MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE: THE CROSSROADS OF DESTINY
Historian's Note: This story takes place following the ending of the original Filmation "Masters of the Universe" cartoon (about one week following the final episode - "The Cold Zone"); and right as the "She-Ra, Princess of Power" Filmation cartoon is beginning (the ending of "The Secret of the Sword").
Disclaimer: This fanfic is based on many of the Masters of the Universe mini-comics, often times being totally new versions of the stories featured there. All characters featured in this story are the property of those that created them. This story is for entertainment purposes only, not for profit.
Prelude
She-Ra turned to He-Man, then gripped Swift-Wind's reigns. He-Man offered her a smile, and the pair looked out upon the crowd that had settled at Castle Brightmoon. The Kingdom was freed from Hordak's grip, and now She-Ra was the leader of the Great Rebellion. He-Man - and Adam, within - knew what this meant.
Princess Adora, She-Ra, was going to have to remain here on Etheria only days after being rediscovered.
The crowd roared, giving She-Ra a light grin. "Listen to them cheer. It's so good to hear them happy."
He-Man nodded. "What about you? Are you happy?" he questioned.
"Yes," She-Ra answered at first, before closing her eyes in thought, "and no."
"You . . . you won't be returning to Eternia me," He-Man assumed.
"You're right," she answered swiftly. "Hordak was correct. One battle does not win a war. And it is a war that Etheria is fighting. I'm needed here. At least for now."
He-Man took a breath, understanding what she was saying. Without another word, the pair hugged tightly as brother and sister. "Tell mother and father I love them."
"I will," He-Man replied. "Ready to go home, Battlecat?"
"Sure, He-Man!" growled Battle Cat.
He-Man looked at her dearestly. "Say goodbye to all my friends here, will you? And should you ever need my help . . ."
She smiled at him. "I know. And if you ever . . ."
"I'll know just who to ask for."
She-Ra nodded and she and Swift-Wind lifted off the ground. He-Man felt an immense amount of pride rise within him as his sister took to the skies. He pulled out his sword as a sign of honor. "Farewell, She-Ra! Princess of Power!"
She-Ra looked back, caught in the glow of the moon. "Good bye, He-Man! Dear brother!"
And with that, She-Ra and He-Man parted ways, both swiping away a stray tear. He-Man and Battle Cat turned away from Brightmoon. Just as they did, a golden portal opened before them. The pair entered . . .
. . . Arriving in the heart of Castle Grayskull. The Sorceress stood before He-Man, her face sad and tired. "She has decided to stay."
"For now," He-Man replied. "But we both know we'll see her again."
"Of course, He-Man, of course."
"Come, Battle Cat, let's get back to Eternos. I'm sure the others are wondering where Adam and Cringer have been."
***
A few hours later, after returning from He-Man and Battle Cat to Prince Adam and Cringer, the pair entered into the Palace. Adam had depended on Duncan for telling King Randor and Queen Marlena where he had been, so there wasn't much point coming up with a cover story. It was pretty obvious.
Teela, on the other hand, was a different matter.
Adam was well on his way to bed, exhausted after the past few days as both He-Man and himself. Cringer was lagging behind him, tired and cranky. Just as they rounded the corner to Adam's room, Teela appeared seemingly out of nowhere.
"About time you got back here," she yelped. "What? Did Adora's friend, She-Ra, keep you out late?"
Adam made a hideous expression. "What?! Oh, gosh, Teela, that's disgusting!"
"Why's that? I thought she sure was pretty," Teela replied, more of an insult than a compliment. "Big blue eyes, blond hair, and hmmm . . . what other aspect was there to her that was so attractive? Hmmm? I wonder what it could be? Oh! I know! It was her brea - "
Adam threw his hand over Teela's mouth. "Don't say it. Just, don't say it. She-Ra may as well be another sister to me and it is impossible for me to even think about her that way. So please. Stop."
Teela answered him with a swift kick, knocking Adam's feet out from underneath him. He fell to the floor, shocked.
"You're such a baby," Teela insulted, starting to walk away.
Adam stood up quickly, not wanting this to be the end of it. "Why are you so threatened by her, Teela? She's like a sister."
Teela looked back sharply, eyes carrying what looked like a death glare. But they softened quickly, as if she was catching herself mid-emotion. "I'm not threatened. I just like to tease you."
Adam grunted and turned around. "Come on, Cringer. Let's just go to bed."
Teela paused a moment, as Adam and Cringer vanished behind the bedroom door. She bit her lip, surpressing the childhood crush she had Adam. But as soon as that thought came rolling in her mind, she also found the other crush she had - the one on He-Man - returning. It had only been three weeks ago that he held her in his arms after he believed he had killed an innocent. His touch had been so warm, so wonderful . . .
But Adam . . . well, Adam knew Teela better than she knew herself. Their friendship had always been so deep, and seemed to always boarder on something more. And right when she felt like taking that extra step - He-Man appeared, throwing her emotions into chaos.
Teela sighed, turned heel and went to bed, tired of sifting through this emotional mess.
***
The Talon Fighter sat down right in front of Castle Grayskull's drawbridge. Man-At-Arms stepped out, carrying a small bag with him. "Sorceress!" he yelled out. "I've come to see you."
For a moment, he could feel the gaze of the Sorceress fall upon him. A few seconds later, the drawbridge opened up and the Sorceress stood at the entrance of Grayskull's mouth. "Man-At-Arms. Please enter."
He nodded and walked inside, the drawbridge closing behind him. As soon as it locked, the Sorceress looked him over.
"Man-At-Arms, why is it - "
"Not tonight," he told her, removing his helmet and walking fully into the great structure. "Tonight, call me Duncan."
