Human Sacrifice

It is 609 A.D. You are in the north Yucatan. You stand at the bottom steps of the Priest's Temple, and await the beginning of the sacred ritual. Behind you, a priest wearing the monstrous mask of the Western Wind God moans an ancient chant about passage to the underworld. Behind the Priest, the Sun dips below the horizon. The Underworld begins to appear through the fog of twilight as millions of points of light come into view.

A Second Priest wearing the mask of the Eastern Wind God approaches you, and wraps your body in the smoking copal of purity. He chants a second song about the passage of the ancestors through the underworld. Then, a third Priest of the Northern Wind God steps in front of you and blows a billowing dust from his hand into your face. Stunned, you inhale the dust. You are terrified...

The three Priests catch you as you fall, and lift you back up to your feet. They lead you to the steps of the Priest's Temple, and loom over you until you begin to walk up. You are unsteady, and losing clarity, but you can still see the nine levels of the pyramid around you. The stairs are lined with the monstrous faces of the divine.

Behind you, the Three Chac Priests sing separate songs in a cacophony of anxious ceremonial music. In the delerium, you remember a song from your childhood:

"The Winds blow, Yet still no water...."

Above you, you see a river of white smoke that crosses the night sky from horizon to horizon.

"The circle is gone, We are wrong..."

The White River churns with swirling eddies and vaporous whirlpools.

"Return the blood, Return Great Corn Father..."

You can see a grey foggy streak down the middle of the White River that empties into a Black Hole. This is the road to the Underworld, the road to the ancestors. It is the road of your dreams.

"And the cycle will be won."

You reach the top steps and hear the song of the Priest of the Eastern Wind God. He greets you as you step onto the grand temple mount. The air is thick with the smoke of burning copal and a scent that you know quite well... the smoldering ashes of bark paper soaked in human blood.

Behind the Priest of the Eastern Wind God, a second figure rises to his knees wearing a giant serpent mask lined with vibrant feathers. His face is paralyzed in a state of ecstatic trance. The King is drawing together the realms of the Earth and the Underworld, thusly preparing a tunnel for your passage into Xibalba.

The Priest of the Eastern Wind God steps before you and spews smoke into your face. You can not resist. You inhale deeply. You will help make the cycle complete.

You look up at the White River in the night sky. The world begins to spin.

The King steps forward, and lifts his royal obsidian blade to your throat. You dare not look at him. You gaze at the White River as the world spins above your head. A twirling, White Road, writhing like a cosmic rope, descends from the Black Hole, and hovers just above your head. Then, in a brilliant flash of light, the Sky Serpent roars out from the Earth beneath you, and swallows you whole. This is your passage to the Underworld.

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It is 2004 A.D. You are a seventeen year old kid in the poor suburb of a major city. You try to avoid being in gangs, but that makes you lonely. So, with no money for college and no hope of a good job, you join the Army. This was a very positive, character building experience for you except that now you are lying half dead on some damn street in Baghdad. You are surrounded by your Brothers, who hurry to your side to try and save you. The bomb was too close, though, and you know you're not going to make it. Your cognitive faculties begin to fade, and you try to tell them that everything will be alright... the shot of morphine eases the pain, and you drift away into the freedom of Heaven.

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It is 2006 A.D. You didn't mean to kill those girls. You just had too much to drink, lost control, blacked out, and woke up with blood on your hands. You hate yourself. And now, the State is going to kill you.

You are stretched out on a medical bed. The medical technicians tap your veins with three long needles... Three needles for three drugs, the safest constitutional method for killing someone.

You do not fight. You have had seventeen years to face this death. You are fulfilled knowing your death brings Justice.

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It is 2007 A.D. The Competition has edged into your market, and you gotta send a message.

You set up the sting. Your partner calls into the Pawn looking for the Acapulco Gold. The meeting location will be at the Bosque Park at 10:00 p.m. You count every minute until the meeting time, but you only pack one bullet. One shot is all you need.

At 10:00 the Pawn shows up. Your Partner gets out from his car and approaches the Pawn. Together, they walk into the park.

You sit in your own car and wait. You count more minutes. Finally, your Partner leaves the park alone and walks to his car. His car starts, and he drives away.

You count more minutes, waiting for the Pawn to reappear. You've thoroughly cleaned and checked your gun by the time the Pawn returns. Spotting your optimum chance, you start your car and casually approach the Pawn as he walks down the sidewalk. you roll down your power windows, and take carefull aim. One shot... Message sent.

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It is 2009 A.D. Zealous Fundamentalist are driving fear and panic and turning people into Lethal Enemies. The Supreme Nuclear Weapons of the Sun God are pursued by many zealots for the powers of Security and Wealth. The Wealthy are rich because most are still poor, and the Resources of Life, that being energy, food, water, are beginning to run scarce. It would only be a matter of generations before the powers of the Supreme Nuclear Weapons of the Sun God were unleashed to burn and poison the face of the Earth... in the name of Security.