Spellbound
(Revised Edition, December 2008)
by Cheezey

Chapter Five

In the bleak territory of DarkSide, the trio of Lunatacs consisting of RedEye, TugMug, and Alluro arrived at the ruins they had fought the Thundercats at the day before. RedEye brought the Lunattacker to a stop and surveyed the area. "It shouldn't take too long to get the Thundrillium."

"Good," Alluro said sourly, still bitter that he had been railroaded into the rush fueling mission. "I'm exhausted. I got barely any sleep last night."

"It's your own fault," TugMug said with a shrug. "No one made you stay up all night in the control room." The graviton bounced out of the Lunattacker and began lifting heavy rocks in the excavation area with his gravity carbine.

Alluro frowned irritably and pulled some equipment out of the back of the Lunattacker. "Actually, TugMug, I was working. Not that I'd expect someone who does so little of it to notice."

"Working?" TugMug snorted incredulously. "Come off it, Alluro, you were just killing time while you waited up for Chilla. That's the real reason you're so pissy. That and the fact that she didn't return."

The hypnotist's eyes narrowed. "I think not. You may not understand the intricacies of Skytomb's network, but I was doing maintenance on one of the energy systems. RedEye can tell you how buggy it's been lately."

RedEye grunted as he lifted some rocks containing Thundrillium ore. "The fourth level system has been buggy enough that it's been giving me trouble, and I'm the one who coded it," the darkling said evenly. "But I don't see why the middle of the night would be the time to tackle such a project, especially considering you were in a coma only hours earlier."

"It doesn't matter," Alluro grumbled in reply, and stalked back toward the Lunattacker to retrieve another piece of equipment.

The rest of their conversation was interrupted as a rumble in the distance became loud enough to catch their attention. They turned in the direction of the noise and saw, to their dismay, the Thundertank roaring toward them. "The damned cats," TugMug growled. "Take them out!" Red Eye and Alluro nodded and jumped back into the Lunattacker, while TugMug wheeled toward them with his carbine aimed.

The Thundertank fired several shots on the three Lunatacs, knocking TugMug backward before he could react. Alluro aimed one of the firebomb cannons at the tank and fired back, but Cheetara's marksmanship was better than his that day and she was able to disable the Lunattacker's engines and power with a carefully aimed blast and shut it down. Once Lion-O swerved out of the way of the fiery blast from now-stopped enemy vehicle, he brought the Thundertank to a stop and climbed out with Cheetara, hand weapons drawn.

"I believe that Thundrillium is ours," Lion-O announced authoritatively. "We found it first, and began mining the site for ourselves. You've no claim to it, Lunatacs."

The Lunatacs were not impressed by Lion-O's speech. "You know how the saying goes, Thundercats. Finders keepers..." RedEye sneered as he dismounted from the Lunattacker and fired his sidewinder at them several times in rapid succession. Both Lion-O and Cheetara leapt to avoid being hit by the blasts, and the cheetah used her lightning speed to double around behind the darkling and knock him to the ground with her staff.

TugMug raised his gravity carbine to fire upon Cheetara, but Lion-O saw his attack coming and raised the Sword of Omens to protect her. He let out a loud cry of "Hoooo!" and a beam from the sword knocked TugMug backwards, sending the gravity beam meant for Cheetara off into the sky.

Alluro joined into the fray by swinging his psyche club, and he sent the pulsing aqua crystal on his weapon to float above Lion-O's head. "Give up, Lion-O," he urged hypnotically. "We outnumber you. We outpower you. You cannot hope to defeat us. You are helpless."

The lion's eyes glazed over as he was caught in the beam, and Cheetara knew she had to act fast. Fortunately for her Lord, fast was her specialty. In a flash she was behind Alluro, bringing her staff down on the hypnotist's head before either RedEye or TugMug could move to stop her. He let out a yelp of pain and whirled around, but that broke his concentration, and his hold over Lion-O was lost.

"They should've left you in your coma," Cheetara hissed.

Lion-O shook off the last of the hypnotic effects and shot all three of the Lunatacs with a beam from the sword to stun them.

