Chapter Four - "Evens and Odds"
"Whoa. You do good work."
Icer smiled, and glanced at Evilseed, who gazed with him up at the dome of ice. "Thank you," Icer replied. "I'll have to keep with it, however, simply because of the heat."
"I hate the cold."
"Why's that?"
"I'm a plant. Plants freeze to death in the cold."
"You're not going to freeze to death tonight. Trust me."
Just then, their communicators went off. Icer retrieved his and opened the channel. "Icer. What is it?"
Count Marzo's voice returned. "We have a problem. Negator's overworked himself. He had to shut down and is currently rebooting. Make sure that dome of yours is secure and get back in here."
"Do you want me to freeze the door and shatter it?"
"It's made of Eternuim, you dolt! Freezing it will do nothing!"
Icer shook his head. "Alright, sir."
"We have another problem anyways . . ."
"What is it?"
"Man-At-Arms lab has been locked down. We're having some trouble getting into it."
Icer turned to Evilseed. The two walked along the stairs towards the Palace. Nearby, Fang Man was herding the animals into pens throughout the city. Toy Maker and Game Master were busy setting up booby traps, just in case someone made it through Icer's ice dome.
Beyond the dome, the sun was drifting below the horizon and in an hour, the moons would be up and the stars would be settled with them. Together, they would cast an eerie light on the dome, reflecting it in the early summer eve.
Evilseed reached the vault, where Count Marzo was pacing uneasily. Negator was laying down on a cot, eyelids closed but his eyes darting beneath. "Rebooting?"
"Processing information," Marzo replied. "It could take hours."
"Do we have hours?" questioned Evilseed.
"Maybe," Count Marzo answered. "I'm not sure. Assuming the dome holds and Man-At-Arms lab is down just for security reasons. But my guess is is that there's someone in there. Someone we weren't counting on. Icer, I want you and the Space Pirates to investigate."
Icer nodded and went down the corridor, followed by Lava Man, Frog Man, Leo, and Hisser.
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Gwildor watched on the security monitors in Man-At-Arms lab as his enemies marched closer and closer. In a panic, he began to press keys on the com-panel, rotating frequencies in a frenzy to find He-Man. Much to his shock, he got through.
"He-Man! He-Man!"
"Gwildor? What's going on? Where are you?"
"I'm in Man-At-Arms lab, but not for much longer. Count Marzo sent some goons to stink me out. Am I ever happy to finally reach you. There was some sort of dampening field in place, but looks like I've finally found the right frequency."
"Yes. Is Roboto with you?"
"What's that?"
"Roboto, Gwildor. Man-At-Arms was performing an up-grade and Roboto had entered into a sleep mood while he was gone. He should still be in there."
Gwildor's eyes swung around the lab and spotted the android in a capsule on the far side of them. He could have smacked himself for not seeing him earlier.
"I found him!" cried Gwildor.
"Good. Free him, activate him, then get out of there. As soon as you do, contact Stratos. There's an army of Goblins and they need to be dealt with. Hopefully King Randor got the other kingdoms to sign the military alliance. What's the status on the vault?"
"They can't break the codes. Negator is down, having to process all sorts of valuables. If my calculations are correct, it'll set them back at least until dawn. He won't wake up until then."
"Excellent. Contact me when you and Roboto are out. And Gwildor?"
"Yes?"
"Don't let them get their hands on the Cosmic Key."
The channel closed, and Gwildor was up and walking over to the capsule where Roboto was sleeping. He pressed a few keys on the panel next to the capsule. The capsule opened and Roboto booted up and walked out.
"Gwildor? What is it?"
"Trouble. Eternos has been attacked, and everyone human has been transformed into an animal." Roboto beeped in question. "I know. It's weird. We're stuck in Man-At-Arms lab, there's a dome of ice around Eternos, and there are some goons heading our way."
"We need to get out of here, then," Roboto replied, two laser cannons appearing on his shoulders. He then turned to one of the doors. Just as they were heading towards it, the door that connected to the Palace exploded, sending chunks of debris all over the lab.
"Run Gwildor!" shouted Roboto. The laser cannons unleashed twin bolts of energy at Frog Man and Lave Man as they entered the lab.
Gwildor made it to the other door and unlocked it. Both he and Roboto ran down the corridor. As soon as they crossed the doorway, it slammed shut and locked.
Hisser pounded his fists against it in frustration. Icer shook his head. "That's not going to work. Here."
Streams of cold air blasted from his hands, turning the door into pure ice. But before they could break it down - it exploded! Icer and Hisser were thrown backwards as a Laser Bolt shot out, Roboto and Gwildor both driving the thing. It unleashed to blasts of energy, shattering the wall, then soared out from lab and into the air.
"Are your computations complete?" asked Roboto as Gwildor quickly slammed his fingers onto buttons on the Cosmic Key.
"Not yet. I'm still working on guess work."
"We do not have much time, Gwildor," Roboto then remarked, watching as vines from Evilseed were coming after them.
The Laser Bolt swung around Eternos, as high as they could. A beam of energy barely missed them from Game Master.
"Got it!" yelped Gwildor.
The Cosmic Key opened up like a flower. A portal splashed open before them, and the Laser Bolt blasted right on in, the portal closing up right after it.
