Chapter 12 – Calm Before the Storm
Far out in deep space, a lone ship carrying a crew of a hundred was flying at top speed towards a blue planet, known as Third Earth. The small flight deck consisted of ten crewmembers with their captain sitting directly in the center. A low growl was emitted from the captain as he remembered Safari Joe interrogating him when he arrived on his planet, returning from Third Earth. The man kept asking questions about his daughter and what happened to her. All his questions were eluded but the captain had to restrain himself from threatening the game hunter's life.
It had been nearly been six months since he was supposed to have been married. A problem that he quickly evaded by saying she died in an accident. No one ever questioned his words or his orders. He was known very well on his planet, so well in fact everyone treated him like a king. No one defied him, until he met his fiancée and her brothers. He was glad they were gone but with Safari Joe asking questions, he began to wonder if they actually survived.
After being badgered by the game hunter, he quickly got a crew ready and launched one of his quickest ships to reach the planet his fiancée had crashed on. He needed to know what really happened to her. Was she dead or did she survive? He needed to know to either force her to come back to him or shut her up for good by his own hands.
"My Lord."
The sound brought him out of his thoughts. He looked down at the crewman who interrupted his thoughts. The man stood before him, slightly bowing. "The coordinates have been set and we're at top speed. So if I may ask, what is our heading?"
Evading the question, he asked. "Were you on the ship that attacked the traitors?"
"Yes, I was. I piloted the ship. They had good manoeuvring abilities. Whoever led the ship did a good job."
A slight growl was heard before the captain said anything more. "Was there anything left of the ship when it crashed on the planet?"
"The ship was completely engulfed in flames before hitting the atmosphere. I can't see anyone ever surviving."
"But you never checked to be sure."
The man slightly quivered in fear. No one ever tried to question their lord mainly because they were afraid of his wrath. He had been known to strike out when he didn't get what he wanted. "Actually, sir…we did not. Our ship was too badly damaged. We had to make repairs or we would have ended the same way."
The captain turned away in frustration. He had read the ship's reports; they had sustained heavy damage. "To answer your question, we are heading to Third Earth., the planet the ship crashed on. She may have escaped destruction. If she has, she will pay for her treachery.
"Alana is a very resourceful woman. She is the daughter of the greatest game hunter in the universe, Safari Joe. She would have been the one who captained the ship, which was no doubt learnt from her brothers. They have always been protective of her."
A plump woman came up from behind him, with a plate of food. She pulled a nearby table and set it down beside the captain's chair. "My Lord," she said.
He turned away in slight disgust at the woman. From the time he was young, a big woman had always been the cook and she was no different. She was the cook and the only cook on his ship. That was her purpose. And her cooking was the only thing keeping her employed as his personal cook. He stood from his seat, getting away from the woman.
"Why is she so important?"
"BECAUSE!" he yelled, snapping around and glared at her. Though she was big, he marvelled at her courage. She was the only one who questioned his motives and she didn't even fear him or at least fear him in the open. "She should be pregnant with my heir right now! But as you can see I'm not about to produce an heir!"
He stormed over to her, brining his hand up towards her neck but stopped just inches from her. In a very low voice, only she could hear, he spoke. "Leave before I strangle you where you stand. You are still alive because I like your food and your daughter begs me to keep you alive."
The woman, without trembling, turned and quickly left the bridge.
The captain walked back to his seat and began to eat with a smirk. She may never show her fear openly but she did inwardly. He knew as she traveled back to her kitchen she would be weeping, but he didn't care.
He didn't care that when the elevators would close, taking her back to her kitchen, she would collapse to the floor and heavily weep. He was a monster. Her daughter was being blackmailed just so her mother would live. Every night her daughter had to don on a sexy outfit and spend the evening with her boss. The two women knew the dress never lasted long after dinner was through, in fact some nights dinner was only half eaten.
"Sir," a feminine voice was heard from behind. The captain turned in his seat to face the woman. "We will reach our destination in three days."
"Good," he smiled staring at the cleavage that was clearly visible from the woman's top. "I want to see you in one hour."
She stood, and moved towards him. Her hips swaying as she went. She bent over towards the captain, giving him a full view of her chest. Her long black hair made a curtain around her face, covering the look he gave. She leaned into his ear and whispered. "Anything you want, my Lord."
Three days of rain was starting to become depressing but the rain was needed. Throughout the spring, there wasn't much rain and when it finally came it was a blessing, but to the ThunderCats it was trouble. The day it began to rain Cheetara felt something was going to happen. Whenever Cheetara felt something wrong everyone knew to believe her. All day everyone was cautious in what they were doing. Luckily Panthro and Alana had just finished refitting Cats' Lair with all new weapons.
