Then
of a sudden the prince Guatemoc stepped forward, and addressing the
priests, pointed to their chief, and said:
'Seize that man!'
They hesitated, for though he who commanded was a prince of the blood
royal, to lay hands upon a high priest was sacrilege. Then with a smile
Guatemoc drew forth a ring having a dull blue stone set in its bezel,
on which was engraved a strange device. With the ring he drew out also
a scroll of picture-writing, and held them both before the eyes of the
pabas. Now the ring was the ring of Montezuma, and the scroll was signed
by the great high priest of Tenoctitlan, and those who looked on the
ring and the scroll knew well that to disobey the mandate of him who
bore them was death and dishonour in one. So without more ado they
seized their chief and held him. Then Guatemoc spoke again and shortly:
'Lay him on the stone and sacrifice him to the god Quetzal.'
Now he who had taken such fierce joy in the death of others on this same
stone, began to tremble and weep, for he did not desire to drink of his
own medicine.
'Why must I be offered up, O prince?' he cried, 'I who have been a
faithful servant to the gods and to the Emperor.'
'Because you dared to try to offer up this Teule,' answered Guatemoc,
pointing to me, 'without leave from your master Montezuma, and because
of the other evils that you have done, all of which are written in this
scroll.
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