The Book Of Earth/Amaranth

AMARANTH, THE CITY OF DOJOS

Just as Speriman was known as the city of scholars in the High First Age, so too was Amaranth renowned as the city of martial artists. The acknowledged center of the Martial Arts World, the City of a Thousand Fists was a never ending parade of training and tournaments, and consistently produced the greatest fighters, schools and martial arts weapons Creation had seen. It was the home of innumerable Exalted, especially of the Dawn, Full Moon, Endings and Water-Aspected Castes, each honing and developing their natural Hero Styles of Martial Arts to their fullest potential. The Library of the Perfected Lotus Tower brimmed with scrolls and sutras full of insightful exergesis on the theory and nature of Supernatural Martial Arts. Gods and Elementals both taught and learned there, and even the odd summoned Ghost or Demon gave an occasional lesson or two. The Martial Opera is even said to have begun there.

At the center of the city sat The Perfected Lotus Tower, a level-5 Sidereal Manse that served as the ultimate Dojo. Radiating outward from it were streets (each named after a Martial Arts Style or Sifu) lined with buildings offering services supporting the martial artists' lifestyle (including workshops to make and repair exotic weapons), as well as many other dojo, representing every Style and School in Creation, including wrestling and fencing. Indeed, one's Art was not considered duly recognized unless it had some sort of representation in Amaranth. The Perfected Lotus Tower itself served as the administrative headquarters of the entire Martial Arts World, with every major announcment affecting that body coming from it, and virtually every Grandmaster resided there. Having studied at Amaranth added an extra dot to one's Face background, although those who could not meet its exacting high standards (or worse, were actually banished) subtracted a dot, instead.

Life continued in this fashion until the Usurpation. Truthfully, many could see something of the sort coming, as many of the Solars in residence became increasingly vain, uncompromising and disharmonious. It was clear that many were using their higher social status and power to unjustly gather all glory to themselves. That, along with the fact that the Sidereals had the most influence within the city, meant that nearly all of the resident Terrestrials were onboard with the plan, which was couched in terms of suitably martial virtues, of course. Fortunately for the city, nearly all of its Solars were away when the Usurpation began, and few made it all the way back home. However, the Solar who was the current Grandmaster of the Martial Arts World was there at the time.

Rather than facing the entire city's retinue of Dragon-Blooded by himself, thereby slaughtering them and devastating the city he called home, he simply dodged all their attacks (complimenting and commenting on their strengths and weaknesses all the while) and vanished from among them without a trace. The Sidereals didn't have to look long for him, however, for he next turned up atop the Imperial Mountain (The Fivescore Fellowship still has no clue why they didn't notice him scaling it), bellowing a challenge for his former friend, the Grandmaster of the North, to meet with him there. Although his fellows wanted to throw everything they had at the top of Mount Meru, the Sidereal Grandmaster restrained them, and met with his former friend, now enemy. A brief conversation ensued, followed by a long duel, whose every move is still pored over worshipfully in Yu-Shan training classes. At the end, the Solar fell, though both knew that he could have triumphed at that last second had he wished. Whispering a few last words, that the Sidereal has never repeated, he died there, atop the mountain of the world...

The Shogunate settled over Amaranth like an uncomfortable blanket. Stricter rules were put in place, dividing mortal and spirit martial artists from Exalted ones. The Bulb and Blossom floors of the Perfected Lotus Tower saw much less activity, although Amaranth still produced more Celestially-trained Terrestrials than any other spot in Creation; it was here that the Immaculate Styles were first conceived and tested. Most Sidereals now had their initiations in Yu-Shan, however.

And then, the Contagion hit. Mighty tho they were, the martial artists fell before it as mortals everywhere did. Shortly afterwards, came the screaming tide of the Fair Folk. In the far Threshold as they were, the surviving fighters banded together against the first wave, mortals and Terrestrials fighting with the secret aid of Sidereal (and even some Lunar) martial artists, but their brave fists couldn't turn the tide. The Wyld itself washed over the entire area, barely held at bay only by the combined power of the Sidereals sorcery and the City Father's Charms. The Sidereals regretfully abandoned the area to its fate, in hopes of saving land and lives that could be saved, while the City Father protected his city and people as best he could...

In the end, it was the power of the Sword of Creation that did what no Martial Art Technique could, and turned the Fae and the Wyld back. Lingering traces of the Wyld turned the area into a Borderlands realm, cutting it off from Creation even moreso than its remote location. In time, the people adapted to their new state of being via Wyld Assimilation. Amaranth still exists, nestled in its secluded valley high within mist-shrouded forested mountains, its population having replenished itself since the Contagion, although they people there are now simply archetypes, ceaselessly reenacting the same stories of School Rivalries, Humiliating Defeats, Training Sequences, and Righteous Victory. One cannot turn a street corner without running into the Wise Old Sifu, his Sharp-Tongued (but Softhearted) Daughter, her Arrogant Suitor, his Evil Master, the Doomed Best Friend, etc. They still follow their ancient customs without fail, rising in the morning and filling Amaranth's parks to follow the City Father atop the Perfected Tower in his performance of slow katas in praise of the sunrise...and filling the rooftops with more traffic in the evening than the streets saw all day!

