Chapter 1
The two cubs frolicked through the grass, ignoring everything they passed by. They were too happy to notice much else. All of a sudden Simba leapt up and rolled into Nala, making the two of them go tumbling quite some distance before finally stopping with Nala on top.
"Pinned ya!" She said, victorious. "How many times has it been now?"
Nala stepped off of Simba and allowed him to stand back up. He wasn't very pleased about Nala beating him for what seemed like the eight thousandth time.
"Just you wait. I'll get you one day. I know I will." He said.
"Ha. Yeah right. You lose every time."
"What about that time I-"
"Look!" Nala shouted, interrupting Simba in mid-sentence.
She was pointing to an open space behind him. The grass seemed to stop there and was instead replaced with dirt and rocks. The two cubs now saw what one of them had been pointing at. By one of the large boulders was a body huddled up beneath it. A body of something neither of them recognised.
"What's that?" Simba asked.
"How should I know." Nala replied a little agitated that Simba had asked such a question when of course she didn't know what it was.
"Do you think It's alive?" Simba asked next.
"Why don't you go over there and check." Nala suggested. "Unless you're scared." She taunted.
"I'm not scared. I'll and check it out. Just watch me."
Simba approached the unfamiliar creature with caution. He glanced back at Nala who just gave him a 'keep going' look. He carried on and was now within touching distance of the creature. Its skin was dark but it didn't look like it had any fur, except for some brown hair on the top of what was presumably its head. It was wearing some kind of cloth around its waist area that was a light grey colour. Instead of paws the creature had five pointy things protruding from the ends of its arms and legs. It didn't move until Simba nudged it with his paw.
"Hey." He said.
The creature suddenly jumped awake and scrambled back, hugging the rock with his back. He seemed distressed at the sight of Simba.
"No! Please... Please don't eat me!" It shouted.
It could speak.
The creature frantically climbed up onto the boulder behind it. Now he was out of Simba's reach.
"Hey. Calm down. It's alright." Simba tried to reassure the dark creature.
"No! Stay away!" It shouted back.
Clearly it wasn't going to cooperate. Simba decided to get Nala over here to help him.
"Nala! Come over here!"
Nala ran to Simba's side and asked him:
"What is it?"
"That thing seems scared. I tried to calm it down but it's gone up there."
Simba drew Nala's attention to the creature cowering on top of the tall boulder.
"Any idea what it is?" She asked.
"No. No idea. I've never seen anything like it before."
"How do we get it down?"
"Something tells me we won't be able to. But it can talk. Why don't we try and find out what it is from here?"
"Worth a try."
The creature was still crouched on top of the boulder. Looking around, frightened. It must have come from somewhere outside the Pridelands otherwise it wouldn't be like this. Simba called up to it.
"Hey! We aren't going to hurt you. You can stay up there and talk if you want. We want to ask you a few questions."
"You... You can talk?" The creature asked.
"Of course." Simba replied. "Now first of all what's your name?"
The creature seemed reluctant to answer at first but soon answered.
"My name's Asger. I'm only ten. Who are you?"
"I'm Simba." Simba answered.
"And I'm Nala." Nala added. "Hope you don't mind us asking, but exactly what are you? Some kind of monkey?"
"No. I'm a human. I ran away from my tribe a couple days ago." Said Asger.
"Why did you do that?" Simba asked.
"Well, I disagreed with the new leader's rules and my family, they thought they were good ones but I didn't think so. So I left. I'm starting to think it wasn't such a good idea now. Where is this place anyway?"
"You mean you don't know where you are?" Asked a confused Nala.
"No. I've been wandering for hours now and I lost track a while ago."
"This is the Pridelands." Simba told Asger.
"Are there any more humans here?"
"No. I'm pretty sure we're far from any human settlements. In fact we haven't even seen a human before." Simba said.
Asger didn't take kindly to this news. He started to panic again.
"What? No... No humans here... At all? But... But..."
Before he could finish his sentence the young boy fainted and fell from the rock onto the ground,landing in front of Simba and Nala. After that he didn't move at all. Simba looked closely to see if he was still alive after the fall. Thankfully Asger was still breathing, it must not have been a very bad fall after all.
"He's fine." Simba announced.
"What are we going to do?" Nala asked.
"I say we go and talk to my dad about this. Asger should be fine here until we get back. Come on."
Simba and Nala then raced off back to Pride rock in order to get Mufasa to come and take a look at what they'd found.
Simba and Nala arrived back at Pride rock just as Mufasa was returning from his day of work. Simba ran up to his father and called out to him.
"Dad! Dad!"
Mufasa turned around to see his son, who obviously had something important to tell him.
"What is it, Simba?" He asked when the two cubs got to him.
"We've found something." Simba said.
"Out in the fields." Nala added.
"What have you found then?" Mufasa asked.
"Well, it's a strange looking creature. He said he was a human. He was like nothing we've ever seen before." Explained Simba.
"A human? In the Pridelands? Where is he now?" Mufasa started to sound more interested now.
"He's unconscious at the moment. We left him where we found him." Nala answered.
"Take me to him." Mufasa ordered.
"Alright. This way." Simba said.
The two cubs then lead Mufasa down from Pride rock, with Mufasa getting two more lionesses to join them on the way. The five of them headed out to where Simba and Nala had left Asger earlier in the day.
While this happened there was a pair of eyes up at the cave entrance of Pride rock. They were dark green and looking out at the small party that just left. Scar's eyes.
"Another human? Well, it has been a while." He said to himself.
Out in the fields where the cubs had left Asger, surely enough, he was still there. He was beginning to stir now, and just in time as the group of lions approached him. He didn't run or panic though. Maybe Simba and Nala's friendliness had gained them his trust. This was good. Mufasa stopped in front of the boy with Simba, Nala and the other two lionesses right behind him.
"Are you in charge here?" Asger asked, his voice still slightly trembling.
"Yes." Mufasa replied. "Now, my son tells me you've run away from your tribe. Is that true?"
"Yes, it is."
"I see. What's your name?"
"Asger."
"OK, Asger. I'm Mufasa. The king here."
"Can you help me?" Asger asked.
"In what way?" Mufasa said. "Something tells me we won't be able to get you back home, if that's what you want."
"No, I don't want to go home. I can't go back anyway."
Simba decide to join in as he came up beside his father.
"Dad, can he stay with us?"
"Oh, I don't know. It's not really-"
"Please."
While this was going on Asger spotted something out of the corner of his eye. He saw what this thing was about to do and acted quickly. Asger dashed forward and picked up Nala, getting her out of the way just before a hyena appeared out of the long grass and landed where the young cub was mere seconds ago. There was a second hyena that came from the opposite side that went for Simba, who had now managed to get himself separated from the others in the panic. Asger put Nala down by the lionesses and ran to the other hyena that was terrorising Simba. He gave it a hard kick in the face and it retreated instantly, backing away from Simba and now eyeing up Mufasa. Asger reacted by picking up a large stick at his feet but he didn't have to use it as Mufasa had already taken care of the two grey creatures.
"How many times must I tell you. Stay out of the Pridelands!" Mufasa shouted at them.
He then let the two hyenas go and they bolted away out of sight.
The lions regrouped and Simba and Nala huddled around Mufasa's legs.
"Thank you, Asger, for saving them." He said. "I guess it would be a good idea if you remained with us."
