Teshna held William’s hand, and her soft touch helped to subdue his rage. He released his grip on the bloodstone and its radiance diminished.
“You must keep thoughts of vengeance from your mind,” Priest Quisac said. “We must act calmly for our mission to succeed.”
“Our mission?” William laughed. “We’ve been preparing to fight a normal army. How are we supposed to fight that cloud thing?”
Priest Quisac considered that for a moment and then turned to Teshna. “Did it come for our people?”
Teshna rolled her eyes with a baffled look. “What are you talking about? I left our camp not long after you. What cloud are you referring to?”
“We have to get back,” William said.
Without another spoken word, the four companions began the journey back to Dzibanché.
During the hike, William told Teshna about the dark cloud that appeared, and how it seemed to be blasting everyone into oblivion, although Priest Quisac insisted that it was taking them—a concept he still could not comprehend. They marched east for several hours, until the familiar buzzing sound vibrated the ground beneath them; they stopped in their tracks.
“It is near,” Priest Quisac said matter-of-factly. “We must proceed with caution.”
As they approached the clearing where the Dzibanché army had been waiting for the attack, the buzzing noise increased in its intensity. Darkness enveloped them under the shadow of the large cloud. They peeked around the trees, staring at the western side of the clearing with shocked looks. The entire army was gone.
“What happened,” Teshna said. “Where are they?”
“They have also been taken,” the Serpent Priest said.
“No. Surely they fled into the jungle,” she said, almost in tears.
“Look.” Priest Quisac pointed to the eastern edge of the clearing. “Their weapons lie where they last stood.”
Colorful lights sparkled beneath the cloud just before a beam of orange light struck a spot in the middle of the clearing, creating a blinding glare until it dissolved.
“It knows we are here,” the Serpent Priest said.
“You think,” Betty whispered sarcastically. “Hey, someone’s there now!”
“It’s Yax,” Teshna said, and began to run out to him.
William grabbed her arm, holding Teshna back. “It may be a trick.”
Yax spotted them and began to approach. He stopped after a few steps, his arms held out in a welcoming gesture. “Do not be frightened, for now I understand. All is well. Come, I shall explain,” he hollered from across the field.
They moved from their hiding place behind the trees and met up with the King in the middle of the clearing.
Yax smiled when they neared. “I am pleased that you have returned, for I am delighted to tell you that our great fear of this day has been misunderstood. Our ancestors from the stars have arrived to take us home… to the world where we come from. They sensed your worry, and so they sent me down to welcome you myself.”
The Serpent Priest gave a suspicious look at the cloud. “The stars did not speak of a reunion such as this. This is unexpected.”
“What about King Aztuk?” William asked, still feeling a twinge of the bloodstone’s thirst for the man; they needed to sacrifice him to end the curse.
Yax gazed at the cloud above. “They say he is there, with all his people too. They told me that King Aztuk was very disturbed by all this. He demanded to be made a god… to be given the powers he thought he deserved. So they subdued him—preserved him inside a crystal chamber. These beings do not understand his negative urges, and they wish to study him.”
“Then you’re leaving,” William asked, feeling confused. “You’re going with them?”
“Not only us,” Yax said. “Those who have been faithful to the gods in all the kingdoms of these sacred lands may go. However, many will be relocated in the north to strengthen Chichén Itzá… for the continued protection of this world.”
There were many other confusing matters that William still couldn’t piece together, and after everything they had been through, he wanted answers—to understand the purpose of it all. “The bloodstone… the soil plague… the Sacred Cavern… this cloud… what’s the connection between all this, Yax?” William asked.
“Perhaps it would be best if they explain it to you,” he said, and gazed up at the cloud above them. He raised his hands to the sky, and a golden light flashed. The land around the clearing dissolved from view—immediately replaced by an incredible sight. They found themselves standing on a platform atop a pyramid that sparkled from the light of a blue-green sky. The sky had an artificial appearance; it shimmered as though it were being viewed through a giant prism. William noticed that the spear and sacred weapon he had been clutching a moment before had vanished from his hands, as did all the weapons that they had each been carrying.
An enormous collective cheer rose from the base of the pyramid. The entire population of Dzibanché seemed to be there, gazing up at them from the courtyard below. Rows of huts spiraled out from the pyramid as far as he could see. In unison, they began chanting, “Balam! Balam! Balam!”
“So the cloud is a spaceship?” Betty asked.
William recalled how he had seen a dark object hidden inside the cloud when he viewed it through the lens of the sun shield.
“Yes, we are inside their craft, Bati,” Yax said.
“But it looks like we’re still outside,” Teshna said.
Yax smiled, raising his arms to quiet the crowd. “I was also confused upon my arrival here. At first, I believed that I had died and had ascended to the heavens. But then they explained what happened. A large portion of this vessel has been designed for the comfort of our people while we travel through the stars to our new world. This area where we now stand has been constructed to suit our needs. It is much the same as our lands that we know—complete with plants and animals as well. Yet this area is but a small chamber on the craft. I am told that if we were to travel from this city center, a large wall would be encountered.”
