A/N: Idk if I said it before, but I'm having a lot of fun with this series ^^ I think the quick lengthy updates are proof of that (then again I had a day off of work due to snow so that really helped XP). As always, these episodes will come in two parts per episode. While it might seem like some parts are rushed here and there, always keep in mind that, aside from always having an idea, these are nice and lengthy ^^.
So with that, onto the show!
And yes people, this is a show. So I will be doing THAT at the beginning of ever episode/when posted X)...
...
...
...
~ We're on the edge of greatness ~
~ turning darkness into light ~
~ We're right beside you ~
~ Ready to Fight! ~
~ (fight, fight, fight fight) ~
~ We're gonna win in the end! ~
~ We must be strong, And we must be brave ~
~(we must be brave) ~
~ We're gonna find every bit of strength that we have ~
~ and never let go ~
~ (Oh ah Oh) ~
~ We must be STRONG! ~
There was a small radiant glow coming off of the transformed warrior. Catra herself had apparently changed in various ways, right down from her wardrobe to her demeanor. There stood the same person who was once before, now changed by the sword's magic. Her clothes at changed drastically fo pure white, as golden shoulderplates formed from her shoulders, and another pair of golden bracelets appeared on her wrists. Even her helmet had changed ever so slightly, the tips of it now slightly larger with a small ruby gem focused on it's center.
Within the center of white chestpiece was a symbol. A symbol of hope and light, one with a great brightness over the middle, protruding from a blue gem, stretching out across the chest on all sides, and connecting from the top to the bottom of the chest piece. All along with her pants which had shortened drastically, now just barely a few inches below her waist. Despite that, the figure that stood before them was the image of a proud warrior, one who was ready to battle and defend those who needed it.
This, was Catra. This, was She-Ra.
Catra herself felt a strange mixed variety of things she had never felt before. For one, for whatever reason, she felt... lighter. Both physically and emotionally. Half the things that used to plague her mind on a constant basis had seemingly vanished and had been replaced with a strange calmness she never knew of.
Physically speaking, her whole body felt like it was barely touching the ground. With her feline characteristics, she commonly felt and was capable of leaping to great heights and distances far more than the average person. This time, however, she felt like her feet themselves were barely magnetized to the ground, like she could blast off into the air at a moment's notice. She barely registered the weight of the sword itself, now feeling no heavier than a common tree branch.
Everything about her felt completely different, and for some reason she actually liked this.
Even the massive creature seemed to settle down from her brilliance, though it still had a strange air of neutrality to it.
At the same time, both Bow and Glimmer on the other side of the clearing were at a loss for words. First this crazy Horde Spy snooped into the Whispering Woods, Rebellion territory, bent on taking a sword they believed rightfully belonged to them. Then, after a scuffle followed by dragging the spy along to a desecrated town, they were suddenly attacked by one of the vicious creatures inhabiting the forest. That's when the catgirl herself attempted to swipe the sword again and made a getaway, leaving the two of them to whatever cruel fate would have befallen the duo.
That's when Catra surprised them once more with something none of them, Catra included, thought she would do - she came back! Definitely not with a plan in mind as she seemed clueless on what to do with the sword or how to use it, but their salvation came to them all the same when the mighty beast struck Catra's sword and enveloped everything in a gloriously bright light.
The end result of all this is what brought them to where they were today.
"Glimmer?" Bow asked completely baffled.
"Yeah, I see her Bow." Glimmer replied as if reading his mind.
"Okay. I wanted to make sure it wasn't just me." The disbelief on both their expressions were understandable. After all, not many people can say they witnessed a strange Horde Spy come out of nowhere, come and save them at the last minute, then transformed into some bizarre looking white knight. Catra herself wouldn't have believed it either if anyone told her this story, and she was the center of it all!
And she was all unaware of these details until she looked down herself.
"What the- Ahhh!" She screeched drooping her ears and shooting her tail out, collapsing on herself as she fell back trying desperately to cover her legs. "Where are my pants?!" She screamed, noticing a slight draft between her legs, seeing her long-length pants replaced with new shorter white ones that practically looked like boxers to her.
Just as quickly as the transformation had occur did the transformation come to an end. Upon falling to the ground, there was another near-blinding flash of light, one much smaller in size as it appeared to personally cover over the entirety of Catra herself. Once the light dissipated again, she found her outfit changed back to normal, her previous fashion wear returning to the way they once were.
This still left a bewildered expression on Catra's face as she saw the sword gleam one more time.
What was going on here? Who was this mysterious Light Hope person she met when she touched the sword? Why was any and all visions she had distorted whenever she attempted communication with this person? What was the deal with this sword? And most importantly, why on Etheria did the sword's only magical power seem to give her a wardrobe change?
Everything was so confusing!
Meanwhile, Glimmer saw her opportunity as she teleported, reappearing before Catra as she tried to take the sword again. "Nghhh gimme that!" She grumbled as she tried to take the sword.
"Hey!" Catra grumbled back as she pulled in turn, rising to her feet.
"Stay where you are!"
"What the heck did your stupid sword do to me?! Did I catch your princess-ness or something?"
"Being a princess isn't something you can catch, fur ball! I had nothing to do with it!"
