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“Little cub, are you in there?” Mufasa asked, running his paw gently down Sarabi’s abdomen. Her leg started kicking and she giggled.
“Cut that out, you wicked lion! ”
“I’m your husband. I can touch you anywhere I want.”
“Well I’m your wife, you know. It works both ways.” She cuffed him lightly in the ribs.
“Ow! That hurt! ”
“I’ll make it feel better.” She kissed him and began to fondle his mane with her paw. “What did I ever do to deserve such happiness?”
Taka’s heart came into his mouth. He ran from the meadow, plunging through the shrubs and breasting the tall savanna grass. The evil sun of midday scorched him with fire. Everything was ugly. All that was real was his hate. Hate for the creature that his brother had evolved into. Hate for Sarabi. Hate for life itself.
In his flight, he flushed out a rabbit. With a couple of strides, he closed the distance, and he sprang on the hapless creature, pinning it to the ground with his large paws.
In ice cold terror, the rabbit stared up into the red eyes of rage. “Oh gods, ” it murmered. “Oh gods. Please let me go! Please! ”
“He thinks he’s so cute, touching her there.” His eyes narrowed. “I’ll kill him. So help me God, I’ll kill him! ”
The rabbit trembled violently in the suffocating embrace of Taka’s paws. “I’m not much of a meal. Oh gods, I’m going to die! Oh gods, oh gods! Please don’t hurt me! ”
“Do you know what I do to scum like that? Dirty sneaking filth that steals what is rightfully mine?” Taka moved his face to within an inch of the rabbit. His breath, pregnant with lion scent, colored his every word. “I wait for the right moment, then I rip them like a gazelle.”
Taka closed in. The rabbit barely had time to shriek before it was stove clear through by lion fangs. Taka raised his head, tossed the blood-drenched trophy up and let it fall lifeless into the grass. “Like a gazelle! I’ll rip him open, so help me! ”
Meanwhile, things were quickly going from bad to worse with the King. The next morning, Akase found Ahadi feverish.
“Get them out of here! ” he said. “Get them out of here! ”
“Get what out of here?”
“Just get them out of here! ” He staggered back against the wall of the cave and with his back covered, looked around in a panic. “Akase! Stand by me, quickly! I’ll protect you! ”
Akase took her paw and patted his face. “Ahadi, darling! It’s all right! You’re safe.”
“Safe?” he said, his eyes not focusing well. “Where’s Akase? I have to drive hyenas off the Pride Lands.” Beads of sweat had matted his splendid mane. “I’m so tired. Hyenas—they always seem to know when I’m tired. Let down your guard for one minute...”
“Please lie down. The hyenas are gone. Mufasa chased them out.”
“Mufasa? He’s such a good boy. Where is he?”
Akase ran to the entrance of the cave. “Zazu! For God’s sake, come quickly! ”
Zazu fluttered in. “What’s wrong, your majesty?”
Ahadi looked up. “We must rest here for a moment. Got to get out of the sun—I’m so hot. Taka, you go on without me.” Ahadi turned to face Zazu, but looked right through him. “What do they think they’re doing? Isha, your cubs are muddying the water hole again! ”
“Oh my Lord, ” Zazu whispered. “I’ll fetch Rafiki.”
Zazu headed out right away, as fast as his wings would carry him. She lay next to Ahadi’s burning skin and kissed his cheek. “I love you, darling. Help is on the way. Can you hear me, Ahadi? Do you know who I am?”
Ahadi began to pant quickly and shallowly, but he moved his large paw on top of Akase’s. “I think I’ll take a nap, old girl. Will you stay by me?”
“Always, honey! Always! ” She added in a whisper, “Gods, make them hurry. I feel so helpless. Help us.”
It seemed to take an eternity for Rafiki to reach the cave, though the did the best he could. Rafiki arrived out of breath with a small pouch of powdered Chi’pim and his staff.
Rafiki took some water from the cistern, mixed the leaves in it, and gave Ahadi the broth to bring down his fever and bring him to himself. After Ahadi drank it, he checked his eyes, even pulling up a little on his eyelids. He stuck his thumb in the corner of his mouth and felt around. Then he listened to his chest. His face was grave.
He took Akase to the back of the cave. “Has he had trouble sleeping lately?”
“Yes.”
“And the muscle stiffness?”
“He told you about that?”
“No. I’m afraid not. It’s a symptom of Koh’suul.” He whispered, "When he comes to himself, take him across the savanna to the edge of the forest."
"Where to?"
"The most appropriate place. The fever will subside, and he'll have a couple of hours of clear thinking. But my dear, you must hurry. He will not live to see the moon tonight."
"Oh gods, no! "
"Hsssh! "
"You're a shaman, " she whispered, but every bit as urgent as a scream. "Can't you do something? Anything? I can't let death take him from me! I just can't! "
He looked in her eyes, pulling down the lid gently with his thumb. "Don't worry, in his own way Aiheu has shown you mercy.” He silently traced a circle around her right eye with his fingertips and touched her under the chin. He wanted her to know she would soon look on the face of God and call Him by name. “Two, maybe three days alone. Use that time to prepare yourself.”
"Oh." She nodded, and warm tears trickled down her cheeks. “I understand. Aiheu is merciful. But if I could have only seen my grandchild first. You must send my love to the child.”
He wiped away her tears. "Say good bye to no one, not if you really love them. You must not drink from the common watering hole or the stream till you have crossed the meadow. You must not stop to relieve yourself until you have found the place. I will have to purge this cave before it is safe." He kissed her. "Is there anything you want me to tell Mufasa?"
"No, just say good bye for me." She sighed. "Poor Taka, I would not live long enough to say what is in my heart. Promise me you will try and look after him. He is so dependent. Promise me you'll look after him."
"I promise I will do what I can."
"Whispering about me behind my back, old girl?" It was Ahadi, much improved.
"I was just telling Rafiki about the surprise. You haven't felt well, and now that the medicine is helping you, you can take a little trip with me to see something special."
"Yes, I am much improved. I won't have to be dragged out, and that is a pleasant surprise. Don't think I didn't know my time was up. Death has been stalking me--now it rushes in for the kill." He regarded her gently. "He gave you the marks of Aiheu. I take it old girl that we are in this together?"
"As always." She nuzzled him gently.
Ahadi said, “Rafiki, you must tell my son Taka that I made a mistake.”
“Sire?”
“Once I killed a badger. It was not male as I had said. She had pups.” He sighed. “She attacked my son to only protect her own children. I was trying to prove that I loved Taka, and I broke one of my own laws. I cannot face Aiheu with this secret on my conscience.”
“I’ll tell him.” A tear rolled down Rafiki’s face. “I’m sure you die forgiven. I touch your mane.”
“I feel it. And friend, tell him to keep looking. He’ll know what that means.”
“I will.” Rafiki took a small flint knife from his pouch. He approached Ahadi and took a few strands of his mane, cutting off a short lock, kissing it, and putting it in his pouch. Then he placed the marks of Aiheu on Ahadi. “It is time.”
Ahadi and Akase left the cave for the last time and climbed down the side of Pride Rock. Without a word they took the most direct route away from the comfort of their dwelling and forded into the silent grass.
With a heavy heart, Rafiki gathered dead grass from the savanna and made a pile of it in the middle of the cave. He put ferns on top of it and a sprinkling of powdered Alba. Then he took a clay pot, and emptied from it a few glowing coals on the tinder.
The coals satisfied their great hunger, raising a cloud of smoke that quickly filled the cave with its bitter incense. The smoke sought the heavens, but it found the ceiling of the cave and spread out gray fingers to feel for an opening. At last it found the door, and began to rise free into the sapphire sky.
"Fire! Fire! " It was Taka. He rushed into the cave, coughing and wheezing at the smoke. “Is anyone in here?”
"You must leave, " Rafiki said.
"You foolish ape! What do you think you are doing?? Have you lost your mind?? When Mom and Dad see this, they will cuff you senseless! "
"They will never see this, " Rafiki said. "It was the Koh'suul. Flee. You are in great danger here."
"Koh'suul?" Taka's eyes widened. "But that’s fatal. You mean Dad is dying? Does Mom know?"
"Akase has gone with him."
"Hffff! ” He stiffened up. “She was well. I saw her this morning. She was well! What do you mean she has gone with him? Without telling me?? She’ll catch it too! Where is she??"
"You cannot see her. It would be death to you. I'm sorry, but she had it when I got here. Death had already placed his mark on her."
"But I must see her! " He pounced on Rafiki and held him to the floor of the cave with his paws. "Tell me where she is or I'll crush the life out of you! "
"Your mother made me promise to care for you. If you must kill me, you must. "
Taka looked confused, sad, and finally released Rafiki. He turned and sat facing the wall. “Sassie doesn’t love me. My brother doesn’t love me. The gods don’t love me. All I had left was here. Now I’m alone. They are killing me one small piece at a time. This time they killed my heart.” He trembled. “I walk, I speak, yet I am dead inside. Dead.”
