Chapter 2-A New Enemy

Danny and Mufasa both headed out for his ship. Danny didn't remember much, except that the Preliator had been tilted on its side. He needed to fix whatever needed to be repaired and fly it back to Pride Rock. Only he and Mufasa went to the ship. The rest of the pride remained behind. Danny didn't know much about lions except the basics. He would have to go on the ship's database and research lions to understand their behavioral patterns and lifestyle. Danny smirked. I'll bet none of the data will talk about talking lions. As they walked, the various animals stopped to look at them for quite awhile and had heard chattering amongst them.

"Who is that?"

"More like what is that?"

"Why is he walking with the king?"

Danny shrugged it off. None of the questions sounded threatening to him. They passed a shadowy region, a geyser crevice. "Mufasa, what is in that region?"

Mufasa's look was dark. "That is one area outside of our borders. It is home to the hyenas. Many generations ago, my ancestor King Mohatu banished the hyenas there because they were a constant disruption to the great circle of life."

Danny nodded. "Oh…the circle of life? What is that?"

"It is the cycle that benefits all creatures. We hunt to eat, but when we die, we become the grass. Many of the animals we lions hunt eat the grass. Hence, their meat benefits us and our bodies benefit them. But the hyenas disrupted by killing for pleasure as well as food."

Danny shrugged. "Well, while I do think it's wrong when man or animal kills for pleasure, I don't believe in any 'circle of life' new age junk. I'm not religious, but I believe that a God created us all and made man and animals in His own image. All animals were made by God, each with strengths and weaknesses."

Mufasa nodded. "Well, that's what you believe. I won't try to take that away from you."

"Um, not that I'm ungrateful or unappreciative but…why didn't you eat me? I would think that a lion would see a human as food."

Mufasa chuckled. "You said 'help' right before you passed out. So I helped." At Danny's humorous response, his smile faded a bit. "No, seriously…I don't know how to explain it, but I could tell there was something special about you. That's why we brought you back and treated your wounds. Come to think of it, how's your arm and shoulder?"

Danny moved his arm and shoulder with full movement. There was no pain. "It's good. What was that you put on?"

"It's gourd juice. And our shaman Rafiki, a mandrill, was the one who put it on. He treated you while you were out and told us you would be good as new in a couple of hours."

"Well, he did a good job. Oh, there's the ship." As they were coming over the hill, Danny spotted the ship. On the outside, the ship looked fine, but it was on the inside that mattered. The more sensitive parts were internal. "It seems okay, but a closer inspection will help me with the repairs."

Mufasa gazed at it with wonder in his eyes. "That is truly a magnificent thing. I wish I knew how it worked."

As Danny pulled out a remote and pushed a button, he turned around. "Well, if the internal damages are fixable, then you can sit in the front with me a look out at the Pride Lands like the birds can."

Mufasa's face was one of a boy being told his biggest dream was going to become reality. "Really?"

Danny's face turned serious as the ramp descended. "Well, you might exceed the weight limits and I might have to make you walk back to Pride Rock."

"What!?"

Danny laughed. "I'm kidding, I was being sarcastic." He looked at his ship with pride. "My ship has gotten me around everywhere safely where another ship probably couldn't. She's been my home and I even have a name for her. Paratus Preliator."

Mufasa nodded. "Nice name. What does it mean?"

Danny looked down at him. "Make ready the warrior."

"Very noble name. Do you think it applies to you?"

"I think it does, but I need to live it for the meaning to apply."

As Danny entered up the ramp, Mufasa took one step on it. "What would you like me to do?"

"Keep an eye out for any trouble."

Mufasa complied as Danny entered the ship. He walked into the cockpit and tried to power up the ship. He wasn't surprised to hear the engines whine for a moment and then die down. "Well, no surprise there." He checked to see if his AI system was still operational. He was relieved to see it come to life. "Computer, give me a ship diagnostic. Give the list starting with damages that need to be fixed before flying." He knew it couldn't respond verbally but it could give a list. It took a moment before the computer came back. Danny was surprised at the list.

