Original subtitles

Narrator: FROM A PLACE YOU CAN'T IMAGINE

COMES A STORY THAT'S NEVER BEEN TOLD.

AFRICA KEEPS HER SECRETS WELL.

IN A MERCILESS, DESOLATE FURNACE,

AN UNEXPECTED PREDATOR SURVIVES.

THESE ARE NO ORDINARY LIONS.

THESE ARE DESERT LIONS.

THEY LIVE AN ENIGMATIC LIFE IN THE VAST, ANCIENT NAMIB

AROUND AFRICA'S SKELETON COAST PARK.

WITH THE USE OF SATELLITE COLLARS,

ONE MAN'S LIFELONG DEVOTION

REVEALS A COMING-OF-AGE STORY ABOUT FIVE YOUNG BROTHERS.

BUT THEIR FUTURE IS UNCERTAIN.

WITH ADULT MALE LIONS VANISHING,

THE YOUNGSTERS HOLD THE KEY TO THE FUTURE OF THEIR KIND,

SAFEGUARDED BY AN OLD LIONESS WHO RISKS EVERYTHING.

♪

IN THE WORLD'S OLDEST DESERT

ROAMS A NOMADIC AND EXTRAORDINARY PREDATOR.

♪

IN THE SOUTHWEST OF AFRICA,

THE NAMIB, VAST AND INTIMIDATING...

CONQUERED BY AN ADULT MALE DESERT LION.

[ROARING]

THERE ARE FEWER THAN 150 DESERT-ADAPTED LIONS HERE.

BETWEEN THE VILLAGES IN THE EAST AND THE COASTLINE IN THE WEST,

AN EXPANSE OF ALMOST 40,000 SQUARE MILES,

THE DESERT PROVIDES SANCTUARY.

AFTER DECADES OF ABSENCE,

THIS MALE WAS THE FIRST LION TO REDISCOVER

THE SKELETON COAST.

HE GOES WHERE NO LION HAS BEEN KNOWN TO GO BEFORE.

HIS HOME RANGE IS TWICE THE SIZE OF NEW JERSEY,

BY FAR THE LARGEST EVER RECORDED FOR A LION.

BUT HE IS ONE OF THE LAST REMAINING KINGS OF THE DESERT.

TROPHY HUNTERS AND LOCAL VILLAGERS

HAVE CAUSED THE DRASTIC DECLINE OF ADULT MALES,

BUT IF HE CAN SETTLE, FIND A PRIDE HERE, AND FATHER CUBS,

HE HAS A FUTURE.

HE MIGHT BE ONE OF THE ONLY MALES FOR NOW,

BUT IN THE DRY HOANIB RIVERBED,

FIVE YOUNGSTERS FACE THE SAME DESTINY.

THEY ARE THE FUTURE KINGS OF THE DESERT.

[BIRDS CHIRPING]

[INSECTS BUZZING]

♪

AT NEARLY TWO YEARS OLD, THEY ARE ABOUT TO REACH ADOLESCENCE.

SOON INDEPENDENCE WILL BECKON.

♪

♪

♪

IT'S TIME TO GROW UP.

[ROARING]

THE POPULATION IS IN DESPERATE NEED OF ADULT MALES,

AND THEY JUST MIGHT MAKE IT TO ADULTHOOD

WITH THE HELP OF THEIR THREE MOTHERS.

THE LIONESSES ARE ON THEIR WAY BACK TO THEIR FIVE YOUNG BOYS.

[ROARING]

TWO ARE IN THEIR PRIME.

THEIR MOTHER IS EXCEPTIONALLY OLD.

AT 17, SHE'S FAR BEYOND THE AVERAGE LIFE EXPECTANCY

OF A LION IN THE WILD.

[ROARING]

A FAMILIAR CALL IS ALL IT TAKES.

♪

THEIR ENTHUSIASTIC GREETING IS GENUINE, IF A LITTLE OVERBOARD.

THEY'VE ALREADY OUTGROWN THEIR MOTHERS,

BUT THEY STILL BEHAVE LIKE CUBS,

UNAWARE THAT THEIR MATERNAL BOND MUST BREAK.

YOUNG MALES AREN'T MEANT TO STAY WITH THEIR MOTHERS.

