32
Leanne let out a small shriek as she was pushed over the ledge and into the pile of garbage with the others. She glared up at Vultare when she landed on her behind. Panthro helped her to stand up.
"Well, this stinks." Tygra said, scowling at the garbage around them.
"Literally." Leanne agreed, holding her nose as she smelled some of the garbage.
"That distinct aroma is coming from the refuse drop." Vultare said, "This is where we dispose of our trash."
"Let us go! Now!" Panthro snarled up at him.
"Normally, we return guests to the ground by airship." Vultare said, "But when they engage in kidnapping, and acts of sabotage against our fair city, we use this." He made a signal to Horace, who stood by a lever. He pulled it downwards, and the garbage they stood on began to sink downwards as the bottom of the floor opened up, revealing the huge distance between them and the ground. Some of it had already fallen out and started plummeting towards the Earth. Everyone else began to climb up the moving garbage, not wanting to share the same fate as the waste. Leanne thought about trying to fly up and grab the others, but she quickly dismissed the though, realizing she didn't have the strength to pull them all up, and even if she could, Leanne might have ejected their shrinking island of trash out even faster, not to mention her friends as well.
"You can't do this to us!" Cheetara shouted at Vultare.
"Yeah! We'd much rather be shot!" Panthro said, desperately scrambling away from the deadly drop. His fear of heights forced him keep eye contact with anything but the gaping hole.
not to look down. A piercing alarm rang throughout the room, and red lights blanketed the room. At first, Leanne thought it was just part of some warning that meant 'Garbage is being disposed of, don't fall in,' but when she saw Vultare's panic stricken face, she was sure that wasn't what it meant.
A raven looking guard flew over to Vultare, obviously exhausted from his urgent flight, "Sir, we're detecting a fleet of ships." He reported.
"Order every pilot to the sky cutters." Vultare commanded, "Whoever they are, they've no chance against the technology of Avista."
"Vultare! You know who this is!" Lion-O shouted up at him, struggling with his grip on the ledge, "It's Mumm-Ra, and he's coming for your Power Stone!"
"And if you want to have a chance against him, you're going to need a few feral barbarians on your side!" Pumyra shouted.
Vultare looked down at the group as they climbed, and he shrugged, "I've always said the enemy of my enemy is my friend." He made another signal to Horace, and he pulled the lever back up, closing the drop, and everyone in the hole let out a sigh of relief. Once they were calm, Leanne got up, glaring at Pumyra and stormed over to her.
"What the hell is wrong with you?!" She snapped at her, "You could've gotten us all killed! You need to think before you act, dammit—!"
"Leanne!" Lion-O cut her off, and she looked back at him, "That's enough." Leanne scowled but did as he asked and stepped back as she approached him, looking much more humble than she had been a while ago.
"I wanted to tell you…" Any explanation Pumyra had trailed off as she looked at Lion-O's disapproving glare, "I'm sorry. My actions in the Stone Chamber were… rash."
"You almost got us killed, Pumyra." Lion-O said, "I need to know, do I have your loyalty?"
Pumyra stood up straight, "I serve my king and master." Lion-O nodded, this being enough for him, and Vultare had a ladder lowered down to help them get out. Pumyra and Leanne brought up the end of the line as they headed up.
"Just because you said you're gonna play nice doesn't mean I'm going to believe you." Leanne whispered to her as they moved toward the ladder. Pumyra glared at her.
"Why won't you trust me?" She asked her.
"Because you've been lying to us since day one." Leanne replied, "I don't know why you're lying, but I know you are. Until you start telling the truth, I won't trust you." Pumyra scowled and bumped her shoulder as she walked faster, heading to the ladder first. Leanne glared up at her as she climbed up. Leanne beat her to the top by flying up there, giving her a rueful glare on the way up. Pumyra glared at her but the two girls said nothing to each other as they headed to the outside of the city to help them prepare for battle. As they walked, they exchanged the kind of looks that women use when weapons aren't an option.
Kit and Kat had flown down to the Fishman Oasis, meeting some of the former pirates that used to sail on the sand sea. They had given them all the information they could about Avista, and what was going on with Lion-O and the others as they fought against the Birds.
"We've been going to everyone Lion-O's helped on Third Earth." Kit explained.
"Because this time, he's the one that could use some help." Kat continued, "Can we count on you?"
The Fish Man they were speaking to stared blankly at them, blinking twice in silence. The other two Fish Men by his side waiting for his answer, as he was their leader since Koinelius had been swallowed by the Ramlak. The two kittens glanced at each other at his silence.
"…So is that a yes or a no?" Kit asked him.
Lucas sat in the cockpit of one of the crafts as it was being flown by a soldier. He had no experience in flying, so he was just the commanding officer as the craft moved closer to the city of the birds. His heart pounded in his chest, and he could feel his palms becoming clammy in his nervousness. The only sound that could be heard on the craft was the sound of the engine as they flew. The craft he was on was one of the larger ones that was fully equipped with all kinds of weapons, ready to fire on any Birds that flew by. He hated the silence that was between him and the crew on board. The silence made him think, and when he thought he normally ended up having flashes of images from nightmares he had had before. He was so sick of the nightmares! He was tired of being a part of this team! Elizabeth was important to him, and he needed that Redoric girl's power, but he wasn't sure how much more of this he could take.
