Granamyr, the oldest and wisest of the dragons, had been probing Adam's mind, and was able to witness most of Adam's memory. Already suspecting the Talisman of Kaspanya, he probed gently, avoiding freezing Adam the way the Sorceress had. But when Adam ran from his memory, Granamyr made his presence known, his magic flooding Adam and freezing the prince in his flight. Then he withdrew quickly, before he caused any damage to Adam's mind.
The old red dragon had shrunk his size to fit into Castle Grayskull, but he still dwarfed the Sorceress as he turned to her.
"There is something you have not told me about this prince," he accused her in a rather lofty tone, his ever-present frown deepening.
The Sorceress inclined her head slightly, but otherwise ignored his statement. "Were you able to learn anything?" she asked instead, making sure her voice held nothing but respect.
"It is indeed the Talisman of Kaspanya that has been used on him," Granamyr answered. He glanced at the King and Queen, who stood over Adam with Orko and Cringer. "I do not understand how he has survived this long. It is one of the most powerful spells in the known universe."
"If Adam has survived so far, there must be a way to beat it," Randor theorized. "So what do we do next?"
"There is nothing you can do," Granamyr responded. "If we try to use magic to break the spell, it will only hasten his death." Marlena's grip on Randor's arm tightened. "Prince Adam has made it to his worst fears. To escape the mind maze in which he is lost, he must confront each fear. If he can do that, he may awaken. It will take more inner strength, courage, and wisdom than anyone has ever shown when faced with this spell. Even then, the talisman will have to be destroyed, or it will regain its hold on him at some point in the future." The great beast paused, then looked at Randor. "Actually, you can help him. His first memory, and his first fear, was about you. He was…not prepared for it, but I believe he now knows what he needs to do."
Randor was shocked. "Me? I've never raised a hand to him in his life. Why would his fear be about me?" His crown slipped down as he furrowed his brow, racking his brain.
Marlena swallowed hard, knowing she had to speak the truth in spite of the pain it could cause Randor. "Because you are so hard on him," she told him softly, answering for the old dragon. "He's afraid of what you really think of him."
The King looked at her as if to argue, but the dozens of times he had reprimanded Adam for being late or not taking his responsibilities seriously enough surfaced almost immediately. His son's downtrodden face and the hurt in his eyes that he tried so hard to hide were suddenly as clear to Randor as if Adam were awake and standing in front of him. Randor squared his shoulders, took a deep breath, and in front of everyone there, he took his son's hand and began to speak.
"Adam, I'm sorry for all the times I've been too hard on you," Randor's voice came through. Adam, who had caught his breath and was in the midst of climbing back onto his feet, hesitantly stepped back toward the voice. He glanced behind at the light to make sure he was going directly away from it. The pull was growing stronger. The magic was now affecting his physical body, making the mental battles that much more difficult.
"I hope you understand, my boy, that I love you. No matter how many times you're late, or how many lamps you knock over, nothing can change that. But it's my responsibility to prepare you to take the throne one day, and I'm afraid it makes me a hard taskmaster at times." There was a pause. Adam could sense his father's love for the first time in a long time. "And I know I don't say this enough either. I'm proud of you, Adam. You may not be the best warrior, but your diplomacy and compassion have won us many allies over the years. Your wisdom is also incredible, for a man of your age. In those ways, you actually remind me of…of He-Man." There was a thoughtful tone to Randor's voice with this last statement.
Adam stopped walking, shocked. Surely he doesn't know, he thought. It must have been a coincidence. His father was just reacting to the fact that his son had saved his life. Randor certainly wasn't that perceptive…was he? With renewed determination, Adam moved forward again.
The Sorceress, who had momentarily disappeared, returned as Randor finished speaking. "I'm afraid I have bad news. Man-at-Arms and Teela have confirmed that it was the Talisman of Kaspanya used on Adam, but they have also been captured. Skeletor is demanding that He-Man turn himself over at Snake Mountain in exchange for their release. Otherwise, he will use the talisman on them."
Randor reddened. "And we cannot reach He-Man." He shook his head. "I don't understand it. He appears whenever anyone is in danger, but here lies Adam, in the most danger he's ever faced, and He-Man is nowhere to be found. It's not the first time. In spite of their 'friendship,' the Prince of Eternia does not seem to be very high on He-Man's list of priorities." The Sorceress started slightly, surprised at his vehemence.
"There is something more you should understand," Granamyr interjected, knowing the Sorceress wanted Adam's secret kept—for now. "This talisman can only attack one person at a time. Its sole purpose is to destroy that one victim. As long as Adam lives, it cannot affect another human being. So your Man-at-Arms and Captain of the Guard should be safe, for now."
"That's why you said it could regain its hold on Adam," Orko muttered, almost to himself.
