The group was silent as Combat Carl also went in a different direction to see if there was some way to go. The five toys were alone, lost in their own thoughts. There were broken toys around them. Were the toys in the ballroom the only one to have survived the capsizing?
Woody slid down a wall and sat next to Dolly who had been staring off into space since they came out from the kitchen.
"Are you okay?" Woody asked her.
"Yeah..."
Woody stroked his hand through the doll's purple hair. He looked down at Lyla who had a tight hold around her body. What else did this kid have to go through?
"He never yelled like that before..." Dolly quivered. "He was always so soft spoken, but now... I don't know what happened."
Woody didn't know if he should cuddle with her or not knowing she was so confused. He honestly felt bad for her, seeing that G.I Joe was trying to make her feel bad for moving on.
He didn't get up and move away, knowing that she felt comforted with him near.
Jessie stared at Lyla. What she said in the kitchen wouldn't leave her mind. She shouldn't have acted the way she did. She was supposed to be the adult figure, not a scared child too. Lyla would never grow out from being a child since that's what she was. Toys never aged, but sometimes their minds would grow.
'I don't know what kind of mother you'd make...'
Was G.I. Joe right to say that to her? Earlier after Lyla's mother died, she had thought about taking that role over. But, now, with Lyla afraid of her, she couldn't see that happening.
Combat Carl came back and looked at the weary toys. Before Woody got up the soldier gestured for him to sit back down. "A soldier needs their strength."
He went and sat next to Jessie who still cuddled with Buzz.
"Combat Carl wants to say how proud he is of you."
"Proud? What did I do?"
"The cowgirl Combat Carl saw in the hotel wouldn't have been able to save that little girl. His words have stuck with you. Don't listen to G.I. Joe. Combat Carl doesn't know what's gotten into him."
This did make Jessie feel better, knowing Combat Carl was proud of her. That's not something he'd say when they were in the hotel, but she knew when he winked at her, it said everything.
"Hey, everyone, come on," G.I. Joe said appearing from behind a corner.
"What did you find?" Combat Carl asked.
"What is of the lobby, we can get through it, but we need to hurry."
The toys got up and followed him to the double doors of the lobby. It didn't even look like the grand beauty from when they walked through it a few hours ago.
The scenic elevator fell from its device and landed on an upper floor. Wreckage lay all around as there were small fires everywhere. They all gasped when they looked over the edge of the floor to see ocean water swarming below them.
Jessie looked up to see Combat Carl already making his way across the elevator. "We're not actually going across that thing are we?" she asked visible fright in her voice.
Combat Carl got to the middle of the elevator and stood in place for a moment. "Combat Carl thinks it will hold. Joe, you guise them over. Let's go!"
Woody didn't know how he was going to get to the other side with a ripped arm. One wrong move and he could fall.
"I'm going to climb to the middle and I'll help you over."
Jessie hadn't taken her eyes off the fiery water below her. This was nothing they ever did before. She looked over at Lyla who was still clinging to Dolly.
She went and bent down to her. "How are you doing?"
"Okay." She said in a miserable way.
"You know, it's okay to be scared, no matter what age you are. There is nothing bad about that, okay?"
She nodded her head. "I just want my mommy."
Jessie sighed. If only Jessie knew how that felt, to have a mother.
"Buzz, I need you to bring the kid!" G.I. Joe yelled once he was in the middle on the platform.
The little doll reluctantly took the space rangers hand. "Will you be in back of me the whole time?" Lyla asked once she stepped on the elevator.
"Yes, I will." Buzz said to her with a kind smile before he turned to Jessie. "Will you be alright behind me?"
Jessie felt uneasy about going across this with an unstable leg, but she had to be brave for Lyla's sake. "Yes, I'll be fine."
Buzz kept Lyla on the side of the elevator and she was doing fine. Jessie never knew how Buzz was so good with kids. He kept saying comforting words to her and kept a hand on her shoulder. It was just like how he'd take care of her.
Jessie was so distracted that she misplaced her foot and fell on the slim path.
"Jessie, are you okay?" Buzz asked a little head of her.
Jessie started panicking when she saw how high up she was. The fire was seething in the water looking as if a hand would form and drag her down against her will.
She looked up to see Buzz trying to re-position himself so he could come to her. "No, i'm fine." She slowly pulled herself to her feet and kept moving.
G.I. Joe helped them over the slight hole in the middle. Lyla got over fine, but had that scared look in her eye.
Jessie took Joe's hand and gently helped her over the crack. Her un-sewn leg got caught and Joe caught Jessie around the waist.
"Be careful, do you want to make me fall too?" He asked as he steadily placed her to her feet.
She didn't see the look in his eyes, but he didn't show any sympathy for how scared she was.
One shaking foot after another, Jessie limped to the other side where Buzz stood in wait with his hand out. She was too scared to walk anymore as Buzz took her in his arms and they were together on the flat surface.
"It's okay, Jessie. I'm so proud of you." They looked happily into one another's eyes. He always made everything so much better.
"Come on you two. It's not that far." G.I. Joe said to Woody and Dolly.
Woody helped Dolly up and slowly got up on the ledge. This wasn't going to be easy, but so far everything was going as planned. They were in the lobby, it couldn't be much further to the engine room.
"Careful, Dolly, don't fall now." Woody noticed how gentle he was with her than Jessie a few moment ago.
He turned to Woody and looked at him as if he were nothing. "Do you always act different with women? You weren't so gently with my sister." Woody remarked.
G.I. Joe took Woody by his ripped arm. "Let's say, I act different with the women I love."
There eyes met with such anger that for a moment, Woody thought he'd drop him.
But then, a crack in the ceiling made everyone's hearts freeze with terror. G.I. Joe didn't bother on sending Woody in front of him as he ran for it. Woody began running, but as soon as he did, a hug piece of machinery smashed through the ceiling and came hurtling down.
"Hurry!" Combat Carl screamed.
Woody felt something in his body explode with fear when he felt the elevator wobble under his feet.
"Woody, hurry!" Dolly shouted when she realized that the elevator was slipping off the two stacks it was resting on.
This gave Woody adrenaline as he picked up his speed. G.I. Joe hadn't even got to the other side when she yelled that. He was almost there when suddenly nothing was holding up his feet.
He let out a scream until someone caught both his arms.
Buzz and Combat Carl caught him and he sat on the ground catching his breath.
Dolly hugged him tightly. "Oh Woody, I'm so glad you're okay."
Woody wrapped an arm around her too. This was what he needed. Dolly hadn't hugged him in so long and this took the fear away.
"What kind of soldier are you?" Combat Carl screamed at Joe. "Don't you know you should let the one you're rescuing go first?"
"Would you calm down? We're not really soldiers. And I was getting over here for..."
He looked at Dolly for one second. "My own sake..."
Both of them knew that's not what he was going to say, but they didn't want anymore fights.
They were about to move on when there was a severe explosion, knocking everything about.
