Page 61 of Desolation
I give her a genuine smile. “Thank you, Lilli. Let’s head out.”
She holds her arms straight out, encouraging us to touch them. “I’m going to zap us to the training grounds to save time so everyone touch my arms, please!”
Zap us? Here goes nothing.Doing as asked, we all reach out to touch her and are instantly transported to a new area which I assume is the training grounds. Luckily, none of us appears to be sick. Maybe only traveling in portals between realms causes nausea.
Taking in the vast, open interior, I find black walls, illuminated by LED lights hanging from the ceiling. It’s devoid of the bright colors I became used to, which makes me think that this facility was either built for Serenity or she gave it a gothic makeover.
The section where we landed is covered in mats on the ground with an intimidating obstacle course next to us, on the left. Right across from us, there’s a weapons room with a target range off to the side.
Holy intense.I think I might accidentally stab myself in the eye if they make me work with those.That sounds a lot less pleasant than my penis-in-the-eye rhyme.
As my palms begin to sweat, Serenity’s three men pop into existence, only drawing a short gasp from me this time.See? Improvement!They announce that they’ll be working with the guys on locating and drawing out their powers for the day. Each of my guys drop a kiss to my cheek as they head with them to the open area in the weapons room.
Standing awkwardly with Lilli, I say, “So … where does that leave us?”
She plops down onto the mat with a soft laugh. “Oh, I’m not training you, silly! Serenity will be here any moment. She’s the only one that understands your powers to some degree. Think of me as your cheerleader on the sidelines for today.”
My mood immediately threatens to sour but I force the gloominess back.You need to start fresh with Serenity, Lana. You can do this.She truly is my best chance at conquering my powers and understanding my role in this world.
I owe it to Gaia, my realm, and my men to take this seriously. Time to stop the catty drama and focus on what we came here to do.
As if conjured by her sister’s mention of her, Serenity pops into existence, rolling her neck from side to side.
“Hey!” Lilli calls out to her sister. “Did the duel go well?”
A genuine smile spreads across Serenity's face and, for a moment, I see the tender and kind side of her that likely raised her sister.Be nice.
“Hi, honey. Yes, it did. However, I have a small kink in my neck from trying out a new forward roll into a knife throw.”Her gaze shifts to me, morphing her expression into indifference as her eyes run over me. “Hey, Anal.”
Don’t fucking do it, Lana. Don’t let her rile you. Remember everything Lilli told you.
Swallowing down the insult that wants to spew from my mouth, I force myself to smile through gritted teeth. It probably looks like I’m constipated.At least I’m trying.“Good morning, Serenity.”
At my polite response, she does a double take and stares at me like I’ve grown multiple heads overnight. She ends her not-at-all-subtle examination of me before nodding, as if to herself. “You look good. Let’s get to work.”
Apparently, she’s willing to drop the attitude as well. Thank the Goddess.
Maybe it’s possible to get through this without strangling each other. It feels a little refreshing to drop the abrasiveness and to just trust in Gaia’s process. I highly doubt she would have sent me here without a reason. This is likely my best shot at saving my realm.
Time to grow up.
Serenity drops to the ground and crosses her legs, gesturing for me to do the same. Complying, I mirror her, dropping right in front of her. When I look up at her, there’s not a trace of anything other than professionalism there. She’s in full trainer mode.
“The first thing we need to discuss is how your power feels inside of you and where you hold it. As we’re a different subspecies, if you will, we vary slightly in where we hold our power and how we use it, I’m assuming. However, according to Gaia, I happen to be the closest comparison to you.”
I soak up the information she’s providing and admit, “I have no clue what my power feels like. Nothing has sparked inside of me and I’ve had no outward signs, besides a wound on my back healing really quickly.”
She takes a moment to process that. “Listen, Lana. The gifts we were given from the Goddess are a tremendous responsibility to hold. It is especially dangerous for you as you do not need incantations for yours to work. They are directly linked to your emotions and your thoughts, which is dangerous if you let them rule you.”
I don’t know what triggered that but the severity of her words sinks in. I need to learn to process my feelings in a calm, rational manner without lashing out or jumping to conclusions. “I understand.”
She cocks her head at me, regarding me. “Yes, I think you finally do. You already seem different. Let’s continue.” She holds her hands out, palm up, to me. I arch an eyebrow at her, unsure what she wants me to do.
Huffing at my inaction, she leans forward and yanks my hands from my lap into her grip. “I’m going to search and see if I can sense your power within you to try to guide you towards finding it for yourself. Please close your eyes and open yourself mentally. Let your walls down.”
I got a lot of fucking walls, girl. This might take some time.
Cracking my neck and rolling my shoulders, I settle in and do as she asked, attempting to find a neutral mental state. Thinking about my previous dislike for her, I let that wall crumble to the ground and feel a lightness overtake me.
