Leo : The Lion King

[3rd POV]

"I don't like this." Hana said with a shaky voice while looking at Leo carrying an impala towards the shade.

"What if the dominant lions come for him?" she asked, her knuckles turning white around her binoculars.

"I wouldn't worry about that," Dr Tonson said while adjusting his hat, "Becuase they undoubtedly, most certainly, will come for him. It's inevitable,"

"I agree. Our lion has shown impressive intellect, but this was a dumb move on his part. He should have never come close to the other males," Ramirez commented while using his camera to record everything.

The research team had parked their vehicle at a distance. They were always present and had even recorded Leo joining the Serengeti Pride hunting party to catch his own prey.

But contrary to their expectation, Leo was not eating his food as fast as he could and running away. Instead, he was taking his food near a shade to enjoy it peacefully, like he usually does.

"I don't understand. He should know that the dominant males are close by, right?" Adeyemi asked but then questioned himself, "Are they?"

He took out his walkie-talkie and contacted the other vehicle. They were the other group of researchers responsible for keeping tabs on the Serengeti Pride.

"Hello, is there any chance that the males are not close by?" Adeyemi asked carefully on the phone.

"No, it's quite the opposite. They are coming towards you," the person on the other side said.

"How many?" Adeyemi asked again, wondering if there was any chance that only two or one of the males made their way here.

"What do you mean? All of them are coming. Snow, Dexter and Miles," he said.

Those were the names assigned to the three kings by the researchers. Snow for Baraka, Dexter for Makali and then Miles for Roku.

On the other hand, Leo was called Leo. The name literally means lion, so the researchers thought it was fitting. It was a way for them to affirm Leo's identity as a lion, no matter how different he was compared to others. He was not an unknown beast but a lion.

He was Leo.

"Okay, thank you," he said and put down the phone. You could feel a drop in morale inside the vehicle.

"So they are already coming towards him. He should know this, right? Why is he not doing anything?" Adeyemi asked the concerned experts once more.

This time, Hana answered him after a thought, "Young adult males are known to be notoriously bold, reckless and driven by the burning need to prove themselves, most of the time to their own detriment. It's mostly due to hormones like the spike of testosterone and part instinct. Some experts have even called it an evolutionary drive,"

"It's for this exact reason that the death rate of those dying before reaching 5 years old is more than 80%. They overestimate themselves, trying to take down a buffalo alone, provoking a dominant male, trying to steal from a clan of hyenas, etc. I think Leo also has that recklessness. He wants to test himself and find out his limit. He is smart enough to not do dumb shits but he still put himself in dangerous situations, even if it's unknowingly," she explained.

"Damn, I guess the girlfriend knows him well," Ramirez commented.

"Will you ever drop that?" she asked in exasperation.

"No," he replied with a smile.

Hana sighed, causing the others to chuckle at the reaction.

"Now that you've mentioned it, it does make sense why Leo is acting so bold and reckless. It fits right in with earlier observations of sub-adult males." Dr. Tonson said and added after a brief pause.

"It's just hard to wrap my head around the fact that he is still a sub-adult."

That was one of their biggest discovery in the past few months. Leo was not a full-grown adult but a sub-adult. The kind of lion that was just recently kicked out of their pride.

The fact had blown their mind completely. And from the rate he was growing, they suspect that Leo was between the ages of 1.5 years to 3.5 years old, which is the phase in a lion's life where growth is the most pronounced.

If not for that, it was beyond natural for him to gain 30-40 kilograms of mass in half a year.

They had observed his insane appetite and controlled diet of only the best part of the meat. But even with that, the rate of growth was still unimaginable. The only explanation was that Leo was in his prime growth age.

"Oh no, they are here," Hana said while covering her mouth. She saw the three kings of the Serengeti approaching Leo from a distance.

The reason why they were so worried, even though Leo had grown way beyond the average lion, was that the three kings were not average by any means.

The three Mbali brothers were the most dominant lions in the whole Seregeti Landscape. They were so remarkable and exceptional compared to the average lion that researchers were sent to study them.

Leo was one of a kind, but so were they.

"Let's hope nothing bad happens. Statistics say the casualty rate between lions fighting for dominance is extremely low," Hana said to herself. She had gotten attached to Leo, and the researcher side of her did not want such exceptional specimens to die today.

"The stats are low because most of the time, the loser runs away and submits when he feels like he's lost the fight," Dr Tonson said, "Do we think Leo would do the same?"

There was silence.

After six months of observation, every one of them knew the answer to that question. So there was no reason to voice out the obvious.

"Well, at least let me make sure I have the greatest shot humanely possible. Malik, please do help me with the drone."

And so the humans watched the war unfold.

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[1st POV]

My blood boiled upon taking in their scent. It's like my body remembered what happened last time, so it knew what was about to happen after smelling that scent.

I could hear my heart beating inside my chest. It was calm and of the same rhythm, but the sound was louder. The beats were harder, so much so that I could clearly feel them deep inside my chest.

