A/N: Final Word Count: 6.8K Pre-A/N's. No people, you are not seeing things. Do not attempt to adjust your monitors because you might end up breaking something just to see if you're seeing things. There is no seeing-things here issue and your eyes aren't playing tricks on you (whether you ingested anything unknown or otherwise is a different matter). We are looking at an update that's.. that's... *sniff* UNDER 7K WORDS X*(! I feel so ashamed! Dirty! Used! I've never seen something so disgraceful X*(!
Lol, honestly, I'm a bit at a shock, but like I said, trying to cut down on the number of words I use for the sake of making the chapter bigger so I don't fill in emptiness with dullness and whatnot XP as such, relatively similar part here today since it covers the first 5 mins like in the show (seeing how i do my show in parts like this anyway). That doesn't mean this'll all be a shot for shot recount, heck, the opening of the next one is going to be a bit different as it stands, and I can't wait to reach the conclusion.
All i'm saying is, like I said, be prepared for shorter parts throughout this season. I'd rather produce quality over quantity and whatnot, though i kind of strive for both. On a brighter note, it's apparently NOT my shortest chapter ever- that distinction comes down to chapter 40, the Episode 10 Finale that comes down to a 6.4k words, and several hundred of that over in Author's notes (god it feels so freaking saying chapter 40 when you're 80+ chapters ahead XD).
So, with that all said, enjoy!
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"Ngggh..." The bed-ridden Adora moaned and squirmed as she tossed and turned within her bed. The images that were haunting her were causing her to sweat profusely, her nightmares cascading into a boiling fever dream as the images and scenery haunted her. Her hair was sprawled about her pillow as she tried to combat the horrendous nightmare, inside and out, doing everything within her power to keep the visions at bay.
But there was no rest for the restless as the suffering continued...
...
"-why we have to stop this, Adora!" Entrapta finished as Adora finally came too, shaking her head to clear her mind. "We can't go through with this."
"B-But how do we know it's the portal or the sword's fault? Maybe it's Catra? Maybe her connection with the sword is still incomplete?" Adora tried to argue, remembering some of the details Frosta gave her during her time in the Horde.
"It won't do any good, I've already factored it in." Entrapta informed with regret, using her hair to type away madly at the screen. "At most, I've found it'll only slow down the degradation of the reality's collapse on itself since Catra's link with the sword is still unstable. But the result will still be the same and everything will still be wiped out of existence." Like the previous times, it was met with the same flash of death over the monitors like it showed before. "I'm sorry Adora, but I have to stop this."
"B-B-But... But you can't..." She didn't know what to say to this... this... she couldn't bring herself to put her finger on the word, knowing it was the one word Adora despised to say about her allies and friends the most.
"I'm sorry, Adora, but I don't have a choice! Catra was right, I can't let Hordak do this, I have to stop him!" Without another word, without willing to waste another precious second of time, while time was still a portion of reality, Entrapta ran off, running towards the door as fast as her feet could carry her.
"...HEY, TRAITOR!"
"Huh-?"
*tug*
*BZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZT!*
"Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!" Entrapta cried out in pain as thousands upon thousands of volts coursed through her body within seconds.
After awhile, probably at least ten seconds, Adora relented as she pulled the baton back. The last thing she saw in Entrapta's eyes was a look of remorse, a feeling that slowly entered Adora herself as she realized what she had done, before she finally collapsed to the ground, unconscious.
Adora breathed heavily as she took a step back. The baton was still freshly steaming with the hot energy that flowed through its tip, the burn of what she had done still flashing in her mind. Entrapta betrayed her. She betrayed the Horde. She deserved to be tased and then banished to Beast Island. That's what happened to traitors! That's what should've happened to Shadow Weaver in the first place!
Right?
That was when she saw the shadow as the scenery dissolved. A large gleaming shadow in the shape of a person, a familiar one at that left no room for doubt as Adora saw nothing but red. It was Entrapta, another Entrapta, the same Entrapta, staring emotionlessly at the girl. There was no hate, no sorrow, no joy, just an emptiness. An emptiness that filled the white void surrounding them as Entrapta's final thoughts echoed within Adora's own mind.
