The Order of the Furies: 1795 by Niklas Natt och Dag

Author:Niklas Natt och Dag
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Atria Books
Published: 2024-04-29T00:00:00+00:00

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The lad is everything Ceton has hoped for. His feelings are as heartfelt as if he exhibited them naked, incapable of hiding anything. His voice trembles but carries, the tears come but do not disrupt—rather, they heighten the emotion. He reminds them of love of the kind they have forgotten—for those who have ever been granted it. The innocence and sincerity of youth, its hopes and promises. He tells of his forefathers’ faith, of the incarnation of the bloody bridegroom, of the Moravians’ belief in the mystery of wounds. They follow his every step from Prussia to Stockholm, his companionship. He shows a sample of his work that he has brought with him—already hammered into the correct shape. Regret and pain. Wilhelm. Ceton hears the silence change tone to rapt attention—no one dares even cough. Barely a breath is audible. He assumes that the masks in the auditorium have taken on new roles as they also conceal tears. The boy’s humble words find an echo in even the most worldly. Many hearts, long since scarred, bleed again—and a bewildering twinge of pain flourishes in a limb supposedly amputated and forgotten. They are reminded of love of a sort that is no longer permitted to germinate in the soil of cynical excess: heartfelt, pure. So ends his tale; he bows his head as the words peter out, and for a moment you could hear a pin drop between the balconies. Then the applause erupts, augmented by supportive cries and whistles. Confused by the response, Albrecht looks quizzically at Ceton while wiping his cheeks on his sleeves, and Ceton mimics a bow until the boy understands and repeats it. He draws Albrecht offstage with a gesture, and leads him back to the dressing room to prepare the second act of the evening. He hears Bolin’s voice rise above the noise.

“Champagne awaits you in the foyer, gentlemen! The interval shall last an hour.”

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