Every morning, the sky is blessed with red hues and soft light. Mother Nature awakening its daytime children from slumber with the pleasant warmth of the sun marking a new day. A gentle touch of light and a pleasant serenade from a flock of birds brings forth the new day to all mammals, aquatic creatures, avian sleepers, and cold-blooded scales alike. Most love to be awaken from their Mother Nature, but a young lion cub, with a red mane slicking back down his neck, was not as fortunate.

His eased breaths and soothed body was quickly subdued by an unpleasant, rough surface. It was sliding up the back of his neck to the top of his head, in which he went from stirring to yelping in anguish. He squirmed, twisted, and pushed away from the offender that had awoken him, but he was trapped under a paw much too heavy to lift. He finally decided to cry out in a desperate voice.

"Mom! Stop it!"

"Kion, quit fidgeting. You have to go through this every morning," the large female lioness continued to clean her son with the sandpaper texture that was her tongue, "I do not understand why you are not use to this by now. Kiara knows to hold still."

"Yea, Kion," another female lion, though much smaller than her mother, smirked at her struggling brother, "You better listen to mom. You do not want to get on her bad side. Besides, we're royalty, and royalty should always be a good role model for others."

"Well excuse me, princess," Kion snarled at Kiara, but, knowing he was defeated, he slumped to the ground, "But I find this unnecessary and embarrassing, especially as the leader of the Lion Guard. I'm just going to go out there and get dirty again defending the Pridelands."

"Which is why you better be prepared for another cleaning when you get back. We have to make an appearance at the Zebra's performance this evening. It would be rude to show up filthy," their mom took her restraining paw off of Kion, sitting down and licking the dirt off of it, "Alright. You may go, Kion. Please be careful."

"I will, mom," Kion rolled his eyes, but smiled back to his mother, getting ready to leave their den, "Bye mom. Later Kiara."

"Goodbye, Kion."

"And try not to get 'lost' on the way back," Kiara said, knowing full well that Kion would rather be anywhere but the Zebra's theatrical performances.

"I will be back on time," Kion's grumbling tone said otherwise while he was bolting out the entrance.

He followed the path down from Pride Rock, reaching the base and out into the Pridelands. The Lion Guard, a team of the finest protectors in Pridelands as well as Kion's personal and best friends, were going to meet out by Flat Ridge Rock to start patrol around the borders of Pridelands. Working their way in along the way.

"Zuka Zama!"

"Huh," Kion looked up to see what was making a honey badger shaped shadow on the ground. It was his best friend, Bunga. The dark blue, bug-eating adventurer had flipped out of a tree Kion was passing by, landing onto the lion cub's back.

"Hey, Kion. Mind giving me a lift," Bunga laughed, gripping onto Kion's orange neck.

"Sure thing, Bunga," Kion said, increasing his strides into long prances, covering hundreds of yards in seconds, "Better hold on though."

"Is that a challenge," Bunga grinned, wrapping his arms around Kion's neck, "Go ahead, try to shake me."

"Ha! You boys are turtles compared to me!"

The two looked over at the sleek, agile body of Fuli the spotted cheetah. She gave a taunting yawn as she easily kept up with Kion's strides, "This is a jog for me. Huwezi! Race you to Flat Ridge!"

With that, Fuli extended her paws into full sprints, kicking dust into their face as she zoomed down the dirt path.

"Hevi Kabisa," Kion gaped, shaking his head and grinning, "Hey! Wait up!"

Though no match for Fuli, Kion tailed her all the way to the flat rock marking the meeting point for the Pridelands and the restricted Outlands. Kion was desperate for air, trying to take long, deep breaths for oxygen. Bunga jumped off as the three of them looked up at a giant mass already sitting on the rock.

"Hey guys, what took you so long?"

"Beshte?! How did you get out here so fast," Fuli raised an eyebrow, looking up and down the huge size of the hippo.

"I started before sunrise," Beshte stood up, his big and friendly smile followed him as he climbed off the rock, "Ono was here just a second ago."

"I'm right here," Ono the egret came soaring down from the sky, landing onto Beshte's thick back, "Everything seems calm and quiet. At least for now, Kion."

"Good, I'm hoping today is a slow day," Kion said, "My mom will not be happy if I'm late for the Zebra performance this evening."

"Don't worry, Kion," Bunga leaned on Kion's shoulder, "Queen Nala is like the chillest mom I know."

"Maybe around you guys, but she runs a tight shift with Kiara and me," Kion said, rubbing the back of his neck that had just been licked clean only a few minutes earlier.

"She's your mom, Kion," Beshte said, waddling over to him, "She only does it because she cares about you."

