Chapter Two:
Red Sky at Morning
Red sky in morning, sailor's warning: A red sunrise reflects the dust particles of a system that has just passed from the west. This indicates that a storm system may be moving to the east. If the morning sky is a deep fiery red, it means a high water content in the atmosphere. So, rain is on its way – from www.loc.gov/rr/scitech/mysteries/weather-sailor.html
"Cheetara," I yelled, "Wait, please!" I knew it was too late as the golden hue of her super speed brightened and then dissolved on the horizon.
"No," my voice dropped to a pleading whisper. How could she do this, again? My head screamed, warring with the excuses manufactured from my heart. After all the time we had just spent, learning, healing, she had just thrown it away!
I looked back at the recent destruction caused by the mutant attack. The memorial gardens had suffered the worst of the damage; the Acinonyx section had been the hardest hit. There was nothing left.
My own anger flared, mixing with and superseding my disappointment with Cheetara's impetuousness. Had I not been so concerned, I would have laughed at my assessment of the cheetah. It was I who was known for going off half-cocked, not she; she had always been the voice of reason.
Spinning on my heels, I started to head in the same direction that she had. She was so blinded by the situation, acting rashly; she would need help. I had managed two steps when the air in front of me shimmered with the light of an astral projection. "Jaga!" I called in surprise, coming up just short of where he appeared.
"You cannot go, Lion-O," my mentor instructed. While his face, as always, seemed impassive, I could sense that the spirit too was greatly troubled by the events that had just occurred. It was for that fact alone that I didn't disregard his command outright.
"But, she is in trouble," I argued, trying to sound like the rational leader I wished to be.
"It is a situation of her own creation." Jaga held up a hand to stop me from interrupting him. "She has released herself from the Code of Thundera. She knows that her pursuit of the mutants is not based on justice but vengeance. She is aware that what she is doing is wrong; why else would she abandon the Code?"
I couldn't answer him, but the feelings welling up within me must have been quite transparent because Jaga continued, "The others are looking to you for guidance, Lion-O; if you pursue Cheetara, aid her in her ill-advised quest, what of them? Our Code is what we are; without it, we are no better than the mutants she hunts.
"Cheetara chose her destiny; you must remain true to your own." With those ambiguous words, my advisor gathered up his gossamer cape and vanished into the morning light.
Helpless frustration reared through my mind, even if Jaga were right, which part of me believed him to be, how could we ignore Cheetara and her actions. Was she justified? Had she had an active choice in her destiny? I thought back to the stories she had shared with me. My mind drifted even further to her self-destruction in the Cat's head; could I live with myself if I let her go?
I can't. Giving in to my own impulsivity, I again began moving in the direction that the cheetah had gone. This time it was a hand on my shoulder that gave me pause.
"Lion-O." I halted and turned to face my striped second-in-command. "Jaga is correct; we cannot just follow the Code when it suits our purposes."
It was only because I recognized the pain in the tiger's face that I did not take physical action against him. Tygra knew Cheetara better than I, in so many ways. Her decision to forego her oath must be causing him to wage his own private war as well.
"Just because she no longer wears the insignia of the ThunderCats, doesn't make her stop being one!" I reasoned. "I won't abandon her just because of that." I didn't care that my voice carried more emotion than that of a leader protecting his comrades.
Tygra's eyes tightened in response to my words. "I care about her too," he growled, making sure that I would not dismiss what he had to say or believe that his words were so easily said. "The Eye of Thundera cannot be used for evil. What she is doing is wrong; you cannot endorse it. It would be the downfall of everything we have fought to achieve, everything for which she has fought."
"So we just turn our backs," I fumed, my hands pushing through my mane. I had to do something with them lest I hit something. "What about the loyalty part of the Code?"
Tygra's head bowed for a second before he looked me straight in the eyes. "We cannot pick and choose what parts of the Code to follow either. She gave you her emblem. She knows that what she is doing goes against the ThunderCat oath."
