Icarus was not deterred. Not even as he saw the cave lined with rows and rows of wild dogs, with the largest one (no doubt in his mind that the biggest one there was Cobarte and therefore the alpha male of the pack) sitting beside the light yellow lioness and her eldest son. Icarus knew without a shadow of a doubt that they were Choyana and Iago, and he also counted 50 wild dogs in total, not counting Cobarte. And as he was counting, he noticed that not one of them fit the tawny-brown description of Magnus or his older sister Mala, for there were only dark red furs to be seen among the canines. At the foot of these rows of canines, sat a leopard, who was clearly no older than 3 years of age.

More than the sight of three different predators gathered together under one den, Icarus was taken aback by the sheer fealty that the dogs and the leopard had for this lioness and her cub. Lana hadn't exaggerated on that fact one bit; it looked as though the idea of anyone of them displeasing Iago or anyone he deemed his equal was a completely foreign concept. A foreign and very much taboo and unspoken concept that no one would even dare to think when he was alone under the cover of night, let alone discuss at all. Say this about that 'Blood' character: he knew what he was doing to ensure his chosen one would always have a base of power. Icarus thought, and as he thought this Malka bared his teeth.

"Iago! What the hell is all of this!? Where is Othello and Jezebel?!" The yearling demanded, not even caring about the growls and vicious jeers of the pack. Seeing and hearing firsthand just how much hatred the two brothers had for each other surprised Icarus, even if Lana had told him beforehand just how bad the relationship between these two were. Iago clearly didn't take being spoken to in that way too well, but Cobarte especially seemed as though he would like nothing more than to tear into Iago's older brother, though one look from Icarus said it all. I'm not just any lion, so you know. Cobarte got the message, as he deferred his response to Iago. "I could ask you the same thing, big bro. Especially since you failed to tell me that someone was intruding on my kingdom." His kingdom? Icarus thought, wondering just how someone this un-ironically arrogant could truly have any sort of followers, even inherited ones.

However, Malka's vicious smirk was what snapped Icarus out of his thoughts, as the yearling was about to drop a real bombshell on his weedy brother and his rather protective mother. "This 'intruder' is Icarus, the King of the Kuatan Jungle, the lion who killed Miran himself. And most importantly, Lana's dad." Hearing that, Iago's bravado and arrogance faltered for just a bit. In fact, it looked as though ice-water was poured into the veins of each and every animal standing opposite of Malka and Icarus. So I'm guessing Blood told them about Miran, and why they should never take him lightly. He thought.

"You say that like it means shit to any of us in here." Iago retorted, and though no one expressed it, Iago was wrong; it did, in fact, mean a quite a bit to all of the animals present, and Icarus had already seen right through the small cub's bluster. "It should, because what I heard from my daughter wasn't-" Iago interrupted him. "She only told you her side of the story, but I bet she didn't tell you how much of a brainless annoyance and an unashamed slut she is, did she? Did 'Daddy's little girl' also tell you that she's constantly arrogant, has almost no self-control and likes to make smartass comments to her superiors." Although Malka had to stifle a laugh at hearing Iago essentially describe his own antics, Icarus instead growled, and then raised his voice. "By telling me 'your side', all you've just proven to me is that you have no side!" He said, his anger finally bursting forth and turning the cool, calculating lion into a very angry father who was going to ensure that his daughter was not to be harassed. And if there were any doubters before, the sight of the angry dark lion convinced the dogs and especially the leopard beyond certainty that he had killed the Blonde Tyrant. Cobarte began to have second thoughts; he wasn't sure if this would be an easy fight anymore. And his pack might just run if they see their alpha struggling.

Iago however, wasn't convinced, and Icarus's fur bristling simply made him smirk. "Yeah, I'd like to see you come over here and say that bullshit." And, to the cub and Choyana's surprise, Icarus promptly ascended to the platform that the mother and cub were resting on. And to their even greater surprise was the way he did so. Although he moved with the deftness and sure-footedness of the felid he was, he also did so as though he were in no hurry, glaring at each wild dog he passed by. Not one of them felt it safe to antagonize him, as each suddenly seemed to realize how much larger than they he was and remembered that he was, in fact, an adult male lion and one who was very angry at that.

And, when he finally stood before Iago and Choyana, both seemed to realize that they were in fact much weaker than he. Iago's courage failed him, the dark lion staring down at him with the same purple eyes that Lana possessed, but right now were so different. These eyes conveyed a deep and terrible rage that he was barely in control of. Cobarte stood up, as did Choyana and Iago, yet when the massive dog stood his legs began shaking and he backed away, thankful that he wasn't the target of this lion.

However, Choyana managed to keep her courage, and allowed her motherly instincts to guide her feet to move between Icarus and Iago. "You wouldn't dare attack a mere cub, would you?" She asked defensively, and now Icarus turned his attention on the cream-yellow lioness. She refused to falter, for the sake of her son. "Stand aside." Icarus said, simply and as calmly as possible, yet with an edge to could cut diamonds. "Don't you dare lay a claw on him! If you do, I will-" At that, Icarus got closer, to the point where their noses were almost touching. Or would have been had Icarus not been so much taller than her. She crouched down in submission, and fear. "Or what?" He asked coldly. Tear began to well up in Choyana's eyes, her fear now overtaking her. "You'll sic these attack dogs on me, right? And that would be a problem, for all of us. But a war you'd be willing to risk and one you could fight, I'm sure. So, the way I see, you've got two options. Leave my daughter alone, and don't ever make me come back here again. Or, you can back up your words and your blusterous attitudes. So go ahead: Make your move." Icarus said, his voice as though it were ice.

No, we aren't. No we can't. And no, we won't on this day. Both Mercutio and Cobarte thought, and Malka enjoyed watching them sweat under pressure, as well as seeing Iago snivel in fear behind his mother like the cub he was. All animals knew that, now that everything Lana told them had turned out to be true, that a war with the Kuatan Jungle Pride would be disastrous for Iago's side. The pack was honestly quite busy with its own problems, and those problems were Mala and her followers. And Cobarte himself couldn't be sure of the loyalty of his own followers as it was, at least as it concerned loyalty to him and his causes in comparison to the safety of their own skins and that of their families. As for Mercutio, he began to wonder if all the kingdoms in the world would be worth it if he would not live to see the results of his labor. He began to question whether following Blood's son was truly going to lead to the luxurious life the dogs had talked about.

And if it did, what price would he pay in the process?