Chapter XIX: The Waltz of Truths
The minutes ticked slowly by for Moria and her child. It seemed apparent that Randor would not get to his main agenda with them present, so the so- called meeting had deteriorated into a mere gala of dancing, talking, and eating. In short, a ball.
And, truth be told, Evil-Lyn was getting bored.
True, it was very nice to be with her mother in a social setting, and the hubbub that had risen at their arrival had been intensely gratifying. But now that the initial shock had passed, the party quickly became dull.
There were, after all, only so many things she and her mother could talk about.
As usual, Lady Moria immediately sensed the shift in her daughter's behavior. She refilled Lyn's glass with a twinkle in her eye. "Bored?" she asked, already knowing the answer.
Her daughter looked up, shaking out of whatever reverie she had been in. "Getting there," she answered, sipping at her glass. "This isn't as much fun as I thought it would be."
"That is only because you aren't making it so, love," Moria answered, smiling warmly. "No one is automatically going to fear you unless you give them a reason."
The younger woman looked at her mother incredulously. "Don't be idiotic, Mother. You know we're vastly outnumbered here. If I tried anything, I-"
"You don't always need to use force to inspire fear, little one," her mother interrupted, winking an eye. "You can do that just as easily with words or non-violent actions."
Her daughter regarded her silently, and then looked over at the crowd.
Lady Moria inclined her head. "Go talk to them, dear. I guarantee you'll have at least one entertaining conversation."
Evil-Lyn looked back at her mother, then nodded, standing from the table with a large smirk on her lips. She winked at her mother, and then lost herself in the crowd of people.
Moria sat, watching her child with a smirk on her face as she moved from her sight.
Once Lyn had fully immersed herself in the crowd, Lady Moria felt a sharp pang of sadness at her absence. She stood slowly, suddenly feeling that she must move somewhere away, where she could see the Moons.
The Ancient Dereskian walked over to the glass double doors that led to the balcony of the throne room. She pushed past them and left the overpowering presences of the innumerous Eternians in the room.
The Red Moon shone back at her, and she smiled, leaning against the rail in her majestic fashion. Her back was to the door and she stood upright, crossing her arms over her chest, smiling at the Red Moon.
Her amethyst eyes closed as she basked in the light of the Moon. It had been far too long since she had spent long periods of time with large groups of people, much less sitting in the same room as two or three hundred others. She had almost felt as though she had been suffocating.
She moved further from the door, standing regally, the Moonlight falling around her face in an almost otherworldly fashion. She found herself thinking that no matter how much things had changed on Eternia, the Red Moon had not altered. The Red Moon was ageless, and Time had left no mark or blemish or any other effect upon it.
Peoples could come and go. Eternians were only mortal, after all. Dereskians had already been eradicated save a few, but the Moons would always be there. Just as Eläni would. There was no stopping that.
Lady Moria's smile faded, her eyes opened slowly, for she had realized that she was no longer alone.
Teela stepped out onto the veranda, having noticed the Dereskian's retreat. She also had been suffering from symptoms not unlike those experienced by an agoraphobic. Teela had never been much of a social butterfly.
Her green gaze focused on Moria's back, and she collected her courage. Her snake staff hung, small and unimportant, at her side.
"Your majesty," she said in a soft voice.
The elder woman's gaze flickered over to the redhead. Her head never moved, and she looked back out at Eternos. "There is no need to be formal, young Teela. I know what little respect you hold me in. My name is Lady Moria."
The redhead flinched visibly. "Lady Moria, then," she said after a moment, feeling daring at the sensation of the forbidden name rolling off her tongue.
The older woman was silent. Feeling a little bolder, Teela took a few steps forward and stood a few paces behind and to the left of the Dereskian. She took a breath. "You knew my mother," she more stated than questioned.
There was a beat before Moria turned slowly and faced the young Eternian. "Yes," she said flatly.
Blinking as she tried to avoid staring into the elder woman's eyes, Teela hesitated before asking what she so desired to. ".What was she like?"
Lady Moria looked at her in her regal fashion. She knew she had to tread with caution here and not reveal anything that might make Teela suspect her parentage. Nevertheless, she felt Teela did deserve to know something, and Moria had never been one to refuse a question she could answer. But she was not going to simply give away answers, she decided. Let the girl work for what she wants. She finally replied, "Why ask me?" The beginnings of a smile formed at the edges of her lips.
"Because you knew her," Teela stated simply. "Because no one else will answer my questions about her. Because I know you won't try to 'protect' me from the truth. Because you keep your promises." The last reason came as a surprise to both women.
