Welcome to the Revolution

[Mirrormoth]

17th Century, Paris.
The world once knew your country for its art, extravagance and beauty. Things have changed, they always change when a new ruler steps into power. Beauty has fallen to corruption and the people of France suffer under the careless rule of King Louis XVI.

[spiltmilk]

Name: Antoine de l’Or
Age: 26
Nationality: French
Physical appearance:  Attractive, of average height, dark skinned, deep brown eyes, long brown hair (almost to elbows), muscular but muscles are not large (above average definition(fit)). Well balanced physique and good bone structure.
Personality: Crafty, manipulative, ambitious, arrogant, distrusting, two faced and mostly fueled by revenge and jealousy. Accustomed to servants. Hates Austrians and the British (anyone that isn’t French really)
Apparel: Changes depending on the situation ahead but is mostly white tights, black boots, white button up shirt, white waist coat, blue coat with red trim and of the cut of the time(long back and short front), more than likely to have the revolutionary cockade pinned to his clothes.
Favorite food: Foie gras, on toast covered with pickled onion.
Back story:
Antoine de l’Or, cousin to Louis XVI, grew up and lives in the Palais Versailles and struggles between being controlled and controlling his jealousy for his cousin, the king. This heavy desire to die a man with a crown erupted not from the want to be king, but rather from catching his wife (a former peasant whom he loved so dearly he made secret arrangements for her to be presented as a noble) in a moment most intimate with another noble. After the incident she then eloped with the man to Austria. From there on he became distrusting and fueled by revenge. The crown will be his at any and all costs, and like his former self his ex wife and her lover will die.
He is often looked down upon due to being the bastard child of Louis XV and a South American woman. This he soon got over at a young age when, in the political environment of Versailles, he found that he could easily befriend high ranking officials, soldiers and servants alike and end up where and with what he wanted. People have always loved him for his charm, and the women for his looks too.

[Mirrormoth]

Name: Lucius Chevalier
Title: Duke / Second to Napoleon
Nationality: French/Spanish
Age: 25
Hobbies: Swordsmanship, Hunting, War, Chess.

Physical appearance:  Tall, Tanned skin, short dark brown hair, Sharp handsome features, Amber eyes and a Scar running horizontally across the bridge of his nose.

Personality: Frighteningly intelligent, has a charming but cold demeanor. A very mysterious individual that can make your hair stand on end through a mere glance.

Apparel: Varies depending on the occasion, but usually black tights, Black boots, a deep red coat, White Cravat and shirt. Sometimes dons a black broad-brimmed hat...all rather plain for a noble.

Wife: Odette Chevalier
Back story: Unknown

[spiltmilk]

(Versailles)
My head butler, Philippe, enters my bedchamber with a smile, “8 o clock my lord. One mustn’t let the winter sun beat them to their day.” He lets out a slight laugh to the words past. I sit in my armchair, dragged some distance to the balcony doors. I stare out over the palace garden. My state most pensive. “And how did my lord sleep?” Philippe asks happily. “I didn’t sleep much. It’s bothering me again.” I reply in a dull tone and continue to look out over the garden. “It’s been almost a year. Surely this can’t be the only thing bothering you. An event, which happened quite some time ago, cannot be the reason for such feelings continued.”
“I will feel the extent that I choose, that which I is perceive necessary. You’re no one to say I feel otherwise. When I found her, when I fell in love, she was in her torn dress netting fish at a lake. She was less than no one. She was a presence that nearly all would rid themselves of and I, hopelessly in love, exonerated by her perfection, took her in. it was as if I had lost all sense of duty, all sanity in fact. Her personality really was something though. It was of a vile soul, one that only I and her family could love and now I see that. Anyway, let me be dressed for the occasion.”
Philippe nods his head, sighs and raises his hand. Soon after, 3 servants enter the room and dress me. Walking down the elaborately decorated passages, I meet my cousin, Louis XVI, and join for the viewed breakfast. I take my seat beside Louis and Mari-Antoinette. The guests stand and watch. Tense with anticipation. I lean over to Louis and whisper into his ear, “Why is your wife here?” “Why can’t she be here?” he responds confused and insulted.
“The people call her l’Autrichienne (the Austrian bitch). Don’t you think these spectators would much rather see her drown in her wine opposed to drinking it?”
Louis, looking at his plate in silence, lifts his cutlery. I and Mari follow. All I can think of is how pathetic he is. How pathetic this system and all its rituals are. Put into my hands we would not waste time on such meaningless events. France would prosper and conquer more than Charlemagne could even imagine.
In the hallway after the viewed breakfast Louis asks me aside, “Why do you always have to be so vulgar and offensive? Such things are not…” “Oh so the weak king has grown some balls now. Imagine if the whole of France saw this. The infamous King Louis XVI finally stops playing with his pocket watches and takes charge of a situation.” I cut him off while creating a display, my arms splayed out as I turn to the near empty hallway and back to him. “Fuck you, you’re no king. You can’t even manage your wife. What king allows the construction of a building for his wife that just about everyone, but himself, can enter. Oui…Fuck you” I add and walk away. Louis stands a little while longer, his eyes scanning the diagonal patterns in the wooden flooring. He puts his hands behind his behind his back, turns and walks in the opposite direction down the hallway. His eyes continuing to read the floor.
After some time I approach an exit to the palace garden. A man approaches and says, “Why do you continue to embarrass and undermine your cousin like you do?” “Fuck you too.” I aggressively state and continue out to the garden. Far away from the palace building, in the middle of the garden, is a bench I always go to. I sit there, close my eyes and take a deep breath. Remembering the cold of the days when I first met her as the air burns my lungs.

