My Lion King Forum

Scar roared into the darkness of the dusty night. He had just sent the hyenas out for a search for food. Scar didn't leave the throne much, unless it was to deal with troublesome lions that weren't obeying his rules. Then again, there weren't much prides left because almost everyone fled before he rightfully claimed his place on the throne. Though even thought he had little to rule over, he was still very pleased with himself for murdering Mufasa and killing that retched son of his, Simba. That brainless little cub had fallen for Scar's tricks more than once, and this time it had killed him. Scar smiled slyly. Yes, indeed it had killed Simba. Simba was gone, Mufasa was gone. Perfect. Scar had also forbidden Simba's mother and his best friend Nala, to ever leave. Especially Nala. Scar planned to make her his queen.

The stars were now set high in the sky, though their glow was very dim. The Pride Lands were quiet except for the far off echo of the hyenas cackling in the dark, which was also fading fairly quickly. The dust had also finally settled in a thin blanket on the cracked and parched ground. It was as if night had put it to rest.

After a good few hours of carrying Jumbe, Ashur began to wheeze from exhaustion. His stomach growled furiously and his mouth felt as if it was as dry as the ground beneath his tired paws. But he had to go on, and he was going to go on. No stopping. If he had to die to keep Jumbe alive, then so be it. Ashur kept a close eye on Kari and Aimee, following them so he wouldn't get lost. It was a hard job to prevent himself and Jumbe from getting thorns on either of them. The thorns were sharper than a full grown elephant's tusk and could easily puncture deep into anything that fell onto it. Nevertheless, Ashur thought he was doing a pretty good job at keeping him and Jumbe thorn-free, at least for now.

After a few more minutes of walking, Ashur stopped and listened in the night. He swore he heard the cackling of the hyenas, and closer than before when Aimee had heard them

"Did anyone notice any hyenas leaving Pride Rock before we left? I hear them now, and I can tell they are very close. We must move more quickly." Ashur explained, who was suddenly very tense. He nuzzled Jumbe, who was breathing very slowly and softly, her eyes still shut tight. Ashur wondered when she would come back to consciousness. He hoped it would be very soon.

There had been a few times where the ground had loosened for Aimee and Askari and they had stumbled to the ground. They had got back up however and pressed on, happy that they were going first instead of their friends. It would make the path safe. Aimee's ears turned to Ashur's voice and she frowned. He was right; the hyena's were getting closer.

"I didn't notice" Askari replied, trying to boost the confidence of his comrades, but there was a hint of worry in his voice. Aimee stopped in her tracks.
"Maybe I should go at the back? Keep an eye out...". She manoeuvred behind Ashur and Jumbe before Askari could get a concerned word in. The group moved on, quicker than they had been before. Askari suddenly let out a relieved sigh.
"I see it, I see the clearing!". Aimee cheered inwardly, but did show an ecstatic smile. The first proper smile in a while.

Then...then there was a snap. The breaking of a twig. Silence fell among the young lions. Aimee turned, very very slowly, to the source of the noise. It was as she feared. The hyeans. They had caught up to them, and they were ready to attack. Aimee let out a startled yell as the hyenas rushed toward her and Askari called to run. He supported some of Jumbe's weight and sped towards the clearing with Ashur. Aimee sprinted behind them, panicking and almost screaming as she did so, feeling the hyena's trying to nip at her legs.

They twisted through the path, loosing hyena's on the way. Askari, Ashur and Jumbe reached the opening. Askari placed Jumbe down with care before looking up frantically. Aimee had not reached them. The sound of her screaming was replaced with warning growls and hissing. The hyenas were laughing. Suddenly, there was a movement. The young lioness had made a desperate attempt to escape the canines by jumping over and through the thorns. A mistake which resulted in various thorns becoming embedded into her skin. She had in fact led them to a dead end, and so they had lost the path the others used.

"Come on" she said painfully through gritted teeth and blood spilled over her fur. "Before they figure out where to go". Askari looked at her with an open maw.
"Aimee..." he mumbled, examining her punctured skin. Luckily, none had gotten into her paw pads. He was going to say how stupid she had been to jump through the thorns like that, because now she looked dreadful, but he remembered Jumbe's state. "Is Jumbe ok Ashur?"

Ashur had feared the worst when the hyenas were on their tails. Fortunately, Aimee had led them on and took a great risk for all of them. He was happy that she didn't get seriously hurt from the thorns. Only a couple stuck out from her matted pelt, but they were still causing a great deal of bleeding for her. Ashur then turned back to Askari, in response to his question.

"Yeah..she's fine right now.." He replied, still trying to catch his breath and what little energy he had left in him.

