Two Brothers Under the Sun Appendix
Chapter 3: Appendix C: Battle of the Dirisha
It was a dry cold night in the Bukuvu jungle. In the midst of the Drought Season, the animals gather around Zulu Falls and the biggest water source left in the rainforest for the annual Water Truce; where no predator is allowed to hunt at the riverbanks so as to let all slake their thirst in safety. As the Jungle Law dictates, all the new toddlers must also be presented at Council Rock to be recognized by the other inhabitants of the jungle. But amongst that year's batch of youngsters, a hairless little ape was presented by Kala, the matriarch of the Mangani gorilla troop. Except the boy was no gorilla... it was a man-cub.
The lush tropical forests of northeast Bukuvu have been the home to the jungle's various gorilla troops for many years. Known collectively as the "Ugani", these giant apes originally came from the snowy mountains to the east but now live a semi-nomadic lifestyle foraging across the lands surrounding the "Wakalu", the strongest tree in the jungle, located in the heart of the northern foothills. Although kings of their own habitat, the gorillas are peaceful people who enjoy solitude from most of the other creatures of the jungle. Little did they know that was all about to change as events transpired on the southern bank of the Dirisha River.
Shere Khan the tiger had quickly established his streak as the great superpower of the south, expanding and conquering the weakened territories of the bears of Sleuth Forest and consolidating the jungle's leopard leaps under his command. In that year's Water Truce, at the official proclamation of his Tiger Khanate, The Great Khan was at the high of his power, garnering favor with the jungle overlords: Colonel Hathi the elephant, Herr Rhino, and Basi the hippopotamus. Although he basked under this blood-earned glory, a thorn persisted in the paw of the new conqueror.
The orangutan by the name of Louie too had started out as a stranger hailing from distant jungles and was taken to the Bukuvu on the whims of men. Following the tiger's example, he carved out a realm of his own to rule over as the first king of the jungle's many monkey tribes. But, unlike the Khan, Louie harbored a great fascination for his former masters' ways and sought to learn as much as he could about their "tricks". Driven by nigh-obsessive curiosity, as well as emulating men's behavior, he reclaimed one of their cities left behind after Shere Khan had thoroughly purged mankind from the jungle, making an enemy of Hista, the Khan's Royal Mjuzi who had been sent there under the tiger's orders to turn the empty ruins into a new lair for his nest of giant pythons.
Well aware of "King Louie's" mania concerning his old enemies, the Great Khan carried the issue to Colonel Hathi at Council Rock in the hopes that he would condemn the ape's actions, which would allow him to regain the formerly-abandoned dwellings to his Khanate. However, the tiger was overruled by the gorilla troops of the northern hills, who held no love for the Khan's leopard subjects and knew their stamping grounds would be endangered should the Khanate further expand its hunting grounds into their side of the Dirisha River. Sadly, their fears would be proven correct only a few days later when none other than the Khan's top leopard lieutenant, Sabor, assassinated the only son of Kerchak, Silverback of the Mangani Troop in cold blood. Possibly as retaliation for siding with the orangutan.
Enraged both at his child's death and the blatant breaking of the jungle's cardinal law against the killing of younglings, the mighty gorilla summoned his fellow kin beneath the imposing base of the "Green Mother" and declared his intention to fight Shere Khan and banish the threat of the big cats once and for all. The other troops rallied to his cause and elected him Chief Silverback of the newly-formed Great Troop of Bukuvu. For the first time, the Ugani had fully united as one troop under one leader. Accompanied by the black panther Bagheera, who had grown alienated by the actions of Sabor and Shere Khan, the great apes make ready for an assault at the crack of dawn.
Cornering the Khanate's contingent near the riverbanks after they had rendered themselves exhausted following a night-long hunt, hundreds of gorillas fell upon the surprised enemy. In the ensuing battle frenzy, tigers and leopards alike died by the troop's war clubs before they were able to mount a meaningful counterattack. For a moment, the onslaught was abated as the Khan's brother Berdan managed to muster an offensive on the treetops above. Even so, his efforts turned futile once the apes powered through his attack, forcing him to call a general withdrawal to the Khanate's heartlands across the river.
The Great Khan arrived too late to salvage the situation but dared Kerchak to test his might against his on a river crossing. Bagheera attempted to quell the hostilities between both sides only to be rebuked when the tiger nonbudgingly demanded the gorillas hand him the man-cub that had escaped his hunters and was rescued by Kala, Kerchak's mate. The Chief Silverback bluntly denied the request knowing that doing so would break the female's heart, thus ending any chance of peace between the Troop and the Khanate. From then on, the Dirish River would mark the border between their domains.
By wiping out the tigers' threat for the time being, Kerchak inadvertently put himself in a favorable position by becoming one of the most powerful leaders in all of the Bukuvu. Taking full advantage of his reputation, he subsequently secured the lands in the Wakalu's vicinity under his protection. That, coupled with the sympathy Kala had garnered for her loss and Bagheera's good word, swayed support for his decision to accept the man-cub, now called "Tarzan", into the Great Troop. Meanwhile, Shere Khan's reputation was forever tarnished in the northern jungles and the Colonel had him banned from ever showing his hide at Zulu Falls again, symbolically blacklisting him under the eyes of the pachyderms. This wouldn't change even after the tiger had exiled Sabor for murdering the infant. Despite the blow this dishonor had delivered to his prestige, the Great Khan stuck to his promise of exacting revenge against the Great Troop and their allies, and that one day he would kill Tarzan.