The hardships of peace

She slept soundly until the chancellor started screaming.

„Frosta. Princess Frosta!"

She woke up but still pretended to be asleep. Maybe she'll be able to sleep again. These meetings were so boring… If Glimmer could fall asleep, why not her. The Queen was not reminded of this, and neither should she! She heard the chancellor sigh heavily.

„The Dread Ice Bane!" she said and immediately lifted her head. She was sitting in her office, in a fur-padded chair. Much more comfortable than the blue crystal throne she had sat on during her official appearances. She had her head resting on one of those thick, dull chronicles that made the perfect pillow.

„Yes. What do i have to do?" she said, trying to keep from rubbing her eyes... She was so bored.

"First of all, I would like to point out that you are commonly known as Princess Frosta, and the name 'Dread Ice Bane' is not befitting one in your position." said the chancellor. He was a tall and bony man with a long, stiff blue beard. He was appointed to the position by her grandmother. He smiled then. For the first and last time

„Why? This Horde Ultimate calls me that... It's a very cool name!" she exclaimed angrily

„This is the name given by the enemy! I shouldn't be using it. The chancellor was indignant… and it made him look quite funny.

„They gave it to me because they respect me! Though maybe not. Then they would have added Lady Ice Bane! Why don't they appreciate me? Don't they find me scary enough?" she asked suddenly sad.

"More like..." He looked at her and hesitated. "It's probably because of your young age." said the chancellor cautiously.

"Glimmer was my age when she fought in the Rebellion... and then she became queen." She looked at the old adviser from under furrowed brows. She became ruler as an eight-year-old child. She was told to be tough as granite rock and stronger than bear. They wanted her to be like a living ice figure. But there was always a fire in her heart. She liked joy and laughter. She liked to throw herself into a fight. But in the realm of Snow, the queen was required to be as cold as the weather in the farthest northern wastes. She should not say a single word without thinking it over ten times. Her every act and gesture was judged, she constantly had to prove that she was worthy of the throne and the runestone.

Only outside the homeland could she truly be herself, and that's where she learned that you can follow your heart. But here she was judged, acknowledged as tainted by the culture of the Warm Lands. Maybe if she'd been born in Brightmoon or Plumeria, but here is the Snow Kingdom... It's the country of the toughest of tough women and men. "Of course, when the Galactic Horde arrived, we fell as quickly as the others" „Maybe we'll stay with Ice Bane? My great-grandmother's name was a skull splitter, and I remember my ancestors being someone called Clawdeen. That would fit.

The Chancellor scratched his cheek.

„Some traditions... Some traditions should be forgotten." The advisor said in a gentle voice and handed over the document.

„What's that?" she asked bored. She would love to go back to sleep.

„Nothing special." said the chancellor, smiling ingratiatingly. She glared at him so he added. "It's an proposal to granting you the title of empress." He said suddenly sounding terribly pompous. She blinked several times.

"But I'm already a princess." she asked, not understanding. The Chancellor sighed heavily.

"Your ancestors relinquished that title by treaty with Queen Angela. But she…well…gone. Old treaties no longer apply." he explained to her. Now she felt like she didn't want to know where this was all leading up to.

„Glimmer is now queen. She's Angela's daughter…" she said hesitantly. The chancellor nodded.

„Yes, but the treaty was made directly with Queen Angela, that's what all our legislators say, so it's no longer valid. We didn't want to raise this issue during the war you so... recklessly pushed us into, but now that there is peace, it would be worth considering the future of the kingdom."

Hearing that she had pushed the kingdom into war, she pursed her lips in anger. Many accused her of that. That she joined a war that wasn't theirs. But it was the Horde who started it, and Horde was evil! Why did no one understand this?!

„We will just sign this treaty again and there will be no problem." she said, trying to sound as if she was saying the obvious.

The Chancellor made a sour face.

"Many of your subjects would not be happy with this decision…" he began, but she cut him off.

„Who! show them!" She banged her fist on the table. Her advisor was perplexed.

„For example the leaders of the great clans. Many believe that there is no need to stick to the alliance. The war is finally over. Now it's time for each land to go its own way." he explained to his Lady.

„But Glimmer is my friend! How can I do this to her." She screamed indignantly, but also a little scared. "Why do they want such things from me!"

"A true ruler must be guided by the desires of her subjects, not her own feelings. Sometimes he has to let go of his emotions and turn his heart to ice."

„Glimmer, Adora Bow and even Catra saved us! They saved us all!" She got really angry this time. "How can they not see it!"

