Part Three

 

Chilla circled around again on the Ice-Runner.  Cheetara was an easy target right now.  She seemed to be concentrting on something.  At the same time, Boron was having trouble keeping the Sword of Omens in check. Chilla swooped in low.

Tygra lashed at her with his whip. Where did he come from?  She cursed under her breath, and began swinging around for her final run.

 

Get.. Out.. Of.. My.. HEAD! Boron fought Cheetara with all the power he could muster, while still holding the Sword of Omens at bay.  Lion-O was straining his arm out, reaching for his mighty blade.  Boron fell to one knee.  Stop it, stop it, STOP IT!  The temptation to blast Cheetara was overwhelming.  One slip in concentration, though, and the 'Cats would win. He couldn't let that happen.

 

Red-Eye monitored the scene below him from the view screen.  The Moon Cannons were too inaccurate to shoot Lion-O and end the ThunderCat menace. "Red-Eye, switch to Sky-Gate Cannons!  Lock on to the Sword of Omens!  Blast it, blast it now!" Luna hollered.  Amok looked grumpy.  Apparently, Alluro's hold over some of the Maidens was less than perfect.  Some decided to fight back.  Luna wisely decided to abandon the situation, and let Alluro deal with the problem. "Sky-Gate Cannons on-line!" Red-Eye said.  He began targeting the Sword.  A twisted smile crossed his face.  Ah, how he enjoyed the suffering of others! "Fire!" Luna ordered.  Lightning blasted into the sky.  She looked up in anticipation.

 

Tygra was too busy watching Boron falter.  Cheetara wasn't holding out too well, either.  He hoped she'd be okay. Then, he wished he had not been paying so much attention to Cheetara, as Tug-Mug blasted him with the gravity carbine.  Tygra floated into the air, unable to help Cheetara.  With Panthro trying to keep the ThunderTank from detonating more fuel or weapons, Cheetara was on her own. He saw Chilla swoop in.

 

Boron felt the hair on the back of his neck stand up. The Sky-Gate Cannons! He lost his control for a split second.  The Sword flew away, as his powers were blocked by the mind lock.  Lion-O held the Sword on high. "Ho-?" Both he and Boron looked up. The first "guiding" shots hit.  There was less than a half second before the  main blast would strike.

Boron wished none of this had happened.  He wished he had died so long ago at the hands of the Tar'unt'Tar.

Lion-O thought about how he'd never see the twins grow up.  How he'd never see what would become of the ThunderCats.

Then, they thought nothing.

 

The induced lightning blast rocked the earth.  Tug-Mug, Cheetara and Tygra were blown back, hitting surrounding trees.  The ice protected Tygra from the brunt of the hit, but was still knocked senseless.  Panthro had the 'Tank to shield him, though the energy from the hit fried some systems.  Chilla was knocked off the Ice-Runner, which crashed into the underbrush. The Lunataks on board SkyTomb cheered.  The TunderCats were defeated.  Lion-O and the Sword of

Omens destroyed.  They couldn't even see what was left of him, just a charred hole. Where was Boron? Alluro thought.  He had managed to control the rest of the blasted Maidens, they didn't like the idea of cooking and stoking the furnace for the rest of their lives, until Alluro told them how much they loved it, how it was their favourite thing in the whole world to do.  He exited SkyTomb to collect the bodies of his fallen comrades. Chilla shook herself off.  She examined the Ice-Runner, which, in her opinion, had seen better days, but Alluro and Tug-Mug could fix it. Tug-Mug was used to hitting things at high velocities, so was none the worse for wear. Boron was nowhere to be found.  Alluro regretted the loss of such a.. fine individual.  So honour bound for a Lunatak. Helpful even. He would be missed. Luna hollered over SkyTombs loud speakers that they would be leaving immidiately. They had detected the Feliner on long-range scanners and were low on fuel after over-doing it with the new weapons. The best option was to retreat to Darkside. Alluro took one last look around, shrugged, and ran back into the flying fortress. Mayhap the ThunderCats had picked him up, or maybe the Maidens. Oh well, easy come, easy go.

 

The ThunderCats all came too.  SkyTombs was retreating.  They were all in one piece.  The ThunderClaw sustained minimal damage, the HoverCat was found in the trees.  Panthro was cursing the damage suffered to the ThunderTank.  They'd need to drag it back the the Lair for repairs. There was only one question: Where was Lion-O?

