The Duplighost led them back up the mountain for only around ten minutes, but it felt uncomfortably longer. Now that warmth and a theoretically safer way down had been proposed, Ike could feel his patience slipping away.
"How much longer?" Ike asked.
"Not far," the Duplighost mumbled. "Everything kind of looks the same around here."
"I thought you took this path all the time," said Pit.
"I do. I just want to make sure I don't walk off a cliff or into a Frost Piranha's den. My cousin Dooper wandered into a strange hole once and came out looking like a big white piece of swiss cheese."
"I hate this place already," Pit groaned.
Ike flexed his fingers. Without adequate protection, he was turning blue. Too much longer, and hypothermia would set in. He was used to camping in the cold, but that didn't mean he enjoyed it. "This had better not be a trap, by the way. I normally kill people who lead me into traps."
"It's not!" the Duplighost whined. "Duplighosts usually live on their own unless they're working for someone, and what are we going to build traps out of, snow? My last employer was King Bowser, and he hasn't contacted me since Mario beat him."
Pit rubbed his wings through his shirt, clearly colder than Ike. "Didn't Mario do that all the time? His brother told me of at least seven different incidents."
"See, this is why I have to move!" said the Duplighost. "You never hear anything on this stupid mountain. I thought it was just the one time."
"So why don't you move?" Ike asked.
The Duplighost paused. "I'll get around to it."
"You're lazy."
"I'm not lazy! I just don't get around to things for a few months, is all."
"Need to pack all your traps made of snow?"
"Now you're just rubbing it in." The Duplighost peered closely at a wall, then gave a small, satisfied smile. "Ah, here it is. Told you we were near. Enter through this wall, and you'll be well on your way to the bottom of the mountain and far, far away from me."
It was completely unremarkable. Ike had expected some sort of mark or indentation to make it easier to identify among an in-group, but it looked just as boring as the rest of the mountain. Ike stepped toward it and rubbed his hand along the surface. It didn't feel like anything was behind it.
"You're feeling too high," the Duplighost corrected. "It's lower, more my height. Watch."
The Duplighost lowered his head and charged at the wall. Ike flinched as he cracked his head into solid stone, twitched, and lay unmoving in the snow. Unwilling to break the silence, the only sound for twenty seconds was the whistling of the icy wind.
And somehow, the next thought to pop into Ike's mind was, I wonder if Duplighosts are edible?
But the Duplighost slowly creaked back to life a moment later, looking like a moving ball of snow. He shook his head and stared at the wall with dazed eyes, then prodded the lower part gently.
"Or maybe it was a little to the left," he muttered.
He slowly got to his feet and wandered closer to the wall. He pressed on a part of the wall, causing it to swing inward as if on hinges. Ike raised an eyebrow in surprise.
"It's like a doggy door," Pit commented. Ike had no idea what he was talking about.
"Just..." The Duplighost reeled for a moment, still trying to gather its bearings. "Just follow the dark crystals, and try not to go back the way you came. It's really easy to get lost."
"Why don't you guide us yourself?" asked Ike.
The Duplighost glared at a spot slightly to Ike's right. "I'm putting my reputation on the line enough as it is. If anyone sees me leading you personally through the mountain, I'll be turned into a bedsheet. Not to mention we have a sort of mutual understanding with the critters on the mountain, and if they see me with you, they may think I've switched sides and maybe eat me or something. So please grant me this one pardon."
Ike didn't fully understand the problem, but he decided the easily-spooked ghost had done enough for them already. Besides, he wasn't sure he wanted that thing following them around. If he wanted a tour guide, he'd get one when they reached civilization. He nudged the wall-door with his boot and figured he could just barely fit his whole body through.
"I don't know," said Pit, "I think we could use him a bit longer. I like a little direction myself."
Ike sighed and turned to the Duplighost. "Just tell us how to find food on this rock, and we'll be on our way."
"Or we could ignore me again..." Pit began.
