Dark clouds hung over the jagged rock formation that was Half Peak. A powerful snowstorm was fast approaching, and soon the entire land would be wrapped in a blanket of a frozen sea. High upon one of the jagged formations, a pair of dark eyes scoured the land. Soto, leader of the saber pack, snarled in wait for Diego to deliver his promised meal.
It had been almost a week since the pack returned to Half Peak, leaving Diego to locate the baby. After sending Zeke and Oscar on a rendezvous to meet Diego, only to return with news Diego was not only bringing the baby but a mammoth as well, the head saber grew more impatient each passing day.
A moment of scouring the frozen wasteland with anger passed and soon Sota turned away to rejoin the rest of the pack. Zeke, Oscar, and Lenny were in the midst of talking about how much they looked forward to finally having such a large meal. A meal of which would guarantee they would never be hungry again.
“Ooh-hoo-hoo-hoo-hoo!” Zeke twitched madly. “I can’t wait to get my claws on that mammoth!”
“Remember Zeke, it’s not just a mammoth Diego’s bringing us,” Oscar reminded him. “It’s a whole smorgasbord of dining options. Ponies, griffins, dragons, sloths… we’ll be eating like kings.”
“No one touches the mammoth or any of those creatures until I get that baby,” Soto voiced frustration.
As Soto passed the remainder of the pack, Zeke continued his crazy rant.
“First, I’m gonna slice its hindquarters in sections,” Zeke explained ravenously. “I’m gonna put the white meat in one pile and the dark in another.”
“Hey, knock it off!” Lenny snapped. “I’m starving!”
“Next, the shoulders,” Zeke continued. “Occasionally tough, but extremely juicy…”
“I told you to knock it off!”
Lenny raised his pay, but before he could strike the smaller tiger, Soto quickly snatched the large saber’s paw and pinned it to the ground.
“Save your energy!” Soto demanded loudly. “We have no idea how much of a fight these other creatures will provide so we must be ready for anything. As for mammoths, they don’t go down easy.”
Seeing the wild, angry gleam in his leader’s eyes, Lenny’s eyes widened with fear as he backed away. Meanwhile, Soto and the rest of the pack drew close on him in a menacing way.
“There is only one way to do it,” Soto said sinisterly. “First, you have to force it into a corner…”
No sooner did he say this than Lenny backed into a wall. Soon Soto was right upon his face.
“Cut off his retreat, and when you three have it trapped… I’ll go for the throat.”
Lenny released an audible gulp as he held his own throat, while Soto smirked wickedly. Soon enough, not only would he have his vengeance on the humans, but enough food to sate the hunger of his pack for much time. Unbeknownst to the pack, upon a higher rock formation, another starving creature loomed upon them with its milky white eyes. Its razor sharp claws actually dug into the stone beneath it. The beast was waiting patiently, for a moment to ravenously dig into the hearts of all the animals soon to be in its midst. And if things went its way, nothing would stop it… nothing.
<>
As the sun set over the horizon, a massive blizzard swept across the entire land. The heavy winds picked up since the Equestrians and the herd left the cave. Ice and snow fell from above, covering the pelts of the animals. The baby was pressed against Manny’s back, desperately trying to avoid the blistering wind.
“Sweet Celestia!” Twilight Sparkle shouted over the wind. “This blizzard is worse than when we first found the Crystal Empire!”
“And I thought winters in Griffonstone were rough!” Gilda added.
“Guys, we gotta get this kid outta the wind!” Manny called out.
“No kidding!” Rainbow Dash agreed. “If we keep going at this rate, we’ll be permanently part of this Ice Age. Emphasis on the ‘ice’ part.”
Soon enough, they found shelter in a small, secluded spot along the cliffs. The high stone wall provided enough protection from the strong winds and falling snow. Manny lifted Roshan off his back with his trunk, passing him over to Gabby. Roshan nestled as close to her as possible, finding comfort amidst her fur and feathers.
“Don’t worry Roshan,” Gabby assured him. “We’re building camp right now.”
“And Uncle Spike will make sure you’re nice and toasty for tonight,” Spike nodded.
While the remainder of the group started building camp, Manny and Diego stepped off the side and looked towards the distance.
“How much further?” Manny questioned.
“Three miles,” Diego answered automatically. “We’ll get there in the morning.”
The two rejoined the rest of the group as Rarity and Twilight used their magic to summon the tents for the night.
“I can’t wait to get back to Equestria,” Rarity declared. “I enjoy a lovely snow day just fine, but this cold is just too much.”
“Ah hear ya,” Applejack agreed, approaching them. “Ain’t been this cold since that winter after a twister took the roof off our barn. Me and Big Mac had tah breathe on the tools so they wouldn’t freeze.”
Off the side, Sid found a small rock and began using it to draw along the side of the large stone wall.
“What are you doing?” Diego asked, approaching the wall.
“I’m putting sloths on the map,” Sid replied happily.
All heads turned toward the drawing. One-by-one, every member examined the crudely drawn sloth upon the wall.
“Why don’t you make it more realistic and draw him lying down?” Manny joked.
“And make him rounder,” Diego offered.
Rainbow Dash chuckled, as she grabbed the rock and drew an exaggerated circle around the sloth’s belly.
“Perfect!” Rainbow Dash smirked.
“Not bad, Dash,” Gilda chuckled. “Looks exactly like him.”
“Ha-ha,” Sid laughed sarcastically. “I forgot how to laugh.”
Sid grabbed another rock and began scribbling out the picture furiously. Just as he lifted the rock, sparks flew and struck a small pile of twigs on the ground. The twigs slowly crackled, as flames danced on them. This amazed the Equestrians, but none more so than the sloth, who gazed at the rock in his hand. Or in which case, a piece of flint stone.
“I’m a genius!” Sid cried, kissing the rock.
“Well done, Sid!” Fluttershy complimented him.
“Not bad buddy!” Spike nodded. “But I could’ve just made that fire myself with one breath.”
Fluttershy quickly flew toward the dragon and whispered into his ear.
“Let him have this one,” Fluttershy suggested quietly.
To which Spike released a chuckle and gave the butter-yellow Pegasus a nod.
“We should probably gather some more sticks,” Twilight pointed out. “We need to keep this fire going.”
Soon the rest of the gang spread out in search of sticks. After a while, they managed to gather enough to last for the night. While the blizzard raged on, and the sky darkened at nightfall, the fire crackled and sparked as everyone and every pony settled down beside the fire.
“From now on, you’ll have to refer to me as Sid, Lord of the Flame!” Sid called dramatically.
“Hey, Lord of the Flame, your tail’s on fire,” Manny smiled.
Sid gasped and turned as his tail was indeed on fire. He proceeded to run around in circles, shouting ‘Hot! Hot! Hot!”. Everyone laughed at the mere sight of the poor sloth until Diego reached out and pulled the sloth into the snow beside him, putting out the fire.
“Ahh, thank you,” Sid sighed gratefully. “From now on, I’m gonna call you Diego.”
“Lord of ‘Touch Me and You’re Dead’,” Diego replied.
