The Pride Days (IC): Hurt

"Layla is already a target, because Snake saw her hunting with me. I will do my best to protect her, and if I fail, I have warned her to fight back, and not let herself be taken. I know what he will do to her if she is taken, because that much is obvious. He will imprison an innocent lioness and force her to have his cubs, and then kill her when she is no longer needed. I have told Layla that if she is taken to try to escape, and not be frozen with fear, that it would be better to die in the struggle than to let them get away with it and then kill her anyway." Gamba said, before sighing. "Do not think I am not deeply distressed by these things. I do care, and I would hate myself if I let him lay a paw on her."


Ammon watched the lions as they tended to their father, his eyes narrowing at their plan. They were fools, the lot of them. A single day's wait was still predictable, and it was suicide for four lions, one with a broken paw, to challenge an entire pride, especially one in which Gamba was a warrior. Thinking about watching him hunt with the lioness made his heart ache, strangely. Although he hated to admit it to anyone, Ammon did care about what happened to Gamba and Layla. The white lion wanted to challenge Gamba, but the tiglon had seemed happy with his new pride, and he knew that Gamba deserved a good pride, if he had wanted to seek one out in the first place. Ammon was ruthless, but to the tiglon he would show mercy, because he was an adversary that just grew stronger every time, and if he was killed the cycle would end. He now had a weak point, but Ammon would not attack it, because it was forbidden. The lioness called Layla could be used as a shield, but the white lion would not lay a paw on her, and drag her into the rivalry. In truth, Ammon would readily protect a lioness from those he was observing right now. Nobody called him little, and nobody regarded him so dismissively.

He turned around and walked along the path, following the scents of Gamba, Layla, and the strange lion that had gone with them. He wanted to have a look at this new pride from Kenya, and see how they were adjusting. In addition, he was going to make it clear that he was not a threat to the pride as a whole. His quarrel was with Gamba, and no one else. Ammon just kept following, until he heard the sound of water lapping against a shore, and the smell of lions was overwhelming. A large pond was a good choice. Sticking to the shadows, he listened as patrolling warriors stalked past, unaware of the new intruder. Because of his pelt, Ammon was very good at remaining quiet, and concealing himself in foliage, because his own fur did not hide him. The smell of Khat also hung in the air. The Poisoned Pelt, a good plan, but how long would it be before they tried to wash it off? Ammon hoped they knew that there would be a delay, because only when you are actually trying not to lick your fur do you realize how much you actually do it.

"I know," Sira said, trying to calm down. She wasn't angry with anyone, just quite serious in a situation like this. Layla had been one of Sira's closest friends for a while now. "I'm glad that you are taking care of her. Normally nobody would protect her from someone like Snake unless Jali or I assigned her some guard... We can't have what Snake would plan to do to her. She deserves so much better. The sons are much more crafty than their father, I should warn you. No matter how many guards Jali brings out to protect the camp, they always find a way in and they always managed to steal someone. I've never seen anything like it from a lion. They're all quite foolish, yes. But they're very clever at these kinds of things so just... keep Layla close to you, alright?" Sira asked, trying to break out a sort of smile to let Gamba know she was just trying to let him know how much Layla meant to her.

------

Snake began to gain his conscious, but at a slow rate. One eyes slowly opened, glancing at the brothers. "We should go" Nithili said. "I smell hyenas somewhere,"
The three brothers lifted their father up, and carried him on their backs as they trailed down the path Gamba, Layla, and Var took. They would sleep outside the Sunset Pride camp until morning. Then they'd strike.

"Var... that traitor..." Nithili scorned. His face curled with a snarl and curves were woven into his white scars. The hairs of his black mane tingled as his heart was now overwhelmed with hatred. "We'll kill him too!"

"What? What did he do?" asked Urathi. "He tackled all three of us when we were about to attack that tiglon and his lioness companion. He stopped us... Then he followed them back to wherever they went, which I assume is the Ridge Pride's new camp. I can smell a lot of lions up ahead."

