"There was a King... [open]

[Muruthi]

... an evil King,
Who dreamt the wickedest of dreams"

Forever shall the wolf in me
Desire the sheep in you

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It was midday, but the temperature was still rising. The scolding sun was directly over head, rarely covered due to the lack of many clouds in the sky. The harsh terrain of the Outlands brought little relief to whatever life was unlucky enough to exist over the Prideland's border; that was all life was in the Outlands, existing. Nothing lived, nothing really thrived (with the exception of termites and other persistent, biting insects. There was little water and little relief from the sun; the gorge, however, at the right time of day supplied abundant shade. Of course, this was at the very bottom of the gorge, which was a very dangerous place to be if one wasn't careful. Everyone knew what happened to King Mufasa as he tried to rescue his son from the merciless stampede of wildebeest. Since then, only the bravest - or perhaps even foolish - of carnivores and large herbivores entered the dusty, dry gorge. Also, this was Outlander territory. The only carnivores, with the exception of a few hyenas, to call the barren wasteland home. Although not all by choice. The pride of malicious lions were lead by Zira, former mate of Scar (one of the past Pridelander Kings), who was thirsty for the current King's blood.

Muruthi was no King, but in his mind he should have been. He had the opportunity to be a leader and blew it; ruined his chances due to a severe lack of patience and overconfidence. The mahogany lion was now an out cast, an Outlander. Muruthi was a Tau lion, born in the Tau pride many seasons ago, in a land many miles north of the Pridelands. The land was once a paradise; food was abundant, fresh water was always available and there was always relief from the blinding sun! But those lands were destroyed when one of the mountains erupted, spewing its contents nearly across the entire territory. Then there was fire, as Muruthi discovered during the night near his former home. The pride were then exiled from their own land, forced out if they were lucky. Not all the creatures made it to safety; some perished in the fire, suffocated by smoke inhalation, blinded by panic. Muruthi and his immediate family were some of the lucky few and they were eventually reunited with the rest of the surviving pride, if only a handful remained. From that night, the last of the pride members were paranoid, lost and distraught. Their beautiful home was destroyed and they were suddenly nomads, thrown to the mercy of nature and more powerful prides. The lionesses were becoming more aggressive, while Muruthi constantly argued with his father and his father's right hand lion. Some of the females believed that the time had come for a new leader; a leader with the courage of a real lion and the determination to claim a new territory. Maliik, the King, dismissed his only son but eventually the two were at war. Traditionally in the harsh Tau pride, new Kings were chosen in battle. The current King and the challenger, in this case it was father and son, would fight for the position. Maliik was successful in his youth as he managed to kill his own father for the position, but Muruthi (younger than Maliik at this point in his life) was no match. As a result, Muruthi was blinded and banished from the Tau pride. A few weeks later, Muruthi found the Pridelands/Outlands.

Now, the adult was, yet again, a subordinate. A subordinate to a female! Lionesses were never respected by a true Tau lion; their job was to have cubs and hunt, while the lions protected the lands, pride and decided what was best for them. Despite his upbringing, Muruthi tolerated Zira - perhaps because she had a truly devious and malicious plan to get back into the Pridelands. The idea could only benefit Muruthi, who still fancied himself as a King and to get revenge on his father. The mahogany lion sat beneath a tree at the top of the gorge, staring down for any sign of life. Muruthi often came here to wait for any lone, sick, separated or injured animals foolish enough to wander through the gorge. The lionesses of the Outlands rarely brought back enough food for him; he was a growing lion, after all, and knew the value of a good meal. However, hunting for Muruthi was difficult. Not only did he have to contend with being blind in one eye, but also he had to carry a large, dark mane. The lion was definitely not designed for hunting his own food. Fortunately, Muruthi was often able to scavenge from smaller predators or pick off the slow and weak herbivores. Maybe it was better for the prey to die quickly in the jaws of a lion as opposed to being torn apart by hyenas, or disease or sickness. Raising his gaze, Muruthi looked to the herd of wildebeest on the other side of the gorge as they grazed on Prideland grass in the distance. They were most likely aware of the lion's presence due to the wind carrying his scent in their direction, but Muruthi wasn't bothered. He wasn't starving yet and sooner or later either a Pridelander leonine would spook the herd or a fight would break out between rival males. Any creature with substantial injuries would by picked off by the waiting lion, although he realised his best chance would be to actually cross the gorge.

However, there was no easy way to cross the gorge. Further south of Muruthi was a formation of logs, used to hold back the river. Perhaps a weapon to punish the outsiders even more by depriving them of water! That was an optional way of crossing, although very dangerous; one slip could lead to disaster. It was a very long way down and not much was available to break a fall. Only the solid, dusty ground at the bottom - Muruthi would end up like Mufasa, even without the stampeding wildebeest to crush him. The fall alone would be likely to break a lot of bones, but if he was lucky the end would be quick. The other option was to cross via the bottom of the gorge by climbing down, crossing and climbing the other side. Probably just as hazardous if not more so. There was no hurry. It was almost relaxing watching the prey graze. It had a similar effect on the lion as watching fishes; there was something so hypnotic about watching how the others live; watching the young bounce around with each other, males going head to head with each other over a female and the elders sticking together as if their lives depended on it. Muruthi continued to stare at the herd ahead while he was carefully situated not too close to the edge. In fear that he could be forced to the bottom. Fortunately, the wind was on his side should anything try to sneak up on him. Their scent would be carried directly to Muruthi. But there was a scent about that belonged neither to the mahogany lion or the herd in the Pridelands. The strong scent of another carnivore..

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