A World Darkly (Wrath of the Old Gods Book 3)

by John Triptych

  The other men who were with him knew the cause was lost as they placed their weapons on the concrete road and put their hands over their heads. Only the medic kept on going as he knelt by the man who was shot in the leg and began to administer first aid.

  A loudspeaker started booming nearby. They knew it was directed at them. “All of you that are still on the freeway, drop your weapons and put your hands over your head! Now! If you do not comply you will be shot!”

  Teller knew it was all over. Any SOL trooper that made it past the bridges and into the city would most certainly be either captured or killed by now. It was all his fault. He had been nothing more than an unassuming captain in the US Air Force until he threw his lot in with the Kansas separatists. He was a man of God himself and he felt that the Federal government just wasn’t doing enough to fight against the chaos that unfolded around the world the moment the old gods came back. The newly organized SOL didn’t have a whole lot of senior, active duty officers and so he got quickly bumped up through the ranks, even though he had no formal training or experience to command an armored unit of this size, much less a brigade. Now it looked like his whole unit was wiped out. Just hours ago he had several companies of main battle tanks, along with numerous support vehicles. In just a matter of minutes, it was all gone. He wanted to bury his head in shame. Teller anticipated what it would be like during a formal inquest as to how his unit was destroyed. He could imagine himself making all sorts of excuses why it wasn’t his fault, but in the end it would all be lies anyway. He did screw the pooch on this one, and he would be man enough to admit it.

  As the minutes passed, he could see groups of soldiers from the US Army were now above them, in prepared positions on top of the overpass. With the exception of the soldier who was wounded in the leg and the other one lying dead on the ground, the rest of them started walking back westwards with their hands in the air, were there was an onramp that would take them off of the freeway. The Federal soldiers stayed along the sides of the elevated walls, their M-4 rifles carefully pointing at them with triggers on the ready.

  One of the Federal soldiers in the overpass above started shouting at him to get his hands up. General Teller stayed where he was, still sitting behind one of the support columns. He didn’t want to get captured. He knew the drill. They would treat his wounds before interrogating him. Then they would lock him up and formally charge him with treason. Teller was aware that they had a file on him. After all, he was the one who played a pivotal role in hijacking that convoy full of nukes to give it over to the Christian cause.

  There was really no other way out and he knew it. Teller remembered what the Romans used to do when their side lost. They would go out with some dignity. Teller was a proud man. What he couldn’t live with was the shame of it all. In the end he wasn’t really that religious, he just figured that siding with the Christians would give him a little insurance if he made it into the afterlife. After all, he figured that as long as he believed in the Lord, then he would go to heaven no matter what he did.

  Ignoring the shouts that were telling him to put his hands up, Teller drew his Beretta M9 pistol from his side holster and placed its barrel at the back of his head. He was blinded momentarily when somebody aimed a laser sight on his face, but he kept his resolve as he thumbed the safety off before pulling the trigger.

  Lieutenant Deon Brown placed his hands over his hips while his communications crews were giving each other high fives. He turned to look at Sykes. “Well, that’s it then. Looks like this operation was a success. Kansas City is still in government hands and we kicked their ass too. My mean have a new nickname for the SOL, we’re calling them the shit outta luck army now. I’d like to thank you for your advice and all that. You really ought to get back to active duty, sir.”

  Gerald Sykes just smiled. Score one for the good guys, he thought. It was amazing what a few missile teams could do against an armored brigade if deployed properly. “I’m much too old, Lieutenant. But since my country needed me, I’m more than willing to lend a hand when it comes to planning and coordination. Let’s see what those darned rebels do now.”

  9. Journey to Mictlan

  Teotihuacan

  Tepiltzin, the newly-christened high priest of Xipe Totec, climbed out from the idling minivan and stared out into the new city. It was early morning, and the short drive from the capital had barely lasted thirty minutes. The small convoy that he traveled with would have made it sooner, but the newly-built roads leading out of Tenochtitlan were still under construction. Once the main elevated highway was fully rebuilt to bypass the constant flooding of the valley, more and more people would be coming here. For even though their imperial capital lay thirty miles to the southwest, Tepiltzin knew that the true power of their empire originated from here, and he was glad to be assigned to this post.

