INCA THIRTY

Here we are, my dears, the very last part of Inca. I have really enjoyed doing this, and I am very grateful to Lady Sunrope for her tireless beta and valuable contributions to the storyline. It would not have been the same if she had not been a part of it.

I must warn you this is not easy to read - but I urge you to read until the end. I suppose I should give a warning, but I'm not going to. Read it at your peril, and please let me know if you've enjoyed it - if enjoy is the right word. It is not easy - but I promise you it is worth it. Love to you all, faithful readers. xxx





***The Prayer is a real hymn by the Great Sapa Inca Pachacutec, and as such, is much revered bu me.***



Part 30 - Death in the Mountains NC-17

Dom was escorted back to his room, his mind and body numb. He was not capable of thought or action, so he sat on the edge of his bed, his hands clasped in front of him, his eyes staring blankly at the wall.

A few minutes later, Will came into the room. He sat beside Dom on the bed, and put his arm around him and rested his head on his friend's shoulder. Neither man spoke - there was truly nothing to say.

After a while, Dom cleared his throat. "I must write a letter to my father, do you think the Inca will allow me pen and paper?"

Will spoke quietly. "I will find Rimac or Villac and asked if this is to be permitted, if you would like it."

Dom reached over and grasped his friends other hand, reaching for the comfort to be had in human contact. "Soon, but for now, sit with me my friend, for a few quiet moments."

They sat there, not moving or speaking, until Dom sighed and said, "go now, if you will. I would do this whilst I still have the wits to finish it."


Will came back with some of the paper they had made the previous day, and ink. "The Villac-Uma bids me tell you that the Inca will have this read to him before it leaves for Spain."

Dom nodded, and pulled the paper towards him, resting his elbow on the table for a moment whilst he thought.

"My Dear and most Honoured father," he wrote.

"I write you this in the sure and certain knowledge that I am about to die. This thought is never comforting in a man whose years are few, but I will rest in more content knowing that I tried honestly to complete the task my King and the Holy Father entrusted to me.

I am sick unto death, and my heart is heavy within me, for I could not complete this task but I wish you to know that I tried my utmost best to see that it was done. I leave it to you to inform our cousin, the King, and the Holy Father of my death

I have not had time to make a fair copy, as I was not expecting to be taken from this world quite so soon, but I am entrusting William Boyd with the completion of it, knowing he is an upright and honest man, and will report fairly my words so that you can pass them on to those whose desire it would be to see them.

I trust the Inca to see to the disposal of my body in a manner suitable to the circumstances of my death, knowing him to be a just and noble King, who counts the care of his people above his own life and comfort.

I send you my duty and my love, and to my brother and his family, a loving farewell.

I abide by the Will of God in this life and the next.

Most Obediently, your son, Domingo."

He put his pen down, and handed the page to his friend.

"You will give out that I have died of some disease, Will. I will not have the Spanish forces descending upon Lizhe and his people, seeking revenge for my death. I will leave it to you to decide. I am afraid my mind is occupied with other things at present. Do you take this to the Inca when the time is appropriate, and let him read it. Let us leave it, now."

He walked slowly about the room, and then to the window, wistfully gazing out over the mountains.

"It is a shame I have been confined to this room, Will. I would like to have felt the fresh air on my skin. But then, there is a walk up the mountain tomorrow. I will feel the air then."

Silence descended upon the two men, and they sat, not speaking as time passed them, galloping on swift feet into the morrow.

Both Dom and Will had expected Villac or Rimac to come to see them, but no-one disturbed their peace, except for servants bringing food.

Towards evening, several guards came and removed everything in Dom's chamber that belonged to the Spaniard.

It was Dom who voiced what both of them were thinking. "One would have thought they would have left me with my belongings until tomorrow. After all, am I capable of committing treason with a set of court garments, or a pair of Spanish hosen? What do they expect I will do, attempt to strangle the Sapa Inca with my silk stockings?"

Anger rose in him like a flood, his Hidalgo blood flaming at the thought of such indignity.

"Am I not even allowed clean clothing, that I must go to my death like a scullion from the kitchens? God's bones, it is insupportable!"

