Wake Up

by PhantomMaws

A fan continuation of the original series, exploring relationships that were hinted at during the show. Set shortly after The Book of Omens, what if Mumm-Ra was not defeated but was biding his time in a plot to finally destroy the Thundercats once and for all? Set over three eras and 20 years. [UPDATE 15/12/23: NO LONGER BEING UPDATED]

19. Chapter 18: Not Gonna Die - Part II

A/N: O-O Three months. THREE MONTHS! That's what writer's block will do to you, unfortunately... :'(

The end may seem a little bit rushed, but I have spent SO much time on this.

As usual, I hope that you enjoy this new chapter, and I hope you accept my sincere apologies for the LONG wait...

Key:

Flashback = Flashback (Obviously)

Dream = Dream

Time Passage =...

- (BORDER) - = perspective change

Anyway, chapter information:

Genres: Adventure and Drama

Warnings: Scenes of violence, adult themes and explicit language. !CHARACTER DEATH!

Date started (Chapter): Wednesday 16th September 2015

Date finished (Chapter): Tuesday 15th December 2015

Song/s: Not Gonna Die by Skillet

Chapter 18: Not Gonna Die, Part II

The ringing in my ears subsides slightly as I slowly start to gain consciousness. My whole body is completely numb, and I can't move, but I have a nasty feeling that it won't last for too much longer. My head is pounding, and I can feel some sort of hot, thick, sticky liquid trickling down my face and neck. There's a support beam lying across my right temple, and I'm pinned down by the rubble and debris. I can hear familiar voices shouting as my hearing starts to recover, but they seem so far away, and are so muffled.

"Sneyarf, Sneyarf! I hope that Lion-O and Lynx-O are ok. They didn't make it out in time before the Tower fell!"

"Reowrr! Quit worrying so much, Snarf! You're making me nervous!"

I try to reach the Sword of Omens; my fingertips merely brush against the end of the handle, making me groan in both pain and annoyance as I force my wounded body to move.

The support beam creaks slightly as dust swirls freely in the tiny space, making me involuntarily yelp in pain as the pressure against my head builds up; I feel more of the liquid trickling over my face, this time, into my mouth. I recognize the warm, bitter, salty liquid instantly; it's blood.

My chest feels as if it's getting tighter as I struggle to breathe. I know that I'm going to use up what little oxygen might be in the small space, but I can't help hyperventilating as it feels like I'm continuously being crushed by the rubble. My right knee is throbbing, making me think that it's broken. The support beam creaks again, then something drops onto my chest, knocking the breath from my lungs as I feel blood running down my body from the various cuts that cover me. Something sharp tears a searing gash across my right thigh, becoming lodged in my flesh as I scream in agony, the hot, salty tears of pain trickling down my cheeks as I groan at the feeling of blood running down my face.

"Reow! Did you hear that, Tygra? That sounded like Lion-O! He must still be alive!"

I hear the seemingly distant sounds of metal and stone being moved as I only just balance on the dividing line of consciousness and unconsciousness. Cracks of light slowly start to fill the darkness, then a muffled voice cries "Sneyarf! We found him! We've found Lion-O!"

"Be really careful, Snarf. He could be heavily wounded."

The support beam is lifted off of me, and I groan as I weakly lift my head, the dried blood on my face crackling as more of the liquid dribbles down my face and into my eyes. My vision starts to clear slightly, and I can only just make out the forms of Tygra, Bengali, Snarf and Snarfer struggling to move the debris.

"Lion-O, can you hear me? Are you ok?"

"Sneyarf! Does he look like he's at ok, Tygra? He's bleeding all over, for Jaga's sake!"

"Bengali, go and grab my medical kit from the Feliner! And be quick about it! And Snarf, don't move Lion-O."

I breathe out weakly, fresh blood tickling from the corner of my mouth as I try to sit up, pain shooting down my back.

Bengali runs up to Tygra, carrying a massive bag full of medical supplies.

"I may need some help with this, Ben." Tygra says as I struggle to sit up, then the tiger gently presses me back down again before saying "You need to stay lying down, Lion-O. Until we know for sure that you aren't seriously injured, you can't move."

I groan impatiently before mumbling "I'm pretty sure that I'm perfectly fine, Tygra." I try to get up, making fresh blood trickle from the many wounds all over me. "You're definitely not 'fine'. You're heavily wounded." the tiger says as I lie back down again, struggling to breathe.

Tygra checks me over before stitching up the worst of the wounds, but when I try to stand up, I scream in agony as I put weight on my left leg. Tygra has to help me back down again, and when he checks my leg, I have to choke back my screams of pain as he tries to move it.

