The Sorceress sat upon her throne, and attempted to decipher an ancient book of spells, written in a language long since abandoned. As always, she wore a long tunic made of soft, white feathers. Longer white feathers, and a falcon's visage, made up the headdress which framed her beautiful face and hid her reddish colored hair.

Suddenly, she received a strange psychic signal.

Someone is coming through one of the travel corridors, she realized. Upon standing up from her throne, the Sorceress raised her arms; in turn, the blue and orange feathered cloak which draped over her back, and attached to her sleeves followed. Moments later, she teleported from the throne room.

When she reappeared, the Sorceress found herself in the Chamber of Corridors. The long, dark hallway was filled with dozens of opposing doors, each one led to another planet (thanks to the portals behind them). Standing there, before the fading glow a yellow portal, was Princess Adora. The blond haired, blue eyed princess wore her usual red suit, boots, and amulets, as well as the same white turtle neck underneath.

"Hello, Sorceress," Adora greeted the other woman.

"Adora!" she answered happily. "What are you doing here?"

"I came from Etheria to surprise Orko on his birthday. It is still tomorrow, isn't it?"

"Yes...oh, dear," the Sorceress said sadly. "I'm afraid that your family, Orko, Duncan, and Teela went to the Mystic Mountains for a vacation. They won't be back for another week at least!"

"No problem!" Adora replied. "I'll spend the night at the palace, and then head for the mountains tomorrow in one of the Wind Raiders." The Sorceress smiled, and nodded her head approvingly; the white feathers of her headdress fell forward.

That night, at Palace Eternia, Adora sat on her mother's throne; she talked to one of the green-and-orange clad palace guards.

"This place is so depressing without my family and Orko around," Adora remarked. "Sort of like that earth story 'Sleeping Beauty' that my mother told me one time."

"'Sleeping Beauty?'" the guard echoed, thoroughly puzzled. And so, Adora related the story, which Queen Marlena had told her, to the guard.

"Once, long ago, in a large Earth kingdom, a beautiful daughter was born to a good king and queen. The royal couple invited all of the kingdom's fairies to bestow gifts upon their daughter...all fairies, that is, save one. The neglected fairy waited sixteen years...waited to take her revenge on the royal couple and their daughter. One day, the fairy took the form of a peasant, and forced the princess to prick her finger on something called a 'spinning wheel.' By pricking her finger, the princess was placed under a sleep spell that only 'love's first kiss' could cure. Many years later, a handsome prince found her. He kissed the sleeping princess...and that woke her up. Before he found her, though, the whole kingdom was a sad place--riddled with dyspare over their princess."

"That's not depressing," the guard remarked. Adora yawned, and then shrugged her shoulders.

"To each his own, I suppose," Adora retorted. "Well, I'm going to go to sleep now--I've got a long flight before me tomorrow."

Later, after Adora had left, the guard whispered a name.

"Evil-Lyn!" The name's keeper appeared before the guard. Evil-Lyn was an exotic woman, who wore a purple and blue body suit, boots, and amulets. A black and purple headdress covered her graying hair, and a flowing black cape descended down her back.

"What news have you for me, my spy?" Evil-Lyn asked eagerly.

"Princess Adora told me a very interesting story," the guard answered. "And it gave me an idea..."

"Excellent!" Evil-Lyn shouted. "I love my newest idea!" The traitorous palace guard started to remind her that the plan had been his, and not hers; he stopped, however, for fear of angering her. Evil-Lyn proceeded to ascend the three, short steps of the dais, and seat herself upon King Randor's ornate throne.

"So, Mistress," the guard began dully, "tell me again how your newest plan will proceed." Evil-Lyn smiled a mischievous smile.

"It's simple," she answered. "I remember the tale of Sleeping Beauty from my own youth on earth. I shall assume the guise of a peasant woman, and lure Adora to a secret room in the palace. Once there, I will show her my spinning wheel."

"But what is a spinning wheel, Mistress?" the guard asked.

"An old earth device used to make clothes and such. I'm sure they had a similar device on Eternia at some point. Anyway, I shall force her to prick her finger on the spindle of my spinning wheel and go into a deep sleep...one that not even 'love's first kiss' can cure!"

"And then?"

"And then I shall conquer Palace Eternia. The Royal Family will be so distraught that they won't be able to stop me. As for He-Man, he wouldn't dare stop me since only I would know the cure for the spell!" Evil-Lyn began laughing at her own evilness, before vanishing in a cloud of thick smoke.