From watching in the window of the council room, Tygra watched as Alana ran out of Cats' Lair like a child when it began to rain. He had watched as she spun around in circles, laughing. He was glad the weather had warmed up considerably. He wasn't worried about himself or the other ThunderCats it was with Alana his worries laid. He knew she couldn't withstand the colder temperatures.
But the day had quickly turned soar when suddenly a laser fire came from out of nowhere and fired down, barely missing the woman. Tygra quickly ran from the room, going to her aid. But he wasn't the only who was alerted. The other ThunderCats heard her scream. When the ThunderCats ran out of the lair, they saw two of the Mutants in the skycutters.
Alana was trying to slowly back away but she wasn't doing to well. She had twisted her ankle as she fell from the surprise attack. Lion-O jumped down to her, quickly using the sword to deflect the Mutants attacks.
"You will drop your sword, Thundercub! Yessssssss!"
Lion-O didn't have to turn around to know whose voice that belonged to. Just hearing the one word slurring, he knew. But why was the voice coming from behind him? Lion-O slowly turned around. His eyes widened as Slythe had Alana in a choke hold.
"Let her go!"
"The Thundercub makes demands. Yesssss. It has taken us awhile, but we have now found out what you ThunderCats have been hiding from us. And it's this girl."
Alana wasn't sure what to do. Having a huge green arm around her was frightening enough. She was petrified of the creature that had a hold of her. But that wasn't the only thing preventing her from moving. Her ankle was throbbing from her fall and she was having a hard time concentrating. Hearing Lion-O demand for her release and the creature just stand there as if he didn't know what releasing was, she felt a small amount of courage break her from shock. She took her good foot and slammed it as hard as she could on the creature's foot.
The creature quickly threw her to the ground as he began to hop on one foot, yelling. Lion-O was quick to lift her up but he noticed that she was in pain and he couldn't do anything for her at the moment. He had to tend to the other Mutants.
Another laser fire came from out of nowhere, but Cheetara's staff blocked it. No words were said between anyone as the fight continued. Tygra was fighting off one of the Mutants and that one couldn't get a lock on Lion-O.
Lion-O guessed Mumm-Ra must have been behind the whole attack. He was the only one who could get the Mutants close enough without sounding the alarm but where was the ever living creature? Suddenly he felt his arm being gripped by Alana. He looked at her and she seemed to be staring out over the drawbridge at something.
"Mumm-Ra!" Cheetara gasped.
"So this is who crashed on Third Earth, during the cold winter. I hope you enjoyed your time here."
"What do you want, Mumm-Ra!" Lion-O shouted.
"What I always want, the world rid of the ThunderCats and now of this new human woman."
Tygra, after finally fending off Monkian, jumped from the skycutter and landed gracefully beside Alana. "You can't have her!"
Mumm-Ra laughed. His hands reached out and bolt of electricity was fired.
"HOOOOOOOO!" Lion-O yelled as his sword extended to full length and deflected the attack.
"Can't you do better than that, ThunderCat!"
No sooner said, Mumm-Ra was quickly thrown off guard. A missile was fired from out of nowhere and hit Mumm-Ra squarely in the chest, knocking him to the ground. Mumm-Ra's eyes flashed before looking where the hit came from. He saw smoke coming from a canon lodged into side of Cats' Lair.
The missile also distracted Jackalman and he lost control of his skycutter as the Thunderkittens threw two of their capsules at him. When the two exploded, one had grey smoke and the other was some sort of sticky substance. Jackalman barely missed the Cats' Lair and began to move away from the fight, leaving Mumm-Ra and Slythe to deal with the ThunderCats.
Realizing Slythe was behind them, Cheetara turned around and began to deal with the lead Mutant. Knowing he was no match for the woman, he fired his gun to distract her and made his way from Cats' Lair.
Mumm-Ra growled in frustration as he watched as each Mutant fled the scene like the cowards they were. He jumped off the ground and tackled Lion-O, knocking the sword out of his hands. The force of the tackle knocked Alana and Tygra to the ground.
Alana screamed out in pain once again as she fell on her ankle. She couldn't see what was happening with Lion-O as the pain consumed her. She vaguely felt her arm being touched but wasn't sure if it was real.
Mumm-Ra and Lion-O began to wrestle on the ground. Beads of sweat formed on the young lord's brow as he began to feel his strength leave him, he tried to go after his clawshield. If he could get it, Mumm-Ra would cower away.
Thinking he had the advantage, he went to gasp for the shield just as Mumm-Ra managed to grab his neck and began to choke him. Even as his airways were now being blocked, it didn't stop Lion-O from trying to reach for the shield. In the last moment when he thought he'd pass out from lack of air, he was able to get his hand into the shield, swinging his arm, and managing to connect with Mumm-Ra's head.
