The three clones that Shocker had newly created were stood at the edge of the waterhole, staring at a sight which stunned them to the very core. It defied their sense of logic and reason so much that it... Well, it just made them angry.
"I don't b elieve it!" raged the clone Nala.
"What does it mean?" screamed the identical Simba.
"This is ridiculous!" yelled the duplicate Haiba.
They were looking at identical versions of themselves. Completely identical. They were exactly alike. The three newborn clones—unaware that they were clones, of course—just couldn't comprehend it.
"This doesn't make sense," Clone Simba said, an angry frown on his face. "They look exactly the same as us. Is it some kind of trick?"
"Doesn't look like it," snarled Clone Nala. "Either we're seeing things, or those three are some serious posers."
"Who gave you the right to decide on everything we see?" Clone Simba suddenly asked. "Remember: I'm in charge around here."
"Well, excuse me for using my brain, you idiot," Clone Nala retorted.
"What did you just call me?" asked Clone Simba, offended.
"I called you an idiot," said Clone Nala simply.
Clone Simba turned to face him, a confrontational look in his auburn eyes. "Say that again," he commanded in a threatening tone.
Unaffected, Clone Nala stared him down. "You're. An. Idiot."
"That's it!" The clone Simba lost patience, and leapt at Nala with the fury of ten thousand lions. Sharing the same level of anger, Nala tore and bit at his flesh.
"Stop it!" Clone Haiba screamed, interrupting the two cubs' fight. Clone Simba stared at Clone Haiba, still nibbling on one of Clone Nala's ears. She had one of his paws in her mouth, chomping down on it with an alarming ferocity. "You're forgetting the point here!"
"The only point is that she thinks she's in charge around here," Clone Simba replied angrily. "I'm the boss!"
"Shut up, Simba; you're not the boss—I am," Clone Haiba retorted.
Clone Simba stared down at the ground glumly. "Sorry..." he muttered.
"Nala, say sorry," Clone Haiba commanded, with an intimidating look in his eyes.
"Sorry..." Clone Nala said, barely above a whisper.
"Now, we're going to fix this problem," Clone Haiba told them, as the two cubs slowly climbed to their paws. The fight was finished—for now. "Those three imposters need to be eliminated. Am I right?"
Clone Simba and Nala looked at each other, then nodded at Clone Haiba. "Right," they chorused.
"Exactly," he said. "Of course, we need to destroy them in a most painful way. Either we rip them apart, limb by limb; throw them into boiling lava; or—the worst punishment of all—we tickle them to death."
Clone Simba and Nala shuddered at Haiba's last option. "That's just terrib le," said Nala. "Haiba, you're so evil."
"I am aware of this," he said. "But it's the only way for future gods like us to live. After all, we are going to become joint rulers of the Pride Lands when we come of age."
"Oh, yeah. Sure..." Clone Simba said, looking aside so he could have a sneaky evil laugh. He had plans of his own for when he came of age. Plans that involved killing Haiba and using Nala as a slave so he could become the most powerful king who ever lived...
"What was that, Simba?" Clone Haiba asked.
"Oh, nothing," Clone Simba mumbled.
"It's us against them," Clone Haiba continued. "We can't have posers taking our place. It would just ruin our esteemed reputation."
"So we capture them!" Clone Nala decided with an enthusiastic grin. "And then we can begin the punishment!"
"It's genius!" Clone Simba declared. "The best plan we've ever had!"
Clone Haiba chuckled sinisterly. "I know! They'll never be able to stop us! Especially since we're the three greatest cubs to ever live—ever!"
"Ever, ever!" Clone Nala exclaimed.
"Ever, ever, ever!" Clone Simba cried.
Clone Nala slapped him across the face. "That's enough 'ever'!"
"Oh, yeah?" Clone Simba pounced at Clone Nala, and they began to try and devour each other once more. "I'm going to have you for dinner, Nala!"
"Not until you head is in my stomach!"
Simba swished the water around slowly with his paw, bored out of his mind. He was praying for something interesting to suddenly happen. After all, his life was all about having adventures. He was just that type of cub. He couldn't help it, and he couldn't change. Not ever.
"I wonder what it'd like to be a girl?" Haiba suddenly said. He lay on his stomach, paws on his chin, staring out with mild interest into the horizon.
Simba and Nala stared at him. "What?" they both exclaimed.
"I said, I wonder what it's like to be a girl?" he repeated. "I mean, it's be great, wouldn't it? All those emotions and nice... feelings. Sounds like a really flowery time—if you get what I mean."
"No, Haiba," Nala said, frowning. "I'm a girl, and I don't get what you mean." She looked at Simba, making a 'crazy' motion with one of her claws. "Talk some sense into him, Simba."
"I can't," Simba said with a shrug, rolling onto his back and gazing up at the bright blue sky. "I'm busy thinking."
"Thinking about what?" Nala asked.
"What do you think I'm thinking about?" Simba replied. "Fun. I need something fun to do! You know when something really fun is happening? Isn't that just really fun?"
"Stop saying 'fun'," Nala moaned. "It's making me feel even more bored."
"If you think about it, then half our lives involve sitting around, doing nothing," Haiba told them. "It's a very lazy life—being a lion."
"Yeah, but we're different from all the others," Simba protested. "I mean, just look at all those cubs across the waterhole!"
Across the waterhole, the multitude of other cubs were all sitting there with bored, lazy looks in their eyes. All at once, they heaved a heavy sigh. Life just wasn't very interesting.
"See what I mean?" said Haiba. "Very lazy."
"I'm not standing for this," Simba said, hopping to his paws.
"Yes, you are," Haiba retorted, indicating that Simba was standing.
"I don't mean it like that!" Simba yelled. He shook his head. "Forget it. Look, I'm making a new rule as the Prince of Pride Lands: Everyone has to have at least three hours of fun every single day."
"Excuse me, but that contravenes the sixth order of the Pride Lands Law," said a voice from behind the three cubs.
"Zazu," Simba sighed, his shoulder sagging. "What are you doing here? I thought you were banned from ever being here."
Zazu put a wingtip to his beak, shushing him. "Don't let the whole world know about it, young master!" he exclaimed.
"After all, I wouldn't want to evoke King Mufasa's wrath. And, in case you're wondering, I was trying to procure some, uh... food. After all, it's ever so scarce in the Outlands."
"Did someone steal it all?" Simba asked, grabbing Zazu by the shoulders. "Someone evil? Can I stop them?"
"There hasn't been food in the Outlands for years, young master," Zazu replied. "Only the hyenas lived there—and they've been extinct from the area for quite some time now."
"Darn it!" Simba cried, hitting the ground in frustration. "And I was hoping for some kind of battle, too..."
"Well, young master, I'm quite afraid that—" Zazu let out a loud gasp, stopping himself from speaking any further.
Simba noticed his horrified expression. "What is it, Zazu?"
With a shaky wing, Zazu gestured to something across the waterhole. "It's... it's... it's..."
Simba, Nala and Haiba followed his gaze.
At first, they thought they were staring at their own reflection. Until they realised that it wasn't the water they were looking at. Three identical versions of them—completely exact—were stood there, staring with quiet rage at them.
"Happy, now?" Haiba asked Simba.