This is what Plucky saw. Just beyond the valley, where the river opened up into the sea, were two rapidly approaching barges carrying several hyenas. Their whooping and yipping could be heard throughout the valley. Not a moment later, the rear rank of cougars had closed in. Plucky saw they were vastly outnumbered.
With a renewed vigor, Plucky grabbed the banner and spun around to warn the others. To his surprise, he saw a rank of ants had formed, standing between the embattled cougars and the river. They snapped their pincers at any who dared come near.
"This cannot be happening!" Plucky shouted as he waved the banner as urgently as he could. His arms grew heavy, but still he waved. He noticed too late that the banner had come loose and flew over the edge of the nest, billowing down to the ground. He dashed towards where he last saw the banner fly, but did not grasp it in time. Plucky could only watch helplessly. In despair, he cried, "What will I do now?" He turned back to the other side and saw the remaining cougars fall at the paws of the hyenas. They barked and yipped with joy. The cougar cubs had long since been corralled into a few caves very high up the mountain, guarded by their mothers in event the hyenas dared approach.
The hyenas, however, seemed to be seeking something else. Then, one of the hyenas pointed up the mountain and many joined him as they found the path Plucky had trodden when he was prisoner. They were heading towards the cave of the Great Owl. Immediately after realizing the witch's intent, his instinct prompted him to look down, which he did.
To Plucky's horror, he spotted three hyenas at the base of his tower, one of which had begun to climb the ladder.
———
Meanwhile, along the opposite river bank, the cougars dodged the ants' pincers as best they could. None of the ants toppled over. In fact, their feet were firmly planted. One of the cougars jumped back, and landed directly in front of another ant, whose pincers snapped shut around the cougar. Curiously, the pincers seemed to pass through him, not leaving a mark anywhere to be seen. The king yelled out, "The ants are an enchantment! Fear them not!"
After which they all made their way back across the river. Back in their valley, they quickly noticed the hyenas threatening to harm Plucky.
"Protect the cub! He is under the king's protection!"
The two hyenas who hadn't climbed fled towards the barges, abandoning the third who was nearing the top of the ladder. Plucky cowered and backed up until he bumped against the nest wall. As such, he did not hear the cougars approaching. Plucky watched in shock as the hyena poked his head up and locked eyes with him, a hungry toothed grin on his face. Suddenly, the ladder began to wobble as the hyena looked down for a moment. When the hyena looked back at Plucky, the hungry grin was replaced by a look of sheer terror. The hyena and the ladder quickly swayed backwards, preventing the hyena from grabbing the nest wall, then disappeared back below the horizon. Plucky sighed in relief, then breathed once more. A few moments and grunts later, the ladder was returned to its original place, minus the hyena, who had since been taken prisoner. Plucky heard someone climbing up the ladder, and he leaned over to see who it was. This time, Djim climbed into the nest.
"Are you okay?"
"Yes! How can I ever thank you?"
"You can worry about that later. Let's get you down from here."
"Did we win?"
"I wouldn't be here if we were still fighting, now would I?"
———
Back on solid ground, Plucky heard the king barking various orders.
"Scour the caves for hyenas! See that our wives and cubs are safe! Tend to our elders!"
Suddenly, one of the guards ran up to the king, and after catching his breath, he retorted, "Your Majesty! They've taken it! They've taken the Great Owl!"
The king turned to an officer and he said, "Let is deal with the Owl later. Now is the time to take care of those who are wounded, and those who were slain."
The officer firmly nodded and went on his way.
"Are you okay, Djim? Were you hurt at all?" Plucky asked.
"An ant landed on me, but I am okay now."
"I'm glad! I was..."
"Who am I kidding? I'm not okay!"
"What? Why?"
"I've actually never been in a battle before. I was having fun until the ant landed on me. After I got out from underneath, reality kicked in. There were injured and dismembered cougars and hyenas everywhere I turned. I never imagined war could be this terrible. I just..."
With that, Djim shook his head, looked down at his paws, then walked away. Plucky started after him, but felt a paw cradle his shoulder.
"Give him time, Plucky," said the king.
———
Later that evening, Plucky met up with the king once more, who smiled when he saw him. Together they solemnly watched as elegantly robed cougars carried their dead up the western mountain, along a path Plucky hadn't noticed before. It took him a moment to realize what was happening.
"Are they...?" He asked. Looking up at the king. The king answered by staring ahead and placed a paw on Plucky's shoulder. As the first robed cougars in the procession reached the summit, they began to sing, joined by those behind as they reached the top. Their song of woe could be heard throughout the valley. This is what they sang:
You gave your lives for us this day;
How great the cost! Yet still you paid!
Your precious lives we now shall mourn,
From this night on to the morn.
Our cougar kind shall not forget
How you paid our freedoms' debt.
May these torches light your way
And protect your families from dismay.
At the word 'dismay,' the king knelt and faced the torches as they were lit two by two, illuminating the path down the mountain. Plucky knelt as well, tears flowing from his eyes. The king looked at Plucky, and with a solemn voice, began explaining:
"For our kind, losing one's life in defense of our land is the greatest sacrifice a cougar in our tribe can make, and as such earns the grandest honor to his family's name. We value sacrifice so much because it serves as a reminder of what we sacrificed to escape the witch's shadow of destruction."
Plucky rubbed his eyes and looked up at the king, and sniffled. The king continued.
"Even though I maintain a standing army, my intent is to remain a peaceful tribe. We were once loyal allies with the Lions of your forest."
Plucky blinked his eyes in surprise.
"About eight years ago, we received word of an army of plains ants advancing on your forest. Our tribe was split between coming to the Lions' aid and ignoring the help the Lions requested. Our debate ended when our lookouts spotted a number of ants marching in our direction. At first, it appeared the ants sought battle with our tribe, but they suddenly turned and retreated into the forest. We have pursuit, and entered the forest with reckless abandon. The ants were easily overtaken and slain. In spite of this small victory, my eyes beheld something I could never have imagined.
Your father was in the throes of combat with a sorceress I had never seen before. They were yelling something about a ruby, when she waved her staff and sent a burst of energy which struck him in the chest. He tried to dodge and counter but he looked at me. That moment proved to be enough of a distraction. I then saw a powerful beam of red energy envelop your father and shot up into the sky.
I began running towards him but a few of my guards grabbed me and pointed in a different direction. A slew of hyenas were running directly towards me. I ordered us to retreat. We barely escaped with our lives. The hyenas stopped chasing us when we reached the border of the plain. That was the last time I saw your father. I am telling you this because I still believe he is yet alive. So should you."
The king and Plucky stood in silence and watched the torches burn through the last of the oil.
"I hope you are right about my father," Plucky said. The king smiled.
"Is Djim going to be okay?" He asked the king.
"I expect Djim will be fine, in time. Going to war for the first time changes a cougar. What happened to Djim also happened to me. Most of the time, the affected cougar recovers and becomes a battle hardened warrior."
The king paused.
"I am counting on Djim's recovery so I can give him a new order. I want Djim to join you on your journey. I expect he will eagerly assent and appreciate it as much as I see you do."
Plucky couldn't hide the grin on his face.
"Now, Plucky, I really must rest. I feel more exhausted in this moment than I have ever been in many moons. May you rest well."
With that, the king stood up and staggered off towards his tent.
Plucky climbed up the watchtower once more, and as he untied his blanket from the staff, he thought about his father and hoped the king was right.
