CHAPTER ONE

“Oga tenant, your days are numbered. Hope you have packed your load” Tete said mockingly as she passed by his side and patted his rump with her paw.

“Get off me,” he snarled.

He leaped up to lunge at her. But out of the corner of his eyes, he caught sight of her mother and his other three step mothers watching them keenly.
His anger rapidly subsided and he walked away from his half-sister.

“Hey Didi, where are you running to? You scared of your own tail?” Tete called out.

“Enough Tete,” her mother snapped.

“I was just joking with him.”

“Enough I said.”

“But Didi is still going to leave, right?”

”Yes, our custom demands we send him away from the Pride. But, don’t make an enemy of him, for your paths might still cross.”

“He won’t last a day on his own,” Tete replied.

“Never say never,” said her mother quietly.

“He is a wimp.”

“Your father was once like him.”

“My father is a warrior,” Tete said.

“Yes, he is. But he was not born one. He became one.”

“Didi does not have the balls.”

“He will grow it.”

“How?”

“Lack of options often makes a hero of the weakest of us.”

"He can’t even hunt on his own.”

“He will learn.”

“Who will teach him when he leaves the Pride?”

“Time and chance happens to us all. Life will teach him using hunger and loneliness.”

“I still don’t agree with you mum. You don’t know Didi.”

“I have been a Lion longer than you have been my child. I know Lions and I know a warrior when I see one.”

“Hmm.”

“My child, your father is my 3rd husband. I have seen many things that your mind is yet to understand. So be careful not to make an enemy of your brother.”

“Even if he comes back, I will be ready for him.”

“No my child, if he comes back, he will be too much for you.”

CHAPTER TWO

Didi walked away from the Lionesses. He knew when the time comes; they will join his father to attack him. The thought of being an outcast made him shiver.

“How will I survive?” Didi asked aloud, “what if I decide to stay?”
He had two options, leave gently or fight his father for the right to stay. His mind flashed back to a year earlier.

He had had two older half-brothers, Kini and Niki. He was quite close to them and loved to always hang out with them.

However, Kini had tried to mate with one of the Lionesses and their father, Daka, had seen him.

Thus, their father had demanded that Kini and Niki left the pride. But Kini stood his ground and Niki backed him up. He had watched as their father took the two of them on and in minutes the fight was over.

Kini lost an eye and Niki ended up with a broken spine. Niki died within 2 days and Kini died 2 days later from hunger or an infection or maybe both.

“I can’t fight Father,” Didi said to himself, “I will be dead in seconds.”

He watched as his 3 younger half-brothers played with their mother. He was older than them. And at just a year old, it would be another 12 months before they also became outcasts. His own eviction was just a matter of days or maybe hours.

Twice, his father had chased him when he tried to feed on the animals hunted and killed by the Lionesses. So he had had to wait for his father, the Lionesses and other cubs to finish eating before he could eat.

“They are lucky to have each other,” Didi whispered as he remembered his siblings and mother.

About 18 months earlier, his siblings, a brother and two sisters, as well as, his mother had been killed in a hunt gone wrong. The Pride had ambushed a herd of Buffalo that were grazing close to the den. The cries of the Buffalo they caught in the stampede had attracted the other Buffaloes to come back. The herd, led by adult male Buffaloes, had attacked the Lions and chased them right into the den. His siblings were trampled to death while his mother bled to death from being gored. Didi grew up being cared for by the other Lionesses.

“Maybe I should leave before they chase me away,” Didi deliberated, “at least it will be on my terms.”

Suddenly, he felt chills that made the hair stand up on his neck. Didi looked up and saw his father, Daka, staring at him about 100 meters away.
He stood up looking at his father for what seems like an hour, but actually was just a minute. As he watched, his father started to move slowly towards him.

Didi looked at his right and saw the Lionesses were now paying close attention to the scene.

“Has my time come?” Didi thought in terror, “fight or flight?”