Sid gasped in fear, worried that this tiger was serious. After a moment’s pause, Diego chuckled.
“I’m just kiddin’, you little knucklehead.”
Diego pulled Sid into a headlock and proceeded to rub it playfully.
“Hey everyone, look at this!” Manny told everyone.
All eyes turned towards Manny, and they all gasped in surprise. Before them, Roshan stood upright and took a few wobbly steps forward.
“Oh, my gosh!” Fluttershy gasped. “His first steps!”
Beside her, Pinkie Pie’s eyes started to well up with giant tears. She pulled a tissue from her mane and blew her nose comically.
“Reminds me of when Lil’ Cheesy did this for the first time,” Pinkie cried.
“I don’t believe it,” Sid said, amazed.
The group watched in silence while Diego and Manny shared a meaningful look. Roshan started to fall forward, but Manny caught him with his trunk. Soon the kid kept walking toward Sid and Pinkie Pie.
“Come here you little biped,” Sid encouraged. “Come here, you little wormy worm.”
“Come on, walk to Auntie Pinkie Pie!” Pinkie smiled.
To their surprise, Roshan turned around and walked toward Diego instead.
“No, no, no, no,” Sid chuckled. “This way, this way.”
“Wrong way, little Roshan,” Pinkie added. “Wrong way.”
But for some reason, Roshan kept walking toward Diego.
“No, go to them,” Diego spoke worriedly. “Go to them.”
Roshan reached for Diego and caught himself by hugging the big cat’s leg. Diego just looked toward the little baby holding onto his leg. An awkward expression formed on his face.
“Um… okay,” He chuckled nervously. “Good job. Uh, keep practicing.”
The sabretooth tiger turned around and Roshan kept walking till he reached the next creature. To everyone’s surprise, Gilda was watching apprehensively as the baby was walking toward her.
“Uh, what’s he doing?” Gilda asked confused.
Roshan steadied himself against Gilda’s leg and looked up toward her. Gilda looked around and noticed everyone eyeing her with huge smiles on their faces. Having spent so long as the take-no-nonsense tough girl, suddenly having a baby holding onto her and all eyes looking at her this way just made her feel… weird.
“Uh… alright,” Gilda cleared her throat.
Roshan babbled happily again and hugged her leg. The griffin was uncertain about this at first. But then, a smile spread across her face as she wrapped a wing around the boy.
“Great work, kiddo,” Gilda finally said.
Gently, she turned the baby around and ruffled her hair.
“Keep at it, squirt,” Gilda nudged the boy along.
As the baby wobbled his way back towards Manny, Gilda turned over toward Rainbow Dash. The cyan Pegasus stared at her with the slyest smirk one could possibly give.
“Knew you were a softy,” Rainbow spoke cockily.
“Shut up,” Gilda rolled her eyes.
“Look at that,” Sid said proudly. “Our little guy’s growing up.”
“Yeah… they grow up so fast,” Pinkie sobbed, blowing her nose.
The baby sneezed, breaking his concentration, and fell. He gave a cute little yawn and rubbed his tiny eyes.
“All right, come on,” Manny said. “Sleep time, lumpy.”
The mammoth grabbed the baby gently and curled his trunk around him.
“Look at that big pushover,” Sid smiled at Manny. “You know, Diego, I’ve never had a friend who would risk his life for me.”
“Yeah, Manny’s… he’s a good guy,” Diego agreed.
“I’ll admit I thought he was a jerk when we first met,” Spike agreed. “But in the end, he’s not so bad.”
“I knew he was a big softy all along,” Gabby smiled happily. “He tries to bury it down deeply, but I could tell it was there. He really is a good friend.”
“Yeah, he is,” Sid nodded.
Blinking a couple times, the sloth soon realized this was the first time he had spoken to Diego without feeling scared of him. At the same time, this wasn’t just Diego trying to intimidate him as usual. But instead, this was the sincerest answer as though he was addressing Sid… as a friend. Sid then turned toward the girls and Spike.
“The same goes for all of you,” Sid spoke to the Equestrians. “I know I can be a pain. Anyone else would’ve just ignored me… or left me. But you… you welcomed me with open arms, and you’ve stuck by my side to help me, even for no reason at all. I guess you can say we’re lucky to have you here, aren’t we Diego?”
Instead of answering, however, Diego turned away. The group eyed Diego wondering what could possibly be bothering the guy.
“Well… we did have a pretty long day and he must be very tired,” Rarity determined.
“We’ll talk more about it tomorrow,” Twilight agreed. “For now, we should get some sleep. The sooner we do, the sooner we wake in the morning and get Roshan back to his family.
“Yeah…” Sid yawned. “Well, good night fellas.”
“Good night,” The girls and Spike spoke in unison.
Sid yawned, and fell back onto the snow, completely passed out. The Equestrians, yawning tiredly, got up and entered their respective tents one by one. This left Diego the only one still awake, lying on the ground and yet couldn’t sleep. The tiger was deep in thought and the more he pondered, the more the seeds of doubt grew fast telling him that perhaps this scheme wasn’t such a good idea. It wasn’t even just that they saved his life either, but the words they said to him after…
‘That’s what you do in a herd. We look out for each other…’
‘And friends always have each other’s back…’
‘We are the weirdest herd I have ever seen…’
In all that time Diego spent with this most unusual group, the tiger couldn’t deny he’d grown fond of their company. Sure, they hadn’t gotten off on the right foot (Or leg, since they are animals), and at first, they didn’t really matter to him. But little by little, everyone stopped looking at him with fear and treated him like a companion… no, more than that. They saw him as a friend whom they were willing to put their lives in danger for, just as he had come to see them all as friends. That was something none of his fellow sabertooth tigers had ever done, none from his pack proved more faithful than these creatures.
And how could Diego know that these creatures were so different? It was because he experienced it for himself…
<>
Many years ago…
A group of sabretooth pups jumped between the cliffs towering above a river. Oscar, Lenny, and Zeke had made it to shore, leaving only Diego left to cross. The tiger was preparing himself to jump yet couldn’t deny that the rushing rapids looked mighty intimidating.
“Come on, any day now!” Lenny called out.
“Yeah, hurry up and jump!” Zeke yelled.
“And you consider yourself a tiger?” Oscar provoked him.
That was the last straw. As much as Diego feared falling, if he chickened out now, they would never stop mocking him. He couldn’t allow himself to look weak. He took a few steps back, broke off with a running start, and reached the other side.
“You were saying?” Diego asked proudly.
Suddenly, no sooner did he speak than the ground beneath his feet gave away. Thanks to his reflexes, Diego was able to grab the edge, but couldn’t climb up. Being a mere inch from the water, his claws wouldn’t hold him long.
“HELP! HELP ME, PLEASE!” Diego shouted, frightened.
The trio looked at each other… and suddenly turned around, running away.
“Sorry Diego, I don’t want to fall too!” Lenny shouted.
“If you survive, tell us!” Zeke shouted.
Diego couldn’t believe his ears. These tigers were supposed to be a pack, his closest companions. But they’d rather leave him behind to die alone. He felt pain equivalent to a stone in the head… more like a knife to the heart. Unfortunately, that discomfort he felt made him lose his strength and he let go. Diego closed his eyes, assuming the worst… but he wasn’t falling.
