The River of Ruin

The River of Ruin is the fourth book in the Golden Books Hardcover collection. Written by Bryce Knorr, the book was released in 1985.

Publisher's Summary
''A happy land falls under Skeletor's spell. He-Man must move mountains to solve the mystery. Skeletor may win unless He-Man convinces the farmers and the fishermen to end their feud.''

Synopsis
In the courtyard of the royal palace, Teela and Prince Adam are locked in a high-speed race on their Wind Raiders, with Cringer holding the line that serves as the finish line. Suddenly, King Randor and Ramjah, captain of the fishermen of the River of Rain, enter, forcing Teela and Prince Adam to swerve their Wind Raiders and crash into a hay wagon. Man-At-Arms orders Teela and Prince Adam to clean up the mess.

While they are doing so, King Randor appeals to Ramjah to be friends with the farmers, but Ramjah refuses to make friends with what he considers cowards. When Teela and Prince Adam finish loading the hay back onto the wagon, Prince Adam challenges Teela in a race to the stable, but the race is cut short when Sy-Klone appears, alerting them to earthquakes shaking the Mystic Mountains near the source of the River of Rain.

In the mountains, the earth was indeed shaking, but it was not being caused by earthquakes. It was caused by Skeletor digging a channel with Land Shark. With the channel finished, Skeletor used Land Shark to block the River of Rain, redirecting the water into the new channel he dug.

Down in the valley, Prince Adam, Teela, and Sy-Klone have arrived to investigate the Earthquakes. They meet with the chief of the farmers there, Ar-Bor, who tells them that the earthquakes are a warning from "The Man in the Mountain" to get the fishers to stop fishing in his river. A thick fog covering the mountains prevents them from seeing Skeletor's dam.

Suddenly, a large wall of water pours into the valley. Teela manages to get to safety on her Wind Raider, but Prince Adam couldn't get to his, leaving him with no choice but to transform into He-Man so he's not washed away. He-Man regroups with the others after the water floods the valley, and they all work together to rescue the farmers from the flood.

A few days later, Ar-Bor requests the help of the Heroic Warriors again as beasts are attacking the valley. He-Man, Teela, and Sy-Klone once again set off to the valley, and chase the beasts back into the river. Ar-Bor is thankful again, but still blames the fishermen for the dangers the farmers are suffering, and refuses to make peace with them, fearing further wrath of "The Man in the Mountain."

Just then, Moss Man appears, and explains that the beasts are water-dwellers who followed the river to the valley because the old riverbed was dry. Ar-Bor takes this as proof that "The Man in the Mountain" is punishing the fishermen, but Moss Man reveals that it's Skeletor that's behind the problems. Realizing Ramjah could be in trouble, He-Man asks for Ar-Bor's help. Ar-Bor gives it, but only out of gratitude for the help He-Man and the other Heroic Warriors have given the farmers.

Riding Bashasaurus, they soon arrive at Ramjah's village, where they find that Skeletor's Evil Warriors have enslaved the fishermen and are forcing them to mine for Eternium. With Spikor and Webstor left to guard the fishermen, the Heroic Warriors and Ar-Bor manage to overpower them and free the Fishermen. Grateful for the rescue, and to Ar-Bor for showing bravery, Ramjah tells them a strong wind can blow away the fog.

He-Man and Sy-Klone take Bashasaurus up the the mountains, and Sy-Klone uses his wind power to blow away the fog, revealing Skeletor's dam. Combining the power of Bashasaurus with his own, He-Man manages to destroy the dam, and Sk-Klone makes sure the water goes where it's supposed to.

Back down below, Skeletor's mine has been washed out, leaving him and his men stuck in the mud. Skeletor orders an attack, but Sy-Klone blows mud all over them. Skeletor tries to threaten them with Land Shark, but He-Man uses Bashasaurus to splash water all over it, leaving Land Shark too waterlogged to function. Skeletor vows vengeance, and orders his men to push Land Shark back to Snake Mountain.

With the help of the Heroic Warriors, the fishers and the farmers work together to plant new fields for the farmers and fix the village of the fishermen. When the work is done, a party is thrown, with the Heroic Warriors as special guests. Man-At-Arms is pleased that Teela got the chance to learn a good lesson about working together. Teela only wishes Prince Adam was there to learn it as well. He-Man and Man-At-Arms just wink at each other.

Characters

 * Heroic Warriors
 * Teela
 * Prince Adam / He-Man
 * Cringer
 * King Randor
 * Man-At-Arms
 * Sy-Klone
 * Moss Man


 * Evil Warriors
 * Skeletor
 * Beast Man
 * Kobra Khan (in text only)
 * Spikor
 * Webstor
 * Tri-Klops


 * Ramjah
 * Ar-Bor

Locations

 * Eternia
 * Royal Palace
 * Mystic Mountains
 * River of Rain

Vehicles

 * Wind Raider
 * Bashasaurus
 * Land Shark

Weapons

 * Power Sword