Later, Evil-Lyn sat in her private chamber at Snake Mountain. Outside of that dark, dank room, she could hear her master, Skeletor, venting his anger for something or another on Beastman--another servant That did not matter, however, she was too busy with her own plan.

Sitting on a large, stone slab before her, was a small purple orb. The Orb of Tussellon could take the form of any object in the universe...if the correct incantation was intoned. The orb had been in Skeletor's possession for years, but he had never used it; he did not know the incantation. Evil-Lyn, though, had stumbled upon the chant one day while snooping through Skeletor's seldom used magical scrolls.

"Taron mos lan turon Tassellon!" she chanted the words word-for-word. The orb began to glow brightly, and then it transformed in a blinding flash. Now, sitting on the stone slab before her, was a spinning wheel. The wooden spindle of the wheel came to a very sharp point, which glowed with purple magical energy. "Now that I have done this, I must transform myself." Evil-Lyn raised her arms, and began to change form.

Within seconds, Evil-Lyn's mind was transported into another woman's body. This new body was very old, with pale skin, dark red lipstick, long red fingernails, and a purple and blue tunic (complete with a purple hood which covered her gray hair). "Wonderful!" she said in awe, using the voice of an old hag. "And now...on to Palace Eternia, before Adora leaves for the Mystic Mountains!"

Adora woke up early the next morning. As she sat up in her soft bed, the princess ran her fingers through her disheveled blond hair and yawned.

"Well, I guess I should get ready to go," she said to herself. "I have a long flight in front of me. I wish I had brought Swiftie with me, he would have been able to fly faster than the Wind Raiders." Adora forced herself up and into the refresher.

An hour later, Adora stood in the palace hangar bay, waiting for one of the Wind Raiders to finish its self-systems-check. A noise behind her startled Adora, and instinct forced her to pull out the Sword of Protection. She whirled around to face the source of the noise.

"Forgive me, Your Highness," the flustered guard from the night before stuttered.

"Oh no," Adora replied, as she lowered her sword, "I'm the one who's sorry. What can I do for you, Lieutenant?"

"A peasant woman has asked to see you...she says it is very important."

"Very well," Adora agreed, taking a quick peek at the Wind Raider's computer console; it was still running its self-systems-check.

"Follow me, Majesty," the guard said before he left the hangar bay. Adora followed behind him.
Many corridors and stairwells later, the guard stopped before a large wooden door. "The peasant woman is in there," the guard said, and pointed at the door. Adora nodded, and stepped into the room alone; the door shut quietly behind her.

Evil-Lyn, still in her peasant woman guise, sat at the spinning wheel. A beautiful blue gown was draped across a mannequin behind her.

"What can I do for you, Ma'am?" Adora asked politely.

"Well, first, let me tell you my story," she said. "Many years ago, before clothes replicators were invented, and when King Miro still ruled Eternia, I was the Royal Taylor. I wove all of the Royal Family's clothes on this contraption here before me. However, during the many years since my dismissal, my money has been slowly used up; I have none left. So, I wove this dress for you, Princess Adora, in hopes that you would buy it from me. All I ask is ten silver coins."

"Well, I'm afraid I don't have any Eternian coins. I'm sorry--"

"Can't you please look around for some? Here, feel the soft fabric..." Evil-Lyn took a hold of Adora's hand and led it to the wound fabric on the spindle.

"Ouch!" Adora shouted, as the spindle tip pierced the skin of her index finger and a drop of blood ensued.

"Oh dear! Please forgive--" Evil-Lyn did not need to finish her sentence; Adora lay on the stone floor of the room...fast asleep.

The traitorous royal guard entered the room and discovered the startling sight.

"You did it!" he said in awe.

"Of course I did, buffoon!" In a bright flash of alternating black and white energy, Evil-Lyn retook her true form. "Now, we must take the princess back to Snake Mountain--from where we shall ransom her back to that boob Randor and his wife."

However, before either evil warrior could touch Adora, her body disappeared in a hale of golden magic.

"Where'd she go?" the guard asked. Evil-Lyn scowled, and looked at her faithful spy; blue bolts of lightning flew from her gray eyes, vaporizing him.

"Grayskull!" Evil-Lyn answered his question. "No doubt the Sorceress took her to Grayskull!"

