Two days later
Thena's room looked like a small storm had passed through it. Clothes were scattered across the bed, and a half-open suitcase sat on the floor, already filled with clothes while Thena kept stuffing in more.
Terra sat on the edge of the bed, staring at the mess in disbelief.
"You do realize that packing usually involves putting clothes in the suitcase," she said slowly, "not launching them across the room."
Thena barely heard her and kept packing.
Terra sighed inwardly before standing up from the bed. She stepped behind Thena and placed her hands on her shoulders.
"Alright," she said gently. "Tell me what's wrong."
Thena stopped moving.
For a moment she just stared down at the suitcase before letting out a quiet sigh.
"What do you think they're going to say about me?" she asked.
Terra frowned slightly.
"What do you mean?"
Thena rubbed the back of her neck nervously.
"You know… how I wasn't actually born and stuff.".
"Thena," Terra said calmly, "you're worrying about the wrong thing."
Thena looked up at her uncertainly.
"What if they think I'm… weird? Or that I'm not really part of them?"
"Weird?" Terra repeated.
She crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow.
"You're about to visit an island full of immortal warrior women."
Thena opened her mouth, then closed it again.
"And remember what your mother once told us about them?" Terra asked.
"Ummm… that they worship the Greek gods?" Thena guessed.
Terra stared at her.
"No, you dummy."
Thena frowned.
"She said they weren't exactly born normally either," Terra continued. "They were created by the gods. Given life and shaped into warriors."
She shrugged casually.
"So if you think about it, worrying about how you were created is kind of pointless."
Thena blinked.
"In fact," Terra added, "you're actually more natural than they are."
Thena tilted her head.
"How?"
Terra gestured toward her.
"It takes the DNA of two people,male and female,to make a child," she explained. "And those boxes definitely check out for you."
Thena stared at the suitcase for a moment.
"I… never thought about it like that," she muttered.
"And another thing," Terra said, pointing at her.
"You need to stop calling yourself a clone."
Thena opened her mouth to protest, but Terra cut her off.
"You're a normal person. Just like the rest of us."
She paused.
"Well… not exactly normal, but you get what I mean."
That earned a small laugh from Thena.Terra smirked before continuing.
"So the only thing you should really be worried about," she said, "is the kind of training they're going to put you through there."
Thena groaned immediately as Terra grinned.
"Because the standards are probably very high for the daughter of an Amazon princess."
"Don't tell me about it," Thena muttered.
She zipped the suitcase halfway before flopping down onto the bed with a dramatic sigh.
"Now enough about that," Terra said with a smirk. "What we should be talking about is how you messed up that day."
Thena groaned loudly.
"Will you ever let that go?" she complained. "I told you, I didn't know!"
The bedroom door suddenly swung open.
"The signs were there," Nina said casually as she stepped inside.
Thena immediately sat up.
"Wait,were you eavesdropping just now?" she accused, narrowing her eyes.
Nina waved a dismissive hand.
"That's beside the point."
She leaned against the doorframe with an amused smile.
"You still messed up."
Thena grabbed a pillow and hugged it tightly.
"I did not mess up!"
Nina raised an eyebrow.
"You interrupted them when they were this close," she said, holding her fingers a tiny distance apart.
Terra snorted.
"Little Thena is so clueless," Nina continued teasing. "It's actually kind of cute."
Thena's face flushed red.
"I was calling Mom for the fireworks!" she protested. "How was I supposed to know what they were doing?!"
Terra crossed her arms, still grinning.
"Come on, Thena. They were both missing at the same time,what else did you think."
Nina nodded.
"Even I noticed it."
Thena stared between the two of them in disbelief before speaking.
"Me and my big mouth. I regret ever telling you," Thena said.
"We would've figured it out anyway," Terra replied with a shrug.
"Alright, enough," Nina said. "Seal your stuff away so we can get going."
Thena nodded and pulled out a sealing scroll. She laid it flat on the floor and unrolled it before placing her suitcase on top of it.
The markings on the scroll glowed faintly.
With a small puff of smoke, the suitcase vanished into the scroll.
"Alright, let's go," Thena said, rolling the scroll back up.
---
Outside, the afternoon sun hung high in the sky, its warm light spilling across the yard.
Thena stood near the gate with Terra while Nina leaned casually against the porch railing.
A moment later, Diana floated down from the sky and landed in front of them with a small travel bag over her shoulder.
"Are you ready?" she asked with a soft smile.
"I'm ready to roll," Thena replied.
Just then, Max stepped out of the house.
Diana's attention immediately shifted to him.
"Good afternoon, Max," she greeted.
"Hello, Diana," Max replied.
For a brief moment, an awkward silence settled between them.
Nina cleared her throat.
"Alright, let's get going," she said. "If we leave now, we'll reach Paradise Island before sundown."
She crouched slightly and gestured toward her back.
"Hop on."
Thena stared at her.
"You're serious?"
"Well, you can't fly," Nina replied simply. "So yes."
Thena sighed dramatically.
"This is kind of embarrassing."
Terra laughed from the side.
"Don't worry," she said mockingly. "No one here will judge you."
Thena muttered something under her breath before turning to Diana.
"How can you fly anyway?"
"There's a special reason I'm able to," Diana said. "It's actually a blessing from the gods. I'll tell you more about it when we get there."
Thena nodded slowly before turning toward Nina.
"And what about you?"
Nina grinned.
"It's a secret technique."
She shrugged.
"I'll see if I can teach you when we get there."
Thena groaned.
"Uhhhh… fine…"
Reluctantly, she climbed onto Nina's back and wrapped her arms around her shoulders.
Nina stood up and turned toward Max and Terra.
"Well, Max, we've got to go now. See you soon."
She glanced toward Terra.
"And Terra… take care."
"Bye, Dad! Bye, Terra!" Thena called from Nina's back.
"We'll see you again in a month," Diana added.
Nina gave a casual salute.
Then, with a burst of energy, she blasted upward into the sky with Diana following close behind.
Within seconds, the two figures became distant silhouettes against the bright afternoon sky.
Max and Terra stood quietly, watching them disappear into the distance.
After a moment, Terra finally spoke.
"Well… I guess it's just you and me now, Dad."
"It is," Max replied as he glanced at her.
"And we'll be going through your training too."
Terra groaned as Max smirked slightly.
"Get ready," he said. "We depart in an hour."
End of Chapter