"Luckily, no bones are broken, but I think you've sprained one of the muscles in your leg." the tiger says as I struggle to sit up for the third time "And if you keep trying to sit up, it'll only make the pain a whole lot worse."

I groan impatiently before lying down again. "I don't suppose that this can be sorted out very quickly, then..."

The tiger was about to reply, but before he can get a single word out before Snarfer's piercing scream splits the air;

"LYNX-O! HOLY THUNDERA! He isn't breathing!"

I can clearly detect the panic in Snarfer's shrill scream. I look up and see Sebastian running towards us on all fours.

"Sebastian, what's wrong?" Tygra asks the young Wolfman, to which he replies "We've found Lynx-O, but I can't detect a pulse, he isn't breathing, and part of his skull has been cleaved open. He's dead..."

I feel sick at the news. We both got buried under the rubble and I'm still alive? How is that even possible? I force myself to my feet and stumble across the wreck of the Tower of Omens to where the Snarfs and Bengali are, and when I see what state Lynx-O is in, I feel like I am about to be violently sick;

The lynx is lying in a pool of blood and is covered by a series of extremely deep gashes and cuts from which the red fluid continually oozes. His eyes are wide open and glazed, staring into nothing, and his mouth is open, a thin stream of blood trickling from the corners of his pale lips. This is the first time that I've ever seen his eyes open; they're bright blue, reminding me of my father, whom was blinded when I was only four years old.

I feel the bile rising from within the pit of my stomach as I see the heavy wound on my friend's head. Hot, salty tears of rage and self-loathing stream down my cheeks. "What the hell have you done?" a voice screams inside my head, undoubtedly my own conscious "This is all your fault, Lion-O! If it wasn't for you, Lynx-O would still be alive! You should have got Lynx-O out earlier, but you didn't! You failed! Now do you see the consequences of your foolish, imprudent indecision? Now do you see what you've done? You killed a fellow Thundercat, and yet you call the mutants evil? What are the differences between you and them after this?"

"I'm sorry...I'm so, so sorry..." I whisper as I drop to my knees at the lynx's side, wiping the tears away from my eyes with my hands. I can't get over the shock; it's just far too much for me to handle.

"This is all my fault..." I mumble as the others stand around me "I wasn't watching what I was doing and I slipped on some slime weed and fell over the side of the handrail whilst I was going down the stairs...it's all my fault...it's all my fault..."

"Lion-O, it wasn't your fault. You can't blame yourself for Lynx-O's death. How were you supposed to know that you were going to slip and fall?"

I sigh as Snarf lays a comforting arm around my shoulders, then I say "But I could have got Lynx-O out quicker if I hadn't have hesitated; we'd both still be alive..."

My old nursemaid's attitude and tone changes within an instant when he realizes that his attempt to make me feel better didn't work at all. "Sneyarf! Sneyarf! Reow! But...Lion-O...Surely you're not gonna hold yourself responsible for this forever...are you?"

I sniff deeply before saying "I will if I have to!"

"C'mon, kid. You can't blame yourself for any of it. It was Mumm-ra's fault, remember?" Sebastian says as he sits down next to me, but I don't listen to any of it. I mean, why should I? They don't know half of the stuff that I do. None of them have the crazy dreams and visions that I do. They don't know my struggles.

"Lion-O, everyone has regrets in their lives, but you don't have anything to feel guilty about; Lynx-O's death wasn't your fault."

"Jaga!" I say, looking up in shock as the ghostly blue jaguar materialises in the air in front of me "What do you mean 'Lynx-O's death wasn't my fault'? It was; I...I could have saved him. He could still be alive but he isn't and it's because of me! It's my fault, Jaga, but nobody will believe me when I try and tell them that, even though it's the truth!"

I'm screaming by the end of the sentence, but Jaga just looks at me calmly, making me even madder at the fact that he won't listen to me.

"They won't listen to you because it was never your fault, and you need to stop blaming yourself for it!" the jaguar says as he lowers himself to my eye level. I look away from him, unable to look him in the eyes. "I understand how you feel perfectly, Lion-O, but you can't let it bother you so much."

I sigh deeply. It sure is going to be fun explaining this to Pumyra and the other Thundercats...

- (BORDER) -

Later that day...

"Thanks, Leo," Pumyra says as we walk out of the lion's home "Just remember to mix the medicine in with their drinks. Give Bräiden ten millilitres, but only give Jøhba five."