Twenty-eight cromons had passed since the Sorceress had teleported Adora from Palace Eternia. The sleeping princess lay upon a make-shift bed of feathers; a protective dome/shield surrounded her. Both Adora and the Sorceress were in the throne room of Castle Grayskull, awaiting the Royal Family's arrival. Finally, they filed out of the portal one by one.

Queen Marlena ran out of the portal first; her green gown outlined her body as she ran through the throne room. Her black shoes and golden tiara were both held in her right hand. The queen's red hair was a mess, and her mascara was smeared from where she had been crying.

King Randor followed close behind. He looked the same as usual--golden crown, brown hair, orange tunic and tights, and his blue overcoat and shoes--except for the worried look upon his face.

Prince Adam, the blond haired, blue eyed brother of Adora, came out next. For once, the scared look upon his handsome face was not an act meant to disguise his true identity as He-Man. The rest, Man-At-Arms, Teela, and Orko, exited close behind; they, too, looked upset.

"Sorceress, how is my precious Adora?" Marlena asked, and knelt by her sleeping daughter.

"Indeed," Randor echoed. "By the way, thank you for alerting us so swiftly."

"I would do no less, Majesty," the Sorceress answered. "As for Adora, I'm afraid I have sad news..."

Queen Marlena looked up at the Sorceress from her kneeling position by Adora; looks of shock, horror, fear, and confusion crossed her face simultaneously.

"I don't understand," King Randor said quietly; Marlena nodded her head in agreement.

"I'm not quite sure that I understand fully myself," the Sorceress informed the others. "However, here's what I have been able to deduce so far: Evil-Lyn discovered that Adora was alone in the palace. Using a magical orb, Evil-Lyn placed Adora into a deep sleep. As far as I can tell, if we can't cure Adora--or at least wake her up--by sunrise..." the Sorceress hesitated. Bowing her head sadly, the Sorceress finally finished, "...Adora will never awaken." The others were in shock.

"Is there a cure?" Adam asked hopefully. "Yes," the Sorceress confirmed. "Adora can be awoken by her true love's kiss."

"Sea Hawk!" Teela shouted happily, giving Adam a hug. "All we have to do is find Sea Hawk and bring him to Eternia!"

"I'm afraid that it's not going to be that simple," the Sorceress corrected. "Not only must Sea Hawk kiss Adora, but the orb that Evil-Lyn used must be destroyed."

"No problem!" Adam informed the others. "I'll 'find' He-Man and have him go to Snake Mountain. Once there, He-Man will crush the orb!"

"Indeed," Randor echoed. "I'll help him, of course. Meanwhile, Teela and the others can go find Sea Hawk and bring him to Eternia!"

The assemblage began breaking up into groups. The Sorceress would remain at Castle Grayskull with Adora. Upon 'finding' He-Man, he and Randor would lead an attack on Snake Mountain. Marlena, Teela, Man-At-Arms, and Orko would travel to Etheria and retrieve Sea Hawk.

Once everybody was ready, Marlena and the others stepped through the portal to Etheria. Adam returned to Palace Eternia to 'find' He-Man, who miraculously showed up moments later. Meanwhile, the Sorceress continued to keep watch over Adora.

The portal from Eternia opened above the Growling Sea on the planet Etheria. Queen Marlena, Teela, Man-At-Arms, and Orko fell into the cold, choppy sea-green water.

"Whoa!" Orko shouted, and he floated out of the water and spun around to dry himself off. "The Sorceress must be so upset over Adora that she miscalculated her spell!"

"We can see that Orko!" Teela retorted. Marlena brought an end to the bickering suddenly.

"Orko!" she whispered--by the tone of her voice, something had frightened her. "Orko, go get help...now!" Orko began to ask her why, but then saw the reason. Heading straight for them was a very large, green sea monster.

"Yikes!" Orko shouted. "I'll go find someone right away!" With that, the three foot high Trollan flew away.

"What do we do, Duncan?" Marlena asked Man-At-Arms. The man pulled out a laser pistol and pulled the trigger, but all that flew from the pistol were a few blue sparks.

"The sea water must have short circuited the laser pistol," Teela explained redundantly.

"Hurry, Orko!" Marlena said, more to herself than anyone else.

Snake Mountain loomed high above He-Man and King Randor; the ink black mountain was nearly lost against the sea of black night. The only light came from the occasional lightning bolt above.

"It's been a long time since I've been to this terrible place," Randor remarked.

"You haven't missed anything, Sire," He-Man retorted. The Eternian warrior led the way into the mountain fortress of Skeletor and Evil-Lyn.

