War of the Holies

by Artemio Saguinsin

  “ Why worry too much when they are purely documents. Whenever the contents of that manuscript are decrees, we have to review them and find out which are relevant and ratified for the benefit of all. “ added the conclave head.

  “ We have the law that any documents stored therein are property of the Papacy and Rome and should not be robbed by anybody. It may be classified information that we have to protect where the interest of our government and papacy is at stake. ” he added.

  “ Will that manuscript affect you personally?”

  “ Not that much. But it may affect the state affairs.” He said.

  “ What do you think you are going to do now?” asked the Chief of the Senate Tribunal.

  “ I will recall and ex-communicate Flavius Perazzeli if found to be the intruder and ask the kingdom of France that the document be returned.” He replied.

  “ Then proceed.” they replied and agreed.

  7

  Bajal summoned all his trusted military confidants to chase Flavius to his path towards the French border. Two days and two nights on his journey back to the French capital, Flavius was vigilant when he would dwell into the lodging house along the way although one day ahead of his chasers. At the border of France, about five squads of royal army were waiting to meet Flavius to secure his safety from his chasers.

  When Flavius reached the cordoned area of French territory, tremors were heard like a stampede of beasts not too far back where Flavius had gone.

  “To the woods! They’re coming !” shouted the squad leader. Bajal’s army reached the point but slowed down when they noticed that no trace of Flavius could be found. They stopped and looked around and trying to sense the surrounding area.

  One of the horses sensed something unusual and neighed violently. It raised his two frontal foot up in the air that disturbed all other horses of Bajal’s men.

  “ They’re in the woods! Attack them!” exclaimed the leader.

  Flavius and the army squads appeared from the woods and repelled the attack. While fighting was raging Flavius drove the horse fast away from the scene and escaped to save the manuscript. Meantime, Kadziel got his horse and gathered some men to reinforce the squads he sent to the border. Along the way he saw the approaching Flavius.

  In a haste he drove nearer to him while the two enemies on their horses were rushing to their path and released their arrows towards Flavius. Flavius unleased his leather bag of manuscript and cast it to Kadziel.

  Kadziel caught the bag but unfortunately, Flavius was hit by a swooping arrow at his left leg. The two perished when they were over powered by Kadziel’s men.

  The wounded Flavius was taken cared of when they got into the palace. Kadziel took the manuscript and browsed it. Moraiza curiously listened as Kadziel read its contents.

  “ This is it. We’re exactly correct. The decree was ratified.” He insinuated.

  “ We can submit that ratified decree as proof that will really put Bajal back into trial” said Moraiza.

  “ Exactly. “ Zadkiel replied.

  Bajal sent reinforcement to the battle site but was futile when they found the dead bodies of his men. Bajal was so furious that he thought of charging the kingdom of France of committing massacre against the Italian army before the Senate Tribunal to declare war.

  But after a careful deliberations in the Senate the consensus was to decline his proposal of war. Bajal had thought that the decree would be used against him.

  In full-battle gear Bajal armed and prepared his men. Bajal believed that it would be his last card to befriend with the Huns after losing favor from the Senate to wage war against France.

  They marched to the border of Rhine with a battalion of soldiers where Huns were settling .

  The Huns under the leadership of Attila were powerful invaders from Mongolia that crossed many regions in Europe. They were strong fighters and their multitude usually made them win war against their enemies. They had invaded many countries in Europe but were not able to penetrate the entirety of the land they invaded because they were driven out by their powerful foes. Thus, Attila’s direction was to go further and continued his invasive journey to other countries in Europe.

  Attila was now eyeing to invade Rome. But because of the extremely bad weather condition they had to defer and prepare the troops for a full-blown force against the Italian army.

  Attila the leader of the Huns conferred with Bajal. They talked about the war with France instead of Rome with a material return and anything that Attila wished. They agreed to consolidate their forces to topple France. When the weather had begun to be favorable the joint-forces marched towards France.

  Kadziel learned about the invasion forces of Attila and Bajal. He prepared his army for war.

  While on alert status, Kadziel sent emissaries to Rome to submit the ratified decree of King Louis and Pope Stephanus. The manuscript was received by the head of the Senate Tribunal which conferred the issue to the conclave.

  “ This ratified decree has made Pope Urbanus a criminal. Pope Urbanus is a getaway Pope. His action was an implied admittance of guilt. We cannot summon him anymore for the trial. He and his army had committed treason against Rome. And therefore, he is an enemy of the state.” the Senate Tribunal head pronounced.

  “ St. Peter’s Basilica has no Pope as we have no King of Italy at this point in time. We have to elect a Pope and crown a king” the Senate head announced.

  “ We will start the selection of candidates in the papacy as soon as possible” said the head of the conclave committee.

  “ And we shall conduct a plebiscite so that the people of Rome will have a king “

  Soon after a few days Rome had crowned king Emmanuel. The conclave had issued its candidates for the position of Pope. All interested Cardinals were listed. Cardinal Francois Bogart who was revealed to be relocated by Bajal in Germany returned and filed his candidacy. After a couple of days the conclave had announced that they had picked a new Pope by the name of Cardinal Bogart.

