CHAPTER 1
It was a day much like any other that fateful summer. A cool and surprisingly rainy spring rapidly gave way to the scorching June sun, bearing down its menacing rays across the parched baron landscape. It had been a month since the clouds last released their precious of water and now not a single cloud passed over the desolate and isolated desert.
Amongst the endless dunes, a shadow, exhausted, trudged onward desperate for adequate shelter from the searing rays. But see, this was no ordinary desert shadow. A single mother cat lost in a sea of sand wandered, searching for a place to bear her young. Her name was Ka'la, meaning wild cat of the sands in an ancient language. She was average in stature, one foot tall and two and a half feet long including her tail. She currently weighed ten pounds but normally was only six. Her fur was uniform in color, light beige. Her head was broad with large widely spaced ears that had a faint black spot on the tips and also on the tip of her tail. On her upper forearms were two faint black bands encompassing each one. Long white fur on all of her paws helped protect them from the hot sand. Ka'la also had a faint red stripe that ran up from her nostrils, around her eyes and down her cheeks along with a pale narrow black ring around each eye and outlining her mouth extending up to her black nose. She had spent many years on these sands, and although it seemed as if no life could be permitted to thrive here, her knowledge of her surrounding and ability to improvise would prove to make her an excellent mother.
It had been 60 days since she conceived, and since then she spent every night trying to locate a legendary oasis. Now she traveled by day, she knew that time was running out. Suddenly off in the distance hazed and shaky as though it were a mirage laid a sign of hope. Ahead of Ka'la she could see it, Mt.Draken! A towering black and golden mountain, If the legends were true just beyond this snow topped colossus Ka'la should find what she sought. Ka'la pushed onward climbing the dunes, with each step the blur which seemed so distant grew greater and greater in dimension. By the time Ka'la reached the base of the immense geological formation it was sundown. How she longed for the cool reprieve of nightfall. She scoured the mountains precipice looking for a shady spot to rest until the sun finally set below the horizon. She noticed a crevice in the rock face, and inched her way up about a meter from the desert floor and wedged herself into the shadows and up against the cool volcanic rock, the only thing to do now was wait.
As the sun slowly set it cast vibrant hues of mandarin, magenta, violet, and indigo across the sky. Atop the array of iridescence fell a curtain of deep black laden with millions of twinkling celestial stars and a full moon to illuminate her way. Almost an hour had gone by since her respite; it was time to keep moving. Ka'la crawled out of the crevice and
begun her ascent. Higher and higher she cautiously tried to find steady foot holds, one wrong step could mean the end of her journey. Ka'la tried to keep her thoughts positive, though with the steady increase in elevation the temperature dropped to well below freezing and the lack of oxygen at this altitude was almost too much for her. Finally after what seemed to be a life time Ka'la reached the summit. It was the most beautiful thing she had ever laid eyes on. The rocks were covered in a thick blanket of snow that glistened in the moonlight. Looking beyond the mountain the baron sand dunes of a lonely desert were visible in the distance as far as she could see, and at the base of Mt. Draken Ka'la could see the full moon's waved reflection off the centralized pool of the oasis. The legends were true! She looked to the sky and thanked the heavens, then slowly began her descent.
By sunrise Ka'la made her final steps off the menacing Mt. Draken and onto the warm sand. Relieved, she took a deep breath and stopped to gaze upon this lush green haven. She stood in awe of the fact that in the heart of this unforgiving desert such a paradise could flourish. It was only here that her kittens would have the best chance for survival. Amongst the trees and exotic brush she would be able to hunt small rodents, and along the banks of the pristine cerulean blue waters fish should be easily accessible.
A gleam twinkled from Ka'la eyes as she calmly entered her new home. The first thing on her mind was to reach the water edge and quench her heavy thirst. It had been to long since her last drink and the moisture she had been surviving off of on her journey was only enough so she could reach her destination. Slowly, cautiously she made her way through the dense foliage until she found herself in front of a large pool of water. To her left a small waterfall ran down the side of Mt. Draken slowly replenishing the pool. She approached the cool waters; ears attune listening for any dangers. Even though this was a haven for her and her soon approaching young, it was also a haven to the other lucky desert dwellers that were strong enough to have reached it. Ka'la lapped up the precious elixir and after acquiring her fill it was time to rest.