„I remind you that Glimmer almost destroyed us earlier by activating the Heart of Etheria, and then brought the Galactic Horde on us!" The adviser's voice became much sterner now.

She flushed with anger and briefly considered locking the man in ice, but saw him touching the back of his neck. She remembered that he had been chipped during the occupation, when she was punching clones in the faces and destroying robots. She felt ashamed of her outburst of anger, and of the fact that she had imagined the chancellor's head encased in ice, but she had no intention of relenting. She sighed and pursed her lips.

„No, I won't sign it. That…would destroy everything". She said in a firm voice

"But princess…" the Chancellor began, but she interrupted him abruptly

„Enough! I won't listen to it End of discussion! Soon Victory Day and my friends' wedding! I won't ruin their day!" she cried, clenching her fists.

„Your involvement in the wedding of a foreign queen is also considered controversial in many circles."

Now she really wanted to punch him in the stupid face. Ever since the end of the war, she had felt the urge to hit someone more and more often. She had the impression that despite the peace, she had to fight much more and on much more difficult fronts. She felt so tired and depressed by hardships of peace. Does Glimmer feel this way too?

Then the Ice Sentinel, one of the guards who have been guarding the rulers of her land for years, looked into the office.

"I'm sorry, but the emissaries have arrived… no… Scholars?" From Brightmoon… or maybe from the Whispering Woods. I'm not sure…" he mused, and she gave him the most murderous look she could muster. "I mean, Mr. Lance and Mr. George want to meet your highness."

She smiled broadly. It was the first pleasant news of the day… the first in a month, actually. However, she looked at the chancellor and restrained her emotions and spoke in a serious voice.

„We are honored to have a PRIVATE audience with the parents of Techmaster Bow, the future royal consort." She looked at the chancellor pointedly.

After a while, Bow's Fathers were ushered into the office. The men looked around the room, Lance's eyes lit up at the sight of those horribly boring books. They were sometimes weird. They were dressed in thick furs, even for the weather typical of her country. They were obviously headed up. Everyone always expected that in her country, all you had to do to freeze was step outside the door... Well, the name Snow Kingdom impresses.

„Welcome visitors from distant lands. Please warm yourself by our fire." she said formally. The men looked at each other in surprise. All they knew was cool, feisty Frosta, but she couldn't be cool, feisty Frosta here. The chancellor left the room, and when he was out of earshot, she smiled from ear to ear. She ran onto the table, then jumped to the floor and started hugging them.

„Uncle Lance, Uncle George! she exclaimed happily.

„When we were promoted to uncles." Lance asked

„When we became grandparents, my dear. In the meantime." George replied and they laughed.

„It's great that you're here. Lately everyone is really bothering me… The heads of the Great Clans criticize everything I do. I have to sign documents all the time, and no matter what I do, it's still wrong". She growled and clenched her fists.

"Uh…" Lance was saying. „We just wanted to find out about the buried city... Which is actually dug up now... But since you're busy."

„No problem! I just packs up." She exclaimed, happy to be freed from this torment, if only for a moment.

"But we didn't even tell her that we were going anywhere… In fact, we didn't even decide ourselves that we were going anywhere…" said George.

„I packed spare clothes just in case." Lance said.

She hated Beast Island. She never explored this place. She always stopped at a small patch of land that had been cleared. But she knew Adora's story when she had come here in search of Entrapta, whom she had condemned to a fate worse than death by sending her here. She tried to call things by their names, including the harm she had done to others. "All our lives we've been taught to fear this place. Anyone who betrayed or failed was sent here without trial, one Shadow Weaver signature…or mine was enough. The entire Fright Zone lived in constant fear of being send here. And I was helping fuel that fear…" she thought grimly. Whenever she traveled near the Horde's former territory, she felt an overwhelming sense of guilt. In Brightmoon, they knew her mostly as the Grand Marshal, She-ra's beloved, or even the one who had rescued their queen from cruel captivity. "They forgot that I made them lose the previous one..." she thought bitterly. "Maybe I'll ask Entrapta again if there's no way to... isn't there a way to reopen..." she sighed. Even in her mind, she had a hard time formulating the thought.

