《Shadow of a great man》


 Chapter 1: The portrait on the wall

    My fingers wondered restlessly until they found my ring on the left had. I often stopped to look at it. It was a way to remember what it meant.


    The snow outside was proof of the cold, but the sun was starting to rise earlier. The winter was coming to an end.


    I had lost the whole night looking at the object hung on the wall just across the room. It was very well made but the eyes... they seemed to follow me, to stare deeply into my soul.


    I lacked the will to go, to continue and do what needed to be done. It was beyond my power to quit. But, before I did anything else, there was something that I had to do.Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.


    My face couldn''t hide how conflicted my mind was. The idea of just staying there on that comfortable armchair near the chimney seemed more tempting every second.


    I had enough.


    It took a lot of me to just lean my body foward and stand up. I walked, stepping on the red carpet, and silently raised the portrait, taking it out of its place.


    The fear of uncertainty made me look once again at it. It was a way of showing myself that there was still time to put it back. I turned around and took a deep breath.


    It barely fit when I throwed it on the fire.


    That act gave me freedom, but a bitter one. It was time for me to rebuild everything.

 Chapter 2: The not so distant past

    "Where are they going!?"


    "I sent them to the frontlines"


    "The frontlines? Are you mad?"


    "Mad? Look around! Those man are hungry. We are fighting for months and the winter just began! You want all of them to die?"


    Those words hit me. I was inexperienced and I had barely seen a few small battles. The enemy was marching way faster than we could. We needed time. Those man were being sent to their deaths for the sake of the rest.


    ...


    I was taken back from my memories and stopped looking at the musket hung on my wall, just above the chimney. I heard some light knocking and Bertrand soon entered the room. He put a goblet just in front of me and poured some wine.


    The smell of Chardonnay was very pleasant and my loyal servant stood beside me to promptly refill it for me. Wine is good to evade memories.The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.


    "Did you find anything?"


    "Yes, Milord"


    "And..?"


    "There is a man that might interest you"


    "And how can I meet with him?"


    "He lives in the city of Lion"


    I frowned as I heard that name. I didn''t expect to go back anytime soon and Bertrand could see how displeased I was.


    "Do you want me to find someone else?"


    "No... I would have to go there sooner or later"


    He said nothing more. He didn''t need to. I openned the drawer to take a paper and my crowquill. I took a small bottle of ink to dip the pen. It was a formality to send a letter before going to the lands of another aristocrat..


    The movements of the quill gave form to the ink. It bacame words, praises, titles and some sort of fancy writing. I asked for an envelop as I folded the paper. I took a small piece of wood and plunged it into a red mixture. Bertrand put the paper in and gave it for me to press the tainted wood on it. It would soon go dry and leave the symbol of the family, proof of the legitimacy of the piece of paper.


    I took another sip to feel the taste of wine.


    "It is time for us to meet them..."


    "It seems so"

 Chapter 3: The same so different

    Everybody was very well dressed. They gave me their fancy smiles and praised me. Many were in the same situation that I was, but my name carried the fame of my father. I got out of the hall, giving polite words and praises to a few ladies walking on my way. It was very tiresome, but I can''t deny I was happy. It was all I had dreamed of since I was a kid. It felt very different from what I expected.


    ...


    "Milord?"


    I breathed and took notice of things around me. I was still in the carriage, but the scenario changed as I was lost in my memories.


    "Milord?"


    "Yes?"


    Bertrand was calling me. He was there sitting beside me, but I had completely forgotten about his presence.


    "We will be passing near the house of Lady Mariane. Would you like to meet her?"


    "Not really..."


    "But you will. Am I right?"


    "Yes"


    The city was full of activity. The sun had risen a few hours ago and the people walking around were making the passage of carriages and horses very difficult. The shouts of merchants and peddlers calling the attention to their merchandise stood out.This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.


    "What about the bank, Milord?"


    Bertrand was becoming an expert of making me frown by reminding me of unpleasant things.


    "I will solve that later"


    "You said that a few years ago"


    He had always been a good servant, so I considered him a friend. He had all the freedom to speak, but it would be nice to not ruin my day.


