Disclaimer: I don't own Danny Phantom, Stargate SG-1, Reign, or anything else I reference.
Chapter 41: Italian Vacation
(Edinburgh, Scotland)
"Yes Phoebe?" Danny asked as he looked over a holographic map of the England.
It displayed an accurate portrayal map of the land that would have one day made up the United Kingdom. The markers in purple displayed the French/Scottish army. He had King Henry send ten thousand soldiers to Scotland so the advanced party would feel that it is a united effort.
He had the advance party split in fourths so they could take different routes to reach England and the city of London.
The Fake Queen Elizabeth had been given order to have the English army respond to the fracturing of the army as he had wanted. The explanation being to keep as much of the damage from the French/Scottish army to a minimal and prevent villages from surrendering to Queen Mary's rule. They had split into three armies. One led by Robert Baratheon, one led by Eddard (Ned) Stark, and the last led by Prince Louis.
Each of the armies held a target that he was interested in. Robert Baratheon held Bebbanburg, Ned Stark's army had Lord Dudley and the Spear of Longinus, and Prince Louis had the Sword of Damocles.
According to his B.I.R.D.S.' scan of the path the army of King Henry is travelling the closest town they would be near would be the town of Tranent.
"I was just wondering what you are doing?" Phoebe asked as she stood behind him.
"Right now, I am looking at the army that the third portion of the advance party is soon to be doing battle with." Danny answered her.
"Is something the matter?" Pheobe asked. "How many men have landed in Scotland?"
"Currently the advance party consisted of twenty-thousand men." Danny said shaking his head. "King Henry has enough men. The problem is that he is getting bored. He wants me to teleport the remaining army in Calias to England to help fight the enemy."
"Isn't that normal for war?" Phoebe asked. "My dad said when he served the war the kings were always wanting to fight."
"Yes. The problem with the situation is that if they meet the English army now the area, they will be fighting in is a large patch of bog." Danny said looking at the current battleground.
Lola had told him that the place is called Trenant meadows.
"That would be bad." Phoebe said.
"That was an understatement." Danny said.
If their horses attempt to stride forward, then they will sink in the mud. The formation of the cavalry would break as the riders fell off of their horses. Then mass chaos would follow as the English started shooting at the fallen soldiers. This was the century where guns would start replacing swords.
If King Henry's army was in an unfortunate location, they could all be slaughtered like boars.
"So, you are looking for a way around the bog?" Phoebe asked.
"Correct." Danny said as he increased the focus on the map.
"How long do you think that King Henry is going to wait?" Phoebe asked.
"He already is resentful of the fact that he has had to wait this long." Danny said.
The madness in King Henry had increased when he learned that his soldiers had landed on English shores. He believed that victory was certain, and any sacrifice was worth it His men just thought that it was certainty of victory, and it gave the men following him confidence. It was probably because their fraction of the army had yet to come across actual violence since they had taken Calais.
They had no idea that he had been blowing up the ships that had moved towards France.
"Why don't you offer one of your ships?" Pheobe asked. "That could take them over the bog and behind the opposing army."
Because that is not what the original wanted.
He wanted them to clash in battle as they advanced forward. He wanted songs to be sung of their glory and valor as they charged into overwhelming odds. The losses they took as motivation for the others. He would be sending aid every now and then to reinforce the men's belief in Nirtti's power and benevolence.
"That is not the plan." Danny said before he pulled himself back. "I'll figure it out."
He would have a B.I.R.D. do a more intensive survey of the area to find a path so that the army could move forward and surprise the English.
"Anyway, the reason that I came searching for you is that I was wondering when you were going to help us activate our gifts?" Phoebe asked.
He had been thinking about that too.
The original had been thinking of making it a grand ritual. Having the pair of sisters drink a concoction brewed by Delphine while under the light of a full moon. They would drink it while under the light of the planet's full moon. The dramatics would certainly suit their tastes.
Then he considered the possibility of them having a power that could be dangerous to the area or each other or even worse with the original. It was better for him to do tests on their blood to see what they would develop before he just granted them their abilities. That way he could check the old Alteran records and see if they had records of the kinds of powers the Halliwell and Stillwell sisters could develop.
