May 8th, 1429

Orlêans, France

My first death was accidental. I want to clear that up.

I could barely remember now the distinct moments of my childhood since it was so long ago, but the small fragments of what I remember to haunt me to the modern-day. The smell of the mud and dense trees around the straw house that was passed off as my home, Stench, and bad hygiene along with the constant hungry stomach and worry of the next meal coming my way.

I had a mother and a father.

I had a brother too, a baby brother who was too young to understand such things as I had to learn fast how to grow up. Although I was the eldest, I had responsibilities for the family. We weren't dead poor, nor were we rich.

We were comfortable. But for me, being comfortable lead me to my death.

Historians would call this later The Siege of Orléans It lasted months, though I only lived through to see the first part of it take place. Fighting was happening left and right, the smell of death rising in the air as the weeks were going by.

On one day May, in 1429 in the heart of Orléans, I took my first breath in my new life.

At first, it was a dream, almost like a feverish dream. Glimpses and images were flooding my mind, flickers of places that seemed so foreign and far away. I first saw a woman, her face contorted in what seemed to be pain and misery and also some softness and beauty with long dark hair framing her face.

Two men, both so close together it seemed impossible to separate them. They both were in a tucked embrace, sleeping in tangle limbs and looking at peace with something in their dream. One pale, and one with dark skin and a thick beard. They both looked young, though they were men in their own right.

The last one I saw seems os far away, in some kind of metal box in the ocean, the sight of her screaming out in agony at the bottom of the ocean was the one who woke me up.

Breathing out shakily, it felt like I was trampled to death. Was I rambled to death? Was happened to me? I blinked slowly, seeing how the sky was high above me, and the smell of what seemed to be was blood and gunpowder.

Suddenly, my bones in my body were moving.

I groaned in pain, it felt like my insides were turning and moving with me realizing. I tried to move my arm, but as I looked down I could see how my arm was now contorted and broken in two parts. But as I watched my almost dismembered arm, seeming shocked and afraid at the same time, the arm was moving on its own. The bones were moving back to their normal place, and it felt like I was under some kind of magic spell.

Nothing was hurting, and nothing was moving.

I slowly maneuvered to sit up from there I was, finding that I was surrounded by bodies. There were dozens and dozens of them. Soldiers, mere children, and young men covered and matted in blood with injuries that looked like they were tramped. I was shocked, looking down at my dress I was wearing.

I too was covered in blood, but I was alive.

Modern Day

"Merda," He said in a gasp as he rushed through the opening of the door and engulfed me in his arms. My duffle bag fell to the floor and I reluctantly wrapped my arms around him a second or two later. It felt so soothing to hold Joseph like this again, feeling the protectiveness in how he was holding me close and yet gentle. Once he pulled away, he looked me over once or twice to see if I was real. I couldn't help but smile from how he was looking a bit frantic in how he was mentally analyzing me.

"You're here," he said in happiness, his smile so big and framing his face in such joy, "Oh Eleanor, Look at you!"

"It's good to see you," I said to him simply, not knowing what else to say to him as he was now watching my eyes. I was still out of sorts from being here, and I only saw Joseph. Who knew what it was going to be like for the others. Joseph could see it in how I was still in front of him, he then sighed with a smile and placed his hands on my arms.

"It's been far too long," He stated, "We have plenty to catch up and talk about, but not now,"

"Joe! You okay? I heard a crash!"

It was a new voice, Joe looked over his shoulder at the direction of where the voice was going from. It was a female, perhaps Nile who Booker told me about. I was frozen, not knowing what to do since this was a bit too exposed for me. Joe looked back at him and rubbed my arms soothingly.

"She's new, like us," He explained, I nodded my head. But something in my trance was telling me to abort and retreat. A new voice and person at this moment might be too much.

"I dreamt of her," I said back immediately, "But…. I don't know what—"

"Come," He said to me kindly, already sensing that I wanted to curl up in a ball and retreat, "It's alright. Come in…please Eleanor—"

"Woah."

