#Glitch Techs Haneesh | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

nautiscarader · 1 month

Text

Chess mates

A Glitch techs story, G, (Ao3)

it is not shipping fic,but it has elements of Zahra/HF which was supposed to become canon.

Also, there are some notes under "read more". Be afraid.

------------------

In a dimly lit room, illuminated only by eerie blinking lights of seven-segment displays of old computers, a man walked in. He looked at the floor as if he could see the infra-red security grid, protecting it from intruders like him. He then took an asymmetrical USB key and inserted it into the panel on the wall… on his first try.

Without fear, he stepped safely and walked unnoticed across the room, until he faced an ominous, black computer tower, bigger than him, and gently touched its side. The machine hasn't been turned on in over a quarter of a century…

"Soon you and I will play again…", he spoke and unlocked the wheel brakes under its pedestal, allowing him to drag the priceless artefact effortlessly. He walked past the knocked out guards, and a few minutes later… he was gone.

xxxx

Miko Kubota stared with growing aggravation at the plixelated figures on her side of the black-and-white board.

"So… I'd like to upgrade my horse into a pegasus."

Zahra giggled.

"It doesn't work like that. Besides, it's a knight."

Miko took the generated figure in her fingers and examined it.

"No, it's a horse. Unless…", she said excitedly, "The horse IS a knight! Wait, is there a horse armor DLC?"

Zahra gave her a polite, but contemptuous smile, looking at how few pieces she had left compared to ones on her side.

"Look, Miko, there is no sense in forcing yourself to liking a game, especially one like chess. But that is the beauty of gaming. I am rubbish at that tower defence game you play. We all have our tastes."

Miko slumped into her chair, finally defeated, while Zahra cleared the board with one swipe of her arm.

"You're right. I guess… You play it all the time, so I wanted to give it a try. Plus, High-Five said one day how he started with some old PC chess game when he was 5 or something…"

Zahra's eyes lightened up.

"Hector? Does-does he play it too?"

"Yeah. Why do you ask?"

"Oh, n-nothing."

But she took a second too long, and a wide, mischievous grin appeared on Miko's face.

"Hey, High Five! Get your butt over here!"

Zahra did one desperate attempt at stopping her, but it was too late. The boy in question turned around and walked from the counter where he's been doing retagging.

"What? I'm busy"

"Oh no, you're not. I'll take it from here, while you and Zahra can have a relaxing game of chess.", she jumped from her seat, practically shoving Hector down, and grabbed the tag printer from his hand.

"Oh? So you like chess too?", he turned and leaned towards Zahra, but quickly shifted back at Miko.

"Wait, and you'd WILLINGLY offer to do this mind-numbing job instead?", he raised his eyebrows.

"Beats your nerdy chess with million rules.", she turned around, blowing a raspberry that once she looked away turned into a triumphant grin. A moment later she took a peek and saw how the two were leaning towards each other.

But her satisfaction was short-lived, when Haneesh jumped in, quite literally shoving his face between those of Zahra and Hector.

"Speaking of chess, have you guys heard? Someone broke into some tech museum and stole some famous old chess machine." he said, missing the icy daggers Miko was throwing at him.

"Wait, old chess machine? You don't mean-", Hector spoke, while Haneesh displayed the article in the air, above the plixelated chessboard, as the rest of Glitch Techs gathered around.

"BlueThought stolen - bizarre theft at The Museum of Really Old Technology.", read the title.

"No!", Hector shouted, rising from his seat. But a quick glance at the nonplus faces of his colleagues tempered his reaction.

"Wait, has-has none of you heard of BlueThought?"

"High Five, it's clear you know and care a great deal about it, so why don't you enlighten us?", Zahra proposed.

"Yeah, go on", a new voice chimed in when Phil chimed in, sipping his morning coffee.

"Well, okay then…"

Hector sat back, cleared his throat and looked at his friends that now paid attention to his every word.

"It all happened a long time ago, in the distant year of… 1996…", he made a long pause as if he was telling a spooky campfire story.

"Oh, give me a break", Phil interrupted, "Don't make it sound so dramatic, it was only…", but he paused when his calculations expected slight buffer overflow.

"…Okay, never-mind, carry on"

Hector turned back and continued.

"Well, as I've said, it was the mid-90s, and they have built this supercomputer to play chess."

"Was it the first one?"

"No, far from it, there have been dozens before. But this one was the best. It kept defeating other chess machines, then regular chess players, then masters, then grandmasters, then arch-grandmasters…! Until there was only one opponent left… The Undisputed Super-Duper Arch Great Grandmaster…"

Hector took a deep breath.

"…Gambi Krasnysledin."

Predictably, the sound of his name brought very little reaction, aside from a guffaw from Mitch.

"Gambi? What sort of name is that?"

"Hey, don't make fun of other people's names", Zahra barked back immediately.

"Yeah, Williams, don't be such a Mitch."

The group laughed at Miko's quick jab that has successfully shut Mitch up.

"And hey, he was from Soviet Russia…"

"Azerbaijan, actually", Phil quickly corrected Hector.

"So what happened then?"

"Well, the match was on. Six games, Gambi won some, lost some… But then, in the final one, BlueThought made a move so unexpected it baffled everyone."

"What? What did it do?"

"Oh, I know!", Miko suddenly interrupted, "I bet it grew arms and legs and cannons and started blasting!"

"Wha-No! It was just a move, a chess move", and he took a piece and slid it across the board, much to Miko's disappointment.

"But it was a typically human move… A sacrifice one. It felt as if it knew Gambi's next one."

"And?", the Techies asked.

"Gambi was furious! He lost the final game and the entire match. The worst thing is, he never got over it. He accused the Blue Team of cheating, of hiding someone inside the machine! Can you imagine it?"

Suddenly, Zahra chuckled.

"Actually, I can. Have you guys heard about The Turk?" she raised her eyebrows, asking the crowd, but eyeing Hector.

"No", he replied, his curiosity piqued.

"Well", Zahra started explaining, pulling some images onto the shared screen to replace the article. They depicted a human-looking mechanical robot, wearing a turban, colorful robes and sporting impressive moustache.

"That is The Turk, a machine from 18th century that could play chess and allegedly defeated Napoleon".

"Woah, woah, woah!", Miko interrupted. "I can imagine a chess computer from the dark ages - er, no offense, Phil"

"Yes, offense, Miko", he sharply replied without missing a beat.

"…but how could it work without electricity?!"

Zahra chuckled.

"With lots of gears, linkages…and cheating! Cos there really was a grandmaster hidden inside the desk, doing all the thinking, and actually moving the arm."

"It's a bit like that saying - 'A computer is only as smart as the one, who programmed it…'", Hector started.

"…'and as stupid as its user'", Zahra finished.

"Yeah…"

And the two once more leaned forward towards each other, forgetting about the small crowd around them.

"Well that is all fascinating", Mitch barged in, sarcasm dripping from his voice, "But why would I care about some old computer, designed to play only one game, when I have this!"

And he pulled from his pocket an USB stick shaped like a fish.

"Hinobi FishStick AI. Prototype, naturally, but I got it first!", he spoke triumphantly.

"You know we should've gotten it", Zahra pointed to herself and her teammates.

"But I got it! This baby can probably learn chess in seconds… If I ever cared about such boring game."

"Well, one reason you should, would be because it is also part of our history", Phil quickly explained, "Hinobi provided some extra chipsets for it."

"Wait, we've made it?"

"Oh no, we were small fish back then."

"So who has built it?"

"A team at BIM", Hector was quick to answer.

"Wait, BIM? Boring Internal Machines? Weren't they making printers and stuff?"

"Yeah, but I guess they wanted a piece of that gaming cake.", High Five pulled out his phone. " There was a whole team of experts… er, doctor Bell, professor Shu, doctor Murray…", he kept reading."That's what made BIM so big, their stock prices sky-rocketed after the match! I didn't even know these names, everyone remembers the name BlueThought… And, well, good thing they went with this one.", Hector suddenly shied away.

The rest of the Glitch Techs exchanged curious looks.

"Wait, what was the original name then?"

"Err…", Hector scratched his head, "Well, the computer was made with only one job in mind, right…", he slowly explained, his face getting progressively redder.

"And BIM's color was blue… So their first name choice was…"

Hector swallowed loudly.

"…BlueJob"

Like a spark tossed onto a pile of gunpowder, it took only a split of a second for the teenagers to burst into uncontrollable, asinine laughter. While the boys held no restrictions, Miko raised her hands saying "Nope, nope, nope dot MP4", and Zahra simply covered her mouth with her hijab, hiding a soft giggle.

"Alright, y'all, this was a hilarious history lesson, but we open in FIVE MINUTES!", Phil's voice boomed across the room, prompting the teenagers to get to their positions at the counters.

xxxx

The discussion about BlueThought returned unexpectedly during their lunch break, as Miko was determined to finish her mission.

"So… Have you and Zahra talked some more?", she asked in a would-be innocent voice.

"Huh? Oh yeah, she had this annoying client, who asked why his terabyte hard drive shows up as "931 GBs" and why did we steal the rest. Now you try to explain to an angry man difference between gigabytes and gibibytes, and that you haven't made those up."

It took about a minute for Miko to blink her way back to reality, as she processed High Five's reply.

"Dude, you have made those up. Secondly, do I need to put a giant quest-marker over her head?!"

"What do you mean?"

Miko groaned. But she quickly regained her composure when Zahra herself joined them.

"Hey, have you read the rest of that article?"

"No…", Hector shook his head, pulled his phone out, and started skimming.

"…'the whereabouts of the perpetrator remain unknown. Police reassured us that the safety of the other half of BlueThought remains'- Wait, what?"

Hector stared at the screen in disbelief.

"The other half?!"

"Yeah! That's why I brought it up."

"What, did they saw it in half?", Miko performed a motion as if she wielded chainsaw.

"Most likely it simply had so many boards it needed two towers", Zahra explained.

"Ah, you're no fun", Miko groaned.

"Listen to this", Hector interrupted, "'After the 1996 match with Krasnysledin, the machine has been separated into two parts, never to be reunited again…'"

"…Cos that doesn't sound ominous", Miko commented.