Lion-O began coughing and sucking in air while Mumm-Ra got to his feet. "You will not defeat us Mumm-Ra!" he said hoarsely. "For as long as…" he placed his shield in front of him, in the line of sight for Mumm-Ra. "Your own reflection causes you…"
Mumm-Ra shrieked and quickly made to the air, flying away.
"To be horrified."
Lion-O quickly turned to see Tygra cuddling Alana as she tried to calm her tears. He also noticed her ankle was swelling. "Are you alright?" He knelt down to her. He carefully reached his fingers over her ankle, touching lightly.
A quick jolt and another yell came out of her. Lion-O looked at Tygra with concern, the two weren't sure what to do and the rain wasn't making things any easier. When her cries went to soft whimpers, Tygra bent closer to her ear.
"We have to get you out of the rain. I'm going to pick you up. Cheetara and Panthro will go and get your sister. Perhaps she could help." Alana lightly nodded. She wrapped her arms around Tygra's neck, giving him access to pick her up.
It took nearly an hour before Vanessa arrived to help her sister who was resting in her room, trying not to move too much. Vanessa wrapped the ankle in a moistened cloth and told her to stay off her foot as much as possible for a few days. She even appointed the ThunderCats to watch her until the ankle was healed. So now three days had passed since her first real run in with the Mutants and Mumm-Ra finally learning she was on Third Earth.
She watched from her window as the rain continued to fall. She was told her sister would return when Alana could move around on her own. Slightly raising her head, she felt something was out of place. A long sigh was heard when she realized she wasn't alone. Not only did her sister appoint a ThunderCat to watch her, but she also got the ThunderCats to keep the door open in case she tried to get out, someone would see.
"Why does my sister have to be so protective?" Alana asked to the intruder.
"Because she cares about you."
Alana snapped her head around at the sound, surprised who was watching her. She gave her intruder a good look over, realizing that he was nothing like the other ThunderCats. His set face, one could tell he was stubborn and no one tried to cross him much. The spikes that poked out of his shoulder straps were something she wondered what they were for and that must sometimes be uncomfortable.
Alana figured it was Tygra who was in the room, but it was Panthro, the oldest ThunderCat currently alive. "I haven't seen much of you since I decided to stop helping you with the new additions."
"That is true and I thought we could have a little talk." He came up and sat beside her. "How's the ankle?"
She lifted her ankle. "Well the swelling is going down and the cloth has helped a great deal. I just hope Vanessa comes soon. I'm getting tired of only being able to look out this window and watch the rainfall. For the past few days, I've only been able to leave the room when meals were ready and one of you guys would carry me to the table and then back again."
"I think Tygra and Lion-O enjoy having to carry you. Though I'm not sure why Tygra does. Which is why I'm here. Dinner will be ready shortly and I'm going to escort you to the dinning room. Except I'm letting you walk."
"That will take some time."
Panthro grinned and stood offering his hand. "There's still time."
She smiled and took his hand and with a small tug, she was lifted to her feet. She kept her sore ankle from touching the floor. He wrapped her arm around his shoulder and his went around her waist, bringing her injured ankle against his side.
She noticed his top two spikes had retracted into the straps. She was amazed he could do that. Remaining silent, the two began to slowly make their way to the dinning room.
"You know you can talk to me about anything," Panthro replied, breaking the silence.
"I know," she answered. "But I'm not sure if I can speak to anyone about…Hey, how did you know something was on my mind."
"Not something, someone." He chuckled.
She looked at the panther with confusion. "What do you mean?"
Panthro looked at her, stopping for a moment. "Look, I know you have been preoccupied lately and every time Tygra is in the room, you seem to shy away. I'm not asking you to talk about what is on your mind. I'm just offering a friendly ear. You know I keep secrets and I can tell you do as well, considering you've never said anything about Jaga's relationship with Lion-O."
"Well you said to keep it secret and I have."
Panthro continued walking. "All I'm saying is if you ever need someone to talk to, I'm here for you."
"Thank you," she nodded. "You guys are really great and kind."
"Well you're family and family doesn't hurt one another."
Panthro grasped the hand draped over his shoulder, shifting her weight. She gently squeezed his hand in thanks. The two then walked in silence to the dinning room. When they walked in, she noticed they were the first. She thought it was going to be amusing when Lion-O and Tygra learned she wasn't in her room. Feeling disappointment, she felt the need to not show it in case she attracted some attention.
Panthro had gotten her to her seat when they heard voices just outside the room. She recognized the voices and began to smirk, trying her best to hide that smirk when the doors swished opened. Panthro moved away, going around the table to his seat.
