Chapter 6
Fun Time or Hunting Lesson?

Slowly, the female human awakes from unconsciousness. Through her still blurry vision, she finds herself indoors in what appears to be a central command center of sorts. She also finds herself slumped on a bed. Who could've possibly taken her here? Was she dead? Was this the realm between heaven, hell, and the mortal world? Was she here because she died a painful death and her spirit was unable to rest or cross over?

Questions raced through her mind and she was confused and in a panicky state. Fortunately for the female human, she wasn't dead. Someone had pulled her from the inferno before it got to her.

"Lena Fletcher…" Dornaus spoke as he inspects the Kalashnikov carbine of his female counterpart. "So, young lady. Did you sleep well?"

"Ugh… Where am I?" she groggily responds. "W-Who are you exactly? And how do you know my name?"

"My name does not concern you, Lena. What you should be worried about is the fact that I'm not with the Outlanders. You're a POW."

"I-I don't understand."

"You were part of the small task force which set fire to the hunting grounds."

"Yes…"

"That means you're part of Zira's pride, no?"

"Yeah."

"Ever heard of the king's bodyguard?"

"Rafael told me that a few times."

"Well you're now face to face with him."

Immediately upon hearing her male counterpart's words, Lena's heard sank. Thanks to Zira's stories, she saw Dornaus as a cold hearted killer with little room for humanity, and she dreaded the day when she would meet him. And now here she was, trapped inside his compound with no weapons and no means to defend herself except for her skills in Jiu-Jitsu.

But how could she possibly take him on in a fist fight? Sure she was more nimble and agile but he was a former serviceman who not only served in the SEALs but as a Tier One operative as well. And all those stories about him taking on packs of Hyenas and sometimes even lions only served to deter her.

"Now, I'm gonna ask a few questions." The male human said as he activates a handheld lie detector. "Answer them truthfully and I won't opt for enhanced interrogation techniques."

"Yes sir."

"Why are you here?"

"Because I followed Nuka, Vitani, and Rafael."

"And why did you follow them?"

"I wanted to prove my worth to Zira."

"Did you voluntarily join the herd or were you taken in forcibly?"

"Neither. I was adopted by her because my mother suddenly dropped dead from an unknown illness while taking me on a safari."

"How honest are you to your parents?"

"Ehehehehe… Not very. Why?"

"Because you're being awfully honest to me."

"Maybe because I'm talking to a former Tier One Operator."

"Not Operator."

"Operative."

"Lieutenant Commander. I don't usually go down into the field."

"But you do. Why else would you… Arouse all the controversy."

"Are you trying to blackmail me?"

"No, I am secretly admiring you for putting logic over ROEs."

"Well isn't that a change."

"My father was killed because of those stupid rules."

"My condolences young lady."

"I'm over it."

Lena's vision returns to her and she gets back on her feet before hugging her male counterpart. The two begin kissing each other affectionately before falling onto the bed. As she looks around, the female human spots a bottle of red liquid labeled "Potion Of Eternal Life". So that's how Dornaus looked so young when he was clearly quite a few years her senior. He perfected the art of eternal life, though he was still mortal.

A scream could be heard from the Dome, followed by the two humans laughing. In the meantime, Simba has returned to Pride Rock with the others and Kovu. The king notices the newcomer attempting to enter the royal den and he stops him with a growl. He still didn't quite trust him just yet and the last thing he wanted was to have his throat slit in the middle of the night.

Unlike the others, Kovu had to sleep outside the den near the entrance. Kiara was the last to reach the den and she takes the time to thank her childhood friend for saving her life.

"What kind of hunter are you anyways, Princess?" he scoffs. "You almost got yourself killed out there."

"WHAT?" she exclaims in surprise.

"You wouldn't last three days on your own."

"Oh, and I suppose YOU could teach me?"

"Yeah." The lion chuckles.

"Kiara!" Simba shouts from within the den.

"Coming!" Kiara steps in front of her male counterpart. "Alright, impress me. We start at dawn."

"I look forward to it." Kovu remarks in a tone that might've been overly… Sinister?