[Mirrormoth]

Stepping out from his meeting with the king’s Generals, Duke Lucius Chevalier made his way through the lavish corridors of Versailles. The meeting in the war-room had drained both his energy and patience, it was always a struggle to strategize between generals and nobles. He sighed irritably, pondering the inevitable doom they faced if the war continued. It was common knowledge that the country was under financial strain, provisions ran low and riots ran high.

Taking refuge outside in the geometric gardens, Lucius lent against the trunk of a tree and composed his thoughts. He missed the scent of actual battle, the nobles here focused on numbers and theoretic strategies, pathetically planning out attacks and provisioning that would never work on a practical level.
“Napoleon was right to be concerned.”, Lucius mumbled, “The nobles here do not know battle. They don’t understand how vital each number is… Every number is a life, a provision, a chance at victory.”

Lucius had joined the military at aged 18, ready to fight on the frontlines for his country. He had shown great promise as a soldier and had been mentored and trained directly under the young Napoleon. He shared in his superior’s strategic methods and problem solving, He learned about the honor of battle and comradery. He probably would have stayed at Napoleon’s side had the man not sent him back to aid the King’s war counsel. His mentor knew that the war counsel had been endangering the army by making poor decisions. Napoleon himself refused to leave the frontlines of course, and had come to the conclusion that he would need to send his second in command, Lucius, instead.

Running a hand through his short dark hair, Lucius turned his attention towards the sound of crunching leaves. A child quietly crept through the garden hedges.
She had not noticed Lucius’s presence and seemed set on her designated target instead. Her eyes were set on a man sitting on a bench a few feet away. Lucius recognized the figure in the distance as Antoine de l’Or; cousin to the King.
Wordlessly he made his way towards the man. They had never been formally introduced, he only knew the man by reputation.
The child arched her arm back, ready to toss apple at Antoine’s head. As she did so Lucius stepped in and grabbed the fruit mid-air before it hit the noble.
“One shouldn’t waste food” Lucius added coldly. His amber eyes glinting in the light as he examined the apple he had just caught. ”I expect better from the young princess, Marie Therese”
Lucius watched as the child ran off crying, clearly startled by his scar and frightening demeanor. Pocketing the fruit for his horse, Lucius turned towards Antoine.
“Daughters certainly do take after their mothers, don’t they?”

[spiltmilk]

My thought broken by the sound of a voice and a child’s cries. I sit up and as I notice a man standing nearby, Philippe arrives driving my carriage, the horses violently stamping their way down the gravel path. I approach and he dismounts. “Sir the riots we’ve instigated in Paris have begun. We need to leave immediately and oversee them.” Philippe says in a rushed excitement. “Brilliant! Firstly I’d like to know who the strange man over there is. I think he chased off a little girl. I don’t want any pedophile shit at my palace.” I reply to Philippe.
“His Name is Lucius Chevalier.”
“I still have no idea who he is. Should he even be here at Versailles? One dressed so………..unextravagantly... can surly not be noble nor part of parliament, can he?”
“Oui, he’s a duke. Hand to napoleon.”
“Aahh, Monsieur Bonaparte, love that guy. Anyway, let’s get going. We’ve got rioters to further provoke!”
I leap on to the carriage and with my arm in the air shout out to Monsieur Chevalier, “Monsieur Chevalier, I’ve heard many a tale of your heroics in battle! Would you like to join me for a ride to the city?” Philippe quickly turns to me and with his teeth clenched asks, “What are you doing? We can’t just trust…”
“Don’t worry. Napoleon is a revolutionary himself, a man of good taste and fine culture. Where else did you think I got the habit of doing so much snuff?” I turn my attention back to Lucius and continue loudly “Well come on then. It’ll probably be your first and last chance at meeting a royal.”

