Chapter 7; Consequences of Guilt
Cruel dawn once again bled its savage path of crimson across the sky. Adora was pale. Her eyes cold. No trace of warmth could be found in their depths. Her purpose was singular. Leech would die, she would bathe in his blood. Hooded and silent she entered the gates of Bright Moon Castle. The guards allowed her to pass and she moved to the throne room unimpeded. Angella's personal guards blocked the path to the royal chambers.
"The queen is asleep." Their tridents crossed to prevent her from passing.
"Wake her. It's urgent." One nodded and proceeded up the stairs to awaken the queen. The other remained behind, gazing at Adora curiously. Adora said nothing as she awaited Angella.
Angella moved quickly down the stairs, garbed in a gown of seafoam green and an ephemeral dressing robe of like hue she leapt from the top stair and floated gently to the ground, her Angels wings spread wide to make her descent one of effortless grace.
"Adora, what is it? What has happened?" Angella was wary of the coldness she sensed in Adora.
"Children have died. It is my fault. They must be avenged. Summon Castaspella and Madame. I have a plan." Angella nodded, trepidation clouding her heart as she left Adora. She went to the moonstone at the heart of the castle.
Brightmoon and all its magic, all her magic and that of her daughter came from the moonstone which drew its magic from the three moons of Etheria. The moonstone could also be used as a conduit to transport her image across vast distances. Placing her hands upon the stone she felt herself jolt from the castle and its city across, Etheria in an instant to Mysticor to the chambers of Castaspella.
The mahogany haired sorceress lifted her eyes from the papers she was writing and smiled in greeting.
"Hello, Angie, what can I do for you?"
"You better get to Brightmoon, now, something's up. Adora is…different." Castaspellas eyes darkened with concern.
"I'm there." Angella winked out and Castaspella rose from her chair. Closing her eyes she gently awoke the well of power which lay inside her.
It was vast and endless and timeless and utterly beautiful. It was the core of her being the essence of who she was- she had spent thirty one years of her life perfecting her talents and increasing them. She was unmatched in her abilities. Her Aura began to glow, radiant, blue then in an instant she was at Brightmoon.
She entered the throne room. Awaiting her was Adora, white and drawn. She looked miserable but her eyes held a resolve as cold as chill the glaciers of the Blizzard sea. Madame Raz and Angella were there as well. No one looked happy.
In a voice cold with lack of emotion Adora laid out her plan.
"Leech has killed six children. Two of them girls and four of them boys, none older then ten. I am going to kill him. The rebellion doesn't have the ability to find him. But Hordack does. Hordack is going to deliver Leech into my hands and I will kill him."
"Adora, Hordack isn't going to let you simply kill Leech- and why would he locate him and deliver him to you?" Castaspella asked in confusion.
"Because I am going to betray She-ra to him." Adora stated coldly, meeting Castaspella's eyes for the first time. The sorceresses eyes went wide with shock. She leapt to her feet and her hands began to crackle with blue fire.
"Explain." She commanded tersely. Adora remained unmoved.
"She-ra has agreed to allow me to betray her location to the Horde in order to exact my revenge on Leech." Castaspella struggled to understand.
"I'm not sure I follow you, after you hand She-ra to Hordack why would he keep his promise to you? He's a liar and he's the enemy!"
"Hordack will keep his promise because he wants me."
"You?"
"Yes. Me. I am going to rejoin the Horde. Betraying She-ra is the price of admission. To kill Leech I am going to hand over some rebel sympathizers."
"And who are they?" Angella commanded.
Adora turned her cool regard to the queen of Brightmoon, unflinching beneath her hostile scrutiny. "The families of the deceased children have agreed to pose as Rebel sympathizers in order to see the deaths of their children avenged."
"After you've killed Leech what are you going to do?" Angella asked dreading the answer.
"Angella, after Leech is dead you must disband the rebel camps in the woods. Divide them up and spread our forces. Lead some to Spikeheart and set up a base there; have some in Mystacor and here in Brightmoon. Move some to infiltrate the south. Form individual resistance cells, and tell the rebellion to go into hiding."
"Why Adora?" Castaspella asked, "we are stronger today than ever, why would we want to go into hiding?"
"Because I am going to conquer Etheria and your pitiful band of rebels will not stop me. They may be stronger than they have ever been but Horde forces are stronger." For the briefest of instances her eyes softened as she whispered, "I don't want any of my friends to get hurt."
"Adora, dearie, your not thinking clearly- honey you've been through a lot, you need some rest-"
"You will listen!" Adora snapped. The three women went silent, Madame concerned Angella angry and hurt Castespella brimming with hostility- but they all listened to their leader.
