TRIAL OF A HERO

BY

AIDAN CROSS

5/22/99

PART 16

The jail cell was almost pitch black as the night fell. He-Man peered through the electro-bars over the window. In the light of the twin moons, there was a group of protesters outside, waving their banners and signs saying 'SET HE-MAN FREE'. And He-Man could hear the shouts of the campaigners from several streets away, echoing through the streets of Eternos. It had been quite a relief to hear that not everyone had turned against him, after all. The jail had an information system, which could be heard even in the prisoners' cells, and He-Man had heard the announcement earlier about the amount of protesters in the city, headed by none other than Teela.
He had also seen the protesters who had been outside the jail before, but forced to move away by the jail guards with their guns. Public opinion was definitely not as much against him as he had originally thought. Although he had been disappointed and slightly angered to hear that the Court was currently refusing to change its verdict, he simply could not have been more grateful to Teela.
Sinking back against the rough surface of the cell walls, staring into the darkness, he though of this girl, and how much she had done for him in the past twenty-four years. He loved her with all his heart. She had been like a sister to him as they had grown up together….. and he had always known that their mutual affection could grow into love. Yet throughout the past six years, since he had first become He-Man, she had often complained that Adam was not as brave or strong as He-Man….. it had just been so tedious how he was unable to tell her that he and Adam were one and the same. He loved her so much, and she adored him as He-Man, yet she loved Adam too and seemed to be torn with the choice of which of them to go for. There had been so many times that he had nearly told her his secret….. and he was sure that she had suspected once or twice….. but it had never firmly gone through to her. He knew she would like him even more if she realised that He-Man and Adam were the same person….. as he remembered the time after he had rescued her from the clutches of the Game Master, and she had said she wanted a man with Adam's wit and He-Man's strength. Yet it had been the tedium of never being able to reveal his secret that had caused him to almost reach breakdown. He just had to tell her….. but it would be considered abusing the power of Grayskull!
He loved her even more now, with all the effort she had made to clear his name, speaking out for him so openly in court, and now starting this campaign which was spreading throughout Eternos. And his love for her would reach an all-time high if she actually managed to get him out of this cursed jail. He wanted to be right by her, to hold her in his arms and love her….. to tell her just how much she meant to him, to tell him his great secret….. but he was stuck here, in this dark, murky prison cell, with not a soul to talk to. It was pitch black, completely uncomfortable, rugged and dirty, and he felt the sweat ooze from his pores….. he had never felt so unclean before. How was he going to face the night in here? He had barely had any sleep the night before….. and he was missing Teela so badly, and was almost sick with worry about what the evil warriors might do in his absence. He KNEW it had to be them who had framed him!!! But how? They had made an evil He-Man before….. that was Faker, who was surely dead by now….. He-Man had last seen him three years ago, in the fishing village of Marxall, when he cast him out to sea, unconscious, in a wooden boat. Could Faker possibly have made a return? Could this have been his way of wreaking the revenge that he had been so determined to enact upon He-Man? Should Faker be the man whom the Law should be looking for???
Surely not, He-Man told himself- how could Faker have survived alone on the great oceans of Eternia, unconscious in a small and fragile wooden boat? And his skin had been blue when He-Man had last seen him….. surely he could not have restored himself to the way he had looked when he was created? No, it could not be Faker, He-Man told himself….. but he could not help but feel that this was the identity of the real killer.
He pounded upon the rocky walls of the cell in frustration. The killer had to be found! He had to have Teela by his side, and be free from this cursed place! But was he thinking the impossible? As he hammered loudly on the walls, almost hurting his fists, he prayed that the walls would collapse under his strength….. he had to escape from here…..
Then he stopped, and sank to the ground to calm himself. He could not even attempt to escape from jail- then he would only be treated with even more disrespect by the guards, and the court officials. He would be seen as nothing but a criminal escaping from jail. He must try to calm himself….. think of something that would relieve his soul from all the stress he had been under….. he would only feel even worse if he dwelled upon the bad things…..
He lay back against the wall, closed his eyes, and emptied his head entirely of the court conviction, his love for Teela, the murder….. everything that had contributed to his current state. He felt the damp sweat on his forehead, the rugged texture of the brickwork on his back, and the floor below. He ignored the comfortless feeling it gave, and focused solely on his breathing…..
He thought of the practices engaged in by the jungle tribes of the East. He heard the sound of their drum rhythm in his head, the rhythmic, delicate beating….. and he focused alone on the sound of the drum.
The rhythm became more and more vivid as he concentrated on it more and more heavily. It felt less and less like it was in his head- it was actually with him. He could actually hear it.
Visions swept past his eyes…. random visions….. of beautiful constellations of stars in the depths of space….. of Grayskull emitting clouds of magical outbursts….. of shooting comets and brightly-coloured shapes, zooming past him….. and the music grew louder. These were not simple dream images. They were actually there, in front of him. So why just lie back and watch….. he had to join them.
And with one big leap, he felt his spiritual body break free from his physical body, uniting with the light that encircled above. He could see the prison cell around him….. the shoddy brickwork, the dirt….. but it all felt so different. It no longer looked so threatening….. for here he was in a world of paradise, unseen to the material world, drifting through the air to the sound of the drumbeat….. accelerating to an ecstatic pace….. he thought of the courtroom….. he thought of his enemies….. his frustration at concealing his true self from Teela….. and he thought of life, and how he LOVED IT NO MATTER WHAT THE CIRCUMSTANCES!!!!!!!!!!!!!! The stars and lights danced around him manically, the drumbeat got faster….. faster….. he felt voices around him….. voices of Gods….. none of his worries mattered anymore….. this was ecstasy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! His soul felt elevated above the rest of mankind!!! He had spirits of goodness on his side!!!!! The music, voices and sound of the zooming stars merged into one….. a crescendo of ecstatic noise….. and he burst through the roof of the jail, spun through the night sky, his eyes filled with the exquisite sights of the shimmering blue lights of the buildings of Eternos!!! The stars above all zoomed like rockets through the sky to the sound of the drumbeat….. and as he reached the peak of ecstasy, he heard a voice surrounding him….. a faint, soft female voice….. as the face of the Sorceress appeared before him, saying "Do not worry, He-Man. You will be freed….. you will be freed….. you will be freed….."

