𝐃𝐚𝐫𝐤 𝐖𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬 (𝐩𝐢𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞!𝐚𝐮) 𝐀𝐓𝐄𝐄𝐙

CH. 23 ~ The Botanist Pt. 2

"W-What do I say?" I ask, my voice almost catching in my throat. I look down at the table to see some ants crawling in a tiny group, working together to push a small plate of sugar cubes towards me. The same odd plant creatures from before make their way over, struggling to carry two cups of tea and set them down before Uhreia and I.

"No, no, no. I meant speak to me. In our language." I become hesitant and unsure of how to answer. I don't even know how I began speaking in that language. I think of what to say and try as hard as I can to translate it but it doesn't come to me. Instead I make a complete fool of myself and spit out gibberish. The worst thing is not even how bad I've embarrassed myself, but the look of stupidity Uhreia gives me. "Mmcht, What is that? That was nonsense! You're forcing your tongue too hard. Relax and let it flow." I nod taking in deep breaths to relax. I think about what I'm going to say and speak, this time in that dialect she's telling me to. Once again, that weird prickly feeling spreads across my tongue as I pronounce the words.

"Is this good?" Her eyes widen, a large smile curling the edges of her lips upwards revealing her stunningly white teeth.

"Fascinating," she breathes leaning in closer to study me. She smells like honey with a hint of chamomile at the end, a very herbal smell. "What do you feel when you speak?"

"M-My tongue feels... prickly. Like-- like when you drink cider and let it sit in your mouth." She tucks a loose strand of her curly brown hair behind her ear, taking a sip of her herbal tea.

"Do you even know the language your speaking?" I shake my head feeling a tinge of guilt. It doesn't feel right that all of a sudden I'm able to speak this random dialect without ever knowing what it was beforehand. I feel uneducated.

"Uhreia, What did you mean when you said our language?" She sets down her drink looking at me confused.

"Aish, Don't give me that. You can't just walk into my store, speak the tongue I've been learning all my life suddenly with those symbols on your wrist, and not know. You're clearly her." She tells me looking for a sign that I know what she's talking about as she skims over the writing on my wrist. She stops once she lays eyes on them briefly, but then goes back to speak to me. "You really don't know anything about yourself." I crease my brows, shaking my head honestly. Uhreia slowly sets my hand down, quickly standing up and opening some jars on the shelf behind her.

She brings out a large marble bowl and some jars containing who-knows-what. She opens them to reveal two different colored powders; one black and one white. Grabbing a fistful of both colors, She holds them in either and throws them into the bowl creating a large fog as the powders mix. The fog rises in the small room I'm in, unexpectedly taking the shape of a script. It has writing identical to that of my tattoo.

"A long time ago, the four nations we know used to be divided into six and they all spoke in one tongue called the Ajarik, also known as the language of the ancient ones. This language was said to have been gifted to us by the first enchantress to exist, the one who introduced magic to us all those centuries ago." I lean in closer to her as she changes the smoky paper with symbols into a sculpture of a beautiful woman with a delicate cloak wrapped around her. "That day she graced us with six different magic types, all controlled with this beautiful dialect. These different magic types are what defines each nation. When one would pass normal proficiency in their magic type, the enchantress would choose whoever she saw fit to represent their kingdom. These people made up the Cuimcer uk Ardark also known as the Council of elders. One would look up to these elders for advice and guidance, and these elders looked up to the enchantress for guidance."

"If the enchantress was such a highly profiled magic bearer, why did she help the Queen exterminate magic? I mean people would look up to her but she just betrayed them by exterminating magic." Uhreia gives me a hesitant look before conjuring up another image with the powder. This one depicts two women whose faces can't be discerned. They seem to be arguing about something.