Colorful lights flash across the night, as loud percussion booms in a happy rhythm. Gorillas sitting on top of trees drum merrily. Under them, animals dance like there is no tomorrow, moving their bodies in an irresistible trance. Finally, after months of despair and hundreds of deaths, a night without the Purple Moon fell upon us— the peace we needed to continue living. They chant in unison, their voices form an orchestra of euphoria. 

What an amazing night... Out of everyone in the party, Gorzan seems the happiest, relaxing on top of thick vines from the lush jungle trees. His party time nap doesn’t get interrupted, not even by the euphoric roaring and howling that surrounds us. After all this time— this chaos and war—, how can someone be so relaxed? Oh, I wished it was me...

While Dad stands still, almost like a statue, I peek my head from behind his torso; Longtooth's face remains serious and cold like always, but his suspiciously affectionate friend starts to play with the brunet's thick mane. I can't help but smile at the sight of Leonidas giggling, as he pokes and twirls his fingers on his buddy's fur. Wait... are those dark tan cheeks blushing? I never knew that fierce warriors also had a soft spot.

Lagravis turn around, and, in the blink of an eye, the guards return to their initial position, staring into the distance, without any kind of tenderness in sight. I never thought that Longtooth and Leonidas were mates!

Among the eagles, lions and gorillas, Lavertus dances with swift, sharp moves; the crowd stops in respect to the life of the party, observing him. Then, a courageous lioness steps out to dance with my uncle; he pulls her paw and they begin to move and balance around; everybody claps.

I, however, am at a distance from the crowd, close to my dad. The lovely melodies that rise from this party move my heart, but not my body, who seems to have been hurt by the past incidents— both physically and mentally. As unfortunate as it is, I remain stiff, pinching onto my dad’s tunic. He looks at me with pain in his eyes; he tries to release my fingers from his leather skirt— and make me walk into the party— but it was in vain.

Wakz also observes the commotion from afar. He holds his son’s hand. I could tell that the elder is full of sorrow; while others are relieved that tonight is a night of peace, Wakz mourns the death of his brethren; the damage had already been done. But maybe, just maybe, it will end forever, if Crominus manages to help the wolves with their plan...

"Mister...", I reach out to the mourning wolf, "Please forgive me. I tried my best, I really did, but—"

Wakz pets my head.

"You did everything you could, Laval. Don't torture yourself", a bit of hope raised through his frail voice, "If it weren't for the three of you, my tribe would've suffered through worse."

Worriz looks at me in an unsettling way; I can't, or can never decipher what he thinks. He lets out a sarcastic, backhanded smile.

"It was truly impressive. Trust me— when you become king, all of Chima will ask for your help". He silently laughs. "You really are a dependable lion, Laval. Your dad must be very proud!"

Thankfully, Dad didn't hear Worriz, but he still called my name. I turn around and find myself face to race with Eris. She greets me, thanking me for helping her out; the loud music gives me a hard time to understand what she is saying.

Meanwhile the agglomeration of animals moved around in synchrony to the music, Eris pulls me by the arm. She smiles tenderly at me before dancing in place. It makes me feel bad not joining her... She helped me out a lot, so I think I should dance with her; Eris looks happy, I shouldn't let her down! So, I move my body as the happy, upbeat soundtrack gave me energy.

"Isn't this fun, Laval?" Eris speaks to me in excitement.

I couldn't help myself but smile back.

The crowd suddenly stops with Lavertus' voice; it casts itself aside, leaving space for my uncle to see me.

"Look who's busting moves!", he walks to me and then gently slaps my shoulder, which interrupts my dancing session with Eris, "That's my nephew! I love you, buddy!"

Some gorillas — the ones in charge of the music — begin to drum an energetic rhythm; the party goes crazy at that point. Lavertus holds a hand of mine and another of my friend, and we start dancing again. The cheerful noises of drums push us forward and in circles, celebrating the first night of peace; they become so loud that I can't hear anyone. We turn round and round until all I see are blurry, vertical lines. My head feels light, but I can't stop myself. The three of us slow down, following Lavertus' momentum, untill my uncle pushes his toes onto the ground and halts the dancing; everyone else continued their movement. His tail whips around in a familiar pattern— a terrible sign.

A sudden gut feeling tells me to look at my uncle's direction; behind a few animals, Crominus and his family walk past us; he glances in accident at Lavertus, and freezes for a second. Crunket becomes worried; she turns her head and makes eye contact with the lion; she holds her daughter— who is clinging onto her dress, longingly— tight, surprised by the encounter, but her pupils look big... Unlike Crominus, Crunket doesn't seem to feel threatened. 