Both Joe and I finally looked to see the newest member of The Old Guard. She was in the foyer, twenty feet away from us, and was looking at me with wide eyes. She was young, a beautiful black woman with a good build on her. Her hair was in gorgeous braids situated in a bun on the back of her head, showing her face perfectly.

If what Booker said was true about her being a Marine, I could see she had arms and legs that were built for combat. She was wearing fitted jeans, sneakers, a gray shirt, and a vest over the top of the shirt. Her eyes, beautiful in a shade of brown, looked right at me and having me gulp silently.

"I saw you…in my dream when…" she said to me, pointing at me as Joe reached down to take my hand in his and lace our fingers together.

"She's an old member of ours," Joe explained to her as he carefully lead me into the doorframe, I stood there awkwardly in front of her as Joe went back out to get my bag that was still out in the hallway, placing it on the side of the foyer, locking the front door and he lead me over to the young woman.

"This is Eleanor Clermont," He said to the woman, then pulling out his phone from his back pocket to hold it in his hand, "I need to call Nicky and tell him you're here."

"Where is he?" I asked, another wave of a fluttering breath coming over me from hearing Joe mention Nicky.

"He's getting food," The female answered for Joe as he moved away to dial his phone. He went into the other room. The female walked over to stand right in front of me, then she was holding out her hand for me to shake.

"I'm Nile," She introduced herself, I then gently shook her hand, "I'm new in the group."

"For how long?" I asked, sounding more curious about it since it seemed like we were having a casual conversation. She smiled.

"Only a few months, give or take," She replied. I nodded my head, hearing Joe talking rapidly into his phone in Italian as I then briefly looked down at Nile's throat, seeing nothing there but feeling a pantheon pain there. Within an instant, I placed my own fingers against my own throat from the meteor of her dying.

"I felt you die," I said to her as she was watching me place my hand back down from my throat, "I was asleep when I felt it, woke me up so much I thought it was me," I remembered that moment like it was yesterday: the sensation of something cutting my throat open and I swiftly gasped for air, wide awake from my dream. Her face was envisioned in my face: how innocent and yet filled with some kind of fight and fire within her eyes.

"That had to have been rough then, huh?" She said to me in amusement, having me lightly chuckle as I nodded, then looking around at the apartment they were in.

"This is your new home?" I asked, seeing the high arched ceiling above us and the small glimpse of the sitting area behind the both of us. Nile looked too, nodding her head as she pointed.

"Want me to give you a tour?" She asked, I smirked and followed her as she was leading me over to the sitting room. It was very minimal: a couch and love seat with an open patio door that showed the balcony and brought in the warmth and summer light into the room. The light tan walls with cracks and signs of aging showed against the sunlight that poured into the room.

A mounted TV was on one wall and an ancient fireplace underneath it, the couches facing it and some candles scattered around on the end table and coffee table. A small speaker on another little sitting table with a few books propped up and open on certain passages, one book written in Italian. It was lovely, barely filled with some things from the group. I could tell it wasn't completely broken into just yet.

"It's lovely," I said in a hum as I was walking around the couch a bit and touching the distinct fabric, "It has some character.

"That's what Andy said when we got this," Nile explained, having me give her a lot as if I wanted to ask her where Andy was. It was on the top of my tongue, but Nile beat me to it, "She's out for a few days."

"Out?" I asked, not understanding.

"She wanted to have some alone time since…" She trailed off, not finishing it. I said nothing, feeling like I didn't know what truly happened when they were in London and Merrick had them all hostage. I wanted to know, but when was going to be the right time to ask?

"I remember seeing you after I died," She explained, watching me as I walked around the sitting room and looking at how it was already completing them as a group together, "And….not to sound weird or anything…but I remember your hair."

"Joe and Nicky said the same thing when they dreamt of me," I reassured her as I looked back at him. She was watching me in amazement, almost like I was an exotic animal out in the wild, "Took them almost fifty years to find me,"

"Fifty years?" Nile asked, sounding so shocked as I grinned, "Why so long?"

