Chapter 17
A large group was standing just outside of the Oshan headquarters. At the head of the group, flanked on either side by very dangerous looking red samurai, was a tall man wearing a red kimono with yellow stars. On his head was a black leather jingasa. A few Ashigaru popped up from behind the wall and aimed their muskets at the group.
“What are you doing here, Takodin scum? Was Takeshi too cowardly to meet with the boss personally?”
The man at the front chuckled a bit before responding.
“I am here not on behalf of the Takodin, but of my own clan, the Kamado! I am Kamado Yamashi!”
The Ashigaru who spoke looked at the man the next to him nervously.
“And why are you here? You wear the colors of the Takodin!”
Yamashi showfully brushed his kimono.
“What, this old thing? Think of it as a memento from a time soon to pass!”
“What the fuck is that supposed to mean?”
“That is none of your concern, doorman! Let me through so that I may negotiate with Saito!”
The Ashigaru briefly considered firing at Yamashi before leaving his post to ask Saito what to do.
Despite the Ashigaru’s hurry he kneeled at the sliding door, opened it, and quickly crawled inside and closed the door while still on his knees, as was tradition of low level members of a samurai clan. Saito was already very serious about turning his Yakuza clan into Bushi.
“Boss! One of Takeshi’s allies is here! He says he wants to negotiate with you!”
Saito stopped what he was saying to the Baron mid sentence.
“And you wi…eh? Who wants to do what?”
“He said his name was Kamado Yamashi!”
Saito’s eyes narrowed.
“Why would a Takodin ally want to negotiate with me? Maybe a changing of allegiance? Send him in! But tell him he may only bring three men with him.”
The Ashigaru nodded and quickly left the room. Satio took a sip of his sake.
“What are your thoughts, Baron?”
The Baron scruffed his chin in thought.
“Well…he’s probably lost faith in the Takodin. Or found new faith in you. Shame that I'm a large part of it, I worry about what becomes of you when I leave.”
Saito chuckled slightly.
“I wouldn’t say you’re a large part, more an important piece, like the queen of a chess set, to put it in Imperial terms. Raijin or Chinmoku could have killed those lieutenants, but since we had you they could focus their efforts on something else. Do not take that as downplaying your accomplishments, what you did has allowed us to reach the position we are in now.”
The Baron sipped his sake and smiled.
“Good that you noticed that. If you can’t run things without an outsider you’re doomed.”
Saito nodded his head in agreement.
“Yes, not only do we not require you, we don’t require the help from the mainland either. I wonder if they have noticed that?”
“If they haven’t by now, they deserve what’s coming to them.”
The sliding doors opened, revealing Kamado Yamashi flanked by two ronin. Behind him was a small child, most likely around ten years old.
“I am Kamado Yamashi. I have brought with me my young son so he may learn the ways of the underworld. Please, pretend he is not here.”
Saito waved his hand dismissively.
“He shall blend into the background like hints of fruit in tea. Now, take a seat and tell me what you want.”
Yamashi bowed slightly in thanks and took a seat across from Saito.
“I take it this is the Empiresman you have used to murder my allies? Wait…are you the Baron?”
The Baron smiled and framed his face with his hands.
“Oh my! Is my likeness well known ever here? Tell me, what have you heard about me?”
Saito waved his hand again.
“No, don’t do that. We have business to discuss.”
Yamashi nodded.
“Yes, of course. Let me get right to the chase. I wish to betray the Takodin and throw my lot in with you.”
Saito took a moment to think.
“Well, I like the enthusiasm. What exactly do you bring to the table? And what do you want in exchange for your betrayal?”
Yamashi chuckled under his breath.
“What do I bring? I can bring you Takeshi on a silver platter! And as for what I want, it is quite simple really. I wish to become part of the Oshan, and to handle your entire drug trade.”
The room was silent for a few seconds as Saito tried to figure out what Yamashi’s angle was.
“You…want to be absorbed by my clan? And you want to be the sole proprietor of my drug trade? Am I understanding this correctly?”
Yamshi nodded.
“Yes. I do believe I was very clear. I wish for my clan to be absorbed into yours so that we may share in your prosperity. And I would like to handle your drug trade so that you can focus on other things.”
Saito raised an eyebrow.