The Duplighost slowly tiptoed away from them, clearly eager to leave them as soon as possible. "It's everywhere if you take the time to look. Frost Piranhas are barely kind of edible, and Gulpits usually have food stashed in their dens. Just make sure they don't kill you first. A Gulpit is basically a big blue ball with a huge mouth, so there's no mistaking them. Other than that, snow makes for good water."
"Just don't eat the yellow snow," Pit interjected.
"How far until the bottom of the mountain?" Ike asked.
The Duplighost looked around in thought. "Depends on what path you take. Some are straight shots to the bottom that'll kill the average person... You look like capable people, so I'd say no more than a few hours if you keep at it. It's really not as huge a mountain as it looks at first. Can I go now? Someone's going to see me anytime now."
"Honestly, I've heard enough," Ike said. "We'll chance the rest of it. We just need to get out of the cold - "
"Great, then, see you later!" the Duplighost exclaimed before turning and running away at top speed. "Or not! Hopefully not!"
Ike watched the white form disappear into the snow. He wondered for a moment if letting him go was the right idea, then decided it wasn't worth letting Pit win another one. He'd faced harsher scenarios than this and come through victorious every time.
He nodded toward the wall-door. "You first, Pit. You'll fit easier than I will."
The angel hesitated. "Uh, right. I'll let you know if anything angry and carnivorous is inside. Listen for the high-octave scream."
"I know."
Shaking his head, Pit got onto his belly and pushed the flap open. A glimmer of the bow-generated rings around his arm illuminated a small part of the dark beyond. Ike crouched down to see better but still couldn't see more than a few feet. Bit by bit, Pit squeezed his slender frame in until his feet disappeared and the flap went shut.
"Anything carnivorous yet?" Ike called.
"Well, thanks for disturbing it if there is one," the reply came.
Anxious to get out of the cold, Ike pushed the flap up as far as it would go, just barely seeing Pit's shoes. He waited for Pit to crawl in further, then slipped Ettard inside and pulled himself forward. It wasn't nearly as tight a squeeze as he thought it would have been at first, but he still didn't dare stand up too quickly. Finally, he tucked the last of himself through the flap and felt much of the cold dissipate.
"You can stand up from here," Pit's voice came from ahead. "I can see light."
Grunting, Ike laid Ettard upright and pulled himself to his feet. He whacked his head on the cave ceiling and bit back a curse. "I can stand up here, my eye."
"I meant where I am," Pit corrected. "Sorry about your head. But look."
Ike couldn't see Pit very well, but ahead was a shimmering cylinder of light like a tunnel leading them onward. It appeared to be made of some sort of crystal which gave off bluish light inwardly. Ike didn't see any other path, so he assumed the darker crystal branches would show up later.
"Kinda pretty," Pit commented.
Ike rubbed the back of his head. "Yeah, it is. I wish we had more time to admire it, but we do have an everything to save, and Horizon's probably looking for us as it is."
Pit glanced back at the wall-door. "You really think they can find us that easily?"
"I wouldn't put it past them, Pit. You haven't seen what Pane can do."
He strode past Pit carefully and made for the crystal tunnel. It felt a lot more insulated inside at the moment - Ike wondered if the Duplighosts had anything to do with that - but it still wasn't anywhere near warm. He didn't feel like he was in danger of freezing to death anytime soon, so that was a step in the right direction. All the better if they could reach ground level in a matter of hours, though the quicker paths sounded more dangerous.
Ike placed a hand on the side of the crystal tunnel as he approached it. It definitely wasn't ice, and it actually wasn't that cold. Pretty as it was, he couldn't help but feel like something bad would happen if he stayed near it too long. He hastened his walk, trying not to trip over the uneven crystal ground.
The tunnel only went on about thirty feet before turning the corner and abruptly ending. Ike stepped out the tunnel exit and straightened up, trying to get a feel for what was coming next.
