Angeli et Daemones
Summary:
You are part of the Corps of Gendarmerie, working alongside your father, Inspector Ernesto Olivetti. You also have a secret relationship with your childhood friend, the Camerlengo Patrick McKenna.
However, when the Vatican is under attack by shadows of the past, you are paired with Professor Robert Langdon to save the kidnapped Preferiti and, subsequently, the Vatican City itself.
Will you manage to save the city and the Catholic Church? Or will you betray everything you knew for the man who had captured your heart for so long?
Pairing: Patrick McKenna x Fem!Reader Chapter Warning: None
Previous - Chapter 3 Next - Chapter 5
Chapter 4:
One last turn to a corner, and from afar, one could see a squat stone building labelled. "Offizia della Guarda Suiza."
Two Swiss guardsmen stood outside the entrance to the building as your small group approached.
They're somewhat comically dressed in puffy tunics vertically striped in brilliant blue and gold, with matching pantaloons and spats, topped by a black beret.
The sight, while usual to you, drew a smile from Robert, who found the imagery rather amusing. Your father and you took notice but did not comment, letting him have his moment.
You did not have to flash any badge or credentials; your faces were familiar enough to the two guards who raised their eight-foot swords, allowing you all to enter the building.
Before one could reach the Swiss Guard offices, though, one had to pass through some corridors. The most famous one, right outside the main building was surrounded by different works of art.
Marble statues reflected the light as they stood entirely white and grand, a rare sight for those raised away from the Vatican City.
As you walked past them, Robert chose to study them; his eyes falling on the fig leaves covering the men's private areas while the rest of the bodies were completely nude.
"The Great Castration," Robert said out of nowhere as he walked between you and your father.
His sudden comment drew both of your attentions, but it was your father who chose to voice his reaction.
"I beg your pardon?" He exclaimed, looking at the American professor.
"1857. Pius IX felt that the male form might inspire lust, so he obtained a hammer and chisel and vandalised two hundred statues. These plaster fig leaves were added later." The professor explained.
This amused you. "Well, perhaps he was not wrong. After all, some things are better left covered," you commented, earning his attention.
"Modesty, even in stone."
You chuckled. "We are men of God, professore but we enjoy our establishments."
Now it was his turn to chuckle, amused by your words. Slowly, he was warming up to you and felt that at least there was someone he could talk to about this and not get criticised.
Your father oversaw you, arching a single eyebrow at the sudden friendliness and connection between the two of you. He knew that Robert was one of your idols, since you would talk nonstop about his achievements after finishing each of his books.
Yet he did not seem to truly approve of what was happening before his eyes. However, he did not approve of a lot of things that had to do with men around you if he were to be honest.
Even with Patrick, he silently sent his warnings whenever he saw the two of you together. But because of their different positions and the respect they commanded, no accurate verbal exchange ever took place further than the formal one.
At last, you reached a heavy steel door with a security keycard lock beside it. Your father was the first to stop, rather suddenly.
"Are you anti-Catholic, Professor Langdon?" He questioned, quickly going into that investigator mode he was famous for.
This caught Robert's attention. "Me?" He questioned, but quickly realised why the question was so personal. "No, I'm anti-vandalism."
"I urge you to guard your tone in there. The Swiss Guard is a calling, not a profession, and it fosters a certain zeal. Commander Rochter, the head of the Guard, is a deeply spiritual man, and he was close to the late Pope. Understood?"
While the tone was slightly scolding and strict, Robert could sense a warning behind it. Warning that he had to keep in mind, passively preparing him for what he was about to face.
At the same time, it told him a lot about where your father stood in all of this. He was not like the Swiss Guard, and for that, Robert was truly thankful.
"I just hope I can help." He added after a momentary silence.
"I hope so, too."
Upon entering, your father and you walked ahead; familiar with the paths after years of working in them, even when you did not like it. Yet while your father kept his attention ahead, you slowed down your steps and glanced above your shoulder, ensuring that Robert was following you.
The headquarters of the Swiss Guard was located in a lushly adorned Renaissance library, crammed with sophisticated communication and surveillance equipment. It's crowded, with Swiss Guards in suits and uniformed Carabinieri, as well as Vatican Police, crammed around various stations, some working together, others arguing, mainly in Italian.
Eventually, you arrived at what seemed like a small waiting area with different cramped stations all around. Up ahead, one would find the single path to the Commander’s office.
