#matona

The Emperor was making a speech.

She wasn't one for speeches, finding them to be a waste of time when she could just do the work no matter how much Light-Paws stressed that public appearances would help her image. But she needed to draw attention away from everything else that would happen today. So she allowed her court to argue and fuss over everything - her hair, her clothes, her makeup - and rehearsed what she would say. It needed to be decently lengthy, but also not draw on far too long and make it seem like she was just grasping for time.

She was, as always, accompanied by the Shizuki twins when she finally stepped behind the podium to speak. Eiko stood tall beside her, and Kaito and Himoto waited in the shadows. While the three were united in their purpose, Kaito preferred to be the stealthy, hidden blade guarding the Emperor's back while Eiko was the strong and heavy shield at her side.

"People of Kamigawa," the Emperor began, "it has come to my attention that many people are asking what I intend to do as Emperor, and you all deserve to hear it from me. It is just one of the things I owe you after my spark severed me from our home for so long."

Doctor Selestri Zlovol's office was located in the foothills of the Sokenzan mountain range, hidden away from where most would find it on the way to Sokenzanshi. From the ground, the Order of Jukai were already using their magic, pulling from the Jukai Forest, to tear apart security mechs and open up the building for their Jundian allies for this fight.

"Strike swiftly and leave no Futurist alive!" Shigeki directed his Order as they breached the building's defenses. "Rescue what prisoners you can!"

The Warren of Dragons struck from the sky. Using Goro-Goro's summoned lightning dragons, they landed on the roof and began tearing into it, intending to meet the Order of Jukai and the Jundian warband halfway down.

"Smash everything!" Goro-Goro had told his akki. "No tech left, no mech left!"

"My goal is simple," the Emperor said, her voice loud and clear thanks to the microphones. "I dream of a better, safer Kamigawa for all of its people. Not merely the Imperial Court and our citizens, but those who have had their rights stripped away by my predecessor, those who are moving to our plane, and those who are traveling through it. Every kami, nezumi, akki, human, orochi, ogre, nantuko, soratami, kappa, and even oni deserves to be safe and respected."

The Sungrip Enforcer Academy in Eigan Town, about as far away from Eiganjo itself as you could get, was the number one provider of cloned enforcers thanks to their seemingly endless cloning machines. Cloning machines that one Reckoner in particular was more than happy to smash.

Unlike the other attacks today, this was a quieter infiltration mission. Redlash and Matona, two Dokuchi Reckoners, led some other Dokuchi as they slipped into weak points in the building, shorted out security cameras, and knocked out anyone who tried to stop them.

Redlash's body ached. He was a deteriorated clone, he knew better than anyone the fate that all clones - even ones early in the process - faced. And he wanted to ensure that clones like him were treated better than they were now, used as fodder for an endless war against Kamigawa's own people.

"Much of my time has been spent going through the laws of Kamigawa, which are written opaquely and with plenty of room to allow the most malicious and rich to use them for harming others. Bills that are passed 'for the betterment of Kamigawa' have lines in them that remove more and more protections from the average person. To get some of these protections back, to not die at the hands of enforcers encouraged to kill, people are then pushed to join Reckoner gangs. Is it any wonder, then, that the Reckoners hate the Imperial Court so much?"

Kaizen Tsuji and Satoru Umezawa were leading the Reckoners - Dokuchi and Hyozan both - attacking the Hayashi Omenpath Stronghold. Kaizen's many years spent infiltrating the Hayashis and serving them meant that he knew every gap in security. That gap in security was large enough for Karahaka, Kami of Empty Graves, to break into for their long-overdue vengeance, for both the Reckoners and Innistradi captured and tortured to death by the Hayashis through the years.

"Let the kami through first!" Satoru shouted to his Hyozans. "No bathing in blood, make it quick and don't get distracted!"

No such warning was passed to the Dokuchi by Kaizen, because he knew that they would follow it regardless. He was in his own enforcer armor, now with orange detailing instead of red, and was at the front of the fight near Karahaka to help protect the other Reckoners as they struck the relatively lightly-manned stronghold.

"Kyodai Omikami chose me to be your Emperor. I intend to live up to her expectations of me, but even more than that, I intend to re-secure the rights of Kamigawa and its peoples." The Emperor pressed a hand to her chest. "I had yearned for many years to come home. I will do everything within my power to become the Emperor that has been needed."

The shadows were darker today. That, of course, was on purpose.

Koda Hayashi stepped out of the shadows, pulling Prince Biilziebub and Vasro Hayashi with him. Haruko, the Kami of Restless Shadows, was not far behind. The four of them remained utterly silent as they moved through the halls of the Hayashi Manor. They had two targets and one goal - elminate Yuna Suzuki and Ichiro Hayashi, then get the hell out.