Still, despite this mind-numbing repetition, the City of a Thousand Fists has much to offer Second Age adventurers who discover it. In addition to still retaining some of the amenities of a Shogunate City (although the folk who lived there were never big on creature comforts), it is a treasure trove of antique training manuals and equipment, many revealing secrets otherwise lost to Creation, as well as a fully stocked armory of Superior and Perfect weaponary and armor. And there's always a Sifu in the form of a Drunken Bum or Pervy Sage on hand to aid in training. Also, if the Wyld could be banished from the area, or the people cured of their Wyld Assimilation, then one may have an entire small army of highly trained, Enlightened mortal martial artists willing to follow one! Assuming that they're actually grateful, of course...

Adding to complications is a Ring of Raksha who live nearby. Taking the forms of impossibly beautiful young men, they are infatuated with the martial artists' lifestyle (or the Rakshas' idea of it, anyway). They regularly raid the town for mortals to duel, seduce and feed on, and enjoy playing the roles of invading fighters; in this capacity, they have taken a Staff Oath to be the greatest fighters in the world, enjoying its Root of the Perfected Lotus and Surpassing Excellence (Martial Arts) Mutations, enabling them to practice both Terrestrial and Celestial Martial Arts (although they have yet to learn any of the latter). They are contemplating turning the area into a Freehold, if they can succeed in somehow wresting the Perfected Lotus Tower from its City Father guardian, who resides there.

The Perfected Lotus Tower is a Level-Five Sidereal Manse, built in the form of a five story pagoda. In antiquity, the first two floors represented the Root of the Perfected Lotus, the next two the Bulb and the top was the Blossom; essentially, it was three dojo stacked on top of each other. Those who sought to study there were first required to abase themselves outside the gates for five days, to show that, no matter how powerful and skilled they were in the outside world, they understood their true place in the Martial Arts World.

Upon being allowed to enter, without any of their belongings, each prospective student was obliged to face off against the Root Master, normally a Terrestrial Sifu who had mastered many Terrestrial level Styles and perhaps some Celestial. Few could hold their own, let alone best the one chosen for this role. After being accepted, the student joined one of the large classes, formed of mortals (Enlightened all), Exalted and spirits alike, and took directions from more advanced students. Classes learned and trained together, practicing their forms and sparring indoors and out. Each graduated according to his skill and potential. Most mortals, spirits and Dragon-Blooded completed their training here and left for the wider world. Some Terrestrials, spirits and most Celestials, however, moved upwards instead of outwards...

Those who determination won them admission to the third and fourth floors, also known as the Bulb, first had to face a Celestial Master in an often humiliating struggle, lest their pride at having attained this level interfere with their learning. Training on this level was more individualized, with one Celestial Master taking on only a handful of students, or even only one. As before, when the student was ready, most either departed to display their mastery for the world, or stayed on to help train newer students. A rare few, however, dared to ascend to the final floor...

Those Sidereals, along with the very few Solars and Lunars who proved worthy, first had to pass the Blossom Guardian. This had never been done, and was really more of an initiation into witnessing the awesome and strange majesty of Sidereal Martial Arts than any real combat. The Blossom was the only place outside of Heaven where Sidereal Martial Arts were taught, and virtually every Sidereal passed through its dojo in some capacity at some point.

The Perfected Lotus Tower generates a Level Five Stone of Return Hearthstone. Its Hidden Passages have Password Activations, but these take the form of exactingly performed kata. Each floor has Tricks and Traps, specially designed to test inhabitants' Perception, Awareness and Dexterity (none of the traps are lethal, simply embarrassing). It also has Ability Enlightenment (Martial Arts) and Archive (a library of ancient scrolls and a magical training room with a Dreamstone Tutor that halves Martial Arts Training Times). A Bound Servant Force of animate Wooden Men serves as sparring aides and performs the daily Maintainance 4 tasks (mostly ritual cleaning). As noted, Amaranth's City Father serves as the Tower's Guardian (and de facto Master of all three floors).

He normally takes the form of a dignified old man in dark spectacles, but has been known to appear as a lamallar-clad warrior or a small girl-child. In the First Age, he was one of the most powerful City Gods in existence. Now that his city is no longer remembered, he has lost the power to enact his greatest techniques, although he still retains his knowledge of them and may teach them. He knows any and all Terrestrial and Celestial Martial Arts appropriate, and may discourse wisely on Sidereal Martial Arts, as well. Although he cares greatly for all his people, he laments that they have become shadows of themselves and cannot attain all the greatness he has to teach. He would greatly welcome any who could end the Wyld curse upon his people and spread his citys' name across Creation once more. Provided they can pass his tests, of course...