The Intergalactic Freak Show

Aidan Cross

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The Siamese triplets looked out from their alcove. The ape-man peered through the bars of his cage. The rhinoceros man stood in the shadows, and the man of electricity illuminated the darkness with the crackling energy that seeped from his body.

In the booth, Galvar, the owner of the Intergalactic Freak Show, stood shouting "Roll up! See the freaks! This is the home of the greatest freaks in the universe!" as the huge queue of visitors poured in, more and more people entering the floating space show as they emerged from the space rockets which brought them up from planet Eternia.

From one space craft, out stepped a young man with blonde hair, dressed in rich clothing, with a red jacket. This was Adam, Prince of Eternia. By him was a beautiful young woman with red hair curled over her head and held in place with a golden tiara. This was Teela, his childhood friend.

"Yes, Teela, they travel all throughout the universe." said Prince Adam. "And from each planet, they collect more strange or malformed beings to exhibit. This is the first time they’ve visited Eternia."

"There’s plenty of strange beings they could pick up from Eternia!" said Teela.

"I know- that’s why we couldn’t let Orko come. They’d have put him on the show within seconds."

Adam and Teela reached the booth.

"Ah, we have royalty do we then?" asked Galvar, in a loud and gruff, but lively and friendly voice.

"I am Adam, Prince of Eternia." said Adam. "And this is Teela- captain of the King’s guard. We got a free space craft up here."

"Ah, most glad to have you with us! I am Galvar, and I manage this Freak Show. With my machines, I can convert my money to the currency of whichever planet I’m visiting! Enjoy the freaks, your highness!"

"Thank you." said Adam as he paid his money.

Adam and Teela stepped through into the dark tunnels where the freaks were exhibited. The Siamese triplets performed a strange, manic dance as the guests walked past. The ape-man just growled as he peered out from his cage….. was he a beast or a man acting like a beast? A huge tank of water caught Adam and Teela’s sight with the disturbing sight of the fish-man….. human in all aspects but his scaly green skin and fins as he swam around the colossal tank. The man of elastic, around the next bend, sent a shiver through Teela’s spine as he pulled out a long strand of flesh from his leg and curled it around his arm.

"Aren’t these guys a little creepy?" asked Teela.

"Many of them are still humans." said Adam. "They may look even freakier than most of the evil warriors, but I’m sure you’d find them pleasant company if you got to know them."

Teela shuddered. "I’m not sure if I’d want to know them."

"Hey, come on, Teela. Don’t let the way they look put you off. They’re exhibited here because in their homeworlds, people mock them just for the way they look- they’re not gonna harm you at all. Anyway, don’t we have some pretty ‘weird’ looking guys on our side too?"

"Well, yeah, only they don’t disturb me because they’re nice. But you’re probably right, these guys could be nice too if you got to know them….. but they sure do look creepy."

Elsewhere in the gigantic space station that housed the freaks, two shadowy figures wandered through the tunnels, both draped in long, black robes. As they passed the ape-man, one of them said "Hey boss, that guy looks like some long-lost cousin of mine. Fellow man of the wild."

"Keep your voice down, Beast Man…" came the deep, gruff voice of the other, taller figure. "We must not give ourselves away."

"I’d like to reveal myself to this guy." said the grizzly voice of Beast Man, from within his hood. "Isn’t it a little hot here, wearing these long robes Skeletor?"

"Maybe so, but we must stay hot!" replied the voice of Skeletor, from the other hood. If one had walked past at the time, they would have caught a glimpse of his red, blazing eyes from the shadow of his hood. "If we revealed ourselves we’d get put on the freak show within seconds! And we’re not going to risk that."

"Okay then… but man, it’s pretty hot for me when I’m covered in fur. But seems like there’s some pretty interesting-looking guys here boss."

"We haven’t come here just to see the freaks. I have a plan."

"What’s that boss?"

"You see, Beast Man, these freaks here, with their abnormal appearances, give ordinary people quite a shock. And who knows what we can do with them… what powers they may possess! Like that man there." He pointed to the man of electricity, as he wowed a line of visitors as he sent an electric current through a man’s body by simply shaking his hand.

"So," continued Skeletor, "I intend to find some way of disposing of the owner of this show, and capturing his freaks for myself. We shall have a whole new army on our side when our task is complete!"

"Sounds great, boss. When do we start?"

"We shall just bide our time, Beast Man. We will look slowly and silently for a way of getting hold of some freaks."

