one hand, and Firkked seemed confused by
the very abundance of his armament. After a few slashes and jabs, von
Schlichten knocked the unwieldy thing from his opponent's hand. This
raised a fearful ullulation from the Skilkan nobility, who had stopped
fighting to watch the duel; evidently it was the very worst sort of a
bad omen. Firkked, seemingly relieved to be disencumbered of the
thing, caught his sword in both hands and aimed a roundhouse swing at
von Schlichten's head; von Schlichten dodged, crippled one of
Firkked's lower hands with a quick slash, and lunged at the royal
belly. Firkked used his remaining dagger to parry, backed a step
closer his throne, and took another swing with his sword, which von
Schlichten parried on the bayonet in his left hand. Then, backing, he
slashed at the inside of Firkked's leg with the thousand-year-old
_coup-de-Jarnac_. Firkked, unable to support the weight of his
dense-tissued body on one leg, stumbled; von Schlichten ran him neatly
through the breast with his sword and through the throat with the
bayonet.

There was silence in the throne-room for an instant, and then, with a
horrible collective shriek, the Skilkans threw down their weapons. One
of von Schlichten's Kragans slung his rifle and picked up the Spear of
State with all four hands, taking his post ceremoniously behind the
victor. A couple of others dragged the body of Firkked to the edge of
the dais, and one of them drew his leaf-shaped short-sword and
beheaded it.

At mid-afternoon, von Schlichten was on the roof of the Palace,
holding the Spear of State, with Firkked's head impaled on the point,
while a Terran technician aimed an audio-visual recorder.

"This," he said, with the geek-speaker in his mouth, "is King
Firkked's Spear of State, and here, upon it, is King Firkked's head.
Two days ago, Firkked was at peace with the Company, and Firkked was
King in Skilk. If he had not dared raise his feeble hand against the
might of the Ullr Company, he would still be alive, and his Spear
would still be borne behind him. So must all those who rise against
the Company perish.... Cut."

The camera stopped. A Kragan came forward and took the Spear of State,
with its grisly burden, carrying it to a nearby wall and leaning it
up, like a piece of stage property no longer required for this scene
but needed for the next. Von Schlichten took out his geek-speaker,
wiped and pouched it, and took his cigarette case from his pocket.