Slowly, the distance between him and his father disappeared.

CHAPTER THREE

“Mum?”

“Yes?”

“You said Father is your 3rd husband.” Tete said.

“Yes, he is,” answered her mother.

“What happened to the other two?

“The first one ran off to avoid been killed by my 2nd husband. Your father killed the second one.”

“Father killed your husband?”

“Yes he did. He also killed all the cubs I and your step mothers had at that time.”

“Haa, why?”

“The life of a Lion is a short and brutal one. A young Lion is customarily chased out of his Pride once he reaches the sexual maturity age. This is usually from age 2. Thus, he has to fend for himself as well as avoid being killed by other Lions and Lion haters such as the Hyenas.

“Okay.”

“After two or three years of killing to survive, the young Lion is now ready to start a family. So he needs a Lioness or more to father his cubs. However, a single and unattached Lioness is an uncommon sight in our jungle.”

“So how does he start a family?” Tete asked.

“The young Lion has to take over an existing Pride. And to successfully take over a Pride means death or banishment of the reigning Lion of the Pride and death to all cubs. The new Lion won’t allow any seed except his own to dwell in his territory.”

“What happens to Lionesses who put up a fight?"

“He will kill Lionesses who refuse to cooperate.”

“Wow.”

“Your father has so far won all attempts by invading Lions to take over his Pride. But as I said before, the life of a Lion is a short and brutal one. Sooner or later, he will meet his match.”

“And what happens to us?”

“We become widows and then wives to the new ruler or rulers.”

“Rulers?”

“Sometimes, more than one young Lion is sent out of the Pride at the same time. If the Lions are two or three, they gradually become aware that though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken. Thus, they become a force to reckon as they grow older and bigger.”

“I won’t allow my cubs to be killed.”

“Then you will need to flee with your cubs and risk being attacked by other Lions or haters.”

“Are there other options mother?”

“My child, you might need to discover that by yourself.”

“Mum?”

“Yes?”

”Is father going to kill Didi?” Tete suddenly asked.

“Why do you ask?”

“Father is heading towards him right now.”

CHAPTER FOUR

Daka approached his Pride silently.

He had gone round to mark his territory with urine, spraying bushes and other obvious objects. He also defecated conspicuously and scraped his feet on the ground where he had urinated, transferring the scent to his feet to pass on while he patrolled his boundary.

He always liked to listen in on the gossips of his 4 wives. Their gossips were usually on the pregnant Lionesses, the young cubs, the next hunt or which of the Lionesses was on heat.

Speaking of being on heat, he could smell the scent of a Lioness that was fast coming into heat. Daka knew he was not the only one who could smell the scent. There was another matured male in the Pride, his son Didi.

He liked Didi. But he knew he could not allow his son stay much longer with the Pride. His son was now at the age of sexual maturity and the possibility of wanting to mate one of his half-sisters or even step mother was very high.

Daka stopped and looked around to see where Didi was. It was almost time to send him packing. He was not ready to kill his son. But if he had to, this won’t be the first time.

For now, his son might still yet be useful for one last major heist before his time in the Pride expired.

The rains had stopped for days now and the drought season was now in full force. Thus, the issue of feeding his growing family outweighed the necessity to chase off Didi.

Today made it the 3rd day the Pride had gone without food. It was time to hunt again.

The key issue for the Pride was that most of the Zebras, Buffaloes and other grazers had left Daka’s territory in search of greener pastures.

Daka knew they had only two options: follow the animals into the territory of other Lions and risk an all-out war if discovered, or go for an animal that didn’t usually migrate but was bigger than anything the Pride had ever attacked.

Given the risks involved in the two options, Daka rationalized that option two was less risky for his pride.

If he was to go with option two, Daka had to decide between two giants. Either of them would guarantee food that would last for 5 days or more for the Pride.

Daka knew the lionesses were better hunters. However, in this high stake heist, it was not speed that mattered but weight.