♪

THE LIONESSES WELCOME THE BOYS' ATTENTION,

BUT NOT EVERYONE DOES.

THE OLD LIONESS IS A DEVOTED AND CARING MOTHER,

BUT AT HER AGE, THE BOISTEROUS YOUNGSTERS ARE TOO MUCH FOR HER.

AS FIRST-TIME MOTHERS,

THE TWO LIONESSES DEPEND HEAVILY ON THE OLD LIONESS,

WHO HAS SUCCESSFULLY RAISED FOUR LITTERS.

THEY ARE LEARNING FROM A TRUE SURVIVOR.

BY NOW, THE FIVE MALES

WOULD NORMALLY BE OUSTED BY THEIR FATHER,

BUT HE'S DEAD.

FAR AWAY FROM THE SAFETY OF THE HOANIB,

HE BECAME A VICTIM OF THE CLASH BETWEEN LIONS AND PEOPLE.

SCIENTIST DR. PHILIP STANDER HAS STUDIED

THE SMALL POPULATION OF DESERT LIONS

FOR NEARLY TWO DECADES.

[CAMERA SHUTTER CLICKING]

WITH THE USE OF SATELLITE COLLARS,

HE IS ABLE TO MONITOR THIS SIGNIFICANT PRIDE CLOSELY.

[CLICK]

THE FIRST TIME PHILIP SAW THE LIONESSES WITH FIVE MALE CUBS,

HE REALIZED THEIR SURVIVAL WAS CRUCIAL.

IF THEY COULD MAKE IT TO ADULTHOOD,

THERE WOULD BE HOPE

FOR THE DWINDLING DESERT LION POPULATION.

AS THEY GREW UP, PHILIP HAD THE UNIQUE OPPORTUNITY,

FOR THE FIRST TIME EVER,

TO FOLLOW THE SECRET LIVES OF FIVE YOUNG DESERT MALES.

[CLICK]

HE FITTED THEM WITH COLLARS

AND NAMED THEM THE FIVE MUSKETEERS.

♪

THE HOANIB RIVERBED IS A LIFELINE FOR DESERT ANIMALS.

THOUGH IT APPEARS DRY, THERE IS WATER DEEP BENEATH THE GROUND,

SALVATION IN A SEEMINGLY LIFELESS EXPANSE.

EVEN GIRAFFE HAVE ADAPTED TO THE DESERT...

[GROWLING]

...THE PERFECT PREY FOR A LARGE PRIDE

WITH SUCH RAVENOUS APPETITES.

HUNTING GIRAFFE IS THE SPECIALTY OF THE OLD LIONESS,

AS PHILIP HAS SEEN FOR HIMSELF.

SEVERAL YEARS AGO, WHEN SHE WAS STILL IN HER PRIME,

HE WITNESSED HER ASTONISHING ATTACK

ON A GIRAFFE AND ITS CALF.

IN AN EFFORT TO PROTECT HER CALF,

THE MOTHER ACCIDENTALLY KNOCKS IT DOWN.

THE LIONESS' FIRST MOVE IS BOLD.

A BLOW FROM A GIRAFFE'S KICK CAN KILL A LION,

BUT HER TIMING IS EXQUISITE.

♪

WITH A PRIDE OF EIGHT STRONG,

THE PRESSURE TO HUNT IS RELENTLESS.

THE MOTHERS MOVE OFF WITHOUT THEIR BOYS.

THEY ARE MORE HINDRANCE THAN HELP.

THE BEGINNING OF A NEW YEAR.

[THUNDER]

THE THUNDERSTORMS IN THE DISTANCE

HAVE BEEN GROWING FOR SOME TIME NOW.

AFTER MONTHS OF RAIN FURTHER INLAND,

THOUSANDS OF SMALL TRICKLES

COALESCE INTO A BURGEONING RIVER,

EVENTUALLY REACHING THE DESERT.

♪

THIS RIVER OF SAND TRANSFORMS

INTO A SURREAL FLOW OF LIFE-GIVING WATER.

♪

♪

♪

BUT A SCORCHING DESERT SOAKS UP THE ANNUAL FLASH FLOOD

WITHIN A SINGLE DAY.