“Sounds kind of like a big cage,” Betty said with a raised eyebrow.
“Where are these ancestors of yours?” William asked.
“We are here,” a voice answered in his mind. William jumped and looked behind him. The others had similar reactions. Teshna’s nod confirmed that she had heard it too. “We speak to you from another location. There is much to explain. Proceed to the rising transport.”
The crowd at the base of the pyramid scattered when a green triangular pillar rose up from the ground. An opening materialized at the base of the object, where a tall slender figure stepped out in a tight-fitting white uniform; it had long arms and legs, a shiny head with a single black eyeball, and a large grey beak.
“Good grief,” Betty muttered. “What is it?”
As it approached, William could see that the bizarre appearance was actually from an odd-shaped helmet on its head; tubes were connected to the helmet from a pack on its back. The citizens dropped to their knees and bowed down before the strange being.
Its gaze slowly drifted up to the top of the pyramid, and it stretched out its hands as if welcoming them. “I am known as Jensik. Do not fear my appearance, for I am not accustomed to your atmosphere, and merely dress in such a manner so that I may interact with the people of your world. Beneath my uniform, I am much the same as you. Please come with me. I will take you to the others of my kind.”
“Who are these people?” William asked, as they descended the steps.
“They may indeed be our brothers from the stars, Balam,” the Serpent Priest said.
“Priest Quisac is correct,” Jensik spoke in their minds. “We are… brothers. Yet not all gathered here comprehend what has occurred. It is why we developed this simulated world, complete with landscape and habitations that you will find familiar—to avoid the shock you might otherwise experience. You will spend much time here with us, and those who remain must be adapted to the conditio
ns of our world. In time, all will be made to understand our purpose.”
As they reached the base of the pyramid and approached Jensik, William surveyed the people gathered around them. “Jensik, there were a number of men taken that I had expected to be here—Etznab, Salmac, and many others from the royal guard. Are they here somewhere?”
“Come,” Jensik said, seeming to ignore the question. He stepped into the brightly lit room inside the triangular monument. “This transport will take us to another level within our craft.”
They followed him inside the triangular pillar, and the opening to the outside dissolved, enclosing them. A humming sound resonated.
“Feels sort of like an elevator,” Betty whispered.
William glared at Jensik, having a hard time trusting him through his weird helmet. He wondered what Jensik really looked like.
Jensik turned to William, noticing his disturbed look. “To answer your question about your missing friends, Balam… not all the people of this land are required. Only those with… desired qualities… will join us. Some will be transplanted back to your world. We are evaluating those we have collected.”
“Collected?” William asked, not liking the way he put that.
The elevator’s humming sound faded and an opening materialized. A silver chamber could be seen from beyond. Jensik stepped into the shimmering oval room, and they followed him in.
Jensik moved to a white table in the middle of the room, grabbed a handful of metallic-looking collars on the table, and handed them out. “Place it around your neck. It will enable you to breathe in the next room.”
The collars were decorated with colorful little stones. When William stretched open the collar and put it around his neck, the stones began blinking beneath his chin. He tried to remove it, but it seemed to be locked in place. William began to feel like a circus animal being prepped for captivity.
“The atmosphere in the next room contains the molecular properties of your world and ours. This device attracts the elements that you require to breathe,” Jensik said, pressing another button on the wall, dimming the light to half its brightness. He placed his hands at the base of his helmet and twisted a knob; it made a popping sound, like opening a bottle of soda. He slowly lifted the helmet off his head. They all stared at him with anticipation, wondering what they would see behind his strange mask.
Teshna gasped when Jensik’s long grey face and big bug-like eyes came into view. She grabbed William’s arm with a nervous grip. Jensik looked sort of like an alien from the X-Files, William thought.
“I thought you said you looked like us,” Betty said in a somewhat rude tone.
Jensik pulled a lever on the wall, and mist entered the room, pumping up from vents along the floor. He appeared to hold his breath while waiting for the mist to fill the room. Opening his thin slit of a mouth, he took in a deep breath; it sounded like he was sucking through a straw. “What you see before you is not the original appearance of our people,” he spoke in their minds, not moving his mouth. “In the beginning, our bodies were similar to yours. The color of our skin and the elongation of our features are the result of living here for generations, where our reproduction methods have evolved us into what we are today.”
“What are your reproductive methods?” William asked.
Betty jabbed William with her elbow, and he realized it wasn’t an appropriate question to ask.
Jensik gave William a blank stare as he removed his gloves, exposing his grey rubbery hands that seemed to have only four fingers. He grasped a knob protruding from the wall and slid it to the left, causing a mechanical sounding clatter to reverberate through the chamber—like the noise of an automatic garage door opener. The ceiling parted down the middle, and the walls sank into the floor, leaving the group standing in the center of a dark misty chamber; the visibility was limited to a few feet in any direction.
“Where are we?” William asked, holding Teshna’s hand firm so he wouldn’t lose her in the fog.
“We are in the control center… with the others,” Jensik said.
