Oh, boy. I know I’m going to get creamed for this. The idea of the story came from Darkman. The story is very much based on the movie “LadyHawke.” If you haven’t seen it, you’ll still understand the story. Warner Brothers and 20th Century Fox own the movie rights and characters, the story, and everything else. That said and done, I can’t be sued. Obviously, this isn’t your typical ThunderCat story so it doesn’t follow the storyline of the television series. For example, Lynx-O can see. It’s set in a medieval time, so no Thundertank, Thunderstrike or any major technological equipment.

Cursed Hearts

“Come on, WilyKat. You can do it. Just one more push!”

He was pushing a slab of stone, straining to be accurate, as he pushed the piece of slab free from the other bricks that were securely fastened to each other. WilyKat peek his head out and saw light—morning light. After two weeks of imprisonment in Cat’s Lair dungeons, he was finally free. He was sent to prison after a fail attempt to steal jewels from the Treasure of Thundera.

Punishments for crimes were very strict in these days. Stealing food would cost one a hand. Killing someone would cost the murderer their own life. Stealing or even an attempted theft from Cat’s Lair, meant the thief has sealed his fate whether he wanted to or not. The Lord of the ThunderCats, Tygra found him dead to rights and imprisoned him. WilyKat was being sentenced today—his approaching death was unknown. There were many ways he could die—hanging, decapitation, and starvation, ways WilyKat did not want to go out.

WilyKat crawled through the small space and onto freedom—cold, green grass, but freedom nonetheless. He looked which way to go—north or south. If he went north, he would more than likely be spotted with the open roads and the highly visible attendance of guards in the capital. The obvious choice was south, though that meant encountering the jungle, teeming life of the wild, big cats on Thundera. Still, that was better than being captured and facing Lord Tygra.

A Thunderian guard opens the cell that supposedly held WilyKat. “All right, Thunderian. Time to face your punishment.” He looked around the small 4x6 cell and found it empty.

“You’ll never catch him,” an insane Thunderian called out, laughing like a mad hyena. “WilyKat is gone. He’s escape through the cot.”

The guard lifts the cot and saw a small hole, barely large enough for a slim person to fit through. A spoon laid beside the hole. The slippery Thunderian escaped and who knew how long he was gone.

The bells outside Cat’s Lair sounded throughout the lair. The sound echoed within a mile from the lair itself. A man shrouded in a black hooded cloak on his black stallion horse with a hawk on his left hand, crosses the plain grass. The lair’s head was seen in the distance. The man stops and listens to the sound of the bells. He knew this alarm was from Cat’s Lair and it wasn’t any type of alarm—it was a warning sound that someone has escaped the prison. This was the signal he was looking for.

At Cat’s Lair, several soldiers mounted their horses waiting for orders in search of the escapee. Tygra, Lord of the ThunderCats, walks outside with Grune, his second-in-command, where soldiers were ready and waiting for the man in charge of the search.

“What’s this I hear about a prison escape, Grune?”

“WilyKat has escape, sir.”

“WilyKat, the thief who tried to steal the Treasures of Thundera? How could something like this have happened?” He questioned irritably.

“He used a spoon,” Grune answered feebly.

“A...spoon?” He spoke as if Grune had grown a second head. “I don’t care if he gotten out using his toenails! Find him and bring him to me! No one has ever escaped the prisons of Cat’s Lair and I will not let some common thief break that tradition!”

“Yes, my Lord,” Grune bowed slightly before him. “I will lead the command.”

Tygra grunted and returned to the sanctity of the lair. Grune got on his brown horse. “Lord Tygra wants all available men searching for the prisoner, WilyKat. The person who finds him will be brought to the personal attention to the Lord of the ThunderCats.” Grune gestured to two men to follow him. It was only a thief after all. No reason to call a full army.

Grune and his men rode throughout the day searching for WilyKat on the open road, but to no avail they couldn’t find him. As day descended to an end, the temperatures dropped dramatically. WilyKat only had the thin tatters of clothing he was given at Cat’s Lair prison for warmth. He was tired, cold and hungry, but he had to move on until he knew it was safe to rest. Hours passed before that happened. The skies were pitch black save for the light given from the full moon. WilyKat gathered sticks to make a fire. His dinner was a rabbit he killed, caught in his homemade trap.

WilyKat was fast asleep after his dinner until he was awakened by a lion’s roar. At first, the roar came from a distance so WilyKat relaxed and went back to sleep but what couldn’t have been an hour later, the roar became louder and closer. WilyKat quickly killed the fire and continued to walk through the jungle for the rest of the night.

Just after dawn, the man in black rides his horse at the base of a green hill. A bird screeches in the distance. The man stops and raises his left hand. The bird quickly swoops and lands on the extended hand. The man continued on his journey.

****

Having been on his feet most of the night, WilyKat was more tired than ever and in badly need of a change of clothing. Lucky for him, a cottage was nearby. The owner’s clothes were hanging on a clothesline. WilyKat quickly swoop the clothes off the line and put them on. Now he had warm clothes. All he needed now was money. Why not kill two birds with one stone? He sneakily entered the house, found some money and made a quick escape.

That was easy, he told himself. Time to pleasure himself in a scrumptious breakfast. Another five-mile jog and he found himself at an inn. Unbeknownst to WilyKat, the man in the black cloak spotted him. The people in the inn looked rather harmless, some eating, drinking, chatting about their business and a strange group in cloaks sitting together keeping their heads low but alert as to what was going on.

WilyKat walked to the owner at the counter. “I’ll have your most finest meal and the same for anyone else who’d join me in a celebration of escaping the prisons of Cat’s Lair.”

“Really?” A man in a gray cloak spoke. “I’ve been in those prisons myself.”

“Oh?” Kat smiled, thinking he still had the upper hand. To his knowledge, he was the only one to have escaped Cat’s Lair dungeons. “Are you there as a servant? A cook? A blacksmith, perhaps?”

The man put his mace on the table. WilyKat’s heart stopped. He knew that mace anywhere. It belonged to the second-in-command, Grune. On cue, he turned around and removed his cloak. The other men at the table removed their cloaks. He knew these were the soldiers who were with him.

“You should’ve stuck to the jungle, boy. Get him,” Grune ordered.

The two soldiers went after WilyKat. WilyKat jumped over the counter and threw plates and glasses at them to knock them back. He then jumped off the counter and made a run for the door, but Grune caught WilyKat, pulled his head back and brought a knife to his neck.

“Thought you could get away huh, kid? If Lord Tygra didn’t want you dead by his hands, I’ll gladly do it myself.”

“Let the boy go.”

Everyone turned their attention to the man at the door. His over six feet statue nearly filled the doorframe. His pose was threatening and formidable in his full black attire of a knight. His sword was sheath in his claw shield. He sized everyone up—two soldiers and Grune. He can handle that. His eyes fell on WilyKat.

“You. Out.”

WilyKat didn’t waste any time. He released himself from Grune’s hold and ran out of the inn. This was his one and only chance away from Tygra’s men and he wasn’t going to waste it.

Grune took a few steps forward and looked the stranger over; only he wasn’t much of a stranger as he was an enemy. He never thought he’d see him again. “One of the guards told me you had return. I thought he was foolish to make up such a fabrication, but I see he was telling the truth. I didn’t think you were so stupid to return, Lion-O.”

"It is still my planet, my land and I aim to reclaim it.”

Grune laughed at that. “You’ve given that up three years ago. You are no longer Lord of the ThunderCats or have you forgotten what happened?”

Oh, he hadn’t forgotten. How could he forget something that changed his life? “I haven’t forgotten anything,” Lion-O said coolly.

Grune scoffed at him. He didn’t like Lion-O when he was Lord of the ThunderCats and he didn’t like him now in exile. The two guards who failed to capture WilyKat stood beside him. “Get him.”

Lion-O pulled out his Sword of Omens. One guard pulled out his sword and fought Lion-O while the other readied his crossbow. With quick movements, Lion-O disarmed the soldier and kicked him into Grune, knocking him both against the wall. Lion-O pulled on his claw shield and raised it to catch the arrow shot at him. He stared menacingly at the soldier who dropped his crossbow and raised his hand in surrender. Lion-O sheaths his sword, ran out the inn and quickly mounted his horse. He had other matters to attend to, like capturing the boy.

Grune pushed the soldier off him. “Get off me you insipid rat and get Lion-O!” he ordered.

WilyKat tried to steal himself a horse at a stable nearby, but whenever he got on one, the horse would knock him off. WilyKat tried to get on another horse but it ran away from him. He cursed at them and made a run for it. For all he knew, Grune and his men killed the man in black and were after him now.

Lion-O saw WilyKat running away. He looked back to see if anyone were following him. When he saw it was clear, he charge his horse faster after the young man. WilyKat’s heart pounded loudly as he ran, but the noise grew louder and louder that WilyKat knew it wasn’t his heart. It was something else. Hooves? He looked back and saw Lion-O charging toward him.

Kat eyes widen and he ran faster. “Oh, no. No. No. NO!”

When Lion-O got close enough, he lifted a screaming WilyKat off the ground by the collar of his shirt and threw him across his horse. By now, the two men with Grune were chasing them now on their horses. Lion-O’s hawk swooped down from the sky so low that one of the men was knocked down off his horse and the other man turned and ran in the opposite direction.

****

Lion-O and WilyKat rode on horseback the rest of the day only pausing to give Lion-O’s horse water. Lion-O decided to stop for the day in a wooded area an hour before sunset. There was a barn and a rundown shack. A plump jackal woman saw them and ran away screaming to the shack.

“We’ll stop here.” Lion-O said.

“Are you sure, sir? There’s still light and frankly we can pick better lodgings than this.”

Even though WilyKat was right, Lion-O knew there was no time to look for more suitable lodgings. “It’ll do. Now stop your insolent chattering.”

Jackalman stepped out of the shack with an ax in his hand—his wife closely behind him. They were both very dirty and in need of a long, hot bath.

“Good evening, sir, madam,” and he was using the term loosely, but as a gentleman he was to show good manners. “My comrade and I are in need of lodging tonight.”

Jackalman shook his head.

WilyKat took some money out of his pocket and waved it in front of them. “We have money.”

Jackalman’s wife nods her head and whispered to Jackalman to let them stay. “You can stay in the barn.” He told them, pointing to the right behind them.

