A/N: Word Count - 8.9K Pre-A/N's. God i missed the intro to my own series. Its so refreshing to see the lyrics after all this time, and reminding myself that I'm finally back ^^! Also, I freaking HATE my laptop T_T I can't begin to tell you how many blatant typos i discovered in the last chapter, with like several lines not even finished.
With all the writing I do, it starts to slow down after the 5k word mark (not that I can blame it), and because of it, it either sometimes doesn't register what I write, or takes several seconds to load an entire line I write, naturally taking longer the more I write overall. That wouldn't be so bad if I didn't have to wait like a minute for the line to show up, and then check the words to see if i misspelled something. Least I'll be back home after this so the computer should run smoother.
Anyhoo! Onto the show!
...
...
The Fright Zone.
The home to the driving force that waged war across all of Etheria.
Within the citadel of this magnificent wonder of technology stood the leader of the Horde itself, Lord Hordak. It was his brilliant mind and ingenuity that lead to the creation of so many technological devices that brought about the war against this word, and it was with his own two hands that he would see the rest of this world bend to his will. Those who allied with him would prosper at the use of his vast technologies. But those who refused, those would wouldn't submit to his will?
They would be burned away till not even that ash remained.
It was thanks to his superior genius, with the devices and weaponry he created, that the Horde had continued to wage war as successfully as they had. One such device he was just finishing up was an example of his technological marvel. Backing away from it, he watched as a large sphere materialized within the center from the lab, channeling a seemingly-endless amount of raw energy as electricity coursed through it without end.
"Finally." He commented to himself as he watched his work unfold. He squeezed the wrench within his right palm tightly, satisfied that his latest creation was finally finished.
After months of research, he had established his long-sought goal of channeling this device, which was just the cornerstone of his ultimate plan. The small imp that had followed him around scurried over to its master, hopping on top of his shoulders as he watched his master's latest creation. This would be the first step of his much larger plans, one that would guarantee victory over the Rebellion once and for all!
Unfortunately, fate wasn't so kind to the lonely inventor. In nothing short of a small flash, an unexpected discharge of electricity erupted from the sphere, destabilizing it until it eventually burst into a glorious flash. The mechanical pillar that created the practical sphere began to short-circuit, electricity dancing around its metallic coating, as it trailed along the cables that connected the lonesome device to its main power source. Before Hordak could react, he watched the generator burst apart from the inside, and the wondrous generator was nothing more than a mere paperweight.
Once again, his machine had failed.
"Useless." He growled. To add injury to insult, his minion chuckled at his master's misfortune, and was quickly brushed off his shoulder as Hordak immediately went back to work. It didn't matter to him how many attempts it would take, or what he had to acquire before its completion. He would make sure that one way or another, this device was operational, if it was the last thing he did!
As for the minion itself, it sniffed around the machine as it circled around it, eventually climbing up to the middle of the device, and opened his mouth as he repeated the last word its master had uttered.
"Useless."
"Useless."
"Useless."
...
...
The intro starts with Shadow Weaver in the Black Garnet chamber spying and glaring at a image of Catra. Than the image dives into the water of her scrying spell.
~ We're on the edge of greatness ~
Where we have Catra at Bright Moon looking both determined and forlorn out into the distance.
~ turning darkness into light ~
A scene of kid Catra and kid Adora training together in the fright zone under Shadow Weaver. Before being replaced with a image of Adora glaring at a heart broken looking Catra who's on her knees across a battlefield.
~ We're right beside you ~
But than Glimmer and Bow teleport to Catra side raising her spirit back up, as shown with her surprise blinking when Gimmer offers her a hand, than she smirks accepting the help as she takes the lead ahead of them.
~ Ready to Fight! ~
Catra raises her sword, transforming into She-Ra in a glorious flash of light
~ (fight, fight, fight fight) ~
Then She-Ra rushes off into battle with Glimmer and Bow following right behind her.
~ We're gonna win in the end! ~
Mermista rises out of a tide, blasting Horde soldiers with water.
~ We must be strong, And we must be brave ~
Perfuma burst from the ground, capturing and tying up Horde soldiers with vines.
~(we must be brave) ~
Frosta rides an entire wave of frozen water, freezing Horde tanks in their tracks.
~ We're gonna find every bit of strength that we have ~
The scene shifts to Hordaks throne room where the evil shadowy figure sits upon his throne, his red glowing eyes being the only noticeable part of him, surrounded by notable members of the Horde, consisting of Adora and Catra's squadron, Shadow Weaver, Adora, Scropia, and even Entrapta.
~ and never let go ~
The scene shifts to an epic clash between Catra and Adora, the She-Ra gritting her teeth as she presses her sword against Adora's electrical baton, as the Force Captain herself grins with chaotic excitement as the red jewel from her headband shines.
~ (Oh ah Oh) ~
Adora and Catra push each other off as they back up into their friends- Entrapta and Scorpia for Adora, and for Catra Bow and Glimmer.
~ We must be STRONG! ~
The scene ends with a final shot of both sides looking across the field, a transparent image of Catra and Adora's faces filling the sky as the colors are split between them;
A majestic darkness shining into light upon Catra's side, and a horrid light seeping into darkness on Adora's half.
...
...