Kiara didn't notice the shift in tone and heads back into the den to join her father while her male counterpart lies down next to a rock outside the entrance. As everyone slept, a nightmare takes over the king's peaceful slumber. He found himself back near the canyon where his father died, now as a young adult and not a cub. Just below him, his father was asking for him to pull him up from the raging stampede below

But before he could do so, another lion holds him back. Scar! So the bugger was back. With no way of helping his father, Simba could only watch as Mufasa fell into the gorge below. He turns towards the former king's younger brother, enraged. Suddenly the form of Scar morphs into Kovu and he throws the current king off the cliff to his death. When he smacked bottom, Simba jolts awake, relieved that it was only a dream.

It was still early in the morning and the king returns to his peaceful slumber, temporarily putting the nightmare behind him.


Daybreak. A distinct metallic ping could be heard near the shooting range of Dornaus' compound. Thick in the air was the smell of gun powder and spent cartridges could be seen littered on the ground near the range. Last night Lena confessed that while she may have been given a Kalashnikov, she didn't have the slightest clue how to operate it. All Rafael ever did was hand her the gun and say "Defensive Fire Only".

The only training she got was from watching Rafael firing his Kalashnikov at the drone during the fire op, and even then she saw it from quite a distance away, not up close. Dornaus picks up an empty "En-bloc" clip and stuffs it into his hunting vest as he inserts a fully charged one into the internal magazine of his M1. Yes, this was the same rifle he carried and used for formal events and three gun salutes.

One rifle to meet all the much more formal needs and fill in recreational time if needed. He needn't worry about the finish of the gun since it was a new manufactured rifle by Fulton Armory and not a gun which had been sitting in a warehouse since 1945(sarcasm). Combine that with the incredible amount of effort put into the care of this particular firearm meant the M1 looked exactly like the day it was purchased, wonderfully blued receiver mated with a custom Walnut stock from DGR.

"Lena." Dornaus hands the gun to his female counterpart. "You have a go."

"I-I'm not so sure if I want to…" She spoke in a slightly reluctant tone. "The only gun I've ever shot was a .22 caliber rifle and even the AK Rafael gave me wouldn't have as much recoil as this."

"This ain't a fifty cal, young lady. The M1 is a pussy cat when it comes to recoil."

"You sure?"

"Why would I be lyin'?"

"Because you want to see me fail horribly?"

"Oh come on. You remember how into each other we were yesterday. Why would I be so bad?"

"Because you're exactly like your younger self. Sure you may be what? Thirty Seven? But that potion of eternal life has preserved you well. When can I try that?"

"When you feel like you want to start the path of immortality. Bear in mind this is not a hundred percent. You can still get killed."

"But I won't die naturally, got it."

"Enough talk, you're just delaying the inevitable."

"Huh?"

"Mr. Garand here is waiting for you."

"Ow… That…"

Lena takes the rifle from her male counterpart. With a few pointers she learns the proper way of shouldering and aiming. She slowly moves her finger down onto the trigger and sends a bullet down range with a gentle tug. As she didn't have pass experience firing a big caliber rifle, she was surprised when the gun kicked into her shoulder. Her reflexes instinctively attempt to protect her sight and she blinks.

There was much to learn for the female human if she wanted to be a good shot. She lets off two more and they hit near the bullseye, not bad for a first timer. If the first round had been closer, her grouping would've been spot on. But no matter how good of a shot she was proving to be, Lena was only going to get three shots off. The M1 wasn't her primary weapon and if she wanted to increase her proficiency, she would have to train with her Kalashnikov.

Thankfully Dornaus' days in the military has given him plenty of knowledge regarding the operation of various firearms, including Kalashnikovs. Even if he hadn't been a Tier One Operative, he would've had some knowledge since part of the training involved teaching new recruits how to employ captured weapons in case they found themselves in a situation where they were unarmed.

The female human takes her Kalashnikov from her male counterpart's dome and returns to the range with three fully loaded magazines in her pocket. While the shooting session continues, Simba and the rest of the lions were just starting their day near the royal den. The king leaves his shelter and heads down towards the watering hole to quench his thirst.

