The sky had turned extremely black by midnight with the first pride member's death, and no one noticed until the clouds turned purplish as dawn neared by. However, the news didn't reach the Nursery, since a royal was giving birth there;
Marquise Eliana, the youngest of her lineage, had entered the most tedious part of childbirth, and the most experienced broodmothers were called in order to help her with it.
Finally, sunrise came and the light went directly into the cave, stricking the newborn just before she started crying; all of the Marquise's family was gathered to meet the new addition to their family, just as the
King was to welcome the new royal. Happiness left the ambiance as Karion's figure overshadowed the Sun, with a straight face and defeated eyes.
The funeral was held by midday, when the pride arrived to the Rock Pinnacles, a place very far away from home. As the submales digged the space and the priestess,
Sisi, dedicated some words in her honor and respect, all cubs, adolescents and lionesses left their tribute by showering her with red flowers, which were her favourite; and once her body was placed and blessed for a last time before being buried,
Lavender pawed at her caregiver while jumping a little.
"Sunn, Sunn, that baby looks like her!" At first
Sunna wasn't paying much attention and had her eyes fixed on
Murk's corpse, but once ahe turned to where the cub was pointing, she did notice the resemblance she was talking about; she was mutated and with it being a patches, a coincidence that was very rare to appear.
"She actually does, Leafy. Nebula does look like Murk." Being that her status was high as one of the King's favourite, everyone listened and immediately turned to see the little fluff ball. It almost felt like she was the last gift the old patch lady had given them; a little one to cherish and love that would carry on not only her legacy, but also her memory.
As Nebula grew older, the pride confirmed more just how much alike they were; her smile was sweet and always present, not naughty at all either, just being playful and full of hopes and dreams. She surprisingly didn't take her grandmother's comments badly either, to the point where
Dante would enjoy her company and actually teach her what she knew, always proudly admitting to having found her so long awaited pupil.
Once she came of age to be an adolescent, it was decided she would be her grandmother's succesor once she retired. With it, she would be the one in charge of giving tribute to all those members who had passed, as well as keeping safe the tombs of all them and seeking advice when needed from the spirits. She learnt to paint her face accordingly to her occupation and was gifted all of her attire by family and other royals, yet to everyone's surprise, she thanked Murk for her scars after an awful incident, saying she had "completed her finally".
When asked, Nebula never says exactly what happened, more than she was attacked by a pack of hyenas when recollecting the remaining meteorite shards. But only once did she admitted that, because of a pressence, she made it out alive with barely any marks, and that even though the spirit didn't present, she immediately recognized her as Murk. Weird, since no one ever told her about the deceased lady.
By her story, Eliana smiled for once and claimed she was the chosen one; not by Heaven or Hell as in most cases, but by the own spirits that watched over them every day and night.