*tsssshhhh*
*tsssshhhh*
"C-Catra! Calm down!" Glimmer pleaded as she continued to push against her friend.
"GET OFF OF ME!" Catra grumbled angrily as she pressed on, trudging her feet through the dirt one foot at a time.
She didn't care how many people tried to stand in her way, literally or otherwise. It didn't matter how many people were trying to block her path. She cared little if it was one of the people trying to push her to go back, or a certain archer and horse attempting to pull her back with the rope currently tied around her waist. She was NOT going to let something like this continue.
There were multiple reasons for Catra's anger. After the days events between her and Swift Wind, in honesty, things were actually starting to look pretty hopeful for the magicat. After a long, daunting, task to repair the Watchtower in order to improve Light Hope's capabilities, Catra had found herself forming an unlikely bond with the magical Pegasus who she was more than willing to consider an actual friend in her life.
That revelation alone managed to unlock another portion of She-Ra's true form, a mere day after unlocking another portion from the previous day's events, and Catra was ecstatic! For the first time in a long while, she felt like things were actually starting to look up in her life, which was saying a lot given the negativity she's felt since the Battle of Bright Moon. She was actually optimistic that things were going to work out naturally for a change, and that lone was already enough to put her in a brighter mood, not even including how the next portion came with a pair of pants.
So of course, it was only natural that everything would drop dead the moment she started to feel a little happy.
On another corner of the world, Glimmer and Bow were on their own little mission, which involved the rescue of a beloved scientist named Entrapta. After learning of her survival since the princesses rescued Glimmer and Bow from the Fright Zone, the duo made it their own personal mission to rescue her from what they presumed was her very own labs within the kingdom of Dryl.
Instead, they were thrown into a chaotic journey through the forests following a failed attempt in locating the girl, and after getting tangled up with Adora herself. Throughout the journey, she put the two in danger, threw them into constant peril at her own convenience, and even attempted to recruit Bow over to the Horde's side. While, thankfully, the recruitment obviously failed, there was still one ace up Adora's sleeve that neither of the two could have ever expected.
Entrapta wanted to work for the Horde, and wasn't looking to leave anytime soon.
With their mission a failure, the two were forced to retreat back to the safety of their own home, patching up personal wounds from the day's journey. None of those wounds would even come close to the scar it inflicted upon Catra, however, after the shocking revelation.
Needless to say, the girl was shocked, in disbelief, and, which goes without saying, utterly and completely enraged.
Entrapta. The girl she had grieved over for weeks, believing her death was on her own two hands, was alive. Not only was she alive, making the moments of grief pointless, but she was working for the Horde. Based on what the two had informed her of, she was working for the Horde of her own free will. No tricks, no torture, no brainwashing. She wanted to work there, to forget about her past friends all for the name of science, and, to Catra, it didn't matter who she betrayed.
Everything about it, from the biggest to the smallest detail, devastated her. How much, one might wonder? Enough knock portions off of Catra's She-Ra state by at least two portions. The inner rage building within her chest was practically on fire as she discovered a newfound hatred for the scientist that she didn't think was possible. She lost her pants, and she lost her cape, two significant items that came with an extraordinary boost of power, and for the first time since becoming She-Ra, Catra didn't care.
She wanted Entrapta to pay, she needed her to. No amount of convincing would get through to her, no amount of teleporting her back to the steps of Bright Moon, in this case 37 times, was enough to annoy her. Entrapta was her sole focus at this point, and if Glimmer, Bow, and Swift Wind were going to get in her way, she wouldn't care. She was on a direct path for the scientist, and she wouldn't turn back until she had her claws around her throat.
"Don't you think you're overreacting just a little?!" Glimmer stammered, using whatever physical strength she had to slow Catra down even a little in her current She-Ra state.
Bow was almost in disbelief at how determined Catra was for a change. It would've been beautiful if it wasn't for the sake of revenge. "You've been at this all night, Catra! Aren't you even a little tired?" He's never met a more determined individual that was willing to march her way straight to the Fright Zone for ELEVEN STRAIGHT HOURS, and still just as determined to continue her mission!
"I told you three to get out of the way!" Catra yelled, barely even seeing Glimmer as she focused solely on the path before her.
"Come on, Catra, at least listen to reason!" Glimmer begged. "Even if you made it all the way to the Fright Zone on foot, how do expect to reach Entrapta who's at the center of it all?"
"Simple- I'll tear down every wall and toss away anyone that gets in my path. Now LEAVE!" It was a miracle at this point that she hadn't physically harmed any of them at this point. It's not like she didn't understand why they were blocking her path, the problem is that she really didn't care.
"But Catra, look at yourself." Swift Wind took the moment in an attempt to get through to her, dropping the rope from his mouth, inadvertently making it harder for Bow to pull her back. "You were doing so well up till now, and now you're losing She-Ra's power. Do you want to let all that hard work go to waste?" Surely, even she cared more about obtaining She-Ra's power more than some petty revenge, right?
"I'm not letting it go to waste. I'm going to use it to pull every strand of hair from her head, and THEN I'm going to toss her off a cliff! I'll let gravity do the rest." Apparently not.
