Interesting Times - Prologue

Asako Shiori opened her eyes and found herself in a place she has never seen before. The walls were made of stone, there were no sliding paper screen but wooden doors, and in front of her stood a young lady no older than 20 winters. The girl had her knees tied together and a knife in her hands; it was obvious that she was about to commit jigai, a form of suicide often committed by the females of the samurai caste in which they cut the jugular vein to archive a certain and fast death. The knees were tied together to ensure that she would be found in a dignified pose.
Shiori could not recognize the girl, but from her clothing she knew that she belonged to the Isawa Family of the Phoenix Clan. The girl lifted the knife and placed it against her neck, and when she made the cut Shiori's eyes widened to see the blood that came out, for it was black as night. This could only mean one thing, the girl carried The Taint of The Shadowlands within her. The reason of her suicide was clear to Asako Shiori, who closed her eyes.

When she opened her eyes again, Shiori was meditating in her house; she was a Shugenja. In Rokugan, those belonging to the Samurai caste went to dojos to be rained in different things; those trained in the art of courtship and diplomacy became Courtiers, those trained in the art of war and the way of the sword became Bushi, and those trained in the art of the kami and magic became Shugenja. They are the priest and scribes of the samurai caste; they can also cast powerful spells by offering prayers to the kami. The word "kami" have 2 meanings. If capitalized, the Kami are the sons and daughters of The Sun and The Moon: Akodo: Founder of the Lion Clan, Bayushi: Founder of the Scorpion Clan, Doji: Founder of the Crane Clan, Fu Leng: Master of the Shadowlands, Hantei: The first Emperor of Rokugan, Hida: Founder of the Crab Clan, Ryoshun: Protector of the Spirit Realms, Shiba: Founder of the Phoenix Clan, Shinjo: Founder of the Unicorn Clan and Togashi: Founder of the Dragon Clan.
If not capitalized, the kami are the spirits of the elements present in every thing on the land.
From the smallest pebble to the biggest mountain, from the tiniest creek to the great sea, every sword, every plant, within everything that is made of at least one element resides a kami; and they sometimes interact with people, more frequently with those willing to listen, like the Shugenja.

Following the steps of her honorable father, Shiori became part of an order dedicated to the hunt of Maho-Tsukai, workers of tainted black magic which draws power, not from the kami, but from the blood of living beings. Because of that she travels a lot and she is rarely home, so she tried to enjoy herself as much as she could, but this time it would not be so, for in her meditation she had a terrible vision of a tainted member of her Clan commit Jigai. She was convinced that it meant something, so she made arrangements to leave town and go to Kyuden Isawa, the capitol of the Phoenix Clan lands. There, she would find answers, or so she believed.
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PD: For more information about Rokugan go here