Friend or Foe?

Earlier, during Luna's meeting with the queen, Lion-O's curiosity got the better of him and he couldn't help but eavesdrop, though he knew it was rude. He could only make out a few details here and there along with a name: Bakura. According to what he heard, Bakura was the heir of the Dark Lord Cobalt and like Luna, he was also born in the village of Kul Elna and he also lived in the outskirts. Now he was on his bed, deep in thought about the things he heard. If Luna's information was correct, then this meant that she could be trusted, right?

Jaga's soul suddenly appeared before him. "The information you heard Luna convey to the queen was truthful, Lion-O."

"Jaga," he gasped.

"Luna was telling the truth when she said that Bakura is the heir of the Dark Lord Cobalt," he said. "In addition, he is also a nefarious thief and murderer."

There was so much Lion-O wanted to ask, but he didn't know where to start. He decided to just pick one question. "If Luna was telling the truth, then does this mean she can be trusted?"

"Not so, Lion-O," Jaga answered. "Though her information was truthful, her intentions were false. Luna is like a double-edged sword. She is neither friend nor foe. As for Bakura, while he knows that Queen Mystery is also the heiress of the Great Goddess Millennia, he lies in wait, wanting to strike at the proper time."

"The proper time?" Lion-O repeated. "What's he waiting for?" Then he wondered, did Bakura know that Mystery was pregnant? Was he waiting for the child to be born? That would mean that Luna wasn't just coming to the palace to provide information on Bakura. She was gathering information for him as well. She really was a double-edged sword.

"Beware of Bakura, Lion-O, and his partner Max," Jaga warned.

"Max," Lion-O asked. "Who is Max?"

"She is not unlike Luna," was all Jaga would say. "She is a woman of many mysteries. However, she is not who she appears to be." And his soul disappears.

"Jaga, wait," the lion pleaded. He still had so many questions, but at least he knew more than he did earlier. He had to talk to the other ThunderCats.

Seto and Mahad brought them to the council chamber. It was normally used by the royal court, but the two sorcerers figured it could be used by them and their friends for this moment; especially if it was urgent.

"I know it's rude to eavesdrop," Lion-O was saying, "but I couldn't help but want to hear what Luna was talking about with the queen. I heard her mention some people named Bakura and Max."

"Bakura and Max?" Panthro asked. "Who in the Egyptian kingdom are those guys?"

"I asked myself the same thing," Lion-O answered. "Then Jaga came before me, telling me that Bakura is the heir of Cobalt and Max is his partner."

"Jaga wasn't wrong," said Seto. "We've actually had the pleasure of meeting Bakura and finding that out for ourselves." Last month, Mahad, Seto, and Joseph all took a small trip to the outskirts hoping to find Bakura and question him regarding the information Luna provided about him being the heir of Cobalt. It didn't work out as they planned, but nonetheless, their suspicions were confirmed.

"But if Bakura is the heir of Cobalt, then that means he has the Cobalt Star," said Cheetara.

"Yes," said Mahad. "And he was also born in Kul Elna, the same village where Luna was born."

"That's the village where the inhabitants are followers of the Dark Lord," said Wilykat.

"Were, Wilykat," Seto corrected. "The village was destroyed several years ago and all of the inhabitants with it." He and the others didn't know what exactly happened. They figured that the village was caught in the wars that occurred back when the Children of Millennia were still in their early years and that the village ended up being destroyed. Apparently, Bakura ended up being the only survivor. Though he was still so young, he managed to survive the way he had been raised to; by stealing and killing anyone who would stand in his way.

"How is it that no one ever knew anything about Bakura until now?" Wilykit asked. "And his partner Max, whoever he is."

"She," Lion-O corrected. "Apparently Max is a woman. Still, I agree. We've explored every corner of the kingdom and have never met Bakura or Max in all the time we've spent here."

"Every part except for the outskirts," Panthro pointed out, "and that's forbidden territory."

"Not without reason," said Tygra. "The outskirts were the home of Cobalt's people. I guess they still are, considering Bakura is the heir of Cobalt. But all the same." He looked at Mahad and Seto. "You guys mentioned that Luna was raised in the palace before she ran away. Could it be possible that she met Bakura when she came to her birthplace only to find out that it was in ruins?"

"We have thought of that," Mahad was saying. "We figured that when Bakura found out about Luna's history, he must have figured he could use that to his advantage."

Bengali spoke up. "Bakura must have gotten the idea to use Luna to gather information on the royal family for him."

"Which means she's not coming here just to tell the pharaoh and queen about Bakura," Cheetara interrupted.

"Jaga said Luna was like a double-edged sword," said Lion-O. "She's aiding both the royal family and the enemy."

Freya still had her doubts. "She's mostly in it to help Bakura and she's doing it at her own free will." She explains her argument, saying that if she were being forced to gather information against her will, she would have asked for help a long time ago. Or if she really were a friend and ally to the royals, she would be living here in the palace instead of in the outskirts with the enemy.

Everyone knew that Freya was still very bitter towards Luna, but her arguments did sound plausible. "I agree with Freya," said Lynx-O. "When I first met Luna, I sensed something evil about her."

Cheetara also agreed. "I felt the same way when I first met Luna too. My sixth sense was telling me she was dangerous."

"We don't know for sure what her reasons are," Wilykat was saying. "But we know where she lives. We could go find her and–"

"No," Seto snapped. "The outskirts are dangerous and forbidden."

"Besides, we tried that once before and we ran into Bakura and almost got killed," Joseph added.

Wilykat tried to speak. "But–"

"But nothing," Seto interrupted. "You are never to go to the outskirts." He looks at all of the ThunderCats. "That goes for all of you."

Bengali snarled. "I would much rather find Bakura, but I understand. You guys know your homeland better than we do."

"It doesn't look like there's much we can do right now, despite what we know," Lion-O was saying. "The best thing we can do is head back to our world." The rest of the ThunderCats agreed. They would figure out a plan on how to deal with Bakura some other time and hopefully, find out more about Luna as well and decide if she really is a friend or foe.

Meanwhile, in the ruins of Kul Elna, Max was informing Bakura of the new ThunderCats. "There are more of them?" Bakura asked.

"Yes," Max answered. "A white tiger, a blind old lynx, and a female puma."

"Oh, that's charming," Bakura said sarcastically. "Just when we thought we had enough to deal with, the ThunderCats gain more recruits." He looks at her and asks, "What were you able to learn about these ones?"

"They're not all that different from the others," said Max. "Still, it may be hard gaining the trust of these ThunderCats. They're not as naïve as the royals. We may have our hands full with these creatures."

"We won't know for sure until we finally meet them," said Bakura. "Until then, we must continue to bide our time."

Max sighed. "I tire of this, Bakura."

"I know, Max, but it won't be long," he promised her.