Episode 1; "The Doom Gaze of Ta-She"

Part 2

The Thunderkittens laughed playfully as they maneuvered around jagged terrain on their hoverboards. Twenty-some odd yards ahead the Thundertank charged through the gnarled, rocky ground as if it were air. WilyKit clutched the forever bag tightly, keeping an even balance so not to jostle her friends and allies contained within too much (not that she was too concerned. There is plenty of room inside). WileyKat in contrast pulled off as many stunts as he could along the ride.

He swiped a pebble off the ground. "Betchya I can hit the tank!" He wagered Kit, flashing a grin as he tossed the pebble in the air repeatedly.

"I wouldn't-" Before Kit would finish her sentence, Kat chucked the pebble. It nicked the bumper with a tunk then bounced back, nicking the tip of Kat's hovorboard. The impact was just enough to send WileyKat toppling forward into the ground. The back of his board swatted the nose of WileyKit's and set impact caused her to lose her grip on the bag. It flopped to the ground limp in the dust.

WileyKit managed to regain her balance. She turned back, afraid of what she might see. "KAT?!"

WileyKat groaned as he pulled himself to his feet and brushed the dirt off his scuffed face and torn clothes. He spat out some dirt. WileyKit upon realizing he hadn't broken his neck began to laugh. WileyKat glared at her, forcing a "hermph" as she retrieved his hovorboard. "I'm fine, thanks."

"Aw, serves you right." She hopped to the ground. "Come on! Help me find our bag before the others get too far ahead."

A tiny metallic tunk noise caused Panthro's ear to twitch. "Did you hear something?"

Lion-O shook his head. "No." Tygra replied aloud.

Panthro shrugged it off, returning his attention to the vehicle's controls. If anything was really wrong with his Thundertank, he'd know it. "So where is the book telling us to go now?"

"Down." Lion-O answered soberly.

Tygra raised a brow. "Down?"

"That's where it's pointing, straight down."

Tygra paused for a second. "The Tech Stone was sitting in the sky. Maybe this last stone is sitting on the bottom of the ocean somewhere."

Cheetara shook her head. "Too easy."

Tygra raised a brow at her. "Do you know an easy way to get to the bottom of the ocean?" "

I was thinking the same thing," Lion-O defended Cheetara. "But I won't rule it out. The book is still so hard to read, it could mean almost anywhere."

"We'll figure out how to interpret the Book of Omens more clearly one way or another." Cheetara assured him. "For right now we just have to use what information it gives us."

"Maybe Lion-O should tinker with it at the Berbil village a while and lay low." Tygra suggested. "What we did to Mumm-Ra in Avista was a slap. He's going to gather more forces."

"Since Mumm-Ra is expanding his team I think we should do the same." Proposed Panthro. "Four cats and two kittens can't battle the entire animal kingdom forever."

"We've made our share of allies of Along the way-"

"But they have their own lives and homes and families to protect." Panthro cut off the young lord. "I'm saying we need cats."

"Cats we can actually trust." Tygra added in reference to Pumyra's betrayal, though doing so resulted in a vexed sideways glare from Lion-O and a quick jab in the ribs from Cheetara.

"It's a good idea, but there are no other Cats left to join us. The entire Thunderguard fell against the lizard invasion. From what we know, Tygra is the last of his clan and Cheetara is the only cleric left. The only cats still alive besides us are the freed slaves living in Thundera's ruins and they're all recovering civilians."

Lion-O looked to the general, completely at a loss. "So who's left?"

Panthro's lips formed a half smile. "I have a strong hunch general Lynx-O scraped by and if he did he went looking for the Prowl."

"The who?" The two princes asked in unison.

"The Prowl are, well perhaps were a spy guild; a Special Forces unit that gathered information for your father." Panthro enlightened them.

"Apparently they dropped the ball with the lizards." Tygra said with a slight sneer.

"Lynx-O trained most of the Prowl himself." Cheetara recalled. "They could have been captured by the lizards before Grune ever returned."

"Or maybe they sided with Grune."

"Why didn't father tell us about the Prowl?" asked Lion-O.

"Spy business isn't something you discuss with a couple of cubs." Panthro answered bluntly. "Beyond what she and I just told you, I don't know anything about the Prowl."

"Should we really sacrifice time looking for the power stones to look for allies who may not be alive or on our side?" Cheetara asked.

"Not too often I get a hunch, but when I do it's usually dead on." Panthro insisted. "Lynx-O couldn't take me, but an army of lizards he could lick no problem. As for the Prowl, maybe Grune bought off one or two, but I'd let the Astral Plane take my left nut before I believe all of them would sell out Thundera."

Lion-O laughed. "You haven't steered us wrong yet, Panthro. Besides, we owe it to our fellow cats to lead them home. We'll search in the morning. Where should we start?"

"Baleful Swamp." The three younger cats did not look enthused.

"How will we get anywhere near there? That country is crawling with lizards!" Tygra reminded the general.

"I know a way." Panthro assured him. "There's a cave; but we have to pass Spidera's web."

Tygra's face paled a bit. "Can we not and say we did?"

Lion-O smirked. "Arachnophobia?"

"Shut up."

"Panthro made it past her once." Cheetara reminded them.

