Sisimito II--Xibalba

by Henry W. Anderson

  “May! At least that gives us the possibility of survival, but I don’t understand. Earlier, you spoke of sacrifice and being locked up if I win, to be sacrificed later.”

  “A Warrior must be aware of all possible tactics the enemy may use. I’m sure you know that, but let me continue. In Xibalba, most of our citizens died from natural causes or were killed in battle on U Wach Ulew. Irrespective of the cause of death, the Lords may have one suffer death again. One can be made to endure many terrible deaths that can last many tuns.” Kish shrugged his shoulders. “From the time Hunahpu and Xbalanque defeated Xibalba, it was decreed by the gods that Xibalba would lose its greatness, continue to decrease in esteem, the Death Gods themselves would lose their glorification. The city would eventually collapse. The Xibalbans have received no more offerings and sacrifices from the citizens who walk U Wach Ulew. Before, when Xibalba had received the tributes, there was much celebration and entertainment. Now there’s very little and the ballgames do not stimulate much interest. The Xibalbans have grown restless. You and your Warriors could change that. That’s why I think the Lords will want you to remain in Xibalba, keep you alive. They would never declare that, however. You must lose the ballgame, convince the Lords to keep you and your Warriors alive, and you must go to the celebrations. Remember, Chiac, if you win you will be humiliating, not only the Demon Lords, but the Death Gods themselves. I am sure you can see that would not be a good thing. You have humiliated them enough and they will take no more.”

  “It’s very confusing.”

  “You’re in Xibalba,” Kish reminded me.

  “You said that if I win, the Lords would say that I received help from a demi-god of U Wach Ulew. Would the Xibalbans just believe that?”

  Kish pointed to my chest. ”They will, Chiac, for you always carry the image of Ix Na Li Kawa around your neck. I let go of the Green Scapular I was still holding. “I have asked you not to wear it. It might be best if you wear it no longer.”

  I reached up and again held the Green Scapular in my fingers, looking at the image of Mother of God covered with Bas’ blood, my blood, the blood of Ix Balanque, and possibly others as well. It felt warm.

  “I will not take it off.” I looked at Kish. He shrugged his shoulders as was his habit. “So, what do we do?”

  “You lose the ballgame, you convince the Lords to let you and your men live, and we leave Xibalba.”

  “We?” I saw Robertson fidgeting and forcefully rubbing his hands as Taat translated for him.

  “Yes. You and your six Warriors. Yochi and his thirteen Warriors that rescued your Warriors from the Nim-ja’ Ti’ Síina’ans and brought them here. The Guards that have been here are all Yochi’s Warriors. Ichik is his Ukab.405 There will be my six Warriors who will play the ballgame, and me.”

  I frowned. “But you told me that you did not know our opponents.”

  Kish hesitated, and again there was something in his eyes I could not decipher. “I do not, as yet, but, as Chief Guard, they will be Warriors I choose. I will meet with them for practice when I leave here. They will not need much as all Xibalbans know to play Pitz.”

  “Even as Chief Guard, how can you be sure the Lords will allow you to pick them?” I asked. “As you said, ‘This is Xibalba’. Don’t forget that.”

  “How could I.” He sighed, then chuckled. “If I am not allowed to choose them, I will make adjustments as necessary. All the Warriors here in Xibalba long to fight again on U Wach Ulew. Many Warriors have left their woman and their children. All we do here is guard, keeping a presence for the Lords. I have many Warriors who report to me and me alone. These selected Warriors will follow me without hesitation. The selected Warriors not in my command, they work as operatives for me, keep me informed of everything that happens here in Xibalba and the Underworld. It is from among these Warriors that I will chose my teammates. I do not think I will be told who my teammates are. It is the protocol that I chose.” Somehow, Kish did not sound very convincing. “I will ensure that I have Warriors loyal to me. As you often say, Chiac, Ixca junes maka ka metzev!”

  “Think is not a good basis for sound military strategy, Kish. I am sure you know that.” I stared at my new friend. “Kish, are you telling me everything?”