“Other things? Do you mean what I think you mean?”
“Independence for Dokotsu-cho, yes. And your emergence as a real samurai clan.”
“And why do you want this?”
Yamashi shrugged.
“Why not? We already receive little to no assistance from the mainland. Why not go independent? We could become even more prosperous if we stop sending tribute and allow ourselves to properly trade on a wide scale with the outside world, and you seem to be posturing yourselves as a proper clan for quite some time now, anyway, unlike the Takodin.”
The Baron nodded his head.
“Yes, I have found that state supported trade is quite lucrative. And I’m sure that Bickenstadt would quite enjoy the goods you have to offer. All I ask is that you keep the drugs to a minimum, don’t traffic them, just deal with our rather reasonable regulations.”
Yamashi smiled brightly.
“See? If a statesman such as he sees the wisdom in my logic, surely you do as well?”
“Yes, of course. I have entertained the notion of independence before.”
The Baron spoke up.
“As my son once said, ‘powerful men do not simply entertain the notion of anything’. I say you go for it, though I will not be there to help you.”
Saito bit his thumbnail in thought.
“Well…what exactly can you do to give me, Takeshi? And how much of his holdings do you wish for yourself?”
“All I ask for are his drug holdings, and possibly his headquarters to operate out of. As for how to deliver him to you, I have an in person meeting scheduled with him in a couple of days. He wants to ascertain the nature of my loyalty towards him, as I lead his drug operations. Him and his sons should be at my headquarters, and during our meeting you can swoop in and kill or capture him, I have no real preference.”
Saito downed the rest of his sake.
“I would be glad to work with you! I grant every request you have made so far! You will become my drug lord and I will become shogun of Dokotsu-cho!”
Yamashi shot up from his seat, as did Saito, and they both walked towards each other and bowed deeply, Yamashi deeper than Saito to show deference.
“Takeshi and his sons are due at my compound at noon in three days. Your men have unrestricted access to my headquarters, all I ask is that you remain unseen until Takeshi is dealt with.”
“You won’t even know we are there!”
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The Baron, alongside Raijin, Chinmoku, and a few shinobi, were sitting in the rafters of the Kamado headquarters meeting room.
As the sliding door opened, in came a large group of men. At the head was Takeshi Takodin, wearing a red kimono with yellow ukiyo-e style fire decals covering it. Besides him were his two sons, Kazuo and Kenichi. Kazuo wore elaborate red samurai armor. The same fire decals which covered his father’s kimono were present on Kazuo’s armor. On his helmet was a golden sculpture of a plume of flame. Kenichi wore a red jinbei with, again, the same ukiyo-e fire decals covering it.
Alongside them were six ronin wearing undecorated red armor. At the waist of each man in the room was a katana. The group took a seat and the Oshan’s operators got in place above each man, katana and tanto with nervous yet resolute grips. Takeshi spoke, his voice was deep and gruff.
“Yamashi, I hope we can skip the pleasantries. I have come here to request a new oath of allegiance.”
“Of course you’re here for this, I imagine the Oshan has you feeling rather nervous as of late. Tell me, how many lieutenants do you have left? Two? Three?”
Takeshi shot up and drew his katana.
“Swear fealty to me or die!”
Yamashi smiled smugly.
“No, I don’t think I will.”
He snapped his fingers and the Oshan agents dropped.
Chinmoku dropped on Kenichi, their katana piercing the top of the man’s head, killing him instantly.
Raijin dropped on Kazuo, his nodachi getting deflected off Kazuo’s helmet and only leaving a shallow cut over his shoulder, Kazuo quickly reaching up and tossing off Raijin.
The Baron dropped on Takeshi, getting parried as Takeshi noticed him at the last second, grabbing and throwing him aside, the Baron crashing through the paper wall before rolling back up to his feet. Three of the six ronin were dropped by the Oshan shinobi, the rest throwing them off easily.
Takeshi pointed his katana at Yamashi.
“How dare you!”
Just as he raised his katana the Baron burst through a different paper wall and slammed into Takeshi, tackling him to the ground.
They both wrestled to get on top of the other, landing quick jabs to each other's ribs all the while. The Baron finally got on top and delivered a devastating elbow to Takeshi’s clavicle. Takeshi roared with rage and managed to throw the Baron off, scrambling to his katana and swinging it wildly in front of him to dissuade the Baron from tackling again.
