Disclaimer: Don't own anything except the idea of mammoth heartless, and Mile.
Chapter 7: The Fog
"Its…nothing but thick fog." Manny said. The others nodded, and Mile came forward. It seemed possible, going through, but the others don't have that good of eyesight in this kind of condition. It would've helped if Crash and Eddie were here, but they weren't, so the keybearer had to think of an alternate solution. Well, not just him of course, but still, the solution had to be thought of. They couldn't just waltz right in, they could be running into a trap for all they knew.
"Maybe one of us should scout ahead." Diego suggested, but some disagreed.
"But one of us could get lost…or worse." Sid gulped as he made his comment clear. Diego went silent too, the sloth had a point. There wasn't any purpose in sending one of them to their deaths. Ellie then asked her own little question.
"Anyway to clear some of the fog?" It seemed a bit ridiculous, but at the same time, an okay idea. But Mile glanced up at her.
"Impossible, there's too much to clear off. The spot we clear would just be replaced." He told her. They all thought hard, but no ideas came to mind. Mile then considered something. He looked at Sid.
"Sid, I know your no possum, but your small. Maybe you could crawl or keep your head low below the fog, make sure you don't see any feet or that we don't run into anything." It was one of Mile's more…'interesting' ideas, but the sloth went along with it.
"Sure I guess, but I'm no dog." He grumbled, then lowered his head. As Mile guessed, Sid could see a bit more clearly, but it wasn't the absolute clearest. But still, it was an okay idea, and Sid looked up at the group.
"Just a straight walk, nothing out of the ordinary…except this fog." He joked. Manny chuckled.
"Thanks for the newsflash." He chuckled more as Sid grinned, and started into the fog. Mile yelled.
"Wait for us!" The rest of the pack ran in, and joined up with Sid as they walked down the narrow passage. It was just like when they were making their way out of the bowl…except Sid made a note that the path widened further down. Ellie shuddered, feeling a bit awkward not only because she didn't know EXACTLY where she was going, but because her brothers weren't there to make any snobby comments, or noises. Manny looked at her gloomy face.
"You alright Ellie? Want me to…" He started, but she smiled weakly.
"I'm fine, just miss Eddie and Crash a little…" She said. Manny wanted to get a second opinion on if she wanted to go back, but remembered that she really wanted to stick with him. He then nodded with a smile.
"Don't worry, this'll be over soon." He convinced her. Manny then turned his head, and stumbled a bit. He was a bit startled, and thought he was being tripped, when he yelled.
"Sid!" The sloth looked at Manny.
"Hey I said it was a straight path, maybe you hit your foot against the wall." He said that, trying to make the mammoth consider the possibilities other then fact it could've been his fault. Manny grumbled a bit, but continued on. After a bit, they stopped, letting Sid jump to the ground and duck his head. He then was a bit shocked to see a black shadow moving about.
"We got company." He said simply. Mile growled, and the keyblade appeared in his mouth just as Manny and Diego came to his side. It wouldn't be easy, they weren't sure if the heartless could see well through the fog but either way, they had the disadvantage. They would need Sid's eyes. As the sabers and mammoth looked at him, Sid nodded, and lowered his head down. The shadow heartless slowly formed, along with another set of feet, a tiger heartless. The tiger heartless made no sound, only started sprinting at Manny, the easier target to spot.
"Manny! 12 o'clock!" The sloth yelled. Manny then moved his head to the left, then swung it to the right. His tusk caught something, and he knew it since he just threw whatever he caught into the wall. It roared, and Sid noticed it backed up slightly as the shadow heartless was slivering between Diego and Mile.
"Diego! Mile! Between ya!" He shouted.
"We're right here Sid!" Diego scowled as he jumped back. The two knew they shouldn't attack at once, they might hit each other, though they could see each other at close range. Mile slashed down at the ground, and smirked as the blade hit its mark. The shadow heartless was history as it splattered and disappeared.
But Sid wasn't able to shout fast enough as the tiger heartless rammed into Mile, making him cry out gently and tumble into Diego. The two sabers quickly fell down, and Manny turned his head to where he heard them fall. He quickly came forward and did a head butt in that direction. But his head only hit the wall, and he was slightly dizzy from the 'off' attack.
"Manny stomp your hind legs down!" Sid told the mammoth. Manny didn't have time to question the sloth, only did as he was told. As his feet slammed down, the tiger heartless growled, a bit of a shockwave coming from the ground. After all, mammoths weren't exactly lightweights. Mile heard the growl easily, and where it came from, and he swung his head and keyblade in the direction he heard it. The heartless screeched, but didn't disappear. Another swing, another hit, and this time, the tiger heartless was down for the count, slowly disappearing. Mile could tell that he defeated the heartless, and he relaxed as he let the keyblade disappear.
"Yay, they're all gone." The sloth told the group. Ellie was a few feet back, and didn't get into the action, she was more-or-less trying to get a good eye view, the same view Sid was getting, but to no avail. She then sighed.
