Disclaimer: I don't own Lion King.
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Chapter 16: Encounter
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The wildly flowing border marked the place, where the Pride Lands Landed and a foreign, hostile territory began. Zazu sat on a branch, resting his wings. Simba stopped as well, struggling to catch his breath after the long run. He set his eyes on the barren wasteland ahead. The rain brought life into his domain, but the Outlands were still a rocky desert, even though they were only a paw step further.
"Let's go." Simba decided.
Zazu eyed him with a certain hesitation.
"Sire, shouldn't we wait for Queen Nala and the lionesses?" he asked.
"They'll catch up!" Simba called and dashed out to cross the river. He dove right into it, not minding any dangers that could lurk under the surface of the water. Zazu spread his wings and took flight, keeping an eye on his reckless King. He hoped that any crocodiles or hippos wouldn't feel like having a lion for the supper.
The sun was setting already. The trees in the Pride Lands and the incredibly tall termite mounds in the Outlands cast long, eerie shadows that made Zazu's anxiety spike. While Simba was paddling across the river and fighting the strong current, he flew ahead to do some scouting. He didn't have to venture far to discern a welcoming party on its way. Zira, the leader of the Outlanders, hurried to greet Simba, accompanied by one of her pride sisters. Zazu took an abrupt turn and raced back to alert his majesty.
When he finally reached him, Simba was already out of the river, wet and on his way further into the Outlands.
"Sire!" Zazu exclaimed. "The Outlanders are nearing!"
Simba stopped immediately, extending his claws and sinking them into the ground beneath his paws. He looked over his shoulder, but there was no sign of Nala and other lionesses.
"How many?" He demanded.
"Only two." Zazu landed on the ground in front of Simba.
The lion nodded. Two against him and Zazu weren't such a bad odds. He would cope even without the support of his pride. Thus, he waited. Soon enough, the wind carried two scents, and their owners showed on a nearby hill. Simba's mane billowed in the wind, as he assumed a majestic stance. The two lanky lionesses surveyed him from afar. Afterward, they ran to greet him. One of them, the female with a dark stripe down the center of her head and a notched ear went ahead. The older lioness stuck behind.
"Well, well, who do we have here?" The lioness with red eyes asked, baring her teeth at Simba. She stared him down. "So well-fed, you must be a Pridelander."
Simba frowned at the unpleasant welcome.
"I am Simba, the King of the Pride Lands." He introduced himself. "And I don't seek quarrel with the lions of the Outlands."
The female with the notched ear snorted at his words. She pointed her paw at herself.
"Zira, the leader of the Outlanders." She stated her name and position. She tilted his head, giving Simba a hostile look. "And none of the Pride Landers is welcome in my territory."
Zazu quietly paced back, stepping out of the lionesses' sight and hiding behind Simba. The lion king narrowed his eyes at Zira, but he remained calm.
"I've received an information that you harbor a criminal from the Pride Lands," Simba said. "Turn him to me and I'll leave your territory immediately."
Zira burst into sardonic laughter at his demand. She strolled toward Simba, close enough to make him feel edgy. Her teeth bared in a creepy smile reflected the red rays of sun, what made them look red, as if bathed in blood.
"You want your uncle?" she asked in a low, threatening voice. Simba shuddered, as Zira betrayed that he knew his affiliation to Scar. She glanced back at her companion before giving the male lion her full attention again. "Fine, you can have him. Hodari!"
Zira stepped aside, and the older lioness came forward. She was holding something in her jaws. With one swift jerky move, she sent the object flying toward Simba. It hit the ground with a quiet thud and rolled all the way to his paws. Simba looked down and froze, mortified. At his paws lay a lion skull, with scraps of bloody flesh still attached to it. Empty eye sockets stared back at him.
"As I said, none of the Pride Landers is welcome here," Zira said. She raised her paw and presented her deadly, sharp claws. "It was unexpectedly stupid of you, Simba, to visit me alone."