 

Willa came too.  Dawn was breaking on the horizon.  SkyTomb was bathed in redish light, adding an even errier quality to the mishappened fortress. She scanned the area.  Several of her warriors lay dead, strewn about in a haphazard way, blasted by heat and fire from SkyTomb.  Others were tending to the wounded, while others stillwere emerging from the underbrush. Even more, she noticed, were not here at all. Like her sister, Nayda. Willa looked around a bit.  The 'Cats were inspecting their losses.  Panthro had sent out a signal to the Feliner, requesting emergancy pick-up. All the Warriors had been accounted for in some way.  After reviewing the visual logs from both the HoverCat and ThunderClaw, most had been visually spotted, most being seduced by Alluros' voice.  All but one. Maybe, just maybe, she kept going to Cats Lair, Willa hoped, she'll be fine. The 'Cats were also looking for someone.  They poured over the recorded  data.  Specifically, the moment before and just after the blast from SkyTomb. The Feliner landed amongst the debris.

 

"What happened here?" Lynxo-O demanded, "where's Lion-O?"

 

"That's what we'd like to know."  Cheetara said.

 

"After the blast, he vanished.  We're almost hoping the Lunataks picked him up."  Tygra said, noticeably worried.  "It's better than the alternitive."

 

"The alternitive?" Pumyra asked.

 

This didn't sound good to Willa..

 

"That he's gone." Panthro said, a tear comming to his eye.

 

"Gone?  Oh, Lion-O!"  Pumyra cried.  Bengali held her close.

 

"Rrawer, he's going to be all right, I can feel it."  He lied.

 

Lynx-O knew better.  He felt like something was... missing.

 

Willa felt it too.  She only knew of one person who could help answer her question. Mumm-Ra.

 

The ThunderCats exited in sort of a flux.  They knew deep down Lion-O was alright.  But.. there was no word.  No Cats signal.  No word from SktTomb, the Mutants anyone. They were listless. They hadn't even bothered to try and rescue the enslaved Maidens. The worst affected were the older ones, like Lynx-O and Panthro.  The cubs felt like something was wrong, but didn't know the extent to which they were.  Snarf and Snarfer moped around, not anting to cook anything, or play games.For three days they endured nothingness. n the fourth day, SkyTomb paid them a visit.

 

Luna, Amok and Alluro basically walked up to Cats Lair and knocked on the door.  It opened, although no-one had actually opened it for them. "Interesting," commented Alluro casually, "they seem to have even less energy than we do. How very odd."

 

"Be careful and be QUIET!"  Screamed Luna. "This could be a trap."

 

They managed to make it to the control room, where the 'Cats were seated.

 

"Uh-oh, Lunataks." Said Panthro.  "I'll get the broom." He didn't move.

 

Luna and Amok exchanged glances.  Alluro waved a hand in front of Tygra's face.  No change in expressoin, or move to stop him. "Where are the cubs?" Alluro asked.

 

"Right here!" They burst from an ajacent room, and threw some smoke pellets around to cause confusion.  Alluro began coughing, while Amok covered both his and Luna's mouths.

 

"You'll never defeat us, Lunataks!" Wilykit yelled.

 

Amok took a half-hearted swing at the cub, who ducked it on her hoverboard.

 

"We only want to talk!"  Luna yelled, "We have some information you might want!"

 

The cubs looked at each other.

 

"Oh yeah?" Said 'Kat.

 

"What kind of information are we talking about?" Said 'Kit.

 

"Lion-O," said Luna, "We think we know what happened to him."  She had the 'Cats attention.

 

"By the way," she added, "you don't happen to have a certain telekinetic Lunatak on hand, would you? No? Oh well."

 

Their inpromptu meeting had begun.  Just the four (well, five if you count Amok,) were seated around the council table.  The 'Cats who had so previously been occupying the chairs placed lovingly on the floor. "Here's what we recorded." Said 'Kit, while  'Kat pushed play on the view screen. They watched with rapped attention, slowed it down in parts, and then watched the Lunataks version.

 

"As you can see here, ThunderBrats.. er Cats.." Alluro chucked nerviously at his failed joke, then continued, "if we use one of Red-Eye's filters on the lens, then we can clearly see..."

