The Fair God; or, The Last of the 'Tzins: A Tale of the Conquest of Mexico by Lew Wallace
CHAPTER V.
THE CHILD OF THE TEMPLE.
There were two royal palaces in the city; one built by Axaya', the otherby Montezuma, the reigning king, who naturally preferred his ownstructure, and so resided there. It was a low, irregular pile, embracingnot only the king's abode proper, but also quarters for his guard, andedifices for an armory, an aviary, and a menagerie. Attached to it was agarden, adorned with the choicest shrubbery and plants, with fruit andforest trees, with walks strewn with shells, and fountains of pure waterconducted from the reservoir of Chapultepec.
At night, except when the moon shone, the garden was lighted with lamps;and, whether in day or night, it was a favorite lounging-place. Duringfair evenings, particularly, its walks, of the whiteness of snow, werethronged by nobles and courtiers.
Shortly after the arrival of Iztlil' and Guatamozin, a party, mostly ofthe sons of provincial governors kept at the palace as hostages, weregathered in the garden, under a canopy used to shield a fountain fromthe noonday sun. The place was fairly lighted, the air fresh with thebreath of flowers, and delightful with the sound of falling water.
Maxtla, chief of the guard, was there, his juvenility well hidden underan ostentatious display. That he was "a very common soldier" in theopinion of the people was of small moment: he had the king's ear; andthat, without wit and courtierly tact, would have made him what hewas,--the oracle of the party around him.
In the midst of his gossip, Iztlil', the Tezcucan, came suddenly to thefountain. He coldly surveyed the assembly. Maxtla alone saluted him.
"Will the prince of Tezcuco be seated?" said the chief.
"The place is pleasant, and the company looks inviting," returnedIztlil', grimly.
Since his affair with Guatamozin, he had donned the uniform of an Aztecchieftain. Over his shoulders was carelessly flung a crimson_tilmatli_,--a short, square cloak, fantastically embroidered with gold,and so sprinkled with jewels as to flash at every movement; his body waswrapped closely in an _escaupil_, or tunic, of cotton lightly quilted,over which, and around his waist, was a _maxtlatl_, or sash, inseparablefrom the warrior. A casque of silver, thin, burnished, and topped withplumes, surmounted his head. His features were gracefully moulded, andhe would have been handsome but that his complexion was deepened byblack, frowning eyebrows. He was excessively arrogant; though sometimes,when deeply stirred by passion, his manner rose into the royal. Hischaracter I leave to history.
"I have just come from Iztapalapan," he said, as he sat upon theproffered stool. "The lake is calm, the way was very pleasant, I had the'tzin Guatamo' for comrade."
"You were fortunate. The 'tzin is good company," said Maxtla.
Iztlil' frowned, and became silent.
"To-morrow," continued the courtier, upon whom the discontent, slight asit was, had not been lost, "is the sacrifice to Quetzal'. I am reminded,gracious prince, that, at a recent celebration, you put up a thousandcocoa,[14] to be forfeited if you failed to see the daughter of Mualox,the paba. If not improper, how runs the wager, and what of the result?"
The cacique shrugged his broad shoulders.
"The man trembles!" whispered one of the party.
"Well he may! Old Mualox is more than a man."
Maxtla bowed and laughed. "Mualox is a magician; the stars deal withhim. And my brother will not speak, lest he may cover the sky of hisfortune with clouds."
"No," said the Tezcucan, proudly; "the wager was not a sacrilege to thepaba or his god; if it was, the god, not the man, should be a warrior'sfear."
"Does Maxtla believe Mualox a prophet?" asked Tlahua, a noble Otompan.
"The gods have power in the sun; why not on earth?"
"You do not like the paba," observed Iztlil', gloomily.
"Who has seen him, O prince, and thought of love? And the walls andtowers of his dusty temple,--are they not hung with dread, as the sky ona dark day with clouds?"
