The gods of Orniskem rested that night in Tezcatlipoca’s palace. Rodrigo had tried to teleport to Pallas, but the barrier still prevented him. Although they could use their power completely in the region, leaving the shield was still impossible.
“I assume that, in the end, it is still a dimensional shield, only massive, like the one Ares used on Mars,” Ana said.
“One moment,” Menrva interrupted. “Rodrigo, did you not arrive by teleporting to the world where we fought Huitzilopochtli?” she asked, confused.
“Yes. Quetzalcóatl described Tamoanchan to me, so I imagined it and was able to get there without problems,” the young man replied.
“And can you not do the same thing again?” the goddess continued asking.
“That is because the worlds tied to this continent have portals and form part of an entire communication network,” Tul interrupted. “That is why one can teleport to those worlds and return, but one cannot leave this network.”
“So, if we traveled to Tamoanchan and from there Rodrigo or Menrva teleported to Pallas or Ibiza, it would be impossible?” Anpiel asked.
“Yes. All those barriers were devised to prevent the two cultures from clashing,” Tul replied.
“Then we must return to Vinland, take a ship there, and once we leave the barrier, teleport to Pallas or Ibiza so we can communicate with Nabu, if he is still there,” Tania said thoughtfully.
“I can take everyone there without problems,” Rodrigo said, but Menrva raised her hand.
“I want us to rest properly today, Rodrigo,” the Etruscan goddess replied. “It is possible that, the moment we leave this place, we will not be able to rest again.”
“I have a request that is somewhat… foolish,” Epona interrupted.
“What nonsense have you come up with now?” Anpiel asked in a tired voice.
“Well, before we leave, I wanted to visit and thank the people who helped us reach Tula. From Sedna to the Rarámuri people,” the equine goddess said.
“Of course, and by teleporting, it will not be any problem!” Rodrigo replied, excited by Epona’s idea.
The Celtic goddess turned to look at Anpiel and stuck her tongue out at him.
“Nonsense, you said?” she told him.
Anpiel smiled.
“In truth, I am rather pleased that you think more and more about others rather than only yourself. You have my respect, Epona,” the angel replied to the deity.
The other gods nodded at the equine goddess’s suggestion.
“We cannot forget the girl we found during the Trial of the Thirteen Heavens either,” Ana said. “That girl with the super hard, impossible-to-say name. She helped us pass one of the trials.”
“That is right. It was Chalchiuhtlicue, and we promised to visit her again,” Tul added with a smile.
“Very well. Let everyone rest, and tomorrow we depart for Pallas,” Menrva ordered.
Everyone nodded.
That night, in bed, Freyja was restless. She had communicated with her brother, but there was still no news. The Norse gods continued their migration while Anat remained sealed in Jotunheimr. Lel’s silence was very strange. She had also received news that Vidar, Odin’s youngest son, had disappeared.
The rooms of Tezcatlipoca’s palace were sumptuous and beautiful. They were painted completely white, with drawings of jungle landscapes. In them, birds with richly colored plumage were drawn flying through the blue sky. The goddess was lying on a bed made of intertwined palm, hanging between two columns like a hammock.
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The moonlight shone beautifully upon the Norse goddess’s face. She looked down and saw Menrva sleeping on a bed on the floor, also made of palm, though that one served more like a mattress.
“Menrva, Menrva,” the Norse goddess began calling to her friend. “Are you still awake?” she asked.
“No. I still cannot sleep,” the Etruscan goddess said, staring at her just as Freyja shook her head.
“Do you want to go walk through the streets of Tula?” the Norse goddess asked.
“I am not opposed to the idea,” Menrva replied with a smile.
“Ladies, if you are going out, you will need an interpreter,” Anpiel’s voice was heard in the darkness.
The angel was lying on a palm bed, just like the one Menrva slept on.
“You cannot sleep either?” Freyja asked him.
“With everything concerning Pallas, rest is impossible at this moment,” the malakim replied as he stood.
“Very well, then let us go,” Menrva replied.
The other two nodded.
Using teleportation, the three gods appeared on Tula’s main street. People looked at them in surprise, since it was not common to see gods walking through the streets as equals. Moreover, many could not stop staring at the Norse goddess’s beauty.
