Disclaimer: I don't own Lion King.

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Author's Note:

I'd like to thank all marvelous reviewers: almondbutter, Keep Calm and Join Team Loki, Zoe, ThatTexasKid, The Lion King, OMAC001, Vaykay, Mysterious Guest and raowr. Your amazing support works wonders – not so long ago I wanted to abandon the story and now I'm writing like crazy to entertain you.

Please keep pampering me with your reviews and enjoy!

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Chapter 12: Demise

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Scar was almost at the rocky edge of the riverbed, when Msuli landed on the logs building the dam. His massive body was too much for the fragile construction to handle. The trunks buckled; some of them rolled down and crashed on the rocky ground into tiny pieces. Scar slipped, when the log under his paws was about to join the others at the bottom of the riverbed. His claws grazed the wood, as he desperately struggled to keep his balance.

The log separated from the dam and fell into the abyss. Scar kicked as hard as he could, leaping for safety. His bad leg made the jump go awry though. With his front paws, he snatched another trunk, frantically striving to pull himself up. The attempt to use his hind legs was miserable, to say the least, and only his sheer fear of death gave him enough strength to crawl back onto the dam.

He eluded death, for now, but he didn't escape his impending doom. Balancing on the rocky logs, Msuli was creeping closer with murderous intent lighting his eyes. Scar gulped and glanced at his destination – the safe side of the riverbed wasn't easily accessible anymore. The logs that linked it to the rest of the dam fell down, leaving a gaping chuckhole in the wooden barrier. It would take him quite a climb to get there.

Msuli growled, approaching. Suddenly, the perspective of nearly suicidal climb up the unstable logs became very appealing to Scar. Not wasting any time, he ran to crawl up.

"Coward!" Msuli yelled after him. Suddenly, he slipped, but it would be far too marvelous to have him experience an accident. No, he regained balance quickly and leapt to another shaky log much closer to Scar. The distance between the two was diminishing dramatically.

"Not good," Scar muttered under his breath, working his way up. He had a plan in mind, but he needed to be already on a safe, immobile surface.

"You won't escape me, you mangy bastard!" Msuli roared.

His powerful muscles rippled under his blood-covered skin, as he prepared himself for a leap. He sent another avalanche of logs when he jumped. Scar glanced over his shoulder and instantly blind panic overtook him – Msuli's single leap accounted for three of his. The big oaf climbed fast like a monkey, despite his mass. Scar might have overestimated the advantage of his lighter weight.

Suddenly, Scar felt sharp pain, what almost made him lose his grip on the logs. Msuli's claw grazed his hind leg. He pulled the limb up right away, so that the giant wouldn't drag him down. A stream of blood leaked out, dripping on his pursuer. Msuli let out a triumphant cry, for the first blood was in his favor. If Scar didn't hurry, the rest of his precious crimson liquid would be spilled as well.

Fighting for his miserable life, Scar climbed up relentlessly. His strength was gradually leaving him; his legs shook and his grip was unsteady. The logs underneath him wobbled, and he was unable to jump agilely; he was too exhausted for that. Only his preservation instinct and sheer willpower allowed him to keep working his way to safety.

"I've got you!" Msuli exclaimed, reaching out with his paw.

Simultaneously, Scar felt long claws pierce into the flesh of his bad hind leg. He howled from pain. The claws went in deeply, tearing the skin and muscle effortlessly until they hit the bone. Then, Msuli pulled.

Scar's howl echoed across the empty riverbed. Msuli's pleased cackle emphasized his victory, right before he yanked his opponent's leg, brutally dragging him down. Scar clenched his jaws and sunk his claws deeper into the log, he was holding onto. They carved deep crevices, as he was slipping down. Simultaneously, his hind leg was being ripped apart. He could feel Msuli separate his flesh from bone. Scar's vision blurred from unbearable aching. A gasp-like sound escaped his throat, and he let go of the trunk, limply falling.

Msuli laughed harder, seeing his rival surrender. However, his joyful cackle quickly became silenced, as he realized that Scar was falling right atop his head. He let go of his leg and tried to save himself, by jumping out of the way. Maybe if he hadn't been so busy laughing earlier, he would have managed to dodge. Scar landed squarely on his back, knocking him off the log, he was standing on.

Frantic to prevent the lethal fall, Scar desperately clawed at everything that was within his reach – the elements of the dam, Msuli. The oaf roared from pain, when he clutched at his rear, pulling him further down. The dam started to fall apart – the scuffle set the makeshift construction off balance. Logs got loose and rolled from the top, flying past Msuli and Scar, missing them just barely. Both lions struggled to survive, temporarily forgetting the fight. They attempted to hold on, but it was harder than it looked.

Scar dodged a log, by swinging the other way, but he rammed into Msuli. The bigger male tried to deliver a blow, while getting himself to the safety. He didn't hit his aim, but his paw got tangled in Scar's black mane. A split moment later, the rotten trunk beneath his legs crumbled, and he fell, taking his enemy with him.

The way down was frantic and painful. Scar strived to slow down the fall, but his claws only grazed the surface of the logs. To make the matters worse, the skin of his neck hurt like hell, for Msuli must have pulled clumps of hair while trying to free his paw. Scar's body got hit by the dam, then it crashed into Msuli and afterward the logs inflicted more injuries.

