Music: "Hand of Sorrow" by Within Temptation

⚠️ Trigger Warning: This chapter contains references to suicidal ideation. If that's not for you, feel free to skip the third scene of this chapter.

As I said before, power is simply a tool, not something that makes you immoral or moral in itself. But I will say that there was some merit to Emeth Auctor's pursuit of power, though he was far too extreme in his beliefs.

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"RRRRRRAAAAHHHH!"

Hordak hurled a cloning vat at Shadow Weaver, and she barely leaped out of the way. "HOW COULD YOU HAVE ALLOWED THIS TO HAPPEN?" he bellowed over the sound of shattering glass.

Shadow Weaver lowered her blank eyes, ebony hair billowing above her head. "The Alliance worked together," she said softly. "Salineas is protected by the Sea Gate, and –"

"Not the fort, you fool!" Hordak snapped at her. "The power source!" By Prime's name, he was lightheaded from shouting. But he couldn't grab anything for support without cluing Shadow Weaver into his weakness...

Shadow Weaver stood up straighter, locking eye contact. "I prevented the Fright Zone itself from collapsing. Do you know what would have happened, had the rebel king infiltrated this complex?"

"Your mission was to protect the power source. I require it for my experiments, woman!"

The slits narrowed. "My lord, with respect –" Shadow Weaver snapped the last word – "I narrowly stopped you from assassination. Carmen can steal the battery back –"

"That is impossible," Hordak interrupted. "You only succeeded because you obtained an opening. The Crypto Castle contains numerous traps, as you yourself have said."

"We have a map."

"A map that was only reliable because the traps were disengaged for that cursed ball," Hordak replied with a wave of his hand. "You must come to terms with reality, Shadow Weaver. We will never hold that battery again." Spots coalesced at the edges of his vision. Stay lucid. Stay upright. Hordak gritted his teeth, forcing himself not to dwell on the pain of his ailment.

Shadow Weaver's fists clenched. "What now?" she asked, an edge remaining in her voice. "Will you be rid of me?"

"No," he said. "You remain the only access point to the Black Garnet." With that, Hordak had a realization. A way to control her, and continue his experiments. "The Black Garnet contains the power of electricity, does it not?"

Shadow Weaver flinched visibly, and her response was delayed. "Yes," she said in a small voice.

Hordak clanked over to his desk. "You will meet me at the Black Garnet Chamber tomorrow," he said. "And I will use you as my conduit. The key to the circuit. Do you know what a circuit is?"

"No, my lord. I am no...engineer." Her voice trembled, even though she had no idea what he was talking about. Shadow Weaver was quite possessive of the magical rock.

"Come." Reluctantly, the Etherian obeyed. Hordak took out a few wires and connected them to a small lunar panel affixed near a lightbulb. Carrying the circuit to the sole window in his sanctum, he set it down in the moonlight, and the bulb began to glow.

Shadow Weaver's eyes were wide. "How does it work?" she asked. "Is there...magic?"

So curious, Hordak thought, quashing the tiny, miniscule affection that rose at her question. "No, Shadow Weaver. The lunar panel converts the moonlight into electricity. It travels through these wires –" he trailed a finger along the red strings – "and reaches the bulb, powering it to turn on."

"Fascinating," she whispered, edging closer to the light. "No magic involved."

"Not a bit," Hordak said. "With this power, the bulb will stay lit for hours."

Shadow Weaver tilted her head, still inspecting the circuit. "Why don't you craft a larger lunar panel, then?" she asked. "Can it not run your portal forever?"

"There are multiple problems with such a proposal," Hordak said. "The first being that the smog blocks the moons frequently." He paced around the sanctum, and Shadow Weaver stood against the wall, her arms crossed. "The second – the power this device offers is like a single drop of water, compared to the ocean that battery would have allowed me to store."

"Why can't you make your own?"

"I have neither the knowledge nor the skill to craft a battery with this planet's resources."

"I could find something for you to study as a reference," she replied, voice still shaking. "I used to be...a teacher of magic. I would start my students in Illusionary Arts by having them construct a small illusion, perhaps a little songbird, to study before moving on to more grand projects."

"A sound philosophy. Unfortunately, batteries lose power, and are therefore inferior to the Black Garnet itself." Hordak clasped his hands behind his back. "Similar to how sorcerers become strained, I presume?"

"Not necessarily," Shadow Weaver replied. "Sorcerers become strained when they try to work too hard against the Pull – surely you have felt it."

"Hm," Hordak replied. "Perhaps that is the force at work here..." he shook his head.

"My lord, might I ask a question?"

Hordak gave her a pointed look – he didn't want her to ask too many, but the engineer in him was fascinated by someone similar to him in intellect. "Proceed."

"If batteries run out of power," she said, "why did you order me to steal that one?"

"It was the best one the Drylians possessed, per our intelligence," Hordak replied. "I had deigned to connect it to the Black Garnet, and run experiments that way."

"My...my lord?"

"Did I stutter?"

Shadow Weaver breathed in sharply. "If you had gone through with that...it would have killed me."

"Explain," he said, drawing a diagram at his desk – though he remained standing.

"I..." Shadow Weaver's voice was small. "If you had connected something else to the Black Garnet, it would have electrocuted me."

"Which is why," he replied, "you will be the wire."

"But my lord–!"

"Silence," he commanded. "Your doctors relayed to me that you can heal to an unnatural degree with the Black Garnet's power. You will touch the runestone with one hand and my apparatus with the other. You will hurt, but you will heal."