  When the ancient Aztecs began to dominate the valley some seven hundred years ago, they discovered a lost, ruined city in the jungle to the northeast of Lake Texcoco. They named it Teotihuacan, or the birthplace of the gods. It was here the Aztecs believed the sun and the stars were created, and that all the gods once lived there. They revered its forgotten temples and fashioned their own city after it. Now that the new Aztec Empire had once again become dominant, so too did the increasing importance of this city become.

  Tepiltzin stretched his legs before looking around. The minivan had been parked just at the entrance to the Avenue of the Dead. In the past few weeks, the modern buildings surrounding what was once the archaeological center were torn down. The great temples were rebuilt almost overnight and there was gleaming white plaster on the pyramid walls. Tepiltzin noticed that the white plaster of the largest temple, the Pyramid of the Sun, had already been stained with blood, but it was not to the extent like the temples they had back in Tenochtitlan. That will be remedied soon enough, he thought. Once we have more sacrifices brought here and more priests trained, these white temples will become carmine and brown very quickly.

  A troop of forty eagle warriors came out of a nearby building that had once been the museum and started walking towards Tepiltzin and his small group of apprentice priests. Dressed in brightly feathered costumes, these elite soldiers of the new Aztec Army also carried assault rifles that were slung over their shoulders. Tepiltzin knew that the warriors preferred to capture their enemies rather than kill them on the battlefield, so that meant that they used their modern firearms to aim for the legs rather than the enemy torsos. Rubber and plastic bullets were now very popular amongst the warrior class, and also made it harder for their enemies to die right away.

  The lead eagle warrior wore a beaked helmet that resembled the head of a giant bird. His brown face was just underneath the top part of the protruding beak. He also had feathered wings protruding from his rear harness. A holstered pistol and his macuahuitl, the Aztec wooden sword, were strapped to his side belt. The soldier moved towards them and stopped until he came face to face with the high priest. “Welcome, High Priest Tepiltzin of the House of the Obsidian Knife, I am Commander Huemac of the House of the Blood Sky. My Eagle Knight unit is in charge of the garrison and training of the city militia. The avatar of Xipe Totec has sent messages of your impending arrival and we welcome you to your new post. We are to escort you to your newly built temple.”

  Tepiltzin made a slight bow. “Thank you, Commander Huemac. It has been a great honor to be assigned as the new high priest of this city. Have the children been assembled?”

  Huemac nodded. “Yes, all the boys and the young warriors from the House of the Youth have been mustered and are in assembly. They are currently waiting for your speech at the Plaza of the Moon.”

  “Very well,” Tepiltzin said. “Can my apprentices go ahead of us so that they may prepare the altar near the rack of skulls?”

  Huemac pivoted slightly as he gestured towards the avenue ahead of them. “Of course, I shall send one squad of my Eagle Knights as a ceremonial advance guard.”

  Tepiltzin snapped his fi
ngers. Almost immediately, his apprentice priests took out their gear from the back of the minivans and started to make their way down the stone avenue. Two of the youngest priests in training grabbed a sacrifice from the back seat of the van and started to drag him along with them. The prisoner was another American whom they had taken when the city of Dallas was sacked. The bound and gagged man wore a policeman’s uniform, he struggled for bit, but one of the apprentices hit the back of his head with a wooden club that momentarily stunned him. Now that the prisoner was unable to resist, the apprentices half carried him down the street.

  Now that the formalities were over until the ceremony began, Tepiltzin smiled as he stepped forward and shook Huemac’s hand. “I wanted to ask you a favor, Commander. You see, I have a brother and he was assigned here for training and—”

  Huemac let out a short laugh. “Do not worry. I know of your brother. He is Yaotl and he is doing quite well. He was able to participate in his first battle when we advanced on to Dallas. That young man acquitted himself quite nicely. He was able to capture a cop, I believe.”