Ka'la turned and re-entered the brush searching for a place to make a den. She chose the location well, underneath a large doum palm nearly 30 feet in height. Several trunks covered in a criss-crossed scaled bark lead up to many fan shaped leaves providing shade. The palm was surrounded by young acacia, a heavily armored tree with 2 inch thorns and small bright green leaves closely grouped together. Amidst the tangled roots and fertile soil Ka'la began to dig, hoping the briars would provide excellent protection from birds and other predators looking to make a meal of her and her young. The den was close enough to the water so that while she drank she could keep watch over her young, and nearby she could hear the rustling of a jerboa, a type of desert gerbil with weak forearms and long legs making it an excellent jumper, and good at digging. A long tail gave it exceptional balance and large ears for phenomenal hearing made it a formidable catch for any skilled hunter, but proving food was near. Once Ka'la was satisfied with the depth of her den, she searched the circumference of the doum palm for scorpions or snakes. Satisfied with finding nothing she entered the den and made herself comfortable for what was to be a long night.
The sun slowly set, casting vibrant shades of red and orange across the once blue sky as blanket of darkness covered the landscape. Ka'la took a deep breath as the first of her new kittens emerged from her loins. Cleaning it off with the tenderness and love of a new mother a sense of pride overwhelmed her as the second kitten took its first breaths of air. By the next morning Ka'la had given birth to four healthy kittens, all suckling with a great hunger. Three were girls and the last was male. The first born girl she named after the life giving water that made this place so special. Namazzi, her beige fur was almost white and the faint black markings on her mother were pitch black on Namazzi. She had a bright red stripe on her face and dark narrow black traced each eye and her mouth in the same pattern as all cats of her species. Her feet until her ankles were also her nose was pitch black. The second and third born girls must have been twins since both of them resembled their mother identically, Ka'la named them Bisa - greatly loved and Dumi - the inspirer. The only boy of her litter she named Jengo, meaning reddish in complexion due to the orange tint in his fur, and bright red-orange stripes on his face. Wide black circles outlined his eyes and ran down to his nose leaving a bright red center. He had full black ears and a completely black tail, his feet were also black. The black bands on his front legs had a red streak between them... he looked just like his father. Ka'la smiled as her kittens lay together ready to sleep the morning away. As the last of her kittens fell asleep Ka'la slinked out of the den to clean herself off and find some food. As soon as she emerged a large jerboa scurried past, she pounced and breakfast was served. After devouring her meal she again cautiously approached the waters edge and washed out the fur still stuck between her fangs.
While Ka'la was on her way back to the den she heard a noise coming from the noble palm that concealed her young. Ka'la raced toward the den to find at least 1/4 of a 5 ft horned viper already in the den! Ka'la sunk her claws into the tail and ripped it from the entrance, sending it flying into the acacia's harrowing thorns. The viper composed itself in front of Ka'la, forming the distinct S-shape advancing a strike. The snake hissed at Ka'la, staring deeply at her with those fiendish black eyes, its triangular head, keeled scales, dark horizontal stripes all along its body, and it most prominent feature had to be the two demonic horn situated above its eyes. Ka'la quickly got between the snake and the den and spat loudly at the snake hoping to scare it off, of course to no avail. The snake reared up, as it slowly swayed side to side it said in a whisper,
"I sssshall leave you in peasssse if you promisssse not to follow."
Ka'la looked at the snake for a moment wondering if she could trust it, then sat where she stood. At this gesture the snake turned and slithered away into the trees. Ka'la stayed and listened to make sure the snake was honestly leaving, as soon as the rustling of leaves sequestered she turned and quickly entered the den. Inside the den, the oblivious kittens squeaked for their mother’s warm milk, the apparent reason the snake was able to find them. Frustrated and exhausted from the fiasco, she plopped herself down to feed her lucky kittens and finally get some sleep.
Ever since the episode with the viper, Ka'la had been on edge, ears always scanning for predators lying in ambush. She hasn't wandered far in fear for her kittens’ lives, but food near the den was running low. All the resident rodents knew of her presence and learned to stay clear of the den site; even the fish knew her reflection on the surface of the water toted an impending demise. Ka'la knew if she didn't eat soon her milk production would cease, and her young would surely starve. It was a tough choice to make but Ka'la knew what must be done. 14 days had past; by this point in the kittens development their eyes were open. The kittens constantly played with each other and made quite a racket, such a hassle for the mother who so desperately tried to keep them concealed. The kittens were still too young to understand the danger they were in, but Ka'la had no choice, she had to leave. After the kittens ate and fell asleep she hurried off, in search not of food but shelter. Ka'la had to move the den! The animals in the area knew where they dwelled and this put their home at risk. Ka'la moved quickly through the vegetation desperate to find a new den. The previous den was located on the north western side of the oasis; she thought it would be wise to move to the southern end.
