- Chapter 10 by Dreaming18. Edited by Asante.

The Lion King VI:

Fall of Man

Chapter 10

After a successful expedition that morning, the hunting party made their way back to Pride Rock. They crossed paths with the knights, who had just finished their morning sparring practice and were also heading home, falling in step with the lionesses. Walking ahead of the group, Boga glanced off toward the horizon and noticed several dark figures in the distance walking through a field. She moved away from the party to get a better look, crouching low to hide herself in the tall grass at the cusp of a hill.

"Boga, what's wrong?" asked Kovu, coming up behind her. Kiara walked beside him.

"Not sure," Boga mumbled. She edged closer until she had a clear view of the strangers, and her eyes grew wide. "Hyenas!"

"What?" Kovu gasped.

"At least three – maybe four of them."

"Hyenas?" Kovu marveled. "I haven't seen hyenas in the Pride Lands since I was a cub. Surely they can't be hyenas."

"Well they look like hyenas to me," Boga said confidently. "They're heading towards Pride Rock."

"Why would they be heading for Pride Rock?" asked Kiara.

The rest of the party gathered around to observe the approach of the small caravan, everyone keeping low to not alert the trespassers to their presence.

"It could be an invasion," Kovu suggested.

"A group that small?" Vitani scoffed. "Ridiculous. Those flea-bitten dogs probably don't realize where they are."

"Well, let's not wait to find out," Kovu growled. "They're a small group, easy enough to eliminate."

"Kovu, I really don't think…" Kiara started

"Wait, they're dragging something," Boga said, interrupting Kiara. Squinting, she discerned that the hyenas were dragging a bed made of sticks with a lion nestled on it. The lion had a light golden pelt and a slick black mane. "Nuru?"

"They have Nuru?" Kiara gasped. "How is that possible?"

"She's most likely their prisoner," Kovu declared. "They're clearly here to wage war. I suggest we attack now while…" He stopped mid-sentence when he noticed Kopa walking nearby. "Kopa!"

Kopa gazed distractedly at the ground before him, not noticing the crowd of lions hiding in the grass nearby until Kovu spoke. He looked up and blinked in surprise. "Oh, good morning," he called uncertainly.

Kovu shushed him. "Where have you been?"

"I had to clear my head," Kopa replied, walking over and joining the other lions. "Something happened to me last night – something I don't think any of you are going to believe…"

"There's no time for that, Chaka," Mheetu declared. "We're being invaded!"

Kopa's eyes widened. "Invaded? Is it Lion Hunters?" He pushed to the front of the group to get a good look at the invaders.

"No," Kiara replied, joining Kopa. "It's hyenas and it looks like they've taken Nuru captive."

"They're getting closer," Boga warned.

Kopa only stared at the approaching hyena pack. Mufasa warned me about Lion Hunters, he thought. Why didn't he also warn me about hyenas?

Kiara glanced at her brother curiously. "Kopa?"

"I'm going to speak with them," Kopa decided.

"You can't be serious," Kovu scoffed. "They have Nuru."

"I noticed," Kopa grumbled. "Just let me talk to them. I don't think this is an invasion."

"They're hyenas!" Kovu scoffed.

"I know a lot more about hyenas than most," Kopa replied sternly. "Just keep back a bit and don't attack unless they do."

Kovu glared at Kopa in exasperation. "Fine."

Kopa trotted down the hill and slowly approached the hyenas, the other lions following close behind. Kiara moved to stand beside her brother. The hyenas noticed their approach and stopped instantly. As the lions got closer, one of the hyenas caught Kopa's eye, a large female who led the group.

"Bow your heads," Asan told her clan. "Don't show any sign of aggression."

Though they did as their leader instructed, the three other hyenas regarded the lions warily and stood protectively in front of Nuru, who appeared to be napping on her makeshift stretcher.

Kopa faced the hyenas' leader. "Wha…"

"What are you doing in the Pride Lands?" Kovu shouted. "Why do you have Nuru?"

Kopa rolled his eyes. "Kovu, I got this," he hissed.

Nuru blinked her eyes open and lifted her head. "Kopa, Kovu, Kiara?"

"We were just taking this lioness back to Pride Rock," Asan explained. "She was injured…"

The hyena was interrupted when Timon and Pumbaa popped their heads out from behind Nuru. "Kopa!" Timon exclaimed. "Thank goodness we ran into you."

"Kopa?" Asan gasped, addressing the lions' apparent leader. "You're Kopa?"

"Yes, that's me," Kopa confirmed guardedly.

Asan came closer, causing the lions behind Kopa to grow agitated. "You don't remember me, do you?"

Kopa's eyes narrowed. "Should I?"

Asan smiled. "My name's Asante. We knew each other when we were young. We were friends."

Kopa's eyes widened. "Asante?"

Asan nodded.

A smile spread across Kopa's face. "I thought you looked familiar."

"Wait, wait, wait a minute!" Kovu interjected in disbelief. "You were friends with a hyena?"

"She has the same name as our brother?" Kiara asked.

"You never mentioned you were friends with a hyena when we were young," Vitani noted with a frown.

Kopa shrugged. "You never asked."

Asan glanced at Vitani, and her eyes flared. "You – I know you." She then studied Kovu more closely. "I know you too. You both were part of the pride that forced my clan from the Elephant Graveyard!" She growled. "You're Zira's cubs!"

"Well this is an awkward moment," Timon whispered to Pumbaa.

Kopa cleared his throat nervously. "Um, Asante, meet my wife," he said, gesturing to Vitani.

Asan froze, glancing at her old childhood friend, and then back to his mate. "You married Zira's daughter?"

