It was a dark stormy night on the Grass Lands when they were attacked. The rain was falling so hard that you couldn't hear yourself think. No one saw the midnight-black lion skulking closer to the golden pride of lions in their cave. The dark lion chuckled in the rain as he waited for them to fall asleep. As soon as Chanuan's, the king of these plains, nodded off it was time to begin. Thantos moved closer to the pride and decided which were going first. The king was old, he couldn't fight a healthy male like him, but the lionesses were young and strong. As soon as he was in range, Thantos killed 3 lionesses silently. Then last two lionesses began to stir. A cub at Chanuan's left paw raised her head, and spotted Thantos.

She let out a distressed cry at the killer look in the black lion's red eyes. The two females' heads shot up, only to be stopped in their tracks by a deadly swipe of Thantos' claws. Chanuan was on his feet and wide awake, and shocked at the carnage around him. "You thought I was dead didn't you, Chanuan?" Thantos said as he approached the leader and the cub behind him.

"Thantos, how could you do this? What did they do to you?'' Chanuan was shocked at the dead lionesses that lay on the ground, at the anger that was used to kill the girls he loved.

"I want you to suffer!" Thantos yelled, lunging at the king. Chanuan grabbed the little Cub and jumped out of the way onto a ledge above the murderer. "Does that cub mean a lot to you, old one? Then she shall die!'' Thantos again lunged for Chanuan, who didn't escape injury. Thantos had cut Chanuan deeply in the leg. Roaring around the cup in his mouth and the king ran out into the muddy grass lands. He couldn't help the crying cub in his grasp as injured as he was. Ignoring the striking pain in his leg, Chanuan charged forward and toward the border of his land, knowing someone there would help his only cub. Thantos roared and snarled behind him, swiping his paws to trip him up.

Chanuan was loosing blood fast and couldn't keep running for very long. ''Give it up, old lion," Thantos said as the storm intensified. Lightning was the only light Chanuan had to go by; he could only catch glimpses of the objects in his way. Tree limbs were low and thick, catching onto his large mane. Soon his vision blurred, he couldn't go much farther. "Give up," Thantos taunted again.

"NO!'' he roared around the cub who whimpered to the noise. As Chanuan collapsed he crossed into the next lion's flat territory. "Your precious cub will die as you bleed to death.' 'Thantos then lunged to kill the cub, when
he was slapped upside the head by a stick. A blue and red faced baboon stepped forward with the stick in his hand.

"A baboon thinks he can beat me?" Thantos taunted.

"Maybe he can't," said a strong voice from behind him. The all black lion jumped to face the large-red mane male that was standing proudly on a rock. This lion-king was too big to face down at that moment. Thantos dodged around the male and ran into the rain.

"Rafiki?"

"He's not going to make it Mufasa." The baboon said sadly picking up the cub from Chanuan's mouth.

"Her name," whispered the dieing lion, "Is Ashanti, please keep her safe." then he died.

"Mufasa, are there any females that are producing milk?" Mufasa paused for moment to think

"Zira has started; I'll give her the cub." Ashanti cried out and shivered in the cold rain. Mufasa picked her up, and with one last look at Ashanti's dad, ran to Pride Rock.