The moon rises in the east and sets in the west, the night is at its deepest, and dawn is about to come. Priest Tomate and Chieftain Moqi continue their unfinished conversation, speaking bits about the northern lowland Maya, unconsciously realizing it's already dawn.
"The Canul guardian clans, their territory is at the westernmost part of the peninsula, more than a hundred miles from east to west and more than two hundred miles from north to south. The north is arid, while the south is hilly, with the population mainly in the central part. From north to south, along a line, there are more than a dozen small Canul city-states. These city-states are each ruled by different chieftains of the clans, all belonging to the Council of Elders in Kapok City. Such a loose political system makes it very difficult for them to unite all their efforts, and there is no Great Chief or King who decides everything..."