As Ka'la moved further and further from the mountain the plant life dwindled until she found herself in a barren, open plain. The only umbrage came from the broad canopies of the grown acacias scattered across the rock laden sands. Several oleander bushes with their long narrow leaves and brilliant pink flowers also lay scattered amongst the rocks. To Ka'las right she noticed a small group of dama gazelle feeding in a 2 acre field of wheat, barley and thyme. In the middle of this field was a large pomegranate tree. It was 26 feet tall with glossy almost yellow leaves. Amongst the scraggly crown of branches were bright red flowers and the tree's bright red fruit, a round, almost hexagonal shaped produce with thick red skin and filled with many seeds enveloped by a pouch of sweet red nectar, also the seeds are sectioned off by a thin white membrane. Encircling the field were several rows of olive trees as though they had been planted there. These trees were also scraggly in appearance, and most seemed approximately 15 feet in height. Olive trees have sharp, jagged bark and oblong leaves that are typically a dark grayish-green on top, and a pale whitish-green on the underside. Below the trees were groups of helmeted guinea fowl. Ka'la licked her lips recalling the palatable taste of their eggs which luckily for the birds come in clutches of 20-30. Ka'la headed toward the olive trees, gingerly crossing the field, trying to stay as low to the ground as possible. The guinea fowl themselves were not so tastey. Normally 2 ft in height, their long rounded bodies covered in dark Grey feathers with white speckles, and their tiny unfeatherd heads have a dull yellowish-red knob protruding from the back of their red and blue faces making them quite a spectacle and surprisingly their short round wings made them an honorable flyer for such a weighty bird. Unfortunately their looks do nothing for their taste, a rather bland meal and feathers are always a pain to get out of your teeth.
Three quarters of the way across the field Ka'la stumbled upon a nest, she quickly began scarfing down the light brown eggs. By the time the nest was empty Ka'la was full, she slinked away from the nest now covered in crushed egg shells. She decided it was time to return to her den. She sauntered off towards the dense shrubbery, when suddenly from the pomegranate a few yards from her. The branches rustled and a giant raptor took off in her direction. The 6 foot wingspan, short tail, bright orange beak and feet gave it away...a bateleur eagle; it must have a nest in the pomegranate. Ka'la made a mad dash for the safety of the trees, as the eagle circled overhead and began spiraling downwards after her. Just as Ka'la leaped into the underbrush the eagle landed nicking the tip of her tail with its talons. That was too close a call Ka'la thought to herself as she zigzagged between the bushes and trees frantically trying to get home. Ka'la skidded to a halt just before the entrance to the den and dipped inside to check over the kittens who were all still sleep and seemed to be fine. Ka'la laid down next to them and decided to take a breather and sleep for a while. Several hours later she awoke to the antics of her children. As they wrestled in the leaf litter Ka’la joined in their tussle, nudging them around as they nipped and swatted her. Tired of playing she pulled Namazzi close to her and began licking her clean, the twins crawled over to Ka’la and snuggled against her warm coat to rest. Jengo the most rambunctious of the four started attacking Ka’las tail. She twitched it around as he played, until he got a little too rough. Jengo bit down on ka’las tail sending a searing pain throughout her entire body. Ka’la meowed in pain and jumped to her feet startling all the kittens. She apologized to her babies and gathered them up, showing them it was alright. They all curled up against their mother still shaken until Ka’las gentle caressing sent their eyelids drooping as they tried to stay awake. Eventually they all lay sleeping and Ka’la got up to leave the den and begin her search all over again.
