I offer no excuses for the length of time it took me to finish this, just apologies. Thank you especially to all those who've stayed with me from the beginning and I'm thrilled to see some new readers, too. I reply to every signed review, but since I can't do that for the ones who aren't signed in, and especially to Starzinmieyez, whose review got me writing again when I was slacking, I'll say it here. Thank you for reading and reviewing. I hope you enjoy.
Simba lay on his stomach with his eyes half-closed, resting but keeping watch over his pride mates at the same time. Nala was sleeping beside him. The beautiful lioness was exhausted from a long day of tending to all the injured lions while still being somewhat weak from her own bout with the illness.
The other lions of the pride were resting, as well, all of them laying inside Pride Rock's cave where they would be safest should the jackals decide to return and attack again. That was unlikely at the moment, but none of them were willing to take any chances while they were weak and vulnerable. The jackal pack was unpredictable. The lions with the worst injuries had been carefully moved one by one into the cave, while the ones who could walk had made their own way in. Then the uninjured lions had continued doing what they could for their friends' wounds, trying to keep the wounds clean and keep them from reopening; that part hadn't been too hard as the injured lions just wanted to rest and recover. Once the makeshift healers had done all they were able to, they too, rested.
Timon and Pumbaa also lay nearby, leaning up against a wall of the cave, the meerkat snoozing on the warthog's back, curled in a ball. Simba could hear Pumbaa talking in his sleep every now and then, saying, as was usual for his warthog friend, "Grubs, grubs, grubs, grubs, grubs." It was nice to know that some things never changed. Comforting, in a way.
Seeing movement at the mouth of the cave, Simba raised his head and drew in a breath, almost calling out a warning to his pride mates. He'd been so jumpy since the attack that he was seeing threats to his pride everywhere. Two lookouts had been placed outside to warn the pride of incoming danger, and though he trusted them to do just that if trouble came he was still on edge. The call died in his throat, though, when he saw that it definitely wasn't a jackal.
"Rafiki?" Simba was pleasantly surprised to see his longtime friend return today.
The mandrill who was their pride's Shaman walked slowly into the cave, stared around at the injured lions in shock for a moment, then stalked up to the Lion King and stood, arms tossed out to either side, with an incredulous look on his face.
"What happened here?" he demanded.
Rafiki is back! Thank the Kings! Simba smiled to himself, relief rushing through him. But what he answered was; "A lot. Took ya long enough."
"I left for one week!" the mandrill protested, rapping the bottom of his stick staff against the cave floor for emphasis.
"It was a long week," Simba returned.
"It was only a few days! What have you done to my pride?" Rafiki demanded indignantly.
Simba chuckled. "Your pride?"
"Well, look what happens when I leave it in your care!"
Nala stirred and raised her head groggily. "What's g... Rafiki!" she exclaimed joyfully, fully awake in an instant. "You're finally back!"
"Finally? I left for one week! I am never leaving again!" Rafiki exclaimed as he stamped his foot, obviously deeply annoyed.
Then he sighed. "So, it was jackals?" he asked in a calm and business-like tone, doing an about-face from his irritation and gesturing to the marks covering the lions, looking like he was ready to get to work on his charges.
"Yes... And the whole pride got sick a few days ago. Half of them still are; the same ones who were attacked by the jackals," Nala answered, her tone heavy with sadness. "Come, I'll show you the worst injured first. Kiara is one, and so is Simba." She got to her paws.
As Rafiki got out his supplies, including the half-gourd in which he usually mixed plants and berries, Simba protested, "There are many others who are hurt worse than I am, Nala."
"There are a few who are hurt worse," Nala corrected. Simba had bites and scratches all over his chest, sides, legs, even a few on his back, some of them rather deep, from his battle with Erevu and her pack mates. "But not many. Sleep, Simba. You need to rest." she said, briefly nudging his head affectionately with her own.
"She is right," Rafiki broke in, beginning to drop different kinds of leaves and berries into his half-gourd. "Go to sleep now, Rafiki will handle dis," the Shaman said briskly. He started mixing the contents of his half-gourd by twisting it back and forth, his movements quick and fluid.