She and Hodari chuckled darkly, encircling him, as if he was a wounded cape buffalo. Zazu yelped and jumped onto Simba's back, shaking from fear. The king of Pride Rock growled at the lionesses, firmly standing his ground.
"There's only two of you." He stated. Against the mass and strength of an adult male, two lionesses had meager chance. Zira must have known the odds, but she looked confident nonetheless.
"Let's do the headcount." She strolled around Simba, constantly making him turn to watch his back. "There's me, my second-in-command Hodari. Oh, there are also my two pride sisters crouching behind the bushes."
She barely said this, when two other females jumped from behind the dry vegetation, joining Zira. Simba cursed inwardly – they must have snuck on him, cautious to stay downwind from him. That's why he hadn't noticed their presence. The male lion spun around, finding himself surrounded by Zira and her followers.
"I'm afraid you've run out of luck, Simba," Zira crouched. In response, Simba growled and assumed the fighting stance. The whole time he tried to keep an eye on all lionesses, so that they wouldn't get his unprotected rear. Zira's muscles rippled under hear skin, as she prepared herself to pounce on him. "Today, you die."
Just when she was about to attack, an unanticipated distraction occurred.
"No he won't!" A strong, female voice called, directing Zira's attention away from her would-be prey. Simba smiled, as he looked over his shoulder at his savior.
His pride showed up, lead by no one other by his beloved Nala. Feisty as ever, she glared at Zira and her followers. Sarabi and Serafina flanked the Queen, and all other lionesses positioned themselves in a row, ready to charge at the Outlanders and wipe them out.
"Meet my queen, Nala," Simba said casually, giving Zira a smug smirk.
Zira scowled, estimating her chances – with only three lionesses at her command, she was miserably outnumbered. Growling, she made an abrupt movement with her head, calling her lionesses off. Now that Simba had his back guarded by his pride, the Outlanders retreated, and they weren't happy about it. Cautiously, they watched the Pridelanders. Nala waited for Simba's signal to launch an attack, but it never came. Instead, he resorted to diplomacy.
"It doesn't have to be like this, Zira. Our prides can live in peace," he said gently.
Zira however, growled at the expression of his good will.
"We always were and will be enemies," she hissed out. She pointed her paw at the bloody skull laying near Simba. "Take what remained of your uncle and get lost, you and your lionesses!"
Simba sighed lightly, saddened that his effort to forge a peace failed miserably. He would like to try to reason with Zira more, but her hostile attitude and vicious look in her red eyes told him that she wouldn't listen to him anyway.
"I hope that one day you change your mind," he said. Carefully, she picked Scar's skull and turned his back to Zira. The lionesses of the Pride Lands stepped aside, making way for him. Zazu took flight, showing the way home, while Simba and Nala ran after him, followed by their pride.
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Zira observed the leaving lions with discontent. It was true to the bone – the pride from Pride Rock was nothing but a nuisance. She huffed, unhappy that she had to let Simba go unharmed. If only his lionesses wouldn't come so soon… Nonetheless, it was past already.
"Let's go back, ladies," she said to her pride sisters.
They nodded in agreement and followed her to their den in the termite mounds. The night already fell over the Outlads, shrouding them in its darkness. Zira, like every other lion, could see well even after the sunset though. Agilely, she made her way home between the impressive buildings erected by tiny termites and set her paw into the biggest of all. A light choir of snoring cubs greeted her. Zira smiled, seeing her darlings sleeping in a pile, all snuggling into each other. Nuka placed his paw over Kovu, protecting Zira's youngest from cold and any danger that could befell him. Vitani lay splayed atop her older brother, with her hind leg resting on his muzzle.
Not everyone in the den slept though. Nukta and Kuruka stood guard in front of the small cavern within the mound. Zira approached it, and a set of bright, green eyes glowing in the shadow greeted her. She sat.
"I'm listening," Zira said.
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Author's Note:
Review, please! I'm eagerly anticipating your comments.