"Great Jaga!" Cheetara gasped.

"Run!" Tygra shouted.

"Retreat!" Luna shrieked.

Thundercats and Lunatacs together turned and raced out of the lab as the air behind them began to heat. Glowing lava began to eat up the floor as they left. Earthquakes continued to rattle the structure.

"Another defense mechanism?" Cheetara asked as she snatched up a still-coughing Snarf on the way out.

Tygra didn’t answer right away. He was trying to carry the heavy box that held the cure, but Bengali yanked it out of his arms. "You’re too weak. Just run!" the white tiger yelled.

"This isn’t any defense of the bunker," Tygra told Cheetara as he raced after Bengali. "Though when we pass this old monitor up here, the cure box might set something off."

No sooner had Tygra said this, but Bengali lurched passed Tygra’s monitor and a loud alarm started to blare. As another earthquake threw them all to their knees, a new sound entered the chaos. The screech of metal and a sudden humming of machinery joined the racket and the walls began to move.

"What’s this!" Luna demanded as Amok managed to heave himself back on his feet.

"The last trap," Tygra yelled back. "The walls are closing in. Everybody move!"

More earthquakes sent them tumbling, but they kept scrambling forward. Behind them, the temperature was increasing exponentially and waves of heat would occasionally blast them from behind.

"Rowr, this has got to be Mumm-Ra’s doing!" Bengali growled.

"Don’t talk, run," Tygra ordered.

There was a smell of melting metals and sparks of electricity began to short out LCD panels, plunging the hallways into darkness.

"Keep moving!" they heard Alluro shout. But no one could see anymore. They were running blind with no idea of where they were going or how far they had to run.

A sudden hiss of hydraulics and a metallic screech screamed through the corridors. It took a minute, but Tygra suddenly realized what had happened. The walls weren’t moving anymore. But why not?

He continued to struggle forward, constantly falling as tremors continued to ripple the floor beneath his feet. Wait! The floor! Was it—warming? A quick glance around made Tygra gasp in surprise. Red light was beginning to illuminate the halls ahead of them, but it was not a welcome light. Behind them, lava was creeping forward. It must have melted the machinery that forced the walls to close. But that meant it was also just on the other side of the walls. And not only there, but—

"STOP!"

At Tygra’s sudden cry, everyone, including Lunatacs, skidded to a halt. "What’s wrong?" Bengali shouted between heaving gasps for air.

"The hall. It’s growing lighter, but that’s not outside light. That’s lava."

The others looked around and quickly discovered that Tygra was right. Behind them, lava continued to move up the corridor. Around them, the walls began to glow with light as they heated up. In front of them, a plume of lava suddenly shot through the floor, right where they would have been had they kept going. Temperatures in the hallway soared.

"We’re surrounded," Snarf whimpered.

Lunatacs and Thundercats started to bunch together in the middle of the hallway, trying to keep away from the walls. But the floor was beginning to heat, too.

"Somebody do something!" Luna shrieked.

"Like what?" TugMug demanded.

"Chilla would come in really handy right about now," Bengali commented.

More plumes of lava erupted around them, closer to their position this time.

"I hate to say it," Cheetara whispered, "but I think this is it."

Tygra looked at the approaching doom and cursed long and fervently. After all this time and all this trouble, to find the cure and then be brought down like this. He looked at Cheetara, his warm amber eyes pouring into hers. His hand found hers and he clutched it tightly. "We tried," the tiger whispered.

Cheetara squeezed his hand back in response. She pressed closer to him, allowing his larger body to shield her from the oncoming heat. "Thank you. For all you’ve done for me."

Another earthquake sent them staggering for balance. Alluro cried out as he struck the wall and felt his skin burn on contact.

"Well, Luna, I won’t say it’s been fun, but it has been different," TugMug said.

"Amok hot, Amok hot" Luna’s large mount complained.

Luna stared at the approaching lava in disbelief. This shouldn’t be happening. This couldn’t happen. How could Mumm-Ra do such a thing to them? Fear began to paralyze her, and in response, she did the only thing she could do. She screamed.

Mumm-Ra sank to the ground in exhaustion. Earthquakes shook the ground around him, making it impossible for him to regain a standing position. He was weary beyond belief. All his magical energy had been expended in one last shove to the surface. But the results were well worth it. He sighed in satisfaction as he watched molten rock erupt from the ground around the bunker.

Lion-O’s head ached. No, it wasn’t just his head. It was his entire body. He was probably one big bruise. The lion groaned. He slowly opened his eyes and froze. He couldn’t see.

He tried to sit up and then abruptly realized why he couldn’t see. He was buried under a pile of debris. With a shaky laugh, he managed to push heavy chunks of ceiling off his body and looked around. He was almost sorry he did.

Instead of the technologically advanced control room, Lion-O saw the late morning sky. "By Thundera," he moaned. Struggling to get to his feet, brushing off pieces of wire and computer chips as he did so, he looked around for Lynx-O and Snarfer. He spotted the mutants, instead. They were at the base of the Lair arguing over something. Probably spoils of war.

Trying to attract as little attention as possible from his vantagepoint, Lion-O began looking for Snarfer and Lynx-O. "Snarfer?" he hissed. "Lynx-O?" He started to paw through some of the rubble when a groan interrupted him. He quickly moved to the source of the sound and found a partially buried Lynx-O. Quickly shoving the debris off, he helped the lynx into a sitting position. "Lynx-O! Are you all right?"

The old lynx sat completely still for a moment, supported by Lion-O’s arm. "Lion-O, when did we move outside?" he finally asked.

"Actually, the outside moved to us," Lion-O responded. "We’re still in the control room. Kind of. The mutants have been kind enough to give us some ventilation."

"I see," Lynx-O murmured. "And where are they now?"

"Squabbling over something at the base of the Lair. Can you stand? We need to find Snarfer and I think we’d be a lot safer if we could get further into the Lair."

Lynx-O nodded and slowly pushed himself to his feet. "I think I hear Snarfer under something off to my left."

Lion-O looked and saw a slight movement under a pile of wires. Moving the wires away, he found a very dazed snarf. "Come on, Snarfer. Nap time’s over."

The snarf blinked in the sunlight and rubbed his head. "Do I want to know what just happened?"

