Sovereignty's Mettle

The king issued this dreadful proclamation from his stern throne. "Every child born this year is to be slain."
The people heard him and said this: "No."
"But there was a foretelling that . . ."
"No."
"I sent carts of wealth to the oracle. We can hardly ignore the warning."
"No."
And lo, the kingdom fell as prophesied, because a king who cannot even make his subjects sacrifice their children is no king at all, his crown ever unsure.
Finis