cries quickly reached the approaching clan. The lions outside of the den quickly made their way up the ramp, whilst others that had been relaxing on the plaza appeared both on the ramp and the Rock to get a look at the approaching onslaught. Though it wasn't any of her business, Kim didn't really see a male lion, only lionesses. Wasn't there supposed to be at least one lion present, one king? But it seemed their lack of a king didn't hinder them one bit, as one particular lioness quickly mustered all others at the ramp, and not one second too soon, seeing as only less than two-hundred meters now separated the lions from their eternal enemies. And although vastly outnumbered and in a hopeless situation by all accounts, the dominant lioness still didn't hesitate one bit when she led her proud warriors down the ramp, surging forward in a seemingly desperate charge, crying various intimidating battleroars along the way. For a split second, Kim couldn't help but admire the lionesses, both the old ones that had been tempered by too many years, and the young ones of which some probably hadn't even seen their first hunt. She admired them because every last one of them stormed down the ramp without a second's doubt despite the tremendous odds they were facing. Now that their cover 'd been blown, the hyenas too broke out in howling and cackling in their bid to break the enemy's morale, albeit to little avail it seemed.
Closing in on the approaching enemy, Kim spotted a young lioness speeding towards her. Kim braced for the inevitable impact, while still running forward. For a moment there, it crossed her mind she couldn't even remember why they were out here picking a fight in the first place, probably because it mattered little now, in the face of death; no time to stop and ask ‘why’.

 

*

 

“I wasn't sleeping,” Kausha yawned, “I was just resting my eyes a bit.”

 

Kani frowned with mild contempt, looking at her older companion lying casually stretched out on the cave floor. She'd about had it with Kausha's lax attitude, and she had already made that clear to her on numerous occasions. Of course, being younger, she had no real authority, but that didn't stop her from getting annoyed.

 

“No you weren't, you were sleeping! Again! That's all I ever see you do 'round here, sleep, doze of and goof around...”

 

Kausha nonchalantly rolled her eyes.

 

“Well pardon me, your highness, but last time I recalled, I was still the senior lioness 'round here, so I do as I please. Besides,” she sighed, “That's what babysitting 's all about: getting a decent nap whilst on duty, didn't anyone tell you by now?”

 

Kani took a quick glance at the cubs next to Kausha, all soundly asleep. Looking at those peaceful little bundles of joy, one could get the impression babysitting wasn't that tough a task. And indeed, it wasn't, at least not when the wee-ones were asleep that was. But what bothered Kani was that Kausha acted just as lazy when the cubs were awake, when they needed protection (mostly from their clumsy little selves). Such negligence was just unacceptable!

 

“And what if one of them woke up and took off? You're just irresponsible! I was always told wisdom comes with age, but quite frankly, ma'am, after meeting you I've really had to adjust my viewpoint on that one...” Kani noted, not quite as mean as she had intended it to be, as she had a habit of being polite, towards superiors that was.

 

“And you're way to smug, up-tight and full of yourself! Get a life...”

 

Kani sighed ostentatiously. That did it! She was out of here, that woman was just hopeless! With a muted snarl, Kani turned her back on a yawning Kausha and headed for the main den. The main den being the cave directly in front of the Priderock. The babysitting used to take place there, but Nala had recently moved the kids further back, deeper into the caves, so the adults wouldn't have to mind their language too much when around the main den.
For what Kani was concerned, that had been just another fine example of the ever deteriorating discipline within the pride that had probably set in around the time when the unification took place (though she wouldn't really know as she hadn’t been a full-fledged lioness back then). If they couldn't even keep their manners 'round the young ones, what could they do? There's decadence for you, the Pridelanders turning into their own stereotypes. Being rather authoritarian in nature, Kani was of course a bit harsh for her pridemates (she herself being about the purest Pridelander the pride had to offer), not to mention she was an fervent supporter of the Outlander-lifestyle (harsh and uncompromising, but with a strong sense of community and pride). But she probably had a point nonetheless, the attitudes within the pride were getting lax: guard duty, for one, had been cut back to a bare minimum, something the Pridelanders would soon come to regret.

