The Blood of Eternia

Chapter Three

The fearless warriors charged forth, charging through the existing Skelecons en route to the tower.

Meanwhile, Scare Glow had resurfaced, he projected not one, but two pairs of energy scythes and approached He-Man from behind, intending to skewer him from side to side with both.

He-Man, however, had a second sight about him, and hastily turned around, his sword of power clashing with the scythes just as Scare Glow intended to strike.

The battle was joined, Scare Glow threw more of his fearsome spirit bombs, several of the projections turned to solid stone, He-Man threw mighty punches and cracked open several of them, but it only produced more of them, which turned to vapour and tried to suffocate the Grayskull guardian.

He-Man gripped his throat, panicked, Scare Glow tightened his fist, and the vapour upon this gesture's command choked the life out of He-Man further.

Scare Glow was so distracted by his all consuming objective that he failed to spot Teela getting the drop on his right hand side with a running power charge.

The distraction weakened his hold on the vapour and He-Man powered through it, pushing them out of his body with a bellowing whistle from his lips, right in the face of Scare Glow.

He-Man charged at him again with the power sword, Scare Glow countered with his energy scythe and this time their duel took them far across the jagged cliff faces of Snake Mountain back to the very foundations of Viper Tower.

The battle did not appear to be tiring either participant, but for Skeletor the evenly matched contest was becoming tiresome to sit through

"Not one of them has an advantage over the other for very long, there's no sport in this"

"Scare Glow requires reinforcements" Evil-Lyn replied.

"Then he shall have it. Skelecons, to battle!"

Skeletor's Skelecon minions poured out of Snake Mountain to confront He-Man and Teela, both warriors stood ready, back to back, swords raised.

Two groups, made of a dozen each, tried their luck first, but their spheres were deflected by He-Man and Teela's weapons, He-Man slid his sword through the shoulders of three of them at once and used the stacked bodies as a battering ram, charging towards the others and pummelling them with it, he then turned back and engaged in wilder and frenetic sword play with the others that weren't accounted for in such a battle charge.

Teela used her acrobatics to avoid jabs from the spheres; she used a technique she'd used on Adam during their sparring session earlier, grabbing a Skeloid by the neck and pulling him over her head, hitting the ground. She picked up his sphere and used it in tandem with her own sword, skewering the Skeloids approaching her on one side, and holding a more unnerved and frightened lot at bay on the other.

Suddenly, the pair and Scare Glow found themselves shielded by an energy bubble.

"No...not her!" Scare Glow spoke, showing even his own fear.

Appearing within the fang-tipped entrance to Snake Mountain, looming over all, was The Sorceress, she leapt off of the gate and transformed into her eagle form, that of Zor, and entered the energy field.

"Sorceress!"

"It's almost time for the towers to fade from Eternia, shouldn't be based back at Grayskull?" He-Man inquired

"I could not stand by while this evil was left to linger in Eternia, he poses a great danger to the present, and must be denied any further future in it"

"Who is he Sorceress?" He-Man asked.

"He is christened Scare Glow, but we have always known him by his true identity-Skeletor"

"This creature is Skeletor? How?" Teela asked, most confused.

"The future holds many surprises in store for us all, that is a story for another time. Skeletor has risked cutting the strands of the great temporal web bringing him here, and we must put it to right"

"What do you intend to do with me you bothersome buzzard?" Scare Glow asked of her

"You shall be locked within the prison vault of Grayskull tower, when they fade from Eternia and return through the veil, you will never threaten whatever shape tomorrow takes or what the past forges"

The Sorceress took sharp aim at Scare Glow with her eyes, bolts of shimmering white light burst out of them and struck him where he stood, transporting him to the tower of Grayskull.

Teela threw herself into He-Man's arms, relieved and proud of all their achievements today.

"Adam, you did it!"

"We did it Teela. You taught me there is nothing to fear, not even fear itself"

"Teela, I am proud of what you have achieved today" The Sorceress spoke with high praise, "You have deduced on your own one of the many great secrets of Grayskull and proven that wisdom is too precious to be taken, it is yours to keep"

"So there are other secrets to learn? Fascinating, I'm in no rush really, if Adam can trust me with this, I'll earn everything else"

The Sorceress transported He-Man and Teela further along the east of Snake Mountain, before returning to Grayskull to watch the tower fade, taking Scare Glow with it

He-Man and Teela watched as their allies caught up to them.

"Late to the party aren't we?" Battle Cat remarked.

"Oh don't worry my friend, something tells me they'll be plenty to celebrate back at the palace, right Captain?"

He-Man winked at Teela, she tried to hide her blush.

"Oh you can trust me on that one"

Back at Snake Mountain, Skeletor sat isolated in his chamber, lost in deepes thought, staring intently at a crystal he held in his hand, a gift bestowed upon him by Scare Glow prior to disembarking. Evil-Lyn walked in and sat beside him.

"Scare Glow failed you, and the towers have vanished, what is next for us?"

"We have learned much from Scare Glow's visit Evil-Lyn, 'least you forget, he was an echo from the future, and with tomorrow comes great guarantees"

"His aura, something was so familiar about it...now I believe I know why. It was yours. Scare Glow was you from another point in time"

"Little wonder why he was so evenly matched with He-Man. A pace only I can truly master"

"There was another thing...Scare Glow specifically instructed me to deceive the palace into sending Prince Adam to Viper Tower with Teela, little of that made sense to me, why make a target of the prince and not He-Man himself?"

"Because, as he was so willing to share with me, there truly is nowhere He-Man can hide"

Skeletor conjured forth in his crystal ball an image of Adam and Teela, hand in hand, admiring the flowers in the royal gardens.

"Nowhere to hide indeed"

And he who's face bore no semblance to man laughed endlessly into the night.