A/N: To get the story back on track (totally not bc I've been MIA for 7 months), it's gonna jump straight into the plot - and there'll be little hints and flashbacks of Adora's current journey with the big C. As of right now: she does know, but isn't convinced on the severity yet. She's also only two weeks into chemo, and because of She-Ra's genes, she's not feeling the full effect - yet. The plot's gone get a bit more on track with the rest of the show for the next few chapters, but expect a bigger C update on the next chapter*
So, cancer wasn't fun. Adora came to that conclusion fairly quickly after her third straight day of puking from the medicine. Initially, she'd written the sickness off as just a bug. But she only seemed to get sicker with each day she was on the medicine. In any case, in between bouts of vomit, she was still her normal self. So, she continued to be her normal self. Including, but not limited to: waking up early to train, having breakfast with the others (though the amount very slowly dwindled each day), shower after training, work on some strategy with Glimmer and Bow, meet with Angella and her doctor, then go off on a mission.
It took a few days to convince Angella that she was fine to get out and fight still: the "shit she dealt with as Adora didn't really happen with She-Ra" as proven by the scratches on the goddess left by her best former friend. They were bleeding and puss-ing as She-Ra, but when she shifted back to her normal self, there were only thin scratches - easily treated with disinfectant, but when she shifted again, they'd be horrid wounds once more.
Thankfully, Catra had been relatively quiet since the Battle of Brightmoon - which wasn't good. At all. When they were cadets way back when, it usually meant she was doing something she shouldn't. The only thing they'd had to do was try to stop the constant attacks - usually led by Octavia or Cobalt. There was no way these were orchestrated by Shadow Weaver. She'd let the Rebellion trick themselves into a false sense of safety - then hit them at once with a huge attack.
"Uh, guys? That thing is way more advanced than usual," Usually, Adora would joke that Bow was being too cautious, but this time in particular, he was right. The bots looked… Entrapta. But that simply wasn't true: she was dead, to keep it blunt. So, unless the Horde somehow stole her schematics and blueprints, and her brain for that matter, they're not hers. But the bot only scanned the surrounding area, clattering off. "Where is it going? Why isn't it attacking the woods?"
Impatient, Adora rolled her eyes and jumped out of their little hiding nook, swinging her sword at the bots leg. She grunted, hoisting herself onto its top, ramming her sword deep into the metal. It whirred down, and she pulled out her sword, tapping its little head. She scoffed with a proud smile. "It's still just a Horde bot. We know how to handle-"
-when she opened her eyes, she was on the ground several feet away. "Okay," She coughed, sitting up. That's new," Glimmer winced. "You ok?" Adora nodded, suddenly cast beneath shadows. Glimmer teleported to its top, crying in battle. She swung Micah's staff at its face, laughing proudly. The next moment shrieked ENTRAPTA, for the bot reared up, grabbed Glimmer and threw her into the woods.
Bow gasped dramatically from behind. "It's learning!" Adora rolled her eyes, already feeling the fatigue settling into her bones. She stood up, determined to not let cancer bring her down. "Yeah, well, I'm about to teach it something," She held her sword aloft. "For the honour of Grayskull!"
The transformation was usually a little painful. Not horrifically so, but more when you have to work a strained muscle - like she was forcing the transformation - but it was workable. She-Ra burst forth, taking away the fatigue. She'd admit, that was nice. Adora ran at the bot, using her sword to deflect the energy bolts back. She swung relentlessly, trying to smash it. She had about .3 seconds to react when the bot's hard, cold, metal pincer squeezed around her ankle, tossing her high and far. She hit the ground in a daze, too winded to even make a sound. The ground shook as the bot charged over. She scrambled back to no avail. The Entraptabot (its new dubbed name) slammed onto her body, pushing her into the moist ground. The initial force pushed the wind out of her lungs as she slammed into the mud.
Then the most awful ringing sound bounced around in her brain, smacking from ear to ear, echoing loudly. She winced, then kicked up with all her might. It shot upwards, wailing growing fainter. Adora stood up with a soft sigh, chuckling in victory. Then it thudded behind her, shaking the ground viciously. Bow whined. For a moment, she felt bad. Then, she didn't.
"What? We'll capture another bot. That one had it coming," Asshole fucker, slamming her into the ground. Bow's face changed. "Yeesh. I'm sorry I destroyed it!" She exclaimed her usual foul mood setting in. What? Can you blame her? When she's not got needles in her arms pumping her full of anti-cancer shit, she's either throwing up or sleeping. Bow and Glimmer weren't bothered by her sour attitude, no. They pointed behind her, faces slack with shock. When she turned, the Entraptabot was stood, re… attaching the pincer? Oh hell no.
"Ooh, that's unnatural. Even for a robot," Never one to disagree with facts, Adora hummed in agreement with Swifty. She stepped backwards, cursing internally when not one, not two, but three more Entraptabots crawled over the hill, trapping them in a square. Glimmer's fists whined with magic, Bow's… well, bow, grew taught, and her grip tightened on her sword. It glowed a bright blue, and for a moment, she thought fate wouldn't fuck her over - but no. The sword shifted into an umbrella.