The moment Diego opened his eyes, he saw Soto, the leader of the pack, grab him with his mouth and soon he pulled him safely to the ground. Diego couldn’t be any happier.
“Thank you, Soto!” Diego sighed heavily. “For a moment I thought…”
*WHAM!!!*
Diego didn’t finish his sentence, as Soto struck him on the head. Not a very strong blow, but it still hurt. Diego didn’t speak, knowing that would only make things worse. He merely fell down and bowed to his leader.
“Diego, this pack is strong because ‘we’ are strong,” Soto spoke firmly. “One life of a tiger does not matter; the pack is all that matters. If even ‘one’ member is weak, the entire pack weakens. You understand that I cannot allow that, right?”
“No sir,” Diego responded, trying to sound firm.
“I tell you this because you have potential, Diego. But it won’t help you if you always depend on others. I helped you this time, but no more. Do you understand?”
“Yes sir…”
<>
Back to reality…
Diego looked toward Half Peak for a few seconds as all these thoughts raced around his head before he fell asleep. He couldn’t think any more; he had come too far to back down. Tomorrow, Soto would have his revenge, the pack would feast, and he’d finally have the respect he worked so hard for. After all, everything that Manny, Twilight, Gilda, and the others knew about him was not true. If they knew what he was truly like, they wouldn’t even want to be friends with him…
Or would they?
<>
While all eyes were asleep, Gilda too was preparing to rest when a commotion drew her attention. Curious yet suspicious, Gilda leaned her head from her tent to investigate. To her surprise, Spike had emerged from his tent and soon the teen dragon was silently passing the other sleeping animals to a secluded spot from the camp. Emerging from her tent, following Spike without making a sound, she tracked him towards a large rock where he could sit and look out towards the breeze. Without drawing his attention, she took a seat beside the dragon and looked out.
“You know the wind only gets colder when you stray from the camp, right?” Gilda asked Spike, rhetorically.
“I couldn’t sleep,” Spike answered quietly.
“All winds fade away… eventually.”
“It’s not the cold that’s bothering me. I was just… thinking…”
Initially it would seem that neither the griffin nor the dragon were making any progress with this conversation. But Gilda sensed something was bothering the dragon and she refused to believe for a moment this was the soul reason for Spike being out by himself.
“Listen kid… I’ve said a lot of things during this trip, and I won’t deny you’ve been the butt of my bad jokes,” Gilda sighed. “I owe ‘a lot’ of creatures many apologies for the way I’ve been acting, especially to your pony friends. But if I said anything that really offended you in some way, all I can say is… sorry.”
“… Why did you bring up Greta?” Spike asked.
“What?”
“When we were fighting a few days ago, you were claiming that for a griffin who thinks she’s cool you could barely talk to this Greta. Does she… mean anything to you?”
“That really depends on how you word it out.”
Gilda took a pause and released a deep breath, which got caught up in the snowy breeze and flew away. Spike faced Gilda, who didn’t return a gaze but stared ahead as if contemplating her own thoughts.
“Before Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie came to Griffonstone, we didn’t really believe in having ‘friends’,” Gilda explained. “I hated living there, and initially I wanted to bake and sell goods so I could make enough to leave town and find a place for myself. It was mostly Grandpa Gruff’s recipes; they weren’t really good, but nobody actually cared. At the time, I didn’t think I was leaving ‘any’ creature behind except…
“There was this one Griffin… Greta. Rainbow Dash would talk about how I’m the coolest griffin around, but if I were to be honest… I thought she was cool. We hadn’t really ‘talked’, she was just some griffon I knew. Then, after Pinkie Pie helped perfect the recipe for Griffon Scones, I was able to convince Greta to try it… even offering them as ‘free’ samples, which is unheard of in our town. She was weirded out at first, but after trying it she said, ‘It tasted good’. The nicest compliment ‘any’ griffin gave me.”
“Well… at least she did speak to you,” Spike spoke hopefully. “Surely that wasn’t the last time.”
“That’s the problem, kid,” Gilda sighed. “I ‘wanted’ to speak to Greta more, but any time I tried I get so awkward that I just take off in a huff before I embarrassed myself. I could only really get close to her when offering her baked goods and even then, our conversations are small. I’m supposed to be this tough girl who’s not afraid of anything, but with Greta… I think to myself, ‘What if even she is too cool to even notice you, Gil?’. And then I see you and Gabby getting along like its nothing, and I think to myself… why can’t that be me? What am I doing wrong…”
Spike eyed Gilda for a moment, seeing this rare vulnerable side out of a Griffin who mainly tried to hide her inner conflicts. Something about the way Gilda voiced her problems reminded Spike of his reasons for being out here. He figured this would be his chance to share his own concerns.
“Can I tell you a secret?” Spike asked curiously.
“Not if you’re asking me to keep it,” Gilda replied gruffly.
“Okay, here it goes…” Spike began, taking a deep breath. “… I’ve been plagued by nightmares about Malakai, and I’ve been dealing with some troubling thoughts for months. There I said it!”
Gilda faced Spike, and while skeptical it was enough to draw her attention. Granted, she hardly really knew about this ‘Malakai’ Spike was talking about except it may have had something to do with a previous trip. But the way Spike brought it up, she can feel that it somewhat hurt the dragon to bring it up.
“You’ve been seeing someone about that, haven’t you?” Gilda questioned.
“Princess Luna comes to visit me in my dreams several times,” Spike admitted. “But no matter how hard she tries this darkness won’t leave and we still don’t know why. The worst part is that I can feel it growing worse each and every day. You’ve seen it yourself when we were arguing. It’s been haunting me, and I’m at my wit’s end”
“Does Twilight know this is going on…?”
“No! No, she can’t know anything about this. She’s already been going through enough as it is. What with Sunset Shimmer leaving, the deal with Celestia and Chrysalis… she finds out what’s going on with me, that pressure will only get worse. That’s why I’m really hoping for a way to sort this out before I can truly feel ready to take the next step with Gabby… and she deserves more than what I’m dealing with.”
Gilda could tell there was some form of truth in Spike’s words. She may not have agreed entirely with his choices, but she understood where he was coming from.
“Take it from me kid, you can’t keep hiding your issues forever,” Gilda advised. “You shouldn’t be taking advice from me, nor should I be telling you what to do. But at least consider this: If you ‘do’ have a problem, it’ll be up to you to figure out how to deal with it. But those friends of yours, as annoying as they may be, will stand by your side and will do everything to help you. Argue all you want how it’s your problem, but sooner or later you’ll need to swallow your pride and ask for their help. You’d be surprised what they can do.”
“… Whoa…” Spike answered, surprised. “That’s actually some very good advice. Kind of makes me wish I hadn’t said all those things, about you not learning anything…”
But a firm claw on Spike’s shoulder stopped his words. He looked down at the claw, slightly confused, then turned back toward Gilda’s face… which grew stern just as quickly.
