RedEye switched off his infrared. Dawn was approaching. Skytomb towered silently behind him in the clearing. The chirping of birds began to fill the air, and pink tendrils of light drifted over the eastern horizon. A light breeze played in the treetops. Impatient, RedEye turned back to Skytomb. "Luna, who are we waiting for again?"

Luna and Amok were just emerging. TugMug rolled along behind them. "I don’t know," Luna answered grumpily. She hadn’t gotten nearly enough sleep the night before and was angry about getting up so early in the morning. "Someone important."

"It had better be someone important," Alluro commented as he stretched and strolled out of Skytomb. "It’s really not safe for us to be this close to Cat’s Lair."

"This is where we were to meet. And this is where we’re going to meet," Luna retorted.

A blast of frigid air hit the peaceful morning. Chilla yawned and found a convenient rock upon which to sit. "And how long do we wait for this person, Luna?"

"Until they get here!"

Alluro grumbled something and leaned against a tree. RedEye looked back to the sky, searching for any sign of a ship. Something seemed to catch his attention, but he wasn’t sure. Curious, he switched back to infrared. "Luna! Look! Do you see it?" he cried out.

Luna looked skyward. "See what?" she demanded.

"The scout ship!" RedEye switched off his infrared and the ship disappeared, though there was a fuzziness where it moved. "It’s cloaked," he whispered. "I didn’t think you could cloak a ship that small."

Chilla looked up. "Where? I don’t see anything."

"Wait," TugMug said. "That fuzzy part. Is that it?"

RedEye nodded and turned infrared back on. "It only holds one person." He turned to Luna. "We’re waiting for one person who can rid us of two of the Thundercats?"

"And this is going to work?" Alluro asked.

"That’s what we’re here to find out," Luna answered. "If I had all the answers, we wouldn’t be here."

"Answers, answers, answers," Amok repeated.

"This ship is decloaking," Chilla observed.

The Lunatacs watched a sleek interstellar craft descend in the meadow next to the cumbersome hulk of Skytomb. Retrorockets fired and it came to a gentle landing. A door opened out of the side and a dark figure dropped to the ground. After a moment of hesitation, the cloaked shadow turned toward the curious Lunatacs and approached. "You are Luna?" the leader of the Lunatacs was asked.

"Yes. And you are?"

"My name is of no importance," the stranger replied. The voice was feminine, but nothing else could be discerned. A heavy black cloak hid the body beneath. The hood was pulled low over her face. "I have come to ask a favor of you, Lunatacs. A favor which will benefit both you and me. It will rid you of two Thundercats permanently. Are you interested?"

"Just what is it we have to do? And what’s in it for you?" Luna demanded.

"Nothing big. All I need is a distraction. Tomorrow morning, the Feliner is scheduled to return to Cat’s Lair from the recently reformed Thundera. When it lands, I need a distraction. Something to draw the Thundercats away from their ship. And that is all. Do this for me, and you will lose two enemies."

"That’s all well and good," Alluro responded, "but you have failed to answer one of the questions. Why are you in this? What is your benefit?"

The stranger lifted her head and looked at Alluro. Alluro’s mouth gaped open in surprise. Feline eyes peered out at him from beneath the hood. "Vengeance," she whispered.

"I don’t like it," Chilla hissed. "She is Thunderan in origin. How do we know this isn’t some trick by the Thundercats to lure us out in the open."

"They don’t work that way," Alluro argued. "The Thundercats have some stupid code that forbids offensives moves like that. Some notion of justice or something like that. If she is working with the Thundercats, they are completely unaware of it."

"Which makes her even more dangerous," TugMug replied. "She’s a freelancer. She can’t be trusted with anything. What’s her involvement in this? How did she find out about Third Earth?"

"But if she does offer us a way to destroy two Thundercats, we should take it," RedEye supported Alluro.

"You’re all hopeless," Luna yelled. "Why don’t we force it out of her!?"

"What good would it do us?" Alluro asked. "If she’s telling the truth, we’ve lost our chance to gain the upper hand."

Luna glared at Alluro. She often wondered if he tried to usurp leadership behind her back, but she knew he did it subtly in arguments like this. By seeming to be the calm and rational one, he drew support and put her in a bad light. "I didn’t mean it like that," she snapped. "Let’s just ask her. Simple questions like origin shouldn’t be too painful."

"I can answer those questions for you, Lunatacs," a voice said from behind RedEye. Everyone turned to look and the stranger slid out from the shadows. She laughed. "My people excel at camouflage. And I couldn’t help but overhear your conversation. It’s echoing all over Skytomb." She threw her hood back and her Thunderan lineage could be clearly seen.

"Why didn’t you first approach us like that?" TugMug asked suspiciously.

"Would you have even listened to me if I had?" she responded. She shook her head, the two bold black strips making a beautiful contrast against her amber hair. Black spots trailed down the back. "No, you would have taken me for Thunderan and proceeded to attack."

"You’re not Thunderan?" RedEye asked.

Her green eyes glinted. "No," she hissed. "Never. I will never claim that planet. My ancestors might have been Thunderan, but I am most definitely not."

The Lunatacs exchanged glances. "Perhaps you’d better tell us your real involvement," Luna suggested.

The feline nodded and began to tell her story. By the time she was finished, there was no doubt in anyone’s mind that she was sincere. Or what their action should be. The attack on Cat’s Lair was scheduled for the following morning.

"Looks like a good day to land," Panthro radioed the Feliner.

"And all’s clear up here," Bengali responded. He checked his boards again and looked over at Tygra. Tygra nodded in agreement.

"Did we miss any excitement while we were gone?" Tygra asked.

"Nah, nothing much," Panthro answered. "The mutants attacked once, but they’re still picking up the pieces of Castle Plun-Darr after that one. Mumm-Ra and the Lunatacs have been quiet. What about you two? Find any more of the Treasure of Thundera?"

"Nope," Bengali said. "Just a lot of dirt."

"Well, maybe we’ll have better luck next time. Our monitors show you’re due to reenter the atmosphere in fifteen minutes. We’ll have the landing pad ready for you."

"Thanks. We get the same readings. See you in twenty minutes," Tygra said. "Feliner out."

"I bet they’re glad to be back," Lion-O said, coming up behind Panthro. "They were gone a long time."

"We all knew this would be a long trip," Panthro said. "But I’ve missed Tygra’s help with the Thundertank. And Bengali’s metal work has been missed, too."

Lion-O nodded. "I’ll find Cheetara. We can clear the landing pad of anything flammable. Tell the kittens they’re back, would you?"

"Sure thing," Panthro acknowledged.

"Here it comes," Alluro whispered. The Lunatacs were crouched in the bushes surrounding Cat’s Lair.

"Okay, we all know the plan?" Luna asked, just to make sure. "Our main goal is to get the Cats away from the Feliner."

"We know, Luna," Chilla replied irritably. "We were there when the plan was made."

Luna glared at Chilla, but was prevented from answering by TugMug. "It’s about to touchdown. Do we wait until after Tygra and Bengali get out?" he asked.

"After," Luna answered.

The Feliner’s engines rumbled as it glided overhead. The hiss of hydraulics accompanied the shifting of the rockets as they adjusted for landing. The ship came to a smooth landing and the Lunatacs watched as the gathered Thundercats greeted the two returning. "Ready," Luna hissed. The Lunatacs waited. "Now!"

The Thundercats turned in surprise as the Lunatacs emerged from the surrounding forest. "What prompted this?" Panthro demanded, springing into action. He let a series or rockets fly from hidden compartments in his nunchucks.

"They must not have known the Feliner was coming back today," Lion-O said, pulling out the Sword of Omens. He leaped toward the Lunatacs. It wasn’t long before the Thundercats were engaged in battle. The Thunderkittens converged on Alluro who had his psyche club out and waiting. "Come on, Thunderkittens. You can trust me. You don’t want to hurt me," he said soothingly.

"Don’t…want…to hurt," Kit tried to shake off the effects.