"No," Lion-O answered. "Let’s see if sickbay’s still intact. We’ll make a final stand there, if we have to."

Bengali stared at the approaching lava in vain fury. This was not the way he’d planned on going out, caught with his enemies in a natural disaster. Or a disaster instituted by Mumm-Ra. The tiger wasn’t sure which was worse. There had to be a way out. There was always a way out. It just had to be found in time. Farther down the hall, the ceiling started to fall into the lava. It wouldn’t be long now.

Wait a minute! The ceiling!

Bengali suddenly yanked out his hammer and fired upwards. Chunks of metal rained down on the startled Lunatacs and Thundercats, but Bengali paid them no heed. He continued to fire at the ceiling. His shots managed to create a hole large enough to see into the next level. He continued to shoot. Another level was breached. And then just above that, after a few more powerful hits from the Hammer of Thundera, sunlight streamed down through the holes. "There it is!" he shouted in triumph. "That’s our way out."

"But how—" Cheetara stopped as TugMug leaped skyward, easily making it all the way to the top. "Okay, there’s one. What about the rest of us?"

"Not a problem," Tygra announced. His whip was flashing through the air and with a twist of his arm, he sent the bolos skyward. They flew upward and out into the air, anchoring on something on the roof. Another flick of the wrist and the remaining whip suddenly stiffened and formed itself into a ladder. "Ladies first," he said.

"Lunatacs first," Luna screamed, almost hysterical with fear and panic.

"Hold on," Bengali interrupted, moving to block Amok’s way. The lava was moving closer, but the white tiger didn’t seem to notice. "What about the cure? Are we sharing or not?"

Luna’s eyes flashed, but Alluro quickly took control before she could do anything. "We agree to share. Just get us out of here."

"Do you swear by the Moons of Plun-Darr?"

"Alright," Alluro grumbled. "Now move aside and—"

"Then say it," Bengali roared, feeling the heat creep even closer.

"We swear by the Moons of Plun-Darr that we will share the cure with you," Luna hissed.

"Okay, Bengali, I think that’s good enough," Tygra broke in. "It’s getting a little too hot down here."

"Are you coming?" TugMug hollered down the opening.

"Already there," Cheetara shouted back, scampering up the ladder with an astonishing speed. Leaping out onto the roof, she quickly brandished her staff and faced TugMug. "Now, we’re going to wait here patiently while everyone else comes out. Understood?"

Down in the bunker, Snarf was half way to the top of the rope, Alluro was behind him, and Amok with Luna brought up the rear. Bengali and Tygra were securing their end of the whip to the cure box. "We’ll have to haul it up after we’ve all gotten out," Tygra panted, almost faint with the intense heat.

"Then we’d better hurry," Bengali warned. "You first, you’re weaker."

Tygra didn’t protest, but quickly scaled the rope with Bengali right behind him. Cheetara helped the two out and then they all hauled the box of cures out. Looking down, they could see lava sweep over the area and the hot walls start to fold and crumble.

"We’d better get off this roof," Cheetara observed. "I don’t think it will last much longer."

With mute agreement, they all turned and headed for the edge. Bengali clutched the crate that held the cures close to his chest, but he didn’t hold it close enough. In one rapid jump, TugMug leaped past the startled tiger, grabbed the box, and took off. "Hey wait a minute!" Bengali’s hammer whipped out, but Tygra moved in front of him before he could fire.

"Wait, you might damage the cure," Tygra warned. "Let Cheetara take care of this." Cheetara was already speeding after the Lunatac as he reached the edge of the roof and dropped to the ground.

"Okay, then, what was all that about sharing the cure?" Bengali demanded, rounding on Alluro and Luna.

"We didn’t say when we’d share it," Luna laughed.

"Likewise," Snarf growled. Bengali and Tygra looked at him in surprise. Snarf ignored them and continued to bristle at Amok. "What if we just decided to withhold the cure until RedEye wasn’t around anymore?"

"Easy, Snarf" Tygra whispered, discreetly moving between Snarf and the Lunatacs. He turned to face Luna and Alluro. "Look, why don’t we give you all the cure you’ll need now, and then we’ll keep the rest. Sound fair?"

"Why should we agree to anything when we have the cure and you don’t," Alluro asked. His psyche club raised slightly as he continued to speak. "You know you’d rather just give us the whole thing, wouldn’t you?"

"Not this time, hypnotist," Bengali snarled.

They might have continued like that for some time but another earthquake suddenly sent ripples and tears through the roof. That was enough to stall further arguments while they scrambled off the roof and dropped to the ground.

Once down, they found a groaning TugMug and a smug Cheetara. "Now what?" Cheetara asked as she perched imperiously on the box.

"Mumm-Ra’s still out there," Bengali remembered.

"Mumm-Ra?"

The white tiger nodded. "We’ve still got to get passed him."

"We’ll handle that," Luna offered. "Just give us the box and we’ll get take it."

"In your dreams," Cheetara scoffed.

"If we went around him through the jungle behind the bunker," Tygra mused, "it would only cost us about another hour."

"We don’t have an hour," Bengali argued. "We’ve got to get back to Cat’s Lair now!"

"Any particular reason why?" Tygra asked curiously. Bengali had still not told them his reason for coming south.

Bengali eyed the Lunatacs. "Let’s just say we need to get back as soon as possible."

Cheetara stood picked up the box. "Well, let’s go. I’ll race, you follow. We’ll worry about Mumm-Ra when we get to him." And with that, she took off.

"Cheetara, wait!" Tygra lunged after her, but it was too late.

"Is she strong enough to extend herself like that?" Bengali asked.

"Nope," Snarf answered. "She was stumbling."

"Well, now that she’s gone with the cure, I think we need some guarantee that we’ll eventually get it," TugMug piped up.

"Very true," Alluro agreed. His psyche club suddenly shot out and over the three Thundercats’ heads. "And you’ll be our insurance."

It took some scrambling over fallen debris and brute force in moving heavy pipes that had crashed through the ceiling or walls, but eventually Lion-O, Lynx-O, and Snarfer made it to sickbay. Forcing the doors open, they were almost hit with flying pellets. "Whoa, Pumyra, it’s us!" Lion-O shouted as he jumped out of the way.

"Lion-O? Thank Jaga, we thought it was the mutants. Get in here and help us."

