| Please note: This article is about the Crab Clan Champion. For other uses of the term, please see Reiha (disambiguation). |
| Hida Reiha | |
|---|---|
| |
| Born: | Unknown |
| Died: | Unknown |
| Siblings: | Hida Benjiro |
| Spouse: | Hida Kuon |
| Children: | Hida Kisada, Hida Ren |
| Titles: | Crab Clan Champion |
| People | |
Hida Reiha of House Kakeguchi was an officer and advisor for Crab Clan Champion Hida Kuroda, and then for Hida Kuon. She eventually married Kuon, and the couple had two children: Hida Kisada and Hida Ren. Reiha became the Crab Champion in 1171, following the death of Kuon, and she became to be known as the Jade Widow. She would hold the position until her eldest son, now Hida Kisada, was old enough to assume the position.
Childhood[]
Born to the Kakeguchi family, Reiha had grown up serving the Hida family. She was the niece to the Kakeguchi Daimyo and was trained at Sunda Mizu Dojo. It was traditional for at least one Kakeguchi child each generation to be raised with the Hida daimyo's heirs, and she was invited to live with the Crab Champion's household, alongside Hida Kuroda and Hida Kuon. [1]
Appearance and Demeanor[]
Reiha was intelligent, insightful, and diplomatic, able to see all sides of a situation. Her prowess on the battlefield and beauty was unquestionable. [1]
Military Service[]
Reiha was a student of Toritaka Tatsune. [2] Her sensei recommended her for a position on the Kaiu Wall under Kuroda's command, which she eagerly accepted. Reiha undertook raiding parties into the Shadowlands and was ever vigilant upon the wall. She performed exceptionally and was promoted to be Kuroda's second-in-command. [1]
Advisor of Crab Clan Champions[]
Hida Reiha
Hida Kuroda[]
In 1159, when Hida O-Ushi was killed [3] and Kuroda became the Crab Champion, she served as one of his military advisors. She saw that while Kuroda was overcome with grief, Kuon was as unmoved as stone. She confronted him privately, and found him grieving alone. He was being strong for his brother. She apologized to Kuon and spoke of it to no one. [4]
Reiha was shattered when Kuroda fought Kyofu under the wall and collapsed the Kaiu tunnel upon them both. It was Reiha who took the shards of Yuruginai to the Kaiu forge and she brought the news of Kuroda's death to Kuon. She continued as a advisor to Kuon. [5] She returned to Sunda Mizu, hurling herself into more rigorous training so that she would be prepared to fight at Kuon's side when the Wall was retaken. [6]
Kuon's Advisor[]
Kuon was an expert warrior, but sometimes the subtleties of politics and human nature escaped him. He called Reiha to serve him as one of his advisors. Kuon was greatly impressed by Reiha's temper, similar than of Kuon's mother, during hot discussions about how to retake the fallen towers of the Wall. [2]
In 1160 she introduced within Kyuden Hida an Imperial delegation formed by Miya Hatori and his aides Otomo Taneji and Fuzake Sekkou, who had arranged a meeting with Kuon. [7]
After a crushing defeat in retaking the fallen Kaiu Towers, Kuon retreated from his advisors in frustration and refused to speak to anyone. Reiha disobeyed his orders, confronted him and insisted that he persevere. Kuon took her admonition to heart, and the samurai-ko was never far from his side since. [8]
Shinsei's Last Hope[]
Reiha, was among Kuon's advisors present in Kaiu Shiro in 1160, when it was learned that there would be an imminent attack on Shinsei's Last Hope. Kuon ordered his advisors to send reinforcements in the hopes that Yasuki Hachi and his two hundred men would buy them enough time to reach the village. [9]
Kaede's Return[]
In 1160 the Empress and Oracle of Void, Toturi Kaede had returned to the Mortal Realm at Kyuden Seppun. She commanded the Four Winds to gather at the city, and sent them to defeat Daigotsu and destroy the City of the Lost, along with its Temple of the Ninth Kami, the channel of the Shadowlands worship to Fu Leng. Reiha was present as one of the most prominent and powerful samurai in the Empire when the Winds were gathered and prepared the Four Winds March. [10] After the return of the remaining Winds a new Emperor was procalimed, Toturi III. [11]
Married[]
Reiha had accepted the private offer Kuon made to marry her once the Wall was secure and a new Emperor had been proclaimed, [4] so they married [12] and together they had two children, Ichiro in 1161, and Hida Ren in 1165. [13]
Kisada's Return[]
