was losing its color, settling into a dull mess.

            And if there's one thing an old lion like Judas did not have time for, it was for cryptic nightmares.

            Now Judas felt he wasn't afraid of much. No, he much preferred others being afraid of him. After all, he was a very large lion. But as he slept the night away, he saw his deceased daughter, Zuri, standing upon a rubble of bones, and it startled him enough that he had not been able to close his eyes again, lest she reappear.

            So, instead of patrolling his turf, Judas relaxed in the grass, analyzing his dream. Now and again he did turn his thoughts towards his demented daughter; often, these days it was more about him critiquing himself. Had he truly been a failure of a father? His family was quick to tell him otherwise, but sometimes Judas wondered if he hadn't paid Zuri enough attention, and that was what had caused her to snap and kill his first-born, Kayode.

            Whatever the case was, the dream was most unusual because Zuri had long been dead. She couldn't cause any more mischief. But, to Judas anyways, it didn't feel like her misdeeds were done yet. Or perhaps he was hallucinating with his age.

            He had considered lying back down, but when he heard Tamu cry, "It's Ari!", he felt some strength return to his old bones enough to see his daughter. He smiled as he saw her, first engaging her mother in a tango of affection, and then likewise showering her love to everyone else who appeared before her, including her younger sister, Duni.

            "Ari," he called out hoarsely, the pride parting before him like a sea to allow him to pass. Ari was quick to give him a nuzzle and he returned her love with a gentle brush of his tongue behind her ear. "I didn't think you were coming back to visit."

            "I just missed you, Dad, that's all," she said, though he caught the faint glimpse of the ghost of worry in her eyes. Something was wrong.

            "You should visit more often," said Tamu. "I know, with the pride and everything, you can't but..."

            "Oh Mom..." But Ari offered no more than that, for she faced her father again and whispered, "Can I talk to you, please?"

            "Of course." Judas led Ari away from everyone else, who resumed their activities without throwing another glance back at them. As soon as he felt he had distanced them far enough, Judas laid down and gestured towards his daughter. "Ari, what's wrong?"

            Ari laid in front of him, their manner business-like now. "Dad, I heard... news. From some lionesses from faraway prides. It's about the Pridelands."

            Judas frowned. He had bad memories concerning the Pridelands, especially when it was about his parents. Judas had run away at a young age because he could not deal with the amount of pressure that was expected of him to succeed his father, Mufasa. He had felt guilty about it ever since, even when Simba had told him everything was fine. That was the first, and last, time he had ever step paw into the Pridelands.

            "What does Simba want?" he spat, unintentionally. Realizing it, he reiterated his question: "I hope he's not expecting another visit anytime soon."

            "No, no, it's not about him. Um, it's about the new king. Abel was his name."

            "Never heard of him. Go on."

            "Well one of the lionesses said that she overheard him talking about finding you. He has a vendetta against you."

            Though the situation wouldn't have been funny to anyone else, Judas found it hilarious, and laughed. "What? I've never even heard of this lion! What does he want with me?"

            Ari shrugged. "That's what I thought, but she was insistent to find you."

            "Did you believe her word?"

            "I mean Dad, she sounded very serious. Do you remember the Outland pride?"

            Judas shrugged. He didn't doubt Mufasa telling him about some of the lion prides that were near the Pridelands, but his extent of knowledge now only laid with familiarity of the Pridelands, and nothing more. "No, I can't say so. Why?"

            "Well, Maalik, he used to live in the Highlands. He said that that's near the Pridelands-"

            "Maalik's your mate, right? The guy I haven't met yet?"

            "-and he said that he knew about the Outlands. So one of the lionesses said that another lion chased that pride that lived there out. Maalik says that the Outland pride was huge, like the Pridelands."

            "So?"

            "So the lion that did that to the Outlands is a friend of Abel's, they're saying."

            "Ari, this is way too confusing. I'm not getting myself involved in another war or anything. The last time that happened, Nomusa was killed. I'm more content to live my days in peace, thank you."

            "I understand Dad, but they were very sure everyone's in danger here. So I said I would come over and tell you."

            Judas reached out with his great paw and laid it over Ari's. "Ari, they could've been misleading you. I wouldn't trust any rogues who say stuff like that. It makes no sense. I never met this Abel before."

            "I know, but I thought it was a good idea to tell you."

            "Thanks Ari, but we're okay here." He took his paw away, and his mind slipped back to Zuri and his strange dream. So he ventured to ask, "Ari, you haven't had strange dreams, have you?"

            His daughter shook her head. "No, why?"

            "Well I had one last night. About Zuri."

            "Zuri?"

            "I didn't tell your mom or Baako anything about it. I didn't think it was that big of a deal, but it was... unsettling." Judas began to retell her how his dream played out - there he was, in the middle of a land he did not recognize, and ahead of him was Zuri, who stood on a mountain of bones. She stood over him, laughing, and behind her were the shadows of evil.

            When he was done, Ari was quiet, which made Judas more unsettled. "Forget it," he growled, struggling to stand up. "I shouldn't have said anything to you about that."

            "No Dad it's fine. Just... that's spooky. I mean she's dead."

            "That's what I said..."

            "JUDAS!!"

            Both Judas and Ari stilled from where they sat, the loud warning cry of Baako sheering through their spines. With renewed alertness, Judas bounded to see what the danger was, his daughter running closely beside him.

            What they saw ahead of them was the pride looking up at a dark-colored lion who was within too close of a distance between them. Judas unsheathed his claws as he stood at the head of his pride, staring down this intruder who approached them.

            Abel was pleased that he had found Judas so quickly. With Zuri as his guide, they were able to make their trip two days less, as Ashiki had predicted. Now he was only mere feet from Judas and his pathetic family. Ramla's words came back to him, and he felt