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Elena was racked with guilt. Had she really ordered the assassination of a man who led an armada to pummel Avalor into submission? She couldn’t believe it. How could she do such a monstrous thing? While she had sent several villains to the Spirit World in her years as a princess, a queen-in-waiting if you will, she had never given the command to kill anyone. It stood against everything she had fought for all these years. She shuttered at the thought she was becoming just like Shuriki. She threw her crown to the ground and began sobbing.
Naomi tried to comfort her. "Nena, it's okay…we all make mistakes…Zuzo will understand."
Elena hugged her wife back. She hoped Naomi had it right. She sighed. She knew what she had to do. It would be a hard decision, after all her years as a monarch, but it had to be done.
"Nomes, I’m going to abdicate."
Naomi gasped. She never expected those words to come out of Elena's mouth. Had she lost it? Did she really want to give up on something she had struggled so hard to get? It made no sense.
Naomi wanted to make sure she heard it right. "You don't want to be…queen anymore?" she asked innocently.
Elena nodded. The responsibility had become too much to bear. Thinking for a second, while stroking her wife's hair, she had an idea of who the next monarch would be.
"And you, Nomes, will take my place. I'll be a queen ex-officio. I would only be an advisor and wouldn’t have any queen-related obligations."
This surprised Naomi. She thought that the right of succession went to Isa rather than her. But she didn’t question Elena's logic. After all, who doesn't like to be in power? It would a chance to show Avalor who she was, and that she could lead the realm out of a dark time.
Isa, a 31-year-old woman, was more than old enough to be queen. Her sister Elena, on the other hand, was seven years older.
"What about your sister?" Naomi asked.
Shaking her head, Elena laughed. She guessed, and expected, that Naomi would mention it. She had prepared a response.
She hated going into social situations and being unsure of what to say. She cleared her throat.
"Right after we married, I signed a royal proclamation stating that in the event of a royal abdication, the chancellor will take on all responsibilities of the monarch, while said monarch will move into a queen ex-officio role."
She further explained that since Isa wasn't 18 years old at the time of the proclamation, Francisco and Louisa had agreed on her behalf. She also noted that once Isa reached age 18, she agreed to this proclamation only if one proviso was added: that the royal princess become next in line for royal succession if anything should occur to those on the royal council, including the chancellor. With the royal council as a generally inoperative entity, Isa may have believed that she had the right to royal rule through that proclamation, while Elena interpreted it differently. She didn't think her sister was capable enough to run Avalor by herself. Furthermore, she saw Naomi as better suited for the job.
Elena chuckled. She held Naomi's hand tightly. "Are you ready for this?"
Naomi grinned. She would do anything for Elena. She knew that her wife had been stressed out with everything that had been going on, especially with preparations to protect Avalor City and defending the city from the mechanical menaces. She believed this abdication would provide Elena with some much-needed rest.
"I most certainly am," she remarked. Walking outside the palace walls, Elena and Naomi wheeled out a device that Isa created and had dubbed the "voice-omatic." The device allowed a person to project their voice across long distances. In a cruel twist of fate, one of the people who heard them first was none other than Isa herself.
Reaching the town square, of the many in the city, Elena began speaking.
"Citizens of Avalor City…I have an announcement to make. I am hereby abdicating as queen of the Queendom of Avalor."
Murmurs could be heard among the surprised citizens. They had never expected Elena would do something like this. It also seemed strange and suspicious at it happened while the city was still rebuilding from damage the city incurred from the Steamlandian Armada and the realm at risk from possible "foreign invaders."
Naomi picked up where her wife had left off. She stepped forward and finished Elena's thought.
"With the abdication of Elena Castillo Flores, per Royal Proclamation No. 3, I, Naomi Turner, Royal Chancellor of Avalor, have been granted the powers of a monarch."
The crowd remained silent. They were unsure what to expect. None of them had been through any change in leadership. Royal rule in Avalor usually passed down through the family, from father to son, mother to daughter.
"Ms. Isabel Flores shall take over in my stead if I am in any way incapacitated. My first order of business to rescind all restrictions implemented to respond to the impending invasion of this city and this realm," Naomi added.
That wasn’t all. She would say something that no one saw coming. Elena whispered in her ear that she'd like to grant the people of Avalor more power over their lives. Naomi accepted this suggestion wholeheartedly.
