CIRCLES OF TIME: The Great War
-by: the Yarnspinner-
the_yarnspinner@yahoo.com
http://strands-of-moonlight.my3gb.com
-or- http://strands-of-moonlight.6te.net
Rated: PG-13> Chapter 14 - The Eleventh Hour <
Setsuna, Daniel, and Eric walked along the street of a small French town. Civilians and soldiers were gathering in the town square. Several trucks carrying American soldiers pulled into the center of town and stopped.
In the distance, the boom of artillery could be heard as the war went on.- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
East of Verdun, an American artillery battery under the command of Captain Harry S. Truman fired its new seventy-five millimeter guns deep into the German positions. At 10:45am, under orders from the American command, Truman ordered his battery to cease fire. With the French forces around them, Truman and his men settled down to wait.
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Elsewhere, batteries continued to fire. Setsuna and her companions saw more people gathering. There was an air of expectation in the air, but also uncertainty. Many eyes were directed at the clock in the square.
The thunder of artillery rolled in from the battlefield, miles away.
The great clock began to chime. Men removed their hats, many in prayer. The priest crossed himself, while two nuns dropped to their knees. Other waited silently, listening to the chiming of the clock's bell.
There, and all across France, bells were tolling the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month of the year 1918. As the eleventh chime faded, all was quiet. No one moved, nor did they say a word. All was quiet. Across France and Belgium, no guns fired. For the first time since the Fall of 1914, all was quiet. From out of the distance came a soft noise, like the rustling of the wind. It was the cheering of the men at the front.
The previous evening, a German delegation had met with the Allies in Paris to negotiate an armistice. The final agreement was reached shortly after five in the morning, and declared to go into effect at 11:00am.
Cheers broke out among those in the town. The American soldiers were hailed as heroes. Among the American troops was a group of musicians. Quickly pulling out their instruments, they returned the honor by striking up the rousing tones of "La Marseillaise", the French national anthem. Men and women joined in the singing, with tears streaming down many faces. The song came to an end with cheers of "Vive la France" as men and women danced in jubilation.
Swept up in the emotion of the moment, Daniel pulled Setsuna into his arms and kissed her.
Wine was being passed around. The mayor jumped up and called for attention.
"Let us offer a toast, to our brave sons of France who have fought so long!" he declared.
A cheer swept the crowd, and many of the American soldiers saluted and congratulated their French colleagues.
"To our brave American friends!" the French captain cried, bringing another loud cheer.
The mayor waved again for attention. "To President Wilson, the savior of France!"
The loudest cheer yet filled the air.
The American captain stepped up alongside the mayor. "Thank you, Mr. Mayor," he said in French. "Americans remember the help of France in our fight for independence. Long live France!"
The crowd cheered again.
Eric stood there, his eyes misting with emotion, and a bright smile covering his face. "I didn't think I'd be this affected," he said. "But I'm glad to be here for this."
Daniel nodded. "You were in Sarajevo when it started. You and Setsuna both."
"Yes," said Eric. "But from my standpoint, the ending is far better than the beginning."
"True," Setsuna agreed. "The immediate threat is over, but there remains much political uncertainty."- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Celebrations broke out all across France and Britain. That evening, Captain Truman found wild celebrations going on around him. Rifles and flares were fired into the air, while all the French soldiers, after imbibing heavily of wine freshly brought in on the ammunition train, insisted on parading past Truman's quarters, saluting and shouting "Vive President Wilson, vive le capitaine d'artillerie americaine!" Truman would get no sleep that night.
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Two days later, Albert and Samuel were reviewing information being collected from world capitals and military commands.
"The public euphoria is beginning to wear off," Samuel said. "The initial jubilation of the war being over has passed, and people are beginning to ask the difficult questions of what the war was fought for, what was gained by it, and perhaps most ominously, who is to blame for it."
"There is fault to be shared by just about everybody," Peter said.
"But the British and French people refuse to hear any such arguments," Samuel replied. "They're suffering from historical tunnel vision, I'm afraid, and want to declare Germany as the villain. All they can see at the moment are all their sons, brothers, fathers, and husbands who will never come marching home."
"The American General John Pershing was very displeased with the armistice," Albert said. "He wanted to see the war continued for several more weeks."
"Why?" Aaron asked.
"For essentially the same reason the German military had wanted to," Albert said. "Pershing believed the German army did not consider itself defeated, and was determined to make them know they were beaten on the battlefield."
"Pershing's view appears to be borne out," Samuel said, picking up a piece of paper from a file. "General von Einem of the German Third Army, told his troops when the armistice took effect, 'Firing has ceased. Undefeated... you are terminating the war in enemy country.' Einem is not alone in his view. There is already considerable feeling in the German army that the negotiators handed the Allies a victory at the table which they had not, and in the view of many German soldiers, could not win on the battlefield."
