A/N: I thank everyone for sticking and staying loyal with this story for so long. I'm sorry that this chapter is so short, but it's a two parter. Either way, I hope you enjoy.
Key:
Flashback = Flashback (Obviously)
Dream = Dream
Time Passage =...
- (BORDER) - = perspective change
Anyway, chapter information:
Genres: Adventure and Drama
Warnings: Scenes of violence and explicit language.
Date started (Chapter): Sunday 17th May 2015
Date finished (Chapter): Saturday 23rd May 2015
Song/s: Hero by Skillet
Chapter 8: Hero, Part I
I open my eyes, which is a decision that I instantly regret. "Oh, God...what the fuck?" I groan as I sit up. I grab my head as my temples pound. The stench of alcohol hangs round me like a cloud of poisonous fumes, making me feel sick. I grab the bucket by my side, just in time.
"Well, you're finally awake, then?"
I look up at Cheetara, who is sitting on her side of the bed. She's fully dressed, and the curtains are drawn.
"What time is it?"
"It's ten to nine in the morning."
"Oh, god..." I can barely finish my sentence before I start vomiting again. "Wha...What the hell happened? I ca...can't remember anything."
"You got really drunk last night. I must say, though. You did try to kiss Leo, which was funny."
I groan as I lie down again. "Well, Leo also said to make sure that you were ok." she says as she hands me the glass of water.
I drink it gratefully as I say "Well, I hope that the hangover won't last too long."
Cheetara laughs as I try to get out of bed. "I don't think that you'll be going anywhere so soon, Lion-O. You're pretty hung-over." she says as I struggle to stand up.
"I'd like to see that stop me! I've got on with the day with worse than this before." I groan as my wife watches me walk out of the door.
I stumble down the corridor to the Council Chamber and slump into my chair as Cheetara walks in. Everybody is looking at me, making me slightly edgy. "You ok, Lion-O? You're looking pretty pale." Snarfer says as he sips his cup of coffee. "Yeah, just...just pretty hung-over. I will never drink a single drop of alcohol...again!" I groan as I put my head in my hands.
"Sneyarf! Ha! Famous last words. They all say that, but they never learn." Snarf purrs as he puts a glass of water and some pills of aspirin in front of me.
"This sucks!" I snap as I take the pills and down the water.
"Hope you've learned your lesson then, Lion-O."
"So do I!"
- (BORDER) -
"You have failed again, Mumm-ra!"
"Please, my Lords! Have mercy on me!"
"WHY SHOULD WE? EVERY TIME YOU TRY, EVERY CHANCE WE GIVE YOU, YOU HAVE FAILED TO KILL LION-O AND RID US OF THOSE WRETCHED THUNDERCATS!"
"My Lords, it isn't as easy as you would think! Lion-O may be an overgrown cub, but he is a strong opponent. The Sword of Plun-darr is no match for the Sword of Omens. I have tried, but I tire of this game. Why don't we just give up?"
"WE WILL NOT GIVE INTO DEFEAT, MUMM-RA! THE THUNDERCATS MAY BE FORMIDABLE ENEMIES, BUT WE WILL SHOW NO WEAKNESSES TO THEM! Summon Osiris, Anubis, Thoth, Nephthys, and Seker. If you cannot cut Lion-O's life short, then they certainly can!"
I look down at the cauldron as I say "Oh Ancient Spirits of Evil, hear me!
Mvua ya mawe kwako,
Anubis,
Osiris,
Thoth,
Nephthys,
Seker.
Anpu, Nebukadreza-ta-djeser!
Kuja kwangu!
Ah juu moja,
Ah mtu hodari,
Ah bwana wa siri kwa wale walio katika Underworld, Death.
Ah Farao wa wale waliopo Amenti,
Ah Mkuu Mganga,
Ah mwana mwema wa Osiris,
Yeye ambaye uso ni kubwa miongoni mwa Mungu,
Unapaswa itaonekana befor mkono wa Osiris.
Mniabudu roho za Abydos.
Ili kwamba wote kuishi kupitia wewe,
Roho hizi,
Ndio wa wavu takatifu.
Kuja duniani!
Jidhihirishe kwangu hapa leo!"
Thecauldron starts bubbling and fizzing uncontrollably, the vivid purple water melts into a shade of deep blood red. The candle that I have held in my hand is extinguished by a sudden gust of ice-cold wind, and five pairs of glowing red eyes are peering at me from in the darkness.
"What do you want us to do, oh Mighty Mumm-ra?" a masculine voice says as Anubis walks out of the shadows, followed by a woman, a hawk, an ibis, a man and a falcon.