  Kish smiled and took in a deep breath. “As I have always said before, I can tell you only so much. If I am not allowed to choose, I will make adjustments, as necessary. But we must plan our escape, independent of the ballgame as much as possible, and we must trust that Ix Balanque will remember you and entreat Kinich Ahau to send us his blessings since we honor him.”

  “How do we honor him?” I asked, puzzled.

  “The number seven. When Kinich Ahau takes his journey through the Underworld, he becomes the Baläm God of Fire and is the god of all things seven; everything is of seven in Yaxché. We honor him because of the number seven. Your team which will become your section is seven. Mine is seven. Yochi and his Warriors number fourteen, which is seven and seven again. There will also be seven guides for you and your team.”

  “Guides?”

  “We discuss that later.”

  I shook my head. “Everything here has its symbols. But what do we do, Kish? How do we leave Xibalba if the Lords do not want us to? Won’t they also have guards that are loyal to them? Won’t they fight?”

  “We play Pitz. You lose and request to remain in Xibalba. You convince the Lords to agree. We then all walk to the Courtyard of the Council Place of the Lords where there will be a big celebration after the ballgame. You must eat and drink or it will look suspicious, but do not partake of much or you will lose focus and seek only to celebrate.”

  “We’ll be high,” I interjected, trying to provide some levity to the tense discussion.

  “As high as Kaán.” Kish smiled then continued. “The crowds will walk with us from the ballcourt. We mix into the crowds and disperse. By that time, Kinich Ahau will have already left Xibalba and the red skies will be gone. There will be darkness except for where the torches and fires give light. We meet at the Gates to Xibalba.”

  “But how do we get out of the Underworld? And what happens if we are attacked at the gates?”

  “If we are attacked, we fight. Yochi and his Warriors will be with us. You will not have the weapons you brought to the Underworld when you play the ballgame. Ichik and two Warriors will see to your weapons and have them at the gates where there will be other weapons as well. From the gates, we continue to where the sacbeobs cross at the krus-be and take the one tracking to the lands of Can-Tzicnal until we come to the Nun ja’ Ti’ Síina’ans. We take the Nim-ja’ Ti’ Síina’ans going towards the realm of Zac-Cimi and then onto U Wach Ulew.”

  I shook my head. “It will be dark, Kish. My Warriors and I don’t know Xibalba. I know it’s one straight sacbeob to the gates, but suppose we

  have to divert because of guards. Suppose we are found out and an alarm is made.”

  Each one of you will have a guide beside you. You will know him. He will appear as a servant or slave and, as he approaches you, he will say, Ek Baläm has whistled. You reply with the same words and go with him. He will guide you and protect you until you have your own weapons at the gates.”

  I sat quietly for a while, pondering what Kish had told me. “What do I tell my Warriors?”

  “Teach them the ballgame. Once Kinich Ahau leaves, Ichik will take you into the Cavern of Trials to practice. When you arrive there, speak quietly to them. Tell your Warriors that there are plans to escape Xibalba. Remind them that they are Warriors and must do as they are told without hesitation. They must play hard, but lose the game. The struggle to win must be convincing. After the ballgame and you have convinced the Lords not to have you sacrificed and your hearts torn from your chest,” he paused, I am sure for effect, “you are to mingle, separately, in the crowd at the festivities. Tell them about the guides and the password and make sure they remember the password. They must hear the password and they must rep
eat the password or else the guide will slip away. Once the password is exchanged, they must do exactly as ordered, as if the command were coming from you, Chiac. Tell them that they will be taken separately to the Gates of Xibalba, but nothing further. They must not know where we go beyond the Gates of Xibalba for, if any of them is captured while trying to escape, that information will be tortured out of them. After the practice session, you must each eat and drink again only from what Emataly and Nikai has brought. You will all fall into a deep sleep. Yochi will awaken you once Kinich Ahau has returned. Use the shit-jar. Rid your bodies of all impurities. Eat and drink again. Slaves and servants will come to prepare you for the ballgame. Make sure you all leave your weapons in one corner of the room, tied together in one of the mats.”

  “What will happen to Emataly and Nikai?”

  “Do not concern yourself with Emataly and Nikai.” I wanted to question why, but, instead, I kept quiet. “Do you have any other questions, Chiac?”

  “You keep instructing me to convince the Lords to let me and my Warriors live, but you do not tell me how I might accomplish this. How do I, Kish?”