"You're worse than Catra could ever be."
It was a familiar line she had once heard by Queen Glimmer herself, a princess at that point, and now with the added dread of Entrapta's own voice ringing in her ears as the scenery flashed again. Now she she saw herself, all alone, with nobody around her, save for an angry-looking Catra staring straight at her as her voice echoed all around them.
"Why did you pull the lever?!"
"I-I... I didn't know... I-I thought you were lying!" Adora trembled as she backed up, something about the look on Catra's face actually terrifying her. How could she be held responsible for a stupid portal malfunction? She was supposed to take Catra's word for it, a traitor's word at that, and call off the entire device that could turn the tide of this war? Of course not! She was her enemy, and nothing more! She couldn't trust her just so she could use her!
Not again!
Humming with an electrical pulse that was felt all around them, Adora watched in horror as the portal began to manifest behind the magicat, coming to live as the machine assembled itself behind her ex-friend. Without any source of power, without any logic or reason, the portal activated as the gravity fluctuated around them. There was nothing to keep the girl on her feet as she felt herself being drawn in.
She was terrified. She didn't want to go anywhere near that portal, or towards the girl who scared her right now. With the pull of the portal's gravitational force, she fell off her feet. She scrambled, scraped, tried to cling for anything along the ground as she attempted to pull herself away from the violent portal, unable to bare the thought of what was waiting for her on the other side.
Emptiness.
Darkness.
Nothingness.
It didn't matter. All that mattered was her attempts to escape from the dreaded machine.
An attempt that Catra wouldn't allow as she felt the girl's claws pulling the bun of her hair above her head. She pulled back Adora's head as she stared at her with a sinister grin, one that was excited about the torment that awaited her, and the vicious suffering she was going to endure.
"Where do you think you're going?" Her echoey voice asked, without moving that godawful grin from face. "This is exactly what you wanted, wasn't it?"
"N-No! NO!" Adora shouted back as she felt Catra continuing to tug her along. Somehow the feline was kneeling at her side all throughout this, as if completely unaffected by the suction of the portal and the void that awaited her. "I didn't want this! I-I didn't want any of this!"
"Like that matters anymore." Somehow the terrifying grin intensified as Catra began to pull against her arms, Adora doing everything in her power to stick to the floor. "It's like I said, Adora. I'm more of a hero than you'll ever be." And it was with the glow of burning red eyes that Catra's final words shook her to the core.
"Now, let me show you how I deal with villains~!" And with a horrendous scream, Adora was pulled back by the magicat, Catra's cackling laughter as she held Adora against her will as the two were pulled into the burning fires of the portal, the cries of a thousand lives screaming from the other side as she grew closer.
"No- Let me go!" Adora begged as her tears flowed from her face and into the void itself. "Catra! Catra-!"
...
And then, she woke up.
"CATRA!" Adora panted as she shot up out of bed, heaving and sweating incredibly as her eyes still watered uncontrollably. She felt like her heart had ran a mile while outside of her own body she was breathing so heavily. She surveyed the area only when her breathing finally became stable, taking in the sight of everything that belonged to her with as her hands shook.
She was back in her old room, one specifically given to Force Captains like her. People that deserved such luxuries when they performed harder than anyone else in the Horde. More than that, these very walls that surrounded her, her room, her bed, reminded her of where she was. She was home with the Horde, where she had always been, and where she was safe.
"Huff... Huff..." It took Adora another minute of heavy breathing as she stared down at her own two hands, waiting for the shaking to finally stop. She could feel the amount of sweat through her grey tank top PJs, the tips of her hair draining with liquid... no, not just her hair. Her eyes too. They were tearing again, outside of her control. Everything about this situation, all that was present, was how she woke up from every nightmare she had suffered.
For the last several weeks since the Portal incident.
