Now
Papantzin, or the ghost of Papantzin, looked at us with blind eyes, that
is with eyes that were open and yet did not seem to see.
'Are you there, Montezuma, my brother?' she said in the voice of
Papantzin; 'surely I feel your presence though I cannot see you.'
Now Montezuma stepped from the shadow and stood face to face with the
dead.
'Who are you?' he said, 'who wear the shape of one dead and are dressed
in the garments of the dead?'
'I am Papantzin,' she answered, 'and I am risen out of death to bring
you a message, Montezuma, my brother.'
'What message do you bring me?' he asked hoarsely.
'I bring you a message of doom, my brother. Your empire shall fall and
soon you shall be accompanied to death by tens of thousands of your
people. For four days I have lived among the dead, and there I have seen
your false gods which are devils. There also I have seen the priests
that served them, and many of those who worshipped them plunged into
torment unutterable. Because of the worship of these demon gods the
people of Anahuac is destined to destruction.'
'Have you no word of comfort for me, Papantzin, my sister?' he asked.
'None,' she answered. 'Perchance if you abandon the worship of the false
gods you may save your soul; your life you cannot save, nor the lives of
your people.'
Then she turned and passed away into the shadow of the trees; I heard
her graveclothes sweep upon the grass.
Pages:
223
224
225
226
227
228
229
230
231
232
233
234
235
236
237
238
239
240
241
242
243
244
245
246
247