Special Tanks to Tasha, my wonderful beta! (She isn't from FanFiction ^^) Without her this translation wouldn't be possible! :D

Thank you Tasha, thank you so much! :)

Chapter 1
From four to one

It was a hot day in the African Thorn Savannah, it was dry season and the animals had to deal with the shortage of water due to the drought. Despite the weather, Kisamba, a beautiful beige lioness with a black stripe that ran down her back, sat in the shadow cast by the acacia shrubs and tried to make the best out of the midday sun.

She propped her head on her paws as gazed at the area around her, her red eyes gleaming in the sun. It felt good sometimes to be alone, without the pride, just her and her cubs.

'Her cubs'... Hmm, she felt so incredibly proud when she said that. It was only a few months ago that she had given birth to her very first litter of cubs, two males and a female. She was so unbelievably happy and proud to be a mother. Not even the bitter fact that the father of her cubs had no interest in her or in his own cubs, had managed to tarnish her mood.

She began to remember the day when she had told him that she was pregnant. He just laughed and left her, but this no longer bothered her as these cubs gave more back to her than she could ever give them.

"I'm going to get you, I'm going to get you!" the voice suddenly pulled her out of her thoughts. A small, greyish-brown lion cub ran hastily behind his brother. "Never, Loser!" The other lion cub shouted back.

Kisamba smiled, cubs… were they not lovable? However, she sometimes had to intervene, "Tamu! Be nice to Serangi! Look at your sister. She is such a good girl, right Zira?" Kisamba asked as she looked down to the small cub between her legs, her daughter came running up. Zira, she was a sweetheart so much easier to handle than her brothers.

One day she would be a strong and powerful lioness, on this point Kisamba was very sure of. Tamu laughed devilishly, he looked a lot like his brother, only a dark spot on his forehead was able to distinguish them apart from each other. "Yes Mommy, you're right, I'm much sweeter than those two!" Exclaimed the little lioness as she nestled her head into the paws of her mother.

"Boys, it's too hot to run around, we still have the midday heat, we should all lay in the shade". Kisamba said seriously, squinting whilst the sun blinded her for a moment. She sank down in the shade. Zira immediately followed her mother and her brothers finally came running up to join them.

"I'm much faster than you, Tamu," boasted Serangi as he jumped on his mother's head. "No your not! Plus I'm a bit older than you!" Tamu chimed as he jumped up and down on his mothers back.

"Ouch! Tamu that hurt" Kisamba cried out in pain and clutched her claws into the ground. "Oh Mommy, you know them." Zira laughed and placed herself between the paws of her mother, "And now you will bath me!" Demanded the little lioness as she lifted her chin. "Well if you want, princess" Kisamba replied sarcastically.

Zira had a mind of her own, she always seemed so determined and accurate for her age. Kisamba now decided to dedicated her time to the bathing her daughter and began to lovingly make her clean.

Oh, how Zira loved bath time. It was good for making her feel sleepy and relaxed. There was nothing better in the world that was at least if you were a little lioness. After Kisamba had finished cleaning Zira, she gazed at Serangi, who was no longer on her head but was now clinging to her neck, as if she was planning something. "NO! Mom! I'm begging you! Anything but that!" He cried out and tried to escape but it was too late, Kisamba had caught him.

Serangi held his head tightly between his paws "MOM! Stop it! Watch my mane!" Spat Serangi as he frantically began to fidget. "Which mane?" Kisamba asked pertly. "MOM! I'll kill you, even if only a tuft of fur is missing!" Serangi yelled as loud as he could.

Zira rested with her brother Tamu on their mothers back. They laughed uncontrollably as they watched how Kisamba conducted the daily bathing-battle with her son. While she struggled to hold on to him, Serangi fought back with screaming, fidgeting and biting, but it didn't help. "That's it!" Kisamba finally said and then took an exhausted Tamu to be bathed. He was much easier to bathe than his brother and he clearly enjoyed it.

Actually Tamu was Ziras favourite brother he was not as annoying and fiery like Serangi. When Kisamba was finished with each of her cubs, she watched them all, as they slept next to her whilst they made smacking sounds with their jowls. "Sleep, That sounds like a good idea" muttered the lioness licking her cubs lovingly over the fur as she laid protectively beside them before she finally put her head on her paws and closed her eyes.

