Masters of the Universe - A New Vision

[Casta in Mystacore]

Upgrades: A Tale of He-Man vs. Skeletor -- Part I

“He won’t refuse. This is too great an opportunity for him.”

“But master… what if you lose?”

Skeletor didn’t reply to Evil Lyn’s question. He just sat there, stroking Panthor’s head and looking into the distance.

Niiiiiice. Can't wait to see what is in store for our hero.

On a side note, I have just finished reading Princely Duties and Things That Go Bump and I really like the fluidity of the stories. You guys are doing good work.

[wolfsfang]

“The Hunt for the Dark Heart Stone – Part 9”

King Sun was growing tired. He may be immortal but with his skull shattered, he could feel the pieces moving around, he had the mother of all headaches and all he really wanted to do was get the fight over with and get out of the cave as fast as possible.

Clutching his head with both hands he ducked as another energy blast soared past him and with a lightning fast movement he spun and kicked a small rock straight towards Villanna. The rock hit the young witch straight in the face and knocked her off her feet. Sun immediately followed this up with a jump kick that knocked Villanna back to the ground with a massive thud. The impact of the hit sending a powerful and painful shockwave through his body and into his head.

“WOW” he shouted, holding onto his head for dear life. “That's gonna sting in the morning.”

Villanna slowly stood up, her feet shaking beneath her. Mind you King Sun did not look so hot either. They faced each other both too injured, at least for the moment, to attack. Catching their breaths each tried to decide their next method of attack. The young witch aimed yet another energy blast at King Sun but it was weak and it vanished before it even reached him.

“Just wait till I catch my breath you stupid little monkey.” She said, her whole body swaying as she tried desperately not to fall over.

Sun laughed, then wished he hadn't as it caused yet another jolt of pain to tear through his head.

“Not if I catch my breath first,” he said “and then I will...whoa I feel dizzy.”

“Must I do everything myself?” said a familiar voice from behind Villanna. The yound witch turned to see her mentor, Evil-Lyn, standing a few feet away from her. Clearly Evil-Lyn had used the nearby warp energies to transport herself to their location just as Villanna had done but the spell had left the young witch drained with very little magical energy left. Evil-Lyn on the other hand looked as powerful as ever as if the amount of magical energy used was nothing for her, a testiment to her true power as a sorceress.

Raising her staff high the elder witch aimed a concussive blast at King Sun which sent the simapian flying backwards through a nearby wall into the chamber beyond. Seeing their friend in trouble the heroic trio Wolfsfang, Rodantus and Ant-Arctic broke away from the respective battles and jumped through the newly formed hole after King Sun.

“Come.” said Evil-Lyn authoritatively as she lead the group of evil warriors after the heroes. “Skeletor would not be pleased if we let them get away.”

Villanna walked up beside her teacher. “Master the three masters should pose no problem but that monkey is.” she became silent. Evil-Lyn just gave a look that Villanna understood meant 'get to the point' she continued. “I hit him with attacks that would have killed an ordinary man and he just shrugs them off. It is af my attacks are having almost no effect on him at all.”

“That is because they are having almost no affect on him.” replied Evil-Lyn. Villanna looked dumbfounded. “If he is who I believe him to be, he is King Sun of the simapians.”

“So?” said Villanna who had never heard of him.

“So. It is said that through either birth or magic, the details are unclear to me, he is a true immortal.”

Villanna was confused. “What do you mean by true immortal? Either you are immortal are you are not.”

“This is not the time to discuss such things.” Evil-Lyn said. “Our enemies are getting away. But to put it simply, in most cases where people claim to be immortal it simply means that they no longer age and so cannot be touched by time. King Sun, if this is truly who he is can't die no matter what befalls him; age, accident or injury. He survives them all.”

Meanwhile the topic of the discussion was getting to his feet with the help of Rodantus as Wolfsfang and Ant-Arctic used brute strength to cause a small cave in at the hole that was created by Sun's body to stop the villains following them too quickly.

“Ok now what?” Ant-Acrtic asked. “We can't go back that way and I have no doubt that they will be through shortly anyway and I don't know about any of you but I don't feel up to much more fighting at the moment.”

King Sun rubbed his head and grimaced with the pain. He nodded in agreement and when his head began to throb even more, wished he had spoke instead of nodding.

A quick look around revealed a small passageway hidden behind some vines and half a pillar that had fell on its side. It would be a tight squeeze but they knew it would be better than waiting for the evil warriors to eventually break through.

Ant-Arctic decided to help by using his freezing power to ice up the walls a bit to help them all slide through easier. Unfortunately the heat from the nearby lava stream was still strong enough to melt the ice almost as fast as he was putting it on the wall and so he was being forced to use a lot more cold energy than he had hoped and he was beginning to overheat which was more of a problem to Ant-Arctic than the others. While they also felt the heat they simply found it uncomfortable. Ant-Arctic like all Cryonids had to remain cool or else he would quickly perish. However Ant-Arctic was using the energy that he should have used to keep himself cool, and alive, to help his friends through the enclosed passageway quicker.

Rodantus was the first to notice Ant-Arctic didn't look too well. The young Cryonid was visibly shaking, sweat pouring from his body and it was obvious he was fighting to stay on his feet.

“Ant?” said Rodantus “You okay? You don't look so good.”

Ant-Arctic didn't reply, he didn't have the energy to speak.

“HEY.” shouted Rodantus to Wolfsfang and King Sun who were close behind him. “I think there is something wrong with Ant-Arctic.”

“What do you mean wrong?” shouted Wolfsfang “Is he okay?”

“I'm not sure.” said Rodantus honestly. “He seems to be sweating a lot and he doesn't answer me. Plus it looks like he could collapse at any moment.”

“This is not good,” Wolfsfang said “We have to get him out of here quickly.”

“Yes.” shouted King Sun, concern for his young friend overriding the pain roaring through his head “I fear the heat of this place and the overuse of his powers is causing him to overheat quicker than his bodies natural cooling abilities can compensate for. If we don't hurry up and get out of here I fear he may die.”

[Casta in Mystacore]

Um...no. Ant-Artic can't die. I forbid it.

[wolfsfang]

“The Hunt for the Dark Heart Stone – Part 10”

Soon they found themselves back at the river of lava, the bridge of ice long gone and with Ant-Arctic desperately ill no clear way back across. The sound of footsteps grew ever nearer as the evil warriors had broken through the blockade and were making their way down the narrow tunnel after the heroic masters.

Wolfsfang and Rodantus both stood at the edge of the cliff looking down at the red hot liquid rock below trying hard to find some other way across, some kind of natural bridge.

“It's no good.” said Wolfsfang “we need Ant to create another bridge or else we are stuck here.”

Rodantus shook his head, he knew that doing such a thing would only make it more likely that Ant-Arctic would perish.

“There has to be another way.” he said looking back at Ant-Arctic who was with King Sun.

Sun was sat against the wall of the cave with his legs outstretched with Ant-Arctic lying across them almost unconscious. Ant-Arctic's breathing was getting more and more laboured as the increasing heat in his body made it harder and harder for him to catch his breath.

“I'm sorry.” replied Wolfsfang “But we have no other way out of here he has to create another bridge.”

Ant-Arctic nodded his head in agreement. He knew that the effort would no doubt be the end of him but if it meant his friends would survive then so be it. So gathering what little energy he had left he prepared to create yet another bridge of ice across the red hot river of molten lava.

Suddenly the cave began to shake violently, large chunks of the ceiling falling to the ground. The heroes had to dive for cover to avoid being crushed by the debris.

"What, by the elders, is going on?" growled Wolfsfang. "First Skeletors forces and now it seems the very cave itself is against us."

"I think it's an earthquake." shouted King Sun as he narrowly dodged a huge boulder that came crashing down where he had been stood not one second before. "But it can't be because this area doesn't have earthquakes."

Wolfsfang was using his increased agility to leap and twist his way through the collapsing rocks. "Yeah well tell that to the planet because I think she has other ideas." It was then he noticed that some of the larger rocks were jutting out of the lava, making a makeshift bridge that they could cross, if they hurried.

"I've found a way across." he shouted as he jumped down to the river landing on one of the large rocks. The others watched as he quickly jumped from one rock to the other and bound back up the other side. It looked difficult but they were postive the could make it. The only worry was that Ant-Arctic would have to get even closer to the heat and it could cause him to fatally overheat.

They decided that Ant should go next with King Sun following behind. That way if anything happened King Sun could make sure Ant got across as it was not as if his life would be in any great danger.

