A/N: Final Word Count: 9.9k Pre-A/N's. Woohoohooooo! Man this was a fun chapter to write ^^ Everything about it was exciting to do between the characters, the party, and the small action we got towards the end (which, not to worry, there'll be plenty more of next chapter and the one leading after it). I don't really have much else to say on this chapter, though I am glad i managed to get the size to a nice chunk after the last minor chapter I threw in. Hope you guys are ready because by the end, the excitement starts to mound X)
And with that said, enjoy!
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"Get everything into position, pronto!" Adora shouted as she directed the soldiers rushed about to their assigned stations.
"You heard Commander Despara! Move it people!" The helmet-wearing Captain of her guard ushered, following about the various soldiers as they went about their assigned duties. Adora watched as the various guards and soldiers went about their work, watching carefully for anyone that could be slouching or slacking off on the job as she stood at the top of the base's bridge within the center.
This was going to be the day that she finally brought the Rebellion down to its knees, one way or another. All the soldiers ran about as they set up the base's defenses within the woods, preparing all the necessary precautions that were needed to ensure Commander Despara's plan succeeded without question. None of them were brave enough to incur the commander's newfound wrath or anger, not that any of them were foolish enough yet to propose such a thing.
For this to work, Adora needed to make sure everything was in place. That everyone did as they were instructed for a change without her having to hold their useless hands through it. Anybody that slacked off from their duties were no better than a nuisance, and a blemish on the Horde. She was going to make sure everything ran as it should be from start to finish. And she wasn't going to allow anyone to give her the same phoney useless excuses they always did.
Everyone felt her menacing gaze on them, nobody was brave enough to look up from their posts or stations as they continued to do as they were told. Soldiers were carrying heavy crates they were unloading from the multiple skiffs, others were unboxing them and assembling the machinery that was housed inside. They all knew what their tasks were, and they all knew better than to do anything that would cross Despara.
No matter how unsettling it was to watch for some of them. Such as a close best friend that continued to follow her from behind.
"Heh, eh, everyone's working pretty hard. Huh, Adora?" Scorpia commented with a questionable chuckle, watching the soldiers pushing themselves for the first time in Adora's presence.
Adora didn't give her any glance or gaze back as she remained focused on the people around her, watching from above to ensure they performed their duties admirably. "As they should be." Adora stated, reaching the end of the bridge as she walked down the small metal staircase. "This is how I should've been from the start, Scorpia. I mean, look at them all! Before they were lazing about going at half their speed. Now? They're working like their lives depend on it, mostly because it does." For a moment, there was a brief flash of red over Adora's eyes as she said this, reaching the grounds of the base herself.
"Y-Yeah, yeah, I know. We need to keep our defenses up and everything..." Scorpia said awkwardly, scratching the back of her head as she watched the soldiers running about. Some of them ran a little faster as they noticed Adora's approach, most likely due to the fear of her anger that was coming off of her. "So... I was just wondering and all," she went off as she poked the tip of her claws, "exactly... how long are you going to do this whole "scary-Adora" thing for?"
"What do you mean?" Adora continued to keep her attention ahead of herself as she signed a small checklist handed to her by a guard.
"Well, it's just with the whole... you know... pretending to be this "big aggressive person" all of a sudden and pushing everyone around you." She tried to explain herself as Adora finished the brief list, continuing on ahead. "Like, how long exactly do you plan to keep it up for? Is there a certain day or time you'll be done with it, or-?"
"Scorpia, I don't know what you're talking about." There was an emotionless streak to Adora's tone as she walked about the base. "I'm not acting for anyone or anything, I'm just being me."
"O-Oh, right, Despara, heh, yeah. I get that. But, aren't you getting, like, tired of the whole charade?" Scorpia continued to walk on as Adora stopped unknowingly. "You know we haven't played a single board game or something in weeks, and I don't think we've hung out lately except for missions or-"
*thump*
Scorpia stopped as she suddenly bumped into the smaller Force Captain, looking ahead of herself as she noticed Adora standing still as if in thought. She didn't give the taller girl any bit of her attention as she squeezed her fists to her side. "Scorpia, I want to make this perfectly clear before this day is over." She stated as she turned to her with her reddened eyes. "This is the new me. The current me. Look around for yourself!" Her friend did as she was told as she watched the bustling soldiers and guards.
"Before I became this way, people needed my approval to wipe their own two feet and tie their shoelaces. They kept wasting my time with the pointless nonsense like if they could get a break or a drink when they needed one, like a bunch of children! On top of that, I was getting pushed back and forth constantly with stupid requests on top of the paperwork I had to do!"
"Now? Nobody pushes me around. People are getting their work done on time, they're putting in more effort than I've ever been capable of pushing them through. Not only that, but I finally have others doing the paperwork for me, which I should've done in the first place if I wasn't being so gutless."
"Gutless?" Her friend questioned. "Adora, you weren't being gutless, you were being compassionate. You were being nice, and friendly, and-"
"And everyone was taking advantage of it." Adora cut off with a scowl. "So I want to be perfectly clear, Scorpia, because this is the last time I'm going to say it. This, is the new me. I will be as hard as I need to be. I will not be soft-hearted person I was in front of these soldiers or anyone else when we're in public like this. And you had better get used to me like this, Scorpia, because until this war is over, I'll never be the same again. Are we clear?"
She almost shocked Scorpia with her words as she said this. She probably would have if Scorpia didn't notice a small twinge in her expression for a minute, one that almost looked apologetic and depressed about everything going on around her. But before she could call her out on this, Adora walked away, continuing to make the necessary preparations for the outpost, and leaving Scorpia with her thoughts.
