Aztec Eternals

"The waves sing their names; the fallen have departed with the wind."

"They have left the earth, and now only the wind knows their final resting place."

"They no longer speak, they no longer sing, submerged in the depths of white jade."

"Flowers will eventually wither, and hearts will eventually slumber…"

The Learned One, Micky, stood by the sea, gazing at a small stone altar, chanting a funeral poem. In traditional Nava culture, the ocean and great lakes were the domains of the rain god Tlaloc. Therefore, souls that sank into the water would also drift with the waves in the rain god's kingdom in the sea, eventually solidifying into stone. The more devout and noble the soul, the more crystalline and radiant it would become, even becoming a precious "jade" in the religion.

…

"Only the ocean, only the sun."

"The wind god takes them away, the sun god shines upon their journey home!"

The Learned One, Micky, raised his head to the sky, gazing at the midday sun, clasping his hands in devout prayer. After a long time, he finally sighed out the end of the poem, praying for the salvation of the sun god. Then, with tears in his eyes, he gazed deeply at the 'Shipwreck Requiem Painting' hanging on the wooden pillar beneath the altar's emblem.

Chymel's 'Shipwreck Requiem Painting' was painted on fresh cedar planks, and was generally "abstract" yet "vibrant," with a strong "Nava religious style," mixed with a touch of peculiar Buddhist "realism," making it quite unique.

The surging waves, the eerie sea fog, the dim icebergs, the sailing fleet, and the splitting ship all exhausted the painter's imagination, abstractly resembling an "indescribable" collection. And the warriors and sailors who fell into the sea were "lifelike," reaching out their hands in various poses, looking at the "more realistic" sun hummingbird in the sky, as if offering their last everything.

"?!…"

The Learned One, Micky, stared blankly at the painting, and the nightmarish shipwreck in his mind reappeared before his eyes. Those crew members who were difficult to see in the thick fog and even more difficult to rescue seemed to become vivid again, turning into the struggling figures in Chymel's painting. At this moment, Micky finally felt heartbroken and burst into tears!

You must know that the victims on these two seagoing vessels were not only warriors and sailors of the kingdom. There were also two second-level priests whom he had personally cultivated from the time they were priest apprentices and who were extremely trusted, who also perished with the wrecked ships!

Those were his closest apprentices, the backbone of his lineage! Originally, as long as this voyage was successful, and he was promoted to priest elder, he could promote both of them to third-level chief priests and make them his confidants. In this way, even if he returned to the Lake Kingdom, these two could stay on the West Coast and control important overseas parishes for him… But all these plans were completely sunk to the bottom of the sea with the irresistible shipwreck, and even he himself had narrowly escaped death!…

…

"Cough! Micky, I can understand your feelings… but please, restrain your grief!…"

Chymel waited patiently for a moment, looked at the extremely sad Micky, and sighed helplessly. Could it be that after listening to "Jiahong's" description of the West Coast painting techniques, his painting skills had improved so much? Just one glance made Micky feel empathetic and burst into tears? This is really… a waste of taking him horseback riding to relax and persuade him for so long.

"May the Lord God protect you! High Priest Micky, please cheer up! Next, going to the Divine Revelation Island Chain in the west, passing through the four or five thousand miles of the Arctic Sea route, is an even more important and arduous task… Your four great ocean-crossing ships are carrying the most critical support mission to connect the ports of the West Sea Continent!"

"At present, after High Priest Losanda crossed to the west last year, he has not returned, and it is not known whether he arrived smoothly, or encountered misfortune… The West Sea Continent has not sent back any news for more than three years! Perhaps, High Priest Zuvarro is in a difficult situation, struggling to contribute among the West Sea tribes, waiting for our support…"

"The Lord God is our witness! Now it is already the end of July, and there are only two months left until the freezing in October. The Divine Revelation Island Chain only has a half-year thawing period, and a four-month ice-free period. In any case, within ten days, the westward support fleet must set sail! Otherwise, once it is delayed until mid-October, there will be ice floes coming south from the north again, and there will be unpredictable storms. At that time, sailing can only rely on the blessings bestowed by the Lord God to resolutely gamble on life and death!…"

… Within ten days, we must set sail to the west? Otherwise, by mid-October, there will be more ice floes and storms coming south?…

Hearing Chymel's urging, Micky finally stopped his grief, but the expression on his face changed inexplicably, and his hand also silently clenched the reins. He was silent for a long time, nodded lightly, and replied in a bitter voice.

"The Lord God is our witness! Chymel, don't worry, I will dedicate myself to the Lord God! Within ten days, the support fleet will definitely set sail to the west, without any hesitation or delay… Actually, losing these two ships, especially that newly built 'Great Ocean-Crossing Ship'… if I don't establish enough merit, I won't be able to go back and explain to the Lake Priest Elders! To be honest, I have no room for retreat, unless there is some other great merit…"

"It's just… it's just that these past two days, I've been tossing and turning, unable to fall asleep. Last night, I burned deer bones to divine my fortune, and I saw a chaotic 'ominous' pattern of cracks. I burned them three times, and each time it was 'ominous'! Later, after falling asleep, I had a dream and received a terrifying 'bad omen'…"

"In the dream, a golden hummingbird flew to me and said… that during this shipwreck, I was originally destined to sink to the bottom of the sea as well. It was only through the protection of the Main God that I was spared from immediately going to the Divine Kingdom… But after this, my maritime luck and the Main God's blessings have been exhausted! Yet the treacherous God-Enlightened Island Chain to the west, and the return journey through stormy seas, fog, icebergs, and massive waves… If I encounter anything else, I will certainly meet the end of going to the Divine Kingdom, and might even implicate the fleet!… Unless, there is another person blessed by the Main God to replace me and lead everyone out to sea…"

At this point, Mickey paused, looking at Chimel expectantly. Chimel's heart skipped a beat, but his face didn't betray his thoughts.

