Summary Recap: AU Storyline. Soon after the birth of Simba, another royal cub was born fathered by Scar named Khali. Will he follow the pawprints of his father, or find a way to alter his destiny under Scar's reign? And how will he effect the other TLK characters? This is another lion's journey to find his place in the Circle of Life.
Introduction: Hello! This is my first fan fiction piece, so I apologize if the formatting is awkward - I will try my best to get things adjusted properly for the best viewing. All feedback is greatly appreciated! Enjoy.
Disclaimer: All rights to Disney and the Lion King franchise!
Chapter Note: This is a revised chapter, though remains almost the same as the original.
Sins of the Father
Chapter One
On a clear blue-skied morning, the sun shined down warmly over the great African savanna as a joyous celebration came together in the Pridelands.
King Mufasa and Queen Sarabi looked on proudly as their newborn cub Prince Simba was presented to the animals of their kingdom in a traditional ceremony led by their trusted adviser, Rafiki. Almost all the subjects of the Pridelands were present for the jubilant occasion, but there was one exception.
Repulsed at the idea he would no longer be the first in line for the throne, the king's younger brother Scar ignored the celebrations and kept to himself in the shadows.
Likewise, Scar had always been in the shadow of Mufasa since the brothers had been cubs themselves. Today was merely affirmation that he was destined to remain so for the rest of his days.
'All thanks to that precious little hairball.', Scar seethed bitterly.
Though the younger lion had long since harbored a jealousy towards his brother for the royal throne, the last few weeks had left a new, malicious feeling burgeoning in his mind.
After a heated confrontation erupted with Mufasa over his intentional absence at Simba's presentation, Scar turned his back on his brother and walked away from Priderock. The king watched on concerned, his face etched with discontent for their increasingly strained relationship.
Scar found himself wandering further into the broad grasslands away from Priderock, heading towards the dark rise along the northern border of the kingdom's territory.
He was the only lion of the pride who ever ventured in this direction, where the banished hyenas had been living in the bordering Outlands region for many years now. But it was not Scar's intention to visit his old acquaintances across the territory line this evening.
Instead, he hoped to find a temporary diversion to distract him from the day's dramatic events.
As the afternoon passed, the immense skies of the savanna slowly transformed from indigo into a beautiful medley of violet twinged with burnt orange.
Though dusk had began settling in, Scar did not have any desire to head back to Priderock just yet.
The lion slowly came to a stop when he came across a large formation of rocks below an acacia tree, surrounded by dense shrubbery. He circled around his new resting ground once before climbing on top of the rocks, then quietly settled into the shadows of tree branches.
Though the long walk should have helped alleviate his frustrations, Scar still felt agitated. The brooding lion began to ponder the same resentful thoughts he had earlier that day.
'Why did I have to be the one second born, destined to live under the rule of that useless, brutish brother of mine? So pompous and self-serving! And now he has himself a healthy male heir, how absolutely splendid...', Scar mused sarcastically.
Born into a prosperous pride in the fertile grasslands of the Serengeti, it was believed young Simba was surely destined to grow up safe and sound under the loving protection of his watchful father.
Likely, the new prince would only assume the throne many years in the future after Mufasa's eventual passing – and the pride's lineage would continue in Simba's bloodline.
'Unless of course, some sort of accident were to occur...but that would be just dreadful, wouldn't it?', Scar thought darkly to himself, a sinister smile slowly creeping upon his face.
As Scar gazed across his surroundings from his shadowy dwelling, he noticed an usual sight several yards away that immediately caught his attention.
A lioness.
She was alone. Her coat was a pale color and she had a sleek, toned build. Scar could recognize even from a distance that she was not a member of his own pride, but rather a rogue. The lioness was carefully stalking a young zebra that had somehow separated from it's herd.
Scar kept quiet and observed the scene in front of him intently. His attention was completely captivated, now distracted from the dark thoughts that had been swirling in his mind just moments earlier.
Nzuri kept a low stance in the tall grass as she observed her prey from a safe distance.
She was a beautiful lioness. With pale fur and large azure-colored eyes, she was still rather young and not far past her adolescence years. Despite her youth, she was tactful huntress.
And now she was ready to utilize her skills.
Nzuri set forth in a sprint and pounced quickly on the small zebra, her jaws gripped around it's neck as she brought the animal down to the ground swiftly. She kept her position locked in a strong choke-hold as her prey continued to struggle in her grasp.
She had not had a kill for several days now, and this game of prey-predator was exhausting the last of her energy.
Earlier that day, Nzuri had narrowly escaped a clan of hyenas when she was passing through the dark lands just north of where she hunted now. She had barely been able to out run them, but as she headed south towards the grasslands the hyenas had abruptly stopped chasing her.
The nomad sensed that whomever ruled these bountiful lands she had now found herself on was not so forgiving to other predators. Yet, Nzuri had no choice but to risk her life trespassing in order feed and fend for herself.
'Life's not fair, is it?", shethought sadly.
The lioness finally felt the zebra go limp in her clutches. In case any scavengers came around, she decided to find a secure place to hide the kill for the rest of the night. Surveying her surroundings, she began dragging her new meal towards the large acacia tree nearby.
But what Nzuri had not noticed this entire time was that she had a spectator, an admirer secretly studying her every action and move.
His eyes glowed an iridescent emerald hue in the dark, attentively watching the lioness as she came closer to the shadows where he was hidden.