"Please, let me go!" I begged. "I've never done anything to you!"
A tan colored lioness walked over to me. "Never." Alongside her stood a wolf, it's icy blue eyes seeming to pierce through my soul itself.
"Please!"
"No," the lioness refused. "This is my last chance at revenge."
"What's the point anyway?!" I asked. "You're dead now. Gone. You wont be able to affect anything or anyone. You couldn't physically rule over anything now."
"True," the lioness mused. "But I can have revenge over that little family of yours. I can just imagine how sad they'll be with you dead." The lioness curled her lips into a wicked smile.
"Why?" I asked. "What's the point of getting revenge?"
"You'd never understand, young lion. The wrongs that have been done to me are unforgivable and unforgettable. It's only right that I have payback. They are all going to get what they deserve."
XXXX
Kion opened his eyes. I was dreaming... That dream wasn't just a dream, it was a memory of the night before, at least, what he thought was the day before. Time had become such a blur now. His spirit drifted in and out of his body itself whenever he slept. His body lay on the bottom of the ravine, barely moving even the slightest bit.
His visit to Fuli a couple of days ago was unplanned. He had begged the spirits of the wolf and lioness to let his spirit go to her.
What am I going to do now? He asked himself. The strange spirits had complete control over where his spirit would go.
He had barely gotten any food. The only things he was able to eat were some poor animal who stumbled into the ravine without seeing it. That rarely happened. He was barely able to get water either - the only thing he got to drink was small puddles that collected near him when it rained.
If I only had enough strength... I could get out of here. If I had enough strength... I could find the rest of the Guard.
Kion looked up at the bright blue sky. The hot and fiery sun shined clearly. With no shade and hardly any water, Kion felt as if he was burning alive.
His gaze focused on a nearby mouse that scurried by. If I can catch that... I'll get to eat. He instinctvily stayed very still, hoping that the mouse would think he was dead. Honestly, it would be kind of hard not to think that, considering his current state. He closed his eyes to give a better illusion.
The mouse approached him, sniffing about. He felt it touch the tip of his front paw. He opened his eyes ever so slightly and looked at it, focusing on it intensely. He waited for the right moment. Three... two... one! He reached out while unsheathing his claws. He caught it swiftly. He pulled the dead mouse towards him, ready to eat it. He licked his lips, this was the first time in days he got to eat so much as a morsel.
He was about to gobble it up in one bite, but then he remembered what his mother, Nala, always told him. 'Food eaten slower feeds you longer.' Reluctantly, he slowly ate it. He relished every bite.
I wonder how Fuli is doing... He wondered to himself after he was done eating the mouse. And Gozi, Bunga, Beshte, Ono, Makini, and Anga.
The fact that he was still in the same ravine that's near Swift's Clan didn't help at all. All day he heard Mwepesi shouting orders to the cheetahs in Swift's Clan. A lot of times he heard the screaming of a cheetah who was punished.
Poor cheetahs... they don't deserve this. Any of this.
There it was again - a wail of pain and terror coming from the direction of the Swift's Clan cave. He heard the thumping pawsteps of the cheetahs as they ran. "LET ME GO!" One screamed. "PLEASE LET ME GO!"
The cheetahs sounded like they were running in his direction. "We don't need to catch her!" He heard another cheetah shout. "We can just keep driving her towards the deep ravine! End her the same way we ended that lion !"
Kion flinched at the words. What if they find me here... still alive?
His eyes widened in horror as the cheetah was given no choice but to jump off the edge. She suddenly grabbed a very thin piece of land sticking out from the cliff with her claws. The other cheetahs stared over the edge. "She's gotta be dead now," one commented. "There's no way she could've survived that fall."
"Yeah, let's go," another agreed. "Our work here is done." The other cheetahs appeared to be walking back to Swift's Clan. Kion breathed a sigh of relief. It was short lived however. He looked up and saw the young cheetah struggling to climb down.
The cheetah continued to climb down using rocks at pawholds, and finally after what seemed like hours, she reached the ground. The cheetah appeared to be not much older than he was.
"Are you okay?" He asked her. She quickly whipped around to face him, her eyes narrowed. Her neck fur bristled. Oh... I forgot. She's going to be afraid of me, isn't she?
Much to his surprise, the cheetah didn't run away. She seemed to relax, actually. She walked towards him, her expression unreadable.
"Kopa?" She asked. "Are you the lion Mwepesi tried to kill?"
"I am the lion that Mwepesi tried to kill... I don't know who Kopa is though," he replied warily. He tried to stand up on all four paws, but collapsed to the ground.