“Just understand this, dude,” Gilda warned. “Gabby and I may not be family, but her happiness does ‘mean’ something to me… as irritating as it is. But so help me, if you ‘say’ or do ‘anything’ that hurts Gabby in any way, curse or no curse, the only creature that’s going to be haunting you the rest of your life… will be me. Is that clear?”
“… Crystal…” Spike gulped nervously.
“Good talk,” Gilda nodded, tapping Spike’s shoulder.
Just like that Gilda proceeded to march her way back to the tent, leaving Spike standing along the cold floor stunned and wide-eyed. He took a deep breath then casually laid on his back along the stone, his eyes looking toward the stars pondering over Gilda’s advice.
Bringing a claw up to the right side of his face, he wiped his eye and a large smudge of purple make-up came off. As it turns out, the nightmares weren’t the only thing he’d been plagued with as his scales and skin had started turning black not too long after he started seeing Malakai. It had now consumed his entire right eye and seemed to be spreading more and more with each passing day. He hated having to keep this whole mess a secret and he truly hoped he’d be able to tell someone at some point. For now though, he couldn’t stand to burden anyone else with this curse. He quickly rubbed the make-up back onto his scales and it completely covered the darkness once more as Spike looked up into the heavens.
For a moment, he seemed to be at peace with himself and his eyes started to close, ready to embrace some sleep. But then a noise woke him suddenly, and he turned slowly.
Before his eyes, Scrat the Squirrel quickly sneaked his way into the camp. He tried to be as quiet as possible as he slunk his way toward the roaring fire. He proceeded to pull out his acorn, which was now frozen in a block of ice. He attached it to the end of a stick and hung it over the fire to thaw. Slowly, the ice around the acorn melted away till finally it was gone making Scrat smile. Unfortunately, it was short-lived as the acorn popped like the kernel of popcorn and Scrat released a defeated sigh. The teen dragon loomed over the squirrel, seeing the state of his food, and tapped his head.
“Better luck next time, little buddy,” Spike spoke, before retiring to bed.
<>
The very next morning, the blizzard blew strong but not to the point for no one to be in it. The Equestrians and the herd had left the overlook early that morning and had since made it to the outskirts of Half Peak. All they had to do was cross the rock way and they’d be at Glacier Pass in no time.
“Alright every pony, be careful walking through here,” Twilight Sparkle warned. “These rock formations don’t look safe.”
“Tell me about it,” Pinkie nodded in agreement. “Growing up on a rock farm, I know what rock formations are safe or not. Then again, Maud knows more than I do… even Limestone knows a thing or two… maybe Marble… wow… how much do I know about rocks?”
“Either way, the last thing we want on this last leg of our journey is damage by rocks,” Twilight replied.
“Let’s get you all cleaned up. What’s your daddy gonna say if you go back all stinky?” Sid asked Roshan, licking his claws. “Let me just clean that up. That looks good. A little bit here…”
“EWWW, Sid!” Rarity cringed. “That won’t clean him; allow me.”
Using her magic, Rarity conjured up a few wipes and proceeded to run them over the baby’s face till it was spotless. Once she was certain he was entirely clean, she gave an approving smile and zapped the cleaning supplies away.
“There we are!” Rarity voiced approval. “Clean as a whistle.”
“You clean up nice, little fella,” Manny pulled Sid’s paw away, gently.
“I think he’s starting to look like me,” Sid smiled, examining the baby’s face.
“No offense or anything, but I sure hope not,” Gilda shook her head.
“Diego, what do you think?” Sid asked the sabretooth.
But the cat didn’t answer Sid’s question directly. Diego took one look around through the blizzard, observing all the familiar jagged rocks in their path. He took a pause in his steps as if a thought came to him.
“Maybe we shouldn’t do this,” Diego contemplated.
The entire group looked at Diego with confusion.
“Why not?” Spike asked. “We’re on the home stretch. Why stop now?”
“If we save him, he’ll grow up to be a hunter,” Diego replied. “And who do you think he’ll hunt?”
“Diego, how can you even insinuate something like that?” Fluttershy asked. “Roshan is a gentle little soul; he couldn’t hurt a fly.”
“Yeah, and it’s that sort of thinking that gets you killed,” Diego retorted.
“Maybe because we save him, he won’t hunt us,” Sid smiled optimistically.
“Yeah, and maybe he’ll grow fur and a long skinny neck and call you Mama!” Diego snapped.
“What’s the problem with you?” Manny questioned.
“Nothing…” Diego sighed. “Let’s go. I’m freezing my tail off.”
And so, the group continued walking, even though many of the Equestrians still had questions. They didn’t realize it, but the saber began to feel as though eyes were watching him. But it wasn’t from either of the ‘herd’ or the ponies and their friends. Diego turned toward one of the higher cliffs, spotting a pack member drawing away from the edge. But that was more than enough time for Diego to acknowledge that the pack was expecting his arrival.
“Diego, you frozen back there?” Manny called from ahead.
Diego watched as the group were making their way through the rock way. He knew they were walking into a trap, and they didn’t even know it. Shaking his head, struggling with his conflicts, he darted forward.
“Get down!” Diego hissed desperately.
The group stopped just as they made their way under one of the peaks.
“What?” They all questioned in surprise.
“Get down and follow me!” Diego whispered.
“What’s goin’ on?” Sid asked, clutching the baby tighter.
Taking a deep breath, Diego let out a sigh.
“At the bottom of Half Peak…” Diego confessed slowly. “There’s an ambush, waiting for you.”
“What?!” Sid gasped in surprise.
“What do you mean ‘ambush’?” Manny questioned.
“And how would you know about it?” Gilda added. “The only way you would know is if… you…”
It was then that realization started to set in for everyone in the group. They all looked toward Diego, half of them were visibly angry while the others were gravely hurt.
“I don’t believe it…” Rainbow shook her head.
“You overgrown flea bag,” Gilda snarled. “You scammed us!”
“You set us up!” Manny realized.
“It was my job!” Diego tried to explain. “I was supposed to get the baby, but…”
“You brought us home for dinner!” Manny stated angrily.
“I knew we couldn’t trust him!” Spike frowned. “From the very beginning, he led us to this spot so his pack could eat us all!”
“That’s it!” Sid pointed at the saber. “You’re out of the herd.”
“How could ya lie to us like that?!” Applejack yelled. “We trusted you!”
“I oughtta skin you alive!” Gilda threatened.
“I’m not a fan of violence…” Spike cracked his knuckles. “But allow me to roast him right here and now!!!”
“I’m sorry,” Diego apologized.
But the Mammoth slammed the saber against the wall, holding him at bay with his tusks.
“No, you’re not,” Manny threatened. “… Not yet.”
“Listen, I can help you!” Diego offered desperately.
“Stay close, guys,” Manny hissed. “We can fight our way out.”
“You can’t! The pack’s too strong. You have to trust me—”
“Trust you?!” Manny snarled. “Why in the world would we trust you?”
“… Because I’m your only chance,” Diego whispered.
