Disclaimer in Chapter 1
**Sorry I disappeared. Life has been rather hectic but I promiiiiiiiiiise that I will update more frequently now. Enjoy!
CHAPTER 7
The wind whipped through Adora's long blonde hair as the wind raider cut through the sky at high speed.
Duncan had been very quiet since she found him in his workshop asleep. He hadn't even responded to her questions about why the room was in such disarray. It appeared to her that his focus was intent on getting to Grayskull, fast, and it seemed that nothing was going to get in his way.
"If he takes one more sharp turn at this speed, I'm going to fall out, and that will slow us down," she thought to herself as she noticed her knuckles had turned white from gripping her seat.
She frowned and put her hand over her abdomen. She had felt off balance since late last night but had chalked it up to fatigue. The Sorceress's telepathic message had been so vague, she wondered if her teacher knew something she didn't.
Anyone that knew Princess Adora knew very well that she did NOT like to be kept in the dark about anything. She opened her mouth as if to ask something, but quickly closed it again as the nausea swept over her once more.
Man-At-Arms noticed her movement and gave her a side-glance.
"You okay?" he asked, the tone of light concern in his voice.
Adora nodded and relaxed a bit. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes. She could smell the pine from the trees in the Evergreen forest below. She loved Eternia, the beauty of the land and the people. It was her home, and she was proud to defend it.
But still there were times she grew bored with her life. She craved action and its unpredictability. There were even days she was secretly grateful that Skeletor was around to keep her occupied so that her time wouldn't always be spent being coddled by her parents and whatever suitor her father had lined up. Although she would never admit it openly, she longed for a life away from the dull niceties of being the crowned princess. Teela had that kind of life, and Adora envied her of that.
Realizing that her teacher was still looking at her, she remembered his question.
"Yes, I skipped breakfast this morning and I think my stomach is mad at me for it," she replied half-heartedly.
Man-At-Arms nodded and returned his attention back to the sky. Adora knew what she said wasn't the whole truth, but Duncan was acting so strangely, she didn't want to worry him with something even she was unsure about. Maybe the Sorceress would be able to enlighten her.
Adora returned her attention to the horizon as the outline of Grayskull started to become apparent. However, a nagging feeling in her chest prevented her mind from wandering.
Man-At-Arms wasn't the only one who was acting strangely. Teela had been so distant the last few weeks that they barely spoke to each other. Adora felt partly responsible for that, afterall Teela was her best friend, but the duties of the palace and her responsibilities to Grayskull had kept her busy. They hadn't had a good talk in ages. Adora missed that. Teela was like her sister, they had always told each other everything.
Well, not everything. Teela didn't know that Adora was She-Ra and had been for a while now. She wondered how her friend would take it if she ever found out.
Adora shuddered and spaced out to her surroundings as she fell into her memories. She remembered that day about three years ago when she found out about her warrior destiny.
Skeletor and his minions had launched a massive strike in several places on Eternia, including Eternos and the Royal Palace. The royal family had been evacuated but in the melee she and her parents had gotten separated.
Adora knew if she were captured Skeletor would use her to destroy her family, or just kill her for his own pleasure, so she ran into the woods, the safest place she knew.
As if by magic, she didn't stop running either. As if something was urging her on, she ran until the woods broke and she was standing in front of Castle Grayskull. She remembered the breath caught in her throat as the giant jawbridge lowered itself to her. To her amazement, she felt safe and walked into the dark castle.
It was there she met the Sorceress. She was like a goddess and despite her instincts, which told her to run; Adora knew in her heart she could trust her.
But there was something strange about that day, well, something strange in a sad way. When the Sorceress gave Adora the Sword of Protection, which she would thereafter use to become She-Ra, the mystic woman seemed guarded, unfocused, strangely enough it was as if she were expecting someone else.
Adora snapped back to reality as Duncan started to descend the raider.
"I guess it doesn't matter," she thought to herself. "The Sorceress has never said anything about anyone else defending Eternia using the magic of Grayskull, so I must be doing something right."
Man-At-Arms landed the raider smoothly and jumped out. Adora followed as her teacher practically ran into the open mouth of the castle.
"What has gotten into him?" Adora frowned again as she tried to keep up.
They ran through long, dark corridors and up many staircases before they arrived at the doors of the great throne room. Without hesitation, Man-At- Arms swung open the massive doors and headed inside.
The two entered the great room where the Sorceress, in all her power and glory, sat perched on the high throne.