As the visitors made their way through the never-ending tunnels of freaks from all over the universe, Galvar left an assistant in the ticket booth and went to attend to things in the freak show, to make sure things were running smoothly. He stopped several times along the way to tell visitors about the various freaks they were viewing, like where he found them, and more about their background. Several visitors were even having conversations with the freaks themselves, which was a good thing as it gave the freaks more self-confidence when they talked to normal-looking people. Then he spotted one of his less favourite freaks, a two-headed creature called Two Bad, arguing with himself in front of visitors.

Two Bad was a bit like Siamese twins… he was born as two beings sharing one body instead of two separate creatures. Half his body was blue, the other half was purple- each half topped with an ugly head the same colour as the side of the body it was on. And the heads did not get on at all.

"I’m really pleased you all came to see me." said the blue head.

"They don’t give a damn about you! They came to see me!" said the purple one.

"No they didn’t, they like me better, you’re just a waste of space…"

"No, if you were more observant you’d notice they’re all smiling at me…"

"Shut up, dumb-ass!" said the blue head, and hit the other head in the face with his fist. The visitors instantly erupted into laughter at the two heads’ squabbling.

"Hey, look what you’ve done now!" said the purple head. "You’ve made ‘em laugh again! That’s not what we’re here for!"

"It wasn’t my fault, you started the arguing."

"Me?! It was you…"

The visitors passed on, still laughing, unsure of whether the two-headed creature was putting on an act or arguing for real. Galvar approached Two Bad. He would laugh himself, if the heads weren’t so obnoxious towards him, and sometimes the visitors. And when he had had to put up with Two Bad’s arguing countless times, it was very annoying.

"If you would like to cease the bickering just a few minutes…" he said.

"Alright then boss, what do you want me for?" said the blue head.

"Hey, he’s no need of you, he wants me!" said the other.

"Please don’t start again…" said Galvar, "I must ask you to take a look at some problem with my computers, I think there’s a virus or something, and I’m a little worried it might mess up my profiles for all the freaks."

"I can help you alright boss!" said the blue head. "Come through and follow me…"

"I’ll help you better!" said the other head. "It’s me who’s the technical expert, he doesn’t know a thing…"

"What you on about, I know way more than you do…"

"I do not care who knows more." said Galvar. "Just help me with my problem."

"Alright then," said the purple head, "follow me." Two Bad led him through to the computer room, just behind the space where he was exhibited. Galvar quickly tapped onto his main computer and showed Two Bad what was wrong.

"Ah, that’s just a small technical problem." said the blue head, "I’ll fix that in no time…"

"You’ll fix it? You mean I’ll fix it!"

"Erm, I’ll leave you to it." said Galvar and exited, leaving Two Bad to argue.

Two Bad began fiddling about fixing the problem, the two heads squabbling the whole time.

"You’re doing it completely wrong!" said the purple head. "You’re meant to go to the options menu first!"

"No, How many times have I had to tell you that doesn’t work! It’s too complicated for your simple mind."

"Simple?! Ha! You don’t know anything about anything technical!"

"Oh, yeah? Well, I’ll tell you something- your mother’s a whore!"

"Erm….. then so’s yours."

"Whaddayou on about?"

"Well….. she’s your mother too, isn’t she?"

"Er… oh yes. No, she’s not a whore, I was only kidding. Now GET shifted and help me to fix this problem….. not that I need it with my knowledge…"

From a distance, outside the room, Skeletor and Beast Man were watching from the shadows. "Let’s make our way inside." said Skeletor. "While that idiot argues with himself we might find something that can help us cause havoc here…"

Skeletor and Beast Man, their forms obscured by their long robes, made their way inside the computer room.

"There’s loads of computers here." said Beast Man. "We might find something…"

"Hey, whaddayou guys doing in here?" shouted Two Bad’s blue head as he noticed the robed figures. "Visitors aren’t allowed in here, it’s private property!"

"I am more than a mere visitor." growled Skeletor.

"Oh yeah, one who’s too scared to show his face! Too scared in case the nasty freaks get you, hey man?"

Skeletor whisked down his hood and thrust his face up to Two Bad, revealing the hideous decayed skull, and the red, sunken eyes beaming out from their sockets. Two Bad flinched back in panic.

"Who’s scared now….." mocked Skeletor. Beast Man then pulled down his robe. "Ah, shaken off that sizzling heat at last!" he said.

