HOME | DD

Description
It was an early start to the day as the sun crept slowly higher into the sky, quickly heating up the savanna with it's summer fury. Rangi and Moja had recently left the desert territory after Zacia had assigned them their mission, leaving them with a mixture of both excitement and apprehension. They were proud that they could serve such an important task, however, if they messed up, it could mean a severe punishment from either the pride or from Zacia's wrath. They had rolled around in the soil all morning to rid themselves of their scent and prayed that they only reeked of earth. The two young teenagers walked in silence in the tall grasses of the meadow and although Rangi was significantly younger than Moja and smaller, the two shared a strong bond. Moja stopped walking for a bit as she tasted the air for any trace of a nearby patrol with no luck. Rangi quickly piped up, "Are you sure we won't get caught as spies? What if they think we're suspicious or something?" Moja rolled her eyes as she tried to appear as level-headed as possible. She could tell Rangi was nervous but she couldn't blame her, she had to remain calm for both of their sake. She was just as scared as she was of getting caught. Although their youth made them appear more innocent, it also made them extremely more vulnerable. "I don't know, why are you asking me? I don't know everything! Quiet down or we'll be spotted!" Moja flicked her tail to silence her but Rangi persisted. "Well isn't that what we're doing here?" "Yeah but it doesn't mean we make it obvious that is our goal. We just need to pretend to be one of them and blend in." As they continued on, they had made their way onto a rocky summit where more grass outstretched in front of them. Letting out a groan, Rangi whined, "More grass? I feel like that's all we've been seeing since we got here." Moja sighed as she rolled her eyes once again, "Well what do you expect? Why do you think they have so much more prey than us? Now keep quiet or else they'll spot us before we find them." Rangi opened her mouth to complain again, "Why does that matter? Are you sure we aren't lost? We've been going on like this for-" Moja quickly threw her paws over Rangi's mouth and before Rangi could protest, she heard voices. Not too far ahead of them they could see two lions that looked about the same age as them. Their scent matched the Central Savanna pride and their pelts shared a similarity. "They must be related." Moja whispered to herself and Rangi nodded in agreement. Taking a step back and uncovering her mouth, Moja murmured, "I'm sorry Rangi, this might hurt just a bit." Before Rangi could respond, Moja smacked her across the face and scent her flying. Landing with a thud, a small amount of blood began to seep from her jaw due to the impact of hitting the ground. When Moja realized she had successfully knocked her unconscious, she quickly got into character as she frantically began to shout, "Help! My friend is badly hurt! Somebody please help me!" The two teenagers could hear her cries and quickly turned their heads, instantly spotting Moja's dark pelt.

Bounding over, Enye took the lead, his growing mane flowing majestically behind him, along with Lydia right on his tail. The two quickly rushed to Rangi's side, checking her for a pulse and vital signs. "What happened?" Lydia asked as Enye finished examining Rangi. "I don't know, she ran ahead of me and I think she must have collapsed.. We've been traveling for a while now... We are exhausted." Enye turned to face Moja, sympathy filling his eyes, "We can take her to our pride's clearing. Our mom is the healer there and should be able to help her! I'm sure she'll be okay with you two taking refuge there, especially since you're alone and tired." Moja felt like laughing, the cubs had bought the bait so easily! Giving her best puppy eyes, she looked teary eyed, "You two would really do that for us? Are you sure that's not intrusive?" Lydia shook her head and replied, "Of course not! You two are dire need of help. Come on, I'll lead us there." Enye gently heaved Rangi onto his back and began to carry her as Lydia made her way ahead of them and gestured for them to follow. Moja smirked to herself, her plan had worked like a charm.

