Prologue
As the sun set, the evening transformation began at its usual pace. The jaguar god allowed itself one last glimpse before descending into the mouth of the cave and entering Xibalba , the place of fright. He sensed that the conscious world was out of balance and its dwellers would soon be joining his flight through the nine-tiered underworld, their souls desperate to escape. He had made this trek many times and was confident he would be reborn at dawn. The lost souls would not be so lucky. They would dwell in this place wrought with danger and peril until they were able to traverse the nine levels. If they failed to elude the evils of Xibalba , they would be forced to spend eternity trapped in the Mayan underworld. The jaguar god watched the earthly struggle for survival play out between unlikely foes. He felt no emotion, and even if he did, he would be unable to alter the outcome. Once the threads had begun to unravel, no being, mortal or otherwise, would be able to challenge destiny a...