SACRIFICE TO THE MOON (Completed) #Wattys2020

SACRIFICE TO THE MOON

 SPECIAL THANKS TO @jabberlocksbox for the story cover.

   The priest, an aged man who had served In the temple of the moon goddess for forty years placed yet another baby on Athena's altar.
    It was a yearly tradition that a new born baby be wrestled from the hands of his mother to be sacrificed to the goddess of the moon Athena. A barbaric act, but nonetheless a small price  to pay for the nightly toils the goddess undertook in shedding her sliver light.
       Unlike other babies this baby did not cry as he placed him on the altar. He was blissfully asleep.
         The priest always hated this part of his job. Eager to be over and done with it, he hurried out of the temple and pulled shut the huge copper door shut while Athena's mortal warriors stood guard.
        In ten minutes there would be an eclipse which would signify the presence of  the revered goddess. The goddess would then spill the blood of the baby as acceptance of the sacrifice....
         From time immemorial so has it been so. So Along side ten thousand citizens of Malabour who had come to partake in the yearly sacrifice, the priest waited for the arrival of the goddess.
        In exactly ten minutes the eclipse occurred. The goddess was always prompt. The eclipse usually lasted three minutes.
     The presence of the goddess always left with the eclipse. In three minutes the goddess would have spilled the infant's blood, accepted the sacrifice and be gone.
     Along side ten thousand people, the high priest cowered on his knees while waiting for the eclipse to be over.
    In two minutes the eclipse was over, an incident that troubled the priest greatly as such had never happened.
   As precaution, he waited until three minutes expired before pushing the oak doors open.
   It was then he encountered shock of his life. For there laid no dead body on the altar,no blood on the ground.
     There was only one explanation. Athena had left with the infant