Adora opens her eyes and starts walking through the corridor to get to the showers. She never had to worry about taking a morning shower before, but her new hormones make her reek first thing after sweating in her sleep.

She rounds the corner to enter the locker room.

She does usually wake up early, but this is the first time that she enjoys the space all to herself.

Adora undresses out of her clothes automatically and places them within the locker behind her. She grabs her towel and washcloth and makes her way over to a stall. Modesty isn't an issue for Adora as she makes her way over. After changing and showering in front of almost everyone she knew, it was almost natural.

She hoists the towel onto a small hook just outside of the curtain and reaches in to start the water. She thinks she hears something coming from the entrance, but as she turns to see who's coming in, there's no one.

She looks back to see her water is hot – as hot as it will get here in the Horde – and walks under it. She sighs at the slight amount of relief it provides as she rakes her hair out of her ponytail. She snaps the band around her wrist and leans her head further back into the water.

Adora hears small consecutive taps coming from the entrance of the locker room. The sound is so familiar, but for some reason she can't pin it. It's like her head is still foggy from sleep. She tries to listen more intently, but the noise stops again.

She reaches for the soap dispenser and pumps out a handful of ivory scented liquid. It's the only soap that's used in the Fright Zone. She's surprised though, because as she lathers it into her scalp she doesn't smell the scent of ivory, but of something more earthy.

Adora squints her eyes in confusion as she continues to lather her head with soap. Suddenly, a locker slams shut. She jumps a little as the sounds startles her, but she continues washing. She lathers the same soap down her arms and over her chest – her brows remain furrowed at the alarming slam.

The tapping starts again as she continues to clean her body. Like the tapping of nails to the ground. The sound gets closer until it stops right in front of Adora's stall. She looks forward seeing a shadow on the other side of her shower curtain.

"Adora?"

That voice, she thinks. Adora sees claws and furry feet on the other side of the curtain. Her brow furrows as the pieces all begin to fall into place. She reaches for the side of the plastic liner to open it "Catra?" Her voice littered with surprise and excitement.

She opens the shower liner a bit to poke her head out and her excitement quickly washes away as nobody is there. She starts breathing faster and her face is riddled with confusion. Adora pokes her head out further into the walkway to look left, then right, but she doesn't see anyone there. She slips back into the stall, her brow knit together as she tries to rationalize what just happened. I could've sworn I heard –

"Adora."

The blonde grabs for the shower curtain again sliding it open and shoving her head and shoulder out. "Who's there?" Her voice is strong and fearless, like she's demanding the person to show themselves.

"Adora, it's me." There's a pleading tone to those words.

She steps out trying to understand what's happening and throws on her blue towel. Soap still slides down her muscled arms. They flex as she clenches her fists.

She walks back over into the main area with the lockers, but she doesn't see anyone immediately. The area is large and separated by two rows of lockers dividing the room. She makes her way towards the opposite wall past the first row of lockers, but she sees no one. She then walks to check beyond the final row. As she comes to the edge, she hears a whimper. A sound that churns a sickening feeling in her stomach. A sound that resonates in her bones down to the center of her core. A fear starts rising in her throat and her alpha stirs with concern. "Catra?"

Adora turns the corner and again sees no one.

Her heart starts thudding loudly in her ears and she sniffs the air to catch her scent, an almost instinctual move, but she senses nothing. She can't smell Catra, but she knows she heard her. Adora's breathing picks up with her panic. Things aren't making sense and she doesn't know why.

Adora makes her way back to the center of the room facing the walkway to her shower that's still running. She hears the whimper again coming from the stalls. "Catra!?"

"Adora!" The scream is filled with fear and uncertainty.

A wave of heat flares through Adora's body as the pain in the other woman's voice triggers something inside of her. She goes to move, to run, towards her best friend, but she feels like she's running through wet cement. Her movements are slow and the urging need to get to Catra continues to course through her.

She starts to see a shadow of a figure laying on the ground surrounded by steam from the still running shower. The body is curled in on itself and trembles on the tile floor. Adora still can't smell Catra and confusion still whirls in her brain. "Catra! How did you make it back? Are you –" She reaches for the other woman's body but her hand passes right through it. Adora's eyes shoot open wide with horror. She clenches her teeth together and feels as though someone is playing a trick on her.

