Here's the new chapter! Enjoy! :D
I know it is a bit longer than how the chapters usually are, but I felt like this is the way it should end.
A few hours later, Sid had been able to recover from his loss, knowing that Sylvia wouldn't have wanted him to cry over her death.
But one thing was certain, the bear would have never forgotten what she did to him despite how badly he treated her, nor forgiven himself for doing so.
Sid suddenly realized he was being left behind, as Milly, with Scrat and the baby on her back, and Diego were walking faster than him.
"Hey, guys, wait for me!" He exclaimed.
Sid wasn't a good walker. By dint of only eating vegetables and never chasing a prey, he became very lazy, so much so that he stayed in the same cave for almost his whole life.
Now, he really find it difficult to keep up the pace with a chaser and a migrant.
"Come on, slow down a little!" The bear yelled, as the distance between him and the group increased more and more.
Suddenly, they stopped near what looked like a pond. Sid was finally able to reach them.
"Whoa, thank you!" He said, and jumped into the water, looking for some relief from his foot pain, due to having walked.
"Three, two, one." Milly and Diego counted in one voice.
Sid's eyes opened wide as he realized the water was very hot.
"Ow! Ow! Ow! Hot spring!" He screamed as he ran out of the water. It clearly wasn't just a pond.
"Let's see if a prank war is enough to cheer him up." Milly thought, smirking.
Not much later, Sid was walking with the baby and Scrat on his back. Pinky was trying again to hug Scrat, who, though, had no intention to let him do that.
So, the rodent kept staying as far away as possible from the human, hissing at him, and even hitting him when he got too close. This ended up in a brawl between them.
"Guys! Stop fighting!" Sid exclaimed, and raised a paw to try to separate them.
But that made him tilt, causing Scrat to fall on the baby and complicating things. It went on for several minutes, and the sounds made Milly and Diego, who were walking ahead of the bear, side by side, irritated.
"Stop it! Now!" The mammoth demanded.
"I didn't start it!" Sid complained.
"The next time anybody moves, I'll get a new chew toy!" Diego roared, making Sid, Scrat and even Pinky separate in fear.
"Good job, Daddy." Milly joked, and the scimitar cat glared at her.
Milly was now holding the baby with her trunk, while Scrat stayed on Sid's back.
The group stopped in front of a red flower.
A herd of muskoxen, that was instead moving east, passed, running.
The air movement made the flower losing its petals, revealing a big, green leaf under them.
The mammals started walking again.
Diego jumped on a flat rock, that looked just like a seesaw, from a small cliff. He smelled the air.
Milly, approaching him, nodded towards the cliff.
"Huh?" The carnivore looked up, only to see Sid jumping too.
Diego realized he was in the "seesaw" end that was on the ground. He gulped and, as soon as the bear fell on the other end, the cat was sent into the air, screaming.
"One down." Sid laughed.
Sid, who had Scrat and the baby on his back again, looked at a snowbank, and then at Milly, walking ahead of him.
He smirked and swiped the snow on her with his snout.
The mammoth turned, but the bear had already cleaned off his face and was now pointing at Scrat and Pinky.
Milly frowned, doubting that the the small mammals did it, but simply decided to ignore them and walked away.
"And two down." Sid smiled maliciously, while the squirrel and the human glared at the bear for putting blame on them.
"Ah, these modernists." Milly rolled her eyes, passing a rock with several stone figurines, made by humans.
Diego didn't even pay attention to them, while Sid and his "passengers" looked at them curiously.
While walking in a hole in the rock, Diego noticed four rhino footprints, one next to the other.
Evidently, Carl and Frank had been here too. But it wasn't a problem if Milly and Sid smelled them, they wouldn't have thought the rhinos were the ones who tried to kill them.
But how many chance of having two rhinos, solitary animals, definitely males, due to the size of the footprints, could there be?
Diego needed to think fast, as the others were getting closer and closer.
Then, a stroke of luck: three of the footprints got cancelled by the snow falling, that changed direction because of the wind. However, Diego's body prevented it from cancelling the fourth one.
The scimitar cat cancelled it and, to justify the fact that he had stopped, draw a human footprint towards north, with only four toes.
When Milly and Sid reached him, he pointed north, as confirmation that they were heading the right direction.
The bear smiled, while the mammoth was just confused. Scrat became suspicious, as he looked at the five toes on the baby's hand and at his "foot cover".
"Why do I keep getting caught up in these situations?" Milly wondered, trying to balance herself on the ice, that was luckily very thick there.
"Hi, Milly." Sid laughed, slipping around her with Pinky and Scrat on his back. For the bear, being a plantigrade, it was easy.
