Knightfall

[Odinson]

Arthur Sinclair was staring at the second-hand on his gold watch with dreary eyes. The watch face was black, with a white Maltese cross in the center. He inhaled and and then exhaled a soft sigh when the second-hand crossed twelve and the date changed. It was now midnight, New Years Day, 1995. Something clicked in his mind when he saw the date changed. He felt slightly different, but he couldn't put his finger on it. Perhaps this feeling came from exhaustion. He, and the Grand Officers of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta, were sitting in a meeting room in Rome. The Order had extraterritorial sovereignty over a couple of buildings just outside of Vatican City, one of which they were inside now. They were seated at a long, hand-made wooden table made of some dark wood which Arthur didn't recognize. Despite the fact that he was sitting at the head of the table, Arthur's attention had been elsewhere for at least ten minutes now.

For hours, the Grand Officers were in a heated debate. Right now, in Malta, a major hostage situation was under way. President Archibald Fenech and Archbishop Micallef were both being held hostage by armed men. For years now, the economy and Maltese political system had been degrading and the morale of the Maltese people was steadily slipping. Maltese news crews were doing their best to broadcast the story around the world, and to the Maltese people. Dramatic pictures and videos of fires and riots in the island-nation's capital were plentiful. Protests evolved into riots, and the riots evolved into a somewhat organized open rebellion by a core group of radicals. One of Malta's few armories had been broken into and raided, and there were now heavily armed rebels in the country. To make matters worse, the government was in shambles. The Labor Prime Minister recently resigned, as had the two Prime Ministers before him, due to corruption accusations. The Foreign Minister was now the acting-Prime Minister. His whereabouts were currently unknown, as was that of most of the government. Even the Parliament had to end its session early for fear that the rioters might break through police lines near government buildings. Sadly, this is how they were able to capture President Fenech, who was ironically one of the few remaining politicians in Malta with any credibility. Archbishop Micallef was in a meeting with him at one of the residencies of the President when armed rebels (or traitors, as others have called them) took both men hostage. A statement was released to the Maltese media, which in short demanded the resignation of all members of the Labor government, and the installment of some of their "leaders" into key ministerial positions. They threatened to kill the Archbishop and the President if their demands were not met.

The Sovereign Military Order of Malta has existed for nearly 1000 years. Today it's focus on being a Military Order is lessened and more ceremonial, and it has a greater focus on providing humanitarian aid to more despotic places around the world, and to those in need. It sees itself as an Order loyal to the Catholic Church, and having a sacred mission to provide for the helpless and defend the faith. The Order operates non-military humanitarian outposts all around the world, and has diplomatic relations as a sovereign entity with over one-hundred countries. There is a small exception, though, to this humanitarian focus. Secretly, The Order has a small, highly-trained special forces team. Arthur's claim to fame within The Order is that he's the youngest knight to ever lead it. Arthur has been advocating that they send the team to Malta and conduct a rescue mission of the President and Prime Minister, while most of the other Grand Officers have been against this idea, or at least on the fence.

Arthur slammed his fists on the table, and silence the Grand Chancellor who had been speaking for what felt like ten minutes now.

"Enough! We're wasting time here. I said it before, and I'll say it again. We can rescue the President and the Archbishop. Get me a helicopter and we can do it. It's that simple!" he said, with a raised voice. The officers of The Order could see that their young, Lieutenant Grand Master was forgetting that his position was only temporary. After all, he was only suppose to be a "caretaker" Grand Master, until the next one was elected. The Grand Commander, who was the most against this operation, raised an eyebrow, and spoke up.

"Sir, out of all due respect, we've never even sent the Sovereign Guard into an operation like this before. The chances of failure are high. We also don't have the right to interfere in the internal politics of the Republic of Malta. It's not our island.."
Arthur pointed at the television screen in the room, which was showing video of riots in downtown Valletta.
"Grand Commander, there is no Republic of Malta at the moment. The people are uprising. I am a Maltese citizen, I know President Fenech. He's the best chance the country has right now - we're about to let some scum execute the most important man in that country" Arthur said. He looked at each of the other men in the room, and shook his head. "What about Archbishop Micallef? He-"
The Grand Commander interrupted, "The Vatican is trying to negotiate his release."