"We have to train her," Tygra said as he entered but stopped as he saw the woman in question sitting at the table.
Lion-O was about to say something when he noticed her as well.
She couldn't tell who was about to ask how she got there but before they could ask, Panthro answered for them.
"I decided to get her before dinner was ready."
"Oh," Lion-O said. He looked at Tygra and shrugged before walking over to her and sitting at the head of the table, beside her. Tygra sat on the other side of her.
"Alana," Lion-O started, getting her attention. "Once your ankle heals, we're going to need to train you. Yes, we know you have some defence abilities, however, they are not enough. The Mutants and Mumm-Ra know who you are now; they may try and come after you again just to get to us. We have to be ready."
"I know," she agreed. "I've been thinking about that. Well there isn't anything else to think about while sitting at a windowsill, staring at the rain."
"I don't like this rain," Tygra said. "It's too suspicious."
"Tygra, I remember on Seris when it would rain for almost a complete week. Now, mind you that was when the weather control malfunctioned and the planet was experiencing it's regular weather."
"Now, that is something I'm interested in," Panthro butted in. "I've never heard of a planet with a controlled weather system."
Alana looked at the panther as Cheetara walked in. "No thanks to Tony. He never liked unpredictable weather, so he had scientists to build a weather device."
"It's like he rules that planet instead of just being a citizen," Cheetara said.
Alana looked at the cheetah. "He has so much power, he controls the law enforcements on the planet, which makes him a king of the whole planet. No one questions him and if he wants something, he gets it."
"I'm not sure what you mean?" Tygra asked.
"He blackmails people to get what he wants. It won't matter what the circumstances are, he'll even use someone for sex just to keep a loved one alive."
Tygra slammed his fist on the table. "He's a beast!"
Lion-O looked disgusted. "I've never heard of anyone who would do something like that."
"It's hard to believe, men can be like that," Alana continued, ignoring Tygra's outburst though being beside him, his fist slamming down had startled her. "See many eons ago, even dating way back before Mumm-Ra's true life time, men were the dominating sex and women had to obey, but a couple thousand years after Mumm-Ra's death, that had changed, but the dominating instinct never left."
Tygra turned to her. "That's not the point. No one should have to be forced into sex just because someone says so. It's just plain wrong."
"Nor is it fair for women," Cheetara said.
"It's not fair but it is part of human history. That is what happened to my mother." She paused for a moment before leaning her head down. "I'm sorry."
Panthro raised a brow. "For what?"
"Bringing up another subject that's not to your liking. I've have a habit of doing that and I don't mean to."
"We know you don't mean to upset us," Lion-O answered, slowly calming his anger. "Before there was a weather control, what kind of weather would Planet Seris get?"
"Everything Third Earth would get and just as unpredictable. Like when I first came, there was constant snow storms and you said that's the worst you had ever seen while you have been here."
"We did say that," Cheetara said. She looked around. "Where are the Thunderkittens? They should be here by now."
"Sorry we're late," Wilykit said as she and her brother walked in. "There was a transmission from the Tree Top Kingdom."
Alana almost stood up before she remembered her ankle. "What did they have to say?"
"Your sister said she would be here first thing in the morning. She has found the place where she buried her belongings before her ship exploded."
"That's great."
"Yeah," Wilykat piped in. "She said, after you can walk on your own, she thinks some of the things would work nicely in the recreational room."
Panthro smirked. "That wouldn't surprise me."
"Dinner!" Snarf called as he walked in with a cart full of food.
"Sir," the helmsman called. "We have reached the coordinates of the planet."
"Good. Stay in high orbit. I don't want to draw attention to anyone down there who may have the technology to see us. If these ThunderCats are as strong as they've been characterized, they may be able to detect us, if we get too close."
"Tony," someone from behind said. "What is the plan?"
Tony turned to see his right hand man standing directly behind him. "The plan is to observe from a far. When we are in position, I want a scan of the planet of the wreckage. I also want to see the remains of it. If she's alive, she will pay."
"We are now in high orbit," someone said. "Scanning the planet for wreckage." A few moments went by before anyone said anything again. "Wreckage found."
"Bring it up on the viewer."
What came up on the viewer surprised him. The outer hall had holes through it. One couldn't even tell that what kind of ship it was.
"Scan the interior!" he snapped.
"No life signs. What the…"
"What!?"
"Sir, you're not going to believe this but most of the interior, computers and other equipment have been stripped from inside. It's basically now a skeleton ship."
"What happened?" Tony knew no one would be able to give him the answer. Something on the viewer caught his attention. "What is that?"
A few seconds went by while the scans did its job. "A bunker of some type. Built by material of the ship. It travels down fifteen feet with 69 pockets. Each pocket is filled with a humanoid, all dead."
