“Jinkies!” Velma cried in terror as the radio signal cut out. “We lost them!”
“And it sounds like the snowman got them!” Hitch shrieked. “We've got to get to that weather station,” Fred declared, “and fast!”
“Which way to the weather station, Pemba?” Zipp asked. “It is not far,” Pemba answered, pointing in a certain direction. “You will see it just over that ridge. I am going to search for Minga in the monster's cave.”
“Pemba's right. We should split up,” Fred spoke. “Daphne, you and I will head over to the weather station.”
“No thanks, Freddy,” Daphne declined. “I’m going with Pemba.”
“Okay, that’s… huh?!”
Daphne didn’t seem phased by Fred’s stunned expression, however. “You can pair up with Velma this time.”
“Lucky me…” Velma deadpanned, looking over at Fred. “Don’t worry,” Zipp assured. “Izzy and I will go with you two, while Pipp, Hitch and Sparky go with Daphne and Pemba.”
“All right, gang,” said Fred. “Let’s solve this mystery before Shaggy and Scooby and the girls wind up in the deep freeze.”
XXXXXXXX
The snowman had joined Shaggy, Scooby and the three ponies up on the pole, swiping at them every chance he got. “Shoo! Go away!” Misty swatted her hoof at him. “Pick on somepony your own size!”
The monster didn’t seem phased and merely swiped at her, causing her to scream and nearly fall, but Shaggy and Scooby managed to get her just in the nick of time. “Thanks.”
Suddenly, Alphonse Lafleur showed up at the roof of the weather station, since he had followed Del’s snowplow up this direction, wrapping a net around the monster's face with a laugh. “You think you can outsmart, Alphonse LaFleur, eh, beastie?”
“Like, what took you so long?” Shaggy asked with a nervous laugh. “A couple of more seconds and we would've been abominable appetizers!”
“Yeah!” Scooby nodded frantically. “What did I tell you, huh?” Alphonse asked them. “You must think like the creature, no?”
“Whatever your methods, just get us down from here!” Sunny demanded. The monster then swiftly grabbed the net with his hands and spun Lafleur around repeatedly. “Okay, maybe not so much thinking next time!”
He was thrown after a few seconds, but Alphonse managed to stop himself and got his weapon ready to fire. “You come for LaFleur, eh? No, no, no. LaFleur has come for you.”
But when he looked down at the sound of cracking, he saw that his ice pick he had shoved to stop himself was causing the ground beneath him to crumble. “Oh no…”
And just like that, the ground broke off in one piece, causing Alphonse Lafleur to fall into the abyss, right before the ponies’, Shaggy and Scooby’s eyes. “Monsieur Lafleur…” Sunny trailed off. “He’s… gone!”
Misty had seen the whole thing with terror filled eyes, which teared up immediately, and sobbed into Scooby’s side, leading the Great Dane to try and comfort her. But that sadness for the loss was soon replaced by fear as the monster inched closer. “Zoinks,” said Shaggy, “like, lucky him!”
“Shaggy! You don’t wish death onto a person!” Snow Spell scolded harshly. “No matter what the circumstance!”
Before the monster could take a swipe at them, they discovered that their combined weight was causing the pole to bend until it finally bent too far, causing them to fall back onto the weather station roof. When they landed, Scooby accidentally inflated the weather balloon, causing it to rise. “A makeshift hot air balloon!” Sunny cried, shifting to alicorn form. “Genius idea, Scoob!”
“Thank you… uh, I think,” Scooby blinked in confusion. Snow Spell, Misty and Scooby leapt onto the tether of the balloon before Sunny quickly flew upward, but Shaggy was left unable to fend himself before the snowman, causing him to scream. “SHAGGY!!”
Shaggy once again screamed before the monster roared in his face, but luckily, Snow Spell had a plan. She conjured up a snowball for herself and Scooby before they threw the snowballs right at the snowman’s face, and this bought Shaggy enough time to be levitated by Sunny. “Hang on, Scoob! I’m hitchin’ a ride!”
Sunny tossed Shaggy onto the tether before Shaggy cut the rope, allowing the balloon to fly away. Once they were out of sight, Sunny switched back to earth pony form and hung onto the balloon, laughing. “We made it! I can’t believe we did that!”
“Oh, I can’t believe it either!” Snow Spell said. “I never thought in all my time I would use my skills against the snow monster of Mount Everest!”
“We really make a great team. But first thing’s first,” said Shaggy. “Scoob, old buddy, point this balloon toward Coolsville… and let’s go home.”
XXXXXXXX
Meanwhile, Fred, Velma, Izzy and Zipp arrived at a large valley, and on a large hill overlooking the weather station. “There's the weather station, directly across the valley,” Fred said. “And since only one of us is a pegasus, we’ll have to find some other way across.”