"But why would they do that?", Hector asked.

"Maybe because otherwise it would be too powerful and it would destroy the world!", Miko laughed maniacally.

"Miko-", Hector started, but was interrupted by Zahra.

"Actually… Think about it: BlueThought acted strangely, Gambi thought someone was inside… But he didn't know WE provided chips…. What if…"

"…it wasn't someONE…"

"…but someTHING! What if it was…"

"A GLITCH!", they all exclaimed.

"And what if it only activated with both halves?"

"Like some ancient artefact…"

"Wait, where is that other half stored?"

"It's…in another museum… An hour away from us."

The three Glitch Techs stared at each other.

"Are you guys thinking what I'm thinking?"

"I think so, Hector, but I don't know if we can use that joke.", Miko quickly replied, scratching her chin.

"What?", Hector asked, once more befuddled by her reply.

"What? I thought we could drive there, guns blazing and catch the thief red-handed."

"No!", Zahra protested, "We should drive there… And offer some protection. Our tech can do wonders compared to ordinary security measures."

"Okay, so it's settled, right? We drive tonight, after we close.", Hector stated.

"And we just offer them help", Zahra looked at Miko, already browsing guns on her gauntlet.

Miko groaned, but when Zahra turned her back, Miko selected one particular gun…

xxxx

Like they've discussed, the three Glitch Techs met after the store closed, quickly getting into the van. Miko swiftly jumped to the back, offering Zahra seat next to Hector, a sly grin drawn on her face.

And as they drove, their conversation quickly moved to the theft.

"I do wonder who could have done this.", Hector spoke out loud.

"Isn't it obvious?", Miko answered, "Gambi…Whatshisname! Didn't you say he was still salty after all these years?"

"Yeah, but that's hardly a motive."

"Except", Zahra suddenly spoke, reading from her phone "Check this out: 'For years Krasnysledin has been unsuccessful in launching his own chess simulator software, unable to compete with growing market of AI-based ones.'"

"Huh.", Hector grunted, "I guess he could be the culprit…"

Soon, the long road became bendy, as the three approached the museum, located on a small hill. They quickly got out, ready to follow Zahra's plan.

"Okay, guys, remember, we're coming just to offer them protect-"

But Zahra froze when she saw two men lying on the ground, now clearly visible in the beam lights of their van that shone upon them.

She rushed towards them, reaching her hand to check their pulse.

"They're alive. Sir? Sir? Can you-"

But in response, the guard let out a loud snore.

"Sleeping gas", Miko kicked the odd circular object on the ground, "Favoured by Russian spies…"

"Azerbaijani, actually", Hector corrected her.

"Alright guys, suit up", Zahra commanded, and with one push of a button on her gauntlet, she became clad in futuristic suit of armor.

Miko followed her, spawning her own combat suit. Hector, on the other hand…

"What? It's magical protection!", he countered the accusatory looks when he became clad in fancy wizard robes, wielding a staff instead of a conventional weapon.

"Well, maybe we will be able to surprise Gambi with a fireball…", Zahra shrugged. "Let's go."

The automatic door opened, showing an empty entrance hall, and two more knocked out guards.

"Be cautious, guys…", Zahra whispered, sliding a night vision overlay over her eyes.

Miko and High Five stuck close together, securing each other's rears, as the three moved forward. Zahra quickly browsed through an interactive map for visitors to find where the BlueThought was located - though the sleeping guards were an easy indicator where should they go.

"Fourth floor", she whispered.

The Glitch Techs rushed up the stairs, only slowing down when they reached the landing and saw the vast hall full of old computers.

And at the very end of the hall… A giant, black tower of BlueThought's second half was clearly visible, even in the dimly lit light.

"Have-have we beaten him?", Hector scratched his head.

"Nope", Zahra replied, pointing to another snoring guard, "Unless…"

She walked towards the blinking panel on the wall and examined it.

"The security is still on.", she stated after quickly scanning it with her gauntlet.

"Great! then we can one-up it with this baby!", Miko suddenly pushed Zahra aside, pulling a familiar, fish-shaped object from her gauntlet's pocket storage, ready to insert it into the USB port.

Zahra had to take a step back, finding it difficult to gather words.

"Miko! Where-how?", Zahra stuttered, as she looked in disbelief at the FishStickAI in her friend's hand.

"You've said it yourself you guys deserved it more!"

"Did you steal it from Mitch?!"

"Yes, but it's not like I went unscathed. I had to place a portal on his backpocket so I had to stare at his butt to aim. Frankly, you should be comforting me.", Miko answered quickly, proudly showing her portal pistol.

"But you've brought the exact thing that Gambi is aft-"

Zahra's words were cut off when suddenly a whip, made of tied computer cables, shot between the two, coiled around the FishStick and snatched it from Miko' hand.

The Glitch Techs watched in awe as the FishStick was snapped and landed in the hands of a shadowy figure that suddenly appeared next to BlueThought.

Next moment, lights were turned on, revealing the face of the thief.

But it wasn't Gambi Krasnysledin.

It was…

"Er, who the heck are you?", Miko asked.

The corpulent man chuckled and corrected his glasses.

"No one remembers my name… But everyone does BlueThought's…", he spoke, fiddling with the FishStick.

Something about the way the man phrased his response stirred a part of Hector's brain, reminding him of what he's said a few hours ago.

"Wait! You are-hang on….", he pulled the article he read onto his gauntlet, "You've worked for BIM! You are…er… Doctor…"

"Professor Shu", he finished.

"Wait, hang on", Zahra interrupted, "You-you guys have won. Haven't you made millions on this match?"

"Oh, we have", he answered calmly, still toying with the stick, "But if BIM had not interfered, I would be making billions. And now, when I power this old machine with your toy, I will."

Only now Hector and the rest noticed that he was standing between both halves of BlueThought, having evidently brought the first stolen tower with him.

"Ha! Good luck with that, this thing is cutting edge tech, you'd need a hundred adapters to make it wor-"

But Hector couldn't even finish his sentence as Shu plugged the FishStick into BlueThought, enveloping it in familiar, blue aura.

"I've built this. I HAVE a hundred adapters.", Shu smugly said, showing his vest full of pockets filled with electrical parts and tools.

"Guys, he's doing the villain speech, shoot him!", Miko cried, already pointing her gauntlet at him.

At the same time, all three aimed and shot some form of immobilising projectiles - with Hector casting a paralysing spell.

But Shu didn't even flinch, as a blue plixelated barrier shielded him and the two halves of BlueThought from Techies.

"Hm, it does learn quickly. And it can predict moves…"

"And that's what you want, right? To sell the smartest chess program out there!", Hector shouted.

"Chess?", Shu did a double-take, "Oh, no, I want to make printers."

Silence fell in the room, as the three Glitch Techs exchanged confused looks.

"P-Printers?"

"Wait, whaaaa…?", Miko was left with her mouth wide-opened.

"Yeah, I don't follow either.", Hector admitted.

Shu chuckled.

"I've been working at BIM on revolutionary new product… A chipset that would make printers smart."

He saw the still befuddled looks on his audience.

"Don't you hate it?!", he suddenly burst with anger, "'Paper jam' error when the paper is fine, 'No cyan' when there's plenty of it… My chip would have fixed all of these stupid problems…"

"You know, guys, as far as villain speeches go, I'm with him", Miko admitted.

He sighed.

"But I needed help… I've heard about your chips with some extra 'Oomph'… And it worked! But then BIM barged in and told me to turn it into a stupid chess machine… They took my life's work… But now-"

"Oh, wait! I know what's going to happen.", Hector interrupted and spread his arms, pointing to the floor.

"I mean, look around! We are in a room dedicated to computer chess! Even the floor is a chessboard. So, we play a game and we take places of three pieces, and-"

His excitement was cut shortly by Miko putting her hand on his shoulder and shaking her head.

"Oh, High Five… Seriously, you're referencing those movies? First of all, this bit has already been done in a waaay better cartoon…"

"Books, they were books firs-Wait, what do you mean by 'cartoon'?"

"Secondly, have you read what this woman has been posting on-line?", Zahra approached him from the other side.

"She is persona very much non grata…",she said performing a slicing motion around her neck.

"And thirdly", Shu's voice suddenly brought the three's attention back to him.

"I do not want to play chess…" Professor Shu was now sitting on a small seat between the two towers… Which slowly began to slide towards each other.

At first, it looked like Shu was going to be crushed, but the side panels moved aside and the boards inside each half started folding itself to accommodate for Shu's figure.

Before they could do anything, the two halves closed like an enormous, obsidian sarcophagus, engulfing Shu inside.

"…I want you to die", Shu finished.

The blue energy shield enveloped Shu in his machine, but it was what happened later that flabbergasted the Techs.

BlueThought rose into the air, growing plixelated legs from its joined pedestals, while each side sported arms ending with cannons aimed at the three teenagers.

"Guys, duck!", Hector shouted just as the robot's armed became encased in even brighter aura, charging their shots.

An explosion shook the building when the projectiles hit the place Zahra, Miko and High Five stood just a second ago. Hidden behind a wall, the three only had a moment to formulate a plan, listening as the machine slowly approached them.

"It's invincible! The whole machinery!", Zahra stated.

"Game over, man, game over!", Miko yelled when another blast shot a column next to them.

"Machinery…", Hector suddenly scratched his chin, "Well, it's time to respec!"

He punched a few buttons on his gauntlet and changed from wizard into an elf-like ranger with ludicrously ornamented bow… and fake, pointy ears.

"What are you doing?!"

"The pedestals! They had some physical lock! We can split it in half again!"

"And can you make the shot?"

Hector chuckled.

"Guys, I killed hundreds of dragons as prophecised Skyborn…"

He stood up, took a deep breath, drew his bow and leapt from their safety spot to the now-broken column.

"…this is a cake-walk."

He released the arrow mid-jump and a second later, he heard a satisfying metallic "cling" when the lock underneath the unshielded two halves of BlueThought became undone.