"General Lucas." He looked up when one of the soldiers spoke to him, seeing that it was Sinzer, "We are approaching the city. What are your orders?"
"All soldiers to their battle stations." Lucas ordered, "Prepare for a fight." Sinzer saluted him and ran off, shouting out the orders Lucas had given. Lucas stood up straight as he looked ahead, seeing the structure of the city of the birds before him. His hands gripped at the railing. Now was not the time for a personal problem. If he didn't fight in this battle, he could die, and then none of it would matter. He had to fight now.
The group stood on the landing pad that held onto the Feliner, looking out onto the horizon. They saw different battling crafts flying up and towards the city. They were out of range of any weapons, but they were getting close.
"How does Mumm-Ra keep finding us?!" Tygra snapped, getting tired of having the old demon chasing after them.
"No doubt you led him right to us!" Vultare snapped in reply, not happy about the prospect of war on his city.
"That's impossible!" Cheetara said, certain that Mumm-Ra couldn't be tracking them through any way.
"What matters now is keeping the Stone away from him." Pumyra said, changing the subject to the more urgent matter on hand.
"We'll defend the perimeter." Lion-O said to Vultare.
"And we'll defend the skies." Vultare said. He went over to where his ship was coming up onto the landing pad, and let out a surprised squawk when he saw Tygra sitting in the pilot's seat. He gave Vultare a cheeky grin as he marched over, "What are you doing in my ship?!"
"Since this one's dented, Prefect, I'll take it." Tygra said. He shut the entrance to the ship and took off into the air, at a much greater speed than the other ship he had been flying before. Vultare glared at him and the trail of exhaust he left behind.
"Cats…" He muttered, and went over to where one of the sky cutters was waiting for him. Panthro, Cheetara, and Pumyra were directed to some blasters that were placed in different parts of the city, ready to fire. Lion-O and Leanne stood on their own, able to make long range attacks from where they stood.
"Keep them off this city!" Lion-O ordered, his voice reaching everyone who listened. He pulled out his sword, "ThunderCats! Ho!" A magnificent red beam shot out from the Sword of Omens, taking out a good portion of the enemies' ships. Unaware of it, Leanne's eyes flashed a hot white and she let a battle cry as she moved her hands towards the ships, tornadoes of fire shooting from her palms. Between her and Lion-O alone, they took out the first line of the enemy's defense.
Panthro, Cheetara, and Pumyra fired blast after blast at the incoming ships that the two of them happened to miss. Any ship that so much as brushed by the blasts of energy exploded, their engines frying as they crashed into another part of Avista. Some weren't so lucky, and their ships started to plummet down to the ground below. Poor Snarf, unable to man any weapons and terribly frightened from all the huge booming noises around him, ran around on one of the landing pads, crying out in fear.
Vultare flew to the front of his attack force, which formed in a V-like formation, similar to ones that birds used in a natural environment back in Leanne's home. "Vulture One to squadron," He said through the communications device in his ship, "Let's teach these savages the art of combat, shall we? Osprey wing, attack pattern 17." The ships flew up, still in the V-like formation and prepared to attack on the oncoming ships. The smaller ships, that were in no pattern whatsoever, zoomed towards them, opening fire and easily taking out one ship after another.
"Too many…!" One of the pilots said, his ship lurched when one of the lizard's shots hit the back of his ship, "I'm hit!" A moment later, his ship exploded, as did five others.
"Vultare! Break up your formations!" Tygra shouted over the communicator, "You're just making it easy for them!"
"I don't understand!" Vultare cried, "The simulations…!"
"This is war, not a game!" Tygra snapped, "All wings, follow my lead! Break formation and improvise!"
"Right with you, Tiger One." One of the other Birds said. Some of the ships followed Tygra's up, then split away, going to fight the other ships on their own.
"I am your leader!" Vultare snapped, in disbelief that his soldiers would follow a Cat instead of him.
On the city, Pumyra was firing away at the oncoming ships, taking out one after another. One that was very tricky managed to maneuver out of her grasp, even though it was one of the larger air crafts. This one happened to be piloted by Lucas, who saw that it was one of the Cats manning the blaster.
"Open fire!" He ordered, and the soldiers obeyed, hitting the blaster with ease. Pumyra quickly made to get off of the blaster once it was hit, but before she had a chance to even get out of the seat, it exploded and threw her to the other side of the landing pad.
As Tygra flew through the skies, he soon saw the silhouette of a much, much larger air craft than the ones he had been fighting and recognized it right away as the vehicle Mumm-Ra had used before at Mt. Plun-Darr. Apparently, it was now capable of flight. "Mumm-Ra…" He growled when he saw it.
"Castrol wing, attack pattern 23." Vultare ordered, sending more of his soldiers towards Mumm-Ra's ship, opening fire on it.
"Vultare, retreat!" Tygra shouted, "You don't know what you're up against!"
Before Vultare had a chance to reply, a purple orb of energy surrounded Mumm-Ra's ship, then suddenly grew larger and larger, taking in the hundred airships within its range, and it blew apart, a shockwave ringing through the air. Vultare's eyes widened at the sight of it.
