off, away from the rest of the pride. Mother had got up and followed a few minutes after, which awoke my curious side. I followed them to a small rock some distance from the Hollow, and I waited in the tall grasses, downwind of my parents. Father looked around for a moment, sniffing the air, but he didn't notice me.

“Why are we out here, Iba?” Mother asked, holding an obvious distaste for all the secrecy. “All I wanted to do was talk about what Aliona's been doing in the Caves.”

Father sighed. “If the pride heard about the Caves, they'd want to know why someone's been using them, even if for exploration.” He looked down. “After the collapse, they're very worried about another cave-in, and they don't want any more deaths as a result.”

I had to try very hard to hold in a gasp. Cave-ins? Deaths? It was then that I saw why Mother was so stern about my going there.

Mother nuzzled Father. “You worry too much, love.” She then looked around. “But then, so do I. Aliona told me that she was talking to an old lioness, a lioness who told her stories.”

Father snorted. “Nonsense. There were no survivors, you know that.”

Mother looked at him intently. “I'm serious, Iba. She seemed so... positive, so sure that there was someone down there. Can we not talk to Ushirikina? Get him to send some lions down there to check it out?”

Father narrowed his eyes. “He wouldn't, you know that. He's too wary of the Caves, even if they've saved the pride more times than he'd care to count.”

Ushirikina was the leader of the pride, serving under the Emperor to help him govern our ways. He was very paranoid, and extremely worried about the condition of the Caves. I used to fear him, but when I got older, I realised he was extremely misunderstood by the majority of the pride.

Mother lowered her gaze. “I know, dear. But I just can't help thinking... What if one of them did survive? What if we just didn't look hard enough?”

Father growled. “Kiara, I won't have you talking like that. You're beginning to sound like the elders,” he murmured, adding, in a lower voice, “superstitious old crones.”

Mother narrowed her eyes. “What would you have me do, then? Just sit idly by while our daughter makes a discovery that could change the pride?”

“You speak of it as though it matters.”

“It does matter though!”

Father shook his head. “I believe that this conversation is over.”

Mother growled. “You're just as much of a coward as Ushirikina is.” And with that, she turned to make her way back to the Hollow. I would have followed, had I not seen the eyes gleam at me from the Caves.

 

*****

 

As I grew older, I would often forget about Bibi and her stories. The older cubs had grown small manes, but I was still too young to be considered an adolescent. Mother was often called to hunting patrols, and Father, as one of the oldest and more experienced members of the pride, often went on small trips with Ushirikina, sometimes to other kingdoms.

It was on one particular day when I felt bored and restless. The other cubs were out playing and I refused to go with them. Sparring really wasn't my thing, and neither was sunning myself on a rock, talking about days gone by.

So I decided I would visit Bibi.

The Caves were silent, and the bats that once hung in the arch were gone. A chilling breeze crept through the valley, sending shivers down my spine.

I kept walking through the Caves, concentrating, focusing on anything that would give me a sign. Then a shape lifted off the ground.

“So you return,” came a hiss.

“Is that you, Bibi?” I asked, my voice wavering.

“Of course it is. Who else?” Bibi laughed, and I saw her sit, the shadows darkening the gleam of her eyes. “Come, have a seat with me, child. Would you like to hear another story?”

I nodded. “Of course, I'm terribly bored.

“Well then, pay close attention,” Bibi murmured. “For this one is dark, as well as true.

“There was once an Emperor in the East, whose people loved him, and whose neighbours revered him. He had a young daughter, a Princess, who would be Empress when he abdicated. The Emperor also had two nieces, whose father had been executed by the Emperor for treason.

“When the Princess was older, she fell in love. Her mate was good to her, and loved her very much. But the Princess' cousins killed her father, and later, her lover.

“The Princess became Empress, and birthed a son to her late lover. He then grew up, became Emperor, and was murdered by his half-brother, who took over his throne and ruined the land he ruled.”

I felt chills run down my spine, crawling through my bones. “Another horrible story.”

