Attention Readers: I have a wedding to attend next weekend. Sadly, I won't be able to post anything until the fifteenth. I hope you enjoy the story and can wait for the next chapter.

Chapter 9

Lion-O deflected a shot from the blaster with the Sword. The Lord of the ThunderCats didn't want to fight with Panthro. Not only was he his friend but also Jaga had expressly forbid fighting amongst each other.

"Panthro listen to me! We cannot fight like this! Jaga forbade it!" Lion-O was trying to reach the panther's real conscious self.

"I don't listen to Jaga or you! I will destroy you and rule this planet!" Panthro growled in return. He fired another shot and again Lion-O deflected it. The Lord of the ThunderCats knew that Tygra had been shot and he couldn't wage a lengthy battle if he was to save his friend.

"Jaga forgive me." Lion-O muttered. He raised the Sword of Omens and shouted,

"Ho!" An energy blast shot out from the Sword. Panthro ducked it and fired with his blaster. The shot hit Lion-O's leg. He roared in pain but shouted again,

"Ho!" The Sword of Omens continued to shoot energy blasts. Back and forth the two ThunderCats went. Panthro ducked behind a desk and continued to fire shots with his blaster. Lion-O had to find some cover and fast. However, the prison room had been left barren on purpose.

Cheetara rolled over. An immense pain welled in her head. She could hear the blasting and shouting. Carefully she looked around to see what was happening. Panthro had Lion-O pinned behind a bed from one of the cells. It was obvious that the bed wouldn't hold for much longer. She had to take action.

Then she realized that Tygra was still lying on the floor. Cheetara couldn't tell if he was still breathing and it scared her. Indecision floated in her mind. Should she try to get Tygra out of there and try to help him? But if she left Lion-O alone then there might not be a point to trying to save Tygra. It was then that she felt something touch the back of her head.

"Get up." Panthro ordered. Cheetara cursed herself as she eased up off the floor. Her indecisiveness had cost her dearly. Now it was too late to help Lion-O or Tygra.

The panther grabbed her left arm and pulled her close as she winced in pain. Her earlier injury had yet to heal.

"Come on." He said as he dragged her toward the bed. Something seemed strange about the whole situation. Cheetara again had this nagging in her head. She looked at Panthro and noticed his right shoulder had been seared by Lion-O.

"Lion-O! Come out of there!" Panthro shouted as he held the blaster to the cheetah's head.

"I know I didn't kill you. If you're trying to trick me, it won't work. I've been around for thousands of years. You cannot outsmart me." The panther continued to speak. There was silence.

"Fine. I know you don't care anything about Cheetara so me killing her will have no effect on you." The barrel of the blaster was placed firmly against the cheetah's head. A ThunderCat is taught to be fearless but right now fear seeped into her mind. There would be no coming back if Lion-O was really dead.

It was then that Lion-O's red hair appeared up over the top of his cover. He raised his hands into the air.

"All right. Leave her alone. This is between you and me." The Lord of the ThunderCats said.

"No, this is all about me and the control I want. I will rule this planet with or without you. Without you would be easier." Panthro told him.

"Say goodbye." He said as he moved the blaster from Cheetara to Lion-O.

To Be Continued…