"And if I don't wake up?" she asked, her voice sounding panicked. "My lord, you of all people must know that –"

He growled. "You will comply. Or you will schedule for yourself the next trip to Beast Island. Do you understand?"

"I –"

"Do you understand?" he snapped. "Or do I need to make myself understood?"

Shadow Weaver gazed up at him, trembling. A part of Hordak reveled in her fear; the other part was grieved to lose the moment between scholars. Finally, she spoke. "No, Lord Hordak," she said softly. "I understand."

"Good," Hordak replied. "Now, I have another task. One we will accomplish together." He pointed to the equipment. "Assist me in transporting it to the Black Garnet chamber."

Shadow Weaver looked at him with a distinct, betrayed gaze. Hordak was not here to serve her; he was here to serve Prime. And the atheistic Etherian would one day face judgment at His hand.

Best to hasten the process, Hordak thought as she pressed her hands to the equipment and teleported away.

✧✧✧

Micah returned to Fort Ammeer that evening with the Ancient Princess, and the first thing he did was grab Nell in a hug. "You're alive!" he cried excitedly. "I'm so proud, Nell."

The older man returned his embrace lightly, then gave him a soft smile. "It was nothing, truly. We have treated the electrocution victims who survived – several are awake now."

Micah nodded. "Talyn's taking a mirror back to Dryl with the source. It seems we're going to be holding this fort for a good while."

"Which gives us an entrypoint to attack the Horde, I reckon."

"Possibly," Micah shrugged. "It's going to be difficult to transport troops, but we'll manage."

Nell lowered his eyes. "Micah...I saved the mission."

"You did?"

He blushed a bit, but it barely showed up on his tawny skin. "Yes. I put a protection spell around Princess Talyn while she hacked the computer. It was...a feat."

"How did you manage it?" Micah asked sheepishly. "What with your..." the word episodes hung between them, but he sensed that Nell didn't want to talk about it.

Nell gazed away, sure enough. "Her Majesty of Salineas," he said. "She told me that there are those who fight, so justice can prevail...and there are those who protect, so others can heal."

Micah grinned. "Nell...you are a good protector."

"It was spur-of-the-moment," Nell replied quickly, tucking a brown curl behind his pointed ear. "I don't know if I can do it again."

"And that's okay," Micah said. "You're still part of the Rebellion. Even if you don't fight. Even if you can't fight."

To his surprise, Nell stepped forward and gripped his shoulder in a kind gesture. Though he wore no smile, his crystal-blue eyes sparkled. "Thank you, Micah. That means more to me than you will ever know."

Micah nodded. "Anytime, friend. Now, could I get up to the control center? I need to make sure we have enough food for the week."

✧✧✧

Shadow Weaver couldn't breathe.

She was trapped underwater, her tears mixing with the red water. Red like the blood of her wounds. Red like the eyes of the Spell. Her lower stomach constricted, sharp knives stabbing deeper...deeper...

I'm going to faint. Please...please let me faint...

The palms of Shadow Weaver's hands were uncovered, and every time a shock barreled through her, they were scorched. Metal melted onto her flesh. Moons, she could smell it. Smell it!

But Shadow Weaver healed. She healed, so she could keep suffering. Her mouth was dry...so dry...

Hordak fiddled with something. A huge shock surrounded her, red lightning popping off her clothes. Shadow Weaver screamed. Thrashed. Tears poured down her cheeks, and she sobbed as the burns kept healing and her mind searched for a way out. Any way out!

Hordak bent down and untied her hands. Shadow Weaver lay on the floor, longing to rest in the bliss of unconsciousness...or death...

He would do this again, she knew – Hordak didn't care about her. Shadow Weaver had knives in her bedroom. She could die, and she would not be subject to this pain anymore. And she would leave the secrets of the Black Garnet in her grave.

But Adora's face remained in her mind. She still had...one more chance...to prove she was worthy...

Tears poured down Shadow Weaver's cheeks behind her mask. She found the words to speak. "Illuras," she croaked. Was Hordak still here? She couldn't see anything...

His voice came from far away. She must be half-deaf by now. "I will...attack Illuras..." she groaned. "I...swear...on my life..."

"I still require your assistance," Hordak growled.

"I...know..." She lingered on the cusp of unconsciousness. Take me, she begged. But it refused to come. "I...will...do it..."

"When?"

"I will...find...a way..."

Hordak growled a sigh. "If you fail," he said, "you will not die. You are of too much use to me. But you will endure such pain as has never been experienced by any followers of my master, nor will it be inflicted again."

"It cannot...be worse than this..." Shadow Weaver replied. Her tongue was a blunt slab in her mouth. "Just...let me...be better..."

A long silence. "Hmph. I will relegate our meetings to once per week. Between then, you will plan. And you will not fail me again."

Shadow Weaver couldn't reply. Another...chance...

Another...way...

As Hordak's boots clanked out of the room, she gave a soft moan and lapsed into sleep.

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Did you know...

- This chapter shares a title with the song "Hand of Sorrow" by Within Temptation. It's a song about the ethics of war, specifically being drafted into a war you didn't want a part in. The album itself has a lot of World War II-inspired tracks.

- This subplot was added relatively late into Part 2, but I think it gives a good motive for Shadow Weaver's later downward spiral and also explains why Hordak didn't depose her immediately.

Tell me what you think...

- Will Shadow Weaver succeed in taking Illuras? Why or why not?