Slave Pits of Targa, Part 6

This is the sixth part of the 7-part event on He-Man and the Masters of the Universe (2010's TV series).

Plot
While the Clamp Champ explores the lower corridors of the Targan arena, he discovers a hidden door that leads still lower beneath the city streets. As he descends, he hears the sounds of labor and cries of pain. He sneaks past two massive Gargons who guard the entry way, using his keen senses to anticipate and evade their scanning eyes. Beyond the entry, he finds the Slave Pits he’d heard about from Man-At-Arms. The tracking device Duncan gave him leads him to a drilling station, where Lizard Man is giving water to the slaves. A Kobold approaches him, having noticed that Lizard Man is not in chains like the other slaves, and begins to strike him for escaping. The Champ leaps to the rescue, lifting the creature up in his mighty clamp and hurtling him into the darkness. He breaks Lizard Man’s chain with his laser tool. “I see you’ve found the Slave Pits again, my friend. Don’t be afraid, Man-At-Arms sent me to find you.” Lizard Man thanks him and shows him the way to Lodar’s chamber to find He-Man. There, they overhear Lodar welcoming He-Man. “I’ve been watching you since they brought you here. Like myself, you hate the enslavement of the Reptons.” “You want them free as well? Then why are you the Master of Slaves? Who are you, Lodar?” Lodar sits back in the chair, eyes like narrow slits of flame. “The Targans were digging in these mines long before I was found. They discovered a substance long ago that they thought would bring them immortality, but instead created the creatures called Kobolds. They continue to think they will find a richer supply deeper in the catacombs, a source that will give them the everlasting life they desire. But instead they found me. I was asleep beneath Targa for eons. When they disturbed my resting place, they demanded I tell the Secret of the Liquid of Life, but alas I did not know it. In return for letting me life, I became their Master of Slaves, and have been a prisoner of Geldor and Balina ever since. The. . . substance they used to create the Kobolds is a narcotic they use now to control me.” “If what you say is true, then you also are a Slave of Targa, Lodar.” Lodar waits a moment, then gestures to his view screen. “Balina has already offered you a kingdom, has she not? Would you like to see what she really thinks of you?” In the monitor they see Balina and Drakka appear, conversing in private. Drakka is concerned by Balina’s offer to He-Man, afraid of an outsider becoming the King of Targa. “Do you think me witless, Drakka? If he kills Torgul, Geldor, and Randor for me, I can ascend to the throne of all Eternia unchallenged, and he will take the fall. And once we find the Liquid of Life, I will be the Eternal Queen of the Universe itself! Perhaps then, if the gladiator still pleases my eyes, I’ll keep him around to entertain me. But I will never give up half my power to an underling. Remember that Drakka, in case you have any designs of your own.” He-Man is not surprised. “If she seeks to overthrow this King Randor, then—“ “She’ll trade one tyrant for another,” says Lodar quickly. “Who do you think has allowed this slavery to continue? Randor seized control of Eternia almost twenty cycles ago, and he permits the atrocities you have already witnessed.” “I have only your word of it,” says He-Man. “Then see it for yourself,” says Lodar, opening a door in the rear of the chamber. “This passage leads back to Stone Cold Mountain where you were found. You won’t remember it well, but it will show you what Randor has done.” He-Man is cautious, but leaves through the passage. Once alone, the Champ gets ready to capture Lodar when a strong hand grabs him from behind. A stranger in purple robes and metal mask appears, with two Gargons in tow. “These eavesdroppers were spying on you, Lodar,” he reports, but Lodar turns his chair towards them slowly. “Yes, I know. Nothing happens in Targa without my knowing.” "You are a deceiver,” growls Clamp Champ, struggling to get loose from the Gargon’s grip. The creature smashes his clamp against the wall and laughs with a deep rumbling growl. “The King and Queen—“ “Are walking into a trap set by me,” Lodar says confidently. “Fortunately, Balina and Geldor are willing pawns in my game. And I have found other supporters in Oberon and among the Reptons as well. You Eternians are all such gullible creatures. Being surrounded by power greater than any in the universe has only made you thirst for more. This world is ripe to be plucked clean.” “You won’t be the first who’s tried to conquer Eternia, Lodar!” Lodar laughs. “Is that the extent of your vision? Fool, Eternia is a means unto an end. He-Man is the key. To have the undying loyalty of another…[i]that[i] is true power. Through him I will seize the greatest power on Eternia…and with that, I will control the Universe. This planet can crumble to dust then for all I care. My destiny is greater than any one world.” He turns away. “Shall I give you a demonstration? Suppose I showed you the truth behind this entire valley?” Another door in Lodar’s chamber opens at his command, and inside is an egg-shaped module. It opens and Lodar gestures the Gargon to bring Lizard Man to him. “Let us discover the true Secret of the Liquid of Life!” Back at Point Dread, the Enforcers commune together in private. Zodon, the leader, approaches Dakkon and says, “We have the means to undo your amnesia. It requires the smallest drop of the Liquid of Life. So small a dose will not make you immortal, but it will cure all ailments—that of your father Torgul as well,” he says to Maran, who is relieved and grateful. “The secret of the Liquid is easy…it must be given by another. It exist in all beings, it is life itself given a new form. But it is greatest within the Reptons. That is why they regenerate their limbs and heal their wounds so easily.” He turns to Sal and asks, “would you be willing to help Dakkon?” Sal agrees, and the Enforcers encircle him. Light surrounds them and Teela is momentarily blinded. When the light fades, Zodon produces a vial filled with a glowing blue liquid. He then applies the smallest drop to Dakkon’s eye, and a blue mist encircles him. When it is gone, he looks at Maran with full recognition and embraces her. “But this can help He-Man too,” says Teela, but Zodon will not let her do take it. “He-Man’s trial is his own.” “He-Man’s strength is his friends,” Teela insists. “What do you care how he passes this trial of yours, so long as he does? Is winning with our help any less a victory?” “She speaks truly,” says Zodak. Zodon still refuses, but the other Enforcers are less sure. Sal says to them, “The liquid you now have was given by me. I was willing to help these people—not just Dakkon. If the giver’s intent matters so much, then my desire to help He-Man should not be ignored.” The other Enforcers agree until finally Zodon allows them to take the vial. One by one the Enforcers vanish, until only Zodak remains. While Maran and Rana welcome Dakkon back, Teela talks to Zodak. “Dakkon is your son, isn’t he? Why don’t you tell him who you are?” “Because he too has a destiny that must unfold on its own. And because I love him and want him to live a better life than I could give him. As an adopted child yourself, you must know this. Would you trade the father you know and love for a parent you can never be with?” “No,” she says after a moment. “But I’d like at least to have the choice. Is keeping that from him really to help Dakkon, or to help you?” Zodak doesn’t answer, and instead changes the subject. “You have little time. King Randor and Queen Marlena are in danger and He-Man’s moment of decision is at hand. You must take Zodac’s old ship, the Talon Fighter. It will know when to come for you.” And then he too vanishes, leaving them alone. The majestic vessel of the Enforcers is shaped like a huge falcon. Its cockpit is large and spacious enough for multiple occupants, but it’s controls are alien and hard to understand. “Do you know how to fly such a craft,” Sal asks Teela. She groans. “This could be a problem.”

