My patient and faithful readers:
Welcome to the start of a new episode in my Season Six. 😃
This episode will be pivotal, I promise you!
Answers will begin to be revealed.
Tears will be shed.
The threat factor will rise.
And more questions will be raised.
You may look forward to touching moments and moments of mirth.
And shippers will rejoice, as well! 😊
But first, the recap:
Episode 53: On The Plain of Heroes (in 5 parts)
In the aftermath of battle, Etheria is at peace, and many journeys begin.
Episode 54: Just Friends Ship (in 5 parts)
The New Best Friends Squad return to Bright Moon, where Catra is ill at ease, and Mermista and Sea Hawk struggle with peril at sea!
Episode 55: Sleeping Arrangements (in 8 parts)
Mermista and Sea Hawk must work together to survive, while Melog helps Catra to fight her demons. And as Bow helps Glimmer prepare for Micah's return, Castaspella gives Micah a precious gift to ease the difficulties with going home after so long. Catra and Adora find solace in each other, beginning a new adventure with Swift Wind.
Episode 57: Missing Peace (in 6 parts)
Glimmer seeks answers to a menacing threat, causing friction among friends.
Scorpia, Perfuma, and Frosta make their way to the Fright Zone, hoping that Scorpia can reclaim her homeland, but the line there between friend and enemy can be very thin.
Entrapta determines to bring Wink to see an old friend.
Episode 58: Peace Zone (in 4 parts)
Entrapta and Wink find danger at Beast Island.
Scorpia makes peace between princesses and former soldiers of the Horde.
Adora and Catra accompany Micah to Mystacor, which has suddenly disappeared!
Episode 59: Good Will Tour (in basically 6 parts)
Entrapta and Wink avert a pooka attack in the name of science!
Catra, Adora, and Micah fulfill their mission to find Mystacor.
Sea Hawk helps Mermista to gather the lost citizens of Salineas.
And Frosta and Perfuma leave Scorpia's new kingdom to spread word of the Peace Zone.
I dedicate this chapter to Owen @S29q9fkn who truly deserves to have more Entrapta in their life!
So, I hope you will enjoy this! 😁
Thank you to everyone who reads this, and many ❤️'s!
EPISODE 60: Cry For Etheria
In the deepest heart of the iridescent night forest on Beast Island, there is an ancient citadel of glowing stone, smooth as glass, but with a surface cloudy as smoke. It towers over the land, and the impossibly tall trees arch over it to an even greater height where their branches intertwine, as if to shroud it from the world: a place of secrets too dark and terrible to be revealed.
Through ages of time, it shrieked an eerie, tortured cry.
But now, it remains silent, or nearly so.
For, just beneath the veil of quiet, there is a troubling susurration.
It whispers.
Lucinda, the great robotic vehicular companion of Princess Entrapta, crashes heavily onto the scene and skids to a halt. She and her occupants remain ignorant of the air of menace and the weight of time that has infused the area where the citadel stands.
The hatch at the top of the great machine creature flips upward, revealing a beaming Entrapta and a wide-eyed Wink, as well as a tumble of pookas sitting happily on Wink’s lap and adorning his shoulders.
Entrapta: [triumphantly] Nice going, Lucinda! We’re here!
In a joyous bit of acrobatics, Entrapta uses her ponytails to launch herself in a forward flip through the air to land neatly on the ground below. Lucinda, squats down on her haunches to make it easier for Wink to step over the side of the cockpit and land beside Entrapta. He sways momentarily, but Entrapta quickly reaches over the nearest tip of her hair to touch him lightly on the top of the head to steady him. As he straightens up, the three pooka creatures he is cradling in his arms sit up tall, looking around the area in playful curiosity. A fourth pooka suddenly peers over the top of his head, panting excitedly.
Entrapta turns toward Wink and gestures around them.
Entrapta: [reverently] This place is the nerve center for Beast Island! A vast repository of information cataloguing every discovery the First Ones made on Etheria and every project they undertook, including every mistake they made!!
Wink practically shivers in anticipation.
Wink: Oh, that’s wonderful!
Entrapta: Aaaand . . .!
Pulling out her data pad with her hair, she stares down into its green glow, and her fingers fly over the surface.
Entrapta: It emanates a mysterious signal! [frowning at the screen] Errr, ohhh, it’s gone.
Wink, in concert with his troop of pookas, peeks curiously down over Entrapta’s shoulder at the pad. Entrapta touches a few more controls and then perks up at what she sees.
Entrapta: No! It’s changed.
A staticky whispering sound suddenly fills the air around the data pad. There is the suggestion of voices, but they remain indistinct.
Entrapta: Hmmmm.
She raises a small antenna up in the air with her hair. The sounds become louder and slightly higher pitched. Still confused and unclear.
Entrapta: [with conviction] We’ll have to go inside to get a clearer reception.
Entrapta begins scrabbling around within a wall of pink viney fern-like growths on the building before them, shoving first her head and shoulders, then the entire upper half of her body into the mass. Using her hands and her hair together, she creates a tremendous rustling of vines as she digs for something hidden behind the foliage.