*shiiiiiiiiim*
In fact, the outcry of her anger was enough to spark even more darkness within her soul. So much so, that in another brief flash of light, another portion of She-Ra's attire, her bracelets in this case, had disintegrated. The one silver lining from all of this was that it dampened Catra's power further, enough so that she actually found herself starting to get pulled back for a change.
"Let me go!" She growled, noticing her apparent disadvantage.
"Not until you calm down, Catra!" Glimmer stated, more than relieved that they were finally gaining a little ground with her.
Not that it did much given the tired state they were in after the last eleven hours.
"Ugggh, you guys are unbelievable!" With another growl, the magicat finally gave in, for the moment at least. Hanging her head a little, another bright flash enveloped her entire body, but thankfully it was a scene of Catra reverting to her regular self, not her losing another piece of She-Ra's true form.
At the instance of Catra's sudden break, everyone else finally collapsed as they panted, exhausted. For the first time in the last eleven hours, they could finally catch their breath.
"I don't get why you guys aren't just as angry as I am! Entrapta betrayed us! Don't you get that? Betrayed!"
"Huff... Catra, it's not that we're not angry or anything." Glimmer stated, slowly getting to her feet as she brushed herself off. "It's just... there's no point in getting angry about it in the first place. We're the ones who left Entrapta behind, remember?"
"...I remember who left her behind, Pinky." Catra said rather coldly as she slipped out of the rope tugging at her waist. There was a bit of an awkward silence as the cat mellowed over to the nearby tree, leaning her back against it as she crossed her arms, shifting her eyes away. Glimmer and Bow looked at each other a little regretful as the archer gathered up the rope in his hands.
That was the main crux of the matter, the one defining line that really put Catra over the edge. It was because of her, what she felt at least, that Entrapta got left behind in the Fright Zone in the first place. The girl was so convinced she was solely responsible for the mess that it caused Catra to take out her frustrations on the Princess Alliance, almost ruining the alliance completely.
It's because of the pain that it caused her, all that pent up frustration that almost ruined everything, that Catra felt the need for revenge.
"She could've come back at any time that she wanted to, and instead she chose to stay in the Fright Zone. She saw everything they had and decided to stay with them instead."
"To be fair, the Horde do have better tech than us." Glimmer commented in honesty. "But we have magic on our side."
"Magic and tech aren't totally separate things." Bow retorted, examining the arrows he brought along as he stashed his rope arrow. "Entrapta is one of the only people who really understands that. She got closer to combining them than anyone else. And... now she's with the Horde."
"Mmmmmh..." Shockingly, the reminder of their dilemma did nothing to ease Catra's spirits as she continued to look away. It just dampened them.
"Err... W-Well who needs Entrapta, anyway? You've got Bow, tech master and premier member of the Etherian Maker Community!"
*boom*
All of that cheer and positivity did little for any of them as the latest arrow he was examining exploded in his hand. With a brief flash, the archer's latest arrow caught fire, billowing with a plume of smoke that trailed towards the sky.
"Uhhh... Ahem... I uhh... meant to do that." He (obviously) lied, shaking the arrow briefly until the fire was out.
"...Huh?" Catra lifted her head a little as her ears twitched. "Hey, do you guys hear that?"
"Catra, we're not falling for that trick a third time-"
"No, I mean it. Listen." Catra said, looking in both directions of the path they were on. "It's quiet... like, really quiet." Taking a brief moment to listen to the girl, while still keeping an eye on her this time, the three examined their surroundings as they listened carefully.
"Hey, it really is quiet. And I didn't notice any animals on the path here." Swift Wind commented, examining thoroughly with his wing perched atop his head as the Noble Steed he was.
"Hey... I think were actually near Alwyn." Glimmer revealed, catching everyone's attention.
"Who?" Catra asked.
"Not who, it's a place." Glimmer explained. "It's a farming outpost we lost contact with a week ago. My mom was actually thinking of sending us there if they didn't respond by morning."
"Lost contact?" After a few seconds of thinking, Catra glared fiercely as she grabbed her sword again. "The Horde's gotta be involved!" She hissed. If these three were going to get in the way of her trying to get to the Fright Zone, at the very least, they shouldn't try to block her from dismantling a Horde-infested outpost.
"We don't know what happened to the outpost, Catra, but the Horde hasn't been reported in this area."
"Oh please, who else could it be? If something goes wrong around here, it's either always the Horde, or something that usually involves the Horde."
And we can handle the Horde." For once within the last eleven hours, Catra was willing to listen to Glimmer's optimism, however brief. "Look, I don't care if they have Entrapta's inventions. They're no match for us! And we'll handle this the same way we always do."
"With our tech?"
"Almost dying?"
"Being a royal pain in my tail?"
"No, no, and NO." Glimmer shot each of them down. "By sticking together and never giving up."
"Yeah! Best Friend Quad to the rescue!" Bow cheer, making a square with his hands. The others just stared at him in an awkward silence as he chuckled nervously. "Heh... Because there's four of us? ...No? Okay, taking that one off the list..."
"You know what? That's actually a great idea!" Catra commented, nonchalantly. "You guys go "best-friend-whatever" yourselves that way, and I'll head to the Fright Zone."
"Yes!"
"No!"
"Er- Yeah... I meant that..." Bow chuckled a little embarrassed as Glimmer corrected him.
