...But won't bring us down
Arkan-tar stretched contentedly and dressed. The strix host couple who had made his night pleasant had long ago got up to run their inn. Waiting for him in the Main Hall were a gloomy Rechiza, a strangely self-satisfied Dilayla, and Doctor Quin , who was sitting at a table in pajamas and a nightcap, taking a nap.
„Lady Cala still sleeping?" he asked, sitting down at the table. Rechiza gave him an offended look and said.
„She went out in the evening and hasn't come back yet."
"And if the gods are kind to us, it won't come back." said the mercenary , stretching and smiling.
„"I wouldn't count on it." said Lashunti. Something interesting must have happened yesterday.
„Are you talking about the fact that he won't come back or about the grace of the gods." Dilayla asked, smiling, but Rechiza responded with a hard look.
„I have a vague feeling that I missed something yesterday. You slept together, right?" he asked, but both women looked at him in such a way that a cold sweat broke out on his back.
„Nothing, it just turned out that Miss Daisy was the right hand of the leader of the local Horde faction, you know, our Wrongdak's brother." the half-elf explained. He was silent for a moment, trying to absorb what he had just learned, until he finally spoke.
„How did you come to such an interesting conclusion?"
Dilayla sighed heavily and replied with irritation.
„I took it and read the tea leaves. What the fuck do you think?" and then she started to explain everything to him. Well, Arkan-tar called himself a scholar, someone who always had an answer to every question. Maybe not always sensible, often wrong, but at least that which sounds smart. So, as he sat there now, staring at Dilayla with his mouth open, he didn't feel comfortable with it. At first he had no problem accepting that the Lord Admiral was a war criminal, having worked for people of this type many times, but when he met the inhabitants of the Zone, who were ordinary, although fate-tested beings trying to lead normal lives... And everyone was impressed Etheria as if it were a wonderful place full of amazing heroes... And in the end it turned out to be. They even had their own avatar of Iomadae, or whoever this She-ra was. And of course she had to be friends with those strange Bina kids. Is it normal for demigoddesses to wander around the meadows and hang out with random kids? Apparently it is, well he didn't know anything about demigoddesses and kids, he was just a damn scholar after all. Then Captain Moonshadow went crazy and suddenly decided that she wanted her sword, but Adora probably broke it, but she claimed that the Pirate was the queen, which probably surprised the pirate and apparently upset her, because right after that she tried to burn down the city, which he wouldn't have been so concerned about, if it weren't for the fact that he was staying in this city. Then Adora, or should he say She-Ra, revived the kid, confirmed that Moonshadow was the queen, and left. On the ship, the situation returned to normal, Dr. Quin gave them a very interesting scientific lecture on the history of the Galactic Horde, which, however, had no significance for their current situation. Etheria herself has become decidedly more likeable. The planet seemed to be a veritable treasure trove full of ancient artifacts and ancient technology that would keep him employed for the rest of his life, and probably beyond. Plus, it was quite a nice place, as he had the opportunity to see tonight, even if it was a bit rustic. However, when they reached the city, they saw this poster with an invitation to the wedding, where it turned out that some scared version of Eti was marrying Adora, which surprised everyone, except for the mercenary, who learned from Bina that Eti had a sister here. He wasn't that worried about this discovery, although if he had known that the crazy cat girl had relatives in the government of this planet, he would have tried to please them somehow. Of course, who in their right mind could have guessed that a bunch of war orphans could have anything to do with a planet that had been hidden from the rest of the universe for a thousand years. It hurt him a bit that this mercenary found out about everything, but on the other hand, it has long been known that sex connects thinking beings. However, what she learned now changed things completely.
Miss Daisy, that damned gloomy drunk, was a member of the Etherian Horde, in fact one of its main commanders. He's been to places where just staying in the same room with an enemy of the state could get you shot in the head, and they fucking brought her here. Even if the local rulers were very understanding, he could probably say goodbye to the permission to open the excavations. He would be very lucky if he managed to leave this planet free... And there was also the matter of Lady Cala.
