- 'Kingdom Come' Official Title Page
The Kioi territory was a separate atmosphere from the wide open plains of Africa. Though there were trees lush and rich with life, water that pulsed through the veins of the dirt to create boisterous green all around, and herds of zebra, antelope, and wildebeest. Mountains provided shadows that hugged coolness around the bodies that stood under the incomparable size. This was the average day for all Kioi life in Africa.
Too bad this was not a peaceful, calming day like the others...
“Get 'em!” Chirped a blonde lioness, snapping her snow white teeth at the back legs of some troublesome hyenas, her pink-brown orbs not once leaving the target as she noticed out of the corner of her eye, a flash of orange jump from the ledge of a short cliff and land beside her, slowly dodging behind her.
The orange lioness pushed her legs harder, catching up for a few moments to nudge her side to the mutt. Both hunters laughed. “Here doggy, doggy, doggy” cooed the other lioness. The two started laughing again. As much as they wanted to keep up their chase, the borders of their lands were reached already and their intent was not to kill but to instead to teach a lesson in the class 'Food Chain'.
And, to see the dogs sprinting with their tails between their legs.
Continuing on with their own fits of happy shrills, the two females rolled over onto their sides, giggles erupting from their vocals, soon beginning to numb their cheeks and stomachs. Their laughs turned into groans of pain still mixed in with little chortles here and there.
“Stop making me laugh, Kali!” The orange lioness commanded playfully.
“Ditto, Malenga” replied the blonde. The two just started up all over again, knowing this kind of numbing wasn't going to be too easy to deal with when they were finally over the moment.
Kali rolled back into her stomach, pieces of grass glued to her fur standing out against the crimson spots on her shoulders and flank. She flicked her ear, the white tufts making a wave in the air, “what time did king Ekevu and queen Hiari want you to meet them?”
It was silent for only a few moments, as Malenga's eyelids reared from relaxed to wide open like she just felt something crawl across her paws. Suddenly, shocking Kali, Malenga leaped up and sped off with a loud, “Ack!” As the lioness cantered off, she looked over her shoulder. “I'll see you and the others tonight!” And she was gone, leaving Kali all on her own in the grassy fields the two best friends, moments ago, shared in a banquet of uncensored snorts and giggles.
After a few silent moments with no sound but the wind singing through her ears, Kali rose to her feet, feeling the need for entertainment. As she was known for hunting, Kali started off towards the hunting fields. Shortly after arriving, her orbs focused on the main course for lunch this afternoon: zebra.
Kali was fortunate enough to be born the colour of the sea of grass (probably being one of the reasons why her hunting abilities were intensified). She dipped quickly, and slowly rolled her shoulders as she stepped forward silently and slowly. Her ears were directed forward, her eyes on the ground so her paws were not subjected to the loud happenings of a random rock getting in her way. The lioness perked her head subtly over the tips, noticing the zebra weren't even phased by her but they seemed irked by something. Definitely not her, or their heads would have been near where they sensed the danger. The heads of the striped horses were pointed to the east, as Kali was in the north.
Perfect, thought the lioness. If something was distracting them, then they'd be ambushed by the huntress and barely have a chance to get away. With one final shimmy of her shoulders, Kali burst from her hiding place and into the herd's space, sending the exotic equine galloping away in a slue of yips and whinnies of terror and shock. Kali started to weed out her next meal.
But she heard something. A roar-- and it wasn't hers, or anyone in her pride. Figuring her duty was to protecting the territory more than the property of what rightfully should belong to her stomach, Kali turned back around and headed for the sound. The roars were consistent, strong, and agreeably male as she sought them closer and clearer. Sure enough, as Kali peered over a hill she spotted the familiar Sharifa pride, and a not-so-familiar male lion in the middle of a deadly circle of lionesses who looked even hungrier than Kali was.