"Catra, you know we need you for this mission if we're to stand a chance in case the Horde's involved."
"As right as you are about that, I don't really care. I only stopped for a quick rest, I wasn't planning on stopping completely." She explained, sheathing her sword as she walked away in the opposite direction. "If you guys aren't going to help me, then just go home."
"Catra! Mmhhh..." What was a princess to do in this situation? Catra wasn't accepting an obvious no for an answer, and there was no way she was going to get a yes out of Glimmer either. At the rate things were going, they were going to be fighting with each other for the rest of their lives and never accomplish a mission again because of this vendetta Catra had. Giving it another few seconds of thought, the princess nodded to herself in assurance before teleporting from her spot, reappearing in front of Catra and blocking her path. "Catra, wait!"
"Get out of the way, Pinky. I'm not in the mood." Without giving the girl a chance, she forced Glimmer to walk backwards as she pressed on ahead.
"Catra, wait, I'll make a deal with you: If you help us with the mission, then... I'll help you with the Fright Zone." For once within the near half-day of fighting with her, something she actually said finally got Catra to stop.
"...You will?" She said, slightly doubtful.
"Yes, we will! We're not going to get involved with the whole revenge thing itself, but we promise to at least get you to Entrapta first and then we'll get you out! Deal?" Catra stared at the girl in minor contempt as she contemplated this, but eventually sighed, crossing her arms.
"Ugh... fine. But no tricks, got it?" Glimmer almost cried out in joy that she finally got through to her after all time time as she thankfully nodded, quickly teleporting back to Bow as he pulled him along with her. She didn't need to check if Catra was actually following her as the sounds of bristling grass trailed behind them, and at worse, Swift Wind could easily chase after her and keep on her location if she tried to bolt.
"Are you sure this is a good idea?" Bow whispered leaning over as Glimmer continued to drag him.
"Would you rather play tug-of-war with the kitty cat all day?" She whispered back. "Hopefully she'll forget about this whole thing before the missions over."
"And what if she doesn't?"
"I don't know! I'll think of something else-"
"I can still hear you you morons!" Catra yelled ahead, causing the two to blush as they sped up the pace to hopefully distance themselves away from Catra's sensitive hearing. In all honesty, Catra was well aware of their plan from the moment Glimmer suggested it, and in all honesty, she didn't care.
Entrapta had to pay. That was the end of it all, and that's all there was going to be. Entrapta spent weeks playing around with who knows what sort of contraptions the Horde had to offer, all while building weapons of mass destruction to pit against the Rebellion and the Princess Alliance, the very people she was supposed to be siding with in the first place! She promised to make weapons for the Rebellion after the Princess Alliance saved Entrapta from her own creations, and what do they get in turn?
Betrayal. The loss of a valuable ally. And stronger and dangerous droids at every second of the day. It's no wonder Catra thought the strange Orbko robot felt familiar to her; even though the scent wasn't strong enough, there was more than enough of the nerd's handiwork around it to tell her it was Entrapta's own creation.
She didn't care what her reasoning for betraying the Rebellion was. When Catra got her hands on her, she was going to make her sorry. She was going to make sure Entrapta ever regretted being born for that matter. Nobody was going to betray Catra or her allies and get away with it, and she wasn't going to let anyone get in her way of revenge.
Even if they were her very own allies.
...
...
"Hm, hmhmhm, hmhm hmmmmm~" Entrapta cheered gleefully to herself.
It was a glorious day for science. Every day was a glorious day for science! After all, when every day garnered a new handful of details and statistics, the science was never-ending! Every failure resulted in more science! Every success resulted in greater sciences to be studied with! And if there was a middle ground, she was sure it wouldn't matter, because that would just result in even more science.
And today was no exception! The readings she got from the prototype-solution she made for Adora, in the form of a wristband, were incredible! Not only was it one of the many new studies between Science and Magic she got to study with since meeting Adora, she was able to get a multitude of readings on her latest project, which crossed the boundaries of science and magic like never before!
It is a shame that the prototype ended in a bust, barely working for more than two hours before Adora started to come under the effects of her fever again, though that was to be expected. It was just the first prototype of a new creation she came up with after all, and thanks to the readings she got from its analysis, she was able to devise new and improved versions of the wristband that she could only dream of ever having!
Over simulations, at least.
With the readings she got from the prototype, she managed to input hundreds of new algorithms into her computers, studying the various effects the new and improved wristbands would have over Adora's body. And, to Entrapta's joy, out of the five-hundred simulations she pulled off, she was sure that at least three of them wouldn't result in some horrific event related to Adora!
Okay, so it might've sounded worse than it looked because, well, it was. But at the very least, it gave her three different reliable wristband schematics she could work with that would've improved Adora's overall health. And as soon as she was finished on her latest schematics and devices, she was going to hop to them immediately!
*rumble*
"Hm?" Entrapta paused as she thought she felt a small tremble from where she worked, lifting her helmet and turning off her electrical modulator to check her surroundings. With nothing seemingly out of the ordinary, the scientist shrugged as she resumed her work.
*rumble-rumble*
She paused again, this time getting a clearer view of the table's trembling. It took even longer for the work station to stop trembling this time, and there was no way she could continue her work until she fixed her problem.