Wiping her eyes dry, the Force Captain took one last deep breath through her nose before exhaling, lying her head back against the pillow with her wrist over her forehead. How many times was she going to have this nightmare? How long would it be before they go away? Months? Years? Never?! She didn't do anything to deserve this. It was all Catra and her stupid friends' fault, she was sure of it! What, now that they beat her in reality, they were going to deprive her of sleep next?
*beep-boop*
"Ahhh!" Apparently not. The next person that came to startle her wasn't a person at all. It was a single lonely droid by the name of Emily that whirred and wooed at the sound of Adora's persistent squirming, to her trembling. It was a gesture that was supposed to be comforting in some respects, or something that was just supposed to irritate Adora to no end. "Eghhhh, Emily..." She grumbled, grabbing one of the several pillows she had before chucking it at the purple light of its sensor. "Get out!"
The robot let out a sad whirr as it beeped again, shaking its body as if it was scrambling amongst its legs before finally making its way out of Adora's room. Adora waited with a stern pair of eyes as she watched the droid leave through the automatic doors, and once she was sure it was gone for good, she moaned, stretching her arms briefly before lying back into bed.
So many things bothered her. The Rebellion. She-Ra. The Portal. Catra. Everything that plagued her in her life all came from that one lowly girl who used her constantly, day in and day out. She didn't know how much of Catra was greedy anymore, she didn't know how selfish she still could've been, and she didn't care anymore. Someone like that, someone as manipulative and deceitful as her, didn't deserve to be called a hero. Adora was going to prove to her and the rest of Etheria that she was the hero the world needed, that the Horde stood unified for everything right with Etheria.
It wasn't even a matter of personal pride anymore, it was vengeance. Vengeance against the girl who ruined her life, payback after everything she stole from her. She was going to end Catra's reign if it was the last thing she ever had to do, and prove to her that she was the true hero out of all of this no matter what happened to her. And she would use any means to put a stop to Catra once and for all.
Even if she had to cut her down for good...
...
...
The intro starts with a mysterious pair of gauntleted hands holding a communicator pad, showing a still image of Catra on it. The hands shake as their grip tightens on the pad, and the image dives into the screen.
~ We're on the edge of greatness ~
Where we have Catra staring off with anger into the distance of the Fright Zone to the left. With a turn to the right, the scene transitions to a view of her new home of Bright Moon, with Catra's new outfit and an unsure look upon her face.
~ turning darkness into light ~
From behind in the valley, the two she's come to know as friends teleport behind her, running up to her side with a small hug each, and turning the uncertainty of doubt into a small smile of her own.
~ We're right beside you ~
Compared to before, Catra accepts this with a soft pat on their shoulders as the three begin running towards the cliffs. Bow readied at the arrow, Glimmer donning her new Queenly attire, and Catra drawing her sword for battle.
~ Ready to Fight! ~
With a jump through the air, Catra descends forth as She-Ra, prepared for battle as she draws her weapon to the Horde army below.
~ (fight, fight, fight fight) ~
And following right beside her are her two friends, weapons drawn, and magic blasted as the three storm the battlefield.
~ We're gonna win in the end! ~
Mermista rises out of a tide, smirking to herself against the colorful warm background with trident at the ready.
We must be strong, and we must be brave ~
Perfuma burst from the bud of a sunny flower, captivated by the tranquility of nature surrounding her with glee.
~ (we must be brave) ~
Frosta skates her way across the scenery, morphing large chunks of ice into weapons over both her hands with a silent laugh, followed by a masked Entrapta stares into the view before lifting her mask off with a hearty smile.
~ We're gonna find every bit of strength that we have ~
The scene shifts to Hordak's throne room. Where once Hordak sat, now Adora lounges with her new outfit in his place with the former standing at her side in contempt, a cruel smile on her lips, surrounded by her old squadron, and Double Trouble, glancing aside at Adora with a grin. Scorpia stands to the side, eyes closed and sad. And throughout it, the camera zooms in on Adora's right eye as it changes from blue to red, all while a sinister dark spectre of Horde Prime appears in her pupils with a black outline and glowing green eyes.
