Page 32 of Terragnata and the Heir of the Earth

Leiya took me by the shoulders.

“Ye need te take a breath. Now sit.”

I did, and she dropped her hands.

She cleared her throat, looking embarrassed, and sat on her own cot. “Bellatoricomes from the old Fae word,Bellator. Et means somethin’ like ‘fierce little warrior.’ As fer the matter a’ ye an’ Ezren… sometimes, I say things that I shouldna say, thingsthat come te me mind and I canna keep en. I didna think these things would push ye te act, I was just jokin’ really.”

“Can you elaborate?” I asked through gritted teeth.

She examined her nails with unnecessary attention. “En me opinion, ye should drop the Ezren thing. Et’ll do ye no good to pursue et. Fer so many reasons, Terra. Ezren es… well, he es dangerous, fer one. And he lost someone, very close te hem. He never recovered. He’s unstable, like ye en a way, he can barely control hes power, despite livin’ weth et fer a century and a half. Fer so many reasons I dinna think he can care fer ye, not really, nay en the way ye deserve.”

I could feel the heat lingering in my face. Though I knew Leiya was trying to be kind, her words left me more humiliated and lonely than comforted. How could I be so naïve to think a century-old warrior would care for me? And even worse, how could I let myself get so distracted pining over him, when I should focus on seeking justice for my family?

I let out a clearing sigh and stood to leave. She grabbed my wrist, halting my exit. “Ye know, yer body es reactin’ te himso because, ye never, well… ye know.”

“What?” I asked in exasperation.

She released me, the devious Leiya-like smile returning to her face. “Ye never touch yerself, en the female way. Ye should, ye know. Et won’t do te rely on a male fer pleasure. They rare know how te give et anyway.” She laughed at her own joke and perhaps at my aghast face. “Make small circles around the tender place, at the top of where yer womanhood parts, usin’ the ferst two fingers. Ye’ll see,” she said, miming the last part in the air. With that, she winked at me and left the tent, singing, “good luck,” as she went.

Any temptation I had to explore her suggestion paled compared to the idea that one of Jana’s minions could discover me pleasuring myself.

I rolled my eyes and set out to find the leader. She was in the meeting tent, addressing letters. “You sent for me?” I asked.

“Ah, Terra, yes. The Witches need until dusk to ready the ship. It takes enormous skill to build something of that nature safely. I have prepared a little day trip for us.” She dipped a seal into a pot of wax and closed her final letter. If Leuffen had relayed the compromising position he found me in, she showed no sign of it.

She walked over to me and took my arm in hers. And then we were gone, the room disappearing from my view while everything in front of me turned black.

It could have beena moment or an hour. Time didn’t seem to exist in the in-between, which is what they called it. My first portal was uncomfortable, unexplainable, and unnerving. But life is relative. It paled in comparison to what I’d experienced the last weeks.

We appeared in a meadow, Jana’s arm still linked to mine. Nothing but the voices of nature reached us, and I relaxed, my nausea subsiding. Light trickled through the canopy above and an explosion of flower varietals dotted the greenery below. The place felt alive, and somehow, I knew it was no accident.

“Where are we?” I whispered, as much to Jana as to the place we were in.

“Somewhere far enough away to be safe, but close enough to portal,” she answered, her words smothered by another voice flooding my ears.

Terragnata, it sang, a sweet lullaby, the musical calling of a siren.Daughter, you are here. Here you are, as you shall always be.The words rang in my ears.

“Terra, are you alright?” Jana asked.

My head snapped back to her, breaking my internal dialogue with the element. “What is Terragnata?”

“Where did you hear that?” she asked softly. I shook my head, unsure how to explain.

“It is what you were given, dear. Terragnata is your name.”

My brows furrowed. I had no recollection of ever being called that.

Jana just grinned. “I believe it means Earth Daughter.”

Figures. A question scratched at the back of my mind. How did my parents know to name me so, if my powers didn’t present until well into my young years—just months before Fayzien had kidnapped me?

Jana led us to the center of the field, and we descended into the lush. The grass tickled my exposed forearms resting in my lap. “Why didn’t we just portal to Viribrum?”

“We considered it, of course. But you would have had to travel with a single companion, given a Witch can only portal with one passenger at a time. And unless you are exceptionally powerful, the allowable distances are short, requiring rest in between. Those periods would have brought enormous vulnerability, just you and a Witch guardian. We deemed the strength of a large cohort necessary for this journey, which is why we plan to reunite with the ship crew before entering Valfalla. But no matter, we did not come here to discuss strategy.”

I leveled my gaze. “Whyarewe here, Jana?”

Jana returned her own look of challenge. “Alright, Terra. I am going to link my magic with yours, to attempt some handle on it, should you need assistance in control.” I chewed my cheek as she took my hands in hers. “There are many ways in which magic can be shared—through joinings, couplings, and other specific tactics. We will do a simple link. Witches can easilyshare magic upon physical contact. You must open your door to me, and I to you. Then, we can strengthen each other, or limit, should the need be.”

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