Chinmoku withdrew their katana from the late Takodin heir and turned their attention to a ronin just as he cut down one of the lightly armored shinobi. They exchanged blows, blocking, parrying, and attacking back with blinding speed. These ronin were most likely all gifted ones, seeing as they were holding their own despite being ambushed.
The ronin swiped at Chinmoku’s head and hit nothing but air as Chinmoku dropped and quickly rose again, thrusting their katana up through the bottom of the ronin’s jaw and lifting his helmet with the tip..
Raijin raised his leg and blurred forward, hitting Kazuo with the full force of his ability enhanced kick, sending him flying through a paper wall, which the room was quickly running out of. He jumped forward and thrust at the prone man, who rolled to the side and stumbled to his feet as Raijin’s blade stuck in the wood floor of the hallway.
Raijin unstuck his nodachi and swung it in a wide horizontal arc, burring forward. His nodachi was stopped in its tracks by Kazuo's sword, biting into the edge as the force of his blow was absorbed by the katana’s blade itself.
The Baron retrieved his katana and rushed at Takeshi, slashing down at him. Takeshi parried the strike and kicked the Baron in the stomach, using the Baron’s momentum to add extra force to his roundhouse. The Baron grunted as he absorbed the blow and returned with a left hook to Takeshi’s face, knocking him back.
Takodin swiped at the Baron, who dodged back and dashed forward, hitting him with his favorite attack: the flying knee. Takeshi stumbled back and tripped over an overturned chair, landing hard on his back. The Baron delivered a flurry of slashes and thrusts down at Takeshi, who barely managed to block and parry each strike. The Baron reeled back for another strike and Takeshi kicked him in the chest, knocking the Baron back and giving himself time to scramble to his feet.
A ronin sidestepped a strike and slashed his katana through the shinobi’s exposed stomach. He turned and redirected another strike, tripping and disarming the shinobi as he ran past. The shinobi tripped and as he skidded to a stop the ronin javelined the man’s sword into his chest, killing him instantly.
Chinmoku kicked the ankle of the ronin who just killed another two of Raijin’s men, knocking him flat on his back. They quickly stomped his wrist and thrust their katana into his throat, twisting the blade and ripping it out and scanning the rest of the room.
There was one more ronin engaged with the last remaining shinobi, surrounded by the bodies of the rest of them. Chinmoku rushed forward and thrust their katana through the back of the ronin’s knee as he raised his katana. The shinobi quickly capitalized on this chance, thrusting his sword into the exposed throat of the screaming ronin.
Raijin ducked under the strike and came up swinging his nodachi. Kazuo parried the blow and swiftly dashed forward at Raijin, hoping to stay close and use the length of his nodachi against him. Raijin blocked a strike with his handle and parried another wild slash, pummeling Kazuo with the butt of his nodachi.
Raijin swept Kazuo and pushed his head down at the same time, slamming him face first into the wooden floor. Raijin raised his leg and slammed down on the back of Kazuo’s neck, breaking his spine.
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Not as skilled as his armor would suggest. Thought Raijin annoyedly.
The Baron batted aside a strike by Takeshi and jumped into him, grabbing his neck and putting him in a headlock. The Baron kneed his chest repeatedly, feeling his ribs crack under the unreal force of the Baron putting his whole body into an attack. The Baron tightened his hold on Takeshi’s neck, feeling his spine creak under the pressure. The Baron stomped Takeshi’s foot and pulled his head hard, ripping it off his neck. The Baron fell back, fully not expecting the head to come off, and let Takeshi’s head go flying through one of the last remaining paper walls.
After a few moments, Yamashi came back into the door, eyeing the carnage with displeasure.
“This is going to be an expensive fix.”
Raijin sauntered back into the room, Kazuo’s head in hand.
“Not you’re problem anymore, you’re gettin’ this guy’s stuff.”
He threw the head down on the now righted table. Chinmoku followed after with Kenichi’s head, and the Baron soon after with Takeshi’s. The Baron wiped the blood off his hands onto the red part of his landsknecht’s pants.
“Well, that was fun. I really ought to be getting home now. I’ve been gone for around two weeks now. My son is going to be furious.”
