A/N Due to reader observations, I have added a little more to the beginning of this chapter to help it flow with the rest of the story. I hope it's better now. Subsequently Chapter 5 is shorter by 3 paragraphs.

Chapter 4

Mother Knows Best

She was falling.

Wind and terror roared in her ears. As she stared, wide eyed, at his rapidly shrinking head, the thought that Skeletor's face would be the last thing she saw before she died, ripped a scream out of her bruised throat. When she finally hit the ground, the darkness was welcomed.

My goodness, it hurt; everything hurt. Her broken body was protesting to the agony of being moved. She felt herself being flung across someone's shoulder. Ignorant, callous bastard! I just fell down a cliff for shit's sake! In reality, all she could manage was a low groan before the darkness closed over her again.

She woke again a short time later. The sun was past its zenith, but still high and bright enough to intensify the pain which was already scrambling her brain cells. She turned head away and groaned pitifully at the unexpected pain that such a simple movement had produced.

"You alright back there?" A very familiar voice called out to her from the front. Who was that and was she on…a speeder? With …Orad! She suddenly remembered what had happened.

"Hey! This is a loan!" Orad called behind him, cringing at the sounds of his passenger being violently ill all over the back seat.

Evil-Lyn ignored him and lay back heavily on the seat. Her humiliation only served to enhance the anger and pain she was feeling. She closed her eyes against the memory of Skeletor's mocking face as he sent her to her death; against the memory of her weakness. This did not have to happen. Damn you mother. The events of her encounter with her mother earlier that day were already replaying themselves in her mind before the pain became too much for her and she fell unconscious again.

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"You called?" Evilyn shut the door sharply. If the fact that she did not want to be there was indiscernible from her tone, her body language practically yelled it. Her mother noted this and smiled to herself.

"Would you like to sit down?" she asked, half amused at her daughter's unwillingness to venture more than two feet from the door. "Come in child. Granted," she gestured loosely indicating their surroundings, "it is not as grandiose as your master's abode," she bated her and smiled again.

"Skeletor is not my master."

"Oh, I'm sorry, my mistake."

It was a beautiful room, Evilyn noted as she walked stiffly to the only wooden chair that existed among the other stone and metal furniture. Yards of shear, multicolored cloth crisscrossed the ceiling and draped down into room dividers. The fabric partitions moved fluidly in the light breeze coming from the open window at the back. The cloths also served to keep her mother's living space separate from the place she entertained her guests, something her mother did frequently. As the self proclaimed "helper" of Eternia, her mother used her inherited magic to perform certain 'favors'for the more desperate of Eternia's populace—for the right price of course.

"So, how have you been?"

"Cut the crap mother, as disturbing as it is, we both know there hasn't been a time in my life when you haven't known exactly where I was or what I was doing, so just tell me what you want."

"There's no need to be so abrupt, dear. Surely you can't blame an old woman for wanting to spend sometime with her only daughter." Evilyn made a face which she ignored and continued. "I am concerned about you." Evilyn snorted rudely to indicate her disbelief. "It seems that you have gotten yourself into a situation that may cause you a great deal of inconvenience. I've ignored your dalliances in the past, of which there have been several." she added in an undertone. "However, this one seems different—you seem different."

Up till now Evilyn had been listening in stony silence, waiting with dread for her mother to get to the point. "You wish to discuss my love-life mother?" she asked, her nonchalance sounding forced in her own ears.

Her mother looked at her, her eyes a little sad and …hopeful? "Hmm…interesting choice of words, darling."

Evilyn refused to meet her mother's eyes. Had she said love life, she'd meant sex-life, didn't she. "I need to get back." She stood quickly. "Mother, as always, it has not been a pleasure."

"Don't be so stubborn child; cowardice has never been among your many faults. What is done is done—accept it! This is not a bad thing."

"Oh please mother; you are being absurd if you think I will heed advice from you about love," she spat the word out and tried to extinguish its taste with mockery and scorn. "You would have sold your soul for one glance from my father, for one kind word. I watched you humiliate yourself, practically groveling for his attention. With your talent you could have ruled Eternia; instead you let him use you to facilitate his own short-sighted, insignificant ambitions. He practically owned you, Mother. After all these years I'm surprised that he cared enough to give you a hole in the wall much less an entire room."

"Don't hold back darling, let it all out," her mother said sarcastically.

"Your love made you weak, pathetic and contemptible mother," she said slowly emphasizing each word. "That is not my destiny".

"My dear child, you have so much to learn," she moved closer and touched Evilyn's cheek. "You can't poss …," she stopped.

"What is it?" Evilyn asked in alarm, unwitting mimicking the expression on her mothers face.

"You …you are with child." She answered softly. Her expression grave as she looked into her daughters face.

Her mother's palm remained where it was while her free hand clutched Evilyn's to ensure that she did not pull away; but Evilyn was rooted. Her eyes were wide and she did not appear to be breathing.

"What? No!" Her voice was strained and barely above a whisper. Her head was spinning and it did not register that her mother was reciting what sounded like incantations.

Evilyn gasped in surprise as her mother grasped her face in both hands. "I will help you," she said earnestly. "It is not weakness to love; the bravest thing one can do is to sacrifice one's life for another. You must learn of this love. You will sacrifice this life for your child."

"What do you mean? Why are you saying these things?"

"I have made it so that you will be unable to use your magic unless you harness the life force of your unborn child." Evilyn recoiled in horror.

"Why …how could you do this?"

"This way you will be forced to choose—your life … or your son's."

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