ALTHOUGH THE HOANIB SEEPS BACK UNDERGROUND,

THE HIDDEN MOISTURE SPREADS INTO THE SURROUNDING DESERT

AND BRINGS NEW LIFE TO THE SURFACE,

AND WITH IT, THE SCATTERED RAINS

ALLOW THE DESERT A BRIEF CELEBRATION.

♪

RAIN BRINGS RELIEF FOR MOST ANIMALS.

ISLANDS OF PLENTY SPREAD OUT ACROSS THE DESERT.

EVEN GIRAFFE MOVE FAR FROM THE RIVERBED, IN SEARCH OF GREENERY.

BUT FOR THE LIONESSES, IT MEANS HARDSHIP.

PREY HAS BECOME SCARCE IN THEIR HOME RANGE.

BUT TODAY LOOKS PROMISING.

♪

IN THE DESERT, HUNTING SUCCESS IS DETERMINED BY COOPERATION.

GIRAFFE ARE RISKY TO TACKLE,

BUT THE BENEFITS ARE CONSIDERABLE.

THOUGH SHE APPEARS OLD AND FRAGILE,

HUNTING GIRAFFE IS HER SPECIALTY.

OVERSEEING THE HUNT, SHE WATCHES AS HER DAUGHTERS MOVE IN.

THE STALK HAS BEGUN.

♪

CALCULATED, PATIENT, STEP BY STEP.

THE OLD LIONESS STAYS BEHIND.

THE END GAME IS UP TO HER.

♪

♪

HER TIMING CRUCIAL.

A CLOSE CALL FOR BOTH,

BUT THE OLD LIONESS IS BACK ON HER FEET IN SECONDS.

IT'S A MOTHER'S INSTINCT TO PROVIDE,

BUT FAILURE IS AS MUCH A PART OF HER LIFE AS SUCCESS.

HUNTING IS NEVER EASY.

THOUGH HER MUSCLES WILL REMIND HER

OF THE IMPACT OF HER COURAGEOUS ATTACK FOR SOME TIME,

SHE IS TOUGH.

SURVIVING 17 YEARS OF HARDSHIP IN THIS DESERT

HAS ARMED HER WITH RESILIENCE AND BRAVERY.

SHE SEEMS UNBREAKABLE.

♪

THE THREE MOTHERS WILL HAVE TO KEEP SEARCHING.

[THUNDER]

THE SCATTERED RAINS SEND PREY FAR AND WIDE,

AWAY FROM THE DRY RIVERBED.

THIS TIME OF YEAR, EVEN AN UNFORGIVING DESERT

BRINGS DELIGHT FOR THE HERBIVORES.

♪

BUT IT LEAVES THE LIONS BEREFT OF PREY.

MOTHERHOOD WAS NEVER AS DEMANDING.

IT'S THE BEGINNING OF HARD TIMES TO COME.

♪

RAINFALL IS RARE IN THE DESERT,

BUT THIS YEAR IS EXCEPTIONAL.

THE MOTHERS ARE STRUGGLING THEIR WAY

THROUGH THE PROLONGED RAINY SEASON.

THEY MANAGE TO PROVIDE THEIR FIVE YOUNGSTERS

WITH JUST ENOUGH FOOD TO GET BY,

BUT THIS ORYX KILL HAS COME AT A COST.

THE OLD LIONESS WAS INJURED DURING THE HUNT.

SHE IS FEELING THE STRAIN.

HER DEVOTION TO THE FIVE YOUNG MALES

IS WHAT'S DRAINING HER STRENGTH.

THE HARDER SHE HAS TO WORK TO FEED THEM,

THE LESS ABLE SHE IS TO PROVIDE FOR THEM.

♪

AT TWO YEARS OF AGE,

THE MUSKETEERS SHOULD NOW BE ABLE TO LOOK AFTER THEMSELVES,

BUT IF THEIR MOTHERS ARE STILL PROVIDING...

THE DESERT CANNOT SUSTAIN A PRIDE OF EIGHT.

HOW LONG CAN THEY KEEP THIS UP?

♪

HOW MUCH MORE CAN SHE GIVE?

♪

PERHAPS THE TIME HAS COME

TO LEAVE THE FIVE BOYS TO FEND FOR THEMSELVES.

