What if Scar did not want to be king, but wanted others to feel his pain? What if he releases a stampede on the sleeping pride? Dedicated to all those effected by senseless violence.
Sarabi's point of view
I awaken to hear the sound of trampling hooves, just like on the hunt. Then I realize that the sound is coming towards us! My eyes flew open only to see hundreds of wildebeest running in our direction. I roar to steer them away, and to wake my fellow lionesses who have fallen asleep under the midsummer sky hours before. Quickly, I rise to my feet as their thundering hooves start to descend on the pride. I try desperately to sway the herd away from us, but am knocked over as I faintly hear cries from lionesses over the chaos. Every sinister second feels like eternity. Before I can even respond, a heart stopping roar erupts from my mate who jumps in front of me that herd divides into two groups in opposite directions. Mufasa helps me to my paws. With a quick glance into each other eyes and exchange our thought and fears.
"Move the lionesses away from here. I'll deal with the herd best I can." said Mufasa and we quickly dispersed. His large golden muscles quickly went into action. He lunged at the heard, pushing them to the left of the those now being startled awake. My eyes go wide as I see the wounded. Immediately, I grab a yearling lioness by her scruff and drag her to the side. She is shaken to say the least and had a deep wound on her hip. I then spot Sarafina running into the herd. My heart sinks as I know what she is running after; the cubs.
"Nala!" She gaspes once she arrives over the hill at the crest, with the same panic in her eyes as the pray's. There are lionesses yelling and running after their young in every direction. In the midst of the scattering families, I manage to spot Nala who is shaking terribly due to this tragic ordeal .
"Help!" she cries with hooves surrounding her. Sarafina and I attempt to reach her, but we are shoved back by a bull moving more rapidly than the current of any river. When this is over, I swear that wildebeest will be for dinner. As I re enter the chaos, trying to get to Nala, who is carrying her week old brother Mheetu, I see a speck of of gold. There is no denying, that is my son.
"Simba!" I roar, hoping his small size helps him sneak over to me without being trampled. He shoves Nala out of the stampede, a moment before her and Mheetu would both have been crushed by a falling wildebeest. "Thank the stars!" I hear Sarafina sigh. Out of the corner of my eye, I spot her grabbing hold of her newborn, who was just released from his sister's jaws. The young family rushes under the ledge of Pride Rock seeking refuge, with Sarafina shoving her daughter as fast as she can with her paw to keep going.
"Mom!" I hear come out of my son's mouth, who has ended up in the midst of it all. I have never heard that amount of fear in his voice before, and it fills my body with the adrenalin rush it needed. l leap over a wildebeest, every second, feeling like hours in this unimaginable hell that my mind is currently going though. Finally reaching my golden prince, I grab him by the scruff, and look for an escape root. Nearly losing him twice while trying to break free from the stampede, I change tactics. Placing Simba on the ground, he instantly stands in-between my legs. I try turning myself into a shield as the last of the herd passes over, wrapping my entire body around his.
"What's happening Mom? Where's Dad?" he sobs. My heart begins to tear in two, but my body remains as unmoving as Pride Rock itself. I let out roar after roar of pain with the passing of each bone crushing blow. All of a sudden everything becomes still. I refuse to move, even when the hooves and voices turn silent. Then something interrupts me from this almost zen like trance I have found myself in; Mufasa's panicked voice.
"Sarabi?" I hear him ask, and reluctantly open my eyes. "Oh thank the kings you're alright." he says, clearly relieved as he leans for a gentle nuzzle. His eyes then widened with horror, "Where's Simba?"
"He's here." I respond, untangling my body to reveal our son. He has a few scratches, but thankfully will be fine. He cried in utter joy and nuzzles his father. Shakily standing up, I find that the adrenalin rush has faded. Nearly every joint in my body aches, with slightly bloody wounds running along my back. Looking around my surroundings, I am faced with a whole new reality then the one I fell asleep with. The wounded litter the ground as cubs emerging from their hiding places in search for their mothers.
"How did this happen?" I ask my husband on the verge of tears.
"I wish I knew, but don't have the luxury of time to ask why. We must be strong and set an example for our people. I'll go check on the others." he says in a sober voice I have not heard since his mother's passing. I lean up against him, but his fur sting the gashes along my back, leading me to grind my teeth in agony. "I love you."
"You too."
