The Lion King: Dawn Of The Nations
Episode 11: Hospitality
The cold of the night's eve woke up Emba, he slowly got into his paws and yawned, stretching while looking through the cave's entrance, glaring at the dark blue sky of the late afternoon, the stars were still hidden. He walked over the rocky, cold ground of the cave, towards the bottom of it, seeing his parents sleeping and gasping when noticing his mother's wound. He hurried his steps a bit, trying to take them as silent as possible, he then approached Rani and got close to the wound. "Mom." He mumbled, Rani moved a bit and let out a sigh of troubled yet deep sleep. Emba glanced at his father and walked towards him, standing on his hind legs and putting his paws on his back, patting it gently yet repeatedly. "Dad?" Kion was laying on his side, facing the rocky wall.
Kion's sleep wasn't as deep as Rani's, he only made a sound of sleepy inquiry, having heard his son's voice.
"What happened to mom?" Emba asked.
Kion yawned and moved a bit, his ear twitched slightly. "What is it, son?" He was now awake enough to answer his son's question. He let out a sigh and briefly after so, he yawned again. "Don't worry, son. Your mom is fine."
"But, what happened?" Emba insisted, still murmuring. "She is wounded."
Kion delayed a bit to provide an answer. "She fell."
Emba raised an eyebrow, looking at his mother's wound once again, trying to make up the scene on his mind, thing that his young thinking found plausible. "From where?" But he still wanted more information.
Kion sighed, a bit frustrated. "I don't know, she just told me." He let out a final, made up yawn, pretending to fall asleep to avoid more questions.
Emba stood there for a moment, thinking while seeing Rani's wound. He got his paws off his father's back and approached his mother again, getting in front of her head, he leaned towards her forehead and licked it. "Get well soon, mom." He mumbled and remained sitting before her for a long moment then just walked away from her.
Ari, Zale and Keru were sleeping on a low level of the cave, inside a hole on one of the cave's walls, with a brief stair like natural path that led to the aperture's inside. Emba jumped in there and approached his sister, patting her head with a paw repeatedly. "Ari." He mumbled, a bit loud to wake her up. "Ari." He insisted.
Ari opened her eyes narrowly. "What?" She inquired with a sleepy voice.
Emba gestured upwards, towards the entrance. "Let's go explore, my parents are asleep."
Ari closed her eyes with disinterest. "And get in trouble for nothing?..." She yawned briefly. "…no thanks."
Emba sighed. "Come on, we won't get in trouble, it's barely night we can go and return without them noticing."
"Explore?" Keru said, he had been woken up by Emba's words. "Where?" He got into his paws and approached Emba.
"See, Ari?" Emba insisted by pushing her with his front paws. "We are two already, don't be a killjoy."
Zale stretched and yawned. "I'll go with you." He approached his brother and his cousin.
Ari remained with her eyes closed, after some uncomfortable silence, she opened one eye and looked at the insistent faces of her brother and cousins, who were just smirking at her, gesturing towards the exit with their eyes.
Ari sighed with resignation and stood up slowly. "Where to?" She expressed with tiredness.
The four cubs exited the cave with silent yet hurried steps, walking carefully over the path that led to the ground under the Pride Rock, running right when reaching the grass of the savanna, running to the west. Their laughs of expectance, curiosity and pure fun ignited by the cold wind and the sound of their paws crushing the dry grass merged with the awakening of the first stars, they felt like giants running on a playground, with no fears or worries at all, just the impatience of finding something new and interesting.
The little lions ran with no cease, the rows of trees slowly started to appear, among the rivers and lakes, flocks of different types of colorful birds flying with fright by their sudden presence, letting out many complaints that then got lost behind their way.
Time flowed rapidly while the cubs rushed to the unknown. "Emba…" Ari breathed in and out repeatedly just as the rest. "I think we just left the Pride Lands."
"Then…" Emba tried to hurry his rush but was getting very tired so he decided to stop running and sit down over the grass to take a break, so the others did the same. He inhaled and exhaled deeply along with the rest before finishing his response. "…it means we're just starting." He looked at his sister and smirked daringly at her.
