Carlos and Glimmer had just arrived back at the rebel camp. Carlos had been giving a
talk to some trainee scientists in the city of Bright Moon. He wasn't his usual self.
His forehead was strained with lines of worry, his approach was less than talkative, and
his face was stern and grim.
"What's wrong,
Carlos?" asked Glimmer. "I've never seen you looking this worried
before."
"I'm really worried about
Adam." Carlos told her. "I have the feeling he's in serious danger. Earlier
on, I could have sworn I saw him- in the form of He-Man- in chains, and being repeatedly
stabbed. I think I'd better go to Doom Tower to help him. If I'm not too late- I
would have gone before if I hadn't had to give that damn talk"
"We should leave at once
then!" said Glimmer. "There's no way I'm letting the Horde get the
better of Adam.."
"I say he be fine!" came a
strange little voice from above in a tree. Glimmer and Carlos looked up, and saw Kowl, a
little owl-like creature with large rainbow-coloured ears who lived inside the tree,
emerging from his hollow.
"When I've been sleeping,
the truth always dawns on me- and I'm not worried about Adam in the slightest."
he said.
"I sure hope you're right,
Kowl." said Carlos. "Usually I know these things, but today my mind just
isn't right for it. At least we've still got you around. I really hope that
Adam's safe."
"He sure is safe." came a
familiar voice from behind. Glimmer and Carlos spun around to see Adam standing behind
them, safe and unharmed!
"Adam!" cried Glimmer,
running up to him and hugging him. "Thank goodness you're alright!"
"Told'ya so!" said
Kowl, from up in the tree. "No words from Kowl are not to be trusted!"
"You're a real hero!"
said Carlos, breathing a sigh of relief as the lines of worry and concern faded from his
face. But then he noticed something very strange- Force Captain Adora was standing some
inches behind Adam! "Adora?" he called out. "What's she doing
here?"
"Ha! Adam's captured her, I
bet!" said Glimmer. "Now we can get her into jail where she belongs!"
"Not so fast, Glimmer."
said Adam. "Adora's got an announcement to make. Tell them, Adora."
Adora walked up to Carlos and
Glimmer. They instantly noticed a slight change in her- her face seemed a lot more
sincere, the lust for killing seemed gone from her eyes, which now looked beautiful and
innocent.
"My friends," Adora began,
"And yes, I mean my friends- I have left the Horde behind. I was only serving them
because I was brainwashed as a child. I have no wish to hurt you- instead, I wish to join
the Great Rebellion, and aid you in ridding this planet from Hordak!"
"Great Gods.. can this be
true?" said Carlos.
"Well," said Glimmer,
"didn't Adam think that sword was meant to be for her?"
"He sure did!" said Carlos.
He stepped up to Adora, and shook her hand. "It's gonna be a little hard for me
to get used to this- but I'm damn well pleased to have you as part of the
rebellion!"
Glimmer also shook Adora's hand,
and said "I'm the leader of the rebels- and I say that if you're sincere-
you sure can join!"
Then Adora fell to her knees, and
said "I now regret to extremes all the murders I committed. All the times I made
innocent people suffer! And please, allow me to make amends for all I did! I will help
defeat the Horde, and repair all the damage I did to this world!"
"You'd better announce it
to the whole rebellion." said Glimmer. "Come with us."
Glimmer, Carlos and Adam led Adora
into the centre of the camp, and Glimmer called a meeting. Within five minutes, the whole
of the rebels who were present had gathered together. When they noticed that Force Captain
Adora was there, this provoked instant angry reactions. Several angry rebels charged
forward, brandishing their weapons. One man, aiming his pistol at her, screamed "You
are the woman who murdered my brother! You're gonna pay for what you did!"
"STAND BACK!" ordered
Glimmer. Carlos rushed into the crowd, and blocked the angry men's way. "Please,
all of you assemble in single order and listen to what we have to say!" Glimmer
shouted. "I understand that Adora has caused many of you pain and suffering in the
past- but she has something to reveal to you! So if you would control your anger, and
listen to her!"
The rebels just managed to make
themselves calm down. But many of them still held their weapons at the ready, hoping to
make Adora pay.
