All the Lion Guard had to do was follow the screams. The young galago didn't have to lead them far to find them.
"Help! Anyone!"
The Guard recognized that voice as Laini, the leader of this particular galago troop. They wasted no time as various sounds of carnage rang out, but what got their attention the most was a loud screech. All five girls came to a stop, while their galago messenger scampered behind Vitani's leg. Never had they heard a sound like that before. Immiadetly their minds raced as they tried to imagine the animal that was attached to it.
As soon as they neared the galago's tree, the image solidified.
"What in the name of the Pride Lands is that!?" Shabaha exclaimed.
The creature before them was unlike anything they had ever seen. But right now all they cared about was what it was doing. The creature itself clawed at the tree, the galagos who had claimed it screaming all the while, doing their best to escape the creature's grasp.
"Hey!" Vitani called out. Her voice got the thing's attention as it turned around with a snarl, "Leave those galagos alone!"
The creature in question planted itself firmly on the ground and at last, the Lion Guard drank in its features.
It stood on all fours, like most animals, but its skin was an ebony black. It lacked fur or scales and instead was covered in some kind of carapace. At least that's how they would describe it. The body overall seemed skeletal, with what appeared to be the outline of bones pressing against the skin. A long razor-tipped tail swayed in the air and the creature's face drew in the most looks. The head itself was long, the top of its head covered in a dome-like substance. It had no eyes, but its mouth was filled with two rows of razor-sharp teeth. Saliva dripped down from its maw, splattering against the ground.
"You aren't kidding Shabaha," Tazama remarked.
Vitani observed the situation, and against the tree, she noticed a zebra corpse. There was no doubt this creature was the same one that attacked Thurston's herd.
"All right, tell me, who are you, and why are you attacking innocent animals?" Vitani demanded.
The creature tilted its head, whatever form of vision it had focusing on the mark upon the lion's shoulders.
"Lion...Guard?" It questioned.
The Guard themselves was taken aback slightly by the fact the monster spoke, but more so that it knew who they were.
"Man that voice is creepy," Kasi remarked.
"All right you know who we are, so I need you to leave those galagos alone, and go back to where you came from, now!" Vitani ordered.
The monster let out a growl, shuddering its head before it spoke again, "Where? Came...from... where?" It almost sounded like it was asking a question.
Before anyone else could act, the creature shot forward, claws outstretched. The attack itself was uncoordinated so the former Outsiders saw it coming. Easily dodging, the five girls watched as the creature whirled around to face them again.
"I don't think it wants to leave," Imara noted.
"Agreed," Vitani concurred, "Till the Pride Lands end."
"Lion Guard defend!" The Guard all chimed in, issuing their battle cry.
The defenders of the Circle of Life charged forward, yet it appeared the monster had gained its reflexes for the moment one went after it. The girls circled it, causing it to snarl as it surveyed its attackers. It eyed all members of the Guard carefully, sizing them up before it acted. The Guard knew it was forming a strategy. Had that been why its lunge had been without direction? Was it testing them out? Whichever the case, it headed towards the first thing it saw: Kasi.
The lioness swiftly dodged as the monster struck, being the Lion Guard's fastest it was no problem.
"Not even close!" The lioness boasted.
The creature merely hissed and struck again, this time towards one of the smaller members of their group. Thankfully, Tazama had good eyes and was able to anticipate its movements with precision.
"No! You're...ruining...the…surprise!" The monster hissed.
Tazama only looked on in confusion, even as the strongest member, Imara slammed right into the monster. The creature spun and tumbled as the burly lioness's strength overwhelmed it. As the creature shook its head, a burst of shrill laughter rang out.
"This thing ain't nothing!" Shabaha boasted.
The Lion Guard's bravest boldly charged forward, taking no care towards her safety. But that's how reckless Shabaha could be.
The creature barely had any time to react as Shabaha slashed against it with her claws. That proved to be a fatal mistake. Suddenly Shabaha let out a cry of pain.
"Shabaha!" The four lionesses cried.
Shabaha continued to cry out, "OW! OW! OW! OWWWW!" She exclaimed as she tried to banish away the pain that coursed through her. "My paw! It hurts!" She cried out.
Vitani growled with fury as she saw her friend in pain, "That's it. I'm ending this!" She exclaimed.
The creature eyed her curiously, hissing all the while. Suddenly a great rush flowed through the air. Clouds began to form in the sky and the creature swore it saw the symbol upon the lioness was glowing. Just then the lioness let out a roar. So loud that it seemed that the clouds, which had formed into lions, roared along with her. A great rush of air struck against the monster and it let out a shrill hiss as it flew into the air, the roar taking it along with it. Vitani watched as the creature soared through the air until it was out of sight.
Vitani took a moment for a breath, but then quickly attended to Shabaha.
"Are you alright?" She asked.
Shabaha let out a whimper as she held out her paw, "No! My paw!" Everyone gasped as they gazed upon Shabaha's paw, "Its blood, it's like fire!"
Sure enough, Shabaha's paw certainly looked like it was burned. Whatever the blood was made of it hadn't gotten too deep, but it was enough to sear off the fur.
"Blood that burns you?" What kind of monster is this?" Imara asked.
Suddenly the galagos scampered down the tree, their leader Laini being the first to speak, "Oh thank you Lion Guard! We were so frightened!"
Looking from Shabaha then to Laini, she addressed the galago, "It's no problem Laini. Are you alright?"
"Oh yes. We're fine, it didn't get any of us, but we're probably going to find a new tree if it ever comes back!" The galago noted.
"Well, I doubt that thing will be back period!" Kasi boasted.
"I wouldn't be too sure about that," Vitani noted skeptically.
"What do you mean? You sent it flying with the Roar. You don't need my eyes to see that," Tazama noted.
"Remember what Kion said? He used the Roar on his enemies multiple times and they kept coming back," Looking on ahead where the creature had flown, she remarked with a bitter tone, "I highly doubt it's going to give up."
The other members of the guard looked in the same direction as Vitani. Though they may have been the Lion Guard now, even they took notes from those that had come before them. Kion had indeed used the Roar many times against his enemies. Granted most of those enemies were reformed now, the fact they kept on coming even after being sent flying was a testament to how persistent they were. This monster may have been an unknown element, but there was an equal chance it would return.
"Um, can we please take this conversation somewhere else? My paw hurts like hell!" Shabaha cried out.
The Guard snapped to attention, "Right, let's take Shabaha to Rafiki," Vitani ordered.
"Now that sounds like a good idea!" Shabaha exclaimed as she attempted to get to her feet, but immediately let out a whine as her wound was still fresh.
"Imara?" Vitani beckoned.
"Right," Imara noted and with Shabaha's help, hoisted her friend upon her back
The Guard continued onward. They had faced their first enemy as a team, but they knew this wouldn't be their last encounter with it.
A/N: Okay, now I may have had to take a few creative liberties with the Xenomorph blood. Now frankly I don't know if acid burns that deep or not, or if Shabaha didn't get enough to eat away full at her skin? But I do recall in the song sequence "We're the Smartest" Goigoi managed to stand in lava for a few seconds and looked no worse for wear. Then again, he's a cartoon character. And of course as you can guess, this is not the end of the xenomorph.