The elder woman's eyebrows raised just a hair. "All true statements," she acquiesced. "But that still gives me no reason to answer. Why not just ask your 'father?'" If Teela heard the cynicism in her tone at the last word, she made no notice of it.
The redhead hesitated and her gaze dropped to her feet. "He never speaks of her. I think he finds it too painful."
Moria paused, obviously deliberating in her mind. She took a step towards Teela, raising the girl's chin with her slim, pale hand. Teela looked into the infamous eyes, her own slightly fearful. Without thought, one of her hands crept towards her staff.
"You look almost exactly like her," Lady Moria said, causing Teela to freeze. "Same hair color, same complexion, and ." she trailed off, her smile apparent. She released Teela's chin gently. "You have her eyes."
Teela rubbed her face, as if burnt by the elder woman's touch. "But what was she like?" she asked, hunger in her eyes.
The Dereskian considered her phrasing, looking through the double doors into the room where she knew Teela's mother sat. "Again, similar to you. A bit more respectful though," Moria said finally, smiling openly.
"Respectful?" Teela repeated. "How do you mean? Respectful towards you?"
Lady Moria said nothing, simply smiling in her fashion. Her amethyst eyes slowly began to pinwheel. She winked and turned away, looking back at the Moon
The redhead sighed exasperatedly and growled, "I should've known better than to ask you anything." She shook her head roughly when Moria did not reply.
Heading for the door back inside, she looked over her shoulder at the moon- haired woman. "Can you at least tell me what her name was?" she asked, almost pleadingly.
The Dereskian Queen turned slowly, resting her hands on the rail behind her. "You don't know?" she questioned in mild surprise.
Teela shook her head, her eyes nearly begging for information. "Please. Tell me."
The Elder woman hesitated, not sure how to answer truthfully while not revealing anything. Slowly, deliberately, she said softly, "Her name was-"
"Teela?" A voice interrupted from the hall, causing both to shift their eyes to the door.
A muscle-ripped figure stood in the doorway, his blonde hair falling around his face as the wind from the night air caught it. He-man's oversized form filled the entire doorframe, making it difficult for one to see the large sword hung from his shoulder.
"There you are, Teela," He-man said, not really noticing whom she had been talking to. "You're father's been looking for yo-" The blonde's words froze in his throat as he saw Lady Moria standing there, her long hair billowing in the same wind that ruffled his furry shorts.
He-man stiffened, moving in front of Teela, placing himself between her and the Dereskian Queen. "Get back inside, Teela," he said lowly.
"I-" she began in protest, the words dying at her lips when she saw his expression. He seemed about ready to split heads. "Right," she said softly, looking back at Moria before disappearing back inside.
The defender of Eternia watched her go out of her corner of his eye, never taking his gaze from Lady Moria.
As for the Lady herself, she was having mixed feelings about the big behemoth's appearance. On the one hand, she was slightly relieved that she was reprieved from having to answer Teela's question. On the other, she was not completely at ease alongside this blonde giant. True, she was technically more powerful than he was, but she was not looking forward to having to prove it. She had watched him defeat Skeletor time after time, and knew that all it took was one mistake.
Still, a small smirk appeared upon her face as he looked at her. She looked back; her eyes unwavering as she slowly took a few steps forward. After all, she still had at least one trump card left to play.
"May I help you?" she asked, standing before him as he blocked her path.
"What do you want here?" He-man inquired, unmoving. "You don't wish to fight, or to argue, bicker or wreak havoc. You know this meeting against Skeletor will not proceed while you're here, so you cannot pretend to be a representative. What do you want?"
The Ancient Dereskian was silent for a moment. "Everything is always black and white to you, isn't it, He-man?" she said finally. "Never any gray areas allowed. Never any hesitation. Only right and wrong and no room for anything else. Isn't that it?"
Even though Moria was actually a bit shorter than He-man, she gave the impression of being taller. It may have been the way she held herself, or the way she spoke, but he suddenly felt very small in her gaze.
"What happens, I wonder, when the gray areas appear?" she asked, her eyes beginning to whirl. "What happens when the one you have pegged as being 'evil' does not have an evil agenda? What happens if I do not want anything?"
He-man shuffled in his feet before meeting her gaze, his resolve re-formed. "If you didn't, you wouldn't be here." He crossed his arms over his chest, thoroughly blocking the door.
Lady Moria smiled slightly. "You have a point. There is something I want. But you cannot give it to me, nor it is yours to protect. Move out of my way, please." Her tone was soft but commanding, and he was half-inclined to do as she asked before deciding against it.
"What do you want?" he asked again, unsheathing his sword and holding it.
Moria blinked at the weapon, remaining relatively calm under the circumstances. "Nothing that concerns you. Now please, move out of my way," she replied, her eyes whirling in contained anger.