"I know how to break the tension," Timon whispered to Pumbaa. He hopped out of Nuru's litter. "Hey Guys, check this thing out," he called, nudging the stretcher. "I call it the lion lie-on, because lions lie on it."

"Lie-on lion?" Timira asked.

"No, the lion lie-on," Timon corrected.

Mheetu shook his head. "That's what she said."

"Isn't it cool?" Timon continued, ignoring Mheetu. "I made this thing all by myself."

Asan's three clan mates glanced over their shoulders and glared at Timon. "All by yourself?" one of them growled.

Timon stared blankly at the three hyenas. "Um – well, maybe you guys helped a little."

Timira rolled her eyes and glanced beyond the hyena clan. "Wait… Kopa, there's something moving over there!"

The lions and hyenas turned towards the object Timira had spotted, which moved swiftly through the savannah with a loud thrumming noise.

"What is that?" Kiara said.

Nuru recognized the vehicle the humans used to transport themselves. "It's the humans – the ones that shot me."

"They shot you?" Kopa snapped.

"That's why we were bringing her home to you," Asan explained. "Your father, brother, and the human Daniel continued on."

Kopa eyed the distant vehicle darkly.

Kiara recognized the look in her brother's eyes. "Kopa, remember what Daniel said. We need to be careful."

Kopa nodded reluctantly, his eyes fixed on the vehicle.

"They're heading towards Pride Rock," Kovu pointed out. "Faraji's still recuperating there and he's unprotected."

Kopa scanned the hills around them, navigating a route back to the kopje that would keep them hidden from the hunters. "All right, everyone keep close and stay low. We'll cut them off and get to Faraji before…"

"What about the others?" Timira said, interrupting him.

"Others?" Kopa asked.

Timira nodded. "Fasa, Nyota, Timir and Uzuri all went down to Zulu falls this morning. They won't know about the humans."

"Chaka, I'll lead a group back to Pride Rock and protect Faraji," Mheetu offered. "You and Kiara take the rest to find the kids."

Kopa hesitated. "I'm not comfortable splitting up, not after what Daniel told us about these hunters."

"Everything will be fine," Mheetu assured him. "Go and find your kids – bring them back safely."

Kopa sighed heavily. "Okay, but everyone be careful. These are the Lion Hunters from legend we're dealing with."

Hasira smiled faintly as he watched the poachers enter the Pride Lands. They hadn't noticed when he slipped off and backtracked to a concealed outcropping overlooking the fields, watching them from a safe distance and admiring his handiwork.

As Mchezo drove through the quiet landscape, he and Nguvu marveled at the enormous kopje rising in the distance. The sight was magnificent, probably the tallest freestanding rock formation they'd ever seen in Africa.

"Now that's a kopje." Mchezo said, admiring the majestic structure.

"You think that's where the lions are?" Nguvu suggested.

"Oh yes, I do indeed," Mchezo replied in a scornful tone. "It's the perfect castle for the king of the jungle." He brought the car to a stop.

"Why are you stopping?"

"The sound of the engine might scare them off." He got out of the car and took his gun. "I'll head out in that direction on foot."

"Alone?" Nguvu scoffed.

Mchezo grinned. "I'm in a daring mood." He noted Nguvu's worried look. "Don't worry, I'm just going to check things out around the kopje. You take the car and keep exploring. Check around the rivers and waterholes."

"I'm not going to change your mind, am I?"

Mchezo shook his head. "Don't worry, if I find any big cats at the kopje, I'll make sure there are plenty left for you to plug."

"Be careful," Nguvu said as she watched Mchezo walk away, gun in hand.

"You too, Sis," Mchezo replied as he made his way toward the kopje.

Nguvu watched her brother leave, and then climbed into the driver's seat. She switched the ignition on and drove off, searching for any signs of water. Where there's water, there's bound to be animals.

Continue to Chapter 11

Here's a little secret Simba doesn't want us to know about the making of The Lion King II: Simba's Pride. The following outtake is brought to us by TRON0602:

Simba stood in the middle of his dressing room for Simba's Pride, wondering why the directors asked him to come in early. He looked around. "I wonder if they have any L'Oreal."

The door opened and many authors of different shapes and sizes entered.

"Hi, Sante," Simba greeted. "What's going on?"

Asante (the writer) made a picture frame around Simba with his fingers and asked, "Simba, do you think you could give me a smile, like the way Nala smiles?"

Simba raised his eyebrow. "Why is he asking me that, Tron?"

Tron shrugged. "Just do it so we can get this over with."

Simba sighed. With a little effort, he did a pretty good impression of his mate's smile. "How's this?" he said through clenched teeth.

Asante gave a nod of approval and turned to the other writers. "Let's start with that mane of his."

Simba's eyes went wide. "My mane! What's wrong with it? Is it not snuggly enough?" Simba panicked as he looked around frantically for the precious fur-care product.

"No, no, no, it's not that," Tron explained calmly. "It's perfectly snuggly, but we just need to shave it off."

"WHAT?" Simba wailed. "But…"

"Sorry, Simba," Asante replied, not sounding sorry at all, "but the budget for Simba's Pride was cut. In order to get semi-decent lighting, we couldn't afford the adult lioness to play your daughter. So we need you to do both yourself and your daughter."

"THE HELL I DO!" Simba roared. "I'm a guy! What are you trying to pull?"

"Now come on, Sim," Tron coaxed, getting his electric razor ready. "In the old days, males played all roles, even the female's."

"Also, we need to get you on a diet so you look more feminine," Asante added, looking over his to-do list only to be interrupted by a growl from a vicious looking Lion King.

"I'll start right now with some exercise! It's called Hunt Asante and Tron!" He ran after them.

The two authors ran screaming from Simba's dressing room.