A/N: Hey, hey! How are all you guys doing out there? Aww, it is so wonderful to see all of your lovely faces (*giggles to self because I can't see your faces*). Ok, I'm gonna try to keep the late night manic behavior to a minimum...and no I am not on drugs. I promise that I don't need medication nor stimulants to be this crazy haha...

BUT, I do have an awesome joke for you guys, ok, you ready for this, here goes nothing!

So, what is the difference between a train and a tree? (*Pauses for dramatic effect)...

(*5 years later*) One LEAVES its SHED and the other SHEDS its LEAVES! :)

Genius I tell you genius. I think I laughed for like an hour after my little sister told me that one.

Ok, so last chapter, WAIT! I just thought of another joke, ok, so I have to tell you this one.

What do you get when you cross a porcupine with a tortoise?

...A SLOW POKE!

I'm telling ya, these are the classics.

So, last chapter was pretty intense, what with the whole family feuding which ended with Uru almost dying, the entire army massacred, and Ahadi drug off in a metaphorical chain, sounds like your average run of the mill dysfunctional family right? No? Really, how in the world do your family fights end? Haha, I'm kidding.

Ok, so when I was younger I always sided with Simba. I don't know, Nala was really harsh with everything she said to him. But, Nala didn't know the full extent of Simba's guilt...still Nala, I mean Simba knows Mufasa's dead, that's not something you should throw in his face. However, I would probably react in the same way that Nala did if I was looking at someone who not only was capable of saving the lives of my mother, friends, and other loved ones, but someone whose responsibility it was to do so. Nala took responsibility by risking her life leaving the pride and crossing a desert to try and find help, it's certainly not unreasonable for her to expect the same of Simba.

As for my favorite part. Well, I really enjoyed writing the part where Ahadi and Uru are keeping guard the night before the first mission; just that whole scene was fun to put into words.

Ok enough of me boring you and confirming all of your suspicions that yes, I am indeed crazy, I will let you read what you actually came for and not all of my nonsense haha.

I'm going back to my old song weaving habit as I've decided to call it lol. I did a lot of debating on what song to use for this-there were so many that had certain parts that I wanted it took me awhile to decide. I almost went with Sound the Bugle from the movie Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron, but then I did one last song flip through my ipod and stumbled upon another and I knew, this was the song for this chapter.

I want to thank Incarnate Firefly, he asked me if I would check out a video on Youtube that he'd made with this song for a Lion King amv. It was such a beautiful song, I instantly fell in love with it. The song is called Heaven's Divide, the artist Donna Burke. You MUST listen to this song in order to get the meaning of this chapter- and I recommend watching Incarnate Firefly's video, it's absolutely stunning. He has the link for it in his profile.

Enjoy :)

Chapter 33: The Guiding Light

Petals of white, cover fields

Flowing in grieving tears

And all the hearts

Once new

Old and shattered now.

The four lionesses huddled in the small den together as tears streamed down their faces. There was nothing they could do to escape the wails of agony that sliced through the night.

The cries of their broken king.

Mohatu let out another mournful roar as he was plagued by yet another nightmare fueled by the lies Kambili fed to him. With all the strength he could possibly gather, the lion stood to his feet and walked to the exit of the cave.

The guards outside the cave saw Mohatu approaching them.

"Get back in there!" one of them growled.

"My daughter, Uru, she's out there. I must find her." Mohatu insisted.

One of the guards snickered.

"Your daughter is dead you old fool. You were too weak to protect her."

"No..." Mohatu whispered.

One of the evil lions gave the old king a swipe across the face and pulled him out of the cave onto the flat surface outside the den and began to violently abuse the tortured lion, tearing at his matted mane and dragging his claws over Mohatu's sides.

Where they were huddled, Kanya, Zuria, Eme, and Laini cringed as they heard Mohatu plead for mercy.

Suddenly, Laini dashed out of the cave.

"Laini, no!" Eme cried.

But it was too late, the young lioness had already come upon the the violent guards.

"Leave him alone!" she demanded.

