Welcome to Etheria
"Well, let's get out of Dryft . Three. Two. One." Bina counted down, and Rosie gripped the arms of the chair tightly. She was excited. They were all excited. Even Eti was wagging her tail nervously. Finally, the entire ship shuddered slightly and an image of the planet appeared on the main cockpit monitor.
"There's no sun, just like the maps said. You know, the darkness between the stars and that sort of thing." Doctor Quin muttered. Rosie looked at Etheria's image. She looked quite normal. It had one green-blue continent, and a lot of moons.
"Seems quite alright to me. It certainly looks like a much nicer place than Akiton"
Ysoka gave her an offended look.
"What do you have against Akiton ! It's a very nice planet!
Alatar snorted.
"Akiton looks like a litter box that no one has cleaned, and it's even worse up close."
Eti looked at Alatar suspiciously, but she caught on to the joke and began to speak in a serious voice.
"Sages say that when devils come across an extremely sinful soul, they bring it before Asmodeus himself, the prince of darkness , to judge it. She usually sends them to one of the circles of hell to receive a special, individual punishment. However, sometimes he encounters so of a hardened sinner, that there is no place for them in hell nor in Abbys or even in Abbadon. Then he makes a decision that even his dark heart is to afraid to make and sends her to a place that is terrifying even among the lords of hell... AKITON."
Wrongdak blinked twice in surprise.
"Is this such a scary place?" he asked with surprise.
Itel grimaced.
"Not really, it's just that in this place there are metropolises full of gangsters and endless stretches of desert ruled by bandits. And all this is watered with the bitter sauce of decay and hopelessness." she said with a very sour smile on her face. Since yesterday's conversation with Eti, the solarian was clearly depressed. Her... Their feline friend, on the other hand, seemed happier and somehow calmer. However, she had the impression that the elf was also worried about this, although she didn't quite know why.
"But their kebab is great." Lilka interjected. Eti nodded and said.
"Its's tastes great, although it's made of rats ... but still tastes great."
Everyone nodded at her.
"Is there Kebab on Etheria?" Lilka asked with great interest, and the clone looked at them in surprise.
"I'm not sure, I usually ate at my friend Entrapta's , and she only prepared things in small portions, and you can't prepare kebabs that way... But I ate delicious dumplings. They were made from what was found on Darla... It's a First One ship." he explained and smiled at his memories.
"Wait, these aren't starlings? Didn't they become extinct several thousand years ago? Have you accidentally eaten archaeological treasures?" Alatar asked suspiciously. Wrongdak shrugged.
"Maybe so, but it was the most delicious thing I've ever eaten and the first thing I ate after amino acids. Then I spent the whole day in the toilet. I thought it was Horde Prime punishing me for my transgression... Glimmer and I prepared them together... Queen Glimmer"
"I guess we can't count on the queen cooking for us, right?" Rosie asked curiously. She's already met a few princesses, that's quite a lot... But not a queen... Although she think Adora called Captain Moonshadow Queen...
"Okay, kids, no more chatting. It's time to contact someone from the spaceport, space traffic control or at least some guard, because they're about to shoot us down because they have enough firepower to blow up cruiser." Bina said and pointed to the projected image, which showed spaceships. They looked like things built by the Horde... Only they were so colorful. They looked quite nice, but also dangerous. And there was a big tree floating around the planet, like the thirteenth moon, only tiny. Looking at this sight, Eti turned her head to the side and said.
"Who commands them? These ships are arranged in no order, this is not what a defensive formation looks like... Is there anyone out there who knows how to command a space fleet? And what is this tree about? This all makes absolutely no sense."
"Then tell them yourself, they'll probably hire you. – Bina said and muttered a curse word that the glasses didn't show. - Do not even think about it! Okay, now be quiet because I'm entering the communication channel." the captain cleared her throat and continued. "This is Captain Bina from the ship." she sighed heavily. "Deadly Sword of Burning Fury. We ask for permission to arrive on Etheria and designate a suitable place in the spaceport, or if this is not possible, indicate a suitable place for landing."
After a while, someone from the staff spoke up.
