´óÏó´«Ã½

You know when you read a piece of writing, doesn't necessarily have to be long or short, a story or instructions on how to bake a victoria sponge with gooseberry icing and hundreds and thousands. But this particular piece of work sticks in your mind, your always thinking about it, anything, you or someone else does, reminds you about it. It wasn't so much something I read, it was something I imagine. How two different people would feel in the same situation but, on the two other sides of the stick.

'Hey, the gate's opening.' The leader of the pack roars to the group, they look over to him and see the metal gate slowly beginning to open, yet there was no one opening it. This wasn't strange for the group, it was a lucky break to them.
'In a second, run, run for your life and don't slow down.' The second in command growled 'On the count of three. After a few second pause he ordered 'Three.....two....one..Now!'

At the command they made a stampede like sound and the ground around them began to vibrate, they charged towards the gate, for the rusted open doors, to be free again.

Not being very organised, a member ran alongside his friend, he hadn't ran as fast as this for a very long time, but he remembered the last time, back home with his dad, sister and two brothers, and of course his mum. They were chasing each other through the tall grass, he was young, small, couldn't see where he was going, but he followed the sound of his mothers sweet tender voice, calling him.

Beginning to actually doubt whether that had really happened he didn't care, he let his mind wander. All of a sudden his mother's voice. It became scared, and anxious, she called for him to run, faster, and to keep going. There was a sound of an engine in the distance, it got louder, his mother's voice became quieter and slowly, this member came back to where he was now. He looked around, everyone was in front of him.

'Bang' one of the escapees went down. He jumped over the dying body wanting to help yet knew he would also die.

'Get them, don't let anyone of them escape.' They heard the guards shout to each other, but still they trudged on, swerving the trees, bushes and traps laid out for them. They were so close, yet so far, more of these life destroying guards appeared, and began to push the gate shut.
'Bang Bang Bang.

'Screams grew from the group as another three were unforgivably shot. They knew this was their only hope, the guards were still arriving from the dark mist, trying to push this massive metal gate. It was definitely working, but not fast enough, they were going to make it!

All the years they had been trapped in this miserable cage like thing, mesh surrounded their small environment, Electric fences in some areas.

And cameras, so many cameras. There was never any privacy, it was all about to change, once through the gate they could all go back home, to the families they had been taken away from, back to where they belong.

As the male got closer to his pack where he felt most safe he began to go back into his day dream, into knew depths of what really happened that day, maybe it would explain how he came to be here.
He remembered feeling tired, weak, he couldn't move on, he began to crawl slowly, crying for his mother.

'Look, I see a young one, get him!'
He hadn't remembered this ever before so he kept going, he fell onto the dusty ground, the guards! The guards surrounded him, he remembered, they pulled him up, tied his arms together and his legs. And threw him into the back of their truck.

'Mum, Muum.' He whined,

Back out of the daydream they were closer than they had ever been before, a tear trickled down his eye, he really was going to make it. The group suddenly had a burst of energy they charged at full speed to the gate, they were about twenty five metres away but the gate was closing in on them, Fifty guards at least were pushing the gate, their faces, white with terror, yet guns hang by the hips cold and unused, not wanting to be used, by most.

One of the guards, the guard that had stole the male away from his family, couldn't bear to help push the gates, he hoped they would be free, yet knew if they were set free he would almost certainly be killed.

He had been an adopted when he was growing up, he hated anyone with their biological, real family, why did they deserve one when he didn't. He grew up having everything he needed, he always had everything he wanted toy games, the lot yet would never regret anything he had done. When he was thirty, his actual parents wanted to meet him, he changed so quickly, from being this spiteful, even at thirty and now to this man, you could never quite believe, he was such a good listener, a very thoughtful and nurturing man.

A tear trickled down his eye, one of his childhood friends stood beside him, his friend never thought the same way he did, but he was an orphan, it was like a promise that they would stick together.

This guard could remember the day, ten years ago when he took that young, immature, thing from its home, he felt dreadful, yet there was no way to turn it back around. All of the group are from loving families, like the family he now had. The family he went back to every night after work, and ate his family dinner, talking and laughing. The family he had always wanted.

The fellow guards around him were discussing in small talk what to do, they had seconds before the escapees had escaped. They whispered, whispered so quietly that the orphaned guard could not hear; they both ran off, either to retrieve something or to hide. The man had known his family now for three years, he knew them all, so well, he knew how that if they knew what he had been doing they would disown him. They were so against this sort of cruelty, he believed it too, but he couldn't get another job, he couldn't.

The male, now grown up was slacking a little he didn't have the energy, what if they escaped, would they expect me to kill the guards as punishment for everything they had done? How could they even begin to think that I would still have the energy anyway never mind killing them.

He began to see the faces of the guards, so angry so unloving, but he recognised one, he felt anger to him, he didn't know why, but he wanted him to feel the way he did, he wanted to be sorry for what he had done.

The orphan saw the male staring blankly into his eyes, the bond broke as the male roared at him and charged towards him, not caring he jumped against the metal fence and slashed the man a deep cut with his long sharp claws across the healthy body of the man. He roared again as the man fell to the ground huffing and puffing in agony. He ran to the opening gate and through it.
They had escaped!

Helicopters flew above them, their search lights, reflecting of their golden brown fur. What was going on? All these lights, making him dizzy, yet he couldn't stop he need to be with his pack. Cars, swerved passed them in a frenzy as they made it to the streets outside. They didn't mean any harm, all they want is to be back where they belong, with their families. They began to run, run fast through the winding never ending roads.

It began to get light, guard looking people appeared out of buildings shouting, telling the little, smaller guards to get back. We don't mean any harm.

As the guard looking people hid in their homes, a sudden news flash appeared, on their televisions.

'Do not leave your homes, I will repeat, do not leave your homes, a group of very dangerous lions have escaped the zoo. There has already been a death as one of the guards at the zoo is said to have been killed after one of the younger ones sliced him with his claw.'