Beyond the Horizon (continued from Nobody's home)

[Deleted]

"Help... Heeelp," Uschi shouted, but it was no use. Her voice was lost in the burrows depths, and no matter how hard she pushed she couldn't unwedge herself from the burrows entrance. The fire had definitely passed over now, and despite being a little singed, her exposed back half at least felt like it had all its skin intact. But no matter how hard she kicked, she couldn't move herself more than a few inches backwards, until the fat bunched up about her shoulders and chin and she was wedged in tight. Angrily, she thumped her tail against the sand outside... And then realised. If they couldn't hear her voice, perhaps they could hear her thumping. So she thumped her tail again and again and again, as hard and as loud as she could, hoping it would attract someone over. Someone who would help, and not harm her.

[Amani]

Kora looked at her back, rubbing it. That branch didn't burn her fur nor her skin too badly. She was a tan lioness with red eyes. 5 years had darkened her fur to a beige shade. She hoped the fire would die down, but it probably wouldn't any time soon.

Amani, somewhat easily distracted as ever, began wondering around the oasis.
Noticing quickly, Kora said, "Stay close, honey."
Amani looked at her and noded. He looked around the oasis, following along the wateredge. Then he was splashed by Nina off-guard. He playfully chased her around the oasis.

Kora wondered about the missing lions. She left Amani with Mufasa. She then ran towards the fire, seeing if she could find them. She ran quickly and lightly, the ground still warm from the fire. As she got closer, she heard a thumping sound. She followed it, hoping one of them was at the end of it.

(Edited, trying to avoid a double post. xD)

[akira]

Akira was weak and continued to cough as she dangled from Wingu's grasp. She did not know who was holding her, she only knew that she was moving and she wasn't using any energy. She had heard two familiar voices, one being Wingu... Maybe? She didn't know. Maybe it was Nuri. She was all too confused; the other voice she was sure of. It was Kala. She was alive! But why did she not hear Mufasa's voice? She was unaware that they were not together and was unsure of his presence.

She managed to whisper softly, "Wingu???" She coughed and weezed some more then asked, "Where's Kala and Mufasa?" Akira could feel the heat around her, but it was not nearly as hot as moments prior to her rescue. The thought of being safe had pleased her as she dozed off...

[Lionel]

When he heard Kala call him, he just turned and nooded. He'll return soon, with Mufasa. He kept running,, and made just a little murmuring sound, when Akira asked him aboout her 'family'. It didn't take long for Wingu to run to the oasis. He put Akira down softly, right infront of the water hole.
"Amani and your mother! Help Akira! Mufasa, we got to help Kala and other lions. Folow me!" The lion said gasping for air and then runned back into the flames. His paws were burning, and he thought of the lion in the burrow. And then he reached Kala, who was dangling for her life, just like Akira, at least he thought so.
"C'mon, Mufasa will be here soon. I'll help you." He said and encouraged her with words, running out of clean air, and supporting her with his shoulders.

[angelgirl]

Kala couldn't take it anymore, she passed out and her last thought was, at least she's safe.
Mufasa yelled in relief,
"Akira!", and ran over to her.
"Honey, are you ok? Thank you, Wingu."
Upon hearing that his wife was still out there, he ran just behind Wingu. When they got there, he was relieved to see she was still alive. He told Wingu,
"You go on and go find the other two, I'll take her back to the waterhole and then come find you."

[Amani]

Amani stopped playing for a moment, seeing lions leave and come. He was taken by Nina over by her mother, who was watching Nina previously. Seeing Akira, Nina's mother went over by to see if she's ok. Amani and Nina followed.

Meanwhile, Kora was still back in the fire. She was lead to a burrow, but where did that sound come from? Getting closer, she found a lion in the burrow, and it looked stuck. She ran back towards the oasis. Finding Wingu and Mufasa, she stopped and said, "I think I found one of those lionesses. I think she's stuck."

[akira]

Akira had still been asleep when the fresh air had filled her nostrils and travelled to her lungs. Her throat was still scratchy and dry. It was almost like a desert in her throat. Although she did not wake up she could hear voices around her, but all she heard were murmurs. She wanted to wake but could not. She was all to weak.

