The Race to Volturnum
Phoenix
It was late in the day when we first met with Akuma's troops and the Unicorn who saw them first. We were able to find a foothold, a few scattered buttes to defend our backs, and then the legions met. The Lion took the brunt of the fighting, Matsu and Ikoma standing side by side. Their courage was remarkable. They died bravely. Those that remain still follow Tsanuri, shouting battle cries until the sky echoes with their ferocity. Beside them, the Crab fight as they were born to do, destroying the creatures of the Foul One with tetsubo and jade.
But still, the numbers are overwhelming. The oni horde leapt from hiding--hundreds of thousands of skittering creatures. We will make little headway here, I am afraid. Yet we struggle on. Hochiu burned a path as wide as ten samurai through the worst of their legions, and many of our soldiers pushed open the gap and held the line.
Taeruko shatters the earth, casting down the oni and allowing us passage over corpses crushed by solid rock. It is how we move forward; it is all that we can do to press our advantage.
But I know the demon hordes are not finished with us. There are more to come over the horizon, and we must plunge onward. In only a few short days, we must reach Volturnum--before the prophecies of the Tao and the oracles come true.
--Agasha Kusabi