it..." he trails off as he walks closer to it, me right at his heels.

There's five more pictures there. Three lionesses and two lions, or soon to be lions, manes hadn't been painted on them yet. I recognized them as Katy, Arturo, Siri, and Me. Simba put his paw on the last cub, "This was my child"

He swipes his paw and the image fades to nothing but a dot of dye and tree bark. "You're all I have left" he whispers.

"Never in this pride's history have they been forced to train cubs they didn't have a king's blood," Simba looks back at us then, "But the pride overlooked something very important...very deep. The great kings have each made a place within you, thus everyone of you has a chance to take the throne, yet everyone has their disadvantages."

Simba suddenly looks back towards the outland's territory, the place where the grass grows dark and the ground is barren or mud. I raise my chin as Simba lets out a low growl, "I want you to swear to me you'll protect my home from them. Never let a murderer back on these lands. Scar and Zira need to be a mere memory, nothing more, when you take your places as rulers"

I'd never heard Simba so angry before, not even when he found us on the outlander territory, now there was something darker in his tone. Revenge perhaps. Or just pity for himself and his deceased family. Then he roars and it echoes across the lands, like a king's should.

That's when the grass on the other side of the ravine moves until a group of skinny lionessess pile into view. I recognized the one at the lead. It was Zira. She roared back. Simba glared at her, she did the same to him, both their gazes were that of hate and rage.

This was no longer a fight for territory. This was a full out war. Simba brought us out here to show us what we were. We were the soldiers. The generation that was thrown into a war that was now in our blood. And with so much pressure, like the clouds in rainy season, there was no stopping what was coming. Simba dug his claws into the dirt and then growled, turning back around as Arturo, Siri, and Katy quickly followed him. But I stood in my place, feeling cub-like as Zira's gaze turned me to stone, and I caught Mel's fearful eyes in the background of the lionessess, behind who I guess is his mother's, leg.

I nod my head to him, so no one else will notice, and I turn my back on the outlanders and trot back into the tall grass which would lead me home. To priderock.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Part 3

 

A King's Message

That night as I slept I had the strangest dream. I woke up in the den, yet their were names calling me out. I trotted towards them to answer their calls. I make it out of the den to a dark night, where only the stars provide any hope to see in the blackness. I can cleary see four pale lions though. They all look musclaur, powerful, except for one lanky one standing beside a golden lion with Simba's mane.

The largest one waits for me, just a few pawsteps ahead, his eyes are gleaming pale, like the stars. I walk to his side and he leads me down to join the other three lions. Once I'm sitting with them at the edge of the rock I look them over.

Their names echo in my mind as if they were there the entire time, but I know they weren't. Mohatu. Ahadi. Mufassa. And Scar...the lankiest lion looks over at me, his pale star-green eyes meeting mine, as if he knew I was challenged by his name.

Mohatu the kind. Ahadi the strong. Mufassa the brave. Scar the intelligent. Four great kings each with their own pasts which gave to either positive, or negative, outcomes. Each of them had failed somehow, despite their great leadership, each of them had a fatal flaw. If a king were to have all four traits he could rule easily with no problems.

Suddenly the scene of the stars above me shifted to Simba, who paced around at the bottom of pride rock. Every few moments his eyes would dart to the outlands and then turn back to his own paws as he marched back and forth among a dusty line that know grew under him.

Simba was a great king. He was strong, brave, and intelligent. But he lacked one thing: kindness. Now don't get me wrong, he was a kind king who offered everything he could to help another, yet he lacked it for the enemies he had made in the outlands pride. He lacked intelligence when it came to being so rash about starting a war. He lacked strength after Nala's death. He lacked no bravery though.

"Like you young cub"

The voice echoes through my head. Simba and I were so alike, therefore we tended to argue, we were both brave, lacking what insight we really needed to lead a kingdom. I hear Simba's voice from eariler that day, "great kings live inside you"

I look around, at the two kings at my left, and the other two at my right. They all merge and dance back into the starry sky, the image has shifted back to darkness and I wake up, gasping. I had a plan now.