"I am having the necessary pieces moved. I want to be sure that I can teach you how to control your abilities." Danny said.
"Is there danger?" Phoebe asked.
She was hesitant but there was very little fear. He knew that even with the risks that she would move forward.
"My people kept records of what our ancestors dealt with when they first began developing their abilities. Thes record described how in the beginning many Alterans had abilities that injured themselves or brought disaster before they gained control." Danny said.
"Like what?" Phoebe asked.
"For example, one member could cause shockwaves but each time she used them it risked her breaking her arms. " Danny said.
"That's horrible." Phoebe said as she moved her right arm to grip her left arm.
"That's why I want to be careful." Danny said turning to her. "How would you and your sisters feel about going to a beach in Italy?"
"Really?" Phoebe asked.
"Yes. I can see how stressed you and your sisters are so I thought you might enjoy seeing somewhere new." Danny said with a smile.
It would help get her mind off what he just revealed to her. He would have a duplicate and some Jaffa watch over them.
"Doesn't all of Italy hate you?" Phoebe asked.
"That is just the Pope and the Catholic Chruch. It will be fine. We won't be anywhere near Vatican City." Danny said.
"Alright. I will go tell them." Phoebe said running off.
Since he was taking them to a beach he may as well take his other friends on a vacation as well.
0-0-0-0-0-0
"Hello King Daniel." Lola said as she curtsied.
"Hello, Lady Lola, how have you been?" Danny asked since it had been a couple of weeks since he had last seen her.
The last story that she had told him about involved Stonehenge. According to her book during the times of the druids they performed special ceremonies that were able to send people through time into the past or the future.
He had a feeling that they were similar to the ones that the original had encountered during his mission on the planet Teru. The material that had been used to forge the quantum mirror.
"Have you come to talk about some new myth that you wanted to learn about?" Lola asked as she gestured for him to come inside.
"Not this time. Instead, I wanted to know if you wanted to come to Milan with Kenna and the others?" Danny asked as he stepped inside the home.
It was rather extravagant for a peasant but for someone that had been raised in Lola's station she probably saw the small estate as a slight by Mary. It probably was given how vindictive Queen Mary could be when she felt like she had been wronged.
She had threatened Queen Catherine in the original timeline by telling her she would tell foreign countries about King Henry's madness and watch as their enemies invaded.
She had ripped a peace treaty between England and Scotland when she believed they were the people that killed Francis.
It was partly the reason why he had her infected with Nish'ta as well.
"Queen Mary probably is not ready to see me yet." Lola said.
That is true but given that Queen Mary is away from the capital trying to establish peace and control it was no problem.
"I just figured that you would want to see your other friends again. They miss you." Danny said while using x-ray vision to peek on the baby sleeping in his crib.
"I do miss them." Lola mumbled.
"Kenna has told me about how she misses the days when your group was whole, and you all got along." Danny said.
"I can't leave Jean all alone." Lola said.
His full name is Jean-Philippe Valois-Angoulême, but they all pronounced it as John. Queen Mary had not wanted him legitimized seeing it as a threat to their reign, but he promised them that she would have a child. It would be better for all of them that they got along as children.
The Targaryens were building up to a civil war right now because the royal family could not get along.
"I can have my Jaffa watch him." Danny said for Lola.
"Are you sure they will be able to watch over a baby?" Lola asked.
"No need to worry. If I give the order, he will be treated as the rarest jewel in a miser's treasury." Danny said as he went to hold Lola's hands.
"How long would it take us to get there and back?" Lola asked.
"I don't plan for it to be long. We are just going to spend a few hours there." Danny said.
"Alright then." Lola said giving in.
"Great." Danny said with a smile.
0-0-0-0-0-0
"That is victory." Danny said to Guiche as he sunk the final ball into the hole.
"Curses." Guiche said as he slammed his hand on the billiards table.
Guiche is really bad at this game.
"I have to check on something, but I will be back in time to watch you suffer another defeat." Danny said as he walked out of the room.
When he walked down the hall he ran into a surprise.
"I expected you ladies to still be talking over what they planned to do once they reached Milan." Danny said.
"Can I borrow you for a second." Kenna said as she tapped him from behind. "Are you going somewhere?"
