A Lovely Masquerade, Books 1-3, A Tale of the Spice King
Introduction - Greetings from the Other Side
My name is…
Well, if you know me then you already know what my name is, and if you don’t know me, it is the Spice King and that is all that really matters.
That is all that really matters because the Spice King is who I spent the majority of my life trying to be and is no doubt who you’ve come here today to read about—the embodiment of a successful man: wealthy, powerful, admired by many, despised by many, master of his own fate, and not obliged to answer to anyone.
I did not start my life as the Spice King, far from it in fact, but my time is short and I dare not waste it writing down my whole life’s story. My youth was largely unremarkable and what details of it are worth recounting will no doubt make it into these my final chapters which I am about to share with you.
Tales of the ascension and reign of the Spice King can be gathered in any port found between where the sun rises and where it sets. If you wish to be regaled with stories of my adventures in the distant jungles and resplendent courts of the East, or of my days spent crossing deserts and exploring the untamed wilds of the Southern Continent, I suggest you find yourself a thirsty old sailor with some white in his hair, dark-brown, leathery skin and the distinct scent of peppers, saffron, vanilla, or cinnamon wafting from him. He will be able to tell all you wish to know plus a little bit more for the price of a few drinks.
I will not endeavor now to chronicle these adventures myself and separate fact from fantasy because, as I’ve already said, my time is short and, sadly, much of what I accomplished during those decades of adventuring after wealth is far less important than what I learned and did on the streets and canals of my own lovely City of Masks in these my final years.
I lost more than I ever thought I could and gained more than I ever thought was possible. The man I was before my fateful fall and return to glory scarcely resembles the man I have become, and for that, I am forever grateful.
I do not feel the fear I have felt in times past when confronted by my mortality, and I only hope that whatever I may fail to finish transcribing, regarding my final days, right up to my death, will be completed by one of my friends. For I do in fact have friends now, true friends, ones that will suffer humiliation and even take a bullet or a blade in defense of the bond we share.
It is well known that I have escaped the ax, the noose, and tampered wine on more than one occasion, that I have stared death in the face many a time; so allow me to say to those of you familiar with my schemes, or who are merely fond of conspiracy:
If you are reading these words, know that they have been penned by one no longer with you; I have succumbed to the end that we each must face, and I am well and truly dead—some may say before my time, but I will leave that to you to decide.
The Spice King,
Sandrone Pavironica
Well, if you know me then you already know what my name is, and if you don’t know me, it is the Spice King and that is all that really matters.
That is all that really matters because the Spice King is who I spent the majority of my life trying to be and is no doubt who you’ve come here today to read about—the embodiment of a successful man: wealthy, powerful, admired by many, despised by many, master of his own fate, and not obliged to answer to anyone.
I did not start my life as the Spice King, far from it in fact, but my time is short and I dare not waste it writing down my whole life’s story. My youth was largely unremarkable and what details of it are worth recounting will no doubt make it into these my final chapters which I am about to share with you.
Tales of the ascension and reign of the Spice King can be gathered in any port found between where the sun rises and where it sets. If you wish to be regaled with stories of my adventures in the distant jungles and resplendent courts of the East, or of my days spent crossing deserts and exploring the untamed wilds of the Southern Continent, I suggest you find yourself a thirsty old sailor with some white in his hair, dark-brown, leathery skin and the distinct scent of peppers, saffron, vanilla, or cinnamon wafting from him. He will be able to tell all you wish to know plus a little bit more for the price of a few drinks.
I will not endeavor now to chronicle these adventures myself and separate fact from fantasy because, as I’ve already said, my time is short and, sadly, much of what I accomplished during those decades of adventuring after wealth is far less important than what I learned and did on the streets and canals of my own lovely City of Masks in these my final years.
I lost more than I ever thought I could and gained more than I ever thought was possible. The man I was before my fateful fall and return to glory scarcely resembles the man I have become, and for that, I am forever grateful.
I do not feel the fear I have felt in times past when confronted by my mortality, and I only hope that whatever I may fail to finish transcribing, regarding my final days, right up to my death, will be completed by one of my friends. For I do in fact have friends now, true friends, ones that will suffer humiliation and even take a bullet or a blade in defense of the bond we share.