"Adora… They got me." Catra's voice breaks through "… m-magic…" she groans in what sounds like pain.

Something inside Adora snaps. She feels her inner alpha taking over the moment Catra's voice cracks. She wants to lunge forward and grab what she can of the woman, but she knows it's not an option. She'll only be grabbing at smoke. Her mouth moves as she tries to think of anything to say, but nothing will come out. Visions of Catra being tortured by numerous princesses fill her mind and her anger spills over into grief. Tears form and prick at the corners of her eyes. Suddenly it's all too much…

Adora startles awake gasping for a breath she desperately needs. She continues to pant heavily as she looks around her bunk. She throws herself out of bed and nearly falls over. The change her body took while she was sleeping is completely unexpected. She looks down at her body and realizes she's in her other form. The dread continues to fill her heart as images of the dream still dance around in her head. Her alpha screams at her to run and track down her best friend, but deep down she knows that's not the best course of action.

She tries to calm her breathing as she clenches and unclenches her jaw. It's hard to focus on much of anything other than those scared words echoing in her mind. But Adora knows, now especially, that she can't let it control her. She can't let the urges take over. She grabs a standard issue Horde under shirt and starts wringing her hands around it, whirling it tighter and tighter. She tells herself 'it's okay' like a mantra. She needs to calm down and the difficulty to get there is almost overwhelming.

After several attempts, and after finally sitting down on her bed, she feels herself shift back into her smaller body. She sighs as relief and dread both fill her heart.

She needs to prove to Scorpia that she can do this. She can handle herself for this mission. The longer she thinks on it, the more she thinks Scorpia would be proud of how she handled this just now. She was able to stay conscious of herself and her actions. That's a pretty big first step, even if she says so herself.

She looks over at the clock realizing that she's up a half an hour before the alarms blare out in the morning. Adora decides it's a good time as any to go shower. Hopefully, there isn't anyone there so she can just relax; although, after that dream she isn't so sure the shower is the best place to do that. At least this morning they have combatives. She'll be able to take out some aggression as she forces other alphas into submission.

Training that morning goes exactly as Adora had hoped. Doing combatives with the other cadets helped her focus her mind along with her body. The standard martial art requires her to not just use her muscle but also strategy. She worked up a sweat thrashing other people on the floor and throwing her body into several uncomfortable positions, but it gave her a moment to ground herself and try not to think of Catra groaning in what sounded like pain.

She does her best to shake that dream from her mind. But she also can't stop thinking about how they've been sharing dreams and it probably wasn't just a dream. That thought fills her heart with dread.

She clenches her jaw and tries to remember that she's powerless if she can't keep herself under control. She breathes deeply and plans on talking to Force Captain Scorpia about it later.

Adora doesn't have time to shower and instead just decides to run off to the chow hall to fill her never ending pit of a stomach. She sits down at a table with a few other alphas from her class and they all seem a little put off. She lifts her right elbow just slightly to get a whiff of herself and realizes she probably stinks worse than the forge – she was right. She smiles to the others warily.

Demetria sets her tray down at Adora's left side. She slides her legs over the bench style seat and leans over her food. She sniffs the air and looks around the table as if just catching on. She looks over to Adora with curious eyes. "You trying to intimidate people?" She asks it so nonchalantly, but it takes the other woman by surprise.

"Me? What? No, I-I…" She scrambles to find her words as she looks across the table at the other people not making eye contact with her. She chuckles a little and turns back to Demetria. "I wasn't trying to. I didn't get a chance to shower earlier." She tugs the collar of her shirt away from her skin as she catches her scent one more time. She shrugs her shoulders and shoves another spoonful of grey slop into her mouth.

Demetria nods her head in understanding. She turns her attention away from the other woman and locks eyes with an alpha across the table. She bucks at him, like she's trying to intimidate him with her presence. He easily flinches in response. She looks over to Adora who has a small smile on her lips, eyeing between her bite of food and the poor little alpha being messed with.