  Tepiltzin grinned as he held his palms open to the darkening sky above. “Ah, praise Xipe Totec! Praise Huitzilopochtli for his safe return! The gods are truly looking after my family!”

  “Yes, your brother has been reassigned here,” Huemac said. “He will now be one of the combat instructors in the House of the Youth. He has earned his increase in rank.”

  “Excellent. May I make a request for a private meeting with him after the ceremony?”

  “Of course, we are in between battle, and the warrior castes are here to serve the high priests, after all.”

  “Wonderful. Then let us proceed with the ceremony. The day is still young and we have much to do.”

  The youth of the city were dutifully assembled in the Plaza of the Moon. Every boy over the age of twelve had been silently standing in orderly ranks as they awaited the new high priest. Many of them were thankful that the heat of the morning sun was now obscured by the ever darkening clouds in the sky. On the opposite side of them were the ranks of the Aztec warriors, these men were in elaborate animal skins and fully armed as if they were ready to go on parade. Many of the children would continuously stare in awe at the soldiers, as the older boys would keep their assigned squads in line using their batons.

  At the center of the plaza was a slightly elevated stone platform. In the middle of the stage was a small altar made of polished green obsidian. A small group of priests stood just behind it. Within minutes, Tepiltzin’s entourage of priestly apprentices made their way to the altar and placed a small wooden chest behind it. Trumpets and drums began to sound as the new high priest walked slowly towards the center of the plaza. The apprentice priests quickly opened the chest and began to prepare the sacrificial tools while the prisoner was held down, just near the side of the stage.

  It was a slow walk that took nearly half an hour, but Tepiltzin knew that all Aztecs must adopt an elegant, leisurely pose while walking down the street during a ritual. Commander Huemac and his eagle warriors followed him closely as they stayed in a tight formation. By the time he had reached the foot of the stage, the music became even louder, until it finally ended in a cacophony of trumpet blasts.

  Tepiltzin walked up the stage, then turned around so he could face the audience gathered in front of him. “Welcome, people of the sun. Young citizens of the new Aztec Empire, and our brave warriors. I have come here as your new high priest for a momentous occasion. This ceremony will mark the beginning of the newly built temples of the Triple Alliance. In order to understand why we are here in this sacred city, and why we celebrate our victories with ritual sacrifices, we must first go back to the beginning of time. I shall first explain to you the events that happened in the Popol Vuh, the Book of the People. In order for you all to understand the purpose of our new Aztec society, you must first understand how the world was brought into being.”

  He cleared his throat before continuing. “In the beginning there was only darkness. Then came forth the dual god Ometecuhtli, the primordial one, it was he who split into two gods, one man and one woman. It was from these two separate beings of the One that gave birth to the four Tezcatlipoca who would create our world. Like the four points of the compass, each one of these new gods would take their turn to create a new world, a new sun. The first Tezcatlipoca was the god of the smoking mirror. He kept the name of Tezcatlipoca, unlike the other three that had their own, unique names. The second son was Xipe Totec, our lord of the Flayed One, the Night Drinker. The third son was Huitzilopochtli, the hummingbird of the south, the god of war and patron of our mighty warriors. The fourth son was Quetzalcoatl, the feathered serpent, he of wisdom and magic. As with all brothers, they fought for control of the world. The four of them created fire, then men, then the underworld. After that they created the heavens and the waters.”

