Chapter Text
A thousand of years ago, in the planet of Eternia
Her gaze became cloudy as Mara finally arrived at the castle, bothered by the enormous amount of light that was reflected by the white and gold walls that guarded the throne hall. She stood in front of her majesty, bowed in respect, her brown hair braided in a ponytail, and slowly but steady raised her eyes again, taking a peek of the face of the Queen of Eternia, heavily hidden behind a fan. Her eyes were crystal blue, and had a special glow like everyone had in her home planet. It was one of Mara's favorite traits about her people. Although beautiful, the Queen's eyes looked at her with stiffness and seriousness. She was analyzing the young warrior.
"Mara. My bravest captain of the north. What news do you bring me? Good ones, I hope?"
"Your Majesty." Mara began. She tried to hide her pride and excitement, because her recent success in the missions of protecting the planet from invaders had brought recognition to her name. "My troops recently discovered more threats from The Horde coming from a planet not very far away. We took down the bases that would welcome the ships, without problem, ma'm. However, It might not stop them."
Mara hold her sword with hesitation. It was not good to bring home bad news about the future. In the past years, since Mara could remember, The Horde has been hunting down all the other empires in the universe, destroying planet by planet. Draining their magic. Magic. The greatest power of Eternia. It brings hope, it brings happiness, it brings light. That's what she fights for.
"Oh my... They don't seem to give up." The Queen stayed silent for a moment, ran her hands through the blonde hai that was falling of her shoulder. She called her counselor, a powerful sorcerer standing by her side the entire time. He would go unnoticed if her majesty didn't call on him. even Mara, with such sharp eyes, got surprised by his presence. He did not look like a magical person, though. He looked more like of a tech guy. "I guess we don't have any other options. What do you think, Zoltor?"
"The project is ready, my queen. This might be the chance we get to complete the process."
Mara looked utterly confused, but her boss apparently understood quickly and stared at the young girl for a very, very long time. Zoltor whispered in her majesty's ear, almost like a weird phantom. At least, in Mara's head, it look several minutes. Finally, she spoke.
"Captain, I'm changing your post."
"I'm sorry, what?" Mara blinked twice. "Did I do something wrong?"
"On the contrary, dear. You have been chosen." She took a brief pause, Mara's heart was beginning to race. "On behalf of your excellent job, I'm sending you off to a much more important mission. Mara, you must travel to a distant planet we recently discovered. There, your mission is to gain knowledge about everything you encounter and report back to us every moon."
"Oh! Of course, your majesty! I would be honored! It's just..." Mara looked down, a little troubled.
"Yes?"
"Um... how should a new planet help us with the horde?"
Before Zoltor could speak, the Queen stopped him with a repressive gaze and turned to Mara, smiling gently.
"We think we can protect some of our most endangered people by giving them a home in another planets. We already have some eternians taking care of the environment, but we lost contact with them years ago. Apparently, this planet didn't had a population before we arrived, it is not a threat to enemies, so it would go unnoticed, and it would be a safe place for eternians, away from the greedy eyes of The Horde. Do you understand now how important your mission is?"
Mara always thought her queen was wise. She didn't want to run away, but simply protect her own. The brown haired girl wished she could be like that one day. "That's brilliant, Your Majesty. I'm going to select a few people for my crew and I'm back before-"
"No." The Queen interrupted. "You must brave this mission on your own, captain. This is a secret project, for as soon as it is discovered, The Horde may take advantage of the vulnerability of the trip and our cause. We must not jeopardize it by selecting soldiers. Do you think you can do this? Do you accept the mission, and promise to keep it as low as possible?"
"Yes, Your Majesty."
Mara had no family to tell about the mission. That's why she's the perfect soldier to go off to a far off planet. No one would miss her. As an orphan, she had a very military focused childhood, and grew to be the brave and strong 20 year-old warrior she is today. She had been granted with the mission of her life, directly by the queen. Some soldiers would die to get this rank of tasks. Alone, nonetheless, to get the glory all for her. That's not what occupied Mara's mind, though. She was currently at her room, in one of the kingdom's bases, freaking out about how much food she would have to take on the ship so she would not starve to death before reaching the planet. She was a terrible cook. A wonderful baker, but a terrible cook. She must learn fast, before she takes off next week.
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A thousand of years ago, . . . minus 1 week.
Eternia is the home planet of one of the biggest empires in all of the universe. As far as we know it, at least. That's why it catches so much attention of The Horde and another hostile planets. It is a planet full of life, where its people never had nightmares because their days were pure happiness and prosperity. Eternian cities are breathtaking, filled with soaring crystalline spires, energy bridges, and buildings that pulsed with controlled magical light. Architecture was not just beautiful; it was functional, designed to channel and harness magical energy.
Mara could not be more proud. Of course, not everything was perfect. The minor kingdoms in Eternia are very divided and closed to themselves, all obeying the Empress, our witty Queen. Mara was a commoner since birth, but through the military she climbed far more than she ever expected. Now, she's on the way to board her ship, one of the best and newest technologies today. With a single crystal as fuel, she could cross unimaginable distances, and she would, to reach a planet called Etheria. One of the royal guards calls the young warrior, sending her off for her last meeting with the queen.
This time, the queen was not sat on her throne, but stood up, facing a pedestal covered with a white cloth. Behind the fabric, a faint blue light glowed, which caught the attention of Mara, too. The queen turned around to face the girl, and smiled gently.
"Captain Mara. It is with a present that I sent you off, with the best of my hopes."
"A present? Your Majesty, I couldn't accept it."
"But you will, of course." She affirmed, calmly. "Mara, I present you with..." She took the white cloth off the pedestal, revealing a sharp and big word, with the size of someone double the size of the girl. "The Sword of Protection."
It was a beautiful weapon. The queen took it from the pedestal and carefully placed it on Mara's hands, who analyzed attentively. As soon as she touched it, she felt an indescribable connection she didn't understand quite yet. But she could feel something. She could feel magic. The golden hilt was heavy, but powerful and had just the right grip for Mara's hands. It looked like it was made just for her. It had words engraved in the blade, which she started to read carefully.
"For the honor of Grays-"
"Don't say it now, dear." The queen interrupted, again. "You'll understand why when it happens. This sword is a technological interface to channel the power of a being that you will become to protect the planet if necessary. This sword symbolizes your mission to protect our people with the strength of an eternian and the magic of the universe. Will you fight for the honor of Grayskull?"
Grayskull is a place in Eternia, apparently where most of the magic is hoarded. It's basically the source of the magic in all the planet, that's why it's so important to fight for it. The planet breathes magic everywhere, and that's what scares The Horde the most. They don't understand it. they fear it. So we must protect it. At least, every kid in Eternia learns this at kindergarten.
"I will. Thank you for your kind present, Your Majesty. I shall protect the glory of our people and the magic of our planet."
"Off you go, then."
Mara smiled so much her face was sore. She could not contain giggles of happiness, and without thinking gave the queen a hug. It was not proper to do so, but she forgot herself for a moment. The guards flinched, confused, but didn't do anything. Before the woman could say anything, Mara was already running through the doors on her way to her new adventure.