‹•›
I tried going against my own soul's warning,
But in the end, something just didn't feel right.
Oh, I tried diving even though the sky was storming,
I just wanted to get back to where you are.
—The Killers, "My Own Soul's Warning"

"'Chakapu'?" uttered Kopa, mortified. "My parents were going to name me 'Chakapu'?"

"Or Chaka for short," Sarabi told him with a smile. "Your father came up with it, until one day your mother decided she liked 'Kopa' better."

"Yeah, so do I," he grunted. "What would've they named me if I were a girl?"

She thought about it for a moment. "They couldn't agree on a name. Nala wanted it to be 'Aisha', but Simba had his heart set on 'Shani'."

"Well, either of those would've been better than Chakapu. Seriously..."

Sarabi chuckled quietly. Her eyes hadn't left Kopa since Fujo went off to scout around, leaving the two of them alone to sit beneath the exposed roots of a thick mutunguru tree. "You look so much like him – like both of them," she murmured, thoughtfully running her paw through his mane. "Just wait till they see you."

"So they're really looking for me?" Kopa's voice dampened a little. "I was starting to think they'd forgotten me."

"Forgotten you?" she repeated, astounded. "What made you think they ever could, child?"

"The Outlands' overseer, Jasiri – she didn't believe me when I told her who I was. She didn't even know I existed."

Sadness filled Sarabi's eyes. "Kopa, your parents loved you more than anything. They were nearly destroyed by regret after you vanished, in ways I couldn't fix – and they very well could have been, if not for your sister. Believe me, they still carry your memory in their hearts every single day."

"My memory," murmured Kopa. "What if they're disappointed I can't remember them properly? What if it... what if I just end up hurting them more?"

Sarabi squeezed him against her tightly, and a lump arose in his throat at her reassuring presence. Her words became soft and vulnerable. "I never got to see your father grow up. I thought he was dead all those years, and when he came back..." She offered Kopa a reassuring smile. "They'll be overjoyed just to see you alive and well, I already know it."

"Is that how you're hoping it'll go with Janga?" he asked quietly.

She let out a long sigh before answering. "Time has taken too many of my children from me, you and Janga included. But the threat she poses to the Pride Lands – to all the kingdoms – is too dire to ignore. And if anyone can turn her from the path she set for herself, it would be me."

"She was ready to take down Pride Rock and all of you with it," recalled Kopa, still disquieted by the memory of their confrontation in the gorge. "Are you sure you want to do this?"

"I must try. There are too many lives in peril for me to do any less, for if Janga gets her way – if she does not relinquish Mount Tempest – then I fear we will be defenceless against what's coming."

Now Kopa's thoughts grew fixated upon Sonara's tale, and the long bloody conflict that had followed the Mtera Pride into the present day. So much of this has been a long time coming. Could we really change the outcome if Janga can be swayed? Is she worth doing something this risky for?

"If you don't think she deserves a second chance, I can't blame you," admitted Sarabi, clearly reading his silence for what it was. "But even the least deserving can earn that chance, given enough time."

Kopa couldn't help thinking of Tumaini. The years they had spent together were good ones, but they hadn't been without their rough patches. They had learned from one another, grown up together. And with all he had learned about his friend in the last few days, he knew that his grandmother was right. With a small nod, he said, "Okay."

The pale moonlight was blotted out by the appearance of Fujo's silhouetted figure from between the roots, and not for the first time, Kopa realized that he hadn't even heard him coming. The older lion jerked his head toward the sprawling array of trees before them. "I found her."

Kopa's pulse quickened as he and Sarabi clambered out of the roots. "Janga?"

Fujo nodded. "She's alone, nearly a thousand paces out from me when I spotted her with the Sight. She's injured and moving slowly."

"Which way is she going?" Sarabi asked briskly.

"South, then presumably southeast if she's bound for Mount Tempest," Fujo informed her. "We'll have to cut through the jungle if we are to get ahead of her."

Exchanging a quick look with his grandmother, Kopa said pointedly, "Just so you know, she is definitely not gonna be happy to see me."

"Leave the talking to me," she instructed. Glancing at Fujo, she added, "And that goes for you too."

•••

Taking care not to make any noise, Vitani stayed low as she crawled to the edge of the mesa to observe the wild dogs below. She and Nia had thoroughly rolled themselves in pine needles before entering the open canyon, which had proven fortuitous as their scents went unnoticed against that of the injured lioness being held fast before them.

