The Lion Guard: The Northern Crocodile

Chapter 19

"Alright, then. Who is it that you're supposed to 'eliminate'?"

"The 'Crocodile of Demons'."

"Who?"

"Oh, right, I forgot. That's what the majority of us refer to him as, but as I've recently learned, you know him as Zaire."

Makuu was speechless for a while, unsure of how to respond to Nneka's claim regarding Zaire.

"'Crocodile of Demons'? Zaire? What are you talking about?" Makuu questioned.

"Of course I wouldn't expect you to understand," Nneka replied. "You don't usually learn about this kind of stuff unless you do some traveling here and there. By any chance, have you ever been outside of the Pridelands before?"

"Only once, but we had no choice. It was either leave and survive, or stay and starve to death."

"'We'?"

"The entire float, as well as every other animal in the Pridelands, except for the lions and the hyenas. There was nothing left for anyone to have even the slightest bit of hope of surviving, so we all agreed to leave until the Pridelands went back to normal."

"Lions and hyenas, huh? Well, I'm not at all surprised that you had to leave. Nothing would be able to survive with those two animal groups in the same area. If it's alright with you, I would love to hear even more about that situation you and the others found yourselves in."

"Stop trying to throw me off topic! I want to know why you call Zaire by that...title."

"I'll explain it all to you after I hear the 'Desolation of the Pridelands' story."

"Fine, but after I'm done, you have to tell me what you know about Zaire."

"Crocodile's honor. So, as you were saying?"

"The King at the time, Mufasa, was killed by a stampeding herd of wildebeest trying to save his son, Simba, who is now our current King. No one knew at the time that Mufasa's brother, Scar, had his hyena lackeys cause the stampede. One thing led to another, and before we knew it, Scar was the new King of the Pridelands. After becoming King, Scar, along with the hyenas whom he allowed to stay in the Pridelands, quickly turned it into a desolate wasteland. With the lack of food, water, and other resources that we needed to stay alive, the other leaders decided that it was best to leave until the lions could get their priorities straight. It was hard for everyone, even us crocodiles."

"I bet. So, tell me, was Kiburi around when all of this happened?"

"No, he wasn't. While we were dealing with the destruction of the Pridelands, Kiburi and his followers were off looking for his father. If you want to know anything more on the subject, then I suggest you try talking to Kiburi about it. Now, tell me about this thing with Zaire."

"Hmm...interesting. Hyenas and lions working together? That's a new one on me."

"Nneka."

"Yes, I know, Makuu. You want to know why I referred to your 'friend' as the 'Crocodile of Demons'. Well, in Crescent Valley lore, it is believed that when a crocodile kills another of its kind, then the spirit of the deceased will haunt the soul of their murderer. Think of it as a curse of sorts for breaking one of the most important laws of the wild: only kill to survive."

"Are you saying that Zaire killed other crocodiles for no good reason, and has been infected with the spirits of his victims?"

"Yes, I am, and I know for a fact that he can't be trusted."

"Yeah right! I know Zaire, and despite a few bad habits here and there, he's pretty trustworthy."

"Really? You're willing to trust some mysterious stranger, just because you like his sister? Tell me something, Makuu. When you first met Zaire, what did you think of him? You weren't, you know, suspicious at all of him? Maybe had a strange feeling, something you couldn't put your claw on perhaps?"