Choj smiled. “Confusion. It is always good strategy to confuse the enemy about your intent. That is what Mahanamtz is doing.”
Ichtaca came running into their circle. “Nabe Nacon. Mahanamtz has raised the floor of the ha’.”
“What? What the fok are you talking about?” asked Chiac.
“There is now a ulew-q’a’m connecting the southern peninsula to K’aay, Paxte, and Topoxte. Mahanamtz can move with his Warriors overland. We couldn’t see the ulew-q’a’m before as there was a mist.”
“Madafok!” cussed Teul. “That takes care of his fear of water.”
“It is not Mahanamtz who has done that, Ichtaca. It is the kabraqan,” said Chiac.
“Then he has Cabrakan on his side,” concluded Ichtaca. “The gods are helping him.”
“Alaxel Cit Bolon Tum told me that this has happened before. It can happen anytime,” Chiac responded, emphatically.
“We’re madafoked,” lamented Teul.
“None of that, Teul,” Chiac ordered, to which Teul shook his head.
“So, we have Maria advancing, and ulew-q’a’ms between the islands … just before the battle,” declared Yochi, matter-of-factly.
“The gods are helping Mahanamtz,” repeated Ichtaca, firmly.
“And who do you have on your side, Ichtaca?” asked Chiac. Ichtaca looked puzzled. “What do you wear around your neck?” Ichtaca looked to his chest and lifted his hand to hold the Raax Ch’ayom Puaq. “Have you not heard of its power?”
“I have heard of its power, Nabe Nacon, but I am yet to see its power in battle.” Ichtaca raised his fist. “Perhaps it is because we wear the Raax Ch’ayom Puag that the gods favor Mahanamtz. I return to my duties, Nabe Nacon,” and he disappeared into the jungle.
The flash of a u-hatz’il-cháak and a roll of thunder came from the northwest.
Wah-co!-Wah-co!-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha.
“Well! It has begun,” said Bo.
Gwow-gwow-gwow-gwow-gwow-gwot.
Chiac looked towards him. “Yes, Achalal. The battle has begun.”
“I am not referring to the battle, Chiac. I am referring to the Fall of an Empire.”
Mahanamtz slowly advanced both shoulders of his reversed arrowhead to the northern peninsula on his left. He and Molly had moved again and were at the tip of the formation which was at the rear, surrounded by the Kechelaj Komon and the kitams, except for Hach-k’ek’en Ajchaq’e who was at the advancing base of the formation between the two barbs. The Warriors of the Kechelaj Jupuq marched at a moderate pace in absolute silence and just as they reached the western outskirts of the militia’s defence, Hach-k’ek’en Ajchaq’e rose as high as he could on his hind legs and wailed a most terrifying moaning sound. Immediately, as the wail stopped, the Kechelaj Jupuq resounded with frenzied barks and howls, and the Warriors of the first column of hach-k’ek’ens, led by Hach-k’ek’en Ajchaq’e, stood on their hind legs, extended their tusks, frothed their mouths. Each barb of the formation rushed into the militia troops on the northern peninsula, the base column advancing quickly. Xwáay Chikoop flew overhead screaming her tortured cry, Skinny, skinny, yu no know me?
The Warriors of the militia were armed with bate’s and ixjos. Most of them carried no to’bal-rib and were dressed only in loincloths, wearing no armor or lej-xajäbs. Yet, they fought bravely as they met their enchanted enemies on three fronts. The hach-k’ek’ens and batz rushed through the troops of the Topoxte Militia, tearing at them with their tusks, claws, and fangs. Many of the young boys, having hunted often on their own, used their long bate’s well, but, as soon as they sank one bate’ into the body of a hach-k’ek’en or batz, another one of the enchanted animals would take its place, jaws and tusks ready to crush and mangle and the boy would fall. The koolnáals and their ixjos were less effective for, many times, as the koolnáal raised his ixjos to bring it down on an advancing Warrior of the Kechelaj Jupuq, that hach-k’ek’en would already have its tusks turning into the koolnáal’s stomach while a batz crushed his neck with its jaws. The fishermen and artisans were proving the least effective of the militia.
