How do you like them Naples? A Neapolitan AAR

Naples, 8 June 1454


Young Prince Alberto de Valois was walking down the halls of the Royal Palace of Naples. He was about to have a meeting with his parents. His father approached him in the morning and said he want to have a talk with him. Alberto did not know the details but the whole thing sounded rather official. He was wandering what could possibly be a reason to this. He was hoping it was nothing serious.

What if they’ve found out about that one time at the university with drunken wheelbarrow racing…? No, that’s unlikely.

Alberto opened the door and entered the living room. His parents were sitting on the couch.

“Ah, Alberto, welcome. Please, take a sit.”

He sat on the chair in front of them.

“So, what is it you wanted to talk with me about?”

“Relax, you did nothing that would upset us. We just want to talk about your future.”

“Your father and I are worried that you still don’t have a wife, Alberto.”

Alberto sighed. He thought it was going to be something serious, instead it’s a ‘you should get married’ talk.

“Ah… you see… it’s not that I don’t want do get married…”

“Is that so? You haven’t found the right person yet?”

“No…., ugh…. I mean, yes….. Well, it’s complicated.”

“I see… I understand that you don’t want to take such an important decision in a hurry. Take me, for example…. I’m kidding, of course, though you have to understand that, as a member of a royal family, you are expected to follow certain rules.”

“We are connected by marriage with many prominent families in Europe. When they’ll find out that you’re unmarried, they might press charges against us.”



“Mom, dad, I’m sorry I disappointed you. I just didn’t think about those things that much until now.”

“Now, Alberto, you did not disappoint us. We don’t want to put any needless pressure on you and we certainly won’t force any kind of decision on you. We simply want you to be happy.”

Alberto relaxed a bit. He was glad that his parents were supportive of him, even if they were a little too interested in his personal lives sometimes.

“Thanks, dad. I promise I’ll think about it.”

“I’m glad to hear that. Now, there’s one more thing… Wheelbarrow racing? Really? Of all the crazy things you can do…”

“Oh, shucks…”




-------------------------------------
Naples, 15 September 1454




Alberto was circling around the palace halls like a severely drunk bat. He wasn’t going anywhere in particular, the walking simply helped him think. There were many things occupying his mind right now, particularly about the conversation he had with his parents a while back. While he was pondering about that for a while now, he did not come to a satisfying conclusion.

“Hey, brother! What are you doing here?”

His train of thought was interrupted by a loud, high voice coming from behind him. The source of that voice was easily identifiable as Anastasia de Valois. She served as a model younger sister for Alberto, always pestering him about various things. She was a splitting image of her mother and would in no doubt become a prime wife material in a few years. Unfortunately, she seemed to inherit the more obnoxious traits of the family.

“How’s that a business of yours? Besides, I’m only here to take a walk.”

“You just happened to be walking past the council chamber, right? You’re going to pester don Bieleucci again?”

Alberto looked to his right- she was right. The rooms in the palace weren’t labeled, as its inhabitants were usually as literate as they were competent, but he went there often enough to know. The door to the Council Chamber, widened a couple of years ago to accommodate Louis in his ‘prime days’, were easily recognizable.

“*tsk* Well, maybe. Is that a problem for you? You’re not jealous, are you?”

Alberto’s teasing took an unsuspected turn as Anastasia’s face suddenly turned red.

“No I’m not! I’m just curious! Wait, what are you happy about all of the sudden?”

“Oh? Sorry, I just find it amusing that my sister has a crush on our chief diplomat.”

“Shut up! I don’t have a crush on him! Just because I think he’s cute doesn’t mean…”

At this point, Alberto did not bother to conceal his laughter.

“Ooooh…. That’s just great…. You know, you might want to grow a bit before you propose to him…”

“Jerk!” She kicked him in the leg before storming off.

Alberto massaged his shin and pondered on his situation. ‘Since I’m here I might as well go meet him.’ He sighed. ‘Great. I’m at it again. Wasn’t this the reason why I stopped coming to the library so often?’ He did not have much time to think about it, as he was already opening the door.

There was no council meeting planned for that day, so the hall was almost empty. Alberto had to really look around to find Oliver reading a book in the corner.

“Hey there! How’s it going?”

“Huh?... Oh, good morning, Alberto. I did not expect anybody to come here.”

“The Council’s not meeting today, right? Why are you here on your own?”

“It’s quiet here and I can focus on reading without anyone bothering me. Besides, I have to make a report for the King regarding the recent developments.”

“The Burgundian situation, I presume?”



“Indeed. The English seem to be in deep trouble.”

“That’s unfortunate. England would make a good ally against France. Now they’re in no shape to challenge them.”

“Yes, that’s why we are looking for allies. In fact, we have received an alliance offer from Bulgaria.”



“Bulgaria’s not exactly a top player.”

“They might prove useful nonetheless.”

“Whatever works for turning Naples into a world power, I suppose.”

“That won’t amount for much if Naples lacks an heir, though.”

Alberto glared at him.

“Et tu, Brute? Why do people keep bothering me about this?”

“Oh, they just want a new topic to gossip about. Besides, don’t you want to have a wife and family?”

“*sigh* You know, you can’t really blame me for lack of trying…”

“So, still no luck in finding the right one for you?”

“Yeah, pretty much…”

Alberto actually took his parents’ words to heart and started looking for an adequate wife for him. As an intelligent and quite handsome heir to a noble dynasty, he was not troubled by a lack of interest. Unfortunately, the vast majority of the candidates fell short of his expectations.

“You know, that Russian princess, Marina, looked good enough.”

“Yeah, she would be okay if she did not open her mouth…”


*sigh*

“You know, Alberto, I have a feeling that you’re not really interested in all of this…”


He sighed yet again. Oliver was partially right: he was mostly doing this to give himself some peace. He went to some meetings, talked with a few women for a while and evacuated. He could never find a common language with them. Sure, some of them were visually pleasing and would probably make good queens, but Alberto was looking for something more. He wanted a wife that would share his interests. Unfortunately, women with interests in classic literature were really hard to come by.


“You may be right… you know, there is a person I’d like to spend my life with, but unfortunately it’s impossible.”

He did not tell him the whole truth. He was still very unsure about his feelings and was very afraid that someone would find out.

“Is that so? Is it someone you know well?”

“Yes. It is a person very dear to me, but unfortunately we probably won’t be able to be together.”

“You know, you should never lose hope. Even if you don’t succeed, friendship is still a pretty nice thing.”

“Platonic love, huh?”

“Indeed.”


Oliver looked into Alberto’s eyes. They shared a long moment in silence.

“*ahem* You know, I really shouldn’t bother you this much when you have work to do.”

“It’s okay, I enjoy your company. But you’re free to go if you have some other matters to take care of.”

“Uh, yes, I remembered something. See you later!”

“Later.”


------------------------------------------------



Yet another year has passed and once again Naples was a calm spot in the middle of the storm that was European politics at the time. By the end of the year 1454, one thing was known for certain- Aragon was out of its mind.



The beginning of one war marked the end of another. In March of 1455, England made peace with France, ceding large swaths of their continental possessions.



This wasn’t the end of troubles for the English just yet, as they still were at war with Scotland.





-----------------------------------------
Naples, 24 April 1455




The council meeting was in order yet again. Over the years Alfonso has grown increasingly older and more tired, yet despite that, he always insisted on regular debriefings. That day, the topic was the recent war between Savoy and Genoa and the repercussions it could have on the balance of power.



The Genoese Republic was still high on their victory over Venice. Their victory over Savoy could bring them close to being the major player in Italy. This obviously caused some concerns.


“All right. Thank you all for coming as always. Before you leave, though, there’s one more thing that I’d like to mention.” Alfonso stood from his chair. “As you probably now, due to some…. Unfortunate events…. Our council was left undermanned for quite some time. I’ve tried to remedy this, for instance by hiring our dear Oliver, though we still need a good economical advisor. That’s why I’d like to introduce you to don Fabio Pierallini. “

The door to the council chamber opened and a tall, slender man entered the room. He seemed like the time of person who puts his work over proper eating (though he definitely didn’t forsake his looks). He stopped in the middle and took a deep bow.

“I am flattered that you chose me, my King. I am Fabio Pierallini, pleased to meet you. I hope we’ll work well together.”



Everyone gave a small round of applause for the newcomer. Oliver noticed that he was sitting with his legs crossed, so he changed his position to a more appropriate one.

“Great so see a new face! Mister Nibbles deems you a trustworthy fellow, I’m sure you’ll be worthy of his trust!”

Everyone else in the room rolled their eyes, while Fabio scratched his chin in a gesture of fascination.

“A hamster, huh? It’s not a common pet in this part of the world.”

“Aye, it is uncommon for a warrior to have such an unassuming companion. Most prefer war dogs or falcons, but I assure you that Mister Nibbles is smart and cunning like no other!”


“Hmm… perhaps it’s best if we leave this conversation for another time…”

“So, if no one has anything more to add, then I suggest we’ll end right here.”

Everyone stood up from their seats and left the council chamber. Oliver was heading back to his room, absorbed in his thoughts, when he met a sudden obstacle.

*THUD*

The force of the impact almost caused Oliver to fall down. Unfortunately, most of the force was absorbed by his head, which he was now experiencing.

“Ow! Mister Bieleucci, you should be careful where you’re going! You’ve scared Mister Nibbles!”

“Ouch… Sorry, don Alessandro. I should really pay more attention.”

“What’s wrong with you? You’ve been out of focus for a while now.”

“Huh… you know, there are some things that are bothering me, but it’s nothing major. You don’t need to worry about me.”

“You know, you’ll feel better if you talk about it with someone! I’m sure Mister Nibbles will think of something that’ll cheer you up.”

Oliver sighed. He sure was persistent. Although he wasn’t in the mood to spill his guts out to the first person that comes around, he didn’t like to be mean to Alessandro. In the end, he did not know if he just wanted to humor him or was he just so desperate for a talk.


“So, there is a ma…. person that I like very much, but I’m almost certain that we can’t be together.”

“Hmm… does he like you too?”

Oliver paused for a minute. He had always taken for granted that his feelings weren’t mutual, but now that he’s thinking about it, he’s not so sure anymore.

“Well, I don’t know. I suppose that it’s possible.”

Alessandro made a very serious expression on his face, something he thought was not possible. He held his hamster close to his ear, as if listening to it. Finally, he spoke:

“Listen, my short friend. It is imperative that you always keep on fighting, no matter how bad the odds are! A true warrior never gives up, and neither should you! That’s what Mister Nibbles says and he’s always right!”

“Okay, but how does military advice help me…”

“War and love are two very similar things. In both you push at your opponent until he surrenders. That’s what you should be doing!”


“Well…. thanks, don Chigi. I’ll think about it.”


Despite his initial skepticism, Alessandro’s words really made Oliver think about his situation. He was wondering about the chances of Alberto returning his feelings. Well, even if he did, there were so many factors that worked against them. Aside from the gender barrier, Alberto was a member of the royal family while he was a commoner. There was no chance in the world that this would work.

Though he also knew that there was one thing Alberto did not know about. Though he had even less idea on how he would react to that. There could be severe repercussions if anyone found out. He could lose his job, or even get cast out of the city. Despite that, he thought that he should at least be honest with him.

He needed to talk with him and soon.

------------------------------------------

Naples, 27 May 1455


Alberto was storming up the stairs as fast as he could. He was holding a note from Oliver in his right hand. He wanted to meet him in his room. He did not give him any clue as to why, but the look on his face suggested that it was something serious.
Oliver was very subdued in the past couple of weeks. He was working alone in his room almost all the time. It almost seemed that he was avoiding him. As much as he was concerned by his behavior, it gave him plenty of time to think about his situation.

It was already pretty dark and he almost fell off the stairs twice. There were so many things he wanted to say…
He arrived at his door earlier than he anticipated. He knocked on the door a few times, his hands shaking severely. After what seemed like an eternity, the door opened.


“Oh, good evening, Alberto. Please, come in.”

Alberto looked around the room. It was lit by a single candle, so it was hard to see the details. He had been in Oliver’s room a couple of times and he was always amazed at how clean and tidy it was. It was unlike any man’s room he’s ever seen.

