"Please, Dad, you promised!" Kopa's voice rang through the Pride Lands.

Simba rubbed his eyes, trying to wake himself up. He had promised his son a tour of the kingdom today, and he didn't want to disappoint him. "Just give me a minute, Kopa," he said, groggily.

"Dad, come on!" Kopa pleaded.

Simba slowly stood up and stretched his muscles. "Okay, let's go," he said, leading Kopa towards the edge of Pride Rock. But before they could take a step further, Zazu appeared.

"Sire! There is an emergency!" he squawked. "Something's wrong with the watering hole. You need to come with me."Simba sighed.

"Sorry, Kopa, I have to go," he said apologetically as Kopa sighed in disappointment.

"Why is Dad always like this?" he grumbled to himself as he went outside to play. Kopa had always been curious about the lands beyond Pride Rock. He wondered what it was like out there and decided to find out for himself.

He set out on his own, not realizing the danger he was putting himself in.

As he wandered through the unknown land, Kopa saw skulls scattered everywhere. "This place is creepy," he muttered to himself.

Suddenly, a lioness appeared. "Oh, look who we have here, a lost kitten," she sneered.

Kopa tried to act bravely, but he couldn't hide the fear in his voice. "Who's there?" he asked.

The lioness approached him. "So, what exactly is a cub doing around here? Wait...you're Prince Kopa," she said, a sly grin spreading across her face.

Kopa's heart raced. "What do you want?" he asked, trembling."I simply want your life...as revenge," the lioness growled.

Without warning, she attacked the young prince. Kopa tried to defend himself, but he was no match for her. He was clawed, scratched, and beaten until he was hardly recognizable.

"Why?" Kopa managed to ask through his tears and pain.

Zira looked down at him coldly. "Blame your father," she hissed.

With one final blow, Zira ended Kopa's life. She threw his body into the river, hoping no one would find out.

Meanwhile, a lion named Rifalme was on his journey to discover other kingdoms and civilizations. As he traveled, he spotted an injured cub floating in the river.

Rifalme felt sick in his stomach and took the cub to his home

The cub would later be raised by him and would be his heir and play a major role in expanding his empire and is known as

Kali

Present day

Nala looked around, feeling unsure of their location. "Where are we?" she asked, her voice hesitant.

"We've arrived," Ni declared, "in the Umojelands."

Ruudhi immediately protested, "I don't want to be here! Good luck with your mission, but I'm out of here!"

Ni halted in his tracks, incredulous. "What? You're not going with us? We need you!"

"I refuse to meet him again," Ruudhi said.

Ni wasn't going to let him go so easily. "I know what you've been through, but we have to face him. This is your chance to get revenge for the pain he has inflicted on you"

Ruudhi took a deep breath "Fine... I'll help you, all of you"

"Get up, Matu! It's time for your training," Kali urged

Matu groaned and rubbed his eyes. "It's too early," he complained.

"That's exactly why you need to get up," Kali insisted. "This is going to be your daily routine until you're fully trained."

"Alright, Dad..." Matu sighed

"Well this is a very perfect time to start your training," Ganaji said "Don't worry it won't be that hard"

"But you guys said that it would be harder than before!" Matu objected

"Yes, it will be challenging, but with practice, it will become easier," Ganaji reassured him

"Well I guess this is goodbye," Kali said

"Wait... Dad, you aren't going with us?" Matu asked

"I have a lot of things to do" Kali replied "But don't worry I'll visit you sometime"

"Dad, do you think I can do it?" Matu asked

"Yes you can, I believe in you" Kali replied

"Well we are wasting too much time" Ganaji chimed in "We have to go"

Matu was conflicted as he saw his father run off as he has to follow some random tiger that is supposed to be his "Teacher"

"It's good to have your son back, Kali," Rifalme greeted him. "How has it been?"

"Fine, I've been able to understand him better," Kali replied.

"While Ganaji trains Matu, you have other duties," Rifalme said. "Our guards found some unusual movement, and it turns out Ruudhi is back, trying to sneak in."

Kali's eyes widened. "Where is he? He's here to take Matu back, isn't he?"

"We don't know for sure, but we need you to hunt him down and teach him a lesson," Rifalme said

Nala marveled at the vastness of the place they had come upon. "This place is huge," she said in disbelief.

Ni shook his head. "It wasn't supposed to be like this. They took all the land and claimed it as theirs."

"Any idea where we should start looking for Matu?" Mheetu asked.

"Not yet," replied Ni.