"I hereby declare that Avalor is no longer a queendom, but a regency. Elections will be held for seats in the Avaloran Parliament. The monarchy will be hereby abolished!"
The people were stunned. No one had ever spoken about the creation of a legislature. Some had heard about it from other kingdoms like Norberg, but no one expected it would ever come to Avalor. With this new development, the populace could, in theory, control their own destiny without a monarch telling them what to do, although democracy was never that simple or straightforward. Cheers erupted from the crowd.
"This is what democracy looks like!" one onlooker declared.
Achieving that democratic goal would not be easy, little did they know.
Isa heard the commotion. Her anger began boiling. How could she be cut out of the line of royal succession? She found her sister's actions despicable and saw Naomi as an unwitting accomplice. She believed a conspiracy against her had been growing and negative thoughts began filling her head. At that very moment, Adora and Catra walked into her lab, believing that Isa must have fixed their spaceship by now. They saw no reason to stay in Avalor, since the battle against Steamland had been won, and both wanted to continue on their merry way across the universe.
"Hey, Isa, what'ya doing?" Adora said, unknowingly stealing the phrase from someone else on the other side of the universe.
Isa cackled maniacally. It made Adora recoil and Catra hide behind her in fear.
"I am formulating a plan to…take over Avalor."
Neither one knew what in the world she was talking about. They thought she had a respectable job heading the science academy in Avalor. Why would she want to be the ruler of Avalor itself? Wasn't that a lot of work…and responsibility? It didn’t make a lick of sense, not in the slightest.
"Uh huh. Ruling over people is challenging," Adora snidely remarked.
"Tell me about it," Catra said in a rejoinder to Adora and rolled her eyes.
Isa continued to snicker. The snideness and dismissal by Adora and Catra did not faze Isa. The anger inside of her had manifested itself in hostility toward Elena and even...Naomi. She wanted to be in control of Avalor by any means at her disposal. She believed she deserved to be the ruler of Avalor more than a girl from the port, from the kingdom of Norberg, that her sister happened to marry 18 years ago.
"I present my Explode-Inator! At one point of this device, it causes things to explode instantly," Isa thundered.
As she began to rattle off a backstory about the device, Adora cut her off. She would not let Avalor, a place she had defended go down the tubes, or let one of her friends hurt those she cared about, like Elena and Naomi. It wouldn’t be right. She had to put a stop to this right here and now.
"Hey, let’s calm down a little here. We can work something out…Naomi and your sister are reasonable people."
Isa stared at her with disdain. She thought, at that moment, that Adora was in her way, an enemy of the monarchy. She sneered.
"How dare you say that! I’ve been through so much…no one, not even my own sister, appreciates me…what you said is the last straw."
As Adora prepared to draw her sword and transform into She-Ra, Isa pulled out a bluish sparkling guitar. It had once been used by Tito to hypnotize Elena, Naomi, Mateo, and Gabe to do his bidding. Isa strummed on it with vigor. She told her story of woe, putting Catra and Adora into a trance.
"As a young girl, I remained in Elena’s shadow
People praised her even when she began glow
I must reclaim what is rightfully mine
To not make me a ruler is a crime
This must end
Elena is my sister
But I must resist her!
I deserve to ascend"
Isa continued playing the guitar. Adora and Catra mindlessly dropped their weapons without a second thought. She laughed. While using the guitar had been a measure of last resort, she saw it as necessary. She could not let power slip out of her hands. She justified this through her belief that the royal ruler of Avalor needed to be a native Avaloran not someone who wasn’t born in Avalor and only had power because of their relations with the former queen.
The fact that Naomi had lived most of her life in Avalor didn’t matter to Isa at this point, not when that meant a loss of privilege and power. She believed that if Elena magically disappeared, then that would strengthen her position. So, she planned to incapacitate both her sister and Naomi, temporarily, and lock them in the dungeon, in a hair-brained attempt to achieve her goals. This plan seemed extreme, but she would do anything to make sure she wasn’t deprived of something she saw as her birthright.
Back in the royal palace, Elena began to think over everything that transpired, from Naomi’s ascension as royal ruler to her abdication. A blue flash blinded her and Zuzo appeared in front of her. He grumbled.
"The task is done…the assassination has been ordered."
