Chapter 14: Shadow of the Tower
The roar of the waterfall emerging from the cliff wall echoed across the valley, the cats staring at it as well as the stretching emptiness between them.
"There's nothing here, all those traps just to protect more jungle!" Lion-O fumed, clenching his fists. "Maybe no one can find this temple because it doesn't exist!"
No, Leppria thought, no that couldn't be all there was. They didn't just almost die over and over to be met with nothing in return! Or maybe Lion-O was right… maybe the temple had only ever been hearsay… a rumor of treasures beyond imagination designed to lure enemies to their death, the Book of Omens just a fable lost to time…
Cheetara touched the king's shoulder, "Or maybe it just takes more than getting past traps to find it," she looked at all of them, the determination in her scarlet eyes picking them up one by one. "Believe in yourself… we all do."
As hopeless as things had seemed, they had already done more than one impossible thing today, so if anyone could find what couldn't be found, it was Lion-O.
Even if he struggled, or failed countless times, he was still their king. He'd already proven himself as a leader to them, but still couldn't entirely believe in himself, and it had held him back until now. Seeing them all now, having come so far and still believing he could lead the way, ignited something in his heart that had not been there before.
Taking a deep breath, and swallowing the fear in his heart, Lion-O lifted the Sword of Omens to his eyes.
"Sword of Omens, give me sight beyond sight!"
The Eye of Thundera blazed to life, Lion-O's eyes glowing brightly as a trance overtook him, gaze fixed forward but somehow seeing much more than any of them could. When the eye calmed and the glow faded from Lion-O's eyes, he blinked and looked down towards the waterfall.
"There's a switch…" stepping forward, they all saw it, the button resting on the side of the cliff beneath their feet. "I can't reach it."
"Allow me!" Tygra smirked as he grabbed his whip. He swung it and the leather cracked as the weights hit the switch.
The ground rumbled as the mechanism groaned to life, the waterfall before them parting like a curtain to reveal a shining tower. It stood like a beacon in the dark, carved heads of stone of previous Thunderan kings guarding the sacred temple as the wall of water fell around it.
"The Tower of Omens…" Leppria said, in complete awe.
"It is real…" Lion-O added.
A path rose from the bottom of the valley, and the cats smiled as they approached the temple. Panthro grinned, heart ablaze with pride. "I can't believe I finally found it! Guess all it took was the right partners…"
Inside, a spiraling staircase stretched up to the top of the tower, "The book must be up there," Tygra voiced.
Grinning proudly, Cheetara turned to the young lion. "You did it Lion-O!" she purred.
"Indeed he did…"
A voice like liquid ice echoed throughout the room, sending the fur on Leppria's back up as she felt her stomach drop. She remembered the fear she felt when Cheetara told her that the creature she grew up recognizing as a fairy tale was as real as them both, yet never thought she'd ever look upon the decrepit thing that stood in front of her now with her own eyes.
His skin was wrinkled and blackened by rot, with clawed fingers and sunken eyes that pulsed an ugly red.
Everything about him spread dread throughout her body, her instincts screaming at her to run. For the first time in her life, Leppria was staring in the face of pure evil.
Mumm-Ra.
"And it will be the last thing he ever does!"
Leppria stood frozen, in disbelief of what she was seeing. She had always been a cat who believed in science, not fairy tales, technology was something real that she could see and touch, but things like magic that had no logical explanation simply didn't register to her.
Even if Cheetara had sworn with everything she had that what destroyed Thundera was the monster of their stories, the fabled enemy of the Thundercats, Mumm-Ra… Leppria supposed she didn't truly believe her until now.
Until that very same nightmare was standing right in front of her.
The spell of fear over her broke temporarily when Mumm-Ra's wrinkled hand held up a glowing lantern, the blue flame inside wavering like a mirage every time she blinked.
"I lead him right to you…" the flame… spoke. "I'm sorry…"
Verdant eyes widened as she saw a face emerge from the light, his expression was worn and tired, but Leppria still recognized his wise face from his place beside King Claudus.
"Jaga…" Cheetara gasped. "You're alive!"
How the head cleric of Thundera had become a flame within a lantern Leppria had no idea, but her racing mind halted when her ears twitched against Mumm-Ra's scratching laughter. "Hardly, he's nothing but a vapor in a jar… and I have little use for him now."
The walking corpse smirked, lips tight over his yellowed teeth, before tossing the lantern aside.