Dark forms began to take shape amidst the fog. They approached the group, gathering around them in a semicircle. Dozens of beings with the same greyish appearance as Jensik studied them with blank creepy looks. It became apparent that the bulk of their attention was focused on William. He felt uncomfortable with their collective stare, hearing the word “bloodstone” repeated softly in his mind.
The tallest of the aliens—in a bright red uniform—stepped out of the crowd. He glided gracefully forward, while taking a moment to study them.
Jensik gestured to the tall alien, extending his gangly arm toward him. “I present our leader, Master Seblinov.”
“You are welcome here,” Seblinov greeted, and then turned to his men who continued to gawk at them. He waved them off; they faded away back into the fog. Seblinov turned back with a gentle gaze, blinking his big eyelids several times. William noticed that they had two sets of eyelids; a transparent inner eyelid blinked just before the outer one did. Seblinov reached out with his hand and extended a long finger, motioning for them to follow.
As the group followed Seblinov through the foggy room, they passed by several of the grey aliens who stood beside tall metallic posts with light covered panels that they poked at with their slender fingers, casually rolling their black eyes toward them when they neared. A bright light filtered through the mist ahead. They proceeded forward until they reached a huge tinted window that slanted up from the floor. The light was from the setting sun, visible beyond the dark glass.
“Beyond and below are the lands where you have lived,” Seblinov said, pointing his gangly arm to the darkening sky outside the window. He motioned to the padded seats nearby. “Sit. Let us commune together.” He studied William and Betty carefully. “You two are not like the others here, yet you possess the bloodstone.” Seblinov waved a grey finger at William. “Tell me how this can be.”
Priest Quisac cleared his throat. “They have come to us from our future, through a portal known as the Serpent Passage. It is activated by the sun on the solstice days. We believe the passage has been used by other advanced beings—the feathered serpents—a race that assists in the growth of civilizations on this world.”
Seblinov clasped his hands together and cocked his head curiously. “Yes, we know of the beings that you speak—those that live in the underworld of this planet, who are unable to ascend for long. These creatures indeed seek the growth of the surface dwellers… but for their own purposes.” He paused for a moment, almost seeming disturbed about the creatures in question, making a wheezing sound as his breath accelerated. Seblinov shut his eyes for a moment. When his eyes opened, they were focused on William. “Why is the bloodstone possessed by this one?” he asked again.
“Balam saved our city from the invaders of Calakmul,” Yax said. “I awarded him the bloodstone and named him as our royal protector.”
“Why is it damaged?” Seblinov asked with concern. “The bloodstone was used by Calakmul to set a curse on our lands,” Priest Quisac said. “It killed our crops and the surrounding jungle.”
Seblinov and Jensik exchanged a knowing glance. “Yes, we are aware of this,” Jensik said. “It is why our vessel is unable to penetrate the area over your kingdom; the negative ions disrupt our controls. It is also why we could not gather you all until now, after you had moved your people further from the city center. The people in this region must either join us or relocate.”
“Where is your home world?” Betty asked with a raised eyebrow.
Seblinov stood, looking into the sky outside the window. “There was a time, long ago, when our world became unlivable. Many of our people left in search of new worlds, to begin again. But many of us remained behind, living in the protection of our vessels, attempting to correct the damage to our world.”
“Why come back for these people,” William asked, feeling concerned about their motives.
Jensik and Seblinov exchanged sub
tle nods to each other; they seemed to be sharing a private conversation. They both looked back at the same moment, their heads spinning in unison. “We have devoted our lives to restore our world,” Jensik said, “to make it livable again. Yet we have evolved to a point that prevents our ability to adapt to the climate. We are unable to reproduce in the normal manner, and we survive through molecular extrapolation.”
“Does he mean cloning?” Betty whispered to William.
William shrugged and nodded. “I guess so.”
Another grey alien wandered over to Seblinov, appearing out of the fog with a blue disk held in his long fingers. Seblinov tapped at the disk, while they had a hidden conversation. The alien left, disappearing back into the mist.
The leader turned back to William. “The people of this land carry the seeds of our race. The chosen ones shall be taken from this land, and they will be… adapted… to the new world.”
“It is true, Balam,” Yax said. “Our people have been saved today. Had we fought Calakmul, perhaps we would have all perished. You saved our people, Balam. You saved us so that we could live to see this wonderful day—when our brothers from the stars returned.”
“That is what the legends say, Balam,” Teshna said, trying to reassure him.
“We have been studying the people in these lands for some time,” Seblinov said. “Over the years we have witnessed a great disintegration in their culture. The collection had to take place before the required bloodlines dissolved.”
“Yet it is also important for the future of this world that the people of this land endure,” Jensik said. “The bloodstone promotes growth, and it must be cleansed. We have agreed to assist you in this endeavor. King Aztuk shall be delivered to you on the evening of the lunar eclipse so that you may reverse the infection.”
“Seblinov, there are others below who you did not collect,” Priest Quisac said. “Hundreds of children and elderly, who could not take part in the battle, are still in the city center.”
“We will send you back to make arrangements for their collection,” Seblinov said.
The Serpent Passage Page 22