Extremely old (4 months old) natomato / matonato doodles

"It all appears to be above board to me, Boss Hayashi. They're rebuilding, we're rebuilding, and this way we can ensure that there are more people watching Fandango, Short, and Vasro's backs."

"Thank you, Doctor Tosari. Tsuji?"

"Likewise. And making sure we maintain the split between Clan Hayashi and the Dokuchi Reckoners means this doesn't add to Calisto's work."

"I intend to maintain that split for a good, long while. Matona, Goldenscar?"

"No concerns on my end, Boss Hayashi. Goldenscar?"

"I have some concerns about being able to maintain our strength while helping yet another faction. We're already allied with the Order of Jukai, the Warren of Dragons, the Hyozans and Okibas, the Grim Fleet, and at least High Marshal Guitirre's portion of the Legion of Dusk. Even with a direct Omenpath - to another crime family's territory, of whom we're on tense truce terms with - I worry about how thinly our planeswalkers are spread."

"An excellent point. With the end of the Darkest Night, tensions have eased in Torrezon, but whether we will still need to create and refill healing syringes at the speed we have been depends on further interaction between the Legion and the Coalition. Right now, that's out of our hands."

"And if they go to war? We can't maintain an alliance with both the Legion and Grim Fleet if they do."

"I'm aware of that. We would continue to provide healing to the Legion, because right now, they are the most likely ones to be able to keep Aclazotz down. I was there on the Darkest Night. There were heavy losses, important losses, but they held. And" - he raised a finger, much like his father - "I can guarantee that they don't have the strength or manpower for an all-out war. And at least some of them recognize that."

"And if they don't, then we can withdraw our support."

"Precisely, doc. And we are not stretching ourselves too thin with our other alliances. Assistance with negotiations and defense with the Order of Jukai has taken the form of speaking with that new branch of Saiba Futurists for them, and they are...alarmingly compliant, which I will choose to believe is a good thing. Assistance to the Warren of Dragons consists of sending Zenkuro up with supplies for them during the lean parts of the year. Assistance to the Grim Fleet has been solely monetary donations to help them build up stationary Coalition communities. And the alliance with the Hyozans and Okibas is to watch each other's backs, so we're getting as much as we give."

A pause for her to ponder this. "Alright. Consider my concerns addressed."

"Thank you, Goldenscar. I'm glad you're looking out for us too. Short, you've been quiet, and this impacts you most directly. What are your thoughts?"

"I'm not the only one impacted. How do Fandango and Vasro feel about it?"

"Vasro has been singing the praises of Lady Errant and Lady Parnesse. Fandango is more worried about his parents coming out of retirement to join them than they are about this particular shard, but she told me that he has no issues with us allying with them. It's an easier way for us to make sure their parents don't wind up in a dumpster."

There was a pause as she thought. "It would be nice to worry about less assassins in New Capenna and not have to rely so heavily on my own family for protection. But I'm also worried how this will impact our...truce...with the Brokers."

"The truce's terms, as thoroughly outlined between myself and Falco Spara, only matters between the Dokuchi Reckoners and the Brokers, not any of our allies. We are only as involved in New Capennan family politics as we want to be."

"...I shouldn't be surprised that you've thought this out, boss."

"Hey, as always, I'm looking out for the gang. So no issues?"

"None. When will you be meeting Lady Errant and Lady Parnesse to set the terms of the alliance?"

A slightly pained exhale. "That depends on if Clan Sasaki is continuing to stir shit and whenever Paladad and Intimidad decide to un-ground me."

A soft chuckle. "I don't think it counts as grounding if they've brought you back to Torrezon for your own safety, Boss Hayashi."

"I don't know Matona, I recall you doing something similar when Greasefang and I began dating..."

"I recall no such thing."

A snort. "Calisto is giving the Emperor some final lessons about proper Torrezone behavior. She's eager to get a sense of what the continent is like right now."

"Oh man, we do still have to figure out where we'll be staying while she's here... I'll ask Lazaro if she can stay here and we can discuss some kami priest stuff I've been wondering about." A pause. "Please tell me Kaito won't be coming with her."

"I believe the current theory is that I, Calisto, and Himotohime-kami will be accompanying her, so Himoto can keep Kaito in the loop while he's helping Regent Light-Paws and Security Head Shizuki in Eiganjo."

"Thank you Kyodai Omikami for not making me have to put up with Kaito longer than necessary. Anyway, I'll let you know what Lazaro says, and if he's fine with it then we can get Vasro to help with transport."

"Understood, Boss Hayashi."

"Anything else before we're done?"

Silence.