Bibi smiled grimly. “But all of it true.”

 

*****

 

Bibi's stories were disturbing, and even more so was the fact that she claimed they were true. As I grew to be an adolescent, I began to think more of the stories. I would ask Mother and Father about the stories, but Father didn't know them and Mother denied their truth. I worried that they were hiding something, but what were the chances of that?

It was about the time of my Msako Sherehe, the Hunt Ceremony, when I met with Bibi again. The Msako Sherehe is when the young lionesses of a pride will gather to celebrate their coming of age, and will hunt for their first time, bringing back all the prey they can catch. The pride will then hold a feast, and will celebrate for a week, before things return to normal.

Bibi was happy for me, and offered to tell me a story about an old lioness who once went hunting. I agreed to hear it, for there was nothing that could possibly be bad about a hunt, right?

“This lioness,” Bibi began, “was a former Queen, whose son was now a loved and respected King. Her mate had died when her son was but a cub, and she had been lonely for so long. She felt that she needed to hunt, to celebrate her son's ascension to the throne, and so she tracked a young antelope far from her home.

“When the time came to strike, she fell short and landed behind the antelope. But the antelope decided it would not fall prey to this lioness, and kicked out with its back legs. The impact shattered the lioness' jaw, and she wandered alone for hours, trying to find help.

“She found her home, and began to walk to it, but was found first by hyenas, an old enemy of hers. She begged for her life, but the hyenas were merciless, and ate her alive.”

I narrowed my eyes. “That's disgusting.”

“Only if you look from the lioness' perspective,” Bibi pointed out. “For the hyenas, it was a great victory, the vanquish of an enemy.”

I shook my head. “I'm not a hyena.”

Bibi laughed. “No child, you're not. But that doesn't mean a thing.”

“What do you mean?”

“Just because you're of a different species doesn't mean you must be enemies of the hyenas. Just like the hare has no reason to hate the jackal.”

“They steal from us, poach prey and murder our cubs.”

“They must, to survive.”

I said nothing, for I was outdone. Bibi was right, there was no doubt, but could I truly agree with her on her claims? “Another story. One more, and I must depart.”

Bibi smiled. “As you wish.

“There was once a lioness, beautiful and kind, who lived in a valley. She had no cubs of her own, but she adopted orphans from all over the land and cared for them as though they were her own. Her leader approved of what she did, as did the rest of the pride.

“One day, a rival pride came to invade, and all of the lioness' adopted cubs were slaughtered. Then, the pride was forced to retreat through a tunnel, and the lioness was one of the last to go through the tunnel, set on avenging her cubs. The rest of the pride had already fled, but the lioness had nothing to lose.

“When she finally retreated, and was halfway through the tunnel, she heard the crumbling of rocks. She stayed put, afraid. What was happening?”

Bibi sighed and drew in her breath. “The tunnel collapsed and the lioness was crushed. Some say she still wanders the tunnels, crying for the cubs that were lost to her long ago.”

There was a silence. I looked into the eyes of the old lioness and I opened my mouth to speak, but no sound came out. I looked down. “That story... It was about...”

“It was about me, child.”

My breath caught in my throat. “Y-you're...”

“Some call me a ghost, others call me a monster. I just say I am dead, and that's that.” She smiled. “Reach out, touch my face.”

I lifted a paw to put it to her shoulder, but it disappeared, fading into the ethereal light that was Bibi. A tear trickled down my cheek. “I'm so sorry.”

“Don't be, child,” Bibi murmured. “Now go. I don't expect to see you again.”

“But--”

“Hush, child. Go.”

I turned my back, racing out of the Caves. Before I left though, I turned round, expecting to see the gleam of Bibi's eyes, staring into my own.

I saw nothing.

 

*****

 

I became isolated after that, locked in my mind, not connecting to anyone. Mother and Father were puzzled, but they didn't understand that I had lost a dear friend. When I did speak, it was to answer questions and comment on something, but nothing other than that.

I

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