Systems Damage:

Primary Circuit A3 Overloaded

Correctional Action: Replace Primary Circuit Card

Electrical Engine and Systems Charge Required for Ignition

Danny let out a sigh of relief. "Well, this shouldn't take too long. Replace a circuit card and jumpstart the ship. The jump start will take awhile but I should get it going within an hour." He got up to head in to back to the generator mainframe. Underneath the generator itself were the primary circuits. He unscrewed the plate cover and removed the circuit. From observation, the card was crispy black. "Oh, wow…that is definitely trash now." Tossing it behind him, Danny produced the new circuit card and slid it into its position. "Out with the bad, in with the good." He screwed the plate back on and headed for the independent battery storage.

Danny knew the jump would take about forty minutes before he could pump the igniter and power up the ship, but it was a relief to know that nothing else was damaged. It gave Danny wonder at how resilient the Paratus Preliator was. To crash-land like he did only to find some repairable internal damage was amazing. Then again, he did perform some maneuvers that saved a lot of repairs when he crashed.

He was just about to pick up the battery when he heard a beeping in the cockpit. He walked in to see the radar's holographic display on. Numerous red dots appeared from the south-southeast and were heading his way. Danny frowned. That's odd. My battle radar doesn't pick up the heat of a body. It picks up the heat of… Danny gulped. "Uh, Mufasa?" He raised his voice so the king could hear him. "Do you see anything to the south-southeast?" He didn't get an answer. Grabbing a pair of binoculars, he ran down the ramp and outside. Mufasa was out there and facing in the direction of the approaching radar blips. "I said, do you see anything?"

"No, but I can hear something," Mufasa replied.

Danny listened carefully. Sure enough, he could hear something as well. It was a rumbling, droning noise. Off in the distance he could see a cloud of dust forming. He pulled up the binoculars and looked through them. It was the last thing he expected to see. Off in the distance, he could see tanks. These weren't normal tanks, though. From what he could tell, they all had a cannon mounted on the right shoulder of the turret, and the binoculars were not picking up any thermal energy signatures. They must be tank drones of some sort. Either way, Danny could tell they meant business, and they must be here for his ship.

"What is it, Danny?" Mufasa asked him with worried eyes.

"They're tanks. They are metal vehicles like my ship, only their purpose is for battle on the ground."

Mufasa growled. "How do we fight them? I will not let them take my people and my land."

Danny shook his head. "We can't. Even a rhinoceros can't take it on head-to-head. Did you ever see something like this in the past?

"No, we've never seen anything other than animals. You and your ship are the only outside contact we've had."

The boy nodded. "I think they're after my ship, so I don't think they're here for your land. You get out of here. I will distract them…maybe if they go after me, they'll leave the Pride Lands alone."

Mufasa's eyes went wide and refused. "No way! I'm not leaving you."

Danny looked at him. "The kingdom needs their king, Sarabi needs her mate, and your cub needs a father. Don't throw that away on my account." He paused and got down on one knee. "If my family is dead, then maybe I will be seeing them again soon. Thanks for everything. Now, go."

Mufasa pulled him into a hug. Danny returned it and wrapped his arms around the lion's mane. "Come back in one piece."

The human released his hug and smirked. "Count on it." Mufasa then turned and ran back to the Pride Lands. Danny brought his attention back on the tank drones. He had maybe five minutes before they'd be on him and two minutes before they would sight the ship. They couldn't detect it because only the electrical systems were working, so they must've found it by trajectory calculations when he crashed. Danny went back up the ramp and grabbed a pistol and a special device for his ship. Running back down, he checked the pistol to see if there were rounds and flipped the safety off. He scoffed. "Well, this has been an interesting couple of days. First, talking animals…now, tank drones."

He pulled out the remote. It was an Iron Curtain igniter. Since the Iron Curtain was on a generator independent from the ship's primary generator, it was still operational. Danny pressed the button, and the Paratus Preliator disappeared from sight. He knew it wouldn't be found so long as no one bumped into it, but he needed to hide the device to avoid being found by whoever was coming. He found a hole near the acacia tree and placed the remote there and covered it up with sand. To mark it, he left a gold coin with a red flag and one star on it.

