Mirumoto Shikei

Please note: This article is about the Dragon Clan Champion. For other uses of the term, please see Shikei (disambiguation).
Mirumoto Shikei, the Laughing Dragon, was a Dragon Clan Champion, son of Mirumoto Mareshi and Mirumoto Kei. He was a Tattooed Monk with Naga bloodline, devoted to Niten as a kensai duelist.
== Birth ==
In 1172 during the Destroyer War the Dragon Clan Champion Mirumoto Kei sequestered her at Jousai Tengai to have her child, Patrolling the Roads (The Plague War flavor) and her son was born in a vault deep inside the fortress. Mirumoto Tobushi (Empire at War flavor) The Army of Fire harassed the area, and Mirumoto Kenzo bought her enough time to recover and for reinforcements to arrive. Knowledge of the Land (Empire at War flavor)
== Demeanor ==
Shikei was a remarkable man, loved by virtually all who had met him. His Naga ancestry and his mystical tattoos reminded others that he was not quite like them, no matter how hearty his laugh or genuine his smile. Mirumoto Shikei Character Bios
== Childhood ==
=== Training ===
Shikei was trained by the Mirumoto Swordsmen and also was tattooed by the Order of Togashi. His demeanor was much like that of an Ise Zumi, and he was known as the Laughing Dragon. The Balance of Power (Imperial Herald v3 #9), by Shawn Carman
=== Bethrothed ===
Moto Naleesh, only months past gempukku moved to Dragon lands alongside with her father the Unicorn Clan Champion Moto Chen. The Khan made an arrangement with the Dragon and proposed a marriage to honor it. Naleesh was wandering out of the castle where she met the future Dragon Champion, Scenes from the Empire 19, by Robert Denton, Yoon Ha Lee, with Special Guest Author Robert Hobart Mirumoto Shikei. He did not know that he had been bethrothed to her at that time. Rulebook story (Second City) Chen agreed that she would marry into the Mirumoto. Consequences, by Robert Denton
=== Naleesh, Shinjo Reborn ===
Shikei later felt genuine love and affection, even after Naleesh was revealed as Shinjo reborn, and she became the Unicorn Clan Champion. They met again at winter court at Kyuden Bayushi in 1184, but neither were willing to leave their clan for the other's, and the wedding remained at bay. 
== Dragon Clan Champion ==
Shikei became the Lord of the Dragon Clan and the Mirumoto Daimyo, when his father Mareshi retired as a monk of the Order of Togashi, taking the name of Togashi Maro. Rulebook story (Forgotten Legacy), by Shawn Carman and Rusty Priske
=== Relation with Kanpeki ===
Every time the Spider Clan Champion Daigotsu Kanpeki returned to the Empire from his residence in the Colonies, he was met by Shikei, to spar jiujutsu. In 1191 they pondered about the loyalty the Spider had to owe to the Iweko Dynasty. Kanpeki relized it was fear of the Spider that kept the Empress and her servants strong. Among Sparrows, by Seth Mason
=== Mareshi's disappearance ===
After several years retired as a monk, in 1198 was reported his father had disappeared from his chambers in the High House of Light, and his grandmother Mara also went missing. 
