The White Conquerors: A Tale of Toltec and Aztec by Kirk Munroe
CHAPTER XXIII.
IN THE PASSAGES BENEATH THE TEMPLE
Although Huetzin felt certain that some secret door or panel must offera passage through the wall, against which he had run with such rudeforce, he realized, from past experience, the folly of attempting todiscover it. Therefore, when he had somewhat recovered from the shockjust received, he slowly and carefully retraced his way along thepassage, in search of some other opening leading from it.
In the meantime the chief priest, who had discovered no sign of thefugitive since the door at the foot of the stairway was flung to inhis face, had hastened on out of the underground labyrinth. He postedguards at all its exits, with the information that an escaped prisoner,who must be seized the moment he showed himself, was wandering about init, and ordered a victim, selected at random from the temple cages, tobe killed and his heart torn out. With this in his hand Topil made hisway, undiscovered, to the private apartments of the king, reaching themjust in time to anticipate the return of the monarch from the temple.
Feeling well satisfied with this portion of his morning's work, andbeing also convinced that the prisoner, who had twice eluded him, wasstill within his reach, the chief priest, after leaving the palace,made several calls on powerful nobles well know as being opposed tothe king's present method of treating the invaders of Anahuac. Thesehe invited to attend a secret meeting, to be held that very day, in aplace well known to all of them, and in every case the invitation wasgladly accepted.
While the priest was thus engaged Huetzin was wandering hopelesslythrough the black mazes of the underground passages, stairways, rooms,and hidden doorways, that he had entered so easily, but from which henow found it so impossible to escape. Some of the passages that hefollowed ended, as the first had done, with blank walls, while othersled into chambers of greater or less size, as he discovered by gropinghis way around them. He was faint, weary, and aching in every joint,tortured by the pangs of hunger and a burning thirst. Above all, itseemed to the young Toltec that he must be going mad, as the horrors ofhis situation crowded thick and fast upon him. In spite of his dread ofbeing recaptured by the priests, he shouted at the top of his voice,and the underground echoes jeered at him with hollow mockery.
Finally he found himself in a hall or chamber that seemed much largerthan any he had yet entered, and here he managed to lose touch ofthe rough wall, along which he had felt his way until the ends of hisfingers were worn to the quick. As he moved forward with uncertainsteps, seeking to regain it, he stumbled against some large object,fell, and rolled partly under it. So far as he could tell by thefeeling, it was a stone altar or table, covered with a heavy tapestrythat hung in folds to the floor on all sides.
It was pleasant to encounter something besides cold stone, and insteadof rising at once Huetzin lay still, passing his hands mechanicallyover the soft cloth. His thoughts became hazy and he seemed to bedrifting into space. How much better it was to lie there than to wanderaimlessly through those interminable passages as he had been doing fordays--or weeks--which was it? He tried to remember, but could not. Atany rate it was a long time, long enough for one to be dead, buried,and forgotten in. Perhaps he was dead! Yes, there came the white-robedtorch-bearing priests who were to bury him. How perplexed they wouldbe if he should hide his body so that the ceremony could not proceed.Of course he would give himself up after a while. Smiling to himselfat the thought of this trick, Huetzin rolled still farther under thestone table, until he was completely hidden by its drapery. He lay verystill, and must have fallen into a doze. At least he was not consciousof what was taking place about him until he was suddenly aroused by theword "Malinche."
Malinche was the native name for Cortes, and some one was saying,"Malinche must then be slain as he visits the king on the morrow. It isso decided. After his death the destruction of his army will be an easymatter, and Huitzil's altars shall not want for victims. As for thevile Tlascalans, they will serve to feed the altars of the lesser godsfor many days of rejoicing."
No longer was Huetzin dozing, nor were his thoughts vague anduncertain. He was, of a sudden, as wide awake as ever in his life, andas clear-headed. Hunger, thirst, terror, and pain were all forgotten.He was listening to the details of a plot for the destruction of hisfriends and followers, and for the establishment on a firmer basis thanever of the cruel Aztec religion and its blood-stained priesthood. Hedared not move, nor even to peep from behind his sheltering curtain todiscover who these conspirators were. He hardly dared to breathe, andwished he could silence the beatings of his heart that seemed to himdistinct above all other sounds.