Now he came to the conclusion that what he now learned explained many things. The dark mystic probably found the aristocrat herself, attracted by her mystical origins. Or maybe she invented this story herself and convinced the noblewoman that she was a descendant of this Mara, so that she could return to her planet. The point was that Lady Cala didn't seem like the kind of person a stranger could convince anyone of anything. She was an intelligent and self-confident woman, not a naive rich girl longing for life like in penny novels. How much did she know about her mentor and tutor? They couldn't ask her about it directly.
„Rosie was drawn to this woman. I even thought that she had a crush on her, as orphans are wont to do, but she was simply clever, although dumb. She wanted to be friends with someone so powerful because she hoped that she would never have to work again. Well, if they lock her up in jail, she'll be able to laze around until she dies. But you know what? I don't feel sorry for her at all. Not only did she force a humble and poor scientist to give her hard-earned money for doing nothing, but now she practically abandoned me to death on this planet cursed by Angels and Demons, where they don't even have an internet." said the scientist, and Dilayla stared at her as she spoke, as if she wanted to grab her head and squeeze it until it burst like a ripe fruit. Maybe her relationship with that deaf girl wasn't so innocent? "However, I do not see any connection between our mystic's origin and our work, although I admit that if I knew the truth, I would ask her about the most interesting places on this planet." Ysoka added and took a large sip of coffee. "THAT DRINK VERY GOOD. ME WANT MORE! MUCH MORE" she said to slowly and loudly to the landlady, who gave her the murderer a look.
„If you keep talking to the locals like they're idiots, they 'll start spitting into your plates, and ours as well." Rechiza growled and added. "And if it turns out that we brought here a criminal who, let me remind you, was very cruel to the demigoddess and her fiancée, we will all be fucked."
„Not to mention this." Dilayla added in a quieter voice. "That we brought the bloody Lord Admiral here with his war fleet."
Arkan-tar smiled slightly and also spoke in a low voice.
„Fortunately, it won't be easy to connect us and this man. Even if Miss Daisy spills the beans, it's not certain that anyone will believe her." he took a sip of the sweet juice, first checking to see if there was anything floating in it. „The more important question is what we will do with Lady Cala now, because I guess pretending that nothing happened and everything can stay as it was is probably not an option.
„Why not, I can forget about everything I heard here as soon as I eat breakfast. When necessary, I can compromise with the truth." said the Rat woman . As soon as she mentioned breakfast, it was brought immediately. It consisted of dried and candied fruit, nut paste, wholemeal bread and savory muffins.
„But will she let us forget about everything?" Dilayla said. "If he finds out that we suspect something, she may want to silence us all."
This time, Arkan-tar rolled his eyes.
„Let's be serious, none of us probably suspects this woman of murderous tendencies." he said with amusement, but the half"elf looked at him very seriously, as if she was a bit scared.
„I don't suspect her, but I know perfectly well that she has murderous tendencies. Shadow herself…Miss Daisy herself told me this to my face. Besides, you haven't seen her training fight. I, who have spent my entire life in war, know that I could not cope with it, even if she fought me with her bare hands and I was wearing power armor.
„And who supposedly beat her then, because I heard she got hit, although I don't know who she was training with at the time." he asked, chewing on some fruit similar to a grape, although more floury.
„With Rosie.„ the mercenary said, and then Dr. Quin burst out laughing, which Dilayla pointedly ignored. He himself smiled slightly.
„Do you know what I think, my dear Dilayla? You just liked this women, but she rejected you and now you're making up some ridiculous stories in revenge."
He must have overdone it a bit, because the mercenary clenched her fists and stood up as if she was about to punch him with a cybernetic fist, but Rechiza signaled her to stop and spoke to him in a voice as sharp as Kasatha's sword."
„ Don't measure us by your yardstick. Some of us think about our responsibilities, not just our pleasures"
„Are you jealous?„ He said and immediately regretted it, because a wave of chaotic magic hit the warper .
„I am taking part in this expedition by order of the Lictor of the Order of Eclipse. He ordered me to keep an eye on Miss Daisy, because apparently she was a cultist... Maybe she really is, but I'm not so sure now. She doesn't seem to be someone who sincerely believes in anything, and if she really was such a powerful and important person, she should have created a real cult here, maybe even sold the entire planet to the dark powers... But Lady Cala... There were some signals that we didn't pay attention to earlier comments. Coldness in the relationship between her and her mentor, words and behavior that do not fit the image of a charming aristocrat, fighting skills worthy of the best warriors. She single-handedly defeated the entire Azlanti unit . There is something very wrong with her. I am a hunter and I have heard of many vile monsters hiding their monstrous nature behind a beautiful face. If she is one of them, we have a serious problem."