"Do you mean to leave her to fend for herself?" I couldn't believe that her friend would so willingly give up on her.
"No," Tygra answered. "I'm telling you what needs to be said, what needs to be known. If you chose to go after Cheetara, you must not do so as the Lord of the ThunderCats. By going in such capacity, you compel the others to act."
I stared at Tygra; his words had shocked me. "Are you saying that to go after Cheetara I have to give up my title? I'm going after her to stop her from doing something she'll regret not to condone her actions."
Tygra took a deep breath and held it for a moment before answering me. "In this case, being the Lord of the ThunderCats and being Cheetara's friend are mutually exclusive."
I glanced back at the horizon, the last place I had seen her. The dawning light had broken with a sunrise of brilliant red. I didn't have time for this, to argue the semantics and politics that Tygra was trying to get me to understand. She was way ahead of me now. I needed to act.
"Fine," I hissed in resignation and pulled the Sword of Omens from its resting place on the claw shield against my left thigh. "You will act in my stead, while I go take care of Cheetara, our friend." I knew I didn't have to put in that last jab, but I couldn't stop myself. I wanted Tygra to know how I really felt about all of this.
I saw the hesitation in Tygra's eyes, in the slowness of his reaching for the proffered sword. This was obviously something he hadn't quite expected me to do. Heck, I wasn't even sure that it was something I had expected in myself.
A blur of reddish-orange, yellow, and white came racing from the main door leading to the courtyard. "Lion-O, for Thundera's sake, what are you doing?" Snarf sputtered in a rush of words and fur as he charged down the stairs to my feet.
"I'm going after Cheetara," I answered, surprised at how steady my voice sounded considering all that was happening.
"But, but, the sword," Snarf stuttered and pointed to the small, inactive dagger now soundly resting in Tygra's hand. "You can't go charging out without the sword, snarf, snarf."
"I have no choice," I answered and turned to start in the direction Cheetara had headed, knowing that by now my chances were even slimmer in catching her before she did something she would regret. I felt an unfamiliar pain in my heart at that somber thought. Would we lose everything before it had even begun?
"Tygra, brrr, give him back the sword," Snarf implored. I could hear the concern, the faint worried, anger tinting his voice as I continued to walk away, unarmed.
"I can't, Snarf," Tygra answered. The voice was softer, indicating that the tiger had turned away. I guess that he was refusing to watch me go, to excuse my behavior.
"But, but, Panthro? WilyKit, Kat? Somebody do something!" Snarf's voice was taking on a wail of desperation. I had no choice but to turn around and settle him. He could not influence the others. That had been the whole point of my relinquishing the sword in the first place.
"Snarf," I halted and lowered myself to kneel so that I would be at his height. The furry creature, who had raised me since I was a cub, hurled into me, practically knocking me over.
"I'm going after Cheetara, Snarf. It is something I have to do."
"Then I'm going with you."
"You can't."
"Just you watch me," he huffed, but a familiar rumble filling the air overshadowed his challenge.
The hulking form of the Thundertank pulled up along side of us. "Ho, Lion-O!" Panthro called from the driver's seat.
"Panthro," I called back and looked at the unexpected vehicle still running smoothly.
"Are you coming?" the panther asked, hitching his thumb in the direction of the empty seat. "Cheetara has quite a head start. We're going to need to go full-throttle if we are going to catch up with her."
I launched myself into a perfect back flip and landed in the passenger seat next to him. "Are you sure?"
Panthro didn't need any clarification as to what I was really referring. "I'm sure," he answered, his voice an equal measure of concern and resignation. "Don't be so hard on him. He is doing what he has to."
I looked over my shoulder at the form of Tygra. The tiger looked years older than he truly was. I suddenly realized that his stepping up to take the mantel as acting Lord of the ThunderCats had been the greatest gift he could have given me.
"I won't," I promised.
"Hold down the fort," I addressed Snarf.