"Hello. This is Stefani, cybernetic assistant to Chief Space Traffic Controller Entrapta . Unfortunately, she is currently on an extremely important scientific mission and is unavailable at this time, but I will be happy to take care of you. I am sending you a list of available landing sites. If you need any more help, please ask. I will be very happy to help you. And I invite everyone to the Victory Day celebrations organized on the occasion of the fifth anniversary of the victory over Horde Prime and the double wedding of Queen Glimmer and She-Ra, the heroine of the galaxy." the voice fell silent
"Yeah... that's nice... we need to discuss where we will land, but as soon as we make a decision, we will let you know..." Bina said and smiled at Wrongdak friendly. "Your friend's assistant has a pretty sexy voice."
Arkan-tar smiled as he looked at the map of Etheria, although he felt no joy at all. He was just putting on a good face for a bad game... No, he had done that before. Not it was more of a game whose rules he didn't understand, but he tried very hard to pretend that he knew what was going on. Even though he was a good trickster, constantly pretending to be smarter than he was, was beyond him.
It was strange, but the fact that Etheria wasn't such a terrible place didn't calm him down at all. He could find himself in unpleasant places, much worse than Saltmarsh, although not as bad as the Lady of Chaos's domain was supposed to be. It wasn't even about the fact that he looked like a fool who fell for cheap propaganda, even though his ego was hurt. He just felt like he was on the wrong side. He had often broken the law and stolen cultural goods from other civilizations and cheated his partners, but now he realized that he was involved in matters much bigger than acquiring treasures. He worked for an ancient vampire and supported a ruthless, cruel dictator in his terrible plans. When the locals find out what he did, they will be, to put it bluntly, screwed. They will have as an enemy someone who could fight personally with a warship and win easily. And then there were all her friends who were just as powerful... Not to mention the fact that they had brought in Captain Moonshadow, who in some completely inexplicable way turned out to be a queen from Etheria, and she had a beef with the damn demigoddess about it. Like Rechiza, when he saw this, he just stood there and prayed very hard to all the devils and demons that they would not accuse them of complicity. They didn't, which was so contrary to everything he had learned about how governments and rulers worked that he felt his neck several times to make sure that She-Ra wasn't beheading him when he blinked. Well, at least he wasn't Azlanti. He wouldn't want to be in one of their shoes when they meet Adora or the Queen.
He himself wondered why he was still on this mission. There was, of course, money that Doctor Sidonius paid him, very much money, with which he would probably have lived the rest of his days in comfort and prosperity, but for this to happen, they both had to survive this expedition, what wasn't obvious. Undead and demigoddesses of light weren't a very good combination... or maybe too good, depending on side you look at it... The weapon, from what he could gather, had been destroyed. At least that's what they said at Clytemnestra, they'll have to find out more on the spot anyway to be sure. Even if it was, they would have to make sure it couldn't be rebuilt, or if the planet didn't hold any more dark secrets, which Doctor Sidonius had said was certain...
But what really drew him to this planet was Lady Cala's story, the prospect of them finding Eternia, the true capital of the First Ones, was a temptation he couldn't resist. He wanted to be rich, who wouldn't? But wealth could be acquired in many ways. He knew deep in his heart that he was looking for something else. The immortal fame that would come with discovering the home planet of one of the most mysterious and highly developed civilizations that lived in the galaxy. He did meet Adora who, in her natural form, did not make a great impression, to put it mildly. But she was raised on an underdeveloped and provincial planet that had been cut off from the rest of the galaxy for millennia, having little in common with her highly developed relatives... Of course, it was more than likely that Eternia was no longer inhabited and the girl had come from some another, unknown place... But it was even better this way... All the treasures and secrets of the First Ones would then be at his fingertips, only for him.
They were standing in the navigation room. Miss Daisy, Lady Cala, Rechiza, Dilayla, Wrongdak, Doctor Quin , and of course Bina, who had not broken her connection with Susan, were observing Etheri'as map. He wondered more and more what the captain and her young crew had in mind in flying here. What were they looking for here, and who was this mysterious friend the kids were talking about, and most importantly, why didn't Doctor Sidonius fill him in on it? Did he consider him an untrustworthy person?... Okay, he was completely right in this case, but why did he prefer to entrust such an important mission to a clone woman who was a gang member and a bunch of unstable kids, rather than someone with a certain reputation, maybe not the most clean one, but at least he knew what to expect from him.
"Okay, so yes. The landing zones that can accept us are: Brightmoon, Sea Gate, Winter City, Joy Zone, Crimson Waste, Stormvale, United Kingdom Court, Beast Island, Sorcerer's Hollow , and Rainfall. Unfortunately, they don't have a spaceport here , but I understand they want to build one in this tree." Bina paused, but Wrongdak began to explain.