 

Willa approached the Black Pyramid. She had hesitated visiting the undead and ever living sorcerer, she had to maintain some semblance of hope in the village. Nayda had still not been found, although nobody says they saw her get caputured. The shiny smooth black stone frightened her immensley.  She had only been there once, and had no desire to go back.  However, she knew his power.  If anyone could find Lion-O, Mumm-Ra could. There was a rush of wind, and Willa found herself being flung through the air.

 

She let out a yelp as she hit the floor just in front of the cauldren.  She didn't hit the ground hard, mind you.  Just hard enough to let her know how powerless she was before him. "Who dares disturb the rest of Mumm-Ra, the Ever Living?"  The priest of daemons said menacingly, as the lid to his sarcophagus slid open. Willa shrank back for a moment.  She had never dealt with him like this, yet this had to be done.

 

"I-I am Willa, leader of the Warrior Mai-"

 

"I know who you are!"  Mumm-Ra bellowed.  "And I know why you're here."

 

Willa was afraid.  I shouldn't have come.  I should never have come.  I need to get out.

 

The dead sorcerer beckond her forward, towards the cauldren.

 

"Look, look into the cauldren," he hissed, "and see the fate of your Lion-O." He finished in a mocking tone.

 

Willa couldn't look for more then a second.  She couldn't look again.

 

Outside, the roar of engines alerted Mumm-Ra and his guest to the arrival of both the SkyTomb and the HoverCat, piloted by Alluro and the Cubs respectivly. Soon, all to soon, the ThunderCats and Lunataks will have wished they had never came.

 

Lion-O stirred himself awake.  That was some blast, he thought, those Warrior Maidens sure took a beating.  Fortunatly, I was there to defend them.  I sure licked that  Lunatak good...

 

He sat up.

 

"Don't move, Lord of the ThunderCats." A sickly soothing voice said.  Lion-O felt something sharp prick the back of his neck.  He felt it burn his skin, ever so slightly.

 

Wisely, Lion-O didn't move.  Instead, all he did was listen and watch.

 

The Lunatak walked calmly in front of the 'Cat.  Lion-O finally got a good look at him.

 

He was tall.  Alluro was still taller, but this Lunatak easily dwarfed any ThunderCat.  He had on a strange type armour, adorned with Crescents, obviously from the Moons.  His right shoulder and arm were protected by a strange silver metal.  Also, in his right hand was the sword, the Lunar Sword.  The Lunatak still held the weapon towards him.  Lion-O met his dark eyes.  They were not afraid, angry or anything.  Just... dead? The grey skin looked a bit off.  Everything did, really.  Sort of askew.  His pants were tied in a weird fashion, distorted even more now.

 

Lion-O felt sick.

 

"Where are we?" He managed to say.

 

The Lunatak looked at the sky.. a purple, fading to black, then to purple again.

 

"We," he said, all smooth-talking gone, "are dead."

 

Mumm-Ra motioned all to witness the waning afterlife that Boron and Lion-O were enduring.  They didn't look substansial, really, and were fading even before their eyes, a little bit at a time. "What's going to happen to them?" Wily-Kit asked the sorcerer who grinned at the pool, "Will Lion-O come back?"

 

Foolish child, thought Alluro, who looked down at the young cub with distaste.  Your precious Lion is dead. As you will be. He then remembered his own weakened state, a direct result of the loss of the Lunar Sword.  Maybe they ought to get them back after all..

 

"Eeeyaaa!! Mumm-Ra, you can't just let this happen!" Luna hollered, "I always thought YOU wanted to defeat the ThunderCats! Why give us Lunataks the honour when a wizard of your talent should be able to dispatch of them without a second thought?" Luna was pulling all the stops in compelments.  She to try and save her people.  Not necessarily the people on Third-Earth, the people on the Moons who had no idea this was going on.

 

Mumm-Ra let out an evil cackle. "You expect me to let the ThunderCat's live after all the humiliation they've caused me? After all these years of useless conflict?" Red lightning flashed, bathing his chamber with a bloody glow.  "I would like nothing better than to rid Third-Earth of the insect races that have infested it.  No, Luna, this is my hour of triumph."

 

Boron and Lion-O explored this dead world.  They determined that it was void of anything, save themselves.  No other traveller passed them in the misty realm. No sounds other than the ones they made. After what felt like a long silence, Boron felt a need to speak his mind, to eleviate his mind of all the things that he had kept inside.