"He-Man!" Gwildor gasped as the Laser Bolt appeared on the other side of the dome, flying north. He held his communicator tight in his hand as he yelled into it. "He-Man! We made it!"
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He-Man smiled and put away his communicator. Gwildor and Roboto were on their way to North Eternos to convene with Stratos, Buzz-Off and the rest of the delegates. Hopefully, the Avions would help stop the Goblins. Even so, if the rest of the kingdoms would follow suit, it would help the peace process. He-Man had no doubt they would be able to Count Marzo and his new cohorts.
Glancing over at Teela, he noticed just how tired she looked. There were differences, the transformation now beginning to pick up. Her middle and pointer fingers had merged, as had her ring and pinky - making Teela's hands look like they had three, huge fingers. The nails were longer, pointy like claws. No sharp yet, still dull. But that would only be a matter of time.
"You look exhausted," he told her.
"I am," she replied, her voice confirming what He-Man had just said.
"Tell you what - we're ahead of schedule. Why don't we get some rest. Sleep for two or three hours."
"Are you sure?" she questioned, gazing down at her bizarre hands.
He-Man nodded, a smile on his face. "I wouldn't have suggested it if I didn't mean it."
"Okay."
The pair were in a huge field in the southern portions of Eternos. The city was still some five hours away, but they could make it in less than that if they got some rest. He-Man laid down on the tall grass, eyes looking up into the night sky. It was a beautiful sight, the stars going on and on endlessly into the sky. Teela had taken it upon herself to lay down next to him, and looked up at the stars as well.
"He-Man," she said to him.
"What is it?" He looked over at her when there was a pause. "Teela?"
She looked at him, green eyes filled with tears. "I'm afraid. I'm afraid of what's happening to me. Look at me! I'm hideous!"
He-Man shook his head and stood up. "Hey, hey. It's okay. It's all right. Come here."
Teela sat up and He-Man wrapped his large arms around her thin body. Her head rested on his shoulder as he cradled her.
"You look fine. It's just your hands. And it's not going to last long. I promise."
Teela pulled back up, rubbing her eyes with her awkward hands. "I don't know how much good I can be to you like this. I don't think I can hold a sword and I don't even know what I'm turning in to, so I doubt I'll be able to aide in the fight."
He-Man reached forward and took her hands in his. She withdrew at first, but He-Man held them firmly, but with affection. Teela reluctantly let him. He looked at her, the moonlight dancing on her face, a few stray hairs dangling before her. She was beautiful. Absolutely, completely beautiful.
He leaned down and kissed her hands. Teela blushed. He kissed them - all of them, from the deformed fingers to the wrists. He-Man then looked up at her once more. She was leaning forward, lips trembling, tears of gratitude in her eyes. The two came together and kissed.
The kiss grew from a small thing into a passionate thing. Their arms wrapped around each other as they continued in the amazing kiss.
When they broke at last, Teela held him against her in the long grass, both still sitting. "I love you," she told him. "I love you I love you I love you," she repeated.
He-Man didn't answer. He couldn't allow this. There was too much risk. She knew this. He knew this.
"Teela, I . . ."
She placed her hand on his cheek. "Don't. Don't say it, He-Man. There are no threats tonight, He-Man. No one watching us. No risks. Don't say it. Just . . . let me be with you. Take down that shield. Let me love you tonight and tomorrow we can let things go back to normal. Let me love you tonight."
They kissed again, then held each other as the last moon rose over the horizon. He wanted to tell her. He needed to tell her. 'Take down that shield,' she told him. He-Man fought so hard to keep his lips closed. The secret . . . his secret . . . that he and Adam are one in the same . . . it wanted to come out. It was a struggle. A losing struggle.
"Teela, I . . ."
She looked at him, green eyes piercing his blue ones. "What is it?"
"I'm . . . that is . . . I'm really . . ."
Teela leaned in closer, one hand on the back of his neck, face curious. "What? What are you?"
He gazed at her long, searching his soul for a way to talk to her. To tell her. He-Man was really Prince Adam, the man she once teased and now respected. Her best friend and her crush were one and the same. And that he loved her - had loved for years.
No. It can't be done. He couldn't do it.
"Nevermind, Teela."
"Are you sure?" she questioned.
The temptation was fading away in his mind. He put his head down, their foreheads gently pressing against each other. "Yes."
"Okay," she returned, in a way knowing different. She kissed him again, this time lightly on the lips. "If you change your mind . . ."
"I know." They remained silent for a moment, foreheads still pressed together. Finally, He-Man spoke again. "We need to rest."
Teela nodded and let go of him. "I know. He-Man, I'm sorry. I guess I just let the animal part of me get the advantage."
"Yeah," he said in return as he laid back.
Teela was still sitting up, looking at her strange hands. She then looked at his face, lovingly and longingly. "I do love you, He-Man. You know that."
"I do know, Teela, but I can't . . ."
"We can't get involved. There's too much risk. I understand. But, He-Man . . ."
"What is it?"
"Give me one last kiss, please. One last touch of our lips is all I ask for."
He-Man nodded, more than happy she asked. Teela came down to his face and their lips embraced, a kiss overtaking them in lust. It was long and it was wonderful.
They pulled away and Teela laid down next to him, her arm swung over his chest. He pulled out his communicator briefly and set it so that in three hours, it would emit a loud alarm that would wake them. He then joined Teela in her slumber.