A/N: I'm Baaaack. Hey everybody, good to be back in the world of writing. I am terribly sorry for the extremely long wait. I hope you all had a fantastic holiday season and are settling into the New Year nicely. For those of you, who may have been wondering if I gave up writing, don't worry. My laptop was giving me all sorts of trouble until this last weekend. Anyway, I know you all must be dying to find out what happened to the Pride Lands human price, so here is chapter 25!
Lee brought his staff down on Rafiki, only for his teacher to dodge and sweep his feet out from under him. With a loud grunt, Lee fell to the ground and felt two hairy arms wrap around his neck. He began to trash and kick in an attempt to throw Rafiki off of him. Despite almost losing consciousness, Lee found himself able to get to his feet and reach back to grab Rafiki's head. With barely any effort, the prince threw his teacher over his shoulder and back on the ground. This time, he jumped on top of Rafiki and used his superior height and strength to hold him down.
"Rafiki is not your enemy Prince Lee; think about what you're doing!"
What Rafiki got in response was a solid right hook to the face. This baboon was even tougher then Lee realized, because while it did slightly daze his teacher, anyone else hit with that punch with that amount of rage would have been knocked out cold. Rafiki's hands reached up and in a desperate attempt to get free squeezed his pupil's face. The last thing he wanted to do was hurt the boy he had gotten so close to; but at the emotionally rage driven state he was in, Lee could very easily kill Rafiki without meaning it.
All Rafiki's actions seemed to do was increase the boy's anger. An inhuman growl escaped his lips as Lee bit down hard on the mandrill's fingers. Rafiki's teeth clenched as he bit back a cry. Using his free hand, he slapped the human across the face. Lee's hands found their way off his teacher's body and around his neck. The ringing in his ears blocking out his friend's grunts of pain; his blurry vision never letting him see the desperate plea in Rafiki's eyes.
"P- Please Lee." Rafiki began.
"EVERYONE AROUND ME DIES!" Lee roared.
Those were Lee's last words before he blacked out.
(Lee's POV.)
I grunted in pain as my eyes opened to see a campfire. That being the only source of light in the dark night. My head throbbed and felt like it had been stabbed with my old knife. In an attempt to rub it, I realized my hands were tied behind my back with rope.
"Your awake." Called a voice I didn't recognize.
Looking to the left of me, I was the silhouette of a young boy dimly lit up by the fire. He looked to be around my age, although I could already tell he was a lot leaner than I was. His jet black hair was buzzed at the sides but kept long in the middle, which he slicked back. What really popped out about him were his eyes, an emerald green. Almost as if they were made of kryptonite. He wore a smile that could light up a room as he addressed me.
"My names Jason, what's your name?" He asked.
I turned away as I started to rub the ropes that bound my hands against the rock I was leaning against. Suddenly, I felt something knock me down on my side, making it impossible for me to get up. Jason stood over me with a disappointed look on his face.
"Your buddy Rafiki told me to not let you get untied. For you are considered to be a danger to yourself and others. "He said.
I sighed, "Where is he?"
"So you can talk." He joked.
"Where?" I repeated with an edge in my voice.
"He said he had to go back to his tree to get medicine to help keep you calm. And judging from the scuffle you two got into; I would recommend taking a big dose of whatever he brings back."
"You saw us fighting?"
"Yup, and when I took it upon myself to incapacitate you before you choked the life out of a monkey."
My eyes narrowed, "You knocked me out?"
"Yes indeed. I'm sorry if I hurt you, just felt like the right call in the moment."
"Whatever." I growled.
"Rafiki tells me you're quite the martial artist. He says he's been teaching you Aikido."
"I guess."
"You guess? Are you not as Rafiki says?"
"Untie me and find out." I said.
"Yeah, I don't think so. You can't bait me fighting you. It would just be a waste of our energy."
"You think you could hold your own against me? What do you do, Karate, Kung Fu?"
"A lot of hand to hand combat. I'm not as disciplined in a specific style, at least not with my fists. But this…"
He stood and made his way over to a large duffle bag next to a sleeping bag. Rummaging through it, he brought out two objects that I couldn't see through the darkness. When he came back into the light of the fire, he was holding a Katana with a white Saya and Tsuka. A golden Tsuba or hand guard matched the cloud white nicely. And a state of the art camouflage crossbow.
