[PRP] Don't Fail Me This Time (Kitisho/Msiba) -FIN

[MoonRazor]

Msiba was in a right foul mood. It seemed to be becoming a trend these days. Ill-boding news had somehow, someway, managed to keep worming its way into his life. First the earthquake. Then the cubs' disappearance. Now this.

Much as Msiba prided himself on being able to think quick and handle any situation that came along, there was still a limit as to just how far he could, and would, go. He had just about had enough of the bad news. He was sick of it, and he was taking matters into his own hands - as he did most other times - and rectifying the problems on his own. Or rather, he was going to cause the problem to be fixed.

Umoja was back in the valley. The handsome lion's brow creased into a frown as he brooded over the news. At least Unyevu was help to them, he thought, otherwise Msiba might have killed the seer long ago for his insolence.

So the heir was back. His mind whirled. No, the heir would not make it back to the valley. He refused to allow it to happen. He had taken his share of bad, and he was turning this into something that would lighten his feelings considerably, and life was going to take a turn for the good again. As it had for a while following Mchawi's discovery of a way into the valley. Yes, that was going to happen once again. He would make sure of it.

"Kitisho!"  

[Bloody Anubis]

It wasn't so bad playing exile. In a way, it was like returning to his childhood, those days where the games were King of the Hill and survival. Their ragtag group fought but looked out for each other. It was all they had aside from their collective carcasses. As soon as they got big, though, they stopped sharing. That was just how it was like now, except older, stronger, and a damn good bit meaner.

Kitisho was laying in a patch of shade in the area that Mchawi had told him to stay when he wasn't hunting. He could watch with a full belly as Ulinzi took to the skies and played chicken with the vultures. The eagle had claimed he needed exercise and no longer cared about the scavenger problem. As it was, he had driven quite a few into the ground rather recently, put out of their misery by Kitisho himself. The martial eagle would spiral through the air, fly short circular distances overhead to stretch and warm his wings to the sun. When the vultures came, he tucked his wings and dropped like a stone, a death-defying dive to the earth and pulling up only at the last moment. Those that tried to follow either were shaken by the maneuver or slammed into the unforgiving terrain. And by then Ulinzi was back to his lion's side in safety until the skies cleared once more.

They had so many buzzard bones lying around they could have made jewelry to pass the time.

The two were preparing for another bait-and-switch when a lion's voice seeped over the virtual rocky wasteland. Familiar- Msiba? Kitisho rose to his feet without a word, striding out of his little territory and trying to catch a glimpse of the absinthe-shaded lion. Once in focus, he began to stride toward their leader. So Mchawi must have told him...  

[MoonRazor]

"Ah, Kitisho." Having caught sight of the lion - he was rather difficult to miss - Msiba made his way toward the striding figure. Time was of the essence.

"A little birdy - and by birdy, I mean Ngao - told me what you did," He said without bothering with greetings. This was, by far, more important. "Which has led to this." He glanced around. Actually, it wasn't a horrible place to be, this place to which Kitisho had been exiled. He just worried that- He paused. Vulture carcasses? Msiba blinked, deciding it best to simply leave those be. But Werevu would not be happy.

"How is it that you failed to kill an old, doddering lion? And a lioness?" Both rather easy targets, he assumed. Though he supposed the fact that Ngao held a rank was a statement to her prowess, but she was still a lion, after all. The thought of the lioness had him bristling. Disturbing their plans. It was not a smart move, and she would pay for it. One of these days, she would end up dead.

"But," He added. "I have more for you to do. This is far more important than some old seer. Though obviously, we wanted that one dead as well."  

[Bloody Anubis]

Ngao. The larger male's lip curled, though not at Msiba. How much had she said to him? Did it really matter? His face relaxed again as his will insisted no, no it did not. He's been over this before, with Ulinzi too. So long as they're both living, they would meet again. Hopefully on Kitisho's terms the next time. And there would be no getting away either.

