First time in a while I've gotten one of these chapters finished in schedule. Anyway, She-Ra and the Princesses of Power is produced by Dreamworks Animation Television, and both She-Ra and He-Man are owned by Mattel. Yadda. Yadda. Enjoy.

Chapter 22: Orko's Sad Tale

(The Celestial Observatory, Trolla: 58 Years Ago)

A young Trollan Mage, no older than sixteen, floated into the Great Hall of the Celestial Observatory, to 'stand' before the Wizard King and three of the Grand Masters.

He was understandably nervous.

"Welcome, Young One." Said the Wizard King in a calm, soothing voice as he floated down to greet him. "We're so glad to finally meet you."

"Th-Th-Th-Th-Thank you, Your Highness."

"Now, now, there's no need for any of that. You've passed the trials and were judged worthy by the Flame of Ortolan. You have earned the right to call me Brother." The White Wizard said gently, before placing a hand on the young one's shoulder. "But I understand, this can all be rather frightening. Saying goodbye to everything you ever knew. Cutting ties with your friends and family."

"Actually, Sir, I don't have any friends or family." The young one said uneasily. "My parents died when I was very young, and I've never been very good at making friends. So for as long as I can remember, I've been on my own."

"Oh… I see." The Wizard King replied in a warm yet sympathetic tone. "Well, it's alright now, young one. Whatever you were before, whoever you were, now you are a Grand Master. Which means you are also a member of our family, now and forever."

With that said, he then pulled the boy forward to present him to the others.

"My fellow Masters, let us welcome our new Brother, Orko the Red Wizard!"

XXX

(The Celestial Observatory, Trolla: 39 Years Ago)

"I call it a Houyhnhnm." Brother Ygbir said as he held up a small clay figure of a humanoid, bipedal creature with an equine-like head and hooves. "I've constructed over 2000 of them and a world for them to live on."

To demonstrate this, he held up his other hand, in which sat a large mud colored orb suspended in a translucent bubble.

"But it's a bit drab, wouldn't you say? Tell me, Brothers, how shall we improve it?"

As usual, Uvo went first.

"I envision a world of green." Said the Green Wizard, appropriately. "Forests, fields, maybe some swamps too. And some mountains and canyons, just to break up the monotony."

No sooner had he said the words, then did the world within the bubble begin to take shape.

"For flora, I'll think we'll keep things conventional this time. Trees, grass, fruit, grains, all the usual things. But with the fauna I shall get a bit more creative. Let's have yellow fieldmice that generate electricity, and giant red bats that spit acid. Cattle that talk like parrots and boars that change colors. And just for the sake of novelty, tigers with horns like a unicorn."

"Splendid, Splendid." Said the White Wizard excitedly. "What about you Brother Awkti?"

"I shall start with the sky. That seems the most proper." The Blue Wizard said casually. "Basic package. A blanket of stars and a nice moon to go with it. And a sun, of course. A nice binary star this time, just to be different."

As he spoke, the empty space in the bubble began to fill up with what he'd just described.

"Next comes a vast ocean, filled with the traditional fish and plant life. But just so it isn't too ordinary, I shall add some sharks with crablike appendages, a kraken with the head of a crocodile, and whales with mouths like a blackhole. Lastly, some birds to fill up the sky. Popinjays, lorikeets, raptors and carrion feeders. Very conventional, but lovely all the same."

"Very nice. Very nice. And you, Brother Aoshi?"

"I bring nothing. Nothing physical anyway." The Golden Wizard said enigmatically. "To your precious Houyhnhnm, I give the gifts of reason and artistry. Some I make poets and painters. Others I make chefs and bakers. And to a chosen few, I give the gift of healing and prophecy. But to everyone, I give a universal sense of comradery and brotherhood, so that even in hard times they will come together for strength, instead of turning against each other."

"A wonderful idea, Brother Aoshi. And you, Brother Orko? What do you bring to this fledgling world?"

