The Gift of Thundera
                                 
                  Part of the "One Year Vacation" Series
                                      
                        By Steve "Indy" Hamrick
              -----------------------------------------------
	            Author's Note - I've had an idea
                  like this story bouncing around for a 
                  while, but I couldn't make it gel until
                  the one-year vacation idea came along.
                  Consider it one of the more interesting
                  crossovers in the Ranger universe.
	      -----------------------------------------------

     When dawn finally came and exposed a bright summer morning, Gadget 
finally woke up. This was the day the Rangers had agreed upon to split up 
for a year and go on separate vacations. At first, the idea had troubled the 
mouse inventor, having spent so much time with these five friends who she 
knew were far more than just friends. But after the shock of it wore off, a 
new idea came over her.
     Gadget had always been careful to construct devices that would never be
dangerous or hurt anyone. This was mostly out of her concern for others, but
this practice had proven practical since she didn't want one of her
inventions to accidentally blow up Ranger headquarters. But now that she had
some time to spend on her own, maybe it was time to explore some ideas she
had previously put aside.
     Gadget had gotten Monty to load a few items into the Ranger Wing for
her, including some spare parts she thought she might need. Monty had asked
Gadget to give him and Zipper a lift to the docks, which she agreed to
readily. The burly Aussie and his buzzing companion were now in the back
seat, craning over a map.
     "So have you decided where to go yet, Monty?" Gadget asked over her
shoulder.
     "Yep! Me little pally Zipper and I are about to hop a cheese ship 
bound for Borneo! Want to come along?"
     "I don't think so." Gadget said as politely as possible.  Cheese
hunting had never been her strong suit. She turned back to her steering.
"I think I'd better give the Ranger Wing an overhaul and make a plan of
action."
     Monty looked at Gadget with that fatherly glint he saved just for her.
"Now, come on, Gadget-luv! This is a bloomin' vacation, not a new invention!
Just let things happen on their own. Leave fate to the wind, I always say!"
     Gadget shook her head and smiled. "Oh, Monty, you know I can't do that.
I don't ever leave anything to chance." **Except whether I'll make it
through one of your meals**.
     A smile broke out on the Aussie's face. "All right, Gadget. I got the
message. Just don't get into any scrapes you can't handle without your old
pal Monterey Jack to help ya, okay?"
     Gadget looked back at him with that smile uniquely hers. "That's a
promise, Monty. And make sure you come back, too. You too, Zipper. I'll want
to hear all about your new adventures."
     Thirty minutes later, Gadget waved goodbye to her fellow Rangers and
wondered just where she should go.
     "Well, if I want to work on my inventions, I guess I should go where no
one could get hurt if one of them developed an anomaly." With that, she
pulled out a map and began to hunt for a desolate part of the world. Still,
with Gadget, decisions were a tough matter. So she finally closed her eyes
and let her index finger choose for her.
     Ten days later, Gadget landed the Ranger Wing where her finger had
guided her, the pyramids of Giza. **Well, I shouldn't have to worry about
hurting anyone here, anyway. The only people here are tourists, who I can
easily avoid, or mummies**. So with that, Gadget decided the best place to
set up would be inside one of the pyramids. Once inside,  she found a
concealed, cool area and began setting out her tools and devices. The only
problem was, what to build?
     "Oh Golly, I hadn't considered that!" Gadget normally made inventions
for use on the Rangers' cases. But there was no pressing need for an
invention here, only her own desire. But the surroundings soon gave her an
inspiration.
     "I've always wondered how these pyramids were built. Maybe I can make
something that would let me see it firsthand." Gadget grabbed up her 
drafting tools and set up her portable table. **After all, you can't build
a complex machine without the proper plans**. 
     It took Gadget several days to get her machine off the ground floor, so
to speak, but once the inventing fit had taken over, she didn't really mind.
She shut out the external world (which was easy to do in a five-thousand
year old pyramid) and kept at it.
     Now there may be some among you esteemed readers that would say that a
time machine is a complete impossibility. Granted, Einstein did show that
travel through time was theoretically possible. But theory and application
are two different animals. These thoughts had crossed Gadget's mind, too,
but she countered with her old axiom: nothing's impossible. So, with that
thought to guide her, she kept on.
     It was a good week before she had the frame of the device built, it 
being much more intricate than her regular inventions. She had also had to
take extra time to stop working in the hot .afternoons and rest at the local
oasis conveniently located near the pyramid.
