The Pope's Deadly Demise 2

The implosion sounded like a bolt of lightning had struck from below. The entire cathedral shook, knocking everyone off their feet. Inside the main prayer room, the floor was blasted into pieces. Giant blocks of marble soared through the air, striking through both walls and windows. The sound of the shattering glass and multiple stone collisions was ear splitting.

The nuns and priests seated in the rooms near the outskirts of the cathedral and those standing outside covered their ears and screamed in terror. 

Father Demetri hadn't managed to even rise to his feet when the tunnel around him abruptly collapsed, crushing him to death.

Several royal knights and priests who had been searching for the Pope also lost their lives when the ground beneath them exploded. Those who were not killed by the rock fragments which slammed into them, died upon impact after falling further below.

In front of the statue of the Goddess, countless voices screamed in shock as the ground collapsed. A large number of priests who were praying for salvation were swallowed up by the opening floor. Their wails of terror carried on for ages before they finally hit the lowest region. Which happened to the be the Pope's demonic chamber.

The ones who'd scrambled back in time were crying. Their faces, hands and robes with soaked in red water. The same water which now poured down the massive hole. Goddess Katara's tears increased, flowing out of both her face and her body, no longer just from her eyes. 

The crash of the waterfall grew even more deafening. 

"We are being punished!" A priest wept, clutching himself. "We have erred in some way and the Goddess is punishing us!"

Back at the imperial palace, Father Demetri's faction had arrived. A group of 30 men who entered the council room and informed the Emperor about the developments. Emperor Robert was furious upon learning that the Pope had vanished. Panic soared within him.

If the Pope had fled to avoid accountability, as one of Father Demetri's priests had implied, then that could only mean something horribly wrong had been done! Not only was he wrong about the witch's curse, but there may be more he was hiding about what was actually taking place. If the Holy Pope could not help them out of this mess than who else could they turn to?

Was Elysium doomed?

Gritting his teeth, Robert struggled to think of a solution. He refused to watch his empire go to shambles all because of a dead witch and criminal Pope. Pacing back and forth, a sudden idea entered his mind. As much as he hated to call on his arrogant sister for help, he had no choice.

The Pope was missing, his son was dying, countless nobles were dying and the Saintess could not heal anyone!

Robert beckoned at one of his personal knights. "Send a letter to my sister. Explain the situation to her and request her to send Aura Wielders to help us. Tell her it's urgent!"

The knight bowed and ran off.

Slumping his weary body onto his ornate chair, the Emperor rubbed his tired eyes. He could not fathom what was going wrong. He had some knowledge on demonic magic, but he had never heard of a case where a curse could impact an entire empire like this. To the extent that neither the Pope nor the Saintess could combat it.

Why is Felicia doing this to us? Why is the Goddess not doing anything to save us?

His painful thoughts and the loud murmurs amongst the royal council members were abruptly cut off when the doors were thrown open again. One of the royal knights he had sent to the church had returned. And he looked decidedly worse for wear.

"Your Majesty!

The Emperor shot to his feet. The room fell in silence.

The knight walked forward with a limp. "Your Highness, there was an earth shake at the Cathedral! A massive hole has been formed in front of the statue of our Goddess! Several royal knights and priests have been killed!"

Gasps and cries of shock filled the air.

"What of the Pope, have you located him?!" The Emperor thundered.

"Unfortunately not! Nearly all the knights were searching the underground chamber when the earth shake happened. The Captain was underground as well and is believed to be amongst the victims. We need more men to shift through the rubble and retrieve the bodies!" The knight replied, falling to his knees.

The Emperor felt more fear than anger. He internally cursed at the Pope for disappearing at such a critical moment.

"Ready the carriages! We are all heading to the church this instant!"

Back at the cathedral, the death toll was unknown. The exact number of people who had gone below ground was unknown. The number of people who had fallen was unknown.

The damage in each room on the ground floor was devastating. It appeared as if a raging windstorm had blown through. Shattered glass, cracked walls, toppled statues and broken furniture were strewn about everywhere. 

Everyone was nursing both bruises and a concussion. 

The devastation was especially bad in the prayer hall. After carefully climbing down the massive hole which had opened in front of the Goddess, some brave priests and two knights looked through the rubble. The hole was broad in some places and steep in others. One to be mindful of every step. Three had already fallen to their deaths. And the sound of the impact was lost amongst the bloody waterfall. Most of the priests were too scared to touch the waterfall, worried it might be poisonous.

Everyone still standing above were spooked by the hole which seemed to go down forever. The dark abyss combined with the red water made it look too much like an entrance into hell.

A handful of the clergymen were biting their lips while staring at the statue of the Goddess. Difficult thoughts and speculations ran through their minds. They started to wonder if the Goddess was sending them a message that was more than what the Pope had claimed.

Where was the Pope? Had been underground too? Was he also crushed by the stone? The last thought made them more scared than the sight before them. How could they possibly deal with the witch's curse without the Holy Father? Would the Saintess be able to provide them with a solution? But the Saintess had only just come of age. She was still learning to master her holy powers.

To whom do we turn to now? The Goddess has not helped us, only warned us. But why? Why hasn't Goddess Kartara intervened when her faithful subjects are at the mercy of a demonic curse?

Have we missed something? Is our assessment of this disaster incorrect?