A Tale of Jaguars

Cubs

"But father, technology is not evil! You can't say that plumbing is a bad thing. Having running water in the bathroom is great! And electricity! Torches and oil lamps are by far more dangerous than electrical light!"

"Lion-O, you have to understand." Said Jaga. "People didn't have a good first contact with technology. They are afraid of the destruction it can do. It'd be sometime before the Thunderians start to appreciate its advantages."

"But you can start with the castle. I'm sure Baal wouldn't mind if we ask for an engineer to come and see…"

"Absolutely not, Lion-O!" Claudus roared. "I don't want Baal having any more control than he already has on our lives! The only reason he's not recognized as the Lord of the Thundercats yet is because he has not even tried to master the Sword of Omens. As long as it remains without a true master, it's possible to recover it, and that is what you should be worrying about! I hope you have been paying more attention to the classes that Cheetara is giving you now. Once Thundera is back to its glory, and we have recovered the Sword, then you'd be able to pay more attention to your hobby. The people would be more accepting then of the changes you want to introduce."

"B-but dad, how are we going to recover the Sword if we can't defeat the jaguars? If we want to have the slightest chance of going against Baal and win, we have to be on equal footing with him. And we are not going to achieve anything if we are not willing to learn how to handle their best weapon!"

Lion-O walked the halls of Ix-Maal's palace on his way to his brother's rooms. He grew more frustrated each time he repeated his conversation with Jaga and Claudus in his head. He had been too disappointed in his visit. He just couldn't understand Thundera's continued lack of technology. He had hoped that at least the palace would have taken advantage of the discovery, but apparently everyone was just scared. Even Claudus was only using the communicator and didn't want to try anything else. The clerics were making up tales of demonic magic imbibed in the gadgets that the jaguars used, and the nobles would not allow anything that looked remotely technologic into their lairs.

The young lion gritted his teeth. He hated the clerics! He hated the bloody superstitious Thunderians, and he…! Didn't like his father very much at the moment.

He stopped at the door of Tygra and Jareid's rooms and sighed sadly. At his side, Snarf mewled questioningly at him, and Lion-O gave a half-hearted smile to the pet. He had been close to convincing his father of the necessity of technology. Claudus had had to at least recognize the military advantages of tech. But then, the adults had had their meeting, and Lion-O had once again not been invited. It had angered him. He had spent the day in a bad mood, complaining loudly about the idiocy of it all. He was almost fourteen! What was the point of his father drilling into him how important it was for him to study politics, if he wasn't allowed to go and see them into play, or take part of them!

The servants had paid him no mind, and Cheetara had tried to soothe him, telling him that his father only wanted to recover them, and shield them from harm, but it didn't sound right. To Lion-O it looked too much like his father simply didn't trust him enough to let him attend an important meeting. He had mentioned bitterly that they would have let Tygra in, and Cheetara had let escape that Tygra had more experience and a better understanding of politics. Lion-O had resented those words. It would ever be the same. As soon as he stepped foot in Thundera, he was back to being compared to his brother. It was as if no one in his home was capable to see him as his own cat.

The meeting had not lasted too long. The jaguars had been ready to return to the jungle just after lunch. Unfortunately, Claudus had asked for more time to have a private conference with Cheetara. Lion-O hadn't been allowed into it either, much to the female cleric's chagrin. The young lion had been even more upset, and had waited impatiently for the private talk to end so they could return to Ix-Maal.