  He was known to be Pope Francis as his name was Francois from France. It was learned that many members of the conclave that voted for him were natives of France.

  While Rome was alarmed by the threat of the lost command of Bajal that joined Attila and the Huns invasion was most likely to occur .

  Kadziel fought the Huns before they had reached the border to prevent them from stepping into the soils of France. The powerful Huns and the lost command of Bajal were advancing into the fortified border of Paris. When Kadziel found that they were being overpowered he moved out of the kingdom with Moraiza and their households heading to Strasbourg. The recovering Flavius was also sent to Strasbourg for a total recovery and then he would go back to Alsace to resume his duty. The palace in Paris was stormed by the advancing troops of Bajal and they engaged in hostility to defend the kingdom. Kadziel and his command ferociously fought amidst the burning fortresses of the kingdom as the panicky households and Moraiza ran for their lives .

  They encamped in the safe refuge far from the battlefields. Moraiza who was then eight(8)month-pregnant felt the pain of giving birth. Eventually, he gave birth to a boy.

  They were asked by Kadziel to leave Paris and proceed to Strasbourg while the war was still raging. At night in the camp Kadziel would intercede and worship God for divine intervention. Likewise, Bajal would also do a ritualistic worship to his god for intervention. In his intense rituals, Bajal would be amazingly transformed to a horrifying werewolf.

  What was more stunning was the tremor and moaning the ritual was creating that would bewilder the environment. It would create fright and terror to those who would experience its bizarre occurrence.

  “Did you feel and heard that thing?” asked one soldier.

  “ Yes, what was that? It’s unusual and it’s coming from the Pope’s tenement? replied the second soldier.

  “ Let’s take a look at it” he suggested.

  “ No. it will be dangerous”

  “ C’mon we have t
he swords why fear?”

  The soldier slowly approached the place where Bajal was. He peeped into an open space of the tenement and was shocked what he saw.

  “ He transformed into a monster ! “ he shouted.

  And before he could scamper he was attacked by a monstrous creature. The other soldier was able to scamper and hid somewhere.

  In the morning, the ripped off body of the soldier was found. When physically restored to normal being Bajal would be amazed at the aftermath of his beastly conduct.

  Like a natural person experiencing amnesia he did not know what had transpired with him.

  “ Who did this?” asked Bajal

  “ We don’t know your holiness. We believed it was a beast that came from the woods” replied the soldier.

  Bajal would prefer to be alone and at times would confer with some Huns in the tenement. The turning point of his ritualistic activity would again claim lives of a number of Huns in the woods.

  “ There could be a killer beast in this wood” said the leader of Huns.

  “ We have to move out of this place right away or we suffer the same fate” suggested another Hun.

  As days and nights passed the intense ritualistic worship of Bajal to his god became more craving for human flesh and blood as he now visibly transformed into a beastly creature in the night to hunt for humans.

  But no amount of blades were necessary to slay him. He would disappear in the woods and would leave the bewildered Huns and his men with astonishment and fright. Attila was convinced that they did not have to pursue their interest in invading France as the creature was attacking and devouring men indiscriminately to death.

  8

  The Huns finally moved out of the woods and retreated from France. Meantime, Kadziel and his men established their tenement in an isolated location when the kingdom collapsed.

  Dead men were buried into ashes from the rubbles of the collapsed palace.

  “ It is no use pursuing Bajal to prosecution. He has become a traitor to Rome and has led astray. He is leading his men to nowhere.” Kadziel told his protocol.

  “ Our emissary told that Attila has abandoned the war zone but Bajal and his confidants remained in the woods in the war zone.” said the protocol.

  “ Why did Attila stop from advancing?” asked Kadziel.

  “ No clear reason. But according to a hunting party something mysterious is happening there.”

  “ What mysterious?” he asked.

  “ The Huns were being attacked and killed every night in the war zone. They would find the ripped off bodies believed to be attacked by extraordinary creatures believed to be hibernating in the woods.” ‘the protocol added.

  “ Where are the Huns heading now?”

  “ Not determined yet, but far away from the woods outside the border.”

  “ They might be heading to Rome.” said Kadziel.

  “ They would face a tough war with the Romans.

  It was Bajal’s advocacy when he joined the Huns to conquer Rome because he had no choice at all. He was being hunted by Rome to put him into a fatal trial.” Kadziel explained. More troops in Paris were sent to the battle fields to totally drive out the Huns and eventually, dominion of the besieged border was recovered.

  Kadziel and his forces settled in the border and built fortresses to avoid future attack by any enemies.

  However, while Bajal and his men were left somewhere in the woods near the recovered territory of France, Kadziel was not confident that Bajal and his lost command had abandoned the woods yet. Meantime, Kadziel learned that Moraiza had given him a boy and was delighted to see that day they would see again after the war. He asked them to remain in Strasbourg as a safe refuge.

