In the beginning, before the universe was created, there was only Nothing. Nothing existed before the birth of all things, and in its timeless existence, realized it was alone - and thus experienced Fear. This unprecedented emotion was the first Sin, and created one third of the world. The realization of Fear also created in the Nothing a sense of Loneliness and desire for a companion. These sensations were the second Sin, Desire, and created a second third of the world. When Nothing realized what it had done, it experienced regret and a wish to unmake what it had mistakenly created. This was the third Sin, Regret, and it created the final portion of the world, completing it and ending Nothing's existence.
The newly-made universe was initially chaotic and formless, like an egg whose white and yoke had been intermixed. Slowly the primal elements of creation seeped through the empty universe, and the energies pooled, with the heaviest sinking to the bottom and creating different layers of reality. Above was the Celestial Heavens, while below the mortal realm was born, deeper still the various other realms of spirits, ghosts, and finally, Jigoku, the Realm of Evil.
In the Wake of the Nothing came three Primordial Gods whose names have been forgotten, for they have never been known by any living creature, mortal or divine, and have always been known simply as the Three Gods Whose Names Cannot Be Spoken. These three gods looked upon the new realms, particularly the mortal world, and recognized that it must be given form and purpose, and realized this was an act beyond their means. In order to give shape to the universe, the three gods sacrificed themselves to give birth to a single man and woman, two divine beings who could do what the three before could not and bring order to existence. Thus, Lady Sun, Amaterasu, and Lord Moon, Onnotangu were born.
Like looking at a great jellyfish, Lady Sun and Lord Moon looked down upon the mortal world and were perplexed by its formlessness. Ultimately, they realized they could only give form to what existed by giving names to all the things that could be found in the mortal realm. They descended upon a rainbow to the mortal realm, and when it was ready, they kissed the formless earth and whispered the name. As the name was spoken, the land took its rightful form.
Together, they floated across the sky and about the newly named earth as it took shape. The land separated from the sea and from the fertile soil, plants grew. In the deep oceans, the fishes took their many shapes. The Fortunes began to take form in the heavens, born in the dreams of the creatures who slept far below. Lady Sun and Lord Moon flew around the world again and again until all the creatures chose their shapes. Then they rested and looked down upon the earth. To their amazement, some of the creatures began to build.
These builders were of many races, and all rose to prominence and faded into obscurity long before mankind walked the world. The lion-like Kitsu, the Subterranean Zokujin, the wily Kenku, the brutish Ogres, and the Opportunistic trolls were but a few of the races that flourished during this time. The greatest of all these builders was the Naga. They practiced art and war much like men do today and worshiped the Thousand Fortunes who dance in the stars and on the snow-capped mountains, much as we do today. They recognized Lady Sun and Lord Moon as the greatest of all the Fortunes. But they cared little for their people, who had lapsed into quiet contemplation, content in their belief that their civilization would outlive any catastrophe that could befall them. They were proud and did not expect the Great Sleep when it came. After them, the Nezumi came to prominence. Formerly food for the Naga, the rat-like Nezumi established a far-reaching empire that overcame many rival races. There is no way to know how far the Nezumi empire would eventually have spread had Lord Moon not caught Laday Sun and ushered in the age of Man.
When Lady Amaterasu and Lord Onnotangu returned to the Celestial Heavens, Lord Moon's adoration for Lady Sun grew more potent with each passing moment until driven by his obsessive love, he pursued Lady Sun across the sky, creating the cycle of day and night. When he eventually caught Lady Amaterasu, the sky blackened in the middle of the day. At this time, the first eclipse, the nine children of Lady Sun and Lord Moon were conceived. Their birth did not come for some time, as the divine are not subject to the same rules as mortals, but eventually, they were born: Hantei, Hida, Doji, Togashi, Akodo, Shiba, Bayushi, Shinjo, and Fu Leng. Their birth was a cause for great concern for Onnotangu, not only because he knew that Amaterasu would love their children far more than she would ever love him, but also because he knew a child born of both Sun and Moon had the potential to become more powerful than he and might attempt to usurp his position. Thus, Lord Moon decided that his children must die.