"They're anarchists! They aren't going to release the President, or the Archbishop. You can't negotiate with men who have nothing to lose!" Arthur snapped back at him, slamming one of his fists down on the table again. "We are Knights of The Roman Catholic Church. We are called to always defend the Church and Christendom, be it spiritually, or by force, and by whatever means necessary. If we're going to sit on our hands and let the Archbishop of an Apostolic Sea be executed, then we should abolish The Order tomorrow. The Acting-Commander of the Sovereign Guard is Jack Denaro. I am the commander-in-chief, he will follow the orders I give him."

The twenty-five year-old stood up and picked up the hat beside him that was part of his formal uniform, and started walking to the door of the room, but the Grand Commander bolted up from his chair. He was boiling. "If you do this, we'll remove you from your post, court-martial you, and you'll spend the next ten years in an Italian jail!"

Arthur stopped walking. The room was dead silent, so much so that the only thing they could hear was the smooth hum of the television in the room as it continued to show pictures of a country in crisis. "Then the blood will be on your hands, and everyone will know," Arthur said. He dropped his hat on the ground, and walked out of the room. Arthur made it to a small staircase that went to his office, when he heard someone chasing behind him. It was the Grand Chancellor, Silas Delacroix. He was holding the Lieutenant Grand Master's hat.

"Your Most Eminent Highness.." Silas said as Arthur turned around. He offered him his hat back.
"There is a way for you to overrule us," Silas noted, quietly. Arthur took the hat back and stared back at his colleague, "Even if you're on my side, your vote wouldn't be enough to stop them from removing me, or stopping the court-martial... I don't care, I'm calling Jack. We're getting this done."

Silas reached out and grabbed Arthur's arm. He gently prevented him from leaving. "Please listen... There's one man in the world that outranks all of us, and we both know that he has to be awake right now."
"Pope John Paul II," Arthur said back, nearly whispering. "But... he wouldn't interfere in the affairs of The Order. Would he?"
Silas arched his eyebrows and looked up towards the ceiling as if he was hoping God Himself would enter the conversation. "The Holy Father is the greatest man I know, I wouldn't doubt him... I'll call the Apostolic Palace, if you wish, and get a car ready outside for you. Time is of the essence, Lieutenant Grand Master."


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Arthur double-checked to make sure his uniform was in perfect condition as he stepped outside. He heard the distant crackle of thunder behind him, coming from the Mediterranean Sea. It was a cool night in Rome. The city streets were starting to empty of people who had been celebrating the New Year, but there were still plenty about. Silas was outside, standing next to the silver Jaguar that was going to take Arthur to Vatican City. The front of the car had two small flags above the hood of the car, one of The Order, and the other of Vatican City.

Silas unlocked the driver-side door. "I called a friend, and we set up the meeting. You're due there... about now. It'll only take a few minutes - I'll be your chauffeur tonight, just don't tell anyone," he said before getting inside.
Arthur took the front seat and checked his watch. It was already half-past midnight. Silas followed all traffic laws as he made the short drive from The Order's properties in Rome, to the walls of the Vatican. They were stopped by the Vatican Gendarmerie, who looked stunned to see Silas and the Grand Master.

"Right away sir, we'll let you in," was all the officer said before pointing them towards one of the small entrances. The Swiss Guard at the entrance to the gate moved aside, and let the car in. They parked just outside of the Apostolic Palace where one of the Pope's aides was waiting to escort Arthur upstairs. Within minutes, he was inside the Papal Apartments. The priest escorting him walked ahead, and entered the Pope's living-room where he was known to watch television.
"Your Holiness, His Imminent Highness Arthur Sincliar is here to see you - I was told that it's a matter of life an death."
"Send him in, please," the Pope replied.