He shot up, finding himself facing once again the blackness of his jail cell, feeling the rugged, dirty surface beneath him. He was back in his physical body. But it no longer mattered anymore.
Had that experience been real?!!!!! Even if it had only been going on inside his brain, it sure had felt real. And it had elevated his mood immensely. He leaped to his feet. The jail cell no longer felt as uncomfortable as before. His problems no longer felt so threatening. They were still there- but after the experience he had just had, he had enough faith that someone- somewhere- would be able to get him out.
He looked outside onto the street. He saw a banner saying 'HE-MAN MUST BE FREED' and smiled. He would be free soon. He was downright sure that he would. He did not know how, or when, or who would get him out- but he knew he would get out of this place.
Feeling refreshed and sheltered, he let himself fall back against the wooden bench of his cell, and fell asleep as his head hit the pillow, his mind totally eased and free from stress and tension.
And he dreamed of Teela.

PART 17

For several long days and nights, The Sorceress, She-Ra, Extendar and Man-At-Arms searched endlessly for the evil being who had framed He-Man. Man-At-Arms spent long hours in the Grayskull Library, looking through all kinds of ancient books to find out if there was any kind of ancient magic that could have created an evil He-Man. The Sorceress constantly tapped into her mind to try to visualise the killer….. but the image became no clearer. She even took off in the form of Zoar, and scanned the surface of the planet for any sign of anyone who could possibly be the true killer. But she found nothing. Extendar and She-Ra ventured out across the planet, secretly spying on Snake Mountain and Viper Tower….. but they saw nothing that offered them proof. On several occasions they were called back to Eternos to help defend the city against attacks by Skeletor's warriors. They could not help but fear that without He-Man, the planet could soon fall to the rule of evil.
As evening fell one night, after just over a week of searching for the killer, Extendar and She-Ra returned to Grayskull, meeting the Sorceress and Man-At-Arms in the library.
"How did you go?" asked Man-At-Arms, looking up from his book.
"Well, we managed to fend them off." said She-Ra. "But they have damaged more of the city. Several buildings are completely in ruins, and there were bodies scattered all through one street. I fear that they may take over the planet soon. I believe Skeletor intends to use the Arcology as a base when he has conquered the city."
"And they're still denying anything to do with the killing?" asked Man-At-Arms.
"I'm afraid so. And there still seems to be a fair amount of people who actually believe the evil warriors weren't involved."
"How's Teela's campaign going?"
"It's still pretty strong. The protesters have been going wild in the square, outside the prison, and outside the Court. But the Law have clearly made up their minds- they have no intention of even considering releasing He-Man."
"We've gotta get him out soon, or this planet's gonna blow." said Extendar. "But how are we gonna do it? We've been here over a week and found nothing."
"We must not give up our search, Extendar." said the Sorceress. "However difficult it may be, if we set our hearts on finding the true killer, we have a much greater chance of freeing He-Man."
"Did you do what I asked you to, Extendar?" asked Man-At-Arms. "Did you go to the palace and get my battle log?"
"What? Oh yeah, I did." Extendar opened up a slit in the chest of his cyborg body, and pulled out a small book, full of entries by Man-At-Arms. It was Man-At-Arms' battle log, in which he recorded every single battle that he or He-Man had ever had. Extendar handed the book to Man-At-Arms. "But why did you want me to bring this, Duncan?"
"It's so I can look and see if there's anything that'll give us an idea about the real killer. There may have been some one-off villain who we've forgotten about, who's pulled this scheme up on us. I've recorded every battle we've had since the start here, so it could take me a while to read the whole thing. You can continue your own searches while I read through this."
"Sure thing, Duncan." said Extendar. "I might as well read the books of the ancients and see what I can find." he went over to the ancient stone bookcase, pulled out a dusty old book, and sat down with it on the couch. She-Ra sat by him and looked through it with him, as the Sorceress sat still, deep in meditation.
After a few moments of silence, the Sorceress suddenly shot up to her feet, as if in shock.
"What's up, Sorceress?" asked Extendar.
"I thought I almost had a clear vision of the killer. It was clear for a split second, then it faded again."
"Then give it another go!" said Extendar. "You could be on your way to getting a clear image! I wish I could meditate like you, it sounds a great experience!"
"Anyone can learn to meditate." replied the Sorceress. "Last week I had this vision of hovering above the jail, and seeing He-Man breaking through the roof. I hope there was some reality in the vision I saw."
"Maybe there was." said She-Ra. "I was talking to Teela when I was in Eternos. She said that she'd heard a guard at the jail, saying that He-Man had been talking nonsense about having some vision of the Sorceress above the jail. Who knows….."
The Sorceress smiled in excitement. Their meditatory visions must have joined, for that second! She must have made He-Man feel a lot better!
"Then I shall continue." said the Sorceress, sitting down again. "Maybe I could get right through to him through meditation." she closed her eyes, and crossed her legs, sinking back into the depths of her mind.

