Hunger

Etrec, the king’s malnourished food taster, accepts an offer from two visiting men who bring him baskets of food. They plan on killing the king so their party can rise to power. They have an agent in the royal kitchen who is working on a way to poison the king’s fish entrée – but only a certain portion of it. Etrec can eat an un-dosed bit, pronounce it sound, and pass it along to the king. Upon the king’s death, the men’s party will attack and rise to power. Etrec will be assured a substantial position in the new government. The king does die of poisoning, and the new government takes power after months of fighting. Etrec, who is given the title of Controller, falls for Elna – a young lady who works in the palace. Like many in the country, she questions if he was involved in the king’s death. To prove his love, Etrec visits the royal mausoleum late at night to pay special homage to the king. In the stone building, the late king bursts out of his casket and seizes Etrec by the throat. The late monarch slices open his stomach with an overgrown fingernail, finds the remains of the poisoned fish, and forces it down Etrec’s throat. To get him to swallow, the king shakes him so violently that he cracks the ex-taster’s neck. At peace, the late monarch slides back into his coffin for his eternal rest.