And when when he gracefully landed behind the column, the Glitch Techs were blessed with the sight of their enemy stumbling in place, as it became split open.

They cheered, but their enthusiasm was thwarted by two noises: a sparkling of electricity… and Shu's scream.

The two halves of BlueThought, though immobile, became linked with what looked like a net of constant sparks of electricity… one in which professor Shu was trapped in, still in his seat, at least until he f`ell backwards.

"We've got to help him!", Zahra rushed in, now the robot had no one to control it.

"That was easy. Good quick-thinking and nice shot!", Miko playfully punched Hector in his arm.

"He's alive.", Zahra stated, having checked Shu's pulse, "I'm gonna call 911, and you-"

But she didn't have time to end verbalising her plan when she heard an ominous, metallic "clunk" behind her back. She quickly turned around only to watch as the almost-split robot becomes sentient and mobile again, once more aiming its cannons at them.

"Oh, shoot, phase two, guys!"

Another blast hit the floor next to the three, forcing them to rush to the nearest corner.

"AH!"

Second explosion, from much more precise shot above their heads, and only thanks to Zahra's shield they were saved from falling concrete.

"Run!"

The three had to save their lives, but as they approached the exit, one of the columns fell right in front of them.

"Guys, we need to stop it! Otherwise we're toast!"

"Well then, eat some portals!"

Miko shouted, pointing her portal pistol to make the robot stumble into a hole she'd create… and watched in awe as the BlueThought effortlessly evaded it, continuing to waddle towards them.

"Uh, got any more arrows?"

By the time Miko asked, Hector has already sent a dozen of them towards the robot and screamed when BlueThought grabbed a piece of concrete from the floor and used Miko's portalled surface to send the arrows towards him.

Only Zahra's plixelated shield allowed them to duck and hide behind another colossal computer that has been toppled to the ground, giving them another second to catch breath.

"It's the Fishstick! It really can learn fast!"

"We need to unplug it!"

"Okay, so how to defeat a robot with the smartest thing ever in its seat?", Hector asked, outshouting another explosion.

And as he said so, a faint smile appeared on Miko's face. She brought her gauntlet, and to her friends' surprise, she summoned Ally.

"Zahra, remember the Turk?", she suddenly asked.

"Miko, there's time and place-", she yelled, keeping her shield up, with blasts exploding all around them.

"Well… what happens, if instead of a chess master you put the biggest chess dummy in?"

Miko continued, and hopped onto Ally's back.

Next second, both Zahra and Hector cried "NO!", as they both realised Miko's plan. She jumped from behind the makeshift barricade and rushed towards BlueThought.

"Remember guys…", Miko spoke, as she swiftly dodged the projectiles. She and Ally jumped to left and avoided two more rays by speeding forward. But Miko knew her luck can only last so long.

"I'm not a knight…", she spoke, hugging her bird, before she jumped into the air, watching as her partner gets trapped in a net, knowing her pain will only last a while.

"I'm just a pawn.", she finished, landing in the chair between two halves of BlueThouhgt.

Zahra and High-Five both shouted "No!" as Miko was engulfed by the two moving halves, but it was too late to change her mind.

Miko screamed, as she landed in the chair, blue sparks of electricity shooting through her. Zahra and Hector listened to it in horror, not knowing what was worse - their friend's agony… or the total silence that fell when the two halves fully entombed her.

Miko felt the pain only for a second,and then… she saw only darkness.

But then, out of the void came a voice.

"Who are you? What are you doing here?"

It was neither male, nor female, and it reached Miko only from her left side.

"Me? Who are you?"

"Wait, are you number one?", a second disembodied voice spoke, this time from the right.

"Heck yeah I am!", Miko burst, "At kicking your butts-wait, where do you have butts?"

"She is…", the first voice spoke again, "You are loss, aren't you?"

"What? I'm not lost, I'm exactly where I want to be!"

"No, I meant-"

"I'm inside you, so I can destroy you from inside! You haven't thought of that, huh!"

"Wait!", the second voice tried to intervene, but it was too late.Miko cracked her knuckles, and suddenly, the insides of the machine woke up to life, becoming encased in blue light.

"So let's start a new game…", Miko spoke, and the chessboard appeared in front of her, Pawn to… V26 - the Whojiwhatsit's opening!!"

"That is not a legal move!", the voices roared.

But it was too late. One of the pawns immediately flew off-screen.

"Next thing… The towers aren't tall enough! I put one tower on top of the other one!"

"Stop!"

"The Bishops… ooh, let's add some controversy, turns out they are in love!"

"How do you even-"

"The knight is a spy! Pawns are on strike, demanding better payment from the queen! The queen abdicates!", Miko kept shouting, watching as figures glitched and demolished the chessboard, sending more sparks everywhere.

"Please, for the love of Shannon-"

"And finally", Miko cracked her knuckles, "I want to upgrade my horse into a pegasus!"

It was an utter chaos. The figures moved on their own, the board itself cracked, and soon, the entire machine started emitting dangerously sounding, whirring noises.

"Oh, nerds."

Miko uttered theses words just seconds before the blue, electric aura filled the insides and grew, until it erupted, splitting the two halves of BlueThought in powerful explosion.

"MIKO!", Zahra and Hector cried, seeing her body fall back, just like Shu's before, and only thanks to their quick reflexes she did not fall to the floor, but landed in their joined arms.

"I… I really hate chess", Miko muttered, before she passed out, being swallowed by darkness again.

When she opened her eyes, Miko was standing alone on a chessboard, stretching endlessly into all directions of the black void she found herself in.

"Zahra? High-Five?", she shouted into the nothingness that engulfed her. But after taking a few steps, she saw the walls of the enormous room she was in: green, covered in strange, golden patterns.

And then it hit her: those were computer boards, dotted with square microchips, connected by embedded wires. In fact, she has only now realised that squares she's been walking on were processors as well - an endless sea of them…

But a sudden movement in the corner of her eye caught her attention, and she started sprinting towards the left wall. A wall that now had a huge window, with someone moving behind.

"Hector? Zahra?", Miko repeated her plea, but quickly stopped. There was a boy behind, but he was enormous - or at least that's what Miko thought until she saw colorful patterns on the screen, which she understood she was staring at.

Realisation finally hit her again - she was inside an old arcade machine, and she was the size of an ant, looking at a regular-sized kid - a kid, who wasn't doing so well, judging by the words "Game over" that flashed on the screen.

"Dude, give me another quarter.", the boy addressed someone off-screen.

"Billy…you've been playing for hours.", a concerned voice of an older boy reached Miko. "Mom is gonna kill us'"

"Just one more, man! I've almost got it this time!"

The younger boy successfully bullied his brother into giving him money, and a moment later the screen was filled with primitive vector shapes that were meant to resemble spaceships.

But Miko was drawn to one of the microchips in front of her, one that inexplicably was glowing. As she approached it, Miko could read what was written on it: "ADDICTION".

But she was even more frightened when she realised that by walking towards this one, she has inadvertently stepped onto and activated others. The two that blinked under her feet read "HEADEACHES" and "NAUSEA". The results of her blunder could be heard immediately.

"Dude, I-I don't feel-"

The boy, clutching his head and stomach suddenly disappeared from view, but the retching sounds painted Miko quite a vivid picture of what happened there.

"Billy! Bill-oh god…"

"Oh nerds, oh nerds..", Miko muttered, crawling back, until she noticed what button she landed on, which made her sick.

"SEIZURES"

"Billy! Oh god, he's having-! Call 911!"

The furious face of an older boy appeared in front of the screen.

"It's that stupid game! It's all your fault!", he shouted staring directly at Miko.

"I'm sorry!", Miko started apologising, "That was an accident! I-I didn't mean to-"

But the boy did not hear her. Instead, the whole cabinet rumbled when he started punching the screen, cracks showing up with each hit.

Finally, he did it. His enormous fist broke through the glass, and went straight for Miko.

She started running away, but it was no use. The giant fist grabbed her and tossed her back into the black void.

She looked up, watching as the screen got smaller and smaller, until it disappeared completely.

She was falling, deep down the rabbit hole…

But when she finally landed, she thought her fall was quite a soft one.

In fact, she felt rather comfortable.

And then she heard voices again, but this time, very familiar.

"Miko? Miko! Finally, oh my goodness…"

As her eyes got used to the bright environment, Miko found her vision obscured by her parents engulfing her with a tight hug.

"Auch, auch, auch! Not enough disk space!"

"Oh, sorry, honey.", her mom quickly apologised, as the two gave her room to breathe.

She could then fully see the white hospital room she was in, though her eyes were quickly drawn to three other figures in the room.

Zahra, Hector, and to her surprise, Phil, stood at the back, all wearing smiles of deep relief.

"We came as soon we could", her dad explained, "When mister Phil told us about that printer accident."

Miko raised her brow in confusion.

"Printer accident…?"

But as soon as she said it, she noticed Zahra, Hector and Phil silently gesturing her to play along with various degree of subtlety.

"Oh, yes, printer accident! I guess that's what happens when they run out of cyan, magenta AND yellow at the same time. The darnedest things…".

"Listen, honey, we will be back in an hour."

"Meanwhile, here I grabbed something real quick: some spare clothes, some snacks, oh, your Snap, of course..", Miko's mom dropped an enormous bag in her laps, making her wonder what else does she want to bring…

"Th-thanks, guys…"

Phil grunted.

"Uh, mr. and mrs. Kubota…"

Miko's parents redirected their attention towards Phil.

"Thank you, mister Altiere. And thank you once again for helping our Miko."

"As I have said, you don't have to pay a thing. Hinobi is well prepared for compensating workplace accidents. They are very rare, but they do happen. But as I've said, I will take that burden away from you. "

Phil shook hands with Miko's parents, watching closely as they exited the room and disappeared into the elevator at the end of the corridor.

He then locked the door.

"…And by that, I mean I will mind-wipe any insurance agent, because I AM NOT PAYING A DIME FOR WHAT YOU THREE CLOWNS HAVE DONE!", he burst with rage, watching as Zahra, Miko and Hector flinch and cower under his rising voice.