Raijin laughed.
“You’ve got responsibilities? You seem like you should be on the battlefield 24/7!”
The Baron nodded sagely.
“I agree.”
Chinmoku walked over to Raijin and spoke in sign language. For whatever reason, the Baron didn’t understand it.
“Right Chinmoku. We’ve still gotta take Takodin HQ. You coming, Baron?”
The Baron shook his head sadly.
“Unfortunately no. I really must be getting home. The festival is in just one week. I need to say my final words to Saito and leave.”
Raijin shook his head.
“Shame. Fightin’ alongside you is pretty fun. You fight different than our guys.”
The Baron waved over his shoulder as he left the room.
“Thanks.”
As the Baron was at the docks with Saito, he realized something he had forgotten to ask.
“Hey Saito, why did Shirahama go back on the deal? Do you know?”
Saito scratched the back of his head.
“You know, I wasn’t planning on telling you…but…you did a lot of work for me. Ok, I’ll tell you. Just promise not to freak out and cause property damage.”
“I give you my word. There will be no property damage done by me.”
“Ok, thank you. He was paid by your Empress to go back on your deal. And given essentially the same deal you gave him, but for Grossenstadt and Leibenstadt boats.”
The Baron froze, eyes wide.
“...what? The…the Empress?”
“Yes, I believe she is afraid of your power.”
The Baron clenched his jaw.
“She fucking ought to be! Saito! Give me a fucking boat! I’m going to the Elven Republic!”
“You’re what? You cant-”
“I can do whatever I bloody well want! Give me a boat or I renege on our deal! Now!”
Panic was written all over Saito’s face.
“Eh, eh, give me a second. I can’t just-”
The Baron stood over Saito, fullying menacing him.
“Boat. Now.”
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The Baron’s boat reached the docks of what the Wako told him was named Paris after a few hours of sailing. The crew was extremely nervous and wouldn’t allow the Baron to stand on the top deck until they docked. The Baron breathed in the air of Paris and noted that it felt less clean than Bickenstadt, to him a sure sign that they had industrialized more than he had.
The Baron waved goodbye to his borrowed crew and stepped out onto the docks. All around him were elves wearing clothes right out of the French revolution, with red liberty caps prominent on the heads of over half of the elves there. The buildings as well were reflective of French style buildings of the time as well, a lot of French gothic architecture and enlightenment era brick buildings.
He walked across the docks and began to move through the streets towards a large structure which he figured was the capital building. He ignored the mystified stares which bore into him from every angle, staring ahead single mindedly as he walked. All around him elves stopped what they were doing and pointed at him, talking loudly about it to anyone nearby. The guards too seemed to be too amazed by the Baron’s audacity to actually do anything but point and yell at their fellow guards.
The Baron saw a child selling newspapers on the street, back turned to him yelling about their price. He decided to figure out if the building he was heading towards was actually the capital building. He walked over and knelt down to be on the kid’s level, tapping his shoulder to get his attention. The Baron smiled his most disarming old man smile and spoke in perfect Elfiqué.
“Hello there young man! Would you be so kind as to point me in the direction of your capital building?”
The child’s eyes widened and after a few seconds he tepidly pointed towards the building the Baron was already heading towards. The Baron handed the child a few Reiksgeld and took a paper, scanning over it briefly as he continued on his way.
“Hmmm, it seems like they’re at a stalemate with some royal holdouts and have a tepid ceasefire with some 'weird cult'. Good to know they have other enemies. Makes them less likely to attack us.”
As the Baron continued towards the capitol building someone finally walked up to him. They wore a Napoleonic era soldier’s uniform, exactly the same as those he had seen in museums in the other world. He pointed his musket at the Baron, bayonet just inches from his neck. The Baron noted with interest that the bayonet was attached to the side of the gun instead of being plugged into the barrel, which seemed to further unsettle the man. The soldier spoke nervously.
“Y-you! What are you doing ‘ere?”
The Baron again flashed his most disarming smile.
“I am here to negotiate with the elves.”
The soldier cocked the hammer back on his musket.
“What do you mean ‘negotiate’?”
A few other soldiers moved over and pointed their muskets at the Baron. The Baron raised his hands in surrender. He noted that the muskets had no flashpan, instead having what looked like a small knob where it would have been.
