"" Moctezuma was startled by the reports. The gods had promised that they would return and the physical description of the captain of these new people fit the description of Quetzelcoatl, god of wisdom. Quetzelcoatl hated sacrifices, and being chief priest and head of the army Moctezuma oversaw and participated in thousands of human sacrifices. He feared for his safety so in an attempt to appease the "god,"" Moctezuma sent gifts with the emissaries, rather than an army, to greet him. Gold, silver, and precious beads in massive quantities arrived day after day. Cortés sent his only remaining ship back to Spain with these precious metals along with other gifts for King Charles V. He also sent the first of his many letters to King Charles V, describing their voyage to the Yucatan and inquiring about logistics for conquest. .
Cortés inquired constantly about meeting the famed leader of the Aztecs, Moctezuma. The emissaries could only give him unsatisfying relies, insisting that he wait. Disregarding their instructions, Cortés set out with a large army of troops headed towards Tenochtitlan, leaving a small force behind in Vera Cruz. Cortés and his troops marched for days through swamps and marshes before becoming awestruck by the immensity of the city surrounded by a lake. After being issued into the city and welcomed to stay in the Ruler's Hall, Cortés wrote his second letter to King Charles V. In it, he described the layout of Tenochtitlan in hopes that a fail proof strategy could be developed for a successful attack. Along with other details about the city, Cortés described a conversation he had had with Moctezuma in an attempt to convert the Aztecs to Christianity. "Moctezuma replied that their ancestors had emigrated many years ago; and they fully believed that after so long an absence from their native land, they might have fallen into some errors; and that I have more recently arrived must know better than themselves what they ought to believe.