Page 158 of Artemysia
King Foss generously allowed Throg, Ivy, and I to dine with him on several occasions, patiently answering our inquiries as if we were children. In his eyes, humans must be childlike— wards to be guarded against themselves. Ivy was finally able to ruffle him when she askedwhy he didn’t have a spouse and heir of his own. At that point, he stood up and announced dinner was over and politely excused himself.
And now, on the eve of my return to Stargazer, I meet with King Foss one last time.
“Will Syf continue to hold back human expansion and knowledge of the Syf?”
“That is up for debate,” the king answers, his voice coming from above. He stands beside me, arms crossed with his hands thrust into his robe sleeves, while I sit next to Riev on the bed. “As you know, there were once other human civilizations across the world…”
He pauses, the very definition of solemn and stately. “But they destroyed each other. We’ve seen you advance in science and technology, only to use it against other humans. We’ve tried to prevent it here, in the last pocket of mankind—the North and South Kingdoms.”
He ends with a heavy sigh. “To preserve humanity.”
“But is it right to isolate us?”
King Foss fiddles with the sleeves of his embroidered sea-green robes, picking off lint that doesn’t exist. “Need I remind you that it is the Syf who shared medicine and technology for the sake of your longevity, health, and comfort?”
I decide for the sake of never losing hot water plumbing that I shouldn’t argue that they also blocked us from crossing the mountains and sailing the seas, penning us in like sheep.
“Why did Syf stop trading with humans two hundred years ago?”
“That’s complicated. Our trade helped you advance. In North Kingdom, they advanced more rapidly with what we gave them and began to outgrow their lands. Their population needed more room, and they wanted to explore the seas and expand. We couldn’t let this happen. In the past, other human cultures clashed with Syf as they advanced. Fought for our lands and resources.”
“What did you trade with South Kingdom?”
“In those days, sugar and medicine for your ore from the southern mountains and wool from your sheep. Opals, too. They aren’t affected by our energies, and don’t grow like other gemstones.”
I glance up at him. “Do you think the kingdoms will go to war eventually? Over the metals in the southern mountains? If NorthKingdom wishes to arm themselves against the Syf world, they will come for our resources.”
Foss’ nostrils flare as he winces. “It’s difficult to tell. We stayed hidden for two hundred years. But we needed your help and I needed Riev, so we revealed ourselves. It is for you to decide what to relay to your king.”
For me to decide.I fall deep into thought, wrestling with what might happen if I tell King Galke and the colonels.
My duty to Stargazer requires me to report back. Who am I to prevent my people from knowing what I’ve learned?
I swirl the flask in my hands and measure another dose of the blue liquid.
“Why do you keep trying?” the Syf king asks quietly, inclining his nose at Riev. “I would like my nephew and heir back too, but it seems your efforts are in vain.”
I shrug. “It’s what I do. I try.”
“The healers have done their best. Even they have never seen any Syf come back after this long.”
Never seen any Syf come back after this long. The truth slams into me. I ignore the trembling of my chin, but a shuddering breath tears from my chest.
Foss notices the effect of his words on my ragged heart.
“I am sorry, Delphine,” he offers gravely.
But he only speaks the truth of the situation. Reality strikes at my wounds, tearing me apart.
I loathe it, so I raise my chin and change the subject. “What will you do if there’s no other heir?”
“I will continue the search. It’s not a matter of appointing someone. The kingdom is tied to bloodlines that control the magic of the forest, as you saw with the entryway to Artemysia.”
“All Syf have magic?”
“Not individually. Our collective energy is harnessed to build such things as the gateways. Only certain Syf can direct our energies to create a gateway, but it takes a large group of us to build and maintain it.”
When I lift another dropper of elixir to Riev’s lips, I know I am in denial. My efforts at this point border on the pathetic. The sudden weight of outrage at the futility of it all crushes my chest as I fix mystare on Riev’s serene profile.