"The heck it isn't, Pinkie! Your stupid sword stole my clothes for a minute!"
"Your clothes just changed, they weren't stolen!"
"Okay, okay, everyone calm down!" Bow finally said as he tried to pull the sword in his direction. The three of them were now in the midst of a game of tug-of-war, pulling the sword closer to each other with more confusion on their mind than their desire for the sword. "Wanna tell us how you did that?"
"How the heck should I know?" Catra yelled, still a little fluster by the brief change in appearance she had. "Why the heck would you guys have some magic sword whose only power is to steal your clothes? That's the stupidest power ever!"
"We don't have weapons like that!" Glimmer yelled back as she pulled. "And your clothes weren't missing, your entire outfit changed! And it's not... happening... again!" Glimmer finally screamed as she won the game of tug-of-war, knocking Catra off her back.
Immediately after taking the sword, the mighty creature's eyes lit up again, as if awakening from the mere misuse of the sword itself or the transfer of it's ownership. There was a deathly silence amongst the three as they heard the creature growling again, rising itself off it's feet slowly as it growled hungrily at the teens. With a mighty roar, it crashed it's front mandibles before itself, narrowly missing the trio as they jumped out of the way in their own separate directions.
Looking back herself, Catra was rather surprised when she realized the creature was less focused on her and more focused on the duo who hid themselves within the tree. It was almost like something was drawing the creature towards them, though in a much angrier manner than before.
*WHAM*
*WHAM*
The entire ground shook as the creature collided into the tree repeatedly, trying it's hardest to either topple the mighty oak over, or break through it enough to reach Glimmer and Bow who were hiding inside. At this point, the two were stuck between a literal hard place and a giant monster that seemed more interested in destroying them rather than eating them, a factor that didn't really make the pair feel any better.
There was only one idea that acme to Bow's mind as he looked over to the sword in Glimmer's arms again. "Do it again! Do it again!" He begged as he rushed out, narrowly avoiding the next collision between the insect and the tree.
"Bow!" Glimmer cried out, frantically teleporting out of the way and back to Bow's side before the creature finally managed to crash through the tree.
"Do what you did before!" Bow continued to plead as he handed the sword over to Catra.
"I don't know what I did before!" Catra yelped, looking over the entire sword. There weren't any options that seemed wise to the young teen. How was she supposed to know what to do when she was barely aware the first time? All she remembered was the creature hitting the edge of the sword and then a great white light went off, and she wasn't tempted to try the same tactic twice, especially when the creature seemed more intent on charging the group rather than crushing them this time!
"No time. We have to go!" Glimmer instructed as she ran past Catra, the other two quickly following behind. Like it had been before, the great creature roared angrily as it gave chase.
How the heck were any of them supposed to lose this thing? It's husk was too sturdy to penetrate with anything they had as a weapon, it's hulking size gave it a vast amount of strength that could easily let it crash through trees, like the several the three just passed seconds ago, and despite it's hulking size the giant creature had formidable speed, keeping up with the runaways just mere yards behind them.
The thought of possibly ditching the two did cross Catra's mind for a brief moment. She could leap great distances and find a good spot to duck out of the way while the monster continued chasing the other two, but two key details kept crossing her mind on this line of thinking.
One, she didn't know if the monster was more focused on them or the sword itself. If the monster was more focused on the latter, then that meant it would continue it's chase for Catra itself, and there was no way Catra could afford to lose the sword after all the time she spent trying to get it in the first place.
Secondly, she still didn't know where she was in the woods. Misdirection aside, she also had no idea what else could be inhabiting these woods. For all she knew she could end up falling into a nest of these giant bug monsters and she would be forced to fend for herself in that scenario. As much as she hated to admit it, she needed the help of these two until they came upon a viable solution.
*thud*
"Wha-Ahhhhhhhh!" Catra screamed as she crashed into bow and Glimmer, too preoccupied on her thoughts to notice them stopping, and crashing down the small cliffside the duo stopped in front of. The group came tumbling down one by one until they came into contact with the hard, strangely metallic, floor. Annoyingly to Catra herself, while she did manage to react in time to land kneeling upright, she was toppled by the other two delinquents who were starting to pester her, landing right on top of her back.
The group moaned in soreness at the heavy fall, Catra more due to the heavy objects that landed on top of her, but her own soreness was quickly replaced with curiosity and surprise as she noticed the strange surface of the ground she landed on, with it's intricate markings and design, all leading up to a path with a very mysterious triangle against a a wall.
"What is this place?" She asked aloud, hoping from a response from either of the two. Any chance they had of answering was interrupted as the familiar growl of the monster approached as well as the thunderous quake it caused when it moved.
"No idea," Bow replied as he helped Glimmer to her feet, "but in there's gotta be better than out here." They barely had a second before they scrambled back to their feet, Glimmer picking up the sword as the three ran from the monster sliding down the slope. Luckily for them, as the monster crashed to the ground, several broken pillars collapsed atop of it, buying them a few precious seconds until the monster dug itself out.
