Please Enjoy. I only own Snow, her staff and her culture/home also the italics are spells that are in Latin and I'll give the translation at the end
I would like to thank Heart of the Demons for the review
Chapter 10: - Forest of Magi Oar
We stood in the ancient forest and I could practically feel the magic radiating off the very air itself, currently Lion-O was attempting to use the Sword but it didn't seemed to be working meanwhile everyone else was setting up camp.
"I don't understand why the Elephants set us here. The Book says the Stone is in their village, Sword does too," Lion-O said.
"Maybe you're not seeing the forest for the trees Lion-O. We might not be able to see yet but coming here might be the key to locating the Stone there," Cheetara said.
"She's right you don't have to be a cleric to feel the forests magic," Tygra said, then he noticed me glancing around and the tension in my body "Scared of a forest?" Tygra teased but I sent him a hard look.
"No, this forest magical but something wrong and I don't like it," I said.
"Snow's right. There's something else here to a cheerless and gloomy presence, it's like the forest is inhabited by…," Cheetara said but the kittens cut her off.
"Ghosts!" They exclaimed and then began to mess about with Cheetara correcting them saying it was spirits instead of ghosts.
"Ghosts, Spirits, Soul. I don't care what you call then they all give me the willies," Panthro said.
The kittens continue to mess about even scaring Snarf at least until Panthro told them to get some firewood and they took the little creature with them.
Everyone continued to set the camp up but something made my hands start to twitch "Blood magic sense," I grumbled.
"What's wrong?" Lion-O asked and I showed him my hands.
"The magic in this forest is so tangible that my magic sense is going haywire resulting in this twitching," I explained and then he gripped on of my hands and it stopped.
"Maybe you need to hold something?" Lion-O but I shrugged and pulled my hand back.
"I don't know this is the first time something like this has happened to me outside of my home, hopefully it'll pass," I said and Lion-O nodded.
"By the way, thanks for asking," I told him and he smiled at me.
"No problem," Lion-O said and we went back to work and the kittens eventually returned with firewood and a slightly shaky Snarf.
Night had fallen on the camp but because of the magic I couldn't sleep so I simply leaned against the Thundertank and had my eyes closed but I still listened.
"He sounds like the Thundertank," Tygra said referring to Panthro's snoring.
"Father use to snore like that remember," Lion-O said, I knew it was still a painful subject for the royals and thus no one really mentioned the late king around then.
"How could I forget? It's the one thing you inherited form him," Tygra stated, I knew where this was going and so I pulled my stand out ready to hit one or both of them with it.
"You still don't think I should be king do you?" Lion-O asked obviously hurt by Tygra's lack of faith in him.
"Does it matter what I think? The Sword picked you," Tygra stated.
"Maybe it choose wrong, no matter how hard I try I can't master Sight Beyond Sight," Lion-O said.
"You just have to believe in yourself, she seems to," Tygra said obviously referring to Cheetara both boys have a crush on her and it aggravated me this was no time for petty love squabbles in my opinion.
"You know we're going to have to settle this eventually may the best Cat win," Lion-o said.
"I wish you two would let Cheetara choose who she likes," I said and I felt their eyes on me and so I opened one eye to look at them "Honestly we do not have the time and I do not have the patience for these silly rivalries or love squabbles we have to focus on what's important," I finished and close my eyes.
Suddenly I heard the kittens exclaim ghost and my eyes snapped open and I saw a glowing blue spirit with a white mask and green eyes "Trouble more like it," I said and I headed over to the others.
"And they're coming from the wood," Cheetara said, with her staff ready in her hands.
It shrieked at us but Tygra tried to shoot it but that didn't work and it disappeared "Oh yes do continue using a physical attack on an incorporeal being," I said sarcastically, the spirit re-appeared behind him and more appeared as well.
Cheetara attempted to stop them but that didn't work "Snow any advice?" Lion-o whispered.
"No except for run," I replied "But you won't do that," I added.
"Always say, the problem with ghosts is you can't punch them in the face," Panthro said.
"Don't worry I've got something that never fails," Lion-O said but when he tried to use the Sword it didn't lengthen "Until now," Lion-O added.
The spirits were about to attack us when suddenly "Be gone evil spirits or face the wrath of the Wood Forgers," A male voice said.
The spirits charged to where his voice came from "Nips scatter these spirits to the winds," The voice said and then winds began to blow forcing the spirits back "Gami fold them a nightmare so they can see what fear really is," He said and a giant paper creature appeared.
The spirits went to attack it but it just blew them away, a man jumped down a few feet away from us "And with a mere stroke of my brush your frenzy is put to rest," He said and when he drew a vase and the spirits were sucked into it.