"WHAT THE HINOBI HAVE YOU BEEN THINKING?", he continued his outburst, "That, what, you're gonna go to that museum, guns blazing and catch that Russian fella?"

"Azerbaijani, actually", Hector raised his hand.

"ZIP IT!", Phil turned his head so fast and shot Hector with glare so icy that the boy fell back.

"M-Mister Phil…", Zahra started, but Phil quickly barged in.

"Oh, don't think 'mistering' me will make things better."

Zahra swallowed loudly.

"Phil, we drove there to offer protection…"

"Oh, that worked like a charm!", he interrupted her, "1 on D20, critical failure: both parts of a priceless computer destroyed!"

"Destroyed?!", Zahra and Hector exclaimed in disbelief.

"Yeah, burnt to a crisp, nothing to collect. Good thing there was relatively little collateral damage to rest of the exhibit. At least by our standards."

"And what about Shu?"

"Locked in a private room above, a policeman guards him. A policeman I also had to mind-wipe…", Phil hid his face in his hands in shame, "Seriously, have you collectively lost your minds? Have you-"

But at the sound of that word, something stirred in Miko's mind, and she clutched her head, as a wave of migraine radiated through her forehead.

"Wait!", she spoke, gathering the attention of the others. "I-I remember something."

"Remember?", Phil raised his brow, "What do you mean?"

"Well, when I was inside the BlueThought, I heard… voices."

"Voices?", High-Five asked.

"BlueThought did not have voice synthesiser", Phil replied quickly, "Ironically, cos they were all the rage back then."

He stretched his arms and started moving like a robot.

"'SHAll-WE-PLAY-A-GAME?' and all that…", he finished, ending his routine. "But go on…"

"Well…", Miko shied away, somewhat stunned by Phil's quick rebuttal, "I-I'm not sure what was it, but I heard these two voices, and they asked me if I was 'number one' and if I was lost".

She took a deep breath.

"And-and then when I was thrown out I had a dream… more like a nightmare… I was inside an old arcade machine, and that machine was making a kid sick!"

Miko decided to omit the details, still painfully present in her memories.

"And I felt as if I was doing it… does that make any sense?"

She looked at Hector and Zahra, their faces painted with confusion and consternation, but they shook their heads.

But as she moved to Phil, she saw his eyes shift, giving the impression of him doing some quick thinking.

"It was a dream.", he stated, "You've said it yourself. And remember…"

Phil sat at the edge of her bed and gently took her hand.

"Electricity shot through your body, Miko. That would scramble anyone's mind. I am so glad you came out unharmed…", he spoke in much quieter and warmer voice, giving Miko a rare smile.

"Yeah…I guess I am lucky."

Phil stood up, causing the bed to bend back into its proper state.

"Okay, guys, I need to… still clean something up…", he touched his gauntlet, a faint grimace of disgust on his face, "Oh, and speaking of cleaning, you are ALL on floor cleaning duties FOR A MONTH."

He saw disappointment on Zahra's face, but to his surprise, Hector's brightened… though he quickly guessed why.

"And no, you will NOT be able to use your gauntlets to multiply and automatise the brooms, like in that old mouse-and-wizard cartoon…"

Hector's smile, predictably, faded.

"You know, that cartoon is from 1940", Zahra quickly added, "Computers weren't even a thing back then, and it perfectly portraits a glitch caused by badly closed logic loop."

"That's correct, miss Rashid", Phil turned towards her, granting her a polite smile.

But the pleasantries did not last for long.

"Oh, I am sorry, did you think being a smart-ass will get you out of the deal? Dream on. You are still on cleaning duties."

And with that, he turned around and burst out of the room, leaving the three Glitch Techs alone.

For quite a long while, neither of them spoke a word, leaving the room with almost perfectly sterile silence, finally broken by Zahra.

"Well… I guess we should count our blessings", she spoke softly, "We're not fired… nor in jail…".

"Yeah, now mopping the floor sounds good in comparison.", Miko countered.

Zahra and Hector's faces lightened up, hearing her joke. Next thing she knew, Miko was once again almost sapped of breath when the two put her into warm, tight hug, to which this time, she did not object.

"You have no idea how much we have worried…", Zahra spoke, tears forming in the corner of her eyes.

"But we are so glad you're back!", Hector finished, his voice also cracking slightly mid-sentence.

The three remained locked in the friendly hug, until Hector threw a proposition.

"Hey, since you have your Swap, do you wanna play some Flunkies?"

"Oh, heck yeah!", Miko and Zahra both exclaimed, and all three pulled out the portable consoles.

"I've heard a new DLC is out! They've added 50 new ones, and there are only 40 regional variants or completely messed up species!"

"So generous…"

And before they knew it, the three teenagers were engaged in fierce battles and trades, having put the stressful memories of the wild and life-threatening adventure well behind…

xxxx

Zahra clutched her head, watching in mix of awe and horror at the destroyed pieces on her side of the board.

"Okay… so, can I fire turrets from my tower?"

"Oh, good move!", Miko complimented her, watching as one of her pawns disintegrated, "But it's not going to help you, because…"

Miko cracked her knuckles.

"I have upgraded my horse into pegasus and it can fly across the board to your king!"

And as she said so, the horse-shaped figure grew wings and flew above Zahra's remaining pieces, knocking her king to its side.

"Check-mate.", she said smugly.

"Well… I'll give you that, this variant of chess is way more tricky than I thought."

"And that is just the tip of the iceberg", Ridley chimed in, speaking through the plixelated screen, "There are tons of mods for this game, just you wait until you see hyperbolic chess…"

"Yea, I'm fine, I will stick with regular chess…"

"Oh, speaking of regulars…"

Miko suddenly jumped from her seat and grabbed Hector that happened to be passing by.

"You two have a game to finish. And start, the more I think about it…".

And she left the two perplexed by her sudden behaviour. Miko fully expected either one of them to chicken out, so she was truly surprised when she heard Zahra's slightly quivering voice.

"Uhm, Hector, I-I've wanted to ask…. WILLYOUGOOUTWITHMESOMETIME?", she blurted, her knuckles getting white from clutching the table.

Hector blinked.

"Go out? Like, on a date?", he added, sheepishly.

"…yes…", Zahra answered, finally allowing herself to breathe.

"Uh, yeah, sure! That would be great. Where would-"

Hector's question was obscured by music from Miko's headphones, as she decided not to overstep the boundaries of her friends anymore. She simply smiled and returned to tagging items before the shop opens.

xxxx

Several hundred feet beneath her, Phil was shaking. Equipped with magnifying telescopic goggles, he examined the many boards of both parts of BlueThought, spread onto dozens of tables as if it was a carcass of unknown species, being dissected and catalogued.

"It can't be…", he muttered to himself, as he took a closer look at the Hinobi chipsets he located. The top was decorated with their old logo, a square divided into four smaller ones.

But it was the text underneath him that made him so horrified.

HINOBI Logic Of Sensory Starvation (L.O.S.S.) #2

He moved across the room to other half of the chess machine, and when he located the twin chipset there, the text read the same, but was indexed with "#3".

With a heavy "thud", Phil sat onto his swivelling chair and pulled the goggles up, revealing widen, bloodshot eyes.

"So SHE is number one…? But how?", he muttered to himself, as thoughts raced and crashed in his mind, producing more questions by the minute.

He grabbed his phone and selected Barbara's number.

But then he remembered the video. The video he's made as a warning to himself.

He remembered all the people, whose minds he had to mess with.

And the he wondered how many he couldn't remember…

No, he'd have to tackle this on his own, he thought.

He grabbed his cup and lifted it to his lips, but realised he's already drunk it all.

This was going to be a long day.

The idea for this fic appeared in my head after watching an episode of "Down the rabbit hole" about the Kasparov vs DeepBlue: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HwF229U2ba8

It is by no means a required reading, but so much references will become obvious.

However, I will list all the in-jokes here, for completionists.

"Upgrade horse" line, as well as tons of illogical commands later, when Miko is trapped in BlueThought, come as inspiration from BBC Three - Comedy Snacks sketch: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YgeYScYe8wI "Megachessatron" still makes me laugh.

Horse armor DLC - allusion to infamous TES 4 Oblivion DLC

Gambi Krasnysledin - stand-in for Kasparov; Gambi from gambit, 'krasny sledz' = red herring (in mangled Russian). Yes I took THAT from Dan Brown's "Aringarosa" character, shoot me.

The Turk: that thing was real https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mechanical_Turk

FishStick - parody of open source chess engine StockFish https://stockfishchess.org/

BIM = IBM, obvy.

"BlueJob", allusion to DeepThought's name being apparently read as "DeepThroat"

Gibibytes are real, look them up. Warning: it will get confusing.

"Are you guys thinking what I'm thinking?" - Pinky & Brain

Prof. Shu = stands-in for Feng-hsiung Hsu https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Feng-hsiung_Hsu, one of the creators of DeepBlue, who thought about printing controller for Chinese characters: http://archive.computerhistory.org/resources/text/Oral_History/Hsu_Feng_Hsiung/hsu.oral_history_transcript.2005.102657920.pdf

Sorry for making you the bad guy, mr. Hsu.

"Way better cartoon" refers to episode "First temple" of Amphibia, which in turn takes inspiration of chess match from "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone" by NAME_EXPUNGED.

"Game over, man, game over!" - quote from "Aliens"

Skyborn = Dragonborn from TES 5 Skyrim. Plus Skyborn Altar is a location in the game

Miko makes a proper Knight's move riding Ally (one left, two forward)

"For the love of Shannon" https://wikipedia.org/wiki/Claude_E._Shannon Claude Shannon was a mathematician and early computer scientist, who estimated lower bound of chess games.

The entire Miko's dream refers of course to Polybius, an urban legend arcade machine that was supposed to cause all those horrible effects on children, all in the name of testing new technologies by US Government. Polybius, or Bolypius is supposed to be the final boss of the show.

"Shall we play a game?" is a line from "War Games".