Stepping into what seemed like one gigantic mess, Lion-O prepared himself for the worst. "How are things down here?"

"We’ve been fortunate," Pumyra answered from beneath an examination table. She hauled out a box of emergency supplies. "Snarfer, could you sort these sedatives out by strength? The information is on the bottles." She turned back to Lion-O and continued. "Most of the beds were already equipped with batteries on the respirators simply because we had to use the portable beds. There weren’t enough standard beds to go around. And of the standard beds, we got most of those hooked up to back-up batteries as soon as power failed. The few we didn’t were in no immediate danger and Wiley Kat managed to jury rig a few control panels to give off an electric current. They should be good for another few hours."

"Luck has indeed favored us this day," Lynx-O agreed, if somewhat sarcastically. "But what of the patients? How are they doing?"

Pumyra sobered a bit before answering. "We lost another Warrior Maiden. The rest seem to be doing fine with the exception of…" she trailed off and glanced toward the back of the room. In the dim emergency light, nothing could be clearly seen, but Lion-O knew that’s where Wiley Kit and Panthro lay. "Panthro’s almost gone," she finally continued in a whisper. "I don’t give him more than five hours, but I can tell you that his last hour will the most painful one yet and he will be fully conscious for it. That’s how the Warrior Maidens, Bolkins, and Wollows are going out, anyway."

A shuffling sound caught everyone’s attention and Wiley Kat vaulted some fallen medical carts. "What’s the situation above?" he asked without preamble.

Lion-O sighed. "Not good. The control room is completely blown away. The mutants can waltz right in any time they want to. The only reason they aren’t here already is that it will take them a while to get through all the junk littered in the corridors and they’re arguing about something outside."

"So this is it," Pumyra concluded.

"It would seem so," Lynx-O confirmed.

"Unless the others come back from the south, snarfer, snarfer," a voice piped up from an examination table. "You’ve just got to give them more time. They’ll make it back. Uncle Snarf won’t let us down, I know it. Yep, they should be back any minute."

At another time, Lion-O might have smiled at Snarfer’s optimism. But the situation was just too dire. "We’ll wait a little longer in case they do, Snarfer," he promised. "Kat, you and Lynx-O start barricading. I want this room completely blocked off. Pumyra…" he turned hesitantly to the healer, ignoring the sudden trembling that had recently taken over his shoulders. "Take me to see Panthro."

When he first saw her, Mumm-Ra was dumbfounded. How had anyone managed to escape the inferno that had enveloped the bunker? And yet there she was, the spotted she-cat, racing toward him through the holes in the perimeter wall and lugging a heavy crate with her.

It took only seconds for Mumm-Ra to regain his composure and assume a threatening posture. His energy was expended and it took enormous will power for him to simply stand and levitate a few inches off the ground, but he did it anyway. He could guess what was in that crate, and there was no way he would allow the Thundercat to leave the jungle alive.

"Well, Cheetara! How good to see you!" There was an underlying current of weakness to his normally powerful bass that he could only hope the cheetah would miss. "And where are you going in such a hurry?"

Cheetara skidded to a halt when she heard Mumm-Ra’s voice. Upon spotting him, she set down the box, took out her staff, and started to advance. "I don’t have time for this, Mumm-Ra, so make it quick," the cheetah growled. She hoped the tremor in her voice brought on by overexertion would be overlooked.

"Oh, your demise will be very quick, my dear," the mummy hissed. "There is no need to hasten it. Tell me, where are you friends?" He had to stall her. The Lunatacs couldn’t be far behind, especially if it was just Cheetara. That implied that the others had been taken out.

"And why do you want to know?" the Thundercat demanded. "Afraid you can’t take us all? Afraid that if there’s more than just me you’ll lose? Let me tell you, bone brain, that I am more than a match for you, with or without the help of the other Thundercats." Cheetara inwardly cringed at her haughty words. They were nothing more than an empty threat, but she needed them to cover her trembling legs. She was almost ready to fall over. Come on guys, she silently urged the other Thundercats. Where are you?

"You seem a little high up on yourself," Mumm-Ra observed, trying to discreetly scan for signs of help. He couldn’t hold his position much longer. "Perhaps I can change that."

"Perhaps you can change the fact that you’re always losing to us, but it’s not likely," Cheetara retorted. She strained her ears for the sounds of approaching Thundercats.

They both got what they wanted, but not quite the way in which it was wanted. Another earthquake sent Cheetara rolling and a chorus of surprised shouts suddenly filled the background. Out of the perimeter, in one frantic dash for safety, charged Luna, Amok, Alluro, TugMug, Bengali, Tygra, and Snarf. "Lava incoming!" Tygra hollered when he saw Cheetara.

"Mumm-Ra upcoming," Snarf warned when he caught sight of the ever-living servant of evil.

"No time for it," Bengali snapped. "Just keep going." Veering toward Cheetara, Bengali grabbed the box of cures and bolted. Confused and bewildered, Cheetara had no choice but to stumble after him. The Lunatacs sped past Mumm-Ra without so much as a glance, Tygra and Snarf gave him a wide berth, and behind them raced a river of molten rock. Mumm-Ra stared in disbelief, feeling heat rise behind him as the bunker slowly sank into the crust of the earth. They had made it out. All of them. And not only had they made it out, but the Lunatacs appeared to be aiding them. Or, if they weren’t aiding them, they certainly weren’t fighting them.

Weary, weak, and totally crushed, Mumm-Ra silently asked the Ancient Spirits of Evil to transport him to his sarcophagus. The ramifications of this loss were draining what little strength he had left, and he needed to sleep. As he felt himself fade away and drift back to the pyramid, he silently vowed to rid himself of both Thundercats and Lunatacs if it was the last thing he did.

"Panthro? Panthro, if you can hear me, give me some kind of a response." Lion-O’s large hand rested gently on the panther’s arm, waiting for any kind of sign that the Thundercat could hear him. "Panthro? Come on, I know you can do this."

Pumyra was checking various monitors around the pair, trying to ascertain Panthro’s level of consciousness. "I think he can hear you, Lion-O," she finally answered. "But his brain is beginning to swell. I don’t know how much he understands."

Lion-O nodded. "Lion-O?" The lion turned to the weak voice behind him and tried to put on a cheerful face.

