Italy

4,436 years since initial death
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A cold breeze was left behind the battlefield.

The Central Powers, consisting of the Austro-Hungarians and the Germans were defeated and forced to retreat. Those left behind were captured and taken as war prisoners. The Allied Forces prevailed and Monte Grappa was defended till the end.

It was October 24th, the day the battle ended. Monte Grappa had been at war for almost a whole year now. What was once a beautiful location filled with the grandest mountain ranges in the area, had now been turned into a dusty warzone that brought forth only death and destruction. However, even beyond the familiar sights of war, the green valleys remained a sight to behold, especially now that the battle was finally over.

Matteo was treated for his bayonet wound, and the young Austrian boy was taken away as a prisoner. Many Italians gathered to celebrate their victory, but Matteo wasn't interested in any of it.

He had to return to Valerie. She needed to explain everything to him, but so did he. And with both of them being immortal, they had all the time in the world. But as Matteo walked past his allies with a frown, he heard yelling from behind.

Relief overtook him when he noticed the yells weren't emitted in horror, but rather out of joy. His gunner from the plane was alive and well, and he rushed into him with a handshake and pat on the shoulder.

"Matteo! I can't believe it," the gunner exclaimed, "I never saw you bail from the plane. I thought you perished."

"I got lucky." He didn't expect to see him again and made up a response. "Glad to see you made it, Marco." 

His gunner, Marco Avisaré, gestured him happily. "You must join us, Armando Diaz is about to give a speech. The war is finally nearing its end." 

"Enjoy the festivities, I have my own affairs to attend to." Matteo would have joined them, was it not for the return of his ancient wife. 

"Where will you go?" 

He continued to walk towards the closest motorbike. After a brief pause, he turned to face his gunner. "Home. It has been a long life of war for me, friend. They said this is the war to end all wars, we'll never have to fight a day in our lives again."

Matteo chuckled at the thought. He'll most likely be charging into another battlefield by Winter. But until then, he sat atop the bike and smiled. "Arrivederci, Avisaré."

"Addio, Settimio."

He sped off across the rough terrain during the sun's downfall. A vibrant orange haze spread across the sky by the time he had arrived back at that small cabin overlooking the horizon. 

Outside the cabin were goats. He only ever spotted up to four of them, but they were accompanied by their immortal being. Valerie stood with crossed arms, her figure leaned against the shelter. When he stopped his bike and stood up, all the goats rushed to her side. 

Matteo shared a glance with her. She lowered her hands, her dagger clenched in one of them. He carefully approached her with raised hands. She stopped him however, and her dagger froze beneath his chin. The goats surrounded him, and a lion's roar from behind startled them. 

Set growled at Valerie, but she never budged. She locked contact with Matteo, and it seemed she was about to speak when one of her goats interrupted them. The light-tanned animal walked towards the towering lion. It bleated and nudged its head against Set's fur. 

"No, Tadeas." Valerie ordered the goat, and Matteo slowly turned his head to look. He recognized the name. 

"Tadeas?" He asked aloud and searched through his memories. "You spoke that name in Madrid."

She turned her attention back on him, her dagger still held against his neck. "You remember that?"

"I remember many things from that day." He gestured Set to stand down as Tadeas the goat circled the lion to feel its fur. It touched Set's tail, forcing a reaction and another roar. 

The two immortals stared at one another again in silence. The other goats beside Valerie rubbed themselves against her legs. She lowered her dagger but maintained caution. "You shot me."

"I'm not the same man you met in Lisbon, Violet. The things I've done as a result of Madrid would terrify you."

She touched the side of his head. "I have been chasing you for centuries, Milton. Each failure led me down darker roads, but I never gave up because of you. That day in Madrid was the happiest day of my life because of what you said to me. I know it's ridiculous to say that after the plague, the fires, deaths and even our short-lived divorce. But your last words to me gave me the hope I needed to push forward. I always thought I was the only immortal being in this world, and you changed that."

"I just wish you had told me." He didn't want to blame her for it, but so many things would have been different if he had stayed in Madrid. "I waited for you, but I never had the patience nor the heart to stay."

Valerie frowned. "I made an oath long before we met that I would never reveal my immortality again. I wanted to tell you, but I was scared of my past. Millions died because they knew of my power. I don't want it to happen again."

The goats around her bleated, and Tadeas left Set to jump to her. She knelt down to pet them and smiled. "These goats were once people. My power made it possible to preserve them in these forms. They watch over me and protect me from anyone they deem a threat. Is your lion someone that was close to you in a previous life?" 

Matteo glanced at Set. "We don't know each other, not that I'd know. He doesn't talk much." 

"Where are the others then? Do you only have one lion?" Valerie's question made him glare at the lion. 

He crossed his arms. "Can you multiply?"

"No." Set grumpily sat down. 

"He speaks?" Valerie gasped. "I often wish my goats could. They only communicate through signals and actions." 

"He only speaks when he wants to, which is once every lifetime." 

Set's tail smacked his legs with enough force to startle him. Valerie stood back up with Tadeas in her arms. The goat licked her face as she cradled it. She looked at Matteo, and they remained quiet. 