This was why he needed Didi. Though Didi was not yet a fully grown male Lion, still he outweighed a full grown Lioness. Thus, if the Pride was to successfully take down a giant, Daka knew they needed the complementary weight of Didi.

Daka watched Didi for some minutes. He knew the young Lion would be wary of him. He had, twice within a week, chased Didi away from eating the animals killed by the Lionesses. If this planned hunt was to be successful, he needed Didi on his side.

Daka moved and stopped at a position that allowed Didi see him. Once he was sure he had the attention of the young Lion, he walked slowly towards him.

Signed
King Olulu

CHAPTER FIVE

“What do we know about this pride?” Kaka asked.

“They are led by one matured male,” Keke replied.

“There are 4 matured Lionesses and 7 younger ones just about matured,” Koko said.

“There is also a young lion there. He appears to be on the verge of being chased out of the pride,” Kuku added.

Kaka nodded in satisfaction. They had been stalking and surveying the pride for over a month. They had most of the information they needed. The rest will be discovered at the point of life or death.

“Good one guys, you have done your homework well,” Kaka said.

“There are enough Lionesses to go round us all. That is sweet music to my ears,” said Keke.

“Yesso,” chorused Koko and Kuku.

“Guys, calm down. Don’t count your chicks before they are hatched. We still have the Lion of the pride to contend with,” Kaka replied.

“He is no match for the four of us,” stated Keke, “abi I lie?”

“Yesso,” chorused Koko and Kuku, “if he stands in our way, he dies.”

Kaka, Keke, Koko and Kuku were 4 brothers from the same Lioness.

About 4 years earlier, when they were just a year old, their mother had ran off with them when her pride was attacked.

Two rogue Lions had attacked and killed her husband. They also killed two Lionesses who had tried to defend their cubs. She had escaped during the melee.

One of the rogue Lion had tried to track her down, but she managed to stay hidden with the 4 cubs.

For the next two years after they had left the pride, their mother taught them everything she knew about hunting and fighting. Unfortunately, she was killed in the 3rd year after she accidentally stepped on a Black Mamba.

The four Lions had spent the 4th year stalking and surveying various prides to determine which one was ripe for a takeover. And it seemed they have now found the perfect one.

“What’s the plan?” Keke asked looking at Kaka.

Kaka was regarded as the leader of the pack. He was not the strongest, but he was their chief strategist. Keke, the quiet one, was considered the strongest of the pack, while Koko and Kuku were carefree, troublesome and aggressive.

“Any suggestions?” Kaka asked.

“Me and Kuku will go for the Lion of the pride, Kaka goes for the cubs and Keke goes for the young Lion,” Koko said.

“Can two of you handle the Lion?” Kaka asked and added. “He is a beast with plenty of experience. We all saw how he chased off the two Lions that tried to take over his Pride.”

“Lions are not Tigers. A Lion is more of a wrestler while a Tiger is more of a boxer. He can’t successfully wrestle two of us at the same time,” Koko explained.

“I will rather three of us go for the male Lion, while Kuku handles the young Lion and cubs,” Kaka stated.

“So na only the three of you sabi fight, abi? Na me no like fight?” questioned Kuku.

“You this overgrown house cat, who teach you how to fight?” Koko teased.

“I go slap that your stupid mouth if you talk nonsense again,” Kuku replied.

“Hey, will you guys cut it off,” Keke snapped. ”This is serious business, get serious for once. Please Kaka continue.”

“To ensure we don’t mess things up, and reduce margin for errors, we will all attack the male Lion,” Kaka said.

“What about the young Lion and the Lionesses?” Keke asked.

“One at a time, we divide and conquer,” Kaka answered, “is that clear?”

“Ok boss, I’m with you,” Kuku replied.

“Koko?” questioned Kaka.

“You are the brain, just point the way,” Koko responded.

“Keke?”

“You know I’m not one for much talk, let’s get this fight started,” Keke said. “When do we attack?”