"Hey Kit. How are you feeling?" Brushing back her disarrayed mane, he almost gasped at how high her temperature was.

"A little better." Her words were slurred, as though she was speaking from a daze. "Pumyra gave me—some stronger medicine. She said it should help."

"Then it will help," Lion-O told her. "Just lie back and let it take effect."

"Lion-O? He talked—to me."

The lion glanced at Pumyra who shrugged. He turned back to the sick Thunderkitten. "Who talked to you?"

"Panthro. Just a few minutes ago. He hurts."

Lion-O glanced at Pumyra again and mouthed the word delirious? Pumyra’s expression turned thoughtful, and then she shook her head slightly. Maybe.

A soft groan caught their attention and both puma and lion turned toward Panthro. His tortured eyes fluttered open and with obvious effort, he turned them toward Lion-O and Pumyra.

"Panthro?" Pumyra hastened to his side. "Panthro, this is Pumyra. Can you see us?"

Panthro blinked his eyes in an affirmative. He turned them back to Lion-O. Lion-O gave Kit’s hand a squeeze and then moved to the panther’s bedside. "Hi Panthro." His voice was soft and low, but there something in it startled Pumyra. She took a good long look at the Lord of the Thundercats. He was resigned, as though he’d given up. He continued speaking to Panthro in that voice that sent chills running up and down the puma’s spine. "It’s about time. The mutants will break through any moment now. Are you ready?"

Relief flooded the panther’s eyes and he blinked them rapidly. Lion-O sighed, knowing the time had come. "Alright. Would you like to say goodbye to the others?" Another blink. Lion-O turned away from the sick Thundercat. "Lynx-O, Snarfer, and Kat. Would you come here for a moment?"

There were muffled acknowledgments from the entrance of sickbay and presently all three arrived. "What now?" Snarfer complained, but stopped when he saw the expression on Pumyra’s face.

After a brief moment of hesitation, Lion-O spoke. "Panthro’s time is here. Whatever you wish to say to him, say now." Ignoring the stares from the other Thundercats, the lion rose and moved away from the panther’s bedside. "I’ll prepare myself and the Sword. Call me when you’re done."

It had been a long run, one in which none had glanced back to see if doom followed them, but upon reaching the ships, that all came to an end.

"Okay, Thundercats," Luna sneered. "Time to give up that cure."

"Whatever, you little freak with horns," Bengali snarled. "And how are you going to get it from us?" The tiger was out of breath, but he could hear the Lunatacs gasping for air, too. He felt the odds were fair.

"Bengali, back down," Tygra said softly. He took a few hesitant steps toward the Lunatacs. "Let us help you. You need the cure for RedEye and Chilla. We’ll give you enough to take care of them and maybe even a little more. We’ll leave the southern continent at the same time, go our separate directions, and call it a day."

"Out of the question, Thundercat. We’ll share, but we want all of the cure first. We’re not going to let you give us some fake formula and waltz out of here with the real thing."

"Then we’ll stay until you can be certain RedEye and Chilla are cured," Cheetara answered. Bengali cleared his throat, but Cheetara stepped in front of him and continued. "But we must have the cure, too. Now."

The two forces stared at one another for a few minutes, but once again they were interrupted by tremors in the ground. It was Alluro who finally broke the face-off. "Very well, Thundercats." The hypnotist made the title an insult. "We will require enough cure for three."

The Thundertanks exchanged glances, but said nothing. Tygra motioned Bengali to open up the cure box. With a grumble of disgust, the white tiger complied and pulled out three vials. He handed them to Tygra who turned and approached the Lunatacs. TugMug, with grumbling equal to Bengali’s, took them from Tygra and backed away.

"And now, Thundercats," Luna sneered, "since we’ve all fulfilled our bargains, we’ll be seeing you later." She smiled. "Some of you, anyway. Now TugMug!"

TugMug’s gravity carbine shot forward, aiming for the cure box, and fired. Though Bengali had been expecting something like that, he couldn’t move fast enough. The box would crush itself with its own weight! There was no way he could get it out of the way in time. They would lose the cure and—

A heavy thud, a shout from Cheetara, the snapping of Tygra’s whip, and TugMug’s cry of surprise and pain were the next things Bengali heard. Everything had happened too quickly for his eyes to track, but he could certainly see the results. Cheetara lay in front of the box where she’d taken the shot from TugMug’s gravity carbine. TugMug himself was trying to get up about twenty feet away from his previous position while Tygra’s whip recoiled and the tiger caught the carbine. "Any other surprise moves?" Tygra growled.

The Lunatacs backed up slightly. "You’d better leave before we destroy what little cure we gave you," Snarf threatened.

"Come on, Lunatacs," Luna snarled. "We’ll take these vermin another day."

As the Lunatacs turned and headed for Skytomb with more than one threatening glare, Tygra turned to the others. "Bengali, attach the Thunderclaw to the Feliner, and we’ll tow it back. The Feliner’s lot faster than the Claw. Snarf, load the cure into the back of the Feliner. I’ll get Cheetara in and then Bengali can explain what he’s doing down here and what the big rush to get home is."

"I can get myself in," Cheetara answered, struggling to rise.

"Sorry, but I think you’ve put on a few pounds in a few seconds," Tygra answered, picking her up with a grunt. He staggered for a minute, but managed to make his way to the Feliner.

It only took a few minutes for Bengali to hook up the Thunderclaw and by the time he was done, Snarf had secured the cure and they were ready to take off. "Let’s go," Bengali instructed as he took his place up front.

"So why do we need to be home by this afternoon?" Cheetara asked, feeling her increased weight start to leave.

Bengali didn’t answer as he listened to the engines warm up. Snarf gave him a curious look. "Bengali?"

The white tiger shook his head. "I don’t know how to say this, but I guess there isn’t another way around it. Lion-O and Panthro made a deal. And if we’re not back in a few hours, Lion-O will have to follow through on his deal."

"What kind of a deal?" Tygra asked. The engines had almost finished their warm-up cycle.

There was another pause from the white tiger while he engaged the upward thrusters. When the other three continued to stare at him, he finally answered. "Lynx-O and Panthro say it’s been with the Thundercats for years. They said you guys would know about it, but I have never heard of it before, and neither had anyone else. It’s got something to do with the Sword of Omens and it’s called—"

"The right of death," Cheetara hissed.