The battle now won with the Thundercats the victor, the two tied up the defeated Lunatacs loosely, their binds just confining enough to keep them out of their way while they decided what to do with them. Lion-O and Cheetara exchanged a look, and then loaded the unlucky trio into the Thundertank's storage bay for the time being. Once that was taken care of, they proceeded to load the mined Thundrillium into the storage bay right next to them.

"If you think you'll be able to hold us as prisoners, you're wrong, Thundercats," TugMug growled.

Cheetara narrowed her eyes as she laid a hand on the hatch. "Oh believe me, we don't want you. Don't worry, we'll be sure to drop you off somewhere near Skytomb before we take our Thundrillium back to the lair."

"Of course, riding with the Thundrillium in the back, the ride might be a little bumpy..." Lion-O laughed.

The Lord's mirth was cut short when a growl from Eye of Thundera came from the sword in his claw shield. "The sword!" he exclaimed. "Someone's in trouble!"

"Tygra!" Cheetara whispered, fearing the worst for their missing friend.

Lion-O lifted the sword out of its sheath and held it to his eyes. "Sword of Omens, give me sight beyond sight!"

A troubling vision of the Thunderkittens being cornered, struck at, and overpowered by the supernatural form Damien came to him. "Oh no," he breathed, dropping the sword.

"What happened?" an unimpressed RedEye sneered from inside the storage bay. "Snarf forget to use the litter box?"

"Shut up," Cheetara snapped, glaring angrily at the captive Lunatacs only for a moment before turning to Lion-O. "What is it? Is it Tygra? Is he hurt? Is he…"

The young Lord shook his head. "No. It's the Thunderkittens. They were attacked and captured by some evil demon creature calling himself Lord Damien, in a place that appeared to be in a landscape like that of the unicorn forest."

His announcement stunned everyone, including the Lunatacs. "Did you say 'Damien'?" Alluro questioned, with a hint of worry in his voice.

Lion-O turned to the captives and regarded them with a quizzical, impatient frown. "Yes, why?"

"Damien is the name of the man that Chilla..." his voice trailed off.

"Ran off with," RedEye finished. The tied up Alluro next to him shot RedEye a dirty look.

"It can't be the same guy," TugMug argued. "Chilla said he was good looking, and I don't think a demon is her type. None of us like Mumm-Ra that much."

Alluro struggled within his binds, feeling a sudden sense of urgency, but he could not wiggle out of them, especially with all of the bulky Thundrillium rocks blocking his way. "But it is in the unicorn forest isn't it? And don't forget, that's where Jackalman disappeared as well."

"Wait, Jackalman disappeared?" Cheetara asked, turning a curious gaze toward the bound Lunatacs. Her intuition tingled, and although she also felt that they needed to find the kittens as soon as possible, she had a feeling that the Lunatacs might be able to give them the information that would allow them to piece it all together. Although she did not trust them, the news that both Jackalman and Chilla were missing and that Chilla was last seen in the company of a creature bearing the same name as the kittens' captor was important enough a lead to pursue. "That's very odd. Tygra is also missing."

"No real loss," RedEye growled.

Cheetara ignored him and continued, glancing between the Lunatacs and Lion-O. "He left to be with a woman named Celeste, the one who gave him the means to heal me. The Thunderkittens left to search for him in the Unicorn Forest."

"What?" Lion-O exclaimed, stunned by Cheetara's revelation.

"They weren't defying your request to leave him in peace, Lion-O," she said quickly, holding up a hand while she explained. "I talked with them, and they had no intent to invade his privacy, they just wanted to make sure he was all right."

Lion-O frowned. "I'm not exactly angry, but now they're in danger for their curiosity. I hope we can get there in time." He climbed back into the Thundertank and started the engine

"Yes, that's the most important thing," Cheetara agreed. "First Tygra vanishes to be with Celeste, now this Damien has captured the Thunderkittens, and we find out Chilla—who also disappeared—is involved with this man. And to top it all off one of the Mutants is missing to boot, vanished in the same area." She reached to shut the compartment holding the Lunatacs so they could be on their way.

"Wait!" RedEye interrupted. "Who is Celeste?"

"Celeste is the healer who gave Tygra the elixir to save Cheetara," Lion-O called out.

