Chapter 18 Chapter Seventeen

"A ball of fire? A ball of fire as big as a star?" Cora Topak, the aging deputy to the throne, repeated Anna Maya's words, seemingly in disbelief. As early as when the mummy of the only king was lost, Vera Omar had asked him for help and asked him to speak to the outside world, because he was the one who escorted the mummy back to Cuzco, before the birth of the next son of the sun who was recognized by all , the person responsible for enforcing the king's law. Under the halo as big as an oil lamp bean, he looked very old. It was hard to believe that he was still alive.His back was hunched like a stone, his face was as thin as a mummy's and covered with wrinkles, but his eyes were extremely sharp, it seemed that only these two eyeballs could move on his face.

By the light of the torch, he carefully looked at the blue-eyed Ana Maya.Then, with unimaginable agility, he turned to Vera Omar and said: "Are you sure Atahualpa is in good health?" Vera Omar says: "I'm sure, Crown Prince. Even at this juncture, he is still nestled in the gentle embrace of several concubines! It is said that before going to bed tonight, he sealed two more concubines." "So what do you think of what Kamakenkoya just said? Do you think that is a good or bad omen?" "I don't know, Crown Prince! That's why I want you to hear her describe it. Note that the fireball came from the southeastern sky, from the direction of Cuzco—"

"But also the direction of the lake of all new life," interrupted the Crown Prince, "the direction of Lake Titicaca!" "So," agreed Vera Omar, "this means two things. Irapa, the god of lightning, will soon destroy Prince Atahualpa; heir!" These few words meant so much that the two men stopped, preferring to let the silence swallow them slowly.Finally, the crown prince finally grabbed Anna Maya's arm a little harder.In his shining eyes, Anna Maya saw the same eagerness and tenderness: "Kamakenkeya, although you are young and I am old, you, like me, believe in the importance of what you see, don't you?"

Anna Maya was so touched that she didn't know how to answer, so she just nodded her head blindly. "I'll ask you again: Did that ball of fire go right into Atahualpa's heart?" "No, Crown Prince, it vanished before it hit his forehead." "Then……" "I don't know," Anamaya stammered. "I was scared at the time." "Fear?" "I thought Prince Atahualpa was going to die." "But you don't think so anymore?" Anamaya was afraid that she would blurt out something casually, so she had to lower her head and keep her mouth shut.

"She saw it, Crown Prince," Vera Omar put in, "but she was only a child after all, and she didn't understand what she saw. But it doesn't matter, because we still have to make a decision, so I am now and High reverence, I ask you, if the omen is ominous, should we stop Vanya Kapac's mummy journey? Should we let it stay here..." "Of course not!" the old man yelled, "The king's law requires the mummy to return to Cusco. With me here to supervise, no one is allowed to disobey the king's law, otherwise Father Sun will be angry and punish everyone severely."

"Perhaps it has begun to punish us, Crown Prince!" Vera Omar continued, "Perhaps Cusco, which symbolizes falling into the hands of the madman Huascal, has already turned into a fireball ready to annihilate us! Perhaps What Kamakenkeya saw meant that Kira was warning us that she wanted to save us from a journey of no return?" "Maybe so, but maybe it's just the opposite!" the crown prince retorted in a stern voice, "there is only one king in the world, Wira Omar, you know it well. Even if stones are thrown, I will escort the one king to Cusco. You must come with me, you and Kamakenkoya, because this is your duty."

The wise man raised his lazy and feeble hands to press on his tired and thin face, his fingertips kept trembling. Anna Maya knew what he was thinking.In recent days, Atahualpa has repeatedly received instructions from his father Vanya Capac in his heart. Priests also gather in front of the coals burning coca leaves, or watch the stars, or ask sheep. The location of the camel's internal organs in order to read the king's oracle. However, the result of the interpretation, apart from predicting that the Sifang Empire will suffer drastic changes, nothing can be seen.Moreover, it is not specified who will be the future son of the sun.

"Please allow me to say a word." Vera Omar asked suddenly, the voice was so small that it had to be close to the ear to hear it. "Say it." "Don't let Atahualpa escort the king's body to Cuzco. He shouldn't have confronted Huascar, otherwise, you know as well as I do, it will start a war. Let him here, in Domen Ba said goodbye to his father. Above all, don't let him know what Kamakenkoya has seen. Why add to his fear while the Cuzco people are putting pressure on him? We just order him to stay in the north, To maintain the stability of the empire..."

The old crown prince showed a tired expression, and Vera Omar put a withered hand on Anna Maya's shoulder, and then continued: "As for you, Kamakenkeya, don't tell anyone..." Anna Maya had no time to rest at all. As if with a premonition, Atahualpa invited her to the inner courtyard before the dawn appeared in the sky.He invited her to share cornbread and some fruit delivered daily from the rainforest. She forgot as much as possible the fear that tormented her, smiled and bowed politely. In fact, her heart was struggling. On the one hand, she was relieved to see Prince Atahualpa still alive and well as usual; on the other hand, she kept thinking of the fireball that entangled her heart and made her incomprehensible.

