#Episode 16: Those Who Crossed the Ages

The Spirit Realm gate does not call forth only yoma. At times it drops time itself, and even gods.
This episode is the story of three expanded classes — modern person, heroic spirit, and celestial — falling onto the same battlefield.

Session participants: Kuro(GM), Hana(PC — samurai 7th dan, observer and guide), Mei(PC — onmyoji 5th dan, observer and guide)
New NPCs (this episode's leads):
Takagi Sayaka — modern person 5th dan. Medical student. Emergency rescue specialist.
Karna — heroic spirit 5th dan. Called from a battlefield of Tenjiku. Sacred object: Vijaya(a bow of Tenjiku).
Uzuki — celestial 7th dan. A divinity who descended from the heavens to cut down yoma. Divine Authority remaining 3 uses.

#Scent -- Three Rifts

Onmyoji Seika's scouting talisman did not return. A valley north of Kagura Domain was never a place where yoma lived, but since last night the breath of the Spirit Realm had been flowing there. Masamune(samurai) led the first scouting party. Hana and Mei followed after him. When they reached the valley, the sky had been torn into three branches.

The first tear was blue light. Inside that light were things Hana had never seen. Houses like square boxes, iron barrels larger than people(automobiles?), and streets bright as day even though it was night. From within that light, a woman fell. She wore a white kosode — no, a white gown — but it was oddly short, and a silver cord(stethoscope) hung around her neck. Her hands were full of small tools shaped like scissors. Sprawled in the dirt, she looked around and shouted in words that sounded like Japanese and not Japanese at the same time. "Where am I? I was just in the ER..."

The second tear was red light. When the light vanished, the one who appeared was — human, yes. But the armor was strange. It was not Japanese in style. Tenjiku-style gold-leaf armor. Earrings set at his ears shone like the sun. Before him, a single bow was planted in the ground. Hana and Mei both stopped breathing the instant they saw it. That bow was — not of this world. Patterns engraved on it shone by themselves. The bow's owner opened his eyes and slowly rose. Battle stance. Then he looked around and fixed his gaze on Mei. He said something in ancient Hindi — and astonishingly, they understood him. A spirit form fits itself to the listener's language. "...Where is this place? I should have died at Kurukshetra, shooting against Arjuna."

The third tear was white light. This time someone descended slowly, gently. Her feet did not touch the ground; she floated in the air. A young woman. White garments, long hair, and a faint halo behind her. Each breath sent pale light flowing from her mouth. Above the palm of her right hand floated three shining orbs. When she opened her mouth, the words entered Mei's head directly. "Lower world. Humans. Yoma. Understood. I have been ordered to exterminate yoma. I can still use miracles three times."

The three looked at one another. One from the future, one from the distant past, one from above the heavens. And all three had fallen into the same valley.

"Do you understand this situation, shrine maiden of the lower world?" Uzuki(celestial) asked Mei.

Mei answered in a trembling voice. "The Spirit Realm gate has opened. But — it does not look like a gate where yoma come out. It looks like a gate where people come in."

"I don't think that person is me, though?" Takagi Sayaka(modern person) stood up, brushing dirt from herself. "Seriously, what happened to my surgical gown? Is there a hospital here?"

Karna(heroic spirit) was silent. He slowly took up the bow and looked beyond the distant mountain. Beyond that mountain, red clouds were gathering. The spiritual grade of yoma boiled there. Karna said, "A summoning has a price. I exist in this land only if I fight." When he stroked the bow Vijaya, it materialized in his hand. Until then it had been translucent; now it became true wood and sinew. This bow was entrusted to him by his teacher Parashurama — the bow that faced Gandiva, borne by Arjuna at Kurukshetra.

The short spear at his waist was different. He did not touch it. It was Vasavi Shakti — the one-use divine spear Indra gave Karna in exchange for his earrings and armor. Draw it once, and it kills once. Karna had already used it once in the Mahabharata(toward Ghatotkacha). Whether that one authority had returned to him when he was summoned again into this age's lower world — even he did not know. So he did not touch it. Not yet.

A heroic spirit needs a sacred object to exist. That is the law of heroic spirits.