"So you know what it is?" Bengali asked. But Cheetara wasn’t paying attention to him. She was watching Tygra for his reaction.

Initially, there was none. And then, with what could almost be described as a feral growl, the tiger started changing the engine configuration.

"Tygra, what are you doing?!" Snarf demanded.

"We’re going to engage the hyper-drive."

The others stared at him as if he’d gone insane. "In the gravity well of a planet?" Bengali managed to ask. "Have you completely lost it?"

"Maybe."

"Tygra, we can’t enter hyperspace in a planet’s gravity well," Cheetara protested. "Space and time bend around a planet, there’s no telling what could happen! We don’t even know if hyper space exists in the planet’s gravity well."

"We’ll get there in a matter of minutes if this works," Tygra said. "And it should work if we blow the engines after a few seconds in hyper space. The explosion should throw us out of hyperspace and into normal space."

"That’s if hyperspace even exists so close to the planet’s surface," Bengali argued. "If it doesn’t—"

"It does. The theories that all space merges in a gravity well don’t hold up under scrutiny. If anything, it should just be harder to enter and exist hyperspace."

"But if we blow up the engines, how do we land?" Snarf asked.

Tygra didn’t answer and there was nothing the others could do as the Feliner lifted off, the engines powered up, and the peculiar whining that precluded entrance into hyperspace started to fill the cockpit. "Hold on," they heard the tiger warn. "This could get bumpy."

"The body has natural defenses against pain!" Vultureman argued. "If we give them the disease, we have to sedate them and give them pain killers first. They’ll last longer that way. We can eventually take them off the pain killers, but we do have to give them initial relief."

"I will not be party to giving the Thundercatsss relief," Slithe snorted. "Those Cats deserve all the suffering they can get, yesss?"

"Yes, Slithe, they do, but if we want to give them ultimate suffering, we have to give them relief," Jackalman reasoned.

"Hoo, that doesn’t sound right. We give them pain killers when we want them to hurt?"

Vultureman rolled his eyes, getting sick and tired of the whole argument. "We can torture those without the disease and watch those with it suffer, but if we want to prolong suffering, we have to get Pumyra to give us painkillers compatible with a Thunderan physiology."

"You know, this entire conversation might be moot if the Thundercats died in the explosion," Jackalman mused.

"They can’t all have died," Slithe hissed. "They have escaped death too often to have all died in one stroke. There will be survivors."

"Why don’t we drag them out and then discuss their torture with them? Hoo, hoo, I’m sure they have some good insight," Monkian laughed.

Jackalman cackled at the thought. "That’s not a bad idea, Monkian. Let’s see them grovel for mercy."

"Then let’s resume this conversation once we have the Thundercats, yesss?" Slithe looked around for protests, but there were none. Monkian and Jackalman liked the idea and Vultureman really didn’t care what they did anymore. He’d become bored. "Very well. We go."

The reptilian turned to enter the Lair but suddenly stopped. Something strange was going on. The Lair seemed to be—moving? No, wavering was more like it. Behind him, he heard the other mutants gasp in amazement. A wave was traveling toward them, but it was unlike any wave they’d seen before. It was almost as if a wave of reality was buckling and rolling. It seemed to be moving quickly, but it was slowing down as it approached.

Slithe turned to ask Vultureman what was happening, but found that time for him had also slowed down. He could hear Monkian yelling somewhere behind him, but he couldn’t turn toward the sound fast enough. And then time seemed to lurch and he whipped around only to be stopped as time screeched to a halt again. He felt something ripple through him and watched in astonishment and fear as reality began to blur and melt together. He could hear himself screaming, feel his claws raking against the ground as he tried to find something solid, but the horrible wave continued, dragging all of reality with it. And from somewhere deep within that wave came an explosion.

The explosion’s impact sent Slithe flying and seemed to iron out the wrinkles in space. The reptilian heard a grunt beneath him and found he’d landed on Jackalman. The dog was cowering in fear and whimpering. Slithe would have slapped him if he hadn’t felt that same fear himself. Glancing over his shoulder, he spotted Vultureman sprawled off to the side and Monkian trying to get back to his feet. Another wave swept over them and then everything seemed to fall back into place.

Rolling off the canine, Slithe pushed himself up. "What in Plun-Darr was that?!" he demanded.

"Whatever it was, I don’t think we want to be around when it comes back," Jackalman whined.

Vultureman looked as though he were about to answer, but Monkian beat him to the conversation. "Look! What’s that?"

High in the sky plummeting in a sharp dive was a huge fireball. As it plunged through the atmosphere, it seemed to take the shape of a white ship, and reality could almost be seen streaming outward from it.

This was enough for Slithe. "Mutants, retreat. We’ll finish this another day!"

There was no argument from anyone else as they raced for their respective vehicles.

Deep within Cat’s Lair, Lion-O pushed himself out from under a fallen examination table. "What in the name of all the Lords of Thundera was that?!" he exclaimed. A quick glance around told him everyone else was all right, but they were clearly just as shaken as he was.

"A new weapon?" Snarfer asked in a voice that trembled with fear.

"Since when have mutants been able to alter reality?" Lynx-O asked.

The sudden blurring of space and time in sickbay had thrown everyone for a loop, especially when it seemed to merge, then stop, and then merge again. The explosion from within that wave of reality had thrown them all different directions, but hadn’t seemed to do any other damage.

"How’s Kit?" Kat asked Pumyra.

The puma was making quick checks on all the sick, confirming that the wave had done nothing to them. Strapped down as they were, they had remained immobile during the explosion. She examined Kit and turned to the Thunderkitten’s brother. "Except for still having the Pain Fever, she’s fine, Kat. But I’d like to know what happened a few moments ago."

"So would everyone else, Kat," Lion-O said. "I think, for the sake of prudence, we’re going to have to go with Snarfer’s assumption that this is a new mutant weapon. And if it is, they won’t hesitate to use it again." Gripping the Sword tightly, the lion steadied himself. "Panthro, are you ready to…go?"

There was a clear affirmative in the eyes of the stricken Thundercat. Lion-O looked at the other Thundercats gathered in the room. "Are the rest of us ready?"