He looked at the ceiling. This day was looking quite good.
„And what are you going to do about it, my dear?" he asked in a tired voice. Then the women looked at him meaningfully. For a moment he wondered what they might be talking about, and when he understood, he leaned towards them and spoke in a low voice.
„You guys must be crazy... You want her... „ the unspoken word hung between them.
"If you want to do something illegal, do it without me.„ said Doctor Quin and put on headphones and played Shiren's pop.
„So tell me, smart guy, what choice do we have?" Dilayla asked, and he answered her with silence.
And then Lady Cala entered the inn. As always, she radiated beauty and magnificence. She smiled happily at them and said.
„I'm sorry I didn't come back last night, but I was invited to a very hot party. It lasted until the race itself. What are you doing here? Because you make it seem like you're up to something. – she giggled and, without waiting for an invitation, sat down next to them. He was very happy that as a Verthani he could control the color of his face. His friends were surprisingly composed. Or rather, they were just behaving as they always did. Rechiza was gloomy, and Dilayla smiled mockingly at the aristocrat. Lady Cala, clearly pleased with herself, ordered a sumptuous breakfast and a bowl of quite pleasant-smelling apple cider. At one point, when she got up to go to the toilet, he saw that Rechiza had put some powder into her drink. When Lady Cala returned, she sat down and drank the entire glass of mulled wine in one gulp, then hiccupped, laughed , and apologized. Rehiza looked at him with a little fear."
"You didn't think it would be so easy, did you," Verthani thought to himself.
Calamity felt content. The night meeting went well. The cultists showed her the respect she was usually spared from, although the way they showed it was exceptionally… relaxing. Well, the followers of Shub-Nigurath knew how to enjoy life. Although she was not sure how much she could rely on them, the Mother of a Thousand Young often recruited followers from among those who were more interested in the pursuit of carnal pleasures than in faithful service, although it was the same with Nyarlathotep. The creeping chaos usually bribed its minions with promises of power beyond the reach of mere mortals, but many of them were not truly dedicated and served themselves first. All you had to do was look at Shadow Weaver to understand how pathetic and cowardly these power-hungry sorcerers are. Fortunately, now the ruler of shadows was already far away, trying to fulfill her plan. Maybe she will succeed, time and Yog-Sototch will tell.
As soon as she entered the inn, she immediately noticed that her companions were planning something, which only improved her mood even more. Although she planned to kill them from the very beginning, each hunt and fight was more interesting when the prey defended herself. It was like a game, and she always liked playing games, although she wished the stakes wouldn't be too high since her companions didn't pose much of a threat. Rechiza was a good example. The poison she gave her caused a heart attack, but she had no heart, both figuratively and literally, although the organ pumping ichor in her body somewhat resembled one. They obviously didn't know its true nature, or weren't well enough equipped. If she had used Brevon, it would have caused her a much bigger problem. Even her regenerative abilities would have trouble dealing with such a deadly element, although it probably wouldn't kill her. But it could force her to stay in bed for several days, not to mention the radiation it would contaminate whatever she was wearing. For a moment, she was tempted to throw herself on the floor, pretending to have a heart attack, and point at Lashunti and shout, "It's her." She wonder what the locals would do with guests from an alien planet trying to poison one of their companions. The faces of the pathetic inhabitants of Etheri would be hilarious.
„However, I must admit that this night was not only about entertainment. I got us a means of transportation." she said, devouring pasta with fruit. "Nothing special, three anti-gravity bikes. A certain general's daughter will lend them to us. Free…well, sort of. I promised I would go with her to Victory Day. All that remains is to discuss how we will divide the vehicles."
„I'm taking Dr. Quin." Dilayla said immediately.
„And I ride with Arkan-tar." Rechiza hastily added. Ysoka looked at the half"elf and spoke in a serious, slightly cocky tone.
„I know that I'm extremely attractive, but restrain your lustful tendencies, because I'm only attracted to males and only from tailed species!"
The mercenary snorted with contempt. "Yes. They clearly suspect something, even if they knew the truth."