"There were seventy people on board that ship. That means someone lived, but who? Can you get a fix on everyone inside?"
"Sorry, sir. The scanners cannot penetrate the bunker. There are too many bodies inside. There is also an inscription, but we can't get a good fix on it."
"Give me a visual of the surrounding land."
Within moments an aerial view of three kilometres from every direction from the wreckage was shown. Tony walked closer to the view screen. He pointed out to a structure that was near the edge of the top right hand of the screen. "What is the structure?"
"The structure is built from rock surrounding the area and…material from the wreckage…Sir…it's the Cats' Lair, home of the ThunderCats."
"I thought they were just a story," someone said.
"Apparently, you've heard wrong," Tony said.
"Who ever survived the crash either found help with the ThunderCats or perished before the ThunderCats found him." The right hand man said.
Tony turned to the man. "What if it was Alana? What if she is living with the ThunderCats? We have to find out, but we can't alert the ThunderCats to our presence. Maintain high orbit. Change if scans are trying to be directed at us. I want Cats' Lair monitored, but stay at this distance."
"Yes, sir."
Tony looked around the flight deck. Everyone in the room were men. He had only allowed a few women on the deck but that was only for a short time and the one he mainly kept around was currently sleeping in his quarters. When he was called to the bridge, he quietly left her. He had hoped by now he wouldn't have had to pleasure himself with different women. He wanted one woman and she had betrayed him.
In the command room, Alana was busying herself with surveying the surrounding land. She was glad when it had stopped raining and she was able to walk again. She didn't need the ThunderCats to help her to get around. She had been alone for an hour and she was almost expecting Tygra to soon check up on her. She rolled her eyes when she heard the doors open and close but to her surprise the person who walked in, wasn't whom she was expecting.
Ever since the conversation about Tony and his taste for blackmail, Tygra backed off from her, not too much, but it was enough for her to wonder if he was avoiding her.
"What brings you here, Cheetara?" she asked.
"I wanted to let you know we've marked the area where Vanessa buried her personal effects, it isn't far from where her ship had crashed. I also wanted to see if you're able to manage everything."
"Yeah. I just finished giving the surrounding land a check. I was just about to check to see if there has been any Mutant activity in the regions away from the villages."
Cheetara nodded. "Don't forget to survey…"
"I know. Panthro already told me what areas to check out. I will make sure to check the skies. I don't want another surprise run in with my father or anyone else."
"If you need me…"
Again, Alana didn't give Cheetara to finish. "Cheetara, could I have a private moment with you?"
Cheetara turned just as she was leaving the room and walked over to the human. "What about?"
"I have been wondering, ever since I upset you guys with Tony, I don't seem to see Tygra much. I was wondering if he was avoiding me?"
Cheetara chuckled. "No, he has been busy setting up a training session with you. He believes it would do you good to learn how to use all our weapons in case we're unable to."
"That stands to reason. Will he be training me?"
Cheetara noticed a small blush, just enough to see her cheeks turn a shade darker. She smiled, Alana must like Tygra and she doesn't realize it. "No, we all will be. We all have our own kind of fighting style. Lion-O wants you to know a little of everything."
"Thanks, I should get back to my inspection." Alana turned back and began her search once again. It didn't take her long before she had the grounds scanned and found nothing with the Mutants. She then began scanning the skyline for any Mutant flying machines or ships about to enter orbit. Sometimes the scans were able to pick up a comet.
For a few quick seconds, something appeared on the radar but it disappeared. She thought it was weird but didn't think anything of it. She looked at the time, showing on the console, noticing Panthro would soon arrive.
She raised her arms, stretching, working out the kinks of being in the chair for the past couple of hours. She couldn't wait for when Panthro would relieve her. Luckily for her, as soon as she thought it, Panthro came up behind her.
"Anything to report?"
"Nothing from what I can gather. If it's alright with you, I'm going to go and relax."
Panthro smiled. "I think the Thunderkittens are enjoying the recreational room."
"That's one of the reasons why I wanted it built, that way anyone can relax. Cats' Lair is too much of a fortress. I understand you guys have to protect yourselves from your enemies."
"Your enemies now too."
"Up until that day, they weren't. It's just when there's down time and nothing more to do, considering not everyone can stay on watch all the time, it's nice to just sit back and relax your muscles. That way when 'our' enemies come again, we'll be so energized, they won't know what hit them."
"That is a point." To prove it, Panthro flexed his muscles. "But sometimes it's hard to relax when Mumm-Ra and the Mutants are hanging around at the back door."
Alana tried to stifle a giggle, but failed.
"What is so amusing?"
"Just that, that's an old Third Earthen phrase," she giggled.
