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(DISCLAIMER: This biography is a HEAVY work in progress, as this lion is still aging. Months will be skipped. This biography includes descriptions of blood, gore and violence.)
-5 months-
The month I was removed from the pride I was born in. Wait, allow me to give some... background knowledge first. My name is Blossom. I am the son of a massive, mighty king and an unnamed lioness. Who was my father, you ask? His name was Petal. A primal, just like me. Ever since the moment I opened my eyes for the first time, I had always looked up to his powerful figure. One day, I will be as strong as him! Right?
Petal was an... interesting individual. He was a bit on the older side, about 8 years old at the time, but he was very hyperactive for his age. I suppose he acted more like a cub than an adult lion, but... guess it's a good thing to stay in shape and release energy? But he wasn't the kindest individual, either. While he did take care of his pridemates as best as he could, he did cruel things in his spare time... or at least that's what I've heard. It must have been bad if he was deemed the Deathlord of the Jungle, no? My mother always seemed timid of him, and the more I grew and heard more about him, the more I sided with her.
She and I lived in a cave separated from the rest of the pride. My mother always looked so nervous. But... why exactly? Well, it was a miserable spot for her to be in. See, this desolate cave was the ultimate place Petal would decide one's fate. Lions were often chased off or abandoned when they made it to this cave, but I also heard rumors that some were even killed... Since the moment I was able to see, I always noticed how worrisome she was, both for herself and her son. Her ears were constantly pinned, her eyes wide. She had witnessed a few lionesses get exiled by Petal... which I think was the same fate she went through. Because as soon as I was old enough to wean myself away from my mother's nursing, I woke up one day to see her snarling at Petal as he charged after her and eventually chased her off his domain. I was devastated... my own father doing such a thing to my mother... Can I even call him my father anymore?
Which brings me to my current situation in this time period.
All this time, I had thought that I would grow up to someday take Petal's place once he has died. I thought that one day he would claim his son as his heir, and he would form a dynasty. He showed me otherwise... but I wasn't aware of the twist of fate he would soon bring me. After he returned from chasing my mother away, he grabbed me by my scruff and suddenly started to pad away with me, on his way out of our pride's territory. He told me we were just taking a trip. Still being so confused and terrified, I just went along with it. At the time, I wished I hadn't. I wished that I had argued back. But nowadays, I figured that my fate was merciful and could have been worse.
He suddenly dropped me off in unfamiliar territory. I knew it was a lion's territory, because I smelled so many foreign scents of other lions. As Petal let out a deep, rumbling roar and suddenly padded the opposite direction, I heard the footsteps of another lion approach. At first what I had thought was an enemy, but now? A savior.
They seemed to have been the ruler of this territory. While they weren't a primal like Petal, they were just as muscular and scarily tall. They were massive, and their pelt was littered with scars. I think one of their eyes were even blinded. But their gaze... they looked very soft and sympathetic toward me, and they let out an angry growl at my father's direction.
The lion decided to take me in, and I reluctantly agreed. What else could I do? I was in an unfamiliar world now, and I didn't want to die. They introduced themself as Nanaimo... oh, they liked being called Imo for short. Then they introduced me to their pridemates. For some reason, I felt a bit more comfortable than what I did back at home... Something about this pride and its king evoked a calm, nurturing nature. Or maybe it was because there were less lions. Either way, it felt as if my mind had immediately changed its perspective on Imo.
My first day of training happened in my new pride. I slammed myself into a rock. I thought nobody understood the pain I was in afterwards, but looking back at it, I found that hilarious. These lions went through worse than rocks and training.
Eventually I asked Imo if I would ever become a king. Their eyes seemed to have sparkled as I spoke, as if they seemed... proud of me. They responded, stating that I would one day take their place as king... But why did I see their gaze cloud with guilt? I asked them what was wrong. They seemed guilty that they had no one to give me patrolling experience once I grow up, for their pride was rather small and newer with no submales. I was scared to have the burden of eventually teaching myself, but it makes me feel better to think that one day I may become a teacher for an adolescent male myself.
-6 months-
I have only been in Imo's pride for a month at this time, yet I was still a bit shaken up from Petal's actions. I no longer considered him a father to me. The adult lions tried to train me again. I spent the whole time muttering to myself some poetry about my life so far. I thought I was a good poet at the time... but now? Let's just say I needed lots of improvement.
I started looking up to Imo a lot more. I even started to consider them as an adoptive parent, and loved them just as much as I had used to love my biological father. We always loved to be near one another's presence. As a cub, I loved snuggling up to their warm flank, and sometimes I would feel them gently nuzzling the top of my head. They acted just like how a mother or father would with cubs. Gentle, nurturing, loving, fatherly... Qualities I had always wished Petal had. What king abandons his own cub, leaving it in the open to die?
But I sometimes caught myself wondering about things. Wondering if the outcome could've been any different. What if Petal killed me instead? What if I was chased off with my mother? What if both of us were killed? What if predators found me before Imo did? What if Imo themself killed me? The questions always haunted me, yet they made me grateful that fate was more merciful on me.
A few days after my training flop, I was on my way to drag a feather to Imo's den. You know, as a little gift. When I entered, I saw them cuddled up with another male lion, who seemed to have gorgeous black patches on his pelt. Both of them noticed me as their eyes widened with surprise and embarrassment. I only snorted and laughed at the time, because I thought the way they affectionately huddled next to one another was silly, but as I got older I realized they were definitely gay as fuck.
