WOOOOOT! Holy muffins, it's my first ever 'Lion King' fanfic! EEEE! *Shakes my tail and does a happy dance* I'm so flipping excited to get this started!
I hope you all enjoy the read! :D:D:D
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Chapter 1: You Are Worthy
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"Ryan?" Kathrynne Evans called as she opened up the camper door and stepped out into the intense African heat. "Ryan, where are you?"
She walked down the steps and searched further around her camp sight, placing her hands on her hips in annoyance as her hazel eyes caught sight of the campfire, which had become nothing more than a pile of smoking ash, before they scanned the wide-open Savannah around them. A frustrated expression appearing on her face when her call once again went unanswered.
"Ryan Michael Morris!" her voice raised in an angrier tone. "You better answer me!"
"Geeze, I'm right here!" came a tired voice from above her, making Kathrynne look up with a startled gasp as a seventeen-year-old boy with raven hair and hazel eyes identical to her own sat up from laying in the branches of a tree that was growing right beside the camper.
"You don't need to yell." he told her right before a big yawn escaped from him.
"Young man, what have I told you about falling asleep out here?!" Kathrynne demanded, watching in disapproval as her son rolled out over the thickest branch and dangled from it with one arm like a monkey. "Not only could you give yourself a heatstroke, but there are lots of dangerous animals roaming around everywhere! What if one of them had come by and decided to make a meal out of you?!"
"Then he would have had the worst indigestion of his life!" Ryan casually remarked as he dropped down to the ground and offered her a small grin. But it was immediately lost when his mothers less than amused expression didn't change in the slightest. "Come on mom, relax. As long as I stay in some sort of shade, then I should be good, right? And you were the one who said that the safest place for me to sleep was up in a tree if I was outside?"
"That was only if you didn't have the option to sleep in a safe, air-conditioned camper!" Kathrynne said as she pointed towards their little home on wheels before she just dropped it with a tired exhale. "And look at this, you've gone let the fire burn out; I want to make sure that you have it going again before I head out to meet up with everyone else. It keeps animals away, so you have to keep adding wood and-"
"-And never let the fire die." Ryan recited with an irritated roll of his eyes as he walked past her to kneel in front of the fire pit. "Mom, alright! I had it down after the last thirty times you've told me. This isn't the first time you've left me here by myself, so stop the nagging already!"
"I'm not nagging, Ryan. I'm your mother and I worry about you when I leave you alone!" Kathrynne said in exasperation. "Can you blame me?"
At that, Ryan paused and fell very quiet, his shoulders stiffening up as his mothers' relatively well-meaning question unintentionally opened up old wounds and bitter feelings he still harbored inside.
"Actually...I can. Since it's your own fault." the young man shot back with a sour tone before he continued to put more wood over the coals. "I could have spent the school year back at home with all my friends, like I wanted, and you could have worked on saving your "precious" animals just fine without me. But no. I'm dragged out in the middle of a boring wasteland where it's stupid hot for no good reason and the single perk I have is getting the camper to myself for hours or sometimes days, on end."
He then paused and gave a hum of mock thoughtfulness.
"Oh wait, having said all that, maybe I should actually be thanking you." he said sarcastically. "So thank you, mother. Thank you for making it feel like old times!"
"Lord Ryan, this again?!"Kathrynne started in exasperation, pinching the bridge of her nose. "Can't we get through one day without you looking for fight like-"
"Like dad did?" Ryan asked, glowering over his shoulder at her.
A tense and awkward silence fell between them, just staring at each other until Ryan was the first break it with a scoff as he turned away from her. Pulling out a black zippo lighter that had a metal, roaring lions head decoration on the front from the back pocket of his tan, tropic-weight cargo pants.
"...That's not what I was going to say." Kathrynne finally said in a quiet voice, her lips setting into a thin frown. "Don't put words in my mouth."
"You probably weren't gonna say it, but that doesn't mean you don't think it every time I say something you don't like to hear about this!" He stated, spreading out his arms and gesturing angrily around while he scowled at the African landscape. "This is the reason it didn't work out, you know. For any of us!"
