Nakala

Chapter 59

They were nearing the caverns, the mountain becoming closer and closer. Nakala was glad to return and retire to his warm den. He felt the weight on his back shift and heard the sound of Bunga landing in the sandy earth below and stopped.

"Bunga? What are you doing?" In the low glow of the moon Bunga tread through the sand and was looking at a rock that had a small space underneath it.

"I can dig under this and make a den out of it," Bunga mused, getting lower to check it out. "It'll give me shade from the sun and it's just far enough from the mountain that the hyenas won't notice me."

"Hmm, alright. Guess I'll see you soon, then." Nakala joined with the hyenas and continued on the path of returning home. In truth the lion hoped that the badger would have stayed with him just a little bit longer but he knew the badger was right. There was no way the clan would let a badger join them, especially with food becoming a little scare. He gave a sigh and placed one paw in front of the other, silently wishing Bunga a good night.

Upon reaching the clan they were met with the night patrol rushing to them.

"Janja!" a hyena spoke in a tone of great relief. "We're so glad you're back!"

"What happened this time?" Janja asked, looking around for any more signs of trouble.

"N-nothing," Another hyena said, "You all were gone for so long and we all started to worry. Wisa picked us out to come find you all."

Janja gave a small chuckle, thankful that the clan didn't fall apart the moment he and Amana were gone. "Yeah, well...The night patrol is canceled, we got something bigger to focus on. Instead I want you guys to gather everyone, there's something I gotta tell you guys." The former night patrol nodded and did as they were newly instructed, turning tail to race inside the cavern instead, leaving Janja and the others outside to prepare themselves.

"You sure you wanna do this, Janja?" Amana offered. "If you want I can—"

"No," the clan leader cut her off. "This is something I got to do. I'm the clan leader and I let one of our own fall. I gotta be the one to tell them that."

Nakala's gaze softened at his mate. "Janja, you know none of this is your fault? There's no way any of us could have known." Janja looked back at Nakala but said nothing, turning around and walking into the cave. The lion sighed to himself, already determined to not let Janja beat himself up. But his attention now shifted to Chungu, the large hyena held his head low and his gaze was unfocused.

"You gonna be alright?" Nakala asked him softly.

"I don't know..." Those words came easily out of his mouth, being the honest truth. Chungu didn't know. He didn't know how he would make it through the night, the next day or even after that. His mind was still trying to grasp the fact that his best friend was gone. The den next to his would be empty for a while. Sure, Janja would get a new hyena to replace the spot he left behind, but it wouldn't be the same. There was no hyena or other creature that could replace Cheezi in Chungu's eyes.

The lion could sense that his friend was in distress whether he showed it or not. "Hey, Chungu and Amana." Both siblings looked at the lion once again.

"I think it would be a good idea if you two shared a den for a while. After all...that I don't think we should be sleeping alone. We should be there for each other," he suggested, knowing very well he would watch over Janja through the night.

"Yeah...I think that's a good idea. You can come to my den, Chungu." Amana told him.

"Alright," Chungu sighed and continued forward to the cave's entrance. Amana and Nakala exchanged saddened glaces at one another. For as long as Nakala had come to know Chungu he saw him as a brother and with Amana being his actual sibling it hurt the both of them seeing Chungu being so heartbroken. They already missed the wide grin he always had. They also knew that this was something for Chungu to get past, he would never be the same if he didn't.

Soon the entire clan, young and old, filled outside a little ways from the training grounds. It was the spot they gathered for when there was urgent news for the clan or if there was a vigil being held. Janja stepped onto a rock reserved for making the announcements. He took a deep breath and prayed that he could keep it together long enough to tell the rest.

"I'm sure you're all wondering why we're here so late at night. But what I'm about to tell you can't wait till the morning!" Janja told all of them. A few hyenas looked at each other, wondering what could be so important. Janja took another deep breath and continued. "The reason we are all here is because today we lost one of our own."

Gasps and concerned murmurs spread through the crowd of hyenas. Janja raised his paw and they all went quiet. "Today we long our dear friend and my own retainer, Cheezi. As our party went in search of food along the ridge the rock crumbled under my paws and Cheezi saved me from falling below. But in the process he lost his own life. Cheezi was a brave hyena who lost his life not thinking of himself, but thinking of the greater good of the clan. And though I am grateful for him saving my life...I wish that he didn't leave us in the way he did. He was a true member of the clan and he will be missed by us all."

Nakala stood some distance away, feeling a mix of emotion. Janja's words were polished and careful, moving the lion as well. Him knowing the truth made him feel conflicted about lying to the entire clan. But he could agree with the last sentiments from his mate, Cheezi was loved by everyone, being a source of positivity and always helping out those who needed it.

The entire clan was saddened by the news of their fallen clan member. They were dismissed by Janja and slowly spread out, returning to their previous affairs. There was one hyena in particular who was not sad at all, instead he was questioning what the clan leader was saying. That hyena's name was Hani.

Something about the situation didn't seem right to the young hyena. For a while Hani had secretly been observing the lion's mannerisms and other things about him. One of the biggest things that Hani noticed was that the kills brought back by his fellow hyenas and the kills brought back by Nakala were vastly different. As far as Hani was concerned the other hyenas were too focused on eating to notice the injuries of the kills. It was clear to see which animals were brought in by a hyena and which ones were brought in by the lion. Whether it was an antelope or a zebra the injuries were more widespread and intentional, as if the lion was enjoying hurting the prey before he killed them. To someone else it might have just been some kind of coincidence but Hani was convinced there was something wrong with that lion.