Chapter 11

In the jungle, Kiava and Zuri were finding that Valon's Brook wasn't quite as idyllic as it might have been in the distant past when it had been known as Hakuna Matata. The oasis that had sheltered Simba for much of his pre-adult life, was now overgrown with wild plants and it was located in such a deep part of the jungle that for much of the day the air was cast in a deep orange glow as the light filtered through the jungle to the ground below. It gave the air a sickly twilight glow for much of the day.

None of that was much concern to Kiava. The Prince was ecstatic when Sarafina had revealed herself. He knew the name of course – at least distantly. Sarafina had featured in some of the stories of Scar and his old lion guard from the time before Mufasa's traitorous brother had usurped the throne. He could remember them well. She was a figure in many of Danyal's stories. Kiava could recall his Grandmother Simba and the thought that the lion before him was Nala's own mother filled him with a certain amount of awe and respect. She must be impossibly ancient by now, though he wisely kept such thoughts to himself. On his very limited experience, lionesses didn't seem to appreciate discussing their age. He was eager to speak with her, but Sarafina was proving to be a frustrating disappointment. She stepped in to rescue Buzz and introduced herself, but after that dramatic appearance Sarafina had withdrawn back into the lair and had not spoken to him at all. Without so much as a word to him or to any of his companions. That suited Ookai just fine, but for Kiava, it was beyond frustrating.

"I just don't understand!" He said. "Doesn't know how important it is that I get to speak to her?" He implored Buzz for what felt like the seventh hundred time. Ookai shuddered. The golden monkey was far more circumspect about it.

"You don't understand? I don't understand. I know that she's technically family of yours, but why would you want to speak to that? She is clearly a vicious killer!" Ookai said, hotly. Kiava scowled.

"There's no need for that. She's just an old lioness Ookai, you need to relax." He told him, but Ookai only shook his head in response.

"That's just my point!" He snapped. "Have you ever met a lioness as old? Believe me, lionesses don't get old, at least not in the way other animals do. And not just because we all age differently, either. Once you start getting old, getting slow, hunting becomes dangerous. A stray antler there, a claw somewhere else and that it. And that's assuming some rogue doesn't get you because they want your water or meat."

"Hey!" Zuri protested, feeling that was little uncalled for. Lions weren't quite that savage. He was making them out to be some kind of hyena! Ookai kept going though and pointed a finger at him.

"My point, is that if she has lived this long, it's because she is dangerous. This lioness, this Sarafina, has lived as long as she has for a reason Kiava, and I can guarantee that a cub pestering her is not going to end especially well. You are far better off staying away from her. Wait for her to come to you. There should be meat around here somewhere, and there's more than enough bugs. You just need to be patient." Ookai advised him. It was good advice. That just made it more annoying. Kiava sighed to himself. He had always thought that of the cubs that fled the Pridelands he possessed more patience then, say, Inti or Danyal. But it was gnawing at him in a way that was difficult to resist.

"I don't want to be hanging around just waiting for something to happen. That's not why I came here." Kiava said. Bruce smiled, sympathetically.

"Okay. You want to speak to this lioness. What will you say to her?" He asked him. It wasn't intended to be a rebuttal; Bruce spoke with genuine curiosity. But it stopped Kiava in his tracks. He paused thinking to himself. Then gave an exhausted sigh.

"I… Don't know. The Kings of the Past didn't exactly give me a message to pass on." Kiava admitted. Zuri's own frustrations increased within her. She wished she could hear the voices of these spirits that had sent them out here. The reassurance would be nice. She could also give them a piece of her mind. Eventually though they took Ookai's advice and Bruce managed to produce some grub. It was insects again. The great ape carried a fistful of large beetles, in one hand, and waddled along on the remaining three, and placed them on the ground in front of them. Ookai dived into the pile gleefully and Bruce and Zuri ate. Kiava said nothing, but sat quiet in thought. Zuri ate some of the offered food. By now the flavour was almost pleasant. Which somehow made it worse. They really needed to hunt again when they got the chance, now they had the knack of it.

"You should eat something Kiava." Zuri pressured him, and Kiava half-heartily picked up a slimy worm and swallowed it.

