Alpha Zulu

Zana was laying on the grass. The nearby cubs played well with each other showing a tranquil environment filled with peace and fun, the right atmosphere for development. Although this bliss may seem natural, but deep within every lion that's part of the pride, anxiety grows deep as each knew the fast approaching danger they needed to face, a hurdle between life and death, between a good life and disastrous one. They knew that the demonification of their kind is imminent, a doom waiting for them at the start of each winter, a wicked transformation that not one of them wants to embrace. They were living this persecuted life all these times but they can't get out, they needed help but to whom can they ask? To the blue skies? Or the dark valleys? 'If there's such a thing as a savior or if the ancestors may bless me and put a pair of wings on my back?' the worried lion asked.

Out of the blue, a squad of lioness ran fast unto Zana, with fear written all over their faces and weariness on their bodies, they looked like rugged beasts on a long journey while their dust covered feet magnified the importance of their report.

"Your Highness! Fern of the Northwoods reporting!"

A young and charismatic leader started to talk, her blood-shot eyes gave way to the fear seated within her heart, as the things that just happened this morning went beyond her usual ideals of hunt and strength. For it was not a battle by her standards rather, it was a massacre, although she's kind of happy because one of the beasts that had died was actually her brother that had the evil mutation last winter. Still, the lingering fear of seeing a small man single-handedly defeating hordes of insane beasts makes her think the magnanimity of such body's power is nothing to laugh upon. Therefore, even though the huge muscles in her body would try to reassure her of her strength, she can never and ever thought for a second that they'll break even a single bone of that man's sturdy structure.

"What's wrong?!"

Seeing that sense of urgency painted on their faces the young princess of the lions didn't take this news easily, instead, a glint of fear already rose within her heart, but her smile seemed like the hand that was there to keep this pandora's box closed.

"A huge number of demonic beasts died, and a strong man appeared."

"What?!"

"Down from here, around two steps* away of running."

"What?!"

"Ugh...."

"I mean, a man, a real human being appeared?!"

"Well..."

"I mean, a real human? Those creatures the Lord Father told us? I thought they were not suppose to step on this lands anymore."

The bizarre conversation stopped for a moment as the once shocked face of the lion princess Zana contemplated on the impossibility of the matter, from worry to wonder her emotion acted like a sudden burst of hard wind to a humid cave. The patrol squad that went to report acted like stones before the surreal royalty on the cloud nine. Her reaction might be weird, but for a girl who's pampered since she was born, she was told of the once overlords within the lands they are now walking on, but was defeated by a greater force hence they retreated away unto the near-ocean part of the land, going to the direction of the river-down. So there she stood, confused if she should be happy or be afraid.

"Your highness, are you okay?"

The lioness called Fern asked, as she is lost in thought before the zealous princess whose imagination have already went unto the other world.

"Yes, I'm fine. You should go and report this to Lord Father Zulu, immediately!"

"Yes, your highness!"

The squad bowed to Zana, and went through, but the curious princess also followed the group secretly into the great cave behind her where her father lives, the Alpha Zulu, a tough leader of the Barbarian Lions, the one who once fought off the malicious conversion of the demonic influence and lived to tell the tale.

************

"What is he like?"

"He's thin as a twig, my lord."

"How is he powerful then?"

"He's using some crafts."

"Is he from the people behind the mountains?"

"We don't think so, my lord."

"Why do you say so?"

"He wears the same furs as the men by the sea."

"So? How is he strong? Humans from that side were always the weakest."

"We were also confused, my lord, but we know what we saw, and it was a man with fair skin."

"Fair skin?"

"..."

After that simple bout of words, the whole room went silent as a starless night, full of worries but full of glories. There was a desire to be curious and see, but also a choice to keep themselves together, not minding the world outside.

"Let's go and check, but I want to do it in small numbers, let's just go with this team."

"Yes, my lord."

"Take me with you!"

Everyone agreed to the command, but before they could even start to muster their strength, a voice suddenly emanated from the sides of the cave, as out from a hole, the princess Zana went out revealing her gracious beauty for everyone to see.

"Okay, but we will not go near the man, we'll just watch him from the watch-over-hill."

"But, Lord Father!"

"Zana, enough! Just follow."

"Yes, Lord Father."

What was suppose to be a disastrous war of words unexpectedly subsided easily. As both the Father and Daughter was curious towards the creature they only knew off from the colored-walls of the Caves, and some bones they once saw under earth.

The whole team started their dash out from the great cave of the Alpha Zulu, unto the dark woods of the fertile plains, their faces were grim as they knew not what to expect from this unexpected guest, is he a friend or a foe? Not a single one of them knows. Not even the wise Alpha could foresee the catastrophe or the possibility of prosperity from the simple actions they've initiated. Although the place where the unknown entity devastated the beasts were kinda far, the hill where the lions would position themselves is not that distant, as it was closer to the Pridelands.

A few moments later, the team of lions arrived at their destination, but much to their dismay, anarchy didn't happen, and instead it was a forceful supremacy. Like a king of the hill, that thin man was seating on a rock while not a single drop of blood was on him, while all around were the beasts that had luckily been spared from their own fatality. They may looked as a horde surrounding him but their legs were placed in such a way that they only need to put a little force in their hooves and feet to jump farther in a second.

"What's this?"

"My Lord, we're also shocked."

The inquiry broke off the silence, as they tried to analyze on how such a possibility was conceived, for these demonic beasts would not bow to anyone and would always be on a rampage, but now they looked like a herd of meat to be slaughtered.

Suddenly, as if the man was waiting to make a show, six figures emerged out of nothing, with different statures but same clothing, they stood like unshakable trees of life and death, emissaries of the heaven and hell. Thinking that the scene created was not that shocking, a line rose from the group as one of them slash his sword unto the clear sky. Then as if there was a god laughing at them, curious for their expressions the line that appeared expanded into a black hole, as big as a hill, and out of it massive wooden houses showed up with trees on top of them with wide branches and few black leaves*, but each leaf was big and unusually shaped as a rectangle. All the beasts that were surrounding the group immediately ran for their lives. Surreal, this experience was beyond words for the futile lions.

These series of events were understandably shocking for the mountain beasts, as their futile minds couldn't really grasp what they are seeing, but unexpectedly the princess, Zana, just said something weird. "Ships..." she uttered. Everyone didn't really mind what she spoke, as they are still lost in their dreamlands. Without warning, a new event unfolded, a small house with a man on it descended out from the biggest one, and landed unto the group below, and the best joke happened. The young man stopped, took something out from the nearby fire, and put it in his mouth. Everyone was flabbergasted, as this was ruining their impression of the dictator who can even subdue the raging beasts. After that laughable and shocking incident, the whole group went into that small house and flew back to the huge box-like house but this time, it was slower.

A few moments passed by and the group arrived at top of that box, and then black mist suddenly covered all the four boxes and started to move towards the white-capped mountains, but as if the group didn't want the world to know where they are going, they disappeared. The four huge houses were gone, and what's left was a fear-filled ecology, for not even the strongest rage-filled demonic beasts could stop the thin man, are they even worthy to fight against the whole group?

Zana was laying on the grass, but this time she was drenched in sweat, and enveloped by fear, an atmosphere for the defeated.