Adora stepped up to the crowd of
rebels. "All of you-" she began, "every one of you- I owe an apology. I
killed your friends. I killed your families. I destroyed everything that many of you
loved. And now I regret every moment of it. I know it shall be hard for you to
believe.. as I always seemed to love it so much. But now I find it hard to believe
that I could have loved a second of it. Now, my stomach turns when I think that it was I
who did all that." she hung her head down low, and bent down to her knees in front of
the crowd. The crowd stared at her, many of them suspiciously. Could this girl really be
telling the truth?
"None of you ever knew
this-" she continued, "but the Adora you have known for the past few years was
not the real Adora. As a child, I was kidnapped by Hordak, and brainwashed by the dreadful
powers of his master- Horde Prime. I spent the next twenty years with metal implants in my
brain, which controlled my whole mind- but I didn't even know they were there. At the
same time, Hordak told me many lies. He pretended he loved me as his daughter- when all I
really was to him was a tool for killing innocent people! And it sickens me to think of
all the things I have done!" a light tear seeped from her left eye, trickling down
her face. "And now- I cannot blame you for hating me, after the bad I have done for
you. But I want to join the rebellion- and fight to eliminate our planet of this cruel and
brutal evil that has threatened you for too long. And I can only beg of you- please give
me a chance. I am no longer Force Captain Adora'. Now I am just- Adora- member
of the Great Rebellion. And please trust me.. as I am entirely at your
service."
She fell silent, and a whisper began
to run through the crowd of rebels. Yes, this girl did seem sincere- but could they really
trust her? After all the evil she had done? Could she perhaps just be a very good actress,
and could this be another of Hordak's evil schemes?
"I think she's telling the
truth." said a man wearing dark glasses.
"She's lying!" shouted
one man. "Hordak's just sent her here to spy on us! She will kill us in the
night when we are not suspicious!"
"No.. I tell
you.."
"She's lying!" added
another man.
"Bitch! Give her the fate she
deserves!"
"Yeah!!! Let's all get
her!"
A band of rebel men charged forward,
wielding pitchforks and knives. Adora flinched back in fright.
"STOP ALL THIS
CACOPHONY!!!" yelled Carlos, pulling out an electric device from his pocket. He
flicked a switch, and a red beam emerged from the small device. He whisked it through the
air, and the beam caught the angry rebels, not hurting them, but driving them back, away
from Adora.
Carlos looked at the crowd of rebels
in pity. "I don't know who some of you think you are." he said, shaking his
head. "However much wrong Adora's done you, by trying to massacre her
you're not making yourselves any better, are you?"
"Er.. he's
right!" said one rebel man. "I am sorry sir.. we will cease violence for
now."
"I should think so." said
Carlos. "And if you're really that sceptical of the girl, my lie detector will
show you whether or not she's telling the truth." He pulled out another small
device from his pocket, flicked it on and walked up to Adora with it. A small screen on
the device flickered on. "Just tell us what you told them before." he said.
"If lie' appears on the screen, you're lying- if truth'
appears you're telling the truth."
"I have left the Horde behind,
and I wish to join the rebellion." said Adora.
The device began to click repeatedly,
then TRUTH' appeared on the screen, and Carlos held it up for the whole crowd
to see. Looks like she's telling the truth alright, doesn't it?" he said.
The rebellion were quite amazed, as
they had never suspected this girl would convert to their side, but as much as they hated
Adora, they could only take Carlos' word.
It'll take some time for you to
believe it." Carlos said, "but Adora's one of us now." lifting Adora
to her feet, he declared "Welcome Adora!"
Adora only received a minor cheer
from the crowd, which upset her a little, but she could understand. As Adam and Carlos and
Glimmer led her back to their hut, Carlos said "Don't worry, Adora. You'll
be met with a little hostility at first, but it'll die down girl. You'll soon
show them what you're made of."
"I sure hope so." said
Adora, smiling nervously. "And you know, Carlos.. I'm sorry for all
I've done.."
"You've no need to be
sorry." said Carlos.
"All the evil you committed was
really Hordak's evil." said Glimmer. "And now you've thrown off his
spell, we're more than glad to have you in the rebellion. Now how about we go to
Bright Moon, and show my mother our new addition?"
"That sounds like a pretty good
idea." said Adam. "Let's go!"
Adam, Adora, Carlos and Glimmer made
their way through the woods towards the city of Bright Moon. The Rebellion had gained a
new addition who would be more than powerful to their needs. But as yet, they didn't
know just how powerful..