He stood firm in his resolve, brandishing his sword.
"I do not wish to fight you," she said politely. "Please, He-man. Stand aside."
He-man's jaw clenched and he took a step forward. "Not until you tell me why you are here. You are in my town, in my King's palace, amongst the people I protect. You have angered my King, flustered Man-at-Arms, and tormented my friend Teela. I want you to leave."
"And how do you expect her to do so while you block the door?" a familiar feminine voice came from behind him.
Moria smiled at the voice, looking beyond the great behemoth and seeing a flash of red hair. "Te lynïa," she said warmly, smiling widely.
He-man unintentionally moved aside, allowing the amethyst gaze to rest upon the face of the Sorceress.
The elder woman seemed to no longer notice the blonde was there. She laughed softly. \\I had not been expecting you to come to my rescue,\\ she said in Dereskian, very obviously amused.
Teelina was nonplussed, and she looked towards He-man in an 'it's alright, now please leave' fashion.
He seemed reluctant to do so, reasoning that although the Sorceress was by no means helpless, he doubted that even she was on par with the Dereskian Queen.
As if sensing his doubt, and she probably was, Teelina said, "Lady Moria has given her word that she will harm no one this night, He-man. She has never told a lie, to my knowledge, in her life. I do not think she will do so now. You may go."
Still seeming hesitant, his attention was suddenly diverted by a loud gasp of shock as one of the court women fainted within the room. He rushed inside the hall, looking accusingly at the person she had been talking to before fainting. Evil-Lyn smiled back at him before fading into the crowd.
He pursued, elbowing his way through the crowd that had gathered around the fallen woman. He spotted Lyn making her way slowly, elegantly through the mass of people, fading in and out of view. He-man finally caught up to her as she reached the back wall, but then had to wonder if she had really been trying to escape as the young Dereskian turned and looked at him.
"May I help you, He-man?" she asked, a measured level of acid in her tone that appeared out of habit as she said his name.
He felt a sense of deja vu as the image of Moria saying those same words not ten minutes prior flashed in his mind. He shook the thought away and a fierce expression appeared on his face. "What did you do to her?" he growled, indicating the fallen woman.
Evil-Lyn feigned shock, as if noticing the woman's condition for the first time. "What makes you think I had anything to do with this?" she asked in as innocent a tone as she could muster.
"You were talking to her and she fainted!" he nearly shouted.
Lyn was unaffected. She was very much accustomed to men (namely Skeletor) shouting at her. "I hardly see how it is my fault if Eternian women can't stay conscious during an introduction."
He-man hesitated. "Introduction?" he repeated uncertainly.
The young woman nodded as if confronting a simpleton. "The only thing I did was tell her my name when she asked it of me. Unless introducing oneself in an offense now, I have done nothing wrong here."
"Not here, no." He-man said, lowering his sword. "But you are still an outlaw, and you must be brought to justice." He reached out to grab her, attempting to make an easy capture.
Lyn twisted away. "Don't be an idiot, He-man. Your own Charter for Eternia grants me diplomatic immunity while I'm here," she called, already a dozen feet from him.
He-man growled, "The Charter only grants immunity to visiting monarchs, Evil-Lyn. You are not one." He bounded over to the young Dereskian and swung his sword above his head. He brought it down hard, glad that they had moved far enough away from the crowd for him to do so.
Lyn's heart began to beat faster as she realized what a stupid idea it had been to move away from the others. She dodged out of the way of the blow, bending her knees and rolling away quickly.
Evil-Lyn got up and ran. He-man pursued. Since He-man barred her way to the other guests, she rushed in the opposite direction, exiting the hall and coming to a small courtyard in the center of the palace: the royal gardens.
The blonde warrior caught up to her, staring at her angrily as she realized there was no other way out.
Now the young woman was berating herself heavily. Her mother would not be pleased with this course of action. Evil-Lyn quickly assessed the situation. She was alone, facing an opponent who was physically stronger than she. She had no weapons against him; he had one. She could not use her Majicks as to do so would break her word, and she refused to do that. She had spent enough of her life living on broken promises and empty vows.
There must be another way. She could cry for help. But who would answer, now that she was this far from anyone? Lyn was beginning to panic, and she knew that was dangerous. Her mother was forever telling her that emotions were the key to undoing a person in battle.
Lyn tried to empty her mind as her mother had taught her. She saw He-man raising his sword; saw it begin to crash down. and no longer cared. Her mind was calm, and she elegantly leapt aside, landing on her feet a small distance away.
