Meanwhile, the women further alleged, Master Rababull's trusted
blood-relation, Conabar, had crept to the House gates unawares and
mercilessly slain Old Maskron when that unsuspecting worthy came and
opened them.
Then the intruders, acting on their leader Conabar's orders, had
promptly searched out and summarily executed all of Master Rababull's
remaining children in a pathetic blood-bath.
At this, Emperor Euphrates had somewhat testily held up a forestalling
hand, and after their jibber-jabber had died away, he said with a
frown, "Eh, about one called Puffat..."
There was a moment of stunned silence, as the women seemed to take a
moment to realize that any number of personal complaints would get them
nowhere near as much sympathy as whatever they could conjure up about
Puffat.
Then all at once the recriminations resumed, centered perfectly on the
outrages suffered by one called Puffat.
One called Puffat, the women alleged, was seen crying out in extreme
agony on account of the aggravated torments from his gain-green, as he
was summarily dragged out and executed by no less a personage than
Conabar himself, to eliminate him as a possible contender for the
Headship of the House of Rababull.
As the perceptive widows watched him and played on his sympathies like
shameless minstrels singing a love song for a handful of coppers,
Emperor Euphrates, his eyes growing more fiery with their every word,
slowly drew himself more vertically upright whilst sitting in his stone
throne, and angrier still as he leaning successively still farther and
farther forward until he seemed to ready to fall upon them all, until
the widows finally began to quail at the sight of him and one by one,
fell silent.
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