Simba's voice soon interjects, "What can I do to help?" Mufasa smiles and bends down to his level, using his paw and messes up his "mane" before saying, "Gather up your friends and tell them to go inside and wait for their mothers. Make sure they stay inside." He then lifts his head, so that our eyes can pour into one another's, but I notice that Simba is still standing between us.
"We'll be right with you once we finish some grown up stuff." I reassure our son. He really is such a sweet cub and will be a great king one day.
By the time night falls, Mufasa and I are done settling the cubs down, and escorting the injured inside more excluded den that is only a few strides away from the main where most of the families usually reside. Tonight we thought it would be best to let them be with one another as the adults said their goodbyes. In all we lost 3 lionesses and 2 cubs. On top of that, most of the pride have some degree of injuries. As tradition, we brought those who were lost to vulture peak, allowing them to complete their journey in the circle of life. I drag my body into up Pride Rock, drained by the days events. Simba, Nala, and the rest with the of the surviving cubs are sleeping huddled besides their adolescent baby sitter. Finally having a moment to myself, I sob into Mufasa's mane, his scarlet eyes providing the only light in the darkest of nights. I cry for the ones we lost, the hurt and most of all for the cubs. Today, thanks to whomever started this, these cubs lost their innocence.
Nala's Point of View
The sun had set hours ago, but I'm still wide awake. My mind is unable to find peace as the screams of the hurt still echo in my ears. Today was worse than any nightmare I had ever had, but this time, I'm unable to wake up. Mom said that she thanked the Kings and Queens above, that Mheetu and I are ok, but how can she thank them when they allowed this to happen? The adults are whispering to one another, acting like we don't know what is going on, and honestly that scares me even more. Much to our protest they are not here right now. They said they had to take care of some adult stuff, so we are all here with Rahima. Well, not all of us. Tojo and Malka ... are not here. They...They were wrestling when the stampede decided upon us, and their hooves crushed their bones. Tojo is with his mom in another den, but were not allowed to see him. I guess one of his legs is completely limp. Malka on the other paw did not make it.
"Nala?" I hear a voice ask and I turn my head to the sleeping white cub, who was curled up next to me. Proceeding to raise my head, I see a visibly shaken up Simba. As my eyes wander in the dim lighting, it soon become evident that none of the older cubs were able to find rest either.
"Hey." I choke out as I force myself to put on a smile.
"How's Mheetu?" He asks concerned and his fiery eyes fall upon the snow white cub.
"Oblivious to it all." I reply with a slight giggle. Wow it feels good to laugh again, but question if it is ok given all that has happened, "Seriously though, I'll never be able to repay you for saving our lives today."
"Just knowing you're here with me is payment enough." He says and his eyes dance like shooting stars.
Tears once again fall from my eyes, slowly soaking Mheetu fur. Everything feels cold, and begin to shake uncontrollably, setting the cub between my paws off. His wails quickly attract Rahima's attention. "Why don't all you guys join me over her. The sun warmed this platform all day." Embarrassed, but too depressed to care, I walk over to her with Simba carrying Mheetu. Though small, he becomes heavy after a while and am grateful for the help. Soon Chumvi, Kula, and Tama join us. Feeling the heat and body pressure from them all around, I am finally able to close my eyes without fear, hoping when I wake, everything will no longer be changed.
Scar's Point of View
Looking back at the silhouette of Pride Rock one last time, the majesty and horror of the structure hits me at once. It was the place my mother made home, and was a prison after she passed that suffocated the life out of me. Once Dad broke his word for the fifth time, and feeling so dehydrated after the second week without a drop of rain, I went searching for Mom. On the third night, there she was, collapsed next to a river, with the blood dripping, turning the water pink. Her chest was barely moving, and her breathing was labored. My eyes traveled the trail of blood from her body, to a deceased lion, whose body was halfway out of a small den. I knew she had been attacked, but even though she was victorious, her battle of life was coming to an end. She was only able to respond to me in one or two word answers, as her eyes struggled to stay open. I was reminisced for the both of us, on all the good times we had shared, and held her that night, all the way until the sun crest over the horizon when she took her final breath. When her soul left her body, I could feel mine start to wither away, like the luscious greenery in our lands had been now doing for weeks.