PART 17: THE SAVIOURS OF BRIGHT MOON
Glimmer and Carlos entered Castle Bright Moon with Adam and Adora. The guards permitted
them once Glimmer had explained that Adora was on their side, and they made their way to
Queen Angella's throne room.
"Good to see you this evening,
Glimmer." said Angella. "But who is this you bring? Force Captain Adora? What is
she doing here?"
"Force Captain Adora is now a
member of the Rebellion." Glimmer told Angella. She quickly explained how Adora had
been brainwashed by Horde Prime as a child, but was now completely free from his mind
control and wished to help eliminate Hordak from their world.
Angella could hardly believe
this.. could it be true? "Is this true, Adora? Are you really joining our
side?"
Adora fell to her knees in front of
the queen, just as she had done in front of the rebels. "Your majesty, I beg your
forgiveness. I committed so many crimes.. but please do not jail me for them, as
that is all in the past."
Angella had never heard Adora speak
like this before.. she had never sounded this sincere. She really sounded like she
truly regretted her crimes.
"How can we be sure this is not
some sort of trick?" said Angella.
"I've tested it on the
lie-detector, and she's telling the truth alright." said Carlos. "Now we
can welcome this new addition to the Rebellion! And she wants to live in Bright Moon
too.."
"Then I am most honoured to
accept her as a citizen of Bright Moon and member of the Great Rebellion!" said
Angella. "Welcome Adora!"
Adora stepped up to the queen, and
shook her hand. "I've spent the past twenty years brainwashed.." she
told her, "but my brother came to this planet, and brought me to light.."
Now this sounded strange. Brother? It
was Adam who had come to Etheria to find Adora.. "so this means..
Adam's your brother?!" exclaimed Glimmer.
"That's right." said
Adam. "We haven't told you yet, but Adora and I are indeed siblings." He
slung a loving arm round Adora, his long lost sister. "I never heard about her
before, and that's why I had no idea who she was when I came to Etheria- but the
Sorceress of Grayskull, who sent me on this mission, told us both the story of how the
Horde stole Adora as a baby."
"So she's also an
Eternian?" said Angella.
"Yes," said Adora,
"the princess of Eternia. Yeah, that sounds even stranger, but mine and Adam's
parents are the King and Queen.. but don't worry, I won't be going back to
Eternia just yet. First I will help to ensure that Hordak and the Evil Horde are driven
from our world!"
"We're most glad to have
you with us, Adora." said Carlos.
"Now I can show everyone the new
Adora!" Adora added. "I'm no longer that hard-headed thug I was in the
Horde. I will now only use violence when it's needed- and I will drive the Horde from
this world if it's the last thing I do!"
"Congratulations, Adora!"
said Carlos. "How about a ceremony to celebrate your transferral to the
Rebellion?"
"No thanks, Carlos. I think
there's probably too many people who won't like me after what I did in the
Horde. Besides, I think Adam and I will need some sleep!"
"We sure do!" said Adam.
"Okay then," said Glimmer,
"there are a few spare bedrooms near me. You can go in them!"
"Sure thing." said Adam,
and they said goodnight to Angella, then departed to bed. Adam and Adora were exhausted
after their adventure- but it was not quite over..
Meanwhile, in Doom Tower, Hordak
was mad with rage at the rescue of He-Man by this red-haired heroine. Where had she come
from? She had rescued He-Man just at the moment he was about to die, and she had even made
off with both of the swords. Just as Hordak had been about to win against He-Man, and find
out the secrets within the two swords, this warrior woman appeared from nowhere and took
him back to square one. And even worse, after that she had somehow restored He-Man's
strength and gone and freed all the slaves down in the mines! Now he would be faced with
the task of not only recapturing He-Man and the swords, but capturing this heroine too. It
was going to be incredibly tough.. but Hordak knew he could never give in.
"Are you sure you didn't
see anyone come into the room and take the swords?" Hordak asked Shadow Weaver in her
chamber.
"Absolutely no-one." she
said. "I just turned around and they were gone."
"Thieving bitch! That woman must
have sneaked in and done it when you weren't looking! Lock the door when you study
from now on!"