  “That, you must do by yourself … and I am sure you will. Do you have any other questions, Chiac?”

  “No, Kish.”

  “You will not see me again until we face each other on the ball-court. Yochi and Ichik will assist you.” I nodded. Kish looked at Robertson. “Taat has told you everything that’s planned. In case Chiac is captured, you take over.” Robertson looked to Taat, who translated, then nodded. “Now, take your drink and go to sleep until Ichik comes for you.” He stood up and looked at us. “May the gods be with us,” he said, and walked through the door.

  I awoke to Yochi kicking me on the butt. For a moment, I thought it was Rhys. “Time to go,” he said. The other men were sleeping and Yochi and Ichik began waking them while I took a piss. I soon had a line behind me, Taat closest to me. “Taat.”

  “Paal.”

  “I haven’t been able to spend much time with you.”

  “You are our leader. Paal. You have many duties. I accept that.”

  “Hey, Waach. Not only you want to piss.” I had finished so I gave Tóolok a good shake then turned to faced Teul who was behind Taat. Of course, he was grinning. “Remember if you shake more than three times, Waach, you’re doing something else. And I want to bos a shit as well.”

  “You take the end of the line for that,” I growled.

  “And suppose everybody wants to shit? Why should I give up my spot?”

  “You still take the end of the line,” I ordered, trying to look as commanding as I could. I had to get back at him, sometime.

  “Madafok!” he grumbled, as he reluctantly went to the end of the line.

  Yochi waited patiently at the door with all the guards while the men did what they had to do. After a while, I joined them at the door as the smell was overpowering.

  “Hey, there’s no shit-paper,” shouted Teul. The men started laughing.

  “Sorry, Teul. And it’s ‘bum fodder’ according to the Limeys,” responded Choco. “Isn’t that so, Medic?” Robertson nodded. “Just tree bark, Teul, and be glad that you at least have that. And it’s smooth. Thy could have left you a piece of mis bark.”

  “Give-and-Take,” added Rhys. ¡Ai yai yai! ¡Hijueputa! Wahn lat a prikl.”406

  “Sometimes, I do miss civilization.” I looked at Teul and was taken aback at the resigned look he had on his face. It was difficult to interpret. He looked up and saw me watching him. He lifted the skin of his forehead and grinned, but it wasn’t convincing.

  Yochi sent one of the guards to check the stairs, to make sure that there was no one about. After that we, except for two guards, walked into the Cavern of Trials. Even though we hadn’t had any visitors and it was unlikely that we would, the guards had instructions to stop anyone from entering our room and to say we were resting in preparation for the ballgame and were not to be disturbed. No one was to know that we were not there.

  Ichik took one of the torches from the wall and went to the head. The men were mainly quiet as we continued towards Ee’hoch’e’en Ja at the end of the Cavern of Trials, but I could feel their desire to know what had happened to me in that cavern. They walked in the middle of the passageway, staying away from the Houses of Trials as much as possible. For me, each house I passed brought back the terror of the night I had endured there.

  Teul must have seen the look on my face as we passed each House of Trials for he came and walked beside me. After a while he spoke. “It’s madafok dark, Waach. How will we practice in this?”

  “There are other torches near Ee’hoch’e’en Ja. We will light them,” informed Yochi.

  “When will we get there?” asked Teul.

  “It takes about an hour,” I answered.

  “Well, let’s start working our muscles. Let’s do some skipping, jumping, and stretching, just like we’d do before a football game.”

  Thank you, Teul. “Okay. Let’s start. Teul. You’re the exercise coach,” I said.

  “Okay madafoks,” shouted Teul. We’re going to work-out and I want no madafok playing around. Set up a double file formation. Rhys, Choc, Taat, Yochi, on the left. Robertson, Waach, Choco, Ichik, on the right. In that order. I will be in the middle. That’s where I like it. That is the same order we will use going to the ballgame, except then, Waach will be in the middle where he hasn’t been for a while.” Yochi and Ichik frowned, looking quizzically at Teul. “What the madafok are you staring at me for, Yochi and Ichik? Take your places at the rear of the line. Don’t worry Rhys. You’ll have your turn. Just follow what the others are doing, Yochi and Ichik. You too, Taat.” Yochi and Ichik glanced at each other, furrowed their foreheads, then joined the line. “Let’s start with some trunk rotations then lunges and side lunges. Do a dozen on each side. We immediately began the exercises, Taat, Yochi, and Ichik following as best they could.