"It was Velvet Glove , flagship of Horde Prime. That's where I was born - when he saw everyone looking at him in surprise, he added. "He used to look completely different."
Bina nodded and Rechiza asked smiling sarcastically.
"Since Mr. Wrongdak has been on Etheri for so long and has become acquainted with so many distinguished people, perhaps he will tell us a little about this planet and help us choose a place where we will stay?"
The Clone almost blushed, apparently not catching the sarcasm in Lashunti voice. He leaned over the map and, pointing to subsequent places, began to tell the story.
"Brightmpoon is the capital of the kingdom of Etheri. Here live Queen Glimmer, Bow, Adora and... " he exchanged glances with Bina. "…and the rest. "On Beast Island Entrapta live with my brother. She used to live in Castle Crypto in Dryll, near Storm Valley..."
At this point, Stefani interjected.
"Dryll has not been part of the Etheri Kingdom for some time now and if you land there, we will not be able to ensure your safety."
"Good to know Stefani, you can continue Wrongdak." Bina said, and the white-skinned alien continued talking.
"The Joy Zone used to be the Fright Zone and my brother ruled it, but now Scorpia rules there... You met her and her wife Perfuma. The Sorcerer's Valley is near Mystacor , a school for Sorcerers, that is, mystics. Aunt Casta, the one who made me this sweater, lives there." He pointed to his strange clothes. "The Sea Gate is ruled by Mermista , Winter City is near the Ice Palace belonging to Princess Frosta... That's all I know. I didn't get to know this planet well because I hadn't lived here too long and i was rather busy getting to know myself." Wrongdak seemed a bit embarrassed, but Bina smiled warmly at him and asked, pointing to the great desert near the Joy Zone
"There are The Crimson Wastes. It's not a pleasant place, it's full of violence and lawlessness, although Huntara may have brought some order there recently In the Valley of the Lost, until recently, you could buy anything and no one asked for anything." the clone explained with slight concern. Bina bared her teeth in a radiant smile.
"Sounds like Akiton!"
Wrongdak frowned in confusion.
"But I think you said today that that planet is a terrible place."
The Captain waved her hand.
"Yeah, it's terrible, no doubt about it, but you know, it's terrible in the way we know and have become accustomed to. Better the familiar Abyss than the alien Nirvana."
"However, I would like to mention that it is a very dangerous place, and its inhabitants are definitely not nice and law-abiding people." Stefani said in a concerned voice. "Brightmoon would probably suit you much better!"
Bina smiled slyly and said.
"Honey, don't teach charlatan to cheat suckers, a few thugs won't be able to handle us , and now we, but we have private matters to discuss. Bye." she said and disconnected the call, then turned to the others.
"Well, my dears, the situation is as Mr. Wrongdak described to you. I suggest that we land in the Scarlet Wastes, because it's a neutral place where no one cares about anyone else's hands, and money can buy anything, and money is what we have. I also suspect that all the treasure hunters and adventurers like that are there."
Then Arkan-tar bowed low and spoke in a polite, somewhat formal tone.
"I think it's time for our two expeditions to separate. I'm looking for things that are similar, but slightly different." he was explaining, but Lady Cala interrupted him.
"Perhaps it's worth not cutting off contact completely. As Arkan-tar said, our goals are quite similar and in my opinion we should exchange information and help each other. I understand you are looking for one specific item, while our interests are much more scientific in nature... although I won't be a prude and say that we would also be happy with treasures. Maybe we will meet during the celebration of this victory day. Your young pupils will certainly want to have fun during such a joyful event, and we will be able to exchange information without arousing suspicion. Who knows, maybe we will be able to win Adora, the Queen and the other princesses to our cause, or at least convince them to help us."
Bina exchanged glances with Wrongdak . He saw concern in the captain's eyes, and a request in the clone's eyes... Very interesting
"I'm not sure if this is really a good idea, my kids are terrible wildings after all."
Lady Cala, however, responded with a warm, friendly smile.
"Oh, you should believe in them more. They are good and resourceful kids, I'm sure they will cope. They have already managed to make friends with Adora and other princesses."
Miss Daisy looked at her sternly, that was also interesting, but on the other hand, could this drunkard be hiding a secret worth knowing?
Bina sighed and said.
