The Last Empress of Mars

Peking, China - Early in the Year of our Lord 1421

Zheng He, Head Admiral of the Ming Emperor´s Treasure Fleet, with over 300 ships and nearly 28,000 persons under his command, was preparing his massive fleet for what would surely be an epic voyage. The sixth voyage to be exact but unlike the previous ones dating back to 1405, this one had many nuances that made it extremely unique. For starters, it was the largest fleet ever gathered anywhere in the World, so much so, that entire forests throughout the kingdom had been decimated just to provide sufficient teak and other woods for building the fleet. This particular voyage would begin by returning to their respective homes the top emissaries and heads of state from dozens of countries and territories in Asia, India and Africa, who traded with and had pledged tribute and allegiance to the Supreme Ming Emperor Zhu Di, who had just finished a month-long celebration to honor the completion of the Forbidden City. These distinguished guests had in fact been in Peking for over two years, having been brought here by the previous Treasure Fleet voyage in 1418 1419 so that they could be here to join in the celebration once the Forbidden City was completed. They had been provided with the best food, wines, luxurious accommodation and with concubines who were very highly skilled in the amatory arts. All of it designed to keep them happy and to impress them with the opulence and generosity of the Chinese Empire and the magnificence of its heavenly designated Emperor. Zhu Di did not believe in doing anything halfway, whether it was rebuilding a large portion of the Great Wall or building this magnificent Forbidden City, unfortunately this meant lavish outlays of royal treasure and this caused serious friction with the conservative Confucius-inspired Mandarin class who ran the day-to-day operations of the Empire outside the Forbidden City while his more liberal eunuchs managed everything inside. Another reason this voyage was unique was its mission to circumnavigate the entire globe by breaking up into several smaller fleets and thus create more accurate maps, and introduce the wonders of China to other people around the World and bring them into the fold reaping the benefits of becoming part of this great empire and of all the advantages and advanced knowledge that it had to offer and of course, as new tributaries to the