Maxtla was thunderstruck at this information, for he saw in it the secret of Tlacopan's temerity. His eyes were opened to the fact that he had been outwitted by somebody, and that Tezcuco was about to slip away from him. His anticipations of an easy conquest of the little states opposed to him assumed a somewhat doubtful aspect, and instead of an extended empire he saw before him a struggle to maintain his supremacy over his already acquired territory. Realizing that celerity of action was imperative, if he would succeed, no time was lost in getting ready for the strife.
The circumstances attending the situation pointed to Tezcuco as the probable field of contention, and troops were therefore sent forward to that locality as rapidly as organization was effected.
While Maxtla was marshaling his hosts for war, Macua and his confederates were not idle at Tlacopan.
When the concourse of people, which had assembled to witness the tourney, quietly melted away at its close, preparations were at once begun to get the allied armies into a condition of mobility. It was not expected that Maxtla would accede to the demands made in the ultimatum, so the work of organization went on.
In the evening of the same day on which the embassy had audience with Maxtla, advance couriers reached Tlacopan with his reply. Its import was anticipated, but definite action could not be taken before it arrived.
Orders were immediately issued for the armies to be ready to move for concentration the next morning. It was no longer a secret that war was to be waged with the Tepanec king, and great excitement and bustle prevailed on the heels of the tournament. The excitement was of the profound and solemn sort which is peculiar to preparations preceding a sanguinary strife for supremacy between opposing armies, especially with a semi-civilized people. The priests were actively engaged in their incitations to self-immolation by ceremonies accompanied with dolefully tuned cantations, causing a weirdness to pervade the very heart of the multitude, which brought a hush of awe upon the scene, giving it an aspect at once ominous and funereal.
All through the fore part of the night following the tournament the secret councils of Tezcuco were moving in a disorganized but orderly procession away from Tlacopan, going to the place of armament. When the morning dawned, an army of them might have been seen massed on the border of lake Tezcuco, east of the city. Some of them were already armed, while others were arming, preparatory to marching for concentration.
The armies of the nations of Anahuac were, to say the least, picturesque, and, from a historical standpoint, worthy of a brief description.
The higher grades of warriors—caciques, chiefs, etc.—wore, as a protection to the body, a heavy, quilted, cotton tunic, over which was usually thrown and fastened their superbly elegant tilmatli—mantle of featherwork. Their legs, in most cases, were protected by leggings made from various kinds of material, and elaborately fringed with trimmings of gold and silver, or other bright substance. Short boots, made from animal skin, or close fitting moccasins encased their feet. Their headgear was varied in character, often representing the head of some animal, a fish or other object. The more grotesque and hideous it was made to appear, the nearer was its purpose attained. However, the indispensable feather decorations generally prevailed.
It is quite safe to venture the assertion that the dress of the lords of Anahuac was not only gorgeously grotesque, but truly magnificent; while, on the other hand, the uniform of the common soldiers was strikingly undress, consisting, as it did, for the most part, of a plain gird about the loins, and a band of some kind to confine the hair—nothing more. There may have been exceptions to this airiness of apparel, but, as a rule, not enough to place the very convenient costume in danger of being superseded by a more elaborate and less airy one.