"I'll think about it. But I'm taking Rosie with me. No offense, but apart from Dilala and Miss Daisy, you don't really care about her, and my kids are friends with her"
Dr. Quin snorted disdainfully.
"Everyone would care much more if the girl wasn't so lazy and did what we all pay her to do."
He threw up his arms. The girl was nice and could fight, which was very surprising, but she wasn't really needed.
"If she agrees, I don't see a problem." replied the captain. Then Miss Daisy came to the map and said.
"Since we're all splitting up, I'd like to ask to be taken to several places. First, maybe we'll take Wrongdak to Beast Island to meet his brother, and then we'll visit Mystacor, I used to be a magic teacher and I'm curious what magical education is like here. Then I'll check out Brightmoon and see what the situation is there. Maybe I'll meet someone from society."
"Trunks of Etheria written by the hand of Miss Daisy, who was personally acquainted with each of them." He thought, smiling evilly.
Bina nodded.
"Okay, just take my kids to Brightmoon, let them see a bit of normal life..."
Dilayla turned pale when she heard these words. Strange, she's had a problem with Lady Cala so far . But he'll talk to her about it later... if he decides it's worth doing. if he decides it's worth taking care of?
"Miss Daisy, you may be an outstanding Sorcerer, but I'm not sure if you should go alone to a strange place... Completely unknown and alien. – the mercenary suddenly said , with very badly feigned concern in her voice, and the gloomy mystic replied with a cunning smile.
"Of course, you're right, my dear, that's why I decided to take Ireanis with me."
Bina and Dilayla blinked in confusion.
"You know, traveling with Ireanis is almost the same as traveling alone, or even worse, it's like traveling with a child of Chaos. " Bina said carefully.
"As I said, you should have more faith in your Wards..."said Miss Daisy.
"Did someone sleep with someone here and I didn't notice anything?" He thought, but then Dr. Quin tapped some keys and overlaid some data on the map.
"This planet is scientifically amazing, in my opinion someone should evict all the inhabitants from here and start full- scale scientific research... " Ysoka coughed and, seeing people looking at her, she added. "Yes, the planet is as full of holes as cheese... No speciesist associations, please. It almost looks like the whole thing is a huge ultra-advanced structure. Unfortunately, our scanners cannot obtain much data because of this. However, I found some places where the structure of the planet was disturbed." she pointed to several colorful dots. Lady Cala leaned forward and said.
"Two of these points are near the Crimson Wasteland. One is at the junction of the Wasteland, Brightmoon and the Zone of Joy, the other is near a place called the Singing Jungle... I think we'll visit the Jungle first, then we'll look at places closer to the capital. Are you comfortable with this arrangement?" asked the aristocrat, looking at them carefully. He threw up his arms.
"That's fine with me. I don't know what the rest think. "He looked at Rechiza significantly. The Warper had been strangely moody since the events at Clytemnestra.
"Yes, it all sounds... Reasonable, you should always follow the voice of reason..." said Lashunti, strangely unfamiliar voice.
An hour later they entered the atmosphere. It happened without any problems. Landing was much more difficult because the landing pad was just smooth rock. Fortunately, the piloting skills of Alatar, Bina and Mr. Ilemshaw were so high that nothing happened, not even shaking them badly. Or maybe she didn't feel it clearly. She was too distracted and at the same time absolutely focused on the task ahead of her. She tried not to let on that she was aware of Miss Daisy's identity, that she was much more than just the annoying aristocrat's tutor. Everything now fell into place logically. Her participation in this mission, magical power completely incompatible with the position she held... Her weird attitude towards Eti, this strange protectiveness in someone with such a decisive and strict character. She had to do something about it... But she couldn't count on her companions' help. Arkan-tar probably just shrugged and said he couldn't do anything. This individual didn't even mind that he worked for a war criminal who used nuclear weapons against his own planet. And Lady Cala, this woman must have known the truth about Miss Daisy, After all, she entrusted her with the management of the estate... This whole expedition must have been the idea of the dark mystic, although it did not absolve the Aristocrat. Whoever cooperated with the monster became part of it himself. That's why she had to do what was needed even more. Not only to save Bina and the kids, but also to save herself.
When they landed, she was already clad in power armor while they were on the ground. Everyone went outside to get some fresh air. Two local people were taking care of the landing site. Four- Armed Lizard and Satyr Woman. As soon as they left, the horned one turned to them with a cunning smile.
