“No,” I answered her question as I took her red-brown hand. “We are Macehualtin,” I reminded her. We were not worthy enough to go to the Great City.
“Macehualtin today, but the sun will rise when I, Quauhtli, son of Matlal, shall awaken as a Cuauhipiltin.” Citlali’s eldest brother lifted his clubs to the temple and hailed the sun.
Quauhtli was the best warrior in our village. His hair was shaved on the sides, and the marking of his fathers showed upon his blood-brown skin.
“Cuauhipiltin…” I whispered the word. I’d never seen such a warrior but I knew of them— warrior among the warriors, a title only the emperor could give, and only to one who’d proven himself most worthy.
“Not if the emperor can never see you,” his sister made a joke of him and before he could even begin to return the favor, she broke from my hand and ran towards the trees.
“Citlali, wait!” I yelled running after her. Her black hair was picked up by the wind and spun all around her as she ran and laughed and disappeared into the forest towards the village. “Citlali!”
Twigs broke under my feet as I followed her and I worried that she’d get lost as she always did. But she had not made it far and had fallen to her knees as the warriors who wore feathers upon their heads and spears in their hands marched towards the Great City.
Rushing to her, I wrapped my arms around her and was about to bow my head as well when I heard the chains. Not one nor two, but the hands of all ten warriors were in chains. I followed the brown links until it reached the skin of the largest man I’d ever seen. So large that he blotted out the sun as he walked past me.
“Down.” Quauhtli rushed beside us and kneeled as he pushed my head down to look at the ground. “They have captured Tlahuicole.”
“Who?” I whispered.
“The Great Warrior of Tlaxcaltec,” he said as if I should have known. “The emperor will make them all—”
“FREE!” A warrior I could not see yelled until the whole forest was covered in screams.
“Run!” Quauhtli yelled as he rushed into a battle that had formed while my head was down.
Warriors like the large one came rushing out of the bushes, striking down the warriors of the Great City.
“Citlali, come,” I called. But fear gripped her and she would not move. But it did not matter for soon I could not move as I found a sharpened bone at my neck.
“No move.” I felt the bone bite into my skin as he looked at me with. The black around his eyes made his eyes dark yellow. It was like looking into the eyes of a tree snake.
“Shhh,” I whispered as I put my hand over Citlali’s face to blind her from all of this and to keep her calm. I wished someone could have done the same for me as I watched the green grass grow red.
“Ahh!” The large man screamed out as he swung his chain like a club to beat the man down, and the man did not come back up.
The large man, the Great Warrior, Tlahuicole, with chains still hanging from his neck and hands and feet, looked into my eyes. I knew those eyes and that scar which ran through one of them. He did not move as he stared at me and I at him. His eyes squinted as though he was not sure what to make of me.
And so, I spoke first, “In this life, it will be the last.”
His eyes widened and I knew then that he was who I knew he’d be. His lips parted to speak and yet it was another voice that came out.
“More come!” One of the warriors yelled as they kicked Quauhtli into the tree and raised their hand to strike him.
“NO!” Citlali, who I’d forgotten was in my hands, screamed and broke free. She grabbed one of the shards from the ground and threw it to the warrior’s face.
When the warrior at my neck moved his weapon from my neck to throw at her. I ran to her, hoping to push her out of the way, but instead I covered her body with my own and waited for the pain that never came.
Suddenly a shadow came over us and when I looked it was him. He’d grabbed the spear by the bone and blood dripped down at his arm.
“Tlahuicole!” One of the others yelled. Yet he did not speak. He nodded his head for them to leave but they refused. “Tlahuicole,” the man called once more but his voice different, warning him.
Tlahuicole did not speak, he did not move and so they, his own people, rushed to his chains and tried to pull him by force, and his fury turned towards them, to the confused the warriors of the Great City.
“Run, home,” I said to Citlali as I brushed her hair from her face. She cried and so I pinched her arm as hard as I could. “Run!”
She hugged me then ran into the bushes, her hair being the last thing I ever saw of her. Part of me hoped she’d turn back so that I could see her one more time but she did not and all I could do was say into the wind and hoped it would carry to her ears. “Live long. Live well. Live under the sun little sister.”
“Leave him!” The snake-eyed warrior yelled and the others pulled back as more warriors ran from the Great City.