~ 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 crossed blades, as the Force Captain herself grins with chaotic excitement as the electricity of her twin swords lights up her face.
~ (Oh ah Oh) ~
Adora and Catra push each other off as they back up into their friends: Double Trouble and Scorpia for Adora with the Horde standing behind them, Bow and Glimmer for Catra at her sides as the Princess Alliance stands bravely behind them.
~ 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.
...
...
The wreckage didn't tell him anything else he didn't already know. The bots were completely scrapped, the devices that made these advanced machinations beyond obsolete. There was nothing around him better than junk and scraps at best. The rest of these useless tools and metals were nothing more than a paperweight at most as they littered every corner of his sanctum. The only one that drew any interest to the side-leader of the Horde was the lone droid that lied atop his lab table.
And not because it amused the once proud Hordak as he examined it.
Like many of the other droids, this one was scrapped from every angle, this one in particular looking as if something had sliced it in half, something other than a troublesome warrior and her sword. The fringes of the edge were dissolved by something with a high combustible energy source, the fractures along its internal circuitry being dismantled by sheer force of strength. This wasn't just a show of brute strength or intelligence. These were made by the tools and weapons crafted by everyday civilians, a militia in some cases. A single militia managed to do this to an army of droids, and who knows what else.
All because of that, possibly. Eyeing the mysterious object within the center of one of the destroyed droids, Hordak plucked a single object from the wreckage, a small pink meter-like device that was integrated within the core of the machine. Nothing like this existed within the Horde's database, and he was pretty sure he would've known if something like this, in pink, was ever made by Horde hands.
There was only one probable explanation behind this, a question that left his mouth on pure instinct.
"Was this your doing," he narrowed his eyes as his throat turned to bile, "Entrapta?" To think, a once promising scientist he actually didn't mind having at his side, would turn traitor like this. To betray the Horde, to betray all it stood for, and... to betray him.
"Entrapta!" The sound of his own imp mocking him with the sound of his own voice was enough to cause a blush, a real blush, to form over his cheeks for the first time in his disgraceful existence. "Entrapta! Entrapta!" The voice was mocking and teasing the fearless leader of the Horde as he dove under his hands, avoiding the swipes and blows that tried to strike it as it rose high into the air.
With nothing else at his disposal, Hordak chucked the very object he plucked from the machine, attempting to shoot down the irritating ingrate that nimbly dodged to the side, bouncing the small device off a large pipe. The object landed a short ways away at the other end of the room where another figure stood waiting, watching as the small device slid across the ground to their very feet. It almost amused Adora as she picked it up from the ground with little curiosity, enjoying the drama that played out before her.
But not as much as she enjoyed the sight of the very imp landing on her own right shoulder, rubbing its face against the side of her cheek as she scratched its pur-like-filled chin. "You really outta try some compassion once in awhile, Hordy~" Adora teased with a smug grin, enjoying the sight of her former abuser scoffing at the sight of her. "It might win you some friends."
"Ghhh... Despara..." He seethed as he returned to the work at hand.
He loathed the name more than anything within his domain, within his rule. Then again, considering she forcefully took judgement over who ran what around here, there wasn't much left that was his. All the countless fools and subjects that bent to his will still obeyed without question, but ultimately, the final choice and say was under Adora's thumb.
However long that was going to last.
"What is all this junk?" Adora questioned, observing the various tools and broken parts as she approached.
Groaning, the former leader of the Horde released the pent up aggression, knowing he was going to have to play her little game, for now. "The rebels managed to capture one of our bots and retrofit it with some sort of surge device. It decimated an entire squadron of our machines." He explained, going about his business as he grabbed one of his tools, seeing what he could salvage from the various wreckage.
"Tch, broken bots and broken dreams." Adora rolled her eyes, squatting next to a large hump of a broken droid. "It's the same story over and over again. When are you going to learn, Lord Headache." She smirked as she scratched the imp under its chin again. "It doesn't matter how many droids you make in your spare time. What really wins the day is loyalty and obedience. Isn't that right~?"
