Molly slowly clawed her way to consciousness. She felt the movement of a vehicle beneath her and opened her eyes to find she was in a cage. Groggy, she raised her head and saw that she was heading down a dirt road, dawn playing across the horizon. A human voice called out and three of them appeared in front of her, two men and a woman, standing at a distance from the bars of the cage. They smiled and muttered between each other, then one of the men knelt and spoke directly to Molly. She stared, not understanding. He laughed and shook his head at the others as he stood. They talked for a few moments more, waving their hands toward her, then dispersed.
The landscape zipped past as they continued on their course down the road until the sun had cleared the horizon. This new place wasn't as lush as the Pridelands. It reminded her of the land around the elephant graveyard, more dirt than grass, and she hadn't seen another animal out in it the entire time. Not one gazelle or wildebeest. The truck was large, holding another cage with a tarp pulled up between them so that she couldn't see what was in it. No noise came from it, but the humans peered into it now and again the same way they peered in on her. Checking on something, someone.
A shout from one of the humans and the truck slowed to a stop. Molly couldn't see anything past the other cage but she heard multiple voices and then the sound of metal grinding against metal. The truck rolled forward slowly and they passed through a large gate into a compound surrounded by high walls, human sentries posted on top with big, powerful guns. Inside, a mix of humans and lions milled about, the truck drew a crowd of them around it. The truck turned and backed up next to a large, idling crane where it parked and stilled as the crane jerked into motion. Molly braced herself as the crane clamped down on a connector at the top of the cage and lifted it into the air. It swayed a little but Molly concentrated on keeping herself centered. It lowered her towards the open mouth of a shallow cell set into the side of one of the large, central buildings of the compound. The cage lined up perfectly with the open gate into the cell. The two men from the back of the truck hopped up onto her cage and hooked a pulley system to the top of her cage door. As another human unlocked it, they pulled up hard on the rope and with a squeal of the pulley, her cage door lifted.
She didn't move. They coaxed her, grinning and laughing as they gestured towards the opening. But Molly could sense behind the bright smiles and reassuring hand gestures, there was an underlying malice.
A young lion came up beside the cage and looked in at her, bored. "Better to go on and get it over with," he said, "You're going into that cell no matter what."
Molly didn't answer, she glared at the cell, at the men above. She straightened and held her head high. She was Scar's mate. She wouldn't slink to do their bidding.
"They'll use the cattle prods on you," the lion shrugged, "They hurt."
Molly continued to ignore him but kept a watch for anyone approaching the cage. No one came, but she felt a jolt and jumped away from the pain in her right hind leg. She turned to see the woman from the truck laughing at her, brandishing the cattle prod. Molly backed away but didn't move through the opening. Two more cattle prods jabbed down at her from above and she ducked low, ears pulled back tight. The two men that had lifted the cage door were helping to herd her towards the opening. They lifted the prods to assault her again and she slashed at them, attempting to pull one down. It sent a jolt through her right shoulder and she released it, but her weight snapped it in half and the painful end clattered down into her cage. They yelled at her, the one with the broken end of the prod still in his hand shook it at her. She bared her fangs and snarled up at them. They weren't impressed. Another jolt on her underbelly startled her, and she whirled and swiped. The woman pulled the prod back before she could catch it with her claw and the man on top thrust his into Molly's face. She scrambled backwards and the cage door came down just in front of her nose with a loud clang that reverberated in the small space. The three humans laughed and disengaged from the cage. They walked back towards the truck as the lion peered through the bars at Molly on the far side. He shrugged and moved on.
Molly paced along the opening, angry she'd been so easily maneuvered. She saw the crane outside lift the second cage down but still couldn't see who or what was inside. The cell was dark, cool, and dry. It was large enough for her to pace across in five or six strides. And pace she did. She felt helpless, trapped, used. She knew why they'd taken her. Scar had said Pacha would use her to hurt him. She whirled, teeth bared, and blinked at the man and two lions that were slowly approaching her cell. The man wasn't old but limped along, leaning heavily on a cane, one hand on the shoulder of the lion to his right. His dark flesh was carved into grotesque dunes and valleys of scars. The two lions beside him were dark like Scar and Pacha. She knew exactly who he was. She debated backing away from the opening, but she stood her ground. She wouldn't let them see her fear.
Pacha closed the distance at a slow, limping pace. The other two lions seemed used to the pace and both of their heads and eyes were constantly on the lookout, scanning the surroundings calmly but diligently. Bodyguards. Molly tried to calm her hammering heart and took a deep breath. She half succeeded and was able to meet the eyes of the three of them when they finally stopped before her.
Pacha grinned at her through the bars and spoke, but she couldn't understand him. He tilted his head and said something else. When she only stared back, he spoke to the lion his hand rested on.
"What human language do you speak?" the lion translated.
She continued to remain silent.
