Matsuo Shin and The Palace of Heaven
Matsuo Shin and The Palace of Heaven is story 7 of the continuing adventures of Matsuo Shin
Plot Summary
Upon his arrival at Ulan Bator airport, Matsuo hired a local man to take him to the site at which the Uranian vase was discovered. Once there, he began a survey, unaware that he was being watched. These two mysterious men signaled Matsuo's guide, and left shortly thereafter.
In the evening, Matsuo called Thorn to let her know everything was going well and that he was busy categorizing his finds. However, he soon sensed that something was amis and quickly ended the call. Outside his tent, he was attacked by a group of men. Although he attempted to fight them off, he was knocked out from behind by a young woman in military dress.
Awakening in an office in Beijing, Matsuo found himself face to face with Yan-Lee Chang, a government official. Cutting to the chase, Chang accused him of forging his credentials, as there is no record of him at the University of Beijing. Matsuo didn't deny the charges, but countered by accusing Chang of kidnapping him over a minor infraction. Chang quickly changed his tone, praising Matsuo for his finds in Egypt.
The young woman from before and a tall, gaunt man, also in military dress, joined Chang and Matsuo, bringing with them an ancient scroll. Unfurling it, Matsuo was astonished as he began translating it--the scroll revealed the existence of the Palace of Heaven, the supposed tomb of the mortal remains of the Jade Emperor, the supreme god of ancient China. When pressed, Chang reveals that the scroll was found during the construction of the Four Gorges dam.
Upon further translation, however, they discovered that three more maps were required to find the Palace' hidden location. Matsuo wondered why they were asking him to do this, and Chang told him that the government wants the Palace found as quickly as possible to create positive publicity for the country. Chang also made clear that refusal to cooperate would land Matsuo in dire circumstances. The young woman was Lt. Lin Chiang, a military archaeologist, and her colleague is Col. Bai Leong. Both would accompany him on the misson. When Matsuo stated he would need some help restoring the faded parts of the scroll to discover what the next map will be, Lin suggested they go to a museum for that sort of assistance.
At the museum, Matsuo felt that they weren't alone, which Bai shrugged off, saying it was probably just the museum staff. Meeting with a restoration expert, they discovered that the next map is one "read in the heavens." From the description, Lin recognized the object in question as a carved tone disc, which showed a crude map of the stars. However, they were interrupted by the sound of breaking glass, and Matsuo, Lin, and Bai ran out to investigate. Matsuo found a broken vase, and was attached by a man disguised in a display. Matsuo disarmed him, but he had hidden knife and attempted to stab Matsuo in the heart. The struggle ended abruptly when Bai shot the attacker.
Lin returned with the stone disc, and they all went back to the restoration room, only to find the expert dead, a knife in his back and the scroll missing. Looking at the knife, Lin recognized the symbol on the end as belong to the Red Hand Triad. Matsuo asked Lin and Bai where the Triad meet, which Bai offered to show him.
Arriving at the Golden Lotus Nightclub, owned by Fat Chi, the head of the Red Hand Triad, Matsuo and Bai attempted to blend in. Pointing the man out to Matsuo, the archaeologist decided to be direct with the criminal and walked over to the table, where he was surprised to learn he was expected. When Matsuo asked Fat Chi what he wanted with the scroll, Fat takes out the scroll and stated that there is more to the Palace of Heaven then Matsuo knows. Before he could ask any other questions, however, Bai and Matsuo were escorted at gunpoint to the back of the club.
In narrow hallway, Matsuo and Bai suddenly attacked the gangster and his men, slamming them against the walls and grabbing the scroll. Running out, Matsuo and Bai grabbed a motorcycle and flee the scene, followed closly by Fat's men in a car. Weaving in and out of traffic, they led them on a high speed chase, until a quick manuvier by Matsuo caused the Triads to crash into the side of a building. Bai warned Matsuo, however, that they would not give up trying to get him or the scroll.
Meeting back with Lin, Matsuo was able to examine the stone disc, trying to deciver how the object could help them find the tomb. While glancing outside, Matsuo realized that the disc showed a certain constellation in the sky, as well as a drawing of an island underneath said constellation. Looking through what notes they can, Lin found a reference to an island with a similar name to the constallation. Deciding to investigate, the three headed out, a group of the Red Hand Triad secretly following them in a car.
On the plane to the island, Matsuo quietly discussed the mission with Lin, and asked why it was so important for them to find the palace. While Lin again spoke of how it would bring new prestige to China, Bai simply replied that perhaps the palace meant more than even prestige.
Arriving outside the series of islands, Matsuo and the others got their hands on a motorboat and made their way, searching for the island. Locating the area, they soon found a small dug-in cave, the walls covered in a huge mural depicting the palace. Lin managed to translate the inscription, revealing that the palace was hidden in the "eastern mountains and the mists." Looking through a map of China, Matsuo came to the conclusion that the palace was located somewhere near the himalyas. He also read a description of something called the Sword of The Jade Emperor, an object that the mural warned can bring either greatness or destruction. Matsuo also read something else, but decided at the moment to keep it to himself.
As they headed away from the cave, they were suddenly ambushed by the Triad in their own motorboats, who began to fire on them, at one point shooting through Matsuo's fedora. Although they attempted to get away from the gang by hiding behind the large islands, the boat's fuel tank was ruptured, forcing them to abandon ship. Surrounded by the gang by gunpoint, Matsuo and the others were brought aboard a boat by an angry Fat Chi, who, putting a gun to Matsuo's head, demanded to be taken to the Palace.