Danny got up and began running away from the ship and the Pride Lands. He needed to draw the tanks away from the family that took him in. When the tanks came into range, he began firing the pistol. He got four shots off when something hit his chest. It was a burning sensation and all of his nerves were firing off. He couldn't move. All he could do was fall on his knees and then his face. His world was spinning…

Darkness.


Mufasa ran as fast as he could. He felt ashamed for leaving one of his own members, but Danny was right. Mufasa had responsibilities to the kingdom, and he did not want to risk jeopardizing the lives of his people. But one thing was for sure: this was going to haunt him for a while. In all his time as king, he had never left someone behind. Just as Danny was coming around to living in the lands, he was now about to be taken out. He only hoped Danny would be back by nightfall.

He reached Pride Rock and ran up to the top. His lungs were burning from the nonstop running and was taking in heavy breaths. As the lionesses came around him, Sarabi came out of the cave with Sarafina, and headed toward him. When Sarabi came close, she could see the worry in his eyes. "What happened? Where's Danny?"

Mufasa waited a moment to catch his breath before answering. "We were on our way…to Danny's ship. He was busy working on it when these metal beasts came our way. He told me to get out and he would create a distraction to keep them away from here."

Sarafina looked with urgent eyes. "What happened to Danny?"

Mufasa shook his head sadly. "I don't know. I can't say for sure, but it doesn't look good."

Sarabi's eyes began to well up. "No, no it can't be. He can't be dead."

Mufasa tried to comfort his mate. "Don't worry, my love. He might just make it out." But he was only fooling himself. Even he doubted his own words.

Sadness struck them all. Only a few hours after declaring him a member of the pride, Danny was all but confirmed as dead. They could only hope he was still alive somewhere.


Danny slowly woke up. Already, he could feel a burning pain in his chest, and that was just the start of his problems. He was tied up and couldn't see because of a black cloth. Danny tried to wriggle his hands free, but the ropes were tied up to well. Danny sighed. "Boy, this is doing me no good. Geez, why me? Why do these things always happen to me?"

He could hear footsteps coming toward him and surrounding him. As much as he would like to vent his anger out, he held it in. He might need it if he was to escape. A male voice to his left spoke. "Enjoying the accommodations, friend?"

Danny gave an exasperated sigh. "You know, during an interrogation or social talk one would be able to see the one talking to them."

"No one sees Dasyu."

Good, he gave me a name. Something to go on. Danny turned his head in the direction of the voice. "Yeah, well I don't communicate very well under a shroud."

"Well, if he doesn't like what you have to say, then you will be wearing that shroud permanently."

Danny paused for a moment before saying, "I'll take that chance."

A moment later, he heard fingers snapping and the shroud came off of him. Danny looked around. He was staring at a group of people, humans. Danny was shocked to see humans in this area, the first he had come into since entering that portal days ago. He looked around to see he was in a room with rock walls. They were most likely in a cave. The clearing of a throat in front of him brought his attention back to the man in front of him. He was a fairly tall man with light brown hair. His cold, dark eyes betrayed no emotion. "Who and what are you?"

Danny straightened. "You should know what I am. I'm a human, just like you."

The group exchanged glances with each other. "Right. And your name?"

"Name's Danny. I take it you're Dasyu?"

"That's right," Dasyu replied. "So what were you doing all alone back where we found you?"

Danny shrugged. "I was out on a journey to study animals."

Dasyu punched Danny hard in the face. Already, the kid could feel blood dripping from his lip. Dasyu's expression was full of anger. "Wrong answer. We know you are alone but you didn't just suddenly appear here."

Danny gritted his teeth from the pain. At least they didn't know about Mufasa and the pride. "Your point being? I have legs to walk, you know."

"We picked up an unknown ship that penetrated the atmosphere. It crashed here and we sent out a retrieval team to pick up the ship. We found you but not the ship. Since you are the only one we saw from our scout leaving the area earlier, why don't you tell us where the ship is?"

