Chapter 36 – Fiercest in the Pridelands
Zira fell asleep late that night, after hours of rolling from side to side. And to think that the few weeks of finally living outside of her father's shadow had been spoiled so fast… She was angry, and her bitter disappointment made it hard for her to find any rest.
Earlier that day, her mother, now the leader of the Five Stones pride, announced to her the arrival of a group of guests… But when the curious young lioness appeared at the spot herself, it turned out that the ones who came to visit were from the Marshlands.
Then she saw him again- Kimya, her betrothed to-be mate… She didn't even know him. She hated him not for whom he was, but for how he was forced into her life. In fact, she had far more hate for Kimya's father- the one who arranged the betrothal… although, unfortunately she had no more power to stop the lord of the Marshlands when he announced that, from that day on, his son would stay and live with his future mate's pride.
Of course, Zira was furious. Even her mother's rational attitude couldn't change it, and when Hasira said that 'the pride needed a male' and that 'Kimya was a handsome one', the young lioness paid it no attention. When she was left alone with her betrothed, she refused to even speak to him. Kimya tried to be nice, and revealed to Zira that he wasn't happy about being sent to Five Stones himself- he was being punished by his father for running away to go to the volcano, where he had to be rescued from hyenas by king Mufasa… In the end, however, Zira lied down to sleep away from her pride, and as far from Kimya as she possibly could.
But that turned out to be a fortunate coincidence- or at least she thought so as soon as she was woken up by a familiar voice. Even though she was tired, the very sound of the words she heard made all of her anger and sorrow vanish instantly- and her heart shiver with joy.
Scar whispered to her from the darkness and from behind some bushes… Was he trying to hide? Certainly, there was no more reason to do that, now that they got rid of Nguvu. So why was he standing out of sight? And why was his voice so… changed?
-"Zira… don't come any closer" – he almost ordered her when she arose from the place where she'd been sleeping, his trembling murmur making her think that he sounded as if he was freezing cold.
-"Scar!" – she purred with delight, yet halted obediently. – "What's the matter? Is everything… alright?"
Her friend's silence that followed upset the lioness even more. She wanted to speak to him badly about his troubles, yet now it appeared that he had more serious worries of his own.
The prince of the Pridelands exhaled loudly, still lurking in the shadows.
-"I have… failed" – he stated finally, sounding too shamed to show his face to Zira.
-"No, why are you saying that?! I know that it was your cursed brother, not you, who rescued Kimya! You've no reason to worry…"
-"No" – Scar interrupted her. – "That is not… what I'm talking about."
It was as if he was too weak to speak properly… Stunned, Zira groaned internally.
-"What happened?" – she muttered, her own voice breaking.
Then the black-maned lion slowly came out to face her. And when he did, Zira gasped, hardly able to recognize the one she knew so well.
Scar was first in line to the throne.
After he realized that, there wasn't anything more important he could think of- neither the Lion Guard, nor his hyenas, nor anyone. He had to become king- as he always should have.
And for that to happen, Mufasa had to be disposed of.
His brother wasn't innocent, after all. Time and time again, he proved to him how much he despised him, ignoring and humiliating his younger sibling whenever he had the chance. Mufasa had already tried to have him removed from the leadership of the Lion Guard, and now that he realized that, even as king, he was unable to do so, he decided to interfere in his duties whenever he saw fit. As if Scar's presence was nothing but a nuisance.
He had been insulted. And no one insulted him with impunity.
The way in which he could make his brother vanish for good and assume the throne had always been right there, before his very eyes- and when he realized that, he was surprised that he needed Samira to point it out to him. It was obvious. Scar had the mightiest, most skilled lions in the kingdom by his side, as his faithful companions, ready to carry out his every he needed was to find a way to convince the Lion Guard to join him.
And when he did, one day, abandoning all other duties, Scar took his fellow guardians to the bank of the Mwangani river, far away from Pride Rock. There he could address his friends privately, with security that no one else would hear the conversation.
When he stood at the shore of the rocky, raging river, his face was covered with an expression of deep sorrow. He'd been silent and mysterious for most of the day, and his companions were starting to feel uneasy.
-"Thank you for joining me here" – Scar spoke sadly, yet loud enough to outshout the sound of the roaring water.
-"Sir, is there some kind of a problem?" – the deeply troubled Kilio asked, expressing everyone else's concerns.
Scar sighed, massaging his temples. It was as if he couldn't possibly utter the words he wanted to speak.
-"The problem… is a serious one" – he mumbled finally. – "And I don't think we've ever faced a situation as dreadful as this one…"
-"We'll give you all the help we can possibly provide, Scar" – Mkali assured him.
-"Yeah, you can trust us" – Duma added. – "Feel free to speak your mind. After what we've been through, I'm sure we can take anything!"
-"Are you sure of that, my friend?" – his leader gazed at the fastest guardian in a way that made him lose some of his confidence. Then, sitting down on the ground, he continued. – "The facts I have recently discovered cause a lot of pain to me personally, but especially because they are truly devastating to the whole kingdom. And that is because they concern my brother…"
-"The king?" – the guardians gasped, surprised.
-"The usurper" – Scar corrected them.
This one shocking word caused the four lions to create a huge uproar. They all spoke at the same time, what made it impossible to understand what each of them was saying. When their chief finally managed to make them settle down, they all fixed their eyes at him.
-"I am afraid I have to reveal to you a certain dark secret which Mufasa has been hiding from everyone" – Scar's voice was still vibrant with sorrow. – "You all remember that, the day after my mother's death, he came to us and announced to the whole pride that my father, our former king, blaming himself for his mate's untimely departure, decided to flee from the kingdom and become a rogue, leaving the throne in the hands of his eldest son. I, however, have recently found out that this is not what actually happened… It is with great grief that I announce to you that my own brother, breathing with the lust for power, had actually murdered our father and your king, hiding his body afterwards so that the pride could believe the story he made up."
