Chapter 12 - Mayan Temple (4)

Leonel awoke with his body on fire, the slight whiff of something catching his attention. The smell made his stomach growl furiously, his mouth almost dripping with water despite how dry it felt.

Leonel didn't know how his friends were being sustained, but he did know that he hadn't felt the need for water until he woke up. And, now that it had been over four days since the last time he ate, he finally couldn't suppress his hunger anymore.

It was only then that Leonel realized that the Spaniards had been roasting a full pig when he initially entered. He must have not smelt anything before because it had just started to cook.

Leonel struggled to pull himself up, peeling all the heavy armor he wore from his body. He hadn't felt this light in a very long time.

Luckily, since there was no one to tend to the fire, the embers had died off while Leonel slept, sparing the pig from being overcooked.

It was inevitable that it was still burnt in some places, especially since no one had been there to turn it, but Leonel could hardly bother to care. He ripped off a leg, devouring the meat madly.

Initially, he had believed that a leg or two would be enough. But before he realized what was happening, he had already cleaned away half of the pig. Leonel had always been a big eater, but it was always within reason. Something like eating half of a 20 kilogram pig was far beyond his means.

"I want you to find that damned entrance! There's no way that barbarian entered from the front, there must be a hidden entrance! Look at how many of our people those savages have killed!"

Words Leonel couldn't understand drifted from the hidden entrance. It became obvious quickly that he didn't have much time. All those who saw him come out of the hidden staircase were already dead. But, it was only a matter of time before they started looking for false walls.

Because Leonel had knocked down the false wall on this side without replacing it, it was much easier to hear things than it had been in the past.

Moving quickly, Leonel replaced his armor with that of the dead leader's. He was going to pour some more alcohol on his wounds first, but he was shocked to find that many of them had faded. In fact, the aches in his body from his torn muscles had become quite dull as well.

'... Food. It must be food.'

Leonel bit his lip. Where else would he get food so easily? There was no point in carrying this pig with him because it would go bad in at most a few more days. Plus, considering the pace at which he ate it, it wouldn't last that long either.

'The only option is to continue to steal food or to leave this temple...'

Leonel couldn't come up with the perfect choice now. He had to hurry.

'I came here for... there it is, the atlatl.'

Atlatl's were essentially sling shots for throwing spears. They were a wooden attachment one could slot a spear or 'long dart' into to gain more leverage. Then, using the same throwing motion one was used to, it was possible to throw more than double the distance and with much more speed and force.

To think such a thing was invented over 20 000 years ago, even before the era of the Mayans.

Leonel abandoned his hand axes, using the belt he had stolen from a Spaniard to slip in a few atlatl's. Considering they were reusable, it was unnecessary to have more than one. However, Leonel had learned to plan for the unexpected.

He kept four atlatls with him on one hip and strapped a short sword on the other. He would have taken the leader's long sword, but he had his reasons for not.

Along the walls, countless barrels of throwing spears fitted for the atlatls. Well, to call them spears was a bit inappropriate. They looked like sturdy arrows one might fire from an large-scaled crossbow.

However, Leonel obviously couldn't carry them all. He realized after carrying around his 30 lb silver rod for so long that his body's limits were far higher than they had been previously. However, it wasn't to an exaggerated extent.

Thinking to this point, Leonel chose a square backpack shaped of wood. It was about a meter and a half in length and by Leonel's estimations could hold about 50 atlatls darts or spears.

He filled it quickly. His initial instinct was to try and overfill it, but he knew this would be foolish. If he failed to pull out a spear at a critical time, it would be too late to regret it.

'Let's test it.'

Leonel took out one of his atlatls, fitting an extra spear to it, he held its handle like a javelin.

The spear sat atop the atlatls. As for the atlatls itself, it attached to the end of the spear, allowing it to sit upon it. The body of the atlatls, which Leonel held, curved back around like an 'S' drawn much too tall and lanky.

Leonel found that when he broke down his opponents systematically with his self-created method, taking them down became even easier. He shamelessly targeted their weaknesses without remorse.

For those with great speed and agility, he overwhelmed them with strength. For those with great strength, he overwhelmed them with speed and agility. For those with great stamina, he left them to last, allowing them to tire themselves out first before he dealt the finishing blow.

Before Leonel realized it, he had grown numb to the slaughter. After breaking down their lives to mere numbers floating in his mind, it suddenly became easier to do what needed to be done. At the very least, it became easier to use the excuse that the Spanish committed terrible atrocities in this era to bury his guilt.

Emboldened by his growing strength, Leonel began to assault the Spanish from within the temple and in the camps outside under the cover of dark.

Their numbers continued to fall quickly. Leonel had no idea how much time he had spent in this Sub-Dimensional Zone, but it was enough for the Spaniards to start calling him 'El Diablo'.

He might not have known much if any Spanish, but he definitely knew what that meant. It was a name that let his actions over the last months truly set in.

His numbness turned to cold.

On yet another seemingly monotonous day, a drastic change finally occurred. With the number of Spaniards drastically lowered, the Mayans holed up within the Sacrificial Room burst out, leading a mighty counter attack of their own.

Leonel watched the battle play out from one of the few small windows he had found in the temple. He felt a wave of relief overcome him. Maybe he would be able to head home soon...

But, that was when another question struck him. Did he have a home to return to now?

Sighing, Leonel made his way through the network of hidden tunnels. A few had been found by the Spaniards in this time, but many of them were still intact.

Slowly but surely, he finally entered the only floor he hadn't. Victory seemed close at hand, but Leonel knew that the Chief Priest was currently in the greatest danger now. He had led enough football comebacks to know that people were the most vulnerable when they believed victory was at hand. So, Leonel chose to watch silently behind a false wall.

He had found this tunnel long ago but had never exited it. There was no point. He couldn't communicate with the Mayans since he couldn't speak their language, so it was better if he helped from the shadows.

But, who knew that the first things Leonel would see was an old man with wrinkled brown skin, standing over the body of a youthful beauty who seemed to be trying her best not to cry.

Her nude form could just barely be seen by Leonel, as could the knife the Chief Priest held high in the air as he chanted something he couldn't understand.

Leonel was so stunned that his face drained of all color. That girl was about to die, and the reason she would was in part his fault. Had he not...

No, that didn't make sense. Wouldn't her fate at the hands of the Spaniards be even worse? Just forget it, they're not real people anyway. Just finish the quest.

Protect the Chief Priest... Just protect the Chief Priest...

Before Leonel knew what he was doing, he had kicked down the false wall in a maddened rage. Guilt he had suppressed in his heart for months came spilling over in a bloody killing intent built from the deaths of hundreds of Spaniards.

His left arm reached into the container of long darts, his right gripping his atlatls as he hooked in his first attack.

"Die!"

This was the first time in Leonel's life he truly wanted to kill. Even with Conrad, his intent hadn't truly been there.

But the result was far beyond his expectations. The chanting Priest turned toward him with a stunned expression, but reacted quickly, a barrier of something Leonel couldn't see appearing to block the piercing spear.

Leonel stood frozen.

[Chief Priest]

[Strength: 0.12; Speed: 0.13; Agility: 0.15; Coordination: 0.42; Stamina: 0.33; Reactions: 0.73]

Not only was the Priest's reaction the highest Leonel had ever seen aside from his own, it was the highest score Leonel had ever given, period. On top of this... Leonel suddenly felt that he was missing a seventh category...

Just what was that wall of energy?