Adora's POV
"Adora."
My name rings out through my entire being, but I don't know who's saying it.
"Adora."
It echoes. The voice is
"Adora!"
I shoot up, gasping for breath. Whatever I was dreaming about, there was nothing but flashes. And a voice. I don't know what it means, but I need to figure it out. I look down, Catra is sleeping below me. Curled up, my best friend. For a second, I think about going back to sleep, but the voice in my head was persistent. I slowly maneuver out of bed, I need to figure out what the sword was about. Standing up, I make my way out of the barracks. I make it two steps down the hallway when I hear Catra's voice behind me.
"Hey, where are you going?"
I jump a little. Of course she'd wake up. "Back to the woods. There's something I need to figure out."
"What? You're not- '' I hear a night-time patrol bot approaching us, and place my hand over Catra's mouth to keep her quiet. As it passes, she immediately pushes my arm down and continues with, "what is wrong with you? You've been acting weird since we got back. Are you sure you're not brain damaged?" She places my hands over my head, calling back to a conversation we had earlier today.
I gently and playfully push her off of me. "Look Catra, I know I saw something out there. It's ju- I just need to get another look. It feels important somehow." I don't know why, but I know things are different now. I just need to figure out how different they are.
Catra seems to consider it for a moment, and immediately grabs my arm. "Adora, come back to bed. We'll figure this out in the morning, okay?"
It feels wrong, like I shouldn't do what I'm to do, but I see the concern in Catra's eyes and… I listen to her. "Okay. Fine. We'll figure this out tomorrow."
Catra doesn't seem sure, but she smiles at this. "Good, I was worried you were going to just run off for a second. Now come on, before we get in trouble."
I sigh, Catra's right. We head back into the room we just left, and we climb back into bed. I'm still on edge. Something is wrong. But I look over at Catra, now laying next to me, and relax. How could anything be wrong? The sword will still be there tomorrow, if it was even real. I close my eyes, Catra obviously so tired she fell back asleep instantly, and I follow suit.
Glimmer's POV
"Come on! Come on!" Bow says in frustration.
"Ugh! Please tell me we're not lost!" I reply, tired of us having been walking in circles for what feels like hours.
"No, this thing is just acting up. Looks like it's being overloaded by the tech's signal. We must be getting close!"
I look around, hoping that something would just click, and we'd be there, but it looks like we're still going to be wondering for a bit.
"Which way does it say now?" I ask, trying not to let my annoyance shine through.
"I don't know. I can't get this thing to work right now." Bow sighs, and puts his tracker-pad away. He looks up, trying to think of a plan. "Maybe… We don't need it to work."
"What makes you say that?" I ask, failing to keep from sounding annoyed this time. Bow doesn't say anything, he instead just points up. I look where he's pointing, and see it. Down here, there are thick bushes everywhere. Up top, you can't see over the tree line. In the middle, though, there's just a bit of space between the tree trunks. And something tore through a huge chunk of branches. "Huh," I say, standing corrected.
We follow the direction of the crash, using where the branches landed to tell us which way the crashing object went. It isn't hard to get through just a few short bushes, and there it is. Well, not the object. Whatever it was, it's long gone, clearing having landed, and eventually turned off another direction towards, well, The Fright Zone? The Horde was here?
"Uh, Glimmer… I think I found the tech." I look over at Bow, and sure enough, there's a sword there, just laying in some brambles.
I walk up to him, and he starts trying to pull it from its tomb. "What do you think it does?"
He manages to get it free, but the weight of the sword surprised him. "Huh, heavy." he says, holding it with two arms. "It's definitely the tech, it feels… powerful."
"Well, then let's get it back to Bright Moon! And since you made us walk here, I can get us back instantly!" I'm excited now, Bow was right! This is going to be a huge win for the rebellion, my mom can't be mad at me now! I grab Bow, and think about Bright Moon. But the image is too hazy. I try the edge of the woods, and it's better, but still hard to make out the details. So I try a halfway point, a rock Bow and I must have passed 3 times a while ago, and the mental image is clear. Bingo. I imagine us there, as we are now, and when I open my eyes, we're there.
"Uh, Glimmer, this isn't out?"