Finally, the fall came to an abrupt end, as both lions landed on the bottom of the riverbed. Suddenly, everything stopped spinning and all the blows weren't coming anymore. Scar was panting, barely believing that he was still alive. His head was spinning and he felt a little confused. The sound of logs crashing onto the ground beside him was muffled; he didn't even register that he was in a danger of being crushed by one of those.

Shocked, he stood on all four. The riverbed was strangely soft for a stone surface. Slowly, he looked down. And he wished he hadn't done so. Naturally, given Scar's fabulous luck, ha landed atop Msuli. Having the foe acting like a cushion was perhaps comfortable, but it would only increase his wrath. Msuli lay on his back, with his paws in the air. His head was turned to the side, eyes half closed. For a brief moment, Scar hoped that he had broken his spine. However, his wishes were dashed, when Msuli drew a deep breath and stared straight at the thinner lion. His glare was dripping with malice and uncontrolled wrath.

"Oh." Scar jumped off his opponent. As soon as he set his paws on the ground, though, he regretted such an abrupt movement. All his bones hurt, his muscles gave him a hard time too. He sucked in a shaky breath, barely able to move a limb. Meanwhile, the groan from behind his back signaled that Msuli was scrambling to his paws and readying to beat the life out of him. Tense, Scar glanced at him over his shoulder.

"Just wait," Msuli moaned and turned onto his side. He grunted, forcing himself to get back on his paws. As he was in the middle of it, Scar spotted something that made his eyes widen in terror. A large chunk of wood stuck out of Msuli's back. Probably, he had his lung pierced, and yet he somehow lived. What was more unnerving, he looked much more mobile than Scar, and he didn't have a sharp object embedded in his flesh. Was this lion a monster?

As though confirming Scar's fears, Msuli broke into maniacal laughter. He cackled, as if there was no tomorrow. Bloody foam dripped from his muzzle, but that didn't seem to bother him. He set his crazed eyes on his target and charged like a vengeful rhino. Scar yelped, leaping to get himself off Msuli's way. He moved clumsily, on three limbs - his wounded leg dragged behind like a piece of meat. Predictably enough, Msuli managed to ram into it and Scar found himself pulled into a whirlwind of fight.

Both males rolled in the dirt, roaring at each other and clawing. Scar put all he had into this battle. Unable to break loose and flee, he slashed his opponent and tried to sink his teeth in his throat. The fight dragged on. A blow followed a nasty kick. Scar managed to carve three claw marks on Msuli's front leg, but the bigger lion bit into his shoulder. The dry dirt flew into the air, obscuring the visibility. The soil beneath the battling males became damp with their blood.

At one point, Scar came on top, but Msuli instantly tossed him aside and pinned him to the ground. As soon as their eyes met, Scar knew that it was the end. Msuli realized it too, for he smiled contently. The ruthless bastard he was, he refused to shorten his foe's suffering and snap his neck.

"You will pray to the Kings of Past for your death," Msuli whispered ominously.

Scar gulped. He wasn't in exactly good terms with the Kings of Past. Thus, he feared that his agony would last much longer than he would like. Msuli kept his word. He pressed his paw against the spot, where he had bitten Scar and intently sank his claws deep into the open wound. He grinned sadistically, as Scar gritted his teeth in pain and thrashed in his firm grip. Msuli scowled, apparently not satisfied enough with the torture. He twisted his paw and jerked, as if he wanted to flay his victim. Scar let out a high-pitched howl.

He flailed with his paws, but he was too weak to defend himself. The writhing pain made his body feel like it was on fire. Msuli's cackle started fading away, and so did his nasty muzzle, as Scar's vision started to fail him. The movements of his limbs stilled; he gave up. The excruciating ache slowly morphed into dull sensation. Scar's eyelids felt heavy. It was truly the end.

The defeated lion briefly regained his consciousness the moment, when the pressure of Msuli's paws intensified abruptly. Scar felt something warm and wet drip on his body. blinked, struggling to comprehend what was happening. Both he and Msuli turned their gazes to stare at the larger male's chest. A bloodied, sharp fragment of wood was protruding from his chest.

"What?" Msuli muttered in a coarse voice, startled.

Afterward, the pressure lessened, and Scar found out what was causing it in the first place – who, to be exact. The female with the ripped ear agilely jumped off Msuli's back. Her mate lifted his head, snarling at her. His legs bucked uncontrollably.

"That's for my pride!" she cried fiercely. Not wasting any time, she encircled Msuli and leapt at him, aiming for his side. She caught him by surprise and managed to knock him off Scar. After landing atop of her opponent, she took another leap and doubled back. "And that's for me!"

Scar lifted his head just in time to see Zira dance around Msuli. She skipped, jumping onto her back. With admirable determination, she clasped her jaws on the wood fragment sticking from his back. Scar winced, when she put all her strength in pulling it out. It was a scene to behold. As soon as the wood had been removed, the dam preventing Msuli from bleeding out broke. A stream of crimson liquid gushed up, bathing Zira's muzzle.

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Author Note:

Thanks for reading, my dear muffins. The last chapter of the 1st arc is titled "Leader" and it will be wrapping up the first part of the story – kind of like the first season. As for the future arcs, I'm waiting for your opinions and reviews. Tell me if you enjoyed the story and whether you want it to continue.

Once again, thanks a lot for reviewing. If you haven't reviewed yet, you could start now! I'd love to see new nicks among the reviewers.

Remember, if I get 10 wonderful reviews from you, I'll post the last chapter of the arc right away.