Rantar let out a long sigh, while SIlitar snarled, scraping his ice tinted paw at the ground. “You know full well the riverbank is mine.” he growled. Rantar’s scarred eye glinted, and he bared his teeth. “I don’t control m-” Silitar lunged at him, snapping his teeth warningly. “Your patrol, your control,” he snickered. “that even rhymes.” Rantar chuckled, yet he showed no signs of backing down. Sillitar glared at him. “You don’t need it anyway, you might as well have the whole wretched ocean- with all the territory you’ve managed to scrounge together.” Rantar roared and jumped at Sillitar. For such a big lion he was exceptionally fast, yet Sillitar was faster. With a swift grin, Sillitar sidestepped the oncoming blow. “Till next time.” Rantar grumbled, yet his eyes were kind. “Till next time.” Silitar mumbled. Rantar retreated, turning away.

Your paws feel heavy as you tread through the mossy forest. As time grows on, your steps begin to slow. The ache of hunger and thirst increased with every step you take. With a gasp, you collapse, the muscles in your tired body giving way. Closing your eyes, your vision blurs and you decend into a haze.
You blink slowly, and the world around you comes back into focus. You find yourself curled up atop a comfy pile of feathers and shrubbery. Looking up, you can see the warm blue glow of Dioptase. A gentle voice echoes from a corner. “You should really be careful out there, you got lucky.” A purpleish lion, with black patches covering her undersides emerges from a corner, she treads over to you, sitting nearby. She’s calm, yet wary. “What hap-“ The lion interjects, an icy undertone to her voice. “You should know where your going, might get lost.” She signs and glances back at you. Her eyes soften and she trots out of eyesight. Returning a few seconds later, she drops a rabbit carcass infront of you. “Best be on your way.” The lion smiled softly. Bowing your head in greatfully, you accept the gift.
As you leave her den, you call out “Who are you?” The lion chuckles lightheartedly. “Horizon.”

Silihar, the magnificent lion who stands before you today, was once a young cub- much like yourself. He was born to the rough terrain of the icy tundra, amidst a subtle, yet deathly snowstorm. The ice, so cold it felt like fire, burned against his warm fur, morphing his appearance.
When he was three months old, wings as white as a blizzard grew from his shoulders. They seemed not to affect his mood. When Silihar grew to five months old, the pride’s cubs began to drift away from him, leaving him excluded. While their small fangs had slowed in growth, Silihar’s fangs grew only longer. By the time he was one years old, his fangs matched the appearance of a sharpened icicle. None of this seemed to bother him at all, he was energetic as ever, and often accompanied his mother on the hunt.
Silihar’s mother, Caliea, was kind. She taught him to aim for the biggest prey, and to defend what was his. His father, Sikarka, often ignored him and was ill-mannered and ambiguous.
One day, Caliea left for a hunt. She never returned. Sikarka was apathetic, but Silihar was broken by her loss. Slowly, he built himself back up, vowing to honor his mother.
It was an overcast day when he found himself lost. His pride was nowhere to be found, and the surrounding territory was unfamiliar. After recovering from the initial shock, Silihar wandered the tundra. As his mother had taught him, he went for the biggest prey. He helped himself to the herds of Caribou whenever he pleased, and spent the days running freely.
When the weather had turned warmer, and flowers had sprung up from the ground, Silihar came across an argument. Two primal lions snarled at each other, foam dripped from the larger one’s mouth. His eyes glowed unnaturally, and he twitched uncontrollably. He was rabid, most likely.
The smaller primal was crouched over two small cubs, they cowered behind her.
About to deliver a fatal blow, Silihar jolted into a run, and slammed himself into the primal. They both went flying, the bigger primal collapsed. Soon, he was back on his feet. He snarled and lunged at Silihar, sinking his claws into Silihar’s fur. With a yowl Silihar threw the other lion off of him. Then he pounced, sinking his blue fangs in his shoulder. The forest was silent. The primal did not get back up.
Stumbling into a crouch, Silihar let out a nervous growl.
The female primal stepped out to meet his eyes, the pelt of a brown lion was draped over her. Her striking pink eyes were full of gratitude. She bowed her head in introduction. “My name is Antashia.” She smiled. Though tired, he nodded back. Silihar noticed her fangs were just as long as his.

