Todd Pitts - The Serpent Passage

William nodded with a smile.

“We are enjoying music and conversation before leaving to the ballcourt,” Teshna said. She studied William, her eyes rolling up and down his frame. “How are your injuries?”

William didn’t quite understand her fast dialogue, and he looked to Priest Quisac for help. The Serpent Priest repeated what she had just said, with images of William’s sore feet appearing in his mind as he spoke.

William looked back to Teshna. “Oh, yes my feet are much better. Thank you.”

“Do you enjoy the ball games, Balam?” Yax asked.

“Oh, yes I like ball games,” he said, remembering how his high school soccer team had made it to the state playoffs the year before. “I used to play back home, but I have never seen…”

An argument between several nobles arose near in the courtyard, interrupting their conversation. A merchant bickered over a particular transaction, and he would not release the spear decorated in quetzal feathers. It escalated into a tug-of-war over the item in question. Yax motioned to one of his guards to take care of it. He waited for the conflict to calm down before turning his attention back to William; he looked like a kid admiring his favorite sports hero. “I am not surprised to hear that you are also a ball player. You must tell me about all your victories.”

“I believe the games are played differently in his land,” the Serpent Priest said, while his eyes rolled back in his head. William figured that Priest Quisac had just seen images of him playing soccer in his mind.

“Yes, Priest Quisac,” Yax said, annoyed. “I am aware that the rules differ from land to land. Yet we play the games to honor the gods. Is this not so, Balam?”

William felt frustrated that he couldn’t completely follow the conversation. But he figured it couldn’t be too important if they were just talking about games, and so he just nodded. He looked around the room, wondering where Betty was. “Where is Bati?” he asked.

Yax instructed a servant to go look for her.

“What is your relationship to Bati?” Teshna asked William, with a hint of jealousy on her face.

Priest Quisac shot a suspicious look her way, raising his grey eyebrows. Teshna responded with a demure smile, like a girl caught stealing candy.

“I have no relationship with Bati,” William said with the same assurance as a husband explaining his pretty secretary to his wife. He wanted Teshna to be aware of his availability. “We only met some days ago, when I… helped her out of a tough situation. We’ve been traveling together since then.”

The Serpent Priest reiterated William’s dialogue, selecting different words than he had to better convey the message. The translation process also helped William to further learn their dialect and expressions.

Teshna let loose a smile, displaying her jewel-embedded teeth. It occurred to William that all the Mayan nobles had similar dental work. He recalled reading how it was a fashion trend with the Maya in those days, and he grimaced, wondering how they went about drilling the little gems into their teeth without the modern dental tools they had in his time.

William shifted his attention to the large crowd in the courtyard. “Who are all these people here?” he asked Priest Quisac.

The Serpent Priest studied the gathered nobles. “Some are related by blood. The men over there-who stare at you with such reverence-were to be taken to the altar after the King. Others included in the royal assembly are merchants, master artisans, and the captains of the royal guard.”

As Priest Quisac gestured to the royal guards, William spotted a young captain-close to his own age-with ripped biceps, and wearing a creative headdress that utilized part of a crocodile’s jaw. The buff warrior noticed his attention and locked eye contact with William, casting an angry stare his way. It evolved into an all out staring contest to see who would back down. William gave the guy a cocky salute. Caught off guard by the gesture, the young captain looked away, and William returned his attention to the Serpent Priest.

“Are you finished?” Priest Quisac asked with a scowl, having observed the interaction with the Captain.

William nodded, taken down a notch, like being reprimanded by his mother. “Who are those two?” William asked, while pointing at the men in the corner. They were painted like zebras with tall headdresses.

“They are priests,” the Serpent Priest said.

“Priests like you?” William asked. He recalled seeing the priests before, dragging the captives up the pyramid steps to be sacrificed. He wondered how they could still be trusted in the new hierarchy.

Teshna leaned forward. “They do not possess the powers of a Serpent Priest,” she said, and then gave Priest Quisac a surreptitious glance. “But at least they do as they are told.”

“Do not fear, Balam,” Priest Quisac said. “They are trustworthy. The priests merely see to the adherence of our rituals and ceremonies. Yet they lack understanding of the cosmic plan .”

When the Serpent Priest mentioned the cosmic plan , William visualized a brilliant light at the center of the galaxy casting a radiant energy toward Earth. In that brief moment, he witnessed a flash of Earth’s evolution-life springing up and developing in a montage of scattered images. The bloodstone tingled and glowed on his chest. He shook his head, trying to return his focus to the reality around him. With a bewildered expression left hanging on his face, William marveled at Priest Quisac’s ability to cast images like that, and he wondered what made him so unique. It occurred to William that the Serpent Priest also looked different than the others; his skin was a lighter shade, his nose seemed narrower, and his cheek bones sat lower on his face.

The servant reentered from the hallway and explained that Bati could not be found in the palace. William rolled his eyes, concerned that she probably snuck off to the cenote for a swim, even after he had warned her to stay away. But he didn’t want to get Betty in trouble, so he kept quiet about it.

The low-pitched bellows of seashell trumpets outside the palace caught everyone’s attention. “At long last, the games are to begin!” Yax cheered.

The music in the courtyard abruptly ended, and the chatter of the royal assembly ceased, when Honac-Fey-the charismatic Mayan with a diamond-shaped tattoo on his forehead-entered the room and made his way to the King. On his shoulder perched a beautiful owl; it was mostly white, except for the blue highlights around its eyes and tips of its feathers. The owl flew off upon his command, taking temporary residence on a branch high up in the ceiba tree. Upon reaching the King, Honac-Fey bowed.

Yax glared at the man. “Honac-Fey. What is the cause for the delay?”

“I do apologize, my Lord,” Honac-Fey said, over exaggerating by dropping to his knees. He looked like he was begging for his life, but in a sarcastic manner. “The players report being prolonged by seven serpents that crossed their path along the journey from Kinichna. To honor the gods, they had to stop for prayers, and to make proper offerings.” He stood and held his hands out wide with a twisted smile. “Both teams are now ready at the ballcourt. They await your command to begin.”

As Honac-Fey spoke, William noticed a stern look on Priest Quisac’s face. It was clear that the Serpent Priest didn’t like Honac-Fey. William thought he was annoying too, like an animated announcer at a circus sideshow.

“Very well,” Yax said. “Bring Priests Ik-Tanil and Ch’elek with you to perform the blessing rites.”

Honac-Fey gave another embellished bow before departing, with the two priests following him out. The white owl flew off the ceiba tree into the afternoon sky overhead, in the direction of Honac-Fey.