Cost of a Crown (Book 3)

Two Heirs

Chapter Seven: Meanwhile, Back at the Ranch

Teela fully supported Adam delaying his return to Castle Grayskull in order to stop in Eternos and doublecheck some of the claims Skeleteen made. As someone who grew up being lied to for what turned out to be basically her entire childhood and a little bit into her adulthood, Teela had an acute appreciation for fact checking.

But then they sent word that they would be staying in Eternos a bit longer than expected because Dare was injured.

That was it. That was the whole message. 'Gonna be late getting home. Dare's been injured.'

The meeting with Skeletor's heir went fine. There were no problems there. Dare was unharmed, and safe, and fine when meeting with their enemies. But when they stop over at the Old Capital, at a city well within the borders of their own domain, and presumably safe, Dare is injured. Teela didn't know what to think, and she spent the better part of two days worrying.

She used the power at her disposal to conjure up images of the current state of Eternos. Since Adam hadn't deigned to share how Dare had been injured. She saw the gardens of the Old Palace all torn up, looking very much like a battlefield after the Masters would clash with the Evil Warriors. The city guard had doubled patrols and placed extra sentries around gates and at corners. Eternos looked like a city after an attack.

But that didn't answer any of her question of exactly what happened.

Shifting the image, she demanded the power show her Dare. She needed to see him and confirm for herself just how bad he was 'injured'. The power showed her, her son laying down in a bed in the Old Palace infirmary, an IV with a blood bag attached to it in his arm. His other arm was bandaged from the wrist all the way up to the elbow and appeared to be the only visible injury he had. Dare looked fine. Except that he was unconscious.

This only filled Teela with more worry.

She loved Adam. But she was also so sick and tired of him not telling her things!

Her mother, the previous Sorceress, and Man-at-Arms told him when he was sixteen 'don't let anyone know you're He-Man' and as he grew up that somehow spiraled into 'don't tell anyone anything about anything'.

Like eighteen years ago when Adam just came home with a baby in his arms and was all like, 'whelp, guess we're parents now!'

Teela did love Dare. And she was always a strong proponent for adoption. She herself was adopted, and she much preferred the idea of adopting over having a child from her own body. Adam bringing a child home for them to raise was not the problem.

The problem was that he didn't warn her he was coming home with a baby. He just walked back into Castle Grayskull with a swaddled bundle in his arms and announced, 'this is our son!'

Obviously, he gave an explanation after the initial shock, and assured Teela that he looked for the parents, or other extended family before deciding to bring the baby home. He didn't just take a random child from somewhere. He even had a theory as to who at least one of the parents was, and Teela agreed, the baby would be better off raised by them anyway.

But still! Instead of just sending word that he was all finished in the Vine Jungle and he defeated Marzo, then coming home with a baby that he did not mention, Adam could have told her 'all done in the Vine Jungle, Marzo's defeated, oh! and I'm coming home with a baby I found'!

Like right now, all Adam said was 'staying in Eternos longer, Dare's injured'. He could have said 'Dare's unconscious', or could have said, 'Dare needs a blood transfusion', he could have said, 'something happened to Dare's arm that rendered him unconscious and made a blood transfusion necessary'. Adam could save the people in his life so much stress and worry just by telling them what was going on!

Teela scrutinized the image of Dare the Castle had conjured for her. He had a bandage on his arm but no other visible injuries, and he was getting a blood transfusion. That was all she knew.

Teela was half a heartbeat away from calling Adam telepathically and demanding that he tell her what had happened. Adam might have a habit of not telling Teela everything, but He-Man had to talk to the Sorceress!

Closing her eyes, Teela forced her frustration with Adam and her worry over Dare to take a sidestep. Pushing her emotions to the back of her mind where she could still feel them, but they wouldn't interfere with her powers. She opened her mind and-

'Sorceress! I need to speak with you!' A person she did not intend to call hopped on her telepathic line before she could form a link with Adam.

She experienced a bit of a mental stumble but caught herself quickly. She recognized the feel of the voice. 'Zodak, I'm kind of in the middle of something.' She informed him. 'Can I call you back?'

