Serpent and Storm (32 page)

The Corn Priest ran into the tent, panting heavily. “Gras … Grasping Fire, Sky Knife … come!” He ran back out.

Sky Knife clambered to his feet and ran after the Corn Priest, Grasping Fire just behind him.

The Corn Priest headed toward a large tent. “Masked One, no,” said Grasping Fire.

Sky Knife saw nothing amiss, nor did he know whose tent this was. But Grasping Fire's alarm was enough for Sky Knife. He got out his sacrificial knife and ran into the tent.

Jaguar's Daughter stood in the center of the tent. Behind her, wrists bandaged and leaning against a jaguar-skin pillow, sat a very feeble-looking Deer. Black Coyote sat by Deer, fear in his large eyes.

In front of Jaguar's Daughter stood her brother. Dark Lightning. As Sky Knife entered the tent, Dark Lightning lunged for his sister. He spun around to face Sky Knife, Jaguar's Daughter between them. Dark Lightning held a knife to his sister's throat.

“Come no closer,” he snarled. His hair had come out of its leather thong holder. It stuck out from his head wildly so that he resembled not so much a man as a monkey. “You've ruined everything, Mayan priest. I would be king of this city now if it weren't for you.”

“Let your sister go,” said Sky Knife. “You don't want to meet the
Bolon ti ku
with your sister's blood on your hands.”

“If I were you,” said Dark Lightning, “I'd worry more about your friend, my sister. She's the one with a knife at her throat.”

“What do you want?” asked Grasping Fire. “You should know by now you will never be king.”

“Neither will you,” said Dark Lightning. “It seems I was wrong. By leaving the boy alive, you retained your hope of his ascension. I didn't want to kill the boy, but you've left me no choice. If you had cooperated from the beginning, he could have lived. His death is on your hands.”

“The boy will be king,” said Grasping Fire.

More people entered the tent. Sky Knife didn't dare turn around to see who they were.

“None of you can stop me now,” said Dark Lightning. “Go on, get out. Get out of the tent or my sister's dead.”

“So kill her,” said the deep voice of Lily-on-the-Water. “You must know we will sacrifice ourselves, including your sister, for the king.”

“You can't win,” said Deer from his bed. Sky Knife winced at the weakness of his voice. “Retain whatever honor you can and surrender your blade.”

Dark Lightning glanced from Sky Knife to Grasping Fire to the others. To Sky Knife, it seemed the other man finally realized he would not succeed. The knowledge seemed to settle on Dark Lightning's face like a bird alighting on a branch.

Rage spilled onto Dark Lightning's face. He pressed the knife against Jaguar's Daughter's neck. “Then she dies with me!” he screamed.

“No!” shouted Sky Knife. He leaped for Jaguar's Daughter, but Grasping Fire was quicker. The burly man knocked Jaguar's Daughter and Dark Lightning down and grabbed Dark Lightning's wrist.

Sky Knife jumped over Dark Lightning's feet and rushed to Deer and Black Coyote.

Deer's face was tense with pain, but his eyes twinkled. “I knew you would come,” he said.

Someone came up behind Sky Knife and grabbed Black Coyote. He turned, knife out, but it was Dancing Bear. Sky Knife relaxed.

“No, Sky Knife,” said Lily-on-the-Water. “Don't let her take him!”

Sky Knife stood, confused, but stepped toward Dancing Bear. She held out a prismatic blade. “One step closer and the boy dies,” she said.

Sky Knife halted. On the ground, Dark Lightning pushed Grasping Fire away.

“I told you the boy would die,” said Dark Lightning.

Sky Knife looked at Dancing Bear. “What are you doing?” he asked.

She spat at him. “For too long, I've waited for my chance,” she said. “When Dark Lightning is king,
I
will speak for the Masked One.”

“Foolish girl,” said Lily-on-the-Water. “It takes more to speak for the goddess than you know.”

“All I know,” said Dancing Bear, “is that I will never enter the true inner circle until you die. I have been promised your death. I will have it.”

“Who promised you?” asked Sky Knife. “Dark Lightning?”

“Never mind,” said Dancing Bear. “Now, back up.”

“Why?” asked Sky Knife. “You're going to kill the boy anyway, right?”

Dancing Bear edged toward the opening of the tent. “Come on, Dark Lightning,” she said. “Let's go.”

“I give the orders here, girl,” he said.

“Fine. Then give the order to go.”

