The fight upon Pride Rock was a horrible thing to behold. Lightning flashed and thunder ripped across the sky as Rafiki sought for a desperate foothold. High above him, Simba and Taka grappled, snarling and snapping savagely at each other as they fought for dominance.
The two traded powerful blows, each striving to undo the other. Simba struck out, but Taka blocked his swing and countered, sending the younger lion sliding across the flat peak to the edge.
Lightning flashed again, and Rafiki felt the air about him shimmering and roiling, like the air over the desert at highsun. A twisting, rippling shape flitted in and out of his vision, hovering over Taka like a ghostly thundercloud.
“Makei,” Rafiki grated. The ground thrummed under his feet. Slowly reaching up, he clapsed the makeshift locket he wore around his neck. Always warm to the touch, it flared brightly now, full of its own inner heat as he held it in his fist. Gripping the thong, he placed a rock in the pouch to weight it down and began to twirl it about his head, the light making a glowing circle that lit his face, the scintillating light flickering over his aged and lined features, now set in determination.
Faster, faster he twirled it, waiting. Simba twisted, struck by a heavy blow from Taka. The line was clear to the peak.
“Aiheu, do not fail me now!” He released the pouch, watching as it shot through the air, a brilliant streak of light flashing to the peak....
It intersected the billowing cloud of darkness over Taka’s head and exploded in a shower of thunder.
Taka twisted as he flew through the air. Simba’s feet sank into his belly, driving the breath from him and sending him flying over the edge of the peak. Rafiki watched in horror as the lion’s form dropped through the air to dissappear in the rocks below.
“I am sorry, my boy,” he whispered. A cold drop splashed from his head, and he looked up, blinking in surprise. A second drop fell, then antother, faster, faster--soon he was deluged by the gentle caress of rain. Minshasa's voice rang in Rafiki's ear. "Let us make life!"
The old mandrill fell to his knees, hearing the hiss and sputter as the fires around him were quenched by the blessings of heaven. "Even so, old friend! I touch your face!"