"Such power…" He said in awe.
"Citizens of Avista," A raspy voice echoed through the communicators in the airships, and a communications system in the city, "I offer you one chance to surrender and join me. With our combined might, we could rule Third Earth together. Resist, and you shall perish. What is your choice?"
"Let's give him our answer!" Tygra said, flying towards Mumm-Ra's ship, "I've got one missile left, and it's going straight down his throat!" He stayed out of range in case Mumm-Ra decided to use that strange blast again, and used the system to take aim at his ship, "I have a lock!"
"What a coincidence. So do I." Vultare said. Tygra looked back and saw Vultare's ship was just behind him, and was able to see him fire a missile on his ship. The aircraft lurched painfully, and the engines began to sputter and burn as Tygra tried to maneuver the craft towards Avista, hoping to make some kind of landing there. Vultare flew up beside the craft that carried Atticus and a few other soldiers and gave him a grin. "The enemy of my enemy is my friend, yes?" Atticus returned the grin before the pair of them went to work.
On the city, the blasters Cheetara and Panthro had been using were destroyed by the incoming ships, the larger crafts coming in to land on the city. As the fight began to get increasingly intense, Snarf ran away from the battle and tried to hide in a small pipe that seemed big enough for him to fit. He jumped in, but soon found that not all of him would go in, so he tried to get out to find another hiding spot, but he couldn't get out either. He let out distressed cries as he tried to push himself out of the pipe while the battle raged on.
The larger crafts landed on the city, the lizard soldiers and the generals that were aboard them coming off, attacking any enemy Birds that came towards them. Lion-O and Leanne were quick to react, going over to the landing pads. The first of the generals to land on the city was Lucas, and his men were quick to scatter. Leanne came upon them first and blasted the soldiers back with a gust of wind that either knocked their weapons out of their hands, or knocked them to another part of the city where they couldn't hurt anyone, or just off of the city itself. When she saw Lucas, she froze. He looked so sickly, his face had become a little sunken, and there were dark circles under his ghostly green eyes. He seemed thinner, and looked exhausted.
When he saw her, he was quick to act, his palms lighting with a sickly ghostly green light that shot towards her. Leanne jumped back from them, holding out her palms as fire seeped out. The flames were bright and strong, and Lucas stepped back, the light disappearing as he tried to block the heat from his face. But, because they were at such a high altitude the flames died much faster due to the lack of oxygen for them to burn. Leanne had to put in some extra effort in keeping up her fiery shield as Lucas kept stepping back. Eventually, he let out an angry shout and shot his hands forward, the flames suddenly going out and pushing Leanne back to another part of the city. Lucas started marching towards her, but was stopped when three Bird guards came over to him, their electric spears ready. Lucas easily subdued them by pushing them all back and their weapons out of their hands, but when he looked up to finish what he had started with Leanne, she was gone.
Cheetara moved quickly through the troops, knocking them out with her staff, and using her speed to run through the crafts that had landed, destroying them. Panthro and Tygra were doing the same, Panthro knocking the heads of the soldiers together while Tygra used his whip to get them down.
"Hold the lines! Keep them off the decks!" Lion-O shouted.
While the group was enough to keep off some of the ones that had landed, even more were coming and invading the city, armed to the teeth. They were crowding the decks all over Avista, and there were too many for them to keep off very easily. Pumyra moved back towards where Lion-O and Leanne were fighting against the enemy soldiers.
"We need to fall back and secure the Stone Chamber!" Pumyra shouted over the battle.
"She's right!" Panthro said in agreement before Leanne had a chance to protest her words, "We'll hold them off as long as we can! Go!" Lion-O looked over at Pumyra, silently nodding and the two of them headed towards the chamber. Leanne made to follow after them, running by Lion-O's side.
"What are you doing here? Go back and help the others!" Lion-O said.
"I'm coming with you!" Leanne said, she glared at Pumyra, and she returned the gesture. "It's not exactly like there's time for us to argue about it!" Lion-O let out a small growl, but nodded.
"Fine." He said, and they ran further into the city, where the Stone Chamber still remained open after Vultare put in the access codes. The Tech Stone still hung in its place, slowly rotating around and around as they approached it.
"We're out of time, you need to take the stone now!" Pumyra said once they got close enough to it.
"We've been over this already!" Leanne said, "If we take the stone, the entire city will fall!"
"It's already fallen! At least we'll take Mumm-Ra with it!" Pumyra said quickly.
"I won't doom thousands!" Lion-O said.
A huge purple bolt shot out from behind them and hit Pumyra, knocking her back and down onto the ground with its force, leaving her unconscious.
Leanne and Lion-O turned to see a familiar hunched figure dressed in bandages and red cloak.
"I, on the other hand, have no such concerns!" Mumm-Ra rasped out, letting out laughter as Leanne readied herself in a fighting stance. Lion-O didn't take his eyes off of him as he ran over to Pumyra, making sure she was okay.
He looked up at Mumm-Ra and glared, "If you've hurt her…!" He let the threat hang in the air.
"Your concern is misplaced." Mumm-Ra said as he stepped further into the Stone Chamber, Leanne taking a few steps back to place some distance between the two of them as he walked, "You're hopelessly outmatched."