I traveled home with her on my back, until we reached our favorite story spot, and laid her under our acacia tree. However when the news reached the pride, no one seemed to care that I found her, comforted her in her final moments, or how I felt. The celebration of Mufasa becoming King totally disrespected our mothers passing. It was as if the pride, and even the lands had totally skipped the grieving process, as the rains returning along with the herds. Others happiness only sunk me deeper into depression, and I could no longer take it. They needed to know the pain I was feeling, and so I set the stampede. At first, when the dust was filling the air, pure elation swept through me, but when the images of what I had done became clear, I realized there was no going back from what I had done. The images of the cubs screaming for their mothers, reminded me of the time Dad saved Mufasa and me from a Rhino attack, and that fear I felt resurfaced. Then I saw perhaps the one good thing left in my life, Zira, now lifeless, her shimmering ruby eyes replaced by a flat gray fog. I knew at that very instant, I had to leave.
As I am about to cross the border I hear a voice from behind. "Taka?" The voice was gruff, yet held a touch of concern. Turning my head to well acclaimed golden pelted lion looked upon me almost bewildered. I can see his hurt expression, but am no longer the person he grew up with. Then again, I have not been myself for quite some time.
"I thought I told you call me Scar." A smirk crosses over his face, but know it will not last for very long. "I'm can't stay here any longer."
"I know things have been hard since Mom died, but please stay. The pride...I need you."
"You have no idea." I grumble
"Then tell! For months now I have been trying to break through to you, but you keep distancing yourself. Quite frankly, I am sick of it." He moves closer, close enough that I can feel his breath. Our eyes lock, like a boa constrictor around it's prey; slowly moving, but unforgiving. "Try me." He snarls and with that, fully knowing my brothers physical advantages, I strike.
I throw the full force of my slightly slender body at my target, clearly knocking the wind out of him as he lands on his back wide eyed. I stumble on my feet, but am able to retain my balance. Just as I raise my paw to strike his face, he rolls over out of sticking distance to my dismay. He bursts off the ground, his hind muscular legs propelling himself upward.
I spot a chance to escape, but have been longing for this opportunity for too long. Besides his concern was clearly just to save face so his followers do not question his authority position. Stern faced, we begin exchanging blows to the face. After a few moments, the anger I felt earlier today returns with advengence. Dodging a possible disastrous blow from the left, I duck my head, and tackle him to the ground. Just as I begin to taste the sweet aroma of victory, I find myself suddenly trading positions with him.
Mufasa's face is stern, like our fathers the day I nearly got us both killed by interacting with a hyena pups. For a moment I am transported back into that moment. My brother's face begins to contort into that of our fathers. Even his eyes appear to have taken on that fiery green that I resentfully inherited. His paws brace my chest against the ground and panic fills my body. "What on Earth was that?!" He demands.
Using my only weapon left, I sink my teeth into his shoulder, onto to have our heads collide as he tried to retaliate. Dear Kings, no one ever wins in a head but. Still I achieve my goal, and am free from his rice grip. I crawl over a few strides, then lay my head back hoping for the spinning of my environment to cease.
Working through the nearly paralyzing pain, I turn my head to the side only to see the scarlet eyed lion besides me. How did I let that fear consume me so? Blood stains his face, but am unable to decipher who it belongs to. "I told you to let me leave." I say gasping for air
"You're all I have left." He says, sounding wiser than his years.
"You're wrong. You have Sarabi and your son back home. This is no longer where I belong." I say as I motion to the large silhouette. How can he say he has nothing when he was always the lucky one, and probably always will be. Not only was he athletic, "sensible" and heir, but he also won the girl.
"Can you attest tell me why?"
"Bye Brother" I say, still feeling the guilt for those I hurt out of my anger, but the taste of revenge on my lips allows me to push onward out into the savanna.
If you wondering, this chapter was inspired by the darkness poem feathered on the tv show One Tree Hill. I hoped you all enjoyed this one-shot. Don't worry I am still working on Rebirth of The Pride Lands, but wanted to write something darker themed. If you liked this type of story, let me know because once my current story is finished, I am contemplating writing a much darker story AU about Mufasa and Taka (Scar) with key moments in their life changed that reshapes the story as we know it called Our Turn. Lastly I would like to give my condolences to anyone who has lost a loved ones one due to both human and natural tragedies. I know nothing can bring them back, but hopefully we can learn from their deaths to prevent history from repeating itself.