End of the Road

[Sander 3312]

 

 

All roads come to an end, even the ones that are really long and full of adventure.

((https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YdW5-uJqCV))

Henrik Amador was born in 1682, the son of Katherina Amelia Amador and Bastian Grayson. Young Henrik was a bit of a timid child, preferring to spend his time reading rather than playing with the other kids. He was asthmatic and all in all his health was a bit weak. This didn’t stop the boy from seeking the adventure of his forefathers though. As an Amador, he’d read about the stories of Amadors of the past, great traders who sailed the seas to earn riches. Thus Henrik took an interest in sailing. By 14 he’d made his own little sailing ship and regularly took it out on the rivers of Atlas. All in all, the boy lived a life that was quite peaceful and quite alright. He was quite a devout canonist and it seemed that in the future, the life of a priest would be laid out for him, something he looked forward to.



When he turned around 20 though, his life started to change rapidly. His granduncle Ruslan II, who had taken care of Henrik for the latter part of his youth, passed away without an heir. Suddenly, the 20 year-old found himself the Patriarch of House Amador, a House on the brink of ruin during these waning days of Atlas. He was determined to make things work however and restore that which he had inherited to the status and glory it had known in the days of old like his books had described it to him.

That’s all in a past long ago and far away though. Since then, he’d married a wife he loved very much and with whom he had four wonderful sons. Henrik had managed to regain nobility status for his House and lost it again as he fell ill with a lung disease which saw him and his family sail away to Aeldin in search of medical aid. Upon returning it didn’t take long for the Amadors to regain their status again however, along with which they gained some land in the form of a barony.



Henrik didn’t rule over this land for long however. By now he was an old man in his seventies. “The times they are a-changin...” He said to his housemaid one silent day. “I feel less and less capable to stand my ground in this ever-changing land… Haense has changed. When I grew up it was a quiet land of good men, peacefully tucked away in the snow and cold of the wilderness… These days, it’s a bustling place of great men, in the middle of worldly affairs in a sunny land of open fields and clear skies…  The Empire as a whole changed… People dress differently, act differently, use different customs… Traditional culture and values are sometimes hard to find... Not only the world around me though, my old road itself is rapidly aging...” He smiled grimly. “I feel old… I feel it every day… In my back, of course, but also in my head… I feel confused sometimes.. Disoriented… I believe it is time for the next generation to take the wheel..”



((https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qHer-rGfTco))

Not long after that, the old Amador had abdicated his baronical title to his eldest son, Ruslan. He retired, enjoyed the simple things in life for a while out in his mansion, in his rural barony. He took his time to go to church every morning to pray for an hour, something he took great joy in. The old Lord managed to read a lot of books and once or twice a week he’d pick up his cane, leave the house and leisurely stroll out to the city. He couldn’t enjoy this peaceful retirement for long though, as soon after his abdication, he fell ill again. This time, it was even worse than it had been in the past, and he was almost entirely bound to his bed.

“W-Who are you? Wh-” The sick, old father asked, having just woken up as some young man brought him soup. “I got you lunch.” Henrik looked at the young lad for a moment with a confused frown before smiling slightly “Thank you, kind man...” He sat up with the young man’s help before bursting into a coughing fit like he’d been having for weeks. The past few days, his coughs were getting softer and weaker though and the young man by his bedside frowned before leaving the room. After a moment Henrik regained his breath and carefully began eating his soup, then the same young man returned with a handkerchief. “Ah! Karl! My boy! Where’ve you-cough-where’ve you been, son? There was this kind gentleman here a moment ago who gave me soup...” Karl simply gave his father a meek smile. As he had looked back on the past few years, he had realized Henrik had been suffering from dementia for a while, though his sickness had made it all the worse.

A week later, it wasn’t just Karl by the old Henrik’s bedside. His sons, nephew, daughter- and niece in law were there, as well as his servants and a priest. Some of them were crying. “Don’t cry….. All roads come to an end… Even the ones that are really long and full of adventure...” Henrik muttered out softly in a moment of clarity. He hadn’t slept or eaten for days due to his overly frequent coughing fits and it was clear his time had come. He coughed softly before shifting his gaze over to his sons and nephew. “I feel like… Like I’ve forgotten your names..” Henrik muttered as a tear rolled across his face. “...but please make sure I’m not forgotten… And remember… Whatever you do in life… Make sure the people you love are there to see it… For until you go to the Seven Skies where GOD loves you, there’s no greater love than that of family and friends...”

He closed his eyes and began coughing again for a solid ten minutes, though by the end of it, no sound was heard anymore, simply the slightly shocking movement of his body. And eventually, that too came to an end, after which he laid there. His body laid there.

 

 

[garentoft 9265]

Ruslan Amador mourns the loss of his father, reminiscing all of the good memories he had of his father. “I hope to be just as good as father as you were.”

[moosehunter123 1081]

Rennard Amador would have quite a plain expression over his face as he signs the Lorraine cross over his chests "From ashes we rise, Uncle. Thank ye for taking me and my brother back into the family once more I shall never forget what ye did for us..." he would quietly mumble as he wonders back off to his room in the manor.

[Drew2_dude 2636]

“He was a good man, reminded me of my Gran’father Marius, may ‘e enjoy his eternal rest.” Sigmar frowns hearing the news of his good friends passing.

[AnonymousAlexa 3890]

Angelika cried upon hearing the news of the lord’s death and signed the Lorraine cross before saying a prayer. ”GOD bless him...if only he could have lived to see the Chronicles of House Amador published...I will write it in his honor.”

[Zanthuz 1863]

Ser Nikolaus Kortrevich assisted his old friend up to the heavens with ease.

”Welcome old friend. It’s been some time since we wielded swords together in battle. My am I proud of what you’ve accomplished throughout your long journey. I’m most eternally proud of your efforts to regain your House’s nobility stature- may your sons, grandsons and great-grandsons thereafter follow in your footsteps. Join me now with your beloved ones while we wait on those we’ve left behind to join us, I’m sure Otto will be making his way up here sooner or later where we may share stories of our past together...” 

[Quinn275 415]

Tears roll down Otto Kortrevich’s face, having just heard the sorrowful news from a maid. He looks down at his now sagging skin and muscles that had gone to waste long ago. Peering across to a mirror, he caught the glazed eyes of a changed man. Although speaking alone, Otto spoke as if he were speaking with Henrik; “My journey will be ending soon too. I’m afraid. I’m scared of what is to come for me -chuckle- you know I’ve lead a life of death, and I’m not certain of my place in the Seven Skies above us all. I know that you managed to get past those gates, though. You were always a gentle soul at the core.” 

 

Wiping his eyes and looking up to the door, he would find the same maid watching him. At that, Otto demanded his cane and clock from her and began hobbling toward the old church to pray for Henrik’s safe passage. As he made the way to the gates of New Reza, his two grandsons, Viktor and Juliyus, began to follow and grabbed his hands. None of them spoke, but Otto’s mind was full of memories with Henrik; Their service to the Haense Royal Army, the Grain Meyster’s Brewing company...

 

“May Henrik Amador stand in the Seven Skies over us all.”