CHAPTER 1: A DAY IN SCARLET
“It begins then…”
The scene opened on a luxurious room filled with a Victorian essence, only one of the many rooms within a big mansion of polished marble, cedarwood and colorful rocks of any kind.
The man in black seated in a red and gold sofa spoke with an elegant tone while holding a glass of red wine in his hand. Anybody would think this man was of great importance, a renowned figure yet he was in fact an unknown person for the media and thus the population. Yet still he acted with the dignity that only a great man can boast.
His interlocutor dressed with a tartan shirt, long pants and a top hat all in a mixture of wild colors, both from the clothes themselves and the stains of different paintings, a total contrast to the appearance of the other man. He was busy on his own painting but gave himself time to smile and reply.
“It was quite a journey, to find the ten pieces, heh! It even took a person’s life to gather them. Do you wear no regret Elean?”
The man in black, Elean, sipped from his wine and said.
“It had to come eventually, that life was wasted after all, a fool old man, a complete idiot that bought all the innocent lies, and his fate was the right one.”
“But, you took his life, didn’t you?”
“I do wear that life my dear friend. Now please, let’s enjoy this time, tomorrow will be a great day for sure.”
The man sipped from the glass again emptying it while his partner continued his painting. Both were accompanied by the Revolutionary Etude echoing through the room.
The day of the Scarlet is soon to fall. I’ll see that you pain your sin.
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The biggest event of the year, The great exposition of art from all the world begins today! The most important day for Anheldrim and the entire world. Which great artist will come triumphant and which will face the bitter defeat? Regardless of the outcome, enjoy! For this will be surely a great day to remember, a day that will be carved within every single man and woman, every single artist!
The greatest city, the metropolis of art was even more lively than the usual. The streets filled with colors and music, with scents and dances; street artists performed their grace with passion in an attempt to gather the attention of any tourist or passerby, but mainly to show its devotion. From each corner a different melody played yet when they mixed it didn’t became a total chaos, instead they combined into a great symphony. The scents of food covered the environment, sweet, salty, spicy and bitter, each one a temptation, each one calling the people to enter into the kitchens and enjoy a promising meal.
The expressions of each art manifested as well, thus lights danced in the air, fling pots of food traveled through the streets, dancing figures took form and even buildings raised into the sky. Even for those who had lived years in this city, each single one was a new surprise, truly a marvelous scenery drawn from a dream.
Yet all this was just the entrance hall from what all had come to see, The Great exposition of Art which was to happen in the center of the city, in a circle that covered several kilometers of radius filled with magnificent buildings reminiscent of gothic and roman structures, each single one a giant palace hosting a different event. Pictures, Dance, Martial arts, Sculptures, Music of each genre, Movies, choreographies and many more that it would take weeks just to describe each one. It also hosted the biggest and most beautiful garden in the entire world, each year ornamented by different arranges made by Petruccio Abaccio, the man considered to be the greatest gardener and whose very services are said to be expensive enough to buy an entire life.
Many men and women dressed like nobles walked through the streets, through the palaces in dignified manner, a glance of elegance, a glance of contempt for the lower classes, the ones who awaited in the shadows wishing for a moment to shine and expecting one to pick the leftovers, a few impatient ones willing to claim rights and new property by their own hands or even perhaps following complex grudges.
A magnificent day, from either viewpoint, even bad ones, no one would doubt that claim, but this one was to come as the most special one of all for each single one.
Many would be involved, yet only a few will be granted the permission to walk in the scarlet carpet of the biggest event, the social class was of no importance, instead, the will to fight, the will to live, and the will to fulfill one’s dream would be the judges of this event. In other words, anyone was free to participate if he or she had what it was required.
Or more likely they will have no choice to step back from the contest.
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Clad in a gold and blue dress, the noble young woman, Nadia Eisendin was seated on a luxurious bench in one of the many gardens close to the philharmonic palace. She was both, nervous and anxious, holding always a black case with her, not too big yet her slender figure enhanced its size.
This girl was a particular famous figure in the world, a celebrity if you will. She was the current head of the Eisendin family, one of the most famous families in the world of music, crafted from poor roots by the hands of Lord J. Eisendin, the patriarch of the family, a man who lead the greatest philharmonic ever seen. The world cried four years ago when the man at the incredible age of 123 years died; all his legacy and fortune was inherited by his granddaughter Nadia, the 19 years old woman whose parents died years ago in a car accident.
The girl waved her short legs, her glance lost in the empty sky. She was a very shy and reclusive person often portraying eyes that reflected a strange fear, yet also a bizarre determination.
Nadia was perhaps one of the most important figures within this tale.