"But Germany could not sustain their armies in the field," Aaron pointed out. "The monarchy essentially collapsed, and the new government is on a very shaky footing. The economy is in ruins."
"Very true," said Samuel. "But the German soldiers in the trenches do not know that, and those in the command who wanted to continue the fight dismiss all reports of economic collapse as defeatist propaganda. Many of the soldiers who will be returning home, will first hear the words of the generals that they were not defeated."
"Yes," Albert agreed. "Some are already beginning to say that it was only the threat of revolution at home that forced Germany to surrender."
Aaron rolled his eyes. "It sounds like the upcoming peace conference could get pretty nasty. And this does not bode well for long-term peace prospects."
Peter raised his hand. "The next question, I think, is whether there is anything that compels us to involve ourselves in this."
"To be honest, I really don't think so," Albert said. "Unless the Council changes the current policy, this is basically just something we would monitor, but we would not become actively involved."
"I have to agree. There is nothing we can really do that would in any way be constructive," said Aaron. "And in any case, we still have the more immediate concerns of the Spanish Influenza and monitoring for any signs of renewed activity by the Order."
"Quite true," said Peter. He turned to Samuel and Albert. "What have we learned about the Order's remaining organization?"
"Well, I'd say we've learned that 'organization' would be too strong a word for it," Albert answered. "The Order seems to have greatly centralized its structure during the last few years. The operational structure that we would expect to find as a managing bureaucracy just below the council appears to no longer be there. The highest levels we've been able to identify are purely regional, and most of these seem to have gone into hiding when communication with the central authority was lost."
"If that's the case, then we've probably shut them down almost completely for perhaps ten years," Aaron said. "It should take them at least that long for their regional centers to resume contact, and then to settle the inevitable leadership struggle."
"I would have to agree with you there, Aaron," Peter said.
"And what about the flu?" Daniel asked.
"The medical section expects to be ready to deploy their counter-virus by the end of the month," Peter replied. "We're already working on the necessary arrangements to put it into circulation."- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Daniel and Setsuna entered the main room of the casino. He was attired in a tuxedo, while she wore a dark green gown. As they walked across the floor, they saw Esteban talking to one of the cashiers. Daniel pointed to the roulette table and they sat down.
"Do you play?" he asked.
She shook her head. "For many of these games, you might say I have an unfair advantage."
He nodded in understanding, then placed several chips on the table. The croupier spun the wheel and released the marble. Daniel's number did not prove a winner. After the chips were cleared, he placed several more.
Just then, one of the casino staff stopped behind Setsuna. "Excuse me, miss. A message for you."
Setsuna turned and took the envelope. "Thank you."
The young man nodded, then walked away.
She opened the envelope and glanced at it.
"Something urgent?" Daniel asked.
"No," she said. "It's from Samuel. They've found a lead on the fake Maltese Falcon. He wants to know if I want to retrieve it, or leave it to the Paladins."
"What are you going to do?"
"I think I can let the Paladins collect it," she said. "He hasn't indicated there is anything particularly difficult about it."
Daniel's second bet on the roulette table also came up a loser.
"Haven't you had enough of this thing yet?" she asked.
"I find it fun," he replied.
She shook her head as he placed more chips on the table. The croupier gave the final call for bets. Just before he spun the wheel, Setsuna took one of Daniel's chips and slapped it on a number.
The wheel stopped spinning. "And we have a winner!" the croupier announced, looking at Setsuna. He then slid a small stack of chips to her.
"Showoff!" Daniel whispered.
She just smiled as she drew the chips back to his stack.
Esteban appeared behind them. She glanced back over him.
"Don't worry, Esteban. It's less than what he's lost on his three plays, so you're still ahead," she told him softly.
Esteban looked slightly puzzled. "I just came over to see if you were having a good time," he said.
"Well, Daniel's losing. But he seems to be enjoying himself," Setsuna said.
Daniel nodded. "I enjoy spending some time in the casino," Daniel said. "And I never bring more money with me than I can afford to lose."
"That's the key," Esteban agreed. "Enjoy yourselves." He turned and walked away.
Daniel turned back to the table. When the croupier called for bets, he put down several chips. The wheel was spun, and the marble released, stopping on Daniel's number.
"We have a winner!" the croupier announced.
A stack of chips was slid over to Daniel.
"You see? I can win at this," Daniel said.
"I suspect we have Esteban to thank for that," Setsuna replied. "I don't think I'd place another wager if I were you."
Daniel considered for a moment, then signaled the waiting croupier that he would not place a bet for that round. Moments later, another casino attendant arrived to offer Daniel a tray for his chips.
"Let's try a few hands of blackjack before we leave," Daniel suggested.
"It's your money," she replied.- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
It was now early December. Peter, Aaron, and Lucas has assembled a group of Paladin wizards within the Pyrenees cavern. With Lucas were four other members of the medical section.
