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Chapter 9 - The gorge and the gazelles

We travelled on for many days. Parcius would not speak to me. It hurt even more as each day went on. He talked to the other hyenas - telling them about how he was fine and his headaches, nausea and hair loss was just a bit of stress. Fisi and I decided not to tell the clan. We only told Jamala, because she was second in command.
Soon, the wilderness gave way to scrubland. The pull of paradise was becoming stronger. We knew that we were getting closer to our new home.
For the first time in our lives, we came across a river. Parcius explained it all to us. That was when he started talking to us.
There was plenty of bushes to lie in as well as the occasional tree. It was wonderful, plenty of water and shade - but it wasn't our home. There was little prey to be found, aside from small animals such as insects, mice, birds and lizards. But they would only take the edge off our hunger. It had been a long time since we'd last eaten a proper meal. We needed something more hefty. And Providence was on our side.
We woke one morning to smell a glorious smell blowing on the wind. It was the smell of gazelle. I'd only every seen gazelles in my dreams, and on the televisions in the laboratory. They were swift and cunning animals that could outrun a cheetah given the right circumstances.
But the clan was tired. The night had been sticky and uncomfortable. Only Vesper and his gang were up and full of beans. They could sleep through anything.
I followed the scent. Not that far away was a gorge with a river running through it. The other river emptied into it, creating a small waterfall. I walked along the gorge. It stretched for miles. I came to a fallen tree that provided a bridge. It didn't look like it could support much weight.
I looked over to the other side. For the first time in my life, I saw a gazelle in flesh and blood. It was a herd, and they grazed in the sunlight. I suddenly had an idea.
I ran back to where the clan was sleeping.
"Say, Vesper, come over here!" I called to him. He came over, closely followed by his minions. "Come on, all of you," I urged them along.
"Have you ever tried gazelle meat?" I asked them.
"Only in my dreams," said one - I think it was Mheetu.
"Well, Mheetu, how would you like to make it a reality?" I had a sly smile on my face.
"We'd all like it very much," Vesper spoke for the group. "Why do you ask?"
And I told them of where I found the gazelles and the log bridge.
"Go across the gorge, but be careful on the bridge," I said. "Bring us back a nice fat juicy gazelle."
"And why you guys can't you go and catch one yourself?" Mheetu looked suspicious.
"Because the clan is too tired, and you are the only ones up and about."
They still looked unconvinced.
"Can't you just do it, please?" I started to get irritated. "Your matriach commands you. Look, if you do this one little favour, I'll promote you to a higher rank."
"Well, I'm convinced!" exclaimed Vesper. "C'mon, let's go!" And they left, with my directions, of course.
"Wow, you dealt with them very well," a voice said behind me. It was Parcius!
"Are you kidding?" I said to him. "I nearly lost my temper. I had to give them a promotion just so the clan could eat!"
He laughed. And then he went all serious.
"Listen, Akida," he sighed. "I've been thinking about what you said, and you're right. There's no hope for me or my species now. So I now say thank you so much for all you've done for me. I never dreamt that hyenas would give me so much mercy. I never dreamt that I could trust you. But I do. So thank you." He paused.
"But I wish there was something I could do," he said. "I wish I could find a way to repay you for your kindness."
"Don't fret about it Parky," I smiled. "Your companionship is thanks enough."

That afternoon, Vesper and his gang came back with a mouthwatering gazelle. They were instantly promoted. It was a huge gazelle, and the gang were praised very highly. And as for the meat, it tasted unlike anything we'd ever tasted before. Parcius himself said that gazelle was much better than ibex. It was savoury and ever so juicy. It filled our bellies up with nourishing protein. We ate everything, skin, bones, horns - it all had good vitamins and minerals in it.
"Maybe this is our home that we've been dreaming about," Khanya, the littlest pup said. "There's lots of food and water, and shade, and hiding places..."
"It's not," Vesper interrupted. "This is not our home. I still feel it calling. We can't stay here. It's because we smelt something over the gorge. It mingled with the scent of the gazelles. It filled us with an image that we saw on the old television back in the laboratory." He lowered his voice.

"Lions."