“So, why did you want to meet me here?”

“Oh, yes, I almost forgot. I have your book.”

He handed him the copy of “Dialogues” he borrowed a couple of months ago.

“Ah, thanks. I almost forgot about it.”

‘I hope you didn’t have any trouble with keeping it for so long.”

“Nah, it’s okay. I hope you enjoyed it.”

“Oh, I did. Thank you.”

A long silence filled the room, with both of them waiting for the other to start the conversation. The tension was rising to nearly unbearable levels.

“You know, I…”

“Alberto, I…”

They started talking almost immediately, causing them to backpedal in embarrassment.

“Alberto…. You might speak first, if you want.”

“All right, then…”

He took a deep breath. Oliver was looking at him with anticipation. ‘Please, don’t do that. You’re making this hard on me..’


“*ahem* You know, there is one thing I want to tell you. I’ve been thinking about my life recently, how I want to spend it. I realize that finding the right someone for you is very important. I’ve spent the past few months looking for a wife, but to no avail. Though, it was all pointless, because I knew for a very long time who I want.”


He stopped to take another deep breath.

“That person happens to be you, Oliver. I don’t know why that is. You’re just nice, friendly, helpful, full of positive energy. I can’t help but smile inside when I’m near you. It’s just…. Listen, I know that’s impossible for us to be together like this, heck, I’m almost certain that you think I’m some kind of weirdo. But you know, that’s the way life goes. I’ll just…. Forget about it if you want it…”

Oliver was listening to his speech with his mouth half- open. Slowly, the amazement on his face changed to a slight smile. At the end, he laughed in a deceptively girlish way.

“..W-What’s so funny about that?”

“Oh, sorry. I just realized how stupid we both are. You see, I have a confession for you as well. Two, in fact. You see, I really like you as well, Alberto de Valois.”

“I’m glad to hear that, but that doesn’t make things much easier for us…”

“Can you let me finish? I said I have something else to tell you. I really don’t know how you’ll react. You see, Oliver is not my real name.”

He reached to his mouth and with a quick move removed the mustache from his face. Then he reached back and pulled out his hair.


“My real name is Olivia Bieleucci. I’ve always loved books and going to the university was my biggest dream. Unfortunately, they would never let a woman in. That’s why I dressed as a man. With this disguise I had access to the best education in the world. I’ve never thought about starting a family so I was never really concerned about ‘coming out’. That is, until I found you.”

“I know that I’ve lied to you, but I didn’t know how would everyone react had they found out. Sorry for giving you the wrong impression of me.”

She stopped to take a look at Alberto, who had an expression that could be best described as ‘dumbfounded’.

“So… you’re trying to say… that you’re actually a girl?...”

“Indeed I am, Alberto.”



Alberto breathed a sigh of deep relief.

“Oh, thank God!”

He leaned forward and hugged her. His nostrils were filled by the scent of old books.

“Thank you, Alberto.” She looked at him with a big smile on her face.

“You’re welcome…. Say, why didn’t you tell me this sooner?”

“You really want to know? It’s a little embarrassing.”

“Come on, tell me.”

“I thought that you won’t have some common bookworm like me as your wife.”

“*sigh* We were pretty dumb, weren’t we? I’m glad that it’s settled. I thought I was…. Never mind.”

“Do you know how will you tell your parents about this?”

“Not yet. Don’t worry, I’m sure they’ll understand.”

“That’s good to hear….. hey, wait! What is your hand doing under my shirt?”

“Huh..? Oh, I’m sorry. I was just…. Making myself absolutely sure…”

“*sigh* Men these days…”

“What are you complaining of all of a sudden, Princess?”

“Princess? Do not skin a bear that’s still alive.”

“That sounded suspiciously like a challenge.”



“Maybe it was, Alberto…”

-----------------------------------------------------


Days went by and Alberto de Valois finally realized that like can be kind of good if you give it a chance. After the events of the past months, all of this adolescent angst and confusion, a change of pace was a welcome thing.

The situation in and outside of Naples was also returning to relative stability. Though not everyone was so lucky: in the beginning of 1456, the Byzantines annexed their long- term subject, the duchy of Serbia, which disappeared from the maps for the second time.



Some good news were coming from Greece: after a long streak of failures, the missionaries in Morea were finally successful, bringing the province back to the Catholic Church for the first time since NeverReallySinceItWasAlwaysOrthodoxUnlessYouCountThePreSchismChurchAsCatholicWhichIsVeryDebatable A.D.






------------------------------------
Naples, 2 June 1456




Alfonso de Valois was sitting in his office. He has just received a note about the success of the mission of Morea. This pleased him, as it made it possible to shift the attention elsewhere.

He was about to put the papers aside when he suddenly felt like someone was watching him.

“Congratulations on your conversion of Morea, King Alfonso.”

Alfonso looked around and saw a tall man dressed in black standing behind him.

“What the…. Wait, you’re one of those Contradiction brothers, aren’t you?”

“That’s ‘Paradoxian Brothers’.”

“Whatever. Anyway, what are you doing in my office?! I did not expect any visitors.”

“If you have complaints, send them to Johan, not me.”

“What Johan?”

“Never mind. I have a new request for you.”

He handed him an envelope. Alfonso opened it, but when he turned around, the guest was already gone.


‘Tsk. I guess I should see what’s inside this time…”



Alfonso scratched his beard. This was certainly an interesting development, though he needed more insight on the current diplomatic standing of Urbino. He needed to show this to his diplomat and hear his advice on the matter.

He went down the stairs and towards the council chamber, where Oliver was most likely to be. The council meeting was long over, but he was probably still there, studying maps or reading books. Maybe he could even find his son, who actually started to attend the meetings himself.

Alfonso pushed the door, stepped into the room, looked around and almost fell to the floor at the sight he had found. He was right on two of his suspicions:
Oliver was indeed in the room, as was Alberto. What they were doing, though, was quite far from reading books.


His son was making out with his chief diplomat.

They must’ve realize that they’re being watched, as they immediately looked his way. After a slow realization, they parted away, faces covered in red.

“Uhm, my King, what brings you here this late?”

“I wanted your advice on a certain matter, but it appears that I’ve come in an unfortunate time…”

“Look, Dad…. I can explain all of this…”

“I’m certain of that. But before that, may I at least take a seat?”






-----------------------------------------------------------------
Well, a week counts for ‘a few days’, right? I know, I am a horrible person.

I’m glad to announce that the Plot segment is officially over! Yay!
[Due to budget constraints, we were unable to get a fanfare for this part. You’ll have to substitute your own one.]

Next time: actual exciting things happening.

DensleyBlair said:

So, will Alberto get with Bob Olivia any time soon? If only she could fake a family tree and become the daughter of a count or something...

Urbino is an interesting choice for future expansion – though focussing on the Italian Peninsula itself is never a bad thing. I'm looking forward to seeing how you go about claiming it.

Very good stuff, as ever – looking forward to more.

Click to expand...

Glad you enjoyed it! Af for your question about Bob Olivia, you'll find out soon enough ;D Though keep in mind that the Palace of Naples is a weird place.
Urbino wasn't my first choice for expansion, but I'll take whatever I have.

The next update is coming, just like DNF- I'll take a freaking long time but it'll get released eventually. And it'll probably be dissapointing.

Naples, 4 June 1456


The old couch standing in the living room of the Royal Palace of Naples has seen its share of awkward and stiff meetings, both formal and informal. It was there for over 30 years- its predecessor, an even older ottoman, while being a good piece of furniture, was unfortunately thrown out of the window by some misguided patriot during the war with the Ottoman Empire. The old sofa has been used by many rulers, nobles and diplomats and could without a doubt share many interesting stories with us, if not the fact that it was an inanimate object and thus unable to speak.

Today however things were quite weird, even for a place such as the Neapolitan royal palace. The couch was occupied by King Alfonso and Queen Irina. Opposite of them were prince Alberto and Royal Diplomat “Oliver” Bieleucci. Both were trying to explain a very sensitive matter.

“So… that’s basically how it went. Sorry that I didn’t tell you about it sooner.” Alberto just finished talking about everything that happened between him and Olivia in the past few months, the parts he was comfortable with sharing anyway. He wished he didn’t have to say all of this while pinned against the wall but he had no choice. It seems that he was really good at making his own life more complicated.

King Alfonso listened to all of it with attention. Alberto tried very hard to read the expression on his face but it proved futile. The King leaned over to his wife and they exchanged a few words.

“Well, first of all, Alberto, I am glad that you finally started to have interest in women. When I saw you in the council room I honestly expected the worst. I see that you have a good taste in women as well- miss Olivia is very lovely and intelligent.”

Olivia blushed after hearing such a compliment form the King.

“That said, I must express my slight disappointment in the fact that you’ve kept this a secret from us. Especially you, miss Bieleucci. When people find out that a woman is a royal diplomat, and on top of that, she’s as good, if not better, at her job than most men, there would be riot on the streets. Not much more than usually, but still. I’m afraid it’s not in the best interest of the country.”

Olivia lowered her eyes. She knew it was too good to be true. She did a very convincing job pretending to be a man. She almost fooled everyone, including herself. Now she has to return home to lead another ordinary life.

“Miss Olivia, I know it’s much to ask of you, but I’d require you to keep the disguise while working for the Council. We don’t want to attract unwanted attention.”

Both Olivia and Alberto opened their mouths in amazement.

“Umm… What?”

“What? It would be really hard to replace such a good diplomat. Well, of course I’ll understand if you’ll decide to resign. It might be hard for you to both take care of the family and work for me.”

At this point, Alberto started babbling incoherently. Olivia was just stunned.

“What’s the matter? I think that’s obvious that you two should marry. In fact, that is a royal order and you should not disobey it.”

The Prince and the diplomat looked at each other, then at the King, unsure what to do. In the end, they embraced each other, screaming happily.

“Thank you so much, my King! Thankyouthankyouthankyou!” Olivia started to hug Alfonso now, which caught him by surprise.

“Uhm…. Well, I’m only doing what’s best for the country…”

*knock*

“Who’s there?”

“Uhm… sorry for interrupting, my liege. An emissary from the illustrious don Irrelevatio arrived. He demands a balcony in the amphitheatre for his private use.”



“What? Tell him to sod off. I have more important things to do. Okay, kids, you may go now. We’ll discuss the details at a later time.”
“Umm…. Okay then. Thank you once again, Dad.”



----------------------------------


The wedding of Prince Alberto de Valois attracted many people from all over Europe. The ceremony itself was pretty impressive considering the rather limited resources of Naples.

“Oh! Matilda! Fancy seeing you here!”

“Good day to you, my dear Fabia! So, you came to see the ceremony, right?”

“Indeed. The Prince looks rather lovely, doesn’t he?”

“You’re right. His bride looks rather stunning too.”

“Speaking of, who’s Prince Alberto’s new wife? I don’t recognize her from anywhere.”

“Apparently her name is Olivia di Montecciano. She is the cousin of the Royal Diplomat.”

“Di Montecciano? I’ve never heard of this family.”

“Apparently she is the only living member, and she did not know about it until recently. Some bad case of clam poisoning, I heard.”

“That seems like a pretty far-fetched explanation to me.”

“Ah, people use more outrageous explanations to justify their nobility. Such as that Mona Giarni, for instance.”

“I agree. Did you see what’s she’s wearing right now?! Disgusting!”

“And her ‘husband’ is even worse…”




We will now leave the two gossiping ladies to focus on Alberto and Olivia.


“Congratulations, Alberto! May you live a wonderful life with your wife!” Alessandro and Fabio went to congratulate him after the end of the ceremony.

“Thank you, Alessandro. We appreciate that you have found the time to come here.”

“We’ll always find a time for a friend! But where’s Oliver?! I can’t find him anywhere.”

“Oh, he had to go see his parents, as they are sick. He apologized and wished us good luck.”

“That’s lucky of him that he has a good excuse! Otherwise I’d have to kick some reason into him.”

“Ummm, thank you, don Chigi, but that won’t be necessary.”

“Don’t worry, lady Olivia. Your cousin has nothing to worry from me unless he does something to upset Mister Nibbles. Besides, I think he should cut his hair, he looks too much like a girl.”