The group were still angry with the saber, their doubt for the cat still strong after learning the truth. Under most circumstances, they would’ve just taken their chances and at least proved to the pack they were more than prepared for a fight. But if there was even a hint of truth in Diego’s words, that the only chance of getting by was to take his advice, they needed to hear him out whether they wanted to or not. But as far as his fate was concerned… this was his ‘last’ chance.
<>
At the bottom of Half Peak, Soto and his pack were still waiting for Diego. Altogether, they prepared for their ambush the moment Manny, Sid, the Equestrians, and the baby arrived. The snow blew fiercely, while the pack’s hunger grew further. It was then that Diego walked in slowly, from behind the pack.
“Hello, ladies,” Diego mumbled.
All eyes turned toward Diego, who had returned to their allegiance.
“Hey, look who decided to show up,” Oscar spoke mockingly.
Diego chose to ignore Oscar, his attention set on Soto. The pack leader eyed Diego with a sinister smile, as he slowly approached his second-in-command.
“Diego, I was beginning to worry about you.”
“No need to worry,” Diego assured deeply. “In about two minutes, you’ll be satisfying your taste for revenge.”
“Very nice,” Soto complemented.
“Guys, look!” Zeke shouted.
The sabers stared at Zeke, who eagerly shook his body. Right in front of them was Gilda, Gabby, Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash, and Sid. The sloth held the baby, who was bundled in its cover to keep warm.
“Whoa!” Lenny gasped in shock. “There really are griffins and ponies!”
“Where’s the rest of them?” Oscar frowned, suspicious.
“Does it matter?!” Zeke grinned excitedly. “I see the sloth with them, and he’s got the baby!”
“Don’t give away your positions until you see the mammoth,” Soto instructed. “He’s the one we have to surprise.”
Oscar and Lenny remained silent, waiting for Soto’s command. Zeke, on the other hand, grew impatient. The small grey tiger whimpered badly, wanting to get his claws on them. But Soto told him to stay hidden till the right time. This made Zeke worry as he stared toward the group coming their way, as Soto’s instructions echoed repeatedly in his head. Diego noticed this and decided to step toward him. He knew the best way to sabotage their plan was to convince Zeke to go forward with the attack.
“You want to maul something, don’t you Zeke?” Diego mumbled quietly.
“I wanna maul…” Zeke whined, nibbling his paw.
“Then what are you waiting for?” Diego motioned.
Hearing his comment, Zeke finally lost his patience with a roar and raced after them. Oscar and Lenny, unable to hold it in either, followed Zeke in suit. Soto was not very pleased seeing his pack giving away their positions.
“No, I said wait for the mammoth!” Soto shouted.
Diego just shrugged his paw without a word. When Soto saw the remainder of his pack getting closer, he groaned in defeat and decided to catch up with the pack to exact his revenge as swiftly and painfully as possible. Diego smirked seeing the plan in motion and quietly returned to rendezvous with the others.
In the meantime, Sid, Rainbow, Gilda, Pinkie, and Gabby had their hooves and claws buried within the snow. When Gilda looked up, a gasp escaped her beak.
“Here they come!” Gilda announced.
The others gasped with fright as the sabretooth pack raced toward them. They waddled their way across the snow as fast as their legs could push. What these felines hadn’t realized, however, was that this particular group of Equestrians were just waiting for them to make their move.
“Okay, on three…” Rainbow Dash instructed. “One… Two…”
“THREE!!!” They screamed in unison.
Soon, all five leapt from the snow revealing big, long boards carved out of logs attached to their legs the entire time. The group sped away, with Rainbow Dash and Gilda taking the lead on snowboards. The others each had two boards for their legs, much like skis.
“WHOO-HOO!!!” Sid & Gilda cheered.
“WHEE!!!” Pinkie Pie & Gabby squealed excitedly.
“Gotta juice, boys!” Rainbow mocked the tigers smugly.
The scenario they witnessed had the tigers paused for a second. Oscar, Zeke, and Lenny were shocked to see them descending the snow so quickly. Which only encouraged them to run faster than usual. At some point, Sid, Gabby, and Pinkie almost lost their balance as they nearly fell off their skis.
“Whoa, whoa, whoa!” They cried out.
“Sid, Pinkie, you can do this!” Rainbow called out. “It’s just like ice skating, remember?!”
“Just like ice skating… just like ice skating!” Pinkie echoed.
Pinkie Pie suddenly remembered Winter Wrap Up Day when she’d skate along the ice to cut the frozen water into squares to open up the lake for spring. Deploying similar tactics, Pinkie maintained control of her body and soon got the hang of skiing.
“WHEE-HEE-HEE!” Pinkie cheered. “You’re right, Rainbow! This is like ice skating!”
Sid too remembered the time he was ice skating along the ice with his friends. Soon, it was his turn to seize control of himself.
“WHOO!” Sid cheered. “This is fun!”
“There you go!” Rainbow smiled approvingly.
Gilda steered close to Gabby who was swerving to her left, then to the right.
“Relax, Gabby!” Gilda encouraged her friend. “You’re doing fine! Long… slow… smooth. Nice and steady.”
Gabby calmed herself as she began to slide smoothly along the snow just like Gilda.
“It’s almost like we’re flying!” Gabby reminded.
“That’s it, Gabby!” Gilda cheered. “You’ve got this!”
The group proceeded to slide toward a tiny edge of the cliff. They leapt off and slid safely along a curved rock.
“WHEE!” They cheered.
“Backscratcher!” Sid laughed. “Ha-ha! Eat my powder!”
“Try to keep up, boys!” Gabby mocked.
But of course, the tigers weren’t far behind. Oscar and Zeke leapt halfway down the cliff as Lenny traversed down the slope. The group turned back with wide eyes seeing they were heading for danger. For up in the distance, the group were heading straight for some big, sharp rocks.
“Watch out, guys!” Rainbow warned.
Rainbow Dash and Gilda easily avoided the rocks without fuss. Sid, Pinkie Pie, and Gabby, however, couldn’t dodge them as well as their friends. Their skis prevented them from making sharp turns. With a majority of the rocks so close together, this proved difficult for the trio to dodge. Eventually, they each headed straight for one rock they were unable to steer away from.
“LOOK OUT!” Gabby screamed.
The three bumped into one of the rocks and found themselves spinning about. The impact made them lose a board, which became a problem for those gliding along the snow. Rainbow Dash and Gilda were quick to notice.
“You guys alright?” Rainbow called out, worriedly.
“We’re okay, Dash!” Sid replied.
“Need a hand? Or claw?” Gilda cried.
“No worries!” Pinkie assured, positioning her legs on the board. “Everything’s under control.”
Just as Pinkie Pie placed her right hind leg and foreleg along her board, Gabby was doing just the same. Sid, meanwhile, swung his right foot back along his board. Soon, rather than skiing, the trio were snowboarding, their gliding improving along the snow. For Rainbow Dash and Gilda to see their friends not giving up so easily, to say they were impressed was an understatement.
“No way!” Rainbow gasped in awe.
“All right!” Gilda cheered, with a thumbs up. “Way to go you three!”
“Right back at ya, girl!” Gabby spoke, with the shaka sign.
