23
The ThunderCats hid themselves behind a dune that was near Mumm-Ra's temple. The skies were dark and stormy, and the clouds seemed to swirl around the top of it ominously, as if warning anyone that dared to travel this far into the desert that they were about to meet a fate far worse than the desert could ever give them. Around the temple, they could see lizard hovercrafts patrolling the area, but not much more because of their distance from the temple.
"Mumm-Ra's temple…" Cheetara murmured, looking at it in a sort of fearsome awe, "It's even scarier than I thought."
"I nearly died in that pit, thanks to Grune." Panthro said, he turned to Tygra, "You sure you want me to help us get in? Getting out was hard enough."
"I don't like it either, General." Tygra said, "But we have to save Leanne and get the Sword of Omens back."
Panthro nodded solemnly, "There's an air shaft on the other side. Dangerous, but it's your call… King." Tygra picked up a scope and looked through it, seeing that the hovercraft patrol wasn't the only thing outside the temple, there were also plenty of armed lizard guards surrounding the outside.
"We need to take out the guards." He said to Panthro, who nodded and jumped over the dune they had been hiding behind, going to do as Tygra had asked.
Cheetara looked over at Tygra, and saw the grim expression on his face, "You okay?"
"I always told him I should be king…" Tygra murmured, he looked away from her, "I never wanted it like this."
"The only thing we can do now is finish the job he started." Cheetara said gently, before she stood up and ran down the dune, going to join Panthro. Tygra soon followed her, and WilyKat was about to, when he noticed that his sister and Snarf were not with him and he looked to see WilyKit doodling on a rock with Snarf sitting at the top of it, watching as she drew it.
"Again?" Kat asked, going over to her, "This is like, the tenth rock that you've drawn that on!" The doodle itself wasn't much, just a smiley-face with a crown, but WilyKit had been drawing it since they escaped from the lizards.
"If I don't leave him a trail, Lion-O will never be able to find us." WilyKit said as she drew a mouth on her smiley-face.
WilyKat looked at his sister sadly, "Kit… Lion-O's gone."
"Didn't you learn anything from the elephants?" WilyKit asked him, "Death is only the beginning. As long as Lion-O still has his soul, he has a chance. We have a chance." WilyKat smiled, glad to see that his sister's determination hadn't been diminished by Lion-O's death. It seemed to have grown stronger instead. She stood up and the twins followed the others to go and dispatch of the guards.
Leanne was silent as she was pulled by the arm into Mumm-Ra's lair. She recognized it from her time in the Book of Omens. In the middle of the room sat something she didn't recognize. It looked like some kind of giant, eerie mirror, and it made her very uneasy just to look at it. Even without her magic powers on hand, she could sense that the strange mirror was filled with all kinds of dark magic.
"Lord Mumm-Ra," Slithe knelt down before his master and Lucas did the same, dragging Leanne down with him. Kanar and Atticus also knelt before him, but Leanne had a feeling they only did it because they had to, not because they respected him.
"General Slithe," Mumm-Ra greeted in return. He gave a motion for him to stand up, and he did, "How did our outing fair?"
"Most well, my Lord." Slithe said, pulling out the Sword of Omens as Lucas pulled the Jewel of Omens from his pocket, "Both halves of the War stone are present and ready for you."
"We also have a little prisoner!" Kanar said in his insane glee, grasping one of Leanne's shoulders with one hand, and using the other to cradle her face, slightly squishing her face with his claw. Leanne growled and shook him off her with an elbow to his gut.
"Don't touch me!" She snarled at him.
"So I see." Mumm-Ra said, he began to walk down towards them. Leanne stood up defiantly, glaring at the demon, while the others took a few steps back. She stood her ground until Mumm-Ra was standing before her in his sickly, cloaked form. He smiled at her in a way that made her think he was toying with her, and he probably was, but she still glared at him, her jaw set tightly. "Do you not fear me, girl?" Leanne said nothing. "Whenever we meet, fear has always flooded your veins. You stand tall, but truly, you quake." Leanne would be lying if she said she didn't feel some level of fear for the demon before her. Her heart was pounding in her chest, and she could feel her hands becoming clammy, but she did not back down. "Humans have always had a quality of… cowardice in them."
Taking in a deep breath, Leanne looked him straight in his red eyes and said in a very calm voice that surprised most others in the room, "I am not afraid of you. Not anymore."
Mumm-Ra only let a small chuckle slip out. "Then perhaps you fear something more?" He reached for her arm, and Leanne jerked it back on instinct, but not fast enough for Mumm-Ra to scratch her arm. Leanne muttered a curse in her pain before looking down at her arm, seeing the scratches he had left, and how they were bleeding. Her mind immediately flashed back to that night as a child, and she closed her eyes tightly, bringing her arms against her chest, hiding the blood that began to drip down her arms. She heard Mumm-Ra's dark chuckle again and she glared at him. "I still remember your moment in the Astral Planes, when you were so afraid, you couldn't even stand."
"That was the Astral Planes." Leanne said, "This is the real world. You can't manipulate things around me like you want. Not here."
"True." Mumm-Ra admitted, "But that does not mean I cannot make your worst nightmares a reality." He took a step back and began to walk towards the mirror, he looked back at her and beckoned her over to him. When she didn't move, Lucas pushed her forward. "Look here." Mumm-Ra waved his hand across the mirror, showing Third Earth and all the destruction that had come to it in recent years. After a moment, it turned into Leanne's neighborhood, and she saw homes that were demolished, and bodies lying on the ground. She turned away from it, not wanting to see it. She knew it was all fake. Just an image created by dark magic. "Soon, this will be the destruction of the old world, and the beginning of the new one."
"Not if the ThunderCats stop you." Leanne said.