"Protecting wildlife is important to me, Ryan; and it's not fair to blame the separation solely on me! "Kathrynne began, defensively. "Your father made his own choices too, and we couldn't force ourselves to make it work!"
"Yeah? Well you made your choices long before the fights ever started!" Ryan retorted rather viciously, grabbing a handful of dry grass and stuffing it under the logs. "He may not have been the most perfect parent either, but at least I know he made the effort to put his family first instead of a bunch of stupid animals!"
Kathrynne only stood there, watching her son add a few more handfuls of grass under the firewood while his biting words left her feeling numb and at a loss for words. But even though she felt incredibly hurt, she had to remind herself that she still had a job to do and pulled her car keys off from her belt loop.
"Okay...I guess I'll just be on my way, then." She announced, keeping her tone even and curt while she tied back her sandy blonde hair in a ponytail and briskly walking over to her dusty green Jeep.
"Yeah, you do that." Ryan said under his breath. "Not like it makes much difference whether you're here or not, anyway."
He hadn't meant for his mother to hear that, but she still did, and it caused her to slow to a stop where she dejectedly stared down at the ground with a defeated expression on her face.
"Once it gets dark, stay in the camper and don't come out for anything." she said, managing to gather herself as she grabbed her hat and sunglasses from the seat. "I...I'll give you a call once I meet up with the team."
When she received no answer, she stole a glance back over to Ryan who gave no inkling of acknowledgment or even offer a single 'goodbye'. Instead, he wordlessly flicked on his lighter and continued to busy himself with starting the new fire.
She opened her mouth to say 'I love you'...but she found that she just couldn't get her voice to work as a tear finally managed to escape and roll down her cheek; quickly wiping it away, she made herself put her hat and glasses on and climbed inside the jeep and drove away before she broke down completely.
At that point, Ryan finally got a decent flame started and put his lighter back in his pocket before he stood to her feet, dusting off his knee and watched as his mothers car left a high trail of dust in its wake before it finally disappeared in the distance. Once he was alone, his anger slowly whittled away to regret, and he ran a hand through his dark hair while letting out a heavy sigh.
"Moron." he started, mentally berating himself for being such an idiot as he plopped himself down in a red camping chair that was sitting in the shade of the tree. "Why can't you just keep your big mouth shut?"
He watched as the flames of the fire grew bigger and scolded himself for once again letting his rotten temper go and run his mouth. He could be as angry and bitter all he wanted with everything that led up to him being in this situation, but that didn't mean acting like a total jerk and taking it out on his own mother was the right way to go about it...
A big yawn suddenly escaped his lips, and he leaned back in his chair as he stretched out his arms and legs; being in this kind of heat always made him feel so drowsy, and figuring that he would be in a better state of mind to sit down put together an apology after he got a few extra winks, he got himself more comfortable in the chair and pulled the hood of his sweater over his head and face before he closed his eyes.
A small, ten minuet nap wouldn't hurt anything.
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More Than Ten Minutes Later...
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"REEEAGH!"
Ryan gasped, jerking awake when the sound of a terrible screech assaulted his ear drums as he yanked off his hood and looked around in shock to see that night had just about fallen upon the Savannah. The only light that could be seen was from the rapidly descending sun along with the soft glow of the moon that was beginning to rise high into the sky. And as a weak crackle brought his attention to the fire pit, his eyes widened when all he could see was dimly burning embers that were just about ready to snuff out at any second.
Cursing to himself, Ryan jumped out of the chair and quickly grabbed more logs and handfuls of dry grass and threw them in the fire pit before he whipped out his zippo and got to work on bringing the fire back.
So much for ten minutes, he couldn't believe that he had actually slept long enough for it to almost burn out! But he didn't dwell on it for too long when the fire sprung back in full bloom and he sat back in relief, shaking his head as a slight chuckle escaped his lips. Falling asleep out in the open wasn't the smartest thing he had ever done, but at least he had a fire again.
"RRREAAAAAAH!"