“I wish to speak with your leader. Or, more accurately, leaders? You have a democracy, yes?”
The soldiers all looked at each other. They all cocked back their hammers. The one first soldier to come over gestured towards the capital building with his musket.
“Go on then. You are under arrest, I am sure Napoleon will want to meet with you in person.”
Napoleon?
The Baron nodded and began to walk again, hands still raised in surrender.
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The Baron sat in a large cell filled with elven criminals. They all stared at him warily from the other side of the cell. The Baron sat with his back against the wall, staring at the ceiling. He had been there for thirty minutes and was already beginning to lose his mind. His leg bounced frantically and he fiddled with his clothes incessantly.
“They took my stuff. I know I’m a prisoner but still, I want my stuff back! Even my powderhorn emptied would provide something I could mess with.”
Finally, a guard approached the cell and yelled for the Baron to get up. He did as was asked quickly and tried to resist running to the cell door, instead walking over calmly. The guard tied the Baron’s hands behind his back.
He led the Baron to an office and knocked three times.
“Sir, I ‘ave brought the man you requested.”
From inside the office a man yelled.
“Send ‘im in.”
The guard opened the door and pushed the Baron inside. At either side of the door was an elf wearing the same uniform as the soldier, except they wore a simple beveled cuirass. At the desk was an elf writing something with a peacock feather quill, and next to that was a plate with some dish, chicken in some sort of white sauce was the Baron’s best guess.
He wore a green double breasted half-coat, lapels pointed, with green lining, as well as red collars and cuffs over a white collared shirt. The coat had facings ornamented with hunting-horns embroidered in gold, and twelve hussar buttons bearing a crestless eagle.
On his legs were white breeches tucked into small black shoes, and sitting on his desk was his bicorn with a red, white, and blue cockade pinned to it. His hair was short and black, and his ears ended in a sharp point. His eyes were graying-blue and discerning, and his ethereally beautiful face was clean shaven and perfect. On his head was a bicorn with a red, blue, and gold cloth flower pinned to the left side. His face looked like the paintings of Napoleon Bonaparté the Baron had seen in his previous world, minus the pointed ears.
The man at the desk set his quill down and gestured for the Baron to take a seat. The Baron gestured with his hands to emphasize the fact that he was tied up. The man at the desk pointed at one of the guards at the door.
“Cut the restraints.”
The guard took a knife out of his boot and cut the restraints without hesitation. The Baron felt his wrists and took a seat.
“Thank you very much. My arms were getting tired.”
“It is of no consequence to me. I doubt you could kill me under these circumstances, Baron.
The Baron nodded his head appreciatively.
“You’ve heard of me. I’m touched.”
“Of course I’ve ‘eard of you. An Empiresman working with an elf. ‘Ow scandalous you must be!”
“I prefer to think of myself as a trend setter.”
“Sure, if it 'elps you sleep at night. ‘Ow is Jean by the way? ‘E is the one you ‘ave ‘ired, no?”
“And you know about Jean. Is he a spy? I have been wondering for quite some time.”
The man waved his hand dismissively.
“Mais non, ‘e is just an excentrique. I try to track 'im, make sure 'es alive-from an important family you see. I imagine you are treating ‘im well?”
“Yes, quite. He is in charge of all infrastructure in Bickenstadt, and he is doing an excellent job, might I add.”
The man nodded.
“Oui, ‘e is quite talented. Oh my, ‘ow rude of me, I ‘ave yet to introduce myself. I am Napoleon Bonaparte, reincarnated into an elven body.”
Holy shit it really is that Napoleon!
“Napoleon Bonaparte, I have heard of you. You terrorized Europe for years, there is a whole era named after you in the other world.”
“Oui, I am aware. I am quite proud of my work. So, you ‘ave studied the other world?”
“Oh yes, quite extensively. There is much to learn from the otherworlders.”
“Yes, well, I believe you to be an otherworlder.”
The Baron barely didn’t let his surprise show, instead tilting his head to the side and looking confused.
“And why do you believe that?”
Napoleon leaned forward in his chair.
“Because you ‘ave not ‘ad enough time to learn Elfiqué so flawlessly since you ‘ired Jean. The gift of language is not given to those who are not reincarnated in some form or another, though that knowledge is rare so it makes sense you would not be aware. You may not even remember your past life, it seems to work like that at times.”