Amazingly enough the wisest of Eternian women looked worried, a sight Adora had never seen on the Sorceress's face before. Whatever it was that made her look like that, Adora knew must be bad.
"You summoned us, Sorceress?" Adora inquired loudly, her voice echoing off the castle's inner walls. Beside her, Man-At-Arms fidgeted, looking very anxiously at the Sorceress.
The goddess seemed to read his mind.
"Something troubles you, Man-At-Arms, what is it?" she asked, her mere voice exuding with magic.
She descended the long staircase without ever touching a stair and approached them. Man-At-Arms held out a piece of paper to her and looked anxiously at Adora, who returned his look, with confusion.
"I have news regarding an old…….situation," he hesitated. "But I will explain later. Why have you summoned us?"
Adora raised an eyebrow. If someone didn't clue her in soon, she was going to have the mother of all fits in the middle of Grayskull.
The Sorceress took the paper and looked at him strangely. She appeared to be working out a puzzle in her mind.
"The Horde has returned to Eternia," she said directly. "Or at least two members have. You can be assured more will follow, perhaps even Hordak himself. Eternia and Grayskull are in the greatest of dangers."
Adora was all kinds of confused now. She opened her mouth to speak but Duncan cut her off. Annoyed she glared at him. He, however, seemed to forget she was in the room.
"The Horde? After all these years? Are you sure?" he had never questioned the Sorceress before, but now, he did.
She didn't seem put off by it though and merely nodded.
"Yes, Man-At-Arms," she replied earnestly. "I'm quite sure. I saw two of them myself, at Snake Mountain. Something is being planned, I can feel it in the very core of my being."
She walked as she studied the paper Man-At-Arms had given her. She continued elaborating on the arrival.
"There was a woman, an ancient of another realm I presume. She possesses great, dark magic," she frowned. "I could sense her power and the darkness was shattering."
Adora tried to follow what she was being told despite her confusion. If she didn't get answers from the Sorceress, she would beat them out of Man-At- Arms if she had too.
Man-At-Arms listened intently as the Sorceress went on.
"And there was a man," she said looking into his stern face. "I could not see his face but he wore the Horde symbol upon his breast."
She finished reading the paper and stared at Man-At-Arms for a moment. What the paper revealed, however, she was not going to elaborate on. Not in Adora's presence anyway.
"There was a strong veil of evil around him," she practically whispered. "One I could not see through in my Zoar form. But there is magic consuming him, powerful, dark, controlling magic."
Adora bit her lip when she heard what the Sorceress said next.
"There is also vengeance in his soul and a lust for power in his head," she said bluntly. "His evil may be equal to that of Skeletor's. If they are plotting something together, you can rest assured that the target will be Grayskull and the Elder's power."
Adora stiffened. She had fought Skeletor and his cronies countless times. She was not about to back down on some power hungry monster that appeared out of nowhere.
"That's not going to happen," she said defiantly. "When he shows his face you can bet I'll…."
Suddenly, and as if she knew it was going to happen, the Sorceress whirled around. Light encompassed them, so bright that both Adora and Man-At-Arms were blinded. A loud humming reverberated in the walls of the castle and while the light faded, the humming, almost melodical, grew louder.
Adora covered her ears and reached for her sword.
"What is going on here?!" She asked loudly as the Sorceress and Man-At-Arms just stared at each other. Neither of them responded, which Adora interpreted as a bad sign.
She started to pull her sword from its scabbard.
"For the honor of…."
"Wait!" the Sorceress yelled as she clasped a hand around Adora's wrist.
Adora looked at her with confusion and lowered her hand. The humming increased so loudly that the walls seemed to vibrate. Wide-eyed, Adora looked at her teacher who seemed mesmerized by what was going on.
"We should evacuate!!!" she yelled, but no one seemed to pay heed. "It feels like this place is going to blow!!!"
And then there was a loud explosion and the thunder from it resonated through the halls of the great castle. All three were knocked to the ground. While none of them were injured, they all appeared to be in shock.
After some time, the shaking ceased and the three stood up and looked at each other. No one appeared to be injured but the experience had left them a bit shaken.
"Okay someone please tell me what the……" Adora started to ask but was cut off as the great doors to the throne room flew open in a bellowing gust of wind, knocking all three of them back down to the ground.
It hovered in the doorway for a few minutes and then began to levitate towards them. They all said nothing as they watched the object glide toward them, smoothly, gracefully, by pure magic. The humming returned but in a lighter form and, as they all were before, it was encircled in light.
The Sorceress stared. Man-At-Arms mouth lay agape. Adora studied the object's features in amazement.