Kat retained enough presence of mind to leap back out of the ray. "Not today, Lunatac," he snarled, hurling marbles filled with sneezing powder. Alluro’s hold on Kit was broken as he started sneezing uncontrollably.

Cheetara was running circles around Chilla who was vainly trying to freeze her. "Hold still, you stupid feline," she hissed. A lucky shot hit Cheetara in the leg, freezing it solid. Because of her speed, Cheetara fell to the ground and tumbled for a while. Chilla raced after her but was tripped up herself by a thin blue whip that entangled itself around her ankles.

"Chilla, that wasn’t very nice," Tygra scolded as he yanked the whip taught. But he was suddenly knocked forward by a jolt of electricity from RedEye.

"That’s no way to treat a lady," RedEye growled.

"That’s no lady," Bengali answered as he leaped in front of the stunned Tygra. A blast from his hammer knocked RedEye senseless.

Panthro and TugMug were leaping through the air, each one trying to get the upper hand. "Stupid Lunatacs," Panthro grumbled. "What are you up to?"

TugMug laughed and aimed his gravity carbine. "A rather heavy matter, Panthro," he snorted. His shot missed the panther by inches. Panthro flipped backwards, trying to give himself some room.

"Care to tell me about it?" he called. He managed to dodge another shot.

"Not particularly," TugMug responded. This time, he anticipated Panthro’s movement and managed to hit the panther. Panthro fell to the ground, suddenly weighted down. But before TugMug could take advantage of the situation, Cheetara’s staff knocked him flat. Tygra had freed her from Chilla’s ice with a stream of fire from his whip.

Lion-O and Amok were circling one another warily. "Give it up, Thundercat," Luna jeered.

"Just how stupid are you Lunatacs?" Lion-O asked.

Luna gave a squeal of rage and sent Amok charging at her foe. Lion-O easily dodged and raised the Sword of Omens. "Ho!" Amok was sent tumbling after the sword blast.

Alluro had managed to escape the Thunderkittens and was watching from the safety of the trees. He watched for a moment and then saw the signal. "Luna! Retreat!"

Luna looked up from the back of Amok’s back. Amok had just regained his footing. She hated to run from a fight, but the Thundercats clearly had the advantage. "We’ll be back, Thundercats," she growled at Lion-O. "Lunatacs, to Skytomb!"

TugMug had grabbed RedEye who was just coming around. Chilla disengaged Tygra and Bengali and ran for the safety of the forest. The Thundercats grouped together to discuss the battle.

"That was odd," Cheetara observed.

"Rather unexpected," Panthro agreed. "I’ll bet they were trying to catch us without Tygra and Bengali. They probably didn’t know the two of you were coming home today."

"But they must have heard the Feliner approaching," Bengali mused thoughtfully.

"Yeah, but Luna probably didn’t want to lose face," Wiley Kat said. "She probably ordered them on, anyway."

"Did you see Alluro’s face when we hit him with that sneezing powder?" Kit laughed. Her brother laughed with her.

"That was a classic."

"Well, let’s go eat breakfast," Lion-O said. He turned to Bengali and Tygra. "Snarf’s at the Tower of Omens right now, but Kit and Kat have graciously volunteered to fix up a welcome back breakfast."

"And this is safe?" Tygra asked.

"We’ll have to find out," Panthro laughed. "Let’s eat. I’m starving."

"You have done well, my friends," the strange cat told the Lunatacs.

"When can we expect results?" Luna asked.

"This afternoon."

"I don’t suppose it’s possible for us to watch, is it?" Alluro wanted to know.

"If you have some means of viewing what happens within Cat’s Lair, please enjoy the spectacle. But I believe it would look a little suspicious if you were to walk in," she answered. "But I must be on my way. Thank you for your help. I hope this will aid you, as well."

The Lunatacs watched her ship leave Skytomb. "Do you think she’ll really follow through? Or was this morning just a big embarrassment?" Chilla muttered.

"I don’t know, I thought it was kind of fun to attack the Thundercats," TugMug laughed. Chilla spat ice at him. "Hey, I was only kidding. It would have been more fun if we’d won."

"We’ll have to wait until later," RedEye said. "But from the look in her eyes when she mentioned those two Thundercats, I don’t think we have anything to lose."

Tygra stretched out in his bed. It felt good to be back. Their mission to New Thundera had turned up no additional Treasures of Thundera, and when it came right down to it, it had been boring. Or, as boring as anything gets with Bengali around. Tygra smiled to himself. That Thundercat had a drive overwhelming even Panthro’s impulsiveness. He yawned and got up. His watch in control was coming up and he might as well be there early.

Walking into the control, he met Panthro intently hunched over the monitor. "Anything new?"

Panthro looked up, startled. "I’m tracking a ship that’s just entered our space. It’s about to be in communication range."

Tygra moved to a station, interested. He quickly accessed the monitors of Cat’s Lair. "That’s interesting. Do we know who they are yet?"

"We’re about to find out," the panther responded.

The main screen became fuzzy with static and gradually cleared. Panthro adjusted a few settings and a link was established. "Mandora?" Panthro asked.

"Mandora to Cat’s Lair. Come in Lair."

"We’re here," Panthro quickly answered. "What brings you to Third Earth?"

"A matter of extradition," the officer replied. "As you can see, I am not in the Electrocharger. This is the prisoner transfer unit. We call it the Cell."

"I noticed you weren’t on the Electrocharger," Panthro said. "But what’s this about extradition?"

"I’ll tell you shortly," Mandora said. "I must speak with Lion-O. Do I have clearance to land at Cat’s Lair?"

"Yeah, no problem here. What’s your ETA?"

"One hour six minutes."

"We’ll be ready for you. Lair out," Panthro ended.

"What do you suppose that’s all about?" Tygra wondered.

Panthro shook his head. "I don’t know. Where’s Lion-O?"

"I think he said something about the Berbil village. I’m not sure, though."

"Well, we have an hour to find him. Do you want to start your watch early while I go and look?"

Tygra nodded. "Have fun."

Lion-O watched the Cell land outside of Cat’s Lair. It was a large vehicle and heavily armored. Two laser cannons were mounted on the cockpit and automatic Electro-spurts surrounded the back of the ship. The engines sighed as they powered down and a ramp descended. Mandora walked down the ramp and then turned, waiting for another to follow her. A pale blue cloak hid the figure following.

Lion-O looked at the other Thundercats. In transmissions received just prior to landing, Mandora had requested that all the Thundercats be present at Cat’s Lair. There was clearly an air of mystery and curiosity. And curiosity is what kills the cat, Lion-O thought wryly. He stepped forward to greet Mandora and her guest. "Welcome to Cat’s Lair."

Mandora nodded. "I’m afraid we’re going to have to cut the pleasantries, Lion-O. Can my guest and I meet with you alone in the council room? There’s something we need to discuss."

"Of course," Lion-O answered. He wondered what the other Thundercats would be needed for. "This way, please."

Both Mandora and the mystery guest were silent as Lion-O led them through the halls of Cat’s Lair. The other Thundercats trailed slowly behind, wondering what was going on and trying to look casual about it all. When safely in the council room with the doors closed, Lion-O turned expectantly to Mandora. "There has been an assassination on the planet Lotari," she said without preamble. "My guest here will explain." She stepped back.

The stranger hesitated and then slowly lowered her hood. Two black stripes ran down her amber hair. Spots followed the line of stripes and green feline eyes looked around shyly. Lion-O’s eyes widened.

"You’re Thunderan," he managed.

The stranger gave a small smile. "I’m afraid not," she corrected him. "My grandfather was Thunderan. The only home I know is Lotari. I am Celotta, now leader of the ocelot tribe."

"Ocelots?"

Celotta nodded. "In the days of my grandfather, we left Thundera after a dispute with the tiger clans. We settled Lotari and have made a great civilization. We thought our days of trouble were over." She sighed and shook her head. "We were wrong. Five days ago, our ruler and my cousin Traun was assassinated." She hesitated. "We have reason to believe that two of your Thundercats were involved."

Lion-O was speechless. Finally, he managed a response. "Thundercats? What makes you think that? Why would we harm you?"

