A/N: Final Word Count: 14,069K Pre-A/N's.
Well guys, we did it. We're here. We're at the SEASON! FINALEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!
Idk what to say that hasn't been said already. I'm touched, flattered, overjoyed, so many things and all of them at the same time. My freaking heart is actually jumping for joy, I didn't think we'd get to this ^^!
Credits and thanks will go down to the bottom again as I thank the following people who've been with us after all this time and continue to support the fanfic even now. I can not express my thanks enough, so instead, sit back, relax, and enjoy one heck of a finale!
ENJOY!
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*Raaaaaaaoooooooooooooooooooo!*
The beast roared with such ferocity that the ground beneath their feet began to tremble. Everything around them shook violently as the beast stomped away from it's massive pedestal, gazing at its quarry like a hungry animal.
"You had a monster hanging around here this whole time?!" Catra stammered, still in disbelief.
"We didn't know it was a creature!" Lance retorted, taking a step back. "We thought it was just a piece of First Ones tech from the dig site."
"Ghhhh..." Catra gritted her teeth as she squeezed her fist. This whole day had taken so many twists and turns that she was expecting to become entangled in the very air itself by the time this day was over.
Finding out a way to strengthen her bond with the sword further, getting a mysterious letter from Bow telling her and Glimmer not to come find him, which Glimmer naturally ignored, getting caught in the library he was sent to that housed relics of the First Ones, including knowledge of the ancient hero known as She-Ra, being mistaken as Bow's girlfriend and forced to play along, and this was still the weirdest part to come out of her day!
At least she wouldn't have said it was a pointless at the end.
Throughout everything she did to keep up Bow's identity as a student at an illustrious Boarding School for history, Catra came to a revelation. Over the course of the many explanations behind their fake relationship, she came to realize why she lost the power to transform into She-Ra's true form following the Battle of Bright Moon. It wasn't some sickness or disease, it wasn't some muscle spasm, it wasn't even something wrong with the sword.
It was her this whole time. More specifically, it was her fear, her dread, of winning the war. It wasn't the victory or the stress of her status that worried her. What did worry her was everything that would happen after if they won, or if the day came that they captured Adora and returned her to Bright Moon.
The friend she's known since childhood, the person who had her back this whole time since she was little. The girl who's making it her life's goal to annihilate the Rebellion and the Princess Rebellion in order to keep Catra from achieving her selfish desire of a kingdom. After everything she did, Catra came to realize she was still worried about her.
And why wouldn't she be? She was still riddled with guilt that everything that's ever happened because of Adora was Catra's fault in the first place. She was convinced that none of this would've happened if Catra had been a little less selfish, none of the terrible acts Adora has committed would happen if she showed the slightest interest in their friendship, instead of taking it for granted like Adora saw.
It's not like she wouldn't fight Adora when the time comes again and again, but as long as she held that weight, that sense of guilt, hanging from the back of her mind, one yelling at her that Adora was her fault in the first place, she would never achieve the true power of She-Ra.
And right now, that was the least of her worries as the fathers continued to back up from behind her. The creature must've towered a good fifteen feet in height and length, its insectoid mandibles snapping its jaws as it slowly neared them. She knew what she had to do as the sword hung from the sheathe on her back. Despite Bow's desire to keep the truth of secret, her options were limited as the beast prepared to attack.
"Sorry about this Bow..." She muttered to herself before pulling the sword out of her back. With her focus on the monster, she rose the sacred sword to the heavens as she spoke the legendary oath, "For the Honor of Grayskull!"
All around her lights of a dazzling displayed danced across the scenery as her entire body shimmered with a sparkling glow, save for her eyes that remained pure light. With the humming of her sword, she brought sword to her face along with her illuminated hand, crossing them side by side until they formed an X in front of her.
With a silent breath, she began pulling the sword and claw against each other on opposite ends, scraping her claws against the mighty blade which danced with a sparkling light. As she did, little by little her outfit changed into a majestic white color, growing little by little along her body as she pulled the blade away from her claw. By the time her claw reached the end of her sword, her entire outfit had finished changing, now sporting a white colored vest with a yellow light image bursting from the center of a light-blue gem, along with a white colored short skirt across her waist.
Below this skirt was the gift of a beautiful pair of pants that Catra always treasured, with small slits in the knees that allowed her to access the maximum amount of her agility without holding her back.
Finally, she brought her empty hand to her face. She held it there as a golden light enveloped both her wrists, forming a beautifully golden set of bracelets. As a final piece, slowly pulling her hand away from her face as her helmet changed to a golden color, the spikes on the end growing several inches longer as they curved out against her form, just as golden pads stretched from the shoulders.
And from their magnificent glow, the red cape slowly formed from behind her, connecting between the two as it slowly descended down to Catra's thigh.
With this, her transformation had come to an end, and She-Ra had been formed.
The two fathers who had shielded their eyes from the blinding light looked back, gasping at the sudden transformation that Bow's girlfriend had gone through. They didn't know what was possibly more shocking; that his girlfriend was magical and most likely a princess, or that her appearance changed in its entirety, resembling some form of She-Ra.
"Y-You're... You're a princess?" George gasped, finding this to be the most incredible and bizarre finding as his years of a historian.
"Kind of, that's still being debated." Catra replied as she looked back. "Now do you mind? I need to take care of this-"
*WHAM!*
"Whooooa!"
*CRASH!*
No sooner did she turn her head back to the mysterious creature, one she came to know as an Elemental, she found herself being smashed away by its tail, being flung through the air and over the balcony of the staircase from where Bow and Glimmer could be seen still studying their findings. Hurtling across the room as the fathers escaped to the stairway, her flight came to an abrupt end at the halfway point as she crashed into several pedestals along the way, being partly buried under a pile of rubble and broken glass.
"Catra!" Bow and Glimmer cried worriedly, seeing their friend-turned-hero being flung across the library.
While the crash itself wasn't as painful, the attack left her momentarily dizzy, the magicat leaning up from the rubble as she shook her head clear. She growled a bit as she saw the elemental rolling into a ball, crashing straight through the balcony's railing as it charged straight towards the girl.
"You wanna play hardball, huh? Fine!" Catra hissed, reaching for her sword... until she discovered it wasn't on her. "What?" It slowly dawned on her as she looked back to the charging beast that she dropped the sword after being launched from her surprise the sword, the legendary blade still settled across the ground on the second floor. "Tch, fine!" She wouldn't let it deter her from beating the elemental back.
She was reckless and resourceful, after all, and the library was chalked full of various pillars, tools, and relics from across the world. Kicking off with her feet, she jumped out of the way of the rolling creature as it nearly bowled her over, and reached for the closest pedestal which housed a strangely decorative jewel inside of it. The glass case remained over the pedestal even as she lifted it like a baseball bat with her incredible strength, ready to send the beast flying as it came near her again!
Or at least, she wanted to.
"Stop! What are you doing?!" Lance cried out, grabbing the girl's attention, as well as her friends. "That's an ancient 9th century jewel from the Marnia Dynasty! It's priceless!"
"Ehhh..." The girl drooped her ears a little as she examined the jewel again. She supposed anything sturdy enough to keep the glass locked atop a pedestal to protect the jewel inside of it would have been valuable, so, with a heavy heart, she groaned as she set it back down to the ground, being careful not to knock it over.
*BAM!*
"Ahh!" She cried out again as the creature swiped its head across her entire body, throwing her through the library's room into a bookshelf. The books collapsed atop of her as she fell to the ground. Still not enough to keep her down for more than two seconds, but annoying enough to get her angry. "Fine, we'll try it a different way!" She declared.
Looking across the room again, she grinned as she saw decorative metallic spear with a large violet diamond-shaped crystal at the tip of it hanging from the wall near her. She could tell from first glance that it would've been more than capable of piercing the creature's body, or at least damage it enough get a few dents out of it.