"There must be something I can do, " Rafiki said, getting up.
"Haven't you done enough?"
"That's not fair, Taka. When I was young, my mother died of Beh'to. Before the end, she was banging her head on a tree, trying to force the headache out. I watched her die in the most dire agony. That's when I knew I must be a shaman. I would never have to feel so helpless again.”
“Then why not help them?”
“As my knowledge grew, every answer raised new questions. I cannot heal every wound. So more important than my herbs and spells is knowing something to say to comfort the Ka when these bodies of Ma'at crumble."
"Then say something comforting to me."
He stroked Taka's mane. "I think about the prophesy. I think about it a lot. Oh, I knew where I wanted to be and what I wanted to do in a year, in five years, in ten. Now I am committed to fight this thing. All my hopes and dreams have been turned upside down. In this way we are alike, my friend. Our childhood dreams are over. The morning has come and we awake to face reality in the light of the sun. Let us find something real in the sunlight, something that pleases us, and hold on to it. All else is vanity."
"You are a foolish ape, " Taka said. "But even a fool may say the right thing at times."
With that, Taka stalked quietly away to some secret place to be alone. His absences had become more and more frequent as his life fell apart. The loss of his father was a terrible blow, but after the death of Akase he was never the same again. Mother she was, friend, and ally. It would be fair to say she was his conscience, his goodness, his faith in the gods. All of these things and more.
Hours passed with no sign of him. Mufasa and Sarabi in the midst of their deep grief gave him some thought and tried to find his private world of brooding depression and nuzzle him. They could not find him, but Yolanda would later say that a one eyed hyena and her brood was sitting next to him near the elephant graveyard as he wept like a baby. No one believed her story—it was too improbable. She must have seen poor Ahadi. Even though Yolanda said it was a dark maned lion she saw.
Later that evening as Mufasa was asking Rafiki’s help in finding Taka, Zazu came flying back.
“News? Have you found my brother?”
Zazu said, “Your father....” His head bowed and he sighed deeply. “Have courage, Your Majesty.”
Rafiki came and put his arms around Muffy and whispered, “It’s time.”
Mufasa climbed slowly up the precipice of Pride Rock and when he reached the tip, paused for a moment. Then he lifted up his head and roared. It was a sad and terrible roar that rent the evening sky, and the lionesses joined in. The King was dead. Long live the King.
In the silence after the unearthly shout, Mufasa could hear his father’s voice speaking to him from the past. “It is always wonderful to be needed, especially when you always do your best to meet those needs. Someday you will know that feeling when I am gone.” Muffy sighed. “It doesn’t feel very wonderful, Dad. I wish you were here right now. There’s so much I want to tell you.”
Sarabi drew up alongside and sat by him, resting her head against his mane. “Let it out, Muffy. Quit trying to hold it in.”
Mufasa’s chin trembled. He tried to hold his composure, but tears welled up in his eyes. “They’re gone, Sassie. They’re gone! ” He leaned against her and sobbed.
SCENE: THE LIGHT IN HER EYES
As weeks passed, Sarabi began to show evidence of the life inside her. The other lionesses would coddle her and hang on her, suggesting male and female names. Among the most favored choices was “Shanni” for a female and “Simba” for a male. Simba was Ajenti’s idea, and it was an instant favorite. Never once did Taka wonder if it would be a male. He felt it was his destiny to fight an uphill battle until he gasped out his last breath. It would be male just to spite him.
Seeing the “light in her eyes” made him ill. It was the mark of Muffy’s passion—his brother’s final insult. He would look away when she passed to avoid seeing her in that condition. Once he sought to drown his sorrows in a night of loveless passion, but he was soundly rejected, even when he offered to take the vow. Once he was caught staring at Isha who was known to sun herself on the rocks in the most liquid poses of feminine beauty. His jaw trembled and his tail lashed from side to side as he dared to make love to her with his eyes. Yolanda, who was suspicious of Taka anyhow, caught him and threatened to go tell Isha. “She would break your lustful little carcass into tiny pieces.”
“She will understand. You’ve been jealous since we broke up.”
“What??”
“Night before last when you excused yourself from the hunt.”
“I was sick! ”
“You were love sick. Oh baby, the things you did weren’t in the talk my father gave me. Which one did you like best--naughty bunnies or the wildebeest’s revenge?”
Her eyes grew wide. “You dirty little liar! ”
“No worse than a dirty little snitch. Just try me and see if I won’t.”
The Isha incident was never referred to again. Indeed, Taka was wont to behave himself in public. And with Sarabi’s child coming closer to the sunlight every day, he stepped up his nocturnal dealings with the hyenas and took a whole new interest in the royal family.
Everyone experienced mixed joy and sadness when the big day came. The male cub was named Simba and his small sister was named Shanni. Shanni was weak and tiny, and she never even tasted her mother’s milk before she went to join the gods. Simba was strong and handsome, and he had enough strength for two cubs. His large paws and well formed features were admired by the relatives and close friends that caught first sight of him.
Taka came in his turn to look at the child. “He looks so much like his father, ” he said. Something Mufasa mistakenly took as a compliment. “You will live an interesting life.”
Though he had no doubt all along the cub would be male and an heir to the throne, seeing Simba with his own eyes was the final cement on his resolve. The cub was innocent, unaware of the resentment in his Uncle’s heart. And he was expendable.
Oddly enough, it was on this day that Taka first noticed how much Elanna was like her sister Sarabi. Only Elanna did not avoid him. In fact, she would speak to him without even being spoken to. She came to him smiling and asked, “Isn’t he a dream? I just know you’re going to spoil your little nephew.”
“Of course.” He looked in her eyes and half smiled. “But it’s a shame he didn’t have his mother’s eyes. Shaka’s daughters all had beautiful eyes.”
She smiled shyly. “Well Ahadi’s sons aren’t so bad looking either.”
“Hmph! ” He straightened a little and began to groom his mane. When she left, he watched her till she disappeared in the tall grass.
Ahadi’s name brought back a stinging pain that finally overtook his good mood. And a little shame began to creep into the darkness of his heart as the wondered what Ahadi and Akase would think of his plans. Simba was the grandson they did not live to see. No doubt they would have loved him. For a moment, but only for a moment, he reflected on the small cub gilded with the glory of sunrise who wanted to divide the kingdom with his brother. “No, Muffy, ” Taka said under his breath. “Dad was right. There can only be one King in this land.” The mood brought mist to his eyes. “Father, if only you had chosen me. Damn Rafiki! Damn the nurse that gave him milk! Someday I will kill him, but not all at once. I’ll destroy him a little bit at a time the way he destroyed me.”
The words of hate hardened his heart. He drew away to the lair of the hyenas to bring news of Simba’s birth and to plan his death.
SCENE: ONE DAY TOO LONG
Over the next three months, Simba grew from a small mite that slept most of the day to a joyful, exuberant toddler. He had his moments that could try the patience of a tree, but his heart was good, and his charm didn’t invite love—it practically demanded it. Nala also fell under his spell, following him everywhere like a puppy.
Then suddenly, as a tree is struck by lightning, Scar came wild-eyed with horrible news of a stampede in the gorge. Simba was in trouble.
Trouble indeed! Taka nearly wretched as he described the small battered body that lay in the dust. Those eyes so full of innocence and love for all Aiheu’s creation staring lifeless at the sky with the final look of horror fixed in them forever! Taka spoke all the earmarks of genuine grief—no one suspected him of harboring ill will toward the golden child of his brother. Often Simba was seen sleeping under the protection of his Uncle’s watchful gaze. It was at those moments that even the most skeptical lionesses looked at Taka with some tolerance.
Nala huddled by Sarafina, sobbing. Sarabi tried to think one minute ahead, even one second, but she could see no future, even her next meal. She contemplated curling up and sleeping, never to wake up again. Yet things were not so simple in real life as they are in wishful thinking.
Rafiki came running up Pride Rock. He saw the hyenas and did not know what to make of it. Going into the cave, he says, “Mufasa, I heard the cry. Who is dead? Old Maloki?”
“No. Not old Maloki.”
“Taka?” Rafiki looks around. “Where is your brother?”
“My brother is dead. So is Simba. There was a stampede in the gorge.”
“Oh my gods! ” The shock made him weak in the knees. “Aiheu, I have lived one day too long! ” The old mandrill could barely stumble out of the cave. He saw Sarabi, her head hung low and her ears fallen flat. “Sassie, is it true? Tell me it isn’t true! ”
She turned to look at him, her jaw trembling. “Rafiki, how good of you to come.”
