A/N: A quick note: this chapter jumps around in time a little bit and written entirely in Tombie's POV. Thank you, once again, Hu-E3rd for letting me toy with your character.
Happy reading ya'll :)
Book 1: Chapter 11
Present:
"I tried telling you earlier," Madoa said as she overlooked the battle below them.
"What in the..." Tombie's voice trailed off and his eyes narrowed. His gaze settled on the lioness currently fighting alongside various Outlanders. He soon regained his voice and a surge of anger coursed through him. "What is she doing?"
oOoOo
Several hours earlier:
Earlier this morning, Jasiri confronted the members of her Clan with determination in her eyes. She managed to convince everyone to take a stand and fight back against Scar and his goons. And Tombie had been proud of her, truly. He had been getting closer to Madoa and had come to view Jasiri as a younger sister to him.
She reminded him an awful lot of someone else he considered a little sister.
After Jasiri managed to pull together a resistance force out of the rag-tag members of her Clan, the Resistance received intelligence regarding a three-sided attack that Scar was planning. The hyenas would take the middle, and the jackals and crocs would attack from the surrounding sides. The goal was to capture Mizimu Grove. A very clever attack, in all regards.
Even Tombie could admit to that.
Apparently, the Guard had already known about this little piece of information and were actively preparing for a counterstrike. And while it seemed like the Lion Guard had everything under control, the Resistance decided to help the Guard out a little bit by taking care of the hyenas. They worked together to block the hyena's path, which left only the crocs and the jackals for Kion's Guard to take care of.
And by the end of it, Tombie felt glad. He helped stop a major attack from a bunch of no-good low-lives who were making the rest of the hyenas look bad. That was something to be glad about, at least in his opinion.
But the brief respite of happiness was short-lived, to say the least.
As soon as they were heading back to the Outlands, some members of the Hyena Resistance informed Tombie that they had spotted Dalia fighting alongside Reirei.
And Tombie couldn't believe it. Dalia — his best friend — fighting for a lion that was so much like Kali? Fighting for a lion who was a perfect parallel to the one who murdered Nyla? No, not possible. And he said as much, as well.
"You've got the wrong lioness," Tombie had insisted, his green eyes narrowing at the hyena who had given him the information. Stadi was the hyena's name. He was relatively new to Jasiri's clan and had very distinctive markings underneath his eyes. "The Dalia I know would never work with someone like Scar. Trust me."
Stadi had given a shake of the head. "I know what I saw," he said simply.
Stadi was a hyena of very few words. He was honest and effective. An all-around good hyena.
"Not this time, you don't," Tombie replied firmly. The tone of his voice signaled the end of the conversation.
Stadi had eyed him warily but didn't say anything further. He tipped his head into a nod.
Madoa approached him gently from behind. "You should've heard him out, at least," she said softly. Her warm brown eyes stared into his green ones.
Like Tombie, Madoa had been surprised at the allegation Stadi had brought forth. And she wasn't sure whether or not she believed it. But she'd always tried to make it a habit to at least hear someone out fully before deciding anything. This habit of hers had oftentimes been the key to making peace amongst her younger siblings and quelling the long bickering between the younger two.
"I'm tellin' you, Madoa, Dalia would never do anything like this. Honestly, if anything, Stadi probably saw her fighting against Reirei."
Madoa gave a small smile. "I hope you're right, Tombie." She reached up to give him a small nuzzle, to which he promptly returned one of his own.
"I am right about this one," he murmured back. A few beats of silence passed between the two before Stadi came running back into the clearing. This time, he was accompanied by Jasiri.
Stadi looked at Madoa and Tombie while the latter straightened his posture. "Scar's Army is forming a second attack. This time, they're gunning for Big Springs and Kiburi's taking the lead." Stadi gave a pointed look to Tombie. "And I'm certain of what I saw this time."
Jasiri looked between both males curiously but didn't say anything. She didn't know about what Stadi had reported and certainly didn't know about Tombie's reaction to the news. But she did know that something happened between the two.
Choosing to ignore the glares the hyenas were exchanging, Jasiri stepped forward with a plan, "I think I know how to stop them."
Tombie grinned and turned to Madoa. "C'mon, 'Doa, let's go kick some crocodile butt!" he said with a small 'whoop.' Apparently whatever apprehensions he had about Dalia working for Scar had been forgotten at the thought of getting back into action.
Madoa rolled her eyes at the nickname but blushed nonetheless.
Jasiri snickered at the interaction and began to make pucker her lips into a comical kissy-face at them. "Oooh, how romantic," she cooed with a smirk.
Stadi cleared his throat uncomfortably from behind her. Apparently, the trio had forgotten all about the oft-quiet hyena. As soon as Jasiri realized they weren't alone, she slipped back into her professional mask. "Right, so like I was saying, here's the plan..."
. . .