It is well known that I have escaped the ax, the noose, and tampered wine on more than one occasion, that I have stared death in the face many a time; so allow me to say to those of you familiar with my schemes, or who are merely fond of conspiracy:
If you are reading these words, know that they have been penned by one no longer with you; I have succumbed to the end that we each must face, and I am well and truly dead—some may say before my time, but I will leave that to you to decide.
The Spice King,
Sandrone Pavironica
Table of Contents
Book 1: Welcome to the Masquerade
[Act I] One Fateful Day
Chapter 1 – The Spice King 1
Chapter 2 – The Weight of Illusion 9
Chapter 3 – Personal Business 13
Chapter 4 – Party Games 23
Chapter 5 – A Dramatic Flare 31
Chapter 6 – Ladies and Gentlemen 37
Chapter 7 – An Unexpected Unveiling 45
Chapter 8 – The Lows 49
Intermission I: Symptoms and Disease 56
[Act II] The Second Act
Chapter 9 – La Nebbia 62
Chapter 10 – A Sunny Day 70
Chapter 11 – Ghosts 79
Chapter 12 – Proper, Improper 82
Chapter 13 – What Does It Matter? 89
Chapter 14 – A Dark Night 96
Chapter 15 – Smiling 103
Chapter 16 – Five Pounds of Saffron 110
Chapter 17 – The Second Act 118
Intermission II: An Individual Malady 119
[Act III] Beneath the Façade
Chapter 18 – Right and Wrong 127
Chapter 19 – A Change for the Better 136
Chapter 20 – What Has Been Gained? 144
Chapter 21 – The Time for Execution 154
Chapter 22 – An Arresting Appeal 164
Chapter 23 – The Price of Love pt. 1 171
Chapter 24 – The Price of Love pt. 2 183
Chapter 25 – Take the Stage 196
Epilogue – The Afterparty 209
Book 2: 30 Months
A New Doge, a New Era 222
The Wells 234
Beautiful Lies 241
New Horizons 252
Plans and Purposes 255
Living to Survive 263
A Dark Wind 269
In the Name of Love 276
Book 3: A Carnival of Masks
[Act I] No Rest for the Weary
Chapter 1 – Long Live the Spice King 289
Chapter 2 – The Cost of Illusion 299
Chapter 3 – The Spice King and The Courtesan Queen 310
Chapter 4 – Freedom and the West 318
Chapter 5 – Sparking a Plan 326
Chapter 6 – Black Wine 336
Chapter 7 – A Wise Fool 344
Chapter 8 – The New Movement 350
Chapter 9 - Kahve 359
Chapter 10 – A Lovely Masquerade pt. 1 371
Intermission I: The Black Inquisitors 382
[Act II] Spice King Once More
Chapter 11 – New Company 387
Chapter 12 – Escaping Desire 399
Chapter 13 – Better than Wisemen 411
Chapter 14 – Criminals and Cowards 421
Chapter 15 – The Underbelly of the Leviathan 427
Chapter 16 – One Million Ripples 433
Chapter 17 – Scars and Secrets 439
Chapter 18 – One Step at a Time 449
Chapter 19 – A Lovely Masquerae pt. 2 459
Intermission II: The Night Shift 467
[Act III] This Beautiful, Terrible City
Chapter 20 – Stepping Down 474
Chapter 21 – Discoveries Great and Small 484
Chapter 22 – Harmony and Differences 493
Chapter 23 – An Army without a King 501
Chapter 24 – The Honest Truth 510
Chapter 25 – Beauty and Pain 519
Chapter 26 – Not So Ignorant Spies 526
Chapter 27 – A Lovely Masquerade pt. 3 536
Chapter 28 – The Blade of a Desperate Thief 542
Intermission III: No Safe Harbor 548
[Act IV] Unsettling the Beast
Chapter 29 – Fairness and Contracts 552
Chapter 30 – Final Preparations 560
Chapter 31 – A Precarious Position 567
Chapter 32 – Nymphs and Fairies 574
Chapter 33 – A Night for Celebration 578
Chapter 34 – Seeds of Life 596
Chapter 35 – Friends and Foes 604
Chapter 36 – Smoke 609
Intermission IV: The Old Man and the Dog 620
[Act V] The Battle before the War
Chapter 37 – A Lovely Day 628
Chapter 38 – Family Legacy 633