"The counter-virus has been finalized and tested," Lucas said. "Once it is deployed, it should spread far enough to show serious results within a few months."
Aaron stepped forward. "We have made arrangements to deploy the counter-virus on all six inhabited continents. The coverage rate will be in inverse ratio to population density."
"Inverse ratio?" Eric asked. "Why inverse?"
"Areas of dense population will actually need less of the virus, since people will quickly spread it from one to another," Lucas explained. "Our real concern are the areas with very thin and isolated populations."
"Can we reach all of these?" Daniel asked.
"No," Lucas admitted. "Our primary hope is to cover the main population centers to defeat the flu, then rely on the fact that when people do move into the isolated areas, they will take the counter-virus with them."
"But at the same time, we can't just ignore more isolated areas," Aaron added. "Some of the communities up in Alaska, as an example, have been hit very hard."
Lucas nodded. "We've had similar reports concerning fishing villages in Greenland."
Bernardo stepped forward. "I can say from personal experience, it is definitely not pleasant."
"How do we proceed?" Eric asked.
"We will form a circle around this crystal pillar," Aaron said, indicating the pillar in the center of the floor. "The pillar will conduct energy to the selected points around the globe, allowing us to release the counter-virus. We will channel the necessary energy from the storage containers here into the pillar."
"Sounds simple enough," said Daniel.
Aaron and Lucas motioned for everyone to gather in a circle. There were twelve wizards in all in the circle. Ruth stood at the main console, monitoring the storage containers. Another moved inside the circle, placing a large sealed container holding the virus atop the crystal pillar. This wizard nodded to Lucas when the container was in place, then withdrew. Ruth adjusted several controls, while Setsuna stood alongside her.
"Aaron, you may start drawing energy when you are ready," Ruth said.
"Thank you," Aaron said. "Let us begin."
Energy began to swirl around them, and the pillar took on a bright glow. They were all experienced wizards in the circle, carefully sensing the flow of energy around them, and adjusting their own contributions as necessary.
As the power levels increased, the pillar's glow reached up to envelope the virus container. Both began to pulse. The wizards could now sense energy being transmitted out across the globe. The glow around the virus container grew brighter.
"We're just about there," Aaron announced.
"You still have ample energy reserves," Ruth declared. "Don't feel that you need to hold back."
A sudden flash of light burst out from the pillar, and the virus container vanished. Its contents were instantly transported to various spots around the world. The wizards maintained their spell to insure the fullest transmission and exposure. Finally, Aaron nodded, and the power flowing through them all began to fade.
"Everything went well?" Ruth asked.
"Very well," Lucas said. "We achieved full transmission of the counter-virus to every location we targeted."
"When do you expect to see demonstrable evidence of success?" Setsuna asked.
"Probably about two weeks, I would say," Lucas replied. "We should see some early evidence by then, but it will be several months before the flu is brought under control."
"We already have our networks monitoring the progress of the influenza," Peter said. "And they're being alerted that the counter-virus has been distributed, and will be reporting any signs of it they see."- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Setsuna entered the main room of the Havana center with Daniel. Samuel looked up from the center table, and hurried over to them.
"I'm afraid I have some bad news," Samuel said.
"What's happened?" Setsuna asked.
"The Maltese Falcon. The fake one. Our team blew it."
"How?" Daniel asked, incredulous.
"The bird turned up in Rome, among the belongings of a wealthy landowner who had his household shipped south after the Austrians broke through," Samuel explained. "He was a senior officer and was killed in action. His son had been killed earlier on the Isonzo. That left the estate to be divided up among the landowner's two brothers, neither of whom had any interest in the bird. It turned up at a sale. Our team apparently decided they'd just buy it, since the family wasn't asking very much."
"But something went wrong, I take it," Setsuna said.
"I'm afraid so," Samuel said, shaking his head. "Somebody broke into the estate agent's store rooms. They tried to cover their tracks by setting fire to the place, but a watchman sounded the alarm. The fire was put out before the store rooms were destroyed, and the theft was discovered."
"I see," said Setsuna, a frown on her face.
"Do we have any idea as to who stole it?" Daniel asked.
"Not yet," Samuel answered. "But we're working to get more people into the area to try to find it, before the thieves can get too far."
Setsuna shook her head. "No. That would be a waste of time, and would risk attracting unwanted attention."
"You want to just let it go?" Samuel asked.
"No," she said. "The thieves will have to keep the bird hidden away for at least several months before they dare let it appear for sale. When they do try to sell it, that's when we'll make our move."< To be continued >
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Always remember, good gentles, that a yarnspinner works from and within existing legends and stories. The characters of "Sailor Moon" belong to others. In spinning my yarns, I do not seek to infringe on their rights of ownership, but merely to join with other fans to spread the legend still further. "The moonlight carries a message of love." Enjoy.-05.16.2001