The Final Tale

The Final Tale Ch. 17

Janja sat on a cliffside all by himself. After Jasiri and the other Backlanders had taken off to take on the Outlanders, Janja had deliberately refused to join them. He couldn't. Scar would most likely be with them, and he was now scared out of his mind of the fiery Ghost. Jasiri had tried to convince him to join them, but he stubbornly refused, so she was forced to leave him behind. The Male Hyena did not care that she was disappointed in him, all that he wanted now was to be safe, away from all those Outlanders.

Away from Scar.

His own clan also stayed behind, for they did not know what to do without their leader. But they did not want to disturb him while he wanted to be alone. He stared out over the skeletal remains of the Great Dragon Massacre. He was glad that Cataro was dead and not coming back, because he sounded worse than ten Scars combined. It looked that way as well.

"Pretty nice day, huh?"

The voice seemed to ring a bell in Janja's mind. The kind of bell that had been left unrung for a lifetime. It was almost the same kind of bell that was used when Janja saw Tombie sfter all those years, but this one felt more ancient.

And he got his answer as he turned around.

Two Adult Hyenas, one Male and one female, stood in front of Janja. A blue Aura could be seen flowing around the two of them. Janja could easily remember who they were.

"Mom? Dad?"

"Heya son." The male, known as Banzai, greeted his eldest son with a smile. "Man, just look how you've grown. You see this, Shenzi?"

"Mhmm." Shenzi the female nodded as she approached the mortal, not leaving a single footprint in the dirt. "Boy, you've always had my eyes."

Tears began to well up in Janja's eyes, something that had rarely happened in his lifetime.

Banzai put his paw on Janja's back, knowing he could not feel it, but still enjoying this reunion. "I tell ya, you and Tombie sure grew up pretty swell." The father ghost chuckled before turning serious. "But, what I wanna know is, why?"

"Why what?" Janja asked his dead mother.

"Why have you done everything that you've done?" Shenzi asked him. "I mean, ditching you brother for dead? After me and your Dad left, you turned from that playful little puppy into..... well, a jerk, to put it kinda plainly."

"Yeah, don't you remember anything we taught ya?" Banzai asked him with a raised eyebrow.

Janja hardened his expression as he stepped forward. "You wanna know why I changed? It's Because after you both died, I was told that 'It's the way things are' over and over and over. Then I realized; it was the rules fault our kind have always been pushed around. Who needs rules? I HATE the way things are!" He turned sharply and glared back over the horizon, at the dozens of Komodo Skeletons. "You see? My point is rested IN STONE."

Shenzi and Banzai looked at each other with sadness and worry in their apparition eyes. What their eldest was saying was almost, if not entirely, true. This explained everything about Janja. He didn't disrespect the Circle of Life because he didn't believe in it, he did it because he always hated its immense and endless rules. The two Ghosts teleported over to their son's side.

"You know, Janja," Shenzi said soothingly to him. "Sometimes, there's rules because there has to be. During me and your Father's time in the afterlife, we learned something new. The Circle of Life has a plan for everyone, but, you know, we don't all make it together in the end."

"But why?" Janja asked as he looked directly at her. "Why does it have to be this way? I've missed you both so much."

"And we miss you every time we look around and you're not there." Banzai replied peacefully. "But you know, me and your mother will always have a special place with you.... and your brother."