He fell to his knees, put his arms around her neck and wept on her shoulder. “My precious little girl. Oh, my heart breaks—it breaks, yet I do not die! ”
Sarabi turned and touched his cheek with her tongue. “You are an ape, and yet you are also a lion. You must say prayers for me, old friend. My heart lies in the gorge, yet the sun goes on rising and setting. I wish I had been there to greet Aiheu with them.”
“You are needed here, so you remain. I do not understand, I only acknowledge.”
“Pray for me.”
“Indeed I will, Sassie.” He kissed her. “Morning and evening, and night.” He placed his hand on her brow. “Oh gods, let your hearts be moved. Take pity on her in her time of loss. Open your arms of love and feed her with the blood of mercy....”
“Rafiki, ” said a hyena. “The King wants a word with you—right now.”
The mandrill looked up in shock. He tried to pull himself together. “Did you say the King?” He took up his staff and tried to stand as straight as he could, but it was a little harder just then. He was escorted into what was now Scar’s cave and faced Taka and his guards.
“It is a sad duty I ask you to perform, ” Taka said. “You once said my road would be long and hard. Now I am King, but I cannot enjoy it. It is an obligation I must fulfill, and I seek divine guidance to carry out the job wisely and well. Give me your blessing.”
Rafiki stood closer to Taka. He did not know, of course, that his brother’s blood was on his paws. But when he looked into Taka’s eyes, he saw no sadness. He saw only the glint of triumph there, and it made him feel ill. “This blessing I bestow. May the gods in the heavens give you what you richly deserve. May you find as much inner peace as you are entitled to. May you receive mercy in the measure you bestow it, no less and no more.”
“I’ll choose to take that as a compliment, ” Taka said, patting Rafiki’s cheek gently, then giving him a blow that sent him into the wall. “You twisted little ape. It was your words that brought us to this. I hate you. Your painted face sickens me.” Taka nodded, and the two hyena guards stood on either side of Rafiki. “You are corban. For the rest of your life you will remain within two hundred strides of your tree except with an escort of hyenas to take you to the watering hole, and only when I am not there. For the next time we meet, you will surely die. Krull, take charge.”
Taka shoved the staff back at Rafiki. Then the mandrill took his staff and picked himself up. As he left Pride Rock for what seemed to be the last time, he cast a longing glance at Sarabi. “Perhaps you will say a prayer for me too?”
The lionesses watched his exit. It was the final injury on top of all griefs. Only Elanna who could see no evil in Taka thought there must be a good reason for his confinement. She went into his cave humbling herself, laying on her back and reaching out. “I touch your mane.”
“I feel it. Rise up, my dear.”
“Your heart is dear to me, even when it is broken.”
“And you have come to comfort me?” Taka was genuinely moved. He saw in her trusting eyes the love that once Sarabi had born for her. Risking all, he reached out and touched her shoulder. She purred deeply. “Tonight my brother lies dead by his son. The day we first make love must be a happy memory. Return in three days, and I will pledge myself to you.”
“Incosi aka Incosi, ” she said. “Great King.” Then she mouthed the word, “Beloved.”
Coming from a lioness, the phrase was liquid light, a thing of beauty. The hyenas that surrounded him were too full of flattery and manners. All fear and ambition, no real substance. Even those who were genuinely grateful could only excite the smallest fleeting pleasure. Only one hyena did he actually love, though he did love her enough to tolerate the rest.
Rafiki looked at the picture of Simba. “Poor child. Innocent and now dead because of me.” Sadly, he took his hand and wiped over the painting, smearing the mark of his anointing. “Somehow, some way, I will undo this evil. I swear I will never stop trying till death takes me.”
SCENE: GOOD HELP IS HARD TO FIND
Rafiki sulked in his confinement. His home that had always seemed so large was now cramped--almost claustrophobic. He could still heal wounds and fevers under the close supervision of his guards. Casual visitors were rudely turned away.
It wasn’t long before the Pride Lands fell under an epidemic of sprains, bruises and coughs. The guards suspected that most were well-wishers, but they had no way to prove which ones were. His dwindling supplies of herbs would soon solve that problem anyhow, as he was not allowed to gather things beyond the boundaries of his restriction.
Rafiki despaired. Unless Aiheu sent him a way, he could quickly find himself without healing powers, a useless relic left over from happier days. He took some of his precious remaining ochre and painted an eye of Aiheu on the wall of his hollow tree. “Watch over me, Lord. I know in your good time there will be an answer to my problems.”
He had just finished his prayer when something happened to change his whole outlook. Krull, the leader of his hyena guard, came in complaining of a runny eye. “If you are good as your friends say you are, it won’t matter that I am a hyena.”
“I don’t know about good, ” Rafiki said. “But it does not matter what you are, as long as you feel suffering.”
“Why does Scar hate you so?”
“Hasn’t he told you?”
“Let’s say for now that he has not. What would you tell me?”
“I would tell you that I am partly to blame. I had toyed with powers I did not fully understand, and given a foothold to the curse that burns him.”
“Hfff! Honest little chap, aren’t you! And yet a half truth is like a half-carcass--it can be dragged twice as far. Tell me about this curse--help me to understand it.”
“The words alone are corban. If they are spoken aloud, they would rot your bones, but I may whisper it to you.”
Coming from the back, Rafiki leaned over and drew close to his ear. “What I do, ” he whispered, “is what I have to do.” Quickly Rafiki grabbed Krull’s forearm and pinched one of the nerves. With his other hand, he grabbed his muzzle to stifle a shriek of pain. The hyena struggled and whined, but Rafiki’s hold was secure. The jaws that closed so powerfully had weak muscles to open them, and Krull was not able to make more than a stifled moan. “Listen to me and listen well. When I release your jaw, the first words I want to hear are ‘I swear by my god that I will be your loyal servant.’ Agreed?”
The hyena struggled again, but whimpered pitifully as Rafiki tightened his hold. “I hate violence. I hate to cause pain, but by my gods I can and will kill you if you refuse me.”
The hyena relaxed a little and moaned again. Rafiki let loose his jaw.
“I swear by Aiheu that I will be your loyal servant.”
“You don’t believe in Aiheu. You will swear by Roh’kash.”
“I swear by Roh’kash! For God’s sake, let go of me! ”
Rafiki let go of him and rubbed the sore spot on the hyena’s shoulder. “Now I have need of an escort from time to time. I do not plan to stay cooped up in this tree like a woodpecker for the rest of my life. I need my herbs, and I need my sustenance. I must get Alba to nurse the wounded. You treat me well, and I will make you thank your Roh’kash for the day you met me. I am not evil. I will do nothing to harm you.” He got some ointment. “Now about that eye problem. Old Rafiki will fix you up in a jif, as I promised.”
SCENE: A VISITOR FROM THE EAST
SCENE: YOUNG MABATU
SCENE: AFFAIRS OF THE HEART
SCENE: SHIMBEKH
“Cut that out, you wicked lion! ”
“I’m your husband. I can touch you anywhere I want.”
“Well I’m your wife, you know. It works both ways.” She cuffed him lightly in the ribs.
“Ow! That hurt! ”
“I’ll make it feel better.” She kissed him and began to fondle his mane with her paw. “What did I ever do to deserve such happiness?”
Taka’s heart came into his mouth. He ran from the meadow, plunging through the shrubs and breasting the tall savanna grass. The evil sun of midday scorched him with fire. Everything was ugly. All that was real was his hate. Hate for the creature that his brother had evolved into. Hate for Sarabi. Hate for life itself.
In his flight, he flushed out a rabbit. With a couple of strides, he closed the distance, and he sprang on the hapless creature, pinning it to the ground with his large paws.
In ice cold terror, the rabbit stared up into the red eyes of rage. “Oh gods, ” it murmered. “Oh gods. Please let me go! Please! ”
“He thinks he’s so cute, touching her there.” His eyes narrowed. “I’ll kill him. So help me God, I’ll kill him! ”
The rabbit trembled violently in the suffocating embrace of Taka’s paws. “I’m not much of a meal. Oh gods, I’m going to die! Oh gods, oh gods! Please don’t hurt me! ”
“Do you know what I do to scum like that? Dirty sneaking filth that steals what is rightfully mine?” Taka moved his face to within an inch of the rabbit. His breath, pregnant with lion scent, colored his every word. “I wait for the right moment, then I rip them like a gazelle.”
Taka closed in. The rabbit barely had time to shriek before it was stove clear through by lion fangs. Taka raised his head, tossed the blood-drenched trophy up and let it fall lifeless into the grass. “Like a gazelle! I’ll rip him open, so help me! ”
Meanwhile, things were quickly going from bad to worse with the King. The next morning, Akase found Ahadi feverish.
“Get them out of here! ” he said. “Get them out of here! ”
“Get what out of here?”
“Just get them out of here! ” He staggered back against the wall of the cave and with his back covered, looked around in a panic. “Akase! Stand by me, quickly! I’ll protect you! ”
Akase took her paw and patted his face. “Ahadi, darling! It’s all right! You’re safe.”
