on Priderock. I’m not well with my brother, but he will accept you, if I ask him...”

“No!” exclaimed Kota. “Whole pride is suffering! We are suffering from drought, but this isn’t even half the pain, we are suffering from that tyrant...”

“He is the rightful king!” called lion, but without any conviction. “He is son of my uncle Kovu and aunt Kiara. What should I do? Depose him?!” he was looking in beautiful eyes of lioness, that moment filled with tears. “He is my cousin! I can’t turn against my family! I can only tell it my brother...”

“...who thinks exactly like you.” Finished Kota. “And nothing will change.

“Kota...” whispered Taka and hugged lioness. “I love you and would do anything I can, to be with you and see you safe... But only what I can do. Don’t require from me breaking the laws. This is not about us... this is more important than any single lion’s fate. This is the Circle of Life! We can’t fight it...”

“You grandfather could.” Replied Kota. “And grandmother... You are telling me those beautiful stories about them, but I feel that they aren’t real.”

“They are real...” disagreed Taka, but Kota was talking still.

“And if... so what? So what, if we haven’t today anyone like Zira, Scar, Hawaa, Tanabi or Amini? So those are just legends about something, that once was, but will never return...”

“You want me to kill him?” asked Taka. “I’m weaker, I have minimal chances to win, but I can try. I don’t fear of death, you know. I can challenge Dhalimu, but even if I win, I couldn’t take his place. I can’t...”

Kota interrupted his speech with kiss, then she answered with breaking voice.

“I know and I love you because of that too. You are so honourable and obedient to law. I love we because of thing... that will never allow us to be together.” She looked on the ground. “You have right... Go now, before Dhalimu sees you. When you will back?”

“I try be in next month. If I have no reason, I’ll surely find some pretext.”

“I’ll try to find some too. Give some sign to Akra or Simmi and I’ll find you in Dry Oasis. But I can’t guaranty it... Then I will be already...”

“Goodbye, Kota.” Interrupted Taka. He wasn’t able to hear it anymore. He licked his beloved and turned on south-east. He started to run as fast as he could, doesn’t matter to save any strength. In fact, he wouldn’t be upset, if he would died on desert. Finally.

*

And the end seemed to be near. After less than hour, just before sunset, first sings of sandstorm showed. Taka knew that he was too far from Golden Sands to get back and there was no other shelter in sight. So he just laid down on hot sand and waited.

“Strange wind.” He thought. “It’s coming really fast... I have never seen such sudden sandstorm. I saw no signs today... well, I failed that. I just wonder, if it just wound me, or rip my flesh apart from bones. I guess, my career as prides arbiter soon will be over... O, Kota... It’s good you will have nothing to do with such a loser like me.” And he understood that all his life was just a escape from life itself. He was younger brother of king and he allowed to be exiled, or even he exiled himself. He was doing job necessary for prides, but not because he wanted to, but because... he had nothing better to do. “Arbiter!” thought. “Who will be remember me, after I will be squashed by the sandstorm? They will find another arbiter and another historian. I won’t be remembered even as secondary character in this tale. Kota, you have right...”

And first blow of wind hit laying lion. He whispered in mind call for Vitani and Tanabi, his parents, to greet him in skyword, but just incase, he also called to Sparthi, patron of desert wanderers. There was small chance he would survive. Very small, but lion wasn’t killed with first blow, so maybe...

“Huh? What?” whispered, still cuddling face in sand. Wind stopped.

Taka carefully raised his face and opened his eyes. WhenSo what, if we haven’t today anyone like Zira, Scar, Hawaa, Tanabi or Amini? So those are just legends about something, that once was, but will never return...”

“You want me to kill him?” asked Taka. “I’m weaker, I have minimal chances to win, but I can try. I don’t fear of death, you know. I can challenge Dhalimu, but even if I win, I couldn’t take his place. I can’t...”

Kota interrupted his speech with kiss, then she answered with breaking voice.

“I know and I love you because of that too. You are so honourable and obedient to law. I love we because of thing... that will never allow us to be together.” She looked on the ground. “You have right... Go now, before Dhalimu sees you. When you will back?”

“I try be in next month. If I have no reason, I’ll surely find some pretext.”

“I’ll try to find some too. Give some sign to Akra or Simmi and I’ll find you in Dry Oasis. But I can’t guaranty it... Then I will be already...”