Sid and Pinkie Pie chuckled as the trio eventually caught up with the two fliers. Most of the rocks ahead were bent and curved almost like ramps. They had determined to glide along them, all while performing a few epic tricks just for fun. Each went up one and came down as though they were skateboarding on stone and snow. Gabby kept gliding along the rocks while performing backflips and spinning in the air.
“If Spike could see me now!” Gabby giggled.
In the meantime, Sid and Pinkie slid up a big rock together, cheering, ‘WHEE! WHOA!’ along the way. Soon they slid down and went up a rock that made them loop over one another.
“Loop-de-loop!” They shouted, before ascending another rock.
“I love loop-de-loops!” Rainbow eagerly noticed.
“There’s your chance!” Gilda spotted.
Together, Rainbow Dash and Gilda performed one with a slide on another rock, looping over, and landing on the other. ‘Up, over, and gone!’ They hollered before landing, laughing over how much fun this was.
“That was awesome!” Rainbow Dash cheered.
“Just like Junior Speedsters, huh Dash?” Gilda smiled.
“You bet, Gilda!” Rainbow nodded.
As the two fliers high-fived each other, the five regrouped and dodged the rocks together.
“Slalom! Slalom, baby!” Sid cheered, while holding Roshan.
Sid and the others giggled as they climbed up a small rock, which they leapt over before landing smoothly along the snow.
“WHOO-HOO!” They cheered.
The group turned back, noting they were now far away from the sabers, who were incredibly tired from all this running. Sid and the others retained the lead as they now made to return to their friends. They were having so much fun showing off they unfortunately weren’t paying attention to where they were going. Then suddenly, they slid off the edge of a crag and flipped off their boards.
“AHH!!!” They screamed their lungs out.
As they slid down the crag slope, Sid lost his grip on the baby who was now lying upon the ground.
“NO!” The girls cried.
They slid up another steep crag and landed atop each other with a thud. Though unharmed, they groaned from the stiff fall. All five watched as Oscar, Zeke, and Lenny surrounded little Roshan. Zeke eagerly leaned forward for a closer look, when the three backed away for Soto to pass through. The lead saber smiled in triumph, ready to put an end to the poor baby’s life.
Slowly, he turned the baby wrap around for one final look at its face. But in that moment, the tiger soon discovered it was ‘not’ little Roshan, but instead a little snowman in the baby wrap. Soon the tigers realized they had been pranked with a decoy.
“GOTCHA!!!” The girls mocked, laughing in unison.
“Sorry, fellas!” Sid teased. “He got a little frostbite!”
Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash, Gabby, and Gilda made funny faces at the tigers’ expense, as Gilda waved her tail at them.
“You want us? Come and get us you overgrown furballs!” Gilda mocked.
Soto growled and swatted the decoy away in frustration.
“Get ‘em!” Soto demanded.
The pranksters ran away, laughing hysterically as they proceeded to lead Soto’s pack into a trap. Just as the tigers turned a corner after their prey, what Oscar, Lenny, and Zeke saw drew them to a halt.
“Huh?!” They said in unison.
Before their very eyes, Manny, Spike, Twilight Sparkle, Fluttershy, and Applejack stood in their way. Manny, Spike, and Twilight each held a log and shouted, ‘Surprise!’ The three hurled the logs, knocking the sabers off the ledge, and they landed upon the ground with a thud.
“And stay there!” Applejack shouted.
“Okay, follow me!” Diego told everyone. “We’ll pick up the others and get outta here while we can.”
“Let’s get moving!” Twilight nodded in agreement.
Just before they could leave, however, Soto appeared. The lead saber was pleased to see Diego had Manny and the others cornered.
“C’mon, Diego, let’s bring these creatures down,” Soto declared.
“Ah crud!” Spike groaned.
<>
In the meantime, Sid and Pinkie Pie trudged their way across the snow in search of Roshan. What neither the sloth nor the party pony knew was they were secretly followed by one of the tigers. Zeke, having just recovered, had his sight set on the pair and was more than eager for a quick bite. The tiny saber followed them toward a small hole along the cliffside just as little Roshan poked his head out with a giggle.
“There he is!” Sid smiled at the baby.
“Hey little Roshan!” Pinkie giggled. “Boy, did we show those dumb sabers not to mess with us!”
Roshan saw the diminutive sabretooth prowl behind his two friends, eagerly ready to pounce. The baby started making a scary face while growling cutely. Sid and Pinkie, of course, interpreted this as him playing around.
“That’s right, where’s the baby?” Sid chuckled.
“There he…” Pinkie began.
Just then, the sound of growling interrupted the pair and drew their attention. They turned just as Zeke made a mad lunge for them. Releasing a scream, Sid and Pinkie quickly pulled Roshan out of the hole, managing to duck beneath Zeke. The little sabretooth flew right over the sloth, the pony, and the baby and got himself stuck inside the hole. Seeing the tiger’s predicament, Pinkie whispered an idea in Sid’s ear and the sloth jumped atop the tiger, sticking him further down the hole.
“Survival… of the… fittest!” Sid said, mid-jump.
“I don’t think so!” Pinkie smiled, high-fiving Roshan. “Yeah!”
Now with one of the tiger’s ‘disposed’ as it appeared, the three made to regroup with their friends to deal with the other tigers. But even our heroes weren’t even prepared for what was still to come…
<>
The remaining sabers stalked forward, with Manny pressed against the wall. Everyone stood around Manny, assuming the defensive stance, prepared for the fight of their lives. All of a sudden, Diego turned toward Soto and stared daggers toward him.
“What are you doing?!” Soto snapped.
“Leave… them… alone,” Diego snarled.
Just as it was only Soto left to deal with, Lenny and Oscar appeared behind their leader. To which, Soto smirked as if he ‘knew’ deep down that this moment would come.
“Fine. I’ll take you down first.”
Diego and Soto circled each other, growling threatening. Just as they were about to pounce, a deafening shriek made everyone freeze and all eyes looked towards the source. From high above, the Wendigo clutched along the side of a jagged rock and stared toward the entire group with bloodlust within its milky eyes. In the blink of an eye, it leapt from one rock to another at such an accelerated rate that it seemed impossible to catch. With one last might leap, it landed upon the snow in the midst of everyone.
From the sidelines, the Equestrians stared at this monstrosity with wide eyes. Never before had they seen such a creature.
“W-W-What is t-that?” Fluttershy shuddered fearfully.
“Nothing good!” Applejack replied.
The monster scanned its surroundings and all the creatures within the surrounding area. No longer could its insatiable hunger be contained; it was time for the beast to have its fill. Whether it be mammoth, pony, griffin, or even sabretooth, the Wendigo was prepped to eat.
Finally, it set its sights along the ponies, griffins, dragon, and mammoth. The Wendigo slowly stalked its way toward them. But before it could get very far, something flew through the air very fast and imbedded itself into the beast’s shoulder. The Wendigo shrieked in pain as its shoulder suddenly caught fire and it looked over its arm seeing a flaming arrow. The beast twisted its head, spotting a mysterious figure racing away in the distance and the Wendigo unleashed a deathly shriek as it now followed the assassin back up the mountain. To suggest the group was confused was an understatement.