She glared at Zuzo with fury. She couldn't believe he had taken her seriously in the moment following the bombing of Avalor City. Did he not understand human emotions? She lashed out.
"Zuzo, how could you? I wasn't of a right mind then…you shouldn't have listened to me!"
He breathed deeply. He feared she would say this. He shook his head.
"No, no, Elena, I'm a chanul and as your spirit guide, I have to follow what you say no matter what, especially since you have saved me all those times in the past…I am deeply indebted to you."
Elena recognized he was right. She couldn’t ask him to disregard her words sometimes and then other times follow them to the letter. That wouldn't make sense. She had to accept the reality.
"Fine, Zuzo. Can…I stop it?"
He stared deeply into her eyes with a clear look ofworry. He gulped by what he was about to say next. It could put Elena’s life, and everything she worked for as a princess and a queen, in danger. It might be the most dangerous thing she had ever done.
"Yes…but you need to go to…Hell."
Elena was confused. She had heard that phrase in the past and had some recollection it was used when a person wanted to put someone else down. Clearly annoyed, she came close to him, and right in his face.
"WHAT did you say to ME?"
Zuzo began to cower. He never liked when she acted like this, and it always made him nervous. He meekly answered.
"The…location...of Hell…I didn't mean any disrespect to you…that is the place to go."
Elena felt relieved. She had a sense that Zuzo wasn’t insulting her, but she was a bit on edge recently with all that had happened. As such, she jumped to a negative conclusion more quickly instead of approaching what he said more rationally or with more emotional intelligence. She had one question for him before embarking on this quest. The answer would decide whether she’d go or not.
"Can…I come back? It’s not like I’d be stuck down there…right?"
Zuzo shrugged his shoulders. He didn't know how to answer her question. He had always been able to move easily between realms, but… what about a human? He wasn't sure.
"I…don't know, Elena…you may come back…or you may not."
She began weeping uncontrollably. She couldn’t imagine leaving Naomi behind after everything they had been through. On the other hand, she wanted to live up to her mistakes. She did not want anything to drag her down. She stamped her foot on the ground. "I'll do it."
Zuzo was scared but also also proud of her. He recognized that she had not been averse to taking risks, but this would be different. Part of him believed that she would make it back somehow.
"Elena, write this down: Immediate Murder Professionals. They are also called I.M.P. You can’t miss 'em."
Elena nodded as she quickly scrawled out a letter to Naomi and wrote what Zuzo told her on another piece of paper. As a tear came down her cheek, she ran over to the adjacent room. Naomi was napping there, tired after a long day. She placed the letter in front of Naomi and put a rock on top of it to hold it down. She moved closer to her wife and tried to hold in her emotions.
"I'm sorry Nomes, but…I have to leave…I'm sorry for…everything."
She kissed her on the cheek. She ran back to the other room, grabbing the piece of paper with the information Zuzo had told her, and stuffed it into her dress pocket. He turned his head toward her. He wanted to make sure she was prepared. "Elena, are you ready for this?"
She indicated her agreement by nodding. He grabbed her hand, and they traveled through the floor as spirits. They were moving so quickly that she couldn’t even comprehend what was happening. Suddenly, they stopped without warning.
Zuzo whispered. "This is where…I let you go…I cannot go any further."
As his grip of her loosened, he began to shed tears. It was hard to do this, especially since thought this might be the last time that he ever saw her. He waved to her. "Elena…best of luck!"
As she fell quickly toward the ground, she had no idea of what lay ahead of her. Even so, she remained determined to rectify her mistake.
Back in the Royal Palace, Naomi yawned. She had enjoyed her siesta, napping on the living room couch. Becoming the royal ruler of Avalor, her wife's abdication, and everything else that had occurred made her exhausted. So much was changing and so fast. She reached out and her hand touched a piece of paper and she felt something she didn't expect…the royal seal. She threw aside the pillows and sheets, causing them to fall onto the floor in an instant. She knew something was wrong. Why would there be a letter with a royal seal right next to where she had been sleeping? Was Elena trying to tell her something? She didn't know. She read the letter, after moving the rock which had been holding it down, with interest:
"My sweetest Nomes, I'm sorry for causing you so much trouble. I have to go to this place called 'Hell' and meet those who are ready to kill the person I told them to…I have to own up to my mistakes…I love you dearly, Nomes and I will do everything I can to get back to Avalor. If I don't come back, just remember that I love you and will never forget you."
