Lycus, our new monarch, slew him.HeraclesDid he meet him in fair fight, or was the land sick and weak?MegaraYes, from faction; now he is master of the city of Cadmus with its seven gates.HeraclesWhy has panic fallen on you and my aged father?MegaraHe meant to kill your father, me, and my children.HeraclesWhat are you saying? What did he have to fear from my orphan babes?MegaraHe was afraid they might some day avenge Creon’s death.HeraclesWhat is this dress they wear, suited to the dead?MegaraIt is the garb of death we have already put on.HeraclesAnd were you being forced to die? O woe is me!MegaraYes, deserted by every friend, and informed that you were dead.