you?"

            Duka shrugged helplessly. "It didn't sound like he did. I heard Ishonda saying that it was a gray lion he was looking to hunt. Adanna didn't say that Ekene was gray, did he?"

            "No, okay so they're safe. I'm going to go today."

            "With Abel?"

            "No, to Adanna. She'll need to know this."

            Duka took a look back over his shoulder, then faced Sanaa again. "You don't think... he's going to wage an all-out war?"

            Sanaa shrugged. "It could be possible. If he does, then maybe Adanna was right."

            The sun was high in the sky when Abel took his forces out of the Pridelands. Beyond the border, at the same time, Sanaa was passing on the word to Adanna that Abel was on the move.

            Sanaa's message was frantic - Abel was going to destroy a lion pride, led by a gray lion with a red mane. She didn't know of the other large lion prides out there, but knew there was some hidden vendetta, something that stretched back long before Abel's birth, but she didn't understand where Abel's intense hatred of this mysterious lion came from.

            Adanna nodded her head, absorbing every word her friend was telling her. She didn't know what she was going to do, but the wheels were spinning in her mind. When she urged Sanaa to leave her, having gathered enough information, Adanna went to the one who would know more about the isolated lion prides.

            Gunju, her companion, was well-versed in the knowledge of lion prides. Before Adanna, he had spent a good half of his life moving around, weaving from bachelor pride to bachelor pride. For some reason, he reminded her of Azazel, her former betrothed.

            He was waiting in the same spot, underneath the shaded tree in between the territories of the Pridelands and the Outlands. When she approached him, he smirked. "Anything new about your crazy brother?"

            Adanna rolled her eyes, as she had a habit of doing when having to deal with Gunju's nonsense. "Oh the usual 'I'm-going-to-kill-off-a-lion-pride' deal he usually has."

            Gunju sat up, his smirk beginning to fade. "Really? He's launching an assault?"

            "Looks like. You've traveled a lot, have you met any lion prides led by a gray lion with a red mane?"

            "Oh, I think you're talking about Judas."

            "Judas?"

            "Yeah. Don't know much about him though, but he took over Ari's pride. Ari was this big shot back in his day, was one of the first lions to keep a tight grip on his rule until he got too old to remember what he was supposed to be doing."

            When Adanna didn't react to the supposedly big deal of the situation, Gunju clarified, "Those lion prides out there don't run like how the Pridelands and Outlands do. They're their own parties, and lions take them over all the time."

            "Oh, okay. Well we're going to stop my brother from destroying them."

            "Why? Do you know him?"

            "No, but maybe if we can get him on our side against Abel. I mean he sounds like a big deal."

            Gunju shrugged. "Eh, like I said, don't know much about him other than word getting around. So, we're traveling?"

            "We're traveling."

            "Just like the good old days. Don't need to tell your folks?"

            At first Adanna had not considered the notion, but in the end she decided she would inform Simba, Nala, and Ekene of her intents. And when the sun had began its descent to the East, she and Gunju hurried out of the lands, for all she had to hear from her grandfather was the following words:

            "Judas? He's my brother."

~ * ~

            With the moon risen high in the sky, Adwin and Timira resumed their quest. They had stopped during the day after a long night of traveling to rest before continuing their travels. They had decided that night was a better time to travel - even though lions were more nocturnal beings, other threats were not. Besides, as long as they knew the scent of a nearby lion, they could easily avoid them.

            Though initially hopeful, Adwin was growing weary of their fruitless search. Whoever they stopped that would allow a conversation knew nothing about Judas, and offered very little information for anything else. If anything, it almost began to feel that they were chasing after their own tails.

            More along the point, Timira was growing cranky. She was the first to complain about rest, and the first to be on her paws to resume their search. Adwin was patient to his mate because he loved her, but he still continued to wonder if it would've been better if Mheetu had known about their plan.

            "Adwin, I have to stop quick," panted Timira as she slowed beside him.

            Good naturedly, Adwin did cease his trots, and patiently waited for his mate to collect her breath. While so, he decided he would voice his own thoughts about their lack of finding anything. "Timira, maybe we need to go back."

            "Go back?"

            "Maybe ask Mheetu if he knew anything."

            "We've only been traveling for a night now." Timira now approached him, fire burning her eyes. "Adwin, this is important. Lindiwe-"

            "I know, I know," he sighed, laying his ears back. "But I don't feel like we're getting anywhere."

            Much to his surprise, the fire in his mate's eyes went out, and she seemed just as deflated as he had been. "I know, but Mheetu wouldn't have helped us."

            "Maybe Imani and Azazel then?"

            "Maybe we- What was that?"

            Both their ears were perked, at the sound of the grass rustling not far from their location. They heard the sound of an argument brewing.

            "I knew we should've gone my way. You pride lionesses and all..."

            "Yeah, we could've done that once you stopped showing off..."

            "And I could've gotten us that small gazelle..."

            "You're too fat for that."

            Adwin and Timira exchanged confused glances, but remained on high alert until the voices, the closer they got, began to quiet down. The rustling continued, though, and eventually the strangers of the night emerged, neither whom Adwin or Timira recognized.

            The lioness sighed with relief upon seeing them. "Thank Mohatu, we've found someone. Do you guys think you can help us out?"

            Beside her, the lion asked, "Do you know of Judas?"

            Adwin had been so intimidated by the size of this strange lion that the question went over his head, but Timira had been listening perfectly. "You know Judas?!" Her excitement was