"Duncan?" she whispered as it floated close to them. Finally it stopped and hung over their heads.
He could not respond verbally, only physically as he grasped the Princess's shoulder to yank her out of the way as the object fell, created a thunderous clanging sound as it hit the ground.
And there it lay motionless for what appeared to be an eternity.
Finally, Adora spoke and broke the long silence.
"That's looks a lot like.……"
She stopped as the Sorceress knelt down and very gingerly picked up the object on the floor. As she held it, light flashed from it and she jerked back. Not in pain, but in some sort of transference. She dropped the object and doubled over.
Man-At-Arms came to her aid immediately as Adora, transfixed on the object, just stared. He put an arm around the Sorceress's back and tried to help her up. She stood still for a moment and looked into the old warrior's eyes.
"It's all connected, Duncan," she whispered feebly. "Your memories, our illnesses, the strangers, this……." She pointed to the object on the floor. "Its all happening now for a reason…….his destiny is unfolding."
Man-At-Arms was puzzled but he kept a firm grip to steady her.
"What do you mean?" he inquired softly and out of Adora's earshot. "Teelana, what is going on???"
The Sorceress closed her eyes and smiled broadly. But a few seconds later and with the same fervor as before, she opened them wide and grasped Man-At- Arms' collar.
"You must stop him, Duncan," she pleaded. "There is still hope for him…….there is still goodness and love deep within him. We can help him find it."
Man-At-Arms was more confused now than ever and the Sorceress appeared to be on the verge of a blackout. So he held her tighter and tried to keep her focused long enough for an explanation.
"Tell me what's going on!" he begged as he shook her lightly.
Adora finally took notice but did not move. The Sorceress smiled at her and then touched the object on the floor.
"He's here Duncan," she whispered. "Its time for him to claim his birthright."
With that, the Sorceress passed out in his arms. Adora stared at him for a second and looked at the object on the floor. Man-At-Arms lifted the sleeping goddess and after climbing many a stair, returned her to her throne where he gently laid her head on the armrest.
He turned and started to descend the long stairway again when he saw Adora pick up the object and study it. As he reached the floor, she walked over and thrust the object in his face.
Considering what it was, Man-At-Arms surprisingly did not flinch. But Adora did.
"Duncan," she asked boldly. "Whose sword is this?"
**Sorry I disappeared. Life has been rather hectic but I promiiiiiiiiiise that I will update more frequently now. Enjoy!
CHAPTER 7
The wind whipped through Adora's long blonde hair as the wind raider cut through the sky at high speed.
Duncan had been very quiet since she found him in his workshop asleep. He hadn't even responded to her questions about why the room was in such disarray. It appeared to her that his focus was intent on getting to Grayskull, fast, and it seemed that nothing was going to get in his way.
"If he takes one more sharp turn at this speed, I'm going to fall out, and that will slow us down," she thought to herself as she noticed her knuckles had turned white from gripping her seat.
She frowned and put her hand over her abdomen. She had felt off balance since late last night but had chalked it up to fatigue. The Sorceress's telepathic message had been so vague, she wondered if her teacher knew something she didn't.
Anyone that knew Princess Adora knew very well that she did NOT like to be kept in the dark about anything. She opened her mouth as if to ask something, but quickly closed it again as the nausea swept over her once more.
Man-At-Arms noticed her movement and gave her a side-glance.
"You okay?" he asked, the tone of light concern in his voice.
Adora nodded and relaxed a bit. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes. She could smell the pine from the trees in the Evergreen forest below. She loved Eternia, the beauty of the land and the people. It was her home, and she was proud to defend it.
But still there were times she grew bored with her life. She craved action and its unpredictability. There were even days she was secretly grateful that Skeletor was around to keep her occupied so that her time wouldn't always be spent being coddled by her parents and whatever suitor her father had lined up. Although she would never admit it openly, she longed for a life away from the dull niceties of being the crowned princess. Teela had that kind of life, and Adora envied her of that.
Realizing that her teacher was still looking at her, she remembered his question.
"Yes, I skipped breakfast this morning and I think my stomach is mad at me for it," she replied half-heartedly.
Man-At-Arms nodded and returned his attention back to the sky. Adora knew what she said wasn't the whole truth, but Duncan was acting so strangely, she didn't want to worry him with something even she was unsure about. Maybe the Sorceress would be able to enlighten her.
Adora returned her attention to the horizon as the outline of Grayskull started to become apparent. However, a nagging feeling in her chest prevented her mind from wandering.