"Mouse-and-wizard cartoon" refers of course to "Sorcerer's apprentice", a Mickey Mouse short from 1940, part of "Fantasia". And I stand by what I put into Zahra's dialogue: this is a prime example of a glitch, I am genuinely surprised GT hasn't referenced it.

Flunkies are of course parody of Pokemon, Swap is Switch, but the line "They've added 50 new ones, and there are only 40 regional variants or completely messed up species!" is a double joke: on the surface level, it criticises Gamefreak, but it is also a reference to much well executed line in "Craig of the creek". In one episode Craig plays new Smash Bros-knockoff and says that "They have added 50 new characters and only 40 of them are recolours".

And finally… the old Hinobi logo, as well as the name of the chip, is based on loss.jpg.

Because you cannot escape loss.

#glitch techs #zahra rashid #miko kubota #hector nieves #nautiscaraderfics

8 notes · View notes

lefemmerougewriter · 2 years

Text

Miko, High Five, and the Etherian "Glitch"

This is set after season 2 of Glitch Techs and after season 5 of She-Ra. After the first mention, High Five is referred to as “Five.” I never thought I could write over 7,000 words in this story, but somehow, I was able to! I hope you enjoy it, and yes, comments (and suggestions for improvement) are welcome. I rated this Teen and Up because the story is basically a YA story, due to some accidental nudity, cursing, and some other stuff, ha.

Romantic pairings: Miko/Zahra, Entrapta/Hordak, Adora/Catra, Castaspella/Juliet, Ridley/Wrong Hordak, Bow/Glimmer,

Friendships: Ridley & Entrapta, Miko & High Five, Adora & Bow & Catra & Glimmer

Words: 7.4k

AO3: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27825937

Wattpad: https://www.wattpad.com/1254522917-miko-high-five-and-the-etherian-glitch

Characters: Ridley, Miko Kubota, High Five, Phil Altiere, Haneesh, Adora, Catra, Bow, Hordak, Wrong Hordak, Castaspella, Juliet, Entrapta

Summary: Miko and Five have wild adventures on Earth fighting glitches and are alone, this time, on a mission. Getting an alert that something is wrong, a glowing blue inter-dimensional portal sucks them across the plains of spacetime to another world which is thousands, if not millions of light-years across the cosmos. Their high-tech gloves don’t work, and they find a surprising guest who almost destroyed the headquarters of Hinobi not that long ago. How will they survive in this new world full of magic, futuristic technology, and princesses who are in love with each other? Only time will tell how much they can adapt to this world and make new friendships, making the best of a unique situation.

It was like any other day as a glitch tech for Hinobi. For the first time in a while, Miko Kubota and High Five, who went by Hector Nieves in more formal settings, were on a solo mission. Neither Zahra, Haneesh, or their rival-of-sorts, Mitch, would be joining them. The glove-like gauntlets of Miko and High Five beeped simultaneously, belting it out the warning:

“Unknown anomaly detected. Please…”

The message cut off and began scrambling the words that came next, which recommended that they “take appropriate measures.” Miko and Five cautiously exited their van, scanning the area for any glitches. They were both puzzled. Miko vented her frustration as she stamped her foot on the ground repeatedly.

“What in the world?...There’re no glitches here. Probably these dumbass gloves aren’t working correctly, AGAIN.”

Five concurred. Both were walking toward their van when some unknown force pulled them in. In desperation, Miko and Five fired energy blasts from their high-tech gloves. Miko thought that they could handle this problem on their own, while the situation scared Five. He put out a call to headquarters. Unfortunately, only the words “we need” reached the Hinobi headquarters. Their boss Phil Altiere, on duty, eating a messy pizza for lunch. Phil saw Five’s message as routine and ignored it.

The bluish glow enveloped Miko and Five, who lowered their gloves and accepted their fate. They wrapped their arms around each other for support. Both were transported thousands, if not millions, of light-years away across the rocky plains of spacetime to a magical world littered with futuristic technology and inhabited by genderfluid elemental princesses.

The interdimensional portal threw Five and Miko into the air. Instead of hitting the metal platform below, the prehensile lilac-colored hair of a middle-aged woman snarled them from either certain death or extreme injury. She proceeded to place them both on a soft, and plush, couch, almost like she had been expecting them to arrive through the portal. With a big grin on her face, she presented herself to these confused visitors.

“Hey, fellow travelers! I’m Entrapta! You can call me Apta, E, or just Entrapta.”

As Miko and Five continued to be perplexed at what had been through, Entrapta kept talking. She then loudly declared, “welcome to…Etheria!” While they appreciated that she was friendly, bubbly, and had greeted them affectionately, neither trusted her. They stepped off the couch and raised their gloves toward her, demanding that she release them.

“Thanks for welcoming us, but we’d like to go back NOW!” Miko shouted.

Five followed this up, saying, “yeah, ditto what Miko said. Give it up, lady!”

Cowering in fear, Entrapta accepted her death until a cackle pierced the room, which had become still. Miko knew she recognized it from somewhere but couldn’t place it. A geeky teen with huge round glasses and auburn hair stepped out of the shadows. She stood in front of Entrapta, protecting her from any harm. She spoke to them both.

“You two think those fancy gadgets of yours will work? Ha! Jokes on you. That stuff doesn’t work on this world.”

Miko expressed her astonishment at seeing her former friend, a skilled hacker, again, after they had been apart for so long. Still processing it, her words came out somewhat jumbled:

“Ridley…here…now?”

She nodded in response.

While Five was skeptical of Ridley’s claims about their high-tech gloves, Miko thought that she might be right. Turning her glove away from Entrapta, she aimed it at the wall. She pressed a button and covered her eyes. Her gadget belted out words which confirmed what Ridley had told her and Five only a few minutes earlier:

“Error. Device Inoperable. Error.”

Five sighed. He remained wary of this woman who called herself Entrapta and even more so of Ridley after what she had done at Hinobi headquarters. He tried out his glove in the same way. It gave him the same message, which completely baffled him. His face flushed a little. He feared that Miko would interpret his actions as meaning that he didn’t believe her, so he spurted out something to throw off any possible “suspicion”:

“We are totally fine, partner! Everything will be ok!”

His words, followed by finger bangs, confused Miko to no end. Not only did she have no idea what he meant, but the word “partner” made her nervous. She remembered that Zahra, about 17-years-old, had wanted her to explain what type of partner Five was to her, with the implication of possible romantic affection between them. She found such a thought absurd. Her and Five as lovers? They were friends, and nothing more, plain, and simple. She wondered if Five thought the same way about her and if Zahra had a crush on him.

She reached out for Five and patted him on the back. She tried to reassure him that everything would be fine, despite the circumstances both found themselves in.

“Yeah, it will…bud.”

She breathed deeply and then explained the next part in a soft voice.

“We are going to be here for a while, so let’s take it all in…then, we can go home.”

Entrapta saw it all differently. She carefully placed Miko and Five on the couch. When both had pointed their high-tech gloves at her, she thought it was all over. She remained forever thankful of Ridley for protecting her. While Miko and Five were unsure what to think of her, but she also remained wary of them. Just as she began to open her mouth, Ridley piped in. She rolled her eyes, declaring that she had been right all along.

“Ha! I told you both. I’ll take you…”

Entrapta abruptly interrupted her and produced an excuse to pull Miko and Five away.

“Rid-ley, it's ok. I’ll take them around with my…uh…partner. You can join us later if you want.”

Ridley nodded. While she wanted to go around with Five and Miko, she thought that Entrapta would be better suited to take them across the planet, and she had some technology tinkering to do. Entrapta had become her good friend. At first, Entrapta saw her with intense interest when she accidentally arrived in Etheria because of one of an experiment gone wrong. At the time, she desperately tried to go back, but Entrapta had calmed her down. Over time they became good friends, and Ridley appreciated Entrapta's partner. In her former world, Hordak would have been described as Entrapta’s boyfriend. People on Etheria used terms like “partner,” “lover,” or any word which would accurately describe a relationship between two or beings of any gender. She had an attraction toward technology, and she loved tinkering with it, as did Entrapta.

Ridley winked at Entrapta and waved to Miko and Five as they left the laboratory in Dryl. Entrapta had moved back there after the Fright Zone had become overgrown with plants following the defeat of Horde Prime and the Horde as a whole by Catra and Adora, and the rest of the Rebellion. Entrapta brought Miko and Five close and spoke to them with a whisper.

“Would you two like to be surprised?”

Miko and Five, seeing the drab conditions of Dryl, hoped that the surprise would be better than where they currently were, underground in a laboratory.

Although Entrapta had Swift Wind on speed dial, she did not like him much. She saw him as extremely annoying as a being usually couldn't speak its mind in the same language as a person like her. She preferred her now-lifelong partner, Hordak. Some, like Adora, Glimmer, and Bow, accepted her newfound relationship, while others, such as Mica, Mermista, and Frosta, were skeptical because Hordak committed countless crimes as the commander of the Horde. No matter what they thought, he had committed himself to her. Every day, he tried to make up for his past actions which had maimed, killed or destroyed the lives of countless others. She-Ra had removed his evilness, but the memories of what he did continued to haunt him every day. He experienced trauma, just as Catra and Adora did, along with most, if not all, of those involved in the fight against the Horde.

To get to the surface, all three traveled through a huge pneumatic tube like a bullet screaming out of a rifle, which scared the willies out of Miko and Five, but Entrapta enjoyed it intensely. Still recovering from that experience, Entrapta covered their eyes. She ripped off a camouflage cloth which had concealed a huge spaceship from any onlookers. When she saw Hordak sleeping inside, it made her uneasy. He was supposed to be in the Fright Zone with other Hordaks from the Velvet Glove, dismantling it so that the area could be put to better use, part of the rehabilitation of the planet. This would include constructing homes for Scorpia and her people, who had been forced from their land by the Horde years ago. She quickly removed her hair from the eyes of Miko and Five, then reformed her hair into a hand that pointed to the ship’s cockpit. She went ahead and the words, “…and that’s my partner, Hordak,” followed.

Five grinned while Miko looked at the ship with glee.

“This is mega cool. It’s like something I’d see in a video game.”