"We're further in than I thought. Give me a second." I imagine the edge of the woods again, and Bow and I are there, much quicker this time. I'm a little tired already, traveling farther distances always burns me out faster, but it's fine. We've made it far further on less, before. I imagine my room now, and we're close enough that I can actually make it out this time, and we're there. The whole trip back, in less than a minute.
"Well, you are getting better at this," Bow says, excitedly, "Remember when you first got your powers, and we went on that trip to Mystacore?"
I smile at the memory, it was a good day. Bow and I have really been friends for a while now, it was getting harder to remember some of the details. "We need to do it again sometime, when I'm not grounded."
"Of course. Don't worry. With this tech, whatever it does, Angella will be sure to forgive you for… Whatever you're in trouble for."
"You're right, thanks Bow. I guess I should get to sleep. Want to stay over tonight?"
"You aren't worried about getting caught?"
"Nah, it's cool. Like you said, Angella is gonna love this."
"Of course she is. The power this was throwing off, I feel like this thing is strong enough to, if we can use it, help us win the war for good!"
I smile, grabbing the sword from him. I set it on the side of the room, against the wall. This is good, and I'm going to be ungrounded tomorrow. But first, sleep. Bow's already setting up his spot near the couch, and I teleport up to my bed. Just to grab my pillow and blanket though. It isn't the most comfortable thing, But we keep sleeping bags just under the couch, for exactly these nights. I think Bow was more tired than me, too, as he falls asleep way before me. I don't know why, but I'm really excited about this. I feel like, finally, things are going alright for us.
Adora's POV
"Adora." The voice is ringing out again in my ears. It won't leave me alone.
"Adora." What does it want from me? Doesn't it know I'm working on it?
"Adora, wake up!" I open my eyes. Catra is on top of me, purring in excitement. "Come on, Force Captain. Let's go!"
"What? Why? What's going on?"
"Come on, Adora, don't play dumb. You knew it was coming sooner or later, except actually, I just got news from Lonnie. She told me to tell you the invasion of Thaymor is happening today!"
"Today? What? But I needed to figure out-"
"Calm down and get ready. I know it's sudden, but we have to get ready."
I freeze up for a second. "Catra… Shadow Weaver said you all aren't coming."
"What? Of course we are. You're leading the attack, Lonnie said so. And we're a team. How can you lead the charge without us?" She sits back, clearly upset, probably angry.
"I don't know. I'll talk to her, okay? I need you out there."
Catra sulks back, obviously upset still. "Yeah, whatever. Just… don't do too good without me?"
"Catra, come on," I extend my hand out, hoping she'll take it. I'll get you out there. I promise."
She sighs, and looks back at me, grabbing my hand. "Okay, Adora. I'll go wake up Rogelio and Kyle. You get ready, your hair is a mess. Honestly, you should really stop sleeping with your hair tied up."
I get off the mattress, annoyed, but playfully. "Hey, don't lecture me about hair care, you rarely even brush yours!"
"Hey, I take care of my hair!" She feigns shock, playing her hand over her chest and dropping her mouth.
"Sure thing. Alright, I'm going to go get dressed. See you in 10?"
"See you in 10," she confirms, standing up and walking over to Kyle's bunk immediately flipping his mattress over, knocking him off the bed. I can't help but chuckle a bit, even if it mean, before throwing on my jacket and straightening up my hair. I didn't bother changing out of my shirt or pants last night, as I kind of planned on heading back to the woods before Catra stopped me, but I guess it saves some time now, as I lace up my boots. I head out in the hall, I need to convince Shadow Weaver to let my team come with, and that requires finding her.
I start bounding down the halls, looking for any sign of her. It almost feels weird, usually I'm just trying to avoid her. I don't need to look very hard, as she is right around the corner.
"Adora. You're finally awake, good. I take it you have been informed of Hordak's decision to move up the attack on Thaymor?"
"Uh, yeah. My team is getting ready for it now."
There's immediate tension in the air. Shadow Weaver's robes and hair are flowing a little slower. "I'm sorry Adora, but I believe I told you yesterday that they are not ready."
"No, they are! You see the training times, they're all field ready!"
"No, Adora. Catra is too lazy, Rogelio too tame, and Lonnie too quick to act. Do I need to even mention Kyle?"