After reading this letter, Naomi started tearing up. She had so many tears that paper itself started to deteriorate. She wiped her tears from her eyes. She believed she had no choice but to be cold, calculating, emotionless, and rational. She wanted to be as strong a leader as Elena and she couldn’t be, she believed, in this state of mind with a whole city and country to govern. This determination, however, didn't stop her from becoming morose and despondent. She sullenly walked to the edge of the royal palace grounds, overlooking the sea, holding the letter in her hand. A swift breeze snatched it out of her hand. She reached for it once, then let it fly away. She solemnly stared out into the sea and stood in a single spot while the storm from the vast ocean began to roll in, as the tears rolled down her cheeks.
The letter moved quickly through the air above the city, from building to building, roof to roof, until it reached the Avalor Science Academy, sometimes called the Royal Academy of Science. Isa had left a window open to enjoy the cool breeze. As fierce winds started blowing, she tried to close the window. Struggling, she quickly closed it and felt relieved, surprised to see a letter on the ground. It had a royal seal and was a bit damp, she guessed from tears or some other liquid. But it was probably... tears
Reading every line carefully, she came away flabbergasted. Elena had gone to this place, named "Hell", and might not be coming back…EVER. Elena's departure had fulfilled all the negative thoughts she had about her, as it would make it easier for her to become Avalor's ruler. However, she didn't want it to happen this way… and not like this! It seemed wrong on so many levels. She asked herself: am I doing the right thing? She answered that question with a definite no.
Grabbing the blue sparkling guitar, she smashed it to the ground, causing it to dissipate into dust, fading from the world and universe, not even entering the Spirit World. Like Elena and Naomi, she had begun bawling and fell to the ground. Catra and Adora, who were now out of Isa's spell, shook their heads. What happened? Why were they still in the Science Academy?
Catra, a bit dazed, remained on the floor, along with Adora. Seeing that Isa was shedding tears, she tried to approach her. "Isa, it's okay…we can help you."
She looked at them teary-eyed and regretful. She could not justify her actions from before and wouldn't try to rationalize them. How can you justify hurting people you care about and for... such a selfish reason? Her scientific brain remained unable to process the awful things she had said and how she had tried to hurt her friends.
Reaching for a medical kit on the table, she pulled out two syringes. She knew what she had to do. They had to be spared. She would not let them suffer anymore. So, she stuck each of them with needles filled with some unknown substance. It caused them to become woozy and light enough for Isa to carry.
Catra turned to Isa and asked, "why are you doing this?" That is when she revealed it all. She didn't know if Catra or Adora would remember what she was about to say, but she didn't care. She had to tell someone.
"Elena…is gone! She may never come back…and everything I did to you…all the destruction I wanted to cause to my home…I can't live with myself anymore…It all must pass."
Although she had begun succumbing to the effects of the concoction, Adora attempted to plead with her to not end her life. "Please, Isa, you have so much live for…don''t do it!"
Having her friend, albeit a new one, act like this made Adora sad and concerned. She had experienced such intense emotions in the past, so she tried to relate and connect with Isa the best she could. Carrying Catra and Adora, who were as light as a feather, Isa's eyes were still filled with tears. She brought them near the portal to Steamland. She wanted them to be as far away from her lab as possible. She would do anything to make that happen.
"I'm sorry, Catra and Adora, but you have to go…have a good life."
Throwing them through the portal, Adora shrieked. Still a bit conscious, she made one last attempt to reach her friend. She didn't want to give up, especially not on someone as smart and creative as Isa.
"Please wait…you don’t have to do this!" she cried out.
Isa looked at the portal tearfully. She grabbed a metal pipe and started to bash in the portal's frame. "I'm sorry for everything I put you through…I just want to be…alone." As the inter-dimensional gateway to Steamland started to fall apart, when it exploded, she was thrown across the room, and injured, with skinned knees and arms. On the other side of the universe, Adora and Catra were hurled onto a city street, finding themselves in Steamland, unsure what to do with themselves. Both collapsed from utter fatigue, mostly due to the concoction. What awaited them there, no one could guess.
