Chapter 34: Amends

No amount of training could have prepared anyone; Horde or Dryllish soldiers alike, for the upcoming slaughter that they were all about to face. Once She-Ra was reinfected with Entrapta's data crystal, her prefrontal lobe had been completely blocked and she felt nothing but a frenzied rage. As the two sides continued to exchange laser fire, a vehicle flew in between the fight of the Horde and Dryllish soldiers. The vehicle crash-landed in the middle of the street causing chunks of asphalt and smoke to fly in all directions.

Both factions stayed their weapons as they tried to figure out what had just happened. Once the smoke cleared, both factions widened their eyes as the greatest threat that either faction would ever see gave them both a sinister glare.

She-Ra growled as she looked at both factions, wondering which one to decimate first. The Horde, believing She-Ra to be on their side at the moment, refrained from shooting her. The Dryllish soldiers, on the other hand, did not share this sentiment. The leader of the Dryllish soldiers stared hard at She-Ra and shuddered once She-Ra turned her rabid gaze towards him. The leader looked to his men then suddenly shrieked.

"Uh, uh! OPEN FIRE!" The leader shouted. Per his command, a wave of lasers began flying towards She-Ra. She let out an animalistic growl and swiped her sword at the street. Once her sword made contact with the street, a wide explosion kicked up the asphalt in chunks which served as a shield against the lasers. However, a couple of the lasers did manage to make it past the asphalt which hit She-Ra in the arm. She let out a carnal scream but shrugged off her wound as she grabbed hold of the vehicle that she threw earlier.

She-Ra then picked the vehicle up effortlessly and heaved it swiftly at the Dryllish soldiers. They let out shouts of fear as they dove out of the way, but she did manage to take a few of them out. She-Ra then transformed her sword into a shield with acuminated edges and charged at the remaining Dryllish soldiers.

The unlucky soldier that happened to be closest to her was quick to be picked off. She-Ra used the sharpened edge of the shield to slice his head clean off. Soldiers to her right began firing their lasers, but their shots were blocked by her shield. Once the shield absorbed enough lasers, She-Ra used the shield to fire the lasers right back at the enemy. The barrage of lasers coalesced into one giant laser and exploded when it hit the Dryllish soldiers, taking out many more of them. The remaining soldiers looked at each other and began to retreat. She-Ra was not about to let that happen, however.

She-Ra transformed her shield into a bladed boomerang and hurled it at the retreating soldiers. The ones nearest to She-Ra felt the boomerang slice their backs in a lined fashion causing them to fall dead to the ground. Very few Dryllish soldiers managed to escape.

A loud cheer came from the Horde soldiers on the opposite end. This cheering caught She-Ra's attention and she turned towards them. She-Ra saw nothing but red as she growled at the Horde soldiers. The soldiers looked at each other in fear and confusion.

"RETREAT!" One of the soldiers shouted. Per that order, the Horde soldiers began retreating southwards towards the barracks they had come from. She-Ra let out another animalistic roar and charged at the retreating Horde soldiers. Stuck between buildings on either side, the Horde had no choice but to run in a straight line. The ones in the rear were the most at risk, and so, were trying their best to get away. One brave soul from among them stopped his stride.

"Keep going! I'll hold her off!" The soldier shouted. Two of his companions stopped their retreat as well and joined him. She-Ra was within ten feet. The three simultaneously raised their laser rifles and began firing at She-Ra. With a swipe of her sword, she deflected two of the shots back at her attackers, but the last shot managed to hit her. She let out her inhuman shriek before focusing her attention on the remaining soldier. He fired a few more rounds at her, but she easily dodged it. She jumped high in the air; much higher than the average She-Ra could then dove down with her sword aimed at the soldier's head. With one swift motion, her sword cleaved through the head, vertically slicing it in half.