She really has changed over the last few months. She's gone from the kind-hearted girl she used to laugh and play with to... this, within a matter of weeks. She didn't smile as often as she did, she didn't usually want to hang out with her like they used to, and she honestly can't remember the last time she gave her a hug within the last week.
At least, not one that wasn't followed by a small growl in her throat.
But at the same time, she knew. She knew, she was confident, that all of this was because of the Rebellion, the people she was trying to defeat. She knew the person Adora was deep down wasn't this crazy overzealous commander who cared more about her mission than her troops. After all, she was the one who risked her life to shut down the portal world when they were all stuck inside of it, and even though Catra ultimately destroyed it in the end, she at least tried.
She knew with a certainty that what Adora needed right now was a friend. A friend that would listen to her every step of the way and help her through her problems until the fight with the Rebellion was over. She was going to do her best to make sure Adora came back to her so they could go back to the good old days like they used to. Maybe if she helped enough, Adora might calm down about the possibility of returning Entrapta from Beast Island, too! It was a large gamble, but one that deserved the risk to reunite the three friends together.
And then, once it was all settled, she knew. She would turn back to the Adora who cried to her occasionally when the stress was overwhelming. They would go back to being the great friends they already were, like a "Best Friend Squad" or something. Scorpia didn't know if they would actually be something that ridiculous sounding, much less if that even existed, and she didn't care. She knew, when the Rebellion's days were over, and Etheria was reunited under the Horde, that everything would go back to normal within the Horde, as well as her best friend.
At least, she hoped.
...
...
The music sprang across the room as the Central Hut of Elberon was abuzz with celebration. Instruments, dancing, streamers, food, every festivity fit under one roof, every possible piece of a party standing before them. They were standing in the center of one of the biggest parties they had ever seen before, and it was all for them!
They couldn't even understand why! Okay, sure. They just liberated Elberon from the Horde's clutches a short while ago. It wasn't anything major, it was a simple battle, really. They whacked a few droids, blew up a few others, dismantled pieces of a tank, all that sorta stuff. And it wasn't like they've never done something so heroic before. Almost all of their missions involved the Horde at some point, even ones where they were just dropping off relief supplies to ruined towns.
And, almost every time, they earned nothing more than a simple thank you, maybe a parting gift or two. Not that Catra was in the mood to complain since she always welcomed a small reward from all of their hard work and effort.
But this? This was something far beyond the scope of anything they had ever seen before. The entire Hut was decked out with all sorts of goodies and party favors, half of which none of the three had ever seen before. The colorful confetti was still raining from the sky almost every five minutes as the party drew on. Catra, Bow, and Swift Wind still couldn't take their eyes off from everything Elberon had to offer as they stood within the center of the room. This village might've been happier than Plumeria, and that was saying a lot!
All around them people played and praised to their heart's content. There was laughter, there was dancing. Children were playing with the remains of a broken tank as if it was a jungle gym, grown adults and children alike climbing over one of the larger bots the trio had destroyed through their hard work. Several of them were still setting up decorations and paper mache cutouts of the three heroes who saved their village. And under it...
Oh gosh, under it, was the greatest sight that Swift Wind ever beheld. Someone was making figurines out of the likeness of the trio, all out of thin bendable wood and straw, and a feather! It was a size fit for a child's toy as they ran off with it, passing the starry-eyed pegasus who couldn't believe what he was seeing.
It was a spectacular party to behold.
"This... is a party..." Catra said as the three of the stared off blankly in the same direction.
"This is a big party." Bow was stunned as he spoke, the riling crowd of partygoers surrounding them in every direction.
"And it's... It's all for us!"
"It's a big party for us!"
"Bow, be honest. This isn't because I'm She-Ra or anything, is it?" Catra trembled as she anticipated the answer. "I'm still in Plumeria, right? Am I dreaming right now? Are they celebrating for me or are they celebrating for She-Ra?!"
"Even if they were celebrating for She-Ra, that wouldn't explain why they're celebrating for us, too." Bow tried to calm down. "This is really happening, and I think it's for us us!"
"Ah, there you are. Our heroes." The three turned to the source of the chipper voice as they saw the head of the village approaching them in her traditional garbs. "Oh, we couldn't possibly thank you enough for liberating our town." She felt so honored as she shook the hands of the town's saviors, including Swift Wind's hoof, one at a time.
"Yeah, no problem, whatever. Listen, just out of curiosity... Is this supposed to be celebrating She-Ra-me, or just me-me?"
"She-Ra-you?" The village head questioned raising a brow. "No, no, of course not. This is to celebrate your heroic deeds and all that you've accomplished for us. For all of you."
Oh my gosh, I love this place... It was official. This was Catra's new favorite place in all of Etheria as she grinned. With the confirmation that this was in support of her and her deeds rather than her just being She-Ra, she no longer had the nagging sensation of deja vu from Plumeria. If she stayed to party, she could stay to party indefinitely without any underlying fear.
"It was really nothing, r-really." Catra smiled back, unaware as a small blush of excitement formed over her cheeks. "We do this sort of stuff all the time. I'm just surprised by how big this whole party is."
"It was supposed to be a small dinner. You know, a quiet meal, but then word got out and suddenly everyone's invited. So here we are." The woman explained, returning a small smile herself. "Rowdy, calling attention to ourselves, we're basically sitting targets."
*BOOM!*
"What was that!?" The woman jumped with fear as her butterfly-like wings springing to each end for a second.
