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"Azelma" means "Little Bud"
27/06/17:
Azelma was born and raised in the Darkmoon pride, by a mother just as ruthless as she was cruel. Queen Soraya took over the pride after killing her mate, the King, and had been ruling with an iron paw ever since. Azelma was only one of many daughters - raised by Queen Soraya to be ambitious and determined, cunning and cruel. She raised them to be Queens, trained them for greatness - they were taught to hunt, to fight, to lie and cheat and seduce their way to the top. They all had different fathers, but they considered themselves to be sisters, bound by iron and blood.
That wasn't to say there was no competition between them - oh no. During training the Darkmoon sisters fought eachother like the fiercest of rivals, competing for their mother's attention, all vying for the top spot. There was cheating and sabotage, visciousness and jealousy. But the blood they shed bound the sisters together - each of them was powerful in her own way. And those that weren't ruthless enough, those that showed weakness - were punished mercilessly and banished from the Darkmoon lands, lest they bring shame and embarrassment on the Queen.
And after seeing so many of her sisters banished, Azelma swore it would never happen to her.
What she lacked in brute strength and size, she made up for in cunning. Her sisters jokingly nicknamed her the Snake, because of her piercing green eyes, but over the years she came to fit the name. Her tongue was as sharp as her claws, her mind quick and clever, full of calculated wit. She grew cruel and merciless - sabotaging her own sisters in order to become the best, resulting in their exile from the pride. Azelma felt no remorse. She didn't care about them - she cared about her. She would become Queen one day, she was sure of it. She would outshine everyone, even her mother.
30/07/17:
The day came around for Queen Soraya to choose a successor. The Darkmoon pride gathered expectantly on the rocks, gazing up at their fearsome Queen above. None more expectant than Azelma, who was trembling with furious delight. She knew it would be her, after all.
"Darkmoon Warriors!" Soraya roared. "I welcome you all here on this special day - the moon wanes in the heavens, and the shadows grow long. It is time to welcome new Warriors into our midst! My daughters have completed their training, and tonight they come of age. When the sun rises tomorrow, each will carry the title of Darkmoon Warrior!"
A chorus of roars went up - in the Darkmoon lands, it passed for applause. When the cacophony died down, Soraya spoke again.
"It is also time for me to choose an Heiress," Soraya's voice dropped, her tone suddenly serious. "One of my daughters shall succeed me as Queen when I am gone. The moon has told me who it is to be, and I agree with her decision that this lioness will make the most powerful Queen these lands have ever seen."
Soraya cast her gaze around and Azelma felt a wicked little shiver run through her.
"I give you - Saliha, future Queen!"
The pride roared in assent once again. But Azlema's roar was not one of joy, but of rage. As she watched her sister Saliha take her place next to her mother, Azelma felt nothing but white hot fury. The second the ceremony was over, she rushed over to confront her mother. She sprang at Soraya from behind, knocking her to the floor and pinning her there.
"It should have been me!" Azelma snarled.
"Undoubtedly," Soraya chuckled. "You would have made a terrifying Queen - and that is the precise reason I cannot allow you to rule. I trained you well, my child. A little too well, if you ask me. I made a monster of you, Azelma. And I know that you would tear out my throat without a moment's hesitation to take my power, am I not right?"
Azelma said nothing, but her muzzle was twisted into a snarl.
"Your sister shall be the next Darkmoon Queen," continued Soraya. "As for you, I have greater plans. Your destiny shall carry you beyond these lands, beyond this small pride. You are destined for greatness, Azelma - greatness and power."
31/07/17:
When a strange male lion arrived in the Darkmoon pride the very next day, it could only be fate. Azelma recognized him to be King Kamau, of the Sakura-Motaki pride in the neighbouring territory. But around these parts he was known as Kamau, the Silent Warrior - famous for his ability to cut down enemies in one brutal blow, without them making a single noise. What he was doing here in the pride, she did not know. She crept up in the undergrowth to watch him speaking to Queen Soraya - they seemed to be discussing a matter of great importance, heads bowed, voices low.
Azelma startled as the lion started to make him way over to her. It was as if he'd known of her presence all along, like his great, pale eyes had seen right through the bushes in which she was hidden.
"Azelma," he said, staring down at her. It was neither a question nor a challenge, just a name, a statement. His whispers trembled, like he was waiting for her to say something.