When they both drank a glass of carob juice, Atahualpa asked: "My father didn't say anything to you?" Anna Maya felt the uneasiness of lying cutting her body like a sharp knife. "No, Prince." She replied quietly. Atahualpa looked at her for a while, then stared at the gray sky, and sighed: "The crown prince doesn't want me to escort you to Cusco, I think he has his reasons. The king's oracle is vague, and those Cusco people are crazy. It's a pity that you are leaving, Ana Maya girl, I wish you could stay with me." Feeling sorry for Atahualpa's words, Annamaya bowed deeply so that he would not see her tear-filled eyes.

"The mountain of silence is great and beautiful," Atahualpa said slowly, "but the silence of my father Vanya Capac is disturbing, and the silence of Andy is frightening." "He'll make himself clear in a moment, Prince," said Annamaya boldly. "Do you really think so, Kamakenkoya?" Atahualpa's tone was suddenly full of hope, while Annamaya bit her lip and said nothing.Then Atahualpa smiled shyly, and she looked up unusually.They look at each other.Atahualpa's eyes were full of anticipation and enthusiasm, which made his expression look strange, less majestic, more worried, perhaps a bit old-fashioned. Although Anna Maya bit her lips tightly, she still couldn't restrain the tears swirling in her eyes.Atahualpa laughed more and more.In the gray morning light, the whites of his eyes were not as red as before, but the fatigue from lack of sleep made him unable to open his eyelids. "No," he whispered, "no, you're not sure." He reached out, put his fingertips on Anna Maya's shoulder, then groped around, as if afraid that what he touched was not warm and real flesh, and finally he touched her cheek. "But I'm still glad to hear you say that to me. Good." He withdrew his hand and looked at the fingertips that seemed to have left a gentle imprint.Then, suddenly, stretching out his hands toward the growing light to the east, he said aloud: "I saw that the war was approaching, and I saw that Andi's body was covered with blood! I want to break the silence before it turns into blood. I don't want to be the one who brings disaster to the Sifang Empire, and I don't want to be the one who blows up the brotherhood! I Not at all trying to hide behind my father's silence." Anna Maya had just realized the power of these few words when Vera Omar's tall and thin figure appeared in front of the trapezoidal gate of the inner courtyard and said to him: "The time has come, Prince! You have to go to the Holy Square, the people are waiting for you!" Atahualpa continued to focus on Anna Maya. "Well," he said, standing up, and she bowed in reply. "Walk with me to my father's mummy." In the square, under the blazing sun, priests and young girls sang and danced to the princes. On the tall steps of the altar, wrapped in a robe covered with two hundred light blue and bright yellow patterns, symbolizing the glory of his life, the mummy of Vanya Kapac was fixed on a golden sedan chair.The statue of the twin brother is behind, also placed on a sedan chair.The two watched the dancers with tears of farewell with eyes overlooking the underworld. The workers, craftsmen, farmers, and shepherds who live on the hills and live in rushes are all clustered in layers of human walls around the square.Everyone wanted to pay homage to the King himself before the mummy of the One King set off for that distant Cuzco, the birthplace of himself and all his ancestors. Atahualpa stood quietly on the half-tilted altar.The prince did not wear his feathered tiara, nor his breastplate embroidered with thousands of red and blue pearls, nor gold earrings in his earlobes.A prince's turban was simply tied around his head, and his lips remained tightly shut. Anna Maya still remembered the tone of his speech just now, and when he spoke against silence, her heart also throbbed endlessly. But now, there, standing in front of all the princes, he regained his confidence.He even exudes an unrivaled power.Just as he suddenly raised his hands high and worshiped the sky, there was a deafening sound of horns in the square.The singing seemed to be absent, the sound of the flute gradually weakened, and Dongdong's drum music also stopped following the abrupt stop of the dancers. Silence, the absolute silence of Atahualpa enveloped the entire sacred square, and then infected the entire city of Dumen Bangba. Everyone held their breath. Then, in the clear air of the Andes, echoed the sensual voice of the northern young eldest son of the only king, Vanya Capac: "I really don't want to tell everyone about my sorrow, but it really hurts me. The only king is watching us over there, beside his father Andi, and I am now a bereaved Father's child can only hide behind silence. You are also a group of people hiding behind silence... "It's time for him to hit the road to his mausoleum in Cusco, where our original ancestors Manco Capac and Mama Okoro planted their golden picks deep in the land of Viracocha On the fertile ground provided... "The only king came to the north, and then conquered it. With the power of Andi, he expanded the land provided by Viracocha, and made the Quartet Empire as vast as the sky. He is so great, so now he You can retreat like a fairy. "The only king came to the north, with the permission of Emperor An, to use the bellies of the northern women to reproduce. Just like planting corn and quinoa, my father, the only king, Wanya Capac, gave birth to children in all corners of the empire Female. "The one and only king never wanted to see the country divided, he wanted the children and grandchildren to live together in peace. He never excluded the Cusco