There was a mild vibration over the telepathic link. Sometimes emotions could be felt through mental connection and Teela felt that Zodak was taken aback. He was not used to the Sorceress of Castle Grayskull telling him to 'please hold'.

'This is a matter of great importance.' Zodak informed her. 'The previous Sorceress would not have hesitated to-'

'I'm sure it is.' Teela cut him off mid-thought. 'And I'm sure she wouldn't. But my predecessor didn't raise her own kid. My son is injured, and I don't even know how or why. So, if you'll excuse me, I do have something more pressing than the immanent destruction of the world. Eternia used to have an end-of-the-world crisis every other Saturday morning. While my son had been hospitalized exactly twice in his life.'

She cut off the telepathic connection before Zodak could reply. Then cleared her mind and tried again, this time shutting herself off the everything but Adam.

'Adam…' She called, reaching across distances with her mind.

This time it was him she connected with. Adam giving her his attention with the same kind of urgency he responded to her predecessor with. 'Teela! Danger? Is it Skeleteen?'

She did a quick mental double take. Adam was asking if Skeleteen was threatening Castle Grayskull and just a few moments before, Zodak tried to warn her of a 'matter of great importance', and Dare was just attacked. She pursed her lips and wondered if maybe Clamp Champ was right. They couldn't trust Skeletor's heir and he had double crossed them.

But she didn't know that for sure, and it wasn't why she was calling. 'I'm asking about Dare.' She said. 'You didn't tell me anything about him. What happened? How was he attacked? By who? Is he doing okay? Do you need to move him here to Castle Grayskull where I can heal him?'

'I will.' Adam assured her. 'I'll bring him home as soon as he wakes up. He just needed a lot of blood right away. Raena was with him when it happened, she said it was Jitsu and two others.'

'Jitsu!' Teela echoed. He used to be one of Skeletor's Warriors before he was trapped in another dimension.

'I need to know if Skeleteen has attacked anywhere else while I was distracted.' Adam continued, nothing but seriousness and concern vibrating over their telepathic connection. 'Is Castle Grayskull safe? Are you safe?'

'I'm fine.' Teela assured him, her own annoyance shuddering through their link. 'Absolutely nothing is going on here at the Castle.'

'Ooh! Dare's waking up!' Adam announced suddenly. 'We'll be home soon. Love you!'

Adam ended their connection.

Teela snarled at the gray Castle walls. She loved Adam, truly she did, but he could be so frustrating sometimes! He did not become a perfect man the moment he told her he was He-Man and explained away all his 'laziness' and odd behavior during their young adult years. Adam still retained the behaviors and habits he developed while leading his double life as He-Man and Prince Adam. He was quick and abrupt with her when important things were happening, and he didn't always give her all the information she wanted.

Adam never intentionally concealed information from her anymore, and he definitely would never outright lie to her like he used to before she knew he was He-Man. But, sometimes, omission could be just as frustrating as a lie because it left her guessing.

Some things just never changed no matter how much they grew up, or gained new responsibilities.

'Sorceress, I still need to speak with you.' Zodak's voice entered her head again. 'It is a matter of grave importance!'

'Alright. What!?' Teela snapped across the new telepathic link. Since Zodak wasn't going to let her go, apparently. She could at least fulfill her responsibility as Sorceress of Grayskull and hear what he had to say.

'A great evil has been set free on Eternia.' Zodak announced with all the seriousness of an undertaker. 'An ancient evil from the Timeless Dimension, the Unnamed One. He was freed with the blood of Skeletor's heir.'

'Skeleteen released an ancient evil.' Teela was not surprised. It looked like the boy was just as treacherous as his father had been. While Adam was distracted by the peace summit, and lulled into letting his guard down, Skeleteen sent Jitsu to assassinate her son, meanwhile Skeleteen was freeing an ancient evil Trollan monster.

But then, what did one expect from the son of Skeletor. Really.

'The Unnamed One must be stopped.' Zodak tried to impress upon her the severity of the situation. 'Or else it will be the fall of Eternia.'

…

Dare felt groggy and weak, sitting in the back seat of the landcrawler. His arm was bandaged, and they were on their way home. Someone had wrapped him up in a blanket to keep him warm, and Dad was sitting in the back seat with him instead of upfront with Clamp Champ and Buzz-Off. Adam had one arm around him, holding Dare close as if afraid the boy might be taken away from him at any moment.