"You have no escape, Evil-Lyn. Just come along quietly and give up. You can't win this fight," He-man said, moving to bring his weapon within range of his target.
"'In war, there are no true winners, only losers,'" she quoted gently, leaping out of the way to the branches of a nearby tree. "No one can ever truly say that a battle was a good thing, or that they won without a price. 'The wise do not try to change the world by force, for they know that force results only in force. The harvest is destroyed in the wake of a great war, and weeds grow in the fields in the wake of the army,'" she finished, bounding out of the tree, landing on the ground behind He-man nimbly, determined to get back to the main hall.
The Master growled angrily and raced ahead of her, blocking her passage, his mighty sword of power extended threateningly. "You have no power here, Evil-Lyn. The Charter does not protect non-monarchs, and you have sworn not to harm anyone. You have no one to protect you." He swung the sword a final time, bringing it down in a crushing blow that would probably cause a rift in her skull.
Clang!
The thrust of his sword stopped instantly as another blade smashed into it. The force behind this other sword was so strong it made He-man grit his teeth as the weapons collided.
The other sword continued in its arc where He-man's stopped, and the force caused his grip on the blade to lessen. The great Power sword fell from his grasp and spiraled into the distance.
The action left He-man defenseless, staring down at a rather beautifully crafted sword that pressed at his neck. It had a slight katana-look to it, with a black handle and a three-colored pommel stone. The handle had a complex netting of wire at the end, which fit around the black, silver and amethyst stone. He looked up from the mass of symbols written in a language he could not read and stared into the calm but angered face of Moria Vadorian.
"I beg to differ." Moria's voice was cold and lacked the usual eloquence that was her trademark.
He swallowed visibly, his throat touching the suddenly very deadly looking weapon.
Moria herself was not exactly looking at him. Her eyes were focused on his, but her full attention was directed at her daughter. She knew it had only been luck that she had disarmed He-man, as she had been fortunate enough to catch him when he had to not been expecting another sword. She suspected that if he had been aware of her presence, she would not have fared so well.
Nothing was said. Evil-Lyn moved towards the door, while her mother held the most powerful man in the universe in distance of her blade.
As He-man watched the younger Dereskian approach the door, he thrust out his throat, calling Moria's bluff. "Kill me," he challenged. "I know you want to, I know you have the power, and now you have the opportunity. Why not just kill me?"
Lady Moria was silent for a long moment, considering. Finally, she replied, "Do you know what differentiates a ruthless killer from a non-ruthless one?" She looked at him, her head turned slightly to one side as she continued, answering her own question. "A truly ruthless person, one who lives only for bloodshed, is given an 'opportunity' such as this, and does not hesitate. He will kill or capture his enemy without a second thought." She looked directly at him, her eyes seeming to bore holes into his own. "A not-so-ruthless person," she continued, "is given this sort of 'opportunity,' and makes a decision as to whether or not it will be passed by."
She let her words sink in, using her blade to turn both him and herself in a 180 degree angle, so that she now had her back to the exit. Once that was established, she slowly lifted her blade away from He-man's neck. "I let my 'opportunity' pass by, He-man," she said softly, stepping back gracefully. She turned and took her daughter's hand, her sword disappearing into a ball of light with then vanished.
Evil-Lyn looked at her, amazed and astounded that her mother had just let He-man go. Moria would have some answering to do later on. But then, she realized, she would as well. She doubted her mother would simply excuse her stupidity at running off.
Moria turned back to look at a dumbstruck He-man once more. "All I wish for in return is that you sit and ask yourself this: If I had not arrived, would you have done the same with your 'opportunity?'"
His eyes locked onto hers, amazed and somewhat angered that she would insinuate such a thing, before realizing that she had a point. He turned away, as if unable to look into those whirling eyes for another second.
The Dereskian Queen turned away, beginning to exit with her daughter. She stopped at the last moment and turned back to him, as if suddenly remembering something. "Oh, and He-man," she said. "In regards to the question of why don't I simply eliminate you, the answer is rather simple: I don't want to. I think I've killed enough of your family's line for the present time. Good evening," she gave a slight nod and vanished into the palace with her child, returning to the main hall.
She left a very perplexed and alarmed He-man in her wake, for he had just realized what she had insinuated: she knew who he was. There could be no other interpretation of her last comment. His family had been the main target of her earlier killing sprees, though he did not exactly know why. It had something to do with an ancestor of his who had killed her lover, or some such thing.
That was one of many in a series of burning questions in his mind. He stood up, reclaiming his sword from the bush that now held it prisoner. With no hesitation, he let the power return to Grayskull, transforming back into Prince Adam, and ran back to the main hall, determined to go in and ask the Sorceress a few things.
