Good news! The sequel to Crystal Promise is now in the editing phase. I will be posting a nail-biter of a preview to this blog in a day or two. Today, I thought I’d share with you a parable detailing Novem’s caste system and class struggle. This and other ‘flavour-text’ style short pieces will be featured between certain chapters, and I will *potentially* be recording a pair of radio plays and uploading them to YouTube: Crystal Captain and Speaker for Hire.
‘The Nine Sons of Novem’
Once upon a time there was a wealthy duke with nine sons. One day, the duke brought his sons to the top of his tower and showed them the virgin, untamed land around the estate. He told them that when they became men, they would each earn an inheritance: one ninth of the duke’s wealth.
When the first son was a man, he used his inheritance to buy up vast parcels of land, and so he and his wife and children became farmers. ‘Thus will I feed my younger brothers,’ said he, for as the eldest, he was a responsible provider.
The duke warned him, however, that his brothers would take advantage of his generous nature.
When the second son came of age, he spent his wealth on tools of iron and went into the mountains, for as the second-born he naturally sought to become more successful than his older brother. ‘Here shall I find the riches of the earth,’ said he, ‘and my older brother shall feed me so that I may work uninterrupted.’
And the duke warned him that a nugget and a coin are not the same thing.
When the third son was old enough, he used his money to buy tools of crafting, for he looked up to his elder brothers who worked with their hands, but he had the heart of a creator. When the second brother complained that his hard work was going to rust, the third brother said: ‘I will pay you to work, brother, and I will pay the eldest to feed you, if I may take what you have and build to my heart’s content.’ And with the riches of the mountains he bought from his brother, he built a great city, and many people paid him for his houses, and so he became wealthier than his older brothers.
But the duke warned him that city walls do not protect against greed.
When the fourth son earned his inheritance, bandits came from the forest and besieged the city the third son had built. The fourth son asked the third son to build him weapons and armour, and then he went out and slew the bandits, and his brothers were thankful. ‘You must pay me,’ said he, for though he was brave he was also practical. ‘I am risking my life to protect your fields, mines and city.’
His brothers paid him to keep them safe, and he became wealthier than they, so wealthy that he had the third brother build him a fine fortress in the centre of the city.
Then the duke warned him that his brothers would not need him during a time of peace, and would become wealthier than he.
When the fifth son was given his gold, he saw how busy his older brothers were, and how they did not have time to enjoy the fruits of their labours. So he bought a horse and cart and offered to take their goods to the next city to sell.
By selling his brothers’ goods, he became wealthier than they, for he earned more gold in the sale than the goods were worth, and he brought back exotic things to sell. His house was larger than the fortress in the centre of town.
The duke warned him, however, that his younger brothers would find a way to outdo his wealth.
Now the sixth son was not hard-working or brave or cunning, but he had spent his childhood observing the world and he knew many things, and there came a time when his elder brothers’ goods no longer fetched a fair price, and all the brothers were in danger of losing their wealth. So they all went to the sixth brother and said: ‘you understand the world. How do we save our wealth?’ The sixth said: ‘why, we must create something new that people need.’ And he used his understanding of the world to make new things that were useful, and from his share of the profits he built a place where others could learn what he knew. For a time, he was the wealthiest of all his brothers.
The duke warned him, though, that not everyone understood the value of truth.
When the seventh son achieved independence, it was discovered that he was a crystal speaker. He took the knowledge of all his elder brothers and bound that wisdom into crystals. He went forth and conquered neighbouring nations with his power, and he had the wealth of an emperor, and he ruled over all his brothers.
But the duke told him that his fortune was forever fated to rise and fall along with his empire.
The eighth son, unlike his brothers, had no concern for material wealth. His share of the duke’s legacy was spent building a place of worship, atop the Great Crystal which spoke for the gods. Because not even the seventh son could understand the Great Crystal, the eighth son’s church became influential even beyond the borders of the empire, and thus became wealthier than the empire alone could ever be.
But the duke told the eighth son that the gods did not concern themselves with the folly of man.
Then came a time when the empire was beset by rival nations, and fell to their might, and the brothers and all they had built were reduced to poverty and ruins. Then the ninth and final son was given the ninth and final share of the duke’s estate. The ninth son looked to his elder brethren and said: ‘brothers, I shall use my wealth so that we may rebuild, provided each of you pays me a regular share of your wealth hereafter, and name me ruler. If you refuse, I shall take my wealth and leave you to ruin.’
And so the ninth son became the wealthiest and most powerful of all, without ever lifting a finger.
But the duke warned the ninth son that his brothers would forever resent him for what he had done.
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