Lion-O nods and trots to the barn. He and WilyKat dismounted off the horse. WilyKat tied Lion-O’s horse to the railing bars around the barn while Lion-O took his black knapsack and weapons off his horse, and with his trusted hawk on his left hand entered the barn in search of an empty stable. Lion-O set his hawk on the door of the stable and carries his knapsack and weapons to the back of the stable where no one would see its contents. He opens it and pulls out a blue dress with gentle care.

“Sir?” Kat called.

Lion-O puts the garment back in the knapsack and walks to the front of the stable. “What is it?”

“If there is anything else, I’ll turn in.”

“You can watch my horse, Storm,” Lion-O offered. “And don’t disturb me. I’m a heavy sleeper and if I am wakened, I’m liable to attack first and ask questions later. Understand?”

“Uh, yes, sir.” WilyKat answered walking away from the stable. He walked outside, freed Storm from the rails, and walked the black horse to Kat’s side of the barn where he would keep watch of him until tomorrow.

Lion-O clutched the blue garment in his hand. He smells the dress—sweet feminine scent teased his nostrils. He then rubs it against his cheek lovingly, imprinting the feel to his brain. Mere instinct alerted him to turn around. The sun was beginning to set. The mixture of yellow and orange colors blending together created a beautiful sight of the sun dipping into the lower horizons to everyone else watching, but to Lion-O, it was breaking his heart.

“One…day…soon.”

****

That night, WilyKat was out in the woods picking up sticks and grumbling about his duties of the night ordered by Lion-O.

“He has me doing everything.” Kat whined. “He wants me to get wood for the fire, take care of his horse, fetch my own food, while he does nothing but sleep in his stable and I do all the work.”

He picks up another stick.

“Lion-O is a strange one. Why did he save my life? He wants me for something, I know. Why else would he save me?” WilyKat thought carefully. “And I know I’ve seen that face before, but that’s impossible. That man is dead.”

He picks up another stick and threw it down.

“Well, whatever he wants I’m not going to do it. I’m sixteen years old. I’m a man. I can do anything I want. I’m leaving this wretched place so to he—”

A growl shuts WilyKat’s train of thought. It sounded like a lion. Best to get out of the woods, WilyKat, he told himself. He walked a few steps and heard a branch crack, but it wasn’t from him. It was from someone else, possibly a hungry, man-eating lion. He heard the growl grow louder. Dropping his sticks, he ran out of the woods, only stopping to catch his breath by a tree near the barn. He thought he was safe but he felt a presence behind him. WilyKat looked back and saw Jackalman raising an ax at him. WilyKat screamed and ran again with Jackalman close behind him.

The lion roars, tackling Jackalman to the ground, going straight for the jugulars. The sight of the lion killing Jackalman caused WilyKat to scream again and run to Lion-O’s stable.

“Sir! Sir!” He pounded on the door yelling. When there was no answer, WilyKat pushed the stable door open. It was empty. Of all the times for Lion-O to not be around for a fight. WilyKat looked around quickly for something to fight the lion with. He grabbed Lion-O’s crossbow and arrows, left the stable, and found a good view through the barn to strike the lion. He pulls the strings back on the bow and put the arrow in the string. He aimed the crossbow at the lion still attacking the defenseless jackal. He was about to let it loose when a hand pluck the arrow from the crossbow.

Kat looked back and did a double take when he saw a woman in a black hooded cloak. He closed his gaping mouth and opened it again to speak.

“Who…”

“Shh.” She silenced him.

There was silence outside the barn too. The lion’s attacking has stopped. The woman walked out of the barn where a dangerous lion was on the loose. WilyKat had to warn her.

“Miss. Miss. Don’t go out there! There is a mad lion out there and a dead man.”

She put up her hand, assuring him it was all right. “I know.” She left WilyKat in the room and walked out in the open.

“Miss! Please!” WilyKat warned him but she didn’t stop walking.

WilyKat couldn’t help but watch and pray the lion wouldn’t harm the woman. He looked on dumbfounded at the scene transpiring before him. The lion approached the woman like he knew her. She rubs the lion’s head affectionately and walks off into the night with him.

“So far this night, I’ve been chased in the woods by a lion, almost killed by a jackal man, and now I see a beautiful woman walking off with a lion. I must be dreaming.”

“You are dreaming,” the woman called out.

WilyKat gasped and ran back to his stable, frighten of everything that transpired. The safest thing for him right now was to stay in his stable and hoped what he saw really was a dream.

****

The following day, Lion-O and WilyKat walked through the woods. Lion-O led on foot with his hawk on his left hand while WilyKat walked Storm. WilyKat didn’t have time to tell Lion-O what happened last night that morning because Lion-O ordered him to pack up and get ready to leave. He still didn’t have any idea where they were going. Lion-O had been so quiet and proud looking that he refused to answer any of WilyKat’s questions.

“We’ll stop here,” Lion-O said sitting on a large rock in front of a tree. He wrapped his cloak around him to keep warm from the early afternoon’s cool air. “This isn’t a good day for travel.” He leaned against the tree and closed his eyes.

WilyKat walked Storm to a tree and tied the reigns around it so the horse wouldn’t get away. Kat sat on the ground in front of the tree. “I could use some more rest after what happened last night. That lion would’ve killed me,” he paused to wrap his brown cloak around him, “but it was strange. He attacked Jackalman and left me alone.” He looked at Lion-O who didn’t seem interested in the story, but he continued anyway. “There was a woman, with snow-white skin, brown tear lines and deep brown eyes, like a bird and she had the voice of an angel.”

Lion-O opened his eyes in wonder. “She spoke?”

“Yes.”

“What did she say?” Lion-O asked amaze, eyes lightening up.

“I asked her if I were dreaming and she said I was.”

Lion-O smiled faintly and lowered his head, looking down as if he was sad and wanted to hide the pain that was coursing through him.

WilyKat took Lion-O’s silence as an offense, thinking Lion-O didn’t believe him. “I may be a liar and thief, but I’m telling the truth this time.”

Lion-O looked at WilyKat, his eyes gentle, emotional. “I believe you,” he said softly. “I believe in dreams. Does this lady have a name?”

WilyKat shrugged his shoulders. “She didn’t say. Why?”

“Maybe this maiden would wonder into my dreams.” He smiled as if reliving a sweet moment with a loved one. He was looking at his hawk now. “It would nice to call this woman by name and pretended we’ve met before. I’ve waited a long time for such a lady.” He paused again, his mind drifting to another lifetime, a happier time with the woman he loved, a woman who he continues to love. Lion-O knew his face was an open book now so he closed his mind from the memory. He pulled his hood over his head further, hiding most of his face. “Get some sleep. The bird will alert us to any danger.”

WilyKat shook his head, not at Lion-O but himself. Lion-O looked as if he was revealing something deep from him, but he swallowed it up. He got a bad feeling about this whole situation he found himself in. Something just wasn’t right. He has been following Lion-O for two days now and he has yet to say what he wanted WilyKat for. Did it have anything to do with this deep feeling he was hiding? Every bone in his body was telling WilyKat to run, get away from Lion-O as fast as he can, but another part of him told him he couldn’t.

“I must be crazy to stay here. Completely out of my mind,” he muttered.

****

Grune arrived back at Cat’s Lair, later that day. He rushed up the steps in search for Tygra. He had important news to deliver to the Lord of the ThunderCats. The saber tooth ThunderCat entered the corner door leading to the Throne Room where he saw Tygra sitting in his throne chair. He was watching professional dancers perform for him. Tygra saw Grune from the corner of his eyes.

“Why have you come to disturb me while I’m being entertained? Have you found WilyKat?”

“No, but my men and I discovered something else. Lion-O is back.”

Tygra snapped his head at Grune. His face contorted in dark anger. He immediately stood and clapped twice, causing the dancers to stop. “I’ve no need for your entertainment now. Be gone.”

Tygra waited until all the dancers were gone, leaving only the guards in attendance. He faced Grune again. “Continue.”

“WilyKat travels with him. I have my men combing the jungles and woods for them.”

“And the hawk?” Tygra asked.

“Hawk?” Grune repeated. “There wasn’t a hawk.”

“There must be a hawk with them. A strong-willed hawk. Find them. Lion-O and WilyKat are to be killed, but the hawk remains unharmed. If she is, then you will die. Now go.”

Grune bowed before Tygra and left. Tygra turned to the guard standing in attendance. “Get me Slythe.”

****

The afternoon clouds broke through, letting the sun shined the remainder of the day. WilyKat was at camp while Lion-O was off exploring. He thought now was a good time to chop the branches he gathered for the fire. He walked to Storm and pulled a gold claw shield with a sword in it from inside the saddlebag. He gasped.

He knew about this shield and sword. What Thunderian didn’t know? Only one person carried this sword and claw shield—the Lord of the ThunderCats. But that was Tygra now, not Lion-O. It hit WilyKat. Lion-O was the Lion-O that was once Lord of the ThunderCats, but he died of an illness. The more WilyKat knew now, the less he knew. He was going to deal with this matter and learn everything when Lion-O comes back, especially if he was going to be apart of it.

He pulled out the Sword of Omens and the blade grew to full length. WilyKat nearly dropped the sword at its full weight. It was heavy. He lifts the sword with two hands, raise it above his head and slams it against the sticks, breaking the branches in half. He gathered some more branches and raised the sword again. He was going to slap it against the sticks when a pair of strong hands pulled the sword from him.

“This sword isn’t for chopping wood. It’s for fighting battles and coming out victorious.” Lion-O stated. He sighed passing Kat to sit on a long log. It was time to tell WilyKat what he would need of him. “I need your help in breaking in Cat’s Lair.”

WilyKat raised his eyebrows incredulously. “You’ve got to be kidding me. I just broke out of Cat’s Lair. There is no way I’m going back there, and incidentally, to carry that sword, the Sword of Omens one must be the Lord of the ThunderCats and you resembled the previous lord, Lion-O.”

“I resemble him because I am him.” He corrected Kat.

“Then where have you been? It’s been said that you died of a mysterious illness and your second in command, Tygra, took over.”

“As you can see, I am very well alive.”

“Then go back to Cat’s Lair and reclaim your throne.” WilyKat told him. Lion-O wasn’t going to get him to do his work.

“It’s not that easy. I must break in to catch them off guard. You can help me. You are the only one to have escaped the dungeons of Cat’s Lair.”

“But you are the Lord of the ThunderCats, well previous Lord.” Kat pointed out.

“It wouldn’t be good if I reveal myself before its time.”

