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“ righteous; well governed “
kinged at 1,074 on 4/12/18
Vicious, nasty, and down-right unpleasant, King Akhuma ruled his small pride with a hostile paw. Those who did not benefit him were quickly killed off with the king citing divine forces for his reasonings. His mind, of which many considered to have been lost years ago, was wrapped thoroughly around the dillusion that he was a god among lions, trapped in the pridelands to repent for some long-forgotten sin. His lionesses lived in a constant, fearful state, forced to worship lion gods they did not understand - for they were products of the unstable king’s mind - or face what was likely death as punishment.
Teijo entered the small, apparently godforsaken pride as an adult. He was never quite sure why the king had picked him, brought him in, but he was treated... well enough. Spared from the punishments the lionesses faced, at least. He was hardly treated at all, in fact, his only encounters with the king were those in passing, often while Akhuma was deep in a conversation with himself. He was content enough, living on the edges of the pride, patrolling and single-handedlg keeping the borders that opportunistic males tried to move in upon while the king was distracted with his worship. He kept his head down, and tried to ignore it when the king went into almost a possessed state and demanded sacrifices from his harem of lionesses. It was livable for him, if he closed his eyes.
And then he made friends with the lionesses.
It took a while for them to trust him, but a few hesitantly began to. He had taken to bringing home small carcasses from his patrols and sneaking them to the often times starved lionesses, and slowly a need to protect them from more than just hunger grew within him. He took up guarding the few cubs the pride had when the huntresses went out, for his presence around them seemed to make Akhuma feel uneasy. He clumsily treated the wounds of lionesses that suffered under the king, and then accompanying them around the pridelands. His presence calmed his friends, but only made the unstable king more and more unsettled by the passing day.
Finally the time came that Akhuma approached Teijo, the young males fur prickling as he realized this was the first time he looked the king in the eye. His eyes unsettled him, the look in them... wasn’t right.
Akhuma, in front of the pride, demanded a sacrifice of Teijo - his life. But he also gave an option: if he preferred to keep his life, the lives of half of the lionesses in the pride, with Teijo picking out those who would die. The king explained this would be a gift for the gods, who he claimed were angry with the pride, who needed appeasement, immediately.
For Teijo, the choice was easy. He would never ask for the lives of his friends, of his adopted family. No, it wouldn’t be them who would die that day.
But it wouldn’t be him, either.
Already bigger than the king, who was physically small and undermuscled due to his focus being on things other than staying in his prime, it was almost too easy for Teijo. The younger male launched at the king, cutting him off in the midst of his raving explanation as to why this sacrifice was necessary, how it would benefit them, and the most important battle of the young males life ensued. A battle not only for his own life, but for the innocent lives within the pride he so desperately wanted to protect.
In the end, the self-proclaimed god was no match for the younger, stronger male, a mere mortal or not. Akhuma hit the ground with a thud, his lifeless body small and no more godlike than what Teijo had done behind a bush after breakfast that morning.
Breathing heavily, his head raised to meet the eyes of lionesses who all physically seemed to have a weight lifted from their shoulders. They were free, after all the years of suffering at his paws. Never again would they have a litter sacrificed, never again would they be starved or face death for small mistakes, never again would they cower beneath their king. The lionesses embraced him as their king without second thought, the crown Akhuma held in his clutches for so long instead placed upon his gentle head.
Teijo’s effects on the pride were immediate. The lands came to life like never before, piles of carcasses the former king hoarded were cleared, their dead breathen finally given proper burials. The young king was inexperienced, but ready, ready to protect the females that had been through hell with every ounce of strength in his body. He developed into a firm king, a stern one, but fair and reasonable. He took time out of each day to check in with his pridemembers, never wanting them to feel the way he watched them feel under the previous king again.
Teijo became a fiercesome king, feared by any who weren’t in his pride - for those outside had no idea what a, good-hearted lion he truly is.
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