"No!" Lion-O roared, face twisting in horror as the lantern fell. Cheetara however was faster, she dove for the lantern, barely managing to catch it in her claws before it could shatter against the ground.
She rolled out to her feet, but Mumm-Ra had counted on them saving Jaga. Shaking with laughter, he conjured a dark, viscous ball of energy from his hands and thrust it towards the cheetah. The blast hit her back and she fell to the floor with a yowl of pain, still holding onto the lantern and shielding it with her body.
Her haunches twitched but she didn't get up. "Cheetara!"
Tygra stopped his brother from running to her, knowing the rotting corpse would just blast him too. "We have to get to the book!" he said, pointing up.
Gritting his teeth and growling, Lion-O turned and began running up the stairs to the top of the tower. Tygra and Leppria wanted to go to Cheetara to make sure she was alright, but they knew their king had to get to the book before Mumm-Ra. They stood in front of the staircase, weapons drawn, and blocked the decrepit relic's path.
The bandaged creature looked at them and smiled, sending shivers all throughout Leppria's body, her finger trembling on the trigger of her cannon.
Panthro stepped in front of the two before the monster could do anything.
"Go!" he said, "Mumm-Ra's mine."
He grabbed his nunchucks from his belt, swinging them threateningly like a gorilla pounding its chest towards Mumm-Ra. Despite the General being nearly thrice his size, a strange static filled the air that made Leppria think he would still be outmatched.
"This sack of bones is no match for Panthro!"
The tiger and the leopard exchanged looks, both nodding before taking off after Lion-O while Panthro attacked the creature. He swung and jabbed despite the wrinkled creature's quick dodging, but was forced to his knees by another blast of dark energy. The cat's muscles shook from strain but he did not yield, standing tall before his enemy.
Bandages billowed in the wind as he laughed. "Do not be deceived by appearances… my true form is much more powerful…"
More energy seemed to conjure out of nothing from his hands, drifting like smoke all around his body as he inhaled it deeply.
"ψ A̶͕͇̱̦̎̓͠ͅn̸̤̭̪̙̍̔̉͗̾c̸̜̬̳̮̔̃i̸̧̳͓̕͜ĕ̷̟̭̟ǹ̶̽͊̾̉͜t̷͚̜͙́̐̈́ ̷̼͎̲̱̰̓̌͠͝s̷̗̳̑͊p̵̻̟̰͌̃̄͜î̷̱̘̼̝͊̉́̾r̶̠͚̂̍i̶̲̤̠̮̊̔͆̾t̸̛͍̆̄͐̂s̴̜̥̝͆͋ ̵̥̲͊ő̸̧̼͔̇̎̀̀f̴̩̥́̇͒̇̓ ̴̢̤̼̯̫̌ȅ̵̻̳̼̎̾͆v̶̳̏i̷̤͕̐̌̈̈́ͅl̶̳̅̋́̋.̸̥̲̩̆̈̊̆.̵͚̼̻̽͗̀̀͝.̷̛̣ ̶̡̮̽̐t̴̨̞̔͛͂̍̾ṙ̵̖̰͉͖̯͆̍̀͠a̸̧̛͍̤̣̠̽̆n̴͈̘̈́ṡ̵̢̩̮̙̟̿̈̀f̸̡͓͙͓͋ò̶̱́̋̔ŗ̷̄̽͘͠ḿ̵̙̘͙̗̩̆ ̷͉͗t̸̥͚̥̓̑̇ẖ̴̹̩̹̌͑͝ͅi̷̬̾̄̏͋s̶̠͌͆́̕ ̵̢̼̳̼̽̈́̕d̷̝̏͛̈́͂ͅe̶̡̝̭͋c̵̫̀͘͝ă̷̬̄̾́͝y̵̞̒͛̈́ḛ̶͔̭̅͠͠d̴̝͉̜̲̽̍̆͝͠ ̴̤͉̹̓̉̽b̷͕̜̬̈͐ò̴̦̳͗̿̐̕d̷̡͈͕̀̌̉͘͜ͅÿ̷̦͓͖̦͊̓́ ̸̧̿̾͝i̴̬̇͐̌͑̀n̴̥͙̳̅̐̈́t̵̡̛̮͕͓̽̒͆ͅo̵͖̖͗̅̇ ̷̲̠͒͋͝M̶̗̞̠̟̜̿͆͋̚u̴̖͛̎͑̕͘m̶͓̫͙͂̔́̈́͠m̷̧̥̟͚͑̃̄͝-̶͇͈̹̂̈́̂͛͠R̴̞̩̥̫̩͐̒͝ȁ̵̦.̵̲̾.̸̫̏̑.̷͖̖̖͊͜ ̸̰̠͒́̏͝T̷͎̾̽̓̊̚ͅḩ̷͎̳̈́ḛ̴̩̪͒ ̵̫̥̬̓͜Ẹ̶̮̞̉͐̒̓͝v̵̛̘̘́̉̚ȩ̶͈̑̂̍̔̔ȑ̸̢̧̭͈-̸̱̼̳͚̺̉̿͐̅L̵̡̛̛͙̗̩̒̈i̸̙̗͔̒̎̐̊͆v̵̳̽̔͛̀i̸̘̻͖̯̔̕ͅn̴̯̾̇g̵͚̍͒!̶̲͎̠̏̔͊̒ "
The black smoke then hardened like ice over his skin, transforming him instantly like a moth within a chrysalis from the shriveled corpse to a towering mass of muscle and coal-black flesh. A pair of leathery wings emerged from his back as another beam of energy spilled from his mouth.
