Hy-slaves

"Listen to me all!" Katthike's irritated voice blared across the square. “And I mean, really good! My precious prisoner from Hy is dead. He took his own life because one of you helped him. One of you is a traitor! ”He paused to let what was said take effect. Then he continued:“ If the traitor reveals himself, or the one who knows something about it gives me his name, then I'll spare him Rest of you. I don't care what you do, if I don't get the traitor I'll have you all executed! Out there, ”he pointed over the wall,“ enough willing people are waiting to take your places! ”

A horrified murmur made the rounds and the fear now emerged openly. But nobody moved. Everyone eyed their neighbor suspiciously. Who was the traitor who cowardly hid himself between them and wanted to drag them all with him into the abyss?

"Well, I hear?" Katthike drew his sword, which blinked ominously in the dull light of the winter morning. Another groan went through the ranks.

“It wasn't us, Your Majesty, believe us! We beg you, spare us, Your Grace! ", A shrill voice shouted on behalf of his group from the back rows of the palace staff, who immediately threw themselves on the floor in response.

"It wasn't us either!" Shouted another of the work slaves. “Why should we do that too, we have nothing to complain about. Your Highness is always gracious and generous to us. It must have been the Hy slaves! Who else would want to help their damned warrior? ”He pointed his finger at the gathering of skinny, bowed people in front of him.

“Be silent! Silence all, you wretched dogs! That's not what I want to hear. Stop it. I will now show you what gracious treatment you will all receive if you don't finally come out with the truth! ”With these words Katthike had already arrived next to one of the Hy-slaves. He put his free hand on the shoulder of the trembling man, who quickly closed his eyes because he could not even look at the tips of the king's boots. Katthike put him on his knees.

“I want the truth. The truth in the purest sense, so to speak. If I may ask! You hy always tell the truth, don't you? Lying is as unknown to you as swimming is to stone. Be a role model for this lying pack and speak up. So, I hear. ”He pierced the man with his icy stare that contrasted with his fiery anger. But the Hy was hardly under control from fear, and not only tears were running down him. A dark stain spread across the front of his pants. Only incomprehensible words came out of his mouth.

"I can not follow you! Please speak in a language that I can understand! ”The king roared at him, but the hy was unable to speak.

"Damn it," Katthike hissed, barely audible, disgusted by the man's weakness and dug his fingers into his shoulder with force.

“Can't you speak or don't you want to? Hm? You there, come here at once! ”He suddenly shouted, pointing to the work slave who had spoken so impudently before. He broke away from his group and approached the king with hesitant steps and a pale face, his eyes lowered as far as he could. If only he had better kept his mouth shut, thought the slave bitterly.

"Come on, go a little faster!" Roared the king on the edge of his patience.

When the slave had reached him and bowed so low that his body formed almost a right angle, Katthike held out his free hand openly in the direction of the general. A sign to give him his sword. The general pulled it out of its sheath and handed it to the king, who in turn held it in front of the slave's nose.

“Take it and kill him!” Was the icy command. The slave stared at the sword in horror. But thinking of his own getting away, he finally obediently raised his hand and took the hilt of the sword. It was his only chance to stay unscathed himself.

"I'm waiting!" Katthike's voice echoed from the surrounding walls of the courtyard and in the slave's ears with a seemingly endless echo. Mechanically this moved towards the Hy and raised the sword. The hy sobbed loudly. The sword hung trembling in the cool winter air. The king waited impatiently. And then the blade flew down on the Hy and severed the Hy's head from the spine, but only so far that he fell limp forward onto his chest. Immediately blood gushed out of his throat in a red fountain and splashed the men, women and children from Hy standing next to him, who cried out in shock but did not dare to back away. With a thud, the dead man's body fell forward on his head dangling in front of his chest, and a steaming lake formed on the cobblestones under the throbbing wound in his neck.

"What a mess!", Katthike hissed angrily and skillfully avoided the stream of blood before it could stain his robe. In a flash he raised his own sword and made a clean, horizontal cut from left to right. The work slave's eyes bulged out of their sockets in surprise, and a hand involuntarily went to his neck, where a thin, red stripe was visible. Then he fell forward and his head rolled over the pavement until it came to rest at the general's feet. He pushed him away unmoved with the toe of his boot like a pebble that had grown a little too big.

"That's how it works!", Katthike said finally and looked up. “Take a look everyone. A lot more blood will soak this plaster if the guilty party doesn't report soon! ”With a cloth the general had handed him, he wiped the sword blade clean, freed it from the dirty slave's blood, which was still purer than his own! This thought suddenly made him mad again and without warning he struck down two women and a child in the front row with his sword. There were horrified screams again. The king had completely lost control of himself and when he wanted to back out again, his general spoke with all due respect, while the advisor Lata in the background only continued to show his contemptuous smile.

“Stop, Your Majesty! Please do not get your hands dirty unnecessarily! If you wish, the Royal Bodyguard will proceed under my orders. ”Katthike gave his Supreme General a long trembling look, then nodded curtly. The general gave a signal to the soldiers of the life guards and they drove the hy-slaves into one corner of the courtyard and the rest into another, where they all had to kneel on the cold stones. Kasai ordered that a Hy and then another slave should be killed alternately every hour until the traitor was either among those killed or surrendered.

The king, who had just been informed by a soldier from his bodyguard, that nothing suspicious had been found during the searches, left the executions to the general and retired to the palace with his still grinning adviser.