Grabbing for the perfect weapon, she jumped through the air again as she landed on the creatures back, grinning as she maintained her balance as the creature tried to throw her off. With victory drawing near, she raised the majestic spear straight into the air, ready to pierce her target as easily as a knife through butter.
"Not the Spear of Lynctis!" Catra was distracted by the sound of George's rambling. "It took explorers over thirty years to track it down!"
"Are you kidding me right now?!" She grumbled. That moment of distraction was all beast needed to finally get the magicat off its head, throwing her, once again, into the air directly above it, dropping the spear like the sword, and slamming its head into her as it blasted her away with a single bash, scraping the poor girl up as slammed against the wall.
As it stood, she came to discover that fighting the giant monster wasn't her biggest issue right now, with or without her sword. No, her biggest issue was her stupid attachment and respect for the two people known as Bow's dads after how nicely they treated her throughout the day!
She was resourceful, she was capable of taking anything in the environment and finding a way to turn it against her enemies, as was her typical fighting style. What she wasn't used to though was having two people pleading with her not to damage the environment around her, two people she couldn't help but listen to given how kind they were.
On top of that, they were still Bow's dads. She didn't have it in herself to do anything that might've hurt or upset them after all she's been through. Nothing about these people stood out to her as selfish or cruel, granted a little annoying, that said they deserved to see their valuables destroyed.
Like a kid being told they couldn't open their presents until Christmas, it meant she was now weaponless in a room full of potential weapons!
With the beast nearing the injured cat who's legs felt a little numb from the attack, Glimmer turned her head around to see the panicking fathers holding Bow close to them in fright. Much like Catra came to realize, there were a few things more important than risking their necks out to keep Bow's identity a secret.
"Hey, leave her alone!" Glimmer shouted, teleporting on the spot. She reappeared just in the nick of time above the creature's head as it was about to chomp down on the recovering cat, throwing it off its guard as she began blasting at its head repeatedly with blasts of magic, irritating the creature as it was incapable of covering its own head.
The creature began flailing about like a mad bull, the princess hanging on for dear life to avoid suffering the same crashing Catra had several times by now. Noticing the creature's distracted state, the feeling returning to Catra's legs, she dashed ahead as she circled around the giant beast until she manged to reach its backside.
Grabbing hold of its tail, using all the strength she could muster in her current She-Ra state, she lifted the creature's entire body a few few from the ground, enough to get it to stop shaking and providing Glimmer enough time to teleport off its body safely. With her friend's safety secured, she roared angrily as she twirled the creature a full 180*, slamming it harshly into the wall of books to her left, topping the entire shelf on top of it.
It didn't matter if the case itself was destroyed as her only concern was damaging it in a way that kept the other items from being destroyed, and she knew the books were sturdy enough to withstand the impact... hopefully.
It proved fruitless, however, as it did nothing more than to irritate the creature further. With the bookcase still over its head, it charged in the very direction Catra was standing, pushing her back as she held onto the edge of the case, struggling to keep herself from falling over as it crashed over everything else in its path. By the end, the warrior found herself being pinned to a wall as the creature continued, slowly crushing her as the case pushed centimeter by centimeter further into the wall, Catra struggling to maintain what little grip she had to push it back against anything.
Thankfully, the always-dependable teleporter appeared in time above the bookcases' back, grabbing onto her friends shoulder before teleporting the both of them out of the way, right as the monster was about to sink a foot of the case straight through the wall.
With this miraculous display in front of them, as well as horrifying, both of Bow's fathers turned to the son they were still holding onto, their eyes practically demanding some form of explanation behind all of this.
"...What can I say? They really get into their studies...heheh..." He tried to explain, chuckling nervously at his own obvious lie.
With the creature finally slithering out from the case over its head, it rushed towards the charging cat and princess as it bashed away an entire display case towards them, forcing the two to dodge as Catra rushed the creature, jumping over the case, and Glimmer teleporting to safety. With the case still flying towards them, the two dads and their son ran out of the way in time of the impending case, running behind one of the large knocked over tables for to hide and for protection.
"Bow, is your girlfriend a princess? Are they both princesses?!" Lance stammered, unable to believe everything that happened within the last two minutes. The ongoing destruction of the library, the timeless artifacts that continued to be destroyed despite Catra's attempts to keep herself from destroying them, and the amount of damage proceeding throughout the room. It was mind boggling!
Oh, and who could forget? THEY WERE PRINCESSES!
"You are going to tell us what is happening right now, young man, or-" George attempted to instruct as he pointed to Bow accusingly.
"Right now, we have to act before the elemental turns on us." Bow interrupted defiantly. He couldn't push it away any further. Even if his fathers disapproved of him right now, he had much more important matters to contend to, like saving them along with his friends.
"You know what that is?" Lance yelled again, unable to believe what was happening.
"We've run into them before." His son replied. "They only attack when they're trying to protect something. So what is it trying to protect?" Bow squeezed his head as he tried to wrap his mind around it. There was literally anything in a room full of historic artifacts it could be protecting right now.
"You've run into them before? Who are you?!" George shouted angrily, standing to his feet. All the while, the monster could be seen being thrown into the air, in part thanks to Catra's current strength, before crashing back into the ground again. The trio covered themselves as a burst of dust erupted from this, scattering everywhere past the table.
"It was found alongside the shard." Lance revealed as George cleared his throat of the dust. "Could it be that?"
"Dad, you're a genius!" He exclaimed with excitement, realizing what he had to do. "I promise I'll explain everything, but right now you have to trust me." He informed as he stood, hopping over the table as he made his way towards one of the various couches of the library.
"Bow? Bow!" He yelled out for his son again as he ran away.
"Bow! You get back here!" The other, Lance, yelled.
At the same time, the hero known as She-Ra was slammed atop another display case, crushing the delicate relics beneath her body. It was by the sounds of his dads crying out for him in worry that the beast left the temporarily incapacitated She-Ra alone, eyeing the two figures with their heads over the table, as it morphed back into its ball again, speeding straight on ahead towards the two defenseless parents.
Shrieking at the sight of the approaching elemental, Lance gently pushed George down again as it waved its arms, gesturing for it to stop. "Whoa! Never mind. Stay away! STAY AWAY!"
"Glimmer!" Bow called out, earning a nod from his respective friend.
"Got it!" Teleporting in a matter of seconds, the princess vanished and reappeared right behind the two screaming parents, grabbing onto their shoulders and teleporting them to safety, right as the creature crashed through the table.
Reappearing on the second-story balcony, the princess quickly scanned the floor, locating Catra's sword within moments and rushing up to grab it. "Catra, catch!" Glimmer shouted down, seeing her friend getting back on her feet as the elemental charged back to her. With a mighty arm, the princess threw the sword towards her friend, Catra grinning at the perfect shot as the hilt stuck tightly to her hand as the beast neared.
Smirking to herself in satisfaction, the mighty warrior transformed the sword into a giant mace the size of her body, and struck the creature dead center on its right side. The elemental let out a cry of pain as it was blown across the room by Catra's incredible strength, crashing into another bookcase in the process. With this, Catra eagerly took charge at the beast now that her weapon was safely back where it belonged.
Smiling as well, Glimmer took the brief moment to notice the two fathers still staring into space, a look of shock and terror over their faces as they still had yet to realize they had avoided their untimely demise. "Uhhh, it's been really nice meeting you." She claimed, teleporting away to join the fight as the fathers came back to reality. They rushed to the balcony's broken railing in worry as they saw the discord continuing to unravel in the library, and their precious son caught in the middle of all of it.