"I will, Hordak. Normally I
would have done.. it's just my mind's still recovering from that spell
that He-Man backfired on me. That bastard.. he's even destroyed your best slave
plantations!"
"I know.. and freed most
of the slaves! But he will pay, I will see to it, he will pay! I will launch an air-raid
on Bright Moon! He-Man and that foolish woman will come after us then, and we will destroy
them! Where's Adora? I must have her assemble the thugs and prepare for our
attack!"
"I tell you, my lord, I have not
seen Adora anywhere."
Hordak flicked on his wrist-radio.
"Hordak through Senador. Senador- find Force Captain Adora and tell her to assemble
the thugs for an air-raid on Bright Moon."
"Right away, master."
Senador replied.
"Soon He-Man will pay.. I
will make sure of it!"
But several hours later, Senador emerged inside the main hall, and said "Mighty
Hordak, I regret to inform you that I cannot find Adora anywhere in the Fright Zone. I
have alerted all hordesmen to search for her, but she seems to be nowhere around here.
No-one reports seeing her in the last few hours either."
"Blast it. She must have gone
out to slaughter someone. But still, we shall still be able to carry out our attack.
Senador- assemble the thugs yourself. And tell Catra to be ready with the Horde Flyers,
and to prepare the best ones for battle- we must destroy the rebels and He-Man!"
"I will, master." Senador
departed, and went to assemble Hordak's band of thugs. Within several hours, Hordak
and Shadow Weaver were preparing the annihilator for battle, and the thugs were manning
the Batmex crafts and Horde Flyers. When each machine was fully armed and ready for
battle, Hordak issued orders through his radio to each craft.
"All crafts blast off for Bright
Moon at once! The rebels shall not escape our armed forces!"
The evil fighter crafts blasted off
into the skies, leaving furious trails of red hot energy behind them. Hordak was at his
most determined- and most dangerous as his angry swarm of crafts blasted through the skies
to Bright Moon.
Adam was woken up in the first
light of dawn by a terrifying wailing sound. It was the sound of a siren- the sound of
approaching doom. He quickly threw on his vest and trousers, and rushed out into the hall
of Castle Bright Moon. Through the window, he saw an army of Horde Fighter crafts, zooming
towards the city. They shot laser beams down at the tall buildings, scattering people
through the streets.
Adam was about to bang on
Adora's door to wake her up- but she burst out before he had the chance, wearing only
a short blouse and skirt.
"It's the Horde!" she
cried. "Now's my chance to show Hordak that I'm no longer one of his evil
band and to pay him back for what he did to me!"
"Should we become He-Man and
She-Ra?" asked Adam.
"Not yet- I want Hordak to see
Adora first. But we need the swords for when the time comes!"
Adam quickly darted back into his
room, and seized the sword of power, which was hidden below the bed. He emerged from his
room to see that Adora had done the same with the sword of protection. With their swords
on their backs, the two siblings made their way through the hallways of Castle Bright
Moon.
They passed Glimmer and Carlos along
the way. "See you two are already on the go." said Carlos.
"We'll be right behind
you!" added Glimmer.
Adam and Adora burst out into the
streets of Bright Moon, Glimmer behind them firing bolts from her hands at the flying
machines. High above their heads, Carlos blasted into the skies propelling his hover
beetle vehicle, its mechanical legs skimming the air as he shot bolt after bolt from its
eyes.
Up in Hordak's Annihilator,
Hordak laughed in evil glee at the poor citizens who were scattering from street to street
at the sight of the Horde machines. Soon they would be joining the injured and dead, who
lay sprawled violently across the streets. "But it's not them I'm
interested in.." shrieked the maniacal dictator, "I WANT HE-MAN!"
"I'm sure we will see him
soon.." said Shadow Weaver, "..but wait! There's Force Captain
Adora, running through that street down there!"
"What's she doing here?
Perhaps she was causing destruction here already. Shadow Weaver, open the bottom hatch of
this craft- I am switching to rocket mode!"
Shadow Weaver flicked a switch, and
the circular hatch in the ground opened up. Then Shadow Weaver halted the ship, and Hordak
began to change. His body began to whirr with energy, and his limbs folded up over the
rest of his body. Then a jet engine sprang out from inside him, and he blasted off,
through the hatch of the ship and down towards the streets below.