Chapter 39 – The Path of the Wind 638
Chapter 40 – Words and Actions 642
Chapter 41 – Coming Together 647
Chapter 42 - A Lovely Masquerade pt. 4 658
Chapter 43 – Striking the Head 669
Chapter 44 – Two Ships in the Night 672
Epilogue – Beneath the Sea 678
A Lovely Masquerade (Full Poem) x
[Act I] One Fateful Day
Chapter 1 – The Spice King 1
Chapter 2 – The Weight of Illusion 9
Chapter 3 – Personal Business 13
Chapter 4 – Party Games 23
Chapter 5 – A Dramatic Flare 31
Chapter 6 – Ladies and Gentlemen 37
Chapter 7 – An Unexpected Unveiling 45
Chapter 8 – The Lows 49
Intermission I: Symptoms and Disease 56
[Act II] The Second Act
Chapter 9 – La Nebbia 62
Chapter 10 – A Sunny Day 70
Chapter 11 – Ghosts 79
Chapter 12 – Proper, Improper 82
Chapter 13 – What Does It Matter? 89
Chapter 14 – A Dark Night 96
Chapter 15 – Smiling 103
Chapter 16 – Five Pounds of Saffron 110
Chapter 17 – The Second Act 118
Intermission II: An Individual Malady 119
[Act III] Beneath the Façade
Chapter 18 – Right and Wrong 127
Chapter 19 – A Change for the Better 136
Chapter 20 – What Has Been Gained? 144
Chapter 21 – The Time for Execution 154
Chapter 22 – An Arresting Appeal 164
Chapter 23 – The Price of Love pt. 1 171
Chapter 24 – The Price of Love pt. 2 183
Chapter 25 – Take the Stage 196
Epilogue – The Afterparty 209
Book 2: 30 Months
A New Doge, a New Era 222
The Wells 234
Beautiful Lies 241
New Horizons 252
Plans and Purposes 255
Living to Survive 263
A Dark Wind 269
In the Name of Love 276
Book 3: A Carnival of Masks
[Act I] No Rest for the Weary
Chapter 1 – Long Live the Spice King 289
Chapter 2 – The Cost of Illusion 299
Chapter 3 – The Spice King and The Courtesan Queen 310
Chapter 4 – Freedom and the West 318
Chapter 5 – Sparking a Plan 326
Chapter 6 – Black Wine 336
Chapter 7 – A Wise Fool 344
Chapter 8 – The New Movement 350
Chapter 9 - Kahve 359
Chapter 10 – A Lovely Masquerade pt. 1 371
Intermission I: The Black Inquisitors 382
[Act II] Spice King Once More
Chapter 11 – New Company 387
Chapter 12 – Escaping Desire 399
Chapter 13 – Better than Wisemen 411
Chapter 14 – Criminals and Cowards 421
Chapter 15 – The Underbelly of the Leviathan 427
Chapter 16 – One Million Ripples 433
Chapter 17 – Scars and Secrets 439
Chapter 18 – One Step at a Time 449
Chapter 19 – A Lovely Masquerae pt. 2 459
Intermission II: The Night Shift 467
[Act III] This Beautiful, Terrible City
Chapter 20 – Stepping Down 474
Chapter 21 – Discoveries Great and Small 484
Chapter 22 – Harmony and Differences 493
Chapter 23 – An Army without a King 501
Chapter 24 – The Honest Truth 510
Chapter 25 – Beauty and Pain 519
Chapter 26 – Not So Ignorant Spies 526
Chapter 27 – A Lovely Masquerade pt. 3 536
Chapter 28 – The Blade of a Desperate Thief 542
Intermission III: No Safe Harbor 548
[Act IV] Unsettling the Beast
Chapter 29 – Fairness and Contracts 552
Chapter 30 – Final Preparations 560
Chapter 31 – A Precarious Position 567
Chapter 32 – Nymphs and Fairies 574
Chapter 33 – A Night for Celebration 578
Chapter 34 – Seeds of Life 596
Chapter 35 – Friends and Foes 604
Chapter 36 – Smoke 609
Intermission IV: The Old Man and the Dog 620
[Act V] The Battle before the War
Chapter 37 – A Lovely Day 628
Chapter 38 – Family Legacy 633
Chapter 39 – The Path of the Wind 638
Chapter 40 – Words and Actions 642
Chapter 41 – Coming Together 647
Chapter 42 - A Lovely Masquerade pt. 4 658
Chapter 43 – Striking the Head 669
Chapter 44 – Two Ships in the Night 672
Epilogue – Beneath the Sea 678
A Lovely Masquerade (Full Poem) x