Dark Lightning hesitated, looking from Dancing Bear to Grasping Fire. “Follow us and the boy dies.”

“And if we let you go, the boy dies,” said Grasping Fire. “I don't think you understand, Dark Lightning. I'm not letting you out of this tent. You have only this choice: kill the boy or let him go. If you kill him, we will take you and make sure you die as slowly as possible. Perhaps we will let you suffer as you made the holy twin and our Mayan friend suffer.”

Dark Lightning blanched at that, but said nothing.

“Let the boy go,” continued Grasping Fire, “and we will take you and kill you quickly.”

The Corn Priest burst into the tent, Amaranth and Talking Storm on his heels.

“What's going on?” demanded Talking Storm. “You, girl, let that boy go.”

“I am no girl to you, Talking Storm,” said Dancing Bear. “I am a priestess of the Masked One. You are nothing. Your feathered serpent's reign here is over.”

“The Masked One's reign here has never been in danger,” said Lily-on-the-Water. “If you had any understanding of our goddess at all, you would know that.”

“I don't need you to tell me about the goddess!” screamed Dancing Bear. She pressed the blade against Black Coyote's neck. The boy whimpered.

“Bibi,” he whispered.

“Stand still, Little Weed,” said Deer. “Stand very still.”

“Oh, yes,” said Dancing Bear. “Stand still and let the brave Mayan priest rescue you.” She stared at Sky Knife, naked hatred on her face. “You've ruined everything. You must think you're blessed by the gods. But that's over, too.” She glanced to Dark Lightning. “You had your part and you failed at every turn. You don't tell me what to do. I decide!”

Dancing Bear's voice rose in hysteria. “I decide!” she said. “The goddess is in me, not in any man!”

Sky Knife dove for Dancing Bear before she could slash the blade through Black Coyote's tender skin. Dancing Bear grunted as he connected. Black Coyote screamed and they all fell to the ground.

Dancing Bear thrust up with her blade and caught Sky Knife in the shoulder. He gasped at the sudden pain and reached for the knife with his free hand.

“Get the boy!” he shouted.

Someone grabbed Black Coyote. Suddenly, Dancing Bear relaxed. Sky Knife stared at her, expecting her to renew her attack, but she lay still, her eyes closed, her breathing ragged.

Sky Knife got up. Lily-on-the-Water knelt by him. “She will die for this,” said the priestess.

Tears rolled out of Dancing Bear's closed eyes. Dust from the ground, stirred up by the struggle, settled on her face and hair.

“Yes,” agreed Sky Knife, though he had no pleasure from the thought. His arm throbbed again, competing with his shoulder for his attention.

“Corn Priest,” said Grasping Fire. “Sky Knife is injured. See to him.”

“Yes, Lord,” said the Corn Priest.

Sky Knife sat back and looked around the tent. Dark Lightning lay still on the ground, the haft of a knife sticking out of his chest. His sister knelt by him, sobbing and rocking back and forth.

The Corn Priest came to Sky Knife as Lily-on-the-Water and Amaranth attempted to get Dancing Bear up off the ground.

Dancing Bear sprang to life. She wriggled out of the other women's grasp. Amaranth grabbed the knife, but Dancing Bear wrested it from her and scratched Amaranth's arm. Amaranth jerked back. Dancing Bear grabbed the Corn Priest.

“Now,” she said as she pressed her blade against his neck. “I am leaving this camp, and you will not follow me. Or the last Corn Priest dies. Think on that.”

33

“No,” said Grasping Fire. “What I said before is still true. We will not let you leave here. You can kill the Corn Priest and die slowly. Or you can let him go and we will kill you in a more merciful manner.”

Dancing Bear hesitated and the knife lowered a fraction of an inch.

“Let him go,” said Sky Knife. “His death will do nothing for you.”

Dancing Bear looked at Sky Knife. “I wish it were you here under my knife,” she said. “For shaming me, for refusing the goddess, you deserve to die.”

Lily-on-the-Water said, “There is no shame for Sky Knife. You knew last night what you were doing. By choosing him, you doomed the Water Ceremony to failure. You wanted it to fail. You planned for it to fail.”

“He's a man. You should blame him, not me,” said Dancing Bear.

“The Masked One is mother to men as well as women. Something you don't seem to understand. Do you wonder why you never rose in our ranks? You never understood even the simplest things,” said Lily-on-the-Water.

