Art by Meddled. on CS
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The Lake Massacre
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I stood in a line with several other lions, waiting for the order. At my paws was a lioness. I held one paw on her shoulders, but she didn't fight. She kept her head up and her chin high, but I could feel her shaking. I watched the other lions be lined up on the edge of the lake.
The Alpha stood on the other side of the lake, and began to address us. "These lions," he said to the gathered pride, "stand accused of treason. They have ratted us out to the rebels. It is lions like them who seek to destroy us. It is rebels like them who rob us of our pride." He looked around at the rest of the gathered, then nodded at the first lion in line. He pushed the lion into the lake. I heard him scream just before hitting the water, then the silence following the echo. It rang in my ears, and I felt the lioness underneath me tense. A few of the lions stood up, or at least tried to, and called out that they 'weren't spies, and what was the alpha talking about?' I didn't believe most of them, but there were at least two I was nearly sure were innocent. I let my claws slip out involuntarily, and the lioness jumped.. The lioness hadn't stood up or said anything,, so I pushed her in. When I turned to leave, the pride moved out of my way. I don't know if it was my involvement in what just happened, or the fact that my element had begun to feed on me again, but I was unable to brush off the feeling that they were staring at me, even though I was alone. It wasn't just the pride. It was the rebels in the lake. It felt like I was being judged harshly, as if I, too, would be pulled in and taken to - wherever the spirits of the lake reside. It hurt. I stayed in my den for days, until my disease's hunger forced me back out. No one looked at me. We were all too scared. Of the Alpha, of the Rebels, of each other. If some of us were capable of this, weren't we all? |
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Dream Lionesses
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I was lounging near the lake, stretched out and relatively relaxed. The rebels hadn't attacked since yesterday, and as such couldn't attack for at least a few hours, and I felt she deserved some rest after a quick feeding. I had been watching the lake, it's soft glow lulling my senses into a numb and clouded state. I breathed in, giving the lake's glass surface one last, hurt pass before my eyes drooped into sleep.
Dreams always start off peaceful. They lure you in deep with a warm breeze and soft starlight, deeper and deeper until you are so deep in it that waking will be a long way off. Normally, one only allows themselves to remain here, in this shady area where ideas take shape and begin to pull at your subconscious until you believe in them - if only for a little while . But that night... that night someone called me still deeper. I felt my paws move through grass that shifted like air as I followed the voice, saying my name, drawing me closer to the center, I couldn't pull away, I had to find her. The grass gave way to water. My paws were harder to move but I pushed and pushed and strained towards the voice. My pace quickened as the voice grew more urgent, and finally I came upon her. It was dark, pitch black. And cold. The soft earth had become rock, the air water, and the walls echoed my steps. I felt ice build up in my veins as I heard the voice again. "Corone!" The lioness suddenly was there, muzzle inches from mine. "Pythia?" "Corone! They're coming, wake up, they're coming to kill us, hurry!" She pushed me and I was thrown back through the dark, then light, skipped through the softness and straight into a panicked run . The dream lionesses were being murdered, and I was going to do my best to save them . The vertebra on my back clicked rapidly as I ran full force through the caves. I had to find them, and had to find them fast. Where were they? Still half-asleep after the forced removal from deep slumber, I had a hard time clearing her head to remember. Shouting came from one of the caves to my left, and I careened towards the sound. I soon caught sight of what was making the noise, a group of lions standing around the Alpha, listening to him bark and direct lions to the individual cells. The order was given, the first had been killed. I had to get to Pythia, to any of them. A roar escaped my throat, and I sent balls of disease streaking through the crowd, lucky in my rage if they hit anyone. I arrived, barreling through the first of the gathered lions, and managing to catch another with a rake of my claws before someone caught me by the scruff and pinned me down. Writhing, still trying to get at the dream lionesses, I heard the order given one by one, and one by one they were silenced. "No-" I screamed, "NO!" One of the lions nearby growled something at me and another ordered that I be taken to the main chamber to wait for the Alpha to deal with me. I couldn't help but remember the cries of the lions in the massacre. They were lined up at the lake, too. I almost wanted to go with them. I had failed. When we reached the main chamber, we discovered it to be under attack. Rebels flooded the place, fur was flying every which way, and elements were shooting across the scene like wishing stars. Afraid but already defeated, I said nothing as I watched as the guards ran to help. My mind was a mess, I couldn't think straight and I kept trying to reach for the dark, cold place that I had last seen Pythia, but could not find her. I felt weak still, and the bursts of light hurt. The air was hot, it was loud, I was tired, I just wanted rest. When I eventually looked up, I saw a warrior looking out over a triumphant group of rebels, the alpha who had both protected and doomed me at his claws. I stood up and called to the rebels. "I am Corone - warrior of the pride. I have committed acts of murder, and I have taken many of your own. Tonight, I failed to protect those of my pride. I surrender." At first, they were surprised to hear me surrender to their will. Two lions escorted me to where the rest of what remained of my pride stood, awaiting judgement. I sat still, waiting. The rebel leader looked at us, talking to some of his lions about who was involved and who was not. He settled on condemning all of us, and we were marched to the arch. Every noise someone tried to make was silenced by our leader. Those of us who were smart simply kept our jaws shut. We knew survival depended on it. |
Life on Earth |
I'm writing here eventually
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