Ruudhi interrupted them. "Are you sure we haven't been spotted? I don't think this sneaking around thing is working."

"Quiet!" Ni hissed.

Suddenly, Kali gave an announcement. "Attention everyone, the Guards have spotted the traitor Ruudhi sneaking into this land. If you see anything unusual, report it to us."

"What? Why specifically me?!" Ruudhi protested.

Ni had an idea. "Wait... They didn't notice the rest of us. Ruudhi, you need to distract Kali while we find Matu."

"Are you insane?! I can't face him alone!" Ruudhi hissed

"We need a distraction. Come on, Ruudhi," Ni insisted.

"Fine," Ruudhi spat, begrudgingly agreeing to the plan.

As they continued sneaking through the lands, Ruudhi stormed off to find Kali, leaving Nala, Ni, and Mheetu to search for Matu.

"I think that's him!" Mheetu pointed out as they entered a place full of trees.

"Yeah, looks like it," Nala said, noticing someone standing beside Matu.

"That's Ganaji! I see he has joined the empire. We need a plan first," Ni said. "We are going to save him quietly."

"Nala, you capture Matu. Mheetu and I will deal with the witness," Ni added.

"Will do," Nala agreed.

"First we need to-" Ganaji started to train Matu but was suddenly pounced on and knocked unconscious by Ni and Mheetu.

"What's going on?" Matu asked, panicking.

"It's us," Mheetu said.

"Mhe-Mheetu?" Matu was shocked.

"We're here to save you. We have to get out of here now, fast!" Ni said.

Nala took Matu, and they made their way to leave enemy territory. Meanwhile, Ruudhi was facing off against Kali.

"Kali, it's nice to see you today," Ruudhi greeted.

"What are you doing here?" Kali demanded.

"I'm here to face you for everything you have done to me!" Ruudhi snarled.

However, before the fight could start, Ruudhi was captured by the guards under Rifalme's command.

"Good job, everyone. Now take this traitor where he belongs," Rifalme commanded, and the guards agreed to take him in.

"I was expecting a good fight, but thanks, I guess," Kali spat.

"Sometimes you have to do things the quicker way," Rifalme said.

"Kali! This is bad! Really, really bad!" Ganaji chimed in.

"What happened?" Kali asked, worried.

"The Pridelanders took Matu. They are on their way to get him home!" Ganaji replied.

"Unacceptable! Simba and I had a deal!" Rifalme exclaimed.

"And that deal seems to be broken!" Ganaji said.

"Normally, Ruudhi doesn't just show up like an idiot," Kali said. "It's all part of the plan... To distract us!"

"It all makes sense now," Rifalme grinned. "Well, I gave them a chance, and they blew it. Consider this a declaration of war against the Pridelands."

"Find those Pridelanders! Don't let them get away!" Kali commanded.

Nala, Ni, Mheetu, and Matu were running as fast as they could, trying to get as far away from enemy territory as possible. They knew they had to make it back to the Pridelands before the enemy caught up to them.

"We have to keep moving," Nala urged, glancing back to see if they were being pursued. "We can't stop until we're safe."

"We're not far from the border," Ni said, pointing ahead. "Once we cross it, we'll be in familiar territory."

"What about Ruudhi?!" Nala asked.

"Exactly... Where is he?!" Mheetu wondered.

"In a place where he belongs" Kali showed up with his army.

"Kali..." Ni growled.

"Matu... I thought you promised not to run away," Kali spat.

"Dad, I..." Matu hesitated.

"Matu belongs to me and should not be under the empire's boot!" Mheetu snarled.

"You do not have any right to my son!" Kali argued

"You didn't raise him, he is my son" Mheetu argued

Ni had been scanning the area for a possible escape route when he saw Kali and Mheetu arguing about Matu. The moment seemed perfect for Ni to act. He lunged at Kali and scratched him, giving him another scar.

Kali howled in pain, and Ni saw his chance. He grabbed Matu and ran, with Mheetu and Nala following close behind.

"Don't let them get away! Get them!" Kali bellowed, but Rifalme ordered his soldiers to stand down.

"Not now. Let them get away," Rifalme said calmly.

Kali was outraged. "Have you gone insane?!" he yelled at Rifalme.

"We have declared war on the Pridelands, and tomorrow we will attack them," Rifalme replied. "Let them have their joy now because their homeland will be destroyed tomorrow."

Kali hesitated, but he knew Rifalme was right. "Well, we better give them hell," Kali said, begrudgingly accepting the plan.