Danny chuckled. "I knew it wouldn't be a good idea to just leave it there so I set it on a teleportation sequence. That way, it can't be found."

Dasyu snapped his fingers and one of his henchmen sent a roundhouse kick into Danny's stomach. He felt the air knocked out of him and he was gasping. While he was regaining his breath, Dasyu grabbed him by the collar and looked square into his eyes. "Then you'll just have to find it for us."

Even though he just had the air knocked out of him, he laughed. "Maybe you didn't hear me. It can't be found. One day you see it, the next day, you won't. There's only a slight possible chance of finding it by catching a randomized harmonics frequency." Danny was, of course, lying through his teeth. The ship was still where it was, but he hoped Dasyu would buy the bluff.

Dasyu smiled. "That's good enough. We have what we need to provide the right frequency."

Danny shook his head. "But you don't have the ship's frequency."

Dasyu tapped Danny's head with his finger. "Not all provisions are materials." That statement sent a chill through Danny. "You will provide the harmonics frequency, or else?"

Danny summoned up enough courage to say, "Or what?"

"I will subject you to tortures so horrible that it will give me nightmares for the rest of my life." Dasyu straightened up and snapped his fingers and three men untied Danny and held him up. "You will provide that ship for us, and then we will let you free. But until then we will be putting you up tonight in…one of our finest rooms. Assuming your roommates don't eat you first."

The last words sent a chill through Danny as he was led down to the cells. He slowly wondered what kind of cell he was being put in. It was a long walk down and as Danny was led into what looked to be a mineshaft. Small geysers of flames erupted in various parts of the ground. A few wooden bridges provided walkways over some flaming tar pits. It looked like rich minerals, particularly ore, were being extracted and placed into refinery equipment for processing. What is going on here? Danny wondered. One of the men opened up a cell that looked more like a huge cage. When he opened the cage, the other two men tossed Danny in there. After they left Danny with some food and water, he sat down. "Great, what else could go wrong?"

A growling behind him forced him to whip around. Surrounding him were about fifteen lionesses and one male lion. The male was a brown furred lion with a black mane and light blue eyes. Danny closed his eyes. "I had to ask."

The lion bared his teeth. "Who are you, stranger?"

"My name is Danny, a human."

The lion's expression did not change. "You are one of them." The lionesses flanked him, ready to pounce on Danny.

"Yes, I am one of them," Danny replied calmly, even though his nerves were going crazy. At least, I think I am.

"So, why shouldn't I tear you apart for food for my pride?"

"Because they may be my species, but they are not my kind." This seemed to loosen up the mood of this pride. "As far as what I'm doing here, I'm just passing through."

The lion sat down and looked at him sternly. "You're not from around here, are you?"

"No, I'm not. Well, you know my name but I'm afraid I don't know yours."

"Jabari, king of the Shore Pride, rulers of the Tropic Lands." A cream-furred lioness came up next to him. "And this is my queen, Alijiah." Danny and Alijiah merely exchanged nods. "Half my pride were on a night-long hunt when these people came and took the rest of us in our sleep. They took us in cages and brought us here."

"These guys need to be taught a lesson," Danny said angrily. "But right now, we can only wait until tomorrow." He leaned back against the cage. "So…what's your home like?"

Jabari, caught off-guard by the sudden social talk, thought over for a second before answering. "Um, we live in a cave. The opening faces the east, and the sun fills it in the morning."

"Sounds like something I would like for my home in the mornings."

Jabari continued. "We usually have hunts during the day, but wouldn't completely ignore night hunts. There are herds of antelope, impalas, wildebeests, but water buffalos are the prey of choice for us. On the hot days, we jump in the water for a swim."

Danny was surprised, but only showed it through facial expressions. "I thought lions or cats in general, for that matter, don't like to be in the water."

