Petra's Powers In Motherland: Fort Salem Explained

In Freeform's alternative history drama "Motherland: Fort Salem," the fates of young witches become intertwined when they join the military, a long-standing tradition that dates back to an accord reached with the Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1692. That means, for many of these magic wielders, being part of the U.S. Army is a family affair. That's definitely the case for Abigail Bellweather (Ashley Nicole Williams), whose mother is General Petra Bellweather (Catherine Lough Haggquist).

In this world, witches who have inherited their talents use their vocal cords at different frequencies, called "seed sounds," to weave powerful spells together. The Bellweathers come from a line of strong witches with a proud name and a tragic history, which means both Petra and her daughter are very powerful witches. They are skilled at the voice layering that helps defend them as well as their country from the Spree, a group of witches that launch terrorists attacks around the world in their efforts to stop the forced conscription of magic users. 

Over the course of several seasons of "Motherland: Fort Salem," while battling their enemies, Petra has shown herself to be an elite soldier as a result of her magical powers — but she's much more than that.

All witches in the "Motherland: Fort Salem" world can cast spells, which come from layering "seeds" together with their voices for their "work." In her profession, Petra has had many opportunities to show off how well she does this. One of these moments takes place at the wedding of her niece, Charvel (Bernadette Beck), who becomes a victim of the Spree's attack in the episode "Bellweather Season." Petra and other witches, standing in tandem, manipulate the weather to call up a storm that would remove the sky-blue balloons that are the trademark calling card of the Spree. Then, Petra goes in to save her daughter, proving that she's pretty kick-butt even without her supernatural gifts. As the Spree who are about to take out Abigail's vocal cords self-immolate, Abigail and Petra use "Windstrike" to fling the two out of the mansion without touching them — and without hurting anyone else. 

In other episodes, Petra displays additional skills. In "Revolution, Part 1," she gives Anacostia (Demetria McKinney) orders through telepathy after a conversation with the president. Not long after, the two of them levitate out of a helicopter to speak to Scylla (Amalia Holm Bjelke) and her group on the ground. Petra has also been known to use tuning forks to find the residue left behind by the Spree's works. Of course, more of her magical talents may be revealed in the third and last season of "Motherland: Fort Salem," which is expected to debut in 2022.