Bow took the initiative as he attempted to crash through the triangle-shaped entrance itself, only to find his charge as effective as crashing through a wall. He refused to allow that to stop him as he attempted to pry the door open with his bare hands, trying anything that could save them from the monster.
"Everyone, grab on," Glimmer instructed as she reached out a hand, "I can get us in there!"
"Glimmer, no!" Bow quickly dismissed. "You've never teleported three people before."
"Well now's a good time to try, isn't it?" Catra retorted, slowly backing away towards them as she saw the monster slowly pull itself from the rubble. Looking back to the door itself, she noticed the strange symbols on the door, having another moment of de sha vue here. "What's with the writing on the door? Is it a password or something?"
"Y-You can read that?" Bow asked surprised.
"Yeah, why? Can't you?" Catra replied raising her brow. Their attention was brought back behind them as the giant monster crashed through the rubble, finally free of it's imprisonment and roaring madly at the others.
"What's it say?"
"Hang I'm, I'm trying to figure it out!" Catra grumbled. She was more irritated by the speed she was reading these symbols than the rush the others were obviously in. She couldn't exactly see it all at first glance, the words unrecognizable entirely to her. Yet for some reason the longer she stared at it, words slowly translated in her mind. "E... Ter... Ni...A..." Then, as if a lightbulb had gone off, the entirety of the word made itself known to her. "Eternia!"
Suddenly the runes and symbols on the door began to glow, coming to life as if on command by the mysterious password. The three watched in amazement as the door split apart from all sides rather than one way or the other, providing the sanctuary the three finally needed.
"Oh come on!" Glimmer grumbled as if jealous of Catra's ability to read the mysterious dialect. Any and all feelings they had for their situation was put on immediate hold as the three rushed inside, Bow pulling Glimmer along with him, retreating into the inner sanctum just as the monster was about to assault them. Just as quickly as the door opened, it immediately shut upon their entering, the last thing the three heard from the creature being a mighty ram as it shut itself, swallowing the room in darkness.
...
After a brief pause to gather their bearings and catch their breath, the next thing any of them saw was Glimmer's magic as she illuminated a small space of the pitch black room, allowing the others to see her and eventually the rest of the great room in a dim light.
Just like her vision, the room matched the mysterious nature of all the things Catra had seen since touching the sword. There were crystals strewn across the room here and there, and there were more mysterious writings along the wall and floors, though it was too dark to get an accurate view of what the words actually were. All she knew was that this place was somehow connected to the sword and the mysterious things that have happened to her within the last day.
"So, Horde soldier, have you always been able to read the First One's writing?" Bow finally asked, breaking the silence.
"The First Ones?" Catra repeated with confusion. The two were temporarily blinded as Glimmer approached with her with her enlightening magic, having the same look confusion as Bow as well as anger.
"Wanna tell us exactly what is going on here?" She questioned Catra in an interrogation-like manner. Catra just sneered at this as she rose to her feet, brushing off a thin layer of dust from her pants she collected after the long chase.
"I already told you guys, I don't know." She replied. "I just looked at the writing on the door and the word just came to me."
"Riiiiight... You just read a word in a language no one's spoken in a thousand years, and the door just opened into a mysterious ancient ruin. Sure." The sense of doubt in Glimmer's tone was almost too obvious to her.
"It's the truth!" She insisted. "I didn't exactly ask to catch your princess-ness you know! No one slapped a label on it saying "Warning, maybe turn you into a pantsless Princess", Pinky!"
"Pinky?" Glimmer blinked at the comment, unable to tell if she was being serious or insulting. "My name is Glimmer, Princess Glimmer to Horde ruffians like you thank you very much!"
"Whoa, whoa, Glimmer, calm down." Bow interrupted, trying to break the tension rising in here. "She did save us, remember?"
"I don't care!" The princess pulled away a bit. "We can't trust her, Bow. Or have you forgotten all the horrible things the Horde's done to us? The people we've lost..." The mere mention of it built a small amount of tears from the corners of Glimmer's eyes. Cata just looked away with no comment, unwilling to continue an argument over something neither of them had control over. She waited until she finished sobbing to herself and wiped away her tears before facing her again.
"Look, I don't care much for what the Horde does and I don't have anything to the supposed people you've lost." Catra's eyes looked back to prize she came here for. "So why don't you just give me the sword and we'll never have to see each other aga-" Catra began as she tried to reach for the sword. Unfortunately (and annoyingly) for her, Glimmer simply held the sword an arm's length away from her, fully intent on keeping it away.
"You think I'd give this to you after all that's happened?!" The idea that Catra even thought it'd be okay fueled her anger further. "I wouldn't give this to you in a thousand years! I don't know what the sword can do but there is no way I'd ever allow a thug like you to have it either!"
"Well I'm not going anywhere without that sword!" Catra's tailed waved a little as she grumbled.
"Hmph, fine," Glimmer puffed as she walked passed her, "then you'll just have to follow us all the way back to Bright Moon if you want it so bad. I'm sure my mother would have quite a few choice words for you regarding the sword."
"Oh come ooooon!" Catra groaned rolling her eyes. She could potentially eliminate the two and take it by force, but even with her heightened sense of sight she wouldn't be able to find her way through the pitch-black darkness if Glimmer's magical light disappeared as a result. Not to mention if she came across the monster again or another one, the last thing she wanted while having the sword was for another one of her visions to kick in and leave her too helpless to fight or retreat.