Panting with each step, the archer ran across the room in desperation as Catra and Glimmer held off the beast for as long as possible, sliding across the ground as he came to the designated couch. Digging under it carefully, the archer struggled to grab onto the treasured weapon, hearing the cries of his friend in the background followed by more crashing as the beast chased them.
"Can't... reach..." He muttered. All of this was happening, everything, because of a lie.
He kept up his appearance as the "perfect son", pretending to be in a boarding school for something he wasn't even interested in, got the two dragged into this because he felt it necessary to spend time with his parents, pretending to be on break. And after everything they've gone through, they were now being chased around by an elemental, none of which would've been happening if he didn't lie in the first place and told his dads where he's been all this time.
Well, no more.
Grunting, the archer tore across the bottom of his tucked-in shirt, the small amount of leather restraining him from stretching his arm any further. The fathers watched in terror as he renounced his status as a scholar and became the archer he was meant to be, Lance and George yelling his name as time seemed to stop around them.
Their son just tore away the very fabric that made him the perfect historian. What was this world coming to?!
"Got it!" With the extra slack available to him now, the archer managed to stretch further under the large couch, finally grabbing at his weapons, and becoming the master archer the two knew him to be.
Back at the others, the two found themselves getting overwhelmed by the strength of the creature as Glimmer was knocked across the room to the other side of the wall. There was nothing Catra could do as the beast rolled back into a ball and rammed straight into her. To prevent herself from being crushed, she pushed back with the sword against the palms of her hand, the girl wincing as she as being pushed into a wall again as she watched a couple of sparks fly off the sword, the beast's endless rotation causing them to bounce around her.
*Boom!*
It was with the small explosion at its side that the beast backed away, giving Catra a moment to catch her breath as she looked back, right at the same time Glimmer got back to her feet.
"Bow!" They called out in unison, glad to finally see archer back to being the person they knew him to be, and the one the two fathers were more confused to see as they watched the archer's skills in action.
The momentary relief came to an abrupt end as the menacing creature narrowed its eyes, rolling back once more as it charged at the defenseless archer. He let out a small yelp of surprise as it neared him before he shot another arrow behind himself, a trick arrow with a rope extension and a claw at the very end. He wasn't trying to take down the beast itself or blast it away.
He was reaching for the very crystal that it was after on the other end of the library, the arrow perfectly breaking through the glass and retrieving the sacred crystal, and returning to the archer. Here, it was neck and neck as the creature and the returning-claw raced back to Bow, his fathers calling out in worry as the elemental was only a few feet away from its intended target. Speed proved to be on Bow's side in the end as the crystal was brought to his palm before the elemental was.
With a nervous gulp, the boy raised the stone before the roaring behemoth, closing his eyes as his life depended on whether or not the creature would stop in time. There was nothing but silence hanging in the air Bow awaited for his inevitable demise, or victory, whichever one he ended up with in the end.
Noticing the shadow looming over him and the lack of movement, the archer slowly opened his eyes until it was revealed, the sight of the large creature staring curiously at the crystal in his hands, all aggression and anger having vanished from its systems.
Using a gentle touch of its mandible, the creature took the crystal back from the archer, losing the will to fight as its sacred treasure had been returned to it. With this, another bright flash illuminated the room as the beast glowed with an impressive light, one that gave way to its transformation as it slowly returned to the sphere it once was, the slivers of light leaving it as it finally closed.
The day, while wrecked around them, had been won.
*swish*
"That's my Bow!" Glimmer cheered proudly, glad that everything, physically speaking, turned out to be okay.
Catra herself actually seemed a bit relieved at the sight as he gave him a smug grin and a shove from behind. "If anybody asks, I'm the one who beat it." She said, partly joking. There was nothing but laughter amongst the three at this, all of them relieved that everything actually turned out alright.
For about three seconds.
"What is going on here?" George finally asked as he approached the scene. All eyes turned to them as the two dads approached, nervousness hanging around everyone as the truth had to come out. There was no way to explain two princesses, a She-Ra, a giant elemental bursting from the library, and their son turning into a master archer, and get them to believe it was all just a school thing.
The three looked to each other anxiously as they frowned, knowing what was going to come out. Despite all the work and effort they put into it, everything that was starting to go smoothly for them, it all eventually crumbled around them, like a dozen of the displays throughout the library. None of them knew what to say or how to get out of this mess.
All Bow knew how to do was to make things right.
With his head hung low as the two girls looked back, Catra returning to normal, Bow moved on, approaching his huffing and puffing father who had such a fire in his eyes, demanding an explanation as Bow stood before him.
"I... I lied to you." He sighed. "There is no Academy of Historic Enterprises." Without looking, he gestured back to the duo, specifically at Catra. "And... Catra's isn't really my girlfriend. She's just a friend. One of my best friends, like Glimmer." The two fathers looked back to the slightly blushing magicat who looked away from the group, scratching the back of her head, unable to think of what to say.
"Um... sorry?" Was her only response, still embarrassed after all she's been through and trying to process this.
"I've been living at Bright Moon, fighting in the Rebellion, alongside Catra and Princess Glimmer." He continued, raising his head. The two fathers looked beside themselves as they glanced at each other, taking in all the information that had been kept under wraps for years and unfolding all around them.
"But... why?" Lance asked, taking a step forward along with George.
"I don't want to be a historian. I've never wanted to be a historian. I'm not a shy bookworm. I'm not a genius like you two. I make things. I'm a soldier. This is who I am and I can't lie about it anymore, even though I know I'm breaking your hearts." With this, the archer lowered his head again, keeping in his sadness and his regrets.
That was the truth of it, all of it. The fathers had finally been revealed the truth of all those years of lies. All the orchestrated schemes behind Bow's leaving, the reason he's been away from home for so long without so much as a warning other than a history of fake letters telling them where he was. Everything, in every little detail, made sense, no matter how much it hurt them.
His dad, George, stepped up to his son as Lance watched uneasily. There was no way to tell how the fathers would react to this, and that's what made it terrifying in the moment. What were they gonna do? Disown him? Berate him? Ground him for life so that he could never run away again? There were so many possibilities that Catra was coming up with that she couldn't tell which was the worse.
Although it was embarrassing to think of, the magicat hid a hand behind her back, stretching out her claws in case the archer needed saving.
After a long pause, a reaction finally occurred. Standing in front of him, with every muscle in his body, he embraced his son, a surprised one, as he hugged him tightly.
"What's breaking our hearts is the fact that you thought you had to lie about who you are." He finally admitted.
"You're not mad?" Bow nearly flinched, the reaction taking him by surprise as his heart began to flutter. At the same moment, Catra retracted her claws again, something Glimmer apparently witnessed as she nudged her with a teasing grin. "But I'm a fighter, and you hate fighters."
"I could never hate you. Never." He stated. "If you feel like you belong in the Rebellion, then that's where you belong." His eyes rose heavy with a sense of pride as he smiled, Lance approaching the two with his own smile.
"Oh, Bow, why didn't you just tell us?" He asked.
"I tried, but you didn't listen." Bow explained, still feeling regret. "You only listened to me if I said what you wanted to hear." The two fathers looked shocked at each other, feeling a sense of shame washing over them both as they looked at Bow with regret.
"We had no idea you felt that way. We were just trying to encourage you to pursue your dreams." It hurt him inside to know this. How could he have been so blind, so selfish, in that he only saw and heard what he wanted to hear? He felt terrible! Tears started to trickle down his and George's face at the emotions rising from his chest. "We thought we were being supportive when really we were being terrible." The father broke down as he cried into his own arm.
"We love you the way you are. And we're proud of you no matter what path you take in life." His other father assured, smiling with comfort. The archer himself finally broke into tears.
Despite everything, despite all the emotional lengths this took, they still forgave him, they still loved him. All this time, all he's done to prevent his parents from finding out, had been a complete waste of time.