"Give us just a minute," Pumyra asked softly. Moving swiftly to the panther’s side, the puma gently stroked his face. "I’ll miss you," she whispered. Wiping swiftly at her eyes, she moved back.

Kat was next. For a moment, he didn’t know what to say. He clutched Panthro’s hand, remembering all the times he’d spent with the gray warrior. "Thanks for all you’ve taught me," he finally choked out. "Even if you were a little hard," he added with a smile. Panthro’s eyes smiled back.

Snarfer slipped up next to Panthro and wrapped his arms around Panthro’s forearm. "I was so sure they’d be back in time," he murmured. "I’m sorry we couldn’t help you. You’ve been a great friend." Snarfer sniffled and withdrew, unable to say more.

From her bed, Kit struggled to prop herself up, surging against her restraints. "Easy, Kit," Pumyra soothed. "We’ll move you over." The healer gently took off the restraining straps and helped Kit sit up and turn in Panthro’s direction.

"Panthro? Do you really—have to go?"

Panthro’s eyes squeezed shut. When they opened again, they were filled with sorrow but there was also the yearning to leave, to be free of the pain.

Kit coughed slightly and small tremors rocked her frail body. "Maybe—I’ll come with—you in a bit," she told him.

"That’s enough," Pumyra whispered to the kitten, ignoring the startled outcry from Wiley Kat. "Let’s get you down again. It’s time for another sedative."

Lion-O knew it was time, but his feet were frozen. He couldn’t move. The Sword hung from his hand, ready to fulfill its roll in this act of murder. "Lion-O? We are ready."

Lynx-O’s gentle but firm voice was what Lion-O needed. With faltering steps, he managed to make his way to Panthro’s bedside. "You were always so patient with me, especially when we first came to Third Earth," Lion-O whispered to his friend. "I’ve never fully repaid you. I don’t know that I ever could. But I couldn’t have asked for a better teacher. Thank you."

Panthro’s eyes squeezed shut and his body shuddered. There were so many things he wanted to say, but that blasted disease that wracked his body had stolen his ability to speak. He hated to go like this. But the relief death would bring! At last, he could draw breath without debilitating pain squeezing his chest tight. Opening his eyes, he looked back at Lion-O. He was ready.

Lion-O saw the look and sighed. The time had come. Glancing around the room, he saw the others were also prepared. Or, as prepared as they could be. He fixed his eyes on Panthro one more time and slowly raised the Sword. In a voice that shook with grief and pain, he called upon the powers of the Sword. "Farewell, Panthro," he whispered one last time. "Farewell."

"Hull temperature is still in the danger zone and rising!" Bengali shouted above the blaring alarms.

"We have no power to maneuver and we’re going to keep tearing through the atmosphere until we burn up or the ground stops us," Cheetara declared. "Either way, we’re going to die."

"We’re not dead yet," Tygra argued stubbornly. "Snarf, where are those sensors?"

"I’m trying, Tygra, but I think the engine explosion shorted out the storage batteries, snarf, snarf."

"If we get out of this alive, remind me to kill you for pulling a stunt like that," Bengali grumbled.

"I’ve got first dibs on him," Cheetara growled.

"Relax, we’ll get out of this," Tygra insisted, though at the moment he couldn’t see how. He was still disoriented from their trip through hyperspace. The merging of multiple times and multiple realities had almost cost them all their sanity. It was all he could do to maintain enough presence of mind to jettison their fuel and ignite it in the blaze of the engines. The explosion had almost torn their ship apart, but somehow they’d survived and been released from hyperspace. But not without consequences. The ship’s skin was on fire, and they were completely out of control, blind as a bat, and headed for oblivion.

"We’re going to have to bail," Snarf yelled.

"We can’t leave the cure," Cheetara protested. "That’s why we pulled this idiotic trick in the first place, so we could get the cure to Cat’s Lair in a hurry."

"If we stay in this cabin much longer, the heat will kill us," Bengali announced. "Outer skin is beyond the danger zone. Readings are off the scale."

"Wait a minute!" Tygra exclaimed. "You’ve got readings on the outer hull. There must be some battery power for you to get those readings. See if you can get sensors to work from your station."

Bengali muttered something about live in an inferno, but nonetheless, he tried to tap into the Feliner’s main sensor array. "Got it. And Tygra, you’ve got about 2500 feet to get us out of this mess. Or, wait a minute!" Bengali fingers began to fly across the control panel. "Cheetara, open the cockpit. Snarf, grab the cure."

"Are you crazy?" Cheetara demanded.

"DO IT!"

"Everyone here’s gone mad!" Cheetara declared.

"Got the cure," Snarf announced.

Bengali reached across to Cheetara’s control station and opened the cockpit himself. The four were instantly engulfed in a wave of heat and flame. "Give me five seconds after I jump and then everyone jump after me!" Bengali shouted. Seconds later, the white tiger leaped through the roaring fires of the ship.

Coughing on the searing air and feeling his fur start to singe, Tygra decided anywhere was preferable to the cockpit. After five seconds, he launched himself after Bengali. Cheetara and Snarf apparently felt the same way, as they were right behind him.

There was a moment of terrible heat and then something seized his arm. He was yanked out of a fall with a rough jerk and tossed onto something. "Hold on! I’ve got to get the other two."

Tygra shook his head, opened his eyes, and discovered himself on the Thunderclaw. "How did you…"

He was prevented from finishing his question when the Thunderclaw abruptly swerved and they came up on a falling Cheetara clutching a shaking Snarf who was trying to desperately clutch a box of cures. "Grab them!" Bengali ordered.

Obediently, Tygra reached out and caught Cheetara’s arm. Dragging the two in, he hauled them onto the Thunderclaw’s seat in front of him. "Bengali, the Thunderclaw doesn’t have the power for all four of us!"

"Yes it does," the white tiger shouted back. "Trust me. It’ll get us down safely, which is more than can be said for the Feliner."

"How did you know the Claw was here?" Snarf asked.

"The sensors. Apparently the engine explosion blasted the towrope and the Claw was falling along side us. I guessed its position, managed to grab it, and start the engines. Then you three came barreling out and now we’re here."

"Great Jaga!" Cheetara suddenly exclaimed. "Look at that!"