Gamba nodded slowly, "Yes, but here is another advantage: They will be come extremely talkative the moment the plan takes effect, oblivious to the need of stealth. With this plan, using force is not possible, because you cannot avoid suffering the effects." He said. He then frowned, "Also, I suppose I should tell you, but I did not want Jali to know, because it may cause problems later. Before Snake ambushed us, the white lion Ammon appeared and spoke with Layla and I. He was going to challenge me, but something tells me he was aware they were watching, as he mentioned I had other enemies to worry about. He is a cold, vicious lion, and my rival, but I did not tell Jali of this because he is also a friend of mine. He is extremely dangerous, but he is not going to wage war on the Sunset Pride, to my knowledge. I do not want anyone to involve themselves with him, because he seeks to battle me, and no one else. He is not a nice creature, but he does have principles that he follows, and if Jali sends warriors to fight him, then it will be seen as a challenge. I am telling you these things because if he does fight me in the future, I need someone to know not to worry."

Sira nodded. "Alright. Well, I'll make sure nothing bad happens. Good luck," she wished him. She had hopes that this would all work out and that the sons and their father would finally be defeated and never trouble the pride again. It was a devastating time for Sira. She knew that Layla would be one of Snake's prime targets. Layla was also aware of this, and didn't stray far from the other lions. She knew that because she was spotted with Gamba, Snake would probably take her in an effort to devastate Gamba before killing him as well for breaking his paw.

Layla waited patiently outside the cave for Gamba, she knew Sira was probably telling him something about her. She rolled her eyes at the thought, but didn't mind. She knew Sira just cared about her and wanted to make sure Gamba cared just as much. Var sat awkwardly in the presence of Taru, who was wondering why he was here.

Jali came up and explained it to his brother, and then left to patrol the camp with all of the warriors.

Gamba nodded, "Very well, then. Be safe, Sira, Snake has a grudge on Jali as well. You must be careful, as you are also a target, and may not wish to fight in your condition." With this, he walked out of the cave. Although he was not a medical lioness of any sort, he had been raised by Brushland Clan hyenas, who would sometimes study corpses before eating them. They also studied many other subjects otherwise not known by male lions. One thing Gamba knew was that certain things could harm unborn cubs, such as severe physical stress, or strong blows to the stomach. Nobody had mentioned Sira was carrying cubs, but because Gamba's nose was trained like a hyena who studied medicine, it only took a few days for him to detect changes in her scent that told him, long before it affected her appearance. He had simply not mentioned it until now, figuring there was a good reason for them not telling anyone.

He looked at Layla, "Let's get ready. We have to find as many of the bushes as possible." He said.

"I know..." she said glancing over at her stomach and down at her paws as Gamba left. Sira wondered how he knew, had Jali told him? No. Jali would have told Sira first, he must have just figured it out on his own, she thought. He must have been able to identify it. Sira stood up to walk out of the cave. Taru glanced at her, Jali had told him about it since he was the king's brother. "Sira, go lay back down. You can't be staying up late at night" he said. Sira rolled her eyes. "Alright," she said and went back into the cave.

Layla followed Gamba down the hill that lead up to the cave, Var looked to Taru, almost asking if he could follow. Taru gave an approving nod and Var followed.

"Okay, we're looking for as many bushes with these leaves as we can find, but it can sometimes be difficult to identify by sight alone. If you want to recognize them, crush a leaf and smell it, to be absolutely sure. When you find it, you crush it into the pulp and apply it, but I cannot stress enough that you avoid putting it in your mouth. Once we finish applying it to our own pelts, we give it to others. The other lionesses first, and then the warriors." Gamba said, he then looked at Var. "Var, I need you to help collect Cardamom for the cubs. The plant is edible, so you can use your mouth to carry it." He walked over to a strange plant that was springing from the ground in stalks, with long, blade-like leaves. He cut a few of them with his claws, and then crushed one in his paw. A sweet, minty scent filled the air. "This is the plant we also need to pick, so we should seek them out as well."

Var nodded and immediately found a few more stalks, cutting them with his claws and stacking them into a pile. He'd crush them up as soon as he found a big stack. Layla went over to a large bushy area and managed to find a some Khat branches and carried them with her paw. She stacked them in a pile for her to crush up later. Then she went back into the brush and got some more. Eventually the two of them alone formed huge piles of the two plants. The pile of Khat was stacked at about four feet high. The pile of Cardamom was just a little shorter.

"Do you think this will be enough? Or do we need more?" Layla asked.