Wasting no more time, Panthro threw the throttle fully forward, and we took off with an impressive press of g-force and a plume of dust to match.
As the panther piloted the tank over obstacles in our path, I fingered the controls to bring up the locator chip embedded in Cheetara's staff. A blip finally registered on the screen as we roared through the Plains of Fertility. I homed the frequency and muttered, "She's already crossed the River of Despair."
In response, Panthro turned sharply to the southeast, a trajectory that would put us at the Bridge of Slime, the only overpass on this side of the river. The change in direction threw us both hard against the cushions, but I also heard an odd thump in the cargo bay. Sliding the partition separating the cockpit from the rest of the tank, I looked in to investigate.
Surprised, I called out, "WilyKit?"
At my announcement, Panthro immediately decelerated the tank to a hard stop and started the sequence to open the back. I had to grab the dashboard to keep my head from cracking against the control panel. WilyKit wasn't so lucky. She flew forward and impacted against the bulkhead. At least, she had had the presence of mind to roll with the momentum.
"Yeow," the female wildcat called out. Using our seatbacks, she pulled herself upright and rubbed her shoulder. "Where on Third Earth did you learn to drive?"
"Don't you go putting this on me," Panthro snarled, as he whirled around to face the stowaway.
Rather than look chastened, the teenager crossed her arms over her chest and glared back at him defiantly.
This wasn't good, I decided, as I looked up at the two older males glaring at me from the front seat. Well, only one was really older. Lion-O and I had actually been almost the same age before his transformation from the malfunctioning, suspension capsule, but I was digressing in my thoughts. Nope, they were both pretty mad. Oh well, time to go on the offensive.
"Sorry, Panthro," I mumbled, and I was. I was sorry that I had gotten caught hiding in the cargo hold but not for tagging along.
"We have to go back," Panthro growled and prepared to reverse the tank.
"No," both Lion-O and I called out at the same time. I was surprised that he would stand up for me, but his next statement showed his support wasn't for my initiative but for tactical reasons.
"We've already wasted too much time," he continued and glanced back at the grid mapping Cheetara's position. A frown crossed his face, and I leaned forward across the seats so that I could see why he suddenly looked so worried, well more worried than he had before this whole mission had started.
"What's the matter?" Panthro asked. He must have seen the change in the lion too.
"It's not moving."
"That's good, right?" I piped in. I mean if Cheetara were stationary than we had a better chance of catching up to her.
"No," Lion-O answered.
"Buckle up, Kit," Panthro ordered.
Knowing that his tone brooked no argument and that I had, at least, won my time onboard even if it were temporary, I scrambled to a jump seat in the back and clicked the harness across my chest. The buckle had scarcely connected before we took off for the previous heading. If I didn't know better, I would have sworn that the tank was moving even faster than before.
The wind whipped at my face and pushed my hair into my eyes. I kept the discomfort to myself and simply swiped the tendrils out of my face. I didn't want to complain, didn't really want to draw any more attention to myself than I already had.
I watched the trees of the Forrest of Silence pass by in a rush on our left. I could smell the faint sweet flowers from the Garden of Delights on our right. The subtle floral scents quickly gave way to damp, boggy earth, and the landscape changed to that of a riverbank.
I leaned forward in my safety harness to peer into the depths of the murky River of Despair, and a chill ran over my fur. Where the day was bright and sunny, the river waters ran dark and gloomy. I almost expected to see the Black Widow Shark leap from the depths and attempt to take on the tank. Another shiver ran down my spine as I remembered my last, and only, encounter with the guardian of the river. Kat and I were lucky that we had only lost one spaceboard.
Even though that was over three years ago, the memory of that beast still gave me the occasional nightmare. I was never the one it was after though, usually it was Kat.
However now that we had found Pumyra, Bengali, and Lynx-O, that particular nightmare had changed, merged with another. Now, the nightmare featured Mom. I was always amazed at how clearly I could picture her. That is probably why this particular dream had always felt so real.
