Dr. Eszterhazy and the Weight of Empire: “The King’s Shadow Has No Limits”

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In this episode, we listen to “The King’s Shadow Has No Limits” by Avram Davidson, originally published in Whispers #8 (December 1975).

Set in a fading, multi-ethnic empire straining under age, tradition, and unrest, the story follows Dr. Eszterhazy, a learned observer moving through the city and witnessing moments of labor, devotion, and poverty that quietly echo the fate of the nation itself. Davidson weaves history, politics, religion, and myth into a dense, atmospheric meditation on power, impermanence, and what it means for authority to extend beyond the throne. Subtle, haunting, and deeply human, the story unfolds less through action than through implication—and lingers long after the final page.

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