  Tepiltzin paused for bit before continuing. He had noticed that the priest that he was supposed to replace wasn’t part of the assembled group at the rear of the stone platform. It was a slight concern, but he needed to finish his teachings first. “Then came the cycle of the five suns. It was of this time that the four gods attempted to create a new world, only to have each one end in destruction. The first sun was presided over by Tezcatlipoca. This was a time when giants walked the world. Quetzalcoatl was jealous, and he overthrew Tezcatlipoca and sent jaguars to consume the planet, thereby destroying it. The second sun was now ruled by Quetzalcoatl but Tezcatlipoca gained his revenge by turning people into monkeys and destroying the second world with hurricanes and wind. The third sun was then governed by Tlaloc, the god of rain. But Tezcatlipoca, ever the trickster, seduced his wife and stole her away. The rain god was furious, and he first stopped all the rains from falling on the ground, then he cast sheets of fire at the world until there was nothing left but ashes. Then came the fourth sun, which was ruled by the water goddess Chalchiuhtlicue. Yet that world was also destroyed when the jealous Tezcatlipoca made the goddess cry from his lies. When he had told her that the love of her people for her was false, she became saddened. Her tears flooded the world and the surviving humans were turned into fish. Finally came the fifth sun, when the minor god Nanahuatzin sacrificed his body to become the new sun. The other gods were moved to pity by his selflessness and they sacrificed their own blood in order to make him move around the earth, so as not to burn it.”

  As he paused once more, he noticed that the high priest that he was to replace was in fact standing high up above them. The other man was at the top of the Pyramid of the Moon, directly behind them. Tepiltzin sensed that he would have to deal with him later. In the meantime he had to continue his story. “So it came to be that our forefathers, the ancient Aztecs of the First Empire, were living under that fifth sun, before Quetzalcoatl returned under the guise of a Spanish Conquistador and destroyed that world. Now that the gods have returned, their words to us now tell of a new purpose. Huitzilopochtli and Xipe Totec are now working together to bring about a sixth sun, this will replace our now dying world with a new one, reserved for the new Azteca as their chosen people. To achieve this, the two creator gods have entered into a truce with Tlaloc and with his mutual consent, we have defeated Tezcatlipoca’s faction and sacrificed his followers, and now that god’s influence is no more.”

  Tepiltzin raised his hands and held them up to the sky. “Now we make sacrifices for a different purpose. Now we offer our most valuable essence, the blood of our people, and that of our vanquished enemies, as gifts to the new alliance of Xipe Totec, Huitzilopochtli and Tlaloc. May these three gods protect us in battle, may these three gods defeat our enemies, and may these three gods protect us against the return of Quetzalcoatl and Tezcatlipoca. May those two exiled lords never return, for as long as we give our blood to the Triple Alliance, so shall they watch over us and defend us against the other gods of the world. With this new pact of creation, the new priests who speak directly to the gods will now prove their divine powers.”
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  With those words, four apprentice priests immediately grabbed hold of the prisoner and carried him to the altar. They quickly stripped him of his uniform and held him down as his back lay on top of the polished stone slab. The storm clouds above coalesced into a dark wall that covered the sky. Lightning began to strike near them but not a single person was hit by it.

  Tepiltzin turned around and took off his feather cloak, letting it drop onto the base of the stage. One of his assistants handed him a flint knife, butt first. As he moved over to where the sacrifice was lying, another apprentice priest used a silken cord to pull down the victim’s throat. The American was screaming, but the roaring thunder drowned out his desperate pleas for mercy. Tepiltzin worked quickly as he ripped open the skin just underneath the victim’s ribcage before working the knife through the inner chest membranes and slicing around the heart. Within less than ten seconds, he held up the still beating heart above his head so that everyone could see it.

  Almost immediately, a hole opened up horizontally in the center of the Avenue of the Dead. It looked like a rip in space. Everyone turned and some of the younger children actually fainted. The older youths and the warriors had seen this before. In fact, it was the third time it had happened this week that it was now becoming a common occurrence. They could not see what lay on the other side of the hole, it was nothing but an inky blackness that stretched up to twenty feet high, it was as if someone had placed a black hole in the middle of the street and suspended it vertically in the air with invisible hands.

  Soon enough, there were things that started to come out from the hole. Tepiltzin knew it was a portal from Mictlan, the Aztec underworld. What came out looked like ordinary Aztec warriors. They were still wearing the bloody costumes that they had died in their last battle. A few of them were missing arms and legs and so they just hopped or crawled out of the opening. One Aztec warrior came through carrying his head in his arms. There must have been tens of thousands of them.