Chapter 42: The Counter-Attack

By the time the Alliance's vanguard arrived at the camp Glimmer had bombed, the Horde had barely managed to get organised enough to sift through the rubble and shredded tents the explosions had left. And Seacat and Glimmer had barely managed to get out of the river at the rally spot where Adora and Brain Boy were waiting with the skiff.

"We should be on the other side," Adora said. "Leading the charge."

"Well, then someone else would've had to drive us upriver," Seacat told her. She grinned at the glare Adora sent her way.

"So that was your plan!" Adora pouted.

She shrugged. "It was obvious, wasn't it?" Skiffs couldn't go over water. Well, not water deeper than a puddle or some shallow creek, at least. Basically, anything deep enough to sink a skiff would stop it. "I thought you'd have realised it."

Adora scowled, but Glimmer and Brain Boy giggled.

"Adora was far too concerned about you to think about attacking the Horde afterwards," Brain Boy said. "Besides, they don't need us. Netossa and Spinnerella are veterans; they'll deal with any organised resistance."

"But there are still Headhunters in the camp…" Adora clenched her teeth.

"And they'll handle them," Seacat said as she pulled her clothes on. If two princesses backed by troops of their own didn't manage to handle a disoriented bunch of Horde soldiers woken up by their camp blowing up, then that would be their own fault.

"I can teleport us over," Glimmer said.

"No. We need you with as much magic left for emergencies as possible," Seacat told her. "We can take the raft back to the yards." She cocked her head. "I don't hear guns, anyway." Which meant the Horde wouldn't have been able to deploy their guns. And the catapult wouldn't have survived the explosions intact.

"Alright." Adora's tone told Seacat that it wasn't alright, but there was nothing she could do about it. By the time they would reach the shore opposite the former Horde yards, where their raft was waiting for them, the battle would be over.

Seacat had been right. The Horde troops hadn't been able to put up much resistance in the wake of the explosions ripping through their camp.

"...and then I ripped the gate off, Netossa took out the two guns with her nets, and we stormed in. Organised resistance ceased right afterwards," Spinnerella said.

"Their leader had died in the explosions," Netossa added.

"Their leader? The leader of the Headhunters?" Adora asked.

Netossa shook her head. "No. That one is in the eastern camp."

"Too bad. We should've hit that one first," Spinnerella said.

"This one's closer to the crystal mines," Netossa reminded her wife. "We had to take out this force first."

The Horde could circumvent the yards, fall back towards the south, then move up north to the river - and the mines - but they would have to supply their soldiers overland, and after the loss of the yards and now the western camp, that would strain their logistics. But the Alliance still had Horde forces to the east. And with at least one working enhanced engine bomb, they couldn't use the Salinean fleet to secure the river.

"So, we do the same to the eastern camp?" Glimmer asked, looking eager.

Adora, though, winced. "Repeating the same tactic isn't a good idea," she said. "They will be prepared for that."

"How would they know what we did?" Brain Boy asked. "I doubt there were any witnesses."

"They will know that there were explosions, and then the camp was stormed," Seacat said. "Their screening forces will have escaped."

"Yes, but they won't know how we did it," Glimmer said. "I can just teleport above them, as before, and - boom!"

Netossa shook her head. "They will expect us to have either sneaked in saboteurs or launched a bomb with a hidden catapult or mortar. That means they'll reinforce their powder magazines enough to withstand a shell."

And that meant the magazines would withstand the sort of bomb Glimmer could teleport as well.

"I can still destroy the catapult," Glimmer said.

"Yes, you can. But that would leave them with an enhanced engine bomb in the camp - ready to be used should we storm it," Seacat pointed out. Glimmer could scowl almost as well as Adora, she noted.

"And they would use it," Brain Boy said.

"Yes," Lonnie spoke up. "They're ready to sacrifice themselves to get us. And even if there aren't any princesses around - if they're about to lose the camp and the bomb anyway…?" She shrugged.

"Well, we do need to find a way to deal with the camp," Adora said. "We can't leave them - and their bomb - to threaten our lines."

"Well…" Entrapta spoke up with a slight grimace. "I could probably construct a firebomb. If their magazines are burning, then they can't use them, can they?"

"That might block their use of the enhanced engine bomb," Seacat said. "But won't they put the fire out before we can reach them?" And Glimmer would have to hit the exact spot.