Approved! This is getting better. Your wording is less awkward and more meaningful. Your descriptions are excellent. Keep it flowing; you've made it interesting.

There are still quite a few awkward points in the story and it can be difficult to follow at times. I would say to not worry about it now. Keep writing.

You have plenty of time to revise and improve when you're finished.

Thanks Lennox!

Chapter 10 - All for one and one for all!

Lions are a hyena's greatest enemy. They steal our food, and they kill us whenever they get the chance. As for revenge, we would steal their food and kill their cubs. It's tough and it sounds cruel, but then again, nature isn't always flowers and butterflies.
I took the clan to the gorge, and they looked across at the Kingdom of the Lions. They smelt several large lionesses and one large male, their scent wafting on the wind.
"We have to pass through their territory," Vesper told us. "There's no way round."
"Are you mad!" Jamala shouted. "We will all be killed. Why don't we just walk into the lion's mouth? The outcome will be the same. We will stay here, and scavenge as much as we can!"
"That's not good enough!" Vesper argued. "We can't live like that. We wouldn't prosper. I say that we run straight through the territory, as fast as we can!"
"And bump headlong into a lion? I don't think so!" she retorted. "You are a fool Vesper, and you'll murder us all!"
"You'll murder us all by making us live on scraps!"
"We won't starve, there's enough birds and all!"
"But this is not our home!"
"Well, it's as good as it gets!"
Then the two hyenas broke headlong into a fight. I intervened, to save Vesper. A small male like him had no chance against a female such as Jamala.
"Stop fighting, both of you!" I yelled. "Your clan matriach commands both of you to stop fighting! We have to negotiate, somehow."
The two hyenas stopped scuffling. Vesper looked a little tattered, but he was all right. (I had a certain respect for him now).
I looked around the shocked faces of the clan. They were worried. The pups ran to Jamala, hiding behind their mother's legs.
"Hey, over here!" called Parcius. He was sitting next to the edge of the gorge. He had a large grin on his face.
"I have a plan!" he exclaimed. "We must get up early tommorrow morning. One by one, we cross the gorge. I'll go on ahead and distract the lionesses whilst the clan tackles the huge pride male."
"How are you going to distract the lionesses?" Kianga asked.
"You'll find out soon enough," he replied.
"I'm not sure," Jamala said uneasily. "What if something goes wrong?"
"It won't, trust me," Parcius answered.
The whole clan looked hesitant. But Vesper and his gang looked convinced, and I found myself agreeing with them.
"It's the only idea we have," I spoke up. "We must go ahead with it. Yes, it will be dangerous, but we've been through a lot together. Bombs, starvation, dogs. Not to mention the cruelty back at the lab. Boy, that seems like a lifetime ago now. This may be the last obstacle we need to tackle. After that, we'll be almost there. It's our destiny, and we can't sit around and wait for it to come to us. It's now or never. All for one and one for all!"
"Yeah!" Vesper shouted. His gang started to cheer. Soon, the whole clan joined in.
"All for one and one for all" they chanted. We were a clan, and we will fight together.

It was decided that we'd go the very next day. We were worried, but Parcius told us that we had nothing to fret about. It was just the huge male that we had to fight, for the lionesses would be distracted.
Our worrying reached its peak that night.
"We may have never fought a lion before, but we've seen them on the television," Jamala told us all. "They are strong and can kill you very easily."
"But there's one of him and thirty of you," Parcius tried to comfort everyone. "I'm sure you can fight him."
"Come on everyone!" I shouted. "We need to get some sleep. We get up at dawn."
"I can't sleep," Mheetu shifted around grumpily.
"Just think of all that lovely gazelle meat, and you will," I said.
I watched them all, one by one, as they dropped off to sleep. A large rock was nearby, and I sat on it - looking over my clan.
"Akida?" It was Parcius.
"Akida, I need to tell you," he sighed.
"I'm listening," I said.
"I probably won't make it," he went on. "The lionesses will probably kill me. So once you've escaped, please do not go back for me."
"We will always go back for a clan member," I interrupted. "No matter what happens, we will remain a clan. No one will get left behind."

