🦁Can You Feel the Love Tonight? + UPDATE (Patreon)

Sorry that I've been so inactive this month. My houses AC broke and we have been sweating out a heatwave for a large portion of the month... it has not been easy to draw in all this heat :(

Even worse, I cannot find time to do the comic I mentioned earlier. Sorry everyone, but I don't want to start a project I can't finish.

Here's an additional piece for this month, but I have something else planned for before the month ends.

Story: When Strad had been given a cleverly hypnotic 'vacation' ticket to the distant Safari, he thought his boss was just being kind or grateful for his long hours on the job. It genuinely seemed that way... and he was none the wiser to believe it, since he had been hypnotized into going anyway.

It was kind of every company's thing at this point... to protect their 'interest'. A lot of 'workers' could act as spies and use hypnosis to find company secrets and tradmarks, so companies started using hypnosis against those intruders as a sort of firewall to prevent any incursion. Based on previous experiences, the kangaroo expected to come back to his senses in some all-expense paid hotel roo, or hidden apartment that he'd never be able to find. He would have been mad about the previous times this kind of thing happened, were it not for how much he was being paid for his line of work.
However, when he found himself standing out in the middle of nowhere, naked, in an open Savanna, that's when he began to question his life choices.

The sound of chirping crickets and birds flying overhead flickered through his ears, as he began to nervously eye his surroundings. This was NOT like before. Normally he was sitting in a private area where no one would see him, but out here... with BLUE FUR... he stood out like a sore thumb! For that matter, he wasn't in much of a Savanna either! It was more like a desert! Heat oozed up from the ground, suffocating his lower body in sweat as he began to think!

Any normal person would have a panic attack or freak out in this situation, but Strad wasn't put in such situations because he was expendable. It's because he was one of the toughest people in the entire company. His paws were so big that he would walk at 7 miles per hour, and his nose could smell any chemical leak before someone else would. His ears were sharp enough to hear through walls, and his large tail gave him a low center of gravity that made fighting him nigh-impossible. There wasn't much he was scared of. Even now, he knew that what he was smelling, was the faint scent of a few lions on the Savanna... but h couldn't hear anyone nearby.

Calling out "Hello" to see if anyone was around would be a fools errand in this situation, and the setting sun meant that soon those Lions would be much more active. This was bad. The roo nearly cursed under his breathe, as he tried to recall what his boss said before he had taken the offer.

Boss: You've been rather depressed lately, and I feel like it's not just threatening to slow your work flow. I heard that a family member had recently died... and everyone at this company understands to give you personal space... well as long as it doesn't compromise our best interest. The higher ups have decided to give you a vacation. It's mandatory... because, well, you're not just a pawn to them. I know we all treat you like some character we manipulate when you work, but this is our way of showing we genuinely care. Just... have fun when you get there.

The words echoes in Strads' mind, as he tried to comprehend the meaning of what he just said. Now... it was starting to sink in, what he had been doing under hypnosis. His boss hadn't sent him out here in the middle of nowhere... he had been hypnotized into doing whatever he felt like, even if it seemingly endangered his health! As the roo began to walk toward the only landmark he could see, the sun began to set. Flashbacks of the information on this park flashed through his mind.

"WELCOME TO PRIDELABDS BATIONAL PARK! Featuring FRIENDLY wildlife, a massive Safari, beautiful dessert... A fun Savanna, and a pride that welcomes anyone and everyone"

Whatever these "Friendly animals" and this "pride" was, Strad was nervously realizing that he was about to find out... and that there was no defense or place to shelter. HE didn't have food, or water, or even clothing! It was like he had been mugged and stripped of his clothing... not that he normally wore much, but this was absurd! Something fishy had definitely happened on his way to this strange Nature Reserve!

As the sun began to set, and the sky became redder, Strad heard a distant, but loud roar echoed over the land. Immediately, he turned his head in that direction, but whatever made the sound was obscured by tall grass! It was obvious what it was, and he didn't want to stay around to find out if his hunch was right! It was clearly a lion, and an adult one judging by the base that just rattled his bones!

With a quicker pace, the nervous roo began jogging toward the large object in the distance. The heat waves obscured its shape, so it looked like a small rock at first. Then it grew to the size of a baseball! Again, the lion roared. This time, it was louder than before, and seemingly closer. Strads' fur shot up, as he began to shift from bipedal running to quadrupedal running! It was obvious that he was being hunted, and that rock might be the safest place to escape from this ravenous beast before the sun sets. To his knowledge, Lions couldn't climb rocks with such a steep incline, but his leg power should allow him to navigate the area in time!

Adrenaline coursed through him, as he panted in the heat! If he could just make it, he might even get a better idea of where he was. Everywhere around him looked the same! Once more, the Lion roared out. The sound was thunderous, and almost felt as though the beast were right behind him! It was a very nerve-racking feeling, and he felt that if he looked back, he would be dead!

After running faster than he knew he could, he reached the edge of the desert. It looked so close... seemed so close... he had just set his foot on grass, when something knocked the wind out of him and sent him tumbling across the ground. His mind was sent for a loop, after running for so long! He had been running on fumes in his attempt to get away from the beast... but it hadn't seemed the least bit tired as it leapt upon him! The shaken roo opened his eyes, trying to get back up when a large paw thrust itself down on his back and knocked the wind out of him! Sharp teeth wrapped around his neck, as he tried to get back up. It was no use... this was it. He froze in fear, waiting to be torn apart by the 'friendly wildlife' as his heart raced. Somehow, the experience was a lot calmer now than when the lion was further away.

A deep calm filled him, as he excepted that this was inevitable... just a circle of life and death. Or so it seemed, until a loud snicker echoed through his ear. The claws on his back, and fangs around his neck retracted, as the seemingly sentient animal snickered more, getting a laugh out of the whole ordeal of terrifying its prey. It was surreal to hear a lion laughing like this... but nothing was more unnerving, then when the massive muzzle of the beast leaned onto his shoulder, and calmly whispered
"Tired already? That was just the welcoming ceremony! Now... it's for the main event, and when I'm done, you'll never want to leave this place!"

The words echoed in the nervous roo's ears, as the large predator proceeded to mount and claim his prey.
The unbelievable weight of an adult lion now balanced on him, as the beast proceeded to have more 'fun' with his catch throughout the night. Before the Roo passed out fro exhaustion, he felt himself faintly enjoying this, over being torn apart. HE wondered hif this was the last thing he'd ever experience; getting shagged by a virile lion. Would he be turned into its slave by the end of this... Would he even still be alive and in one piece? He would only know if he survived long enough to wake up.