Pacha laughed and shook his head. He let the cane fall to the ground and, as Molly stared, transformed into a lion. It was unsettling, but not horrific. It reminded her of a contortionist. Everything twisted and folded in a controlled, almost dance like movement. It looked like it should be painful though Pacha never showed discomfort. She remembered her own transformation hadn't been as smooth or painless. There was the shimmer of a distinct pattern across his skin as the transformation took place. Fur rippled down his sleek body with a muffled crackling sound akin to leaves being crunched underfoot. The pattern faded. He shook his mane when it was finished and sat back on his haunches, at ease, pleased with himself.
"Welcome to my home, Molly Walker," Pacha smiled at her clear shock at hearing her full name, "I hope you will enjoy being here with my Pride."
Molly's lips curled back, "I doubt I'll have the time to get acquainted. I don't intend to be here long."
The two lions exchanged an amused look as Pacha openly laughed at her, "I admire your spirit. I can see why he wants to keep you so badly. Unfortunately, that won't be possible. I'm afraid Taka will have to give up the dream of making a human his mate."
Molly remained silent. The fear and unease that she'd managed to compress down to a tiny irritant at the back of her mind had broken loose and swelled into a dark void inside her. She kept it there. If she let it completely overrun her, she didn't think she'd ever regain control.
"In fact, I believe Taka owes me a mate," he moved towards the bars, his scars stretching the skin on his face in grotesque shapes as he grinned down at her, "You know, lions don't have an understanding or word for forced intercourse."
Molly's mouth went dry.
"But they have an understanding of ownership. Taka sees you as his, something just for him. He knows that if I have you, then you are no longer his. If he comes for you, I'll be forced to take more of you from him, bit by bit, until there's nothing left but the tainted idea of what your lives could have been."
His tone continued to be jovial, lighthearted; a gracious host welcoming her despite the harsh threats. His eyes gleamed with hatred, his lips pulled back in a strained feline imitation of a human smile. He was insane. And she was trapped. Her mind raced.
"Did your father rape Scar's mother?" she blurted.
His face became eerily still, all emotion seeping out of it as his eyes widened, absorbing her, "Don't you fucking dare speak of them."
She felt bile rise in her throat but went on, "You are brothers, aren't you? And you knew."
Still his face remained emotionless as he stared in at her. Slowly, like a cloud covering the sun, a dark look of pure hatred took over his face. He spoke, voice low and hissing, "I will enjoy destroying you. It will allow me to kill Taka twice."
"He's better than you. No matter what you do to me, that will always be true."
He stepped forward aggressively, but he stopped himself, a smile cracking through the rage. "Aha, you clever girl," he gave a genuine laugh, "You're as good at getting me riled as he is. You very nearly made me forget myself."
The transition was startling and solidified her belief that he was certifiably insane. A pair of humans approached and the lion on the right detached to intercept them. They spoke animatedly to the lion then waited as he returned to Pacha.
"Father," he said, "The other one is awake and willing to speak."
Pacha grinned and nodded, "Excellent! I had a feeling she would be useful," he turned back to Molly and gave a mock bow with a dip of his lion head, "I look forward to continuing our talk about our mutual friend, my dear." He turned to cross to the other side of the compound. The lion that had addressed him as father scooped the discarded cane up into his mouth and the two younger lions loped after him.
Molly watched him move across the open space. It was clear why he preferred to be in lion form. As a human, his injuries impeded his movement to the point of needing the aid of the cane. As a lion, he could still move as easily as she could, despite a slight limp on one side. She worried at Scar's assessment of Pacha as weak. Watching him approach the cage on the other side, Molly flinched when she saw the lioness that came up to the bars to meet him with a coy smile.
Zira.
...
Rafiki sucked his teeth as he inspected Scar's wound, "It's not something I've ever encountered before," he shook his head, "You said it's a…bullet?"
"That's what the lioness called it," Scar was trying to remain calm and patient but every second that passed was another second Molly was left in danger.
"Hunh," Rafiki gave a grunt and peered out towards the open land that Scar kept staring at, "I can give you something for the pain and my usual healing ointment. If this Ukweli can do more, perhaps I should accompany and learn from her."
Scar winced at the pain in his shoulder as he shifted his back haunches. He remained silent as Rafiki busied himself with his gourds and mixtures. Shenzi had returned and pulled Banzai aside to mutter in the grass. Ed sat idly, ears drooped, tail lying still in the dust. Rafiki treated Scar to the best of his abilities before stepping back and giving Scar a long look.
"You owe me two favors," the monkey said.
"Yes?"
Rafiki held up one long finger, "Save her," he held up a second finger, "Live for her."
Scar opened his mouth to say those were things he had already been planning on doing but Rafiki clamped his hands around his jaws and stared him down. Scar gave a grunt and a sharp nod, both as an answer and a way to shake the baboon off of him, "You are troublesome, monkey."
Rafiki shrugged, about to retort when a battered lioness came barreling down the slope at them.
"Rafiki! Rafiki, you're needed!" she slid to a stop in front of them, eyes wide, panting, "It's the Queen. Hurry!"
