Phoenix Clan Letter - #18
My brethren,
The Elemental Masters have returned.
I know that times have been difficult since last you saw us. Know that we could not be more proud of how you have prospered in our absence. Once again, you have proven that the Phoenix can never be truly defeated.
Though it is difficult to recall a time when I have been more proud to call myself a Phoenix, not all the news I bear is good. In the weeks since our disappearance, many of you assumed that the Council had died in battle with Tamori Shaitung. This was not so. After our battle with the Dragon, we found ourselves in a cave deep beneath the earth. There, an unexpected third party suddenly attacked us -- Agasha Tamori himself.
Yes, the Steel Chrysanthemum's ally still lives, and rumors of his corruption by the Shadowlands are not only true, they were vastly understated. Tamori reigns as the Dark Oracle of Fire, and it was his fiendish power that engineered our war against the Dragon. Even Shaitung seemed shocked by how far her father had fallen. The Council stood as one against the Oracle, but we could not defeat him. Isawa Nakamuro was separated from us during the battle. Isawa Riake, our dear friend, died raising a wall of ice to protect us from the Oracle's magma. For weeks we remained sealed in a bubble deep within the earth. Ningen's magic provided us with sustenance and insight, while Taeruko and I cut our way slowly to the surface.
We were pleased to find the lands of the Phoenix safe and secure upon our return. Shiba Aikune has proven himself as worthy a general as any who ever bore the Soul of Shiba, and his mastery of the Last Wish is quite exceptional. Already, we have begun to make plans to employ the Wish against Agasha Tamori. As soon as the Council is whole again, we shall carry the fight to Tamori's underground caverns. The Phoenix will not endure a Dark Oracle in our lands.
We will be manipulated no more.
We will be defeated no more.
We are the Phoenix.
Isawa Hochiu,
Master of Fire