Lord Moon pursued his children throughout the Heavens, heedless of Lady Sun's pleading for him to stop. One by one, he captured each of them and swallowed them whole while Amaterasu wept for their demise. However, despite her sorrow, Amaterasu was determined to save at least one of her children. After each child was consumed, she brought her husband a drink of sake, tainted with a single drop of poison. After the eighth child was consumed and the sake drunk, Onnotangu was so stupefied that Amaterasu was able to feed him a stone in place of her youngest child, Hantei. Thus, one child was saved, and Lord Moon fell into a deep slumber. Hantei trained with the Celestial Dragons to defeat his father, and they gave him a sword of great power. When Lord Moon awoke, he found Lady Sun and Hantei awaiting him, and the son battled his father. It was a terrible battle, and in the end, Hantei cut his father open, and his siblings tumbled out.
In a rage, Onnotangu lashed out and seized Fu Leng, his eldest son, determined that not all his spawn should escape. Hantei struck and severed his father's hand, and Fu Leng tumbled after his siblings. In desperation, Fu Leng reached for anything to save himself, took hold of Hantei, and pulled Hanti down alongside him. Thus, the nine children of Lady Sun and Lord Moon fell from the Heavens and Came to the Mortal realm.
As her children fell, Lady Sun shed tears just as the blood of Lord Moon fell alongside it, and where they mixed, men and women arose from its twining, who quickly gave rise to humanity, which spread quickly across the face of the land we know as Rokugan.
Fu Leng fell far from his siblings and crashed into and through the mortal realm, down into Jigoku, with a wound in the earth that wrought great devastation. When the other Kami arrived, they believed their brother Fu Leng dead, and chose to not speak of their fallen sibling out of respect for them. The children of Sun and Moon wandered the world, interacting with mankind before returning to speak with one another. It was unanimously agreed among them that mankind should be protected and guided, and the only question that remained was who amongst the Kami should lead. Many of them believed they were the best suited to rule, and ultimately, a tournament was held at the site of their arrival in the mortal realm. Hida, the strongest of the Kami, was defeated by Shinjo's speed and skill. But Shinjo, in turn, was tricked and defeated by Bayushi. Bayushi's twin, Shiba observed his brother's tricks and was not deceived. Doji's elegance and technique overcame Shiba, but she, in turn, was defeated by Akodo's might and tactics. Finally, Hantei battled his brother Akodo in an incredible display of determination, power, and prowess. Akodo, fueled by rage, lifted his sword and was about to kill his bother Hantei, but just when Akodo thought victory was at hand, Hantei angled his blade to shine the light of Lady Sun into his brother's Eye. The light flooded Akodo's soul, and he realized the folly of what he was about to do. Akodo also recognized that Hantei could have beaten him at any time but had refrained for love of his brother, not wishing to shed his blood. In the face of such strength, compassion, and honor, Akodo fell to his knees before his brother, proclaiming his defeat. Hantei thus became the first emperor of Rokugan. Togashi, who had forseen the tournament's outcome, did not participate. Watching the final battle and Akodo's pledge of loyalty to his brother as Emporer, Togashi whispered: "When the Last Akodo falls, so fall the last Hantei.":
The stalwart Hida forged the Crab Clan.
The delicate Lady Doji breathed life into the Crane Clan.
The enigmatic Togashi and his followers became the Dragon Clan.
The militant Akodo gathered to his banner the Lion Clan.
The humble Shiba created the scholarly Phoenix Clan.
The manipulative Bayushi crafted the Scorpion Clan in the shadows.
The compassionate Shinjo created the Ki-Rin Clan.