"For five years I have led this rebellion. Together we have all tried to unite the people against the Horde to no avail. Peace! Peace, men cry! They fear fighting so we bear them to freedom with our labors. And do they appreciate the sacrifice? Do they cherish the prize we wrest from the Horde for them? No. They look down their nose at us and deride us for fighting believing there is a better path, while enjoying the fruits of our labor."
"They are quick to fight each other when the real enemy is the Horde. They don't understand what life will be like under Hordacks tyranny. I will make them understand. As Etheria falls beneath my blade and the horde squeezes them ever tighter in his grasp they will realize what they have lost. Only when they understand what they are fighting against and what they are fighting for will they join us in our cause. To regain our planet we must first let it fall. And I will see that it happens swiftly with as little bloodshed as possible and with no more innocent children dying at the hands of the horde."
"Adora- what makes you think that Hordack wants you back, or that he will put you in command of his armies?"
"Casta, before I left the Horde, Hordack was grooming me to replace him. I am the only one who knows how to handle a large command half as well as him. He will make me Commanding General. He wants me corrupted. He always has. My plan to conquer the people I have fought so long for will appeal to his perverse sense of humor."
"Adora you realize if you do this, if you betray us your friends, Bow and Glimmer and all the others who have come to love you will feel abandoned even if they know its not true-"
"No. They must believe it is real only you three may know of my true plan, they must believe I have truly joined the Horde, everyone must."
"But if your captured and someone doesn't know the truth you could be harmed."
"I know the risk Angella. But the only way to win back our home is to rouse the people and what we have been doing for the past five years is not effective. This way people will flock to your banner much sooner than if things remain as they are. Besides… no more innocent children must suffer for a cause that this planet does not believe in."
The three women pondered Adoras words. She was wise. And she hit the nail on the head in regards to the people and their main obstacle to freedom being their lack of unity. They all realized that in order to win the people must be united as one- if not in freedom then in slavery.
Finally Castaspella stood. She walked over to Adora and lay her hand to Adora's cheek.
"Beautiful child of Etheria, I fear for your soul. 'Ere you undertake this mission think of the cost to yourself."
"I already have and that's why I must do this. It is for the greater good of our people. Better they learn now while they still have She-ra to champion them than years from now when their heroes have all become legends and their legends become myth, and freedom becomes a memory of the way things used to be."
Adora rose to leave. She stopped before Angella and grasped her hand.
"Angella, you are the queen of Brightmoon and you are needed here, I suggest that you allow Glimmer to lead a contingent of rebels to Spikeheart."
"Adora, Glimmer is just a child she's not ready for leadership like this-"
"Angella, five years ago the princess of Brightmoon led an uprising that freed the village of Thaymore and turned a force captain for the evil Horde into a rebel leader. She's more ready than many give her credit for. Let her be a woman now. She'll need the experience for what's to come."
"Very well Adora."
"Angella- tell her I love her. She was my first friend…." Adora paused, drew a shuddering breath and shook her head, "never mind, tell her nothing. If she hears that she may try to come after me."
"Adora, you don't have to do this. Please change your mind."
"No." Adora whispered gazing into the queens eyes, "you're wrong. I do have to do this. It's what must be done. You said it yourself, in war a part of yourself must be sacrificed in order to win."
"Adora I said a part of you not your entire soul!" For the first time that morning Angella saw the rage and guilt burning in Adora's eyes and her breath caught.
"My soul is nothing. Nothing compared to the six bright flames snuffed before they had a chance to add their brilliance to the creation. If my soul is the price that must be paid to destroy this monster and make our people rise up, then I will pay. I will destroy the Horde from the inside. I will be the disease that brings about their ruination. And any that stand in my way will be annihilated."
"You will become a monster. The destroyer of the world you claim to love." Castaspella rasped, her eyes wide with horror." Adora arched a graceful brow.
"If it must be, so be it. I will destroy Etheria as she is- mewling and whimpering in ignorance and fear, from the ashes of the old world a new world will be born, one to rise as a phoenix from the flames of destruction and become new and strong and when the people join to reclaim the world I stole I will gladly aid them in that endeavor."
"Adora, if you do this, the people will destroy you. You may never be able to come home." Madame Raz pleaded.
"If my world is free….. I will accept that."
"What if they decide not to fight and instead crumble under the sword?"
Adora drew her brows together and rage ignited in her eyes at the thought. Through clenched teeth she hissed a reply, "if they will not fight for that which they have lost then let them burn for they do not deserve to live!"