Dare stared at him. He had a vague memory of his attackers saying he wasn't a descendent of Grayskull, and demanding if King Adam was really his father. But… that didn't make any sense! King Adam was Dare's father. …Right? Dare didn't have any memories of any other parents besides Adam and Queen Teela. They raised him. They were his parents.

So then, why were his attackers so sure he wasn't? Why didn't his blood work for whatever they were trying to do with it…?

"Dad…?" Dare ventured, voice sounding small even to his own ears.

Adam looked down at him. He pulled the blanket up more on Dare, tucking it around his chin before answering. "It's okay, son. You're safe now, and we'll be home soon."

Dare gave a weak little nod. Of course Adam was his father! Those bad guys just didn't know what they were talking about! That was all. Adam was his father. Adam was the only father he'd ever known.

So why did Dare suddenly feel so unsure of that fact…? Why did Dare want to know if…?

…

Teela met Adam and Dare just inside the gate of Castle Grayskull.

She shoved Buzz-Off to the side to get to her son faster. "How bad is it? Let me see."

Her hands shot out abruptly, but when she touched Dare's managed arm, her grip was gentle. Lifting the boy's arm enough so she could get a clear view of the work. Whoever had wrapped the bandage did a good job. The dressing was tight enough to not let any particles through to infect the wound, but still loose enough so as not to cut off Dare's circulation or interfere with healing.

But it didn't show her what the wound actually was.

"How bad is it?" She demanded again.

"It just needs to heal." Adam assured her. "The worst is over."

Teela glanced up at him, then looked back at Dare. Growing up being lied to by her dad and her boyfriend, she didn't like it when someone else answered a question that was asked to a specific person.

"Uh, Mom, can I talk to you when you have time?" Dare asked.

"Of course." Teela nodded. Then she raised her eyes to King Adam, here eyebrows coming down with seriousness. "Zodak contacted me while you were gone. There's something you need to know." She looked back at Dare, reassuring herself that he was fine, and the worst was over. "Right now, before anything else."

Adam, Clamp Champ, and Buzz-Off followed her down to the Sorceress' Throne Room. Which was different from the main throne room above. The main throne room was something they renovated and put in when King Adam moved the capital to Castle Grayskull. The Sorceress' Throne Room was part of the original design. A golden chair atop a miniature pyramid, and flanked by tall sculptures of wings.

Teela lifted her staff, and a globe of light appeared between the wing sculptures.

"Long ago, in the Timeless Dimension-" The globe of light projected images that coincided with Teela's narrative. A rolling field under a rainbow sky, and numerous Trollans floating around, picking flowers or hovering while holding hands. But then the scene darkened, the rainbow sky being hidden behind a layer of dark clouds while a single Trollan figure wearing a dark purple robe took over the scene's focus. "-there was an evil sorcerer that conquered the Timeless Dimension, and turned his eyes to conquering the rest of the universe."

The scene changed again, this time showing a wide shot of the same Trollan sorcerer fighting a warrior with long golden hair and wielding the Power Sword.

"He sought to steal the power of Eternia, but was stopped by King Grayskull." Teela continued. "He was stripped of his identity, his True Name becoming a curse, and trapped in the Nameless Dimension as his prison."

Dare had followed the adults down into the Sorceress' Throne Room, and he pushed between the older men to ask, "But if he was defeated, why are you showing this to us?"

Teela waved her staff again and the globe of light was extinguished. They had concluded viewing all the images she had access to. Teela would have loved to see what kind of alter, or ritual Skeleteen used to free the Unnamed One, but Snake Mountain was magically veiled from her Sight.

Instead, she told them exactly the same thing Zodak told her. "The Unnamed One has been freed from the Nameless Dimension using the blood of Skeletor's heir."

"I knew it!" Exclaimed Clamp Champ. "I knew there was a double cross. You can't trust a Skeletor!"

"Why would he do that?" Dare asked. He hadn't met King Malkyn himself, but the kids he met at the beach, Mal, and Keris, and their Snakeman friend, Danger, all seemed to really like their King and they didn't seem evil. A little cautious and borderline hostile, but not evil. Dare couldn't imagine an 'evil' leader inspiring that devotion.