Along the sides of the wall, the source of the massive explosive sound came from the toys the children were playing with, as in fully armed and stable Horde tanks that were filled to the brim with confetti. The very same confetti that continued to rain upon them as they continued to fire off a shot every several minutes.
"... Okay, okay. Terrifying booming sounds were probably a bad idea." She was relieved that the Horde nightmare was just a false alarm as she straightened out her hair. When she made her way over to to a quiet halt to the shenanigans, another villager appeared to Catra's side, one skinned in pink and bulging in muscles like she's never seen before.
"She-Ra. You saved us!" There was no warning for the feline warrior as she found herself crushed under the bulk of woman's muscular arms, the pink-skinned woman squeezing the life out of her as she suffocated her in a hug. Catra could've sworn she actually felt her ribs being crushed a little bit closer together as the grateful woman smushed the side of her face against her chest.
"Mmu... memmwy don't mave to moo mis... Mish mah mob... Mit mas muffing... (You... really don't have to do this... It's my job... It was nothing...)." Catra muffled into the woman's arms as her bluing cheeks were practically touching on the inside.
"And Tech Master Bow of the Rebellion." The woman continued as she finally released the suffocating girl to approach the famous archer. She gave the archer some more leniency as she threw a muscular arm over his neck, pulling him over. "Oh, you have to show off your arrows to the kids. They're obsessed with them."
"Really?" The unsure archer looked behind him as he saw a sight that neither Catra nor Bow could ever see coming.
Standing before the surrounding adults, were a handful of winged children who were all giving him a nervous smile of joy. In front of those very kids was another one, a small boy with a bluish tunic, who slid gracefully against the floor as he fired his toy bow and arrow a foot ahead of him. They all wanted to be archers just like the infamous Bow, the Tech Master of the Rebellion, when they grew up. And as Bow waved to the giggling children who took off after, his eyes watered with joy as he realized one thing.
He had his own fan club!
"We've heard stories of your victories," the woman recounted as Bow silently wept with joy, "but to see you destroy those bots in person? Mmh! Amazing!"
"That's nothing compared to when She-Ra took on the monsters of the Northern Reach. Or when she single-handedly won the Battle of Bright Moon!" A fluttery child a little over half a head shorter than Catra's jumped in, regaling the incredible victories that were brought on by none other than Catra herself.
"Ah, well, you know, it wasn't really anything special." Catra gloated as she crossed her arms uncaringly, admiring the view of her own still-growing claws as she smirked. "It was just me, being awesome as always, while protecting all of Bright Moon by myself..." She grinned further internally as the girl's eyes sparkled like a star at the announcement.
"Didn't the other princesses show up to help you, though?" Swift Wind whispered lowering her head to her.
"Shhh!"
"Just awesome? Try incredible!" She exclaimed, pumping her fist in to the air. "You fought off the Horde, you united the Princesses, and you saved Etheria-"
"Hey, now, it wasn't that big of a deal." Catra tried to pass off with a playful roll of her eyes. "All I was doing was saving the entire world from the brink of destruction... for the second time in my life." This lone girl was the greatest source of Catra's amusement as her sparkling eyes widened in anticipation and wonder.
Squealing to herself, trying her hardest to hold back a scream as she squeezed her mouth shut, the pink-haired butterfly finally dropped the four greatest words that Catra always wanted to hear from a complete stranger. "You are the COOLEST!"
Coolest...
COOLEST...
COOLEST...
All around her, the world became silent to the magicat as her pupils widened. Within the course of 30 seconds since meeting this mysterious young girl, she had done the impossible, done what no other being in existence could ever possibly do. Legends spoke of such a feat only being capable by the gods themselves, a higher source of power that would need to bend to Catra's will just for her to consider such a possibility.
There could be no denying it. There could be no misguidance or false truth to the thought proclaiming dominion over Catra's mind. She knew it, right then and there, the one thing she knew about anybody who would run up to her out of nowhere and state she was the coolest person ever to them.
"You... are officially... my all time favorite person in the world..." Catra stated without worry nor care, turning her attention to the beloved stallion that was always at her side. "Swift Wind, you're fired."
"Fi- What?!" The horse stammered as he threw his head back in disbelief. "What am I fired from?!"
"From being my sidekick."
"Sidekick? I wasn't your sidekick, I'm your partner!" The horse nearly cried for a moment, thinking she was referring to that.
"Then pick something I can fire you from so she can join in!"
"Why do you need to fire me in the first place? Why can't we both be your partner or sidekick?"
"Because I already have Bow and Glimmer, and no good hero has four sidekicks by their side!"
"Wait, since when are me and Glimmer your "sidekicks"? We've saved the world and you countless times."
"Which is exactly a sidekick is supposed to do."
"We're not your sidekicks!"
"Neither am I!" Swift Wind snorted.
"Then why are you yelling?!"
"BECAUSE YOU FIRED ME!"
"Hahahaha! You guys are hilarious!" All three heads turned to the young girl as she bellowed out with laughter, all of them getting a small chuckle out of it at their own shenanigans. Regardless of however much Catra meant or joked about, as she usually did, it was always refreshing to see a child warming up to the group as quickly as she did. "One day, I'm gonna leave Elberon and join the Rebellion, fighting side-by-side with you. I'm Flutterina, by the way." She greeted as she extended a hand.
"Catra-"
"Ohohoho!" Catra nearly flinched as she barely touched the hand back when she got the reaction that she did. "I'm shaking hands with She-Ra!" Never has Catra blushed before from being too overwhelmed by someone's adoration for her. Remaining silent as she glanced away, she gave the girl a playful toothy grin that twinkled with light, giving her a small wink of approval as she did. "Ahahahahha...ah...AH!"
