No book can teach you how to tame the raging river of fortune, for it has many plans contrary

to ambitious minds, yet to submit powerlessly to fate with lamentation, as if God has not

instilled you with freedom of the will, is a sign of disrespect and the ultimate folly of our kind.

For the river splits into many paths, and those that appear to drag us towards the abyss may, in the end, lead us to glory if only we persist in our efforts.

That is not to say that fortune always favours the brave.

The acts of life should be understood as drama rather than science and sometimes the heroes

lose.

Nevertheless, if it just so happens that you wish to play the role of the prince or princess,

and be responsible for guiding others to a better future, there is wisdom you can learn

from your time and through

history to aid your cause. Before we go any further, however, I must warn you that the practicalities

of ruling come with demands that are not for the faint of heart. Human nature dictates that

at times you will need to adopt the methods of the fox and the lion. You must be like the fox in order

to spot the traps laid by those who wish to see you fail. And you must be like the lion

so that those same people will never try too hard for fear of the repercussions. This might

sound harsh, but let me remind you that the road to hell is often paved with good intentions,

and that sometimes, to be good, you must learn to be cruel.

It's like Sean Baptiste from the falls in the room.

Yeah.

It's like I've got one thing I can do on.

Sean Baptiste, what are you doing?

I didn't realize you're in 15th century Italy.

...