"Well we have been living here for four years and in that time, we have learned quite a few phrases from the Warrior Maidens."
Getting her giggling under control, Alana stood and started to make her way out of the room. "If you need me, I'll be in the recreational room."
For several days, Tony kept his men monitoring Cats' Lair. In that time, they were able to learn the ThunderCats had enemies and were also able to learn there were only six ThunderCats.
"Any sign of someone staying with the ThunderCats?" Tony growled to no one in particular.
"No, sir," the helmsman said. "Either there isn't anyone or he isn't coming out."
"Sir," Tony's right hand man spoke. "Alana always loved the outdoors. I cannot see that she would be down there. From what has been gathered if someone were staying with the ThunderCats, he probably would have been out by now."
"Either that," the only woman on the flight deck, turned in her seat. "Or their guest is subdued to bed by some other means. I mean what if it's a woman…"
Tony turned with a death glare. "Don't ever presume a woman! I will not, nor cannot imagine a woman, let alone Alana, having feelings for an alien with cat like features! That's just down right disgusting. If you ever want to keep your life, you'll leave this bridge immediately!"
Everyone was quite surprised Tony kept his temper in check. The black haired woman slowly stood and backed away onto the elevator. She did not need to see Tony fly off the handle. The last time she heard of him doing that, it was rumoured that the person he yelled at was never seen again.
When the woman was gone, Tony made a slow circle around, looking at all his men. "Now," he said. "Anyone else want to make possible presumptions?"
When he heard no replies, he smiled. "Good. Now I don't want to hear possible reasons, I want proof. Even if I have to go down there myself."
Everyone knew not to get on Tony's bad side, and they also knew Tony would do what he said. They all turned back to their stations and began more scans, getting back to normal duties. As for Tony, he walked to the center of the flight deck, where his chair was located. He slowly sat as he wondered if the ThunderCats knew they were in orbit. But he honestly didn't think they did, if they did, they probably would have made contact by now.
Standing from his seat, Tony ignored his men as he left the center of the flight deck to the elevator. He turned just inside. "Trevor, you have the Bridge."
His right hand man, turned. "Yes," and then spoke a little lower. "My brother."
Tony made his way to his quarters. Upon entering, to his surprise, his quarters were empty. The bed in the far corner was the only indication there had been someone in the room. Even the wine glasses that were out on his little table near the bed were gone.
He glared at the room, realizing how much he hated his quarters. When he decided to make the venture to this part of the universe, he needed his fastest ship. He had to sacrifice his huge room to quench his questions about the ThunderCats and his stolen ship. Normally his room would be bigger than the flight deck of the ship he was on, but size wasn't needed. If he were to meet the ThunderCats, he needed to make a good impression, by making whoever was with them to be a liar.
He had to some how trick the ThunderCats into giving him the information he needed. He couldn't do it by the means of his normal ways, it had to believable he was a good guy and was only looking out for the best interest of Alana.
He walked over to the small computer console that was nearby and punched up the information that came from Safari Joe when he encountered them. He highlighted the key points and then gathered the information Mandora reported. With the information in front of him, he was able to decide what was useful and what was not. From there he then took the information gathered from the sensors. He leaned back in his chair in deep thought. From all the data, he had to decide what could be used to his advantage.
It was obviously pointed out; the ThunderCats were noble and trustworthy. They would help someone who needed help and give them the benefit of the doubt. They had their weakness, just like everyone else, but they were unique. He knew he was going to have to neutralize them differently than what Safari Joe did. The only one he had a hard time figuring was the Lord of the ThunderCats. There were only good things about him. No one who went up against the ThunderCats could figure out what Lion-O's weakness was.
Going back over the information again, thinking he missed something, he began to grin and leaned forward. Perhaps there was something that could neutralize the Lord after all, but it would take precious planning.
"I'll find you, Alana, dead or alive, and I'll find whoever is staying with the ThunderCats. If you are one of the people lying in that underground crypt, I'll dance over your grave. I will never allow you to rest in peace." He laughed outright not caring who would have heard from outside his quarters.
Everyday Alana checked the scanners for any Mutant or Mumm-Ra activity, she would always see a blip for a second and then it would disappear. After the third day, she began to get nervous, but didn't find she had enough evidence to alarm the ThunderCats. She felt it would've been silly to only report split second blips on the monitor that always disappeared. After a few more days she decided it was time to speak to someone about it. After days of seeing blips, she was able to get enough information there was a ship in orbit but was avoiding the ThunderCat scanners.
When Panthro relieved her, she went looking for Lion-O. She found him in his quarters and waited until hearing him say to come in. Entering, the doors swished closed behind her, allowing her to address him in private, taking note he was standing by the window. "Lion-O, I hope I'm not interrupting. I would like to talk to you." She noticed he seemed to be staring off into space.
