Fanfic / CAT-RA: Phantom of the Mystic Mountains

"This is what life looks like. You should take a moment... Feel it."

Moving on is the half of it.

Opening Quote

CAT-RA: Phantom of the Mystic Mountains is a Role Swap AU Paraquel written by EtherianFrigatebird that takes place in the Siren Universe from ADORA: Vagabond of the Etherian Cosmos.

Five years ago, Glimmer, the malevolent ruler of Etheria, was brutally slain right before Catra learned of her own destiny as She-Ra. War has plagued Etheria ever since, and Catra remains haunted by the fact that she was everything her former lover ever needed. Searching for answers, Catra finds herself chasing a phantom at a prophetical location — the birthplace of magic, Mystic Mountain.

In the serene, mystifying summits, Catra hopes to find the answers to her inner turmoil. What really happened to her as a child that left her as an orphan? And could it be that after all these years, Glimmer is still alive?

It is the second in a planned trilogy, with the third unreleased work being NOVA: Last of the Cosmos.

Unfortunately, despite making it through 13 chapters and leaving off on a cliffhanger for the last two chapters, it appears the work maybe a Dead Fic as the last chapter was uploaded November 28th 2021 with no real word from Butch Osprey in quite a bit of time.

WARNING: This page contains an unmarked spoiler that concerns a massive twist revealed in the first chapter which is vital to understanding the story, and as such, has remained unmarked for ease of reading. Please be advised.

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This work provides examples of:

• Arc Symbol: Carried over from AVEC: Bright Moon Violets, which only bloom when the Queen of Bright Moon is in love with another woman.
• Belligerent Sexual Tension:
  • As Glimmer and Catra are both bitter exes yet still attracted to one another, the reader is subjected to plenty of tension.
  • Catra often refers to Glimmer as "queen", "princess", "your majesty" when they argue.
  • There are many moments where both check the other one out — often as unsubtly as possible.
  • Upon drinking a little too much, Glimmer has no filter, and her and Catra make bad choices.
• Body Horror: As revealed in a flashback, a group of bullies ended up pulling the feathers on Glimmer's wings when the young princess visited Mystacor for the first time. Catra doesn't take it well when she learns of this.
• Catapult Nightmare: The first chapter opens with Catra caught in the middle of one as she tries to process her grief.
• Call-Back:
  • In Chapter 5, Glimmer and Catra get undressed to bathe in a hot spring and Glimmer teases Catra, jokingly proposing that they hook up then and there. A flustered Catra responds "Where would we even do that here — on a rock?!" Readers of AVEC know this is almost exactly how things happen between Force Captain Adora and Glimmer.
  • An incredibly dark one: Glimmer once again attempts suicide via exposure/hypothermia on the Mystic Mountains, and is stopped by a woman she has a strong connection to. The Heart of Etheria makes a small cameo both times.
  • Invoked: Catra disappears through a portal in Chapter 10 in almost exactly the same fashion Adora did in the opening chapter of AVEC. It's heavily implied that this is Light Hope's doing — if it looked like Catra had been flung into The Multiverse, Glimmer would have no reason to look for her, leaving Light Hope to continue her plans unimpeded.
• The Cameo: Adora appears in a flashback to the period where she was stuck in the siren dimension, giving advice to Catra.
• Closed Circle: The Mystic Mountains function as this for Glimmer due to the intense magical energy powering the piece of the runestone that's keeping her alive. It turns out she thinks Catra might be able to help her get off the mountain.
• Driven to Suicide: Glimmer, as detailed in Once More, with Clarity. She attempts it again during Chapter 9, but is saved by Catra.
• Early-Bird Cameo: The Heart of Etheria makes an unnamed cameo in chapter two, trying to dissuade Glimmer from her current course of action. It reappears again in Chapter 9 and warns Catra to save Glimmer before becoming a much bigger presence in the story.
• First-Episode Twist: The first chapter reveals that Glimmer is alive and slowly falling back in love with Catra.
• Foreshadowing:
  • Nana Elli initially appears reluctant to address Glimmer by her fake name and points Catra towards the Phantom, stating that Catra might have a chance with whoever's up there. Come chapter four, we find out that Elli knows exactly who Glimmer is, and has probably heard about her prior romance with Catra. This is basically confirmed in Chapter 10.
• Once More, with Clarity: Chapter Two revisits Glimmer's "death" from AVEC, revealing that she hid herself to heal her stab wound and teleported to the Mystic Mountains, fully intending to die there before being stopped by a vision of Angella.
• "I Know You're in There Somewhere" Fight: Glimmer has to do this when Catra becomes corrupted by Light Hope. She remains on the defensive the entire battle, saying she doesn't want to hurt her. It's only after Glimmer pleads with her that Catra is able to break free.
• I'm a Humanitarian: How the lost spirits kill any rogue invaders, as Glimmer unfortunately (and violently) finds out. Due to the rules of the Spirit Realm, this does not kill her.
• In Spite of a Nail: In spite of the timeline's extreme divergence, Catra is still forced to destroy the sword of protection in order to keep Etheria from becoming a universe-destroying weapon. And Horde Prime is still on his way.
• Internal Reveal: Glimmer finds out that Catra is She-Ra in chapter two. She doesn't take it very well.
• Screw This, I'm Outta Here: Catra tries to pull this in Chapter Three before Glimmer stops her.
• Shout-Out:
  • Many to The Legend of Zelda and Princess Mononoke (and other Studio Ghibli films).
    • Visually, you can see both media's influence. There are some pieces that feature nods to both.
    • Catra's primary outfit takes influence from both Prince Ashitaka and Link (Breath of the Wild). The scar on her cheek is a very direct shoutout to the former.
    • The Spirit Realm is very heavily inspired by the Silent Realm from The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword - both of which have spirits that become hostile under certain conditions. A blood moon occurs when Catra and Glimmer go to the realm together, which is influenced by The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild.
• Star-Crossed Lovers: It seems everything in the universe is trying to keep Catra and Glimmer apart, in spite of them being soulmates.
• Titled After the Song: All the chapters except Chapter Three are named after songs from Everywhere At the End of Time and Sadly, the future is no longer what it was.
• Waxing Lyrical: At some points, Glimmer laments that she started out wanting a better world for Catra, which is a veiled reference to "Forty Screams" by Son Lux.