As it turned out, adding other members was pretty simple. It seemed to require Dominic to initiate the invite and the lioness to accept it, but that was all. Since they were still recuperating from the previous fight, he decided to check out the changes. 

Pride status

Level 2 Pride (progress to next level 5/10)

Current information shared:

Health, Abilities

Current members:

Dominic/Leo (T2, L18) – leader. (Health: 558/600, Abilities: Quick Strike, Second Wind, Group Attack, Crushing Bite, Pounce, Powerful Swipe, Sharp Nip, Rapid Attack) 

Hathor (T1, L4) (Health: 256/300, Abilities: Pounce)

Neith (T1, L4) (Health: 221/300, Abilities: Pounce)

Jenkins (T1, L4) (Health: 330/330, Abilities: Pounce)

Pride enhancements:

1% increase in Prey Points for all Pride members – level 1

Increased damage for Pride members fighting together by ((number of enemies/number of pride members in the fight)*level of enhancement)% – level 1

Dominic had settled on Neith as a name for the mother lioness. He’d loved Egyptian mythology as a pre-teen, and had actually done a huge project – voluntarily – about all the Egyptian deities. There were a lot of them and he didn’t remember them all. However he remembered that Neith had been linked to hunting, so figured that it was a good fit for a lioness. 

He did find it interesting how Jenkins’ health pool was actually a little bigger than the other two lionesses. Clearly she’d chosen to enhance it at some point when the others hadn’t. That they all had Pounce as their Ability wasn’t particularly surprising and just confirmed to him that it was likely all members of the same species had the same starting Ability. 

It also highlighted how different he was that he hadn’t received it automatically. Clearly he hadn’t been considered a full ‘lion’ even before he’d gained the Chimera tag. 

We’ve already increased Pride level? he also noted with a little surprise. Perhaps it was expected since he was counted as two Tier 1 members and there were three other lionesses with him. He wondered what level they’d manage to get to once they got back to the rest of the pride. It probably depends on how the cubs are counted, he thought after a moment. 

Deciding to once more use the tried and tested technique of bait, Dominic stepped out from the bush where they were resting and pulled a number of resorel carcasses out of his storage space. 

Chewing at them a bit more, he made sure that their blood was scenting the air. Interestingly, although they were showing some evidence of time having passed, there wasn’t as much as Dominic might have expected. It had been a number of hours since he and Sekhmet had killed them, after all, but these looked more like only half an hour had passed or less. 

Whether it was that the storage space actually had some element of time slowing, or just that, removed from the sun and flies, the deterioration of the meat was slower, he didn’t know. Either way, it worked out for him. 

He actually pulled the rhino body out of his storage space just to check on it. Fortunately, just like with the resorel carcasses, the deterioration seemed to be much slower in his storage than it would have been if he'd left the body lying around. However, it was deteriorating, so he'd have to Consume it within the next few days or risk not being able to gain benefit from it.

‘I wonder if I’d get food poisoning if I absorbed a gone-off carcass,’ Dominic wondered even as he popped it back into his storage device. 

‘I once ate a carcass which must have been around for at least five days,’ Leo admitted. ‘It tasted horrible and I didn’t feel very well afterwards.’ 

‘Why did you eat it? Were you that hungry?’ Dominic asked, not sure if he was more intrigued or revolted. 

‘I hadn’t eaten a proper meal since being pushed out of my birth pride. I was starving. Even a rotting carcass looked better than nothing,’ Leo explained. 

‘OK, I understand that,’ the former-human replied, though with more sympathy than empathy: being driven by hunger to the point of being willing to eat anything was fortunately not something he’d had personal experience with. And if he was lucky, despite now being a lion, he never would. ‘So, in summary, the rhino meat should be good for a couple more days?’ 

‘I’d say so. Perhaps even three to four days since the deterioration of it seems slow.’ Dominic sent him an acknowledgement and then turned back to his task. 

After he had set up his little ‘scene’, he eyed the lionesses. Absorbing the hyenas had significantly helped them, but they still weren’t at full health. Moving over, he pulled a few more resorel carcasses out, dropping them in front of each lioness. It left him with only three left in his storage space for emergencies, but that was OK. 

The lionesses looked at him with a bit of confusion, though Jenkins was already starting to tuck into the ones before her. 

‘They’re not used to the male being the one to bring them food,’ Leo remarked. ‘Usually they would have to hide their food from the males so that they actually get a chance to eat it.’ Dominic mentally shrugged at him. 

‘Well, things change. It’s not like I’m hungry at all.’ He sent the lionesses the image of them Consuming the carcasses, just as he had earlier with the hyenas. 

Hathor and Neith immediately followed his instruction; Jenkins just continued chewing on the meat. Moving over to her, he growled, once more sending her the image of Consuming the carcass while adding a sense of urgency to the message. 

She eyed him, but continued eating, her muscles tensing a little. 

Moving quicker than she could react, Dominic darted forwards and grabbed the resorel bodies, pulling them backwards and then standing over them, his teeth bared menacingly. 

Jenkins snarled back at him, her ears back and her tail lashing. Dominic didn’t back down, instead staring down at her from his greater height, a low growl rumbling in his chest. He once more sent her the image of her Consuming the bodies, making it as clear as he could that she wouldn’t get them otherwise. 

