Episode 4.2: Cult Dealings

Their fame growing, it would be obviously expected that the Bravos’ would soon find themselves receiving requests from further afield than the lands they were familiar with. Such was the case when a worn letter arrived from a distant land, Morenia, requesting aid, and marked with an emblem containing three golden lions within a red circle.

"To the most honorable Bravos Feminine,

Word of your deeds has spread far and wide, and has reached even our ears, and we must implore you for your aid. My name is Morita Fumiko, and as of now, I am acting in my father's stead as Shogun of Omuma during a period of sickness he is suffering from. My family has ruled Kamionaika Bay and its surrounding forests and savannahs for centuries, and always enjoyed great prosperity and stability, but, through my father’s marriage to my mother, gained the lands of the more southerly Kingdom of Katori, a seafaring people.

We integrated their mainland into our nation easily, just as we did with their southern colonies but found more difficulty with their distant northern island colonies, the Suyuru Islands, and this is where our current problems lay.

Since coming into our possession, the islands have always been unstable and tumultuous, marking a critical point in the trade routes from east to west. This past year, however, the situation has worsened beyond our worst fears, and we have been unable to stabilize it, in no small part due to my father’s illness and the restriction placed upon my regency.

A cult of sorts has emerged, a heretical sect of a northern religion, and worshiping an entity known only as the ‘Blue Love’. While initially appearing unthreatening and peaceful, it somehow underwent an explosive growth over a period of a mere two months, and as their numbers grew, so did their boldness. The situation was still partly under control until last month, when they took over the critical port of Kubayashi in the island of Suyuru, controlling the flow of goods and taxing passing merchants, and evicting our forces present to the small Tayokaki Island. Furthermore, reports have been trickling in that those who oppose them disappear without a trace, or else are later seen as willing members, as loyal as any other. Worse yet, they appear to be receiving aid from a related cult from the mainland, and from the cult’s homeland, the Fencian League, with my agents reporting several shipments of materials and supplies being landed on the more easterly islands.

As mentioned before, there exist certain limitations on my ability to act during this regency, and due to these and political concerns, I cannot send a large expeditionary to the island without definitive proof that something is happening. Mere rumors and fragmentary reports are simply not enough to please the council, nor the Emperor. However, this is where you Bravos come in, with your skill and relative anonymity in this area of the world.

I wish for you to travel to the islands and investigate their activities for me, and if possible, to undermine them. I will arrange for all your travelling expenses until you reach the islands to be covered, as well as provide you with some resources and contacts within the islands. If you succeed in this mission, I shall see to it that you are rewarded appropriately for your services, to the extent of what I can offer as Shoguness of our prosperous nation.

Please understand, I make this request from a position of danger, given what may occur to our citizens on the islands should the cult not be neutralized soon, and how this may spread elsewhere within our nation. If you choose to accept my request, you may freely arrive at my court in Ichikamita and gain entry using the seal found within this letter. I hope to see you soon, and I hope my letter reaches you swiftly.

Yours truly,

Regent Shoguness Morita Fumiko"

The letter had been first received as a surprise, as the Bravos were not aware word of them had genuinely spread that far, to truly foreign lands far beyond their home. However, there was also some apprehension at jumping at something like this, especially not even knowing if it was real.

However, it only took a few words with traders that had travelled that far out to confirm that the names checked out, as did the official seal present in the letter. After discussing the matter among themselves, the Bravos chartered a trading boat, which would take them to Ichikamita, where this adventure would begin.