Chapter 6 – Revelations
Dawn, or better, Sorceress, walked to the window, and looked outside.
"Do you know how much time I didn't see this beautiful world, just waiting for this moment?", she sighed.
"What do you mean, 'how much time'? You are a ten year old girl. You've had until now to appreciate this mudball." Xander spoke, rising from the bed.
"That's where you are wrong, Heir."
"Xander, please. You call me Heir, I feel… old."
"In this case, you are right. But I'm not making much sense, am I? So, let me start from the beginning.
You may know me as Sorceress, and that was indeed my name, in ages long forgotten. I was the keeper of the most sacred place in all galaxy, the place you Heirs know as Castle Grayskull. But Grayskull was not only a castle; it was the place of the strongest convergence of mystical powers for this entire galaxy. Inside its walls laid the knowledge to destroy a thousand universes and to create another thousand. Some people gave it a title once, the Birthplace of the Gods. How I wish it were true, once.
As such places normally are, there were people who sworn to protect it, and those who sworn to conquer it. Myself and a handful of others through time upheld the first, none more fiercely than the Heirs."
"He-Man and She-Ra." Willow completed.
"Yes." Sorceress returned to the room, leaving the window behind. "But they were one of many incarnations of the Heirs, as you both are, today. Trough time, the Swords chosen new bearers, and these bearers were the Heirs to Power. One Man, and One Woman. One He and One She.
The previous, and also the last incarnation of such Heirs were He-Man and She-Ra, the son and daughter of the kings of planet Eternia, as it once was called. Both were brave and courageous beyond belief, but so was the Enemy, in cunning and deceit."
"Skeletor. But I always saw him as a stupid moron with stupid plans and idiotic allies." Xander spoke.
"Don't think that all the information on these childish cartoons were true. The Enemy was not called Skeletor, it was S'kor. Although he did look like a living skeleton, he wasn't called that. And he rarely relied on allies to his plans. He trusted no one. He had only one lieutenant, a powerful witch called Lyn. And a large assembly of mindless, yet powerful creatures, called the Mon."
"S'kor was a master strategist, and he devised a long-lived plan to obtain the secrets of Grayskull. He hijacked the newborn daughter of king Randor and Queen Marleena, offering her as a sacrifice to an old competitor, an interdimensional warlord called Hordak. Hordak saw in the girl a chance to later on to blackmail the kings of Eternia and S'kor himself, so, instead of killing, he raised her. That wasn't on S'kor's plans, but it couldn't have worked better. A part of this story you know, Heirs, it is almost the same of that infernal cartoon, with a few minor differences. In the end, the Heir of Honor chose to stay in her adoptive planet, and helped release it from Hordak. But it was a serious drawback in the defense of Grayskull. He-Man was powerful, but he was only one, and, as many allies as he had, none had access to the powers from Grayskull, none except his sister."
"He failed? He… lost?" Xander asked.
Sorceress became quiet for a long time.
"I will assume the aspect of the child again, this form takes much of my current power." And the glow diminished, and so did the Sorceress body, and soon she became Dawn again.
"To answer your question, Hei…Xander, no, he did not fail, but yes, he lost. In truth, he was betrayed."
"Betrayed? By who?" a bolt of rage ran through his veins.
"By the only person he could not be betrayed by. Me."
Xander almost jumped her. "WHAT?"
"You see, that was another part of S'kor's plan, one he did not plan himself, but he used anyway. You see, I made a mistake once. Or I did not, I surely don't know. I fell in love with a wonderful man, the Warmaster Duncan. But the life of a Sorceress must be of a single purpose, defend Grayskull. But I betrayed that call, and I loved that man. From that love, my daughter was born." Dawn cried a single tear.
"Teela." Willow murmured.
"Yes, Teela. She was raised by his father, and with his kind and brave heart he trained her, and she surpassed him, becoming one of the best warriors from the entire planet, and Captain of the Royal Guard. But he and I, we made a mistake in raising her, we never told her the truth about her mother."
"You were trying to protect her."
"Yes, I was, wasn't I?" Dawn cried again, like the ten year old she was supposed to be. Willow held her arm and helped her sit on the bed. "I'm sorry… this still hurts too much…"
"Hey, if you want we can…" Willow tried to calm her.
"NO. No…no, you must know the truth, all of it." Dawn took a deep breath. "Years later, she learned by accident that He-Man and the prince were the same person. She felt betrayed, and she disappeared for a time. We tried to find her, but somehow we could not. She suddenly reappeared, asking the one question his father swore not to answer."
"Who was her mother." Xander spoke, more calmly.
"Yes. Duncan, afraid to lose her again, answered. She came to me, to confront me. I told her I was trying to protect her. She yelled at me, telling that she didn't need protection, she needed her mother. She was right."
Dawn rose from the bed again, and she began pacing the room.
"She left again, but this time we managed to follow her. We just didn't imagine were she would go to. S'kor's lair, Snake Mountain. He-Man followed her and he tried to bring her back. She just said that she was there of her own free will, and that she trusted S'kor more than she trusted him. At least S'kor actions were honest. He-Man didn't have a choice but to back up, hoping that she would see the truth sometime in the future. But S'kor did not wait. He used Teela knowledge of Grayskull and the palace to perform a massive strike, and in a masterstroke, he kidnapped the prince, yet untransformed. He then proceeded to Grayskull."
Dawn looked at them again.
"I still remember as if it was today…"
Adam was tied like a hog ready for the butcher, the Sword of Power on Teela's scabbard. She was helding him upright in front of the suspended bridge to Grayskull, a dagger pressed into his neck. Behind her, S'kor and Lyn were waiting, a large group of Mon surrounding them.
