Sorry that it's been a while since I posted a chapter. I hope this chapter makes up for it.

The Sacrifice Chapter 6

King Randor and Queen Marlena, along with Teela, cried out in alarm as soon as they saw the emblems across the trespassers' chests. They were members of the Horde!

"Oh, Randor!" Queen Marlena cried. "They've taken Adam! First, Adora and now…"

The king shushed the queen and immediately pulled her into his arms. As he comforted her by rubbing her back with strong strokes, he looked from Man-at-Arms to Teela several times before stating firmly, "We have to get Adam back. Contact He-Man and whoever else you think you will need. We are going to Etheria to get my son back!"

At Randor's order, Queen Marlena pulled back and widened her eyes. Everyone could tell she was more concerned now than she was before.

"Your Majesty, we'll get Adam back!" Teela assured her. The young woman had tears in her eyes.

The queen nodded and then walked closer to Man-at-Arms. She mumbled softly so only he could hear, "Come to my bedchambers within the hour. I have something I want to discuss with you privately." When she saw Duncan nod slightly, she turned to face Randor and said aloud, "I have to go lie down. This is…too much."

Randor walked over to squeeze her hand and replied, "I quite understand, my dear. I'll be with you as soon as we figure out how we're going to get Adam back…and we will get him back."

She tried to smile at her husband to show her confidence in his words, but she couldn't. Instead, she simply turned and looked at Man-at-Arms one more time before leaving the room. It was her way of telling him to come as soon as he could.

=)=)=)

Duncan stood outside the king and queen's bedchambers and hesitated before knocking on the door. He had no idea why Marlena wanted to speak with him privately. It was obvious she wanted to do so without her husband present and that surprised him greatly. When the door opened, he wasn't shocked to see the queen's reddened eyes or the tearstains on her face. Queen Marlena had always been emotional when it came to the Horde. They had stolen Adora from her when she was infant, only to do it again shortly after they were reunited. Now, they had Adam. Those times were the few in a very short list of occasions when he had seen her cry.

"You wanted to see me, Your Majesty?" he questioned softly.

She nodded, looked down the hall in both directions before opening the door wider, and said, "Come in, Duncan."

Man-at-Arms walked inside and immediately took a seat. The first room he entered into was the queen's sitting room and her bedchamber with Randor was through the next door. He knew she would want to remain here to discuss whatever was on her mind. He watched as she breathed deeply and sat beside him, facing him.

"This is bad, isn't it?" she asked softly.

He didn't know how to answer that. He had a feeling there was more to this question than what was apparent on the surface. Of course, it was bad. She was Adam's mother—she already knew it was bad. So, what was she asking?

"Your Majesty?" he questioned, trying to convey his confusion at her words.

She sighed in response and mumbled, "Let's not beat around the bush here, Man-at-Arms. Adam was taken last night. If this were under normal circumstances, Adam would already be back on Eternia and Randor would be none the wiser, but that's not the case this time. What has happened that has made that impossible this time?"

Duncan widened his eyes. "Your Majesty, I have no idea…"

The queen interrupted him by narrowing her eyes and informing him, "I know Adam is He-Man!" Duncan gasped, but she continued to speak. "I've known for quite some time, so don't deny it. My question to you is why isn't he home yet? What has prevented him from doing so? I know you must have some idea."

He shook his head. "I have no clue," he answered softly, still not quite believing that Queen Marlena knew the secret. He had never even suspected that it was possible! Did the Sorceress even know that the queen knew?

"Focus, Man-at-Arms," the queen insisted sharply. "Instead of worrying about what I know, think. This is Adam we're talking about. We need to figure out the situation he is in right now, so we need clear heads, especially since Randor isn't in the know."

He nodded dumbly for a moment and then cleared his throat. "I need to go to his bedchamber," he announced suddenly.

"What for?"

He looked back at the queen after he approached the door to leave and informed her, "There is only a few reasons that I can think of that would prevent Adam from turning into He-Man: one, he might not have the means—he might not have the Sword of Power." With that, he walked out of the room with the queen hot on his heels. It was a matter of moments before the weapons inventor opened the prince's door and went to his bookshelf. When he opened the hidden compartment, he gasped for what felt like the umpteenth time that day: the sword was there. Adam didn't have it. That meant the prince was in serious danger, more so than he thought.

=)=)=)

Adora didn't immediately go to her room. She went to Adam's. He was asleep on the bed, still wearing the bedtime apparel he had been in earlier. She sat on the edge of the bed and whispered, "Oh, my brother, what have they done?" It was so reminiscent of the first time she had asked that question under similar circumstances, but she knew this time was direr.