"Catra isn't lazy, she does try! And she succeeds too! She keeps up with me in almost every metric. And Rogelio and Lonnie know what they're doing, they have the heart and capabilities. Kyle, probably, just needs a chance to actually get out in the field."
"It's a shame you care so much about them, Adora. It's unfortunate there are no other cadets your age more suitable for your guidance. But out on the field, it wouldn't matter. You'd lead an entire squadron in your name." I feel guilty letting her speak about my friends like that, but there isn't exactly anything I can say to get her to like them. But to let me have this? I could do that.
"But… I don't want to lead if they're not by my side."
"Adora, they will only slow you down."
"Well, maybe that's a good thing! Slow means time to think!"
"Slow means distracted, slow means sloppy."
"How bad can Thaymor be? Just let them try out on the field. I promise, I'll make sure they'll keep up."
Shadow Weaver pauses, looking down at me. I don't know if she's trying to tell me something silently, or thinking. You can't exactly read someone through a plastic mask. Eventually, though, she does speak, "fine. However, I expect nothing but success out here. This is their one, and only, chance to be field-ready early."
I gulped. If they messed up here, it'd be months before we were out on the field together. "Don't worry, Shadow Weaver. We won't let you down."
"Adora, please. I already know you will succeed."
"I-" I don't know what to say. My friends… "Thank you."
"Hurry back to your room, Adora. Make sure you're prepared."
I nod, and turn back towards the barracks. When I get there, Catra is all ready to go, as Well as Lonnie, who has been awake. I see Rogelio struggling into a suit of armor, while Kyle is struggling to even get out of bed. Catra immediately stops leaning against the dresser, and walks over.
"Well, what did she say?" There's so much excitement in her eyes, but I can tell she's holding back, dreading bad news. Thankfully, I have none to give.
"You're all coming. Even Kyle." Catra shouts in excitement, and immediately hugs me. I see Lonnie smile, and nod in my direction. Rogelio says something unintelligible, and Kyle isn't listening. I hug Catra back, enjoying it while it lasts, before she pulls away.
"Thanks Adora, this is huge!" Lonnie says, turning around and grabbing her helmet.
"It's fine, I only had to say please. A lot. Besides, there's no point in being out there without you all. We're leaving soon. Kyle!" He finally stands up, staring. "You're running out of time. Get ready. Everyone else… We've got a rebel outpost to capture!" I can barely contain my excitement at this. This all we've ever wanted, for as long as we've been aware of our own thoughts. This is how it starts, climbing the ranks with my best friends.
"I can't believe you were able to actually get through to Shadow Weaver!" Catra says, purring
"I know! I mean, there's a bit more pressure on me now, but it's going to be worth it!"
Catra pauses for a second, like I said something wrong, but doesn't say anything about what I said, instead saying, "well, let's make sure not to disappoint."
We continue bustling around the room, grabbing whatever we feel we might need. Catra and I are going without the armor, both preferring the maneuverability to the defense, but we don't get our own set of stun-sticks, we'll grab those from the armory on the way out. Catra, Lonnie, and I are ready to go. After a few short minutes of everyone yelling at Kyle to hurry up faster, all five of us are heading down to the entrance of the building. Everyone's excited, bustling with energy and livelihood. 17 years of my life, and I'm finally here. Force Captain, leading a team of my closest friends out to see active combat.
Taking a quick trip to the armory, we all grab a stun-stick. I don't think Catra or Rogelio plan to use it much, but it's always good to have. We're on our way over to the skiffs when we notice the crowd. There must be two dozen other people ready to go. Huh, seems a little light for a fortress assault. Still, that's nearly 30 people I'm in charge of, this is going to be a little tricky. To make things even more complicated, Shadow Weaver is there in front.
"Alright everyone. Many of you have been in the fields before, many of you have not. This should be a simple mission to establish an outpost within the Whispering Woods, hopefully making our future voyages through those woods less treacherous. You'll be led by Force Captain Adora. The plan originally was for this attack to be a few more weeks out, but you will have to deal with it today." She looked right at me when she said that. That's right, I'm heading out into the field without even having attended Force Captain orientation, since that was next week. I hope I don't let anyone here down. "You all know your roles on the field. The skiffs and transport vehicles are ready. Do not fail, Hordak will be hearing how this goes."