“Before it’s time? Grune saw you and I bet he’s telling Lord Tygra about you right now. And incidentally, it’s pure luck I escape in the first place.” WilyKat argued, adamant of disagreeing with Lion-O. “There are strange, magical forces surrounding you, and I don’t want to be apart of it anymore. Find someone else to help you.”

“I’ve been waiting three years for a sign, and when the bell alarms sounded at Cat’s Lair, I knew the sign I was waiting for was you.

“I don’t live by signs. I live by wits and guts and they are both telling me to get out of here before I get sunk in too far. I thank you for saving my life, but I have no honor, no loyalty. I don’t help anyone but myself. I doubt if you’d kill me for looking out for myself.”

A half smile crept the corner of Lion-O’s face as if agreeing with him. WilyKat continued.

“I’m sorry for your troubles but you can’t make me apart of them.” He walks away and the Sword of Omens slams into a tree WilyKat was about to past. Startled, he looked back. Lion-O looked rather smug; pleased with the direction his sword took. WilyKat put his hand on the sword, stopping it from swinging. A sheepish smile crossed his face. “One more time couldn’t hurt.”

****

That night, a blonde haired woman ran in the woods, chasing a rabbit. The rabbit was a fast one as it moved in different directions to confuse her chaser. Unfortunately for the rabbit, the chaser was a cheetah, the fastest being on the planet. The woman dived and caught the rabbit.

“Gotcha!” She said triumphantly.

“Miss?”

Startled, the woman looks for the voice and absently releases the rabbit that scurried away. She looks at the rabbit running away from her. “Oh,” she groaned. She’ll have to find another meal. She turned her attention back to WilyKat who was tied to a tree. “Why are you tied to a tree?”

The truth was Lion-O tied WilyKat to the tree so he wouldn’t escape, but WilyKat wasn’t going to tell her that. He had a better idea—lie. “Lord Tygra’s men attacked me and tied me up.”

The woman smiled, knowing he was lying. She knew who tied him up. “Oh, really?”

“Yes.”

“Well, why didn’t they kill you?” She asked.

“Kill me? Uh, oh, they want me to suffer a painful, starving death and I saw a family of birds looking at me mighty tasty. So, could you help me? Please. Please?” He said more innocently and pleading. “May I have your name, Miss? We’ve seen each other for two nights and we haven’t exchanged pleasantries.”

“Cheetara.”

“I’m WilyKat, Cheetara. Could you please help me? I’m losing blood circulation in my hands.” He pleaded again. “Please?”

Cheetara smiled at his antics. He was lying and wasn’t in as much pain as he fabricated, but it was a pity just to leave him tied up like that. What harm could it be releasing him? She walked to him, pulled out a small knife she had with her and cut the thick rope that held WilyKat’s wrists. A lion’s roar broke the stillness of the woods. Cheetara looked back, searching where the roar came from. .

“Hey,” she turned around and WilyKat was gone.

“Thank you for your help, Cheetara. Tell Lion-O he ties a wicked knot,” WilyKat’s voice echoed in the distance. He was running away and not coming back.

“Oh, no,” Cheetara groaned. “He’s going to kill me.”

****

Just after dawn, Lion-O stood on his horse waiting. A bird’s screeched erupted the calm morning as it flew to its master and landing on his left hand. “Good morning,” he said cheerfully. “Shall we find WilyKat?”

WilyKat spotted a handful of Thunderian guards at the bottom of a hill. Their tents were still up and a fire from last night was being put out. It would be foolish to go in that direction so he decided to head back, but if he did that, he’ll risk running into Lion-O. Well, running into Lion-O now was better than Lord Tygra’s soldiers.

He crawled backwards and bumped into something. It wasn’t hard enough to be a boulder or anything natural. It was human. He only glanced back before he was yanked off the ground and dragged to the camp below to the group leader, Tor.

“Tor, we’ve captured the Thunderian, WilyKat.”

“Good,” Tor replied and looked WilyKat over. “Where’s Lion-O?”

“Uh, Lion-O? Big man in all black and thick patch of red hair? Haven’t seen him,” he lied.

The solider yanked his head back and put a sword to his neck. “Seen him now?”

WilyKat gulped. He was grateful Lion-O helped him, but his life was at stake now. Besides, Lion-O could handle his own, but something tugged inside him that it wouldn’t be right if he rat Lion-O out.

“I don’t know.”

The soldier yanked his head back. “Liar. We know you travel with him. Tell us or your head will be on the ground.”

“He’s heading south.” WilyKat lied.

Tor smiled wickedly. He knew WilyKat was a compulsive liar. “Then he’s heading north. He should be coming in this direction then. Set up a trap for Lion-O.”

****

Unaware of an ambush, Lion-O rides his horse on the lower part of the hill. His hawk, faithfully on his left hand. He passes the tents and the dead fire. The Thunderian guards were hiding behind the tents, preparing their crossbows and unsheathing their swords. WilyKat was sitting tied and gagged on a horse with a soldier. WilyKat saw they were getting ready to attack. Even though Lion-O wasn’t his favorite person now, he didn’t think it was right for Lion-O to die. He only wanted back what was rightfully his. WilyKat struggled and pulls out the gagged. He worked on the thick ropes his hands were bind in and got an idea. He put his hands around the soldier’s neck.

“Look out, Lion-O!” WilyKat called out. The soldier struggled and broke free. He pushed WilyKat off his horse.

Lion-O raised his left hand, sending his hawk to fly over the area. The Thunderian guards came out of the hiding places. Two shot a crossbow at Lion-O. One hit the saddlebag on his horse and the other hit his claw shield as Lion-O blocked it from hitting his chest. Lion-O pulled out his own crossbow and shot one of the soldiers in the chest. Two other soldiers were getting ready to shoot at Lion-O when WilyKat threw a rock at him. The arrow shot upward hitting the hawk in the sky. It let out a piercing cry. The other soldier did shoot Lion-O, striking his shoulder. He cried out in pain and looked up. He saw the hawk falling from the sky.

“NO!” Lion-O cried out.

WilyKat freed himself and watch the hawk fall to the ground. Angry, Lion-O pulled out the arrow as a soldier charged towards him with his sword. Lion-O stabbed the arrow in the soldier’s stomach. He pulled out his Sword of Omens and rush towards the last standing soldier. He turned his horse around and ran away. Lion-O then turns his horse to where the hawk had fallen. WilyKat followed him.

Lion-O stopped his horse a few feet from the hawk. He dismounted off Storm. His sword still in his hand, Lion-O slammed the blade into the ground and steadily walked to the hawk. He kneeled in front of it. The weak cry from the hawk was tearing Lion-O up inside.

WilyKat didn’t understand Lion-O’s actions. He was hovering over the hawk protectively as if it was the most important thing to him. It was a hawk for crying out loud. He can get another one and trained it like he did this one. What was the big deal about that?

“Easy,” Lion-O told the hawk soothingly. “It’s going to be all right. I promise.” He looked back at WilyKat. “Quick, get a cloth from my saddlebag.”

WilyKat did as he was told and rush to Lion-O with the cloth. Lion-O wraps the bird in the cloth, cradling it gently as if it was a newborn. He hands the hawk to WilyKat.

“Here. Get help.”

For a hawk? WilyKat thought. “It’s just a hawk, Lion-O. It’s done for.”

Lion-O grabbed WilyKat by the collar of his shirt with one hand and lifts him off the ground. “Don’t you dare say that!” He growled. Regaining his cool, he lowered the young Thunderian to the ground. “Get on my horse. Go west. You will find a ruined home on a cliff. You’ll find a monk named Lynx-O. Give him the hawk. He will know what to do.”

WilyKat got on the horse and Lion-O handed him the hawk. He looked at WilyKat, making sure his threatening eyes met WilyKat’s confused ones. “If you fail, I will hunt you to my dying breath. There will be no place where you can hide from my wrath. Now go!” The horse starts off and Lion-O slaps the horse’s rear end to make him go faster. “Go!”

He watch them leave and Lion-O fell to his knees in front of the Sword of Omens in a weakened state. He looked upward in a search for answers. “Please,” he begged. “Don’t let the hawk die.”

****

WilyKat rode the rest of the day on horseback, looking for Lynx-O, unsure why he was doing this in the first place—going out of his way to save a bird? What was Lion-O’s problem? What was his problem? Oh, right. Lion-O threatened to hunt him for the rest of his life and he believed he would. WilyKat didn’t want Lord Tygra’s soldiers and Lion-O hunting him for the rest of his days.

Near sunset, he approached a house on a cliff. There was a crevasse between the house and the land Kat was on. “Hello? Is there a Lynx-O here?”

The door opens and an elderly man stepped out. Obvious from the lynx family of cats, he was slightly bald with a mustache and beard. “I’m Lynx-O,” he spoke gruffly. “Who are you?”

“I’ve got a hawk here.”

Lynx-O smiled. “Good. We can eat it.”

The thought was tempting for a moment. He was getting quite hungry himself, but Lion-O would have his head if he did that. “We can’t eat this bird. It belongs to Lion-O, the former Lord of the ThunderCats.”

Lynx-O froze in horror. “Oh, great Thundera. Bring her in! Quickly!” Lynx-O lowered the bridge so WilyKat could cross over. WilyKat carefully got off the horse, cradling the hawk and followed Lynx-O inside. Lynx-O leads him to a bedroom on the second floor. He ordered WilyKat to set the hawk on the bed. A bed for crying out loud! WilyKat’s mind scream. It was just a hawk not a human being. Why was it being treated with such care?

“Now go,” Lynx-O told him, leading the Thunderian to the door. “We must wait.”

WilyKat turned back to see Lynx-O cover the hawk to the wound—above the hawk’s left breast with a blanket. WilyKat knew something big was going on and he was once again being left out of it.

Moments after sunset, WilyKat found Lynx-O in his garden gathering herbs. More than likely it was for the bird. Speaking of it, he decided to check on it and see how it was doing. He suspected the bird was dead. There was no way it would last this long with that arrow in it. He opened the bedroom door and his body went still when he saw who was lying on his bed.

Cheetara, the woman he has seen for the past two nights, lied on the bed with the arrow stuck out above her left breast. Eerily, everything was making sense. It crashed into him like a pounding wave. Everything was so clear now. He knew the who and the what. The only question left was how. He backs towards the door to leave when she called out.

“Lion-O…is he….”

“He’s fine, milady.” He turned back to face her, slowly approaching the foot of the bed. “Lion-O fought like a lion.” He inwardly groans for the terrible pun he made. In spite of that, Cheetara’s face was washed with relief. “What are you?” WilyKat asked carefully. “Are you flesh? Spirit?”