“Safe?” he said, his eyes not focusing well. “Where’s Akase? I have to drive hyenas off the Pride Lands.” Beads of sweat had matted his splendid mane. “I’m so tired. Hyenas—they always seem to know when I’m tired. Let down your guard for one minute...”
“Please lie down. The hyenas are gone. Mufasa chased them out.”
“Mufasa? He’s such a good boy. Where is he?”
Akase ran to the entrance of the cave. “Zazu! For God’s sake, come quickly! ”
Zazu fluttered in. “What’s wrong, your majesty?”
Ahadi looked up. “We must rest here for a moment. Got to get out of the sun—I’m so hot. Taka, you go on without me.” Ahadi turned to face Zazu, but looked right through him. “What do they think they’re doing? Isha, your cubs are muddying the water hole again! ”
“Oh my Lord, ” Zazu whispered. “I’ll fetch Rafiki.”
Zazu headed out right away, as fast as his wings would carry him. She lay next to Ahadi’s burning skin and kissed his cheek. “I love you, darling. Help is on the way. Can you hear me, Ahadi? Do you know who I am?”
Ahadi began to pant quickly and shallowly, but he moved his large paw on top of Akase’s. “I think I’ll take a nap, old girl. Will you stay by me?”
“Always, honey! Always! ” She added in a whisper, “Gods, make them hurry. I feel so helpless. Help us.”
It seemed to take an eternity for Rafiki to reach the cave, though the did the best he could. Rafiki arrived out of breath with a small pouch of powdered Chi’pim and his staff.
Rafiki took some water from the cistern, mixed the leaves in it, and gave Ahadi the broth to bring down his fever and bring him to himself. After Ahadi drank it, he checked his eyes, even pulling up a little on his eyelids. He stuck his thumb in the corner of his mouth and felt around. Then he listened to his chest. His face was grave.
He took Akase to the back of the cave. “Has he had trouble sleeping lately?”
“Yes.”
“And the muscle stiffness?”
“He told you about that?”
“No. I’m afraid not. It’s a symptom of Koh’suul.” He whispered, "When he comes to himself, take him across the savanna to the edge of the forest."
"Where to?"
"The most appropriate place. The fever will subside, and he'll have a couple of hours of clear thinking. But my dear, you must hurry. He will not live to see the moon tonight."
"Oh gods, no! "
"Hsssh! "
"You're a shaman, " she whispered, but every bit as urgent as a scream. "Can't you do something? Anything? I can't let death take him from me! I just can't! "
He looked in her eyes, pulling down the lid gently with his thumb. "Don't worry, in his own way Aiheu has shown you mercy.” He silently traced a circle around her right eye with his fingertips and touched her under the chin. He wanted her to know she would soon look on the face of God and call Him by name. “Two, maybe three days alone. Use that time to prepare yourself.”
"Oh." She nodded, and warm tears trickled down her cheeks. “I understand. Aiheu is merciful. But if I could have only seen my grandchild first. You must send my love to the child.”
He wiped away her tears. "Say good bye to no one, not if you really love them. You must not drink from the common watering hole or the stream till you have crossed the meadow. You must not stop to relieve yourself until you have found the place. I will have to purge this cave before it is safe." He kissed her. "Is there anything you want me to tell Mufasa?"
"No, just say good bye for me." She sighed. "Poor Taka, I would not live long enough to say what is in my heart. Promise me you will try and look after him. He is so dependent. Promise me you'll look after him."
"I promise I will do what I can."
"Whispering about me behind my back, old girl?" It was Ahadi, much improved.
"I was just telling Rafiki about the surprise. You haven't felt well, and now that the medicine is helping you, you can take a little trip with me to see something special."
"Yes, I am much improved. I won't have to be dragged out, and that is a pleasant surprise. Don't think I didn't know my time was up. Death has been stalking me--now it rushes in for the kill." He regarded her gently. "He gave you the marks of Aiheu. I take it old girl that we are in this together?"
"As always." She nuzzled him gently.
Ahadi said, “Rafiki, you must tell my son Taka that I made a mistake.”
“Sire?”
“Once I killed a badger. It was not male as I had said. She had pups.” He sighed. “She attacked my son to only protect her own children. I was trying to prove that I loved Taka, and I broke one of my own laws. I cannot face Aiheu with this secret on my conscience.”
“I’ll tell him.” A tear rolled down Rafiki’s face. “I’m sure you die forgiven. I touch your mane.”
“I feel it. And friend, tell him to keep looking. He’ll know what that means.”
“I will.” Rafiki took a small flint knife from his pouch. He approached Ahadi and took a few strands of his mane, cutting off a short lock, kissing it, and putting it in his pouch. Then he placed the marks of Aiheu on Ahadi. “It is time.”
Ahadi and Akase left the cave for the last time and climbed down the side of Pride Rock. Without a word they took the most direct route away from the comfort of their dwelling and forded into the silent grass.
With a heavy heart, Rafiki gathered dead grass from the savanna and made a pile of it in the middle of the cave. He put ferns on top of it and a sprinkling of powdered Alba. Then he took a clay pot, and emptied from it a few glowing coals on the tinder.
The coals satisfied their great hunger, raising a cloud of smoke that quickly filled the cave with its bitter incense. The smoke sought the heavens, but it found the ceiling of the cave and spread out gray fingers to feel for an opening. At last it found the door, and began to rise free into the sapphire sky.
"Fire! Fire! " It was Taka. He rushed into the cave, coughing and wheezing at the smoke. “Is anyone in here?”
"You must leave, " Rafiki said.
"You foolish ape! What do you think you are doing?? Have you lost your mind?? When Mom and Dad see this, they will cuff you senseless! "
"They will never see this, " Rafiki said. "It was the Koh'suul. Flee. You are in great danger here."
"Koh'suul?" Taka's eyes widened. "But that’s fatal. You mean Dad is dying? Does Mom know?"
"Akase has gone with him."
"Hffff! ” He stiffened up. “She was well. I saw her this morning. She was well! What do you mean she has gone with him? Without telling me?? She’ll catch it too! Where is she??"
"You cannot see her. It would be death to you. I'm sorry, but she had it when I got here. Death had already placed his mark on her."
"But I must see her! " He pounced on Rafiki and held him to the floor of the cave with his paws. "Tell me where she is or I'll crush the life out of you! "
"Your mother made me promise to care for you. If you must kill me, you must. "
Taka looked confused, sad, and finally released Rafiki. He turned and sat facing the wall. “Sassie doesn’t love me. My brother doesn’t love me. The gods don’t love me. All I had left was here. Now I’m alone. They are killing me one small piece at a time. This time they killed my heart.” He trembled. “I walk, I speak, yet I am dead inside. Dead.”
"There must be something I can do, " Rafiki said, getting up.
"Haven't you done enough?"
"That's not fair, Taka. When I was young, my mother died of Beh'to. Before the end, she was banging her head on a tree, trying to force the headache out. I watched her die in the most dire agony. That's when I knew I must be a shaman. I would never have to feel so helpless again.”
“Then why not help them?”
“As my knowledge grew, every answer raised new questions. I cannot heal every wound. So more important than my herbs and spells is knowing something to say to comfort the Ka when these bodies of Ma'at crumble."
"Then say something comforting to me."
He stroked Taka's mane. "I think about the prophesy. I think about it a lot. Oh, I knew where I wanted to be and what I wanted to do in a year, in five years, in ten. Now I am committed to fight this thing. All my hopes and dreams have been turned upside down. In this way we are alike, my friend. Our childhood dreams are over. The morning has come and we awake to face reality in the light of the sun. Let us find something real in the sunlight, something that pleases us, and hold on to it. All else is vanity."
"You are a foolish ape, " Taka said. "But even a fool may say the right thing at times."
With that, Taka stalked quietly away to some secret place to be alone. His absences had become more and more frequent as his life fell apart. The loss of his father was a terrible blow, but after the death of Akase he was never the same again. Mother she was, friend, and ally. It would be fair to say she was his conscience, his goodness, his faith in the gods. All of these things and more.
Hours passed with no sign of him. Mufasa and Sarabi in the midst of their deep grief gave him some thought and tried to find his private world of brooding depression and nuzzle him. They could not find him, but Yolanda would later say that a one eyed hyena and her brood was sitting next to him near the elephant graveyard as he wept like a baby. No one believed her story—it was too improbable. She must have seen poor Ahadi. Even though Yolanda said it was a dark maned lion she saw.
Later that evening as Mufasa was asking Rafiki’s help in finding Taka, Zazu came flying back.
“News? Have you found my brother?”
Zazu said, “Your father....” His head bowed and he sighed deeply. “Have courage, Your Majesty.”
Rafiki came and put his arms around Muffy and whispered, “It’s time.”