"I am Skeletor, the Lord of Destruction, and you shall obey my every word." he said. "Before you go asking me, I am not one of the exhibits. I am here to capture the freaks and use them for my army to strike terror into the hearts of every ordinary being on planet Eternia!"

"Hey man, I get paid on this show!" said the purple head.

"I doubt if I’ll need you particularly… but I will give you a pay rise if you end up with me! Just tell me, is there any way I can use the equipment here to bring the show to panic? I want to fake a fire or something, so the freaks will evacuate and I can kill the owner before he escapes."

"There’s nothing here that’ll do that." said the blue head. "But I can help you….. since I’m an exhibit here myself, I might be able to talk the others into joining you."

"You might?" snorted the purple head. "You mean I will!"

"Please do not argue, I will not tolerate it! Just begin our task… now."

"Right away, boss." said the blue head. "You just wait there….. we’ll have some new recruits for you in no time. An invention I made a while back could easily help you."

"What invention?" said the purple head. "You couldn’t invent anything to save your life!"

"Don’t you remember? The gun that throws out a special beam, that grips hold of a person and drags them nearer. I invented it as a quick way of getting hold of new freaks for the show. We were using it on that last planet we went to…"

"You dumbass, it was me that invented that! Do you have no brain…"

"I care not who invented it!" interrupted Skeletor. "Just find this weapon at once and use it to capture freaks one by one."

"With our arms we can hold a person easily!" said the purple head.

"Then make your way around here and capture the freaks. When you get hold of them, bring them to me and Beast Man and I will hold them in here….. then when we have enough, I will have a powerful army of freaks at my command. We will destroy this wretched place and journey back to Eternia!"

"Hey, this guy has some good ideas." said the blue head to the other. "I’ve wanted to cause destruction for years."

"So have I! And on Eternia it seems we’ll finally get the chance! We’ll be off right away!"

Two Bad leapt out from the seat in front of the computer, then ran quickly from the room. Skeletor and Beast Man watched him go. This creature sure was annoying….. but he was just what they needed to gather Skeletor’s new army.

Elsewhere in the Intergalactic Freak Show, Adam and Teela were dining in the Freak Show caf�. The place was so big, with so many freaks to see, that they had to take a rest and a meal. To keep visitors interested as they dined, they were served by freaks- a man with incredibly long arms stretched them across the room to lay Adam and Teela’s meals on the table. Around the caf�, in glass boxes, were preserved bodies of past exhibits who had passed away. Intergalactic rock music boomed out from large speakers.

"It sure is interesting, seeing all these….. people." said Teela. "They seem a little less creepy when you see more and more."

"That skeletal man you were talking to sure was nice. He came from my mother’s planet, you know."

Just then, they were approached by Galvar as his inspection of the show reached the caf�. "How you enjoying things then, your highness?" he asked.

"I’m finding the whole thing very interesting." said Adam. "You’ve done really well to get this place so big."

"My freak show is one of the most successful of the intergalactic businesses! I’ve been running it for nearly ten years now. Some planets reckon my show’s immoral, but this is all in a good cause. The freaks are happy here, and if any are unhappy, I let ‘em go. They’re all treated as human beings. There’s plenty for ‘em to do here….. I have a leisure centre for ‘em on the bottom of the station. They love it ‘ere."

"I admire your work, Galvar." said Teela. "It can be strange to think these guys can look so gruesome, yet….. they’re still human beings, or at least have a human enough personality. But I’m getting used to it."

"We do have some here who maybe aren’t quite so nice, one two-headed guy who sees to my computers is a little thuggish….. but overall, they’re nice people. Great company."

"I’m looking forward to seeing the rest." said Adam. "I hope you keep up the standard of this place."

"I sure will, your majesty. Enjoy your meal for now. You ain’t seen nothing yet….. loadsa freaks here that you haven’t seen!"

Galvar left, and Adam and Teela continued their meal. But although so far the trip was a refreshing break for them, elsewhere in the Freak Show, trouble was brewing…..

For Two Bad was using his ray gun to capture freaks for Skeletor. He had his arms tightly gripped around a retarded man, with one half of his body swollen up and rugged, and a lioness-woman, her body covered with lion-like fur. And in his purple hand he held the ray gun, and as he made his way across the corridors, and a crowd moved away from the alligator boy, Two Bad zapped him with his gun, drawing him closer and gripping onto him. Then he dragged the three freaks through the secret passages, back to the computer room where Skeletor and Beast Man waited, a crowd of freaks already gathered with them.