"It's the crunchy ones which are the best you know. Any meerkat will tell you that." A voice said. The cubs and apes turned, and found, sitting high in the tree, dangling from a vine, Buzz. The meerkat in question was holding some rod of wood in his tiny hands, no more than a few inches long in his paws, and was busily shaving away the top of the stick, using the sharp edge of what appeared to be a canine tooth. Kiava realized that this must have been how the meerkat was making those nasty traps. It was almost ingenious. Still, the stick was rather small.

"That won't stake anything worth eating, let alone someone you'd want to fight." Kiava observed, before he could stop himself. The meerkat snorted, and placed it in a pile with the others.

"It's not meant for killing." He said, ignoring Kiava's rudeness. "It's meant for hurting. I dip the tips in fire-ant venom. It's good for days, and it causes excruciating pain, or so I am told. Even to a lion. Better than any hornet I know." He commented. That gave Zuri pause. The tiny javelins looked as though could penetrate deep enough if thrown with enough force, and fire ant venom could incapacitate out of sheer pain.

"Poison? Ugh…" Kiava said. The meerkat gave a slow grin at Kiava's response. He didn't much like snakes, and with good reason, though meerkats tended to be immune to most venoms.

"Trust me. I know more than enough distinct kinds of insects – and arachnids – to put a few nice shiny spots on any Imperials that come our way. Do some damage to a Shai'tan too, Princeling." He said. He put down his spears and dived off the branch, sliding along the vine, carefully. "Why do you want to speak with Sarafina so badly? She doesn't seem to know you, and she doesn't have the time to be dealing with cubs like you." he said not rudely, but honestly.

"… you wouldn't believe me if I told you." Kiava said eventually. The meerkat laughed at that.

"I have lived through impossible injuries, seen impossible things, and fought impossible battles. Won and lost. Try me." he said, leaning back nonchalantly. Kiava shared a glance.

"My Name is Kiava. I'm the Son of Kovu." He told him.

"Ah. Hence 'Prince.' And the son of Princess Kiara if I know the Royal family correctly." The Meerkat said. Kiava blinked and nodded. It was strange to think most animals would have heard of his parents, even if they didn't know them. Every animal in the Serengeti, and a good deal beyond it, would have heard of Simba, and of Scar, Kiara and Kovu. Their blood-feud turned romance had nearly destroyed, then healed the Pridelands, twice over. Kiava nodded.

"Yes, those are my parents." he said. The meerkat said nothing.

"You had a lucky escape when Pride Rock fell. Did anyone else survive?" he asked. Kiava nodded. There was no point in lying, especially he if they really were among friends. He sighed, thinking about the family they had left behind. He hoped they were alright. They were better off without the danger he would have been putting them in, but he missed them.

"My aunt Vitani. And Almasi, Damu – Zuri's mother as well. And Danyal, Zuri, Inti, Sara and myself all survived. We managed to made it to Rafiki, the Healer, for a while, and then got as far as the tree of life. King Kion was alive last we saw too, even though his Kingdom was gone." He said. Buzz smiled at that, but it was a sad look.

"The Night Pride? Kion's Guard?" He asked. Obviously, he'd heard of the defenders of the tree of life. Kiava had once thought to find them too, that they would rush in like all the stories and save the day. No such luck.

"They were all dead before we arrived." Kiava said after a moment. Zuri held his paw at the expression on his face. Buzz nodded grimly.

"Huh. Thought so." Buzz said after a quiet moment. It wasn't entirely surprisingly. The Shai'tan's continued spread was proof enough that there weren't any heroes capable of stopping them. The fate of the Pridelands heroes had seemed entirely self-evident. "Still, it's good as many of you got out as that. I thought most of the Pridelands had been wiped out."

"We almost were." Zuri said, shaking her head. It hadn't been pleasant. They had all nearly died several times over, but the horrible night Pride Rock had fallen haunted both their dreams and seemed likely to continue to do so. Monstrous enemies among the shadows and flames as their home burned.

"They chased us down and eventually that Shaman of theirs, Marsade, used his powers to… I don't know. Track me somehow. Using my blood. He conjured a wraith and that thing followed us for a time. Kion found us in the nick of time and killed it. But we got separated again." Kion explained, as best as he could with his limited understanding.

"Sounds to me like you should be looking for the Prideland's fiercest instead of ancient lioness in a lost paradise." Buzz said after a moment.