"It's a bit different to find other Immortals during the 1400s in France," I explained, and before Nile could ask something else, I heard the front door being unlocked and swing open so fast I thought the door would come off the latches. Immediately I heard a voice that made me break my heart, Joe's voice mingling with the voice as they were talking rapidly to each other.

"Dove?! Dov'è lei?!"

"Stai calmo, amore," Joe hushed him as running feet were coming in our direction. Within a second, a man rushed into the sitting room and skidded to a halt, his pale eyes looking right at me with shock and emotion that it broke my heart. He looked just the same, like Joe, and how he was looking at me it was like he was seeing a ghost.

Nicolo di Genova. Of course, I knew him as Nicky.

His eyes were still pristine and yet kind, a mixture of pale blue and green morphed together to be unique and rare. His hair, a light brown, was pushed to the side from his eyes and his stance looked so stiff from seeing me. His eyes were right on me, and as soon as I took a breath to see him, I saw the tension there in the room suddenly roll out the window. I was so close to crying just from seeing him, because of what we both had as friends.

He and I were close, not in a romantic way since I knew his heart belonged to Joe, but in a platonic manner. He was the first one to find me, Joe in tow of course, but he truly found me when I was alone in my new life. He showed me how to fight, how to speak different languages, and how to truly live in this life that neither one of us wanted. I saw him as a brother of sorts in this life, and I knew he saw me as a sister.

"Eleanor?" he asked so softly, his voice, thick with his Italian accent, sounded like he was about to break himself. I nodded my head, my eyes were big and my smile was etched on my face. He walked over to stand in front of me, his eyes never leaving my own as Nile moved to give us space. It was so hard to look at him since the only thing that I could think about was how I somewhat broke his heart when I left.

Once he was right in front of me, that's when I lost all restrain of what I had left to cry. I felt a few tars hitting my cheeks, I cringed from crying in front of him as he saw me cry. His face went from shocked to worry, reaching up with his fingers in a fluid motion as his thumbs moved the tears away from my skin. This felt too much, seeing him and Joe there, a new member of the group watching me crumble as if my heart was broken. But it was broken, and I was selfish to think that I broke theirs so long ago.

"Mi displace," I said in a broken tone, Nicky watching me as I was closing my eyes almost in defeat. It was hurting me to act like this to Nicky, a true compass in our group and the one who would bring us back from being too far away, "Sono così dispiaciuto….I'm sorry.."

"Hey," Nicky said in a broken tone, almost sounding like he too was in mourning. Immediately, he wrapped his arms around me and hugged me, a sigh escaping my lips as I knew the kind of hug he was giving me. He knew how to hug: it was both like being engulfed in the ocean waves that soothed me and also keep me warm like a fire. All the times that he hugged me as if we were siblings by blood, it always made me feel complete. I dug my face into his collarbone as his arms were around me and he was trying to calm me.

"Hush..hush now Eleanor. None of that, it's okay," he said to me over and over, his lips against my hair as we were embracing in the sitting room for a mere two minutes long. I felt safe with him, his calm voice, and how he was hugging me was already calming me down and having me feel a sense of peace flowing through me and my veins.

"I worried about you all these years," he admitted as he hugged me a bit more, finally pulling away and scanning me up and down, just as Joe did some time before, "Stai Bene?"

"Sì," I answered,

I could see out of the corner of my eye Joe standing with Nile, a grin on his face as he too was trying not to cry. Even Nile, though I barely met her, seemed moved by our reunion. Nicky finally smiled, framing my face in his hands once more as he stared at me hard in the eyes as he would plenty of times when we were younger.

"We have time to catch up, yes?" he asked, the hope and optimism back in his voice. I smiled, getting the last of the tears off my face as I nodded my head. His smile was infectious for me, and I knew he was right at this moment.

We had time. Plenty of it.

The first bite of freshly made pasta melted in my mouth, and I groaned, closing my eyes in bliss.