He found her attention had already been claimed.
The minutes ticked slowly by for Moria and her child. It seemed apparent that Randor would not get to his main agenda with them present, so the so- called meeting had deteriorated into a mere gala of dancing, talking, and eating. In short, a ball.
And, truth be told, Evil-Lyn was getting bored.
True, it was very nice to be with her mother in a social setting, and the hubbub that had risen at their arrival had been intensely gratifying. But now that the initial shock had passed, the party quickly became dull.
There were, after all, only so many things she and her mother could talk about.
As usual, Lady Moria immediately sensed the shift in her daughter's behavior. She refilled Lyn's glass with a twinkle in her eye. "Bored?" she asked, already knowing the answer.
Her daughter looked up, shaking out of whatever reverie she had been in. "Getting there," she answered, sipping at her glass. "This isn't as much fun as I thought it would be."
"That is only because you aren't making it so, love," Moria answered, smiling warmly. "No one is automatically going to fear you unless you give them a reason."
The younger woman looked at her mother incredulously. "Don't be idiotic, Mother. You know we're vastly outnumbered here. If I tried anything, I-"
"You don't always need to use force to inspire fear, little one," her mother interrupted, winking an eye. "You can do that just as easily with words or non-violent actions."
Her daughter regarded her silently, and then looked over at the crowd.
Lady Moria inclined her head. "Go talk to them, dear. I guarantee you'll have at least one entertaining conversation."
Evil-Lyn looked back at her mother, then nodded, standing from the table with a large smirk on her lips. She winked at her mother, and then lost herself in the crowd of people.
Moria sat, watching her child with a smirk on her face as she moved from her sight.
Once Lyn had fully immersed herself in the crowd, Lady Moria felt a sharp pang of sadness at her absence. She stood slowly, suddenly feeling that she must move somewhere away, where she could see the Moons.
The Ancient Dereskian walked over to the glass double doors that led to the balcony of the throne room. She pushed past them and left the overpowering presences of the innumerous Eternians in the room.
The Red Moon shone back at her, and she smiled, leaning against the rail in her majestic fashion. Her back was to the door and she stood upright, crossing her arms over her chest, smiling at the Red Moon.
Her amethyst eyes closed as she basked in the light of the Moon. It had been far too long since she had spent long periods of time with large groups of people, much less sitting in the same room as two or three hundred others. She had almost felt as though she had been suffocating.
She moved further from the door, standing regally, the Moonlight falling around her face in an almost otherworldly fashion. She found herself thinking that no matter how much things had changed on Eternia, the Red Moon had not altered. The Red Moon was ageless, and Time had left no mark or blemish or any other effect upon it.
Peoples could come and go. Eternians were only mortal, after all. Dereskians had already been eradicated save a few, but the Moons would always be there. Just as Eläni would. There was no stopping that.
Lady Moria's smile faded, her eyes opened slowly, for she had realized that she was no longer alone.
Teela stepped out onto the veranda, having noticed the Dereskian's retreat. She also had been suffering from symptoms not unlike those experienced by an agoraphobic. Teela had never been much of a social butterfly.
Her green gaze focused on Moria's back, and she collected her courage. Her snake staff hung, small and unimportant, at her side.
"Your majesty," she said in a soft voice.
The elder woman's gaze flickered over to the redhead. Her head never moved, and she looked back out at Eternos. "There is no need to be formal, young Teela. I know what little respect you hold me in. My name is Lady Moria."
The redhead flinched visibly. "Lady Moria, then," she said after a moment, feeling daring at the sensation of the forbidden name rolling off her tongue.
The older woman was silent. Feeling a little bolder, Teela took a few steps forward and stood a few paces behind and to the left of the Dereskian. She took a breath. "You knew my mother," she more stated than questioned.
There was a beat before Moria turned slowly and faced the young Eternian. "Yes," she said flatly.
Blinking as she tried to avoid staring into the elder woman's eyes, Teela hesitated before asking what she so desired to. ".What was she like?"
Lady Moria looked at her in her regal fashion. She knew she had to tread with caution here and not reveal anything that might make Teela suspect her parentage. Nevertheless, she felt Teela did deserve to know something, and Moria had never been one to refuse a question she could answer. But she was not going to simply give away answers, she decided. Let the girl work for what she wants. She finally replied, "Why ask me?" The beginnings of a smile formed at the edges of her lips.
"Because you knew her," Teela stated simply. "Because no one else will answer my questions about her. Because I know you won't try to 'protect' me from the truth. Because you keep your promises." The last reason came as a surprise to both women.