But Dare's question was drowned out by the adults suddenly launching into conversation.

"We need to stop Skeleteen!"

"We need to figure out how Skeleteen plans to use the Unnamed One!"

"We can't let our past with Skeletor distract us. The priority should be stopping the Unnamed One and sealing him back in the Nameless Dimension. We can take care of Skeleteen after."

The adults seemed to be ignoring Dare.

He looked down at his feet, feeling unneeded and out of place. They were the heroes of Eternia. The Masters of the Universe. They didn't need his input. Dare wasn't a Master. He ran a hand over the bandage on his arm. Dare might not even be a real descendent of Grayskull.

Dare walked away from the adults arguing over who they should worry about more. Skeleteen or the Unnamed One he freed.

They didn't even notice when the doors shut behind him.

…

Raena and Kay-La watched the adults (and Dare). Kay-La look a step as if to follow them, but Raena stopped her.

"Hold it right there." She hissed, putting a hand on Kay-La's shoulder. "You don't get to sit at the grown-up's table again until you tell me what the hell happened to you back there."

"What do you mean?" She tried putting a vapid smile on her face, but Kay-La's eyes remained tense.

Raena tried really had not to let her frustration with her friend seep into her voice. "After all your bragging about being in a real battle, and how you were gonna take out the Evil Warriors easily because they're all old, the moment we're in a real fight against real Evil Warriors, you just froze up! What happened to you?"

"They just got me by surprise." Kay-La insisted.

"They got all of us by surprise!" Raena snapped, this time her frustration did come through in her voice. "You're the only one who freaked out and shut down."

Kay-La's plastic smile, fell into an uncomfortably grinning cringe. "Can we not talk about this, please?"

Pushing her frustration back down, Raena placed both her hands on the other woman's shoulders. "Kay-La, if you're gonna be doing that in battle, we can't let you fight with us. So, if you wanna talk-"

A bit abruptly, Kay-La pulled out of Raena's hold and backed up a few paces. "There's absolutely nothing to talk about. I'm a warrior. That was just a little hiccup."

"But-!" Raena began to protest.

But Kay-La was already walking away.

…

Dare was alone in his room when Teela finally found him.

"Hey, kiddo, you wanted to talk?" She said, inviting herself to sit down on the corner of his bed.

Sitting up, Dare crawled to the side of his bed to sit next to her. He held out his bandaged arm again. "During the attack, one the bad guys did something weird."

"Weirder than attacking the Crown Prince out in the open?" Teela's tone was pitched like she was teasing him, but her eyes remained serious. She wanted to know what 'something weird' the attackers did with her son."

Feeling nervous, Dare gripped his bandaged arm. How did he ask his mother this question? Did he even want to ask? Did he want to know the answer?

Dare dredded being told what he didn't want to hear. But more than that, he needed to know the truth.

"Their magic user." He began. "He smelled my wound and said that my blood wasn't Grayskull's blood. That I wasn't a descendent of King Grayskull." His throat tightened. He hoped his mother wouldn't be upset by what he was about to ask. "But, if Dad is my father, then I have to be a descendent of Grayskull, right? Unless… unless Dad's not my father. Mom…? I- I'm sorry to ask- and it's totally not a comment on your or anything! I love you. But… Is it possible that Dad's not my father?"

Teela's expression transitioned from serious concern, to alarm, to sympathy, all in the space of a heartbeat.

"Oh, Dare…" She wrapped both arms around him and pulled him into a tight hug. "I wanted to tell you ever since you were little. But Adam thought it would be better if you lived believing you were our biological son."

"What?" Dare tried to pull out of her hug to look her in the face, but she was holding him too tight. He ended up demanding answered from her collarbone instead. "What do you mean?"

Still hugging him tightly, it was into his hair that she spoke when she answered. "I just want you to know that it doesn't change anything. I was adopted too and I was very happy with my father."

"Adopted?" Dare finally succeeded in pulling out of her hold. He blinked at Teela, almost as if he were looking at a stranger. As if he didn't recognize her anymore. "What do you mean, 'adopted'?"