"Isn't she the one who gave it to you too?" Cheetara asked the Lunatacs. "I know you must have gotten some sample of it, or Alluro would still be comatose."

Alluro shook his head. "No, Damien is the one we obtained it from. He gave it to Chilla. That's how they met."

"And she left to see him later that night," TugMug added. "She never came back. Looks like your tiger friend did the same thing. So much for Thundercat loyalty," he finished with a sneer.

Ignoring the barb, Cheetara's eyes grew wide with terrible realization. "He gave me the elixir and then left with only a note saying he wanted to be with Celeste. When he was in the Lair, he kept saying how beautiful and wonderful she was."

"That's exactly what happened with Chilla," Alluro said, frowning at the cheetah. "She was acting very strangely, as if she cared for this Damien, and when we questioned her on it she got defensive and left."

Lion-O groaned, overhearing the conversation from within the Thundertank. "And if Damien is what I saw in the Eye, and treated Chilla in the same way Celeste did Tygra, then that means Celeste must—"

"She's just like him," Cheetara said, horrified. "And she has Tygra in her power, while Damien has the kittens! Lion-O, we have to get there now. Call the others!"

"What about us?" RedEye demanded.

"You'll just have to hang out in the storage compartment in the back for a little while longer," Cheetara replied, and slammed the hatch shut. The Thundertank took off with a roar toward the forest, much to the Lunatacs' discomfort.

The bird that the Mutants pursued slowed in flight and swooped downward into the unicorn forest. The Mutants followed, recognizing the area as the same general area in which Chilla had gone with the now missing Jackalman the day before. Once on the ground they parked their vehicles on the forest floor, while the bird perched on the branch of a tree at the edge of a path. It began to caw loudly, trying to draw their attention.

"The eagle has landed, and I don't see Jackalman," Slythe growled. "So what now, Vultureman?"

"Caw, how the in the name of Plundarr am I supposed to know?"

"Well you are the bird-Mutant, yesss? It was your bird-brained idea to follow that bird, so you tell us!"

Vultureman sighed and surveyed his surroundings. "I suppose we could start by following this path."

The bird's caws fell silent as Vultureman spoke, as if to indicate that he was correct.

"Hoo hoo, I could have guessed that much," an unimpressed Monkian grumbled. "Let's not waste any more time. The sooner we find Jackalman, the sooner we get back home." He started off down the dirt road, and Vultureman and Slythe fell in step and followed.

It was not long before the group of Mutants came upon the hidden village. They saw Celeste and Damien's manor in the distance and decided that it would be the most logical place to begin looking. Clutching their weapons, they stomped defiantly toward it. When they approached the gates, they found them empty and unguarded, which might have struck them as strange had they been thinking strategically, but it did not concern them and they pushed their way in. They passed a few wispy-looking human-like servants, but they shrank away from the terrible creatures, knowing themselves to be no match for the intimidating trio of Mutants. Soon they found themselves looking into the courtyard.

There they saw Chilla dressed in an uncharacteristic outfit stretched upon a chaise lounge, casually eating what appeared to be a frozen confection. A human-looking male sat beside her, his arm draped around her shoulders in what seemed more of a possessive than affectionate gesture. When they looked to the other side, they could also see Tygra, standing obliviously with a woman who bore a resemblance to Chilla's lover. What they did not see was Jackalman, and that made them furious. It would seem that their suspicions of Chilla and foul play with her stranger were correct. Snarling with rage, the three Mutants charged into the courtyard, weapons at the ready.

"What have you done with Jackalman, yesss?" Slythe demanded in a loud hiss.

All four of them turned toward the intruders. Damien and Celeste exchanged brief looks, and regarded the interlopers with a cold and angry glare, while their victims, Chilla and Tygra, eyed them with a surprised and startled look. Whoever they might have expected to show up in Celeste and Damien's palace, the Mutants were not it.

Tygra blinked as the reptilian spoke. "Slythe?"

Chilla narrowed her gaze in clear irritation at the Mutants. "Why are you here?"

Vultureman stepped forward and put his hands on his hips in a defiant stance. "Caw," he began, "we have evidence that Jackalman's disappearance is related to someone in this place. And since you're here, Chilla, and you were the last one to see him, I think you know something about it. I highly doubt it's coincidence."