The five of us climb into the center transport ship, taking the back. No one else gets in, as there's still 7 more vehicles out there. I sit down, Catra and Kyle surrounding me, Lonnie and Rogelio across from us. We're there for only a moment before the engine starts, and we feel the vehicle moving out.
"This is so awesome!" Catra says, breaking the silence since we were in the halls. "I can't believe it, we made it!"
"I wouldn't get too excited," Lonnie says, "we need to be sure we don't mess this up."
Catra visibly calms down, shockingly enough. She turns to me, and says nothing. I shouldn't have said anything about the pressure on me.
Kyle is the next one to speak. "I actually weirdly don't feel nervous. I always thought I'd never make it out of the Fright Zone, but we're actually going to see the woods, and a town!"
"This isn't sight-seeing, we're on a mission," Lonnie again says. I'm relieved she's here, it means I'm not the only one keeping everyone focused.
"I know, but… I'm just saying. I'm always nervous before training and,-"
"Kyle, you're always nervous. Period," I point out.
"I'm just hopeful, I guess."
Catra puffs a little. "Please, we don't need hope. I don't know about you, but I'm certain this is going to be a piece of cake."
"Exactly," I add, "We've taken everything the horde has thrown us. They always say not to underestimate the enemy, and I don't, but I'm not worried either. We got this!"
That being said, there is an air of uncertainty. Everyone agrees with me, everyone is so sure, but I still have that nagging feeling in the back of my head that I shouldn't be here. I push the thought aside. The ride won't be long, I need to be focused.
Glimmer's POV
"So, you found this sword, in the woods, out with Bow."
"Yes, mom, I found the sword in the woods with Bow."
"So you disobeyed my orders."
"Yes! Well actually- no, I did. I just thought it would be a huge win for us!"
"Bow, do you know what it does?"
"No, your majesty," Bow answers. "But, I think it's powerful. It's given off energy signatures like nothing I've ever seen before. I had to specifically code in my tracker pad to ignore it so it doesn't act up whenever it's near the thing."
My mom says nothing, seeming to be lost in thought. "So you have no idea what it does, or why it was there, and thought it was worth risking the deep parts of the whispering woods in the middle of the night?"
"Mom, please, Bow didn't not think this through."
"Glimmer's right. I have an idea. I know someone who's been studying this tech for years, trying to figure out its secrets. Well, I don't know her, know her, but the readings speak for themselves. Look," he hands her his tracker pad, consisting of constantly fluctuating numbers and a graph going up and down in something.
"Bow, I have no idea what this means." Bow pulls it back, seeming slightly embarrassed. "But, who is this person?"
"The princess of Dryl, Entrapta, of the Etherian Maker Community?"
"Oh, Princess Entrapta. Well, I'm not sure I can immediately approve of transporting this supposedly ancient and powerful relic all the way to Dryl, but I will look into it."
"Mom, wait!" I shout. "What if we go? Then you don't have to free up any resources for it. Bow can continue to hold onto it, and we'll head over when we're able."
"Hmm… alright. Bow, thank you. I do not appreciate this working behind my back, but I will give you both some credit for immediately coming to me with this."
"Yes!" I shriek, jumping forward and hugging her.
"Thank you, Queen Angella. We'll figure out what this does. We-" Bo is interrupted in thought when the Bright Moon general storms into the room, panting.
"Queen Angella," she breathes in, "scouts have reported an envoy of Fright Zone ships on their way through the woods." She breathes deeply again. "They believe the target is Thaymor."
"Thaymor? The horde has never marched that deep into the Whispering Woods before. Thaymor has no defenses, we barely have anything stationed there!" Angella is immediately separated from any thought about the sword. Bow and I look at each other, worried.
"What do we do?" General Juliet asks. "We won't be able to muster up a response force that could reach Thaymor for an hour!"
I take a deep breath and step forward, "mom, look."
"Glimmer, no. I will not send you out there without backup. You can't take an entire team with you."
"I don't.. Look, I know I disappointed you yesterday. But please, you said it yourself. Thaymor has nothing, let me at least go and insist in evacuation?"