"Loyal! Loyal! Loyal!" The imp mimicked as it opened it's mouth, playing a sound-for-sound portion of Adora's words all over again. Grimacing at the annoying imp, and how easily it turned traitor when it found someone else to fear and respect, the nefarious leader flicked a scrap of metal directly at its forehead, scaring off the poor creature as it flew away again.
"Loyalty means nothing if you don't have the manpower, Ad-" He shook his head in annoyance, remembering his current place. "Despara. Loyalty won't mean anything without soldiers, and soldiers are nothing without power. If you intend to run the Horde as you see fit, you'd do well to remember that lesson."
"Yeah, yeah, your bots are tough and shiny, I get it." Rolling her eyes again, Adora's smile twisted playfully as she stood by his side, tossing the coin-like object back and forth in the palm of her hands. "You have your toys, I have my soldiers. But how many of those do you lose on a daily basis compared to me?"
*swiff*
Adora flinched as the ex-leader swiped the object before her eyes, narrowing his own with a small scowl. "Do not be flippant with me, Despara. No matter what power you think you hold over me, do not think for a moment that I will hesitate to be rid of you if your agendas put the entirety of the Horde at risk."
Cute.
Simply cute.
He still thought that he held some sort of presence over her, that she was intimidated by the very sight of him, and the sound of his threat. She almost wanted to call it adorable if the person themself didn't revolt her so much. "I'm just saying. My soldiers seem to be doing pretty well in comparison. I'm starting to wonder if "Big Boss Man Prime" will make me his new general when he sees how well I'm doing compared to-"
"Even you, Adora, should fear being this bold in my presence." His rage knew no bounds as he began to march up to the girl, his glowing red eyes burning with a hatred as backed her up a step at a time.
He would not allow any sort of playfulness such as this when it came to matters of his one and only master. He toyed with her disrespect and put up with it all till now, but there was a limit where even HIS infinite patience with this girl would run thin. She could destroy him, he could destroy her, it didn't matter to him. All that mattered was that she learned what true fear really was. "I-"
*clap*
*clap*
*clap*
That noise. That stupid clapping. He's heard such a pat before when Adora thought once to foolishly applaud him for something trivial in the past. He was hearing it again after so long, coming from the same person who was standing right in front of him.
And fifteen feet away from him to his right.
"Bravo, brava." Adora cheered passively as the worried look over the previous Adora's face smiled once more. "Not a bad performance, huh? Like looking in a mirror." Hordak shifted his view between the two Adoras as the one in front of him gave a small bow, walking her way over to the new one as the true leader of the Horde gave the proper introductions. "Lord Hordak, I'd like to introduce you to Double Trouble. We met when I was out scavenging Mara's ship for parts."
Hordak watched with amazement as the familiar cretin he mistook transformed before his very eyes, watching their body morph with a night's illuminating sky as they changed in size and appearance into what they truly were. A bizarre green-skinned tailed figure that stepped forth, bowing graciously before their captivated audience. "They're going to help us take down the Rebellion for good."
"Apologies for being rude." They said lifting their head up as they backed away to Adora's side, hiding behind her a little for protection. "I was getting into character. Did it work? Be honest. As always, I'm open to constructive criticism." Somehow, Adora became the second-most disgusting creature within his presence.
"A shape-shifter." The creature that stood before him wasn't unknown to the technological mastermind, having not seen one for countless years. To his knowledge at least. He was also a little baffled that anyone, much less Adora, managed to acquire such an asset. "Do not attempt to deceive me again." It was there that Adora, the real one, had the exact same thought about Hordak's dire warning that the doppelganger had previously.
His threat was cute.
But not intimidating.
Especially when she eyed the small crystal around the collar of his exosuit. He followed her gaze to the same suit as he grimaced, knowing exactly what she was thinking. Unlike her exoskin-based suit, she didn't need a crystal to keep it empowered, or to keep herself alive. It was that very detail that gave her a slight edge over him, with the shadows at her possible disposal making it near impossible to reach her in a fight from a safe distance.
