Old Enemies -- Chapters 22 and 23
Chapter 22 Lion-O soon found he had a companion as he walked off of the last paved stones of Cat’s Lair. “You know you’re very stubborn.” Cheetara said. “This is true but I have made a decision and that is to give up my title and privilege. The only thing that will change that is a unanimous vote by the remaining ThunderCats in favor of restoring me as Lord of the ThunderCats.” Lion-O told her. “You don’t think you can get it? Do you remember what I said earlier? ‘We would all lay our lives on the line for you’, remember?” The cheetah hoped this was getting through his thick skull. “Yes, I remember and I was kind of hoping that the others would follow me out that door but only you came.” He said. “Do you not want me here?” She asked slightly offended. “What I meant was that on a personal level you are all that matters but on a professional level…” he never got to finish as he heard his name being shouted. The two turned around and saw Panthro, Pumyra, and Ben-Gali running towards them. “You two make good time.” Ben-Gali huffed as he pointed out how far away from the Lair they had managed to get in such a short time. “Can’t help it, she’s a cheetah.” Lion-O smirked. “I think this belongs to you.” Panthro said, handing the Sword of Omens and Claw Shield to him. “So you voted while we were away. That’s what took so long.” The lion smiled and gladly accepted what was rightfully his. “Yes we did.” The panther lied. None of them really knew what Tygra was thinking but they had agreed it didn’t matter. “Well then there is work to be done. We need to get back to Third Earth and deal with the Mutants.” Lion-O said. “Agreed. The ThunderKittens can stay here and we will deal with those blasted Mutants.” Panthro nodded. The group then began to walk back and discussed their options about how to handle their prisoners. As they neared the Lair, Lion-O stopped. “What is it?” Cheetara asked. “I just had this awful thought.” The lion told them. “What?” Pumyra wondered. “Can we not tell Snarf what happened?” Lion-O pleaded, trying to lighten the mood. At this the group laughed. “The Lord of the ThunderCats afraid of a snarf?” Ben-Gali teased. “I just don’t want him to make a fuss. That is the last thing we all need.” The lion defended himself. “I swear not to tell.” Cheetara smiled and gave him a bump with her elbow. The other three followed with similar promises. “Good now that that is settled lets see what’s for dinner. I’m starving.” Ben-Gali said. “Sounds great, I don’t know how much longer I could control my stomach growling.” Panthro told them. Laughter once again could be heard as they climbed the steps to the entrance of the ThunderCats’ fortress. ********************* Around two am, the lair’s silence was broken by the sound of a door opening. Footsteps could be heard heading down the vacant hallways. Another door opened and the lion took his seat behind his desk. He had a lot on his mind and lying awake in his bed wasn’t helping. First on his mind was how to deal with the Mutants. Banishing Monkian, Vultureman, and Slythe was the easy part but dealing with Jackalman wasn’t going to be so easy. As the Lord of the ThunderCats, he would have the final say as to what would happen and after dinner he’d ordered the security tapes from Third Earth. They had been beamed over immediately and the lion had stored them on disks to review in his office. He had watched and rewatched them for hours and poured through the books on Thunderian law. It was obvious that when he destroyed the Amulet of Seti, the resulting force that had knocked everyone back had forced Jackalman on top of Lynx-O. In all actuality, the jackal had inadvertently killed Lynx-O. However, on the other hand wasn’t that his intent? Hadn’t the Mutants tried to take over the planet? Weren’t they trying to rid themselves of the ThunderCats? This is where things got fuzzy. According to the law book, killing someone on purpose is murder. An accidental death however is manslaughter. Only murder gave an option for a death sentence whereas manslaughter only offered a prison sentence. Should he even consider manslaughter or was he being too lenient? Then again, Lynx-O died from a wound received in battle so was it even a chargeable offense? Lion-O then spent some time looking at the war crime offenses. All that did was make his mind more confused. He sat and pondered it for a little while until he eventually decided he needed something to help him relax, so he got up from his seat and headed for the kitchen. On his way down there he heard animated voices coming from the control room. They were not loud enough to wake others but loud enough to be heard through the door. He soon recognized Panthro and Tygra’s voices. There was a scuffle followed by the panther saying, “Are we going to have a problem?” “No.” Tygra replied. “I agreed with you didn’t I?” “I’d still like to know why you didn’t follow us this afternoon.” Panthro said. Lion-O had been wondering too but he hadn’t brought it up. “I told you that someone had to stay with the Kittens.” The tiger responded. “Bull shit. They don’t need that much help anymore. Did you really think that Lion-O doesn’t deserve to be our leader?” Panthro’s anger grew. Lion-O waited for the answer but got nothing as he felt a hand on his shoulder. “You should be in bed. We are flying to Third Earth in a few hours.” Cheetara said. “Why aren’t