"I mentioned before that we left following a dispute with the tigers. The tiger clans and our own clans did not part on good terms. But we believed distance would protect us. Unfortunately, it has not."

Lion-O’s eyes narrowed. "I don’t like what you’re saying, Celotta. If I understand you correctly, you’re accusing the two tigers, Bengali and Tygra, on the Thundercat team of murder."

"That is what I’m saying, Lion-O," she answered quietly.

Mandora chose this moment to step in. "Control has reviewed the evidence and it stands in her favor. I need to ask you a few questions. Where have Bengali and Tygra been for the past two weeks?"

Lion-O’s jaw clenched. "They took the Feliner to New Thundera."

Mandora nodded and made some marks in an electronic notepad she was carrying with her. "And were you in contact with them at this time."

"No," Lion-O said shortly. "But that doesn’t mean that—"

Mandora stopped him. "Do you have the logs of the Feliner and if so, may I look at the navigational records?"

Lion-O quickly walked over to a computer terminal. "It will show they went to New Thundera," he warned her. He quickly pulled up the Feliner’s computer notes. Mandora stepped over and punched a few commands. She inserted a recorder and copied the data.

"Look again, Lion-O," she said.

Lion-O glanced at the screen and then looked closer. The navigational computer did not show a record of traveling to New Thundera. It showed a star path through a different part of the galaxy to a planet Lion-O had never heard of. He looked at Mandora.

"That’s Lotari," she said simply.

Lion-O stared at her. He couldn’t think of anything to say. "Now what?" he said eventually.

"Under article 10, section 8, paragraph 3 of the interstellar treaty regarding custody of criminals to which the citizens of Lotari have appealed, Control is to take into custody and render harmless one Bengali and one Tygra and deliver them to the proper authorities of Lotari where they will await fair trial and if it is called for, sentencing," Mandora explained in one long breath.

"But you have no proof," Lion-O protested. "There is no proof that they murdered the ruler of Lotari."

"Under regulation 6 of the rules regarding interstellar criminals, I am not at liberty to discuss the nature of the evidence gathered on Lotari. But I will tell you that it is convincing. I must extradite Tygra and Bengali."

Lion-O sat down heavily in one of the chairs. "And what do you need from me?"

"Control feels that a promise from the Lord of the Thundercats that the Thundercats will cooperate is necessary before proceeding on this investigation," Mandora explained.

Lion-O nodded slowly. "Of course we’ll cooperate. What do you want?"

"Tygra and Bengali. Without a fight. Which is why I asked that all the Thundercats be here. All involved parties need to understand that what is happening is a very serious matter and full cooperation must be forthcoming."

"Should I call them in here?" Lion-O asked.

"Wait." Celotta put her hood up. "Okay, now."

"What do you need that for?" Lion-O asked suspiciously.

"Forgive me if I cause insult, but after recent events, I do not trust members of your team."

Lion-O gave her a long look and then stood. He turned back to Mandora. "Should I call the Thundercats in?" Mandora nodded. Lion-O walked to the door, which opened at his approach. He found Wiley Kit and Wiley Kat loitering in the hall. "And what are you two doing?"

The Thunderkittens looked up, startled. "Um, I, that is we, thought that maybe, well," Kat stammered. He stopped and looked at Kit who shrugged.

"Never mind," Lion-O interjected. "Where are the other Thundercats?"

"I think they’re all up in the control room," Kit told him.

"Go round them up and tell them we need to have a meeting in the council room." The kittens scampered off to look for the others. Lion-O turned back to the room. "When are you taking them?"

"Today after the meeting."

Lion-O stared. "You have to be kidding," he stammered.

"No joke, Thundercat," Mandora said evenly. "We need to make all possible speed to Lotari."

Lion-O walked back to his seat and sat down again. Mandora and Celotta moved off to the side as they heard footsteps coming down the hall. Panthro walked in first. He took one look at Lion-O and stopped any questions that he had. He took his seat silently across from his leader. Cheetara and Tygra arrived and had the same reaction. Snarfer, Bengali, and Pumyra walked in together. But Snarfer and Bengali were not forestalled in their questions. "What’s going on? Why the big secret?" Snarfer asked.

"Does it have something to do with the mutants or the Lunatacs?" Bengali asked.

"You’ll learn," Lion-O said heavily. Lynx-O, Snarf, Kit, and Kat had arrived by this time and also found seats. The kittens and snarfs perched on the windowsills. Everyone waited.

Lion-O looked around and tried to think of how to break this news. His own mind was still reeling. He studied Tygra and Bengali, but couldn’t discern anything. Something was seriously wrong. But the matter was quickly slipping out of his hands. He looked to Mandora who was standing silent. She made no move to help. Finally, Lion-O addressed the Thundercats. "I’m afraid I’ve got some bad news. The ruler of the planet Lotari was murdered."

The Thundercats exchanged puzzled glances. Tygra cleared his throat. "Lion-O, where is Lotari and how does it concern us?"

A good response, Lion-O thought. He struggled within himself. "The citizens of Lotari think some of us are responsible."

There were gasps around the table. "Who?" Panthro demanded. "We’ve all been here. No one had access to other planets except for Bengali and Tygra, and they were on New Thundera."

Lion-O cursed quietly. "Tygra, Bengali, can you prove you were on New Thundera?"

All eyes turned to Tygra and Bengali, who happened to be sitting side by side. Both looked taken aback. They looked at each other. "We didn’t find any more treasures," Tygra started.

"The navigational computers," Bengali said. "They’ll show you that we charted straight to New Thundera."

Lion-O shook his head. "We looked at them. They show a course to Lotari."

There was stunned silence. "But I don’t even know where Lotari is," Tygra objected. "How can I navigate to some place I’ve never charted."

"We have evidence to the contrary," Mandora said, breaking her silence. "Unless you have some very convincing proof that you could not be responsible for the death of Traun, the ruler of Lotari, I’m afraid I’ll have to take you into custody."

"Who lives on Lotari?" Bengali asked.

Mandora hesitated. "I am not at liberty to say. You pose a threat to the guest in this room."

Celotta stepped forward at this point. "No, it’s all right. The Thundercats have a right to know who accuses their friends. And I will not hide behind a disguise when confronting my cousin’s murderers any more." She lowered her hood.

"You’re Thunderan?" Pumyra demanded.

Celotta shook her head. "My grandfather was Thunderan. I am Lotarian. For those who don’t remember us, we are ocelots."

"Ocelots? But you abandoned Thundera years ago," Lynx-O said.

"To save our lives from the continuing onslaughts of the tiger clans."

"As I remember history, it was you who first assaulted us," Tygra said quietly. Bengali looked at Tygra.

"I don’t remember hearing anything about ocelots," he said.

"Lion-O, I must go soon," Mandora interrupted. "I will be taking Tygra and Bengali with me. Is there anything more you wish to discuss?"

Bengali was about to say something, but Tygra stopped him. Lion-O looked around, trying to find words. "We’ll prove you were on New Thundera," he vowed. Tygra nodded. Bengali didn’t look happy but didn’t protest.

"I swear by the Code of Thundera that we are innocent," Tygra told Lion-O. Bengali echoed Tygra.

Mandora was clearly getting impatient. "Tygra, Bengali, please stand and come with me," she ordered.

The tigers stood reluctantly and watched as Mandora produced manacles from within her belt. She walked over to Bengali and wrenched his arms behind his back.

"Is that really necessary?" he protested. "I’m not going to try and escape."

"As of now, Bengali, you have the right to remain silent and anything you say can be used against you as per regulation 9.3 regarding criminal rights." She then drew her gun that hung in a holster by her hip and shot Tygra.

"What was that for?" Cheetara demanded, jumping to the fallen tiger.

"Merely a precaution," Mandora answered, pushing the cheetah away. She drew a hypodermic needle and injected something into Tygra. "I didn’t want him struggling."

"What did you just give him?’ Pumyra asked.

"A drug to disable his mind powers. He should be regaining consciousness in a few minutes."

"What kind of a drug?" Pumyra said dangerously. "He does have allergies, you know."