Ka’la decided not to venture into eagle territory, no matter how tasty guinea fowl eggs may be. Instead she headed towards the waterfall a quarter mile from the den. Ka’la walked along the sandy banks of the pool. A cool misty breeze blew over Ka’la as she finally turned a corner to face the waterfall. She bounded up a steep incline to where she thought she saw a crack in the rock face. She peered inside only to be met by several very angry scorpions, all escaping the heat of day. She bolted away from the wall disappointed, but she couldn’t let this little snag get her down. Ka’la climbed higher up the mountain alongside the path of the waterfall. She noticed on the ground that there were strange markings, as if something had scraped double grooves into the soil. Around several of the scrapes dung and urine was scattered. She looked around and noticed the strange patterns were all over the mountain. Ka’la sniffed a large boulder; a pungent odor filled her nostrils. Ka’la backed away from the boulder afraid that what left the markings would return to check its territory. As she turned to leave Ka’la heard the clicking of hooves on the rocks above her, as she tilted her head in the direction of the noises a large reddish-tan animal leaped over her, landed to her left and started stomping the ground and waving its backwards arching crescent shaped horns 3 feet in length. It was an arabian tahr, a wild member of the goat family far from its original ranges in the arabian peninsula rather than in Africa. The fifty pound stocky male grunted at Ka’la, shook it head again undulating its impressive mane that extended down its back, and from its chin to its front legs forming a tuft at the hoof. Just as the tahr thrust itself toward Ka’la she leapt from the rocky escarpment onto the one below and ran down to the base of the waterfall stumbling into the lagoon.
Soaking wet and out of breath Ka’la pulled herself ashore. As she lay motionless on the sands she couldn’t help but wonder how such a creature came to this area, and with what bad luck that she came to find it. Ka’la turned her head to scan the cliffs for signs of any others. Her eyes landed upon the male and alongside him, his mate. They must have been abandoned here by some human and managed to fend for themselves. Ka’la placed her head back on the sand and took a deep breath. As the midday sun dried her fur Ka’la closed her eyes, a warm breeze blew across her, calming her restless mind. Once her fur was dry Ka’la got to her feet. Above the main lagoon the waterfall pooled into a small basin about six feet across and overflowed into the mere. Ka’la walked along the basins edge, once on the other end she stopped for a drink. As she lowered herself to the waters surface she heard the piercing caw of a brown necked raven shattering the silence. Scanning the sky for the brunet aviator, Ka’la noticed one land in a small fig tree alongside its mate. She walked back across the pool and sat beneath the tree watching them preen each other. Ka’la called up to the pair catching their attention. “I don’t mean to bother you, but I was wondering if you could assist me.”
The birds stared at Ka’la unsure of her intentions then one replied, “What seems to be the problem?”
“Well you see,” replied Ka’la, “I have been searching for a safe place to move my den, but have encountered difficulty where ever I have gone. I was wondering if you knew an area, preferably near water where my young and I would be safe?”
The birds looked at each other then back at Ka’la. “Well I’d say your safest bet would be near our home.” Crowed the first raven.
“Indeed!” agreed the second. “We live on the other end of the lagoon, where it is stopped by thick rooted reeds and forms a meadow.”
“Oh yes lovely area that is!” the first raven interrupted. “I’m sure you can set up a splendid home in one of the hollowed out trees, in fact the perfect one comes to mind. Follow us, we’ll lead the way”
With that the birds took off from their perch and headed out across the water. Ka’la ran after the pair, struggling to keep up with the swifty fliers. Ka’la ran all the way to the southern end of the lagoon and met up with the ravens who quietly awaited her arrival atop a natal plum. As she caught her breath she surveyed the landscape. Natal plums grew all over the meadow in a variety of sizes, from seedlings to adults twenty feet in height. The fruit from these trees lay scattered across the grasses and reeds and were known to be loved by many rodents as a sweet protein rich delicacy. By far the most abundant plant was papyrus. These tall robust reeds provided excellent cover. Thick woody stalks five feet tall at the most were easy to walk through, while the clumps of long thin grass like leaves were situated atop the stalk like a feather duster blocking the view of the ground from aerial hunters such as hawks or eagles.
The ravens called down to Ka’la, “Were sure you’ll find a nice home here.”
“Good luck!” and with a few flaps of their wings they were gone.
Ka’la looked around not sure where to begin looking for a den.
“Why did they have to fly off like that?” Ka’la asked herself frustrated with this seemingly never ending search. She walked up to the large plum tree and placed her front paws against its trunk and began to climb. Pulling herself above the height of all the grasses she scowered the meadow looking for a dead tree mentioned by the ravens. There were a lot of trees growing in the distance but the dead tree wasn’t hard to locate. About thirty feet to her right half a palm stood erect. Ka’la leaped out of the tree landing perfectly on the moist soil and headed in the direction of the dead palm. As she made her way further from the water the amount of papyrus diminished and she found herself traveling through an assortment of strange plants Ka’la had never seen before. As she pushed her way through the last bit of papyrus, she emerged amongst small two-tone pink flowers atop slender climbing stems and deeply toothed smokey green leaves giving them the appearance of having three separate leaves. Its official name is fumitory, a member of the bleeding heart family of plants. It was definitely a large patch of it. As Ka’la hiked through it her paws became entangled in the already entwined stems. As Ka’la tried to escape the plants grasp she tripped and fell over, only tangling herself further. She sat up as she spit foliage out of her mouth, vine like stems draped all down her body from head to tail. Taking a deep breath, she looked around at herself and chuckled. “Oh how silly I must look!” she thought with a grin as she awkwardly squirmed her way out of her green chains. She took her next dozen steps out of the fumitory a lot more carefully.

