{"sf1_id":762378,"sf2_id":null,"title":"Drifting Down the Loire with Da Vinci","author":"StGeorgesHorse","words":3081,"posted_at":"2014-09-29T23:59:00.000Z","tags":["Human","Leonardo Da Vinci","Plot Development","Story Progression","Werewolf","back story","france"],"url":"https://fse.anthro.fr/stories/762378-drifting-down-the-loire-with-da-vinci","original_url":"https://sofurry.com/view/762378","image_url":"https://www.sofurryfiles.com/std/thumb?page=762378\u0026ext=.jpg","description":"#46 of The Moonrise Chronicles","content":"                They\nexited the grounds of the chateau, but not without many curious looks from the\nvisitors. It wasn't that any single thing about the group stood out, it was all\nin the combination; an old bearded man in period costume, a middle aged man and\nyoung girl dressed in modern designer clothing, and two rather impressive\nlooking dogs. It wasn't the circus, but it was outré enough to be eye catching.\n                Leonardo\nstopped and looked up and down the streets. While the town was old, many of the\nexisting buildings weren't five hundred years old. Some had been destroyed in\ntwo wars, and many from Leonardo's time long ago rotted and new ones put in\ntheir place.\n                His\nquick eyes caught sight of the lines of automobiles. He made a beeline for\nthem. \"These are remarkable! How do they work?\"\n                Maggie\nteased him before answering. \"How do you know what they're for?\"\n                \"Young\nlady, they have wheels, albeit strange ones. Metal and...\" he kicked at one,\n\"some strange black substance.\" He looked to Edward. \"Enhanced tar?\"\n                \"Something\nwe call rubber.\"\n                \"Rub-ber?\nThere is some much I will need to catch up on!\"\n                Maggie\ntugged his sleeve. \"You'll need to see the internet!\"\n                \"Inter-net?\nA net in between what exactly?\"\n                \"The\nwhole planet!\"\n                \"I see.\nSo you have advanced to the point that the whole of the earth is connected.\nThat is incredible. How big is the earth? I had heard tales of one of my\ncountryman sailing east to make his way across to find a better trade route.\nEveryone said he'd fall off the world. I thought it nonsense at the time, but\npeople tend to be gullible by nature.\"\n                \"It's\nhuge, but nothing compared to the universe.\"\n                He\nstopped and tugged his beard. \"Universe? Yes, I have missed much. I will have\nto spare some time to look into all these things. But I digress. Which of these\nself propelled carts is yours?\"\n                Edward\nshowed him the old Alpha. He walked around it without commenting for a few\nmoments. That he looked up. \"I find it rather pleasing to look at. But is it\nnot rather small for five bodies?\"\n\"I wasn't expecting to have a troop\nto haul around. I got it because we needed a means of travel for me and Maggie.\nThe twins here were an unexpected bonus. And now there's you as well. We didn't\ncome here expecting to find you alive you know.\"\n\"I suppose then, under the\ncircumstances, you may be excused. But if you didn't think I was still alive,\nwhy did you bother coming? Seriously now, why?\"\nMaggie spoke up. \"Because I wanted\nto come. We are from far away, and after learning about there being more rings,\nI thought that maybe there would be a hint somewhere at your tomb.\"\n\"A hint at my tomb? Why would I do\nthat? Because my tomb would be the only part of my legacy people would still\nhave to remember me by?\"\n\"No, I guess not. A lot of your\nworks are still around today.\" Then she stopped. \"Hey, we found you didn't we?\"\nHe smiled. \"Yes you did. But I am\nnow left to wonder what the point of your discovery of my preservation chamber\nwas. I don't see there being any great need for my services. It seems your\npresent world has more to offer you than I do.\"\n\"But you're Leonardo da Vinci!\"\n\"And you are Maggie Peterson. Never\nshortchange yourself young lady. It's the worst mistake you can make. After\nall, I am the bastard son of a peasant woman!\"\nShe actually blushed. \"I guess so.\nWhat we really need to know is about the rings. Why were they made? And who\nwere they made for?