A curse has washed over the land, causing the rainy season to arrive early, but there is no savior in sight. Witness a realistic fiction about the demise of prides and its savanna, as well as the rise of a new as it becomes too wet to cope.
The rainy season has the added benefit of making it darker and their stalking less obvious. Surprisingly, it was another round-bellied female named Hope who was at the forefront of this hunt. Hopes swollen mas swung from side to side with each step, yet she bounded happily alongside the younglings.
They made every effort to stay low in the taller grasses nearing prey that was laying down. Behati felt she was getting close enough and lurched onto the back of a laying wildebeest, her paws sliding across their drenched fur and her claws failing to dig through the almost oily bubble formed over the skin. She took a bite in an attempt to stay latched, kicking her feet and making graceless wounds on its behind. She managed to rally the rest of the herd. The others dashed in, not intending to do so. Behati, being weaker, was easily bucked off with minor wounds inflicted on the prey. With the position she pounced on, she barely had time to go for the throat. They stood there watching as their prey fled from them. They were all panting from the adrenaline rush of a failed hunt. Behati appeared agitated, her tail sweeping side to side and bellowing at the others.
They lumped together again, refusing to give up, but they seemed more willing to follow Hope than Behati. Behati loomed behind Hope as they followed the herd, but her demeanor was generally dissatisfied with her. The other lionesses looked on, hoping for a feast, and seemed unconcerned about the two's pointless argument. After hours of walking, the group needed to rest, but with another opportunity on the horizon, they pushed on, and Hope made certain that Behati would follow her instructions the next time.
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They took command, surveying the herd while surrounding it, searching for the injured or weak, though they appeared to do so more separately. The wind howled fiercely as a storm brewed within the pouring rain, but it didn't seem to deter them from their mission. Hope jumped out first this time, her paws splattering in the mud and droplets flying sharply across many others and slicing them apart. Others hid in the prey's line of sight before leaping out to kill it, as they had been taught years before. The prey struggled to save its own life, eventually filling the damp air with the smell of its blood, others of its kind arrived to try to save their kin, but so did the lionesses, Behati made herself useful by utilizing her broad bulk as a barricade while snarling viciously with three other females who also attempted to chase them off with heavy muddy swipes at the eyes. The wildebeest quickly cut and weaved in between the lioness' defenses, avoiding most attacks. Even with the muddy dirt beyond their hooves, they had more endurance than the lions' stalky bodies could offer. They roared as they stood their ground, protecting their kill and a wildebeest's friend. Distressed calls filled the land, and the herd waited in the distance as the vein fight raged on, stomping and chasing, but it was all a shambles.
After going for the throat, one of the lionesses struggled to stay latched with the chaos going on around her. A thump was heard as one of the lionesses flew through the air and landed on the ground after raking her claws across the face of one of the many wildebeests. They were outnumbered in either case, but once the deed was done and their kin had passed the wildebeest retreated from the fight, leaving the lions with their prey. Hope observed before proceeding to eat her fill, following behind was Behati. As she approached the kill, chaos broke loose, with bellowing, growling, clawing, and overcrowding, but only towards Behati.
They actively kept her away from the kill. They wouldn't let her get a single bite and she was struck in the nose due to her efforts to try and get past nine other lionesses. Luckily, not enough to leave a mark, but the force of the hit was enough to make her finally back off. She set off to the side, watching them eat.
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She sat and circled impatiently around the others for an indefinite amount of time. They gave her dirty looks, with some going so far as to tackle her into submission before returning to the meal and wiping Behati's hunger in her face. She was furious but remained silent, knowing that her rebellion would not be in her favor. Two lionesses approached her with scraps yet she was apprehensive and snapped at them; however, they did not leave but instead sat by her patiently until she calmed down and ate from their offerings. She licked her lips as she ate the scraps, looking back to the other lionesses as the last of the meat was devoured while still hungered.