The lioness screamed as the wild dog leader – Majonzi, the others called her – brutally raked her across the face. The smaller creature propped up the lioness' chin with one claw. "You think this hurts, just wait till I put the poison on. Or do you feel like talking now?"

"I... I don't know which way they went..." the lioness murmured, dazed. "We never... planned for this..."

"Then tell me where to find the rest," demanded Majonzi. "Your pride can't hide in these mountains forever."

Having counted the wild dogs' numbers, Vitani ducked back in tandem with Nia, taking care to keep her voice low. "Fifteen. That's a whole pack we'll have to get away from that lioness."

"Careful," warned Nia. "Majonzi's not wearing poison, but the others likely are. We should keep our distance."

"I thought you people were resilient against poison."

"It's still best avoided, and..." Nia faltered, but added, "And my mother was a newcomer to the tribe. I have no such resistance – I came very close to death when I undertook my coming-of-age ritual."

Vitani groaned quietly. "Great. You wait until now to tell me this?"

"I didn't say I came unprepared." Nia shifted, producing a pawful of small black thorns. "The wild dogs aren't the only ones who know how to use poison."

"I remember these," Vitani whispered, eyeing the thorns. "You used them on me last time."

"They can knock a lion out within moments, so anything smaller should be even more susceptible. Take a few."

"What, why?"

"To help me out, of course. We have the height advantage, and the thorns will never be more effective than from up here."

"Yeah, they're effective alright. I don't really feel like getting a second taste though."

"Don't worry, they're safe as long as you don't swallow them."

"I'm not putting those in my mouth!" Vitani hissed. "I don't even know how to do that spitting thing you do!"

"It's not spitting, more like blowing it out," explained Nia patiently. "You keep your lips slightly open and push out with your tongue at the same time. It's easier than it sounds – watch, I'll demonstrate."

As she slipped one of the thorns into her mouth, Vitani's eye caught movement from behind the other lioness' shoulder. A wild dog had clambered up the opposite side of the mesa and immediately let out a resounding howl that filled the open air. Nia whirled about at the sound and launched the thorn from her mouth. A low thhk was heard as the wild dog's howl was cut short, the smaller creature clutching at his neck before he tumbled off the side of the mesa with a distressed yelp.

A quick glance down at Majonzi and the rest of the pack told Vitani that they had been compromised. She hurried to where the wild dog had fallen and saw another eight or nine peering up at her. "Okay, so there are more than fifteen. Stay up here, pick off as many of them as you can. Don't let them creep up on you."

"I won't," assured Nia, another thorn already held between her teeth. "What are you going to do?"

Vitani did not respond. Instead she ran straight off the side of the mesa, leaping into the air at the last possible moment to gain as much distance as she could. She could see the eyes of Majonzi and the pack following her as she sailed over their heads, and with the ground rushing up to meet her, she released a sonic roar that propelled her upward a second time.

A sharp crack split the air, blasting dust outward in every direction. Vitani rolled into a front somersault to disperse the last of her momentum, turning to face the wild dogs who were now charging at her through the settling dust. She moved to reposition, trying to line them up in front of her without endangering the lioness they had captured, and seeing this, the wild dogs hastened in closing the distance between them.

Majonzi flinched as a faint whistle was heard, and she slowed down, pawing at the thorn in the side of her neck. A few of the wild dogs reacted similarly, and they momentarily lost cohesion as Vitani waited for the effects of the poison to take them out – when to her surprise, Majonzi irritably extricated her thorn, as did the others one by one. As they bared their fangs at her, Vitani caught a whiff of poison coming not just from their claws but their teeth as well. They're immune to poison, she realized, taking a few steps back in spite of herself. This stuff must be tame compared to what they use.

Atop the mesa, it looked as if Nia had come to the same realization. The rest of the wild dogs were climbing up around her, and despite her best efforts to fend them off, she was clearly outnumbered.

Vitani's attention was forced back to Majonzi, however, when she noticed that the wild dog's claws were now dripping with poison – and held against the captive lioness' throat. Majonzi's eyes did not leave Vitani's as she growled, "You seem like you don't need this explained to you. Back. Up."

