***** Don't sue: Disclaimer is in Chapter 1
****Thanks to everyone for the feedback so far...LadyNiko I'm glad to see you're around to keep me in check! ( Anyways, reviews are always appreciated!
CHAPTER 3
Within the walls of the city of Eternos:
Man-At-Arms put his hands on his hips and sighed as he watched the Talon Fighter turn over in the air, punch down to the deck, and then shoot back up right above him. The windblast almost knocked his helmet off. He sighed and shook his head.
"Show-off," he mumbled, frowning.
He had just finished making the repairs on the machine from the last time it had been taken of a joy ride. He wasn't looking forward to having to do it again.
Man-At-Arms walked over one of the huge, blinking control panels near the aircraft hanger and reached for the radio. He flipped a few switches and held the receiver up to his mouth, his brown eyes still watching the fighter bob up and down in the air, clipping treetops and scaring the hells out of birds and bystanders on the ground below. He rolled his eyes and pushed the 'Talk' button on the receiver.
"You cut that one a little close, don't you think?" he asked into it.
The fighter flipped in the air and then punched the deck again. Man-At-Arms sighed and pushed the button again.
"You do realize you're aging me a little more every time you pull that stunt don't you?" he asked sarcastically.
A high-pitched, feminine giggle came over the radio. Man-At-Arms turned up the volume a touch.
"Duncan, you worry too much," the voice laughed. "I was just making sure your helmet wasn't on too tight."
Man-At-Arms looked at the young guard stationed at the nearby radar. The lad was stifling a smile and blushing. Man-At-Arms smirked and put the receiver down. The Talon Fighter landed just as he walked out onto the landing pad. He strolled up to the aircraft and watched as it's pilot opened the cockpit door and jumped out.
"I'm glad to see you're in one-piece," he said flatly.
The pilot laughed and removed her helmet, shaking her long, blonde hair out. Her blue eyes sparkled as a smile spread across her lovely face.
"I told you not to worry about me, Duncan," she laughed. "I HAVE flown this thing before."
Man-At-Arms crossed his arms and looked at her sternly.
"I was talking TO the Talon Fighter," he said in that 'I mean business' tone.
The pilot just smiled brighter and slugged him lightly on the shoulder.
"You know, I don't think I'm aging you," she teased. "You're already turning into a grumpy, old man."
Man-At-Arms narrowed his eyes, then eased up and chuckled. He sometimes forgot that his young protégé was quite capable of taking care of herself...most of the time. He put his hands behind his back and started walking back to the palace. The pilot walked next to him, chattering on about the drag the fighter was experiencing on lift-offs.
Duncan half-listened to her before he started staring at something in the distance that caught his attention. After a few minutes, the pilot looked at her teacher and stopped talking, slightly annoyed that she was being ignored.
"Duncan, did you hear what I said?" she asked irritably, throwing her hands up in the air. "I swear, you NEVER listen to me."
Man-At-Arms, snapped out of his trance and looked at his student apologetically.
"I'm sorry, my mind wandered," he said gently. "What were you saying about the drag?"
The pilot raised her eyebrows and looked at him. For a brief moment, her teacher had a look of such great sadness, one she had never seen on him before. She turned her head and looked to see what Man-At-Arms had been looking at.
About 40 yards away, she could see a young, blonde boy and his friends playing with Orko in the courtyard. The children seemed to be hiding, which was probably the smart thing for him to do if Orko was practicing his magic tricks. But suddenly the boy leapt out of his hiding place and shouted "Boo!" sending Orko straight up into the air in a fit of fright. The boy laughed hysterically, rolling on the ground, surrounded by his comrades.
She wondered what about that scene could cause Man-At-Arms, resident rock and strong shoulder, to become so bothered and yet so detached.
"What were you looking at Duncan," she inquired with slight confusion.
Man-At-Arms looked at her and smiled. He seemed to be reflecting on something and it bothered the young woman. She put her hand on his shoulder and he just nodded and continued to walk back towards the palace.
"Nothing," he said distantly. "Nothing at all, Adora."
Adora nodded her head and continued her pace next to her teacher. They reached the doors to the palace when they heard another loud, female voice behind them.
"Princess, father wait up!"
Both Adora and Man-At-Arms turned to see Teela, the First Lieutenant of the Royal Guard, and Man-At-Arms' daughter, running up to them. Her long red hair hung down and was pinned at the nape of her neck, except some wisps that were hanging in her face. She was sweaty and her uniform was dusty, probably from constant training she put herself through daily.
