A Question of Intuition

Over the next few days, Bengali, Pumyra, and Lynx-O were given the same guided tour and shown the same sights Lion-O and the other ThunderCats did many months ago. They were shown the pyramids, the temples, the markets, the fields and farms, the Nile River, the different towns, even the Moogle village. Once more, the Children of Millennia were sorry that Lynx-O could not see the sights, but he kept assuring them that it was all right. Once more, he reminded his friends and guides that he could imagine the wonders by simply taking in the many different sounds and scents and the feel of the environments. Besides, just because Lynx-O was blind, didn't mean he had to miss out on all the fun. His friends and guides didn't even mind describing the sights.

It was still amazing to see the wonders of the Egyptian kingdom; the different races of people, the different species of monsters and animals, the architecture of the houses and other structures, even the food was satisfying. The remote island they were stranded on was nice and peaceful, but nothing compared to the Egyptian kingdom or even the Pure Valley.

The three friends had been riding on Flammie as they were being shown around the kingdom and they found him to be just as extraordinary. He truly was a friendly dragon. Flammie brought them back to the palace courtyard. Pumyra and Bengali helped Lynx-O down. The puma woman gently petted Flammie. "Thank you again, Flammie."

"Anytime," he replied. "Any friend of the Children of Millennia is a friend of mine. And if you or any of the other ThunderCats need me for anything while you're here in Egypt, all you have to do is play the spin drum to summon me."

"Sure," said Bengali. "Thanks again."

"Have a safe journey home," said Lynx-O. Flammie howls in response and begins flying home.

"Wow," the white tiger sighed. "The more time I spend here in Egypt, it seems each day gets better and better."

Pumyra agreed. "Everything we've learned and seen has made our stay worthwhile. It's almost a little upsetting that we have to be returning to Third Earth soon."

"We have our own responsibilities and obligations back home," Lynx-O reminded her.

"Besides, we're welcome to come back here whenever we want," Bengali added.

The puma woman knew that her friends and comrades were right. There really was nothing to get upset about.

When they entered the palace and started coming to the throne room, Lynx-O stopped. He felt an ominous presence. It was coming from the person standing before the queen: Luna. Bengali and Pumyra noticed her too. "I guess the queen has a meeting with someone," the white tiger figured.

"Be wary of this woman," Lynx-O warned. "Something about her doesn't feel right."

Bengali and Pumyra didn't always understand Lynx-O's intuition, but he had never steered them wrong before. For that matter, they decided they should take his word for it.

The queen noticed her friends. "Oh, welcome home, my dear friends. You arrived just in time. I have someone I want you to meet." Kisara and Freya knew that the queen wasn't helpless and could manage by herself, but the cousins still helped her to her feet. They were her handmaids, after all. As usual, Freya frowned at Luna, carrying bitterness and distrust. Luna saw it too, but brushed it off. At Freya's feet, Sakuya lowered her ears and softly growled, warning Luna not to get too close. As for Bengali, Pumyra, and Lynx-O, they continued standing where they were.

Queen Mystery began the introductions. "Friends, this is Luna. She's an old friend of mine. Luna, allow me to introduce my new friends and allies: Bengali, Pumyra, and Lynx-O. They were recently anointed ThunderCats by Lion-O."

The puma woman decided to be polite, despite Lynx-O's warning. She figured she should at least make a good impression. "Hello, Luna."

"Hi, Luna," Bengali said, having the same idea. "It's nice to meet you."

Lynx-O decided to put on the same demeanor. "Charmed," he replied, his tone a little dry.

Luna was amazed to see more Thunderians. She regarded Bengali first. "Oh, Bengali, your features are just magnificent. Yes, the white with black stripes is so exquisite. And your eyes, yes, just as beautiful."

The white tiger was flattered. Freya, however, wasn't fooled. She knew Luna was just acting.

Luna continued with Lynx-O. "Oh, I didn't realize you were so…"

"Blind," the old lynx finished.

That was when Freya decided to intervene. "Lynx-O may be blind, but his other senses are razor sharp. He may not even need his sight to see you for what you really are."

"Freya," Mystery said firmly, "behave yourself. Luna is our guest."

Lynx-O could tell that Freya could sense it too. There was something dangerous, something sinister about Luna. Nonetheless, he decided to be polite and dismiss the matter. "It's quite all right, Your Majesty. I know Luna means no disrespect and I understand Freya was only trying to help. They do say that the eyes are the window to the soul, however, there are other ways to see than just with the eyes."

"Yes," Luna replied. She noticed that Pumyra was looking at her; rather, she was looking at her scars. The puma woman gasped and looked away. "It's all right, Pumyra. I know you couldn't help it. Actually, I'm used to it."

"I didn't mean to stare," the puma woman apologized. "If you don't want to talk about it, I can respect that."

"I would greatly appreciate that," Luna told her. "But I think it would be best if I took my leave."

"Are you sure?" the queen asked.

"I don't want to take up too much of your time and I did do what I came here for," she said. Just before Bengali, Pumyra, and Lynx-O returned, Luna came here to provide some very helpful information on someone very important. Now her business was done. "But I'll come back when I can," she promised. She dismisses herself and leaves the palace.

"She seems pleasant enough," Pumyra figured.

"Don't be fooled," Freya growled. "She's not as pleasant as she appears to be."

"You don't seem to like her very much," Bengali observed.

"I have my reasons," she simply replied. "I'll tell you about it later," she promised. She needed time to cool off for a bit, so she went back to her room. Kisara sighed as she watched her little cousin walk off. It seemed some things would just never change.

A few hours later, Freya headed to the guest room where Bengali, Pumyra, and Lynx-O were staying. Sakuya was at her feet, walking beside her. She came to the doorway and asked, "Can I come in?"

The puma woman was the first to notice her. "Freya, by all means," she insisted. So Freya stepped inside and Sakuya jumped on Pumyra's bed and the puma woman began petting her.

"I wanted to apologize for the way I acted earlier," Freya began.

"You have nothing to apologize for," the old lynx insisted. "It was understandable that you would get defensive the way you did."

"We would have acted the same way too," said Bengali. "But I did notice that you looked really upset when Luna was here. Freya, did something happen between the two of you?"

"No, not personally," she was saying. "However, when we were young and first met, I somehow felt threatened by her, like something was telling me there was something evil about her. And when my friends told me how they knew Luna and how badly she treated them, I thought her to be manipulative every time I saw her acting nice around everyone. Because of that, well, I just don't like her very much." She faces them and asks, "Is that bad of me?"

Lynx-O disagreed. "Freya, you have very good instincts and you should listen to them."

"Really?" she asked, surprised.

"When I sensed Luna's presence in the throne room, I could sense something ominous about her," he was saying. "I agree that there's something about her that makes her a danger to the people around her; including the royal family."

"What about Lion-O and the others?" Bengali asked. "Do they know?"

"They've seen Luna many times before as well," Freya was saying. "And Cheetara told me the same thing you did just now, Lynx-O, that she senses something dangerous about Luna. I also warned them to be careful and that she's not to be trusted."

Bengali and Pumyra nodded at each other, feeling that they should agree with their friends. They also figured that they should meet up with the other ThunderCats to discuss the situation.