Page 97 of Artemysia
Choking, I spit out my wine.
Everyone is silent, staring at me. I wipe my mouth with the back of my palm and fall into what I hope is a blank, expressionless look. I still don’t know what to believe.
I’m no prince. I’m not true Syf. I can’t be.
“Is this place another world? Is it real?” Ivy claps her palms together. “Riev, you’re the prince of a magic realm! In a fairy tale castle?” Only she could find mockery in this situation.
The Syf king folds his wings flat behind him and leans back. “The forest is enchanted. Humans only see the trees and are bespelled to steer away from our lands. But the gateway tree allows you to enter our kingdom, Artemysia. We share the same earth, drink from the same rivers, live under the same sky.”
“Why’s it brighter and warmer here?” Ivy asks.
“Our Syf magic harmonizes with the land. The gemstones grow with our energies, warming and lighting our kingdom.”
“Then why do the Syf leave to attack our villages? Your guard saidyou preserve human life, not kill,” Delphine says.
Preserve human life?How did she already get information out of a guard? No one answered a single question of mine. When I asked, I got a bag over my head.
I’m impressed. Mildly amused, because it’s very Delphine of her. She gains trust easily, but she deserves it.
King Foss’ brows gather as he clears his throat.
My spine goes taut, and I sit up taller, because he seems troubled by her question, and she’s right. I haven’t seen a single Syf with fangs and claws like the ones who attack us.
“It’s true that we preserve human life. We, the Syf of Artemysia, gave humankind technology. Gas-powered lighting. Antibiotics. Advanced medical care. You still live in thatched cottages. You wouldn’t have survived this long on your own. Even hot water plumbing was our invention that we chose to share for the sake of your health and comfort. So you have my assurances that we do not want to kill you unnecessarily.”
Foss raises a palm, and a guard shuts the throne room doors. “Not many here are aware of this, because most of my people do not leave Artemysia. But I have patrols who check on your human population, and in the last twenty years, more and more of my subjects have been struck by a disease. They become rabid, change in body and mind, and kill indiscriminately. This bloodlust is a mystery we cannot solve. And it happens only to those who travel to the human civilization in the north. North Kingdom, as you know it.”
I’m stunned. He mentioned North Kingdom in the forest with Delphine, but I couldn’t tell if he was bluffing to get Delphine to turn back.
Thereisa second human civilization that I could have escaped to. My plan was sound.
Delphine presses on. “Do the people in the north contract the disease? Do they get sick too? If it’s a disease, are you working on a cure?”
Her questions are brilliant. Focused and incisive.
My heart swells, but unfortunately, so does my cock. Damned inappropriate, but it’s just what this woman does to me.
“No. Only our Syf spies become sick, rabid. We have tried to determine what is happening there, if it’s being done on purpose, and how.We suspect they are using us to attack South Kingdom.”
I speak up, my emotions raw. “This is a trick. You can become beasts anytime you want. Your civil behavior is a lie. It seems you want to pit human civilizations against each other.”
“Riev, you’re too clever and jaded to take anything I say as truth. You will see for yourself. I have an assignment for you and your commander.” He angles his head at Delphine, and I’m instantly worried.
Why does everything have to involve her?
“We are unable to infiltrate the royal circle of North Kingdom as deeply as we want. Our wings and tails are difficult to disguise, not to mention our ears.”
“And your stiff way of speaking,” Ivy coughs out.
“The King of the North is holding a coronation gala for his son, Prince Toryl, who has come of age at twenty-two,” King Foss continues patiently, perhaps accepting Ivy’s casual interruptions as a human trait. “The entire court and the leaders of the country will be at the prince’s winter manor near our northern borders. We had spies ready to go, but since we have you now…” He pauses and turns to me.
“Riev, you andyourcommander, since you refuse to followmycommand, will attend the two-day gala. Gather as much information as possible on their intentions and ambitions, and determine if they are infecting the Syf on purpose.”
“Commander,” he addresses Delphine with an extended palm, “I am sure you see how this benefits your kingdom as much as mine, so there should be no protest.”
The king casts a furtive sideways glance at me. “And Riev, for all the Syf lives you have stolen, this task is but a small part of your trial and penance.”
A muscle in his jaw jumps when I emit a low growl of frustration.