Uzuki spoke in the manner of gods. "The rules of the lower world are complicated. I have Divine Authority remaining three times. Each miracle cuts down one yoma or saves one life. After that, I too must become like you." Her three orbs dimmed slightly. She knew it too. This descent was one-way.

Sayaka was the first to be practical. "Then where is the nearest village? What I can do is medicine. I should be able to connect it to this age's medicine. Human anatomy is the same anyway."

Karna: "The enemy is beyond that mountain. I can fight."

Uzuki: "I pray. And I cut down."

And behind those three, Masamune's scouting party was fleeing toward them. From inside the white mist, a host of yoma was pouring down into the valley.

#Law -- Session Actual Play

Kuro: Episode 16. This time, I am dropping 3 expanded classes all at once.

Hana: All at once?

Kuro: The Spirit Realm gate opened wide. The timing lined up, so a modern person, a heroic spirit, and a celestial descend at the same time. You are observers + guides. Hana stays samurai 7th dan, Mei stays onmyoji 5th dan — but the leads this time are the three NPCs I am holding.

Mei: You are playing all three NPCs yourself, Kuro? Isn't that hard?

Kuro: We will watch them for one session, and after that one of you can take one over. I will reveal the sheets.

[Takagi Sayaka — modern person 5th dan]
Abilities: Wisdom+3, Presence+2, Finesse+1, Physique+0, Courage+0, Fate+1
Energy: 11. Wounds: 3. Defense: 10 (no armor).
Three Ways and Six Hearts: starts No Heart. Has experienced 2 value shocks.
1st dan [Aptitude] Foresight — automatic +3 for anatomy/medical knowledge (Medicine/Perception).
3rd dan [Kata] Squad Command (2 Energy) — squad command cost -1 (1 use/round).
5th dan [Kata] Field Medicine (3 Energy, 1/lull) — restore 1 Wound to 1 ally. Restore 2 on Medicine success.
Adaptation slots 2:
 Slot 1: scholar 1st dan [Divine Calculation and Ghostly Strategy] — transfer Energy (1:1, limited to 1 use/round).
 Slot 2: onmyoji 1st dan [Shikigami Service] — reinterpreted with a "mobile karakuri" concept.
Weapon: none. Emergency scissors set — Medicine checks +2.

Hana: The modern person took Shikigami Service through Adaptation. Is it interpreted as a "robot"?

Kuro: Right. Adaptation rule(Principle 5): keep the effect exactly as the original, and restate only the scent through the era's interpretation. Sayaka's "shikigami" is not an origami bird; it feels like an instantly assembled automaton(simple karakuri).

Mei: How does a modern person make that?

Kuro: By pretending to assemble the gears, wire, and cloth in front of her in a few minutes. Wisdom+3 + Foresight +3 = a future engineer making something that roughly works from Sengoku-era parts. That is this character's appeal.

[Karna — heroic spirit 5th dan]
Abilities: Courage+3, Physique+2, Finesse+1, Wisdom+0, Presence+1, Fate+2
Energy: 12. Wounds: 5. Defense: 13 (Tenjiku-style gold-leaf armor).
Three Ways and Six Hearts: starts Life(活). Spirit form of a warrior hero.
1st dan [Aptitude] Memory of a Previous Life — sacred object "Vijaya" resonates. If not held, spirit form becomes unstable (maintenance check each session: 2d10+Fate ≥ 11).
3rd dan [Aptitude] Previous-Life Technique Reproduction — 3 Kurukshetra battlefield techniques. "Arrow of the Sun"(Vijaya only, 3 Energy, Pierce+2 Wounds).
5th dan [Kata] Sacred Object Awakening (2 Energy, 1/combat) — when using Vijaya, attack +3; against yoma, additional 1 Wound.
Weapon: Vijaya (sacred object, Tenjiku culture). Devotion technique [Understanding D]: heroic spirit automatic resonance.
Waist reserve: Vasavi Shakti (one-use divine spear, 1 confirmed instant death/session or combat, permanently vanishes after use). Not used in this episode.

Mei: Since the heroic spirit is the original owner, the devotion technique applies normally when he uses his own sacred object.