“I understand enough,” said Dancing Bear. “I understand that I won't leave this tent alive.”

“Then let the Corn Priest go,” said Lily-on-the-Water. “You have Grasping Fire's assurance you will be treated as mercifully as possible.”

“I don't think so,” said Dancing Bear. “I'll take at least one of you with me to the underworlds.”

Dancing Bear drove the knife into the Corn Priest's neck. Blood spurted from the wound all over Sky Knife and Lily-on-the-Water. Blood rushed out of the Corn Priest's neck and his mouth. Dancing Bear stabbed him a second time and the Corn Priest sank from her grasp into a puddle of blood on the ground.

Talking Storm leaped over the Corn Priest and grabbed Dancing Bear, but she did not struggle. She dropped her knife and stood straight and tall, defiant.

Sky Knife knelt by the Corn Priest and touched the old man on the shoulder. The flow of blood from the wounds on the other man's neck continued. The Corn Priest's eyes were closed and he was limp.

Sky Knife took out his knife and touched it to the Corn Priest's wounds. “Itzamna guide you on your journey,” he said softly. “And lead you to a quiet place where you can find the peace you seek.”

The knife glowed blue. Sky Knife held it over the Corn Priest's body as the glow got brighter. “Short be your journey, easy be your way, quiet be your soul,” said Sky Knife in his formal priest voice. “Itzamna guard you, guide you, preserve you, keep you. May your way be swift and may you be content in the fields where your ancestors dwell.”

The knife's glow died. The shiny black blade was clean. The blood that had stained it—and Sky Knife—was gone.

Sky Knife stood shakily. His shoulder and arm throbbed in time with his heartbeat and he swayed slightly. Grasping Fire laid a hand on his shoulder.

“Thank you for blessing our friend the Corn Priest,” said Grasping Fire. “Lily-on-the-Water will handle things from here.”

Lily-on-the-Water nodded. “I thank you as well,” she said. “Your god has great power—that is obvious. His blessing will certainly mean only good for the Corn Priest.”

Talking Storm held both of Dancing Bear's arms behind her. She still stood defiantly, chin high, eyes staring just over the heads of the rest of the people in the tent.

“What would you have me do with her?” Grasping Fire asked Lily-on-the-Water.

Lily-on-the-Water lifted the Corn Priest in her arms and walked out of the tent. “She is no concern of mine,” she said as she disappeared out the entrance.

“Kneel before your Lord,” said Talking Storm. He forced Dancing Bear to her knees in front of Grasping Fire.

“How should we go about this, Talking Storm?” asked Grasping Fire. “A public execution? And how do we kill her—I promised her a slow death.”

“There is no need to debate it,” said Talking Storm. “The penalty for treason to the gods should be sufficient. I think we can send scouts out to find a suitable place.”

Dancing Bear blanched but said nothing.

Sky Knife sat down in front of her. She didn't look at him. “What was your part in this?” he asked. “Did you set the spell this morning to bring the feathered serpent? Did you kill the king? Are you the informant of whom Dark Lightning spoke?”

Talking Storm tightened his grip and Dancing Bear winced. “Think on your answer carefully,” he said. “Even dying slow, there are better ways and worse ways. I could be persuaded to have some mercy on you if you cooperate with us now.”

Dancing Bear looked at Sky Knife. “No,” she said. “No, I didn't call up the serpent this morning. Lily-on-the-Water was having me watched. She could tell you.”

“But you were the spy,” said Sky Knife.

“Yes.”

“And the king?”

Dancing Bear looked at Grasping Fire. “I killed the king,” she said. A hint of a smile played across her face. “It was so easy,” she said. “I only had to put some poison in his cup.”

“Why?” asked Sky Knife.

“To signal the beginning of the revolt,” said Dancing Bear as if the answer were obvious. “Dark Lightning was set to move as soon as the king died.”

Something about that answer bothered Sky Knife, but he couldn't decide just what it was.

“That's all I'll say,” said Dancing Bear. “Because that's all I did.”

“All?” shouted Grasping Fire. “You killed my brother, you … you…”

Talking Storm dragged Dancing Bear to her feet. “I'll take care of her,” he said.

“Get her out of here,” said Grasping Fire. “Get her out!”

Talking Storm pushed Dancing Bear out of the tent. Grasping Fire paced back and forth. Deer, Jaguar's Daughter, and Black Coyote watched him anxiously.