As He-Man and King Randor walked through the dank halls of Snake Mountain, the king couldn't help but notice things crunching beneath his blue shoes. Holding up a bright red torch in his hand, Randor beheld thousands of tiny insects scurrying about his feet..and under his feet.

"Ohh!" he said in disgust. "That's more disgusting than the smell of this place." The smell to which he alluded was akin to that of a thousand rotting bodies; the cause of the smell was, in fact, the dead bodies rotting in Snake Mountain's dungeons.

"Don't worry, Majesty," He-Man said, obviously breathing through his mouth at the same time, "we'll be done soon!"

"Let us hope--" Randor was cut off by He-Man.

"Shhh! Someone is coming!" The two men ducked behind a stalagmite just as the evil warrior Beastman hobbled by them. "That was too close."

"Indeed," Randor concurred. "Wait a minute--look up ahead!" He-Man looked in the direction that the king had indicated just as Evil-Lyn ducked into a large chamber

. "That must be where she keeps the orb!" He-Man whispered cautiously. "Let's go!"

"Queen Marlena!" Teela shouted. As she and her foster-father watched, one of the Sea Monster's many tentacles wrapped around the queen; she didn't even have time to scream before she was pulled into the air.

"No matter what happens," she shouted, "help Adora!" The Sea Monster drew her close to his enormous jaws; thousands of needle-sharp teeth gnashed against each other with excitement.

Suddenly, a blue bolt of light slashed through the tentacle holding Eternia's queen; Marlena plummeted back into the sea with a large splash. With a deafening yelp, the Sea Monster dove under water and retreated to nurse his wounds.

"Look who I found," Orko said happily as Marlena resurfaced, and repositioned her tiara.

Orko hovered next to Sea Hawk on the deck of the pirate's floating ship. Sea Hawk, Adora's boyfriend, was extremely handsome. He was tall and muscular; he had a red goatee and head of hair. The pirate captain wore, in addition to those things: a large, glowing ring (which gave his hits more impact), Seven League Boots (which enabled him to jump great distances), a red tunic, and red pants. A laser rapier was in the palm of his right hand.

"Greetings, Your Highness," he said, lowering a rope ladder into the water. Man-At-Arms and Teela followed Marlena onto the floating ship.

"Thank you, Hawk," the queen said graciously. "I have to talk to you..."

"Oh, Adora," Sea Hawk whispered sorrowfully. The pirate knelt beside his slumbering girlfriend at Castle Grayskull; those who had retrieved him from Etheria, and the Sorceress, were also there. As for He-Man and King Randor, they had yet to return.

"How much longer does she have, Sorceress?" Man-At-Arms asked the woman.

"She still has ten cromons until Evil-Lyn's spell is permanent."

"Oh, hurry Randor and He-Man!" Queen Marlena whispered quietly. "Please hurry!"

He-Man crept into the same room that Evil-Lyn had entered mere moments prior; Randor followed him in. Both looked around the dimly lit room, but neither father nor son saw Evil-Lyn; they both, however, spotted the orb that the Sorceress had told them about.

The glowing purple orb was the only source of light in the room, and it only lit a radius of five feet.

"Do you see Evil-Lyn?" Randor asked He-Man as he braced himself for a fight. He-Man unsheathed his sword, and then looked about cautiously.

"No--" Suddenly, a bolt of blue lightning ricocheted off of the sword. Both He-Man and Randor spun about. "Show yourself, Evil-Lyn!"

"Here I am, you muscle-bound buffoon!" Evil-Lyn shouted, stepping out from the shadows. "Did you truly think that I could not sense you right before I came in here?"

"Sense this!" Randor shouted as he lunged at the witch. Both people fell to the floor with a loud thud! He-Man took the opportunely to grab the orb off of the stone slab upon which it sat.

"Your Majesty," He-Man called, "I've got the orb!"

"No!" Evil-Lyn shouted. "You shall never escape this mountain alive!" The sorceress of night wrapped her black cloak around her body tightly. Then, she ripped it away from her suit--the black cloak transformed into thousands of hairy, blood sucking Wolf Bats. "Ha, ha, ha!"

"Sorcer--" He-Man attempted to call, but one of the Wolf Bats took a swipe at him.

"Hurry, He-Man!" Randor shouted, ducking away from his own batch of attacking bats.

"Sorceress! Teleport us to Grayskull at once!" Mere feet away from the two heroes a golden portal appeared. "Quickly, Your Majesty, into the portal!"