The Thunderclaw was struggling to pull out of its dive and had drifted far enough away from the Feliner that they could now see the Lair behind the flaming ship. Or rather, they could see what remained of the Lair.

"What in Thundera happened?!" Bengali demanded.

"Was that our fault?" Snarf asked.

"How would that be our fault?" Cheetara wondered.

"Hyperspace. Could we somehow have blown the Lair apart by merging hyperspace and real space in the gravity well of a planet?" Bengali explained for the snarf.

"Unlikely," Tygra answered. "Look at the surrounding jungle. It wasn’t affected."

"Then they must have been attacked," Cheetara reasoned.

"Oh no. That was part of the deal."

"What deal?" Snarf asked Bengali.

"The deal that Lion-O made with Panthro. If something happened before we could get back, Lion-O would grant him the right of death."

"Take us down fast, Bengali," Tygra instructed with a dangerous note in his voice. "Try communications, too, though with the control room visible like it is, I doubt if they’ll be working."

"You got that right," the white tiger answered. "Nothing on communications. And as for going down fast, already accomplished. I’m just trying to get some control to our dive."

"Aim for the control room. Someone was probably in it when it blew, and if they survived, they’ll have cleared a path to sickbay. And if they didn’t survive…" Tygra didn’t finish. They’d all had too many brushes with death in the past few days. None of them wanted to consider the possibility that death continued to stalk them.

The Thunderclaw was now in a steep but controlled dive. Below them, the Feliner continued to blaze. It impacted at the base of the Lair with a great explosion, sending debris and shrapnel flying. The Thunderclaw rode off the thermals from the explosion and managed to drift into the now-open control room. "Hold the applause, please," Bengali gloated as he brought the Thunderclaw to a halt.

"Hold the conversation," Tygra snapped. He had leaped off the Thunderclaw the moment it entered the control room. "We’ve got to get to sickbay and fast. I just hope it’s not too late."

Sickbay shook suddenly, breaking Lion-O’s concentration.

"Sounds like the mutants have decided to come in," Wiley Kat murmured.

Lion-O struggled back to his feet. "Hold them off," he instructed. "I need time to finish this."

The other Thundercats nodded and moved to block sickbay’s door. But Lynx-O hesitated. "Did you…" he trailed off and turned his head in the direction of the door.

"What?" Pumyra asked. "What is it?"

"That last hit. It was an explosion, but it sounded like something impacted on the base of the Lair. Like a ship. Why would the mutants ram the Lair?"

"It really doesn’t matter," Lion-O answered bitterly. "Just hold them off. We’ll spare Panthro the pain of dealing with the mutants."

Obediently, Snarfer, Pumyra, Lynx-O, and Wiley Kat took up positions on both sides of the entrance. Alone with Panthro and Wiley Kit, Lion-O once again raised his Sword. The Sword extended, ready to carry out its deadly mission. "Panthro, as Lord of the Thundercats, I ask that you release your life to the powers of the Eye of Thundera. Do you willingly consent?" The words seemed to be forced from Lion-O’s lips. He didn’t know how this power worked, but the Sword seemed to have taken over for him. He knew what the procedure was; he knew what was required.

Panthro shifted slightly and managed a weak nod. It was the only form of consent he could give. Lion-O felt his eyes moisten, but he struggled to continue. He had to continue. There was no turning back now. In his hands, the lion could feel the building power in the Sword. It was a power like he’d never felt before.

"Then Panthro, I, Lion-O, Lord of the Thundercats, grant unto your right: the right of death." He felt the Sword gather even more power and its glow began to brighten the room. "If any Thundercat objects, let them contest now the power of this right."

"COME ON!" Tygra shouted, forging his way through the ruined hallways of the Lair. "I will not let him go through with this," he growled. "Not after what happened."

"What happened?" Bengali hissed to Cheetara.

The cheetah skidded under several pipes and sparking wires, trying vainly to catch the rampaging Tygra. "It’s a long story," she answered back. "You’ll probably hear it after all the action."

"Is this about that incident with Savan?" Snarf asked.

"Don’t ever let Panthro or Tygra hear you call it an ‘incident’," Cheetara warned. "Tygra, wait! They’ll take you for a mutant!"

"What’s this incident?" Bengali demanded.

"Ask later," Cheetara instructed.

Ahead of them, Tygra had reached sickbay and was slamming against the door, trying desperately to get in. "They’ve got it blocked!" he yelled.

"Hang on," Bengali said. He pulled out the Hammer of Thundera and juiced it up. "We’ll be through in just a minute."

There was a muffled crash outside of sickbay. The other Thundercats, trying to block out what was happening behind them, readied themselves to jump on the mutants as soon as they entered. They could soon hear the sound of impacts against sickbay doors and then the sounds of firing weapons.

Behind them, Lion-O slowly lowered the Sword and pointed the blade at Panthro. The panther’s insignia glowed brightly and the lion could feel the gathering of life into one ball, ready to be taken and dispersed by the Eye of Thundera. Almost as if in a dream, he mentally formed the words that would complete the right. Behind him, he could hear the sounds of energy weapons hammering at the door. Hammering. Something about the sound of the weapons caused him to pause, but he forced himself back into concentration. It was now or never. He opened his mouth to speak.

But the words never came out. Something powerful blasted open the door behind the lion. Pumyra and Wiley Kat hurled pellets and the room filled with various kinds of chemical smoke. Something or someone clamped a firm hand on Lion-O’s mouth while the Sword was ripped from his hands. A crushing weight forced him forward to his knees while something else flashed around him and Panthro’s bed could be heard flying across the room.

Uncontrolled rage swept over Lion-O. How dare the mutants interfere! With newborn strength, the lion reached back and grabbed whatever arm was holding his mouth closed and threw the creature off him. Only to stop in amazement.

"TYGRA!"

Tygra landed neatly on his feet and whirled around to face Lion-O. "Say you didn’t do it," the tiger hissed. "Say you didn’t complete the ceremony!"

Lion-O shook his head in confusion. "What are you doing here? Where are the mutants?"

"He didn’t." It was Cheetara’s voice that called from where Panthro had eventually ended up.

