The Sun Will Set

[Scar]

Before Zira's brain could finish registering Scar's presence, there was this cub yelling t her face which needed to be dealt with first. The Queen attacked, but surprisingly, the King interfered.

You see, all Scar had managed to see was Ila in the floor, and Zira, stained with a little blood, and abut to eat a cub. They had already talked about this. Nothing would get them out of power more quickly than killing random Pridelanders for no reason (knowing his mate's temperamental nature, he assumed this was the case).

Zira had always been submissive to him, but oblivious to the nefarious events that had jut occurred (a cub's high pitched voice don't travel as far as the rumble of a lioness's roar), he had no means of preparing himself for what happened next.

That paw on her shoulder and that roar on her ear, demanding her to stop attacking the cub, only redirected Zira's anger. It brought it upon him.

Scar would have never imagined Zira would attack him one day. He tried to block the strength of her leap by rising on two legs, but she took him down easily. Pinned. Just like Ila had been only scarce minutes ago.

He could see in her maddened eyes that she would kill him. But... why? What was going on here?

The only clue was a dark brown body, hidden in the dirt, which he had missed earlier but now he Had fallen close enough to it to recognize it.

"Shujaa?" Scar gasped, forgetting about Zira.

Seeing the motionless cub, the lioness's snarl faded. She appeared to realize what had just happened and backed off, allowing Scar to get up.

Scar nudged his son, but he did not move.

"YOU!" Scar growled, whirling about to be face to face with Zira.

The lioness, no longer enraged, gave another step backwards. Hyenas were beginning to emerge from the grass, late but there. Having connected the blood on Shujaa to the one on Zira, Scar's green eyes were burning with fury.

Now it was his turn to be mad.

"Kill her!" The King roared.

Zira ran away, as fast as her legs would carry her, and the pack of hyenas chased close behind.

(Of course she escaped. Now we have an excuse to be Ziraless for a little while.)

[mistwolf]

Ila was trying to urge Kayani away from Zira, thankful for Scar's distraction, when he heard the king's order to kill his mate. Ila;s eyes went immediatly to Shujaa's dead body, then to Zira, covered with Ila's blood.
No... she thought, immediatly dropping the non-responsive, limp Kayani who hung from her jaws. The cub landed in a listless pile, not moving. Ila knew what Scar was thinking. He thought that his mate had killed Shujaa, that the blood on Zira's claws was from the dead cub. But that wasn't true! It was her's! And Zira was her queen!
He watched as the hyenas ran after Zira, and knew she had to stop this.
"King Scar!" she cried, rushing to him. "You cannot kill Zira! She didn't kill Shujaa! He died naturally! Please, listen to me!"

[Scar]

Scar's mane bristled as he watched the last hyenas disappear in the grasses after Zira. He only stood there, shaking with wrath.

Then Ila came to him, her words pulling his world from under his paws.

"WHAT?!" The King barked, his eyes widening.

He knew she would never lie to him, for she was one of the few lionesses that remained loyal to their King. Ila wouldn't play with something as grave as this. It meant it was true, every word of it.

With no time to waste, Scar ran after the hyenas, praying that they hadn't given her reach.

"Halt!" He cried, "hyenas, stop!"

The slowest ones, barely visible in the distance, stopped first. They looked back at their King, confused, but some continued to alert the rest of the change of orders. The result was a very long trail of hyenas scattered across the savannah that Scar followed. He breathed deeply, relieved to find no dead Zira in the end.

Zira was nowhere to be seen. Scar wanted to call her name, but he decided to leave her alone.

No hyena dared cross looks with him as he returned to Shujaa.

[mistwolf]

Ila watched the hyenas slow to a halt, heart pounding in her throat. She hoped desperatly the Queen was all right. Sadly, she turned to see Scar walk over to the dead body of his son.
"He and Kayani got into a fight," she told him in a sad whisper. "He went off, and I told Kayani to let him simmer down for a while. She went after him, and he had been caught by a snake. Kayani came and got me, and Zira and I killed the thing. But I think it was too much for him. He tried to play with Kayani but...."
She didn't need to explain what had happened. It was right there in front of him.
"I'm sorry, King Scar, but....there was nothing we could have done...."

[Scar]

Scar's rage had gone as quick s it came, leaving nothing but grief in the lion's blackened heart. He felt like he was falling apart. He had just lost his reason to wake up every day.

Shujaa... why you? Why did you have to die? It seemed so unbelievable, so wrong.