Unbeknownst to him, Kovu was silently monitoring him. So far he had remained true to Zira's plan and was merely waiting for an opportunity to strike. And right now he had caught the current ruler alone, sipping water at the watering hole. There were three ways he could execute the plan. One was the silent throat slit. The second involves a brawl in which he would overpower the king and kill him while the final plan called for him to drown Simba in the watering hole.

He opts for the silent option so as not to arouse any suspicion. Before he could go through with the plan however, Kiara leaps in front of him and cheerfully greets him.

"Mornin!" she said. "I'm ready for my first lesson. Surprised you huh?"

Kovu is momentarily distracted by this and by the time he turns his head back, Simba was long gone. His opportunity to kill the king has been smashed by his childhood friend and his foolish mistake of promising to give her hunting lessons. Kiara turns in the direction of the hunting grounds and starts walking, telling her friend to follow her. He does so, but not before giving a frustrated growl under his breath.

The two make their way to a hunting ground within the Pridelands(not the one ravaged by the fire)where Kovu teaches his friend the art of stalking. He lies and waits in the open while Kiara sneaks up in a bush. In the eyes of an inexperienced individual, the lioness might seem to be doing everything correctly but listen closely and you can hear her heavy breathing.

"Three… Two… One…" he counts.

"Gotcha!" Kiara leaps out from the bush but misses her target.

Kovu walks up to his female counterpart, still unimpressed.

"You can hear me…" She said shyly. "Aww…"

"Only a lot." The lion replies as he walks away. "You're still breathing too hard. Feel the earth under your paws."

He extends his claws and puts all four of his paws firmly on the ground. Kiara notices the action and does the same. Immediately there was a noticeable difference. Unlike before, there was no noise when she shifted and she seemed much firmer than before when standing. Just then the sound of birds chirping catches the attention of the two. They turn and notice a flock of birds disappearing over the ridgeline.

Kovu decides this was the best opportunity to teach his friend the proper way to stalk. He gets low on the ground and sends all available energy to his limbs as he thunders forward and up the ridge. At the end he leaps and while his original goal was to pounce on an unsuspecting bird, he gets Timon instead. Yet again the Meerkat was in the save vicinity as Simba's daughter.

Unlike last time however, he wasn't following her. They just happened to stumble upon a place he and Pumbaa stumbled upon, a patch of land where there was an abundance of worms and insects, which the Meerkat dubbed the "Best Smorgasbord In The Pridelands". Unfortunately for him and his warthog friend, there was just one small issue; birds. Not just one or two but an entire migratory flight of them.

Timon and Pumbaa have been trying all day just trying to get them to leave. The Meerkat tries it again in front of the lions but only got his nose bit by one of the birds. Pumbaa was still using his old tactic of charging the birds but it was relatively fruitless from the beginning. They suggest that the lions help out and Kiara roars, causing some of the birds to disperse.

Her male counterpart does the same and they drive more of the birds away. Together with Timon and Pumbaa, the two lions charge down the ridgeline, causing the remaining birds to scatter as they went. This was the first time Kovu had fun in years and he was flustered, having never had any playtime during his younger days. Eventually the lion is brought out of his shell by the laughter of his female counterpart and the repeated whoops of "Yee-haw" from Timon and Pumbaa, and he too joins in the fun.

Out of nowhere, an ATV rolls up and keeps pace with the four. At the controls was Dornaus and his female counterpart was riding shotgun. The two had just finished their firearms training session and wanted to have a relaxing ride. That idea quickly dissipated when Kiara, Kovu, Timon, and Pumbaa showed up over the horizon. They being at the same spot could only mean one thing; adventure.

And Dornaus was quite the adventurer himself. Even during his military days, he would use up whatever R&R time he had to go hiking with friends or travel to exotic locations.

"YEEEEEHAW!" he exclaims as he revs hears the roar of his ATV. "Modern day cavalry for the win!"

