How the Tiger Got Its Stripes

Back in the times before the continents split, Leo the Tiger ruled the land. He controlled the plains, the deserts, the jungles, and the forests. He was more powerful than the lion, the bear, and the wolf. Leo was the most beautiful animal, and the creatures of his kingdom loved him as their ruler. He had a perfectly golden coat without any blemishes, and his hair was trimmed and kept short so as not to be confused with the mane of the lion. He was fair to his subjects, and even though he needed to eat, he still let the deer and antelope live prosperous lives with out over hunting them. "You are the fairest king ever to rule over us King Leo," all the squirrels and birds would preach. "Thank you fair subjects, I have always tried to provide the best lives for all of the creatures under my control."

It seemed that King Leo's rule was too good to be true, and of course, it was. One day a strange creature Leo had never encountered before came to him, "My name is Corruption and I have come to teach you how to achieve great happiness."

Leo replied, "Corruption? I have never heard of you, and besides, I'm already happy, I have my wonderful kingdom and all my subjects love me."

"But don't you want more! You could have it all, Leo"

"More? All? Tell me more..."

And so was the start of King Leo's decline. He started eating more antelope, started to force the chipmunks to gather him fruit to eat, and made the monkeys build a huge shrine in honor of "The Great King Leo". The animals tried to believe in their King and thought that anything their great king did must be good. How could such a wonderful king ever do anything that would cause them harm?

The animals lived under the oppression of King Leo for 10 years. At last, one creature stood up and organized the creatures of the world. Bob the Lion, a medium sized, scraggly cat, brought the oppression of King Leo to the attention of all the animals. "We must band together and end the King's rule. He is ruining all of our lives and there is nothing you can do to stop it unless we stand up together to overthrow our evil king!" And so the animals rose up. Of course there were those animals that remained loyal to the king. The poisonous reptiles, gigantic insects, and creepy spiders stood behind their king.