We were all sitting out on the balcony, the sun slowing setting in the west and the temperature was cool enough for us to be out in the open and no longer inside. The soft sounds of the nightlife in Venice were coming alive with some live performances and street bands echoing along the canals and the high ancient buildings.

I opened one eye, seeing all three of them watching me in interest to see my reaction. I took another bite, feeling it soothe my mouth in such a way it was almost romantic as it went down my throat. I grinned, leaning forward in my chair and then pointing to Joe.

Nile and Joe were exclaiming in victory as Nicky playfully rolled his eyes as I shrugged at him. Joe chuckled as he then looked over at Nile who was next to him and the opposite of Nicky and me.

"I told you, Nile. Eleanor knows my cooking more than she knows Nicky's cooking," He explained to her as I shook my head.

"No," I interjected, "I know Nicky's specific pasta. No offense to you, but he adds more of a….what's it called, Nicky?" I looked over at Nicky, seeing him grin as he eyed me and then his lover.

"Semolina flour," He said in a grin.

"See?" I asked as Nicky chuckled and Joe was now rolling his eyes, "You, on the other hand, cook with Kamut! I know both of your kinds of pasta," I then leaned over to Nile as Nicky was pouring each of us a glass of red wine.

"The would make me be their test subject on their pasta making," I explained to her as she was intrigued with the story, "I swear, I ate so much at one time with them just to settle the argument that was having with each other back in the early 1900s."

"It wasn't an argument," Joe reasoned as Nicky handed me my glass of wine, "Just a personal difference that needed to be finalized."

"You make it sound so formal," Nicky joked, hanging Joe his glass before sneaking him a kiss. Joe kissed back lag idly as Nicky pulled away and walked over to sit next to me, "You never decided on a winner anyhow,"

"How could I? You two are excellent chefs," I reassured them as I took a small sip of my wine from my glass. The others were settling into the light mood that was there in the air, having me sigh and look out into the nighttime was coming through below. I could see boats coming up and down the canals, how the rest of there world was turning, and no turning back.

"It's been too long since I've been here in Venice," I murmured, slowly blinking.

"When were you here last?" Nile asked in curiosity, having me grin from the memory.

"World War I," I explained, looking over at Niles and seeing her lean in with ratted attention to how I was telling her this story, "1915. We came here to help the Anglo-French Allies win against the Germans. As a native French woman, who am I to go against my mother county of France?"

"Eleanor here has fought many battles and wars," Joe explained to Niles some more as he then gave me a grin, "Her famous one, that brought her into this life….was the Siege of Orléans, which was lead by Joan of Arc herself."

Nile's eyes lit up so fast, looking at me with a bright revelation about her as Nicky leaned back in his spot and took a drink from his wine glass. I stayed calm, though I could see the wheels turning in Nile's head.

"You knew Joan or Arc?!" She asked in shock. I scoffed playfully.

"Wel…no, I just fought for her and the French against the English. She was a mere child, younger than me, and yet I was following her into a battle," I replied calmly and with nonchalance, "I heard of her visions by God and what God told her to do,"

"Did you believe her?" Nile pressed, having me shrug.

"I was young, thirsty to fight. Of course, I would say I believed her, but then again, I never practiced the faith myself. I was already dressing like a boy to fight, I was risking my life and my neck to fight in a war for men," I explained, "In those times, I could have been murdered for what I did,"

"She's a fierce fighter," Nicky added, squeezing my shoulder in a friendly manner, "She would have done well if she was alive in The Crusades,"

"She's done well everywhere she fought," Joe added in agreement as he motioned his head over to Nicky, "She had a good teacher,"

"You two were my teachers," I reminded them both as I then looked back at Nile, "I learned how to shoot a bow and arrow before the battle, and thankfully I've mastered it at this point. These two taught me the rest: swords, daggers, even hand to hand. My battle was far different from the Crusades, merely nothing in comparison,"

"A battle is a battle," Joe commented.