The sun had finally set, and their surroundings turned dark. Matteo took a step towards her and held his arms out. She paused for a moment, and she set Tadeas down. They hugged tightly, their arms wrapped as closely as they could. 

"I'm sorry for shooting you in the head." He sensed her chuckle after saying that. It's not everyday he ever had to apologize to someone for that reason. 

She lifted her head and smiled. "You can make it up to me."

Her hand grasped his collar and she dragged him towards the cabin. All the animals had disappeared on their own. Inside the cabin, she led him towards the bed and pushed him over it. She climbed atop of him, her body pressed against his.

"I assume your sin is lust?" His face was an inch away from hers, and she laughed. Her nod then confirmed it. 

"You have no idea how long I've waited for this." She whispered into his ear. "I have loved you for a thousand years." 

"It's actually six-hundred years." 

"Shut it, Settler." She stopped him with a kiss, one that he couldn't resist. Their intimacy only grew higher with each passing second. He hadn't felt love like this in several decades, and it only made him grasp her all over as both their clothes loosened off their bodies. 

By the time the candles surrounding them had diminished, they had already fallen into a deep slumber within each other's embrace. Matteo awoke to daylight beaming through the windows and burning into his eyelids. 

Valerie was already awake and was eating from a bowl of beef stew. Beside her was an empty can of Maconochie, one of the only canned foods many soldiers were forced to enjoy during the war.

He wore his pants and jumped out of bed. The serenity of the early morning didn't last long when Valerie suddenly spoke. "Are you Jack the Ripper?" 

His heart nearly burst out his chest. In total silence, he just looked at her in response. She continued. "I just keep recalling that one day when I fought him. He could see my goats, and from the second I saw him, I could swear he looked just like you." 

Matteo froze, his mouth opened to speak but no words came out. After a few seconds, he replied. "No."

"Why did you hesitate?" 

"Be-because that's a chapter of my life I don't wish to discuss." He stuttered and said whatever came to mind. "It's not for the reason you might think, but there was a reason I left London shortly thereafter." 

"You disappeared after the last murder, and it was when I realized you were Milton." She kept interrogating him, and it only frustrated him.

"I left because I needed answers in regards to your dagger. I returned to Italy to retrace the past." He lied.

"Milton, you can tell me what really happened. I know the Ripper was immortal." 

His temper rose. "No Valerie, I did not kill those women." The lion did, but only against its will. It was more of a group effort. 

She finished the last spoonful of her cold stew and set it aside. "I just wanted confirmation, thank you for your honesty. It might have been the man with pride as his sin, I forgot his name but he seemed like the sort of person to do it. I couldn't stand him for very long, he was more depressed than you." 

She laughed at the end, but he never smiled. Upon standing, she walked past him. "And by the way, thanks for shaving that mustache. I'd have recognized you sooner in London without it, it really never suited you." 

He tried his best to crack a smile, but it didn't last. He wore the rest of his clothes in silence and watched his ex-wife gather a few of her belongings in a suitcase. By the time she was ready, he waited for her outdoors in the sun. He leaned against the cabin with his arms folded. 

Valerie stopped beside him. "Come on, I was thinking we could head west. I know a few places we could see together." 

He stepped forward and towards the motorbike ahead. It had a passenger attached to its side. "I'll drive." 

"No Milton, don't strain yourself." She walked in direct contact beside him. "You're already injured to begin with."

He blinked. "What inj-" 

A piercing jolt of pain struck his upper arm. Valerie pulled the dagger out of him and continued to walk while he staggered back, his hand clenched over the stab wound. He yelled in anger and agony. "What the fuck was that?!" 

"That was for shooting me." She readied the motorbike and waited for him to follow. "You didn't think I'd forget, did you?" 

He stumbled into the passenger seat and hissed. She only teased him further. "Relax, you'll be fine. If you bleed out and die, that's your problem." 

Finally, she drove the motorbike down the valleys, over the hills and far away. Within the next few weeks, peace treaties were formed and signed. The Central Powers were stripped of military power, politically humiliated and economically ruined. 

On November 11th, the great war was called off, officially marking an end to it all. The War to End All Wars was over, and many believed there would finally be everlasting peace and justice throughout this world.

But it was all a lie.

Peace was never an option when humanity was involved. 

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Historical Notes:

World War I ended on November 11th at 11AM. It is seen as the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month. A ceasefire came into effect, forcing all combat to come to a stop. However, some fighting in the frontlines continued briefly as commanders desperately tried to gain new territory before the war would officially end.

Armando Diaz

The Treaty of Versailles, which officially ended the war between Germany and the Allied nations coincidentally happened to contribute to the start of World War II as fascist regimes were rising as a result.

The Ottoman Empire was destroyed and disbanded by the end of the war until Turkey won its independence in 1923. A majority of Germans felt resentful towards the war's conclusion. Many of the Central Powers were deprived of military power, became economically ruined and were politically humiliated.

WWI marked an end to empires and brought forth the beginning of new political, economic and social orders in not just Europe, but the rest of the world in due time.

As a result of the war, Europe overall saw great improvements to industrialization, nationalism, and imperialism.

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