"And how do you plan to do so, when the king is gone?" Mumm-Ra asked, Leanne looked away at the mention of Lion-O's death. Mumm-Ra only smiled. "Well, it is no concern of mine, I suppose. I have both the Sword of Omens, and the Jewel of Omens." He walked over to where Slithe and Lucas still stood, looking at the two objects in question. He reached for them, but the spell that protected them forced him back with a small, yet powerful red zap. He let out an angry hiss and moved his clawed hand away. He looked over at some of the lizard soldiers, "Take her away. Lock her in one of the cells."
"Yes, My Lord." One of the lizards said, saluting him before they came over to Leanne and started dragging her away. Leanne struggled against their hold, glaring at everyone whose eyes she happened to meet.
Soon, she was pulled out of the room, and everyone turned their attention back to Mumm-Ra.
"Take these to the spell castors. Have them form the circle and remove the spell that binds them." He ordered Slithe, who nodded.
"Yes, My Lord." He said, "But… I believe there is something you should know."
"We will discuss it later." Mumm-Ra said, he turned to Lucas, who jumped when he realized he had the demon's attention, "Now, seeing as the bearer of the Jewel of Omens is in our… 'care,' I will hold up my end of our bargain."
"Thank you, Lord Mumm-Ra." Lucas said, he put the jewel back in his pocket, "I'll make sure this gets to your spell castors." Mumm-Ra waved him away and Lucas left the room. Once he was gone, Slithe turned to Mumm-Ra.
"My Lord," he began, "I thought it best for you to know that—"
"I'm aware of what Lucas is capable of." Mumm-Ra interrupted, "I saw him holding the Jewel so easily. Why do you think I allowed him to be a part of us so easily?" Slithe was stunned by his master's insight. "This boy has great potential, and the Ancient Spirits of Evil can see him being of great use to us, if he continues on this path."
"…'If', My Lord?" Slithe asked.
"His loyalty is not guaranteed." Mumm-Ra said, he turned to Slithe, "Make sure he remains with us in the future. We do not want to lose such a valuable asset."
"Yes, My Lord." Slithe said, bowing his head.
The next portal opened up into a place Lion-O recognized right away, the Thundera throne room. It looked just like he remembered it.
"Not the first time you've kept someone waiting in the throne room, Your Majesty." A voice said. Lion-O looked ahead of him to see Panthro standing in the middle of the throne room, next to an hourglass that was half his size. "Stakes weren't so high when you were ditching sword lessons as a cub."
"Back then, I didn't want to be king, Panthro." Lion-O said, walking towards him. Panthro stood on one side of the ThunderCats crest, and Lion-O stopped on the opposite side. "Guess I never thought I'd have to be."
"No choice now." Panthro replied, "So let's see what you picked up along the way." He picked up the hourglass and flipped it over, making it so the sand would begin to fall, "This is a trial of strength." He stepped into the ThunderCats crest, "All you've gotta do is get me out of this circle before the sand runs out."
Lion-O looked at the Not-Panthro with wide eyes. "But you're three times my size!"
"Yeah, I noticed." Not-Panthro said with a small smirk. He gestured to the hourglass, "Better hurry, Your Majesty. I'm not getting any smaller." Lion-O did the first thing that came to mind, and tried to jump up and kick him down. Not-Panthro easily caught his foot and threw him back down on the ground. Lion-O skidded across the floor for a small moment before moving to get up.
"These trials are going to kill me… again." He muttered to himself. He charged at Panthro and tried to tackle him, grabbing hold of his waist to try and push him down. Panthro lifted up his arms and slammed them down on Lion-O's back. Lion-O fell to the floor with a pain-filled grunt. He quickly got back up and charged at Panthro, only to have him punch him back onto the floor again. Lion-O pushed himself up and tried again, but Panthro deflected him with a powerful kick.
"Tick tock, little king." Not-Panthro said. Lion-O got up and ran at Panthro, grabbing his sides and trying to push him back, but only succeeding in dragging his feet across the floor in trying.
"This test is impossible!" He said as he kept trying to push Panthro back, "No one can get you out of this ring!"
"If that's what the king says, then it must be so." Not-Panthro said, before grabbing Lion-O, picking him up, and throwing him to the ground. Lion-O groaned in pain. This test really was going to be the end of him. He glanced at the hourglass to see that very few sands remained inside. And at the rate this was going, he was never going to be able to get Panthro to move. Some king he turned out to be.
"Wait a second…" He stood up and faced Panthro, "I am the king. And you're my subject, General." How did he not see this before? As if Panthro hadn't dropped enough hints about his status already. Considering how much time was left, and how much strength he had, it was worth a shot, "I order you to get out of this circle!"
The Not-Panthro smiled and bowed to him, "As you wish, My King." Panthro moved back out of the circle just as the sands in the hourglass ran out.
Lion-O smiled at his victory, "I thought this was gonna be a test of strength."
"It was." Not-Panthro said, "And you're greatest strength is as a leader." He walked up to Lion-O, key in hand, "Try not to forget it." Lion-O took the key from him and nodded. He walked away as the portal appeared before him. He put the key inside and the portal grew slightly larger. He looked back at Panthro before he left, moving on to the next trial.
It didn't take long for the ThunderCats to take down the guards that stood in their way, what with Tygra's stealth and Cheetara's speed, as well as Panthro's strength, they were able to disable the guards before any of them could even get a chance to call for help. Panthro brought the last two guards over to a small pile they had made and dumped them onto it. Now, the only obstacles that lay before them were what lay inside Mumm-Ra's temple.
Panthro went up to the wall, pressing against a small part, making it sink in. The button activated a greater mechanism that lit up that side of the wall in a red light, and a small triangular door opened up to them. After checking to make sure no one was nearby, they all ran into the temple.