Rechiza couldn't understand how the mercenary could sleep so peacefully after receiving such news. After all, what she learned ruined the point of their entire trip. They let in on their plans a woman who must have had a hand in this attack... Did Dilayla not care about Rosie? Or maybe it was that military thing. Mercenaries must have learned to sleep always and under all conditions, because you never know when there will be another opportunity to do so. However, she had to admit that the mercenary had gained a lot in her eyes. She really started looking for a solution to the terrible situation they found themselves in. She even let her in on her plans, which sounded quite sensible.
However, Arkan-tar turned out to be a major disappointment. First he tried to make a joke out of it, and then he fell into a chair, completely helpless. How could someone like that be considered a scholar and traveler? Every righteous being knew that in such a situation he must remain focused and not be distracted if she wanted good to prevail. Fortunately, she suspected that People like Miss Daisy did not understand this simple rule.
Arkan-tar, of course, as soon as he found out that she was going with him, started imagining ridiculous things. He was, of course, an attractive and charming and well-educated man, but she didn't just think about those things. Even though she hadn't been with anyone since the accident, the loss of her antennae meant she couldn't feel things the way she used to, and she was afraid that being together would be a huge disappointment. The truth was that she didn't want to go with Lady Cala because the woman truly terrified her, especially after she drank a dose of poison that could kill three people. Whatever she was, they would find out sooner than they would like.
They left the town around ten o'clock in the evening. She had to admit that this planet was quite a nice place. She had never felt such clean air even on Castrowal. But it wasn't just the clean air that made this place so extraordinary. She felt the power permeating them through and through. It intoxicated her, like pure oxygen. The magic came from inside the planet, but not only that. She felt it from the moons too, but this time it was different. She didn't know how it was with technomancers and ordinary mystics, but she drew power from other planes and thanks to it she was able to feel something amazing. These moons produced planar resonance. Everyone is different. For example, the black, barely visible moon resonated with the depressing despair of Abadon , while the fiery orange one radiated the resonance of fiery joy typical of Elysium. She had no idea whether the inhabitants of this place felt their influence in their daily lives, or whether she was even aware of their power. Unfortunately, she didn't have time to ask anyone. Animals were plentiful here, another thing that connected this place to her native Castrowal . She didn't look at many creatures, but from what she saw, some of them were surprisingly similar to those that were supposed to live on the lost Golarion, which wasn't that strange. Many of the terraformed planets were home to animals that once lived on that legendary planet, but most of them were colonized after the Gap, or not long before it ended, and Etheria would be cut off from the rest of the Galaxy for millennia. But what was she wondering about, since the inn was run by a very friendly couple, the Strix , and the Lashuntas lived in the jungle ... And their Grand Marshal looked almost like an unstable teenager they had brought here. Apparently the planet had already been partially terraformed before it was cut off from the rest of the Galaxy, and the colonizers, probably the Firsts ones, brought here a labor force gathered from all over the galaxy. But several animals looked different. They had many eyes that looked like they were made of jewels. She saw a small blue-furred mouse eating some fruit, probably of Golarion origin. It was interesting, although she doubted it would ever matter to them.
The vehicles were generally similar in structure to the skimmer in which they flew to the town. They were probably made by the local Horde, and she had to admit that they were surprisingly functional, although she suspected that the soft seats had been added here quite recently. Arkan-tar was a really good driver, and she had to admit he was a great driver and having him around her waist felt good, though she would never admit it out loud. Dilayla rode with Dr. Quin , whom she strapped to her chest in a makeshift baby carrier. Lady Cala, of course, turned out to be an excellent pilot. She moved ahead of their small group like a guide, and sometimes she waited for them, smiling broadly and joyfully, until it made her feel sick.
