Chapter 20: Life Lost

Susan was surrounded by rats, but now, she realized, instead of attacking, they were running, trying to get back out through the closed Gate. They piled up on top of each other, climbing her legs. She shook them off with a cry of disgust and pushed her way to the guardhouse.

It wasn't until she looked up that she discovered why.

Hundreds of cats, led by the unmistakable Vinnie, attacked the rats, driving them back. She felt a rush of relief. They won! Now that the Gate was closed, and the tunnel too, the cats were more than a match for the rats that were left.

Susan looked around for Tucker. And her heart froze as she saw he was still in terrible danger.

Tucker fought Khai. Both were hurt and she was sure she saw a ball of pink light rise from Khai before she reached them. Vinnie made it to her before she could stop the fight.

"Let him finish it," was all he said. Susan watched, anxious.

*****

Tucker, however, had it under control. He stood over the wounded Khai, shaking with rage, fur standing on end.

"WHY?" Tucker demanded. "Not for power! Not to be king! I don't believe it.

Why?"

Khai coughed, a deep, wracking sound, as he collapsed on the ground. "You don't believe. Tucker, you must admit you didn't know me as well as you thought." Khai started to laugh, but the cough won again.

"I trusted you," Tucker said, crying, furious and hurt all at once. He wanted to lash out again, to make Khai feel the pain he was feeling deep inside, but knew the real pain was in his heart. "I loved you. And you betrayed me."

"You can't know how much you mean to me, Tucker," Khai said softly. "I never wanted it to turn out this way. I had such great plans for Cat City, for you. But, our wayof life needs to change. The humans who created usÉ we are so much more now than we were then. To hide undergroundÉ to fear humans when we could be freeÉ I know you would have understood, if onlyÉ but by helping you, by encouraging you, I brought about my own downfall. Imagine." Khai fell still.

Tucker howled in agony. Khai was like a second father to him. A teacher, a friend. It wasn't fair!

Tucker looked up to see the rest of the Council approaching. "They are coming for me," Khai said.

"Yes," Tucker answered. "Goodbye, my son," Khai said.

"Step away from him, Tucker," Tabitha ordered. "The traitor is our problem, now." Tucker spun on them with a snarl. "You believe me now, do you?"

All four of the Council members bowed their heads, tails and whiskers low. "Please, Tucker," Albert said. "We need to take him. Let him go."

Tucker stood there one more moment, breathing hard before spinning and sitting down, his back to them, not wanting to look at them or see them take Khai away.

Susan knelt next to him and held out her hands. Tucker looked up at her, but wasn't ready for comfort.

"I'm okay," he said instead.

She looked hurt, but nodded and backed off.

Tucker got up and paced away a few steps to gather his thoughts. He finally looked around him, seeing the cats cleaning up the rest of the rats that threw themselves with no result against the Gate in an attempt to get away.

"We'll have to scour the City," Vinnie's voice was soft as he sat down next to Tucker. "We can't afford to have even one of them survive."

"I know," he said. "We'll start right away."

"I think there's a bunch lost in one of the tunnels," Susan offered softly from close by. Tucker hadn't realized she had followed him.

"Oh?" Vinnie said, voice light. "And why would that be?" "Took a wrong turn, I guess," Susan answered.

Vinnie patted Susan's knee with one big paw and turned back to Tucker."Rest a bit," Vinnie said. "Just a bit." Tucker nodded. He was suddenly very tired.

A gasp from behind him, however, spun him around and, horrified, he gathered himself, knowing he made a huge mistake.

Khai broke free of his captors, not nearly as weak as he appeared, and was in mid- leap, headed directly for Susan, surrounded in a ball of rainbow light.

Tucker leaped without thinking, planning to intercept, but knowing this time he was too late.

*****

Susan was hurt that Tucker didn't want her help but wasn't really surprised. He went through so much, and it was all because of her. She stayed as close to him as she could, not wanting to be far but turning away from her friend to give him the privacy he wanted. She sat down on the ground, hugging her drawn-up legs, just trying to stay out of the way.

She was actually so tired she started to nod a little when she heard a shout. She looked up in time to see Khai leaping at her, glowing like a rainbow. She knew she wouldn't have a chance to duck this time so, instead, she opened her arms and caught him.

Susan felt the magic go into her and flinched, expecting the worst. Instead, she felt it flare and bounce against a wall of power within her, a power woken only a few short moments before that somehow felt so familiar.

"You have found it, then," Khai breathed, eyes heavy lidded.

"The statue," Susan said. "And the Gate. The power went through me."

"The power of the Gate is human power," Khai told her so softly she could barely hear. "And that is what saved you. My power is now yours. I beg you," his pupils swelled as he stared into her eyes, "use it to free my people from Cat City."

"I don't understand," Susan said. "Free them?"

"You will," his voice faded so she was forced to lean closer to hear. "All I did, I did for them. When the time comes, you must help them be free."She nodded, though still confused. "I'll do my best."

Susan felt that thrill again as something that felt like a promise sealed in magic passed between them. Khai seemed satisfied with her answer. He sighed heavily, once. "Farewell, Susan."

And, breathing his last, with a rainbow of light rising slowly and serenely from him, Khai died in her arms.