The standoff continued for a few moments, the other two lionesses watching but not interfering. Dominic found it interesting that they didn’t. Was it because they didn’t consider Jenkins a cub anymore? Or that they didn’t fear for her because of the way he’d behaved so far? Or that they felt that this was something Jenkins had brought on herself? 

Finally, Jenkins backed down, her lips lowering to cover her teeth, the snarl dying down in volume. She looked away from him, breaking their staring contest. 

In recognition of her actions, Dominic nudged one of the carcasses towards her. She bent down, placed her nose against it, and it dissolved into golden smoke. Sending her the feeling of approval, Dominic stepped away from the other two carcasses, letting her get at them. 

Lying down again to watch the trap, he was surprised to feel a weight flop against his back soon after. Looking over, he saw that Jenkins had decided that he was the best leaning post she could find, her back leaning against his. Mentally, he shook his head.

‘I’ll never get lion logic!’ he complained to his companion. 

‘Well, I’ll never understand humans, so we’re matched,’ Leo retorted. 

*****

It was getting dark when some potential prey appeared. The lions had been lying there patiently for a while. Hathor had taken advantage of the pause to come and visit the male lion for some ‘fun’, prompting Dominic into beating a hasty retreat into the study. 

Once more, he admired what Leo had done – the change had indeed remained even when Leo wasn’t present. The lion had obviously felt confined within the walls of the study and had transformed one of the walls into a massive door. Outside the door was the savannah.

Not the kind of savannah that they walked through now, full of unfamiliar plants, but the savannah Dominic had himself walked through – shortly before being attacked by Leo. 

He’d wandered out into the space, wondering how far it actually extended. It looked like it went far into the distance, but surely that wasn’t possible? Just how big was this space? And, most importantly, had Leo decided to mark his territory like he wanted to mark it in the exterior world.

Then again, did he actually want to know the answer to that?

In the end, Dominic hadn’t had much time to explore. He’d only managed to wander around the closest parts, marvelling at how detailed each of the plants was, when Leo called for him to return.

‘Do you wish to take over again?’ Leo asked as he reconnected with his senses. 

‘No, it’s OK,’ Dominic said after a moment of thought. ‘You can do this one.’ 

‘Very well,’ Leo responded, a hint of eagerness indicating his true feelings on the matter. 

The creatures which had come to investigate the prey were new to both of them – clearly one of the recent additions. Dominic supposed that it wasn’t too surprising – most of the creatures he’d seen recently were former denizens of the African savannah; they were due to come across something that wasn’t. 

As for the new creatures, they were actually quite big in comparison to most of the group-scavengers he’d seen so far. They had to be half the size of the lions at least, possibly even more. 

They also looked pretty mean, bad enough that Dominic suddenly wondered whether diving into the fray with the three more-vulnerable lionesses was a good idea or not. 

Bearing some resemblance to the warthog which had almost killed him once, the new creatures had tusks, piggy-looking faces, and sharp teeth. Their feet were pads rather than trotters, and their backs were hairy, a mohawk of fur sticking up in a ridge along their spines. Their tails were equally porcine, a little corkscrew curl rather than the tufted tail which a warthog would have. 

They grunted and snorted at each other, seemingly bad-tempered even with their own kind. There were lots of scars and open wounds among the troop which seemed to have been caused by in-fighting more than anything else. 

The creatures didn’t waste much time in running to the carcasses, sharp teeth and strong jaws immediately evident by the sounds of bones cracking and crunching. Even as they ate, the forerunners had to defend their places against the others pushing forwards. The smallest members were stuck at the sidelines, unable to even glimpse what the stronger ones were partaking of. 

‘Uh, Leo, are we sure we want to do this?’ Dominic asked, unsure. 

‘I think it’s worth the attempt,’ Leo responded, though with a hint of his own uncertainty. ‘If they seem too much to manage, then we will turn tail and run.’

‘Alright,’ Dominic accepted. After all, this was Leo’s pride more than Dominic’s – if the lion wanted to take the risk, that was his choice. Dominic was fairly confident that he would personally come out alive – unless Leo started taking stupid risks to keep his pride safe, of course. ‘Maybe put on our tail armour? I think you’ll have to play a more active role in this fight than I did in the fight with the resorels and Sekhmet.’

‘True,’ Leo accepted, and concentrated. A moment later, they felt the weight of the armour on their tail. ‘Do you have any suggestions for a battle plan?’ the lion asked, slightly reluctantly. Probably because he didn’t want to admit that he needed help. 

Dominic considered the situation. 

‘I’d suggest essentially what you were already considering. Attack the smaller ones on the outside first. These creatures are obviously good at close-contact fights, but they probably don’t have our ability to move with speed. The lionesses are very agile too, probably more so than these creatures. So, guerilla attacks are probably the best option – quick in and out. Don’t let yourself get surrounded – the tusks might easily lame us or cause significant injury if that happens.’ 

The lion sent him a sense of appreciation. 

‘Understood.’ 

Dominic felt him send messages to the lionesses, his own ability to send feelings much less clumsy than Dominic’s own, but his ability to visualise was a bit more awkward. 

Finally, they were ready. Time to make these Pounces count.