"This should be good. It does not take a lot of either plant for this to work, because of their juices' potency. Now we should start mashing them, and give the paste to the lionesses. The cardamom should be given to the mothers, as well. They will feel more comfortable if they themselves are applying the plant to their cubs' fur, and not a stranger. We need to make sure we do not mix the cardamom and Khat while we are doing this, as the cubs cannot be trusted to obey if they are told not to lick their fur. Both plants need to be a fine pulp, so we can extract as much of their juices as possible." Gamba said.

Layla got to mashing the Khat with force. He used her paws to mash it into pulp and kept going to the stacks to get them. Var did the same with the Cardamom and kept his pulp far from where Layla was mashing hers to keep them from mixing. When the piles were nearly completely ground, they looked to Gamba for the next task.

"Alright, so do you want us to begin applying it?" Var asked.

Gamba nodded, "Yes, we should start. You must coat your entire body, but focus mostly on where you are likely to be touched if engaged in combat. A choke hold is a frequently preferred way for a single lion to take someone hostage, so your throat must be protected. Do not coat your chin, though, as it is too close to the mouth." tactically speaking, if a lion were to stick out its tongue, then the area it can reach around the mouth should not have khat on it.

Layla began applying the pulp all over her body. She covered all of her neck, her flanks, and her legs the most and tried to get her back as much as she could. Var did the same. When the two were done, Layla sat but Var paced around nervously. "I smell them..." he said. "They're likely waiting somewhere for father to wake up..."

Jali saw that their pulp was ready and gave Gamba an approving nod. He and the warriors began to go around to each den and wake up everyone and the lions began to gather around the large lumps of pulp on the ground.

"Cover yourselves completely! Do not put any of the pulp in your mouth!" he said. Var directed him everyone to the cub-friendly pulp and had their cubs put on the Cardamom. He told them what was going on as they applied it.
Mira struggled to rise from her den. Kal followed her, helping her walk. Her stomach was hanging very low, a sign that the cubs were coming some day soon. She seemed to be having pains as she gave low breaths as she walked. He helped her apply it and then did himself, afterwards Kal gave a thankful nod to Gamba and he and Mira went back to their den.

Jali brought Sira out of the cave and the two of them applied it to themselves and as fast as they had come out, Jali brought her back inside to hide her from any terrors that would come. Taru guarded the entrance to Jali's cave. The king came back down to the rest of the camp and directed the cubs to the bushes and had them guarded by mothers who had put on the same pulp as them. He then came up to Gamba, Var, and Layla. "We're ready," he said. "And I'm not sure if Snake is going to wait until morning. I can smell them coming this way..."

Snake had awakened and he, Nithili, Urathi, and Barcal stood behind tall grasses, walking out towards the camp. Luckily they had not witnessed the plans and preparations and had just arrived.

"Use stealth this time," Snake commanded. "Take out the targets I told you about, then when they are eliminated, take out the rest. But save Sira and the tiglon's mate for me!"

The brothers nodded. "I'll take out Jali," Nithili said, he made an evil smile that crinkled his ugly white scars. Of course all of the brothers had white scars on their faces, even Var had a white strike under his right eye. But Nithili's scars were like no other you'd ever find on a lion.

"I'll get Kal and Mira," Urathi decided. "Want me to get the tiglon?" asked Barcal. Snake shook his head. "No, the tiglon will likely be with his mate. I'll kill him first then take the lioness. The tiglon will be mine to kill for what he did to me... making me so... vulnerable..." Snake said, his voice trailing off into a growl.

"Begin."

Gamba lowered his head and looked around, his hackles rising slightly, "You're right, the smell of infection is so strong it practically has a taste. Layla, stay close, you and Sira are both main targets, because of your links to me and Jali. They underestimate you because you are female, without considering you are armed with claws and teeth as well." He said, agreeing with Var, and giving Layla his warning. He also smelled something else that was familiar, but he couldn't be sure what it was. He whispered the next few words, so that only the two lions would hear him, "We must use caution, so as not to let them surprise us." Gamba said, "Although I think we can find them by scent. Just keep your guard up, especially if the scent grows stronger."