     It was during one of these trips that she make an interesting
discovery. She had dipped her feet in the cool water of the oasis when one
of her sandals slipped off (have you ever walked barefoot on hot desert
sand?). Seeing no alternative, she removed her pith helmet and her other
sandal and swam to the bottom of the pool, where she quickly retrieved her
sandal. But her hand also grasped something else. At first, she was alarmed
and swam for the surface. She had been so alarmed in fact that she had
forgotten to let go of whatever she had grabbed. In a moment, she was glad
she had not, for the magnificent sparkle of a diamond met her eyes!
     "Golly, how pretty!" were the first words that escaped her lips. She
made her way to shore, all the time admiring her new find. "I wonder how it
got down there? Oh, well, I'm sure whoever lost it is long dead now, so they
won't mind if I keep it. At least I hope not."
     Replacing her sandal, Gadget hefted the diamond, which was about
two-thirds her size, back to the pyramid. When she got there, she put the
jewel down and turned back to her invention. "Well, when I get back to
ancient Egypt, I could try to see if anyone knows whose diamond this is,
provided it was someone in ancient Egypt who lost it in the first place. But
then again, I think most people would say it's theirs, if they saw a diamond
/this/ big. Oh, shoot!"
     This exclamation had nothing to do with her previous statement or the
length of this exposition, but rather with her invention and a thought that
had just bubbled up in her mind. 
     "How am I going to power this thing? Oh, really smart, Gadget! You come
out into the middle of the desert and you don't even bring a battery! Well,
not that a battery would be enough to power a time machine or even a bank of
batteries in cycle for that matter. Oh, I can't keep rattling on like this.
Think Gadget! What can I use?"
     Gadget swung around, her hands behind her back and her face down with
her forehand knotted in concentration. She was about to start pacing, but
just then a flash of light from the diamond struck her in the face. She
stepped back from the hard light, giving her eyes a chance to recover.
     "Wait, that's it! I'll use solar power!" With that decision made,
Gadget ran back to the Ranger Wing and began gathering the parts that would
allow her to build a solar powered electromagnet.
     But Gadget wasn't going entirely unobserved. A dark pair of eyes was
watching her through a wavy pool of slightly discoloured liquid. A bandaged
hand reached out and grasped the edge of the pool.
     "So," a gruff and slightly raspy voice said, "this young inventor wants
to go into the past. I think I will give her a better destination, one that
will serve my purposes, as will she." The bandaged form stood up straight.
He was about six feet tall, but looked far shorter in his delapidated 
condition. Besides his wrappings, he was wearing a red cloak. He was in a
pyramid, but it was a darker, more foreboding place than the one Gadget had
chosen. It was also in a different dimension. But, as Gadget would say,
nothing is impossible. She was about to find out just how right she was.
     "Ancient spirits of evil," the mummy cried, "transform this decayed 
form...to Mumm-Ra, the ever-living!" In an explosion of power, the bandages
left the mummy and the form grew and muscles and greyish flesh covered him.
Also a symbol of two snakes enjoined glowed red on his chest, while priestly
raiment covered him. His now-glowing red eyes cast down on the scene in the
pool.
     Gadget had finished her powering device. Using the diamond as a light
catalyst, she pushed the precious stone where it would catch the sun's rays
coming into the pyramid from a small hole in the wall. Immediately, a fine
beam of light concentrated by the diamond shot toward Gadget's invention,
where concentric mirrors amplified the beam and powered the electromagnet.
The time machine began to hum and glow.
     As Gadget walked over toward it, the machine's hum reached a fever
pitch and suddenly shot out a wide beam of white light opposite Gadget,
opening a narrow, oval shaped portal. Gadget slowly walked toward the
portal, her curiosity growing with every second.
     But the evil Mumm-Ra would not allow her to make the trip so easily.
"Come to me, my pretty! Come to Muuuuumm-Raaaaa!" Suddenly, beams of energy
cut from Mumm-Ra's hand into the pool. The light of the portal changed from
white to a pale pink and then red. Gadget started to step back, but from the
other side of the portal, a vortex pulled her!
     "Oh no! Heeelllp!" Gadget cry echoed in the pyramid, but it was too
late. She was pulled inside. Mumm-Ra had not counted on one thing, though.