Carefully, deliberately, Vitani obliged, mind whirling frantically as the other wild dogs moved to surround her. If that lioness could only get clear... but it's too risky, especially with that wall behind them. I might not be able to save her after all...

Then Majonzi disappeared into a mess of claws and fur, and in the blink of an eye, she rolled off to the side with Nia, who had leaped down from the mesa above. Wasting no time, Vitani darted to the captive lioness, who appeared to be in better shape than she looked as she smacked and kicked the wild dogs away from her.

Vitani promptly helped her navigate out of the fray. "What's your name?"

"B-Bidi..." the lioness stammered.

"Bidi. I know you're in a lot of pain, but I need you to try and walk, okay? I can't get you out of here if you're dead weight."

"Okay..." Bidi managed an uneven hobble, taking some of the pressure off Vitani who was trying to keep her upright. "What about your friend?"

Vitani looked over her shoulder to see Nia grappling with Majonzi, while the rest of the pack was forming up around them in quick succession. Seeing that Bidi was out of danger for the moment, Vitani carefully set her down and turned to face the wild dogs. "Nia, get clear!"

Nia's eyes flicked to her, comprehension slipping into her expression. She rolled herself away from Majonzi, not even bothering to stand as she covered her ears with both paws and squeezed her eyes shut. Majonzi snarled and leapt toward her again – and was instantly flung into the air as another resounding boom erupted in their midst.

Every wild dog was hurtled away into the evening sky, their alarmed cries barely audible through the ensuing blast of wind. A series of small thuds could be heard in the distance as the Roar's echoes dispersed into the canyon, and as Bidi picked herself up off the ground, Vitani caught the look of astonishment on her face. "You... you were the one who saved us before..."

Vitani's nose twitched against the dust now drifting past her. "No, that would've been my friend. Let's get you out of here, I have some questions about a lion who stayed with your pride recently."

"Kopa?" said Bidi, her taut expression creasing reflectively. "He's not here, he escaped with Fuli when the wild dogs showed up last night."

Vitani perked up. Last night. He can't be far now. "Which way did they go?"

"South. They were headed for the rapids last I saw."

If I'm going after him, then this one's only going to slow me down, she thought. "You got anywhere to lay low for a while?"

Bidi shook her head. "The ones who got away are probably fending for themselves in the mountains. We can outrun the wild dogs no problem, but they can track us over long distances so we can't risk leading them back to The Hollow."

Presuming The Hollow to be the refuge Majonzi was questioning Bidi about, Vitani considered her options. "You can't stay with me, it's too dangerous. We'll track down your pride so they can take a proper look at your injuries. Nia, you and I will keep following the Zuberi once we... Nia?"

It was then that she noticed Nia hadn't gotten up. The older lioness was curled tightly against the ground, teeth clenched and both forelegs clasped over her abdomen.

Vitani's eyes found the bloody claw marks streaked across Nia's fur, and she rushed to her side without hesitation. "No... no, no, not now..."

"That's not good," Bidi muttered, limping up to join them. "We still have time to save her if she fights the poison, but she has to stay conscious."

"Go," grunted Nia, her voice tight with agony. "I can... take care of mys–" She tensed with a sharp cry of pain.

Vitani swiped at a withered shrub in frustration. I'm so close. Kopa can't be more than a day's journey from here, but if his trail goes cold...

"Stop standing there," Nia gasped raggedly. "Why are you... still... here..."

A knot twisted itself into Vitani's heart when she noticed the way Nia's voice grew weaker. She yelled at the darkening sky before crouching down to haul Nia onto her paws. "Help me out here, Bidi. Nia, don't you dare pass out, got it?"

"But you have to..." began Nia.

"Don't want to hear it. I'm taking you back to your tribe. Just hold on."

"My oath... Safina said..."

"I don't care what Safina said, and honestly I never cared about your oath. You don't owe me this."

Nia giggled feebly as Bidi helped her slouch unsteadily against Vitani. "Vitani... care about... me?"

"Sure, yeah, whatever keeps you going," Vitani responded shortly, fighting back the aggravation in her voice. "Keep talking, you hear? Don't fall asleep."

"Okay..." slurred Nia drowsily, "...like talking to you..."

