Burning crosses
Thick
clouds heavy with rain moved high above the fires, reflecting the
light and turning night into day. Slowly the fires made their way
through the city, while its inhabitants fled for their lives or ran
for water in an attempt to stop the flames from destroying their
homes.
From
the top of the church, it was clearly visible that the city did not
stand a fighting chance against the raging inferno. Down in the
streets in front of the church, there were carts being loaded up with
the valubles from inside. A big wooden cross that had been hanging
above the altar was now being dragged onto one of the carts.
The
priest gave an ironic laugh when he saw the people struggling with
their load. After the last fire some fifty years ago, the church had
rebuilt the city in its own image. Altough very impractical to
defend, the town had become a holy place. The shape was visible from
the nearby hills and had become somewhat of a tourist attraction on
its own.
The
embers came in through the open doors. The sight of the fire through
the doors was one that could only be described as the sight of hell:
buildings burning, the heat that struck everyone that looked out, and
the realisation of the fact that there were people in those flames.
As the heat of the fires became unbeareble, the people that had
stayed behind could only look at the glow from behind the doors and
pray that the blaze outside would not destroy the church, and them
with it.
The
heat of the flames became to much for the doors and set them on fire.
For those who had stayed behind, it was the moment of realization
that the church was also lost. Some decided in this last minute that
they wanted to survive and ran to the back door in an attempt to
escape the blaze. The door opened, and through it came scorching
heat.
From
the top of the hills, those that had escaped the city could see the
tragedy unfold. To some the thought occurred that their world was
coming to an end with the burning of the city, and that god had lost
his throne. Before them, the city build like a cross was fully ablaze
with its church at its center. Now all the crosses in the city were
burning.