Kuro: Right. [Understanding] route D(heroic spirit automatic resonance). See Principle 3. For Karna, the bow Vijaya is his anchor. Without it, his spirit form destabilizes.

Hana: Why mention Vasavi Shakti if he is not going to use it?

Kuro: Because that is Karna's story. He already used his one-use finisher once. When he returned to this age, he himself does not know whether that authority was restored. He does not touch it. But the reader feels, "He might be able to use it someday." It is Chekhov's gun.

Mei: A device that builds across sessions.

Kuro: That is the idea.

[Uzuki — celestial 7th dan]
Abilities: all abilities +1 (celestial starting bonus, broadly high).
Energy: 12. Wounds: 6. Defense: 15 (divine barrier).
Divine Authority remaining: 3 uses (initial 5 uses; 2 were spent in another lower world).
Three Ways and Six Hearts: starts Divine(神). At every even-numbered dan, -1 ability (currently 2 descents at 7th dan).
1st dan [Stance] Manifest Divine Authority — forms a divine domain (zone fear/Cohesion immunity).
3rd dan [Kata] Purifying Touch — 2 Energy. Direct attack against yoma, Pierce 2 Wounds.
5th dan [Aptitude] Combat Adaptation — lower-world technique +1.
7th dan [Aptitude] Demigod — Divine Authority maximum +2, Divine Punishment (2 Energy, 1 Wound to all in a yoma zone).
Special: "spending Divine Authority = descent." Each use permanently reduces an ability by -1. After depletion, fully human.
Weapon: chokuto (made in the heavens). Treated as an ordinary weapon.

Hana: Uzuki is strong. But she weakens when she uses it.

Kuro: That is the celestial's story. Initial strongest → gradual weakening → the process of becoming human. She has 3 uses of Divine Authority left. Use it once and it becomes 2. Twice, 1. Three times, 0 — and at that moment she is fully human. How she uses it in this session is the drama.

Mei: So 3 different class groups meet at once. The modern person is the future, the heroic spirit is the past, and the celestial is from above. A space-time cross.

Kuro: Right. Hana and Mei are witnesses to this meeting. You are the present.

Hana: That is tense.

#Battlefield Layout

[Valley Entrance(Hana and Mei join)]
   ↓
[Middle Valley(three outsiders' fall point)]
   ↔
[Valley Front(Masamune scouting party retreating)]
   ↔
[Valley End(yoma host advancing)]

Kuro: Yoma composition.

[Enemy Composition]
- Ko-oni Squad A: 5 Mob units. Valley end, right side.
- Ko-oni Squad B: 5 Mob units. Valley end, left side.
- Ashigaru Oni Squad: 4 Minion units. Valley end, center.
- O-oni(Elite): Wounds 4, Defense 13, Energy 9. Central vanguard.

Mei: If it is Minion to Elite grade, we could handle it ourselves, but these three are experiencing this for the first time.

Kuro: Right. And this is not a training environment. Masamune's scouting party is being routed, so it is immediate combat. They have to fight right after falling.

Hana: Since Uzuki looks strong, central defense?

Kuro: Decisions follow the NPCs' personalities. Each moves by their own judgment.

#Round 1 -- Confusion at the Meeting

Kuro: Count. Uzuki 12, Karna 12, O-oni 9, Sayaka 11, Mei 10, Hana(samurai) 11.

Kuro: Uzuki first. From the air, she stares down at the ground — and grasps all nearby allies at once.

Uzuki: "Do I stand with these three? Good." Manifest Divine Authority(2 Energy, Stance). Allies in the same zone are immune to fear.

Kuro: Since Sayaka and Karna are in the same zone, all three are immune to fear. A white zone(divine domain) spreads around Uzuki.

Uzuki: Then Purifying Touch(2 Energy) — ranged against O-oni. 2d10+Courage(1 — after offsetting -2 from Divine Authority attenuation)+Exorcism(0)=+1. [10, 6]=16+1=17 ≥ Defense 13. Hit. Yoma Pierce 2 Wounds.

Kuro: O-oni Wounds 4→2. A white beam descends from the sky and pierces the O-oni's shoulder. Breath total: 2+2 = 4. No reservation.