"I bring what I always bring, Brother. Horrors, pestilence and pain." The Red Wizard said proudly. "I bring living nightmares to torture your precious Houyhnhnm and test their 'universal comradery'. I bring horrible mountain ogres who steal children in the dead of night to make them their pets. I bring a forbidden city of gold, guarded by mechanical colossi who kill all intruders on sight. To your swamps I bring snakes whose venom drives men to murder, and to your forests I bring gaseous beings who will grant your fondest wish, but at a terrible price. Lastly, I bring a horrifying plague; a virus carried on the spores of mushrooms that turns ordinary men into the living dead."

"Marvelous! Simply marvelous! Well done, Brother Orko." The Wizard King said delightedly. "You've all outdone yourselves this time. This world just might be our best collaboration yet. I can't wait to hang it with the others."

XXX

(The Fields of Orikhan, Trolla: 23 Years Ago)

ROAR!

Went the horrifying hell-beast known as Dragoon as it repeatedly beat against the walls of its invisible prison.

The Wizard King and his Four Grand Masters floated in formation to tighten the seal and prevent its escape.

"Steady yourselves, my Brothers!" Ygbir called out loudly. "The beast cannot breach the barrier yet, but its influence can. It can read your minds and make you see and hear things that aren't real. It will do whatever it can to break your concentration so we can't finish the spell, but you mustn't let it. You must clear your heads of all distracting thoughts and focus only on the spell. For if we fail, the beast will escape and countless lives will be lost. So for the love of all that is sacred, do not let the beast deceive you."

Orko heard his Brother's words and took them to heart.

He would not let Trolla fall to this monster.

It's too late, child.

'Huh? W-What?'

I said, it's too late. The wall is nearly broken. Soon I will be free and Trolla will burn.

'No! My Brothers and I will stop you. You won't lay one claw on Trolla.'

You can't stop me, boy. You're not strong enough. You're the youngest of the Grand Masters. The least experienced. You've never faced the likes of me before. You've never seen true horror.

'You don't scare me, monster. I may not have much experience with this, but my Brothers do. I know I can count on them when the chips are down."

But can they count on you?

'What? I mean, of course they can.'

Can they? A chain is only as strong as its weakest link. Even you're not sure you deserve to be here.

'That's a lie!'

Oh come now, Ulton.

'That's not my name anymore!'

What? You think you deserve to be called Orko? Please. You know you've got no business being amongst these great wizards. You've been doubting yourself since day one.

'That's not true! Maybe I doubted myself at first, but I've more than earned my place amongst my Brothers. I am a Grand Master.'

Oh really? Then why is the wall starting to crack?

The young Mage was about to counter that ludicrous question, when he saw something out of the corner of his eye. A small, almost imperceptible hairline fracture in the side of the barrier. Small at first, but then it started getting bigger, and bigger, and bigger.

The wall really was starting to break.

But why?

Because you're not strong enough to stop me. Your weakness is bringing down the collective. And now I'm coming for all of you.

Just then, the large crack began to branch out into smaller ones; spreading further and further across the barrier.

Yes… not much longer now. Soon I'll be free. Free to burn all of Trolla to a blackened cinder. Free to level your towns and poison your rivers. Free to rob and rape and kill!

By this point, the cracks were covering nearly every inch of the wall's surface; just one little tap and the whole thing would come crashing down.

And I think I'll start with you!

CRASH!

The horrible hell-beast smashed its way through the barrier; finally free to wreak unspeakable horror upon their helpless world.

Upon seeing this, Orko turned and fled as fast as he could fly; so utterly terrified that he ignored the pleas of his Brothers.

"Orko, what are you doing? You've disrupted the spell!"

"The seal was almost complete! What's the matter with you?"

"Brothers, look! The wall's starting to crack!"

"Good Lord! He's coming through!"

"What do we do?"

"We stand and fight! Fear not, my Brothers. Trolla will not fall this…"

CRASH!

ROAR!

XXX

(The Celestial Observatory, Trolla: 5 Days Later)

Orko floated into the Great Hall of the Celestial Observatory; his head hanging low.

Before him 'stood' Brothers Ygbir and Uvo; all that remained of his family.