 

"Lion-O, I'm free."

 

The young Lord of the ThunderCats looked at him, vexed.  We were dead, yes.  Free?  It depends on your definition. Surely of the mortal coil...

 

"The Lunar Blade.. it influences my actions. It speaks to me, and I to it.  Is the Sword of Omens the same, or is this my curse to bear alone?"  They had stopped walking, there was no point in walking, really, this place had nothing to find.

Lion-O met the fading Boron's eyes. "Why tell me this? You killed me."

 

Boron snickered. "Because you're the last person I can tell before we're gone.  You think our friends can save us?  The Swords sustain our races. Without them..." He shook his head. "You didn't answer my question. Does it guide you?"

 

"I ask it to guide me, to lend me strength when the ThunderCats need it most. It asks for nothing."

 

Boron looked through his hand. "Then you were blessed.  The last few months of my life were not my own. I was in part, ruled by the Sword in my quest to rid the universe of our enemy, the Tar'unt'Tar.  It lead me to discover the Psi Corruptor in the heart of a sun, and it told me how to use it.  I am a pawn of my own destiny." Boron met Lion-O's eyes again.  "We are fading fast.  At least before my stasis, there was a balance in the voice of the Sword.  Now, I no longer hear the wisdom of the Avian race. What has become of the Sixth Moon?"

 

Mumm-Ra cackled in his glory.  The eternally dead and dying priest of the Ancient Spirits felt no compassion for the gathered people, who looked more forlorn by the moment. "Wily-Kit, I don't want to fade like Lion-O!" He whined, looking at the Lord dissappearing slowly.

 

Wily-Kit held her brother close.  Willa put her arm around them protectivly, like a mother guarding her children.  "Mumm-Ra, surely you must be able to help these poor children! Have you no feelings?" She asked.  Mumm-Ra stopped laughing, but didn't fry her outright for her comment. Luna mulled as fast as she could.  She had to change all of this. The Cubs were lousy with fear, and Mumm-Ra was as evil as ever.  She needed a plan, fast. The pod Boron came in!  If there was some way to manipulate it..

 

"Alluro, come with me.  We're leaving." She tried to steer Amok out, but he wouldn't follow.

 

"AMOK! Listen to Luna, we need to get out of here.. do you hear me?" She screamed.  Her Amok was just as listless as the ThunderCats. "EEeeyaaaa!! Alluro, carry me out of here NOW!"

 

"Cool your jet's, Luna." He said.  He lifted the diminuative Princess off her mount and put her on his shoulders.  He knew she had a plan.  He also knew it had to be a bad one.  But right now, what choice did he have? Mumm-Ra made no attempt to stop them. Their lives were over in his book.  He looked on at the scene in the pool with avid attention, egar of the outcome. When they had made it out of the Black Pyramid, Luna explained her idea.  In Alluro's state of mind, it seemed to make some sense.  They made it into engineering to find all the other Lunataks still as corpses. Luna ignored them and the two set to work as quickly as they could, growing ever slower as Boron faded from existence.

 

"I wonder what's happening to our friends?" Lion-O wondered aloud. His mind had begun to deteriorate.  He babbled about his childhood, Jaga, accursed Berbils and anything else he could.

 

Boron merely sat accross from him, trying to keep sane.

 

"It's okay, Ugnarth.  The charge is set.. The Tar'unt'Tar are finished."  Boron re-lived his past.  The final conflict of good and evil.

 

"'Your unborn child has been avenged.' the fortress loomed before them. A huge underground cavern had been hollowed out, and the metallic castle erected.  It was the last major stronghold of the Damned.  The thermal charges that had only so recently been developed were set.  The final transports were being lifted.  His long-time companion Ungarth the Dark Slayer, stared grimly ahead. 'I don't like this.  Where'd that scientist go? I told Mnesine to keep an eye on her.' Boron looked around, 'I think they left.  Scan the area.  We don't want anyone left behind.. What the hells?" The Palace doors swung open.  At the distance they were at, it was obvious that they were doomed. A dark swarm of the most feared race poured from the bowels of the earth. 'Pikemen, to the front! Form ranks!  We need to hold them off as long as we can!  We must not fail!' He knew they already had.  The smattering of soldiers that he had were ill-equipped to battle the menace.  It was long ago discovered that their skin was impervious to energy based weapons.  Fortunatly, they did have weaknesses.