The room was roughly fifty feet around and composed of duller elements of the same crystal tunnel they'd just passed through. The crystalline ceiling was seven feet off the ground, high enough for Ike to stand comfortably but low enough to make him claustrophobic. Enough light pervaded the room for Ike to see at least four tunnels branching off the main room, all made of differing shades of crystal.
"Well, this is where it gets fun," Pit mumbled.
"We've just got to find the darker tunnel," said Ike. "See anything?"
They looked in silence for a moment. It only took Ike a moment to realize the problem.
"What defines 'dark'?" he asked, furling his eyebrows in confusion.
The tunnel all the way on the left was significantly duller than any of the others, mostly resembling glass. The second from the right, on the other hand, took on a purplish hue, which was definitely darker than the brighter blue they'd seen. "Dark" was subjective.
"That little idiot," Ike grumbled. "He meant to get us lost."
Pit groaned and held his head back. "This is just like one of those useless instruction manuals that can't tell you how to do anything worth whale puke. How are we supposed to know what dark means?"
Ike looked them over again. The second and fourth ones from the left couldn't be it; they were doubtlessly too bright. That left the dull one and the purple one. They'd have to choose one eventually, and he had no idea how long it would be before Horizon showed up and blew their hopes to pieces.
"Transparent isn't dark," Ike decided. "Let's go with the purple tunnel. If dark indicates color, that has to be it. If it goes up or leads to a dead end, we'll just turn around."
Pit nodded. "Yeah, that's what I was thinking. I just want to keep moving before my joints freeze in place."
"We've bought ourselves a good bit of time before that happens. Besides, if the paths are as rough as that Duplighost said they were, we'll work up a sweat before long."
They started toward the purple tunnel. Ike glanced over his shoulder to make sure no one was following them. He was upset enough already.
"Ike, stop for a second," Pit said, holding his arm in front of Ike.
Ike glared at him. "Now what - "
He was interrupted by a blue form bursting from the floor, spraying snow everywhere. Ike jumped back instinctively and held Ettard higher, preparing for a strike. Pit readied a shining arrow and pointed it at the mass.
It looked like a bulbous, light blue plant with massive fangs and, unmistakably, big lips. It had come up from a spot in the ground which had actually been snow, not crystal, but blended in well enough to surprise most travelers. The plant had no eyes but clearly knew where its targets were. It was very nearly Ike's height. It parted its jaws, letting a big red tongue hang out.
"What is this thing?" Ike grunted.
Pit stared at the plant where its eyes would have been. "Well, friend or foe?"
The plant opened its jaws, lunged forward, and snapped at Pit. The angel leaped back just in time, barely avoiding the thing's teeth.
"That seals it," said Ike. He took a giant step forward and brought Ettard through the plant's head, knocking off the top chunk and sending it through the air. The half hit the ground and shattered like ice. The body of the plant convulsed, then flopped onto the cave floor and lay still.
"That was brutal," Pit commented.
Ike flicked the plant's remains off his sword. "I'm assuming killing it was the best action, but I don't want to kill too many things here. We don't know what's going to get us in trouble with this world's population."
The shining arrow disappeared in Pit's bowstring. "Oh, that makes sense. But we can still kill them if they attempt to bite our heads off, right?"
"If they try to kill you first, yes, violence is authorized. I'm saying we shouldn't assume killing every creature we meet is a wise idea." He scanned the floor for more snow patches. "Now, about that tunnel."
The going wasn't a whole lot less stressful from there. The purple path did appear to lead down, so Ike guessed they were right about that. The "darker path" changed in definition slightly each time, from different colors to which path was glowing the least. Over the course of an hour, they'd run into two dead ends and had to go back the way they'd come. Since the sky wasn't visible, Ike had no concept of time, but he supposed the sun had set already. The somewhat warmer interior of the mountain had worn off its novelty, leaving Ike beginning to shudder in spite of the sweat he'd inevitably worked up.