Frowning, Simba looked between Nala and Rafiki, the former of whom was staring at him expectantly. He knew that Nala and Rafiki, as well as the rest of his pride who were healthy and unhurt, wouldn't fail the injured lions. They would make sure that they got better if it was possible for them to do so. Still, as much faith as he had in them, that wasn't the thing that bothered him about the idea of going to sleep and letting them handle this without him. What bothered him was the thought of leaving this duty to anyone else.
He felt as though he should be helping somehow. He was the king of this pride and it was his responsibility, as well as his desire, to take care of his pride mates, to keep them safe. A responsibility that he had already failed in, he remembered guiltily. The jackal attack certainly hadn't been safe for the lions of his pride. He didn't want to fail them again.At the same time, he knew that he was hurt, sick, and that he needed to rest if he was going to recover. And he knew that Nala, loyal and steadfast as she was, wasn't going to give up until he was resting. He would have to leave it to them to help the injured lions. He trusted them to take good care of others, after all, and in this condition he wouldn't be much help, anyway. With a resigned sigh, Simba laid back down to rest.
Finished mixing the herbs and berries into a poultice, Rafiki went to Simba to work on his injuries. Before he could start, however, the red-maned king raised his head again. "Wait, Rafiki," he said determinedly. "I'm last. Nala has taken really good care of me, I can wait. Help the rest of our pride first."
Rafiki stared at Simba for a moment as he met the mandrill's eyes with a resolute gaze. Then Rafiki nodded, turned and went to another, grumbling something about stubborn lions under his breath.
Pausing first to make sure Simba put his head back down to rest, Nala then fell into step next to Rafiki. "Let me tell you what you missed," she said, as she led the mandrill over to a sleeping Kiara. Kiara was one of the lions in the most danger from wounds and sickness. Nala was very worried for her daughter.
"About six days ago, right after you went on your sabbatical, I took a group out to hunt. We went beyond the Pride Lands borders, following a herd of giraffe. The hunt was taking a long time and we were all thirsty, so we searched for water. We found a stream. I remember that the water tasted a little unpleasant, but that didn't seem important." Nala grimaced. It had been very important. It had made the entire pride sick, and so unable to defend themselves effectively against the attacking jackal pack.
"A few days later, however, everyone who had gone on the hunt was getting sick." Nala then rattled off the name of every lion who had been the first to take ill, herself included, before continuing with her story. "The most we could guess was that the water in that stream must have been polluted. The symptoms were achy muscles, stomach pain, and fatigue. It was affecting us all very badly. Mikazo told Simba about some herbs he knew of that would help us get over the sickness, so they went to pick the plants and then used them on the ill lions."
"Which herbs did you use?" Rafiki interrupted, looking up from Kiara with a concerned expression crossing his features. He was smearing some of the mixture of crushed leaves and berries on her wounds. The golden-coated lioness wasn't even stirring as Rafiki worked on her injuries, too deeply asleep to notice. That was good, Kiara needed to rest as well.
"Horsetail stalks from the river, Bird's Brandy stalks and Cancer bush leaves. We didn't mix them together," Nala answered. "They were safe to use, weren't they?" she asked with a twinge of worry. No one had suffered from the use of the plants as far as they'd been able to tell. In fact, they had felt better after eating them despite the awful taste. But maybe the effects could show up later?
"If you did not give anyone too large a dose of anyting, den it is fine," Rafiki replied. "Mikazo did well and he might have saved a few lives."
"No one took more than a few at once. About a pawful," Nala told him.
Rafiki nodded, and Nala, feeling relieved that they hadn't inadvertently caused their pride mates any harm while trying to help them, once again continued with the tale of the events that happened in the Shaman's absence. "After a few days, about three, the ones who had gone on the hunt were getting better. But then the rest of the pride started to get sick. We decided to go on a hunt a day or so after that. We needed food even if half the pride was sick, perhaps more so because they were sick. We couldn't safely leave them without someone staying behind to help them. Simba was staying, of course, since he was and still is sick, but he needed to be taken care of as well. So we left Mganga here to watch over them." Nala's voice caught painfully on the deceased lioness' name. "She died in the fight, trying to protect the others..." Nala trailed off as she thought of her lost pride mate and friend, her ears lowered sadly.