“Goodbye, Kota.” Interrupted Taka. He wasn’t able to hear it anymore. He licked his beloved and turned on south-east. He started to run as fast as he could, doesn’t matter to save any strength. In fact, he wouldn’t be upset, if he would died on desert. Finally.

*

And the end seemed to be near. After less than hour, just before sunset, first sings of sandstorm showed. Taka knew that he was too far from Golden Sands to get back and there was no other shelter in sight. So he just laid down on hot sand and waited.

“Strange wind.” He thought. “It’s coming really fast... I have never seen such sudden sandstorm. I saw no signs today... well, I failed that. I just wonder, if it just wound me, or rip my flesh apart from bones. I guess, my career as prides arbiter soon will be over... O, Kota... It’s good you will have nothing to do with such a loser like me.” And he understood that all his life was just a escape from life itself. He was younger brother of king and he allowed to be exiled, or even he exiled himself. He was doing job necessary for prides, but not because he wanted to, but because... he had nothing better to do. “Arbiter!” thought. “Who will be remember me, after I will be squashed by the sandstorm? They will find another arbiter and another historian. I won’t be remembered even as secondary character in this tale. Kota, you have right...”

And first blow of wind hit laying lion. He whispered in mind call for Vitani and Tanabi, his parents, to greet him in skyword, but just incase, he also called to Sparthi, patron of desert wanderers. There was small chance he would survive. Very small, but lion wasn’t killed with first blow, so maybe...

he noticed cloud of sand before him, he knew that his eyes would be painfully rip out by charge of dirt and soon or later whole his body would be crushed by power of element. But it didn’t happened.

“What, on Stars!?” muttered lion, seeing, that golden cloud in front of him was floating in the air... in place, just mixing inside. Suddenly, he saw some silhouette in centre of sandy cumulus, lioness’s silhouette. It said with little ironical, but still friendly voice.

“Well, well, well... you are Taka, son of Vitani and Tanabi!” shade came closer to him, and all cloud moved too, that lion found himself in. Sand was hitting his fur, but in strange, gentle way, doing no harm. He even opened eyes, that he closed earlier. Nothing happened. “You have always been my favourite... mostly because of name!”

“Zira...” whispered Taka with amaze. “Grandmother Zira!” he bowed with respect. “Welcome here, ma’am. Am I dead?” asked with doubt. But he felt alive as never. Not, that was not this. “What brought you here, so low under the sky?”

“Your stupidity.” Replied queen and came closer to grandson. Her body turned from sandy shadow to almost material flesh. “Look at yourself! You would be fine lion... if you only wanted to!” she touched his shoulder. “Why have you refused Kota? You would be now king...”

“...of the Past.” Finished lion and lioness’s ghost burst in laughter.

“Good! That was great!” said with playful voice. “Someday, you will meet Tarki and... ow, never mind... Yes, I know, you are weaker. I know, you would probably die in challenge... But I see no fear in your eyes. Someone, who wanders through the desert, just to maintain liaison between prides and make them cooperate to resist the drought... is probably mad or ready to die at any time. Or both, what I see in you eyes. Why don’t you want to challenge Dhalimu?”

“He is my cousin.” Replied Taka. “And rightful king. I have no right...”

“...to defend lioness, you love?” finished Zira. “Don’t you think that are quite poor laws?”

“This is the Circle of Life.” Said lion. “My duty is to guard it.”

“Well done...” Zira clapped her paws. “But I think, that should be opposite: it has to guard you. And you think the same, but you are afraid to admit it. You are the same as your grandfather was!”

“I would break the laws...”

“Dhalimu is breaking the laws! He is a tyrant! He doesn’t care about his subjects. You have right to dispose him... as a descendant of the royal line. Golden Ones can’t do this, because killing own monarch is terrible crime. But you can, you are not his subject. You won’t break any oath and you will be worthy to assume the throne.”

“I’m too weak to win with Dhalimu.” Said Taka quietly.

“And Scar was too weak to win with Mufasa! He was too weak to survive drought and save his prides. Also, he was too weak to conquer the throne for Vitani. But he did it all! You know that, because you are telling about it so often...” she came even closer and whispered him to ear. “I tell you a secret: weakness is just a state of mind.”

“Would you help me then?” asked unconvinced lion.

“I already have, Taka...” replied she, slowly disappearing into the air. “I already have.”

After minute of gentle wind, all sand from cloud felt on the ground. Taka noticed, that there was just calm, silent night... He took a

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