In 1166 Reiha met Kisada at Kyuden Hida, after the Great Bear returned to Ningen-do through Oblivion's Gate. [14] Reiha gifted the grandfather of her husband with a horse, Koman. [15]
Ambassador of the Empire to the Shadowlands[]
In 1168 Mirumoto Taishuu traveled to Crab lands to meet Kuon, and asked for permission to travel into the Shadowlands to become the ambassador to the City of the Lost, as Togashi Satsu had ordered him. He explained that the Mirumoto Daimyo, Mirumoto Rosanjin, had authorized him to offer Kuon the release of their hostage, Kaiu Sumata, and that Kuon could still retain custody of the Dragon hostage. Kuon remained reluctant, so Taishuu added that Rosanjin promised no Dragon would fight the Crab for the Scorpion Clan in the Crab-Scorpion War for any reason. Reiha lobbied to her husband to permit the intervention of another emissary, Moto Akikazu, a Unicorn Death Priest. Akikazu told Kuon that he would watch over Taishuu in the Shadowlands. With that promise, Kuon relented. He offered a full chest of jade in recognition of the honor given to the Unicorn when Kuon sent his son, Ichiro, to be trained amongst them. [16]
Kyofu rejoined the Crab[]
An oni attack to the Wall put the life of Reiha's son, Ichiro, at risk. Kyofu arrived on time to save his life. Kyofu no longer looked like the Onisu; he was handsome, though his flesh was strangely discolored. He was taken prisoner and requested an audience with Kuon. Kyofu asked to be given command of the Damned so that he could lead a force against the oni. After his intentions were verified by Omen, the Oracle of Jade, Kyofu would command the tainted Crab in what became known as Kyofu's Last March. Kyofu was given Kettei to wield in the battles. Kuni Daigo pledged to bring the sword back to the Crab upon Kuroda's death. [17] Kuroda was killed by Kyoso no Oni in the Battle at the Wall of Bones. [18]
Kuon's view on Kurako[]
Toritaka Tatsune sent word from Winter Court at Kyuden Otomo that the Empress Toturi Kurako had appointed Bayushi Norachai as Protector of the Imperial City. Norachai requested from the Great Clans that two thousand warriors be sent to defend the capital. Kuon refused to weaken the Kaiu Wall. He assumed that the Scorpion were manipulating the Empress somehow. Kuon could not believe that the Emperor thought her worthy of the Imperial Throne. If a worthy man with the strength to hold the Empire together were to sit on the Steel Throne, Kuon would pledge his legions to follow him. [19]
Kyofu's Death[]
Kuon was told by the three only survivors of the Kyofu's Last March, Kuni Daigo, Hida Kengo, and Hida Fubatsu, about the death of Kyofu fighting Kyoso no Oni. After the demons were defeated at the Wall of Bones, they turned to the Lost, but they had been disappeared. The City of the Lost was also found abandoned. Kettei was brought back to the Crab. [20]
Winter Court invitation refused[]
Reiha refused the invitation the Otomo made to attend Winter Court at Kyuden Otomo, as it was happening during the Third Yasuki War, in which the Otomo and Crane were allies. She received a present from the Crane Clan Champion, Doji Domotai: a box full of the kimono with the proper fashion during this year, a fashion dating back to the times of Hantei X. Kuon was angry with the news of the Battle of Cherry Blossom Snow Village and as such ordered the clothes to be burned. [21]
Winter Court - 1169[]
During winter court at Kyuden Hida, Kuon appointed Hida Sozen as the Crab candidate for Emperor. His connections with the Dragon Clan could bring support from other quarters and there were many that claimed he had gained enlightenment. Kisada disagreed that Sozen was the best option, but Kuon kept his decision unchanged; despite this, he maintained support for Kisada's option to the Throne. [22]
Investigating the Spider[]
Reiha became a trusted confidant of her husband, and he would seek her advice about a variety of topics. When in 1170 rumors of the Spider Clan started surfacing, he consulted with her to figure out who should lead the investigations. Reiha suggested Toritaka Kaiketsu. Kuon initially dismissed the idea because of Kaiketsu's youth, but Reiha wisely pointed out that everyone needs their first chance to prove themselves. [23]
Kisada's death[]
News arrived about an inciden at Koten: [23] Kisada was dead. [24] It exacerbated the Third Yasuki War, as the Crab blamed the Crane for his murder. [25]
End of the Third Yasuki War[]