After another lengthy plane trip, Matsuo and the others, along with Fat Chi and his men, arrived in the Himalayas. Fat Chi forced Matsuo, Bai, and Lin to start their walk toward the Palace's supposed location. Arriving at an area covered in blinding mists, Fat Chi warned them that if they tricked him, he would kill them all. Before Matsuo can reply, the mist seems to part, revealing an eleborate palace. Taking this chance, Matsuo quickly knocked Fat Chi over and Bai and Lin disarmed the rest of the men. However, almost immedetly Bai turned his gun on Matsuo and Lin, revealing that Fat Chi and the Triad were under his orders the entire time. Matsuo wished that this type of thing wouldn't keep happening to him. Bai Forces them to the door, Matsuo can only open the gigantic stone structure.
Walking in, the group discovered a gigantic hallway, the sides of which were flanked by stone soldiers. Moving ahead, Matsuo paused, beliving he heard movements. Feeling the butt of the gun against his back, however, he went on. The group stopped again as clearer noises of the movement reach their ears. Looking around in the dim light of the hallway, they suddenly realized that the statues were moving toward them, weapons drawn. The Triads began to fire blindly at the soldiers; however, the bullets did little more than bounce off their stone bodies. Several of the men were cut down in their tracks by the statues, which soon turned on the rest. Thinking fast, Matsuo pulled out the stone disc, holding it up for the soldiers to see. This seemed to work, as they suddenly stop in their tracks. Before anyone could react, the doors behind them opened slowly.
Entering the doors, the group found themselves in an elaborate room, filled with silk banners. Gigantic torches lined either side of the room, as well as a line of statues holding spears. Sitting on a large throne was a mummified corpse, dressed completely in jade armor with a simple sword in front of it on a dias. Bai ordered Fat Chi to remove the sword. Hesitantly, Fat Chi grabbed hold of the blade's handle, only to burst into blue flames and turn to ash, screaming. Bai then said that only someone with noble blood could hold the sword, such as himself, the last remaining of the bloodline of the previous imperial dynasty. He panned to use the sword's power to unite others in order to restore the glory of China with himself as it's ruler. As he reached the handle, Bai was suddenly clothed in the armor of a Chinese warrior. However, before he could pull out the handle, Matsuo grabbed hold of the sword, and to Bai's surprise, was dressed in the armor of a Quinoxian prince.
As the two glared at each other, a voice boomed from the armored corpse, claiming to be the spirit of the Jade Emperor and that one of must prove worthy as his successor. Bai smiled, pulling out a sword from his belt and claiming that he would be the better man and would prove it by killing the usurper. Bai charged Matsuo, who barely managed to pull his own sword to block the attack. The two began to fight, Matsuo using all his sword skills to try to bring down his opponent, while Bai relied on his strength.
Matsuo, however, soon remembered the mural in the island cave and stops, getting down on his knees and proclaiming that he would not fight Bai. Bai proclaimed himself victor, preparing to kill Matsuo. However, the Jade Emperor suddenly proclaimed that Matsuo is the true successor, for knowing when to declare peace and when to fight. Bai, enraged, grabbed the Sword of the Jade Emperor, stating that he would not be denined his right. As he thrusted the sword to impale Matsuo, Lin dove between them, taking the blow for him. As the first drops of her blood hit the blade, The Jade Emperor shouted that Bai has desicrated the weapon with the blood of the innocent and must pay. As Bai backed away, the warrior statues came to life, advancing toward him. Dropping the sword, Bai screamed that he was the true heir of China, and that he was supposed to restore its glory.The statues, however, gave no head and surrounded him, killing him with their spears.
As Matsuo cradled the dying Lin in his arms, the Jade Emperor spoke, offering Matsuo the sword and the throne. Though tempted at first, Matsuo declined, saying that all he wished was to return home. The Jade Emperor respected his request and bade Matsuo leave the palace, as the world no longer needed him. With that, the complex began to tremble, forcing Matsuo to rush to his feet and run for the exit, carrying Lin.
Running out from the palace, Matsuo was able to get to a safe enough distace. To his surprise, Lin recovers, fully healed, a final gift from the Jade Emperor. The two turned to look at the Palace, they watched as it flew apart and reformed into a gigantic dragon made of brick and stone. Roaring once, the dragon flew up into the sky and vanished into the clouds. Lin turned to Matsuo and asked how he knew that he had made the right choice by not fighting Bai. Matsuo said that on the care mural there was a sentance that read that the wise man knows that the way of peace is the only way to win. Lin then asked what he'd do now that they had nothing to bring back to the government. Matsuo simply tells her "talk."
Back in Beijing, Chang, the government official, was surprised by the sudden arrival of Matsuo and Lin. Matsuo suddenly pressed him to the wall with his telekinesis and had Lin disarm the guards who enter. He then told Chang everything about Bai and reminded him that Chang's future depended on the success of this mission. Letting Chang loose, Matsuo instead offered a deal: full backing on Matsuo's fictional backstory, a professorship from the university and no further hassal for him or Lin from the government. When Chang tried to hold out on making the deal, Matsuo reminded him that whatever discoveries he makes in the field will translate to good publicity for the country as well as perhaps a pardon for the mess Chang made of the mission. Chang saw the point of this and agreed. As Chang prepared the paperwork, Matsuo started to leave. When he asked where he was going, Matsuo told him he had a dig to finish.
Items Discovered
- Uranian Pottery - Late Celestia Period
- Uranian Armor - Middle Celestia Period
- Uranian Sword Fragments - Middle Celestia Period
- Uranian Knife - Middle Celestia Period
- Sword of the Jade Emperor (Lost)