“What the heck is going on around here?!” Gilda flipped out.
<>
As one battle was taking place, another was in the process. Princess Atalanta waited for the arrival of her companions as they planned to lead the Wendigo into a trap. All of which was left under the supervision of Curtain Call, who proceeded to set up a trap similar to a temporary storage container from a notable spirit removal team. As he finished setting up the trap, it was noted that around his shoulders was a flame thrower of sorts, approximately 88 centimeters long and weighing 2.7 kilograms. The death cry of the Wendigo itself briefly stopped his work.
“Sounds like Snow and Quill got their attention!” Curtain declared, resuming his work.
“Mr. Call, what exactly is the plan?” Ata asked curiously.
“Elementary dear lass,” Curtain explained. “As soon as the Wendigo gets here, we need to make sure it stands at this very spot. Using this incinerator unit model, we ‘borrowed’ from the Marine Corps of the 2120s, we blaze the beast with some pressurized, ultra-thickened napthal which should ignite the monster in thirty meters.
“It won’t be long till the spirit leaves the host. Due to dealing with a powerful spirit, we’ll need your magic to capture the spirit and lure it into this trap. Normally these weren’t built to withstand sub-zero temperatures, but now with the right modifications it should work… hopefully.”
“And how do you rate our chances of survival?” Ata asked nervously.
“Honestly… I’m trying not to think about it.”
“Go, go, go!”
Both heads turned as they heard Quill Cast’s shout from atop the hill.
“Quill!” Ata cried out.
<>
Having gotten the monster’s attention, thanks to careful aim on Snow’s part, he, along with Quill Cast, and Ghost were running down the slope to meet up with the others. Knowing how fast this Wendigo ran, they didn’t slow down for an instant.
“Go, run!” Jon Snow ordered. “We have to go!”
“Ah crud!” Quill turned back.
The Wendigo soon appeared; its shoulder burnt black as a piece of an arrow was still lodged. Princess Atalanta soon appeared before them, gasping at the sight of the Wendigo and ushered the group.
“Run, boys!” Ata called out. “Run!
Following orders, the two men and the direwolf ran faster as the Wendigo charged down the mountain. The trio managed to race back toward Curtain Call, who just finished setting the trap. The three passed Curtain Call and took their positions as Ata raced toward them. But the princess suddenly tripped over an exposed rock and fell forward, sliding hard along the snow. Quill looked up, staring at the Wendigo appeared from atop a rock edge. Quill raced to get Ata, when Curtain raised a hoof up.
“Don’t… move,” Curtain whispered, facing Ata. “Don’t move a muscle.”
Ata laid perfectly still while staring toward the Wendigo in fear. The Wendigo snarled, its jaws drooling as it eyed the landscape. From its perspective, the entire landscape was orange, and its field of vision was slightly weak. It was determined to track any movement within the area. The direwolf growled slightly at the beast, but Snow urged his companion down to prevent him from attacking.
Curtain Call slowly leaned on the cold ground, eyeing the flame thrower in his hooves. He slowly eyed the princess, who noticed and nodded in agreement. As the Wendigo slowly made its approach, Ata slowly crawled toward the ground but one of her front hooves accidentally cracked a branch. The wendigo screamed in Ata’s direction, much to the group’s horror. Just as the beast slowly approached the princess, Curtain cautiously turned on the nozzle burner, setting off a small flame.
The Wendigo quickly turned, and it seemed that its sight caught the flame as it slowly stalked toward Curtain Call, who held his ground while sweating slightly. Beneath his breath, Curtain Call was praying, just hoping that this plan was going to work.
<>
Back on the Equestrian Heroes’ side, Twilight Sparkle viciously bucked Soto, rolling him away from her friends. As the pack leader righted himself, she joined Diego’s side and the pair stood defiant against the monster. Soto circled around before making a leap toward them, when Diego crashed into the pack leader sending them rolling along the snow. Diego swiped his claws toward Soto’s cheek, and the leader took a temporary pause.
Manny tried to race forward, but Lenny and Oscar stopped him. Applejack raced toward Manny’s side, bucking her hind legs at anything that moved in their direction. Lenny leapt onto Manny and Oscar took a swipe toward the mammoth. Fortunately, Spike managed to breathe a blast of fire in Oscar’s direction, and the beast backed off. Unfortunately, this left Spike vulnerable when Lenny was shoved aside and saw the exposed dragon.
Just as Lenny attempted to pounce on the dragon, Gabby and Gilda zoomed forward and managed to tackle Lenny and tried to hold him down as Spike ducked away.
Just as Twilight Sparkle admired their handiwork…
*THUMP!!!*
Twilight Sparkle turned and gasped, as Diego struck a rock. Fortunately, she could see that his chest was rising and falling, indicating that he was still alive. At the same time, Lenny used all his muscles to shove the griffins away and the force sent the Fire Ruby around Gabby’s neck flying off and it struck the stone wall, shattering the ruby to pieces. As Gabby gasped in horror, Soto had his sights set on Manny and only then did the princess see the severity of the situation.
<>
Another princess was facing troubles of her own. Ata’s friend, Curtain Call, was currently in trouble as the Wendigo loomed over him. Ata knew she couldn’t lay there idly by and had to act. Slowly, she got back to her feet and stared determinedly toward the monster.
“HEY!” Ata shouted.
The beast screeched horrifically and slowly approached the princess, who stood as still as possible. The beast was now inches from the princess, so close and still it couldn’t see the Changeling because she was trying so hard not to move. When the beast couldn’t find her, it walked away seeking its prey. Curtain knew that with the beast still so close to her, he couldn’t shoot. And so, he waited, biding his time for the right moment. Ata could feel her heart racing, watching as the beast was slowly drifting away from her. Her eyes darted toward the trap and knew she needed to act fast.
<>
Back with the battle with the pack, the two male sabretooth tigers switched tactics. This time, they had Twilight Sparkle against the wall as she tried to usher them away with her horn. Soto was just doing the same with Manny. The mammoth desperately swiped toward Soto, but to no avail. Soto leapt, with intent to strike a deathly blow upon his intended prey. When all of a sudden, Diego got in the way and cringed when the claws swiped him instead landing limply upon the ground.
Sid, along with the other ponies, had just turned the corner when they witnessed Soto swipe Diego’s neck, and they gasped in horror.
“DIEGO!!!” Pinkie Pie shrieked.
Soto paused and his eyes moved toward the group. The baby was gurgling happily, when Sid clapped a paw over his mouth and the cyan Pegasus covered Pinkie Pie’s. Rainbow Dash stared daggers toward Soto, who’s eyes darted toward the baby and its defenders. All this time waiting and scheming, Soto was determined to see his revenge to the end.
<>
Finally, princess Atalanta made a run for the center, her movement catching the beast’s attention. It leapt from one corner to the next and made a daring leap, reaching for the princess. It was then Jon Snow got up, and fired another flaming arrow toward the beast’s head, lodging itself through its neck and the creature fell as Ata rolled away. This left Curtain Call’s field of range open.
“EAT THIS, SUCKER!!!” Curtain shouted.