The party, however they might dislike the cacique, could not listencoldly to this conversation. They were mostly of that mystic race ofAzatlan, who, ages before, had descended into the valley, like aninundation, from the north; the race whose religion was founded uponcredulity; the race full of chivalry, but horribly governed by a craftypriesthood. None of them disbelieved in star-dealing. So every eye fixedon the Tezcucan, every ear drank the musical syllables of Maxtla. Theywere startled when the former said abruptly,--
"Comrades, the wrath of the old paba is not to be lightly provoked; hehas gifts not of men. But, as there is nothing I do not dare, I willtell the story."
The company now gathered close around the speaker.
"Probably you have all heard," he began, "that Mualox keeps in histemple somewhere a child or woman too beautiful to be mortal. The storymay be true; yet it is only a belief; no eye has seen footprint orshadow of her. A certain lord in the palace, who goes thrice a week tothe shrine of Quetzal', has faith in the gossip and the paba. He saysthe mystery is Quetzal' himself, already returned, and waiting,concealed in the temple, the ripening of the time when he is to burst invengeance on Tenochtitlan. I heard him talking about it one day, andwagered him a thousand cocoa that, if there was such a being I would seeher before the next sacrifice to Quetzal'."
The Tezcucan hesitated.
"Is the believer to boast himself wealthier by the wager?" said Maxtla,profoundly interested. "A thousand cocoa would buy a jewel or a slave:surely, O prince, surely they were worth the winning!"
Iztlil' frowned again, and said bitterly, "A thousand cocoa I cannotwell spare; they do not grow on my hard northern hills like flowers inXochimilco. I did my best to save the wager. Old habit lures me to thegreat _teocallis_;[15] for I am of those who believe that a warrior'sworship is meet for no god but Huitzil'. But, as the girl was supposedto be down in the cells of the old temple, and none but Mualox couldsatisfy me, I began going there, thinking to bargain humilities forfavor. I played my part studiously, if not well; but no offering oftongue or gold ever won me word of friendship or smile of confidence.Hopeless and weary, I at last gave up, and went back to the _teocallis_.But now hear my parting with the paba. A short time ago a mystery wasenacted in the temple. At the end, I turned to go away, determined thatit should be my last visit. At the eastern steps, as I was aboutdescending, I felt a hand laid on my arm. It was Mualox; and not moreterrible looks Tlalac when he has sacrificed a thousand victims. Therewas no blood on his hands; his beard and surplice were white andstainless; the terror was in his eyes, that seemed to burn and shootlightning. You know, good chief, that I could have crushed him with ablow; yet I trembled. Looking back now, I cannot explain the awe thatseized me. I remember how my will deserted me,--how another's came inits stead. With a glance he bound me hand and foot. While I looked athim, he dilated, until I was covered by his shadow. He magnified himselfinto the stature of a god. 'Prince of Tezcuco,' he said, 'son of thewise 'Hualpilli, from the sun Quetzal' looks down on the earth. Alikeover land and sea he looks. Before him space melts into a span, anddarkness puts on the glow of day. Did you think to deceive my god, Oprince?' I could not answer; my tongue was like stone. 'Go hence, gohence!' he cried, waving his hand. 'Your presence darkens his mood. Hiswrath is on your soul; he has cursed you. Hence, abandoned of the gods!'So saying, he went back to the tower again, and my will returned, and Ifled. And now," said the cacique, turning suddenly and sternly upon hishearers, "who will deny the magic of Mualox? How may I be assured thathis curse that day spoken was not indeed a curse from Quetzal'?"
There was neither word nor laugh,--not even a smile. The gay Maxtlaappeared infected with a sombreness of spirit; and it was not long untilthe party broke up, and went each his way.
FOOTNOTES:
[14] The Aztec currency consisted of bits of tin, in shape like a capital T, of quills of gold-dust, and of bags of cocoa, containing a stated number of grains. Sahagun, Hist. de Nueva Esp.
[15] Temple. The term appears to have applied part