"You ready for the scenario training later today?" Demetria says it as she shoves another bite of food into her mouth.

"Yeah," Adora responds excitedly. She'll get the chance to prove to Force Captain Scorpia that she's been improving her skills and she will be a huge asset to the mission to get Catra.

"Good, because there's a big mission coming up. I didn't get all of the details, but it's important and they're going to be calling on some of the new alphas to help." The woman shoves a spoonful of food into her mouth and uses her spoon to move around the rest on her plate.

Adora inhales sharply at the surprising news. "I wonder if it's to go after those other Horde soldiers that were kidnapped." Her face was set with determination and a lick of hope rises to her chest.

"Eh. I don't know. They didn't say anything about a rescue." She eyes Adora as if gaging her response, then looks back down to her food when the blonde doesn't betray her feelings. "Welp, I'm leaving to get dressed. See you at training."

Adora shoots her a little wave as she focuses a little too hard on her food. I have to talk to Scorpia. She'll be able to help get me on that team. I know it.

Adora heads down to training after she made a quick stop back at her room. She used some wet wipes they usually use to clean their weapons to clean under her arms. They were always handy in a pinch and this is definitely one of those necessary moments.

She walks up and seems to be one of the last people to arrive as she steps into formation. They stand there in front of the simulator waiting for their training to begin. She looks left and right at the never changing green walls of metal until she sees white hair poking around a corner.

Scorpia walks around and goes to stand in front of her platoon. "Alright, cadets!" She then turns her back to them and whispers "man that's so cool to say." She whips back around with one arm behind her back and a face of command plastered back upon her like a mask. "Today, you'll be training as a unit. There will be many challenges along the way, but nothing you haven't seen before… Miles! Click the thingy!" She shouts at a young scrawny beta that's been assigned to the unit as a clerk of some kind. He jolts and fumbles with the switch, then clicks the button.

Scorpia clears her throat. "As I was saying." She begins to pace in front of the large digital screen showing a rudimentary map of their scenario. "Each team is assigned to go in covertly to uncover crucial information from one specific princess. THIS" She points harshly to the screen, "Is princess Glimmer of Brightmoon." There are some dramatic gasps coming from the crowd, but Adora's jaw is set, and her eyes are glaring. The figure on the screen is a flurry of glitter and a devilish snarl.

"You will be going in to capture her and extract whatever intel you can. Got it!?" Scorpia has really been working on her voice of command and she is rewarded by grunts and howls from the raging alpha cadets. "Alright, then. Line up!"

The alphas move to get in order to be near their friends. Adora looks left and right and then notices Demetria in her row. The woman's eyes are firm and determined as she looks back at Adora. They both smirk at each other.

One team goes first before Adora and she looks around to see if she has time to ask Scorpia about the mission coming up. She's pretty far away from her and she begins to wonder if she can step out of rank to go talk to her.

Then, a cold chill runs up her spine. The feeling is so familiar that she couldn't go a day in her life not knowing what it is. She turns her head left and right but doesn't see her. Since she's in the last rank she doesn't notice the figure standing directly behind her.

"Adora." The voice so smooth and gentle sounding, like the rattle of a snake before it bites you. Adora gulps and clenches her jaw. She turns and a scent she has never noticed before hits her now much more sensitive nose. She scrunches up her face in disgust as Shadow Weaver stands before her. The older woman reaches out her hand and caresses the young alpha's cheek. "Now, Adora, don't be rude. How is training going. It's been too long since I've seen you. I assume you're performing excellently." The eyes of her mask squint in what Adora has only assumed is a calculating look.

Adora swallows. "Yes, Shadow Weaver."

The woman pulls her hand away from Adora who had inadvertently been leaning into the touch a little too much. She just notices it as Shadow Weaver pulls away.

The older woman gives her a smile that can only be seen in her chilling eyes. "Oh, I am not surprised to hear that. Your force captain has been keeping us up to date on your progress."

"Us?" Adora questions.

Shadow Weaver shifts out of Adora's direct line of sight and reveals a tall ominous figure behind her. "Yes, Lord Hordak knows all about your endeavors and has come out to witness it firsthand." The man grunts in disdain, but otherwise remains neutral.