[Lionel]

Wingu noded to Mufasa, and after he was sure, that they can continue their way, he ran off to the burrow. The lion was stuck, you could see that, and Wingu didn't know what to do, until he saw a little pile of dirt.
He started digging one of the burrows sides, to free the lioness. It took a while, and Wingu's lungs were filling up with ashes and smoke. He was done by the time he couldn't dig anymore.
"C'MON!!!!!! GET OUT!!!"
He screamed, because another wall of flames moved closer. He took his last strenght and built a little wall of burnt wood to protect them, and tried to help the lions.

[angelgirl]

Mufasa had dragged Kala back to the waterhole and said,
"I'll be back, Amani. I'm going to go help your mother and Wingu."
Mufasa ran and found them, trying to get Ushchi out. He helped Wingu dig, and jumped back a little when he heard Wingu yell. He added,
"Listen to him! He knows what he's talking about! Now come on!"
He was starting to cough himself.

[Amani]

Kora helped them dig as well. The fire was getting closer to the burnt wood. She built it up to hold a little longer,
"C'mon! You can do it!" she yelled, trying to encourage her.

Nina's mother looked over Kala and Akira for burns or other injuries. She waited patiently to see if they would awaken.

[Deleted]

When the cage of dirt around Uschi crumbled, she shuffled backwards and came face-to-face with a large male lion, a scar running across his nose. She opened her mouth to say thank you, but nerves claimed her, and all she managed was, "Uhh, lead the way!"

[akira]

Akira had begun to awaken slowly, her eyes began to flitter. Her coughing had died down now that she had been in fresher air for a while; although smoke had still roamed the air around the area she and the other lions had now occupied, but compared to the other air further out above the fire this was the best it would get for now. She felt they would all be trapped here for as long as the fire had remained.

Her eyes shifted in the direction Kala had been laid down in. She attempted to get on her paws but could not. This was alarming to her. Having no use of her legs would do have no positive affects for her. She slowly wiggled her way to Kala while remaining on the ground almost like she was stalking her prey. As she reached Kala she had whispered, "Mom?" Was Akira getting used to Kala enough that she could call her mother? Of course she was; Kala had been there for her through everything. Mufasa had also been of equal importance to her. They were what she called.. Family.

[Lionel]

Wingu coughed and lead the lionesses back to the water hole. It was like an eternity, untill he got back to the waterhole. He left the lionesses to lie down and get some fresh air. He was still coughing, but he felt good. He did do a good job, helping everyone.

[angelgirl]

Once Mufasa and the others got back, he arrived just in time to hear Akira call Kala 'mom'. He smiled at that.

Almost as if she'd somehow heard Akira's call, Kala moved slightly and opened her eyes and whispered,
"Akira? Are you ok? Where's Mufasa?"
Mufasa came over and nuzzled his wife and gave Akira an affectionate lick on the head, then asked in a worried tone,
"Kala, are you ok? Akira, what's the matter with your legs?"
Kala noticed it and asked,
"What happened?"

[akira]

Akira looked ate them both with her happy eyes, "I don't think anything is really wrong with them. They're just really sore and tired." She looked at her legs then began to lick her front right paw, "Ouch!" A small trickle of blood seeped from her paw and flowed down a path in the ground. "I think I may have a small but sharp rock stuck in between my pads."

[Amani]

Kora returned to the waterhole with the rest. She nuzzled Amani as he came, who was delighted to see her back. It felt nice to get out of the smoke. She was coughing a little, nothing major. She was lucky, but atleast they all made it. She would have to wait here until the fire gave out. This proved to be one brutal fire season, and it wasn't over yet.

[Lionel]

Wingu got up and walked to Akira. He looked at her paw and said: "This could hurt a little.". Then he used his teeth to pull it out gently. It was a shard of a rock, and it was a little bloody.
"You should wash that, and watch out." Wingu said and started coughing.

[angelgirl]

Mufasa made sure Kala was on her feet safely, and before he or Kala could comment on Akira's hurt paw, Wingu walked over and got it out. He then asked his wife,
"Kala, would you make sure she gets her paw washed? I'll go see how Amani's doing."
He approached Amani and Kora.

Kala nodded and told Wingu thank you. She turned to Akira and said,
"Come over here and we'll see if we can't get your cut clean. It's better if we do that as soon as possible so it doesn't get infected."

[Amani]

Amani was glad everyone was back, and seemed okay. He looked up at Mufasa as he came towards him. He said,
"Hey Mufasa."
Kora seen him too. She gets so worried about things sometimes. "Hakuna Matata", she thought repeatedly in her head. She added,
"Is everyone alright?"

