…Ocsic, 30 years ago
10 days before the war
A group of people are seen standing in the town's square, talking in hushed tones. The streets are filled with men discussing in groups as they digest the daily newspaper, with questioning looks on their faces. Women are seen comforting their little ones and taking them away from the crowd and into the house. The air begins to fill with tension and anger as well as confusion from the anxious citizens.
"Hey, I heard the traitors are being executed in 10 days." One man says to the other.
"The same traitors they've been unable to apprehend?" Said another
"The system is a joke. Are they letting criminals free now?" A man laughed.
"Forget the traitors, what are they doing about that huge crack in the mountains?" Another asked.
"A lot of strange things are happening and the government is quiet about them all." Another chipped in.
"Moreso, I heard the explosion in the mountains caused it to split in half."
"Woah!" The meh chorused.
"Stop talking all that nonsense." A man said from behind.
"Don't you people have businesses to run and families to care for?" He barked at the men.
"And what would you know about that, you don't have either of those." One man mocked.
"And so will you if you don't quit that nonsense talk and get to what's important." The man retorted.
And with that, the crowd begin to disperse, with some unsatisfied men who promised to get back at the man they all called 'Lion'. Lion was a physically intimidating man, he was nearly seven foot tall and had wide shoulders. In addition to being tall and muscular, he also had large hands and feet compared to most of the villagers and as a result, it was hard finding shoes his size. His hair was short and thick, with bright colors of brown and black resembling a mane. He had a rich pair of amber colored eyes that would occasionally glisten in the sun and sometimes glow in the dark. His hair and scary face earned him the nickname 'Lion'. His face had a red scar on it that looked like a cross. Some of the townspeople said he had been born possessed by demons and so the priests gave him the mark as a means of exorcising the demons out of him. Many villagers believed he was still possessed, especially when they saw him get angry. But he was a very strong, kind man who only fought for the lives of the people he'd grown so fond of. The many lives that their tyrant king tried so hard to destroy with his unfair treatment and abuse of power.
"Lyle!" A child called.
Lion looked back and smiled at the child. He carried her on his shoulders.
"Well hello there, my precious little princess." Lion said softly.
"Lyle…why do you keep calling me that?" She asked, her big bright eyes filled with curiosity.
"Because you look like one, maybe even prettier. And you're well behaved like a princess should be." Lion said stroking her lustrous auburn hair.
"There you go…" He put her down
"Now you go home to your mama and do as she says okay?"
"I brought you something. Here, see?"
The child handed him something. It was a carefully wrapped handkerchief laced with exotic perfumes. There was also a flower embroidered on it with an inscription that he couldn't read. Lion wondered where the tiny tot got it from.
"It's mama's. I didn't steal it." The child said, noticing the concerned look on Lion's face.
"Ahh…no…I didn't say that." He smiled, feeling guilty about what the girl said.
He tucked the handkerchief carefully into his pocket and secured it with the cloak's rope.
"I promise I'll never lose it." He said patting the child's head.
"Thank you, princess. You go on now"
"Bye Lyle!" She called out as she ran towards her mother.
"Silly girl, it's Lion." He said under his breath.
Everyone in the city— except the little girl— called him Lion. He had corrected her several times and tried teaching her how to properly pronounce the word, all of which yielded nothing. She still insisted on calling him Lyle. She said it suited him better than being called an animal. Lion let out a chuckle as he remembered the ordeal that afternoon and how he'd laughed his head off. The little girl was thoughtful enough to tell him she didn't like him being called an animal. She really is just like a princess, he thought. His face suddenly darkened and his aura grew stronger, nearly suffocating anyone who came close enough to him. He stood up and looked towards the alley. He narrowed his eyes and saw a cloaked figure standing there smoking. Show time, he said to himself as he smiled and walked away, straight up the alley.
Lion caught up with the other man who had been waiting for him. They then made their way out of the city and toward the mountains. Earlier that day, the two men had planned to visit the area where it was rumored that the mountains were split. The duo carefully climbed their way up the mountain in hopes of getting a bird's eye view of the wreckage. They finally got to the top of the mountain and what they saw shocked them. The second half of the mountain was completely fenced with thick iron doors on the north and south sides of the mountain. Lion looked at his companion with worry, they knew the Ocsic government had something to do with the odd structure.
"That power-hungry old man! He's already been here! Dammit!" Lion vented.
"So now what?" The other man asked.
"We'll buy it back, build our city. We'll-"
"Woah, woah, woah. Pause. You want us to play directly into their hands?"
"There isn't much of a choice. We have dreams! We have families! We have a vision."
"And we have a tyrant king who's after us, Lion."
Lion looked at the landscape. It had a beautiful view and the lush forest trees were like giant umbrellas shielding the land from the scorching sun. A small river ran right through the mountain from the north gates to the south gates. The second half of the mountain had slid down and sunk into the ground to form a small crevice. The crevice was large and steepy and it was also very dark so the two men couldn't venture any farther into the mountain. Lion and his companion sat on the mountain top and for a while, they just continued looking at the fenced area a few yards away from where they sat.The wind gently swept across the men's faces and it carried a fresh scent with it. Lion knew exactly what he had in mind when he planned on buying the place. His friend, however, seemed unwilling to follow through with his plans.
"We'll call it Kunga!" He declared, a proud smile on his face.
"Kunga?" His friend asked, puzzled.
"It means pride. It's my grandmother's native language, and she used to call me Kunga when I was younger."
"Lion, this plan's a little shabby. We don't even have enough money to buy this huge property!"
Lion face-palmed himself. His friend wasn't so easy to convince.
"We're on the run! What makes you think we're eligible to purchase land as criminals?" He continued.
"Also, who buys a fenced property?"
Lion stood up and paused, there had been some truth in what his friend said. But then he smiled a mischievous smile and grabbed his friend by the shoulder.
"Auburn." He grinned
"What about auburn?" His friend asked, quizzed
"We'll buy it in her name. And we're lucky, that old fool doesn't know what we look like yet."
"No! I won't have you risk that little girl's life." His friend threatened.
"That little girl is our only hope at a better future and a better government!"
"You've completely lost it, Lion!"
"Please, I need you on my side, friend. This is our only shot at a better life. Where we can live free and without fear."
Lion fell to his knees, his voice quivered and his short black-brown hair covered his face, revealing his thick, scarred neck.
"I can't do this alone." He said, his voice breaking.
"I can't do this alone…Basil."
"Fine. But only after we come up with a genius plan." Basil said.
He offered his hand to help Lion up, looking at him with approval and admiration. Yes his friend was crazy, but he was also strong willed and his resolve was never easily broken.
"Meet me at Mabel's tomorrow." Lion said and the duo returned to Ocsic.