"Count again." Lion-O said, holding up his gauntlet, "I have two power stones, and Leanne has the third." The Jewel of Omens let off a small gleam of light from where it rested around Leanne's neck.
"And once I destroy you, I will have four." Mumm-Ra said. "The Sword of Omens is a pale copy that can only tap a fraction of the Stones' power!" He reached into his cloak and pulled out the dark blade of the Sword of Plun-Darr, "This is the original, carved from the heart of a shattered star!" Leanne watched as small sparks came off of the blade, the sword showing off its power.
"My ancestor defeated you with the Sword of Omens." Lion-O said, "I will do the same." He reached for his sword, pulling it out of his gauntlet, letting out a feral growl as he stood up, preparing for an attack.
Mumm-Ra chuckled at his enthusiasm and began to chant, "Ancient Spirits of Evil, transform this decayed form into Mumm-Ra! The ever-living!" Leanne shielded her eyes as he transformed, her eyes widening as she saw the circle forming around him. She could see various symbols flashing through, and she recognized them from before, seeing them somewhere in her Nana's diary. Soon, Mumm-Ra changed into his true form, spreading his wings wide as he held up the Sword of Plun-Darr, lightning shooting out of it in a display of power. Lion-O let out a battle cry as he charged over to Mumm-Ra, sparks flying as their blades clashed. Lion-O swung at him again, more sparks coming from the swords as they fought. Leanne ran towards Mumm-Ra, her hands aflame as she spewed out fire at him. Mumm-Ra deflected it easily enough using his wings to push it back. Seeing that her fire wasn't going to do much good, Leanne went to fight with the only other element she was able to use and blasted a powerful gust of wind at him. Mumm-Ra stepped back from it, but did not move otherwise. As Lion-O charged at him again, Mumm-Ra quickly defended himself from the attack and went on the defensive as Lion-O swung at him again and again. Leanne kept blasting wind at the demon, and Mumm-Ra was able to defend himself by using his wings as he kept parrying at Lion-O.
Pumyra still lay on the ground near the hovering Tech Stone, unconscious, as the battle raged between the three of them.
Kit and Kat stood outside of the gates of the Elephant Village as the slowly closed. Kat turned to his sister, "A whole day scouring Third Earth…" He murmured, surprised they had been able to do it.
"We've asked everyone for help." Kit said, listing them off on her fingers, "The Fish Men, The Elephants, The Berbils, even those stinky Dogs. Anyone left?" Kat shrugged in response, "Then we did our best. We'd better get back to the others…" She trailed off as she looked down at the edge of the Forest of Magi Oar. Her eyes widened as she saw a familiar face coming out of the thicket, rubbing a few leaves off of his clothes as he walked, squinting, into the sunlight. Smiles grew on the twins' faces at the sight of him.
"Is that who I think it is?" Kat asked excitedly. They quickly got on their hover boards and flew down to him.
Nick looked up when he saw the two floating masses heading towards him, but before he could properly defend himself, he was crushed by two pairs of arms in a hug. He laughed as he looked down at the twins. "Hey guys." He greeted, grabbing the two with one arm each, "Good to see you again! I was worried I wouldn't find you."
"When did you get back?" Kat asked as he pulled away from him, all three of them sitting up.
"About an hour ago." He replied, he reached into the pocket of his pants and pulled out a folded-up piece of paper, grinning, "I found just what I needed to get back here. Now, where are the others?"
"Up in a floating city." Kit said, Nick looked at her with wide eyes.
"Seriously?" He asked, the twins nodded and he sighed, "Okay, considering everything that happened the last couple of times I've been here, I'll buy that." He stood up, "What's going on?"
"We're going to everyone in Third Earth to ask for help." Kat said, "Lion-O's fighting against an entire city, and he's going to need some friends on his side." Nick nodded.
"Hey, you can count me in." Nick said. "Anything to help out a family friend." The two kittens grinned widely.
Mumm-Ra roared as he charged at Lion-O, swinging his blade at him again and again. Lion-O did his best to deflect each blow, sparks flying as their swords clashed again and again. Leanne let out a battle cry as she jumped up, the speed of her wind increasing to cause Mumm-Ra physical pain. He let out another roar and he turned and held out his hand to her, a blast of lightning shooting from his palm and blowing her back against the wall. Lion-O let out an angered cry when he saw her attacked and ran at Mumm-Ra again. Mumm-Ra didn't deflect his sword with his own, and defended himself with his gauntlet. Lion-O used this as leverage to jump over and above Mumm-Ra and land on the other side. Mumm-Ra turned around and before Lion-O had a chance to use his sword against Mumm-Ra, he reached out with his gauntleted hand and grabbed the Sword of Plun-Darr before it could touch him.
"The Stones are mine!" Mumm-Ra shouted as the dark blade began to heat up, pushing him back. Lion-O struggled against it, but as the dark sword grew hotter, a light shone from the Spirit Stone on his gauntlet. Sparks flew around the golden metal, and the gauntlet had extended into an armored arm. Lion-O was able to use this armor and throw Mumm-Ra back just as Leanne got up from where she had been blasted by Mumm-Ra. Her eyes widened at the sight of the armor Lion-O now had.