Demetria side eyes the conversation happening near her and sweat drips down her cheek. She understands the detrimental nature of the training in front of her. It's about time she proves her worth, too. She sets her jaw and watches the team going before them with rapt attention to make sure she retains as much as she can for their turn.

Adora sets her jaw and looks down as she contemplates raising the question to her previous superior. But before she can, the buzzer goes off as the other unit of Cadets gets blow up from a notional explosive device. Adora shakes her head and moves to get her gear on. Their team is up, and she has to prove herself to them so she can go save Catra. The thought alone sends a jolt through her alpha. Her sense of smell heightens as well as her other instincts.

Her group lines up next to the doors and they slide open. The group of four alphas enter the arena and they connect their devices to link with the system. Adora speaks "alright, lets keep this neat and simple. We get in, get the details and get out before the princess's guards find us."

The other alphas look to her and accept her lead, even Demetria. They walk through the simulation of the woods just outside of Brightmoon castle until they reach the southeastern wall. Adora gives silent signals to each of the cadets and they all move on her signal.

Shadow Weaver and Lord Hordak look on with interest.

The group manages to scale up the wall and make it into a side window. Adora checks the map on her wrist locator and takes a moment to decipher it. She signals two alphas to head down corridor on the left to see if they can locate any roaming guards while Adora and Demetria stand off to the side behind a statue guarding the right corridor.

Demetria goes to stand when Adora smells the air. The blonde sticks her arm out and stops the other woman in her tracks. Demetria snarls at the aggressive grab until Adora points down their corridor at a guard starting to walk their way. They both watch as the simulation walks down another hall way.

The other pair returns without making any kind of noise and they all make their way down the left corridor to the stairs that lead up to the princess's room. Their intel states that she will be there, but to keep an eye out for guards that make their rounds every 10 minutes, or so.

They all make it up the stairs and notice the room with the door ajar. Adora doesn't smell anything out of the ordinary, but there is something sweet coming from her room. She can't quite place it though.

They make their way closer, and the scent is much stronger, but they all barge through making sure to close the door and jam it up. The princess hasn't even been triggered yet to notice them and that's when Adora realizes it. The smell is sweet and strong, and the young alpha begins to shift right then.

Each alpha turns abruptly as the scent fills their noses. They can't fight the changes of their bodies, but they have to fight their instincts. "The princess is an omega?" Adora says. Glimmer turns and glares at them. Each one wants to fight and each one wants to fall prey to their instincts.

The simulation of Glimmer disappears into thin air and reappears in another part of the room. Adora knew she was magical, but this is unexpected. The blonde looks to the other alphas to make sure they're still on task. Demetria is holding her own, but the other two seem like they might cave any second. Adora yells at them, "stay focused and track her!" She dodges a magical burst shot at her head and dives behind a pillowed table. She furrows her brow at the ridiculousness of it and refocuses her efforts on tracking the princess.

Glimmer yells and bursts her magic at the other three cadets bouncing around the room. Adora waits until she has the perfect moment. The glittery princess lands right near her and Adora grabs her arms and forces her into a submission hold.

Her scent is right in Adora's face and it is arousing, but there's something off about it. She isn't sure what. Even though her body is betraying it's affects, her mind is clear headed. She grips the simulation harder and Adora intends to get straight to business, getting as much info as she can. "Alright, tell me where the bases are that house your soldiers." She grits it out through her teeth.

Glimmer wiggles trying to free herself – unable to poof herself away as Adora has a firm hold against her, and the simulation can only do so much. The pink woman laughs softly and the tone caresses Adora's ears. "Is the big bad alpha going to make me submit?"

Adora's eyes shoot open at the lewd comment, but she can tell it has some affect on herself, her inner alpha.

"No?" Glimmer asks in a teasing tone. "Maybe one of these other strong alphas will know how to take care of me." She looks over at the other cadets and the blonde shakes her out of her reverie.

"Tell us!" Adora screams at her, but she can also tell that the simulation is having an effect on the other alphas. She turns to look at them and commands "you two. Out of the room and look out for the guards roaming. Demetria," she looks to the other alpha sensing that although she is having a hard time focusing, it isn't as bad as the others. "Help me interrogate her."