[Mirrormoth]

Monsieur de l’Or seemed unperturbed by the incident with the young princess, though Lucius suspected that the noble hadn’t even noticed that he had almost been hit in the head by an apple. Versailles was after all a safe haven for these men who enjoyed their powdered wigs and rouge cheeks. There was no need for them to guard themselves from apples, arrows or blades, they needed only guard their pride and reputation.

The heavy trot of horses on cobblestone clacked through the air. A Carriage arrived for the young Monsieur de l’Or. The lavish individual rose from the bench and headed towards it.
Nonchalant in his mannerisms, Lucius turned on his heel; He was ready to fetch his own horse and head back home to estate de Cygnes. A curious call overhead stopped him though, and he turned back towards the carriage.
“Monsieur Chevalier, I’ve heard many a tale of your heroics in battle! Would you like to join me for a ride to the city?”
Glancing towards Monsieur de l’Or, Lucius seemed surprised to receive an invitation from such a lavish and blasé indivual, “I’m headed towards Paris myself Monsieur. I suppose that travelling together would make the trip more interesting. ”
“Well come on then. It’ll probably be your first and last chance at meeting a royal.”
Climbing up into the carriage, Lucius had to restrain himself from rolling eyes, Monsieur de l’Or seemed to be cursed with that familiar Aristocratic arrogance … As if meeting a royal would be as interesting as observing perfectly cut diamond or some exotic bird. Cousin to the king or not, a man is a man - They all look same blow open, Lucius had seen enough dead men to know that much.

Pushing aside his dark thoughts, Lucius thanked De l’or for his invitation.
As the carriage made its way towards Paris, Lucius felt a question linger on his tongue, “If you don’t mind me asking, Monsieur de l’Or, what business do you have in Paris. I hear that there is an uproar of sorts in the city at the moment. Would it not be unwise for a man of your reputation you to visit at such a time?” Adjusting his broad brimmed hat, Lucius shielded his eyes from the sun.

[spiltmilk]

I look at Lucius with a smile and reply, “Ah, but you see, a man of my reputation is a welcome sight to the Parisian mob. I openly support them, but work behind closed doors to make sure the revolution continues. I try to give the mob whatever coordination it can handle before falling into total discord. You’re probably wondering why I’ve told you this, why I seem to trust you so. Well honestly I don’t really know, but what I do know is that I’ve got a good eye for useful, trustworthy people…and enough power to get rid of those who don’t agree, of course.” I bang on the roof of the carriage and shout to Philippe “Wouldn’t you agree Philippe?” Barely making out my words after the banging below him, he replies with his well known one liner for such situations “Yes my lord. The expanse of your power and influence is immeasurable!” I turn my attention back to Lucius ‘Isn’t he just great.”
The carriage briefly stops, a woman enters holding a bottle of white wine and sits on my lap. Her skin pale as snow, her eyes as if of sapphire, dark brown hair flows to her shoulders with a curl at its ends and her lips a sweet pink, that of rose’. She gives me a large gulp of wine, sets the bottle down and removes her coat to reveal her naked body, stripped of its pride, but her enthusiasm to compensate. I grab her breast, roughly pull her closer on my lap and kiss her. “I must tell you ,Monsieur Chevalier” I take a deep snort of snuff and continue “The best things to abuse in life are drugs and woman. Anyway, I’m a man of the people with the influence and money to back them. They have no reason to turn on me and if they do…Fuck it I’m going to Austria anyway.
A little while longer and the carriage arrives at the Hotel de Ville. Philippe leaves his carriage throne and opens the door, standing to attention and on his best behavior. I continue to Lucius “So…important matters to attend to. Shall we?”

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