"I'd thank you to call me Azelma Saa're," she spat, tail flicking in annoyance. "Darkmoon Warrior and daughter of Queen Soraya Saa're, bringer of death!"
At that moment, Soraya stepped up beside Kamau, eyes glinting in pride.
"Young Azelma," Kamau proceeded as if he head heard nothing she said. "I am here to offer you a deal. I have heard of your unparallelled skills, and I wish to offer you a place in my pride. Should you accept, you will integrate the ranks of the Sakura-Motaki Warriors, in exchange for an alliance between our two prides."
"And should I refuse?" Azelma raised an eyebrow imperiously.
"You shall not refuse," said Soraya.
No, she would not refuse. She was far too clever for that.
Her mother had taught her to be wily, to be ruthless and opportunistic, and to Azelma, this was the greatest opportunity of all. Status meant power - and Azelma loved power. Oh, yes. She didn't care what it took to get there - she would go to Kamau's pride, join the ranks of his Warriors, and she would rise through the ranks and become Queen, no matter who she had to tread on to get there. She would not miss her mother or the pride. Soraya had been her teacher, yes, had taught her to fend for herself in this world dominated by males, had taught her to use her wit, her cunning, and her claws if it came to it - but there was nothing remotely loving between them. To her Queen Soraya, Azelma was just another investment, one of many daughters - each as ruthless as the next and destined for great and terrible things. Azelma knew this, and accepted it wholeheartedly.
"Very well," said Azelma, eyes glinting with cunning. "I accept your proposal."
Kamau nodded, as if he expected nothing less. "Good. We leave immediately."
Azelma left with Kamau that day. On their walk back to the pride, Kamau was subjected for the first time to her sharp tongue and scathing wit - he was questioned relentlessly, mocked mercilessly. He did not bow to the young lioness's whims - just walked stoically along, which did nothing but infuriate her more. She considered assassinating the King right there and then. But even with all her training, she doubted she could dispatch the huge lion efficiently. They didn't call him the Silent Warrior for nothing, after all. No, she would do what she had always done to survive and use her cunning. She would be the snake in the grass, the voice in the dark. She would infiltrate his pride, work her way up through the ranks like poison spreading and stab like a knife deep into the heart of the Sakura-Motaki pride, deep into the heart that lay beating between the ribs of the ghost of a lion that walked beside her - should he indeed possess one. And then she would tear it out and take it for her own.
She was destined for greatness. The Sakura-Motaki pride would be hers.
03/05/18
Azelma's cunning never did fail her.
Within months of her arrival in the Sakura-Motaki pride, she had risen like a wildfire through the ranks - gaining prowess as a huntress and then graduating to the position of Warrior, reserved only for the strongest, the elite. She was the obvious first choice as a Queen, she had eliminated all of her opponents, who were injured or killed in mysterious hunting accidents - except for that dreadful Koani, Kamau's loyal adviser. Koani was almost too pure to harm, too sacred - besides, Kamau would murder her if she dared lay a claw on his precious little friend. Somehow, though, Azelma didn't think Koani would be a threat. She had been Kamau's closest friend for years, and he had never appointed her as Queen, even though her royal birthright declared it. Besides, Azelma was younger, stronger, more striking - no male in their right mind would choose Koani over her.
The young lioness's beauty was not missed by Kamau, but neither was her cunning and savagery. He found himself attracted to Azelma's dark side, her mean streak, but knew deep down that she wouldn't hesitate to slaughter him in his sleep if it came to it, which both enthralled and repulsed him.
Azelma already knew she had won - the King was safely in her trap, enticed by her vicious beauty as if into a venus flytrap about to snap shut. All that remained was for Kamau to choose a Queen, and it would be done. It wouldn't be long now. The King was getting older, and needed an heir. All Azelma had to do was wait.
19/06/18:
The time came sooner than expected, but Azelma was ready.
The ceremony was held on the Kopjes, every lioness out in their best jewels and finery, hoping to be appointed as the next Queen. Azelma wore only her black Darkmoon armor that she wore to train - a decision that was viewed as scandalous by the other lionesses, perhaps even an act of treason. Azelma grinned smugly as she thought of Kamau removing the armor in question later that night after he had made her Queen, as he laid her down in the royal cave and bedded her not as a Warrior but as Queen of the pride.