Mom would be dancing on the Bridge of Light. She would have just finished an amazing pirouette that placed her directly in the center of the bridge. Then, the lights would fade. A large, ominous, black whirlpool would form in the center of the river, and with this as the only warning, the Black Widow Shark would attack. Watching the light bridge crumble into a million prisms, I would stand helpless on the shore. Mom would fall. She would make no sound, no scream, just fall, flipping gracefully in the air, into the jaws of the shark, and I would wake as those horrible teeth closed around her.
I jerked in reflex as I realized that my eyes had closed with the memory of the nightmare. I took a deep breath, thankful for the roar of the tank to hide the gasp of horror that had pulled me from my reverie, but I was even more thankful for the stinging wind as an excuse for the tears brimming in my eyes.
"Just a dream, Kit," I muttered to myself, again glad for the loud engines masking my voice.
The smells from the river were becoming more stagnant, and I realized that we had just about made it to the Bridge of Slime. When it came to crossing the River of Despair, there were four options: swim or submerge, and given my experience with the shark, not an option I or any of the other ThunderCats would take voluntarily; fly, not an option in the ThunderTank, unless Panthro had made modifications of which I was unaware; or drive or walk across one of the two bridges. Since we were too far away from the Bridge of Light, we were going to have to cross the Bridge of Slime.
My nose scrunched with the decaying odor of vegetation and standing water. We weren't just close; we were practically on top of it. Panthro slowed to a stop in front of the green covered arch. It was too small for both of the treads of the tank.
With the tank stopped, I unbuckled my restraint and moved to the cockpit. Lion-O tapped the control panel again where the blip representing Cheetara's location remained steady. "What now?" I asked, reminding the two men that I was still a participant in this endeavor.
"We hoof it," Panthro answered and catapulted out of the tank. Lion-O and I exchanged a look and followed suit. By the time we reached the panther, he was already leaning down to examine the bridge.
"This stuff is viscous but as slippery as ice." He pulled a strand of the muck off of the stone and rubbed it between his fingers.
"And, it smells awful," I added, my voice taking on a funny grate as I pinched my nose closed to stop the odor from making me gag.
"That it does," Lion-O agreed, as he surveyed the only passage to the other side. "Cheetara must have come this way." He pointed to a divot in the earth near the beginning of the bridge. "It looks like she vaulted using her staff."
I looked at the hole that Cheetara's staff had formed in the bank. She must have been really moving to create such a cavity. My gaze drifted across the river to the other shore. Two footprints were clearly embedded in the river mud. A small sigh of relief went through my body. She had made it across without incident it seemed.
"Well," Panthro stood from his spot, "you're the expert in this, Lion-O. What is the best way to cross?"
Lion-O looked at the chasm that the arch bridged. "Well, I don't think we should try and swim. Last time I was here a large, two-headed, sea creature decided I'd make a good snack, and if he's not around, there is a good chance that the Black Widow Shark may be making rounds as well."
I shuddered involuntarily at that reminder. Lion-O must have noticed my reaction because he quirked a sympathetic look in my direction before continuing. "The surface is very hard to get a decent grip. I have my claw shield, but you two…" he left the statement open. Neither Panthro nor I carried anything that would aid us in a climb over the gunk coating the bridge unless you counted our claws.
As I tried to come up with a solution, my hand started to fiddle with the pouch of pellets that Kat and I both carry. "I wonder," I said out loud as my fingers curled around two of the chemical pellets that we had been working on with Tygra.
"What is it, Kit?" Lion-O encouraged.
"Well, I don't know if it will work. We haven't even tested it yet, but we've been trying to design a defensive weapon by distilling some of the chemicals found in Acid Lake. Maybe I can dissolve the goo?"
"It's worth a shot," Panthro nodded to me.