Meanwhile, Ni, Mheetu, Nala, and Matu were running as fast as they could. They knew they had to get back to the Pridelands, But they also knew that they were now in grave danger. The empire would stop at nothing to capture them and bring them to justice.

"Simba," Mufasa's ghost appeared before him.

"Yes, Father?" Simba responded.

"What you have done is wrong. You are the king, and you should have helped your people," Mufasa said.

"I did what I had to do to maintain peace," Simba retorted.

"Peace at what cost? Sacrificing your people? Peace is essential, Simba, but not at the expense of your people," Mufasa replied.

"What should I do, then?" Simba inquired.

"Fight. Fight for what is right, Simba," Mufasa replied before vanishing.

Nala, Mheetu, and Ni returned to the Pridelands with Matu, preparing for what was to come.

"Simba, we understand that you were trying to maintain peace, and we respected that," Ni spoke. "We will be on our way now."

"No, stay here," Simba insisted.

"What do you mean?" Ni questioned.

"I was a fool. I realize now that you were right. The empire needs to be stopped, and I won't give up without a fight," Simba responded.

"That's what we wanted to hear, Simba. We'll be with you until the very end," Ni replied, smiling.

"Matu are you okay? You look sad" Mheetu asked

"I broke a promise..." Matu replied

"What do you mean?" Mheetu asked

"I had a promise with my dad, that I shouldn't run away and leave him..." Matu explained

"Well it's a good thing you did, you shouldn't be with him," Mheetu said

"What?! He is my dad! What do you mean I shouldn't be with him?! You aren't even my real dad!" Matu argued and stormed off

"Matu I..." Mheetu sighed

"Matu, wait!" Matu heard Mheetu's voice behind him.

"Leave me alone," Matu said, wiping away his tears.

"I know it's tough," Mheeth said, putting a paw on Matu's shoulder. "But sometimes we have to break promises for the right reasons."

"But my dad is still my dad," Matu said, looking up at Mheetu.

"I know he's your dad, but he's not a good lion. He's done bad things and hurt a lot of others. I just don't want to see you get hurt too," Mheetu said, sitting down next to Matu.

Matu took a deep breath and nodded. "Thanks, Mheetu. I guess you're right."

"I know, Matu," Mheeth said "But things will get better, I promise."

Kali was alone in the dark, and he let out a sigh of frustration. "Why does everything have to be so hard?" he muttered to himself "I just want all of this to be over..."

"Ah, there he is... The lost prince and heir... Welcome back, Kopa," Rafiki said with a smile.

Kali let out a sigh and muttered, "Thamani... If only you knew what a headache your son could be."

"Did I hear someone having a headache problem?" Rafiki appeared out of nowhere.

Kali growled, "Who are you? Were you watching me?"

Rafiki replied, "I guess so, Kopa. Who knew a cub could be such a headache sometimes?"

Kali demanded, "First of all, my name isn't Kopa, and second, who are you?"

Rafiki grinned and asked, "Well, the real question is... Who are you?"

Kali's temper flared, and he threatened, "Get away from me, or I'll make a meal out of you!"

Rafiki calmly responded, "Oh, Kopa, everyone knows you don't like monkey meat."

Kali was taken aback and asked, "Wait, how did you know that? Whatever, it doesn't matter. You have the wrong guy!"

Rafiki replied, "Did you ever wonder about your past?"

Kali replied hesitantly, "I did, but so what? Do you know anything about it?"

"I certainly do," Rafiki said confidently. "You are the lost prince of the Pridelands, Prince Kopa, firstborn of Simba and Nala."

Kali scoffed, "Are you serious? Get out of my way! You're wasting my time."

Rafiki encouraged him, "Do you want to know the truth? Follow me."

Kali was unsure but decided to follow Rafiki. The Mandrill led Kali to a secluded spot where a still pool of water lay. Rafiki gestured towards the water and said, "Look into the water, Kopa. What do you see?"

Kali looked into the water hesitantly and saw only his reflection. "What am I supposed to do here?" he asked.

"Just look, and you will find the answers to your past," Rafiki replied.

However, nothing changed. Kali saw only his reflection. "Are you messing with me?" he asked. "I see nothing!"

Rafiki was perplexed. He didn't know what to do. It always worked before. "Well, you see..." he started to explain.

"I'm not dealing with any of this! Get out of my sight! If I ever see you again, you're dead!" Kali warned as he stormed off.

Rafiki sighed to himself, "This is going to be harder than I thought..."