the journey on the following day.

"Come along, now, Kopa. Let's go and find a place to rest before it gets too dark. We have another big day of travelling tomorrow."

"You're not wrong. We sure do."

And that said, the uncle and nephew lions walked off to find their overnight stop place in the heart of the beautiful Lower Zambezi National Park; never to forget the teachings and leanings of yet another wondrous and sacred sight of the African continent. With so many amazing places surrounding us, we are very lucky indeed to roam on this part of the planet. was Kopa's final thought.

*

That evening, back in the Pride Lands, the lionesses of Simba's Pride had been under instruction by Nala, as of two days ago, to undertake hunting and fighting training; and the former Outsiders, named the New Breed, were instructing the original members of the pride, named the Originals, as they had already had previous training under their former leader and were now passing it on to their new counterparts.

They had just finished their spar sessions in the open grassland half a mile behind Pride Rock and were currently heading back to the inside of their den to get ready to turn in for the night. Most of them were heavily fatigued from training for more than an hour and were slowly panting as they walked.

"Alright,...everyone." One of the commanding former Outsider, or New Breed, lionesses said aloud to them, also panting. "Good...good session today. You are all...working very hard and with...with good discipline. A few more sessions of those same techniques...and routines over a set period...and you will be better prepared to tackle...to tackle your enemies in future battle. Just remember: Always try to...outsmart your opponent by using strategy and defense...to conserve your energy before you go on the attack...and then once the opportunity arises,...go for the fatal blow by attacking the throat or snout."

Every lioness heard this and gave small nods to confirm that they got the message. 

"Alright, now." The commanding lioness continued, not panting as much now. "Let's go and get some rest. Tomorrow we take a day off, and then we go at it again the following day. We will restrict the sessions to one and two hours so that we don't work too hard or too long. We just need to get you Originals as familiar as possible with every maneuver and techniques that us former Outlanders have been taught but will ensure to be effective in battle. Several weeks of training should be enough to get you well prepared and ready. Just keeping working hard like you did tonight and it will happen."

As soon as she had finished and the rest of the pride confirmed they took her advice in, they all continued on to Pride Rock; where once back inside the den, they would get ready to settle in.

Back there, outside the front of the Rock, all members of the Royal Family, Kovu and Vitani included, were feasting on an antelope carcass that had been killed earlier in the day by the young lion and his mate and sister lionesses when they went out hunting together after their earlier conversations. 

While they were eating, Vitani had explained how she, her brother and his mate had spent a while in the afternoon searching for a catch but how the prey kept escaping. Then in the near evening, they eventually caught a slow one out by Kovu and Vitani blocking it's way and then Kiara immediately jumping out of the grass, using the techniques that she had been taught, and pouncing on it, where she would then pin it down while the other two lions would make the fatal blows with bites to the neck. After the success, they had dragged it back to the rock and called out whoever was present to join with them on the feed, in which only Simba and Nala were around as the rest of the clan had gone out to begin their hunting and fighting training.

"Very nice job on the catch, you three." Simba, in-between eating, said to his daughter, Kiara, Vitani and Kovu after hearing the story of their success. "Good effective teamwork, I must say."

"Yes, well done." Nala agreed impressively.

"Well, thank you." Vitani responded. "We knew that it had been a few days since feeding, so we thought it might be an idea to help out."

"I just wish that we could have gotten more than one kill, though." Kovu, slightly disappointed, added. "We were out chasing quite a few antelope for several hours before we finally got success, and we ended up so tired from it all that we just couldn't run anymore. If only we got enough for the rest of the pride."

"That's right, Kovu, my love." Kiara put in as she looked at her mate after he said this. "We would have had to kill at least three to feed the entire pride. With the larger number that we now have at our helm, we need as many resources as we can get, and it will take a little more combined effort to get that sufficient food supply."

"Yes, but in the end, the effort that you put into making that kill is the most rewarding thing." Nala assured with optimism, which had always been one of her strong unique attributes. "Even if you do not come away with anything, as long as you tried your best, that is all that matters."

Vitani, Kiara and Kovu looked at each other for a few seconds and agreed by not saying anything and giving single small nods.

"Besides, the rest of the pride will pitch in." She continued. "Tomorrow we will get another group to go out so that you can have a rest."

"And the numbers gain should ensure that we get at least a few more catches than usual." Simba added. "So no chance of going hungry."

Everyone else silently agreed and smiled at him to show this. 

They suddenly heard the sound of walking paws, and their heads turned to the direction of that sound and caught sight of their entire united pride advancing towards them from the right side of Pride Rock. They were about to walk up the rocky pathway leading into the den when the commanding New Breed lioness gave a signal for them to stop and wait and then approached the Royals, where she gave a small bow of the head before speaking up:

"Sires, we have just finished our training session, and so far everything is going smooth and according to plan. Your trainees are learning the essential skills well and working very hard and we are pleased with the progress that they are making. Several more sessions and then they will be ready for battle."

"Wonderful to hear this, Noyana." Simba, mentioning her name, satisfactorily responded, who then wanted to make sure of something: "And you haven't been pushing them too hard, I hope?"

"Not at all, sire. We have been allowing time in-between sessions to explain the methods so that they can recover and keep vital stamina for the physical practicals. So now one has shown any signs of heavy fatigue as yet."

"Excellent." Simba then responded. "And by the way,..." He gestured towards the antelope carcass that his family had been feasting on. "...I understand that it is late and everyone might want to get some sleep now, but if anyone is hungry, they are free to take what is available out of this kill before it disappears. It is only one catch, but this is all that my daughter, her mate and his sister were able to acquire today. Still, there should be a sufficient amount to feed several more mouths. And they can feast on it whenever they want to; either tonight or tomorrow."

"Thank you very much, Your Majesty." Noyana appreciatively replied. "And, yes, I will inform everyone when I step inside the den."

"That said,..." Nala spoke quietly to the three younger lions with this thought from her mate in mind. "Let us not be too selfish with this. I believe we have had our share. Everyone else needs a feed as much as we do, so let us stop now and leave it for them. Alright?"

They understood and nodded their heads. They were already fairly satisfied, so therefore were happy to pass it on. They then took a couple of steps back from the carcass to affirm at face value that they were willing. Nala saw this and smiled to say 'thank you' before she turned her attention to  Noyana who had begun to walk back to the open cave at the Rock.

"Oh, and so you know,..." The Queen spoke aloud to her, who suddenly turned her head back when her ears caught the voice. "...we have finished our share here, so the rest is now for the pride alone."

"They will appreciate that." Noyana remarked. "Thank you, sire."

"And as for tomorrow," Nala continued to her. "we will send out another group to catch some more prey so that we can build on our supply of food. It has been a couple of days now and a good feed will be needed sooner. Whoever is willing to volunteer can be a part of that group, but we have to ensure that we have enough numbers to work together effectively and get enough supply for all members of this pride. Please also inform everyone of this."

"I certainly will, and yes, I will ensure that we get some volunteers to help out for tomorrow."

"Thank you, Noyana." The Queen then finished. "You may go now."

Noyana nodded her head and then turned away to walk back towards the den, where she would undoubtedly get ready to rest for the night and prepare herself, along with the others, for the next day.

Not too long after she had disappeared from sight, the sound of flapping wings could be heard coming from the east, and all five lions lifted their heads and

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