She-Ra's bloodlust was still not satisfied, however. But, the remaining Horde soldiers had made a much larger gap thanks to the sacrifice of the three brave souls that stood their ground. She-Ra was about to continue her onslaught when she heard a familiar voice coming from a little ways behind her. She-Ra turned her attention to the voice. It was Brittni, Amazona, Bow, and the remaining Horde soldier.

"Adora?! What are you doing?!" Brittni demanded. Although they were around fifty feet away, Brittni could see that She-Ra had killed Horde soldiers. Adora muttered a low growl then widened her glowing red eyes. Brittni and company shuddered.

"Oh, no…" Bow muttered, "that's not Adora, anymore. She's been infected with the data crystal! We need to go! NOW!" Bow shouted. Nobody was about to argue with Bow and so turned away from She-Ra and ran as though the ground was slowly sinking beneath them.

Brittni and company had just gotten into the same boat that the other Horde soldiers were just in; that is, they were now She-Ra's prey. The panting of each individual was only drowned out only by the incessant, carnal roars coming from She-Ra as she inched ever closer to them. Brittni was looking around for any way out, but the street seemed to stretch on forever and She-Ra was closing in on them. Suddenly, they found themselves at the end of the street. To the left was a steel wall, and to the right were more buildings. Brittni and company turned to face She-Ra and readied their weapons. She-Ra's countenance still looked enraged but there was an evil grin that was slowly curving on her face as she raised her sword ready to slash. She-Ra was within twenty feet, advancing slowly on their position. Brittni, Amazona, and the Horde soldier brandished their laser weapons, while Bow nocked an arrow. All four were ready to fire when all of a sudden, they saw a helicopter flying towards them…

...A Horde helicopter…

Meanwhile, back at the reestablished Night Moon headquarters based in Elberon…

Void, Glimmer, Frosta, and Cairus managed to escape Dryl with all of their respective factions. They returned to Elberon that had been completely converted into Night Moon's main stronghold. It had been reinforced with denser walls, sophisticated security, patrols, and checkpoints. Along with all their soldiers, the leaders met inside Elberon's castle in a big conference hall. Void was at the pulpit with the faction leaders sitting behind her and the rest of their soldiers in the audience.

"Fellow Night Moon, Kingdom of Snow, and Dryllish soldiers. Today is a day of significance that marks the unification of all three of our nations. We are as the Rebellion should have been all along; that is, an actual threat to the Horde. Although there were some minor setbacks in Dryl, we have come back with the greatest prize of all: Princess Entrapta, and her plans regarding portal technology. Thanks to the sacrifice of our fellow soldiers, we now have a way to sneak behind enemy lines simply by walking through a portal!" Void declared.

A great cheer resounded in the conference hall showing the enthusiasm of all the troops. Void grinned under her mask. Glimmer and Cairus let out a cheer as well, but Frosta sat in her seat, rather uncomfortable. Void then continued.

"Now that we have the brilliant mind behind the portal plans as well as the technology, Entrapta has informed me that the only missing pieces we need are this… 'First One's technology.' This technology is some kind of fusion of magic and science, and I know just where to get it… Mystacor." Void proclaimed. Another resounding cheer rang out. Void then continued, "I will demand of Mystacor their technology. If they refuse to accept our demands, we will have no choice but to take it by force." Glimmer let out a quieted gasp underneath another resounding cheer that rang out across the crowd. Void chuckled lightly.

"Yes, my fellow freedom fighters. Soon we will have all the technology we need to strike a great blow against the Horde, and that day will be soon. For now, everyone return to your duties. And thank you for all of your hard work. I promise that it will all pay off. Dismissed." Void said.

Per her command, everyone left the conference hall until only the leaders resided. Glimmer stood up from her chair and beseeched Void.

"Void, please. We don't need to take their technology by force. Aunt Castaspella will listen to me if I explain to her how bad we need it." Glimmer declared. Void groaned upon hearing Castaspella's name.

