Chapter 3: Royal Council

Mtundu stood upon a boulder near the fortress of Misty Rock, observing the hues of pink, orange and red in the western horizon. The sun finally touched the land line, signalling that it was officially sunset. Mohatu, meanwhile, was taking role, making sure everyone who had been invited was present. Ucheshi fidgetted about, clearly anxious to find out what the meeting was about. Tuli lay on the cool stone and yawned nonchalantly--bored, or tired, or both. Mzungu cleaned a paw, and Malkia looked from Mohatu to Mtundu to Mohatu again. Yolanda scooted closer to Tuli and began to chat. Everyone was here and accounted for.

Pulling himself from the Royal Council, Mohatu walked over to Mtundu, respectfully standing a few feet away from him. "Ready to get this meeting under way?" he asked softly. Mohatu himself wasn't very enthusiastic about discussing the trespassers. He could tell that it was going to be pretty heated. A trespasser was never a light issue, especially if they were helping themselves to the game in the Misty lands. This could throw off the whole balance that had so delicately existed since Onevu's banishment. Much was at stake here and only Mtundu and Mohatu themselves knew exactly what. The trust of their ecto-pridal subjects, the food supply, the safety of their pride, the firmity of boundaries, and their reputations. This was a delicate matter, and needed to be handled as such.

Mtundu sighed, still looking off into the western sky. He wasn't ready. But that wasn't the answer Mohatu was looking for. This was his duty, his obligation. This was what he was born into. At that moment, he cursed every drop of royal blood in his body. Had he been a rogue, or someone that wasn't the king or queen, he wouldn't have to fill this obligation. He would only be expected to look out for himself and his family, not an entire savanna and all who lived in it. It could be fun to play God sometimes, but now was not one of those times. But such was the life of a king. He filled his mighty chest with enough oxygen to once again transform himself into the mighty King Mtundu. He turned to his brother, who was patiently awaiting an answer. "Let's do it."

The two walked over to the group, the Royal Council assembled themselves into a loose circle. Mtundu and Mohatu took their place in the circle, and the others bowed to them in unison. The kings sat down. "Be seated," commanded Mtundu. Ucheshi, Tuli, Mzungu, Malkia and Yolanda instantly obeyed.

Mtundu gave the group a once over, double-checking to make sure everyone was there. Once this was confirmed, he started the ritualistic fore-speech to the actual discussion. "Due to its importance, we bring forth to you an issue that concerns the stability of our kingdom. It is, as already stated, an important issue that deserves your full attention and participation. Your duty as Royal Council is to take the issue, hear any and all testimonies, and analyze the problem. You must share your ideas and opinions with King Mohatu and I--granted that they are appropriate and can be implemented--and agree on a reasonable solution that is to be set in motion to eliminate the problem and thus guarantee the security of the Misty lands. Do you rise to these duties?"

"We do," the Royal Council replied.

Mtundu nodded his approval. "Very well," he said. He turned to Mohatu, motioning that it was his turn. Mohatu cleared his throat and spoke. "It has come to the attention of King Mtundu and I that the danger of trespassers exists." The Council exchanged worried looks. Mohatu continued. "There have been two encounters that we are aware of. One, which occurred four to five days ago--which King Mtundu himself witnessed--and another today--which Malkia witnessed. Now that you know the issue at paw, we will precede with the testimonies." Mohatu turned to Mtundu. "You first."

Mtundu shared his story of what happened on border patrol several nights before. By the time Malkia had finished her story, the full Council seemed uneasy. Now it was time to analyze.

"What we have here is a territorial dispute, I think," Yolanda started.

"I doubt it," Ucheshi replied with a scoff. "I mean, both the encounters involve prey. One eaten carcass, and one caught during the witnessed hunt. If it were a territorial dispute, they would be putting their scents all over our lands. I've inspected every where, and there are no signs of foreign markings."

"What are you saying, that they don't pose a threat?" asked Malkia.

"No, what I meant--"

"What you meant is that as long as they aren't leaving scents, sure, go ahead, let them take our food. Let them hunt all our game. We can starve, that's okay. As long as they aren't taking our land, who cares?" argued Malkia.

Mohatu groaned and rubbed his temple. He should have guessed that this would happen. Malkia was not a member of the Royal Council at all. The only reason she was at the meeting was to present her testimony, as ordered by royal protocol. The official courtiers were expected to remain as level headed as possible at all times, which was easy since they were all friends. But Malkia was very overdramatic and throwing her into the mix could result in chaos.

Mohatu turned to Malkia. "Now Malkia," he started, "we are not here to spew accusations at others. We are here to find a solution. That's going to take all of us, so we have to cooperate."

Mtundu turned to face Mohatu with angry eyes. "Excuse me, King Mohatu," he hissed, obviously defending Malkia, "but everyone has a right to an opinion here. Whether or not Malkia is an official courtier shouldn't interfere with her right to an opinion."

"Here we go..." muttered an exasperated Ucheshi. He began to clean his paw.

Great, thought Mohatu, only a few minutes into the meeting and we already have courtiers at others' throats. What, with Malkia and Mtundu throwing accusations around like the issue exists because of someone here...no wonder they make a great couple. Another rule in the royal protocol was to make sure emotions didn't interfere with these kind of issues, and Mtundu had violated that. He was king. This was unacceptable. Mohatu met Mtundu's eyes. "Don't accuse me of holding Malkia's position against her," he warned in a flat voice. "Now, Ucheshi was just in the middle of sharing his opinion when Malkia cut in. Let him finish."

A silence fell on the council. Tuli, Yolanda and Mzungu looked at eachother nervously, then watched the kings intently. Ucheshi looked up from his bathing with mild interest. An extremely offended Malkia looked at Mohatu with disgust. But Mohatu was focusing on Mtundu, who was staring at Mohatu. He looked angry, embarassed and insulted. Finally, he tore his gaze from his brother and looked to Ucheshi. "Very well," he said, voice beginning to level back to calm. "Continue."

Unsure, Ucheshi looked over at Mohatu. Mohatu smiled and nodded. Ucheshi continued. "As I was saying,"--he glared at Malkia--"they don't seem to pose an immediate threat to us. Sure, it will probably throw off the balance of game and whatnot, but they don't seem like they want to fight us. They want food, if you ask me."

"We didn't," muttered Malkia. Ucheshi shot her a look.

"So, you think they're after our food, and not our territory?" asked Mtundu.

"That is correct," replied Ucheshi. "But of course, I can't be certain. We'd have to ask them ourselves to know for sure." He gave a small laugh and looked around. "Any volunteers?"

The others chuckled, all except Malkia. A smile even found its way onto Mtundu's face. Mohatu gave a small sigh of relief. Leave it to Ucheshi to crack a joke at just the right time, he thought. At least it settled everyone down. He turned to his brother. "So, what do you say, King Mtundu?" he asked.

Mtundu smiled to his brother. "Well, it doesn't seem like we can come up with a solution to the immediate problem until we find out what is causing it. Like Ucheshi says, they are probably hungry. My guess is famine, but we need to make sure our deductions are accurate."

"Meaning...?" Ucheshi hummed.

"Meaning we need someone to go inspect the situation in the eastern lands and come back and give us a report," Mohatu finished.

One by one, everyone looked at Ucheshi. Ucheshi licked his nose. "Me?"

"Well, you're the one with all the ideas," Mtundu replied casually. "Besides, you do border patrol everyday. You're in shape. The trek there would kill any of the rest of us."

Ucheshi shook his head violently. "Nonono, I'm not doing it." He froze, as if struck by some brilliant thought. A smile came upon his face. "But I think I know someone who will."