"Nothing that he would react to. He just won’t be able to concentrate on anything for very long."

"And how long will this drug last?"

"Until he’s given the antidote," Mandora said in a voice that told Pumyra the conversation was at an end. "Celotta, return to the Cell. I’ll take Bengali out." She looked around at the Thundercats. "No one is to move Tygra. Is that understood? Or I will bring the force of interstellar law down upon your heads."

There was a mumbled agreement. The Thundercats were in a state of shock. Bengali was roughly propelled out the door. Finally, Snarf whimpered. "What just happened here? Snarf, snaaarf, I don’t think I like the looks of this."

Pumyra had moved to Tygra and was checking his vital signs. She looked up at Lion-O. "He seems okay for someone who was just shot with a stun gun at close range."

Panthro looked up from a computer terminal. "Lion-O’s right. The navigational logs say the Feliner went to Lotari."

"That’s not possible," Cheetara argued. "Why would they go there? I remember vaguely learning about some disagreement between the ocelot and tiger clans, but why would Bengali and Tygra go to Lotari? It was settled. The ocelot clans left Thundera."

"Not quite, Cheetara," Lynx-O began, but he was interrupted by the return of Mandora. She moved to Tygra and shook him roughly. He opened his eyes and blinked.

"Come on, stand up." Mandora took him by the arm and hauled him to his feet. Tygra swayed a bit and blinked. He seemed to want to say something, but nothing would come out. Mandora moved behind him and manacled his hands.

"Lion-O?" Tygra stopped and shook his head vigorously. "I—" The words wouldn’t come. He squeezed his eyes shut and tried to concentrate. Mandora pushed him forward. The Thundercats watched in horrified silence as Mandora directed him out the room and down the hall. It was Wiley Kat who finally broke the silence.

"Now what?"

Cheetara tossed restlessly in dream-filled slumber. The day had worn her out, but the night brought no respite. A single dream kept appearing and tormenting her. She saw the Feliner on New Thundera. She saw it return. She saw Bengali and Tygra executed for murder. She heard the real assassins laughing behind her. But when she turned, they were no longer there. She would turn back as Bengali and Tygra were dying. Both cried out to her to tell the truth. To tell how they were innocent. But she couldn’t. No one would listen. And the end was always the same. When Tygra and Bengali died, the other Thundercats began to die. They all died.

Cheetara bolted to a sitting position. Her breath was coming hard and sweat beaded her brow. She groaned. "A dream," she whispered. "Only a dream." And yet it hadn’t been. That nagging sixth sense of hers kept bringing images to her mind. Bengali and Tygra dying. The other Thundercats dying. The truth coming out too late for anyone to hear. She swung her legs out of bed, dressed, and walked to the control room.

Lion-O was on watch and turned at her approach. "Cheetara? What’s wrong?"

"Couldn’t sleep," she mumbled. Lion-O looked at her skeptically. She slumped down in a chair.

"Want to talk about it?"

She held her head with her hands. "I’m having, this dream. A horrible, horrible dream. I see Bengali and Tygra die. And I know they’re innocent. But I arrive too late to stop their death. They’re completely set up by someone who’s out to murder them. For things they never did." She started to tremble. "And then we die. We all die."

Lion-O gently knelt by Cheetara’s side. He placed a hand on her shoulder. "What else?" he asked quietly. "What else do you see?"

She shook her head. "I don’t know. Falsified evidence. An unfair trial. The murderer laughing at me because it’s all futile."

"What can we do to stop it?"

"I don’t know," Cheetara moaned softly. "But I know they’re innocent."

"We all do."

"No, I know it," Cheetara replied firmly. "You all believe it. But I saw the Feliner on New Thundera. I saw Bengali and Tygra exploring caves. I know they were there. They couldn’t have been to Lotari."

Lion-O nodded. "We’ll talk in the morning. I think Lynx-O knows something about this that he didn’t get a chance to explain yesterday. Try and get some sleep if you can." Cheetara obediently rose and started back to her room. On the way, she thought she saw something flitting around a corner. Curious, she started after it and smiled as she turned.

"Panthro? What are you doing up?"

Panthro jumped. "Cheetara? It isn’t your watch."

"It isn’t yours either."

Just then, Wiley Kat came running around the corner. "Panthro, I’ve finished the—" he stopped when he saw Cheetara.

"So you’re keeping the kittens up too?"

Panthro grumbled. "Thanks Kat. Tell Kit she can start the program." He turned back to Cheetara. "They were up anyway. I figured I’d put them to work."

"I wonder if Snarf’s up, too," Cheetara mused. "So what are you working on?"

"Diagnostics on the Feliner’s computers. Want to help?"

Cheetara nodded. "Definitely."

Panthro watched the series of numbers scroll down the screen. Wiley Kit was fast asleep on a chair behind him. Kat was trying valiantly to stay awake at a computer terminal and failing miserably. Cheetara set another set of data discs beside the panther. He didn’t even notice. He had picked something up. Stopping the screen, he moved back a few lines. "There," he breathed quietly. He looked around. Cheetara appeared to be pulling up more information. The morning sun was beginning to stream in through the garage window. Kat gave a loud snore. "Cheetara, take a look at this," Panthro whispered.

Cheetara looked up and moved behind Panthro. "Find something?"

The panther nodded. "Look at this line of code. Now look at the following line. That’s where an adjustment was made to the navigational computer. Now if this is correct, that would be where the Feliner made a turn for Lotari around a super nova." On a separate monitor, Panthro pulled up a star chart and zoomed in on a sector. "This super nova is the one from the logs," he pointed. "Now, according to the adjustment made in the computers, the Feliner passed between the second and first meteorite belt. Right?"

Cheetara nodded, but couldn’t see where he was going. Panthro moved to the other monitor where the super nova was displayed. "But look at the radiation curves around that nova. If the Feliner did pass between those belts, the radiation would have killed Bengali and Tygra. The Feliner just doesn’t have the shielding to withstand that."

"So you’re saying that the course heading is wrong. The Feliner couldn’t have gone through that."

Panthro nodded. "More than that, though. I know how Tygra navigates. He makes course adjustments well in advance of obstacles. He doesn’t like to have to make hasty changes. Look at the first two adjustments. This is when they could have been on a course for either New Thundera or Lotari. These first two changes are made far in advance of upcoming obstacles. But here, where they make a definite turn to Lotari, all subsequent shifts are made moments before the obstacle. And their entire journey back is the same way. That’s not Tygra. And Bengali doesn’t like to navigate. Either the computer was adjusted or someone hijacked the Feliner and we never heard about it. I like the first option."

"But we still need more," Cheetara said. "We need definite proof that someone changed the computer and we need to know what the course was before it was changed."

"What bothers me," Panthro mused, "is how the computer was changed in the first place. Someone had to have direct access to it."

"The Lunatacs," Cheetara said suddenly. Panthro looked up at her. "They attacked just after the Feliner touched down. Could they have drawn us away from the computer while someone altered it?"

"Who?" Panthro asked. "Who would have altered it? The mutants don’t have the knowledge except maybe Vultureman, and he wouldn’t be that fluent on Thunderan computers anyway. And all the Lunatacs were involved in the attack."

Cheetara shrugged. "I don’t know. But that attack was a little surprising."

At this point, Lion-O sauntered into the garage. He cleared his throat. "As I remember it, I was only supposed to be on watch for two hours. And after that, Panthro was supposed to relieve me. Following Panthro, Wiley Kit and Wiley Kat were supposed to be on call. And Cheetara had the morning watch with Snarf."

Panthro and Cheetara exchanged glances. "I guess we forgot," Cheetara said sheepishly.

Lion-O sighed and slumped into a chair. "Don’t worry about it. I went to look for you, but all I could find was Snarf who was reading history from the data banks. He was reading about the ocelots. Have you lazy cats been productive?"

Panthro snorted. "Take a look at this," he told Lion-O. He showed him what he had showed Cheetara.

