miércoles, 3 de junio de 2009

Part 14: Heralds of Doom

"Where is it?" Alice asked, pressing herself against the wall and looking around the room, trying to catch a glimpse of the lightning-fast creature. The priest walked up to her and put his hands in her arms.

"Don't worry," he said. "It has been vanished out of existance."

"So my mom will be okay?"

"I don't know. As long as she keeps the amulet with her, she'll be fine. But the power of the amulet wanes over time."

"So what can I do to save her?" Alice could feel the tears stinging the back of her eyes. She'd never be able to handle the loss of another loved one.

"Save her? I don't think you're quite getting the big picture here," the priest said. "The fate of the whole world is hanging on a thread. After what you just saw, are you willing to listen?"

"... Yes."

"According to Aztec mythology, every fifty years a Chosen One is born. He who has been chosen carries the flame of the gods in his heart, and needs to be sacrificed so his blood can nourish the sun. Otherwise, the sun will wither and die, taking the world with it. The tzitzimime are heralds of doom, their arrival signals that the sun is about to wither, and we haven't found The Chosen One."

"We believe he might not have been born at all," one of the other men in the room said. "Maybe it is a sign, that the world is supposed to end now." Alice stared at the ma, trying to figure him out.

"Leave the room, both of you." The two men obeyed the priest's order and disappeared behind a door Alice hadn't noticed before. She could feel her breath catching in her lungs, fear keeping it inside. Her head started spinning and the colors on the room started dancing around her. Strong arms wrapped around her shoulders, and she could only faintly hear what the priest and Leo were saying.

"..."

"She really insisted."

"But..."

"I know, I did .... "

" ... then?"

"I don't know."

Alice made a huge effort to drag herself back to life and looked at Leo, who still held her from falling to the ground.

"I'm okay," she said. Her head still spun "I... I wish to talk to the Gods." She almost didn't recognize her voice uttering words so unknown to her. She sensed a sudden tense movement in Leo's arms, and the priest looked surprised.

"I can arrange that," the priest said. The look on his face had turned almost hungry.

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