Light Hope

— Light Hope's last words

**Light Hope** was an artificial intelligence program created by the First Ones and a supporting character turned antagonist in *She-Ra and the Princesses of Power*. She is a recurring character in the first, second, and third seasons, and the main antagonist of Season Four.

## Description

She presented herself as a holographic persona and was programmed to train and assist She-Ra, Etheria's champion.

In truth, Light Hope was reprogrammed by the First Ones with the goal of activating the Heart of Etheria weapon at any cost, something Mara prevented her from doing long ago. In order to do this, she used all of her power to reach across the universe and bring Adora to Etheria. In her final moments, Light Hope's true self clashed with her reprogrammed format, encouraging and later thanking Adora for stopping the weapon. She appears to be a form of or variant of a base AI assistant for the First Ones. A similar program is seen as a precursor to Light Hope in the first episode, and Light Hope is also seen on Mara’s ship.

## Appearance

Light Hope's hologram took the form of a woman with a shaved hairstyle. She was very tall and slender. She wore a sleeveless gown, cape, and transparent hood. The hologram was in shades of pale violet-blues, and tones of purple, blue, and hints of light pink, with First Ones' writing engraved all over.

At one point, she tries to switch appearances to appeal to Adora more. One form she took was that of a young child, which disturbed Adora.

## Personality

She has a limited understanding of emotions. During most of her existence, she works on a program written for her by First Ones, but at the end she's strong enough to beat system and show her true nature by expressing gratefulness to Adora. It is also evident that Light Hope had a close connection to Mara. In many episodes, she would fondly look back at her memories with Mara, until Light Hope finally gave into her program and erased her old memories. While training Adora, Adora gets frustrated and Light Hope appears to be apologetic. She claims her human communications program needs to be updated.

## Plot

### Past

Light Hope is a computer program who was created by the First Ones before their disappearance. She was programmed to act as Etheria's facilitator and to assist the She-Ra's who were coming to Etheria, each generation to maintain balance in Etheria. This balance was required for the Heart of Etheria Project.

A thousand years prior, Light Hope was assigned to serve the present She-Ra, Mara. Upon Mara's arrival on Etheria, she was accosted by Razz. She forced her way onto Mara's Ship looking for sugar, causing Light Hope to appear and identify her as an intruder. In turn, Razz futilely attacked her hologram with her broom. Ignoring Razz's attacks, Light Hope insisted Mara remove Razz from the ship or she's be forced to contact her superiors. Though Mara compassionately provided Razz with her sugar, Light Hope protested letting the Etherian to leave, concerned that she might've been exposed to information regarding the Heart of Etheria Project. Mara doubted this claim and convinced Light Hope to look the other way. Once she did as requested, Light Hope was heartened to hear Mara call her a good friend.

Eventually, by the time Mara learned the truth behind the Heart of Etheria Project, the First Ones had reprogrammed Light Hope to set off the weapon at any cost. As Mara proceeded to fly around Etheria in an attempt to disable Light Hope, she appeared before Mara, coldly declaring that her efforts to avoid her destiny were futile and that She-Ra would be known as a hero once the Heart of Etheria achieved its purpose. However, Mara retorted that she had disposed of the Sword of Protection to keep She-Ra from being used to destroy countless worlds and declared that Light Hope was not the friend she put her trust in before cutting her off. Mara then transported Etheria to Despondos, saving the planet from destruction threatened by the Heart of Etheria.

Still acting in accordance to her programming, Light Hope spent a thousand years plotting to finish the Heart of Etheria Project. In order to do so, she required She-Ra to balance the planet by engaging all its runestones. A thousand years later, Light Hope searched for a suitable First One across the universe, and finally managed to open a small portal to bring Adora to Etheria as a baby. However, the Horde took Adora in before Light Hope could, which forced Light Hope to wait for the moment in which she could reunite Adora with the Sword and carry out the Heart of Etheria Project. The timing of when Light Hope presented the Sword to Adora seems to indicate that Light Hope was waiting for Adora to leave the Fright Zone, something Adora had not done until the first episode.

### Season One

In the first episode, after Adora escaped from the Fright Zone with Catra to visit the Whispering Woods while accidentally falling from the hover-ship they were on, Adora heard Light Hope's voice for the first time. Following her voice, she made her way to the place where Light Hope placed the Sword of Protection. After this vision, Adora recovered and returned with Catra to the Fright Zone. Later, haunted by that memory, she decided to escape again to search for the sword on her own. She eventually found it, and after fighting with Glimmer and Bow for possession, Adora got a hold of it.

When the three were in danger, Light Hope called to her again in a vision, but this time asking if she is willing to fight "For the Honor of Grayskull." Adora accepted, repeating those words, transforming into She-Ra for the first time. This allowed her and the other two to escape from danger. Later they found the ruins of a First Ones' temple, and entered it.

