Gods of Jade and Shadow

Casiopea crests a hill and sees the Jade Palace. As she gazes at it, Martín arrives. He begs and demands Casiopea give up. She refuses, and he attacks her. Tired, desperate, and disheveled, he looks more terrifying than “a monster from the myth” (310). Unable to kill her, Martín pushes her down a hill and runs off. When Casiopea recovers, she finds the road has vanished.

Without a plan, Casiopea starts walking. The further she goes, the more her memory fades, and she starts to forget her past. Rather than being a young woman on a quest, she believes she has grown old and bitter in her grandfather’s house. She recalls a line from a poem she told Hun-Kamé, and her memories return to her. The landscape changes, and suddenly, she is in a salt quarry with mountains in the distance and colorful fish flying overhead.

She sits by a pure blue lake. Somehow, she can feel Martín’s progress along the Black Road. Casiopea takes out her knife and wades into the lake. She knows she cannot win but refuses to let Vucub-Kamé claim the victory without a fight. She recalls standing in the ocean with Hun-Kamé and realizes he loves her.