Chiac, his Nacons and Warriors, stood on the hill overlooking the peninsulas, Yochi, Choj, Bo, and Patli standing beside Chiac. Initially, the cries of battle, the war whoops, the whistles, the frantic shouting, the call of the töt trumpets, the beating of the nim-tums, the rattling of the sochs, all reached up to them, but, as the battle progressed, those were being replaced by cries of pain as the militia troops fell before the enchanted Kechelaj Jupuq. Fires began burning the nearby residences and the militia sheds and huts.
“Shall we move forward?” asked Yochi.
“No!” Chiac answered, adamantly.
“They are being slaughtered,”
“I am aware.”
“Yet, you do nothing.”
Chiac swung towards Yochi, angrily. “You are Ukab Nacon,” he said roughly. “I am Nabe Nacon! You will follow my orders or I will order you to fall on your own bate’.” Yochi stared at Chiac, disbelief in his eyes, then he raised his fist three times and turned to look at the fighting below, his face becoming expressionless.
Choj moved close to Chiac. “I am Alaxel of Ox Witz Ha and you guard me with your life, Nabe Nacon, as I guard you with mine. But I will speak to you as achalal. I do not know anything about your Kingdom of Belikin, Fuck, but those citizens of Topoxte, those boys, young men that have not yet chakuj tutuchci, those koolnáals, fishermen, and artisans that are falling to the tusks and fangs of the enchanted Kechelaj Jupuq, they are our people. They are Ukab Nacon Yochi’s people, our people, even if you do not regard them as your own. A whole company of militia is being slaughtered. There!” he stressed as he pointed to the northern peninsula. “Is that the blessing your Ix Na Li Kawa gives to them?” He looked bitterly at Chiac. “Nabe Nacon!” he shouted, hitting his chest once then moving away.
Chiac’ s expression didn’t change. Faint thunder came from the northwest and Chiac looked. In the far distance, black clouds continued to build and a burst of pale green light flared to the jungle. “Patli!”
“Nabe Nacon!”
“Get me Teyacapan.”
“I meant no disrespect, Nabe Nacon,” said Yochi, “but their useless deaths rip out my heart like the u-yeh of the Ah-nakom.”
“I am Nabe Nacon and I must always be Nabe Nacon before my Warriors, even if it means I lose a friend, an achalal. That is the Way of the Warrior. You have taught me that.”
“Yes, Nabe Nacon. That is the Way of the Warrior.” Yochi raised his fist once. “Yet, with K’an II’s new teachings of change, it appears that the Way of the Warrior must also change. We now preserve life … and not only our own. Shouldn’t we also preserve those lives being slaughtered below?”
“Nabe Nacon?” said Teyacapan, announcing his arrival.
“Teyacapan. Get Ah-k’inob and his priests to begin their incantations. Tell them to weaken the enchantment that makes the Kechelaj Jupuq fight so fiercely. Tell them they must not fail. When you are done, return here.”
“Yes, Nabe Nacon,” replied Teyacapan, moving back to the rear, puzzled at the sternness with which Chiac spoke. Almost immediately, the smell of the Sacred Incense of the Sacred Pom began to infiltrate the jungle about them and the chanting voices of the priests rose, drowning any noise of the jungle that had persisted. Other than the chanting, only the cries of the falling militia and the persistent Wah-co!-Wah-co!-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha of the kos remained, for the Kechelaj Jupuq had become quiet as they did their bloody and deadly work, and the sickly cry of Xwáay Chikoop, Skinny, skinny, yu no know me? was not heard.
The slaughter on the northern peninsula continued until it was complete after which the Kechelaj Jupuq turned south. On the southern peninsula, the militia was withdrawing to K’aay on the ulew-q’a’m thrown up from the floor of the ha’ by the kabraqan. Mahanamtz commanded his Kechelaj Jupuq to reform the narrow reverse arrowhead with a sharp concave base. His Warriors
were also in a different formation, paralleling the base to the tip of the arrowhead. Each half of the blade had a rank of batz, then one of hach-k’ek’ens, alternating towards the tip in diminishing numbers. Mahanamtz, Molly, and the Kechelaj Komon remained at the tip, except for Hach-k’ek’en Ajchaq’e who was at the base, and Xwáay Chikoop who was again flying and screaming overhead, Skinny, skinny, yu no know me? Surrounding Molly was a section of enchanted Topoxte Militia.