“Umm, yes, I’ll be sure to tell him that. Meanwhile, we need to go to tend to the guests. Have a good time!”




The wedding party went on until the evening. Alberto and Olivia spent their time talking to the guests and thus were very tired at the end of the day.

“Whew… that was an exhausting day.”

“Indeed. So, how do you feel, Olivia?”

“Honestly? It’s still a rather crazy idea to me. I can’t believe we’re actually married. Feels almost too good to be true.”

“You’re worried that I’ll poof out of existence all of a sudden?”

“Not exactly… I’m just overwhelmed by all that has happened. I guess I might be a little insecure about you.”

Alberto smiled and embraced her. “Don’t worry, Honey, I’ll always be there for you.”

“Thank you, Alberto. I love you.”

“I love you too.” They shared a long kiss and stayed embraced for a while, enjoying a moment of peace after a rather hectic day. “Say… are you sure that you still want to be the diplomat?”

“Hmm? Yes, I like this job. Why, are you worrying that I might neglect you?”

“No, I just thought it might be hard for you to lead a double life.”

“It shouldn’t be so hard. I’m sure I’ll get used to it.”

“Yeah… You know, this might turn into another disaster…”

“I know, but based on experience I might get out of it unharmed.”

“So, when’s Oliver coming back?”

“*laughs* He might be back by the end of the week. Actually, there is one thing I need to inform the King about.”

“Is it important?”


“I don’t know the details yet, but I’ve heard that it’s pretty big.”


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Naples, 4 September 1456



“So, first Castile, now France?”



There was no council meeting planned for that day, but Olivia felt that the information was important enough to inform the King in person.

“Indeed. France is, as of recently, at war with Aragon.”

“That’s interesting. Aragon is now very vulnerable.”

“They are also still excommunicated, so any declaration of war against them is perfectly justifiable.”

Alfonso scratched his chin. “We might think about that. As for now, have you read my request?”

“Yes, my King. Urbino is allied only to Milan. They are also guaranteed by Aragon, but they’ll probably won’t intervene.”



“Thank you for getting this information for me, and for taking time out of your busy schedule for me.”

“It’s nothing, Sir. Serving the country is important to me.”

“Glad to hear that. You’re free now.”


-------------------------------------------


The preparations for the war against Urbino weren’t particularly long, and the war was declared by the end of the year. Unsurprisingly, none of its allies bothered.


I’m kinda worried about those odds, though.

This particular war isn’t worth much attention, so let’s focus on the rest of the world. It seems that Genoa has bitten bore that it could chew when attacking Savoy. They have lost and were forced to release a lot of their subject nations.



The war between Aragon and French was particularly brief. In August, less than a year after the beginning of hostilities, Aragon was forced to cede Roussillon, thus thus confirming the words of one sage.



Aragon’s situation was dire. While their push into the Castilan mainland met with some success, including the capture of Madrid, their homeland was under heavy siege. Worse yet, it had to deal with opportunist, including the Italian nation of Pisa. Aragon’s once impressive Italian holdings, now reduced to the province of Romagna, were seriously threatened.



France showed no signs of stopping. After their annexation of Brittany they went for the archbishophoric of Avignon.



The end of the year marked the end of the war with Urbino. Though the siege was finished in December, the official peace treaty was signed an the beginning of 1458 so that it won’t get in the way of the Christmas celebrations*.

There was one more reason for celebrations in Naples: the Royal Family has gained another member when lady Olivia gave birth to a healthy boy named Filippo. Young parents were fully absorbed by taking care of their baby, though they were able to spend a while at the special Council meeting.



*There was one more reason to this decision, albeit it wasn’t discussed as often- making peace in January allowed to conduct the yearly Census with war policies.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Naples, 10 March 1458



“It is time to begin yet another meeting of the Council.” King Alfonso stood up from his chair with a degree of difficulty. It seemed that time had finally taken its toll on the King of Naples. Even though his mind was still bright his body was beginning to fail him and he couldn’t participate in the matters of the state as eagerly as before. “Unfortunately, we are one person short for today. Don Bieleucci, as you know, has gone on an important mission to Rome and he has yet to return. Fortunately, dear Olivia agreed to come to this meeting in his stead. We have Alberto with us as well.”

Olivia and Alberto nodded. “We’re glad that the Queen agreed to take care of little Filippo for us.”

“I’m sure she doesn’t mind that.”

“That sleazy Bieleucci! He slipped away right after he heard that you’re with child! I bet he doesn’t want to help with the baby.”

“You know, Alessandro, you’re a little unfair. He went on an important diplomatic mission. I’m sure he’d help me had he was here.”

“I’ll trust your judgment, lady Olivia. But if I’ll find him procrastinating, his butt will have a word with my boot!”

“*ahem* May we begin? Okay, first, let’s talk about our peace with Urbino.”



“It’s a sound move, much wiser than just annexing the nation. They’ll provide us with additional wealth and army. Though the Pope might be concerned about us encroaching so close to his lands.”

“Thank you, Fabio. Oliver is right now explaining our good intentions to the Pope. We shouldn’t worry about it too much. Another thing, I’m a little concerned about the size of our forces. What do you think about that, don Chigi?”

“My Liege, my humble armament plan predicts that our glorious army will count 20 thousand men in about ten years!”



“Let’s hope that will suffice. Now, are there any news from the world?”

“Well, I’ve received some letters from my cousin. He said about the war between Lithuania and Muscovy.”



“Lithuania? How’s this a concern of ours?! We should focus on Italy first and foremost!”

“Now, don Chigi, we mustn’t ignore any changes in the balance of power. We might oversee a potential ally…. Or enemy…”


“Thank you, don Pierallini. And what about Aragon?"

“They are taking a heavy beating. On top of that, they have accepted a harsh peace deal from Genoa.”


The National Bank of Aragon offers long- term loans on convenient terms to everyone.


“There was also the thing about the Byz…” Alberto begun but was cut off by his wife.

“The Byzantines annexed Candar and are winning the war against Karaman. They are slowly regaining their long lost territories.”



King Alfonso was thinking about the news for a long time. Finally, he spoke.

“Thank you for sharing the news with me. Today’s meeting is over, you are free. Olivia, Alberto, I want you to stay for a moment.”

Fabio and Alessandro leaved the room and went to their offices. The King was left alone with Olivia and Alberto.

“Thank you for staying. I have something important to tell for both of you. I’m honestly worried about Naples. There are so many things going on right now, so many dangers. Castile, France, Austria, I doubt they’ll just leave us alone. The Byzantines may seem friendly now, but sooner or later they’ll want their Greek territories back. It all may seem good now, but I’m old and I don’t know how much time I have left…”

“Please don’t say that, father…”

“Please, don’t interrupt me, Alberto. Don’t get me wrong, though. You and Olivia are wonderful, brilliant people and I’m sure you’ll lead this country well. I just want to share what I feel with you. I feel that Naples should take a more active approach in Italy.”

“You want to see Italy united?”

“*laughs* I doubt I’ll be the one to see that, but yes, I do want to see Italy under one ruler. There is no one else that could do this. But to achieve this we need to take action. Olivia, how long will the war between Castile and Aragon last?”

“Let’s see… I wouldn’t give it more than a year or two, though our declaration would make Aragon more desperate for a peace.”

“I see… what about their allies?”

“The only significant one is Scotland. We’d have to hope they won’t intervene.”

“So that seals it. We need to make preparations.”


“As you wish, father.”



And thus, Naples begun preparations for the war against Aragon. The goal was simple- to retake their territory of Romagna.



Though unbeknownst to all, while Naples was busy preparing for conflict, elsewhere in the world two travelers were looking for answers…



-----------------------------------------------
???, 20 May 1458



“Ahh! That heat is killing me! I swear to Go… I simply swear, Aziraphale, this is the last time I have ever listened to you!”

“Oh, stop with the complaining! It’s not like you could get dehydrated. It is quite hot, true, but that’s nothing we couldn’t handle… Come quickly, it’s getting dark.”

“Is it evening already or is it simply because you have your cranium up your…”

“Besides, isn’t there even hotter down there?”


“*sigh* You know what, the sooner we’ll get there the better.”


Aziraphale and Crowley were travelling for a very long time and they were growing weary, though mostly Crowley showed signs of that. Due to lack of navigational tools and detailed maps of the area they were forced to rely on the stars and sun for navigation.

They ventured very far south, farther than any European traveler. Even Muslim traders form Mali rarely set their foots there. They have occasionally met merchant caravans and remote villages. They have traded some of the junk they carried with them and sometimes helped to get rid of an evil spirit (it was mostly accomplished by Crowley bragging about some of his more impressive deeds, after which the spirit ran away in shame). As they went on though the encounters were getting rarer.

Navigating these lands was a daunting task, but thanks to some directions from the locals as well as observations Aziraphale was able to draw a simple map.

“Remind me once again why can’t we use our powers to locate him?”

“That’s because he might sense our use of power and run away.”

“How can he sense that? Is he a supernatural?”

“You could say that. We don’t have an exact term for his kind. They are basically angels who left Heaven but weren’t welcome in Hell, forced to spend the rest of time on earth.”

“Hmm, that’s kind of like us, right?”

*sigh*

“Wait a second, you mentioned that he might run away? He doesn’t know that we’re coming?”

“Well, it’s an unexpected visit for sure. I don’t think he knows us. I heard about him from some Muslim trader back when Cordoba was still Moorish and I thought he might fit the picture.”

“But you said that you know him…!”

“You wouldn’t have come with me had I said otherwise.”


“Just wonderful…”

“Shhh…. I think we’re here.”

Crowley looked ahead and saw a small oasis with a few date palms surrounding a pond. Nearby stood a small shack. It looked like it was built by someone who had vague idea on how to use building tools and materials but it was clear it was his first time building something. That and the complete lack of animals surrounding it seemed very suspicious.

“Yeah, it seems about right…. So, Aziraphale, what is the name of our friend?”

“I believe his name is Palaarernsaarmax.”

“Pal… erm…. ser… what?”

“Palaarernsaarmax. Wow, this place looks really ran down. I wonder how long did he live here…”

“So, have you got any idea what he’ll tell us?”

“Not really. I’ll guess we’ll have to ask Palaarernsaarmax himself. Though I don’t know what to expact, I’m not Palaarernsaarmax.”


“You’re reading that name out of a paper, aren’t you?”

Aziraphale hid his hand in his pocket. “No, I’m not! Come on, let’s go.”

Aziraphale knocked a few times on the door, but received no reply. Resigned, he pulled the door and was surprised by how easily he could open it.

The inside of the hut was very crammed. The locals used the date palm to make pretty much everything and inside you could see almost every example of that, though they weren’t the finest crafts known to man. Beside the fireplace they saw a small dried up man sitting on the floor. Aziraphale couldn’t tell if he was hunched due to his age or the lack of space.

“Aziraphale. Crowley. I’ve awaited you.”

“Good day to you, Palaarernsaarmax. Wait, you know us?”

“I know who you are. An angel and a snake. They can’t stand one another but they stay together despite that. Though nobody comes to Palaarernsaarmax just because. You need answers, don’t you?”

“Yes. We are sort of aware that something or someone is influencing history. Do you, by chance, know who or what?”

A mischievous smile flashed on the old man’s face. “Don’t you know? Everyone is influencing history, in one way or another.”

“Listen, I’ve been there for less than five minutes and I already have had enough of your ‘vague old man’ routine. Spit it out or stop wasting our time!”

“Oh, Mr. Crowley, always impatient. You’d think patience is an important thing for a devil. I digress… *cough* I don’t know much about the outside world but I’ve heard about what happened to the Ottomans. Someone didn’t like them…. Many countries went in a rather weird direction. I don’t want to brag, but I might know a bit more than you do. The manipulation is clear and figuring out its beginning is the key… not exactly the time, but the place….”

“That’s nonsense… the Boss won’t be happy with this explanation…” Aziraphale said to himself, though his words were loud enough to be picked up by Palaarernsaarmax. His eyes widened in a mixture of anger and fear.

“The Boss… Who sent you?!”