She was stuck with these two no matter how much she hated them.
"Hey," Bow spoke up again while Catra refused to look back, "so, thanks for saving us from that bug thing back there when you could've escaped instead." Catra remained silent for a few seconds before scoffing in turn.
"Tch, I didn't do it to save you, the sword made me do it." Catra herself was almost just as skeptical as bow by her choice of reasoning.
"Are you sure it's not because you secretly like us?" He asked with a smug grin. All Catra had to do to prove her point was stretch out her already sharpened claws in front of his face. "Heh... point taken." That seemed to please Catra enough to drop the conversation because the next thing he knew she was casually walking down the hallway with her arms crossed, definitely peeved by how the recent events were unfolding.
Still, he wanted to make his gratefulness known even if she didn't want to hear it. "Thanks for saving us all the same." He repeated as he walked by her side. "I'm Bow by the way." It was hard to tell if she was ignoring him or simply didn't hear, an impossible detail given the large cat ears, given the lengthy silence and lack of physical reaction that came from her.
To Catra, if keeping everyone else quiet meant playing along, then she would play along as long as she possibly needed until she got her sword back. "...Catra..." She muttered.
"Catra, huh? Weird name for a-"
"Freak?" Catra assumed.
"I was going to say Horde soldier..." Bow corrected.
"O-Oh..." If there was ever an instant of surprise ever present on Catra's face at this, it lasted for less than a millisecond.
"Still, it is kind of an uncommon name for a Horde soldier and all."
"I don't know what my real name is, I guess they just gave it based on my appearance."
"Heh, guess they're not the most creative bunch, huh?"
Meanwhile, while trying to drown out the conversation the two behind her were spewing, Glimmer looked closely at the sword in her hands. A sword as powerful as this, possibly forged by the First Ones themselves, must've been of great importance and power. Bringing something like this to her mother was sure to gain her recognition, not to mention the fact she successfully captured a Horde soldier at the same time!
The only thing that could make this situation better was if she could unlock it's power. She saw the strange transformation Catra went through, the raw power glowing off the newly transformed warrior along with her sword, and how the creature seemed to practically submit to her will the very instant it laid eyes on her. That kind of power could be the very key she needed to turning this entire war around! All she needed to do was figure out how to acquire it.
Thinking back on it, overlooking the sword once more, she thought back to the very instant before Catra transformed. The creature struck the sword, a bright flash emanated from the sword, and then she spoke a certain phrase, possibly a password like the door. Viewing the bright gem itself, she whispered. "For the honor... of Grayskull."
"What are we doing?"
"Ah-!" Glimmer jumped at Bow's sudden question, realizing he was standing right behind her. "N-Nothing! I mean uhh... Look at these carvings! I think these might be a First One ruin." She stated trying to change the subject. She watched as Bow apparently took the bait, stepping ahead of her as he looked over the writing on the black-walled surface. Catra, on the other hand, just grew a cheeky grin as she leaned in over from behind the princess.
"Can't get the sword to work, Pinky?" She teased, earning nothing more than a small grumble from Glimmer herself. Insults aside, she was just as curious over the strange symbols displayed on the wall. "What's with this First Ones mumbo-jumbo you guys keep mentioning?"
"You've never heard of the First Ones?" Glimmer couldn't tell if she was feigning ignorance or serious, given the events that led up to this moment. She also didn't have the capacity to care for it either as she continued on ahead.
"The First Ones are the original settlers of Etheria." Bow explained in Glimmer's place. "They disappeared over a thousand years ago, but they left behind a lot of old ruins and technology. Like this place."
If the First Ones left technology like this sword or the other strange devices she's come across up till now, there was no telling what other sort of powerful objects laid hidden across Etheria. All of these details were the key to obtaining everything she could've dreamed of! All with one underlying detail she did need to ask about. "Whatever happened to them?" The cat was growing curious at this detail and she wasn't planning on getting killed over it.
"No one knows." Somehow she knew that would be his answer. "They just disappeared. The Horde didn't tell you about them?"
"If they did I didn't care much to listen to them." Catra shrugged. "They taught us the basics of basically everything, then drilled into our heads how we're all 'destined to bring unity and balance to Etheria' or some garbage. When it came to whatever they considered important matters, they always kept it to the higher ups."
"Ugh!" The two stopped as they heard Glimmer moan, standing up ahead. "How do we get out of here?"
"It'll take forever to find a way out at this rate." Bow replied looking around. Wow. Catra was joking when she thought to herself how she would die getting lost with these two earlier but that was going to be the case at the rate things were going. "Hey, you wanna turn on some light, Catra?"
"Huh?" Did he think she was magical too or something? "What? Do you want me to use the glow-in-the-dark powers I don't have or something?"
"Maybe there's a magic word..." He rubbed his chin trying to think. "Ooh! What's the First One's word 'lights'?"
"I don't know, 'Light's on' or something?" She had to resist the urge to facepalm when Bow took a second to look around to see if it worked.