"Don't let them escape!" Evil-Lyn shouted at her creations, but it was to no avail. He-Man and Randor both ducked into the shimmering gateway; the portal closed behind them, preventing anyone--or anything--from following them. "No! My plans are ruined!" Evil-Lyn snapped her fingers angrily and the Wolf Bats disappeared. "Unlike Skeletor, however, I shall not allow this to set me back or discourage me! No, on the contrary, I shall use it to fuel my future plans--those foolish heroes have not seen the last of me!"

He-Man and Randor appeared in the throne room of Castle Grayskull. The others sighed with relief at the sight of them with the orb.

"Quickly, He-Man, we only have a few moments left!" the Sorceress informed the warrior.

"Here, Sorceress," He-Man said, handing her the Orb of Tassellon.

"Hurry, Sorceress, there's only a few cromons until sunrise!" Duncan urged.

The Sorceress held her right hand over the protective field which surrounded Adora (she held the orb in her left hand), and waved it back and forth. The shield dissipated.

A small ray of sunshine invaded the castle via one of its windows, and Queen Marlena and King Randor gasped as their daughter began to grow pale.

"The spell is already becoming permanent!" Orko gasped.

"Prepare yourself, Sea Hawk!" the Sorceress warned. "He-Man, when I finish the incantation that I am about to recite you must crush the orb!"

He-Man took the purple orb from his friend and placed it in the joined palms of his hands. Outside, the dark purple sky had begun to turn a pale orange.

"Taron mos lan turon Tassellon...temaball!" the Sorceress shouted. The orb began to glow brightly, and He-Man enclosed it in his hands. The blond warrior placed enormous amounts of pressure of the Orb of Tassellon, until it finally began to rumble in his hands.

"Release the orb, He-Man!" the Sorceress commanded. Outside, Eternia's wildlife was beginning to awake from its night-time slumber.

He-Man released the orb from his grasp, and it began to hover many feet above the heroes' heads. With an enormous crash the orb shattered into thousands of razor-like shards; the Sorceress easily stopped the shards from raining down on them.

"Now, Hawk!" Randor commanded. The red haired captain bent down over the princess of Eternia--another ray of sunlight broke into the castle from the outside--and placed his lips gently onto Adora's own soft, pink lips.

"Did it work?" He-Man asked as Sea Hawk stepped away from his love.

"I--" the Sorceress began, but was cut off by another feminine voice.

"What happened?" Adora asked quietly, sitting up on her make-shift bed. "Why am I at Grayskull...why am I on the floor of Grayskull?!" The princess stood up and began stretching her muscles.

"Evil-Lyn placed you under a sleep spell," Sea Hawk explained.

"Hawk!" Adora exclaimed, giving him another kiss. "Mother! Father! Bro...er, He-Man!" she announced belatedly.

"We're all here!" Orko interrupted.

"Orko, just the Trollan I came to see in the first place!"

"M-m-me?!" Orko stuttered.

"Yes," Adora confirmed. "Happy Birthday, Orko!" The princess gave him a large hug. "Now, though, I think someone owes me an explanation."

"Well..." And so, the story was related to her.

A little while later, Adora was awoken by the sound of someone knocking on her bedroom door at Palace Eternia. Looking down, she found a large book laying across her chest; obviously she had been reading before she fell asleep. The young princess discarded the book, and arose from the warm bed. She once again wore her blue nightgown.

"Who is it?" Adora asked groggily.

"The best mother on Eternia," Marlena answered jokingly from the other side of the door; Adora let her mother into the room. The queen was already dressed--wearing her golden tiara and green gown--for the day.

"What time is it?" Adora asked.

"Too early in the morning," Marlena retorted. "So, how did you like the book I lent you?" Adora looked back at the book.

"Funny, I don't even remember reading last night...I don't remember much about last night period."

"Well, I guess you didn't like the book then." Adora was puzzled by the fact that she didn't remember reading the night before. She walked over to her bed, and picked up the book.

"Sleeping Beauty," she read the book's name. "I can't believe I was reading this--I've had enough of this story for a while?"

"What do you mean?"

"The whole thing with Evil-Lyn! How could you have already forgotten?"

"Ha, ha, ha. I think you must have dreamed whatever it is you're talking about. Now, hurry up and get dressed--Orko's surprise party starts in a few minutes, and then it's off to the mountains."

Marlena left the room, and Adora threw the book back onto her bed.

"I didn't dream all that...did I?"

The End.