“No one! We went on our own…”

“You might’ve fooled me for a while by coming here together but I cannot be fooled! They will never get me! Never! You can tell them that!”

Palaarernsaarmax stood up and before anyone of them could react threw some powder to the fireplace and disappeared. After a short while they were engulfed by a ring of flames. Aziraphale felt a sharp push and fell to the floor…





------------------------------------------


Aziraphale slowly regained his consciousness. He had no idea how long he was out. He still felt like he was pinned to a ground by some sort of object. Suddenly, he felt some sort of movement.

“Hey, Princess, would you kindly stand up already? There is some rubble to pick up.”

Aziraphale looked up and saw Crowley above him. His suit was heavily damaged but he himself seemed all right.

“Crowley? What happened?”

“Well, someone had to save you from the crumbling, fiery death.”

“But how did you managed that?”

“Well, I’m sort of immune to fire so I covered you up.”


“Oh, right….” Aziraphale felt a jolt of joy. He grabbed Crowley by his shoulders.


“Crowley! You wonderful, flame-retardant bastard! You saved us!”

“Yeah, yeah… Now get up and help me.”

Aziraphale helped him remove the rubble. The hut was almost completely obliterated so it wasn’t that much of a hassle.

“So… now what?”
Crowley looked at himself. “Now I have to change…. Now kindly turn the other way for a while.”

Aziraphale turned away from him. Behind him he heard something akin to rustling of leather. When Crowley said he can turn around, he saw discarded dry husk lying beneath his feat. Crowley was standing there, dressed up in a brand new outfit.

“Wow… how’d you do that.”

“Tools of a trade, Aziraphale. Now, let’s go back to civilization.”

“But what about him? Where could he possibly go?”

Crowley picked up a rusty bucket. “That belong to him so we can use it to locate him. But we can’t do that here, we need tools to make a circle.”


“Right…. Let’s go, there’s nothing left here, anyway.”



------------------------------------------------


The way back took them more than they anticipated, mostly because Aziraphale left the map on the hut’s table. Both the table and the map were now ashes (‘remember me to never go anywhere with you again’). Finally, they have reached Timbuktu, a prime hub of trade and commerce in Western Africa.

Crowley was sitting underneath a palm tree drinking juice. Aziraphale have left him to gather some information and he was gone for a very long time. ‘Maybe I’m finally free of him I might go somewhere nice now for a change, like…’

“Sorry to keep you waiting!”

“Ah!... Don’t startle me like that!”

“Sorry. I had to ask several people, as most of them looked at me funny when I asked them what year it is.”

“So, have you got an answer?”


“Apparently it’s 5 August of 1461”


…………………


“Wait, are you serious?”

“I’m positive.”

“Oh man… We’ve lost three years… How could this happen?”


“I don’t know… “ Aziraphale sat next to Crowley. “I’m tired….”

“Yeah, me to… You know, if I’ll ever agree to some bright play of yours, remind me of this…”




---------------------------------------------



As the reader is probably as clueless as our heroes as to what happened in those three years, let’s have a quick recap.

The war between Aragon and Castile ended in September of 1458, as per Olivia’s prediction. Aragon was forced to cede good half of their territory to Castile and was left defenseless against the onslaught of the Italian nations. Yes, more than one- in October, Pisa decided to join the fun. Later they have acquired Girona in the peace deal.

Peace with Aragon was made in January of 1459, granting Romagna to Naples. That year saw yet another war between Denmark and Sweden, won by the latter.

The year 1460 marked yet another annexation spree by Burgundy, as well as another war between Scotland and England, with predictable results.

In 1461 Naples acquired yet another province by annexing its loyal vassal of Siena. There was much talk about the possible vassalization of the republic of Pisa.



We now end this quick recap, completely planned and definitely not caused by a lack of materials of any kind, to go back to Naples.



-------------------------------------------------
Naples, 14 November 1461



Alfonso de Valois was spending almost the entire day in his chamber these days. His quickly deteriorating health forced him to abandon most of his duties, though he still wanted to be kept up to date.

Earlier that day, he was studying notes about the war between Denmark and Pskov. The papers were still lying on his desk.



Alfonso woke up and saw the bedroom covered in slight darkness. It was strange- he only went for a short nap, so it shouldn’t be so late already and even if it were, Irina would be lying next to him.

It wasn’t long before he noticed that he wasn’t alone in the room. In the corner of his eye, he saw a person covered in black.

“What… I did not ask for anyone. Are you one of these Paradoxians again? I swear, if this happens one more time…”

I’M AFRAID THE PARADOX BROTHERS WON’T HAVE MORE BUSINESS FOR YOU, ALFONSO DE VALOIS

Alfonso was about to ask the stranger who he is, but suddenly, he realized.

“You’re… you’re Death, aren’t you?”

YOU UNDERSTAND. THAT’S GOOD. I COME FOR EVERYONE AND THIS TIME I COME FOR YOU.

“I see. Can you… Can you take me right away? I don’t want to see my wife when she…”

Death nodded and opened the door to the room, revealing a bright passageway. Alfonso de Valois, King of Naples, stood up and proceeded towards the portal to leave this world forever.










------------------------------------------------------------------
So, on that note we end the reign of yet another Neapolitan ruler and I actually have two things I want to talk about:
1. I will be going to a psychiatric hospital for a few days this week (don’t worry, I’m going there as a student, not a patient). As it’s unlikely that I’m going to have Internet access there, I won’t be able to respond to the lack of feedback or update until the end of the week.
2. You might’ve noticed that I’m not updating as often as I used to. Well, school takes away most of my attention and it’s hard for me to find both time and inspiration to write as often. Thus, I think I’ll change the uploading routine to once every two weeks, at least for a while. I hope you’ll understand.

tuareg109 said:

Huh, I would've thought that you would for sure be going as a patient with an AAR like this! Great update and good luck with your studies.

Click to expand...

Skywalker_T-65 said:

I second tuareg. Good luck with the studies, though I will eagerly await another update.

Click to expand...

Thanks guys, I really appreciate your support! I'm back now and I'm ready to continue working on this AAR. New update probably by the end of the week.

DensleyBlair said:

Rest in peace, Alfonso. A fitting and poignant end for the King. Nicely done.

Another all round enjoyable update. Alberto looks to be a very good ruler indeed, so here's hoping that his reign is long and prosperous. Also, the wedding story-arc was nicely resolved. Made for nicely entertaining reading.

Looking forward to more.

Click to expand...

Thanks, Densley, I'm glad you enjoyed it!

I'm very sorry for the lack of update. I've been feeling pretty bad during the last week and I couldn't find resolve to write. Then, I got a new laptop and moving things from the old one took quite some time and before I could realize it was almost Christmas.
I'll do my best to update as soon as I can. In the meantime, I want to wish you all Merry Christmas. Wherever you are, make sure to spend this time with your family, your loved ones, your friends and make sure you enjoy yourselves.
Until next time!

Episode 21- Passing the Torch
With a speed like that, it’s a sure thing we’ll finish before the Olympic Games. In Rio.​

The funeral of King Alfonso de Valois was attended by almost 50 thousand people from Naples and beyond. He was praised as a monarch who changed the country from a backwater laughing stock to a prime power in Italy. He recovered it from the crisis after the Ottoman war and turned it into a leader of the Italian Renaissance.

After the loss of their great leader, people started to look up to his heir, Alberto. His son was still young (barely 32 when he succeeded his father) and full of potential. Will he live up to the expectations?

Right now, Alberto was overtaken by grief. His mother, Irina, was shattered by her husband’s death and succumbed to illness two months later. Young King was now left with barely any guidance.

It wasn’t all bleak and depressing though. Alberto found some refuge in spending time with his wife and sons (the youngest one, Carlo, being born not long before). The recently conquered territories were relatively peaceful and the end of 1461 saw the graduation of the first batch of students at the Naples- owned University of Siena. They went on to do what all humanist students are best for- gardening and farming.



Alberto knew that conquest wasn’t always the best way of expansion. A number of strategic marriages (Louis had a lot of nieces) with nations such as Hungary and Milan ensured the prosperity of the Kingdom.




Naples always enjoyed good diplomatic standing, courtesy of decades of excellent work of its chancellors. Some events, however, could put that to the test….





-----------------------------
Naples, 16 May 1462



Alberto de Valois have had a good night’s rest. Well, as good as a person with two kids living in a large palace where everyone uses their outdoors voice could get. No one said it would be easy to be the King…

“* YAWN* God, I can’t remember when did I sleep properly…”

“Oh, stop complaining and hurry. Fabrizio is waiting for us.”

Fabrizio Pieroni became the Chief Diplomat of Naples after Alberto became the King.

“I wonder what could be so important that he requires our attention right now…”

“I don’t know, but he wouldn’t bother us if it wasn’t serious.”

After a while they arrived in the council chamber. Fabrizio was the only person present, sitting next to a table. He looked rather serious.

“My King, My Lady, I’m glad that you arrived. I apologize for bothering you in such time but it’s a matter that requires your immediate attention.”

“That’s okay, Fabrizio. The fate of the country is much more important to me than proper sleep… please don’t look at me like that… Now, what’s the matter?”

“Here, take a look…”



Olivia and Alberto looked at the letter, then looked at each other in silence.

“The Emperor want to pick a bone with us? But what interest does he have in Siena?”

“Probably nothing at all. He just wants to stroke his feathers and shove us around. Fabrizio, how serious repercussions would declining bring?”

“There’s the obvious threat of war. While the Austrians have no real reason to engage themselves in this part of the world, our declaration would give them a valid justification. I can’t stress enough how undesirable this would be. Aside from that, the Empire is a shadow of its former self but it still has some meaning to some people. Some of the more radical elements in Siena might take this Imperial decree as a declaration of support.”


Alberto scratched his chin. The room was very quiet.

“That’s indeed a hard decision. Olivia, what do you think?”

Alberto looked at his wife. She had a look of determination on her face.

“….send the Emperor a note of refusal.”


……


“Are you sure about that, my Queen?”

“The Emperor did nothing to protect the nations of the Empire from Burgurdian or Hungarian manipulations. Should we honestly believe that he stated to care about their sovereignty now? He’s not fooling anybody- this is a disguised act of aggression. We shall not stand to that kind of blackmail.”

“I understand the sentiments, my Queen, but we must remember about the strength of the Austrian army.”

“I realize that the war would go badly for us, but I’d much rather lose Siena while fighting.”

“…What do you say, King Alberto?”

“….I, ah, agree with the Queen.”

“Very well. I will prepare the diplomatic note immediately. Thank you for your time.”

Fabrizio bowed and went back to his office.

“Well, that settles it then. Let’s hope that the Emperor really doesn’t want the war right now.”

“Well, you didn’t object to this, did you?”

“Who could possibly disagree with such a speech? It’s a shame you resigned from being the Chancellor.”

“You know, it was just too much responsibilities to handle, being a queen, a mother and a diplomat on top of that. Besides, Fabrizio is well-fitted for this position.”

“I agree. It somewhat makes up for the lack of your guidance.”

“What lack of guidance? I’m a Queen, after all! You could say that’s even better.”

“Of course it is. As long as you remember who the King is…”


“I’m sorry, Alberto, there was a loud commotion outside and I did not hear what you just said. Could you repeat?”


“Ughmm… nothing, my dear. Let’s just get back to sleep.”



--------------------------------------


“Don Fabrizio, have you send our reply to the Emperor?”

“Yes, my liege. The Austrian emissary was not pleased by it.”

“I suppose we should not expect a reply. Now, how did the nobles react to the news?”

“As well as you could expect, sir. They are selling their properties en masse and moving to Greece, far away from the border.”

“Excellent.”

“We’ve also received some gifts from certain noblemen. In exchange, they want us to keep their place of destination secret.”



“Just fantastic! Keep me posted on the situation.”




-----------------------------------
Naples, 9 July 1464




Weeks and months passed and it seemed that Austria was not willing to make good of their threats after all. After initial period of instability the situation in Naples was returning to (relative) normal.

“Ah, it’s so nice and peaceful here. We should be thankful we’re not those Aragonians. Poor bastards.”

Alberto, Olivia and the members of the Council were sitting in the council room discussing recent events.