He didn't need to hide anything from them, something he should've known since day one. He thought they were going to hate them for it when really they were prouder than ever for confessing the truth. They cared more about his safety and his happiness than the personal goals they had set out for him, and that's what made him cry the most.
The fact they truly loved him. That was the reality that Catra came to realize.
It was sort of a weird experience for the magicat as she continued to watch this as the people continued to break down around them. Sure, it was a touching scene, everything worked out in the end. So what? Why was everyone crying about it? It was embarrassing being in a room where his friends, Glimmer included, and two grown men were breaking down into tears, and a part of her wanted to stop it to keep everyone from embarrassing each other.
But she didn't. She didn't do anything to impede the scene, and for once, she was just fine with that. To her, it was the fact that everything turned out to be okay that truly mattered. And for a change, it actually got a sincere, comforting, smile out of the girl.
That was when Glimmer paused from wiping her teary eyes from her shirt as she heard a strange noise. A familiar one, but one hasn't heard in what felt like ages. Turning around, she let out a small gasp at what she saw on Catra's face.
"Catra... you're crying!" She whispered amongst themselves.
"What?" Catra was confused at the statement as she looked back. "Did you hit your head too hard or something? I'm smiling, not crying."
"No, Catra, seriously! You're crying!" Glimmer's heart beamed at the sight of it as she pointed to Catra's face.
"Don't be ridiculous, I'm not-" Catra stopped as she felt along her cheeks. Pulling her hand back, she felt it, saw it. Tears. Actual tears were rolling down her face. Confused at the sight, she tried wiping her face again with her other hand to make sure it wasn't just sweat, and sure enough, they were filled with tears too. "I'm... I am crying..." She muttered, still feeling around her eyes. "I'm actually crying for some reason."
"Ooooooh!" Squealing, Glimmer hugged the girl tightly, leaving the girl in a state of confusion as she tried to figure out what was wrong with herself. "Catra it's okay, it's wonderful!"
"What are you talking about? I'm just happy, I'm not crying. Maybe it's just dusty around here or something?" She wasn't trying to put it off or anything, she was legitimately confused by why she was crying. Given everything that was currently wrecked around here, it wouldn't have surprised her.
"Oh, Catra, don't you get it?" Glimmer said, continuing to smile as she let go. "You're feeling touched. Pure happiness. That's how you're supposed to feel at a time like this."
"Pure... happiness?" The girl wiped another droplet from her eye as she examined the tear closely.
She can't remember the phrase of if it had ever been an influence on her life, nor did she know anybody around her that ever cried from being too happy. It was weird feeling to describe to herself as she tried to think of every reason she could be crying. Maybe she was secretly frightened of the beast and that caused her to cry in the middle of battle? Maybe the tears just started to happen when she touched her eyes on accident and didn't even feel it?
It was a complete mystery to her. People should only cry when they're hurt or when they're angry, upset, relieved, or sad over something. Who in the right mind cried over something when they were happy? When they had nothing else to actually worry about?
...When was the last time she felt truly happy? That's what she was beginning to wonder as she stared back at the hugging family. Were they all crying because of how happy it was, or was that sadness? If she started crying over stuff like this, then how was she supposed to know when she was actually sad or happy anymore?
"But... I don't get it. Why am I crying, then? Why are they crying?"
"You still don't get it, huh?" Still teary-eyed, the princess looked back to the same sobbing family who embraced one another. "They're crying because they know what's most important, and it touches them. All their fears and their worries were for nothing, and they finally see that now. That's why they're crying."
"What truly... matters?" Catra blinked, slowly pulling out her sword as she gazed over the reflection she saw, one last time. What truly matters... to me, then? She thought to herself, trying to make heads or tails over this confusing dilemma. Was there something in her life she wanted more than her dream, more than a kingdom? And if so, then what?
"Hey!" The two nearly jumped as George called over, pulling away from the hugging pair. "This is a family hug, Princesses." What they thought was originally anger dwindled to shear warmth as his eyes softened. "You're part of Bow's family, too."
Glimmer let out a small gasp as she and Catra looked at each other. Without giving the girl a chance to decide for herself, she quickly pulled Catra by the wrist, jumping over to the small hugging squad as they held one another warmly.
Here, Catra was the only one who felt the odd one out. Not because she didn't appreciate the moment or the gesture, not because she was the magicat among regular people, but simply because she couldn't understand. She couldn't understand any of this or this "happy-sadness" she was feeling for the first time. It needed an explanation, someone to describe this feeling to her.
And for the first time in her life, she didn't care. She smiled a little as she closed her eyes, deciding to embrace the moment for now instead of questioning it. She didn't know what this feeling was, and she was more than happy to keep it that way if it meant it would stick with her. As long as she remembered this feeling throughout the day, then she was fine with it.
For once in her life, as if a distant memory, she came to realize how warm it felt to be loved for by others...
...
"On one of our missions, we received a message from an unknown source." Bow explained as his dads examined the tracker pad personally. From behind him, Catra and Glimmer waited eagerly as Bow explained one of the key purposes for this entire day, the reason they needed this information so badly. "If we knew what Serenia is, I think we could figure out the rest."
"Serenia portal Mara." Bringing the pad up closer to his face, adjusting his reading glasses, Lance tried to piece together the words and their strange meeting. "Okay. But what are these other words?"
"Honestly, I don't have a clue." Catra replied, scratching her head. "It's too degraded for me to understand."
"Wait a second. Lance!" Noticing something himself, the other father brought the pad closer between them as Lance held onto it. "What does this pattern look like to you?" It only took a single second for the thought to come to Lance's mind, and then he gasped.
"Huh! Oh, I think you're right!"
"What is it?" Bow asked walking towards them.
"Look at it, Bow. Really look at it." George directed as he brought the pad closer to his son. "What do you see?" Bow peered deeply into the pad as he focused.
What was it? What did his dads see that he couldn't? Was there a certain symbol that stuck out of place? A line of data that was encoded within the lines? He knew whether or not he wished to be as smart as them that he could figure it out. He just had to narrow down the parts of the image to see what came to him.
The trouble was specifically what came to him. He still couldn't tell what he was looking at or the hidden meaning possibly behind it. If he had some sort of hint, like maybe a Legend from a map that detailed the symbols on a paper, or some high-tech computer to analyze this stuff, he could understand it better. For all it was worth, the most he saw were the hundreds of lines that took up the screen, the strange patterns that came across it, and the round orbs scattered throughout that...
Wait a minute.
Eyes widening, Bow rose his head as a grand revelation finally came to him. "These aren't words at all, are they?" He guessed correctly.
"Oooh, now you've got it." Lance squealed, proud of his warrior-preferred son. "George, get the projector!" The friends questioned to each other what was going on as George ran in one direction across the room, all while Lance was smiling with glee as he awaited the necessary projector.
Wheeling it in, the historian started up the globe-like projector as everyone gathered around it. "The world of the First Ones was different from us." George began. "Climate, language, even the sky was different, filled with cosmic formations they called..." Eager to get it underway, the man touched the machine, projecting a holographic display above everyone.
It was something Catra hadn't seen in a long time, not since Madame Razz herself showed them to her. It was an image that she had only bore witness to herself once, and one she could never forget as her face lit up a little. "Stars!"
"The First Ones used them to navigate and named constellations after mythical heroes, including Serenia." Lance explained as the children gazed at the wonder around them. At the mention, they watched as a formation of lines started to appear above them, forming the familiar symbol that Catra came to know as Serenia.
"The Constellation Serenia would only appear in summer, and only over one place." George added, adjusting the projector as a new hologram came to the group. It wasn't like the previous ones that were displayed over the sky.
