Disclaimer: I dot own Thundercats 2011
Sneak Preview
The scrublands, a stretch of territory between the fertile territories dominated by Thundera and fought over by 'lesser animals', and the wastelands no one cared to posses. Tall cactus and hearty scrub grew in abundance but the thin pale soil supported littler else and water was scarce. It was a perennial haunt of outcasts, scavengers, and those seeking to hide from the world.
A place history passed by with little note.
Now marred by a great scar of torn up plants and soil ripped and scatters wide.
Atop a rise a lone figure cloaked against the hot sun looked down upon the trail of an army eyes tracing their eerily straight course to the horizon.
"Lion-O, we should turn back," Tygra said, as he joined the young king on top of the rise. They had stopped worrying about any scouts or lookouts with it being clear just how quick and far ahead the Lizard army was. The young tiger frowned looking on the trail, if that small word could be applied to such a sight.
Tygra would be awed at such a force moving so quickly and disrupting the lads so much just by passing through if it wasn't the enemy.
"Do you think repeating that will change anything?" Lion-O asked rolling his eyes as Cheetara streaked toward them having scouted ahead.
"Yes, one hopes enough hits will get through that head of yours," Tygra grumbled.
"Tygra," Cheetara sighed, stopping next to them and taking a small drink from her water skin.
"He may be my king, but he's still my brother. And it was bad enough following the Lizards when we thought they were heading back to their own lands. Even Panthro thought this route was too treacherous. The only way to navigate the drylands s to reach the sand sea and follow its shoreline to the other side. And that means the driest hottest region of the wastelands," Tygra snapped.
"The Lizards can do it, and we've seen plenty of impossible things besides," Lion-o pointed out starting down the rise. Tygra kept pace with him walking and easily skidding down the hill.
"The Lizards have those steed-less wagons. They're not just moving through this land quickly, who knows how much they can carry in a supply train. We've only got what we could fill our packs with or forage."
Huffing, Wilykit came up to the top of the rise and leaned forward, carrying a pack nearly as tall as her.
"You know, you're no good if you overwork and pass out," Cheetara said, ignoring the near-argument between the descending brothers.
"I am here... to be useful."
Smiling Cheeta rested a hand atop the pack and pressed making kt fall the short distance for her paxck to plunk on the ground, hr rear still aloft. Cheetara undid the pack's top flap.
"How about we share the load a bit," Cheetara suggested. Cheetara cocked her head trying to understand thew words Kit said.
"I'll just take that as a yes."
X X X
The Lizards had marked their trail, as if daring someone to follow them. Not that this was all of them, but the greater force of their machines had converged after destroying Thundera's domain and garrisoning it and split. The lesser portion returning to the Lizard homeland, and the Generals along with the slaves and greater mass of machines heading outward into the drylands.
Apparently not all slaves, once shackled, had been cooperative. A stand of poles stood to the side of the torn ground that marked the metal host's passage, each pole desecrated with the corpse of a Cat, with flies buzzing around them.
The four figures considered them, one pressing for a pyre, another dismissing it. The dead were dead, the living enemy needed to be attended to.
Alas, had any of them looked back after stepping away, they would have seen one member of the miserable grove was not dead. The Puma woman's body was lacerated from torture and her body ravaged by the elements, but her eyes finally opened, having been woken by the talk. Seeing the retreating forms of other Cats, a moment of clear sight even recognizing her princes, she opened her mouth to cry out.
But her tongue was gone and her throat too dry to make even a croak that could reach her own ears.
As her head dropped as her hope of rescue marched away, tears could not even come as her eyes closed again with no more strength to keep them open.
And so yet anther child of Thundera perished under the relentless heat of the sun.
X X X
The drylands spread before them. Sand-blasted silt and fewer and fewer scrubs growing. And somewhere out there was the Sand Sea. One of the great wonders of the known world, a mass of fine sand that moved in waves before one's eyes and could swallow a cart in an instant like water that burned and cut.
There was a good reason that only groups and individual adventurers had traveled beyond the known lands. Between the sea, the mountains, and the drylands, it was an ordeal for large groups and impossible for armies or trading caravans.
And Tygra was not counting them as such a hearty group. Which he made clar as they paused for break seated in a rough circle taking shelter under a scant rock outcrop.
"As I recall, you were the one whining about me trying to get directions from the sword."
"Yes, but I didn't think we were going to leap from you making a fool of yourself with a spell not working to something even more foolish."
"And your plan to follow the route of Cats we know didn't find the Book is supposed to work?"
Their faces that had been drawing closer pulled back as Cheetara swung her staff between them. Lion-O blinked, then frowned and resumed the march, heading down the hill.