“Indeed. They haven’t really recovered from their last war and now they are at war with Portugal.”

“I heard that Scotland is getting uppity again?”

“That’s true. They have declared war on Norway, aiming to reclaim Orkney.”



“That’s a shame. They should pick a more worthy opponent, like us!”

“Speaking of, don Alessandro, I’d like to congratulate you on your excellent work with our troops.”



“All in a day’s work, my King! A glorious nation such as Naples needs an equally magnificent army.”

“But…” The Queen interjected “Shouldn’t we put more focus on expanding our forces?”

“That is a thing to consider, though right now our 15000 troops are enough to deal with most internal and external threats. We couldn’t hope to rival such ground powers as Castile and Austria even if we tried.”

“Thank you, don Fabio. Maybe we will find more funds for expanding the army when we finish our development projects. Without nobles to worry about, it should be much easier to pass reforms as we….”


Alberto was interrupted by the sudden opening of the door. A large person dressed in overly flashy clothes barged into the chamber.

“King Alberto! Long time no see!”

“Excuse me, but we have an important council meeting here, sir…”

“Oh, I apologize for interrupting but I was just so excited! I am Baron Gustavio Alivederci-Braga.”

“Baron Braga? But aren’t you supposed to be in Greece right now?”

“That’s part of the great news! Seeing that the threat of Austrian incursion is gone, we decided to go back to our homes and families!”

The King and indeed all members of the Royal Council were less than pleased by the news.

“That’s, ahem…. Wonderful. Your dedication to this country and its people is greatly appreciated.”

“My King, that’s rude to reply sarcastically to such an honest statement!”

“You thought I was sarcastic? I apologize, my sir. I was very, very sincere *cough* really, leaving was the best thing you could do to help *cough* Now, what else do you need? We’re quite busy.”

“*sigh* Sadly, I am most disappointed by the fact that the ruling class of Naples is shunned from serving its purpose as a leader of this country! It saddens me to discover that you’re as short- sighted as your exalted father in that regard, my King.”


“Is that how you feel? You won’t like my latest reform plans then.”

…..


“What latest reform plans?”

“Fabrizio, care to explain?”

----------------------------------



Alberto’s reform plans were received as well as you’d expect. Fortunately, the announcement day coincided with a new wine shipment so the whole thing did not escalate.



The war between Portugal and Aragon has proven to be rather uneventful, as the Aragonese were unable to provide any real resistance and the Portuguese did not have much to gain from the war anyway. A peace was declared after just over a year of fighting, with minor monetary concessions from Aragon.


They won’t stand a chance without the protection of the mighty Knights.

More news reached from the north. It seems that the decline of the Teutonic Order continues. They have lost a war with Lithuania and were forced to cede more territory to them.



Meanwhile, the Genoese Merchant League was enjoying a resurgence of power. They managed to take back their old colony in Azov. Time will tell if they’ll be able to keep it.



The north of Europe was embroiled in war and it seems that something was indeed rotting in the state of Denmark. They have lost a defensive war with Brandenburg and were suffering heavy losses to the forces of Scotland and France.





-----------------------------------------
Naples, 17 March 1467




The Royal Palace of Naples was being haunted. Rumors were spreading across town that a restless spirit was circling halls of the home of de Valois.

A spirit wearing royal clothes.

Fortunately, those rumors proved to be untrue, as the person haunting the halls at night was no other than King Alberto. With two new children born to the royal dynasty, Ricardo and Eva, he could barely find time to sleep and when he did, he was suffering from insomnia. In order to not wake up Olivia, he spend nights shuffling through the corridors.

“Alberto, all you all right?”

Alberto jumped at the sound of his wife’s voice. He was sitting in a chair in the council office. It seems that there was a council meeting in progress and he dozed off for a while.

“Huh…? Oh, sorry, I’m just tired.”

“My King, if you feel unwell, we can reschedule this meeting for another time.”

“There’s no need, Fabrizio. I will try my best to remain conscious for the remaining part.”

“As you wish, sir.”

“So, as I was saying…” Fabio Pierallini continued his speech. “A merchant from Palermo was found dead in the river last night. With a boulder attached to his leg. And a slit throat. And signs of poisoning.”

“Looks like someone really wanted to finish his job. Local mob dealings, perhaps?”

“It seems the most likely scenario. Regardless, he left no legal heirs, so his money, what’s left of it anyway, is ours to manage.”



“*yawn* Excellent. We will use it to invest in our economy.”

“There’s one thing more and this it will interest you, my Liege. Remember the Sunni state of Saruhan?”

“You mean Kosovo? They’ve splintered from Serbia a while ago, right?”

“Yes, my King. They are currently under attack.”

“From who?”

“From entire Europe, potentially.”



“Hmm. So Hungary is aiming to increase their base of operations in the Balkans? This might be troubling for us.”

“Not if we beat them to it.”

Alberto looked at his wife with a ‘not-quite-present’ look.

“Huh? But how?”

“Official Papal crusade call gives us a valid casus belli, right?”



“Yes, but what could we do with Kosovo, anyway?”

“No one’s saying we need to keep it. Besides, defeating the last stronghold of Islam in this part of the world would greatly improve our standing with the Pope. That would help us immensely when we decide to do… you know…”

The members of the council looked upon each other.

“Alessandro, how long will it take for our forces to achieve full capacity?”

“About three months, including shipping the troops, my Lady. I’ve heard of some troubles in Bosnia as well. Some rebel scum have crossed the Byzantine border and the local troops can’t handle them.”

“We’ll dispatch some troops to aid them. Thank you, for now, you are dismissed.”

The members of the Council left for their rooms. Only Alberto and Olivia remained in the chamber.

“You’re going to get yourself in trouble someday by your sleeping on the job, Alberto.”

“*yawn* What, you’re going to discipline me?”

“No, that might have quite the opposite effect on you. Having trouble sleeping?”

“You’ve noticed? I’ve tried not to bother you with that too much. You have enough to worry about as it is.”

“Oh, don’t be like that.” She sat next to her husband. “I’m concerned about your health, you know.”

“Don’t worry, it’ll probably get better soon… raising children is such hard work, huh?”

“Should’ve thought about if first before you…”

“I’m not complaining, it’s just… time’s flying by so fast, right? Seems like just yesterday we were two stupid kids in a library.”

“Indeed. And we’re not getting any younger either…”

“You look just as lovely as you did back then, my dear.”


Olivia couldn’t help but smile.

“And now our kids are growing up too. Just look at Filippo. He looks at least three years older than he really is!”

“Yes indeed. He’ll soon need a suitable wife for himself.”

“Don’t worry, my dear. De Valois were always lucky with finding right women.”

“They sure did.”


They spent a while sitting together on a sofa. After a while, Olivia heard loud snoring coming from her left. Alberto has fallen asleep on her shoulder.
She sighed. Taking care of five children wasn’t a piece of cake…


---------------------------------------


War on Saruhan was declared two weeks later. Naples had to race against time now, or rather, race against Hungarian soldiers. This race had only one prized place.




Regardless of the chances of success though, the crusade did quite a bit to strengthen the economy of Naples. Merchants selling dispenses and fake relics were flocking to the city hoping to capitalize on the holy war craze.





----------------------------------------------------------
Naples, 1 September 1467



“Sir, I’m glad to announce that our troops have arrived in Kosovo! Hungarian soldiers are nowhere to be seen.”

“Great. If we’ll hurry, we’ll snatch a victory before they’ll even notice.”

“There’s one more thing we need to take care of. Majesty, may I introduce sir Leopoldo Pontelli.”

Fabrizio gestured towards the door. A dark- haired man wearing a really large hat and an equally large coat entered the room.

“Your Excellency, it is an honour to meet you. I am Leopoldo Pontelli, a humble Sheriff of Palermo, at your service.”



“Well met, don Pontelli. What brings you to my humble quarters?”

“I offer my services, my Lord. With your recent reforms, the tax collection is more efficient, however, there is always a place for improvement. We can exercise a, erhm, more successful tax collection from the local taxmen."

“And how exactly would we do that?”

“We can, should we say, persuade them to be more honest in their tax reports. I have made some contacts in Sicily. They know how they deal with people who owe them money.”

“I’ve seen some of his plans in action, my liege. Normally, I would whole-heartedly disagree with such actions but we are in need of money.”

Alberto scratched his beard. “All right, thank you for now, don Pontelli. I will consider your proposition.”

“As you wish, my King. Till we meet again.”


“Fabrizio, has Alessandro gone to Serbia already?”

“No, sire. He’s currently outside town overseeing guard tower construction.”

“That’s too bad. I need someone to take care of little Carlo for a while. Maybe you, Fabrizio?”

…

“Fabrizio?…. Where did you go?”



------------------------------------------


“Master Alessandro, we have received a new batch of building materials. The construction may continue!”

“Fabulous! Just look at this beauty! A great symbol of a country as glorious as ours! Don’t you agree, Mister Nibbles?”

Alessandro took out Mister Nibbles from his travelling bag. The hamster, however, was more interested in the tower as a playground than a symbol. It promptly escaped the Captain’s grasp.

“Mister Nibbles?! Come over here, you’ll get lost!”

Alessandro went running up the tower after the hamster. The quick little bastard went up to the highest floor before the Commandant could catch it.

“Here you are! Don’t run away from me like that! It’s dangerous! You could fall or…”

Alessandro was given very little time to finish his sentence though. You see, the tower was still under construction and the final floor was made out of wood. It seemed that it wasn’t meant to hold a large man in full armor. Alessandro found it out the hard way.

AIEEEEEEEEEE!

*THWOMP!”

*splat*




------------------------------------------------------

Leopoldo was leaving the town, unsure if his proposition convinced the King or not. Well, he could always go somewhere else. Maybe Nottingham…

When he was walking past the guard house under construction, he saw a gathering of guards and random travelers. He shrugged it off. ‘Probably some guard passed out drunk. Nothing to concern myself about.’ He went on, but suddenly his foot met with an unexpected tree branch. Soon after, his face met with the ground.

“Oh, goddamnit! Someone should realy clean those roads…” He realized that he was being watched. He looked up to see a pair of small, beady eyes observing him.

“A hamster? What is it doing here? Oh, he’s so cute!”



------------------------------------------------------



The passing of the great Commandant Alessandro Chigi was mourned greatly in the Neapolitan army. Even if his methods were unconventional, to say the least, he did much to ensure that the troops of Naples were ready for any challenge, well, almost any.

Faced with a vacancy in his Council, Alberto decided to hire the Sheriff Leopoldo in Alessandro’s place. Time will tell if he’s gonna be worthy of his trust.



----------------------------------------------
Morocco, 18 October 1467




Deep in an abandoned crypt, somewhere in English controlled Maghreb, two people were sitting on the cold ground. One was holding a candle, far too small to pierce the encompassing darkness. Good thing they could see in the dark.

“Hurry up, Angel, I haven’t got all day!”

“Oh, right…”

Aziraphale placed the last candle, right in the corner of a large, red pentagram on the floor (Crowley had to paint it three times because he hasn’t satisfied with the shape).

”Are you sure this will work?”

“Haven’t tried it in ages, but we don’t have many other options. Now, give me that thing.”

Aziraphale handed him a rusty, burned bucket. Crowley placed it in the middle.

He said a couple of words in a long forgotten language. His eyes flashed brightly, bright enough to pierce through his spectacles.


“Now…. I can see him…. But where is that… a grassland…. Some trees…. A buffa…. Oh what?... Oh, that son of a b…”

“What, Crowley, where is he?”

“He ran to the West…”

“But where exactly? Portugal? Gibraltar? Iceland?”

“Nope. WAY further west.”



---------------------------------------------

I apologize for any typos in this part. I'm still getting used to the new keyboard.

One more thing- I'd like to remind you of this year's AAARland choice awards! Go out there and vote!
Not for me, though. Vote for a legitimately good AAR.

DensleyBlair said:

Another very entertaining update. Great as ever, drSandworm.

I can't say I've ever seen the Emperor react negatively when I've told him he can't have his unlawful territory back. I tend to just consider the threats empty and take the negative modifiers. It's reassuring I see that Olivia follows the same logic.

