Page 55 of Corvus and the Broken God

“Your sculptures are amazing, so lifelike, I’m afraid of some of them.” The little man seemed to understand, for his smile grew even wider. He addressed my Monster in his language, who looked embarrassed, but I must have been reading something into it.

Since I couldn’t understand anything they said, I studied our surroundings while sipping my hot drink, which tasted like my favorite green tea from another lifetime.

After sitting still for a while longer, I decided to explore. Another path led away from the house and shed, and this one looked well-traveled. It couldn’t hurt to take a look, and no one stopped me from walking down it.

The ground was clear and level, but the path didn’t take me far. It ended in a small clearing with a giant hole in the ground.

“It’s a cenote,” I said to my Monster, who had followed me after all. “He has it all to himself?”

“Well, yes. This is the reason he lives here.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“He is my spy, Corvus. This cenote leads to a wide web of underground caves, most of them underwater. Many of my kind meet nearby from time to time, and my friend keeps an eye on them.”

“He spies on them? Isn’t that dangerous?”

“Not the way he does it.”

“Are you going to tell me, or should I start guessing?”

“As entertaining as it would be to make you guess, I will tell you. Do you want to see the pool?”

He pointed toward the steps leading down into the earth. These had been expertly carved out of the side of the limestone walls lining the round hole. I had read about cenotes and their importance to the people who had lived here before, both ceremonially and as fresh water sources. The limestone that made up the foundation for the area absorbed water so quickly, there were virtually no streams. All the fresh water was underground. The cenotes were ancient sinkholes giving access to the water. While many of them were caves, this one held a deep, gorgeous pool.

“Yes, you know I want to see the water, but I’m not going unless you start explaining yourself. I’m tired of being in the dark.”

“I promise to tell you everything on the ride back, okay?”

“You better; otherwise, no nookie for you tonight.”

He gave me a shocked look. “You would withhold sex?”

“Yes, I will, and the non-dairy creamer. I know you’ve been raiding my stash.”

He struggled not to laugh, and it was even harder for me, so I turned to walk down the stone steps. They had been carved with such precision that they almost looked machine-made. We descended carefully, pressing against the rugged wall to avoid slipping on the slick surface, gripping the occasional vine snaking down the cliffside for support. I soaked in the natural beauty, too awed to worry about him keeping his promise, although I was fairly sure I had enough to barter with to make him tell me the truth.

When we reached the bottom, I gazed up at the hole leading to the sky. Fringes of green blurred the edges. The air was cooler down here, and the water was a stunning sapphire blue. It called to me.

“Will you come for a swim?” I asked.

“What? Willingly walk into the water?”

“Yes, that’s usually how a swim starts.”

“I don’t swim, Corvus.”

“What?”

“You heard me.”

“But you use the pools back at home.” I snapped my mouth shut at calling his land my home, but it didn’t faze him.

“Those are shallow.” He moved closer to the stone wall, and I peered over the edge. Sure enough, there wasn’t much of a ledge, only clear, deep water.

“How old are you, Camazotz?”

“Much older than the name you choose to call me suggests.”