"Well, if I use a concoction I discovered looking for alternative fuel for engines, they won't be able to put it out unless they can smother it - and that would take some time given the heat of the burning fuel." Entrapta still looked queasy. "But it would be, well… it would burn everything. And everyone. And it's kinda dangerous when exposed to air."

"Ah." If Entrapta was hesitant - and called something 'dangerous' - then Seacat was sure that the thing was too dangerous to be used at all. Perhaps…

A courier entering the command room interrupted them. "Commander!" She saluted Glimmer. "We've got word from our patrols. The Horde force to the east is moving!"

"Moving?" Adora asked.

"They're packing up their tents and supplies," the courier replied.

"And the catapult?" Entrapta asked.

"That, too," the courier told her.

"Oh. So if we time it, we can judge how mobile they are - sort of," Entrapta said. "We would still need to check how quickly they can set up a catapult, but it would be a start and give us an estimate."

"Where are they going?" Seacat asked

"We don't know yet - they've sent scouting forces everywhere," the courier told her. "Except for across the river, of course."

"They won't be moving towards us," Mermista said. "And they can't cross the river. It's either south or east."

"Linking up with the forces in the forest south of Fortress Freedom, or heading south and possibly west to threaten the crystal mines." Adora shook her head. "Hard to say."

"If they try to go around us, we can shadow them all the way," Brain Boy said. "They might as well retreat into the Fright Zone to replenish and push from there. The force across the river's mouth would still block us from moving south from Fortress Freedom."

"The bombs would do that," Adora said. "If they hide a bomb in a choke point or a mountain pass…" She shook her head. "We'll need your detectors for every scout," she told Entrapta.

"Uh… I'll have to get back to the fortress for that - I don't have enough tools or materials here. Sorry." Entrapta shrugged, but she looked rather dejected.

"We have to move to the fortress anyway," Seacat said. "With the threat from the Horde, we can't use the river as a supply route until they've been pushed back to the Fright Zone."

"I can keep us supplied," Perfuma pointed out. "At least with produce."

"Yes," Adora chimed in. "But we need a larger force at the crystal mines - and they need supplies as well. And we need to crush the pocket of Horde forces to the North of us."

"And for that, we have to strike from the fortress. It's the anchor point of our control of the coast." Mermista nodded. "We also must keep up our picket lines and blockade. If they manage to slip out some enhanced bombs… All the inspections at sea we'll have to do will add delays to our supply lines as well."

Seacat nodded. You couldn't inspect the cargo as it was unloaded - you had to do it at sea. And that meant you had to check the entire hold for anything big enough to hide an engine. That would take some time - almost as long as unloading a ship took. They would have delays of up to a week or so for the bigger ships.

And all without the Horde even trying to slip a bomb past the Salinean lines… The threat of the bombs was almost as dangerous and effective as the bombs themselves. She muttered a curse under her breath.

"Alright. Let's send out our screening forces - part of them - to shadow the Horde so we know where they're moving to," Adora said. "And we'll split our troops here - half march back to the crystal mines, half to the fortress. We'll leave a garrison, half here half across the river in a permanent camp, with the yards rigged to blow."

"And we'll need patrols along the whole river to know if the Horde tries to cross it," Seacat added.

"Yes." Glimmer nodded. "And I'll have to go back to Bright Moon to recharge - and talk to Mom."

Seacat noticed Adora glancing at her. Ah. They'd have to split up, then - Adora would have to go back with Glimmer and Brain Boy. Mermista and the captain were needed at the coast, but Adora was needed at Bright Moon. Especially if the Horde threatened the city as well.

"You'll have to go back as well." She nodded at her lover, who winced in return.

"And we'll need Netossa and Spinnerella with Perfuma at the crystal mine," Glimmer added.

The three princesses nodded in agreement, though a little reluctantly, or so Seacat thought. Well, tough for them - the crystal mines were essential; now more than ever. Without them, the Horde would eventually run out of bombs. Probably.

"I'll send Colonel Kilian up here to take command of the yards," Mermista said.

Adora nodded. So did Seacat - the Colonel was a marine; he would understand best how to cover the river.

"So… I think we've settled everything," Adora said. "For now."

"Yes, I…"

Once more, they were interrupted by a courier rushing into the room. But this man looked frightened. "Ma'am! Sir! The Horde destroyed Fortress Freedom!"