Adora left. The three women were at a loss.
Cruel dawn once again bled its savage path of crimson across the sky. Adora was pale. Her eyes cold. No trace of warmth could be found in their depths. Her purpose was singular. Leech would die, she would bathe in his blood. Hooded and silent she entered the gates of Bright Moon Castle. The guards allowed her to pass and she moved to the throne room unimpeded. Angella's personal guards blocked the path to the royal chambers.
"The queen is asleep." Their tridents crossed to prevent her from passing.
"Wake her. It's urgent." One nodded and proceeded up the stairs to awaken the queen. The other remained behind, gazing at Adora curiously. Adora said nothing as she awaited Angella.
Angella moved quickly down the stairs, garbed in a gown of seafoam green and an ephemeral dressing robe of like hue she leapt from the top stair and floated gently to the ground, her Angels wings spread wide to make her descent one of effortless grace.
"Adora, what is it? What has happened?" Angella was wary of the coldness she sensed in Adora.
"Children have died. It is my fault. They must be avenged. Summon Castaspella and Madame. I have a plan." Angella nodded, trepidation clouding her heart as she left Adora. She went to the moonstone at the heart of the castle.
Brightmoon and all its magic, all her magic and that of her daughter came from the moonstone which drew its magic from the three moons of Etheria. The moonstone could also be used as a conduit to transport her image across vast distances. Placing her hands upon the stone she felt herself jolt from the castle and its city across, Etheria in an instant to Mysticor to the chambers of Castaspella.
The mahogany haired sorceress lifted her eyes from the papers she was writing and smiled in greeting.
"Hello, Angie, what can I do for you?"
"You better get to Brightmoon, now, something's up. Adora is…different." Castaspellas eyes darkened with concern.
"I'm there." Angella winked out and Castaspella rose from her chair. Closing her eyes she gently awoke the well of power which lay inside her.
It was vast and endless and timeless and utterly beautiful. It was the core of her being the essence of who she was- she had spent thirty one years of her life perfecting her talents and increasing them. She was unmatched in her abilities. Her Aura began to glow, radiant, blue then in an instant she was at Brightmoon.
She entered the throne room. Awaiting her was Adora, white and drawn. She looked miserable but her eyes held a resolve as cold as chill the glaciers of the Blizzard sea. Madame Raz and Angella were there as well. No one looked happy.
In a voice cold with lack of emotion Adora laid out her plan.
"Leech has killed six children. Two of them girls and four of them boys, none older then ten. I am going to kill him. The rebellion doesn't have the ability to find him. But Hordack does. Hordack is going to deliver Leech into my hands and I will kill him."
"Adora, Hordack isn't going to let you simply kill Leech- and why would he locate him and deliver him to you?" Castaspella asked in confusion.
"Because I am going to betray She-ra to him." Adora stated coldly, meeting Castaspella's eyes for the first time. The sorceresses eyes went wide with shock. She leapt to her feet and her hands began to crackle with blue fire.
"Explain." She commanded tersely. Adora remained unmoved.
"She-ra has agreed to allow me to betray her location to the Horde in order to exact my revenge on Leech." Castaspella struggled to understand.
"I'm not sure I follow you, after you hand She-ra to Hordack why would he keep his promise to you? He's a liar and he's the enemy!"
"Hordack will keep his promise because he wants me."
"You?"
"Yes. Me. I am going to rejoin the Horde. Betraying She-ra is the price of admission. To kill Leech I am going to hand over some rebel sympathizers."
"And who are they?" Angella commanded.
Adora turned her cool regard to the queen of Brightmoon, unflinching beneath her hostile scrutiny. "The families of the deceased children have agreed to pose as Rebel sympathizers in order to see the deaths of their children avenged."
"After you've killed Leech what are you going to do?" Angella asked dreading the answer.
"Angella, after Leech is dead you must disband the rebel camps in the woods. Divide them up and spread our forces. Lead some to Spikeheart and set up a base there; have some in Mystacor and here in Brightmoon. Move some to infiltrate the south. Form individual resistance cells, and tell the rebellion to go into hiding."
"Why Adora?" Castaspella asked, "we are stronger today than ever, why would we want to go into hiding?"
"Because I am going to conquer Etheria and your pitiful band of rebels will not stop me. They may be stronger than they have ever been but Horde forces are stronger." For the briefest of instances her eyes softened as she whispered, "I don't want any of my friends to get hurt."
"Adora, dearie, your not thinking clearly- honey you've been through a lot, you need some rest-"
"You will listen!" Adora snapped. The three women went silent, Madame concerned Angella angry and hurt Castespella brimming with hostility- but they all listened to their leader.