The two lions instantly stopped and turned to the young lioness.

"Well, well, well, what do we have here?" one of them said.

"I don't know, she seems pretty firey to me. Think we can handle her?"

"With pleasure." the other responded licking his lips.

Laini gulped, it was know that she realized her mistake.

She slowly back away, preparing to make a run for it.

"Hey, what's going on here?" another lion approached, a stern look on his face.

"N-nothing sir. We've just got some insubordinates. Nothing too serious."

The lion looked at the bruised and bloodied king as well as the lioness with fear in her eyes. He thought he had a pretty good impression of what was going on.

"Back to your posts. I'll handle the situation from here." the lion commanded.

The two guards instantly obeyed.

Laini's eyes were on her king. Since the day that Princess Uru's death had been announced, no one in the pride had seen him. Kambili kept him locked away in one of the lower dens of Pride Rock, forbidding anyone from entering on the penalty of death. But though none of the Pride Landers saw their king, his cries of pain stood testament for the abuse he was enduring.

"Your majesty?" Laini whispered as she nudged his matted fur.

"Uru?" Mohatu said feebly lifting his head.

"No, it- it's me Laini..."

"Laini...have you seen Uru and Jolina today, they haven't come home yet." Mohatu replied.

Laini felt her heart break. So the rumors were true, the king had lost his mind. And who could blame him? The only place of comfort that he had left were in the dreams of yesterday, far, far from their cruel reality.

"I'm sure that they will return soon." she whispered.

Laini heard the lion approach, she had never seen him around here before.

"Help me get him back in the cave?" the lion asked.

"Oh, of course." Laini answered a bit nervous.

Why had he asked her? All the other lions under Kambili's authority would have simply demanded, and certainly never asked politely.

The two lions managed to get Mohatu back in the cave, where the old lion sank into sleep. Laini set to cleaning the blood from his face and the other wounds that covered his body.

"What's your name?" the strange lion asked.

"Laini." and after a moment she added hesistantly, "What's yours?"

"Dameii." the lion answered.

oOo

"Look, if there is a chance that he is still out there, I have to believe that I can save him." Tamalei begged.

"Oh, won't you stop with this nonsense? Your brother is dead. Gone. Kambili's forces are powerful, we are three lionesses, there is nothing we can do that wouldn't get us killed. And I don't know about you, but I would actually like to live!" Kanala said.

"You told Ahadi and I that you knew of a pride of lions that could help us, lions that had remained out of Kambili's grasp."

"Yes, they are led by my sister. But she doesn't help anyone without there being something in it for her."

"There is, it won't be long until they too are taken. There is something in it for all of us." Tamalei insisted.

"What?"

"Freedom... My mother didn't roll over when this happened to her. And I don't intend on disgracing her and my brother by giving up."

oOo

Love can kill.

Love will die.

Give me wings to fly.

Fleeing this world so cold

I just wonder why.

Why? Why had all of this happened to her? How was she supposed to move on from this?

The early morning rays spilled down onto Uru where she lay beneath the tree, unsure what was more painful, the burning wound on her abdomen or the hole in her heart.

There were three of them left. Three. How could she even hope to save her family now?

Uru sat up as she saw Tamalei approach, the golden lioness seemed much more composed than she had last night.

"Uru, Kanala and I managed to make a small kill. Won't you come eat?"

Uru heard her stomach growl, but she felt no hunger. Her eyes were heavy, but she felt no exhaustion.

She felt nothing.

Tamalei sighed as she watched the younger lioness close her eyes and turn away.

"Very well, dear. Try to get some rest. But you do need to eat sometime or another." Tamalei said.

Uru didn't really hear the words Tamalei spoke to her; she just lay down on the cool earth and let her body's exhaustion take her away from the darkness of reality.

If she could, she would stay in that darkness forever; where the pain was easier to bear.

Her hopes were gone, her determination gone, and her strength gone.

There was nothing left, nothing to live for.

oOo

Cold as the dark

Now my words are frosted with every breath.