Mufasa climbed slowly up the precipice of Pride Rock and when he reached the tip, paused for a moment. Then he lifted up his head and roared. It was a sad and terrible roar that rent the evening sky, and the lionesses joined in. The King was dead. Long live the King.
In the silence after the unearthly shout, Mufasa could hear his father’s voice speaking to him from the past. “It is always wonderful to be needed, especially when you always do your best to meet those needs. Someday you will know that feeling when I am gone.” Muffy sighed. “It doesn’t feel very wonderful, Dad. I wish you were here right now. There’s so much I want to tell you.”
Sarabi drew up alongside and sat by him, resting her head against his mane. “Let it out, Muffy. Quit trying to hold it in.”
Mufasa’s chin trembled. He tried to hold his composure, but tears welled up in his eyes. “They’re gone, Sassie. They’re gone! ” He leaned against her and sobbed.
SCENE: THE LIGHT IN HER EYES
“Then Herod told them ‘Go to Bethlehem and search for the child. And when you find him, come back and tell me so that I may go and worship him as well.”
-- MATTHEW 2, VERSES 7-8
As weeks passed, Sarabi began to show evidence of the life inside her. The other lionesses would coddle her and hang on her, suggesting male and female names. Among the most favored choices was “Shanni” for a female and “Simba” for a male. Simba was Ajenti’s idea, and it was an instant favorite. Never once did Taka wonder if it would be a male. He felt it was his destiny to fight an uphill battle until he gasped out his last breath. It would be male just to spite him.
Seeing the “light in her eyes” made him ill. It was the mark of Muffy’s passion—his brother’s final insult. He would look away when she passed to avoid seeing her in that condition. Once he sought to drown his sorrows in a night of loveless passion, but he was soundly rejected, even when he offered to take the vow. Once he was caught staring at Isha who was known to sun herself on the rocks in the most liquid poses of feminine beauty. His jaw trembled and his tail lashed from side to side as he dared to make love to her with his eyes. Yolanda, who was suspicious of Taka anyhow, caught him and threatened to go tell Isha. “She would break your lustful little carcass into tiny pieces.”
“She will understand. You’ve been jealous since we broke up.”
“What??”
“Night before last when you excused yourself from the hunt.”
“I was sick! ”
“You were love sick. Oh baby, the things you did weren’t in the talk my father gave me. Which one did you like best--naughty bunnies or the wildebeest’s revenge?”
Her eyes grew wide. “You dirty little liar! ”
“No worse than a dirty little snitch. Just try me and see if I won’t.”
The Isha incident was never referred to again. Indeed, Taka was wont to behave himself in public. And with Sarabi’s child coming closer to the sunlight every day, he stepped up his nocturnal dealings with the hyenas and took a whole new interest in the royal family.
Everyone experienced mixed joy and sadness when the big day came. The male cub was named Simba and his small sister was named Shanni. Shanni was weak and tiny, and she never even tasted her mother’s milk before she went to join the gods. Simba was strong and handsome, and he had enough strength for two cubs. His large paws and well formed features were admired by the relatives and close friends that caught first sight of him.
Taka came in his turn to look at the child. “He looks so much like his father, ” he said. Something Mufasa mistakenly took as a compliment. “You will live an interesting life.”
Though he had no doubt all along the cub would be male and an heir to the throne, seeing Simba with his own eyes was the final cement on his resolve. The cub was innocent, unaware of the resentment in his Uncle’s heart. And he was expendable.
Oddly enough, it was on this day that Taka first noticed how much Elanna was like her sister Sarabi. Only Elanna did not avoid him. In fact, she would speak to him without even being spoken to. She came to him smiling and asked, “Isn’t he a dream? I just know you’re going to spoil your little nephew.”
“Of course.” He looked in her eyes and half smiled. “But it’s a shame he didn’t have his mother’s eyes. Shaka’s daughters all had beautiful eyes.”
She smiled shyly. “Well Ahadi’s sons aren’t so bad looking either.”
“Hmph! ” He straightened a little and began to groom his mane. When she left, he watched her till she disappeared in the tall grass.
Ahadi’s name brought back a stinging pain that finally overtook his good mood. And a little shame began to creep into the darkness of his heart as the wondered what Ahadi and Akase would think of his plans. Simba was the grandson they did not live to see. No doubt they would have loved him. For a moment, but only for a moment, he reflected on the small cub gilded with the glory of sunrise who wanted to divide the kingdom with his brother. “No, Muffy, ” Taka said under his breath. “Dad was right. There can only be one King in this land.” The mood brought mist to his eyes. “Father, if only you had chosen me. Damn Rafiki! Damn the nurse that gave him milk! Someday I will kill him, but not all at once. I’ll destroy him a little bit at a time the way he destroyed me.”
The words of hate hardened his heart. He drew away to the lair of the hyenas to bring news of Simba’s birth and to plan his death.
SCENE: ONE DAY TOO LONG
“Mufasa's death was a terrible tragedy; but to lose Simba who had barely begun to live.... For me, it is a deep, personal loss. And so it is with a heavy heart that I assume the throne. Yet, out of the ashes of this tragedy, we shall rise to greet the dawning of a new era in which lion and hyena come together, in a great and glorious future.”
-- TAKA’S ELEGY
Over the next three months, Simba grew from a small mite that slept most of the day to a joyful, exuberant toddler. He had his moments that could try the patience of a tree, but his heart was good, and his charm didn’t invite love—it practically demanded it. Nala also fell under his spell, following him everywhere like a puppy.
Then suddenly, as a tree is struck by lightning, Scar came wild-eyed with horrible news of a stampede in the gorge. Simba was in trouble.
Trouble indeed! Taka nearly wretched as he described the small battered body that lay in the dust. Those eyes so full of innocence and love for all Aiheu’s creation staring lifeless at the sky with the final look of horror fixed in them forever! Taka spoke all the earmarks of genuine grief—no one suspected him of harboring ill will toward the golden child of his brother. Often Simba was seen sleeping under the protection of his Uncle’s watchful gaze. It was at those moments that even the most skeptical lionesses looked at Taka with some tolerance.
Nala huddled by Sarafina, sobbing. Sarabi tried to think one minute ahead, even one second, but she could see no future, even her next meal. She contemplated curling up and sleeping, never to wake up again. Yet things were not so simple in real life as they are in wishful thinking.
Rafiki came running up Pride Rock. He saw the hyenas and did not know what to make of it. Going into the cave, he says, “Mufasa, I heard the cry. Who is dead? Old Maloki?”
“No. Not old Maloki.”
“Taka?” Rafiki looks around. “Where is your brother?”
“My brother is dead. So is Simba. There was a stampede in the gorge.”
“Oh my gods! ” The shock made him weak in the knees. “Aiheu, I have lived one day too long! ” The old mandrill could barely stumble out of the cave. He saw Sarabi, her head hung low and her ears fallen flat. “Sassie, is it true? Tell me it isn’t true! ”
She turned to look at him, her jaw trembling. “Rafiki, how good of you to come.”
He fell to his knees, put his arms around her neck and wept on her shoulder. “My precious little girl. Oh, my heart breaks—it breaks, yet I do not die! ”
Sarabi turned and touched his cheek with her tongue. “You are an ape, and yet you are also a lion. You must say prayers for me, old friend. My heart lies in the gorge, yet the sun goes on rising and setting. I wish I had been there to greet Aiheu with them.”
“You are needed here, so you remain. I do not understand, I only acknowledge.”
“Pray for me.”
“Indeed I will, Sassie.” He kissed her. “Morning and evening, and night.” He placed his hand on her brow. “Oh gods, let your hearts be moved. Take pity on her in her time of loss. Open your arms of love and feed her with the blood of mercy....”
“Rafiki, ” said a hyena. “The King wants a word with you—right now.”
The mandrill looked up in shock. He tried to pull himself together. “Did you say the King?” He took up his staff and tried to stand as straight as he could, but it was a little harder just then. He was escorted into what was now Scar’s cave and faced Taka and his guards.
“It is a sad duty I ask you to perform, ” Taka said. “You once said my road would be long and hard. Now I am King, but I cannot enjoy it. It is an obligation I must fulfill, and I seek divine guidance to carry out the job wisely and well. Give me your blessing.”
Rafiki stood closer to Taka. He did not know, of course, that his brother’s blood was on his paws. But when he looked into Taka’s eyes, he saw no sadness. He saw only the glint of triumph there, and it made him feel ill. “This blessing I bestow. May the gods in the heavens give you what you richly deserve. May you find as much inner peace as you are entitled to. May you receive mercy in the measure you bestow it, no less and no more.”
“I’ll choose to take that as a compliment, ” Taka said, patting Rafiki’s cheek gently, then giving him a blow that sent him into the wall. “You twisted little ape. It was your words that brought us to this. I hate you. Your painted face sickens me.” Taka nodded, and the two hyena guards stood on either side of Rafiki. “You are corban. For the rest of your life you will remain within two hundred strides of your tree except with an escort of hyenas to take you to the watering hole, and only when I am not there. For the next time we meet, you will surely die. Krull, take charge.”
