Chapter 10
The group managed to make their way to the main chamber without much trouble which had Lion-O inwardly worried. What was the likelihood that Red-Eye and Alluro managed to do the same or were they waiting in the main chamber with a booby trap of their own? Maybe they just got lucky and Wizz-Ra put them on the right path when he opened the pyramid wall.
"I'm having that same feeling," Slythe spoke up, seemingly understanding the lion's concern.
"Oh so it isn't just me?" Panthro wondered, chuckling slightly.
"Way too easy, given past experience," Lion-O nodded.
"Here I thought you guys were just trying to freak us out," Commander Tiberius said before turning to his troops and saying,
"Light this place up like a Christmas Tree."
"Yes sir!" Quickly more light buttons were placed on nearby walls, thanks to special adhesive pads. Then the Evil Chasers made teams of three and spread out, clearing the room, and adding light wherever they could.
"So they aren't here. How much you want to bet they got themselves lost in the tunnels?" Slythe chuckled.
"I'm not taking that bet," Ben-Gali shook his head.
"And we're not going in there to find them. Too many ambush possibilities and it would force us to split up," Lion-O frowned.
"Corporal Ash, send out the robots. See if you can find any heat signatures," Commander Tiberius ordered. The small statured young man next to him moved the backpack he was wearing to his front, dug into the pockets, and pulled out a handful of tiny flying robots.
"Fascinating. You can get them to fly without any use of a controller?" Panthro asked.
"These are new heat-seeking drones, sir. I just have to send them in the right direction. If we stand at the entrance to each tunnel, I can release one and the computer I have still in the backpack will track their movements. Would you like to help?" Ash wondered.
"Most definitely," the panther was excited.
"I think Panthro's in love," Ben-Gali chuckled.
"They definitely have some awesome toys," Lion-O smiled.
"First Class, this is Commander Tiberius, come in," the Evil Chaser tried his radio but got nothing but static.
"The walls of the pyramid are probably too thick for radios," Slythe said.
"That doesn't exactly make me feel any better," Tiberius frowned.
"She has a wizard with her. How much trouble could Mandora get in?" The reptile asked.
"It's not her I'm worried about. If we need an immediate Evac, we're going to have a problem," the Commander said.
"Yeah that would be a problem," now Slythe was frowning.
"Commander! I lost one of the robots! It just went offline!" Corporal Ash shouted from his position near one of the tunnel entrances. He handed Panthro a light button and the panther slapped it to the tunnel wall before turning it on.
"That could be a booby trap," Lion-O said.
"These drones are supposed to be small enough to not trigger booby traps. It could be our Lunatak friends," the Corporal told him.
"Hey did anyone notice that Ma-Mutt doesn't seem to be here?" Ben-Gali suddenly asked.
"What's a Ma-Mutt?" Tiberius wanted to know.
"The ever-living dog of Mumm-Ra's. Perhaps it is he who took your drone out. He does seem to be missing," Lion-O looked around, noticing that Mumm-Ra's sarcophagus was closed.
"Slythe, with me," the King said. The Mutant gave him a look but followed, along with the Commander.
"You think he's in there?" Slythe asked in a low tone, hoping that if the dog was in there, he didn't hear him. Lion-O nodded and the two of the shoved the lid of the sarcophagus off. Inside, sure enough, there was Ma-Mutt but the horrible hound was looking a little worse for wear. He was pale and it looked like he'd sheared off his toenails on his front paws.
"I need some water," Lion-O said. Tiberius handed him a canteen and the lion gave some water to Ma-Mutt.
"There you go. Now how did you end up in there?" Knowing the animal could not respond, he was beginning to wonder how alone they were.
"He tried to claw his way out…" Slythe said. Lion-O looked up and saw the claw marks on the inside of the sarcophagus.
"The Lunataks are most definitely here and now they are sure they are not alone. Men, line up at the tunnel entrance! Blasters at the ready!" Tiberius shouted.
"What are you thinking?" The lion wanted to know.
"A few warning shots and then we go in," the Commander said.
To Be Continued…