Cheetara continued plowing through the protection codes on the Feliner’s navigational banks. She had flagged the definite course change to Lotari and was trying to find a difference between the series of codes. If she could find one, it would prove that the Feliner had actually been on New Thundera and not Lotari.

Snarf wandered into the garage and looked at the collection of Thundercats. "Any progress down here?" he asked.

"From what I can see, quite a bit," Lion-O commented, straightening up. "We have proof that if the Feliner did go to Lotari, Tygra and Bengali could not have been on it. Or if they were, they weren’t driving."

"Found it!" Cheetara suddenly said. The Thundercats with the exception of Kit and Kat crowded around her. "Look. An overlying code. This part of the program completely skips the real logs and diverts the readings to this new subfolder that I don’t remember being here before."

Panthro studied the display. "How did you find this? That’s a well-concealed command."

Cheetara shrugged. "I don’t know. I just started looking around the course diversion."

"So now we have the real logs. And they do prove that Tygra and Bengali took the Feliner to New Thundera. They couldn’t have been on Lotari. There wouldn’t have been enough time to be in both places." Panthro looked at Lion-O. "We have to take this to Lotari. This proves they’re innocent."

Lion-O nodded. "But I’d like to ask Lynx-O about this feud or whatever it is, first. I feel we need some more information. There’s more here than we can see."

"I’ll go get him on the monitor," Snarf volunteered, taking off for the control room.

"Cheetara, get the Thunderkittens to bed. Come on Panthro. We’ll be the ones to take the Feliner to Lotari so we need to hear what’s going on."

"I’ll be with you in a minute," Cheetara called after Panthro and Lion-O.

"You have very definite proof? This will be convincing?" Lynx-O asked.

"Anyone with a knowledge of Thunderan computer systems will be able to tell," Panthro confirmed. "Once we point out the subfolder and overlying hidden commands, it will be obvious."

"That’s good," Lynx-O said quietly. "The hatred between tigers and ocelots runs deep."

"What’s the source of this hatred? What exactly are we up against?" Lion-O asked.

"Lynx-O told us part of the story last night after we returned to the Tower of Omens," Pumyra broke in. "It’s quite a long story. Do you have time?"

Cheetara walked into the control room. "Did I miss anything?"

"Not yet," Lion-O answered. "And yes, Pumyra, we’ll make the time to hear this."

Lynx-O nodded. "Very well." They saw Lynx-O leave the Braille board in the Tower of Omens and find a chair in which to sit. He began the tale. "Four generations ago, there was a prolonged war between Thundera and Plun-Darr. We have all learned that from studying history. But there are many aspects of that war that were not common knowledge and were hidden from the ordinary Thunderan. One thing that was hidden was the story of an ocelot name Junglan. Junglan was a war hero of sorts. He made many brave exploits into mutant territory and became something of an assassin. It was partly due to his efforts that the war ended as soon as it did. There was no doubt that Thundera would win, but many lives were spared because of Junglan. Unfortunately, this went to his head. He began to believe that he was destined to be the new ruler of Thundera. A large number of ocelots supported him and this only added to his boldness."

"Was Junglan a Thundercat?" Lion-O asked.

"No, back then warriors included those who were not Thundercats. But Junglan believed he should be a Thundercat. Leon was the ruler of the Thundercats and he had no serious qualm with anointing Junglan a Thundercat. There was no doubt that he was brave and heroic. But there were certain parts of the Code of Thundera that Junglan felt should be changed. He thought it Thundera’s destiny to spread across the stars and overwhelm the other races such as the mutants or the Lunatacs. He felt they should be wiped clean from the universe. Before he could be anointed a Thundercat, Junglan made these views known and stuck to them. So Leon denied him the honor. After this, Junglan became bitter and vowed to destroy the Thundercats. In his mind, if he couldn’t be one, no one deserved to be one. He was better than all."

"Did the ocelots still look up to him?" Cheetara wondered.

Lynx-O nodded. "A surprising number did. Not many ocelots were made Thundercats. Most had no outstanding talents. Their biggest talent as a species was their aptitude for stealth and secrecy. They made excellent spies. Most ocelots were quite small compared to the average Thunderan. The average height for an ocelot was a foot less than the average Thunderan. So they could slip undetected into many areas."

"That’s one thing I noticed," Snarfer interrupted. "Celotta was really short. She didn’t look fully grown."

"Shut up and let us hear what Lynx-O has to say," Snarf scolded.

Lynx-O smiled and continued his story. "Anyway, he still had quite a few supporters among the ocelots. And he decided that if he were to kill the Lord of the Thundercats, he could take over Thundera. He knew Leon was to take a journey soon and he vowed to kill him before he could return. When Leon left in a scout ship, Junglan followed. In a remote area of Thundera, he opened fire and forced Leon’s ship to the ground. In the crash, Leon was thrown from his ship and knocked unconscious. Junglan landed and readied himself to make the fatal stroke. But he forgot that Leon never traveled alone. He was always in the company of his counselor, Clawtel of the tiger clan. Clawtel was also thrown from the ship, but he was still conscious. However, the crash had paralyzed him and he was immobile. But he could see Junglan advancing on Leon and knew what was about to happen. So Clawtel did the only thing he could do. He bombarded Junglan illusions and images. What some say happened is that he transferred all of his pain from the crash directly into Junglan’s mind and magnified it. I couldn’t say as I’m not that familiar with the way the tiger clans use their mental powers. But whatever happened, the end result was that Junglan lost his sanity. When his followers found him, he was a raving lunatic in the wilderness of Thundera. He was never the same after that."

"So the ocelots were the ones who started the war?" Panthro asked. "I remember a little about this, but I don’t think I’ve ever heard the full story."

Lynx-O shook his head. "It becomes too complicated to really say who started the hatred because the story doesn’t end there. It was the decision of the Thundercats to keep this incident a secret. They thought they would save the ocelots from shame and embarrassment. However, Clawtel felt that Junglan’s family deserved an explanation. And so he told them what had happened and apologized. Unfortunately, Junglan’s family felt that Clawtel had gone too far. After Clawtel had returned to Cat’s Lair, they attacked his hometown and kidnapped his family. Now the tiger clan of this town didn’t take this too well. But before waiting for retaliation from the Thundercats, they took matters into their own hands. They didn’t know who had kidnapped Clawtel’s family, but they knew where the ocelots lived who had taken them. And so they attacked the ocelot village. Most of the ocelots had no idea of what was going on and so they defended themselves, not understanding that the tigers were only looking for those who had taken Clawtel’s family. This led the attacking tigers to believe that they had all been involved. And so the ocelot village was completely destroyed. The survivors fled to other ocelot clans and begged for help."

"What were the Thundercats doing during all this?" Lion-O asked, shocked.

"It happened too quickly for them to do anything. They had barely gotten wind of the disappearance of Clawtel’s family when they heard that his clan had attacked and destroyed an entire ocelot village. You have to remember that the entire incident was kept secret."

"How can you keep something like this a secret?" Cheetara demanded.

"I’m really not sure, to be honest," Lynx-O answered. "There were rumors, but these were quickly hushed up. Again, you will recall that it was about this time that problems with the mutants started cropping up. That seemed to be a larger concern than a dispute between clans of tigers and ocelots."

"So what happened next?" Snarf asked.

"The Thundercats sent help to the involved ocelot and tiger clans, but they found both villages gone. The tiger village had been abandoned; the ocelot village had been destroyed. The Thundercats started searching for them and discovered that the ocelots had begun preparations for retaliation. The Thundercats tried to stop them, but it was no use. The ocelots were determined to make the tiger clan pay for what had been done. And since other tiger clans were sheltering the guilty parties, they figured all tigers should pay. And so guerilla warfare broke out. The ocelots developed paranoia of the mental powers of tigers and started creating neural repressors. In response to this, the tigers increased their attacks and death counts began to add up on both sides."

"I can’t believe no one heard about this," Panthro said softly.

