"They can do nothing. It is not their faces. Their mouths are as dry as sand with fear; their thoughts are as blown sand. They have no idea what to do. Take the three of them away from us and kill them. They are unworthy. Do this, find our son Damnazes and have him staked out of the desert to be devoured by the beats. His mother is to be given to the place slaves in Kabadh for their pleasure. Do this. Then go to our son Murash and have him brought here to us.”
The King's health is deteriorating, and he continuously seeks local doctors. The three doctors before the King have not done enough to restore his health. The King knows that he is about to die. However, before he dies, he wants to punish his wife and one of his sons. He orders his wife to be taken to Kabadhi’s palace to be used by enslaved people. The other son is punished by being taken into the desert to be eaten by the wild beasts. The quote shows the authority of the King of Kings. He roars like a god whenever he talks, and everyone must bow his head. Consequently, the King of Kings is the most influential during his time.
“It came to Crispin, watching the queen reach the marble floor to accept bows and her cloak, that he'd been offered intimacy by three women in this city, and each occasion had been an act of contrivance and dissembling. Not one of them had touched him with any tenderness or care or even a true desire.”
The author depicts all women in the novel as beautiful, intelligent, and fashionable, far from reality. Every woman can't possess the same virtues. However, the reader can agree that one of the described women in the quote is Queen Gisel. She is young, stylish, stunning, smart, and clever. The quote majorly focuses on how a woman is perceived in this kingdom. However, the most privileged are those in a position of power like Queen Gisel.
"We have a much-traveled physician here, in the village below the fortress. We might summon him."
The quote signifies the arrival of Rustem, a doctor who has traveled from the far East to come to save the life of the King of Kings. Peru notifies the King that Rustem can be summoned to attend to him with his permission. The King of Kings had already known that the local doctors were quacks. However, the doctor who has arrived from the East is the most experienced. The King allowed him to be summoned and then started attending to him. The King of Kings is the most dangerous patient because of his temper and power.
