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You drop 150 silver beetles before the scrying stone.. And the markings are revealed to be... White Freckles 1 (Slot 12).
The two lions whirled in the grass nearly too fast to see, white and gold pelts flashing in the sunlight, claws and teeth bared, locked in a deadly dance. Claws raked Lucifer's shoulder, but nothing could wipe the smug grin off her face.
"Stop trying, Grandpa. You're embarrassing yourself. I was born better than you, and now you're old and creaky. If you'd had any sense," The lioness ducked another claw swipe and sprang in the same movement, her powerful back legs launching her straight into the older lion's chest. With a pained grunt, the gold-pelted king fell flat onto his back, Lucifer's enormous paws crushing him into the dry savanna grass. "you would've killed me the day I crawled into the sunlight." The king's breathing was labored now, the rosetted lioness's weight nearly cracking his brittle ribs. "You were always too soft. I'll bet you're regretting it now." Lucifer teased, her teeth bared in a smug, bloodstained smile. She dug her long, jeweled claws in just a little, and the golden lion made a small sound of protest as small ruby droplets welled up to stain his fur.
Sunstrike had been ruling the Pride of Tranquil Rain for nearly two decades, and he'd been known far and wide to be a merciful and benevolent king, with close relations to Goldenscar and then Great Warrior of Ares, the last two leaders of the Pride of Blessed Stars. He'd taken in Morning Star as an adolescent, rescuing her from her father's cutthroat pride and adopting her as a cub of his own. He'd been sure that the young lion's intense ambition could be used for good, despite her occasionally violent tendencies that had earned her the nickname Lucifer. In the end, though, Morning Star's desire to make her birth father respect her won out. Maybe it had always been winning, brewing under the surface into a storm that would topple Sunstrike off his throne.
"Morning Star." Though his breathing was ragged and shaky, the old king's voice was steady. Instantly, the pale lion's expression soured, and she shifted her weight further onto her front paws, making Sunstrike gasp for breath. The old golden lion managed to continue. "You don't have to kill me. I'll-" He coughed a little blood as Lucifer dug her claws in deeper. "I'll step down. Let you lead the pride. I just want to- advise you." His tone was genuine, but Lucifer curled her lip in a snarl.
"I don't need to be advised, Gramps, thanks very much. Once you're out of the way, I have quite the changes in mind for this pride of soft-hearted losers." Lucifer was in the right, she was sure of it. Sunstrike had always been too weak, and once she was leading the pride, her father would have to respect her. She'd turn her pride into lions they could be proud of, and she'd do it by weeding out any sign of weakness.
Sunstrike tried to defend himself, to say anything else, but Lucifer cut him off, giving him a last gruesome smile before leaning down almost gently and locking her jaws around his throat. She felt muscle tearing in her teeth and gave one yank upwards, almost instantly snuffing out Sunstrike's life. And it felt good. It felt amazing to know how much power she had, to know that she could get rid of anyone who disobeyed her.
Morning Star, Queen of the Pride of Tranquil Rain, let go of her predecessor's bleeding throat and looked up, shooting the horrified lions around her a delighted smile sticky with blood. "Well!" She announced, making everyone flinch and standing up straighter, her claws still buried in Sunstrike's slowly cooling fur. "Let's get to making some changes around here."
Sunstrike was the first member of her pride that Lucifer had killed, but he wouldn't be the last. As it turned out, leading a pride wasn't all it was cracked up to be. Sure, Lucifer could do anything she wanted, which was awesome, but there was also the small problem of Ares and the Pride of Blessed Stars. Ares, and his stupid morals and his stupid magical superstrength. He was the one lion Lucifer could never defeat, and she would never stop hating that. Still, through allying herself with him and some careful planning, Lucifer might, just maybe, still be able to get what she wanted.
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