Teela readjusted her position sitting on the corner of the bed. She recognized that Dare didn't want comfort and affection right now, he wanted answers. The emotions would come later. She cleared her throat.

"Your father brought you home one day after one of his battles." She began. "This was after the defeat of Skeletor when we were still trying to stabilize peace on Eternia. Count Marzo had set up a base in the Vine Jungle and Adam, as He-Man, went to stop him. He defeated Marzo, but the base was destroyed in the process. In the wreckage, Adam found you. He looked for your family." Teela assured him quickly. "Marzo had a lot of Jungle Tribes men indentured to him. But when no one claimed you as theirs, Adam brought you back here and we raised you as our own."

When she was done, it was all Dare could do to just stare at her.

King Adam wasn't his father, he was expecting that. But Queen Teela wasn't his mother either? He was expecting her to confess to having an affair. That he was the result of a short lived but loving lapse in judgment. But she was saying that no part of him came from her at all?

"But- then- Who am I?" Dare heard himself ask.

"You're my son." Teela told him with absolute concision. Dare was her son. Not because he came from her body, but because she chose to make him her son. Adopted family was family.

That, however, appeared to be a conclusion that Dare needed to come to on his own.

He seemed to have his attention turned inward. Thinking. His eyes fixed on the far wall as he brought a hand up to his mouth to bite his nails.

"That's why they left me." Dare muttered, speaking more to himself than to Teela.

"Who left you?" She asked, concerned. Did her son's bodyguards abandon him?

"The guys who attacked me." Dare explained. "As soon as they realized I didn't have Grayskull's blood, they left. I didn't have what they needed."

"That sounds like a good thing, Dare." Teela stared at him.

He was still avoiding looking at her. No longer looking at the wall, either. Dare had averted his eyes. Off to the side and a little down. Almost staring at the bandage on his arm, but not really seeing it.

"If I'm not good enough for whatever terrible thing the bag guys are doing, then how can I be good enough to take care of Eternia when Dad- when King Adam's gone?" He said out loud.

Teela reached out and grabbed his hand, squeezing hard in a way she hoped was reassuring. "Dare, the two are not one in the same. We're lucky the bad guys didn't want you, and you will be a good King."

"How can you know?" Dare demanded. "How can you be sure I- I'm worthy?"

"Because I raised you, and I know you." Teela assured him. "I know who you are, Dare. Who you really are. In your core. The things that makes you you. Because I am your mother. Maybe not the woman who bore you, but I'm the woman who raised you. And… I'm also the Sorceress of Castle Grayskull, and as the Sorceress I can tell you, Dare of the House of Adam, you are worthy."

Her words sounded nice, and Dare offered a weak smile. It was nice being told in an authoritative voice that he was worthy. But he didn't really feel reassured. He still had questions and Teela wasn't giving him answers. He still wanted to know who his biological parents were.

Teela said Adam looked for his parents and nobody he found claimed him. That didn't mean they were dead. It just meant they hadn't claimed him. Maybe they were afraid. If they were indentured to an evil sorcerer like Count Marzo, maybe they didn't believe Marzo was gone and didn't want to risk their child becoming enslaved by Marzo as well. Maybe they thought he'd be safer with He-Man.

Dare needed to know.

"Thanks, Mom- uh, Queen Teela." He stood.

"Mom." She corrected him. "I'm still your mother, Dare. I still think of myself as your mother."

"Right." He nodded.

Teela pursed her lips. She didn't like that response and she didn't appreciate being addressed by her title by the baby she adopted and raised as her own child. But, as someone else who discovered the real identity of a parent that was concealed from them, Teela understood that Dare needed time to process what he'd just learned. Time, and maybe a little space.

Teela stood to leave. If time and space was what her son needed, then she would give him his privacy.

But she did pause in the doorway, turning back to briefly add, "And, Dare, Adam feels the same way I do. Regardless of who your biological parents were, you are our son."

She waited for a response, but Dare was lost in his thoughts, all he gave her was a subdued grunt to conform that he heard.

Teela left the room, carful to close the door behind her. Dare just needed to process. He would feel much better once he adjusted to what he learned.

…