Arthur walked past the aide and into the room. It looked as if the Pope had just been watching television and drinking a cup of coffee. The room itself was simple, but extremely clean and welcoming.
"Your Holiness, thank you for seeing me at this hour," the Grand Master said as he approached to kiss the Pope's ring. Instead, the Holy Father grabbed Arthur by his shoulders and said, "Arthur, I am so sorry for your loss..."

The Pope could see Arthur's confusion. He suddenly found himself being the messenger of the most unfortunate news. "A minute ago they just announced on the television that President Fenech was executed... there's pictures of it..."
Arthur stepped back and covered his face with one of his hands. It took ever fiber of his being to avoid an enraged outburst, and the Pope could tell. "I know you knew him well... I'm so sorry, Arthur. Is.. is that what you were coming here for, to discuss his imprisonment?"

The Pope offered Arthur a seat, which he politely refused. "I... Holy Father, is the Archbishop still alive?"
"Yes, he is. The Cardinal Secretary of State is working on negotiating his release.." John Paul said. Arthur could sense the lack of hope in the Pope's normally powerful and persuasive voice.
"Holy Father, The Order has a special forces team - I was a part of it before being elected to my position. I believe that we can get to Malta and rescue the Archbishop. Most of the Grand Officers are trying to overrule me. If you give me permission - if you order me to do it - then they will have no choice but to allow it to happen."

John Paul turned his back to the young Grand Master and contemplated for a few moments. He bowed his head and presumably said a short prayer.
"Will there be violence, Arthur?"
"Yes," he admitted, "there will be violence. But we are God's knights, Holy Father."
The Pope remained silent for a bit longer as he kept his back to the Grand Master. He briefly looked at the television, which had a headline confirming the death of President Fenech. John Paul clenched his fist and walked over to a small desk in the corner of the room. He wrote something on a small note card, folded it, and used his signet ring to make a wax seal on it. He stood up, and handed it to Arthur who was internally concerned that the note was so short.
"Have this delivered to the Grand Chancellor... It should be enough." The Pope raised his right hand and made the sign of the cross, "May God bless you in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit - and may Saint Michael The Archangel defend you in battle..."
Arthur stood at attention, and saluted the Pope who gave him a confident nod back.


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Silas made a few swift turns as they headed back to The Order's properties in Rome. "What did the Holy Father say?"
Arthur was frustratingly pressing buttons on his new cellular phone - he was having trouble getting a connection. "He asked me to give this to you... I'm curious to know what it says," he handed the Grand Chancellor the folded note, which had the red wax seal of the Pope.

The Grand Chancellor opened it while making sure to keep his eyes on the road. Arthur finally got a connection, and started to dial the number of his friend and now-subordinate, Johnathan "Jack" Denaro. "Well, what does it say?" he asked as the phone finally began to make a secure call.
Silas didn't say anything, and handed it back to Arthur. The note had only two words written on it:
Deus vult

Jack must have answered on the other side, because Arthur said, "Assemble the Sovereign Guard. Operation Knightfall is in effect."

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This post and the others following it in this thread are considered to be private and not known to the public.

 

[Odinson]

A guard outside of The Order's headquarters in Rome stood at attention as Arthur and Silas walked by. They were in the midst of conversation as the Grand Master, Arthur, started to unbutton has formal jacket. "Once we know what we're doing, I want you to call the Italians and let them know we're launching a small tactical operation from here in Rome - we owe them that much," he said before swiftly walking inside. Silas followed closely behind as he checked his watch.

"Yes sir," Silas replied. He followed Arthur to the elevator. "I'll check what assets we have in Malta right now, but I don't think we'll have much help outside of the embassy and Fort Saint Angelo... You're going to be on your own there... Is the entire Sovereign Guard here in Rome right now?"

Arthur pressed the elevator button and only had to wait a few moments until it reached the floor he and Silas were on. They both stepped inside, "No.." Arthur said reluctantly. "I'm hoping that we at least have a team of four, including Jack and myself, otherwise this will probably be a suicide mission. Speaking of which... follow me to my office before you head to yours, I need to give you something." The elevator doors cracked open and they both stepped out, Silas after the Lieutenant Grand Master. The ornate walls and floors and paintings felt like nothing but grey scenery to Arthur who was contemplating his own mortality as they walked to his office. He opened the door, which first led to his secretary's anteroom. They silently walked past her and into the office. Arthur sat behind his desk and opened a few drawers until he found the parcel that he was looking for. The young Grand Master handed the small envelope to Silas, who arched one of his eyebrows.