- - - - -

Meanwhile the villainous evil warriors were also having trouble with the earthquake. Evil-Lyn and Villanna were using all their power to deflect the debris as it rained down on them but it was coming too thick and too fast for them to keep it up forever.

"Whatever was here is gone now." shouted Terror Fly "we have to leave...NOW."

Evil-Lyn threw Terror Fly an icy glare. "I am working on it." she said

She threw her arms up high, her staff held horizontally across her head.

"Okay," she said. "If you wish to leave this place I suggest you get close to me and hold on."

The other evil warriors quickly scrambled towards Evil-Lyn as she completed the spell that would teleport her and the others out of the cave and back to Snake Mountain

Naturally Skeletor was surprised to see his minions suddenly appear before him in his throne room. They looked beat up and exhausted, but worst of all, they were empty handed.

"Well?" he said glaring at the group that had appeared before him.

"I am sorry lord Skeletor." said Evil-Lyn. "There was nothing there."

"So you mean those blasted heroes beat you to whatever treasure was there?"

"No my lord." chimed in Terror Fly "Whatever was there was long gone. The few heroes that we encountered have also been forced to leave empty handed."

Skeletor seemed lost in thought for a moment.

"Well so be it." he said "For now I have more important matters that need attending to"

- - - - - -

Back in the cave the heroes had finally made it across to the other side of the river. The cave in had opened up an exit in the ceiling which they were making their way over to.

"You know." said King Sun "if I am not mistaken I think we are near, if not under, the village of Andruaar. Which I hope is the case because I could do with a rest."

The others voiced their agreement before quickening their pace towards the exit. But when they got their no sun light shone through as there was far too much dust and smoke for the rays of light to penetrate.

"I'll go up first." said Wolfsfang climbing the wall that lead to the newly opened exit. "I'll shout down if it is safe."

Outside was chaos.

Smoke and dust filled the air for as far as he could see. So thick it was that he coudl barely see past his own nose. Still he strained his eyes as hard as he could to try and make something out.

As his eyes began to adjust he began to wish that he had stayed in the caves. He was indeed near the village of Andruaar but it was no longer the bustlign lively place that it once was. Most of the buildings had not collapsed as they would through an earthquake, no...they had been blown apart as if someone or something had released a tremendous explosive force from the centre of the village. This explosion, and not an earthquake, had been the cause of the cave in that had almost cost him and his friends their lives.

But worst of all were the bodies of the villagers that he began to see scattered around their once peaceful home. Their bodies tiwsted and broken and their flesh burned black, the sign that a huge amount of heat had been released.

He began to wonder if this was the work of Skeletor, but doubt quickly crept into his mind. He knew Skeletor to be evil but he this didn't seem like something he would do. This was simply pure evil and malicious and he saw no way how this would further Skeletors goals to be ruler of Eternia.

Then through the dust he saw something.

A figure.

It was small, about the size of a child. Wolfsfang called out to it but it seemed not to hear. He slowly made his way towards it. If it was a survivor then it may know what had happened.

As he drew closer he could see that its skin was a dark purple in colour and strange runic shapes seemd to be drawn all over it that each gave off an unearthly glow.

Then the child, if that is what it was, looked at him and smiled before simply vanishing from sight.

"Are you alright my friend?" came a familiar voice from behind Wolfsfang.

The Lupian spun around quickly to see He-Man stood their, his friends next to him. Ant-Arctic had been draped carefully across Battle Cat. He was unconscious but still alive.

"We got a bit worried when you didn't shout down." said Rodantus. "So we decided to come up ourselves and look who we just happened to bump into."

He-Man nodded his head

"The sorceress feared that you may be in danger and sent me to assist you. Still it looks like you made it out safely and unharmed." he took a quick glance at the unconcious Ant "Well for the most part. Now come, the King and Duncan will want to hear about what has happened here and we need to get some help for Ant-Arctic though I am positive he will pull through."

[wolfsfang]

EPILOGUE

Ant-Arctic had been left to recupriate in the castle infirmary, there had been no injuries that had needed attending to but it was felt that it would be the best place to rest as his body's natural freezing agent brought his temperature back down to safer levels.

The rest of the heroes in the meantime had been summoned to the meeting room to tell the King and Man-At-Arms what they had seen. King Sun, who had accompanied them back to the Palace of Eternos, had of course not been summoned but merely requested to attend and was naturally given a royal welcome by Randor and Marleena. Sun objected at first but the King and Queen insisted as it was protocol.

Randor and Duncan listened carefully and without interrupting as the group told their tale of what they had seen and done at the Kingdom of King Sun and their adventures in the cave and of Sun's feelings that it may have something to do with a group of evil doers named the Covenant that had been destroyed many millenia ago.

"But there was nothing there?" asked Duncan "No relic or ancient source of power that Skeletor could use?"

Rodantus shook his head "Not that we could see."

"Then." said Randor "we should give thanks for small miracles. You are all alive and Skeletor has not aquired yet another power that he could use against us."

Duncan nooded his head. "Yeah I believe that is the best way to look at it your highness." He looked at Wolfsfang. "Now I woudl like you to tell me exactly what you saw at Andruaar."

Wolfsfang shuddered as he recalled what he had seen upon leaving the cave. Images flashed in his mind of broken buildings, burnt twisted bodies and off a small purple child standing amidst the carnage...smiling.

"A child." said Duncan, his voice pulling Wolfsfang back to his senses. "Did you see a child?"

Wolfsfang looked at Duncan, a small hint of incomprehension in his eyes

"There have been similar reports from all over Etenia of villages being destroyed." said Duncan "and what few eye witness accounts we have they all speak of what appears to be a small purple child seen in all of these places."

Wolfsfang simply nodded.

"Is this child important?" asked king Randor, not fully grasping what his Man-At-Arms was getting at with his questions "After all if it is a child what could it possibly have done?"

"But that is just it." said Duncan "I don't think it is a child. I fear that whatever it is, child or demon, it is the one responsible for all the recent attacks on the villages that have been reported recently and I fear that unless we find and stop it now...this may be only the beginning."

... END?

[wolfsfang]

TIDAL

real name: Tai Dahl

affiliation: Heroic Masters


Bio: Mer-Man may be the the ruler of the Merfolk of Eternia but that does not mean that they all follow him willingly. One such rebel was a young merman named Tai Dahl. From a young age he had witnessed the barbaric way that Mer-Man (and Mer-Man's boss Skeletor) ruled their kingdom and was determined to see Mer-Man overthrown and peace restored once again to his people.

When he was old enough he secretly approached the heroic masters with an idea. He would find away to get a job as one of Mer-Man's loyal henchmen and using this position he would be able to be a spy for the masters and tell them what the evil ocean overlord was up to. Of course they tried to talk him out of it but he was determined and the masters knew that there was no way they could prevent him from going through with it. So they wished him luck and let him return to his underwater home.

It took a few months but eventually Tai managed to get a job as one of Mer-Man's guards. Not as close as he would have liked but still close enough to hear whispers and rumours of what was going on from other guards and from Mer-Man's personal servants. For several years Tai passed what he learned on to the masters and they were able to stop a lot of Mer-Man's (and Skeletor's) evil plans because of this. However things did not go so well for very long.

Mer-Man had come to realise that a spy was in his midst giving out information to the masters and he set a trap to capture him (or her). He felt sure it was one of several people in his employ, one of which was Tai so he made his loyal servants give each one a false piece of information which would lead the masters to one of several different places. Depending on where the masters went he would know for sure who the spy was.

Unfortunately for Tai the plan worked. Unmasked he was sentenced to death for being a traitor to his king and people. But it would not be a quick and painless death, instead Mer-Man had decided to make an example of him.

Mer-Man and over one hundred witnesses marched Tai to a large lake just east of the Evergreen Forest. There he would be the first to test out a new method of execution designed by Mer-Scientists. As the witnesses and Mer-Man stood on the bank of the lake to watch, Tai was forced to swim to the middle and once there was held by guards as one of them forced a vial tasting liquid down his throat.

He did not have long to worry about the taste however. The liquid instantly began to break down his body, literally causing him to melt from the inside out as he screamed in agony. Eventually there was nothing left as the clear liquid mass that was once Tai diffused into the water of the lake. Believing the traitor had been dealt with the merfolk returned home.

However this was not the end for Tai. Somehow his mind had survived and the liquid that he had been forced to drink had also infected the water of the lake so that he and the lake water were now one. Using as much will power as he could muster he managed to somewhat reform himself out of pure water but when he tried to leave the lake to seek help he found that he was unable to do so.

