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Ragnark was bested by his first Queen, Ripper. He knows now after he has aged that he made the mistake of picking an older and more experienced lioness for the duty of Queen when he was young and stupid, not only that but also a Queen with giant terrifying fangs. She had no problem wrangling his neck, tearing through his mane, and nearly killing him. After that incident, Ragnark gave over most of his duties to Queen Ripper; watching his Pride grow and hold a heavy fondness for their Queen. His Queen said that there should be no lion forced to live with the burden of carrying blood so ugly from him- banning him from bearing any kin- he would die alone with no family to mourn him.
Ragnark hated himself for the scars of trauma he clawed into Queen Ripper when she had first joined their pride after being sold off from the one prior. He had been blinded by the rage that his Queen came into his pride with the cub of another mane, publicly dragging Queen Ripper’s daughter to the edge of their territory’s shrub line while she had been out leading a training hunt for the pride’s Adolescents. Ragnark then brutally mauled the cub, drinking in all her cries for help- cries for her mother to stop him, to kill him. Those calls were answered when Queen Ripper caught ear from a loyal huntress of hers who had been pregnant, staying behind in the pride during the hunt that day. Her anger was a sight to behold when she leaped from the shrub; claws skinning his flank and toppling him over, screaming everything she could at his face.
Ragnark had never felt anything more painful than being ripped apart by his Queen. Her fangs cut and sunk deep into his body, and when she wanted to release; she snapped her head back sharply, letting her fangs rip through every ligament, every muscle, and every nerve in the spot she had latched onto. Ragnark had been sparingly left alive by Queen Ripper and lived with the wisdom of never upsetting her or her kin again, meaning he had no qualms about his Queen’s daughter, Sephtis, taking her mother’s spot when she had passed.
Ragnark respected Sephtis, being exceedingly grateful that she didn’t outright hate him when she started her reign. He never tried to trick or influence the young lioness because she was taught and willed by former Queen Ripper, even if she didn’t have her signature fangs.
Though, the pain he caused his first Queen was never and will never be forgotten. It will be a story told by royalty for generations to come. Silently Ragnark hopes there will never be a future king more vile than he.
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