"Some did," Lynx-O admitted. "But at the same time this was going on, the Lunatacs and mutants launched an allied offensive. No one had time to settle a dispute between rival clans. And so it was allowed to continue while both clans developed a deep hatred for the other. And who can say how long it would have gone on if one incident hadn’t forced the ocelots to leave Thundera. A white tiger by the name of Coldpaw managed to lead a strike force into the main headquarters of the ocelot camp. Coldpaw was the only tiger to return, but he brought with him Spotrol, the very popular recognized leader of the ocelots, and news that his entire council had been destroyed. With their valuable hostage, the tigers delivered an ultimatum. The ocelots could save their beloved leader and leave Thundera, or they could watch him die by his worst nightmares and suffer the same fate themselves as they tried to lead their armies without a government. The ocelots loved Spotrol very much and were willing to do anything for him. And so they agreed to leave. But Spotrol was not allowed to come with them. The tigers created ships with enough fuel to get the ocelots to a planet deemed suitable for life. I assume that this is what Celotta called Lotari. They were allowed to take technology with them, and this ended the feud. In a way. Because the ocelots harbored a deep hatred about being forced to leave their homeland. The tigers were somewhat satisfied with the end but still grudged all the deaths the ocelots had caused. And when the Thundercats again had time to look at the matter, it was too late. And they deemed that attempting to mend things would only make matters worse. So the ocelots were left to themselves on their new planet. No one attempted to contact them and for the most part, they were forgotten."

"No one noticed an entire race of Thunderans leave?" Lion-O asked.

"At the time, there were many small groups leaving Thundera, trying to get away from the wars. An entire race was not noticed that much. The ocelots had always been a solitary group, keeping to themselves for the most part. Their interaction with other races had been minimal, so their disappearance was really not noted. And until now, that ended the story. But it appears there is conflict once more."

The Thundercats sat in silence. "That’s incredible," Cheetara finally said. "I think I had heard this conflict mentioned vaguely, but that’s all. So much more emphasis was put on the mutant wars when we were learning history."

"What I want to know," Pumyra said, "is how much of this Tygra and Bengali are aware of. Tygra seemed to know something about it, but Ben was completely bewildered. That’s how it looked to me, anyway."

"I would not be surprised if Tygra knows as much as I’ve told and more. The red tiger passed this story on to their children, though they were careful it stayed within the tiger clans only. The white tiger clans decided that they would rather forget the whole thing. I don’t think Bengali knows anything about it," Lynx-O answered.

"How did you learn about it, snarfer, snarfer."

"When I was growing up, there was an elder in my village who was part-ocelot, part-tiger. He had separated from both clans just toward the end of the war. It was from him that I learned this story."

"How much do you think the ocelots remember?" Lion-O questioned.

Lynx-O’s brow wrinkled up. "It’s hard to say, Lion-O. There is no doubt that they remember. Being thrust from your home world is something we can all relate to. And being separated from their most popular leader was hard to take, I imagine. I would not be surprised if this story has been heavily taught to their children as well as their hatred for tigers and their fear of mental powers. If you’ll remember, Mandora drugged Tygra before taking him with her. I am betting that Celotta had requested that. Bengali was not drugged, as the white tigers don’t possess the mental powers that the red clans do. I can’t imagine Mandora drugging Tygra unless Celotta had made a fuss over the issue."

"Sounds like we’re up against quite a bit," Panthro observed.

Lion-O nodded. "Let’s get the Feliner ready. We’ll leave tonight."

"So, the Thundercats are going to try and rescue Tygra and Bengali." A dark figure turned away from the cauldron of bubbling water. A red cloak concealed his disfigured body wrapped in bandages. Red eyes glinted as he thought about the recent events that had transpired. Mumm-Ra glanced up at the four statues surrounding the pool. "The Thundercats are down by two key players," he murmured. He absently reached down to pet the dog at his feet. "We can do something with this, Ma-Mutt. The Thundercats must not be allowed to rescue their companions."

Ma-Mutt whined and made a snapping motion with his jaws. "No," Mumm-Ra murmured. "An attack now would only hasten their departure. They would realize how much they need Bengali and Tygra. We must do something that will force them to stay. Something that will force Lion-O to stay." He thought a bit more.

Ma-Mutt growled and backed away, shaking his head. He looked expectantly at Mumm-Ra. The mummy tried to interpret his pet. "A hostage?" the ancient one queried. Ma-Mutt barked in answer. Mumm-Ra closed his eyes and pondered. "A hostage. A hostage the Thundercats will value enough to rescue but one that will not significantly diminish their strength. One that will not make them need their fellow Thundercats. An easy hostage." Mumm-Ra opened his eyes and an evil grin spread over his deformed face. "I believe I should find a companion for you, Ma-Mutt. Would you like to play with Snarf, my putrid pooch?"

"How long will you be gone?" Snarf asked Lion-O. Lion-O was watching the meters on a board as Panthro adjusted the fuel cycles in the Feliner.

"As long as we need to be," Lion-O answered. "We’re going to do everything within our power to prove Tygra and Bengali innocent."

"Have you thought about what Cheetara said?" Snarf questioned.

Lion-O looked up. "What did Cheetara say?"

"Well, snarf, snarf, she was wondering how the navigational computer was altered. Panthro said someone had to be in direct contact. Who could have done that? Do you think Bengali and Tygra were set up?"

"They were obviously set up, Snarf. That’s why there was an alteration in the computers."

Snarf shook his head. "No, Lion-O, I don’t mean that. Who set them up?"

Lion-O paused. "I don’t know. The Lunatacs?"

"But Panthro said—"

"What did I say?" Panthro asked as he jumped down from the Feliner.

"You said the Lunatacs wouldn’t know how to alter the computers. So who did it?"

Panthro looked at Snarf. "You know, I haven’t thought about that. But you’re right. Someone with a good knowledge of Thunderan computer systems created that program. Somebody who wanted Tygra and Bengali out of the way."

"So who could do that?" Lion-O asked.

"I could," Panthro said. "Tygra could, Cheetara could but it would take her more time, and I think Lynx-O could come up with something like that from the Braille board. Beyond that, I think Vultureman could if he were given a long time with the Feliner’s computer and Alluro would stand a chance, too. But those logs had to have been changed during the Lunatacs’ attack. That’s a pretty small time frame. Which narrows it down to myself, Tygra, or someone we don’t know about. I know I didn’t do it and it’s pretty obvious Tygra didn’t do it. So we’re looking at someone new."

"Someone new with a good knowledge of Thunderan computers," Lion-O added.

Snarf swatted at a fly that was beginning to bother him. "Could Mumm-Ra have done it?" he asked.

Lion-O snorted. "Mumm-Ra may be powerful in magic, but he doesn’t know much about technology."

"Besides that, I think we would have noticed Mumm-Ra slipping into the Feliner," Panthro said.

"That’s another thing," Snarf said as he leaped around, trying to get rid of the fly. "How did they get past you to the Feliner?"

"Someone with a lot of stealth could have," Panthro mused. "We were all kind of distracted by the Lunatacs. But it would still take a lot of ability to get past all of us that were there."

"Didn’t Lynx-O mention the ocelots have that capability?" Lion-O asked.

"That’s a pretty heavy accusation," Panthro warned. His attention was suddenly drawn to a frantically circling Snarf. "What are you doing?"

"This stupid fly, snarf, won’t leave me alone."

"Take it outside," Lion-O suggested.

"I’ll do that," Snarf responded. He raced out of the garage.

Lion-O turned back to Panthro. "But what if some of the ocelots planned this? What if they waited until they knew Bengali and Tygra would be gone?"

Panthro shook his head. "What if some of them did? That’s still a very serious accusation. And would the ocelots still hate the tiger clans enough to go through with something this big? I can understand hatred stirred up at the thought that Bengali and Tygra murdered their leader, but if the ocelots started this whole thing, that’s a lot of hatred they’re packing around."

"In which case, the truth might not do us a lot of good," Lion-O stated. Suddenly, the Sword of Omens started to growl. "I hope that’s not for Bengali and Tygra," Lion-O said, reaching for the Sword. "Sword of Omens, give me sight beyond sight." The hilt curled and Lion-O gazed through it.

"What would Mumm-Ra want with Snarf?" Wiley Kat asked.