Trapped in what should have been his personal water grave all he could do was wait for someone he recognised to walk by. Eventually he saw Teela and Prince Adam walking by and was about to shout out to them for help when the two were attacked by Skeletors forces. Caught by surprise Teela and Adam were unable to defend themselves so Tai knew he had to do something quickly. Using pure instinct he willed the water to shoot at the evil warriors as a powerful jet.

This gave Teela the opportunity she was waiting for and she managed to fight the evil warriors off. The two heroes then looked towards the lake for the saviour. Forming a replica of his original body out of water, Tai came as close to the edge of the lake as he could and told them who he was and what had happened to him.

Shocked by their friends condition they instantly sought the help of Teela's adoptive father Man-At-Arms who in turn went to see the Sorceress. However the Sorceress, despite all her magic could do nothing for Tai and had to break the awful truth that he would have to remain in the lake in his watery form for as long as he lived, tho with more research she may find a way for him to leave (at least temporarily) his watery prison...tho he would still be a being made of water.

Still if any villains went anywhere near his lake he would attack them with the force and power of a Tidal Wave...so he was renamed as TIDAL

Powers: Once a member of Mer-Man's race he was magically transformed into living water and must now remain in contact with it to stay alive. He usually takes a form that roughly assembles his original one but he is able to take the form of anything he likes tho the bigger it is the more of a strain on him it is.

one limit he has is that he always looks like water no matter what form he takes. He can't change the color of the water like Hydroman from Marvel comics can to make himself look normal. He is made of water and he looks like water...well a water / ice sculpture

[Machinitess]

Nice new stuff here. Also checked the bible for new entries.

[Darth Latveria]

It's been awhile since I posted anything new in here, but I do have a few stories ready to go. This one is to give some background to an upcoming character in the staction comp.

The Knight of Grayskull

Part 1

A Need for Protection

“Sorceress, are you sure this is wise? I still managed to get here with the others in time to stop Skeletor,” He-Man asked.

“You did. And the others fought valiantly and managed to protect the castle. But how can we be certain that you will always be available when aid is needed? Not long ago your father sent you off on a diplomatic journey. What if Skeletor had attacked then?”

“The other defenders of Eternia would have heeded your call.”

“He-Man, I know you place much trust in your friends but unfortunately they can’t always be depended on. In this time of war many of the most powerful soldiers will be sent away to protect your father’s interests. I cannot protect the castle alone. My magic is strong, but I am bound within these walls. Furthermore, I am no warrior. I could never defeat Skeletor and his full forces alone. You must also consider something else. Skeletor isn’t the only great power with which we have to contend. Hordak has returned and what you told me about your trip makes me wonder if the Snakemen will be trouble once more. Looking past those threats, I also sense other great evils that are amassing power. He-Man cannot be everywhere at once.”

“But what you are suggesting… it isn’t natural. And the danger involved is so great.”

“I am well aware of the dangers involved. But the need to protect the secrets of Grayskull outweighs the need to protect me. If I fall I can be replaced, I saw to that long ago. But if the nexus point where the castle stands fell into evil hands Eternia would be thrown into turmoil.”

“Is there any way I can persuade you to not do this?”

“No. There is not.”

New Life is Created

The Sorceress watched as He-Man rode away on Battlecat. He had engagements that he had to attend as Adam and had to be back at the palace soon. She then turned to a painting of Teela.

Months ago Duncan had brought it to the castle. He had had it commissioned as a surprise for the Sorceress. She greatly appreciated the gesture. It was lonely in the castle and she found it difficult to not be a mother to her daughter. But soon things would change.

If the Sorceress was successful in her plans the castle would be better protected than ever. The fact that she would have company was a nice bonus as well. If she failed… at least Teela could take her place. Duncan was well aware of Teela’s destiny and the Sorceress knew that if thrust into a new role Teela would be strong.

Slowly walking into the castle’s depths, the Sorceress noted that she had only come this way twice before. Holding a torch up so that she could see ahead of her, she entered a large room that had a strange pool of bubbling liquid. It was the very heart of Castle Grayskull, the strongest magical nexus in all of Eternia. She could have cast a spell to illuminate her path down the stairs but instead she wisely chose to conserve her energy, knowing that she’d need to be as strong as possible for what was to come.

The first time she had entered this room was when she had first taken the mantle of the Sorceress and wished to explore the castle. The raw energy in the room unnerved her and as a consequence she preferred to avoid it unless absolutely necessary. Looking at the floor, the Sorceress saw an ancient suit of armor that she had taken from the castle armory. Her bringing the armor into the room had been the second time she had entered it.

Kneeling close to the floor, the Sorceress picked up the various pieces of the armor and slowly dropped them into the bubbling pool. Once the armor was fully submerged the Sorceress began speaking in a language that was long since dead.

Although there were no windows the room was hit with gale force winds that blew out the torch she had brought with her. Rising into the air she saw that the torch was no longer needed because the pool now had an eerie green glow. Suddenly the Sorceress’ body shuddered in agony. She knew that what she was doing would be painful but she had no idea it would be so bad. Through the pain, the Sorceress forced herself to focus on her task, knowing that a break in concentration would lead to not only failure but death.

Grimacing in agony, the Sorceress saw the armor lifting out of the pool. It was glowing and before her very eyes she saw the creation of a skeleton within it. As she struggled to concentrate on the spell she was casting, she could see organs, flesh and muscle slowly growing around the skeleton. As the body looked to be near completion, the exertion finally became too much and the Sorceress passed out.

An Introduction

“Where am I? What’s going on,” the Sorceress thought to herself. As she opened her eyes, a terrible wave of pain shot through her body, causing her to roll over heaving. Looking at the floor, the Sorceress saw that she had just vomited blood.

Slowly regaining her bearings, the Sorceress saw that she was in her bed. Forcing herself to focus past the blindingly painful headache, the Sorceress tried to determine what had happened. She believed that the castle needed a guardian that could be more active in its protection because never in its history had Eternia faced so many threats at once. To do this she created a man, a man who would be able to help protect the castle even when He-Man was absent. But his creation was a dangerous affair as she needed to create a soul for him which required an extremely dangerous form of magic. In this case, it required her to use her own soul as a template. Once the soul template was completed, a body would grow around it. This person would help her protect the castle. But the Sorceress had passed out before the process was complete. What had happened next?

Pulling off her covers, the Sorceress attempted to stand up. Once more the pain struck and the Sorceress fell to her knees. At this point she noticed that there was a man just outside her door, wearing the armor that she had taken from the armory. Hearing the commotion as she fell to the ground, he ran in and quickly placed her back in the bed.

Looking at the man’s face the Sorceress knew that she had succeeded in creating a new form of life. She was proud of her accomplishment but the terrible pain wracking her body made it clear to her that she would never be able to do such a thing again.

The man then quietly said, “Who am I?”

It was still painful to speak, but the Sorceress took a deep breath and said, “You are a protector of Eternia.”

“What is my name?”

The Sorceress had put a lot of thought into that particular question before performing the ritual that led to this man’s creation. Quietly she said, “You are Gray. Named after one of Eternia’s greatest heroes.”

Without another word the Sorceress passed out once more.

[Darth Latveria]

Part 2

Gray’s Tutelage

Unfortunately for Gray his introduction to the world was unpleasant. His first week of life was spent tending to the Sorceress as she was far too sick to get out of bed. Although too tired to help Gray begin his formal education, the Sorceress used the time to explain his purpose to him.

Gray existed to protect the castle when He-Man could not. Unlike the other heroes of Eternia whose job was to protect all of Eternia, Gray’s primary purpose was to stay at the castle and ensure that its walls were never breached. Although he may on occasion be sent away on a mission these instances would be few and far between.

He had been formed fully grown. His body was that of a thirty year old man and he shared some of his “mother’s” familial characteristics, such as her red hair. He was naturally very strong, likely having about three quarters the strength of He-Man himself. But his mind wasn’t as well formed as the Sorceress had hoped. This was a consequence of her being unable to complete the ritual.

The Sorceress had wanted Gray to be “born” with full knowledge of Eternia’s vast and rich history, a good knowledge of strategy and with a solid grasp of the many languages that were spoken throughout the land. She had also hoped that her incantations would create a natural fighter who had battle honed skills, similar to He-Man’s own creation. But this was not meant to be.

Gray was born able to read and speak the Sorceress’ mother tongue. Fortunately that was the language most spoken on Eternia and the language used in the Royal Court. He had the mind and maturity of an adult, but very little actual knowledge. Consequently he spent much of his time reading the books in Castle Grayskull’s vast library, trying to learn about the world around him.

