Chapter Two - "Walls"

"What are you talking about?"

Skeletor cackled. "You think King Hiss is a threat only to you? You are so blind. Hiss is my enemy too. Or didn't you realize that?"

He-Man grasped the Sword of Power harder. "You were the one that set him free in the first place."

"A miscalculation."

"Skeletor came to us, He-Man," Man-At-Arms stated. "His forces are at the edge of the Evergreen Forest. It's an alliance."

"Temporary, of course," Skeletor added.

"Who else do we have on our side, Duncan?" asked He-Man, not releasing his sword. "Hordak? Count Marzo?"

"Somebody's angry," Skeletor remarked.

"Shut up," He-Man snapped.

"He-Man . . . let's head inside."

Skeletor sat down on a rock and He-Man, Battle-Cat, and Man-At-Arms were instantly teleported inside. Before He-Man was She-Ra, Gwildor, the Sorceress, Pelicor, and Orko. They were standing in the throne room. A crystal ball floated nearby, showing Skeletor outside, sitting on the rock.

"Welcome back," Sorceress greeted.

"Thank you."

"What's the current situation?" asked He-Man.

"Not good," replied Pelicor.

"King Hiss and Vipera have claimed the Great Towers, Snake Mountain, and Eternos. All the Heroic Warriors as well as all Royal Soldiers within the city and King Randor have been transformed into statues," Man-At-Arms reported.

"Queen Marlena?"

"A prisoner of the Snake-Men, from what we can see," the Sorceress replied. "King Hiss has hatched a vile plot."

He-Man nodded. "I knew that already."

"He intends to use the Serpents Ring to transform all of the forces of Eternos in Snake-Men. It is already in use on Teela's body," she continued.

"But how will that change anything? Can't they still be free of mind?" He-Man asked.

"The Serpents Ring will make them submissive to Vipera."

He-Man sighed and leaned back. "Okay. What do we do from here?"

"We've been discussing this in your absence," Man-At-Arms answered, making sure his feelings for He-Man's departure were known to the champion.

"A multi-coordinated attack would be best," She-Ra advised. "The power of Grayskull harms Vipera. That is a key to the attack."

"What about Teela?" He-Man questioned.

Three crystal balls lifted from the ground and sat in mid-air before them. The Sorceress waved her hand above all three.

"Orko," Sorceress addressed, the first orb showing Stone Mountain. "You must go to Malik and Kareen. They will help us with the situation at hand."

"How?"

"You must figure that out on your own." The crystal ball then flew back to its place on the wall. The second shifted into its position. "Battle-Cat, Swift-Wind - you must ride to the Sands of Time," she told them, the Sands of Time appearing in the orb. "It is there a great power lies sleeping. Only the two of you may awaken it. Only the two of you may stir it from its long slumber. You know of what I speak."

"We do," Swift-Wind returned.

"We'll leave there immediately."

The second orb returned to its place on the wall as well, and then the third and final one appeared. It showed them Eternos. "Eternos is the key. Pelicor, you and the Royal Soldiers must remain in position with the Evil Warriors, prepared to strike on Man-At-Arms command."

"I understand, my lady," Pelicor returned.

"What about the rest of us?"

"She-Ra, you and SeaHawk must remain here at Castle Grayskull and protect it in this time of danger. He-Man and Skeletor have their own quest to embark on."

"What quest is that?" asked He-Man.

"The two of you must go to the Great Towers, and then to Snake Mountain. The White Hole must be closed. It is the key to Vipera's power."

He-Man closed his eyes and grunted. "All right."

"Don't sound so excited about it," SeaHawk joked.

"Let's get a move on," Man-At-Arms ordered.

As everyone else went their separate ways, He-Man remained in the throne room with the Sorceress and Man-At-Arms.

"You didn't answer my question," He-Man said once every left. "What about Teela? Where is her life force since it was tossed from her body?"

"Teela is beyond my reach, He-Man. She is within the prison that Vipera was placed in. She is alive, but I can not see her. Believe me when I say that I will not stop looking for her."

He-Man sighed. "All right."

"If you will excuse me, I have been attempting to view King Hiss and Vipera. Trying to observe their actions. Get a feel for their power levels."

The Sorceress left the room, leaving only Duncan and He-Man alone.

Duncan sighed and looked away. "Well."

He-Man leaned against a pillar and looked to the floor. "Well."

"Where is Kathryn?"

He-Man perked an eyebrow. "On Dellos."

"She's safe? Alive?"

"Yes. She's . . . she's going to be fine." He paused, then spoke again. "We ended things. It's over between us."

Duncan started. "What? Why? What happened?"

He-Man clenched his eyes shut. Tears started to escape anyway. Duncan's anger for He-Man was gone. He stepped over to him and put his hand on his shoulder.

"What is it?"

"She was pregnant!" He-Man blurted out, tears pouring from his blue eyes. "She was pregnant and we lost the baby . . . we lost it!"