The elder woman's eyebrows raised just a hair. "All true statements," she acquiesced. "But that still gives me no reason to answer. Why not just ask your 'father?'" If Teela heard the cynicism in her tone at the last word, she made no notice of it.
The redhead hesitated and her gaze dropped to her feet. "He never speaks of her. I think he finds it too painful."
Moria paused, obviously deliberating in her mind. She took a step towards Teela, raising the girl's chin with her slim, pale hand. Teela looked into the infamous eyes, her own slightly fearful. Without thought, one of her hands crept towards her staff.
"You look almost exactly like her," Lady Moria said, causing Teela to freeze. "Same hair color, same complexion, and ." she trailed off, her smile apparent. She released Teela's chin gently. "You have her eyes."
Teela rubbed her face, as if burnt by the elder woman's touch. "But what was she like?" she asked, hunger in her eyes.
The Dereskian considered her phrasing, looking through the double doors into the room where she knew Teela's mother sat. "Again, similar to you. A bit more respectful though," Moria said finally, smiling openly.
"Respectful?" Teela repeated. "How do you mean? Respectful towards you?"
Lady Moria said nothing, simply smiling in her fashion. Her amethyst eyes slowly began to pinwheel. She winked and turned away, looking back at the Moon
The redhead sighed exasperatedly and growled, "I should've known better than to ask you anything." She shook her head roughly when Moria did not reply.
Heading for the door back inside, she looked over her shoulder at the moon- haired woman. "Can you at least tell me what her name was?" she asked, almost pleadingly.
The Dereskian Queen turned slowly, resting her hands on the rail behind her. "You don't know?" she questioned in mild surprise.
Teela shook her head, her eyes nearly begging for information. "Please. Tell me."
The Elder woman hesitated, not sure how to answer truthfully while not revealing anything. Slowly, deliberately, she said softly, "Her name was-"
"Teela?" A voice interrupted from the hall, causing both to shift their eyes to the door.
A muscle-ripped figure stood in the doorway, his blonde hair falling around his face as the wind from the night air caught it. He-man's oversized form filled the entire doorframe, making it difficult for one to see the large sword hung from his shoulder.
"There you are, Teela," He-man said, not really noticing whom she had been talking to. "You're father's been looking for yo-" The blonde's words froze in his throat as he saw Lady Moria standing there, her long hair billowing in the same wind that ruffled his furry shorts.
He-man stiffened, moving in front of Teela, placing himself between her and the Dereskian Queen. "Get back inside, Teela," he said lowly.
"I-" she began in protest, the words dying at her lips when she saw his expression. He seemed about ready to split heads. "Right," she said softly, looking back at Moria before disappearing back inside.
The defender of Eternia watched her go out of her corner of his eye, never taking his gaze from Lady Moria.
As for the Lady herself, she was having mixed feelings about the big behemoth's appearance. On the one hand, she was slightly relieved that she was reprieved from having to answer Teela's question. On the other, she was not completely at ease alongside this blonde giant. True, she was technically more powerful than he was, but she was not looking forward to having to prove it. She had watched him defeat Skeletor time after time, and knew that all it took was one mistake.
Still, a small smirk appeared upon her face as he looked at her. She looked back; her eyes unwavering as she slowly took a few steps forward. After all, she still had at least one trump card left to play.
"May I help you?" she asked, standing before him as he blocked her path.
"What do you want here?" He-man inquired, unmoving. "You don't wish to fight, or to argue, bicker or wreak havoc. You know this meeting against Skeletor will not proceed while you're here, so you cannot pretend to be a representative. What do you want?"
The Ancient Dereskian was silent for a moment. "Everything is always black and white to you, isn't it, He-man?" she said finally. "Never any gray areas allowed. Never any hesitation. Only right and wrong and no room for anything else. Isn't that it?"
Even though Moria was actually a bit shorter than He-man, she gave the impression of being taller. It may have been the way she held herself, or the way she spoke, but he suddenly felt very small in her gaze.
"What happens, I wonder, when the gray areas appear?" she asked, her eyes beginning to whirl. "What happens when the one you have pegged as being 'evil' does not have an evil agenda? What happens if I do not want anything?"
He-man shuffled in his feet before meeting her gaze, his resolve re-formed. "If you didn't, you wouldn't be here." He crossed his arms over his chest, thoroughly blocking the door.
Lady Moria smiled slightly. "You have a point. There is something I want. But you cannot give it to me, nor it is yours to protect. Move out of my way, please." Her tone was soft but commanding, and he was half-inclined to do as she asked before deciding against it.
"What do you want?" he asked again, unsheathing his sword and holding it.
Moria blinked at the weapon, remaining relatively calm under the circumstances. "Nothing that concerns you. Now please, move out of my way," she replied, her eyes whirling in contained anger.