Leo laughs sarcastically before saying "As if I don't know how to take care of my own cubs. Rewth may not be here anymore, but she's the one who inspired me to start learning about medicine." The lion hands me Katzeran, who is sleeping peacefully. I take my son from him as he says "Make sure that you mix the second dose in with his milk when you feed him because he'll just spit it back out if you try to give it to him on its own."

I'm just about to reply, but it suddenly feels like I've been hit by a train...wait...I know this feeling...I've had this so many times in the past...

Before I even know what is going on, I find myself standing in the cockpit of the Feliner, which is eerily quiet; nobody is saying a single word, and I realise that Lion-O isn't present; only Bengali, Sebastian and Snarfer are piloting the Feliner, and when it switches to my husband, I feel the pure worry at the fact that he's lying unconscious on one of the beds, his right leg is wrapped in bandages, and he's got loads of sutured cuts and wounds all over his body.

I'm not aware that in curled up on the floor with my arms over my head until Pumyra and Leo drop to their knees by my side. "Cheetara, are you ok?" Pumyra asks as I roll onto my back. I see that she's holding Katzeran, and both her and my husband's twin brother have the same concerned looks on their faces.

"I...I saw the Feliner. Tygra and Snarf are safe, but Lion-O is badly wounded." I whisper as I look up at the pair, tears streaming down my cheeks from the pure shock of what I saw.

"C'mon, Cheetara, we'd better get back to Cats' Lair ASAP, just in case it's as bad as it sounds." Pumyra says as she helps me get back up "Panthro will be here in a minute to take us back to Cats' Lair. The Feliner will be here in less than a few hours, and Lion-O might need emergency treatment if he's as badly wounded as you say he is."

I get to my feet and sigh shakily. I just knew that something would happen on the rescue mission, and I have the feeling in the pit of my stomach that it's worse than it seems...

- (BORDER) -

Even later on that day...

"I don't like the idea of having to tell the other Thundercats about Lynx-O's death..."

I sigh heavily, violently shuddering at the memory of staring, horrified, into the lynx's cold, dead eyes after he was pulled from the rubble, and fresh tears stream down my cheeks as I start to feel sick.

"Lion-O? Are you ok? You've gone really pale."

I look up at Sebastian as he sits down next to me, and I notice the worried and anxious expression on his face.

"I...I'm fine...I'm fine..." I stutter, to which the Wolfman replies "You can't be fine. You look like you're about to throw up."

I groan as I feel my mouth filling with thick saliva, sweat trickling down my forehead.

"Yeah...I'm fine. I've just got a lot of stuff on my mind at the moment..."

"It's about Lynx-O, isn't it?" Sebastian asks in a surprisingly calm voice as he looks me in the eyes.

I sigh before saying "And a lot of other things as well as that..." I've had a close friendship with Lynx-O ever since we rescued him, Pumyra and Bengali from Mumm-ra's icy clutches, and I've learned so much about Old Thundera and my father from the lynx that filled in all the gaps in my knowledge that were left when we evacuated from the planet when I was only 12 years old, but now that he's gone, it feels like a small part of him is gone.

"You guys have to get ready for landing, Sneeyarfer, Sneeyarfer! We're landing in the courtyard." Snarfer's voice says over the intercom, and both me and Sebastian get ourselves buckled up into our seats.

The Feliner lands on the snow-covered courtyard outside of Cats' Lair, and both Tygra and Sebastian help me out of the aircraft and down onto the tarmac, and I see Cheetara, Pumyra, and some of the medical team, who are pushing a gurney, are running up to us.

"Lion-O...Great Jaga, thank the God's you're ok! I was so worried! What on Thundera happened to you?" Cheetara says as she stops before me, and I see that she's holding Katzeran, who is dressed in his thick winter sleep suit, fast asleep.

"It's a long story, but I'm sure that it's easy enough to explain," I say as Pumyra and Tygra help me lie down on the gurney "But I don't want to go into the gory details..."

"Just tell us the best that you can manage," Pumyra says as a blanket is pulled over me "we're not gonna push you to say something if you don't want to talk about it."

I sigh deeply before saying "It began when we got to the Tower of Omens; the place was showing signs of being aged and abandoned for years, and the power generators had been completely destroyed, which was extremely strange, but then Mumm-ra attacked us, and that's when everything went wrong..." I look behind us and watch as a black body bag is unloaded off of the Feliner and put onto another trolley "Because the Tower collapsed and both me and Lynx-O were buried in the rubble, but Lynx-O was killed..."

I look at Pumyra, and I notice that she's stopped walking, gone really pale, and looks close to fainting. "Pumyra, are you ok?" Cheetara asks, and, in a small voice, the young puma says "Not really..."