Gadget's machine couldn't haandle the extra power affecting it and exploded.
The overload of power reacted with Mumm-Ra's evil spell unpredictably,
sending her careening out of control between dimensions.
     Mumm-Ra was not pleased, to say the least. He yelled in his fury,
"Where has she gone? Where!" He beat his fist on the edge of the pool, but
it was no use. Gadget had disappeared.
-------------------    
    When Gadget did reappear, she was unconscious. The blast had struck her
hard and it was some time before she recovered. Finally, her eyes did open
and at first she thought she might have dreamed it all. She was still in the
desert, but it was early morning now. **Strange, I didn't think I was out
that long**. But as she stood, she realized that something was terribly
wrong.
    "The pyramids! They're gone!" she shouted as her echo was carried
across the empty sand dunes in front of her. What had happened? Was she in
the past? Could this be Egypt before the pyramids were built? No, that
wasn't it. There should still be people around, even without the pyramids.
Could the pyramids have been destroyed? No, there would be debris lying all
around. With no sign of life and no supplies, Gadget suddenly came to the
realization that her situation was even worse. **Without water, I can't
survive more than a day on this desert**. The only thing to do was to try
to get somewhere shaded and cool before the desert sun robbed her of all her
strength. So, she got started.
    In about an hour, the sun was coming down hard. Gadget could already see
that any protection was too far away. But death is a hard thing to accept,
particularly for such an optimist as our heroine. She kept going, hoping
against hope for a miracle.
    Fortunately for Gadget, and this story, miracles were in good supply. A
flash came across her eyes as she realized that something was moving towards
her. She didn't know if it was an animal or a vehicle, but as it got closer,
she could see that it was actually a machine that looked like an animal. But
before it could get there, Gadget's strength suddenly left her, and she
fainted, laying on her back in the hot sand.
------------------------
    "Cat's Lair, Panthro calling Cat's Lair! I've spotted something on the
edge of the desert of sinking sands. I'm going to check it out. Over."
Panthro had seen a form walking toward him, then disappear. It was strange
for anyone to be caught out this far, especially in the summer. **Whoever it
is, they're probably in big trouble** Panthro thought as he increased the
Thundertank's speed. In less than a minute, he was met with a strange sight
indeed.
    The feline engineer jumped out of the tank and just stood over the
unconscious form for a moment. **Moons of Thundera, a female mouse! She's
almost as big as I am. But she doesn't look she'd be from Rataro's planet.
She looks more like a human than a regular mouse. Very strange**. As he
started to reach down and pick her up, Gadget's eyes again flew open. She
had decided to play possum and take whoever was coming for her off-guard.
The reaction on her face can only be imagined if a mouse were to meet a six
foot, humanlike...
    "Cat!" Gadget shouted in fear. She slithered out of the reach of her
would-be helper and assumed a fighting stance. "Are you the one responsible
for bringing me here? Answer me!"
    Panthro held up his hands and started to say, "Now wait a minute!" But
Gadget was in survival mode now, as her recent training in the martial arts
had her prepared for just such a situation. She tested the waters with a few
simple punches. Panthro, a master of all fighting skills, easily dodged her
and tried to keep a non-threatening posture. But Gadget was not so easily
put off.  With a resounding scream, she leaped into the air, ready to give
her opponent a flying kick that would send him to the ground.
    But Gadget was taken off-guard by the expertise of her opponent's
side-step which left her kicking empty air. She again came at him, using a
variety of thrusts and kicks, but Panthro blocked every one with ease.
Finally, Gadget's resources gave out.
    "I...didn't...know anyone...could fight like that." Gadget said as she
fought for breath. "I guess I'm at your mercy."
    Panthro smiled at Gadget's amazement as he helped her up. "Then it's a
good thing I'm feeling merciful today! The name's Panthro. And you're?"
    "Gadget. Gadget Hackwrench. I've never seen anyone who looked like you
before. What are you?"
    "I'm a Thundercat, from the planet Thundara. And I was about to ask you
that question. You aren't from Ratara, are you?"
    Gadget shook her head. "Golly, no. I don't even know where that is. I'm
from Earth, and I'm more than slightly confused. What planet is this,
anyway?"
    "It's Earth, Third Earth."
    Gadget paused a moment to let this sink in. "Third Earth? Golly, I
didn't know we had even had a Second Earth. Are you sure?"