Will's quiet words stopped him in his tracks. "It matters not what you wear, my dear friend - you will be a Prince, conduct yourself like a Prince, look like a Prince, whatever your apparel - that is the most important thing. Calm yoursel', now. There is no need for this."

Dom suddenly saw that the box in which the Inca's gift resided - the chain he had given him - was being carried out. All the anger fled from him. This was all he had left of his Lizhe.

"May I not keep this?" he pleaded with the man who was removing it. "It did not come here with me, it is a gift from the Sapa Inca. He specified everything that came with me was to be destroyed - this did not. This was God's gift and I would keep it."

The guards looked at each other, and at Dom. Slowly one of them reached into the box, and reverently took out the golden object and handed it to Dom without a word.

Dom put it around his neck, feeling its weight rest against his chest. Feeling calmer, he sat at the table with Will, who had sent for some chicha, and drank slowly.

Time passed, and night came. Will insisted Dom rested on the bed, and he did so, trying not think, and not succeeding.

He remembered Lizhe climbing over the wall, bringing him tomatoes, and Dom thinking him a servant boy. He remembered sitting there in the sunlight, eating them, while Lizhe chattered on, his dark hair and bright blue eyes shining - beautiful in his youth and glory.

He remembered the overpowering love that he had felt when he first held Lizhe in his arms, and kissed him. Their first night together...

He stopped. All this was pointless; it would all end in a few days, on the mountain.

There was nothing to be done, save endure what was to come.

Dom closed his eyes for Will had come to lie beside him, spooning into his back, giving him comfort. He pretended to sleep, for he did not wish his friend to know that he was suffering through the night hours.

Thinking in the darkness he realised he did not blame Lizhe for acting as he did. Dom was a fair man, and knew that he would have behaved in the same way had the roles been reversed, and this was his country to protect. He saw it all, now, as if he were Lizhe examining Dom's thoughts - seeing for himself what folly he had caused by his unchecked words. He felt no anger towards the Inca, but a longing for him that tore at his inmost self.

Silently, so that Will would not hear him, he wept into his pillow for the years together he and Lizhe would never have.

*****

Dawn came, and with the dawn came food and drink. Will gestured the food aside, but took the jug of coca, and the two clean cups.

Neither man had spoken to the other, and before they had had an opportunity to do so, more servants appeared with ewers of water, and towels.

If Will thought it was a waste of time bathing before one went to one's death, he said nothing, but helped Dom as he was used to do.

Dom was just about to put on yesterday's garments when Villac appeared, carrying Dom's grey silk court dress over his arm. It was the suit of clothing in which Will and Dom had dressed Lizhe, in what seemed now to be another life and another time.

Villac must have seen Dom's stare, for he said immediately, "God has commanded that you put on this clothing, Dom Domingo."

Dom was just about to ask why, but decided against it. After all, he reasoned in his mind, he might not like the answer - and what did it matter now?

Slowly and carefully, Will helped him dress. Will placed the hat with its curling plume in its exact place, and nodded slightly.

Dom braced himself to ask a question. "Will the Inca be accompanying us up the mountain?"

The High Priest shook his head. "God left for the Shrine last evening, before the Sun set. He wished to commune with Viracocha, the All-Father in private for a while."

Will had had fresh clothing sent to him by Pima, and he bent his head and laced his doublet, so that he did not have to look at Dom. He sensed his friend's disappointment. Dom would have wanted to look upon Lizhe as he made his last journey, yet even that was denied him.

Villac glanced sadly at Dom. " I will lead the way; you will follow me, if you please."

"If we please or not," Will muttered under his breath, but neither man heard him.

******

When they left the Palace, both men were astounded to see that the whole population of the city was lining the road up the path to the mountain. Dom saw David and Pima, and many others with whom he had become acquainted. He wondered why they were waiting there.

Before either man could ask a question, Villac said without turning his head," God commanded it."

They stopped at the bottom of the path outside the city wall, and Dom and Will were handed little bags of the coca leaves that they had taken the first time they had climbed this road.

Dom put two leaves in his mouth, and turned, as Lizhe had done, and looked at the City, shining in golden beauty in the morning sun. Tears came to his eyes as he thought I will never see this again, but he blinked them away, thinking that the guards and priests that accompanied them would count it a weakness in a man, to see him weep.