They'd run into six more of the big blue plants, three of them at the same time. Pit dropped one of them with a volley of arrows before they'd caught on and, quicker than Ike had thought possible, zipped underground to reappear at the closest snow patch and attack. They were surprised to learn these things could breathe freezing breath, which Ike and Pit had fortunately avoided long enough to finish the plants off. Ike guessed they were the Frost Piranhas the Duplighost had spoken of, though he'd always figured piranhas were fish.
After an hour and a half, the two of them had stumbled into the mother lode of food...sort of. Starvation had become prevalent after awhile, leading them to search for food off the beaten path. Pit had spotted an odd-looking mini-cave with big tracks going to and from it. While not keen on meeting whatever created the tracks, the needs of the stomach outweighed the logic of the brain, and they entered the dark cave. It led to a dead end, but stuffed in the corner along with a large pile of rocks was a large pile of food. It was mostly frozen, but it appeared edible.
"I found dinner," said Pit, weak but very pleased.
"Dinner," Ike repeated.
They heard stomping and deep grunting behind them. Ike closed his eyes for a brief moment and turned around. Something that was undeniably cute but still threatening loomed over them, filling up the expanse of the mini-cave and bathing it in shadow. Ike had previously wondered if maybe the blue plants were the Gulpits (he still couldn't get over the name), but there was no doubt this was the real thing. It was little more than a tall dark blue ball with tiny eyes and stubby arms and legs. Its jawline implied it had a massive mouth.
"I don't even know anymore," Pit muttered.
"Good evening," Ike began. "We're starving, and we can't find food anywhere else. You wouldn't mind horribly if we took some of your food, would you?"
The Gulpit responded by opening its mouth and lashing out with a massive tongue, seizing the nearest rock about the size of Ike's head and pulling it into its mouth.
Ike raised his eyebrows. "Or you can just eat rocks."
The Gulpit opened its maw again, launching the stone right at Ike. He stepped out of the way just in time, feeling the wind from the rock brush against his face.
"Or you can spit them at us!" Pit yelled. He turned to the food pile. "Aw, he just crushed the 'shrooms."
"I don't want to be a thief," Ike said, "but something tells me we need the food more than this thing does. As far as we know, it doesn't have a collective universe to save."
"No argument there," said Pit, scooping up as many vaguely edible items as he could.
The Gulpit grunted in annoyance and lapped up another rock. Ike grabbed a few items, wanting to leave the creature with something of its own, and rolled under the Gulpit's rock as it rocketed out at him. He accidentally dropped one of the objects but decided it wasn't worth going back for. Ducking instinctively, he stole past the Gulpit and made for the tunnel entrance, zigzagging as he went. The Gulpit focused on him long enough for Pit to zip by from the other side.
"Is it following us?" Ike asked. He probably should have checked himself considering Pit had more food in his arms, but panic and excitement had clouded his judgment a bit.
"It's just standing at the tunnel entrance," Pit replied. "Poor guy, but hey, angels have got to eat. Humans, too."
"Especially this human. Let's take the bluer path on the left there."
Ike's sides felt like they were splitting open at this point. He was used to traveling in the wild quickly, but in the past few days he'd engaged in a humungous battle with a futuristic organization, run from a bunch of wild killer animals, tried to adjust to a new world, been drugged, sneaked through an enemy base, killed an enemy leader, roughed it on a frozen mountain, and run from yet more wild killer animals. He couldn't shake that Horizon was chasing them, and he hadn't done this sort of thing in a long time. Naturally, he was low on sleep and patience.
They stopped running five minutes later when they were sure none of the Gulpit's friends were coming to rain on their parade. Groaning from pain, Ike sat against the crystalline wall and crossed his legs.
"Dinnertime at last," he sighed. "Let's see what we've got here."
Pit sat down across from Ike, looking a little dazed from all the running. He dumped his food on the ground and began sorting through it, relief beginning to cover his face.
Ike picked through what he'd managed. "Some sort of frostbitten vegetable, scrap of meat, heck if I know what this is...hey, Pit, toss me that thing that looks like a turkey."
Pit stared at Ike like he'd asked him to cut off a finger. "But this is my pile."