The brothers and their father spread out, going through the bushes. Snake sat in a bush that pointed directly at the group. Snake licked his lips, in hunger for revenge. Suddenly a wailing came from one of the dens in the brush. It was Mira's voice. Then Kal's came into earshot. "The cubs! They're coming!" he cried. Mira sounded like she was in so much pain. A lioness or two who were in their dens ran along the sides of the bushes quickly to get to Mira's den.

"No! No! Not now!" Layla said. Snake's eyes narrowed and he grinned. This would provide a good distraction. Snake saw his son Var and growled. "Barcal!" he whispered through the grass at his son who was crouched a few meters away. The other brothers were heading towards the cave and out into the camp where the others were.

"What?" asked the son. "Get Var! He's here! You kill him!"
Barcal got a face that suggested that he didn't like the idea. Of all the brothers, Barcal was the most sensitive about family matters, though he'd kill a lioness any day. He hated his brother Var for betraying the family, yet he still loved him in a sense. He nodded to his father anyways.

Nithili crept up to the cave followed by Urathi. They waited quietly as Taru stood at the entrance of the cave. They wanted to see if he'd leave any time soon and Taru was feeling a terrible urge to go help Mira and Kal.

Gamba glanced over at where Mira's den was, before looking at Layla and Var, "I know she is in pain, but she has others to tend to her, and if we allow ourselves to become too heavily distracted, then we leave others vulnerable. Their scent is still here, and they will most definitely try to use this as a distraction, as low a move as it is." He looked over at where Taru was guarding the cave, visibly disturbed by Mira's cries. He nodded for Layla and Var to follow, and went up to Jali's brother, "Taru, are you all right?" He asked. Gamba was concerned for the safety of everyone in the Sunset Pride, but his reason for speaking to King Jali's brother was partly because of a strategic reason. Taru was all alone guarding Sira's cave, and being a prime target with four possible attackers, the odds were not good. Mira was already well guarded, with Kal and three lionesses present, but Sira was not. Gamba aimed to protect those around him, and hopefully set minds at ease.

Nithili snarled as Gamba, Layla, and Var had approached. "Great!" he whispered. He poked his head through the bushes and looked at his father way down on the camp's central spot. Snake pushed Barcal out into the open to cause a new distraction. The son jumped out at Jali and tackled him, the king growling and biting. Barcal didn't manage to bite Jali or sink his claws into him because the king was much stronger and pushed the brother off of him.

"You stink!" Barcal said after getting a whiff of Jali. Snake snuck out near the beach, visible to the others.

"Well, it looks like they've finally decided to stop hiding." Gamba said, his eyes narrowing, and a fierce growl rising in his throat. He looked directly at Snake, whose horribly infected paw made it impossible for him to stay hidden, as he could now be tracked purely by scent. "Layla, keep close, there are still two others who have yet to reveal themselves. They're trying to distract us, a tactic that is effective, if not predictable." He said. He then unsheathed his claws, remaining rooted to his spot. In his current location, he could not defend Mira, or Jali, but he could hopefully protect Sira and Layla. This time, if he was attacked, he would kill the offender. He had no tolerance for Snake's kind, and would think the world was better off if there were no lions like him at all.

Suddenly Nithili jumped out of the bushes and tackled Taru, pushing them both down the hill. Urathi jumped behind the line of lions and into the cave. Sira heard it all and slipped behind a large crevice in the rock, trying to hide. Snake looked up at the cave and grinned. He ran as much as he could up to it, half-running, half-limping with his broken and vastly infected paw.

Layla screamed and ran back into the cave, facing Urathi. Without delay, she pounced and tackled him and began clawing his face. Urathi turned his head and spotted Sira. He clawed Layla off of him and tried to lash at Sira, but it was too late. Layla pushed him so hard up against the rock wall, his back almost broke. He growled in fear and jumped out, biting Layla flank. She kicked him off, and fell over. The cut was not too deep, but enough to shoot a bit of pain throughout her body.

Urathi's entire body fell over on the ground and became victim to the Knat. Nithili and Taru were still lashing at each other. Nithili was much smarter than the others. He smelled something on Taru and felt that his fur was very greasy with something and was ever so cautious. Taru kicked him off and kept him at bay. Var caught Nithili on the other side, but the brother kicked Var in the forehead and pounded him with his flank. Var rolled down the roll uncontrollably as Snake ran up a that moment.

