Week 6 Storytelling: Notscha vs. Sun Wu Kung

Notscha could not just stand and watch the heavenly warrior sent by the Lord of the Heavens get beat down so quickly by Sun Wu Kung. He would not let this childish ape win and get away with this! How could Sun so easily dodge and maneuver his way around this so-called elite warrior? It was incredible but at the same infuriating for Notscha, who had spent his whole life training to become one of the best warriors of the Heavens. Notscha snapped out of it as the warrior fell next to him and took his last breaths as warden of the Heavens. It was now time for the prince to take charge.

Notscha stepped up and cried out in a loud voice, "You wretched ape! I am Prince Notscha and I have been commanded by the Lord of the Heavens himself to take you as prisoner! You will stand no chance against me."

Sun Wu Kung couldn't help but giggle a little bit as he looked the prince up and down. He couldn't have been more than sixteen years old, but he showed resolve that not many people could muster in the face of battle. He could see the fierceness in the young warrior's eyes; they were unrelenting.

"Time to get serious," Sun Wu Kung thought to himself.

Before he could even ready himself, Notscha was upon him, swinging his sword with a force that would've taken off Sun's head had he not ducked in the nick of time. Sun Wu countered with his own sword, swinging it up and to the left. Blow after blow after blow, both fighters could not get the best of each other. The whole world could sense the fight going on. Each time their swords clashed, the ground trembled and quaked. Every time that Notscha thought he was gaining an upper hand, Sun Wu would lash back with even more finesse and power than expected.

Sun Wu was slightly impressed. He had a feeling this kid could put up a fight, but he wasn't expecting this.

"I need to end this soon before I get tired and sloppy," thought Sun Wu as he danced around Notscha trying to buy a little more time so he could figure out his next move.

Sun Wu glanced around, looking for anything that would give him an edge against this kid. A few feet away, he saw something glistening in the light. It was a sharp rock! One that could easily end this fight. All he had to do was get to it without alerting Notscha.

At the same time, Notscha was getting overwhelmed. He could not keep this up much longer even if he wanted to. He could feel his legs burning from darting around trying to avoid Sun Wu's quick moves. Ever so slowly, momentum was shifting towards Sun Wu.

"What do I do now? Do I give up? Do I surrender? I can't keep up no matter what I do," thought Notscha.

Doubt was clouding Notscha's mind, so much so that he was beginning to lose focus. Fatigue and inattention was a recipe for death, and Notscha knew it. He took a quick moment to shake his head to rid the negative thoughts from his head. In that split moment, Sun Wu took his chance. He dived to the ground and scooped up the stone with his free hand, all in one motion. He turned towards Notscha, and with all his might, drove the stone clean through his shoulder. Blood spattered everywhere!

Sun Wu Kung spoke fiercely, "Take this as a warning and never come back again to find me. I shall let you live this once. Next time you feel the urge to come after me, think of this pain and you will no longer desire to cross paths with me. I am the Great Saint Who Is Heaven's Equal and I will not be defeated".

And with that, Sun Wu Kung was free to live peacefully and reign over his mountain.

Sun Wu Kung at a Beijing opera; Wikimedia

Author's Note

I chose to take the story of the immortal Monkey King, Sun Wu Kung, and elaborate on the epic fight between Notscha and Sun Wu Kung. In the original story, Sun Wu feels disrespected after he is given a job as stable master in heaven. After hearing that it is a worthless job, Sun Wu becomes infuriated and flees heaven to go back to the mountain over which he reigns. The Lord of the Heavens sends warriors to catch him as prisoner, but Sun Wu has other ideas. An intense battle between Prince Notscha, the prince of heaven, and Sun Wu ensues. I didn't stray from the original plot of the story, but I did add my own twist to the fight between the two characters. I added dialogue in order to capture the words exchanged during the fight and I also tried to highlight each character's thoughts as the fight was occurring. I also wanted to depict Notscha as inferior to Sun Wu when it came to battle. However, I also wanted to portray him as an up and coming warrior who never backed down from a fight. My intention was to glorify the battle in order to highlight its importance because I thought it was brief and rushed in the original story.