“I am desolate.”

Scared, WilyKat stepped back and bumped into Lynx-O who just entered with a small bowl in his hand. The lynx wasn’t please with the wildcat sneaking in. “Go, boy. Get out of here.”

WilyKat stumbled and left the room. As he closed the door behind him, he let everything that happen race through his mind again. He held onto the doorknob to keep his balance. He was feeling faint from the ordeal. He cringes thinking how painful it will be for Cheetara when Lynx-O pulled the arrow out. A lion’s roar was heard in the distance. WilyKat jumped again, but this time he wasn’t as scared as was when he first heard the lion growled.

At Cat’s Lair, Tygra was drenched in sweat as he tossed and turned in bed, suffering from a dreadful nightmare. His hand just above his left breast, clutching it tightly. Figurines of a lion and a hawk rested on his four-post bed. Lynx-O put his left hand on the arrow and covered Cheetara’s eyes with his other hand. She removed his hand from her eyes and rested her hand on his shoulder.

“Ready?” Lynx-O asked.

“Yes.” She nods. Her body swamped with sweat of what was to come. The minutes turn to seconds, as Lynx-O got closer to pull out the arrow.

The lion’s roar grew louder. He was getting closer to Lynx-O’s home. Lynx-O mentally counted to the three and pulled the arrow out. A piercing cry of pain erupted from the cheetah’s mouth. The lion roared in pain and Tygra awakened in a cold sweat. He jumped as the door to his dark room open. A guard stood in the doorway.

“Sorry to disturb you, my Lord, but Slythe is here.”

****

Downstairs in front of the fire, Lynx-O had a drink—his third for the night. The whole ordeal sent him to drink as it did when it all began. WilyKat stood in the doorway. He was going to get some answers and he knew Lynx-O knew all that he needed to ask. He quietly walked inside and poured himself a drink. WilyKat heard the roar of a lion. It sounded he was outside.

“It’s him, isn’t it?” WilyKat asked. “Somehow it’s him. Lion-O is the lion.”

Lynx-O knew there was no use in hiding it from the young Thunderian. The story must be told. “Yes, it’s him. As you know, Lion-O was the Lord of the ThunderCats. Tygra was second-in-command. Lion-O never did die of a mysterious illness as the rest of the planet was led to believe. The woman resting in the bedroom upstairs is Cheetara. She came to Thundera’s capital three years ago to stay with her aunt after her parents were killed in the war with the leopards. I’ll never forget the first day I saw her. It was like looking—“

“At the face of an angel,” WilyKat finished.

Lynx-O smiled at WilyKat. “You two, hmm?” He took a sip of his drink and continued. “I suppose we were all in love with her one way or another. Even the then second-in-command Tygra was in love with her.”

“Lord Tygra loved her?” WilyKat gasped.

“Yes, as much as that cruel man could love anyone. He sent her letters, poems and gifts, but Cheetara sent it all back unopened. She knew of the evilness that lied deep within the tiger, and she had already lost her heart to the Lord of the ThunderCats.”

“Lion-O,” WilyKat whispered.

“Yes. Tygra knew of their love like everyone else on the planet. He saw it grow stronger and deeper each day until he couldn’t take it anymore. Tygra vowed if he couldn’t have Cheetara, no one could. Tygra tried to do everything to split them apart. He went so far as to spread rumors that turn the people against their courtship. Cheetara didn’t want the people to think ill of Lion-O so she decided to break if off with him. Lion-O wouldn’t let her. He relinquished his title to be with her and they fled from Thundera’s capital that night.

“Through some foolish drunk, Tygra got wind of Lion-O and Cheetara’s secret departure. He wouldn’t let them escape so he made a pact with the evil priest Mumm-Ra. With his help, Tygra hunted them and put a curse on them. By day, Cheetara is the graceful hawk and by night, the lion’s roar you hear outside is the voice of Lion-O. The poor souls have no memory of their lives as animals. They can never touch in the flesh, but only the slim chance of touching at the split second of dawn and dusk.”

“Always together, forever apart.” WilyKat said thoughtfully. “You were the drunk who betrayed them, weren’t you?”

“Yes,” he let out a ragged sigh. “But the spell can be broken and the heavens above have told me of a way.” Lynx-O said.

****

In the Throne Room of Cat’s Lair, Tygra sifts through all the dead lion bodies before him captured by Slythe. “Pitiful,” he murmured bitterly. “None of them is him.”

“I’ve set traps all over. I can only get so many lions. There are a lot of them out there.”

“I don’t care if they’re a million of them out there. I want you to find him.” He walks away from the pile of dead lions and looks out window. “This lion travels with a woman. A very beautiful woman—a cheetah, with blonde hair sprayed with black spots. Perfectly sculptured brown tear lines on her face, deep brown eyes like a pool of sweet chocolate and skin as soft as silk,” he spoke as a man deeply in love with the woman he describes. “Her name is Cheetara. She travels at night, only at night. You find her and you find the lion. The lion I want. The lion…” he looked at Slythe, face full of evil and anger, “who loves her.”

Slythe looked surprised and disgusted. A lion loving a woman? The wicked reptile had some strange assignments in his time, but this was the weirdest.

****

WilyKat watched Cheetara as she slept. After the arrow was taken out, Lynx-O patched up the wound and gave her some clothes to wear. She had been sleeping for over an hour now. She slowly stirred and opened her eyes. She started to get up when WilyKat gently pushed her back down on the bed.

“You mustn’t get up or you’ll start bleeding again.”

Cheetara looks at him, tired. Moving wouldn’t be good idea now, but talking would do. “You travel with him, don’t you?” She asked softly.

WilyKat nodded and Cheetara smiled wistfully and suddenly looked away, hiding her emotions of envy towards the young Thunderian. WilyKat knew what she was thinking. Having learned the whole story, he pitied her for what Tygra did and wanted to make her feel better. He was good at lying. He could do that.

“‘You must save this hawk,’ he said. ‘She is my life, my only reason for living. This isn’t her time so I know one day we will be together, and when we are reunited, we will have a love that one dream about but never have.’”

Cheetara gazed at him. “He said that?”

“I swear it on my life, Cheetara.” WilyKat stood up and walked to the door. “Get some sleep,” he said and left the room.

Cheetara rolled on her side, thinking about what WilyKat said. His words touched her. “Lion-O,” she whispered holding back the tears threatening to fall.

****

WilyKat slept downstairs by the fire for the rest of the night. As harrowing as the day was, he wasn’t sleepy. He awakened a half an hour before dawn. He only got a yawn in when Lynx-O rushed into the room.

“Get up, boy. Tygra’s soldiers are here. Get Cheetara out of here.”

WilyKat ran up the stairs and went into Cheetara’s room. What were they doing here? How did they find him? He asked himself but there was no time for answers. He found Cheetara still sleeping. He shook her gently. “Wake up, milady.”

Cheetara eyes fluttered open. “What is it?” she asked sleepily.

“There’s no time to explain. Come with me.” He helped Cheetara out of bed and rushed her out of the room and up the steps to the third floor.

Lynx-O forgot he left the bridge down. He was distracted by Cheetara’s injury and telling WilyKat the story. Once the soldiers crossed over, Lynx-O fought off the three soldiers as best he could but they were too overwhelming for him. Lynx-O was able to handle two of the soldiers but the third one knocked him out and was now searching through the house for WilyKat and Cheetara. He heard noises from upstairs and followed it. He saw Cheetara and WilyKat climbing up the top hatch on the third floor.

“Stop!” The soldier called out.

“Hurry.” WilyKat told Cheetara as she climbed out first. The soldier was close on them as he began to climb up. When WilyKat got out, he closed the hatch.

“They’re after me, WilyKat. They are following Tygra’s orders.” Cheetara told WilyKat.

“Well, he won’t get you.” WilyKat said as bravely as his voice would allow it.

He looked around. They were on the top, very high up. The only way to escape was climbing down the house and prayed they don’t fall to the cliffs below. The soldier pushed the hatch open and WilyKat jumped on it, keeping it closed. The soldier stuck his knife between the cracks and slid through. WilyKat screamed and fell back, knocking Cheetara off the top. She grabbed the ledge. WilyKat grabbed her hands and tried to pull her up.

“Hold on!” WilyKat yelled.

“Don’t let me fall!” Cheetara cried out.

Cheetara’s left hand slips from WilyKat. He was now holding onto her with one arm.

“I’m slipping!” Cheetara cried.

WilyKat tried pulling her up using his other arm now, but he couldn’t. He wasn’t strong enough. There was no way to save her. He was giving it everything to hold on to her, but it wasn’t enough. He felt her other hand slipping from him.

“NO!” WilyKat screamed.

Cheetara screamed as she was falling, falling to the rocky cliffs below. Only a miracle would save her now, and it came. The sunrise. WilyKat watched opened-mouth as Cheetara began to change. Her arms changed to wings. Her feet changed to claws and her body converts into a hawk. Her screams turned into screeches of a bird in pain. Transformation complete, she flew away.

WilyKat climb down the roof and stood on a ledge from the second floor to hide from the soldier when he knocked the hatch open. The soldier looked around and walked to the edge. He saw WilyKat.

“Where is the woman?”

“She flew away.” WilyKat told him.

“Don’t lie to me. Where is she?” The soldier raised his hand to strike the Thunderian, but an arrow hits the man from the side. He doubles over in pain and falls off the roof, crashing to the jagged rocks below.

WilyKat looked toward the direction the arrow came from and saw Lion-O with his crossbow in his hand.

Sometime later, Lion-O rode his horse to the front of Lynx-O’s house. His hawk was on his hand and in good health. He eyed Lynx-O who was standing outside his home. He hated the old Thunderian. He knew it was Lynx-O who betrayed him and Cheetara to Tygra.

“There were times where I wanted to kill you myself, old man.” Lion-O said and smiled at hawk on his hand, so relieved and happy to see her well again. “But I’m grateful for this.”

Lynx-O took a few steps to him. “Perhaps you will listen to me when I tell you I know of a way to break the spell Tygra has put on you and Cheetara.”

“There is no way to break the curse, but three days from now, I will kill Tygra at his coronation, where he would be celebrating his reign on Thundera for three years. It will be his last day as well.”

Lynx-O shook his head. “You can’t kill Tygra, Lion-O. You and Cheetara must face Tygra as humans for the curse to be broken.”