tribe or the Quito tribe, because he wanted peace to cover the whole country from south to north like an alpaca rug ... "It's a pity that my elder brother Huascar tied the Borra turban on his forehead before he obtained the oracle. He wants me to obey him. He wants the north to pay tribute to him..." Atahualpa stopped abruptly.Everyone turned to look at him, waiting for his instructions.Only flies dare to fly around. Then Atahualpa said: "This is the king's law. Everyone should obey the only king. If Huascal becomes the only king, then as long as our heavenly father Andi gives me an order, I will bow to him. But at present, I am too Sad, I really can't leave these lands where I was born and raised, cultivated by my father, and I am willing to live and die with it..." Nobles and pariahs alike bowed their heads.Their grief and anxiety did not melt into gurgling tears.The expressions on their faces are elusive. Atahualpa turned to face the Crown Prince.With an order from him, all the priests closed their eyes, raised their hands towards the sun, and then lowered their heads to face the shrine where the mummy was placed.The horn sounded again, and the bearers lifted the mikoshi and began to descend the steps of the altar. Moved by this solemn moment, Anna Maya held her breath.Vera O'Mara took her by the arm and whispered to her: "Go to the idol of the twin brothers, Ana Maya girl! Be with the one you should never leave, and let his wisdom be with you." At noon, the long funeral procession was finally ready to leave Dumen Bangba.Before setting off, about twenty servants spread out in all directions with brooms of parrot hair in their hands to clear the way. After the orchestra, they walked in front of the sedan chair.First the high-pitched horns sounded in the air, followed by the murmuring conch and the plaintive fife.A hundred women attended the mummy, carrying thin-necked chicha jugs and baskets containing corn, fruit, meat, cloth, and jewels, the essential food and clothing of the mummy of the one and only king. Followed by the mikoshi of the twin brothers.Walking in the breeze, the colorful feather cap on the sedan chair fluttered slightly, making the whole sedan chair seem to be carried by a bird instead of being carried by a bearer.The interior of the sedan chair is resplendent and magnificent, and Anna Maya is sitting directly opposite the statue of the golden god, on a carpet woven entirely of tiny red and green feathers scattered by tropical birds in the wind. After that came the sedan chairs of the eldest princes, followed by the little princes on foot, and finally hundreds of servants.On both sides of the funeral procession, there were double rows of guards armed with slings and bronze axes. They formed a moving wall and advanced with the huge procession. In such a well-proportioned lineup, the only incongruity was the dwarf: he was busy running around the mummy's sedan chair, seeing his thousand and one red robes flying in the wind, and he was busy making sure every day Whether the footsteps of the bearers are consistent, whether the road is spotless, and warn members who accidentally splashed dust on the ground.Ana Maya glanced at him tenderly.He came to her side in threes and twos, dancing a deformed dance step that was imitated. "Hey, princess, do you have confidence in my protection?" "From now on, I'm afraid you are the one who needs my protection!" "Of course. Did you know they wanted me as a gift for the people of Cuzco?" Ana Maya was terrified by the fear that leaked from the depths of his eyes. "I am afraid, princess, I have never been so afraid since the only king found me under that pile of blankets..." When he danced lamely away amidst laughter and jeers, she could only look at him, not knowing how to answer. Now that they had finally reached the last walls of the city, she heard someone calling her.Just as she walked to the king's sedan chair, she found Andi Panla standing in front of the spirit escort. "Anamaya, let me go!" Anna Maya gestured to the guard closest to her, but she had to wait for the funeral procession to move forward for a distance equivalent to the range of a catapult before Anti Panla could walk to the shrine of the twin brothers . Ana Maya saw her eyes red and swollen from tears and her cheeks sagging from insomnia. "Are you sick?" she asked worriedly. "No," Anti Panla replied with a smile, and ran forward quickly. "I'm just sad that my friend is leaving. Maybe we'll never see each other again in this lifetime?" "God knows. You can come to Cusco..." "Atahuallpa will never want to go to Cusco!" Antti Panla muttered angrily. "I know, he never will." Her eyes flashed suddenly with indifference, and she went on: "It's a pity you didn't convince him that his father appointed him as his successor! Just like you only think about those two brothers, you even helped them win the Valach Valley game that day, and now you are going to join them Already!" "Anti Panla!" Anamaya retorted. But the prince's concubine grabbed her hand and quickly changed her words: "No, no, I don't want to hurt you. I made a mistake, I know! There are things you can't do anything about, I know..." From the tone of her voice and the expression on her face, you can hear that there is something in her words.But Anna Maya didn't want to continue dealing with her, so she said: "I will miss you and I will never forget you, Antti Panla." Antti Panla smiled.Tears re-wet her eyes, but no one knew why she was crying.She stroked Anna Maya's arm, played with the golden snake bracelet and said: "Don't forget that I gave you this, Annamaya, I am your good sister! So, please make Atahualpa the only king!"