Biting his own tongue, the ex-leader returned to his work as Adora watched in satisfaction, glad that the fearless leader finally knew his place for the time being. "So, what's with all the broken toys?" She asked, gingerly making her way to his side as she sat atop his work table.
"The bots were a part of the occupation of Elberon. A failed operation. The rebels seized the town." Adora shook her head at the information. To think, not two weeks ago, she would've taken the news with a dash of salt, the bittersweet information rolling down her tongue with disgust. Now, it was nothing more to her than the foolish rebels making a mistake they were going to regret later. "It seems their tactical capabilities have increased since... Since Entrapta returned to them." And yet he still knew what to say to make the bile rise up once more.
Even after all she's accomplished, more than tripling her previous alliances with various towns and outposts in the last few weeks compared to her first few months as his Second-in-command, he still felt the need to bring her up now and again. If it wasn't for the fact she knew he wouldn't attempt to rile her up intentionally, not with his suit's limitations, she would've sworn he was doing it on purpose.
"It is of no consequence. I will improve our machines and we will seize Elberon back." This he swore.
"Why Elberon?" The Force Captain asked, glancing over the broken droids. "It doesn't seem any more important to Horde than any other town we've come across."
"It may have escaped your notice, but we are trying to win a war."
"Win this, win that. You know, that's what your biggest problem is, Hordy." Adora commented as she pulled one of the coils from a broken droid, playing with it and bending it between her fingers. "You always focus on how to take over the place when you should be focusing on how we can get them to work with us even if they don't want to."
... He had to admit. She piqued his curiosity ever so slightly as he contemplated her words. "And what do you propose, then?" Adora said nothing as she grinned, looking off to the center of the room where Hordak's eyes followed.
There, sitting cross-legged atop a mound of debris, was the newest ally and recruit who went by the name of Double Trouble. Everything that went on with her plans involved them in one way or another. They were going to bring the Rebellion crashing down upon them with her newest ally, one who could transform without giving off their scent to Catra in any regard. They would be the ultimate weapon at her disposal, and, together, they were going to change everything.
And it all started with a little town by the name of Elberon.
...
...
"That's when Catra turned her sword into a long chain sickle, punctured it with the blade, hooked it up, and slammed it into several more bots like a wrecking ball!" Bow exclaimed through the data pad's video, all while the smug Catra rubbed her claws against her chest nonchalantly with pride.
"What can I say? I'm a natural." She only says it because she knows its true, grinning with pride as she stared back into the monitor. "Personally, I think my favorite part though was when Bow used one of his oil slick arrows to slip them them, gathered them at the edge of the cliff, and then I slammed the one I had into them like bowling pins, knocking them over the edge. Bam!"
"And I kicked them!" Swift Wind added, popping into the screen with the same enthusiasm as Catra tried to shove him out of her view.
"Yes! Get them." Glimmer cried out in cheer as she pumped her fist. This was what always excited Glimmer since her reign as Queen began several weeks ago.
Throughout the many proceedings and work she had to do, what with all the meetings, all the business she had to conduct, and resources to distribute throughout the Rebellion, she was beyond exhausted spiritually as every dull task kept her from enjoying the fun stuff that the rest of her friends were going through. The only semblance of fun she had was listening to their reports through the data pad about how they kicked the Horde's metal butt over and over again.
Even if she was stuck hundreds of miles away from Bright Moon.
At least her job as the new Queen was going relatively well. Among the many assignments she had, one of the few that she actually enjoyed was coming up with the new missions and details that Catra and her friends always found themselves on. In a way, it still made her feel like she was part of the mission too as she assigned the tasks they would then complete.
Take the mission to the Crimson Waste for example, the very first mission she assigned as her role as Queen. With Huntara and Perfuma at their side, Catra and Bow were tasked with retrieving a First One's vehicle, Mara's ship, from the desolate wasteland so the Rebellion could repair it and have an edge over the Horde. It was a simple enough task with Huntara acting as their guide, the same huntress who stayed behind soon after the mission was finished, and Perfuma's magic over her plants to carry it.