He smiled, "This I know."
I shrugged, "Crossbows were never my style, always took too long to reload."
He laughed, "Let me guess, you're more of a Smith and Weston kind of guy? What do you use, hunting rifle, pistol?"
"Both, plus I'm a pretty handy with a tomahawk and knife. At least until said knife got stuck in a croc's eye socket." I chuckled for the first in forever over the memory.
"Impressive."
"Thanks."
"So, do you have a name?" He asked.
"Lee."
"Nice to meet you, Lee."
"I doubt that."
Things got really quiet after that. Jason stroked the fire and left for ten minutes to go hunt. He returned with a descent sized antelope, a crossbow bolt right between the eyes. Using a smaller blade, what did he call this one, a Tanto to carve up the meat. My stomach screamed in agony as the scent of cooked food hit my nostrils. Jason looked up at me as the sound of my stomach growling caught his attention. With a playful smirk, he held a huge chunk of meat up with his knife.
"Hungry?"
Shaking my head, I looked away to try and block out the smell. The sound of meat being chewed and bones cracking only maximized my hunger. My stomach wouldn't let up either, only seeming to get louder with each growl it released. Jason must have noticed this too, because he walked right behind me and nudged me with his foot. He kneeled down with a piece of food an inch from my face.
"Eat." He demanded.
"No thanks."
"That wasn't a request. You're not starving to death on my account."
I inched my face closer to his. Our noses were almost touching now. My face got hot as my blood started to boil. This guy was seriously starting to get on my nerves. We haven't even know each other for half an hour and he's already knocked me out, tied me up, and now he was trying to force feed me against my will. Yet despite me doing my best to intimidate him, he didn't look the least bit scared. There was almost an unshakable sense of both determination and kindness in his eyes. What is up with this dude?
"You don't even know me." I spat.
He raised his eyebrows, "Do you need to know someone to help them?"
"What makes you think I want your help?"
"You don't want it, you need it." He said.
"No I don't!" I shouted,
He sighed, "Who did you lose."
"What?"
"I recognize that look in your eyes. You've lost someone close to you. You feel like everything important in your life is gone like there's nothing left to live for; your heart being ripped out of your chest? Stop me if I'm getting close."
"How do you know that?" I asked.
"I basically summed up my whole childhood in one tragic paragraph. My mom was a drug addict who left me practically after I came out of her. No hug, no goodbye, I don't even have a picture of her."
For the briefest of moments, I felt something again; a sense of pity for a man who never knew his own mother. My original life wasn't exactly glamorous, but at least I had my mom and sister there whenever life felt too hard. It looks like this guy didn't even have that.
He continued, "For the last fifteen years, I was under the care of a man who didn't really have the best parental instincts. He had a fascination with ancient military civilizations, particularly Spartans. Thinking it was best to turn scared children into killing machines. That's how he raised me, I've been holding that sword and crossbow since I've been able to stand."
I almost smiled at a thought, "I think your dad and my dad should have gotten together and had a few beers. They would have become best friends."
He smiled as he raised an eyebrow, "Was mine like yours?"
"My dad was a soldier who suffered from PTSD, which he coped with by constantly drinking and bouncing my mom, sister, and I off the walls with his fists."
"I'm sorry man."
I shrugged, "No one to blame."
"So, are you a military man yourself?" he asked.
"I wanted to join the Marines when I was old enough, why do you ask?"
"With the buzz cut, beefy frame and cold look in your eyes, I just figured you were a soldier."
"Believe it or not, I used to have a long, mane like hairstyle. I hadn't cut my hair since Middle School."
"Then why cut it now?" he asked.
Our conversation was interrupted by the sound of a not to far off engine. A few seconds later, we were both blinded by a pair of headlights. They belonged to a pickup with some kind of design on the driver's door. It was too dark to see what it was. Four men stepped out of the vehicle, all dressed in camouflage. Thankfully, it looked like only one of them had a gun, and it was the smallest of them. The three others only had an axe a machete, and a really big knife.
"Untie me, I have a gun, we can take them together." I whispered.
He didn't move at first, "Maybe we won't have to fight them."
