Chapter 10: The Destruction of a King

It was late, very late. Tamu had watched as Simba and Shuja left Pride Rock. Where they had gone, she did not know. She had her own journey to make. As quietly as she could, she left Simba's pride, venturing towards the north, where Simba and Kovu had been the day before, where she had been captive. The journey took a while, even at Tamu's swift pace. Once there, she halted just beside a steep fall, the cliff Kovu had likely fallen from. It was here she hoped to find Malkia, her old friend. They had one last hope if they were to truly be rid of Hasira. If they could turn his two remaining allies against him, he would have no power, no logical reason to stay nearby. He would be forced to return home and leave the Pridelands alone. Of the two, Malkia would likely be the easiest to convince to betray her master. Yama was a special kind of brute. She would leave him for another day. She did not have to look far to find her old friend. Malkia emerged from a nearby passage at the faintest sound of Tamu's movement.

"Tamu?! What on earth are you doing here?!" she asked, incredulous at the fact that the lioness would return after being held captive not a day ago.

"Where's Yama?" she asked. If the enormous lion was nearby, this may not go according to plan.

"He's sleeping," Malkia answered, impatiently. "Now answer my question. Why did you come back? You're either here with Simba and his pride or you're very foolish."

"I came alone. I came to make you see sense."

"Oh, please!"

"Malkia, listen to me!" Tamu implored. "You can't keep this up. This charade, this false loyalty that you show Hasira? I can see right through it. You're only helping him because he can protect you."

"I'm helping him because he gave me my home back!" Malkia screamed, enraged at these accusations. "Hasira marched into our home and took it back from those that exiled us! He was the only one that did."

"And to you he's the only one that can continue to keep you and Yama alive. Don't you see? He's blinded you, made you absolutely loyal to him so that you'll do anything he commands. You know what he's doing is wrong. You may have agreed with him back then, but not now. How could you? We were your friends, we grew up together." As futile as it seemed, it looked as though Tamu was actually getting through to her former pridemate. Malkia looked confused. It was as Tamu said. She had been loyal to Hasira when he retook their home because she believed action needed to be taken. Now, though, what Hasira was doing was mad. He would have them annihilate the Pridelanders or get them killed in the process. Neither prospect was very encouraging.

"Wha-…what would you have me do, Tamu?" she asked finally, exhausted and drained from the events of the past few days. "I'm lost. I don't know how to change this."

"Stay with him, Malkia," Tamu instructed her. "Remain Hasira's ally. And when the time comes, leave his side and join us. Without allies, he'll have nowhere to run and nobody to do his bidding. We'll have him defeated." Surprisingly, that seemed like a very plausible plan. Much of Hasira's strength in the current situation lay in his allies. Two had been killed in the fight with Simba and Kovu. That had been a significant blow.

"What about Yama?" Malkia asked then. The behemoth would not be so easily convinced. "I doubt he's as conflicted as I am. I don't know if we can convince him to betray Hasira. Any attempt to do so and he'll reveal our plan." This would be tricky. If Yama discovered them and remained loyal to Hasira, the white lion would have him kill them both.

"I could try and talk to him tonight, but it's risky."

"Don't bother," Yama announced as he emerged from the same passage Malkia had moments ago. He had heard everything. "Is this truly where your loyalties lie, Malkia?" he asked. Malkia simply nodded, unsure of what was about to happen. "He saved us. Gave us our home back when we were starving in the wastes."

"I know," Malkia said softly. "But he's gone too far, Yama. If the circumstances were different, I might think the same but…he has to be stopped. We need to put an end to this." Yama sighed then, a great, tremulous sigh. This decision was not easy for him.

"Then, I'm with you," he said then. Tamu couldn't believe it. She had done the impossible, convinced both of Hasira's remaining allies to betray him. This was it. They had the war won. "Both of you. I may not like it, but…I can't ignore the facts. Hasira's vendetta will kill us all. If not now, how can we be sure he won't go too far again in the future? No, his reign needs to end." Malkia sighed with relief.

"Thank you, Yama. You have no idea how much this means to us. To me." He simply nodded before facing Tamu. For a moment it seemed as though he may apologise to her.

"Tamu, I…well, I don't, uh…"

"Apology accepted," Tamu told him. It felt good to have her old friends back.

"Now, go," he said then. "Back to the Pridelands. When Hasira sees fit to strike again, we'll be ready. You have my word." With that, Tamu turned and left them. This was good, far better than she could have ever hoped, in fact. When she arrived at Pride Rock, it was day and the others were awake, likely getting ready to search for her. Once they spotted her, they rushed to meet her.

"Tamu, are you alright?!" Shuja asked frantically. "What happened?"

"It's alright, I'm fine. I have news." Carefully, she explained her plan to them. Assuming Hasira would enter the Pridelands again, Tamu would give the signal to his allies, prompting them to join the Pridelanders and oppose their former master. The news that Yama and Malkia would betray Hasira was almost too much to take for Shuja. Still, he trusted Tamu. If this worked, they would be free from Hasira.

"Tamu, that's incredible," Simba praised her. "With this plan, he'll be powerless against us. We'll never see him again." It was settled, then. Should Hasira refuse to enter the Pridelands again, they would seek him out instead. With the might of the Pridelanders behind him, Shuja would be untouchable. It was late that day when Kiara emerged from the cave. She had evidently been crying. Spotting Shuja down by the watering hole, she went to him. She needed to talk to him.

"Shuja?" Her voice startled him slightly. He had not expected her to approach him for some time.

"Oh! Hi, Kiara. How are you feeling?" He was sure she had come down to vent her feelings, to unleash her rage upon him as she blamed him for what had happened to Kovu. What she said next shocked him far more.

"I wanted to set some things straight," she began. "I need to tell you that I don't blame you for what happened." That was a surprise. "I was angry, yes…but not at you. It wouldn't have been fair for me to ask you to accept Hasira's offer. I just needed to tell you that. Don't beat yourself up over it…" She did not seem to know whether to leave or not. Shuja instead nuzzled her affectionately, grateful beyond comprehension that she was so forgiving, so undeservingly compassionate. Shuja deserved a lot worse from these Pridelanders. He owed it to them to make sure Hasira never harmed them again. He would make sure they were safe.

"Thank you, Kiara. I mean it! I really didn't deserve that." Kiara purred softly then.

"Don't mention it," she whispered before heading back towards Pride Rock. Hasira was nearby, that much was certain. His last words before leaving had been, 'You know where to find me.' Shuja did know, in fact. He surmised the white lion had returned to the western land, to the stone tower where Nala had been kept captive. That was where they would seek him out if he did not come to them first. That was where they would destroy him.