Man-At-Arms wasn't the only one who was acting strangely. Teela had been so distant the last few weeks that they barely spoke to each other. Adora felt partly responsible for that, afterall Teela was her best friend, but the duties of the palace and her responsibilities to Grayskull had kept her busy. They hadn't had a good talk in ages. Adora missed that. Teela was like her sister, they had always told each other everything.
Well, not everything. Teela didn't know that Adora was She-Ra and had been for a while now. She wondered how her friend would take it if she ever found out.
Adora shuddered and spaced out to her surroundings as she fell into her memories. She remembered that day about three years ago when she found out about her warrior destiny.
Skeletor and his minions had launched a massive strike in several places on Eternia, including Eternos and the Royal Palace. The royal family had been evacuated but in the melee she and her parents had gotten separated.
Adora knew if she were captured Skeletor would use her to destroy her family, or just kill her for his own pleasure, so she ran into the woods, the safest place she knew.
As if by magic, she didn't stop running either. As if something was urging her on, she ran until the woods broke and she was standing in front of Castle Grayskull. She remembered the breath caught in her throat as the giant jawbridge lowered itself to her. To her amazement, she felt safe and walked into the dark castle.
It was there she met the Sorceress. She was like a goddess and despite her instincts, which told her to run; Adora knew in her heart she could trust her.
But there was something strange about that day, well, something strange in a sad way. When the Sorceress gave Adora the Sword of Protection, which she would thereafter use to become She-Ra, the mystic woman seemed guarded, unfocused, strangely enough it was as if she were expecting someone else.
Adora snapped back to reality as Duncan started to descend the raider.
"I guess it doesn't matter," she thought to herself. "The Sorceress has never said anything about anyone else defending Eternia using the magic of Grayskull, so I must be doing something right."
Man-At-Arms landed the raider smoothly and jumped out. Adora followed as her teacher practically ran into the open mouth of the castle.
"What has gotten into him?" Adora frowned again as she tried to keep up.
They ran through long, dark corridors and up many staircases before they arrived at the doors of the great throne room. Without hesitation, Man-At- Arms swung open the massive doors and headed inside.
The two entered the great room where the Sorceress, in all her power and glory, sat perched on the high throne.
Amazingly enough the wisest of Eternian women looked worried, a sight Adora had never seen on the Sorceress's face before. Whatever it was that made her look like that, Adora knew must be bad.
"You summoned us, Sorceress?" Adora inquired loudly, her voice echoing off the castle's inner walls. Beside her, Man-At-Arms fidgeted, looking very anxiously at the Sorceress.
The goddess seemed to read his mind.
"Something troubles you, Man-At-Arms, what is it?" she asked, her mere voice exuding with magic.
She descended the long staircase without ever touching a stair and approached them. Man-At-Arms held out a piece of paper to her and looked anxiously at Adora, who returned his look, with confusion.
"I have news regarding an old…….situation," he hesitated. "But I will explain later. Why have you summoned us?"
Adora raised an eyebrow. If someone didn't clue her in soon, she was going to have the mother of all fits in the middle of Grayskull.
The Sorceress took the paper and looked at him strangely. She appeared to be working out a puzzle in her mind.
"The Horde has returned to Eternia," she said directly. "Or at least two members have. You can be assured more will follow, perhaps even Hordak himself. Eternia and Grayskull are in the greatest of dangers."
Adora was all kinds of confused now. She opened her mouth to speak but Duncan cut her off. Annoyed she glared at him. He, however, seemed to forget she was in the room.
"The Horde? After all these years? Are you sure?" he had never questioned the Sorceress before, but now, he did.
She didn't seem put off by it though and merely nodded.
"Yes, Man-At-Arms," she replied earnestly. "I'm quite sure. I saw two of them myself, at Snake Mountain. Something is being planned, I can feel it in the very core of my being."
She walked as she studied the paper Man-At-Arms had given her. She continued elaborating on the arrival.
"There was a woman, an ancient of another realm I presume. She possesses great, dark magic," she frowned. "I could sense her power and the darkness was shattering."
Adora tried to follow what she was being told despite her confusion. If she didn't get answers from the Sorceress, she would beat them out of Man-At- Arms if she had too.
Man-At-Arms listened intently as the Sorceress went on.
"And there was a man," she said looking into his stern face. "I could not see his face but he wore the Horde symbol upon his breast."
She finished reading the paper and stared at Man-At-Arms for a moment. What the paper revealed, however, she was not going to elaborate on. Not in Adora's presence anyway.