Once the Great Clans were established, the Kami began to create a shining civilization under their rule. Unfortunately, they had little time and preparation before their work was threatened to its core. A monstrous horde of demonic oni, cackling goblins, and other Shadowlands creatures appeared from the south and began to advance, destroying everything that stood in the way. The unsuspecting Empire had never seen such powerful beasts and could do little to prevent the collapse of its defenses. The general who led the gruesome legion was an even worse surprise for the Kami, for it was their fallen brother Fu Leng, who had not died as they previously believed. Instead, he had arisen from the realm of Jigoku, the Realm of Evil. So consumed was he by Jigoku's insidious whispers, manipulating Fu Leng until he became the leader of that malignant place. Filled with hate for his former family, Fu Leng intended to topple the fledgling Empire of Rokugan.
The Great Clans marched into the battlefield in the first test of their mettle. Many of the Kami took the field themselves to protect their followers, yet the thought of fighting their brother troubled their hearts. Akodo, the war leader of Rokugan's forces, was a tactical genius but yet could only slow down and delay the Shadowlands advance. Hantei himself was critically wounded in battle. Slowly but surely, Rokugan was losing the war.
The Kami returned to their capital, Otosan Uchi, to decide on a course of action. At this critical moment, a strange little man entered the court uninvited and changed the course of history forever. He called himself Shinsei, a name that meant 'New Way', and he promised the Kami victory over Fu Leng's hordes if he were given permission to take seven mortal champions deep into the heart of the enemy lands. The Kami could not believe such a thing was possible, but Shinsei won them over one by one in private conversation, the first of which was held with Hantei himself. His discussions with Hantei broached every topic under the sun and moon, and Shiba recorded all the words spoken from this meeting as a single text. This document called the Tao of Shinsei, would become the basis for the Shintao, the core and official religion of Rokugan.
While Shinsei's idea seemed outlandish, and many of the other Kami initially bawked. How could one mortal from each clan be enough to defeat the dark god Fu Leng in the heart of his power? The Little Teacher believed the Kami could not do this despite their great strength, saying, "Fortune favors the mortal man." and making it clear that if this battle was to be won, it was mortals who must defend their own realm. Shinsei finally convinced Hantei to follow his plan. The monk gathered the Seven Thunders, one from each of the Great Clans: Hida Atarasi, Doji Konishinko, Mirumoto, Matsu, Isawa, Shosuro, and Otaku. Together, they traveled south through the worst of the fighting to infiltrate the enemy's land, a desperate and perilous journey.
On what was later recorded in history books as the Day of Thunder, the heroes of Rokugan faced Fu Leng in personal combat for the fate of the Empire and the world. The fight was brutal but decisive, and Fu Leng killed each Thunder except for Shosuro, the Scorpion Thunder. Still, the mortals prevailed, and Shosuro returned with twelve Black Scrolls and a hand made of Obsidian, stating that Fu Leng had been banished from the mortal realm with them. When Shosuro died delivering these, Bayushi was so distraught that many say he had lost the most in the war, and that he demanded recompense. Hantei obliged, entrusting all that Shosuro had returned with to the Scorpion Clan to protect forever, lest the dark god return to wreak havoc once more.
Then, Hantei commanded the crab to build a great wall between the Empire and the dark lands still held in Jigoku's sway. The Crane and Lion swore to protect the Emperor, with the Crane his fan and the Lion his sword. The Dragon and Phoenix chose the paths of contemplation, taking the Tao of Shinsei and incorporating it into their understanding of the universe and sorcery. Last, the Ki-Rin left the Empire to find what lay beyond its borders.
Since this time, a thousand years of relative peace has been declared, though a true scholar knows it has hardly been truly peaceful. Clans have fought for territory, acclaim, and imperial favor through political, military, and philosophical strengths. Hantei and their brothers and sisters grew old, and their children assumed their responsibilities and duties. As the ages marched on, each clan developed its own character through tradition and duty.
In a thousand years, the population has grown to a little over 26 million. The strength of the Seven Great Clans has ebbed and flowed, and political boundaries have been redrawn countless times. But some things never change, only grow and mature. Each clan has grown from its beginnings, transforming itself into a distinct force, each an individual power to be reckoned with. The 'Minor Clans' also developed, but none were as significant as the clans that gave forth the Thunders and were founded by the children of Lady Sun and Lord Moon.