"If I don't make it, then break the seal and open this. It has all of my last wishes, as well as directions for you and the rest of The Order... Will you keep it safe?" Arthur's voice was serious. The information on those papers included his will and his advice on whom to choose as the next Lieutenant Grand Master. Arthur had written this only a week or so ago when the situation in Malta hadn't gotten this serious yet. He had been told by the Grand Hospitaller that it was common for Grand Master's to have notes like these, so that there is some stability in the initial chaos following an unexpected death of a Grand Master. Of course no one assumed this would be necessary, especially because of Arthur's young age.

Silas carefully stuffed it into his left breast pocket before retreating back to the door, "I'll guard it with my life, Grand Master. I'll prepare that message to the Italians and I'll find out exactly what we have in Malta."
"Thanks!" is all Arthur could say before Silas had stepped out.

Finally, after hours of arguing and disagreement, he had some alone time. "Just for a minute" he told himself as he sat back in his chair and put up his feet on his desk. He closed his eyes and he slipped into-
KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK
Arthur nearly fell out of his chair as he stood up and rubbed his face, "Yeah, come in!"

It was Johnathan Denaro and three other knights of the Sovereign Guard. They came inside in an orderly fashion and rendered a salute to the Lieutenant Grand Master, which Arthur returned even though he still felt half asleep. "Jack... everyone, I'm happy to see you guys. Where's the rest of the team?" he asked.

"Well, sir," Jack said with extra emphasis as he addressed one of his best friends, "Michelle, Ryan and the rest of them are off-duty right now. Last I heard, they went out to Rome for a concert of some sort. We're still trying to get in touch with them, but for now this is what we have, sir. Once they get here and are briefed, maybe they can provide us some backup? What exactly are we going do, Grand Master?"

Arthur motioned for them to follow him to another side of his office. They all walked up to a tall bookcase and the Grand Master grabbed a thick, red book that had a small Maltese cross on the spine. The book, however, appeared to be attached to the shelf itself. He was able to pull it back to about a thirty degree angle, and then it stopped. The entire shelf shifted, and they could all hear a series of gears turning. The book shelf slowly lowered down into the floor itself, revealing a dark staircase. "Follow me," he said. The bookshelf closed behind them as they went down about ten steps until he reached a large metal door. Arthur pulled it open, revealing a small, but very modern, command center. It had glass maps of Europe and Malta, computers, and a comms-center.

None of them, except Jack and Arthur, had ever been inside before. Jack walked over to one of the glass maps - this one of Italy - and picked up a marker. He made an X on Rome's international airport. "Grand Master, I thought we would get a Blackhawk, but it isn't fit to fly at the moment... However, I did find an alternative, but I'm not sure if you're going to like it..."
Arthur resisted the urge to frown, "Alright, go on."
"Well," Jack said, "we have a C-130 that was preparing to fly out with some aid to Africa. I grounded them on the runway, I think that's our best bet."

One of the other knights in the room raised a finger, "Sir, are they really going to let us land at Malta's International Airport?"
The rest of the room looked over to Arthur for an answer, but Jack and Arthur already knew what they were going to have to do.
"No," the Grand Master said, "we're going to have to do a HALO jump over Valletta and pray that the wind isn't too bad. There's a thunderstorm at sea right now, but luckily it's coming here and not towards Malta. Has everyone here done a jump before?"

"Yes, but not at night," Jack said. He and Arthur had done plenty before, but not the other three soldiers in the room.
"Are you guys up to it? I don't see another option," Arthur asked.
"Yes sir," they said in near-unison.

