Dark Thundera: The Age of Evil

A fanfic epic by BkingKat

Fanfic 1: Quest for Power

Many many centuries ago, on the planet of Thundera, there lived a great king named Mannion, and was known to his people as Lord Mannion the Valiant. He served as king, and Lord of the ThunderCats, and was well deserving of both titles. Ever since he took the throne after the end of Lord Clawthorne’s reign, Thundera’s poor had known full stomachs, the homeless knew of shelter, and those at war with each other knew peace. Lord Mannion pledged his life to the welfare of his people, and the kingdom prospered.

After a time, the great king fell in love with a beautiful lioness named Aynara. After a wonderful courtship, Lord Mannion took Aynara for his bride, and she became Queen Aynara of Thundera, and Lady of the ThunderCats. Mannion showed as much devotion to her as he did his people, and their marriage was happy. A couple years after their marriage, Aynara bore Mannion a son, and they named him Toerwyn, after Mannion’s most trusted friend. Four years later, Aynara had another son, and Mannion named him Roarzuma. He loved both of his sons very much, and pledged to be the best father to them as he could.

As the two sons grew, a difference in their personalities could be seen. Toerwyn was very much like his father; strong, quick, noble, obedient and patient. He took to learning the Code of Thundera like a fish takes to water, and vowed to be a great a king as his father, and a noble ThunderCat as well. Roarzuma, although strong and quick like his brother, lacked the humble nature of his brother; he enjoyed being of the royal family, and used it to get whatever he wanted from the common folk. He grew irritated with his father’s constant teaching of the Code of Thundera, growing sick of hearing the same code over and over again. He too wanted to be a ThunderCat, not for honor, but for power, and wanted the throne and the kingdom all for himself as well. Needless to say, the two brothers didn’t get along very well, and were always bickering amongst one another, competing for their father's favor. When asked which one he loved the most, Mannion would merely laugh and say that he loved them both the same. When asked which one was to be king, he would say "Work hard, build up your skills in battle, expand your knowledge, and heed the Code of Thundera. You will both make powerful ThunderCats one day, and the one who excels above the rest shall have the throne when the time comes."

There was an enemy afoot in the kingdom. It was not Mutants or Lunatacs or anything of the sort, but Thunderians. These Thunderians were known as Gorthromils, which were powerful dark sorcerers who used their powers for personal gain and evil. The young Roarzuma was fascinated by their power, and secretly read all the books on them, as well as the books written by them. When his father found him reading a book of spells one day, he warned him never to have such things in the palace again.

"But father, I could be so powerful." Roarzuma would say. "They possess all sorts of powers, if I used them I would be the greatest warrior and king in all the land."

"You would be consumed by their evil, and their magic would destroy your very being!" said Mannion. "The Eye of Thundera is the true power in this land. It has protected all of us, and has always defeated their wickedness."

Instead of discouraging Roarzuma, this only made his craving for power grow. He thought of the power he could wield if he had the full power of a ThunderCat, Gorthromil, and the Sword of Omens combined. His lust for power and greatness never ended, and kept growing and growing.

As Roarzuma got older, his abilities and knowledge increased. He continued to read the dark arts in silence, but also read the forces of light and truth, as well as the Code of Thundera. He was determined to be the most powerful king and lord in the universe, and all would love him. As his knowledge grew, he became very cunning, and he continued to improve his physical skills as well.

Toerwyn continued to train as well, and became a scholar in the forces of light and truth, learning all he could from his father and the wise men of Thundera, hoping to be a great a lord as his father.