"1,859,237." The Wizard King said in a softy and somber tone. "That is how many lives were lost before we could return the monster to its prison. Not to mention the thousands severely injured and clinging to life as we speak, and the countless billions left homeless and destitute. Death and pain and suffering are all a necessary part of life, but this… this is just too much. And it all could have been so easily avoided."

Ygbir's words cut like a knife. In that moment, Orko felt as though he were less than one inch tall.

"I understand, that you are the youngest of our order, and until now you have never faced such an unspeakable horror, but that is an explanation, not an excuse. Brother Orko, what you did on the Fields of Orikhan was the single, most shameful act of cowardice I have ever seen. And because of it, our world has been thrown completely out of balance. From which I fear it may never fully recover."

"Please, Brother, I beg your forgiveness."

But the White Wizard merely held up his hand; signifying that he would hear none of his pleas.

"Now, the ancient laws forbid me from stripping you of your title as Grand Master, but that does not mean you will not be punished. Brother Orko, you are forever banished. Banished from these halls, from Trolla and from our hearts. Now begone!"

"Brother, please…"

"I SAID BEGONE!"

XXX

(Broken Edge, Eternia: 19 Years Ago)

With a painful groan, Orko landed on the cold hard ground outside of the Rusty Nails Saloon; still too drunk to float, but just sober enough to feel the gaping wound in his left shoulder.

The bartender stood over him; the bloody icepick still in hand.

"When I tell you to use a coaster, I mean it!"

XXX

(Tar Swamp, Eternia: 8 Years Ago)

Slowly and carefully, Orko gathered the dry sticks he needed for the cooking fire. It was hard, tiring work doing this sort of thing without magic, but in this dimension it was the safest way.

Just then, the Red Wizard heard something in the distance. It almost sounded like a child laughing. But what would a child be doing in this inhospitable place?

Curious, but cautious, the Trollan mage followed the sound until he was certain he was close to the source and then hid within a nearby bush to wait and see what happened.

Sure enough, a few minutes later, a young child ran by. A human male about 10 or 11 years old to be exact; with blonde hair and blue eyes.

"Come on! Hurry up, Cringer!" the boy yelled back to someone following behind; which turned out to be a small, emerald green tiger cub about the size of a house cat.

For a moment, Orko felt a great sense of relief. It was just a young child, and judging from his carefree demeanor, he probably wasn't too far away from his parents. The Red Wizard was about to leave and go back to what he'd been doing, when he noticed a slimy black tentacle emerge from a bubbling tarpit.

Before he even knew what had happened, the inky black appendage grabbed the little boy and his pet and hoisted them high into the air. Then a horrifying face arose from the bubbling pool, with blazing red eyes and a gaping maw filled with razor-sharp teeth. The child screamed in terror as the tentacle slowly lowered him into the beast's open jaws.

The Trollan Mage froze in horror as a thousand terrible images ran through his mind.

'No… not again… never again!'

Without even thinking, he emerged from the bushes and conjured a fireball to hurl at the hideous creature. Fortunately, the attack hit its mark and the tar monster howled in pain as it tentacles flailed about wildly; accidentally throwing the boy and his cat back onto solid ground in the process.

Still acting on instinct, Orko rushed over to the two youths and improvised a spell to get them out of there before the beast could regain its senses.

"Drizzle, Drazzle, Druzzle, Drome~ Time to send these two back home~"

A split-second and a flash of light later, Orko suddenly found himself in what appeared to be some sort of lush garden. Evidentially, he'd been caught in the backlash of his own spell.

"Adam!" cried a new voice from somewhere close by. Seconds later, it was revealed to belong to an older human female with chestnut colored hair; obviously the boy's mother, judging by the way she was crying and hugging him tightly. "Oh, my sweet baby. Where in the world have you been? Your Father and I have been turning the countryside upside-down looking for you."

"I was in the Tar Swamp, Mother." The boy answered plainly; clearly oblivious to the trouble he was going to be in later.

"The Tar Swamp! Adam, I've told you a thousand times never to go to that awful place!"

