Shusen

Ishiwa "Shusen" Heian

Reito no Yurei-jin
Reiryu-do no Godan
Go Kamisori Gama no Shujin
Agent of the Court of Shooting Stars

Description

~The boundary between life and death takes the form of a man in Shusen. An older gentleman in his early 40s, this Japanese man dresses in sharp and well-pressed suits of dark hues, conservative blues and blacks the most common. Shusen prefers his black hair to be kept short and styled in a simple and unremarkable fashion. Occasionally, the man wears a long leather duster over his expensive business wear. The duster commands an odd shimmer in the right light. And so this reflects in Shusen's steady, brown-eyed gaze. He walks with an upright and quiet self-assurance that defines a successful entrepreneur. Deep in the pits of Shusen's eyes, however, burn cold flames. An unspoken passion lurks behind the man's facade. Driven to this mysterious end, Shusen's chilly and nebulous air remains subdued by his silence and evident intelligence. There is something dark and even cruel about this man. But only death could bring it out in him.~

OOC: Appearance 2; Arcane 2

"'Don't fear the Reaper?' No. Do not fear him at all. I am here."

History

Youth

The Reiryu Clan birthed many great warriors over the centuries. And hundreds Awakened and became some of the most terrifying supernatural soldiers in the world. Ishiwa Heian shared in this glorious heritage when he was born in 1963. His parents, Akio and Takako, were not Awakened. So there was little hope that Heian would Awaken. Of course, his parents cared for him as their son anyway. They raised him with all the ethics and strictly binding code of honor that ninja observed. No, this was not bushido. They were not chivalrous samurai, but efficient assassins. Their version of honor involved loyalty unto death and the ideal of courage through performance of duty. And Heian received the benefit of their training, too, starting as soon as he could walk.

However, Heian was not satisfied with this lot. The boy did study and train hard. His young ambition fueled his drive. Heian's ninjitsu regimen included study of the supernatural. He raided the clan's library to examine ancient and updated records of the shen. Heian purposely read the most horrifying tales he could. He often stole away to the clan's cemetery for the isolation and quietude. There he shocked himself with grisly and ghastly stories of war and demons. His visits to the graveyard became much more frequent after his father was slain. Heian was nine when he received the news that his father would not be returning from a mission. Perhaps the boy was trying to shock himself into Awakening. Or maybe he was just a morbid kid. Either way, he kept subjecting himself to those horrors. Unfortunately, all he really accomplished was to give himself nightmares. His stoic mother could not alleviate his self-inflicted anguish.

Some might chalk it up to just the stories he read. But Heian saw more. Whenever he awoke at night in his lightless bedroom, he witnessed the dark itself pour four. It engulfed him nightly and sent shivers of wakefulness through his spine. It submerged him with images of the stories he read and sorceries he witnessed at the clan estate.

And this was a home Heian almost never left. Only three times did he ever visit the city. Heian was amazed by what he saw: so different from the clan's rural home. He liked the busy life of the city. But it didn't distract the youth from his ambitions. Maybe one day when his training was complete he could visit the city or even live in one, if he were assigned there. But for the time being, Heian stayed focused.

Awakening

As Heian began to mature, he started to meditate upon his nightmares and visions. Over several years, the teenager came to fear what the shen did and would do to mankind. More and more he came to hate demons and all supernaturals that would enslave humanity. In 1979, when Heian was sixteen, his graveside meditations were finally rewarded. Heian opened his eyes and beheld the ghost of his father. The shimmering image of his gauntly sire was grim but proud. It whispered that how Heian now felt and understood was truly the way of the Go Kamisori Gama. Heian now comprehended this purpose and he saw his destiny. He knew he would live and die for his clan, for his people, and for the gods. It was the same way his father perished. Awakened or not, Heian would serve humanity, and drive a chill of despair and terror into the demons that would dare prey on humanity.

And the boy's Awakening did not go unnoticed. Clanmates soon observed his distracted awareness and confirmed his sorcerous talents. Heian was sent to Hinodi Tenran to train in the kage-waza of the Reiryu. Tenran focused on Heian's natural talents with ancestral spirits. The youth's ghostly inclinations combined with the usual regimen of "ninja magic": illusions and war-craft. Heian learned of a special duty in the clan: to take care of the spirits of fallen comrades. Since most Go Kamisori Gama racked up so much "karmic taint" in the course of their murderous lives, many returned as hungry ghosts. So those Reiryu like Heian, who were talented in the right Arts, were to guard these lingering souls. They made sure that their restless comrades remained loyal even in death, and that no outside force tried to manipulate these gaki for their own ends.

Thus, Heian specialized his mystickal studies to one day fulfill this obligation. Of course, Heian didn't neglect his other training. The intelligent young man excelled in all the fields expected of him. Four years later, Heian was ready for his first test. This would initiate him as true ninja in the clan.