A SEPARATION MIGHT HAPPEN, IF THEY MEET UP

WITH THE ONE ADULT MALE THAT'S STILL WITHIN THEIR REACH.

UNITED WITH THE PRIDE,

HE WILL OUST THE FIVE YOUNGSTERS,

FORCING THEM INTO INDEPENDENCE,

BUT THE RAINS HAVE LED THE MALE FAR AWAY FROM THE LIONESSES,

INTO HUMAN TERRITORY.

IN HIS SEARCH FOR GAME, HE HAS COME DANGEROUSLY CLOSE

TO A VILLAGE ON THE OUTSKIRTS OF THE DESERT,

WHERE CATTLE MAKE FOR EASY PREY.

[CATTLE LOWING]

THEY ARE VULNERABLE, DEFENSELESS,

BUT PEOPLE HAVE GUNS

AND WILL PROTECT THEIR LIVESTOCK AT ALL COSTS.

[RADIO RECEIVER BEEPING]

PHILIP WILL DO EVERYTHING HE CAN TO KEEP THE ADULT MALE SAFE.

HE IS THE ONLY ONE REMAINING

IN THE GREATER PART OF THE DESERT.

FORTUNATELY, THE OWNERS KEEP THEIR CATTLE SAFELY IN A CORRAL.

[BEEPING]

THERE'S A LIMIT TO WHAT PHILIP CAN DO.

THE CORRAL SEEMS TO DETER THE MALE,

AND HE DISAPPEARS BACK INTO THE NIGHT.

[BEEPING]

THE RADIO SIGNALS FROM HIS COLLAR ARE FADING.

[BEEPING GROWS FAINT]

FOR NOW, HE IS SAFE.

♪

[ROARING]

THE DISTINCTIVE, BROKEN, AND ANCIENT CRY

OF THE OLD LIONESS.

WEAKENED, SHE HAS FALLEN BEHIND.

WITH HER FRAIL ROARING,

SHE IS TRYING TO REACH HER DAUGHTERS.

[ROARING]

BUT THE REST OF HER PRIDE HAS GONE FAR,

IN SEARCH FOR PREY.

THEY CANNOT HEAR HER.

♪

ONE OF THE YOUNG MOTHERS

HAS SPOTTED A LONE ORYX IN THE DUNES.

THIS IS THE ULTIMATE HUNT FOR A DESERT-ADAPTED LION.

♪

♪

♪

SHE STALKS THROUGH THE MOTIONLESS WAVES

OF THIS SEA OF SAND.

THE DUNES BECOME HER ALLY, THE SAND HER DISGUISE.

TODAY, THE DESERT HUNTS WITH HER.

THE MAJORITY OF HUNTS END IN FAILURE,

BUT NOT TODAY.

THE REST OF HER PRIDE IS UNAWARE OF THE KILL,

BUT HER SUCCESSFUL HUNT DOESN'T GO UNNOTICED.

AS USUAL, THE MUSKETEERS ARE SOUND ASLEEP.

THE LIONESS HAS REALIZED THAT HER SISTER IS GONE,

THOUGH SHE'S OBLIVIOUS TO THE WAITING FEAST.

[SQUAWKING]

WITH SCAVENGERS ON THE SCENE,

SHE CAN'T RISK LEAVING THE KILL TO FETCH THE REST OF HER PRIDE.

[ROARING]

HER MATERNAL INSTINCT KICKS IN.

SHE CALLS OUT FOR THE OTHERS.

HER ROAR IS AN INVITATION.

♪

AND ONCE AGAIN,

IT'S THE YOUNG MALES WHO WILL TAKE THE LION'S SHARE.

♪

A KILL IS NOT JUST FOOD.

IN A DESERT WHERE WATER IS SCARCE,

THE MOISTURE FROM THEIR PREY ALSO QUENCHES THEIR THIRST.

THE ORYX IS DEVOURED QUICKLY.

EVERYONE IS TRYING TO GET AS MUCH AS THEY CAN...

[GROWLING]

EVERYONE, EXCEPT THE OLD LIONESS,

STILL SEPARATED FROM HER PRIDE.

WHEN THE CLOUDS EVENTUALLY VANISH INTO DUST,

THE END OF THE RAINY SEASON IS FINALLY IN SIGHT.