"We're only here to pay for guarding the ship... To make sure nothing happens to it."
Dilayla didn't want to argue. She simply took the red stone and crushed it in her armored hand. They both turned pale at the sight and politely swept the sand away. Miss Daisy had walked quite a distance and seemed surprised amazingly relaxed. She smiled to herself, it was a significant relief. She moved towards the woman with a grim smile. She wasn't sure if the others would understand, especially Rosie, but she couldn't help it... Maybe when she was older...
She wasn't able to sneak in her armor, so she just walked towards it, trying to make her steps sound neutral. She had to get as close as possible to strike a blow before the other could cast her spell. But before she was far enough away, Miss Daisy said.
"Even if you succeeded, the only thing you would achieve would be to make Lady Cala happy."
She stopped in surprise and the gloomy Elf turned to her with a smile on her face
"You've been lying to everyone from the beginning. You're from here..." she said angrily, but without shouting, so as not to attract the attention of the rest, and the sorceress nodded.
"My name was Shadow Weaver, and before that I was called Light Spinner. I was a war criminal. I hurt and betrayed everyone I knew. I finally did the only good thing in my life and sacrificed myself for my daughters, Adora and Catra. But I did not receive the grace of death and now I am here."
She blinked a few times, but then shook her head.
"So that's why you're so fascinated by Eti... This girl also resembles the daughter whom, according to Wrongdak, you hurt so much. What are you looking for in her? Redemption for what a mean and lousy bitch you were? – she said in a venomous tone. However, the gloomy elf only smiled bitterly.
"I know it's ridiculous. I know perfectly well, but... I couldn't resist. Don't you know what it's like to believe that you have lost everything, leaving behind only memories full of pain and anger, and then to be given a second chance to do everything again, this time better, without making the same mistakes?"
Dilayla laughed darkly.
"So why did you come to this place? As far as I know, everyone here hates you, you have no friends or allies here. You could go anywhere in the Galaxy, do absolutely anything you wanted. With your talent and skills... You were free, and instead you came to the only place that doesn't want you. Why!?
This time it was Miss Daisy who laughed. She heard a lot of pain and sadness in that laughter.
"No, I'm not free." she approached her. "I cannot tell you the details, but know that the game is about something much bigger than you, me or even the dammed Lord Admiral. We are all mere pawns in a game that began thousands of years ago, but unfortunately its end will unfold before our eyes." She stood in front of Dilayla so that he could kiss her. "You can kill me. Even though I am much more powerful here on Etheria than I was recently, I will let you try to kill me. But know that if I die, no one will stop Lady Cali from... doing what she wants. And what she wants most is to bathe in blood."
Dilayla stared into the dark mystic's emerald green eyes for a moment, until she lowered her gaze and moved out of the dark sorceress's way.
"Okay, now I have to talk to Ireanis like a drunkard to a drunkard." Miss Daisy or Shadow Weaver said and moved towards Papa. She watched her go for a moment until she suddenly saw Rosie running towards her. The deaf girl hugged her as tightly as her armor would allow and then spoke in Sign Language.
"Bina said I would go with them if I wanted to. I... I like Eti... and the others. But we are friends and... be careful."
She gently stroked the girl's head and said.
"Don't worry. A tough girl like me won't be hurt by anything."
She woke up... or rather was woken up by a splash of cold water in her face. She jumped to her feet abruptly, summoning some kind of spell. She wasn't exactly sure what it was, but it was TERRIBLE. Through her she saw Miss... Dandy... Danny ... Daisy! She liked her. She drank with her and didn't judge, at least not like others did. She was a good friend. But then she saw something that chilled her heart.
"Nooo!" she exclaimed and ran to the empty bottles standing by the sink in her cabin. – You did the best thing! – she screamed as she felt tears flowing down her face.
"Something what someone should have done a long time ago. Bina is a good woman, but she did wrong to let you get drunk like a fish day after day."
"But... What will I do now?" The Sorceress from Mwangi said in a dead voice. Miss Daisy put her hand on her shoulder and smiled warmly and said.
"I won't cheat on you. Will be hard. But we will be in this together. We must have clear and agile minds to face what lies ahead. But we can do it."
She looked at the mystic with sadness.
"I can barely face the morning. I'm just a pathetic drunkard."
Miss Daisy nodded and said.
"But you were a much better person… Better than I ever was. And I will help you become that person again."