The ice Lunatac was on her feet in a flash, her temper flaring despite the effects of the food, drink, and magic that sedated her. "Worthless throwback! How dare you come here and accuse me of anything?"

Damien quickly joined Chilla's side, and addressed them in a dark and dangerous tone. "You disgusting Mutants have the audacity to barge into our home and accuse my dear sweet Chilla of treachery? I suggest you leave now, before you are forcibly removed."

Monkian could not help but laugh rudely at the man's description of the Chilla he knew. "Hoo hoo, Chilla sweet? That's rich! She's the meanest bitch that's ever set foot on Third Earth."

A low growl came from the disguised demon, and in a flash he grabbed Monkian's arm and twisted it in a deceptively strong hold. "You will apologize to the lady now, Mutant."

Slythe raised his weapon to strike but could not help but laugh at the image of a vicious Lunatac warrior like Chilla called a lady. "Show ussss one and we will," he roared with a cruel laugh.

Damien's blue eyes flashed an infuriated red, but Celeste glided between them before the confrontation went further. Though she was as angry as her brother, she was not willing to let his temper cost them both their newest victims and their even more precious energy by showing them their true forms too soon. "Remain calm, Damien. These loathsome creatures aren't worth the energy it would take to dispense of them." She turned to face the trio of Mutants. "If you've come here to make yourselves heard, then state your business. Now."

Damien snarled, but relented his grip and released Monkian. The simian shook his arm and moved to strike back, but Slythe blocked him with his weapon before he could finish and Vultureman stepped forward. "Our fellow Mutant Jackalman disappeared, and we have reason to believe he was in this area when he disappeared, caw, and as we already said, Chilla was the last one to see him."

The icewalker exhaled a frosty mist that visibly showed her growing irritation. "And I told you losers that I don't know—or care—what happened to him!"

Her denial only served to incense Slythe further. "You're a liar," he hissed accusingly. "And we will get the truth from you, Lunatac, even if we have to beat it out of you!"

Tygra stepped forth to do his part to smooth things over as a favor to his mistress. "Now Slythe, I know Chilla's nature as well as you, I'm sure, but she's not lying about that. She's been here the whole time with us and none of us have seen Jackalman."

The Mutants turned and faced the Thundercat, surprised to hear him speak up in defense of one of the Lunatacs. "No one asssssked you, Thundercat," Slythe replied darkly. "And besides, what makes you think Chilla isn't lying? A Thundercat of all things should know from past experience that this icy bitch would jusssst as soon kill you as look at you."

Celeste took a step toward the Mutant trio. "Tygra speaks the truth. He's spent enough time with us to know our village is an entirely peaceful one, and no villainy or treachery takes place here. It is indeed unfortunate that your friend is missing, but I assure you that we know absolutely nothing of the whereabouts of your missing Mutant," she informed him coolly. "Now kindly take our information and leave our home."

"Immediately," added the still-seething Damien.

Their conversation was abruptly cut off when the Thunderstrike landed on the opposite end of the courtyard.

The three captive Lunatacs in the storage compartment of the Thundertank grumbled and groaned as they were tossed like so much dead weight back and forth against the rough rocks and metal walls of their confinement. It was clear Lion-O's driving was not the most gentle, but the Thundertank was designed for functionality, not comfort, and Panthro never took into consideration that anyone might need a comfortable ride in the storage compartment.

"Ouch!" the very aggravated Alluro growled as he was thrust against a rock that dug deeper into his skin when the bulk of RedEye's torso slammed into him. "For all the forgiveness and benevolence nonsense they always spout, those Thundercats certainly don't seem to feel any guilt in subjecting someone who was in a coma less than a day ago to a ride like this."

"Oh, quit your whining about the coma already," TugMug snapped. "That elixir left you in perfect health, so you're no worse off than we are. Shut up!"

The tank lurched again, and the ropes on RedEye's hands caught on a jagged rock, stretching their limits significantly. The darkling immediately noticed the advantage and managed to wriggle out of them. "Hey... my hands are free."

"Good," Alluro replied grouchily. "Now untie us so we can get out of here."