By the time Hou Yi had emerged from the trees, Chang’e was already awake and pacing. “Where have you been?” she slowed to a stop besides Hou Yi. “We have a problem,” she muttered.
Eyes widening, Hou Yi shook out his icy mane. “Already? The sun isn’t even up.”
Chang’e nodded. “Well I guess abandoned cubs don’t really take that into account.” This caught Hou Yi’s attention. He looked at Chang’e quizically, and she sighed. “There’s a cub, a few paces beyond our territory. Best be careful, wouldn’t want to get into any trouble.” She explained. “Shall I wake Lan and the others?”
Hou Yi hesitated, then shook his head. “That Kodiac took a lot out them, let them rest. If I’m not back by mid-day, come find me.” He smiled, nodded, than turned away. “I shouldn’t be too long.”
Hou Yi trotted through the trees, watching as two blue-jays twirled in the air. He wondered how they got their coat so shiney and vibrant…Before he knew it, Hou Yi had bounded past the newly blossomed field of flowers. He growled with the longing to take a detour and run around in the patches of color. It reminded him of when he was just a little cub.
Soon, he was well past the fields, and the green trees around him had started to fade. The land grew a little dryer, and the wind shot by twice as fast. Hou Yi paused and slowed to a walk, looking around for the mystery cub.
Tree, another tree, oh a bush! And another tree. Nothing seemed out of the blue. Then, with a start he spotted it.
A small cub was hudled close to a bush, the streaks of blue in her fur giving her away. She seemed to give up on hiding, and let out a fierce roar. Tumbling out from her hiding place, the cub ran straight into Hou Yi. After recovering from the initial shock, she rocketed right back into the bush.
“Well hello there little cub! Where is your pride?” Hou Yi questioned. A second passed by, then a few more. No response. Hou Yi repeated himself once again. “I’m…I’m lost!” The cub finalled yelped. Hou Yi lowered himself to the ground, his large frame reducing to the height of the trembling cub. “We’ll find them, come with me. You’ll be safer.”
He retracted his claws, and stretched out a large paw towards the cub, offering help. Suddenly, the little cub growled and lunged at Hou Yi, her fluffy pelt lighting fast. She sank her needle-like baby teeth into his fur with a chomp. Hou Yi let out a surprised growl, and gentally shook the cub off. Wincing, he tucked his sore paw towards himself.
“Follow me then, okay?” Hou Yi rose from his spot next to the bush and stood up. “You won’t even have to look at me!” He playfully covered his face, and the cub let out a small snicker. Hou Yi started walking back towards the forest. A few paces later, he glanced behind him. The bush was empty, and some furry ears were hidden behind a tree. Hou Yi chuckled and trotted forward. He wondered how the cub had gotten lost. Though the surrounding prides could be unforgiving, they seldom chased one of their own. Then they were back in the familliar green forest, and Hou Yi turned around again. The fluffy cub hopped behind a bush. He turned around and continued his walk forward. Suddenly he whipped around, the cub squaked in fright but it quickly turned into glee. Every couple of minuetes Hou Yi would check to make sure the cub was still there, and each time she would jump behind a tree or a rock. The walk back home had turned into a game, and Hou Yi grinned, knowing he would be back well before mid-day.
Only a few minuetes later, they reached the clearing. The pride’s cubs tumbled around next to a cave, an annoyed adolescent watching over them. “Chang’e?” Hou Yi called out. When she didn’t appear, Hou Yi sighed. “Go play, I’ll be right back.” He nodded at the other cubs. “Can I stay?” She looked around, then looked back up at him. “You just got he-“ she cut him off. “Please?” here eyes were hopeful. “Go play.” Hou Yi replied. She gave in and bounded off towards them.
“Chang’e!” He roared.
“In here!” She called back. Her voice echoed from the farthest den. Hou Yi started towards it, but Lan Yu emerged from his own den. “How was it?” He asked. Hou Yi smiled, his sharp teeth glinting off the soft light. “I’m assuming good then,” Lan nodded, “I’ll let you be on your way. Den leader duty awaits”
“Are we keeping her?” Chang’e glanced at Hou Yi, then went back to eating the rabbit carcas at her paws.
“I’m not sure. She wants to stay.” He sighed.
“But…”
“She bit me Chang’e, for moon’s sake we can’t risk having any other cubs get hurt.”
This time Chang’e stopped chewing. “I’m assuming she doesn’t have anywhere to go, so it would be cruel to not to help.”
“I know, I know. Remember what happened last time though? I thought we learned our lesson.” Hou Yi paced back and forth, contimplating the situation.
“King Hou Yi! Please help, a eagle! Please hurry!”
The adolecent previously on cub duty raced into the den. There was a gash on his shoulder, and his eyes were wide with fright. Alarmed, Chang’e and Hou Yi sped out of the den. They prepared themselves for the horror that awaited them. Yet when they arrived, there wasn’t a cub to be seen. Frantically, Hou Yi looked towards Chang’e but her eyes were worried, as she shook her head. They came to at the same time, almost in sync. The riverbed.
But when they drew near, the scene expected to be waiting simply wasn’t there. Looking closer, the small, shivering outline of the cubs were huddled behind a boulder. As they ran, Chang’e counted pairs of pinned back ears. “One, two, three,” she continued, “nine, te-“ she gasped and turned towards Hou Yi, but his eyes was already worried. “Where’s…”
The air thundered as the flapping of wings grew louder. Brown with flashes of white streaked across the sky, and a Golden Eagle circled high. It’s eyes locked on to lone target, a brown cub crying out softly as it looked around. Hou Yi roared, a failed attempt to scare the bird away. It tucked it’s wings tight, then began to soar towards the ground.
Chang’e and Hou Yi charged towards the riverbed, yet they weren’t fast enough.
The brown, black, and white bird descended upon the cub, it’s shadowed claws outstreached. Time seemed to slow at the cub continued to look around, unaware of the impending danger. Chang’e looked horrified, her expression mirrored on the face of Hou Yi.
Then suddenly, a flash of blue burst from behind the boulder. Leaping surprisingly high into the still air, the cub lunged towards the large bird. With a shriek, the Golden Eagle was knocked out of the sky, leaving the cub safe, yet shocked. The bird shot off back towards the clouds, looking quite done with the ordeal. Red spotted one of it’s brown wings.
The cub’s trailed behind an older lioness, the previous adolescent looking quite guilty. Chang’e and Hou Yi led them back towards their territory, the dangers of the wild reciding.
Nodding towards the blue-tinted cub, Hou Yi beconded her over. “What’s your name little one? Apologies for not asking sooner.”
“Rino!” she responded.
“Well then Rino, be up at dawn for training, wouldn’t want to be late.”
As Rino bounded back towards the other cubs, Chang’e glanced at Hou Yi and smiled.