Suddenly… she began to smell something in the air. This smell... It was hard to describe, she rarely smelt it, that's why it was so distinctive, There was something out there, she was sure of it!

She sat up and listened, her ears drawn in one particular direction. The tension grew gradually and her instincts told her... Danger! She could smell the danger, but she didn't know what exactly this smell was, it was just too…strange.

But it still seemed to be so familiar, but from where? What the hell was that smell? Should she risk it and stay there? She was a brave lioness, but somehow the smell of danger, which seemed to be much stronger than that of a lion, made her afraid very quickly.

She had to take the safety of her cubs into mind, so what should she do? Kisamba quickly made a decision. "Children get up!" She exclaimed, jumping up as she frantically woke her cubs, panic spread across her face.

"What is it Mom?" Tamu asked sleepily. He was just having such a nice dream, that he did not want get up from. Which he found unfair! "Back to the pride…Now!" she said firmly, without giving any explanation. "Why?" Said Zira, half asleep as she looked around at her family. "No time to explain Zira! Go, Go!" Cried her mother as she walked ahead.

Serangi and Tamu had a problem keeping up with their mom, and Zira was still too tired to even run correctly.

"Not so fast!" she said tearfully, feeling the infectious anxiety, which spread through Kisamba. Something was wrong, which also Serangi and Tamu had noticed, but they did not dare to ask anything. Kisamba looked around frantically for her daughter and turned back shortly. "I'm sorry Zira, but you're too slow. Listen, you just wait here, in the bushes. When I have got your brothers back to the pride, I'll pick you up. And don't make a peep, promise me?"

"Yes Mom, I promise! I will not say a word. Mom..."

"Yes?"

"I love you." Zira said with a smile. She did not know why, but for some reason she had the sudden erg to tell her mother such a thing, without any reason. "I love you too Zira." Kisamba whispered lovingly as licked her daughter's face and snuggled into her head one last time.

Zira didn't know it, but that would be the last time she would see her mother…Forever. Kisamba ran quickly back to Tamu and Serangi who were still waiting restlessly on the trail. Zira heard the amused laughter of her brothers, as they rushed with their mother home. Yes, they had a nice laugh, a childlike, carefree laugh.

Although for Zira it was like her whole world had suddenly broken down. She heard a loud bang that startled her and she began to cry! Only a split second later, two more shots followed, which rang for a long time in the little lioness's ears. She was so scared and frightened that she did not really realize that everything was quiet again. It was as if nothing had happened, the shots were now so far away.

Zira could still not understand why she did that, but she stood up. Although her mother had forbidden her, she went into the direction from which the shots came.

She knew that she wasn't allowed to do that and she really should have been afraid, but her curiosity, the seduction of the forbidden was too strong. "Mom?" Zira whispered fearfully. Her voice broke after a few quiet meows. She knew that what she was doing was not allowed, but she felt she must.

Zira would have never imagined that the world was so big. Now that she was completely alone, the world was suddenly so huge…and threatening. Even the tall grass, through which she jumped, suddenly seemed to be the size of trees! Even though it was actually much smaller, when her mom was there, Zira carefully followed the weak smell of her mother through the grass and finally found what she was looking for.

What she saw there, would haunt Zira for the rest of her life. This horrible sight, this disgraceful death! And these men, what Zira saw was already too much for her young heart to handle.

Her mother was lying dead on the floor, close beside her lay Serangi and Tamu. It looked almost as if the two had been playing at the time of their death. They were smiling and Kisamba looked completely normal as if usual. She saw all three so normal, except from the bullet wounds in their shoulders. It had to have happened very quickly, although Zira did not know this. It was not in her interest either. She wasn't stupid she could see that all three were badly injured or worse.

The two men had guns in their hands. They did it! THEM! These men! If only Zira hadn't been so small and helpless, she swore to herself that she would have jumped at the throats of these murderers! She would have torn them into pieces, pulled out their hearts and ate them! But she was just a little cub. She didn't even eat meat, at least not that much.

Zira did not even understand at first, that her mother was dead. She thought she was asleep. She thought they are all asleep.

She thought!

The men, where probably poachers and without any hesitation, they began to cut off Kisambas claws, teeth and her tail tuft. They would sell what they collected, for a large sum of money. For poaching was an easy way for man to make money if they needed it, to live and to survive. They also chopped off the paws from the two shot cubs. More 'products' that could be made out of them.