As for this intriguing sub plot involving our two theological protagonists, it's sounds like they're in America. Will we be seeing some Neapolitan colonisation of the New World?

Click to expand...

Thanks as always, Densley. I haven't yet seen the Emperor follow up on his threats. The negative modifiers sure are annoying, though.
As for the America, who knows? The New World is big and empty, so it sure looks tempting, especially if the situation in Europe gets heated.

I got some exams to pass, so next update will probably be next week.

Naples, 13 October 1467


With the sudden and unfortunate passing of don Alessandro Chigi, the moods of people in the Royal Council Chamber were pretty grim. However, there was work that had to be done in order to ensure the prosperity of the kingdom, regardless of how hard it might be.

“Thank you all for coming today. As we all know, a couple of days ago our country lost a great man. Don Alessandro Chigi was an extraordinary military mind and we will all mourn his passing.”

“His position as a commandant will remain vacant until we can find a suitable replacement. Meanwhile, I would like to introduce you to the new member of our council, don Leopoldo Ponelli.”

Leopoldo stood up and bowed. His face disappeared completely under the rondo of his hat.

“Thank you very much, my King, for choosing me.”

“Don Leopoldo was previously known as a sheriff in Palermo. It’s a difficult region to manage but he was able to keep things under control. We could definitely use that kind of discipline here in Naples. Anyway, don Fabrizio, are there any matters that require my attention?”

“Yes, my King. Two things in fact. First one, England has declared war on Connacht.”

“Hmm. The English want to compensate for their losses against the Scottish.”

“Indeed. In other news, Pisa now controls what was left of Algiers.”


The map of North Africa starts to resemble an abstract painting.


“The Pisans are getting stronger and stronger. Should we concern ourselves about that?”

“No, they are no threat to us, my Queen, unless they’ll find a powerful ally.”

The conversation was interrupted by doors opening. A messenger entered the chamber.

“Yes? What is it?” The messenger spoke a few words to Fabrizio. “I see… thank you, sir. You can go now. Your majesty, I report that Kosovo has fallen to our troops.”



“Excellent! When can we begin the peace negotiations?”

“Any time you wish your Majesty.”

“Though in that case there won’t be much of a negotiation involved.”

“That’s true, though we have to at least pretend that that’s the case.”



-----------------------------------------------------------
Naples, 27 January 1468



“The annexation of Saruhan went down smoothly, I presume?”

“Yes, my King. Thanks to our Papal sanction the international repercussions will be minimal.”

“And what about Hungary?” This time it was Olivia’s time for a question.

“They don’t seem to be bothered by this very much. In fact, they have already found another target.”

“Really? Who?”

“This time it’s Genoa.”



“Genoa? What do they want to gain from them?”

“I don’t know, my Liege, though I do know what do they want from us?”

“What is it?”

“An alliance, my King.”



“Hmm… that’s certainly a possibility to consider. What do you think about it, my dear?”

“That’s a tough decision. Hungary sure is powerful but they also have powerful enemies.”

“That also means more opportunities to expand.” Leopoldo leaned back in his chair. “Aren’t they at war with Pisa right now? We’ve been always seeking to, *ahem* extend our influence over them.”

“That’s true.” The Queen agreed. “Though that also means being dragged into their wars.”

“One more thing, your Majesty. Hungary, due to overlapping alliances, is currently at war with Bohemia as well. I’ve received an envoy from Praha recently and they are also requesting assistance.”



“*sigh* So it’s a ‘choose your poison’ situation then? Fabrizio, which rejection would bring more severe consequences?”

Fabrizio shuffled through his papers. “Let’s see….. Hungary is at war with quite a few countries, including Austria, Genoa and Pisa. On the other hand, we are more closely tied with the Hungarians. As you might remember, your Majesty, your niece in bethored to a Hungarian prince. Breaking the engagement would upset our nobles.”

“I see… How fast can we overwhelm Pisa?”

“The biggest concern would be siegieng their castles. We might need a competent commander to coordinate the troops though.”

“I’ll see to it. Meanwhile, send a message to the Hungarian king. Tell him we’ll help him.”

“What about Bohemia?”

“I think it’s best not to tell them anything.”

“As you wish, My King.”

“Great. You are all dismissed for now.”




Everyone left the council chamber to resume their duties. Only Alberto and Olivia remained.


“So, Alberto, how do you feel about your decision?”

“I don’t know, I think I’ve made a good call. Why, do you disagree?”

“Well, I did not object, did I?”

“Indeed, and truth be told, I’m a little surprised by that. Usually you take a stand in a decision like this.”

“That’s because I agree with you. Besides, I want to give you an illusion of control once in a while.”

“That’s nice…. Wait, what? Don’t you think that’s a little unfair, having so much power over me? “

Olivia flashed a sly grin. “Well, I didn’t hear you complaining last night…”

Alberto’s face turned bright red in an instant. “What?.... Don’t bring that into this conversation… ugh, argh…. *sigh* You know what? You win…”

The Queen leaned forward and kissed her husband on the forehead. “You know, It’s a very fortunate thing for Naples that I’m the only person who can influence you so much…”

“What can I say. I’m just lucky like that…”



--------------------------------------


Naples wasn’t destined to stay at peace for long this time- it had to gear up for yet another war. This conflict proved to be on a much bigger scale than the last one. Fortunately, King Alberto found a suitable commander for his army.



Under the command of Ferrante del Rosso, a distant relative of a former Chief Diplomat Adriano del Rosso, Neapolitan troops managed to defeat the enemy. The Pisans gave their best effort, but ultimately it proved to be insufficient to stop the purple- clad, illiterate invaders.


------------------------------------------
Naples, 1 August 1468



Alfonso de Valois, king of the most overcompensating country in Europe, was sitting alone in the throne room, reading a book. He appreciated what little time he had for himself. Olivia was tutoring his youngest child, Eva, Ricardo and Carlo were at school right now and Filippo left for the university. He was starting to understand an old saying claiming that you only start living once you’re over forty.

He wasn’t left alone with his thought for long, though, as he was quickly interrupted by a knocking on a door.

“Come in!”

Giovanni, from the long and proud family of butlers, entered the room.

“Ah, Giovanni! What brings you here?”

“Your Majesty, pardon my interruption but I have a message from your son, Filippo.”

“Filippo, huh? How’s the university life working out for him?”

“I believe he’s doing well, my King. Maybe a little too well. In fact, last time he participated in a monumental alcoholic binge with his friends. He is suffering from severe gastric disorders.”



“*sigh* Should’ve known… he will be all right, yes?”

“Indeed he will, my liege. Oh, one more thing: prince Filippo is asking for some more pocket money.”

“What? Didn’t we send him money already?”

Giovanni just shrugged his arms.

“*sigh* All right, I’ll see what we can do. Is there anything more?”

“No, my Lord. I’ll inform you if there’s something that requires your attention.”

“Splendid. Good bye, Giovanni.”

Giovanni bowed and left the room.

Alberto stretched out his arms in his chair. That conversation reminded him of his own university days. Those were wonderful times, full of academic discoveries and alcoholic excesses. If only he could revisit those moments…

Before he got the time to return to his read, he was interrupted by yet another knock.

“Yes, who’s there?”

Leopoldo Pontelli entered the room.

“Greetings, your Majesty. May I acquire your attention?”

“Of course. What is it you need?”

“Sir, I have returned from my trip to Genoa.” He got closer to the king and lowered his voice to a whisper. “I have found something that might interest you, you majesty…”

Alberto rolled his eyes. “You know, there’s really no need to whisper. We’re the only one here.”

“*ahem* Oh, yes, I apologize, your majesty. Old habits die hard… Anyway… When I was in Genoa, I have found some very interesting designs that would help us build better ships. I have contacts with one of the local shipwrights and he agreed to, ergh… ‘displace’ them in our hands.”



“That’s wonderful, Leopoldo, but I suppose it won’t be cheap, right?”

“When you have an edge over your enemy, expenses don’t seem to matter much, do they?”

“I suppose you’re right. Our financial situation is actually improving so I think we can fit that in our budget.”

“ Splendid. I’ll contact you when the deal is finalized.” Leopoldo bowed and left the room.

Alberto changed his position on the chair, visibly annoyed by the constant interruptions. Can’t a king of Naples get at least some kind of peace?

He didn’t have to wait for an answer for long, as he heard yet another knock on the door.

“*sigh* Come in!”

A royal diplomat entered the chamber.

“Erghm… Good day, your Majesty!” He said, flustered by the rather cold welcome. “Am… Am I bothering you, sir?”

“Don’t worry about it, what do you need?”

“I’m here to report that England has annexed Connacht. “



“That’s wonderful…”

“Sorry to bother you with such a trivial matter, your Majesty, but don Fabrizio has gone somewhere and I don’t have enough money to stable my horse so I parked it outside and I’m afraid someone will apprehend it…”

“That’s all right. I’ll let Fabrizio know about it when he’s back. Gotta send some stern words to the king of England. About as much as we can do…”

“Urgh, I can go now, right?”

“Oh, yes, you’re free to go.”

“Thank you, my Lord!” The messenger stormed out of the room.

Alberto sat down and sighed heavily. ‘Can’t a King find at least some peace? I swear, if I’ll get interrupted one more time…’

The door opened with a creaking sound.

“Excuse me, kind sir. Would you like to hear more about Jesus?”

“Oh, GODDAMNIT!”

A book went flying across the room.



----------------------------------------------
Somewhere near Pisa, 12 January 1469


The siege of Siena was progressing slowly but surely. Ferrante del Rosso was getting impatient, but he knew that he doesn’t have the manpower to directly assault the city.

He just had to wait…

Though waiting patiently proved difficult with those annoying guards insulting him and his troops.

“Hey, you cheese-eating pinhead, why don’t you get your laughable soldiers and go away?”

‘Here they go again. *sigh* why did they have to assign Frenchmen to guard duty?’

“Why won’t you come over here and try to kick us out then?”

“Do you think we’re stupid? You’re attempting to lure us in and finish us off with your foul smell!”

Ferrante was starting to get annoyed. “Listen, the only thing I’m here for is to take control of this city. It is already tedious enough without you around.”

“Ha! He thinks he can take the city! Well, too bad, pasta muncher, the war is over!”

“What? I haven’t heard of any peace negotiations!”

“Don’t believe us? Well, see for yourself then!”

A rock was thrown from the city walls, obviously aimed to hit Ferrante’s head. Instead it just rolled on the ground and landed a few meters away from his feet. The General approached it, cursing quietly.

He read a small note attached to it.

“It looks like a legitimate document… wait… is says only about Hungary and nothing about Naples!”



“Well, numbnut, Hungary was an alliance leader so obviously our war with you is over! How hard is that to understand?”

“Who said that we need to step out of the war with you?”

“Send your complains to Johan about that.”

“Who’s Johan? “

“Not your Goddamn business.”

“All right… Troops, we’re marching out! It’s gonna be better than dealing with these guys…”



------------------------------------------


Though Naples was very much out of luck when dealing with Pisa, there was one thing it could be grateful for- at least it wasn’t Hungary. Hungarians paid a hefty price for getting involved in too many wars at once. The first one to plunge its metaphorical fork into an equally metaphorical cake was Aquileia. They have demanded a large chunk of Croatia, rupturing the region it the process.



The Emperor in Austria soon followed, though his terms caused much rejoicing throughout Italy. The Habsburg emperor demanded release of all Hungarian possessions in Italy. Though many suspected this gesture to be just a publicity stunt, the end of another foreign presence on the peninsula was a well- received change.



Bohemia was the last to let go. As far as the peace terms went, they have demanded their former territories taken from them long ago.



Though Hungarians have proven to be a suspect ally, Naples was able to find more help by securing an alliance with Portugal.




The end of 1469 brought some more news, some of them were highly disturbing. After their success in defeating Hungary, the emperor in Austria managed to pass a bill that reduced some of the autonomy of the members of the Empire. Will it mean the return of the long- defunct state that was the Holy Roman Empire? Only time will tell. Meanwhile, the king of Naples was busy doing exactly the opposite…


-------------------------------------------------


The coronation ceremony was underway. Arminio de Valois, nephew of king Alberto, was about to be crowned as the Duke of Serbia. He approached the Bishop with a smile on his face, ready to accept the ducal crown. Well, he had to be elevated to do so, for he was only eleven years old, but it’s the intention that counts.