"You'd think so. But I… started having visions. I've been having dreams and nightmares since the fall of Pride Rock. But recently, I started seeing… people. Spirits. Kings of the Past." Kion admitted, unsure of how much to share in case it made him sound crazy. Buzz looked at him in confusion.

"Are you serious?" He gasped. "You… You spoke to them? Dead spirits? You sure you didn't just bang your head or something? Saw some old memories?" He said, firmly. Kiava shrugged.

"I know what I saw. They weren't memories or dreams. For starters, I didn't recognize them. Not from memories and not from any myths or histories I recall. They were named Taka and Kivuli. Do you know those names?" He asked.

Buzz shook his head. "No… I have never heard them. You didn't see Simba or Kovu?" he asked. Kiava shook his head sadly. That would have been something. Buzz sighed.

"I still think you might have knocked your head too far. If the spirits of the dead could speak to us, don't you think they might do it more regularly? We've all lost loved ones… Friends, partners. Sons. Why would they speak to you and not the rest of us? Why would only these mystery lions speak to you, and not your loved ones?" Buzz said. Kiava shrugged again.

"I do not know. I asked what I needed to do and they said I could come to this place and find some help there. A survivor from Pride Rock. I have to believe that they meant this Sarafina. I have to find out what it is they wanted me to ask of her before I can go back home. I have to finish what I have started." Kiava said adamantly.

For a while, Buzz was quiet.

"No offense kid, but I think you might be losing it. I don't blame ya, given what you've been through, but I think you hallucinated or something." He said standing up. "But… Sarafina used to believe in the Kings of the Past and all that mumbo jumbo. I don't know if she still does. But if so, I would be a poor friend if I did not let you speak to her. Follow me. I will show you where she sleeps." he said. And directed Kiava away from the groups. Zuri followed, but Ookai and Bruce looked uncertain.

"Umm… We'll wait for you." They said, and Kiava smiled. They were not the bravest of companions, but in the last few weeks, Kiava had become fond of the mad duo.

With Buzz leading the way, the two lion cubs moved through more vines, across a small stream and at one point, through a rock tunnel.

The entire place was like a maze. If the Shai'tan ever did find them there, it would be child's play to elude them in this place. It almost must have been a wonderful way to avoid being tracked by predators. Their scents were all over the place but without Buzz showing them the way, they doubted they would have been able to find Sarafina even if they knew shew was there. As Ookai had guessed she was an ancient lioness and had clearly survived on guile, intelligence, and instinct, rather than brute force. It made sense for a lioness whose physical strength must have been failing. After that came a narrow trench of small stones that crunched beneath even their small feet, announcing to the entire lair their approach. He had no doubt there were other parts and nooks and crannies to the lair. It was unlike anything he had seen before. Very unlike the lair of Pride Rock, which Kiava could only distantly remember. He associated it with warmth, the sensation of many lions and lionesses. Brightly coloured paintings smattering the wall, and bright sunlight filtering through the cave entrance. This lair had none of that. It was cold, grim, and dusky. Difficult and unfriendly to approach, and the scattered rocks and twists that could hide even a small elephant from view betrayed it as a lair belonging to a lonely and perhaps even paranoid lioness. It didn't feel like a home. More like a fortress. A fortress for one. Closed off and distant, much like the lioness who sheltered there. They approached the den softly, but Buzz made no attempt to sneak on her.

"Hey! Fina! You got visitors!" he shouted. Immediately, the dry yellow form of Sarafina emerged, her ice blue eyes narrowed as she looked to them.

"What do you want?" She said. As soon as she saw the cubs she shot a dark look of annoyance at Buzz, who was leaning on the den, picking his nails with the end of the javelin. Presumably, it had yet to be treated with fire ant venom.

"Aunt Sarafina…" Kiava said, clearing his throat, but his words died when she stared at him. To say she frightened him was too strong, he did not think she would hurt him. But as she glared at him, he found he had no words to say.

"Well?" She asked again. Zuri stepped up, trying not to look as intimidated as she felt.