At the beginning of winter, the leaders of the Crab met to discuss the progress of the war. Hida Otoya claimed that their forces would be able to push the Crane out of the province by spring, but Yasuki Jinn-Kuen said that the Crab's supplies would last no more than a month, due to the Crane's economic sanctions and the high cost of maintaining the Wall. Otoya suggested they deploy the Damned, but Kuon was outraged by the notion. Left with no other options, Kuon sent Jinn-Kuen to ask Domotai for terms. He returned with the terms of the Crab surrender, betrothed to a Crane, and as Yasuki Daimyo. The Yasuki lands were his bride's dowry. [26]
War of Dark Fire[]
In 1171 the Battle of Dragon Heart Plain ended the War of Dark Fire. [27] Shortly after an unusual spectacle was reported: demons, goblins, and ogres were approaching the Kaiu Wall, fleeing from an unknown foe deep in the Shadowlands. [28]
Destroyer War[]
After a relentless oni attack lasting weeks, the Destroyer's Horde arrived, overwhelming the exhausted samurai and breaching the wall, and letting hordes of Destroyers pour into Rokugan. Kuon was wounded in a personal duel against the leader of the gaijin demons, the Rakshasa General. It was the start of the Destroyer War. Reiha was moved away from Kyuden Hida. [29]
Ichiro's Gempukku[]
Ichiro, a prodigy with the blade, underwent his gempukku in the spring of 1171, a full year ahead of his contemporaries despite being small for his age. He took the name of his great-grandfather Hida Kisada, and had since served alongside warriors older, larger and stronger than him. [30]
Kuon's Death: Becoming Crab Clan Champion[]
In 1171, following the fall of the Kaiu Kabe to the forces of the Destroyer, Hida Kuon was made to answer for the failings of the Crab Clan by Empress Iweko I. Kuon offered to seppuku to cleanse the shame from the Crab, and his request was accepted. He was however allowed to die a Crab's death, leading a hundred volunteers in an attack on an occupied section of the Carpenter Wall. Kuon passed leadership of the Crab Clan to his wife Reiha, until such a time as Kisada would be old enough to assume leadership, and marched upon the wall. Reports returned to the Imperial City of Kuon's valiant stand and death on the 17th day of the Month of the Rooster. [30] She was called the Jade Widow, [31] and a tale was made telling her history. [32]
Kyuden Hida under attack[]
Following Kuon's death, the Destroyers answered by pressing forth with renewed vigor. Kyuden Hida was defended by the Lion Clan, under the command of the Lion Clan Champion Akodo Shigetoshi and the high ranking general Ikoma Kosaku. The Destroyers attacked the palace in a wedge formation and it was crushed by the combined Rokugani force. Another force arrived Shiro Kuni and besieged it. [33]
Winter Court - 1171[]
Reiha and her youngest son Hida Ren departed to the Islands of Spice and Silk to attend winter court at Kyuden Gotei. In such way, the new Crab Champion and her child were in a safe place during the Destroyer invasion. Her elder son Hida Kisada remained with his uncle Benjiro. The Imperial Treasurer Yoritomo Utemaro met her and told all Imperial stipends currently received by the Crab would be doubled, on account of the difficulties they were having. [34]
Hunting the Daughter[]
The Empress tasked the Crab with the hunt of the Ebon Daughter, who she believed was solely responsible for the plague. The Empress wished her brought to justice, to be executed before the Imperial Court for her criminal acts. [34]
Imperial Proclamation[]
The Empress proclaimed that she was suspending the edict demanding the immediate execution of Daigotsu, and demanded that he be brought before her. [35]
Imperial Wedding[]
Reiha was present with her son Ren in the Imperial wedding between the Empress and Akodo Setai at the Temple of Jade Sun. [31]
Kali-Ma[]
The Empress used the Mantis Kshatriya, Yoritomo Singh and Arjuna Singh, to learn of the Ivory Kingdoms, and their connection to Kali-Ma, during the Destroyer War. They had to travel to Toshi Ranbo, and remain at her disposal. The Emerald Champion Shosuro Jimen saw it as too high a risk to the Empress' honor to have contact with gaijin, so he tried to bar their movements. Yoritomo Utemaro circumvented the Emerald Champion's operative by sailing onboard a Crab ship alongside with Reiha and Moshi Kekiesu. Reiha gave this aid to the Imperial Treasurer to have Utemaro's favor. [36]
Empress' audience: renewed Charters[]
In 1172 Reiha attended the Empress' audience, where the Great Clans were given new Imperial Charters. The Crab would continue to stand against the Destroyers, but not alone. Lion and Unicorn Clan would join the Crab on holding back the forces of the Shadowlands and of Jigoku. [37] Despite the combined efforts of the Three Armies the Crab lost all their territory against the relentless Destroyer attack. [32]