"Mmh we're wasting time." Glimmer stepped between them as she handed the sword to Bow. "Everyone, stand back." She instructed as started to gather more magic.
"Uhh Glimmer? Maybe you should take it easy." Bow suggested sounding slightly worried. "We're a long way from Bright Moon. It'll be awhile before you can recharge."
"Bow!" Glimmer yelped at the small detail he just gave away.
"You have to recharge your powers?" Catra smirked for several reasons. That was an interesting detail Catra was unaware of. Who knows what other juicy bits he could give her before the day was over?
"Can we not talk about this in front of the Horde soldier? Now, stand back." The look Catra saw on his face seemed to be glossed over as he stepped near her and away from Glimmer.
With the distraction out of the way, she watched as the pixie-looking girl began to gather a larger amount of magic within the palms of her hand, a large shining pink sphere growing in size with each passing second. This too actually got Catra interested as she studied her every move. On top of the sword, every bit of detail she could return to the Horde could prove invaluable for her chance at a promotion.
On the off and incredibly unfortunate chance she failed to get the sword before returning to the Horde, as well as any other First One tech she could find, she needed something she could fall back on to make up for it, no matter how minor and inefficient it was. Knowledge was power after all, and it was the last thing Catra could bring back with her to prove all of this wasn't for nothing.
Her attention shifted back to the princess as she heard her groan slightly with unease and discomfort. A small piece of sweat dripped a little from her forehead as the orb continued to expand, growing wider and wider before Catra's very eyes.
Then, with one mighty roar, Glimmer threw the large sphere into the sky, as high as it could reach above these ruins, and expanded like a great shining sun.
"Whoa..." Catra's own eyes sparkled slightly in astonishment, finding herself actually surprised at the massive amount of magic this young princess had welling up inside of her the entire time. She was brought back to focus after hearing the Glimmer groan again, a little louder than before.
"Wow, are you okay?" Bow asked checking on her.
"I'm fine Bow, okay?" Glimmer insisted a little weakly. Her attempts to continue on with the trek was immediately stopped as she turned around again, the sight shocking her at what she saw.
Before all of them, stretching across the wall to nearly the ceiling itself, was a large glass picture, the frame itself embedded within a large sturdy stand keping the picture up. There was a myriad of colors that danced across the picture, depicting of what appeared to be a young warrior, a princess perhaps, standing what appeared to be a magnificent, majestic sword in front of her.
What made the picture so compelling was the similarity it had to recent events. This large beautiful image in front of them bared a striking resemblance to what Catra transformed into, with the large curved edges to her helmet and shoulder pads of her armor. Even the symbol while being partially covered by the sword itself, was too similar to Catra's outfit to not be a coincidence!
"Hey, that's you!" Bow exclaimed as Catra stepped forward. She couldn't help but find herself mesmerized by just how similar the mural was compared to her own image when she transformed.
"That... That can't be right." She shook her head at this. "That doesn't look anything like me!"
"No, I mean the other you." Bow said looking back to the mural. "The large sword, the whole Tiara thing, " Catra briefly checked to see if her helmet was either missing or different at this, "it's gotta be you."
There were a few striking differences, however, and not just with the person as a whole.
"Well minus the cape thing if you really want to look at it." Glimmer commented. "Do you know what the inscriptions say?" Catra took a look at the strange words that were slowly translating in her head like the door.
"It says... whoever found the sword first should get to keep it! Well, if the mural says-" Catra said with a grin.
"Nice try." Glimmer was already two steps ahead of her as she stretched it away at arms length.
"Eh, worth a shot." Catra continued to look over the inscriptions. Luckily it was only one word, thus the translation was over almost as quickly as it began. "It says... She-Ra."
All at once, light stretched across all the inscriptions as it ascended from the base of the picture to the mural itself. Just like with the door, the phrase appeared to bring the entirety of the room this time to life as light danced across the long hallways and the mural from whence it came. Everyone watched as the ruin of the First Ones practically sprang to life under these effects, all of them finding themselves in a practical trance as they watched with amazement at the wondrous light show displaying before them.
It didn't just end with the picture itself coming to life with light, the light stretched across the entire room and then some, illuminating the very floors they stood on and the walls to places they've yet to come to. It was like the First Ones' ruins themselves were alive, awakening after being called upon by one chosen to awaken it. Even the ambience in the air somehow felt more alive than it previously was, all of this culminating from just one word.
She-Ra.
"Greetings, administrator." A full-sized image of a person resembling Light Hope suddenly popped up from the ground, causing the group to jump with fright along with Catra's tail.
"W-What is this thing?"
"What is your query?" It asked.
"My... what?"
"I think it's some kind of ancient hologram." Bow stated as he looked at the transparent being.
"What is your query?" It repeated a third time.
"Um... hi. What is this place?" Bow tried to ask, expecting an answer that never came. "...How do we get out of here?" He asked again trying to sound as blatant and direct as possible.
It didn't help.
"What is your query?"
"Well she's broken." Bow concluded.
"She's just old." Glimmer pointed out. "I'm surprised any of this stuff works at all." She waved her hand through it as she said this. Whatever she did didn't seem to agree with the hologram because almost immediately the hologram glowed red as if angered.