The three Lunatacs squirmed and wriggled around in the dark, cramped space as best they could to allow RedEye to remove their binds. It only took a few minutes, but it felt much longer to the very uncomfortable trio. Once they discarded the last rope, RedEye pushed hard on the closed hatch keeping them imprisoned. "We're still locked in. Even not bound, it'll take us a while to break out of here," he said with clear disappointment in his voice. "Most likely they'll hear us and stop to make sure we're secure as long as they're in the tank itself, so we'll have to wait until they stop before we can blast our way out of here."

TugMug reached into a pocket and pulled out a communicator. "Maybe I can reach Luna and have her speed things up for us." He switched the device on and entered the code to page Skytomb.

"Luna here," came the shrilly reply through the speaker. "What is keeping the three of you? I've been trying to page you on the Lunattacker for the last twenty minutes for a progress update. Haven't you loaded that Thundrillium yet?"

"We ran into some feline difficulties, Luna," TugMug explained, wincing at the volume and how unpleasantly her voice echoed against the metal. "They got the better of us and have us trapped in the back of their damned Thundertank."

"With the Thundrillium, to add insult to injury," Alluro added.

"What?" came Luna's infuriated response. "Can't you idiots do anything without me there to keep you in line?"

RedEye scowled and made a rude Plundarrian gesture at the communicator, while TugMug answered her.

"Just use Skytomb to track the Thundertank to back us up. We're going to make a break for it when we stop."

"All right," she squawked back, "I'll be there shortly, but try not to screw anything else up in the meantime, if you can manage that much. Luna out."

From her hiding spot in the shadows, the former servant Mirlana watched the Mutants confront Celeste and Damien, and the heard the Thunderstrike coming in for a landing. She steeled herself for the inevitable, realizing that the time for her to stop standing by and take action had finally come. It's time. Finally Damien and Celeste's evil will be stopped. She took a deep breath, and ran for the dungeon.

She flew down the stairs, not allowing herself the luxury of time to think about the consequences of her actions. When she came into the room she saw Jackalman and the Thunderkittens trading insults.

The jackal's interest shifted from them to her when she entered, however, and his canine eyes brightened when he saw her. He took her new warrior maiden attire as a positive sign that something was happening. "You! You came back! Did you get us help?"

WilyKit and WilyKat eyed the woman in shock. "You're friends with him?"

"After I set you free, I hope you would call me a friend too. I've come to help you. What Celeste and Damien are doing is wrong, and I'm ashamed to say that I stood by silent and afraid for too long, for too many years, while they've played their games and took so many of the innocent."

"I wouldn't call Chilla 'innocent'," WilyKat said quietly, and both his sister and Jackalman, in spite of his inherent dislike of the feline children, smirked at his remark.

The humor of the situation was lost on Mirlana. "It doesn't matter. I can't watch them to do to her and Tygra what they've done to so many others, and what they did to me so many years ago." She retrieved the keys from their hook by the door and unlocked Jackalman's cell. "Your friends from Castle Plundarr are here, and they were followed by a vehicle that bears the same insignia as the one worn by Tygra and the children here."

"The Thundercats are here?" WilyKit said hopefully. "Don't worry, they'll help us and set things right."

"Nyah, and the Mutants will give that worthless pair of demons what is coming to them once I let them know what happened."

"Then let's waste no more time," Mirlana said as she freed the kittens from their cell. "Follow me. It's time to put those immortal fiends in their place."

The four of them hurried out of the dank dungeon and up the twisted stone staircase to the hall above. In the hall, Mirlana stopped and pointed in the direction of the courtyard. "You'll find your allies there, confronting Damien and Celeste. Hurry!"

"What about you?" WilyKat asked.

"I'll make my own appearance."

Trusting that she knew what she was doing, the Thunderkittens and Jackalman did not question the former slave further, and hurried to join their countrymen in battle. As they approached they could see the other Mutants facing off with Celeste and Damien, while Tygra and Chilla looked on in an oddly detached fashion. When they got closer, they could see Bengali, Pumyra, and Lynx-O disembarking from the Thunderstrike, preparing to confront the demons themselves. WilyKat turned briefly to call to Mirlana to let her know what was going on, but to his surprise she was no longer in sight and already gone.