"Ugh… Castaspella… She was one of the sorceresses that forced me out of Mystacor. I have a bone to pick with her." Void sneered. Glimmer glared at Void with her black sclera eyes and folded her arms. Void sighed and continued, "but if it's that important to you, I will allow you to try the diplomatic approach. But mark my words, my dear niece. If Castaspella refuses your offer, we will have no choice but to take what we need by force. Is that clear?" Void demanded. Glimmer let out a slight growl but nevertheless nodded her head.

"Good." Void said, her voice becoming more upbeat, "then head to the communications center and contact Mystacor. Let me know what they say." Void then turned to Cairus, "Cairus, I'm sorry that our plan for you to take control of Dryl did not pan out the way you wanted it. But you and the rest of your people are more than welcome to stay here. We can retake Dryl another day. Especially now that we have the princess." Void declared. Cairus let out a grunt and nodded.

"What's done is done. Let's just make our preparations for our next move." Cairus said. Void and Cairus then made their exit out of the conference hall. Glimmer began making her way out of the conference hall when she felt a tug on her pauldron. She looked back to see a disheartened Frosta giving her a somber look.

"Frosta? What is it?" Glimmer inquired. Frosta let out a sigh then asked Glimmer to sit back down with her. Glimmer did so and Frosta went on to explain her feelings.

"Glimmer, I didn't know that we would be attacking innocent people." Frosta muttered, "and kidnapping Entrapta? Why would you agree to that?!" Frosta demanded. Glimmer let out a scoff.

"Sometimes you need to get your hands dirty in order to win the battle. We need Entrapta for the portal technology, and the only way to get her cooperation was to bring her in by force. These are small sacrifices for the greater good." Glimmer reasoned. Frosta stood up.

"I saw what was happening! That guy, Cairus or whatever, his own soldiers betrayed their kingdom!" Frosta snapped. Glimmer growled.

"If the bots remained under Cairus' control, there wouldn't have been any casualties! I don't know why you're so mad. The only people that were harmed were the Dryllish and Horde soldiers. I thought you'd be happy about the Horde getting slaughtered. I mean, you did manage to kill that one Horde officer, Brett, right?" Glimmer inquired. Frosta shuddered and looked away. Glimmer narrowed her dark eyes at Frosta.

"You didn't kill him, did you? Cairus told you exactly where he'd be! I saw you go into that prison! What happened?" Glimmer demanded. Frosta shuddered a bit more, then took her seat. A few tears began streaming down her face. While her head was down, Frosta continued.

"Glimmer… I could have killed him. I was ready to kill him… but he… he sincerely apologized. I… I just couldn't do it." Frosta said as she began to sob. Glimmer glared at Frosta until she witnessed Frosta sobbing. Frosta then continued, "I just don't know what's happened to you, Glimmer. In one way, I'm glad that you're taking a more proactive role in fighting the Horde… but some of these methods… they just aren't right." Frosta mused. Glimmer let out a sigh and patted Frosta's back. Frosta wrapped her arms around Glimmer and continued crying.

Ordinarily, Glimmer would have scolded Frosta for not executing her objective, but she started remembering that Frosta was still pretty young. In addition, although Glimmer had been exploiting Frosta's love towards her, Glimmer began returning the affection. All the time they had been spending together, Glimmer was actually beginning to truly love Frosta back.

During this moment, Glimmer also began feeling a tenderness she had not felt for a while. At that moment, Glimmer had felt a little bit of light return to her. In a way, she actually enjoyed that feeling. Because of this, Glimmer decided to be a little more sympathetic.

"...Maybe you're right." Glimmer admitted. Even more light began flowing through her body, "well, hopefully, we'll be able to minimize the casualties if I'm able to convince my Aunt Castaspella to give us the First One's tech. If we can do that, our only target left would be to attack the Fright Zone directly and end this war." Glimmer explained. Frosta broke away from the hug and sniffled. Glimmer rubbed the tears from Frosta's eyes and laid a passionate kiss on her. The two pressed their lips together for what seemed like an eternity. When they pulled away Frosta let out a giggly chuckle and turned red.

"That's the Glimmer I've always liked," Frosta said. Glimmer let out a chuckle and stood up.