"I'm so sorry, Pumyra...I swear I am. It's all my fault...I couldn't save him..." I mutter as I hide my head in my hands, the action of which tears the stitches on the deepest wound on my back open, making blood start to gush from the gash again as spasms of pain shoot down my back, causing me to roar in agony.

"He's going to need a load of stitches, Pumyra, and I suggest that you get it done ASAP because he won't sit still enough, meaning that you might have to sedate him to get it done." I hear Tygra say, then I'm taken off to the infirmary...

...

Later that night...

Darkness. That's all I can see; nothing but pure, tainted darkness. The wind that blows is eerie, and I can hear faint, ghostly whispers. Then, almost as if someone had flipped a light switch, the darkness is flooded with light, and I can see Lynx-O standing before me, cut and bloodied and bound in chains. We're in the old Cats' Lair on Third Earth before we left for New Thundera. All of the other Thundercats are present, and they too are bloodied and restrained in chains, and all have their eyes on me, staring at me with the same cannibalistic expressions; they all look like they're about to pounce on me and devour me.

The way that they are all staring at me has me worried. I slowly rise out of my seat and slink towards the door, but just as I'm about to press the button to open it, a strong but cold hand clamps around my wrist and violently tears my arm away from the panel, seconds before it's smashed.

"You're not going anywhere, cub!"

The voice sends violent chills down my spine. It's deep raspy, and grainy. I turn around and see Tygra...but it's not the Tygra I know; most of his flesh is either charred or shredded. I can see his ribcage, and just underneath, his still beating heart...

"T...Tygra...What the hell happened to you? To all of you?" I ask as I look around at my 'friends'; Panthro's throat has been torn clean out of his throat and there are stab wounds all over his abdomen and chest; Pumyra is covered with bruises and deep gashes; the Thunderkittens both look like they've been shot though their chests, and there are red marks around their necks; Bengali looks like he's been impaled and both Snarf and Snarfer have been skinned, but Cheetara doesn't have any visible wounds; she's just covered in blood.

"You is what happened!" Tygra growls as I am forced back down into my seat.

"You're the reason we're dead!"

"This is all your fault, Lion-O!"

"We tried to warn you, but you just wouldn't listen to us!"

I close my eyes and try to get rid of the awful sight and cover my ears to stop myself from hearing them snapping at me, but they start to scream at me. The Cats' Lair dissolves into darkness again, but the Thundercats remain. I press myself as far into the corner as I can, but I can still hear the screaming.

I haven't felt this scared since I was a cub. Leo locked me in the basement of the Cats' Lair on Old Thundera whilst we were playing hide and seek, and he switched off the power supply, swamping me in darkness. To this day, I can still remember sitting hunched up in the corner crying, shouting for my brother to let me out, but he didn't; my father eventually found me after hearing me screaming, crying and clawing at the door which Leo was sitting in front of, happily reading a book...

I feel sharp claws scratching at my skin so fiercely that it draws blood, then I'm dragged to my feet. I open my eyes, and see that the other Thundercats are standing in front of me. Lynx-O makes the first move as he's released from his chains; he runs for me and starts to savagely tear at my exposed flesh as, one by one, the others are released.

They start to tear me apart, ripping the flesh from my body with their razor sharp claws and fangs, swallowing whatever they manage to get off whole. I begin to gurgle blood, the warm, salty crimson fluid gushing from my mouth and neck as Panthro bites deep into my flesh, tearing it to shreds as he shakes his head in a rapid frenzy, before clamping his fangs around my trachea which makes me start to choke, and with one quick, swift movement, he tears it clean out of my throat as blood sprays from my torn neck and mouth but what my wife does revolts me the most; she sinks her hand deep into the mess of my abdomen until she's elbow deep, then she tears something from my body.

That's when I see that she's holding my heart, which is still beating and pumping out blood...

My eyes fly open and I sit bolt upright, tears streaming down my cheeks. I'm only just aware of exactly how hard and fast I'm panting, and my whole body is soaked with sweat; I feel sick. I look around me and realise that all of the other Thundercats are crowded round mine and Cheetara's bed. Snarf is the first to act.

"Lion-O, Sneyarf, Sneyarf, thank Jaga you're awake! Reow! You scared me!" he purrs as he jumps up onto the bed and wraps his arms around my neck. I break down and start sobbing on my old nursemaid's shoulder, fresh tears trickling off of my cheeks.

Cheetara sits down next to me with Katzeran held in her arms. "Lion-O," she says as she puts a hand on my right knee "What's so intense about your nightmares that you wake up every night, screaming loud enough to wake the dead? Surely they're not that bad?"