Slowly and steadily they climbed the hill.

*****

The first two nights on the mountain passed as if in a dream. When they stopped to sleep, Villac did not come near Dom, as he had expected, but sat alone, huddled in his blanket, as far away from the group as possible.

Dom refused what he was offered to eat at first, but Will made him take a little. "You dinna want to be fainting from weakness, Dom," he had said in a quiet voice, and with that Dom had to agree.

The third day he knew would bring them to the Shrine. Dom and Will, turning the corner that would bring them there, stopped, and Will brushed down Dom's clothes with his kerchief, and rearranged his small ruff in a more becoming position. Dom replaced the hat upon his head, and strode forward.

As they came to the month of the cave, Dom straightened his shoulders, and would have walked in had not Villac stopped him.

"You will stay here until I return," he said, entering the cave. A few minutes later he came out, and indicated who should go in.

Thus it was that Dom and Will, with four priests and two guards passed through the entrance.

*****

As Dom's eyes became used to the lesser light of the interior, he saw that Rimac was standing beside the altar, and, emerging from the gloom at the back of the cavern, came Lizhe, dressed solely in a white fringed skirt that hung to his ankles.

Dom, staring at the beloved face for what he knew to be the last time, was shocked. Lizhe was paler than Dom had ever seen him, and his eyes bright with a frantic glow that frightened Dom. Even now, at the end of his life, Lizhe had the power to move him.

Villac and Will came to Dom, and began to strip him. Dom neither protested nor indicated in any way that he knew what they were doing. The one he had eyes for stood motionless and pale in the dim light.

When Dom was completely naked Villac led him forward by the arm, and indicated to him that he should lie on the bright red blankets placed on the altar. He did so, settling himself as if it was important to him to go into eternity in comfort.

He lay still on the woollen cloth, staring at the roof of the cave, unable and unwilling to look anybody in the eye, here, at the end of life.

He heard sounds of movement around him, and then Villac was standing at his side, offering to him a golden cup. This then, was the poisoned drink that took the offerings to the God.

He looked up at the High Priest, and saw only compassion and understanding in his eyes. This he did not wish to see, not from any man. He took the cup and drank swiftly.

A few minutes passed. He felt lightheaded, but not unpleasantly so. It was as if he was wrapped in a warm cocoon. He was glad to feel this, as he now knew what little Eyla had felt under similar circumstances.

He raised his head a little, giddy from the drug, and saw Will leaning against the wall as if his own weight would not hold him. The guards and the priests knelt in a row on his other side.

Then Lizhe appeared, and he was holding a large ceremonial knife. Dom blinked at him. He was not to die from the poison, then, it was to be the knife. He did not understand.

Lizhe stood at his side for a few moments drinking him in with his eyes, then raised the knife grasped in both hands, high above his head.

Villac said something Dom did not catch, and, as the last of his senses were leaving him, spoke his last words, to the place where he knew his love stood, for in truth, Dom could no longer see.

"Forgive me" he whispered, but there was no reply.

The Inca cried in a loud voice "Inti!" and the knife struck Dom's chest.

*****

Will sank to the floor, his legs no longer able to hold him. He was standing behind Lizhe, but could see the blood staining his white skirt, and running down his arm, dripping onto the floor.

A horror struck him. It could not be! "Not his heart! For the love of God, dinna tak' his heart!" Then Rimac was there, and clamped his hand, hard, over Will's mouth.

"Silence!" he whispered. " this is a Holy Rite."

Will closed his eyes, and tried hard not to vomit. His friend was dead, and now his body was being desecrated. He did not know if he could stand it, but knew that nothing could be done for Dom now.

Then Lizhe turned from the body lying still and pale on the blankets, his chest a mass of red streaks, the hand that was holding the knife, wet with blood.

"God gives you leave," he said in a hoarse whisper, and turning back to Dom, flung himself on the body, and uttered such a sound of anguish as Will had never heard from mortal man.

Supported by Rimac, Will went into the fresh air. He did not notice the others coming out with him, or that they sat against the cliff, silent and grim.