"I know. But Cringer and I were playing pirates, and there was this big ugly tar monster and it tried to eat us, but that guy over there saved us. He's a hero, Mother. A real life hero."

Just then, the woman turned to where her son had pointed and finally took notice of the Trollan Mage.

"Um… hello there." Orko said nervously; unsure of what was about to happen.

Suddenly, the woman rushed towards him and embraced him in a tight but surprisingly pleasant hug.

"Thank you." She said as her eyes continued to stream with tears. "Whoever you are, thank you for bringing my baby back to me. Thank you. Thank you."

XXX

(Castle Grayskull, Eternia: Present Day)

"And that's pretty much how it happened." Orko said plainly as he played his final Arcana Card, Blue Spell: Kraken's Fury, winning the match. "Queen Marlena and King Randor were so grateful to me for finding their son that they made me their new Court Magician. They even gave me my own apartment in the old Astronomy Tower. And Adam and I have been best friends ever since."

"My, my, that's quite a tale." Shadow Weaver admitted as she folded her own hand in defeat. "I wasn't quite sure at first, but you're right. The two of us are so very much alike. We're both victims of betrayal. Unjustly cast aside by those we held dear."

"Actually, I'd say you're more a victim of your own arrogance."

"I beg your pardon?"

"Don't get me wrong. I agree that these Sorcerers of Mysticor sound incredibly closeminded. They obviously have an irrational fear of Dark Magic. But you still shouldn't have tried the Spell of Attainment with only two people; especially a child. You should've waited until you'd convinced at least three more spellcasters. Then the side effects wouldn't have been so severe and you wouldn't need to wear that mask."

"Hmmm…" the shadow witch murmured bitterly, before calming herself back down. "Well, you are the Grand Master, so I suppose you would know best. But still, I don't think it was fair for either of us to get banished the way we were. After all, it's not as if we meant to cause any harm."

"Maybe not, but we still caused it. Your foolhardy experiment could've killed you and that little boy. And over one million people died because I let that monster get to me. And nothing I do can ever change that. All I can do is try to learn from my mistakes and live the best life I can. That's all anyone can do."

"Spoken like a true Grand Master." Shadow Weaver said in a surprisingly sweet tone. "And I must confess, I'm a little jealous. You've done far better for yourself than I have; socially and emotionally."

"Thanks. I just wish my magic wasn't so unstable in this dimension. Then I wouldn't have to stick to party tricks all the time."

At this, the two dark spellcasters shared a good laugh and for a moment it seemed like that was the end of it. When suddenly, a strange noise caught their attention.

BEEP

BEEP

BEEP

"What the heck is that?" asked Shadow Weaver.

"I don't know. But it sounds like its coming from over there."

Sure enough, the strange beeping appeared to be coming from a large, ornate mirror hanging on a nearby wall.

"Hey, Sorceress! What's up with this mirror?" the Trollan Mage asked his semi-immortal friend, who up until then had been silently watching their game from her favorite chair.

"Oh, I don't know. The damn thing's always going off like that." The angelic being answered plainly. "I just ignore it."

Never being one to 'just ignore' things, Orko floated over to the mirror and took notice of the flashing red gem on the top.

"Hmm… I wonder." He said before casually pressing the gem with his index finger.

Moments later, an image appeared on the screen, depicting a young woman with fair skin and flowers woven into her long flowing blonde hair. She appeared to be sitting in a meditative position and apparently hadn't noticed Orko's unintended intrusion

"Ohm~ Ohm~ Ohm~" the mysterious female repeated to herself; obviously this was some sort of mantra. "Ohm~ Ohm~ Oh-my gosh!"

The strange girl jerked backwards in surprise as she finally took notice of her unexpected onlooker.

"W-Who are you? What are you? And why are you in my meditation mirror?"

"Uh… What?" Orko replied, sounding just as confused as she did.

"Listen you, as Princess of Plumeria and Guardian of the Heart-Blossom, I hereby order you to reveal your intentions and surrender yourself to my power… please."

"What?"

End Notes:

How's that for an unexpected twist?

Anyway, thanks for reading and I'll see you in the next one.

Peace.