•••

Even at night the jungle buzzed with ambient noise, something Fujo had admittedly not considered when he led Kopa and Sarabi into its dense, sprawling terrain. He sat atop the side of a tree-shrouded cliff, trying to spot the image of Janga amidst the haze of incessant noise between them. They were closing in on her now, mostly due to her injuries slowing her down, but after losing track of her amidst their restless surroundings, they had settled on a quick breather while Fujo regained his bearings.

Now, probing his way through the depths of the jungle with the Sight, Fujo contemplated his next move carefully. I cannot mislead Sarabi without drawing her suspicion, that much is obvious. But if she convinces Janga to back down, then my plan will be impossible to salvage – to say nothing of what would happen to me once my involvement becomes known. No, she needs only hold Mount Tempest for a little longer. If she could make it there before we can catch up to her... but she's in no condition to–

Something sounded off in his mind's eye, from an entirely different direction. Fujo directed his attention toward the disturbance. His heart palpitated as the sonic image of Jeraha materialized from the Sight, trampling through the jungle and closing in rapidly.

Fujo's eyes flew open, mentally berating himself for his increasingly recurring sloppiness. He caught Sarabi's questioning look as he rose to his paws. "It's him. We must leave."

She placed a paw on Kopa's shoulder, shaking him urgently from his slumber. "Get up, Kopa."

Kopa stirred with a groan, blinking in confusion. "What's...?"

"Keep quiet," muttered Fujo, turning to face the direction Jeraha was coming from. "Sarabi, take him and go. I'll hold him off as long as I can."

Sarabi did not ask questions, instead leading Kopa the other way along the cliff edge. As they disappeared into the jungle, Fujo nicked the back of his paw against a sharp rock, drawing fresh blood to cover their scents. Even without using the Sight, he could hear the sound of Jeraha's thunderous footfalls picking up speed. Fujo settled into a ready combat stance, already knowing that the burly lion was in no mood to negotiate.

Jeraha burst into view far more quickly than anticipated, and Fujo barely managed to dive aside to avoid the worst of his initial attack. Nonetheless, Jeraha's claws swiped across his flank, and he could feel warm liquid against his fur even before the pain registered a heartbeat later. Fujo grabbed one of Jeraha's hind legs, trying to bend his footpaw the other way, and was rewarded by a hard kick to the snout. He staggered away, blood spraying from his nose.

His opponent slammed him against the ground, front paws closing mercilessly against his throat. Fujo did not turn his face away from Jeraha's hot breath as the larger lion barked, "Who was with you? What did you tell them?"

"Wouldn't you like to know," Fujo scoffed, helpless as he was at the moment. "What's the matter, Jeraha? You don't trust me anymore?"

"I never trusted you," Jeraha snarled. "You're planning something with the Pridelanders, and before I kill you, I'm going to find out what."

"Then do your worst," gasped Fujo. He stared up at the burly lion stubbornly, refusing to close his eyes even as darkness tugged at the edges of his vision. "Because I am certainly going to do mine if you fail." At that moment, he was surprised by the strange sense of relief that washed over him. I did all I could. It wasn't enough, but I wouldn't have done anything different.

Jeraha suddenly let go as he was knocked aside, and Fujo sat up, heaving, to see him entangled with Sarabi.

He gave Kopa a look of disapproval as the younger lion helped him up. "I told you to run."

"So did Kumi," replied Kopa, turning to face Jeraha again. "I shouldn't have listened."

Seeing that their adversary had backed Sarabi up against the cliff edge, Fujo charged past Kopa and slammed into Jeraha, trying to push him as far as his momentum would allow. Claws pierced his back and his steps slowed; digging his weight into the dirt, Fujo headbutted Jeraha under the ribs and sent him stumbling off-balance, wincing as stars popped into his vision.

Kopa leapt over Fujo and sank his teeth into Jeraha's ear, dragging the larger lion to the ground. Jeraha's paw caught Kopa under the chin in retaliation, although Fujo noticed that his claws were retracted. I nearly forgot, Janga wants Kopa alive. He pressed the offensive without falter, landing a hard kick on the back of Jeraha's head. Sarabi charged in for the follow-up, and as Jeraha turned toward her, Fujo advanced from the other side.

And then he felt Jeraha's clenched paw strike him in the face, sending him crashing head-first into a nearby tree. Fujo tasted blood and dimly registered something warm running down the side of his head, staggering up when he noticed Kopa rushing at Jeraha once more. The burly lion stepped back, using Kopa's speed to veer him straight into Fujo and send them both rolling toward the cliff edge.