    Panthro nodded. "Maybe youd better come with me. This desert isn't
exactly the best place to spend the afternoon."
    Gadget hesitated. She gave this Panthro a good looking over. He was
slightly taller than her, just under six feet. He was grey-skinned, with no
hair and the most intriguing ears. He looked for all the world like a bald,
greyish colored Vulcan. He was wearing a blue harness with metal spikes
attached to the shoulder straps, giving him a punk rock look. On his belt
was a pair of red and blue nunchuks shaped like cat's claws at the ends. On
the chest of harness was a unique insignia: a circle with a red background
highlighting the silhouette of a roaring cat's head, facing left.
    As she was about to step into the Thundertank, Gadget paused. "Uh, you
aren't going to /eat/ me, are you?"
    Panthro laughed louder than he ever had. "Don't worry yourself on that
account, Gadget. Thundercats don't eat mice."
    "Oh, that's good. I mean I don't really know you, and becoming your
dinner would have spoiled any chance of us getting acquainted."
    Just for the edification of those who aren't up on cartoon universal/
dimsensional travel, one of the main bylaws states that when one being from
one dimension enters another, he or she will not necessarily be the size
they were in their native dimension. So it was in this case. If Gadget had
realized this fact, it had only made a marginal impression on her mind. She
was currently absorbed with the technical marvel she was riding in.
    "Golly, what a machine! How is it powered! What is its total power 
output? Can it handle over any terrian? Who built it?"
    Panthro knew an engineer when he heard one and was warming up to this
stranger quickly. "You're looking at the inventor. And as for the
Thundertank's handling, feast your eyes on this!"
    Gadget drew in a breath as a protective glasslike canopy sealed them in.
The tank leapt off a precipice they had been driving next to and dove into
the water. Almost immediately, the Thundertank rose to the surface and the
covering slid back.
    "Wow! A built-in amphibious mode!" Gadget shouted over the noise of the
tank. "Would you be willing to show me your blueprints?"
    "Ha! Ha! Of course! But let's get you to Cat's Lair first and find out a
little more about you."
    "Cat's Lair? What's that?"
    "Something else you'll want to see the blueprints of, if I'm not
 mistaken!"
  ---------------------------
    On another part of third earth, three malevolent beings resided in a
dank stone castle, shaped like a vulture. They were not exactly having a 
great day, either. These beings were all mutants from the planet Plundarr.
They were also sworn enemies of the Thundercats. Their leader, Slythe, was a
half-human, half-reptilian creature. Monkian, a half-man, half primate,
usually let his warclub do his talking for him. Vulture Man, a half-man, 
half-vulture, was the only inventive sort among them. He spent most of
his time repairing the mutant vehicles and arguing with the other mutants,
like now.
    "Monkian! Watch what you're doing!" Vulture Man said.
    "Watch out yourself, Vulture Man! I'm tired of your yelling." Monkian
replied.
    "Stop your yapping!" said Slythe, cutting in. "We've got to come up with
a plan to rid ourselves of those wretched Thundercats!"
    Monkian raised the club in his hand and slammed it onto the table they
were sitting at. "I say we go look for Thundrainium. It's the only thing
that slows them down!"    
    Slythe elbowed him hard. "Did you forget what happened the last time we
tried that? Lion-O and his blasted Sword of Omens took care of our last
Thundrainium cannon."
    "Yes," Vulture Man added, "and I haven't got the parts to build another
one."
    Just then a half-human, half-jackal mutant named Jackal Man, entered the
room. "Well, why not build something new to carry it in? Or do you have a
better plan?"
    Before Vulture Man could answer, a noncorporeal voice answered first.
"I have a plan that will suit all our needs. Nyah ha ha ha ha!" The figure
of Mumm-Ra appeared out of thin air.
    "Mumm-Ra! What do you want this time?" Slythe, asked.
    "Why nothing, my dear Slythe. I just wanted to inform you of the
opportunity fate has placed in our hands."
    "And what might that be?" Jackal Man asked. "A new ally in our fight
against the Thundercats?"
    "No, but something even better. Behold!" Mumm-Ra's powers created an 
energy field that became a viewport, showing Gadget and Panthro in the
Thundertank, nearing the Cat's Lair. "This she-mouse is from another 
dimension. I brought her here."
    "But why, Mumm-Ra?" Slythe. "If she is not evil, then what use is she to
us?"