When he reached Adora, he quickly
transformed back to his normal form. "Adora, what are you doing here? Usually you let
me know before you leave to wreak havoc!"
"Wreaking havoc is something I
don't do any more, metal face. And neither do I kill. Neither do I torture. Neither
do I molest slaves. Neither do I even belong to your stupid army any more!!!" She
glared angrily at the evil dictator who had brainwashed her all those years ago.
Hordak didn't believe what he
was seeing. Surely there was no way she could have broken the mind control? "What do
you mean, Adora?" he asked. "You have always been one of my most faithful
servants.."
"Yes, when I was under that damn
brainwashing spell I was faithful'- but not any more. You're mistaken if
you think I'm gonna have anything more to do with you and your bunch of thugs- other
than fighting against you and driving you from our world! I am a member of the Great
Rebellion- and together we shall strive to free Etheria!"
A cheer went up amongst the citizens
on the street as they observed Hordak's most trusted warrior.. jilting him!
Hordak's eyes glowed red with anger.. "How did you break the mind
control?! How?! Which bastard did this.. NO!!! This cannot be!!!"
"Oh, yes it can-
Xazrog'!"
"And how.. did you know my
real name?"
"Perhaps the same way I know
that my parents are the King and Queen of Eternia? That you stole me from them as a baby?
And that you brainwashed me, and lied to me, telling me I was like a daughter to you when
all I was was a tool for conquering Etheria! You lying bastard!" And with that, she
clenched her fist as tight as it would go, and threw a mighty punch into his metal face.
Hordak fell to the ground. This was
something that he hoped would never come.. Adora coming to her senses, and attacking
him! As he picked himself up, he noticed a man standing nearby Adora.. a man he
recognised.. the man who He-Man had sent to Doom Tower to try and turn Adora from
him! No doubt he would have something to do with it! Pointing at the man, he shouted
orders into the sky: "Warriors- destroy this man! Strip him to the bone!!!"
"Don't you lay a finger on
my brother!" shouted Adora, diving into Adam and gently pushing him to the ground.
They looked up, ready to dodge the beams from Hordak's fighter crafts- but they were
already being dealt with by Carlos as the Hover Beetle skimmed rapidly through the skies
as it zapped them, so fast they could not keep up with it!
Then Hordak was stunned by a purple
beam shot by Angella, just as he was about to charge at Adam and Adora. "I'll
keep him busy!" said Angella. "You two go with Glimmer and help the
people!"
As Adam and Adora turned to help the
people, followed by Glimmer, they knew they could do a lot more than just help!
"I've got the message through to Hordak in fine style," said Adora,
"now to begin on my way to full revenge!"
"I'm with you!" said
Adam, and dodged into a side alley. Glimmer followed them inside. "Hey, she's
not meant to be around, is she?" said Adora.
"It's okay," said
Adam, "she knows already! Now let's get going!" Glimmer watched as Adam and
Adora pulled their swords out from their backs.
Adam shouted: "BY THE POWER OF GRAYSKULL!" Adora shouted: "FOR THE
HONOUR OF GRAYSKULL!"
Glimmer shielded her eyes as two massive bursts of light emerged from the
siblings' swords and surrounded their bodies. When she had managed to strain her eyes
enough to look up, she saw the transformation to He-Man consuming Adam's body, as a
flash of light increased his stature and muscle mass.. but something very similar
was happening to Adora. As a coil of light encircled her body, her height increased, her
hair turned bright red, and longer, wearing a golden tiara.. her clothing became
bright and sparkling, covered in rich, elegant jewels, as a long red cape ran down her
back.
As the mighty form of He-Man
completely replaced that of Adam, He-Man lowered the sword across his chest and shouted
"I HAVE THE POWER!" Adora, in her dazzling, goddess-like new form, did the same,
shouting "I AM SHE-RA!"
Then the light fizzled back into the
swords, and Glimmer gazed in awe upon the immensely powerful forms of the two heroes.
"Glimmer- meet She-Ra!" said He-Man.
"I'll explain all
later-" said She-Ra, "but now, we must see to the Horde!"