Upon hearing the news of Mganga's death, Rafiki grew very still, frozen for a moment in sorrow. Then he sighed, his expression pained. "I am sorry to hear dat. Very sorry indeed," he said solemnly, going back to work on the next injured lion.
Nala nodded in acknowledgment. "Because we were on a hunt," she said, her voice slightly shaky from recounting the death of Mganga, "we didn't know that the rest of the pride was being attacked until Zazu flew up to us while we were stalking a zebra herd. He told us about the jackals and we ran back to Pride Rock. When we got here, the jackals fled. Everyone who had stayed here was badly hurt and Mganga was dead. Simba told me that she was the first to be attacked and that she died standing in between the jackal pack and her pride." Nala shook her head sadly, though her grief over the loss of her friend was mixed with pride in Mganga's bravery and loyalty. She would miss Mganga very much.
"I sent some of the pride out to collect supplies; moss to pack the wounds with, absorbent moss we could use to bring back water, and Horsetail stalks to use on the lions who are still ill. We did what we could to stop their bleeding and clean the wounds. Once that was done, we buried Mganga near Pride Rock. Some of us kept watch for trouble while others dug the grave." It had taken Nala a while to clean the dirt from in between her claws. It had been very difficult to dig the hole in the first place, and not just because the ground was hard and dry from lack of rain. They had, after all, been digging a grave for their pride mate.
"After that, we moved everyone inside the cave where it was safer. We cleaned any wounds that had started bleeding when we moved them, and then we all laid down to rest. Then you returned," Nala finished the story. "And it's a really good thing you did, Rafiki." She glanced at the injured lions around her. As she spoke, Rafiki had been hard at work. Almost all of her hurt pride mates now had poultices on their wounds. With Rafiki here to heal them, they were bound to get better quickly. Nala was relieved beyond words that the powerful Shaman was back in the Pride Lands and able to help her troubled pride.
"You did well," Rafiki said as he finished working on one of the last of the untreated injured lions. "De wounds are packed correctly and dey have been given plenty of water. Dere is little dat I could have done better."
Nala smiled, grateful that they had been able to help their injured pride mates.
Rafiki straightened from his work and took a slow look around at the injured lions of Pride Rock, their formerly smooth pelts slashed and torn from the claws and teeth of the vicious jackal pack. "What will be done about the jackals?" he almost snarled, his eyes suddenly flashing dangerously, filled with anger on behalf of the lions who he healed and fought for.
"We will take a group out and hunt them down. Soon," Nala answered, a growl rattling in her own chest. She was looking forward to catching up with the jackals who had attacked her pride and killed Mganga. They couldn't do this to her pride without retaliation. And more than just that, more than for the sake of retribution, the jackals were far too dangerous to be allowed to live. If they were cocky enough to attack a large pride of lions, than there was no telling what else they would try before they were stopped permanently.
"Good." Rafiki nodded with satisfaction.
They walked back toward Simba, who woke from a light doze as they approached.
When they reached him, Rafiki said, "Alright, now it is your turn."
"Thanks, Rafiki," Simba said, as Nala sat down next to him. "How is everyone? Will Kiara be okay?" he asked anxiously.
Quickly setting to work on Simba's wounds, Rafiki answered; "Kiara will be fine." Simba and Nala both let out sighs of relief at that, both of them feeling a large amount of fear and tension leave them at hearing that their daughter would live, while Rafiki continued, "Almost all of de pride will make a quick and total recovery. Though some will make a faster recovery den others will."
"Almost all of the pride?" Nala asked warily as she registered the word, her tail whisking back and forth slightly in sudden worry.
"It appears dat da lion, Mikazo, has developed an infection in one of his wounds. It is the bite on his neck, it is reddened and oozing. I am doing what I can to clear de infection, but it may be difficult for a while as it appears to have taken hold already," Rafiki said.
"Oh no," Simba muttered. "Rafiki, you have to save him. He saved the lives of my daughter and grandson."
Nala got to her paws and went over to Mikazo, who lay nearby, still unconscious, and licked the top of his head in a motherly manner. The light brown lion didn't wake up. Nala noticed that he was shivering slightly in his sleep. As she watched it hit her that he wasn't truly sleeping. This wasn't a healing sleep; the lion was unconscious. She shared a worried look with Simba.
