The Statement

He studied the statement in his hand, trying to focus only on the words, not on their meaning. He couldn't think about anything but the words.

He'd been the Emperor for as long as he could remember, since childhood. He'd never been just Glenn. He'd never heard that name spoken, and he'd rarely ever thought about it.

But after he read that statement out loud, Glenn was who he would be from now on.

The Emperor put down the statement and took off his glasses. He wondered how long it would be before the new emperor decided to execute Glenn.