The Lion King 3: Nadira's Journey.
Chapter One: Eshe's Capture.
A yawn left Eshe's mouth as she stretched, her rump up in the air with her front legs stretched out and tail twitching in the air. Licking her lips she came out of her feline stretch before padding her way through the various other white lionesses of her pride. Her piercing blue eyes sparkled as she reached her father's side whom was the King of the Pride. He was sat upright, front paws on the ground and legs straight with his bottom on the ground as well as his tail curled around his large paws. His thick white mane surrounded his face, covered his strong neck and chest, before running down the length of his belly. It was very thick and definitely made him look the peak of noble and majesty lions were known for.
"Morning father."
Eshe chimed, a happy smile on her lips as she watched her father scan the desert surrounding them. Various dry shrubs as well as trees were dotted here and there but for the most part it was empty. It was not without prey however especially since there was a river nearby and beyond that a lush oasis. Her father turned his noble head towards his daughter, noticing the strong jaw and defined features that she shared with him. Most would consider it a masculine look but on her it just looked right. Besides, it wasn't as if she had any lack of admirers.
"You're not going hunting."
He told her, a teasing smirk on his lips as he watched her expression descend into an upset pout.
"But father, all the other lionesses get to hunt!"
She whined, tail twitching as she shifted her weight from her front left paw to her front right. He chuckled at the look on her face, shaking his head with a deep fondness.
"And who would take over the pride should my little Bumblebee get mortally wounded?"
He asked, slowly rising up onto all four paws as he teased her. An embrassed look filled Eshe's face at the nickname.
"Oh come on, you promised me you'd never call me that again!"
She complained, before tugging on one of his large ears with her teeth. He shook his ear free of her grip with a playful grin before giving her a long lick over her cheek.
"I'm your father, I can call you whatever I like."
He told her before wandering amongst the lionesses of his pride. Eshe huffed in exasperation before trotting after him.
"Father, I really want to hunt. I'm the only lioness that never has. I promise I'll be really careful. Besides, Ajia taught me herself and she's the best huntress in the whole pride!"
She argued as she came up beside him. He turned his piercing sky blue eyes on his daughter's own cobalt blue ones, noticing how desperate she really wanted to hunt and prove herself. He supposed at three years old she was the oldest lioness to have never been on her first hunt. He sighed deeply in resignation but before he could even tell her yes Eshe had squealed and began nuzzling him thoroughly with a lot of enthusiasm.
"Thankyou, thankyou, thankyou!"
She beamed, giving him a quick lick on the nose before turning around and running off happily. He could only watch her with fondness and longing, hoping she would return.
It wasn't long before Eshe reached the river as she crouched in a small area of long, dried grass. So far there was no prey but she was determined to bring something back. She would do her father proud. All she had ever wanted was to have the approval of her pride and father, as well as their pride. She fully believed she couldn't be a good Queen for the pride if she couldn't hunt. Besides, she wanted to be one of them. She wanted to be a friend. She didn't want to be feared or just seen as a superior. It would just feel very uncomfortable and too wierd.
Finally an Impala doe approached the river, its herd a fair distance behind it, and lowered its small head to drink. Unfortunately it was on the other side of the river but Eshe refused to let it stop her. Fortunately the river wasn't so deep she couldn't just run through it so that was exactly what she would do. She shifted her weight, aligning her body in the perfect position before she leapt out of the brush. She didn't hesitate to run at top speed, the noise from her leap causing the Impala to turn and take flight. Eshe didn't stop however. She kept bolting after it, her paws thudding against the dry earth once she had come out of the water. Her coat was damp from the spray, the sun beating harshly on the earth beneath, and dust rose where her paws thudded on the ground as well as where the Impala's hooves touched the ground.
Within moments she was close enough to pounce, and so with a shift of strength she launched herself at her prey. Sharp claws slid into the fur and flesh of the Impala either side of its withers, whilst Eshe's powerful jaws had parted and sunk into the back of her prey's neck. Her teeth sunk in deep enough to brush against the bone. The pain was so great the Impala lost a stride before it sunk to the ground due to its own error. The second the Impala hit the ground Eshe released her grip on the back of the neck before biting into the throat whilst using her left front paw to pin down her prey's head and her right front paw on its shoulder.
It wasn't long fore the Impala went completely limb as its heart stopped beating. Releasing its neck from her jaws, Eshe' licked her lips to get the blood off her muzzle. After a thorough wash she lowered her head to grab her prize when a scent reached her nose. She frowned before lifting her head, turning it to the left before tilting her nose upwards and parting her jaws. Her senses told her within seconds that a virile male was nearby. The scent was so powerful, so musky and tempting that Eshe found it hard to resist. Her gaze went down to her prey before looking in the direction the scent was coming from.