"To my ready room. I have some calls to make." Danny said.
"You can't make such a call in your quarters?" Kenna asked.
"I want the room for the atmosphere such calls require." Danny said.
"I just want to remind you that you promised that you would spend the trip with us." Kenna said pouting as she walked up to him and grabbed his hand.
"I mean to keep that promise. Which is why I have to make the call now." Danny said bringing his head down to kiss her hand. "I have promised many people many things and I intend to keep them."
"Very well as long as you don't forget mine. I am really looking forward today." Kenna said pulling him into a kiss.
"Right. All of us are going to enjoy the trip. Nothing is going to get in the way of that." Danny said clearly feeling Kenna's intent to guilt trip him.
It was adorable so he let it pass.
Kenna stood back and let him pass her and walk down the ship.
"Hello Ka'ri." Danny said as he walked up to the Jaffa guard.
"Greetings my king." Ka'ri said moving out of the way.
Danny walked into the room and took his seat.
He activated the contact orb and started a group call.
"Hello." Lucien said.
"Yes" Aurora asked.
"How can I help you?" Tristan asked.
"I am glad that the three of you have answered my call in such a timely manner." Danny said looking at the Trinity with a smile.
"Did we have the option to refuse?" Aurora asked.
It seems that Aurora was in one of her downward swings.
"Please forgive my sister. You know how she can be." Tristan said.
"I have called you three because I have a problem." Danny said.
"What kind of problem?" Lucien asked interested.
"Finding Mikael has turned out to be a bit more difficult than I expected. It seems that he is aware of my traps and is doing his best to avoid detection." Danny said.
He did not think the man knew how to be subtle. Everything he had learned about him made it seem like if given the choice between subtlety and overt action he would choose to rampage like a bull in a China shop. When he had been chasing Niklaus he left him the cut off head of horse in his bed.
"The Vampire hunter? You want us to find him for you." Tristan asked hesitantly.
"Yes. I have been advised that the best way to catch a thief is with another thief." Danny said.
"If you are unable to find him then how are we supposed to find him?" Aurora asked.
"The three of you have spent centuries living in the shadows of human awareness. I have no doubt you can use such experience to find him." Danny said.
"Even if we do find him there are limits to what we can do." Tristan said sounding concerned.
"He is the most violent of the family. Entire villages have burned because he believed they held his children." Aurora said.
"You have caught all the others is one more such a challenge?" Lucien asked.
'Seems like I am going to have to go through with the plan.' Danny thought.
"I thought that you three might be reluctant to get involved. You spent a century running from him after all. So, I am going to give you the correct motivation to help me and join in the hunt." Danny said. "I am planning on releasing Rebekah."
"What?" Aurora asked surprised.
"Why would you do that?" Tristan asked with wide eyes.
Danny knew that would make him care.
"To force your hands. My retainers distrust you vampires. They believe one of you has been helping Mikael avoid detection. I wanted to reassure them that you will do everything possible to help." Danny said.
"So, you decided that putting my life in danger would be a proper motivational technique?" Aurora asked anger raising in her voice.
It was a good thing for them that he decided to make the call while they were separated by oceans. Looking at their faces he left that they might have reacted impulsively.
"I am only threatening you to make sure I have all of your help." Danny said.
Tristan is her older brother, and Lucien has been pinning for her since they had been human. There was no way they would let her come to harm when word reached Mikael that his daughter is walking around.
"I assume that you are doing the same with Sage?" Lucien asked.
"Sage is already properly motivated. I can trust her and have no need to take such action." Danny lied.
He knew that he had Sage's loyalty but that did not mean he would reveal such things to these three. Instead, he would make it seem that the reason that he is doing this to them is because they have yet to full prove their loyalty.
"Very well if you are going to force our hand." Tristan said.
"Goodbye." Danny said ending the conversation with the three.
Now for his next call.
"Ray'al." Danny said as the hologram formed.
"My king." Ray'al bowed in greeting.
"How far along have you gotten?" Danny asked.
"The process is twenty percent completion. Soon we will know everything that Greg and Paul Rowe know." Ray'al said.