Scratching her head, Isa stopped the waterworks and pushed down her emotions. She knew what she had to do. She pulled a cord, which caused bells across the science academy to ring. Those inside knew what to do: they had to evacuate. The procedures, something that Isa had designed many years ago, were clear. After seeing that everyone was outside the building, she locked every door to her lab, sealing it off from the rest of the academy. As she began powering up her Explode-Inator, she stuck herself with a needle filled with the same substance she had used on Catra and Adora. As she started to gather some of the most volatile substances in her lab in one area, preparing it like a bomb, she thought over everything in her life. Had it all come to this? Was this the end? Sullen, she snapped out of it and realized that Adora had been right. She had so much to offer this world and the people of Avalor.
Isa panicked, desperately trying to turn off her device. She wanted to live. She did not want to die. But it was too late. She resigned herself to her fate. In the process, she accidentally touched the device's self-destruct button. This deactivated it and simultaneously caused it to detonate, igniting the nearby substances, destroying the entire lab in huge explosion of untold energy. As the ground shook, the academy's scientists, thinking this was another attack by the Steamlandian Armada, ran in all directions, screaming their heads off in utter terror.
Naomi, moping to herself, ready to be drenched by the imminent downpour, was abruptly pulled out of her funk, not even noticing the tremors from the blast at the academy. Gabe came running over to her.
"Something's happening at the science academy, Nomes…a big blast…a detonation of some device."
When he said that, she snapped back to reality. She had to act like a leader. The time for acting sad about her wife had to wait, at least for now. She spun around and faced him. Her eyes were still bit puffy from her tears.
“We have to go…NOW!” she shouted. He couldn't agree more and appreciated her being so determined. Both quickly prepped and hopped onto their horses, riding as fast as they could to the science academy. As the storm clouds came closer, they both barely rode out the storm. In no time at all, they reached the smoldering ruins of what had been Isa's lab. Naomi searched across the rubble with her eyes in horror.
"Isa!" she exclaimed. "Are you there?"
As the guards removed more of the rubble, they found her lying on the ground, lifeless and unmoving. This devastated Naomi. From her perspective, she had lost one person, her wife, and she wouldn’t lose another.
Holding Isa in her arms, she rode as fast as she could back to the royal palace, even as the rain began to pick up and she became soaked in the process. Her tears were washed away by the falling rain.
"We need a doctor!" she shouted.
Royal guards were dispatched to find a doctor somewhere in Avalor City and to calm down the frenzied scientists who had run from the academy. Gabe, for his part, cordoned off the academy. He put it under the protection of the royal guard, ensuring that no one could go in and out, and began an investigation into the cause of the destruction. He was, of course, worried about Isa, but he had a job to do as the head of the royal guard.
Somehow, Naomi made her way back into the palace in record time, holding Isa in her arms, and escaping the torrential downpour. Luisa and Francisco, who were making some tea for themselves, were shocked to see her come back with their granddaughter in her arms.
Coming closer, Luisa asked, "is…our little mija ok?"
Naomi shrugged her shoulders. How would she know? She began to bawl her eyes out, even more than before.
"Isa is non-responsive…she's unconscious…I'm really worried about her," she told them.
Francisco said something which echoed what his wife had said. He stared at her, anxiously, and stroked Isa's hair.
"My beautiful mija…we will do what we can for her." Naomi nodded. That is all she wanted and all she hoped for. She could have cared for Isa herself but remained grateful that Luisa and Francisco were there to help.
She then remarked, "I hope Isa is ok."
Luisa smiled. She knew her granddaughter would make it through this. She remained convinced she'd bounce back.
"Our dear Isa is a strong woman…she will make it through this."
As they did all they could to help her, Luisa, Francisco, and Naomi awaited a doctor. Isa's fate would be in the hands of her own body and those caring for her.
During the downpour, a man wearing robes and a hood, who almost looked like a monk, stood on a nearby cliff overlooking the royal palace. He had traveled far and wide on his magical journey from the mountains and had now returned to Avalor, at long last. His long trek had ended. He had so much to share.
He heard screaming from the palace, followed by: "ISA, WHY? You are all I have left! Elena is gone…I don't want you to leave me too!"
He knew that voice: it was Naomi. What was going on? Where had Elena gone? Was Isa in peril?
Sensing the danger, he yelled "Llévaluq!," causing him to float and reach the royal palace in a split second. He wanted to help in whatever way he could, and he had come back at just the right time.