Chapter Two

"I REALLY wish you hadn't come," said Teela to Orko

"Why?" Orko asked. He sat next to Teela - uninvited - in the Wind Raider. "I figured you could use some company."

"This is something I need to do alone," Teela replied firmly.

"You're not going back to the Crystal Sea, are you?" Orko asked with a hint of worry on his voice.

"No," Teela replied flatly. "I'm going to talk to the Sorceress."

"The Sorceress of GRAYSKULL?" Orko's eyes were now as wide as dinner plates.

"Uh-Huh."

"What would SHE know about your mother?"

"That's what I'd like to find out." Teela looked over the side of the Wind Raider as the massive stone walls of Castle Grayskull emerged from the mists below. "We're here."

"What makes you think SHE knows anything?" Orko asked after they had landed. Teela stretched her legs by putting one foot - and then the other - on the engine manifold.

"She gave me a tip … a BIG tip … about her when I sat in for her at Grayskull," said Teela.

"You think she wants to talk?"

"I don't know," said Teela softly. "That's what I'm here to find out."

The Sorceress of Grayskull silently sat on her throne deep within the castle, watching - and listening - to Teela and Orko through a transparent magical sphere floating before her (As a security precaution, she made it a point to monitor all conversations occurring on Grayskull's grounds.)

It fascinated her to no end to see what people did when they thought no one was watching. She found it … educational … to see how people behaved in their more-or-less …unguarded … moments (Those times when any and all veneers of pretense and posturing were stripped away.)

"Aren't you going in?" Orko asked. Teela was doing lunges against the front of the engine manifold.

Teela straightened herself up. "I have to think," she said. "I need to figure out an angle of attack."

Orko's eyes widened. "You're going to attack the CASTLE!"

Teela let out a snort. "No, silly," she said. "I need to figure out how to broach the topic."

"Why don't you just ask her?"

"It's not that easy," said Teela. "The last time I tried it, she stonewalled me." Teela paused. "I don't think she quite trusts me with that information yet."

"Teela, you're not making sense!" Orko exclaimed. "Why would she give you a tip and then stonewall you?" Orko paused. "Shouldn't the fact that she gave you a tip AT ALL tell you something?"

Teela gave a shy smile. "You're right," she said quietly. "Maybe I am paranoid." Teela paused. "I guess I'm just nervous." Teela sighed. "I came SO close at the Crystal Sea … only to have it yanked away from me at the last second." Teela paused again. "I don't know how much more of this I can take."

"Does she know how much this is hurting you? That you haven't hardly eaten or slept in DAYS!" Orko paused. "That this has been going off-and-on for MONTHS?"

"No … and she's not GOING to know, either," said Teela. "Right now, I don't have the luxury of appearing weak." Teela paused. "If I'm going to get through this, I've gotta be strong." Teela paused again. "It's almost time … I'd better get going."

Orko placed a comforting hand on Teela's shoulder. "I'm sure you'll be OK."

Teela straightened herself up. "I hope so," she said.

"You're not just ANYONE," said Orko. "You're Teela, Captain of the Royal Guard." Orko paused. "You're as tough as they come!"

Am I tough ENOUGH? Teela thought. THAT is the question. Teela let out a deep breath. The Sorceress HAS been known to … test … people in the past, she thought. Let 'em coast for awhile … and then pull the rug out from under them, just to see what they're made of. "I'm gonna go," she said.

"You want ME to come?" Orko asked.

"No … stay here," said Teela. "As I said, this is something I have to do alone."

Teela, you are nothing if not persistent, The Sorceress thought as the image of Teela walking up the bridge which led towards the Castle appeared in the viewer. With a wave of her hand, she dissolved the viewer and lowered the drawbridge, allowing Teela to enter.