The Sorceress took note of the fact that his mind was like a sponge. He absorbed everything he came across and did so quickly. Unfortunately she knew that this would not always be the case. She could sense that in just a manner of days his memory would not be as precise as it was now and that although he would likely still be relatively intelligent, he’d almost certainly lose his near photographic memory. This led to her feeling guilty about wasting the first week of his life by being sick. But there was little she could do at the time and she was far too unsteady to properly probe his mind and discover this limitation to his intellect. Furthermore, it also led to a dilemma. What would be most useful for Gray to learn?

The Sorceress knew that in time Gray would be able to learn whatever was valuable to him but now she had opportunity to accelerate his education. Thankfully Gray was born with the Sorceress’ natural empathy towards others, her same natural love for life and beauty. Consequently she believed that Gray’s education about the history and customs of Eternia could be put on hold. He already appreciated all life and it would be a long time before he needed to deal with the outside world. So instead, she told him to focus on reading books about military strategy. That information would prove useful when the forces of evil once more tried to enter Castle Grayskull.

To the Sorceress’ chagrin, Gray was also not born with the skills of a warrior. Very early on it became clear that he would need to be trained but the Sorceress was unable to do it herself as she knew very little about non-magical combat. Consequently she called in He-Man to help.

Battle Training

With Duncan’s help, Adam was able to leave the palace to spend a couple weeks at the castle. Duncan had told Randor that Adam and he were going to go on a safari trip where he would teach Adam some outdoor survival techniques. Naturally Gray knew the truth about He-Man’s duel identities and to the Sorceress’ relief he got along well with both Adam and He-Man, also understanding the importance of keeping Adam’s true identity secret.

Duncan and He-Man helped put Gray through his paces. Unbeknownst to most, the castle actually had two armories. One was stocked with well-made but conventional weapons. It had a wide variety of weapons and Gray spent some time working with each of them to see what he liked most. During this time Duncan noted that while Gray wasn’t born with combat knowledge, he learned extremely quickly. He had never met a person who mastered weapons and styles faster.

Gray’s vast strength was particularly well-suited for heavy weapons. He worked well with the large battle axes, but he didn’t like how brutal they were and wanted a weapon that could be less lethal. Discussing his problems with the Sorceress, she suggested that they take a trip to the second armory.

This armory stored some of the most powerful and dangerous magical weapons in Eternia. It was from this armory that the Sorceress had taken the armor that was used during Gray’s formation. The room had stored the mystical helmet that Ram-Man used and for a long time it had been the home of He-Man’s Sword of Power until Adam was deemed worthy of being Eternia’s hero.

Looking at the artifacts in the room, Gray noted that there was a second sword stand that was identical to the one that had held the power sword. This stand was empty as well and Gray wondered what was supposed to be there but chose not to ask.

After a few minutes, Gray came to his weapon of choice. It looked similar to a shortened lance and was made out of solid metal, causing it to weigh a couple hundred pounds. Most warriors could barely lift it at all but he was able to wield it easily one-handed. What he liked was that its bluntness allowed for non-lethal attacks, while its weight, sturdiness and sharp point would allow him to kill if needed.

Shortly before He-Man and Duncan left to return home, they had a discussion with the Sorceress about what was to come for Gray.

“What will he be referred to as,” He-Man inquired.

“Yes, I have been wondering that as well. Most of the defenders have codenames, are we to simply refer to him as Gray,” Duncan asked.

The Sorceress answered, “No, I don’t believe that calling him ‘Gray’ will suffice. He needs a title that will properly denote his function while also causing a sense of foreboding in our enemies.”

“Do you have any ideas for that,” Duncan asked.

“Yes. Your ancestor, King Grayskull, was a great and strong man, but he was not alone. He had help from others as you do now. There was a group of great warriors that aided him in his battles that were referred to as the Knights of Grayskull. I believe that being referred to as the ‘Knight of Grayskull’ would be a fitting tribute to them.”

“The Knights of Grayskull? I have never heard of them. Who were they,” He-Man asked.

“Their tale is a long one that I will have to share with you another day. Your father will be concerned if you don’t get home soon with Duncan.”

He-Man then said, “How will Gray continue his training?”

Duncan replied with a suggestion. “I have been thinking about that. Sorceress, with your permission, I’d like to speak to King Randor about sending one of his mage-knights here. A recent graduate, a man named Sir Seror, is one of the finest fighters in King Randor’s forces. His natural skill and strength were incredible even before he added magic to his repertoire and I believe that he currently doesn’t have a posting. With King Randor’s permission, I’d like to send him here for awhile to train Gray.”

He-Man then asked, “Won’t he learn my secret then?”

“No, I don’t think he will. He’s one of the most disciplined people I have ever met and understands the need for secrecy, even when that secrecy means keeping things from him.

Thinking about what Duncan had said, the Sorceress finally says, “Yes. Speak to the king about sending this man. Normally I would not allow an outsider into the castle, but I trust your judgment and I agree that Gray still needs training. He’s naturally gifted but he’s definitely not ready for battle. If this man can come here, he should be able to change that.”

In agreement with the Sorceress, He-Man and Duncan left the castle. Watching them ride into the distance the Sorceress was pleased that her plans for Gray were progressing well. But she still felt worried. She could feel the dark forces on the horizon, darkness even greater than what she had felt during the Great War. Eternia would depend on its heroes to survive.

[wolfsfang]

Well it has been a while since there was an update and hopefully people have not forgotten about this project.

So now finally we have a new bio and it is none other than the evil doppleganger of He-Man known as


FAKER

Now one day it seemed to Skeletor that trying to defeat He-Man in battle was basically going nowhere fast. He-Man's immense strength and supernatural levels of invulnerability meant that the kind and heroic man mountain was basically unstoppable. Not only that but he was loved and adored by the people of Eternia as some kind of living God.

This was when Skeletor hatched his most fiendish plan. Using his Dark Magics he would conjure up an exact duplicate of He-Man, a FAKER that would spread evil across the land and ruin He-Man's name and reputation. With He-Man's world destroyed he would be an easy target to annihilate.

Using a magical mirror that captured the image of whoever looked into it, he lured He-Man into a crystal cave, where he hid the mirror in a part of the walls where he would be sure to look. Skeletor disguised himself as an old man whose family heirloom had been stolen by bandits who had took it into the cave. Naturally He-Man couldn't refuse to help.

Having retrieved the heirloom (which was a simple diamond on the end of a gold chain) Skeletor finally had what he needed. He-Man's reversed image.

Using a dark and forbidden spell, Skeletor used all of his magical powers to bring the reversed He-Man to life. But there was a flaw in his plan. Being a mirror image, true this Faker was a force of evil...but he was also weaker with only half of the strength of the original. Still Skeletor knew that his resemblance to He-Man would ensure that the plan still worked.

So Faker went out into the world.

A few hours later he came across a man who looked similar to himself and He-Man, but there was a slight difference. There was evil burning in this man's eyes.

“Finally we meet He-Man.” cried the newcomer has he unsheathed his sword. “I am Thanatos, sworn enemy of good and soon to be your end.”

Faker said nothing, instead he slowly and clumsily unsheathed his own sword just as Thanatos drove his own deep into his abdomen. The false He-Man dropped to his knees, cracks spreading out from the wound as if he was made of glass.

The fake He-Man exploded into pieces. Thanatos looked disgusted.

“You were not the true He-man!” he cried “You were nothing but a FAKER!”

Hours later He-man and Man-At-Arms were walking past, having been on a mission to stop Mer-Man from releasing some large sea monster on an unsuspecting town.

They noticed the shattered pieces of what appeared to be a glass man, that upon closer inspection of the parts, bared an uncanny resemblance to He-Man.

“So what do you think went on here Duncan?” He-Man asked his friend and mentor bending down to pick up a piece.

Man-At-Arms just shook his head “I don't think I want to know.”

[wolfsfang]

Ferat - Heroic CHIROPTERAN Warrior



Chiropterans are one of two vampiric races that hail from the Dark Hemisphere, the other being the Drachuls. Whilst the Drachuls have evolved in such a way as to retain a mostly human appearance, the Chiropterans have evolved to be more bat-like.

Both races have also evolved the need to drink blood to survive and to this end they have developed increased strength, the ability to fly and heightened senses including acute hearing, excellent night vision and the ability to smell a single drop of blood from over ten miles away. However there abilities are not needed as much as they once were as the Chiropterans have become well respected livestock farmers whose animals produce rich blood and succulent meat.