"What's wrong with horses?" Lena asks. "They're pretty fun to ride and take care of."

"For you, Lena. I'm horrible when it comes to taking care of animals and an even worse rider."

"Oh…" she giggles slightly.

"Yeah yeah, laugh all you want." Dornaus signals to Kiara and the rest of her friends. "Prepare to smell feel the fumes in your face."

"We'll see about that." Kovu challenges. "Let's race!"

"It's on, newcomer!"

Lena gets a firm grip on the ATV before her male counterpart lets loose with the throttle and zooms ahead. While they had the disadvantage of needing to move under their own power, the four friends were undeterred and they gave chase. The friendly race soon nears a canyon like area. Without warning, the engine of Dornaus' ATV begins to sputter and somewhere within, a leak has sprung on one of the oil lines, causing pressure to slowly drop.

Maybe he should've replaced the faulty line instead of applying duct tape. Knowing how the oil leak could potentially put his ride out of commission, the human stops by the road and shuts the engine off before sealing the leak with duct tape. Kiara and her friends take the time to catch up and they wasted no time running ahead as Dornaus fixed his ATV.

"And this is why you shouldn't use duct tape as a universal solvent." Lena cracks a smartass remark.

"Yeah yeah, whatever." Her male counterpart replies as he applies the final patch of duct tape. "That'll do."

"And then you realize your oil pressure is too fucked to be saved."

"If that happens you know what'll come."

"It's not that bad. Imagine for a second, a single man stuck out here in the Savannah with a gorgeous woman."

"Oh great…"

Both humans share a chuckle as Dornaus restarts the engine of his ATV. Fortunately for him, the oil was still fine and the engine wasn't seizing up. Just then, the ground underneath them begins to tremble. It wasn't caused by an earthquake, but by a massive herd of Rhinoceros charging towards them. Barely seconds later and the herd appears round the corner, surprising the humans.

Kiara and her friends were ahead of the Rhinos, and they seemed like they were trying to escape a herd they've just pissed off. All of them seek shelter inside a small opening in the canyon walls as the Rhinoceroses charged pass them, totally oblivious to the fact that the agitators were not even running in their direction. The Rhinos quickly notice the king's bodyguard in their area and they immediately stop.

"Something wrong?" he asks.

"We've had some numbnuts come over and piss us off." The leader of the Rhinoceroses spoke. "Did you see them?"

"No but I'll look into them if you want."

"Forget about it. Let's go home guys."

Without further words spoken, the Rhinoceroses return to their grazing field.

"What a liar…" The female human remarks. "You clearly saw Kiara and the others running this way."

"Yeah but they hid themselves in a cave." He smiles. "And I don't know about you but telling a white lie is a lot better than watching a herd of Rhinos tear new assholes into four wild animals."

"Again you make a point."

Both humans lock eyes with each other once again and they kiss each other affectionately. Just up ahead, Pumbaa manages to get himself unstuck from the opening and Timon quickly exits after his friend. Kiara and Kovu turn towards each other at the same time as they laugh from the adrenaline surging through their bodies. Then, something rather awkward happens.

Due to the cramped space within the opening, they accidentally nuzzle each other. Both of them are a bit flustered and they smile in embarrassment before exiting the opening. Like Timon and Pumbaa, they quickly notice Dornaus and Lena having a bit of romantic action.

"Hey!" Timon shouts. "I thought you challenged us to a race?"

"Can't help it, Timon." He answers. "Not when you're caught up in the romantic mood."

"So what are you going to do? Bring her on the Titanic?"

"Not the Titanic but maybe the Titanic II." Dornaus turns towards his female counterpart. "What do you think?"

"I'd be flattered."

Kovu and Kiara once again glare at each other. Like the two humans, they too were starting to feel warm and fuzzy whenever they were around each other. They were at the right age to marry and mate, and it was perfectly normal if they were falling for each other. Issue is, neither was ready for the other just yet. Timon shouts to the two lions and they proceed to follow him as they chatted with one another.

Closely following them were Dornaus and Lena, both of them on ATV.