Lion-O scoffed. “Cheetara and I face Tygra together as humans in the day? You’ve been drinking too much, old man.”

“I’m not drunk!” Lynx-O shouted. “Three days from now, there will be a day without a night and a night without a day!”

Lion-O laughs harshly. “You really are drunk. There is no such thing. Now leave me alone with such nonsense.” Lion-O turned his horse around and trotted off.

“Lion-O, wait,” WilyKat called out from the house. Lion-O stopped his horse and waited for WilyKat to reach him.

“I thank you for saving my hawk. I’m in your debt.”

“Yeah, I know.” WilyKat said confidently.

“You don’t have to help me get in Cat’s Lair. I’ll do it on my own.” Lion-O told him.

“I know, but I want to help.”

Lion-O smiled appreciated for his assistance. “Then you better get your things.” Lion-O said and slowly trotted off.

WilyKat nods and ran to Lynx-O before going back in the house. “Follow us, Lynx-O.”

Lion-O rode on his horse that morning and afternoon while WilyKat kept up with Lion-O by jogging behind him. He thought maybe if he could talk to Lion-O, he would listen to Lynx-O’s plan. After all, he didn’t betray Lion-O and Cheetara and he wasn’t a drunk.

“Maybe Lynx-O is right, Lion-O. If you and Cheetara face Tygra, then the curse will be broken.”

“You will not mention that to me again and you won’t mention it to Cheetara,” he commanded. “Do you understand? I will not have you fill Cheetara’s mind with such futile hope.”

It was worth a try, but he wasn’t through yet. WilyKat felt it was possible and decided to bring it up another time with Cheetara. She would be easier to convince than Lion-O.

By mid-afternoon, Lion-O let WilyKat’s legs rest by riding on Storm while he walk on foot. An hour before sunset, they enter the woods.

“The sun will be down soon,” Lion-O noted.

WilyKat looked at the sky. It was still light. “How can you tell?”

“After so many sunsets, you have to ask?” Lion-O questioned jokingly.

Lion-O hands WilyKat the hawk. “Find shelter and take care of Cheetara.” WilyKat nods and rides off. “Tell her I love her,” he called out. Lion-O felt relieved that his secret could be shared with a trusted individual and even more grateful he would look after the woman he loved.

****

WilyKat found an inn with a stable outside the woods. WilyKat settled Storm in the stable and set the hawk near the horse. Sunset meant Cheetara would need some clothes. He didn’t have any for her to change in. He would have to fine some.

WilyKat ventured around until he saw a seamstress store near the inn. Now was a time to actually do some good. He still had money from when he stole two days ago so he went inside, and for the first time in his life, bought instead of stole. He purchased a burgundy dress with matching shoes and some clothes for himself. He went back to the stable and laid Cheetara’s clothes in front of the hawk, then stepped outside and change as sunset approached.

In the woods, Lion-O was stripped of his clothes. He settled them under a rock so no one would steal it in the night. As the sun sets, the transformation began. He fell to all fours; his tail sprinted out of his rear. A gold coat of fur covered his body. His thick red hair, changed to a coat of brown. His nose got bigger, teeth grew longer, whiskers formed on his cheeks, eyes grew bigger and the roar of the lion signaled the completion of his metamorphosis.

In a fresh set of clothes, WilyKat knocked on the door. The sun was down so Cheetara had to be human again. “Cheetara?” He knocks again. “Cheetara, are you dressed?” He waited and there was no reply. “I’m coming in.” He opens the stable door and walks in slowly.

Cheetara steps out from the back of the stables wearing a burgundy dress. Her hair was pulled back in the bow matching the dress. “You?” She pointed to the dress.

“Yeah,” he said sheepishly.

“Thank you.” She smiled grateful. “How is Lion-O?” Cheetara asked walking to Storm.

“He’s fine, Cheetara.”

“Hello, Storm.” Cheetara greeted the black horse and strokes his hair. “He’s taking us back to Cat’s Lair, isn’t he?”

“Yes, milady.”

Cheetara sighed, a nagging feeling stirred inside her. Just the thought of returning to Cat’s Lair, almost made her stomach turned. It was there that this curse began, but it was also there that she met Lion-O and she wouldn’t change anything for that. She stops petting the horse and looks at WilyKat. She didn’t have an idea of what to do after she gets something to eat and look out for Lion-O, but assume WilyKat did.

Kat smiled mischievously. “Lion-O has put me in charge of you.”

Cheetara looked at him surprised, her smile still on her face. “He did?”

“Yes. He said, ‘Tell her we speak as one and she will follow your instructions as if it were my own.’”

Cheetara almost laughed. She knew how protective Lion-O was with her when they were together, so this didn’t come as a surprise. “Oh, really, and what would that be?”

“There is an inn nearby. I’m sure it’s been a while since you’ve had a good cooked meal.”

“As a matter of fact, it has.”

WilyKat picked up the Sword of Omens in the claw shield and held his arm out. “Shall we?”

Cheetara laughed as she took his arm. “Are you going to be my protector too?” She asked noticing WilyKat wrapping the sword and shield in a cloth. “I’m flattered.”

“Actually, Lion-O would kill me if I lose the sword.”

WilyKat opened the door for her. She was greeted with a pile of dead lions on a horse. Cheetara screamed in horror. She reached out to touch the dead lions fearing one of them was Lion-O. WilyKat put an arm around Cheetara to console her.

“Calm down, Cheetara. It’s all right.”

On the other horse beside the deceased lions, was Slythe. He looked down at the two. “Cheetara?” Ah, he remembered what Tygra told him—you find the woman, you find the lion. “Cheetara,” he looked her over. No wonder the lion was in love with her.

WilyKat saw the lewd look Slythe was giving Cheetara. “Get inside,” he gently pushed her back inside. WilyKat pulled out the Sword of Omens, the blade extended to its fullest length. He aimed it at Slythe. “If you try to touch her, your head would be on the ground with the rest of your body!”

Slythe laughed at the boy’s antics. “Oh, you’re scaring me, boy.”

“Go on! Get out of here!”

Slythe rode off with his other horse to the nearby woods. Getting Cheetara wasn’t his job anyway. He was to kill the lion and he knew he was nearby since he saw Cheetara.

WilyKat groaned. “This is not turning into a good night.”

The stable door swung open and Cheetara rode out on Storm towards the woods.

“Wait, Cheetara!” WilyKat called out, but she was out of hearing distance and even if she did hear him, he knew she wouldn’t have stopped. If anything happened to Cheetara…. “He’s going to kill me.” WilyKat groaned. He couldn’t let that happen. On foot, WilyKat ran after Cheetara, hoping he could save her from any danger.

Cheetara rode deep in the woods and stopped. She dismounted and walked on foot looking for Slythe. Her only weapon was a knife from the saddlebag. It will have to do. Slythe was a lion killer and she had to warn Lion-O somehow if not protect him herself. Traps were set all over the woods for the lion and Slythe was somewhere, hiding and waiting. Cheetara heard footsteps around her. She couldn’t see in the darkness so she challenged him out.

“Show yourself, coward.”

A lion looked up at the sound of the voice. He searched to find the voice and stepped into a trap. A lion’s cry echoed in the forest. Cheetara followed the direction of the cry. Was it Lion-O? She hoped it wasn’t but not many lions travel through these woods. She saw Slythe hunched over the wounded lion. He pulled the dead lion out of the trap and reset it for any other lions that travel in the woods. Cheetara pulled out her small knife and approached Slythe. She stabbed Slythe with the knife. He cried out and pulled the knife out. He tripped Cheetara with his tail and she fell to the ground.

“I don’t care what Tygra wants. I’m going to kill you too.” He growled.

Another lion came roaring out of nowhere and tackled Slythe, pushing him into the trap.

“Lion-O,” Cheetara whispered. Slythe struggled to pull himself out of the trap but the sharp steels pierced through his skin and blood was running fast from his face. Within seconds, he died. “Lion-O,” she called out. The lion walks to her. She strokes his mane and kisses his forehead. “Thank you.”

WilyKat arrives with the Sword of Omens in his hand. He saw Cheetara kneeling in front of Lion-O and stopped.

Cheetara felt his presence and looked at WilyKat. “It’s over. The hunter is dead.”

WilyKat’s eyes fell to the body in the trap. It then went to Cheetara in front of Lion-O. There was so much love in her eyes for the lion as she looked at him, stroking his mane. The sadness of what Cheetara and Lion-O were going through was hurting WilyKat now and he wanted to help them more than ever.

“Run and hide safely, my love. Another one may come.” She told him soothingly. The lion looked at WilyKat. He wasn’t sure if he could protect her after what transpired. Cheetara stood up, sensing his hesitance. “Don’t worry. He will protect me. Now go.” The lion looked at WilyKat as if telling him, ‘she better not be harm.’ He turned around and ran back in the forest.

Cheetara stood and watch her love run deep into the forest towards safety. When he was out of site, she looked at him. “How about that dinner?”

****

WilyKat and Cheetara spent the evening in the inn, eating a nice hot dinner and listening to the music. They spent the rest of the night talking. Cheetara did most of it as she talked about how she first met Lion-O. WilyKat talked a little about his life and how he came to meet Lion-O. Snow began to fall in the early morning, conjuring warm memories Cheetara had with Lion-O.

The next morning WilyKat woke up in the woods to the smell of cooked fish and fruits. When he opened his eyes, he saw Lion-O looking down at him with a smile of his face.

“Good morning. You look pale so I got you something to eat, and I also want to thank you for taking care of Cheetara last night.”

“This is for me?” WilyKat asked sitting up.

“Yes, so tell me what happened. What did she say?” He asked anxious for WilyKat to talk about Cheetara.

WilyKat was grateful Lion-O didn’t have a memory of last night. Who knew how he would react? “Nothing I couldn’t handle,” he lied boastfully. He stood up to stretch his tired muscles.

The hawk screech as it flew towards the camp. Lion-O held his arm out and the hawk flew passed him and rested on WilyKat’s hand. He looked about as surprised as Lion-O. A curious smile curved Lion-O’s lips as he place a hand on his hip. It was an innocent look enough but this hawk was Lion-O’s love of his life and she flew to WilyKat.

WilyKat laughed sheepishly. “Heh. Heh. Nice, hawk. Good one, Cheetara. Fly to your master.” He told the hawk.

“Last night,” Lion-O began curiously.

“Yes, Lion-O?” WilyKat said as he tried to get the bird to fly to Lion-O. “Go. Fly to the one you love.”

“Tell me about it.”