He stood firm in his resolve, brandishing his sword.
"I do not wish to fight you," she said politely. "Please, He-man. Stand aside."
He-man's jaw clenched and he took a step forward. "Not until you tell me why you are here. You are in my town, in my King's palace, amongst the people I protect. You have angered my King, flustered Man-at-Arms, and tormented my friend Teela. I want you to leave."
"And how do you expect her to do so while you block the door?" a familiar feminine voice came from behind him.
Moria smiled at the voice, looking beyond the great behemoth and seeing a flash of red hair. "Te lynïa," she said warmly, smiling widely.
He-man unintentionally moved aside, allowing the amethyst gaze to rest upon the face of the Sorceress.
The elder woman seemed to no longer notice the blonde was there. She laughed softly. \\I had not been expecting you to come to my rescue,\\ she said in Dereskian, very obviously amused.
Teelina was nonplussed, and she looked towards He-man in an 'it's alright, now please leave' fashion.
He seemed reluctant to do so, reasoning that although the Sorceress was by no means helpless, he doubted that even she was on par with the Dereskian Queen.
As if sensing his doubt, and she probably was, Teelina said, "Lady Moria has given her word that she will harm no one this night, He-man. She has never told a lie, to my knowledge, in her life. I do not think she will do so now. You may go."
Still seeming hesitant, his attention was suddenly diverted by a loud gasp of shock as one of the court women fainted within the room. He rushed inside the hall, looking accusingly at the person she had been talking to before fainting. Evil-Lyn smiled back at him before fading into the crowd.
He pursued, elbowing his way through the crowd that had gathered around the fallen woman. He spotted Lyn making her way slowly, elegantly through the mass of people, fading in and out of view. He-man finally caught up to her as she reached the back wall, but then had to wonder if she had really been trying to escape as the young Dereskian turned and looked at him.
"May I help you, He-man?" she asked, a measured level of acid in her tone that appeared out of habit as she said his name.
He felt a sense of deja vu as the image of Moria saying those same words not ten minutes prior flashed in his mind. He shook the thought away and a fierce expression appeared on his face. "What did you do to her?" he growled, indicating the fallen woman.
Evil-Lyn feigned shock, as if noticing the woman's condition for the first time. "What makes you think I had anything to do with this?" she asked in as innocent a tone as she could muster.
"You were talking to her and she fainted!" he nearly shouted.
Lyn was unaffected. She was very much accustomed to men (namely Skeletor) shouting at her. "I hardly see how it is my fault if Eternian women can't stay conscious during an introduction."
He-man hesitated. "Introduction?" he repeated uncertainly.
The young woman nodded as if confronting a simpleton. "The only thing I did was tell her my name when she asked it of me. Unless introducing oneself in an offense now, I have done nothing wrong here."
"Not here, no." He-man said, lowering his sword. "But you are still an outlaw, and you must be brought to justice." He reached out to grab her, attempting to make an easy capture.
Lyn twisted away. "Don't be an idiot, He-man. Your own Charter for Eternia grants me diplomatic immunity while I'm here," she called, already a dozen feet from him.
He-man growled, "The Charter only grants immunity to visiting monarchs, Evil-Lyn. You are not one." He bounded over to the young Dereskian and swung his sword above his head. He brought it down hard, glad that they had moved far enough away from the crowd for him to do so.
Lyn's heart began to beat faster as she realized what a stupid idea it had been to move away from the others. She dodged out of the way of the blow, bending her knees and rolling away quickly.
Evil-Lyn got up and ran. He-man pursued. Since He-man barred her way to the other guests, she rushed in the opposite direction, exiting the hall and coming to a small courtyard in the center of the palace: the royal gardens.
The blonde warrior caught up to her, staring at her angrily as she realized there was no other way out.
Now the young woman was berating herself heavily. Her mother would not be pleased with this course of action. Evil-Lyn quickly assessed the situation. She was alone, facing an opponent who was physically stronger than she. She had no weapons against him; he had one. She could not use her Majicks as to do so would break her word, and she refused to do that. She had spent enough of her life living on broken promises and empty vows.
There must be another way. She could cry for help. But who would answer, now that she was this far from anyone? Lyn was beginning to panic, and she knew that was dangerous. Her mother was forever telling her that emotions were the key to undoing a person in battle.
Lyn tried to empty her mind as her mother had taught her. She saw He-man raising his sword; saw it begin to crash down. and no longer cared. Her mind was calm, and she elegantly leapt aside, landing on her feet a small distance away.
"You have no escape, Evil-Lyn. Just come along quietly and give up. You can't win this fight," He-man said, moving to bring his weapon within range of his target.