"Administrator not detected. Lockdown initiated."
For a pile of what was supposed to be old junk and ruins, the three found themselves caught off guard at how quickly it reacted and initiated the lockdown. The entire room lit with an angry red as the floors began to rumble. One after the other the various entrances and exits to this place slammed shut and tightly with completely flattened, metal surfaces, leaving little to no means of prying the doors open or gripping the door no matter how hard they could try.
That wasn't including the doors and locks that came down from the older pieces of the ruin. The other areas that were locking down found themselves grinding to a harsh halt, the magic of time catching up to the structures, causing the doors to some sections to completely collapse on top of each other as well as the entranceways that housed them. The amount of force pushing on these structures were enough to shake the ground more as it caused bits of the ceiling to come falling out of the sky, glass murals from above falling one after the after around them.
The entire room would collapse atop of them at this rate, and none of them had the means to protect themselves from the ensuing rubble.
"Catra, you've got to stop it!" Bow finally stated.
"What makes you think I can?!" No amount of assurance could convince her when the world was literally falling down around them!
"Query not recognized."
"There's got to be a password or something," Bow suggested, "just like all the other times!"
Catra found herself on wits end, refusing to let her skepticism keep her from possibly saving their lives from a simple guessing game. "Uhh cut it out- er no I mean stop it. I order you to stop it!" Catra ordered assertively. It was met with the same results as Bow's attempt at stopping it, but she wouldn't give up. "Uhh S-She-Ra! Light Hope! Uhh Eternia? Come on, give us a break!" Catra shouted.
It was then that Catra looked back to the picture itself, the one displaying She-Ra, the person she resembled and the potential key to all of this. There was something about her that had to give them the answers they were looking for, and it all rested on the one thing she was holding in her hands.
"Give me the sword!" She quickly told Glimmer.
"What? No!" Glimmer pulled away.
"We need crazy lady in the cape!" Catra asserted. "If this place is as old as you said it was, then maybe it'll listen to someone close enough to resemble her. You can't deny it's worth a shot!"
"Mmmh." There was a strong urge to deny it but she knew better than not. If they didn't get out of this place it wouldn't matter who had the sword anyway, and that was worse than a soldier running off with the sword at all!
Almost at least.
"Ngh... She-Ra! Uhh Catra! Bow, Glimmer, First Ones?" Catra continued to list off as many potential words and names as possible, hoping any sort of miracle could get them out of their situation.
While she still had misgivings about the soldier, Glimmer wasn't about to leave her behind after realizing the only thing she could do at this moment. Quickly grabbing Bow by his arm and Catra by her tail, freaking the girl out for the very first time since meeting her.
"Hey, what are you grabbing-!" Catra tried to snap about the tail.
"Hold on!"
"Glimmer, no!" Bow tried to warn but it was too late. Perhaps it was good fortune that Glimmer used some of the last remaining fractions of her powers because no sooner had she finally teleported the three of them, a large slab of colored concrete landed where they previously stood.
She had little control though over where they ended up next as the next thing Catra knew they were well above the Whispering Woods, over hundreds of feet from what she fell from the first time that started all of this madness. Worse still, the one who threw them into this situation out of another situation didn't appear to be conscious, which would've explained the calming sleep she was under because there was nothing but panic filling Catra's mind.
"Uh Pinky? Hello? Wake up, we still need you!" Catra tried to shake awake to no avail. Whether or not half-human half-cats always landed on their feet gravity always proved to be the more dire detail to the statistic.
"Hold on!" Bow shouted as he pulled another arrow from his quiver. The boy managed to surprise Catra as he always seemed to have an answer to their troubles because if there was ever an exact thing they needed to save them at this moment, it was the net that grew out of his arrow the moment he shot it at the trees below them, hanging on for dear life as the group had landed straight in the center of the life-saving contraption.
It was a narrow escape for the group, but one that they had officially survived.
...
"Glimmer?" Glimmer heard an echoey voice as she slowly conscious. "Glimmer?"
"Ugh..." She moaned, slowly opening her eyes. She doesn't fully know where she ended up taking them or where they were at this moment, all she did know was that she, Bow, and even Catra were all safe, the last of them having a vague hint of worry in her incredibly annoyed look. "Did it work?"
"What do you think?" Catra huffed as she leaned over. "Word of advice if you don't want to lose your fingers; don't grab a cat by her tail anymore, got it?" Glimmer was so used to her method of speaking that she wasn't even fazed by her nonchalant threat.
"Are you alright?" Bow asked as he carefully helped her up.
"I'm fi-Ngh!" Glimmer clenched her teeth as she felt a sharp pain in her stomach. "I think I used up too much power back there..."
"I don't know who could've predicted that... oh right, me." He said with a slight tease. It didn't make Bow feel any easier knowing this was to be expected after the amount of power she's been using, but it did at least give him an excuse to be a little smug about it.
"Bow..."
"Like an hour ago..." He added.
"Bow!"
"I'm sorry, I'm just glad you're okay." He apologized as she picked up the sword. She was too relieved for words when she realized she was still holding the mighty sword in the palm of her hands.
And a little confused.
