Kion's Tale

Kion's Tale Ch. 14

"Scan the area!" Zira ordered her Lionesses. "We'll have to make ourselves comfortable until the Lion Guard shows up."

They had been there for over an hour and already Zira was getting fed up with being in charge of such pathetic lowlifes. In her opinion, such animals as jackals and Crocodiles were not fit to be anywhere near the superior species (Lions). She glowered as the canines and reptiles roamed around the spot their master had told them to stay in.

None of them aware that they were being watched.

From behind a large tree root, Makini and her brothers, accompanied by their new Cuckoo bird friend, watched the evil animals settling into their station.

Gunge watched with a surprised expression, as if he had seen these animals before. "You weren't kidding, Makini." He whispered. "Those are the Outlanders that attacked us once before."

Makini looked up to the bird. "The Outlanders attacked you?"

Gunge chuckled as he puffed up with Pride. "Indeed they have. If fact, that little cub down there should remember me better than anyone." He then shook his head quickly . "B-but the pint is, we need to tell the king about this."

"Y-your king?" Ugo stuttered. From the stories that Gunge had told them, the Backlands king seemed to be a forced to be reckoned with.

"Oh don't worry." Gunge waved his wings at them. "I'll be sure to explain everything about you to him."

As the four animals turned their backs as they were about to find the king, they were stopped by the two Jackals who had just made themselves known to them.

"Going somewhere?"

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Scar Snout could barely believe what the young Lion had just explained. The crowds of Striped and Brown Hyenas, Leopards, and Komodos began to chatter among themselves in worried unison. In all the time that he had lived in the Backlands, the great Dragon had never heard of a ghost Lion in a Volcano. He had heard of the legend of Scar, and the Impact he had on the Pridelands.

"And you're saying that Scar is behind the Outlander attacks that plague your Kingdom?" He asked in his Grandfatherly voice.

"That's right." Kion confirmed, before slightly hanging his head in shame. "And... it was my fault."

Scar Snout's eyebrow raised as more clamoring arose from the crowds at the hearing. Each one of them giving suspicious, hating looks to the young Lion. The friends that had come from the Pridelands with him seemed worried, concerned for how their leader was being accused by Backlanders under their breath.

"Understand this, Lion." Scar Snout hissed. Around him, inside Komodo Rock, was a menagerie of paintings of numerous animals. "There have been many stories of heroes long past." He first motioned to an orange striped cat. "Such as Azula the striped." To a Wild Dog. "Kambauku the bold." And a Marabou. "And Skalatak the Valiant. But never has there been any good tales of Lions here in our Kingdom." He added with a glower that was shared with the crowds of Backlanders present.

But there was one Leopard who did not glare at him.

"Your Majesty, Ladies and Gentlemen of the gathering," Badili began, stepping forward to the middle of the hearing. "I met Kion and his friends when Mapigano was not very likable. It was their advice to help me stand up for myself that led to Mapigano becoming a better Leopard, and if someone like Kion is willing to help someone like me, then he couldn't have brought Scar back on purpose."