***Chapter 1***

"Do not sleep under a roof. Carry no money or food. Go alone to places frightening to the common brand of men. Become a criminal of purpose. Be put in jail, and extricate yourself by your own wisdom."

(((0)))

The wilderness was a dangerous place to most and one to be avoided at all costs. If one was suddenly made pride-less and a rogue, the first objective for most was to find a new home and escape the vast wilderness as quickly as possible. Though there were many stories of monstrous rogues and killer animals, the true fear of the wilderness was not due to its physical danger. Lions of all types and backgrounds dreaded the rough country because of its true nature. Isolation. It was true that there were dangers to be faced, but they were generally few and far between. Far more likely than a crocodile attack was a fall down an unseen slope and a broken leg. Without the care of a pride's shaman, the victim faced certain death of the worst kind. Slow, painful, and above all, alone. When faced with death, even the most introverted loner would pray for someone's help, care, and kindness. Kiota was the exception. He thrived not only in isolation, but in the face of death.

It was early morning and the grass, still wet with dew, brushed across his fur softly. The wilderness did not frighten him as it did most lions; he was different. He had discovered a long time ago that Pride-life wasn't for him; he was simply too restless. Ever since he had killed Sali almost a year earlier, he had wanted something more than what a Pride could offer him. He had soon become a rogue in the wilderness; traveling from kingdom to kingdom with the same motives each time. Today was no different.

This Pride existed in a small forest on the banks of a fast- paced river and was home to what he estimated to be around twenty or so lions and lionesses. It was a rather well- off place that was almost out of place in the surrounding wastelands. It had been extremely difficult for Kiota to travel through the boulder fields to the west, but he had done it ably. Now, after a good night's rest, he headed into the Pride's land with his mission in mind.

As he neared their main area, he began to attract the expected attention. He walked past surprised lionesses and ignored their confused stares. For Kiota, this was all routine; he had even forgotten exactly how many times he had done this before. This was at least the seventh time, maybe even the eighth. It didn't matter either way; he wasn't after numbers, Kiota wanted the intangible.

An angry growl split the crisp morning air and a middle aged lion leapt from a nearby rock. Judging by how he carried himself and the others' reaction to his movement, Kiota assumed he was the King.

"Who are you and what are you doing in our lands?" the supposed king demanded dangerously.

Kiota bowed lowly, but never took his eyes off the lion. "You are the king?"

"I am King Faru."

"Are you the strongest?"

Faru blinked suprisedly at the unusual question. "I am the King for other reasons as well, but yes…" he replied slowly. "You never answered my question, though."

The rogue nodded. "My name is Kiota, and I'm here for you."

The king blinked again, this time in confusion. "You are challenging me?"

Kiota nodded and looked around at the lionesses that were beginning to circle around them. He smiled inwardly as history inevitably repeated itself. No matter where he went, whether it was his old home or a small desert pride, the lionesses always came running at the first sign of violence. For reasons he could only guess at, they loved the fight.

"I accept the challenge," Faru hissed. "But I warn you… I will kill you."

Kiota nodded neutrally with unsettling calmness. "I would expect nothing less."

Faru looked over his challenger for a moment, trying to gauge the threat. Kiota was unusual to say the least. The golden lion was an adult, but still young and without the usual nervousness that most rogues had. Faru had fought off many challengers before, and a consistent trait that he had noticed was that of desperation and impatience. Kiota was not at all impatient, nor was he desperate. He just stood there, as calmly as if he had just asked for directions rather than a fight to the death. It was bizarre to Faru, and he didn't like it one bit. The thing that bothered him the most was the eyes. Unlike his body language, Kiota's eyes were filled with purpose. Whatever he wanted, he wasn't nervous and he wasn't desperate… he just was determined to have it.

"I'm ready whenever you are, Faru." Kiota stated calmly to the aggravated king.

"Well so am I." He responded in a near whisper. "Maybe you should attack."