"Alright, I'm going to the communications center. You can come with me if you'd like." Glimmer offered. Frosta nodded and grabbed Glimmer's hand. Glimmer blushed a little then smiled. The two then walked out of the conference hall, hand-in-hand.

Meanwhile, Void and Cairus had been posted at the second level witnessing the entire interaction between the two.

"Hmph, I hope that snowgirl doesn't soften your second-in-command up," Cairus muttered as he leaned on the rail.

"Oh, she won't." Void said, calmly, "and if she does, well… we'll just have to remove her…"

Meanwhile, back at Dryl…

The Horde team (and Bow) rejoiced when they saw that red bat symbol of the Horde come into view. The helicopter's loud propellers constrained She-Ra to redirect her attention at it. She let out her animalistic growl and began running towards it. The helicopter turned to its side and the passenger door slid open. Although it was hard to make out, Brittni gasped when she realized who it was in the passenger hold.

Catra!

And Catra was not alone. She was manning a machine laser with its crosshairs aimed right at She-Ra. The machine laser began spinning its barrels until hot beams of green light began flying out towards She-Ra. She-Ra transformed her sword into a shield again and attempted to use it to block the incoming lasers. This tactic did not work as well as she thought, however, as many of the lasers managed to hit She-Ra's legs, causing her to drop to her knees.

She-Ra writhed in pain as she fell to the ground. Nevertheless, this mostly made her more angry than anything. With She-Ra's attention now diverted, however, Brittni, Bow, and Amazona started moving towards the most leftwards building to hopefully get away from She-Ra. The remaining Horde soldier simply stood there and aimed her laser rifle at She-Ra. Amazona and Bow ran into the building while Brittni turned back, realizing the other soldier wasn't with them.

"Roxy! What are you doing?!" Brittni demanded.

"Taking She-Ra out!" Roxy yelled as she fired her rifle at She-Ra. She-Ra looked back at the lasers coming from Roxy's rifle and could not defend against both fronts. The lasers struck her in multiple areas causing her to fall on her back, seemingly unconscious. Brittni, Amazona, and Bow switched glances between Roxy and She-Ra.

"Adora!" Bow cried out seeing his best friend fall.

"Wow…" Amazona muttered, "nice job, Roxy." Roxy let out a choked chuckle and rubbed the back of her helmet. Bow pushed Amazona out of the way and ran towards She-Ra. Brittni, meanwhile, stood there frozen, not believing that Adora could really be dead. The Horde helicopter slowly descended until it was resting on the street. Catra jumped out of the passenger side with a look of concern. Amazona and Roxy then ran towards Catra.

Catra kept her gaze fixated on She-Ra, shuddering, thinking that Adora was truly dead. She completely ignored the fact that Bow was even there. When Catra approached She-Ra, she fell to her knees and trembled as she put her hands on her. Brittni turned to Amazona and Roxy and motioned for them to get on the helicopter. She then walked over to Catra and knelt down next to her.

"Is… Is she…?" Brittni inquired distantly. Catra said nothing but continued to stare at She-Ra, not believing what she was seeing.

"I… I didn't want to kill her…" Catra admitted, "I was just trying to… I dunno, knock her out or something." Catra said with a few tears streaming down her eyes. Bow then stood up.

"Knock her out? Knock her out?! You used a machine laser on her! What did you think was going to happen?!" Bow demanded. Tears began streaming faster down Catra's face as she stood up and glared at Bow.

"She was in her princess form! She's been able to take a tank blast before! How was I supposed to know that this would do her in?!" Catra demanded. The two then began yelling over each other. During this time Brittni peered closer to She-Ra and felt her pulse.

"Fifty beats per minute…" Brittni muttered to herself. She then raised her head, "hey, HEY! Shut up! She's still alive!" Brittni shouted. Catra and Bow stopped their bickering and looked down. Sure enough, She-Ra was still breathing.