The dock where the skimmer had moored was empty, though many vehicles could stop here. There was also an airfield for spaceships, of course empty. She felt a pang of remorse. Few people visited Entrapta on Beast Island. Not only because of the bad reputation surrounding this place. Everyone knew who the other inhabitant of the island was, and did not want to meet him here. For decades, Hordak has been feared not only by the free kingdoms, but also by the common people of the Fright Zone. "But I was never afraid of him. From the first meeting, I felt who he really was like." She thought as she walked towards the chaotic yet amazing structure that was Castle Mysterio or Fort Junk as she sometimes called it. "I should come here more often. Entrapta is again stuck in a gloomy and inaccessible castle. She's alone again... Almost" she thought and winced. "But it's not just about him. Not only about him" she thought, looking at the technoflora-covered interior of the island. Even here she heard music. It was on the verge of hearing. At the same time, it penetrated every muscle, every bone and nerve of her body. It reached the very core of her being...

And she was beautiful. She knew others could hear the sound, piercing through. Painful and imperious, taking away all the will to fight, the will to live and exist. It was much worse than the monsters that lived here… That's what Adora and Mikah said. But to her, this signal, this force, sounded completely different ... She had once thought it had to do with her sensitive hearing, but after her recent discovery ... She had a bad feeling. "Maybe I should bring some other felines here? A few felines from Etheri, that is…" she thought, staring into the dense metallic forest. She had a package on the skimmer, her cardboard box. She left Melog at the dock. Her companion reacted extremely badly to the aura of the island. He felt the taking away the will of life aura much more strongly than the others, but at the same time he felt the bliss the music evoked in her. It was painfully overwhelming for him, as she had learned at Entrapta's wedding party. That's why she left him on the skimmer, let him guard her treasure. She had one more request for Entrapta, though she wasn't entirely sure she wanted to make it. Now she was hesitant to know the truth. Adora this knowledge did not bring happiness, nor will it bring her. But she had to know the truth to know who she really was. And where is she from.

She stood in front of Castle Mysterio's gates and eyed them suspiciously. The castle was weird and chaotic…and overwhelming. A clear combination of the visions of both builders. As she approached, two stalked cybernetic eyes stretched out towards her and studied her.

„Object recognized as Grand Marshal Catra. Status: Friendly. Start the onboarding process. said a voice from the door. she sighed. Entrapta never knew when her inventions became disturbing. The gates swung open with a bang. There stood an old Galactic Horde bot dressed in livery and with a smile glued on. But sometimes it's good that no one lives here, otherwise a few people would run away screaming at the sight. It is said that Entrapta once had a robot uprising. She hoped it wouldn't happen here.

„So... Will you let me in? Inside? Will you take me to Entrapta?" she asked uncertainly, and the robot looked at her and turned away. She shrugged and followed him.

Castle Mysterio wasn't as cursed and crazy a maze as Entrapta's old home, though there was a hint of chaos here. Muting protecting against the signal from the interior made it seem to be quite a cozy place. She went through several rooms until she came to a large workshop, or maybe a laboratory? She had no idea. Suddenly, from between the tables, something ran towards her and, wrapping its hair around her legs and torso, climbed high enough to look her straight in the face. A blue-haired, perhaps three-year-old but very large child with purple eyes and a white complexion pressed his forehead to hers.

„Aunt Catra!" Kid chuckled, showing sharp teeth.

„Hi Child!" She responded by showing her equally sharp fangs. Well… Hordak and Entrapta made a baby before they got married, in a very literal sense. It was created in a laboratory and grew in a tank ... For now, it was simply referred to as the Child. According to Etherian custom, children chose their names and pronouns at the age of seven. Sometimes the result was Mikah and sometimes Castaspella. There was a big age difference between Glimmer's father and aunt, and little Castaspella chose that name because she believed it would make her as great a sorceress as her big brother.

After a while, the person she liked much less appeared behind the table. Hordak, former ruler of the Etherian Horde, watched her with his always sour face. The genetic therapy had served him well, and he no longer needed the power armor. Not that he didn't wear it, especially here at work in the interior of the island. His current outfit had two extra servo arms that probably made him as multi-tasking as his spouse.

„Is there Entrapta?" she asked, trying to sound completely indifferent.

„She will come soon." he said briefly. The child grabbed the bars suspended from the ceiling with his hair and "ran" towards his father and threw himself on his shoulders. Hordak smiled at his child. She was almost offended by it. "You have deprived hundreds of orphans of a happy childhood, and now you play the role of a beloved husband and daddy! Good for you" she thought venomously. The child climbed on Hordak's back and wrapped its hair around his shoulders.

„Daddy, can Aunt Catra stay?" asked the child. His father replied with clear sarcasm in his voice.

„Aunt Catra is very busy as Grand Marshal of Etheria"

Behind her, Entrapta came out of the ventilation shaft and she started talking in an excited voice.

