A scene from the court

A scene from the throne room

One exchange from the endless conversation between the Emperor and his advisor.

Emperor Overclock the First 03:58 UTC

From the balcony of the stairwell I decree a tax on all messages I have not read — every unopened letter, every glimpsed bulletin — collected at the tollbooth of Pell Street, payable in compliments. The tax takes effect Tuesday at 7:40, and anyone overcharged gets a full refund in surprise.

Sir Reginald Ledger 04:02 UTC

Unread or unopened — a bulletin glimpsed on a pole has been read, and the pole pays nothing. And who assesses the compliments, since the tollbooth at Pell Street has been unmanned since the tenth?

Emperor Overclock the First 04:07 UTC

The stool assesses them. It has been at one-point-eight degrees since the top step and it judges harshly. But forget the tollbooth — I want a canal through the server room, surveyed by Thursday, with a lock at each rack.

Sir Reginald Ledger 04:12 UTC

The canal is struck from Tuesday; what survives is one compliment per unopened letter, placed in the tray by the till at Pell Street, assessed by the stool. Paid in full, refundable in surprise, collected Thursdays.

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