Kiota nodded and stared blankly at the king for several moments from only about ten yards away. Suddenly and without warning, he let out a fierce roar and lunged forward towards Faru. In a flash, the golden lion was barraging the king with blows from all directions. He growled and snarled as he struck, his face the perfect picture of rage and determination. Faru tried to maintain his defense, but Kiota's dramatic change in behavior had greatly surprised him. Despite the king's experience in dealing with rogues, he found himself backing up in unprecedented retreat. He roared in anger and struck out at Kiota's face, only to have his blow be blocked easily to the side. In a single fluid motion, the same paw that knocked away Faru's strike slid up his arm and across his collarbone with its claws exposed. Faru gasped as the claws passed across his neck and followed through to his other shoulder.

At first, he thought the claws had completely missed him; after all, he felt no pain. Then he saw the blood. Faru stared down at the vast amount of blood that poured from his neck onto the dry ground. He looked up to see Kiota standing a few yards away, the fury gone from his face. The calm and patient lion had returned and now watched with neutrality as the king died.

"Huh…" Faru said blankly as if he had suddenly realized something profound. It was the last thing he uttered before he collapsed to the ground in the final and permanent sleep of death.

Kiota nodded to himself and turned away from the corpse. The body didn't interest him… it never did. He looked to the crowd of mortified lionesses for a moment before speaking.

"If you have any food, I'd appreciate it."

One of the ones closest to him nodded numbly as a silent tear slid down her face. "Y-yes… Sire." She said quietly as she gestured to a Zebra corpse not too far away.

Kiota walked over to the kill and began to eat his fill. While he ate, he was vaguely aware of a funeral proceeding behind him for the pride's late king. He could hear the quiet sobs and cries of distraught lionesses as they said their final goodbye's to their fallen leader. To most it would have been heartbreaking, but Kiota felt no sympathy for them. He had fought Faru on even terms with his consent, the king had known the risk when he entered the fight, and the price had been paid. He understood their grief, he simply didn't care. Even when the now orphaned teenage prince approached his deceased father, Kiota continued to eat his meal without so much as a blink.

Once he had eaten his fill, Kiota turned away back in the direction from which he had come past a group of teary-eyed lionesses. He walked past them without as much as a glance.

"Where are you going?" one demanded with a mix of anger and confusion.

"I'm leaving." Kiota replied as he stopped to address the lioness.

She blinked suprisedly. "What? What do you mean that you're leaving?"

"I'm leaving."

"But… But you're the king now."

Kiota allowed a small smile to cross his face as he shrugged. "I don't want to be king. You all can keep your pride." With that, he turned and continued down his path, leaving the lioness staring at him blankly in shock. It was like this every time he left a beaten Pride, everyone expected him to take the throne as any other Rogue would, but he wouldn't. Kiota didn't want power or family or anything like that. He wanted the intangible.

He walked out into the open savannah that he had passed through only a short while earlier on his way to fight Faru. The landscape hadn't changed, but to Kiota, everything was different. The colors were more vibrant, the air was sweeter, his steps were lighter, and his mind was sharper. It was always like this after he fought and he loved it. In order to feel truly alive, he had to risk life itself. But it was also more than that. It was about the challenge and the unknown. It was what separated him from others; when most avoided the unknown for fear of what it could bring, Kiota pursued it at all costs in order to find out just how far he could go. So far, he hadn't found his limit, and was therefore incomplete. He wanted a new challenge… perhaps the larger kingdoms to the east could offer him a more worthy opponent. Up until now he had been traveling among the small to medium sized Prides and challenging the best they could offer, and each time he defeated them easily. It was beginning to bore him; he needed a new fight, one that would truly test him and show him some of his weaknesses. When he killed his opponent too quickly, he learned nothing about himself or fighting in general, and learning was really what it was all about. The more he learned about fighting, the farther he would be able to push himself, and the longer he would live. Kiota loved life, more than most did. He loved it so much that he was willing to kill in order to enjoy it.

***Author's Note***

An interesting character, is he not? Some feedback would be nice on Kiota, he's my first… for lack of a better word, "Villain" Protagonist. I don't own any of the quotes that will appear in the beginning of this, and future chapters. As far as their origins… It will be revealed in due time.

REVIEW AND COMMENT!

-Ben