He released the switch and fired a burst of flame toward the monster. The beast was soon shrouded in flames, screaming hysterically as its whole body was ignited and the fire eating away its shell. Curtain Call kept firing even as he was running low on fire and could just see that a glow within what little remained of the beast.
“QUILL, NOW!!!” Curtain Call bellowed.
Without a moment’s haste, Curtain Call slapped an activation pad near the trap and the device opened, unleashing a wave of light. The spirit of the Wendigo tried to escape when Ata managed to catch the wandering spirit with her magic, grunting as she tried to pull the beast toward the trap. The spirit snarled and cried, as it felt itself caught in the wake of the trap’s force, feeling itself drawn like dust with a vacuum cleaner.
<>
All the screeching and glowing from the mountain had Soto momentarily distracted, as he looked up toward the glowing sky. Seeing his chance, Manny struck the sabretooth and launched him against the wall with his tusks. The icicles above clinked together and by the time Soto looked up, they fell toward him and pierced his chest before he could even scream. The very sight of their leader’s death horrified the two remaining sabretooth, as Soto’s final breath escaped.
The Equestrians and the herd gathered around the Mammoth, as Manny glared toward the remaining cats. Magical energy glowed from the horned ponies as Twilight and Rarity stared towards the cats with all their friends behind them. All the while, Spike stood before the group, bits of smoke escaping his nostrils.
“Leave… NOW!!!” Spike growled.
The sudden deep voice from the dragon had the sabretooth scared, as Lenny and Oscar ran away from the field not wanting any part of the hunt anymore. The group looked on as the sabretooth vanished deep within the blistering winds, never to be seen or heard from ever again.
<>
Steam escaped the trap, as it sizzled before the eyes of the two stallions and their allies. They gathered around the spot where the flames melted the snow leaving only the stone ground it covered. They fell upon their knees, sighing after a successful battle, as Jon Snow leaned along his direwolf for support.
“Finally… we got him…” Quill Cast declared.
“Just a regular Tuesday…” Curtain Call agreed.
“It wasn’t easy,” Jon Snow added. “But now that’s one less threat to worry about.”
“… Can we go home now?” Ata asked, tiredly.
<>
Two battles came to an end, seeing the Wendigo escape and with the death of Diego’s former leader, Twilight Sparkle and her friends could finally catch their breath after everything that happened. Gabby, meanwhile, scooped up the snow, picking up the fragments of the Fire Ruby that was destroyed during the battle. Spike approached his fiancé to check on her. This drew Rarity’s attention, and she followed behind her friend.
“Are you okay, Gabby?” Spike asked.
Gabby turned toward Spike sadly, the broken shards of the ruby in her clutches.
“This was Rarity’s gift… for us,” Gabby choked tearfully. “She said this was your Fire Ruby. She’s been taking care of it, until it would come back to you… she gave it to me, entrusting that I would care for it as I would care for you. But… it’s broken… how could I let it be smashed like this?”
Gabby breathed heavily, fighting back her tears against the bitter cold. Rarity could feel her heart break seeing Gabby so crestfallen. Like a repeat of the episode when she purposely drove a hard wedge between Spike and Gabby. Only now, this heartbreak had increased tenfold. For the Fire Ruby, once treasured, was now destroyed.
Spike looked toward the broken ruby, then toward Gabby as he drew her into a warm hug.
“Don’t feel bad about it, Gabby,” Spike comforted the griffon. “It’s just a gem; no biggie.”
“Just… a gem?” Gabby sobbed. “This was your Fire Ruby! Your gemstone.”
“True… and like any gem, I knew I could always find more,” Spike shrugged. “But you, Gabby… you’re irreplaceable! There’s only one ultimate treasure and that’s you. You’re the one who makes me feel so high, my Diamond in the Sky!”
“Oh… Spike!” Gabby smiled tearfully.
Spike and Gabby clamped their jaws and beaks together in a passionate kiss that lasted ten seconds. When they broke apart, tears still streamed from Gabby’s eyes only they were out of joy.
“How has no girl ever claimed you before?” Gabby asked. “How come I’m so lucky?”
“Guess I was just waiting for the right girl,” Spike replied.
“We did it!” Sid cried happily.
But this momentary happiness for victory was short lived, however. All eyes drifted over the side as everyone slowly approached the ground where Diego lay. They looked down toward the saber, who deliberately betrayed his own kind just for them. His eyes stared weakly toward the group, acknowledging their presence.
“We were some team huh?” Diego chuckled dryly.
“Were?” Manny spoke quietly. “Come on, we’re still a team.”
“He’s right, Diego,” Twilight agreed, tearfully. “It wasn’t right of you to lead us here, but you stepped up and defended us to the end. We’re all proud of you.”
“I’m sorry I set you up,” Diego apologized.
“You know me,” Sid tried to joke. “I’m too lazy to hold a grudge.”
Sid set the baby down carefully. Roshan patted Diego’s face, making small noises. It was clear he couldn’t understand that his friend was dying.
“Knock it off, squirt,” Diego chuckled weakly. “You gotta be strong. You have to take care of Manfred and Sid… especially Sid.”
“Don’t talk like that, Diego,” Spike voiced his concern. “You’ll be fine.”
“All I have to do is a simple healing spell,” Twilight began. “And then you’ll…”
“No!” Diego interrupted. “Just let me have this. Let me go knowing that in the end, it wasn’t too late to do the right thing.”
“Come on, you can lick this!” Sid urged. “You’re a tiger. Look, I’ll carry you. Come on, what do you say? Come on, Diego, come on! Tell him he’s going to be okay, Manny.”
Tears streamed down everyone’s faces as they stared toward Diego.
“Listen, you have to leave me here,” Diego told them. “If those humans get through the pass, you’ll never catch them.
“We can’t leave you, Diego,” Gabby sobbed sadly. “You’re our friend; friends never leave each other behind, remember?”
“You have to…” Diego replied weakly.
“Don’t tell us what to do or don’t!” Gilda yelled tearfully. “I finally learn to let others in and truly make friends. I’m not about to let one of the first friends I truly made die.”
“At least… I’ll die knowing… I protected the only true friends I’ve ever had,” Diego groaned.
“You didn’t have to do that,” Manny said.
“That’s what you do in a herd,” Diego informed, with a pained smile.
And just like that, Diego laid his head upon the snowy ground once more… and would rise no more. Tears continued to flow, as our heroes silently sobbed for the loss of one of their own. Manny pulled little Roshan away from Diego, even as the baby reached out to pet him one more time. For the longest time, they stood around Diego, mourning for his loss and sacrifice. True, he was deceitful at first, but to give up his life for theirs… such was the essence of a true friend.
Eventually, they knew that Diego was right and there wasn’t enough time to get to the pass. They needed to get Roshan back to his family or else it would be too late. So, they left his body to lie there in the snow, with no time to properly bury the body or say some last minute prayers. Silently, with no words, the group walked away to continue their journey to Glacier Pass leaving with some hope that Diego may finally find peace…
That is… if not for a certain mysterious Equestrian, who stood before Diego’s body as the Equestrians and the Herd vanished from sight…