The Hyena Resistance managed to fend off the crocodile attack and the jackals, and they were currently stopping another attack on Mizimu Grove. Though Tombie couldn't be personally present at the latter, he was sure that it was going well. Because while the rest of the Resistance were off to stop Scar's Army, Tombie and a few others went back to camp to protect the little ones: Wema and Tunu.
Tombie looked fondly at the two wrestling pups. The usually shy cubs were really welcoming around him, after he saved them and all, so they've been getting pretty close over the past year or so.
Wema was just getting the upper hand over her brother when a breathless and wide-eyed Madoa came barging through.
"Tombie, Stadi was right," she said in one breath, "I saw it with my own eyes. Dalia was helping the jackals! And now she's helping them all attack the rest of the Resistance. The Resistance is cornered!"
Before now, Tombie had always considered the phrase "I could feel my heart drop" to be just an expression. But now, as Madoa looked at him with her big brown eyes, Tombie felt his heart drop to the pit of his stomach. It was easier to brush off Stadi's report as a fluke. But Tombie trusted Madoa. If she said something, he believed her.
Madoa never lied.
Ever.
"I thought they were attacking Mizimu Grove?" Tombie said.
Madoa shook her head. "It was a trap, and I managed to sneak away. Come on, Tombie. We need your help; Jasiri's in trouble!"
Still, he held on to a strand of hope. "I need to see this for myself," he said.
Madoa nodded fervently. "Come on, then. I'll show you."
oOoOo
Present moment:
"I tried telling you earlier," Madoa said as she overlooked the battle below them.
"What in the..." Tombie's voice trailed off and his eyes narrowed. His gaze settled on the lioness currently fighting alongside various Outlanders. He soon regained his voice and a surge of anger coursed through him. "What is she doing?"
Madoa watched as Tombie huffed and pulled himself to his paws. "Tombie, be rational," she insisted.
"She's attacking my clan," he said with a growl. Just as Madoa had said, the hyenas, crocs, and jackals — with the lovely addition of Dalia — have his clan cornered. "Hardly any time to be rational."
He and Madoa lept into the thick of things, and Tombie delivered a rather rough headbutt to an unsuspecting Janja. Madoa took the opportunity to nip at Kiburi's tail, the latter letting out a very much uncharacteristically high-pitched squeal.
Tombie spun on his heel and got into the circular formation the rest of his clan was in before narrowing his gaze at Dalia.
The lioness in question widened her eyes and began almost imperceptibly shaking her head 'no', though Tombie couldn't understand why. But he didn't really care at this point.
"I'm giving you one last chance, Dalia," Tombie said sternly. "You better get your butt away from him," he jerked a paw towards Janja with contempt, "Because I don't want to fight you. But if you're going to attack my clan — my family, I'm not going to have much of a choice."
Dalia, for her part, had the decency to look caught off guard for a moment. Some of the members of Scar's Army gave confused glances between Tombie and Dalia. As soon as Janja's accusing gaze settled on her, Dalia's face quickly morphed into one of rebellion and her claws slid out. "Then I guess I don't have much of a choice, either."
Tombie's face fell noticeably, and he saw something resembling remorse flash across Dalia's face for the briefest second. Again, he didn't understand why.
"Ey, Freak," Janja said, addressing Tombie, "You know her?" He jerked a paw back at Dalia.
"Apparently not," he replied.
Scar's Army — save Dalia — look between Tombie and Dalia once more before shrugging. When they stepped closer to the trapped group, they began cackling at the situation. The source of their trouble all day was now cornered helplessly.
"I guess your days of spying for the Lion Guard are over," Kiburi mused as he led his crocs closer towards the trapped Resistance members.
Reirei gave a loud cackle. "So very over."
Dalia took a step forward as well, her face full of contemplation. She kept looking over her shoulder as if she was waiting for someone to show up from beyond the walls of the canyon. That, combined with the remorse from earlier, caught Tombie off guard.
Then, after a beat, Kion's voice echoed through the canyon.
"That's close enough!" he shouted before leaping onto a rock that overlooks the battle beneath him. Immediately, all heads — from both the Resistance force and Scar's Army alike — swiveled around to locate the location of the noise. Kion's brows furrowed together as he continued, "Now back off of Jasiri's clan."
Janja growled before turning on his heel to face him. "Nice try, Kion. But even you can't save the Hyena Resistance now. We got 'em surrounded!"
Kion grinned. "And we've got you surrounded."
As if on cue, Bunga's voice sounded from the right. "Hiya, croccidy-crocs," the honey-badger said with a wave.
Beshte, beside the honey badger, gave a similar wave. "Hello, Dalia."
"Surprised to see us, Reirei?" Fuli questioned from the left side of the canyon.
"Now!" was Kion's cue, and immediately, all the members of the Guard lept into action from all sides.
Kion tackled Janja, and the noise of the impact resonated through the rocky walls. Fuli and Ono, from the left, worked together cohesively to take out members of the jackal crew. Ono helping lead her, and Fuli doing the dirty work. The crocs and Beshte soon found themselves in a fight of their own, the hippo ultimately coming out victorious after barreling into the reptiles.