Jason slowly stood up to address our visitors. With his hands slowly raised, he walked in a calm manner; armed only with his Tanto tucked inside his jeans.
"Evening gentlemen, how can we help you?" he said in a polite tone
The guy with the gun walked forward with his hands behind his back. Blond hair was neatly culmed back, and his smile portrayed a set of pearly white teeth you would expect a model to have. Despite being the smallest among the men, he still looked slightly taller than Jason. I hoped he was a good a fighter as he claims, or he would be dead.
"What might you two be doing out here in the African wilderness? And why is that boy tied up might I ask?" the man asked.
Jason quickly glanced back at me before answering, "That is my cousin, Lee. He tends to sleep walk, so to avoid losing him in this tough terrain, I take to incapacitating him. It's for his own safety."
The man chuckled, "Well, this is no palace for two young boys to be staying. A predator could sneak up on you and make you his dinner within the blink of an eye. Especially lions, savage beasts those things are. You would be much safer with us."
I clenched my fists at the comment about lions. If we had to share a room with this guy, I don't think I could last long before throwing him through a door. Thankfully, Jason must have not been too keen on staying with them either. He politely declined the man's offer before wishing him and his men a good night and turning away.
"That wasn't a request, boy." The man said, now in a darker tone.
He drew his pistol in an instant. Jason still didn't look the least bit riled up. Slowly and calmly, he raised his hands back up and spoke in the same tone he had always used.
"There is no need for that, sir. My cousin and I just want to enjoy a night under the stars. Now I will ask you to please get in your truck and be on your way."
The man stepped so close to Jason, the barrel of the gun was pressed against his forehead. Even though I couldn't see his face, I'd be willing to bet he didn't even blink. For the first time, I saw Jason shoulders rise and fall, as if he had just sighed in annoyance.
"Last chance kid, get your cousin and get in the truck or Ill splatter your brains all over the dirt!"
Jason sighed, "I'm sorry."
"For what?"
"This."
In an impressive display of speed, he grabbed the man's arm and twisted it so hard; I could hear a gruesome snap from where I was sitting. Aiming it at the three other men who looked at the very least surprised by his attack, he could easily end this by shooting all of them. Amazingly, all he did was take out the clip and put it and the gun in his pocket.
"This could end here if you all just take him and go home."
The man snapped, "He's one man, take him boys!"
The man with the axe swung with everything he had at Jason's head, only for him to miss when Jason leaned back and poped him in the head. Pulling out his knife, Jason made one quick slice, cutting the man's throat open like he was slicing a piece of salami. He quickly knocked the large knife out of the other man's hand and kicked him in the stomach. A large meaty hand swung his way and actually connected. His attacker's joy lasted for about a millisecond before Jason flipped back to his feet in some true Jackie Chan type fashion. Man and I thought Rafiki was acrobatic!
Something shining caught my attention. It was the large knife the other man dropped a moment ago. Looking back over towards the action, I would assume Jason still had his hands full. Using all the strength in my feet, I crawled closer to the key to my freedom. Jason made quick work of the guy with the machete, sticking his knife right through his neck, killing him instantly. Maybe he wouldn't need my help.
All that was left was the unarmed man and the guy with the broken arm. The only problem is, the man now without his knife was the biggest guy out of all four of them. He constantly threw punch after punch at the much smaller boy, but Jason kept dodging them like they were nothing. Getting annoyed at how easy this was for him, the large brute charged Jason with a fierce yell. All Jason had to do was run to the man at full speed, jump on the man shoulder, and SNAP! The man hit the ground with a thud, dead.
While all this was going on, I had managed to crawl all the way over to the knife, and cut myself free. Just in time for Jason to have only one more guy to kill. The man that pulled the gun on him now lay frozen where he originally fell. Despite easily killing three larger men without hesitation, Jason didn't move to attack him in any way.
"Go." Jason said in the same calm tone.
Without a second's hesitation, he scrambled to his feet and ran to his truck. Not caring that his comrades lay dead in the dirt. He dropped his keys twice before finally getting them in the ignition and taking off a hundred miles an hour in the opposite direction. Jason turned just in time to see me right in front of him. Looking around, I just shrugged before stating.
"If it's all the same to you, I'll take that meat now."