This small group first gathered at the Topaz Championship of the nine hundred and ninety fifth year after the founding of the Hantei Dynasty. One of them won the tournament, and the group as a whole was blessed with the presence of the fortune Megumi, who declared them "among the chosen."
Kakita Yokuni is a Crane duelist, a student of Kakita Toshimoko, and is alternately revered and reviled by many in the Empire. He has had some difficulty with courtly affairs, and found himself entangled in several Scorpion plots, from which he extricated himself with various degrees of help. He recently participated in a defense of Kyuden Hida against undead believed to be created by the maho-tsukai known as Iuchiban, putting his star currently in ascension, including an appointment as Emerald Magistrate.
Mirumoto Yumi is a Dragon bushi, and becoming renowned for his tactical prowess (especially denoted in that he is welcome among Akodo Toturi's lectures to Mirumoto Daini, Ikoma Tsanuri, and others.) He was in line for a command in the Dragon armies, but was called to serve as an Emerald Magistrate before this could be made known; it was said that a command would be his when he leaves the service of the Emerald Champion, although he has recently fallen into disfavor with the Mirumoto daimyo, leading to the restoring of social status to his deadly enemy, (now-)Mirumoto Tagi.
Bayushi Kochiro is a Scorpion samurai-ko who makes no secret of the fact that she hopes to eclipse even Kachiko's notoriety one day -- unfortunately, she is one of the "honest" Scorpion, so in a way this is unlikely. She has recently begun shoring up her skill with sword and bow with studies of the Tao and battle. Unlike the other two, she was not present at the defense of Kyuden Hida until the end, when she returned with Bayushi Shoju (as his yojimbo) from a mission somewhere to the north. All that is generally known about this mission is that they returned with Yogo Junzo, and the attacking undead were destroyed by something in their posession. Shoju himself pressed for Kochiro's assignment as Emerald Magistrate with the others.
There were originally two others in the group -- two shugenja, a Scorpion named Bayushi Hiroto, who left immediately after the tournament, and a ronin named Chorun, who parted ways with the other three after the Winter Court of Imperial Year 996 in Unicorn lands. Their current whereabouts are unknown.
During a tour intended to foster peace between the Crane and Lion clans, whose relationship was significantly inflamed by an incident involving Kakita Yokuni, a guide was placed with the three, a Lion samurai-ko named Matsu Kura. Thus far she has shown a great contempt for the Crane, but remains with the group as an Emerald Magistrate. What role she plays with the others in regards to the blessing of Megumi remains to be seen, although she seems more concerned with the tracking of a ronin named Jubei.
Since the group's assignment to Ryoko Owari, two others have been impressed into their ranks. Kuni Shinju is a Crab shugenja with an interest in the investigative arts, who encountered the group at the temple of Osano-Wo on the Plains of Thunder, and later appointed an Emerald Magistrate with the group. The other, a Scorpion named Bayushi Ito, was assigned to the group after the near-disastrous events of the Bon Festival that year (see Night of a Thousand Screams) because of his knowledge of maho lore, arriving just in time to join an investigation that led the group to the gates of Iuchiban's tomb.
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