The human was enjoying it, while the rodent was just annoyed.
"Hi, Diego." He circled the scimitar cat, who was sticking his claws in the ice, not to fall.
However, without knowing it, Sid ended up in a part of the ice that was instead thin. It broke and he fell in the water, while the small mammals landed on the "rink" safely.
"Hi, Sid." Milly, carrying the two, and Diego smirked shortly after that, walking away and watching the bear, still in the water, panting and resting his head on the ice.
"I can't believe we got lost." Milly complained.
"We aren't lost." Diego stated, and smelled the air. But he didn't move, a sign that the big herbivore was right.
Milly spotted a female squirrel on a rock not far away.
"Hey, Scrat, go to her and ask her if she saw humans passing by." She explained.
"And ask her if she saw other animals, this could help us." Sid added.
The rodent nodded and quickly reached her. The big mammals and the baby watched the two talking for a minute. When Scrat returned, he seemed very worried, especially while glaring at Diego.
"So, has she seen humans?" The mammoth asked.
The squirrel quickly shook his head.
"And what has she seen, then?" She questioned.
Scrat put his fingers on his head, trying to mimic a horned animal.
"Reindeer?" Sid proposed.
The squirrel shook his head again, and pretended charging "Uh…bisons…muskoxen?"
"Rhinos?" Milly suggested, and Scrat nodded.
Diego's eyes opened wide, and the rodent glared at him. The cat couldn't believe it: evidently, the female squirrel even told him what the rhinos were saying, surely something about the plan, and Scrat realized Diego wasn't who he said he was.
"I just hope they'll be nicer than the ones we met." The bear said.
"Well, did she see anything else?" The mammoth inquired.
The squirrel nodded and glared at Diego once again, before starting to mimic a predator.
"Long claws…and teeth." Sid spoke "Uh, wolves?"
"Or bears?" Milly continued.
"Maybe lions."
While discussing, the bear turned to the mammoth, involuntarily preventing her from seeing the squirrel, who started pointing at Diego.
The scimitar cat approached him and put a hand on his head.
"Listen, snack, you better keep the secret." He hissed, whispering "You know, I'd have no problem eating you in one bite this night, they'd just think you left."
He pressed his paw on his head, making all the food in his cheeks coming out of his mouth. Then, Diego buried it in the snow, and put him back on his feet.
"So, Scrat, which direction is the right one?" Diego asked so that Milly and Sid could hear him, stop talking and turn to them.
Scrat pointed at it and ran towards it, followed by Diego and then by Milly and Sid who looked at each other confused.
"Saigas?" The bear asked, watching him run so fast.
Sid spotted another snowbank and, after piling up even more snow on it, he threw it to Milly.
She turned angrily, and before the bear could point at his "passengers", they were already pointing at him. Plus, he forgot to clean his snout.
Milly walked menacingly towards him, taking the baby and letting Scrat jump on her. Then, the buried the bear into a snow wall.
"Me down." The bear muttered.
It started raining, wetting the mammals, and then a harsh snowstorm started.
The water on Diego's fangs froze, turning them into icicles.
On Milly's tusks, instead, several stalactites formed. Luckily, the baby was curled up in her fur, so he wasn't so cold.
Sid was attempting to help Scrat, clutching him to his chest with one of his front paws, walking with the remaining three. However, he noticed his claws, not retractable, were frozen, gasped and blew on them, trying to keep them warm.
Sid and Milly had stopped by a coppice to eat the berries growing off of them and Diego thought he might go ahead to hopefully report to his pack about his progress. Scrat was stuffing his mouth with roots and berries while Sid was helping Pinky get his food.
"I'm going to go ahead." Diego told them.
"Are you coming back?" Milly glared at him.
Diego nodded. "I am."
Milly narrowed her eyes at him as he left. "I don't know if I should trust him..." She told Sid, who was looking at her and responded inarticulately with a mouthful of berries.
For a while, Diego seemed to be the only thing in the tundra, no horizon to be seen, since the sky and the snow seemed the same color. Diego's sense of smell wasn't the best, but he used his eyesight, hoping to see them. He sighed in realization that his pack was smart enough to not to be seen by anything. He would have to rely on his scent. He remained deep in these thoughts until the scent burst into his nose. No doubt it was a pack scimitar cats. It was faint, as if they were covering their scent with another animal, perhaps their meal.
He ran swiftly, but he was still hoping not to be suspicious to any animals who may be watching him curiously. He stopped, realizing they were in an icy cavern. This was perfect for their plan. He knew what to do.