Chapter 11 - The lionesses

We woke up early the next morning. We carefully crossed the bridge - three animals at a time. The sun had risen when we were all ready. We moved away from the log bridge and hid in the trees. The morning was fresh and cool, with birds singing so prettily - oblivious to what was going to happen.
Several gazelle ran past, but we were not hungry.
"Good luck Parcius." "Run like the wind!" "Be careful."
I could see the slight frustration on his face. He just wanted to go without fuss.
Finally, he got up and left, the pups trailing behind him. He would find somewhere to hide them.
He did hide them, and he later told me of what happened next.

He was trotting through the bush on the look out for lions when he heard mewing from behind the bushes. He crouched down low, and crept towards the noise. He saw around ten fat happy lion cubs frolicking together, blissfully unaware that they had a visitor. The lionesses were nowhere to be seen. These cubs were part of a huge creche and obviously belonged to more than one lioness. He had to get the attention of the lionesses, somehow. Then an idea popped into his head. It pained him greatly - more than the Death Spirit ever could, but he had to do it. The clan was depending on him.
He padded closer and closer. His claws sank silently into the dirt, and his body tensed. He was like a cat, ready to pounce.
He leapt at out of the bushes, his teeth bared. The cubs scattered, but one cub didn't run fast enough. Parcius grabbed it by the scruff of its neck. (Lionesses do it all time, so it didn't hurt the cub as much it frightened it).
It hissed and spat angrily, and tried to scratch him, but Parcius held on tight. He had no intention of killing it; he needed it to cry out so the lionesses would come to its aid.
He heard roars of anger and intimidation. They shattered what peace was left in the atmosphere, and made the ground rumble beneath his feet.
A lioness burst from the bushes, followed by several others. Parcius darted just out of her reach. She stopped, and crouched, with her eyes fixed on those of Parcius. She was waiting for him to do something. The cub's cries of distress faded into whimpering. Parcius couldn't stand it any longer. He bolted off across the earth. with the lionesses in hot pursuit. He stopped quickly and put the cub down. It ran down a nearby bolt hole.
But the lionesses were no longer defending their youngsters. There was an intruder on their territory. It had tried to harm one of their cubs so it was considered an enemy. And for a lion, all enemies were to be extinguished as quickly as possible.
Parcius ran swiftly through the bush. He must not lose them. He could feel the hot breath of the lionesses behind him, and at any moment one might stretch out her paw and swipe him. Now he was well and truly terrified. Their roars and growls of aggression thundered in his ears. He was no longer running just to distract them. He told me that he was well and truly running for his life.
He was suddenly knocked off his feet. A lioness had hit him with her paw. The blow hurt, but he scrambled to his feet and kept running, albeit painfully.
It seemed like an age until they reached the log bridge. The Ethiopian wolf leapt onto the log. He ran to the middle and waited. The lionesses stopped. One sniffed the log, and touched it daintily with her paw.
Parcius crept a little closwer towards them. The lionesses saw him, and with no second thoughts, they all ran straight onto the log, each trying to get first. The log started to shift. Parcius ran to safety on the other side. But it was too late for them. The weight of all the big cats was too much for the log, and it slipped and fell into the river, lionesses and all.
Now, I don't think I mentioned that it was a small and shallow river. The lionesses climbed out of the water and shook themselves dry. They tried to jump up the gorge walls. It wouldn't be long before they succeeded.
Parcius told me that he never imagined the he'd survive this far. He hadn't thought ahead. How could he get back across the gorge? There was only one thing he could do. It was a long shot, but he had no choice. He braced himself. He stepped backwards. His muscles tensed. This was going to take all his strength.
He started to trot. It broke into a run. The edge of the gorge was getting closr and closer. He placed his front paws on the edge, with his back paws close behind. He propelled himself into the air. At that moment, Time stood still, once again, for Parcius. He seemed to fly over the furious lionesses. He only managed to grab the other side with his bare claws. Parcius' leap of faith had left him dangling just a few feet above the lionesses. One lioness leapt up and tried to grab him. She only just missed. She roared in anger.
Finally, the wolf managed to haul himself up onto the level ground. He got to his feet, and howled.