"So far, so good." Panthro said as they ran down the hallway.
"Our plan just may work after all." Tygra said.
Suddenly, as if to prove him wrong, an alarm went off, buzzing again and again. Tygra cursed under his breath when he heard it. They all soon heard the sound of lizard guards approaching and ran to try and hide in the hall where they had come in.
"Now what, king?" Cheetara asked him, wondering what their next course of action should be.
"Just… Just let me think." Tygra said, his mind began to race. What was he supposed to do now? He hadn't thought this far ahead. The only thing they could do is fight back, but in this place, reinforcements would come faster than they could imagine. His brows furrowed, trying to come up with a good plan to at least get away from them without having to leave the temple, but nothing came to his mind.
WilyKit could see how hard he was trying, and knew she needed to do something to help.
"Don't worry, I got this." She said, pulling out her instrument and running out in front of the lizards. She began to play a sweet melody on the instrument, and very soon, the lizards' eyes were drooping, and they all began to feel relaxed, almost to the point where they were about to fall asleep. The Cats took this moment and ran past the lizards.
"Nice work, Kit." Tygra praised as they dashed by, WilyKit joining them not long afterwards, still playing the tune until they were all safely out of sight of the lizards. Once the music had stopped, they all jumped awake, shaking their heads of the sleepiness in them. They went to check the opening and saw nothing.
"Just a false alarm." The one in charge said, "Everyone return to your posts!" They stopped the noise after deeming the area secure, and shut the opening so they wouldn't deal with this problem again.
Leanne let out a grunt as she was suddenly shoved against the wall of one of the prison cells in Mumm-Ra's temple, Lucas's hand at her neck. Her hands were still bound, and he had already given the Jewel of Omens to the spell castors. Now she was completely at his mercy. She struggled against his hold as he choked her slightly.
"Sounds like the lizards found your friends." Lucas said, now that the alarm had stopped, it meant that they had taken care of any problem. Leanne couldn't give the reply she wanted with his hand around her throat. "Now, to finish what I started." Leanne's eyes widened as she saw that same wisp of a tentacle come out again and reach her throat. She struggled as hard as she could when she felt it go underneath her skin and move around inside her. Lucas held her still as it wrapped around whatever it was that he had been trying to get ahold of the first time. She felt Lucas slowly beginning to take bits and pieces of it, and she opened her mouth to scream, but nothing came out. She felt horrible pain throughout her entire body and she did her best to try and get out of his grasp, but Lucas held her to the wall. Tears welled up in her eyes and began to trail down her cheeks as she tried to get away. She could feel herself slowly and steadily becoming weaker and weaker as Lucas continued. Lucas kept his gaze on his hand the entire time as he did this, and Leanne took in a deep breath, finding the strength to speak.
"If you're… going to kill me, at least… have the… decency to look me… in the eye!" She rasped out. Lucas looked up at her, looking straight into her eyes as she had asked. She saw him flinch slightly when they made eye contact. He looked back at his hand, focusing on that again. Leanne could see it was getting to him, and used as much strength as she could manage to say, "Look at me!" Lucas looked up again, and suddenly closed his eyes. He yanked his hand away, and Leanne fell to the floor, coughing. Once she was able to breathe again, she looked up from where she lay over at Lucas, who was standing a few feet away from her, running his hand through his bleached hair. His back was to her, so she couldn't see the expression on his face.
There was a beat of silence, where Leanne kept laying on the ground, catching her breath, trying to recover from the ordeal she had just gone through, and Lucas simply stood up, not saying anything, not doing anything. He was just silent.
Finally he began to walk and went out of the cell. He pressed a few buttons on a small pad next to the outer wall of the cell, and an iridescent, lavender colored screen moved over the entrance. He looked back at Leanne, who returned his gaze. From there, she could see something she didn't expect to see in him. In his green eyes, she saw someone who was torn, someone who was trying to make a very hard decision. Whatever he was just doing, she realized, wasn't for him. He was trying to take her life for the sake of someone else.
"I wasn't trying to kill you," Lucas began, "I was trying to take your power. I need it, Redoric. And I'll take it any way I can." Leanne didn't reply, and he turned away, walking to another place and out of the prisons, "I'll be back in an hour to go again. I just hope you're ready for it." She heard the hiss of the doors to the area outside the prisons closing.
She took a deep breath in and out, feeling relief from being away from Lucas. Suddenly, she felt something bubbling up in her throat, and she coughed it out. At first, she thought it was vomit, but when she looked at the red substance that had come out, she saw that it was her own blood. Her eyes widened, her mind flashing back to that night again. She closed her eyes tightly and turned away, crawling away from the small puddle that had formed. She tried to get out, but as soon as her hand came near the lavender colored gate, it zapped her hand and electrocuted her. She let out a cry of pain and pulled her hand back. She lay there, on the floor of the prison cell, listening to the silence of the world around her as she tried to come up with a plan of escape. She trusted Tygra and the others to come and get her, but she didn't trust them to get her out, not without Lion-O.
Lion-O…
Leanne let out a sob. Now that she was alone in such a place, she had the freedom to cry and mourn all she wanted, and so she did.
Lion-O stepped out of the portal to his next challenge. He recognized the area instantly, the tall branches curling out of the pool of water, with the bell resting at the top of the tallest branch. The seats of the stadium were all empty, and the sky was dark, as it would have been when the stadium was open to the public.
"This looks familiar." He muttered as he walked in.
"It should." A voice said, Lion-O looked up to see Tygra sitting on one of the branches, "You lost to me enough times in this arena."
"I was a kid then." Lion-O said, trying to defend himself, "I'm stronger now."
