Despair and Wisdom: Imperial March

"Of course, Bayushi-taisa," says Isawa Hana, her face remaining still against the light reflecting from the officer's gilded armor. "It will be done."

It's stupid, and you're stupid, she thinks, but I'm not going to buck orders.

She steps out of the operations tent into the surrounding morass of people, sighing slightly and looking about for how best to do what she has been told to do.

~~~~~
2 sux, 2 opps, 2 strife; opps to eat Strife
https://sakkaku.org/r/13962

Trying to move, slightly, outside of her comfort zone Mukai had spent the morning trying to understand troop movements. By the end of the morning her frustration had mounted to the point that it was all that she could do not to flip the table. Though her tension impacted the room around her she managed to hold back her actual rage.

Her swift and determined exit from the tent had her nearly at the Isawa's heels and, recognizing that she was perhaps too close even if she had not collided, she once again tried to let the anger fade.

"Apologies, Isawa-san. I was not paying sufficient attention."

(Wow, just wow

D2, LM - Metagame: Tactics/Water | TN: 2 | Success: 0 / Opportunity: 1 / Strife: 1


Metagame -1 Discipline, downtime Water opportunity spend to reduce Strife by 2, net -1 Strife)

Hana's face contorts slightly for a moment, but no thorn shows forth from the flower as yet.

What does escape her lips is "At least you weren't trying to catch a knife."

She shakes her head. "But that wasn't you, anyway...Utaku-san." A slight bow follows, punctuating "Isawa Hana, Sixth Kaisha."

Her eyebrow raises slightly at the knife but she returns the bow, "Utaku Mukai, of the Second."

"How unexpected."

Hana looks the Utaku up and down. "So, how're you liking Legion life so far?"

"It is an adjustment, that's for sure, a lot of new things to get used to. But even with all that fuss it's better than the alternative so it's a good place to be."

Hana cocks an eyebrow.

"What was the alternative for you?" she asks.

Her arms fold into her kimono sleeves, resting against her abdomen.

"There's enough chance for glory here, of course, but just as much chance of languishing away unnoticed."

Mukai laughs slightly at the thought of 'languishing' here compared to her old life, "The alternative was patrolling backwoods and praying there'd be something as exciting as a bandit... and being oft disappointed. Languishing here would still be a much more glorious life."

"That sounds terrible," Hana replies. "Although things in the Legion can get dull quickly, as well. Routines settle into place, and you see the same faces--or, more often backs--again and again and again. Hear the same insipid stories, the same asinine conversations. The same tawdry tales get read over and over, the same silly fights get fought over and over."

She shakes her head. "I'll do my tour, of course. But I'll look forward to having another assignment once it's done."

She nods though honestly it didn't sound bad as long as she could still make herself known.

"What type of assignment does Isawa-san hope for?"

"Something near or at a well-stocked library," Hana replies easily. "And with time to read."

Mukai mentally adds a notch under the accuracy column of stereotypes of Phoenixes she had been told.

"Then here is hoping such awaits you." Mukai is trying to be supportive, really, but it's hard for her to wish a fate, to her, worse than death upon someone.

"Thank you!"

Hana very nearly chirps it, somehow.

"And if you had your wish, for you, what would you want to be assigned?"

"I think advancement more than reassignment. Though properly earned of course it wouldn't matter otherwise. I've things to prove and I think the Legion is likely the best means to do so."

"Well, if you're looking to advance," Hana says, "and to earn advancement, you do have to be where people who can promote you can see you. Even the best soldier stays a soldier if they're never where command sees them do well.

"So I suppose something you probably ought to do is make sure you've conferred with your kaisha commander. And, if you're with the Second, you'll probably be doing a fair bit of scouting, so making sure the Intelligence Chief knows your name and face will probably help you a lot."

She nods (and adds another check under the accuracy column), "Wise words Isawa-san. The former had already been in my plans but you are right about the latter as well. Thank you."

Hana smiles.

"It's a pleasure, truly. After all, the Legion's only as strong as the weakest among us."

"I have no intention of being such, that is for certain." If there had been an implication of insult behind it it had flown over the Unicorn's head, "Even if there's still much to learn."

"Oh, there's always more to learn," Hana says--again, almost chirping. "Which is part of why I hope for a posting near the libraries, as I said.

"But, anyway, I know that Unicorn love their horses, almost as kin. Tell me about yours!"

"Better than kin in some cases." She thought the Isawa was likely humoring her, again missing the potential to read it as an insult, but decided to go along with it, "Hachiko. The stablemasters did not have high hopes for her but she's proven her worth a dozen times over. Smarter than they were I'd say."

It would not take an astute mind to combine backwoods assignments and a horse with poor expectations, even if disproven, to come to a conclusion about Mukai's standing within her family and from there to her drive to prove something.