Chapter 295: Blueprints (3)
Granada - January 19, 870 AD
After spending months shivering in the freezing lands of the North, the mild January sunlight of Granada was a true blessing.
Al Hakam stepped out of the carriage, he took a deep breath. He was finally home.
He turned back to the carriage and carefully pulled out a massive wooden chest. The royal guards offered to help, but Al Hakam waved them away.
Inside this chest contained lots and lots of blueprints.
"Al Hakam!" A joyful voice broke his train of thought. Al Hakam looked across the courtyard and smiled broadly. Running toward him were his three siblings.
First was Qasim, his older brother, a tall and broad-shouldered man. Behind him was Malik, their younger brother, who was skinny, anxious, and always had ink stains on his fingertips from managing the family’s accounting ledgers.
And finally, walking with a graceful but hurried step, was his younger sister, Laila.
"You’re alive!" Qasim shouted, wrapping his arms around Al Hakam and lifting him slightly off the ground.
The heavy chest of blueprints dug into Al Hakam’s ribs, but he couldn’t stop laughing.
"Put me down, you brute!" Al Hakam chuckled, patting his brother’s back.
"We were so worried," Laila said, stepping forward to give him a hug. "You look completely different. And you smell like... smoked fish."
"That is the proud scent of the North, little sister," Al Hakam teased, adjusting the heavy chest in his arms.
"But I promise you, the journey was worth every freezing night and terrible meal."
Malik pushed his spectacles up the bridge of his nose, his eyes darting to the box. "Is that silver? Did the Northern King pay us for the trade agreements?"
"Something much better," Al Hakam said, "Come inside. Let us drink some hot tea, and I will show you how our family is going to change the world."
A short time later, the four siblings were gathered around the large carved table in Al Hakam’s private study.
Al Hakam unlocked the iron chest. He threw open the lid and began pulling out dozens of large, rolled-up animal parchments.
He spread them out across the table, using heavy brass cups to hold down the curled edges.
"What are these?" Qasim asked.
"These, my dear brothers, are the blueprints of a new era!" Al Hakam explained, "This is a mechanized loom. Powered by a flowing river, it can weave wool and cotton fifty times faster than a human hand!"
Malik gasped, nearly dropping his teacup. "Fifty times?"
"With Ragnar, nothing is impossible," Al Hakam replied firmly. He pointed to a second blueprint, a massive, tower-like structure.
"And this is a blast furnace. It uses a water-powered bellows to push air into the fire, creating heat so intense it can melt iron ore like butter. We can forge steel tools, stronger weapons, and iron parts for more machines. Ragnar gave me these plans to build a sister city of industry right here in the South."
As Al Hakam looked up from the table, he noticed that his siblings’ smiles were fading. Malik was staring at the floor, Qasim had clenched his fists, and Laila had wrapped her arms around herself, looking deeply troubled.
"What is it?" Al Hakam asked, "I have been gone for six months. What happened while I was away?"
Qasim sighed heavily, "It is Prince Marwan."
"What has that snake done now?" Al Hakam demanded.
"He... he has formally asked for my hand in marriage," Laila said softly. "Our father is considering it. Marwan has threatened to cut off our family’s access to the southern ports if we refuse. He wants to absorb our estate into his own."
"And he hates you, Al Hakam," Malik added nervously. "He hates that you went to the North. He calls Ragnar a filthy, mud-dwelling barbarian."
Al Hakam looked at his younger sister. The thought of her being trapped in a marriage with a cruel man like Marwan was unbearable.
Before Al Hakam could speak, the doors of the study suddenly burst open.
"Speaking of the mud-dwelling barbarian!" a smooth, mocking voice echoed into the room.
Prince Marwan strolled into the study without an invitation. He was draped in expensive purple silks, his fingers glittering with heavy gold rings.
Two large guards followed closely behind him, their hands resting on the pommels of their curved swords.
Marwan sneered as he looked around the room, his eyes finally landing on Al Hakam.
"Welcome back to civilization, Vizir!" Marwan drawled, stepping toward the table. "I am surprised you didn’t freeze to death. Or perhaps the Northern savages taught you how to roll around in the dirt to stay warm?"
Qasim took an angry step forward, but Al Hakam held up a hand, stopping his brother.
"My journey was very enlightening." Al Hakam said politely, "The North is far more advanced than you realize."
Marwan laughed. He picked up one of the blueprints from the table, not even bothering to look at the ingenious blast furnace drawn upon it. He carelessly tossed it back down.
"Fairy tales and scribbles!" Marwan mocked. He turned his attention to Laila, "I assume your brothers have told you the good news, Al Hakam? Your sweet sister and I are to be wed. It is the only way to save your family’s dwindling finances."
Marwan stood there, expecting them to bow their heads in defeat. Al Hakam looked down at the blueprints on the table, and then he looked Marwan directly in the eyes.
"You are mistaken, Prince Marwan," Al Hakam said.
Marwan narrowed his eyes. "Excuse me?"
"We do not need your ports, nor do we need your permission to trade."
Marwan’s face flushed with anger. "You speak boldly for a man whose family relies on my goodwill! If you reject my proposal, I will crush your supply lines! You will have nothing!"
Al Hakam couldn’t help but smile. He placed his hand flat against the blueprint of the massive water-powered loom.
"We are going to produce more iron, more cloth, and more food than your entire royal estate combined. You think you can starve us? I promise you within a year, it is you who will be coming to us to ask for trade." Al Hakam said.
Malik and Qasim stared at their brother, while Laila’s eyes widened.
Prince Marwan looked at the strange blueprints, then back at Al Hakam.
"You are a fool." Marwan hissed, "You will regret insulting me today."
"I look forward to proving you wrong," Al Hakam replied, gesturing toward the open door. "Now, please leave. My family and I have a great deal of work to do."
Marwan glared at them for a long moment. Finally, he spun on his heel, his guards hurrying after him.
For a moment, no one spoke. Then, Qasim let out a booming laugh.
"Did you see his face? I thought his head was going to explode!"
Laila rushed forward, throwing her arms around Al Hakam’s neck, "Thank you."
"Now," Al Hakam said, rolling up his sleeves. "Who wants to help me build a waterwheel?"