♪

THE PREVAILING STORMS

TURN THE DESERT BACK INTO A WORLD OF SAND.

♪

AS UNPLEASANT AS IT IS, IT'S A GOOD SIGN FOR THE LIONS.

AT LAST, PREY RETURNS TO THE RIVERBED,

ONCE AGAIN, THE ONLY SOURCE OF FOOD.

♪

THE HARD TIMES ARE ALMOST OVER.

♪

♪

WITH THE OLD LIONESS GONE FOR SO LONG,

A CONCERNED PHILIP HAS BEGUN SEARCHING FOR HER.

♪

BUT SHE'S NOT THE ONLY ONE MISSING.

THREE OF THEIR FIVE MUSKETEERS

HAVE ALSO BECOME SEPARATED FROM THE PRIDE.

WITH THEIR PRIDE FRAGMENTED, THEY BEGIN THEIR OWN SEARCH

FOR THEIR OWN MOTHER AND THE THREE LOST BOYS,

BUT FINDING EACH OTHER IN THIS ENDLESS DESERT

IS ANYTHING BUT A CERTAINTY.

THE LOST BOYS' INSTINCT IS TO WAIT FOR THEIR MOTHERS,

AND THEY WILL WAIT, NO MATTER HOW LONG,

UNTIL THEIR MOTHERS RETURN.

♪

REACHING THE DUNE BELT, THE SEARCHING LIONS

BECOME DRIFTING WANDERERS IN AN OCEAN OF SAND.

♪

♪

BUT THERE'S NO ONE HERE.

IF THE THREE LOST MUSKETEERS ARE HERE,

THEY NEED TO FIND THEIR VOICES.

[ROARING]

AND FIND THEM THEY DO.

[ROARING]

THE POWER OF THEIR DESPERATE ROARS MAY CARRY OVER 25 MILES,

PERHAPS FAR ENOUGH TO REACH THE PRIDE.

HOPE IS AT LAST REKINDLED.

BUT ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE NAMIB,

THERE IS NO MORE HOPE.

♪

WHEN PHILIP FINALLY FINDS HER, SHE'S BARELY ALIVE.

THE RAINY SEASON HAS TAKEN ITS TOLL.

♪

THERE IS NOTHING HE CAN DO.

17 YEARS AGO, WHEN PHILIP FIRST ARRIVED IN THE DESERT,

THE OLD LIONESS WAS ONLY A CUB.

HE'S BEEN HER COMPANION THROUGHOUT HER ENTIRE LIFE.

SHE'S BEEN THE FOCUS OF A LIFELONG STUDY.

TO PHILIP, SHE'S BEEN THE MOST SIGNIFICANT LION

IN THE POPULATION.

♪

NOW, AT THE END OF HER REMARKABLY LONG LIFE,

WHEN SHE IS AT HER MOST VULNERABLE,

THE DESERT IS AT ITS MOST RELENTLESS.

♪

IT STARTS TO BURY HER,

EVEN BEFORE SHE TAKES HER LAST BREATH.

♪

♪

♪

PHILIP STUDIED HER FROM THE MOMENT SHE WAS BORN

TILL THE DAY SHE DIED.

♪

♪

IT'S A SAD MILESTONE IN HIS RESEARCH,

AND YET, A TREMENDOUS ACHIEVEMENT.

[ROARING]

AT LAST, THE LOST BOYS

HEAR THE FAMILIAR SOUND OF THEIR MOTHERS' CALLS.

♪

AFTER THE LOSS OF THE OLD LIONESS,

IT'S NOW UP TO THE TWO YOUNG MOTHERS

TO CONTINUE LOOKING AFTER THEIR MUSKETEERS.

♪

♪

WITH THE OTHER TWO MUSKETEERS JOINING IN,

THE PRIDE IS FINALLY UNITED AGAIN.

♪

♪

NOW, THIS PRIDE OF SEVEN WILL CONTINUE TO LIVE

BY THE LEGACY OF THE OLD LIONESS.

THE BOND BETWEEN THE TWO YOUNG MOTHERS AND THE FIVE MALES

SEEMS STRONGER THAN EVER,

BUT CHANGE IS IN THE AIR.