"Here’s some more, boss." said the blue head.

"Excellent." said Skeletor. "I am swiftly gathering my army now." he gazed in admiration at the amount of freaks that Two Bad had collected for him. But the freaks did not seem to share his pleasure. They just stood there, solemn and expressionless. Finally, the skeletal man spoke out. "Do you not understand that hardly any of us actually want to serve you, Skeletor? You’re doing just what we all hate people doing- judging us by our appearance."

"Silence, fool!" snapped Skeletor. "I’ve already warned you that I will kill any of you who disobey me. Many members of my army say they want out from time to time, being so envious of my power, but they always end up staying- as I am the most powerful warlord in the universe and the only evil leader for anyone to serve."

"You don’t get it," said the skeletal man solemnly, "most of us aren’t even evil! We live on this show because we want to be here, not causing destruction to other planets! The only person here who’d ever really serve you is that two-headed thug, but we are not like him!"

Skeletor pulled out his havoc staff from under his cloak, and thrust it under the skeletal man’s face. "One more word, skeletal man….. and I kill you. I will not warn you again. Now, Two Bad, you go and collect some more freaks with that gun of yours. I have a big enough army here to make an attack. Electric man, I want you to carry this out for me."

"But I do not wish to obey an evil-doer like you…"

"Silence! I kill those who disobey! With your powers, why would you not want to cause destruction to every being in your way. So find the owner of this place- and attack him. Don’t just give him electric shocks….. electrocute him. Kill him. Then I can take over this place, and this army can make an attack while Two Bad gets the other freaks to join me!"

The electric man hesitated. He did not want to kill Galvar. Galvar was his friend. But how could he escape the wrath of this terrifying demonic warlord? Solemnly and quietly, he left the room. Already he was over-ridden with guilt….. could he escape from Skeletor’s wishes?

Inside the computer room, Skeletor was unsure of whether the electric man would carry out his orders correctly. "He isn’t going to obey me, I can tell. Beast Man- dress in your robe and take out your whip. Lash it out at him to make sure he does it."

"It’s damn hot in that robe, boss." said Beast Man. "But I sure will." he donned his robe, took out his whip, and followed the electric man down the corridors.

Adam and Teela passed through more of the dark corridors, observing more and more freaks. A man who was over ten feet tall stood in an alcove holding a sign saying ‘Tall man." By his side was a dwarf, only three feet tall, holding a sign saying ‘Small man’. And across the tunnel was a man with no torso, just arms and legs sprouting from his head.

Just then, Galvar rushed through the tunnel. "Your highness, things are looking bad."

"Why’s that?" said Adam.

"Several of our exhibits have reportedly vanished. I’ve looked all over the show but there’s almost….. no sign of them."

"I heard you calling through the loudspeaker earlier asking where they were." Said Teela. "Did you get no response?"

"Absolutely nothing. The security guards are out looking for them now. There’s fears that there might be a thief on board."

"But why would anyone want to steal freaks?" asked Teela.

"I don’t know, but-" Galvar was interrupted by a huge blast of electricity which surged through the air, directly at him! He managed to duck just in time, but then came another blast… and another… and then the electric man came running through the tunnel, shooting the bolts of electricity from his fingertips. Behind him was a figure draped in a long, black robe, lashing a whip out in front of him. Galvar ran for his life- as it seemed that the electric man and whoever was under the robe were after him. The figure in the robe turned around when he saw Adam and Teela, and gripped hold of the electric man, who turned and fired a bolt at Adam and Teela. Teela dived swiftly, then Adam went running off down the corridors.

"Adam! Come back here!" called Teela, as the two figures went off down the tunnels, in pursuit of Galvar. "We must stop this chaos….. oh damn, I should have known he’d run off." Then she ran down the tunnel, attempting to follow these strange beings as they pursued Galvar. But why did they seemingly want to kill him? Why the sudden chaos? Perhaps these freaks weren’t as friendly as Adam had thought. But whatever was going on, she had to put a stop to it….. even though she would have to do it by herself.

Adam sneaked into a small store room, shut the door, lifted his power sword, and shouted:

"BY THE POWER OF GRAYSKULL…..
I HAVE THE POWER!"

In a flash of light, he became He-Man, mightiest man in the universe, and went off down the tunnels to put a stop to the sudden chaos and find out its source.

As he passed the pool where the reptile sisters swam, a security guard jumped out of a side door in front of him.