In her hands she carried three large bouquets of Eternian wildflowers, which she shoved into Adora's hands forcibly one at a time, to the Princess's surprise.
"Here," Teela panted, indicating that she had probably run from wherever she came from. "Ram Man asked me to give you these; Quildor, the mystic one, wanted you to have these; and THESE are from Sgt. Trackett of the Royal Infantry. All given with their 'Utmost admiration for her majesty, the Princess Adora.'"
Teela took a deep breath and looked at her pleadingly.
"Can you PLEASE tell your boyfriends that I am your bodyguard, not your messenger and certainly NOT a delivery woman?" she begged harshly. "Again?"
Adora looked at the flowers and sighed as Man-At-Arms chuckled.
"Sorry Teela," she conceded helplessly, looking at each bouquet nonchalantly. "I have tried to stop this kind of behavior, but I guess it's not sticking, huh?"
Teela crossed her arms, looking very much like her father, and narrowed her eyes.
"Apparently not," she grumbled.
Man-At-Arms laughed heartily at his daughter's response and put his arm around her, squeezing her shoulder.
"Lighten up Teela," he chided between laughs. "People will begin to think you're just jealous of the attention Adora gets. You certainly don't want that now do you?"
Adora and Teela both looked at Duncan with surprise. Teela blushed angrily.
"Jealous?" she howled. "Why should I be jealous? I don't need some man falling all over himself for me! I have more important things to do!"
Adora restrained her own laughter and threw the flowers up into the air. Finally laughing as they floated down on the three of them.
"Here, here Teela!" she chimed in. "Who needs men?"
Teela blushed a little harder and looked down, realizing that her friend and her father were making fun of her 'work before play' attitude, again. She was used to it but wished they understood her better. She kicked some dirt and flowers on the ground and followed the other two as they continued to walk inside.
Later that night Teela sat in the window of her bedroom looking out onto the moonlit plains that surrounded the kingdom. Rays of moonlight caught her face, highlighting her green eyes like emeralds. She sighed and rested her head on the wall.
"I don't know if anyone understands me," she thought to herself.
On the nearby chair lay her uniform, boots and gauntlets: pressed, shined and ready to go - lay prepared for the next day of work and training.
At 22, she was in remarkable shape. She could out fight almost everybody in the kingdom, with the exception of the warrior She-Ra, but not only that, she was smart enough to plan nearly perfect defense strategies against Skeletor's attacks, which had become more and more frequent lately.
She played with a strand of her hair which now hung loose around her shoulders. She had a feeling she would be promoted to the rank of Captain soon, and the thought of it made her warm with pride. But the feeling quickly faded.
It was one thing to be the best, but being the best could often be lonely, a feeling she was more than familiar with.
She wasn't alone, per say. She had her guard friends, Adora, and her father; but she still felt an emptiness inside her that, despite her efforts to fill with work, she simply could not fill.
Sometimes she wondered if things would be different if her mother was alive. She had only ever known Duncan, but she felt comfortable with that being enough.
Often times, the Queen, Marlena, had been a surrogate mother to her when she needed it - those few times where Duncan just couldn't fill the maternal shoes. She always thought how lucky Adora was to have her.
She thought about how her father had accused her of being jealous of Adora earlier that day.
"Jealous, indeed," she thought as she wrinkled her nose.
She and Adora had been good friends since they were younger and were practically like sisters. They used to gossip about girl-stuff, played games, got into trouble, your standard youthful antics.
However, in the last few years, the pressures of her title and Teela's ambition to be in the guard left little time for the long girl talks they used to have. Not to mention the fact that she was now Adora's bodyguard and that meant things had to be kept to a certain amount of professionalism.
Plus, the list of Adora's admirers grew longer and longer every day. And hers, well, the list was short, nearly nonexistent, but she didn't let it get to her. She knew soon the King would try to make a marital match for Adora, and then Adora would have to play the role of obedient wife, cultured diplomat and someday, Queen of Eternia.
"Ah well," she thought. "I guess all friends grow apart at some point or another."
Teela thought again about the aspect of arranged marriages and smirked to herself. She wasn't envious of Adora there. The idea of someone telling her whom she had to spend the rest of her life with seemed ludicrous to her. In fact, marriage, arranged or not, seemed ludicrous to her.
"Besides," she thought as she kept gazing out the window. "I have yet to meet the man that can keep up with me. I certainly won't find a match in someone that I would have to slow down for. Quite frankly, I'm beginning to think such a man doesn't exist anywhere."