"Lady Sarafina – we have come a long way to find you. We need your –"

"Will you be quiet? I was speaking to this 'Kiava,' if you really are who you say you are." She said, sharply. Zuri flushed and fell silent as she continued to look past her at the Kiava. The dark maned lion cub tried not to flinch under her gaze. Buzz didn't say anything. He just watched them. Kiava wished Bruce and Ookai had come with them after all. Ookai had a silver tongue when he needed it, and though Bruce wasn't much of a fighter, his huge bulk usually gave people pause, and he had a comforting presence that he wished was with him. He was neither physically impressive or charismatic and he knew it. Sarafina continued to glare at them. "Fine." She said. "Let's pretend just for a moment that you are who you say you. Do you mind telling me what it is you are doing here, and what it is that you want of me, your majesty?" She asked him. Despite what she had just said, when she called him majesty it felt as though she was mocking him. Kiava felt himself blush and swallowed.

"I want… I was sent here." He said eventually. Sarafina snorted.

"Who by?" she asked curiously. She glanced at Buzz who gave her a shrug. "Nobody knows I'm here. I'd been here by myself for years before Buzz found me. No one else knows where I am. I made sure of it." She told him.

"By the Kings of Past. A lion named Kivuli." Kiava tried to explain. He was about to launch into the same explanation he had given Buzz, but she simply snorted.

"Kivuli? I have never heard of him. Sounds made up." She said. "Besides, the Kings of the past abandoned us long ago. I highly doubt they have any interest in you or I. If they even exist." She said. Kiava sighed.

"Fine. Don't believe me. It doesn't change that it happened." He said. Sarafina looked uncertain for a moment.

"How did you escape Pride Rock?" She asked him suddenly. "Buzz told me the Pridelands had been destroyed. I didn't think the Imperium left any survivors." She said. Kiava winced.

"They didn't. We barely escaped. A handful of us. But we got separated from the rest of the group. Now it's just me and Zuri." He told her. Sarafina blinked.

"You made it this far by yourself? Impressive."

"We had to learn quickly." Kiava said, thinking back to the many dangerous that had beset them during their escape. "The Kings said they'd been watching me. I don't know if they mean they had a paw in it or not, or if they were just hoping we'd succeed." He admitted.

"The Kings." Sarafina said cynically. "Pah. Don't talk to me about the Kings. I rather doubt that they have any interest in this world." She said, then suddenly paused as if she were aware she was speaking to a child for the first time. She shuffled on her paws awkwardly. She sighed. "Maybe you really did have someone looking out for you. I wouldn't know." She said. She looked at Zuri who had remained silent since she had snapped at her. "And you've stayed with him all this time? Hmm."

"That's right. We're a team." Zuri said, standing next to him. Sarafina didn't look too impressed. In fact, she sighed and shook her head. It seemed the kings really did have a sick sense of humour.

"I've heard that before. I apologise for not coming to you earlier. I needed time to think. To clear my head. I haven't spoken to another lion in… some time. I am out of practice. I don't know what would possess you to come here, but you're welcome to whatever safety it can offer. You want food? You can have it. If you need a place to stay, then you are welcome here. I have never been one to turn away cubs. But what possible help could you ask of me? I know all about what's happened in the Pridelands. Buzz told me when he first came here. I can't be of any help to you. I'm just an old withered lioness. What do you actually want from me?" She asked him. Zuri and Kiava looked at one another.

"We… I mean… I was hoping..." He tried again. She cut him off.

"No." She said instantly, glaring at him. The greying lioness was glaring at him with green-blue eyes.

"I'm sorry?" he said startled. Sarafina sighed. Kiava wasn't sure what he had done to annoy her.

"Definitely not. Wrong again. No."

"What are you talking about! What do you mean?!" he said in frustration. Sarafina gave a cold smile.

"You keep apologising. Mumbling. Hesitating. Ahadi and Mufasa wouldn't have hesitated. They would have asked what they came here to ask. You aren't the Prince of the Pridelands. You don't know the first thing about ruling a Pride. You're just a cub. You might have been a Prince once, but with the death of the Pridelands you are just an ordinary cub. Forget these notions of winning back the Pridelands, of beating the Shai'tan because you can't. It's not about winning a fight. It's about being a ruler. And you, my boy, aren't a King of the Pridelands. You aren't even a Prince." She said.

Kiava stopped, his own mind whirring. She was eyeing him now, searching. He didn't speak right away.

"You are testing me." He said after a moment. It was not a question.

"Yes. No. Maybe." She answered as if it had been, but kept staring at him. It made him uncomfortable.

"What for?" He said again, firmly. Straight and to the point. The corners of her mouth turned up slightly.

