"Sumik to Panthro, come in, I've pinpointed the location of the cycle, transferring coordinates, over." The cougar was quite proud of the fact his system had worked better than Lion-o's. He was rewarded by the lord with a pat on the shoulder and a grateful smile.

"Wow, that's great, you found the coordinates." Answered Panthro with more than a hint of sarcasm, part of a mask to cover up the fact he was still sobbing intermittently. "Oh, and look, just near Sky Tomb - holy shit, I'd never, ever have guessed she headed there!"

"Oh." Came the simultaneous answer from the pair in the control room.

"But if anyone wants to send backup..." he suggested, as the tank headed over the final hill, and a loud ka-thunk could be heard in the back. Sky Tomb appeared in his sight like magic. "Since there's five of them and one of me, if anyone wants to do the math."

"I'll be right there." Lion-o told him. "Cat's Lair, over and out."

Panthro was about to add, "And I though you said the sword was working again," but the connection was cut out before he had a chance.

Within seconds, the tank was parked a hop, skip, and jump from Sky Tomb. The panther shut off the vehicle, but even after the engine powered down, he could hear movement behind him. Hopping out of the driver's side he hit the release latch on the back of the tank. The main passenger area was strewn with blankets, pillows, various items of clothing, and...

"Wilykat, remember when you were thirteen, and I went through the list of things the Thundertank is not to be used for?" he asked, quickly turning away from the sight.

"Yeah, I do, like it was yesterday." Admitted Wilykat, grabbing a pillow to use as cover.
"Well, this would be one which should have gone without saying. And Sahny?"

"Yes, Panthro?" asked the young lioness, looking sheepishly towards the floor of the tank.

"Remind me to give you the soon to be updated list when we get back to the lair. Now, get...back into uniform and catch up. I'll need help in there. Cheetara ran off, we think she's in Sky Tomb. Make sure your communicators are on so I can tell you where to go. You do have them with you, right?" he said, still trying not to think of what was going on in the back of the Thundertank...his Thundertank.
"Of course we do." Said Wilykat, in turn keeping from looking at the panther.
"Then, when you're ready, come inside. I mean, you know, meet me in Sky Tomb." He quickly reworded his statement, then sprinted to the entrance.

Once he had entered, he glanced around in hopes of finding where she went to. To find Alluro, obviously, but where would he be? The answer came in the form of crashes from below. Panthro readied his nunchukas, looking desperately for a way to the lower deck. Running down one hallway, and then the next, he could hear the ensuing battle. Frantic now, he began rechecking the paths he had taken. He prayed the battle would continue - as long as he heard fighting, she would still be alive. Panthro nearly missed the steps leading to the dungeon as he listened to the turmoil below.

He later wouldn't remember racing down the stairs, just that one moment he found the path, and the next he was there. But he didn't expect what his eyes were showing him. Chilla stood, not ten meters away, holding a mace in one hand and tapping the end of it into her other, blood covering her palms, but it was blood that was not her own. RedEye was on the floor, trying unsuccessfully to get up and breathing heavily. Pieces of TugMug were strewn on the floor, on the walls, and just about everything in fact, and it looked as if Chilla was planning to add RedEye's body to the assortment.

The smell of the rotting of the corpse hit Panthro like a baseball bat to the head, so it was no wonder that RedEye vomited as Chilla's boot heel pushed his head into a pile of decaying organs and flesh. Against one of the walls, Alluro was chained, watching the scene in agony, unable to do more than lift his head. In the furthest away corner, past the clutter of torture devices, Amok was paying close attention to Chilla with a pained look in his eyes.

"So, who's it going to be, Amok? You can either save your little friend here," she said, kicking at RedEye's head, "or your brand new playmate. Who's it gonna be?"

Chilla still didn't notice the panther stealthfully making his way closer and closer to her. In the corner, behind Amok, Cheetara was huddled on the floor. Her dress was torn, and Panthro smelled her blood in the air. He was certain it was hers - it was a scent he hadn't forgotten from the very first time he took her to his bed, and the same that he could smell whenever she had been injured in battle. Panthro could taste it in the damp air, and it ignited the building rage into a fury he had never before felt. An overwhelming passion flooded into him - one to kill, to seek revenge. An emotion unheard of for a Thundercat, but one present in a father protecting his child, in a man protecting his mate.

His claws tore out of their sheathed shelter, piercing out from the fine fur which covered his fingers. In one swift, silent motion, the nunchukas were safely around his neck for use later. He prepared himself to pounce, a primal instinct which he seldom used. "Amok, go help him." Ordered Cheetara from where she was crouched. She clenched her knees close to her stomach and squeezed her eyes shut to block the pain. Amok looked back with sad eyes. "Amok no want go." He protested.

"Brave words, Thundercat, or what ever the hell you think you are." Said Chilla, lifting the mace, preparing to use it on RedEye. SHe hoped the results would be fatal this time. "And if he saves RedEye, who will protect you?"
"Him." Cheetara raised a hand and motioned past Chilla. The lunatak lowered the mace to her side and spun around as Panthro's razor sharp nails ripped across her face. A thick, dark blue liquid ran down the panther's withdrawn arm, spilling onto the floor in warm, oozing drops.