Koji Ken

Koji Ken, An Elite Samurai born into a world of death and destruction. Koji was well aware of these dangers, That is why his family urged him to join them with their work. They were politicians, In their eyes that was one of the most noble jobs that there could be. Koji, on the other hand, was a bounty hunter who had commonly worked with corrupt crime lords like Shido Noon. Eventually, Koji's work had spread far and wide throughout the Kingdom gaining attention of even the Emperor himself. Koji was banished when they traced the killings back to him. His parents begged the Emperor to allow him to stay but it didn't matter, Koji was gone.

He had taken this very personally. He thought his parents had disowned him and that his country had betrayed him. Koji expanded his work to throughout the Southern Isles. As he was beyond the reach of Thaw they could do nothing to stop him. Many times his family tried writing to him but he ignored every single letter. It was not until two years later when he would receive one last one. This contained his family begging for him to return. They explained that the Brood had launched an attack on all sides of Thaw and that they were approaching the Capital, Where his family lived. Koji contemplated whether to go or not but when he would decide it would already be too late. The Brood had crushed the defending army and slaughtered anyone in the Royal council, A council of politicians who served the Emperor, and so this included his only loved ones. The battle of Shihoni left over 10,000 people dead (Armed Forces not counting) with many injured from the damages. It would take Koji a month before he heard of what had happened to them. Fuelled by rage and regret, Koji embarked back to his homeland in search of revenge. He began by entering the city of Great Fujin which had also recently fallen to the invaders. It was here where he was able to kill and interrogate many high ranking Brood officials. This act was to ensure him who led the assault into the capital. Koji rode deep into the Shihoni forest where he would encounter a band of native rebels. Having being quite famous, The rebels helped him along his journey where they would take down multiple Brood convoys.

After entering Shihoni, Koji got to work by killing a Brood High Priest after he ordered for the execution of an innocent Squirrel Monke. News of the Priest's death caught the attention of General Grund, The Ape who organised the invasion. Grund called upon multiple bounty hunters to kill Koji. However to his surprise, Koji was hunting him. Koji Ken slit his throat when he snuck into the Shihoni Brood Headquarters. Unknowingly, His death led to Thaw's victory in the coming months. With the Imperial counterattack in Lebashi being an example.

Koji returned to his home in the Gorillan mainland after killing 3 of the 7 hunters with the rest leaving him be. The Gorilla's too would fall, A shared fate amongst all in the Isles. As a smart Monke would, He layed low because of his attack on the Brood. It was here where he learned he possessed a dark secret. He had the powers of the Dark Ape. Magic was forbidden amongst Samurai but as he was nothing of the sort, It didn't apply. Koji learnt about his power when he was forced to kill a Brood scout who was about to reveal to the other troops that he was there. Koji had accidentally banished him to the Shadow realm. This ability has only been reserved for a very small amount of magic users. Even then it is not used by those more who care about ethics. Koji was never again able to do this. Miraculously after many years, He was able to somewhat control his power but he needed teaching. He needed to go where this originated, So he did.

Thankfully, at this point the Brood were defeated and the Isles had begun a period of rebuilding. One nation in particular stood out to Koji, It was the Light Apes. He knew that they were the only country who know the whereabouts of this so called "Darklands." The Light Ape Kingdom was abiding by an ancient decree that swore itself into isolation. This meant they had cut all contact with the outside world. One country was highlighted more then others though. The Country Koji wanted to travel too. Thousands of years ago, The forces of Light and Dark clashed which ended the lives of at least half their population. The two Kings realised what needed to be done, Peace had to be made. A treaty was signed which saw that both nations would enter a strict isolation for 5,000 years. Koji had entered the country illegally but it would be even harder to leave it. He approached a renowned cartographer of the name "Earlwind Crust". Koji asked him if he contained a map to the Darklands. After some hesitation, Earlwind presented him with the only one to that region in the entire country. This would mark the first voyage to that land from there in many millenniums.

When Koji arrived, He was introduced to the Port City of Drakown. It was infamous for the national slave trade amongst itself, This was pivotal for local economies. Koji would travel two hundred miles east to the Capital.