He rushed the short way back and Milly seemed surprised about his return, while Sid and Pinky just bounced happily. Diego needed to get Milly and Sid to argue, so that they and the baby would be distracted. That way, he could pull the aggravating rodent, Sid called Scrat to the side and threaten him, so his plan could work. After all, he needed someone to run in the cavern.
"Um, Milly." Diego announced.
Milly glanced around at Sid and the others as if she was unprepared. "Yes?"
"You sure care about your mate, huh?" Diego commented, as Milly gave some of the berries she disliked to the bear he gulped them up.
"What? No!" Milly shrieked.
Sid looked hurt. "You don't care about me?"
"Well, I... You're not my responsibility! I shouldn't have to care for you."
Sid whimpered. "So... you don't care? Even a little?"
Milly growled. "You're not focusing on the big issue! I'm not your mate!"
As the mammoth and bear argued, Diego approached Scrat, who lowered his ears both hatefully and fearfully.
"Guess what?" Diego snarled. "We're going to continue on our journey soon, and once we spot a cavern you're running in without a second thought, got it?"
Scrat looked at Diego with a challenging face.
"Or else I will kill that stupid free travel ride for you." Diego hissed, nodding his head toward Sid.
This was clearly alarming to Scrat as he thought deeply. The cat wouldn't really do that... would he?
After a while and Diego growling and threatening him with his sharp claws, the squirrel nodded worriedly.
"Good."
After Milly and Sid settled their argument on that they cared for each other like "travel buddies", which Sid was fond of, hoping for their relationship next to become "friends", Diego and Scrat spotted the cavern.
Offhandedly, Scrat ran into the cavern. Diego was impressed, thinking he'd have to glower at the squirrel several times before he'd go.
"Where are you going, Scrat?" Sid asked loudly. "Wait for me! Please?"
After Scrat stumbled into the cavern while hearing Sid's pleas, the squirrel slipped and fell on the ice. His claws gripped the gelid iced ground.
"Scrat! Wait up!" Sid called to the squirrel.
Sid ran into the cavern and immediately lost his balance and fell on his snout. He winced as pain shot through his peccary cut. The baby cooed in wonder if Sid was okay. Diego came in after him, digging his claws into the ice as a reflex before he fell. Seeing everyone's shaken up looks, Milly walked in carefully. Diego scowled at Scrat, and the squirrel dug his claws into the ice as he dashed, slipping every few seconds while going deeper into the cave.
"Little buddy!" Sid yelled.
Sid fell as he reached his paw out to run and his body slid a little. As he stood up carefully and looked to his left, he saw a frozen ground sloth in the icy walls.
"AHH!" Sid yelped and fell on his stomach again before realizing the animal was behind the thick layer of ice. "Wow. That's a strange looking creature. It looks like it was kind of slow, don't you think, Milly? It looks friendly though! Too bad we couldn't be friends."
Milly snorted. "Sure. Get your furry friend out of here so we can go."
"Wait." Diego interrupted. "No need to leave. This cavern leads exactly where we need to go and it's... a shortcut."
"Don't know if you could see or not, but most of us are struggling to even stand up in here! Even you, Mr. Tough Claws." Milly growled.
The baby's basket slid off of Sid's back, and started sliding, but Sid gripped it with his teeth, stumbling over his own paws. The baby laughed and Sid smiled as an annoyed Diego helped return the basket to the bear's back.
"You're going to kill that baby before we can even return it." Diego growled.
"I am not!" Sid responded with an offended tone.
Scrat peeked around the corner, and Diego nodded that he could come back with a menacing glare.
"I got this." Sid announced as Scrat scrambled onto his back. "I'm carrying two passengers."
"You are the worst at walking on this ice out of all of us." Milly replied gruffly.
"Trust me!" Sid insisted. "I'm the best."
Sid lowered himself to the ground and gripped the ice strangely as he moved himself forward with slow care.
Diego nodded. "He'll be fine in here. No peccary attacks and no other animals for him to chase after unless he sees his own reflection."
"Whatever... Let's go, I guess." Milly sighed.
Diego approached a short ice cliff and was ready to jump down before Sid joined his side, making the ice shutter and crack. Diego hissed at him, but then Milly began to approach.
"Milly, wait!" Diego warned.
As Milly joined, the ice fell the short way and shattered. The animals weren't badly injured.
"Are you kidding me, cat?" Milly growled to Diego. "You seriously think a three second warning is enough? I don't have cat reflexes!"
Diego scoffed. "Hey, at least I tried."
"It's okay." Sid told them. "No need to argue, we didn't break bones."
Milly and Diego huffed in annoyance at each other as they went ahead, approaching a cave with a little bit of light.
What will they find there? Stay tuned for more!
And don't forget to review! :)