WilyKat laughed nervously again. “What’s to tell? I took Cheetara to an inn.”

The smile faded and he eyed WilyKat cautiously. “You took Cheetara to an inn?” He couldn’t hide the anger that was rising in his voice.

WilyKat heard it too. He had to explain quickly it wasn’t what Lion-O was thinking. “Just to eat, but we had to go to a stable first.”

“What were you doing in a stable?” Lion-O asked confused.

“We had to change clothes.” Oh, no. Poor choice of words. He knew what was coming now.

“What?” Lion-O snapped.

“We didn’t change together,” WilyKat explained and he thought he was in the clear. He thought wrong.

“You left Cheetara alone?!”

“No!” He lied.

“So you did change together!” Lion-O argued.

“No. No, it wasn’t like that at all.” He hands the hawk to him. “Here. Take her. She changed in the stable while I changed outside. No one came in.” He saw Lion-O relaxed. He was saved. For a minute there, WilyKat thought he was a dead man.

“I won’t lie, Lion-O. Cheetara is a beautiful woman and I’ve had my fantasies, but all she talked about was you.”

Lion-O smiled softly. He looked at the hawk, thinking about Cheetara and a moment they were together. It brought wonderful memories to him. “Whenever you are with her, I envy you.” He set the hawk on a tree root, uplifted from the ground, and turned his attention to WilyKat. “But you can tell me. Tell me everything she said, and I will know if the words are hers.”

WilyKat turned his back for a moment thinking of what Cheetara would say about Lion-O, how would she feel about talking about him. He thought about coming up with a great lie to make Lion-O feel better but what Cheetara said last night was good. He was going to tell the truth.

“She told me of the day you first met. She knew her life had changed the moment she saw you. She then cursed it.” At that, Lion-O frowned. He understood her sadness and it pained him that he couldn’t help her. He didn’t care about him suffering. He didn’t want her to suffer. He looked at WilyKat intensely as he continued. “But she smiled and talked about the day she fell in love with you. She continues to love you each and every day. Nothing will change that and if she could go back in time, she wouldn’t change a thing, Lion-O, fearing it will alter you meeting each other. She loves you more than life. There is no other way to explain it.”

Lion-O was touched Cheetara would say that. There were times where she spoke about her feelings for him and he for her. Those memories kept him going each day. “Did you know that the lion and cheetah clans mate for life?” He could tell WilyKat didn’t know. “Tygra didn’t even leave us that. Not even that.” He turned his back on WilyKat and walked to the hawk.

Although Lion-O was hiding it, WilyKat could see the pain Lion-O was feeling. Every time he would look at the hawk, he would see Cheetara. They were so close and yet so far away from each other. Imagine being torn away from the person you love for three long lonely years, without a soul to confide in the curse shared between them. Things WilyKat would take for granted—Cheetara’s smile, the sound of her voice, her laughter, the way she move or look at times, whether happy or sad, Lion-O would always treasure. He’s had to. There had to be a way to help them, WilyKat thought. There had to be.

****

They stayed at their current camp outside the other end of the woods for the rest of the day. The snowcapped mountains created a peaceful backdrop. Tomorrow they would be at the capital of Thundera. Lynx-O finally caught up with them at their camp sometime before sunset. He got off his donkey and walked to Lion-O who was packing some warm clothes for Cheetara and some food in his black knapsack. He mounted his horse and the hawk settled on his arm. He was ready to ride up the mountains and change. All he was waiting for now was WilyKat to fill the water of his canteen.

“You’re still going to kill Tygra.” Lynx-O guessed. “Why won’t you listen to me? In two days time, you and Cheetara will be able to face Tygra as humans and the spell will be broken.”

“In two days time, I will be at Cat’s Lair and I will kill Tygra. One way or another, it will end. Now leave me be.”

WilyKat attached the canteen to the saddlebag. “Maybe you should listen to Lynx-O, Lion-O. It’s worth a chance to try.”

“You too, hmm?” He suspected WilyKat told Lynx-O to follow them. “Then you stay with Lynx-O while I go to Cat’s Lair.”

“No, I’m coming with you. How else can you get into Cat’s Lair?” Kat asked.

“I will find a way without your help.” And with that, Lion-O left them riding away to the mountains ahead of them.

Lion-O rides upward to the rocky snowcapped mountain. He found a spot on the mountains where the areas were still surrounded by trees but not much snow. He dismounted, tied Storm to a tree, set his hawk on a branch, started a fire, and walked away. As day descended into night, the transformation began. It pitied and angered him that he and Cheetara have been reduced to this—living half-lives because of some madman’s obsession with Cheetara. No more, Lion-O told himself. No more. Tygra was going to be dead two days from now. Lion-O had given up all hope of he and Cheetara ever being together again and he was going to make Tygra pay for it. In spite of it all, the curse never stopped his love for her. The curse made it stronger. Lynx-O was wrong. There was no way he and Cheetara could face Tygra as humans. He was going to kill Tygra and he was going to do it for her—for them.

When Cheetara return to her human form, she found it cool. It would have been colder if a fire weren’t set for her so she wouldn’t freeze. She quickly put on the clothes left out for her—long leggings, a sweater, shirt, boots, and lastly Lion-O’s black cloak. It kept her warm and made her feel as close to Lion-O as she possibly could be thanks to the dreaded curse. By each passing day, she was regretfully forgetting his touch, but never his smell. It was in the cloak and that brought back tender memories. She found a strain of red hair—Lion-O’s hair on the cloak. She held it tenderly, having being the only thing she has of him beside his cloak.

Her growling stomach told her that she should eat. She found food in the knapsack. She heated up her meat over the fire and heard a branch crack. Her head snapped in the direction of the sound. She relaxed when she saw WilyKat.

“Oh, hello, WilyKat.” She smiled and returned her attention to warming her dinner.

Right after Lion-O left, WilyKat told Lynx-O of a plan he thought of earlier that day. Lynx-O agreed that it could work but they will have to talk to Cheetara for it included her help.

“This may be our last night together, Cheetara.”

Cheetara looked at him, her eyebrows wrinkling. “Why?”

“We have a plan, milady, to break the spell.”

“You and Lion-O?” She asked hopeful.

WilyKat shook his head and Lynx-O appeared beside WilyKat. Cheetara frowned seeing the sight of the old man. She was never fond of him after learning it was he who betrayed her and Lion-O in the first place.

After Cheetara ate her dinner, they crossed the other side of the mountain where the land was covered with snow. They made camp again, and afterwards, WilyKat and Lynx-O begin digging a deep hole in the cold ground. WilyKat was using the Sword of Omens and Lynx-O was using a pot. There was still light from the sky. Another hour or so and the sky would be completely dark.

“Keep digging!” Lynx-O told him. He shoved WilyKat out of the way to dump some dirt out of the hole.

“Lynx-O, this hole isn’t big enough for the two of us.”

“Hopefully, it will be big enough for the lion.” Lynx-O grumbled.

Cheetara who was watching them from higher ground smiled at them. They were silly, amusingly. She stood and walked around. She looked back at the hole when she heard Lynx-O cried out.

Lynx-O was trying to climb up out of the hole. “What are you doing?” He growled at WilyKat angrily.

“When you kneel before for your prayers, how do you get up?” Kat asked smartly. He was tired of being stuck in the hole with Lynx-O as much as he.

“Why you ungrateful boy. Push me up! Come on!” Lynx-O rose higher. His hands reached the higher ground when the roar of a lion was heard. “It’s him.” Lynx-O said. “He’s coming.”

WilyKat put his hands on Lynx-O’s shoulder to brace him as he jumped off the older Thunderian and got out of the hole. Lynx-O slide back down the hole. WilyKat ran to Cheetara. “Cheetara, we’re just covering the trap.”

“All right. Hurry.” She told him and looked back to find Lion-O. She heard the roar again and turned around. She saw the lion running towards her.

From their hiding places behind snow forts, WilyKat and Lynx-O saw him coming. “He’s coming across the ice.” WilyKat said.

Cheetara watch him anxiously. It was a good plan WilyKat told her. If he would fall for it, then there nightmare would be over. The ice cracked over the lion’s heavy footsteps and the lion fell in. Cheetara gasped and started over the ice towards him when the ice cracked under her feet. Cheetara laid on her belly and crawled towards him.

“Wait, Cheetara!” WilyKat called out.

“WilyKat, help me!” Cheetara cried out, her eyes trained on the lion that was struggling to get out of the icy water. “He can’t get out!” She shouted frightened.

WilyKat carried the Sword of Omens tied with a rope with him as he crossed the ice. Lynx-O warned WilyKat to crawl on the ice so it wouldn’t fall under him. WilyKat crawled on his belly and tried to catch up with Cheetara who was closer to Lion-O.

“I’m coming, Lion-O!” Cheetara called out.

“Wait, Milady!”

Cheetara didn’t wait for WilyKat. She had to get to Lion-O. When she approached him, she wrapped her arms around his neck. “I’ve got you.” She told the lion. She tried to pull him out of the water but he was too heavy. “He’s too heavy. I can’t pull him out, WilyKat!”

“I’m coming!” WilyKat called out. He sat up on the ice and stuck the blade of the Sword of Omens in a patch of thick ice. He took hold of the rope and crawled towards Cheetara and the lion.

“Hurry up, boy!” Lynx-O shouted as he crawled behind him. He held the Sword of Omens so it would fall in the ice.

“WilyKat, help us! I can’t lose him!” Cheetara cried as she struggled to keep the lion from falling in the water. “No! He’s slipping!” She cried out and tried to pull him up.

WilyKat tied the free end of the rope around his waist. He climbed in the ice water. He grabbed the lion and tried to push him up. “Hold him!”

The lion struggled and released himself from Cheetara and fought WilyKat as if he was trying to keep him in the water. He slapped Kat with his paw. Cheetara tried to grab the lion but he was too busy fighting WilyKat.

“Hold him off, Cheetara!” Lynx-O shouted.

"No, Lion-O! Don’t!” Cheetara shouted.

The lion pushed himself on WilyKat as if he was trying to use the Thunderian as a board of wood to crawl out of the water. WilyKat push up trying to stay alive himself. The lion’s paw slapped WilyKat’s face again. Cheetara reached forward and grabbed the lion’s front limbs.

“Push him!” Cheetara told WilyKat.

WilyKat push the lion up while Cheetara pulled him out of the water. The lion crawled out and nearly collapsed on the thick ice drained of energy. Cheetara pulled off her cloak and wrapped it and her arms around him. “It’s all right. I’ve got you.” She hugged him close to her and started to cry. She almost lost him.