The whole of Mahanamtz’ formation began moving through the southern peninsula towards K’aay, pushing any resisting militia in front of them, trapping some of them within the neck of the barbs and butchering them, burning everything that would burn. The tiny island of Alaj K’aay had risen like a small hill above the muddy ulew-q’a’m and a few militia scouts had rushed up to the top to assess the battle. The hill was quickly surrounded and the troop became easy prey for the batz who pressed on them with reddened eyes, frothed mouths, savage grinning jaws, and saliva dripping sharpened fangs.
Ahau Topoxte had kept his five hundred trained Warriors at Topoxte Island, except for those Warriors who were Nacons and were in command of the militia. He had divided the battalion of one thousand militia into four companies of two hundred and fifty each. He deployed one company to each peninsula, one to K’aay, and one to Paxte. The Ahau and his Nim-q’ij Commanders had decided to use that troop distribution strategy taking into account the natural barrier that the ha’ provided between each island and the mainland, not foreseeing that that important strategic element would be removed by the kabraqan. There would no longer be a delay in crossing the ha’ as Mahanamtz advanced his march from island to island.
Mahanamtz continued marching across the muddy and soft ulew-q’a’m towards K’aay, and Chiac felt the rising tension in his Warriors. He knew that they wanted to race down the hill towards the departing army, but he also knew he could not allow it. They would be slaughtered. If they weren’t and there was any indication of a victory for them. Molly would be killed, immediately, and Mahanamtz and his Kechelaj Komon would withdraw and escape.
It was still light, but Kinich Ahau was close to settling into the mountains; yet, they could see the horror of the ‘no quarter given’ happening below. Captured militia were being taken to the edges of the ulew-q’a’m and thrown into the ha’ to scream and then to be torn apart by the many áayins that infested the ha’. Q’eq Ha’ Wíinik was jumping off the heads of the áayins, his cruel laughter loud and resounding, his white palms and soles flashing off and on in the deepening evening. Circling and dancing above was Xwáay Chikoop, always above, screaming her demonic cry of torture, Skinny, skinny, yu no know me? Often, she plummeted downward into the retreating militia, seized one of the boys, took him screaming and thrashing into the air, sucked him dry of his blood, then released his body to the waiting áayins.
As Mahanamtz continued advancing towards K’aay, pushing the retreating militia company before him, the company of militia stationed at K’aay left the courtyard area where the main group of buildings was situated. They broke into two smaller companies, one going northwest of the main courtyard and the other to the northeast where they sequestered themselves on rooftops and small darkened alleys. Some of the buildings had also collapsed in the kabraqan and the rubble provided good defensive walls. K’aay was the second largest of the three main islands, overpopulated as the others, packed with buildings. Other than the ones around the main courtyard, they were built as the land allowed and were mainly medium sized platforms upon which the buildings stood. That gave the militia many places to remain hidden.
Meanwhile, Mahanamtz’ troops, as they hit the then landlocked southern beaches of K’aay, suddenly reversed their formation into a regular arrowhead, the tip moving quickly into K’aay. The hach-k’ek’ens and batz were in the same alternating ranks, and Molly and Mahanamtz were in the stem of the arrowhead surrounded by the Kechelaj Komon, the section of enchanted Topoxte Militia, and the kitams. The formation moved generally northward, the hach-k’ek’ens fighting with their tusks and the batz with their fangs, tearing into flesh, maiming and killing any citizen or militia that they encountered.
When the retreating militia had climbed the beaches of K’aay, they reformed themselves and began rushing towards the north of the island, along the gentler slopes of the western side. Mahanamtz did not pursue them, but continued moving north through the center of the island, towards the main courtyard, intending to take control of the center of K’aay and thereby establish himself as the victor in that initial battle of the Topoxte Islands. As they marched into K’aay, batz began searching out the chultuns, looking for weapons, dragging out citizens, mainly women and children, immediately crushing their necks then tossing them aside.
Chiac was joined by more of his Nacons as he stood on the hill overlooking the peninsulas and the islands of Topoxte. Frequently, one of the Nacons would look at him, but Chiac did nothing, said nothing. He was, however, getting very apprehensive for he felt the strain of not doing anything building more rapidly in his Warriors. He had placed a severe restraint on them, Warriors who were not trained for restraint in advancing into battle, but trained to respond immediately, trained to fulfil the expectations they had of themselves as Warriors, trained in the Way of the Warrior.