Bibliography

The Monkey King Sun Wu Kung taken from Wilhelm's Chinese Fairy Book.

Reading Notes (B): The Monkey King Sun Wu Kung

The Lord of the Heavens

Due to his unruly conduct, Sun Wu Kung is almost taken prisoner by the Lord of the Heavens. However, the Evening Star comes to his defense and explains that Sun Wu Kung is an immortal made from the purest powers. So instead, Sun Wu Kung is offered a position as stable master in heaven! For my story, I could tweak this story and describe the journey to heaven from the stone ape's point of view. I could also elaborate on his new position as stable master as part of my story this week.

The Great Saint

At dinner one day, Sun Wu Kung asks about his title of stable master. He is expecting it to be a very official title, one of the highest ranks. But alas, that is not true. His friends tell him it's not an important title at all. Sun Wu Kung then gets very angry and feels he has been mistreated. He leaves heaven is a flurry and returns home to his mountain where he is a respected King. His new title becomes the "Great Saint who is Heaven's Equal",

Notscha, Son of Li Dsing
Upon hearing of the escape of Sun Wu Kung, the Lord of the Heavens orders Li Dsing, his son, Notscha, and a heavenly warrior to find Sun and take him prisoner.  Sun Wu Kung easily defeats the heavenly warrior and laughs at him for even trying to fight him. Then an epic fight between Notscha and Sun Wu occurs and it is one for the ages. Ultimately, Sun Wu Kung wins and Li Dsing return to heaven to tell the Lord of the Heavens of their defeat. Once again, they are speechless. The Evening Star once again returns and suggests giving the title of the Great Saint who is Heaven's equal to Sun Wu Kung. It was an empty title, after all. The Lord of the Heavens agrees and summons Sun Wu Kung once again. I think retelling the story of Sun and Notscha's would be an entertaining story to write for this week. It's a good idea to work with!

Sun Wu Kung; Wikipedia 

Bibliography

The Monkey King Sun Wu Kung taken from Wilhelm's Chinese Fairy Book.

Reading Notes (A): The Monkey King Sun Wu Kung

Handsome King of the Apes

The King of the Apes was born on a mountain out of a special rock. This rock was filled hidden power from the heavens and earth and sun and moon since it originated from the beginning of time. One day, the rock bursts and out comes an egg. From this egg hatches a stone ape who eventually becomes the King. There was a waterfall that was basically the entrance to a cave. He told his ape friends what he found and then led them inside the cave. There they found  pots and pans and other utensils that were only made of stone. From then, the stone ape was named the Handsome King of Apes. I like the idea of there being a waterfall covering an entrance to something grand. I can potentially use this in my story for this week.

The stone ape and the waterfall; Wikimedia

The Great Sea

In this story, the King of the Apes breaks down at the thought of death. A wise, old ape speaks of three different kinds of living creatures who are exempt from Death's powers: the Buddhas, the blessed spirits, and the gods. Only these three categories can skip death and live as long as the heavens.

Sun Wu Kung Gets His Name

At the Mountain of Heart, the King of the Apes comes across a workman who tells him of a saint named "The Discerner". This saint gives the ape who came out of stone a name: Sun Wu Kung.

The Master

The master offers many different things that Sun Wu Kung can learn but he desired to only know how to attain eternal life. The master became irritated at his negligence and hit him across the head three times. However, the master was not irritated. Instead, the three blows to his face was an indication to meet him during the third watch of the night in his chambers. At the proper time, Sun Wu Kung excitedly made his way to the chambers and exclaims that he is ready to learn.

Bibliography

The Monkey King Sun Wu Kung taken from Wilhelm's Chinese Fairy Book.