As Kani entered the den, she noticed it was practically empty, as everyone awaited the sunrise for a quick nap outside.

 

“And this is what the Kings of old have all bled and died for?” she mumbled to no-one in particular, “Everyone spending the better part of their lifetimes basking in the sun? It's about time Simba got back here and straightened things out again... and again... and again... Stupid Kausha... if I were queen, I'd give her a real good trashing in stead of just turning a blind eye...”

 

Not that Nala wasn't a strong enough queen, far from it: she knew life didn't come cheap, she had still lived to know greatness incarnated in Mufasa. And Nala had lived through the years of darkness, through the years of Terror; she knew the price you paid when just sitting by idly, letting evil (both within the pride and outside) run it's course unhindered. But Nala couldn't be everywhere at once, of course, she couldn't explain the finesses and lessons to be drawn from their great history to everyone at once. And this lead to ignorance in the likes of Kausha, who forgot what being a Pridelander was all about. But not Kani, she knew her heritage, she still realized what pure blood went through her veins. And she was proud of it, even despite her relatively young age, an age at which most other lions can’t even tell the difference between an Outlander and a Pridelander, let alone tell laxness from discipline. But I'd take one big king to get that through the skulls of the likes of Kausha, maybe an even bigger king than they had now. Of course, Simba too was great, sure, near legendary even. Freeing the Priderock from the clutches of Terror, reuniting the prides... those are acts that echo through eternity. Come to think of it, Kani realized kings probably didn't got any greater than Simba.... but what was it they needed then, to shake of the fat accumulating 'round everyone's neck?

 

Maybe a decent drought?
Too drastic...
A new split with the outlanders?
No, they are about the only good influence around...
Maybe a real nasty king, a murderous brute...
And that would help how?
A two years forced vacation in the Outlands, that ought to keep everyone vigilant enough.

 

That reminded her she should be applying for a stay with the outlanders as soon as possible, now that she was old enough. Kani had always wanted to know what life in the Outlands was like: it could only provide her with new, possibly important experiences which could make her an even better lioness in sevice of the pride. Best she addressed that issue first thing after she'd completed her babysitting duty (indeed, Kani regarded it as a duty, much to Kausha's amusement, as she regarded it as a favor, a cushy job), which was of course her number one priority for the time being. She wanted to head back to the cubs, not being able to bear the thought Kausha was the only one around to watch them, but suddenly heard some ruckus outside. Sounded a bit like roars... another lioness that had been dazing in the den briefly looked at Kani, but she gave her the 'I know nothing'-expression, so they both ventured outside to have a look. Everyone seemed to be panicking all of a sudden. Kani of course wasn't impressed (she suspected a lot of ado about nothing), but as she was always ready to do her part for the pride, even in the face of futility, she ran down towards the plaza either way so she could report to Nala, who by now seemed to be franticly issuing orders to everyone and anyone at once.

 

That's odd... Can't imagine anything...

 

Suddenly, her ears caught, out of all the noise and roaring 'round her, one word: hyenas.

 

Now why didn't I think of that! Those glorified punching bags make great scarecrows to keep everyone vigilant, to shape up the likes of Kausha. If they’re around, I doubt anyone would want to get caught having traded discipline for decadence. But those hyenas shouldn't overdo it, of course, they just have to keep everyone on their toes... but taking a stab in the dark here, I'd say they are grossely overdoing it. Not good. Not good at all...

 

As she was just about to storm over the plaza to defent the ramp, Kani was caught by Nala’s sight. She stared at the young lioness for 'bout one second, like she was trying to remember her name, but then, out of the blue, shouted at her.

 

“Kani, get the cubs out of here, now! Use the passage!”

 

for the blink of an eye, Kani just stood there, processing the command, but that still took too long judging by Nala's second shout.

 

“NOW!”

 

After that second directive, Kani rushed back up the path towards the Rock, and the caves, passing the (much slower) lioness that had been in the den with her, but Kani didn't acknowledge her; her

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