Demetria gets closer and shakes her head trying not to let it overwhelm her. She reaches down with the blade in her hand and places it under the woman's chin. "Talk."

Suddenly, the lights and the simulation fall black. The robot Adora was holding onto flitters out of life and mechanically tries to reset itself. The blonde releases it and it scampers across the room to set up where it was located before.

The doors to the training area open up and Scorpia walks in. "Guys! That was great!" She walks up and pats one of the other alphas on the back and nearly knocks him over. Shadow Weaver slithers inside as well, leaving Lord Hordak by the far wall – he was never great at interacting with the cadets, and he only liked to observe the fruits of his labor.

"Well done, Adora!" Shadow Weaver coos over her efforts and walks past the other cadets. Demetria looks down to the ground with a look of disdain written on her face. She huffs it off and walks out of the simulation with the other cadets to put away her gear.

Shadow Weaver continues, "you continue to impress us. You know, I was quite displeased when I knew you'd be taken from my watchful care, but here you seem to be flourishing." Her arms widen in grandeur as she gestures to the space around them. "It seems I was right about one thing."

Adora furrows her brow, "what's that?" She awkwardly chuckles at the praise.

"That Catra has always been a terrible influence on you." Shadow Weaver's tone is light and airy like she didn't just give Adora a crushing blow.

"Hoo, yeah!" Scorpia awkwardly intervenes the conversation. "You did, wow, you did great Adora. So did the whole team! I'm just so impressed. It's not easy to ignore the scent of an omega like that." She chortles thinking of her own experience.

Adora looks up. "Speaking of Catra."

Scorpia's eyes go wide. She had hoped they would move on and change the subject, but that doesn't look like it's going to happen.

Adora continues, "I heard there's a mission coming up to go look for her. I want on the team. I think I could really be a big asset. You know, I know all of her quirks, and…"

Adora is cut off by a sinister laugh. A laugh that goes on for far too long. Shadow Weaver regains her composure a moment or so later. "Oh, Adora." She says it through a Cheshire cat smile. "There is no mission. Catra was lost, a casualty of war."

Adora's heart utterly shatters and drops to her stomach at the words.

Shadow Weaver continues, "it would be quite a waste of resources to go after one cadet. Let alone one so…" the words are said so flippantly, "useless."

The blonde can hardly continue to listen as the news hits her.

Scorpia is looking anxious as she looks at Adora's crestfallen face. She puts her pincers to her mouth in worry and shifts her eyes between the two women.

Adora starts to breathe heavier, faster. "What do you mean… lost? She…" The words get caught in her throat and she has a hard time registering what's happening. The last dream replaying through her mind. Catra curled in on herself calling out for Adora's help.

The memory destroys every chance she has at controlling herself. Her alpha knows her mate is in danger and not a single person gives a damn about her! The blood starts to roar in her ears as her eyes lose even more focus from the conversation. Her breathing is coming in too quickly.

"Adora wait!" Scopria tries to reach for her, tries to move her somewhere else, or at best try to prevent what is going to happen.

Adora thought she could be good enough and work hard enough to get on the team. But now she knows that all she's been doing is wasting her time!

Her vision shifts and a blinding light flashes to fill the entire room. Shadow Weaver covers her face from it and the rest in the immediate area does as well. Adora stands tall and radiating power in her new form.

Shadow Weaver gasps "Adora!"

Adora's alpha completely takes over and her instincts are blazing through her. She has one goal in mind and it's to find Catra. She plows past the others and goes to make her way out of the building, barely catching a glimpse of wide red eyes following her every move. She reaches for the door, then unexpectedly, she can't move another inch. Her whole body vibrates with a magic she isn't used to feeling very often. That magic was usually reserved for Catra.

Adora grunts at the thought and pushes through the barricade of magic. She moves another few inches until… BAM!

Everything in Adora's vision goes black as she falls to the ground. She hears whispers of "secret weapon" and "plan" before it all just stops.

A/N

Don't hate me for the wait. Lol, I do enough of that myself. Thanks for sticking with me! I appreciate you guys!