Of course, he had said nothing to anyone about the Gathering, and if his government learned he was smuggling an ancient artifact out of the country, well, let’s just say it would become extremely difficult for him to ever travel again. Certainly he was familiar with other less conventional methods he could have used for international passage, but they were very, very expensive and would take many months to arrange. Time was something he could not afford to waste.
Zhang is the caretaker of the Ancient Sword of Sanfeng which, unbeknownst to the world, is his own personal sword. Nearly 800 years earlier, it had been meticulously crafted for Zhang’s hand by the finest swordmaker in Hubei Province. As custodian and historian of such a respected artifact, he would be welcomed warmly. Because his benefactor was making a donation to the Dr. Sun Yat Sen Classical Chinese Garden, the replica would be left on permanent display in Vancouver, but Zhang hoped his own sword, hidden within a secret compartment of the travel case, would give him the power to win the Prize.
Bribing officials at the Beijing airport proved to be as easy as he had expected. Mortals so foolishly regard money as power. He was confident his arrival in Vancouver would be smooth as well, surrounded by fawning media and toadying politicians. Since the arrival of the 21st century, Zhang had become increasingly cynical, a trait he did not enjoy. He settled into his first-class seat, sipping on some warm and soothing green tea. Shortly after takeoff he drifted off to sleep.
In his dreams, he was a young man again, about to discover his immortality. He and his best friend had begun to scale a local mountain peak near their village. For centuries, young men had climbed to the top to prove themselves worthy of entering manhood, but Zhang faltered just as he was completing the most difficult part of the ascent. He lost his footing and tumbled wildly down the hillside.
Zhang’s parents cried in anguish as they watched him falling, and they averted their gaze when his limp body landed on a rocky ledge with a sickening thud. Some men from the village had begun to climb up to retrieve his lifeless form when Zhang stirred. He could feel that both his legs were broken. One shoulder was dislocated, and most of his ribs were cracked or broken from being pummeled against the rocky mountain face. He called out, but the rescuers were frozen, their eyes wide in disbelief. They turned back, refusing to climb any further. Zhang eventually crawled back down to his parents’ feet.
The village doctor set his broken bones, and within a few days Zhang had made a full recovery. Villagers whispered behind is back, declaring that it was demons who had protected Zhang during his fall, and that he was now Sei Gweilo. Consumed by both rage and sadness, he packed his belongings and left his village, never to return.
Zhang awoke with a start when the aircraft hit a pocket of turbulence. He glanced at his watch – only 6 more hours to Vancouver, and the Gathering. Would he be victorious and win the Prize?
Can you help Zhang determine where the Gathering will take place? You need to find all the caches in this series and collect clues from them to locate where these immortals will be doing battle.
Remember, there can be only ONE!
The cache is a small camo-painted L&L that contains a laminated clue note. You will need to copy down the information that is written on the note, however if the note has gone missing or is unreadable you can obtain the necessary info by emailing the CO.