"True." The Not-Tygra relented, "But strength had nothing to do with it. It was always the mental aspect of the game where I had the edge." Lion-O growled lowly in his throat in anger, "Let's see what you can do now." Tygra stood up, gesturing to the bell, "Beat me and you'll get the final key, and your life back." Lion-O nodded. They both moved to the base of the branches, ready to start the race. Lion-O looked over at Tygra, who started running a second before the horn sounded, signaling them to go. He took off up the branches, keeping up with Not-Tygra. Once they had gotten up a little higher, Lion-O jumped over, planning on knocking Tygra into the water, but instead the tiger disappeared before he could grab him and he fell down onto another branch. He easily regained his footing and looked around for the Not-Tygra, but suddenly felt something wrap around his ankle, most likely Tygra's whip, and yank it up, making him fall further down onto another branch. He looked up to see Not-Tygra reappear with a confident smirk on his face. Lion-O's insides boiled in anger and he started running up the branches with great energy, eager to knock that grin off his face. He ran up to the top of one of the branches and started running towards the bell, thinking he had won, but he was knocked back by a hard punch to the face.
He plummeted down into the water, and when he came back up, he glared at where Not-Tygra was standing, "You're gonna pay for that!" He growled as he swam back to the branch base.
"There's that famous temper again." Tygra called down to him. Lion-O sighed to try and calm down and he looked up at Tygra.
"I see where this is going." He said, "This trial is about controlling my emotions." He narrowed his eyes slightly, "You always loved to make me mad."
"Because it was so easy." Not-Tygra replied.
"Because you wanted what I had!" Lion-O snapped back, "That's why you had to be better than me at everything!" His fur began to bristle in his anger. "It was so everyone could see that the crown was going to someone who didn't deserve it!"
Lion-O started running up the branches again, fury fueling him. Apparently, trying to calm himself down had only made him angrier, and he was ready to use that renewed energy to really punch Tygra across the face. Tygra waited patiently at the branch at the top, and when Lion-O reached him, he made a fist to finally sock him like he wanted to, but Tygra beat him to the punch, literally. Lion-O fell back and grabbed onto another branch to stop himself from falling into the water again.
"Maybe I thought I would be a better king," Not-Tygra called down to him, "But I wasn't the only one!"
Lion-O glared up at him, "You think Father believed it, too?!" He snarled. He quickly jumped up and climbed towards him. He made another fist and made to punch him again, but he disappeared before he could land the hit and Lion-O fell back down into the water.
Not-Tygra reappeared again, looking down at where Lion-O had landed, "It wasn't Father I was talking about. It was you. And it appears you still believe it." Lion-O's eyes widened when he saw Tygra jump up and ring the bell, signaling his victory.
He went over to the side of the pool and got out of the water, a solemn frown on his face as his failure set in. There was no chance of him coming back, he was dead. He couldn't complete the mission, and he couldn't help his friends. He looked up when Not-Tygra appeared in front of him with a grim expression on his face. He stood up to face him, and he handed him a black key that bore the face of a red-eyed skull.
"I'm sorry." He said. A portal appeared near Lion-O, and he stepped towards it. He held the key in his hand, looking down at it. He was tempted to not go through the portal, hanging onto the tiny chance that he might be able to live again if he challenged the Not-Tygra again. But he knew that he wouldn't allow that to happen. There were no second chances. No, these trials were a second chance, and he just blew his. He closed his eyes in reluctant acceptance as he placed the key into the hole in the portal and turned it. The portal expanded and Lion-O gazed at it for a moment, contemplating what he could do before he stepped through it, going on to what was waiting for him in the afterlife.
Tygra crawled through the ventilation shaft, the other Cats just behind him. They kept going until they reached a grate that let them look into another room. They saw Mumm-Ra with his generals and Lucas all standing in a circle that was made by a large group of lizard spell castors who were all chanting in an ancient language that no one understood. In the very center of the circle rested a platform where the Sword and Jewel of Omens rested before Mumm-Ra.
"At long last," Mumm-Ra said, "The king of the Cats is dead. And the Eye of Thundera will be mine once again! And this time, no spell will keep me from the stone." He eyed the two red stones that both items bore, "For within these walls, my powers are immeasurable!" He raised up his hands and began to chant. Lucas's eyes widened when he recognized the words, and he felt a sharp chill down his spine when he realized he was speaking in the old language of the warlocks. The Cats, of course, don't realize this and watch from above.
WilyKat moved around, trying to get a better look at what was happening, "I can't see anything. What's going on?"
"A thousand bad things, kid." Panthro responded.
"I don't see Leanne anywhere." Cheetara said, she turned to Tygra, "What do you want to do?"
"Drop in for a surprise attack." Tygra said.
Everyone's heads turned to him in shock. "And land in the middle of trouble?!" Panthro whispered sharply.
"It's not a perfect plan, but we owe it to Lion-O to try." Tygra said, he stood up and kicked the grate away, pulling out his whip, "ThunderCats! Ho!" The others followed him soon enough, bearing their own weapons.
"Keep them from the Sword!" Mumm-Ra ordered once he saw them. The generals and the spell castors all went to fight. The generals letting the castors go first, to see if they could do anything. They didn't. The castors were all easily taken out by Cheetara, Panthro, and Tygra, their weapons helping to take out a few at a time. Mumm-Ra growled, seeing that they weren't helping. "You were fools to come here! Lucas!" Lucas stepped forward, his eyes glowing a bright green as he lifted up his hands, a sort of green lightning surrounding them. Different beams of light shot out of his fingers, zapping all of the Cats. They fell to the ground soon after. "No more delays! Take them to the cells. I'll deal with them once I've destroyed the sword and the necklace." The spell castors did as he asked and began to drag the Cats away.