"What's the point of having luck if you don't push it, right?"

Lion-O could see the vibrant foliage of the Berbil crops in the distance. It never felt better to see the village. The Berbils celebrated their victory upon being released from the bag. The air bounced with music and the air was filled with the delicious scent of a well-cooked feast.

Tygra waltzed over to Cheetara with a glass of candy fruit wine in his hands. "You look like you need this."

He offered it to her, but she waved it away. "No thank you. I swore an oath of sobriety." She explained.

"Come on…you're technically not a cleric anymore." He tipped the glass towards her lips.

She smiled, lowering it with her pointer finger. "Technically I am a cleric for life." Tygra put his hand on her waste, grinning seductively. "How else am I supposed put you in the mood?"

"Respect my personal decisions and don't subject me to peer pressure." She teased before giving him a kiss. They looked to the night sky and noticed the Thundercats insignia glowing red against the moon."

"Why is Lion-O practicing? He should be here enjoying himself."

Cheetara frowned. "He's still upset over Pumyra. Her betrayal hurt him the worst out of all of us."

Tygra expression hardened. "I'd still like to give her one right across the jaw. I wasn't satisfied watching Ro-Bear Bill do it."

"Maybe you should talk to him." Tygra flashed a peculiar look. "You really think I would make him feel any better?"

"Better than how I would make him feel. Come on, tough guy. A heart to heart with your baby brother won't kill you."

"Okay." Tygra sighed before downing the rest of the glass. "You're lucky you're cute." He smiled before walking off to track down Lion-O.

Cheetara winked at him. "You too."

Tygra stood by and watched as the eye of Thundera came to life in Lion-O's arms. The young lion growled, swinging his sword with strength and precision. It reminded him of a rider and his faithful mount how the two operated with trust. Tygra would always harbor some jealousy towards his brother, but he couldn't deny the sword chose Lion-O. Not with a serious face anyways. "I'm glad father isn't alive to watch you ham-handle that blade." Tygra teased.

Lion-O stumbled, his concentration instantly broken. He flashed Tygra an annoyed look for a moment then chuckled. "Ho!" He placed the sword back in the clawsheild for a rest.

"Ho!" Tygra approached him. "Not in a party mood, hu?"

"Not really." Lion-O admitted.

"Hey…I know…Things didn't quite… work out between you and Pumyra, but…um…" Tygra struggled to think of something comforting to say, but all he could really think of was 'the hell with her.'

"Don't hurt yourself." Lion-O teased.

"I'm sorry; I don't know what to tell you." Tygra ran his fingers through his mane. "Aside from the way she used to overreact sometimes, Pumyra seemed good for you. None of us saw it coming, Lion-O. Don't beat yourself up over it."

"It's not that. Pumyra is being controlled by Mumm-Ra. Maybe she does really resent me, but he's using that to twist her into a nightmare! This isn't her fault." Lion-O argued to himself more than to Tygra by that point. "She's still a Thundercat. I have to help her."

"She's a dead Thundercat." Tygra reminded him. "You can't fix a ghost."

"You don't know that! Mumm-Ra lies!"

"Look… You don't want to hear this coming from me, but I know how it feels to really care about a girl you never have the slightest chances of being with. It's the shittiest feeling in the world. Don't put yourself through the strain along with everything else. We'll deal with Pumyra as delicately as you can in case you're right, but she isn't our friend, Lion-O. She isn't a Thundercat."

Lion-O gritted his teeth and looked away, unwilling to let his older brother's words soak in. Tygra put a hand on his shoulder. "Just forget her, Lion-O. We're going on a cat hunt tomorrow. Maybe you'll find new, better tail to chase." He gave him a playful slap on the back.

Lion-O forced a chuckle. "And this new cat will probably turn around and try to claw my eyes out too."

"What kind of attitude is that?" Tygra scolded.

"You're right, chin up."

"Atta boy. Try some of the spirits. The Berbils know how to brew." Tygra suggested, leading Lion-O back to the gathering."

"Why do we have to stay in Thundera?" The kittens whined in protest.

"After you finish dropping the others off we need you to check on the refugees." Cheetara explained. "We're going to meet up with you after our recon mission in Baleful Swamp."

"Why are you leaving us out of the fun? Didn't we come through for you in Avista?" WilyKat demanded, folding his arms over his chest.

"Haven't we proved we're Thundercats to you people yet?" WileyKit added, pouting her lips to exaggerate her hurt feelings. "Thundercats do what's asked of them for the good of their fellow cats." Panthro allowed a smirk to form on his face.

"If you really want in on this, Tygra can go check on Thundera and you two can follow me to Spidera's web."

The kittens cringed, their tails puffing out slightly. "I've been a little homesick." WileyKat admitted.

"Aburn can't stay cooped up in the bag forever. C'mon, we gotta get everyone home!" The kittens hopped on their hovorboards and sped off with Snarf in toe.

"Keep your communicators on in case of trouble!" Panthro reminded them. Satisfied, he turned to walk away only to discover the kittens standing in front of him. Panthro jumped, a bit startled.

"Is Spidera as giant as they say?" WileyKat inquired innocently.

Panthro chuckled. "When her egg sack is attached to her back she's TWICE that!" He fibbed. The kittens screamed, then ran away frightened.