Waiting for the current trembling to stop, she searched under the weighty table to discover the root of the evil, finding a loose lug nut that held the entire table together. Nothing a little twisting couldn't fix. "Emily, hand me a six-sided hex driver." She ordered to her faithful companion.
The droid gladly examined the table of another workbench, trying to find the necessary tool for her master. Sadly, the robot had little luck in this endeavor, growing frustrated in its own failure. With no where else to look, the robot made its way over to another pile of scrap heap, hoping to find its master's precious tools, and coming to the same result. It could only give a lowly hum of sadness as it shook its round body to her.
*Hmm-Hmm*
"Ugh. You're right, Emily," she groaned, lifting herself up to the table with her hair, "how can we possibly work like this?" She let out another groan as she lied on her back, her hair on the fritz as she became irritated.
This was no way for a scientist to live! A decent lab space was supposed to have sound structures, decent materials, and access to schematics and technology to get the job done! And she only got all of those things! She was going to have to find a new location, or better materials, to work from.
But where...?
...
...
Sighing, Adora cleared her throat as she entered Hordak's inner sanctum. The second-in-command was eager to find out what could possibly be on today's agenda, as well as possibly brainstorming different ways to improve the functionality within the Fright Zone.
After the long exhausting day she had to suffer through, she wanted to forget everything that came from yesterday. Being captured by one of the princesses and used as a piece of leverage, failing to recruit a member of the Rebellion over to the Horde, and dealing with the world's most severe fever for several hours.
It was refreshing, in some sense, as it was one of the few failures Adora had suffered through since becoming Hordak's second-in-command. At the same time, it wasn't a process she felt like repeating, especially giving one of the much larger side effects she came across.
So, hoping a good meeting with the leader of the Horde would brighten the mood around here, she smiled as she examined Hordak's inner sanctum, only coming across it a few times within her life, and still marveling at the great man that roamed these halls.
"Lord Hordak?" Adora called out as she looked around. "Sir?" Her eyes drew over to the sight of Hordak's strange imp staring right back at her with its yellow imposing eyes.
"State your purpose, Force Captain Adora." The sound of his voice nearly made Adora jump as it startled her. Looking over to the right, she discovered her leader in a small lab-like section of the section, straightening out her captain's badge properly before making her way over to him.
"G-Good morning, Lord Hordak." She greeted, respectfully as always, as she placed her right hand behind her back. "I, um... Eh-hem. I thought we should go over any new details today concerning the Horde. You know, like you did with Shadow Weaver. I thought it would be proper if we checked in on a daily basi-"
"So, I'm to understand, that you disturbed me for no reason?" He coldly interrupted, his back still facing her as he examined the monitors.
"What? N-No, of course not! I wouldn't waste your time or anything like that!" She assured, stepping towards the center of the room where he was situated. "I thought it would be vital to discuss detailed strategies or changes within the Fright Zone that need addressing!... Sir! We've gained more ground within the last month, and with our resources growing, we-"
"Was squandering our advantage while the Whispering Woods regrew part of your plan, captain?" His voice was unlike anything Adora's heard of before. It was filled with an unfamiliar rage she didn't recognize from him, the hiss in his voice almost giving her chills.
As he spoke, he walked over to a pair of levels located on the opposite side of the room's center, never taking his glare off of her. Adora didn't have so much as a chance to blink as he reached over for the leftmost lever, initializing one of the technological advancements of his knowledge, a device that hummed with energy as a blanket of pink began to cover the area the two were in.
"Was letting yourself get captured?"
Adora had never seen something like this before. It was like a force field, one meant to keep things inside rather than out. All throughout the location, she felt the ends of her skin beginning to tingle, the electricity crackling with an eerie tune, and the air... She pulled at the collar of her of her jacket as she coughed a little.
"Etheria's atmosphere has proved to be a complicating variable in my experiments."
"I-I...hack! Ough!" Adora rubbed her neck as she continued to cough.
"I just removed that variable."
What... What was going on? Who was this man?
"Tell me, Force Captain, how is your breathing?" He mocked as Adora's legs trembled a little. It wasn't from her own lack of strength that caused her knees to become unstable, it was the growing shadows around her arms that proved hard to control.
They always reacted in times where Adora found herself under physical pressure, or, more commonly, when her fever continued to surmount. They reacted defensively to most-anything near her, and the longer she was under harm, the harder it was to control them. By now, she had mastered limiting these experiences, this protective coating, to her arms, but even they were becoming a harder to control
Within seconds, Adora fell to her knees as she wheezed, gasping for breath. It was taking all of her energy just to keep the aura of shadows around her arms from possibly lashing out, and it was near impossible for the blond Force Captain to breathe. Sweat trickled down her face little by little as bangs of her hair became undone.
This... This sensation was horrifying. She could barely see as her vision hazed from the immense pressure. She could've sworn she wasn't looking up to the eyes of a man.
She was seeing a monster.
"...Pathetic. Just like everything else on this backwards planet." He scoffed, returning to the levers that created this madness. At long last, after what felt like an eternity, he provided mercy for her, finally disabling the machine. A breath of fresh air never felt so good to Adora as she gasped for breath, watching as the shadows surrounding her arms finally dissipated. "Do you know what the definition of failure is, Force Captain? Failure is when something ceases to serve a purpose. When that happens, it becomes worthless to me." She nearly flinched as he rested his hand atop the lever again.
