His swords, once light an easy weight to bear, now felt as heavy as lead in his hands, covered in the blood of a Crane. The blood of a brother.

His name had been Doji Kuyamu, son of Doji Utso, Lord of the Hainen Provinces. His white hair spilled across the ground in a tousled wave of spider web, stained red with the blood that trickled beneath him. His eyes, a pale blue, stared up at a matching sky as if searching for something he had lost. His hands were sheathed in golden gloves that matched his elaborate, armor, still held tightly to his yari.

The general knelt beside the corpse, looking over its features, the pale cheek drained of color. He saw the blood that stained the grass at their feet. As if he had not been the one to kill the Doji, the general looked once again at the wound, a vicious cut that cursed the metal plates of his do, the enameled breastplate parted as if made of cloth.

"I have done this," Daidoji Uji mourned. "By my hand, his death'

Around him in an ever widening spiral, Crane fought Crane, cursing the day their brotherhood brought them together. The Daidoji, Uji's men, followed the will of their ancestors, determined to claim Matsu lands in revenge for Lion slaughter of the Crane during the Great War. Against them, Doji soldiers marched to defend the Champion's command: Cease all attacks against the Lion.

One side, ordered by mortal man. The other, led by immortal duty.

Both torn apart by honor.

"Eight months, Uji. The open warfare has continued between Doji and Daidoji for eight months. It must cease!" Asahina jinsuo leaned across the map-laden table, brushing aside the small figurines that marked each territory. "Where is your ancestor's wisdom? Where is he, now that we are ready to claim his revenge? The Doji march toward us with each passing day, and the men beneath your command threaten desertion and mutiny!"

Uji stared impassively at the stones that depicted mountains, noting each curve and sharp edge. "They will do no such thing. They are Daidoji."

"Daidoji" jinsuo snarled. "Son of Doji."

"Defender of Doji," the general growled. And we defend the honor of all the brave samurai who were slaughtered in the Clan Wars. Kakita palace was sacked by Matsu, handed to the Shadowlands on a tray of Lion steel. Would you forget the deaths of all,those who fought for your home, Asahina? Would you have denied your ancestor's call? Ignored the sacred command of Jigoku?" Uji stood from the table, his wiry frame moving like a thickly muscled cat. "Kuwanan is a mortal man, and like all men, his commands are for this world. My orders are more sacred, and I cannot refuse them. I have already offered my head..."

'A fool's death, Uji, for one of the greatest generals of the Crane. In this time of war, Kuwanan needs you at his side, not dead at his feet"

"Yet he marches toward Hekai no Usuo to take my life."

"To stop your assault on Lion lands." Uji turned away mockingly. "To command me to ignore the words of my sacred ancestor."

"Uji..." the tone of the shugenja's voice was quiet, pleading. "When did you last hear the words of the spirit of Daidoji Yurei?"

Uji turned, his eyes narrowed and angry. "The ancestors speak to us only when we fail them. I have not failed."

"No, Uji." Jinsuo bowed apologetically, his white hair nodding down his blue-robed back. The golden trim of his formal kimono caught the last light of the sun as it crept through the tent's open doorway. I mean no disrespect, but the Kitsu say that the ancestors of the land have been silent ... silent for too long"

"The Kitsu are liars, Lions and maho-users. They summon Oni to defend their lands, and turn blood-sorcery on the Unicorn, servants of the Emperor. Oh yes," Uji snapped, "I have seen how the Lion respect the dead."

For a moment Jinsuo was silent. He stepped to the table and lifted a single blue-clad figure from the mossy terrain of the map-table, holding it to his face as he studied the intricately painted mon on its banner. "Daidoji Yurei was the finest warrior the Crane have ever known. He fought with courage, and he died with honor. When he commanded you to take Shiro no Yojin, the Crane were at peace. The Emperor commanded well from the heights of his throne"

"A Lion Emperor," Uji's tone condemned the entire bloodline.

"...and the Shadowlands were quiet. Do you believe that Yurei would have you continue, if he knew the havoc that had been caused since his appearance?"

"My grandfather will tell me when the time is done. I will know when his spirit is at rest'

"Will you, if he is unable to speak?"

The general stared at the shugenja, watching as he turned the ceramic figure between delicate hands. The little Daidoji warrior, frozen in a stance of defiance, glittered in blue and silver. "Speak your piece," he said at last.

"The Empire is shadowed by a great darkness, my lord," the Asahina said. "The flames of the sacred shrines are failing. Villages vanish in the Crab lands, as if they had never been, and not a peasant seems disturbed. The Dragon are in disarray, their wisdom lost; the Mantis strike against any weakness they can find, and Phoenix silver pays for the death of Crane noblemen. The dragons have left us. The Ki-Rin is dead.

I fear for the Crane, Daidoji-sama. I fear for our future. The Emperor seems to no longer be the man he once was. The courtiers in the Emperor's palace have not written in weeks, their voices stilled by his command. No man passes into, or out of, the Forbidden City of Otosan Uchi, and the Unicorn seem to follow in the footsteps of his madness like wolves behind the moon.' jinsuo placed the Daidoji miniature amid the wreckage of the huge map, standing him beside a fallen Doji warrior. 'Ve fight against our brothers, Uji-sama, when we should be fighting beside them"

The face of the Doji stood out in sharp relief within Uji's mind as the shugenja continued, frozen like a marble statue against the darkness of his thoughts. Blood stained white hair once more, and lifeless eyes stared up at a clear blue sky. My cousin...

"Go, Jinsuo. Tell Kuwanan I will meet him in thirteen days."

Asahina jinsuo bowed thankfully, pressing his forehead to his fingertips in gratitude.

Thirteen days, Yurei-sama, Uji's thoughts whispered as the shugenja left the tent. He looked down at the tiny warriors on the miniature battlefield, and lifted the fallen Doji with an uncharacteristically gentle hand. With respect, he turned the swordsman on its base, standing him to face the other Crane. They stood, two warriors amid a turbulent field of fallen and broken figures, hands on their swords and faces frozen in battle-cries. Only thirteen days to fulfill your greatest command. Why is your voice silent, when I need you most of all?

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