The decision to recreate Serbia was mostly a geopolitical one. Naples didn’t have much use for a disconnected province and releasing it as a vassal proved to be more beneficial in the long run. The people of Kosovo were also happy with the deal, as they were promised religious freedom. Some were also hopeful that king Alberto would retake the rest of Serbia from the Byzantines. Right now, Naples had no desire to go to war with Byzantium, but that remained a possibility.
Overall, people in the kingdom were in happy moods. Not even another war between Muscowy and Novgorod could change that.



In 1471, a strange sensation swept across the whole kingdom of Naples. Suddenly, everyone in the country had the same idea. That idea was ,fittingly, to force recruit hapless people to serve on Neapolitan ships.



Thankfully, not all of this sudden surge of creativity was spent on chaining people to the decks. The people of Naples finally realized that having different units of measure throughout the country was stupid, to say the least.



In June, another war have broken out. I’ll give you a minute to guess between who.

If you guessed England and France, you are correct.





---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Lisbon, 23 January 1471



It was another dull winter day in the docks of the capital of Portugal. Most of the ships already returned to the port and the sailors have swarmed the local taverns and back alleys, looking for a cheap drink and a cheap, though least likely to give you ‘something extra’, lady of company. Most of the locals were absorbed by idle gossip and discussing the recent war between France and England.

Two people were visibly standing out from the crowd. Instead of going with the flow of port life, they were staring idly at the horizon.

“See that one over there?” Aziraphale pointed at the cog approaching the harbor. “This one looks like it can take us there!”

“Yeah? And where would you get the crew?” Crowley was unconvinced.

“We can always hire some at the tavern!”

It would be a great idea had they were in a video game, but, alas, they weren’t.

“To sail out into the uncharted waters? I don’t think so.”

“We can be very persuasive, remember?”

Crowley sighed. “That’s true, but you still have to get there.”

“We can use a map…. Oh yeah, right….” Aziraphale realized that he just said a very stupid thing. Crowley smirked.

“So… how much time there is before Columbus?”

“Ah, about…. 20 to 30 years?”

“Fantastic…. *sigh* I’m glad I brought something to read…”

“Don’t get your hopes up. Even if we wait, with the changes to history, we can’t hope that he’ll show up.”

“What?! Then who will discover the New World?”

“I don’t know. I can’t believe that would be anytime soon. Who would be stupid enough to fund such an expedition?”

Aziraphale and Crowley looked at each other.

“Crowley…. Are you pondering what I’m pondering?”

“Indeed I am, Angel.”

“Looks like we’re coming back to where it all started…”

“Not so fast. I’m going to get a drink first….”



---------------------------------------------------------
So, our ‘heroes’ decided to come back to the dreaded city of Naples. It looks like history likes to repeat itself, with old kingdoms coming back to life…

DensleyBlair said:

Naples funding an expedition to the New World? Colour me deeply intrigued... Let's get some nice Caribbean action going!

Click to expand...

Thanks as always for the kind words! Indeed, Naples is going for the New World, though I don't know how much engaged will I become in the colonization. I guess that depends on the situation in Europe.
Also, congratulations on your well- deserved award! (I know it's late but I hope that it still counts)


The new update should be up in a few days.

Episode 23- Goodbye, Sweet Prince
Expecting a funny episode? Too bad, Waluigi time have some drama instead.​

The year 1473 was a year of many changes in Naples. The revival of naval trade in the city, coupled with a constantly growing need to transport ships and goods throughout the country created a need for a stronger navy. The reforms and shipbuilding program sponsored my King Alberto made a sudden shift towards naval affairs in Naples.



Some people did not take it well.



The premature death of their commander was a major blow to the Neapolitan soldiers. King Alberto took it as a sing to seek more allies outside the country. Thus, in February of 1473 Naples signed an alliance treaty with Denmark.



Trouble were brewing once again in the usual areas of the world. The Kingdom of Pisa lost the province of Girona to France, ending their long reign in the area. The weakness of Pisa was a subject of interest for the King and his Council, as the kingdom was high on their hit list.



The past years have not been kind to England. Constant wars with France have cost them almost all of their French holdings. What’s worse, their constant struggle with Scotland caused them to lose many of their British territories as well. Fortunately, there was still hope for England, as they were able to fend off the Scottish invaders in their last war.

Actually, I lied.





Keeping up with the political situation in Europe wasn’t for the faint of heart, it seems. In August, Naples lost its statesman, Fabrizio Pieroni. He worked hard for the King and the country, neglecting his health in the process. His death was mourned deeply in the city of Naples.



After the passing of that many great men, Naples was greatly weakened. Unfortunately, Death had still kept his eyesight on the palace and the worst hit was yet to come. This time, it was a very personal hit.




-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Naples, 22 December 1473



Carlo de Valois, Crown Prince of Naples, was woken up by a loud commotion. Loud noises weren’t uncommon in the Palace of Naples even at night, but it was already noon. Why was Carlo asleep at that moment? Well, young prince led a very night- based lifestyle. Not because he was a vampire- he lacked the necessary sparkly skin. Instead, Carlo was a party animal. He spent most of his college days drinking and engaging in risqué sexual behavior. He was talented, so this did not jeopardize his grades, though his habits were frowned upon by many people, his parents included.

He reluctantly got up, got dressed and headed downstairs. It wasn’t hard at all to find the source of commotion- it came from the throne room. Normally you couldn’t find many people there, expect when there was a ceremony. Carlo was unaware of any kind of event, yet the throne room was filled to the brim with people.

He plowed through the crowd, trying to find anyone that would know what was going on. Lots of people around here were talking, but the room was so loud that he could not hear a single word. Finally, after ten minutes of pushing aside people in his way, he reached the thrones. He saw his parents surrounded by the council members and Father Antonio, Bishop of Naples. Ricardo and Eva were also there. He could not find Filippo anywhere.
Alberto approached his parents. Undoubtedly he was about to utter some kind of witty remark. He stopped himself when he saw their faces.

“Father, what’s going on?”

“Carlo…” There was something in his voice that sent chills down his spine. His father was usually an easygoing and friendly person, though with little tolerance for stupidity. Now his voice was almost completely devoid of emotion.

“Father, what are all these people doing here? And why isn’t Filippo with you?”

Asking about Filippo was innocent enough from his perspective, so the reaction this caused caught him completely off- guard. Eva started crying loudly, holding on to Ricardo. His mother began to sob.

“Carlo…” Alberto breathed in loudly, trying to keep his cool. “How should I explain…. You see… Filippo went horse riding with his friends…” He spoke quietly, often pausing for breath. “He…. Oh, God…. Filippo fell off his horse and broke his neck.”



The news of his brother’s demise caught Carlo completely off- guard. He was left speechless for a long time, only able to snap out of it when queen Olivia, who was at the edge of emotional breakdown for a long time, started crying. Carlo stepped forward and embraced her. His opinion of women was never high, but his mother was one notable exception. Seeing her in such a state was as bad for the young Prince as losing his brother.

“But… how could this happen, father?”

“I don’t know… we may never know…”


One thing was certain, though. Death has once again crept into the royal family of Naples, taking away a beloved son and a promising heir to the throne. Days of peace and joy were to be replaced by difficult decisions and grief.




----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Naples, 14 January 1474




The Christmas of 1473 in Naples was not a happy period. Most people were mourning the passing of Prince Filippo de Valois. His funeral was attended by almost half of the city’s population. Many guests from outside Naples were also present, including Castillan princess Marika, fiancée of the deceased prince. Everyone was in grave moods that day, but the royal family was shaken the most by the lost of their heir. It was most apparent when looking at queen Olivia. The was almost no sign of the inner drive and determination she was usually full of.

Nonetheless, life still went on without Filippo, however hard it might’ve been. Alberto knew that. Naples needed a heir, but it also needed more than that- a guarantee that the de Valois dynasty will continue. He was concerned whether Carlo would live up to that expectations. He was still hopeful that his son will start to live a responsible life.


----------------------------------------------------------------------


Alberto’s office was rather small and he did not spend much time there. Most of the paperwork was handled by Fabrizio. Unfortunately, he passed away and with the death of his son he did not the time to find the suitable replacement. There wasn’t a time to dwell on it right now, as Alberto was having a meeting with Prince Carlo.

Carlo was anxious about the whole ordeal. His father preferred to settle all the family matters in a non- official manner. He never called him to a meeting like that before. His father was sitting in front of the desk, dark circles under his eyes suggested he did not sleep well.

“Perhaps you are wondering why have I called you here, my son?”

“Indeed I am, father.” Carlo said, though in reality he knew very well what they are going to talk about. There could be only one topic considering the circumstances.

“First of all, I would like to thank you for staying with during such difficult period. I and especially your mother really appreciate this.”

“Please, father. There was no way I could leave you during that time.”

“I’m glad to hear that your sense of duty to the family is still strong. I’m afraid, however, that that’s not the only thing we’ll need you for.”

Carlo tensed up. He knew what was going to be the subject of this conversation. Alberto haven’t brought up the subject of succession so far and he knew that it was insensitive to bring it up on his own.

“This is a difficult time for us all, I’m sure you understand. We are still shocked by what’s happened but need to do our best to carry on. I need to know that the kingdom is in good hands when I’ll be gone. You are now my official heir, so this responsibility rests on you.”



Carlo was shocked- not because of his father’s decision, as it was the only logical one. The possibility of being a king never crossed his mind before. It was Filippo who was groomed to be Alberto’s heir. He did not feel prepared enough for the role.

“Are you sure, father?”

“I am. You have the ability to be a great King. The only thing I worry about are your motivations.”

“I will return from the university if you wish…”

“I was mostly referring to your partying and womanizing habits, Carlo. As a future King, you need to be responsible.”

“I will keep that in mind, father.”


“I hope you will, Carlo. You may go now.”



------------------------------------------------------------------------------


Life was slowly returning to normal in Naples, while the rest of the world was still engaged in petty squabbles. In June of 1474, Austria have declared a war of aggression on the Former Republic of Venice.



Said war lasted only half a year, ending in total Austrian victory. The end of 1474 also marked an end of another conflict between Novgorod and Muscowy.



In 1475, Alberto decided to resume his plans of centralizing the government. Said plans were met with disapproval of some local nobles, who took up arms in rebellion. It was quickly put down.



England’s struggles continue. After yet another crushing defeat against France, their mainland holdings are dwindling with blinding speed.



In August of 1476, France, high on their victory against England, decided to follow up with declaring war upon Aragon.




Though unlike England, Aragon was not without friends. The French were soon engulfed in a double- front war against Castille and Burgundy. That effort soon proved too much for them.



To the East, the Byzantine Empire continued its conquering spree, this time going after the principality of Achaea. Will we see the Empire reborn?





------------------------------------------------



5 years passed since prince FIlippo’s demise. Prince Carlo returned from the university and was nominated a chancellor by the King. Alberto was pleased by his son’s greater interest in foreign affairs, though at the same time he was irritated about him continuing his wastrel ways.
Queen Olivia helped his husband whenever she could, though most of her time was now occupied by tending to her children. Prince Ricardo was especially struck by his brother’s death. He now insisted on being called Filippo, much to despair of his mother. Medics attributed this to the stress he was under.
The healthy part of the royal court kept on working hard. Their minds were especially occupied with the recent war in France.


-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Naples, 25 May 1478


King Alberto was studying the map of the situation in France.

“The French are losing badly. I wonder what will that bring to the stability of the region.”



“It’s too early to tell, probably.” Prince Carlo said. “The Burgundians don’t have the best reputation right now due to their constant wars in Germany. They most likely won’t be so eager to take French land.”

Their conversation was interrupted by a courier.

“Yes? What is it?.... Ah, thank you. Father, the French have made peace with Burgundy.”

“Really? On what terms?”

“You need to see for yourself.”



Alberto was shocked. This peace pushed back the French unification efforts back to before 100 Years War. It was a crushing defeat for a country as proud as France.