"I require your help to put an end to the reign of the Thundercats. Their wretched cub lord is King of this damned planet."
"Cats?" Anubis snarls as he walks up to the cauldron "I'll tear them to shreds!"
"Oh, but, almighty ones, these are no ordinary cats." I say as I wave my hand over the now calm waters of my cauldron. The five Gods watch as I show them the Thundercats in action. Then, I say "And this is their leader. I'm sure that you will be able to...exterminate him." I show them Lion-O fighting against my many evil minions.
Seker squawks then caws "Surely if he is a cub like you say, we'd be able to tear his head clean off?"
"He's a lot stronger than he looks."
"We noticed. It's rather pathetic considering the fact being that you can't defeat a mere boy!"
I feel my anger surging up again at Seker's comment.
"Don't mock my powers, Seker! It's your new job to wipe the upstart from the face of New Thundera! I attempted to do that myself two nights ago; I lured him to this pyramid, disguised as Cheetara, where the Mutants of Plun-darr ambushed him, but he escaped. It's your job to get them trapped inside of their sardine-can of a Lair, and challenge him to a fight. And, I want his broken, twisted body before me by sundown tomorrow!"
"Yes Mumm-ra. Whatever you say." Anubis says as he turns away.
"One thing that you're forgetting, Anubis." I say as he turns back around to face me.
"What?"
"The greatest weakness of all Thunderians is Thundrainium. Make sure that you line your weapons with the metal before fighting him; it should subdue his powers."
"I know what I'm doing Mumm-ra! We ALL do!" he says as they walk out of the door. I chuckle to myself as I watch them go. "Well, Ma-mutt. This should be fun to watch!" I say as I stroke my demonic dog. The hound barks then tries to lick the side of my face. "Yes, Ma-mutt, I love you too." I say as I look at the image in the cauldron of Lion-O sitting on the sofa in the Lair's library with Cheetara cuddling up to him. He doesn't know what's coming to him.
I put Ma-mutt down then say "And now to pay those wretched Mutants and Lunataks a visit!
"ANCIENT SPIRITS OF EVIL, TRANSFORM THIS DECAYED FORM TO MUMM-RA, THE EVER-LIVING!"
My whole entire body starts to change; my weak, shrivelled arms start to bulge as my muscles expand, my chest starting to fill out. I look down on Ma-mutt as I say "Time to put the Thundercats through their paces!"
- (BORDER) -
"Battle stations!"
"What's happening?" I ask as I look up at Tygra. The tiger stops before me as he pants "Mumm-ra, the Mutants and the Lunataks are on their way here! Plus, this time, they've bought some friends!"
I stand up as I growl. "Are the defences online and locked on?" I say as we run down the corridor.
"Negative. None are operational. Somehow, there's something fucking with the defence systems."
"Shit! Looks like we're going to have to fight them off like we used to. Everyone get your weapons and meet me back in the main entrance!"
I run into the Sword Chamber and take the Sword of Omens from the stand then connect the Claw Shield to my left hip before running back out again. As I race to the main entrance, I pass many young ThunderGuard troops who are also headed towards the entrance. When I eventually get there, I'm met by Mumm-ra and his cronies.
"What the hell do you want, Mumm-ra?" I snap as I step forwards. I pull the Sword of Omens from the Claw Shield as Mumm-ra signals to a dog-headed man. The creature steps forwards and snarls "He doesn't want anything, but we do!" He draws a long scythe-like sword from his side "I challenge you to a fight, cub!"
"You'll lose, but it's your call, you son of a bitch!"
"Ah, that's where you're wrong! It's five-on-one!"
I look either side of him, and see five other gods next to him; three birds, a man and a woman.
"Lion-O, you can't take them all on at once!" I hear Cheetara say from behind me. I turn around and see her standing behind me with her hand on my right shoulder. I shake my head at her before saying "No, Cheetara. I've got to."
"But..."
"Don't argue with me, Cheetara. Please."
"But...Lion-O...he could kill you!"
"That's a risk I'm more than willing to take."
Cheetara nods as she then backs off. I take a deep breath in before stepping forwards. The black jackal laughs then says "Come on then, coward! FIGHT!"
He runs for me, just as I pull the Claw Shield onto my hand. Caught off guard, his fist flies out and catches me on the chin; the taste of blood fills my mouth as I accidently bite down on my tongue. I growl with rage before launching myself at him, only to miss and be sent flying into thin air. I get to my feet and look over my shoulder at the Ancient Egyptian god as he smirks at me. "And I thought that you'd fight better. You disappoint me, Lion-O!" he snarls as he draws a spear-like sword. I run towards him, swinging the Sword of Omens across, but he blocks the blow with his weapon.
