Transvestia

telligence very early in life and in time I became fa- mous as a physician.

In

The enemy, with whom we fought were barbarians. They were crude, their manners non-existent, and their language so simple that later when I tried to instruct their crude doctors they had to learn our language. all ways they were our inferiors except two; they could fight as well as we could and their population was end- less. Within ten years all of our cities had been captured and my hospital was filled with their sick and wounded.

During this time my personality was changing. 1 enjoyed an hour before a mirror with jewelry and fine clothing. I loved the company of my wives and daugh- ters. My greatest joy was to join them in their daily tasks. My youthful innocence however, was dying and I became scheming and outwardly hard of heart. I felt the need to protect myself from the barbaric victors who in their ignorance of culture looked down upon men such as myself.

At the close of the war their king came to live at our capital. He was crude and merciless, but more than this he was afraid. He ruled a fair sized empire and his great desire was to keep ruling but he suffered from an illness of the stomach. His own physicians did not under- stand enough of drugs and diet to be of much help to him and so having heard of my growing reputation, he sent for me.

I could not cure him but with the right amount of herbs and a special diet I was able to relieve both his pains and his fears. He resented me, but he needed me, and to keep myself indispensible to him, I never allowed another doctor to examine him, nor would I tell anyone my methods of treatment.

He lived under my care for twenty years in which time I managed to marry my eldest daughter to one of his sons. I also was able to secure high positions in government for several of my friends, so that when he died I was still well off. A short time after the death of the king my first wife died. I buried myself in work in order to ward off a tremendous feeling of loss.

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