Lion-O took a good look around the room. Snarf was moaning in unconsciousness after inhaling the smoke from Pumyra’s pellets. Bengali was still in the hallway where he’d taken cover from Lynx-O’s light blasts and Snarfer’s frenzied teeth. Tygra was glowering angrily at him and Cheetara was wheeling Panthro back into place and reconnecting the life support systems. "What’s going on?" Lion-O eventually asked.

Tygra gave him one last glare and then turned to Pumyra, where she stood completely stunned with the other Thundercats. "Come here," he ordered. "I need to show you how to administer the cure."

"Tygra?"

Over a week had passed since the Thundercats had returned with the cure, but not all of the wounds were healed. Sitting on his bed and facing the window, Tygra turned slightly at the sound of the voice. "Come on in."

Panthro walked slowly in and collapsed back on the bed. It had only been a few days since the last of the disease had been expelled from his body. His condition had been so severe that the Thundercats had been forced to give him the cure in small doses over several days. It had been a long and painful process, and one he was glad to put behind him. But he was still very weak and his muscles had atrophied from his long stay in bed. Pumyra estimated it would take a couple months for him to recover completely. He wished he could be so certain about his friendships.

He glanced over to Tygra and discovered that the tiger was still facing the window. He hadn’t moved since Panthro’s entrance. Casting about for words to say, the panther began to speak. "You know, I never thanked you for what you did. That was something, going down to the southern continents when you knew you had the disease." There was no response. Tygra didn’t even stir. Panthro sighed and decided to continue. "You took quite a chance when you interrupted the right of death. Had Lion-O been saying the key words, it might have been your life that was taken. The Sword’s powers could have easily escaped Lion-O’s control." Still no response. "Hey Tygra? Just how long do I have to sit here before you acknowledge my existence?"

That got a response. Kind of. The tiger shifted his position and looked back at Panthro. After another few moments, Tygra spoke to Panthro for the first time since his return from the southern continent. "Did you realize what you were doing?"

Panthro’s eyes hardened and he sat up. "Do you have any idea what kind of pain I was in?"

"I fell to the Pain Fever while in the bunker. I assume you’ve heard the story by now."

"Kind of," Panthro retorted. "Bengali’s back in the Tower of Omens, Snarf doesn’t remember most of the journey in the bunker, and you and Cheetara are never down in sickbay anymore. I had to get it all out of Pumyra who wasn’t even there. And even though you experienced the Pain Fever for a brief moment, there is no way for you to imagine the kind of pain it escalates to." Panthro shuddered at the memories. "Every waking moment, I wished for it to end. Can you even begin to imagine what that’s like?"

"I guess not," came the sullen reply. "Cheetara put you up to this, didn’t she?"

"No, but she is concerned. You haven’t been speaking much to anyone."

"What you did…" Tygra trailed off in a fierce growl. "Do you have any idea what I went through when they—when they killed Savan?"

Panthro nodded. "More than most, at least. All my protests were verbal. You completely closed up. I don’t think you’ve ever completely reopened. You still blame yourself for it, don’t you?"

"I should have seen the ambush coming," Tygra whispered. "I should have seen it coming. I was in command of our reconnaissance mission. It was my fault."

"And when you realized I might do the same thing, you blamed yourself then, too." Panthro clapped a hand on his friend’s shoulder. "Listen, Tygra. The two of us have been Thundercats longer than anyone else has. We can’t afford to let something like this come between our friendship. We’re like the glue that holds the team together. You can’t blame yourself for something that didn’t happen."

"If it had—"

"If it had, it would have been my choice and not your fault," Panthro interrupted. "I guess I should have had more faith in you, Cheetara, and Snarf. As long as I’ve known you, never have you failed in your responsibilities. Even Savan’s death was not your fault. You saved the rest of the team. According to everyone who reviewed the attack, you did all you could and more. The rest of us should have died, too. You were the only one who thought differently." Panthro sighed. "Look, what I’m trying to say is…I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to put you through another Savan episode. But you can’t blame yourself like you’re doing. And we can’t afford to have you take it out on the rest of the team. So…friends again?"

Tygra looked over at Panthro and his proffered hand. With a faint smile, he took the hand with his own. "Friends."

A look of relief washed over Panthro’s face. "Good. And I know just how we can celebrate. I’ve got some new ideas for the Thundertank and…"

Tygra started to laugh. It was a sound Panthro hadn’t heard for a while and it convinced him that Tygra had really started to heal. "That’s better," the panther said. "I’m going to go get some real food, not that junk Pumyra kept trying to force down me in sickbay, and then let’s meet down in the hanger."

"Sounds great," Tygra agreed.

Panthro smiled and stood, still a little wobbly. "See you later then." He stumbled out of Tygra’s room, but he would have paused had he seen the expression on Tygra’s face. Though he struggled to hide it, just as he struggled to hide most of his emotions, the tiger had still not forgiven himself for letting his friend come so close to death. Glancing back out the window at the setting sun, Tygra shivered. The wounds on his spirit would never truly heal. They never did. Unlike the other Thundercats, he didn’t release his emotions in bouts of rage or short spells of euphoria. Emotional damage was completely internalized and there it festered until it became another hole in his spirit, one more failure, or so he thought, that he was always reminded of.

With a sigh, Tygra pushed himself off his bed and exited the room. He’d have to find Cheetara and assure her that he was fine. She’d know he was lying, that he was never really fine, but she would know it was as close as he’d get. And so they’d all forget about it. Or try to. But how could they forget how close Lion-O had come to destroying Panthro’s life and how close the others had been to getting there too late.

Locking all these feelings up in the back of his mind reserved for emotions he couldn’t block out, Tygra headed for the hanger. He might as well get a head start. After all these years of hardships and failures, intellectual challenges had become his only recourse. His only therapy. When the day came that these, too, failed to work, he supposed he would go insane. But that day was still far off, and for the present, he could still lose himself in his work. Reaching the hanger, he set about the task of keeping himself completely occupied and gradually he felt the stress of the previous adventure start to dissipate. When Panthro joined him later, he was almost back to his old self. But the scars were still there. They would haunt him forever, just as they would haunt all of the Thundercats. The right of death had not been resurrected without consequences. From that day on, every time Lion-O drew the Sword, every time the Thundercat signal flashed on the horizon, the Thundercats would remember and shiver. The Sword of Omens might safeguard and preserve their lives. But it could just as easily take it. It was a lesson none of them took lightly.