The obvious first instinct of the lioness: herd them all off her territory. Kali remained a secret on top of the hill, looking the situation over. He couldn't have been a part of their pride as they all looked like they wanted to rip him apart and use his bones for play toys, but on the other paw it was becoming quite clear that this male, judging from his posture, was not enjoying being around these lionesses. His unhappy snarls were a clear signal.
“You will pay for what you have done, Eze. I will personally--” remarked the leader of the pride before she was cut off at the sight of Kali's looming presence now barrelling down the hill towards everyone else.
“What are you doing here, Iyabo?” Kali stubbornly questioned, coming to an ungraceful halt that almost resulted in a clash of Kioi and Sharifa into a big ball of fur. Thank goodness for claws and their undeniable ability to grip onto anything.
“Teaching a young cat some old fashioned lessons” she didn't so much reply to Kali as she did to the male, supposedly named 'Eze'. When Kali looked over her shoulder at the male, aside from identifying his numerous scrapes and wounds, she noticed his stern, unbreakable expression of stubbornness towards the queen. As well as his face with very masculine, attractive features.
Kali snorted. “You've been crossing into our territory and you're thinking he's the one who needs to be taught a lesson?” She started to take a hunting stance, these zebras with fangs and claws like hers not being much of the type to back down, but then again neither was Kali. “Maybe I should do some teaching”. With that, Kali leaped towards Iyabo, fangs gleaming and claws unsheathed. Both females hissed and started the brawl, fuelled by the need for dominance, and it was obvious Iyabo's lionesses were intent on keeping their queen in the position of power.
Adrenaline was pounding against Kali's chest, pumping through her limbs, and it heightened her senses dramatically. She could feel every hair on her body, and practically taste the blood on Iyabo's unpunctured skin. The negative side though meant she could feel her tail being pulled at and her legs being chewed on, which felt like daggers stabbing through individual holes in her body all at once. Kali was a stubborn female, but that didn't mean she was stupid. As her mouth became free and her opponent regained herself, Kali's vocals flared into an intense flame of roars, destructing the calming winds passing by in leisure to call attention to the fighting going on not too far away from the Kioi's den. It seemed within the moments she took to call out, there was an earthquake for her back up.
Iyabo looked up to the hill Kali had descended from only to find a horde of lions-- mostly males. As the reinforcements came to work along side their fellow pride mate and a nearly passed out rogue lion, the presence of three important lions were not standing their front with the Kioi pride members.
Kali looked from each individual member to the next and then back at the female leader. Her pelt was tattered but still shimmered with sweat and the faint marks of blood. Hers, and Kali's. Just as Kali opened her mouth to give one last warning to the leader, her speech was cut short at the sight of a grey king and beige queen, as well as her orange companion.
Ekevu and Iyabo snarled at each other, Hiari letting out a roar to silence the female. When Kali looked to Malenga, she could see that Malenga was in no way ready to back down either. She could feel the slightest hesitation in Iyabo's retort, but nothing that could scare off their pride.
“You need to leave,” the king demanded as he looked over his shoulder and over his pride, then back to the intruding queen, “or my pride will have no problem making you”. The king's words bestowed newly emerged confidence from his young gang of lions and lionesses-- it had always been there but there was a certain spark in his voice that lit the fireworks in their spirits of loyalty.
It was silent for a few moments, as if everything was in slow motion or too high pitched for the others to hear. The opposing prides stared each other square in the eye, reinforcing their stability. But the leaders had the last word, as everyone knew. And according to Iyabo, it was time to go-- unless she had something else to say.
The dark lioness stepped forward, looking the king's eyes of dirt brown over for any sign of backing down. Ekevu would never. Finally, the opposing queen smirked, “this isn't over, Ekevu”. With that, the battle was delayed and the Sharifa lionesses turned themselves away once again, leaving the testosterone dominated pride to themselves and their coveted lands. The war front seemed boring now, with only the memory of generations before them who had fought for this land like they were about to. In their silence, the lions could hear a thud on the ground, drawing their attention to the body of a lion. The one who Kali knew as 'Eze'.