"Yeah, her heart rate is at normal resting- wait." Brittni began. Slowly, She-Ra's heart rate began picking up. Before Brittni had a chance to respond, She-Ra's glowing red eyes appeared as her eyelids opened up. She-Ra then sat up and grabbed Bow by the shirt and threw him towards the helicopter, barreling him into Amazona and Roxy. All three let out a major oof as they flew against the helicopter and were knocked out.

She-Ra then immediately turned to Catra, grabbed her by the neck and lifted her several feet in the air. Catra tried clawing at She-Ra's arm, but her slashing only made She-Ra angrier and tightened her grip.

"A...Dor...A… Please…!" Catra begged as she gripped She-Ra's wrist. She-Ra simply continued gazing at Catra with an animalistic rage. Brittni, taking a few steps back, ran at She-Ra full force and tackled her to the ground. Thanks to the weight of the armor, Brittni actually managed to take She-Ra down and make She-Ra loosen her grip on Catra's throat. Catra fell to the ground and gasped for breath.

"Adora! It's Brittni! Wake up! We're your friends! Please!" Brittni begged. She-Ra let out a carnal scream in return and kicked Brittni off. Brittni flew back almost ten feet away. The armor cushioned the blow, but Brittni still felt like she took the kick without armor.

"Ugh…" Brittni groaned. She-Ra then brandished her sword at Brittni and marched towards her. Just as She-Ra was about to raise her sword to swipe at Brittni, Catra jumped on She-Ra's back and attempted to rip the sword from She-Ra's hands. With her free hand, She-Ra grabbed Catra's hands that were attempting to grab the sword and threw Catra towards Brittni, causing Catra to crash into her.

Both girls groaned but then gasped when She-Ra again attempted to slice them both with her sword. She-Ra made a vertical swipe and the two girls rolled the opposite way of each other. When the sword collided with the street, a large crack appeared. The crack became larger and larger until a hole, big enough for all three opened, and swallowed them, causing them to fall in the deep depths of the Dryllish underground…

Meanwhile, at the Communications Center in Elberon…

"Glimmer! Oh, thank goodness you're alright." Glimmer's aunt, Castaspella gushed as she was able to see Glimmer. Castaspella then added after looking at Glimmer's new look, "I… I see you've changed your look. Well, no worries, the next time I see you, we can give you a makeover!" Castaspella suggested. Glimmer groaned and rubbed her forehead while Frosta sat quietly in the chair next to her.

"Hey, Aunt Casta, I just want to know if I can borrow some of that First One's Technology that Mystacor dug up." Glimmer demanded. Castaspella cocked her eyebrow.

"Why, whatever for?" Castaspella inquired.

"It's… for a device that is going to help us with a battle with the Horde. Please, can we borrow some of that tech?" Glimmer inquired. Castaspella slowly shook her head.

"Glimmer, those artifacts we've found still merit a great deal of study. We can't just simply hand them over-" Castaspella began before being interrupted by Glimmer's groan. Her eyes began glowing purple and Castaspella gasped upon seeing her niece's shift in attitude.

"Aunt Casta!" Glimmer shouted, "Listen, I don't know what you plan on doing with that tech, but I guarantee it is incredibly trivial compared to why we need it. Now can we have it or are we going to have to take it from you?" Glimmer threatened.

"Young Lady!" Castaspella snapped back, "I'm not sure where you learned that behavior, but that is no way to ask for help. I told you the reasons, and I-" Castaspella began before getting interrupted by Glimmer again.

"This is so typical with you and the rest of your useless sorcerers! There is a war going on that will determine the survival between the Horde and the rest of Etheria. All you and your people do is laze about and talk to the sky or whatever! We could have used your magic for so many battles and you idly sat by while innocents were slaughtered. Well, if you're not going to fight, maybe I'll give you a reason to fight!" Glimmer snapped. She then ended the transmission and stood up. She used her aura to surround a locker in the corner and throw it across the room, slamming into another wall, blowing a silhouette of the locker thrown through the wall.