Taking aim, I threw the first of the two pellets onto the bridge, hitting it dead center. The result was anticlimactic as nothing happened other than a colorful burst of yellow mist. "Okay, now for the catalyst," I explained and threw the second pellet. It too hit is mark spraying a fine red mist on impact with the overpass. Once again, nothing happened.
Disappointment setting in, I turned away. "I guess, it failed the test," I sighed.
"Don't be so sure," Lion-O corrected me. Sure enough a gurgling sound reached my ears. I quickly turned back to look. An orange liquid was slowly enveloping the green ooze. Bare patches of stone were starting to peek through the remnants of goop and chemicals.
"It worked," I cried out gleefully. I couldn't contain myself, and I jumped in the air, laughing while I clapped my hands in celebration of my success.
"Yes, but for how long?" Panthro asked as he pointed to the bridge. Even though the chemicals had eaten through the slime, a new coating was almost immediately growing to take its place.
"Let's go ThunderCats," the panther urged and led the charge across the recuperating arch. By the time we had crossed the passage, it was once again covered in a thick layer of sludge.
Once he had caught his breath from our frantic sprint, Lion-O praised, "Well-done, WilyKit."
"Yes, indeed," Panthro agreed.
My face heated at the praise. "Maybe it was a good thing that I decided to come along after all," I suggested and watched the panther's face set into the scowl I knew and loved.
"Where to?" I asked, quickly diverting the rant I could see starting to brew on Panthro's face at my remark.
"Well, unless she's on the move again, her last coordinates put her within the Treasure Ruins," Lion-O answered and started in the direction of the ancient building remains.
I walked behind the lion and kept my eyes peeled. This section of Third Earth was by far one of the creepier sections in my book. It wasn't because it overlooked the silent black pyramid, Mumm-Ra's old home, and it wasn't that Third Earth was lacking in places more dangerous or deadly. I couldn't put my finger on exactly what it was about this place that set my fur on edge. It was a feeling of wrongness that I could not describe.
I don't know if my twin agreed with me. We never spoke about it, nor did either of us use our mutual dislike of this particular area against the other. This was a place that neither one of us ever dared the other to go.
Gooseflesh prickled beneath my fur and caused the hackles on the back of my neck to rise in subliminal anticipation of an unknown danger. "Lion-O," I whispered, edging closer to him.
"I know, Kit," he whispered back; I could hear the same urgency in his voice, mirroring mine.
We came to a large building blocking our path. It almost seemed to as if it had been set there on purpose. Lion-O motioned to Panthro, pantomiming that we should split up, each take a side. Stealthily, the panther disengaged his nunchakus, holding them defensively as he slid silently down the wall to the other side of the edifice. My hand traveled to my pouch as I shadowed Lion-O around the other corner.
We skirted the building with no incident, regrouping with Panthro in the front. Still on edge, we continued on our way to what had probably been the main plaza. Broken remnants of what once must have been beautifully architected buildings surrounded this open area; now only a crumbling limestone floor remained. These were the only signs left of a civilization long past. Nothing existed here, or was supposed to.
My eyes caught the glimpse of a faint coil of smoke, rising from something loosely resembling a machine. My hand left the comfort of my weapon pouch and latched onto Lion-O's forearm. Saying nothing, I pointed to the wreckage still smoldering in the center of what had once most likely been a fountain.
"Gods of Thundera," Lion-O hissed, as he looked at the smoking rubble and then ran full tilt toward it.
"Lion-O," I called to the running lion. It was then that I saw what he must have already seen.
"Panthro," I screamed as I took off after Lion-O. I didn't have to look at the panther. I could hear his footsteps behind me, see him as he sped past me.
"Lion-O, stop," I ordered and grabbed the lion, tossing him away from the hot scrap metal that he was tearing through with his bare hands.
"Get off of me," the lion roared.
I gave him a little room to maneuver and instantly regretted the allowance as his large fist slammed into my cheek. I saw stars as my head not only made impact with his knuckles but also rebounded to hit the ground. Stunned, I loosened my tenuous hold on him and felt him slide easily out of my grip.