Rafiki scooped up his gourds and staff and hopped onto her back. The young lion looked nonplussed to have the baboon riding her, but she didn't hesitate to turn and run back up to the rock. Scar's attention was pulled away as Shenzi and Banzai came out of the grass together, Shenzi standing as tall as she could.
"Scar, we need to get you to Ukweli as soon as possible," she eyed the wound, "You need help only she can give, not the monkey."
"We will leave soon," Scar assured her.
"No, Scar," she nodded to Banzai, "I'm sending Banzai and a few others to reach Ukweli first. You are in no shape to travel. She can send help here, you just have to be patient."
He huffed, "I do not have time for you to track some old hyena down and wait for her to doddle out here."
"You won't survive if you try to make the journey like this. Who's going to save Molly if you're vulture food?" She met his glare with one of her own.
He took a deep breath but stopped when his shoulder erupted in pain. Suppressing a whimper through gritted teeth, he gave a short nod and Banzai took off without another word.
Shenzi smiled up at him gently, "You won't regret trusting us, Scar."
He hoped not. The sky was beginning to lighten from black to midnight purple. Regardless of any emergency happening that required Rafiki, Bapoto and Masika should have been on their way back to report. He turned to look back at Pride Rock and was surprised to see the two young lions following Mufasa down the hill to him. Despite Shenzi's protests and demands that he should remain lying down, Scar pushed himself to his feet. He wasn't about to receive his brother while bleeding into the dirt.
"I assume you're not here because you're worried about me," Scar said to Mufasa as he came to a stop before him. Bapoto and Masika both continued on past to turn and take up places behind Scar. An interesting development. They weren't showing independence from their elders by staying off in their own space. They had specifically positioned themselves behind Scar, supporting him.
Mufasa took in the sight unsurprised and nodded, eyes haunted. His golden hide was drenched with blood, deep scratches and bites marring the sleek skin. His voice was hollow when he spoke, "I should have listened to you. They were already here," he muttered, looking at Scar unfocused, unseeing, "They've been planning for years. I never- they were able to turn us on each other so easily." He blinked and seemed to finally see Scar, his eyes fell to the blood on his chest and shoulder. When he met Scar's gaze again, Scar saw more pain in his brother than he ever remembered seeing before. "They're gone."
Scar didn't think his brother was talking about the enemy, but he didn't know who else he meant. "You're saying the lions that attacked last night were interlopers?"
Mufasa shook his head, "I wish I could. It'd be easier if-," he took a shaky breath, "The interlopers were few. They roused the others and whispered fear into everyone, inciting the majority of the Pride to want to chase you and your traitors out. Serafina brought suspicions to Sarabi but by the time they were coming to inform me, it had started." Mufasa swallowed several times and Scar felt a new prickle of fear stab into his heart. "They tried to intercept their own hunting parties but it was too late," he trembled and worked his mouth but no words came out.
"Brother," Scar said gently, remembering the panicked lioness that had wisked Rafiki away, "Where are Sarabi and Serafina?"
"Inside," the big lion managed, "Alive but," his voice hitched in his throat, "Rafiki- he said one- one might have survived-" Scar felt the fear grow as he watched his strong, indestructible brother begin to cry.
"The cubs," his voice came out barely above a whisper.
Mufasa's only answer was a shake of his head and more tears. The silence cut into Scar. He hadn't been overly interested in the cubs, but their loss still left a jagged hole in his heart. His hatred for Pacha swarmed through his entire being as he stood there and watched the King of Pride Rock, his brother, mourn his unborn children.
I will kill you, Pacha. I will hunt you down and water the grasslands with your blood. "I'll kill him, brother," he said out loud.
Mufasa looked up at him, "I know," there was something in his gaze that Scar couldn't place, as though he were looking at someone else, "I cannot go with you, everything is too unstable here," he squared his shoulders and gave a shuddering sigh, but no more tears came, "It seems like a pathetic offer after everything, but I will send whatever reinforcements you need."
Scar shook his head, "I won't take them."
Mufasa nodded, unsurprised by the answer. He turned to climb back up to Pride Rock and hesitated, "Mother was right," he said over his shoulder, "You should have been born first."
Scar felt a lump form in his throat but swallowed it down. He turned to Shenzi, "We leave now. Whatever help Ukweli sends can meet us on the way."
"But your wound," Shenzi attempted to protest as Scar moved away, Bapoto and Masika close beside him, "The bleeding hasn't stopped yet-"
"The bleeding has only just begun," he growled and continued on.
I wanted to give an honest heads up to you all.
I currently have two fanfictions that I'm writing and both have come to pretty critical moments in the stories. I'm struggling with juggling both and so updates haven't been monthly like I had hoped. I've decided that the best thing for me and you guys is to choose one to focus on and go at it until it's done. Unfortunately I still haven't really decided which one that is going to be.
So this may be in a hiatus while I update the other or vice versa. I apologize for the wait and especially for any possible wait in the future. No matter what, I will try to keep the wait as brief as I can.
Thank you all for reading.
Much love,
Meg