Howether, when I charge him again, he throws me back, and something hits me around the head. I try to get up, but two of the other gods grab my arms and hold them behind my back as I'm bound and gagged.
"Hahahahaha! You're not so fearsome now, are you?"
"Mmmmmmnnnnnn!" I scream into the gag as the other Thundercats are quickly bound and gagged, which earns me a sharp punch around the face and to my stomach.
Mumm-ra cackles then says "A job well done, Anubis!" I try to get up, but Anubis hits me on top of my head, making me see stars momentarily. I growl as I struggle to stay on my feet. "KNEEL! Or I'll kill you!" the hawk-man screeches as he jabs me in the back of the neck with his spear. I fall to my knees, much to the disappointment of the others.
"Lion-O! You can't give up! You can't!" I hear Wilykit cry as a gag is rammed into her mouth.
"Mmmmm...mm mmm?" I roar into the gag as Slithe walks towards me, carrying the Book and Key of Omens.
"Lion-O," Mumm-ra says as he turns the key in the keyhole in the Book "I banish you from New Thundera forever, never to return!" The Book is placed in front of me as the Ancient Egyptian devil priest starts to chant
"Hear me, Ancient Spirits of Evil.
I offer to vanquish the Lord of the Thundercats from this planet,
To rid us of him forever.
To send him back in time and space,
To the ancient First Earth,
To the time of animal-man gods and powerful evil magic.
Oh, Ancient spirits of Evil, send him back and seal him inside of the Book of Omens, never to return to New Thundera!
To make sure that he's trapped forever!
Anquu'aat-connceniini polligaaj!
Huumiagj'zcva-aacht na Re!
Kuungth'zjaarzsch Laarchd!
Romaji'chaa-ce que acchtvalzsch!
Anquu'aat-connceniini polligarj!"
I look down at the Book of Omens as it starts to glow a deep shade of red, disturbingly similar to blood, then it envelops me.
I can feel some sort of force pulling me into the book. That's when I see the ghostly black hands dragging me into it. My claws scratch the floor as I struggle to get a grip on the stone. Everything fades to black as I get sucked into the Book of Omens...
I open my eyes to the blinding bright light of the sun. I can feel the hot sand under me, as well as the scorching sun on my body. I sit up and shake the sand from my clothes and fur before getting to my feet.
Trapped forever...
The voice echoes in my mind as I scour the landscape; desert. Miles of vast, unrelenting, sandy desert, as far as the eye can see. There's nothing around for miles; nothing but sand dunes and mirages.
I whip my shirt off and start walking, the infernal sun beating down on my back.
Never to return to New Thundera...
My mouth is dry and my tongue feels like sandpaper. I shield my eyes against the sun as I look behind me. What looks like a group of humans are approaching on the backs of what look like...camels?
As they get closer to me, I can see that they're Thunderians. I can hear them talking as they approach me.
"Who is he?"
"I don't know. Never seen him before."
"Hold on...he looks like a Thunderian!"
"That's not possible! He doesn't look anything like us!"
"A Plun-darrian, maybe?"
"No. He doesn't look like one."
"Halt, boy! Speak your name, and be wise not to attack us!" one of them says as he stops before me. I stop and say "I am Lion-O, the Lord of the Thundercats."
"Do not lie! Any old fool knows that the current Lord of the Thundercats is Lee-O, soon to be taken over by Lygaar, then Tyrone, then Löwe-N, and his newborn son, Prince Satos!"
I drop to my knees from exhaustion.
Sealed inside of the Book of Omens...
"Hey, Lion-O, you ok? You look like you could do with something to drink." an ocelot says as he throws me a water skin.
I take a heavy swig from the water skin, but it tastes strange. Bitter. That's when I realize that it's drugged. I fall to my knees as it takes effect on me. The ocelot jumps down off of his camel, as well as a tiger. "Get him secured to your camel. I'm sure that the Queen would love another cat god."
"That is if we can pass him off as a god!"
- (BORDER) -
"There's got to be a way to get Lion-O out of the Book of Omens."
I look down at the golden book as if I can pull my husband out with my own will. "The only way that we can is if someone uses the sword to get in."
"Even so, we don't know exactly where he is. Mumm-ra did say something about 'the time of animal-man gods and powerful evil magic', which could suggest that it's a time where he was at his most powerful."
"Isn't Mumm-ra from Ancient Egypt?"
"By Jaga! That must be where he is!"
"I'll go into the book."