Jali had followed and quickly began to fight with Snake more, but it was only a matter of time before Jali was thrown down the hill and hit his head on a large tree and pretended to be unconscious. Snake sneered, thinking he was dead. "Finally!" he growled. "King Jali is dead!"

Everyone in the camp seemed to glance up at the hill as a strike of lightning thundered behind Snake who stood on the hill's peak. He grinned darkly. Nearly everyone gasped and began to cry. However Taru saw directly through it and grinned. His brother was always up to something crafty.

"Hey Snake!" Taru growled. The leader of the vile brothers turned around, his eyes squinted into evil slits. "You're next!"

Gamba could see that Taru had retained his confidence, and the fact was that if he wasn't immediately grieving his brother, then Jali probably wasn't dead. As a result, there was something amusing about Snake's threat, maybe because he was counting the antelope before the herd arrived. He just growled, "One false move, Snake, and we will kill you and your sons like the pathetic excuses for lions you claim yourselves to be. Even now, when you are clearly going to die from gangrene in your paw, if one of us does not kill you, you think you have won. I can smell the infection, and I am surprised you have not fallen ill with fever."

Snake turned, growling at Gamba. "You're entire pride is MINE!" he gave out a ferocious roar and tackled Gamba, keeping his paw away from contact though. Layla limped out of the cave and quickly jumped up and tackled Snake, tearing him from Gamba.

"HEY! RESPECT YOUR KING!" he shouted at her. "You aren't my king..." Layla said in return and quickly raked his face with her claws, causing a terrible array of bleeding cuts across his face. He gave out a loud growl of horrific pain and bit into Layla's shoulder. She bit into his neck. Snake let go and pushed Layla off of him then whacked her hard with his paw in the side. He began to grow dizzy and finally fell over on the ground, feeling strange.

Layla felt exhausted and injured. She fell over, and wondered... wondered... if the injuries were too deep for her to continue living. A lake of blood coated her, both hers and Snake's. Nithili jumped up the hill, and tried to jump at Gamba, but Jali's seemingly lifeless body sprang to life and cut the evil son off. Jali chased Nithili down to the pond where finally Nithili tackled Jali. Jali pawed at Nithili and bit him several times. He was just waiting for Nithili to bite into him, but the son did not.

"You think I'm an idiot Jali!? I know you've got some sort of pulp on you! I saw how my father and brother fell when they bit into the lioness! I've figured out your tricks!" Nithili growled. "Obviously, you have NOT!!" Jali shouted as suddenly he flipped Nithili over and the son flew into the lake. He panicked, screaming and pawing around.

"I can't swim! Help! Barcal! Help!" he shouted. A flow of water pulled him further from shore. He screamed and kicked and pawed, trying to swim and trying to grasp whatever he could. But finally his entire body plummeted and went underwater... gone... Sinking down so far you couldn't see it from the top of the lake, even if the water was perfectly clear.

Jali got up. There was one more son to take out. He heard a scream from Mira and Kal's den, and it wasn't Mira giving birth. It was Kal, he screamed as suddenly he and a bulky black maned lion jumped out into the camp. Barcal growled as he pounced onto Kal. After a few seconds of sparring, Barcal leaped up and ran off into the forest. Jali didn't think he'd come back.

Jali came back to the core of the camp and saw that Mira was holding three small cubs. Kal was standing by, looking down at them with a smile. He glimpsed at Jali who was smiling back at them. Jali was becoming more and more excited for his own cubs to come.

He came back to Layla, Var, and Gamba up on the hill. Sira came out, she was shaking and breathing heavily. She screamed when she saw Layla's bloodstained body on the ground. Jali grimaced when he saw Layla in her injured form, though he couldn't believe she took out Snake and Urathi. The bodies of the fallen enemies were laying down, still breathing but barely conscious.

"You put up a very brave fight, Layla," he told the lioness. He glanced at Gamba. "You should be very proud of her. We all should. She took the blood for us, without her three cubs may never have been born. Without her, my dear Sira would be dead..." he said coming up to Sira and comforting her with a lick. "I'm sorry, I didn't want to leave you... I was just so worried about everyone," he whispered to her. She tried to crack a grin, but with Layla on the ground like this she couldn't. "It-it's f-fine Jali..." she said, her eyes went back to Layla.