Panthro cried out as the energy hit him in the chest, pushing him back to his knees as Mumm-Ra unleashed his full power into the cat.
Leppria clenched her hands tighter around her cannon, frozen with fear. Her paws were sealed to the steps until she felt Tygra harshly hit her on the back of her head, successfully jostling her attention.
"Don't look at him! Focus!" he growled, fangs bared.
Sparing only another glance backward before shaking her head, Leppria nodded and the pair continued upwards.
With his biggest obstacle out of the way, and seeing the two kittens who stepped in front of Panthro as no more than mere insects unworthy of his time, Mumm-Ra spread his wings and began to rise towards the peak of the tower, letting out a malevolent shriek as he did so.
A blast of energy exploded between Leppria and Tygra, forcing the two in different directions. Tygra managed to dodge and hide behind a stone column a short jump away from the stairs, while Leppria leaped to the next level of steps and disappeared among the vines that swamped the tower. Mumm-Ra was quick to abandon them as he continued to fly higher, but with a crack of his whip, Tygra was quicker to follow him.
The monster suddenly stopped midair, weighed down by something invisible to the naked eye. A plasma bullet shot him in the eye, and he fired back a more powerful blast at whatever was latched onto him. Tygra grunted as the brute of Mumm-Ra's energy hit him in the chest, his stealth ability crumbling as he was once again visible.
With a kick he shook the tiger loose, but he only latched on again with the help of his whip. "You won't shake me that easily!"
His taunting angered the creature as he prepared to unleash more energy, but his mouth clamped shut when a plasma blast exploded against his forehead. Two more rounds emptied against him, blinding Mumm-Ra as he hovered in the air, Tygra pulling his leg in every attempt to drag him down.
Roaring in frustrated fury, he viciously kicked the prince in the head, forcing him to let go. Leppria managed to hit the creature again before he saw her, shooting dark energy towards her that she only barely managed to dodge. Biting her tongue, the leopardess continued to follow Lion-O to the top, Panthro catching Tygra by his ankle and climbing the tower wall.
Lion-O did not look back despite the burning in his gut that told him to help his comrades; the Book of Omens came first. They had to get to it first, nothing else was more important than keeping it out of Mumm-Ra's hands. With heavy legs he finally reached the top platform, the endless jungle visible from the open windows.
Unable to see the book, he vigorously looked around until his ears twitched under the nearly untraceable hum of power just above his head.
It was there, wrapped in a cage suspended from the ceiling and almost completely covered by vines. The Book of Omens.
They were so close!
Lion-O reached for it, but was stopped when Mumm-Ra's scratching roar echoed off the walls of the temple, the creature having reached the top of the tower as he stood in all his monstrous presence before the young king.
"The Book of Omens and its power belong to me!" he bellowed.
A roar built in the lion's chest as he brandished his sword, the Eye of Thundera burning like the flaming beacon within a lighthouse, drawing all who were lost to it. "Thundercats, Ho!"
Whereas the cry of the scorched demon was ice cold throughout the temple, Lion-O's roar set the hearts of the Thundercats ablaze, pulling them from the darkness. On the ground, Cheetara pulled herself to her feet, Jaga's lantern still clutched in her arms.
Her eyes burned a fierce gold as she took off up the stairs, a yellow flash of light spiraling up the tower past Panthro and the others. Tygra couldn't stop himself from gaping in amazement, watching as the spotted woman reached the top in mere seconds.