"I will do what I can for him. I will save him if it is possible," Rafiki promised firmly.
) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( (
Tumaini crouched by the lake that was near her pride's cave, lapping thirstily at the water, through which she could easily see the lake-bed. The water in the lake was greatly lowered, and most of the streams that normally fed the lake were now completely dry, the others merely a trickle that barely flowed. The hot sun and lack of rain was taking its toll on the land. She could feel the heat from the sun hanging high in the sky, relentlessly drying the land below it to a cracked and dusty crust, while warming Tumaini's red pelt and turning it the color of a blazing fire.
As she raised her head from the water, which was so warmed by the sun that it gave little relief from the heat, her fur brushed the stalks of grass around her, causing them to crackle with electricity that made the fur that came in contact with them stand on end. The grass was brown and dry, almost dead from lack of water. If it didn't rain soon, the grass would die completely, leaving the herd animals- the lion's prey- with nothing to eat. The herd animals would leave the territory and the lions would have to follow or starve. Odd, Tumaini thought, how even though lions didn't eat the grass, they relied so heavily upon it for survival.
Finished drinking, her thirst quenched even if she was still feeling overheated, Tumaini turned to head back to her pride's cave, picking her way through the brittle stalks of grass. She had only gone a short way when the wind shifted in her direction; and carried on that wind was the scent of unfamiliar lions.
She stopped in place and sniffed the air, trying to work out the scents. There were several lions in her territory, heading this way, and she definitely didn't recognize any of their scents.
She peered cautiously in the direction the strangers' scents came from and then started walking that way, wondering if she should go tell her pride mates right now, but too curious not to take a look first. It wasn't all that often that they had visitors in their lands. The last time someone had come to their pride was, of course, when Jinamizi had arrived to take the throne from Hodari and Kawanja, which was hardly the most pleasant of memories for Tumaini. Along with her curiosity of what these lions might be doing in her territory that was driving her to take a look before she told her pride mates, she also wanted to put off having to deal with Jinamizi for as long as was possible to do so.
Tumaini walked to the top of a small hill that rose in a gentle slope not far from the lake. Once there, she scanned the territory around her, using the higher vantage point to try to spot the strangers.
After a moment, she saw them; a group traveling through the grasslands in the direction of their cave. From what she could see, the group looked to be made up of four lionesses and one lion, a small pride. From the way they were heading across the land, unwaveringly in the direction of the cave, she guessed that they were following the scent of her and her pride mates as they neared the cave where they lived and their scents were strongest. She also realized that the fact that they were heading straight toward her pride's cave must mean that the strangers were looking to meet with them for some reason. If they had been here to steal prey or some other similar reason, they would be trying to stay out of sight, rather than heading right to the home of the lions whose territory they were trespassing in, so obviously that wasn't what the strangers had in mind.
Not knowing if this group of lions was hostile or not, and not wanting to confront them for being in her territory without others with her in case they were, Tumaini quickly and silently spun on her hind paws and raced back to her cave to inform her pride mates that they had visitors.
When Jinamizi heard her report, the king stood from where he was lounging in front of the cave's entrance. "I'll handle this," he announced, his demeanor cruelly dismissive. He stalked off in the direction Tumaini had indicated, arrogance clear in his every movement.
Tumaini, Uzuri, Nuru and Cheneta exchanged glances, and then the four lionesses bounded after their dark leader. They moved quickly through the tall Savannah grasses, crossing the plains.
When they came within sight of the group of unfamiliar lions, the newcomers stopped, respectfully awaiting their approach. That seemed a good sign to Tumaini; perhaps it meant that they were not here to cause any sort of trouble for her pride.
Jinamizi was in the lead and he took an aggressive stance. "For what purpose do you dare enter my land?" he demanded, baring his sharp teeth threateningly.
The lion in the group stepped forward and bowed his head deferentially to the king. His gaze was open and honest. He was a handsome lion with a sandy coat and a dark red mane. His muzzle, chest and paw-tips were a light tan. His deep green eyes flashed momentarily as he stood tall and strong, facing the threatening lion without fear. His stance was respectful, but wary. "We mean no harm," he said, his voice calm and soothing.
