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"Little sister," the clone said. "Where are you..."
"Cut the crap, Hordak," Catra snarled, in an even worse mood than usual. She was getting seriously pissed with all the creepy clones everywhere. The ship carrying Adora was coming closer and closer - she just knew the idiot would get herself killed trying to save her pink little princess - and for reasons she has no intention of exploring she had given Sparkles a fucking cake. She pushed Hordak out of the way and continued down the corridor.
"Wait... Catra..." he said, and it was clear how much he had to struggle to get those words out of his mouth.
She stopped and gave him a glance over her shoulder.
"You remember my name, then. I was starting to worry about that green gunk washing away all your memories, Hordak."
"Names are sinful..." he muttered, not meeting her eyes.
"Well, fuck you, then," Catra said and started walking down the corridor again. "If you're so free of sin then I'm sure as hell not sticking around to stink down the place."
"Catra, wait!" he said, taking a few steps after her. "I need to..."
"Who needs to?" she hissed and kept walking.
"...me," he said between gritteed teeth. "Hordak."
She stopped and turned around.
"My, my. Seems like he didn't completely write you out then," she said, malice in her eyes (malice and - well hidden but nevertheless there - relief). "Welcome back, Hordak."
"I should have killed you," he snarled, the old anger for a moment back in his voice.
"Well, you didn't," she shot back. "And now your big space-daddy has forbidden it, so fuck that. What did you want to talk about badly enough for you to step out of line like this?"
"...the ship," he hissed.
Catra felt a cold shiver along her spine.
"Well, that was a short conversation," she snarled and turned around. "See you never, looser."
"Wait," he cried. "I've... temporary cut myself off... Horde Prime can't hear us."
Catra stopped. She slowly turned around and watched Hordak in silence with an arched eyebrow.
"...really?"
"Yes," he mumbled, unhappily.
"That's quite a trick," she said, voice full of suspicion.
"Not that hard," he muttered. "The thing is... we - that is me and my brothers - are never supposed to even consider the possibility."
"But you do," Catra said, a grin forming.
"I'm defect," he snarled. "Now, will you talk to me, or do I have to beat you senseless first?"
"Nostalgic for old times, are you," she snarled, feeling better than in ages. "I'd love to kick your ass again."
"The ship," he said, suddenly serious again.
"What about it?" Catra said guardedly.
"Is my father-brother right?" Hordak asked, voice intense. "Is She-Ra on that ship?"
Catra barred her fangs, but the urgency in his voice cut through. She gave him a short nod.
He stared at her in silence for a few moments, his mouth moving, as if he tasted the words before forming them.
"Horde Prime will try to catch her," he said with low voice.
Catra nodded again, fangs barred.
Hordak took a deep breath, an expression of utter hatred spreading over his face.
"Adora could not have made that ship fly. Not all the way here."
"She's coming, all right," Catra snarled, "so unless..."
"The princesses couldn't make that ship space-worthy. Their pathetic makers guild couldn't. Shadow Weaver and the peddlers of parlour tricks from Mystacor sure as hell couldn't."
Catra narrowed her eyes.
"What are you saying?" she demanded.
"There is one person and one person only in all of Etheria who could have done it," Hordak said, rage building in his voice.
"Entrapta is dead," Catra shot back, voice full of self loathing mixed with anger. "I killed her."
"Entrapta is alive," Hordak hissed. "She's alive and she's on that ship."
"Well, hurray for you," Catra snarled. "You get to present your girlfriend for space-daddy. Aren't you happy."
"She's coming here because of you," Hordak hissed. "He will catch her. Because of you."
"Because of you you mean," Catra shot back, quick like a wasp. "You brought him to Etheria, remember. Wasn't this what it all was about, the entire war? Wasn't this what you wanted?"
Hordak stared at her, completely at a loss for words.
"Yeah, I thought so she snarled. Now get out of my way."
"What are you going to do?" he cried after her.
"One good thing," Catra hissed over her shoulder as she bounded down the corridor.
- - -
"Catra! Wait!" Glimmer cried in full panic from behind the force field.
"Adora!" Catra cried to the microphone. "I'm sorry. For everything."
And with a last swipe of her paw, she activated the teleporter, and Glimmer beamed away. Away from the ship. Away from prime.
She was as safe as Catra could make her.
The clones tugged at her, but Catra just laughed, a sense of relief flooding her brain.
She had done it.
She had saved Adora.
(and Sparkles.)
Everything else was just gravy.
"You have no idea how long I have wanted to beat up someone who look just like you," she grinned to the closest clone. "And to be frank, to do it once just didn't cut it."
She aimed a kick at another clone, managed to headbutt one of them, but then they finally got a grip of her limbs and held her.
Oh well.
At least she got to go out kicking and screaming. If she were to be perfectly honest with herself (and why wouldn't she, now when it was all over), that's the way she always wanted to go.
"Hey, before you off me," she snarked, "just let Hordak know that, fucking hate him as I do, he's the least worthless of all of you. He, at least, had the balls to be his own man for a while."
That was the moment the wall exploded.
Catra and the clones looked up in utter confusion, looked up at the tall, red-eyed figure standing in the hole, dressed in armour and aiming his arm canon at the clones.
"Why don't you tell me yourself, Catra," Hordak said, voice booming.
And he fired his canon.
"Brother!" one of the surviving clones protested. "This is not the way of Prime."
"Prime is not here," Hordak said, a manic glint in his eyes. "But I am."
"...the fuck?" Catra said in weak voice as the clones fled.
Hordak grinned at her. He held out his hand - Catra stared at it for a moment before taking it - and helped her to her feet.
"Sorry for taking my time. I had work to do." He indicated his armour. "You did well, Catra," he went on. "You got the princess away. That should stop Adora and Entrapta from coming here, correct?"
"Why would they," Catra replied. "There is nothing here they need, now."
"Quite correct," Hordak cheerfully agreed, even if rage lurked in his voice. "But still, my father-brother is bound to chase after them."
"Yeah?" Catra said, unable to hold back her grin. "I might have some objections."
"So do I," Hordak rumbled. "The one good thing in this entire universe is on that ship, and he can't have her."
"I hear you," Catra hissed, extending her claws. "So... you figure we should register a complaint."
For an answer, Hordak powered up his arm canon.
They looked each other in the eyes.
They grinned.
"You realize he'll kill us, right?" Catra casually said.
"Of course," Hordak offhandedly said. "Still, I figure we can cause significant damage before he manages it."
"Seems like a good trade to me," Catra shrugged.
"Of course it is," Hordak said, aiming his arm canon down the corridor, at the approaching clones. "Everything of value is on that ship. You and me, we are expendable."
"I hear you," Catra repeated.
As Hordak fired, she jumped a beam in the ceiling, ready to take out any clone that made it through Hordak's barrage.
Oh yeah. Kicking and screaming, that was the way to go.