"Did they just defeat them with paper?" Tygra asked unsure of what he had seen.
"Nunchucks are a weapon, swords are a weapon, paper isn't any kind of weapon," Panthro said.
"It is when used with magic," I said, as Lion-O walked up to the 'Wood Forgers' I believe the voice had called them with the kittens in front and the rest of us followed.
"I'm Lion-O Lord of the Thundercats," Lion-O introduced himself.
"Welcome Lion-O to the Magi Oar forest, we are the Wood Forgers," The leader said and then he threw a scroll into the air, it began to glow and then more glowing scrolls appeared and they were arranged in a way that was made it look like they were making a path to somewhere.
"Quickly now it's not safe here," The leader said and we followed him.
We eventually came to a large building structure "This is the School of Paper Arts and I am its head master," Zig the leader said "Tasked with training our students in the various disciplines of Wood Forging in order to carry out our mission to protect all in need," He added.
We were lead inside and Zig began to explain that the forest's magic was harnessed by then through the paper which they sued to protect it from a creature known as Viragor who was a monster but for some reason my gut instinct told me to not trust this man.
Zig continued to explain that until they built the paper mill Viragor almost drove them out and he explained that a Wood Forger would take one day to made one sheet whilst the mil could make thousands in that time.
I didn't like this, my instinct told me to stop the Forgers before something irreversible happened, later that night I was up on one of the roofs looking over the forest trying to understand what I should do and Lion-O was below me looking at the sword.
"Tell me Lion-O what brings you so deep into these woods?" Zig asked as I heard him approached the young Lion.
"I was sent here to see," Lion-O said.
"Then you should know seeing is about perspective," Zig said and sheets of paper appeared suspended in the air after Lion-O claimed it didn't look like anything the paper reformed into an image of Lion-O.
Suddenly a loud cawing sound could be heard and Zig said it was Viragor, I looked out to see a gigantic bird with an owlish face with ears shaped like the wings of a bat, white fur or feathers enwreathing his neck, and blue-grey feathers and wings. Two of his tail feathers were ribbon-like as they were longer than the rest and they trailed behind him, he has yellow eyes with white slits for pupils, and fangs on his beak.
"Get out of my forest," Viragor said and he began to destroy the mill, myself and Lion-O joined the Forgers on the ground and they began to attack Viragor "You forget, I'll always be stronger than you Zig I don't need paper to harness the magic of this forest," Viragor said and when Gami tried to attack him he used his wings to get rid of her paper and it knocked the Forgers into a pillar.
Lion-O tried to use the Sword but it wouldn't lengthen "Fantastic," I said and when Viragor was about to attack Lion-O Cheetara managed to block him with her staff but was taken into the air.
"Maybe the Sword's changed its' mind about you," Tygra said as he ran off.
"Shut up," I told him and we raced forward as well, Cheetara was almost eaten but luckily Tygra saved her I had pulled my cloak of miniaturized in and once more handed it to Kit for safe keeping.
Lion-O launched the claws from his gauntlet which could be used as a grappled, they wrapped around Viragor's foot but he just continued flying "Lion-O!" I yelled and I grabbed onto his waist and we were pulled of the ground.
"You idiot," I said as I tightened my grip on his waist whilst Viragor flew off with us.
Lion-O used the grapples to pull us in and we climbed onto Viragor and Lion-O used his fur to steer him down into the trees and smack into one allowing us to jump down and grab onto another tree "Do that again and I'll hurt you so hard Leo will feel it," I said and Lion-O nodded.
We dropped down to the ground but Lion-O pushed me out of the way in time so as to made sure that I didn't become lunch for Viragor, Lion-O once again tried the Sword but nothing worked and I guessed the Staff wouldn't work either.
Viragor came at us and Lion-O covered me but we were knocked back "Why aren't you working? What am I not seeing?" Lion-o asked but he seemed to realise something he then looked at me.
"What?" I asked confused by his look.
"Get rid of the Staff," He said and I stared at him in shock "Do you trust me?" Lion-O asked and I bit my lips knowing I could lie to him.
"Yes," I said and he smiled.
"Then leave the Staff behind," He said and I removed my belt which held the sheath which held the Staff, we stood up and tossed the weapons, sheath and gauntlet aside then Lion-O pulled me into a hug and instead of being eaten we were caught by Viragor in his claws.
"You're going to eat us aren't you?" Lion-O asked the giant bird.
"Thinking about it," Viragor responded.
"If we die I'm haunting you in the afterlife," I told Lion-O and he smiled sheepishly but I could see a blush on his cheeks and I knew I was blushing as well at our close proximity.
We had been flying for a while "You're getting heavy bugs, mind if I drop you off here," Viragor spoke.