"Alright..." Jack said, "we're going to call our boys in Malta and see what they can set up for us. Once we get the Archbishop, we're going to the harbor and we'll take a RHIB to Fort Saint Angelo. At the moment, no one there is armed, but they can at least secure it for us. Since the fort is away from Valletta-proper, we're hoping they wont be able to get to us as easily, and we can either harden our position or evacuate. The rebels there are armed with military rifles at the very least.. so we should be ready for a firefight. Any questions?"

The room was silent.

"Alright," Jack said, "let's gear up."


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The five of them were in a black SUV, headed to Rome's International Airport. The Grand Chancellor privately informed the Italians that the C-130 flight that The Order had scheduled out of Rome was being redirected for a "military purpose" and that it would be heading to Malta. He asked the Italians to be discrete, if possible, because the mission was "sensitive". The SUV, which had Order of Malta diplomatic plates and the small red flags on the front of the vehicle. The car was obeying traffic laws, but they weren't taking their time either. Once at the airport, they boarded the C-130 which just had its cargo removed from it. The pilots was inside on the cargo deck, and was stunned to see the Grand Master and four other knights decked out in full black tactical gear - their weapons were all in bags, of course, so that they wouldn't worry anyone at the airport.

The pilots saluted the Lieutenant Grand Master, who returned it to him. Arthur pointed at Jack and said, "He'll tell you where to go. We need to move out as soon as we can."

Within thirty minutes the internal temperatures of the aircraft were brought up to spec and they were ready to take off. They followed the directions of the Italian air traffic control and proceeded to leave Italian airspace and head towards Malta. Once they were out of Italian airspace, they turned off their transponder and went radio-silent. All of the lights around the aircraft were turned off, and they climbed to about 35,000 feet. The men put on their breathing masks and the proper equipment to do their HALO jump. They all waited, mostly in silence. Close to half of them were praying the rosary to themselves while the others were checking their weapons and equipment. Jack checked his watch and looked at Arthur. They couldn't verbally communicate, but they both knew it was almost time. The light in the cabin went from red to yellow. The knights stood up and made a line. Arthur was in the front of the line, along with one of the other knights. Jack was going to be the last to jump to make sure everyone made it. The back door of the C-130 lowered, and the clear night sky was revealed to them. After another minute or so, the cabin's light turned green. Time to go.

The men jumped, one by one, out of the back of the aircraft. Shortly after they jumped out of the aircraft, it banked hard to the right and headed back to Rome. The transponder was turned back on once they were out of Maltese airspace. Eventually, they followed the directs of air traffic control so that they could land in Rome. They speared down through the sky, reaching terminal velocity. The city lights of Valletta grew brighter and brighter as they got closer to the city. As they got closer, they could see smoke rising from some parts of the city where riots were probably still taking place. The plan was to drop right in the front of Fort Saint Elmo, which is where a small plaza was located. The knights checked the devices on their wrists and waited until almost the last possible moment to deploy their parachutes. They all successfully deployed and in less than a minute touched down in front of Fort Saint Elmo. It was now about 3:30 in the morning.

Once on the ground, they detached their parachutes and pulled out their weapons. Most civilians were at home at the moment, except for those who were rioting in different parts of the cities. Luckily, there were no demonstrations taking place near Fort Saint Elmo at the moment. They checked their headsets, loaded their weapons, and started swiftly moving down Merchant Street. The intelligence they had was that the Archbishop was being held hostage in a building near the basilica on that street. The knights hugged the right side of the street and tried not to be visible, but they could only do so much. They were almost to the basilica when Arthur raised his fist, signalling for everyone to stop. There was a sniper on top of the roof of a small one-story building right next to the church. He hadn't seen them yet.

Arthur gestured at one of the knights, who carefully leaned against a car and prepared a solid shot on the sniper. Arthur motioned for the rest of the team to move forward. They were able to make it to the front doors of the basilica before the sniper saw them, so the knight that was perched against the car took his shot and killed the rebel recently. Their element of surprise was now gone. The team ran up to the front doors of the building. Jack and another knight each waited next to the door. It opened and an older man with a rifle started to walk out. Jack grabbed the rifle and yanked him forward, and the other knight stabbed him in the neck with his tactical knife. Then, one of the other knights threw a flash-grenade inside the room. The team moved inside, with Arthur leading. They immediately shot two more men who were on the ground, rolling around in confusion, that were still holding their weapons. The room they were in now had a few other doors to other rooms, one of which had an eruption of bullets come from it.