Instead, it was the terrain around them, displaying what appeared to be a horrible and mutilated piece of land that held no room for life, where hope went to die. It was the one place everyone knew of, where none dared to tread.
"The Crimson Waste." Just saying the name was enough to make Glimmer shiver a little. She's heard stories about many an adventurer who would seek out treasure, fame, fortune from all across the world, and how all their stories ended terribly within the region.
Even Catra was more than aware of how horrible the place was, having been threatened to be sent there multiple times as a child for disobedience. It was a threat that she never took personally since she knew that that would require people to actually bring her to the Crimson Waste itself to drop her off. But the idea of it alone was nerve wracking enough to make her claws tremble a little.
"We have to go there." She announced.
"What?! You can't just go into the Crimson Waste!" Lance stammered. No amount of love for his son would make him foolish enough to go to some place as dangerous as that. He could have an actual army behind him and he'd still forbid it, it was that dangerous! "It's a no-man's-land, a giant lifeless desert. No ones ever made it that far and come back alive."
"They haven't, huh?" Catra muttered to herself as she looked against the desert again. She knew it, they all did, that they didn't have a choice. It was only natural that one of the most dangerous places in Etheria would also be the location they needed to go, and it wasn't going to change for her because she wanted it to.
What would change for her is how she would do it. If they even thought about attempting it, they would need power, more than She-Ra had, something that would ensure their safety through the dreaded wasteland. They couldn't afford to drag the other princesses into it, knowing it was just as dangerous, if not possibly more, than the Fright Zone itself. If going to a place like the Fright Zone meant certain death, then going to the Crimson Waste was asking for death right then and there.
When she thought about it more, she realized something; maybe it wasn't a matter of how much strength She-Ra had, but how much strength she had now.
"Promise me, you kids will stay away from there." George pleaded.
Glimmer and Bow turned to one another in unease, wondering what the other was thinking. There was no way they could avoid it despite its dangers. The more they learned about She-Ra, the better chance they had at winning this war, of stopping the Horde possibly! They couldn't verbally acknowledge their intentions now to the troubled dads, but they could at least think about it for the time being.
"Okay, we promise." Glimmer assured, turning to her friend. "Right Cat-" She stopped.
Catra was gone. The four slowly grew aware of their surroundings that there was one person missing from the group, someone who mattered just as much as the rest of them. "Catra?"
*Tweeeeeeeeeet~!*
From the open window, ironically the same one Catra wanted to use to get out of this place at the start, they heard a familiar whistling. Looking back at one another, her friends quickly ran for the door, racing outside to see what their friend was doing and why she suddenly took off.
Coming through the front doors, they arrived just in time to see Swift Wind flying down from the sky, the eager horned-pegasus flapping his wings as he landed in front of the awaiting hero.
"Hey, Catra!" He greeted as his friend jumped atop his back. "You want to go do more training or something?"
"Take me to Bright Moon Castle." She ordered firmly.
"Wait, Catra!' Glimmer yelled, running up to Swifty with Bow following behind her, while the Horse began to flap his wings again. "What are you doing?"
"Don't you at least want to stay for dinner or something?" Bow asked? It was among the least of the things he could provide for them after all they've been through, on top of everything he now owed her.
Scratching the back of her neck, Catra replied in an unusual sense of awkwardness, keeping her eyes away from them. "I, uh, got something to take care of." She replied as they started flying a few feet from the ground. "I'll meet you guys later at the castle."
"The castle? But Catra, why do you need to go now?"
"I can't talk about it, I'll explain later!" She yelled as she started to ascend to the sky. "I'll explain later!" Was the last thing they heard before she disappeared past the trees overhead. The two waited for a few seconds before Glimmer could say anything, wondering the exact same thing the other was at this moment.
"What was that about?"
...
...
"Are you sure you want to do this?" Angella asked as she sat atop her throne.
By now, Catra was situated at the very center of the Throne Room, the very place she stood when she joined the Rebellion, and with Swift Wind at her back once again, this time, more as a friend. The evening dusk began to settle in as the sun was setting, glistening against the beautiful forest behind the open archways of the room. Like the time before, Catra felt an overwhelming sense of nervousness as she tried to speak, this time accompanied by the feeling of stupidity floating around her mind.
"Honestly, An- I mean, Your Majesty," she held back the need to roll her eyes, both of them knowing it was the proper way to address a royalty of the court, "I don't. I really don't want to do this. Right now, everything is screaming in my head to tell me to stop this and turn away."
"...Buuuut..." Angella piqued, knowing what was going to come.
Catra let out a sigh through her nose before she continued, "But... I can't. I really can't. If I'm to get stronger, then this needs to be done."
The Queen tapped at her chin in curiosity, wondering if something else could be done. "Well, if you'd prefer, we could postpone the deal until after the Horde has been dealt with-"
"No!" Catra nearly shouted, refraining from doing so in a room full of guards and people. "I... I can't have that. It needs to be this way, period. No postponing, no off-the-side deal, just..." She frowned a little as she turned her head slightly, still unable to believe what she was doing. "I need to do this right. Nothing more, nothing less."
Silence filled the air as all eyes turned to the Queen of Bright Moon. The one who had the final and only say within the throne room, the one who addressed the issues and details of Bright Moon and Etheria all over on a daily basis, the very one who was the leader of the Rebellion, the single driving force pushing back against the Horde with the might of She-Ra on their side.
At the beginning, the Queen held disdain for the girl, apprehensive about her demeanor. She didn't trust Catra from Day 1 for weeks and weeks after joining, it took forever for her to believe in her. She lacked any sense of reason to trust the girl, this Horde soldier who barged into her Throne Room on that day, claiming to be a defector who had decided to join the Rebellion for her own personal gain. Anyone that greedy was hard to accept as a trusted ally.
Now, she was looking at her with a warm smile, a gentle face. To see that person, to see how far she's come since then, leading up to this very moment, was perhaps one of the most touching displays Angella had ever gotten to bore witness to.
And it was thanks to Catra that she got the chance to see it.
"If that is your decision, so be it." Looking to her left and to her right, the Queen nodded slowly as she rose from her seat. "As Queen of Bright Moon, leader of the Rebellion, through the power of my court and my seat on the Throne, I hereby rescind the agreement we initially came upon. She-Ra," Catra lifted her head at the name, looking at her almost as if she was pleading for her to do this, "will not receive a kingdom in payment for bringing us to victory against the Horde."
At the declaration, all the guards rose the butt of their spears as the Queen stood, then pounded it against the ground in acknowledgement as the Queen sat. Catra gave a small smile back, almost letting out a brief chuckle as Swift Wind rubbed his head against the side of her cheek, displaying his own sense of pride for the girl. Catra herself actually gave a small bow of the head as she agreed upon the statement, patting for Swift Wind to turn around as the two began to make way for the door.
"I'm eager to see how else you'll continue to inspire us, Catra." Angella commented, feeling proud for the girl. To this sincerity, at no surprise at all, the girl just waved her hand carelessly in the air back to her.
"Yeah, yeah, yeah, keep your wings on." She joked, in a more playful manner than she usually did. "Just make sure there's a baked salmon waiting for me at dinner tonight, and we'll call it even."
It almost got a chuckle out of the Queen, seeing Catra actually trying to seem like her old self after everything they've been through. If that wasn't enough to get a laugh out of her, she most certainly earned one after Catra opened the door, resulting on Bow and Glimmer plopping on top of her as they pressed themselves against the doorway, trying to listen in on everything that happened.
"Hey, get off me!" Catra yelped, the other two scrambling to get to their and coming up with excuses as they vacated the Throne Room, Swift Wind's tail being the last thing the Queen saw as the door closed behind them.
"O-Oh, Catra, what are you doing here?" Bow feigned ignorance as Catra sneered at the two of them.
