Secrets of the New World (Infini Calendar) (Volume 2) (25 page)

Deschanel thought about it for a moment, and then said, “Very well. I will return to France and try to do some good there.”

***

Washington, December 18, 1792 (Infini Calendar), 9:07 a.m.

The Austrian contingent stood on the dock, preparing to board the
Hapsburg Pride
. George Washington and Jeanne were on hand to see them off. It was a cloudy and cold outside.

“Well, fräulein…looks like this is goodbye.”

“For now,” Jeanne said. She was once again dressed up as Mary Rose. “Fate is a strange thing. We may yet meet again.”

Leopold said to Washington, “Thank you for your hospitality.”

“This is but the first of many fruitful meetings between our countries, I hope,” Washington replied. They shook hands.

The Austrians boarded the
Hapsburg Pride
. Farahilde helped Frederick along, as he had not yet fully recovered from his injuries. Washington and Jeanne waved at them as the ship pulled away from the dock.

Everyone went below deck to escape the cold, except for Farahilde. She just stood at the railing, staring ahead blankly. Eventually Frederick hobbled out to stand beside her. “You’ll get sick if you keep standing out here,” he said.

“Uh-huh.”

“Is something bothering you? Is it what that Gnostagar said, about your sister having been one of them?”

“I know my sister,” she said. “She wasn’t evil. She couldn’t have been one of those monsters. And yet…”

“And yet you still have doubts.”

“Is it just a coincidence she championed the same technology the Gnostagar have been pushing?”

“Probably. It seems to me that if she was one of them, she would have been able to fight off the mob that killed her.”

But she said, “Maybe the Gnostagar women don’t have the same abilities as the men. Maybe they’re just as helpless as most humans.”

“You could spend the rest of your life worrying about this, and perhaps go mad,” he said. “Or you could accept Antonia Johanna for who you knew her to be: a kind, loving sister.”

Several silent moments passed as she thought about it. Then, “You’re right. It doesn’t matter what some otherworld monster tells me my sister was. To me, she will always be Antonia.”

He nodded happily. “I’m glad to hear that. Now—let’s go inside. It’s cold, and we have a long journey across the seas ahead of us.”

She followed him into the hold of the ship. “I hope more pirates show up.”

END

Brilliant Dawn

1

Paris, France, September 1, 1788 (Infini Calendar), 12:00 p.m.

Jeanne de Fleur followed the caskets as they were carried through the streets of Paris. This was a dark day for France, and the weather lent everyone its sympathy with a dark sky full of clouds.

As vice-commander of the Ordre de la Tradition, Jeanne was the highest-ranking member still alive. One of the men in the coffins, Rene Assange, used to hold that honor. Sadly, he had died in a recent mission, and they were bringing his body home to be interred. Their path today led through the city, eventually ending at Notre Dame Cathedral. The magnificent church, with its gothic architecture, dual high towers and flying buttresses, was a fitting place to end the story of Rene Assange, she thought.

In the other casket was another knight, lesser ranked than Assange, but no less a valuable comrade, was Bernard Sarcozi. He had been the third seat of the Ordre, and a good friend to Jeanne.

For this occasion Jeanne wore her irodium armor as usual, except her skirt and eye patch were black as a sign of mourning.

Following behind her were the crew of the
Justice Ethérée
(Ethereal Justice), the Ordre’s sailing vessel and primary mode of transportation outside of France. Their mourning attire consisted of black robes.

All of Paris had come out to pay their respects. Crowds of people lined both sides of the street as the procession passed through. The knights of the Ordre were the highly respected defenders of France, and Rene Assange had been the one the people loved most.

Soon the procession passed over the Pont au Double, a bridge over the Seine. North on the other side of that bridge, on the island in the midst of the Seine known as the
Île de la Cité, was Notre Dame Cathedral.

They entered the church, and Jeanne was once again struck by just how large it was. Its vaulted ceiling rose a little over one hundred feet above their heads, making the inside of the church feel more like an enormous cavern. Furthermore, a veritable sea of chairs stretched out across the nave, while beautiful stained-glass windows allowed sunlight into the cathedral and chandeliers hung from the ceiling.

Jeanne took her place at the first row of chairs up front. The cardinal then began the mass. “
Deus est palma. Palma est Deus
.”
God is glory. Glory is God
. They were supposed be celebrating the life of these men who had died, but Jeanne’s heart just wasn’t in it. Right now, she wanted to be anywhere but here.

The cardinal conducted the mass, but she wasn’t even paying attention. All she could think about was how the Ordre would continue without the man who had been its pillar for so long.