"My name is Msafiri. And this is my pride. We have come to ask for temporary shelter. My mate, Masa-" He indicated a brown-furred lioness among the group who looked tired and worn. She was painfully thin and her coat was ragged, her eyes dull and weary. Tumaini now noticed a lioness cub sitting between Masa's fore-paws, looking up at Jinamizi with wide eyes. The little cub was so small that she hadn't noticed her earlier when the lions were approaching through the tall grasses. "-Is unwell, she needs a safe place to rest and recover."
Tumaini looked at Jinamizi, wondering what he would do. She hoped that the group of strangers would be allowed to stay. They seemed harmless and they were in need of help, but she doubted Jinamizi would be willing to lend a paw.
She was right. "Shelter?" Jinamizi growled viciously. "You trespass on my territory, expecting me to welcome you rather than rip you to shreds? You dare ask for shelter?"
"Jinamizi," Uzuri started, her eyes narrowed with anger, as she moved a pace forward, "they need help. Why-"
"Silence!" Jinamizi snapped, snarling at his pride mate. Uzuri reluctantly obeyed, sending an apologetic glance at Msafiri's pride as she did.
Msafiri stared in shock. "I only want help for my mate, I do not mean to cause any trouble," he insisted, obviously attempting to keep things well-mannered and civil.
"Well, if you do not mean to cause any trouble, you'll leave now, won't you?" Jinamizi said coldly, taking a step toward Msafiri, his mate and their cub, his claws out and teeth bared.
Tumaini let out a quiet growl that rumbled in her chest, glaring at her king angrily. How dare he treat lions in need in such a manner?
Msafiri stiffened and, with a defensive snarl, moved in between Jinamizi and his family. He nudged Masa's shoulder gently, indicating that it was time to leave, not taking his eyes off the tawny king as he did so. Masa silently picked up her cub and padded ahead, heading toward the territory's edge, looking tired and resigned. The other three lionesses followed their queen, shooting furious glares back at Jinamizi as they did so.
Msafiri started to follow them, then stopped and looked back at Jinamizi, meeting the tawny king's hard gaze with his own suddenly calm, determined one. "You are a cold-heated king," he said quietly. "If Masa dies, beware."
"You're welcome to try any time," Jinamizi snarled, going half-way into a attack crouch. "If you want to die, I'll be happy to oblige you."
Ignoring him, Msafiri glanced at Tumaini, Uzuri, Cheneta and Nuru with sympathy in his green eyes, and as he did, Tumaini suddenly had an idea that she might be able to help them in a subtle way. Trying to catch Msafiri's gaze with her own, she jerked her head in the direction of Simba's Pride Lands, hoping he would get the message. Msafiri turned and followed after his pride mates, heading out of Jinamizi's territory.
Tumaini wasn't even sure that Msafiri had seen her hint of where he should head, because he hadn't reacted. That was actually a good thing, though, because if he had reacted, Jinamizi might have killed her for trying to help Msafiri and his pride. Even so, she couldn't have not tried; they needed help.
If they followed her hint, and then, after leaving her pride lands, followed the scent markers to the next, they would come to Simba's land. Hodari, the king of Tumaini's pride before Jinamizi had taken over, had mentioned once or twice that Simba was a fierce and strong king with a good heart. The two kings had met a few times in the past, though Tumaini, as a young cub, hadn't been included in the talks, nor had she been terribly interested in the boring matters of adults. If Msafiri and his pride mates found their way to Simba's pride, they would be given help, she was sure. Simba would help them. She just hoped that her hint had been seen and understood.
) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( (
Msafiri was getting very worried for Masa. She was panting heavily and wasn't able to go much faster than a walk, dragging her brown-tufted tail on the ground behind her and barely lifting her paws as she plodded on. Msafiri was carrying their cub, Azizi, now, having taken over the job from Masa soon after they had drawn out of the sight of the king who had just ordered them to leave. Masa was so tired and weak now that Msafiri had been worried that even carrying their small daughter would be too hard. Msafiri walked close beside his beloved mate, watching her carefully to be sure she rested when she needed to. She had a tendency to claim she was fine so that she didn't inconvenience the rest of her pride. He sighed, his breath muffled by Azizi's small scruff. As if she could ever be an inconvenience, his lovely Masa.