"Halt!" the guard shouted. "Are you responsible for the kidnapping of several exhibits and the attempted murder of Galvar?"

"Fear not, my friend." said He-Man. "I am He-Man, and I am here to put an end to this evil, though I am not sure who is behind it myself."

"He-Man? I think I’ve heard of you! Then I can assure you that Galvar is safe." said the guard, and moved aside, allowing Galvar out from the tunnel.

"Hey, I managed to escape by running in here….. those guys after me probably think they’re still on my trail. But hey, are you He-Man? The champion of Eternia?"
"Yes, I am, and I am looking for whoever is behind this all."

"Wow. I hear all those tales about you, and now here you are in the flesh. I’m damn well pleased if my show attracts people like you. But I’m totally confused here- I don’t see why the electric man would want to attack me. He’s always been a close friend of mine. And I’ve no idea who the guy was under that robe."

Just then, another security guard came running through into the passage. "The striped man and the iguana man have just been kidnapped. I saw someone making off with them, but I couldn’t catch him- he just dodged around the place until I lost him. But I did notice one detail about the kidnapper- he had two heads."

"Two Bad!" exclaimed Galvar.

"Who’s he?" asked He-Man.

"He’s a two-headed freak who’s been on the show several years. But although he’s very skilled technically, I can never fully trust him because he’s also pretty rough-natured and thuggish. It wouldn’t surprise me so much if he had something to do with this."

"Then I will scout the show for him at once- and the electric man, wherever he may be. I must make sure that no more freaks get captured."

"Good going, He-Man. We’re lucky you came!" said Galvar.

He-Man ran down the tunnels, past the freaks who were currently lucky enough to have escaped the chaos. But as he ran, looking for the source of the havoc, more and more announcements came through over the loudspeaker to say that further freaks had gone missing, and to keep a close look-out for Two Bad.

As He-Man rushed through the dark tunnels, he heard the sound of battle around the next bend in the passage. He quickly darted over there, and saw Teela, throwing her high kicks at a shrouded figure with a long whip. Near to him was the electric man, who just sat in the corner, grimly watching the fight.

"You fiend." said Teela. "I don’t know who you are under that robe, but I will make you stop whatever it is you’re doing!"

The shrouded figure did not reply. He just cracked his whip violently at Teela. She was fast enough to jump over it, but he was also fast enough to avoid her swift kicks from the air. It seemed a pretty even struggle. So He-Man decided to put an end to it. He jumped between the two of them, and brandished his power sword.

"He-Man!" exclaimed Teela. "I didn’t expect to see you here! Where is Galvar?"

"Don’t worry- he’s safe."

"What about Prince Adam?"

"He’s near the main entrance, I think he’ll be fine! Now let’s put an end to this struggle!" he lashed his power sword at the shrouded figure. The figure reared up at him, exposing hairy, brown claws from its long sleeves. With a quick blow of the sword, He-Man slashed the whip in two. The figure growled with rage. A somewhat familiar growl… so He-Man threw one mighty punch at the fighter’s face, and he fell to the ground. Before he could get up again, He-Man tore off the robe- to reveal the hairy figure of Beast Man.

"Beast Man!" exclaimed Teela. "So that explains why he wasn’t speaking!"

"And he’d have had to wear this robe so he wouldn’t be put on the freak show! What is your scheme, Beast Man? Why all this chaos?"

"It is none… of your business, He-Man!" growled Beast Man, leaping to his feet, ready to attack. But just as the two foes were about to launch into battle, an announcement came through: "All visitors- evacuate the space station at once. An attack has just been launched on the caf� by none other than an army of our exhibits. Unauthorised use of shuttle pods is now permitted."

"If the battle has begun, then I will leave to cause destruction!" said Beast Man, and ran from the room.

"Ha! He’s too scared to fight you, He-Man!" laughed Teela.

"I will go to put an end to this chaos at once!" said He-Man. "But first-" he grabbed the electric man by the collar- "I could do with some explanation from you!"

"Please, He-Man, don’t hurt me!" the electric man pleaded. "It’s all a mistake- I’m damn sure the freaks don’t really mean any harm. We were all captured by Two Bad, who took us to this demonic creature- and he’s frightened us all into obeying him."

He-Man loosened his grip. "What does this ‘demonic creature’ look like?"

"Well, he could quite easily be an exhibit here himself. He wears a long, black cloak and a hood- and his face is really gruesome- he has no flesh on it at all."