She wasn’t sure it could.

***

The Palace of Versailles, September 2, 1788 (Infini Calendar), 12:00 p.m.

The next day, Jeanne was called to a meeting with Louis XVI at his palace. She knelt before the king in his throne room. “Thank you for coming, Jeanne.” As the absolute ruler of France, he had hand-picked her to join the Ordre, and its base of operations was within the palace.

“I do as you command,” she replied. Her skirt and eye patch were once again purple, though her heart still felt black.

“The loss of Rene Assange has hit all of France particularly hard,” he said. “But there is no more time to mourn. I am sending you on a new mission, and you must be ready to move out within twenty-four hours.”

She felt as if a tremendous blow had just struck her. “A mission? But…who will lead it? We are without leadership!”

He shook his head. “The Ordre is not without leadership. I chose you to join it with the intention of one day appointing you its leader. That day is today. From this point forward, you are Jeanne de Fleur,
Commander
of the Ordre de la Tradition.”

“I…” She wanted to argue with him, but she knew that would be exceedingly foolish; he was her king, and his word was absolute. So she simply said weakly, “Yes, Your Majesty.”

He smiled. “Do not worry, Jeanne. You will not be alone. The pyramid is, after all, is the strongest structure in nature. The trinity of the Ordre must be preserved. Therefore, I have appointed two new knights to assist you. They will be reporting to the commander’s office—
your
office, now—later today.

“Thank you, Your Majesty. I will do my best. What is our mission?”

He shifted in his chair. “As you know, our economy is in a terrible state. If it does not improve soon, I fear the people may become violent.

“Fortunately, it seems providence is on our side. Our spy in Spain has reported back that a Spanish galleon bringing gold from the Americas recently went down off the coast of Corunna. He has provided us with the approximate coordinates of the site. You must go salvage the gold before the Spanish do.”

“That’s not too far from France,” she said. “But it’s still the territory of the Kingdom of Spain. The
Justice Ethérée
was badly damaged in our recent battle with pirates.” She avoided mentioning the deaths of her comrades in that fight. “How will we get there in time to salvage the gold?”

“Your ambush by pirates has made it clear the Ordre needs more advanced weapons. Hence, I am giving you the
Minuit Solaire
. Since the
Majesté Divine
nears completion, we no longer need it. Fly to the site of the sunken galleon and retrieve the gold.”

Jeanne nodded. “Understood.”

***

After leaving Louis XVI, Jeanne headed over to the Ordre’s barracks in another part of the palace. She entered Assange’s office—
her
office, she had to remind herself—and took a seat at her new desk.

Unlike the rest of the palace (or really, anything belonging to the royal family), the office was of mostly spartan design. A simple wooden desk; a weapon rack filled with sharp blades; paintings of the king and queen. Those were really the room’s only furnishings.

Jeanne sighed. She missed Rene Assange. He had been her mentor. She trusted him with her life, but now he was gone and she knew she could never replace him.

There was a knock at the door. “Come in,” she said. Though she didn’t at all feel like having visitors, she still had a job to do.

Two men entered. The one on the right was an average-looking young man with long dark hair, while the other was a massive physical specimen with almond skin; Jeanne had never seen anything like him. Both wore French Army uniforms.

“We were ordered to report to the Commander,” the large man said. His demeanor seemed rigid. He was all business.

“That we were,” the other added. He had a care-free attitude and looked to be the opposite of his associate.

Jeanne said, “I am the Commander. Are you the new knights His Majesty was supposed to send?”

The large man’s eyes went wide. “This
girl
is our leader? Ridiculous!”

Jeanne was never in the mood to be insulted, but today was a particularly bad day to do it. She leapt from her chair and strode over to the big lout. “You are speaking to a superior officer,” she said. “And yes—this
girl
is your leader. If you don’t like it, get out.”

His face went red. He obviously couldn’t believe he had just been spoken to like that. Before he could say anything further, though, the smaller plain-looking man intervened. “You’ll have to pardon him, Commander. He’s not used to women officers.”

Jeanne snorted. “Obviously.”

He elbowed the big man, and they both snapped to attention. “Second Lieutenant Victor Mont-Hume, reporting for duty!”

“First Lieutenant Pierre Girard, reporting for duty!”

“That’s better,” Jeanne said. She returned to her desk. “From this point forward, you are both knights of the Ordre de la Tradition. I expect you both to act with the honor that title carries. Am I understood?”

They both replied, “Yes, Commander.”

“Report back here at fifteen-hundred-hours for a briefing on tomorrow’s mission. Dismissed.”

***