Mumm-Ra glared at him, "You cannot fully harness their power, and yet the Stones still protect you?!" He snarled out. Lion-O looked down at his new armor, feeling just as surprised as Leanne had. Mumm-Ra pushed himself to stand, "I will just have to get one for myself!" He flew over to where the Tech Stone was and swiped it from its place in the machine.
"No!" Leanne shouted, she ran over to Mumm-Ra and used her wind to propel herself forward and land a solid punch to Mumm-Ra's face. The Tech Stone went flying out of his hands onto another part of the floor as a loud alarm sounded throughout the city. The machine that was used to harness the Stone's power began to collapse and break apart.
"Warning: Anti-gravity failure imminent. Warning: Anti-gravity failure imminent." A mechanical voice called out. The entire place shook and Leanne felt the pull of gravity on her as the city started to fall, and she lost her balance for a moment, falling to her knees as the room began to shake. She looked up when Mumm-Ra started to make a run for the Tech Stone, and Lion-O ran over to it, using the Sword of Omens to knock it away. Leanne ran over to it, wanting to make sure Mumm-Ra never got his hands on it, but the demon was quick and fired a shot at the stone to knock it away from her before she had a chance to grab it. As he dashed over to it, Lion-O got there first and knocked it away. He ran for it, and Mumm-Ra blasted the stone out of his reach. Mumm-Ra ran for it, and Leanne blew it away towards Lion-O, and Mumm-Ra blasted it away from him. The life-or-death game of Keep Away continued as Pumyra slowly began to return to consciousness, seeing the three of them run for the Stone after knocking it away from another. Lion-O knocked it away from Mumm-Ra and the Stone slid over to her and she grasped it in her hand as Lion-O and Leanne kept battling with Mumm-Ra.
Lion-O saw that she had it, and with a powerful swing, knocked Mumm-Ra back and turned to her, yelling, "Pumyra! Throw it!" She looked up from the stone at him, pausing in her actions as she pushed herself up. Leanne looked over at Mumm-Ra, seeing that he was waiting for her to act. She thought it odd he didn't just blast at her again to get the stone out of her hands, "Pumyra!" Lion-O shouted when she hesitated.
"Lion-O… You are my king." She said as she stood up, giving him a wicked grin, "But he is my master." She threw the Tech Stone to Mumm-Ra, who easily caught it.
Lion-O gasped, and Leanne's eyes broadened, fury filling her veins as she saw Pumyra's betrayal. Mumm-Ra put the green stone to his gauntlet and let out a cackle as he began to transform, the dark armor that Lion-O and Leanne had seen in the Book of Omens taking form on him. Once it was finished, Mumm-Ra created a blast that threw back Lion-O and Leanne and they slid on the ground. As they got up, they saw Pumyra going over to Mumm-Ra and when he held out his dark gauntlet, she placed a gentle, sensuous kiss to it.
"I knew it!" Leanne shouted as she glared venomously at Pumyra, "I knew you were lying! I knew you were a traitor!"
"Pumyra, why?!" Lion-O growled, angered and hurt by her betrayal. She said nothing, only giving him a smile as Mumm-Ra's claws caressed her chin.
"Fool, Pumyra has been mine, body and soul since the day Thundera fell!" Mumm-Ra said, "You remember that day, don't you Lion-O?" Lion-O's eyes narrowed, growling as he saw the horrible memory of Thundera's destruction. "Pumyra fell in battle, waiting for a king who never came. She called out to you as you left the next day, but you did not come." Leanne and Lion-O's eyes widened at this news. They never heard anyone calling out for them when they left, but Leanne had always thought that Lion-O had searched for survivors after Thundera fell, did they not see her? Had she been trapped somewhere where they couldn't hear her? "Her fiery rage shined bright in the Well of Souls, calling out for revenge. I invoked the Ancient Spirits to bring her back, to take revenge on the one who betrayed her."
"Against you." Pumyra growled, picking up a piece of shrapnel from the destroyed machines.
"The signs… They were there all along…" Lion-O said, he turned to Mumm-Ra, "You tracked us through her!"
"You were a fool not to see it!" Pumyra snapped, "A love-struck fool! Even when Leanne told you the truth, you were so blind that you couldn't accept it!" Lion-O glanced at Leanne as she pushed herself up. She didn't notice his gaze as her hateful one was directed towards Pumyra. Pumyra held up the shrapnel, fire in her eyes, "Now die as I did, helpless and alone!" She ran towards him, the sharp end of the jagged metal pointed towards him as he tried to get up.
"No!" Leanne cried as Pumyra charged, ready to strike, but before she had a chance to land it, something hit her and she was knocked aside, the shrapnel slipping out of her grasp. The two watched as Tygra appeared before them, whip in hand, glaring at Pumyra.
"He'll never be alone as long as we're alive!" Tygra growled at her. Pumyra glared at him, watching as Cheetara, Panthro, and Snarf ran into the room, ready to fight them off (Although little Snarf couldn't do much in such an intense battle). They all stood beside Lion-O and Leanne.