"We were just coming by to see you," Glimmer also feigned, trying to come up with a plausible excuse, "and what you were doing. What exactly were you doing in-"
"Yeah, can the small talk." Catra spat, throwing her hands behind her head. "I know you dweebs were listening on everything." She may not have known the exact moment they arrived, or if they actually followed her all the way back the moment she left, but she knew they would've been too curious to see what he was up to.
Chuckling to each other nervously, Bow and Glimmer prepared themselves as they tried to get to the heart of the matter.
"Catra, did you... Did you really give up your kingdom in there?" Glimmer asked, unable to believe what she heard through the door.
"Why? Do you have a problem about it?" She grumbled back.
"W-What? No, no, no, nothing like that!" She stammered, shaking her hands in front of her. "It's just... Catra, I thought it was your dream to have your own kingdom? Somewhere to call the shots and all that stuff?"
"I didn't expect you to ever give up on it." Bow added, crossing his arms. "Even if you haven't mentioned it for some time, I thought you wanted some reward out of all of this?"
"Yeah, well," a small tint of a blush formed around Catra's cheeks as she looked off to the side, "I just... figured, you know? What's the point of having a kingdom if you don't beat the Horde in the first place? And really, why would I want one anyway? All the paperwork, everyone coming to you with their stupid problems, it just seemed kind of annoying to me, so I decided to call it off."
"But you told me it was because you were worried about Glimmer and Bow?" Swift Wind stated.
"Gh-!" Catra bit down at her own teeth at the announcement as her blush intensified all over her cheeks, her tail shooting to the air.
"Yeah, don't you remember on the way over here?" Swift Wind smiled as he lifted his head, going off his thoughts as he waved his right wing tip like a hand. "You said, and I quote, "I need to become more like She-Ra in order to become stronger so I can protect those two when we go to the Crimson Waste-" " He was cut off as he was grabbed by Catra's hands pulling him over to her, clamping his mouth shut in the process.
"THERE WAS A REASON I TOLD YOU NOT TO SAY ANYTHING IN THE THRONE ROOM TO BEGIN WITH!" She stammered as Bow and Glimmer laughed in response. "S-SHUT UP! I DON'T KNOW WHAT HE'S TALKING ABOUT! HONEST!" That only cemented their laughter as it grew twice as loud.
Suffice to say, Swift Wind spoke the truth of Catra's words. She needed to become stronger, she wanted to, and that may have been somewhat seen as selfish. What truly made it a selfless act, however, was her desires behind it.
She wasn't doing it anymore for a kingdom, a dream she shared with a long lost friend of hers she could only hope to get back by this point. Instead, she did it for them. Her friends. The people she's started to feel like a family towards as each day drove by.
Yeah, she still wanted a lot of things personally out of this war. She was bummed beyond belief that she would no longer get the kingdom of her dreams, any chance she had of calling the shots and giving orders. And she would never fully admit it to the likes of them, friends or not, or even to her enemies, that she was doing it for someone else!
...But that was the truth behind it. It was for someone else. The people that mattered to her these days. As their missions continued to become more and more dangerous, she knew she couldn't let anyone hold her back, including herself. She needed to become stronger at any cost, even if it meant losing some of her personal benefits in the process.
Cheesy as it was, her current benefit were the friends and family she had right now rather than some hunk of rock she could name after for herself.
"C-Cat-ahahaha!" Glimmer continued to laugh, wiping at her eyes as she tried to calm down. "W-We're not laughing at you!" She chuckled to let out a few breaths as she collected herself. "We're just proud of you, that's all."
"Heh, yeah." Bow agreed, smiling back. "We're really happy for you. And we're glad you care so much, even if you won't admit it."
"Tch, whatever." Catra muttered, shifting her eyes away as she blushed again. "Don't think this means I'm going to be treating you guys anymore buddy-buddy than I usually do, got it? Nothing's changed."
"Haha, we get it, Catra, don't worry." Glimmer chuckled again before eyeing her sword. "So, how much stronger do you think you've gotten, now?"
"How much stronger?" The magicat was actually wondering for herself as she pulled out her sword, staring at it. Like it was actually approving of her, Catra could actually feel the sword's energy flowing from her hands, the intense boost flowing through her like a wave. That alone was enough proof of how much stronger her bond with the sword has gotten, and she grinned eagerly as she thought of the best way to test it out. "There's only one way to find out!"
Stepping away from her, her friends stood back and watched, preparing to see the newest transformation of Catra with their very eyes. Twirling the sword a little bit in her hand, waiting for the rest to step back, she grinned. She knew the right words to say, she knew the way she was supposed to hold it, and she knew that, no matter what, she was going to be prepared for the future.
She was ready for this.
"FOR THE HONOR OF GRAYSKULL!"
...
...
"ARE YOU INSANE!?" Aroda shouted as she continued to walk backwards ahead of Adora. "NO! ABSOLUTELY NOT! I FORBID IT!" The living reflection shouted as it tried to push back against the girl, being powerless as Adora easily pushed against her without a care despite all of her strength.
"My decision is final, Aroda." Adora stated, keeping her mind focused. "Hordak called to see me for something, and I'm going to tell him about Shadow Weaver." Nothing would convince Adora otherwise as she traveled through the halls of the citadel.
This was Adora's final decision, her final choice. She couldn't keep it bottled any longer, not while her friends had to suffer for it.
Following Shadow Weaver's escape, Adora had been at her wit's end. She couldn't handle the stress anymore. Everywhere she went when someone questioned how or why she did something, bumped into her on accident, or came to file a complaint, she snapped at them. She yelled at them, insulted them for bothering her, and even went as far as to threaten those who questioned her leadership. It was when she did it to Scorpia that the last straw had been pulled.
After a brief, rather strange comforting moment, Adora broke down. She broke down as she confessed everything to her, everything that had upset her throughout the last few days. How she was tricked and played for a fool by Shadow Weaver's own hands, how she manipulated her with the promise of exchange for information in exchange for her own safety, and how she tricked her into giving her an old Sorcerer's Badge from her time in Mystacor, which still housed enough magical energy to aid in her escape.
And just as Adora was starting to see her as a mother again.
The girl stayed by her side the entire hour as she cried into Scorpia's side. Scorpia proved herself to be an invaluable friend ot the distressing Force Captain as she listened to all of her fears, all of her worries. For the moment, she appreciated Scorpia in every regard, from her constant need to cheer Adora up, and always being there at her side. She was truly the closest thing Adora could consider to a new best friend, and practically felt it before she was summoned to see Lord Hordak.
She had no idea what to expect right now. Was he aware of Shadow Weaver's vanishing? Did he somehow discover her involvement behind everything? Or were her worries getting the better of her, knowing what would await her if she failed him one more time?
It didn't matter at the present, not as long as she was still a Force Captain and a commander. She still had a job to do and that required her to follow orders and to make sure everything ran smoothly for the time being.
She wouldn't allow her thoughts to get in the way, she wouldn't let her fears control her, and she definitely wasn't in the mood to listen to Aroda anytime soon.
"Whoa! Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, let's back up here for a second." The panicking Aroda pleaded as Adora crossed another intersection. "Do you really think any meeting involving Lord Hordak is going to run smoothly?"
"I don't even know what he wants, Aroda." Adora admitted, keeping a hardened expression. "For all I know maybe he has a new announcement he has to tell me."
"Oh, yeah, let's play with that idea." Crossing her eyes, Aroda spoke in Hordak's voice as she placed her hands behind her back. "Hello, Adora. I have an announcement to make. I'm going to execute you right now for losing Shadow Weaver. I'll send your belongings to your next of kin before they're executed, too."
"Knock it off." Adora pushed aside as Aroda floated to her side, still walking. "It's not like I can avoid Hordak even if I wanted to, in case you forgot. He's the leader of the Horde."
