Chapter Nine

"Foreshadowing"

"BEAT THE DRUMS OF WAR! SOUND THE HORNS OF BATTLE!" King Hiss proclaimed, urging his Snake Men forward. "GO FORTH! GO FORTH, MY WARRIORS AND FIGHT THE BATTLE THAT WILL BRING US ALL VICTORY!"

6,000 Snake Men thundered out of Brightmoon and began the march towards the Fright Zone. Rattlor was in command of this wave, with King Hiss cheering them on from the Castle. His words intoxicated the Snake Men, causing them to grow strong with boiling blood. No drink was needed, no food wanted, no rest necessary. Only the words of their master - the great King Hiss - caused their great march to go on at such an amazing pace.

The great and mighty King Hiss. He who lead them into battle with the warriors and tribes of old. The one who protected them while trapped in the Void. The King that freed them into this world, allowing their power to be replenished.

Powerful King Hiss, who now promised victory and strength against the enemy. The battle would be long and hard, but all would be right and it would only make the victory even greater.

"They will win," Hiss said to Angella from the balcony as the army faded in the distance.

"I hope so. If only to rid this peaceful place of you, I hope you win."

King Hiss laughed. "You will thank me when this is over."

"You're being overconfident," Angella told him. "Your forces on Eternia were beaten last night. 1,000 Snake Men widdled down to 400 in a matter of nine hours."

"A mistake and a loss, but nothing I can't recover from. Besides . . .thisssss isssss the true victory."

Boots and feet thundered against the ground and the Whispering Woods faded behind the grand army. Before them was the barren land of the Fight Zone . . . with the dark, tall visage of Doom Tower now appearing far before them. It would take another twenty-four hours to reach at their pace and size, but it was there, ready for their arrival.

***

Hordak grunted and snorted. Impressed with the work that General Sunder had done in North Eternos, he sent him back to Etheria to prepare a defense against the Snake Men. 700 still remained from the battle of the North Eternos, but now there was little time to decide what to do next.

All route north and to the other kingdoms were blocked. Eternos was still held - and held well - by the Snake Men. North and West Eternos were under direct control of Hordak, as were the Golden Isles. The war was overtaking the entire Light Hemisphere, mostly because there wasn't much to be offered on the Dark Hemisphere.

"Curious, aren't you?" asked a voice from behind.

"Skeletor . . ." Hordak turned around and faced the holographic image of Snake Mountain's former master. "What do you want now?"

"You're curious how you can defeat King Hiss and his army? He has 6,000 Snake Men marching towards Doom Tower and you're curious as to how to stop them. You know how . . ."

Hordak sneered at the hologram. "No. I will not do that. I gave up those teachings along time ago. I told you when we first met that it was all a guise."

"You still know how to do it. You can still channel the power."

"No. And that is final!"

"All right, fine. But when the time comes, I'll be the only one you can come to because only I have the amulet."

The hologram faded and Hordak stomped his foot, then snorted.

***

Swift-Wind soared across the Mystic Mountains and She-Ra found herself shaking her head once more in regret. She contacted the Central Tower and linked up with He-Man. "No sign of them," she reported. "Whatever happened to Buzz-Off and Stratos, it wasn't here."

"Avion and Insectia are staying out of this. They insist on only being involved if Buzz-Off and Stratos say so. They're plan on the Horde and the Snake-Men destroying each other."

"With us to clean up the mess."

"Of course. We're on our own. Everyone has upped their defenses and are just watching to see what happens. Best to return, She-Ra. We need you back here. It's time. If we're going to fight this war on our own, then we might as well get moving."

She-Ra nodded and shot back towards the Sands of Time. Her thoughts immediately went towards Etheria and was quickly concerned for the safety and well-being of the Great Rebellion. There was still 4,000 Snake Men stationed at Brightmoon, keeping over them with keen eyes.

But if this plan was to work . . .

They had all worked out a plan, one that would be dependent on many different variables. Sadly, it involved a lot of sitting and waiting for those variables to occur.

***

Doom Tower loomed now right before them, and General Sunder watched as the Snake Men marched forward at a pace unprecedented with any army he's ever dealt with. Shadow Weaver seemed comfortable with this.

"King Hiss has empowered his Snake Men," she observed. "They are far stronger and far more powerful than the ones that you faced on Eternia, General."

"I'm prepared. Hold off until they reached the farthest wall, then we'll hit them with Bat-Mechs and Battle Tanks."