He had set a trap for the two brothers while disguised as Jeremy. He used Delphine as bait and when the brothers arrived, he had them tranquilized and sedated. The reason he went through all this effort instead of just killing them is because he learned through Jeremy that the brothers had been working on a project.
It seems that Marik decided to have an auction. Whoever came up with and carried out the most interesting (horrible) plan he would give them a gift. An ancient treasure with amazing properties.
"Keep me aware of your progress." Danny said as he ended the call.
He was about to leave when he received a surprise. Someone is trying to contact him.
"Hello, my king." Fared said in greeting when his image manifested fully.
"Is something the matter with Katerina? Or Violet?" Danny asked the Jaffa that was responsible for watching over his important spies.
"They are still on mission. I am calling you to inform you of Ha'ru's progress." Fared said.
"How has the mission gone?" Danny asked.
Ha'ru is a Jaffa. He had been tasked with going to Germany to discover if the rumors about the woman there is true. He had heard tales that a red-headed warlock has been stealing children from villages.
"It seems that the rumors are true. The children are being abducted by a warlock." Fared answered. "We have discovered the warlock to be Countess Palatine Von Marburg."
"Is she alone or is she working with a coven?" Danny asked.
"The only two witches we have discovered with her are her two children. A boy named Sebastain and a girl named Anne. The boy is the oldest." Fared said.
"Do you believe they are aware of their mother's actions?" Danny asked.
He wanted to know if there was a chance that they could be saved or if they had to go down with their mother.
"Ha'ru did not see them in person during my visit to the village but from what I have read it seems the daughter Anne is a kind soul." Fared said.
Seems more research would have to be done.
"Tell him that I want more information on how she is taking these children and the purpose behind it." Danny said.
"I will do as you command." Fared said.
"Keep me aware of his progress." Danny said before he ended the call.
0-0-0-0-0-0
(Milan, Italy)
Danny looked on with a smile as the group traveled between the merchant stalls.
From the moment that they had set foot on the ground Kenna and Kirche had been deciding where they would go. The group had been surprised at her energy, but they decided to go with the flow.
The werewolves walking behind them were for their protection to make sure nobody tried to rob them.
"Look at this." Kenna said leading the group with enough energy to power a Tel'tak.
"Ah you ladies have wonderful taste." The merchant in charge of the stall said.
He watched as she noticed the rings and moved closer to inspect them. He had given them all money for the trip so she should enjoy herself.
"Is she always like this?" Montmorency asked Greer.
"She has always dreamed of coming here since we were little." Greer whispered back. "When we were coming to the Royal Castle Kenna planned on seeing if she and Mary could talk King Francis into taking us all on a trip to Milan."
He stopped walking when he felt something drawing his attention.
"Watch out for them." Danny told the werewolves following him before he split off from the group and walked down another street.
The street he was walking down was definitely shady and suspicious. The roads were cracked, and, on the walls, there looked to be remnants of dried blood.
"Hello stranger. What brings you to my shop today?" The merchant asked. "I am Dmitri Helios. Purveyor of fine goods and treasures."
He is a rather thin man with black hair. He looked to be Greek. He had an earring in his left ear made of gold.
"What kind of ring is this?" Danny asked as he pointed at the black ring laying amongst the silver.
"You have a good eye. My suppliers travel all around the world finding hidden treasures. This ring used to belong to English druids. It is said to bring good luck to those that wear it." Dmitri said.
"I will take it." Danny said.
0-0-0-0-0-0-0
Danny walked up to the ladies while they were distracted with looking at the dresses being displayed in the shop. The first thing he noticed was that the name on top of the shop was French.
"Boo." Danny said with a smile and watched as they jumped in surprise.
"Why did you do that?" Kenna asked glaring at him.
"I thought it would be funny." Danny said with a smile.
He could feel their annoyance with him buried under the Nish'ta induced loyalty.
"Where were you?" Kenna asked.
"I found something that I wanted to buy." Danny said with a smile. "On my way back, I heard that this new tavern/inn opened up and the chef is trying to get people to try out his food."
"That sounds fun." Kirche said.
"I thought you might like that. So, when you are finished trying out dresses, we can get something to eat." Danny said gesturing them forward.
0-0-0-0-0-0
"What do you think?" The chef asked as he watched him eat his desert.