"So, how's things at the palace, Extendar?" Man-At-Arms asked, as he flicked through the pages of his battle log, without looking up. "I haven't been there for more than a week."
"The Royal Family are coping okay." said Extendar. "I think Queen Marlena's pretty worried….. I know she's always known secretly that Adam is really He-Man. She knows it's her son who everyone's calling a murderer. I get the idea she's gonna speak out about He-Man being Adam if he's in that jail much longer- that's another thing I'm worried about, she might blow his secret identity."
"Then we must not give up our search for the killer." said Duncan. "If I continue reading this….. wait a second, what is this….."
"What's up, Duncan?" asked She-Ra. "Have you found something?"
"I think I have!" said Duncan. "This is one of the first battles we ever had….. The Shaping Staff! Skeletor created an evil He-Man, called Faker!"
The Sorceress suddenly looked up, jerking into action again. "Faker! Of course! He lured me out of Grayskull, pretending he was He-Man!"
"I think He-Man has mentioned him to me!" said She-Ra. "Wasn't he knocked down the abyss?"
"He was, but he definitely came back." said Extendar. "I was looking for him three years ago, in the village of Marxall. He killed two fishermen there!"
"Yes," said Man-At-Arms, "He-Man knocked him down the abyss after a brief battle….. but he did come back, let me find the date!" he flicked rapidly through the pages of his journal, eventually stopping and saying "Aha! Here's where he came back! I wasn't present to see him this time….. but the Sorceress was!"
"Yes, I was." replied the Sorceress. "He tricked me again into thinking he was He-Man, and attacked me in the night. And then I tricked him," she smiled at the memory, "he thought I was totally helpless, and then I just jumped up and….. kicked his butt!" she laughed out loud.
"Now, that's strong language coming from you, Sorceress!" laughed She-Ra.
"I totally fooled him!" the Sorceress laughed. "And together with He-Man, I defeated him….. but when did he come back?"
"Well, it says here that you turned his skin blue after he was defeated." said Man-At-Arms. "And if I remember correctly….." he flicked through more and more pages, "Yes, it was a year later that he invaded Marxall! Here it is! At one point he leaped upon me in one of the streets! That definitely was a memorable battle….. especially the way He-Man defeated him, casting him adrift in a wooden boat!"
"Yeah, I remember that!" said Extendar. "The guy was a real psycho, I remember….. totally mad for revenge on He-Man, but He-Man seemed to kick his butt within seconds. But cast adrift at sea in a wooden boat? Has he been seen since?"
Man-At-Arms flicked through more and more pages. "I can't find any other reference to him. No, that was the last we saw of him."
"Then he can't have survived, can he?" said Extendar. "I mean, he was unconscious, and adrift on the sea in a simple, small wooden boat? He couldn't survive that!"
"He could." said the Sorceress. "He survived two years in the abyss before he made his first return. He was almost as strong as He-Man, so I think that if he survived the abyss, he could easily survive at sea. However unlikely, it is still possible."
"But….." said Man-At-Arms. "He was blue then. He may have been an exact replica of He-Man when he was created, but at this point his skin was completely blue….. and I don't see how he could have restored it. I'm not entirely sure about this….."
The warriors sat silently, considering the thought. Then Extendar said "No, it can't be Faker. If he wanted revenge, he'd have come back long before now anyway. No, it's not him. Let's continue our search."

