How long had it been? Days? Months? She had lost count of how many times the moon rose and fell, or how full the moon would get before it disappeared in the night sky. She had visited many lands in hopes of finding something, ANYTHING, that would spark a thought to a new name, but nothing she found or saw interest her. She sighed. What had that gray lion said just before she left the swamps?

”You’ll know it once you find it” Something along those lines.

Well, she wanted to find it now. “I didn’t realize how long this would have taken. I wish I could find someone of some kind of familiarity.” She knew that was probably out of the question. She didn’t know if her siblings had even started their naming quests, or if they had, were they finished? As far as Ksenia knew, she was on her own.

It seemed as is the day was already over, as the sun slowly began to drift below the mountains on the horizon. “Those are nice,” she said out loud, walking towards the tall rock formation. It would take a good half-day to get there, but the best way to travel was just into the night. There would be a chance for her to grab a meal right before bed, so she wouldn’t have to worry about hunting in the morning, or looking for leftovers another predator had left behind.

She watched until the sun finally disappeared, being replaced by his night sister. The moon was large, its silver rays shining on the plains, showing what animals may be lurking around. She noticed a hare, a food source she really didn’t care for, as well a herd of antelope. Unless there was a smaller deer, Ksenia would settle for just the hare. She hated leaving remnants, and she knew if she hunted a full grown antelope, there would surely be some leftovers.

Her blue eyes scanned the herd, spotting the perfect meal for just her. A smaller antelope was in the middle of the herd, grazing next to its mother. A smirk rose to her maw as she crouched low to the ground, heading closer to the herd of prey.

A small rumbling noise was heard in the distance, causing the lioness to take a full stance for the time being. A storm? This time of year? She watched as the purple/blue sky turned black, the bright silver moon soon being covered by dark gray rain filled clouds. The thunder was loud enough to disband the herd of antelope, cause them to flee all in one direction. “NO!” Ksenia roared. The roar was drowned out by a large clash of thunder. She growled with a drop of rain hit her nose, followed by another drop, and another drop.

Ksenia loved water if it was in let’s say a waterhole type of situation, but the rain was a different story. She forgot about her meal for the time being, looking around for any type of shelter. Staying out in the rain storm would cause trouble for the rest of her journey.

Lightning struck just beyond the mountain range, causing the giant rock formation to illuminate. “There must be a cave up there somewhere!” She said with a small gasp as the lightning lit the sky again. With ears turned downwards to avoid any chance of water getting in them, and an already soaking wet pelt, she dashed towards those mountains. If she flat out ran she might be able to make it there…just might. She continued to run as the rain beat the ground. She could see the range getting closer before she found herself looking directly at the sky, a small throbbing in her leg. She must’ve slipped across the slick ground. Ksenia closed her eyes, the water beginning to drip into them. She sighed, staying on the wet ground for a moment before getting finally lifting back to her feet. Another flash of lightning streamed across the sky.

Tonight was turning out to be an awful night. She went to place her foot to the ground, but the small throb of pain caused her to not put any pressure on it. “Great, how am I suppose to get there now?” she groaned, looking around now for just any form of shelter. Luckily, a small boulder would be enough shelter if the storm would pass quickly. She limped over, not caring now about how wet or how dirty she was; she just wanted to get away from the lightning. Not only were the flashes enough to scare the wits out of someone, the strikes seemed to becoming more often. She could be struck at any moment if she stayed out in the open.

As soon as she arrived under the rock formation, thunder rumbled the lands. She watched as rain took over the land. You couldn’t say that the plains never needed water, they just didn’t need this much water right now. Ksenia sighed. This was going to be a long night. She was about to just wait out the storm by sleeping, but a large crash above her, followed by sparks caused her to jump, hitting her head on the top of the rock. “Ah,” she cried out, a paw reaching towards her head. “Damn lightning,” she stated, her blue eyes focused on a small spark floating to the ground. Thunder crashed, but this time, it sounded different. It was a big bang, followed by a smaller rumble quickly after. It was as if the thunder was talking.

Ksenia listened carefully. It was if the land whispered:

Radi….

“Radi?” She repeated, “I wonder what that is.”

As if to answer her question, another lightning bolt struck the plains. “Lightning?” She lied back down on the grown. “Lightning huh?” After tonight, she most certainly didn’t want to see another bolt of the electric matter as long as she lived.

The storm began to die down as a strong wind pushed it out of the area. It whistled harshly, changing it’s tone every so often. Finally, it too had dissipated. Ksenia took this opportunity (as long as she saw no more lightning) to check out the area. The land looked flooded. She knew though, with one day in the pure sun would dry out the land again in an instant. She gazed over to the rock that had been her temporary shelter and gasped. When she had seen the sparks, she just assumed that lightning had hit somewhere close to the boulder. She didn’t realize the rumble she felt above her was actually the lightning hitting the rock. The gray rock looked to be slightly charred.

“Heh, the lightning hit the small mountain.” She stated, the wet ground filtering in between her toes. “Wait a second.”

“You’ll know it once you find it” Was that it? She thought she heard the thunder roar a word, and then when the wind whistled something else. Was that eve possible? You’ll know it when you find it she repeated in her head.

“It’s got to be it!” She said. “Radi’Kilima,” the name rolled off her tongue quickly. It sounded differently then when she had said just plain old Ksenia.

Her gaze met the sky once again, the moon showing its bright silver rays. “I think this adventure is just about over.” She said with a small smile, watching the giant silver orb in the sky.

“To the start of a new adventure.”

[[FIN--- Word Count 1249 ]]