"Perhaps I just want to see if you are who you say you are?"

"I already told you I am Kiava."

"I know what your name is. I know who your parents were. I want to know if you are truly King Simba's heir. If you are the Pridelands' new ruler. If you've really been sent by the great Kings." She said.

"I told you! I am Prince Kiava, Son of Kovu." he said, his anger flaring now. He was annoyed. He wasn't in the mood for games. Sarafina grimaced.

"Ah, now that is an anger I have seen before. But if the Kings really did send you to me, I haven't the faintest idea why. I am far too old to be fighting anyone." She told him. There was a bitterness to her words. If it wasn't already obvious it was clear that she didn't have the greatest relationship with the great kings of the past.

"But you used to be! And more besides!" It was Zuri now. Her eyes were shining with a brilliant idea. "I bet you could teach Kiava all sorts of stuff. About how to fight. How to rule. You were there, all those years ago, weren't you? When Scar took over the Pridelands. You have lived under Ahadi, Mufasa, Scar, Simba, and Kovu. Maybe that's why the Kings sent us here?" Zuri suggested. Sarafina snorted. What a ridiculous suggestion. But Kiava was captivated by the idea.

"Yes! I told them I was tired of running. Tired of hiding. I told them I wanted to stop just hoping for the best and doing something, and they sent me to you." Kiava said, sounding excited at the idea.

"They are family, Fina." Buzz said. "Distant family, perhaps, but family nonetheless."

"Don't be ridiculous." She said. "I do not know the first thing about ruling. I am far too old to teach you to fight. And come to think of it, even if I were able to, I wouldn't do it. You're just a child. You could get hurt." She said, firmly. Kiava frowned.

"Fine! We'll just go back the way we came from. Sorry for bothering you. But if you don't help me, I'll have to figure it out on myself. Then you won't be keeping me safe, you'll just be making it more likely. Please Sarafina. You… Are my Great-grandmother, aren't you?" He asked. Sarafina nodded. There was something truly idiotic about threating to let one's own idiocy kill them that she found strangely familiar. She shook herself. Buzz was looking at her strangely, but he shrugged. The choice was hers and hers alone. He made no attempt to convince her.

"I am. But I would be betraying their memory if I helped you commit suicide. I've been hiding here since before Zira's rebellion trying to make sense of the will of the kings. I can't believe for a moment that me helping you get yourself killed is a part of it. No way. Not a chance. Go away.

"Whyever not?" Kiava asked, sharply. "What are you so afraid of? What do you have to lose?" He challenged her. "Sarafina…" I need your help. "Please…" he said. Sarafina stared at him.

"I can't. I will not be responsible for any more deaths. Not one more familiar member. I am sorry, but no. Never again. I won't do it, Kiava. I won't. I'm not even a proper Pridelander anymore. No better than Zira." She said, sounding very tired, and very old, for the first time. Kiava stared at her.

"Are you sure about that? Maybe the Kings haven't forgotten you after all. They sent me to you after all. Why are you so scared? Is it something to do with why you're out here in the first place? Something to do with why you left the Pridelands?" He asked her.

"You shouldn't put your nose in other people's business." Sarafina snapped. "It's a good way to lose it."

"Maybe it's my business!" Kiava retorted. "I'm the Prince of the Pridelands remember? I could order you to help me. And you'd have to. Because you are still a Pridelander, aren't you? No matter what you say. I can feel it." He said.

"Huh… So perceptive." Sarafina said, shaking her head. "Fine. I will help you. But on one condition. You listen to me, and let me do this my way."

"Does that mean you'll help?!" Kiava asked her, excitedly.

"It means I'll try. I listened in on some of Ahadi's lessons when he was teaching his sons. And I know a lot about what makes a bad king. So maybe I can be of some use to you after all. But you were wrong about one thing. You aren't Prince Kiava. If you really are Kovu's son, and young Kovu really is dead, then you are King Kiava. So you tell me… Kiava. Are you the King?" She asked. Kiava stared at her.

"Yes… I think so." He said.

"You don't seem confident." She observed.

"Yes, he is!" Zuri protested. "I mean, he came all this way! Just the two of us!" She said. Zuri's assurance gave him a confidence he didn't really feel.

"Yes! I am the King." He said. She gave another smile.

"Well. We'll see if that's true." Sarafina said, with a critical eye.