PART 18

The next morning, as Teela dressed herself after showering, staring at the reflection of her slick, beautiful form in the steamy mirror, the sole thing on her mind was He-Man and the strength of her campaign. She was still sickened by the thought of him in jail, and the way the Court and Lawmen had snubbed her campaign so far. Attacks by the evil warriors had demolished more and more of Eternos in the last few days, and she was worried that the planet would soon fall to the forces of evil. She could not understand why the Court was so convinced He-Man was guilty, when it was so blatantly obvious that it was the work of Skeletor. It could not be coincidental that virtually the moment He-Man had been sentenced to jail, the evil warriors had started attacking the city. She would make sure the campaign strengthened more and more, until she could finally get He-Man out. The protesters were due to make a large appeal in the city square tomorrow night, so hopefully by then, the Court would have seen more sense.
She unlocked the door of the washroom, and as she stepped out, she saw Sy-Klone crossing the hall.
"Sy-Klone! What are you doing here?" she asked.
"I just came to see how things were going." the cyborg replied. "You know, I felt great when Adora came here. I really like her."
"Yeah, I know you do." said Teela. "No need to tell me all that again. But you know she loves the Sea Hawk, don't you?"
"Yeah, I do." said Sy-Klone. "But she's a really nice girl, anyway. What I was gonna say is that I'm pretty disappointed that she's nowhere to be seen. I only saw her for a few split seconds, then she was gone."
"Marlena says she's gone off to see more of Eternia. You've gotta remember, the poor girl was brought up by the Horde, who brainwashed her and turned her evil for twenty years. She wants to see what life on Eternia would have been like if the Horde hadn't captured her. But I know how you feel, I'm missing her too- we usually get on pretty well. And I thought she'd at least stay and help the campaign."
"Yeah, well let's just hope she comes back soon."
"I'd better go for breakfast." said Teela. "I've gotta be quick, I'm meeting some protesters in the city in half an hour. We've gotta get He-Man out of jail- haven't we, Sy-Klone?!"
"Ah, come on Teela, it's not entirely my fault he was put in jail." Sy-Klone said. "I still don't reckon Skeletor was involved."
"Then you shouldn't have made it sound like you were sticking up for him."
"I didn't! Well, I didn't mean to, anyway. But I'm fighting to get He-Man out as much as you are. I still think he's innocent."
"Oh yeah? Well, I haven't seen you amongst the campaigners at any time!"
"Er….. well….. alright, I'll come and help you today."
"Alright then." said Teela. "See you then." she turned away from him and made her way down the corridor.
"Wait up, Teela!" called Sy-Klone, whooshing down the corridor towards her, at super-speed. "You needn't be in a mood with me. I'm sorry if you do think I got He-Man in jail, but….. I'll make up for it. I'll help you today. Come on, Teela, you gotta forgive me."
She turned and looked him in the eye, at first firmly, but then her expression softened. "Alright then, I'll forgive you….. for now, anyway. But you've gotta prove you're honest about helping me. If you vanish after five minutes, I'm not gonna be too pleased."
"I won't. Don't worry. Come on, I'll join you for breakfast."
Teela and Sy-Klone made their way down the corridors, and took the lift down to the dining hall. Marlena and Randor were already there, and Orko was hovering above the table, practising tricks.
"Good morning, Teela." said Randor. "And Sy-Klone? I didn't expect to see you here."
"I just came to see how Adora was." he said, as he and Teela sat down at the table. "But once again, she's not here."
"I'm also rather disappointed at how she's hardly spent any time with us." said Randor. "She always makes good company."
"You needn't worry, Randor." said Marlena. "She just wants to see more of Eternia. It wouldn't surprise me if she's gone to look for Adam. He is her brother, after all."
"You shouldn't worry." said Orko, above the table. "She's just gone to find out more about the planet. Much how I felt, after I'd just come down from Trolla!"
The Chef arrived at that moment, laying plates of food before everyone at the table. Teela thought for a second that she saw Marlena wink at Orko, but she could not be sure.
"I understand that your campaign is working very well." said Randor to Teela.
"It's going fine, but we're still not convincing the Court. We're making an appeal in the square tomorrow evening. Let's hope for the best- maybe the Court won't just snub us next time."
Marlena's expression fell glum as the subject of He-Man's imprisonment was brought up. Noticing her sudden change of mood, Randor turned to her and said "Why do you feel so uncomfortable talking about it, dear? We're all distressed at the thought of He-Man in jail, but Teela's doing her best to get him out. And over at Grayskull, Duncan and the Sorceress are doing their best to find the real murderer."
"I know that." said Marlena. "It's just….. you don't understand. There's something else I feel I need to speak up about, and….. I'm just unable to."
"You can tell me." said Randor.
"I….. I don't think I can tell anyone. Please don't ask me to say more."
Teela, Randor and Sy-Klone looked at Marlena curiously. What could it be that she felt she had to speak up about, but could not?
"It's okay, Queen Marlena!" said Orko, "I think I know what you mean. You can talk to me about it if you want." He turned to address the others. "It's best to keep it private," the magician said, "so let's not ask her too much!"
"If that be the case, then let us switch our conversation to other matters." said King Randor.
So for the rest of their meal, they excluded the topic of He-Man in jail, but Marlena still looked troubled. What could be bugging her so heavily?, Teela thought. But whatever it was, it was obviously none of her business. So she decided to mind her own, and as she finished her meal, she set out to conduct her own business. "I'm going to meet the protesters now." she said, rising to her feet. "Coming, Sy-Klone?"
"Sure am." the cyborg replied, arising and joining Teela.
"Good luck in your campaign, Teela!" said King Randor. "May the Court see the light!"
"Thanks very much, your highness. Now come on- we've no time to lose!"
Teela and Sy-Klone set out of the palace grounds, and into the streets of Eternos. They saw that there were already several bands of protesters scattered around the streets. When the people saw Teela, they instantly rushed over to the great fountain of the city, and assembled around it. Teela and Sy-Klone went over to them.