"Yea, I know," Kion chuckled, "I worry about the wisest queen in the Pridelands and she worries about the fiercest protector. I guess that's what family is, right?"

"Sure is," Bunga grinned, nudging Kion in the side, "You can't imagine the stress I give Uncle Timon and Uncle Pumbaa when I tell them about the crazy adventures we have."

Kion laughed with his friends before sighing softly, "Alright. I suppose we should…"

Kion was interrupted by the hair raising laughs echoing from the cliffs of the Outlands. Devious laughs that struck fear into the regular grazers of the Pridelands. Kion frowned looking out over the wasteland nearby.

"Hyenas," Kion climbed up onto Flat Ridge rock to get a better look over the Outlands. However, he could only see the deserted dryness of the barren fields.

"Don't worry about it Kion," Fuli said, jumping up next to Kion, "They're probably just acting like a bunch of buffoons like always. Nothing to get worked up about."

"Maybe," Kion looked over to Fuli, then to the rest of the Guard, "But when they're all laughing like that… That normally means they're planning something."

Bunga laughed, jumped up into the air and did a few martial art poses to emphasize his points, "So what? They'll come over here, we'll use a couple of our awesome moves, and then you can just scare them away again with the roar. Don't worry about it, Kion. We'll just have to keep an eye out for them."

"Yea. I suppose you all are right," Kion finally smiled again, hopping down from the rock, "But I think we should split up this time to cover more ground. Beshte and Bunga, you two should keep watch over the watering hole. Fuli, I want you to patrol the fields and make sure nothing bothers the herbivores from their daily grazing. Ono, you're our eye in the sky as always."

"Affirmative," Ono gave a saluting wing before taking off into the sky.

"You heard the lion, Big B," Bunga said, swinging up and onto Beshte, "Let's get moving."

"Way ahead of you, little B," Beshte nodded as the two began their journey to the watering hole.

"What about you, Kion," Fuli said, glancing over at Kion while stretching out her legs.

"I'll patrol around the border between the Outlands and the Pridelands. Make sure other animals stay far away from it and that no hyenas find their way in," Kion said.

"Sounds like a plan. Alright then, see you in a flash," Fuli's grinning face only was visible for a second before she sped off into the rest of the Pridelands.

Kion smiled to himself before looking up at Flat Ridge Rock. He stared at it for quite some time, and, when he decided to jump onto it, he sat atop it even longer. He looked out over the Outlands and its unpleasant scenery. Bones scattered throughout the plains of dirt and dead vegetation. The cliffs were jagged, rocks acting against each other in crooked ways. To the normal eye, the Outlands seemed like a filthy place scattered with nothing but despair.

Although, he was no keenest of sight, Kion still saw the wasteland differently. Despite it being home to one of his most frequent trouble maker, Janja, the leader of a Hyena clan, Kion saw the subtle beauty of the Outlands. He saw that even in places like these that harbor offenders of the Circle of Life, Nature's law still reigns supreme just as it does in the Pridelands. The remains of the animals being cleaned up and given back to Nature. No matter how different they looked on the outside, these two lands were still brothers inhabiting part of the world.

"Sisi ni sawa," Kion sighed in relief when he laid down on the cool, but comforting rock. He slowly patted the rock, remembering one of the last times he was there.

Many moons ago, he had a run in with a spotted hyena after being separated from the Lion Guard. She called herself Jasiri, Kion called her untrustworthy. Offended, but not defeated, Jasiri explained to him that she understood and respected the Circle of Life just as much as he does. Kion was skeptical, especially since he believed the horrid stories his father had told him about Hyenas, but between being lost in the Outlands and Janja's clan roaming the area, he could use a guide. With an expert of the land, Kion soon found his way home, parting from Jasiri for a moment before her vicious yelling began steering him away from the Pridelands to their source. Kion arrived just in time to help Jasiri fend off Janja's clan, Jasiri loving the sight of bad guys on the run.

The two had a new found friendship, one that would be tested again in the Outlands by a group known as the Outsiders. A pride of lions led by Zira that disrespected the laws of the Prideland. Through manipulations, Zira had almost ended the relation between the hyena and lion, but she was foiled by the rest of the Guard, saving Kion and returning the lion occupied watering hole back to Jasiri's clan. Jasiri could not have been more grateful for Kion, remarking on his fierce but protective nature as her clan enjoyed the spoils of their victory

Now that Kion looks back on it, he wishes he had gotten to spend just a little more time with Jasiri. Looking at the Outlands, Kion felt sorry her clan has to be labeled with the villainous reputation other hyenas create. If he had been given more time, he might have thought of a way to bring them into the Pridelands, safe from the oppression and no longer needing scraps to survive.

