These characters don't belong to me. They do, though, belong to Mattel. I'm not making any money off of this and so on.
This fic takes place in the same continuity as "Preludes and Beginnings," "He-Man: Year One," "The Elfsong of Eternia," "The Crossroads of Destiny," "Prophecy & Change," "Just Another Day," "The Final Adventure," "A Winter's Heart," and "The Shroud of the Horde."
It serves as a basic sequel to "Liberty and Valor" and concludes the Destiny series that started with "The Crossroads of Destiny," and continued in "Prophecy & Change," "Just Another Day," and "Liberty and Valor."
Previously:
1,000 years ago . . .
Prince Gray was given the Staff of Power, which allowed him to transform into the mystical warrior called He-Ro. Along with Battle Beast, the Sorceress known as Kodac Ungl, the Council of Elders, and the Masters of Eternia, He-Ro fought against the forces of King Hiss and his Snake-Men.
The Snake-Men, who operated out of Snake Mountain were defeated and placed into an interdeminsional prison called the Void. However, as the Snake-Men were banished, King Hiss killed He-Ro.
2 years ago . . .
The villain known as Skeletor released the Snake-Men from the Void as a result of the arrival of He-Man's newest associate and a second champion of Grayskull called She-Ra. This was also done because Skeletor sought an ally to fight the Horde, an organization of conquerors with whom Skeletor once served but now feared and despised. The leader of the Horde unit threatening Skeletor was a man named Hordak, who was the rival of King Hiss in the old days. Once King Hiss arose, he restored the ancient Great Towers. A battle was fought over them between He-Man and the Heroic Warriors; the Horde; Skeletor and the Evil Warriors; and the Snake-Men. Though He-Man claimed the victory, he paid nearly for it. His secret love, Teela, was gravely injured. (The Secret of the Sword and "The Crossroads of Destiny - Book One: Honor")
But Teela did not die. She did in fact live. As King Hiss sent Skeletor and his minions into exile, Hordak built up an army to destroy his ancient nemesis. King Hiss and Hordak battled across Eternia and Etheria, all the while the Heroic Warriors were in hiding. Teela recovered from her wounds during this war, thanks in part to King Hiss, who sought to make her his wife with a 'love spell.' Needless to say, it failed. The war ended when Hordak called upon his skills as a former Elder's apprentice. ("The Crossroads of Destiny - Book Two: War")
In the aftermath of the Horde/Snake-Men War, Skeletor swooped in and gained control of Castle Grayskull. He-Man, Teela, Man-At-Arms, and newcomer Gwildor battled on planet Earth for the safety of Eternia. While they did so, She-Ra, Orko, and various other Heroic Warriors secured the palace of Eternos and the Great Towers. ("The Crossroads of Destiny - Book Three: Beyond" and He-Man and the Masters of the Universe: The Motion Picture)
However, Skeletor's near gaining of power summoned the creature known as the Dark Cloud. It rushed to Eternia. To defeat it, She-Ra, the royal family (King Randor, Queen Johanna, and King Stephan), the Sorceress, Zodak, and Man-At-Arms joined forces with Skeletor, Hordak, and King Hiss. The battle ended when Teela used the long hidden Sword of the Ancients on the Dark Cloud. He-Man, She-Ra, and Zodak then finished off the creature. During this time, Teela revealed to Prince Adam that she had feelings for him. However, she later confessed that she actually had feelings for He-Man and was merely projecting those feelings on to Adam. ("The Crossroads of Destiny - Book Four: Restoration")
1 year, six months ago . . .
He-Man and She-Ra teamed up to stop Horde Prime from halting the Christmas spirit from reaching Eternia and Etheria. (The He-Man and She-Ra Christmas Special)
1 year ago . . .
