Chronicles of the Pride Lands cotpl-1

by John H. Burkitt

  "I feel it."

  She trotted off slowly to join them. Abruptly, one of the remaining hyenas broke away and ran to join them. Two more followed, and then another two.

  They hurried over to Shenzi’s group, spreading out to form a protective phalanx.

  A weak smile slowly crept acorss Shenzi’s features as she surveyed the growing party. Turning to Skulk, she chuckled. “On the other hand we may be able to salvage something from this after all.” She lowered her voice. “Listen up. I want you to....”

  His cold eyes locked with hers. “Shut up.”

  The group froze, their startled gaze turning to him as he shook his head. “Just shut up and keep walking. I’ve had it with your schemes. From now on, I’m going to handle our dealings with outsiders.” He glanced furtively over his shoulder. “In case you didn’t notice, most of our bretheren have sided with the King. The Roh’mach has graciously allowed us to leave.” His voice curdled with contempt at the mention of Uhuru. “We still have our lives. Or would you rather go back and have the little weasel finish the job?” He looked at her intently. “I can arrange that if you’d like.”

  Banzai strode forward angrily. “Hey, you can’t do this! ”

  Skulk stared at him. “I just did, ” he said softly. “Now be silent.” He returned his gaze to Shenzi who looked back at him with an incongruous smile on her face. “Well, I’m waiting.”

  Limping forward, she rubbed his cheek against his softly. “Ah, Skulk, I love it when you talk dirty to me.”

  Leaning on his shoulder, she moved off with him, her companions following behind as they paced slowly away from the baobab, calling softly to each other in their own tongue until they were swallowed up by the darkness.

  Uhuru watched them go quietly, uttering a small prayer of thanks. For a moment he had feared there might be civil war. He fought away his fatigue and turned to the jackals who still sat near, hoping to take advantage of the situation.

  “Is there something I can help you with?”

  The jackals looked at him sourly, realizing that there would be no chow tonight. Reluctantly, they turned and left.

  Isha groomed her son gently, tears of happiness streaming down her face as he babbled on about his adventures. "Mom! You should'a been there. Bashak and I played in the biggest skull in the world, and we made Skulk look stupid in front of everybody, and..." Raising her head, Isha looked over at Losara.

  The hyena was nuzzling her cub playfully, talking softly to him and laughing at his little antics. She glanced up and caught Isha's gaze. Lioness and hyena looked at each other for a long moment. Slowly, a small smile crept to Isha's face. She bent to Habusu's ear: "Habu, if I ever catch you running off to play with that hyena again..."

  He looked at her, ears laid back in contriteness. "Yes, ma'am?"

  She looked at him and grinned. "...you'd better tell me where you're going, okay?"

  Habusu's smile filled her with such a warmth that she felt like weeping. "Yeah! No problem."

  Simba came forward and Uhuru fell before him. "I touch your mane."

  "I feel it." He purred deeply. “There can only be true peace where there is justice. I say this before the gods and the great kings of the past: the ban which great Ahadi placed on scavenging in the Pride Lands is over and done. There is no reason why you cannot live as Aiheu intended.”

  Many hyenas flocked to Simba, falling to the ground and humbling themselves. “Ebu Simba, Roh’mach aka Roh’mach! ”

  SCENE: FAR AWAY FROM THE REST

  Six months had passed since the rescue of Habusu from Shenzi and Skulk, though it did not seem so long to most lions.

  Still, in that time the miracle of new life had come and left changes in the Pride Lands. The grass was green, the trees were full, and the savanna was grazed by herds once again. Even Khemoki deigned to grace the Pride Lands with his Zebra’ha.

  Misha, one of the new children, was sitting on a high rock outside her mother's cave. It was one of her favorite spots because she could see far in all directions.

  Her mother Ajenti asked, "What are you looking for so intently?"

  "Grandmother is coming. It's time for our walk."

  "Come in, Misha. She's not feeling up to it today. I'm sorry."

  "But she promised. She was sick yesterday and the day before."

  "If you love her, let her break the promise. That's what happens to you when you get to be her age, " her mother Ajenti explained.