I raced among the grass, so fast that the blades hit me like claws, and I didn't stop until I splashed into the waterhole while skidding to a stop, "Mel!" I call, looking around the waterhole.

A lanky body pushes into view, "I shouldn't be here Percy...after yesterday" I cut him off, racing to the other side of the waterhole to join him. He gives me a questionable look as I pant, eyes gleaming.

"I can stop this Mel" I said.

Mel rolled his eyes, "There's no doubt in my mind that you couldn't do it Percy, but it's not only you. Plus Zira had a ceromony last night, speaking of war, she named the new king of the outlands"

"King?" I question, I didn't know the outlands had a surplus of male lions.

"Her son Nuka" Mel answers.

"Her son?" I questioned again.

Mel nods, "Scar's only son" he clears out for me.

Then I remembered Scar from my dream. He didn't seem evil there, but Nuka was going to help stop the war. "Well is he a good king?" I asked.

"Don't know, he just became king yesterday, but Zira practically trained him to be a lethal attacker" Mel said.

I don't speak for a second, "I had a dream last night Mel, all the kings of the pridelands were there. I learned you can't just be one kind of king, but I still don't know exactly what they're trying to say"

Suddenly a clap of thunder roared over the land like a great lion. I lead Mel under the cover of the tree Simba had showed me yesterday. We dry off and then lay down in the roots. I have my back to the tree, while Mel sits in front of me with his eyes towards it.

"Is that me?" he asked.

I raised a brow and turned around, the place where Simba wiped his son off, had been replaced with another red-colored cub with green eyes. It was Mel. Mel's eyes find me beside him, "And that's you"

I nod, "Some tree, eh?"

He laughed, "It's like it has a mind of its own"

Then I hear the grass moving despite the rain, I perk up, heart racing. Simba and a few other lionessess race into view at least a hundred yards away from the tree. Simba raises his nose, "I can smell it" he roars.

Mel cowers and I race to cover his scent with my body. I lay in front of him, "I have to run Percy" he mutters.

"No you don't, just stay behind me, I'll protect you" I said, and my voice seemed stronger, Mel didn't move, "I trust you" he whispers.

The roots of the tree cover up the lower half of Mel's body and I cover up the remaining top. Simba pushes into view, he looks like he's going to attack, but then he recognizes me, "Perseus?"

"Oh hey" I said innocently.

"Did you see anyone pass through here?" he asked.

I looked back up at the tree, at Mel's picture, "Yeah, only Rafiki, he smelled funny today" I answered.

Simba looked back at the other lionessess, his hair was soaked, "What are you doing out here?" he commanded.

"I was intrigued by this tree" I replied.

Simba lowers his head and I raise my chin, we were both testing each other, but I was going to win. "Get home, this storm is dangerous" he finally growls before leaving with the other lionessess.

I stand up and Mel pounces me into an embrace, "Percy! Thanks" he exclaims.

I wink at him, "Only for you"

We both grin and another roar of thunder erupts from the dark sky along with some lightning, "You should get home" I told him.

Mel nodded, "I hope to see you tomorrow Perseus"

"Don't call me that Melvin" I snapped back playfully as we both dashed back out into the rain, heading seperate ways.

 

 

When I returned my three friends were waiting at the mouth of the cave. They all ran to see me when I approached with a smile, "Where'd you go Percy?" Katy questioned.

"We were so worried" Siri said.

"We thought you ran off" Arturo says.

I shake my hair and soak the other three lionessess as they make disgusted sounds as I laugh, "No, just went for a walk"

"Like you strangely do everyday?" Arturo asked.

"It's not strange" I correct here as we all walk in a line back into the den.

Luckily when the four of us were younger and weren't able to leave the cave we had discovered a secret passage heading away from the main den. This is where we had decided to go if we were ever stuck inside during a storm. I crawled in first.

The passage was tight at first, and since we were growing it was becoming quite a struggle, but once you passed the first few feet,

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