"Then allow me to remedy that problem!" Mumm-Ra growled, he held up his clawed hands and let out a powerful blast of lighting that hit all of them. They cried out as they were thrown back and onto the floor, the lightning having been strong enough to take them all out. "Now, if there are no further distractions…"
"You didn't forget about us, did you?" A voice called out. Everyone looked towards the entrance to the chamber and saw WilyKat and WilyKit riding towards them on their hover boards, the forever back resting on Kit's shoulder.
"Do you think I will hesitate to destroy two kittens?" Mumm-Ra asked, moving his claw towards them.
"Kit! Kat! Get out of here!" Lion-O shouted at them.
"It's okay, we brought back-up!" Kit said quickly with a smile.
"We went to everyone you ever helped, and told them it was time to return the favor." Kat said, they looked behind them as a form came from the shadows, revealing a single Fish Man bearing a harpoon as a weapon. Lion-O's eyes widened.
"…And that's all you could find?" He asked them, dumbfounded that only one person out of all those he helped would come to his aid when he needed it.
"No, he just didn't want to ride in here with the others." Kat said as Kit pulled the forever bag off of her shoulder. They each took hold of the handle and said, "Rankinbass!" Suddenly so many things started jumping out of the bag, first it was a few Elephants, then some of the Berbils, a small platoon of Dogs, a group of Fish Men, and the last thing to come out was Leanne's cousin Nick, who gave her a friendly wave once he had landed.
"Because you once stood by us, Lion-O, we wanted to be here to stand by you." Anet said.
"Berbils love Lion-O." Ro-Bear-Bill said in his mechanical voice, waving to Lion-O with a few other Berbils behind him. Lion-O smiled at the sight of his mechanical friends. Panthro looked up when he saw Dobo among the Dogs. He smiled and nodded at him, and the old general did the same. Leanne smiled widely at the sight of her cousin, knowing his appearance there meant good things for all of them.
"Now take them down!" The kittens said, pointing to Pumyra and Mumm-Ra. They stepped back to ready themselves for the oncoming attacks.
The Elephants were first, stomping their heavy feet on the floor in perfect harmony, creating a powerful wave of sound that made the floor quake and rumble, causing Mumm-Ra to lose his footing. The Fish Men fired harpoons at him, none of them pierced through the armor but they did enough to cause him some pain. The Dogs ran up, bearing their weapons, barking and howling battle cries as they battered Mumm-Ra. A few of the Berbils rolled up into balls and rolled rapidly towards Pumyra, knocking her down as Dobo came over to her and kicked her hard enough to send her tumbling back. Nick raised up his hands and began to chant, a circle forming beneath him as he chanted,
"Magna imperia universi,
Invoco fortitudo tua,
combinant animam meam fulgur,
et da mihi tonitrui virium hominis ut percutiat!"
When the chant came to an end, his eyes were a bright white, his brown hair stood on end, and sparks flew from his fingertips. He let out a cry as he shot out his hands towards Mumm-Ra, lightning bolts firing from his palms with a bluish hue and hitting him. Mumm-Ra let out a roar of pain.
As the groups began to advance on the two, Mumm-Ra and Pumyra stepped back. Realizing that they were too much at the moment, Mumm-Ra spoke, "A pyrrhic victory. This city will become your tomb, and I'll take the stones from its shattered remains!" He held out his hand to Pumyra, "Come, beloved." She took his hand and he grasped her waist as they flew up higher and higher, Pumyra looking down at them with a smug grin.
"Farewell, my king." She bid mockingly. Leanne glared angrily at her, her fingers lighting in fire.
"You are not getting away that easily, you miserable traitor!" She shouted and flew up after them.
"Leanne, no!" Lion-O shouted after her, but she didn't listen as she flew closer to Pumyra. Seeing her coming, Pumyra reached for her bow and fired a sharp stone into her side. Leanne's eyes widened and she cried out as she suddenly felt a sharp pain in her stomach, her hand going to where the stone had penetrated through her skin. Her flight path did a mid-air stumble as she started to drop. Mumm-Ra blasted open a hole in the Stone Chamber as he and Pumyra made their getaway.
"Leanne!" Nick cried, cushioning her fall with a small stream of air, bringing her safely into his arms. The city continued its plummet towards Third Earth. Leanne's face was twisted into one of great pain as she held the spot on her stomach, her breath coming in heaves as she tried to calm down. It felt like someone had taken all the times she had scraped her knee, or cut her hand as a small child, and bundled it all into her stomach, then multiplied it by a hundred.
"Warning: Anti-gravity power at ten percent." The mechanical voice called out to the city. As the city fell further, Mumm-Ra's ships and his soldiers started to fly away, joining their master as they made their escape.
The Cats ran to a panel inside the Stone Chamber that showed the city's machines and generators and where each of their power lines went. Nick stayed by Leanne as she kept writhing in pain, feeling her hand grow moist as something started to block her breathing, she began coughing into her cousin's shoulder just as the chamber became darker, showing that the city had started its descent through the clouds.
"Panthro! We have to save the city!" Lion-O shouted as the general went over to the power panels.