  "Will I be like that someday?"

  "Yes, but it will be a long, long time."

  Misha sulked. She had grown to love those walks to the water hole with Yolanda in the early morning hours. Her grandmother was an encyclopedia of great stories of the old kings, of the gods, and even the latest gossip. And while they were supposed to take these walks for their exercise, Yolanda would always end up seeing something that brought back a memory, and the walk would become a talk.

  Misha was bright, and it didn't take her long to figure out that her grandmother would only get older with time. 'That age' was keeping them apart more and more, but never for three days in a row. She tried to imagine life without her grandmother--even the thought depressed her.

  Ajenti nuzzled her affectionately. "Why don't you go play with Tanabi? He really likes you."

  "He's OK, " she answered half-heartedly. Misha was really crazy about Tanabi, but it was just not the same. That was Grandmother's special time, and it was for no one else. If Grandmother couldn't come to her, she would go to Yolanda. It would be a pleasant surprise.

  There were several places Yolanda loved to go. Some of the more challenging ones, like her favorite branch in a low-hanging tree, had been neglected lately. She was more apt to be dozing on one of the large rocks that caught the morning sun. Misha went to the rocks, but no one was there. She wasn't at the tree, either. And the small cistern where rainwater filled a cave in the rock was visited by two lionesses, neither one of which had seen her.

  Simba wished Misha a cheerful good morning. "Tanabi was looking for you. That is, if you're not taking your morning walk."

  "But I am, Your Majesty, if I can find my Grandmother. You haven't seen Yolanda, have you?"

  "No, I'm afraid not."

  "I thought you were supposed to know where everyone is. You're king, aren't you?"

  Simba smiled pleasantly. "Indeed I am. But I'm not a miracle worker. If I see her before you do, I'll tell her you're looking for her. She's been kind of sick lately. Maybe she's still asleep."

  "I checked, " Misha said, distracted.

  Without saying good bye, Misha hurried on, but she had no idea where she was going. Everywhere her Grandmother usually stayed was deserted. So she must be somewhere unusual. On a whim, she took the path down to the savanna that stretched out before Pride Rock. The grass was tall, and it was easy for a lioness to disappear completely, a thought that was most upsetting to the antelopes and zebras. "Grandmother! Yolanda! Are you out there?" She hunted everywhere, which was not easy for a fully grown lioness, much less a cub. "Grandmother! It's me, Misha! "

  Just when she was about to give up, she saw Yolanda walking alone into the distance.

  "Grandmother! It's me! " Misha hurried over to her in the tall grass. "Wait up, will you! I've looked everywhere for you! Couldn't you hear me calling you?"

  Yolanda stopped for a moment to let Misha catch up, then resumed her slow, steady tread. "I'm sorry I didn't come by for our walk. I haven't felt well."

  "But you feel well now, don't you? I mean, you're walking now."

  "Honey tree, I'm walking now because I don't feel well. I don't want to be at home when something happens to me. They would either have to move me to a more suitable place, or let the hyenas desecrate my den. Either way, I don't want the ones I love to remember my death, but my life."

  "Are you going to die?"

  "Someday we all have to die. It's part of life."

  "I wish you wouldn't say that. You know I'd be sad if you died." She ran a few s
teps out front, which was not difficult at the rate Yolanda walked. "Can I walk with you?"

  "I suppose I have no choice, and I could use someone to talk to."

  "Maybe you'll tell me a story. Where are you going?"

  "I'm going to be with my husband. Your grandfather. You never knew him. His name was Simba, too. Just like the King. He was a good mate. Seeing him will make me young again."

  "Not really. I mean you just mean feel young, don't you? I thought he was dead."

  Yolanda smiled, indulgently.

  "Can I see him too?"

  "Someday, Misha. Not now." She walked across the plain slowly, painfully. Her joints had been stiff in the morning, but there was something more akin to lameness that was obvious even to Misha.

  "Are you all right?"

  "That doesn't matter now. I'm tired. I'm just so tired."

  "Then let's rest for a minute."

  "There will be time for rest later, " she said, determined. "We are not far enough yet."