The city was filled with lights, since a festival had been held for the death of the four gods. The purpose of this festival was not only to honor the deities, but also the men and women who had fallen during the Chichimeca attack against the Toltec Empire and its neighbors.
Near the temple area of Tula stood the four gigantic altars where they honored the memory of the fallen gods. At the top of the altars, their totemas were displayed. They also had food, ornaments, dolls made of clay and pottery, and lamps to illuminate them. At the lower part rested urns containing the ashes of those deities. They would remain there for several days and later be taken to their respective kingdoms.
“It was fortunate that I was able to survive,” Menrva said, ashamed. “I suppose I was lucky.”
“I always had faith that you wouldn’t die,” Freyja confessed. “I’ve come to believe that deity they told us about in Chaco has been watching our steps for some time now.”
“Yes, I must confess that I tried to calm Tul by assuring her that you would not die,” Anpiel added. “Even so, it was a wager I had to make to soothe her, and if it was an error on my part, then I owe you an apology.”
“That is not necessary, Anpiel. I thank you all the same,” the Etruscan goddess replied.
Then Menrva saw her totema and smiled.
“Besides that,” Menrva confessed, “Bellona spoke to me shortly after I regained consciousness, and she merely scolded me, saying she could not have left her legacy to someone as weak as I am.”
“It is incredible that you tamed that woman,” Freyja replied in surprise.
“I think she had chosen me long ago so she could assimilate with me,” Menrva replied, somewhat embarrassed.
“Well, I’m mighty happy to have you back, friend,” Freyja said with a big smile.
“We are all glad you survived,” Anpiel replied as well.
Then Freyja gave a somewhat seductive look while placing her hands on her hips.
“By the way, did y’all see that Toltec hunk who was standing with us? Xochipilli, I think his name was,” the Norse goddess said sweetly.
“The man you faced in the Trial of the Thirteen Heavens?” Menrva asked, confused.
“Would there be any chance I could stay with him for a few hours?” Freyja asked, embarrassed, to which Menrva simply burst out laughing.
“Do not worry, Freyja,” Anpiel said with a mischievous smile. “I shall be a tomb if anyone asks me where you are.”
At that moment, the three gods heard two soldiers speaking to each other.
“Yes, they say they found that girl on the beach of Coatzacualco. She was unconscious, and they did not know how many days she had spent shipwrecked,” one of the two guards said.
“Coatzacualco? Is that not that little town in the Xicallanca region?” the other soldier asked.
“That conversation sounds interesting,” Anpiel said to his two companions. “I shall translate what they are talking about.”
The two goddesses nodded, and Anpiel began explaining what the men were saying.
“That is right, but the interesting thing is that her skin is similar to ours. Even so, she has beautiful curly blond hair and green eyes,” the first guard added.
“She sounds like a deity, to have such strange colors,” the other guard replied, laughing.
“She might be, because she was not dressed like our women. She had a long blue dress and some gold garments on her body. But the strangest thing was a tattoo on her right arm with symbols no one had ever seen before,” the soldier continued.
“Wow. I would have liked to see her when they brought her. She sounds like a beauty,” the second guard replied.
Menrva fell absorbed and silent when she heard that description. Freyja tried to ask her whether she knew her, but before she could do so, the goddess approached the guard with a gaze full of anxiety.
“Where did you hear that? Do you know where that woman is?” the Etruscan goddess asked imperatively.
But the men did not understand Menrva’s words. However, both soldiers knew she was a goddess and knelt before her.
“I forgot they do not speak my language,” the Etruscan goddess said, disappointed, and then turned to look at Anpiel.
The angel understood that she wanted him to speak with the guards.
Anpiel approached and held a conversation with the two men. After saying farewell to them, the angel returned to the two goddesses.
“We are fortunate. It seems she was brought to Tula yesterday,” the malakim said.
“Where?” Menrva asked anxiously.
“In the temple over there. It appears she has divine blood,” Anpiel said, pointing toward one of the temples in the area.
“Do you know that girl?” Freyja asked.
“I do not know, but that description sounds very much like Ishtar’s subordinate, Ninshubur,” Menrva explained.