"You won't because you're not evil Viragor are you," Lion-O stated.
"Have you not been paying attention?" Viragor asked.
"The Sword of Omens wouldn't work against you or the spirits, I thought it was me but it's because the Sword can't be used against a force of Good," Lion-o said.
"Interesting theory, willing to risk your life and the girl's for it," Viragor said.
"I am," Lion-O said and I smiled.
"Besides if you were evil you could have eaten us before instead of snatching us up," I stated.
"Let me show you something," Viragor said and he continued to fly across the forest "The Magi Oar is an ancient forest one I've care for, for centuries," Viragor explained.
"I thought that was the Wood Forgers job?" Lion-o questioned.
"They sure give that impression don't they," Viragor said "No they're merely guests who have outworn their welcome, I allowed them into the forest because I believed in their mission but Zig wanted more power that meant more paper and so he built the mill," Viragor said as he landed in a barren landscape completely devoid of wood except for the ends of trunks.
"What happened?" I asked as I covered my eyes from the shock, I was always told to respect nature for it held unique and powerful strength so to see such a place destroyed it was shocking to say the least.
"Once they were content with fallen timber, now they strip my forest," Viragor said and I could tell that this pained him "Can't they tell these trees are alive, that mill must be destroyed," Viragor finished.
"We'll help you," Me and Lion-O said at the same time as I felt rage coil inside of me I knew Zig was untrustworthy and now he would pay for harming this delicate and ancient forest.
We climb on to Viragor's back and he flew off to the mill but not before we retrieved our weapons, gauntlet and sheath, when we arrived the Forgers were about to attack when the Thundercats stopped them realising we were there was well.
When Viragor landed we hopped off and Lion-O walked up to Zig whilst I removed my Staff and lengthen it "You haven't been telling us the while story have you Zig," Lion-O stated.
"What is the meaning of this Lion-O, Snow?" Zig asked as if he was confused.
"Viragor's is not a monster," I stated to the other Thundercats.
"He did break my staff," Cheetara said and Viragor apologised.
"He is the true protector of this forest," Lion-O revealed and Zig got angry asking if Lion-O's sight was so clouded but before he could to anything else I punched him effectively silencing him.
"Lion-O's sight has never been clearer, you are strip mining this forest simply for paper and all because you are greedy," I spat the words at Zig who was shocked.
"It doesn't have to be this way Zig your school can exist in harmony with the forest," Lion-O said, but the Forgers refused to listen and they attacked us.
Zig created wings and took off into the sky, me and Lion-O hopped onto Viragor who gave chase to the greedy Forger.
"Nigrum Procellae," I chanted and spiralling black wind began to blow at Zig stripping away the paper but he still managed to fly.
"Impressive you're quite the sorceress," Viragor said.
"Thank you," I replied and Zig glared back at me.
We continued to chase him threw the skies he turned back and launched paper bombs at us "Obice," I chanted and a shield arouse in front of us and Viragor did some acrobatics in the air to dodge them as well but some of the bombs still got threw and they hurt Viragor and he crashed.
"The mighty Viragor broken and defenceless," I heard Zig say.
"Not whilst we still draw breath," I said as Lion-O lifted up Viragor's wing for he had protected us form the impact.
"You see my Sword and Snow's Staff seem to be working again, it's time for you to start seeing thing in a new light Zig," Lion-o said and when he chanted this time the Sword lengthen.
"Together?" Lion-O asked.
"Together," I replied and we crossed our weapons raising them to the sky and the red light and blue lighting seemed even stronger this time and we easily defeated Zig.
Viragor managed to get up and approach Zig "You are no longer headmaster of this school, I am," Viragor said and Zig ran off.
I stepped in front of Viragor and gently touched his chest "Sana," I said and a glowing green light appeared around my hand and it when into Viragor.
"Many thanks young Snow Leopard," Viragor said and I smiled at him.
The next day all of us were taken to the barren landscape "I owe you my thanks Thundercats," Viragor said and he placed his wing over and area and when he removed it a staff with a golden symbol in the centre was present "A gift from the oldest tree in this forest, it's alive with great magic," Viragor said and the staff glowed green.
Cheetara picked it up "I accept it with great humility," She said.
"Now Lion-O want to try putting what you learned to use," Tygra said and then Lion-O held out his hand to me I took it and stepped in front of him and our fingers intertwined and we raised our weapons.
"Sword of Omens," Lion-O said.
"Staff of Omens," I said.
"Give me Sight Beyond Sight," We said in unison and we saw where the stone really was.
"Lets' go get that stone," Lion-O said.
*Thundercats*
Snow's Spells
Latin version – English Version
Nigrum Procellae – Black Hurricane
Obice – Barrier
Sana – Heal