Zira saw everything, as fast as the men came, was as fast as they fled. Very slowly Zira realized what had just happened. They had killed her family, They had destroyed Ziras life! Tears quickly fell, Zira sobbed and ran to her mother and wrapped her paws around her head.

"Mom! Stand up, please!" pleaded Zira as she pounded her little paws on her mother. No reaction. Well, maybe Serangi or Tamu could still be saved! "Boys, stand up! Mommy... She is hurt... We... We need to take care of her" whimpered Zira, the tears cutting off her words as they didn't move. They too were dead.

Zira tried to talk a few more words, but the huge pools of blood, which where around them, frightened her. She looked to her paws and realized that she stood in the blood of her own mother.

No… She can't! She can't stay in her mother's blood! Her mother was so big and strong, she can't die! She can't… right?

Completely scared and with tears in her eyes, Zira clung onto the ground. She tried not to cry out loud, that would be her death. She tried to be strong, but she still cried, like a little helpless cub, that had nothing in her life any longer.

The hours passed like minutes. Zira had hidden herself between the clawless paws of her mother, because she feared that the men would come back. But they didn't, they were gone. It was now dark.

Kisamba was so cold, they were all so cold! It made Zira so afraid. She was very frightened. What if now, the hyenas and jackals come? They would kill Zira, wouldn't they?

She whimpered quietly and tugged on Kisambas fur, but she showed no reaction. Zira just listened into the night, in the hope that she would survive the next day or at least this the night.

Suddenly a noise caught her attention and her heart began to beat a thousand times faster. The blood rushed to her head as she tried to breathe as quietly as possible. "Oh ... That can't be true! Not another one and this time one with cubs" There was a pause and someone seemed to scan Kisambas' feet and opened her mouth.

"Yes, they are the same they only take the teeth and claws, the rest they left to the vultures." Then it was quiet again. Zira had squeezed herself between Kisambas front legs and her chest. Silent tears flowed down Ziras face.

What type for an animal this was, Zira had smelled it before. This was the thing that had killed her mother! The 'animal', which was a human, had now looked at Tamus' and Serangis' cadavers and blinked away a few tears when she saw the bloodied cubs.

She stood up and sighed. Here she could do nothing more. Damn, she would finally have been able to catch those damn poachers, if she only was earlier! She was just about to go, but then she wanted to see again the bullet wound of the lioness. She put on two disposable gloves and touched the shoulder of the lioness extensively. She was already quite stiff and cold, since her death, hours had passed.

Then the woman began to carefully touch Kisambas chest, she groped more and more deeply, then she suddenly stopped and pulled her hand away in shock. She had clearly felt something warm, she was sure of it! Gently, almost hesitantly, she went on her knees and grabbed a second time at the point between the front legs and the chest. There it was! Something soft and warm lay there. The woman looked closer and stared at a stunned Zira.

"Oh honey. Did they not catch you?" The woman spoke softly and quietly to Zira. "Oh baby, your mom can't take care of you now, Come here sweetheart." She spoke softly

Zira put her front paws over her eyes. True to the motto: If I can't see you, you also can't see me! But that didn't work. "Hey baby... Do not worry, I'm here. I'm Linda, sweetheart." Aha, so the woman was called Linda. She looked at the dead lions, lying at her feet. "She was your mommy and these were your siblings, right?"

The woman looked seriously sad, even Zira could see a tearful glint in her eyes. But she didn't understand; the woman was a human. She was made to kill, so why did she want to help Zira? Humans were meant to be evil! Meant to be? "Oh baby... Come here. I'll take care of you".

Lovingly and carefully Linda took Zira, who did not even defend herself anymore, in her arms and walked with the terrified cub through the evening twilight to a strange, big thing, a car.

"I'll take care of you, little one. As long as you are with me, nobody will hurt you, I promise." Linda whispered lovingly and tried to soothe the shaking cub.

Zira was too tired to even respond. She had cried so much today that she had got, in the meantime a headache a very bad headache. And she was tired, she was so incredibly tired! It was a long, exhausting and hard day for her. Even if she wanted to stay awake she felt like she couldn't, she pressed herself against Linda's warm body and closed her eyes. She felt Linda's quiet breathing and even felt safe.

Although Zira knew that this was the most horrible day of her life and she had no idea what this human, this Linda, would do with her. Zira just felt too tired and exhausted to stay awake. The horrors of the day were simply too much for this little cub.