Moja followed the two siblings until they had reached a big clearing behind a thick lining of shrubs and trees. "Follow me, you might get lost." Lydia called as she realized Moja was frozen in place while staring at everything in awe. "Talk about spoiled..." She thought as she gazed around at all the pride members who were exchanging mixed glances of confusion and curiosity, lounging about on the sunny boulders. She followed Lydia and Enye to a den where the entrance was streamed with vines. As they entered, a strong aroma of mint hit them. "Mom! Hurry up and come out! Look what we found!" Lydia exclaimed as if cheerful about the fact that they were bringing in an injured cub. A grown lioness emerged into the light from the darkness of the depths of cave and gasped. "Lydia! Enye! Who are these two strangers?! You're supposed to notify King Jason before bringing in two random cubs!" "But mom look! One of them is hurt!" Lydia whimpered and her mother's eyes softened as she shifted her gaze to Rangi's unconscious body. "We'll talk about this later..." She sighed as she grabbed Rangi by the scruff and turned around, disappearing into the darkness once again. Moja was about to follow but Lydia and Enye stopped her. "We're not allowed to go in there. Mom says we might accidentally knock over some of the herbs or medicine. Follow me, we need to take you to see the king so we can get his approval." Enye said, gesturing to the entrance of the den. Moja became nervous, mostly because she was afraid he'd know the two were from Zacia's pride. As they walked through the clearing, they reached the den on the opposite side and were greeted by a lioness with beautiful teal eyes. They shined bright with youth and kindness. "Hello Enye, how can I help you?" Jayla asked before her eyes fell onto the strange dark lioness she had never seen before. Enye dipped his head respectfully and calmly replied, "Good morning your highness. Today Lydia and I ran into two cubs that needed some help. We were wondering if they could stay for a little bit. They say they've been traveling a long way. Is Jason here?" She nodded and smiled turning to Moja. "What happened? Are you lost?" Moja shook her head. "No my friend collapsed. Our parents were killed by a couple of outcasts and we've been searching for somewhere safe to live for a while now." Nodding once again, Jayla thought for a moment before saying, "You poor things... Alright I'll talk to Jason and see what he thinks once he comes back in the afternoon." Enye nodded and smiled, "Thank you!" He began bounding off and Moja followed him after giving a small dip of her head to the queen. Lydia met them once they got back to the clearing. "What happened?" she asked. Enye beamed, "We have to wait until Jason gets back but I'm pretty sure they'll let them stay. In the meantime we should show her around." Lydia nodded in agreement and asked, "What's your name anyway? And your friend's too? I'm sorry, we should have asked sooner." Moja awkwardly mumbled, "I'm Moja and she's Rangi." "Cool! We'll show you around, okay?" Moja nodded and the brother and sister excitedly began their tour.

Base- Me
Original Art- Disney

Part 17--->truelightportal.deviantart.com…

Description
It was an early start to the day as the sun crept slowly higher into the sky, quickly heating up the savanna with it's summer fury. Rangi and Moja had recently left the desert territory after Zacia had assigned them their mission, leaving them with a mixture of both excitement and apprehension. They were proud that they could serve such an important task, however, if they messed up, it could mean a severe punishment from either the pride or from Zacia's wrath. They had rolled around in the soil all morning to rid themselves of their scent and prayed that they only reeked of earth. The two young teenagers walked in silence in the tall grasses of the meadow and although Rangi was significantly younger than Moja and smaller, the two shared a strong bond. Moja stopped walking for a bit as she tasted the air for any trace of a nearby patrol with no luck. Rangi quickly piped up, "Are you sure we won't get caught as spies? What if they think we're suspicious or something?" Moja rolled her eyes as she tried to appear as level-headed as possible. She could tell Rangi was nervous but she couldn't blame her, she had to remain calm for both of their sake. She was just as scared as she was of getting caught. Although their youth made them appear more innocent, it also made them extremely more vulnerable. "I don't know, why are you asking me? I don't know everything! Quiet down or we'll be spotted!" Moja flicked her tail to silence her but Rangi persisted. "Well isn't that what we're doing here?" "Yeah but it doesn't mean we make it obvious that is our goal. We just need to pretend to be one of them and blend in." As they continued on, they had made their way onto a rocky summit where more grass outstretched in front of them. Letting out a groan, Rangi whined, "More grass? I feel like that's all we've been seeing since we got here." Moja sighed as she rolled her eyes once again, "Well what do you expect? Why do you think they have so much more prey than us? Now keep quiet or else they'll spot us before we find them." Rangi opened her mouth to complain again, "Why does that matter? Are you sure we aren't lost? We've been going on like this for-" Moja quickly threw her paws over Rangi's mouth and before Rangi could protest, she heard voices. Not too far ahead of them they could see two lions that looked about the same age as them. Their scent matched the Central Savanna pride and their pelts shared a similarity. "They must be related." Moja whispered to herself and Rangi nodded in agreement. Taking a step back and uncovering her mouth, Moja murmured, "I'm sorry Rangi, this might hurt just a bit." Before Rangi could respond, Moja smacked her across the face and scent her flying. Landing with a thud, a small amount of blood began to seep from her jaw due to the impact of hitting the ground. When Moja realized she had successfully knocked her unconscious, she quickly got into character as she frantically began to shout, "Help! My friend is badly hurt! Somebody please help me!" The two teenagers could hear her cries and quickly turned their heads, instantly spotting Moja's dark pelt.

