Peace for the Soul ~ A Lion King Fanfiction

Chapter 3: Fire and Flame

I walked out of the Volcano and on a nearby cliff and let out a loud roar, the Pride hear's it and roars with me. For a brief moment, I felt contentment, only for recent memories to fog my vision. Me and the guard walk down, almost all of the guard. My Father was the first to greet us at the base of the volcano. "Well done Kion," he paused, he sees my facial expression and that we are missing a member.

"Kion, where's.." I throw my face in his mane and weep until my throat hurts. I couldn't save her. I wasn't fast enough, I was too weak. It was my fault.

"Kion, look at me." I begrudgingly lift my head up, exposing my newest feature, the scar on my left eye. A feature I hate with all my being, the mark of evil, everything I stand against. "My friends need medical treatment from Rafiki, they inhaled a lot of smoke." I turn to walk back to pride rock. "And what about you?" I think I hear my Dad asked, I didn't know if he did, and honestly couldn't care.

My paws lead me through the outlands, past multiple cliffs and draws, until making it back to the Pridelands. I can't say I recognize the outlands like here. Here I am presented with all of my victories and all of my mistakes. Every strip of land Me and my pride have saved, and all the ones that had been torched. The animals that were saved from hyenas and now are strong adults, and the carcasses that the hyenas left behind.

I sit atop pride rock and can't help but ponder the beauty of the sunrise in the Savannah, something I look forward to seeing every day. I hear a pitter patter of light steps coming to me, "Why aren't you helping the guard, Rafiki?" He chuckles "They do not need my help like you do young lion, let me see your eye." I flinch, I don't want anyone to see it. He looks at me, with a facial expression I can barely read, I sigh and face him.

"Kion, this is very serious. Ushari's venom cannot kill you, but you will suffer unless this is treated." I sit motionless, "I have seen this injury once before, and it is not good. If given enough time, your definition of right and wrong will be blurred, no longer knowing the difference between the two." My eyes widen, "What must I do?" Rafiki takes a deep breath. "Imagine you are in a dark cave, how do you escape?" I sat there, extremely puzzled, "What?" He chuckled, and my patience was growing thin, "Kion, it is a long and treacherous trail to find the peace you seek, but it is just as rewarding once your journey is complete."

I was still confused, "What journey? I don't understand." Rafiki grabs my shoulder and points at a mountain pass off beyond the outlands, "every morning, the moon sets between those mountains, follow its path and you shall find what you seek." "Rafiki, that path leads to nothing! No one has travelled that far past the borders, surely there is something better I can do!" Rafiki then hit my head with his bakora staff, "Hush Lion! You must be patient. It is a long and painful journey, but if anyone can make it, you can, and you must. Do it for her."

I look away at that last thought. What would she have done?

"Food for thought, young lion." He walks away, as I continue to watch the sunset. My family was peacefully sleeping, so I figured I should at least try to get some shut eye, not trying to let Rafiki's story get to me too much. I lay my head down in my paws and drift into a deep slumber.

'Accept your destiny Kion, there is no other choice! At the end of the day we are like fire and flame!'

'We're not the same, I'll never be like you scar!'

'You have no choice! One way or another, I always get what I want.'

'I'm going to enjoy this...'

'As will I Ushari,'

I awoke in my family's den out of breath and trembling. I didn't wake anyone up, so I quietly trotted out of the den and atop pride rock. The land lit by the moon was beautiful, my home, a place I fought to protect for so long.

The war is over...