\"\n\"Child, I think that we will need\nto find a better place to discuss this. Since your vehicle seems to be rather\nsmall for so many, might I suggest we find some alternate means of locomotion?\"\nEdward was feeling embarrassed. He\nreally should have bought something more practical; but how was he to know?\"\n\"I can sell this one and buy\nsomething larger.\"\n\"I see up and down the line here\nthat there are more practical devices than yours. But I think I can help now,\nrather than waiting for you to barter yours for a bigger one. Follow me.\"\nBefore they took off after him, Edward popped the trunk and they took what they\nhad left to their names and then locked the car back up. Edward gave a sigh as\nthey left it behind. \"It was nice knowing ya!\" he called back to it.\nAn old bearded man, a young man, a\ngirl and two wolf-like dogs made their way down along the river. After a while\nLeonardo stopped and surveyed the area. \"Damn. The landscape has changed a lot\nsince my time. I don't suppose you two would be so kind as to lend me your\nrings?\"\nSince they were on their fingers at\nthe moment, it wasn't a problem. They handed them over. He slipped them on the\nsame hand as his and waved it around a little. He seemed to home in on\nsomething and began tearing away brush and dirt. A few feet down he found a\nbrass ring, about the size of a small wheel. He pulled it outwards and twisted\nit clockwise. There was a clang. Then the dirt started to move. The river wall\ngave way as doors opened up. \nMaggie tugged in his slightly dirty\ntunic. \"What is this?\"\n\"My boat. I never got an\nopportunity to get it into the water, and the king said I had to hide it lest\nit fall into enemy hands.\"\nThe doors creaked open and stopped.\nThe master stepped in and with a werewolf roar pushed out his boat. It was big\nenough for six or seven people. It had a series of paddles on both sides, and a\ncrank and gear assembly in the middle.  And\nremarkably, it appeared to be in the same condition as when he had hidden it\naway. Of course, the gaping hole in the ground hiding the secret room was going\nto be noticed, but there was nothing that could be done for that now.\nBefore he gave it one last heave,\nhe hollered at them to get aboard. They did, and with their weight in the\nfront, it overbalanced and slid down the embankment into the River Loire. The\nmaster jumped in the stern and settled on a bench. The current caught the craft\nand set it in motion down the river. He grabbed the rudder and steered it\naround the bridge abutments. \n\"If you're in a rush, then I\nsuggest we take turns operating the device which runs it. Otherwise, I think we\ncan allow the river the take us at its leisure.\"\nEveryone agreed that the speed they\nwere going was fine.\n\"There will be another town down\nthe river where we can get out and perhaps you can find another one of your\nauto-mobile devices that will fit all of us. I am most fascinated by the\nconcept of a self propelled cart. In the meantime, I would suggest we get better\nacquainted. And that goes for you two as well.\" He was talking to the twins.\nEdward got outfits for them as best\nhe was able from their luggage, and soon Emile and Corinne were dressed. It\nwasn't a great fit, but they were clothed. Leonardo handed the rings back. \"Why\nare you really here?\" This was directed to Edward.\n\"We told you. There was this guy,\nthis Cardinal Medici, who was in control of a bunch of werewolf hunters. He was\nlooking for the rings. I had mine from home, and somehow one of the hunters\nfound out about it. We got Maggie's from his storeroom, along with the empty\nbox you managed to get open . All we really wanted to do was to make our life\nsafe again.\"\n\"Yes, yes. You alluded to some of\nthis earlier. That's what took you to Rome. But why here, to Amboise? I find it\nunlikely that you would come just to seek out my grave. If you were expecting a\ndead man, what would you have possibly gained from it?\"\nMaggie answered a bit sharply. \"I\nwanted to see where you were buried. And Like I said before, I thought that\nmaybe I could find a clue about the rings!\"\n\"Yes, the rings. It always seems to\ncome down to the rings.\"\n\"I beg your pardon,\" asked Edward.\n\"The rings. From the beginning they\nhave been as much a bane as they have been a boon. And to think I pulled\nLorenzo Ghiberti out of his retirement in Grecia to help me to create them.