Lion Guard: King of Life

Chapter 3: Kopa's plight

Kion and his Guard fought at the southern border against a band of poachers.

Kion slammed two of the striped hyenas away with his paws and shook a third in his powerful jaws.

"Anga Linga!" Anga swooped down and slammed one of the hyena's into using her powerful talons.

Bung and Beshte kept at Kion's flanks to ensure he couldn't be surrounded. Both similarly fought off the hyenas while Ono kept watch from above.

"Hapana! They're breaking for the pass!" Ono squawked as he saw four dash behind the guard.

"No, you don't!" Fuli sped to the pass entrance and knocked two of the hyenas away. However, she wasn't alone. Azaad ran beside Fuli and dispatched the other two.

Eventually, Kion's Guard forced the hyena band away from the pass and directly in front of him.

"Last chance, leave or face the consequences." Kion's growl shook the air around them and the hyenas whimpered upon seeing a few clouds growl with a thunderous sound.

With that, the hyenas scattered from which they came.

"Well, that wasn't so bad. All that time-fighting Janja's spotted hyenas has made these striped and brown ones seem like nothing." Bunga brushed his hands together.

"Nice moves out there, you're not half bad in a fight." Fuli smiled at Azaad.

"I'm so pleased you think so." Azaad spoke with a hint of sarcasm.

Kion didn't share his companions' optimism.

"How many is that today?"

"Three poaching bands and two territorial herds." Ono carefully announced.

"It's just past midday too. There have never been this many poachers before." Beshte spoke with slight fatigue.

"At this point maybe we should just let them spend some time in the hunting grounds. Maybe they'll finally be satisfied." Bunga chuckled.

"If poachers were interested in legitimate hunting they wouldn't be poachers." Anga corrected with a little impatience.

Kion took another deep breath stood up taller.

"Well, no one said this job was going to be easy. We've handled worse when we weren't as strong."

"I don't know Kion. Maybe there's a reason poachers are showing up more often." Beshte said wearily.

"We probably have ourselves to blame for that. We led Makucha and his friends here, now he's told every poacher across the lands where the Tree of Life is and how many rare animals are here." Fuli groaned.

"I don't know. Thus far we've done a superb job of keeping poachers out during the day. The Night Pride has had the same success at night. You'd think they'd have gotten the message by now." Ono pondered.

"How long did it take Janja to get the message?" Bunga reminded Ono.

"Hmmm, fair point."

"Whatever the reason, there's nothing we can do but hold them back. Hopefully, they'll give up once their efforts become unsustainable." Kion tried to sound confident but his days grew more strenuous.

Kion was always willing to do his duty but he longed for a day of peace. One where he and Rani could spend an entire day of quality time together. He knew his friends each longed for the same.

Kion wondered if Vitani and her guard faced similar pressure back at Pride Rock. He also wondered if this was the king of stress his father faced on a daily basis. Kion tried to find some comfort in the thought that maybe Rani was having a more manageable day than himself.