"…We bought him some time." WilyKit said to her brother.
"Bought who some time?" WilyKat asked, "No one's coming to save us." Two of the castors came over to them and picked up the kittens, dragging them away with the others.
The group was thrown roughly into the cell, and were quickly sealed away. "Enjoy your stay." One of the guards said mockingly as he walked away. The doors to the hall outside the prisons slid shut with a hiss, and the Cats looked around their cell, unsure of how they could get out. Tygra stood up, heading to the door of the cell, looking through the lavender colored gate. He looked around the room, searching for any weak points they could use to their advantage. His eyes wandered to the cell across from them, and his eyes widened when he saw someone lying on the floor of the cell.
"Leanne!" He called out, the other Cats' heads shot up, and they all went to the gate to see their friend lying on the floor of the prison cell across from theirs.
"You alright, Lee?" Panthro called to her. They watched as Leanne lifted her head slightly, and gave them a weak smile.
"Hey, guys…" She quietly called back to them, lowering her head back down, "I'd wave to you, but I don't really have the energy right now…"
"Are you okay?" WilyKit asked, worried for her.
"What happened to you?" Cheetara asked, looking over her appearance, noticing that Leanne was definitely paler than she had been, and in the corner of the prison cell, she could see a small puddle of blood.
"…Nothing major." Leanne said after a moment, her voice slightly raspy, "I think I'll be oka—" She started coughing again, and a small amount of her blood splattered out onto the floor and on the front of the gate. The others looked at her concernedly, "Um… it might take a while for me to get better…"
"Who did this?" Tygra asked.
"It was… Lucas." Leanne said, "He said he was taking my power…"
"Looks like he did a lot more than that." Panthro growled angrily.
"We'll get you out of here." Tygra promised.
Leanne looked up at him, giving him a small smile, but said nothing else, and that worried him.
The door to the cells suddenly opened, letting in two people.
"I don't remember asking for your thoughts on this matter." Lucas said to Kanar, "This is my hostage, and I'll do with her as I please."
"I just think it would be more fun if you let me have her." Kanar said as they walked to Leanne's cell, just in front of the number pad that would open it.
"You're idea of 'fun' is torture for the average person." Lucas snapped as he punched in a few numbers into the pad, opening up the cell, "The only reason you came with me was to see if I could make her scream again."
Kanar laughed a little, "Maybe." Lucas rolled his eyes.
Lucas went over to where Leanne lay on the floor, "Come on, you. Get up." When Leanne didn't move he crouched down, "I said get up!" When he reached for her, Leanne shot out her hand to touch the skin of his wrist and held on. Suddenly her eyes became filled with a vision.
Lucas was pushing the wheelchair of the same girl Leanne had seen before, little Elizabeth. She was wearing a small pink jacket over her nightgown, smiling at the sight of the bright flowers that passed her by as Lucas went through a garden.
"It's so pretty today!" Elizabeth said happily as Lucas pushed her through. He smiled at her.
"The weather man said today was just gonna be sun and fun." Lucas said, "So we're going to enjoy it." Elizabeth smiled up at him from her chair. They came to the end of the stone pathway that Lucas had been pushing her on. Elizabeth's smile fell a little as she looked out to the rest of the small garden that had been made in someone's backyard, looking out at the flowers at the other end of the yard. Lucas followed her gaze and looked at her. "What is it?"
"Mum said she planted some new azaleas last week…" Elizabeth said, "I thought she would have planted them closer to the door." Lucas looked back at the flowers then walked in front of her with a smile.
"Well, then let's go see them." He said, Elizabeth looked at him in confusion.
"But we can't move the chair through the grass." She said.
"We're not moving the chair." Lucas said, and he suddenly swept up the little girl in his arms and she let out a startled laugh. She wrapped her arms around his neck as he held her princess-style. He shifted her a little in his arms to make her more comfortable and she giggled as he carried her over to the flowerbed. He placed her down on the ground beside the flower bed, being very careful when he did so. She smiled and reached out for the flowers.
"They're so pretty." She said happily. Lucas crouched down next to her, watching as she picked one of the flowers and held it in between her hands. Lucas watched as she closed her eyes, her small lavender talisman glowing as she used her magic to lift it up, making the bloom of the flower hover in her hands. She smiled up at Lucas, "I've been practicing!"
"I can tell." Lucas said, bringing his hands under hers. He closed his eyes, concentrating, and Elizabeth watched with wide eyes as the bloom transformed into a much larger, much more exotic flower. Lucas smirked as he added in a few magic wisps of light around the flower. When it was done, the azalea bloom had turned from pink to purple, with an appearance more similar to that of a lily. Elizabeth looked up at Lucas and he smiled, "And so have I." She smiled widely at him.
"Can you do it again?" She asked excitedly, Lucas chuckled a little.
"Only if you keep smiling for me." He said, pressing a small kiss to her forehead. In return she gave him a big smile, showing him all her teeth. He laughed again and got up, going over to another part of the garden and picking a few more of the azaleas to change again. When he felt he had enough, he stood up and turned around to see Elizabeth had collapsed on the ground. Immediately, he dropped the flowers and ran to her, seeing that she was a bit pale, and her eyes were closed, "Lizzie!" He gently shook her a little, "Lizzie, wake up!" He patted the side of her face, but that didn't do anything. His heart began to race in worry, and he quickly picked her up again, running towards the house, calling, "Aunt Laura! Help!" The back door to the house opened by a woman, but before Leanne could make out her face the vision disappeared from her sight.