"No, Cheetara. You can't! It's far too dangerous. I'll go."
I look at Tygra as I say "No. Lion-O is my husband, so I will go."
The old tiger shakes his head as he says "No. As I said, it's too dangerous for you. Lion-O could be in danger and..."
"TYGRA!" I snap as I look at him "I said I'll go! I'll get Lion-O."
Tygra nods then says "Ok. It's your call, Cheetara. After all, you are the Queen, now."
I stand up before saying "It's set. I leave tonight."
Everybody is silent. The wind howls outside as the rain patters on the window pane. Thunder rumbles from overhead as lightning streaks across the sky. I look out at the moon rising over the distant mountains. "Cheetara, you'd better have something to eat to get your strength up." Snarf says as he hands out bowls of stew to everyone. I turn back around and pick up my spoon, but I just push it around my bowl; I don't feel hungry at all.
"It's been a day. Who knows how long Lion-O's been in Ancient Egypt for? Time passes quicker in the Book of Omens. He could have been in there for months, maybe even years." I say as I stand up, unable to eat anything. "Well, I'd better go, then." I say as I walk out of the door. They get up, and follow me to the room where the Book is usually kept. It's lucky that the Sword of Omens fought Mumm-ra off by itself.
"Well, this is it."
I turn around and look at the other Thundercats. "I promise, I will have Lion-O when I come back." I say as I take the Key and the Sword of Omens from Tygra.
"Just be careful, Cheetara. We don't want to lose you and Lion-O in the Book." Snarf says as I place the book on its stand.
"Don't worry. I'll be fine." I say as I put the Key into the Keyhole.
"Thundercats,"
"HO!"
I feel myself getting pulled into the book. Minutes later, I'm standing before the Guardian of the Book of Omens.
"I understand that you wish to rescue Lion-O, Cheetara."
"Yes. He's been sucked into Ancient Egypt and..."
"Pay heed of the dangers! Once you go back through time and space, you will not be able to return unless Tygra uses the Sword of Omens to get you both out!"
"But Lion-O is the only one who can use the Sword!"
"Lion-O can call the Sword into the Book of Omens. So, Cheetara, Lady of the Thundercats, are you ready?"
"Yes. I am ready to go to Ancient Egypt and bring my husband, the Lord of the Thundercats, back to New Thundera."
A bright blue aura surrounds me as the pitch black scenery slowly changes to that of a hot, arid desert. The heat hits me instantly. How can any living being survive in a place without water? I look around, and I can see the outlines of three pyramids and a city against the setting sun. Well, if Lion-O is around here somewhere, I'd better start looking for him.
My best bet is to look for him in the city.
...
"Lion-O! Lion-O, where are you?" I shout as I walk through the dark streets. I hear footsteps approaching from behind me, making me turn around. The young lion is standing before me, but he looks so different. His skin has been slightly tanned by the unrelenting, hot Egyptian sun, and his muscles are even more toned than before he got sucked into the Book of Omens. He's wearing some type of white material which is wrapped around his waist, and he's barefooted.
His smile fades to a scowl as he stands still.
"Where the bloody hell have you been? It's been two weeks! TWO weeks! What took you so long?" he says as he walks towards me. I can clearly detect the hurt tone in his voice. As I walk around him and inspect his body, I can clearly see that the scars on my husband's back have been made darker by his tan.
"We've had Mumm-ra, the Mutants, the Lunataks and those Ancient Egyptian gods watching us like hawks for the last day and a half! Anyway, what have you been up to?"
He sighs before saying "You wouldn't believe the things I've seen! I've seen the rise of Mumm-ra, and humanity is starting to increase in population, driving the Thunderians off of the planet."
"Well, either way, I've come to get you out of here, but we can't get out of here until Tygra uses the Sword of Omens to get us out."
We walk towards the edge of the city as the sun disappears below the horizon. He leads me to a cave, then says "We can bed down here for the night. We'll sort everything out tomorrow."
We lie down on the sand as the air starts to get colder. I snuggle into my husband's furry chest for warmth, making him wrap his arms around me as we watch the fire that we built roaring to life. I look into his eyes as I say "I love you, Lion-O."
He passionately kisses me as he says "I love you too, Cheetara." He turns back to the fire then lies down to go to sleep, smiling for the both of us as I join him.
Next time on Thundercats:
When Lion-O and Cheetara return from Ancient Egypt, they're met by a pissed-off Mumm-ra. The young Lord of the Thundercats must drive the ancient devil priest from his home, a task which will put his every strength to the test. Will he succeed?
Find out in the next chapter of Thundercats: Wake Up!