Seven samurai enter the cavern, to find the princess. Creatures dark and vile await, beings of twisted form and unholy fury. The Lion and the Crane turn aside, taking on the largest of the beasts. The Magistrate and the Ronin step forward to engage the warriors. The Dragon and the Pirate, move for the Shaman, and the Scorpion drops back, to cover the escape. In such moments life and death are defined, in such moments the soul of a samurai is tested.

JIN
Respect what is important to others. Sacrifice your virtue to protect the pure from corruption. Do not allow the innocent to lose their ideals, shield them with your dishonor.
An innocent librarian, a rogue who is after nothing but a one night stand, sometimes there are honorable uses for the Scorpion arts of seduction. Some poetry, a long walk through the garden, and a stolen kiss, perfection is ruined if purity is lost…
The Dragon is impaled on the Shamans blade. The Pirate steps around him to sink his obsidian tanto into the creatures flesh. It cuts, it burns, a howl of pain from an inhuman throat. He screams at the princess to flee, to run, but the young child does not move.

MAKOTO
Make no false promises, when you make a threat be prepared to follow through. To do otherwise is to become a paper tiger, and not be worthy of respect.

The chain hangs from the roof, the pirate hangs from the chain, and the window hangs open. A swing, a jump, a landing, a knife pressed against the man's throat. "You have three choices, your wakizashi at dawn, the Phoenix's katana, or we can go plant a tree." There was no question in the other man's mind what he meant, and no question in the pirate's eyes that he meant it…
Pain rolls through his body, his knives fall from his nerveless fingers, and he drops to the ground. The Shaman cackles, as the Magistrate is torn asunder. Unholy power washes through him for several moments, before he can bring himself together again. Through gritted teeth, he speaks, "Mirumoto san, take her and go, run, and do not stop." Slowly he forces himself to his feet, as the Dragon grabs the princess, and flees.

CHUGO
We exist to serve the peasants, to protect and provide examples to them. Tyranny serves no one. It is our duty to treat them with respect and lead by example.
The Crane demands blood, but the peasant boy is not at fault for the amusement of the Fortunes. "If it is blood you wish, the blood will be mine, I will take the beating for the boy…"
Uncontrollable rage rolls through the Scorpion, he abandons his position to charge the creatures, a few moments of flashing blades, and the blood coats everything, and the Scorpion's mask falls to the ground, eyes still staring from it, empty and lifeless. The Pirate moves, pulling himself through the pain, to block the exit.

YU
Do Not Doubt. Do Not Fear. Do Not Hesitate. He who hesitates is lost. He who fears: fails. He who doubts: dies.
A storm rages, the rigging is wet, the sails slippery. The enemy vessel has come alongside, tied off tight to his own. The bandits swarm across the deck, forming a wall, keeping his crew from the shugenja, who leisurely picks them off one at a time, turning the tied of the battle. There is no time to think, not time to question, just one man twenty feet above a storm tossed sea, and a forty foot gap to the opponents mast. Do not doubt, do not fear, do not hesitate…
The Pirate watches the Ronin turn to form on the door, only to be cut down before he can take more then a few steps. Pain flows through his body again, but this time he is expecting it. He grits his teeth and takes it, drawing the No Dachi he recently aquired, he takes aim, and lets it fly, crossing the cave mouth it impales the Shaman, before he can draw on any more unholy power.

REI
You are never too busy to take time to help another. Always treat a lady with respect.

The Tournament of the Topaz Champion, was it really so recent? It seems so long ago, the feel of wind through my hair as I held the lead, the sound of a splash of mud behind me, the decision to stop, and go back to help the Maeda out of the mud…

"My Lords, I think it is about time we depart" he calls over to the Lion and the Crane, as they continue their duel with the largest of the creatures. They do not hear him, they are both badly wounded and beginning to falter. His Parangu is lodged in a wall, his Katana has come free in the shoulder of one of the beasts he fights. All that is left is a length of silk, and a length of steel. He fights on, holding the tunnel with Whip and Chain, allowing none to pass, buying the princess several more precious seconds.

GI
Be honest with yourself, know your limitations. Know what is impossible. Eliminate the impossible, and whatever is left, no matter how improbable, must be the truth.
Shadow Lands creatures surround him, he has covered the retreat, and now everyone else has escaped. The smell of his own blood is rich in the air, as he bleeds from a dozen wounds. His back against the wall of a mountain, the goblins move around to cut off his last line of retreat, there is no escape, no way out, except up. When all options are cut off; your path becomes as clear as crystal…
A fighting retreat down the hall, the Lion and Crane lost around the bend, the sounds of fighting becoming fainter and less frequent. He's begun bleeding now, but not as much as one might expect. He begins planning an escape, looking for a way out. The bridge over the chasm comes in sight. Freedom within his grasp, and then PAIN, the creature's claws slide through his body, ripping him in twain, the only sound that of the Manrikikusari skidding across the stone floor.

MEYO

There are times failure is not an option, when lives are on the line and everything hangs by a thread. You must grab that thread and pull, when failure is not acceptable, your path becomes crystal clear.
The still water of the bay, the wisp of arrows, the smell of Gaijin pepper hangs on the air. When there is only one path, then you have no choice to make. Feet scamper across the surface of the water, but the pirate does not fall, the gap between him and his enemies disappears…
He lies there in a pool of his own blood, his life force ebbing away. He vision begins to cloud, as he tries to take stock of the situation. The girl is gone, fled, alive, but the creatures are beginning to follow now. There is no way out, no way to save himself. Suddenly when all options disappear, that is when your path becomes most clear. He has lost nine blades to these creatures already, but that's why he always carries ten. He draws his last weapon, his Honor was never kept very bright, but sometimes you find you have just enough of it to get the job done. He forces his battered broken body up against the wall, and lets fly. The Wakizashi spins through the air, flying 25 yards with unerring accuracy. It strikes the bridge, dislodging it, and sending it falling end over end into the chasm below. The howls of the frustrated beasts of Fu Leng reverberate off the walls of the cavern, as they turn on the Samurai who has denied them their prize. He braces, weaponless for the charge. There is no fear in his face, no regrets in his heart. On his lips are the curse words of three languages, none of them Rokugani. His final legacy to the world will have been teaching them to the emperor's daughter. That thought brings a smile to his lips, and a twinkle to his eye as he screams out and leaps on the oncoming monsters. The scream is cut short mid way through, and then nothing but silence, and the sounds of rending flesh.

The Dread Pirate Rokugo 1485 - 1501