I wave at Crooler, but fail to catch her attention. She does not care at all about her surroundings; the crocodile princess wants to stay with her mother. I remember her cries of loneliness, those from moments before I had gotten kidnapped. They fill me with sorrow.

Crominus holds Crunket's hand and they move away from us to talk with my Dad. Lavertus remains stiff. I hold his paw, trying to make him move, but a sudden swarm of lionesses push Eris and I aside; they corner Lavertus into a bubble. He's out of reach now.

My friends, consumed by the party mood, dance like there is no tomorrow; and yet, this euphoria fails to enter my heart. The joys of tonight don’t move me at all. Even if I want to let the music guide my legs, they are stuck to the ground.

“Your Majesty— Forgive me for my pleas, but my throne was stolen by Cruz. I heard that your brother captured Crawley, and I am very thankful for both of you”. He bows. “I need to restore my tribe if I want to protect the Wolf Tribe.”

Dad avoids speaking for a few seconds, but then breaks his silence.

“Crominus— If my tribe fights for the peace of yours, will yours do the same for mine?”

The crocodile king is surprised by the unexpected question.

“I will try, your Majesty. I do not know how many followers Cruz has, but I will try to crack it down and catch anyone who is working with him”, he says.

Wakz enters the conversation, backing up Crominus’ words: “Yes… What he said is true; Crominus sent his most trustworthy warriors to protect my tribe, who is quarantined.”

I look at the sky; a bright star shines above; but it starts to come down, like a shooting star; as it spreads its wings, it appears to be a raven, with gleaming, golden feathers. The raven lands far from the crowd, next to my father. Dad seems to know him.

“Reabait? Is that you? I haven’t heard anything from your tribe in a while.”

“Yes, your Majesty. This is urgent, so let me keep it brief— Please read this letter”, the raven bows down to Lagravis before handing him an envelope.

Dad opens it and reads the letter; he nods at Reabait, who then proceeds to leave. 

I poke Cragger’s shoulder to grab his attention. My friend didn't even notice Reabait’s presence; he was focused on the hypnotic movement of the party.

“Do you know that animal?”, I ask him, forming a silhouette of a raven with my hands.

He shakes his head.

Ugh— Whatever, it doesn't matter for now, at least. If it’s important, Dad will tell me later. Eris would know, but she was also distracted too.

Cragger jumps around in circles with Eris, merrily humming a melody. They’re ecstatic. But I feel that my soul is wandering elsewhere. There’s a feeling I can’t let go of; it's like a sense of dread. That fear won’t leave me… or is it I who doesn't let go of it? Dad had taught me the truth about reality when my adolescence was almost near— about two years ago. As my mane begins to grow, the closer I will be to the “age of becoming”. He told me that, if I am oblivious to the world around me, I will never be able to use Chi wisely, that my instincts will overtake my soul; I need to mature if I want to use Chi— that was the duty of a prince.

Even then, even after trying to understand my father’s words, I was shaken to my core. The wolves… the Purple Moon… Crawley, Wilhurt, Cruz, Furtivo… I never thought that reality would come after me this soon. At this moment, I noticed; before, I had fear; now, I fear. Violence was something that felt so distant… until it hurt me.

Dad was right. He is always right. If I feel terrible now, he must feel a lot worse. 

And yet… Cragger lives like there was no yesterday. He bears not even the concept of death, even if he had witnessed the most heartbreaking funeral, where hundreds of wolves were dropped one atop the other inside of a single grave! Eris herself is aware of danger!

I cross my arms and grunt at my thoughts. At this point, I don’t know if I will live tomorrow, or if Cragger will either. I can’t imagine what my life would be like without him. 

Suddenly, a light yet aggressive touch hits my back. I turn around and see Worriz hiding a smile. He pulls Cragger's shirt to grab his attention. It feels like the three of us are isolated from the world— is this Worriz’ intention?

“Hey. Are you two enjoying this party?”, says Worriz.

I hesitantly nod.

He continues, “Yeah, Laval, I get it. I personally think it's kind of boring. All of those lights are ticking me off. You know, perhaps… things should get a little more… intense.”

A weird sensation sends a goosebump down my spine. I look at Cragger; he wasn't even listening to Worriz’ words. The pup’s tone of voice makes me afraid…

“Hey, mud lover! Where are you looking at? I was talking to you too, stupid croc!”