"Close that mouth." Panthro teased, "You're drooling."
Tygra glared at the General but didn't say anything as they continued to climb.
At the peak, Cheetara saw the young king prepare to charge at Mumm-Ra, but before he could she twisted her body and kicked the monster to the ground. Shrieking in pain, the demon backhanded her across the face, forcing her to let go of Jaga as she tumbled over the edge of the platform, hanging on by her claws.
He lunged for her again, determined to watch her plummet to her death, but was once against shot in the eyes by Leppria's cannon. Once she hit him the leopard kept shooting him until she was close enough to grab Cheetara's hand and begin to pull her up.
"I've got you!" the redhead called as he rushed to help, distracted and unable to see Mumm-Ra rise up again and begin to conjure energy from his hands powerful enough to send static along Leppria's fur.
Her verdant eyes widened in horror when she saw that Lion-O's back was turned to the demon. "Lion-O no!" she cried, but it was already too late.
Mumm-Ra unleashed all of his power into Lion-O's back, pulling screams of agony from the king as liquid fire convulsed throughout his body. He dropped to his knees, his wrists crying out in protest when he tried to prop himself up only to collapse at the monster's feet.
Laughter pierced his heart like a knife. "You are very much like your father…"
Too weak to stand, Lion-O could only glare at the creature responsible for the end of Claudus's reign. He'd slithered into Thundera under cover of shadows and trickery, taking the face of his father's dear friend and using it to stab him in the back, laughing as his body fell into the water below while his sons watched.
"What do you know of my father?" he rasped, chest burning from strain.
"Only that I killed him!"
Every nerve and vein inside of him erupted in pain as Mumm-Ra hit him with a barrage of black plasma, the boy falling in a heap as he felt the last of his strength and more being ripped away.
Nearby, Jaga's lantern pulsed as the cleric's spirit stared helplessly from within the glass. "The boy is not ready yet… he cannot do this alone!"
Drawing on the last remnants of his power, mere droplets from a once mighty sea, Jaga summoned a bright light from the lantern. The light's intensity grew until it engulfed the tower completely, forcing the cats the shield their eyes as Mumm-Ra felt his flesh begin to burn.
Bubbling and smoking beneath his bandages, he cried out in fear. "The light… not the light! Rahhhhh!"
The glass suddenly shattered, releasing even more light, and the demon was forced to flee. Once again wrapped in black smoke, his monstrous true form vanished in place of a mangey black bird that quickly flew from the temple.
"The book will be mine!" he crowed, his caws of outrage fading into silence as the tower was still.
Leppria felt her jaw go slack from shock, staring dumbfounded between where Mumm-Ra had fled and the broken remains of the lantern, unable to explain any of it. It had been easy to dismiss superstition and stories, but this…
This could not be anything other than magic.
With her and Cheetara's combined strength, she managed to pull the woman back onto the platform, the two of them rushing to Lion-O's side as the king began to rouse. Once he was able to stand again, the yellow-haired woman picked up the lantern, now empty as Jaga was nowhere to be found.
"Jaga…" Lion-O whispered sadly.
Cheetara hugged it close, almost afraid to let go and be reminded of what was missing. "He sacrificed himself for you… for all of us."
Kit and Kat both whimpered, tails drooping as Tygra and Panthro both bowed their heads out of respect. Leppria was about to do the same, but noticed a speck of light dancing within the lantern.
She gasped, gaining the others' attention. "Look," she said, the cats watching as the fleck of light emerged from the glass towards Lion-O.
Leppria still did not quite believe in magic completely, but after what happened, she was willing to go on a little faith that Jaga was still with them, if only slightly.
The light flew upwards until it touched the cage that held the Book of Omens, and with a loud creak from the ancient tech, the cage began to lower itself towards them. Lion-O tentatively stepped towards it, cautiously brushing his claws along the spine of the book. When nothing happened, he grasped it firmly, its crimson stone glimmering in the light almost happily, as if it were finally in the right hands.
"At long last," he said, body tired but spirit strong. "We have all the answers."
Leppria clenched her fists to steady her shaking hands, excitement coursing through her veins as she watched Lion-O open the Book of Omens. He stared hard at the pages long enough for her to snap like a coiled spring.
"Well… what does it say?" she urged, eyes sparkling.
"It says…" he started, looking up from the book with a stunned expression. "Nothing… it's blank!"
They were all silent.
That satanic font was a blast to use! Stay tuned for next time when Leppria gets her mitts on the Books of Omens! Ciao!