    Mumm-Ra turned toward Slythe, his red eyes pulsating in eagerness. 
"Because she is from another dimenision, the Thundercats will doubtless help
her find a way back to her home. And when they do, we will strike and use
the dimensional portal to send the Thundercats away from Third Earth,
forever! Ha ha ha ha!"
    Meanwhile, inside Cat's Lair, Gadget was getting better acquainted with 
the other Thundercats. Panthro started the introductions. Gadget was amazed
at the unique appearance of these beings, and just a bit more afraid of
being surrounded by these large cats. 
    "Gadget, this is Cheetara, Tygra, Wiley-Kat and Wiley-Kit."
    The one called Cheetara was the only adult female in the group. She had
the fast speed of the cheetah, and cheetah-like spots in her blonde hair and
on her shoulders. Her skin, like all the Thundercats but Panthro's, was a 
milky white. She was wearing a brown one-piece covering that left her arms
and legs bare. On her right forearm rested a yellow baton.
    Gadget was intrigued by this sight. "Cheetara, how is that baton staying
on your arm?"
    Cheetara took the baton. "It's magic."
    Before Gadget could argue that point, Cheetara's baton glowed and
suddenly grew longer! Gadget's eyes grew large as she watched Cheetara
expertly spin the power staff and turn it into an array of different shapes.
    "That's incredible!" Gadget exclaimed.
    "Go on Tygra, show her some more," Cheetara said.
    Gadget now turned her attention to Tygraa, whose name obviously came
from the black and orange tiger-like striping on his body. Like Cheetara, he
wore a one-piece outfit, two-tone grey in his case. His hair was also in the
tiger-stripe pattern. A bolo whip was attached to his hip. This he took and
instantly the whip extended, the three bolos on the end catching fire and
making a breathtaking display. Then Tygra turned off the bolos and spun the
whip around himself. The cat disappeared! Gadget gasped a few moments later
when Tygra reappeared and touched her shoulder.
     "You expect us to top that?" Wiley Kat asked.
     "Never mind him, Gadget" Wiley Kit said. "He doesn't like being
upstaged."
     Even on sight, Gadget could guess that these two were likely brother
and sister. They were the same height, about four feet. They both had orange
hair with a stripe or two, though Wiley Kat had some white along the sides.
Kat was wearing a brown harness and shorts combination, while Kit was 
wearing a light blue one-piecer.
     Greetings were exchanged all around, then Panthro asked, "Where's 
Lion-O?"
    Cheetara was the first to answer. "He's in the kitchen, helping Snarf
get dinner ready."
    "Hmm. You mean he's sneaking a taste of Snarf's candy fruit pie." 
Panthro said. "Ah, here they come."
    Gadget was not normally awe-struck, but the one they called Lion-O did
it to her. He was taller than the other Thundercats and stronger. His hair
was solid orange, giving one the idea of a lion's mane. His one-piecer was
aqua-colored. He also wore a sword and shield of a type. **Quite a dashing
figure, for a cat**.
    For his part, Lion-O was taken aback, too. The only mouse-like beings
they had seen resembled Rataro, the evil mutant. And they definitely didn't
like like *her*. "Oh, I didn't know we had a guest. I'm Lion-O, Lord of the
Thundercats. I assume you've met my friends..."
    "Gadget's the name, and yes, I have met your friends. Thank you for
allowing me to come here."
    "Think nothing of it. We Thundercats are the sworn defenders of the
good. You are good, aren't you?"
    "Oh Golly, yes. Back where I come from, I'm a member of a team that
fights for the rights of others. We call ourselves the Rescue Rangers."
    Tygra came up to her now, putting a hand on her shoulder. "Well, Gadget,
as long as you're here, you are welcome to join us in our fight for justice,
truth, honor and loyalty..the Code of Thundera."
    Gadget was overwhelmed by the power of the moment. "All right, until I
can figure out how to get home, I'll join with you. Just how did you..Oh!"
    "What is it, Gadget?" Lion-O asked.
    "What's that?" she asked, pointing toward the kitchen.
    Lion-O laughed when he saw the fear on her face. Wiley Kit answered her,
though. "Oh, don't be afraid of him, that's just Snarf!"
    If one had never seen a snarf, the sight could give one pause for
concern or at least curiousity. Snarf was about half the height of a
Thundercat, covered with brown, white and yellow hair and looked for the
world like a cross between a dog and one of the seven dwarves.