THE MUSKETEERS HAVE NOTICED

SOMETHING IS DIFFERENT ABOUT THEIR MOTHERS.

THEY PICK UP AN UNFAMILIAR SCENT FROM THEM

AND TRY TO READ A MESSAGE THAT'S MEANT FOR SOMEONE ELSE.

[ROARS]

THEIR MOTHERS ARE CALLING,

BUT THIS TIME, IT'S NOT FOR THEIR SONS.

[ROARING]

THE LIONESSES ARE READY TO MATE AGAIN.

THEY CALL FOR THE ONLY ADULT MALE WITHIN THEIR REACH.

[ROARING]

BUT THERE IS NO ANSWER.

IF THEY SHOULD FIND A MATE SOON,

THE MUSKETEERS WILL HAVE NO CHOICE

BUT TO CONTINUE LIFE ON THEIR OWN.

AS YOUNG DESERT MALES,

THEY'VE BEEN WITH THEIR MOTHERS FOR MUCH LONGER THAN USUAL.

♪

IT'S BEEN A SLOW LEARNING CURVE,

BUT OVER TIME, THEY'VE MADE GOOD PROGRESS.

IT ALL STARTED WITH BECOMING INVISIBLE...

♪

LEARNING TO STALK WITH COORDINATED PRECISION...

GETTING TO KNOW WHO TO CHASE...

AND WHO TO AVOID.

[TRUMPETING]

MAKING THE MOST OF EVEN THE SMALLEST OPPORTUNITY...

WORKING TOGETHER AS A TEAM...

[SNARLING]

TO BECOME EFFICIENT AND SKILLED HUNTERS.

♪

AND WITH THESE EXPERIENCES BEHIND THEM,

THEY ARE BECOMING A TIGHT AND STRONG COALITION.

IT IS A COALITION THAT IS BECOMING EVEN MORE VALUABLE,

AS PHILIP'S CONCERN FOR THE ADULT MALE IS GROWING.

HE HAS BEEN IN THE SAME PLACE FOR SEVERAL DAYS.

MAPPING HIS SATELLITE TRANSMISSIONS REVEALS

THAT THERE HAS BEEN NO MOVEMENT.

IT CONFIRMS WHAT PHILIP HAS FEARED.

♪

♪

♪

HE, TOO, FELL VICTIM TO THE HUMAN-LION CONFLICT.

PHILIP COULDN'T PROTECT HIM,

BUT AT SEVEN YEARS OLD, HIS STORY HAD ONLY JUST BEGUN,

AND AS HE WAS THE LAST REMAINING ADULT MALE IN THE REGION,

HIS LOSS IS A TRAGEDY.

THE DESERT HAS LOST THE VOICE OF ANOTHER KING.

IT'S GROWN SILENT.

IN THE GREATER PART OF THE DESERT,

THERE IS NOT A SINGLE ADULT MALE LION LEFT.

MORE THAN EVER, THEIR SURVIVAL IS CRUCIAL.

FIVE MUSKETEERS--

IT'S ALL FOR ONE...

[GROWLING]

AND EVERY LION FOR HIMSELF WHEN A KILL HAS BEEN MADE.

THE TIGHT BOND HAS BEEN PUT ON HOLD.

FOR THE MOMENT, THERE IS NO BROTHERLY LOVE.

♪

AND JUST WHEN YOU THINK YOU'RE GETTING A HEAD,

THERE'S A SNAG.

♪

A SPRINGBOK KILL IS NOT NEARLY ENOUGH

FOR TWO LIONESSES AND FIVE AGGRESSIVE ADOLESCENT MALES,

BUT NO MATTER HOW MANY KILLS THEY WOULD MAKE TOGETHER,

THE MUSKETEERS HAVE NO FUTURE WITH THEIR MOTHERS.

♪

THE MUSKETEERS ARE NOW THREE YEARS OLD.

TO THEM, IT'S JUST ANOTHER DAY,

BUT THEIR MOTHERS ARE NOT JUST LEAVING TO HUNT.

♪

THIS TIME, WHEN THE LIONESSES LEAVE THEM BEHIND ONCE MORE,

THEY WILL NOT BE RETURNING.