Kitisho's stare was bland, seemed to ask if Msiba really wanted to know what happened. That didn't really matter either. Msiba was right- he had failed to kill them both. He wasn't the type for excuses, though it had been a severe enough blow to his pride.

"They both slunk off as fast as they could go," Noted Ulinzi, who sat on his lion's shoulder as usual, "After the captain played as long as her body could handle it, anyway. Did you see that as well?"

Kitisho rumbled dismissively at his eagle's attempts to get him some credit, his eyes narrowed with focus upon the leader. He was more interested in this new job, his head raised in expectancy. A chance to redeem himself, yes. He wouldn't be anything less than ruthless this time.  

[MoonRazor]

"Hm, I did," Msiba said rather flatly. It was one thing to almost mortally injure a lion, and another thing entirely to actually mortally injure a lion. Much to his distaste, what had happened to Ngao had been the former, not the latter, and the fact that she was still alive added more to his disgust. "Which would be good enough if the goal had been to simply hurt her, you see? But it wasn't. She wasn't even part of the plan, but the least that could have happened was to have her end up dead."

Still, he had more important things to do than to dwell on the fact that the lioness was still alive. There would be time to deal with her later. There was not time to lose. No doubt Ngao was already spreading her filthy assumptions about himself and his band of interlopers throughout the pride, Ukweli as well. Her accusations were unfounded, he knew that, but if the pride were to choose between believing the Captain they all knew and trusted, to the rogue lions who had appeared not too long ago, he knew which side they would trust.

"That doesn't matter now," He said, of the matter with Ngao. "There will be plenty of time afterward to kill her. Right now, there's a more pressing matter at hand."

He thought of the vision Unyevu had reported to him. Oh damn these complications. Would they never end? All he ever wanted was to grab his little seer and then split. Was it really that hard?

"Umoja," He said with a low growl. "The heir to the throne of the pride. He was cut off from the rest of the valley in the earthquake." The operative word being was. "He's back, and he's bound to cause trouble if he manages to return. Okay? We need him dead. You hear me? Dead. Not wounded, not frightened off, dead."  

[Bloody Anubis]

Kitisho waited as Msiba went through it all, his dark eyes baring down on the other with his silent interest and growing impatience. Get on with it, get on with it, spit it out, were thoughts that streamed through his mind as the green lion went on. If such a jab at the end effected him, he hardly showed it in his face. But his stare became a little more flat, a little more stoney.

"I understand." He said it for the other's benefit, as he seemed so tightly wound at the moment. It was also so clipped that it seemed to be a reminder. Kitisho had failed, yes, though not by his own merits. While his mind and desires dwelled totally on fighting and violence, he was not stupid. Even though he jumped when Msiba said jump, he was not mindless. Not even incompetent.

Umoja, though, the heir to the throne. The dark warrior licked his maw and growled softly with the thought. So be it. The returning prince would be no more than a smear among the rocks- he would not even give him a chance to see him as he descended on him. This was a good example why he had stayed with the interlopers. Msiba knew all the good jobs to give him, just like the kill he prided himself in so much, Peace itself.

"Buzzard food."  

[MoonRazor]

"Right," Msiba muttered. "You're the expert."

Still, he supposed, this job would be a rather pleasant one for Kitisho. After all, heir to the throne was no small target. It seemed to suit the black lion perfectly. A small smile allowed itself to flicker across Msiba's muzzle. It was wonderful to have a lion under his command, if it was in fact that, who simply did, and did not ask questions. It made life far simpler.

"Well," He added. "You have fun with that then." The day was already starting to look up again. In a matter of time, Umoja would be dead. Their plan would continue. The thought lifted his spirits ever so slightly. He knew that they still had some way to go before they reached the finish line. Until they did, the pale green lion would not be able to unwind, could not relax.

But once they crossed, they would all be able to take a rest. For a little while. The main objective, though, for Msiba, was to get out with the seer cub, alive.

This mission for Kitisho would bring them just one step closer. One step closer to victory.

/fin.