"Jabari!" Lion-O hissed, breathing hard. "I'm sorry, Panthro."
Even though I registered that he had used an Acinonyx curse, I didn't say anything. I was too busy trying to focus my eyes to see his outstretched hand as one rather than two. Cautiously, I took the offered assistance and allowed him to pull me to my feet. I shook my head slightly and looked at him. "Mavi, Lion-O, where'd you learn to hit like that?" I rubbed at my aching face.
"From you, old friend," he replied. I watched him turn away to look back at the wreckage that had started all of this. "It's S-Slithe's Nose Diver."
"Yeah," I agreed, although the twisted hulk of metal didn't look anything like the vehicle that had attacked us this morning. "You want to tell me what got you so riled you came up swinging?"
The lion was silent, as he took a couple of steps toward the rubble.
"Lion-O," I warned, as I watched him carefully use his boot to scoot a piece of metal away from the rest of the debris. He waved me off and then bent down to retrieve what he had freed. It was a soot-streaked, foot-long cylinder. His fingers brushed the grime to reveal a golden hue beneath it.
I recognized it instantly. "By Jaga," I hissed in denial, "it can't be."
Lion-O said nothing. He just held the object out to me. I saw the slight tremor in his hand as I took it from him, confirming for myself that it was indeed Cheetara's bo staff. I looked over the weapon, felt along its surface to its jagged tip. "It's broken," I said, stating the obvious. I couldn't seem to keep these simple, these painful, observations to myself. I stepped away to study the remnants of the Nose Diver.
"Do you think?" Kit stopped before completing her thought.
I had already forgotten that she had tagged along with us. Neither Lion-O nor I had candy-coated our words, our thoughts. Kit looked at me and then to Lion-O before she covered her face with her hands and began running in the direction we had come.
"WilyKit!" I called out and turned to follow the distraught teen.
"I'll go," Lion-O intervened, quickly pushing past me.
In less than a few strides, he had bridged the head start WilyKit had created. Even though he had moved quickly past me, I had seen the look in his eyes, on his face; he too thought the worst.
My hand tightened on the shaft of the broken staff as I surveyed the damaged, scratch that, destroyed, mutant vehicle. Cheetara must have slammed the bo into the main fuel supply and then discharged her weapon, igniting the tank and blowing the whole mess to smithereens. The question was what happened after that? Where were the cheetah and the mutant driver?
I sniffed the air picking up on the ozone smell of fried mechanical systems and the acrid scent of burned fuel, but I didn't catch the sickening sweet smell of burned flesh. My nose twitched as the wind shifted. This time I did scent something that was organic.
Fearful of what I might find, I followed my olfaction to an outcropping a few meters from the wreck. Looking down I noticed a dark spot that had been absorbed by the arid ground. I bent down and scraped my fingers against the wet earth and brought them to my nostrils.
"Fresh blood," I acknowledged to myself since no one else was in hearing range, "but not cat blood." That fact gave me a small measure of relief that instantly withered as my rational mind put that observation into perspective.
I heard two sets of footfalls and looked up into the somber faces of Lion-O and WilyKit. I tried not to linger on Kit's face. But even in my cursory glance, I could see that fresh tears had recently streaked down her cheeks. I glanced at Lion-O in unspoken question. His eyes flickered to Kit and then closed momentarily, weighing his decision. When he opened his eyes, he nodded slightly to me.
I pointed to the small, dark patch of wetness I had found. "It's blood," I confirmed and watched Kit as I finished my assessment. "Mutant blood. It looks fresh, but I can't tell you how fresh or when or even if this happened before of after the Nose Diver blew."
I watched Lion-O move his hand to his claw shield and look down when he came up empty. I assumed that he was going to ask the Sword of Omens for sight beyond sight. He lowered his hand and his head in a reflexive sigh.
"I might be able to tell you more," Kit whispered.
Both Lion-O and I looked at the young Felis questioningly.