  "Far enough from what? When is far enough?"

  "I'll tell you."

  She walked on. The exertion made her perspire, and her breath was labored. She stumbled over a small rock the way Misha might fall in a gopher hole. "What are you trying to find?" Misha asked. "There's nothing out here but grass."

  “That's the point, " she said. "It is the sort of place no one would go without a good reason."

  "Why don't you rest now?"

  "Are you tired, Misha? you're so young and strong. I'm so..." Yolanda stopped. Her teeth bared in a grimace of pain. "Oh gods! "

  "Grandmother! "

  Summoning all her reserve, she calmly said, "You were right, Misha. This is the place. We will rest here." She collapsed into a heap and moaned. "I'm so tired, Honey Tree. I could use

  some sleep. Why don't you go play someplace else right now and let me rest. I'll be all right."

  "Grandmother?" Misha said in a trembly voice. "Should I call Rafiki now? He's just over there."

  "No, honey tree. I'll be all right." Saying that, she lay her head in the grass. "Oh, can you feel the cool breeze, Misha?"

  "Yes, ma'am."

  She closed her eyes. "Isn't it wonderful? It's been so hot recently with no rains to freshen the air. But it may be a fine day after all. Nice and cool." Yolanda took in a deep breath, and let it out in a long, slow sigh. Misha anxiously watched her chest for a long time, waiting to see it rise and fall. She waited for a long time.

  "Wake up, Grandma! You can't sleep here! " She ran nervously around the body, nipping her on the paws and licking her on the cheek. "Don't leave me, Grandma. You can't die. You just

  can't! "

  Backing back from the body, Misha looked about for someone, anyone who could help. Why did she have to go so far away into the brush? Maybe Rafiki could help. Oh that the gods would let him be at home! "Is anybody out there?"

  Finally she spotted a lioness in the tall grass and ran toward her. "Help! Help! It's Yolanda! "

  "It's not safe here, " the lioness said. "You must go."

  The voice galvanized her. Misha stood frozen to the spot and stared at the sad, kindly face. It seemed to shine with its own inner light, and she didn't know whether to be happy or terrified. "Please don't leave me. I don't want you to go. I'll do anything. Just stay a little longer, please! "

  "It's not safe, " the lioness said firmly. "The vultures are here and the hyenas are not far behind. Run, honey tree. Run home now!"

  Misha was grief stricken, but she had to flee before the ghastly funeral took place. She couldn't hope to face off the scavengers at her age. And so she ran toward Pride Rock. She ran and ran like a mad thing and did not stop until she found her mother.

  SCENE: MAKING SENSE OF DEATH

  When Misha found her mother and told her what had happened, Ajenti moaned as if from a wound. She ran up the side of Pride Rock and out onto the peak and roared one heart-rending roar. The other lions didn't have to ask what happened, for Yolanda had been expected to die. They roared as well, setting off a wave of sound that washed over the Pride Lands the sorrowful message. It may have lasted a few seconds, or a few minutes--time seemed to stand still. But when Ajenti lithely slinked back off the pinnacle and disappeared into the grass, so did her public grief. From now on, she would discuss it only with friends and family, and only when asked about it. They all understood that she loved her mother--there was no need to keep proving it to everyone. Indeed, if anyone asked her if she was heartbroken, and no one would, they would likely catch an indignant rake of her claws.

  For a couple of hours, all Misha could do was huddle next to her mother. Ajenti needed her small, warm presence. But there came a time when Ajenti needed to be alone for a while. It was her turn to remember when she was the cub, and Yolanda would tell her stories of the old kings, and groom her with her warm moist tongue. That was done best alone.

  Misha wanted her mother, but she welcomed the chance to head out unescorted across the savanna to the baobab tree. Her heart was full of questions that must be answered--it was her first experience with death.

  Rafiki had an odd habit of talking to himself. He put some small pieces of fruit into a bowl and took a bone in one hand while holding the bowl in the other. "Look out, little ones! Here comes the elephant! " He began to mash them into a paste. "Oh no! This is just awful! Shame on you, you ol' elephant! Heh heh! "

  He got an egg. Rarely did he use meat in his diet, and then it was only carrion. The egg was the closest thing he had that day, a prize he had filched from a nest only that morning.