AT LAST, THEIR MATERNAL INSTINCT

HAS GIVEN IN TO THEIR URGE TO FIND A MATE,

AND THEY WON'T STOP SEARCHING UNTIL THEY DO.

IT IS THE END OF AN ERA,

AND A NEW PHASE OF LIFE FOR THE MUSKETEERS

IS OFF TO A TURBULENT START.

[WATER RUSHING]

THE HEAVY RAINS INLAND

BRING THE LARGEST FLASH FLOOD IN A DECADE.

THE WATER CARVES ITS WAY THROUGH THE DESERT.

IT COMES SO UNEXPECTEDLY,

IT LEAVES A DESERT-ADAPTED ANIMAL IN SOME CONFUSION.

♪

THE FLOOD IS CREATING ISLANDS, SHRINKING BY THE MINUTE.

AND THE MUSKETEERS FIND THEMSELVES STRANDED

ON ONE OF THEM.

[ROARING]

THEY DESPERATELY CALL OUT TO THEIR MOTHERS,

BUT THEY ARE NO LONGER AROUND TO SAVE THEM.

THIS TIME, THE MUSKETEERS ONLY HAVE EACH OTHER TO DEPEND ON.

♪

THEY HAVE NEVER SEEN SO MUCH WATER IN THEIR LIVES.

THEIR WORLD IS FALLING APART AROUND THEM,

AND THE WATER IS RISING.

SOON THEIR ISLAND WILL BE GONE.

ONE OF THE MALES FINALLY OVERCOMES HIS FEAR

AND LEADS HIS BROTHERS OUT OF DANGER.

♪

BUT ONE HAS STAYED BEHIND--

HESITANT, UNSURE, TOO AFRAID OF THE RUSHING WATER.

♪

THE ISLAND IS DISAPPEARING.

HE NEEDS TO MOVE NOW, BEFORE IT'S TOO LATE.

♪

THE FLASH FLOOD HAS WASHED AWAY THE LAST OF THEIR DEPENDENCE.

NOW THEY ARE READY TO START

THEIR FREE-ROAMING, NOMADIC LIFE.

FREE FROM THEIR MOTHER'S CARE, THE FIVE MUSKETEERS MUST NOW

MAKE AN IMPRESSION ON THEIR WORLD.

BEING INDEPENDENT, THEY ARE FINALLY READY

TO LIVE UP TO THEIR OLD MOTHER'S LEGACY--

HUNTING GIRAFFE.

♪

THEY ARE FOCUSED.

THEY ARE PRIMED FOR THEIR BIGGEST CHALLENGE YET.

♪

♪

♪

THEY HAVE LEARNED THAT COOPERATION IS ESSENTIAL.

♪

♪

♪

FURTHER DOWN THE BANK,

TWO MUSKETEERS GET INTO POSITION.

♪

♪

♪

♪

♪

♪

♪

♪

♪

♪

♪

♪

[GROWLING]

SUSTAINING A COALITION OF FIVE MALES IN SUCH A BARREN PLACE

IS GOING TO BE A CHALLENGE,

BUT IF THEY CONTINUE TO HUNT LARGE PREY SUCCESSFULLY,

TOGETHER THEY WILL THRIVE.

PHILIP WILL FOLLOW THE FIVE MUSKETEERS WHEREVER THEY GO.

HE WILL CONTINUE TO MONITOR THEIR MOVEMENTS

AND DOCUMENT THEIR LIFE STORIES

WITH THE SAME COMMITMENT HE MADE TO THE OLD LIONESS.

NOW THE FIVE BROTHERS HAVE BECOME DESERT NOMADS

IN SEARCH OF THEIR OWN KINGDOM.

♪

IN TIME, THEY'LL BECOME THE FATHERS OF THE NEXT GENERATION.

SOMEWHERE OVER THE DUNES, A HIDDEN OASIS.

♪

IT IS HOME TO A PRIDE OF YOUNG LIONESSES.

THIS COULD BE THEIR DESTINY.

HERE THEY'LL BE SAFE.

THIS TIGHTLY BONDED BROTHERHOOD, THE FIVE MUSKETEERS,

WILL HERALD THE RETURN OF THE VANISHING KINGS.

NOW THEY ROAM FREE, LIKE THE KINGS BEFORE THEM.

♪

♪