Page 24 of Terragnata and the Heir of the Earth

The name turned my insides to ice and my throat to ash. I closed my eyes, willing away his image. “All right.”

When I walked into the tent, everyone sat at the long table. Except Ezren. He stood at the far end, one arm in a sling, the other resting on the back of a chair. He seemed to be positioned as far from the entrance—or from me—as possible.

“Good morning, Terra,” Jana said. “Please take a seat.”

I obliged.

“I promise to ask this of you only once. Given yesterday’s events, we are worried that Fayzien will be notified of our location. The Earth splitting was likely heard and felt widely by anyone with Fae hearing. We have already stayed in this location for several days too long. In order to move safely, we need toknow everything about Fayzien’s goals and plans. Could you tell us about the night he came to Argention? I know this will be difficult, given what he did to your family, but it is crucial to spare no detail.”

The room’s attention turned to me. I hadn’t bothered to wash after falling into the crevice, and the subsequent battle on the cliffs. I swallowed, my skin itching. I had no desire to remember the events Fayzien brought to Argention, let alone in front of a group of strangers.

Leiya laid a comforting hand on my shoulder. I looked up at her, and she gave me an almost imperceptible nod.

“I’ll try.” My voice sounded distant to my own ears like I was separating from my body to prepare for reliving the horror.

“I first noticed Fayzien in the market the day before Spring Day. Spring Day is a matching ceremony for the young people of Argention. He’d been with four other men, all hooded and as large as he. I didn’t see him again until the following evening when he made a claim for my bridehood. Given the amount of gold he offered, the Matron accepted his price without providing me my rightful chance to accept or reject his proposal.

“I ran home, hoping my parents would reason with the Matron. But he caught up to me.” I paused, my eyes closing at the memory.

“He stood in front of me, and suddenly I was on the ground, my clothes missing.” Heat traveled into my cheeks upon discussing my nakedness with strangers. “He did something to me then. I am not sure what, but it hurt. He only touched his hand to mine, but I felt him; I felt him inside of me. As if he traveled into me through my fingertips. And went everywhere,” I whispered. My gaze remained fixed on the table, unmoving.

“Terra.” Jana’s face softened, her tone too gentle. “Would you say he sent his magic through you? Does that feel accurate?” Her words resonated.

“Yes,” I breathed. “It does. The sensation hurt, like a… burn weaving through me.”

“And he went everywhere with his magic?” she asked, her voice low and steady. Her eyes traveled to my womanhood.

I nodded, my tongue coated with disgust.

I ventured a look at the group, shame thick in my throat. Shame that only grew thicker when my eyes landed on Ezren’s back, moving through the opening of the tent.

I stared at the flap for several moments.

He left.

Mortification was a cresting wave, breaking on my cheeks, leaving a trail of heat in its wake.

Jana cleared her throat, and I looked back at her. “R-right,” I stuttered, shaking my head. “Where was I?”

“Fayzien sending his magic through you, dear. Will you be able to finish?”

“Yes.” I said, wanting to get the rest over as quickly as possible. And I did. I told them of our following conversation, of how Fayzien said he acted on behalf of his queen, how she had some mysterious use for me, and how he had expected me to go with him willingly on account of hisbeauty. I told them of my escape, how we battled on the bridge. I told them how I made it back to my cottage, how I crept through the passage to the crawl space under our living room.

“I hid beneath the floorboards, watching Fayzien scream at her. It happened fast—she was standing one minute, shaking, afraid. And then she wasn’t. And I did nothing to save her.” I whispered the last part, pressing the jagged part of my nail into my palm to keep the tears from flowing. “After that, I just laid there, hoping I would die too. That somehow I would go to whatever place she did.”

“Terra, there is nothing you could have done,” Jana said, her voice firm yet tender. “You have to know that.”

Even if my rational mind agreed, my heart wasn’t prepared to listen. Her words floated past me, skimming the surface of the dark black well those memories lived in. I nodded absently and continued. I told them about the Earth, how it closed up around me in what I’d thought was a coffin, but now seemed to be a shield. About how I woke to the sound of their voices, confused and afraid.

And then I was done.

Jana tapped two fingers on her lips. “Interesting that he could not track you. He should have been able to, given he sent his magic through you.” She shook her head and rose. “Thank you, Terra of Argention, for your bravery in telling us your story.” She placed a hand over her heart, touching the necklace she always wore. “I promise to you, on my Siphon, this sacred bur oak that feeds my power, I will aid you in obtaining justice for Fayzien’s wrongdoing to you and your family. In front of my council, I swear this.” And then she hinged at the waist and bowed to me.

Leiya cleared her throat behind me. “I, too, swear,” she said, her eyes bright. The rest of the room rose, repeating the words in an echo of promises.

My chest swelled, and I beamed in awe at their gestures. I rose, placing my hand to my heart, a bizarre sense of camaraderie descending across the tent. Though I was still unsure if they could keep their vows, I sensed a truth amongst the group—even amongst those I didn’t know. As if they felt Fayzien’s wrongdoing against me was a wrongdoing against them, too.

“And I swear to journey to Viribrum, to aid however I can in your attempt to prevent the death of the innocent Fae and Witches of Viribrum and Drakkar.”

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