John Burkitt - The Leonid Saga

“Aiheu?”

“Yes, my child. The light is from Lord Aiheu. And when you look in his face, all your questions will be answered, and your heart will be filled with love and happiness. And he will let you drink from his great river of milk that sustains the blessed in their home among the stars.” Rafiki looked at her worriedly. “Does Isha know you’re out here?”

“No.”

“Then you must sneak right back the way you came. But first there’s something else I want you to know.”

“What’s that?”

“Old Rafiki loves you very much.”

A tear slipped down Lisani’s cheek. “I love you too.”

Rafiki looked out the entrance. “Krull, you make sure she gets home all right, and don’t you dare wake Isha up. She shouldn’t have to get in trouble tonight.”

“I’ll see to it myself.”

It was to be Mobuta’s first hunt with the lionesses. Having reached a suitable size and received the approval of the hunt mistress, the young lioness was in a state of high anticipation. Being invited to the gathering-up for the first time was a great thrill for Mobuta, but she was very nervous as well. She had her heart set on making her first kill. She had hoped to bring down some prey, no matter how small, when her mother was teaching her to hunt. But while she was an apt pupil, she never had the chance to put what she knew into actual practice and draw first blood. She had so wished to be able to gain one honor at a time, and so relax and enjoy herself. As it was, she was trembling in the joints.

“Listen, Sisters!” Ajenti said excitedly, crashing through the brush. “I’ve seen it!”

“It?” Sarafina asked.

“It! The greatest of great omens!

“What, what??” the Pride sisters asked.

“Don’t you know? Or are you unwilling to believe it? Many are the white zebras with black stripes, but there is a black zebra with white stripes on the eastern meadow!”

“The black zebra!” Sarafina said with awe. “No, it can’t be!”

“Such a thing was seen in my mother’s time, but only rarely,” Uzuri said. “Mobuta, you have brought us good luck. I say you should try for it. If you bring it in, your sons will be great kings and blessings will be on the land all the days of your life.”

“Oh my gods!”

“Should we let a new lioness do this?” Isha said.

“It shall be and it must be,” Uzuri said firmly. She took the new lioness aside. “Since we have chosen this means to earn your first blood, listen carefully. You cannot chase down the great zebra by yourself. We will divide into two groups. You approach straight on with all your stealth, and our group will divide in two. Half will circle around the right and half will circle around the left. When you get as close as you can to the zebras, roar as loud as you can and shout, “Come, sisters!” We will rush out and drive the great zebra toward you. And it should be easy enough for you to claim what’s coming to you. Understand?”

“Yes ma’am. I only hope I’m worthy of this great honor.”

With well-practiced speed, the main group broke into two halves and when Mobuta headed out, the leopard patrol headed left and the cheetah patrol headed right. But as soon as Mobuta was out of range, they circled back to the west and quickly reunited behind a grove of acacias. Isha began to snicker. “It should be easy enough for you to claim what’s coming to you.”

“She’ll be blessed for the rest of her life,” Uzuri said with a sly wink. “Not only her, but whatever she finds out there.”

It was the same on every first hunt, as the Pride Sisters headed into the west to find food and left poor Mobuta to her eventual humiliation.

Before long, they heard a loud roar. “Come, sisters!”

Isha snickered. “What do you know, she’s found something!”

Uzuri looked over at Ajenti. “Damn! Now she’s spoiled the hunt! Everything in sectors will be running for its life! Why didn’t you see them, scout??”

Ajenti was aghast. “There isn’t a even a moon tonight! Who do you think I am? Minshasa??”

“Well, what’s done is done. Let’s get Mobuta before she squalls her head off and runs off all the game.”

“Come, sisters!”

Uzuri flinched. “We won’t have meat tonight. Some joke.”

They headed a hundred lengths into the east. And before long they met with an astounding sight. Mobuta beamed at them, her sides heaving as she stood prowdly over a dead zebra. “You were great! Boy, they were running everywhere when just like you said, the great zebra came charging right at me! But you know, I can’t tell the difference, I’d have thought he was just a regular zebra. Are you sure it’s the great zebra?”

“Uh, honey tree, there’s something I think we need to tell you,” Isha said.

“Yes,” Uzuri interrupted, stepping in front of Isha quickly. “Beyond a doubt, it’s the Great Zebra. And because this is your first blood, that makes you a lioness and a member of our hunting clan. Since your mother was not here tonight, I’d be honored if you’d let me mark your cheek.”

“The honor is all mine,” said the beaming lioness.

Uzuri rubbed her paw in the fresh blood on the throat and touched Mobuta’s cheek gently. When she pulled away her paw, it left a recognizable, if dripping, pawprint in blood. “All hail the lioness! Aiheu bless the lioness! Mobuta the Pride Sister!”

The pride sisters all came and nuzzled her and sniffed of the blood on her cheek. Mobuta was in tears. “Oh gods, I’m the happiest creature alive!”

“This print is the first step of your path as a lioness,” Uzuri said. “Welcome, Pride Sister.”

The lionesses all quickly muttered, “Aiheu abamami! Aiheu provides!” and they started quickly on the still-warm body.

Isha’s side rose and fell slowly with the tides of her breath as she napped fitfully in the oppressive heat. Sighing with resignation, she gave up and rolled upright, licking a forepaw absently as she began to groom herself. She mentally cursed the drought which gripped the land in its dry and thirsty clutches and again wondered if the mumbling overheard from the hyena seers were true; that Taka had lowered a curse on the land and the rain was gone for good.

Motion at the cave mouth caught her eye, and she glanced over to see her son trot in, tired and dusty. “Hi, Mom.”

“Hey, kiddo.” Isha reached out with a paw and swept him to her, nuzzling his side.

He wriggled uncomfortably. “OW!”

Isha flinched and looked him over. There was an ugly scratch on his flank. “What happened to you? Have you been fighting?”

“No, but I sure wanted to. Kombi knocked me over when we were playing. He and Togo always push me around.”

Isha rolled her eyes and sighed. “Those two! At least it’s not too bad, Honey Tree.”

“Yeah, but Mom, Lisani was there!”

Isha’s mouth made a soundless “Ohhh.”

A rough growl escaped the cub and he scuffed the floor angrily. “I wish I was bigger and meaner. I’d show them!”

Isha slapped her tail idly at an annoying fly. “And what would you show them?”

“I’d give them a pawful of claws across the nose, that’s what I’d do!”

“Habu, you would not.” Lisani’s warm voice drifted into his ear as she snuggled up from behind him. “You’re too sweet to be mean like they are.”

Habu’s ears flattened and he writhed in embarrassment. “Sometimes I want to be mean, though. When people deserve it. If I was strong and powerful like Simba, I wouldn’t take that stuff off ‘em.”

Isha blinked. “Another lion once thought as you did, son.”

“Huh?”