The Hover Beetle was proving to be
Carlos' most successful invention yet. He was having an easy time confusing the
Horde, as he piloted it through the air, swerving it rapidly from side to side, zapping
every craft in his way! Suddenly he felt something from behind knock the machine. Carlos
spun it around, and saw Senador, zooming towards him in a Horde Batmex craft! So, he
though he could confuse Carlos by attacking from behind.. Carlos would show him that
that was no use. He quickly dived the beetle below Senador's craft, then he crouched
down to the controls as he propelled it upwards, and it coursed through the middle of the
Batmex craft, sending pieces of metal and rubble spiralling to the ground- along with the
rear half of the Batmex craft.
Carlos swerved the beetle down
towards Senador's wrecked craft. "You fool.." said Senador, "You
have made a mess of my craft! You shall pay!" and he aimed his gun directly at
Carlos, and fired a laser bolt- but Carlos was too quick for him and propelled the beetle
straight into what remained of the Batmex craft- which exploded into pieces, along with
Senador, who amongst the cloud of smoke and rubble, could not be seen- but he sure
couldn't have survived.
Leaving the wrecked remains to drift
to the ground, Carlos revved up his engine to concentrate on the other flying machines!
Down on the street, Glimmer
emerged from the side alley, charging towards Catra and Leech, who had just swarmed down
from their flyers.
"Don't think a feeble girl
like you can defeat Catra!" Catra said, baring her claws.
"Or the suction power of
Leech!" Leech added, reaching his suction pads towards her.
"Well even if I can't-
these two sure can!" announced Glimmer, as the powerful forms of He-Man and She-Ra
came hurtling out of the alleyway. Leech was instantly felled by a powerful blow from
He-Man, as She-Ra countered Catra's attack with a high kick.
As the citizens erupted into cheer
for these two heroes, and the Horde flying crafts above were given a run for life by
Carlos, Hordak burst in front of He-Man and She-Ra, his arm hooked tightly around
Angella's neck.
"So, He-Man, you finally dare to
show your cursed face. And you have brought your female friend along, I see. Well, you may
have escaped me yesterday, but this time you will not be so lucky. Both of you- surrender
your swords, or Queen Angella dies!" He turned his other arm to cannon mode, and
aimed it into her face.
"Don't do it!" called
Glimmer. "There must be some other way we can save my mother!"
"As if we'd give in that
easily!" laughed She-Ra, and fired a bolt of power at Hordak from her sword. It hit
him in the neck, and he dropped Angella, who flew free of his grasp and joined He-Man,
She-Ra, and Glimmer. The four of them faced Hordak, muscles tensed for action.
"You're outnumbered,
Hordak- time you gave in!" said She-Ra. Hordak did not move.
"Okay then," said She-Ra,
"let's make him move!" And the four of them charged on the mad dictator,
and with their tremendous punches, sent him spiralling across the street. "Etheria
has a new defender!" announced She-Ra, "And that am I, She-Ra! You will pay for
the many times you have made innocent people suffer, Hordak! Your rule will not last
long!"
A huge cheer went up amongst the
citizens of Bright Moon, all around them.
Hordak took one long glance at the
barbarian-like hero, He-Man, standing before him. He had no chance of beating this man as
yet. Especially now that he had She-Ra with him.. who, it seemed, was here to stay.
Then he looked above, at the Horde flying crafts being scattered through the air by the
strange-looking beetle machine. It was so humiliating to see so may of his masterful
crafts being defeated by such a ridiculous-looking machine. His crafts were sent
spiralling through the air, hordesmen were being knocked out to plummet to their
death.. some were even retreating back to the Fright Zone. He had lost the battle.
If he stuck around, he may only suffer proper defeat. So he quickly transformed to rocket
mode, blasted away from the crowd of heroes, and up through the hatch of the Annihilator,
where Shadow Weaver sat in wait.
"Adora.. has turned
against me." he said solemnly, as he turned back to his normal form. "And now we
have this infernal She-Ra to deal with.."
"So I see, Hordak." Shadow
Weaver said grimly. "So I see."
Hordak didn't even bother
issuing a retreat to his recruits. He just programmed the automatic pilot to steer back to
Doom Tower, and the ship blasted off. The remaining ships, which stood no chance against
Carlos and the Hover Beetle, quickly followed the Annihilator back to their base.
When all the Horde ships had gone
from sight, Carlos descended the Hover Beetle swiftly to the ground. Then he looked upon
the triumphant form of He-Man, and the beautiful red-haired heroine who was with him.
