Chapter 7
The weather cleared only a few hours before the Evil Chasers were due to arrive. Lea, Mumm-Rana, and Wizz-Ra headed to the Lair in the ThunderTank, hoping to pick up the new pieces of railroad track. The ancient female sorcerer had managed to use her magic to check on the inside of the mine. As far as she could figure the sensors had frozen. Panthro and Ben-Gali were heading into the mine with a team of Mutants to check out the sensors and to figure out if they could build large doors to cover the mine entrance.
"I think you're having too much fun driving this thing," Wizz-Ra commented from the back of the vehicle as they hurdled over the snow and through the Third Earth terrain.
"It's a good thing that we have tracks on this thing. Tires would just be about useless," she chuckled.
"I didn't survive thousands of years to die in this contraption," the ancient wizard told her.
"Lighten up. This is probably the most fun I've had in a thousand years," Mumm-Rana was enjoying the ride through the deep snow from her seat next to the lioness.
"We're almost to the Plain of Fertility. Then it's just a short drive home," Lea smiled as they bounced along. The radio crackled to life, Slythe's voice came over the air waves,
"Cat's Lair to ThunderTank, come in ThunderTank."
"Mumm-Rana here. We're about thirty minutes out," the ancient female sorcerer replied.
"Excellent to hear. See you soon," he told them.
"Not much of a Chatty Cathy is he?" Mumm-Rana asked.
"Chatty Cathy?" Lea was confused.
"First Earth phrase, sorry. It means someone who talks a lot," she explained.
"Ah. Yeah he doesn't chat much on the radio. Get some liquor in him and look out," the lioness chuckled.
"Good to know," Mumm-Rana smirked as Lea steered the Tank into the Plain of Fertility. It was a straight shot to the Lair and the lioness pressed the gas pedal closer to the floor of the ThunderTank. Wizz-Ra grabbed onto the seatbelt for the seat next to him and held on for dear life. He could take on an army of Mumm-Ra's undead servants but riding in the Tank was just too much.
"The Tank is now within viewing range," Cheetara announced to Slythe as he walked back into the Control Room with coffee for them both.
"Excellent. How's the Evil Chasers' progress?" He asked handing her a cup of the hot liquid.
"They've made contact with Panthro at the mine. They should begin to offload the equipment within the next three hours," the cheetah told him as she accepted the cup, glad for its warmth.
"We need some wood to knock on," the lizard said, not wanting to jinx their improved fortunes.
"I would agree but you would have to go down to the dining room to find something wood to knock on," she chuckled.
"Hangar to Control Room," it was Captain Samson.
"Hi Captain. All good down there?" Cheetara asked.
"We're all set. Tell Lea to back the Tank into the hangar if she can. Things are a little tight down here," the liger relayed.
"All right, you got it," the cheetah ended the call and quickly picked up the external radio and alerted Lea to what needed to happen. The lioness promised to do her best as they approached. Backing into the hangar was only something Panthro did and he only ever let Lea do it. No one else was even allowed to attempt it since it was difficult to do in the Tank when not flirting with the building or the edge of the ground, with the moat below. Slythe had a bad feeling and announced,
"I'm going down there to make sure the pathway is clear. The last thing we need is the ThunderTank slipping off the edge of the property."
"Get some help from the guys down in the hangar," Cheetara said.
"Will do. I'll keep you posted," the lizard promised.
To Be Continued…