She brushed her fingers across Adam's cheek and asked softly, "Brother, can you hear me? Open your eyes and look at me."

She could tell it was a struggle, but eventually, Adam opened his eyes. She could also tell that he was trying to focus on her but couldn't. Eventually, he gave up and closed his eyes again.

"Adam! Adam!" she exclaimed in response, trying to keep him awake.

The prince opened his eyes once more. She leaned over and kissed him on the cheek. "Don't worry, I'm going to get you out of this, I promise. First, we have to give you your strength back. I'm going to turn into She-Ra. We're going to see what she can do, okay?"

"Okay," she heard her brother whisper lightly in reply. His voice was so strangled and hoarse that it broke her heart. Tears came to her eyes as she stood and lifted her sword aloft. "For the honor of Grayskull!" she cried. As soon as she transformed into She-Ra, she sat back down on the bed and stated, "I'm going to heal you now, brother. You're going to be okay."

She placed a hand on his forehead and the other over his heart. Closing her eyes, she mumbled, "For the honor of Grayskull, let your wounds be healed."

She-Ra felt her healing powers leave through her fingertips and spread throughout Adam's body. She could tell immediately that he was drained completely and as a result, he was draining her. She wanted to help her brother by any means necessary, even if that meant tiring herself out, but she knew that wouldn't be wise. There wouldn't be a way to explain why Adam was suddenly so much better and Adora was weak. Hordak had no idea that Adora and Adam had magical powers and she knew they would both like to keep it that way…

So, reluctantly, she pulled away. She would have to do it a little at a time. She was slightly woozy, but not so much that she couldn't stand and talk to Hordak if she had to. Quickly, she changed back into Adora just in case the Horde leader came into the room. She then placed her hand on her brother's cheek and asked, "How do you feel, Adam?"

He was finally able to focus on her. "Slightly better," he answered, "but I'm still so weak. I hate this." He tried to sit up, but he couldn't. She could tell he was straining to do so, so she quickly forced him to lie back down. "Save your strength, brother. I don't need you tiring yourself out any faster than necessary. I have to heal you in intervals."

Adam sighed and stared at his sister. "I don't like you being here," he revealed. "The Horde wants you back, so this is the last place you should be regardless of whether I am here or not." He swallowed nervously and continued, "I'll be fine. Just head back to the Whispering Woods. If at all possible, go to Eternia. My sword is behind the bookcase in my bedchambers. Man-at-Arms can show it to you. You could bring it to me, then you wouldn't have to heal me. I could heal myself."

Adora grimaced and whispered, "I'm afraid that's not an option, brother."

"What do you mean? Of course, it is!"

She shook her head and explained, "I promised Hordak that I wouldn't escape or contact anyone to break me free if he promised not to harm you. Adam, I couldn't risk your life and when Bow showed up and ruined everything, Hordak started draining you at a faster rate. That's why you're like this! In fact, you were way worse than this a moment ago!"

Adam narrowed his eyes in frustration and exclaimed, "You should have never promised that monster anything, Adora! He's using me to get to you!"

"I know, but I didn't have any choice. You know you would have done the same for me!" she cried.

He paused and relaxed his expression. He knew she was right, so he couldn't continue to be angry at her actions. Besides, he could never remain angry with her for too long anyway. Breathing deeply, he mumbled, suddenly tired, "We'll find a way out of this. We always do."

She nodded and agreed, "I know we will. It might take some time, though."

Slipping into the bed with him, she rested her head on his shoulder. "I hope you don't mind that I'm going to stay with you. I have my own room, but I don't want to leave you alone while you're so weak. We are in enemy territory and you're unable to protect yourself right now."

Adam nodded tiredly. He was already falling asleep, which was evident by his hooded eyes. He could barely keep them open. Already the energy and willpower she had given him was fading away. Even she was feeling the pull of sleep, so she decided that they should give into it. "Go to sleep, Adam," she whispered, leaning up to kiss his forehead. "We'll be okay and I'll be here when you wake. I promise." She could tell Adam was using a lot of energy to wrap his arm around her. She almost chastised him for it but didn't when she realized he probably needed to do it as much as she needed to feel it. If he was still trying to comfort her at this time, that meant he was still okay and not as bad off as he could be. That was one thing to be grateful for.

As Adora drifted off to sleep, she hoped Hordak would leave them alone until morning.

=)=)=)

I know, another short chapter. I hope you enjoyed it nonetheless!