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Post by Sze Kamlong on Sept 11, 2006 19:01:42 GMT -5
The other two generals thankfully had the patience to wait until they were in private, quietly waiting beside him until the soldiers had shuffled back to their daily chores, the surprise of the announcement still visibly hanging from their faces.
Kamlong watched them go with the hope that it would wear off quickly - after all, a man did not come into the army for play and games. Even so, tough times were ahead, and he sympathized with them for that much at least.
Yulin laid a hand on his elbow afterwards, reminding him that there were still matters left unfinished, judging by the grimness in her expression. He smiled, nodded, and beckoned for her and Rie Chou to follow him into the large tent that served as a meeting and discussion room.
"Sorry," he murmured, once the other two had made themselves comfortable, though the reason was unclear. He seemed to be apologizing a lot lately, he noted, while sliding into a chair. For his brother, perhaps, or what his brother was making thousands of people do.
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Kwok Yulin
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Post by Kwok Yulin on Sept 11, 2006 19:10:47 GMT -5
"For what?" Yulin scoffed, dismissing the issue with ease. She had been a little late to the meeting - by the time she had returned from giving Shen the equivalent of the Spanish Inquisition, Sze had already taken the initiative and told everyone the news. She knew it before she got there, because a hush had fallen over the crowd, as if they were all holding their breaths, forgetting what it was like to breathe.
"Let me see the letter," she requested, holding out her hand as her friend deposted the papers into it. She scanned it quickly, hardly reading and only letting her eyes catch on the most important of words. It wasn't that she didn't know the contents, after all, she was just making sure that all of this was real. It made acceptance that much easier, and as she put the letter down, she felt herself steeling against whatever came next.
"I expected it, but to think that all this would happen because of one little mistake," she muttered unhappily. She drummed her fingers on the wooden pole beside her, sending the dulled rhythm of nails hitting wood to break the uncomfortable silence that followed. "But you know," she mused, "it can't all be just because we picked up that little boy Prince. Someone must be pulling some strings on his side, or else he wouldn't have ended up here alone."
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Rie Chou
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Post by Rie Chou on Sept 12, 2006 2:11:31 GMT -5
"And mind you, it wasn't our mistake," said Rie defensively. "But you're right," he said to Yulin, "there's something going on on that side, and I don't like it." From what he knew of him, the prince seemed innocent and well-meaning enough - all the more reason not to trust him. And wasn't it the shogun who now held the power in Japan since the absence of the prince? Could it not be him who was gaining anything from this confusion? And how else could a royal, of all people, suddenly appear on the soil of a rival country, if not by arranged circumstances?
Temporarily removing his doubts from mind, Rie picked up the letter from the table and read through it slowly and thoughtfully, though there wasn't much in it that he hadn't already learnt from Kamlong and Yulin. His eyes lingered on the practised strokes awhile before he lowered the paper slowly to his knees. "But what difference does it make?" he said, his determined tone bringing about a change in atmosphere in the tent. "They declared war on us, and it's our duty anyhow to protect our soil, regardless of their internal politics."
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Post by Sze Kamlong on Sept 12, 2006 13:41:49 GMT -5
Kamlong nodded, smliing at the older general. He appreciated the clear-sightedness the more experienced man possessed. Sometimes it was refreshing to have someone who just saw things as they were - after the two run-ins with the emotionally charged prince, he had begun to question what his driving forces were. After all, it wasn't as though he wasn't aware his virtues were poked through with holes - what his country, what his king and his brother did seemed to so often go against what he believed.
"Duty," he murmured, like it was a reminder. "That's right...it's our responsibility to fight."
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Kwok Yulin
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Post by Kwok Yulin on Sept 12, 2006 13:47:38 GMT -5
"But still," Yulin argued, expression obviously unsatisfied with so one-dimentional an answer, "We can't just let them take this mistake to such far measures!" She slapped one hand against the pole, the skin on her palm flaring with the sharp burn of the force. "We still have to do something with the prince, even if it's just to let the enemy know that he's not dead, even if we can't send him back."
She broke off at that, sneering at the paper in her hands. "If it weren't for this stupid embargo - why do we need it anyway? We could just send the boy back to his own country and have had none of this happen."
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Post by Sze Kamlong on Sept 12, 2006 13:50:47 GMT -5
"I am not so sure of that," Kamlong interrupted, drawing a raised brow from Yulin, asking for explanation. "Granted, we still can't prove that he's telling the truth, but I have two accounts of what exactly's been going on in their country, and something tells me that even if we returned the prince, relations wouldn't go smoothly. Apparently their shogun is not handling their nation as well as they'd like him to."
"And if I gather correctly, all this misunderstanding is the doing of that one man alone." The observation didn't do much for their current standing - they still could do nothing from their side as things stood, but at least it narrowed down the problem.
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Rie Chou
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Post by Rie Chou on Sept 13, 2006 9:12:23 GMT -5
Rie folded his hands, silently considering Kamlong's deductions. "Yes," he said at length. "It's possible. There isn't much point in returning their prince, as it seems the shogun is intent on having this war." It was a foregone conclusion that Kamlong had already voiced, but Rie said it quietly once again as if to convince himself that no matter what, this was a war that had to be fought.