"Lion-O is King, we follow his orders Tygra," Cheetara reminded him.
"You think this is a good idea?"
"Jagga trusts, trusted him."
"Jagga didn't see this," Tygra said, gesturing at Lion-O. Cheetara just sighed and, shouldering her staff, followed after. Kit walked up beside Tygra, having caught her breath.
"Well, you think this is a good plan?" he asked.
"Prince Tygra, I am his slave. What I think doesn't matter, remember?" she reminded him stiffly, before setting off after her King.
Growling a bit, Tygra kicked up some red dust.
"Who's the bigger fool here? Him for deciding? You for following? Or me for not leaving the lot of you? Whiskers! Father, what would you do about this?" Tygra grumbled, picking up the pace to catch up.
X X X
The dead filled Lion-O's dreams. Jagga, his father, guards snd servants of the castle. People whose faces he had forgotten from the streets of the city and the court. Some he had known so well their loss left him empty, others were little more than faces without names, voices barely heard. By whatever decree, they reached out for him. In accusation, in desperation.
His father most of all. The others had not let him return to the city. Even when it seemed the Lizards had cleared out along with Mumm-Ra. What had happened to Father's body? It was the duty of children to see their parents cremated, to spare the dead the humiliation of scavengers and decay, for this life's final chapter to be cleansed with flame so the spirit could better take flight unhindered to their rest and next life.
But they all closed against him that day. Too dangerous, no guarantee they would find the body. And if they did, it could be a trap.
The fate of the remains plagued him like an itch that refused to leave. He had never impressed his father. Never been the son his father wanted. Was it possible a day went by his father did not wish he'd never been born so his queen would still be by his side?
And what had Lion-O done to prove him wrong? Failed to save the mighty king's life, and been unable to give him any dignity in death.
If Loon-o stood still, he was lost; of that he had no doubt. He had to move, toward vengeance, toward proof his being alive was not a mistake with any number of other Cats having been better suited to live.
The Sword of Omens was silent. After Jagga's blessing, he had dared to think it would be different, but no, much like his years with tech, however he looked at it, no matter how much effort, there was no progress.
So he took another direction; forget the Book for now. He'd hurt Mumm-Ra himself with this sword. He could do it again. He would cut off the hand that struck his father down, and then take the monster's head and lay it on Thundera's ruins as an offering to his father's shade!
Now if only Tygra would stop making needless trouble. After all, what was this if not progress?
"The Sand Sea," Lion-O said, looking across the deadly expanse of moving grains.
The sight should have been stirring in some way, he felt. But it only confirmed they had indeed reached a rough halfway mark in the drylands.
"We'll make camp early here and start following the shoe with first light. For now we'll scout and see if there's anything to forage," Lion-o commanded.
Kit shrugged off her pack with a grunt and started to draw items from it, setting up camp. Cheetara with a nod dashed off. And Tygra gave the Sand Sea N unimpressed look before turning his back and setting off.
"Okay, let's see if I can find anything useful," Lion-o said after watching kit set up camp with the easy rhythm she'd developed for the task.
X X X
"Well I found something," Lion-o admitted considering the cactus before him. It wasn't tall and straight or short and round like the others he'd seen. It was like a bunch of balls growing off bigger ball. And a bluish veined pattern through the pale green of its skin.
"Well cactus mean edible pulp and water, so ugly or not it will do," Lion-o remarked taking his knife out.
A few minuses later he wiped the knife off and scowled at the small cut sawed into the plant.
"Tough eh? Well, Sword of Omens I hope this doesn't count as desecration but we do need water," Lion-o said as he dew the ancient blade. He gave a half smile when the blade extended, he'd take that as the sword not objecting right now.
The sword cut through the plant with ease and ion-o gave a small smile seeing water pooled in the hollow of the plant. With his water kin he drew the water out filling it up and taking a deep drink.
"Huh, weird flavor but I've had worse lately. And the pulp?" the young lion tore a chunk off and chewed it up; and winced before swallowing it.
"Well, its nothing the chefs in the palace would use but, well we are far from the palace," Lion-o said before sitting down hard licking his lips. Eyes closed he took a deep breath of the desert air, gathering himself from the hard days travel.
AUTHOR'S NOTE:
Hello. With March 11th as my birthday i decided to give something back to the readers. A preview, not even properly betaed yet I admit. But this felt right regardless. I hope it to soon be replaced with the proper next chapter of Collar.
Why this one and not another? Sorry I don't know. But it has been fun working with these characters again, and that fun I hope will carry me through this time on conquering this chapter once and for all.
Oh, and there will be no Petalars if we get that far. I like em, but I can't seem to write them. So sorry if you were looking forward to that.
Well long days and pleasant nights to you all.