Despite their need to drink blood they are not an evil race, just feared and misunderstood.

One such family of Chiropterans; a mother and father and their three children, the youngest of which was called Ferat, had been travelling through the Light Hemisphere of Eternia when they heard news that war had broken out between the forces of Eternia led by Miro and the warriors of evil under the command of the evil Prince Keldor which had thrown their homeland in the Dark Hemisphere into chaos.

Upon hearing that this unfortunate families plight Miro took it upon himself to make them as comfortable as possible. Seeking assistance from the Spelean race Miro was able to find them a small but well furnished cave that they could live in for as long as the war meant that they were unable to return home.

However this turned out to be longer than they thought it would be.

Eventually the war ended with the creation of the Great Barrier and the Chiropteran family found themselves stranded on the Light Hemisphere. This did not prove a problem however as they had grown to love living with the Speleans and had themselves been accepted into the community, in fact their eldest child had begun dating a Spelean girl and would later go on to marry her while the middle child would garner some fame as a poet and playwrite who even had some of his works acted out in front of King Randor himself.

The youngest child, Ferat, never forgot how Miro helped them and vowed that one day when he was old enough he would dedicate his own life to helping others just as he himself had been helped. So when he was old enough he gladly offered his services to the Defenders of Eternia

Ferat can usually be seen patrolling the skies at night with the other bat-like heroic warrior Bat-Ler

POWERS:
Increased strength
Flight
Acute hearing
Night vision
Heightened sense of smell (especially in relation to blood)

[wolfsfang]

"History of the Covenant"

Thousand of years ago, long before the reign of King Grayskull and many millennium before the heroic exploits of He-Ro, far back to the beginning of recorded history, Eternia and Etheria were jointly ruled by a conglomeration of warriors and mages from the many races that inhabited both worlds. One Thousand and One Hundred members made up of an equal number of warriors and mages to create a balance they felt was necessary to maintain while the sought to uncover the secrets of the universe, each member branded with a special magical mark that granted them special privileges.

They called themselves “The Covenant”

For over a hundred years this ruling force learned to tap into the natural magical energies of both worlds, energies that would later be used to turn a young prince into the heroic champion He-Man. In order to focus the power that they were amassing they created spells and weapons of unimaginable power and used them to channel the immense powers of the universe.

Unfortunately like a lot of people who are given so much power they became corrupted by it.

One thousand members of the Covenant began to use their own subjects as both slave labour and unwilling participants in their vile experiments and pretty soon the name Covenant became synonymous with evil.


Still that left 100 members that were horrified by what the others had become. Joining with a small force of people who had decided to fight back against the tyrannical rule of the Covenant they created a new group which they named “The Committee”

For ten years they fought back valiantly but it soon became painfully apparent that they could not prevail against the awesome might of the Covenant. So a plan was formed.

An ex-Covenant mage now serving the Committee cast a spell that would compel all those bearing the mark of the Covenant to gather together at the “Moutains of Darkheart”. There he put his plan into motion. Using a special gem that he had created for this very purpose he cast yet another spell that would seal all those branded with the mark inside the stone, in a timeless prison that would seal them forever from any and all forms of stimulation in an eternal state of sensory deprivation. However this spell would also trap those that had left the Covenant and joined the Committee, but it was felt that it was the right thing to do seeing as they themselves had helped bring about this state of events.

The spell was cast and the Covenant were no more.

A small group of mages hid the stone deep under the mountains where it had been used and named it “The Darkheart Stone” in honour of the place it was used and of the hundred brave souls who allowed themselves to be sacrificed to restore peace to Eternia and Etheria. But they also feared that it would one day be found and the spell broken, so to try and prevent this they cast another spell which meant that once every 10 years the stone would teleport from one location to another to a series of caverns and temples that would be specially made for this purpose.

Then began the systematic destruction of every Covenant weapon and spell book that could be found and while most were disposed of there were still some that managed to survive to the present day whether by luck or design. This included three spell books that would be discovered under the Crystal Castle by the evil Prince Hordak which would grant him the power to overthrow his family, so beloved by their people for being kind and just rulers, and setting himself up as the uncontested evil ruler of Etheria. It would also include a magic staff of great power that would be discovered by Keldor of Eternia which became known as the Havoc Staff.

Still despite this the Covenant eventually slipped out of memory and were eventually all but forgotten, this included the most dangerous artefact the come from that time, the Darkheart Stone. So focused on the evils that plagued their planets in the present time, the good people of Eternia and Etheria did not consider that the next great evil would emerge from its darkest past in a form that nobody could ever have predicted.

The Covenant were about to return

A young boy named Kalin who worked in the Royal Kitchens under Chef Allen somehow found himself in one of the caverns used to store the Darkheart Stone of the many hundreds of thousands of years since its creation. He was not the first to come across one of these caverns but what made this time special was that it had been discovered when the stone was currently there.

It is unclear whether it was a fault of the spell or if the magic had simply begun to wear out after all these years but when Kalin reached out and touched the stone the souls trapped within entered his body turning him, temporarily, into the demonic force of pure evil that would become known simply as “HE”

Whenever too much power was used the souls would retreat back into the stone to recharge, leaving Kalin with no memories of what had transpired while he was possessed. When they were sufficiently rested they would once again take over the body of poor Kalin who was compelled to keep the stone for reasons that even he didn't understand.

Thus the power of the Covenant had returned to plague the universe once more.

[Darth Latveria]

It's been a long time since I posted anything in here so I thought I'd make my return with a pretty important character, King Hiss.

The Rise of King Hiss

Part 1

Hiss seldom spoke of his past so few knew how humble his beginnings actually were. His past was shrouded in mystery but some stories were whispered amongst the Snakemen as to his possible origins. Much of this is likely due to his actively trying to have his history hidden, but some accounts of his past managed to survive.

It is believed that he was born as a normal green-skinned Snakeman, not the writhing pile of snakes that would someday haunt Eternia’s nightmares. Growing up in a modest family that lived on the outskirts of Serpentia, the capital of the Snakeman Empire, there was little about him that truly stuck out. Hiss’ father was a farmer and his mother was a baker and his childhood was unremarkable. Although Hiss didn’t seem to care much for the others around him, always acting as if he was above the other Snakemen, there weren’t any specific events that would have made others believe that he would become one of Eternia’s greatest despots. Most of his days were spent alone, in quiet contemplation. He also had two siblings, one older and the other younger. Not much is known about them although it is believed that Hiss got along relatively well with them.

One day when Hiss was 16 he left his home early in the morning to travel to a nearby village. His father needed a new shovel, after the last one he had bought broke within weeks of its purchase and he wanted to ensure that this time he got a better quality good. The village that Hiss travelled to was known for having an excellent blacksmith and his father felt that although it was a bit more costly than the locally available tools, the quality was worth the extra expense. Unfortunately the day ended in tragedy.

Late that afternoon, as Hiss was nearing the outskirts of Serpentia, he felt the ground tremble and was knocked down. Sitting upright, he could see rocks tumbling down the side of a nearby mountain… the mountain that his family’s home was built next to. Getting to his feet and running towards his home he saw that rocks, sand and debris were tumbling down the mountain and had totally engulfed the small neighborhood that he had grown up in.

Hiss was filled with confusion and despair but eventually what happened was clear. Although Serpentia was in a region that was not known for earthquakes, a fairly strong one had occurred. Within the city a number of the buildings had collapsed in on themselves. On the outskirts, specifically where Hiss’ home was the tremors had caused an avalanche. His family, who had been home at the time, was killed in the avalanche.

After this disaster, Hiss was left with nothing. All his belongings had been destroyed and all he had left was the shovel that he had bought for his father. Witnesses to the event did note something unusual. Although he was clearly shocked by what had transpired, he didn’t show much sorrow over the death of his family. He actually seemed fairly unfazed by it.

The next series of events in Hiss’ life were better recorded, although for a time he tried to have these records hidden as well.

[Patreek]

Cool, I like the idea of Hiss before he was Hiss, I'm interested to see where this goes! :-)

[wolfsfang]

You will be disappointed








erm I think I forgot the word 'not'

[Darth Latveria]

Part 2

Having just lost everything, Hiss had few options. He was still young and he had not trained in a trade so few would take him on to work. He could have tried to meek out a life as a beggar, but for obvious reasons that did not appeal. In the end he decided to join the Snakeman army.

At this point in Eternia’s history, the Snakeman Empire was the most powerful empire on the planet. The other most populous race, the humans, were very disorganized. Instead of having a centralized ruling body, they were just a sparse group of small kingdoms and villages. Some of the other groups, such as the Caligars, had relatively centralized governments but their populations were pretty small.