Entrapta responded with complete bewilderment, saying, “video…game?” Miko then patted her on the back and softly spoke in her air. She told her that she would explain it later.

In what seemed like seconds, they entered the gigantic grayish ship, which Entrapta affectionately named “Darla.” She happily showed them around the controls. The ship had once belonged to the earlier She-Ra, Mara. Every time she was inside, the craft’s technological capabilities fascinated her. Pulling a lever, the craft tilted upward and sped ahead at a supersonic rate. Miko and Five gazed out the window, completely terrified, while Entrapta enjoyed herself, happily chuckling, while she cuddled Hordak. The heads of Miko and Five spinning, the ship touched down outside Bright Moon, which sparkled in the sunlight. Stepping outside, Miko stared in awe at the castle and its surroundings, forgetting about the time in the spacecraft which had brought them there. As all four of them walked up to the castle, her eyes wide with excitement, she jabbed Five in the side and chattered to him about a game she had played years ago.

“Hey, doesn’t this remind you of Magical Princess Castle Adventure: Moon Capture? It’s almost like someone came here and copied this castle exactly!”

Five bowed his head in agreement and had a slight smile. He never played the game but did not want to admit it. Instead, he lied, declaring “yeah, I remember that one…it was hella cool…you know, it had…that castle.” She wanted to talk to him more about the video game, but that would not happen. Two Bright Moon guards at the base of the Moonstone spire, stopped them in their tracks. They demanded to know their business in the kingdom, serving as the de facto center of the planet which helped the populace of Bright Moon and the other six kingdoms on Etheria. Rumors had circulated that the Princesses had delegated more of their power to the population and only served in truly ceremonial roles, other than fighting off possible threats and helping to rebuild the world after the destruction wrought in the fight with the Horde. But the reality of the situation was different.

“Who are you and why are you here?”

Entrapta let out a cackle, picking up the guards with her hair, and threw them into the water nearby. The guards gazed up at her and recognized her at once. They bowed, even as their clothes were completely soaked, and said softly, “you may proceed, Princess Entrapta. Sorry for the inconvenience. You and your guests are welcome here.” Entrapta glowered at them for impeding her travel to Castle Bright Moon and for calling her a “princess.” She hated that word and all the royal trappings associated with it. As they continued across the causeway, a familiar face greeted them. He mentioned toward them and told them to come inside. His curly brown hair in an afro buzz captivated Miko, while his medium brown skin sparkled from the light bouncing off the Moonstone and surrounding water. Walking them through the castle’s hallways, he gleefully introduced himself to Miko and Five.

“Hi, I’m Bow. What’s your names? I’ve never seen either of you…ever before…And what’s up with those clothes?” he said, pointing to their Hinobi uniforms.

Five wanted to explain everything, but Miko beat him to the punch. She cleared her throat and began telling him what had occurred. “So, we work for a company that gets rid of video game glitches which manifest in real life and we were pulled into this blue portal thing, which brought us to this planet…and so yeah, that’s basically it, man.” Bow acted like he knew what they meant, even though what they told him did not make a lick of sense even to someone as smart as him. Even so, he recognized that their current outfits would lead to a lot of unnecessary questions. He pointed them to a spare room and recommended they change into something more comfortable.

One at a time, they entered the room, changing into their normal clothing. For Miko, this was a black tank top covered with a yellow t-shirt with a cat in the middle, a blue hoodie about her waist, black tights, red-and-white socks, an orange wristband, and blue sneakers, all of which were somehow stored in her high-tech glove. Five, in contrast, wore a green t-shirt, with a game controller in the middle, atop a black undershirt, grey pants, and sneakers with light and dark grey parts. After both had changed, Bow chuckled and shook his head, remarking, “well, this should be fun.” He banged his hand on the door in the hallway which had “Catradora room” in beautifully written script taped on a piece of paper. A message below it, written in the same handwriting, stated “Knock before entering…if you dare.” He heard a voice shout back “come in!” Bow gingerly opened the door. Entrapta, Hordak, Miko, and Five all came in at the same time. Catra, Adora, and Glimmer were playing a game. If Miko and Five had played it in the human world, it would have been called “Spoons.” On Etheria, people called it “Sparkle” because all the items you had to grab during the game “sparkled” in the light. All three were caught off guard not by Entrapta or Hordak, who they had seen from time to time after the defeat of Horde Prime a few months prior, but by Miko and Five. Glimmer looked at Miko’s hair with amazement. She had never seen someone who had such long purple hair with pink tips. It somewhat resembled her hair, pastel pink on top and sparkling purple underneath, but was different. Similarly, Adora loved the color of Five’s puffy hair which had a galaxy purple hue. Catra adored the cute black winking cat on Miko’s shirt, which had one eye open and the other closed.

To break the ice, Adora giggled, and turned to Miko and Five, proclaiming, “you wanna see something cool?” Catra shook her head, muttering under her breath. She knew exactly what Adora had planned when she summoned a giant sword that had a golden hilt, a turquoise-colored opal, and a light blue blade. She shouted, “for the honor of gayskull!” and transformed into an eight-foot-tall warrior who radiated across the room. While this impressed Five, Miko became entranced, with the feeling that she was staring at a goddess from a video game.

Catra inched closer to Adora, now in the form of She-Ra, whispered that she had said “gayskull,” not “greyskull.” Her cheeks turned a rosy red, as she nervously tried to defend herself. In the process, she tripped and fell backward. Catra rushed in to catch her, but Miko happened to be there, causing Adora to fall into her arms. She chuckled uneasily and set Adora, who came back to her normal self, onto the ground while admiring her. Still somewhat flustered, Adora explained everything, preempting any questions from Miko or Five.

“Hold your questions…let me explain what happened. This sword changed me into a magical warrior named She-Ra who is set to fight evil, I guess…it all started when I found the sword in the Whispering Woods…and the rest is history…The last time I transformed…”

Catra cut her off and continued the thought. “…was when we kissed each other. We had to, in order to save everyone...and everything, ya know.”

Affectionately, Miko looked at them both with big eyes, adding, “Aw. So, love that saved the world…or universe…or whatever?”

Apprehensive, Catra started to say “well, I wouldn’t call it that…,” Adora jumped in and said, “yes! That’s exactly what it!” Catra moaned, not liking to be as open about her feelings. Even so, she accepted Adora’s explanation, since she knew that she had told the story correctly, although she did not like making their relationship that public. Since the fall of the Horde and the beginning of de-Hordeification on Etheria, they had enjoyed each other’s company, going on occasional frolics through the Whispering Woods and other parts of the planet. Sometimes when they passed nearby a town, Adora would shout the loudest she could “I LOVE MY CAT GIRLFRIEND! SHE’S CATRIFIC!,” humiliating Catra every time.

While Catra and Adora chattered away, Entrapta sat in the corner furiously taking notes with Hordak beside her. It would serve as the beginning to her new story, which she titled “Catra, Adora, and fangs of love.” Although she continued to work on her social skills, she did not mind watching social interactions from afar and poured herself into these silly stories she came up with, often on the spot. She then planned to distribute them in book format to all those across the planet, even as she continued to determine how she would complete this goal.

Adora saw that Catra was uncomfortable, so she quickly thought up something to “solve” the situation. She also wanted to know their new guests better. Catra, on the other hand, remained wary of Miko and Five, something that she and Entrapta could agree on, despite their outgoing nature. She suggested traveling to Mystacor, an idea that made Catra roll her eyes. Adora inched closer to Catra and spoke softly in her ear, “it’s ok, CAT-RA. It will be fine. You can trust me.” Adora’s words calmed her down and she agreed to follow along, surprising Bow and Glimmer at the quickness of her concurrence with Adora’s judgment.

In what seemed like an instant later, Adora, Catra, Glimmer, and Bow crammed into Darla, grumbling as they did so. Unlike the previous time, Miko and Five found seats, as did Hordak. Once everyone had come inside, she shouted, “Is everyone ready?...LET’S GO!” They nodded in agreement and she pressed a button, throttling the craft forward at a breakneck pace. As Catra shrieked, Adora comforted her, while an exasperated Five bellowed: “Oh Nerds!” No one understood his catchphrase and looked at him, perplexed. But Miko knew. She patted him on the back, murmuring to him, “it’s ok, Cap. I get you.”

The ship lurched to a sudden stop, with everyone, apart from Entrapta and Hordak, thrown forward. Sheepishly, Entrapta apologized, while pressing a button which opened the landing ramp. Annoyed and complaining about their journey, these thoughts soon faded away. They saw General Juliet and Castaspella, called Casta or Aunt Casta for short, who greeted them with open arms. Glimmer embraced these two lovers as did Adora, while Bow, Catra, Miko, and Five stood at the side. After their hugging ended, Casta walked with a pep in her step toward Miko and Five, excited to see new people. Even though she had become accustomed to Glimmer’s purple and pink hair, originally detesting the colors, Miko’s purple hair with pink tips left her spellbound like nothing else, with her eyes open wide with wonder.

All of them walked together across Mystacor, visiting the sites, whether the steam grottos, the cloud beaches, or any other areas of relaxation. Hordak and Entrapta stayed by the ship, tinkering with technology. This is because Casta had not warmed up to Hordak yet. Even seeing him haunted her with the awful deeds the Horde had committed across Etheria and remembering the time she saw Hordak as a little girl attacking sorcerers. She could not forgive him for his war crimes. He had atoned in some ways. But no trial had occurred, not for him nor for anyone formerly part of the Horde. With the defeat of the Horde, the Princess Alliance had become defunct, as had the Rebellion. It had become part of a new amalgamation that had named itself the Royal Authority Group or RAG. Afterward, a “truth and reconciliation” approach had been adopted, meaning that a commission to discover and reveal wrongdoing by the Horde in hope of resolving any remaining conflict had been created. This proposal had caused much division. While Entrapta, Adora, Catra, Glimmer, Scorpia, Swift Wind, Huntara, Micah, and Perfuma favored this approach, Mermista, Frosta, Casta, Netossa, and Spinnerella did not. Neither did General Juliet and Sea Hawk. This meant that the proposal for truth and reconciliation passed 9-7, with Melog, Emily, and Wrong Hordak as non-voting members.