"There's not enough power to keep it in the air!" Panthro snapped as he looked at the lowering bars for each of the generators, he looked at all the knobs and handles and buttons, seeing that the power, while little, was evenly distributed among everything, "But… maybe enough power in the city's thrust generators to land it!" His mechanical arms extended and started pulling at different cords and levers, "I'm rerouting power from every machine in the city!" He watched as the bars of energy went lower from everywhere but the thrust generators, which kept going up higher and higher. "It's working!" Leanne coughed violently into Nick's shoulder, having trouble breathing as more liquid came into her throat, and she started to shake. He held onto her as Panthro looked at the large red button that said 'Engine Start' above it, "Firing engines now!" He slammed his claw onto the button, and everyone could feel the jolt as the generators started up, slowing the descent as it came closer and closer to the ground. The ride was still a bit shaky, and when they finally hit the earth, the city ground down along the surface, sliding through the dirt as it made contact. The entire place shook and everyone who wasn't holding onto something fell over as the city finally came to a halt. The landing was a success, and everyone had survived. Clouds of dust and dirt floated up from the city's landing place as everyone got back on their feet.
Lion-O stood up, looking around them, eyes wide and heart pounding from the adrenaline rush. "We… We made it." He breathed in relief. He went to the door of the chamber and saw that everyone outside the room was alive and well, if not a little shaken up. He heard a violent coughing and gasping sound and looked back to see Leanne was still in Nick's arms, coughing up blood onto his clothes as a red stain began to grow on her shirt.
"Lion-O, do something!" Nick shouted at him as he held onto her, laying her down on the ground to try and help her to breathe. Lion-O looked at her with wide eyes as Leanne lay writhing, gasping for air as blood filled her lungs. Her eyes went wide as she realized just what she was coughing up, and she began to quake in fear, feeling her stomach churn at the sight of blood. She was drowning in blood. Memories of that traumatic flooded her mind and she shut her eyes tight to try and rid her head of them, but it didn't do any good. She could still feel the blood working its way up her throat and staining her shirt. Cheetara ran over to her, lifting up her head as she tried to steady her friend, her eyes wide as she saw her keep gasping.
"She needs a doctor!" She said to Lion-O urgently as Leanne kept coughing, her eyes filling with tears both from the sight of the blood, and the fear that she was dying.
"A-A doctor!" Lion-O shouted through the door towards those who were there, "We need a doctor! Please, are there any doctors here?!" A few of the Birds who were there got up and started shouting for a doctor. Not too long later, a stork woman came running through the chamber, going over to Leanne. Her feathered hands went over Leanne's body, moving her hand away from the wound, seeing the hole that the sharp stone had punctured in her skin. She took her from Nick's arms and started to run with her, Lion-O ran after her. The doctor called for nurses and various medical supplies, demanding that a tent be set up outside so they can operate on her to get the stone out.
"You're going to be okay, Leanne." Lion-O promised as he ran with the doctor. Leanne looked up at him, "You're going to be okay."
Leanne couldn't hear him, her eyes fluttering as they suddenly became much heavier. The blood in her throat was starting to affect her and she started to lose consciousness. Lion-O slowed down as the doctor ran off, the Birds quickly setting up a tent outside. He looked after her with sad eyes, feeling his stomach drop as he saw her being pulled into the tent, Birds going in and out, providing the medical supplies needed.
Panthro looked out at the city, his arms akimbo as he smirked proudly, Tygra standing next to him. "Ha! Can't fly, but I sure can land." He said as he looked at the city.
Tygra looked up at the city with a dry look, "If you say so."
Cheetara stood with the citizens of Avista, watching as the Berbils went to work on the mechanics of the engines. "The Berbils will get your city flying again." They watched as one of the Berbils got electrocuted and went flying up into the air, landing near the citizens. "…Eventually. Meanwhile, some time on the ground will do you good." The Birds didn't seem too happy about it, but no one voiced any complaints as they watched the repairs being done.
Lion-O and Nick sat outside of the medical tent where they were repairing Leanne's wounds. He looked at it worriedly, while Nick seemed only somewhat scared, having faith in the doctor and her team.
WilyKit came over to where they were. "You okay?" She asked him.
He looked over at her, a sullen expression on his face, "I was a fool to trust Pumyra. And now look what I've lost us." He said. Nick looked over at him, keeping silent.
"You have lost a lot." WilyKit said in agreement, "But look what you've gained." She gestured to another place behind him, and he looked over eyes widening at the sight of all the Elephants, Dogs, Fish Men and Berbils all looking towards him, hope shining in their eyes. Lion-O stood up, "The different animals of Third Earth working together for the first time. You know why?" Lion-O didn't answer, he looked down at WilyKit, who smiled up at him, "You, Lion-O. You gave them something to believe in." She went over by his side, picking up the Sword of Omens from where it had laid beside him. She held it up to him, "Now, there's still one more stone left. Are we gonna find it or what?" Lion-O's expression became serious as he took the sword from her hands and held it up, looking at the blade, remembering how his ancestor used it to defeat Mumm-Ra. He knew that it was enough to beat him, stones or no stones.
A moment later, there was silence behind the tent, and the stork doctor stepped out, wiping her forehead as some of the other team members remained inside to finish. Lion-O quickly went over to her, "How is she?" He asked her urgently.