For the most part the Snakeman Empire lived peacefully with its neighbors, although on occasion conflicts did arise. But even without the prospect of imminent war the Snakemen believed in having a strong military in place should the need arise.

The Snakeman army was known for its harshness. The instructors quickly broke the wills of their recruits and were utterly unforgiving of mistakes. Hiss stuck out to them immediately. He was aloof and seemingly unbreakable. It didn't matter what tasks he was given or how harshly he was punished, his will never seemed to waiver. Even though he tended to keep to himself, early on his indomitable will got him pegged as a potential leader and as his instructors gave him more and more to read regarding strategy, they saw that he was a gifted tactician. Over time Hiss seemed to come out of his shell, slowly beginning to associate with his fellow recruits, showing a talent for bending their wills.

But there was one thing that worried his instructors. Hiss took to combat well but it seemed as if he almost had too much of a killer instinct. He was utterly ruthless in battle and had a nasty cruel streak. This was fairly apparently during a skirmish that Hiss’ squad had with a nearby Gar settlement. The source of the conflict has long been forgotten, but what was remembered was how much Hiss seemed to relish killing the Gar soldiers. Seeing him in combat left some of his fellow soldiers in awe, while others began to fear him.

These years were formative for Hiss because it was during this time that he met those that would be his first true followers and closest friends, as well as the time in which he would begin to form his world view.

Hiss’ closest friend was a man named Rattlor. Rattlor was naturally very big and strong, larger than most of the other Snakemen. Although he was a truly dominant force on the battlefield, Rattlor had an intellect that few suspected and was almost as good a tactician as Hiss himself. Another good friend of his was a man named T’Lash. Although T’Lash was not a particularly talented fighter, he was a model soldier. He naturally took to the strict and regimented lifestyle and had no tolerance for those who shirked their duties. He was soon made an instructor who was known for whipping insolent recruits.

Once Hiss was given his own squad to manage, a young Snakeman known as Sq’uaz was placed under his command. Sq’uaz was very loyal to Hiss and was a very talented wrestler, being renowned for his vice-like grip.

He had two other friends of note, Leptomicrus and Palid. Leptomicrus was part of the Snakeman equivalent of Special Forces. He was known for his speed and stealth, generally used for missions where the objectives were limited and it was impractical to send in a full military force. In particular, Leptomicrus excelled at assassination missions. Hiss saw him as an extremely useful resource, frequently using him for missions that he wanted to distance his squad from.

But his last friend, Palid, had a particularly notable affect on Hiss’ life. Palid was born into a noble family that had gotten him magical training at a young age. Once he reached adulthood, he chose to join the army as a combat mage who focused on fire magic. Hiss seldom came into contact with mages and until he and Palid were sent on a mission together, he had never given magic much thought. But when seeing what Palid was capable of, Hiss began to wonder whether he might have similar skills.

Hiss’ friends were extremely devoted to him. No one is sure what it was about him that drew them to him, but they believed that in Hiss they saw the future. That Hiss was the man who was meant to someday lead the Snakemen to true glory and power.

It seemed as if Hiss had a good career ahead of him. By the age of 22 he was a captain and was both well respected and feared. But he was unsatisfied. Although it was not apparent in his youth, Hiss seemed to have gained an unquenchable ambition and he wanted more than the life of an army officer could provide. He felt that the Snakeman leaders had limited his people by not imposing their will on what he deemed as lesser races and that the army was foolish for blindly following their policies. Thus he found himself spending less time concerning himself with his military duties and more time reading in the vast libraries that were made available to officers. It was in these libraries that his world views would slowly begin to be formed; the views that would lead to the horror that would be known as King Hiss.

[Patreek]

Palid sound very cool, and I like how you've altered their names a bit to be a little less cheesy.

You will be disappointed





erm I think I forgot the word 'not'

so you did, I really like it so far.

[Darth Latveria]

Part 3

By the time Hiss was 23 he was utterly obsessed with his studies and had begun to neglect his other duties. As Hiss became more and more engrossed in reading the various Snakemen texts on religion, magic and philosophy, the less he cared about his military career. Soon it was clear that he would not rise any further in the army and that his growing disdain for his commanding officers would lead to his discharge, so before he could be kicked out he quit and decided to follow a different path.

Leaving the army, Hiss joined the Najan monastery. The Najan monastery was in a remote region north of Serpentia and had been the training ground of the Snakeman Empire’s greatest religious leaders for as long as they could remember.

As was true for many other Eternian races, the Snakemen had a polytheistic religion. However the Snakemen primarily focused on one god, Degaya, who was seen as the altruistic leader of the snake gods. For the most part, few Snakemen ever took note of the other gods. Snakemen philosophical views basically espoused a “live and let live” policy. They were happy to trade with other races, but for the most part there was little interest in having much direct contact with them. However they did believe in always being prepared for war, as they felt that should a war occur they had better be triumphant.

Normally the monastery was very strict with whom they would admit but Hiss was allowed to join due to his distinguished military career as well as Palid pulling a few strings for him. Once in the monastery, Hiss focused on two things, the study of magic and the study of Snakeman lore.

Snakemen monks were known for their magical abilities but they had strictly pacifistic views. They focused on things such as healing magic and certain pragmatic magical abilities, such as the ability to create fire, but there was never any focus on using the magic in combat. As a matter of fact, using magic for selfish or violent purposes was strictly forbidden and led to immediate dismissal.

Hiss showed more promise as a mage than he had as a soldier. It was immediately obvious that he had far more magical potential than any of the other initiates in the monastery and likely more than the elders themselves. This potential had never been realized in the past, but given Hiss’ background that was not surprising. Generally only the children of aristocratic families were given training as mages, thus given his humble origins there was no reason to even consider his possible mystical potential. Once he had joined the army it was just assumed that he likely had the same potentials as the other recruits and was used as a regular soldier, as opposed to Palid who was trained to be a combat mage. Hiss did not share their views on magic and while he did as was expected while with the monks, in private he focused on dangerous and forbidden magic.

Hiss’ view on magic was not the only thing that differentiated him from the others in the monastery. His religious beliefs also strongly differed in that he did not think very highly of Degaya. Instead, he saw himself as a follower of Serpos.

Serpos was viewed by most as an evil god. He lacked the altruism of Degaya and was generally ignored by the populace, partially because the monks felt that Serpos’ views were warped. It was believed that Serpos hated the other Eternian races and felt that the Snakemen were supreme, the only species that deserved to rule. These xenophobic views appealed to Hiss. During his time as a soldier he’d come to believe that the Snakemen were superior to the other Eternian races, finding that he relished the occasions when he could lead a squad into obliterating another group’s army. Naturally Hiss hid his affinity for Serpos from the other monks.

Within 5 years of joining the monastery, Hiss knew he had to leave.

[Patreek]

Sounding good, I really like seeing how he found out about Serpos and where his magical abilities were first kindled. Any chance we'll get snake face in this?

[Darth Latveria]

Sounding good, I really like seeing how he found out about Serpos and where his magical abilities were first kindled. Any chance we'll get snake face in this?

I'm glad that you're liking it so far. I hope that anyone else reading this agrees As for Snakeface, we do have plans for him but not for anything that'll be ready soon. Hope you like the next part!

Part 4

Hiss never got along well with the monks in the monastery. He had been able to hide some of his more clandestine studies, but it was clear that he viewed the others with disdain and they in turn were not fond of him. As the years passed, Hiss’ low view of his colleagues became more and more apparent and eventually the elders began to suspect him of breaking the order’s rules, although they could never definitively prove that this was the case. In truth they were correct, but Hiss was adept at covering his tracks.

As the whispers and rumors surrounding Hiss increased, he knew that he would soon have to leave. People suspected that he was a follower of Serpos and the stigma associated with that made it increasingly difficult for him to continue his private studies. With these annoyances, the value of being at the monastery had come to an end and Hiss decided to leave. However, he had no intentions of leaving empty handed.

He stole a few items from the monastery before leaving.

Firstly, he stole a number of sacred texts that only the elders were granted access to. The others in the order weren’t sure what was in them but it was believed that they held forbidden teachings that the order did not want spread. It was also rumored that they also discussed a long lost temple that the order’s monks had spent years searching for but were unable to find.

The other item was a sculpture of 3 interwoven jade snakes. Hiss had no idea what the significance of the sculpture was and as it happened, neither did anyone else. The artifact was so ancient that none of them knew what it was, but it was believed to be a sacred object of great significance. Hiss found it ironic that they felt it was so important while having no idea what its actual significance was but decided it was best to have just in case it proved to be useful.