The fortress hadn't been completely destroyed. The citadel was still standing, Seacat saw as they approached on their skiff. And the earthen fortifications looked more or less intact - at least from this side. Perhaps the report had been exaggerated. Sent in the heat of the moment, without waiting for a proper assessment of the damage.

But when they passed through the northern gate of the fortress, it was instantly obvious that the reports hadn't been exaggerated. The harbour was gone. Moles and piers and walls were so much rubble - or missing entirely. The waterfront was gone as well. Warehouses and alehouses swept away or caved in. And the smell… The explosion must have sent a wave through most of the fortress, leaving puddles and flooded cellars.

And, Seacat added to herself after another sniff, corpses that were starting to stink.

"All the supplies in the port are gone," Adora said.

"As are most of the ships which were in port," Mermista added, looking grim. "That's the main mast of the 'Salinean Pride' there.

Which had been the flagship of the squadron stationed in the fortress. Now all that was left of it was the top of the mast visible above the water, still flying her colours. Seacat could see the remains of two cargo ships, Kingdom of Snows cogs, spread over the waterfront. And a courier ship that had been thrown into a gun emplacement. She could see two frigates and two cutters cruising about a mile out and quickly ran through the list of the other ships stationed at the port in her head.

"So the Shark's Tooth and Pride of the Gate survived," the Captain beat her to the point.

"Enough to stop any attempt to cross the river - unless they have another bomb ready," Mermista said.

'Unless they have a bomb' would be added to a lot of sentences from now on.

"If they had the means to cross the river, they would've done so," Adora pointed out. "This would've been the perfect opportunity - blast the port, then land before the soldiers can recover."

Seacat glanced around as they walked up towards the citadel. Judging by the looks of the soldiers digging through rubble and other debris, most of the soldiers hadn't recovered yet. They looked either still shocked or dejected. "They could've built rafts in the forest," she said. "The shore isn't ideal for a landing operation, but they could've tried." And probably succeeded.

"They would've lost a lot of troops, though," Adora retorted. "As long as any Salienan ship would've been in range."

"They don't need to take the fortress," Mermista replied. "With all the supplies here gone, we only have the citadel's stocks left. That won't be enough for our forces in the area. We need to either pull the troops out and move them to another port or rush more supplies in."

And the only way to rush in supplies would be to call on Perfuma. Who was needed at the crystal mines. Or to create a fleet of rafts and ship supplies downriver, which would take a lot of soldiers, and make them vulnerable to raids.

Damn. "How did they manage it, anyway?" Seacat exclaimed. "It looks like the bomb exploded right inside the port."

"They must have smuggled it inside underwater," Mermista replied. "I gave strict orders to inspect every cargo ship."

Damn fishpeople.

"My workshop is gone." Entrapta spoke for the first time since they had entered the city. "All my prototypes. My materials. My bots…" She sniffed.

Seacat reached over and wrapped the princess in a hug. "We'll rebuild." Probably not here, though, but somewhere safer. "And Emily survived." Because the bot had been with Entrapta.

Entrapta nodded with a weak smile. "Yes." Then she sighed again. "But my other workshops are in Dryl or Salineas - that's quite far away."

That would make them safer. Probably; Salinas was a priority target for the Horde since it controlled the sea lanes on this coast. And every frigate defending Salineas wasn't blockading Horde ports. And Dryl was far in the mountains. But they needed Entrapta's bombs quickly; the shorter the route to the front, the better.

They reached the citadel. Colonel Kilian met them there. The man had a bandage wrapped around his head, covering one eye, and his uniform looked dusty and had some fresh tears, but otherwise, he looked as usual. "Princess!" He saluted.

"Colonel." Mermista returned the greeting. "What's the situation?"

"Bad," the man snapped as they entered the courtyard. "We've lost the harbour and most of the troops outside the citadel. The stockpiled rations will last for two months, at best - with the current troop strength in the fortress." He looked at Mermista.

"We planned to send the landing forces back from the yard," the princess told him. "But given the new situation…"

"We do need more troops to hold the fortress. And to repair the most crucial fortifications and docks."

"Yes," Adora chimed in. "We can't abandon the fortress - that would give the Horde access to the forces trapped in the northern area and control of the river."

"Can we afford to rebuild an entire fortress?" Seacat asked. Silently, she added: And can we keep it safe from more bombs?"

"We have to. We lose all our gains if we lose it." Glimmer looked all grim and determined.

But it was good that she understood how important the fortress was.

"How are things?"

