New Fears and Worries

After the whole ordeal of meeting and fighting the Lunataks as well as Mumm-Ra's return, the heroes agreed that they could certainly use a vacation in Egypt. A few weeks sounded like a fair enough time frame. And the best part about it was that while they would be spending time in Egypt, time would stop here in Third Earth. This meant that the heroes wouldn't have to worry about any attacks from any enemies.

The heroes even managed to find a hidden passage to the Pure Valley near the entrance to the Forest of Mists. There was another cave near the rocky wall that was covered with vines. They walked into the darkness and came out into the light and found themselves back in the Pure Valley once again. It seemed the wonders of this place would never ceace to amaze any of the heroes.

Already Snarfer was bouncing around with excitement, marveling at all the sights and sounds and asking so many questions. The heroes laughed, admiring his enthusiasm. It was Snarfer's first time coming to the Pure Valley, after all. Snarf told everyone to go on ahead while he would show his nephew around. So the heroes proceeded to the door to the Egyptian kingdom.

They passed through the door and appeared in the throne room. Atem was the first to notice the heroes. "Friends, welcome home, he greeted."

"Thank you, Pharaoh and Queen," they all said, bowing.

"Mystery," Jirachi squeals, flying over to her and hugging her.

The queen laughs and catches her partner in her arms. "Welcome home, Jirachi. I hope you were a good boy."

"Jirachi was no trouble at all," said Lion-O. "As usual, he was very helpful just like everyone else."

"I always have fun with the ThunderCats, but I always miss you when we're apart," Jirachi tells Mystery as he hugs her. She hugs him and tells his the same thing.

"We've got so much to tell you," Lion-O tells Atem and Mystery. Together, the heroes begin telling the pharaoh and queen about the recent events, starting with Mumm-Ra's return. It came as no surprise to Atem and Mystery that Mumm-Ra was still at large. After all, he is immortal. Unfortunately, he's not the only one the heroes have to worry about. Now they have the Lunataks to contend with as well. Of course, the only information Lion-O and the others had on the Lunataks was that they were a sinister band of aliens from the moons of Plun-Darr, each one having their own powers and abilities. But as Atem and Mystery listened, they agreed that these Lunataks were a nefarious bunch.

The heroes also explained how the Lunataks had a mobile operational base called Sky-Tomb, a fortress that could move anywhere and that it required more Thundrillium than Cats' Lair did. Though the base was mobile, it was often positioned in the forbidden territories of Dark Side and the only way to get to Dark Side was by going through the Forest pf Mists. Atem and Mystery were also told of the Tower of Omens and how it was built near the entrance to the Forest of Mists. In addition, the Tower of Omens would also be the home of Bengali, Pumyra, Lynx-O, and Snarfer. Atem and Mystery remembered Snarfer and were happy to hear that he was going to be helping the ThunderCats too.

When it got back to the subject of facing Mumm-Ra again, that was when Lion-O shared the bad news that the mummy was stronger than before and that he no longer feared his own reflection. But the lion knew that it didn't mean that the mirror shield was useless. Even though Mumm-Ra was no longer afraid of his own reflection, Lion-O could still use the mirror shield to deflect his enemies' attacks back at them.

It was a lot for Atem and Mystery to take in. Clearly their friends and allies definitely had their work cut out for them in the past several days back on Third Earth. Unfortunately, there was nothing either of them could do to help this time. Lion-O even told the pharaoh and queen that it would be best if they didn't come back to Third Earth until this whole thing was better understood and the Lunataks would be dealt with.

The queen looked down and placed her hand over her abdomen. She knew that Lion-O was only looking out for her and her child and she agreed that he was right. If Mumm-Ra and the Lunataks were to learn of the queen's pregnancy, it would more than likely give those fiends the idea to use the queen against her friends and allies or do something much worse. For that matter, the queen agreed that it was best if she stayed here for her own good.

She decides to lighten the mood. "Well, I'm glad you all came home safely. And I do hope you'll be staying here. You certainly deserve it after everything you went through."

"Oh, definitely," Bengali agreed.

"We wouldn't want to take advantage of your hospitality, of course," said Pumyra.

"Remember what I said, Pumyra," the queen was saying, "the palace is your home and you are welcome to stay here for as long as you wish."

"We have been thinking about staying here for a few weeks, actually," said Tygra.

"Then, by all means," the queen insisted. With that being settled, the ThunderCats were taken to their rooms. Snarf and Snarfer came back as well and already the young Snarf was bounding around in excitement. Mana decided to keep an eye on him and keep him company.

Rather than join his friends, Lion-O decided to head out to the palace courtyard and enjoy the sun. At least it was still nice and warm out despite the fact that winter was almost here. He leaned against a tree and helped himself to an apple.

Atem walked over to his friend. "Lion-O?"

"Oh, hi, Atem," he replied.

"How are you feeling?" the pharaoh asked. "I'm sure you have a lot on your mind after everything you and the others went through."

He did, actually. "Yeah, you're right. With all that's been happening, I guess I am a bit worried. Now that we have new enemies who have proven to be more powerful, I'm worried it's too dangerous for you and your wife to come back to Third Earth." He faces him and adds, "Like I said, I don't want anything to happen to either of you two or your unborn child."

"I know, and I feel the same way," the pharaoh replied. "We both understand. While we both feel helpless because we can't help you, our reasons for not being able to help you are legitimate."

"And that's the whole point," the lion replied. "If Mumm-Ra and the Lunataks were to find out about Queen Mystery's pregnancy, well, that's too horrible to even think about."

Atem agreed as he began imagining all possible scenarios. He sat down beside Lion-O, promising him, "It's going to be fine. Once we've managed to find a way to keep Mumm-Ra and the Lunataks under control and made sure it's safe enough to come back, my wife and I will return to Third Earth. True, there's still a chance we may not be able to do much, but we'll still be happy to come and visit." And to think, the leader of the Lunataks shared the same name as the Luna they knew here.

Lion-O liked the sound of that, but he stopped smiling. "But there's a lot to think about here too," he pointed out. "Here in Egypt, you've also got Bakura and Max to worry about. And while you haven't met him yet, you know there's a chance you will end up meeting him."

Atem knew that Lion-O was right. And in truth, the pharaoh was worried about when that time would come. He also knew his wife was just as worried. They knew nothing about Bakura aside from the fact that he was the heir of the Dark Lord and that he was somewhere out there, waiting to attack at the right time.

"I feel as though after everything that's been happening," Lion-O was saying, "that there's no safe place for us or any of our friends and loved ones here or on Third Earth."

"Maybe not, but it never does good to run and hide from our enemies," said Atem. "You can never really be safe by locking yourself away from the world. You'll only truly be at peace once you face your fears and overcome the ones who threaten your safety." He looks at his friend and says, "So whether it's Max and Bakura here in Egypt, or Mumm-Ra and these Lunataks back on Third Earth, we will find a way to overcome them and restore peace to both of our worlds."

Lion-O agreed, knowing Atem was right. They would find a way and they would find it together as a team.