"Open up, Mother. We just want to talk. Wasn't that what you want from me? To TALK? To have your BELOVED daughter back? So, MOTHER, open the castle. Open up the castle or your beautiful Heir DIES!"
Teela pressed the dagger strongly to Adam's neck, drawing a little of blood. Inside the castle, the Sorceress was on the verge of tears. What could she do? She couldn't sacrifice Adam or Teela, nor she could open the castle to S'kor. What could she possibly do?
"The Sorceress is no fool. She won't open the castle." Lyn murmured into S'kor's ear.
"Oh, yes, she will, dear Lyn. Haven't you heard? We have the perfect ransom material in our hands. Her own daughter. If the Heir isn't a strong motivation, her daughter surely will be." He 'grinned', holding his scepter more strongly.
Inside the castle, Sorceress had a sudden insight. Adora, we need She-Ra urgently. The castle is being attacked and your brother is in grave danger!, she sent a telepathic message trough the dimensions.
I'm coming, Sorceress. came the prompt reply.
"COME ON, MOTHER, I'M GROWING IMPATIENT! OPEN UP!" Teela screamed. She wasn't thinking rationally. Damn, she loved the man she was holding hostage. All because of revenge? Revenge on what? Against who?
She-Ra appeared from a dimensional gateway a few hundred meters from the castle, her winged unicorn following her.
"Let's make an aerial recon, Swiftwind. UP!" She jumped into the saddle, and the unicorn gained altitude quickly. From the heights, she looked at the apparently unsolvable situation, a plan quickly forming in her mind, but she would need her brother as He-Man.
"Ok, my friend, here's the plan…" And she informed her unicorn the idea. "Ready?"
"As always!" the winged beauty answered.
"On three. One. Two. Three. DOWN!"
The unicorn made a dive on a straight path to Teela. In the last moment, it turned upside down, She-Ra clamped her legs on his torso to hold herself to him. In a daring maneuver, the Princess of Power grabbed Teela, leaving her brother to fall on the ground. Swiftwind rolled again, and steadied himself in the right position.
She-Ra's hand flew to her brother's sword, and she managed to retrieve it from the other woman scabbard.
"Ok, Teela, care to explain me why were you threatening my brother, before I decide to throw you from up here? Part two, Swifty!"
The unicorn made another maneuver, pointing himself again to the battlefield. Time was of the essence, She-Ra would have only moments to rescue his brother before…
"She-Ra, be a dear and release my friend Teela, please?" S'kor asked mockingly, his battle staff pointed at Adam's head. From that distance, he wouldn't miss, not even if he wanted.
"If I do that, you will going to kill Adam."
"Dear She-Ra, I'm a pratical man. I only do the things I must do, killing gives me no pleasure. So, I'll just kill the prince if you don't give me what I want, so please, release Teela." The problem with a skeletal face is that you didn't knew if it was laughing at you, mocking at you or just playing with you, so Adam's sister was at an impasse.
"Ok. Down, boy." The unicorn landed a few feet from the situation. She-Ra placed Teela on the ground, but she kept hoding the woman's neck. Teela was too good a warrior, so she was applying a little bit more force than what was necessary. "Let's make a trade-off. Adam for her."
"Oh, no, my dear. I think you misunderstood me. This isn't a hostage negotiation, it's a killing negotiation. You give me her, I don't kill him, you do not, I do. Simple. Besides, the moment I release him, you are going to give that annoying sword to him, and I'm not in the mood to face the idiotic He-Man."
She-Ra blanched. S'kor KNEW!
"What have you done?" she asked angrily to the woman held in her hand.
"Betrayed him, like you people betrayed ME!"
"Betrayed YOU? What are you talking about, woman?" Sorceress, what madness is this? Is she under some spell?
It's a long story, She-Ra, but she is not under a spell. She is just extremely confused.
What should I do?
Release her. It's our only hope.
I don't trust S'kor. He'll kill Adam the moment I release Teela.
We have to trust him, it's Teela only hope.
Teela? What about Adam? He's my brother, she is just a TRAITOR.
And she is my daughter.
"She-Ra, what's your decision? Your brother's clock is ticking…" S'kor asked, the scepter coming closer to her brother's head.
He is not trustworthy. She-Ra was almost screaming.
We have no option. Release her.
Can't you transport him someplace else?
I'm afraid I can't. His bindings seem to be some sort of magic blocker, also. Please, release her.
I can't. I WON'T.
She-Ra, please. She is my daughter.
AND HE IS MY BROTHER! ASK HIM WHAT HE WANTS!
A few moments of silence.
He said that he trusts you. Your decision is final. But please, I ask you, stop and think about it!
She-Ra took a deep breath.
No. She stays.
Inside the castle, the Sorceress made a decision she would regret for the rest of her life.
I'm sorry.
The transformation from Adora into She-Ra and vice versa was one that could only be made by Adora herself. But her power came from Grayskull, and in Grayskull no one was more powerful than the Sorceress. So, to give her daughter a chance of escape, the Sorceress removed a great part of She-Ra's strength with a simple spell. It would only last a moment, and it would be sufficient.
Teela noticed the lack of strength on the grip on her neck, so she twisted her body violently, escaping She-Ra's hand. She ran away in the direction of Adam and S'kor.
The warlord was no fool, and he had a clear shot. He changed the staff position quickly, and the mortal bolt he had prepared found a new target. He had hit He-Man and She-Ra so many times with those that he knew it would only knock them out for some time. But She-Ra was not fully herself.
The magic bolt hit her fully in the breastplate, but the magic that reinforced the armor wasn't fully present. The bolt opened a hole the size of a small fist in the plate, and it ate skin, muscles, blood, heart, a part of her lungs as if they were made of paper. She-Ra looked surprised at her chest, and like a marionette that suddenly had her wires cut, fell to the ground, dead.
- To be continued -