"Good to see you all assembled here!" said Teela. "Today we have Sy-Klone to help us, and we hope that more people will join our campaign later on. Ram Man is currently patrolling the city, looking for extra names to add to the list of protesters. Now we must remember that we are making a full appeal in Eternos City Square tomorrow night. Absolutely no-one whose name is on the list should be absent from it! And we must continue working to convince the Court of He-Man's innocence!"
Blastar raised his hand. "Rio and I are still trying to talk to the law chief about it." he said. "He still shows no sign of changing his mind, but we won't give up."
"Then keep working at it!" said Teela. "The harder we work, the more chance we have of getting He-Man free! Now let's get distributing our leaflets around the city!"
The crowd of protesters instantly moved apart, walking through the streets, handing out leaflets to passers-by.
One young man stood outside the doorway of a café, handing leaflets to every person who emerged. Several people just ignored him, and others instantly went off and binned the leaflets- but at least he was getting the word across.
Two hooded men, wearing long, dark robes, emerged from the café door. They instantly looked suspicious. One of them said, in a strange hoarse voice, "I'll take a leaflet, please….."
"Er, alright….. go on."
The strange man reached out, very slowly, to take a leaflet. His sleeves were so long that his hands could not be seen. The young men felt uneasy as the robed man reached forward….. and his anxiety turned to terror when he saw that it was not a hand emerging from the sleeve….. but a HOOK.
He jerked back in fright, as the strange man's robe fell to the ground….. revealing his gruesome form, with tight black armour and a long mane of white hair….. he was Skeletor's general, Karg.
"Quick, Whiplash- destroy him!" ordered Karg, as green scaly hands emerged from the other man's robe, ripping away his veil, revealing the scaly reptilian form of Whiplash. Before the young man could move, Whiplash coiled his tail around him, and repeatedly smashed the young man on the ground, causing the ground to shake violently! Every head in the street turned as the young man cried out in pain.
Teela and Sy-Klone saw what was happening. "Quick!" cried Teela. "It's Karg and Whiplash- we must stop them!" They rushed towards the evil warriors, as the people scattered throughout the street in terror at the sight of them.
Sy-Klone leaped into the air, and began to spin at super speed. He spun so fast that he was merely a blur….. and charged towards Whiplash, knocking him back and causing him to drop the man. Rio and Blastar then arrived on the scene, and lifted the body of the injured man, laying him out on a bench. Then they turned to Karg and Whiplash, and Rio said "Okay Hombres. You're under arrest!"
He opened up all his laser cavities, and fired bolt after bolt at the warriors….. but Whiplash was more than a match for them, his powerful body feeling little pain as he spiralled towards Rio, smashing him back with his tail as he advanced upon him. "You fools stand no chance!" he laughed.
Sy-Klone spun around rapidly, and rose into the air. Then he suddenly dropped down, on top of Whiplash, and gripped the reptilian warrior by the neck. "Okay, Teela, I've got hold of this guy!" he said, as Whiplash struggled. "You take care of the white-haired thing!"
"No problem!" said Teela, leaping towards Karg with a high kick. He rose his hook into the air as if to fire a bolt at her, but she gripped hold of it in mid-air, and twisted his arm back as she descended. Then she gripped hold of his neck, and called to Rio as he picked himself up. "Rio! Blastar! We've got hold of these guys, you can arrest them!"
"Oh no you can't….." hissed Karg, "You are unaware who else we brought with us!"
And as Teela looked up, there came a massive explosion from inside the café. The loud bang caused Teela and Sy-Klone to drop their enemies, who ran for cover, and the whole building was reduced to rubble within seconds. In the centre of the rubble, pieces of metal began to pull themselves together, forming the shape of Blast-Attak.
And before they could take action, a shadow fell over the street, blocking out the sun. Teela looked up, to see Comtech in his computerised flying machine. He fired a beam of electrical energy down on a row of shops, and they exploded in a burst of lightning.
"More destruction caused to your precious city!" laughed Whiplash. "Soon Skeletor will take over!" And before the heroic warriors could act, several metal arms emerged from Comtech's machine, and gripped hold of Karg, Whiplash and Blast-Attak, pulling them inside with Comtech. Then the vehicle jetted off back to Snake Mountain.
Teela and Sy-Klone shook their heads as they observed the damage that had been done to the buildings. What further destruction would the evil warriors cause, with the absence of He-Man?
"We must set about clearing up the damage immediately." said Teela. "Come on Sy-Klone, we must clear away this rubble."
Throughout the rest of the day, all that could be seen in the street was heroic warriors carrying away the corpses of people who had been unfortunate enough to be inside the buildings when they had exploded. Friends of the deceased sat nearby the remains of the buildings, in mourning. It was a tragic sight, and many could not help but feel that evil was finally taking over.
As night fell, an eerie silence fell over the street, as a cloud of lightning formed in mid-air, and spread out to reveal the gruesome image of Skeletor, projected by his holosphere.
"People of Eternia" he spoke, "the war is coming to an end. All this time, you have believed that He-Man is your hero. Your savior. Your source of justice. You always believed that he would save you from me. But instead- he has only caused the downfall of this planet. By betraying you all, and committing murder, he has been rightfully jailed. And this leaves the way open for the rule of Skeletor! Stand by, citizens….. for before long, you shall be kneeling at my feet."
The image faded into the night sky.
"This planet's gonna fall to Skeletor soon." said one man. "I know it! But He-Man is not evil!!! We need He-Man back, urgently!!!"
"We do indeed." answered Teela. "We know he was framed for that murder. Yet the Court still refuses to believe us. Tomorrow, when we make our appeal in the Square, we must hope that they will see the light, and realise that this planet risks falling to evil if He-Man is not released. We must pray that things work out for the best!" she raised her hands into the sky, and uttered a prayer. "May someone, something, anywhere in the universe, please help us! May they reveal the identity of the true killer, and help us to free He-Man from that jail! We need the help of the greatest gods in the universe- to enable us to FREE HE-MAN!!!!!"