Expediently disentangling himself, Fujo eyed the side of the cliff and noted that there was a decent amount of shrubbery below. He glanced down to the still-recovering Kopa, and without wasting time on explanations, shoved the younger lion over the side. Kopa gave a cry of surprise, though Fujo did not watch him disappear into the foliage and opted to dive out of the way of the incoming Jeraha instead.

The burly lion nearly went over the cliff edge himself, but managed to correct his trajectory before resuming his tenacious pursuit. Fujo could see Jeraha coming out of the corner of his eye, and in spite of the thick tree they were both running toward, he jumped, feeling the air tremble as Jeraha collided with the trunk directly below him. Fujo, who had managed to dampen his own impact with his forelegs, dropped unceremoniously onto Jeraha's back.

Despite having the wind knocked out of him, Fujo backpedalled on sheer instinct, panting and scrambling to get to his paws even when he saw that the burly lion was momentarily dazed. Blood dripped from Fujo's snout and the tips of his pitch black mane as Sarabi appeared at his shoulder. "Don't let up now," she said, stepping past him with steadfast urgency. "He's won't stay down for long, we have to–"

The old lioness stiffened as Fujo's claws sank into her back paw. It took him a moment to reluctantly lift his gaze to meet hers. "You should have stayed in the Serengeti," he murmured, swiftly withdrawing his claws. "I figure everything out in the end, always have, but you – you were nearly the exception that could undo all my careful planning."

"What are you planning?" Sarabi growled, hind leg now trembling as it threatened to buckle. "You can't possibly want this war."

"No, but I can end it. I am sorry, Sarabi. You didn't deserve this."

"Well, you'll get exactly what you deserve," she retorted. Her eyes lingered on him as he began to back away. "I once knew someone like you – and made the mistake of letting my guard down around him as well."

Fujo narrowed his eyes but did not slow down. "If you think I'll end up like him..."

"You already have," Sarabi said calmly. "Death did not come quickly enough for him, and I suspect she'll show you the same courtesy. Even now, the fate you've bestowed me is far kinder than the one you left for yourself – to live and be utterly alone, as he did."

Jeraha was stirring now, Fujo could sense it through the Sight. With Sarabi disappearing from his view, he caught one last glimpse of her as she turned to confront the burly lion. There was not a single trace of fear within her being, and Fujo found he actually had to shut himself out of the Sight as his ears picked up the sounds of teeth and claws tearing into flesh.

Perhaps I was already condemned before this. And perhaps she really left me no choice. But there was a bothersome thought Fujo couldn't deny, not even to himself – he had acted out of fear. And fear, he realized, was the one thing he had never expected to feel again.

•••

"Jeraha, no! Stop!"

Kopa froze. It was Janga's voice, no more than twenty paces away, and sure enough the violent commotion he was clambering toward came to a halt. A moment later, he flinched as Jeraha tore through the undergrowth and ran past him, either not noticing or not caring as his footfalls became swallowed up by the ambience of the jungle. Kopa held as still as he could, listening for the sound of Janga breaking into pursuit.

Yet she did not. Taking care not to make any noise, he slowly peeked through the undergrowth as the cliffside settled into relative stillness once more. Janga was huddled over Sarabi, her back turned to him and her shoulders shaking. Kopa bit his lip at the sight of his grandmother swathed in bloody gashes, and for a moment he wondered if she was already dead.

Then her head moved slightly, her eyes gazing up at Janga in contentment. "Janga... I've been... looking for you..."

"I'm... I'm sorry, mother," wept Janga, words trembling against her breath. "I was gone too long, I know that."

"Hush," Sarabi chided softly. "Don't weep for the past... when the present is so fleeting. You've longed for me... you're here now... and I am thankful."

Janga laid her head against Sarabi's chest, tears and blood blending into her fur. "I've done something terrible, mother. None of this has gone the way it was supposed to, and I don't know what to do."

"Go to your brother," urged Sarabi, her voice growing fainter with every word. "Let all this go and look to the future... I know... you can... escape..."

"Escape what?" Janga murmured.

Sarabi shakily reached out and cupped her paw against her daughter's face. She brushed the still-healing scar over Janga's right eye. "His shadow, Janga... I see it in you now, when I never did before..."

