The Tale of the Golden Little Lion

 "Once upon a time, when our planet was still young and crowds worshiped the gods, there lived a brave little lion. His fur shimmered like molten gold, his eyes shone alike stars, and his claws cut sharper than a sword."

A soft female voice floated through the tiny hut with a green tiled roof. She whispered words to the little boy, gently hugging him and rocking him to sleep. The woman carefully brushed away the blonde locks that had fallen into the child's eyes as he listened intently.

"The little lion was always surrounded by faithful friends – a curious chameleon with an emerald crown, a wise owl in a gray robe, a snow-white little tiger without a single black stripe, and a cunning jackal who mentored the young hero. Together they went through many wonderful adventures, accomplished feats, and always came to each other's aid. There wasn't a day that they didn't spend together. However, the little lion couldn't find his place, as if he was a stranger everywhere – his world didn't suit him, seemed wrong. And the little lion's heart burned brightly as if everything was within his power, and he sought to give freedom to all beings, to reject old laws and create new ones.

There were also those who loathed the brave little lion for his bold and wild spirit – the evil overlord in the black crown and the ice fox with nine tails, who wanted to forever deprive the creatures of their freedom and continue to rule over everyone. They weaved insidious plans, thinking about how to punish the little lion and his friends.

One day, when the little lion went in search of new adventures, the evil overlord ordered to seize the cunning jackal, who disobeyed the rules, and lock him in a distant dark cage, from where he would never be able to escape. The brave little lion couldn't help his friend in time, but he was not afraid to stand up against the dark overlord and the ice fox to fight for justice. But a chameleon, an owl and a tiger stopped him so that the little lion would not incur wrath and end up in the same prison as the cunning jackal.

Sorrow overtook the brave little lion's mind and he went in search of his friend. He wandered around the world for a long time, visited many cities, met many creatures that he had never even heard of. And everywhere he went, he made new friends, helped the poor and protected the weak. He learned how creatures chose for themselves freedom from gods and former shackles, how they fought for their happiness and not submission. And the little lion fell more and more in love with these new places and their inhabitants, who were so similar to himself.

But no matter how many days and months he spent on the road, he couldn't find his friend. It seemed that the cunning jackal just disappeared. Despondent, the little lion didn't know where to go next – after all, he could no longer return home. Saddened and thoughtful our hero became.

However, at this time another misfortune happened – enraged at the waywardness and disobedience of mortals, the gods sent punishment to peaceful lands. And armies of horrific monsters with hundreds of sharp fangs in heinous maws, with paws the size of thick oak trees, with eyes filled with emptiness, descended from the heavens. And those monsters were called Reapers. And these armies swept across all lands, bringing destruction and death. And the mortals fought, but they could not hold back even one such monster."

Somewhere in the distance outside the window, there was a rolling roar that resonated in every bone of the body, as if the heavens themselves were collapsing. The woman shuddered and hugged the child tighter. Her lion tail twitched nervously, but her voice continued to softly float around the room, lulling.

"But the brave little lion wasn't afraid of dangers. He stood up against nightmarish monsters, and he was strong, like a god incarnate, and destroyed dozens of enemies. After all, he knew that he was fighting for a good cause, for his freedom, for the lives of his friends, for the peace of the places he loved so much. And he found what was close to his heart, he found his place – on the battlefield, hiding behind his mighty back those who could not defend themselves."

Again there was a roar outside, but this time it was followed by a chilling howl, as if the call of Death itself. The fur on the woman's arms stood up and she flattened her ears. A small trembling ran through her, which she could no longer hide. She moved with her family away from the big city to start a new life after all the problems that befell them. But no one could have foreseen that fate would send a horrifying punishment to their world. The small hut with a green roof was hidden deep in the forest, far from civilization, but the faint hope that they wouldn't be noticed here was fading away faster and faster with each second and with each new howl.

The woman looked at the little boy in her arms, who lay with his eyes half-closed. His golden hair had not yet grown into a real lion's mane, but his claws were already sharp, although not very strong, often breaking while he played with his friends.

Despite his mother's request to lie quietly, the boy carefully whispered:

"Mom... Was everything okay with the little lion?.."

A few drops fell on the boy's pale skin, and the woman quickly wiped the tears from her eyes. She stroked the child's cheek lovingly. Her voice trembled but remained warm and gentle.

"Yes, baby. Everything was fine with the little lion. He defeated the monsters and the evil overlord, found the cunning jackal, and then lived happily ever after with his friends. Many new adventures awaited them ahead. Everything was fine with them, everything was fine..."

She muttered the last phrase over and over again, like a spell that could change reality. The woman clutched the child to her heart and rocked slightly while tears silently flowed down her cheeks...

***

The Reapers raced through the forest, following the scent of life. Massive claws, oozing with the stench of hundreds of tortured bodies, sank into the ground, cut down trees, and even dug into stone. Just from one look at these monsters the blood chilled in the veins. The Reapers were the creation of the goddess of Death, her favorite and faithful dogs, devoid of their own intelligence, and were fully consistent with their task – to exterminate everything in their path.

After them, there was nothing left but destruction, mortals for them were nothing more than insects. It was a massacre organized by the gods, and the creatures inhabiting these lands had no chance to resist the highest punishment. However, at several points on the planet, to the surprise of the goddess of Death, the Reapers encountered obstacles, forced to engage in a real battle.

In one of these places, in the middle of an ancient dense forest, the force of a mighty blow threw the Reaper ten meters away, and he smashed into a hut with a green tiled roof, crushing it with his massive body like paper. Rising to his paws and emitting a guttural howl, the Reaper pushed off from the remains of the hut, crushing planks and stones into the ground. The monster attacked his opponent, who was blazing with a golden glow, and again a clang and rumble echoed throughout the area, a frightening roar was met by a furious voice.

And only over the remains of a small, once cozy hut, a heavy silence hung.