****Thanks to everyone for the feedback so far...LadyNiko I'm glad to see you're around to keep me in check! ( Anyways, reviews are always appreciated!
CHAPTER 3
Within the walls of the city of Eternos:
Man-At-Arms put his hands on his hips and sighed as he watched the Talon Fighter turn over in the air, punch down to the deck, and then shoot back up right above him. The windblast almost knocked his helmet off. He sighed and shook his head.
"Show-off," he mumbled, frowning.
He had just finished making the repairs on the machine from the last time it had been taken of a joy ride. He wasn't looking forward to having to do it again.
Man-At-Arms walked over one of the huge, blinking control panels near the aircraft hanger and reached for the radio. He flipped a few switches and held the receiver up to his mouth, his brown eyes still watching the fighter bob up and down in the air, clipping treetops and scaring the hells out of birds and bystanders on the ground below. He rolled his eyes and pushed the 'Talk' button on the receiver.
"You cut that one a little close, don't you think?" he asked into it.
The fighter flipped in the air and then punched the deck again. Man-At-Arms sighed and pushed the button again.
"You do realize you're aging me a little more every time you pull that stunt don't you?" he asked sarcastically.
A high-pitched, feminine giggle came over the radio. Man-At-Arms turned up the volume a touch.
"Duncan, you worry too much," the voice laughed. "I was just making sure your helmet wasn't on too tight."
Man-At-Arms looked at the young guard stationed at the nearby radar. The lad was stifling a smile and blushing. Man-At-Arms smirked and put the receiver down. The Talon Fighter landed just as he walked out onto the landing pad. He strolled up to the aircraft and watched as it's pilot opened the cockpit door and jumped out.
"I'm glad to see you're in one-piece," he said flatly.
The pilot laughed and removed her helmet, shaking her long, blonde hair out. Her blue eyes sparkled as a smile spread across her lovely face.
"I told you not to worry about me, Duncan," she laughed. "I HAVE flown this thing before."
Man-At-Arms crossed his arms and looked at her sternly.
"I was talking TO the Talon Fighter," he said in that 'I mean business' tone.
The pilot just smiled brighter and slugged him lightly on the shoulder.
"You know, I don't think I'm aging you," she teased. "You're already turning into a grumpy, old man."
Man-At-Arms narrowed his eyes, then eased up and chuckled. He sometimes forgot that his young protégé was quite capable of taking care of herself...most of the time. He put his hands behind his back and started walking back to the palace. The pilot walked next to him, chattering on about the drag the fighter was experiencing on lift-offs.
Duncan half-listened to her before he started staring at something in the distance that caught his attention. After a few minutes, the pilot looked at her teacher and stopped talking, slightly annoyed that she was being ignored.
"Duncan, did you hear what I said?" she asked irritably, throwing her hands up in the air. "I swear, you NEVER listen to me."
Man-At-Arms, snapped out of his trance and looked at his student apologetically.
"I'm sorry, my mind wandered," he said gently. "What were you saying about the drag?"
The pilot raised her eyebrows and looked at him. For a brief moment, her teacher had a look of such great sadness, one she had never seen on him before. She turned her head and looked to see what Man-At-Arms had been looking at.
About 40 yards away, she could see a young, blonde boy and his friends playing with Orko in the courtyard. The children seemed to be hiding, which was probably the smart thing for him to do if Orko was practicing his magic tricks. But suddenly the boy leapt out of his hiding place and shouted "Boo!" sending Orko straight up into the air in a fit of fright. The boy laughed hysterically, rolling on the ground, surrounded by his comrades.
She wondered what about that scene could cause Man-At-Arms, resident rock and strong shoulder, to become so bothered and yet so detached.
"What were you looking at Duncan," she inquired with slight confusion.
Man-At-Arms looked at her and smiled. He seemed to be reflecting on something and it bothered the young woman. She put her hand on his shoulder and he just nodded and continued to walk back towards the palace.
"Nothing," he said distantly. "Nothing at all, Adora."
Adora nodded her head and continued her pace next to her teacher. They reached the doors to the palace when they heard another loud, female voice behind them.
"Princess, father wait up!"
Both Adora and Man-At-Arms turned to see Teela, the First Lieutenant of the Royal Guard, and Man-At-Arms' daughter, running up to them. Her long red hair hung down and was pinned at the nape of her neck, except some wisps that were hanging in her face. She was sweaty and her uniform was dusty, probably from constant training she put herself through daily.