“Good, isn’t it? But, believe it or not, there’s more.”



“That’s not the best time to be French, is it?”

“Wow…. That’s just…. I know we had bad history with France before but I just feel sorry for them…”

“Too bad we did not see Provence independent once again…”

“Maybe some other time. Say, you mentioned something about war in Hungary, right?”

Carlo scratched his head. “Oh, yes. The king of Hungary is requesting our aide in a war against Austria.”



“Is that so? Hungarian king is excommunicated right now. Wouldn’t it speak badly of us if we’ll go to his defense?”

“Maybe, father, but Austria is alone in this war. It is as good of an opportunity as we’ll get to attack them.”

“Very well. Instruct the generals and prepare our response.”

“As you wish.”

Carlo disappeared from the council room. Alberto sighed heavily. He was getting too old for this…. Hopefully young Carlo has what it takes to succeed him…





---------------------------------------------------------------
Sorry for the delay. I was just too tired for the majority of the week to write properly. Hopefully I will catch some break this week.
Also, thank you everyone who voted for me in the ACA’s and thanks to everyone who voted in general. Let’s hope for another year of great AAR’s!

Naples, 5 July 1478


Naples was at war with Austria for over a month now, though major military movements were not yet in motion. Many people were worried that the city would become threatened by Imperial troops. Though it was a possibility, Naples was not a prime target for the Austrians. Neapolitan citizens could sleep safely for now.

People’s minds were distracted from the impending doom for a while when a local beggar was cured from gonorrhea by a traveling priest. Perhaps the Man in Chief was thinking the same way as them- that only a miracle could help Naples win this war.




“Bah! Amateur. Saint Augustine would be able to heal at least ten people and multiply the ravioli for good measure.”

“Hey, Crowley! Don’t be so harsh on him! He’s just beginning.”

Crowley and Aziraphale were sitting on a bench in the port district of Naples, enjoying the warm summer weather.

“He won’t achieve much by sticking to single deeds. It’s just not enough these days.”

“That’s why you don’t bother with tempting individuals anymore?”

“Why spend decades trying to send astray just one person? A waste of time I say. You can use that time to spoil a whole lot more.”

Aziraphale scratched his chin. “And how would you do that, exactly?”

“See that tavern over there?”

Aziraphale looked at the building on the opposite side of the street.

“Yeah. What about it?”

“Let’s say I will sneak inside every day and water down the ale.”

Aziraphale shrugged. “Isn’t that what they do everywhere?”

“Let’s pretend they didn’t there… Now, see… The patrons realize that the ale is watered down and they complain to the bartender, likely using some very colourful words. The bartender, convinced that his ale is fine, gets angry at them instead. Things might escalate into a brawl, with property broken, teeth lost, guards scared witless and cats skinned alive. Come next couple of days, the situation repeats. Isn’t it brilliant?”


“Well, I don’t know, Crowley…. Breaking stuff is mean- spirited, but I wouldn’t call it evil if they won’t kill anyone.”

“Tsk. You don’t see the big picture. The little bits of negative energy, put together, amount for way more than from one incredibly evil person. That’s progress!”

“You know, Crowley, maybe you’re right… Though I can’t imagine your ideas gaining more followers anytime soon…”

“I know…. Doesn’t help that we’re stuck in this forsaken town. I thought finding people willing to embark on an expedition to uncharted seas would be easier.”
“Now’s not the right time, I suppose, with the war going on an everything.”

“Yeah…. I’ll be in a tavern if you need me. I hope they have decent beer.”



-------------------------------------------------------------------

By August the war with Austria was in full swing. The Emperor was joined by his loyal satellite nations in the struggle against Hungary and its allies. They couldn’t contribute much to the fight but were still viable targets, especially for an opportunistic nation such as Naples.



Naples decided to concentrate its war effort on two distinct targets. One army was sent to attack Imperial allies in the Balkans. The other embarked on ships and sailed for the city of Venice. The former trade capital of the Mediterranean was an isolated and valuable target. While they were outmatched on land, the forces of Naples were dominating on seas. King Alberto aimed to take full advantage of that fact.



Austria proved very early that they are in this war for keeps. In September they annexed the Kingdom of Milan. This unlawful conquest of Italian nation outraged many people in Naples who were calling for vengeance.



Even though King Alberto was equally enraged by this act, he was simply unable to engage Austrians on equal footing. The best he could do was attack its backkissing allies. In October, Neapolitan soldiers captured Albania.



Less optimistic news came from the Italian front. While the Neapolitan soldiers managed to siege Venice, a large Austrian army was spotted in the province of Romagna.



Worse news came from Bohemia. After mere six months, the Bohemians were the first to bow down from the war.





-------------------------------------------------------------------
Naples, 20 February 1479

“That’s bad news. Despite the beating they took, Bohemians were able to take the fight to the Austrians.”

Alberto already heard about the Bohemian fiasco. He and Olivia were discussing the next course of action for Neapolitan troops.

“They just couldn’t bear that fight alone I suppose.”

“How about the Hungarians? Will they be able to hold on?”

She shacked her head. “Even now they aren’t doing so good. Now that the whole Austrian army will be focused on them I can’t see them holding out for long.”

“Damn it! I wish we could do something to stop them!”

“Don’t worry. We’re doing our part in the war. I have some good news, though. The mission in Larissa reports their success.”

“Finally we don’t have to send them more money.”



“One more thing. Today we found this in the mail.”

….

“Hmmm. It looks legit. Should we do anything about it?”

“We can after this war is over.”

Alberto leaned back in his chair.

“I hope Carlo is safe. With the Austrian troops attacking Hungary I’m starting to worry about him…”


“Oh, don’t worry. He can handle himself.”


----------------------------------------------------
The Balkans, 28 June 1479


The encampment of Neapolitan army was busting with activity, unusually at that time of day. The troops were preparing to march forward. The siegies were finished and there was simply nothing more to do.

Captain Alonso de Girana was walking forward towards the tent of the commander in chief.

*salute* “Aye, Captain.”

“Aye. Is the Prince inside?”

“Yes, sir, but he ordered not to disturb him.”

“What, he still asleep? Here, let me check…”

He stepped inside the prince’s tent. What he saw exceeded his expectations.

To be fair, Alonso was almost right- Carlo was indeed in bed, though he was far from sleeping. He was surrounded by three women in various state of undress.

“Uhm… Prince Carlo…. Am I interrupting?”

“Oh, no, don Girana. Wanna join in?”

His face flushed red. “No… thanks, my Prince. I’m afraid that I require your attention right now.”

“*sigh* I suppose I might. Come on, ladies. Time to go.”

The women started dressing. It turns out that Alonso has miscounted- there were in fact four of them.

“Sir…. You might want to put your pants on first.”

He left the tent. After a while Carlo also stepped out followed by his courtesans. Five of them.

“May I allow myself of a bit of impertinence… My Prince, was that… escort really necessary?”

Carlo adjusted his collar. “Don’t be like that, don Alonso! The girls are locals, just wanted to, eghm… assure them of our friendly intentions.”

“That’s an unique approach to diplomacy, sir.”

“What can I say. We’re pioneers here. Now, what did you want to tell me?”

“We’re packing the camp. We’ve succeeded in taking Croatia.”



“Excellent. I’ve heard that the Byzantines are coming to help us, right?”

“Indeed. They appear to be marching towards Hungary.”

“So, are we heading out to help them?”

Alonso shacked his head. “Sorry, sir. Even if we did, there are almost fifty thousand Austrian troops there.”


Notice the complete lack of Hungarian forces.


“Well, sorry to hear that. What are our orders then?”

“We head back to Greece and wait for further instructions.”

“*sigh* Great…. At least they have good wine.”

“We might get shipped back to Italy, actually. I have received news that Venice has finally fallen.”



Carlo smiled. “Well, at least someone is making some progress in this war. Come, this calls for some celebrations!”

“But sir! We’ve celebrated birthdays of twenty of our troops since we were here!”

“It’s not my fault they had birthdays so close together!”


“I just…. *sigh* nevermind.”

------------------------------------------------------------------------------


Turns out Queen Olivia was right in her suspicions about Hungary. In September of 1479, they were forced out of the war by Austria.



While they managed to get out without significant territorial concessions, they were forced to annul many of their international treaties. Naples has lost a valuable ally.

The situation for the rest of the allies was dire. Only Poland, Lithuania, Byzantium and Naples were still in the fight and while they still hand more troops on paper, the lack of ability to concentrate them in time meant that Austrian troops could wipe them out one by one. Because Austria had few ports their advantage on sea amounted to pretty much nothing.



Naples was also losing ground in Italy. While they have succeeded in taking Venice, the Austrians retaliated by taking Romagna. They also took control of Urbino, coming dangerously close to the Neapolitan heartland.



They have, however, retreated before they could do much more damage. King Alberto wondered why would they do that while he order the troops to retake lost territory.
All was clear when he received news from Poland.



The whole country was overrun by Austrian troops. With Polish army all but annihilated, there was very little they could do.

Indeed, on April of 1480, Poland was out of the war.



With the conflict taking a turn for the bad, many people in Naples were seeking a way out of it with minimal repercussions, though turns out some people had a little different plans…



------------------------------------------------------------
Naples, 9 November 1480


Prince Carlo returned from his campaign in the Balkans two weeks ago. Though only moderately successful, it gave the relatively young leadership of Naples much needed experience.

“Sir, Lithuania is being overrun by Austrians as we speak. It might take a while for them to subjugate them but we are still in danger of attack.”



Alonso de Girana was promoted to Captain of the Guard after the campaign. Unlike Prince Carlo, he was cautious and reserved about potential warfare opportunities.

“My King, I agree. Furthermore, the peasants are getting weary of all the war taxes. There are even rumors of an upcoming revolt.”



“Hmm. We can use this fact to our advantage. With the threat of the revolt around the corner, the nobles will be much more willing for government reforms. As for the war, you might be right. There isn’t just anything we could get out of it.”

“Should we send our envoys to the Austrians then?” Queen Olivia asked.

Everyone agreed and the matter of peace was almost settled when prince Carlo spoke up.

“Father… may I have a word with you?”

“Of course, my son. What is it?”

They exchanged a few words quietly.

“Hmm, interesting….. are you sure this will work out?”

“Positive.”

“Tell me, what are the alliances of Modena?”

Captain Alonso was caught by surprise by the request, though he managed to find the document in question.
“Let’s see. They are allied with Croatia, Genoa and Pisa, none of which have the power to oppose us. Though you also need to remember that they are part of the Empire and as such they are protected by Austria.”

Prince Carlo smiled. “But you see, they won’t be able to protect them now….”

“Why would that be…. Oh, they already are at war with us.”

“They can’t be hostile to us in two different wars, can they?”

Everyone present looked at each other with baffled expressions.

“That’s…. brilliant. But what would we say to the people?”

“Oh, come on. This will be a short war. There’s nothing to fear from Modena!”

-------------------------------------------------------------------


So, Prince Carlo managed to convince the members of the council to his plan of taking Modena right from under the Emperor’s long and pointy nose. Meanwhile, it looked like the rumors of France’s weakness were greatly exaggerated. They have managed not only to defeat the invading forces of Avignon, but also annex the tiny state.


A mighty feat if I ever saw one.

The preparations for war against Modena lasted longer than anticipated, though they were finished on May of 1481. Only Pisa and Croatia accepted the call to arms, with Pisa as the alliance leader.



All of Naples’ allied agreed to help with the war. This might’ve seemed like an overkill, but life had one more surprise in store for our heroes.



-------------------------------------------------------------
Naples, 25 May 1481


King Alberto was alone in his office, writing a letter concerning his recent orders for the troops. His desk was littered with maps and charts of the area. It seemed like an easy war but the King liked to do things properly when he could.

Suddenly, he was interrupted by a knock on the door.

“Come in.”

“Oh. Sorry, sir. I’m bringing an important message.”

“Thank you, but couldn’t it wait until the council meeting?”

“I thought you might like to see this now o, ah, acclimatize with it.”


Alberto took the message given to him. What he read made him quite surprised.






“Ah.”