Adora! Seacat turned away from the piece of rubble she had been inspecting in the remains of the waterfront and smiled at her lover. "Do you want the good news or the bad news first?"

"Bad news first," Adora said.

Seacat snorted - she had expected that. Adora was always the sort of girl to pick work before pleasure. "The supplies are an almost total loss. The food's rotting as we speak - it was covered in seawater. From the port." And every sailor knew how filthy that water was. "Some barrels with pickled vegetables and cured meat might still be useful, but most of them were broken when the shockwave hit." The rats were having a feast, too - and that wouldn't be pretty once they bred. Seacat shuddered at the thought. "We're still finding bodies, too." Some of them gnawed-upon as well. Filthy vermin!

"And the good news?"

"Mermista can recover the guns of the sunken frigate. Which means we can rebuild the fortifications and convert the rest to field guns. Or put them on merchantmen."

"Ah." Adora nodded but didn't look very happy about the good news. Well, they weren't really good news. Just… not as bad as they could've been.

"What about the citadel?" Seacat asked.

"It's in good shape. But…"

"We need more than a citadel. We need a port to supply the troops here and up the coast," Seacat said.

"That, too," Adora agreed. She looked around - they were alone for the moment - and sat down on a broken column of the warehouse that had been standing here before. "Entrapta's working on a new workshop in the citadel."

"That's good." Seacat smiled - the princess wasn't happy unless she could work on her inventions.

"It is, but…" Adora sighed again. "She can't do everything. And we need so much from her…"

"Oh." Right. Entrapta was the Alliance's only source of engines and enhanced engine bombs. And bots and other inventions. Like the rockets she was planning to make. Seacat muttered a curse. "It's like with Perfuma. If we lose her, we lose the war."

"Yes. But even if nothing happens to her - and nothing will happen to her! - it might not be enough." Adora looked grim. "She just can't build everything we need. And she can't teach others. Not quickly enough to have them take over."

Damn. Seacat should've seen this. Unlike Perfuma, Entrapta couldn't just use magic and make things grow - she had to make everything by hand. And by hair. "And she lost most of her bots. Those helped her."

"Yes. She can repair and rebuild them, but that will take time as well," Adora told her.

"Time we don't have," Seacat said. She closed her eyes and clenched her teeth. Damn. This was worse than she had feared. "And if we fall back, abandon our gains, we won't be facing the old Horde, but a Horde with enhanced engine bombs." And Headhunters.

"Yes. Advancing against them will be much harder than it was before."

And much more dangerous. Headhunters would adapt to the bombs very quickly. And strike at the Princesses. "We need a new plan, then," Seacat said.

"Yes." Adora looked at her. "Do you have any ideas?"

Her lover looked so hopeful, despite the situation… Seacat closed her eyes again. "I've got an idea. But it's very, very dangerous," she said, glancing at her friend.

Adora nodded with a determined expression.

"A decapitation strike?" Mermista sounded, well… not as angry as Seacat had feared. But the princess wasn't happy. "Into the heart of the Fright Zone?"

"Yes." Seacat stood a little straighter.

"That's a suicide mission." Mermista crossed her arms over her chest. "You've managed once, but they'll be ready for another attempt - they won't be fooled again. They'll have shored up their weaknesses and changed procedures."

"And it was a rescue mission," Brain Boy added. "Not an attempt to take out Hordak."

"And Shadow Weaver," Seacat said.

"Shadow Weaver isn't a priority. She doesn't build the bombs and engines," Adora said.

Seacat clenched her teeth. Adora was correct. But still… Seacat wanted that witch dead. "She's his second in command. If we take her out as well, the Horde will collapse. We don't have to hunt for her, but if the opportunity presents itself..."

Mermista looked, if anything, even more dubious, but Sea Hawk nodded. "Indeed - a daring strike into the heart of the enemy! That's the spirit! They think we will retreat, they think they have us on the ropes, but we will turn the tables on them!"

"It's a suicide mission," Mermista repeated herself.

"It's not," Glimmer said. "If we plan it right, prepare and with a little luck…"

"That's not exactly encouraging," Mermista commented as the other princess trailed off.

"It's not as if we have a choice," Seacat said.

"The Horde can't make unlimited numbers of bombs. Not as long as we hold the crystal mines," Brain Boy pointed out.

"They don't need to make many bombs. Just the threat of them being used is crippling us," Seacat retorted. "They can pick their targets - we need to treat every attack as a lethal threat."

