When Orko opened his eyes, he got the distance feeling they’d been closed for a long time. He thought for a moment, trying to remember what happened….

Suddenly, memory hit him like a cold shock. Falling… the Tower… Imagiland…. He looked around to find he was in his bed, in the Palace. His wand lay on the nightstand within easy reach.

“Orko, how do you feel?” came Teela’s voice as she entered the room. Orko sat up straight.

“Teela! Trolly-Molly, what happened?”

“You fell. Don’t you remember?”

“Fell?” Her words confused Orko severely.

“Straight down. Fortunately, Cringer was napping right below you, and you landed on him.” As if on cue, Cringer and Adam entered.

“Yeah. Scarred the daylights outta me.”

“Out of all of us,” agreed Adam. “What happened?”

“I - I - “ What was going on?

“I’ll go get you something to drink,” offered Teela, and the instant she left Orko turned to Adam.

“What happened, Adam? The Tower - and Skeletor - “

“What do you mean?” Adam seemed genuinely confused. “What tower?”

“After I fell. We went to the Sorceress to see what was going on, and she showed up a black tower that only I could enter, and - “

“Slow down! That must’ve been some dream.”

“Huh?”

“You passed out while we were decorating, and just now woke up.”

“But - “ Orko was speechless. Had it all been a dream? He sagged back into his bed, as Teela returned with a plate of cookies and a glass of juice.

“I thought a little holiday cheer might help,” she explained. The sight of the cookies jogged Orko’s memory even more.

“Okoru…”

“Hmm?” They hadn’t caught his half-whisper.

“Nothing.” Orko sat up a bit more, and got a sharp jab in his side. He reached into the pocket where he kept his Gate Cube to pull the fully functional cube out… and a small, five-sided gem with a curl of silver hair embedded within.

“That’s beautiful,” Teela complimented. “I’ve never seen it before.”

“It’s a gift… from a friend,” he explained numbly. As if shifted slightly in his hand, letters like tiny prisms appeared, just where he could see:

Believe

Orko secretly smiled.

“We’ll let you rest,” offered Adam.

“I’m fine,” Orko replied. He grabbed two cookies and floated out of the bed. “Lets finish decorating. I’ll meet you in the hall.” They agreed, and left.

Orko floated there for a moment, then casually drifted to his mirror. He floated there for a long moment, muching a cookie and looking at himself.

His reflection smiled, and winked.

Then, a very happy Orko went to join his friends, to celebrate the season.

Ooooooooooooooooooooooo

Elsewhere….

“Hmm… he was a very resourceful one,” commented the shadowy figure, leaning back in the chair and sounding oddly calm.

“You aren’t angry, my master?” asked the demon beast beside him.

“Oh, I’m angry, but I’m also intrigued as to how he escaped my little trap. That trap was one I could only use once in my lifetime, and he made me waste it. It seems I have underestimated him, all of them actually, but for the last time.” The mirror before them shifted to show all four of the Bretheren Arcanum, Orko, Vivi Orunitia, Zentarou Cat, and Dregan Za’Tayina. “I must know more of them, before I strike next. This time, we watch, and learn.”