-"This is… unbelievable!" – Mkali uttered, his mouth agape. The other guardians also looked as if the very thought of Mufasa being a murderer was completely inconceivable to them.
-"How do you know about this?" – Giza asked Scar, narrowing his eyes.
-"I understand that this all sounds ludicrous…" – the prince looked from one lion to the other, trying to convince each of them that he was saying the truth. – "You've heard, however, that the leader of the Lion Guard is gifted with a special link which connects him with the Old Kings of the past. I myself would never have accused Mufasa of as horrible a deed as patricide… But it were the Ancients who revealed his guilt to me. And that is undeniable."
-"Mufasa had never expressed any desire to claim the throne before the right time for that came…" – Mkali continued to shake his head, unable to accept the things he was being told.
-"It is certain that he camouflaged himself well" – Scar admitted – "but you've not known him all your lives, as I had. And I know that, even though he tricked the whole pride to think otherwise, he had indeed always desired our father's throne… and that he is guilty."
-"No no no…" – the completely devastated Kilio continued turning his big head. – "Mufasa is a good king! He saved the Marshlander cubs, he did it just the other day!"
-"Only to be admired" – Scar uttered in a relentless accusatorial tone. – "Which is the main motive for most of his seemingly noble actions… and the ignoble ones, as well."
A long silence followed, during which each of the guardians battled with their own thoughts. That was to be the most difficult battle they would ever fight.
-"What do you want us to do?" – Giza asked finally. The bravest among them looked a little different that everyone else, giving the impression of a great anger arising within him…
Scar looked at him in a way that left no room for denial.
-"We must stop my brother. He is guilty of murdering the rightful king… and the punishment for that is death."
Kilio, Mkali and Duma shivered at the very thought.
-"I said that you could trust us, but this… this is too much, Scar!" – the fastest guardian, no longer the jolliest one of the bunch, groaned in shock.
Giza, having his eyes still fixed at their leader, continued to speak.
-"And what happens then?" – he asked.
-"Then" – the prince responded – "I, as the one who is next in line to the throne, will assume the leadership of the Pridelands. A new leader for the Lion Guard will be chosen from among the four of you."
After hearing that, Giza bared his fangs… and then, astonishing the others, he started laughing.
Now the bravest in the Pridelands was not someone who laughed very often. And especially not at a time like this.
-"Hahaha…" – chuckled the dark lion, almost losing his breath, attracting all of his companions' attention.
-"This is not a joke, you imbecile!" – Scar growled at him.
But the bravest guardian paid him no attention.
-"They were right…" – he gasped. – "… you are corrupt after all! We've all been blind! Everyone, don't listen to him! Scar's lying. King Mufasa did not kill his father!"
-"What?!" – their insulted leader clenched his fangs. – "How dare you…"
-"You're not the only one who has visions, Scar. Upesi told me everything! He warned me, and I didn't believe him… It turns out that, all this time, I've been a fool!"
Upesi? – the former leader's nephew couldn't believe his ears. – Why in the world did he appear to Giza, and not to me?!
-"Your insinuations are completely irrational!" – he warned the dark guardian. – "You will execute my order, or you shall face the consequences…"
-"And what will you do if we don't?" – this time, Giza gave him a look of his bright, green eyes which was completely serious. – "Will you kill us, like you did with Siri?"
The other guardians gasped again… and Scar fixed his eyes at each of them one by one, wondering whom they would believe. Finally, he walked over to stand in front of Giza's face. With a wrath that made him grind his fangs, he spat out:
-"I've create you. Each one of you. Without me, you would be nothing but commoners. But you, Giza… I saved your life once. Don't you remember? If it weren't for me, Korofi the leopard would have snapped your neck. Is this how you repay me? By betrayal, and by accusing me of murder?"
He then turned toward the rest.
-"I am the leader of the Lion Guard!" – screamed Taka the Scarred. – "I order all of you to join me in overthrowing Mufasa. What is your answer?"
He gazed at the companions who'd been with him for all those years… He couldn't sense what was going on in their hearts, but he already saw the response they would give to him painted on their faces.
Kilio, the strongest lion in the Pridelands, was shaking with fear- dreading to disobey his superior, which he knew he had to do, having realized what Scar had become.
Mkali, his most trusted advisor, whom Scar wanted to make leader in his own place after taking the throne, fixing his hawk eyes at him with determined opposition.
Duma, always so joyful, now hardly able to think about anything else than what would happen to Uroho, his pregnant mate, and their cubs that would have to be born in the midst of this whole mess.
And then he heard Giza's voice. It was only now that the mysterious lion revealed to him his true self. And that left him no other choice.
-"You lust after nothing but power and the spilling of innocent blood… It's you who needs to be stopped! This is the end, Scar… your leadership is over. But tell me- what requires greater courage? Going up, or coming back down? Is it easier to face the height while looking up toward the tall place you wish to reach, or to face the distance that separates you from the ground while looking down on it?"
Scar remembered that this was the same question he asked his comrade during the Leonine Tournament… and then saw the dark guardian get ready to attack- to push him down from the high spot which he had ascended. At that moment, nothing mattered anymore- the friendship and companionship he once shared with his companions vanished, shattered by their insolent disobedience.
The black-maned lion's blood began to boil in his veins.
Before Giza was able to even touch him with a single claw or fang, Scar opened his mouth, summoning his Ancestors of old. They answered with a rage which corresponded with his own.
The four guardians, overpowered by the force of the Roar of the Elders, were rapt from the ground and thrown straight into the Mwangani river with full strength. The sound of Scar's vicious howl, as well as the raging of the water, completely muted their screams.