3.60 The God of Death

         Suddenly, as if the sun itself had erupted from the mountain, a massive ball of fire exploded from Mount Ekar. Gripped by shock and awe the eclipse gazers gathered on the lookout froze, stunned by the sight.

         "RUN!" Mina screamed, snapping them out of their stupor. "GET INSIDE THE TEMPLE!"

         Like a herd of startled deer they bolted for safety, tripping and stumbling down the trail they rushed for the door, terrified of the unknown fiery explosion in the sky. The blinding light was almost instantly followed by a blazing hurricane, a wild inferno of unfathomable might blasted the land, incinerating any life that had straggled outside.

         Thrust violently into a wall by the force, Zara clung to the rocks, gasping for the hot, acrid air, searing her lungs, fighting to shield her face from flying debris all around. Burning embers torched her skin, pieces of broken furniture and airborne objects pummeled against her body, screams muffled by the howling sounds of destruction tortured her ears.

         A child hurtled to her feet with a painful thud. With instant reflex she lunged for him, pulling him close, holding him tight, shielding him from the violent blast with all her might.

         Thrown to his knees by the blast, Neter staggered to regain his step, ears ringing, dread gripped him tight as the bedrock shuddered hard all around him. This was it… Holy God… Was he too late? Feverishly he made it to his feet and stumbled forward, clinging to the rocky walls as the deafening roar shook throughout the tunnel. Against all odds, he kept going, the climb was steep. He was just fifty yards short of the entrance when another explosion blasted through the Underworld, throwing him to the ground, he slid back down landing hard against the rock, smashing his head into the wall.

         As if the earth was splitting in two, the bedrock groaned hard around him, stars circled in his head, he felt the grit of sand in his mouth, rocks pummeling him from above was making it hard to breathe, his body was fighting for life, he could hardly move or utter a word,

         "Mina…" A wicked wind blew from below, filling the air with burning ash and smoke. Images of his loved ones flashed before his eyes.

        

         The celebrations in the Royal Residence were in full swing, the thunder from Mount Ekar was incredible, all goblets were raised for the big event, however the shaking was much harder than anyone had imagined. Hedena took a big gulp of wine, unable to hide her fear as the explosions rocked the bunker. It wasn't just the scary blasts, things in general didn't feel right, the wine didn't taste right, tensions were hiding behind last minute changes, false celebrations and now news of the missing gold was devastating, an operation to reclaim it was delusional, without the gold they were helpless to get it, how would they ever pay the slaves?

         As the third explosion ripped the side of the mountain apart, chunks of rock tumbled down the mountainside, the earth shook violently from the force, knocking the dishes and candles off the table, drenching the white tablecloth in wine, like a hideous omen of death.

         "HA-HAAA!" Atalon raised his goblet for another toast, high from the wine, from the fear, from the terror he felt inside. He scanned the faces around the table, eyes wide open, marveling at the powerful response of the bombs.

         "Bye bye Aquilla!" He toasted his demise. "Here comes the last bomb to finish him off!"

         Hedena clutched her chair, a crack was forming in the wall above Atalon's head. She glanced around the chamber, cracks were beginning to form everywhere… A chunk of the ceiling landed on the table… Then, with a sinking feeling, a dreadful thought transpired. They were going to die...  The god of Death had foreshadowed their demise...

         But as the fourth and Final Bomb blew, leaving the pyramids still standing, the gods in the Royal Residence stood up from their chairs and let out a loud round of applause. Goblets were re-filled, smiles were returned, hopes rose, they had survived the Great War and Aquilla was history for ever!

         The lives inside Kergal were safe, too, so far. The air pockets at the depths of the cave had protected the refugees quite well from the exploding mountainside across the water, from the hurricane inferno and flying debris outside. Even still, most of the souls taking shelter at the depths of Kergal were terrified, praying for their lives. If Halki was right, the storm wasn’t over.

         The noise, force and explosive power lit Torus up like a fire cracker, for the god of the Underworld the big event was an orgasm, high on adrenaline he felt ecstasy for the first time, it was like Soloha times ten, Soloha injected into his veins. The feeling was incredible, he couldn't get enough of the violence and destruction being generated outside.

         He had to walk away from the fearful slaves huddled in the depths, unable to take any more whimpering, instead he wanted to witness it all. He stood as close to the entrance as possible, feeling the powerful forces in his face was living! This was what it was all for!

         "Thank you Orius!" He bowed in respect for his genius older brother, then raised his flask against the burning wind for a toast as the rumbling of the fourth and Final Bomb finally subsided. 

         He took a long drink, then stepped back, held onto a rocky ledge, readying for the finalé. There would be little to see, the sky was so dark already he could barely make out the landscape before him, but surely they would feel it.
         "Mighty Medel…"

         Hidden away in the Underworld Chamber was Nolan's fifth and most powerful final bomb, the biggest bomb of all, encased in Kergal's finest gold. In a blinding flash of light, the monster bomb, twice as powerful as the bombs on Mount Ekar, blew. In seconds the walls the Underworld chambers dustified, like a string of dominoes the honeycomb of ancient chambers and passageways were obliterated, crushed by the ground collapsing from above, followed by the thundering roar of the sea in a cascading crescendo.

         "WHAT WAS THAT?" Atalon grasped the table as the thunder of the fifth blast rocked the foundations. The fifth blast was much worse than the other bombs, the thunder was so violent the walls were cracking in extraordinary ways and none of the Royal Residents knew what it was.

         "Volcanic eruption!"

         "LOOK!" Hedena pointed the crumbling walls as another large chunk of the ceiling fell down onto the table.

         "AAAAA-G-G-H!"

         Terrified, Atalon watched the cracks growing, spreading like a spiderweb across the polished wall, his life was flashing so fast before his eyes he was going into shock.

         "IT’S AN EARTHQUAKE!" Hedena screamed.

         Atalon glanced at Hedena, suddenly feeling overwhelmed by the urge to rip her face off... Feelings of savage desire were engulfing him as the ground shook so violently beneath him, as the plates and dished rattled to the floor...

         The violence of the fifth blast was equally alarming for Halios, This fifth blast had come from the opposite direction of Mount Ekar, it couldn't be volcanic! He suspected an earthquake as Orius had warned yet even though the bunkers were designed to withstand such an event, the Reserves bunker wasn’t faring so well. Walls were cracking, chunks of ceiling were falling, the entire structure seemed to be moaning. Terrified, he stood up, barely able to balance from the shaking ground. So violent was the blast, he began to panic and pace.  The groaning rumble that followed the blast was getting louder, the fear heart stopping, sweat sprung from his brow like a mountain spring as the ominous cracks multiplied along the walls.

         Suddenly it felt like the entire pyramid shifted, the groans vibrating through the caverns were suddenly amplified to deafening degrees, like a giant violin the chambers filled with a terrifying noise, then everything began to shudder, violently.

         Now the aribu were screaming, the shaking got harder and harder until finally, with a sickening groan the pyramids collapsed with a cataclysmic roar into the crumbling underworld of Aquillan void, swallowing the city of Atlan like ravenous jaws. Within minutes there was nothing more than a mound of rubble, settling below the depths of the raging, angry sea.