General Sunder stared carefully at the movements of the army. They had come to a sudden stop. There was something odd in the center of their lines. Some of the Snake Men were busy with something on the ground. And then it came clear - a large, steel egg-shaped machine.

"NO!" shouted Sunder.

The machine activated, sending out streams of blue electricity through the air. A wave of blue light crossed the Snake Men, and came across Doom Tower. Lights blinked out, computers shut down, weapons died out, and - worst of all - the Horde Troopers all went powerless.

"What was that?" yelled Shadow Weaver.

Sunder gritted his teeth. "An Electro-Magnetic Pulse. It just shut down every piece of machinery in the Fright Zone. MODULOCK! We need all available units back Doom Tower immediately! Every tax collector unit and armed force unit are to report here YESTERDAY!"

"I will summon all of my strength and try and bring Hordak back to Etheria!" Shadow Weaver yelped.

"Make him aware of the situation. We may have to pull soldiers from Eternia back to here!"

It was then - then - the Snake Men surged forward.

***

"A WHAT?!" Hordak shouted.

An Electro-Magnetic Pulse, my master, Shadow Weaver replied telepathically. It could take up to twenty-four hours to recharge the Horde Troopers and the defensive weapons. I can power up the teleporter, though. Our only chance of survival is the immediate teleportation of all resources from Eternia back to Etheria.

"He had this planned out. Damn you, King Hiss! You had this planned out!"

Master, we don't have much time! What is it you want me to do?

"Use your power and anyone elses to energize the teleporter! I'll connect with my end. We'll be ready to return in two hours. Hordak out."

Johanna smiled. "Your little visit up and over with?"

Hordak scoffed, but didn't answer. He turned to Grizzlor. "Gather everyone up and head back to the Golden Isles IMMEDIATELY. We don't have much time."

***

In the northern Vine Jungle, just as the slopes of the Mystic Mountains become visible, a lone figure made for his destination. Using his walking stick carefully, the short, red-haired Thenorion named Gwildor produced his key from his long, blue jacket. He grumbled to himself about the old days, when locks were barely used. But of course, in this new age of war, locks were needed. And when locks were needed, so were locksmiths.

And Gwildor was, indeed, a locksmith.

He made his way into his home and immediately sat down and pulled out his greatest experiment - the Cosmic Key. There were still computations to made, along with a number of trial and test runs. His prototype was stored away in case something were to happen to this one.

As Gwildor finished computing the location of the greatest amount of energy source in the area - Castle Grayskull - there was a sudden knock at the door.

He hesitated for just a moment, and checked the outside monitor. He smiled. It was a fair-skinned, tall, beautiful woman. Her hair was long and black, and her eyes held a certain fire of life within them. It was as if he were staring at the most beautiful woman ever.

"I'm coming!" yelped Gwildor, setting down the Cosmic Key.

Gwildor opened the door and in walked the woman. "Hello. You must be Gwildor," said the woman. "I've heard of you." Her voice was light and sultry, beckoning his attention.

"Oh? How so?"

She smiled cutely. "You have . . . quite the reputation. As a locksmith, I hear you can open almost any door."

"Well, I don't know about that . . ."

"I've got a door that needs opening, Gwildor. Can you help me out with it?"

"I . . . uh . . . have some tools . . ."

She nodded. "Would you mind getting them out for me?"

Gwildor laughed and made for his toolbox. Just as he did, he saw - out of the corner of his eye - the woman pick-up the Cosmic Key.

"What's this?" she asked, studying it curiously.

"That's the Cosmic Key," he replied. "It can open a door to anywhere."

"Really? This may just be exactly what I'm looking for . . ."

"Huh?"

The woman suddenly lit up. Her body - her clothes - changed into someone that was far more recognizable to Gwildor.

Evil-Lynn.

"Thank you very much, worm!"

With that, she was gone in a flash.

***

Hordak walked out of the portal, his Horde Troopers right behind him. Doom Tower was shaking as the Snake Men launched boulders and fireballs at it. The Fright Zone was in terrible shape for such a battle. Hordak took immediate control of the situation.

"Shadow Weaver, take ten minutes and recuperate," he snarled. "Mantenna, Grizzlor, get to work on activating the degenerated Horde Troopers. Catra, General Sunder - get these Troopers to the front lines and hurry! As long as I live, Doom Tower and the Fright Zone SHALL NOT FALL!"