She looked up at the furious face of Lucas, who held her wrists tightly in his hand. "I know what you're trying to do." He growled, "I told you. You have no right to search my mind! My memories are mine and mine alone!" Leanne didn't say anything, and he glared at her, throwing her hands back down. "Now get up." He stood up, waiting for her to do the same. She didn't do anything, she remained on her back. Not that she could get up if she wanted to, she was still very weak. She kept her silver eyes on Lucas, wondering just how someone who had acted so sweet around that little girl could be so cold and demanding now. She saw him step back, shifting uncomfortably. "Stop looking at me like that." She kept looking at him, and he shifted his weight onto one foot.
"Here, let me fix that." Kanar said, stepping into the cell. He brought up his foot and kicked Leanne in the stomach, sending her flying into the back of the cell wall. Leanne let out a groan once she hit the floor, curling up from the pain. Lucas looked at Leanne with wide eyes, glancing fearfully at the jackal as he cackled happily.
"Leanne!" Tygra shouted from his cell. Snarf let out an angry growl, showing how angry he was at the jackal for hurting her.
"See? Now she's not looking at you funny!" Kanar said, pointing at Leanne.
"Yeah…" Lucas muttered, he walked over to Leanne, kicking her legs, but not nearly as hard as Kanar had kicked her. It was more of a tap, "Get up, Leanne. I'm not done with you yet." Leanne, not wanting to have to get kicked again, pushed herself up, and Lucas grabbed her arm, pulling her along and out of the prison cells, "When Mumm-Ra's done with the Jewel and the Sword, I'll finish what I started with you." Leanne gulped roughly in nervousness.
Lion-O went through the portal, landing back in the room where this had all begun. The soul of Jaga stood before him.
"You were deemed worthy of another chance, Lion-O." He began, "That chance was given to you, and you failed."
"It can't end this way, Jaga!" Lion-O said, desperation lining his voice, "My mission! The others! They need me!"
"Mumm-Ra has taken them prisoner." Jaga said, "He is going to use the Eye of Thundera to bring darkness down upon the entire world."
"Why are you telling me this if I can't do anything about it?!" Lion-O growled. "Jaga, please. There must be a way to send me back. I'd give anything!"
"What do you have to give?" Jaga asked him, "You've already lost your life."
"…Then what about my soul?" Lion-O asked him.
"Don't be foolish." Jaga said instantly, "Your soul is your most precious gift."
"If a king should be willing to sacrifice his life for his people, then why not his soul?" Lion-O asked.
Jaga's eyes widened when he realized just how serious Lion-O was about this. "The Spirit Stone can return you to your body, but only until sunrise." He said, "If you spend that time wisely, you may be able to save your friends."
"What happens at sunrise?" Lion-O asked.
"Your soul will depart this world and enter Limbo, where it shall remain for all eternity." Jaga replied, forewarning him of the dangers behind this.
Lion-O looked down for a moment, thinking. Was giving up his soul really worth this? It was his soul, if he didn't have that, he'd have no chance at all to come back. If he didn't take this deal, though… He shuddered to think of what would happen to his friends if they were Mumm-Ra's prisoners. He looked back up at Jaga and said, "Deal."
"Are you sure you understand the consequences of returning to your earthly body?" Jaga asked him. Lion-O nodded. It was better to help his friends and spend the rest of eternity in Limbo, than to do nothing and move on to the afterlife. "Very well." Jaga waved his staff, and Lion-O disappeared from the room.
He was transported back to where his earthly body was under the rocks and the water. He opened his eyes, startled by the fact that he could breathe in the water. He tried to move from under the rocks, but he was still trapped. The Spirit Stone began to glow, and a bright purplish light came from it. It created a dome around him that pushed the rocks up and away from him, and once they were no longer trapping him, Lion-O quickly swam up to the surface, where he took in his first gulp of real air since these events had begun. He looked around, seeing that the moons had already risen in the sky, and before him stood the cliff where he had fallen. He breathed out a sigh.
"Up again." He muttered, "Why does everything always up?" He heard a loud call and looked back to see a large bird come down towards the water and snap up a fish in its beak before flying off. He smirked as he remembered his trials with Not-Cheetara and swam over closer to where the fish were. When another bird came swooping down, he grabbed onto its tail. The bird squawked and immediately began to fly up, and Lion-O held on as it flew up the cliff, "Maybe I'm finally learning my lessons." He said to himself. It was a little ironic, seeing as how those lessons wouldn't really do him any good once the sun rose…
He shook his head of that thought and immediately began to focus on the others, trying to figure out a way to find them and save them. Once the bird had flown high enough, Lion-O jumped off and landed on the cliff. He looked around, searching for any sign of where the others might have gone, and his eyes spied a small drawing on a rock. It wasn't much, just a little smiley-face with a crown on its head. Lion-O crouched down, running his hand across the drawing, knowing that someone had put that there for him to find. He smiled, amazed that one of them still had such incredible faith in him, and got up and ran, going down the path.
He continued to follow the markers that had been drawn for him, until he finally made it to the desert, and soon enough, Mumm-Ra's lair. He knew that somewhere in there, his friends were being held. He was determined to get them out, but first, he needed to figure out how to get around the guards surrounding the place…
The Cats all sat in their cell, trying to figure out their next move.
"If Mumm-Ra gets the Eye of Thundera, we won't be able to stop him." Cheetara said.
"I don't know what to do, Cheetara." Tygra told her. He looked away for a moment sadly, "I questioned Lion-O's decisions, but in the end they always worked out… Suddenly I'm in charge and we end up in here, and heaven knows where Leanne's gone."
"Will you all stop worrying?" WilyKit said, she looked at the lavender gate of their prison cell, "Lion-O will be here soon, and he'll find a way to get the sword back, and Leanne."
Cheetara looked at the little girl sadly, "Kit… Lion-O is…"
"He'll be here, Cheetara!" WilyKit insisted, "He'll be here!"