Kion sighed, feeling glum because of his unfortunate friend, but his blue mood was interrupted by the cries of an animal in trouble.

"Panic and run! Panic and run!"

Kion jumped to his paws, his ears picking up the screams and diabolical laughs echoing off the cliffs of the Outlands , "The Zebras!"

Kion waved Ono down from the sky, giving him a briefing before he even able to land, "Ono. It sounds like the Zebra's are in trouble in the Outlands. They must have been ambushed while preparing for their performance. Go find the others and bring them to the Outlands, I'll go ahead."

"Affirmative! Be careful, Kion," Ono flew off while Kion hurried down from Flat Ridge Rock and slid out into the Outlands.

He tried to follow the sounds of the pandemonium, but as he narrowed down on the location, all sounds seemed to have stopped. Fearing the worst fate has befallen the Zebras, Kion made a final turn into an enclosed clearing only to be shocked by the sight of Janja holding Tamaa, the animal imitating drongo, by the tail.

"I'm sorry, Kion. I had no choice," Tamaa looked down in shame and worry for Kion.

"Ha, good job, bird brain," Janja smirked, flinging the bird into the air and letting it fly up, "You're free to go."

"Kion! I'll get the Lion Guard! Hold on," Tamaa assured, flying as fast as he can to the Pridelands.

"Uh, Janja," Cheezi, one of Janja's closest hyena member, "Isn't the Lion Guard, like, a bad thing?"

"it doesn't matter," Janja smirked, as more of his clan member showed up, surrounding Kion and keeping him from escaping, "The Lion Guard was split up, thanks to our little ruckus. By the time they get here, Kion will no longer be able to lead them."

Kion readied himself, sharpening his sense and growling a warning, "Hyenas! Shouldn't you know by now that you never mess with the Lion Guard?"

"Oh, but we aren't messing with the Lion Guard. We're messing with you. Take a look at your surroundings, Kion," Janja cackled and gestured to the loosened rocks and cracked cliffs, "I would think twice before using that roar of yours. And without your roar, you're just a small lion cub out on his own."

Kion barred his teeth as the hyenas closed in around him. When on finally decided to lunge at him, he headbutted into its stomach, sending it flying back from where it came from. A few more attempted the same, but swipes from Kion's claws forced them away.

However, Kion felt the pressure as they all quickly rebounded. Pushing Kion up against the wall, they left him an open target for Janja to swoop in and snap his jaws around Kion's hind leg.

"Ah," Kion used his front paws to throw the others off of him and swipe at Janja, forcing them back.

Janja's face was covered from ear to ear in a wide grin, "No where to run, Kion. After all this time, we got you cornered and helpless."

"You hyenas must be one of the most stubborn animals I know," Kion scoffed, giving a warning swipe to force the group back, but still trying to keep off his injured leg.

"Ha, I suppose that is one thing we all have in common."

"What, who's that," Janja looked up higher into the cliffs, seeing another hyena, but this one was not of his clan.

"Jasiri," Kion smiled as the female hyena hopped down next to Kion, "it's good to see you."

"Likewise, Kion," Jasiri giggled, ruffling his mane, "But now is not the time for a greeting. We still have a nuisance nearby. This shouldn't take more than a few moments."

"A few moments," Janja snarled, feeling insulted by such mockery, "There are still only two of you and seven of us."

"Oh, but I'm afraid wits is not shared among all hyenas," Jasiri smirked as more hyenas from her own clan appeared from the cliff's edges, all ready to aid the two, "Did you really think I would only show up by myself?"

"U-Uh, Janja, there are more hyenas here than I can count," Chunga, another one of Janja's loyal companions, shuddered as he and Cheezi huddled closer around Janja like scared pups.

"Y-Yea, Yea," Cheezi's tail tucked between his legs, "See! One, Two… Uh… One…"

"Can it, furbrains," Janja growled, whistling to the rest of his clan, "We know when to cut our losses. Let's get out of here."

Janja and the rest of his crew scampered their way out of the enclosed area, running back into the deeper parts of their territory.

"And stay out," one of the hyenas who came to Kion's rescue yelled.

"Thank you, Jasiri," Kion sighed in relief, leaning back on the wall he was forced against, "Thank all of you. I was a goner had it not been for you."

"Ah, don't sweat it, Kion," Jasiri giggled again, "It's what neighbors do."

"Yea… Neighbors," Kion's grew slow and weak, his head swayed around on his neck and his vision grew dark.

"Kion," he heard Jasiri call out to him and barley felt her paw try to shake him awake, "Hey Kion!… Hurry back to the den…"

Kion could not hold his eyes open any longer, the world becoming dark and his body shutting down into a numbed sleep, the last bit of light from the world dwindling out.

(To Be Continued…)