"So, who's this beauty?" he asked, climbing out from the Hover Beetle.
"Carlos- I'd like you to
meet my sister, She-Ra!"
"Pleased to meet you!"
Carlos said, shaking her hand. Then he whispered "Adora?"
"Sure am!" She-Ra nodded.
"I'll explain later!"
Within the next few hours, Queen
Angella's servants began clearing up the wreckage from the brief battle. The mood in
the air was one of triumph. This was the quickest ever that an assault by the Horde had
been foiled. There were also no fatalities- only several injuries- and before this, every
time the Horde had attacked they had caused at least some deaths, or captured someone.
There was also fewer damage caused to the city than usual. This was the first time ever
that the rebellion had been completely victorious. And they had Carlos to thank, with his
superb new Hover Beetle invention. He was going to prove a very important source to the
rebels. But even better, one of Hordak's most feared warriors, Force Captain Adora,
had now left her evil ways behind and pledged alliance to the rebellion, and she had even
been seen punching her old master. And better still, the rebellion had two new heroes on
their side- the mighty defender of Eternia, He-Man- and his beautiful sister She-Ra, the
Princess of Power. These fighters were more powerful than anyone had previously dared to
imagine. He-Man would have to be leaving for Eternia soon- but She-Ra would be staying on
Etheria to defend the world from the rule of the Horde. And her power packed quite a
punch. With her on their side, and He-Man to call whenever things got serious, it really
did look as though the Horde rule could be nearing an end.
The story that the people got was
that He-Man came from a mountain tribe (as many people on Eternia believed) and came to
Etheria to help Adam release Adora from the Horde, and had then called his sister She-Ra,
from the same tribe, to Etheria to help him. But by the remains of Senador's ruined
ship, He-Man and She-Ra were telling the whole of the real story to Carlos and Glimmer.
"So now Adora's been
granted the power of Grayskull, just like He-Man." said Carlos. "Sure is an
amazing story. I'd really like to see this Grayskull, and see a bit of life on
Eternia. I've always wanted to go to another planet!"
"Maybe you'll be able to
visit some time." said He-Man. "I'm hoping that Adora will be able to visit
soon, to see her parents!"
"That mountain tribe story seems
convincing enough." said Glimmer. "Should keep most people from suspecting
you're really Adam and Adora. But I'd better be welcoming our other new addition
to the Rebellion too. Our new heroine, She-Ra!"
She-Ra smiled. She knew she'd
have some problems with hostility as Adora, but as She-Ra, everyone seemed to love her.
And she knew she would be able to defeat Hordak in the end, and have him pay for what he
had done to her. She was a radically changed person.
Down below the heroes were the
remains of Senador's craft, a pile of rubble and charred metal. The golden metal arm
of Senador could be seen poking out from the rubble. This marked the first time an entire
craft and warrior had been fully defeated by the Rebellion, and just showed how powerful
Carlos' inventions were becoming.
"That new Hover Beetle of yours
sure works well." said Glimmer.
"I'm really proud of
it!" said Carlos. "I will be able to make more vehicles that will increase the
power of the rebellion. Soon we will bring the Horde to a standstill!"
"But.. one thing,
He-Man.." said She-Ra.
"What's that, She-Ra?"
"I just.. can't stop
thinking about my parents, and my homeworld. Is there any way I'll be able to see
them soon?"
"Well.. maybe you could
come back with me just for a while when I go home. You'll have to ask the Sorceress
if it's okay. You should be able to see them soon."
"You will." came a voice
from out of the blue. It had come from She-Ra's sword! But it was not the voice of
the Sorceress- this voice was masculine, deep and dignified. She-Ra pulled the sword out,
and saw that there was a bright light floating in the jewel.
"You must follow your
sword." the voice said. "It shall glow, and you must follow the glow- the
brighter it glows, the closer you are to your destination. Once you have reached it, I
shall reveal your powers, and send you through to Eternia. You must begin your journey
now!"
The light faded from the jewel, and
the sword began to glow. "I don't know what this place is," said She-Ra,
"but it sure must be important!"
"You're right." said
He-Man. "Let's go!"
"Good luck, wherever it
is!" said Carlos.
He-Man and She-Ra bade goodbye to
Carlos and Glimmer, and followed the mysterious glow from the sword.