Jali turned around. Kal was walking up the hill to Jali. "Jali, Mira wants to see Var..." he said. Jali got a confused look. How did Mira even know Var's name? They'd never introduced him to her. Jali gave a nod to Var who followed Kal into Mira's den where she sat with a few cubs curled up beside her stomach drinking.

"Yes, ma'am?" asked Var. Mira gave him a kind smile. "Var, I'm so glad to see you again. I wanted to tell you a long time ago, but I couldn't when Snake took you away..." she said. Var got a strange feeling in him. Mira went on.

"Var, I'm your mother. I had you with Snake, many years ago when he was my mate, when we were all young. When you were born, it was the day before he was banished. He stole you from me and took you with him, making you think he killed me like all the others... I'm the only female Snake has failed to kill after he was done with them..."

Var felt a sensation of hope swelling up in him. "Really?"
"Yes" she said. Var gave a look to Kal who was giving him a smile. "You're my mother... so, is Kal my new father?"

"If you want me to be, sure" Kal said. Var nodded. "Thank you, thank you both..."

Sira was crying on the hill, her tears dripped onto Layla who was laying down below her. She lifted her head up to the cloudy, starry night sky as if crying out to the spirits themselves. "Please! Spare her!" she shouted. Jali licked her behind the ear twice. "Sira, I think she'll be alright... but so much blood... Gamba..." Jali looked over to Gamba, hoping he'd say she would be alright. Layla hadn't lost enough blood to die, but she wouldn't be feeling well for a while and she was vastly in pain.

Gamba went up to Layla, concerned, but relaxing after he took in the severity of the wounds, "She'll be all right. The wounds bleed greatly, but they aren't as bad as they look. Although I can't say she will feel very well for the next few days." He then scanned the faces of Jali, Sira, and the rest, "I should warn you, Snake is not dead. But he and his other son are at your mercy to kill as you see fit. They will remain in a disoriented state for a very long time, so you may want to finish them now. I'll tend to Layla, I know medicine regarding the plants here." He said.

Gamba then turned to Layla and carefully shifted her onto his shoulders, "I'm going to get you to your den so you can rest." He told her, as he carried her over and set her down inside. He then began running about the clearing, gathering various plants. He collected some Cardamom that was still left, and another plant he identified as Coriander. He then ran back and mashed them together into a pulp, working it into her wounds as gently as he could manage. "You were formidable, Layla, you fought off Snake and one of his sons. We have much to be grateful for, that you are part of this pride." He said.


When Barcal had run into the woods, he had gotten far enough away where there was no immediate danger of being attacked by the Sunset Pride, but it was then that he unknowingly stumbled into a new threat. Ammon stepped out of the foliage, emerging from out of nowhere, and the young lion collided with him, although it did not even seem to unsteady him. The gigantic white lion glared at Barcal, his cold, hard black eyes boring into him. "So, you thought you, your brothers, and your father could defeat an entire Pride, one with Gamba among its ranks?" He questioned, mockingly. He took a single step towards him, and unsheathed his claws, which glinted black. "This is for getting in my way!" He roared, before slicing down with one enormous paw, aimed directly at Barcal's skull.

Barcal's head was raked with a claw, and he ended up with a huge wound on it, blood splattering and pouring down his face. "What the heck! What is wrong with you!" he shouted. He fought back, pouncing and attempting to bite Ammon under the neck.

Layla managed to crack a smile. "Thank you," she said. "I... I don't know how it happened. I don't know how I managed to do it, I can't be that strong... Not enough to take down Snake, who is much stronger than almost all of the lions in this pride..." she said, not believing in herself. She tried to lick some of the blood off of her fur, keeping away from the pulpy spots Gamba had made. She was grateful to have him.

Sira sat on the hill, she felt relieved that Layla would be alright. "So, what should we do with them? And where's the other two?"

"Nithili drowned, Barcal ran off somewhere. He won't be back. As for Snake and Urathi... Layla took them out pretty well... incredible... I have an idea for these ones..." he said with a grin. Taru and Jali glanced at each other, they both seemed to have the same thought.

Taru shook his head with a grin. "Brother, I never thought you'd be so cruel,"
Jali laughed. Taru added, "you're actually going to stoop to Saber's level?"
"When Gamba is finished tending to Layla, we'll as him if there's any good crocodile gangs anywhere near..."