“Oh? And who told you that?”
“The Seekers. They came and told me of my abilities.”
“Yes, but if I am truly a reincarnation, then I would have been seeked by now, wouldn’t I?”
Napoleon scoffed.
“It took them two 'undred years to seek me out. They work very slowly.”
The Baron nodded.
“Fair enough. What would it mean to you if I were indeed a reincarnation?”
“Not much. I wouldn’t worry about it, pure curiosity. Now, let us get to business, why are you ‘ere?”
The Baron started bouncing his leg. He hoped Napoleon didn’t read too much into that, it was just a thing he had to do sometimes.
“I have come to seek your assistance. I plan to rebel against the Empire and crush it entirely.”
Napoleon took a moment to take in that information.
“You know, my men will be wary of working alongside ‘umans.”
“Even if they are working with us to destroy a large bastion of nonhuman racism?”
“Well, they will do what I ask of them. You need not convince me, I am willing to provide aid, though it will be small.”
“Already? Thank God.”
“Well, I can ‘ardly ignore an opportunity to destroy an ‘ated enemy. Comme le dit le vieil adage ‘L'ennemi de mon ennemi est mon ami’.”
“Fair enough. You know, to be honest, I came here in a flash of anger. The Empress paid some pirates to attack Bickenstadt.”
Napoleon put a hand to his chest in mock concern.
“Was there any damage done to your beautiful lands?”
“No, I handled it. So, what would you be willing to offer?”
Napoleon thought for a moment.
“Well, off the top of my ‘ead, I can offer you better firearm and cannon technology. I only offer you blueprints and per’aps someone to teach your men ‘ow to produce it. I could possibly send some drill instructors to teach you my style of warfare, and maybe offer up a few companies to fight alongside you, though that is less likely.”
The Baron whistled.
“My, my! How generous! I will accept anything I can get! I would be very interested in learning about your style of warfare, and gaining your technology. I noticed your muskets have bayonets attached to the side of the barrel, how genius! I can’t believe we hadn’t thought of that before.”
Napoleon nodded sagely.
“Oui, it makes your men much more effective in all forms of combat.”
Napoleon grabbed two papers off to the side of his desk and skimmed them as he spoke.
“I can maybe spare a drill instructor or two right now, but any amount of soldiers will ‘ave to wait. If you want blueprints for our weapons…I will allow you to buy them at normal price. For our muskets it would be…around 2,000 Francs, eh, let’s say, 3,500 Reiskgeld? And the cannons would be twice that.”
The Baron nodded his head appreciatively.
“I can pay that. Not now obviously, but I will definitely be buying those.”
“Excellent! Then is there anything else you can think of? Per’aps some novel way to communicate over long distance?”
“I have no such thing, unfortunately. Sending Stones are the exclusive property of the Imperial family. I’ll just send some ‘independent agents’ to send messages back and forth. And as soon as I get back to Bickenstadt I’ll send one over with my payment, just make sure they don’t get shot at, ok?”
“But of course, I’ll give an order to stop shelling any nearby Imperial vessels, at least those with your flag. It’s not like any other Empiresman would try to come here anyways. They know better by now. Oh, but any found around the coast will still be sunk. Your people have acted rather barbarically to us.”
“Yes, I’d expect nothing less. You know, some great merchant families have had sons killed by your men? They tried to force you to open trade and got obliterated at sea. Probably assumed you were savages with bows and arrows or something. They always ask me to do something about it, and I always tell them ‘oh yes of course’ but as I’m sure you’ve noticed, I do nothing about it. They deserved it for being arrogant and racist.”
Napoleon chuckled.
“Well, as much as there is to be gained talking to each other, you should probably get going, no? Do not want your Empress to get suspicious.”
The Baron pushed on his knees to stand up, like an old man.
“Yup. It’s about time I get going. If my crew left me here, do you think you could escort me home? Or I suppose to Dokotsu-cho?”
Napoleon gestured towards his guard, who opened the door as soon as Napoleon moved his hand.
“Of course. Just tell Captaine de Port that I said to assist you. If he doesn’t believe you, well, just tell him to ignore my orders and find out later if they were true.”