Suddenly, there was movement coming from Jumbe. Violent coughs and desperate wheezes for air soon filled the air. Quickly and carefully Ashur put Jumbe down onto the ground and watched her, his face flooded with distress. But after Jumbe finally caught her breath, she actually stood up, to Ashur's great surprise. Ashur felt as if he was going to drown in happiness. Careful as to not knock her down, Ashur gave Jumbe a tender lick on her cheek.


Jumbe opened her eyes. There was still darkness everywhere, but she knew that she was with other animals. Perhaps she was with her friends? Her vision wasn't fully back yet, but she could see those around her enough to make out who they were at least. And just as she hoped, she was with her friends. But.. she was still very confused. Where was she? What was this place? All Jumbe could see were what seemed like curvy and solid-like black colored twists. They also had dull points sticking out of their sides. Jumbe cocked her head in confusion. At least she was up, and she was actually standing. As weak as she was, she was still standing. Jumbe turned back to her blurred friends, and just to be sure they were who she though they were, she started to talk to them.

"Uh.. Ash.. Ashur? Kar.. K.. Kari?" Jumbe stumbled on her words, finding it hard to speak.

"Aimee? Where are you? And.. where am I?"

Aimee ached all over, and prayed that Askari could get the thorns out once they were safely distanced from the Pridelands. She was distracted by her own pain with another's; Jumbe was waking up. A smile split across Aimee's face as she prevented greeting her fellow lioness physically, for she was still finding her feet.

The young lioness came a little closer to the dazed lioness. She assumed she was having trouble seeing at the moment and Aimee prayed it wasn't permenant damage. It was hard to loose one of your senses out here.
"I'm here" Aimee said softly, standing directly in front of her. Askari hoped he'd be recognisable by his voice.

"We're all here. And...we're out. We're beyond the border of the Pridelands". These words echoed around the four. They were both anticipated and rather unnerving. What were they meant to do now? Askari didn't want to say, but he knew what lay beyond the thorns. A desert. He was hopeful that there would be some form of water before they continued their journey. He glanced at the night sky. If the Kings of the Past saw their struggle, he prayed they were generous enough.

As soon as Jumbe heard the voice of her friend Aimee, she felt extremely safe. Jumbe licked Aimee's cheek softly. Her vision was slowly coming back and she could finally see her friends somewhat, and where they sat all around her. Jumbe coughed. She noticed that there was no dust out here, but she still had some in her lungs from when they were all in the Pridelands.

"I'm hungry.." Jumbe complained. She wondered if there was any food around. At this point she didn't care what she ate. As long as it filled her stomach and stopped the constant gnawing hunger she felt on a daily basis now. Jumbe walked through her friends and tried to walk towards the path through the thorns, but someone stopped her.

Ashur blocked Jumbe from going any further, and gave her a stern look.

"You are definitely not going through that path." Ashur said to Jumbe.

"Why not? It's not dangerous or anything."

Hearing that remark from Jumbe made Ashur burst out laughing.

"Excuse me, but how would you know? In case you don't remember, you fainted in the Pride Lands. We all needed to escape and I carried you here, even through that path that leads through the thorns. I will do anything to prevent you from going back there because the hyenas were on all our asses and chased us. If it weren't for Aimee's quick thinking, we all would probably be dead." Ashur nosed Jumbe back towards Askari and Aimee.

"Now stay here, and don't be a brainless vulture." Ashur licked Jumbe's now pouting expression as she went to sit next to Aimee.

Ashur turned to Askari.

"So, where to now?" Ashur asked.

Aimee and Askari watched their puzzled friend. When she said she was hungry, both of lion's stomachs growled loudly. Being reminded of their hunger did not put an ease to their worried minds. However, they both chuckled at Jumbe's remark about it not being dangerous. If only she had been awake. Aimee felt a little flattered by Ashur's mark. She felt like a bit of a hero, even though she wasn't about to admit it.

Askari beckoned towards the desert.
"Into the unknown I'm afraid". He sighed violently. He didn't want to go into the unknown world of the desert, but it was cool at night and they didn't want to be caught out in the desert during the day. Aimee had wondered off a little. She had noticed that the ground beneath her feet was a little softer. That meant water had been in contact with it.

She padded along the ground until she noticed some dark grass. Her eyes widened with excitement. A little further and she came to discover a small pool of water. It had to be a gift from the Kings of the Past. She almost dived in for a drink, but she remembered the others. She forced herself to wait.
"Guys! Come over here, I've found water!" Askari looked up and bounded over to his friend. He didn't believe it at first. "I know its not much, but there's enough for all of us to have some" Aimee added with an anticipating smile.

Water. Hydration. Liquid. Nourishing. Cold. Ashur and Jumbe's ears perked up as soon as they heard Aimee tell them she had found water. Ashur suddenly sprinted off to Aimee. As soon as he reached the water, he stuck his tongue in it. His parched tongue soon felt less limp and more strong than it had been before. The water was very tasty and pushing aside the fact that it was in the middle of a desert, it was cold. Ashur wanted to drink the whole thing, but he had friends that needed some as well. This was definitely not a time to be greedy.

