Ono was looking around at a lake for small fish to eat from the waters with his family and flock of other cattle egrets. So far, he didn't really catch anything, but he knows that it requires patience in catching one of those fish, and he eventually caught a small tigerfish in his beak, and swallowed it whole. "Ah, That is so delicious." He muttered.
all of a sudden, there was the sound of the ground mildly shaking. The young cattle egret looked up while hovering over the cattails, and saw a face he knew before. "Ah, there you are, Ono." It was the large, Mbeya. "I was looking all over for you."
"Hey, Mbeya. What's happening?" Then he perched on his back.
"I got a bunch of bugs crawling on me, and they are driving me crazy." Mbeya replied. "Do you think you can have them taken care of? Because they are starting to get on my nerves."mane he made a small huff.
Ono smiled, and he said: "No problem, I always love eating ticks and flies." The. He began doing his work and picked the black rhino's skin of any worms, ticks, or other insects crawling on his very thick skin.
It was a cattle egret's job to eat all those insects off of rhinos, elephants, hippos, buffalo, and other large animals they can perch on, as part of the circle of life. Them, and the infamous oxpecker birds do the same thing for the large animals too. So far, Ono found some interesting bugs like a few ticks, and a worm that got on Mbeya's body from wallowing in the mud to cool off, and it was almost like a buffet for him.
After around fifteen minutes, the egret was finished, and the black rhino was already clean of any filthy insects. "Yummy." Ono remarked before letting out a burp.
"Thanks Ono. I knew I can always count on you to get rid of these bugs crawling all over me." said Mbeya with gratitude. "I'll let you know when I'll need you again."
"No problem. Always nice to be in a buffet like I was in right now." Ono replied. Then he patted his belly in happiness. "Boy this ticks were so good." Then he flew back to the spot of the lake where he was looking for fish before, and he only found two, making him wish that the black rhino he cleaned before had more of those bugs or parasites on his body.
Still, he didn't mind, and Ono thought that maybe he will find more food, either fish or eat insects from yet another large animals. It could be a giraffe, an elephant, a hippo, or another rhino. After he was done with his little fishing, he rested in a group of cattails, and began to take a nap. Over about two and a half hours have passed, and he was suddenly awoken by a loud voice.
"Ono!" said the voice. The cattle egret suddenly awoke with a fright.
"What? What? What? What happened?" he looked around at his surroundings, looking quite startled and alarmed.
He looked who it was, and it was Zazu himself. "Pardon me for this intrusion." he said "But, I am in grave need of your help."
"Zazu, what's wrong?"
"There is a trouble going about in the southwest part of the Pride Lands." the hornbill explained to him. "It could be a snake, or I really don't know what it might be."
"Why do you need my help Zazu?" Asked the cattle egret curiously
"You ate the keenest of sight for the Lion Guard, are you?"
"Oh. Touche. Point well-taken." Then he stretched his white wings out with a yawn. "So in the Southwest part of the Pride Lands, right?"
"Yes. Do hurry, a colony of hyrax are being under attack by some unknown creature." Zazu pointed him in the direction in where he should be going from where he was now. "You will find the commotion down there."
Ono nodded his head and flew off in the sky once again. Zazu watched as one of the members of the Lion Guard was springing into action against this unknown threat. Looking down below him, he saw a white figure poking his head from underground in a fast manor, then he would go back below the earth in a very swift manor. Odd, it almost looked like a honey badger from below where Ono was flying above it.
He couldn't quite make out exactly what it was, but he knows that honey badgers are capable of digging holes in the ground with their razor-sharp claws. Slowly hovering down on the ground, he was extra quiet for he wanted to wait for something to pop out and ambush him from underground to see what this creature was. It was all quiet. too quiet.
All of a sudden, something popped out in front of him, starling poor Ono, but it revealed to be a hyrax named: Ino. "Ono! Thank goodness you have come."
"Ino, what happened?" asked the egret
"We were just looking for some food out here on the surface, then, we were suddenly attacked by-" she was interrupted. "Behind you!" she screamed before burrowing down on the ground again to safety. Ono looked behind him and saw a fierce-looking, full-grown honey badger, having fur blacker than Bunga's underfur, and the upper fur of his body the color of bone white.
Unlike the other honey badgers living in the Pride Lands, this one had a red scar going down his right eye, almost like Scar when he was alive, but his scar was on his left eye, and this one looked a little more painful and red. His claws looked more sharp than most honey badgers would have, almost looking like hooks, or khopesh swords.
This beast charged straight at Ono, but he pecked at his belly and pushed him with his hands. After falling to the ground, he slowly got back up, teeth slobbering on the dirt, and growling in a menacing snarl. "You hit like a child!" He said in a very low and gruff voice, sounding like a combination of an out-of-tune guitar, and a series of thunderclaps.
"Technically, I am a child!"
"Heh. Toy got serious nerve correcting me, kid." Said the honey badger. "But, no matter. I'll eat you as my next lunch."
"You know, mister Badger," Ono said, about to explain something to the brute. "There are so many bees and beehives around the Pride Lands you know? Why are you terrorizing these hyrax?"
"Uh, because it's sun making them all scream. And I am not going really eat them, for I am not really hungry. I kill for the fun of it." Said the honey badger in a snarky voice. "And, my name is Harif."
"Can you think about the hyrax' feelings?"
"No!" Said Harif. "Why should I care about these little runts? They are weak and pathetic."
"Hey! Hyrax can play an important role in the Pride Lands! It's all part of the-"
"Circle of Life?" Harif interrupted him. "Bah, I've heard of that stupid nonsense before, nothing but a loud of bologna."
"How dare you! I'll make you regret scaring these poor Hyrax you bully!" He charged at the honey badger, and tried to peck on his nose, but it had little affect apart from Harif becoming annoyed every time Ono was pecking at his nose.
Before he knew it, Ono was pounced and picked up by the Harif with his right hand, and his claws were constricting his throat, slowly suffocating him. "Stupid little bird!" Said Harif. "Haven't you forgotten? We honey badgers have coats of invincibility!"
Then he felt Ono trying to bite on his finger, but to little effect, and the honey badger threw the poor bird on the ground with a loud thud. "Ah! My wing!" Said Ono. Despite the pain, his body wasn't broken, but sore from the impact of the blow.
"And yet they called you the keenest of sight for the Lion Guard?" Harif cruelly asked before he chuckled. "How pathetic." He was about to bite on Ono's throat, but he was suddenly pounced by a familiar figure of yellow.
It was Kion, who clawed the honey badger in the face, and tried pressing on his throat, but this brute was strong, and bit Kion's left ankle.
"Gah! You Lion Guard are a bunch of meddles. I'm out of here!" Then Harif escaped in a fast run.
Fuli was about to charge after him, but she was stopped by Kion. "Let him go. He's beaten." Fhen he turned his attention to Ono, and he rushed up to him. "Ono, are you okay?"
"I'm fine, Kion." The cattle egret replied while grunting. "Just a little sore."
"Poor Ono." Bunga remarked. "You need help."
"I'm not bleeding. Just some bruises." He tried flying, but he was in even more pain.
"Come on. Let's get you home." Said Fuli.
Beshte had the honor of carrying him since he was the strongest member of this group.