Eventually they reached the dry rainforest hills. The plants here were covered with countless thorns, although it was quite pleasant here. Dilayla divided the equipment between them and then they set off. The terrain was difficult and they had to leave their vehicles on the road, which did not please Dr. Quin , who complained about her painful joints. Well, traveling with Ysokis and scientists at the same time had its share of problems. During this journey, they often strayed from the established path, as if the forest itself was trying to get in their way. She used to wander the wilderness of the Pact worlds very often, before... the accident, but since then she had mainly been conducting investigations or research and had lost some of her stamina, which caused her to often stop and gasp, but she tried not to complain. Dilayla, of course, had no problems in her armor, although she would have been fine in a swimsuit. She finally decided to strap Doctor Quin to her armor using the carrier she had used earlier, probably so that she wouldn't have to hear her grumbling and whining anymore and so that she wouldn't delay her march. Arkan-tar was, of course, fresh and rested, apparently his nightly activities had not tired him. And Lady Cala… well, she was tireless. She jumped over boulders and stones like a rock drake, and the vines and bushes did not pose the slightest obstacle to her, she chopped them with powerful blows of the machete. She suspected she would have chopped off their limbs with the same verve and smile. She shuddered at the thought.
At one point, Arkan-tar approached her. There was an inherent happy smile on Verthani's face , as if the morning conversation had not taken place.
„Help you? You look exhausted." he suggested, but she glared at him furiously.
„Oh, you want to play gentleman saving a lady in trouble? I can handle!"
„Not every woman can be Dilayla... Personally, I'm glad she is n't because my nightlife would be much more boring." Verthani chuckled, which irritated her even more. "You're the one who does magic, and it would be unfortunate if you fainted just as you were supposed to fight off Leukodaemon"
She bit her lip and said in a low voice.
„Maybe she's the best of us because she's the only one who still cares about anything. We hide behind our Mission, even though we don't really know what it is now, allowing someone like Anatares to roam this corner of the galaxy, so terribly tried by evil and tyranny . And it's not going too well for us, because we don't give a damn about anything so much that we brought a damn witch and a monster here, damn... „ she stopped and looked around with frightened eyes. "Due to our ignorance, we probably sentenced Rosie, Bina and her kids to death or maybe something worse. I won't even be sorry if our noble aristocrat cuts us into pieces!" at the end of her statement she almost screamed, then adjusted her backpack and moved forward, although only Eloritu knew how much her back hurt."
The phrase she hated most in the world was "I told you so." But she could use it to describe the entire day today. Arkan-tar and Rechiza did not take kindly to the news of who they had been traveling with all this time. Rechiza acted as if she was offended by reality, and Arkan"tar simply denied the inconvenient facts. And Dr. Quin just didn't care. She never wanted to be anyone's moral compass, but clearly she had to. She was only happy that the Warper was willing to cooperate, and even tried to poison Lady Cala , albeit unsuccessfully. She wasn't sure if there was any poison in the galaxy that could kill such a nasty viper...
The terrain was becoming more and more mountainous and it was more and more difficult for them to climb, especially the Warper had trouble continuing her journey, but she didn't ask anyone for help, not even Verthani , for whom she clearly felt something, so she didn't lean out. Dr. Quin snored happily strapped to her armor, completely oblivious to the shocks. She kind of envied her ability to ignore problems.
Finally they reached the top of a not very high, very flattened mountain. There were many boulders and a stone obelisk decorated with images of a monstrous creature, somewhat similar to a nightmarish, humanoid version of the Golaron elephant.
„What kind of madness is this?" the mercenary asked with disgust.
„ It's Chaugnar Fhagn, Horror From The Hills. Apparently Bina's scanners led us to the temple of the great ancient one." Rechiza muttered, a strange mixture of relief and disgust in her voice.
„No, that can't be it. The statue was created quite recently. Traces of erosion indicate that it was no more than three or four hundred years ago, and using the simplest tools. We are looking for something that resembles traces of a highly developed civilization. The First Ones, as far as is known, were not worshipers of the Great Old Ones, or any other beings for that matter. This was probably built here because the locals remembered that this place was associated with the First Ones and wanted to capture a piece of their splendor by building their temple here. Or they left a statue of such a terrible creature here to oppose another, equally great evil. "Arkan-tar explained, continuing to look around."
„The First Ones are generally considered a noble race serving good, it is highly doubtful that anyone sees evil in them." Rechiza said uncertainly and winced as she unconsciously touched her cybernetic eye.
„An Angel for some will be a Demon for others." Lady Cala said, and on this one occasion she agreed with her wholeheartedly.
They stopped for a while and Dr. Quin began to examine the area using one of her devices, as she said, looking for a disruption in the structure of the magical network. About fifteen minutes later she approached one of the many mounds of stones and said.
