The Lion King Connection
(Originally appeared in Lilymud thread 11/4/05.)

The Complete, Cohesive & Concise Map of TLK Movie Interlaces

Ajali finds shelter with the Elephant Graveyard Clan (being quite unwelcome in other clans, as she is female & therefore competition for status/power,) in exchange for serving as a "Sponsor"--something like a matron or resident assistant, a female responsible for overseeing new arrivals until they are adjusted/absorbed into the clan's structure, and afterward that their interests are being looked after &/or have some representation in the clan, as young men are pretty disenfranchised critters in hyena society (retirees, likewise). Ajali's little cell sticks together after Simba returns and the hyena super-army busts into a thousand panicked pieces.

Jana is another one of Banzai's children. Nothing special, though--as the highest ranking male in the clan, Banzai probably has several daughters besides her, and they don't interact with each other because hyena fathers are (enforced) deadbeats.

Closer to little cubbie Jana is Rai. Rai is her grandfather on her mother's side who has been a part of the Elephant Graveyard Clan through three matriarchs, & while he would generally be as disinterested in a cub like Jana as the next male, he is also an old soldier & when his daughter (Jana's mother) dissappears without a trace, he begins to take a watchful interest in his grandchild and her safety.

Kasiri, Mtawa, & Sabasi--Since male hyenas emigrate to different clans on maturity anyway, these three are among the very many that set out for the Elephant Graveyard Clan after hearing about it's newly aquired lands & marvelous resources. (This is how I reconcile the natural behavior of hyenas, where females are more in evidence, with the fact that almost all the hyenas in the fight scene at the end seem to be boys. The American West was similarly unbalanced for a good 20 years when it was being settled, though of course informed by a rather different set of gender assumptions.)
Sabasi additionally harbors an adolescent obsession with Shenzi and is, in my mind, is one of the five hyenas that give Nala such a run for her money in TLK6NA before being chased off by Ni & Sarafina.

Ziada is the only one that has nothing to do with the canon TLK world.