And far, far above them, in the peak of the night sky, was a faint silhouette in the light of the moon. It was the silhouette of a man sitting in a hovering grey metal chair, totally unseen by the people below. He wore a red metal mask, with large, dark eyes, looking solemnly down on the streets of Eternos.
"Yes." he said quietly. "I will help."

PART 19

Over the giant stone structure of Castle Grayskull, a bright yellow light appeared in the evening sky. It spread out, and poured down over the castle, illuminating it brightly in the darkness.
The light seeped in through the windows of the castle, just as Duncan, She-Ra, the Sorceress and Extendar emerged from the library.
"Well, the Grayskull Library is no good." said She-Ra. "It doesn't have anything good in it! Or at least nothing that can help us. Hey wait- what's that light?"
The yellow glow was filling the corridor, spreading over the ancient walls of the castle. The Sorceress smiled as the glow spread out. "I think we could be about to receive the help we have longed for."
In through the window, sitting in his hovering chair, flew Zodac, the cosmic enforcer. He flew into the middle of the corridor, and landed before the warriors, as the bright yellow glow slowly faded, as the room once again slipped into darkness.
"Greetings." he said solemnly.
The Sorceress stepped forward to him. "Greetings, Zodac." she said gently. "What has brought you to Grayskull, cosmic enforcer?"
"As you all know, the balance of good and evil has been slowly tipping….. in favor of evil. It is my task to put a stop to this. I must free He-Man from jail- and I know the identity of the killer."
"You know who the killer is?" said Extendar. "That's great! Who is it?"
"Patience, my friend." said Zodac. "Before I allow the killer to be revealed, I must bring forth those whom I have been conversing with. Possibly the wisest spiritual beings in the universe- the Elders of Eternia."
The heroic warriors watched in amazement as Zodac spread out his arms, and out of the shadows emerged a huge group of transparent spirits, mostly elderly men, dressed in robes, glowing with white auras. They were the spirits of the Elders of Eternia, who lived in the shadows of Grayskull, and only emerged at times of extreme importance.
One of the spirits stepped forth. He was similar to the others- elderly, with a white beard- but he was also muscular, as if he had been a warrior in life.
"Greetings, defenders of Eternia." he said. "I am He-Ro- the most powerful wizard in the universe."
The warriors gasped in amazement. "He-Ro!" exclaimed She-Ra. "Is it really you?!"
"Yes, it is I." replied He-Ro. "I who freed Eternia from the rule of the Snake Men, thousands of years ago. The legends of the time foretold that a man named He-Man would come to defend Eternia, on the world's blackest day. Now He-Man has defended Eternia for six years. I have helped him once before when he was in great danger, and now that he has been jailed for a murder he did not commit- I shall not allow this great legendary hero to succumb to such a fate. Together with the Elders of Eternia, I have looked into the sphere of truth. It is this sacred object which has shown us the identity of the true murderer."
He-Ro held out his hand, and a glowing sphere appeared in mid-air, and floated downwards, landing in the palm of his hand.
"Now watch," he said, "and the truth shall be revealed."
The sphere began to glow brightly, then it emitted an image of Lord Marlach standing outside the entrance to the Eternos Arcology, after opening the building. Then came the same sight that had been seen on the tape- He-Man walking towards Lord Marlach, pulling out his sword, and stabbing him to death brutally, before leaving the scene. But then, the image followed He-Man as he left the scene of the crime. It showed him walking down several streets, before he reached a small, secluded side street. A shadow fell over him, and a large vehicle descended before him. It was an evil Fright Fighter! Then He-Man crossed his sword along his body, and his skin turned blue. Skeletor was beamed down from the Fright Fighter, and he said "Excellent work, Faker! Now we have won! We have finally destroyed He-Man! Now he will be seen as nothing but a cold-blooded murderer!!!!!! At long last, we stand triumphant!"