"For five years I have led this rebellion. Together we have all tried to unite the people against the Horde to no avail. Peace! Peace, men cry! They fear fighting so we bear them to freedom with our labors. And do they appreciate the sacrifice? Do they cherish the prize we wrest from the Horde for them? No. They look down their nose at us and deride us for fighting believing there is a better path, while enjoying the fruits of our labor."
"They are quick to fight each other when the real enemy is the Horde. They don't understand what life will be like under Hordacks tyranny. I will make them understand. As Etheria falls beneath my blade and the horde squeezes them ever tighter in his grasp they will realize what they have lost. Only when they understand what they are fighting against and what they are fighting for will they join us in our cause. To regain our planet we must first let it fall. And I will see that it happens swiftly with as little bloodshed as possible and with no more innocent children dying at the hands of the horde."
"Adora- what makes you think that Hordack wants you back, or that he will put you in command of his armies?"
"Casta, before I left the Horde, Hordack was grooming me to replace him. I am the only one who knows how to handle a large command half as well as him. He will make me Commanding General. He wants me corrupted. He always has. My plan to conquer the people I have fought so long for will appeal to his perverse sense of humor."
"Adora you realize if you do this, if you betray us your friends, Bow and Glimmer and all the others who have come to love you will feel abandoned even if they know its not true-"
"No. They must believe it is real only you three may know of my true plan, they must believe I have truly joined the Horde, everyone must."
"But if your captured and someone doesn't know the truth you could be harmed."
"I know the risk Angella. But the only way to win back our home is to rouse the people and what we have been doing for the past five years is not effective. This way people will flock to your banner much sooner than if things remain as they are. Besides… no more innocent children must suffer for a cause that this planet does not believe in."
The three women pondered Adoras words. She was wise. And she hit the nail on the head in regards to the people and their main obstacle to freedom being their lack of unity. They all realized that in order to win the people must be united as one- if not in freedom then in slavery.
Finally Castaspella stood. She walked over to Adora and lay her hand to Adora's cheek.
"Beautiful child of Etheria, I fear for your soul. 'Ere you undertake this mission think of the cost to yourself."
"I already have and that's why I must do this. It is for the greater good of our people. Better they learn now while they still have She-ra to champion them than years from now when their heroes have all become legends and their legends become myth, and freedom becomes a memory of the way things used to be."
Adora rose to leave. She stopped before Angella and grasped her hand.
"Angella, you are the queen of Brightmoon and you are needed here, I suggest that you allow Glimmer to lead a contingent of rebels to Spikeheart."
"Adora, Glimmer is just a child she's not ready for leadership like this-"
"Angella, five years ago the princess of Brightmoon led an uprising that freed the village of Thaymore and turned a force captain for the evil Horde into a rebel leader. She's more ready than many give her credit for. Let her be a woman now. She'll need the experience for what's to come."
"Very well Adora."
"Angella- tell her I love her. She was my first friend…." Adora paused, drew a shuddering breath and shook her head, "never mind, tell her nothing. If she hears that she may try to come after me."
"Adora, you don't have to do this. Please change your mind."
"No." Adora whispered gazing into the queens eyes, "you're wrong. I do have to do this. It's what must be done. You said it yourself, in war a part of yourself must be sacrificed in order to win."
"Adora I said a part of you not your entire soul!" For the first time that morning Angella saw the rage and guilt burning in Adora's eyes and her breath caught.
"My soul is nothing. Nothing compared to the six bright flames snuffed before they had a chance to add their brilliance to the creation. If my soul is the price that must be paid to destroy this monster and make our people rise up, then I will pay. I will destroy the Horde from the inside. I will be the disease that brings about their ruination. And any that stand in my way will be annihilated."
"You will become a monster. The destroyer of the world you claim to love." Castaspella rasped, her eyes wide with horror." Adora arched a graceful brow.
"If it must be, so be it. I will destroy Etheria as she is- mewling and whimpering in ignorance and fear, from the ashes of the old world a new world will be born, one to rise as a phoenix from the flames of destruction and become new and strong and when the people join to reclaim the world I stole I will gladly aid them in that endeavor."
"Adora, if you do this, the people will destroy you. You may never be able to come home." Madame Raz pleaded.
"If my world is free….. I will accept that."
"What if they decide not to fight and instead crumble under the sword?"
Adora drew her brows together and rage ignited in her eyes at the thought. Through clenched teeth she hissed a reply, "if they will not fight for that which they have lost then let them burn for they do not deserve to live!"
Adora left. The three women were at a loss.