The ladies felt that since he was the one to bring them here that he should try the food at this place first.
He had ordered an Italian Curd Lemon Semifreddo. It is the same desert that Takumi Aldini had made during his food war. He had been wanting to taste it for a while, but the clone was still on a journey learning about different foods. So, when he saw it on the menu, he had to order one even if it tasted different than the one from the anime/manga.
"I like the color." Kenna said looking at his desert.
"I think that it is wonderful." Danny said after he took his first bite.
"You really like it?" The chef asked.
"I think it is amazing." Danny said before he moved to take another bite.
"Then I want one as well." Guiche said.
"Me too." Malicorn said.
"Make enough for the whole table." Danny said placing two gold coins on the table.
It was more than was expected or necessary, but he felt like this tavern/inn could become a favorite spot of his when he wanted some Italian food and dessert.
He would try not to destroy it when he conquered Italy.
"Is there anything else that we are going to do today?" Kirche asked.
"Yes, but we are going to be leaving the city." Danny said.
0-0-0-0-0-0
(Forli Castle, Italy)
"This is such an amazing place." Danny said with his arms extended wide as he looked upon his newest treasure.
"I am sorry my king, but I do not understand why you are fascinated by such a ruin?" Greer asked sitting on the blanket.
Her aim was on the giant hole that would allow people to walk inside if they had the courage to go over the giant hole.
"This ruin as you call it once belonged to Catarina Sofrza." Danny said. "This is where she stood and fought against the tyranny of the Catholic Church."
The first time Catarina had been forced to watch as her son was tortured by the gonfalonier of Rome Juan Borgia. He was the bastard son of the pope at the time Rodrigo Borgia (Alexander Sixtus). Juan had tried to intimidate her into giving up her castle and face his father. She had refused and instead claimed that even if he did kill Benito, she had the ability to make ten more sons.
Apparently that line tormented him until the end of his life.
She had defeated Juan when she gained reinforcements from her cousin Giovanni but that only made the church more determined to bring her down. Giovanni was stabbed to death in the castle's dining hall by his ex-brother-in-law Cesare Borgia while they were in diplomatic negotiations. Cesare would also be the one to break the castle wall with cannon fire and finally drag the imprisoned woman to Rome.
"What do you plan on doing with this place?" Kenna asked. "Turn it into a fort to invade Rome?"
"The original would probably do that." Danny said looking at ramparts atop the castle.
He would enjoy the historic resonance in the act. The Sforza family had plotted in this castle to make an alliance with the French King to march down to Rome to kill the Pope and his family. They had gotten close to accomplishing that goal but thanks to the French King's desire for Naples they had to give up.
It turned out to be a bad deal for the French King as Naples was suffering under the Black Plague.
Prince Alfonso had left infected bodies around the city as a way to weaken the French army while he escaped. It did the job better than intended as it infected the French King Charles VIII.
Rome would not be so lucky this time.
"We are here because I want this place." Danny said as the Jaffa finally set up the Reduction Cannon.
The Reduction Cannon was given its name by the effect it had once activated.
Like most Goa'uld technology the Reduction Cannon relied on crystals. These crystals had properties that caused objects to shrink or enlarge when a light source was fired through them. They could shrink to the size of a thimble or grow to the size of a mountain. It might be able to grow bigger, but he had not tested that. The machine around the crystal allowed more control of the size alteration.
"Are you going to use it as a private home?" Kenna asked feeling dejected.
He could feel the worry that she had about him. That he did not like her efforts to build his estate or that he had been wasting her time.
"The original already have enough of those." Danny said. "I intend for it to be the resort for our zoo on mars."
The habitats were completed, and he was going about producing the herbivores.
The original intended to show off his dinosaurs and so eventually his people would need someplace to stay at. The original thought of making a new building but he realized that he could turn their hobby into something practical. Taking a castle of noted history and turning it into something that they could actually use for people more than himself.
There was work that had to be done on it though. His Jaffa would have to fix the wall that had broken down, clean the interior, and remove the vines and grass that had grown around the place.
"There is a chance that the pope will hear of this." Greer said.
"I planned on sending him a card telling him what I have done." Danny said. "It will be good for him to know who he is dealing with."