"Emba, we should go bac…" Ari was interrupted.
"Ari, we know how to return." Zale said. "Besides, what's the worst that could happen?" His ear twitched and his eyes widened when hearing a noise behind them. "Uhm, cous…"
"Yes, I heard it." Emba tilted his head slightly to hear better, then the noise sounded again, like moving grass. He noticed that a bush among them was moving. "Maybe we should keep moving."
"Why?" Keru asked with fright.
Emba kept glaring at the bush then did a gesture of disinterest. "Meh, maybe it's just a mouse or something."
Suddenly, between the leaves of the almost dry bush, a pair of yellow, glowing feline eyes opened, thing that the four cubs noticed, backing away with sudden gasps. "Emba, I don't think that's a m…" Ari gasped again, and right when they saw the first paw of the mysterious animal exiting from the bush, the four cubs started to run, repeatedly looking back at the feline that chased them. "I told you so, Emba!"
"This is no time for 'I told you so's'!" Emba argued, breathing quickly.
"Oh I think it's just the right time for those, I knew we should've stayed in the cave!" Ari responded.
"Zale!" Keru was very scared and worried, having trouble to follow the rapid steps of the rest.
"Just keep running, Keru!" Zale watched over him by turning his glare occasionally, slowing down his rush a bit.
The four cubs kept looking over their backs at their persecutor, having not paid attention to the brief cliff ahead them, Emba and Ari were the first to fall, then Zale and Keru. The cubs hit a couple of rocks of the cliff's wall, groaning and falling, then the four finally fell over the sandy ground among cactus, piled rocks and more dry bushes. Emba got over his paws with struggle, breathing with worry, his sister got up after him then Zale also got into his paws while helping his brother to do so. "I think we lost him." Zale looked sidewards and yelled with great fear when seeing the feline's face right before him, falling over his back then immediately standing up and backing away from the caracal, who was a cub just like them, he was sitting down, glaring at them with an eyebrow raised.
"Please, don't eat us!" Keru pleaded, getting behind his brother, poking his head out to keep seeing the caracal.
"Eat you?" The caracal chuckled. "Why would I? We don't eat lion."
"And…what are you?" Emba asked, still staying close to his cousins and sister.
"Well, a caracal." The feline explained and started to walk towards them.
"And…why were you chasing us?" Ari asked. "We were very scared."
"I'm still scared." Keru commented.
The caracal chuckled again. "I just wanted to guide you to my land, there you can spend the night, maybe have some dinner too."
Zale raised an eyebrow." Well, thanks but, I think is better if we just return."
"That's not a good idea." The caracal said. "Even less with the hyenas."
Emba raised an eyebrow, standing and approaching the caracal. "What's up with them?"
"I've seen some of them wandering at night." The caracal lowered his head. "They killed two of my friends a few days ago."
Keru gasped, getting out of his brother's cover. "Your friends?" He spoke with empathy and sorrow.
The caracal nodded, keeping his gaze on the sandy ground. "We were playing hide and seek." He let out a nostalgic chuckle. "We loved that game. I was hiding behind a rock, about an hour passed and I wasn't yet found. Weird thing, so I decided to get out of my hideout." He stopped talking for a moment. "And then…" He took a deep breath. "I found them." His voice was broken. "And I can't forget how I saw them." He sobbed, managing to contain his cry. "But…" He sighed. "Those things happen, I guess."
Keru walked by his brother then approached Emba and the caracal, sitting down next to his cousin. "I'm sorry." Keru said.
The caracal looked at him, smiling. "Thanks."
Keru thought for a moment, turning and looking at his brother and cousin briefly then looking back at the caracal. "We can be your friends."
The caracal smiled at him, looking at the rest friendlily. "That doesn't sound bad." He chuckled. "Alright." He gestured rightwards. "I'll take you to Nandari, I'm sure you're gonna like it." He began to walk towards his still far land.
Emba looked at Ari, gesturing at the caracal, she just sighed with resignation and approached them then Zale followed their steps. He got right next to the caracal. "And, what's your name?" Zale inquired.
"Nuku." The caracal responded. "And yours?" He asked the four cubs.