Back in Lodar’s laboratory, the Slave Master reveals the function of his ominous machine. “I’ve only just completed this device from my own designs. You see, it simulates the Enforcers’ ability to create the Liquid of Life. Of course without a willing participant, the device is useless. But suppose I kill your friend with the Clamp, eh? What would you do to save him?” A gesture from Lodar is all the Gargon needs. He stabs the Champ, who moans in agony and crumples to the floor. Lizard Man cries out in protest, but Lodar forces him to watch. “My device can create the Liquid of Life to save your friend. But you have to enter the chamber willingly. What do you choose?” Clamp champ begs Lizard Man not to do as Lodar asks, but Lizard Man cannot let the Champ die. He crawls into the module and it closes around him, like an egg recovering its hatchling. Soon blue liquid fills the vats under the egg, and Lodar injects himself with the first dose. “AHAH! It has been too long since I felt this nourishment! I thank you, Man of Eternia. You’ve allowed me to test my machine and for that, I will honor my promise to the Repton.” He administers a tiny amount of the liquid to the Champ, whose stab wound vanishes. “Put him in the pits,” Lodar commands. He looks to his masked accomplice and hands him one of the vats. “This completes our bargain, I think. You have planted the evidence of the Eternian’s presence in the caves?” The masked one nods. “And we retrieve the weapon you asked for.” Clamp Champ gasps as the masked one hands Lodar the Sword of Power itself. “Excellent! You’ve done your part well. Take your payment and be gone. I have no more need of spies. When all is done, I will leave this world behind, and your agenda can have its way with Eternia.” The masked one nods and leaves.

Meanwhile, He-Man has persuaded Garn to come with him out of the Slave Pits. Together they climb into the jungle wilderness outside at the foot of Cold Stone Mountain. “Does it look familiar to you,” Garn asks, and He-Man confesses a slight recollection of a great stone face gaping over a cave-like door. But smoke is rising from the mouth of Cold Stone Mountain, and inside they find a massacre. The Reptons inside are all dead, save for a few who hide in the darkness. King Pythos comes forth, badly beaten. “So you’ve returned to see your butchery, Man of Eternos?” He-Man is confused, but Pythos points to a staff embedded in the ground like a dagger. It waves the flag of Eternos. “I trusted you, and our people are all but destroyed because of it!” “Sire, I do not remember what part I played in this,” says He-Man regretfully, “But I swear I will avenge your people. Randor and Eternos will pay for the blood they've spilled today!”

To be continued