The Storyteller’s Replacement
By N.K. Jemisin, first published in How Long 'til Black Future Month?
A replacement storyteller entertains their patron with a tale of the magical kingdom of Sosun, where a king consumes dragon hearts to boost his virility, an act that will eventually lead to his own demise.
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Plot Summary
A replacement storyteller tells a story of King Paramenter of Sosun, who searches for a male dragon’s heart to boost his virility. Due to the rumors (which are unconfirmed) that a male dragon’s heart can boost virility, male dragons are scarce. When the king’s men slay a dragon for its heart, they soon realize it is a female dragon guarding an egg. The king destroys the egg and eats the female dragon’s heart. The heart initially works—the king's wife and concubines bear children. However, the effects of the heart soon fade. The king is unable to perform during sex. The king consults a wizard, who tells him that a female dragon’s heart gave him female dragon traits. Enraged, the king has the wizard beaten. His wife and concubines die during childbirth, and each give birth to daughters. The king remarries to the daughter of a neighboring king. The king’s new wife fears the king’s six daughters. Unsure of why his new wife would be afraid of his daughters, the king has tea with his daughters, now ten years old. The daughters tell their father that his new wife must be jealous of them and insecure in her stature in the household, as she has not given birth. They encourage their father to have a child with her. Their father is hesitant; as he is still unable to perform during sex, he lies to his daughters by telling them he does not find his new wife attractive. The daughters suggest that their father send ten or twenty of his guards to have sex with the king’s new wife so that she might give birth to a son; they suggest that after his wife is impregnated, the king execute his guards to keep the arrangement a secret. The new wife soon begins to lose her mind. The daughters turn 16 and have many suitors whom they all reject. The daughters tell the king that they desire most in a husband is strength. A battle royale of the strongest warriors from kingdoms across the land to determine the single man all six sisters will decide to marry together. The man is a “mountainous beast” with one eye. Each daughter gives birth to a child. Their husband mysteriously dies falling from a balcony a month later. With the wizard’s help, the king finally consumes the heart of a male dragon. The male dragon heart helps the king have a son. One night, the king enters his daughters’ room. His grandchildren, and his young son, attack and devour the king as dragons would. The replacement storyteller ends the story of the king, and offers sexual services to their audience.
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