Inuko skipped along the snowy path. Sure, her parents insisted on coming with her on this dinner, but whatever! She was still going to be with Urashima! Besides, she was bringing Maiko and Aya with her anyways. Tonight was going to be a night she would never forget. Meeting up with her two best friends and waving mockingly to her much slower parents, she hopped inside the large dining hall.
It was ornately furnished, with banners decorated with all the colors of the imperial family. Black wooden low tables were arranged systematically, and Inuko could not help but notice that they were arranged as if to face a single presenter. Finely embroidered zabuton were placed around the tables. Scanning the room for Urashima, she ran over to him and sat down beside him. “Hey cutie!” she said.
Urashima reacted as he usually did (with an embarrassed smile) and bade his other guests to sit down. Inuko rolled her eyes. Why wasn’t he a little more open with his feelings? She turned towards the center of the room, to which all the tables faced, and instantly recognized Shogun Isamu Honma. The old man sat there, dressed in his blue tinted suit of armor, aesthetically designed after his original, ancient suit. His long grey moustache went down to his obi, and his face was covered by his helmet.
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Near him sat none other than Katsuro Kondo, the Shogun of the Southeastern half! His armor was slightly different, and he lacked the moustache, but he was otherwise very hard to tell from Isamu.
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And to top it all off, the Emperor-the Emperor himself-just walked in the door. Well, didn’t that figure that he would be the host! His royal robes followed behind the old, long finger nailed man, in a range of colors and embroidery patterns.
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The Emperor sat between the Shoguns. This gathering of politicians was an extremely rare one: The Shoguns themselves would almost never meet. So this political get together was a powerhouse meeting. Masanori Tadaka, who used to be Shogun Isamu’s personal head architect, received a look of disappointment from his old boss. Politicians from many groups began pouring in: Military officers, veteran Samurai, economists, ecologists, municipal leaders, clan chiefs, law enforcement and countless others. Even the media and paparazzi showed up. They all sat down, and they all talked. The question on everyone’s mind was: What were they all here for?
The Emperor rose and silenced the crowd with a wave of his hand. Then in spoke in a dignified manner incomparable to that of any lesser man. “People of my country, I have gathered all of you here for a very important reason. Daichi Tadaka, head architect of Shogun Isamu Honma, has completed the new Shogunate, and has dubbed it ‘The Wolf’s Lair’.”
“The Wolf’s Lair? That is not what I asked him to name it. I give him a ridiculous amount of extra funding and he doesn’t even name it want I want….” Isamu muttered.
“This glorious military stronghold is luxurious enough for me, yet it is strong enough to withstand a siege from a hundred thousand fierce opponents. I have come to believe that it is even more secure than my own palace. Due to the recent attempts of the theft of the Imperial Regalia, I have decided to move the Three Sacred Treasures to the Wolf’s Lair.”
The crowd was suddenly talking again, but the Emperor hushed them all, and continued to explain why he was doing this. However, it did not silence the memories running through Inuko’s mind.
“This is my HOME. The Lair of the Wolf Brothers is not a palace, not a castle, not an invisible city, not a flying fortress, it’s a goddamn CAVE!”
Kiba had died…..but Okuri was still alive. And he still wanted to be Shogun. What if this was all just some terrible trap? No. A trap could only work if Daichi had a hand in it. And Daichi was far too loyal…….