Frosta blinked several times as her lips quivered. She looked at Glimmer who was panting as though she had just run a marathon. Frosta did not want to say anything in fear of Glimmer's wrath. Glimmer maintained the scowl on her face until she turned her attention to Frosta. Seeing the distraught expression on Frosta's face, Glimmer let out a low shudder.

"I… I'm sorry you had to see that, Frosta." Glimmer apologized. Frosta let out a sigh.

"I feel that you could have handled that better. I mean, you only gave her one explanation… maybe it would be better to ask her in person?" Frosta suggested. Glimmer let out a sigh.

"Yeah… maybe. I don't know, ugh…" Glimmer groaned, "I think I just need to get some sleep."

"Well, where's our bed?" Frosta teased. Glimmer grinned.

"I'll show you…"

Back at Dryl…

Brittni, Catra, and She-Ra had fallen through the hole. Brittni had landed first and was cushioned by her armor. Catra, likewise, was fine as she landed on her feet. She-Ra was less lucky, as when she fell down, she slammed on the concrete. Thankfully when she hit the ground, so did the data crystal. The crystal absolutely shattered upon contact with the ground, thus breaking the virus' control over She-Ra.

Brittni groaned as she slowly picked herself up from the concrete platform. She could hear rustling water coming from nearby. Sure enough, when Brittni blinked a few times, she found that they were all in Dryl's sewer. She stood up and wiped the debris that fell on her. A few feet away, Brittni found Catra and…

Adora! Not She-Ra, but actually Adora! Catra was already gripping Adora by the shoulders shouting for her to wake up.

"Adora? Adora! Wake up! Please, wake up!" Catra begged. Brittni moved over to the two and gently moved Catra away. Catra scoffed, "Hey, what're you doing-" Catra started before Brittni let out a groan.

"I'm sorry, did you become a medical practitioner in the last week?" Brittni asked, sarcastically. Catra rubbed her shoulder and let out a sigh. Brittni then added, "yeah. Let me handle this." Catra scoffed, stood up and away, then folded her arms. Brittni then placed her hand on Adora's neck and was shocked to feel that her heart rate was going from resting to completely active.

"What the…?" Brittni inquired. She then gasped at what happened next. Adora immediately raised her torso up from the ground and gave Brittni the goofiest smile ever.

"Brittni! Oh, my gawwwwsh, it is so good to see you!" Adora said while letting out a snort. She then wrapped Brittni in a hug and ended up toppling her over.

"Whoa, whuh?!" Brittni protested as she fell over.

"Hah-hah… tag, you're it!" Adora shouted. She then quickly picked herself and awkwardly started to run until she saw Catra. Adora and Catra stared at each other with looks of uncertainty. Catra's lip began to quiver while Adora continued to study Catra thoroughly.

"Adora… I…" Catra began. Adora then ran up to Catra and wrapped her in a hug.

"Catra! Oh, man, it is soooo good to see you! You remember Brittni, right?!" Adora giggled and snorted. Catra widened her eyes in confusion and looked to Brittni. Brittni just shrugged her shoulders and shook her head, about as clueless as Catra.

"Hey, Catra! You're still afraid of water, right?! Last one in's a dirty little imp!" Adora shouted as she broke away from Catra and jumped into the rather filthy sewer water. The water splashed towards Catra causing the fur on Catra to stand up. Catra herself let out a rather high pitched shriek as she jumped away several feet against the wall, and landed on all fours. Adora let out a snorty laugh as she started splashing more water towards Catra.

"Adora! What the heck is the matter with you?! Knock it off!" Catra yelled. Brittni could not help but giggle under her breath. Catra narrowed her eyes at Brittni and growled. Adora continued to laugh until she saw a rather large pile of debris flowing down the sewer towards her.

"Hey, guys! Look, there's a giant pile of sh- AGH!" Adora screamed as the debris crashed into her.