He turned. "Not at all. I was just thinking of how much has happened to us since we came here." He turned back. "We've made new friends, and new enemies. I was thinking back to all the achievements that were made, especially how much I've had to grow up."
"I'm sure your life has been anything but dull, ever since the day you allowed me to see into your past, I know you've had it rough, and having to adjust to a new planet, to call home, must have been hard."
"It was, but I've learnt to accept it. What is it you want to talk to me about?"
She walked closer to him, seating herself at a chair near the window. "I thought at first I was seeing things and didn't think anything of it, but as each day passed I began to feel like I'm not imagining it. For the past several days when I've monitored for enemy activity, I've noticed a quick blip high in the sky as if something is orbiting the planet. Today I've been able to confirm there is a ship in orbit."
The last line got the young Lord's attention. He turned from the window. "A ship?"
"Yeah, and from what I've gathered everytime I scan the orbit, the blip is in a different location. On the third day when I began suspecting something was out there. I had the all around the planet scanned for ion trails. It has taken until now to confirm the ship. I don't know what the ship is but…"
Lion-O noticed she began to tremble. He knelt down and wrapped his arms around her, waiting for her trembling to subside. When he noticed that she was calming down. He spoke. "I suppose you're afraid it's Tony."
His name brought back the quivering. He pulled her closer, lightly kissing the top of her head. The sound of his beating heart calmed her down but she couldn't stop shivering. She quietly gasped when she felt his lips touch her head. In that instant, she knew she was safe. The ThunderCats wouldn't let anything happen to her.
"What should I do?" she asked, trembling.
He gently pulled her away from him to arms length. "Well, 'we' are going to call an emergency meeting and you'll let everyone know what you told me. I know right now it's still speculation as to what's out there but we can't be too careless."
"You don't think of me as being a coward?"
Lion-O blinked in confusion. "Why would you think that? You are a very intelligent woman, and if you say there is something out there I believe you. Now, let's go round up the others."
Alana nodded as she tried to fight the tears from falling.
It didn't take them long to gather everyone in the conference room also known as the council chambers. When everyone was seated, Lion-O stood addressing everyone.
"There's a possible situation on our hands and thanks to Alana, we may be able to get a handle on it before it breaks out. It would appear there's a spy orbiting Third Earth."
"How can that be?" Panthro asked.
Alana watched as Lion-O sat down, giving her the room to speak. "As you all know, I've been taught by Panthro to scan for enemy
activity. Well during my search, I came across a blip in the sky. It only lasts for a second and then it's gone.
"At first I thought it was my imagination, thinking something was there when it's not. I didn't want to alarm you in case I was wrong, but on the third day I started to have my doubts. I began to scan around the planet for ion trails. I was able to find the trail no problem. I have no doubt in my mind there is a ship in orbit and when the scans are aiming in their direction, they change their orbit, trying to avoid us."
"Any idea of who could be up there?" Tygra asked.
"None, but I have my suspicions. It could be father…"
"Or Tony," Wilykat offered.
A low growl, barely heard, came out of Tygra.
"We have to be extra careful and we can't let him know Alana is here. If Tony is orbiting us, we have to be prepared." Lion-O turned to Alana. "I want you to stay in Cats' Lair. It's a good bet, they are able to monitor us from a distance, trying to determine how much of a threat we are."
"And if it is Tony," Cheetara offered. "He would have already found the remains of his stolen ship and determined there were survivors."
"Right now," Lion-O continued. "It's only speculation. We will not draw any attention to him. If he's out there, let him come."
Alana whipped her head at the young Lord. Lion-O noticed she was about to ask why. He looked at her. "We need to fool him. Let on we don't know anything about him. We have to let him believe we don't know who the survivor was."
"That may not be possible," Alana answered. "The way I know him, he's like father. He will get to know his prey before going in for the kill. If Tony is out there, it's a good bet he's already learned of all our good points and bad points. He will come up with a plan to stop you. In a way one has to marvel at his intelligence. He probably could take you guys out without so much as breaking a sweat.
"If he has to, he'll watch from a far for years before taking the kill, unlike the Mutants or Mumm-Ra. They attack at the first sign of an opening. They don't seem to sit back and study you. Getting to know your enemy and doing nothing about it, is the best way to be rid of your enemy."
"Well we have had six months planning for Tony's arrival," Panthro answered. "I'm sure we know more about him than he does us."
"Don't be so sure," Alana defended. "We don't know how long he's been up there."
"Well we do know it's only been a month since your father was here so Tony would have only been here for a short time," Panthro countered. "And it must take a least a week to get here."
"Two weeks, if Tony is using the fastest ship in his fleet."