WilyKat struggled to climb out. His energy was completely wasted fighting the lion. Lynx-O pulled on the rope helping him out of the water. WilyKat laid upon the hard ice, breathing hard along with Lynx-O, Cheetara and the lion, all worn out by the ordeal.

Cheetara looked at everyone. Lynx-O was tired and worn out from pulling out WilyKat. Lion-O as a lion was tired, having almost died and poor WilyKat. He went into the cold waters to save him and almost died himself. Two lives could’ve been lost tonight because of the curse put on her and Lion-O by Tygra. She almost died the other night when she fell off Lynx-O’s home. No more. If this curse doesn’t end, someone would die. The plan WilyKat and Lynx-O came up with must work.

“We must live, Father,” she spoke to higher one who could break the spell, “as human beings. Only you can save us now.”

They rested for another ten minutes before they left the frozen ice and move to the snowy ground. WilyKat changed into a set of warmer clothes while Lynx-O made a fire so they could all warm up. Afterwards, Cheetara grabbed a spare cloak, crawled into the hole in the ground and the lion followed her into the trap WilyKat and Lynx-O made and laid beside her. Within moments they both fell asleep.

****

When Cheetara opened her eyes again, the sky was lighting up. Because of the curse, her body knew when to wake up if she ever fell asleep in the night. She wasn’t the only one up though. WilyKat was and waiting near the hole Cheetara and the lion were in, hoping to see the curse break.

Cheetara looked at Lion-O in his lion form. His dark cloak covered him to his waist and his back was to her. Cheetara reached out to stroke his fur and mane around his neck. The lion was awake. It is close to dawn, she told herself. It could work. She prayed that it would. Three long years, she has been apart from Lion-O. She missed the gentle caress of his hand upon her cheek, the feel of his lips upon hers. Her hand ran slowly up and down his back. She balled her fist in the fur and saw sunlight on her knuckles. Her hand went flat against his back and slowly pulled away as she sat up and looked behind her. The sun was beginning to rise.

WilyKat saw Cheetara sit up and looked in her direction. He saw the sun rising too. He crept closer and watched the events happened before his eyes.

Cheetara’s eyes were on Lion-O too as she watch him change. She held her hand up, the morning sun shining on her and her hand. The sunlight fell on Lion-O. The lion’s fur began to recede and his golden brown skin was seen more and more. His brown hair turned to the fiery red she remembered. She put her hand to her mouth holding back the tears that threaten to fall. It was happening. It was really working.

Lion-O blinked twice. He was almost human. It was day. He turned his head and saw Cheetara. She removed her hand from her mouth and shakily turned it so her palm was facing him. She couldn’t move yet. He wasn’t completely human yet. Lion-O couldn’t believe his eyes. For the first time in three years, he saw Cheetara’s face, a face he thought he would never see again. The sun crept higher over the horizon and Cheetara saw his eyes changed. He was human again. She slowly extended her hand out to him. His hands moved towards hers. If only they could touch. If only for a moment they could touch before she changed, then the spell would be broken. The curse Tygra put on them would be broken forever. They would be free today.

But it wasn’t meant to be. Their fingers faintly touch and Cheetara felt the change erupting inside her. Her eyes changed into a hawk. Her mouth opened as to cry out ‘No!’ but a screeching sound of a hawk escaped her mouth. She changed before Lion-O’s eyes. They were so close and now so far away as her hawk body flew away from him. She was gone again. She was so close to him that Lion-O felt as if he lost her the first time the curse happened. He let out an angry cry of pain—not of a physical wound but from the heart.

WilyKat who was watching the hawk fly away jumped at the roar that came from Lion-O and scurried away back to camp where Lynx-O laid asleep. The plan didn’t work. The best thing to do now was leave Lion-O alone until he was ready to talk to them. All that was left now was Lynx-O’s plan about a day without a night and a night without a day was their only hope now.

****

An hour later, Lion-O was dressed and searching for his Sword of Omens. He saw Lynx-O and WilyKat packing up and clearing camp. They had a long ride today.

“Where is my Sword of Omens?” Lion-O asked.

“It fell through the ice last night,” WilyKat lied. He actually hid the Sword of Omens under Lynx-O’s wagon. Lynx-O told WilyKat it would be foolish to do so, but WilyKat thought he could try and he didn’t expect Lion-O to be asking for it so soon.

“I was going to use that sword to kill Tygra.”

“It would be a useless attempt. Just listen to Lynx-O and you and Cheetara can face Tygra as man and woman and break the curse. You two will have a life together then. Think about Cheetara.”

Lion-O yanked WilyKat by the collar, lifting him from the ground. “I am thinking about her. All this is for her.”

“No, you’re not. All you’re thinking about is yourself and your thirst for revenge. So go ahead and kill Tygra. You might as well kill Cheetara too because she will continue to suffer if you kill Tygra.” Now that he was on a roll, he couldn’t stop. “You never did care about her, only about yourself and your stupid mission.”

At that, Lion-O punched WilyKat, knocking him to the ground. His thin shirt opened and Lion-O saw a lion’s claw scratch across his chest. Lion-O examined the mark and shot a curious look at Lynx-O. “Where did he get that?”

“That happened last night when he saved your life.”

Lion-O wasn’t expecting that bit of news. He hoped that wasn’t from him and now he was feeling like a fool for hurting WilyKat when he saved his life last night. “I’m sorry. Forgive me.” He extended his hand out for WilyKat to take. He took it and Lion-O pulled the young Thunderian to his feet. “There will be barriers surrounding the capital for the ceremony. Since I’m a wanted man, we will have to go at night. I have a plan.”

****

That evening, Cheetara rode with Lynx-O on his wagon. Storm was following them in the back of the wagon. In his lion form, Lion-O was in a cage. WilyKat, who was hidden in the wagon, jumped off and ran to opening he escaped out of in Cat’s Lair.

“Halt!” A solider said calling Lynx-O and Cheetara to stop. He looks around and lifts the cover and saw the lion growling. “What is this?”

“A lion for our Lord Tygra. I hear he is quite fond of them,” Lynx-O said.

The solider saw Cheetara covered with a scarf over her head. “What have we here?” He asked and snatched the garment off his head. The lion roared threateningly at the solider. He ignored him and looked at Cheetara. “A pretty thing. Lord Tygra is searching for a Lady. Perhaps she will do.”

The lion roared ferociously and struggled to escape his cage and attacked the soldier. The soldier turned his attention to the lion and pulled out his sword. “I never had the honor of slaying a lion.”

Cheetara looked at Lynx-O for help. She couldn’t let the soldier kill the lion. “Uh, that’s what Lord Tygra said. What a pity it would be for you to kill the lion before he had the pleasure to do so.”

The soldier lowered his sword. “All right. Let them through.”

They went through the rest of the stops with ease. At the final stop, Cheetara let out a sigh of relief. “That was close. Too close.”

“We’re in now the city now. The rest is up to Lion-O and WilyKat.” Lynx-O said.

****

The following morning Tygra was dressed in his most formal attire. Today, the planet will commemorate his three years as ruler of Thundera and the ThunderCats. A lot has changed in those three years. He made sure of that. The people weren’t all favorable of him ruling so Tygra had to be a tough king. He didn’t have the Sword of Omens because of Lion-O, but that didn’t stop him from ruling the planet with an iron fist. People feared him than loved him like they did the previous lords.

His personal servants dressed him in blue garbs and he wore the royal crown the other ThunderCat Lords wore. On this day, he would be showered with gifts from the people, be entertained, danced and end the day with a fireworks display.

Instinct told Tygra Lion-O was near, he ordered security to be tighter that ever. Every mile into the city, there was a stop where the visitors would be checked for anything unusual or anyone resembling Lion-O. To no avail, they didn’t find anyone, so Tygra was able to relax.

The only thing he regretted this day was that Cheetara wasn’t with him. She would have been queen—his queen. He treasured the ground she walked on. He sent her numerous love letters, poems and gifts and she rejected it because she was in love with another—the previous Lord of Thundera, Lion-O. For such a betrayal, he had to make her pay by turning her into a hawk, but oh, if his plan of killing Lion-O as a lion succeeds, nothing will stop him from capturing Cheetara, removing the spell from her and making her his queen. He hadn’t heard from Slythe in a while, but he figured it was because he was still looking for Lion-O.

A knock at the door and a ThunderCat entered, telling Tygra is was time to begin. Tygra marched out. The other ThunderCats marched into the throne room in groups of two with Tygra walking in last.

WilyKat had escaped back in the lair through the hole left by the slab of stone. He crawled through the hole and found another tunnel leading to the cell he was in. WilyKat peeked his head from the bed and saw that no one was in the prison cells and there weren’t any guards. They must have been killed already. He crawled from under the bed and picked the lock of his cell and walked out. He looked around and saw no one in the halls. He causally walks through the lair and found his way to the Throne Room. He saw a line of people waiting to enter the room. WilyKat stood at the end and waited as well.

Outside Cat’s Lair at the back of an inn, Lion-O looked around. He was home after three years. He has return to reclaim what was rightfully his—his title as Lord of the ThunderCats and the death of Tygra by his hands.

Clouds covered the sky in a blanket of gray darkness. Lynx-O was watching the sky with a smile. Yes. It was going to happen today. He saw Lion-O keeping himself hidden in the shadows. He held his hawk on his hand.

“It’s going to happen soon, Lion-O, once the clouds break.”

“It’s day, Lynx-O, like it was yesterday, like it will be tomorrow. Nothing special will happen today, except Tygra’s death.”

“But you can’t kill Tygra,” Lynx-O argued. “If you kill him, the curse will continue. A chance like this will never happen again.”

Lion-O nodded. “You’re right.” He went to the saddlebag of his horse and pulled out a small knife. “If WilyKat has done his job, I will be in Cat’s Lair, and should I fail…you will know by…the warning bells. I…” He was having difficulty with his words “…. beg you to take her life. Make it quick and painless.”

“But, Lion-O, I can’t do that to her.” Lynx-O started to protest.

“Cheetara wouldn’t want to continue a half-life. It would be punishment to do so. Please do this for me.” He hands the hawk to Lynx-O.

“But, Lion-O…” Lynx-O started to protest.

“Have you ever stopped to consider this is what was meant to be all along?”