"I guess we aren't your typical lions then. It's normal to us to swim, because it gets very hot on the beach. We also eat fish at times. For the most part, I patrol the area for rogue males and other threats to my pride. Unfortunately, with no other male in the pride right now, my people back home are very vulnerable."

Danny nodded. "Very commendable doing your duty. I would do the same."

Jabari gave a quizzical look. "What about your home?"

Danny was silent for a moment and Jabari caught it. Danny managed a weak smile. "Interesting question, actually." He sighed. "I live in a structure called a house. It's kinda like your cave, but much more fancy. I usually go to school for education, to learn for a career."

"Career?" Alijiah asked.

"It's a lifelong duty, like a king. Jabari's career is to rule and defend his pride." The pride understood that explanation as Danny continued. "My career was to be a pilot, one who flies ships. I achieved that and now am a certified pilot."

Alijiah smiled. "That's great that you accomplished what you wanted to become. What about your family?"

That still ate away at Danny. He kept his expression calm, but his voice was shaky. "My dad was leader of a huge business, while my mom stayed at home and kept it clean and managed. My parents names are Dennis and Gabrielle. I also have two little sisters named Raechel and Callie. They can be cool, but they are generally annoying." He paused. "I am…was close to my family, but I loved to have fun with my friends when they were free."

Alijiah caught the "was" in that statement. "That sounds nice…where is your family?"

Danny lowered his head, shedding a tear as he was brought to memory what happened. "Another good question. They were on a safari, here in Africa. I had to stay behind to continue my education. I was training on my ship when another man came to me. He told me my family went missing a few days before and said they were killed. There was a signature of my family's boat on radar, and a massive detonation and explosion was detected nearby. They never found the boat nor the bodies."

Alijiah's mouth was slightly agape. "Oh, I'm so sorry."

"Well, it's not going to bring them back. But then again, that's why I'm here. They never confirmed they were dead, so I will search for them, even though things look bleak. I still believe my family might be alive."

"You're very strong to not give up or give in without a fight," Jabari said. "That makes for a great leader. But how did you get here, in this place?"

He told the story, from how he got to these lands to Mufasa taking him in up until the current point. "I was knocked out so I don't have an exact clue where the Pride Lands are, but when I get out of here, I will do the best I can. I…" He stopped and drew his eyes to a cub in the corner. The cub was also brown-furred but a little lighter than Jabari, with a black tuft of fur on his hair. The most peculiar feature were the tufts on his ears, like a caracal. He was cuddled up in a corner near two lionesses. Danny looked at Jabari. "Your son?"

"No." Jabari shook his head. "This one was already in here when we got here. He said he was lost from his pride and was found by these people."

Danny came up to him. He got down on one knee. "Hey there, little fella." The cub shakily got up. "I'm Danny. What's your name?"

"M-Malka." He said nervously. "D-Do you have any food? I'm hungry."

"Sure, hold on." Danny walked back to the fairly big bowl of meat and the bottle of water and brought it back to Malka. "Here you go." He set it down for Malka to eat. The cub immediately began eating away at the meat. While he was doing that, Danny took a sip of the water and set it back down for Malka. Malka spent very little time devouring the food and water. When he was done, the energy was definitely restored in the cub's body. Malka walked up and sat down in front of Danny with a smile. "Thanks for the food."

"No problem. I'll be right back, Malka." He walked back to Jabari. The lion's expression held intrigue and friendliness to Danny for his actions. Danny walked up to him. "He's gonna need the food and water…we can last a little longer."

Alijiah stared at him in amazement. "You would do that for a stranger?"

Danny smiled at her. "A lion did that for me when I was nothing but a stranger not too long ago. I feel as though I should do the same for you." He looked at Jabari with determination in his eyes. "I lost my own family, and I will not let that happen to you, to Malka, or anyone here. I swear to you, I will not leave here unless you leave here as free beings who can return to their home, to their family. If I die doing so, at least I can say I did it saving the lives of others."

Jabari beamed at him. "I guess I was wrong about you. If we make it out alive, I will see to it that your pride and mine will forever remain allies."

Danny nodded. "Okay, here's the plan."