*flap!*
With a burst of excitement, an unknown excitement rushed over the young girl as her wings fluttered open, nearly fainting as she fell back into the muscular woman's arms as she panted out of breath. She felt like she touched the face of heaven itself for a moment. Catra couldn't contain herself as she casually brushed past the seemingly frozen girl who was stuck in a trance, pulling Bow along the room as she found a spot to talk in private.
"Bow. This is really happening, isn't it?" The disbelief filling Catra's mind was unprecedented as she gazed around the room. "This whole party? It's for us? Please tell me I'm dreaming right now, I'm going to be so mad if it starts getting good and I wake up in the middle of the night!"
"This isn't a dream, it's for real!" Bow nearly squealed himself, his eyes flashing with excitement as he squeezed her elbows to prove this was reality.
"Everyone loves us!" As excited as the magicat was, all the optimism in her mind slowly drained away along with her ears as she remembered the missing member of their group. "But... We told Glimmer we wouldn't stay long..."
"Yeaaah, but weeee have to stay for now." Bow drove on, shifting his eyes around as he came up with the possible excuse- er, reasons, for why they had to stay. "It would be rude if we just left in the middle of all this, right?"
"Oh, r-right!" Catra instantly beamed up again. "It would be insincere! We're just being polite, that's all! We'll just stay until- AHHHHHHH!" With a near-screech, Catra swiftly pushed Bow off to the side a little as the most captivating piece of art drew her attention. "They have a Me-Cake! A Me-Cake!" The wonderful work of art was one of the greatest tributes to Catra's awesomeness that she had ever known!
The cake itself was designed out of her She-Ra likeness, two of the hosts wheeling it in on a cart as the cake stood at a good three feet in height. Each layer was stacked upon with a white frostine at the base, a flower-ish decoration at the center for her chest, and a mix of brown frostine with an orange coating for the third layer at the top, one decorated and designed off of her She-Ra appearance. They even had a slim separate cake for her sword, they even put detail into her tiara for crying out loud!
She was so enamoured by the presentation that she didn't register or care in the slightest as Bow squeezed her by the cheeks, staring into her eyes in pure shock as both their mouths dropped open.
"This is the best Party ever!"
"LET'S PARTAY!"
The two were convinced that it should have been illegal for a party to be this amazing. And they loved every second they were breaking the law.
...
The party went off without a hitch as the gang integrated themselves throughout the ordeal. One of the first things Bow was proud to do was show off his amazing card tricks to the children, his fan club, something he was still tearing over having, with his new deck of cards he had to replace after Huntara speared his previous deck. Like many times before, he gladly showed off his mystifying skills to the young children as the entire deck disappeared before their very eyes with the wave of his hand, just after flipping them through the air from one arm to the next.
They all gasped over the sight of the vanishing cards. Where did they go? They couldn't have gone up his sleeves, especially since he had none to begin with given the shirt he was wearing. The archer himself seemed to be at a complete loss over the mysteriously disappearing cards, feeling around himself as he appeared to have misplaced them.
All throughout it, the one naysayer of the group was an older woman who watched bored and dulled out of her mind. She didn't want to watch these stupid card tricks, she wanted something more exciting! All she was getting was the same trick of the cards that could trick any five-year-old crybaby. When he decided to show her some real magic, THEN she would be impressed.
As it turned out, she didn't have to wait very long.
Casually making his way over to the bored girl, Bow hummed to himself carefree as he stared out at the ceiling, the woman watching through a puff of her hair as he approached her. Thinking nothing of it, the girl wasn't the least bit drawn to him until he did the unthinkable. Reaching behind her head, through dense hair just behind her ears, he produced one of the mysterious cards before her, the woman shocked beyond measure as she stared at the mystical card. It was simply amazing!
The same ounce of fun could be seen from Catra's side of the room as she continued to chat along with Flutterina about all the wonderful stuff here, as well as how wonderful she was in general. Their fun little talk came to an abrupt pause as one of the many Horde banners, ones that were X'ed out and drawn over from the children, suddenly loosed from its post, covering the unsuspecting butterfly as she fell from the recent tumble.
Lifting up the edge of the banner to get a look at the girl's face, finding out Flutterina was okay, Catra did a small double take between the girl and the post before grinning. In a few seconds, there was a small flash of light in the middle of a crowd before the proud and mighty She-Ra stood before the crowd, the people cheering as she helped Flutterina reach the top of the post along the wooden beam.
With the banner fully secure, the room burst into another round of laughter and applause once again as Flutterina sat upon Catra's She-Ra powered arm, the two laughing among themselves as they waved to the crowd around them.
It was official; Catra loved it here.
*splash!*
It was a sight to behold as a certain figure watched the young kids on the side. All of the kids were having a roughhousing good time as they all dunked their head in a large barrel of water, bobbing out for the apples as fast as many of them could without using their hands. Joining in on the fun, the same figure dunked their own head in as the kids continued to play.
One by one, the kids returned their heads to the surface, some of them with an apple in their mouth from the tip of its stem or the apple itself, and those who didn't were joining in on the laughter as they saw the dunked and watery faces of their fellow friends and siblings.
That's when they noticed the last of the partygoers who were lifting their own head out of the water. Mane completely soaked in every direction, the figure lifted their long white neck from the water before shaking it about profusely, trying to throw the watery hair out of their eyes as the kids chuckled from the small sprinkle of water. What was even more amazing to them was the proud Swift Wind that at the center of them, carrying not one, not two, but three full apples in his mouth at the same time, earning him the biggest laugh from a group of children he's ever heard.