As Hiss escaped the monastery, he knew that the other monks would be in swift pursuit. There was no doubt that he could fight them off but their possible interruptions would serve absolutely no purpose, so he chose to go into hiding.

He contacted Palid who used his resources to give Hiss shelter. He allowed Hiss to stay at an empty farmhouse that his family owned that was far east of Serpentia, too remote for the monks to be able to find him. Given Hiss’ theft, the army was also ordered to keep an eye out for him, but Rattlor, now a general, assured him that he would ensure that no soldiers came his way.

Hiss liked Palid’s farm very much. There were no distractions and he was able to study the stolen texts and practice magic at his leisure. The first discovery that Hiss made was that it was believed that Serpos was equal in power to Degaya. He was far more than the monks had made him out to be. It pleased Hiss to see that Serpos was so powerful but it also enraged him that they did not give him the respect that Hiss felt he deserved. He felt that their insistence on peaceful coexistence with the other races was infantile and unwarranted. It was his belief that Serpos was right and that the Snakemen were meant to be the true rulers of Eternia.

The other thing Hiss discovered was that the books did in fact describe a lost snake temple but that they did not stop there. There were actually three lost towers and the other two were made by different races. One had been built by either humans or Gars, Hiss wasn’t sure which. The third tower appeared to have been built by the Qadians. Not much information was given on the temples and Hiss couldn’t determine when they were built as it seemed that it was done long before the ancient texts were written. But from the descriptions, it appeared that the temples were built on very powerful ‘nexus points.’ Nexus points were essentially places on Eternia where great magical power could be channeled. Hiss suspected that each temple was built by the respective races to worship their own gods, but he admitted that they might have actually been a joint project by three ancient powers. The scrolls did not have the locations of the towers, but it was suspected that the Viper Tower was somewhere in the Sands of Fire, a desert known for its searing heat.

Hiss also spent a lot of time studying the jade snakes. Like many others before them, he had no idea what they were. He could sense that they were ancient and in some way powerful, but there was no way for him to access that power. Oddly enough, while handling them he noticed that the sculpture could be separated into the three individual snakes.

After spending two years on the farm, Hiss believed that he had learned all he could from the stolen texts and that it was time for him to leave. He had learned how to magically conceal his identity so that others wouldn’t recognize him. Curiously, the methods described in the text only allowed him to take human forms.

His next quest was clear to him. To find the long lost Viper Tower.

[Darth Latveria]

Part 5

Hiss’ search for the Viper Tower was extremely difficult and dangerous. For over two years he had to fight near constant dehydration and starvation due to the extremely harsh conditions in the Sands of Fire. There is no way he would have been able to survive these years if not for his strict military training and magical abilities. A less determined man would have given up, but not Hiss. Hiss was obsessed with Serpos and the power that Serpos represented, willing to make any and all sacrifices necessary to honor Serpos.

When Hiss was not wandering the desert, much of his time was spent meditating, looking to Serpos for guidance. One day after countless failures, he began to sense magical energies. He believed that he was close to the Viper Tower but there was some doubt. His body was worn down and exhausted and he was worried that he might be hallucinating. He also couldn’t see anything that was even vaguely reminiscent of a tower. All he saw was sand and rocks… and more sand and rocks.

Kneeling down, Hiss opened his leather sack. Emptying its contents onto the ground, he looked through his meager belongings. The water bladder had been empty since the previous evening and there was no water nearby that could be used to refill it. He also had a dagger with him and the jade snake sculptures. He hadn’t brought the ancient scrolls with him because he didn’t see the point in carrying the extra weight. He had also run out of food. Normally this would concern him, but under the circumstances he assumed that the dehydration would kill him before starvation had a chance to do so. Sighing he knew that even if he found the Viper Tower, he would likely still die.

As Hiss started to repack his sack, inspiration struck him. Maybe it was possible to use one of the jade snakes. He did believe that he felt strong magical forces nearby so could he use one of the snakes as a sort of divining rod? Given that he had run out of options, it seemed worth a try.

Carefully placing two of the jade snakes back into his sack, Hiss stood up, holding onto the third snake in his right hand. Closing his eyes, he put his right arm out ahead of him and felt as if some unseen force was compelling him to walk southwest of his current location. He followed this force and walked for what seemed like days, but was in all likelihood not much more than an hour. Eventually he was standing in front of some rocks that were covered in sand.

Looking at the rocks he swore to himself. He’d wasted his time and he didn’t think he was any closer to finding the tower than he had been earlier. With the anger welling inside him, he shot out a blast into the rocks, a poor use of his energy given how close his body was to death. As the force blast hit the rocks, sand blew off of them and into his eyes. Swearing to himself, he wiped the sand out of his eyes and then saw something that shocked him. The sand had been knocked away and given him a better view of the rocks, but they did not appear to be natural stones. Looking at them more carefully, they appeared as if they had been cut and shaped, but from his vantage point he could not tell what that shape was.

Excitedly, he started to brush sand away from the stones and it seemed as if the stone was shaped like the scales of a reptile. This was the long lost Viper Tower. From the looks of things, sometime in the distant past it must have sank into the ground and over time the various sandstorms covered up the remaining signs of it. The problem was that Hiss had no idea how to get inside and he was still keenly aware of the fact that if he did manage to get inside, he’d still probably die from dehydration.

Leaning against what he thought was likely part of the roof of the Viper Tower; Hiss was at a loss for what to do. Thus he was quite relieved when the stones parted and he fell backwards into the tower. Hiss didn’t know why the stones had parted and then closed when he was inside, but he assumed that it likely had something to do with his faith in Serpos.

The inside of the tower was dark, as no torches had been lit in centuries but the jade snake that Hiss was holding had begun to glow. Using it as a light source, Hiss studied the room he was in. Other than the stone bench in the middle of the room, it was utterly bare. Hiss believed that it had once been a lookout post and that what he had entered through was actually once a window. At the other end of the room, there was an open doorway that led to a steep flight of stairs.

Hiss spent the next hour exploring the tower and being amazed by what he found. There were countless works of art and sculptures that miraculously seemed to be in excellent condition, as well as numerous weapons and vast treasures of jewel-encrusted, golden objects. Hiss’ excitement at having found the Viper Temple had given him a newfound energy but it was fleeting. His body was still terribly dehydrated and unfortunately it appeared that there was no water in the tower.

There was one room in the tower that Hiss believed might be a sort of prayer room. It was a large, circular room that was filled with concentric circles of benches. Each row of benches was a foot lower than the one behind them and at the lowest point of the room, in the center, there was a large stone altar.

At various points around the room, there were stone carvings depicting the Snakeman gods. At opposite ends of the room, Hiss saw Degaya and Serpos, positioned as if they were staring each other down. Walking down to the altar, Hiss’ knees suddenly buckled and he fell forward, knocking over a statue. Slowly getting up, weak from dehydration, Hiss vaguely took note of the fact that the broken statue before him was a depiction of Cerastes, the Snakeman god of war and one of Serpos’ sons.

Slowly making it down to the altar, Hiss placed the three jade snakes onto it. Kneeling down, he prayed to Serpos, asking for guidance. Minutes into his prayers, the jade snakes began to exude arcs of green energy that spun outward, engulfing Hiss. His body was lifted into the air and he heard the voice of Serpos.

“For untold ages I have waited for one such as you and I have watched you for a long time. Your brethren are obsessed with my foolish counterpart, Degaya, but you have grasped onto the truth. You are not the first to have worshipped me but you are the most faithful.”

“Th-thank you, my lord.”

“Coming here took great courage and strength. When you entered this tower, your body was near death, but that is not how you will leave it. You will be rewarded for your efforts.”

At this point Hiss’ body was wracked with more pain than he thought was possible. It felt as if his body was literally tearing itself apart, but through a red-haze he could see that his body was being transformed. His torso was being turned into a mass of writhing snakes. Some of the snakes were like pythons, having incredible strength and raw power, whereas others were more like vipers and venomous. As the pain passed, Hiss could also feel his magical powers increasing tenfold, his body becoming strong and invigorated.

Once the transformation was complete, Serpos spoke once more.

“What I have done to you I can only do to one mortal, but I have given you another gift. You now have the power to transform those that you believe are faithful to me as I have transformed you. But use it wisely, that power is limited and you will only be able to use it on five subjects.”