"Thus far, your performance has been lacking."
Adora blinked as if he was speaking an entirely different language. Failure? Lacking? Who was he referring to? It... It couldn't possibly... "F-Failure?" She squeaked. "You mean... me?"
"Am I not making myself clear enough, Force Captain!?" He seethed, tightening his grip on the lever again.
"But I haven't... W-What do you mean, failing? My Lord, where have I failed?" It was baffling to her that he would think such a thing, let alone react like this. She did her best to maintain composure as he made his way over to her, backing away slowly. "I've gained resources that far exceeded our previous records. I've helped the Horde obtain alliances with various outposts. I've-"
"With every so-called "alliance" you've achieved you've depleted our resources and spread our troops further!" He bared his teeth as she backed into his console. "How many kingdoms have you obtained? What kind of technology have you acquired? Your methods were merely amusing at first, Force Captain, but they've begun to hinder our efforts. I can not have a Force Captain who can not continue to exceed my expectations," she jumped again as he suddenly grabbed her right arm, exposing the little secret she was trying to keep hidden behind her, "or ones that are already falling apart!"
"I-I-I-" Adora lost her voice as she stared at him.
With the terrible side-effect she just came across the previous night, Adora didn't know what to do. It was too late in the night to inform Entrapta, she couldn't risk Scorpia having more of a panic attack than she did throughout the day. With the decay still present all over her right hand, Adora took it upon herself to keep it personal, for now, and covered a black, thin, glove over it. She needed to work out her own problems for now, not present every one to Entrapta after all she's done to help.
Yet, how did Hordak already know about this?
"Nothing happens within the Horde without me knowing, Force Captain." He emphasized what he already knew as he rubbed the edge of his thumb around her glove. "I can never accept a commander who can't take care of herself, nor can I allow failures to rise through the upper ranks of my army. So tell me, Force Captain, are you reliable, or a failure?"
"I-I'm..." She swallowed silently. "I'm reliable, Lord Hordak. H-Honest."
"...Hmph... Prove it." She flinched as he casually pushed aside her arm, making his way over to another console. "You are dismissed, Commander."
Adora didn't waste a single second as she anxiously walked away, tensely rubbing her gloved hand as she tried to process everything that transpired within the last full minute of her life. The icon she looked up to as a hero nearly killed her because of her mismanagement of resources, which she thought was evenly adjusted, his personality didn't reflect anything like in the stories she's heard, or the last month of working under him, and he somehow already figured out about her decayed hand before she could even tell anyone, not that she wanted to.
And all throughout her exiting, she was haunted by the imp's unsettling taunting as it repeated the very words that unnerved her.
"Failure."
"Failure."
"Failure."
...
"Huff..." Adora breathed deeply as she leaned against the walls just outside the door to his sanctum. He thought she was failing the Horde? How was that possible? She gained alliances with outposts that could track the Rebellion's movements, enlisted soldiers that never would've dreamed of joining the Horde. Isn't that all he wanted? Sure, the technology of the First Ones was a great priority, but with a lack of details on where to find more, it was nearly impossible to come across some at random.
Looking back at the door for a brief moment, she was about to make her way back down the hall, debating on how to improve her current output, when she was greeted with a face that was all too familiar to her.
"Hey, Adora." Herself.
"Wah-!" She nearly yelped, feeling her heart skip a beat as she jumped.
This was the other side effect that came from yesterday's endeavor, and it was proving itself to be much more of a handful than it insisted it was. After literally coming face-to-face with it last night, it simply disappeared, leaving nothing behind of its existence. So, naturally, Adora could only assume that it was all in her head, most likely some fever-induced dream, and that she made the whole thing up in her mind.
Unfortunately, reality came to bite her in the neck as the moment she woke up, she was greeted by the very same reflection, who agreed to see itself as her "conscious", and had been trying to get Adora to acknowledge it every waking moment. It never left her alone, it wore just about everything she did at all times, and it, disturbingly, knew what sort of thoughts were going through Adora's mind, sometimes before even she did.
At this point, she couldn't tell if it was worse than her hand's decaying, and a part of her really didn't want the answer.
"Geez, what's up with boss man giving you the business?" It joked. "So, I've been thinking on what to call myself. Since I met you through the mirror, I'm thinking of something a little more playful. How does "Aroda" sound?" Its constant jestering did nothing to lighten Adora's mood as she glared at it, preferring to ignore it as she walked along the halls. "Oh come on, are you still ignoring me?" As if it needed to ask as it walked along with Adora, the Force Captain doing everything she could not to draw attention to it as she kept her eyes forward.
"You're nothing but a figment of my imagination... You're not real..." She muttered to herself.
"You're a figment, you're not real, blah, blah, blah." It taunted back in a mockingly serious tone.
"As long as I ignore you, you'll eventually go away."
"Mmmh noooo, I don't really see that happening." There was nothing this thing was taking seriously. It wasn't even walking anymore, it was floating an inch off the air as it continued floating backwards with Adora. "At least until I say you don't need me."
"Then what do you want?"
"I've already told you, I just want to help you."