He-Man loosened his grip more, then let the electric man go as he realised who was really behind all this chaos. "Skeletor! And I thought we were free from him up here….. no wonder Beast Man was here, then. Thanks for your help, electric man. I know Skeletor may seem very powerful- but I’m sure that all the freaks are capable of defeating him. Come with us- we may need your power!"

He-Man, Teela and the electric man made their way down the dark corridors, to find Skeletor and put a stop to his evil scheme.

Meanwhile, in the caf�, visitors were scattered about the place, and tables and chairs were lying overturned all around the room. The freaks were making their way around the room….. but with no intention of harming anyone. They wanted to find Galvar, and let him know of this monstrous demon who had invaded the freak show. They had been frightened by Skeletor into obeying him- but now that they were just about free from his eye, they should be able to act for themselves.

Skeletor was on the balcony above with Two Bad. "You have done well, Two Bad." he told him. "Although you have not captured all the freaks, I still have a strong enough army here. I knew it was the right time to attack when that announcement that you’d been recognised came through- attack before you could be found. Once we find that the electric man has killed Galvar, I can take over this place, capture all the freaks and then journey back to Snake Mountain with my new army."

"I’m….. pleased to serve you." said the blue head.

Just then, Beast Man ran up to Skeletor and Two Bad. "Master," he said, "I am afraid to tell you that Galvar has escaped. But with our army, we should be able to kill him in the end anyway. He can do nothing to stop us."

"Then just keep looking for him! There is nothing that can stand in our way!"

"Except….. one possible thing. He-Man. I am afraid that He-Man seems to have just happened to be visiting too."

"Curses!" growled Skeletor. "Does that muscle-bound fool have to turn up wherever I go?! But I am not worried this time. With an army this strong, we can kill him in no time."

As the freaks lumbered slowly around the caf�, like zombies, the mighty figure of He-Man, with Teela and the electric man beside him, appeared in the doorway, below the balcony, so out of Skeletor’s sight.

The Rhinoceros man looked over at He-Man and said "Who are you?"

"I am He-Man, one of the Guardians of Grayskull. Do not be afraid- I am here to protect you against Skeletor. Do not let his will succumb you. As good people, nothing is forcing you to obey him."

"We haven’t exactly obeyed him." said the skeletal man. "The only damage we have done is knocked over these tables. We’re not going to hurt anyone. Skeletor thinks we’re frightened of him, so we’ll do anything he says- and he can’t understand that we’re not evil, because we look so unusual. He thinks we’re going to go round killing everyone or something."

"And I only attacked Galvar because that hairy guy was whipping me along." said the electric man.

"Hmmm… then it looks like we have absolutely no trouble to fear at all." said He-Man. With Teela and the electric man at his side, he stepped into the centre of the room, and looked up to see Skeletor on the balcony.

"He-Man!" shouted Skeletor. "So, you dare to show yourself. Well you won’t last for long….." he teleported himself, Beast Man and Two bad off the balcony and into the caf� in front of He-Man, "… as my new army will destroy you! Attack him, freaks!"

A silent laugh ran through the crowd of freaks. Then one of the Gorilla brothers stepped forth. "My brother and I may look a lot like your henchman there," he said, "But we wouldn’t serve you if our lives depended on it!"

A massive cheer ran through the rest of the crowd.

"Then you might as well attack Skeletor, then." said He-Man.

The freaks all charged forth. With He-Man on their side, they felt more confident against Skeletor. As Skeletor, Beast Man and Two Bad found themselves being charged at by the army of freaks, Skeletor watched in amazement. "No! This can’t be! You cannot all obey He-Man!"

"We sure can!" shouted the lizard woman, as she thrust her tail at Skeletor. Skeletor backed off in horror. There was no way he could survive against this army of freaks- especially with He-Man on their side.. He quickly teleported himself up to the balcony….. as the freaks threw themselves upon Beast Man and Two Bad, eventually sending them running from the caf� like cowards.

The freaks erupted into a cry of triumph. "Freaks united!" shouted the skeletal man.

Beast Man and Two Bad ran up to join Skeletor on the balcony. "My plan has gone wrong….. terribly wrong." said Skeletor. "You win, He-Man, but next time I will win!" the villains turned and fled, and Skeletor said "Two Bad- get us back to Eternia at once!"

"Quick- man a shuttle pod!" said Two Bad’s purple head. They ran onto the launchpad, and leapt into a shuttle pod, and Skeletor blasted off back to Eternia.

