Nightfall in the Goldlands, as Magnus walked through the golden brush alone with his thoughts. He had hoped he wouldn't have to fight any member of Cobarte's pack, for as he saw it this quarrel shouldn't concern his pack anymore. The day Blood entered the Goldlands was the day the pack split right down the middle, and quite frankly he wished that the lions of the land would just do as Mala said they had done for generations and simply leave them to their devices again.
Everything was fine before they showed up. Our pack was happy, and not at each other's throats. Mala wasn't constantly watching her own back; constantly worrying about if someone was going to betray her or not! Mom would still live! Dad wouldn't have been exiled! And my life wouldn't have been dictated and overshadowed by some spoiled weakling of a pussycat who actually thinks he's a lion! As Magnus stewed over what he witnessed, all of the mortality that he would watch unfold from his hiding spot in the cave once the fighting started, he realized that he shouldn't be angry at his friends. Hence why he was visiting the zebra plains, and entering the underground den. And boy was he surprised.
It wasn't the fact that Iago was lazing around, chewing on a bone that he no doubt stole from a weaker predator. Nor was it the fact that Choyana was doing her son's dirty work and slicing up the best cuts of meat for her son. What surprised him was the fact that Mala was also there. And she seemed to be… actually at ease. "Mala? What are you…" Magnus asked, but when he spoke to her she turned away, as though ashamed. The older sister was hesitant to reveal why she was here, but Cobarte limped into view and got Magnus' attention.
"Welcome back to the pack, Magnus." Now that definitely caught the teenaged dog off guard. "What?" He asked, hollowly and rather dumbly. Cobarte realized he didn't get it, but Iago standing up and approaching signaled that he would be the one to explain it. "Mala has finally made the right decision, and rejoined the side of Blood's dynasty. It's a cause for celebration, really." Iago said jovially, and that was a surprise to Magnus. But surprise quickly turned to questioning.
"Mala, there were many casualties among our kind. Did you know this?" Mala's angst said it all, but she decided to answer. "Such is war, Magnus." She said, that same defeated tone that he always heard whenever something bad happened and she was unable to do anything about it. And Magnus was tired of hearing it. "And, knowing this, you're going to join… him!?" Magnus pointed to Iago, but once again Mala said nothing. Instead, Iago moved between the brother and sister. "And you have a problem with this? Your side of the pack has come to their senses. And because of that, they shall share in the spoils of my eventual victory. They will have what my father gave them when he was alive and took over. Why don't you do as your sister has done, and join the winning team?" Iago more demanded than asked. To which Magnus bared his teeth.
" 'Winning team', eh? So far, you and your father have done nothing but use and abuse any and everyone who has been foolish or ill-informed enough to work for your ungrateful, rude ass! You are constantly arrogant, constantly belittling your so-called 'friends' and just generally awful for the sake of being awful! And not to mention that you are constantly harassing lionesses who don't want to be bothered by you anyway!" Magnus exclaimed, and Mala knew that eventually her younger brother would say all of these things to Iago. And she dreaded it even at this very moment, especially when she saw Iago's clawed paw rise to the side of his head. However, he then started grooming his protracted claws instead.
"Yeah? This is coming from the mutt whose best friend is an arrogant, annoying slut who shakes her ass for any male that looks her way? She says stupid shit, thinks she's the funniest bitch in the room and acts like she can kick everyone's ass. And this on top of being the same slut who flirts with my stupid-ass brothers and then has the nerve to reject me outright, knowing full well that she looks like a real bitch for doing that? She knows she's doing it, too, because I see the way she taunts and smirks when the beta males jump right to her defense every time she bats her eyes. You're not even a lion and look at how she's got you wrapped around her paw; and you're trying to say that she's somehow any better than me?" Iago asked threateningly. Magnus almost lost his nerve, but he was not going to be intimidated so easily.
"Lana is a bit full of herself and sometimes tells bad jokes. She acts like a slut. You, on the other hand, are killing my pack!" Magnus had enough of it, and that much was clear. Unfortunately, so had Iago. With a signal of thumbs down, a young hunter leaped from his hiding place and ripped Mala's throat out. Her eyes widened in surprise, yet she was dead before she could make a sound, and the only reason Magnus perceived her death was because her blood splashed on him. He looked to the side in horror.
"What! Mala!" Magnus called out, as he moved to attack the dog that had killed his sister. And, to his regret, he had taken his eyes off of Iago and allowed the diminutive lion to pounce and pin him to the ground. Small stature or not, even a weak lion possessed the strength to hold down the average sized dog, as Iago just proved to Magnus. He squirmed and kicked, but he wasn't going anywhere. "Damn it all!" He said, fury burning in his voice. Iago simply chuckled in amusement at the angry teenaged dog, as though he were a sadistic child torturing an ant. At least, that was the comparison Magnus made. "What are you waiting for?! Kill me already, you son of a bitch!"
"Where's the fun in that?" Iago asked, as he slapped Magnus across the muzzle. The teen's fury was stoked further, but he could not get free. "Now, that, right there, was me killing your pack. But, as you saw there, I never touched your sister. While you were talking all of that good shit about how your king and I were killing your pack, your sister just died to one of her own subordinates. Because even the dumb ones know who is their king, above all kings. Even the dumb ones know not to step up to me like you just did." Iago then placed his claws on Magnus' jugular.
"And now you will learn all about what I do to insubordinate bitches like you."