[akira]

Akira had snarled a little as Wingu had pulled the rock out of her paw. She wasn't trying to be aggressive, the pain had just been barely tolerable for a young cub her age.

She had stood up on three paws instead of four hoping to keep the dirt out of the wound. She hobbled over to the waterhole with Kala and slowly lowered her paw into the water. The water was cool and felt nice, but it also burned immensely. If a stranger had looked at her she would look like a cub that had just jumped into a pile of mud then ash. Her body was covered in pitch and she knew it. She knew it wasn't a time for fun but she missed being clean; without thought she had jumped into the shallow water and rolled over on her back. When she was finished she laid down in the water on her stomach and kept her wounded paw in the water.

She was much cleaner now but permanent damaged had been caused to the ends of her fur. She would have to wait for the ends of her fur to brake off on her back and hindquarters before she would return back to her normal golden glow.

[angelgirl]

Mufasa replied,
"Hey, Amani. Yes, Kora, everyone's ok. Akira got one of her paws hurt, but she'll live."

Kala laid down beside her adoptive daughter and said,
"There, now doesn't that feel better?," in a reassuring tone. Her fur felt singed somewhat and she jumped in the waterhole to wash all the soot and ashes off. She climbed out and shook herself. Her back still looked somewhat black, but her fur would grow out and she'd be fine.

[Deleted]

When Uschi got to the waterhole she immediately paddled out into the water, cooling all her singed areas. It was the most relaxing thing she had done in a long time, and took the pressure off her overburdened joints.

When she heard the strange male, Wingu, speaking again, she rolled onto her back and lifted her head to listen. Her massive chocolate-cream stomach floated like a vast island between her limbs and prevented her from seeing what was happening over it, so she tilted herself sideways, and spied Wingu pulling the shard out of Akira's little paw. Uschi gave a little gasp.

'He's so big and strong, but so gentle,' she thought, much like the prince's in the stories back in her homeland. 'And he saved me.' When he started coughing Uschi's heart went out to him, so she rolled right-way-up and paddled to the shore.

She felt much less graceful on land than she did in the water. It was an effort to lift her body high enough so her stomach didn't drag in the mud, and her usually-poofy fur was wet and singed, and stuck to her body in such a fashion that it showed every bulge and crease on her incredibly fat body. Nevertheless she walked to the big lion's side and met his own eyes with her big brown ones. "Wingu, is it? I'm Uschi." Then she lay her paw on the big lion's shoulder. "Thank you for saving me," she said softly. "And the way you treated Akira was so gentle... Erm... Would you like to come for a drink? By the sounds of it, you breathed a lot of smoke. And I can look at your paws. They might be burned."

Uschi hoped she didn't sound as stupid to him as she did to herself.

[Amani]

"Cool," Amani said, eagerly to run and jump in the water. It cleaned off the thin layer of ash and left the ends barely singed. He was only in the fire for a short time thankfully.

"Good. Excuse me." replied Kora. She decided to wash off real quick as well. It relax her nerves, cleaning some of her fur as well. She then climbed out onto shore, shaking off.

[Lionel]

Wingu looked at the lioness, and nooded, when she said his name.
"No problem. Just... Burrows aren't the safest place inn times like this." He said after Uschi stoped talking. He felt a bit akward, but folowed to the waterhole. just as he wanted to drink, the cough started again. The lion drank and drank, and it was easier, when he coughed. His paws felt sore, so he looked at them. The right paw of his front leg was badly burnt. He put it in the water, letting it to cool off.

[angelgirl]

Mufasa had gotten a good deal of his mane singed, so he finally followed suit and jumped in, allowing the water to cool his singed and burnt fur.

Kala licked Akira's head affectionatly and whispered,
"I think Ushi has a crush on Wingu. What do you think?"

[akira]

Akira giggled at what Kala had said to her, "Yeah..." She watched Wingu closely then looked back at Uschi with an odd look. Love didn't exactly sound good to Akira. It seemed so plain, but what else was someone to expect from her? She was only a cub after all.

[Deleted]

(OOC: hey guys. Am not going to have Internet access for two weeks so plz carry on without me.)

[Lionel]

(( A time flash? Krissi won't be able to write, so I thought we could skip untill the fire goes out and we move, opening secrets about Akira's parents untill I put Moja in and the fight can start.))

[angelgirl]

(OOC: Sure, sounds good! Whoever else wants to start, go ahead.)

[akira]

((OOC: Alright, how far in the future are we thinkin? Just hours or days? Or what?))