"ADORA!" Catra and Brittni screamed, simultaneously. Adora laugh-screamed as the debris pile began sweeping her down the sewer. Without hesitation, the two Horde girls sprung into action and ran on the walkway in the direction of the current. Adora seemed to be picking up speed. Brittni analyzed the situation:

"There's debris in this water… the current's moving faster…" Brittni thought to herself. She then gasped.

"Oh, no…" Brittni muttered.

"What?!" Catra shouted as she panted.

...She's headed for a waterfall…" Brittni said, gravely. Catra let out a gasp and picked up the pace, jumping on all fours and maneuvering around Brittni. Brittni stopped her pace and dropped her jaw when she saw what happened next. Catra sprung from the walkway and leaped at Adora. Brittni let out a loud gasp.

"Catra!" Brittni protested, but it was too late. Catra had splashed into the water and grabbed hold of Adora's right arm and attempted pulling her from the debris.

"Brittni, get over here!" Catra ordered. Brittni sprang into action and ran as though she were two feet taller. The current continued to pick up, however, and Brittni was falling behind. Catra was struggling to stay afloat while simultaneously pulling Adora from the debris; (and to brave the water in general.) Meanwhile, Adora was in la-la land.

"Hey, Catra! Let's play Marco Polo! I'll go first! Marco!" Adora hooted. Catra growled for a moment until a lightbulb popped into her head. Catra let go of Adora's arm, swam towards the walkway, and grabbed onto the railing.

"Polo!" Catra yelled. Accordingly, Adora pulled herself from the debris and swam towards Catra.

"Ah-ha! I got you!" Adora clumsily declared as she tried to grab Catra… but missed. Catra looked towards the current's end and saw that the waterfall was coming up. Catra let out a loud gasp.

"POLO! POLO! POLO!" Catra yelled. Adora grumbled.

"Catra, I didn't say Marco- Whuh!" Adora started saying before being grabbed by Catra. Catra had to let go of the walkway railing to grab Adora, so now both were floating towards their doom.

"Brittni, help!" Catra yelled. Brittni saw that the waterfall was coming and sprinted beyond her max. Catra looked as they were only a few feet from the waterfall. She let out a loud scream while Adora giggled relentlessly. Just as the two were about to plummet down the waterfall, Catra held Adora tightly and shouted something Brittni did not believe she would ever hear.

"Adora… I... I love you!" Cata shouted. The two then began falling down the waterfall. Catra let out a loud shriek of fear as the two were about to descend into oblivion...

...Until a certain twin grabbed Catra's shoulders.

Catra looked up and saw Brittni holding the railing at the end of the walkway while also grabbing her shoulder. Catra reached her free hand and grabbed hold of Brittni's arm while holding onto Adora… who was dangling below Catra. Using the strength of her power armor, Brittni slowly but surely pulled the two up safely onto the walkway.

Brittni was panting heavily while Catra was shivering and panting. She got on all fours and shook herself to get all the water out of her fur. Adora in the meanwhile was laying on the walkway kicking her feet in the air.

"Woohoo! I won!" Adora whooped. She then started waving her limbs back and forth, and added, "woo! Water angel!"

Catra and Brittni both let out groans. Although these groans almost sounded more of relief than aggravation. While Adora was entertaining herself, Brittni sat and leaned against the wall while Catra squeezed the water out of her clothes. Brittni smiled at Catra and she took notice.

"...Um, thanks for saving us, Brittni." Catra admitted almost begrudgingly.

"That's not what I'm smiling about, Catra." Brittni said, chuckling. Catra eyed Brittni suspiciously then widened her eyes.

"You didn't… hear any-" Catra began to say before Brittni interrupted her with a yell.

"I heard EVERYTHING, Catra!" Brittni yelled, giggling and pointing at Catra.

"Wha- Look, I dunno what you think you heard, but-" Catra began before being interrupted again; this time by a recording device.

"Adora… I… I love you!" Catra's voice came from the recording device built into Brittni's armor. Catra's already widened eyes became even wider as she trembled from hearing her own voice admit to something so… compromising. Catra marched right up to Brittni with a huff.