Janga reared back, and from one side Kopa could see her stricken expression. "No, that's not..."

"It can't hold you," the old lioness whispered, slowly easing back toward the ground. "I know it can't... find peace... for yoursss..." Her paw fell to her side, head lolling lifelessly with her glassy eyes still half-open. Janga collapsed onto her in full, sobbing shamelessly into her mother's pelt.

Kopa stood there in silence, feeling an awful numbness growing inside him. He hadn't realized it during their brief time together, but Sarabi's presence had become a comforting one and already it felt as if her warmth had evaporated from the jungle. But it was the sound of Janga's anguish that really struck him; despite what Afua told him about her, Kopa's mind had been made up from the moment he confronted her in the gorge. I didn't think Janga even cared about her mother. Seeing her now, like this, he wondered if Sarabi had been right after all.

"Sarabi! Where are you?" hollered an unfamiliar voice from the depths of the jungle. "Come back, it's Bunga from the Night Pride!"

Janga's head snapped up, and she bared her teeth as she dashed the tears from her eyes. "The Night Pride..." She shifted into an upright position, and for a moment Kopa considered intervening if he had to defend the Night Pride from her – but then she took off away from the direction of Bunga's voice, and within moments she disappeared into the jungle.

As the sound of rustling subsided, Kopa stood and silently approached Sarabi's body. He stared down sadly at her, closing her eyes with one paw and nudging his forehead against hers. He couldn't help but wish he could feel her draw one last breath against him, irrational as it was. Finally, he drew back, gently tipping her head skyward once more as his paws came away smeared in her blood.

And then something slammed into Kopa, knocking the breath out of him. He was pinned against the ground, his vision filled with a brilliant red mane and the most enraged pair of eyes he had ever seen. Kopa roared, claws flying out toward his assailant's lightly scarred face.

•••

Kion viciously slashed and snapped at the brown-maned lion, who tried to claw at his face with his paws still covered in Sarabi's blood. The other lion was slightly larger and stronger than him, but Kion fought to keep him pinned down with relentless fervour. With another frenzied roar, the brown-maned lion pushed him off, sending Kion onto his back.

The other lion bound to his paws, and before Kion could recover, leaped at him in a flash. Instead of getting out of the way, Kion kicked upward at his opponent, catching him in the footpaws in mid-air. They both grunted as their foreheads smacked together before the brown-maned lion flew over him and landed gracelessly next to a shrub.

This time, Kion was the first to rise, and he charged forward without hesitation. To his surprise, the brown-maned lion rolled aside, and as he did so, Kion noticed too late the coiled length of shrubbery clutched in his paws. He did not have time to react as it flew out and caught him right in the face, sending him reeling back. The brown-maned lion's head collided with Kion's flank a moment later, knocking him back-first into the tree behind them.

Incensed, Kion staggered upright and met his opponent's assault head-on, claws tearing at one another's manes until Kion was pushed back to the ground again. His teeth sank into the other lion's shoulder and was vindicated by the sound of a pained roar. The brown-maned lion writhed, his claws flashing out toward Kion's eyes; Kion instinctively used his foreleg to block the attack, though it was enough to dislodge his bite from the other lion's shoulder.

Tasting blood that was not his, Kion got up again, only for his wounded foreleg to flare in protest when he tried to put weight on it. Disconcertingly, the brown-maned lion had also righted himself, seemingly unhindered by his bleeding shoulder. Kion gritted his teeth, and he drew a deep breath as his opponent charged forward again.

The Roar of the Elders burst forth from Kion's maw, engulfing the cliffside in a roiling fury and sending the brown-maned lion flying into the trees. The sonic force tore a line through the jungle, shredding leaves from their branches and even snapping the thinner trees where they stood. Seeing that the other lion was stubbornly clinging to a thick tree trunk even with his body suspended in the air, Kion did not let up, moving closer and directing the full might of the Roar at him.

Finally, a deep ripping sound was heard from beneath the earth as the tree itself was uprooted from one side and tipped over. A heartbeat later, it was flung away through the razed section of jungle, taking the brown-maned lion with it. Kion heaved for breath as the Roar subsided at last, leaving behind the sound of splintered wood falling around him. He made his way through the wreckage in a daze, his senses reattuning amidst the blood pounding in his ears. It did not escape his notice that the ever-present ambience was gone, as if the jungle was holding its breath.