Will turned his head and retched into the sparse grass, and when he had finished, took the cloth that Rimac offered him, and wiped his face. Then he drank what was given to him, and then he slept, for he knew, as he was drinking it, that the water had been drugged. But he did not care. His heart was empty. Dom was gone - his friend was gone.

The last thing he heard as sleep took him, was Lizhe crying out into the dying light.

It was all so... unnecessary.

*****

It was still dark when Will woke. Rimac was no longer there, and Will guessed he was in the cavern with Lizhe and Villac. He went up the path a little way, his legs still unsteady, until he found the stream that he knew was there.

Several minutes later he came down again, as the grey pre-dawn light peeped over the hilltops, to find Villac and Rimac standing at the cavern entrance, with the priests and guards.

"God commands that you enter," Villac said, looking at him, not unkindly.

Will steeled himself, and went into the cave. Dom was lying there, still, but there were different coloured blankets - blue - adorning the top of the altar, and covering his body up to the neck.

He looked at his friend's face, pale as milk in the little light that there was coming from two lanterns placed in a niche on the wall. Villac doused the lights, and the darkness covered them. As Will's eyes got used to the watery daylight filtering in on them, he wondered why he did not feel the anguish he had the night before, and realised the this was how the death of a loved one was - he remembered the detachment he had felt when Granny Boyd died, and knew the tears would come later.

Lizhe was dressed in vivid blue, the headdress of the Sun on his head - its spikes catching a few glints of daylight. Will could not see his face, and he was glad. For surely his eyes would mirror the deep despair that Will felt, whether it showed in his face or not.

Lizhe stood at the foot of the altar, his back turned towards the encroaching daylight. He gestured to Villac to remove the blanket from Dom's body, and Will fervently hoped that no more injury was going to be inflicted upon his friend.

The space was charged with an atmosphere Will had never before experienced, and he did not understand it.

Suddenly he saw Lizhe's shoulders tense, and he flung his arms in the air.
"Inti! Inti! Inti!" the Inca cried in a loud voice, and as the rays of the Sun struck his back and rose above him to rest on the altar, Will was consumed with wonder, for Dom was lit by the golden rays of the Sun, and he was breathing.

All the men knelt, and bowed their heads. This was too much to understand, and Will made no attempt to do so. He stayed where he was, and let the experience flood through him.

The priests were chanting praise to the Sun-God, Life-Giver, and to God-on-Earth, the Sapac Intiq Churin, Aralizhe Pachacuti, Only Son of the Sun, who made all things possible through contact with his Father, Viracocha.

Then Lizhe sang, in a strong, uplifted voice -

"Lord Viracocha,
Who says"Let there be day, let there be night!"
Who says,"Let there be dawn, let it grow light!"
Who makes the Sun, your son,move happy and blessed each day,
so that man, whom you have made, has light:
My Viracocha,
shine on your Inca people,
illuminate your servants,
whom you have shepherded,
let them live happy and blessed,
preserve them in peace,
free of sickness, free of pain.

Bless this, your servant,
returned to us from the dark;
renew his heart within him,
his heart clean and pure,
comfort him - bring him joy
and life everlasting.

Take my words to your heart!
For ages without end
let us live,
grasp us in your arms,
hold us in your hands,
wherever you are, my Lord,
my Viracocha!"

"Amen," Will whispered. "Amen!" For he, too, felt renewed, although he did not understand why.

Then Will looked at Dom again and saw, in the stronger light, that the beard had gone from his face. He lay there, calm and serene, his eyes closed, his lips gently smiling.

Dom was in the Valley, where he had spent the Night, in a field green with new growing grass. There were some alpaca grazing further up the slope, and he was sitting in front of a clay oven, prodding the potatoes inside with a stick, turning them, so that they would be evenly cooked.

The sun was high in the heavens, and the day was warm, filled with the scent of honey, and the sound of bees.
He had been talking to a man -who he was, he was not sure - maybe it had been a priest. He had worn a headdress that combined both the Sun and the Moon in its design.
He did not remember what the man had said to him, only that he felt supremely happy and contented.
Then he saw Lizhe coming towards him across the grass, and smiled at his love, welcoming him. Lizhe put his hand out, and took Dom's in his, and pulled him to his feet.

