CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

"Too Late"

The courtyard of Eternos was filled to the brim with injured and demoralized Royal Soldiers. He-Man walked through their ranks, his eyes latching onto each one he passed. The attack had been a complete and utter failure. He stepped lightly to the entrance into the palace and sat down on a bench near the door and hung his head in defeat.

"He-Man," came a voice from his right. He looked up and saw She-Ra standing there.

"She-Ra."

"Please," she replied, stepping up. "May the power return!" In a flash, Adora stood in She-Ra's place. He-Man nodded.

"May the power return!" he chanted, standing up, and in a burst of light and energy, became Prince Adam. He slumped back onto the bench. His sister sat down next to him.

"What happened?" she asked rhetorically.

"We lost."

"How? How did this happen?" she wondered aloud.

"I . . . I'm not sure," he confessed. He paused and looked away in silence. "Adora, something happened. Something I wasn't prepared for."

"What?"

He looked to her, a fearsome expression on his young face. "I killed. Not only that, but death completely surrounded me."

She nodded. "Yeah."

"I seem to be the only one with a problem with it."

"Adam, when Hordak let lose his darkness upon Etheria, I had accepted that everyone had died. Luckily, I was wrong. But I had accepted it. And I also accepted that to defeat the enemy, you have to be his enemy. Sometimes an opposite, sometimes a reflection."

"You were prepared to kill Hordak?"

Adora nodded. "Yes. And I'm betting you could ask Teela or Duncan or even father the same question they'd give the same answer. Unlike you, Adam, we spent nearly five years fighting the true face of death. After all this time, the death we had faced had been a somewhat false one. The death we were forced to stare down when Hordak began his full assault was one I don't think any of us had seen before. We've all come to terms with that."

"Except me."

"Except you."

Adam sighed and struggled. "I . . . Adora, I can't kill. I can't. That's a level I don't think I can sink to. I'm sorry."

"Then, well . . ." she began.

"Well what?"

"Then I suppose you'll have to find another way to defeat Skeletor."

***

Across the other side of the palace, in the royal dining room, Ram Man poured himself a drink. "A little early, isn't it?" asked Fisto from behind.

"Yeah, well . . . I have a feeling this is the big one," Ram Man returned. "And if it is, then I don't wanna go out without my favorite drink in my gut."

Fisto grinned and took a glass.

"Am I to assume that this is the end?" wondered Mekaneck. "And that we'll be going into battle today?"

Ram Man nodded. "Yeppers. Betcha all the gold in the vault."

"You're not allowed to bet that gold, you know."

"Shut up, Mekkie, and have a drink."

Man-E-Faces walked in and smiled at the group. "Three please," said the one faces. Ram Man did so.

"Looks like I turning into a bar keeper here," Ram Man noted, taking a swig. "If this whole ends well and all, then I'm gonna open up my own bar."

"Mind if I ask you guys a question," wondered Fisto, getting a second glass full. "What do you think of this whole Zodak thing? Do you really think we've been used as toys all these years?"

"Honestly?" asked Ram Man after no one else wondered.

"Always," Mekaneck said.

"I suspected the whole time."

Man-E-Faces smiled. "And that's why we love you. How's about a toast?"

"Sure thing."

"To He-Man."

"And Eternia."

"And Zodak, for putting us all together in the first place."

"Cheers, then."

***

"Son," said Randor as he entered into Adam's room.

"Father? What is it?" asked the young prince.

"Son, I feel at blame for this. I should have told you. I should have let you in on it . . ." Randor attempted.

"That Skeletor was actually Keldor, your brother?" asked Adam. "Don't worry about it, Father. We all kept secrets from each other. It feels good to finally let them out, don't you think?"

"I . . . I suppose so, son," Randor replied. "I suppose so." The old King looked out the window and sighed softly.

"Father," Adam began, placing his hand on Randor's shoulder, "I love you, Dad."

Randor hugged his only son. "I love you too, son."

***

The light of dawn fell across the Evergreen Forest and the suns rays entered the lofty windows of Castle Grayskull. The Sorceress was in a telepathic trance, communicating with Granamyr. After the defeat at Snake Mountain, she had a few ideas and wanted to present them Granamyr.

"I do not think this is a good idea," Granamyr told her telepathically.

"There is no other choice. What must be done . . ."

"That is exactly why this is not a good idea. Our days on Eternia have ended."

"Have they? The generation is passing, Granamyr. We will be slaughtered if you do not aid us. You will be no better than the Zodac!"

"Sorceress . . . what you ask . . ."

"Is difficult, but I believe us capable of it. You must aid us! You must!"

Suddenly, the Sorceress' eyes snapped open. She walked over to one of the windows and looked outside. An odd and deep darkness had fallen over Castle Grayskull. The clouds above it were black, blocking out all light completely. There was a boom of thunder and then a crack of lightning.

With that flash of lightning, the Sorceress could see them.

Hundreds - maybe thousands - of Goblins, marching and riding to Castle Grayskull. Skeletor led them, riding on the back of Panthor. Lighting flashed more and more as they grew closer.

Skeletor then neared the edge of the road, where the drawbridge would come down to. The Master of Chaos leapt off of his beast and pulled out a book from his cape.

"No . . ." muttered Sorceress. She recognized it.

The Book of Living Spells.

The most powerful book in all of Eternia.

Skeletor held up his staff and read from the Book of Living Spells. The dark clouds that swirled around Grayskull began to collect above Skeletor. The blue sky reappeared, but the clouds formed into a large, black claw that pulled down the drawbridge.

The dark cloud claw disappeared and Skeletor strode forward across the drawbridge.

"Stay out here. Prepare for an attack," he ordered.

The Sorceress stood in shock as Skeletor entered the ancient castle. "Duncan! Duncan! Help! He's in the Castle! Skeletor is in Castle Grayskull!" she called out with both her voice and mind.

"That's enough of you!" shouted Skeletor. One blast took down the keeper of Grayskull.

***

Randor, Marlena, Adora and Adam all stood in the Throne Room, looking at the map of Eternia once again.

"Okay, we need to decide what to do," Randor commanded. "Another offensive maybe seem slim, but now that we have the support of the Insectiods and the Avions, we might be able to take over-take the Goblin army."

Suddenly, the doors were thrown wide open. "DAMN IT!" shouted Man-At-Arms. "No time to apologize, your majesties, but I just received a telepathic plea from the Sorceress."

"What is it?"

"We're too late. Skeletor is at Castle Grayskull."

"What do you mean? He's planning to attack it?"

"No. We're too late. Skeletor is inside Grayskull."

Adam looked to Adora, then lifted his sword. Adora did the same.

"BY THE POWER OF GRAYSKULL . . ."

"FOR THE HONOR OF GRAYSKULL . . ."

"I HAVE THE POWER!"

"I AM SHE-RA!"

He-Man, having replaced Adam, stepped out of the room with She-Ra, who had changed from Adora.

"Have everyone that can carry a weapon get ready for a fight," He-Man commanded.

"We leave in an hour."