In her past life, Xuma made use of the chains around the lions necks.
The creatures were bigger, stronger, and faster than her. Since there would've been no point in confronting them, she had sneaked up on the leader of their pack, the largest lion, and climbed its back with the assistance of the chain.
That act had saved her life.
However, it had also garnered her the attention of the nobles. When she became Prince Rimon's servant, her heroic deed spread throughout the palace, until it reached the ears of Joan.
She had acted on instinct and dared to climb the lion's back to stay alive. Her desire for revenge, the nobles' laughter in the face of their adversity, and the goal to retrieve the Erlan stone had been her driving force. The strength behind her courage.
However, due to this, Joan found her, and from there, her plan for revenge began.
Honestly, Xuma still hated the nobles of this Empire. When she saw the horrific deaths of the slave girls, that old flame of hatred flared to life and threatened to consume her heart and mind.
The only force holding her back from giving into its bewitching allure was the scene of the hungry kids eating the maggots from the corpses of the dead.
For them, she had contemplated joining hands with Naila. To escape death and remain obscure, she had planned to tell her to climb the lion's back. Taking advantage of the time the nobles' attention were focused on her, Xuma had intended to climb another lion's back.
By that time, everyone would've assumed she had copied Naila. They would've either dismissed her or wouldn't have talked about her feat as much.
But now…
"Roar!"
The beast lunged and slammed the cage. Xuma and Naila tumbled to the side, and scrambled backward. The other eight lions joined the first, leaving them surrounded in the center of their pack.
"You! Help me! If we throw them one of the girls, their attention would no longer be on us!" Naila heaved, already dragging the unconscious slave girl by the wrists.
"I'm not helping you!" Xuma scoffed. "You can be a murderer yourself!"
"Murderer? Huh!" Naila released the girl's wrists and planted her hands on her hips. "Aren't you a noble one? If you have the guts, then shout that to those men. They're the ones who got us into this mess!" She spat.
"And you think that'll excuse your actions?" Xuma shook her head and stepped away from her. "What the nobles did is horrid. Beyond inhumane. However, that's to be expected. After all, they're the men of this empire. The same that reduced our nations to ashes. We would be stupid to expect anything but cruelty from them. But what about you? Aren't you supposed to be one of us?"
"I'm not one of you! I'm my own person. And believe it or not, I don't want to do this either." Naila sighed and whispered with a despondent expression, "I have no choice."
"That's a lie." Another bang had her head slamming to the metal bars. Through the gaps, a large paw sharpened with razor claws slashed towards her back. Xuma fell forward, a hiss escaping her teeth as stinging pain seared her nape. "No matter what situation, a person always has a choice. What you choose to do is what defines you." She gritted and pushed herself to her feet.
With a battle cry, she twisted her body and kicked open the door of the cage, slamming one of the lions right in the face. The beast reared back from the shock. Eyes red with violent rage, it roared at her and charged.
Before Naila could react, Xuma dashed forward, flipped on her hands and leaped over the lion. A resounding crash split the air as its claws met metal and teeth snapped an inch from Naila's face.
Out of the cage and on her feet, Xuma turned and raced into the barren desert.
This was a land of waste. Dry and scorched without a single stalk in sight. The near winter season sent chills down her spine.
But she gritted her teeth and pushed onward.
Because this…was her only chance at escape.
The nobles booed and threw stones at her. Some even provoked the other lions to draw their attention to her. But some sort of power must've been on her side.
The lions ignored them, as their attention fixed on another girl who had been hiding behind the cage.
The girl screamed as they roared and lunged at her, ripping her shreds in mere seconds.
On the other side, Naila stood motionless before the golden beast. The cold, golden orbs of the lion petrified her. Without conscious thought, her knees buckled and she shoved the girl she had been dragging at the creature's face. This brought the lion to a stop. It swept its paw, slashing the unconscious girl in half.
A silent whimper escaped the girl's lips. Blood gurgled from her mouth, her upper half spasming as her eyes flung open from the pain. But soon, the brilliance in her orbs turned murky as her lifeblood spilled and engulfed the cage in a metallic scent.
Distracted by the scent of blood, the beast turned its head and began to feast on the carcass.
Naila swallowed. Her already pale face turned even paler at the sight.
'I can't die! Not now. Not here!' Determination flashed in her eyes. She inhaled a deep breath and scrambled forward. Ducking beneath the lion's belly, she slid to the other side and rolled out of the cage.
The impact with the hard ground spiked tingles of pain through her arms and legs.
'Run, Naila, run!'
She didn't know if the command was her own, or from a distant past. But it was enough to pump her energy and strengthen her resolve.
Naila pushed to her feet and dashed towards the nobles.