"It is time to come home now, Auqui. Your sleep is over."

The sun was high in the heavens and his heart was filled with joy.

*****

Dom opened his eyes, and saw the sunlight coming into the cavern, and Lizhe standing beside him holding his hand, and Will leaning against the wall, his fist crammed in his mouth to stop himself weeping.

He swung his legs over the side of the altar and stood for a moment, looking around him, as if he had never seen the place before.

Villac and Rimac stood together, and there were a group of men on the other side whom he did not know Then there was Lizhe staring at him with such love his eyes, that Dom's heart missed a beat.

He felt a tingling on his chest, and looked down. There was something carved there, deep into the flesh, but he could not see what it could be. It hurt, but this did not matter, for he was alive where he had thought to be dead.

He had an overwhelming desire to take Lizhe in his arms, but he knew instinctively that this was a religious sacrament, and that it could not be. So he contented himself with a smile, and put all the love that he was capable of showing into it. His eyes were fixed on Lizhe, as the Inca's were on him, and words unspoken and un-numbered passed between them.

Lizhe stood at Dom's side and spoke to the assembly. " I present to you the Auqui Inti Huayna Capac, The Splendid Youth of the Sun. His less formal name is Dom Huascar, Lord of Joy, for he is my joy, now and for ever."

Dom knew that he was naked, but it did not matter. He bowed low to those present, then went to Will and put his arms around him, and leaned his head on his shoulder.

"Welcome back, my Lord," Will managed, breathless with choking tears.

Then Dom stepped back, and took Lizhe by the hand again, and kissed his hand, then his brow, then his cheeks, then, tenderly, his mouth.

"Of my earthly life, from this moment, you are my Master. Everything I desire is in you. You have given me a new life where there was only death. None shall come before you, this I swear."

Then he allowed Rimac and Villac to dress him in midnight blue and silver. The buckle on his belt was made in the shape of the moon, and there were silver stars fixed into the leather encircling his waist. On his head he wore a headdress of Condor feathers, and standing proud above them was a crescent moon, its horns facing downwards, and studded with sapphire.

Then Lizhe spoke again. " Dom Domingo of Spain is dead. He died in this cave last night. This morning has been born Dom Huascar, Lord of Joy. Of his former self there is no atom remaining. You are my witnesses that this is so. God gives you leave."

The assembly bowed and left the cave for the bright morning sun, leaving Dom and Lizhe inside.

Will sat against the wall, and breathed deeply. Much had happened that was beyond his understanding - but one thing he thought he knew, and when Rimac came towards him, he voiced his thoughts.

"So the poison was not poison, my friend - but merely a sleeping draught. Yon Villac is a clever man."

Rimac stared at him, and smiled. "How little you know us, my friend. Villac brewed the potion, as he makes it for everyone who goes to God. Sixteen of the leaves, and two handfuls of the powder, which is enough to kill ten men. If a man is to die, he does not wish to wake in the middle of it. Dom's life was in the hands of God."

Will swallowed hard. "So he might have died, before the knife..."

Rimac smiled. "Do not doubt it, because I do not. He did die, and if you ask him where he was during this night, and with whom he spoke. I think you would be surprised at the answer. Try him later, when he has recovered."

"I saw something carved on his chest, what is it? Is that what Lizhe did last night? The light was too dim to see it clearly."

"There was a straight line at the bottom, representing the Earth. Above it, the Sun was sinking into it to rest, and above that was a crescent Moon, covering the Sun - protecting it. The People are the Earth, The Inca is the Sun, Dom Huascar is the Moon. They - the Three - are One now, and always will be. Nothing will separate them, not life, nor death, nor anything in between," Rimac told him, his handsome face wreathed in smiles.

*****

Villac made as if to enter the cave with some food, but backed out, smiling.

The two men were locked in each other's arms as if the rest of the world did not exist - and for those few moments, in truth, it did not.

When both of them could breathe again, Dom lifted his head from Lizhe's shoulder and looked carefully at him.

He saw the pain had gone from his lover's eyes, the strained, set look that had been on his face was no longer there. There was light where before there had been darkness, joy where there had been sorrow.

