Chapter Text
“By the power of Grayskull!”
In the heart of Castle Grayskull, He-Man raised his sword high. Lightning crackled from above, crashed through the walls of the castle, and collided with the sword. Gritting his teeth, he turned his gaze back down and held his weapon steady. In front of him, the Council of Elders' cracked orb of magic flashed and flickered, leaking waves of loose, uncontrollable energy, but like a magnet, the sword drew them closer. When they connected, the room lit with flashes of white and blue, and He-Man felt his veins fill with fire.
A pained grunt escaped from between his teeth. He gripped the sword tighter, and its silver sheen faded into pure white. He felt something shift between his palms, changing shape, and as he lifted his arms, the force of the universe's magic pushed them apart, splitting the sword across the center.
He-Man's vision went white, though whether it was due to the orb's magic lighting the room or the searing pain filling his body, he couldn't tell. He tried to yell for Teela, to tell her to run, but his mouth wouldn't move. Every muscle was rigid, frozen, locked in place while all the magic in the universe filled him, too much to contain.
He had never given much thought to dying. Perhaps his powers had made him too confident, too convinced in his own invincibility. He had known his life would be abnormal, always filled with battles against evil, but he never imagined he would reach the end so soon.
Maybe that was for the best. There was no time for regret, no time for fear. He-Man's only purpose was to protect the universe, and his final act on Eternia was to do just that. It was selfish to wish for more time to teach Cringer courage, or to earn his father's approval, or to share more jokes with Teela. He was a hero. He had lived like one, and in the end, he would simply die like one.
“No!” Distantly, he heard Skeletor's cry of outrage. “That power is mine!”
He-Man felt a cold grip trying to yank his arm down, but he did not yield an inch. He squinted into the light, and he could faintly see Skeletor's snarling face near his own. He would have wrinkled his nose if he could, but he at least managed to shift his gaze; he didn't want Skeletor to be the last thing he ever saw. He somehow found the strength to turn his head aside, and his eyes locked with Teela's, bright and blue. There he stayed, unable to say anything, not knowing what to say.
In a final burst of sound, the world lit ablaze.
Faintly, as if while underwater, Adam heard shouting. A weak groan escaped his lips, and he tried to move. Every limb ached, and his chest burned. His fingers twitched on soft fur, the same surface pressed against his cheek. With a heaving, wheezing breath, he finally managed to open his eyes.
Dully, he stared down at the thin red carpet beneath him, and it took him several moments to recognize the floor of his own castle's throne room. Near his own knees, he saw a large green paw, and the soft fur against his cheek rippled. He felt a puff of hot breath near his hair, and then a voice whimpered, “Adam?”
The faint shouting came to a sudden stop. Swaying a bit, Adam lifted his head to find Cringer's nose inches from his own. “Cringer?” he murmured. The tiger's ears perked up, but he only had time to give Adam's face a brief lick before he was pushed aside.
Adam, whose body had been leaning against Cringer's, nearly dropped to the floor, but strong hands caught his shoulders from behind. Queen Marlena threw herself atop her son, wrapping her arms around him and sobbing, “Oh, Adam, I thought we lost you! Thank goodness you're okay!”
King Randor's shadow passed over both of them, and as Adam peered up, his father pointed a shaking finger down and said, “Son, explain yourself. What happened? What is this nonsense about being at Castle Grayskull, and fighting Skeletor, and-- and-- and He-Man?”
“Randor, leave him alone, he's exhausted--” said Marlena, but then many voices started talking at once.
“I am the king, and I demand answers--”
“My lord, Adam and He-Man, they were both--”
“W-we had to keep the secret, your majesty, the Sorceress said--”
“We never wanted you to find out this way--”
“Enough!” Teela's voice echoed above them all, bringing the rest to a stunned silence. The hands behind him let go of his shoulders. Adam weakly turned his head, and Teela towered over him. Glowering at the crowd, she said, “I'll tell you what happened. Skeletor released the magic in the heart of Castle Grayskull. He-Man used his sword to contain the blast, even though it would kill him, and--” She glanced down at him. For only a moment, Adam saw fear and shame flicker across her face, but it was swiftly extinguished. Lit with rage, she turned away and said, “Then I saw Battle-Cat turn into Cringer, and I saw He-Man turn into Adam. And judging by what I've heard,” her arm made a sweeping gesture across the room, “the king and I are the only ones here who would find that surprising!”
King Randor took a step away from the crowd, further up the stairs toward the throne. “What? Adam and He-Man, they... They're the same person?” His head swiveled to Adam, Queen Marlena, Orko, and Cringer. “And you, you all knew?” His gaze settled on Duncan, and his slack jaw clenched. “Man-At-Arms, you knew about this?!”
Adam tried to pry himself away from his mother and speak, but none of his aching muscles would cooperate. Man-At-Arms bowed his head and said, “My lord, I am sorry you had to find out this way, but the Sorceress assured us that secrecy was essential for your family's protection.”
With anger that surpassed even Teela's, King Randor shouted, “My family's protection?! This is my son! He is my family! My son has been fighting Skeletor for years, and you didn't tell me! You did nothing!” He jabbed his finger past Man-At-Arms and pointed toward the door. “Get out! I strip you of your title and banish you from the palace! If I ever see you again, I will have you executed!”
Though Duncan did not cower at the king's threat, his voice was subdued when he answered, “As you wish, my liege.”
Through clenched teeth, the king turned away and said, “Marlena, take our son to the medics. Teela, get this disgraced Man-At-Arms out of my sight.”
If King Randor's anger was fire, then Teela's was ice when she answered, “No.”
Adam panted and managed to sit up without his mother's help, but his tongue still sat heavy as lead in his mouth. Meanwhile, Teela clenched her fists and said, “I am done with all of you. Everybody I ever trusted since I was a child knew Adam was He-Man.” She turned to the queen. “You had me promoted today; you all spent the whole day telling me how special I was, how I was a member of your family, but none of you trusted me enough to tell me the royal family's biggest secret.” Her eyes shifted and locked with Adam's once more, and her expression crumpled. “My best friend's biggest secret.”
I did trust you, I still do... The words were there, in his heart and at the end of his tongue, but Adam only had the strength to hold his gaze, to pray that she could read the words in his eyes.
Duncan murmured, “Teela, that's enough.”
Teela scowled up at her father. “Yes, it is, because I've had enough. Enough of your secrets and lies, enough of magic and the monsters it makes, enough of the royal palace, and enough of Castle Grayskull to last me a lifetime. I am done looking out for the people who never told me the truth. Skeletor is gone. He-Man is gone.” Red locks cascaded down her shoulders as she plucked her headpiece out of her hair and threw it to the floor. “And now, so am I.”
She stormed her way out the door, ignoring Orko's cries to come back. Adam managed to stand, letting his mother help him up, but while she tried to pull him back, he tried to push forward, opening his mouth to call out for Teela, but any sound he made was drowned out by his father turning his rage toward the others, banishing Orko and Cringer from the castle, demanding everyone to leave his sight...
Absurdly, in utter desperation, even though there were witnesses everywhere, Adam did what he always did when he needed more strength: he forced his mouth to move, and he weakly said, “By... the... power of Grayskull...”
Nothing happened. Adam's legs gave out underneath him, and he heard his mother cry out in alarm, but the last thing he heard was the echo of Teela's parting words:
“He-Man is gone.”