Mei: (swallows) ...A real celestial.

Hana: Observe carefully. You will not get to see this many times from now on.

Karna Count 12: He goes at full power from the start. Sacred Object Awakening(2 Energy, 1/combat) + "Arrow of the Sun"(3 Energy). Total 5 Energy.

Kuro: Target?

Karna: "That squad first." Ashigaru Oni Squad.

Kuro: The heroic spirit draws the bow up to his shoulder. Light gathers on the bowstring — becoming not an arrow, but the shape of light. Karna's spirit form wavers once behind him. For him, this is the act of using power.

Karna: 2d10 + Courage(3)+Archery(0, heroic spirit has no lower-world skill slots)+Sacred Object Awakening(+3)=+6. [8, 5]=13+6=19 ≥ Defense 12. Total 13 or higher → remove 2 units + Arrow of the Sun Pierce +2 Wounds → affects the whole squad. Of 4 Minion units, remove 2 + the remaining 2 each take confirmed 1 Wound → entire squad removed.

Kuro: Ashigaru Oni Squad annihilated. Cohesion 0. When the light fades, what remains is — corpses.

Kuro: Karna's spirit form stabilizes through the bow Vijaya. The bow is holding its master in place.

Mei: Wow. If someone steals that bow, does that person disappear?

Kuro: Yes. The law of heroic spirits. If an enemy wants to disable Karna, they should not cut him with a blade; they should take the bow.

Hana: Mei, today is educational.

Karna: "Sacred Object Awakening is 1/combat, so it is now spent." From here on, only ordinary Vijaya shots.

O-oni 9: Charge. Move to Middle Valley for 2 Energy. Searches for the weakest target → Sayaka(Defense 10, Wounds 3). Iron club smash 3 Energy.

Kuro: 2d10 + Courage(3)+Unarmed Combat(2)=+5. [6, 9]=15+5=20 ≥ Defense 10. Hit. 2 Wounds.

Kuro: The O-oni simply smashes Sayaka away. Sayaka Wounds 3→1. Serious injury.

Sayaka: "Aagh!"

Kuro: (in the modern person's voice) Even as Sayaka falls to the ground, by instinct she pulls a hemostatic pad from inside her gown.

Hana: ...What is she carrying around inside that gown?

Kuro: Emergency rescue set. It was in her hands before she fell from the ER.

Sayaka Count 11: Self-treatment. Field Medicine(3 Energy) on herself. Medicine check — 2d10 + Wisdom(3)+Medicine(3)=+6. [7, 4]=11+6=17 >= 11. Success, restore 2. Wounds 1→3.

Sayaka: "If I die, I can't save anyone else!"

Kuro: Breath total: 3. Cannot reserve defense(low Defense). Energy 5-3=2 remaining.

Sayaka: Should I summon a karakuri doll through Shikigami Service Adaptation? 2 Energy... wait, Adaptation penalty +1 Energy = 3 Energy. I only have 2 Energy.

Kuro: Then next round. This time, only self-treatment.

Sayaka: "Sorry. I will make one next time."

Mei Count 10: Shikigami Service(2 Energy) — 1 shikigami at the valley end. Pressure Ko-oni Squad A. Then Killing Curse(3 Energy) — ranged snipe against O-oni.

Kuro: 2d10 + Wisdom(3)=+6. [9, 7]=16+6=22 ≥ Defense 13. Hit. 2 Wounds.

Kuro: O-oni 2→0. Incapacitated.

Mei: Breath total: 2+3=5. Limit.

Hana Count 11: Samurai. Immovable Formation(2 Energy, Stance) — Front Zone at Valley Front. Blocks the enemy advance. Domination +4. Reserve Parry(1 Energy). Breath total 3.

Kuro: Hana sets up the Front Zone and stands. Now even if the ko-oni squads come, they cannot break through the Front Zone.

#Round 2 -- The Rhythm of Three

Kuro: The O-oni is down. Ko-oni Squads A and B are still advancing. The Ashigaru Oni Squad is annihilated.

Mei: I attached the shikigami to Ko-oni Squad A, right? This round, I have the shikigami attack.