Taka shoved the staff back at Rafiki. Then the mandrill took his staff and picked himself up. As he left Pride Rock for what seemed to be the last time, he cast a longing glance at Sarabi. “Perhaps you will say a prayer for me too?”
The lionesses watched his exit. It was the final injury on top of all griefs. Only Elanna who could see no evil in Taka thought there must be a good reason for his confinement. She went into his cave humbling herself, laying on her back and reaching out. “I touch your mane.”
“I feel it. Rise up, my dear.”
“Your heart is dear to me, even when it is broken.”
“And you have come to comfort me?” Taka was genuinely moved. He saw in her trusting eyes the love that once Sarabi had born for her. Risking all, he reached out and touched her shoulder. She purred deeply. “Tonight my brother lies dead by his son. The day we first make love must be a happy memory. Return in three days, and I will pledge myself to you.”
“Incosi aka Incosi, ” she said. “Great King.” Then she mouthed the word, “Beloved.”
Coming from a lioness, the phrase was liquid light, a thing of beauty. The hyenas that surrounded him were too full of flattery and manners. All fear and ambition, no real substance. Even those who were genuinely grateful could only excite the smallest fleeting pleasure. Only one hyena did he actually love, though he did love her enough to tolerate the rest.
ELANNA:Why can’t they see the one I see when others look at him?
His inner light is shining bright; why do they find it dim?
TAKA:I’ve seen that face through all my days, but now I see it new,
And all my dreams of hope and love begin to look like you.
CHOIR:There’s a renaissance of love here, a respite from an age of fearful darkness
Calling to the hopeless to enter the light.
There’s a wakening of spirits, a call to overcome the bonds of sadness
Shining with a fervor ecstatic and bright.
TAKA:Far over the hills coming in warm crimson splendor
The sun is preparing now to rise for us, to comfort us
And shine on our newborn love!
CHOIR:There’s a renaissance of hope here, a respite from an age of hopelessness
Wiping clean the bitterness borne of our tears.
There’s a wakening of spirits, a freedom from the bonds of loneliness
To comfort us and soothe away all of our fears.
Back in his baobab tree, Rafiki was thrust none too gently and warned by the overly enthusiastic guards that his life hung in the balance. He was too sad to be frightened of death, but he clung to life from some impulse Aiheu had breathed into his forefathers.
ELANNA:Come let the sun rise up with its gold joyful splendor
And light the golden face of my beloved one, to warm our hearts
And shine on our newborn love!
Rafiki looked at the picture of Simba. “Poor child. Innocent and now dead because of me.” Sadly, he took his hand and wiped over the painting, smearing the mark of his anointing. “Somehow, some way, I will undo this evil. I swear I will never stop trying till death takes me.”
SCENE: GOOD HELP IS HARD TO FIND
"In the third year of King Ramalah, there was a certain lioness named Alba the faithful. She was a servant of Queen Chakula from the time of her coming of age, and often times the Queen entrusted her with her two sons N'ga and Sufa. Once, when Chakula was aprowl, the earth shook, and the cave where Alba dwelled was closed with the twins inside. Five days it took to dig them out, and Chakula had no hope to find them alive. But when the cave was opened, N'ga and Sufa came out alive. Only Alba was dead. Because she was a dry lioness, she opened the deep veins of her arm to nurse them, that they might survive. It was from the spot she lay that the first flower grew that bears her name, red as the blood of mercy."
-- THE LEONID SAGA, “E” SECTION, VARIATION 5
Rafiki sulked in his confinement. His home that had always seemed so large was now cramped--almost claustrophobic. He could still heal wounds and fevers under the close supervision of his guards. Casual visitors were rudely turned away.
It wasn’t long before the Pride Lands fell under an epidemic of sprains, bruises and coughs. The guards suspected that most were well-wishers, but they had no way to prove which ones were. His dwindling supplies of herbs would soon solve that problem anyhow, as he was not allowed to gather things beyond the boundaries of his restriction.
Rafiki despaired. Unless Aiheu sent him a way, he could quickly find himself without healing powers, a useless relic left over from happier days. He took some of his precious remaining ochre and painted an eye of Aiheu on the wall of his hollow tree. “Watch over me, Lord. I know in your good time there will be an answer to my problems.”
He had just finished his prayer when something happened to change his whole outlook. Krull, the leader of his hyena guard, came in complaining of a runny eye. “If you are good as your friends say you are, it won’t matter that I am a hyena.”
“I don’t know about good, ” Rafiki said. “But it does not matter what you are, as long as you feel suffering.”
“Why does Scar hate you so?”
“Hasn’t he told you?”
“Let’s say for now that he has not. What would you tell me?”
“I would tell you that I am partly to blame. I had toyed with powers I did not fully understand, and given a foothold to the curse that burns him.”
“Hfff! Honest little chap, aren’t you! And yet a half truth is like a half-carcass--it can be dragged twice as far. Tell me about this curse--help me to understand it.”
“The words alone are corban. If they are spoken aloud, they would rot your bones, but I may whisper it to you.”
Coming from the back, Rafiki leaned over and drew close to his ear. “What I do, ” he whispered, “is what I have to do.” Quickly Rafiki grabbed Krull’s forearm and pinched one of the nerves. With his other hand, he grabbed his muzzle to stifle a shriek of pain. The hyena struggled and whined, but Rafiki’s hold was secure. The jaws that closed so powerfully had weak muscles to open them, and Krull was not able to make more than a stifled moan. “Listen to me and listen well. When I release your jaw, the first words I want to hear are ‘I swear by my god that I will be your loyal servant.’ Agreed?”
The hyena struggled again, but whimpered pitifully as Rafiki tightened his hold. “I hate violence. I hate to cause pain, but by my gods I can and will kill you if you refuse me.”
The hyena relaxed a little and moaned again. Rafiki let loose his jaw.
“I swear by Aiheu that I will be your loyal servant.”
“You don’t believe in Aiheu. You will swear by Roh’kash.”
“I swear by Roh’kash! For God’s sake, let go of me! ”
Rafiki let go of him and rubbed the sore spot on the hyena’s shoulder. “Now I have need of an escort from time to time. I do not plan to stay cooped up in this tree like a woodpecker for the rest of my life. I need my herbs, and I need my sustenance. I must get Alba to nurse the wounded. You treat me well, and I will make you thank your Roh’kash for the day you met me. I am not evil. I will do nothing to harm you.” He got some ointment. “Now about that eye problem. Old Rafiki will fix you up in a jif, as I promised.”
SCENE: A VISITOR FROM THE EAST
Taka did not prove to be a popular ruler. His unpopular standing was for far more than the coming of the hyenas, though they were universally despised. His insecurity was overwhelming, and he sought to fight all threats real and perceived with savage force. Still under it all, Taka wanted to be liked. He would sometimes whisper a tender word to a lioness—wanting only a friendly reply--only to be rebuffed or simply ignored. At those moments he was most dangerous, for he would sometimes fly into a rage in frustration and hurt. Soon they learned that he could be placated by simple pleasantries, and they would return his greetings and agree that the weather was indeed fine today. But the very deep resentment crept out through their tone of voice, and he eventually stopped trying to speak with them rather than wince at their insincerity.
When Taka had been ruler of the Pride Lands for a year, a lioness named Kako had come out of the east seeking asylum for herself and her unborn child. Taka saw in her someone whose opinion of him was not already poisoned, and he felt that she had the sympathy of the other lionesses. So with little deliberation, and that mostly for show, he invited her to stay.
Kako was suitably grateful. She went on the hunt with Uzuri, even though her condition was less than ideal, and that overlooking her advanced pregnancy.
One night they were hunting wildebeests when Kako fell in agony. She was attended by two other lionesses while the others went on with the chase. It was there in an open savanna that she gave birth.
Like most lionesses who are not of royal blood, Kako was praying for a female. There is no difference in the love of a mother for a son or daughter, but a daughter does not grow up to be a lion, and she can be the comfort of a mother’s old age. So Kako was both happy and sad when Isha cleaned off the child and said, “Mother, behold your son.” He was small and wet and his nose was pushed in, the sort of beauty a lion could not appreciate, but a lioness worshipped. “Come, my son.” She took the small child and placed it against her where it took its first meal under the starry heavens.
“He will be Mabatu, like his father.” That was the only part of her past that was not locked behind a door of silence.
When Taka had been ruler of the Pride Lands for a year, a lioness named Kako had come out of the east seeking asylum for herself and her unborn child. Taka saw in her someone whose opinion of him was not already poisoned, and he felt that she had the sympathy of the other lionesses. So with little deliberation, and that mostly for show, he invited her to stay.
Kako was suitably grateful. She went on the hunt with Uzuri, even though her condition was less than ideal, and that overlooking her advanced pregnancy.