"And how do you "want to help me" as you would put it?"
"Well, for starters, I feel like we need to establish a little more respect from a certain leader. I say we go back there, trash whatever he's currently working on, and pull him down to your height so he's ready to listen."
"And that is why I'm ignoring you."
"Oh come ooooon! I'm just trying to help you. You can ignore me all you want, but you need me more than you think."
"I don't need anything from you. I'm managing just fine on my own." She glanced her eyes away for a brief moment. "I just... need to make some improvements around here. Adjust some things. Then he'll see I wasn't a mistake."
"Oh, right. Pffft. Mistake." Aroda rolled her eyes at this. "You do all the hard work and king vampire over there just sits on his silver tin can all day."
"What are you talking about?" For once, Adora came to a halt as she stared directly at her. "Lord Hordak is a wonderful leader, and has accomplished so much! We wouldn't even be here right now if it wasn't for him!"
"Then why was he the one barking his disappointment at you?" Adora was silent at the question as she looked away. "Doesn't seem very grateful of a leader if he just shouts at you and treats you like garbage."
"T-That wasn't his fault." Adora insisted as she continued down the hall again. "H-He's just... real busy. Responsible for the entire Horde. I shouldn't have been stupid and bothered him without something important."
"Oh yeah, I see how it is. He messes up and you apologize for it. That seems fair. Hey, while you're at it, how about the next time the Rebellion crushes the Horde and takes Hordak captive, you volunteer to take his place after he says what a failure you are?"
"The Rebellion is NOT going to beat us!" Adora nearly shouted, actually making the double pause in its floating. It wasn't out of surprise or shock, either. No, it was actually because of the amusement it found as it grinned.
"Ooooh, that's right, they're going to lose aren't they?" At this point, the double was lying in midair as it continued along with Adora. "After all, we have such a good track record of beating them. Like that time in Plumeria- oh, no wait, they totaled that outpost." Its grin continued to spread as she saw the corner of Adora's mouth twitch. "Well at least we have Salineas under our belt, and... Oh... no wait, I forgot... that was them too wasn't it? Gosh, I'm sorry. I'm just reminded of what a HUGE success you are around here. I just can't see why Hordak would call you a failure."
"Shut uuup..." Adora muttered, trying to calm herself.
"And repelling their invasion after we kidnapped the princess and her friend? Man, you were WAY on top of that weren't you? I mean, not everyone can rip the doors open to freedom and let the prisoners get away, huh?"
"I... I wasn't intending for that. I didn't think..." She couldn't bring herself to bring up Catra, the betrayal she felt that day only being the start of the pain she would cause her.
"And who could forget your greatest victory to date? The day you won Bright Moon for the Horde by letting your best friend get to you, to stall you, and let an overwhelming victory slip out of your grasp, all because you wanted a little bitty satisfaction-"
"SHUT UP!" That was the breaking point for angered Force Captain. Aroda had to admit, that was a surprising reaction even for someone who reached their breaking point. It was all too clear what button pushed Adora the most and how to get the best reaction out of her.
It was even more clear at how crazy Adora must've seemed as she was staring at the wall, to the point of view from the two guards who were patrolling further away from the Force Captain. Adora's eyes shifted somewhat embarrassed as she noticed the awkward pair staring at her, lowering her head a little as she continued on her way.
"Boy, that must've been awkward."
"Would you just go away already? I don't want any of your advice or anything, okay? I can handle my own life."
"Awww, come ooon. I can do a lot more for you than give you advice."
"Like what?"
"Like telling you to look out for that wall."
With the hallway clear in her view, and the path still going, Adora had to look at her in confusion. "What wa-"
*Thud!*
"Ah!" She yelped, falling back after colliding in whole with the sturdy force.
"Adora!" Scorpia cried out, kneeling as she offered a claw. "Are you okay?"
"Ngh... Y-Yeah..." She mumbled, rubbing her head a little before accepting her hand. Of course she wouldn't see the wall she was referring to- she wasn't expecting anyone to come around the corner of the intersection. "I'm fine. Sorry about that."
"It's alright. I was looking for you anyway." She took a glance around the halls as she tapped her chin. "By the way, who were you talking to out here?" She was completely oblivious to the reflective figure that had plagued Adora recently. The reflection, or "Aroda" as it called itself, was standing right in front of the girl with a grin, waving both her hands back and forth right in front of her face.
"So you... really don't see her either, do you?" Adora wondered, just to confirm what she already knew.
"See her? Who?"
"The person? Waving right next to me? It-" Adora sighed as she just rubbed her forehead. "Never mind."
Scorpia frowned a little as she noticed the distress she was in. After the days events she went through yesterday, it was obvious that Adora was going to feel a little down. Not to mention all the pain she might have suffered from Rebellion while she was held captive, there was no telling how troubled she was. Giving a small smile, a look of genuine surprise crossed Scorpia's face as she tried to cheer her up.
"Oh! Oooh, yes! Yes I see her!" Adora's eyes widened in shock at the statement as she stared back at the assuring Scorpia.
"Wh- You do? Really?!" Was it possible? Was this living reflection actually not in Adora's head after all?
"Of course I do!" She nodded, tapping her claws together as she waved. "Hi, Adora's imaginary friend! I'm Scorpia, I'm sure Adora's told you all about me."
