"Mark my words," said Emperor Euphrates. This was spoken for the
benefit of the Royal Scribe, one called Ibi, who was also a man of
great age like unto Ampho. Off to one side, aged Ibi promptly reached
for his marking sticks, and impatiently signaled an apprentice to
deliver a fresh clay tablet to him.
"One called Puffat," declared Emperor Euphrates, "has died an honorable
death."
"Here ye all! One called Puffat..." Ampho cried out, howling Emperor
Euphrates' pronouncements. When he had finished repeating the
proclamation, he turned his head to his emperor and waited for the next
royal pronouncement.
"One called Conabar," said Emperor Euphrates, "and one called Kadrug,
both of whom doth magnify themselves against the Imperial throne and
doth conspire unlawfully to slay his relations and diminish his blood
line, shall appear before His Majesty, and their entrails shall be read
to determine their guilt or innocence."
When Emperor Euphrates paused for breath, Ampho raised his voice and
howled the decree loudly. Thus were pronounced both men's death
sentences in typically indirect fashion.
Emperor Euphrates's claim to being a divinely appointed ruler and
sorcerer depended most frequently and blatantly upon the habitual
practice of killing off some victim for who-cares-what offence, and
then ceremonially 'reading' the victim's entrails, invariably
pronouncing that their guilt and worthiness of death by execution was
clearly foretold there.
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