The young man looked out across the darkening land when another scream rang out in the air. It didn't sound like it belonged to a person it was too animal-like, almost like it belonged to some sort of monkey if his guess was right; though whatever it was, the racket it was making was sure to attract the attention of a hungry predator at some point, so it would probably be in his best interest to lock himself inside for the night.
After adding a few more logs to the fire, he folded up his camping chair and started towards the camper; though the second he opened the creaking door and put a foot on that first step, he hesitated for a moment and looked back out towards the shadowy plains. Should he really just leave the animal out there? From the noises it made, it seemed like it was hurt, maybe even stuck somewhere and unable to get free by itself.
And the poor thing sounded so scared...
"Nope! No way, mom said stay in the camper!" He firmly reminded himself as he turned back to look inside the space they shared with each other. "Besides, other animals gotta eat, too."
But even as he said it, there was something inside that was holding him back...It sounded like it was pretty close, and if the animal really was caught in something, then survival of the fittest or not, would he really be okay if he made the conscious decision to leave it be and deny it a proper fighting chance?
"RAROOOOOH!"
"I guess what mom doesn't know won't hurt her." Ryan finally stated as he walked inside to put the chair away and grab a big black flashlight that was hanging on a hook by the door before closing it behind him.
"Here I go, walking outside when it's getting dark and risking my neck for some animal." He muttered, taking in a deep breath to steel his nerves and clutching the flashlight in a tight grip before he forced himself to march on. "...I'm such a moron."
Unfortunately, that snap of courage pitifully dwindled away about ten mins minutes into his little rescue mission once the sun disappeared completely and made him really start to regret leaving his camper the longer he trudged through this grassy, uneven terrain with the only light he had coming from the flashlight that seemed to just barely pierce the unsettling blackness around him.
Ryan could feel his heart starting to beat faster, his hazel eyes wide as they darted left and right, and he jumped at every sound. Why did he think this was a good idea again? He couldn't believe he was doing something so stupid!
This was what his mother did, and unlike her, he saw absolutely no sense in putting his life on the line for animals as, the way he saw it, they could take care of themselves just fine; so just who in their right mind would think they were worth the danger that went into dealing with them?!
His brow then began to bead with sweat, and he felt a lump form in his throat when he suddenly realized that it had been a while since he last heard the animal cry out. He should have just stayed in the camper; or at least thought to grab his favorite aluminum baseball bat, one of the few personal items he brought out here with him from his house in America so he would have had something to better to defend himself with if there was anything with long teeth and sharp claws hiding out there somewhere that thought it could get an easy dinner tonight...
"RRRAGH!"
The young man let out a startled yelp, nearly dropping the flashlight as the latest shriek rang out very close to his left along with rapid scuffling and scratching sounds. peering through the dark, Ryan could just barely make out a small, shadowy figure running back and forth across the ground until he quickly shined the light on it...letting out a sigh of relief to see that it was only a monkey.
It was of a somewhat medium size with a dark gray face and white chest, legs and stomach. It also had bright red fur that went along from the dome of its head and all the away across to its long tail, which almost made it look like it was wearing a red hood and cape. If he remembered correctly from the books his mother had back at the camper, this was a patas monkey.
The simian gave a fearful chitter at the strange light that had suddenly washed over it, and when it finally took notice of Ryan, it bolted; but it didn't get very far when it suddenly jerked from something that was around it's arm and fell heavily on its side with a pain filled screech. The young man blinked in surprise, then he held the light at a different angle and noticed something glinting, finally realizing that the poor thing was caught in a thin wire snare.
The kind that poachers would set to catch unsuspecting prey.
Slowly, the young man started towards it, making sure to keep his steps smooth and easy. But despite his attempt to appear non-threatening, the monkey growled, warning Ryan to keep his distance while it bared its teeth and pulled away as far as the snare would allow.
"Easy..." Ryan said in a soft tone as he got down on one knee and put the flashlight on the ground beside him, another growl rumbling out from the puffed up primate before it started gnashing its jaws at him. "Hey, it's okay little guy, I'm here to help."
The monkey stared at him for a long while until it finally stopped showing its teeth, but it still regarded him with a very wary gaze.