Annnnd there it was. Even though it was all an effort to make Adora feel better, it ultimately did the complete opposite. If there was any consolation that came out of this, it was Aroda showing the only thing she was currently good for- face-palming in Adora's place. She wasn't even looking in the same direction Aroda was standing.
At least Scorpia came with a possible distraction away from all of this. "Why were you looking for me, anyway?"
"Thanks, I just had it cut three days ago!" Scorpia continued, flaunting her hair.
"Scorpia!"
"Huh? Oh! The drop zone! She's going to be here in a few minutes!"
"The drop zone? What are you..." It slowly dawned over Adora as her eyes widened in surprise. "Oh, right! I completely forgot!" With everything that's happened within the last few minutes, she was surprised she could forget something so important. It was the second-most highlight of her day today, with the first being her meeting with Hordak, which ended... differently, than she expected. "I could've sworn I set a reminder for myself."
"Well we can still make it if we hurry. Come on!"
"right!" With a nod, the two Force Captains quickly began to run down the hallway. If this meeting went off without a hitch, she was sure Hordak would see that he wasn't wrong in his decision to make her his second-in-command! Yet, not ten feet away from their original spot, Adora paused as she looked back. Strangely, not that she was complaining, Aroda had finally disappeared, and would hopefully remain that way for the rest of the day, and, if she was lucky, the rest of Adora's life.
That wasn't what bothered her, though. Assuming she was her conscious, then she should know everything consciously and subconsciously that Adora knew. So, with that in mind, it begged the question: how did she know Scorpia was approaching when Adora didn't?
...
"Are you ready?" Adora asked, standing side-by-side with Scorpira as they awaited at the drop zone outside.
It was the perfect spot to start introductions with her. Atop one of the many strong structures of the Horde, it was capable of overlooking the majority of the Fright Zone, the best way to show their technological prowess with her. From there, she was going to have an exciting day escorting her throughout the Fright Zone as she revealed the many wondrous things the Horde had to offer, as well as its necessity to the rest of Etheria.
Once things moved smoothly enough, assuming they had enough time, she might have been able to introduce her to Hordak, too. There, he would remember everything that Adora had accomplished for the Horde, and reminded why he promoted her in the first place. She wasn't going to force her to see him if she didn't want to, of course, but it was a nice thought of hopeful thinking.
"Mh-hm!" Scorpia nodded, keeping the look out for the escort's skiff. "I can't wait to show her everything! I wonder if Entrapta will have anything cool to show her by the time she gets here?" Scorpia was just as eager to meet her as Adora was. She never got a chance to be properly introduced to her, and she was more than excited to meet any friend of Adora's! "By the way, what's with the glove?"
"Glove?" Adora blinked as she rubbed her wrist along the base of the black latex. "O-Oh! It's... It's nothing. I just thought it... looked cool, you know?" She still had no interest in showing the rotting hand until she figured out what was going on here. It wasn't enough that her hand had rotted away as such, but with the addition of a certain individual last night, she wasn't comfortable revealing anything until she knew exactly what was going on.
Luckily, after a few moments of staring, Scorpia seemed willing enough to accept the answer as she smiled. "Haha, it does look pretty cool. I thought about trying on a pair of gloves too sometime but... " She snapped the claws that were her hands gently. "Claws, you know?"
"I'm sure we can get you a pair of gloves at some point." She encouraged, earning another small chuckle from the scorpion.
"Heh, yeah... Hey, wait a minute. Why are you only wearing one glove?"
Shoot. She just had to ask that. Adora could easily tell her mind was slipping today, not even including "Aroda". Of course it would look suspicious for someone to only be wearing one glove. She might as well have worn the world's best camouflage gear that rendered her near-invisible while holding the world's largest sign on her back that said "Shoot Here!" on it, it was so obvious. "Ummm... O-Oh look, she's here!" She directed off into the distance. The girl let out a mental sigh of relief as Scorpira looked back.
Sure enough, as Adora spotted, the skiff was coming in at high speed towards their landing, soaring through the sky as it closed the distance between them.
This is it! Adora was ready for this! Once the tour went on, everything would be all right. She would assure her Hordak of how reliable she is, she would assure her ally how reliable the Horde was to them, and then everything would be all right!
After another twenty seconds of waiting, the skiff slowly came to a halt until it hovered right atop the landing zone. Smiling, Adora approached the vessel as the skiff descended to the ground, a small lift extending from the base of it that touched the floor. It didn't surprise Adora in the least that she was escorted by two of her personal guards for her own safety, not that she needed it. The Horde were her allies, and there was nothing she needed to fear.
With the figure finally reaching the bottom of the ramp, Adora extended a personal hand with a genuine smile.
"Princess Frosta, on behalf of the Horde, I'd like to officially welcome you to the Fright Zone!"
...
...
...
A/N: God i can't tell you how painful it was watching Catra's first interaction with Hordak moment several times and translating it to the Adora version X/ And obviously i don't mean hard as in difficult, i mean as in painful- only worse doing it to the Adora version Xo Ughghgghg...
Anyway! Hope you all enjoyed! Leave a like, fave, follow, and review if you enjoyed and hope to see you soon!