Then abruptly, he stood up. "Let's discuss our strategy then, shall we?" He said brightly, as he walked to the long wooden table, where he unrolled a map of China and its surrounding regions. He marked their position in Songjiang with a little red flag. "The defences of Chang'an shouldn't be a problem as of yet, seeing as it's so far inland; I believe our main concern right now is to prevent their offence from penetrating our borders."
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Kwok Yulin
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Post by Kwok Yulin on Sept 13, 2006 21:20:04 GMT -5
"Hey, hey, not so fast now!" Yulin chided, peering over and down at the map from where she stood. She looked neither as eager nor as content to move on to such matters so quickly, not with so many loose ends untied. Then again, Rie Chou always had seemed to be the sort to rush headfirst into things, simply because brute force was enough. They all had different styles, she supposed, and it worked well for them individually, but when deciding the fate of other men, it was better to put their heads together.
"Before you jump into that, you've got to think about it a bit more, old man." She smiled, since the jab was less of an insult than a sign of familiarity. "Returning the prince may not accomplish much, but why don't we just tackle the problem at its root? Is there any way to get rid of that shogun?"
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Post by Sze Kamlong on Sept 13, 2006 21:30:54 GMT -5
"Half of the problem might..." be right here, with China, he almost said outloud, before he realized exactly what the words coming out of his mouth entailed. He promptly nipped that thought and its very roots in the bud - it was out of the question. That was blasphemy, treachery, and betrayal - dirty and political words that only worsened the nagging pain in his temple.
He shook his head while cradling it in one palm, propping the elbow on his table. "Forget it. If we could get to the general, that would solve things, but how do you propose we do that? We're the military - our job is to take the brunt of the attack. Assasinations and covert operations like that are better left to different people, don't you think? Perhaps a spy or something."
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Kwok Yulin
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Post by Kwok Yulin on Sept 13, 2006 21:32:46 GMT -5
Yulin thought this over, before suddenly suggesting, "Don't we have one? ...Well, not ours, exactly, but we do have people we can use as a spy, who are familiar with Japan. Two of them, to be precise."
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Post by Sze Kamlong on Sept 13, 2006 21:38:01 GMT -5
Kamlong turned to look at her, brows raising, but looking none the more convinced. "And what makes you think that they would do it? They're just-..." He paused, the full possibility of the suggestion turning over in his mind. If what Naia and Akihito said had been true, then they were the best candidates indeed. They both possessed the power to get close to the shogun with the least suspicion, as well as the driven desire to do away with the man.
There were still questions surrounding the issue of their trustworthiness, but otherwise it almost seemed like an opportunity had walked straight into their hands. He lifted his eyes to see Yulin beaming. The female general had obviously taken all factors into consideration. "Even if that were possible and they were to agree, how would we get them back? They don't have the sort of clearance to even ask for a boat back to Japan during a time like this."
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Kwok Yulin
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Post by Kwok Yulin on Sept 13, 2006 21:41:39 GMT -5
"Oh, details, details," Yulin responded nonchalantly, with a few waves of her hand. She grinned, the smile baring teeth - a dangerous grin. "Surely you know that there are ways around everything. What's more important is that before we jump to that step, we have to see what those two think about all this."
It took a few seconds, but eventually Kamlong nodded, slowly and somewhat reluctantly. She turned to Rie, tilting her head demurely in mock innocence. "How about it, big guy? Are you willing to wait a few moments with that map of yours to see if we can turn the tables?"
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Rie Chou
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Post by Rie Chou on Sept 14, 2006 5:11:21 GMT -5
Rie smiled at Yulin, like an indulgent parent at a child. "Very well," he said, while turning away from the map to indicate his putting the matter aside. But as they returned to the situation at hand, his face darkened again. Esponiage and like alternative methods of war were one thing he was not skilled in.
"Removing the shogun?" He thought aloud. "That is not our place, and it might stir up the common Japanese against us, more so than they are already. We don't know how well-supported that man is, though it's conceivable that, with his standing, his base is by no standard narrow.
"Should I say - we won't have to extend our reach as far as the shogun, but still it'd be helpful to send a few spies over and find out more about their current situation."
With that, he stood quietly, listening to what the other, more tactical generals would have to say.
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Post by Sze Kamlong on Sept 14, 2006 13:59:40 GMT -5
"It depends on how you look at it," Kamlong said in response to Rie Chou's line of thinking. Yulin was already making comments under her breath about how boring the two of them were, how they had no sense of adventure, but she had always been and would always be somewhat dramatic, even if it would mean death to say it to her face. Regardless, she did have a point. They both did.
"Our duty, fundamentally, is to protect our country, isn't it? And if we can do it in a way that requires less damage to our men, then that's all for the better." He also stood, pushing the chair away from the desk slowly. "Before we decide on anything, let us first see what the captive's views on the situation are. They are only victims in this - we should at least hear them out."
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Kwok Yulin
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Post by Kwok Yulin on Sept 14, 2006 14:01:40 GMT -5
"Very well," she agreed, with an easy roll of one shoulder. This sort of stalemate would lead nowhere. It was better to first gather what resources they did have - human or otherwise. "We will go ask them." She turned and slipped out the door.
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