Still the hate burns wild

growing inside this heart.

oOo

"That is why you will obey me."

Ahadi watched in horror as an old lioness crumbled to the ground. Her head was laying at an awkward angle; her neck had been snapped.

"Her blood is on your paws. If you do not honor your pledge to me, she will not be the last. And remember, the next could be that stupid orphan you call brother." Kambili said.

Do you understand?" the cruel lion asked.

Ahadi's eyes filled with hate, but what choice did he have? Did it all even matter anymore? Dameii had betrayed him. Tamalei, he would never see her again. And Uru...she was dead. He didn't have anyone to live for... no one to love anymore. He had no reason to cling to the dwindling light left inside his broken heart.

"Yes." Ahadi said.

"Good. You will stay here in the northern regions to oversee the forces patrolling these areas while I return to the Pride Lands. Any insurrections should be crushed immediately, swift and hard. That is the most efficient way to make sure any dreams of rebellion are squashed. I trust you know effective methods in order to do so. You have 5 divisions at your disposal along with three hyena squadrons. As my new second in command, any of the officers here in the northern region are subordinate to your instructions. You will obey my commands without question, any further orders I have will be sent to you through my messengers. Are we clear?"

"Yes." Ahadi said.

"Yes, what?" Kambili smirked.

"Yes...sir."

Kambili watched the emotions play across the younger lion's face. And when a hard, numb coldness filled Ahadi's eyes, the evil lion knew he had won the younger lion's soul.

For Ahadi, there would be no escape.

oOo

It had been three weeks since Dameii's betrayal.

Luckily, the wound that Kambili had inflicted upon Uru's unconscious body had healed, though it was still quite tender; and a raw, pink scar ran down the length of her abdomen.

Tamalei, Kanala, and Uru had left the area around the base; the scent of death and the painful memories too much to bear. And the three had headed southeast, intending to avoid the heavy concentration of Kambili's troops just north of the Pride Lands.

What Uru was unaware of though, was that Tamalei and Kanala had a plan.

"I think here is a good place to rest." Tamalei said in the most cheerful voice she could manage.

Kanala immediately sat down under the thick canopy of the small forest.

"Oh, I'm getting too old for all of this." she groaned.

Tamalei sat down beside the older lioness and looked at Uru.

"Uru dear, there is something Kanala and I have to tell you." she began.

Uru, who had also taken a spot upon the ground turned her attention to Tamalei.

"Kanala knows of a pride that is located to the southeast of the Pride Lands. We have reason to believe that they will help us... What I'm trying to say is, there's a chance we can still beat Kambili. I'm not saying it will be easy, I'm not saying that it will work, but, we have a new chance." Tamalei said.

Uru didn't even sit up. She turned a lethargic and weary expression to Tamalei.

"What's the point? We've already failed, how many times do we have to watch the ones we love die around us before we understand that we're never going to win? Kambili is too powerful, we don't stand a chance. And I'm tired of fighting Tamalei... I'm tired."

"But Uru, think of all those lions suffering under Kambili, think of your home, your kingdom, your father. Think of Ahadi..."

"AHADI IS DEAD! And my pride is lost, my father, I'm sure Kambili has already killed him. I give up Tamalei. Don't you get it? I. give. up." Uru said as hot tears drenched her face.

At this point, Kanala had stood and come over to the younger lioness.

"Look here you little wench! Yes, it's very well likely that Ahadi, Dameii, and your father are all dead. But you have a kingdom to fight for. For King's sake, are you really going to allow that black hearted scum to sit upon a throne that is rightfully yours?! You are a Queen. Why don't you act like one?!"

Uru sat up as she looked at the older lioness, sharp pangs of guilt and sadness cutting through her as Kanala's harsh words echoed in her mind. Without thinking, Uru got to her feet and ran, more tears running down her cheek.

Tamalei turned to the older lioness.

"I hardly think that was the best way to handle it."

"Hmmf. Serves her right. She can't go her whole life being such a weakling."

"Kanala. How can you say that? She's been through so much, we all have."