Kicking things off back on his end, Bow was having the time of his life as he was teaching the young future archers of Etheria, aka his fan club, aka the thing that was still making him teary eyed by this point, how to practice their aim. One after another, he watched as the young archers attempted to hit the center of the makeshift bullseye constructed out of a paper plate, hanging from one of the beams of the mighty party-filled hut.
He watched as each of the archers performed valiantly against the dreaded piece of paper, each one of them being polite and taking turns as they all shared the same toy bow and arrows each of them had. Every one of them performed to the best of their abilities despite never hitting the target, much less reaching it. The closest any one of them came to was the second youngest girl of the group managing to hit the base of the beam itself, which earned her a rousing cheer from her friends. He could admit, she was pretty good.
Now, it was time for the main event.
With a sly smile as he stepped forth, Bow produced his own set of arrows he unleashed one at a time, in style that only he was capable of. The first shot firing straight into the center of the corner left of the plate, the second shot hitting straight above the bullseye as he turned, barely having a glimpse of it as he fired behind, and then for his third and final shot to thee right corner, he did the unthinkable for the kids. He bent backwards from where he stood as he shot upside down and from behind, hitting it squarely in the corner.
With all three of these arrows combined, they formed the perfect triangle as they distanced themselves from each other at a perfect length. And for the added icing on top, pulling out a fourth arrow from his options, instead of hitting dead center in the middle of them all like the kids expected, he shot the forth one straight into the air, the kids watching bedazzled as his trick arrow exploded above them into a beautiful array of fireworks and sparklers. Truly, he was a gentlemen in scholar... among other things.
The party itself continued to be more than a fun time for the rousers as they continued to partake in their various party favors and tokens of appreciation. In particular, Catra, still in her She-Ra attire, was enjoying herself as she casually yawned, leaning an arm across the table with her elbow firmly planted into the wood.
On the other end of the spectrum, or the table as it were, nearly a dozen civilians could be seen trying to beat the incredibly powerful She-Ra in a game of arm-wrestling. Oh, it wouldn't be much fun or fair if she went all out on them, right? No, no, she decided to be lenient and let them all face her at the same time. And by lenient, it meant pretending it didn't amuse her as all of their hands struggled to pull down her awesome muscles at the same time.
She could applaud them for a notable try. She thinks at one point she actually felt a nudge in her elbow. Then again, she also had an itch to deal with which threw her off too for a nanosecond. Yup, these future soldiers and warriors of the Rebellion sure were giving it their all, but sadly, Catra was going to have to let them all down as her hand slowly started to desce-
*SPZZZZZZZT*
*Thud*
Keeping whatever freakish reaction she could bottled up inside of her, Catra nearly hissed in fright as the soaking gallon of water sprayed her from behind. This one brief distraction was all the townsfolk needed to finally catch the magicat off guard, slamming her fist back against the table victoriously! Who happened to be the perpetrator behind this horribly wretched surprise attack?
Why, a lowly little archer by the name of Bow, one who was grinning cheekily back to the girl as he covered his mouth in laughter. Normally, her immediate response would've been to pulverise, beat the brains out of, or throw anyone across the room after dousing her with so much water out of nowhere like that. Friends included. But, with the fun atmosphere going on around here, making up for a decent change of pace, the feline joined in on the laughter, getting caught up in all the excitement around them to be too angry about anything.
It didn't help that several or so kids dogpiled her immediately after either from the large group of wrestlers, still wishing to play with the infamous She-Ra.
And she wasn't the only one having more fun with the kids either as Swift Wind came abound. Mere moments after getting his tail braided by a hairstylist that truly knew her stuff, or just wanted to get a horse's butt out of her face as soon as possible, he found himself caught by several tiny hands pulling on his luscious tail, turning his head back to find the dreaded culprits ruining his great posterior. As it turned out, those hands belonged to several young children who were eyeing the horse with a certain curiosity, one that made the noble steed turn to Catra for a second to get her approval.
It took a simple nod before the majestic stallion found himself flapping about as he flew a short distance around the large hut. He was a sight for many to behold as the three children on his back praised and cheered for the incredibly awesome steed they were riding on. Already, many of them were hoping one of their parents would get them a flying horse for their own birthday, hoping to fly like the wind like the white stallion between their legs!
If only they knew...
This is how Catra and Bow eventually found themselves dancing at the center of the hut along with the dozens of other dances moving about. There was no other place in all of Etheria like this one, no other mission that had gone this smoothly for them, and no greater reward than this party right here! They didn't know what paradise was, but they were pretty sure this party was the closest thing to it!
This was, hands down, the single most greatest day, of their lives.
...
By now, at least several hours into the party had flown by by the time Catra had collapsed alongside Swift Wind, the latter resting his weary and exhausted head as he lied on the floor, Catra using him as a pillow right beside him. The horse himself had a party horn still tucked away in his mouth, lacking the energy to spit it out by this point. Unless Catra needed him of course. For now, he was just content to rest by the fire as the party continued around them.
"This... is the single greatest place... in the world..." Catra officially decreed as Swift Wind raised his tired head a little, blowing the party favor.
*Twooooooooot~!*
"Is it possible to actually party too much? Because I swear, I have never had so much fun before at a party."
With the small jerk of his ear, the gallant steed raised his head further as he looked to his left, noticing a certain archer missing from their side. "Hey, do you see Bow anywhere?" He asked.
"Ah, he's fine." Catra casually replied, leaning against the horse in relaxation as she pointed further away. "He's over there nerding it up with the kids over there."