The knights took cover and aimed their weapons at the door while one of them covered their rear in case anyone tried to come back through the front door. Two of the knights went up to the door, and prepared to breach. The one of the right of the door stood in front and kicked it down.
BANG BANG
He was shot twice in the chest, and fell to the ground. His comrade behind him, who was directly behind, turned his rifle and shot the gunman in the room for times, one of which was in the head. The knight scoped out the rest of the small room, and saw the Archbishop, tied up, in a back corner. The other knights rushed in. One of them checked their comrade who was shot, but he was luckily wearing a vest that stopped the low-caliber rounds from entering his chest.

Arthur ran up to the Archbishop who looked to be a bit disorientated. He took a knee and showed him his arm-patch with the Maltese cross, "You Grace, we're with the Order of Malta. We're going to get you somewhere safe. Just stay with me, alright?"

The archbishop nodded in understanding as the other knights helped untie him. Arthur put himself under one of the arms of the archbishop, while another knight did the same on the other side. Jack led the team outside where there was another armed man waiting. Jack took him out immediately, prompting screams from a nearby house as civilians started to wake up from the gunshots.

"We need to get to the evac point now! Let's go!" Arthur yelled to Jack. They went as fast as they could with the old man in-tow, and made it to Mediterranean street. The knight who had been shot, and likely had several broken ribs, took out his flare gun and handed it to the knight next to him. The man shot it into the air, turning everything around them red. Within a minute, they heard the hum of a motor-engine from a RHIB speeding towards them. Inside was one of the knights who had been stationed at Fort Saint Angelo, where the Order of Malta has extraterritorial sovereignty over part of the fort. The man, who had no military experience, was terrified to see the men in full military gear with the bishop.

"Move up! We'll come aboard!" Jack yelled to the man. The RHIB was pushed up against the rocks, and each of the knights, plus the bishop, came aboard. Once they were all on board, Arthur pointed and yelled, "Get us the fuck out of here! Go go!"

The RHIB revved away from the shore as bullets impacted the water around them. It took them less than ten minute to get to the harbor right next to Fort Saint Angelo, where a few knights and dames of the Order were waiting. They all helped the Archbishop out, and started rushing to the fort.

"They're coming. We need to get ready. Does anyone have a phone here? A satellite phone, we have to have one upstairs, right?" Arthur asked.
"Yes sir, it's upstairs. We keep it near the chapel. Are we alright? Who was that shooting at us?" the knight who drove the boat asked. He was an older man with graying hair, but apparently he was also athletic judging by how easily he was able to help carry the bishop.

Once they were inside, the medic of the team checked out the archbishop while Jack and Arthur spoke for a moment. "We need to see if we can get those reinforcements from the rest of the team. Call it in. We need to harden this fort, I'm going to head upstairs. The rest of you make sure all the doors and hatches here are locked," Arthur ordered. Everyone did as they were told. Arthur made the secure call to Rome. Whomever answered, though, said that they were unsure of the status of the rest of the Sovereign Guard.

There were a handful of other knights in the fort, but none of them had any recent military training. Some of the Sovereign Guard team gave them their sidearms, in case the fort was breached. While Arthur was upstairs with another knight, Jack could see a few cars driving up from a vantage point in the fort. They parked about 500 feet away, and got out of their vehicles. He and a couple other members of the team drew their weapons from the high walls of the ancient fort, and prepared to fire. An RPG rocket zipped by them and exploded somewhere over Valletta's harbor. "CONTACT!" Jack yelled over the radio.

Both sides started exchanging fire. Bullets lodged themselves into the side of the stone fort, but most of them just bounced off.

"Hey Jack?" Arthur said over the radio.
"Yeah boss!?" Jack said back as he fired off a couple of rounds and then shoved a new magazine into his rifle.
"I recommend you get down... this is going to be loud," Arthur noted.