Tygra stepped forward, looking at her as Cheetara had. It seemed the concept of death was lost on a child so young, "Kit…"
"He'll be here!" WilyKit insisted again, looking out at the prison cells, waiting for Lion-O to come through the doors and save them.
Lion-O looked down at the lizard guards as he climbed up the side of the temple. He was surprised none of them had noticed him yet, and it had been fairly easy to sneak past them. Then again, it was dark, and there was a bit of a thick fog around the temple, so he really shouldn't have been so surprised. He continued on, going through an opening someone in the temple had forgotten to close and he slipped inside. Now, he just had to get to the prison cells and free his friends.
It was easy enough, as he still remembered the way from his time inside the Book of Omens, where he had been his ancestor, Leo. He walked in through an opening and looked around, seeing only one cell had been taken, and his friends were inside it. He was about to go to them, when he heard the voices of another.
"How much longer, Slithe?" Kanar's voice whined. "They smell so good."
Lion-O looked to see Mumm-Ra's three generals coming down the steps to where the cells were. Thinking quickly, he hid from them, waiting for them to pass by as they argued with one another.
"Lord Mumm-Ra has plans for them!" Slithe snapped, "Do you want to tell him that you ate his playthings?"
Atticus let out a couple of monkey grunts before speaking, "He's right you know. They do smell delicious." Lion-O watched as they walked by him, a plan quickly forming in his head as they walked by one of the empty cells.
"Ah… Everything for Mumm-Ra…" Kanar muttered, he looked at Slithe, "I bet he wouldn't miss one of the kittens."
Lion-O stepped out of his hiding place, and couldn't help the grin that showed on his face as he greeted them, "Hello Generals."
All three turned around with wide eyes to see him, "Lion-O?!" Slithe exclaimed when he saw him.
"We… We saw you die." Atticus said.
"Then your eyes must be as bad as your breath." Lion-O said, carefully and casually walking back into one of the cells. The three generals followed him.
"Brave talk," Slithe said, "But without your sword, you're no match for any one of us."
"So… You wanna do this the hard way?" Lion-O asked as he came near the back of the prison cell.
"Absolutely." Atticus said, a psychotic grin on his face. As they began to approach him, Lion-O jumped up, resting his hands on Slithe's head as he kicked away both Kanar and Atticus, and he used Slithe to give him some leverage as he jumped away to the outside of the cell, and pressed one of the buttons on the pad, locking it up.
"Too bad." Lion-O said, "I prefer the easy way." He walked away from them, ignoring their threats and angry cries as he went to go help his friends.
When he appeared in front of their cell, they all looked at him with wide eyes, and he gave them a warm smile as he opened up the cell.
"It can't be…" Tygra breathed when he saw him.
"Lion-O?" WilyKat asked in shock.
"I told you he would come!" WilyKit cried happily. The twins ran to him and hugged his waist happily. Lion-O smiled and rested his hands on their heads.
"If it wasn't for your markers, I never would have made it." Lion-O said. Panthro walked up to him with a smile on his face.
"It's good to see you again, kid." He said, Lion-O returned his smile. He looked around, the smile disappearing when he saw one missing from their group.
"Where's Leanne?" He asked. Panthro's smile disappeared at the mention.
"Lucas took her away, we don't know where." He said.
Cheetara came up to him, "How… How are you…?"
"Long story, but we don't have much time." Lion-O said, Or rather, there won't be time, he thought. "We have to get the sword back, and help Leanne."
"It's a suicide mission." Panthro said.
"You're telling me…" Lion-O muttered, he looked at the others, "I'd understand if you don't wanna follow me into there."
"We'd follow you anywhere," Tygra said, he smiled, "Your majesty." Lion-O smiled back. That was the first time he had ever called him that without meaning it in an ironic way. Lion-O looked to see everyone was in agreement and they moved out.
Tygra told Lion-O where Mumm-Ra was keeping the sword and the Jewel of Omens, and they carefully moved through the halls until they arrived. The door was guarded, not really something Lion-O didn't expect. He looked to Panthro, "General, the doors, please."
Panthro smiled and pulled out a single bomb, "With pleasure, My King." He used his mechanical arm to reach up high where the guards weren't looking and stuck it on the top of the huge doors, sliding his finger across the small screen, and he pulled his arm back. They all prepared for the oncoming explosion by crouching together.
Leanne watched with dull eyes as Mumm-Ra continued to chant, his spell castors still surrounding him, before him on a platform rested the Sword of Omens and the Jewel of Omens. Leanne looked to Lucas, who was stone faced as he watched the ceremony.
"You're not doing this for you, are you?" She asked him quietly. He didn't respond, he didn't even make eye contact with her, "You're doing it for her. For Elizabeth… right?" He still didn't respond, but he did squeeze her arm a little, and she winced at his grip.
Suddenly, an explosion destroyed the doors to the room, and Leanne looked at it with wide eyes. Through the smoke, she saw someone she thought she'd never lay eyes on again, and they filled with tears as she looked at him, and she cried out, "Lion-O!"
Lion-O cried out, "ThunderCats! Ho!" As he and the other stormed into the room. Lucas and the others all looked at them with wide eyes.
"Impossible…" Lucas breathed in shock. Leanne, seeing this opportunity, brought up her elbow from his grasp and jammed it under his chin. Lucas groaned in pain and hunched over, and she brought her hands down on the back of his head, knocking him down on the floor, and knocking him unconscious. She ran towards the other Cats as they stormed through.
"No!" Mumm-Ra exclaimed, "They must not break the circle!" The other spell castors ran towards them, trying to fight them off. But they were easily overpowered by the ThunderCats, their weapons giving them great advantage over the spell castors, who had none at all. Leanne even joined in the fighting once she had been released from her bonds by Panthro. Lion-O walked straight up to Mumm-Ra a murderous expression on his face.