Like all of their missions had been up to this point, and most likely will be for the foreseeable future, it steadily got worse before it got better. For the current mission, it came down to the very ship being taken and dragged away by the Horde, to the very friends and allies who went on the mission to start with.
Between Catra's apparent need for acting out to prove she wasn't soft, unknowingly missing Glimmer throughout the day, Perfuma's inability to command the cacti surrounding them, the one plant she saw as the bane of her existence, and Huntara's old friends betraying her and selling her out to the Horde when they were trying to search for the ship, there was no end to the troubles that chased them all throughout the Valley Of The Lost.
And like the many missions they had beforehand, eventually, everything started to work out. Catra had accepted she wasn't the same Horde soldier she once was, Perfuma managed to use the powerful roots of the Valley to hoist the ship up, Bow used his technological expertise to track and locate the ship through a Horde badge from a jacket her collected, one that Catra was still wearing, and Huntara provided the encouragement the two needed to hear to push themselves through the day. And in the end, everything was resolved by the time Glimmer appeared to lend her support.
Yup, everything was just the way it should be!
... Except for her. She was still missing out on the missions, with the most exciting part of her day being waiting for the meetings to be over. All she could rely upon was her trusty data pad to keep in touch with Bow and Catra on a daily basis as they went on the missions they usually did as a trio, the missions that brought them closer together as friends. If it wasn't for them right now, she was pretty sure she would've died of boredom as a Queen by the third day alone.
"And just when we thought it was over, a dozen more of the bots swarmed all around us!" Catra continued, drawing her sword from her collar for dramatic effect. "And that's when..."
"My new surge device worked perfectly." Bow revealed, showing off the very device that would continue to lead to the Horde's downfall. Circular in shape, pink in color with a few wires along one corner, and coin-like in size. "Took out the rest of the bots in one go."
"And I kicked them!" Swift Wind wanted to make sure the new Queen would never forget how valiantly he kicked them!
"Amazing." Glimmer always wondered what it felt like to be proud of her friends like her mother always did, and now she knew. "Those bots didn't stand a chance against the Best Friend Squad!" And then she realized how her mother must've felt when she gazed around the room again, feeling the same feeling that the Meeting Room represented.
Emptiness.
There was a small divot in Glimmer's expression as she frowned, the once boisterous Queen looking glum as if she had seen a depressing film. "I really wish I could've been there. At least you'll come back soon, right?"
"Uhh..." Bow checked over the magicat's own expression as the three walked through the woods. She had something of unease within her eyes that was filled with guilt, partly masking the excitement she was feeling at the same time. "Soon. Yeah. There's just one more thing we have to take care of."
"Er... Y-Yeah! It's just some small, eh... p-patrol we're taking to make sure we got them all." Catra's best efforts to sound genuine were met with skepticism, but at least they were better than Swift Wind's involvement with what he said next.
"The people love us because we saved Elberon, so they're throwing us a celebratory dinner!" The device practically screeched with Swift Wind's announcement his voice was so high pitched. He was completely missing the look of annoyance coming off of the two friends as Catra rolled his eyes and Bow stared in abstract silence.
"Heh. A dinner? That sounds like fun." Glimmer said, trying to sound supportive of her friends.
"Ah, i-it's nothing much, just a small thank you, a few snacks, you know." Now Catra could understand why Bow told her not to sound too excited about the dinner for them as she shoved Swift Wind away. The look in Glimmer's eyes alone was enough to make her feel guilty about what she was missing out. Too bad she neglected to tell Swift Wind the same thing.
"Yeah, I mean, I bet they do this for everyone." Bow conceded, recognizing the same look that Catra noticed.
"You guys, of course they wanna thank you. You freed a whole town from Horde control! I just... Ugh..." This was so unfair. She was the Queen, which meant she could've decided how things were run around here, right? So why couldn't she make a stupid rule that allowed her to go on missions as often as she wanted?!