  In Rome, the entire nation was alarmed about the threat of Attila’s invasion. The armed forces were prepared for war. The Papacy was in trouble and most of the brethren prepared to move out for they knew that Bajal would attack St. Peter’s Basilica. Pope Francis thought of transferring the papacy to Avignon, France to avoid attack of the enemies . It would also give favor to most members of the conclave since most members were French nationals.

  Bajal and his lost command continued their encampment in the forest while weird phenomenon became intense not only it was audible by his band but this it became visible.

  “ You know who you are serving for now” Bajal asked them.

  Scared but courageous his men who realized his nature conceded to him and recognized his powerful being.

  “ We will serve you and your god, your holiness.” his servant vowed.

  “ We will all serve you master” affirmed by the chorus while they vowed their heads before him.

  Bajal was no longer alone in his worship but he was already joined by his men. Flaunted by weird occurrences surrounding them Bajal’s eyes became as sharp as a wild beast while transforming into a werewolf before his worshippers. When totally transformed his quick movements portrayed like a hopping monkey and as wild as a killer bear in the wilderness.

  He would even devour other beasts in the woods that were capable of sustain drops of blood and fleshy heart.

  Meanwhile, Kadziel and his legions were vigilant sensed that the tranquility of the woods concealed something dangerous and could not be trusted.

  At night it looked like there were sharp beastly eyes observing and monitoring movement of preys that could be slain. In a routine check of the site, some men of Kadziel were slain by the beast. The same fate that happened to other victims of Bajal in his attack.

  In the day time, Bajal would turn into a normal human nature and would command his men to be vigilant. While they had no planned attack yet, Bajal would ascend to the woods with his men to a more serene area that was not ever visited nor inhabited by humans to be more conducive and far from disruption in their worship.

  Kadziel was puzzled with the unusual killings of his men. But he was visionary with what had transpired in the incident..

  “ This no ordinary warfare of a human being nor an ordinary devouring beast. We are dealing with a beastly creature that is so powerful to combat with by an ordinary human being.” He insinuated.

  “ Your majesty, it is not an ordinary beast waiting for its prey in the woods?” asked his protocol.

  “ Exactly. It is a super human transforming into a beast. And that is what Bajal is” he added.

  “ He has turned into a beast?”

  “ Yes, because he is a devil worshipper and so his lost command ” said Kadziel.

  “ How could we deal with them if they possess devil’s power?”

  “ We can deal with them in its right time” Kadziel replied.

  Day and night Kadziel would worship God in his solitary time. Intensely and frequently, intercessory prayer seemed to be heard and blessed.

  A bright ray appeared and in an audible voice that sounded like rapids said, “ Son You Shall Conquer, I will be with You”

  Meantime, Attila and the Huns were slowly marching forward the Italian border. However, the Italian fortress with powerful command obstructed them that started the bloody battle to what was known as the Battle of Italian Pass.

  The Huns overrun and destroyed them all. They turned the besieged fortress their camp. They stayed there for the meantime while planning the invasion of Rome.

  9

  Bajal with his Chief of Staff, Siegfried with their cohorts moved out of the woods and headed to Strasbourg where he thought the new seat of government was established by Kadziel. When Kadziel learned about this move of Bajal he immediately proceeded to Strasbourg to prevent their entry into the city. However, Bajal made it quick to infiltrate the city by destroying and killing the inhabitants that would hinder their ferocious invasion. He was so powerful that they sowed terror and havoc in places that they inhabited.

  Folks that inhabited the places got a horrible experience with the vicious intruders. “ They are monsters. They are not humans as they kill more than beasts. They are horrible and inhumane ! “ they exclaimed. Th
ey sowed terror that most of the terrified folks abandoned their homes and relocated to a safe refuge. Authorities were helpless that they retreated and escaped to save their lives when they encountered the ferocious enemies.

  “ Keep an eye on the surroundings. They hide themselves in the dark. “ Kadziel commanded.

  “ We should leave this place now or we suffer the same fate like their victims” Moraiza suggested.

  “ We’re nowhere to go but to face them to death” Kadziel replied.

  “ Take care of our son and remain calm”

  “ We’ll make sure that all possible entry points in this house are shut down “ Moraiza said.

  “ My men are prepared and equipped to repel them.” He assured.

  The still of the night seemed to be so treacherous with a bright full moon which looked so cold that every movement in the surroundings would be made visible by a watcher. Momentarily, uproar in the woods would be heard. Then, subsequently, turmoil would prevail. The lost command had attacked and being repelled by Kadziel’s command.

  Kadziel would prioritize Moraiza and his son while the hostility was raging nearby the old edifice where they were in.

  The shadow of large creature was reflected in the window glass outside their house.

  Kadziel brought Moraiza and his son to an adjacent room and locked the door.

  “ Do not go out but take a look at the windows. Lock them all.”

  “ I will meet him outside !”

  Right after he stepped out of the door, Bajal with a wielding blade attacked but missed him. He was able to avoid it prompting him to draw his mythical sword which according to old warriors was the sword of the legendary warrior kings of olds that was passed on to the next generations where history of France in fighting against the enemies was written.