Cragger notices the insults almost instantly; he pushes himself onto Worriz in aggression. With them both, it's always like this, and I'm unable to do anything about it! My tongue has become stuck on itself…

“Now that I got your attention, you two have to listen to me. I dare you to go on a race against me; we'll run around the border of the party. If I win, Cragger will be forever known as the dumbest and slowest crocodile Chima has ever seen!”

My friend’s nostrils flare; an unfortunate and familiar sight; he exposes his teeth, holding himself to not lash out on Worriz, but he didn't care. Each second that Cragger is restrained in my arms, Worriz’ smile grows even further with malice. Overtaken with rage, it's now impossible to change my friend’s mind. Before I could even intervene, Worriz began to sprint far away from us, and I lost my grip on Cragger, who started to chase the wolf.

My legs push me forward to follow them. I shudder just at the thought of all the awful events that could happen if they were left alone. I don't know if anyone noticed our leave.

I pass by trees while running after Cragger. Why does he keep falling for the bait? Leaves crack at every step we take. He turns to the side and I follow suit; he jumps over rocks, and I jump afterwards, but my muscles start to cramp with all the intense movement. Cragger doesn't seem to lose his stamina, he's too determined.

“You will never catch me, lizard!”, Worriz screams mockingly.

Cragger runs in a sudden burst of speed; only his tail is visible, breaking through the veil of darkness. We turn around once more, avoiding the trunks in our path. Falling vines hit my face.

“Did’ya just go through a shortcut? You fur bag! Cheater! I ha— I hate you!”

The crocodile slows down.

I can't move properly anymore with all of that pain… Leaves fly around with the impact of my body falling down to the ground. A feeling of dizziness puts down an immense weight in my back. In front of me, I can see Cragger's silhouette, distorted by my fatigue. He notices me, then kicks the ground continuously in a tantrum.

“I hate that wolf! He's mean, so mean! Why does he lie so much? Why can't he be a good pup like the others say he is?”

I try to lift myself up, but my arms have become too weak. The noise of my torso falling down startles Cragger.

“L— Laval? You're here, too?”

From under my breath, I mutter, “Yes… And I failed you. I'm sorry…”

I can never calm him down. He's almost like a weapon; trigger him and he'll fly like a Chi laser.

His eyes fill with regret. He crouches in front of me, afraid.

“Please, tell me you're okay! Please…”

I muster strength to raise my neck, and I look at Cragger right in his eyes. He knows I'm not fine, but he only wants my words. I don't want to lie. It's just that, if I tell the truth, he'll become even more scared. His body is shaking. It's not fair to make him suffer more than he already is!

In pain, I smile at him. “Don't worry about me, alright?”

The party’s lights barely shine our road. Worriz took an easy shortcut and returned to safety; meanwhile, Cragger and I are stuck in darkness. However, without the Purple Moon, are we truly safe? My brain tells me to run, but I can't. I feel Cragger's hand hold mine, and yet this gut feeling haunts me. It happened more than once; there is no suspense anymore, just dread. Horrible, terrifying dread. There's nothing we can do; we'll get lost for sure. A painful shock runs across my body; my heart starts to beat loud enough to make me pant.

I hear the leaves cracking. Someone has been following us. Crawley is dead, though…

I pull Cragger next to me without second thought.

Behind tree trunks, a wolf and a crocodile jump out of the darkness. In the blink of an eye, we're separated and tied up, while we're being shoved to the ground. The rope pushes my already aching limbs onto themselves. Something closes my muzzle shut. One of the animals lets out a sadistic chuckle, as they force one of their nails into my neck's skin.

It's Wilhurt. He was after us.

I hold my breath in fear. My heart begins to pounce from the inside of my chest. The adrenaline rushing from inside my veins paralyzes me and my thoughts.

But an unexpected flash of light blinds the four of us; as I open my eyes, I see Dad in his tank  with his bodyguard, my uncle, and Gorzan. In relief, I wiggle with what I can. Before anyone could react, Wilhurt lets go of me and runs away; Dad shoots lasers at the wolf, but he manages to avoid them and flee the scene. The crocodile holding Cragger wasn't able to react in time, and a laser pierces his head, dissolving what was in its path; he falls down, dead.

Longtooth forbids Gorzan to leave, while Lagravis and Lavertus untie us. They breathe fast and without control. Lavertus remains speechless, his hands trembling; he returns to the tank with Cragger, who's crying for his father.

Dad stares at the crocodile's corpse in disbelief, with his jaw open wide. He puts aside his gun, his paws shaking a lot. Silently, he mumbles:

"Crominus... What is your plan?"