Accompanying five other Ishiwa ninja, three of which were Awakened veterans, Heian left the estate for Hokkaido's western shore. The beachside villages in the Reiryu's protectorate and claim were suffering an unlikely number of shark attacks. Clearly, the Same-Bito ("weresharks") were trying to cull humans they considered offensive. Heian was present on the team as an advisor, for he was always well versed in various shen lores. The team dressed and posed as villagers. However, they were secretly armed with silver blades, at Heian's knowledgeable recommendation.

There they waited for only a few days. As dusk settled the last night, the tides erupted with a habatsu of enraged Same-Bito wearing their terrifying Karvu "war-forms". The real villagers screamed and fled. The Reiryu surprised the marauders by standing and fighting. The four weresharks thundered only land, but expertly wielded and magick-enhanced silver blades drove them back from a deadly ambush. In a matter of a minute, the Same-Bito lay slain. One of the unAwakened warriors was dead. The rest of the team was injured at worst. Heian himself was unscathed save for shaken nerves, while one of the Rokea was dead at his feet. His silver-tipped spear was driven straight through its throat.

So the Reiryu returned home victorious. Heian was hailed with full clan status, awarded his shodan rank in Reiryu-do, and given the name "Shusen". It was his advice that helped the team put an end to that threat. And Heian knew now that there was no turning back. With his successful killing of that rabid Rokea, he declared to heaven that he was willing and able to assert his will and destiny. Heian -- Shusen -- could and would face up to the horrors of the world. He reaffirmed his intent to face down the travesties that hell spawned. Shusen would be the dark angel come to slay the demons.

Guarding Glass Dreams

Then, just as he hoped, Shusen was assigned to a team based in the city. Joining several other Ishiwa in Sapporo, he and the team leader, Warai, were the only Awakened ninja. Shusen was more of a supporting member, however. He provided the team with adequate shen lore. That way the team could better defend the Reiryu Clan interests at this urban outpost. Shusen also developed divinatory Arts, the better to advise Warai. Due to his thorough perfectionism and serious but pleasant nature, he was also well liked on the team. For ten years, Shusen served on this team with only a few major conflicts. Most of the time, he ardently trained and studied to become the best at what he did.

But that wasn't all Shusen did over that time. He came to enjoy city life. Shusen adapted well to the setting and urban culture. He also learned the in's and out's of business. Through his divination, Shusen invested wisely in various corporations. He took the allowance the Reiryu paid him and developed more capital from those investments.

Shusen also became better acquainted with the ghostly elements of the Yin World. He came to understand and sympathize with these restless souls. Shusen also perceived the ongoing struggle between Japanese spirits, the "Sundead", and the invasive imperial Chinese ghosts. Shusen began to make friends among the rebel group, the Fist of Nippon. He suspected one day they would make excellent allies. Plus, Shusen was outraged by the rapine Japanese ancestors were suffering in this afterlife. He wanted to help expel the foreign devils from the Jade Kingdom.

However, duty to the Reiryu came first. Fairly early on in Shusen's career, in 1985, the team clashed with Kuei-jin in Sapporo. Gaki of House Genji were trying to seize assets and territories from the local shen. These vampires targeted one group at a time. They chose to try and excise the shinta first, since they would be "easier" than hengeyokai. The foolish undead grossly misjudged their enemies. A series of battles in which Shusen participated blasted wide swaths in the legions of the Hungry Dead. Most of these antagonists were dealt with in a matter of months. Continued clashes were seen over the next few years, but nowhere near as bloody as the first. Shusen's advice to employ a variety of fire-based weapons and magicks deterred their vampiric foes quite effectively.

But later in 1990, the Reiryu faced a more dangerous enemy. The Zaibatsu -- the Japanese arm of the Technocracy -- was cracking down on shen-backed criminals in Sapporo. The yakuza were targeted, of course, and thus so were the Reiryu assassins who contracted for these mobsters. A team of Ryusugi agents was also based in Sapporo for that end. But when they learned of the Technocracy crackdown, they didn't hesitate to call on the Ishiwa team for back up. Better to be safe than sorry against enemy shinta, especially against efficient Zaibatsu soldiers. And the Reiryu teams combining together proved to be a wise move indeed. Pooling their deadly skills and Arts, the death squads were repelled brutally. The conflict was kept private from the Masses, and left more than one (unAwakened) ninja dead. But only a few Technocratic soldiers escaped, and the missions were cancelled after so many repeated failures. The Reiryu were once again triumphant. And Shusen was disgusted. He was disgusted not by the Zaibatsu's technomancy, but their greediness. If the Technocracy would work with the traditional shinta instead of trying to mindlessly slaughter them, humanity could be purged of all demonic elements. What a pity.

