Tyranny of Steel

While Berengar was managing affairs in Granada, Pope Julius was in the midst of a heated conversation. Today was an important day. The College of Cardinals had gathered in Rome for a single purpose. To discuss the rise of a certain heretic and his regency in the disputed territory of Iberia.

Invited to this meeting were members of the Iberian Church, who had come under pressure from the Sultanate of Al-Andalus now that Berengar was at its helm. Unlike in Germany, Berengar had not stripped the Iberian church of its land, wealth, and resources. Instead, he simply passed laws requiring the Catholic Church to pay heavy taxes under the new Muslim dominated regime.

Under the reign of the previous sultan, the Muslims had not bothered picking a fight with the Catholics whom they had conquered, and opted for a route of peaceful compromise. This did not work out well for the Hasan, whose lax attitude towards his Catholics subjects had caused fierce resistance both in peaceful protests and in violent uprising. These uprisings were now in full effect with Hasan's death, and the ascension of the boy Ghazi to the throne of a united Iberia.

Unsurprisingly, the Catholic Church was the culprit behind this rebellious movement. However, there was one major point of contention among the men gathered in this room, and a man representing the Anglo-Saxon Church was quick to voice his objection.

"Our forces in the holy land require gunpowder if they are to defeat the heretics and their Saracen allies. We can not afford to be shipping what little black powder we have to Iberia in the hope that the locals can successfully resist a German occupation. We never expected Berengar the Accursed to detonate the saltpeter mine, and because of this action, we have to rely on trade routes from the east.

Our current trade routes cross through the Golden Horde and we are forced to pay a heavy price for this saltpeter. If we wish to supply the Iberian rebels, then we need to search for new trade routes to India! We simply can not import enough saltpeter through our current methods to make the black powder required for two wars!"

Julius nodded his head in agreement with this statement. They were paying a heavy price to import their current saltpeter supplies. The Golden Horde had charged a king's ransom when they realized that the Catholic Kingdoms were becoming increasingly reliant on the saltpeter trade. Of course, since the Papacy had no other alternative sources, now that Berengar had destroyed one of the few natural saltpeter deposits in Europe, they had no choice but to pay whatever price the Golden Horde requested.

The Pope merely rested his head in the palm of his hand. He could not believe how quickly Berengar had risen to power. He knew in his heart that his eventual crusade for Germany would be a slaughter, but if the Church sat back and did nothing, then they would lose all influence over the Catholic Kingdoms.

What he needed was a victory in the holy land, to fill the crusaders with the morale necessary to march them into German borders. Julius had heard rumors of the border defenses that Berengar had established around Germany and was terrified at the prospect of challenging them. Only by convincing his men that God was truly on their side would these men be willing to so suicidally charge against such extensive fortifications.

However, if he wanted the slightest chance at victory, his men needed to be equipped with muskets, and for that, they needed a bigger saltpeter supply. Thus, he quickly announced his approval of this plan.

"With the way to India blocked by the Byzantine and Timurid empires, it is imperative that we discover new trade routes to the east. Especially if this next generation of warfare is reliant on black powder. Since all of our efforts to investigate Germany's methods of procurement have been met with failure, we have no choice but to seek out alternatives.

Send out word to all explorers. The Papacy will fund their expeditions in search of new trade routes to the east. I will grant anyone who discovers an alternative route to India a substantial fortune."

The Cardinals all agreed with this course of action, and did not speak up in objection. Seeing that this new motion had carried, the Pope sighed heavily before discussing the other major point of contention that needed to be said.

"How goes the plan to assassinate the new Sultan? Are the rebels in a position to strike?"

It was at this moment that a representative from the Iberian Church spoke up on the matter.

"We have supplied them with weapons and training. The plan is to start a riot among the people, and use that as a means to sneak into the Royal Palace. After all, the forces of Granada and Germany are severely depleted right now. Berengar will be forced to send what little soldiers he has to stop the chaos in the capital. Then our assassin will shoot the child dead. A despicable deed, but a necessary one."

Pope Julius had a mad look in his eyes as he smiled upon hearing this news. For too long, he had suffered at the hands of Berengar. The heretic was always one step ahead of him and had always played him like a fiddle. No longer would that be the case. In his temporary insanity, Julius voiced his true thoughts aloud in front of all the Cardinals.

"Finally, you will pay the price for your affront to God. Berengar the Accursed, for your defiance, you shall lose your son!"

It was only after Julius had said this that a member of the Iberian delegation stood up from his spot. It appeared as if he had something to say. The man was a curious one. He had the light skin of a Spaniard, but the swarthy features of a moor. Until now, he had gone totally unnoticed. Everyone looked at him with confusion in their eyes. That is until he tore off his robe to reveal a chest rig and a bandolier which contained a substantial amount of dynamite wired to a handheld detonator. The man in question spoke in the Arabic tongue as he screamed the words.

"Long Live the Sultan!"

Before anyone could stop him, he pressed the detonator, which ignited the two dozen pounds of TNT he had strapped to his chest. The result was a total massacre. The entire college of cardinals was shredded to pieces in the explosive blast.

Despite this sudden attack, a single man survived the explosion. This man was Pope Julius himself. If one were to see Julius right now, it would convince them the grace of God spared him. Julius could only gaze in disbelief as the bedrock that formed Papal Power in this world was blasted into mincemeat before his very eyes.

He then shifted his gaze and noticed that his white robes were not the slightest bit stained in gore as he witnessed a golden light fade away from his personage. In that moment, the Pope lost control of his legs and fell to his knees as he spoke his words of prayer to the lord God almighty. Frightened to the core of his being over what had just transpired.

The explosion had rocked the seat of Papal Power, and the guards of the Pope quickly rushed to the scene, where they witnessed a gory sight. Despite the many bodies that had been blown to pieces, the Pope was perfectly unscathed, as he stared towards the heavens above while speaking in tongues.

Everyone besides him had perished in the attack, an attack which they were not expecting. It was truly a miracle that anyone survived this mess. The words the suicide bomber had spoken resounded in the pope's mind over and over again while his guards gazed at him in awe.

"Long live the Sultan! Long Live the Sultan!"

As if reaching sudden divine inspiration, Julius cursed out the name of the culprit he knew in his heart to be responsible for this atrocity.

"BERENGAR!!!!!!"

News of this attack would make its way to the fatherland almost immediately after being carried out. The German Reformation would use this incident in propaganda against the Catholic Church. The exact words they would use would describe the scene as a divine intervention against a demonic plan to assassinate the young boy Ghazi who had rightfully succeeded his uncle in the throne of Al-Andalus. God Smites the Wicked would be the major headline in all the Reich's newspapers in the days following this attack.

As for the Catholic Church itself, they would paint this event in a very different light. God Saves the Pope from the wicked would be the propaganda that would make its way across the Catholic World. Every true believer would see Al-Andalus, and the German Empire, as their most heinous of enemies. Naturally Berengar would deflect the blame, stating he had nothing to do with the attack, and to insinuate it was slander.

Ultimately, this conflict would only be resolved with bloodshed. However, one thing was certain: those who knew about the plan to assassinate Ghazi would think twice before entertaining the idea of harming a member of Berengar's family. Lest they suffer a similar tragedy. As for the Pope himself, he was now more determined than ever to kill Berengar's son.