10# Mundus Novus [EN]

A lot has changed since the last post at the end of July. But before we look at the narrative written down, it is important to mention one important change. In the game we free Christopher Columbus from the dungeon of the queen/witch so that he can lead us into the new world shortly afterwards.

That queen plays a much bigger role in my expression than she does in the game. Along with Ark, Melina/Elle, she is one of the main characters who accompanies us from the Spain section to the final. More precisely, she is Johanna Trastámara, whose real tragic story is made for a single ruling queen who has fallen into madness and evil. When creating some timelines, I used her life dates as a guide and decided to replace Christopher Columbus with his younger brother Bartholomeo. Another, probably even more important reason was the events in the life of Christopher, which do not coincide with the plot I created around Genoa. The figure of Bartholomeo Columbus offers me essential freedoms in order not to deviate more from reality than I already do.

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So we’re moving around the year 1515. King Louis XII rules in France, Johanna I of Castile in Spain, Charles V in the Holy Roman Empire and the Doge Campofregoso in Genoa. A lot in Germany revolves around the Reformation and the peasant uprisings, as Fyda noticed herself on her search for Princess Elle. The year is also suitable for a detour to the workshop of Leonardo da Vinci, whose last residence is connected to the castle in Amboise, where King Ludwig rules his empire.

But enough of the details about space and time and back to the actual plot. After Ark freed Bartholomeo from his captivity and performed another task for the Genoese Giacomo Delvecchio, the signs point to a war between Spain and Genoa. Ark, however, travels with Columbus to Portugal, where they meet Amerigo Vespucci, who settles an old debt and provides them with a ship with which they can embark on the journey to the new world. After a few experiences in Porto and Lisbon, they actually set sail, with another change in the fraternity in the Columbus family. Ark travels with the youngest brother, Diego Colombus, while Bartholomeo returns home to Genoa. On board is Perel, who is now a free man in friendship with Ark and Diego. A few stories about terrifying sea monsters, mind-numbing mermaids and ghostly encounters later, they finally reach their destination and go ashore near the city of Santo Domingo on the island of Hispaniola.

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In the coming days it turns out that Ark has still not reached his intended destination and that he is drawn to the mainland further to the west. However, he will now tread this further path again without his companions, since they have to follow their own regulations on Hispaniola. Perel takes care of five orphans whose families, villages and even entire tribes lost their lives due to disease and war. These five children can also be found in the game in the city of Liberita and are depicted as similar as possible according to the 16th century. On Hispaniola we encounter real figures such as the colonist and theologian Bartolomé de Las Casas and the conquistador Alonso de Ojeda, before Ark boarded the expedition of the conquistador Francisco Hernández de Córdoba.

Arrived on the Yucatán, Ark parted with the unpleasant expedition, whose goals of conquest and fortune he hated. Little does he suspect that he himself will soon find himself in the midst of this conflict that still lies between him and his hidden goal. The awakening of Beruga.

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