Ryan waited a bit longer for it to calm down before he slowly began to reach out a hand with the thought that if it saw that he was gentle, it would relax a little more and begin to trust him. But when the little creature saw his hand reaching for it, it let out a terrified coo that made the young man pause for a moment.
"It's alright, I'm not gonna hurt you." Ryan assured, staring into its eyes which were such a vibrant amber that they almost looked red. "Just trust me, at least long enough to get you out of this."
The monkey made no other sound, staring at him as though it were in deep thought before it finally moved and took a timid, hesitant step towards him; taking it as a sign that it just might let him touch it without biting or clawing at him, he lightly brushed his fingers over its head. The fur was rather soft under his touch, and when it made no aggressive move, he began to stroke it in a slow and comforting manner until the monkey actually began to lean into the touch like it was actually enjoying it.
"See? I'm nice, aren't I?" Ryan asked, offering a smile.
To his surprise, it seemed to respond to his question by moving closer, keeping it's big amber gaze upon Ryans' face as it slowly climbed right up into lap and clutching folds of his tan, TD–Elite hoodie with camouflage design on the shoulders and sides under the arms in its paws.
It took Ryan a second to process this amazing show of trust, and taking advantage of it, he picked up his light in one hand and gingerly took the hairy arm that was caught in the other to examine it before he cringed at what he saw. Before he found it, it had struggled so much to get free that the wire was buried deep into the flesh, making painful look lacerations that crossed over each other.
That was definitely going to need to be cleaned to keep it from getting any worse.
"Stupid poachers, leaving these things..." He commented distastefully as he put the flashlight between his shoulder and neck and took out his automatic buck knife with a rose wood handle from his back pocket, pushing the button on the handle and releasing the blade before he began to work at the wire. "Well, at least it was only a snare and not something worse."
When he finally cut through, he cradled the monkey in his arm and stood to his feet and shining his light around the area. After he was sure that nothing else was out there with them, he quickly started back to his home on wheels so he could fix this little guy up; But as it turned out, the plan to get the patas monkey inside and treated ended up being easier said than done.
The second Ryan had opened the camper door upon their arrival, the monkey was out of his arms and scurrying around the inside opening up doors, scattering loose papers and at one point, it accidently ripped out pages from a couple of schoolbooks Ryan had left open. The teen probably chased it over every square in of the camper trying to catch it before he eventually managed to bribe it to the kitchen counter with a fruit bowl his mother always kept filled.
When it was finally still and engrossed in eating its sweet snack, Ryan wasted no time in retrieving the first aid kit and got right to work. It let him take off what was left of the snare around its arm with hardly any problem rather than the occasional whine when something twinged painfully, but not even fruit was enough to distract it when it was time to clean it with antiseptic.
To put it simply, it was not a fan, and it was nothing short of a miracle that Ryan's hearing was still intact by the time he finally pulled out the bandages. Only, as he began to dress its arm, the little monkey was very much fed up with everything he was doing.
"Hey, stop that, my fingers are still there!" Ryan said with a short laugh, nudging the face of his furry patient away for the fifth time as it tried to nibble at the white cloth. "This would go a lot faster if you'd just sit still and let me do it, you know."
It chittered at him miserably, but it allowed him some space until the raven-haired teen had finished fastening the bandages.
"And there we go," Ryan announced, stepping away with his hands in the air. "You're all done."
The monkey inspected the wrappings on its arm, sniffing and tentatively licking at it a couple of times before it just decided to leave them alone and looked up at Ryan with those large eyes while the young man smiled down at it, feeling pretty good about himself that he seemed to have successfully patched it up.
"You can stay here with me until tomorrow." Ryan said as he tousled the fur on its head. "That way I can keep an eye on that arm."
A ringing from his cell phone that he placed over on the arm of the couch made him turn around and leave the monkey on the kitchen. But as he picked it up and turned it over to see who was calling, he failed to notice that the little creatures' large eyes began to glow with a golden light...
