Chapter Text
She-Ra Princess of Power. No one knew where she came from nor how she miraculously managed to always show up in their time of need. She-Ra was the main reason the rebellion even stood a chance against the Horde in recent months.
Their attacks around Etheria were becoming more frequent and more organized than ever. It was only a matter of time before the rebellion slipped up and a kingdom under their protection became vulnerable to the Horde’s increasing power.
Glimmer was in the middle of taking down the last of the many bots on the edge of the Whispering Woods until she heard a loud thump behind her.
"Watch out!"
She instinctively teleported a few steps away to see She-Ra jump right on top of the machine and disable it in one swoop.
It's been months since Bow and Glimmer first met She-Ra after investigating a signal coming from ancient First Ones’ tech. It appeared the magical woman wielded a sword made of their technology and was able to read the language of First Ones.
At first, She-Ra seemed completely disoriented about the state of the planet and the war against the evil Horde. However, after witnessing the battle of Thaymor, she soon decided to join their fight and even helped them with recruiting the princess alliance.
"Hey Glimmer!" Shouted She-Ra as she jumped down onto the ground in front of her.
Glimmer quickly regained her focus. "You know I actually had that one this time?" She sighed, "I don't need you always rescuing me whenever you decide to show up."
"But what are friends for?" The woman replied with a smile. While She-Ra was considered a close friend of hers, and by extension Bow, they really didn't know much about her outside of… you know She-Ra.
That didn't really matter to Glimmer though. It's not like she knew every single detail about Bow's life. She never pushed him to talk about his past since he persistently avoided bringing it up. Glimmer could understand that and respected his privacy. Speaking of which, she suddenly noticed Bow running towards them.
"She-Ra!” He said, almost running out of breath, “Right on time. We have reports of Elberon being under attack. Glimmer, these bots were just a distraction"
"Calm down, we got this. What do we know so far?" Glimmer said while putting her hand on his arm. "More than 30 soldiers, and multiple tanks, all led by force captain Catra."
Both of them looked back at She-Ra but her expression was undecipherable. Glimmer always suspected there was something personal the woman had against Catra. Usually when they’ve encountered her, everything about She-Ra seemed to tense, like she's scared of something terrible happening.
"She-Ra, you there?" Bow suddenly asked.
"Oh me, yes? Sorry. Yes, we should go there right away and make sure to tell the other princesses." She quickly replied.
There wasn't much conversation after that. After a short break to prepare and contact their allies, Glimmer teleported the squad to the outskirts of Elberon and the battle would soon follow.
Once the fight was over and the villagers were safe, She-Ra was finally able to part ways with her friends. Along with Swift Wind, they went to their usual spot near the Crystal Castle in the heart of the Whispering Woods. He was one of her few friends who knew her true identity, including a mysterious older woman named Madame Razz.
As soon as they landed, she was able to de-transform and her sword shapeshifted back to the form of a bracelet she could hide under her shirt when needed.
Adora was exhausted. Being She-Ra for long periods of time was never a problem but having to stay composed when face to face with Catra was... different.
It's not like looking at Catra's pretty face was the problem. She loved- liked her face. Obviously. More importantly she missed her, which was even more ridiculous since she called her everyday when they were assigned different missions.
Shadow Weaver seemed insistent on separating them whenever she had the chance. Right now 'force captain Adora' is technically supposed to be at an outpost north of Salineas. Not that anyone ever really noticed when she was gone.
"You okay there Adora?" Swift Wind suddenly got her attention again.
"Hmm. I'm fine." He had a hard time believing that.
"Swifty, I need to get back to my outpost as soon as possible."
Great, now she was changing the topic of the conversion. Swift Wind only wanted what was best for her and today she’s been acting a lot more distant. Not to mention-
"Just drop me off near Salineas and I'll find my way. You should go check in on Razz."
"But Adora-" She shook her head.
"Please Swift Wind I need to go."
As the night faded away, Adora was nearing closer to her assigned outpost. At this point she had been awake for over 24 hours and the lack of rest was getting to her.
She was however, grateful to have been sent to the most remote and boring base possible. With Adora in charge, it was mostly just sparse reports on Horde defenses and the occasional rebel updates. Most of the other soldiers stationed there weren’t getting a whole lot of action unless in the case of an emergency.
Shortly after getting back, she received a call from Catra on one of their communication pads. Great. Just what she needed right now. She sat down on her bed and answered.
"Hey Adora." She heard Catra's voice through the small speaker. As tired as she was, she couldn't be mad at the sound of her voice.
"Catra. Aren't you kind of busy right now? I heard they sent you all the way to the rebel base of Elberon."
She hated having to lie, knowing that Elboron was a remote village that had no real defense against the Horde without the princesses, but she had to keep up appearances.
"Ughhh. I don't want to talk about it. The most annoying princesses just had to show up and make a mess of everything. Anyway, we're heading back to the Fright Zone now so I guess I'll see you there-"
"Wait, what? That's today?"
Adora suddenly realized she completely forgot about the change in shifts for the outpost defense groups. She looked out the nearest window and noticed the transport below her already loading supplies.
"Wow… they're really overworking you there huh?" Catra said with a tone of irony. Adora sighed. She couldn’t help but mentally slap herself for forgetting.
"I think the days of sitting here and doing nothing are really getting to me that's all." She tried to brush it off with a laugh.
"Well you won't have to worry about that much longer. I heard they're finally giving you another chance at the front lines soon.” Catra responded.
Unfortunately, that's exactly what Adora feared. She never really wanted to fight for the Horde. She never wanted to hurt people. Now it looked like she would have no other choice.