In her hands she carried three large bouquets of Eternian wildflowers, which she shoved into Adora's hands forcibly one at a time, to the Princess's surprise.
"Here," Teela panted, indicating that she had probably run from wherever she came from. "Ram Man asked me to give you these; Quildor, the mystic one, wanted you to have these; and THESE are from Sgt. Trackett of the Royal Infantry. All given with their 'Utmost admiration for her majesty, the Princess Adora.'"
Teela took a deep breath and looked at her pleadingly.
"Can you PLEASE tell your boyfriends that I am your bodyguard, not your messenger and certainly NOT a delivery woman?" she begged harshly. "Again?"
Adora looked at the flowers and sighed as Man-At-Arms chuckled.
"Sorry Teela," she conceded helplessly, looking at each bouquet nonchalantly. "I have tried to stop this kind of behavior, but I guess it's not sticking, huh?"
Teela crossed her arms, looking very much like her father, and narrowed her eyes.
"Apparently not," she grumbled.
Man-At-Arms laughed heartily at his daughter's response and put his arm around her, squeezing her shoulder.
"Lighten up Teela," he chided between laughs. "People will begin to think you're just jealous of the attention Adora gets. You certainly don't want that now do you?"
Adora and Teela both looked at Duncan with surprise. Teela blushed angrily.
"Jealous?" she howled. "Why should I be jealous? I don't need some man falling all over himself for me! I have more important things to do!"
Adora restrained her own laughter and threw the flowers up into the air. Finally laughing as they floated down on the three of them.
"Here, here Teela!" she chimed in. "Who needs men?"
Teela blushed a little harder and looked down, realizing that her friend and her father were making fun of her 'work before play' attitude, again. She was used to it but wished they understood her better. She kicked some dirt and flowers on the ground and followed the other two as they continued to walk inside.
Later that night Teela sat in the window of her bedroom looking out onto the moonlit plains that surrounded the kingdom. Rays of moonlight caught her face, highlighting her green eyes like emeralds. She sighed and rested her head on the wall.
"I don't know if anyone understands me," she thought to herself.
On the nearby chair lay her uniform, boots and gauntlets: pressed, shined and ready to go - lay prepared for the next day of work and training.
At 22, she was in remarkable shape. She could out fight almost everybody in the kingdom, with the exception of the warrior She-Ra, but not only that, she was smart enough to plan nearly perfect defense strategies against Skeletor's attacks, which had become more and more frequent lately.
She played with a strand of her hair which now hung loose around her shoulders. She had a feeling she would be promoted to the rank of Captain soon, and the thought of it made her warm with pride. But the feeling quickly faded.
It was one thing to be the best, but being the best could often be lonely, a feeling she was more than familiar with.
She wasn't alone, per say. She had her guard friends, Adora, and her father; but she still felt an emptiness inside her that, despite her efforts to fill with work, she simply could not fill.
Sometimes she wondered if things would be different if her mother was alive. She had only ever known Duncan, but she felt comfortable with that being enough.
Often times, the Queen, Marlena, had been a surrogate mother to her when she needed it - those few times where Duncan just couldn't fill the maternal shoes. She always thought how lucky Adora was to have her.
She thought about how her father had accused her of being jealous of Adora earlier that day.
"Jealous, indeed," she thought as she wrinkled her nose.
She and Adora had been good friends since they were younger and were practically like sisters. They used to gossip about girl-stuff, played games, got into trouble, your standard youthful antics.
However, in the last few years, the pressures of her title and Teela's ambition to be in the guard left little time for the long girl talks they used to have. Not to mention the fact that she was now Adora's bodyguard and that meant things had to be kept to a certain amount of professionalism.
Plus, the list of Adora's admirers grew longer and longer every day. And hers, well, the list was short, nearly nonexistent, but she didn't let it get to her. She knew soon the King would try to make a marital match for Adora, and then Adora would have to play the role of obedient wife, cultured diplomat and someday, Queen of Eternia.
"Ah well," she thought. "I guess all friends grow apart at some point or another."
Teela thought again about the aspect of arranged marriages and smirked to herself. She wasn't envious of Adora there. The idea of someone telling her whom she had to spend the rest of her life with seemed ludicrous to her. In fact, marriage, arranged or not, seemed ludicrous to her.
"Besides," she thought as she kept gazing out the window. "I have yet to meet the man that can keep up with me. I certainly won't find a match in someone that I would have to slow down for. Quite frankly, I'm beginning to think such a man doesn't exist anywhere."