Kion approached the brown-maned lion, who was shaking his head disorientedly from beneath the wreckage he was tangled in. Kion stopped a few paces away but did not retract his claws. "Why did you kill her?" he demanded, voice shaking.

The other lion struggled to pry the fallen timber off himself, to no avail. "I didn't... I... wouldn't..."

Kion was not particularly inclined to believe him, but nonetheless he snarled, "Then who? Tell me!"

The brown-maned lion stopped struggling and peered up at him. His red-brown eyes found the Night Pride sigil on Kion's shoulder. "I've... heard a lot about you... Kion."

Kion bared his teeth. "And I don't know anything about you, except you were standing over my grandmother just now with her blood on your paws."

"Our grandmother."

"What?"

Now the brown-maned lion's gaze drifted up to meet his. "I'm Kopa... your brother."

Kion stumbled back a few steps, having expected anything but this. Yes, he could see the similarity in his features, but none of it added up. "You're lying. I don't have a brother."

"She could've told you," said Kopa, casting a rueful gaze toward Sarabi's body. "I can't believe none of them ever told you..."

A horrible realization hit Kion just then. "Is that why you did this?"

"I said I didn't kill her," snapped Kopa, batting and shoving at the debris entrapping him. "Now let me up already."

"Then tell me why you were with her," Kion growled, not entirely convinced just yet.

"To find Janga! We were supposed to talk her out of what she's doing, what she's about to do. And maybe we still can. We have to try! For her!" A tearful edge entered the other lion's words, and something in his voice dashed away the last of Kion's misgivings.

Feeling a slow rumble build in his throat, Kion focused on the mess of vines and trees on top of Kopa and let forth a controlled Roar, cautiously clearing the debris around his brother to allow him to climb out.

Kopa stared in awe as he moved clear, watching Kion set the clutter back down into the wreckage without so much as disturbing the surrounding area. "Now that's really cool."

Kion gave a small, wistful smile. "Thanks. Sorry I used it on you."

"I've been through worse, believe it or not." Kopa padded back to Sarabi's body, pensively gazing down at her once more. "I wish I had more time with her. She was wonderful."

"Yeah," murmured Kion as he took a seat on her other side. "She really was." There was an odd buzzing in his head, and he wasn't quite sure how to feel about this revelation that had come to him in the form of his brother. "But why would mom and dad... or Kiara, even... why didn't they tell me?"

"I've asked myself the same question," Kopa admitted quietly. "I'm not sure it'll be enough to hear the answer at this point. But it's the only thing that's keeping me going."

They both looked up as the undergrowth rustled nearby. To Kion's surprise, Fuli stepped out into the wreckage with the other members of the Night Pride following one by one. The cheetah's expression was grave as they slowly gathered around Sarabi's body. "Kion... I'm so sorry."

"Where've you been, Fuli?" asked Kion dully, all residual traces of adrenaline sinking into heavy defeat.

Fuli stiffly jerked her head in Kopa's direction. "Looking for him. Didn't expect to find him like this though."

"Who is he?" asked Bunga.

"He's, uh..." Beshte trailed off, looking slightly embarrassed.

Kion gave Sarabi's paw a tight squeeze before finally letting her go. He rose to his paws, fighting back the wave of crushing sorrow with hard-edged determination. "A reminder that we can never give up, now more than ever. My grandmother believed she could prevent this war, and now it's up to us to carry on in her place. Right, Kopa?"

Kopa nodded, though his eyes were brimming with tears. He set his jaw rigidly and got up as well. "Right. One way or another, this ends with Janga – so let's get after her."

•••

"Guys," whispered Fika. "We're being followed."

Tumaini's ears tilted back a little but he did not slow down, having worked up to a decent speed now in spite of his sprain. "Yeah, that's what I thought I heard too. And I'm slowing you both down, so..."

"Don't even say it," hissed Siri. "We're not leaving you behind."

"No, but you could use me as bait," suggested Tumaini nonchalantly. "Whoever's on our tails is about to catch up to us, so decide quick."

"He's right, Siri," said Fika grimly.

Siri growled. "I know. I hate that about him."