“Hold it…” Zipp said, her ears beginning to swivel. “Does anypony else hear that?”
Indeed, there came the sound of an engine running, and it was getting closer. Suddenly, Del's snowplow appeared in front of them, and Del and Aurora popped out of the snowplow in surprise. “Fred?” Del spoke up. “Velma?”
“Del?” Fred blinked. “You know each other?” Zipp asked. “Sure we do,” Del said. “Man, I thought you guys were in Paris!”
Velma rolled her eyes and muttered under her breath. “You've gotta be kidding me.”
“Listen, I know I don't know you like Shaggy and Scooby know you,” Aurora said, “but we have something... well, five someones you should see.”
XXXXXXXXX
On the way to the weather station, Del and Aurora got acquainted with Izzy and Zipp, and Fred and Velma got acquainted with Aurora. But by the time they got to the weather station, it was completely wrecked and destroyed.
So, naturally, they went to go check out all the damage. “I asked them to fill in for me on the radio while I went out to look for the others,” Del said. “But meanwhile, the monster showed up,” Aurora said, “and it was more than Sunny and the unicorns could handle, so they fled with Shag and Scooby right behind.”
“Maybe there was something else the snowman was after besides our friends,” Velma said as she looked at a chart. “According to these inventory records, a few of your helium tanks are missing.”
“Our what?” Aurora looked at the records to discover that Velma was right. “Helium tanks?” Zipp frowned. “Yeah, we use helium to fill up the weather balloons, but, they're missing?” Del asked, and this made Aurora hum in thought. “What would a snow creature want with pressurized helium?”
That's when Del noticed the seismic device on the wall acting up. “This is super weird.”
“That looks like a seismograph. A device used to detect underground vibrations,” Velma explained, and Fred shrugged. “I knew that.”
“And it's picking up some really strange vibes deep inside the mountain,” Del observed. That led Zipp to realize something. “Then maybe the next place to search for clues won't be on the mountain... but in it!”
XXXXXXXX
Meanwhile, Daphne and Pemba led Pipp, Hitch and Sparky into the cavern of the monster, trying to avoid any hazardous ice in the cave. “Hello?” Daphne called. “Anybody in here?”
“Minga!!” Pemba cried. “Are you in here?!”
“If there are any monster's in here, we would appreciate you to speak UPP!!!!” Hitch screamed as he fell face first in the ground, causing Daphne to trip over on him. “Dada?” Sparky seemed to coo in concern. “Are you all right?” Pemba asked them, frowning. “We're fine,” Daphne said, “but I think Hitch and I tripped over a clue.”
And what that clue was? A helium tank set on empty. “What would helium be doing down in a deserted or... non-deserted cavern?” Pipp asked, leading Daphne to hum. “I'm starting to think this abominable snowman may be less snow and more man.”
XXXXXXXX
The three ponies, Scooby and Shaggy had been flying high for a while by that point, and Misty was starting to get a little airsick. “Okay, Scooby-Doo. You got us all the way up here, but now how are you gonna get us down?”
Scooby pondered at that for a moment before getting an idea and fidgeting with the handle a bit on the helium tank, making the pressure in the balloon slowly drop.
Unfortunately, this caused the balloon to fly out of control for a few moments before they got above the clouds, where Shaggy looked down in fear. “Like, don't look now, guys, but I think our stock is about to take a serious plunge.”
But before they could ask what that meant, the ponies felt themselves begin to plummet toward the ground at top speed, allowing them to shriek at the top of their lungs. However, Sunny was unable to activate her alicorn form in the heat of the moment, leaving them on their own.
And despite not being pegasi, Shaggy and Scooby got the idea to flap their arms to slow their fall. When they finally reached the group, they landed in a snowbank at the bottom of the ravine. Shaggy couldn't believe that fall actually went well, chuckling as the others got up. “That wasn't so bad after all.”
“Uh, yeah. Considering we fell from pony knows how high,” Sunny said, shaking out her fur from the snow as Scooby pounded the snow out of his ears. As soon as they all stood, a bright light from not far away caused them to gasp with wide eyes. “Do not be afraid, my young travelers,” said the voice of the High Lama. “Zoinks,” Shaggy quickly stammered. “Like, who's a-a-afraid?”
“Uh... uh... uh... I am!” Scooby whimpered. The light quickly disappeared, revealing the High Lama in its place. But the strange thing was... he seemed younger for some reason. “I am wondering. What are you doing among the gravestones of the spirits?”