Spider Clan[]
Spider began to appear in the field confronting the Destroyers. Reiha allowed them to fight side to side with the Crab if they were not alongside tainted creatures. [38]
End of the Destroyer War[]
In 1173 Daigotsu, Shahai, Susumu, Fu Leng, and Kali-Ma had died. The drawback was that Daigotsu had returned in a phantom form, as the Master of Jigoku. The Empress proclaimed the end of the Destroyer War with the victory of the Empire. Crab and Scorpion had to rebuild their lands, and to defend the Empire against the Second Festering Pit, created after the death of the goddess Kali-Ma. The Spider Clan had been conferred the status of Great Clan. Those free of Taint could remain in the Empire, and the Tainted were put under guard of the Dragon Clan, and ordered to extend the Empire into the Ivory Kingdoms, as Iweko's Conquerors, alongside the Mantis Clan. As a part of the agreement with Daigotsu, the Taint would be withheld from the humans and the Rokugani would be spared the Taint forever. [39] Reiha despised the Empress' edict about the Spider. [40]
Scorpion Wall[]
Shortly after the end of the war, the Scorpion Clan Champion Bayushi Miyako visited Reiha. Miyako managed to secure the aid of the Crab in the construction of the Scorpion Wall, to defend the Empire of the demons which emerged from the Second Festering Pit. In return, the Kuroiban gave the Crab full cooperation and the uninhibited sharing of information in matters relating to the Taint or maho. [41] This formal alliance over the management and security of the Second Pit was known as the Treaty of Odashi. [42] The Kaiu Daimyo Kaiu Iemasa built the Scorpion Wall, and standing Crab forces were stationed there. In 1175 she ordered that Hida Demopen would be appointed there, to command the forces that would guard the builders. He later became the commander of a section of the wall. The Crab duty had been extended to a second wall and they did not falter. [43]
Little Bear[]
Her son Hida Kisada, known as the Little Bear, became the Crab Champion. [44]
See also[]
External Links[]
- Hida Reiha (A Perfect Cut)
- Hida Reiha Exp (Broken Blades)
| Preceded by: Hida Kuon |
Crab Clan Champion 1171 - ? |
Succeeded by: Hida Kisada |
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Secrets of the Crab, p. 21
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Honor in War (Season of the Crab)
- ↑ Four Winds, p. 32
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Secrets of the Crab, p. 22
- ↑ The Truest Test, by Shawn Carman
- ↑ Way of the Samurai, p. 17
- ↑ Secrets of the Crab, pp. 13-14
- ↑ Brotherhood, by Rich Wulf
- ↑ Shinsei's Last Hope, Part III
- ↑ Fight For Tomorrow, Part IX
- ↑ A New Emperor, by Rich Wulf
- ↑ Blood Dawn, Part II: Son of Stone, by Shawn Carman and Rich Wulf
- ↑ Penance, Part One, by Rich Wulf
- ↑ Persistence, by Rich Wulf
- ↑ Enemy of my Enemy, Part Three, by Rich Wulf
- ↑ Soul of Darkness, Part 1, by Shawn Carman
- ↑ Souls of Steel, Part Two, by Brian Yoon
- ↑ Oaths, by Shawn Carman and Rusty Priske
- ↑ Armed and Ready (Imperial Herald v2#21), by Rusty Priske and Fred Wan
- ↑ Oaths, by Shawn Carman and Rusty Priske
- ↑ The Flowers, the Snow, by Nancy Sauer and Fred Wan
- ↑ To Defend the Empire (The Race for the Throne Book), by Rusty Priske
- ↑ 23.0 23.1 Words & Deeds, Part 1, by Shawn Carman
- ↑ Scenes from the Empire VI, by Brian Yoon
- ↑ Death at Koten, pp. 16-17
- ↑ Glory of the Empire, Part II, by Rusty Priske and Nancy Sauer
- ↑ The War of Dark Fire, Part 16, by Shawn Carman
- ↑ Oceans, by Lucas Twyman
- ↑ The Burning Wall, Part 2, by Shawn Carman
- ↑ 30.0 30.1 To All Things an End
- ↑ 31.0 31.1 The Imperial Wedding, by Rusty Priske
- ↑ 32.0 32.1 Hida Satoshi (The Plague War flavor)
- ↑ Logistics of Death, by Brian Yoon
- ↑ 34.0 34.1 A Season of Intrigue, by Shawn Carman
- ↑ The Proclamation, by Rusty Priske
- ↑ Scenes from the Empire, by Brian Yoon, Rusty Priske, and Shawn Carman
- ↑ Duty of the Clans, by Shawn Carman
- ↑ Never Enough Soldiers (Before the Dawn flavor)
- ↑ Goddesses, Part 4, by Shawn Carman
- ↑ Aftermath, Part 1, by Shawn Carman
- ↑ State of the Clans, Part 2, by Yoon Ha Lee
- ↑ Treaty, by Seth Mason
- ↑ The Life of the Warrior, by Brian Yoon
- ↑ Rulebook story (Forgotten Legacy), by Shawn Carman and Rusty Priske
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