  "Oooh, it must be done so carefully! " He said, positioning the egg on the edge of the bowl. "A-one, " he said, tapping it once lightly. "A-two! " he said tapping it a little harder. He turned the egg slightly. "A-three! " And at last with a smile, he said, "Here goes nothing! "

  "Rafiki! "

  The shell shattered in his fingers. Egg loaded with shell fragments dribbled from his hand into the bowl. "A-four, " he said with a sigh, and shook off his hands. "Who's there?"

  "Are you busy?"

  "Misha! " He smiled, wiping his hands off quickly. "Come in, my dear! Sit! " He planted a kiss on top of her head and giving her a hug. "You honor my humble home."

  "Oh Rafiki, she's gone! Grandma Yolanda is gone! "

  "I heard the cry, " Rafiki said. He understood a bit about how lions grieve, so he was careful in his approach. "You have questions for Rafiki?"

  "Well, yes."

  "Come sit beside me, " Rafiki said. He put his arm around her and said, "Now ask your Uncle Rafiki anything at all."

  Misha's eyes brimmed with tears. "I didn't want her to die. Why did she have to die? She was so good. Can't you help her? Why do the gods let good people die if they can do anything they want? Why?"

  "Oh, the little lady starts with the biggest questions." Rafiki sighed. "For one thing, no. I'm sorry, but it's beyond me to call her back. If I could have helped her, I would have helped Mufasa. As for why there is death, there is a legend among the mandrills about how death came into the world. My father told me, and he learned it from his father. I will not tell you, for it’s not the truth."

  "What is the truth?"

  "Death has always been a part of this world. It is part of life. Otherwise there would be no more room to move about. It makes room for new generations to grow and flourish. It renews the world. It makes sense."

  "I see." She sighed longingly. "But why even live, if all you're going to do is die someday? What's the point?"

  "Because if you didn't live, I couldn't put my arm around you and have these little talks." He kissed her again. "Your blood runs red with mud. It is the soil of the earth mother that binds us to the great Circle of Life. When we die, the water which is the life force returns to heaven with the morning dew. We are then freed from the mud, and freed from its pain. All except the pain of separation, and that will take care of itself with time. Remember even here the spirits of the blessed look down on us, and their prayers for
us are always before the gods. Watch the night skies, and feel the love surround you. You will know your grandmother is alive."

  "I saw her, " Misha admitted. "She told me to run away before the hyenas came."

  "You saw her?" He said it like he believed her. She was glad to tell someone about it. "Grandma was shiny all over, lit up like the moon. Mother says the stars are the spirits of the great kings, but where did she go? Will she see my grandfather?"

  "The stars cannot be counted. Could there be so many kings in a hundred creations?" He smiled. "She is a star like your grandfather, and if the life she led is any measure, she'll be the most beautiful star in the sky."

  When you love another soul, you have security,

  Because the thing you choose to love will last eternally;

  The secrets shared, the way she cared,

  The jokes that make you smile

  May go away, but not to stay

  Except a little while....

  Aiheu is wonderful, He knows the pain you bear,

  And He will grant a share of comfort in the night;

  The ones you hold most dear, His hand will hold most near,

  Until you see them clear in His eternal light.

  When you’re feeling very sad, the way you feel right now,

  You will do well to realize she’s helping you somehow;

  She’s holding you, enfolding you to soothe your fears away,

  And when you cry, her watchful eye will see you and she’ll pray....

  Aiheu is wonderful, He knows the pain you bear,

  And He will grant a share of comfort in the night;

  The ones you hold most dear, His hand will hold most near,

  Until you see them clear in His eternal light.

  Misha lay her head on Rafiki's shoulder. "I love you."

  "I love you too." He gave her a pat. "Now how about a little snack?"

  "What'cha got?"

  "It's sweet, it's disgusting. You'll love it."

  Rafiki got the wooden bowl back out and stirred the contents up really well. He put it before Misha, who attacked it with gusto.