The Hyena Resistance took this as their moment to leap into action as well. They separated, helping the Lion Guard take out the very same creatures who had them cornered a few minutes ago.
Tombie, however, had his eyes set on one lioness in particular.
As he charged towards the unsuspecting lioness (who, for some reason, seemed not to be doing much fighting at all this entire battle), she turned around and spotted him, her green-gray eyes widening with surprise. He knocked into her, quickly pinning her to the ground and his eyes hardened into a glare.
"What is wrong with you, Dalia?" And that was how he knew how angry he was. He only ever used her full name when they were fighting. "You, outta all lions, are working with Scar? Working with dirty low-lives that keep little pups hostage for their own gain?"
Dalia, who always had an infinite fire in her when she was young, did little to fight back. Instead, she looked back up at him with pleading eyes. "Please," she whispered after making sure she was out of earshot. "I promise, it's not what it looks like."
To this, Tombie lessened his grip on her. "Then what is it?" he asked gruffly.
"I can't explain now," she hissed quietly, eyes darting around to make sure nobody was nearby. "Ask Kion when this is all over, and he'll explain it to you." She looked up at him once more. "I swear on the fire lilies, this isn't what it looks like."
After a moment of deliberation, Tombie released her. Swearing on the fire lilies was the highest promise you could make back home. And if Tombie knew anything about the lioness before him, she always kept her promises. She was a pretty good liar, he'll admit that much, but he couldn't think of a time she had broken a promise.
But then again, today, she had been nothing but surprising.
Still, despite major reservations, he let her go.
"He better have a pretty grand explanation for all this," Tombie mumbled quietly, gesturing to Kion.
Dalia smirked. "Believe me, he does."
Tombie turned on his heel to rejoin the main fight, deciding that Dalia was no longer a threat, but was interrupted when Janja came barreling past him. Tombie quickly side-stepped out of the way and watched as Janja flew into a lava pit directly behind him. The red-furred hyena looked to see that Janja's fate was the result of an accidental tail-whipping from one of Kiburi's crocs.
To his surprise, he heard Dalia let out a loud gasp as Janja slipped into the lava pit. "Janja!" she shouted, rushing over the edge of the pit.
Before Tombie could offer his assistance, Reirei also came barreling past Tombie a second later, spinning on her paws after Beshte shoved her. Luckily for the jackal, she managed to scramble away from the fire pit as to not meet the same fate as Janja. She snarled in the hippo's direction before saying, "We need to regroup!"
The losing members of Scar's Army rally behind Reirei. Tombie noticed the stick lodged between the roof of Kiburi's mouth and the bottom, and he stifled a chuckle.
"You need to leave," Kion growled.
Kiburi finally managed to snap the stick between his mouth in one fluid motion, the splinters of the branch flying every which way. "There's no way we're going back to Scar empty-handed. We're not leaving until we take down the Hyena Resistance."
Kion narrowed his eyes, his golden eyes glinting in the sun. "We'll see about that."
Without any other warning, his eyes flashed once more and he unleashed the Roar.
The clouds behind him took shape into four ginormous lions in the sky, all four roaring alongside Kion. The Roar sent most of the Outlanders flying, with the exception of Janja and Dalia. Dalia was still crouched over the edge of the pit, and Janja was still clawing at the walls to prevent him from falling to what had to be a very painful death. Dalia's brows were knitted together in genuine worry as she reached for Janja.
Out of nowhere, Jasiri popped up from behind the lioness and helped her lift Janja up.
After some effort, Dalia and Jasiri managed to snag Janja by the scruff and lift him up and out of the pit. Janja landed on safe ground with a grunt, and he looked up at Jasiri and Dalia with wide eyes.
"I... why?" he asked Jasiri, though he gave confused glances at Dalia as well. "I kinda understand why she'd help me," he gestured towards the lioness, "But why would you?"
Jasiri smiled warmly at him. "I'd help any hyena in trouble. Sisi Ni Sawa."
"We're the same?" Janja questioned suspiciously.
"You and your clan don't have to be on Scar's side, Janja. You could join the Hyena Resistance and help beat Scar," Jasiri offered kindly.
Janja seemed to consider this for a moment. Tombie noticed the hopeful light in Dalia's eyes, and that only confused him more. The light quickly went away, however, as she watched Janja backpedal.
"I don't think so!" he said shakily. "We ain't the same, Jasiri!"
Dalia sighed audibly as she watched Janja take off towards the Outlands, and then she did the same.
Tombie watched as his best friend disappeared into the distance. As soon as the last flash of pale fur was gone, Tombie spun around on his heel to face Kion. He didn't know how or why, but looking at the prince, he knew that somehow Kion's involved in whatever Dalia was. And naturally, Tombie (who's always felt some degree of protectiveness over the lioness) was curious.
The red-furred hyena raised an eyebrow at Kion. "You and me — we need to have a talk."