Name: Uzoma (Igbo for 'follow the right road')

Sex: Male

Parents: Kanika and Juugu

Siblings: Chippy, Scratchy, many others...

Mate: Is in love with Nyarai

Cubs: Sauda, Dotty, Spotty, Beauty-Spot

Personality: Charismatic and knowledgeable, and is no one's tool. Is Imamu's complete foil in every way. Uzoma does not respect Scar, and does not see why his older sister does, nor does he respect Scar's methods of ruling, even though he - Uzoma- will not interfere unless needed to be. He is very sarcastic and has a snide way of talking, but even still he has his moments of showing off his heart of gold, especially when they concern Nyarai.

History: Kanika and his sisters were born in Kanika's first litter with her new mate Juugu, son of former Outlander leader Abraham who was also Kanika's first mate. Juugu respected his father's dying wish of having one of his and Kanika's sons becoming leader, but he sought to have Uzoma become the new leader of the Outlander pride instead. He conditioned his son to fight, and when the time came, Uzoma rose against his much older half-brother, Viserys, to challenge him for the throne. The fight was quick and humiliating for Uzoma, and he was quickly banished from the pride as Viserys rose as victor.

Wounded and without a home, Uzoma traveled considerably far from the Outlands before he became unconscious. When he awoke, he became a prisoner of war in the hands of the Riverland Pride, a pride that closely bordered Outland terrain where the only thing separating them was a large river. The king was Ferisk, and his son Olufemi had found Uzoma, and had taken them back. While the Outlander pride had already established friendly relations with the Pridelander pride, it was still hostile to other prides. The Riverland Pride wanted to see war against the Outland pride immediately.

Ferisk's only daugher, Nyarai, was the only one within the pride who did not wish to see war, and it was she who felt sympathetic towards Uzoma when she went to see him in the den where he was kept. Upon seeing her first sight, Uzoma fell in love with her. She was not unlike the Outlander lions he had grown up with, which intrigued him because of the Riverland pride's adamant stance that there was no relationship between the two prides. Nyarai promised Uzoma escapage back into his land to prevent the onset of a war, but when Uzoma begged for her to join him, she denied his request, for she was to be engaged to a lion from another pride to store relations there. She swam Uzoma across the river, but left him there to find his way back. Uzoma did not see Nyarai for a year after that.

It was by mere accident that they did meet again; this time it was Nyarai who landed on Outlander shores, and it was she who was captured. At this point in time, Uzoma had risen far on the political scale within his pride - Viserys was still leader of the pride, but Uzoma became a secondary leader should Viserys pass, for he was ill at the time. Upon seeing her, Uzoma ordered for her to be released. Unfortunately, this was when Ferisk started his war with the Outlander pride.

Nyarai revealed to Uzoma that Ferisk sent her across the river on purpose just to make an excuse to start a war, and Uzoma was outraged that she was so willing to go along with the plan until she revealed that her father was keeping her and her betrothed Imamu's cubs as hostages, and would've killed them had she not gone along with the plan. Feeling sympathetic, Uzoma promised her that he would get her cubs back for her. He never mentioned Imamu, however.

The war was immediate, and Uzoma found himself meeting Imamu for the first time. Wounded and bloody, Imamu had forced himself to confront Olufemi to win his and Nyarai's cubs back. The cubs were safe, and Imamu begged for Uzoma to take care of them in his land until things settled down. Touched by Imamu's devotion despite being a rival to him, Uzoma agreed, and took the cubs back with him. Imamu stayed within the confines of the Riverlands to destroy Feisk's rule from the inside-out.

It took a lot of convincing to make Viserys decide that Nyarai was no longer a threat to them, but Uzoma finally managed to worm his way into his half-brother's heart, and let him allow Nyarai free reign of the lands, and to be able to care for her cubs. Uzoma stood by her side at all times, only leaving to discuss tactical strategies with Viserys. During this time, Uzoma fell even more in love with Nyarai, and he felt that she was feeling the same way, especially since there was no guarantee that Imamu would survive the war. They shared a romantic evening together, and soon Uzoma felt that he could ask Nyarai to leave Imamu's side to live with him.

When the war ended, Ferisk and Olufemi were deceased, as was Viserys, therefore leaving Uzoma to take up the mantle as leader of the pride. He asked Nyarai to stay with him, but unexpectedly Imamu showed up, beaten up but otherwise alive. Nyarai decided that she would stay with Imamu to help fix up her homeland left desolated by her father. Uzoma was crushed, but though Nyarai tried to tell him that they could always be friends, he ignored her, and sent her back immediately.

Heartbroken, Uzoma threw himself into repairing the Outlands. It was many months before he had contact with Imamu again, but when he did, as the oher lion had swam across the river to deliver his own cubs that he had with Nyarai. Imamu told Uzoma that Nyarai had explained it all, and though she loved Uzoma just as much, her heart belonged to Imamu and the Riverland. Imamu stated he had nothing against Nyarai or Uzoma for what had transpired that night, but he felt it would be better if the cubs were able to live with their father and their true heritage. Uzoma agreed, and watched as Imamu delivered all four cubs to him before leaving indefinitely.

It was a long time after the war that more conflict began to stir with the arrival of Scar, brother to the king of the Pridelands. Uzoma was unhappy with his arrival, and banished him as soon as he came, but during his short period of being able to live under Uzoma's nose, Scar was able to stir some alliances with some of the lionesses. It was longer after that that trouble in the form of Zira arrived to the pride. She wanted to make her own Outland pride, and so she murdered Uzoma behind the scenes, and became a self-proclaimed ruler of the pride. This caused a split between those who supported Zira, and those who still lived under the traditions of the true Outlander pride. This would continue onward until Zira's death.

Family History:

Great-Grandparents: Joe and Gbemisola

Grandparents: Mohatu and Thema

Grand-Uncle: Emeka

Grand-Aunt: Asabi

Aunts: Uru, Nakato

Uncles: Bakari, Asante

Grand-Cubs: Rena, Sarafina, Abrafo, Gacheru

Cousins: Mufasa, Mega, Scar

Second-Cousins: Judas, Gotto, Simba, Tojo, Halla, Aboyo, Reno, Nuka

Third-Cousins: Kayode, Ari, Zuri, Kesi, Jiro, Jalena, Kayin, Gwandoya, Lindiwe Ayodele, Erevu, Duni, Adwin, Ngosi, Kopa, Kiara, Firion, Maalik, Katura, Hasani

Given to me by Claire. Thank you so much! :)