"What does this mean? Is he asking me to replace him and lead the support fleet westward to the Western Sea Continent? Mickey, this guy, has been sailing for so many years without encountering a shipwreck. But this time, he suddenly encountered one and narrowly escaped death… Could it be that he's afraid now?!"

"That's right! He's now a rising star, a highly anticipated High Priest of Navigation, only one step away from becoming an Elder of the Lake Priest Council, one of the Twelve! He's different from how he was a few years ago; he no longer has the courage to risk his life sailing to advance his career. For him, the risks of going to sea now far outweigh the benefits of the achievements. And this time, he's leading the fleet to directly support the Western Sea Continent… It's hard to say whether some of the City Elders in the Priest Council are intentionally colluding to push him out, hoping he won't return…"

"After all, there are probably many nobles and priests in the capital who don't want such a strong, middle-aged High Priest of Navigation, representing overseas interests, to become a member of the City Priest Elder Council and gain power in the center of the kingdom's theocracy! And with Mickey's age, once he takes a seat as a Priest Elder, he could probably hold it steadily for twenty or thirty years… It's just that, although our Northern Pioneering Navigation Priest lineage urgently needs a Priest Elder to speak for us in the center of the kingdom, do I have to replace him and go to sea, cross the Western Sea and return, risking my life to accumulate merit for him? That's too…"

Thinking of these unavoidable power distributions and factional disputes, Chimel's mind flashed with countless thoughts, and in the end, he could only sigh softly.

"Alas! High Priest Mickey, using dream omens to determine fortune is an old Nava tradition. But now, the Main God's light covers the earth, and everything is the Divine Order of the New Era. Someone like you, who has received divine grace, will surely be blessed by the Main God and successfully sail west and return!… May the Main God protect you!"

"…Yes, may the Main God protect you!…"

Hearing this, Mickey fell silent, his face darkened, and he lowered his head to pray bitterly. Chimel touched his nose and also lowered his head, unsure of what to say. There was no doubt that the westward support, as guided by His Majesty, had to be carried out! It was just the choice of who would lead the fleet…

"May the Main God protect us! I wonder if High Priest Losanda is dead or alive, or if he perished in the storm? If he had a smooth journey, he should have already arrived at Great Whale Port by now, for the spring and summer return in May or June!… If he happens to return, within ten days…"

The sea breeze howled, and the whale song echoed, blowing past the shores of Whale Island. Silent thoughts flowed in the hearts of the two high-ranking High Priests at the sacrificial altar in the harbor. This silence lasted for a long time, and as the sun gradually set in the west, the eighteen hours of the polar day were finally about to give way to blood-red sunset clouds…

"Woo! Woo!…"

Suddenly, a deep horn sounded faintly from the southwest sea and sky, one after another, bringing a message of warning and notification. Then, the watchtowers on the hills near the port also blew their conch shells, echoing throughout the entire camp and port!

In the Alaskan waters, where there is a half-year polar day of ice and snow in winter, and a half-year polar day with sea fog in spring, summer, and autumn, the "lighthouses" of the classical era were not very effective. Even lighting the brightest whale oil lamp could not penetrate two miles of sea fog. The most practical maritime guidance communication discovered by the kingdom's ports was still the "horn"!

The deeper the sound of the large horn, the farther it travels, like a whale song. And in foggy weather, the propagation of the horn sound is not only far beyond the reach of light but also farther than the sound in clear weather! It is said that this is related to the "density of divine particles" in the God-Enlightened scriptures, and sound travels faster in a "denser" place…

"Eh! This horn sound? A ship? Two large ships are coming?!"

"What! Two large ships? Could it be?…"

At this moment, Mickey and Chimel both looked up and glanced at each other, their expressions somewhat subtle. Chimel showed a smile and nodded affirmatively to Mickey. And Mickey's face was even more filled with barely concealed excitement and joy, and he instantly thought of even more. This is truly unpredictable fate…

"Let's go! Go take a look!"

"Giddy up! Giddy up!"

The two men mounted their horses one after the other, one galloping ahead and the other struggling to keep up. Soon, both of them climbed the small hill to the southwest, stood in front of the watchtower, and looked out at the southwest sea and sky. Under the red glow of the setting sun, two weathered ocean-going ships, with somewhat damaged long sails hanging, were struggling to ride the wind and waves, coming from the boundless red horizon. And the flags hanging on those ocean-going ships, from tiny chili seed dots, gradually turned into kidney beans, and finally transformed into the Main God's hummingbird! Everything about this fleet was familiar, clearly representing…

"May the Main God protect us! May the Main God protect us! Losanda's fleet has finally crossed the treacherous God-Enlightened Island Chain and has returned safely from the Western Sea Continent!"

Wishing everyone a Happy Lantern Festival!