Bounding over, Enye took the lead, his growing mane flowing majestically behind him, along with Lydia right on his tail. The two quickly rushed to Rangi's side, checking her for a pulse and vital signs. "What happened?" Lydia asked as Enye finished examining Rangi. "I don't know, she ran ahead of me and I think she must have collapsed.. We've been traveling for a while now... We are exhausted." Enye turned to face Moja, sympathy filling his eyes, "We can take her to our pride's clearing. Our mom is the healer there and should be able to help her! I'm sure she'll be okay with you two taking refuge there, especially since you're alone and tired." Moja felt like laughing, the cubs had bought the bait so easily! Giving her best puppy eyes, she looked teary eyed, "You two would really do that for us? Are you sure that's not intrusive?" Lydia shook her head and replied, "Of course not! You two are dire need of help. Come on, I'll lead us there." Enye gently heaved Rangi onto his back and began to carry her as Lydia made her way ahead of them and gestured for them to follow. Moja smirked to herself, her plan had worked like a charm.

Moja followed the two siblings until they had reached a big clearing behind a thick lining of shrubs and trees. "Follow me, you might get lost." Lydia called as she realized Moja was frozen in place while staring at everything in awe. "Talk about spoiled..." She thought as she gazed around at all the pride members who were exchanging mixed glances of confusion and curiosity, lounging about on the sunny boulders. She followed Lydia and Enye to a den where the entrance was streamed with vines. As they entered, a strong aroma of mint hit them. "Mom! Hurry up and come out! Look what we found!" Lydia exclaimed as if cheerful about the fact that they were bringing in an injured cub. A grown lioness emerged into the light from the darkness of the depths of cave and gasped. "Lydia! Enye! Who are these two strangers?! You're supposed to notify King Jason before bringing in two random cubs!" "But mom look! One of them is hurt!" Lydia whimpered and her mother's eyes softened as she shifted her gaze to Rangi's unconscious body. "We'll talk about this later..." She sighed as she grabbed Rangi by the scruff and turned around, disappearing into the darkness once again. Moja was about to follow but Lydia and Enye stopped her. "We're not allowed to go in there. Mom says we might accidentally knock over some of the herbs or medicine. Follow me, we need to take you to see the king so we can get his approval." Enye said, gesturing to the entrance of the den. Moja became nervous, mostly because she was afraid he'd know the two were from Zacia's pride. As they walked through the clearing, they reached the den on the opposite side and were greeted by a lioness with beautiful teal eyes. They shined bright with youth and kindness. "Hello Enye, how can I help you?" Jayla asked before her eyes fell onto the strange dark lioness she had never seen before. Enye dipped his head respectfully and calmly replied, "Good morning your highness. Today Lydia and I ran into two cubs that needed some help. We were wondering if they could stay for a little bit. They say they've been traveling a long way. Is Jason here?" She nodded and smiled turning to Moja. "What happened? Are you lost?" Moja shook her head. "No my friend collapsed. Our parents were killed by a couple of outcasts and we've been searching for somewhere safe to live for a while now." Nodding once again, Jayla thought for a moment before saying, "You poor things... Alright I'll talk to Jason and see what he thinks once he comes back in the afternoon." Enye nodded and smiled, "Thank you!" He began bounding off and Moja followed him after giving a small dip of her head to the queen. Lydia met them once they got back to the clearing. "What happened?" she asked. Enye beamed, "We have to wait until Jason gets back but I'm pretty sure they'll let them stay. In the meantime we should show her around." Lydia nodded in agreement and asked, "What's your name anyway? And your friend's too? I'm sorry, we should have asked sooner." Moja awkwardly mumbled, "I'm Moja and she's Rangi." "Cool! We'll show you around, okay?" Moja nodded and the brother and sister excitedly began their tour.

Base- Me
Original Art- Disney

Part 17--->truelightportal.deviantart.com…