From a faint glow that came through the tapestry he knew that thechamber was lighted by torches, and from the sound of footsteps onthe stone floor he judged that a number of persons were implicated inthe conspiracy. At length the glow began to fade and the footsteps toretreat. The meeting had broken up and its members were departing.Venturing to peer out Huetzin saw the last torch on the point ofvanishing in the distant blackness, and springing to his feet he rannoiselessly after it.
He was thus guided along a narrow passage similar to those in which hehad wandered so miserably, and around several corners. All at once hesaw a torch coming directly toward him. A priest had been sent backfor some mislaid article. The young Toltec crouched close beside thewall. The priest did not discover him until he was within a few pacesof the crouching figure. Then, as he peered uncertainly at it, Huetzinlaunched himself forward with a spring like that of an ocelot. In aninstant the priest was borne to the ground, while the torch, flungfar from him, flickered and expired. He attempted to cry out, but afierce clutch at his throat changed his cry into a choked gurgle.His struggles were futile in the iron grasp of this monster of thedarkness, and within a minute he was bound hand, foot, and mouth withstrips torn from his own robes.
Leaving him thus, Huetzin sped noiselessly and swiftly away in thedirection taken by the others. He was so fortunate as to again seetheir lights as the last one was passing through a doorway leadingto a flight of steps. He heard a voice say, "Let it remain open forAmatli," and was content to wait until all had ascended the stairwayand disappeared.
Then the young Toltec crept cautiously up the stone steps, which weredisclosed by a subdued but blessed daylight. From their top he couldsee a door opening on to a street. Between him and it were two armedguards engaged in earnest conversation. Their backs were turned to him,and stealing breathlessly to where they stood, he bounded past them tothe doorway. They were after him in an instant, with loud cries, buthe had already gained the street. He knew not where he was, and ranblindly, though with the fleetness of a deer, while an ever-increasingmob of soldiers, priests, and citizens followed in hot pursuit. Had henot caught sight of the great temple he must have fallen an easy preyto this army of pursuers. Even with the hope inspired by this familiarlandmark his strength would have failed to take him to the shelterof the Spanish wall, had it not been for the opportune appearance ofSandoval with his flashing sword and gallant war-cry.
Once inside the gate, and realizing that he was again safe from hisfierce pursuers, the unnatural strength that had sustained him so longgave way, and Huetzin staggered as though about to fall. Numbers ofSpaniards and Tlascalans sprang to his assistance, but Sandoval was thefirst to reach him, and lifting the youth in his mighty arms as thoughhe had been an infant, he bore him to his own quarters. Here, under therough but skilful ministrations of the young soldier, Huetzin revivedsufficiently to beg for water and food, neither of which he had tastedfor many hours. These being brought, he ate and drank until, fearfulthat he would do himself harm, Sandoval took them from him.
Greatly refreshed and strengthened, Huetzin now asked for Marina, andwhen the girl appeared, full of wondering pity at the evidences hebore of his recent experiences, he requested her to obtain for himan instant interview with the commander concerning a matter of vitalimport. Cortes had just learned of the reappearance in the flesh of onewhom the king had, but an hour before, declared dead, and was comin
The young chieftain had expected to go to the General, and was coveredwith confusion when the latter came to where he was, as though he hadsent for him. He would have risen, but the commander insisted that,by his sufferings, he had won the right to lie still. So, seatinghimself beside the pile of mats that formed Sandoval's couch, and onwhich Huetzin now lay, Cortes listened with the gravest attentionto an account of all that had happened to the young warrior sincethe preceding evening. When the latter came to a description of theunderground meeting of conspirators, the leader's face grew very stern,and at the conclusion of the recital he exclaimed:
"Thou hast done well, my young lord of Titcala, and even thy recentsufferings are amply rewarded by the news obtained through them. Thusforewarned I am of the opinion that we shall find some means forcheckmating these burrowing water-rats. How say you, Don Gonzalo?"
"If not, then shall we well deserve the fate they plot for us,"answered Sandoval, to whom this question was addressed.
"Art sure that thou hast a heart still beating in thy breast?" suddenlydemanded the General of Huetzin. "I was told, not long since, that agod had torn it from thy bosom, also that a fair lady of the king'scourt was expressing anxiety concerning thee."
"My heart is still in my own keeping, in spite of gods and fairladies," replied Huetzin, though with Marina's blush reflected on hisown face; "neither do I know any lady of Montezuma's court, unlessindeed it be my sister Tiata, who is but a child, and is, I fear, nolonger to be found in any earthly court or city."