It was like another living being inside my body,

My tongue came out and licked the blood off my muzzle. I stared into the distance with eyes full of expectation.

And then they came.

The lack of trees meant I could see them approaching from far away. The heat of the sun made their figure blur in my eyes. I raised my nose to take in their scent, imprinting the three distinct scents in my mind.

The smell of my enemies.

I made sure to not eat any more meat as they approached me. I learned from experience that a full belly was not suitable for fighting. So the most I did was nibble some more meat.

When they finally came close enough, I observed each and every one of them. I focused more on the two new lions that I'd never seen before.

Baraka, the white lion, was easily distinct among the three. He looked white from a distance, but on closer inspection, he looked more blonde than white. His mane was absolutely thick and hairy, but that was far from an important observation.

He was a giant. I could tell you that much. I believe I have grown a lot in these past few months, but Baraka would still tower over me in sheer size. It was not overwhelming, but he was bigger.

Not just his size, but his thick mane and fur gave him a more puffy appearance. He looked bigger than he actually was. Like Shaq wearing eight-inch heels and having an afro. Already big, but the fur adds even more.

But as if to boost my morale, my eyes fell on Roku. His face now had scars, and one of his ears was chipped. He looked even smaller than the first time I met him, proving to me that I had grown.

Finally, my eyes fell on the last lion, whom I assumed was Makali. He had even more scars on his face and ears than Roku did. He was noticeably taller and longer than Roku, but I was not smaller than him.

Although not the biggest, Makali caught my attention the longest. There was something very dangerous about him that my instincts were warning me about. If I had to explain how he felt compared to Baraka, he would be a sharp scalpel and the giant would be a baseball bat.

A baseball bat should kill you faster, but there was something so unnerving about a sharp, small scalpel.

He and Makali both closed the distance and stood a few metres away from me. On the other hand, Roku stopped in his tracks and was a little far behind. From the shocked expression on his face, I could tell that he had just recognised me.

I could understand why. Imagine thinking you fought a hard battle with a full-grown lion, only to meet him again, and this time he was bigger and stronger. The realisation that he faltered in front of a cub brought out myriad emotions, shame being the most prominent.

"Intruder," Baraka was the first to speak. His deep voice and thick mane gave him the image of a royal king.

"Who are you and why are you here?"

It was not just me, Makali also winced at the meaningless attempt to talk. I've heard that Baraka was the gentle one among the three, perhaps he wanted to talk to me and ask nicely for me to leave before starting a fight.

"What's the use of asking him that? He came into our territory and hunted our prey!" Makali said with bared fangs.

I met his aggression by turning my body towards him. I was crouched in front of my prey, but that didn't mean I was not ready. It was quite the opposite, I was ready to explode into action at a moment's notice.

"We don't want to escalate things, Makali. The dry season is always tough on everyone, neither party want injury in these dire times," Baraka said, speaking the truth.

It was one thing to fight during the wet season when prey was abundant, but to fight during the dry season was just a fool's endeavour. Healing takes proper food and rest after all. Both of which were scarce during the dry season.

"Why should we worry about injuries when it's three against one?" Makali said, making another solid point.

"We don't even know if he is a challenger," Baraka said and then asked me, "Are you?"

I stayed silent for some time before saying, "No,"

Although I made progress over the past months, I would like more time until I challenge them head-on for dominance over the pride and the land. My current state was that I would fight back when provoked, nothing else.

"See? He is not a challenger," Baraka said to his brother before turning to me once more. This time, his voice vibrated with a sharp edge.

"Now, you just have to leave and stay out of our sight. We will keep the rest of your food," he said and Makali finally showed a grin at that.

Now it was certain that there was going to be conflict. I was not going to give up something of mine again. I would rather die fighting for what I considered to be mine than running again.

It was not logical, but it's what my indemnity required. I will never give up something of mine again.

Never.

But before I could answer, Roku came forward, "I don't believe this."

"It's you!!" he said, baring his teeth with an enraged face.

His two brothers were taken aback by the sheer rage and anger from their brother. Their eyes asked for an explanation, and Roku was quick to give them.

"That's him," he said, "That's Leo."

And then something changed. It was like a storm finally settled between us, and the result was set in stone.

"Oh, I see," Baraka said.

A blur.

!!!!!!!

I jumped back in an instant to dodge the white blur of fangs and claws. Baraka, whom I thought to be the most reasonable, was the first to attack me.

When he heard who I was, the one who deeply wounded his brother, there was no hesitation in him. His calm before seemed like a thin mask when I looked at his savage expression.

But it was the same for me too. The memory of what they did to my home played back in my mind. The same burning rage that consumed me back then bloomed from my heart. It was like the anger was planted there, waiting to explode at the right time.

Ferocious growls tore through our throats collectively. The vibration was the sign of the beginning of the conflict

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[IMAGE]

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