Heavenfall

Hantei frowned a little and then sighed he placed his hand on Satone and spoke in a language she did not understand and suddenly she glowed brightly for a second and she would have felt invigorated, lighter, a rush of power and energy through her whole body as the man who was more than a man bestowed the blessings of Lady sun on her.

After he let out another breath and actually seemed to be a little tired from the ordeal.

(Satone temporarily gains the great destiny advantage)

Shinjo smiled at his apologetically. "Sorry..."

Then she looked to Satone and nodded to the exterior. "Let's go outside for this."

Koyama would be there to watch, with something between understanding and bemusement. He still had his own turbulent path to recognising that the world was changing once the Kami had descended so he had a lot of empathy for Satone. However, his own take he had once agonised over was that to protect tribal traditions, one would have to impress their worth on the Kami not by hostile defiance, but but stubborn seeking of a sense of community, even as with the passing years he came to realisation that the differences between the former and the latter where loosely defined, and taking different shapes every damn day.

And as far as community-seeking goes, he couldn't have done any better than ending up as Shinjo's consort. Thanks to him, the Hikaru highlander traditions were so far finding a potent presence in the emergence of the Ki-Rin. At the same time he knew it wouldn't be the same if he had ended up paired with another Kami. So in the end it all came down to some principled pragmatism. Being traditional doesn't liberate one from the need to be smart.

Satone gives a nod to Hantei in thanks and follows outside, the prepairing herself to take a blow.

She stand a few feet from Shinjo.

“I am ready, lady. Show me your power.”

Shinjo nodded and shifted her grip on the hammer, swinging it for center of mass before abruptly shifting it to aim for the head.

Attack, 2 raises for Feint, TN 30: 10d10o10k10+2 52

The wood of the hammer cracked and bent as it made impact, the weakness of the wood softening the blow for a loose definition of "softening".

Damage: 10d10o10k10+32 104

Anyone else would have died instantly if not for the protection of Lady Sun. Even someone with extreme durability would have been knocked unconscious.

Satone wasn't, though she was certainly knocked to the ground and her head was left ringing. The woman tossed the hammer to the ground next to her.

"I guess I underestimated your durability, Seidou-san. Or I overestimated the hammer's. I suppose you've made your point."

Then she walked away.

Satone sits on the ground, stunned for a moment, struggling to catch her breath. After a few moments, she slowly gets to her feet and then nearly falls over again from a wave of dizziness and nausea. She plants her hands on her knees and takes a few deep breaths before getting sick, the power of the blow overcoming her bodily function to keep her stomach in check. She stands there with her hands on her knees, eyes closed, breathing slowly as the world spins.

Hantei sees the woman still standing and smirks "and Shinjo is the fast one not the strong one, she is not the weakest of us she is about middling in raw physical power. If it is strength you seek so much our brother Hida is the one you should seek out." His voice held no concern or worry for her as he looked on her struggling to breath.

"You should see the healers, it will not do to have such a stout warrior injured should we have need of you."

Koyama followed his wife without a word, instinctively feeling she might need to process it with someone she could confide in.

He wasn't surprised by the outcome. To deliver a killing blow, one had to have the mindset of a killer, and he knew his wife was not that someone.

Satone straightens and looks at Hantei.

"Probably the worst I have suffered at once, but not something that will kill me. I know of Hida, and I did not find his points of view convincing enough either. It seems I have much to think on, for even though she did not meet my challenge, she proved the strength is more than mortal. Or, in turn, that whatever spirits have blessed me according to Haruyo are more powerful than I imagined. One thing is for sure though, whatever enemies we may face in the coming days are going to have something of a surprise coming."

She takes a deep breath, unsure how to proceed.

/double exit with Shinjo