The image faded. The heroic warriors felt triumphant- at last they knew who the killer was. They also felt a sense of frustration, having rejected the idea of him being the killer a few days earlier. "So the killer is indeed Faker!" said the Sorceress.
"And to think we disregarded that possibility!" said Man-At-Arms. "It still baffles me how he could still be alive- but thank you, He-Ro, for revealing the truth! Without you, Eternia would be completely lost!"
"It is my pleasure, Man-At-Arms." replied He-Ro. "I saved Eternia thousands of years ago, so I am more than happy to help to save it today. Now you must go to Snake Mountain, and find Faker."
"Thank you, He-Ro!" said the Sorceress. "And thank you Elders of Eternia." then she turned to Zodac. "And thank you too, Zodac. Now we can expose the killer, and free He-Man!"
"We all wish you good luck." said He-Ro, and a huge flash surrounded him, the Elders and Zodac, and engulfed the corridor. The warriors shielded their eyes, and then the light died down, and Zodac, the Elders and He-Ro were gone.
"We must get to Snake Mountain right away, and find Faker!" said Extendar. "Come on- let's charge upon that place!"
"I'm not sure that's a good idea." said She-Ra. "If the evil warriors saw us approaching, they would instantly be prepared, and they would outnumber us. We would not stand a chance. They would also be able to hide Faker before we could find him. We would be better to try a more subtle approach."
"You're right, She-Ra." said Man-At-Arms. "But what other way is there?"
"We could try going underground." said She-Ra. "But it would be hard….. it may be impossible for us to make our way there by going underground."
"No it would not, She-Ra." said the Sorceress. "Going underground is actually a very good choice. For there is a way that we can get to Snake Mountain underground. We must travel through a place where Duncan, Extendar, and I, have been before. We must travel through Karg's Underworld."

