Tendaji

A dark lion was traveling across the plains through scattered trees, a mountain range to the left and a thick forest to the right. The sun was high in the sky and warm on his fur. Almost too warm. He was on his own hoping to start a pride now that he was old enough to leave his home pride. When he started his quest, he happened upon a rather large pond. He recalled how plentiful the area was with prey and shelter. Not being able to find a better area, he had decided to travel back to the pool he had found. The trees around him thinned further till it was mostly clear plains. He could see the sun shimmering off the waters surface in the distance. Voices could be heard north of him, to the left. Intrigued, he turned his head and spotted six hyenas, four wild dogs, and a white lioness.
“Odd company.” The male stopped walking to pay closer attention to the group. It seemed the dogs were defensive towards the hyenas. The feline stood back a bit from the others, silent. Moving closer, he picked up on some of the conversation.
“You cannot be here, Njeri.”
“Come now, Gadisa. We hyenas have as much right as you dogs to be here.”
“You take too much from this land. You would see it barren.”
The boy smirked as he continued closer. Hyena problem, huh? Should be easy enough to solve. He sauntered forward earning a sneer from this Njeri.
“Yet you allow lions to infest the area,” the hyena snarled in his direction.
Seemingly unfazed by the comment, he sat nonchalantly beside the other lion. She gave him a cautious glance which he responded to with a reassuring grin. “Njeri, was it? I wouldn't risk your pack if I were you. The herds over here seem to carry a parasite that infect predators. Best to hunt elsewhere.”
“Do you take me for a fool, cat?”
“Not at all, m’am. Why just two days ago I saw a leopard drop dead after eating one of the infected gazelle.” The other hyenas looked amongst themselves, a mix of disbelief and concern. “It’s the fastest acting parasite I’ve ever seen.”
“That sounds pretty bad, Njeri.”
“Quiet!,” she barked at the others. She gave the lion a quizzical look. “If that’s true, how come you’re still here?”
“Who, me? I’m here to warn the others, of course. I came through here a few days ago when I noticed a lot of the predators were sick. Yet the grazers seemed impervious to the affects. I’ve been traveling the area, warning as many as I can find. The herds beyond the mountains appear safe.”
Njeri appeared to consider him a moment. “It’s not worth risking if what you say is true.” The hyena turned her gaze on Gadisa. “Don’t consider yourselves victorious. There’s still the rest of the valley to hunt.”
The hyenas left although somewhat hesitantly and the wild dogs nodded approvingly before taking their leave. The lioness shook her head with a small smile. “I can’t believe that worked.”
“I’ve had to persuade a few hyenas away from my old pride.”
“Ah. So you are Anayeshawishi.”
He tilted his head with an amused grin. “I see my reputation proceeds me. I’m Tendaji.”
“Firyali. I’ve heard the stories of how you diffused a war between your pride and a neighboring pack of hyenas.”
“Not all battles require strength. Sometimes you just need someone with a bit of charisma.”
The pale lioness lowered her head in what appeared to be bashfulness. "It would seem so."
He smiled. "I think I'm going to like it here."