Soon, the time came for them to begin their training as ThunderCats. To be fair, Lord Mannion held Toerwyn back 2 years before he could train, so Roarzuma could train alongside him. Both sons were excellent warriors, and became ThunderCats in no time. Toerwyn’s battle style was strong and courageous, rushing into battle and fighting his way valiantly to the goal. Roarzuma’s battle style was fierce and swift, charging through the enemy like a hurricane, making sure no one was left standing. A year after they both received the title of ThunderCat, Lord Mannion decided it was time for them both to take the anointment trials, so that they may be ready for the throne when the time comes. They each passed all the trials separately with flying colors, but the final task for them remained. They had to defeat their worst enemy in a single battle. Lord Mannion gave them the task of defeating Sektura, a powerful Gorthromil sorcerer. Some said he was the leader of the Gorthromils, but that was not confirmed.

"Should either of you win against him in battle, you will both be eligible for the throne." Lord Mannion told him. "However, should one of you destroy his power for good, that one of you will be the one to receive the throne right away. His power can be defeated by fighting past him bravely enough, and destroying his black orb."

Both sons eagerly went to Sektura’s dark tower, where he awaited their arrival.

"Let us fight him together brother." Toerwyn said to Roarzuma. "Together we will be much more effective than one, and we can share the kingdom. There’s no reason that only one of us has to rule."

"I cannot." Roarzuma replied. "For that would be against my personal honor. I must be able to face him alone."

Now a treaty had been reached with Sektura and Lord Mannion. It was agreed between them that should both sons defeat Sektura in battle, Sektura would destroy all that gave him power. Should one win and one lose, then nothing would change the status quo. Should both lose, then Lord Mannion would turn the kingdom over to the Gorthromils. Because he loved his sons so much, and had all the confidence in the world in them, Lord Mannion made this gamble in the hopes of saving his people.

Toerwyn entered the dark tower first, and went to face Sektura. Sektura stood waiting for him, in dark, black robes with a fierce iron sword, and a dark sorcerer’s staff.

"Come to your doom." The dark sorcerer beckoned.

Toerwyn rushed to the front, and clashed swords with the vile necromancer. Once Sektura had been bested by Toerwyn’s sword, he tried to repel him with magic, but the techniques Toerwyn had learned in training kept him from falling victim to dark spells. Sektura tried fighting in hand-to-hand combat with him, but Toerwyn proved too good a fighter for him. At long last, Sektura was on the ground, with Toerwyn pointing his tip at him, both of them tired from a long, heated battle. Try as he could though, Toerwyn could not get past the strong magic protecting the black orb, it was far too powerful.

"Do you yield?" Toerwyn asked.

"Very well." Sektura said. "But soon you shall be downfallen."

Seeing Toerwyn leave, Roarzuma saw that it was his turn, and rushed into the dark tower to face the danger ahead of him. Roarzuma lunged at him on sight, and swords clashed fiercely. Roarzuma struck hard, ferocious and swift, cutting Sektura several times.

"You’re quite good with that." said Sektura. "Let’s see how you do man to man."

The hand-to-hand combat had begun, and Roarzuma once again showed his fierceness. He began with a powerful kick, and several strong hits to the head and chest. Then a series of wild martial arts moves commenced, and Sektura was amazed by the intensity, ferocity and swiftness of Roarzuma’s fighting. He soon found himself grasped by the throat, and Roarzuma was beginning to crush his esophagus with a death grip. Sektura sent a blast of magic, which sent Roarzuma flying backward. Roarzuma got to his feet, and avoided any further magic that Sektura had to give him. He picked up his sword once again, and used it to guard against the blasts of magical energy Sektura sent his way. On one blast, Roarzuma managed to send it bouncing off his sword and back at Sektura, which sent the sorcerer sprawling to the ground, paralyzing him from his own magic.

Once the sorcerer was out of commission for the time being, Roarzuma approached the black orb. He felt the power radiating from it, and was about to destroy it, but felt a need to absorb its dark power. Using his hands, he touched it, and the power surged within him. Once the power had been drained, Roarzuma was thrown back once again, and he could feel the power flowing within him, and felt that his rise to becoming the most powerful king and Lord of the ThunderCats was drawing near. But the power also had a terrible effect on him. It slowly amplified his feelings of greed, ambition, jealousy, and all his negative emotions, causing them to grow within him. It began to evolve the fierceness in his heart into cruelty, and the ambition into evil.

