Tierrapuerta

The original portal from which the English and Spanish settlers passed through to populate Altierra. It was destroyed by an earthquake (in Patagonia) in the year 8.

Etymology

The name comes from the merging of Tierra (land) and Puerta (door/gate). Originally, it was La Puerta de la Tierra but became shortened over time.

The English settlers named it Worldshole (from World's and Hole). When the Spanish arrived, this name soon became confined to mythology, becoming a folklore term for a place where people vanish or supernatural beings appear.

On the Patagonian side, the cave containing the portal was known as the Demon's Mouth (in their local language) and Boca del Demonio in Spanish.

Location

The Patagonian end of the portal lay inside a large cave called The Demon's Mouth by the local natives. It was about twenty metres inside, in a crooked passageway so that it was without natural light. On the Altierran side, the portal was a large crack in a cliff face on the west coast of the island that would become Alta.

History

When the English passed through, they built their settlement, New Plymouth, about five kilometres from the portal, not wishing to be too near for they feared it. The portal itself was left in its natural state.

The Spanish passed through the portal 177 years later but they took a different view. They created their first settlement immediately outside. After they had conquered Alta, they built a church enclosing the portal which later became a temple with the establishing of Divara. Eventually, the Spanish created another town further away and the temple expanded into Casando, the first Cregan, the home for the Priestesses. The actual entrance was carved into an elaborate archway, inside a chamber deep within Casando. After the earthquake, the room was sealed and, over time, knowledge of the portal faded away.