Imperial Chancellor – Bayushi Hisoka

The Conclusion, Part 1

by Shawn Carman

The twenty-first day of the Month of the Dog, year 1170

Although they were not particularly large, the quarters set aside for use by the Otomo family at Kyuden Seppun had always been used largely as an archive, where duplicates of important documents were kept as a matter of record. Typically there were one or two Otomo stationed there at any given time, a far cry from the days when the nearby ruins of Otosan Uchi had served as the glorious Imperial City. Now, Kyuden Otomo and the new capital of Toshi Ranbo were simply too far away for the family to place great emphasis on the post at Kyuden Seppun, which the Seppun family of course understood, and took no insult. The past few days, however, the entire area had been complete chaos, with dozens of Otomo in attendance. Given the unprecedented tournament taking place nearby, and what it held in store for the Empire, most Seppun simply tried to stay out of the Otomo’s way.

Otomo Ouga took a scroll from one of the many subordinates that were scurrying here and there and spread it on a table in front of him, frowning severely as he did so. “No, this will not do. This will not do at all! These duty assignments are completely unacceptable. These ambassadors are too young by far to be assigned to such weighty posts!”

The young man who had handed him the scroll paled slightly. “But Ouga-sama,” he offered carefully, “these posts were only made by Taneji-sama some two months ago.”

“And Taneji-sama had the good sense to appoint me to oversee these matters in his absence,” Ouga said, bristling at the subordinate’s temerity. “I will be making new assignments in his stead. Go and find a half dozen Miya and tell them they will be expected to begin delivering new orders very soon.”

“Hai,” the young man said, and left the room at once. Ouga scowled, sure that the fool seemed grateful to be leaving. He had no sense of the gravity of what was taking place! None of them did. They would see soon enough. His scowl grew more severe when he heard the retreating courtier say “Pardon me, sama,” softly. Ouga slipped easily into his more presentable ‘mask,’ a look of dispassionate authority that he had labored throughout his entire lifetime to perfect for the purposes of his work. He turned to the doorway with this mask well in place, looking at the newcomer expectantly.

The young man bowed and then carefully tucked his hair behind his ear, a practiced movement that Ouga was sure the man, little more than a boy, thought won him great favor with the ladies of court. “Pardon me, my lord,” the newcomer said. “May I ask who the senior member of your honorable family in attendance might be?”

“I am Otomo Ouga,” he replied, “hatamoto of Otomo Taneji, lord of the Otomo.”

“Of course,” the young man said. “I have seen you in the Imperial Court, of course, but I did not know if perhaps Taneji was present today.”

“He is not.”

“Then perhaps you can be of assistance, Ouga-sama. I have several issues of considerable importance that I must speak with you about, the most pressing of which…”

“Enough,” Ouga said, holding up one hand. “I have no intent to be rude, young Scorpion, but there is much that must be done today. Unless you have personal orders from the Scorpion Champion or perhaps the Emerald Champion…”

“I do not,” the young man answered.

“…then I will have to ask you to come back another day,” Ouga finished, turning back to his scrolls. “There is far too much to do for me to become involved in whatever matter you have pressing. I will be happy to allocate some time for one of my subordinates to speak with you, perhaps tomorrow. That will have to suffice.”

There was no sound of the newcomer departing. “I am afraid that will not suffice.”

Ouga turned back to the Scorpion, allowing his mask to slip ever so slightly so that the full measure of his displeasure might be obvious. “I have no time for this foolishness, boy,” he said, maintaining an even tone even if his words were less than polite. “In a matter of hours, perhaps less, a new Emperor will be proclaimed, and I must be ready to represent the Otomo as part of the ceremony that will be…”

“The proclamation took place at mid-day, nearly two hours ago,” the newcomer said.

All movement within the chamber halted at once, and all eyes turned to the Scorpion. No one dared say anything, but many of the young Otomo very carefully moved away from Ouga, whose expression was one of absolute astonishment. “That is preposterous! I would have been summoned! There is a protocol that must be followed in situations such as these, and the rituals for the coronation of a new Emperor very explicitly call for…”

“The Heavens are bound by no laws save their own, it seems,” the Scorpion said. “The proclamation has taken place, and the coronation completed. Much is afoot in the city and castle outside.” He regarded the old man with a disdainful expression. “I imagine most were content to leave you here, given your ridiculously pompous nature. Really, why anyone would care to speak to you at all I honestly cannot imagine.”

