Black water boils beneath the hollow sky, Where iron hulls descend to silent stone; Five shadows drown, and prices climb on high, To feed an engine carved of blood and bone. Across the sand, the drawn dividing lines Begin to fray under a quiet ban; Old allies whisper over olive vines, And turn their faces from the works of man. Northward, the borders lock their frozen gates, Milk, steel, and spirits barred behind the mist; While hands within the palace seal the fates With secret paper held in heavy fist. The court commands the cradle to forget, The ballot stirs an ancient, restless ghost— The balance tilts, the ledger dark with debt, And none can name who pays the final cost.
