Tengu
Overview
Many yokai of Azuma are more complex creatures than one might think at first glance. The tengu exemplify this idea more than most, particularly due to the specific nature of their creation. While many yokai that arise from an existing being are the transformed state of that entity, tengu are instead spiritual chaff, manifesting when a person of good standing commits a knowing evil. When a general flees while his army faces an overwhelming horde; when a samurai breaks her oath of service to a daimyo; when a priest desecrates a shrine and defiles its spirits; when a son stabs his father to claim ownership of their humble shop; all of these spawn a tengu fully-formed within the misty mountain of Kohryu.Being born from such cruelty and cowardice, most tengu exemplify these traits. While they wear the robes of ascetic hermits and carry religious staffs and fine weaponry, a tengu is driven to commit the lowest and most savage acts a human could conceive of. At the same time, tengu are not mindless beasts; they are known to be the most adept martial artists in all of Azuma, and more than a few incredible warriors have earned their skill under a tengu they have convinced to train them. Lord Imagawa of Suzaku has even managed to employ a kotengu to provide training to his elite shock troops, a group known as the Daisen Crows after their teacher. Such tutelage is hard to come by and even harder to endure, however; if the tengu does not torment its aspiring pupil to death just for the joy of it, then their rigorous and life-threatening training might instead.
Kotengu
The vast majority of tengu manifest as kotengu, identified by their crow heads and taloned hands and feet. These tengu most often exemplify the worst that tengu can be, at once cruel and cowardly. When left totally free, many kotengu enjoy such games as abducting people and dropping them from great heights deep into uncharted forests, tying children to the tops of trees so that their screams reach far and wide, but none can safely climb to save them, or force-feeding people feces until they go mad. Sacrilege is a particular joy to many kotengu, and those that can get away with it torment monks and nuns or rob temples. When no such opportunities exist, their time is instead spent with sparring or training to further enhance their martial skill.
Each kotengu believes itself to be superior over others, and this overconfidence (while often accurate in terms of battle prowess) is often their downfall when cleverness and trickery come into play. Many kotengu have been duped into trading powerful magical items, training, or valuable information in exchange for worthless trinkets.
This superiority complex also falters in one key regard, as all kotengu defer without question to the orders of a daitengu. As the current daitengu, Sojobo, is aligned with the heavenly kitsune, all kotengu are restricted from being violent and cruel to humans. This doesn't mean that some kotengu don't try getting away with what they think they can, especially if witnesses aren't around to prove what happened.
Daitengu
As with all yokai, malice and self-control are a personal choice, and daitengu clearly represent this dichotomy with their kotengu kin. If a kotengu chooses to restrain their cruel urges and focus on self-reflection and improvement, after many ages they may ascend as a daitengu. Identified by their much more human features, bright red skin, and extremely long noses, daitengu represent the martial skill, focus, and potential of a tengu with none of a kotengu's flightiness and cowardice. A trick that relies on a kotengu's overconfidence will not be effective against a shrewd daitengu.Their ages of meditation and self-improvement have made them much wiser and stronger than the kotengu, but it does not automatically mean that they are less brutal or unpredictable. Indeed, the wrath of a daitengu has been known to cause tornadoes, earthquakes, and even greater catastrophies; they have simply honed their self-restraint and ability to act with more thought and care. More importantly, this thoughtfulness brings with it a respect for the other people of Azuma, and often a noble cause or simple bravery is enough to gain the ear of a daitengu.
There is rarely more than one daitengu in Azuma, and currently only one is known in the public eye: Sojobo, king of the tengu and lord of Kohryu. Sojobo has claimed leadership over the tengu for five hundred years, and he is known to be the most benevolent by far in Azuma's history. It is exclusively through his alliance with the kitsune that the kotengu are currently kept in line and made to serve as protectors of Azuma rather than terrors, and his days of solitude and meditation have come to an end since his alliance began. While he remains on the mountain, he makes regular patrols to minimize the cruelty of the kotengu in his territory, and just the powerful rush of wind from his wings is enough to strike fear into the hearts of the kotengu.
by Wang Jianxi