She had made her way into the strangest flowers Ka’la had ever seen. Large bright orange feather like petals protrude from the side of the vibrant bluish-purple stiff, pointy leaves that encased the petals before blooming. The oblong almost shovel shaped leathery leaves were all positioned aloft long stalks at least six feet in height. Everything grew in dense scattered clumps, growing together with time; a lot easier to walk through. Just up ahead, through these birds of paradise, Ka’la could see the tree she was looking for. Ka’la bounded in its direction, over and around anything in her way. She sniffed its hairy scaled bark. On the ground next to the stump, the top half of the tree lay flat on the ground up against itself. Between the two pieces amongst the roots and the sandy soil their appeared to be a well dug hole that led to a decent sized chamber. Ka’la checked it all over, making sure nothing was hiding in or around the feasible den. The den appeared clear of threats on first inspection. The hollow beneath the trunk was the perfect size for everyone to fit comfortably and should be safe enough for the time being. The fractioned palm decaying above it, and roots that cradled from below. The plant around it that loved the compost produced was a type of moss that grew in the constantly shady portions of the den entrance and all inside of the den creating the softest bedding imaginable. Thrilled to find her new home Ka’la marked her new territory by cutting deep claw marks down the side of the palm stump, and claiming a wide circumference around the dead trunk as hers by urinating on a few of the plants. Ka’la rolled around in the dirt before the entrance to the den. She sat up quickly sneezing dust from her nose, and shaking more from her pelt. She scratched behind her ear with her back paw then sprinted back toward her kittens.
Ka’la ran all the way across the meadow and through all the papyrus until she was on the edge of the lagoon facing the dense jungle standing between herself and her kittens. Ka’la followed the edge of the water slightly turning left and forming a small flowing stream, trickling into the lagoon. The stream led straight into a grove of tamarisk trees. Tamarisks have dense, powdery grey-green leaves. Young slender branches are smooth reddish brown that age brown to purple. Ka’la stepped into the shade and onto the dense accumulation of brown leaves composting across the terra camouflaging the tamarisk’ nut large pea pod shape reddish brown and tasty. Keeping alert Ka’la kept walking through the trees. No other plant grew on the ground beneath the trees. Only dead logs and branches lay decaying on the mulch, amongst the large black boulders weathering away with time. The leaves blocked the sunlight, dappling rays upon the leaf litter.
As song birds darted through the trees, the sound of something digging around in the crunchy leaves caught Ka’las attention. She quietly made her way towards the noise. Once she could see her prey, Ka’la pounced. She landed on top of a big fat rabbit, knocking the wind out of it and placing it in a strangle hold unable to catch its breath. The rabbit tried to claim its last gasp for air and silently went limp. Ka’la removed her jaw from the rabbits thought and began to consume its remains. As Ka’la ate she heard a rustle in the branches above her looking up the silhouette of large wings flapping in front of the dappled sun. Then a second came into view, /ka’la squinted trying to focus on the birds when a caw echoed from the canopy. Ka’la gracefully slipped into a shadow to her right, sunlight reflecting off her back in a shimmer as she moved. Now in the shade Ka’la could see it was the pair of ravens who helped her out.
“Oh its you!” Ka’la exclaimed. “I’d like to thank you for earlier.” Ka’la grabbed her meal and tore out several larger pieces with her fangs and tossed them on the ground beside her. “I hope you accept these as a token of my gratitude.”
One of the ravens, the more brown of the pair fluttered to the ground and took a bow before Ka’la. Lowering his head and extending a wing the raven said with a caw, “we thank you, this is most generous.”
The second bird, which was still in the trees, flew down to its mate and also took a bow, crossing its legs and half extending both wings with a nod of its head. “I am Kanuna and this is Kangee, we hope you found everything fine.” The female said in a dainty yet distinctly crow tone of voice, as Kangee went after some meat. Swallowing a very large piece in one gulp Kangee sighed with relief it made it past his thought.