Sure enough, true to her word, Bow as indeed showing the kids the technological marvels of his work. Among the several children who were watching with anticipation was the older one among the kids, a delightful and eager Flutterina who was watching curiously as the tech expert was fiddling with something on the other end of the hut. "-connect this wire over here like this, and throw this switch, and viola! You have yourself a personalized miniature EMP!"
"Ooooh!" The several kids watched with interest as Flutterina blinked at the small makeshift device.
"Does it really work?" She asked, watching as the archer disconnected the wires from his data pad.
"Well, for one this size, you could get it to work on something within a few yards of yourself." He stated, reconfiguring his data pad as he put the tools away. "If you want to take out a whole bunch of bots, you'll need to find a bigger power source to hook up the data pad to. Just make sure you don't need it though cause otherwise you'll short out your own electronics with it." He offered the data pad to examine it for herself, the pink-haired butterfly examining it up closely.
"Hmm..." The curious winged girl poked at her chin curiously before noticing the magiat across the room. She gave another smile and greeting as she waved to the hero of the hour, Catra grinning a little back as she waved a small hand back in turn.
Relaxing with herself, Catra eased herself back into the horse's side as she rested her eyes peacefully. She almost wished another Horde attack could happen so they'd have another party to celebrate soon-
"It's the Horde!" The familiar head of the village shouted in worry as they ran in, catching the three heroes by surprise.
And leaving Catra with a dramatic sense of bad timing as she jumped to her feet.
The three heroes gathered near each other as the woman approached, Swift Wind shaking off a few flowers from his mane as he prepared for whatever action was upon them. "Our scouts have reported a bot. Several of them, unlike anything we've seen before. And they're on their way here!" The woman fretted as the townspeople murmured among themselves, worry coming over people by the handfuls. "Oh, we need to evacuate the town. Now."
Catra glanced around as she listened to the gossiping and whimpering people left and right. All these people, these people who've been nothing but nice to her and her friends since they saved them? They didn't deserve to lose their town! Especially one that was great at throwing parties like they did.
Besides, if they evacuated now, the Horde would easily tear through this place and none of them would have a home to return to, simply building new ones would leave them defenseless to further invasions. When it came down to it, defending their home was the best bet either way.
"Everyone, calm down." Catra called out to the worrying men and women alike. She gave them all a confident smile, as did Bow, as she gazed around the room. "You're under my protection. Let She-Ra handle this."
"... She-Ra. She-Ra. She-Ra! She-Ra!" The crowd began to chant in cheer as they praised their honorable savior. Catra's ego had never known such heights before coming to this village. It was then that she knew once and for all.
She was officially moving to Elberon when she got back, forever.
"Are you sure we shouldn't prepare?" The head woman asked with concern in her eyes. "As I always say, cautious today, here tomorrow."
"Relax, it'll be fine." Catra assured as she soothed her shoulder. "If there's one thing I'm the best at, it's smashing bots. Plain and simple. We'll find the bots, take care of them, and be back in time for another cake. The rest of you enjoy the party till I get back!"
"Woohoo!" The cheering crowd roared as Catra dashed away, passing through the partiers as she made her way to the door with Bow at her side and Swift Wind to the other.
"Ugh, why do our parties have to end with the Horde attacking?" Bow complained as he settled his quiver and devices.
"Ah, relax, Bow. You can stay here with the rest of them, I got this." Catra said as she encouraged the skilled archer to remain. "You can keep them all safe while I take care of the bots myself."
"Are you sure?" Bow asked as Catra ran up ahead with the majestic pegasus.
"Swifty and I can handle this. It's just a few bots, and I've been training with Light Hope against dozens at a time." She fitted herself over the horse's back as she held onto his braided mane. "Go enjoy the party, I'll be back in no time."
"She-Ra and Swift Wind Forever!" With a rallying cry, the majestic horse burst from the ground as he flew off into the air, leaving behind a large gust of wind as Catra chuckled a little, still having a bit of the partiness rushing through her veins.
Soaring through the air, wind brushing past both their manes, Catra found herself smiling for a change as she couldn't wait to finish a fight against a Horde bot. Once this was over, they were going to swing right on back to the party, they were going to continue having a ton of fun, and she was going to throw herself right into whatever cake they made for her next! Man, she actually couldn't wait to go somewhere for a change!
Maybe she could get Glimmer to tag along too once she saw what the party had to offer. Being cooped up in the castle like that with nothing but boring meetings left and right, it would drive anyone crazy. She's surprised Glimmer hasn't up and ran away somewhere with all the work she was given. Catra would be out of that castle within two days if she had to put up with meetings like that.
Although, come to think of it, she's never been a real princess before.
"Down there." Swift Wind directed to the small clearing down below. Catra couldn't tell if she was just seeing things on her end, but she could've sworn the bot they were looking at below was sort of... small... Like, really small. Maybe it would get bigger when the two flew down closer to it?
... Nope. Still small. The horse landed gracefully as Catra jumped from his back, walking across the field as she approached what she presumed to be the bot. "This is the Horde's newest droid?" She lifted a brow to the strange machinery in front of her, if it even was that, as the bot remained motionless.
It was unlike anything Catra had ever seen before, and given all the weird stuff she's been through since her adventures began, that was saying a lot. She's seen droids that were threatening, droids that could level entire beings. She's fought them a dozen times in the forest, sometimes in the mountains, once or twice she even had to do it underwater! If it wasn't for the fact she did so in her She-Ra state, she would've hated the water more than the fight itself.