Lastly, Shusen also worked with the Sundead throughout his decade of service in Sapporo. He often performed minor favors for his ghostly acquaintances, such as protecting objects of vital sentimental value to the spirits in the living world. But in 1992, Shusen engaged himself in a bigger conflict with his Fist of Nippon allies. Several agents of the group were captured during a secret meeting. The Chinese ghosts bound them in plasmic manacles and awaited deportation. They were to be sent to China and from there to Feng-tu -- Hell. So important was it to the Jade Kingdom to put these rebels down that one of their elite and unique Immortal Guardsmen oversaw the ghosts' imprisonment. The Fist of Nippon begged for Shusen's help, as the Immortal Guardsmen were difficult indeed to defeat. Shusen agreed, knowing this would earn their alliance wholly, and he wanted to strike the imperialists a blow while saving his ghostly companions anyway.

From beyond the Shroud, Shusen divined which Chinese guards would pose the most threat. The Imperial Guardsman came up as the greatest threat, of course. So Shusen risked his very soul by coordinating with the Fist of Nippon. A bold strike from the Fist was less bold when Shusen suddenly drew the Immortal Guardsman from the conflict. The Guardsman struck at the meddling mage with deadly, entropic forces. But Shusen warded himself well, and struck back at the ghost who was unprepared to defend against raw magickal blows ripping across the Shroud. Soon the ancient spirit was dispersed to the winds of death and the rest of the Chinese soldiers were defeated. The rebels were sprung and the Fist of Nippon regained its strength in the region as a result. Shusen knew that they now owed him a great debt.

Watching the Winds of Time

While Shusen impressed the Sundead quite a bit, he perturbed the Jade Kingdom. The Chinese ghosts began to search him out. The Reiryu Clan was also less impressed than concerned. Shusen was tugged from the Sapporo team and forced to return to the clan estate to avoid the Jade Kingdom's detection and revenge. While Shusen didn't appreciate having to leave his city home, he wasn't really being punished. In fact, he was given the job he always wanted to have. Shusen began to serve the Reiryu as both lorist and spiritualist. He was one of but two such mages in the clan, using his divination and mediumship to keep tabs on the spirits of those Reiryu who died. Shusen watched the passage of all Go Kamisori Gama, not just the Awakened, since even the unAwakened ninja were privy to clan secrets. He would track them down spiritually and insured they were still loyal and would remain so. Shusen came to a darker realization in '95. He determined that he must always be merciless to all that stood on his Path. Enemies among the shen and mankind alike could not be spared. Indeed, even other Go Kamisori Gama that strayed from the right path had to be corrected as quickly and brutally as possible. There was only one way to do things right. If it wasn't right, it was wrong. And Shusen was determined to do everything right the first time.

The first test to his deepened resolve came in 1999. A simple battle mobilized the entire clan as a small army of demons arose in the fields and charged the estate. These demons were bakemono, men and women that evil spirits possessed. The Reiryu swept over them with lethal precision, leaving a battlefield of corpses. But in truth, the battle would have gone a very different direction if Shusen and the other clan's spiritualist did not participate. For many stray demons floated beyond the Wall, waiting to possess Reiryu to turn them against their own clanmates. But Shusen and the other shaman prevented this with their potent Yamabiko spells.

Besides this vicious but short battle, Shusen tended to four restless souls over the decade. Three of them returned as Sundead, and one of them as Kuei-jin. The latter ended up joining the renowned Kuro-sama's school. And like Kuro-sama, that gaki knew to keep her trap shut about Go Kamisori Gama secrets to all outsiders. Of the three ghosts, two of them lingered near the clan estate and never posed any danger to security. Indeed, they acted like guardians in the Yin World for the clan.

But the third opted to crusade against the Jade Kingdom and he joined the Fist of Nippon. In 2001, the imperialists nabbed this young wraith and tortured him. His anguish was felt across the lines of life and death and Shusen was up in arms. It would not be long before the wraith broke under the torturous pressure and spilled his guys about everything he knew. Suicide was not an escape option when one was already dead! Worse, not one but three Immortal Guardsmen guarded the prisoner. The Fist of Nippon could not stage a rescue and they weren't motivated enough to do so anyway. The Reiryu Clan's secrecy was not their concern.

So Shusen made it their concern. He pulled the favors they owed him from several years past. With the aid of two other Reiryu shamans, the mages joined with the Sundead to stage an even more daring rescue. And like before, the shinta defeated the Immortal Guardsmen while the Fist of Nippon struck the regular guards and freed their compatriot. Shusen once more established himself as a deadly warrior of Yin. Indeed, the man grew so accustomed to interacting with the spirits of the dead that he no longer need sorcery to see and hear nearby ghosts.