"Who says we have to avoid him? Just listen to me for a sec!" The reflection temporarily blocked Adora's path as she threw both her arms to each side, thankful the girl was giving her five seconds of peace. "Think about it. We go in there, and then what? He tries to execute us or something? So, we get a little defensive and fight back. We scuffle for a bit, throw a few insults back and forth, and then we pound him in the back of his head when his guard is down!"
"Ugh, are you crazy? I'm not going to fight Lord Hordak!" Adora scoffed, unable to believe she even considered listening to Aroda.
"Hey, hey, slow down there, I'm not saying necessarily fight him. Think about it, you've been doing all the work, and Tinman back there has been acting more and more aggressive towards you even after everything you done. So, and I'm just throwing it out there... what if we, you know, sneak in a little bit, see if the coast is clear... wait until his guard is down... and then-"
"Absolutely not!" Adora yelled, walking passed Aroda without a second thought.
"Hey, Adora, calm down. Listen for a second-"
"I'm not listening any more, you are insane! You want me to get rid of Lord Hordak?" There were many things that Adora would be willing to do if it meant proving her loyalty to Lord Hordak again. Take out a Rebellion stronghold on her own, capture a neighboring region, strengthen their weaponry, whatever came to mind, and he could torture and threaten her all the same in the end.
That still wasn't enough to convince her to go through with anything like Aroda was suggesting and getting rid of Lord Hordak like that.
"Who says it'd be us getting rid of him? Maybe we just found him like that after an accident? Get it?" Her nervously teethy grin didn't get so much as a wink from the girl as she walked right passed her, and it was starting to tick Aroda off. "Look, Adora, I don't know what you're planning on doing, but don't forget, you're piloting for two of us in there, and I don't like the idea of getting myself killed!"
"And I don't like the idea of getting rid of somebody like you're proposing. What would be the point in it, anyway?"
"Because you would be in charge then." At the statement, Aroda grinned a little as Adora came to another stop. She grinned to herself as she floated to Adora's side, placing a hand over her shoulder as she spoke gently into her ears.
"Think about it, Adora. If he suddenly disappeared, you would be next in line in his chain-of-command to run the Horde, and then, you'd be calling the shots. The Horde rules over half the planet as it is, and you can do whatever you want with that half. Expand it, control it, collect from it." She sneered as she leaned towards Adora's other ear, acting like the conscious on her shoulders. "Think about it. You've been doing such a great job, much better than Hordak ever could. Isn't it about time you got something in return?"
"Think of all the people still crying out for a hero, hmm? Think of everything you could help with your own two hands if the army was being ran your way? You could finally start running things the way you wanted, however you wanted, and nobody would dare to betray you."
"..." Adora remained silent as she contemplated every word. She wasn't about to go around and start ruling half the world or whatever Aroda wanted, but she did at least make a good point. If Hordak was gone, she would be free. She wouldn't have anyone to threaten her anymore, and she'd be calling the shots. But more importantly, she wouldn't have to live in fear anymore.
She wouldn't have to worry about being betrayed, not as often. Who would be gullible or foolish enough to betray the leader of the Horde in the first place? It'd be a guaranteed death sentence! And with all the people who were still struggling because of this war, she had the chance to finally help them, to prove once and for all that she was on the side of the righteous, the heroes this world needed to be.
She could shape everything, everyone, to make a better world... for herself...
"... No." It was with that very last thought that Adora pushed on, declining Aroda's idea yet again. "I'm not looking to rule anything, Aroda. I just want to do my job and defeat the Rebellion."
"Oh, come, OOOOOOOOOON!" She shouted. "Doesn't your life mean anything to you? Is it because of me? It's because of me, isn't it? Tell you what, you go with my idea, and I'll never bother you again. How does that sound?"
"The answer is still no!" She shouted with conviction. "I don't care about ruling anything, Aroda, I don't want to force people on how to live their lives, I just want to protect them! I'd rather take my chances with Hordak and be done with it, and if you don't like it, then that's your problem." As she finally reached the doors to the inner sanctum, Adora looked back. "Why don't you just wait on the sidelines like you always do and tell me "I told you so" if I end up being wrong?" Without another word, the captain walked through the opening doors, leaving a fuming Aroda to squeeze her fist as she disappeared.
"Oh, trust me Adora..." She seethed. "I will..."
With the captain having arrived at the inner sanctum, and Aroda thankfully out of sight and out of mind, Adora sighed. She combed her hair a little bit, making sure her posture was straight, and took those first few steps as she explored the confines of his lair.
To say she was nervous would be a severe understatement. Despite all the rantings and anger towards Adora's plan, she couldn't say Aroda was wrong for her reasoning. If Hordak was aware of the situation, then he was most likely planning to do away with her, to end her. And she still couldn't bring herself to back down from his summons.
Hordak was a respectable leader, a reasonable one, she believed. He wasn't one that would lash out without proper cause, not unless there was a good reason for it. If Adora just explained to him what happened, everything behind it, then surely he would understand that it was all a mistake, that she was tricked behind the master of deception.
That was the only way she could convince herself to move on ahead.
Walking through the seemingly-empty sanctum to the inner lab, Adora kept her heart rate steady, taking slow deep breaths as she prepared for whatever eventuality she would come across. As usual, the girl cleared her throat, preparing to address Lord Hordak in all his glory as she stood in the center of his lab.
"You wanted to see me, Lord Hordak?" Adora greeted to the man who dabbled away at the far table.
"Yes, Force Captain." Hordak replied, continuing to mess with something that she could only see the sparks of. "I wish to, how did you put it? Touch base with you."
"You... you did?" Adora questioned, squeezing her hands at her side.
"Yes, Adora." Turning his head a little to the side, she saw the last thing she ever expected to be present on his face as he continued to work. A small smile. "I must admit, you've surprised me as of late, with all the feedback I've been hearing. I'm impressed."
"I did?" Adora actually smiled a little in turn as he continued to work, typing away on a nearby console.
"Yes, with all the data from the outposts we've collected and the resources you've gained from your previous mission, I'm starting to think I was wrong about you." Adora swore that her heart skipped a beat briefly.
Maybe she wasn't in trouble after all? Maybe she was actually wrong about everything! Perhaps Hordak has been more on top with her accomplishments than she thought he was, and had been holding off on this meeting until she finally did something that impressed her.
The idea of that alone was more than enough for the girl. She, impressed, him! Hordak! She mentally shook her head to herself at the ridiculous thoughts she had about him before, all the fears washing away down a stream of nothingness as she stood proudly to be at his sanctum. He really was the great hero she knew him to be, the glorious leader of the Horde like she always dreamed of.
"T... Thank you, Lord Hordak!" Adora beamed happily, bowing her head at this.
"I trust that you've also been following my orders, and have been making sure everything is running efficiently?" He stopped as he set his tools away.
"Y-Yes, sir!" She saluted. "Everything's been running smoothly, I promise."
"Does this mean Shadow Weaver has been transferred to Beast Island, as per my orders?" He asked again, turning to look her in the eye.
The girl turned her eyes away for but a moment. "Uh, y-yes, sir. Everything's been..." As she slowed, a frown grew over her expression, lowering her head. She could have it all right now. His respect, being seen as useful to the Horde, somebody he could consider dependable. All she would have to do was lie about it and say what he expected to hear, what she wanted to tell him.
But she couldn't. She couldn't bring it in herself to lie to him, not when she was starting to gain his respect. He finally started to show trust in her, and the girl couldn't bring herself to lie to him, not when he expected the truth most.
She's spent more than enough time with liars.