'Ugnarth, get your people out of here.  This is my war.' Boron said.  He drew the Lunar Blade, which glowed blue with anticipation of combat.

 

'Your will be done, general.' The Dark Slayer baarked orders at his men.  The Tar'unt'Tar warriors were seconds away.  Suddenly, the scientist came running through the wreckage of the cavern.

 

'My lord,' she said to Boron, 'I belive that I may have alerted the Enemy to our plan....'

 

Damnit.  Boron knew the Tar'unt'Tar were telepathic, she must have gotten too close to the compound and they read her mind. Amazing.  The war is over. All that remains is duty.

 

'Get out of here.'  I order. Screams erupt from my soldiers as they were bombarded with psionics. The Corruptor had been pulled from orbit. 'For the Moons!' He rushed into the ranks. Already, the ground was soaked with his warriors blood.  Soon, he would join them."

 

SkyTomb's engines flared.  They moved the lumbering fortress as fast as it could go.  The Cave of Time was not far away, but it would take time, and they needed every second.  Alluro worked frantically, re-wiring something you have very little knowledge of was tricky buisness.  Still, he made every second count.

All too soon, they hovered not far from the Cave.  They finalized plans on how to do this. "Alluro, go into the pod, and fly into the Cave.  The conflicting temporal  forces should..." Luna trailed off.

 

"Should what Luna? Do you even know what you're talking about?" Alluro wondered.  This had got to be one of the worst ideas she's ever had.

 

"No idea." she admitted. Still, something was better than nothing. "Now, get in there.  You've programmed the course, right, Alluro?  Alluro!  ALLURO!! DAMNIT YOU SARCASTIC HYPNOTIST!"  Alluro wasn't moving. He wasn't even registering her screams of anger.

 

"How am I supposed to work this thing?"  She climbed inside and tried to open the door.  It swung closed on her andknocked her to it's cool floor. Damnit, now wasn't it supposed to....?

 

 

Luna in the pod materialized before the accident.  She was no longer at the Cave of Time.  The pod stopped at the footof SkyTomb. The door popped open and she hopped out.

 

The sky was about to light up.

 

Red-Eye monitored the scene below him from the view screen.  The Moon Cannons were too inaccurate to shoot Lion-O and end the ThunderCat menace. "Red-Eye, switch to Sky-Gate Cannons!  Lock on to the Sword of Omens!  Blast it, blast it now!" Luna hollered.  Amok looked grumpy.  Apparently, Alluro's hold over some of  the Maidens was less than perfect.  Some decided to fight back.  Luna wisely decided to abandon the situation, and et Alluro deal with the problem.

 

"Sky-Gate Cannons on-line!" Red-Eye said.  He began targeting the Sword.  A twisted smile crossed his face.  Ah, how he enjoyed the suffering of others!

 

"Fire!" Luna ordered.  Lightning blasted into the sky.  She looked up in anticipation.

 

Future Luna screamed at Boron, who was kneeling with exertion.  "Heeeeelllpppp meeee!! I fell out of... Just help!"

 

Boron could not ignore the request of his Queen.  As he let his concentration go, Lion-O recieved the Sword of Omens.  He could feel the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end.  He used the Claw Shield to grapple onto SkyTomb, and pulled himself towards it. Lightning smashed the earth.  Debris flew everywhere.  Boron flung himself onto Luna.. only she wasn't there.  There was general confusion.  Red-Eye signalled that the Feliner was en route, and that they were low on fuel and ought to get out of there.

 

The ThunderCats congradulated themselves on a job well done.  The Feliner had arrived just in time to save the day.  The Lunataks were defeated, even at the cost of Panthro's pride.

 

The Lunataks were also pleased with the outcome of the battle.   They hauled in a whack of Warrior Maidens, and with the Thundrillium stolen from Panthro earlier, it would be a while before the 'Cats could oppose them openly for a while.  Boron got the "Attaboy" award for trying to stop the Sword of Omens.  They were used to failure.  Tug-Mug joked that he would get used to it by the third or fourth time.  Luna ordered Tug-Mug to shut the hell up. And Boron looked at the unfamiler stars, and cried.

 

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