Forging a Soul-Sword

Despite his growing power, the Reiryu came to no longer need Shusen. In 2004, a younger shaman was ready to take up the reins of spiritual guardianship in the clan. The clan elders suggested to Shusen that he take his remarkable talents to one of the Reiryu's distant claims, where his abilities would be even more appreciated. The Reito Cabal based in the Little Asia of Kansas City, Missouri, needed someone to keep an eye on the rising number of agents involved there. Shusen agreed since this would give him an opportunity to once more live in the city?even if it was an American city.

And Shusen, budding his 40s, was ready to settle down somewhere. Like most men, he enjoyed his women on occasion, and came to enjoy a young geisha in the clan's protectorate. He liquidated some of his monetary assets and purchased Mariko's debts (and effectively "bought" her like an indentured servant). He also procured private real estate -- in a cemetery -- in Kansas City ahead of time. That fall, he moved there with Mariko, meeting with the Go Kamisori Gama already present, and joining their ranks. Nekoko's skills impressed the spiritualist. Shusen knew that whatever direction they took together, they would take their clan's interests far.

The Empty Hall (Sanctum)

~Quiet Knolls Cemetery is not just home to the dead. Sharing their eerie territory rests the Sanctum of Shusen. Years ago, the wealthy Tsing family purchased land and they even built a spacious mausoleum for their large familial stakes. Strangely, however, the entire family vanished without a trace. The mausoleum went unused for years until recently it was put up on the market: and Shusen was the lucky bidder. Located near the westernmost border of the cemetery, not far from the Five Winds Wall, this mausoleum towers over most other memorials in the graveyard. The grassy turf surrounding the building lacks many arrangements. There is a row of cherry trees leading from others' grave plots nearby, and purple irises surround the base of the mausoleum. Its black marble structure, the upper building spanning ten by fifteen feet, gives it an unusual beauty in that place. But the edifice bears no adornments but one: a spire from the center of the domed roof. This spire spikes up towards the sky like an antenna to Heaven.

One solid stone door leads inside the heretofore uninhabited crypt. White candles line the passages in sconces, and they are lit. This mausoleum is not empty anymore. Shusen dwells and does his shadow magicks here. A short flight of marble steps are hewed down into the main vault. Candles give way to torches and an overhanging chandolier of flickering flames. Black marble seems to be the primary material in the whole construction. The walls boast long shelves to lay down one's bones. But they are bereft of corpses. Instead, Shusen stores his tools, components, and weapons of death on these shelves. Other signs of his secret inhabitation remain. Right there in the main vault, Shusen has tapped into the cemetery's plumbing to provide a bathtub for ritual cleansing in the north corner. A futon lies opposite of this to the west. And a cherry wood table stands in the other corner of the sepulcher in the east. The south corner lies empty, providing space for the practice of his more mundane arts. There seems to be just enough space for a man to live here and he makes ample use of it all.

But a passage in the far end of the vault leads shortly down into a smaller crypt. This room lacks shelves, the walls curving upwards into the dome of the upper, above-ground edifice. But the center is drawn by a circle engraved into the marble floor. This is perhaps where the head of the family intended his tomb to be laid. Five-foot high candlesticks mark this circle at four points. And the walls themselves boast unusual markings. Also carved right into the marble are sigils and kanji-like characters (kaja), empowering the chamber with Shusen's personal marks and power. This room in particular commands a silence beyond the unheard decibels of the cemetery beyond. In here, even the dead are hushed.~

OOC: Arcane 5

Significant Other

Shusen "purchased" Mariko, or rather her debts to the geisha house, in 2004. In private, they call each other by their real names -- Heian and Katako. Katako is little more than a girl, and Heian's taken her completely as his own servant. Katako is smitten by her first and only lover. He in turn favors Mariko above all other women.

Such favor, sadly, could not protect Katako from Shusen�s growing enemies in the Yin World. These unknown wraiths crept into her apartment and clammy dead hands stole the life from her body while she slept in 2009. Shusen returned from a mission to a corpse. His icy vengeance in the Shadowlands thereafter instigated a minor rift with the Court of the Silver Censer, as he targeted any ghost in reach for many days after Mariko�s funeral. Then, to his delight, he discovered that Mariko's spirit persists, and he welcomes her back into his Sanctum, which serves as her Haunt. Once more, they live together, and though she is confused and distraught, the necromancer offers comfort.

Mariko

Weakness
Claim of the Dead

Shusen acts as a policeman for his clan, insuring those clanmates that die and return as ghosts or gaki stay in line and loyal at all costs. This is not an easy task. And with so many spiritual obstacles, it's not just his life at risk.

Likelihood of Corruption

High.

Dealing with wraiths, wights, and demons all the time brings Shusen often into exposure to the corruption of their P'o. He undergoes ritual purification regularly. But sometimes it's just not enough. One of these days, it won't be nearly enough.

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