Pope Paul IV has died and his replacement Giovanni Angelo de Medici has become Pope taking the name Pope Pius IV.
"The current pope is a member of Catherine's family." Kenna said to remind him.
"I am aware of his family history." Danny said. "I plan to give him a chance to surrender."
0-0-0-0-0-0
"Has something been bothering you Montmorency?" Danny asked as he watched the others walk to the Tel'tak.
"What do you mean?" Montmorency asked.
"I can feel the anguish you are feeling." Danny said.
"It's my cousin Mari-Jeaane. She has sent a letter that some manner of beast has been terrorizing her village." Montmorency said. "It has been killing many villagers."
"Do you want me to send some of my servants to go and see what type of beast this is?" Danny asked.
"I would like that yes." Montmorency said. "My cousin says that she wants to hunt the beast. I would like it if she had some help."
"Tell me the name of this village." Danny said.
"The village is called Gevudan." Montmorency said.
0-0-0-0-0-0
(Apostolic Palace, Vatican City)
Danny teleported into the Pope's chambers.
'It would be so easy.' Danny thought as he walked to the old man asleep in his bed with an outstretched hand.
There was a chance that even with this upcoming talk that the pope would not be accepting of his offer. Threatening the man that he would kidnap all of his family members would add little motivation.
When Queen Mary had kidnapped Queen Catherine for her money her cousin Hortenza told Mary that it was against the Medici family principal to pay kidnappers.
He took a breath then he put his hand on the man's bed and entered his dreams.
Danny found the man standing in front of the kings and queens of Europe atop his pulpit as they bowed before him.
Danny gathered attention by clapping his hands.
"You truly surprised me. I had been expecting prostitutes dressed as nuns." Danny said walking between them to face the man.
"What are you doing here?" Pope Pius IV asked before looking to the sides. "Guards!"
"Don't bother they cannot hear you." Danny said as he sat in a chair and looked around the recreation of the man's sacristy. "I have come to talk the terms of your surrender. Afterwards I am going to see the frescoes in the Sistine Chapel."
"Why would I surrender to you?" Pope Pius IV asked. "I inherited the chair of Saint Peter on the promise that I would fight your heretical armies with all the strength that I have."
"That is not true." Danny said. "You made it to that chair because you were able to bribe the other members of the curia."
The Roman Curia are the cardinals selected by the Pope to watch over his archbishops and their diocese. They had originally numbered fifteen but after the invasion of Naples Alexander Sixtus rose that number to forty-seven.
"How dare you suggest that the throne of Saint Peter can be bought!" Pope Pius IV shouted at him with a hand raised in the air.
"Spare me the false righteous anger." Danny said snapping his fingers and projecting images of the bribes that Pope Pius IV had participated in. "The Catholic Church is a hive of corruption. You buy, threaten, and intimidate all monarchs to get what you want."
"Lies! Trickery!" Pope Pius IV denied.
"You want to ignore what I am saying but just looking at your family's history with the church should make it obvious." Danny said.
"What do you know of my family?" Pope Pius IV asked.
"I have been talking with Queen Catherine about her past and her family." Danny said. "How your family convinced the Curia to elect certain popes, the wars you fought in against the popes."
"You have no idea what you are talking about." Pope Pius IV denied.
"Pope Sixtus IV had disliked the power and control the Medici family held over Florence." Danny said listing the first name in the air with fire.
"Pope Sixtus IV did nothing to them." Pope Pius IV said.
"Because he fell sick and died before he had the chance." Danny countered. "It is why the Medici worked so hard to install Pope Innocent VIII."
Although that made their family many more enemies.
"Then there was the whole assassination attempt by Pope Innocence III."
Pope Innocence III is believed to have grown to dislike the Medici over Lorenzo's politics and had allowed the Pazzi to try and assassinate the both of them in the Florentine dome during mass. The attempt resulted in the death of Lorenzo's brother Guliano.
"There is no proof to the allegations that Pope Innocent III had anything to do with that." Pope Pius IV said. "He had to fight back as Lorenzo murdered his nephew."