Before Jack could ask what the hell he was talking about, he distantly heard Arthur yell, "FIRE!"

A massive explosion erupted from the top of the fort, and the three vehicles exploded into a massive fireball. All of the rebels were dead, some of them were blown up into bits and pieces.

Everyone was stunned. Jack picked up his radio, but before he could say anything, Arthur chimed in over it, "Turns out they have cannons up here."

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This post and the others following it in this thread are considered to be private and not known to the public.

 

[Odinson]

Later that morning, the rest of the Sovereign Guard showed up - all five of them - in a Blackhawk helicopter. They had cleared their departure with the Italians before they left, and were now there to reinforce the fort. By sunup, what remained of the Maltese government knew that the knights had conducted an operation in Valletta. What remained of the Labor Government wasn't happy about it, neither were the rebels, but when it came out over the radio and television that they had managed to rescue the Archbishop, most of the people of the islands felt like the knights brought more order to the islands than the government had managed in weeks. From Fort Saint Angelo, Arthur managed to contact the Foreign Minister of Malta, who was now the acting Prime Minister. Unlike the rest of his dwindling government, he wasn't outraged with the knights.

The Foreign Minister tried to organize a meeting between the two of them, but Arthur refused to leave the fort. Eventually, a meeting was set up between Arthur, the Foreign Minister, and one of the leaders of the rebels at Fort Saint Angelo. The conclusion of the meeting was this: there would be a ceasefire between the rebels and government, and the Grand Master of The Order of Malta, Arthur, would mediate between them. What these three parties didn't understand was that the Maltese people, especially those in Valletta, were sick of both the government and the hyper-nationalist opposition.

Just a few days later, it was becoming strikingly obvious that the people of Malta had no faith in their government, and talks were starting to break down. That was when the Grand Master had a meeting with the head of Malta's armed forces, the head of Valletta's police force, and the Mayor of Valletta. On television, the radio, and in peaceful protests around the islands, the people were supporting The Order more than anyone else. The Mayor of Valletta, who himself was one of the few non-corrupted politicians on the islands, publicly stated that he thought the Grand Master, who is a citizen of Malta, should run for Prime Minister. He argued that The Order has remained a stable force made up of humanitarians, and would "bring order" to Malta.

The stunning reality eventually unfolded onto the islands: the people wanted the knights, with their traditions, order, and sense of responsibility to form a new government on the islands. Help came from The Order's resources around the world, from constitutional scholars and political scientists, to retired military and intelligence officials. A new government had to be designed, from scratch. By the tenth day of January, Arthur Sinclair was now the de facto head of state of Malta.

This was officially announced to the world.

 

[Odinson]

Grand Master Jean Parisot de Valette was the greatest military leader to ever serve the Order, if not the greatest Grand Master since its founding. With only a handful of knights, he managed to hold the island of Rhodes during an onslaught of tens-of-thousands of Ottoman regulars. His leadership and military brilliance during the siege was so remarkable that the Ottoman Sultan of the time - who was the leader of the Order's biggest foe, the Ottoman Empire - allowed Grand Master Valette and the remaining knights to safely evacuate Rhodes. The Sultan even allowed them to use his own ships to ensure their safe passage to Sicily. The Sultan would later regret this, after his failed siege of Malta in 1565, where the knights had relocated. That siege today is still listed as one of, if not the greatest, known sieges in Western history.

After this decisive victory, the Order decided to keep Malta and make it their permanent home. In honor of Grand Master Valette, a new capital was to built with he as the namesake. Sadly, the Order's most remarkable Grand Master died in 1568, shortly after laying down the official cornerstone for the city. Although he didn't live to see the city built, it was indeed built with money sent directly from the Pope, as well as the skill of Italian and Maltese architects and engineers. One of the first buildings to be constructed in Valletta was St. John's Cavalier, which still stands to this day. The building was completed before 1570. It stood directly next to the city gate and functioned as a castle-like fortification. It not only guarded the city from the outside, but could easily function as a place to rain hell onto any enemy that managed to breach the city walls.