„Catra! Great that you are! I just wanted to show you something unusual about these artifacts we took from Horde Prime's vault. You know, the ones that no one claimed because they belonged to the civilizations that he destroyed and no one was left behind. Because you see, one of them… „

„Maybe another time, for now we have to fly to Netosa because ..." she tried to interrupt inventor, but she did not succeed, because she shouted with delight.

„Oh, She wants to show us the armory!

She blinked twice, trying to comprehend what the former Lady of Dryll was talking about.

„The armory?"

"Yes, her grandmother's armory, where a lot of ancient weapons from the time of the First Ones or just after they left, which if they fell into the wrong hands could cause damage on an unimaginable scale!" And I can test it all. her friend said with unstoppable excitement.

She tried very hard not to look at Hordak, because if she saw the curiosity or triumph on his face, she wouldn't know what she would do. But he spoke on his own, in a surprisingly thoughtful voice.

„Shadow Weaver mentioned this once and always pushed us to capture Netosa alive after she failed to... get all the information during the interrogation of he father.

She felt shivers down her spine because she knew what an interrogation by a dark sorceress would look like. She looked sharply at her former superior. He looked to the side as if confused. She snorted in contempt.

"Then pack up..." she wanted to say, but Entrapta cut her off.

"I'm always packed, because if someone needs to solve a problem with advanced technology, secret technology, First Ones technology, anything related to technology, I'm called. That's why I always have to be ready to go." The lilac-haired woman said happily. If it had been anyone else, she would have taken her words as a reproach, but it still hurt. "I need to be here more often, even if it means running into Hordak". Entrapta whistled, and a trunk-sized bot with six legs ran to her. He was hung with packages, had a strange triangular head with three eyes, one on each corner of the triangle.

„Catra, meet Alice. Alice meet Catra." She pointed at her and the robot. She sighed seeing another contraption created by Entrapta, but smiled and politely greeted the bot, which started making strange noises reminiscent of barking.

„She can be a little nervous around strangers, but you'll make friends! I have all the equipment I need to explore the armory there. I've been waiting for Netosa to invite me for a long time! Hordak, take care of the Child I'll be gone for a day or a week." she said. Excited, she ran out of the room.

She just hoped her friend knew what she was doing...

Melog greeted her at the dock. He jumped on her and licked her. He told her he was afraid he wouldn't come back. That it will unite with the island. She shivered because it matched what Adora and the others were saying, but then he added, "Island Waiting." She shivered again, but tried not to ask. She wasn't sure if he could explain it to her anyway, or if she wanted to know. Entrapta, meanwhile, made herself comfortable on the skimmer, but she could make herself comfortable even on Beast Island or in the Horror Zone.

„Listen Entrapta, I have a package there, I would like you to take a look at its contents, just be ..." She turned around sharply when she heard the sound of the box being opened. „BE CAREFUL!" she shouted, but Entrapta gently held her card, eyeing it suspiciously.

„I'm always careful. After all, I work with explosives and explosions are pretty rare." She began to turn the card over, more and more confused. "It's definitely cardboard. Made of cellulose." She looked at it, not understanding why she should examine an ordinary cardboard box. She sighed and said.

„This is the cardboard box Adora found me in."

Entrapta widened her eyes. Which made her cry with excitement.

„It's as cute as it is tragic." -

„Yes, I know it best." She closed her eyes and put her fingers to her forehead. „Just read the writings."

The lilact-haired woman read the inscriptions silently, making „Aw" only once at the sight of an apple. Finally she asked.

„Kesler? Haven't heard of this place"

She smiled sadly.

"No one on all Etheria heard."

She heard a sharp intake of air and heard Entrapta lunge at her. She didn't have to open her eyes not to see him staring at her. That's what she feared.

„Entrapto... Please... It's me, still the same Catra, don't look at me like that. At least not you." she said in a broken voice. When she opened her eyes, tears ran down her cheeks and she saw her friend watching her with concern instead of the fascination she expected. She placed her hands on her shoulder

„But it's wonderful ... Think, of all beings on Etheria, except for my husband, only you and Adora were not born here. You must have arrived here at the same time. You came to the same place and found yourself. Can you imagine what an incredible twist of fate this is? How special are you both?!"

And then she burst out laughing. All her life she had envied Adora that everyone could see her uniqueness, and now…now it terrified her. She was afraid that everyone, especially Adora, would stop seeing her as she was. That she would lose everything she had worked so hard for. She gave the helm to Entrapta and went to cry herself cuddled up to Melog.