Mom looks down at me, thinking. She considers it, and looks at Bow, "you two will focus only on ensuring the town folks are brought out of harm's way?" I clench my fist. Of course she'd ask Bow. Why would she make me a commander if she didn't trust me?
"If that's all you want from us, yes," Bow responds. He puts a hand on my shoulder and looks at me as if to tell me to let it go, and I unclench my fist.
"Just an evacuation."
My mom nods, and I turn back to Bow. It'll have to do. His hand on me, I think of Thaymor. Of course, I can think an image of it up just fine, but there's a different sense of it when I'm teleporting. I can feel it, almost. Feel it without being there. The air. Except now, when it's too far, so I imagine the edge of the woods again. Thaymor isn't actually too far from where we found the sword. Bow and I had a backup plan in case we ran into trouble. If I couldn't teleport us home, we'd go there. Three teleports wouldn't be too much so, and willing myself to be there, we're at the woods edge.
I concentrate more, trying to find a halfway point. The magic of Etheria is a tricky thing to ride, sometimes. It's unpredictable, uncontrollable. Mostly. I find a suitable clearing, and we're there. One more stop. Now, Thaymor is easy to imagine. I was right, just like last night, three long-distance teleports will do. They're a little tiring in quick-succession, a lot trickier than teleporting a few feet over in the middle of a fight, but nothing I can't handle plenty more of. So there we are, in Thaymor, on will and magic alone.
Bow looks around the clearing. "There is some sort of festival going on. No sign of the Horde."
"Great, let's get their attention. I don't suppose you have a confetti arrow?"
Bow looks at me, and smirks. There's no way. "Don't worry, I don't have one. Well, I do, but not on me, it isn't exactly a war arrow."
"That's… so silly. I love it."
"I'll show you later? How charged are you feeling?"
"Enough. Light show?"
"Light show."
I raise my hand, and with a little concentration, I shoot a quick burst of energy into the sky. It isn't exactly loud, but anyone already outdoors will certainly have seen it. A few people are already turning to us, and I start speaking. "Attention citizens of Thaymor, the Horde is currently on route with a convoy of who knows what. We're here on behalf of the rebellion. I'm sorry to say this, but the party is off. Grab your family members and head for the nearest Bright Moon relief outpost if you're able, we'll be here to make sure no one gets hurt."
There's a few collective whispers and murmurs, but thankfully it's hard to not take the daughter of the queen seriously when the situation calls for it, and suddenly, people are scrambling for their homes. The chaos probably isn't going to be great, but the more people are out of harm's way, the better.
"Um, excuse me?" Someone asks, tentatively.
"Hi. Yes?"
"How long do we have?"
"I'm sorry… I don't really know. The queen got word from some scouts about a convoy, and I came as quickly as I could."
The person nods, and they're off, heading towards a tent a short while away.
"Glimmer, care to take me on top of that roof over there?" He points at a moderately tall building. It's no tower, and everything here is one story tall max, but any vantage point is better than none. I nod, and we're up there instantly. Of course, there's no better time to be greeted by the oncoming row of smoke coming up through the trees. It's more than I thought would be necessary for a place like Thaymor, but I guess the horde isn't taking chances.
The first of the vehicles crosses the tree line, as well as two others like it. I saw these at the battle I fought just the other day, horde tanks. They're followed by about six- no, seven trucks, and a squad of hovering, bike things. Bow pulls his Bow off his back, and draws an arrow of some kind. I raise my fist, charging them with magic. The tanks don't aim at us, but they all charge up in unison. I have no way to stop the shelling, but I did the most important job, the people are leaving. If Bow and I were going to fight anyway, this was going to be tough.
"Glimmer."
I pause, his calmness shocking me. "Yes, Bow?"
"Remember. Civilian safety first. Once everyone is out and we bought enough time, we leave, okay?"
"Of course. Civilians first."
The first two shots fire out, hitting the side of the two closest buildings. Bow nods at me, and I get ready to teleport over to see the damage and if anyone got hurt, when the third tank pivots its aim. The shot fires instantly, and while it doesn't come straight for us, the building we're standing on collapses, the floor coming out from under us. I reach over to Bow, to grab him, but we already fell apart. There's no time to think, and we hit the ground.