    "Yes. I am aware of that"


    "You could sell his projects"


    I gritted by teeth with my mouth still shut, but he noticed that. I was tired of living by the things that were built by him.


    "No, I will find my own way"


    "He is dead now. It is not wrong to use the things that are left to recover from a fall"


    "I had enough, Bertrand. Please stay shut for a minute"


    The sight of wood houses and balconies were replaced by walls that streched what seemed to be a kilometer. The gates of steel were decorated by flowers and two static guards dressed in red and white.


    They prevented our passage using their spears.


    "Identify yourself!"


    And there I was, seeing the gates of that same palace as Bertrand got out of the carriage to speak with the guards. I stood there to celebrate a moment I now curse and that was just a few years ago.


    They stopped blocking the way and openned the gates for us. The floors of rugged stones from the streets gave way to a very delicated material with carvings that showed the prosperity of the house.


    The flowers were simply beautiful, but that is not all they were. The ones inside were separated by railings for a reason. They were some of the most poisonous you could find. I stopped looking at the plants when the carriage stopped moving. I oppened the little door to get out and feel the pleasant sensation of standing again. As usual, Bertrand started to speak with other servants to take care of the baggage.


    The finely carved doors painted in white and blue oppened for me to see someone as beautiful as a godess and as poisonous as the garden she kept.


    I forced the best smile as I could and she responded with a graceful expression, a fake one.

 Chapter 4: The right way to fool your family

    "You look well, brother"


    "Same to you"


    "So? What brings you here?"


    "Small matters we can leave for later"


    "Later? No. Come on, tell me"


    "...I would like you to sell the house on Amista and you said you wanted it"


    "Oh? Why are you selling it now? No, wait, don''t tell me. Maybe your gambling problems finally got to this stage"


    She was wearing an elegant dress and spoke while making exaggerated expressions. She was trying to test my patiance.


    "No. Not to this point.. yet"


    "Oh? then why do you need the money? Come on, you can tell me"


    "Maybe I can tell you at dinner"


    It was a battle. She was making me speak in a way that if I refused I would be the one looking bad. The servants stood still, waiting for us. They weren''t looking at our exchange. It was part of their job to make it seem like they were not there if they were not called. She smiled and gestured for them to continue their work.


    "Of course, brother. My servants will lead you to your room"


    She walked away and a few maids followed right after her. I looked at Bertrand and he nodded. It meant that he would bring my baggage to my room soon. I followed the butler with black tidy hair combed backwards. I couldn''t stop myself from noticing the perfect posture and how well designed was his tailcoat. He definetly came from a very traditional family with some wealth.The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.


    He guided me through the hallways and stopped near a dark wood door. I looked at him and then at the door before opening it and stepping inside. When he was about to go, I asked for a quill and two pieces of paper.


    Bertrand arrived to leave what I brought. He bowed down and left politely as I put the baggage over the bed. There were a lot of papers. Strange drawings that couldn''t make less sense and exquisite writings all over as if they were explanations and cluttered notes. I tried to read it again, but the terms written were not something I had ever seen. There were some names written bigger than the others, titles.


    "Piano.. Pendulum clock... Telescope... optical microscope... What are all those things..?"


    There were thousands of inventions, drawings he could never give life to.


    I heard a knock and looked at the door. I quickly put everything back as I said to come in.


    "Milord, here it is"


    I thanked him and got the paper and quill to quickly sit in a chair made of wood with a red pillow to sit in. I started to write quickly but carefully. It needed to have perfect grammar for me to convince them, to make a good first impression.


    I openned the door slowly, making nearly no sound and found a maid. I told her to call Bertrand and she nodded before going after him.


    He arrived in a minute.


    "You didn''t tell me you were going to sell that house"


    "I decided it on the way here"


    "And why are you going to do it?"


    "Remember the projects you talked about?"


    "Yes"


    "I will not sell them. Instead, I am going to make them work. Something he could never do"


    He widened his eyes and stared at me for a few seconds. I smiled to him and he acknowledged my intentions.


    "Milord.. You have no money.."