She nodded, smiling at him. He caught the sight of it and remembered it as the smile she gave him the night they first met. "Then," she said to him, "tonight, call me Teelana."
He looked surprised. "Really?"
"Things have changed for all of Eternia, Duncan. Tonight, I permit this. Come, sit." She waved to a table and chairs. He sat down across from her and gave the great woman a smile.
"I brought something to commemorate the events of these past few days." Duncan reached into his bag and pulled out a bottle of wine, along with two glasses. He poured them up and handed one to Teelana.
"To Adora," he said, lifting it up to hers.
"Adora."
The two drank, then. Duncan nodded, satisfied with his choice in beverage. "Teelana, I wanted to talk to you about something."
"Oh?"
"Yes. With this reunion between Adora and her parents, I figured it would . . ."
She put up her hand, already knowing what he was going to say. "I know, Duncan. Yes, it is difficult. Very difficult. To see Adora returned to her parents . . . her mother . . . it's . . ."
"It bring up feelings about you and Teela. I know. I figured."
Teelana smiled. "And that's why you're here."
"No," Duncan answered. "I'm here because I wanted to thank you on behalf of the king and queen for bringing Adora back. But this" - he picked up the wine bottle once again - "is for those feelings."
Teelana laughed and place her hand on top of Duncan's. "I have missed this."
"I know. Me too. I wish we could do this more often, but with you being the Sorceress and all . . ."
"Yes. Yes, I know," Teelana replied, straightening herself in her chair. "Too much risk."
"Exactly. But, hey, I'm here now. Just an old soldier stopping by to have some drinks with an old lady friend."
Teelana laughed out loud. "Duncan, you were always able to make me laugh."
"Yeah, well, I got another one for you. Teela's jealous."
"Oh? Whom of?"
"Who do you think?"
"She-Ra?"
"Yep."
Teelana giggled. "I can not believe it. She actually believes that - "
"Yeppers. I wish I could tell her, but, hey, it's still quite funny," Duncan laughed. "But, I guess that just goes to show you how much she really cares about Adam. And He-Man. I can't wait for the day she finds out they're one and the same."
"Well . . . affairs of the heart . . ." Teelana began, the smile on her face dimming.
"What's wrong?"
"Duncan, I . . . it's just that . . ." She stood up, and walked away from the table. Duncan followed her.
"What is it?" Her back facing him, he put his hands on her shoulders. "Talk to me, Teelana."
She turned to face him, her face cracking with emotion. "Oh, Duncan . . . this mantle . . . it's so lonely . . ."
Duncan turned her around, and pulled her against him. His arms wrapped around her body, holding her tight as she began to cry. "Hey, hey," he assured her, lifting her face up, hand on her chin, "it's alright. I'm here."
"I know."
The two looked deeply into each others eyes, rekindling something that had been there years ago. Duncan and Teelana moved in for a deep, wonderful kiss. For a moment, everything seemed frozen in time, trapped all in that wonderful, emotional moment of passion and love.
Then, they broke, still looking into each others eyes. "Duncan . . ." she whispered, gazing at his face.
"I . . . I'm sorry," apologized Duncan. "I'll . . . I'll get going . . ."
He started away from her, back to the door. But she caught up with the old warrior. "Duncan, wait."
Duncan turned around, his face red. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have . . ."
She stepped over to him and kissed his cheek. "Stay with me. Just for a little while."
He nodded. "Alright."
Teelana opened up her arms and the two hugged for the longest time . . .
***
Evil Lynn was in for quite a surprise when she returned to Snake Mountain.
Two of the corridors crushed, at least a dozen doors were smashed apart, and one of the main chambers were in shambles. Add onto that Skeletor's cursing echoing throughout the entire mountain, and you had yourself one big mess.
"What's going on here?" she asked Beast-Man.
"Skeletor and some of us were just beaten up by a She-He-Man," Beast-Man answered. "Skeletor's mad."
Evil Lynn blinked. "What are you talking about, fuzzball?"
Tri-Klops looked over. "Some new ally of He-Man's named She-Ra arrived and defeated all of us. She supposedly has all of He-Man's powers. Maybe even stronger."
"How strange. It seems I can never leave this place without something like this happening," she grunted.
"More than that," Tri-Klops continued. "This She-Ra supposedly comes from Etheria, where she's waging a war against the Horde."
"The Horde, eh? Curiousier and curiousier."
Suddenly, Skeletor barged through a nearby door, fuming with rage. "Evil Lynn!" he yelled. "Did you get the book I sent you to retrieve?"
She pulled it up from behind her back and handed it to Skeletor. It was old, bound in green and had a musty smell to it. Skeletor ran his fingers over it. "Excellent. And the timing couldn't be better. The knowledge contained within 'The Book of the Snakemen' will allow me to seek out the secrets of this accursed mountain. Secrets I can use to destroy He-Man, Hordak AND She-Ra!"
Evil Lynn rolled her eyes. Skeletor began to flip through the pages. "What is this!?" he yelled, outraged at what he was seeing.
Evil Lynn stepped forward. "It's written in a form of Snakemen language we have yet to - "
"KOBRA KAHN!" screamed Skeletor. The green-scaled villain entered the chamber.
"Yes, master?"
"You're Repton, aren't you? That means your people are related to the Snakemen?"
"Yes, master, but I - "
Skeletor threw the book at him. "Translate this! NOW!"
Kobra Kahn looked through the pages. "This will take time, Skeletor."
Skeletor's eyes grew red. "Then you had best get started, shouldn't you?"
"Y-Yes, master . . . yes . . ."
Skeletor lifted up his fists. "This day shall be mine, then! I will crush you, He-Man! You and She-Ra and the entire Horde army! This I vow!"