"Yes," Adora agreed. "We need to strike at them now. And finish this, once and for all."

Seacat nodded. One way or the other.

It was do or die, as the Captain would say. "So, we do need to… kill Hordak." Seacat didn't like her slight hesitation there, but she didn't want to mince words. Even if Entrapta winced a little. "He's not just the leader of the Horde; he's also responsible for their technology."

"So, he's like my counterpart," Entrapta said with a frown.

"If you were a homicidal monster, yes," Mermista told her. "Did you ever feel the urge to crush and enslave your neighbours? Or your own people?"

Entrapta blinked and wrinkled her nose. "I don't think so, no."

Seacat glared at Mermista - the princess should've known that Entrpata didn't deal well with rhetorical questions. At least Mermista looked like she regretted her quip. "So, you're not his counterpart any more than Scorpia is Adora's counterpart just because she's a Force Captain and one of the Horde's best fighters," Seacat told Entrapta.

"And a princess," Entrapta pointed out.

"Technically a princess," Mermista retorted. "They only claimed that to meddle with our alliance at the Princess Prom," she added with a scowl.

"Indeed. They abused the terms and customs of the event," Sea Hawk said, nodding several times. "Instead of celebrating and partying, they pursued their own plans."

"That's actually what the Princess Prom evolved from," Brain Boy told them. "It was originally a meeting of royalty to discuss politics and settle disputes. The ball was added some time afterwards. It only started to be known as the Princess Prom when most kingdoms started to use the occasion to debut their heirs."

"Fascinating!" Entrapta piped up. "The social dynamics that would lead to the ball part usurping the original function must be very interesting."

Mermista pressed her lips together. "Yeah, yeah, I'm sure. But we were talking assassinations, not ballroom dancing."

"That can be the same thing," Glimmer said.

"Really?" Entrapta leaned forward. "I wasn't aware of that."

"Well, you could hide quite a number of weapons under a ballgown…" Adora started to say.

Seacat cleared her throat. Loudly. "I don't think Hordak will be found dancing any time soon. Can we focus on assassinating him and Shadow Weaver?"

"Of course!" Sea Hawk replied. He coughed into his fist. "As was pointed out before, the Horde will surely have changed procedures and plugged the holes in their perimeter that we exploited during our last foray into the Fright Zone. But given the sheer length of their borders, I have no doubt that we can slip through the enemy lines without being detected."

"That's the enemy lines. But the core areas of the Fright Zone?" Adora shook her head. "They'll have them locked down tightly since they can't afford to lose the factories."

"And Hordak himself will be even better protected in his throne room," Mermista said.

"Uh. He's usually in his, uh, laboratory?" Adora said. "He doesn't really do the throne room thing much. Only for some ceremonies, like my promotion to, ah, Force Captain." She looked away, and Seacat reached up to pat her shoulder.

"So, you could make whoever is his assistant get him out of his workshop and into the throne room?" Entrapta asked.

Seacat was sure that Entrapta was projecting, but it was a valid suggestion - if you weren't aware of how the Horde leadership worked. "That would be Shadow Weaver," she said.

"Oh."

"But we're putting the cart before the horse," Glimmer cut in. "First, we need a way to infiltrate the core of the Fright Zone. And we'll have to be able to study the area before we can strike - we can't just drop in and fight our way through."

"We can't be seen," Seacat added. "If Hordak or Shadow Weaver realise most of the princesses fighting the Horde are in the Fright Zone, they might blow the entire area up to get them." She would at least consider it, in their place - kill the princesses, even just the ones present here, and the alliance would fall apart. Without Mermista, the admirals would try to rule Salineas, and she didn't trust them to rule their own ships, much less a kingdom. Bright Moon might keep fighting if Glimmer were killed, but they wouldn't be doing any better than they had done before Adora became She-Ra. And without Adora… well, not that anything would matter any more if Adora were dead.

"Great," Mermista said, scoffing. "We can't even be seen. And we have to be seen at the frontlines, or nearby, or they'll suspect something is up."

"And we need to keep up the Alliance's morale," Glimmer said.

"So, we'll need disguises," Seacat said. "We need to pass as Horde soldiers."

"That won't work for long - they'll notice we're not with a unit there," Adora told her.

"Did they tighten security? Used to be, you could pass almost anywhere if you claimed to have orders," Seacat replied. "So, we could slip some fake orders into the administration offices."