=== Bringing Justice ===
After a year of official betrothal, Shikei came to visit to the Unicorn lands with his aide Mirumoto Sutano, to negotiate an end to the delays of the wedding. During the journey Shikei made a stop to deal with a bandit gang, when he realized that his forces had tracked down and surrounded the lair of the Drunken Tiger. Shikei challenged and killed the bandit leader in a personal duel. Emperor Edition Starter Fiction: Dragon Clan
=== Broken Wedding ===
Shikei and Naleesh met at Shiro Shinjo, to ponder about their wedding. Emperor Edition Starter Fiction: Unicorn Clan Naleesh visited Shikei at Shiro Mirumoto Scenes from the Empire, Part 24: Correspondence, by Robert Denton who offered an Imperial arbitration about the betrothal. The engagement had carried on for over fifteen years now, and for the same time the negotiations between the clans had stalemated. Shikei had asked the Otomo which champion should leave his or her clan in the marriage. Some saw it as an insult to her. The Shadow’s Embrace, Part 2: The Crane, by Nancy Sauer After the Imperials judged that Shikei would fold into the Unicorn Clan, the Dragon Champion refused the ruling, and broke the engagement,  because the Dragon Champion could bow to no one. The Khan Shinjo Min-Hee sought retribuiton through figth, but Shikei avoided to enter war with the Unicorn. Scenes from the Empire, Part 30: Bow To No One, by Robert Denton Rumors of Shikei and Naleesh leaving the Empire to live as a couple in the Colonies were whispered, Face the Madness, Part 3, by Shawn Carman & Seth Mason but the travelers were actual doppelgangers, born from the Egg of P'an Ku. Kitsuki Yoritoko had used it upon Naleesh, and Moto Taigo upon Shikei, in vengeance for the broken betrothal. GenCon 2013: Face the Madness, by Shawn Carman & Seth Mason
=== Dark Naga ===
Shikei felt that he was being contacted by the soul of her grandmother, the Mara, through the Akasha. He also felt another presence, one of the Dark Naga, who was attempting to influence him. Shikei named it Kurai no Naga, and learned it hid at the heart of the Shinomen Mori. He passed this knowledge to Ide Takeru, the friend and advisor to Naleesh and the Khan Shinjo Min-Hee. Scenes from the Empire, Part 31: Uncover your Face, by Seth Mason Shikei already had sent word to the Jade Champion Asahina Nanae, who sent an Imperial Legion commanded by Akodo Kano, the Lion Clan Champion's brother, and escorted by the Jade Magistrate Tamori Yayu. Finding the Balance, by Seth Mason
=== Min-Hee's Retribution ===
The Festival of the Hundred Hands in the Month of the Dog celebrated the Empire's victory in the War of Dark Fire. To mark the strength and unity of the Rokugani, kenjutsu pratices were set between samurai of different clans, to display their skills. Min-Hee managed to suffer a direct hit from Shikei's shinai during one of theses matches, leaving her arm broken. Rumors were spread, blaming that Shikei had dragged his grudge to the festival and then passed it off as an accident. War of Hearts, by Nancy Sauer An aged Togashi Satsu pondered with Shikei the incident and his broken betrothal. Both knew Min-Hee had forced to be wounded, so the Dragon Champion would be scorned, but no single Dragon had uttered this option in any court, as to shame the Khan would be to shame Naleesh. Scenes from the Empire 35, by Robert Denton & Seth Mason
=== Niten ===
In 1200 Shikei ordered that every student of Niten would carry a copy at all times. He was moved by the text Failure, My Sensei, which was written by Mirumoto Higaru shortly after he was defeated in a duel that seemed to prove the superior Kakita Style over Niten. Higaru had realized that failure was completely his own, lost because he was fighting without Niten. Spring Kotei 2015 Fiction Act 1: Opening Moves, Day 4, by Chris Hand, Maxime Lemaire, Mari Murdock, Fred Wan, and Robert Denton
== Reign of Iweko II ==
=== War on the Empire ===
During the festivals predating Iweko Seiken's coronation, the Imperial Heir had publicly humiliated Daigotsu Kanpeki by announcing that he would remove him as Spider Clan Champion. Seiken's brother, Iweko Shibatsu would join the Susumu family as their daimyo and become Lord Spider. Kanpeki considered this as betrayal of the deal between his father and Iweko I and declared war on the Empire. Thunderous Acclaim, Part 1, by Shawn Carman & Christopher Hand
=== Betrothed ===
Shortly before the coronation of Iweko Seiken, Shikei was betrothed to the sister of the Matsu Daimyo, Matsu Rika. He had rejected an offer to marry a maiden of the Doji family. Coronation, by Shawn Carman and Maxime Lemaire
== Leaving his Clan ==
The Dragon foresaw the rise of Jigoku and that the Empire would be ruled by the Spider Clan. To avoid the destruction of the Tao of Shinsei teachings they severed themselves from the Empire. All Dragon were moved north of Last Step Castle alongside with those Tonbo who decided to follow them. The Dragon Wall was magically built with no gate, no door, stretching to the top of the mountainsides, from the high base of Morning Frost Castle to the other side of the pass. Any Dragon who remained in the Empire became an outcast. Shikei was one of those who did not join his clan, because he rode alone to Unicorn lands, to meet his beloved Naleesh. Dragon Returns to the Sky, by Robert Denton III
== External Links ==
* Mirumoto Shikei (Emperor)
* Mirumoto Shikei, the Laughing Dragon (Ivory)
Category:Naga
Category:Dragon Clan Leaders