"'In war, there are no true winners, only losers,'" she quoted gently, leaping out of the way to the branches of a nearby tree. "No one can ever truly say that a battle was a good thing, or that they won without a price. 'The wise do not try to change the world by force, for they know that force results only in force. The harvest is destroyed in the wake of a great war, and weeds grow in the fields in the wake of the army,'" she finished, bounding out of the tree, landing on the ground behind He-man nimbly, determined to get back to the main hall.
The Master growled angrily and raced ahead of her, blocking her passage, his mighty sword of power extended threateningly. "You have no power here, Evil-Lyn. The Charter does not protect non-monarchs, and you have sworn not to harm anyone. You have no one to protect you." He swung the sword a final time, bringing it down in a crushing blow that would probably cause a rift in her skull.
Clang!
The thrust of his sword stopped instantly as another blade smashed into it. The force behind this other sword was so strong it made He-man grit his teeth as the weapons collided.
The other sword continued in its arc where He-man's stopped, and the force caused his grip on the blade to lessen. The great Power sword fell from his grasp and spiraled into the distance.
The action left He-man defenseless, staring down at a rather beautifully crafted sword that pressed at his neck. It had a slight katana-look to it, with a black handle and a three-colored pommel stone. The handle had a complex netting of wire at the end, which fit around the black, silver and amethyst stone. He looked up from the mass of symbols written in a language he could not read and stared into the calm but angered face of Moria Vadorian.
"I beg to differ." Moria's voice was cold and lacked the usual eloquence that was her trademark.
He swallowed visibly, his throat touching the suddenly very deadly looking weapon.
Moria herself was not exactly looking at him. Her eyes were focused on his, but her full attention was directed at her daughter. She knew it had only been luck that she had disarmed He-man, as she had been fortunate enough to catch him when he had to not been expecting another sword. She suspected that if he had been aware of her presence, she would not have fared so well.
Nothing was said. Evil-Lyn moved towards the door, while her mother held the most powerful man in the universe in distance of her blade.
As He-man watched the younger Dereskian approach the door, he thrust out his throat, calling Moria's bluff. "Kill me," he challenged. "I know you want to, I know you have the power, and now you have the opportunity. Why not just kill me?"
Lady Moria was silent for a long moment, considering. Finally, she replied, "Do you know what differentiates a ruthless killer from a non-ruthless one?" She looked at him, her head turned slightly to one side as she continued, answering her own question. "A truly ruthless person, one who lives only for bloodshed, is given an 'opportunity' such as this, and does not hesitate. He will kill or capture his enemy without a second thought." She looked directly at him, her eyes seeming to bore holes into his own. "A not-so-ruthless person," she continued, "is given this sort of 'opportunity,' and makes a decision as to whether or not it will be passed by."
She let her words sink in, using her blade to turn both him and herself in a 180 degree angle, so that she now had her back to the exit. Once that was established, she slowly lifted her blade away from He-man's neck. "I let my 'opportunity' pass by, He-man," she said softly, stepping back gracefully. She turned and took her daughter's hand, her sword disappearing into a ball of light with then vanished.
Evil-Lyn looked at her, amazed and astounded that her mother had just let He-man go. Moria would have some answering to do later on. But then, she realized, she would as well. She doubted her mother would simply excuse her stupidity at running off.
Moria turned back to look at a dumbstruck He-man once more. "All I wish for in return is that you sit and ask yourself this: If I had not arrived, would you have done the same with your 'opportunity?'"
His eyes locked onto hers, amazed and somewhat angered that she would insinuate such a thing, before realizing that she had a point. He turned away, as if unable to look into those whirling eyes for another second.
The Dereskian Queen turned away, beginning to exit with her daughter. She stopped at the last moment and turned back to him, as if suddenly remembering something. "Oh, and He-man," she said. "In regards to the question of why don't I simply eliminate you, the answer is rather simple: I don't want to. I think I've killed enough of your family's line for the present time. Good evening," she gave a slight nod and vanished into the palace with her child, returning to the main hall.
She left a very perplexed and alarmed He-man in her wake, for he had just realized what she had insinuated: she knew who he was. There could be no other interpretation of her last comment. His family had been the main target of her earlier killing sprees, though he did not exactly know why. It had something to do with an ancestor of his who had killed her lover, or some such thing.
That was one of many in a series of burning questions in his mind. He stood up, reclaiming his sword from the bush that now held it prisoner. With no hesitation, he let the power return to Grayskull, transforming back into Prince Adam, and ran back to the main hall, determined to go in and ask the Sorceress a few things.
He found her attention had already been claimed.