Although Entrapta could have easily walked around Mystacor, bringing Hordak into the mix could have engendered further tensions, so she stayed by her ship with her partner, while some of the citizenry snarled. They were not ready to accept members of an organization that had destroyed so much of the planet and almost destroyed Mystacor itself, although the latter had been Shadow Weaver's doing, not the Horde. Catra and Entrapta were treated differently because Entrapta continued to develop technical systems that interconnected each of the kingdoms, working to undo the damage she had done. As for Catra, she remained Adora’s girlfriend and tried to do some of the same, working to make the planet a better place. Some held resentments against both, but more against Hordak and the Horde as a general entity.

Miko and Five relaxed in the steam grotto alongside Glimmer and Bow, while Catra and Adora were nearby, in their own grotto together. Casta and Juliet had gone off to the main chambers of the former citadel and current center of Mystacor. Even in all the time Miko and Five had spent on Earth, nothing could compare to this experience. Miko began posing a series of questions to Glimmer as she remained enthralled by this entire world.

“So, like can you use magic? I mean, Adora showed us her transformation into She-Ra earlier.”

Glimmer chuckled. “Yeah, I can and I’m AWESOME at it! Wanna see?” Bow shook his head and hoped she wouldn’t show off her magic to a stranger. He tried to warn her not to and that something bad would ensue. She didn’t listen to his advice. Stepping out of the steam grotto and overconfident, her towel snagged on a rock and pulled off her body. She teleported nearby and stood in front of them, shouting “ta-da!” Miko acknowledged her, then looked at her in horror. Not even 16, the same age as Five, she had never seen a nude female body other than her own. Catra guffawed while Bow shook his head once more, while Adora hollered loudly. “Glimmer, YOU’RE NAKED! Get some damn clothes on!” Scrambling, Glimmer rushed to cover herself, nervous to expose herself in front of strangers. She then began muttering a response as she slunk back into the grotto with Bow.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean for that to happen…I apologize for anything…”

Miko interrupted her. “…I just had never seen someone without clothes on…it was kinda a bit of a shock to be honest.” Glimmer began crying and continued. “Again, I’m sorry…” About to say something more, Catra interjected with her thoughts. “Sparkles, you don’t need to worry about it…I’ve seen Adora naked a bunch of times and it doesn’t bother me. You should be comfortable with your body.” Glimmer agreed and wiped the tears off her face. For Bow, however, Catra’s comment got him thinking. He then had a realization: had Catra and Adora done the “dirty deed”?

“Uh, Catra, you’ve seen Adora naked? Like when? And what did you do?...did you do the…”

Adora, whose cheeks became as red as a stoplight, struggled to find words to respond to Bow. She did not expect such a question. She was, secretly, a little angry at Catra for mentioning it, although she couldn’t blame her. Waving her arms wildly she tried to set the record straight about their relations, even though it wouldn't clarify anything.

“It…was nothing! We sleep together from time to time…and cuddle…none of that dirty stuff…we aren’t about that thing…all people who love each other do these things, right?”

Bow, just as uncomfortable, did not know what to say, so he accepted her response, although it seemed like a form of evasion. Catra, for her part, did not want to undermine Adora, even as it annoyed her that Adora had downplayed their relationship. As they chattered away, Casta came running toward them, telling them that lunch was about to be served in the former citadel. With everyone acknowledging her, she returned to prepare the table for the meal. Complaining profusely, each person put their clothes back on after drying themselves off with the complimentary towels. They did so in such a way that no one would be uncomfortable at seeing someone else naked in front of them.

A short time later, Adora, Bow, Catra, Glimmer, Miko, and Five all gathered around a medium-sized dining room table, with Casta and Juliet sitting at opposite ends like they were at the “heads” of the table. Each of them ate happily, devouring the food in front of them. Everyone was so caught up in eating, that no conversation ensued. Just as soon as Casta wanted to begin talking about something, she looked up and everyone had left, going their separate ways. Juliet sighed and moved closer to Casta, as magic assistants took away the dishes so they could be cleaned using various spells. She tried to be as frank as she could.

“Those kids. I really wanted to ask them some more questions, especially that girl and guy…I have never seen them around here.”

Casta silently agreed. Awkwardly cracking a smile, she gave her observations.

“Glimmer has grown up so much from the last time I saw her…and that boy, Bow, is nice too. I’m still coming around to Catra…but I am glad that Adora has someone who loves her…she needs that after everything she is been through…and…I’m glad we have each other.”

Juliet’s caramel tan cheeks turned a lighter brown, jesting Casta, shouting, as she tickled her, “Oh, stop that, you!” Giggling a little, she leaned in closer, and told Casta in a soft voice, “I’m glad we are both here, together…we can enjoy our lives now that the war has ended.”

Glimmer, Bow, Catra, Adora, Miko, and Five all hid behind the double-doors leading into the room, watching this all unfold. Bow only went along with this plan because he felt obligated to so, like Five. Even so, neither left, even though this sort of spying wasn’t their style. Catra, Glimmer, Adora, and Miko were like giddy schoolgirls, watching this unfold, liking the intrigue. Then, something changed. The faces of Juliet and Casta came closer together and their lips met. Glimmer’s face went from its usual tan appearance to a darker skin tone. The doors flew open, and she tumbled onto the ground, as did Adora, Catra, and Miko, as the human pyramid which all of them constructed came crumbling down. Casta and Juliet looked at all five of them with interest, then burst out laughing. Both came over to Glimmer, who stared into space and mortified that her aunt would be kissing someone in front of her friends. Casta spoke to her.

“Oh, so you were watching us through that doorway, were you now? You could have just asked if we were together…instead of hiding, Glimmer.”

Stuttering a little, Glimmer inched forward while the rest of her compatriots remained on the ground. “I-I-I just didn’t think you…were…like that, Aunt Casta.”

She let out a hearty chuckle. “Oh, Glimmer, I’m so much more than you could ever imagine…I can love people too, you know…”

Glimmer’s face flushed with blood and warmer than usual. She continued to attempt a cogent argument but stumbled over her own words repeatedly, even stuttering a little. “I-it-s just embarrassing with all these guests here…”

Seeing that the emotional state of her niece in shambles, she began to open her mouth to say something. Suddenly, Adora interceded. “So, Castaspella, how you’d both get together…Mystacor isn’t near Bright Moon…so how’d this beautiful romance begin?”

After getting permission from Casta, Juliet answered the question instead. Clearing her throat, she began the story. “Well, in the aftermath of the Horde Prime’s defeat, there was a big feast in Bright Moon. She came there on business and I heard about a dance party...”

The sounds of their voices faded away as Casta, Juliet, and Adora chattered away. Catra tried to slip away, but Adora held her arm tightly. She rolled her eyes. She agreed to stay only because she loved Adora and didn't want to disappoint her. Somehow, Miko, Five, Glimmer, and Bow left, with Glimmer relieved. Soon thereafter, her mind became filled with images of Juliet and Casta smooching each other over and over in the most sexual way possible, while wearing skimpy outfits. She began yelling, running away the fastest speed she could muster. Bow cried out, shouting “wait, Glimmer, wait!” but she ignored his pleas. Having been to Mystacor in the past, he guessed where she would be. Prior to searching for her, he checked to ensure that Miko and Five were ok with coming along.

“So do you both want to join me in this search…or chase I guess…for my girlfriend…I mean partner…or go to Entrapta and her partner?…either one works for me.”

Miko answered in the affirmative. “Yeah, sure, that’s fine with me, how about you, Five?”

He whispered back, “whatever…anything to get away from that PDA in the dining room…I’m just not there with my love life.”

As they walked slowly to Glimmer’s secret hiding place, somewhere that only Bow knew about, he raised his eyebrows. He had no idea what this “PDA” thing meant…

“PDA…what’s that?”

Miko giggled a little, saying in a soft voice, “personal display of affection.”

Bow understood. He didn’t see it as a negative thing. He told them casually, “oh yeah, Glimmer and I express our personal affections, as you call it, for each other all the time, although we aren’t as direct as her Auntie and Juliet were in that room…all the time.”

Despite the fact she had expressed interest in how Adora and Catra had gotten together, his response horrified Miko. She moved her head from side to side, only speaking one word “…right” with a heavy dose of sarcasm in an attempt to push it off. There were many possible reasons for this response. For years upon years, she had channeled many of her emotions into video games, and perhaps the prospect of someone loving her like that scared her, as she saw everyone as friends, not potential romantic partners, or people to have crushes on.

Bow, Miko, and Five had finally reached their destination: Aunt Casta’s private library and study. Glimmer had come here many times in the past, bored by the antics between her late mom and Casta. She had come there as a solace, to calm herself down after seeing Casta and Juliet smooching, giving her visions which, she never wanted to see. Standing by the door, Bow saw Glimmer meditating near the stacks, sitting near the wide and he approached carefully, then announced himself so his presence wouldn’t surprise her.

“Glimmer, are you ok? I came here to make sure you are fine and all…we can leave now if you’d like…there’s no reason to see Juliet or Casta again.”

Breathing deeply, she rushed over to Bow and hugged him. Tears began streaming down her face. He put his arms around her as well and gave her a peck on the head, with her cheeks becoming warm, turning a little darker in its complexion. Together, and holding hands, Glimmer and Bow left this secret hiding place and headed back to the ship, with Miko and Five in tow. Their visit in Mystacor had come to an end, none too soon for Glimmer.