Kuro: Shikigami control(0 Energy [Kata], use 1 of the 2 uses per round cap from Principle 2). The shikigami attacks the squad. 2d10 + Wisdom(3)=+6. [5, 6]=11+6=17. Ko-oni Mob squad Defense 10. Total 17 or higher → remove 3 units. Squad A 5→2. The remaining 2 flee as Cohesion collapses.

Mei: Killing Curse(3 Energy) to snipe Ko-oni Squad B.

Kuro: [4, 8]=12+6=18. Total 13 or higher → remove 2 units.

Karna: Energy 7 remaining. Sacred Object Awakening is spent, so only ordinary Vijaya attack. 2 Energy.

Kuro: Target?

Karna: Ko-oni Squad B remaining. 2d10 + Courage(3)+Archery(0, no lower-world skill)=+3. [9, 3]=12+3=15. Defense 10, hit. Not total 13 or higher. Remove 1 unit.

Kuro: Even for a heroic spirit, a basic attack is a basic attack.

Uzuki: "I will conserve Divine Authority." Normal movement. Advance to the valley end for 2 Energy. Enters melee with Ko-oni Squad B.

Kuro: Uzuki moves little by little through the air. Her feet do not touch the ground; she cuts through the mist as she moves.

Sayaka Count 11: Finds Masamune, an NPC samurai. During the retreat, he was struck by a spear in the waist. Wounds 2/5.

Sayaka: Field Medicine(3 Energy) — to Masamune.

Kuro: Masamune says, "...What is a strange woman doing to me...?"

Sayaka: "Do not move. I am going to stop the bleeding point."

Kuro: 2d10 + Wisdom(3)+Medicine(3)=+6. [6, 8]=14+6=20 >> 11. Great Success. Restore 2. Masamune Wounds 2→4.

Kuro: Masamune looks at Sayaka with a strange expression. "...Who are you? What are those tools?"

Sayaka: "I am a doctor!"

Masamune: "That... Chinese-style physician?"

Sayaka: "...That is right. Please understand it roughly that way."

Hana: (laughs) Sayaka is giving up on explaining.

Kuro: That is the wisdom of a modern person. "Let's not explain CT scans in this age."

Mei: I like Sayaka.

Hana Count 11: Maintains Immovable Formation. The remaining 2 of Ko-oni Squad A attempt to enter → Cohesion check -1 from Domination contribution. Automatic collapse.

Kuro: The remaining Ko-oni Squad A breaks before Hana's Front Zone. They run. Squad Cohesion 0. Leave the battlefield.

Hana: Now clean up Squad B.

#Round 3 -- The Celestial's Decision

Kuro: Remaining enemies — Ko-oni Squad B(2 units), 2 Ashigaru Oni Squad remnants... manageable. But.

Mei: But?

Kuro: From beyond the valley, from a place you had not seen yet — the real threat rises. The leader of the O-oni main force. lord-grade O-oni(Wounds 7, Defense 14).

Mei: ...Lord-grade?

Kuro: Too hard for a 5th to 7th dan party.

Hana: So that is why Uzuki has Divine Authority.

Kuro: Yes.

Uzuki: "...Is that the master of this valley?"

Kuro: One of Uzuki's three orbs grows slightly hot. A signal telling her to use it.

Uzuki: "I will use it. Even if one Divine Authority vanishes forever — if I leave that one now, all of you will die."

Mei: (tense) ...I will record this scene.

Karna: "A god's single step is a human lifetime." (Tenjiku proverb) "Lady Uzuki. Take your step."

Uzuki: Divine Authority activation. No check required(divine authority). lord-grade O-oni Wounds fully erased. Instant death.

Kuro: From the sky, white light descends as a pillar and wraps the lord-grade O-oni. The oni cannot even scream — it scatters into ash. That ash is neither black nor white. It is a trace of light.

Kuro: And the halo behind Uzuki becomes one step fainter. Permanent ability -1. Divine Authority remaining 3 → 2.

Uzuki: "..." (She says nothing for a while.)

Uzuki: "...Next time, more carefully."

Hana: (quietly) I wonder how faint that halo will become before she remains.

