Chapter 18

Ben-Gali continued to compress Panthro's chest but Pumyra was getting nothing. The panther lay motionless.

"Cheetara! I need you to…" the puma didn't get the words out of her mouth before the cheetah was gone. Ben-Gali stopped compressing and began to use his fist on Panthro's chest. Within seconds, Cheetara was back carrying a defibrillator.

"Ben-Gali stop! Charge the paddles." Pumyra said. Quickly, she and her husband switched places.

"200! Clear!" Pumyra instructed as she placed the paddles on Panthro's chest. The panther's body jumped but there still wasn't a pulse.

"400! Clear!" Pumyra shouted again. This time Panthro's eyes open and he gasped for breath.

"Thank Jaga!" Cheetara said excitedly.

"Can you hear me? What's your name?" Pumyra asked hoping that the panther hadn't sustained any brain damage.

"I am Panthro, Chief Engineer of the ThunderCats." Came the reply. Pumyra smiled.

"It's good to have you back." She said. Ben-Gali came over and picked the puma up and swung her around.

"You did it!"

"With your help, I couldn't have done it without you." She kissed him. They separated and went about helping Panthro sit up.

"I think the best thing is to get him inside. He needs rest so he can recover properly. Lion-O and Ben-Gali can carry him." Pumyra said.

"That's going to be easier said than done, I'm afraid." Lion-O spoke for the first time. "I can't see."

"Let's get Panthro and Lion-O inside. Cheetara, run get the stretcher." The cheetah obeyed Pumyra and ran inside. Within seconds she was back. Carefully, Panthro was moved to the stretcher.

"All right. Now I'll hold this handle and you hold that handle." Pumyra pointed to the cheetah. Ben-Gali grabbed the other end and the three moved the panther inside.

Lion-O sat on the steps waiting for them to return. He blinked rapidly but the world was still black to him. How could he continue to be Lord of the ThunderCats if he was blind? Maybe the Sword of Omens could help him that was if he could find it. Lion-O had lost control of the Sword during the destruction of the evil being.

"Lion-O, I'm going to try something. Let me know if you can see it." The disembodied voice was Pumyra's. He nodded. The puma took out a flashlight and shone it into the Lord of the ThunderCats' eyes. His pupils didn't react.

"Anything?" She asked.

"No. What are we going to do?" Lion-O sounded nervous, it wasn't something the others were used to. Pumyra thought for a few minutes.

"Well, the next step is to run a scan of your eyes. It could just be temporary blindness due to the intensity of the light. Let's get you inside." She explained. Ben-Gali helped him to his feet.

"I'll take him." Cheetara volunteered. The white tiger smiled and let her take Lion-O's arm. At her touch, Lion-O turned his head.

"Come on. I'll help you." She told him. He smiled and the two walked slowly up the stairs toward the entrance to Cat's Lair. Pumyra and Ben-Gali went ahead to setup the equipment.

"I think I could get used to this." Lion-O joked.

"Me helping you out?" Cheetara smiled.

"Well lets face it when I'm older and arthritis has set into my knees, I suppose you'll have no choice." The lion continued to joke.

"Oh really? What if I don't want to?" Cheetara teased.

"I'll make an offer you can't refuse." Lion-O smiled. The cheetah laughed. They spent the rest of the walk to the sickbay, joking and teasing each other.

To Be Continued…