"Whatever it is, it can’t be good," Kit announced.

"But why now?" Cheetara questioned. She had a very strange feeling about this. "And why only Snarf? There’s something strange about this."

Lion-O sighed from his chair in the council room. The Thundercats in the Tower of Omens waited expectantly on the main monitor. "Whatever his intentions, I’m afraid we’re going to have to delay our flight to Lotari. I don’t want to go until Snarf is rescued."

Snarfer whimpered from the monitor. "Poor Uncle Snarf. What do you suppose Mumm-Ra is doing to him?"

Pumyra started to say something, but stopped herself. Lynx-O turned to her.

"Were you going to suggest something?"

Pumyra hesitated. Finally, she said, "Shouldn’t we still go after Tygra and Ben? I don’t think the ocelots will wait long for their trial."

Snarfer swung on her. "And abandon Uncle Snarf?!"

"Wait," Cheetara spoke up. "Pumyra’s right. There’s something funny about all this that I don’t like. What if that’s Mumm-Ra’s intention? What if he’s trying to delay us?"

"Then I think it worked," Panthro said heavily.

"If all of us go after Snarf, how long would it take to rescue him?" Wiley Kit asked.

"I guess it depends on where Mumm-Ra has him and who’s involved," Lion-O said.

"What if some of us still go on to Lotari?" Cheetara suggested. "And the rest stay here and rescue Snarf?"

"It would be dangerous," Lynx-O warned. "We would be even more vulnerable than we are now. What do you suggest, Lion-O?"

Lion-O paused. "Whatever happens," he stated, "I’m staying here. Snarf raised me since I was a cub. I owe it to him. But I think Cheetara might be right. Tygra and Bengali won’t have much time once they reach Lotari. I don’t know."

"If someone does go to Lotari, I’ll have to go with them," Panthro said. "I can explain the computers. Which means if you’re planning a rescue, you can’t include me."

Lion-O massaged his temples. He glanced up and to his surprise, a ghostly apparition was standing on the other side of the table. "Jaga!"

Jaga addressed the young Lord of the Thundercats. "You must send someone to Tygra and Bengali. The hatred stirred by recent events will doom them if it is not stemmed immediately."

"But what about Snarf?" Lion-O demanded.

"Those who remain will have to take care of him," Jaga answered. "I told you once that you would have to make sacrifices. This is one of those times, Lion-O. The Thundercats cannot stand to lose both Bengali and Tygra."

"But Snarf—"

"Stay here, Lion-O," Jaga told him. "But send someone for Tygra and Bengali." Jaga began to vanish.

"Jaga, wait!" But it was too late. Jaga was gone. Lion-O slumped.

"Lion-O?" Cheetara questioned gently.

"We have to send someone to Lotari."

Panthro nodded. "I’ll go."

"No, not just you," Lion-O said, gritting his teeth. He felt like he was betraying Snarf, but he knew now that it had to be done. "I don’t want you there alone. There’s going to be a lot of angry ocelots to deal with. Cheetara, go with him. And Kit and Kat. You’ll go, too." The Thunderkittens looked at him in surprise, but immediately nodded. "You’ll all leave as soon as possible. The rest of us will deal with Mumm-Ra."

Bengali’s manacles were slipped off, but he entertained no thoughts of escape. Four sets of ocelot hands were firmly clutching his arms. At least this was a change from the dreary prison cell he’d been placed in since reaching Lotari. He was slammed down into a metal chair. Steel restraints snapped out and firmly anchored his arms to the armrests.

He looked around for Tygra. Tygra had also been taken out of the prison cell, but after that, Bengali had lost track of him. Things wouldn’t have been so bad if Tygra had been himself. But he couldn’t speak except in monosyllables and sentences one word long. He couldn’t focus on conversation and had no idea what was going on. Most of the time he sat staring at nothing. Bengali figured he was trying to regain some of his concentration. But that didn’t make for an interesting cellmate.

Bengali allowed his mind to drift back to only a few hours ago when they had been taken from Mandora’s Cell. That had been quite an experience. He had decided their ocelot guards were there to protect himself and Tygra because the crowd that had gathered was screaming for blood. What made things worse was that Bengali still had no idea what was going on. He had hoped Tygra would be able to explain it, but Tygra hadn’t been able to do anything.

Bengali looked up as he heard the sound of approaching footsteps. Tygra was roughly propelled through the door and the ocelot guards guided him to another chair. Bengali noted that they hadn’t even bothered to put manacles on Tygra after taking him from the cell. Steel restraints snapped into place and one of the guards put some kind of headband on Tygra’s head. After doing this, he pulled out a hypodermic needle and injected something into Tygra. The guards left the room and Bengali and Tygra were alone.

Bengali sighed dejectedly and resigned himself to yet another boring wait. He decided to study the layout of the room as there was nothing else to do. He noted quickly that his chair and Tygra’s were different. Tygra’s was equipped with what looked to be a medical monitor. Bengali’s chair was merely a restraining device. Other than that, the room was dull and boring. The floor was gray, the walls were gray, there were no windows, there was only one door and it was gray, the ceiling was gray, and the light was, well, a light.

Bengali decided that if it hadn’t been a light it would have been gray, too. And the table that sat in front of Bengali and Tygra was also gray. In fact, as Bengali thought about it, the uniforms of the guards were gray. They were like big cloaks and completely covered the guards. Gray, gray, gray. Bengali looked around for something else to do.

Movement caught his eye and he turned to watch Tygra shaking his head. The glazed look had left his eyes and he appeared alert. Hope sprang in Bengali’s heart. "Tygra?"

Tygra turned at the sound. He hadn’t done that for a while, either. "Bengali? Where are we?"

Bengali would have jumped if he hadn’t been strapped down. "You can talk again!"

Tygra’s brow furrowed. "When haven’t I been able to talk?"

"Do you have any idea how boring you are when you aren’t talking? No offense, I mean. It’s just that three hours cooped up with you in a gray prison cell with no windows can be enough to drive anyone nutty. At least in the Cell I could sometimes talk with Mandora, though she didn’t encourage it. And it was more interesting."

Tygra gave his head a vigorous shake. "There is something around my forehead," he observed. He had decided to divert Bengali’s attention and see if he could find some information that way.

Bengali nodded. "I don’t know what that is. They just barely put that there."

"How long have we been here?"

"Only a few minutes. Before that we were in our prison cell for three hours. Or, I was. I’m not sure where you were. You were kind of in your own little world."

"It seems so vague," Tygra murmured. "I don’t remember any of it, and yet in a way, I do."

"Mandora said she gave you something to prevent you from using your mind powers," Bengali offered. "Maybe that was it."

Tygra nodded slowly. "That would have to be. I wish I could figure out what this thing on my head is."

He looked around. "Where are we?"

"From the color, you would guess the Gray Prison Planet. But that’s not it. This is Lotari."

Tygra gave a small shudder. But it was so small, Bengali thought he might have imagined it. "There are ocelots here, aren’t there?"

"Yes," Bengali answered slowly. "This entire planet is full of them. And they’re not exactly happy with us. When we were escorted off the Cell, I wouldn’t have been surprised if they had stormed the guards and killed us there. Why are they so upset?"

"You’d be upset too if your planet’s leader was murdered," Tygra said shortly.

Bengali frowned. "But it’s more than that. They really hate us for some reason. Why?"

Tygra squirmed in his seat. "It’s really not a story I’m very proud of. Be happy you haven’t learned it."

"Tygra, since this story seems to be affecting us now, maybe I’d better learn it."

Tygra was saved from answering when the door suddenly opened behind them. A well-dressed ocelot walked in. He spoke quietly to someone still in the hall and a chair was brought in and placed on the side of the table opposite Tygra and Bengali. The ocelot took a seat and set some kind of projector on the table. The door shut again. Tygra and Bengali waited expectantly.

"My name is Justry," the ocelot began. "You are Tygra and Bengali. I am your defense at the upcoming trial." He watched the two tigers.

Bengali decided to respond. "Good to meet you. What are our chances?"