Adam and the forces of Eternos discovered that the entity known as the Spirit of Evil was attacking the titan Ancient known as Procrustus. Procrustus held together the Light and Dark Hemispheres, ensuring their stability. A team of Heroic Warriors set off to stop the Spirit of Evil, but failed. Procrustus was destroyed and the Light Hemisphere became a second Dark Hemisphere. ("Prophecy & Change - Book One: Abyss")
As all those of the new Dark Hemisphere give into their evil natures, the ones spared from the transformation - Queen Marlena, Rokkon, Stonedar, Lubic, and Orko - set off for Castle Grayskull. Lubic, however, is captured and tortured on their way out. Stonedar and Rokkon head off into space to contact Zodak. Marlena and Orko arrive at Castle Grayskull, where He-Man, Man-At-Arms, and King Randor plan to attack. To defend Castle Grayskull, She-Ra and the Great Rebellion journey to Eternia. To do this, the secret of She-Ra's identity is revealed to Queen Marlena. The Great Rebellion defeats the Heroic Warriors and He-Man and Teela are ultimately restored to their true, good selves. ("Prophecy & Change - Book Two: Sundered")
To quest to restore Eternia begins. She-Ra becomes goes through a surrogate pregnancy to return Procrustus and she is guarded by her dual selves' crush, SeaHawk. Teela goes on a search for artifacts left over from the Ancients. And He-Man seek the help and cooperation of the Ancients themselves. In the meantime, an Army of Darkness under the command of Skeletor and King Hiss marches to Eternos. King Miro, who managed to remain free of the Spirit of Evil's influence, takes control of Eternos as his children go mad with jealously. Stonedar and Rokkon then spare the palace, thanks to a device given to them by Zodak. While the Army of Darkness struggle with the device, Hiss betrays Skeletor and hands him off to Hordak in an exchange with the means of entering Eternos. ("Prophecy & Change - Book Three: Destruction")
The Ancients are gathered by He-Man, She-Ra gives birth to Procrustus and Zodak and the Cosmic Enforcers defeat the Army of Darkness. With the help of He-Man and Teela, the Ancients destroy the Spirit of Evil once and for all. The Light Hemisphere is returned to normal, as are all of its denizens. But the emotional and political scars run deep. ("Prophecy & Change - Book Four: Unity")
As Randor brings together a summit of Eternian kingdoms, universal scoundrel Count Marzo gathers Chimera, Sticky Fingers, Lava Man, Frog Man, Leo, Hisser, Evilseed, Negator, Darkdream, General Tartaran, Game Master, Toy Maker, Fang Man and Icer to help him in a major heist: all the gold in Eternos. After putting the Dark Hemisphere to sleep and transforming all Eternians and aliens on the Light Hemisphere into animals, only He-Man is able to stand up Marzo and his gang. He-Man takes down the lackeys and then finishes Count Marzo, who is accidentally teleported to Earth. He-Man then undoes all of Marzo's handiwork. ("Just Another Day - Book One: Caper")
After all of this, Adam suggests a party to boost kingdom morale. At this party, Prince Adam meets up with a farm girl named Kathryn. Immediately, there are sparks between the two of them. These sparks blossom into a relationship with Adam and Man-At-Arms are called to Kathryn's farm to deal with a leader-less Panthor and Screech. Adam and Kathryn hook up, and then go on a exploratory trip where they and the crew of ship they are on are captured. Their captors are Pelicons, lead by the Warrior-Commander Pelicor. Immediately, it is assumed that Eternos has been aiding the enemies of the Pelicons, the Lobsterites. However, it turns out it's the Mer-People helping the Lobsterites. Adam manages to transform into He-Man, only to be caught by Kathryn in the act. He-Man and his allies help the Pelicons, but Pelicor himself is exiled. He joins the Heroic Warriors then, and even helps prevent a Spider invasion lead by Webstor. In the meantime, Snout Spout finds his past at last; Adora deals with her post-partum depression; and He-Man tells Teela that he absolutely can not return the feelings she's been confessing to him. ("Just Another Day - Book Two: Fellowship")
In an effort to change the present, King Hiss sends Kobra Kahn into the past to kill He-Ro before the fall of the Snake-Men. He-Man, She-Ra, Battle-Cat, and Swift-Wind follow and are able to stop Kobra Kahn from completing his mission. ("Just Another Day - Book Three: Legacy")
King Miro retrieves Skeletor from execution at the hands of Horde for being a traitor. He hopes to transform Skeletor back into Keldor, but fails miserably. Skeletor then returns to his place at Snake Mountain. ("Just Another Day - Book Four: Family")
Five weeks ago . . .
