From his dais, King GarGar enthroned, could see his all of his soldiers who had fled the field of battle in cowardly fear for their miserable lives. There were well over a thousand of them, broken down into groups of ten. His Majesty could see them all. They had been forced to draw lots. The loser in each group was stripped to his waist, while the other nine were given cudgels. When the King gave the signal, a trumpet blasted. This was the note that the chosen nine awaited. They began to beat their comrade to death. This was the true definition of decimation.
There was one thing King GarGar could not tolerate and that was desertion.
[CAPTION: GarGar plays fiercely with his furry toy.]
A good use of the prompt word, though a very grim scene!
Thank you. This is an honest depiction of where we get the word decimate. It comes from the Latin word for ten: decem.