A/N: I apologize for the long wait for this chapter. The area where I live was hit by a nasty snow storm the day after my last post. I spent most of the time hoping the power didn't go out, shoveling out, and finally getting out after the travel bans were lifted. I hope you enjoy it.
A/N2: I want to wish my American readers a very Belated Happy Thanksgiving. :) Hope you all had a great holiday.
Chapter 30
"What's going on in there?" Lion-O asked as he arrived at the hospital with the other ThunderCats in the ThunderTank.
"A team has Lo-ta cornered in the neonatal unit with an improvised bomb that will send infected powder into the air. We set off the fire alarm and are evacuating the building. The alarm shut down the ventilation so it's going to get warm in there," Colonel Cougara filled the King in.
"How many babies are in the unit?" Cheetara wanted to know.
"More than I want infected. The team is trying to go nonlethal but we may not have a choice," the cougar explained.
"They have the clearance. Tell them to do whatever is necessary to protect the babies in that unit. Mandora may have our Mutant connection on the other end and I'm not risking anyone getting infected for this bastard," Lion-O told him. Cougara nodded and then went to the radio and quickly radioed the team that they had permission to do whatever was necessary to stop Lo-ta.
Upstairs, Fer was trying to get Lo-ta to back down but he wasn't giving them much of an option. He hadn't pressed the button on the homemade bomb after feeling the air stop blowing down from the diffusers in the ceiling.
"Do you really want to be that guy that killed a bunch of defenseless babies all because he didn't get what he wanted?" Fer asked.
"All I wanted was a happy life. That was taken from me the moment Thundera exploded. Everyone will know my pain when I press this button," Lo-ta smirked.
"A lot of Cats lost a lot that day. What does this prove?" Fer wanted to know.
"They have no idea the pain I went through! My wife went into labor early due to the stress of the evacuation. She died trying to bring our baby into the world and he died in my arms moments after he was born! I didn't even get to bury them! The ship I came in on floated in space for so long that we had to eject the mounting dead from the freezer storage. My wife and son are floating in space never to find a resting place!" The lynx's rage was undeniable as his thumb moved to the button. Fer tried to speak to him again but Bo fired his weapon before he could get a word in edgewise. The lynx dropped to the floor, a hole between his eyes, his thumb no longer on the trigger.
"Target is down! Target is down! We need containment in here!" Bo barked into his radio.
"Containment is on the way. Stand down Bo and hand over your weapon," Taka told him. The liger nodded and quickly removed the extra round from his blaster and then handed his weapon to his teammate Leo.
"Head downstairs and give your statement. We'll wait for containment to get here," Leo ordered.
"Yes, sir," Bo nodded and then he moved out of the room.
"He was nuttier than a fruitcake," Fer shook his head.
"The Colonel said that the manifesto they found certainly made it look that way," Leo nodded.
"You think he wasn't nuts?" Fer gave him a questioning look.
"I think uncontrollable grief will turn anyone nuts," the lion admitted.
"I could understand that if he'd just gotten off the ship but to take babies hostage after being here for almost a year?" His partner shook his head.
"Sometimes all someone damaged needs is a push. Find who was giving him the money and we'll have our answer," Leo said.
To Be Continued…