"Well, that scheme stood no chance, did it!" said the blue head.

"All your fault." said the other. "If we had used a better weapon than that crap gun of yours-"

"Hold on, that’s your weapon!" said the blue head, pulling it out. "You invented this crap thing- so you take it and shove it up your arse!"

"No, because I didn’t make it, you did!"

"Fine then- I’ll shove it up your arse, here goes….. OWWWWW!!!!! I forgot….. same arse!"

"By the gods of evil….." said Skeletor, "I go there to get a new powerful army of freaks….. and all I get is this idiot!!! Why is fate so cruel to me….."

In the caf� of the Intergalactic Freak Show, the freaks picked up all the tables and chairs and rearranged them. No harm was done. Galvar came through to the caf�.
"Thank you for your help, He-Man!" he said. "I knew no evil could ever overtake my freak show….. just better make sure I never exhibit thugs like Two Bad again!"

"A wise choice, Galvar. But remember, your freaks are the real heroes of the day. They never even intended to help Skeletor, and it’s them who have made him end up looking a complete fool."

"And we’re more confident about our skills, too." said the skeletal man. "We may look pretty weird….. but at this moment I think we’re all feeling better about ourselves than we ever have before."

"Exactly." said He-Man. "You all have skills and talents, regardless of your appearance. Skeletor just assumed you were all monsters because of the way you look- but he was wrong. You live on this freak show because in normal life, people mock you for your appearance- but here you get the chance to befriend the visitors as well as others who have suffered like you, to increase your self-confidence. Society is full of people with small minds- no matter which planet you’re on- but in the end, if they judge you on the way you look, or anything about you that’s different, they’ve judged you wrongly and will only end up looking as much of a fool as Skeletor does."

"Wise words, He-Man." said Galvar. "That’s why I set up this place- to give deformed people a chance in the universe- and now they’ve really had it. You guys will all be heroes on Eternia now that you’ve helped beat Skeletor. And I’m most glad to make your acquaintance, He-Man!"

"You owe me nothing- I’m just doing what should be done. Keep up your freak show, Galvar. I must leave now, as I have other things to do- but I long for the day you return to Eternia!"

The freaks all cheered and hailed He-Man. The mighty champion thanked them all, then left the caf�.

A few moments later, Prince Adam returned. "Hi, Teela." he said. "Whew, I’m glad that’s all over. I had to hide because those announcements I heard were pretty scary!"

"Oh, Adam, are you always such a scaredy-cat? You’ve missed all the action, now- but don’t worry."

"Hey, what’s up Teela? You usually rant at me when I get scared."

"Today I won’t. Because you being scared so easily is no different from these people being deformed- you still have many good qualities about you, and I’m wrong to put you down for your weaknesses. You’re a very nice person to be with, Adam- and I like you just for who you are."

"Hey… thanks Teela!" Adam was well chuffed. Teela hadn’t said anything that nice to him as Adam in ages. Of course, she didn’t realise he was He-Man- but at least it made a difference to how she treated him as Adam!

"Now let’s continue our tour of this place- we’ve still got more freaks to see!"

"And enjoy it, your highness!" said Galvar. "I’ve sure enjoyed the show’s visit to Eternia. And pleased to have royalty here!"

As the freaks returned to their exhibition places, Adam and Teela toured the place, seeing more freaks, conversing with them, and becoming quick friends. "You know," said Teela, "I’m not half as spooked out by these guys as I was when I came in. They’re just normal people. I can see through their deformities the moment I see them. I could spend a lifetime with them."

"You’re right." said Adam. "This place really is a wonderful establishment. Helps you to see the freaks for who they are, and helps them to meet ordinary people and talk to them as friends. And that just shows you- just because someone’s deformed, doesn’t mean…"

"Doesn’t mean they’re a bad person- He-Man told us all that, Adam! And you know what else doesn’t make you a bad person?"

"What’s that?"

"Being a ‘lazy coward with no ambition.’" she smiled at Adam. He smiled back, and then she laughed. "You’re not a bad person at all, Adam! No matter what I say about you!"

He took her hand. Their experience at the Intergalactic Freak Show had brought them closer together than ever before. And this was a day they’d never forget. They spent the rest of the day looking round the freak show, as the best of friends, at one with the universe. There were many dodgy things out there….. but at this moment, everything felt just perfect. The universe….. what a great place.

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