WOO! Got the 8th chapter up sooner that I thought.

I had my first day of Spanish class today, and my Spanish teacheris one weird cookie.She started offtalking Spanish to us and my brain just couldn't comprehend. lol!I'm in for a long semester...

Simba's Other Daughter: I got your email, but when I reply it sends it back saying that you've exceeded your mail quota.

Thanks for reviewing!

As the morning dawned Talib awoke to see that his father was gone. Must've left during the night. Talib smiled. This is great. This will make it easier for us to go find Kohana.

The two lions carefully and quietly made their descent of Pride Rock. Upon reaching the bottom, both males carefully scanned the area for any sign of the Pridelands King. They didn't see anything and they began their quest across the savanna to find out of Kohana had indeed returned.

They stopped by the diminishing watering hole for a quick drink and quickly set off again. They passed only a single zebra, an old and sickly one, which they took the time to hunt down. It had been a few days since they had last eaten and anything to fill their empty stomachs would suit them just fine.

After they finished their meal, the vultures quickly began to fight over the scraps. Talib and Thorn stopped for a moment to watch the crazy scavengers fight with each other.

"Crazy creatures, those vultures." Talib laughed.

"Yeah." Thorn chuckled, amused for the moment.

"Well, we'd better get going again." Talib said and the two set off again.

The walk to the northern border was long and monotonous. Nothing but barren land and a few dead trees. A few live trees were scattered around. No signs of life other than the two lions were visible.

As they approached the northern border where the lionesses had spotted the cheetahs and white lioness, Talib and Thorn stopped to take notice of any clue that would tell them if their friend was near. It was Thorn who noticed something first.

There was a set of lion paw prints. "I'd say those are a lionesses tracks. They look smaller than a males." Thorn concluded as he studied the prints.

"Yeah. Do you think they are Kohana's?" Talib asked hopefully.

"No way to know for sure, unless…" Thorn grinned "We follow them."

"Wait, those tracks lead past my father's territory boundary and into the desert. There's no way we could ever catch up with the lion that left theses tracks." Talib took a deep breath. "But we still have to try." He looked up to the sky. "The sun's almost directly overhead. We're in for a long and hot journey."

"Yes, but we can do it. We've overcome other obstacles." Thorn said hoping to boost his friend's spirit. Talib knew that Thorn was talking about the time he had been blinded by the zebra when he was a cub. "Although, we'll have to guess at which way it went because it looks like the sand has been shifting and the tracks are gone."

Talib looked into the desert and saw that the tracks had vanished. "Don't worry, we'll know the right way." Talib was sure that his heart would lead the way, but he still had his doubts. This would be a great time for you to show up, Grandfather Simba. Talib knew that his grandfather would appear if he really needed help. You must really trust my instincts, Grandfather. Talib smiled.

"Okay, let's go." Talib said, taking the lead into the desert.

The two lions crossed the boundary of the Pridelands into the desert. They trudged through the sand. Violent winds occasionally blew sand into their sensitive eyes and stinging their faces. The lions still continued on. Nothing was going to stop them from finding Kohana.

The sun began to set as the lions continued their trek across the barren wasteland. Thorn was the first to show signs of slowing down.

"Talib, I need to rest." Thorn said, panting heavily, The lack of water and intense heat taking a toll on his body. Talib was lucky that his fur wasn't as dark as Thorn's black fur, which held more heat. Thorn collapsed where he stopped.

"Thorn, just a little more. We'll stop as soon as it gets dark." Talib coaxed. Thorn struggled to his feet and continued on.

As night fell, Talib and Thorn got ready to settle in for the night and rest up for the next day's journey. The two friends lay down. They fell into the silence of the desert until Thorn broke the silence.

"Wait, you smell that?" Thorn asked as he raised up from the sand.

"Smell what?" Talib asked tiredly.

Thorn didn't answer, but kept sniffing the air. Talib sighed and stood, trying to see of he could smell what Thorn smelled.

"Smell it?" Thorn asked, suddenly fear replaced the curious look upon his face.

When Talib finally realized what he smelled, his stomach lurched. He smelled blood. He could tell it was close by.

"Blood? In the desert?" Thorn asked. He was truly scared now. Blood in the desert wasn't a good sign.

"Something is going on." Talib said. "I hate to say this, but we should go see what the source of the smell is."

"I don't want to, but I don't want you to go alone." Thorn said reluctantly.

The two males walked in the direction the scent was coming from. It got stronger with each step they took. When they came upon the source, they both wanted to turn and run.

Lying on its side was a female cheetah. Her slender body was badly wounded. Large gashes ran down her body. Teeth marks on her legs and claw marks across her face. A puddle of blood was underneath the limp body. She had been killed a few hours before, in the cloak of darkness her pursuer had struck.

Thorn looked away, unable to look at the poor creature anymore. Talib however wanted a closer look. He took a paw and wiped some blood from the cheetah's forehead revealing a star shaped black spot.

"Thorn…" Talib fought back the tears. He knew this cheetah. Unless another cheetah had a star shaped spot on her forehead, then he knew he was correct in knowing who it was. "It's Takara."

Thorn finally turned back around. He didn't look at the limp body of Takara, he only looked his friend in the eyes. "No. It can't be."

"It is. Do you know of any other cheetah that has a star shaped spot on its forehead?"

Thorn shook his head. "No, I don't. But what killed her?"

Talib didn't answer right away. He noticed something in Takara's claws. Fur. A large clump of brown fur.

"Thorn, my father did this." Tears stung Talib's eyes. Had his father really done this?

"How do you know?" Thorn asked.

"Look." Talib showed Thorn the brown fur. "It was him."

"The brown fur could've come off a hyena, or a wild dog." Thorn said, praying that it wasn't Kovu who had killed Takara.

"Maybe. But there's only one way to find out." Talib said, his body tensed. "Let's head back to Pride Rock. We'll find out where my father was last night."

"I'll never forgive my father if he did this." Talib said sternly. "I'll never speak to him again."

Thorn had always watched Talib and Kovu bicker, but he had never seen Talib act this way. He had never heard Talib say anything like this either.

"If you want to go back, I will go also." Thorn said.

"Yes. I'm going back to get some answers." Talib said as he sprinted into the darkness as he headed for Pride Rock. Thorn followed behind.

Father, if you killed Takara, I'll never forgive you. If you did, may the Kings of the past ruin your life. Talib thought bitterly as he ran. He wanted answers and he was going to get them no matter the price.

Oh no! Takara is dead! Did Kovu really kill her? I guess you'll have to find out next chapter! Thought I would give a little info about the next chapter.

Next Chapter: Talib gets answers. Thorn and Talib return to the desert, and find a lone Kohana. Where are Tokala and Tokai?