Roarzuma smashed the orb once the power was gone, and Sektura was free, but weakened from the hardened battle, and void of all power, making him like any other ordinary man. Roarzuma approached him, and lifted his sword.

"Please, have mercy, I yield to you." begged Sektura. "You are a truly powerful warrior, I could help you to be even more powerful. Give me the chance, and I can help you become the most powerful being in the universe!"
            "Ha!" said Roarzuma. "I’m more powerful than you are, so what have you to offer me?! You are finished!"
            With that, Roarzuma drove his sword’s tip into Sektura’s heart and out through the back of his spinal chord. He then withdrew his sword, and beheaded the sorcerer. Picking up his head and the broken orb, he left the dark tower, but burned it to the ground before leaving.

When Roarzuma arrived back at the palace, he brought the head of Sektura, and the broken orb with him, presenting it before his father.

"I’ve destroyed one of our greatest enemies father." Roarzuma told him. "I’m ready to assume the throne."

Lord Mannion was horrified by the sight he saw, and the Sword of Omens growled. Using the sword to give him sight-beyond-sight, he saw Roarzuma’s battle, how he had absorbed the power of the orb, and how he cruelly slaughtered Sektura of his own free will.

"My son, what have you done?!" said Lord Mannion, horrified. "He yielded to you, and still you killed him?!"

"He is out of power now." Roarzuma said. "And will never be a threat to anyone again. The Code of Thundera will prevail."

"That is not the way of the Code of Thundera!" Lord Mannion shouted. "You fought evily, you killed someone who surrendered, and you let evil enter your heart by absorbing his dark power!"

"It did not poison my heart." Roarzuma argued. "It’s made me more powerful. And with the power I have, along with everything I have learned, and once I have the Sword of Omens, I will be the greatest king and Lord the people have ever known. I am ready to fulfull my destiny."
            "You shall never be king or Lord of the ThunderCats!" said Lord Mannion. "The Eye of Thundera will not heed to your command! There is evil in your heart, and you’ve always fought for the wrong reasons, for power rather than the good of the people! Toerwyn has fought fairly, nobly, and for all the right reasons, the Eye of Thundera can see that. Unless your heart changes, you shall not rule."

At this, Roarzuma became very angry, and began to shout at his father.

"It isn’t fair!" said Roarzuma. "I was the one who put Sektura out of power! If it weren’t for me he would still be around today! I fought more cleverly and strongly than Toerwyn ever has, I deserve the throne! Give me what is mine!"

"Yes, you put him out of power." said Lord Mannion. "But you achieved your means through evil and force, instead of fairness and doing what is only necessary. That is not the way of a ThunderCat, and until you learn the ways of the Code of Thundera, you will never be ready to rule Thundera."

"I AM ready!" growled Roarzuma. "I have always been ready! I demand you give me what rightly belongs to me!"
            "Enough, I have made my decision." Lord Mannion said. "When the time comes, Toerwyn shall be Lord of the ThunderCats, and King of Thundera.

Enraged, Roarzuma slammed his fists down on his father’s table.

"You shall pay dearly for what you have done this day!" growled Roarzuma. "Mark my words old man! You shall PAY! I will leave this pathetic kingdom, but when I return I will be the most powerful man Thundera has known in it’s entire HISTORY! Then you will see that I will be ready to rule!"

With that, Roarzuma stormed out of his father’s great hall, and into his room. Once he had all his belongings packed, he rode out on one of his father’s horses, and left the kingdom. He ventured into the land of Uucronia, the dark kingdom of the Gorthromil sorcerers.

It was there, where he planned to face the great unknown. He vowed vengeance against his father and his brother, and would be determined to rule Thundera with the greatest of power…..

Continued

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