She sagged with a frustrated groan.
A few days later found Adora freaking out about a Horde outpost, maybe a mile or so, away from their camp. Nobody in the alliance was taking the threat seriously enough. Maybe it was thanks to her big C, but being up most nights with chills and nausea, and consequently being weak, AND having the Horde that close to her home made her the most on edge she'd ever been… and she grew up in the Fright Zone. Being realistic (and a little bit too harsh) Adora thought like the Force Captain she'd been raised to be and counteracted every move made by the alliance. "Fine. You throw your strategies at me, and I'll combat them as an ex-Horde Captain," She leaned back against the wall of the tent.
Glimmer puffed her chest. "I teleport in-"
"-and run out of teleports," Adora argued. Glimmer pouted. "My plant golem tears down the wall-" Perfuma began. "The Horde will set it on fire," Adora began to chew her fingernail. "Frostbite smashes the wall-"
"-the ice armour cracks as you hit the stone," Adora sang. Mermista stood up. "Sea Ra destroys the bots-" Adora's temper flared as she pinched her nose. "There is no Sea Ra and you aren't taking Catra into account!" She exclaimed, fisting her hair. "Sure we are!" Perfuma explained her view of Catra, followed by Frosta, then Glimmer, then Bow's.
Adora felt the anger bubble to the surface as she swiped her hand across the board. "No! None of this is right!" The pieces scattered across the room. The alliance grumbled in exhaustion. "We've been here for hours. It's time we attack!" Glimmer whined. Adora shook her head. "No. The Horde will counter whatever we throw at them. We'll go again. We won't leave until we have a perfect plan,"
She couldn't face going into a battle, knowing outright that she was gonna lose. What kind of leader would she be if she didn't even try? Bow's hesitant voice brought her back to Etheria. "Adora... isn't this going overboard? We've faced the Horde before. What's the worst that could happen?"
Thousands of scenarios sped through Adora's mind. She inhaled slowly through her nose, and out of her mouth.
"You wanna know the worst that can happen? Fine," She picked up her figurine. "I'm the heaviest hitter, so Catra will separate me, trap me, take my sword, do something so I'm helpless when she turns on you. She knows everything about me. What I'll do, how to take me out," She placed her figure on the map again. "They'll overwhelm Frosta and Mermista with bots," She swiped the aforementioned Princesses off the map. "Then they'll fire on Perfuma, and use her to draw out Bow pinning him between bots and Horde soldiers," She flicked Perfuma away. "Glimmer'll teleport in to help, but won't have enough magic to get out, trapping them," Glimmer and Bow landed on the ground. "Catra will make me watch before she finishes me off. Everyone is gone, the Horde wins, Etheria crumbles, It's all my fault,"
She tossed her figure off the table, head in her hands, emotions riding high. She took a steadying breath to combat the anxiety. "The Horde nearly destroyed Etheria. We were barely able to stop it. If this plan isn't perfect, if I'm not perfect, everyone will-"
She cut herself off.
She sighed harshly, standing up abruptly. "I need air,"
Later came the battle. She hesitated initially in charging in, wanting to let Glimmer take the lead instead. She'd shook her head with a grunt. "I'm gonna be fine," She mumbled to herself, holding the sword up high. Her heart fell to her feet. Her shoulders dropped. She shook her head. "No. I can't do this," She said. She paced a little. She'd had a good night last night, no nausea, no puking. She was a little cold, but she was cold all the time now. Nothing's gonna happen. She's fine when she's She-Ra for fucks sake!
"Whatever happens, happens," She sighed to herself. She held the sword up high, taking a deep breath. "FOR THE HONOUR... OF GREYSKULL!"
The power rushed over her body, stretching her by three feet. Her arms grew into the muscles she'd obtained in the last year. Her legs grew colder as the skin-tight shorts materialised on her legs, long above her knees, accessorised with her boots. She flexed in the mirror, twisting and turning. "Hey, Adora. You ready?" Glimmer popped behind her back. Adora turned, sword pointing to the ground. "I think so. It's no different to the usual," Glimmer walked over with a soft smile. "You'll be fine. The plan's foolproof,"
Adora hummed, looking at the small mark on her hand where the chemotherapy needle had begun to make a permanent mark.
"Hey, what's wrong?" Glimmer crept closer. Adora leaned against the table, letting the sword rest against her leg. "Nothing. I'm fine," She said. The lie was fake to her own ears. Glimmer hummed. "Wanna try that again? I don't speak bullshit," The blonde huffed quietly. "I just-" She cut herself off with another sigh. "What if I'm too weak? What happens if I drop my sword? Or- or have one of those stupid sick spell things?"
Glimmer took her sword by the hilt and pushed it into her own grip. "Even if you do, we'll face it together. You haven't yet, you're not going to. It's gonna be fine," Adora smiled small as she grasped the hilt tighter. "Yeah," She agreed with a quiet sigh. Glimmer tutted. "Come on. Kicking Horde ass'll make you feel better. It always does,"