And of course, Kamau chose her. There was no doubt in anyone's mind - the whole pride could see that the King had fallen under Azelma's spell, that there was no helping him. And so the Sakura-Motaki crown was placed onto the head of a Darkmoon princess, and so there came to be a Darkmoon Queen on the Sakura-Motaki throne, a Darkmoon Queen in King Kamau's den, and hopefully soon, Darkmoon cubs stirring in her belly. From the moment the crown touched her head, Azelma felt victory at last. The pride would be hers. Now all the had to do was bear Kamau's cubs, a Darkmoon heir, and the pride would be hers forever.
That night, as he removed her armour and layed her down, she felt a savage, wicked thrill go through her. She did not love this lion, this King, in fact she planned to dispose of him at the first opportunity, but Azelma was very good at pretending, Oh yes, her training in lies and deception had served her well. As she groaned and arched her back, inviting Kamau to mount her again and again, anyone might think she was simply a young lioness eager to bear her first litter. But Azelma knew that those royal cubs would be her gateway to victory. And Kamau knew this, too - Kamau knew he had met a fearsome match in Azelma. This is why he had taken a herbal tincture to make him infertile the night of their wedding. He knew very well what he was up against.
And so the battle begun.
*
As Azelma went on with her terrifying ways, Kamau made plans behind her back. After searching for many weeks, he came up with a legitimate Heir to the throne: a young lion named Ryukin, from the Sakura pride to the east, whose blood ties went back generations. He spoke for a long time with his lion and appointed him as his Heir in secret - Azelma had still not showed any signs of pregnancy, much to her irritation. She had started to suspect Kamau of his treachery, and had courted other males behind the King's back, desperate to produce an heir, legitimate or not.
Kamau knew he didn't have much time. When he settled things with Ryukin, he made the announcement to the pride, that Ryukin would succeed him as King of the pride. Azelma was furious - a white, murderous rage overtook her at being outsmarted, and she vowed right then that she would have her revenge.
The next day, the new King Ryukin left with the pride on a long migration to seek out new territories to the east. It had been a wise decision to leave the Kopjes: many lions disagreed, as this place had been their home for generations, but the hunting was poor, the earth dry and barren. Only Kamau stayed behind - he was getting older, and wished to live out the remainder of his years in his homeland.
Just as the pride were leaving, Azelma crept up behind Kamau, who was stood alone at the top of King Kopje, watching the distant horizon.
"You should leave too, Azelma," said Kamau without bothering to turn around. "No doubt there will be more chances of power in faraway lands. More lions to trick."
Azelma could see that Kamau was no more use to her: a lone, aging lion, with not even a kingdom to rule. He was obsolete to her now. She spat at his feet.
"I will leave you here to rot, Kamau," snarled Azelma. "But not before I give you what you deserve."
Azelma flew at Kamau in a fit of rage. In one vicious swipe, she struck at his eyes, blinding him. Blood droplets fell to the floor like ruby-red tears.
Kamau knew he would never see again. This was to be his curse, for all he had done.
Azelma cackled as she walked away, off to seek new adventures, new kings to seduce, new lands to conquer.
*
The sun rose and set and Kamau grew old beneath the watchful shadow of King Kopje.
He knew he would not leave here, that he would die in these lands - the thought was a comfort to him. And there was a small, naive part of him that dared hope that Koani might return to him, that they might be together once more. But as the seasons passed and Kamau grew weary, Koani never did come back. She returned to him only in dreams, speaking to him softly about the life she was living, in a green, gentle land far away, and how their daughters had grown up, how she thought of him every day.
Kamau grew a little mad with the loss of her. If a traveler happened to be passing through the Sakura-Motaki lands, now deserted, they might see a lone lion standing at the top of King Kopje, his plaintive cry lost in the wind. Rumors began to surround the place: the land was said to be haunted, inhabited by the ghost of a past king. They said he had gone mad from a broken heart and now roamed the lands like a specter, touched by a curse. In his youth, he had been a bold, noble lion, known throughout the land as Kamau, the Silent Warrior, but the king had fallen from grace because of his vanity. He now wandered the plains alone, blind and crippled, waiting for his true love to come back to him.
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