One day, Nicademos the cheetah was taking a nap under his favorite tree. Antwon the ant awakened him with a message from King Lion Heart.

“What do you mean, Antwon? You say the king wants me for a great task?” Nicodemos asked after he had awakened.

“Yes, the king said that a great menace is destroying the land. He needs a hero like you to conquer it,” Antwon answered in a small, timid voice.

“Then we must hurry, little fellow. The whole jungle could be at stake. We must go and find the king,” Nicademos said.

Soon Nicademos arrived at the king’s palace. He and the king talked about the great menace destroying the land and what Nicodemos the cheetah must do to stop it.

“Yes, Nicademos, I have called you for a task that is extremely dangerous – even life-threatening,” King Lion Heart said.

The king explained to the cheetah, “There is a powerful rhinoceros. His name is Big Horn. He causes havoc all over our land, destroying anything in his path. He must be stopped. My royal army fought him, but he defeated them. Only you, Nicademos, may be able to stop Big Horn.”

“I don’t understand, my king. If your army failed, how can I succeed?” Nicademos said.

“I’ll tell you, Nicademos. An army is huge, which makes it an easy target for its enemy But you are small and able to hide yourself until you attack by surprise. An army has many soldiers, which means some may become afraid and then spread their fear to their comrades. You are by yourself, but by yourself you have a brave heart that will not weaken. And the huge size of an army means it moves slowly. But a lone cheetah is the fastest cat alive. Now do you understand why I have faith that you may win against Big Horn?” the king said, placing his right paw on the cheetah’s shoulder.

“You are my king. I will do as you wish,” Nicademos said.

Big Horn the rhinoceros lived in a cave in Death Valley. As the stealthy cheetah crept towards the cave, all around him were reminders why everyone lived in fear of the rhino. The broken trunks of uprooted trees and the rubble of animal’s dens littered the twisting path that led to the lair of Big Horn.

Nicademos silently glided into the rhino’s cave. His cat’s eyes quickly adjusted to the dark of the cave. He saw huge pools of some kind of glowing black liquid. The glowing pools seemed to make him feel stronger as he crept closer to them. But the cat had no time to investigate the mystery of the glowing black pools. His mission was to find the rhino and stop him.

The faint, golden gleam of the shimmering black pools was the only light in the rhino’s shadowy cavern.  The voice of the cheetah echoed from the walls of the cave as the booming footsteps of Big Horn grew louder in the darkness.

“Come out and face me, Big Horn!” called Nicademos, his shout echoing.

Emerging from the shadows, Big Horn seemed to suddenly appear from nowhere. The rhino effortlessly swatted the cat, tossing him through the air. Big Horn spoke in a voice that sounded like thunder.

“So you are the great warrior who is supposed to defeat me. Look at you! You lie on the ground, crying like a little kitten,” the rhino said.

As those words echoed in the cave, Nicademos jumped to his feet and leaped towards Big Horn. But the strength and confidence of the rhino could not be stopped by the cheetah. Nicademos’ fear was growing as his strength was draining away.

Big Horn pinned Nicademos to the wall. Nicodemos weakily struggled against Big Horn, but there was really nothing the scared cheetah could do to save himself. Exhausted and afraid, the cheetah started to give up.

Suddenly, Big Horn roared in surprise. Antwon the ant had stung the rhino in the tender part of his heels.

Surprised by the ant’s bite, the rhino lost his grip on Nicademos and his own balance. The cat and the rhino both fell into one of the glowing black pools. The tar held them fast. They tried to escape. They only continued to sink to the bottom.

Big Horn was afraid, confused, and helpless. The rhino slowly sank without struggling. Nicademos’ fear left him. New strength came to him. A bolder, stronger cheetah dragged himself and the helpless rhino out of the glimmering black pool.

Nicademos stood at the edge of the black pool. His coat shined with a new golden glow. The defeated Big Horn crawled at his feet. The rhino feebly tried to get up to run away, but he was too scared to be able to stand.

“I want you to leave this place and never return,” Nicademos commanded the beaten Big Horn. Big Horn only nodded and slowly staggered away.

Antwon the ant congratulated his friend. Nicademos thanked the ant for his help.

“Little friend, once I fell into that pool I lost my fear and felt strong and powerful. I wonder what happened to me,” Nicademos said.

“Maybe it’s because of those new spots on your coat,” Antwon said. Nicademos looked at his glowing golden pelt and noticed that his fur was now decorated with a beautiful pattern of black spots.

“Maybe you’re right,” Nicademos said in amazement.

Maybe there was a rare mineral in the black pool that gave Nicademos greater strength and courage to save himself and the helpless Big Horn. Maybe there had always been more strength and bravery in Nicademos, but he needed to overcome his fear and doubt.

Many days after Nicodemos and Antwon had told their story about Big Horn, every animal went to the glowing black pools to get their own spots. All of them failed to get any spots, or greater strength, or more courage. The strange pools soon dried out.

And to this day, only the family of Nicodemos the cheetah have these unique spots so that all may remember his most glorious day.