Scar walked past Ila without paying her any attention. He lied down besides his son and said nothing. The lioness spoke, yet he was barely listening. But what little words he heard made everything change. Natural death? This was murder! His son had just been murdered by that snake!

His head rose over his shoulders, and some of that terrible fire returned to his green eyes.

"Are you trying to tell me," He snarled, furious, "That three hyenas and two lionesses couldn't keep an eye on a cub?!"

[mistwolf]

Ila shifted, trying to come up with an answer that wouldn't be disrespectful. It wasn't her fault that Shujaa had died! He had been dying long before! It was a miracle that his life had finally been taken! But she couldn't tell Scar that! He was King! It was the truth, but she couldn't tell him that!
"King Scar..." she stuttered, trying to find the right words. "it...it wasn't my fault! It...."
"It wasn't her fault," a broken voice affirmed from behind her. Ila turned to see Kayani standing up. Her eyes were red from crying, her cheeks damp, and tears still rolling down.
"Kayani..." Ila whispered.
"It wasn't her fault," she repeated. "It was mine. I killed Shujaa."

[Scar]

If he would have died of his sickness, Ila would have been right. But he died because his heart was too weak to withstand the snake's attack. If the army of babysitters that were supposed to be looking after him had done a better job, Shujaa might have lived enough like to actually take the medicine Rafiki was making him. And then he would have been alright, Scar believed.

He lashed his tail angrily and seemed about to say something when Kayani, unexpectedly, came forwards. Scar only stared at the small cub as she "confessed". He clearly didn't believe a word she said, rolling his eyes with annoyance.

"Ila, just take the cub and go home." Scar ordered.

[mistwolf]

"I don't want to go home!" Kayani wailed when Ila went to do as her king commanded. "I want to stay with Shujaa!"
"Kayani, I'm sorry, but he's dead...."
"Then I want to die too!" The cub flung herself on Shujaa's dead body and sobbed into his fur. "I'm sorry, Shujaa!" She wailed.
Ila slunk low to the ground, trying not to attract Scar's attention. In her heart, she was sad for Shujaa's death, but she wasn't regretful. She knew it wasn't her fault. Shujaa had died on his own. If it was anyone's fault, it was the snake's.
Gently, she picked Kayani up by the scruff. The cub didn't even struggle. Slowly, Ila backed away and quickly escaped Scar's gaze, leaving him alone with the body of his son.

[Scar]

Scar's muzzle rugged into a snarl when he heard Ila's superfluous statement of that Shujaa was dead. He completely ignored them as they left, and told the hyenas to let nobody approach afterwards.

Soon after Ila and Kayani had gone, a great roar was heard across the withered plains; a roar of pain, confusion, and revenge.

[mistwolf]

Tojo ran. He didn't know why. He just did. He had the strange urge that whatever he was so anxious about, it required running. So he ran, pounding across the savanna until the scenery was familiar again. He was getting close to home.
Then he heard the roar.
It was confused, angry, but most of all, Scar. He pushed himself harder, lunging through the savanna grass.
He skid to a halt, just catching the lioness Ila walking away with Kayani hanging from her jaws. He looked over the otherway to see Scar, standing by the body of a small, dark figure.
Shujaa....

[dude]

Something came out, or someone should we say. The person or Hyena was no other than the fierce, and loyal Banzai protector of the Pride Lands. Banzai looked with amusement, he was hiding in the grasses and he was enjoying watching some blood. And cool a cub was dead, Banzai loved it a animal finally died something had not died in a while here in the Pride Lands. The Young Hyena then noticed Tojo, his loyal servant he stalked up on him and said with his bone chilling voice "You spaying my friend, well i can't blame you it is quite interesting seeing someone die is it not?"[/color] He ended with a creepy laugh.

[mistwolf]

Tojo growled at the hyenana.
"I am not spying," he snarled.
He turned towards Scar, and took a step forward, unsure of what to say.
"....King Scar....?" he murmered.

[Scar]

But the order had been to let no one near, not even the King's Adviser. Hyenas dashed in to block Tojo's way briskly.

"What is it, Tojo? Scar wants to see nobody now." One hyena informed. It was Vangr.

Vangr did not stand as aggressively as his companions, who all had their heads low and manes bristling. They were all happy to get a chance to bully the lions. Vangr, on the other paw, was always calm.


Scar didn't even want to look at Tojo right now. He ignored him entirely as he bent over to pick up Shujaa on his jaws and headed home.