you in bed?” He asked. “I was looking for you. I figured since your office was empty, the kitchen would be the next spot to check. Besides when you don’t sleep, neither do I.” She told him. With that the two headed for bed while Lion-O wondered what Tygra had been holding back. Chapter 23 The Thunder Guard brought the four prisoners into the mini-Thunderian courtroom. The ThunderCats sat at their panel along the left side of the wall. They had reached Third Earth only three hours before and were now ready to deal with their old enemies. “What have you been up to ThunderCatssss?” Slythe spoke up when he saw them. “We buried Lynx-O two days ago.” Lion-O said his face was stolid. “So it seems we managed to do something good.” The reptile smirked. “The perpetrator will be punished accordingly I assure you.” Lion-O told him. The doors to the room then opened and in walked Mandora and Captain Bragg. “Speaking of punishment, Captain, I do believe three of these Mutants belong to you.” The Lord of the ThunderCats said. “Indeed they do.” The bounty hunter smiled. “Thunder Guard please escort the prisoners out to the Circus Train.” Three of the Thunder Guard members nodded and grabbed Slythe, Monkian, and Vultureman. The three of them were surprised to see that Jackalman was the one that was getting left behind. “That mutt is the one that killed a ThunderCat?” Slythe asked in disbelief. “How did that happen?” Monkian screeched. Then the three started bickering as they were led outside. “What are you going to do with me?” Jackalman whimpered. “You killed a ThunderCat, what do you think is going to happen?” Panthro stood up. The jackal cringed as Lion-O stopped the panther from going any further. “I have reviewed the tapes and read through the law books and I have spent a long time trying to decide what your punishment should be. There is no doubt in my mind that you should pay for what you have done.” The lion explained. He nodded to Mandora, who stepped in and grabbed her prisoner. “Jackalman, you are hereby charged and found guilty of war crimes. The charges include illegal possession of warp gas and murder of Lynx-O the ThunderCat in the second degree. Your fifty to life sentence will be carried out on the Penal Planet until you are either released on parole or die of old age.” Mandora told him. She then turned to Lion-O and asked, “Permission to remove this scumbag from your custody?” “Permission granted. One more thing before you go though.” He said. The Evil Chaser nodded and the lion began. “Before you go thinking that I spared you because I couldn’t in good conscience end your life, realize that I didn’t end it because it would be too good for you. You deserve the worst punishment possible and for it to drag out for the rest of your life.” With that Mandora took her prisoner and left the room. Now the only one that remained besides the ThunderCats was the leader of the Thunder Guard’s Third Earth contingent. “Major Lupi, please step forward.” The litah did as she was commanded. “I want you to know that your troops are not at fault for what occurred. They had no control over what was going on and they will not be penalized in any way.” Lion-O said. “Yes sir. Thank you sir. My men and I would like to give our condolences for Lynx-O. He was a good cat and will surely be missed.” The Major told them. “Thank you. You are dismissed.” Lion-O nodded. With that the litah gave a salute, turned on her heels and left. The room now only held ThunderCats. “Well said and a wise decision, Lion-O. Jaga would be proud.” Panthro told him. “Thank you.” The lion said half-heartedly. “Where did the warp gas charge come from?” Cheetara asked. “He had it on him when the Thunder Guard stripped him of his belongings.” Tygra spoke up. The others nodded and a silence fell between them for a few minutes. Finally Pumyra got up and left the room. The rest soon followed. Lion-O wondered if he had given the puma the closure she was looking for. He’d seen how hard this whole ordeal had been on her and he hoped that she would be able to live with his decision. Later that night, he found himself up in the Cat’s head yet again. Cheetara soon joined him and the two sat in silence and enjoyed the cool night air. “Somehow I knew you’d be up here.” The puma’s voice surprised them. “It’s a good place to be.” Lion-O said. A silence fell between them as Cheetara excused herself. They two watched the sunset and then Pumyra spoke up. “I want you to know that I think you made a good decision today.” “Really? I thought you were upset.” The lion said. “I was but I realized that telling Jackalman what you did was the best thing. A part of me wants the jackal to die, I’d be lying if I said any different but putting him to death won’t bring Lynx-O back. That and Lynx-O would not want me to live with such horrible thoughts.” She told him. “It wasn’t an easy decision to make believe me but I remember that Jaga once told me that the best way to defeat our enemies was to do it by kindness. Sparing his life the best kind thing I could think of because I imagine his prison sentence will not at all be pleasant.” Lion-O gave a half smile. “Well it’s over and somehow we’ll manage to still fight another day.” Pumyra smiled slightly herself. The Lord of the ThunderCats nodded. It would be difficult to get over the loss of their friend but somehow through their friendship they would deal with it. The End