Ammon saw Barcal's attack long before it could reach him. He lashed out with yet another ferocious blow, this time catching his opponent on the side of the jaw while he was flying in midair, using even more strength than he did before. He then pinned the lion to a tree, holding one paw on his throat, using his body weight. It was enough to effectively rob someone of air, and Ammon leaned in and growled at him, "By thinking you could stand a chance against my rival, you have questioned my power. I would not consider Gamba an adversary, unless he was a challenge to defeat. He and the lions in his pride have defeated your father and your brothers, and more shameful, you ran like a sniveling coward!" He roared, furious. His grip on Barcal's throat tightened, and he spoke again, this time his temper veiled by a cool, even tone that was bone-chilling in its lack of warmth, "You listen to me, you little prick, you stand absolutely no chance of defeating me in a fight, and unless I had a reason, then I wouldn't even bother to attack. My problem, is that your father seems to think that I was not angered by his little antics." A growl rose in his throat, "You can call me a creep, or even a demon, but I am not going to let you get away with threatening cubs. If they have good fathers, then let them remain, but if their father is bad." Ammon's cruel eyes narrowed, "Then it would be better if the cubs died, then and there." His claws dug into Barcal's throat. "I am going to drag you back to that Pride, and you are going to face your punishment. If you don't come willingly, I will beat you into total submission." The tone he used made it impossible to deny that he was telling the truth.


Gamba looked at Layla, "You are that strong, Layla. You just needed to know what was important enough to fight for. Once you have a purpose, and something to protect, losing means so much more than a few wounds. It means the loss of a precious thing, and when you have one, you fight all the harder to prevent it from being taken away. You have courage, as well, and I think you have inspired many in the Pride here today."

Barcal came along with Ammon. "Alright, alright! I'm coming!" he pleaded. He tripped a few times, but to avoid being punished he got up just as quickly and followed Ammon.

Layla laid her chin tiredly on the ground and glanced up at Gamba. "Well, I know I'm stronger than I give myself credit for... but I..." she sat back up and gave a sad expression, glancing at the ground. "I don't know anymore," she said sighing and looking back at him. She gave a smile and thought for a moment, thinking deeply. "Well, either the spirits possessed me, or I really did take out Snake and Urathi. So, I guess I might be stronger than I think."

She gave a wide yawn and gave Gamba a lick on the ear and laid on her side in the den. "Well, I'm going to sleep. I haven't slept for a while," she said smiling and finally laid her head down and gave a deep and peaceful breath out. She took a glance at Gamba and then closed her eyes.

As soon as Layla was breathing soundly, letting Gamba know she was asleep, he exited her den and approached Jali and Taru, but before he could say anything, a familiar scent reached his nostrils, blown to him by an errant wind. He turned and faced a wall of trees, glaring into the underbrush, his hackles rising, and a growl rumbling in his throat. "How does he always conceal himself...?" He hissed, through clenched teeth. As if to answer the question of who the scent belonged to, an enormous white lion emerged from the forest, and even at a distance, it was obvious that he would tower over everyone in the Pride. "Ammon...what are you doing here?" Gamba demanded. The rogue lion lowered his head and uttered a fierce growl, his tail flicking, "Stand down, Gamba, I did not come here to challenge you, but in due time..." He said, his voice its usual cold, even tone. Gamba snarled at this, but quickly straightened, his fur smoothing, "So what, then, has brought you here?" He asked.

Ammon's eyes narrowed cruelly, "I came to congratulate you, of course, on defeating those foolish excuses for lions that thought they could get away with harming cubs and their mothers." He then flicked his tail, "It has come to my attention, though, that you permitted one of them to flee. I am here to ensure that he is punished with the others. I have no desire for cowards to hide in my territory, killing off the prey when they are not deserving of it." He then looked over at Barcal, "Get over here and don't let me see you whine. You'd better apologize, and maybe they will consider sparing you." His dark eyes were hard, "As for myself, you should be grateful that I am turning you over to this pride, I would not hesitate to destroy you, otherwise." As though to urge him on, the white lion placed a paw on Barcal's shoulder, and shoved him into the clearing, where everyone could see him. "Now, face this pride's king, otherwise, I will be your judge, jury, and executioner."