    "Oh sure," Snarf said. "Don't tell her that old Snarf's the one that
gets you out of trouble when you stick your nose where it doesn't belong.
Just take all the glory, snaaarf snaaarf."
    Gadget had to laugh at this in spite of herself, which gave everyone a
chance to laugh and relax. But just then, as she realized the scope of her
situation, her demeanor changed and her smile quickly turned to a frown.
    "What's the problem, Gadget?" Wiley Kit asked.
    "Jeepers! I just realized that I may be stuck here indefinitely! My time
machine is back on my world, along with my blueprints. If I could see them
for a minute, I might have a chance to copy them and alter the design to get
me back. But that would be highly improbable."
    Just as Gadget was ready to sink to the depths of despair, Lion-O
stepped toward her. He took his sword from its sheath.**Golly, I thought it
would have been bigger than that. I wonder why he carries it so proudly?**
    "That may not be true Gadget. With the Sword of Omens, we should be able
to handle that problem," Lion-O said.
    "The Sword of Omens, of course!" Snarf added. "She can use the eye to
see back into her world."
    Gadget was floored at this idea. "You mean this sword has some kind of
power to see beyond the normal electromagnetic limits we're used to? How is
that possible?"
    Lion-O placed the sword in Gadget's right hand. Immediately, the sword
pulsated with power, startling her slightly.
    "Don't worry, Gadget, the sword is just greeting you." Lion-O said.
    Gadget turn her face up toward Lion-O, caught in a look of disbelief.
"But...it's just a sword, it's not alive or anything...is it?"
    "Oh, it is Gadget. Look at the hilt of the sword. The stone there that
looks like a cat's eye is the Eye of Thundera, the source of all our 
powers."
    Gadget suddenly realized how much they trusted her, to give her this
vital power source. "Okay, how do I get to see back into my dimension."
    "Just hold the Eye in front of your eyes and say, "Sword of Omens, give
me sight beyond sight."
    The mouse inventor felt a little silly, but she obeyed. As she repeated
the words, the tapers of the sword hilt grew outward and up, and her eyes
glowed. She heard a strange noise, and then a vision began inside her mind.
    "Yes, I can see the pyramid where I was working! And there's the
blueprints I made. Golly, my machine didn't survive my trip. It's totally 
destroyed." she lowered the sword and it reverted to its former state. "I
memorized the blueprints, so if I can get you to help me, Panthro, we can
start building a new device right away."
    Panthro scratched his head. "I don't see why not. You'll have to
reconstruct your blueprints first to see if it's feasible. The only thing I
don't understand is why your machine brought you here. If it was a time
machine, it shouldn't have brought you here."
    "Well, I don't think my machine actually did. At least not on purpose."
Gadget said. "But I do remember the portal changing color before I was 
pulled into it. Yes, that's right! I was pulled into it by some sort of 
vortex. And I seem to remember some sort of horrible laughing."
    The Thundercats looked at each other and could only think of one person 
who fit that description.
    "Mumm-Ra!" Lion-O exclaimed.
    "Mumm-Ra? Who's that?" Gadget asked, not exactly sure she wanted to 
know.
    "Mumm-Ra is an evil sorcerer, the most powerful on Third Earth." Panthro 
answered. "He's always looking to cause trouble for us or anyone else he 
can."
    "A sorcerer? You mean he's actually got magical powers of some kind?" 
Gadget found this statement hard to accept, as she didn't believe in magic 
or luck.
    "Oh yeah," Wiley Kit added, "once you've seen him in action, you'll know 
what magic is."
    Gadget was dejected by this news, and her words matched her thoughts. 
"But that means that my machine really didn't bring me here. How am I going 
to get back?" 
    Cheetara put a comforting hand on her shoulder as the tears started 
welling in Gadget's eyes. "Now don't you worry. I'm sure with our help, 
you'll get back to your home. But in the meanwhile, feel free to stay with 
us and help us in our fight against evil."
    Gadget brushed away a few tears. "Well, I am actually on vacation now, 
so I do have some time. Okay, I'll help you out however I can, and you help 
me get home. Okay?"
    Panthro laughed. "Sounds like a deal to me. What do you think, Lion-O?"