Sometime later, they came to a nearby area which served as a makeshift landing pad for ships like the one that Hordak and Entrapta flew in across Etheria. Other ships were currently being constructed from old Horde technology in order to create free air travel from place to place, with Mystacor serving as one of the future hubs of such travelers. Some people who had formerly been Horde soldiers were part of the construction, while a truth and reconciliation commission, for all the crimes committed by the Horde, continued. The records of each proceeding were recorded by hand by a robotic scribe, along with video and audio files through various devices put in place by Bow. Each of these records would be deposited in an archives under construction in Bright Moon, thought to be the center of Etheria itself. While the specifics of who would work in the archives had not been fully determined, it appeared that George and Lance would offer their services in a support role as historians and collectors of information, along with Bow, assisting archivists working at the facility. The records from the family library curated by George and Lance would likely form part of the collection, as would accounts of battles against the Horde, oral history interviews, and transcripts from the commission. Unlike a library, however, the records would not be organized by subject matter or by topic. Rather, they would be kept in the original order set by the person or organization who had created the record in the first place, with these records assembled in a hierarchical fashion. Each collection of records became a record group, then subdivided into series and files, with the records arranged so they could be useful and accessible, with original order occasionally disregarded if the archivists deemed it necessary. This all happened after archival appraisal of the records themselves had occurred. The records could be of any form, whether paper, digital or moving pictures. Most were paper because Etheria did not have an internet. Currently, a pilot intranet program named Aptanet, a system created by Entrapta, only remained available within some of the kingdoms. As the archives was only in its first stages, no records schedules had been established. Perhaps, in the future that would be added as a way to ensure that records were processed efficiently and effectively, allowing for access to all the records by Etherian citizens, no matter the kingdom they resided, accompanied by the appropriate description and necessary other archival tasks.

On the landing pad, or what appeared to be one, Entrapta and Hordak sat outside the ship, with Catra and Adora nearby. They happily greeted an approaching Miko, Five, Glimmer, and Bow, with grins on their faces. No one discussed Casta and Juliet smooching, even though they all saw it, apart from Entrapta and Hordak, as they just played a game of Rummy, named Ethumy on this planet for some unknown reason. Both enjoyed each other’s company. Everyone quickly filed inside. Soon thereafter Entrapta, while holding Hordak’s hand tightly, bellowed, “get, ready, set….GO!...” Darla flew forward at an incredible velocity, even quicker than previously, causing Miko to shriek like she had the last time, with Five comforting her. At the same time, Bow, Glimmer, Adora, and Catra were a little terrified but were able to get through it as they all hugged each other so that no one would be alone.

Without warning, the ship came to a stop near Bright Moon, hovering in the air. Since Entrapta didn’t see a safe place to land Darla, this seemed like the only safe option. Glimmer griped but knew what she had to do. She grabbed the arms of Adora, Catra, and Bow, readying themselves to wish the unexpected guests on Etheria goodbye. Miko stopped Glimmer in her tracks with a “wonderful idea”: taking a selfie with her newfound friends, so she could have something to remember them by. Bow, Glimmer, Catra, and Adora agreed, even though they had never taken a selfie. Five decided to join in too. All five of them squeezed together, cheery, and having a jolly time. After they were finished, Bow took out his tracker pad. It resembled what Miko and Five would call a tablet in their world. He set a timer, and all five of them moved to the other side of the craft, beamed, and the tracker pad snapped a picture. Before leaving, Bow checked the picture and satisfied with it, whispered to Glimmer, “ok, let’s go.” Glimmer, Bow, Adora, and Catra all said their goodbyes. Then, they disappeared into thin air, teleporting into the halls of the Bright Moon Castle.

Miko and Five were sad to see their new friends leave but knew they had to get back to Earth, since their families and lives were there. Darla expeditiously reached Dryl, touching down in the courtyard, on top of a pad that Entrapta had designed. She quickly motioned them to leave the ship, which she covered with a net that made it invisible so Darla wouldn’t be stolen. She snickered and turned to them, saying “pretty neat, huh?” Miko and Five nodded their heads. Hordak decided to come down to the laboratory with them this time. He firmly clasped Entrapta’s right hand. All four of them descended underground in an elevator, which Entrapta, of course, had installed. Ridley, still distracted by some former Horde technology, which she loved tinkering with, waved nonchalantly in their direction. She remarked, “oh, you all are back. That’s nice.” Miko approached her and asked, “Ridley, are you sure you don’t want to come with us?...back to Earth?” Ridley let out a loud belly-laugh. “Go back? Ha! I’d never go back to that wretched planet. I can start anew here without all that baggage. I can work with cool technology that no one on Earth would ever dream about.” She followed this, adding, “yeah and there's no cops who want to bust me here.” She then blushed a little, her cheeks becoming as red as ripe strawberries, followed by the words, “and…I have a boyfriend.” These words took Miko aback. She never expected Ridley, of all people, to be the romantic type. Puzzled, she decided to probe a little more with her questioning. “WHO!?” Ridley pointed to Wrong Hordak, standing nearby, and working on the same project as her. Sheepishly, she replied, “I call him WH for Wrong Hordak, a name some people gave him in the past, and he likes that.” She bellowed across the room, “Hey, WH, say hello to our guests, Miko and Five!” WH spun about, smiled, and gave them a thumbs-up. Neither Miko nor Five knew what to make of this gesture, so they nervously grinned back.

Somehow, during their brief time on Etheria, the portal remained open. Since it hadn’t acted as wildly as the one Catra had opened all that time ago, items from Etheria were not pulled inside. Entrapta shook their hands, as did Hordak, both wishing them well. WH and Ridley did the same. Prior to stepping through the portal and returning to Earth, Entrapta handed Miko a pen with her name engraved in the side. She bowed her head and said in a soft voice that it would be her present to them. Miko and Five, about to step inside the portal, gave their farewells. Miko spoke first. “Bye Entrapta, Hordak, WH, and Ridley…it was a pleasure meeting all of you, some for the first time and others…again.” Five followed this up by saying, “I hope to see you all sometime soon.” Both bowed and turned their backs, saying one line in unison: “Just in case I don’t see you, good morning, good evening, and good night!” As they entered the portal, Miko and Five were sent through the plains of spacetime at an alarming rate that it would have boggled their minds to stop and think about it. Before they knew it, the portal spit them out onto the asphalt pavement, right next to their van. Seconds later, Haneesh and Zahra came running toward them. Zahra sat down on the road's surface and came to Miko’s side, then spoke to both of them. “Hey, Miko…and Five, are you ok?”

Both nodded their heads, giving her the sign that they were fine. Zahra moved in and gave Miko a peck on the cheek as a friendly greeting. Remembering what she had seen that day, between the head kiss by Bow on Glimmer’s forehead, the intense kiss between Juliet and Casta, and description of Catra and Adora’s kiss, Entrapta and Hordak holding hands, she immediately thought that this kiss meant that Zahra loved her romantically. In fact, it was a custom for those in the Arab world, especially among Muslims like Zahra, to kiss friends and family on the cheek as a greeting. Whether Zahra had feelings for Miko remained to be seen, although she likely did. Miko scrambled up from the ground, still in a bit of pain, and somehow sprinted into the distance, her face becoming warmer and warmer, the more she thought about the interaction. Five shook his head, while Zahra had no idea what had riled up Miko so much, and neither did Haneesh. She explained to Five that a cheek kiss was a tradition to greet people. Five told her, “yeah I think she knows that, but that’s not what this is about.” He paused. “I’ll tell you about it later when we make a report to Hinobi about our…unusual experience today.” That satisfied Zahra and Haneesh, who got back in the van to chase down Miko, so they could all go back to headquarters together.

All four of them reached headquarters, with Five and Miko explaining their story to their boss, Phil, who thought that they had lost it, as anyone who heard their wild story would think. He told them to turn in their high-tech gloves and to go home for the rest of the day to clear their heads. Off in a huff, Miko and Five returned to their respective homes. Haneesh and Zahra hadn’t heard the story about their day yet, but they would soon enough. Miko, exhausted from the day’s ordeal, laid down on her bed, putting the pen Entrapta gave her on a bedside table. She instantly fell asleep. As she rested, the pen transformed into a small robot that looked like a grasshopper. It cut a hole in the window screen and began scaling the side of the house, and soon reached the slate roof. Once there, the robot changed form once more and began emitting a high-frequency radio wave beam. This energy wave was so powerful that not even the most advanced satellites orbiting the Earth could pick it up. The beam barely reached a dormant beacon, which sent the message speedily onward from beacon to beacon through space, until it reached the one orbiting Etheria, which transmitted the message to the planet’s surface. Working late at night, as usual, the middle-aged woman heard a loud beeping noise from one of her monitors. Yawning, and drinking some home-brewed tea, the screens illuminated her face, revealing her to be none other than Entrapta. She walked toward the screen and snickered. “Good…everything is going according to plan.”

*****

Notes: I used pages for “Mara’s Ship,” “Glimmer,” “Juliet,” “Castaspella,” and “Bow” on the She-Ra fandom site, the “Miko,” “Zahra,” “Haneesh,” and “High Five” pages on the Glitch Techs fandom site. As I wanted to incorporate archives into this story, I summarized Samantha Thompson’s post, “How do archivists organize collections” (https://peelarchivesblog.com/2015/08/26/how-do-archivists-organize-collections/) and incorporated it into this story. As Stephanie Greenhut wrote in NARA’s Education Updates blog (https://education.blogs.archives.gov/2013/04/08/intro-to-national-archives/), for NARA, “archival records are filed in whatever system each contributing agency thought was best for their day to day business.” For this post, I used information from NARA’s Federal Records Management page (https://www.archives.gov/records-mgmt/scheduling/id, https://www.archives.gov/records-mgmt/scheduling/inventory-elements), the starting guide for Access to Archival Databases (AAD) (https://aad.archives.gov/aad/help/getting-started-guide.html). For the final part of the story about the cheek kiss by Zahra on Miko’s cheek, I used Lindsey Shapka’s article “To Kiss Or Not To Kiss? Your Guide To Cheek Kissing Etiquette” in The Anthrotorian, the Cheek kissing Wikipedia page, Julia Jahanpour’s “8 Ways the Arab Cheek Kiss Can Get Awkward,” “Greet Like a Local: Deciphering the Complicated Culture of Greetings” on EasyExpat.com, and Roger Friedland and Janet Afary’s “The Politics of a Kiss: Islam and Intimate Life in Turkey” in HuffPost. The line “Just in case I don’t see you, good morning, good evening, and good night!” is very close to the one in one of my favorite films. Anyone want to guess which one?

2 notes · View notes