"Because, I have no use for someone who, when the going gets rough, rolls over and gives up."

"Kanala, she's young and has lost so many that she loved..."

"This is war Tamalei. And war is not about love. It's about revenge. The sooner she learns that, the better off she'll be."

oOo

When the wind changes course

When the stars align

I will reach up to you and leave this all behind

When Heavens Divide

Uru ran into the forest, the stinging tears blinding her as she fled and paying no heed to the branches that whipped her in the face nor the direction that she was running.

When she'd spent all of the energy that she could spare, her legs gave out from under her as she sank to the ground. Her rapid, ragged breathing chocking the sobs that violently shook her body.

Turning her face to the night sky, Uru looked up at the gleaming stars. But their light gave her no comfort, no hope.

Ahadi had been right. There were no Great Kings. Her mother didn't live on in her. There were no guiding lights in this abyss of darkness. She was completely alone.

"Mom. You're not with me. You never were." she whispered.

oOo

(Flashback)

"I don't know Ahadi, it's just, I always get this feeling that she's with me. I knows it sounds strange saying that my mother watched over me. But it's like, like in the moments I don't feel strong, I don't know, there's just something that keeps me going...I have to believe that I'm not alone. I have to believe that there is something up there, watching over us. Something helping get us through all the bad so that something good can come."

Ahadi looked at the lioness sprawled on the grass beside him. They had just finished another training session and were now casually relaxing as the last few hours of daylight dwindled on.

"I used to feel that way too...before." he trailed off.

"Before you were captured by Kambili." she finished.

Ahadi looked up at her in shock.

"How do you know about that."

"Tamalei told me...Is it ok for me to know?" she asked softy.

"Yeah...I- I'm glad you know." he answered.

"Ahadi, do you mind if I ask you something? Something personal?"

"Go ahead."

"Well, it's just that I was wondering...what do you think of me? I mean, do you think I'm just a silly, spoiled Princess?"

The large lion paused for a moment before answering her question.

"I think you are a smart, strong, and resilient young lioness. You're a rare flame of light in a world full of darkness. You, you have a fire inside of you. But, I think you're afraid to unleash it...I hope one day you see yourself as the brave warrior that I see you as..."

Uru sat back, shocked. Ahadi thought she was brave and strong?

"So, what do you think of me?" he asked with a grin.

"Well, I don't know if I can top that, but..."

Uru stepped toward him, hardly aware of her actions as she turned her eyes up to look into his.

Ahadi watched as she came up to him, an incontrollable wave of heat swept through him and he struggled to mask his sharp intake of breath. He watched her eyes, framed by their dark, sensual lashes, as they turn up to look at him. They were darker than they had been the moment before and he saw something dancing in them, something he'd never seen cross those innocent eyes before...was it desire?

"I think that you are the bravest lion I've ever known. I think you've been hurt a great deal, but you still continue to fight with no reward for yourself. And I think you try to hide the good in you under a mask of darkness."

Ahadi took a deep breath as he stepped away, trying to silence his pounding heart as he resisted the urge to move closer to her.

"Sounds like someone has a crush." Ahadi joked giving her a playful grin, hoping a joke would calm the growing tension. between them.

Uru rolled her eyes.

"I'm sure I don't know what you're talking about." she said turning her nose up at him in mock disgust.

"Don't play coy with me Princess."

Uru stuck her tongue out at him as they both began to laugh.

"You know, you don't have to call me that." she said after her giggles had subsided.

"What?"

"Princess. You don't have to call me that?"

"Well, m'lady, what should I call you?"

Uru shot him another playful glare.

"Uru. Just Uru. We're friends now, right?" she asked.

(End of Flashback)

Kambili had finally departed for the Pride Lands, giving Ahadi a moment's peace. Something he knew he wasn't going to get much of from now on.

Ahadi looked out into the cold night, his mind wandering to better days.

Even if every thought of her sent a stab of pain through him, he still couldn't banish the memory of her.