After Ashur had had his share, he suddenly felt a bit stronger than he had before. Ashur looked back to the exit from where he and his friends had came. Jumbe was still sitting there, pouting. Ashur sighed.

"Hey Jumbe!" Called Ashur. "Come get some water! You need it especially."

Jumbe looked up and stuck her tongue out teasingly at Ashur.

"Don't make me drag you by the tail."

Jumbe giggled and walked towards the pool of water. After waking up from fainting, running was out of the question until she at least ate and felt better. Her legs and body still felt weak, but he vision had come back fully. As soon as Jumbe reached the pool of water, she looked up to the sky and preyed.

"Thank you, to the Great Kings of the Past. Thank you for all this water. We will share it with one another, and be conservative with it." Jumbe bent her head down and closed her eyes. After her prayer, she started to lap up her share of the delicious water slowly, savoring every drop of it.

Ashur looked towards the desert after he finished drinking. It stretched out far and wide, and he knew there was no way of telling where you would end up from their current location. It was in this situation that Ashur wished he would have explored more. Then maybe he would know what was beyond the desert.

"I just hope there are no predators out there." Ashur said to himself, still looking at the large desert.

Aimee watched proudly as their friends downed the water. She was so relieved to have found it, and even more relieved to see it had worked some sort of magic on her friends. Askari beckoned with his paw towards the water. He was going to let his little 'sister' drink first obviously. She smiled widely and gave him a quick nuzzle.

She repeated Jumbe's prayer quietly before lapping up the cool liquid. It revived her dry lips and throat and she felt some life being brought back to her. She finished and licked her lips of excess droplets. She sat down on the softer ground and listened to Ashur while Askari took his turn at the pool of water. He savoured it just as much as the others had.

"I hope not either..." Aimee replied worriedly. "Although,there are four of us. We should be ok" Aimee added after a brief moment of thought. She wanted to at least try to be optimistic.

Askari raised his head from the pool which had almost been drained.
"We best head off before light" he stated. He hated to be a joy-kill after this miracle of finding water, but someone had to take charge. Being the oldest, he thought he'd give it a shot. He felt protective over his friends; especially Aimee.

After gathering a few moments of rest, Ashur and Jumbe headed off with Askari and Aimee. Despite their still severe situation, Jumbe was in a bouncy mood. She walked beside Aimee happily, smiling and laughing while chatting with her about girly things. Ashur walked alone behind the two, with Askari leading the way in front of them. Ashur was starting to feel a lot better ever since they all had had a drink of water. As Ashur continued to walk around quietly, he couldn't but help notice a feeling that was growing big inside of him. Inside of his heart. All though he wasn't sure of what it was just yet, he kept walking with the warm feeling inside of his chest. It was a great feeling.

A few moments went by and all of a sudden, Ashur had accidentally stepped on Jumbe's tail.

"Ouch!" Jumbe squealed, as she sat down and examined her tail.

Ashur gave Jumbe an apologetic look.

As soon as Jumbe started walking again, Ashur finally could put his paw on what this warm feeling was. It was love. Ashur then remembered he hadn't been paying attention to where he was going. He had been trying to catch up to Aimee and steal her attention away from Jumbe. Ashur had always liked Aimee, but he never knew that he had this much. Ashur sighed. He probably would never have a chance with her, as Askari was too protective over her.. but what if he told Askari? Would he understand? Ashur knew that Askari considered Aimee as his younger sister.

Ashur continued watching Aimee and walked at the back of them again, this time a few meters away so he wouldn't make a fool out of himself.

Aimee tail swished a little. She was exhausted and sleepy, but Jumbe was keeping her going. Her good mood was rubbing off on her, and Aimee couldn't help but join in the conversation and laugh along side her. It took her mind of the cold desert night and the uncertainty of what was to come after they had reached new uncharted territory.

She was interrupted mid sentence when Jumbe squealed. Ashur had stood on her tail. She rolled her eyes jokingly at him, but asked Jumbe if she was ok. She seemed fine and they continued walking again.
"He seemed a bit...distracted" Aimee said with a chuckle at a level of sound only Jumbe could make out.

Askari was keeping an eye on there surroundings as they walked. He shook his still growing mane free of sand that had blown into it through the desert breeze. The young male glanced at his fellow male companion, Ashur. He was watching something, or someone. He tried to follow his gaze, but couldn't make out whether it was Aimee or Jumbe.

He raised a curious brow but didn't say anything. He began to think though. Did he like Aimee? Askari didn't know how he felt about that. There was no point in pondering for too long. They had a journey ahead of them.