"Soon, my beautiful Teela. Soon we will be together. Once I remove those who would stand between us, nothing will stop me from claiming you as my own." The man speaking was shrouded in darkness, but even the dark could not eclipse the light of madness in his eyes.
In the city of Eternos:
HeMan entered the courtyard of the Royal Palace after delivering a message to King Randor. He had just returned from a fishing village near the Eternian ocean where he'd helped locate a lost fishing boat and returned the crew to their families. The grateful Mayor had asked him to deliver a message of thanks to the King for sending him to help. Now he should change back to Adam, although, truth be told, he wasn't in a big hurry to change back, since as soon as he did, he'd have to face Teela and try to explain why he'd skipped their training session.
"Oh, well, no sense delaying the inevitable." But as he did his customary check to see if anyone else was around, and he noticed someone was.
Teela was sitting on a marble bench, and quite out of character, she looked very distracted. HeMan might have thought she was daydreaming but for the troubled frown on her face. Intrigued, he approached and greeted her softly, "Hello, Teela." His soft greeting caused her to jump; she'd obviously been completely unaware of him being there. "Oh! HeMan, I didn't notice you there."
HeMan frowned slightly in concern. Teela was always alert to her surroundings. "Is there something troubling you, Teela?" He asked in tender concern. She gave him a small half-smile, "Am I that obvious? It's nothing, really. I'm just being silly." "Tell me." HeMan promoted, sitting on the bench next to her. She sighed heavily then explained, "It's just that, lately, now and then, it feels as though I'm being watched. No matter where I am, on the training field, in the city, even in the Palace, I feel eyes on me." She waved a hand dismissively, "Just an overactive imagination from fatigue, I've had a busy month training new recruits and finishing my evaluations. I just need a few days down time."
She sounded as though she was trying to convince herself more than anything, but before he could reply she asked , "Have you seen Adam today?" "No not yet, is he missing?"
Teela shook her head in defeat, "No he just missed yet another training session. I don't
know what to think about him anymore." Now HeMan was even more intrigued, this wasn't her usual anger at being stood up, "What do you mean?" Teela looked at him sadly, "I know I'm hard on Adam, and I don't mean to be. It's just that he's become such a different person than the one I grew up with. He used to be a brave, compassionate man concerned with what was going on with Eternia , and he's turned into someone I don't recognize anymore. Sometimes it feels almost like he's putting on an act, like he wants to be more responsible but feels compelled to act otherwise. At times I want to grab and shake him, and demand to know what happened to the real Adam!"
HeMan couldn't swallow past the lump in his throat, Teela seemed so sad; it was all he could do to stifle himself from telling his secret. Taking a breath, he settled for saying, "I think Adam is going through a phase, struggling with his identity. But if you still see glimpses of the old Adam, then he is still in there and I think he'll reappear one day." 'If she only knew" he thought to himself.
Teela smiled a bit more brightly, "Thanks for the talk. I'll try to be more patient with him." HeMan smiled back, " I know Adam values your friendship greatly as do I. You are a very special person Teela, don't forget that." She blushed slightly and he continued, more seriously. "Teela, these suspicions you have of being watched, if they continue, I want you to let your father know and have him contact me. I don't want to think about anything bad happening to you. It would kill me to see you hurt."
"Thanks. I know I can always count on you to help. Even if it is with my overactive imagination." He gave her a warm smile and left the courtyard.
Later, as Adam, he entered the gymnasium to find Teela stretching, and , bracing himself for a lecture he spoke up. " Uhh, Hi Teela. I'm sorry about our sparring session. I, uh, kind of forgot." Teela heaved a sigh and straightened, 'Look Adam, I know I seem uptight and disapproving with you. It's just that I know you are really a good, responsible, compassionate man and I just want to help you realize your potential. So why don't we make a deal. I'll stop being so strict and let my hair down once in a while, and you put up with my training sessions and teach me how to have some fun."
Adam was floored, and , after gaping for a moment, he stammered, "All right, deal."
After what was for once a productive session with Adam, teal decided to walk down to the marketplace. She strolled through the tables where the people of the kingdom gathered to sell their wares. Tables filled with fruits, vegetables, baked goods, pottery, jewelry, and colorful cloth filled the square. Teela smiled at the sights, feeling more relaxed than she had in days. As she stopped to examine a beautiful bolt of lace, her feeling of peace vanished.
She felt it again. The sensation of cold eyes following her every move. Tiny hairs rose on the back of her neck and goose bumps covered her flesh. She scanned the crowd with her eyes, but saw only the smiling friendly faces of the merchants and shoppers. Still, she could not shake the feeling of dread sitting in the pitt of her stomach. As her eyes swung around once more she nearly jumped out of her skin when two large eyes appeared right in front of her.
Teela cursed herself for her foolishness. It was only Orko, brandishing a bright pink flower, "Hi Teela!" "Orko, I didn't see you there, you startled me!" She smiled at him, still trying to chase the fear away. "Oops, sorry about that! But I found a whole bunch of these in a field and wanted to give you one to cheer you up!" "An Eternian Lilly! Thank you, Orko, it's lovely." Teela smiled at the little trollan, whose ears were blushing. Orko may be goofy and accident prone, but he had one of the purest hearts and gentlest souls she knew of. He always knew how to make her smile. She laughed softly and hugged him, "Thank you, you made my day a little brighter. I've got to go get ready for lunch. See you later." She waved at him and left the market.
Orko waved and floated the other way, but just as he passed a dark alley, a rough hand reached out and grabbed the shocked little wizard. Orko was thrown hard against the wall like a rag doll and then a foot was driven viciously into his little body. He barely registered a voice snarling onto his ear as he was hit again and again, "She's MINE you little freak!!" then Orko knew no more.