Ahadi looked up to the stars as a warm breeze blew his mane; one star in particular caught his attention.

Maybe Uru had been right, maybe those who lived pure and noble lives really did go to the stars to watch over the ones they'd left behind.

And as he looked at that twinkling star glimmering against the black canvas of the night sky, he couldn't help but smile, bittersweet though it was.

"Yeah, Uru, we're friends." he whispered, a silver tear sliding down his cheek.

If anyone deserved to be a bright glimmering star, it was her.

And maybe one day, they would meet again... somewhere in the shimmering eternity of the heavens.

oOo

She couldn't remember why she had come here. Then she heard the noise of a thousand thundering hooves.

Looking down, she saw a huge herd of stampeding wildebeest pouring into the gorge, the steep walls containing the panicked animals.

"Dad!" she heard a voice yell.

It seemed to be her own voice, but she couldn't tell.

She then saw a huge lion jump from the depths of the snorting herd and blinding dust, but she didn't recognize him.

Suddenly, she saw a shadow emerge from the cliff side, its sickly green eyes glowing as it approached the struggling lion.

She didn't know the lion, but for some reason, he seemed, almost familiar.

She heard the lion called out to the shadow and with horror, she saw the black form sink claws into the golden lion's paws.

Sensing what was coming, she tried to run to help the golden lion, but she couldn't control her legs.

Then, an agonizing roar ripped through the air as she watched the golden lion plummet toward the rampaging beasts.

She screamed, but it seemed that her voice wouldn't come out and before she could react, the image started to melt away into another scene, this one all too familiar.

"NOOO!" she heard her father roar as they both watched in horror as the vengeful currents took her mother over the edge of a drop off. As her father began frantically trying to climb down the steep walls, she saw the dark shadow again, but this time it was coming for her.

Before she could move, the shadow pushed her over the bank and into the raging waters.

She felt the current pulling her, faster and faster toward the drop off. Frantically, she struggled against the raging waters as it took her under into its icy depths. Liquid fire burned her lungs as she desperately tried to resurface.

She was now upon the drop off, this was it, her life would soon end.

She closed her eyes as she felt her body begin plummeting and then...

Nothing.

"You may open your eyes now." a voice said.

But it was not a voice that she heard with her ears, it was almost as if she felt it in her mind. And it was a voice that she had not heard in a very, very long time.

Slowly, she opened her eyes, but to her surprise, she saw no one.

The lioness gave a sigh.

"Oh, I was only dreaming." she thought to herself.

When Heavens Divide

I will see the choices within my hands

How can we ever protect and fight

With our tiny souls

Then a sudden blinding light appeared, the winds began to howl, and the bright light continued to grow more intense. Through her squinting, the lioness saw that the light seemed to shift and bend, shaping itself into the image of a beautiful lioness. A lioness she'd been sure she would never see again.

"Hello my little Uru." the lioness said.

"M-Mom?" she asked in shock. "How, how are you here?"

The lioness smiled.

"That is not important my child." The lioness then turned to face the landscape before them. "This is what is important."

Uru turned to look, she was standing on the summit of Pride Rock, a place she wasn't sure she would ever see again.

But as she looked out onto the Pride Lands, she saw it was not the Pride Lands that she had left behind.

The sunlight light, which had once spread its golden beams across the rolling savannah, was now blocked and distorted by a gray expanse of dust and dark clouds. The once waving seas of grass- the color of the most vibrant green- had now withered to brown dust. A land once full of life, was now a land of death.

Looking down, she saw a shadow, the shadow was on the promontory, giving a smug grin as it surveyed the dying land.

"I always told you everything is connected in The Great Circle of Life. Our kingdom cannot prosper under the rule of those who do not respect and cherish it. Uru, on the day of your birth, you were anointed with the juice of the fruits bared by this land to symbolize the royal blood in your veins and the dirt of the earth to represent your sacred tie to your kingdom." the lioness spoke.

"But what does that mean? I cannot possibly go back, even if I wanted to. I lost mom. I-I'm not like you. I'm not strong enough." Uru said.