"There are ways to spot that, but… would they expect that?" Glimmer said.

"Not if we replace an existing force," Seacat, grinning. "We'll have to take out some soldiers on the way back and take their place."

"Passing as Horde soldiers?" Brain Boy still looked sceptical. "We don't know their regulations and customs…" He trailed off.

Adora smiled. "Don't worry! I can teach you! And train you! When we're done, you'll be able to pass as Horde soldiers anywhere!"

Seacat grimaced. Adora was her best friend. Her lover. Her partner. But she had a thing about training. And regulations. A very unreasonable thing.

Damn.

"We still need to plan our insertion," Seacat said. "And how we kill Hordak." And Shadow Weaver.

Adora raised her sword. "This should work. It can cut anything."

"I didn't mean that," Seacat explained. "And Entrapta's blades can cut anything as well. I meant, how do we keep them, him, from fleeing as soon as we get close."

"Indeed. Such a fiend will have escape plans - multiple ones. At the very least, he'll have an escape tunnel or two. And a fast vehicle ready to take him away," Sea Hawk added.

"And body doubles," Mermista said. "He must know that he's the key to the Horde's survival and success, so he'll have decoys."

"Shadow Weaver is his second in command," Seacat agreed. "Of course he'll have body doubles, if only so she won't kill him to take his place."

"Shadow Weaver wouldn't do that," Adora protested. "Or she would have done it already," she added before Seacat could chew her out. "He must have safeguards, too, to control her."

Seacat nodded. "She was willing to murder me and any witnesses just to get rid of a… 'distraction'," she spat. "She'd have killed him if she thought she could get away with it."

"That just means we'll need to study the situation very carefully before we strike," Glimmer said. Brain Boy, unsurprisingly, nodded in agreement.

"But we can't spend too much time, or the Horde will realise that the princesses aren't at the frontlines," Seacat objected. "And body doubles won't cut it for most of you. We need a cover story or something." You couldn't fake magic, after all.

"I know!" Adora piped up with a wide smile. "We're searching for a super-weapon to win the war in… uh…" She chewed her lower lip. "...the Whispering woods?"

"Too close to the frontlines," Glimmer said, shaking her head.

"And if the Horde wanted to, and didn't care about casualties, they could push into the forest," Brain Boy pointed out.

"The Crimson Waste!" Sea Hawk said. "A vast, mysterious desert full of rumours and myths! The Horde's entire army could search for us there and wouldn't be able to find us in a year or more!"

"And how do we lure the Horde into the desert?" Glimmer asked. "And keep them from launching an offensive at us while they think we're away?"

Seacat winced. That was a very good point - if the Horde thought most of the princesses were gone for weeks, they would launch an offensive. And despite the losses the Horde took, they still outnumbered the Alliance. "We need to keep them guessing," she said. "Make them think it might be a ruse to lure them into overextending themselves or attacking before they are ready or something."

"That would work. Neither Hordak nor Shadow Weaver likes to attack without intel." Adora nodded.

"But they have spies in our ranks," Brain Boy said. "They could quickly find out the truth if we're unlucky."

"Then we fool our own people as well," Seacat retorted. "Tell some that we're looking for a super-weapon, others we tell to be ready to ambush the Horde attacks…"

"That would be a good thing anyway," Glimmer said. "They need to be ready to receive attacks."

"But then that might not help us convince the Horde that we aren't actually in the Crimson Waste." Mermista shook her head.

Seacat clenched her teeth. She hated such mind games. Unless she was winning, of course.

"We have to take the risk," Adora said. She looked firm and determined. "Even if the Horde attacks our troops while we're away, even if they advance and take more territory - it's worth it if we can take out Hordak."

"And Shadow Weaver," Seacat added.

Adora didn't react. "If we don't stop Hordak, we'll be beaten by his bombs - and by the threat of his bombs. We can't outlast him like that."

"I can build bombs," Entrapta said. "A lot of bombs."

"You can - but then you couldn't do anything else. Hordak has factories and manufactories," Adora told the princess.

"But we were winning before the bombs," Entrapta protested.

"Yes. But the bombs changed everything," Seacat told her. "We can't risk more bomb attacks. That means we need more people securing ports. More scouts. Moving troops to safety. Spreading out. Better perimeters. And we need to secure the passes and more. Before, if a dozen Horde soldiers sneaked into Bright Moon territory, they couldn't do much. Now?" She clenched her teeth and shook her head.