“But there is more that you must do. Those jade snakes serve a special purpose. They are the means with which I can enter Eternia. For me to do this, they must be placed in specific locations and given time to absorb the magical energies that emanate from them.”

“Where are these locations?”

“One of them is here. The other two are nexus points where the magic that emanates is very similar to the magic that I control. One is in the dark hemisphere, while the other is far south of the Evergreen Forest. The locations will be planted in your mind so that you may find them.”

“Yes… yes, I can see them now. I see a dark and foreboding mountain in the dark hemisphere and in the south; I see a cold and frigid land.”

“Yes, my servant. That is where you must go. But first, you must prepare the world for my coming. The Snakemen have deluded themselves by following Degaya. You must lead them; show them the path of Serpos. From this day forth you will be known as King Hiss, Master of the Snakemen.”

[Darth Latveria]

Part 6

After discovering the Viper Tower and being ‘reborn’ at the hands of Serpos, King Hiss returned to Serpentia. Hiss had decided to leave the location of the Viper Tower secret for the time being, not wanting the faithless to desecrate it with their presence. He considered taking some of the treasure with him but decided not to, believing that he was more than capable of amassing whatever wealth was necessary for his goals. However, he did take an ornate staff with him. It was made out of a very heavy and dark brown wood, shaped as a branch with a snake wound around it. It was an ancient magical weapon of great power that was designed to help a mage focus his powers.

There was no longer any need to hide his identity from others. His transformation terrified his enemies and he was now far too powerful for them to be a threat to. Not only did he no longer conceal his identity, but he became an extremely public personality, preaching the teachings of Serpos. At first the Snakemen were hesitant to turn away from Degaya but soon they began to doubt the traditional Snakeman religious teachings. King Hiss’ transformation was very compelling evidence as to the power of Serpos and there was nothing that the followers of Degaya could do that compared.

Early on soldiers were sent to challenge him. Rattlor, who was secretly backing King Hiss, apologized profusely for this. Although Rattlor had become a powerful general, he still did not have full command of the Snakemen armies and their orders came from the highest levels of the Snakeman government, who were still loyal followers of Degaya. King Hiss told Rattlor that there was nothing to be sorry for. He enjoyed destroying those who came to attack him, knowing that these showings of power were swaying the public to his cause.

Between the soldiers’ attacks, King Hiss would speak to the masses, telling them that he had been sent by Serpos to lead them to a better future, to take their rightful place as the rulers of Eternia. He told them that the ruling bodies were weak and complacent, that their remaining in power would forever hinder Snakeman progress. When King Hiss spoke, his voice had an almost hypnotic quality and that combined with his awe-inspiring power quickly led to his gaining public support. Concurrently, King Hiss was making headway amongst the aristocracy.

Palid, still faithful to King Hiss, had been using his connections to grant King Hiss private audiences with the most powerful members of the nobility. King Hiss’ tales of Snakeman superiority and promises of power enthralled them. He promised that by following him, they would know greater wealth than they had ever dreamed possible.

Almost exactly one year after returning to Serpentia, King Hiss managed to take over the Snakeman Empire. Feeling that the time was right for Rattlor to show his true allegiance, he had told Rattlor to publicly support him. With Rattlor`s support came the support of much of the military leadership. Out of fear, most of the government acquiesced as well and granted supreme rule to King Hiss. Much of the populace had already been swayed so there was very little resistance, but there was some. It was quickly crushed by King Hiss` forces and those who showed even the slightest hints of dissent were forced into slavery. King Hiss was not known for his mercy.

One of King Hiss` first orders was to have the Najan monastery razed and to have a gargantuan temple dedicated to Serpos built in the center of Serpentia. No reference to Degaya was to survive. King Hiss ordered that all scrolls across the Snakeman Empire that in any way referenced Degaya were to be destroyed and any spoken reference of the deity was considered a capital crime. In time, Degaya was forgotten. Consequently, in the era of He-Man, few knew of the others gods in the Snakeman pantheon and most Eternians assumed that the only god that the Snakemen worshipped was the dark god Serpos. Many could see that the Snakemen had entered a truly dark and horrific era but most were far too afraid to speak out against it.

King Hiss knew that taking over the Snakemen was not enough to please Serpos. He knew that when Serpos told him to prepare Eternia for his coming that he was expected to do more than take control of the Snakeman Empire. He had to take over Eternia. And to do that, he needed to strengthen those that were most loyal to him.

Summoning Rattlor, Palid, T`Lash, Sq’uaz and Leptomicrus to the newly constructed temple, King Hiss performed a magical ritual that was similar to the one Serpos had performed on Hiss. King Hiss knew that he could only empower a limited number of subjects and believed that he had made his decisions wisely.

General Rattlor, King Hiss’ right hand man and the new commander of the Snakeman army, had his already impressive strength and durability greatly enhanced, making him one of the strongest beings on Eternia.

The gift given to Palid was the power of fire. For years Palid had depended on mystical spells and incantations to create fire but from that day forward he would be able to naturally project fire, which also led to his being immune to fire as well. Having left the military years earlier, Palid was given control of the empire’s wealth.

Deciding to improve Sq’uaz’ natural abilities, King Hiss granted him the ability to elongate his arms and use them as a crushing vice. From now one he’d be known as Squeeze, King Hiss’ personal bodyguard.

Knowing that discipline was the key to any great power, King Hiss gave powers to T’Lash that complemented his natural temperament. He now had the ability to elongate his tongue and use it as a whip, or even as a grabbing device. His role in the new empire was as an independent advisor of sorts, going from encampment to encampment to ensure that the commanders enforced stringent discipline and that the soldiers were indoctrinated in the teachings of Serpos.

Finally, King Hiss granted Leptomicrus powers that greatly enhanced his speed, agility and senses, improving on his natural talents. Few actually knew of Leptomicrus’ existence as he always kept a low profile, making him a more efficient assassin.

As King Hiss gazed at the followers kneeling before him, he felt a surge of dark excitement. The next few years would be glorious as he and his Snakemen legions bent the rest of Eternia to Serpos’ whims. Closing his numerous eyes, he envisioned the many slaves he would soon have. And he needed them. His master required new places of worship and King Hiss had already designed one. It would be located in the dark hemisphere and would forever be known as, Snake Mountain.

[Patreek]

Part 4 and 5 were awesome! Definitely the best so far! I'll have to read 6 tomorrow my eyes are pooping out. Great stuff though!

[TechTrek]

very cool stuff. i really like squeeze being his personal body guard. makes complete sense. can't wait to read more.

[Medusa]

Wow. Deeper and more experimental He-fic than I'm used to reading and love your Hordak morph! What a start!

I like that your He-Man has an ego, and through that wrath and pride, which (sometimes) make archetypal heroes interesting...big-time improvement on the status quo.

By comparison, the He-Man of the minicomics was also wrathful and proud. He actually had a religion--he worshipped the warrior goddess and protectress of the land, Mighty Teela--and he didn't take that lightly. Mess with Eternia, and He-Man was coming for your behind..look at The Magic Stealer. In the opening scrap with Rammy in He-Man Meets Ram-Man, he is motivated as much by selfish pride, as by saving the village just over the hill...ego! This gave him conviction and just a little more angst than Lou Scheimer's version, but made him intriguing...how far would he go? For this reason, I think your He-Man can be heavy-handed and driven, without being a bloodthirsty bull-in-a-china-shop cliche or seeming out of control.

I hope you will not let your characterization of He-Man as a little gung-ho be influenced by lame comparisons with Conan, who was nothing like He-Man beyond both having bare chests and furry pants. Conan never cared about anything but getting paid, staying alive, was always written as a cunning thief...never a dumb, out-of-control brute. Your He-Man can be cunning AND bloodthirsty and very cool, because we don't know what he'll do next. Only bringing this up, because you mentioned the Conan thing in your post.

Yikes, more...right? Last one...you can do a cosmic Zodak, without involving sci-fi themes or futuristic technology. Merlin in Excalibur was really pretty cosmic, a being concerned with cosmic matters of fate and universal order, without being Ben Kenobi. His distress over King Arthur's breaking or care of Excalibur is a very cosmic matter, concerning a future for Camelot and events fated to unfold. You can have Zodac here, even though the Filmation folks never figured out how to use him.

Krull was a spectacular example of how magic and sci-fi can hang out and not overtake each other. The Beast and his Slayers are armed with these little zappy-sticks and kill a lot of good people with them...never see them climbing off a sky-sled or a flying saucer.

I will be watching with baited breath where you take this project. Great start. Daring and innovative in ways we see far too little of in the fan fic arena...good luck.