“Now,” Kaka said and turned to walk into the pride’s territory.

His brothers followed him.

Signed
King Olulu

These one go mad oo.. following to the end

Nice one...

silverlinen:
These one go mad oo.. following to the end

DDexter99:
Nice one...

Thanks

CHAPTER SIX

Daka got to Didi and nudged Didi’s left cheeks with his head to show he came in peace. Then he moved and sat down 10 feet away from Didi.

Didi then went to meet him and rubbed his left cheek against Daka’s cheek and they rubbed heads together.

The rubbing of heads together is a show of affection, commitment, loyalty and respect.

After some minutes of rubbing heads together, Didi sat down beside Daka. His heart was pounding in excitement as he waited in silence. He was no longer scared. He was happy that Daka came in peace and that he, Didi, was able to show respect to him.

“How have you been?” Daka asked.

“Fine sir.”

“Hope you have not been naughty.”

“No sir, I have been good.”

“You sure?”

“Yes sir.”

“Hmm.”

Didi waited in silence. He was not sure why Daka approached him but he believed it had to be important for Daka to have approached him.

“We will be hunting soon, and I want you to play an active role,” Daka said.

Didi kept quiet.

Daka continued, “I want to show you strategies and techniques on how to take down giants. This will help you fend for yourself when you eventually have your own Pride. So I want you to be serious about it. Watch closely, learn quickly and act decisively.”

“Ok sir.”

“If you perform well, it won’t be for the Pride, it would be for you. You will be way ahead of your mates in terms of skills, experience and expertise.”

“That would be great. But which of the giants are we taking down?”

“Worry not your head about that. You will find out soon enough.”

“Ok sir.”

“Just follow me closely and mirror what I do.”

“I will do that sir.”

Daka stood up and as he walked away, he said, “we leave within an hour, be ready.”

“I am ready sir.”

“Don’t disappoint me.”

“I won’t sir.”




https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kj3StdK-lC0

CHAPTER SEVEN

Kaka continued to do scenario analysis as they walked.

He knew it was important they got the matured male alone without backup. It would make the job of killing him easy.

The question of ‘what if’ kept popping up in his mind: what if the Lionesses joined in? What if the young Lion joined in the fracas? What if the matured male had a long lost brother that suddenly appeared?

In his analysis, the matured male might be able to handle two of them, but three of them would be a handful for him. However, at 4 to 1, they will kill him easily. Thus, the preferred setting still remained getting the matured male alone.

“You are quiet,” said Keke as he matched strides with Kaka.

Kaka smiled and replied, “Says the quiet one.”

“A penny for your thoughts?” Keke asked.

“Nothing major, I was just considering the different situations that could manifest and the contingency plan for any unexpected happenings.”

“Don’t worry yourself too much bro, between the 4 of us, that male Lion dies.”

“I know, but what if the Lion has a backup team we don’t know of?” Kaka asked.

“Remember, we stalked and surveyed the pride for more than a month. I’m sure we will come out successful and with our brides,” Keke replied.

“OK, if the Lionesses come for him, I will go and engage them.”

“Agreed.”

“None of us must die today.”

“We won’t bro, we’ve got the victory. Let’s go manifest it.”

“I sure hope so,” Kaka replied.

“I know so,” affirmed Keke.



****************************************************************



They froze and listened carefully.

It came again, louder and closer this time.

There was a Lion or worse still, Lions approaching. And it was no friendly roar. The Lions were here for business, not pleasure.

Daka got up to move towards the sound.

“I will come with you,” said Cece the Lioness, Tete’s mother.

“And I also,” said another Lioness.

“No. You will do no such thing,” Daka snapped and added, “I’m the head of this pride. It’s my duty to protect you. Watch the cubs, prepare for the hunt, I will be back soon.”

The Way of the Lion is an epic tale of blood, lust, and loss. It’s a fictional story about what happens to Lions and members of their pride when there is a takeover of their territory.

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