open Cultures Unite (1x1 with GeneralDirection)

[GeneralDirection 971]

@Samurai Equine

Ayla nods and thanks the waiter for the food. She looks down at her plate with wide eyes and responds to Fukami in between bites.

“At what point in your life did you make the decision to become a samurai?” She asked. “Or did you get to make that decision, as in, it was forced upon you? My parents tried to force me into their trade to ‘follow in their hoofsteps.’. I wasn’t interested, so that’s when I started my wanderings.”

----------------------------------------

The two kirin watch in interest as the plot of the play unfolds. There is a lot happening all at once. Charlotte looks over at Samurai as he whispers about the hero excitedly and can’t help but get excited as well.

“So how much of this is real and how much is a myth?” Silver asks Samurai in a whisper.  

[Samurai Equine 45,937]

@GeneralDirection

Fukami takes a sip of his drink. "To protect and to venture... That's how I live. When I started to grow older, I drifted around, doing odd jobs here and there but never really sticking to any job for too long. This region use to be a lot more bland many years ago. Then one day, I was working at a construction site, and an earth pony working there fell from many stories up. Without even thinking about it, I flew up and used my wind powers to catch him. It was the only way. He was too big for me to physically catch, and I wasn't as strong as I am now. When Oya-san, my boss, learned about what I did, he told me that my talents were waisted doing regular work like this. He told me about the samurai try-outs. With just a little bit of training, I qualified to become a samurai. I wasn't sure at first since the samurai class usually have to stay in the homeland, but the Shogun was willing to make a special arrangement for me so that I could travel to my heart's content."

Fukami momentarily makes his chopsticks dance with his powers. "It's strange... I never sought it out, but protecting others just comes naturally to me. Like an instinct. Traveling is my personal passion. Ever since I learned I could talk to the wind, the spirit of adventure has been alive in me. And my journeys have brought lots of international culture to this part of Japone. And the more I travel, the more wonderful things I find, which means the more things I want to protect from harm."

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Well, Prince Thorogood, Queen Starprose, and Prince Petal Spirit all did exist at some point in history, though I don't know if they were alive at the same time. And it was rumored that Prince Thorogood was in talks with Celestia to merge Equestria with the Yak Kingdom, but they never did reach an agreement that made them both happy. Shibarock might be fictional..." Samurai explains.

The yak Prince presents his five challenges. Shibarock breaks three boulders, represented by cardboard props, by punching a structural weakspot in each stone. He also dances across a bed of hot coals, represented via harmless red rocks, while wearing geta sandals and striking a mie pose. He pretends to drink a poisonous liquid by teleporting it away as soon as it enters his mouth, secret stage hooves taking the prop liquid to a nearby potted plant. The prince makes him recite an extremely long yak creed word-for-word despite only hearing it once; but Shibarock does so in Japonies!

Obviously, some of these challenges were lies, made-up on the spot to try to and make him fail. Shibarock won only by being clever and outsmarting the prince. But the final challenge is for Shibarock to defeat a bunch of the prince's loyal soldiers in battle. No weapons! Shibarock stands his ground and disregards his sword. It's only fancy stage choreography, but you can tell Shibarock is having trouble holding his own against 5 yaks all at once. Two or three was more than enough, but all five is nearly impossible. With his prop horn lighting up, Shibarock uses his magic to push the other yaks back and defeat them. The magic blasts are represented by multicolored paper streamers being tossed at the yak actors. When the battle is over, a very annoyed yak Prince backs off and leaves the castle, but he swears that yaks will never align themselves with ponies. Starprose decides to leave as well, but was so impressed by the show that she has decided the Hippogriffs need to find their own strength first. And for a moment... Prince Petal Spirit contemplates how easy it would be for him to take the throne in the name of Japone right now. Still, he decides against it, since it's not what his aunt Sable Spirit would want.

After a speech from Shibarock, the narrator wraps things up. All of this is to explain that this is the moment where all the world rulers became divided. Some made kingdoms that were not loyal the Equestrian empire. Some were loyal in a loose sense. Others were absolutely loyal. Shibarock dreams of a day where maybe all the kingdoms could be unified, but for now, justice and virtue have been upheld. With a curtain fall and the actors bowing, the show is over. Samurai stands and claps. "...Also, the various kingdoms were NOT founded in one night like that. This was just history simplified for the sake of a fun play."

[GeneralDirection 971]

@Samurai Equine

“Woah, that’s quite the amazing story you’ve got there.” Ayla smiled. “Saving that pony was a very courageous thing for you to do, Fukami. Before I decided to become a singer, I also did a lot of wandering. Went from village to village, sharing stories with others and singing songs. Sometimes ponies would suggest I make a career out of it, but I was hesitant due to my race and how I look. But because ponies insisted on it so much, I started looking into it and well, here I am. I’ve finally reached the point in my life where things are stable and I’m content with the way things are. It sounds to me like you are as well, and I think that’s amazing.”

----------------------------------------------

 Once the play finishes, the two kirin stand up with the rest of the audience and applaud.

“Woohoo!!” Charlotte cheers. “That was awesome! I loved it!” She exclaimed, turning to Samurai.

“Yes, the play was very special.” Silver agreed. “Everypony involved was very talented and it was also cool to get some more insight into the history of Japone. Thank you, my friend.” He said to Samurai.

[Samurai Equine 45,937]

@GeneralDirection

Fukami smiles. "Well for what it's worth, I think your music skills are great." He soon finishes his meal. "Do you want desert or would you like to move on and do something else?."

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Samurai nods. "Historical accuracy aside, I'm glad you enjoyed it." Samurai begins to lead the way out, stretching a little. Along the way, he thinks out loud. "Hmm... What to do next... There's always Kart Avenue. Hit the arcade parlors. Maybe go to a themed cafe..." Samurai thinks out loud.