Your father came to a halt and looked at Robert. “Wait here.” He ordered him and then spared you one last glance, silently passing his message.
Make sure he stays here.
You nodded silently
Robert looked at the chaos around you and leaned faintly as you stood side by side. “Your father was not joking when he called it a nightmare,” he dared to comment, amusing you faintly.
“And this is on a calm day,” you replied, shocking him momentarily before he realised you were joking.
Once he did, the faintest smile of amusement formed on his face, and some of the nerves he had started to get were slowly going away.
The American Professor, then, chose to search for your father, only to see him talking to another man. This one was tall, fair-haired, around sixty, weathered like steel -- maybe "tempered" was the better word.
Before he could question you to confirm his suspicions, you beat him to it.
“Yes, that is him,” you answered him, back straight and hands on your side.
You saw Rochter eyeing you from the other end of this vast room, still displeased that you had managed to win that argument and bring Robert into the case.
And while you and Rochter eyed each other like two stubborn goats ready to butt heads over nothing, Robert took notice of a woman sitting on a waiting chair close by.
This woman was none other than Dr. Vetra, whom your father had picked up from the airport not so long ago.
Eventually, Rocher approached you with your father, making the female scientist stand up.
The Commander immediately focused on the Italian woman, extending his hand. “Ms. Vetra? I'm Commander Rocher, Commandante Principale of the Swiss Guard. Thank you for coming.” His accent had a hint of Swiss/French tone when he spoke English.
Once they shook hands, only then did Rocher choose to acknowledge the other newcomer in the room. He silently looked him up and down, clearly unimpressed by his casual, lax style or his presence in this investigation.
Yet, remained mannered, for now. “Professor Langdon?” he questioned, just in case.
Robert, who had spent years around people, had learnt how to recognise when one did not fully like him. It was usually helped by the fact that those people never attempted even to hide it.
Commander Rocher was no exception.
Yet he answered him. “That's right.”
“Thank God, the symbologist is here,” Rocher replied sarcastically. “Ms. Vetra, this way, please.”
While Vittoria was led across the room to the surveillance monitor, Robert felt puzzled by the cold shoulder. He looked at the father and the daughter of the Gendarmerie, who both seemed displeased by such rude behaviour.
Yet, it was your father who seemed to understand more, and such he turned to acknowledge both you and your idol.
“There's been a development. We received another threat from the kidnapper.” He informed, making you look at him.
“When?” you questioned, though you feared you already knew the answer.
“Less than an hour ago,” was your father’s reply, before he motioned to follow him, heading also for the surveillance monitor room.
The latest threat, apparently, was a new live feed of the stolen canister. This time, the place had changed, and the lights indicating the canister’s battery level had dropped significantly, a thing that worried you.
Hearing Vittoria gasp made you realise you had every right to be worried.
Silent you remained, merely watching the full story on how the famous CERN lost such an important thing, let alone to the hands of an anti-religious fanatic who most likely wished to blow up the whole Vatican City.
“... the canister was stolen from our lab around midnight last night. The intruder killed my research partner, Leonardo Bentivoglio, and mutilated him to bypass security.” She explained, only to receive blank stares from all of you. “We use retinal scanners.”
Once again, there is silence, but only from the men in the room.
Something clicked in your mind, and your eyes grew wide as you realised what she meant. “My god,” you exclaimed, earning their attention. “They cut off his eye.”
Vittoria nodded in confirmation, causing the men to cringe at the thought.
“That canister contains an extremely combustible substance called antimatter. We need to locate it immediately or evacuate Vatican City.”
Now it was Rocher’s turn to join in this discussion. “I'm quite familiar with incendiaries,” he started, making you roll your eyes, only to receive a warning look from your father. “I haven't heard of antimatter.”
“It's new, energy research technology. It uses a reverse polarity vacuum to filter out anti-matter positrons generated in particle accelerators in the Large Hadron Collider at CERN.”
Once again, no one replied, making you sigh. “As much as I understand the complexity of it, Ms. Vetra. Please explain it plainer, or we will lose time looking at one another.”
Your brave words earned a glare from Rocher and an amused smirk from Robert, yet you paid no man's attention. You wished to know what was going on, so you could help and be prepared for what would most likely come.
Thankfully for you, Vittoria understood and took no insult. She pointed at the screen. “ The anti-matter is suspended, there, in an airtight nanocomposite shell with electromagnets at each end. However, if it were to fall out of suspension and come into contact with matter — say, the bottom of the canister — the two opposing forces would annihilate one another. Violently.”