"There was a strong veil of evil around him," she practically whispered. "One I could not see through in my Zoar form. But there is magic consuming him, powerful, dark, controlling magic."
Adora bit her lip when she heard what the Sorceress said next.
"There is also vengeance in his soul and a lust for power in his head," she said bluntly. "His evil may be equal to that of Skeletor's. If they are plotting something together, you can rest assured that the target will be Grayskull and the Elder's power."
Adora stiffened. She had fought Skeletor and his cronies countless times. She was not about to back down on some power hungry monster that appeared out of nowhere.
"That's not going to happen," she said defiantly. "When he shows his face you can bet I'll…."
Suddenly, and as if she knew it was going to happen, the Sorceress whirled around. Light encompassed them, so bright that both Adora and Man-At-Arms were blinded. A loud humming reverberated in the walls of the castle and while the light faded, the humming, almost melodical, grew louder.
Adora covered her ears and reached for her sword.
"What is going on here?!" She asked loudly as the Sorceress and Man-At-Arms just stared at each other. Neither of them responded, which Adora interpreted as a bad sign.
She started to pull her sword from its scabbard.
"For the honor of…."
"Wait!" the Sorceress yelled as she clasped a hand around Adora's wrist.
Adora looked at her with confusion and lowered her hand. The humming increased so loudly that the walls seemed to vibrate. Wide-eyed, Adora looked at her teacher who seemed mesmerized by what was going on.
"We should evacuate!!!" she yelled, but no one seemed to pay heed. "It feels like this place is going to blow!!!"
And then there was a loud explosion and the thunder from it resonated through the halls of the great castle. All three were knocked to the ground. While none of them were injured, they all appeared to be in shock.
After some time, the shaking ceased and the three stood up and looked at each other. No one appeared to be injured but the experience had left them a bit shaken.
"Okay someone please tell me what the……" Adora started to ask but was cut off as the great doors to the throne room flew open in a bellowing gust of wind, knocking all three of them back down to the ground.
It hovered in the doorway for a few minutes and then began to levitate towards them. They all said nothing as they watched the object glide toward them, smoothly, gracefully, by pure magic. The humming returned but in a lighter form and, as they all were before, it was encircled in light.
The Sorceress stared. Man-At-Arms mouth lay agape. Adora studied the object's features in amazement.
"Duncan?" she whispered as it floated close to them. Finally it stopped and hung over their heads.
He could not respond verbally, only physically as he grasped the Princess's shoulder to yank her out of the way as the object fell, created a thunderous clanging sound as it hit the ground.
And there it lay motionless for what appeared to be an eternity.
Finally, Adora spoke and broke the long silence.
"That's looks a lot like.……"
She stopped as the Sorceress knelt down and very gingerly picked up the object on the floor. As she held it, light flashed from it and she jerked back. Not in pain, but in some sort of transference. She dropped the object and doubled over.
Man-At-Arms came to her aid immediately as Adora, transfixed on the object, just stared. He put an arm around the Sorceress's back and tried to help her up. She stood still for a moment and looked into the old warrior's eyes.
"It's all connected, Duncan," she whispered feebly. "Your memories, our illnesses, the strangers, this……." She pointed to the object on the floor. "Its all happening now for a reason…….his destiny is unfolding."
Man-At-Arms was puzzled but he kept a firm grip to steady her.
"What do you mean?" he inquired softly and out of Adora's earshot. "Teelana, what is going on???"
The Sorceress closed her eyes and smiled broadly. But a few seconds later and with the same fervor as before, she opened them wide and grasped Man-At- Arms' collar.
"You must stop him, Duncan," she pleaded. "There is still hope for him…….there is still goodness and love deep within him. We can help him find it."
Man-At-Arms was more confused now than ever and the Sorceress appeared to be on the verge of a blackout. So he held her tighter and tried to keep her focused long enough for an explanation.
"Tell me what's going on!" he begged as he shook her lightly.
Adora finally took notice but did not move. The Sorceress smiled at her and then touched the object on the floor.
"He's here Duncan," she whispered. "Its time for him to claim his birthright."
With that, the Sorceress passed out in his arms. Adora stared at him for a second and looked at the object on the floor. Man-At-Arms lifted the sleeping goddess and after climbing many a stair, returned her to her throne where he gently laid her head on the armrest.
He turned and started to descend the long stairway again when he saw Adora pick up the object and study it. As he reached the floor, she walked over and thrust the object in his face.
Considering what it was, Man-At-Arms surprisingly did not flinch. But Adora did.
"Duncan," she asked boldly. "Whose sword is this?"