Ryan let out a sigh when he saw that the call was from his mother as the memory of their fight before she left came back to him; the whole time he was helping the monkey, he had completely forgotten to work on an apology. His finger hovered over the green answer button as he fretted over what he should say to her...and if she would she even accept it if he told her he was sorry.
BOOM!
A deafening explosion rang through the air, and he cried out as a strong gust made him lose his phone, knock him off his feet and sent him sailing across the room until he landed face first in the worn, carpeted floor. It left him feeling dazed, and as he pushed himself up to his hands and knees and rubbed the back of his sore neck, his eyes went as big and as round as saucers to see a freaking tornado going on right in the middle of the room!
Papers, books, even kitchen utensils were swirling around the camper with him trapped right in the middle of it all. He could only sit there and shield his head as he was almost pelted with whatever flew over him, and as he tried to figure out what was going on, a small figure appearing at his side startled him into jerking away, slamming his back against the side of the chair.
A strap flapping about next to him drew his eye, and instinctively, he pulled up and over the arm of the chair until he was holding a backpack of his in it hands; using it to block things from hitting him in the head or face until he noticed something else even stranger than the whirlwind going on...it was the monkey, sitting perfectly still as though it didn't even notice the vortex going on around them.
It was staring unnervingly at him with glowing eyes while Ryan stared back in shock and fear. He quickly ducked his head behind the pack to avoid getting a face full of a passing book; when he looked back up, his heart began thrumming at an even faster pace in his chest when the monkeys' entire body began to glow with that same golden light.
It started out dim at first, but when the light began to grow bigger and brighter until it almost filled half of the camper, Ryan couldn't help but shield his eyes from the intensity.
'Ryan Morris.' He heard a deep and resonating voice say. 'You are worthy.'
What the heck did that mean?!
"Worthy of what?" Ryan cried, trying to squint through the light to find out who it was that spoke to him. "Who are you?!"
'I am Mufasa, one of the many kings of the past.' The voice said, the wind suddenly picking up in speed. 'I have felt kindness at your hand, and I have seen courage within your heart; Because of this, I have chosen you to embark on an urgent task.'
"A..a task-what?!" Ryan sputtered, almost having to yell over the howling of the wind as it grew louder. Then he let out a gasp and flattened himself down on the floor just as a large pot that came from the kitchen almost hit him.
'You must go to my son.' he was told. 'Earn his trust as you have mine, and with him, save our family from certain doom.'
Ryan winced as the tempest suddenly began to escalate, digging his fingers into the carpet fibers for fear that he would be swept up and hurled around the camper as well; as he tried to keep grounded, he began to notice that the bluster of the wind wasn't the only thing he could hear, there were...animal voices coming through.
He couldn't make out all of them as they seem to meld together, but he was able to identify some as he could just make out the chattering of monkeys and the whiny of zebras; there was also a particularly loud trumpeting of elephants, but the rest was just too jumbled together for him to him to identify what they were. They never seemed to end, and even though Ryan tried to cover his ears, he could still hear them as they all seemed to painfully wash over him all at once until it felt like his head was about to split in two!
The young man couldn't help but let out pain filled shout before he began to feel dizzy. And just as his vision began to grow fuzzy, he was suddenly aware of this strong presence nearby that made him open his eyes to see two large paws; straining to lift his head, he discovered that a huge lion with golden fur and a great red mane was standing over him, tall and proud with this intensely glaring gaze that seemed to pierce right through to his very soul.
'Save my family.'
Ryan couldn't tell if it was his fading eyesight playing tricks on him, but as the big cat leaned his big head down closer to his own, he seemed to be glowing...almost as if the sun itself was shining from his body. But trick or not, Ryan couldn't do anything but heavily let his head fall back upon the pack that had been laying under him as the squall of animal calls continued to crash around in his ears.
The last thing he heard was the mighty roar of a lion before he finally fell into silent darkness.
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Now what's the lesson we've learned here, kiddies? Unless you want a freak tornado that makes animal sounds happening inside your camper, you do not, I repeat, do not pick up stray monkeys.
Let me know what you think guys, and if you happened to see any spelling or grammar errors, don't be afraid to tell me about them :3