Even the most cold-hearted, infernal oni summoned from the deepest pit of jingoku can know mortal fear.

Far across the Empire a less glorious, and more tragic tale is unfolding...

Matsu Tsuko reels from her defeat at the gates to Otosan Uchi. Hida Kisada may have died in the attempt (or so the rumors say), but she failed utterly to protect the Capitol and her Emperor. As the days grow longer and winter grows close, Tsuko is left to her own bitter memories of the day she was forced to stand and watch as the armies of the Lion died.

Far to the south, Hida Yakamo tends to his injured father. Word has gone forth from the lands of the Crab that Kisada is no more - but his incredible strength of will, combined with the Armor of the Shadow Warrior that protects him is keeping Kisada alive when any lesser man would have perished.

Yakamo looks around him at the grim faces of the Crab warriors, and sees little that raises his spirits. Where once there was a fierce pride in the duty to defend the Empire against the Shadowlands, now Yakamo sees only the image of broken faith and shattered illusions on the faces of his bushi. Kisada will never lead the armies of the Crab again, and may not survive the winter. Yakamo listens to the elders of his family and he thinks long and hard on the price of victory. Then he makes a fateful choice.

Tsuko too makes a fateful choice. She is drawn to the camp of Toturi like a moth to the flame. Something within her cries out for solace, and she unconsciously knows that only Toturi can put her aching soul to rest. There is only one person fit to lead the honorable warriors of the Lion. In this time of turmoil and confusion, only one person has shown a clarity of purpose and unswerving duty towards the Empire. That person is the dishonored son of her own Clan, the man the Lion call "Toturi the Black". Today, no Lion samurai would follow Toturi, regardless of the need. Tomorrow, those who do not may indeed cause the end of the Empire and the enslavement of mankind.

Tsuko sneaks into Toturi's camp late at night, deftly avoiding the sentries. She makes her way to his command tent, and surpises Toturi's guards. They make motion to detain her, but Toturi himself steps from the shadows of his tent, sees Tsuko standing in the frigid night air, and wordlessly beckons her to join him within.

Tsuko explains herself quickly - if the Lion are to survive, they must break their ancient oath to defend the Emperor, and instead, embrace the true nature of that promise, to defend the Empire itself. Toturi is unmoved. Beyond the walls of his tent sleep hundreds of bushi, ronin and clan-aligned warriors from across the Empire. These men and women, he tells Tsuko, have chosen to follow the banner of the Wolf not due to some need to placate their ancestors or to prove themselves worthy of lands and titles, but because doing so may yet save the Empire from itself. The Lion, like every other clan, will be welcomed to the growing ranks of the army, should they choose to join.

But Tsuko knows that the Lion will not, cannot join Toturi's army. While she lives, they must follow her, and the promises that bind the Clan together. While she lives...

A flash of steel, a moment of intense pain, then Toturi's blade sweeps through the crisp night air, and Tsuko is no more. In the morning, Toturi will read her death poem, and weep. In the days ahead, the Lion will learn the true meaning of sacrifice and virtue.

A second cut is made that night as well. Howling with the incredible, burning pain, Yakamo saws the tainted claw from his own wrist, searing the putrefied stump in the embers of the fire keeping Kisada's chambers warm. The pain is too great for even Yakamo to bear in silence, and his screams echo through the dank chambers of Hida palace. Yakamo drags himself from Kisada's chambers, and painfully staggers into the inner sanctum of the Crab Clan. There, among a hundred other rare and fabulous items, is an articulated hand made entirely from the finest Jade. As his vision narrows and his breath grows short, Yakamo places the hand on his wrist, and wraps the joint with a silken cord inscribed with the wards and protections against evil taught to every Crab bushi in childhood.

Yakamo's last sight is of a strange, hooded figure leaning over him, pressing cool herbs into his tortured flesh, and whispering a soothing ritual. Yakamo's last thought is a startling one - "my fingers... itch..." then he finally gives way to the darkness.

As the fourth expansion ends, the stage is set for the Day of Thunder and the Time of the Void. The Elemental Masters of the Phoenix are all corrupted (save Isawa Kaede, who has vanished). Tsuko's sacrifice shows some of the Lion where their true path lies - but many remain bound by oaths they do not understand, but will fulfil nonetheless. Deep in the heart of Otosan Uchi the festering hatred of Fu Leng grows stronger with each passing heartbeat. His minon, Junzo, is burning the temples of the Shintao, and the Libraries of the Phoenix, seeking the descendant of Shinsei.

Alone in his mountain fastness, Togashi Yokuni alone knows that the great cycle is nearly complete, and the events he has waited a thousand years to witness are about to unfold. For on the fields far below him seven Thunders walk the Empire, and Shinsei's descendant has arrived to speak the tao and explain what must be done to end the menace of Fu Leng once and for all. Yokuni may save an Empire, but if he does, he will kill his own brother...

A brief interlude, then we get to the heart of the matter - Time of the Void.

[Just a quick interjection here - in my previous post, I described the struggle Yakamo went through to attach the Jade Hand. As with many things in Rokugan, there are many stories that may fit the observed facts. My notes from the time indicate that something close to what I wrote occurred. However, I believe that either John Wick or Ree Soesbee wrote fiction at a later date with a different story. As in all things story related, you should assume that Wick or Soesbee's accounts are more "cannon" than mine.]

During the time expressed in the "middle third" of the expansions, roughly from Forbidden Knowledge to the end of Crimson & Jade, there were several smaller stories that were expressed in the cards and in various other sources which have some bearing on the larger story.

At some point along this time-line, the Black Scroll "Return of the Fallen Lord" was recovered (supposedly by a Lion shugenja...). Shoshi Bantaro, a powerful Scorpion shugenja used that spell to return Bayushi Shoju, the Scorpion Clan daimyo to a hideous state of un-life. Shoju's undead form was twisted by hatred and evil and had little connection to his previous life. Kachiko was saved from his clutches by her personal servant Akiyoshi, who was probably the same person who snuck Doji Hoturi out of Otosan Uchi, and may have some relation to Toturi's geisha that has yet to be described.

Akodo Kage, the only remaining "Akodo" in the Empire was discovered to have ties to the mysterious Kolat, a group of assassins and saboteurs who are almost completely unknown in the Empire. Rumors that he was a "Kolat Master" persist, but nothing was ever proved, and eye-witness accounts describe his death and immolation following the end of the Clan War.

The Elemental Masters of the Isawa became increasingly corrupted by their researches. Isawa Tadaka, always the strongest of their number summoned a powerful oni from jingoku and gave it a portion of his own name to bind it to the material world. By torturing this oni, the Phoenix were able to learn much of the dark god Fu Leng and his minions. However, the price they paid was terrible indeed. By the beginning of Time of the Void, all the Masters (save Kaede) were either slightly or completely insane. The worst among them, Isawa Tsuke engaged in a murderous rampage against his own kinsmen, striking down any Phoenix shugenja who crossed his path.

The Hooded Ronin, a personality who had appeared earlier in the war (in the Shadowlands expansion) was revealed as the descendant of Shinsei. Shinsei's unbroken line had preserved secrets of the battle against Fu Leng and of the thousand-year cycle that was ending. Combined with the wisdom of Togashi Yokuni, the Hooded Ronin was able to locate and bring together all seven reincarnated Thunders. As TotV opens, the armies of the Clans have gathered together at last to fight Fu Leng and the Shadowlands horde. Many of their number have chosen to side with their oaths and allegiances, and defend the Imperial Palace against Toturi's army and the Thunders. As the winter gave way to spring, the Empire prepared itself for one last convulsive battle. Hanging in the balance - the entire fate of the world...

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