...Gerard de Louraine left the building where he had met one of his contact, in the hope of getting his paws on some juicy information he could turn to his advantage. Unfortunately, it had been another wasted evening. As he walks the streets of the Rive Gauche, he catches sight of a fancy carriage with four horses standing quietly in the street. It bears a coat of arms on the side which is not immediately recognizable in the dark. As someone opens a door, the light momentarily illuminates the side of the carriage and it's sole occupant, a thin, saturnine aristocrat.
A moment later, cries sound behind the Palais de Luxembourg...
'Treachery! Treachery! Soldiers of the Cardinal, help! Come quickly!'
It is a man's voice, and mingled with the shouts are other, less distinct calls and the clash of steel against steel. The sound comes from behind the Palais du Luxembourg, a favoured place for private duels. But the call of treachery suggests that this is no mere dispute between gentlemen, but rather an ambush of some kind.
Responding quickly to the cries, they round the corner of the palace in time to see a single man in the uniform of the Cardinal's Guard struggling valiantly against six armed assailants - common ruffians by the look of them, armed with a mixed assortment of swords, knives, and clubs - while another man, swathed in a heavy black cloak, looks on. Even as the adventurers approach, the lone guardsman slips and falls, and two of his attackers are on him before he can recover.
The cloaked man notices the adventurers as they arrive, and with a shout, orders the rest of his henchmen to hold them off.
A fight ensues and the cloaked man is heard calling 'The ring! Get the ring, or it is all for nothing!'
A few moments later he and the two men who finished off the Guardsman break and run, leaving the others to deal with Jean and Gerard. A few quick slashes and stabs leaves Gerard and two of the ruffians wounded, the rest flee.
Within seconds, the Old City Guard patrol shows up and detains everyone they find. The original cause of the crisis is the Cardinalist Guardsman, who now lies, only barely alive, where his attackers left him. Before he dies, he recovers consciousness long enough to say to Gerard: 'It was . . . I . . .' Then he dies.
The man on the ground is a Lieutenant of the Cardinal's Guard. He is tall and thin, with long, dark blonde hair and a curling moustache over an elegant, tapered goatee. His uniform is of the best quality, and there is something about him, even in death, that suggests good birth and great wealth.
The patrol of the Old City Guards is also led by an aristocrat, the Viscomte de Remoilles. He is accompanied by ten of his men. They investigate the scene of the crime, question each of the witnesses in turn, and then allow the party to go free, saying that their story seems to be the truth, but carefully noting addresses and names for later verification. They also take the body of the Guardsman away for return to his family.
The next day the two heroes meet again at the Palais de Luxembourg. Most traces of the fight have disappeared and there is something about the whole case that doesn't sit well with them.
They decide to pay a visit to the Cardinal's Guard Barracks and see what they can find out about the victim. Using a new recruit to gain entry, they are able to talk to Sergeant Fernand de Clemenceau. Their story raises a few eyebrows. There has been no report of a murdered guardsman, much less an officer. Fernand tells them he will look into it, and sends Jean and Gerard on their way.
Over the next day, pieces of the puzzle start to fall in place. The Viscomte de Remouilles is nowhere to be found, and Gerard finds a link to the carriage he saw the night before: it belongs to the Duke de Montauban, the uncle of de Remouilles. The Duke is said to be visiting Paris this month, a rare enough thing since the Cardinal's rise to power. The two men detest one another both personally and politically, and the Duke was once heard to denounce the Cardinal as a 'bloody-minded tyrant determined to play the puppet-master to our Sovereign.'
Montauban was stripped of all government posts, and rumour has it that the Cardinal is set on seizing his estates, titles, and other possessions as well, given half a chance. It seems that his nephew also fell out of favour at the same time.
Talking to the Old City Guard gives some contradicting information: Viscomte de Remoilles was not on duty the night before. Naturally, he filed no reports, for he had no reason to; he was probably keeping company with his beautiful young mistress.
Later during the day, they meet up with some friends of Jean, including Maitre de St. Pierre, a famous fencing teacher. The atmosphere is vibrant, as there is exciting news, War has been set in motion against the Huguenot rebels of La Rochelle, and their English allies, if the Buckingham's minions dare to support the Huguenots in their resistance. The army is in motion already, or parts of it, at least; and though the King has fallen ill, he plans to send his First Minister, the Cardinal himself, to command the siege until his own arrival.
Returning to Fernand de Clemenceau with a description of the victim, he seems confused. He recognizes Lietenant de Lamoye from their description, though he spoke to the very man himself this morning... Mention of the Duc de Montauban and the cover-up from De Remouilles make him very wary, combined with the fact there was something just not right when he spoke to de Lamoye.
He orders horses to be fetched and gather a handful of Cardinal's Guardsmen and allows Jean and Gerard to accompany him, on the trail of the Cardinal, who has headed towards La Rochelle with a unit of Guards let by de Lamoye...
Travelling throughout the night, they are able to catch up with the Cardinal's entourage by morning. The three men kick in the door, pistols drawn and face the surprized guards inside. Jean tells them not to resist and shoots one of the guards in the leg. Gerard holds back for a moment, unsure about shooting the Lieutenant or one of the other Guardsmen, but Fernand doesn't doubt and puts a bullet in the officer. Gerard follows his lead, and the jump on him with their rapiers. Before he has a chance to cause any real damage to anyone, Jean runs him through.
The successful rescue of Richelieu from the traitors' schemes will have many important effects. First, the Cardinal returns immediately to Paris, postponing his journey to La Rochelle so that he can deal with the Montauban conspiracy in person.
The Cardinal informs Jean and Gerard through Fernand that he owes each of them a favor for their efforts in his behalf. Fernand makes a point to meet up with them back in Paris, and offers them a place in one of the Gascon Regiment, where his brother is a Captain.
Most members of the plot will be quickly rounded up and dealt with, but both the Duke and his nephew manage to escape.
The Regiment is due to arrive in Paris and will march to La Rochelle soon after.
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