\"\nNo one knew who he was talking\nabout, but they politely deferred asking him at the moment. It probably didn't\nmatter who the man was anyway. Just some long dead metal smith.\n\"The Baetylus had been damaged. I\nhope you know a little bit about it. It was nothing to be worshiped, and yet it\nwas. Those who knew its true power refused to give that information away, not\nthat I think it would have mattered. It was only to the kind that it would\nprovide healing, among other things. The Medici's got their hands on fragments\nof it, after the stone was damaged. They, like me, had the blood of the kind\nrunning through their veins. And they wanted a ring created from the stone\npieces, to provide them with a means of defense against opposing forces.\"\n\"Only one ring?\"\n\"Yes child, only one. But I didn't\nfeel right crafting only one. So I acquired the entire mass of the rock. After\nit went missing, I created the story that it was buried for safe keeping. Let\nthem look for it in vain was my thought. In the end, we were able to create ten\nrings. Many snapped and shattered during the process. Whatever metals were in\nthat stone, they did not like being handled roughly. This was no gold or silver\n(here he shuddered) to be worked with a hammer and die. This stuff took great\nheat to melt, and great time. A week of continuous stoking was required before\nthe rock melted.  Then, once it melted,\nwe could not get it to cool down again. Obstinate stuff!\"\n\"However, that did make\nexperimenting with it easier. In the end, we poured some of it into a tubular\nmold. It took two days to solidify, and the day after we were able to slide the\nform out. It took days to cut the rings apart from the whole. Several broke,\nbut we ended up with ten. I gave one, in the box I specially designed for it to\nthe Medici's.  One I kept for myself, one\nI gave to Lorenzo, with a box just for him, and that left seven. I crafted\nboxes for each one depending on whom their recipients were and distributed them\nquietly.\"\n\"What would happen if someone wore\nall the rings at once?\"\n\"Nothing. Leastwise, nothing\nspectacular. As you know, the ring protects against silver and other harmful\nagents. It also enhances the mind of the one wearing it, as long as they are of\nthe kind. It also seems to enhance the transformation process. I never played\naround too much with it. To be honest, I never transformed that much. There was\nrarely a chance to kick back and enjoy a good romp.\"\n\"why did you were the three rings\nback there?\"\n\"Because the more metal there is,\nthe more I can sense things I am looking for. Don't ask me to explain it. It\njust is.\"\n\"But what about eating people?\"\n\"What?\" The master looked genuinely\nalarmed. \"Who does such a thing?\"\n\"We do. I do. Well, used to. I\ncouldn't eat regular food before the ring.\"\n\"Dear me. That is awful. I know\nthat several members of the kind did kill, but never as a source of food.\" He\nwas speaking in French, allowing the two without rings to understand him, as\nwell as the twins. At times he would translate what the others were saying.\nEmile had been sitting quietly, in\nawe of the presence of the great man. \"Sir, what they say is true. Meat such as\nlamb and pork do not agree with use. Eating normal food would be such a great\nthing. We would love to have a ring for ourselves, even to share!\" Corinne\nnodded shyly, agreeing with her brother.\nLeonardo patted his own ring. \"We\nknow of three my young wards. I would gladly give you mine, but for the moment\nI believe it behooves me to keep it on my person. We have a box that may\ncontain a ring, but opening it may prove problematic. So I guess for now, when\nit comes time to eat, I shall share with you. I don't wish to be party to\nmurder, even if it might be for the good of the kind.\"\nHe turned to Maggie and Edward.\n\"How long has this been a problem; the eating of the flesh? In my day, there\nwas no such problem.\"\nThey both shrugged simultaneously.\n\"We don't know. Neither of us had any information until recently, and the only\nsource, the Taborum, never mentioned it.\"\n\"Then the book is pointless.\nInformation is power. If there was some point in time where the kind became\ninfected with something, it would have helped to have it documented.