We heard the howl in the distance. We now knew that the lionesses were trapped. We just have to pass through quietly, on the look out for the male lion. Parcius said he would catch up later, and he would bring the pups with him.
It was nearing midday now. The heat of the sun was getting more and more intense. The birds had stopped singing. Only the gentle buzz of crickets indicated that there was any other life form about.
Maybe we didn't need to fight the lion. Maybe we could get through, safe and sound.
Suddenly, a huge male lion burst out of the bushes! He charged straight towards us, roaring and shaking his mighty mane. He was large lion, well-built and in his prime.

He was the monster of every hyena's nightmare.

Chapter 12 - War Cry

The clan scattered in fear, like fallen leaves. That was a terrible mistake. The lion singled out one hapless hyena - Mheetu. Despite his desperate efforts to escape, the lion bore down on him like a hawk in pursuit of a mouse.
We heard a loud shriek of pain. The lion's jaws were enclosed firmly around Mheetu's head. The huge paws prevented him from struggling. Hyenas are tough, and can withstand such a predicament, although not for long.
"Help me!" the hyena's voice squealed in extreme terror.
But we were all too scared and shocked to move.
"Help me please!" he cried again, more urgently.
We had to do something...
"Heeeeeelp!" Mheetu was desperate.
We can't just stand here...
"Matriach, do something! I'm begging you!"
My claws dug into the earth. My muscles tensed.
"Please help!" His voice was getting weaker...
I threw back my head and howled the Hyena War Cry - the loud and hideous cackle that was bestowed upon us.
"Charge!" I screamed. And I ran forward, my teeth bared. The clan followed behind, all their weaponry - teeth and claws - ready for attack, ready to defend their clan brother. They were ready to fight for their queen, and for freedom.
We went into the lion's side, biting and snapping at his feet. Others went for the rear - the most vulnerable part of a lion. I rammed into his ribs, making him cry out in pain and anger - and also making him drop Mheetu. The huge cat fought back. He knocked some of us out the way with his paws. But we just swarmed back, like a plague of locusts. The lion roared out for help from the lionesses. But none came.
Now, I went for his muzzle. My teeth penetrated his leathery skin, and he roared again in frustration. He flung me to the ground, and attempted to kill me once and for all. But the clan was too strong, and he couldn't kill me and fight back at the same time.
We were true hyenas. We were fighting as part of a clan, a team. We were safe in numbers. Remember that Jasisi. The only hyena that is killed is the one that strays from the clan. Like the Ethiopian wolves, the dogs, and the lions, we work together because we know that it is the only way to survive.
The lion fought bravely. He sunk his teeth into my side, and I scremaed in pain. Fisi bit his hind leg and the beast swung round to bat him off. I escaped his grip, and leapt onto his shoulder - ripping out some fur. The lion roared in agony.
Our teamwork persevered, and eventually, the lion ran for his life. He stopped, looked back and roared before finally disappearing into the bushes. We did it! We'd defeated the monster of our nightmares.
But we payed a price for it. There were many casualties. Fisi had broken one of his ribs, Vesper had lost an ear. Mheetu had survived - he was lucky, but his jaw was broken. Now he couldn't hunt until it healed, which would be some time. He would have to eat the same meat that the pups ate - chewed up and partially digested chunks of meat. But as I said before, he was lucky not to have been killed.
"We can't stop here!" I shouted. "We need to get through the territory as quickly as possible! The lionesses will be here soon!"
So we travelled on, slowly and painfully. But we hadn't lost our fighting spirit. We ploddded along in the hot midday sun. The ground was burning our feet. Soon, we lost the scent of the lions. We did it. We were out of the territory. We were alive.

We found shade under an acacia tree. All we had to do was wait for Parcius and the pups. Jamala decided to go back for him, despite my protests.
"If I don't go, the lionesses will kill him and my pups," she said. "You stay here and look after the clan. I'll be very careful."
I watched her disappear back into the lions' territory. I looked at the rest of the clan with pride.
"I can't believe we did it!" I cried. "Together, we did it! I'm so proud of you all!"
The other hyenas cheered. Our new home seemed so close now. We knew that our journey was at an end. All the pain, the fear and the sadness of our old life was gone.

Well, at least I thought it was.