Sacrifice

Copyright © 2021 by Dan Harrington
 
All rights reserved.
 
No part of this publication may be produced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the author, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other non-commercial uses permitted by copyright law.
 
ISBN
(eBook) 9781005464493
 
Sacrifice
 
A long line of people was gathered before the steps of the pyramid. Many were dragged up to the top but never returned down. So, many people milled about. It was midday and the sounds of daily activities filled the air. It was loud, hammers upon chisels that shaped stone to the liking of whatever the workers were ordered to craft.
Warriors with spears stood on either side of the steps In a line from the bottom of the pyramid all the way to the top. Every so often they would jab with their weapons to usher the prisoners of war faster up the pyramid. Most were obedient sheep, while there were a few who would try to flee. They were quickly brought to heel.
Once, in a while someone would look to the clear cloudless sky. The sun was high at its peak. Its hot rays cooked everything it touched. It was a scorcher with the humidity that hung thickly like a mist. Today was the perfect day to celebrate the sun god.
She stood behind a man who was looking about for a way out. He was just as scared as her and everyone else. They had no idea what was going on up there. There were cheers and screams. The priests spoke about appeasing the sun god. Soon, she would be up there to find out what all the fuss was about. Steadily everyone moved up the steps in the hot sun. Sweat poured from smelly dirty bodies. Thirst was a factor and some people begged for a drink of water. All their pleas were ignored. What someone would do right now just for a sip of water was unbelievable. The smell of urine permeated the air as those loosened their bladders. There were even those who shit themselves because they could no longer hold their bowels.
Almost there. She looked behind her and a realization had come to her. There where no children in the line up. There were only men of various ages and her. She was the only woman here she was sure of it. This did not bode well for her she thought. Fear gripped and tightened its hold upon her. The man in front stepped to the top of the pyramid platform. He tried to turn away, but four warriors grabbed him and hauled him away. The look he gave her said many things, but she picked up on one ‘goodbye’. He struggled in vain. She in turn stood up on the top platform, next in line for what was to happen next. She watched as the warriors placed the man on a round alter of stone. All around the base were intricate carvings of entwined figures, some human, some not. The warriors held the man down by his limbs. He continued to struggle to no avail. He begged for mercy and whimpered.
The high priest came to one side and murmured a prayer. He held a blade made of obsidian. He thrust the knife under the man’s sternum and with a single cut from side to side made an opening. The man screams were tormented and cringe worthy. Then the high priest reached in and cut the artery and pulled out the still beating heart for all to see. The man’s screams had ended abruptly, and he lay still and silent. She could not take her eyes off the morbid scene. The man’s body was taken away. Blood filled the bowl-shaped cusp which drained down a path on the side of the alter into the pyramid itself. The alter was coated crimson, the only colour to its cold looking stone surface. The warriors then came for her, and she snapped out of her reverie of shock. She was grabbed by her arms and legs and was carried to the alter. She screamed and fought furiously against her captures. They laid her on the alter, but she continued to struggle. She tried to twist and shake, her bare breasts bounced. Her copper skin glistened with droplets of sweat. Her long dark hair matted to her face and body.
The high priest looked down on her and she glared back with bared teeth. He removed her under garment, and she lay there, nude. He saw the birth mark on her thigh. It was a red circle with three stretch lines. It resembled a sun with its rays shining down upon the world. He then placed two of his fingers inside her womanhood. He moved away and spoke. All became quiet. He spoke about how she was this young virgin who was the chosen bride of the sun god. She was of a prime age and fertility to bare his children. She was picked up from the alter and stood before the high priest in defiance. The high priest smiled and blessed her with a prayer. She was then led by the guards to an opening. They pushed her in, and she slid down a spiral causeway into darkness. She landed at the bottom, and it was hard stone. She could not see a thing and felt around blindly. Her emotions rolled around inside her, and she was on the verge of panic. She panted as fear threatened to overwhelm her.
Suddenly there was a sound, or she thought she heard something, a movement of some kind. She went very still and listened intently for it to resume. There it was again, a scraping sound like sand moving along the floor. Then there was another sound, a hissing. She strained her eyes willing them to see in the total darkness. She knew there was a presence. It sounded like it was moving around her in circles. Then all went quiet. So, quiet that her ears began to ring.
A burst of light gave her a brief flash of sight before she was once again blinded. When she got a hold of her bearings again and could focus, what she saw in the chamber was exceptionally large and light emanated from its body. She looked upon something both magnificent and horrifying. A giant serpent like creature looked down, its emerald slits deep and fathomless. Its scaled and feathered body coiled around her. She was trapped with no way out. The serpent’s head came closer to her, its tongue flickered out and licked the front of her body. She squealed. She could not believe that she was in the presence of Huitzilopochtli, The Sun God. It was a total awe inspired moment. She narrowed her eyes and held her quivering chin high. She trembled in fear and dread. She would even defy her god, the monster that he was. She was not going to beg nor fall to her knees. She would die and be eaten standing proud.
She blinked in surprise. She was sure the serpent god smiled at her. How very strange! He brought his coiled body in closer until it wrapped around her in his hold. He lifted her up off the ground. Her heart pounded in her chest like a hammer. While suspended in the air the feathered serpent spread its great feathered wings. Its tongue lashed out and licked between her thighs. She through her head back in a gasp of rapture. A single fang penetrated her birth mark and venom flowed into her veins. A burning light emanated into her core. She was then engulfed in golden rays of sunlight. She was in total ecstasy. Her body began to morph and grow. She became serpentine. Feathered wings sprouted from her back. Her arms and legs melded to her body and disappeared. Copper scales replaced her skin and glittered brightly. Her eyes became sapphire orbs of deep blue bottomless slits.
Their bodies intertwined together in a mating dance. They coiled together in their passion of pure pleasure. Love blossomed and their, coloured scales glittered and shined brightly, moved like a wave. Their coiled bodies became a huge heap. She had become The Sun Goddess, Quetzalcoatl. (08/04/19)