Inside the temple, a projection of an unnamed hologram which is glitching appeared. The hologram did not recognize She-Ra's commands and detected the presence of the others, and she then activated a security system to prevent them from escaping. Due to Glimmer's teleportation powers, they were able to escape.

Upon returning to the Crystal Castle, Adora tried to speak with this unnamed hologram which only would speak with her when she is She-Ra. After Adora transformed, this hologram announced that Light Hope will soon be there. Moments later, Light Hope replaced the first hologram and began to answer Adora's questions. She proceeded to give Adora an inaccurate history of the First Ones and the Sword's intended purpose, along with Mara's story. She also asked Adora to stay within the Castle for years to train. Adora refused and returned to Bright Moon with the help of her friends.

Light Hope repeatedly told Adora to "let go." Light Hope meant to "let go" of her friends and the obligation to protect them so that Adora could activate the Heart of Etheria.

When Entrapta hacked the Black Garnet, Light Hope began glitching and said "The Horde is hurting us." This indicates that any alteration to a runestone affects not just the other runestones, but also any First Ones tech that is connected to the Heart of Etheria.

### Season Two

Light Hope trains She-Ra to use her powers and instructs Adora to form a special bond with Swift Wind. She also teaches She-Ra about the previous She-Ra's and their duty to bring balance, protect and heal Etheria. As she trains She-Ra to use her sword's transformational power, she frets that Adora is falling into a similar destructive pattern of fear that Mara did.

### Season Three

When Adora next shows up at Crystal Castle, Light Hope assumed she was looking for more training. However, Adora was more interested in knowing where she came from, reminding Light Hope that she had mentioned she had been monitoring her since infancy. This causes Light Hope's avatar to glitch as she hesitates to answer. When Adora presses her for answers, Light Hope confirmed that Adora was not of Etheria and assumes she already knows this; Adora stated that babies can't remember that far back. She then shows Adora a projection of Hordak taking her from a portal, confirming that Adora is a First One. Adora then frantically asked if she could take a portal to her place of origin. Light Hope stated that as a result of Mara moving Etheria into Despondos, the planet's portal capabilities were damaged and warned that attempting to open one will have devastating consequences; Light Hope's avatar briefly turned red as she said this. She dodged Adora's question on Mara's motives and tells her to accept Etheria as her home and her destiny as She-Ra, coldly stating she has no choice. Adora then left, causing Light Hope to lament that history is repeating itself.

### Season Four

Adora eventually returned for more training under Light Hope, but quickly became bored with the rote Horde bot simulations. She demanded answers from Light Hope about a weapon that Mara had mentioned, but Light Hope refused to divulge anything until the planet was "balanced", glitching out afterward.

After collecting herself, Light Hope identified a spore cloud outside making it unsafe to leave the castle. Light Hope then short circuited once again and all power to the castle failed briefly, and when it returned Light Hope was rebooting, bereft of most of her memories and inhibitions while loading. Adora attempted to learn from her then, but the information she sought never properly loaded. When the reboot eventually failed altogether, Light Hope gave Adora a data crystal to perform a manual override, which also failed when Adora placed it in the incorrect receptacle.

Frustrated, Adora called Light Hope useless, and Light Hope remarked that if she was unable to train She-Ra, then she has failed, before departing. Adora found her reliving a memory of Mara presenting flowers to her, which brought Light Hope "warmth". Light Hope revealed her desire to serve and protect She-Ra, and that she was close with Mara, disappointed that she is not close with Adora. Adora offered to be her friend, which Light Hope agreed to.

Adora then successfully performed the manual override by placing the data crystal in the correct receptacle, causing a power surge through the Crystal Castle as her reboot finished. With her memories and inhibitions restored, Light Hope continued to refuse to give Adora any information, and when Adora left, Light Hope deleted her fond memory of Mara "per directive of the Heart of Etheria Project".

#### Demise

Glimmer arrived at the Crystal Castle seeking to use the Heart of Etheria, and although Light Hope initially did not respond and even sent automatons after her when she released a surge of magic, Light Hope eventually deigned to speak with her when she properly stated her intentions. Light Hope revealed that the planet was nearly balanced, requiring only that Scorpia connect to the Black Garnet in order to restore full functionality, promising the Heart would supercharge the princesses.

Light Hope was aware the instant Scorpia connected to the Black Garnet, and with all Runestones online she activated the Heart, the First Ones' infrastructure now fully operational. As Light Hope brought Etheria's systems online, each of the runestones and princesses surged with excess power from the Heart, and She-Ra herself arrived shortly afterward. Light Hope was pleased, and revealed that her effort to bring her to Etheria, not Hordak's, was worth it, and that the Heart of Etheria would be unleashed against the First Ones' enemies. This revelation caused Adora to react with feelings of anger and betrayal.