"You... didn't try to take the sword?" She asked looking back to Catra.
"Trust me, I wanted to," She crossed her arms as she puffed her cheeks, "but aside from Bowey over here, I... just wanted to make sure you woke up before I did. I hate owing people who help me so consider this making us even." While it was far more one-sided on how much Catra owed her, Glimmer decided to just accept the consideration without saying a word.
Although that didn't keep her from finding more things to question. "Can I ask you something?"
"What?" Catra replied with the typical roll of her eyes.
"Why are you doing all of this?"
"What do you think? I want that stupid sword so I-"
"No, not that." She interrupted. "I mean why are you fighting for the Horde? I mean you don't seem to be all buddy-buddy with them. You even said you didn't like anybody over there so what's the point of working for people you hate so much?"
"Because she's over-!" Catra quickly looked away as she caught herself. "I mean... I just feel like I owe them one, ok? No matter how much I hate their guts they did raise me since I was a baby. Least I can do is find some way to pay them back before I leave them entirely."
"Sounds rough." Bow commented scratching the back of his head. He couldn't even begin to know what it felt like working for a group of people you have absolutely no care for. "But if you really don't care that much for them, then why not just leave them? You could... fight for the Rebellion!"
"What?!" Both Catra and Glimmer stammered at the same time.
"Are you out of your mind?!" The Princess shouted. "There's no way we would-"
"You're still interested in the sword and what it can do, right?" He continued.
"Yeah...?" Catra nodded with a curious brow.
"Well Glimmer's mom knows more about First Ones' tech than anyone. She'll know what's going on with the sword and can probably show you how to use it!"
"You don't say..." She rubbed her chin as she thought to herself. She did have to admit, there was an appeal into knowing how to use the sword rather than just the sword itself. As it stood it was no more useful than a giant sharp paperweight the way it was now. But if she could unlock all the secrets it contained there was no telling how much power she could unleash on her enemies, especially Shadow Weaver of all people!
"So? What do you say?" He asked offering a hand.
Her options were either A: Accept the deal and get back at everyone she's hated for years now, or B: Decline the deal and find some other means of getting the sword back as well as an alternative solution for finding her way home, which became increasingly difficult since she didn't know where Glimmer just teleported them within these woods.
The choice was obvious.
"Come on, we're wasting time." Glimmer butted in before Catra could so much as offer a response, pulling Bow along with her. "There should be a village a few miles from here. They should be able to give us a ride back to Brightmoon." She didn't give either of the two a chance to continue this conversation as she sped her way up the path a little, looking sternly over to Bow as she whispered. "Are you out of your mind? She's a Horde soldier! She'd never work with us!"
"I know you're upset, but this could really help all of us!" He whispered back. "If she really hates the Horde as much as she says, she'll be willing to help us figure out how to defeat them! She must know loads of battle strategies and weaknesses of the Horde, she'd make a great ally!"
Unbeknownst to the two of them, Catra's superior hearing allowed them to eavesdrop on their whispering even when they were several yards away. She knew exactly what they were talking about even if a few words here and there were incoherent for her. She knew they wanted to use her to help them win the war and they wanted her to join them and fight on the Rebellion's side. All all throughout this there was only one thought on her mind that made her grow a sly grin.
This... is too easy...
It's a funny thing when you have time on your hands. Most people can enjoy activities or socialize with other people about various events in the world. During the near full hour they had to wait for Glimmer to wake up, there were quite a few thoughts running through Catra's mind. How was she going to get the sword, how was she going to get back home, and then a new thought occurred; how could she use this to her advantage.
When the idea finally came to her, she knew what she had to do. All she had to do was show a little caring and concern here, a little sympathy there, and find some way to get either of the two morons to sympathize with her. Top that all off with a bit of inner turmoil followed by a dash of possibly betraying her own allies, and she had them eating right out of her very palms.
Because at the rate things were going, she had the advantage over the two. And before this day was done, she was going to get far more than some maesily sword!
...
...
"Mmmh..." Adora mumbled holding herself worriedly as she walked back and forth within the halls of the great building. "Where is she..."
This was a disaster. A complete and utter disaster!
Here she was, newly promoted Force Captain fighting on behalf of the Horde who was currently worrying over a verily late friend of hers. She promised Adora two hours, three tops. She promised she'd return either with the supposed sword that she mentioned or she'd go with her to the infirmary to see if she was suffering some mental injury. And she trusted her friend to keep her word and would have returned within the day just like she promised.
That was all seven hours ago!
She was well over her deadline and incredibly late within the day! If she didn't show up soon, any of her other friends would've noticed her missing! They'd notice her missing, they'd gossip around the base, then one of the staff would've heard, and one way or another it would've eventually ended up with Hordak of all people finding out she was missing! Maybe he wouldn't have been bothered by the announcement of a single missing cadet, given the numerous soldiers he dealt with on a daily basis, but at the very least one of the other soldiers would've noticed, or even worse, Shadow Weav-
*thud*
"Ah!" Adora yelped as she backed away from whatever she collided into. Her fears were intensified as she realized it was the very last person she wanted to literally bump into. "S-Shadow Weaver!" Adora quickly stood at attention, as always, as she saluted. "G-Good day!"