Hordak, defeated once more at Unicorn Island, gathered his greatest generals, dukes, Elite members, scientists, and other allies and gave the man ultimatum: develop a plan to conquer Etheria over the course of six months in the next 48 hours or perish. It took them 47 hours and 30 seconds to come up the plan. The plan, as Hordak and Horde Prime found it, was full-proof. Horde Prime, dealing a resistance movement led by his own son Prince Zed, declared that if Hordak failed in this new, seemingly full-proof plan, then he would surely die. This was a bad time for failure and the more Hordak wallowed in his own losses, the more Horde generals would lose faith in the Horde Empire and would gather around Zed. Thanks to Shadow Weaver, Hordak uncovered a way to put into motion part of his plan. Hordak's attempts at destroying the Great Rebellion had been continuously halted by the protective power of the Whispering Woods. By seeking out Dark-Hope, the evil counter-part of Light-Hope, Hordak hoped to shatter the protection of the Whispering Woods. However, He-Man, She-Ra, and a band of Heroic Warriors and the Great Rebellion were able to stop Hordak and Shadow Weaver from awakening Dark-Hope from his slumber. Yet, as victory seemed clear, Hordak was granted a bit of Dark-Hope's power for his effort to destroy the Great Rebellion. Meanwhile, Queen Angella's spy within the Horde - Double-Trouble - stumbled upon the plans for conquest and brought them to her attention. Upon She-Ra's return, Angella shared with her the plans and both are currently preparing for a counter-attack. ("Liberty and Valor - Book One: Hope")
In a manner much like Hordak's, various towns, cities, kingdoms, and peoples from across Etheria were called in for a meeting to discuss just how to counter Hordak's dastardly plan. A full-scale revolution took place, in which Horde Harbor was destroyed, towns were freed from Horde rule through riots, taxes were halted, and key components to Hordak's plan were lost. While the Great Rebellion dealt with things on Etheria, She-Ra traveled to Horde World to meet with Prince Zed. She was captured, though, and was to be executed by Horde Prime himself. But at that last minute, She-Ra was rescued by the person she least expected: Skeletor! She then returned to Etheria to aid the gathering of a massive army that would be marching soon to the Fright Zone. ("Liberty and Valor - Book Two: Resistance")
Three weeks ago . . .
After many battles, the Army of Etheria came to the Fright Zone and a combination of He-Man, She-Ra, Queen Angella, King Randor, Skeletor, and King Hiss were able to defeat Hordak. The Great Rebellion took down the Horde Elite. ("Liberty and Valor - Book Three: Endgame")
One week ago . . .
A celebration after two weeks of recovery is held, at which Adora/She-Ra hook up with SeaHawk and Adam shares some mysterious yet uplifting information with his immediate family. Hordak, his fortress destroyed and his empire wasted away, discovered a magical object that he knew could change things around: the Sword of Deception, part of the four set of blades being the Swords of Power, Protection, and Darkness. ("Liberty and Valor - Book Four: Aftermath")
It is one week after the celebration.
Thew40 presents . . .
He-Man and the Masters of the Universe
MANIFEST DESTINY
BOOK ONE: DISTRESS
The Final Volume of the "The Books of Destiny"
Prelude
The object came out of nowhere, moving at the speed of infinity, tearing across the cosmos at pace faster than space and time. It arched across the universe from its starting point, aimed directly at its destination. The object's passenger, Zodak the Cosmic Enforcer, was on a mission of utmost importance.
Zodak entered the solar system he so desired and curved to the world that was second from the sun. He swung around the three moons - Brightmoon, Darkmoon, and Org - then headed to the Light Hemisphere, until finally reaching his landing point.
His chair landing gently on the ground, Zodak stood up. As soon as he did, there was a loud clanking sound. The jawbridge of Castle Grayskull was open before him and Zodak entered. The Sorceress sat upon her throne and did not stand as Zodak walked past the pits and the pillars.
"So . . . the message was correct," the Sorceress said.
Zodak stopped near the edge of the stairs to the throne. "Yes. A gathering is taking place. You doubted it?"
"Not really, but I hoped it would not come."
There was brilliant flash of light and then a shaft of pulsing, rainbow-colored energy arrived to Zodak's left. Light-Hope, the keeper of the Crystal Castle, had come at last.
"Just why is that, Sorceress?"
"I did not care for the tone of Zodak's message," she replied.
"Neither did I," Light-Hope responded, flashing as he spoke.
