course, except of muzzle. Whole face was downing in the one giant pool of blood. Eyes and forehead of arbiter was a archipelago of deep wounds, maybe whole one wound. Shocked lion felt no pain, probably he felt nothing. He even didn’t notice of Kota’s coming, because he was still screaming curses and randomly swinging his paws with extended claws. After a longer while he had to sense his beloved because he felt silent and laid motionlessly on the rock. He was alive for sure. But sure was also he gone blind.

 

XIII. The ruling Hearts

 

Next day woke lazy and a bit uncertain. Dusty clouds were still dimming the sky and thanks to that sun wasn’t burning wounded lions – then: trapped on Golden Massif plateau – too hard. But the weather still reminded about constant danger – light wind was blowing and another sandstorm was in the air. Nether Kota nor Raia hadn’t enough courage to watch on horizon and dark shapes that grew on it. There they could see the coming end for theirs lions.

“My lord, listen to me...” was whispering sandy-furred gently, as if the mother to her cub. In the same time she was holding a gourd and king was drinking. “You must rest and sleep as long as you could. The sooner you come down fromgn: justify; text-indent: 9pt;">Raia was watching this and an analytic voice of her reason called to tell her friend that Taka was probably stunned due to storm and such screams won’t reach him. But she didn’t even listen to own mind. She was running to the centre of plateau, looking of silhouette of beloved king.

“Taka, say something!” cried Kota, but in the same moment sandy-furred saw Dhalimu, lying by some big boulder.

“My lord!” she called, although she already knew that her ruler had a limited chance to hear her.

When she reached the lion she heard a burst of Kota’s cry, but she ignored it. She looked with motherly tenderness on brown-maned, but then she turned out her stare with shock. Ruler was unconsciousness and his front-right paw was broken... or better to say: smashed. His ulna and radius bone almost had tore the fur from inside and only thanks to lucky coincidence the limb of king was still in one fragment. But for now – useless fragment.

“My lord... you paw.” She bended down to beloved. “That paws you were keeping your justice...” Dhalimu moaned in pain but for lioness that sign of life sounded like the most beautiful music.

Meanwhile Kota was standing over Taka, unable to make any move. Each time she reached with paw to beloved, fear was paralysing her. She was too afraid to hurt arbiter even more. And for the worst wound she could do nothing.

Miraculously, black-maned had all bones intact. Almost whole body was unwounded, even unspotted. Of course, except of muzzle. Whole face was downing in the one giant pool of blood. Eyes and forehead of arbiter was a archipelago of deep wounds, maybe whole one wound. Shocked lion felt no pain, probably he felt nothing. He even didn’t notice of Kota’s coming, because he was still screaming curses and randomly swinging his paws with extended claws. After a longer while he had to sense his beloved because he felt silent and laid motionlessly on the rock. He was alive for sure. But sure was also he gone blind.

 

XIII. The ruling Hearts

 

Next day woke lazy and a bit uncertain. Dusty clouds were still dimming the sky and thanks to that sun wasn’t burning wounded lions – then: trapped on Golden Massif plateau – too hard. But the weather still reminded about constant danger – light wind was blowing and another sandstorm was in the air. Nether Kota nor Raia hadn’t enough courage to watch on horizon and dark shapes that grew on it. There they could see the coming end for theirs lions.

the massif, the better.” She barely repressing herself from looking on east horizon. “The storm might be back.”

“First of all I must finish Taka.” Replied ruler. “You said he is still alive...”

“Yes, he is alive.” Confirmed lioness. “Severly wounded. My lord, ignore him. You are in danger!” Suddenly, touched by obvious idea, bended to brown-maned’s ear and whispered. “If you order me, I will kill him...”

“No!” roared Dhalimu. “That is against the Law of Challenge... Besides...” He based on left paws to raise to head higher. Raia gasped, fearing he might fall, so she immediately support his side. “...if Taka is alive, I bet Kota is guarding him all the time. Just like you are guarding me.”

And then sandy-furred understood whole risk of her plan. She could kill arbiter easesily – she knew he was blind and completely helpless due to that. But before she would get the wandered she would have prevailed Kota. “For you, my lord, I would even kill my beloved friend.” She thought. “But I can’t risk. I’m too weak, still partially disabled. Kota could win with me and then you would be defenceless.” She looked on west part of rock where was lying Taka, nursed by golden-furred.

