Chapter 24
Death is the Beginning
Boudy shivered. Snow fell at a rate that one couldn’t stick their hand out and see it. By itself, it wasn’t bad, but when you factored in the wind, it was unbearable. Without the warmth of the sun the temperature plummeted to where any exposed skin would be tortured until frost bitten.
There was a pile of sticks that laid before him. They were supposed to be on fire, but Boudy was too cold and tired to light them with the limited fuel left. He reached for his water canister and gave it a soft squeeze. Frozen. And so was the last of the food, a half-ate apple. Boudy could never throw away the last of what he prized. The apple reminded him of home and of his past friends. Deciding that an apple wasn’t the only thing worth living for, Boudy quietly laid down into the soft snow and waited for it to gently take him away.
A sharp jabbing kept occurring on his chest. Boudy slowly opened his eyes to see that all of his lower body was covered with snow and that his head was the only part of him that protruded from the snow, which had subsided. The jabbing was coming from a stick, which as boy held, though the boy stopped once Boudy opened his eyes.
They starred at each other, both confused by the other. Noticing that they boy had something steaming in his hands, Boudy whispered in fluent Russian, “warmth…”
The boy looked at his hands and held them close to his fur coat. He gazed at Boudy in a weird way. Boudy knew that he understood him, having the adventure taught him a thing or two about life. All the boy did was shake his head, whether it was in pity, regret, or in greed, Boudy didn’t know, he was too tired to interpret anyone’s behavior. Looking around, the boy headed into the woods and disappeared into the snow.
There was a groan. The only thing that he wanted was warmth, food or water were of no use to him now. More than warmth, was feeling not to be lonely. He had been alone for so long now, it was hard to keep track of the days and weeks without human contact. Now the boy had come and gone and he had missed his chance, his only chance to talk with someone before he died. There was so much that he wanted to tell the kid, even if he only sat there with a blank look, but, alas, there was no strength left to have a conversation. There was nothing to do but to accept defeat, but Boudy thought he accepted that long ago. It was confusing and made his head hurt, until finally there was no strength left to think. With the last ounce of life, he sputtered, “Glad that Ivan decided to change his mind.” Boudy shivered and fell asleep forever.
Snow fell upon this man. A man of no position or power, condemned to die. Befriended betrayers, liars, and pretenders. Drank alcohol and cracked jokes. Escaped prison and freed prisoners. Commanded a ship and had a family. Loved the world and at the same time was scared by it.
Snow fell upon this man. A man who done considerable things in his life time. Fought in three wars and was captain of a ship. Befriended cardinals and stoop up to wrong. Saved a council member from certain death and was the mastermind behind the biggest jailbreak that Rome has ever seen.
Snow fell upon this man. Some people call him ordinary, some call him extraordinary. Despite everything he did in life, he would not be remembered for these, but instead of all the events that followed. This man is the cause behind one who would lead a war across Europe.
***
Napoleon paced the room, which was private to him and a select others. An advisor stood there with a baffled look on his face.
The advisor tried to calm his friend down, “Emperor—“
“Quiet,” Napoleon shot, “I must think.”
“But sir, don’t you think you should be planning.” The advisor took a step towards Napoleon.
The emperor stopped and turned to face his advisor, “what did I just say?” The pacing continued.
Quickly taking two steps back, the advisor looked for an exit route.
“Why, why, why, I conquered Europe in the effort to gain all the information I can about him, but when I get to his resting spot, I have to retreat.” Napoleon was furious, the usual for the past days. It was the same story, but apparently, Napoleon was obsessed about it. Only the closest of friends knew about it, but for Napoleon, the demand of friends outweighed the supply.
Knowing that the only way to calm Napoleon was to question about the story, so he asked, “Tell me about the famous story, make sure that you don’t leave any detail out.”
Again, Napoleon stopped and faced his advisor who gulped. “I have told you time after time…. No matter, it can’t hurt none, and it will ease my mind.” There was a moment as he arranged his thoughts and continued pacing. “Captain Boudewijin Kuijper, it has a ring to it doesn’t it? Well that is what my ancestors though. This story had been handed down countless times, and I am the only one to truly to find the man who has captivated my family for years.
Guglielmo di Buonaparte started this all. He happened to be a council member who was fleeing the city of Pisa and he happened to stumble across Boudy, his nickname. They quickly realized that there was an unrealistic connection between the two, so they quickly became friends and told the other their life’s story. So on the way over to Corsica, Boudy explained everything and since Guglielmo was a council member, he wrote down much of Boudy’s words as he could jot down. Once arriving in Corsica, they said good-bye to each other and that they would never forget the other. After some time, my family wondered what had become of their friend and so starts the Bonaparte hunt for information. It was also a quest to see how they could repay their debt to him. After all, he is the one that saved my family, without him there would be no me.
Unlike my forefathers, who had used peaceful measure, I used military might, as any other method was too time consuming. I first started in Italy where his adventure began. Then the trail led me to his hometown in Netherlands and that is where I found out he had gone to Spain and visited the king, so naturally I had to go to Spain and make out the truth. Eventually I swept across Europe, following trail after trail, until I received the position of his death in Russia. Then using all my might to push through I desperately hoped to find his grave and have this adventure over. However, I was defeated and will never have that chance again. Therefore, I have failed my family’s mission, which has been there for the last couple centuries.”
Napoleon stopped and stuck his finger in the air in resolution, “I have shamed my family, country, ad the world. Now, into exile I go.” He started briskly walking out the room. The advisor gaped, nothing was new expect for the last part, which scared him. How can one family be so obsessed about one ordinary man, that they are willing to conquer Europe just to find information? He shook his head in disbelief, anger, and resentment. How Napoleon could be committed to such an insignificant quest, was beyond the advisor’s imagination. That didn’t change the one thing that the advisor concluded.
Captain Boudewijin Kuijper had changed the world.
The End
o The next update I want to be perfect, so I am taking my sweet old time, that and the fact that I am doing the library, another AAR, and "All the news about Rome plus some" thread. I am a very busy man.