Granamyr looked to him. "Yes. And why it must be destroyed."
"Just because the talisman cannot hurt them, does not mean that Skeletor couldn't do something else to them," Randor said heavily. He rubbed his forehead. "Sorceress, we really need He-Man. Can you please try contacting him again? If we can't reach him, we'll have to see if any of the other masters can help." Randor, however, was reluctant to pull them away from Grayskull and the palace. Everyone was expecting Skeletor to attack while the royal family was preoccupied, and now that he had Teela and Man-at-Arms, he had even more reason to do so.
"Of course," the Sorceress agreed immediately.
"That's because you're a failure, Adam. You always have been, and you always will be. And I'm tired of it. From this day forward, you are no longer my son."
The memory didn't catch Adam off-guard this time, nor did the statements from his "father." He took a deep breath and did something he'd always dreamed of doing, since the first day he'd had to hide behind a cowardly act to conceal his alter ego.
"I'm not a failure. I'm…I'm He-Man," he told his "father." "Everytime I run away it's to turn into He-Man, to save someone's life or stop Skeletor's evil plans. And no matter what you say, you can't take away that fact. Or the fact that I love you."
Adam pushed past the imaginary Randor, whose mouth was hanging open, and the walls dissolved in front of him, putting him in another part of the palace. He closed his eyes for a second to regain his focus. He'd deliberately tried to not remember this part. In fact, during the last six months, he had carefully put it out of his mind, blocking it out even though it was the first thing he thought of every time he saw her. Now he had to figure out how to handle it. Although he was prepared to handle memories, the fact that the spell took an imaginary twist at a vulnerable moment was disconcerting, and he wasn't sure what was about to happen.
He stood before Teela's door. Once again gathering his thoughts and trying to ignore the aches that were beginning to flood his body, he knocked softly. It flew open immediately, just as it had that night.
"What do you want?" Teela glared at him, fire spitting from her eyes.
"I'm sorry Teela," he said in response. Even though he'd tried to forget this night, the words came tumbling out just as they had so long ago. It was as if he couldn't alter the memory until the spell did. "I was out near Rock Haven, and an earthquake struck. I went to find He-Man, because there was a family there who needed help. Then I stayed until…" his voice faded. "Until everything was over."
In spite of her anger, Teela knew Adam well. She recognized the shadows in his eyes and the catch in his voice. "What happened?" she asked more gently.
Adam sighed. "The little boy got away from his mother and went running after something—the Ancients know what it was. There was an aftershock, and it caused another rockslide. I—and He-Man—tried to get him, but we didn't see him until it was too late. All we could do was dig him out." Adam's blue eyes filled with tears, a mixture of failure and guilt plaguing him. "He-Man took it really hard. The most powerful man in the universe, and he couldn't get to the little boy in time." There was a trace of bitterness to his voice, and he heard it too late.
Teela drew back. "He's human, Adam! Just because he has super strength doesn't mean he can do everything, save everyone! I can't believe you're blaming him for the death of that little boy!" She was practically shaking with anger.
"I'm not," Adam protested, but in fact he was blaming He-Man, and they both knew it. "I just meant that he took a vow to protect the innocent, and I'm sure—" He didn't get to finish, as Teela ripped into him.
"You're just jealous, that's your problem," she snapped. Her finger actually waved under his nose. "He-Man is everything you're not—a true warrior, with an incredible sense of responsibility. He doesn't need you to tell him how to do his job!" With that, she shoved Adam out of the room and slammed the door.
Adam hung his head. Unfortunately, none of this was his worst fear; it was all memory. Every bit of it had happened. So where did the spell come in on this? Where was his worst fear? Hearing footsteps behind him, he whirled around and faced it. He-Man walked past with Teela, and her voice drifted back to Adam.
"He's such a coward. I can't believe I ever even thought of him as a friend. I can't stand him anymore."
Adam focused his mind on what Teela had said to him earlier. "You're my best friend, and I know I don't say it, but…." He still believed he'd imagined the whispered, "I love you," but he held on that hope as he moved after Teela and "He-Man."
"Teela," he said, reaching for her arm. She turned to him with a raised eyebrow, anger still evident in the way she held herself. "You once said you wanted someone with my wit and He-Man's courage." She gasped, since she had said that to He-Man, not Adam. "I'm right here. I AM He-Man. And I love you. Even if you don't love me, you will always have my heart." Everything faded then, except for He-Man, who suddenly had a malicious grin on his face.
"Aw, how sickeningly sweet. You annoying little twerp. This isn't over yet. The worst is yet to come," he said before he too faded away. Adam stood in shock for a moment. A wave of dizziness passed over him, and his knees gave out. There was another danger here, he realized then. Getting out of here was going to require more than facing secret fears. It might require a fight.
And as weak as I'm getting, he thought, I might not survive it.