"You got that right," Nile said in agreement, having me watch her drink a small amount of her wine as she tapped the glass with her fingers that were wrapped around the glass top.

"You fought in a battle?" I asked her, seeing her nod her head as his face was going a bit solemn.

"Afghanistan," She explained, "Of course it's nothing like you guys went through, but I've seen some things," She felt a bit and to bring it out to us, Joe giving her a loving smile as I just analyzed her from my spot next to Nicky. I could tell she too had many layers within her, and being in this new life might have been a for a shift for her.

"I had a theory about this life," I explained to her, seeing her now look at me as I sat up a bit and pointed to Nicky and Joe, "I explained it to them after we met together, sometime after I think. We were granted this new life, this life of immortality, because of what we fought for. We were in heats of war, whether it was the Crusades or a Siege, and even now in the modern world in a foreign land,"

Nile was watching me intently as I was explaining it to her, and it was a theory I would thinking about for hundreds of years with all that we did together.

"Our battles and what we did in those battles were heroic, maybe suicidal, but in the end, they changed everything around us. We were blessed with this life, and although it's harsh at times to see the world rotate and us stay still in comparison, other battles and wars could be won with our help,"

It had to be the truth. How we were given this gift of not dying and in return we would help those who deserve a fighting chance. I did debate whether or not this was a blessing or a curse, and I saw both sides thanks to those in the Old Guard. But I never wanted to be less than optimistic about it, maybe that part rubbed off of Nicky and onto me.

Nicky grinned at me as he squeezed my shoulder gently, "Bien dit,"

"Your French is improving," I commented to him as he chuckled. The mood was back to being light and smooth now from its somber moment a few seconds before.

"I had a good teacher," He replied smoothly. I grinned, pausing a second as the three of them were watching me now. I shifted forward to place my arms on my knees and placed my wine glass on the table in between the four of us.

"Booker told me you were here," I explained, knowing that this could be an awkward mood that could be seeping through since I brought him up. Instantly, I saw Joe tense up a bit, though Nicky and Nile were still calm.

"He found you," Nicky stated.

"He remembered my safe house in Paris," I commented, "He reached out and explained some things that happened," I saw Joe about to say something and his stance was rigid with Booker being the new subject, "I want to know what happened, not but tonight. There's too much that happened that we can't all hash it out tonight. But right now, I'm…I'm glad I came back," Joe eased back down inches seat next to Nile, though I knew that look on his face. The same with Nicky, and I wanted them to know how I felt about where I was in this situation.

"Are you going to stay?" Nile asked, having me look at her in hesitance, "Because….even though I just met you and it might sound crazy on my part…but maybe it won't be so bad you being here with us. Strength in numbers, right?"

I said nothing, my leg bouncing lightly as I folded my hands on my lap and thought about it. Part of me wanted to stay, more than anything, but the other part was haunted by what happened in the past, so many years ago, and how it made me feel beyond fragile and exposed.

"You know my answer to that, Eleanor," Nicky said to me softly as he was watching me feel a bit.

"Mine too," Joe added in agreement, having me look up at him and see him give me his infamous kind smile. I smiled briefly back before drew out a heavy breath. It was a lot to think about and to drink in.

"Just think about it tonight," Nile suggested. I barely knew her and yet we were talking like we've had decades of knowing each other. I nodded my head finally, seeing her grin to show that shew was fin with me not running away.

I had to take baby steps with this, and I haven't even seen Andy yet. I knew she wasn't angry or mad with me, and we also never had a bad relationship with each other all those times with each other. This could be a new phase of life for me, something that I could grow from. I had to think of it in a positive way, not in the negative way that made me stay away all these years and not contact them. I was grateful they didn't try to contact me, they gave me space. And now I was back here, who was I to go backward?

I had to try.

Italian Translations:

Merda = Shit

Dove?! Dov'è lei?! = Where?! Where is she?!

Mi displace, Sono così dispiaciuto I'm sorry, I'm so sorry

Stai Bene = Are you OK

French Translation:

Bien dit = Well said