„Hmm... Strange..."
„ More strange than the image of an Eldritch monster?" she said in a sarcastic tone.
Ysoka waved her hand.
"Sure. I've seen something like this on TV many times. And here something is sucking in the micromagic waves I am sending, instead of simply bending them, as it should be done.
"So that means there's a place out there that we need to get to?" the mercenary asked, and when Ysoka nodded, she told everyone to stand back and fired several times from her shoulder-mounted cannon. After a few volleys she managed to loosen the stones and walked over to them and using the force provided by the power armor began to move them apart. Then Lady Cala rolled up her sleeves and said.
„I'll help you." she started working with the mercenary. It didn't escape anyone's notice that the aristocrat was as strong as a woman in modern power armor, but no one commented on it because there was no point. Everyone knew what that meant anyway. Soon they saw a tunnel covered with a substance resembling a crystal.
„Let's go." said Dilayla, feeling the battle excitement in her stomach.
The corridor was wide and illuminated by the soft glow of the crystals. Rechiza walked timidly next to the mercenary, looking uncertainly at the walls, which were covered with star-like inscriptions, similar to those in the monastery.
„The node of the northern part of the Adamantium Soul planetary defense system." the Warper explained in a muffled voice. She was terrified. As far as the mercenary knew , it was related to an accident that resulted in her losing her eyes and antennae. She understood her. Even she, a veteran of many wars clad in extremely resistant armor, gave chills, let alone a fragile Warperr. Arkan-tar examined his surroundings carefully, apparently more used to this type of place than the others. Lady Cala, on the other hand, seemed fascinated. It was one of the few times she acted true to the image she was trying to project. After all, this was a place created by her ancestors. And Dr. Quin just seemed disappointed
They finally reached a huge room with lots of pink crystals mounted in the walls. In the middle there was a ten-meter-wide pillar covered with an exceptionally dense network of inscriptions in the First Ones language. Fila was half-hearted and there was something inside of him recess, It looked like a place where you could put an object, perhaps a battery or some kind of generator to provide power to the entire complex. There were numerous lines branching out from it, though she didn't understand their purpose, but well, that wasn't her job.
„It's probably a geomantic network, I wonder what they were used for..." Rechiza started , but then she stopped and started trembling. She raised her right hand and pointed to the shape resting against the opposite wall . It resembled a combination of a millipede and a sea spider with countless limbs.
„I think he's inactive, but we have to be very careful, because if he wakes up, we'll be screwed.„ said Arkan-tar. Everyone, even Lady Cala, nodded.
„It says there that one branch leads to the terminal of some Heart Gift Planetary Archive , and the other to the planetary node control center. Maybe let's go in the other direction first." Rechiza said in a hushed whisper.
Arkan-tar and Lady Cala nodded and they all headed towards the chosen branch. However When they were very close, Lady Cala jumped back and said with false sadness in her voice.
„Well, I was originally planning to give you a much more... Sophisticated death, but this one will be much more practical... I won't ruin my dress... oh , you're not surprised! I blew a joke!" The aristocrat giggled and dodged Dilayla's shot very neatly. She then pulled out her plasma gun and shot at the mechanical monster. Rechiza screamed as the creature moved. But then Dilayla held out her hand, which held a detonator of explosives. Lady Cala's eyes widened as she realized what had happened, and with a movement so fast that the mercenary could barely see, she threw the backpack in which Dilayla had previously placed their explosives towards them. The half-elf immediately set off the fuse, but the backpack was already flying towards them. The explosion blew both Ich and Lady Cala back. The vault began to collapse, and then darkness fell.
The force of the Explosion would have killed a more pity creature on the spot, but it threw her against the wall. It burned part of her body and ripped off her arm, which was only a minor inconvenience, but it also ruined her dress, something she would never forgive those filthy worms. She didn't think these creatures could afford such treacherous perfidy. However, she should show off less and watch them more. Sometimes Shadow Weaver's words contain wisdom, she should probably listen to it sometimes... even though it was so... irritating.