  When those exercises were done, Teul continued with the instructions in English. “Okay, let’s start moving at a moderate pace. When I shout now, do an ‘accelerated run’. When I shout stop, go back to the ‘moderate pace run’. Teul had us do four ‘accelerated runs’ then some ‘high knees’ while still sprinting. He then called a halt. “Okay. Good enough. Remember to focus on the correct technique rather than speed. We’ll do ten double leg ‘butt kickers’ and I want to see you high in the air and your heels against your naked madafok asses. Okay! Let’s go at your own pace. We started. I saw him looking at me and even without his grin, I knew I was in for something. “What the madafok’s wrong with you, Fuck? Do you think you can madafok up my exercise routine just because of your name? Get up into the madafok air and get those heels against your naked-ass, or else I’ll have you do a hundred madafok push-ups on the fingers.”

  I said nothing, showed no emotions, he was the coach, and I did go higher in the air and had my heels hit my butt. He was correct. I had not been doing the exercises as well as I should have. My mind was already on the ballgame.

  “When you’re finished, do ‘quick feet’ for about two minutes, then take a one-minute break. From there, we’ll just do a moderate sprint until we reach the practice area,” ordered Teul.

  When we reached the Ee’hoch’e’en Ja, I took over. I had the men line up close to the wall of the House of Trials and we did some breathing exercises to reenergize us as Teul had really worked our butts. The exercises we had done were football warm-ups and were very relevant to the Xibalba ballgame, especially the ‘butt kickers’ and the ‘high knees’. I was not too worried about dehydration, for we were not going to do much more exercises. I stood in front of my men, my teammates, noting that they had all stepped a few feet off the wall of Ee’hoch’e’en Ja. They wanted no contact with the House of Trails.

  Yochi and Ichik had joined the line, but I called them to my side. Usually, when just my section was speaking, we spoke in English so that Robertson and Rhys could partake; otherwi
se, I spoke in Ke’kchi and Taat translated as necessary. I addressed Yochi and Ichik in Ke’kchi. “You know the ballgame.” Both of them nodded. “I thought you were to bring the ol, Ichik. It’s a disadvantage not to have the ol.” Both of them reached into their loincloths and pulled out an ol. I had wondered why their loincloths were bulky with a large flap in front, but I had dismissed the thought. It seemed that the loincloths in Xibalba could hold as much as Taat’s cuxtal, as Teul had said. I looked at the two Warriors, shaking my head, having the greatest grin. I just hugged them, much to their amazement.

  “Warriors!”

  “Waach!”

  I bounced one of the ols in my hand. It was bigger and heavier that the ol I had played with at Ox Witz Ha. “The ol is made of rubber, or k’ik’,” I explained in English, “mixed with the Flower That Honors Ix Chel, a type of Morning Glory, which, incidentally, can also make you see things. This ol is about eight inches in diameter. It feels like nine pounds. A regular size five football weighs about one pound and is about eight to nine inches in diameter; so, gentlemen, there’s a lot of difference in the weight.” I smiled looking at the men. “Perhaps that’s why we are not allowed to kick the ol. Yochi and Ichik know how to play the ballgame. It’s called Pitz; the technique and strategies of playing is Ti Pitziil. After I am finished, I will pass the coaching over to them. Rhys and Robertson. I will work with you.”

  I looked to the men and I recalled Choj and Bo at the ballcourt in Ox Witz Ha. “You must think only of winning the game,” I said. “Do not allow anything to distract you. Concentrate only on the ol, the players, the Ti Pitziil, and the ballcourt ring. If you think on anything else, you will lose the ballgame. Then we will be sacrificed and have to remain here in Xibalba forever. I will not be pleased.” I had decided that I would not tell them until just before the ballgame that we were to lose. I wanted them to put all their effort in learning as much of the game as possible. As Kish had said, it must be a convincing loss.