"Pope Alexander Sixtus had allowed Bishop Savonarola to incite chaos during the final years of Lorenzo and his revolt during the time of Piero the unfortunate." Danny said.
"Whatever my cousin told you has probably been warped by her corruption." Pope Pius IV said glaring at him. "You are not even mentioning that it was Pope Alexander that brought down the heretic Savonarola."
"Of course he did. He had to. Bishop Savonarola had started decrying the Pope and claiming that he was corrupting the chair." Danny said.
Pope Alexnader had not taken that lying down and sent Cesare to deal with it. The father and son tried bringing the bishop to Rome, then they tried threatening him, finally they decided to let him destroy his follower's faith in him. They played to the bishop's belief in his righteousness. They convinced the man to try and walk through fire.
Bishop Savonarola for some madness believed that he could and tried to do it.
When that failed, he was taken to Rome and tortured until he recanted his statements. In the end Bishop Savanorola burned and his flock returned to what they had been doing before.
"Anyway, that is a hurtful accusation." Danny said. "Your family aimed for the papacy because of what they lost to the previous popes. They learned that they would need massive amounts of political power to go along with their money."
Lorenzo sent his child and nephew to the church so that they could gain the power to make sure nothing like it would happen again.
"You will have to burn Rome because I will never give in to you." Pope Pius IV said.
"Your stubbornness is digging you a hole that you will not be able to escape." Danny said. "I am not above kidnapping the pope and unlike the last time that this was attempted you will not escape."
King Phillip (The Fair) of France had issues with the pope at the time Boniface VIII and when the man would not listen to his demands they came and kidnapped him.
He hated the man so much that even after he died, he wanted to dig his remains out from his grave burn the man's bones to ashes.
"Try it and you shall die. When King Phillip tried that he found out how much love and sympathy the people of the Catholic Church had for their Pope." Pope Pius IV said determined.
"You will regret refusing my offer." Danny said as he pulled back room the man's dreams in a swirl of colors.
0-0-0-0-0-0
(Edinburgh, Scotland)
Danny walked through the castle to his chambers.
He stopped as he heard someone is calling him.
"My king." Iok called out gaining his attention.
"What is it?" Danny asked turning away from the ruins towards his Jaffa.
"The King of Scotland would like to talk to you." Iok said. "He wants to know what time would be good for you."
"Where is he?" Danny asked.
"He is in the throne room." Iok said.
"Now is fine." Danny said as he started walking in that direction.
He walked into the throne room. "Hello King/Prince Francis what did you want to talk about?"
King/Prince Francis took a deep breath. "I wanted to be the one to inform you that my father has decided to move forward and attack England."
"Really?" Danny asked feeling his eye twitch.
This was not a part of the plan. The royal family was to remain in France while the soldiers' moved forwards to invade England.
"I am sure my father meant no disrespect." King/Prince Francis said as he rose from his throne.
"Has he left already or is he still thinking about it?" Danny asked.
The level of punishment depended on the answer. He had been dying to try the Blood Eagle on somebody that truly angered him. The method of execution had been the one that had killed Jarl Borg and King Aelle of Northumbria.
"He feels that he has enough men defending Calais and that he should do something in response to the Englishmen trying to invade his country." King/Prince Francis said.
'He should worry more about the French that are trying to leave.' Danny thought to himself.
Queen Catherine tried her best to guard the docks and prevent men from joining the enemy but that just led them to create different routes to leave.
"He needed to give the men confidence and the way he knew to do that was to lead from the front." King/Prince Francis said.
"Very well." Danny said.
He wondered if this was because of the poison that was infecting the king. He knew that King Henry had taken his personal bible with him on his march. The original may have found it amusing watching the crazy man lead this country but that was because he was not here to see it in person and deal with the consequences. He was too busy in space terrorizing Marduk and hunting the Highbreed that were building bases on other worlds.
"King Daniel." King/Prince Francis called out.
"Yes?" Danny asked focusing back on the person that he was talking to.
"I beg you to forgive my father." King/Prince Francis pleaded.
"Alright." Danny said. "I want you to remember this moment. As a reminder that I am a kind and merciful king."
He would accept the original's fault in this.
"I thank you King Daniel." King/Prince Francis said.
Danny turned and walked out of the throne room.