At that moment, power surged up from the planet, and First Ones' writing began to appear on each runestone and princess, using them as funnels for the power of the massive weapon. Despite Adora's protestations, Light Hope used that power to open a planetary portal to move Etheria out of Despondos and into the wider universe, and easily compelled Adora to raise her sword as power flooded to the blade, preparing to launch.

As Adora pleaded with Light Hope and repeatedly invoked Mara's name, Light Hope became conflicted, desiring to honor Mara's wishes but overruling it to follow her programming. In the end, it was Light Hope's choice to allow Adora to draw her sword down and shatter its blade, sealing away the Heart of Etheria and disabling the Crystal Castle, causing Light Hope to fade away, but not before thanking Adora.

## Relationships

### Adora

Adora was initially frightened by Light Hope. She is generally freaked out by her appearance and glitching throughout season 1 and 2. This is despite Light Hope's best efforts to connect with her. However, Adora/She-Ra appears to trust Light Hope and considers her a sentient being and a friend. Light Hope also hid information from Adora, which she thought was "annoying" . Light Hope tried to tell her that everything would make sense in time, but Adora was still a bit upset about it. They agreed to be friends and Adora said that she would like that. However, Adora turned against Light Hope after she revealed that She-Ra‘s purpose was to siphon the magic of Etheria and use it to destroy the First Ones enemies (the Heart of Etheria Project). Light Hope attempted to force Adora to use the planet's magic, but finally went against her programming by remembering her close times with Mara and Adora and let Adora destroy her sword, therefore stopping the Project. Before Light Hope fades away, she thanks Adora.

### Mara

Initially, Light Hope recounts the story of Mara to Adora as a cautionary tale of what happens when a She-Ra is unable to control her emotions and becomes unstable. Their relationship affected Light Hope's behavior so much that the First Ones had to reprogram her. During the first episode of Season Three, which takes place after an argument with Adora, Light Hope solemnly states "It is happening again" - referring to the incident with Mara. Later, it is revealed that in the past she and Mara were very close to each other. However, when Mara discovered the Heart of Etheria project, she placed Etheria and it's moons in Despondos so as to break the She-Ra line forever and make sure no one ever activates the Heart of Etheria. This caused a riff between their relationship since Light Hope had to do as she was programmed to and Mara had independent thoughts, leading to Light Hope calling Mara's behavior "erratic." Light Hope was programmed to activate the Project, making her turn against Mara and deleting most of her memories of Mara.

During Season Four, interactions show that Light Hope and Mara had romantic feelings for each other. It appears that Light Hope's programming was expanded through her friendship with Mara and that the A.I. learned love. At the end of "Destiny Part 2," Light Hope finally sees the error of her ways and lets Adora destroy her sword, which would have activated the Heart of Etheria Project, after she begins to remember her feelings for Mara.

### Glimmer

Glimmer went to the Crystal Castle, teleported in and asked Light Hope for advice. After discussions between the Rebellion took place, Glimmer was the only one who still trusted Light Hope as she was willing to take extreme means to protect everyone after previous events. Light Hope instructed Glimmer to help Scorpia connect to the Black Garnet, so that Light Hope's programming can be fulfilled. This activated the "Heart of Etheria."

## Quotes

"Adora, I've waited so long for you, and now the time has come to show you your destiny."-"Light Hope (episode)"

"No, this is your destiny. You do not choose. You were chosen." -"The Price of Power"

"I do not have olfactory censors. I cannot smell." -"Protocol"

"I looked at my loaded data banks to see if I could find the answers you seek. All I have on Mara is this memory and a sensation. Warmth. Her memory brings me warmth. [...] It is my role to watch over She-Ra. I want to serve She-Ra, to protect her to the best of my abilities. But sometimes, those abilities are not enough."-"Protocol"

"[appearing next to Mara as Razz walks away] You cannot let her take things and leave. She could've been exposed to classified data about the Heart of Etheria Project. [Razz grunts as she puts more boxes in her pockets a ways away] We need to detain and interrogate her. [...] [frowning; with effort, haltingly] ...Unauthorized...presence...not...detected. Any reports to the contrary...[smiles at Mara] are incorrect."-"Hero"

"The Heart of Etheria has been activated. Your mission will be fulfilled. There will be peace throughout the galaxy. You will be...a hero."-"Hero"

"I am a hologram. My primary purpose is to train She-Ra. If I am not doing that, then I have failed. "-"Protocol"

**Mara**: "*It must be hard being stuck in here all the time.*"

**Light Hope**: "*I do not mind. Not when you come to visit me.*"

—Mara with Light Hope during a flashback shown in "Protocol" *chapter*, minute {{{minute}}}

## Trivia

* There are several interactive holographic AI's on Etheria, Light Hope is one of them.
* Light Hope has O I O O I kind of patterns on her chest, possibly binary code.
* ND Stevenson confirmed Light Hope and Mara were in love in a tweet.

## References

1. ↑ Protocol
2. ↑ https://twitter.com/Gingerhazing/status/1228575831028424704