"You’re blunt," Justry observed. "That may help us. First of all, I need the two of you to answer a few questions. Is that all right?"

Bengali nodded but Tygra chose to object. "What guarantee do we have that you’re really the defense? Our answers won’t incriminate us, but we do have rights."

Justry’s eyes narrowed a bit. "Suspicious, aren’t you? I don’t know how to convince you. You’ll kind of have to take me at my word. But don’t think I’m doing this out of kindness. I was ordered to be your defense. I don’t think any ocelot would voluntarily disgrace himself by walking in here and telling you he was going to try and help you. Satisfied?" Tygra nodded. "Good. Then maybe you can answer a few questions. First of all, general background would be good. Bengali, where were you born, how did you become a Thundercat, and how much do you know of the war between tigers and ocelots?"

Bengali thought for a minute. "I don’t know where I was born. My parents moved around a lot. I became a Thundercat after some Berbils, two other Thunderans, and myself landed on Third Earth. That’s kind of an interesting story, but there’s not a lot to it. And I have no idea what’s wrong between the tigers and ocelots."

Justry studied the white tiger. "Nothing at all? You really don’t know what’s going on?"

Bengali shook his head. "Nothing. And it’s rather disturbing to be left in the dark."

Justry turned to Tygra. "What about you?"

"Do you want background information or how much I know about the war?"

"Despite what some might have said, there were ocelot spies from time to time on Thundera after we settled and established Lotari. As a prominent red tiger, your records are known to us. I have all that information. How much do you know about the war?"

"The red tiger clans kept the story going, but only within clan lines. I was taught the history of the war from our perspective," Tygra answered carefully.

"What were you taught?"

"Do you want me to go into everything? I was taught about Junglan, Clawtel, the ensuing guerilla war, Coldpaw, Spotrol, various other key leaders in between, and the exile. Where do you need specifics?"

"That will do for now," Junglan responded. "So you have an idea of what we’re up against in preparing a defense."

Tygra nodded. "The neural blocking drug was something of a giveaway."

"Do you know what that band is around your head?" Junglan asked. Tygra shook his head. "It’s monitoring your brain waves. If it picks anything up that looks like an illusion in the making, an alarm goes off and the chair in which you’re sitting automatically stuns you and administers a large neural blocker to your system. Just as a warning, I wouldn’t try it."

"Thanks for the warning," Tygra said softly.

"Uh, I hate to interrupt, but I still don’t know what’s going on," Bengali interjected.

"I’ll explain at a later date," Junglan informed him. "Now, are the two of you guilty? By pleading guilty, I might avert the death sentence."

"We’re innocent!" Bengali exploded. "Rowr, I swear by the Code of the Thundercats that we were on New Thundera when your leader was killed."

"Brutally murdered," Junglan corrected softly. "You’re certain you were on New Thundera?"

"I’d stake my life on it," Bengali said confidently.

"You will," Junglan warned him.

"That’s where we were," Tygra confirmed.

Junglan nodded. "All right then, we plead innocent. Now, I’d like you to take a look at some tapes the prosecution is going to present. And if you still claim innocence, we’ll go from there." Junglan touched something on the projector he’d placed on the table. A holographic image sprang up. "This is outside the ruler’s palace moments before intruders slipped in and murdered Traun in his sleep. The images come from a security camera on the wall. And this," he zeroed in a shadowy spot next to the wall, "is where the intruders entered. I’m now going to allow this to play and you can tell me what you see." The image began to play and Tygra and Bengali watched in amazement. On the holograph, Bengali approached the wall and blasted through it with his hammer. Tygra slipped the whip around himself and became invisible. Both slipped inside. Justry fiddled with the projector and a new image came up. "This is inside the palace," he informed them. As they watched, the holographic Bengali crept down the hall. Tygra became visible as his whip snapped around a corner, taking out a guard. Both opened a door and slipped inside. "That’s the ruler’s bedroom. We don’t have cameras in there," Justry said. The screen continued and two tigers slipped out of the bedroom and back down the hall. Justry turned the projector off. "What do you think?"

"Where did those tapes come from?" Bengali asked, incredulous.

"Various security cameras."

"But that couldn’t have been us. Because we weren’t here," Bengali protested.

"Can I see that first part again?" Tygra asked. Justry nodded and turned the projector back on. The outside wall appeared. Once again, Bengali approached the wall and fired. "Stop it," Tygra ordered. He studied the image of himself as he was just about to wrap his bolos whip around himself. "I recognize that," he said quietly. "I don’t usually wrap my whip that way. In fact, I can only think of one time recently where I wrapped my whip around myself like that. It was only a few weeks ago and I was trying to elude the mutants."

"What do you mean?" Bengali asked.

"I wrapped down instead of up."

Bengali looked at Tygra. "Is that important?"

Tygra nodded. "Its harder and takes more mental energy. And it creates a fading effect. So I looked like a projection and the mutants started looking elsewhere."

"So you’re saying that under these conditions, you would not have done that?" Justry questioned.

"That’s exactly what I’m saying. There would have been no need."

"And the implications are?" Bengali wanted to know.

"That’s a tape of us when we were somewhere else. Have you used your hammer like that recently? To blast a hole in a wall?"

"Sure," Bengali answered. "I used it quite a bit on New Thundera."

"I think this thing has gone through a bit of planning," Tygra observed.

"Now wait a minute," Justry broke in. "You’re trying to say that the two of you were set up, spied on, taped, documented, and framed? That’s a pretty tall order."

"Not really. When you first came in here, what was your initial reaction to our presence?"

Justry’s jaw tightened. "That’s not important."

"Yes it is," Tygra continued. "It’s everything in this case. My question to you is, could this have been done? Do the ocelots have the technology to dub over security tapes and fill in backgrounds?"

"Yes," Justry conceded. "But would it be done? I doubt it."

"Why not? Spotrol has descendents, right?"

"Traun was one of them."

"Okay," Tygra said, "but there are others, right? And if some of those others are out for revenge and murder their own relative, that’s conceivable isn’t it?"

Justry sighed. "I’ll take a closer look at the security tapes. I’ll return tomorrow night and we can build our defense then."

"When’s the trial?" Bengali asked.

"Five days."

"That’s not a lot of time," Tygra observed.

"No, it isn’t. There are a lot of bloodthirsty ocelots out there who are calling for an immediate execution. You’re lucky you’re even getting a trial." Justry stood. "And with that encouraging thought, I think I’ll leave you. Anything I can get for you?"

"I would really appreciate if I wasn’t drugged," Tygra suggested hopefully.

Justry shook his head. "Sorry, but I can’t do anything about that. There’s a fear that you’ll use your mental powers to kill the guards and anyone near you."

"I can assure you that my powers are really not that powerful."

"Perhaps they’ve become exaggerated over time," Justry said. "I will see you later." He left the room. Five husky ocelot guards took his place.

"Don’t try anything funny, tigers," one of the guards spat.

"Don’t worry about it," Bengali retorted. "You wouldn’t recognize funny if it bit you." Bengali received a hard blow to the face.

"You know, you really aren’t helping our situation," Tygra told him. One of the guards pointed a laser gun in Tygra’s face.

"No talking, either of you," he ordered. One of the guards took out a hypodermic needle. Tygra was hoping they’d take off the headband first and give him enough time to create the illusion of an injection, but there was no such luck. He was injected and then he felt them remove the band. His vision started to blur and he felt coherent thoughts start to slip through his mind like water through a sieve. Finally giving up, he abandoned his mind to the overwhelming madness.

Bengali was released and immediately seized. Once again, his arms were painfully chained behind his back and the gray-cloaked guards forced him out the door and down a long gray hallway. You’d think they didn’t have any other colors, he grumbled to himself. Gray was really beginning to get down on him. He realized this was probably the intention, but there wasn’t a lot he could do about it.

He reached his prison door. The lock opened, the bars slid to one side, and he was shoved in. The manacles were removed, Tygra was thrown in beside him, and the door slid shut. Bengali looked at the spacey tiger next to him. "Well," he mumbled. "Here we are again."