****

The Throne Room was teeming with all the upper class citizens of Thundera and the elders of all the Cat Clan. Tygra walked around talking to his guests, being as cordial as he liked. His guest weren’t all that pleased to be there but it was out of respect that they come. WilyKat kept his head low and out of the vicinity of Tygra’s eye as he kept himself close to the throne doors. His back to the door, he felt it was locked. Great.

Lion-O arrived at the gates leading to Cat’s Lair. The guards stood at full attention at the man in a black cloak. Lion-O removed his cloak. Most of the guards nearly turned white, seeing a ghost while the others stood in attention, obvious new recruits who didn’t know the man standing before them.

“As your former and soon to be lord once again, I order you to let me pass,” Lion-O commanded.

A smug puma guard trots to Lion-O on his horse. “You are no longer king. Go back to the jungle where you belong.” He pulled out his sword. Lion-O pulled out his Sword of Omens. He summoned it after his bout with WilyKat. How foolish of WilyKat to hide the sword under Lynx-O’s wagon. He disarmed the puma. Seeing he wasn’t a match for Lion-O, the puma pulled back. Lion-O marched through and the other guards stepped aside to let Lion-O pass.

After talking to the elders, Tygra signaled Grune to talk to him. He and Grune walked away from the crowd so unwanted ears didn’t hear them. He knew every clan did not respect him. The lion clan made it obvious of their distaste of him and he wasn’t getting much respect from the cheetahs either.

“Have you found any of them yet?” He whispered to Grune.

“No. We lost track of them at Lynx-O’s place.”

“That old coot,” Tygra muttered angrily. “I never trusted him. He’s probably working with them to redeem himself. Still, there is no chance of the curse being broken.”

Grune decided now was as good as any to continue on with the bad news. “We found Slythe’s body in the woods yesterday. His face was in one of the traps.”

“Lion-O,” Tygra cursed.

“And WilyKat. We spoke to some people who saw him at an inn with a woman.”

“What did she look like?” Tygra asked immediately.

“She was a blonde—a cheetah.”

“Cheetara,” Tygra whispered. “I don’t care what it takes. I want you to find them. Get all the men to hunt them. I—“ He stops when he saw a Thunderian at the doors. “Is that WilyKat?”

Grune looked in Tygra’s direction. It was WilyKat struggling to pick the lock of the door.

“If he’s here, then Lion-O cannot be far behind.” Tygra figured. “Kill him.”

Lion-O moves forward in the lair towards the Throne Room doors. As he passed by, servants gasped and murmured seeing Lion-O again. They never knew the truth to Lion-O’s absence, which sent rumors throughout the lair—he abandon his title for his love, Cheetara, he died, he disgraced himself, etc.

Grune walked through the crowd gracefully to not bring attention to himself. WilyKat was working with the lock. It was a difficult lock. On a gut feeling, he looked back and saw Grune moving towards him. He turned back and worked faster. He struggled a little more and finally…yes!

The doors burst open and WilyKat went to the side barely holding on. Everyone stopped what they were doing and looked at the door. Lion-O stood on his horse. He looked to his left and saw WilyKat giving him a thumb’s up.

The people were murmuring in disbelief. They couldn’t believe their eyes. Lion-O has returned. Though many didn’t believe he was dead, they were still shocked to see him. They believed all the rumors that surfaced the planet when he disappeared. Neither knew the truth of the matter, but it was going to be settled today.

Tygra’s face contorted in pure evil. How he hated Lion-O. Lion-O kept his angry eyes on Tygra as he marched towards him. Tygra waved a hand and Grune arrived on horseback with his mace in his hand behind Lion-O.

Lion-O turned his horse around to see Grune charging on him. Lion-O stormed on him, the Sword of Omens and mace clashed sending sparks from both weapons shooting around the room. Grune hits Lion-O with his elbow knocking him off the horse. He fell back but landed on his feet. He aimed the Sword of Omens at Grune.

“HO!”

The blast came so fast that Grune was knocked off his horse. Another blast hurdled at Grune and he slapped it away from him with his mace. The blast hit the ceiling window, which shattered into small pieces. They ignored the falling window pieces and swung their sword and mace at each other. This went on for minutes until Lion-O finally got the upper hand and kicked Grune down. The sunlight beaming in the room, Lion-O looked back and saw it.

The moon was moving in front of the sun. Lynx-O’s prediction was coming true.

“A day without a night and a night without a day,” Lion-O murmured. Cheetara would be changing soon. He had to get to her. This would be their only chance.

Tygra looked at the open ceiling and saw the eclipse taking place. Was it possible? Mumm-Ra said the spell could never be broken unless it was by him and Tygra wasn’t going to do that until Lion-O was dead.

“Lynx-O, wait! I’m coming!” Lion-O shouted, running to the doors, but Grune jumped in front of him. This battle was going to continue whether Lion-O liked it or not.

Lion-O swung his sword at Grune’s mace with all he got. He was going to finish him quick and get to Cheetara so they could touch. He knocked Grune down and ran towards the door. Grune tripped Lion-O, his sword flew out of his hand as he hit the floor. Grune stood and slammed his mace at Lion-O. He rolled out of the way and tripped Grune up, causing him to lose his mace. WilyKat slide the Sword of Omens back to Lion-O. He grabbed it and slammed it into Grune’s chest. He pulled the sword out and Grune clutched the wound and fell over dead.

Just them, the bells rung—a warning bell. It was over. Lynx-O was going to follow Lion-O’s orders and kill the hawk. He shouldn’t get mad Lion-O told himself. Lynx-O is only doing what he told him to do. “Lynx-O, make it quick,” he whispered.

Lynx-O heard the bells tolling. He looked towards the sky and saw the moon in front of the sun. It didn’t matter now. Lion-O had fail, the bells attest to that. He was dead. The hawk was standing by him unaware of what was going on. Lynx-O held the knife in his hand. He didn’t want to do it. He was sure Lion-O would come back. Lynx-O begged Lion-O not to do it. He told him to wait until the eclipsed happen. Now he was dead and Lynx-O had to kill Cheetara. The blade was shiny and sharp. He aimed it at the hawk’s neck. “Forgive me.”

Lion-O faced Tygra and walked towards him. Tygra’s arrogant smug face made Lion-O want to rip his head off shoulders right then and there.

“Kill me, Lion-O and the curse will go on forever. You must think about Cheetara,” he said softly, knowing that would get him. He knew Lion-O would never put Cheetara in any harm.

“Cheetara is dead,” he said bitterly. “She no longer has to suffer from the curse you put on us.” His grip tightened on the Sword of Omens. “Now I’m going to send you to a place where you will never join her.” He raised his sword in order to strike him down.

“Lion-O.”

His whole body froze. No, it couldn’t be. It was impossible, but he couldn’t help taking the chance and turning around.

Cheetara stood at the other end of the room in a purple dress. Tygra turned away from the sight. No, it was impossible. She couldn’t be standing in the flesh, in daylight, but there was no denying the fact the spell was broken. Lion-O faced Tygra again and approached him in anger. He was being shaken by Lion-O.

“Look at me!” Lion-O growled. Lion-O shook Tygra again and forced him to look at Cheetara. “Look at her!” He shook him again and moved back in front of Tygra so he would look at her and him. “Look at us!”

Lion-O released Tygra and walked to Cheetara. She started walking to him, her right hand extended to him. Halfway, Lion-O fell to his knees, he lowered his sword to the floor. When Cheetara reached him, Lion-O grabbed her right hand, tightly. He didn’t want to let her go. Cheetara smiled down at him and ran her fingers through his hair, lovingly; amazed she was touching, seeing him again after so long.

Lynx-O was now beside WilyKat as they watched the two lovers reunite.

Cheetara looked up from Lion-O to Tygra. Her eyes were full of scorn. Tygra smiles at her as she release her grip from Lion-O and approach him. Tygra couldn’t help but smile. He still loved her. She was coming to him.

When Cheetara reached Tygra, she slapped him hard. The force of her skin cut through his. Blood crept from his cheek. She turned away and walked back to Lion-O.

Tygra’s face knotted in anger and pure hatred. How dare she return to Lion-O and not him? He would end this too. He grabbed the mace by Grune lifeless body and raised it at Cheetara. “If I can’t have you….”

“Lion-O!” Lynx-O called out.

Lion-O turned and threw his sword at Tygra. It pierced through his chest. Tygra fell back slump in his throne chair. His eyes still on Cheetara who watched in shock. “Cheetara,” he said in his dying breath as the blood from his mouth trickled out.

Cheetara stood there with her hand over her chest trying to calm down her racing heart. Tygra almost killed her. Lion-O stood and took Cheetara’s hand and pulled her away from the site. He stopped in the middle of the room and the two stared at each other for a moment before exploring. They touched each other’s hair, caressed their face. They had to make sure it was real, they weren’t dreaming but this was a reality.

“It’s almost unreal,” Cheetara said stroking his face. Her hand rested his chin. A smile crossed his face. “You cut your goatee.”

Lion-O smiled and took her hand to kiss her fingers and then her lips, lips he has been dying to taste for three long years. They embraced each other, not wanting to ever let go.

Lion-O slowly parted from Cheetara and searched the crowd for WilyKat and Lynx-O. “You two. Come here.”

WilyKat and Lynx-O stepped out of the crowd and walked to them. “You two have helped us in ways we can only begin to thank you for.” Lion-O hugged Lynx-O and WilyKat, grateful for they have done for him and Cheetara.

“You’re our truest friend.” Cheetara said and kissed WilyKat on the cheek.

Lion-O wrapped an arm around Cheetara keeping her close. “I would be honored if you two join our kingdom and become ThunderCats.”

“Me? A ThunderCat?” WilyKat pointed to himself. He couldn’t believe the offer. All his life he was on the wrong side of the track, but these two—Lion-O and Cheetara’s story changed his ways to the side of good. He didn’t feel that need to steal or lie anymore. “I’ll be honored and I won’t let you down.”

“It’s more of a privilege to be welcome back, Lion-O. It is I who should be honored.” Lynx-O said.

Lion-O nodded and faced Cheetara again. She yelps, laughing as Lion-O lifts her up and spins her around. Her smile and laughter warming his heart. “I never thought I’d see your smile again. I love you so much.”

“I love you too.” Cheetara told him.

He lower Cheetara back to the ground and kissed her again, sending all the love he had for her, the love he had been holding and waiting to express for three years through her with a promise they will never be apart again. Cheetara return the kiss just as eagerly with the same promise. Their love has been put to the ultimate test and passed. They will never be apart again.

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