"Well, if you need us, we could always skip out on the dinner thing?" Bow suggested before Catra shoved into his way.
"Or, better idea, you could just ditch work and come join us?" Catra threw in a little enthusiastically. "I mean, missing one meeting couldn't hurt, right?"
Apparently it did have to hurt, because the immediate response to this was Glimmer sighing. "Catra, we've been over this. I have too many duties now as the new Queen." Honestly, she was touched when she found out Catra actually missed her a little since the last mission. She just wished she could get through to her about why she couldn't hang out like they used to. "I can't afford to be missing if something happens. What if the Horde suddenly attacked Bright Moon?"
Catra merely blinked at this as she shifted her eyes to the side for a few seconds, returning her view to the monitor with a small grin. "All the more reason to come and be out of harms way then, right?"
"Heh, that would make for a decent excuse, couldn't it? I'm sorry, Catra, but I really can't."
"Mmmh... Do you know how much you're pushing my niceness-quota for the day?" The cat's brow furrowed as she grumbled.
"You can put it on my bill. Really, go enjoy your victory you guys. You earned it."
Great, because I am famished. Are we going now?" Swift Wind popped in again as he shoved Catra's head away with his own. It was times like this Catra could understand what it was like being someone else while another Catra was at her side.
It was painfully obnoxious.
"You really aren't missing anything." Bow assured as the three made their way into the central hut of the village. With such a remote setting, with simple people and folk alike, it was hard to expect anything glamorous from this place. "You know, we'll drop by for a little while to be polite-"
"Pick you up a few snacks." Catra threw in.
"-and be back home."
"Seriously, it's a small village in the middle of nowhere." Catra chuckled as she and Bow pushed open the double doors. "How much of a party can it be?"
*POOOOF!*
"Whoooooooo!" It was hard to tell which surprised them first, the incredibly loud sound of party favors going off with streamers and confetti, or the insatiable crowd that was applauding with cheer the moment Catra and Bow stepped through the door.
For such a seemingly-peaceful quiet village, this place was the furthest thing from it!
All around them, the Main Hall of the village was packed to the brim with people in just about every shape and color. They stretched as far as the very end of the room to the edges of the surrounding wall. Nothing about this place didn't scream party to these two as they stood there, mouths gaped open from utter shock, and faces filled with disbelief.
Streamers and balloons stretched across every archway connected to the ceiling, the overhead chandeliers were lit with candles at every foot. Every single one of these people were showing their utmost affection and cheer for their town's heroes. It was almost hard to tell if they were all here for their accomplishments or just here for them, they were so cheerful.
The biggest draw to any of this, the thing that truly caught Catra's eyes the most, was the sight of the far wall in the background. There, for reasons she couldn't explain, for answers one couldn't check, there was a memorial dedicated to her, Swift Wind, and Bow, in the shape of a large painting. The entire wall in the back had the rough details of their characters drawn about, each of them holding their weapons or themselves with honor as they represented the best and the bright of Etheria.
If Catra didn't know any better, she could've sworn she was in Plumeria again, remembering the way they all cheered for her for just being her as they praised and adored her. Only this time, she knew this was for her, not She-Ra. She could look at this place and say to herself that absolutely nothing could ruin this day for once.
And the rain of confetti never seemed to end as it piled over their shoulders and head.
"What was that?" Glimmer could be heard asking through the device. "What's going on?"
"Horde's here. Gotta run!" Catra stammered before charging into the crowd with Swift Wind at her tail.
"Gotta go. Wish you were here." And with Bow turning off the device before stashing it away, he soon followed suit.
This was going to be a very interesting day.
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A/N: God, this is going to be a fun party X) It'll even be a funner episode with what i got in store for you folks... Heh heh heh X)... Eh hem, but uhh... With that said! Not much else to say about this overall since we've barely just started.
So with that said, hope you all enjoyed! Leave a like, fave, follow, and review and hope to see you soon!