Sobbing now, He-Man collapsed onto his mentor. Duncan took in a deep breath and embraced him. A memory flashed across his mind as he did so. Years ago, when Adora was kidnapped, Duncan held Randor is the same sobbing manner. But there was one difference. Randor had been his best friend back then, almost his own brother. He-Man - as both the hero and Adam - had been like a son to Duncan. And that was exactly what He-Man needed right now.

"All right, boy, it'll be all right."

"I'm so sorry . . . I'm so sorry . . . I shouldn't have . . . I shouldn't have left . . ."

Duncan shook his head. "No, Adam, it's all right. You did what you felt you had to do. It . . . it may not have been the best decision but . . . I . . . understand it."

He-Man pulled back and Duncan could see the boy he trained to be a man within his eyes, looking to him for guidance. "Thank you," he said quietly. "Do me a favor and keep this all between us?"

"Of course. Now . . . we need to get to work."

"Yes. We do," He-Man replied, standing up straight now. "Duncan?"

"Yeah?"

"Thanks."

She-Ra stood outside with the others. Skeletor sat apart from them and was instead looking out upon the horizon. He-Man and Man-At-Arms joined them all.

"So what am I supposed to be doing?" asked Orko.

"It's like the Sorceress said, Orko," He-Man answered. "You'll have to figure that out on your own."

"Hmph. Well, all right."

"Good luck, Orko. I'm sure whatever you find out will be of service to the greater good," She-Ra added.

"Thanks a lot. See y'all!"

"Good journey," He-Man said.

With that, Orko went flying north, towards the Mystic Mountains.

"We had better be off as well," said Battle-Cat.

"I agree," Swift-Wind. She-Ra walked over and stroked Swift-Wind's mane.

"You two be careful."

"We will," Battle-Cat responded, being scratched on the back of the neck. "We have a way of blending in with other animals."

"Good luck to you both."

Swift-Wind and Battle-Cat then turned away from their masters and set forth across the field, running at incredible speeds towards the southeast. He-Man and She-Ra watched until they were out of view, then turned to Skeletor.

"I suppose we should be off, then, Skeletor," He-Man addressed.

Skeletor nodded. "I suppose we shall. It will be an interesting trip, to say the least."

He-Man gave She-Ra a weary look. Man-At-Arms pressed a small key on his wrist. Stridor and Night Stalker came trotting over. He-Man leapt onto Stridor and Skeletor onto Night Stalker.

"Good and evil standing side-by-side once more. Will these days ever end?" Skeletor mused.

"I hope so."

"You understand of course, just what it is we are up against?" Skeletor asked then, voice devoid of his wry humor. "Vipera is far greater than any other threat you've faced. She would be tossed Shokoti back into her tomb. The Dark Cloud would have been blown away with one huff. The Spirit of Evil could have been dissipated at her whim. She is greater than I; greater than Hiss or Hordak or Marzo. There is but one weakness, but it is also her greatest strength."

"And what is that, Skeletor?"

"Her body. It is mortal. Kill the body and she is gone."

"And stop any chance of Teela returning."

"You know by now that I won't make any distinction," Skeletor responded.

"Unfortunately."

As the pair entered the Evergreen Forest, She-Ra and SeaHawk headed towards the jawbridge of Castle Grayskull. SeaHawk took her hand.

"You scared, hon?"

"Not yet."

The illumination of three moons came down upon Vipera, who stood in one of the gardens of Eternos. Despite her evil intents, she still respected the beauty of Eternia's plant-life. The summer insects chirped like nothing was wrong from their perches among the plants. Vipera, in Teela's body, walked along a path, her new scaly skin feeling much more comfortable than the soft flesh.

Her fingers ran along the Serpents Ring, which allowed her to transform Teela's body into its current state. It would continue to do so until Vipera wished it to stop. And then . . . the world of Man would be transformed into loyal Snake-Men, to do her bidding. The world taken from her by Veena the Goddess would be hers.

It was then that she saw the man that had rescued her. King Hiss stood near one of the entrances, a smile on that flesh-face of his. He walked over, but stood a few feet away out of respect.

"Your highnesssss . . ." King Hiss said, bowing.

"Rise, Hiss. Anything new to report?"

"Nothing," Hiss replied, staring at her. "I must say, your highness, you are looking ravishing. Each and every day you take that human body and continue to make it even more beautiful."

Vipera smiled. "You find this body very beautiful, then?"

"Even more so now than before, yes."

She stepped forward and ran her finger across his cheek. "You wish to be with it. You wish to mate with it. You told me as much, did you not?"

"I did," Hiss returned, his voice shaking.

Vipera's smile grew even wilder. "This body is in its time to conceive a child. Come with me, King Hiss, and together we shall have a baby. The heir to our new world order."

King Hiss gulped. "When?"

"Tonight."