"Adora," Shadow Weaver greeted in her usual calm demeanor as she always did with her, "how pleasant it is to see you." If one thing that scared Adora, it was the fact Shadow Weaver was always nice to her. If there was one thing that terrified or scarred soldiers always recalled about Shadow Weaver, it was that things were always bad when she started a conversation seemingly nice. She was completely living on edge in her case as that's how Shadow Weaver always spoke to her. "I was wondering if you've seen that certain... soldier... friend of yours. Catra, was it?"
"Err n-nope, haven't seen her!" Adora replied with a nervous smile. While she was aware of how strange she was acting herself, she knew everything would be alright as long as there wasn't any proof of where she could be. "I mean I think I heard she was out running an errand or something, so I'm sure she'll be back in awhile."
"Oh... I see..." Outside from the eyes, the other impossible thing to tell about Shadow Weaver was what was on her mind. Without any shift in her tone or voice, there was no way to tell how she was feeling or what she was feeling based on her lack of emotion. "In that case, could I borrow you for a moment? I need your help with something." She instructed as she gestured along with her.
"Oh, o-of course, Shadow Weaver." Thank goodness. For a moment there she really did think Shadow Weaver was on to her about her missing friend. But mundane tasks were nothing uncommon for anyone who Shadow Weaver instructed, so she didn't see any issue with the command.
"Wonderful, thank you dear." She replied as she lead Adora to one of the rooms down the hall. "I would like your help with this issue I came across."
"It's no problem, Shadow Weaver." Adora nodded as she entered the room, curiously approaching a strange waist-high fountain she found in the center. "What kind of help do you nee-" She was instantly cut off as her eyes widened.
Within the center of the fountain, she saw an image displaying everything she questioned, wondered, and feared in that order. Within the fountain she saw an image of her friend, Catra, traveling within the woods alongside two other stranger she's never met before. Whether or not she was being forced to tag along with them or followed them of her own free will wasn't the issue at this time.
The problem was, Shadow Weaver knew.
"You see, it's the strangest thing," Shadow Weaver said as she approached Adora from behind, "I was just told by a certain somebody that she had no idea where Catra was. Yet you seem more worried at the sight of the picture than confused. It's almost like you knew she was gone..."
This was beyond all sorts of bad. It wasn't surprising to see Shadow Weaver had caught Adora in her lie either, being a master manipulator in both emotions and mentality. What came off as troubling was not knowing the repercussions or who would incur the wrath of said repercussions. As much as she respected Shadow Weaver, she also knew how soft she was to her at times compared to others, and that's what worried her most.
"Ok, look, Shadow Weaver? I'm sorry I lied," Adora apologized with pleading hands, "but you can't blame her either! I promised her I would wait for her to get back so if you're going to be angry, I take full responsibility for this! Just please don't punish Catra for-"
"Who said I was ever angry about this?"
"-leaving, I should've just taken her to the-" Adora paused as she just processed what Shadow Weaver had said. "Wait you're... not... mad?"
"Of course not," she said in a soothing tone, stepping over to Adora's side as she gazed in the water, "I'm actually quite worried."
"You... are?" Was she really? She's known Shadow Weaver to have an angry side with others but not once were those situations of anything dire. Maybe she really did care when the situation truly called for it?
"Yes, Adora. That happens to be a Princess with her, you know." With the wave of her hands, the image in the bowl suddenly shifted to a closer look of Princess Glimmer herself, her spiteful, anger-filled demeanor still covering her face.
"So what's what a princess looks like." Adora muttered gazing in. This was her first legitimate time ever seeing a princess that wasn't a hologram from a simulation. "But then... what is Catra doing with her?"
"No doubt she and her lackey have somehow brainwashed your dear friend. If we don't react quickly enough, they'll take her to the closest facility where they'll interrogate her. And I guarantee they'll force her through the most barbaric of means to tell her what they want to know before disposing of her."
"D-disposing of her? You don't mean..." Adora caught a lump in her throat as she saw Shadow Weaver narrow her eyes. That one look within her wholly white eyes told her exactly what she was thinking, and every detail of how they would proceed with that creeping up in the back of her mind. "We have to do something- I have to do something!"
"Of course, Adora." She soothed, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder. "Now would be a very good time to begin."
"Begin?" She repeated questionably. "Begin what?"
"Why, your very first mission, of course..."
...
...
...
A/N: Well nothing gets cheesier than writing a freaking intro to a series, right XP? Lol... oooohhh god i have no life X*(...
With the intro series I'd like to request help from anyone who can provide it! If someone writes scenes to go with the lyrics for this version of she-ra, their intro will be posted at the beginning of every episode as a prize, as well as have the opportunity for a non-canon episode they would like to see of in this version of she-ra ^^!
As always, leave a like fave review and follow if you enjoyed! Especially review, as I'm doing what I did for Danganronpa and requiring at least 3 reviews for my next post- i like reviews a lot because I feel people get more attention for their fics the more reviews they have. That and I just like hearing feedback for my series XP
Lol.. anyway, hope you all enjoyed it! Can't wait for part 2, and I'm the one who's writing it ^^!