And these things were the furthest thing from the word "threatening" to her.
These... droids... things... were incredibly small compared to their usual size. They were about half the size of a droid, about two to two-and-a-half feet in radius, and completely silver. The one that stood before her barely came up to her knees as She-Ra, and didn't have any comparable features to it that stood out to her. Why, the fact it didn't have any notable features WAS the part that stood out to her. It was just silver, all around.
The only spot around it that had anything different to it was the top of it, or possibly the bottom of it if this thing was upside down. There was a small circular line running around it, about the size of her palm. Beyond that, there wasn't anything about this thing that came out as dangerous to her.
"Awww, I think it's kinda cute." Swift Wind said with a smile, lowering his head towards it as he saw his reflection shining off in the polished silver. "Hey there little guy."
"Swifty, it's not a... ehh... I'm honestly not sure what it is, but don't get so close." Catra warned, pulling his head back a little as she kept her eyes on the bot. Scanning the small clearing they were in, she could see several more of these orbs lying about, one of them rolling back and forth almost in a playful manner. Turning her attention back to the one in front of her, she slowly rose her sword to the top of its possible head, giving it a small tap to see what sort of reaction she could get out of it.
*clank-clank*
Still nothing.
"So... do they just stand there or-"
*PPPPPFFFFFF-*
Immediately, Catra and Swift Wind jumped back a decent foot as they prepared themselves for the silver bot ahead of them. Whatever Catra did to anger it or get a reaction out of it, it appeared to have an immediate effect as the small circular lining over its top began to burst with a bit of steam. Steadily, the two watched as a small hydraulic press began to force its way out of the silver tin ball, stretching itself further into the air, annnnnd doing nothing like everything else it did.
The two blinked as they stared at the orb still, confused beyond words. All it did was lift up the hydraulic press about a foot into the air and nothing more. Like the droid itself, it was still useless beyond measure, and incapable of being any possible harm to them.
It was practically a dud.
"Still think it'll attack us now?" Swift Wind playfully teased as Catra approached it again. The magicat remained silent as she got up close and personal to the device.
Despite Swift Wind's assurance, something about all of this wasn't right. All of this had Adora's handiwork to it. The deception, the peaceful nature. Something about all of this was telling her that the droids were more than they let on to be. She just couldn't figure out what at the moment. If it was that easy to get into Adora's head, she would've beaten her a long time ago.
Watching for another few moments, seeing a small reflection of light pass over her face's reflection in the orb, Catra tsked to herself with a small moan, standing up again as she decided to take off. "Yeah, let's just go." The moment she said that, the same droid's hydraulic popped back into its own body before rolling halfway in her direction. There, the small droid began to hum to itself as its body shook fervently, all the while Catra went about her business. "It's probably some new spy bot the Horde invented or something. We can get Bow to dismantle one or something to check it out-"
*WHOMP*
"Look out-!"
"Huh?"
*WHAM!*
"Augh!" Catra yelped as she let out a cry in pain.
In a matter of seconds, the droid that barely came up to her knees in height delivered what might've been one of the most painful strikes Catra had ever felt, and that was saying something given her current She-Ra state. Using its own hydraulic press as a launch pad, the small orb-like droid shot off like a cannon ball as it slammed into Catra's back, knocking her clear off her feet as it bounced back off of her.
She felt like she was just struck solid by a skiff ramming into her, wincing in pain as she rubbed her sore back a little before glaring back at the troublemaker who she showed the slightest bit of mercy to.
A mistake she wouldn't make again.
"Catra!" Swift Wind yelled with worry as he ran to her side, giving his own stern look as he stood protectively over his friend. "Are you okay?"
"Ngh... I-I'm fine." She spat, wobbling a little as she made it back to her feet. If she wasn't fortunate enough to be in her She-Ra state, she was convinced that would've broken her spine in two. "Just sore. Keep your guard up." She cast her eyes in the surrounding area as she saw the other roly polies beginning to come to life themselves, counting at least five others in the area as they began to advance on her.
Readying herself, she caught sight of the next rolling silver ball as it lunged at her head, shooting off like a bottle rocket that was ready to shove her head clean off her shoulders. She was more than ready for it this time as she morphed her sword into a spiked mace, bating away at the sphere like a giant baseball as she shot it back where it came from, directly at another rolling ball that was making its way closer to them.
At the same time as her, Swift Wind neighed fiercely as he backed his feet up to two of the approaching balls, managing to slam both of the projectiles back towards the trees from his force. Their armor continued to prove its durability to them throughout the constant bashing as Catra had yet to see any dents along their surface from where they struck. She couldn't see so much as a scratch on them, really. It was then that she realized one detail too late as she fisted another ball back to its predecessor.
These balls were a lot smarter than they appeared.
Before the launched ball could smash into the other one, the second sphere did the unthinkable as it showed off a display of higher intelligence. Positioning itself again like all the other ones that used their launching capabilities, it shot off directly at the ball shooting at it, knocking it back in the air as it ricochet'ed off its partner.
The projectory launched it right back at the magicat who braced herself, feeling twice the pressure being applied to her as she stopped the ball's launching with her bare hands. It almost burned as she felt the sphere spinning rapidly in her hands until it came to a complete stop.
Growling at the irritating contraption, Catra noticed how the small hydraulic opening remained partially vulnerable, giving her the insight she needed as she forcefully dove a fist right into the small circular spot of the large sphere. To her satisfaction, as expected, she managed to break her fist into robot's interior body, pulling out all its circuitry and wiring until it finally powered down, and throwing it threw the air as she watched it explode twenty feet away.