One night they were hunting wildebeests when Kako fell in agony. She was attended by two other lionesses while the others went on with the chase. It was there in an open savanna that she gave birth.
Like most lionesses who are not of royal blood, Kako was praying for a female. There is no difference in the love of a mother for a son or daughter, but a daughter does not grow up to be a lion, and she can be the comfort of a mother’s old age. So Kako was both happy and sad when Isha cleaned off the child and said, “Mother, behold your son.” He was small and wet and his nose was pushed in, the sort of beauty a lion could not appreciate, but a lioness worshipped. “Come, my son.” She took the small child and placed it against her where it took its first meal under the starry heavens.
KAKO:Little one, small and soft as a new golden blossom
Little one, snuggled next to my heart,
Someday soon you’ll be grown and be off on adventures
But your journey is still at its start.
Isha came and touched the small infant with her tongue. “Isn’t he beautiful! What are you going to call him?”
Stay a while, don’t be rushed, let the world wait to own you
Life is short, do not flee, for I’ve only just known you
Love is here, take my heart, let my strong arms enthrone you
Child of mine, gift of God, little one!
“He will be Mabatu, like his father.” That was the only part of her past that was not locked behind a door of silence.
SCENE: YOUNG MABATU
Taka found that he could speak to Kako without being reviled, though Kako was not overly friendly in return. Still, Kako would speak her mind, and to get more than two words out of her was Taka’s one great pleasure outside of his mate Elanna.
When Mabatu’s eyes first opened, the first thing he saw was his mother. And the second thing he saw was Taka peering down at him with an elated grin. “Look at him! Isn’t he a looker! ”
During the days of Mabatu’s milk, Taka would save choice portions of the kills for Kako. Later he would bring Mabatu tempting tidbits to eat. Baba, as he was often called, found Taka more than an Uncle, for indeed he was like a father to the cub. Love was a rare commodity for Taka, and he begged for it from those who could and would feel for him. Indeed, when it suited him, Taka could be capable of great tenderness on his own terms and at his own times. This patronage frightened the other lionesses, who knew that the strength of his love was only matched by the strength of his hate. Those who had betrayed his love were as likely as not to end up dead.
Still, his care of Mabatu was his one shred of respectability that commanded respect from the lionesses. They even began to speak to him as he passed. He was so surprised to have someone ask HIM if the weather wasn’t divine that he suspected a joke at first. But little by little the pleasantries sounded more and more sincere. If it only wasn’t for the hyenas, he might have made some friends.
When Mabatu was three moons old, it rained heavily. That rain would be remembered for a long time because it was the last rain before the drought.
It took a while for the sun to bake the remaining water out of the soil and dry up the grass. Dry spells were frequent on the savanna and only to be expected. For the first week, no one was alarmed. A week later, some of the lionesses remarked on it before the hunt. But after four weeks without rain, hunting began to suffer. Little Baba was now four moons old, and his appetite was growing along with his body. His “Uncle” had to work harder to find enough for him to eat. Once when game was very scarce, Taka brought him a couple of large fish that had been stranded in a pool once part of the river. When Mabatu started to turn up his nose at them, Taka looked hurt and said, “But I caught them myself just for you.”
Baba tried one, and liking it quickly devoured it. He sniffed of the other, but looked up. “What are you going to eat?”
“I’ll find something.”
“Here.” He shoved the fish over to Taka. “You eat this one.”
Taka looked into Mabatu’s eyes. There was a quality about them that reminded him of young Simba. For a moment he experienced if not repentance at least a pang of regret. “What a kind thing to do, ” he said, nuzzling the cub. “I love you, Baba.”
“I love you too.”
There was no difference in Simba and Mabatu. Simba used to tell his Uncle, “I love you” from time to time. In his heart Taka swore from then on that only those who knew the evil they caused would die. He felt that he had saved Baba, and in doing so wiped out his guilt for killing Simba (for indeed he thought the cub was dead). Though he was unsure about Roh’kash and had turned his back on Aiheu, he still suffered a superstitious dread about what would happen to him when he breathed his last. Baba would be his atonement. Baba would be his salvation. Baba must live.
When Mabatu’s eyes first opened, the first thing he saw was his mother. And the second thing he saw was Taka peering down at him with an elated grin. “Look at him! Isn’t he a looker! ”
During the days of Mabatu’s milk, Taka would save choice portions of the kills for Kako. Later he would bring Mabatu tempting tidbits to eat. Baba, as he was often called, found Taka more than an Uncle, for indeed he was like a father to the cub. Love was a rare commodity for Taka, and he begged for it from those who could and would feel for him. Indeed, when it suited him, Taka could be capable of great tenderness on his own terms and at his own times. This patronage frightened the other lionesses, who knew that the strength of his love was only matched by the strength of his hate. Those who had betrayed his love were as likely as not to end up dead.
Still, his care of Mabatu was his one shred of respectability that commanded respect from the lionesses. They even began to speak to him as he passed. He was so surprised to have someone ask HIM if the weather wasn’t divine that he suspected a joke at first. But little by little the pleasantries sounded more and more sincere. If it only wasn’t for the hyenas, he might have made some friends.
When Mabatu was three moons old, it rained heavily. That rain would be remembered for a long time because it was the last rain before the drought.
It took a while for the sun to bake the remaining water out of the soil and dry up the grass. Dry spells were frequent on the savanna and only to be expected. For the first week, no one was alarmed. A week later, some of the lionesses remarked on it before the hunt. But after four weeks without rain, hunting began to suffer. Little Baba was now four moons old, and his appetite was growing along with his body. His “Uncle” had to work harder to find enough for him to eat. Once when game was very scarce, Taka brought him a couple of large fish that had been stranded in a pool once part of the river. When Mabatu started to turn up his nose at them, Taka looked hurt and said, “But I caught them myself just for you.”
Baba tried one, and liking it quickly devoured it. He sniffed of the other, but looked up. “What are you going to eat?”
“I’ll find something.”
“Here.” He shoved the fish over to Taka. “You eat this one.”
Taka looked into Mabatu’s eyes. There was a quality about them that reminded him of young Simba. For a moment he experienced if not repentance at least a pang of regret. “What a kind thing to do, ” he said, nuzzling the cub. “I love you, Baba.”
“I love you too.”
There was no difference in Simba and Mabatu. Simba used to tell his Uncle, “I love you” from time to time. In his heart Taka swore from then on that only those who knew the evil they caused would die. He felt that he had saved Baba, and in doing so wiped out his guilt for killing Simba (for indeed he thought the cub was dead). Though he was unsure about Roh’kash and had turned his back on Aiheu, he still suffered a superstitious dread about what would happen to him when he breathed his last. Baba would be his atonement. Baba would be his salvation. Baba must live.
SCENE: AFFAIRS OF THE HEART
Isha was very close to Kako and her son Mabatu. She worked hard to help them whenever she could. And they were not without gratitude.
One day when Isha came to take care of Mabatu while Kako went to see Rafiki, she told Isha, “You’re the sister I never had. What wonderful thing did I do to deserve you?”
Isha nuzzled her. “I was just wondering the same thing.”
“That’s the third time this month you’ve taken care of Mabatu for me. There must be something I can do in return.”
“I love the little fellow. I enjoy every moment we spend together.”
While Kako was gone, Isha thought she would just keep an eye on little Baba, but it turned out he wanted to be more involved. So they wrestled. Mabatu was too young to make headway with a fully grown lioness, especially not an accomplished huntress like Isha. She tried hard not to win too badly.
Mabatu was quick, if nothing else. She was surprised to find herself off balance when she was not planning it. He pounced on her stomach and giggled. “Gotcha! ”
After he let her up, she dusted herself off and said, “I’ll get you next time, you little rat fink.”
He kissed her cheek and said, “I love you.”
“I love you too.”
He smiled broadly. “Are you married?”
She laughed, a little embarrased. “No. But maybe someday the right lion will come along.”
In a shy voice, he said, “When I grow up, I want to marry you.”
She laughed again.
“Please don’t laugh at me. I meant it.”
“I wasn’t laughing at you. It was just such a sweet thing to say. I wasn’t expecting it, that’s all.”
“You’re not mad?”
“No.” She kissed him. “It was the nicest proposal I’ve ever heard, and I’ve heard quite a few.” She pulled him over with her paw. “Time for your bath, squirt.”
Mabatu did not raise the usual objections. When she cleaned his fur, he purred quietly.
Later that day as the lionesses gathered for the hunt, Uzuri came to Isha with a broad smile on her face. “Congratulations! ”
“On what?”
“On the big event. Mabatu just told me the good news.” She laughed, something Uzuri didn’t often do.
Embarrased, Isha asked her, “Who else did he tell?”
“I don’t know. But I’d catch him quickly if I were you.”