"I wasn't any help at all…" She told herself. The others managed to hear her. Mile and Diego didn't have anything to say, letting Manny do the talking.
"Its alright Ellie, Sid was the only one who could've saw the heartless coming." He told her. He paused, then continued. "By the way…where are you?" He then grunted as he fell over, Ellie apparently moving forward and then falling on top of her boyfriend. Sid was startled by the noise and started to shout.
"Earthquake!" He started to panic, but Diego, who was near, grabbed him by the neck gently.
"Relax, just Manny and Ellie who decided to have a make-out session." He teased them. Mile couldn't help but snort, and Manny glared into nothing.
"We're not making out! We just had a little trip, that's all…" But he couldn't help but like the feeling of Ellie on him. But they slowly and hesitantly got up on their feet, and pretty soon, the group was huddled together again.
"This is getting dangerous…I like it." Diego commented, and Mile laughed.
"Figured you would." He said with a chuckle. Sid on the other hand, gulped then ducked his head down again. He noticed the passage split into two paths up ahead, and told that to the group. Mile thought carefully.
"Hmm…is it less foggy up ahead?" He questioned. Sid looked at Mile and nodded.
"Actually…yeah. We could see each other better, that's for sure." He smiled at the thought. No more walking part blindly for him, or his friends. Ellie beamed, happy as well about that too.
"Well what are we waiting for, an invitation?" She giggled softly. They all started walking again, it was a clear walk, and their visions started to come to again as they noticed the split.
"Well at least I don't have to cramp my neck anymore." The sloth said with joy. Manny then spoke with a bit of uncertainty.
"Don't bet on it…I think the fog starts building up again further down." Sid groaned at the mammoth's remark, but he then cheered up. His help was more important, and he was happy to help too, after all, for once, it was up to the 'Lord Of The Flame.' to get the herd through.
"You can count on me." Sid told them. Mile smiled, then wondered. Which way to go…he then heard a voice.
"Having trouble? Relax…" Mile swiftly turned his head and asked aloud.
"Who's there?" Manny, Diego, Sid and Ellie looked at him, wondering who he was talking to. They could tell it wasn't them.
"Which path seems most clearest in your view…its simple really. Think about it, your smart…" The voice seemed to disappear, and Mile scowled.
"Who the hell's there!" Sid patted his friend's back, snapping him back to his senses…somewhat.
"You okay?" The sloth asked.
"Yeah, you were talking to yourself." Diego added. Mile shook his head.
"No I heard…never mind…" He sighed, then looked from path to path. He noticed something alright…the voice was right, it was simple. He then looked up at Manny who looked down with worry.
"Manny, could you bend down so I can climb onto your back?" He asked. The mammoth was confused, but nodded.
"Alright." He bent down as asked. Mile climbed up, careful not to claw Manny's back, and as he ascended back up, Mile clearly noticed, though he had to squint his eyes. The left path seemed to narrow slightly, while the right seemed to expand a little. He then took Manny and Ellie's size into consideration. Their tusks, extending out, might get caught as they walk down the left path, if the path narrowed. So it seemed the solution was taking the right path.
"Okay then," Mile started, jumping to the ground smoothly. He looked at them. "We're heading down the right path…" His ears then perked, same as Diego. Ellie looked at them and their ears curiously.
"Hear something?" She asked. They both nodded.
"Yeah…" Mile looked around a bit, curious and wanting to know what the sound was coming from. It was like a thumping sound, slowly getting louder and louder, till it was as if the ground was shaking. And...it was. Sid gulped.
"What is it?" He asked, a bit in a panic. Everyone though, got the feeling of what was coming up, and Mile was already ready to fight. It was then two, huge black blobs appeared behind the group, and in the middle of the right path. They slowly started to form, and due to the sizes, it was expected to be big.
"I wonder what these nut jobs are..." Diego muttered. Mile was facing one direction at Diego's side while Diego was facing the opposite. Manny was also ready, though moved so Ellie and Sid were in between the team. As the heartless formed, Manny's heart almost stopped. They were slowly forming into a huge form, with two long tusks.
"They're..." He started, but couldn't finish the sentence. As they shaped into their full forms completely, Mile finished.
"Mammoth heartless..." Sid then had to add in a crack comment, maybe to boost morale, or just because he had to say something before he started screaming.
"First Tiger Heartless, now Mammoths, what about a sloth?" Diego glared at Sid.
"Not now..." The saber then glanced up at Manny. His eyes were a bit wide, it seemed like he wouldn't be able to attack if he had to...the two heartless then made a loud trumpet, and Mile yelled.
"Everyone, get ready!"
Author's PN: Well I'm back, and this chapter was kind of fast edited. I'm determined to take more time on the next few chapters,but I wanted to post this up to give people what they wanted. I'm going to take careful time on the fight scene. Also guys, make sure you glance at the other chapters occasionally, I MIGHT edit them to be more longer and descript. Well enjoy!