She knew she should just go home, but with her father being the only male in the pride she couldn't help but be curious about another male. Growling in fustration, Eshe gathered the Impala's neck in her mouth before dragging it in the direction of the male's scent. She wasn't going to loose her prey but she did want to see the lion so she decided to bring it with her. At the time it seemed like the right thing to do.
However when she reached the source of the scent she immediately realised something was wrong. The scent was on a rock on a dry patch of earth with long, dried grass circling it. Eshe immediately dropped the Impala and scanned the surrounding area desperately. She didn't see the culprit in time. Infact she didn't see it at all. Even when something pierced the skin of her rump, causing her to yelp and spin around to face the direction it had come from, she still didn't see the culprit. She turned to bolt but her body started to feel heavy and she barely got three strides away before she collapsed to the ground in a deep sleep.
Once she was unconscious on the ground, five men rose from their laid positions on the ground in the grass. Each one had a rifle filled with tranquilisers, although only one had a walkie-talkie attatched to his belt. As the lead of the hunt and owner of the circus, he took out the walkie-talkie and pressed the button to speak.
"The white lioness is down. Bring the truck, now."
He growled, before putting the walkie-talkie back where it had hung previously. There was a rumble of the engine in the distance, growing in volume until it sounded like thunder, and then the sound was gone as the truck skidded to a halt inches from the group of men. Two of the hunting party, redhaired identical brothers, grabbed both pairs of legs of the lioness and carried her to the back of the truck. They let her body thud onto the bed of the truck before using strong chains to bind both sets of ankles together, and then another around her muzzle so she couldn't bite them. Grabbing a black piece of tarp they threw it over the lioness before both brothers climbed up into the bed of the truck. They sat either side of the lioness, their bottoms resting on top of the sides of the truck, whilst the other two men of the hunting party and its leader got into the front of the truck where fortunately there were two rows of seats. With the windows down the truck drove off, leaving only the Impala corpse behind.
An hour late a large white lion with his pride of females had tracked Eshe's scent all the way to the Impala corpse. The scent surrounding it was unfamiliar but smelled like a predator however outside the small clearing the scents didn't go anywhere. That night the pride roared their mournful loss although it held a slight tinge of hope that one of their own would return. The sound carried for miles, and although other prides answered none knew of the location of a single white lioness princess.
Eshe did not hear the plea for her return for her brethren, as by the time she woke she was so far away even the scent of lions could no longer be smelt.
When she woke she was not bound but steel bars surrounded her on all sides and at the top whilst cold concrete was beneath her four paws. She felt groggy but she was aware enough to see the other cages filled with a variety of exotic animals - some familiar to her and others not. There was also the two leggeds, according to rumour known as 'man' everywhere.
Each man was armed, the cages left underneath a large red and yellow striped marquee. The performers of the circus were either in their dressing rooms within a multitude of lorries or in the main tent practicing for that night's show.
The scent of humans and tame animals drenched the world around Eshe, and with nothing familiar to her she couldn't help but feel scared. She had never known anything outside her home and pride. How was she supposed to survive here let alone find her way home?
Slowly Eshe rose onto all fours, her keen eyesight taking in everything more thoroughly as she felt more awake. One thing caught her eye and that was a massive feline, almost alike her father in build but taller and stronger, with thick black stripes over his white coat. It was surely male, one look between his legs as he strode ferociously around his cage proved that, and she had never seen a thing so... feral. His eyes had barely looked her way, a very ice blue, when a fiercesome snarl left its throat as he lunged in her direction within his own cage. Even the steel bars refused to deter him; he just kept slamming at the bars with claws unsheathed in an attempt to maul her. She suddenly felt a whole lot more terrified especially when she managed to see the various slices through his hide that were at different stages at healing. Clearly he was a fighter and not one that was used to loosing. She even noticed the animals around him were cowering in the farthest point of their cages in an attempt to avoid his wrath.
What had she been brought into?
Author's Note: So I absolutely love The Lion King and after looking at a variety of amazing TLK art on Deviantart I couldn't help but write my own story. This is just the beginning, but don't worry we'll see the lead Nadira soon. This chapter is crucial to setting up Nadira's background. Please leave me reviews and let me know how I'm doing. This is my first TLK story, and I want to keep as true to it as possible whilst keeping this well written.