“G-G-Gravestones?!” Shaggy and Scooby shrieked before diving into hiding behind the High Lama. “Fear not, honored ones. Your good karma has at last brought you to safety. Welcome to the lost kingdom of Shangri-la.”
From his hand, a butterfly flew around the group before leading them to a glorious, spring-like kingdom, with a glorious castle standing in the distance. Snow Spell gasped in awe. “I can't believe it-- we really found it... come on.”
“Huh?” Misty and Sunny appeared confused, but they followed the High Lama and Snow Spell further, Shaggy and Scooby trailing behind. As they got further in, however, they had to ditch their winter clothing due to how warm it had gotten. “Wow…” Shaggy said, looking around. “The vibes in this place are too groovy for words. And, like, it's done wonders for your complexion.”
“I’ve heard all about the kingdom when I was a little filly from my mother,” Snow Spell said, “but… I never thought it actually existed. This is what Professor Jeffries and Ember were so eager to find.”
“For thousands of years,” explained the High Lama, “ this mystical valley has been the source of eternal youth. Those who discover Shangri-la can never grow old, so long as they stay.”
“It’s so beautiful…” Misty said. “And the longer we stay, the longer we never age? That’s amazing!”
Scooby paused to take a look at their new surroundings, but then felt a yank on his tail, causing him to yelp and jump onto Shaggy for protection. “Like, what is it now, Scooby-Doo?”
“He pulled my tail,” Scooby whimpered. “Pulled tail.”
“Oh… you mean, somepony pulled your tail?” Sunny asked, comforting the large dog. That’s when they noticed a horde of chimps laughing at Scooby’s demise. “Hey,” said Shaggy. “Like, those chimps must think we're a couple of chumps.”
“Oh yeah?” Scooby challenged, and barked at the chimps before scaring them off. “Like, nobody makes a monkey out of you, right Scooby-Doo?” Shaggy asked, but then, Scooby started acting like a monkey to make everyone around smile. “Heh, Shaggy, I think you might’ve spoke too soon,” Misty said, and the High Lama chuckled. “Indeed. This way my friends. You may stay as long as you wish.”
The group began to follow him up the stairs of the palace, and Shaggy turned to look at his best friend with a smile. “You know, Scoob, I could get used to a place like this.”
“Yeah,” Scooby nodded. “Me too.”
They followed the High Lama into the palace, where he finally turned to the group. “You have full access to the palace. I must go make sure that everything is in order. Would any of you care to join me?”
“I would!” Snow Spell volunteered. “I’ll see you all later.”
Snow Spell and the High Lama walked out of sight, where Misty saw a piano over close to them. “You know, guys… if I was still serving Opaline, I might not be doing this with you right now,” she said. “And I… I wanna thank you guys for that.”
“Misty, you don’t have to do that,” Shaggy said. “But I want to,” Misty took a seat at the piano. “And if Pipp’s taught me anything, the best way to do it is with music.”
So, she began to play a soft tune on the piano, demonstrating how spending so much time with her new friends had changed her for the better.
Misty: Can’t believe
The world that you’ve revealed to me
For the first time, I feel truly free
And it’s all thanks to you
Sunny smiled… being friends with Misty, Shaggy and Scooby had helped her frequently as well, and she couldn’t think of any regular words to say thank you with.
So… she decided to sing as well.
Sunny: I feel the same
You’ve pushed me through the doubts, the pain
And as our paths collide again
I know what to do…
Misty stopped playing, and when she and Sunny looked around, they saw Shaggy and Scooby on a staircase heading upward into the palace.
Shaggy: Like, take our hands
All: As we stand
Let’s face the world
There is nothing that can defeat us
They climbed the staircase and up into the upper layers of the palace, beginning to explore this new land around them.
All: Day and night
You and I
Let’s show the world
That nothing can come between us
Misty: Thanks to you, I’ve become
Confident to know I am free
Sunny: When I feel overrun
It’s no longer all on me
Misty and Sunny: Hearts and minds, now combined
I am stronger…
When you’re by my side
Sunny leapt out of the nearby window, turning into her alicorn form and flying to the next level, where Shaggy, Misty and Scooby met her and continued the song.
Shaggy: We can share all our cares
You've laid bare our deepest flaws
Scooby: You've caught us unaware
Shaggy: That our fate is tied with yours
Scooby and Shaggy: Hearts and minds now combined
We are stronger, so stay by our side
Shaggy: Like, take our hands
All: As we stand
Let’s face the world
There is nothing that can defeat us
All: Day and night
You and I
Let’s show the world
That nothing can come between us
Misty: Nothing... will come...
Between us...
The song was finally over, and the four friends happily embraced. “Whatever comes next, I know we can all handle it... together,” Sunny said. “Come on... let's get inside.”