    Lion-O stretched out his hand toward Gadget. "I swear by the Code of 
Thundera, we will do all we can to get you home." Lion-O did this salute on 
instinct, not thinking that he still had the sword in his hand. As he 
finished his oath, the sword extended to its full size and a beam of energy 
shot out and enveloped Gadget.
    At first, Gadget was terrified, but when she saw the beam wasn't hurting 
her, she noticed something else. Her goggles were glowing bright yellow! 
"Gee willikers! That's never happened before!" As the sword's energy left 
her, she pulled her goggles over her eyes to see what had happened to them 
and looked at Panthro. As she did, her eyes flashed with the same yellow 
glow and a pair of nunchucks like Panthro used appeared in front of her. 
Gadget blinked hard. "/That's/ never happened before either!" 
    As she took the weapon from the air, a new energy surged into her body.
Instantly, she knew how to use the nunchunks and did, revolving them around 
her body like a master.
    "Incredible!" Lion-O said. "The sword has given her the power to emulate 
Panthro's powers.
    "Hmm," Tygra said. "I wonder if it's just Panthro she can copy. Gadget, 
lower your goggles and look at Cheetara."
    "Well, okay," she answered. As she did, her eyes glowed again and a 
power staff appeared before her. She laid the nunchuks down and took the new 
weapon. In a moment, she was racing around the Thundercat's table at 
lightning speed. When she stopped, she did some fancy acrobatics with the 
baton, which she found she was able to extend to any length and shape at 
will.
    "Now look at me, Gadget." Tygra said. In a few moments, Gadget had a 
copy of Tygraa's bolo whip. She leaped into the air, covering herself with 
the whip. As she did, she disappered! In a few moments, she reappeared on 
the other side of the room.
    "Do you think it will work with the sword, too?" Lion-O asked.
    "Only one way to find out. Try it, Gadget." Tygraa offered.
    As she looked at Lion-O, a claw shield formed and attached itself to her 
waist. Then a sword that looked just like Lion-O's appeared in the sheath.
    "Now hold on!" Lion-O said. "This can't be! How can she have duplicates 
of all our weapons and the ability to control them? I've never seen this 
before!"
    Suddenly, the air hummed with power as a form appeared. "No Lion-O, no 
one before has been given the gift of Thundera. But she is a unique and 
worthy champion of good."
    Everyone, including Gadget, looked up and saw the apparition. "Jaga!" 
Lion-O said. "What is this 'gift of Thundara' and why have we not heard of 
it before?"
    Before Jaga could speak, the Thundercats all turned to Gadget, who was 
trying to get some words out. She finally succeeded. "G..G..G..Golly, is it 
a /ghost/?"
    Jaga looked down on her, smiling. "Fear not, Gadget. I am Jaga, the 
spirit of the Thundercats' mentor. I am in the astral world, so my form 
looks different than you are used to."
    Gadget stared back. "So why did I get this gift? I haven't done anything 
to earn it?"
    "Ah, but you have. In my astral form, I can see in more than one 
dimension. I have been aware of you and yours comrades' efforts to fight 
the forces of evil and help the helpless, in spite of your small size. I 
knew that you were one who could receive the gift."
    "But Jaga," Wiley Kat asked, "she's the same size we are. Isn't that big 
enough?"
    "In her natural state, she is much smaller. Remember how defenseless you 
felt when Mumm-Ra found a way to shrink the Thundercats."
    Lion-O nodded. "Yes, I understand Jaga. We were all vulnerable. But 
still, why her? We have the micrits on our planet that are tiny in 
comparision to us."
    "You are right, Lion-O. There is another reason. Gadget, your coming 
here was not by accident. Soon the Thundercats will face one of the greatest 
trials they have ever been challenged with. Despite Mumm-Ra's efforts, your 
coming was destined to happen at this time. I do not know what the danger 
will be, but good always is drawn to good in times of trouble like this."
    Gadget nodded her understanding. Then she looked at the arsenal of 
weapons she had. "How will I ever carry all these things?" As if the weapons 
had heard her, they all transformed into energy, which entered her goggles.
    "Whenever you need them, Gadget, just think and the weapon you want will 
appear." Jaga said.
----------------  
Rescue Rangers are copyright Walt Disney;
Thundercats are copyright Telepictures Corp.
All characters used without permission,
but with the utmost respect.
You are free to distribute this document,
but do not modify.

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Part Two
Part Three
Part Four