"You delete that right now, or so help me…" Catra threatened. At this point, Brittni was giggling like a hyena.

"Alright, alright." Brittni conceded. Catra started walking towards Adora and knelt down. Brittni then added, "it was pretty cute, though." Brittni smirked.

"Oh, shut up and help me fix her," Catra commanded. Brittni stood up and walked over to Adora. Adora was blowing raspberries while holding onto her feet. Brittni bit her gloved finger as she contemplated how to fix Adora.

"Hmm… well, her Gamma-Aminobutyric Acid transmitter in her brain has abated… basically, she's experiencing the equivalent of inebriation." Brittni surmised. Catra looked up at her.

"Okay, medic nerd, how do we get her back to normal?" Catra demanded.

"Hmmm… well, we can either wait for the GAMA transmitter to function correctly, or we can apply stress to the frontal lobe in order to jumpstart the-" Brittni began saying, to the chagrin of Catra who interrupted Brittni's plan with a smack to Adora's face.

"Ow! Catra!" Adora protested, "Wait. Catra?! What? What's going on?! Where are we?!" Adora demanded. Brittni narrowed her eyes at Adora.

"Adora! You're back!" Brittni squealed as she reached over and wrapped Adora in a hug. Catra hissed at this action, to which Brittni looked over and smiled devilishly.

"Jealous?" Brittni teased, sticking her tongue out. Catra's cheeks turned red for a few moments and she growled.

"No! I just don't want you getting affectionate with the enemy!" Catra snapped. "In case you forgot, Brittni, she betrayed us!" Brittni pulled away from Adora and Adora looked at Catra in desperation. Adora then let out a sigh and looked down.

"This would be the… fourth time? Fifth? Ugh, whatever…" Adora began. She then stood up and looked at Catra. Catra leaned against a wall with her arms folded.

"Catra…" Adora reattempted to start.

"What Adora? What could you possibly have to say to me?" Catra demanded. Adora groaned and rubbed her shoulder.

"I just… I'm sorry. I'm sorry that I left so suddenly and I'm sorry that I didn't give you an explanation as to why." Adora said, glumly.

"I don't care about an explanation! You left! Do you know what I went through when you just up and defected from the Horde? Do you know how alone I was? Do you…" Catra began choking on her emotion, "do you even care?!" Catra demanded.

"Of course I care, Catra! Everything just happened so fast." Adora protested, "Catra… I left the Horde because I saw what they were doing to the rest of Etheria... I couldn't be a part of that anymore…" Adora said, with a few tears streaming down her face. She looked back up at Catra, determinedly.

"Catra, I promise you… I never wanted to leave you. I really never did." Adora proclaimed as she walked closer to Catra. Catra hissed but did not move. Adora then reached for Catra's hands and gently held them. Catra switched glances between her hands and Adora's face. A few tears began streaming out of Catra's eyes and she shuddered.

"But you did leave me, Adora! You just left without considering everything that you were doing!" Catra accused. Adora looked down, sighed, then gently rubbed Catra's hands.

"I know… I know I did, Catra…" Adora let out another sigh. "But maybe I can make up for it?" Adora suggested. Catra pulled her hands away.

"How? How could you possibly make up for leaving? In case you forgot, we're on opposite sides in the middle of a war!" Catra snapped. Brittni then threw her two cents in.

"Well… actually, it's a little more complicated than that." Brittni said. Catra turned to Brittni.

"What's complicated? The Horde hates the Rebellion and vice versa. Sounds pretty simple to me!" Catra jeered. Brittni shook her head.

"It's a long story…" Brittni started. She then sighed and shook her head, "look, for right now, we need to focus on getting out of this sewer," Brittni suggested. Catra switched glances between Adora and Brittni.

"Alright… let's get out of here."

Meanwhile, back at Elberon…

Glimmer was tossing and turning in her bed while sweating profusely.

"Ergh! No! Who are you?!"

"... My name is Oracle..."