Humanity's Black God

Twisting through the bends of the forest, Serpent slithered through the dark night. A glimmer of gold adorned the tip of his tail, a golden coin attached with a thread of yarn. He stopped at the base of an immense oak tree, whose trunk resembled the face of a cliff. A dark shape perched on the upper branches, a grim specter of night. Vulture.

            “Why have you called me here?” asked Serpent. His tongue flickered out of his mouth as he tasted the air. He didn't trust the carrion eater. Nobody wise did.

            Vulture cackled darkly. “I have my reasons. But be patient. All will be explained, in due time.”

            Serpent lifted his head off the ground, so that a third of his body wavered in the air. “I am not a patient creature. But very well, take your time. You have captured my attention.”

            “That is good,” said Vulture. His bald, skull like head seemed to grin. “Long ago, back in the time of the tyrant lizards, a great catastrophe occurred. This extinction drove them into the ground, where the corpses of flesh and plant gave birth to a great entity.”

            Serpent lowered his head and twisted into a coil. He admired the gold coin as it shimmered in the moonlight. “Merolutep. That is whom you speak of. The black god of humankind.” 

            Vulture nodded his head. “For the time being. His strength leaves with every passing decade, until soon, there shall be no more left of him.”

            “And why should we care? Merolutep still slumbers. He cannot be awakened. But oh, if he could, the possibilities would be endless. The riches to exploit would last a millennium.”

             “Then be either afraid or enthralled with joy, for the humans have decided to awake him. In the burning land, where the ground shudders beneath the weight of their mechanized activities, Merolutep stirs.”

            A glint of understanding flashed in Serpent’s slit eyes. “You want us to go there, to be there when he awakens. My friend, I like the way you think. Merolutep will be a powerful tool.”

            “Yes, but not just that. Think past your greed for a moment. He shall also be both a great boon and hindrance to humanity, an agent of chaos, fueling both progress and wars.”

Vulture flew from his branch, leaving Serpent to slither after him.