You nodded. “And what might cause it to fall out of suspension?”
“The battery is going dead. Which will… In six hours and eleven minutes.”
The limited amount of time given suddenly made the weight on your shoulder feel heavier and your heart beat faster. You had suspected you had limited time, but not that limited.
Swallowing silently, you looked at your father, who, despite not understanding all the fancy words, understood enough to know that time was literally of the essence.
And none of you liked to work under such pressure, for mistakes could always happen, and they could be lethal.
Vittoria eyed the camera fees carefully. "Where is that camera? Number eighty-six?"
"It’s wireless. It, too, was stolen." Your father informed. "That could be anywhere inside the Vatican walls."
"You've got to find it."
"We're a bit preoccupied with four missing cardinals at the moment," Rocher interfered.
But the scientist persisted. "You don't understand. An annihilation is a cataclysmic event. It would be a blinding explosion, equivalent to about five megatons. The blast radius alone would be…"
Suddenly, Robert spoke up after having been quiet for far too long. "Vatican City will be consumed by light."
This made everyone go quiet and look at him. Your father and Vittoria held a surprise, Rocher's suspicion.
"Those are the exact words the kidnapper used," the commander informed.
A smirk formed on your lips before you could stop it, for at that precise moment… You were the winner. At that exact moment, you saw Rocher glancing at you with annoyance as he realised that the American professor he disliked was far more valuable and capable than he thought.
Without hesitation but with a silent, bitter retreat, Rocher guided everyone into his office. Gathering around his desk, he played the same video of the kidnapped Cardinals for Vittoria and Robert.
"...and then bring your church down upon you. Vatican City will be consumed by light."
Rocher paused the video, and everyone turned to look at Robert.
"It's an ancient Illuminati threat. The destruction of Vatican City through light. The four pillars, he probably means the kidnapped cardinals." He explained and then turned to look at you. "You didn't mention they were the Preferiti."
"It wasn't as important to mention at the first meeting," you explained, justifying yourself. "They are still important human lives we have to save."
Robert looked at you, and you looked at him, a few seconds of silence passing by.
He was processing what you said, and deep down, he felt that you were not lying to defend yourself. No, you truly cared for human lives that were in danger, not the ranking they held in the Catholic Church.
His respect for you increased and became visible in a faint nod of his head.
Then, the American professor turned to Vittoria, who had been silently watching but was clearly unaware of the talk and the unmentioned titles.
Thus, he chose to help. "The favourites to be chosen as the new Pope." He looked at Rocher. "Play it again
"... we will destroy your four pillars... brand your Preferiti and sacrifice them on the altars of science…"
"Stop it there." The video was paused. "Brand them, another Illuminati legend. This one says there is a set of five brands, each one an ambigram. The first four are the fundamental
elements of science -- earth, air, fire, water."
You nodded. "And the fifth?"
"The fifth -- is a mystery… Maybe it's this." He grabbed a folded paper from his pocket, unfolding it to show that it was the same ambigram with the Illuminati word on it.
Rocher finally seemed to believe and hear him. "He said they'd be killed publicly. In churches."
Robert nodded, not surprised to hear it. "Revenge for La Purga."
"La Purga?"
"Don't you guys read your own history?" Robert asked, and upon seeing the clueless faces of the men around him, he glanced at Vittoria and you.
The female scientist did not seem to know the topic, but you… Robert would recognise anywhere that look in your eyes.
His student had the same when they knew something more about a topic, but hesitated to speak up first.
His gaze persisted to the point that everyone else was looking at you now.
You sighed in defeat. "1668. The church kidnapped four Illuminati scientists and branded their chests with the symbol of the cross. To ‘purge their sins.’ Murdered them and left their bodies in the street as a warning to others to stop questioning church rulings on scientific matters."
You observed the people around you, with only Robert showing pride that there was someone whose head was not buried beneath the sand.
Rocher sent you a passive glare, already offended by such accusations.
Your father looked impressed, though any comments he wished to make on why you knew such information were held for later.
Now it was not the right time.
"You see," Robert took the lead. "It was after La Purga that a darker, more violent Illuminati emerged. This sounds like retribution," he then looked at Rocher. "Is there any more?"
The commander did not answer but merely hit play again.
"... A shining star at the end of the Path of Illumination."
Suddenly, Professor Langdon looked up sharply. "The Path of Illumination?" The video was paused. "I need to get into the Vatican Archives."