“I’ll have a little talk with him.” Isha thought a moment and burst out laughing. “He asked me if I was married. The little rat fink, I should have known what he was up to! ”
One day when Isha came to take care of Mabatu while Kako went to see Rafiki, she told Isha, “You’re the sister I never had. What wonderful thing did I do to deserve you?”
Isha nuzzled her. “I was just wondering the same thing.”
“That’s the third time this month you’ve taken care of Mabatu for me. There must be something I can do in return.”
“I love the little fellow. I enjoy every moment we spend together.”
While Kako was gone, Isha thought she would just keep an eye on little Baba, but it turned out he wanted to be more involved. So they wrestled. Mabatu was too young to make headway with a fully grown lioness, especially not an accomplished huntress like Isha. She tried hard not to win too badly.
Mabatu was quick, if nothing else. She was surprised to find herself off balance when she was not planning it. He pounced on her stomach and giggled. “Gotcha! ”
After he let her up, she dusted herself off and said, “I’ll get you next time, you little rat fink.”
He kissed her cheek and said, “I love you.”
“I love you too.”
He smiled broadly. “Are you married?”
She laughed, a little embarrased. “No. But maybe someday the right lion will come along.”
In a shy voice, he said, “When I grow up, I want to marry you.”
She laughed again.
“Please don’t laugh at me. I meant it.”
“I wasn’t laughing at you. It was just such a sweet thing to say. I wasn’t expecting it, that’s all.”
“You’re not mad?”
“No.” She kissed him. “It was the nicest proposal I’ve ever heard, and I’ve heard quite a few.” She pulled him over with her paw. “Time for your bath, squirt.”
Mabatu did not raise the usual objections. When she cleaned his fur, he purred quietly.
Later that day as the lionesses gathered for the hunt, Uzuri came to Isha with a broad smile on her face. “Congratulations! ”
“On what?”
“On the big event. Mabatu just told me the good news.” She laughed, something Uzuri didn’t often do.
Embarrased, Isha asked her, “Who else did he tell?”
“I don’t know. But I’d catch him quickly if I were you.”
“I’ll have a little talk with him.” Isha thought a moment and burst out laughing. “He asked me if I was married. The little rat fink, I should have known what he was up to! ”
SCENE: SHIMBEKH
Among the hyenas, there were several seers, but few that could compare to Shimbekh. She was said to have the ear of Roh’kash, and her words were never taken lightly.
Without Rafiki to give his guidance to Pride Rock, Taka relied on her judgment to make all his important decisions. Of course, this was of great interest to Shenzi, who saw in it a way to secure control over Taka and virtually rule the Pride Lands.
Shimbeck was always surrounded by questioning throngs, for everyone wanted her wisdom. But her personal friends were few. Like most seers, she never married. The dark and frightening aspects of the future were a large obstacle to her being seen as a friend. And for most hyenas, Shimbeck and the future were inseparable, as if the unseen had taken on a familiar form to stalk among them.
Makhpil, a shy but talented seer was only an adolescent. But she clung to Shimbeck for comfort. Her own parents were afraid of her, though they had no reason to be. So Shimbeck was both mother and father to Makhpil, and Shimbeck loved her appropriately. They had both faced the future, and it could not come between them.
Prophesy is a two-edged sword—it cuts both ways. Shenzi, at first unable to make Shimbeck lie, convinced her to tell only the truth that helped the hyena cause. A half truth is like a half carcass; it can be dragged twice as far.
Both Shimbekh and Makpil knew that a seer who lied was a seer no more. The gods would take the truth from those who would not use it. And for a long time, Shenzi only encouraged Shimbekh to manipulate the truth for it would be a shame to lose her rare talent. Somehow Shimbekh’s personal feelings never entered into Shenzi’s mind, and Shimbekh was all too aware of that.
Then came a time months later when Shimbekh had made so many compromises that Shenzi could blackmail her. Shenzi wanted Shimbekh to come to her private quarters, this time without Makpil. And when she had her alone, she said, “You will tell Scar that it is folly to leave Pride Rock. You will tell him that the day he attempts to go, he will die.”
“My Lord Roh’mach, the gods do not say it. A seer is a servant of the Lord. To lie is blasphemy.”
Shenzi smiles coyly. “Is it really blasphemy when the greater good depends on it?”
“You mean YOUR greater good depends on it.”
“Whatever.” Shenzi comes up beside her and pats her lightly on the cheek. “I wouldn’t want to be you Honey Bun, not when Scar finds out how far you stretched the truth.”
“On YOUR orders.”
“Little old me?” Shenzi smiled wickedly. “Would I ask you to lie to my King? For shame! ”
Shimbekh says “You wouldn’t dare tempt the gods.”
“Oh yes I would. Taka’s superstitions are his downfall. I believe in what works, and this works. Play the game by my rules, and you’ll have no reason to frown. Refuse me, and you won’t be able to frown.”
Shimbekh says, “Well I have one prediction for you. This path leads toward defeat. You do not scratch dirt at the gods and profit by it.”
“Are you threatening me??”
“No. You threaten yourself. We all pay for our own sins, Roh’mach. I will pay for mine, but you will pay for yours.” The seer looks at her closely before going. “I will pray for you.”
“You just do that. But first, you see Scar.”
She walks out. Going in to see the King, she bowed deeply. It took all her nerve to keep from trembling. “My Lord, King of Kings, I have something to report.”
“Yes?”
“It is Pride Rock, Your Majesty. It is the source of your life. If you flee, it will mean your death.”
“Oh?” Taka’s ears perked up. “My death?”
“Yes, Sire. Game is scarce, and rain is sparce, but if you are faithful and remain, the rain will fall and the game will return.”
Without Rafiki to give his guidance to Pride Rock, Taka relied on her judgment to make all his important decisions. Of course, this was of great interest to Shenzi, who saw in it a way to secure control over Taka and virtually rule the Pride Lands.
Shimbeck was always surrounded by questioning throngs, for everyone wanted her wisdom. But her personal friends were few. Like most seers, she never married. The dark and frightening aspects of the future were a large obstacle to her being seen as a friend. And for most hyenas, Shimbeck and the future were inseparable, as if the unseen had taken on a familiar form to stalk among them.
Makhpil, a shy but talented seer was only an adolescent. But she clung to Shimbeck for comfort. Her own parents were afraid of her, though they had no reason to be. So Shimbeck was both mother and father to Makhpil, and Shimbeck loved her appropriately. They had both faced the future, and it could not come between them.
Prophesy is a two-edged sword—it cuts both ways. Shenzi, at first unable to make Shimbeck lie, convinced her to tell only the truth that helped the hyena cause. A half truth is like a half carcass; it can be dragged twice as far.
Both Shimbekh and Makpil knew that a seer who lied was a seer no more. The gods would take the truth from those who would not use it. And for a long time, Shenzi only encouraged Shimbekh to manipulate the truth for it would be a shame to lose her rare talent. Somehow Shimbekh’s personal feelings never entered into Shenzi’s mind, and Shimbekh was all too aware of that.
Then came a time months later when Shimbekh had made so many compromises that Shenzi could blackmail her. Shenzi wanted Shimbekh to come to her private quarters, this time without Makpil. And when she had her alone, she said, “You will tell Scar that it is folly to leave Pride Rock. You will tell him that the day he attempts to go, he will die.”
“My Lord Roh’mach, the gods do not say it. A seer is a servant of the Lord. To lie is blasphemy.”
Shenzi smiles coyly. “Is it really blasphemy when the greater good depends on it?”
“You mean YOUR greater good depends on it.”
“Whatever.” Shenzi comes up beside her and pats her lightly on the cheek. “I wouldn’t want to be you Honey Bun, not when Scar finds out how far you stretched the truth.”
“On YOUR orders.”
“Little old me?” Shenzi smiled wickedly. “Would I ask you to lie to my King? For shame! ”
Shimbekh says “You wouldn’t dare tempt the gods.”
“Oh yes I would. Taka’s superstitions are his downfall. I believe in what works, and this works. Play the game by my rules, and you’ll have no reason to frown. Refuse me, and you won’t be able to frown.”
Shimbekh says, “Well I have one prediction for you. This path leads toward defeat. You do not scratch dirt at the gods and profit by it.”
“Are you threatening me??”
“No. You threaten yourself. We all pay for our own sins, Roh’mach. I will pay for mine, but you will pay for yours.” The seer looks at her closely before going. “I will pray for you.”
“You just do that. But first, you see Scar.”
She walks out. Going in to see the King, she bowed deeply. It took all her nerve to keep from trembling. “My Lord, King of Kings, I have something to report.”
“Yes?”
“It is Pride Rock, Your Majesty. It is the source of your life. If you flee, it will mean your death.”
“Oh?” Taka’s ears perked up. “My death?”
“Yes, Sire. Game is scarce, and rain is sparce, but if you are faithful and remain, the rain will fall and the game will return.”