Masa had become ill shortly after giving birth to Azizi. They assumed she'd picked up some sort of infection from the difficult birth. Fortunately, Azizi was healthy and strong. But Masa's health had continued to deteriorate throughout the months since Azizi's birth.
Msafiri was terrified that he was going to lose her. He wasn't at all sure that he could bear it if Masa died.
He was also furious that that lion, Jinamizi, had refused to give them shelter- to give Masa, who was so sick, shelter! It would only have been until Masa had recovered, but the cruel king had turned them away without the slightest hesitation. He had refused shelter to a lioness who was in danger of dying if she wasn't helped. If Masa died because of that, Msafiri swore to himself that Jinamizi would pay, one way or another.
Msafiri, Masa, and the rest of their pride had been forced to leave their home land when all the water sources dried up a few weeks ago. Their home was farther downstream than this area so the long dry season had badly affected their lakes and streams. Since then, they had been trying to find a new place to stay. But that problem was put to the side as Masa's health got worse. They needed to find a pride to take them in until Masa recovered. Then they could continue to look for a place that would make a good home.
His pride was now heading in the direction that he thought that the lioness from Jinamizi's pride had indicated. Though he wasn't sure whether she had been telling them where they should go to find help or just telling them to get a move on and leave, he hoped it was the former. He thought that the lionesses in that pride had seemed much more willing to help someone in need than had been their king. He felt bad for them. That anyone would have to live under the rule of a king such as that was a terrible thing. But at the moment, his main concern was Masa. They needed to find someone who would help his sick mate, before it was too late.
) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( (
Simba sat next to Mikazo, looking at the young lion with concern. Kimada lay nearby, resting on his side and sound asleep. Like most of the others, Kimada had tired himself out by tending to their sick and hurt pride mates. Mikazo had not yet awakened, and Rafiki had said that it would still be a while until he did; that is, if he got over the infection enough to wake up at all.
Mikazo had wounds covering much of his body, deep bites and slashes across his legs and paws, and on his chest. Even his tail had a vicious bite mark near the tip. Worst of all, Mikazo's deep brown mane was parted by a jagged bite wound. It was lucky that the jackal's teeth hadn't gone any deeper than they had. If they had sunk in any deeper, Mikazo would have been killed immediately. That wound was the most dangerous one, the one that was now infected. Simba was easily able to see that. The bite was an angry red, and had swollen so that it was higher than the skin around it. Simba could smell the infection festering in the wound, a sickly, sour smell that made him want to gag from being so near to it.
Simba had been horrified and furious when the jackals attacked his pride. He had tried to drive them away, to kill their leader, Erevu. He'd known that with her dead, her pack, then leaderless, would likely disperse. But, as sick as he was, he hadn't been able to match Erevu's speed and ferocity, though he had managed to give the she-jackal a few wounds to think about.
He'd been terrified, frantic, when he heard Kiara yell that jackals were going into the cave where Daka was. In spite of his desperation, he hadn't been able to get past the pack leader, quick and vicious as she was, and had thought that he might lose his grandson, his precious, sweet little grandson. Simba had tried to tear away from Erevu to get to Daka, but the savage jackal had blocked his way and lunged at his neck, sinking her claws and teeth into his mane. He had been forced to continue fighting her. He'd then been gratified to see Mikazo run into the cave, and hoped that his young apprentice wasn't too late to save Daka. Soon after that, Kiara had broken past the jackals and raced into the cave as well, limping harshly, but filled with frantic worry for her young son.
He had seen Mikazo a few times as they fought the jackals, and had been glad to see that the light brown lion was able to put his battle training to good use. Thank the Great Kings that the young lion was such a quick study and was learning to fight quite adequately; otherwise, Kiara and Daka might have been killed. Simba shivered at the thought of losing his daughter and grandson. Losing either one of them was unthinkable, and to lose both at once was a horror not to be contemplated.
Simba settled in for what might be a long night, watching this lion and making sure the infection didn't win this battle. Though Rafiki had it mostly under control, Simba wasn't going to relax. He didn't want another lion to die, especially not this lion, to whom he owed so much.