"Things are happening, though," an old voice said. Master, the leader of the Ancients, came walking through a portal without warning. His silver robes flowed around him as he joined the group at the throne of Castle Grayskull. "Justice must be done, Sorceress. Here on Eternia or elsewhere. Forces are in motion. Everything that has been happening in the past five years has led up to what will happen in the next few weeks."
"You ask a difficult task, Master," came the voice of Eldor, the last of the Elders. He came walking out of his own portal, holding the Books of Living Spells and was wearing a long, brown cloak.
"So . . . we are all here," Light-Hope said.
"There is much to discuss," Zodak replied. He turned to the Sorceress. "The summons that have been issued are important. The emissaries are on their way. He-Man must comply with their plea."
Eldor perked an eyebrow. "Should he?"
"Why do you disagree, Eldor?"
The former elder looked to the Sorceress. "Do you detect the Sword of Deception any longer?"
"No, I have not been able to find it for weeks now. I believe it escaped whatever plain of existence it was in. A cloud of darkness has been hiding it from me, but it has done that before. Its very nature is based on the ability to hide itself."
Eldor shook his head. "Someone has it. It found a place in our universe once more and now . . . someone has it and is using it in subtle ways."
"Who?" questioned Light-Hope.
"I know not, but I fear it shall be used at full capacity once more."
"She-Ra will handle it," Zodak told them. "In the meantime, we must reassess the situation at hand."
"We still have several days, Zodak. You know this," Master told him. "I agree with you, you know. Let the emissaries approach He-Man themselves."
Eldor and the Sorceress exchanged brief, concerned looks, but said nothing.
"Perhaps . . ."
"I disagree with all of this," Light-Hope said loudly, pulsating brighter too. "He-Man will be needed in the time to come. Not only because of the Sword of Deception, but also . . . the time of the battle between myself and Dark-Hope grows ever closer."
Zodak lifted his hand. "The concerns of Etheria are of no importance to the Cosmic Enforcers."
"I understand that," Light-Hope responded, his tone containing an anger that was just under the surface. "Otherwise, you would have helped against Hordak and the Horde."
Zodak firmed up. "Your attempts at goading me will get you no where, spirit."
Eldor stepped in a little closer. "There is something else we must consider. There are problems here on Eternia. Conflicts that are as of yet unresolved. Who will step in?"
"With Hordak defeated, She-Ra can answer the call," Master responded.
"People can not be moved across a chessboard as you wish them to be, Master," the Sorceress said, her monotone voice carrying out the words with stronger affront.
Master sighed. "She will answer the call, though. You know this. Light-Hope and Dark-Hope's battle will be for some time, if I'm right. He-Man's task may just be over with by then. The Sword of Deception business will certainly be difficult, but it could take whoever has it years to figure out just how to use it. She-Ra can most certainly handle whatever else comes about."
"No," Eldor said sternly. "There is something coming. Don't you feel it? Don't any of you feel it? A conflict is about to erupt. I have traveled Eternia many times and in the past two years, I have heard rumors that I do not care for. King Hiss . . . the restoration of the Great Towers . . . his many betrayals and alliances . . . he's building to something."
Zodak looked to Eldor, his true emotions hidden behind his mask. "Paranoia. Your time fighting King Hiss is in the past. Hiss is nothing but a fool."
"No. He's right," Sorceress countered. Master looked a little confused at this. "There is something brewing here. Something deep and old. Something very powerful."
Master's eyes widened. "You don't think he'd actually try and . . ."
Eldor nodded. "I believe so."
Zodak cocked his head. "I do not understand."
Light-Hope flashed. "He-Man is needed here. I did not realize it until I returned her, but an evil older than all save Zodak is budding."
"She-Ra can handle it," Zodak said, blowing off whatever it was that the others were so worried about.
Eldor took a step towards Zodak. "What comes will come soon. Perhaps sooner than your emissaries. But if they arrive in the middle of the conflict, He-Man will be going nowhere."
"I would not expect him too," Zodak responded. "But what about afterwards? Surely when this 'great threat' is dealt with, he will go on with the task that has been set before him?"
There was suddenly a great voice that quieted all of them. The voice of the Spirit of Grayskull itself. "WHEN THE TIME COMES . . . HE-MAN SHALL DECIDE HIS OWN FATE!"