hesitance in his voice.

            Ashiki and Nunka bullied the trio off the Rock, while Abel stood by to watch them, a satisfied smirk on his face. You did good, said Zuri. They were going to be trouble anyways.

            "Abel, what's happened?" inquired Tojo, as he trotted up to his great-nephew. "Why is Simba leaving?"

            He did not turn to face his relative as he spoke. "Simba has betrayed us," Abel said simply. "This is their punishment for it."

            Tojo turned his head to Kula, who acknowledged with a shrug.

            Abel's eyes stayed on the dark forms of his loyal subjects leading his traitorous family into the wilderness until the black swallowed them whole, and he could no longer spot them. A gust of wind rushed past him. Abel leaned comfortably back, smiling to himself.

            Ah, yes, now my reign can finally begin.

 

            Adanna took one last look at the great Rock in the distance behind them. They were left on the outskirts of the Pridelands, and were not without having had Ashiki's threats tossed in their faces. Even though Simba dared to fight the lion underneath his breath, he did not speak loudly the words that would've cost his life.

            "Where will we go?" inquired Nala.

            Simba pondered the thought. "We'll go to the Outlands, they're the closest. Ekene might be willing to offer us a place while we think of what we have to do. Adanna? Is this all right with you, or will you run off?"

            The brown lioness flinched at her grandfather's words. She knew better than to expect her family to be so welcoming to her. "Grandpa, I'm sorry."

            "Let's just go to the Outlands, shall we? It's getting darker, and if we leave now, we can make it there before dawn."

            Adanna turned back to Pride Rock, the place of her birth. The place of her mother's death. She thought she saw something in the distance. "I'll be along," she said. "You go on ahead without me. I promise I won't run away," she quickly added.

            Though Simba wanted to argue with her, Nala nudged her mate along. The pair trailed off, leaving Adanna awaiting the secret guest who was approaching her. With their proximity becoming less and less, Adanna was able to recognize who this someone was - her cubhood friend, Sanaa.

            "Oh Adanna, thank Mohatu you haven't left yet!" she said in a hushed whisper, staring expectedly at her friend. "Duka and I heard everything. We couldn't believe that you returned to us!"

            Though she was happy to see her friend in good health, dark memories began to circulate within Adanna. Memories from now, and memories from then. "Well, saying returned now might be a bit of a stretch..."

            "So it's true then. He banished you?"

            "And Simba and Nala."

            "You know, I never liked him from the beginning." Sanaa cast her friend a soft smile. "When you left, Duka and I were devastated. I went looking for you, but I never found you. Where did you go?"

            "Another time, perhaps. What're you doing out here, Sanaa? Shouldn't you be back in the dens?"

            "I was until I heard what was going on outside! I wanted to catch you before you left completely! It wasn't right what Abel did to you, or to his grandparents for that matter!"

            Adanna's nostrils flared. She kept aware of their surroundings, hoping to herself that Ashiki wasn't going to show his ugly face any time soon.

            Sanaa went on. "I can't believe he's King now! After Kiara's death, I just couldn't... mhm, besides that though, I'm just glad that you're okay."

            "Maybe not for much longer. Abel's insane, Sanaa."

            "I know, Adanna. I knew for a while."

            Suddenly, Adanna was staring at her old friend in a new light. "Sanaa, can you do a favor for me?"

            Sanaa seemed just as surprised to have heard that slip from Adanna's mouth, just as much as the brown lioness was surprised to have said it. "Of course!"

            "Keep an eye out on him, Abel. If he does anything bad, I'll be around."

            Sanaa cocked her head to the side. "We're spying on him?"

            Adanna nodded her head. "I think this... thing, or whatever, it's just beginning. I don't think he's going to stop at us, Sanaa. He might hurt someone else next. Can you do that for me, please? I want to know what's going on over here."

            "Of course, Adanna. Duka and I have your back."

            The brown lioness gave her friend a grateful smile, took a step forward as though to engage her in a nuzzle, but then decided not to at the last second. There were still things she needed to work on. "I'll see you soon," she said to Sanaa, and slowly she slipped into the night, leaving her oldest friend waiting helplessly in the dark.

 

The next morning, in the Riverlands...

 

            When Ekene had returned from his visit to the Shadowland pride, he explained everything to Khari in front of both their prides - that the Shadowland pride never scheduled for an attack, and that it was Ikuta's exiled brother that was performing the acts under the Shadowland name. He also mentioned that the Shadowlands were more than happy to help out any pride who needed their help.

            Even though that had been a day ago, and Ekene had led his pride back across the river, Khari was still troubled by the act itself. She had met Ikuta when the leaders met, and thought that the female was mysterious. If she had launched an attack, it wouldn't have seemed unlikely. But the way Ekene spoke of his meeting with Ikuta, of her promises, it shaped Khari's outlook on the situation. So she exiled her brother, and never thought to warn the prides in advance?

            Khari would trust Ekene's word, but she would remain suspicious about Ikuta's offers. However, she did decide to pass on the word to the Savannah pride, and sent Sauda and Reno out to relay the message. They had returned bearing the same suspicious outlook on the whole situation, but nonetheless were relieved that a full-scale pride war was not imminent.

            Now that the dawn brought forth a new day, Khari found herself busy with her usual duties - after all, she was still pride leader. She had the perimeters of their territory checked, she had her hunters go out to find food, and she found time to spend with her family. Laying on the green grass, facing away from her daughter Kagiso and her mate Nzuri, Khari found herself ecstatic to hear the good news.

            "We're having another cub!" Nzuri was quick to tell Khari, his face blossoming with a glowing radiance. Beside him, Kagiso was blushing and facing away, looking both pleased and a little embarrassed.

            "Congratulations you two," Khari responded, unable to hold back the large smile threatening to rise to her face. Her daughter had already given her three beautiful grand-cubs, and one more addition to the family was absolutely wonderful. "How has everyone else felt about it?"

            "Khatiti and Tatu were really excited about having another cub to play with. But Yejide..." Nzuri's face darkened, and the good mood the news had sprung vanished immediately. "Khari, we're really worried about Yejide.

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