She seemed to study him for a moment then shook her head. "Of course not..."
"What is your name, anyway?" Kion asked curiously. "I'm Imani," the cheetah replied. "And you?"
"I'm Kion," Kion introduced himself.
"Well, Kion, do you need any help getting out of this ravine?" She asked.
"Yeah, I'd like that," he replied. She then helped him to his paws. She let him lean on her and they began to walk in the direction that she said would lead out of the ravine. While they were walking they began to talk to each other to pass the time.
"... Fuli's so brave," Kion said dreamily. "I remember this one time when she-" He was cut off by Imani.
"You sure do talk a lot about this 'Fuli,'" Imani commented. "If you ask me, you seem moony."
"What does 'moony' mean?" Kion asked curiously. This earned him a laugh from Imani. What's so funny?
"Moony means you like someone," Imani replied simply. What?!
"As in just as a friend or... like-like?" Kion asked nervously.
"Like-like," Imani replied.
A thousand thoughts were hitting Kion's mind at once. "You can't be serious," he said to Imani.
"Oh I am totally serious," she replied and gave him a friendly nudge.
Kion shuffled his paws. I've never been 'moony' over someone so... how should I know if I am?
"But it's interspecies," Kion said the only protest that he could think of. "Not that I'm against it or anything it's just... how would everyone else see us?"
"It doesn't matter how they see you. All that matters is that you follow your heart." Kion took Imani's words into deep consideration. 'It doesn't matter how they see me... All that matters is that I follow my heart'...
"Just keep all of that in mind," Imani reminded him. Kion nodded.
He noticed the ground began to slope upwards. He looked up and there was a not-so-steep path up the ravine. He and Imani walked up the path and out of the ravine.
"Finally," Kion breathed a sigh of relief. "I thought I'd never get out of that ravine."
"Well you have," Imani told him. "Now, I'll be off. Now that Mwepesi and the other cheetahs think I'm dead, they won't be looking for me," Imani said. "I'm surprised the cheetahs drove me off of the cliff instead of the... traditional way that they and Mwepesi kill someone." She shivered. She then shook it off.
"Well, goodbye Kion. It was nice meeting you!" She then sped off into the distance, Kion knew that she was happy to be free of Swift's Clan.
"Bye! And thanks for helping me get out of the ravine," he called out, though he knew that by now, she couldn't hear him.
He then laid down, his paws aching from walking. He closed his eyes to sleep. The moment he did, he felt something lightly grab him. He could feel himself being pulled out of his body. The unpleasant feeling in his stomach always returned whenever this happened.
XXX
The force let go of him. He looked at his surroundings. Burnt trees. No grass. Smokey air. Typical. The tan lioness he saw often -including the day before- snickered.
"What do you want now?!" Kion snapped. "I have nothing to give you!"
"Revenge," the lioness emphasized. "Revenge on your family."
"Why?!" Kion asked desprately. "Why must you have that?!"
"Because...
When someone lies to you
Or you get betrayed
It's only fitting
That you make sure they pay
One may have the foolishness to forgive
And the wise one will always seek revenge
The foolish one will let the liars and traitors live
And the wise ones will avenge
Revenge!
It runs through my veins
It is my very soul
Just let me explain
My true goal
I wouldn't try to let anyone suffer for nothing
But sometimes it's just nesesary for something
When you've been lied to
When you've been deceived
When nothing is going for you
That's when you try to achieve
Revenge!
It runs through my veins
It is my very soul
Just let me explain
My true goal
Everything you care about is taken
Your cubs, your love, your mate
And don't be mistaken
When I say that my revenge is past it's due date
Banished to a wasteland
Where I had to live off of scraps
Once I was so thin that I could barely stand
And had to force myself not to collapse
I should have been the queen
With Scar ruling by my side
Though Simba wasn't too keen
On letting us rule the pride
All my life was so unfair
I didn't deserve this
And I greatly miss
My cubs, my love, my home, not that anyone even cares
And one thing I don't believe
After everything I've done for them
The children I raised decided to turn their backs on me and leave
All my life I've been lied to
All my life I've been deceived
Nothing was ever going for me
And so, my friend,
For that reason I will acheive revenge!
Revenge!
Glory!
I will avenge
Everything everyone did to me in my life story!
Revenge
I will avenge
Revenge
I will make sure I avenge
"Even though I may not be able to force that on Simba himself, I will force revenge on his son, like I did a long time ago."
(Authors note: Okay, that's all I've got so far. From now on, y'all can expect updates about once a week)