Azmaria told Joshua some of his past however not all of it. Now Viscount is here and that's either good news or bad news. What will happen and why is he here?

Don't' own CC


Chrono Crusade: Horns of Time


Chapter Seventeen: Introductions Before The Plan
"I've been lucky enough to go to many of the uncharted places on the map, and these days what I do is go more and more into the unmapped hours..." –Pico Lyer
At the meeting room, Viscount was staring right at Joshua in which, in turn, he did the same. The sisters stood silently at the benches as with the other high ranked Order members. However, the silence didn't last and Joshua popped a question that was in everyone's minds.

"Wait…" Joshua started, "isn't Viscount a devil? What's he doing here!"

Wolf answered his question. "Viscount is a pursuer. When we first met him, we mistakenly thought him as an enemy. He's after Logan too because he was branded a traitor to the demon society."

"And I am charged to bring Logan back with me to Pandemonium."

"For what?"

"For…justice…"

"Whatever," Joshua mumbled to himself. He and Azmaria made their way to the center of the room. Joshua could see the three members having old, facial expressions. The woman on the right had cross earrings, the woman at the center had a pearl necklace and the woman on the right just wore a smile however that gradually faded. On the left side were three men and on the right side were three women. All looked serious.

"Shall we begin?" Azmaria asked them. They all nodded.

The woman on the right center cleared her throat, "Some of you had the chance of meeting us. However, for those who didn't let us introduce ourselves. I am Sister Anna. To my right are my associates, Sister Claire and Sister Mary. We serve on the High Order Council. The witnesses and close relatives serve as different regions in the Order and are the people on the sides of the room."

Claire began to speak, "As you are all aware, there has been a substantial increase in the demon population. The man known as Charles Logan is the one responsible for these increases according to our sources. Furthermore….the facility that Wolf and his team had infiltrated and destroyed is proof of that."

Mary then spoke, "The information about Logan's whereabouts is a bit…how you say…impossible to understand."

"Why is that?" Azmaria asked.

"It is because where he escaped too…"

"Where is he?" Viscount asked who was intrigued by this.

"Not where…when…"

"What the hell-" Joshua muttered.

"I know that this far-fetched however according to the information provided in the report, the control panel settings for the portal were set for the year 1918, San Francisco which is 88 years back in time."

"You're kidding me!" Ebony finally spoke. "You're telling me that he's capable of time-travel?"

"Say what you will, dear," Anna said, "that's what the report said and Caitlyn can verify that for you."

Everyone turned to Caitlyn, "It's true. I had a good look at the information before I delivered it to Sister Azmaria. I was pretty shocked by this."

"But how did he go time travelling in the first place?" Ebony asked. "Electricity and circuitry isn't enough to do that kind of thing."

"The horns," Wolf replied. "He must have used the horns to go through time. They are also part of his plan."

"What horns?" Anna asked.

"The Horns of Time. From…those two…"

"You have got to be joking, Wolf," Anna said in monotone. If this is the case, then we're in big trouble."

Abigail asked, "My question is…why Logan is going to the past?" Everyone was silent.

"I think I may have a speculation," Wolf cleared his throat after a while. "I think the reason why Logan went to the past is because of a certain incident that happened during that time. When Joshua and I were cornered, Logan mentioned that his 'watch' was the final key."

"Yes…" Joshua verified with him. "What are you getting at?"

"I'm just saying that since Logan couldn't get this particular watch from him…then…"

Everyone understood however Azmaria realized it first. "Logan is desperate enough to get the same watch in any time period."

"The settings on the control panel were 1918, San Francisco, right?"

"That is correct."

"Then I know which moment he may travel too."

"You do? How?"

"The wearer of the watch at that time is the one that has the most spiritual power. A holy aura protects her. That aura is down during that moment."

"And which, pray tell, is this moment?" Caitlyn asked.

"The Ritual of Atonement," Viscount murmured. Everyone looked at him. Anna, Claire and Mary looked horrified.

"What?" Joshua asked him.

"It is the day when San Francisco reported to have damages of outrageous proportions, hundreds and hundreds of people were injured and when the people blamed the Order for the mishaps. It was also after a few days when the Crusades started."

"The Crusades?"

"It is when a girl known as 'the Saint' appeared and somehow brought hope and peace to all. People had fought the local government and the Order…all for the sake of the Saint."

"Who is the Saint?" Joshua asked.

Before Viscount could answer, Claire interrupted him, "It would be best if we didn't reminisce about past events. The fact of the matter is that 'the Saint' was the one that processed the watch at the time and that is when her holy aura disappears. Logan must be attempting to take the watch after the ritual."

"So what do we do now?" Wolf asked. "I don't think that the Order has some sort of time travelling machinery."

"That's where you're wrong," Mary replied. "The Order has been working on some top secret projects with the discovery of tapping into the Astral Line. Time travelling has been one of them."

"I'll offer you my company's resources," Viscount offered, "in turn, you give Logan to me."

"I have no objections to this," Claire replied him. "Is that okay with everyone?" Everyone agreed.

"Some preperations are in order. We'll be ready in one week. The members that will participate in this mission will be announced before the day of the mission. Be prepared as we may call upon you for help. Dismissed." As everyone left the room, Viscount and Joshua travelled together.

"Who is the Saint?" Joshua asked him again. "Who is she?"

"She is the wearer of the watch. She is also known as 'Mary Magdalene."

"Mary…Magdalene?" Joshua repeated him.

"That's right. The Order wants me to keep her a hush-hush kind of thing. Meet me at the training grounds at midnight. I must show you something." He walked at the opposite direction.

"The Saint…Mary Magdalene," Joshua repeated him again. During this, Wolf was watching off from a distance.

"Viscount and Joshua," Wolf murmured, "better keep tabs on them."

Back inside the meeting room, Azmaria, Mary, Claire and Anna were having a discussion.

"Don't you think that Joshua should have the right to know?" Azmaria asked.

Claire replied, "I don't like this any more than you do however orders are to keep him from the truth. If he found out, then he might do something rash."

"I know…but still."

Anna out her hand on Azmaria's shoulder, "I miss her…everyday of my life. She was a dear friend. Now that we know where Logan is going, she is in even more danger than she was before."

"Are you putting him in the mission?"

"Yes, we are planning to."

"Then what you are actually doing is defying orders."

"That's the plan. He'll find out on his own and we won't be responsible. We'll just say that he wanted to be put in the mission and had no idea what was in store."

"A loophole…ingenious." Azmaria walked away with the three looking at her.

"She's certainly wants what's best for Joshua," Anna commented.

"You're right," Claire agreed, "she treats Joshua like his own son. Truly she is a great friend to her. Taking care of her brother…"

Mary had nothing to say. "Then what does that make us?" she wondered, "what do our actions about this issue make us?"


The meeting is over and the sisters question themselves on this delicate issue. What does Viscount want with Joshua? All will be revealed at the next chapter so please R&R.