The Lost Artist of the Empire

Dear River,

  

                Do you recall what father taught us about enjoying small delights in life? I have found myself taking his words to heart as of late. Those simple and yet perfect words, ‘Enjoy the small delights of life and only the small delights, for when they are taken away, and they will be taken away, you’ll be fine. You must, my sons, find a way to enjoy or at the very least embrace the hardships of life for they are plenty in this world.’ The more my days grow in the year, the more I come to agree with our father in his wisdom and have found a small delight on the Estate. A delight only I seem to enjoy in this small city inside a bigger one.

                As I’m writing this to you, I am sitting in a tower in the Oak Library overlooking the Estate and the city beyond its walls. The golden rays of the sun are washing over the Royal Blue roofs of the city right before it sets for the night. The shadows are long in the city while my ink dries on the pages, I keep wishing to paint the scene. It is quite hard to write to you because I can’t stop staring off into the world.

                Sitting in this tower has led me to wondered who was the architect of this place and if he sat up to look over the city as well. I hope the architect got to see the top of the tower before his death, I couldn’t find out if he did or didn’t, but I did find his name, and it is Alucard Rootsoul.

                From what I have gathered about Alucard which I’m sad to say isn’t a lot, he was born either in Whispering Oaks or Traveler’s Haven, but I can’t say for sure which city. I’m not sure either how he made his way to Whispering Oaks, but I do know for sure he was an artist before becoming an architect, which I couldn’t believe at first because I have walked by his work almost daily on the way to the library, at least, on the days it rains. There are many paths in the Palace to get around, some forces you to go outside but most can be found indoors. The walk might take longer to move throughout the Palace inside, but the walk is not dull. Over the long years of the Empire, art has been gathered here in the halls. Every hall I have been down either has paintings or statues or both lining its side. Those halls which hold nothing to study in them will cast colorful lights on the floor due to the stain glass windows. Sometimes, I believe those halls were meant to be a church with the way the colors dancing with the light on the floors.

                On the far east side of the Palace near the base of the Great Oak and under one of its roots sits a narrow hall leading to the library. There are two other paths one can take to get to the library, but I have found the Narrow Way to be the best for one simple reason. The artwork lining the walls are the paintings by Alucard.

                At first, no one would blame you for calling these works gloomy in their nature. The earthy tones of the colors, mostly browns, grays, and blacks only help cast the viewer into a deep sense of contemplation. The heavy shadows only several to deepen the thoughtfulness demanded of the viewer. Alucard had a great understanding of light and shadow, far beyond his time, and few can rival him to this day. Most of the time the light scouse is unseen or is a simple candle, but the way in which he handles the paints is a gift from the AllFather. He almost makes the picture come to life with his dull hues, but with a heavy understanding of light.

                The technique of the Master Artist is great, and there is no doubting his skill, but it is the subject matter which I have found I greatly enjoy. It is of simple squirrels going about their lives only to be faced with the holiness of the AllSon. You can find a glimpse of the AllSon within every painting in his work but can never fully see the Holy One. He is always hidden by the shadows or right out of view for you to study his face. It is not like Alucard doesn’t have the skill to paint squirrels. His portrait work is the best I have seen in years, but he chose to hide the face of the AllSon.

                I wonder why?

                It was actually the question that brought me to look into the artist. I wanted to understand what the point behind hiding the AllSon, but sadly, I couldn’t find a true reason behind the act. A few Bards have suggested Alucard struggled with his faith throughout all of his life, but I don’t know if I can agree with them on that matter. Alucard is counted among the builders of the Great Cathedral on the Estate and did many portraits of the Fathers and Sword Saints of the Order. Those paintings can still be found in the church’s back halls to this day, and I have studied them to find many devotions on the back of the canvases. The devotions were written in the paw of Alucard himself.

                I guess, his early work could be his soul warring with itself over his faith for the AllFather, but there is no way to know the truth. I wish I could find a journal from the artist, just an idea of how he was thinking during his time here on the Estate. As of me writing this letter, I have no idea how he died or what happens to his family, there seem to be little known about him. The only sign I can find of him is the tower I’m sitting in, which I still not sure how he was able to become an architect, and his painting hiding away in the Narrow Hall. It is a shame he is lost to history but at the same time, I have found, and his work is my delights in these days. They almost seem to be hangings the walls just for me.

                Maybe one day, my brother, I can show Alucard’s paintings hopefully sooner rather than later. Give your family hug and kiss from me and …

 

With Love,

Brain Redtales

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