"Have you forgiven me, mi corazon? Dom whispered into the dark hair tumbling down Lizhe's shoulders, breathing in its scent in the fresh morning air.

Lizhe drew back, and taking Dom face in his hands, smiled.

"You, Dom Huascar, you who have been newly born this day, ask for forgiveness? Why? What sin have you committed in the short moments that you have been breathing in this world? You are as sinless as a new born babe."

Dom stared at him, not understanding for a moment what the Inca meant, then realisation descended on him like a flood.

He took Lizhe in his arms again. "It is true - I am reborn; and as I look into your face I see the same newness reflected in you. Nothing will harm us, now, for we are one - one in purpose, and one in spirit. Renewed and made perfect."

Lizhe put his arms slowly around Dom's neck. "Yes, mi alma," he said, as he kissed him.

If there was any sound coming from the cave, no-one appeared to hear it - except Will - and he rejoiced mightily at it.

It was a new beginning - for all of them.


Epilogue.


Holy Father, and dear Cousin,

It is with the greatest sorrow I have to inform your Holiness that my Son, Dom Domingo, died in the execution of his duty to your Grace and our Cousin, the King.

His servant, William Boyd, who is remaining in the Americas with his new wife, has written to me a report, a copy of which I am sending with this letter, and a copy also to Ferdinand, so that you may see how matters lie in the Country whose People and Customs were of interest to your Holiness.

I comfort myself that I have left to me a Son with Sons of his own to console me in my loss - and I am pleased that Domingo died in full Faith, wishing at the Last to do his Duty.

I enclose for your Grace's perusal a Copy of the Letter he wrote to me before he succumbed to his Sickness, from which he was suffering even as he entered these New Lands.

Sincerely your Brother In Christ Jesus,

Cristobal y Aragon

*

To Cristobal Diego Sancho Ruy Fabiola de Mora y Aragon from William Boyd, Servant.

This is the report that was begun by Dom Domingo, and which I completed as he charged me, as I have already told your Highness in the Letter accompanying this scroll.

The Inca people live simple lives, working the land, and tending their flocks on the mountain. They are a Primitive people and do not use the wheel for transportation, but rather, pack animals called llamas which carry wool and provisions to outlying areas.

They worship the Sun as God, and the mountains, sky, rivers and the wind. They have no concept of any higher law, and cannot read, communicating with each other by knotted strings no-one else can understand.

The Sapa Inca is Law here, and his people would do nothing at all without his express permission, choosing rather to die than displease him in any way.

These People are like Children in their eager simplicity, and resist any new ideas or changes as not being the Inca way.

Only yesterday the Inca threw into the fire the Journal that Dom Domingo has used to write notes for his report, saying it served no useful purpose.

The only treasures this nation possesses are the gold and jewels owned by the Sapa Inca, and which reside in two small chests in his apartments. The Inca's gold is the only thing that has any value in the entire Country. Unfortunately I cannot send to you or his Holiness the gifts the Inca offered to you, as we fear they might carry the contagion of disease to your Persons and lands, even if cleansed by Fire.

There is much sickness here at present. Five children of one family and their mother died overnight. No-one is sure what caused their sickness - several people are also said to have died in the harbour town - and this is of concern to those of us who are not natives to this land. The Inca has forbidden anyone to travel out of the City, or to come up from the coastal regions to make certain no more sickness is transmitted to others, seeing how Dom Domingo died amongst us so recently, and might have spread the contagion .

It was Dom Domingo's last wish that these simple people be left in peace to live their Primitive lives upon the mountain, as nothing useful will be served by trying to instill in them the Truths that your Highness holds to so strongly.

The Auqui Inti Huayna Capac, The Splendid Youth of the Sun, constant and most beloved Companion of the King, sends, on the Sapa Inca's behalf, his thanks for your concern regarding his peoples, and trust they will overcome this sickness which has afflicted them and have many years of peace in which to enjoy their happy and contented lives upon the Mountains, tending the llama and the crops.

He was roasting root vegetables in the fire as he said it, so you may see how simple the lives are here, on these Mountain. Nevertheless it contents me, as it reminds me, most forcibly, of Home.

Sincerely, and with Greatest Respect and Obedience to your Highness,

William Boyd.