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Chapter 112
After another half an hour, they had matched all the lines of the map up precisely, and they stood back to inspect their work.
"How very curious," Leonardo thought aloud.
"It...it is a map of the entire world," Ezio said. "But...there are lands shown here that do not exist!"
"Apparently they do exist," Machiavelli said. "Just because we have not seen them does not mean nobody else has."
"How is this possible?" Ezio asked.
"Perhaps the vault will hold the answer," Machiavelli suggested.
"Do you see where it is then?" Paola asked Ezio.
The latter looked as hard as he could, but with no success. He shook his head.
"Perhaps I was wrong," Rosa confessed with a sigh.
"No...no, you weren't," Ezio realized. We're just missing one last piece of the puzzle."
He left the room, and in another minute he returned carrying the same box he had stolen from the Spaniard. He pulled out the Apple and, without any objections from the others, held it in front of the map.
The room was as bright as day in the next instant as the Apple flashed and buzzed. The map that Ezio saw was now visible to all of them, and with several new marks on it. Ezio recognized the location of the largest one almost immediately.
"No, it can't be! The vault...it looks like it is in Roma!"
"Yes!" shouted Bartolomeo. "I see it too!"
"Wait," Ezio realized. "Then the Spaniard...this is why he became Pope!"
"Now I understand," Mario nodded. "It's not the vault alone he's gained access to, but the staff as well."
"What staff?" asked Teodora.
"The Codex always spoke of two keys, two Pieces of Eden needed to open the vault. One is the Apple..."
"And the other is the staff," Ezio finished the thought. "The Papal Staff is the second Piece of Eden!"
"For years...no, decades, we've sought these answers," Mario sighed.
And now, at last, we have them," said Paola.
"But so too could the Spaniard," Antonio reminded them. "And if he does...if he finds a way into the vault, its contents will make the Apple seem a trifling thing."
"What could be more trifling than this?" Rosa asked. They all remembered that this was the first time she had seen anyone use the Apple.
"I dread to think about it," Ezio said. "I must go to Roma and find the vault. What of the rest of you?"
"We'll do what we do best," Bartolomeo assured him. "Cause some trouble in the city, giving you the freedom to conduct your search." The rest of them nodded in agreement.
"Just let me know when you are ready, nipote," Mario told Ezio.
"I think we should not delay," Ezio answered. "The sooner we are rid of the Spaniard, the safer everyone will be. Every moment we waste is a moment he could be using to plot against us."
"My thoughts exactly," Machiavelli agreed with Ezio for once. "How soon are all of you able to leave?"
"Paola and I can be ready in a few days, I think," said La Volpe. "Of course, I cannot speak for our Venetian friends who may have to grow accustomed to riding horses instead of boats."
"HA!" Bartolomeo bellowed. "If you're looking to bet on who would win a race on horseback, I would be delighted to take your money." They both laughed.
"Mario," said Antonio. "Before we depart, is there still time for that favor I asked of you?"
"Of course!" Mario told him. "In fact, it is being prepared as we speak. We will do it tonight, if that suits everybody."