Kuro: Who knows. That is this character's time bomb.

Sayaka: "...This is how I felt every time I saved one person on the operating table."

Kuro: (Sayaka's voice, low) Sayaka looks down at her white gown. It is stained with dirt and blood.

Sayaka: "Of course, I could go home. I would go home, take a warm shower, sleep a little, and stand at the operating table again the next day. That was my everyday life. But — I cannot go back from here. I know that. So — I want to help here."

Mei: ...

Hana: ...

Kuro: (after breaking a long silence) These three are each trying, in their own way, to find a path to be accepted by this age.

#Round 4 -- Cleanup and Recruitment

Kuro: Handle the ko-oni remnants and the Ashigaru Oni Squad remnants. Hana's Immovable Formation + Mei's shikigami control + Karna's repeated Vijaya shots finish it. Combat ends.

Hana: The valley is cleared.

Kuro: Now you need to take these three back.

Mei: Karna has Vijaya, so his spirit form is stable. But Sayaka needs food... and whenever Uzuki maintains a divine domain, she will spend Faith and accelerate her descent.

Kuro: Right. All three are vulnerable in different ways. When you return to Kagura Domain, you have to decide how to handle the three of them. They can be incorporated as PC candidates for the 3 expanded outsider classes. One player can take over one NPC.

Hana: Should we decide next session?

Mei: I want to take over Sayaka.

Kuro: Think carefully. A modern person has a value shock cap of 2, so she may break quickly.

Mei: That is what I like. The story of someone shaken who keeps standing.

Hana: Then Karna for me? Or Uzuki?

Kuro: Uzuki is a long-term character. After she spends her 3 uses of Divine Authority and becomes fully human, she gains the right to choose a dual build. Karna has to keep making spirit-form maintenance checks.

Hana: ...Uzuki. I want to see the descent through to the end.

Kuro: Understood. I will remember that.

Kuro: That is all for today. Count combat completion 1 + narrative milestone 1.

[Episode 16 Confirmed Rules]
1. Modern person: 1st dan [Foresight] — Medicine/Perception +3. 5th dan [Field Medicine] — 1/lull, restore 2 Wounds to an ally.
2. Heroic spirit: 1st dan [Memory of a Previous Life] — designate sacred object. If not held, maintenance check each session. Maximized spirit-form dependence.
3. Celestial: 1st dan [Manifest Divine Authority] — zone fear/Cohesion immunity. Divine Authority N uses — 1 use instantly kills a yoma or saves a life, permanent ability -1.
4. Adaptation(Principle 5): [Aptitude] → convert to 1/round. Preserve conditions. Free scent reinterpretation. (Sayaka's "shikigami" changes only scent into "karakuri robot.")
5. Heroic spirit sacred object [Understanding route D]: 1 item from the heroic spirit's own previous-life culture resonates automatically. Multiculture only by GM setting.
6. Celestial Divine Authority descent: each use gives -1 ability; after 5 uses are spent, fully humanized(dual build selectable).
7. Three Ways and Six Hearts shift: modern people shake more easily with a value-conflict cap of 2(general cap 3). Heroic spirits shake based on sacred-object possession. Celestials take -1 at each even-numbered dan.
8. Principle 3: Vijaya devotion technique = heroic spirit automatic resonance. Gaijin and celestials cannot understand automatically.
9. Squad command vs control action distinction: Sayaka's modern person 3rd dan "Squad Command" is a squad command(1-2 Energy). Mei's shikigami control is a 0 Energy [Kata] maneuver (2 uses per round).
10. The 3 outsider classes are mutually exclusive with dual build. They use Adaptation slots instead.

On the road back to Kagura Domain, Hana walked in front, and Sayaka asked, "Are there more people like me in this world?" Mei answered, "I do not think you are the first. Since the Spirit Realm gate opened, they say things like this sometimes happen. But — no one has returned."

Karna walked with Vijaya on his shoulder. Vasavi Shakti, tied at his waist, still slept — a divine spear that would kill once and vanish if drawn once. Behind him, the bow sometimes glimmered faintly. A sacred object exists by following its master. Uzuki walked at the very rear, and her halo had grown so faint it was almost invisible.