A World At War
Renato knocked on the door to Michael’s quarters. When he did not receive an answer, he tentatively opened the door and peeked in. The archangel was leaning over his map table, scribbling away with his quill. Renato cleared his throat and Michael nearly dropped his quill. The archangel spun around and said, “I did not hear you there. Please come in.”
Renato stepped into the sparsely decorated room and stood next to the archangel. The map he was drawing was yet another of Europe, but the borders had changed since last time. Iberia drew his attention immediately.
“What has happened to poor Portugal?” the king asked, pointing at the now tiny Iberian nation.
“It would seem that Castile has bested its neighbours.”
“At least that means Aragon is suffering. Castile must be extremely lucky to overcome them.”
“Yes, lucky indeed,” Michael said softly. Renato had a feeling that the archangel knew more than he was letting on, but the king said nothing.
Renato next pointed to the British Isles. “You would hardly know that war raged in those lands. It looks like the borders have barely changed, other than England’s foray into France.”
“Their armies may be evenly matched. Either that or someone has been keeping any conflict from escalating too far.”
Renato raised an eyebrow, but Michael did not notice. Who this someone was that could be keeping the British Isles from descending into chaos was anyone’s guess. If the archangel knew, he wasn’t showing any sign of it.
“France seems to be doing quite well for itself,” Renato said, eyeing the big blue blob on the map. “It’s quite impressive that Burgundy has held out as long as it has. Perhaps England’s hold on the northern coast has caused more trouble than expected.”
“I do not think France has anything to fear from the English. Ships cannot conquer land after all.”
Renato gave a nod and said, “That is true. Let us hope that those ships do distract the French away from us though.”
Renato skimmed over the former Holy Roman Empire. All of Germany was a mess. He had been shown a similar map earlier, but could barely note any difference. He did notice that Austria had lost land in the west, which pleased him. He also made note of the big threats up north. Bohemia, Pomerania, and Nuremburg seemed to have carved out a decent domain, although it was yet to be seen if they could hold onto it.
The Balkans were a bit more of a surprise. Pointing at the purple patches in the west, Renato asked, “Is that the Byzantines that have made gains there?”
Michael gave a small smile. “It is indeed. They have proven to have amazing staying power. This plague may have been the only thing that saved them from defeat.”
“The Balkans in general are quite the mess. I can’t see the Ottomans holding onto it for much longer, not that I want those heathens to do so.”
“It is best that they not, for they are a bigger threat than the nations that take their place. Whether or not those nations are heathens matters little.”
Renato stiffened and looked over at Michael. For an archangel to so easily overlook heathens seemed odd. If anything, a representative of God should be striking down all heresy in any form. Perhaps this plague had changed his outlook on those matters.
After scanning the map a few times, Renato said, “This world has surely changed since your arrival. God must have a big plan for us.”
Michael smiled sadly and said, “I’m certain He does.” Renato carefully watched the archangel, trying to gauge his response, but he said no more. Something was going on that Michael refused to speak about. Renato would find a way to get it out of him eventually. With no other ideas in mind, Renato left the archangel to his maps.
Renato knocked on the door to Michael’s quarters. When he did not receive an answer, he tentatively opened the door and peeked in. The archangel was leaning over his map table, scribbling away with his quill. Renato cleared his throat and Michael nearly dropped his quill. The archangel spun around and said, “I did not hear you there. Please come in.”
Renato stepped into the sparsely decorated room and stood next to the archangel. The map he was drawing was yet another of Europe, but the borders had changed since last time. Iberia drew his attention immediately.
“What has happened to poor Portugal?” the king asked, pointing at the now tiny Iberian nation.
“It would seem that Castile has bested its neighbours.”
“At least that means Aragon is suffering. Castile must be extremely lucky to overcome them.”
“Yes, lucky indeed,” Michael said softly. Renato had a feeling that the archangel knew more than he was letting on, but the king said nothing.
Renato next pointed to the British Isles. “You would hardly know that war raged in those lands. It looks like the borders have barely changed, other than England’s foray into France.”
“Their armies may be evenly matched. Either that or someone has been keeping any conflict from escalating too far.”
Renato raised an eyebrow, but Michael did not notice. Who this someone was that could be keeping the British Isles from descending into chaos was anyone’s guess. If the archangel knew, he wasn’t showing any sign of it.
“France seems to be doing quite well for itself,” Renato said, eyeing the big blue blob on the map. “It’s quite impressive that Burgundy has held out as long as it has. Perhaps England’s hold on the northern coast has caused more trouble than expected.”
“I do not think France has anything to fear from the English. Ships cannot conquer land after all.”
Renato gave a nod and said, “That is true. Let us hope that those ships do distract the French away from us though.”
Renato skimmed over the former Holy Roman Empire. All of Germany was a mess. He had been shown a similar map earlier, but could barely note any difference. He did notice that Austria had lost land in the west, which pleased him. He also made note of the big threats up north. Bohemia, Pomerania, and Nuremburg seemed to have carved out a decent domain, although it was yet to be seen if they could hold onto it.
The Balkans were a bit more of a surprise. Pointing at the purple patches in the west, Renato asked, “Is that the Byzantines that have made gains there?”
Michael gave a small smile. “It is indeed. They have proven to have amazing staying power. This plague may have been the only thing that saved them from defeat.”
“The Balkans in general are quite the mess. I can’t see the Ottomans holding onto it for much longer, not that I want those heathens to do so.”
“It is best that they not, for they are a bigger threat than the nations that take their place. Whether or not those nations are heathens matters little.”
Renato stiffened and looked over at Michael. For an archangel to so easily overlook heathens seemed odd. If anything, a representative of God should be striking down all heresy in any form. Perhaps this plague had changed his outlook on those matters.
After scanning the map a few times, Renato said, “This world has surely changed since your arrival. God must have a big plan for us.”
Michael smiled sadly and said, “I’m certain He does.” Renato carefully watched the archangel, trying to gauge his response, but he said no more. Something was going on that Michael refused to speak about. Renato would find a way to get it out of him eventually. With no other ideas in mind, Renato left the archangel to his maps.
- 1