"The round openings on their head." Catra shouted as she backed into Swift Wind. "It's softer because of the hydraulic parts within their system, that's their weak point!" With Swift Wind nodding back to her, the two readied themselves for the firefight on their hands, knowing the battle was far from over.
Or, maybe it was? As soon as Catra had spoke those words, all of the roly polies came to a sudden stop. The steam of their hydraulics simmered a little bit as they shook to themselves, Catra and Swift Wind preparing for whatever surprise attack they had in store for them next.
An attack that never came.
Instead of continuing to assault the heroes head on, the remaining five orbs began to roll away from the duo, all of them converging on the center of the clearing in a neat and orderly line, side by side against one another.
"What are they doing?" Swift Wind asked, keeping his questionable eyes on the bounceable droids that continued to simmer with steam.
Catra refused to let her eyes off these machines for even a second as she reformed her sword to its original state, gripping it tightly in front of herself as she prepared for anything. "Don't let your guard down. They're definitely up to something."
Noticing the distress concerning the magicat's emotional state, Swift Wind tried to give her some words of comfort as he smiled back to her a little. "Oh relax, I'm sure it's nothing. How could they possibly get any worse than this?"
With a final burst of steam from their soft centers, all of the roly polies began to freeze as they initiated another portion of their capabilities. Opening up each of their weak spots one at a time, the small rolling orbs began to practically hop onto one another as they formed a small stack of orbs piling on top of one another with perfect balance. The five two-foot droids all formed a small tower of a sort as it now stood at a glorious ten foot height, at least an orb and a half taller than Catra was in her current state.
That wasn't he part that became most troubling. The troubling aspect came from what happened next.
From within all of the opening weak points among each of the droids, the hydraulic presses within them suddenly shot up and into the next droid, connecting them to the next droid on top of them as they formed a solid stack of a tower of orbs. The five remaining orbs let out a great burst of steam in all directions, spreading around themselves a few feet, as they fully integrated and connected with each other in a perfect unison.
Lastly, as if the big tower stacking wasn't enough, the combined bots topped off their small performance by what happened to occur next. At the top of the very large tower, and along the edges of each of the orbs, two more unnoticeable openings appeared. For all the orbs under the top one, small leg-like protrusions, the ones that resembled a centipedes, burst into the open, skittering against the open air as they awaited the head of its body.
Said head was the last thing to fully form as its own two openings began to make way for its pincer-like jaws, ones that were more than capable of cutting down a whole tree in a single snap, or an unlucky Catra if she was unfortunate to get caught in its grip.
With all the portions connected and the protrusions grown along every orb, the towering droid finally began to back itself up as each of the orbs slowly came down to the ground floor, its mandible-like jaws snapping threateningly at the magicat as it cast its unseen eyes in her directions. What it now lacked in height it made up for in its near ten-foot length, and its ability to conceal the most vulnerable parts of its body by working together, putting them at odds with the same durability they had yet to break the surface of.
Whoops.
"Ooooooh, that bad, huh?"
"WHY DID YOU HAVE TO ASK THAT!?"
...
...
"Should we still evacuate?"
"We don't even know which direction they're coming from, we could end up walking straight into them."
"Maybe we shouldn't have filled the tanks with confetti before she left."
"Everyone, everyone, calm down." Bow waved his hands soothingly as he drew the many eyes of the worried townsfolk. He did what he could to ease the burden and fear that was filling the minds of so many in what was supposed to be a fun party. "Listen, I know the Horde is dangerous, but you have nothing to worry about. Catra's the Rebellion's strongest warrior, a few droids are nothing to her."
"Yeah! She even saved all of Bright Moon all by herself!" Flutterina cheered from above one of the giant broken droids in remembrance as many eyes were being comforted.
"Exactly." Not quite the way he would've put it, but close enough. "Catra's a lot more capable on her own than anyone else I've seen. I bet she's on her way here right now after dealing with those bots. Then we can go on back to having a great party!"
*knock*
*knock*
*knock*
"Speaking of which..."
There were a few shrieks and jumps as all eyes turned to the front of the hut as the party echoed with the sound of a casual knocking. Where many some people were met with questioning and worried eyes, Bow's were met with a smile over his face and a light in his eyes as he approached the door for himself.
"See? What did I tell you?" He said looking back as he opened the twin doors. "She's right on-" And it was when he looked back that he realized; time wasn't on their side at all.
It wasn't Catra.
It wasn't someone else from the Rebellion.
It wasn't anyone hat Bow would've preferred to the alternative.
As opposed to the charming, carefree, grin of a magicat that had just gotten back from her mission, he was instead greeted by the sight of a familiar figure that stood before the rest of them. It was the last person on Ethera that Bow ever wanted to cross paths with on his own, or the army she had waiting behind her sneering gaze as she saw a familiar face in return.
"Hey, Bow..."
...
...
...
A/N: Heheheeeee! I love doing cliffhangers ^^ I know, it's *SHOCKING* to hear, but its true XP They always leave people on the edge of their seats, they leave them in anticipation for the next episode, and they provide so much need to watch the next episode immediately after. It's one of the things I love about the She-Ra series, nearly every episode ends with an exciting build up at the end towards the next chapter in some way. Whether its a clever twist or a shocking one, it'll always leave you wanting more ^^... just like the season five finale leAVES ME WANTING MORE AFTER EVERYTHING I JUST WITNESSED-!
Phew, deep breath... sorry, I just can't get over that finale still even today XP lol
Anyway! Hope you all enjoyed! Leave a like, fave, follow, and review if you enjoyed and hope to see you soon!