"I-I mean... No, Lord Hordak." Adora shook her head, kneeling as Hordak turned around in full. "Shadow Weaver, she... she escaped, several nights ago, and we've... We've failed to locate her." She quickly stood up. "But we're still looking, honest. I've known her for all my life, and I know she couldn't have gone far. I promise you, I'll find her, tomorrow at the latest!"
"...I see." Hordak appeared to be thinking about everything she said as he rubbed his chin. "And is that all you have to tell me?" He asked again. Looking off to the side, Adora gave him a small smile as she nodded.
"Y-Yes sir, and I apologize again. But I swear, we're using our best equipment to find her. She'll be found in no time, and I'll-"
"I'm the reason Shadow Weaver got out to begin with!" Adora's heart froze as her eyes went hollow.
That wasn't her. That wasn't her voice. She heard the message playing over and over again in her head as she looked up to the ceiling, into the darkness above. There, she saw the downfall of herself, the creature that had this exact recording of her- The Imp.
The imp fluttered across the room as it continued to play the recording, mocking her and all of her foolishness. "I was tricked by the very person I didn't have an ounce of trust in, and I still helped her escape!" She saw Hordak's eyes. How they narrowed, how they were disgusted at the very sight of her. Those loathing, seething, glowing red eyes of pure hatred.
"The minute Hordak finds out about it, he's going to make me suffer, and I can't let that happen! Here, the Imp taunted her as it played the middle of that recording several times.
"-he's going to make me suffer-"
"-he's going to make me suffer-"
"-he's going to make me suffer-"
Finally, the beast had enough of its toying around as it flew to its master's side. It grinned to the girl who had been caught in the act as it climbed on top of his shoulders. From behind, it smiled viciously, with the girl completely unaware that Hordak had been drawing closer to her throughout all this feedback.
"At least you told the truth about that." Without another word, the leader of the Horde, the one Adora had been wrong about once again, pulled the lever that sealed her fate.
"W-Wait! It's not what you-" It was too late for Hordak to ignore the rest of the girl's pleading as he pulled the switch. Adora felt empty inside as she lifted her head, staring at the ceiling that was powering up against her wishes.
"I meant every word I said about you, Adora." He seethed. Right as he finished, the area around them erupted in a violent pink light, the air around them being suppressed in its entirety.
No, worse than that. It felt like the air was being sucked out of the girl's lungs as she struggled to breathe, Adora gasping for air as she grabbed at her throat. The field around her was being affected immensely as objects rose through the air, as life was being sucked clean out of the force field he conjured, and the energy around her was draining from her environment. There was nothing she could do, with or without her shadows as they responded in full, as dark veins rose against her arms on both sides and swarmed towards her neck.
"Multiple outposts lost under your watch." He went on in detail as he slowly approached the trembling girl, one who buckled under the weight of her own legs. "Resources depleting faster than you can collect them. I've heard you had this She-Ra under your grasp at one point, and still managed to fumble it up!"
"I-It's... It's not what..." She rasped. She couldn't do anything as he approached, other than to squeeze her own throat, tying to keep whatever air she had left.
"And it was with this final act that you proved me wrong, Adora." Tears formed in the corners of her eyes as he grabbed her by the throat. There was no power in her shadows as the energy was drained around them, no way to help her from any outside forces, even if they were watching. The angered lord lifted her off the ground as he hung her in the air up to his face, feeling the pathetic worm's attempt to scratch away at his hands. It would've been amusing if he didn't hate her so.
"I gave you a chance, a chance to come clean about everything." He hissed. "A chance to prove your worth to the Horde, to prove your chance to me, and you failed. All you had to do was be honest with me this one, last time, and you couldn't even do that right."
"I... I-I..." The tears dripped from her face and under his hands as she felt her life fading, her struggling coming to an end.
"But worst of all, you thought you could slip by me, to throw in a lie with the truth, much like Shadow Weaver attempted multiple times in the past, and it disgusts me how much you resemble her right now. The fact that you tried to squeeze your way out of it proves that you have a limited amount of loyalty in your veins." The lights started to dim around her as Adora's limbs dropped to her side. She couldn't breath, she could barely see, and it was beginning to become harder to hear as the noise around her distorted.
All she saw left was a pair of glowing red eyes as she started to be surrounded by darkness.
"And if there's one thing I hate worse than failures, its soldiers, with LIMITED! LOYALTY!" It was the last thing she heard before even his eyes went dark to her.
But it wasn't the last thing that sang through her mind.
"I told you soooooo~"
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...
Catra's chambers looked peaceful for a change, felt peaceful, at that. For one of the first times since the girl had officially joined the Rebellion, since she turned her back on everything in the Battle of Bright Moon, she actually went to sleep with a smile across her face.
It was rejuvenating, refreshing, for a change, as the outside lights of the night's sky filled her chambers, almost enshrouding the girl in their spectacular warmth. So many things had happened to her within the last month. So many adventures, so much drama, and this was the final thing she could ask for, a good night's rest.
Everything felt pleasant to her for a change since the ceremony this afternoon, since she recalled her offer for a kingdom. They had a typical dinner, which was thankfully baked salmon as Catra requested, the friends hung out for a bit, then made their way to their respective chambers as they turned in for the night, preparing for whatever the next day had to bring.
But she wouldn't even make it past midnight before the trouble finally began.
It was there, as Catra lied peacefully against the bed, her sword off to the side, that a figure appeared, their presence looming over the girl as they made their identity known. The figure itself was beyond comprehension that it would come to them of all people at this time of their lives, but it didn't have a choice. As much as it disgusted her to say, they needed the girl for their own agenda, to accomplish what no one else was capable of right now.
And standing over them, Shadow Weaver wouldn't take no for an answer...
...
...
...
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 ~
Final Word Count: 970K+
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.
Special Thanks: Endless Chains, Star Saber, Peyton Helix, reaper king, Shadow Joestar for their constant love and support, as well as everyone else who saw this season through to the end.
Additional Special Thanks goes to Petie doon over on Instagram for his beautiful fan art and creations for the series, give him a look up to show your support!
~ 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! ~
Final Review Count: 566
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) ~
Final Favorite Count: 195
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 ~
Final Follower Count: 169
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) ~
Final Viewer Count: 111,257 viewers
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.
SEASON 2 OF CAT-RA: Complete
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A/N: Phew, we made it folks. All the way to the end as I stated above. I have nothing more to say that hasn't been said already, so instead, I'll sing about it!
*BANG!*
...I'll just talk about it instead, that works too...
Lol, seriously though folks, thanks to each and every one of you who have kept this fanfic going. Showing your support, throwing in all the excitement and wonder that has kept me going for the years now. I can't thank you all enough for the patience you've shown by supporting my creation right up until the very end.
With this said, HOOOOOOOOOOOOO BOY! That cliff hangar, eh? Personally, I love cliff hangers myself :P (unless they're at the end of a season and it gets cancelled making it entirely pointless and disappointing). They add a nice layer of excitement over what's going to happen on the following episode, and HOOOOOOOOOOOOO MAN, DO I HAVE SOME TWISTS TO THROW IN O_O! Every episode of season 3 ended more shocking and exciting than the last, with each of them reaching new heights that even I would call unbelievable!
Which also makes them exciting ^^
Hofftah. Im definitely not going to fin season 4 unless i rushed a 1 sentence episode between this and now before the finale XP But my hope is to reach season 3 conclusion before 5 comes out so i can get a start on season 4 ^^ I can't wait to see what it has to offer!
With that said, I HOOOOOOOOOOPE you all enjoyed, and again, thank you so much for continuing to support the fanfic all the way from start to finish. We'll have more excitement, dangers, so many other made up things I'm still debating, and by the end of it all, we'll have a very satisfying(hopefully) conclusion, that I can't even wait to get started with X)
With that said, hope you all enjoyed! Leave a like, fave, follow, and review, and hope to see you VERY soon ^^!