Am I the only one who hums the old 80's ThunderCats theme song while writing these fics...No, just me? Alrighty then! Just like last time, I still don't own ThunderCats!

ThunderCats: Sword of Kings

Chapter V: Omens

After having the maids escort the Wileys off to their rooms, Cheetara quickly directed Lion-O to the throne room before they went their own ways. When asked why she wasn't going with him, the cheetah had said that she had Cleric duties to perform but that he would see her in the throne room.

It wasn't long before Lion-O was the first that reached a grand hallway outlined by pillars, at the end was the throne room. Under the banner of the ThunderCats, alongside four other smaller thrones, was the Throne of Thundera, where the first Lord of the ThunderCats Leo established Thundera. In his old life, it meant nothing to Lion-O. It was just some fancy chair for a king. But now he realized that as future king, he would soon sit on that throne.

Footsteps echoed through the room as Lion-O turned to see Jaga, Grune, and a few Clerics enter with two unfamiliar figures. The first was a tiger wearing royal attire that seemed to be sizing him up; this must be Prince Tygra.

But the other figure seemed to be as big as Grune, a huge lion in kingly attire, a cape flowing behind him. This was King Claudus. The king seemed to stare at Lion-O curiously before walking slowly towards him. It took all of the young lion's will to keep himself composed as the king stood before him.

"You…" It was strange seeing a king struggling to get the words out. "You look like your mother."

"Um…Your Majes—" Lion-O suddenly remembered who he was. "Father—"

It was so sudden that the lost prince didn't even see it coming. The king had brought him into a father's embrace. "My son," he had whispered, "Lion-O, you have returned. After all these years, you have returned."

Lion-O didn't know what to do. Before this, Panthro had been the closest thing to a father he ever had. But now things are different, this king, this Lord of the ThunderCats, was his father. All Lion-O did was return the embrace.

For some reason, he couldn't help but feel a sense of dread.

Claudus soon broke the embrace, he suddenly seemed embarrassed. "I'm sorry," he said quickly. "I know this all must seem confusing."

"It did," Lion-O said, "but now…now I understand."

"Yes," Claudus nodded, "since Leo first established our kingdom, our bloodline has served as the Kings of Thundera for countless generations. When you were lost," Claudus looked away for some time, "I feared for the future." The king signaled for one of the Clerics. "But with your return, my fears have been lifted."

The Cleric that approached seemed to be carrying a steel box that bore the red and black symbol of the ThunderCats. All that Lion-O noticed was the Cleric's eyes. The same fuchsia eyes that belonged to a certain cheetah girl winked at him from behind the Cleric's mask.

Cheetara!

"Within this box is the Sword of Omens," Claudus spoke, drawing Lion-O away from his thoughts. "This sword allowed Leo to overthrow Mumm-Ra during the Great Mutiny and establish Thundera. Since your disappearance, the sword has been…inactive."

As if on cue, Cheetara (at least that's who Lion-O thought it was) opened the steel box. Instead of a sword as Lion-O expected, he saw a dagger with a jewel, a red circle with a black slit in the middle making it resemble a cat's eye, between the hilt and blade. Could this really be the legendary Sword of Omens?

Lion-O reached out to the dagger's hilt. "No offense, but this doesn't—" There were gasps all around as soon as Lion-O touched the hilt, the jewel began to glow and the dagger began to change. The blade grew in length and the guard extended. It seemed almost instantaneous as the mere dagger became the legendary Sword of Omens.

Claudus turned toward the Head Cleric. "Jaga, how…how is this happening?"

Jaga himself seemed perplexed. "I…" he seemed unable to get the words out, something unusual for a Cleric. "I am not sure, Your Majesty. How both the sword and the Eye of Thundera themselves work has always been a mystery."

Lion-O didn't pay attention to any of this. All he could here was the strange humming coming from the sword. Before Lion-O even knew what he was doing, he had already put the sword's guard at eye level. That was when everyone noticed the Eye of Thundera began to glow brighter.

"Lion-O!" the Cleric, definitely Cheetara, exclaimed as she attempted to take the sword away. But before she could even get close, a blue bolt of energy was fired from the blade and stunned the cheetah.

Jaga was able to catch her before she fell. "Everyone stay away," the Head Cleric warned, "the sword is out of control."

They were all forced to watch as the lion's teal eyes began to glow behind the sword's guard.

Countless images flashed through Lion-O's mind, but three he saw clearly. A black pyramid surrounded by a whirlwind of sand. A city in flames, and in the center were two dark figures fighting with swords. The last was of an old decrepit figure dressed in a red cloak.

"THE WAR STONE WILL BE MINE!"

Lion-O groaned as he opened his eyes. He saw Cheetara unconscious in Jaga's arms and the Sword of Omens shrinking to its dagger form as he felt himself be lifted up to his feet. "Alright," an unfamiliar voice said, "there we go. You okay now?"

The lion turned to see that Prince Tygra was the one holding him up. "Yes," he said, "thank you…brother."

"Lion-O," Jaga said, "can you tell us what happened?"

What could he say? How could Lion-O describe something he had never felt before. "The sword," he said, "it showed me some kind of vision."

The Head Cleric's eyes went wide. "Sight beyond sight," he whispered.

"What exactly did you see?" Claudus asked, his voice booming with authority.

Lion-O wanted to tell what he saw, but something was stopping him. "I…I don't remember," he lied.

Jaga rose, Cheetara nestled in his arms. "I shall take Cheetara to the healers," he said, turning to Lion-O, "you should probably see them as well, Your Highness."

"I say we should see this street rat out of the palace," Grune snarled. "He's dangerous; did you see what he did with the Sword of Omens?"

Lion-O released himself from Tygra's hold to argue, but his father had beaten him to it. "That is enough, Grune!" Claudus growled. "You may be my oldest friend, but Lion-O is my son and your future king! You will show him the respect he deserves!"

The saber tooth's hand curled into a fist. "As you wish, My King." Grune then stormed out of the throne room.

Claudus turned towards his son. "Jaga may be right, you should probably see the healers. Who knows what those visions did to you?"

"I'll be fine," Lion-O said, "but Cheetara needs help, right away."

The lion saw Tygra narrow his eyes at him, as if even speaking the cheetah's name was a crime in itself. Jaga had already left with the Clerics with Cheetara in his arms and one of the Clerics placing the dagger-sized Sword of Omens back into the box.

"What will you do with the sword?" Lion-O asked.

"It shall be returned to the Royal Armory and rest aside with the Claw Shield," Claudus said. "But enough about the sword. In two days' time, there will be a royal feast celebrating your return. All of Thundera's nobility shall come to greet you as their future king."

Claudus rested a hand on Lion-O. "But that is for later," he said. "Now I shall tell you of the history of our bloodline, which bears the glory of our ancestors."

"You two go ahead," Tygra said. "I'll go talk to Grune, maybe see if I can talk some sense into him."

With that, the young tiger was off. As he left, Lion-O saw his father's face turn grim. Something told him that his father didn't like Tygra spending too much time with the Destroyer.

"Come, Lion-O," he said, "let us start with your mother and me." Claudus took his son down a hallway lined with paintings. One painting was of the king and his deceased wife. "This was me and Leona before you were born."

Lion-O was almost unable to contain the gasp that threatened to come out. He had seen his mother before, except it wasn't in some painting.

He had seen his mother as the woman in white in his dream.