The village was peaceful in the pale light after morning. Heimin went about their routines, and one could easily imagine that there were not a war being fought less than a day's travel from here, across open ground. Birds sang regardless, and what was one more war, if it did not come here? The two samurai sat on the grass beneath the tree. One of them was quite young, but the other looked to have seen his share of years. It was not age exactly, as much as his face showing the magnitude of his history in his eyes. He was alone, this one.

"So, Aramasu-san. Do they treat you well, in the Mantis' camp? I trust you are well, and learning?"

"Hai, ojisan. I have learned much from them. The Daimyo's army strikes like a blade in the hands of a master. He allows his enemies no respite, and no resource. He pursues nothing lightly, all things are vital."

"Good, good. I would ask that you take care to learn all that you can of his techniques. Believing the Mantis to be weak only because they are a new Clan would be a grave mistake. The tides of fortune turn again quickly, and the old falls away..

"Such was the fate of our Clan."

The young samurai looked nervous, uncertain of the propriety of his question. Finally, curiosity overcame care. "Ojisan. The other Clans say that the Emperor died on a Scorpion's blade. Is it true?" He suddenly regretted his courage. His flinch showed that he was prepared to suffer for it.

The expected punishment never came.

"Iie. I am not the only magistrate to think that he did not. The Kitsuki have a phrase: 'When Truth and Fact disagree, follow Fact to see where it leads.' We did not kill the Emperor, despite the Truth.

"Consider Fact. The Scorpion have gained nothing from the Emperor's death or disappearance. We have lost all. Only one man gained his power from the Emperor's demise." The magistrate looked at the boy expectantly.

"Um. The Regent?"

The magistrate almost laughed. "No, not the regent. He is a good man, but in truth I do not believe that he would be strong enough for such a bold move. No, he is not even strong enough to rule. The Empire sits before him, and he asks another to rule through him.

"Do you remember what I told you about masks?"

The change of subject did not startle the boy. He adapted well. His time with the Mantis had been far from wasted. He learned. "Yes, I remember. The Regent is a Mask, then?" The boy was bright.

The magistrate sipped his tea. "Hai. I believe so. Only one man gained all that he desired. He rules with the word of the Emperor. His enemies have all been banished for his crime. Hai. That is what I think. It is not the Truth, but it is where Fact leads."

Silence shrouded the yard. It was interrupted only when the inkeeper apologetically splashed the bucket in the well, for the bath-water. The air warmed slowly to the day's full caress, and the dew misted up into the air. Somewhere nearby, a cricket sang, feeling safe where it hid. Unseen.

"How can he, then, be stopped?" the young man asked.

The magistrate looked to the sky, one hand shading his eyes. He looked to the East.

"When the Mantis visit the Capital, then we shall know. Only then." The magistrate continued to stare into the eastern sky long after the young samurai had collected his swords, and departed.

When the inkeeper became nervous, the magistrate paid for the tea, and for a room. When night settled about the Lion Provinces, he was still beneath the cherry tree, watching the sky.