\"\n\"Infected?\"\n\"Is that so thought provoking?\nDisease in my day was rampant. I studied the body to better understand both how\nit worked and how it might be treated. I was no doctor, but then again, once I\nhad the ring, I needed no doctor. \"\nMaggie made a sound like a snort.\n\"Yeah. About that. I thought you died.\"\n\"You were supposed to. The world\nwas meant to mourn me and forget. What sort of story did they tell?\"\n\"That you died with you head in the\nking's lap.\"\n\"That's a good story. Simple,\npoignant, and totally fabricated.\" \n\"What really happened?\"\n\"Oh, I was getting old, in my own\nway, and I wanted to call it quits. While I still had life left in me, I\ndevised my cooling apparatus using some of the metal left over from making the\nrings. It has many properties I did not have time to fully come to appreciate,\nI'm sure. Metal from outside to confines of Earth! Who knows what value it\nhas?\" He sighed. \n\"But as I was saying, I was feeling\nold and much put upon. Everyone wanting this or that created. Even my friend\nthe king was badgering me for technical toys. A lion! He wanted a mechanical\nwalking lion! I told him to get one from a menagerie. He didn't take kindly to\nmy jest.\"\nEdward cut in. \"Is that what we saw\nin your workshop?\"\n\"Yes, I was working on it. It just\nseemed to be below me to manufacture toys. So I made my chamber. And I made it\nso that no one could get it open without a few of the rings. I didn't want just\nany fools waking me up. I figured a hundred years or so might pass. But I guess\nmy message was never read.\"\n\"Message?\"\n\"Yes, in my journals. I guess\nthat's the problem with writing backwards and in code. No one is smart enough\nto figure it out. And then you four come across me entirely by accident. Even\nif you had purpose to your discovery, I was not what you were expecting to\nfind. So now I am at a loss as to what I will do with my remaining years. I\ndon't think that a man a half millennia out of date will be of much use to\nanyone.\"\nMaggie stood up, rocking the boat.\n\"Now who's talking nonsense? I have hours worth of questions to ask you. And\nthere is a lot you can tell us that has apparently been lost to the ages. So do\nus the favor of stifling your self-degradation. You are still one of the most\nfamous men...\"\nHe coughed. \"The kind, please.\"\n\"Fine. One of the smartest of the\nkind to have ever lived. So clam up on the negativity!\"\n\"Clam up?\" He looked at her before\nlaughing. \"Your words and mannerism amuse me. Yes, I believe you are correct\nregardless of how you state it. I will travel with you and advise you as you\nbest need it. So where are you off to next?\"\nEdward looked at Maggie. \"Are you\nstill going to try it?\"\n\"I don't know. It seems like we can\nhave a lot of information here in front of us. Running off to Russia now seems\nstupid.\"\nLeonardo knit his bushy brows.\n\"Russia?\"\nEdward was stuck. How could he\nexplain Russia? It was a modern name, he was sure, and the whole concept of\ncommunism and Stalin and Lenin, was going to be beyond his ability to explain. Even\nthings like the tsar and Bolsheviks would take a book to comprehend. And that\nwas about all he knew about Russian history.\nMaggie smiled. \"Maybe you knew of\nit as Kievan\nRus?\"\n\"Oh ho! The land of the Mongols! I\nnever did get to meet any of the kind from there. It was said they had powers\nwe did not. I would love to meet one of them, if they still exist in this\ntime.\"\nMaggie did a little bow. \"Then you have\nmet one I guess, though I was born outside of that place. I have it on good\nauthority that my ancestors came from there.\"\nHe returned her bow, rocking the boat\neven more. \"Then I am all the more please to make your acquaintance young\nlady.\"\nAfter that, they fell to talking about\nother things. Eventually, Edward took the hand crank, and summoning his\nstrength, if not his form, he propelled them down the river until they got to\nTours. There, they docked the boat, amid many stares, and found a hotel with\nsuitable accommodations. After that, it was the matter of getting some food and\nsome rest. Things were only looking weirder for their future, and Edward wanted\nto rest up before it did."}