PART 20

Using Sky Sleds from the vehicle bay of Castle Grayskull, Man-At-Arms, She-Ra, and Extendar flew down into the abyss of Grayskull, followed by The Sorceress, in the form of Zoar. They piloted the sleds down vertically, until Zoar called a halt and beamed a message to them telepathically.
"Before us is the part of the rock that Karg used to drill a hole between his caverns and Grayskull, in our dangerous adventure in the caverns! He-Man used his sword to seal the hole once the battle was won- but I can use my magic to open it up again!"
She reached out her right wing, and fired a bolt of magic towards the rock. Slowly, a hole began to form in the rock face, revealing a dark tunnel, leading through to the underground world.
"Programme the Sleds to return to the castle." said Zoar. Each of the warriors programmed their Sleds to return, then they leaped through the hole before them as the Sleds automatically flew back to the castle.
The heroic warriors now found themselves in a dark underground world, made up of many dark, rocky caverns.
"The Underworld of the Skar-vins." remarked Man-At-Arms. "Just as I remember it."
"So let's get this straight." said She-Ra. "Karg's the evil warrior with white hair and a hook for a hand, isn't he?"BR "Yes." replied the Sorceress, resuming her human form. "He is one of Skeletor's most important warriors. And he is one of the Skar-vins, a race of strange creatures who live in this underground world. It was here that we had one of our most dangerous battles ever- when Karg retrieved the doom crystal for Skeletor. Its evil power was so great that it almost destroyed us. This was also the occasion when He-Ro helped us previously- it was only with his help that we got away."
"We'd better be on our guard then." said She-Ra. "If these Skar-vins nearly destroyed you before, they could be quite likely to try again."
"We have nothing to fear from the Skar-vins anymore." said the Sorceress. "They were a threat to the masters of the universe- but following their defeat in the battle, their emperor chose to make peace with us. They may be evil, but they are a lot wiser than other evil creatures, for they realised that peace was the best solution when they could not defeat their enemies. They are more likely to help us than destroy us."
They walked on, until they came across a huge cavern, glowing with radiant blue light from the fungus on the walls.
"This is the cavern where Skeletor unleashed the Doom Crystal upon us!" said the Sorceress. "I recognise it!"
"And I recognise you." came a deep voice. The warriors looked around to see a tall Skar-vin man, resembling Karg in appearance. He had the same kind of thick, white hair, but he was dressed in long robes with a gold chain around his neck. It was Varlon, the emperor of the Skar-vins underworld.
As Varlon walked towards them, the Sorceress said "I remember you. Your name's Varlon, and you're the Skar-vins' Emperor!"
"I am indeed, Sorceress of Grayskull." he replied. "But what brings you down into our underworld again? I hope it is not an attack, since if you remember, we agreed to make peace."
"Don't worry." she replied. "We are simply using your underworld as a means of getting to Snake Mountain. Skeletor framed He-Man for a murder by using an evil version of He-Man called Faker, and we must get into Snake Mountain so we can capture Faker and prove He-Man's innocence! We thought it better to travel through your caverns, since a direct assault on Snake Mountain would only allow Skeletor to prepare to fight us, and fend us off!"
"I understand." replied Varlon. "And I am happy to help you get to Snake Mountain. But I must warn you- it could take some time."
"That doesn't matter!" said Extendar. "All that matters is that we get there, so we can get hold of Faker!"
"Alright then." said Varlon. "Follow me, and I shall lead you there."
Varlon led the heroic warriors through several caverns illuminated by blue fungus. Bats and strange creatures flew overhead. Eventually they reached one cavern where there was a whole set of Skar-vin homes, built into the rock, over the running underground streams and rivers below. There were strange-looking Skar-vins all over the place- and a commotion began when they noticed the heroic warriors. There came cries of "Look! Heroic Warriors!" "The Overground heroes have returned!"
"Do not worry." called Varlon. "They are merely passing through our world. I am simply escorting them to Snake Mountain. Please allow us safely past."
The Skar-vins cleared a space in the center of the cavern, so that Varlon and the heroic warriors could pass through.
As they passed through several caverns full of Skar-vins, She-Ra said "There sure are a lot of them."
"Indeed." replied Varlon. "Our underworld is a busy place, but completely separate from the world above. We have advanced our technology greatly in recent years."
"How have you been doing with your technology since the battle?" asked Man-At-Arms.
"Still advancing," replied Varlon, "but using only the resources that are available in our underworld. So we are no longer making giant drilling machines- just simple tools, weapons and devices from the ores found in the various types of rock. Our technology can never be advanced as we planned at the time of our battle- but this no longer matters to us, for we have accepted it. Neither do we have any involvement with the upper world- the jail has been dismantled, and we definitely do not steal from your laboratory any more."
"I'm pleased to see you have seen the error of your evil ways."
"Well, our traditional enemies have always been the humans, right back to the earliest days of our race. So we could never be true allies with humans, and many of us would sooner pledge ourselves to Skeletor- but we have accepted that greed and thirst for power is not the way of nature, and that we must make do with what we have got."
"If only all evil warriors had your sense!" said Extendar.
"Many evil beings are nothing if not power hungry." said Varlon. "And let me be honest, I did not like Skeletor that much either. I am just hoping that our long lost brother Karg will soon leave him and return to our home."
"Well, soon we hope to crush Skeletor's forces so Eternia can be free again." said Man-At-Arms. "But we can not do that without He-Man- so we must move on, to find the real killer!"
Varlon led them through more and more dark caverns, over underground streams and rivers, as underground bats flapped past and water serpents slithered below. The journey was long and tiring, so they had to stop from time to time for rest. At one point, they sat on some smooth rocks at the side of a cavern.
"It should not be long now." Varlon said. "We are nearing Snake Mountain."
She-Ra turned and whispered to the Sorceress. "You don't think he's leading us into a trap, do you?"
"I do not sense any falsehood in his tones." whispered the Sorceress. "The Skar-vins are respectable by comparison with other evil races, and nevertheless, if he is we are capable of beating them. Since the destruction of the Doom Crystal, the Skar-vins have possessed fairly little power."
Man-At-Arms was engaging in conversation with Varlon. "So are you going to work on some kind of transport system in these caverns?"
"Well, it is rare that any Skar-vin will go as far as Snake Mountain, we really have no business there. And of course, if there was some kind of transport system in these parts, Skeletor would probably try to use it to enslave us all. So we have no intention to build up these particular caverns- but in the more densely populated ones, we hope to develop some kind of vehicle. Our scientists are working on it."
"And to think I was nearly killed down here." said Man-At-Arms. "But nevertheless, you have left those ways behind now. I must thank you for your help. But we must move on- we have to find Faker as soon as possible!"
Man-At-Arms got to his feet. The others arose after him, and together they made their way out of the cavern, and progressed through the dark underworld in the direction of Snake Mountain.
Eventually, after passing through several rocky tunnels, Varlon came to a halt. A rocky, steep tunnel led upwards. "Here we are." he said. "We are directly beneath Snake Mountain! That tunnel leads right to the caverns under the mountain! From here you can make your way upwards, to find he whom you seek."
"Thank you for your help, Varlon!" said the Sorceress, shaking his hand. "If we manage to free He-Man, you will be one of our most important aids!"
"My pleasure, Sorceress." replied Varlon. "And good luck!"
The heroic warriors bade farewell to Varlon, and made their way upwards through the steep tunnel. As they emerged, into the pitch black caverns beneath Snake Mountain, The Sorceress called "Be careful! Unlike in the Skar-vins caverns, here we have no glowing fungus to light our way! We must watch our step!"
She-Ra took out her sword of protection, and the gem in the center lit up. "This should do it!" she said, as the light from the crystal illuminated the cavern. "Now let's make our way up! It shouldn't be too hard. Karg's Underworld was pretty easy!"
"Yes, Karg's Underworld was easy….." came a hissing, reptilian voice, "so let's see how you fare against Whiplash's Underworld!!!"
And before the warriors could respond, She-Ra found herself caught in the grip of a scaly, reptilian tail, which smashed upon the rocky ground heavily. They had entered the territory of one of Skeletor's most dangerous warriors- Whiplash.