"Mumm-Ra!" He snarled, "You have something of mine!"
"And without it," Mumm-Ra replied, "You will never defeat me!" Lion-O let out an angry growl as Mumm-Ra shed his cloak and began to say, "Ancient Spirits of Evil, transform this decayed form into Mumm-Ra! The Ever-Living!" Lion-O stepped back as the demon transformed, his withering body becoming full of life once more, and with all the strength he had in his youth. In his hand he created a ball of lightning and shot it at Lion-O, who jumped away from it before it could hit. He kept firing at the young king, and Lion-O kept jumping back. He landed in a crouch and held up his gauntlet.
"You may have the Sword of Omens, but I still have the Spirit Stone!" He said, the stone in his gauntlet began to glow brightly, "And I am the King of the ThunderCats!" Mumm-Ra fired at him again, and the Spirit Stone protected Lion-O, shielding him from it. He kept the shield up as he ran around Mumm-Ra, still blocking his lightning, until he came to the side of the room. He put the shield down, and deftly ran along the walls, using them as leverage as he jumped away and dove for the sword and necklace. Once they were in his grasp, he held his sword tight in his hands, and looked around to see Leanne trying to fight off one of the other lizards, but wasn't doing much good. "Leanne!" She looked up at him and he threw her the necklace. She smiled as she caught it and held it tightly as she blasted back the lizards with a huge gust of air.
"No!" Mumm-Ra cried, and he ran at Lion-O to try and grab the sword back, but Lion-O used the Eye of Thundera to create a powerful red beam that, even in his true form, pushed Mumm-Ra back. Once it died, Lion-O ran at him, and Mumm-Ra ran away. Lion-O wouldn't let him live so easily. Not when he had so little time left in the world. Mumm-Ra jumped down a long shaft, heading down to another floor. Lion-O still ran after him, letting out a wild cry, but was stopped by a metal hand as an alarm sounded throughout the room.
"Forget him, Lion-O!" Panthro said, holding him back, "We've got to get out of here!" Lion-O glared at where Mumm-Ra had been, but followed Panthro as he had said. They all fled the temple as lizard guards came upon them, firing their guns. They all ran through the doorway, making sure it closed behind them as they escaped the temple and got as far away as they could.
Mumm-Ra's temple could still be seen in the distance, but the Cats knew that they were safe here. Lion-O looked out at the skyline, seeing that the night was slowly beginning to turn to day, and sadness took over his heart as he realized his time was almost up.
He turned to the others, and looked in surprise as Leanne approached him, an angry scowl on her face. He was about to say something, when she smacked him across the face.
"Okay… I think I deserved that…" Lion-O said, still in shock that she hit him.
"You're damn right you did!" Leanne snapped, "Don't you ever scare me like that again!" Tears leaked out of her eyes, and Lion-O's expression softened. She came over to him and wrapped her arms around him, "I'm so glad you're okay…" Lion-O held her to him pressing her warm body against his, and putting his head beside hers. He held her tight for what he knew was going to be his last few moments. He wanted to remember her. He took in a deep breath as he held her, remembering her scent. He wanted to remember the warmth her body gave him. Maybe it would give him some kind of comfort when he was in Limbo.
"Okay, Lion-O," Cheetara began, pulling him out of his thoughts, "I think it's time you told us what happened to you." Lion-O looked up at her, and then at the ever-brightening sky. He pulled away from Leanne and stepped back. She looked at him confusedly, tears still flowing down her cheeks.
"I'm sorry." He said, "But I have to leave."
"Leave?" WilyKit asked, "Why?" Lion-O didn't answer as the Spirit Stone began to glow.
Soon, Jaga's soul appeared before them, a solemn expression on his face, "Because he has paid the ultimate price."
"…Ultimate price?" Leanne repeated, knowing that something like that normally meant his life… or his soul.
Lion-O looked out on the horizon as the sun began to peak over the edge, "Sunrise… I guess it's time."
"Time to use what you've learned to bring your people to victory as the Reborn King of the ThunderCats." Jaga said with a smile. Lion-O's eyes widened in shock.
"I can stay?!" He asked in surprise, "H-How…?! The Trials…!"
"The Trials were designed to test more than just your skill." Jaga said, "They were designed to test your heart. When you made the ultimate sacrifice to save your friends, you showed what it means to truly be a king." Jaga's soul faded away, and a smile broke out on Lion-O's face as the dawn continued to break through the sky. He wasn't going to die. The mission wasn't over. He could still live! It was the greatest news he had ever heard in his life.
"What trials?" WilyKit asked curiously as she looked up at Lion-O.
"Yeah, what trials?" Her brother asked him.
"What did he mean by 'ultimate sacrifice'?" Cheetara asked.
"What was he talking about?" Tygra asked.
"Where've you been?" Panthro asked. Lion-O held up his hands defensively, trying to stop the bombardment of questions.
"Wait, wait, hang on!" Lion-O said, Leanne reached up and gently placed her hand on his arm. He looked down at her and she looked at him with soft eyes, and a gentle smile.
"Lion-O… Just what exactly happened to you?" She asked him, "We all saw you fall off that cliff… We all thought you were dead." Lion-O put his hands down and gently held hers with a soft smile.
"I guess I'll just start at the beginning," He said, he turned to the others, "When I died."
Tada! A new chapter!
I thought I should upload it now since I'm going to college in a couple days, and I won't be able to focus on writing on much as I'd like to. I hope this chapter satisfies all of you!
Also- I broke 300 pages! ^_^
This fic is getting so LONG!