    "That''s why I am going to sell that house"


    "Your father tried to do it with ten times that much and he couldn''t"


    "That''s why I need you to personally get those letters to the bank and to the east isles company"


    "..They didn''t accept it when your father offered either..."


    I smiled to him. If we couldn''t do it asking them to help us, we had to deceive them.


    He saw my vicious smile and hesitated, but grabbed them anyways.


    The stagewas set.

 Chapter 5: The dinner

    My eyes wondered through the hall. The large wood table seemed to stretch up to the person sitting on my opposite side. She was as elegant as ever, but her face wore a false expression just like a mask that perfectly suited her.


    Since it was night, the firelight illuminated the hall in red and orange tones as the servants stopped to bring any kind of food, leaving the table full.


    "Brother?"


    I got back from my own mind and looked at her smile. I knew where this was going.


    "You didn''t tell me why you wanted to sell the house in Amista"


    "I need the money for somethings"


    "Somethings? Like what?"


    "..For a new project"


    "Project?"


    "Yes. I plan on making the inventions of our father work"


    By the time I ended my phrase, she already making muffled laughs. I stopped and stared at her, but she did not stop. It was her way to ridicule me in front of her servants. I acted as if it never happened until she stopped to speak.


    "Father tried that several times during his life. What makes you think you can do it now?"Stolen story; please report.


    It was my time to smile. I took a letter from inside my suit that I had written for this occasion and handed it to the maid closest to me. She quickly gave it to my sister as I started to speak.


    "The Bank and the East Isles Company already accepted my proposal"


    I rejoiced when I saw her disbelief and watched as she oppened the envelop and started to read.


    "What is this?"


    "I am also inviting you to be a part of the investment"


    "This is impossible!"


    "Imposible? I don''t think so"


    "I can''t belive it. I am going to send a letter to the bank right now"


    She watched me intensely as I smiled once again.


    "I don''t think that''s going be needed"


    "And why is that?"


    "There is going to be a meeting in the house in Amista"


    She looked at me again. She was trying to find a hint that it was not true, a flaw in my expression, but it was my turn to talk.


    "Since Bertrand is not here, I will borrow one of your maids"


    "For what exactly"


    I looked at the same maid that I had given the letter to and gestured for her to come closer.


    "Please send two letters. One for the EIC and another for the bank. Ask them for a confirmation of their participation in the meeting in Amista"


    She looked at my sister and received a nod. My sister did not believe me yet.


    "I still don''t believe you, brother. But.. If they are indeed going, I will participate"


    There was nothing else to speak of. I silently ate the food that was on the table. There were no vegetables, but there was abundance when it came to fruits and meat. I did not stay to talk. Instead, I got out the moment I finished, but I did not forget to bow in respect.


    I couldn''t help to feel happy. Everything was going as planned and hopefully Bertrand would arrive bringing good news.


    The greatest and richest are the easiest to fool.

 notes 1

    I tried to make people imagine the time by looking at the scenes.


    Just to make clear


    The character remembers a scene in a war while looking at a musket and that suggests something after 1500s


    but the character also sees for the first time in a project the name "piano" that was invented around 1710sReading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there.


    there is also the telescope, that was invented around 1610s


    The time is between 1550 and 1610 when we compare the fictional world to the real world


    Another good way to analyse is by remembering the cities.


    In our timeline the cities grew to flourish around 1300s and continued to prosper until today


    It was also uncommon to have big cities in medieval time and that makes me imagine something after 1400s


    Anyways,


    Thanks for the comments and support


    It makes me really happy


    I will try to show things more detailed and clearer for you

 Read this

    Writing this has been a great pleasure


    This fic served as a test and I will be writing a newfiction instead of this one


    I will try to Apply the things I have learned to do the new one


    if you want to check out the fiction I will be writing now... The name is "Tales of Giants and Men"Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original.


    There are many elements that are similar to this story


    But the new one has a beginning, a middle and an end


    It has many elements of post-colonial brazilian history and I will try to make it great


    Yes, I won''t write "Shadow of a great man" anymore, but the new fic has many things that are similar, since I used this one as a way to learn what I could


    Thanks a lot.


    Please check out the other story if you are interested