"My dear one, if you do not return -if you forsake your place in the Circle- our land, our pride, our kingdom will die."

Uru saw that the lioness was beginning to fade.

"Wait. Mother please, how, how can I do this? I'm only one lioness!"

"You must find the strength within yourself, Remember your destiny my child and you will find the courage to fight for your kingdom and for your family. You are the Queen of the Pride Lands."

The golden light around the lioness began to dim and the image of her mother's smiling face faded away.

"Wait! Mom. Please, I need you! Tell me what I must do!" Uru screamed.

But the her mother was already gone. She felt a breeze blow past her and a soft voice, though it seemed far, far away whispered.

"I will always be with you."

Uru awoke. Her head was spinning as she tried to hold on to the fading fragments of the dream she'd awoke from. She'd again seen the dead land that had haunted her dreams many a night.

Uru thought back to the dream, the dream she'd had about her mother.

Her mother. The Queen who had given everything to save her kingdom.

Uru knew the question now was,

Did she have the strength to do the same?

Let me shine like the sun

Through the doubts and fear

Do you feel the storm approach

As the end draws near

She thought back on the days of her cubhood and adolescent. How even on the rainy days, her home was so full of light and life. She remembered the shadow land of her dream; she remembered the cold hearted lion who had destroyed everything.

She thought of the prides and kingdoms that had been overthrown and she thought of the lions who had been enslaved, their only hope to escape the gruesome brutality was death.

She thought of her friends and fellow troops that had been ruthlessly massacred. She thought of Ahadi. The lion she loved destroyed by his own father.

An intense feeling began tighting around her throat and well up from her stomach. She'd never felt such a rush of rage. And a deep, deep feeling began to take root in Uru's heart.

It was a feeling of the coldest, deepest...hate.

oOo

I will dive into the fire

Spilling the blood of my desire

The very last time

My name scorched into the sky

Tamalei and Kanala looked up as they Uru approach-a cold look of determination on her features.

"Where are those lions and how do we reach them?" Uru asked.

"They live in the marshes of the south. Kanala's sister is their leader." Tamalei said.

"What difference does it make to you? I thought you'd rolled over and given up." Kanala spat at Uru.

"Let's just say I had a change of heart." Uru replied her tone equally as bitter.

"Uru, are you sure you can go through with this...it is going to be almost impossible." Tamalei said.

Uru took a deep breath as she looked the other lionesses in the eyes.

"I have lost everything. But there is still a hope that I can set my pride free. And I will stop at nothing to save my home. Kambili is a cruel hearted tyrant; we are going to find this pride and create a new army, we are going to crush his forces till there is nothing left, we are going to make them pay for the lions they have taken, and I am going to see that black- hearted monster's blood spill, or I am going to die trying.

oOo

When Heavens Divide

Time will come to softly lay me down

Then I can see a face that I long to see

And for you, only you

I would give anything

Leaving a trace for love

To find a way

When Heavens Divide.

It would be a long journey to reache the marshes of the south. But within the dark-furred lioness was a heart beating for the salvation of her kingdom and with the burning lust to see her enemies dead.

There was a happy future, perhaps not for herself, but for her children and grandchildren. And for that, she would fight till her last breath.

Her mother before her had made the sacrifice for the future of her pride, and now Uru was going to do the same.

She was done being the weak, innocent princess.

Now was the time to become what Ahadi had always told her she had within her. A part of her that she had been afraid of her entire life.

Now was the time to be a warrior.

A/N: Well, that is all I have for now. Don't fret lovelies, the next chapter is on its way. I hope that you all enjoyed it and that you thought the song fit.

1) Why do you think Rafiki's tree was the only tree not dead during Scar's reign? And, why don't you think Simba recognized him before the Mufasa's Ghost scene?

2) I saw a random interview of a woman by the name of Katie Hopkins-she was on the Apprentice at one point and she is British. What do you think of you and her rather blunt opinions? (If you know who I'm talking about).

Thanks guys! Till next time, all my love to you. :)