The other Otomo scattered, each finding something to do around the edges of the room, carefully examining rows of well-sorted scrolls, gathering the materials that they had been pulling out and replacing them, or anything else that would keep them out of the way of Ouga’s wrath. “How dare you speak to me that way!” Ouga roared. “You insolent whelp! I am of Imperial blood! Who do you imagine that you are, you foolish, senseless child!”

“I am Bayushi Hisoka,” the man replied with a polite smile. “I am the Imperial Chancellor.”

There was nothing but silence for at least a minute as Ouga attempted to absorb the information. “That is preposterous,” he finally said, all the power gone from his voice.

“Honestly? I thought so as well,” Hisoka admitted. “I have served in the Imperial Court for years, but nothing of any true significance. I assist the Emerald Champion from time to time. We worked together prior to his victory at the Championship. But again, in all honesty, I find this situation somewhat… surreal.”

“What… what happened?” Ouga said. “Why wasn’t… why wasn’t I summoned?”

“I have a notion regarding that,” Hisoka said, “but for the moment it is unimportant. I was summoned by the new Voice of the Emperor and told that the Divine One was familiar with my work among the Crane Clan. It seems that the notion of building alliances between clans that are traditionally enemies impresses some, even if I was never aware that they knew of my work in the first place. Regardless, I was appointed the new Imperial Chancellor, and as such I must begin my work immediately. Fortunately I have studied the journals of my predecessor, Bayushi Kaukatsu, so I have some vague notion of what is expected of me. For that I can but thank the Fortunes.”

Ouga struggled to regain his composure. He took a moment to straighten his robes, and managed to put his ‘mask’ back in place. “Naturally the new Emperor will wish to make use of Kyuden Otomo for the first Winter Court,” he began. “It is in the throne’s best interest to immediately establish a firm link with the Imperial bloodlines, owing to the previous dynasties’ significance in terms of…”

“That is quite enough,” Hisoka said, cutting the old man off. “If you had responded in any manner other than that of a petulant child earlier, then perhaps this is a discussion we could have had civilly. Fortunately for me, and unfortunately for you, that is no longer time that I will need to waste. The duty of selecting the site for the first Winter Court was given to me, and I have chosen Kyuden Bayushi. I will need your staff to begin assisting me immediately.”

“Kyuden Bayushi?” Ouga frowned slightly. “That seems a poor choice… Chancellor. If I may…”

“You may not,” Hisoka said. “If I am to secure the safety and sanctity of the Emperor’s Winter Court on such short notice, then I will require a familiar location with ample resources that I can call upon. Kyuden Bayushi it will be, and that matter is not available for discussion.”

Ouga looked away, his stomach turning. “If you wish. I can arrange for my delegation to arrive within a matter of days.”

“You will not be attending.”

The old man looked at the Chancellor with a calm expression, but his eyes spoke of violence. “What do you mean?”

“I mean exactly what I said,” Hisoka replied. “You are a buffoon and a fool, and so far as I am concerned, you will never set foot within the Imperial Court so long as I live. Unfortunately for you, you are too old to outlive me and too incompetent to have me disgraced or killed, so I imagine your dismay is simply overwhelming.” He smiled slightly. “My formal recommendation to your lord Taneji will be that you be reassigned to the Badger lands as their Imperial liaison.”

Ouga felt his blood boiling. His face was surely a crimson canvas of rage, and he could not control himself.

“Leave,” Hisoka dismissed him. “Speak another word and I will ensure your next placement is along the Great Carpenter Wall instead. The Crab are a sensible people, and I am certain they can find a use for even a doddering old fool like yourself, if pressed. Personally I hope they are at their most creative when they do so.”

The old man clenched his fists, but chose to say nothing, and departed at once. The Imperial Chancellor smiled at the assortment of other Otomo, mostly young and untested individuals with too little influence to have avoided Ouga’s unpleasant service. They looked back at him with something like awe, and of course a little fear. Hisoka had already decided that he liked the fear. He liked it very much.

“I need to leave for the Imperial City at dawn,” he said warmly. “Until then, there is much that I need to do, but there are woefully few Scorpion here to assist me with it. You will have to suffice. Perform your duties well and you will find a place in my service. If you are not capable of that, then perhaps Ouga-san will enjoy your company in his travels.”

The assembled Otomo all bowed sharply, as did the two Seppun guardsmen at the door. Yes, Hisoka thought privately. Yes, this certainly will prove interesting.