Entrapta: [somewhat muffled] There’s an opening here . . . somewhere.
As she scrambles around, her feet lift off the ground.
Entrapta: [impressed] The density of the growth has definitely increased. And . . . Oh, owww! [with happy curiosity] Wow! The spines have become pointy with maturity!
Wink steps closer in response to her struggles, frowning. Only Entrapta’s legs, waving in the air, are visible poking out of the vines. Suddenly, they flip entirely over, the toes of her boots pointing to the sky! Wink reaches out his hands in a vague effort to help.
Entrapta: [triumphantly] Haha!!
Her head and shoulders pop explosively out of the growth and they face each other nose to nose. Wink’s face flushes a pale rosy color, and Entrapta beams.
Entrapta: Here it is! Come on!
Wink steps back, as Entrapta hops out of the vines. Her hair remains, moving the pink growths to one side to reveal a long triangular hallway. She picks up the data pad in one hand, staring down at the readings. With her other hand, she holds the antenna, and, without looking up, gently uses it to prod Wink to enter.
In wonder, Wink makes his way down the hallway, toward a vast open chamber, vaulted into the heights beyond the reach of their vision. At the center, there is a huge, glowing pyramidal obelisk. Wink gasps. Even the pookas clinging to him look alert and impressed.
Wink: [spontaneously, glowing] Ohhhh, such a magnificent structure is surely worthy of Horde Prime’s regard!
Wink stiffens, surprised at his own outburst. He frowns in disgust.
Wink: [in a hard voice] But Prime is not worthy . . . of anything.
He turns toward Entrapta, a look of contrition on his face.
Wink: I am sorry, Entrapta.
Entrapta looks up from her data pad at him smiling.
Entrapta: [in surprise] You are? [grinning] I’m glad you like it! Isn’t it great? It’s my sanctum!
She lifts up the antenna and scampers toward the controls at the obelisk.
Entrapta: And listen! You can hear the signal now.
Echoing amongst the enormous towering walls and bouncing from the hidden alcoves, there is a loud whispering, forming words.
Whispers: [fizzing in and out] sssssss---connections---sss---Light---ssssss---systems---sssssss---mechanisms activated---ssss---exterior---ssssssss---antcipate---sssssssssss . . .
Entrapta lays down the tracker pad, and her fingers begin to play over the controls. The antenna continues to bob up and down with her hair, as she fine-tunes. Wink approaches, fascinated.
Entrapta: [happily] Well, that’s a start! But we can do much better.
As she works at the controls, screens appear in the air with various views of the island and its bizarre monstrous wildlife. The pookas begin to chirp and hoot softly, obviously intrigued by the images.
Entrapta: [to Wink, as she works] One of the most interesting things that I discovered here is about the bio-technologic network created by the First Ones. It’s an automatic process that continues even now, by which every creature on the island becomes incorporated into the system, feeding it with information and tapping into its programs. It actually combines with and becomes part of the biology, without any apparent harm to the subject. Here, I’ll show you!
Stretching out a hair strand, she grabs a pooka from Wink’s shoulders and sets it down on the surface of the control panel. That portion of the panel begins to glow gold, at which the pooka straightens up with a gentle shock of connection. A fine network of golden veins, like circuitry, blooms in a similar glow, apparently from just beneath the surface of its skin.
Entrapta: See?!!
Wink: [eyes wide, impressed] Whoaaaah!
At this moment, the pooka’s jaws drop open, and its voice is the whisper of the signal, amplified and more clear!
Entrapta: Oooooo! It’s using the pooka as an alternate transmitter for the signal! That is so clever! Let’s try another one!
With mounting excitement, she snatches one of the pookas from the cradle of Wink’s arms and plops it beside its sibling. It responds instantly, with a similar reaction of hyper-alertness, it’s inner circuitry glowing brightly. Entrapta, seeing a response on her terminal, turns her attention to the controls in front of her. After a moment, the second pooka opens its mouth, and the whispered message is almost fully intelligible!
Entrapta: [enthusiastically] Almost there! Just one more should do it, Wink!!
Wink picks up one of the two remaining pookas in his arms and gently sets it down on the panel. The remaining pooka peers up at Wink with its single enormous pink eye, and then happily leaps onto the panel with the others.
Wink: [pleased and surprised] Oh!
Both of the newcomers straighten up, huddling close to one another affectionately, as their bodies glow with the energy of the subdermal circuitry. Their mouths open up, and a chorus of whispers emerges, rising and resolving into a clearly spoken message, no longer a whisper, but a strong female voice.
Entrapta: [ebullient] Hahaha!! We’ve got it, Wink!
Her hair drops the antenna with a clatter, then grabs Wink around the waist and pulls him in close, as they hover in expectation over the murmuring pookas.
Message: [urgently] Warning. Warning. Control systems are now offline. Connections with Light Hope control are non-functional. Multiple systems errors detected. Emergency energy release mechanisms activated . . . . . . . . . .