Fact that both lions survived sandstorm was a miracle. When sand-clouds had hit the massif, Dhalimu was pouncing on arbiter. Blow had thrown him on the ground and had dragged him several meters to giant boulder, standing over plateau. So king was lying about twenty meters from south and over hundred from east edge of plateau. Hard landing cost him nasty break of front-right paw, but no much in addition. Taka wasn’t so fortunate.

The lighter of lions had been tossed up by sudden blow and then dragged on the rock surface almost on the western edge of massif. Because he almost instantly fell on the rock his injuries wasn’t too numerous – few scratches of paws and belly. But his main, the most dreadful, wounds were heavy cuts on his face. Speeding sand, even through shut eyelids, wounded his eyes and scattered fur on black-maned’s muzzle. Kota could just lick those cuts from sand and pus to prevent the infection. But there was no chances for him to regain the sight. And being blind he was unable to go down from narrow path of massif. Every time golden-furred thought about this, disobedient neck turned her head to the east. But lioness closed her eyes not to the coming doom and to not know how many time left.

“I’m sorry, Kota...” whispered Taka. „I’m so thirsty...”

“Right, my love.” Replied lioness instantly. “I will arrange it with Raia and we will go down for more water.”

“Why do you always go together?” asked black-maned but then he understood why for it was. “Oh... Raia seemed to be so nice lioness.”

“She is a wonderful friend.” Said Kota honestly. “And I love her. But because I love her I know her well. I know she is waiting for opportunity to kill you. Quite reasonable thinking, because if she wouldn’t with Dhalimu I would have...” Taka interrupted her with painful gasp.

“It all have gone wrong!”; he yelled. “That shouldn’t be! Instead of peace, my attempt brought only more hostility... We should have both died in that storm. It would be much better that to be cause of that...” he waved his paw in random direction. “...all. Leave me here and convince Raia to leave Dhalimu. In fact, we both have failed.”

“I can’t leave you.” Whispered Kota, nestling to lions’ side. “And I know that Raia won’t leave her king.”

“And you know what is most amusing?” asked Taka after a while of that caress. “We even can’t determine who has won. I admit: the sandstorm came to save me, but technically the duel is still unsolved. We disabled and wounded each other, so for now we have draw... in such situation the Law tells that lion who as the first leaves the battlefield by his own, wins...” He looked with his dead eyes in direction where he expected that the path down was. He missed about thirty degrees, but Kota had no courage to say him that. “But it rather an idiotic problem. I know I won’t leave this rock.”

“You will!” said golden-furred wit decisive voice. “Just give me some time and I’ll fix something...”

But then came Raia, proposing the way down for water. Kota gasped, seeing as her friend broke the unwritten pact, forbidding her to get closer than thirty meters to Taka. So with huffed voice Kota ordered Raia to go back to west path and to meet her down. Sandy-maned understood the anxiety of friend and obediently fulfilled her instruction. They met in Acacia Alley where all the hostility between them ceased. They entered the cave with gourds, greeted by surprised stares of whole pride.

“You must go hunt.” Said Raia. “King must eat, we must eat...” seeing curled lips of Kota, she added. “And until the duel is unfinished, we have to feed also Taka.”

“You are staying?” asked Simmi.

“Or we both are going with you. But I prefer to stay...”

“We will manage.” Assured her Akra. “At least for now.” And she whispered to Simmi. “Get Kauli here. Maybe he would know whet to do.”

And hundred meters above them a strange dialogue was taking place. Taka, in spite of his perfect blindness, thanks to gentle wind managed to recognize the four quarters of the globe and then he crawled to one of the boulders on plateau. When he climbed on it, he was on altitude of higher terrace, where was lying Dhalimu. King, seeing the efforts of enemy, decided to help him. He crawled few meters, leaving from behind his boulder and stopped before the deep crack, that he couldn’t pass on three paws. But he was so close to the adversary that they hear each other, at least when they were shouting.

“I see you are still alive, you stray!” Dhalimu cheerfully greeted arbiter.

“I hear you are still prattling, you freak!” replied black-maned. “That’s good. I won’t be bored here, thanks to your preaches.

“And I heard you are completely blind and helpless. I could finish you with one blow.” Talked brown-maned down.

“So come here and do it...”

“Well... for now I’m unable to walk.” Replied Dhalimu with airy honesty. “But I’m working on it...”

For a while a dead silence fell

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