She didn't feel pain the way normal mortals did. She couldn't lose consciousness either. Even when she slept, she was actually listening to the music of the universe that her divine parent hummed. So all she could do was wait for her body to recover sufficiently until she could take any action. The eyes were the first to regenerate, the sense organs were always among the first to return to functionality. She saw that the tunnel containing these traitorous scum was collapsed, so she smiled with what was left of her mouth. The explosive was much closer to her than to them when it detonated, so there was a chance they wouldn't die instantly. She hoped that they were now lying there on the other side, waiting for a slow death by starvation... Although perhaps she would find another, much more interesting use for them. For their wickedness, they did not deserve an easy end. Fortunately, the local runestone site remained intact. While these artifacts have lost much of their former usefulness, her bloodstone nerve core will thus be able to tap into the planet's geomatic grid and create its own crystalline grid. Everything was going according to plan, but then she saw movement. The mechanical guard stirred and woke up. By the tentacles of Shub-Niggurath ! This creature could be a real problem. She wasn't sure she could beat him. A similar one once almost killed an enhanced She" Ra , until Shadow Weaver had to give up her worthless life and call upon the power of an Outer God to defeat him. Although it was not easy to kill her, a few cells were enough for her to regenerate, although it was a long process, and even then, there was a chance that she would lose some of her freshest memories, but imprisoning her was devastatingly easy. She had to get away from this beast as quickly as possible, get out of here! She tried to get up and run out of there, but her body failed her. That was weird. After taking such damage, her regeneration must have been slower, but something else was slowing her down, probably the power drain that that stupid rodent had mentioned. She fell over with a nasty splat, and then the creature turned towards her. She cursed, got up and started running. She knew she wouldn't make it to the exit, but there was this side branch leading to that planetary archive. Maybe she'll make it. She tensed all her muscles and jumped. If she were like the mangy worms she had traveled with so recently, she would have lost her head, but her supernatural dexterity only caused him to lose a few strands of hair. Any damage to her perfect body, even the slightest, was a crime worthy of the utmost punishment, but now was not the time. She quickly crawled deeper into the corridor to keep the creature from reaching her. The mechanical monster couldn't get through here. She stood up, smiling with almost regenerated lips. Well, maybe she would be trapped here for a while, but even though she couldn't use real magic, she knew an ancient art that was deadly to mortals, but for someone as great as her, it was just a friendly arrangement. He only needs to wait a moment and then he will summon some servant of the Old Ones, or he will travel through the cursed plateau of Leng or the Land of Dreams
And then hundreds of smaller mechanisms similar to it began to descend from the mechanical guard's body, rushing towards her with the obvious intention of tearing her to shreds.
„Seriously?" she shouted, crushing the nearest crab spider with her foot and running into the room. Being torn apart by such tiny creatures. She bought some time. She found herself in a narrow room with several armchairs, which, according to the creators, were probably comfortable. She looked around, this would be an extremely idiotic end for someone like her!
„Hello! How can I serve you?" asked the hologram figure that suddenly appeared next to her.
„Who are you?" She asked, surprised by the appearance of a new creature. She could already hear the wave of mechanical crab spiders approaching.
„I am Heart Gift, planetary archive. I just found out that Mara and Light Hope were my moms, isn't that amazing?" Hologram said with Pure Delight.
„Indeed... „ she replied with sincere astonishment. But then she saw the robotic bugs coming and said." Is there any way you can stop them?
„ I don't know if I'm allowed. Light Hope... my mother told me she forbade me from influencing defense programs. Geart said carefully Gift .
„Your mother certainly wouldn't be happy if you allowed an innocent creature to get hurt." she said, jumping on a chair to avoid being torn to pieces. Heart Gift thought about her words for a moment, then waved her hand and all the creatures first froze and then began to retreat. Once the danger was averted, she looked at the hologram girl. Shadow Weaver had mentioned Light Hope to her, although honestly she didn't know much else about her. She knew that she was the planetary interface overseeing the Heart of Etheria project and was the mentor of the previous She-Ra. As the presence of the creature standing next to her indicated, they were much closer. This can be used very creatively. She bowed as courtly as she could and said a friendly word.
„Thank you very much, Heart Gift, for saving my life. My name is Lady Cala Grayskull . My friends... they are probably dead or missing and now I am very lonely... Would you be willing to be my friend"
The holographic girl looked at her for a moment, then triggered holographic fireworks and jumped up and down happily.
„I have my first friend!"