They stopped between the hills they were traversing, having stayed within the mountains' sprawling cradle to keep their visibility to a minimum. And though it was now well into the night, evidently their efforts had not been enough to avoid detection. With a little help from Siri, Tumaini gingerly eased himself into a sitting position at the base of a stone column. "Take flanking positions behind the hills. Don't rush out while you're upwind."

She gave him a scowl. "Did you forget who does all the hunting in a pride?"

"Right, yeah, been a while," said Tumaini sheepishly, sensing worry beneath her irritation. "I'll just sit here and shut up."

As Siri and Fika slipped out of sight, Tumaini leaned a little on his uninjured side, listening closely for the sound of movement coming from the way they had come. He frowned as he caught the sound of a faint sliding noise, as if something was being dragged across the ground, and a moment later he caught a whiff of blood. Well, that's not ominous at all. Assuming the blood is theirs, I'm pretty sure it's lions. So probably the Duara Vunja... hard to tell how many with everything blending together.

The sound was drawing nearer now, and Tumaini braced his weight on his hindlegs, ready to pounce in spite of his hindered state. But before he could react, Siri and Fika leaped out from atop the hills, just in time to plow into the lions that had appeared from behind the column he was leaning on.

Tumaini knew almost instantaneously that something wasn't right – for starters, the newcomers had been carrying an unconscious lion between them, and as the figure collapsed to the ground, he saw that it was a beaten and groggy Fujo. "What in Mother Africa..."

A short distance away, Fika had similarly realized her mistake and hastily rolled off her would-be adversary, who turned out to be Kaidi. Siri was still wrestling with the lion beneath her, though she stopped when Afua's voice sharply rang out. "Hey, get off! Are you trying to put the wild dogs back on our trail?"

"Sorry," she said, stepping aside and helping him up. "Guess we're all a bit on edge right now."

Kaidi's snout was pointed her way as she sniffed at the air. "No kidding. Some of us more than others, apparently."

Tumaini flushed. "Yes, great, crisis averted. Where did he come from?" He indicated Fujo.

Afua rolled their uncle onto his side so that the blood trickling from his head wasn't resting against the ground. "The jungle south of here. Not sure what happened to him, he could barely string two words together."

"Not many lions can get the jump on him and beat him in a fight," remarked Tumaini, wincing as he took in the wounds on Fujo's body. "Or maybe he's getting old."

With a weary exhale, Afua took a seat next to him. "He hasn't been the same since mom died. He doesn't really talk about her, but..."

Tumaini frowned. "Wait, how many times have you talked to him before that?"

His brother fell silent.

"Just how long did he know you were in the Serengeti?" Tumaini pressed, already guessing the answer as he put the pieces together.

"It's not important."

"Of course it is! You realize he just let mom and dad and everyone think you were dead?"

"Like you're one to talk," growled Afua. "You had years to tell them, but you couldn't do it, could you? Maybe if you didn't run away from your problems, you wouldn't have had to think I was dead this whole time!"

Kaidi cleared her throat. "So what was that about making too much noise?" she asked, although neither of them turned to look at her.

"Well, maybe you just can't see him for what he is!" Tumaini retorted. "There's a traitor in the pride, Afua, and I'm pretty sure it's him!"

Siri reared back, blinking in surprise. "You really think that?"

Tumaini made an aggravated noise. "I could be wrong, but yeah, it's plausible enough. I don't want him around for the rescue."

"Tumaini, look at us," she scoffed. "We're in no condition to rescue anyone right now. We'll be lucky to make it back to whoever did get away, and unless Kopa brings help from the Serengeti in time, we're on our own."

"But we're not on our own," mumbled Fujo, stirring weakly as his eyes fluttered open. "And Kopa's not heading for the Serengeti – I was with him, before we were attacked."

"What?" yelped Tumaini immediately. "What do you mean he's not–? What happened?"

"Stop asking pointless questions, he's obviously in trouble," Afua snapped. He turned back to Fujo. "Where is he, uncle?"

The older lion's expression was set in a look of concentration that Tumaini was well familiar with. That Sight of his creeps me out, but... it's days like this that I'm glad we have it. In spite of his many conflicted feelings about Fujo, Tumaini found himself hoping that he was wrong about his uncle being a traitor.

Finally, a ghost of a smile appeared on Fujo's bloodied face. "Not too far. And he's found all the help we're going to need."