Now, you may be asking: "The pride is small β were you the only cub in it?" The short answer is no. When I first arrived, I was greeted by another cub and even two adolescents. They introduced themselves as Everglow, Halo, and Manifest respectively. Most of the time Halo and Manifest were gone doing adolescent things or out hunting with the adult lionesses, and sometimes Imo was busy doing duties a ruler would have to do, so I resorted to hanging out with Everglow. We quickly grew to be the best of friends. We would often crack jokes or make up silly stories to tell one another, get creative with making games to play (which we never got bored of), or practice hunting and fighting skills. I would always complain when she won our little wrestling matches. Oh, how I miss those daysβ¦
-1 year, 10 months-
Many months had passed. I would almost be an adult lion at this time. And... safe to say, I adored my new pride. It felt like family to me. A complex yet comfortable feeling that my former pride failed to give to me.
Speaking of my pride, I had noticed that it has grown much larger in numbers than when I first arrived. But... some of the faces and scents were awfully familiar. I think Imo had brought in some of my former pridemates. I had no idea why, but I assumed that Petal banished them all. Who knows what goes on in that sick lion's twisted mind.
Imo has brought in some new faces during this timeskip as well. A female and two males, all who were taken under their wing as cubs and have grown to become eager, young adolescents at the time of my late teenage months. I always admired how Imo dealt with new pridemates, and their fatherly nature that they displayed. They always treated each lion with love and care, and raised each cub as if their own. It makes my heart happy to see each cub get the same loving, accepting treatment that I had received when I was their age.
I have started to play less and less as I aged more. Perhaps I was growing more mature as I learned more about the world, and prepared for the burdensome duties that I have yet to come as the pride's next heir. My friends all have aged up to adult lionesses and all seem to have little interest in playtime as well. That was understandable. They're adults. Sometimes I caught myself reminiscing about these nostalgic memories. It made me smile at first, but I would always frown as I remind myself of the painful truth. Once one learns about the dangers of this world, they cannot go back to innocent, youthful times. At least, that's how I viewed it.
Though, around this time I would often notice how tensed Imo would be. I would always catch them pacing back and forth in their den, with their ears pinned against their head as they muttered inaudible words under their breath. They always seemed angry, but I wouldn't know why. It was very difficult to catch what they were even saying, but something has been increasingly bothering them.
It wouldn't be until a few months later when I found out for myself why they were always so upset.
-3 years-
I find it difficult to talk about this, even after all the time since it has happened. The image... It is forever engraved in my mind, buried deep like a parasite.
I recall waking up one morning to furious roars in the distance. They sounded as if they came from somewhere within the territory, but not too far from the pride's dens.
Curious and concerned, I arched my back into a stretching position before heading out... I still question if that was a mistake. I had expected to see one of my pride members attempting to scare off an invading lion, or something of the sorts.
I was right, but the lions were not who I had expected them to be.
I was shocked to find Imo and Petal facing one another, right on the borders of their respective territories. Imo's tail was lashing, making them appear like a violent madman. Their teeth were bared and their lips were curled into a nasty snarl. Petal let out threatening growls, and I've noticed that he had been flexing his claws, as if they awaited to tear into Imo's flesh. I realized both lions were in an argument of some sort. However, I didn't know what it was about at first. Perhaps it was a territory dispute, or an invasion?
I didn't have a single clue until Imo mentioned me.
They were furious. They spat at Petal, exclaiming how it was morally wrong of him to abandon me, and criticizing him for being a cruel lion and a horrible king. That must have been Petal's last straw, because not even a heartbeat later, he lunged at Imo. He was like a snake, giving out the warnings and swiftly springing toward his enemy once they had approached too close.
I didn't know what to do. I froze in horror, knowing that I couldn't do anything but watch.
Imo quickly countered Petal as they dodged to the side and smacked him on the face. That was no warning smack β their pitch black claws were unsheathed, glistening in the morning rays. I watched as Petal's blood splattered onto the damp grass, and the way he stumbled to recover from the blow. His pink eyes were furiously locked onto his target; letting out a thunderous roar, he charged at Imo. He seemed akin to an angry buffalo.
The fight felt like it lasted for eternity. Or, perhaps, my overwhelming fear made it feel that way. But I continued to watch as the two massive lions fought one another, exchanging powerful blows. I watched as they sneezed and hacked out blood, as their battlefield slowly changed from emerald green to scarlet.
My panic skyrocketed when Petal suddenly pinned Imo down.
Imo writhed angrily in his grasp. They bit and clawed at Petal as a desperate attempt to escape. Not once did Petal flinch at their attacks, as he dug talon-sharp claws into the ruler's stomach and sank his sabre-like fangs into their throat. I nearly gasped in horror as Imo screeched in pain. Their attacks intensified, but Petal still wouldn't release them. I could still vividly remember Petal gaining this... haunting smirk on his face as he made his final move.
His jaws clamped around Imo's neck. Locking them into place, and with great force, he yanked at their throat. Imo's furious expression shifted into that of terror as they seemed to have watched their life slip out of their grasp.
Petal tore out their windpipe.
After a few moments of Imo gasping and feebly writhing, blood gurgling from their mouth and the gaping wound in their throat, they fell motionless. Petal's smirk only grew wider as he let out a victorious roar. He was clearly satisfied with the bloodshed. He was clearly satisfied that his opponent was dead.
And worst of all, he was merciless. He had no remorse after what he did.
I remained hidden in the bush. My body was trembling as my horrified expression locked onto Petal, who was padding away back to his own pride. Then my gaze shot toward Imo's dead body. I didn't dare utter a word. Once I was certain Petal was away, I gathered some courage and trudged toward Imo. I buried my nose into their blood-stained fur as I stifled sobs of grief.
Meanwhile, their body was quickly growing cold.
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