The Lion Guard Season 5

Chapter 10: The New Night Pride

{Saka's POV}
We went back to the Tree of Life immediately the next day. Dad told Mom the entire story, and she was shocked of course. So was the Lion Guard and Night Pride. Aunt Kiara told me before I left that she would make sure Dogo was punished for what he said. Aunt Makini and Aunt Nirmala started the process of healing the claw marks that Dogo left on my paw. Dad took me behind the Throne Rock and to where Aunt Makini spends most of her time. They told me about the Night Pride and more specifically the roar I'd spontaneously developed. They told me its history, told me it was called the Roar of the Elders. They told me the story about Scar and how he was defeated. After it all, I could only stand there in stunned silence. He told me I had to create a new Night Pride because Mom's Night Pride are growing old and soon, they're going to retire. Dad said with the Roar, I become the Fiercest, but I need to find the Bravest, Fastest, Strongest, Keenest of Sight, and Smartest (Which is the new thing Dad created). He also said I could ask anyone, but those 6 have to be a part of the team. I knew who I wanted for the Fastest, Smartest and Keenest of Sight. Amani would also be a part of my Night Pride because she was brave but she's not the bravest. I went to Duma and Moto's den, where Aunt Fuli greeted me. She told me that Duma and Moto can't come and play because they're still grounded from their recent visit to Chika Escarpment, but I told her that wasn't the reason I came here. I went inside and asked Duma and Moto to join my Night Pride. Duma readily agreed, but Moto was reluctant. I wanted Duma to be the Fastest and Moto the Smartest. I went to where the birds like to perch and met my friend, Dekha. She had amazing vision, she could see the pond outside the Mountain Pass from the Tree of Life. I asked her to be the Keenest of Sight and she agreed. The Strongest and Bravest, I don't know who I should ask. Dad said his friends made up his Lion Guard and Mom's Night Pride is her immediate family and their closest friend. I thought about it, and approached Shani. She was always so distant, and she always seemed sad. She was waiting, that much I know. What or who she's waiting for, I don't know. But she's strong, I know that. She told me about the war for the Tree of Life. She also told me not to tell Dad that I know. She was always alone, and she always looked on when Dad and his Lion Guard went on patrol. So I walked over to her.
"Hey Shani." I greeted "How are you doing today?"
"Same as every other day since the war." She responded
"Can I ask you something?"
"Sure. Shoot."
"Why are you always sitting here alone?" I asked
"Because the other animals don't really like me that much and I prefer to be alone." She said
"So why do you stare at me and my friends so longingly?"
"Because I had a friend, and we were inseparable." She revealed "I haven't seen him in a long time, and I'm starting to wonder if he's ever coming back."
"Really?"
"He left one month before you were born." Shani told me "He wanted to find someone."
Shani was leaving things out and I don't know why. I'm not a little cub, I have the Roar now too. She didn't need to protect me, but maybe, it was too much for her to say. Dad once told me not everything is about me and a true king would almost never think of himself, especially when making a choice. He told me that he didn't pick his friends to be a part of his Guard because he wanted them to be but because he knew they were the best ones to protect the Pridelands. Same reason why he'd let Aunt Vitani be the leader of the Lion Guard.
"Really? Wow. I never knew that before."
"Of course you didn't." She said "King Kion said the cubs shouldn't know until they were old enough. What that meant I have no idea."
"Dad said that?" I asked, a tinge of anger making itself known "Why? I am not a little cub anymore! And neither is my sister nor my friends! Whatever the truth is, I'm allowed to know! I'm ready to know, the Lions of the Past deemed me ready to know the family secret!"
"The family secret?" Shani asked "What does that mean?"
"I got the Roar of the Elders." I told Shani "Now Dad told me to make a new Night Pride. Because the current Night Pride is getting old."
"They are, especially Surak." She agreed "He has grandkids now. The nightly patrols are getting harder and harder on him. You can see it. He refuses to stop but the strain it puts on his body will soon become too much for him to bear."
"I saw that too..."
"So, your father told you to create a new Night Pride. Did he leave any requirements?"
"Yeah, the I'm the Fiercest, I need to find the Bravest, Fastest, Strongest, Keenest of Sight, and Smartest. I've got the Fastest, Keenest of Sight, and Smartest, but I'm missing the other two."
"And you want me to be one of them?" Shani guessed
"Yeah..."
"Figures," She said, annoyed but not at me "The only reason anyone comes and talks to me is because they need something from me. That's how it's been my entire life."
Shani got up and walked to the nearest lake and I followed. She looked in and stared at her reflection. Specifically the three scars that run down her face.
"I still remember what it's like to see out of my eye."
"I can't even imagine what it's like not being able to see from one of my eyes."
"And you should never imagine what it's like being half blind." She said "It's one of the worst things that anyone could experience and I wouldn't wish this on my worst enemy."
"Can I ask, how did you get those scars?"
"It's a long and painful story. One I don't like talking about. The gist of it is that my father tried to escape our old pride. My scars and the loss of my mother were his punishment."
"So... you were hurt because of what Uncle Kopa tried to do?"
"Yes..." Shani paused, she stared at her reflection for a long time. Then she looked at me, stared into my eyes. She then asked "Saka, promise me something. Promise me that whatever you do, whatever choices you make, whatever action you carry out, think them through first."
"Huh?" I asked. That was so sudden.
"So much war, so much pain, could have been avoided if the players thought their actions through. Because every action had consequences. Even and especially your choices for the Night Pride. You may think your just creating a group to help settle disputes but the Night Pride is more than that. It's our way to protect the Tree of Life, and without it, the Tree of Life would have fallen years ago. The animals you choose to be a part of this team would become the lifeline of the Tree."
I didn't respond, I just stared into the water, trying to process what Shani said. She must have picked up on it because she said "So, you still want me to be a part of your Night Pride?"
"Yeah."
"What am I going to be?"
"The Strongest."
"You don't think I'm brave enough?"
"N-NO it's not that I just, I needed the Strongest and I thought about you first."
"Flattering." She teased "I'm in."
"Awesome!" I said "Now I just need the Bravest."
"Not just that, you don't know how to fight nor how to hunt."
"No, Dad never taught me how."
"I can teach you and what team you have at the moment, but in secret." Shani said "Your father doesn't have to know."
"Okay!"