Legends are more often than not stories passed down from each generation. Some teaching life lessons. Others try to explain natural phenomenon that was misunderstood at the time. Rarely, are they based off of facts and real events.
French Mayanist Claude-François Garnier -named after the famous Claude-François Baudez whom co-wrote 'Lost Cities of the Maya' in 1987- followed in his name-sake's footprints. He had studied dutifully in his birth country, spending years in colleges in order to get the chance to study the Mayan culture. It was his dream to be the first to find and prove why the once great civilization fell into ruin.
It was his first expedition to the Yucatan Peninsula of Mexico -the city of Cancún to be more specific-. They arrived via boat as Claude wanted to experience the seas like back in the old days. He had a teammate, an archaeologist by the name of Alejandra Torres. Together, they gathered several local men to show them to ruins in the forested area beyond the city's edge.
It took days, perhaps more than a week and a half for the expedition to reach their desired location. The local men gave them the usual warnings about being respectful of the structures and the gods worshiped their, about not leaving any trash on the ground, or about harming the architecture in any way. Of course, both scholars agreed.
Despite spending all daylight hours of the day scouring the temples and the surrounding areas, Claude and Alejandra could find nothing new that those before them hadn't already discovered. The pair were growing weary.
While eating lunch that the locals had provided -at a price, of course-, the two sat in the middle of their camp.
"This is a waste of time!" Claude huffed, throwing his arms up in the air.
"Relax," his female companion bit back. "I'm just as downtrodden as you, but we can't give up yet!"
"But we've been here for a month! Nothing we've come across will get any recognition!"
"You can't just expect a scientific discovery to fall out of the sky. Some people spend their whole lives on trip after trip only to come up empty handed. This is your first expedition. Give it time. Maybe do something to take your mind off the situation to come back with a clearer head?"
Brown eyes lit up as she turned to a man with a bow and arrows. She spoke adamantly in Spanish (Claude assumed, at least), her arms moving with each word. At some point, the woman gestured to the Frenchman. He nodded in response, slinging his quiver over his shoulder.
Alejandra beamed and ran back to him. "He said yes!"
"Uhm.. yes got what?"
"Oh, silly me. I asked if he would take you to go hunting! You leave in five minutes. Take your water and a machete!"
The red-headed male blanched.
"Wh-what?! I've never hunted a day in my life! Tell him I'd only be a burden!"
She waved a hand nonchalantly. "It'll be fine! Go, or else I'll throw your notes into the harbor when we get back!"
Garnier couldn't help but deflate. He knew he should have learned more modern Spanish instead of relying on her as a translator. As it was, being a month into the expedition, his phone was dead and useless.
Claude-François Garnier hated the forest.
All his life, he regarded the wooded areas with a sort of ethereal charm, fantasized about a wonderful breeze cutting through the leaves, cooling off the humidity of the sea. Oh, how wrong had he been.
The humidity was stifling, sweat clung to every part of his body and in every crevice. What little wind made it under the canopy only managed to waft the smell of decaying plant matter up his nose. Biting bugs constantly buzzed in and out of his ears, plaguing everyone involved. All the walking and hacking at vines made his limbs feel like jelly. Sleeping in tents on the rough ground, despite bedrolls, hurt his spine. He had opted for a more traditional approach than using ATVs and more high-tech amenities. He wanted to experience what researchers of old did, and, boy, did he regret it.
Theo (pronounced 'Tea-oh') rolled his eyes, walking low, arrow notched but not tensed. He kept his ears open for the sound of animals, but it was difficult with Claude crashing through the underbrush and making noises in the back of his throat.
Of course the Yucatan is just as advanced as the rest of the world. They have their own super heroes. But, those who lived closest to the Mayan ruins felt a need to preserve their heritage. So many tourists came. So many buildings were made. So many artifacts were carted off to museums around the world. They had so little left of their culture. Some felt the change was needed. The small group that went on the expedition agreed on that, some more so than others. Although, with their knowledge of the area and how to handle the animals and weather, they made good money in taking scholars to the ancient ruins with rules, of course. Nothing of significant importance could be taken without the permission of the Mexican government.
Suddenly, the hardened male caught a flash of brown among the green. The gentle snap of a twig. A deer, one unaware of their presence. He slowly raised the tip of the arrow, taking aim. Just as he breathed out and loosened his fingers, Claude let out a cough. The animal took off, and he missed the shot.
Theo cursed, standing up from his position. The Frenchman apologized for scaring their dinner away. With a motion of his hands, the elder of the two wordless told him to follow but to stay low and silent.
It was hard. The only times in Claude-François had to be silent was while playing as children or during Akuma attacks. Albeit, being quiet during attacks did little to keep one safe against super villains.
They squat-walked through the underbrush for a long time. Eventually, Theo held up a hand in a 'stop' gesture. He pointed, and Claude saw why. The deer was grazing beside a large hedge of roses. The Spanish speaking man's body went rigid.
"La rosa de la sange," he muttered, again, lowering his hunting tool.
"The what?" Garnier asked softly, not wanting to spook their prey again.
Theo didn't answer straight away. Instead, he took aim at the tawny fur and fired. The sound of a body collapsing reached Claude's ears, but he looked away. He wasn't.. mentally fortified to watch.
As his eyes strayed upward, the Frenchman noticed something amazing.
The hedge of roses and thorns climbed high on what looked like a rock formation. It stood at least two stories tall, with sharp, protruding points on either side of a smooth dome, the sharpness of said tips and lack of roughness on the curve hinting strongly at the structure being man-made. It was hard to see the grey stone beneath the moss and rose plants. Was it a temple? A mountain with some sort of significance?
"We.. need to show the others!"
Alejandra gaped at the discovery. There she and Claude-François stood, right at the base of a new ruin that had yet to be catalogued. This could be their big break!
"We need to start clearing these plants away," the Frenchman said, eagerly pacing. "So we can get a better idea of what we're looking at."
As those words left his mouth, several of the local men spoke out, seeming against the idea.
He frowned. "What are they going on about?"
The female turned to one of them and conversed for a bit until turning back to her companion.
"They said they aren't touching those roses. They're Blood Roses. It's said that Blood Roses warded off Camazotz and those under his dominion. The fact that there's so many of these planted this thickly, they say it's a sign of nothing good."
"Tell them to get over their superstitions! There could be a temple filled with ancient artifacts! Perhaps even a reason as to the collapse of their society! Any number of reasons to cut down these overgrown weeds!"
Hesitantly, Alejandra translated, making some.. tweaks to his statement. Seeing the still apprehensive looks, Claude backtracked.
"Add that I'll pay them double."
"This is.. incredible!" Claude-François cried. "A cave with such intricate carvings!"
The group stood in a half circle, looking in awe at what was before them.
The two tips at the top and smooth dome was the tip of the iceberg. It was a bat head, the points the ears. Where the mouth should be was the opening to a dark cave with stalactites reminiscing sharp fangs. Intricate designs decorated the rock foundation. It looked very Mayan indeed.
"We need to go back to the harbor," Alejandra posed. "Get more supplies, call in an expert to help us explore safely."
The Frenchman nodded, dusting off his hands. "Right! Let's head back to base and pack up. We'll head back, call a guide, and come back. Mark where we are on the map so we don't get lost!"