I sigh before saying "They're always truly horrific, and they're always about different things. This one was about how I'm responsible for and the cause of Lynx-O's death..." I feel my emotions welling up again and I cover my face as I sniffle, so Cheetara hugs me, making our son wake up; he mews in annoyance before starting to cry slightly. My wife gently lays the nine day old cub in my arms, and he slowly stops crying as he nuzzles into my bare chest, purring contently.

"We have to arrange the funeral. I won't rest until I know that he's at peace..." I say as I look around at all of my friends...

- (BORDER) -

I have failed yet again. I tried my best, and yet the cub still lives. How is it that he can survive everything that I throw at him? There has only ever been one person who has ever came close to slaughtering Lion-O and that's Grune the Destroyer, but I sent him to hell the last time he failed to kill the wretched Lord of the Thundercats.

Maybe, just maybe if I would be to summon Grune once more he would be able to finish the lion off for me. I chuckle to myself as I pick Ma-mutt up off of the floor, and as I walk around the cauldron, I think to myself for a minute before coming to a decision;

I raise a hand before shouting "Ancient Spirits of Evil! Of darkness! Summon Grune the Destroyer back to this world so that he may finish his task of ridding us of the wretched Lion-O, Lord of the Thundercats!"

I continue to chant in Ancient Egyptian, and the cauldron starts to viciously bubble as a pair of glowing blood-red eyes appear in the smoke.

"Why have you summoned me back to this world, Mumm-ra? What do you want me to do for you this time?" a raspy voice says as the smoke clears.

I grin at the ancient sabre-toothed tiger as I say "I have a job for you, Grune, which involves killing Lion-O."

Grune chuckles deep in his throat as he says "Anything you want, Mumm-ra!"

"Then listen carefully!"

- (BORDER) -

"What do you want, Grune?" I growl as menacingly as I can. The old sabre-toothed tiger cackles deeply before saying "As if the answer wasn't obvious, Queen of New Thundera!" he spits the ending of the sentence with such venom on her tongue "I want Lion-O to face me in the Badlands of New Thundera...alone."

I growl again before snarling "You know that Lion-O would never be stupid enough to do that! Never in a million years!"

"What the hell is going on in here?"

I look up as Lion-O walks into the room; his face clearly shows that he's absolutely furious, and when he sees Grune, he violently tears the Sword of Omens from the Claw Shield before snapping "Why the hell are you here, Grune? What the fuck do you want?"

Grune chuckles to himself before saying "I challenge you to a fight to the death, 'Lord of the Thundercats'!"

Lion-O roars, the deep sound echoing throughout the room as he says "I'll NEVER do such a thing, Grune! I don't lower myself down to that...level."

"That's the problem, Lion-O; you haven't got a choice! A fight to the death, or I slaughter all of the Thundercats in the most horrifically painful ways possible..." he throws a sickening glance at me "Starting with your wife and son. It's your choice; make it wisely, cub!"

I see what he's doing; he's infuriating Lion-O to bring out the impetuous and hot-blooded side of him, and it's working...

Lion-O growls before saying "I...I'll do it!" as he slams his fist down on the table, denting the metal.

Grune laughs before saying "Good!" Then, he disappears into nothing...

- (BORDER) -

"Lion-O, please reconsider! You can't face Grune alone! He'll kill you!"

I can hear Cheetara begging, but I don't pay attention to her.

"I have to face him, Cheetara. If I don't, then it's pure cowardice!"

"But if you do, then it's pure foolishness! You don't know what the hell he could have planned for you! Lion-O, you could be walking into a death trap without realising..."

"The Sword of Omens would have warned me by now if I was in any danger, which I am not. So you can stop worrying about me; I'm going to be perfectly fine." I say as I clip my hunting knife to my belt, then I turn to look at my wife.

"You can't do this. You have a son. He needs you; I need you!"

I sigh as tears trickle down my cheeks. "I'm so sorry Cheetara, but this has to be done, whether I agree with it or not..."

I start to walk away, but I start to feel small and scared. What if Cheetara is right? What if this is all just one elaborate death trap? I force my fears to the pit of my stomach. This is important, and I'm not about to let anything get in the way of what is right...

Next time on Thundercats:

Lion-O has agreed to a fight to the death with Grune the Destroyer, but will he get out with his life? Will everything go smoothly for the funeral of one of the oldest members of the Thundercats, or will the Lord of the Thundercats' decision cost him his life?

Find out in the next chapter of Thundercats: Wake Up!