“The militia on K’aay has left the main courtyard and gone into hiding. They are not coming forward to help the retreating company of militia,” said Bo.
“Those boys, koolnáals, fishermen, servants, and artisans of the militia stationed on the northern peninsula fought and died bravely. They did not disappoint their Nacons or themselves. I didn’t see any trace of fear as they fought,” said Yochi. “I expect nothing less from the remaining militia.” Bo lowered his head. “Something of strategic importance is happening between them. There have been Runners between the two K’aay Companies and the South Peninsula Company. Did you not see them, Bo?”
“No. I didn’t, but then I’m not the military minded Alaxel of Ox Witz Ha. There’s a whole panorama of fighting, death, pain, blood. Unless one has the military astuteness of the T’oit’ik-jolom, it is difficult to see movements of military significance in all that chaos. You are one of those, Yochi, who can see.”
“The retreating militia is not moving in panic,” continued Yochi, not acknowledging the praise Bo had bestowed on him. “They have regrouped and are marching along the easier western slopes towards the northwest. If you had looked for details of movement, rather that the panorama of death, you would have seen that the company that was in the main courtyard, split into two, one going to the northeast and the other to the northwest.”
“It’s some kind of maneuver,” observed Choj. “It must be.”
“Well I be a foka,” blurted out Chiac. “They are preparing a bottleneck.”
“What’s a bottleneck?” asked Bo.
“I’ll explain later, but if it’s successful, you’ll immediately see what it is,” answered Chiac, even if you don’t have a military mind. “That’s if the light holds.” They all looked towards the west and Kinich Ahau was just above the mountain tops, giving an unusual greenish hue to the heavy clouds in the western skies. A sole shaft of greenish flame plunged itself into the mountains, followed by the rumbling roar of thunder.
“The storms are staying away,” said Teyacapan.
“They will come,” Chiac answered. “If not tonight then as soon as Kinich Ahau brightens Kaán again. I have a question, Teyacapan. Ichtaca
has confirmed that Molly, Xch’úup Xma’ K’aaba’, is surrounded by a section of militia. I suppose they have become enchanted?”
“Yes, Nabe Nacon. That is the likely explanation. Mahanamtz does have the power, although not as strong as he has with animals, to enchant citizens, Warriors, to make them do as he wishes.” Chiac nodded and they turned to look at K’aay, once again, but were drawn away as flames flared and flashed in the northeast across Ha’ Yaxha.
“Yaxha has been attacked,” declared Yoc
hi. ‘The Warriors of Yax Mutul are there.”
There was no response to Yochi‘s words as the Warriors glanced briefly at Yaxha then turned their attention back to K’aay.
Glyph for War against Yaxha.
The militia retreating from the Southern Peninsula had reached the northwest area where they met up with the K’aay company that had sequestered themselves, forming a thick offensive line of militia covering the northwestern, western, and southwestern confines of the main courtyard. Mahanamtz continued north until the arrowhead tip entered the main courtyard then they stopped.
“Something is madafok happening,” blurted out Teul. No one responded. It was suddenly very quiet, everything, everyone was so quiet that one didn’t even hear the breathing of the others beside him. The thunderous beating of nim-tums, quickly followed by loud cries, war whoops, piercing whistles, and shouts rose above K’aay. Against the semi-darkness of moimatik, hundreds of flaming ch’abs flew from the roofs of the buildings to fall onto the blade of Mahanamtz’ arrowhead.
“Well madafok! They have ch’abs,” yelled Teul.
As the first volley of ch’abs found their targets, the militia troops that had remained hidden rushed forward attacking the Hach-k’ek’en Warriors and Batz Warriors on the blade edge. Ch’abs continued to fall, some aimed at surrounding rooftops and soon the city was alight with flames. Heavy fighting ensued and among the shouts inciting the militia to fight, came the cries of pain, the barks of the Batz, the grunts of the Hach-k’ek’ens, and casualties grew in both armies.
“There’s nothing from the other company that went to the northeast,” cried out Choj. “What the t’ot are they waiting for?”
“I think, I hope it’s all part of the maneuver, Choj. They are simply not showing themselves as yet,” answered Chiac. “It looks good, right now. Very good. Let’s see if what I expect to happen, happens.”
Sisimito III--Topoxte Page 52