Introduction

Image: "A Sunday Afternoon" by Emmanuel Valtierra

The Aztec civilization was a powerful empire composed of three city-states, in the area now known as Central Mexico, from the 1300s to the 1500s. They included several different ethnic groups: the Mexica, Texcoco, and Tlacopan, all spoke the Nahuatl language. Tlacaelel was the emperor who brought the Aztec to the height of its power in the 1400s. During his reign, he "rewrote" history by burning history books and emphasizing that the Gods chose his people. The Aztecs were a deeply religious society and worshiped hundreds of different gods. Tlacaelel was an active follower of Huitzilopochtli (wit-si-lo-poch-tli), the God of war and the sun, and prioritized their connection to him. Tlacaelel strengthened the concept of the Aztecs as the people chosen to nourish the Gods, and they achieved this with human blood and hearts. For years the Aztecs were known to be fierce warriors. When Tlacaelel began the practice of blood sacrifices, Aztec warriors became an elite class based on how many prisoners they captured. Anyone could be a warrior in the Aztec empire, and thus they amassed a massive army as commoners tried to climb the social ladder by capturing the most prisoners. Their empire turned into a warmongering society which ruled with fear.

This story takes place during the prime years of the Aztec empire under the rule of Tlacaelel in the 1400s.

Huitzilli was a young man, age 17, born to a family of farmers. From a young age, he demonstrated great strength, endurance, and leadership skills and trained to be a ferocious warrior. He knew that if he continued his training, he would bring his family honor and land, but his soul was at war with itself. He never wanted to battle; he saw no point in worshiping a God that required so much blood and despised the countless sacrifices. However, as his parent's only child, he knew that if he didn't fulfill his "destiny," they would never escape their impoverished life. Huitzilli and his peers were at the end of their training. All that was left was for them to capture their first prisoner to establish themselves as warriors — their final test, one that will take place tomorrow.