"She's lost a good deal of blood," The doctor said, "She's stable for now, but don't get your hopes up. I've never worked on a species like hers. I don't know how she'll react to the treatment." Lion-O breathed a sigh of relief at hearing that she was alright, if only for that moment.
"Can we see her?" He asked.
"Once they're finished, you may see her." The doctor said, "It may be some time before she regains consciousness, though. As I said, she's lost a good deal of blood." Lion-O nodded, thanking the doctor as she left. Lion-O stayed by the entrance of the tent, watching as some of the nurses went in and out through the night. Every now and then, one of the Birds would come by, see how he was doing and thank him for saving them. Lion-O took their thanks, but once they were done, they were on their way.
Nick and the other Cats helped some of the Birds to make tents of their own in preparation for the night. After a talk with Viragor, since they were near the enchanted forest of Magi Oar, he promised all of them protection for the night if they stayed there. Nick checked in on Lion-O every couple of hours to see how he was doing. Eventually, Nick sat down beside him.
"So, Lion-O," He looked up at the human, "What did Leanne say when she called that Cat girl a traitor?" Lion-O sighed.
"It's a long story." He said.
Nick shrugged, "I got time."
Lion-O took in a deep breath, "The Cat she called a traitor is named Pumyra. She worked for Mumm-Ra, and she helped him to track us as we made our way to find the next stone."
"Why didn't you do something about it?" Nick asked, amazed that Lion-O would allow that to happen so easily.
"We took her in and made her a part of our team. I didn't really think she was any danger to us." Lion-O explained. "She just seemed like a regular Cat at the time."
"And no one picked up on the whole working-for-your-enemy the entire time she was with you?" Nick asked.
"After a day, Leanne told me that she had been lying to us about everything, but… I didn't believe her." Lion-O rested his head in his hands and his elbows on his knees, "I wanted to believe that Pumyra wasn't like that. That she was on our side, that she could… be one of us. I accused her of being jealous, and she stormed off. We didn't speak about it again."
"Seriously? Doesn't Leanne have that thing where she can tell when someone's lying?" Lion-O nodded his head, "And you didn't believe her?" Lion-O nodded again, feeling guilt flooding through his body, "Are you stupid or something?! Look, I may not have been around Leanne for very long, but I'm pretty sure she's not a liar!"
"I know, I know." Lion-O said.
"No, I don't think you know anything!" Nick snapped angrily, standing up. Lion-O's eyes widened as Nick started to shout at him, with every word he felt his guilt multiplying, "I don't know what the hell you were thinking at the time, but you knew that Pumyra girl for, what, a day? You've known Leanne for way longer than that! You decided to trust Pumyra so much after a damn day?! The last time I saw you and Leanne together, it was pretty damn obvious what was going on! You trusted Leanne enough to date her, but you decide to take the word of a complete stranger over hers?! What possessed you to think that the opinion of a complete stranger over the opinion of the girl you actually care about?! I know she would have made her case, and you should have listened to her! Or were you just too stubborn to bother listening to her?! What is wrong with you?!"
"I know!" Lion-O snapped, a small roar mixed in with his words. The sound shocked Nick and he took a step back in fear. Lion-O sighed, calming himself down before he spoke again. "I know. I was stupid and reckless and naïve. I trusted her without a second thought just because she was a Cat. Now, because of my actions, we lost the second Power Stone to Mumm-Ra and Leanne is seriously hurt. Don't you think I feel bad enough already?"
Nick looked over Lion-O's hunched form, seeing the sorrow that filled him, and sighed. "Why didn't you listen to her?"
Lion-O sighed, "Leanne and I… We had a falling out. We ended the relationship, and I just thought that she was trying to get back at me because I had been spending so much time with Pumyra." Nick was quiet, knowing that the pain of a bad break-up can linger, especially when you have to see that person every day. The pain and anger from it all had probably affected whether or not he would accept what he would say about Pumyra.
"Okay. Look, I'll stick around for a few more days, just until Leanne is back on her feet, but I need to head back home soon." Nick said. Lion-O nodded and Nick stuck his hands in his pants' pockets, "I'll see you later." Lion-O remained quiet as Nick went over to where some of the other animals were helping to set up camps for the Birds, leaving him to wallow in his guilt as he waited for someone to come out of the tent and let him in.
Lion-O remained by the tent until late that night, and one of the nurses came out, telling him that he could see her. He was quick to go in. Inside the tent was nothing more than a cot that held up Leanne's still-unconscious body and a small table containing various medical supplies. Placed around the room were a couple of candles to give some light. The room was completely silent other than the sounds of the candle wick letting out small snaps as it burned. Bandages were wrapped around her middle. Parts of it were stained red from her blood. Lion-O came over to the side of her cot, taking one of her hands in both of his. He felt a lump in his throat as he looked at her unconscious form. She looked completely at peace, but he knew she wouldn't be that way when she woke up. He sighed and closed his eyes, his fingers moving around her palm and squeezing it.
"I'm sorry, Leanne…" He whispered into the quiet, "I'm so, so sorry…"
Super huge thanks to Dalebeto Feninski for beta-ing! And woo-hoo! We broke 400 pages! You guys are awesome, thanks so much for sticking with me this far!