"Even if he knows about us," Wilykit responded. "In the amount of time he has been here, he wouldn't have gotten to know us on a personal level. He may have our strengths and weaknesses but he doesn't know who we are on the inside. He won't know how well we work as a team or what motivates us."
"No but he may have the strongest point to weaken you," Alana countered. "Thundranium."
"I can't see him figuring that out until he was to arrive here," Lion-O said. "Tygra, what do you think?"
Tygra leaned back, he had to fight back another growl, but he was the leader of the council and the decision was up to him. He always knew the decision had to be fair, he couldn't put his feelings on the line about the man. Everyone else also didn't like him. "I have to agree with Lion-O," he finally said. "In order to get the best upper hand we need to let him think he's won."
"Then everyone else is agreement then?" Lion-O watched as everyone nodded. He knew Alana was disagreeing, but she knew she didn't have a say in the matter until she became a ThunderCat.
With that thought in mind, she remembered when she was given the opportunity to become a ThunderCat. She didn't feel quite ready, feeling she needed to earn that right. Coming to a decision about being a ThunderCat she stood, stopping everyone from getting out of their seats. "I have something to say, not about the possible invasion."
"What is that?" Cheetara asked, making sure Alana had everyone's attention.
"When father came, I privately spoke with Lion-O about being a ThunderCat. I didn't want him to tell anyone in case you were to inadvertently push me to join. I know you wouldn't have done it on purpose. I felt like I had to earn the right to become one. Up until my father arrived, I wasn't always cooperative.
"I felt I needed to earn your trust, not have it given to me freely. Trust can be easily broken. Well I have now come to a decision."
She leaned her head down for a second, taking a deep breath before answering. "I have decided I want to become a ThunderCat, to take the Anointment Trails."
All six ThunderCats beamed with happiness. Lion-O stood and walked up to her. He wrapped an arm around her. "That's great, whenever you're ready to begin the trails let us know and we'll make the preparations."
"Thanks," she nodded.
Tygra stood. "We've been waiting for when you would tell us what you will decide about that. There will be five trails to overcome, but there will be one change than there was with Lion-O."
"What's that?" Lion-O asked.
"Well when you were going through the trails," Panthro offered. "You had to best Tygra with Mind Power but Alana will not need that, she will have to best you."
"What?" she jumped. "Lion-O!"
"Yes," Tygra agreed. "You will have to prove you have good leadership skills, but the toughest is going up against your enemy. Only you know who that enemy will be. We can make our guesses but when the time comes, you will know who you will need to defeat."
"Alana, we are not pushing you to do anything you're not ready for," Cheetara replied. "You'll let us know when you're ready to begin the trails, but right now we need to make preparations in case that is Tony's ship in orbit."
The ThunderCats quickly left the room, leaving Alana alone. She sat back in her chair with a thud; shock was evident on her face.
"Is something the matter?"
Alana slowly looked up and saw Jaga, standing on the other side of the table. Tears began to trail down her cheeks. "I have to go up against Lion-O, my new brother. I don't know if I can do that."
"Have faith," the spirit answered. "Doing the trails is never easy. For each hopeful, the trials can be different. At least you will not need to best Tygra."
"I was expecting to best him."
"Yes, but you are not as close to him as you are to Lion-O."
"What should I do?"
"Relax. The next few days will become tiring for you, that I'm sure of. I don't like the idea of that ship in orbit no more than you. If that is the person who you ran away from, rest will not be easy. You'll need the ThunderCats to get you through this."
Unknown to Alana but Jaga knew it was Tony orbiting the planet. He also knew Tony was going to be her trail of evil. He had no doubt in his mind she would succeed. Normally in the Anointment trails, the Trail of Evil was the last but he was going to make an exception where Alana was concerned.
When Tony would reveal himself, the Anointment trails were going to have to be put on stand by while they dealt with the evil man. He was quite hopeful with him arriving, Alana would finally be able to be at peace and able to reveal her past. He hated not being able to inform the ThunderCats of her past, but it wasn't his place to say anything. He had vowed to Alana's brothers he wouldn't say anything.
Jaga wanted to comfort the young woman but there were only two people who could. Her new brother and a man she unknowingly was beginning to have an attraction to. He was surprised no one else had really picked up on it. He hoped she would see the attraction for what it was. Her brothers were already all for the relationship. Alana was the only one holding it back. Jaga knew she was only holding back because she didn't want to be hurt like the other members of her family, mostly her sisters and mother.
He inwardly smiled as he began to disappear. He had a surprise for Alana when everything was all said and done. Her struggles with Tony were going to be tough but she was going to have the ThunderCats on her side and when everything would settle down, he would reveal his surprise to her.