Love Unites Us All

Schemes and Plans

As nightfall arrived, the cool and serene atmosphere across the barren desert in the heart of the Backlands was shattered by the sounds of heavy trudging and exhausted growls. The Desert Lionesses were inwardly relieved to arrive back at the towering cave that they call home, most of them desperate to tend to the countless cuts and wounds that covered their battered bodies, which were a result of the violent skirmish between them and the Pridelanders and the animals of Mukuni Woods just minutes ago.

While the rest of the Lionesses went straight into their lair to tend to their injuries, two particular Lionesses decided to confront their leader in search of answers to several obvious questions that urgently needed a resolution as quickly as possible.

"Akina, can we have a word with you for a minute?"

The leader of the Desert Pride let out a soft growl below hearing range in annoyance when Upesi and Kulinda, her most trusted Pridesisters and unofficial sidekicks, turned around and blocked her path just in front of the cave's opening, yet she was still able to remain calm and retain her composure, as if she was already expecting them to confront her all this while.

"Make it quick, then," She replied, sitting on her haunches and narrowing her gaze, waiting to see what her Pridesisters had to say.

Upesi, the oldest amongst them decided to be very frank with her, "Akina, our entire pride fought bravely today and almost all of us are half-dead as a result. We fought on your side because we wanted to bring justice to your brother by getting back at your mate and, at the same time, help you get your son back. Yet we came back home without your son and Kopa is still well and alive in the Pridelands. Please tell us that you're not really going to the meeting tomorrow just to negotiate with Simba. We'll all end up losing to him, and the injuries that we suffered today would just be for nothing then."

Akina pursed her lips as she nodded in acknowledgment, apparently agreeing with what Upesi has said. "You're right about us losing to Simba if we go to the truce meeting tomorrow without coming out with a plan. But, you're very wrong when you said that we came back home empty-handed."

Kulinda and Upesi exchanged a glance with each other before focusing back on their leader. "Well, we did come back almost half-dead and covered in cuts and bruises if that's what you meant," Upesi sneered, taking the opportunity to make a light-hearted comment that even forced Kulinda to stifle a chuckle.

Surprisingly, even Akina cracked a smile at her Pridesister's humour, though she was inwardly dismayed that the older Lioness failed to see her point. "Upesi, as you said earlier, we have two separate agendas when we broke into the Pridelands today. Unfortunately for us, we now know that Kopa is already untouchable as he has Simba's pride on his side and those Mukuni Woods' animals who are willing to do anything to protect him from us. There's no way we can get to him, I have to accept that. But, just because we can't achieve one agenda, that doesn't mean we have to forego the other one."

Kulinda raised a brow, still confused and trying to piece together the point her leader was getting at.

"Let me ask you two," Akina continued. "Who did Simba bring along when he decided to show up just when we were about to get to Kopa?"

"His Lionesses."

"And the Lion Guard..."

Upesi and Kulinda answered, both of them slowly realizing the point that Akina was conveying.

"Yes, anytime that old goat decides to stick his nose into a risky situation, his Guards and Lionesses will have to escort him, as we've seen just now..." their leader explained further.

"So that leaves only one or two of his Lionesses looking after your son then once they leave Pride Rock," Kulinda interrupted, finally understanding the plan Akina had all along.