"It is something I've been noticing just recently. After Kat and I finish our sparring, I can get a faint impression of each move made through the whole entire match. At first, I thought it was because I had been there or maybe because we were twins, but it's not. I've been going to the sparring mat in the evenings after you all have had a practice round and seeing if I could pick up on anything."
"And?" Lion-O prompted.
"I can. I've even been testing myself by recording my impressions and then going through the security tapes to see how accurate I am."
"How accurate are you?" I asked, wondering why this was the first time I had heard about any of this.
"Eight-five to ninety percent," she shrugged.
"What about Kat? Does he have this new ability as well?"
"I don't know," Kit shook her head. "I haven't discussed it with him. I haven't discussed it with anyone. I was going to ask Cheetara, but…" Kit's eyes clouded over, and she bit her lower lip.
I looked back at the area that held the blood and then to the remains that had once formed a Nose Diver. Kit might be the only one who could give us an idea of what happened, give us a lead on where to go from here.
"Okay," I breathed.
WilyKit walked over to the blood and took a deep breath, holding the air inside her body. Slowly, her arms rose to shoulder height, her palms turning toward the sun. Suddenly, she was in motion, and I felt as though I was watching a slow-motion movie of a single player in a two-person act.
As I watched Kit, I wondered, when had she changed? Why hadn't I noticed? She wasn't a kitten anymore. She had grown; she was on the cusp of womanhood. Her hair was longer than I remembered. It no longer splayed into what had looked like a natural ponytail; it now hung low enough to graze her shoulders. At that moment, she looked so much like her mother I almost believed that it was Katika standing before me.
Until this moment, I hadn't even observed the alterations WilyKit had made to her uniform. They were subtle, and yet different enough that I should have noticed. The left armband no longer was short sleeved; it now traveled the length of her arm, ending at her wrist. The right arm remained bare; the armband decoration still in place. The bodice was more form fitting, or she simply had grown to fill it out, and the shorts were no longer shorts at all. They had lengthened and become form fitting, ending slightly above her knees. A thin, gauzy skirt, reminiscent of her original outfit, floated over the longer shorts, completing the entire ensemble.
I tried the excuse that I hadn't really noticed the changes because she had kept the same color scheme, same pattern of her previous uniform, but even I knew that was a lame defense. I had simply not paid enough attention, had allowed myself to get wrapped up in other things that never should have taken precedence over my family. I hadn't seen Cheetara slowly crumble into self-destructive mode; I hadn't seen the development of Kit's new ability; what else hadn't I seen?
WilyKit's scream rocketed me back to the present. My muscles moved of their own accord, catching the teenager as she crumbled into a ball from a mid-air jump. Lion-O was at my side in an instant as I lowered her to the ground. "Kit?" I called, gently trying to coax her to open her eyes.
Slowly, WilyKit's eyes fluttered opened, but I did not see the usual sorrel-color staring back at me. Instead, a thin, white membrane shrouded her eyes.
"Kit?" I called again, a bolt of anxiety running up my spine.
She blinked and then blinked again. On her third try, the nictitating membrane covering her eyes slid back to its normal position. She gulped suddenly and pushed out of my arms. She managed two steps and then crumbled to her knees vomiting.
I walked over and knelt next to the retching Felis. My hand traveled to her back and gently rubbed a circle of comfort until the sickness passed. I felt her take a halting breath and saw her scrub her hands over her face. Saying nothing, I offered my support and helped her stand. She leaned weakly on me as we both walked to where Lion-O waited.
"Are you all right?" the lion asked, worry thickening his voice.
Kit nodded and rubbed a hand across her temple; her other hand stayed wrapped securely around my waist, using me as a bulwark to keep her upright. "Yeah," she answered, shakily, "and, I know what happened."
--Translation--
Jabari – Acinonyx curse. Swahili origin meaning: god, supreme ruler
mavi – Thunderian curse (vulgar). Swahili origin meaning: damn, shit