"Yes," Adora went on. "Before, we had the advantage that a few of us could do a lot of damage, which meant the Horde had to deploy lots of troops to react to us and put up guards. Now, we're in the same situation - but we don't have enough troops to cover everything and attack them."

"We might not have enough troops to cover everything, period," Glimmer said. She sighed. "Mom will hate it - for a variety of reasons - but this is the best chance we have."

"Then let's make sure we have the best chance for success." Seacat grinned.

"Alright, you maggots! Another lap! And run as if your life depended on it! The last to arrive will serve as target dummy for your close quarter combat training! Run! And no cheating!"

Adora was channelling their old instructors perfectly, in Seacat's opinion. Then again, her lover had had four years more experience with them, so Adora was bound to remember them better.

She didn't run as fast as she could, of course. That got you singled out. And the only one she knew about who hadn't been hurt for getting singled out by the instructors was Adora because Adora had been the perfect cadet. And Shadow Weaver's pet cadet.

"Faster! I'll have your guts or breakfast if you don't run faster! I'll drag you behind a skiff!"

"This… Adora's really overdoing it!" Glimmer huffed as she tried to keep pace.

"She's not overdoing it," Seacat corrected her. "She hasn't even used a shock rod to motivate us."

"What?" Glimmer stumbled as she turned her head to stare at Seacat.

"On the lowest setting, of course," Seacat added. You couldn't run faster if your muscles locked up, after all.

"That's… that's…"

"No talking! If you can talk, you're not running fast enough!" Adora bellowed.

Damn. Seacat had forgotten about that bit. She urged herself to run a little faster. Mostly to keep Glimmer running fast enough. Brain Boy was sprinting ahead - he should've known better. No, he wouldn't have known better. The boy had never gone through basic training, hadn't he?

"No cheating, Entrapta! Use your legs, not your hair!"

"But I'm faster using my hair!"

"I don't care, you maggot! Run!"

"But that's inefficient!"

"I'll give you inefficient if you use your hair for another step!"

"That doesn't make any sense…"

Perhaps Adora was getting a little too much into her role…

"If... every… Horde… soldier… gets… through... this…" Glimmer managed to say between gulping down air. She hadn't even bothered to move from where she had collapsed after Adora had finally called the exercise.

"Every cadet does," Seacat told her.

"It's inefficient," Entrapta complained. "And illogical. People should train according to an exercise regime tailored for their state of health."

Seacat looked at the princess. She didn't seem to be as out of breath as the others. Then again, she had been arguing with Adora for quite some time while running. Mermista, though, was pretty much asleep in Sea Hawk's arms. "Well, that's not how the Horde does it. One size fits all," she told Entrapta.

"But that doesn't make any sense!"

Seacat suppressed a sigh. "But that's what they do."

"They don't want to get the most out of every soldier - they want troops that act, think and fight the same," Adora said. "It's about control."

"Oh."

Seacat glanced at Adora. Was that what she had learned as a cadet or realised after deserting? Judging by the reactions of the rest of the group, who were listening to their talk, this was news to them as well. "Yes. If you weren't a good little soldier, you got punished - even if you got results."

Adora winced at that but nodded. "Yes. The Horde's entire strategy is based upon that. They need soldiers who follow orders without thinking."

"But you can't win a war like that," Brain Boy protested. "You need to be able to adapt and change plans - exploit opportunities and counter enemy actions."

"That's the duty of the officers," Adora said.

"And they're trained differently?" Glimmer asked, sitting up and leaning against Brain Boy.

"They receive additional training after basic training," Adora told them. "But everyone goes through basic training."

"And that explains why the Horde is so bad at reacting to surprises," Seacat said with a grin. "Most of the officers never really unlearn their training."

"Enough of them do," Adora corrected her. "And the Headhunters are proof that the Horde's changing as well."

"Wait…" Glimmer narrowed her eyes at them. "You mean we could skip this torture and pass for Headhunters?"

"We want to pass as harmless rear echelon troops," Adora reminded the princess. "Headhunters draw attention. No one wonders what regular troops are doing."

"Great…" Glimmer closed her eyes. "I can already feel my brain shrinking."

"Good!" Adora beamed at her. "That means we can now start on standing at attention and saluting properly, Horde-stye."

Seacat joined the others in groaning. She didn't need flashbacks to that part of her training.