The next morning the feeling of despair hung thick over the cats. The anguish of their failed venture into the jungle laid heavy on their thoughts.
They had returned to the down feliner the evening before to gather their strengths and contemplate their next plan of attack.
That nights discussion around the campfire was a match of aggressions between the two brothers.
Lion-o argued for another attempt into the jungle, Tygra on the other hand was firmly against it. The two would go around in heated debates before exhausted, finally retiring late in the evening.
The sun had hardly peeked over the mountains in the distance when Lion-o found himself staring at the giant trees that had mocked him since the first day.
If it was even possible they were larger and more ominous that he had remembered and ridiculing him for having the impudence to try and go against them in the first place. The words (I told you so) seem to be written all over their nonexistent faces.
He couldn't help himself from staring at them, cursing them.
In truth he was exhausted, both with this failure and the latest argument with his brother. No he thought, it goes much further back than now. Pumyra, the text stone, Cheetara, even the fall of Thundera, everything so far. All the missteps I had made, when will it be enough. How many blunders will I have to make, how many trials will I fail before finally becoming the wise leader my father believed I could be…
He felt drained, standing in the tall grass he sighed heavily. .
"You're up early," Panthro's voice startled him from behind.
"Yeah," he answered nervously. "I was having trouble sleeping."
"It's no wonder why," Panthro added, joining him at the front of the mighty jungle.
"There really something aren't they?" Panthro asked, sizing up the giant trees before them. "I've been just about everywhere on third Earth, and I've never seen them reach such heights."
"Yeah, there something," said Lion-o, in a low tone.
A few seconds of silence past before Lion-o gathered up the courage to ask the question that has been weighing on his mind.
"What would you do, I mean how would you go about finding the last stone?" he asked, stumbling over his words.
He figured the seasoned veteran would have some ideas.
Panthro smiled, it's the first time the boy King had asked for his help. The expression on Lion-o's face reminded him of the cub he knew long ago.
"We'll figure something out," he said, with a friendly but hard smack to Lion-o's back.
Returning to the camp the two discussed many ideas and in the end believed the best plan of action would be to scout around the brim of the jungle and hopefully find a easier passage in.
With the rest of the cats still asleep, Panthro and Lion-o set out among the swaying grass.
There long stocks were far easier to navigate through then the jungle's thick undergrowth. The grassy dunes that surround the jungle were puzzling, the ground look like a unsettled blanket on a bed, with many rises and falls.
The jungle stopped abruptly as if a invisible line drawn in the land, from there on the hilly ground sprung forward.
No matter where they tried the jungle block them at every pass, it was clear to see the trees weren't about to yield to them.
Climbing the rolling knolls to get a better look Panthro caught sight of an odd structure in the far grass.
Hiking higher in the attempt of getting a better look, he reaches the top and gets a full view of the rolling territory.
He hollers for Lion-o to join him.
"What is it," he asked, rushing over.
"What you suppose they are?" Panthro asked, pointing to a low valley at the east side of the jungle.
Lion-o was taken aback to see large black stones like pillars arranged neatly across the sprawling hillside.
The two cats hurried over to get a better look at the odd figures.
They were tall, black stones, smooth and shiny in the sun. Many were broke and lay in ruins among the grass, only a handful were still standing upright and straight.
Upon closer inspection Lion-o was stunned to see they weren't pillars but carved statues. To him they struck a familiar chord, like statues he had seen on the palace grounds.
"They look like cats," he said astounded.
"I believe you're right," Panthro agreed.
The two looked at each other in confusion then back at the structures.
They searched the stones for writing but found nothing, the weathering from the elements had worn down and degraded the objects.
With no explanation the cats were left to wonder about their existence.
The three largest statues still upright stood in a line on the peak of a large hill.
Lion-o standing at the foot of one of them noticed they looked over the jungle below, maybe from a top one of them he could see past the high trees of the jungle.
Informing Panthro of his plan the two climbed up the tallest ancient stone.
On the head of the large figure they looked out over the jungle once more.
Just like the first day from up in the feliner they saw the sprawling jungle stretched out for miles before them.
Panthro from through a pair of binoculars searched for a thinning of foliage but the canopy hid any weakness in the tree wall.
"Is there any hope," Lion-o asked, watching Panthro assessing over the immense jungle.
"Not from what I can see. Here, take a look for yourself," he answered handing the binoculars to Lion-o.
He eagerly looked through the glasses, panning up and down for any anything.
Lowering the glasses he sigh in disappointment.
"There really is no hope," he said glumly.
"Wait a minute," said Panthro, grabbing the binoculars from Lion-o's hand. He turned and focused behind them on something he'd noticed while Lion-o was looking over the jungle.
"What could be back there," Lion-o question a bit confused?
"It's there," Panthro exclaimed, pointing out over the grasslands and passing the binoculars to him.
Lion-o looked out the glasses in the distance where Panthro had pointed.
In the lull of two dunes he could see the edge of what looks like a chimney, scanning further he saw a roof then the edge of another building.
"Could that be a village," he asked, lifting his head from the binoculars.
"Looks like," Panthro confirmed. "And a village means people, hopefully people who know something about this blasted jungle."
Panthro quickly climbed down off the tall statue leaving Lion-o, who took a second look through the binoculars at the far-off village.
"How come we didn't see this before," he asked himself.
Panthro called to him breaking his self interrogation and he climb down joining the old cat on the ground. The two hurried back to the feliner to inform the others of their findings.
…
"If were lucky they have some information on this place," informed Lion-o.
"You hope," Tiger added.
"Nonetheless, it's the only thing we have to go on," Lion-o continued.
"I think it's a good idea," Panthro chimed in. "Even if we can't get information we can at least get more supplies, which were in desperate need of."
All the cats came to agree and it was decided that Cheetara, Tygra and Lion-o would go into the town. If they all were to go it might be a bit suspicious for the small village.
"I don't understand why we can't go," Wiley Kat grumbled, poking out his lower lip.
"Because we need to be quick," Lion-o answered. "We can't have you running around and causing mischief like in Dogtown."
"And besides," Tygra added. "We don't even know if this village is friendly."
The three cats through on their long, light blue cloaks and flipped up their hoods.
"Don't worry," Lion-o said looking back at the twins who were still moping. "We should be back in a couple days."