St. John's Cavalier, as well as it's identical sister, both still stand to this very day. In 1967, the government of Malta issued a 99 year lease to the Order of Malta for St. John's Cavalier. The Order converted the ancient structure they build into an embassy, even with a small penthouse on top where the ambassador lived. It served as the Order's de facto headquarters in Malta up until the recent troubles. It's now presently functioning as the headquarters of the Order. In the eyes of Lieutenant Grand Master Arthur Sinclair and his other Grand Officers, there would be no better place to invite former members of the republican government, local governments, and the military to decide what Malta's new government would look like.

Armed knights of the Sovereign Guard stood watch outside, on top of, and around the building as the sensitive talks took place. They went on for weeks, with semi-regular updates being issued to the public, until finally it was announced to the press that the Lieutenant Grand Master would be delivering a televised address on a matter of "National Importance". Arthur was sitting behind an old wooden desk inside the former office of the Order's Ambassador to Malta. Silas Delacroix, the Grand Chancellor, was standing in the back of the room while a small television crew did a few final checks on their equipment. Despite their age difference and differences of ethnic and cultural origin, Silas had so far turned out to be a very valuable adviser and confidant for the young Lieutenant Grand Master. He even helped him write the speech that Arthur was about to deliver.

"Okay Grand Master, we're one minute out. I'll count you down from five," the producer beside the cameraman said. Arthur sat up straight and carefully made sure that his red uniform was neat and in proper order. He looked over to Silas who gave him a confident nod. The producer counted down from five, gesturing with his hand after he said "four". The address was in Maltese, Arthur's native tongue, but had English subtitles.

"Fellow Maltese, knights of the Sovereign Order of Malta, and fellow citizens of the world, good evening. As of this afternoon, the Constitutional Assembly here in Valletta has passed a final resolution, proclaiming the existence of our new government. The text of this resolution, as well as in-depth explanation of it, will come to everyone in the following days. However, I felt it was my responsibility the changes we will be experiencing in the weeks to come, as well as some things that will stay the same.

"Firstly, the Sovereign Order of Malta has been listed as the official national government of Malta. The Order will be entirely responsible for foreign affairs, defense, and international aid. However, by request of Constitutional Assembly, there will also be a Parliament of Malta which will be an autonomous entity of the Order. The Parliament will consists of two chambers: the House of Representatives, and the Council of Knights. The House of Representatives will be directly elected by the people of Malta, regardless of their membership in the Order, and will have the power to legislate. The Council of Knights will be comprised of senior knights of the Order, and will serve as the upper-chamber of Parliament. Instead of legislating, it's primary function will be to ensure that the House of Representatives stays true to the fundamental principals inscribed by the Constitutional Assembly and that they do not overstep their legal bounds.

"In regards to executive leadership, the House of Representatives will elect a Prime Minister who will be the Head of Government of our nation. The Grand Master of the Sovereign Order of Malta will serve as the Head of State of our nation. For those of your unfamiliar with the current events of the Order of Malta, we recently loss our Grand Master, the great Andrew Bertie. I was elected to serve as the interim Grand Master, which is why you may often hear the press refer to me as the 'Lieutenant Grand Master'. The Order itself has recently had its own constitutional reforms, which concluded shortly before the Constitutional Assembly issued its resolution today. Some time this week, the Sovereign Order of Malta will elect the next Prince and Grand Master of the Order. This person may be myself, or any number of other very qualified individuals in our Order. Regardless of the outcome of this election, I am so humbled and honored to have been able to play a part in bringing back law and order to my native country.

"As I said before, more details will come out tomorrow, and the following days. Importantly, I want to stress that soon there will be elections for the House of Representatives. Please choose your legislative leaders wisely and carefully. The Order will be overseeing these elections, and I will also invite neutral officials from the Global Assembly to do the same. Also, we have apprehended the living individuals responsible for the murder of President Fenech. They have been arrested by the Order, and will be held in jail until our judicial system is able to offer them a fair trial.

"Thank you for your patience and your loyalty to Malta. May God bless you all."

The live transmission ended.