"We share, Pit. Your mother did teach you sharing, right?"
"If you mean Palutena, yes, she did. I just ignore it sometimes."
Ike was too tired to be surprised. "Palutena is your mother?"
Pit took an excruciatingly loud bite off an iced potato. "Well, kind of. Not all angels have physical parents, so some are crafted out of light like putty. I never met any parents of mine and I never age unless Palutena says so, so I'm guessing I'm one of those made from light."
Ike considered Pit's words and nibbled at a large frozen leaf. "Never met your parents, huh..."
"Hey, humans have parents all the time, right? Did your mother teach you to share, or what?"
Ike smiled wryly as bittersweet memories starting coming back. He leaned his head back against the wall. "Probably at some point. Probably told me a lot of things I should have taken to heart more... Just ignored it sometimes."
A faraway look dawned on Pit's face as he realized part of what Ike was saying. "Oh, I, uh... Sorry."
"Nah, you're fine. I'm still here because of her and father, and that's what matters."
Pit tossed Ike something meaty that looked slightly more substantial than what Ike had. He caught it in midair and turned it over, looking for beefier parts.
"So you were made out of light," Ike continued. "How does that work out? What were your earliest memories?"
Pit shrugged. "I'm pretty sure I was made a baby at first. I wasn't aware of my surroundings for the first few years or so. I hear a lot of light-made angels start as babies."
"Well, all humans do."
"I hear that, too. A lot of people want to take care of angel babies, so we're often left that way for awhile. Palutena just decides when I need to age. That hasn't happened for twenty-five years or so. I guess I'm just too good-looking now to change."
Ike stopped eating. "Twenty-five years? How old are you?"
"Uh...somewhere in the thirties?"
"You look like you're thirteen. Amazing." A strange thought occurred to Ike. "Actually, if Palutena can increase your age, could she make you younger as well?"
Pit paused and looked away slowly, then widened his eyes in shock. "I have no idea, but don't give her any ideas, Ike. I like me the way I am now."
"I am conjuring up some interesting images in my mind right now..."
"Please don't."
Ike smiled, then stopped as he heard something strange resound throughout the cavern. He straightened up, grasping Ettard's hilt in case the sound meant danger. Pit heard it too and looked around the dim room slowly.
"Sounds electronic..." Ike muttered.
Pit's gaze fixed on their backpack Ike had laid beside the wall. "It's the mini-teleporter thing! Get it out!"
Ike mouthed Pit's words, not grasping their meaning at first, then bolted for the backpack and tore it open. He snatched the round, metallic device out, noticing several colored lights blinking rapidly. For a moment, he wondered if he should really be holding it.
"What's it doing?" Pit asked.
Ike shook his head. "Heck if I know. Anything in the manual about this?"
"Where's the manual?"
"I don't know. In the bag. Look, I'm about to start hitting random buttons here. Help me through with this."
Pit started digging through the bag, then flung it away and turned to the portable teleporter. "Does this mean it's working? How'd we warp here?"
Ike tried to control his panic. "Press the bottom left button, wait for the menu... I forget. How do we know this thing won't shut itself - "
"Initiating local environmental scan," a computerized female voice said.
Ike almost dropped the teleporter. "What?"
"It talks," Pit whispered.
A small tube popped up from the teleporter, shining a bright blue light in the center. A moment later, the light extended into a two-sided beam, rotating around the room to illuminate their surroundings. Ike looked around cautiously to make sure nothing aggressive noticed.
"I don't like this," said Pit. "Maybe we should just trash it and move on."
"We're not trashing it," Ike grunted. "This thing could be our only ticket out of here."
"What if it calls the Horizon guys?"
"Then we fight. We can't get rid of this thing."
The light shut off and the tube receded back into the teleporter. It emitted a few more beeps, then fell silent.
"This light wasn't on before," Ike said, pointing to a small orange light on the side of the teleporter. "It says 'auxiliary' right beside it. Any idea what that means?"
Pit threw his hands up. "I don't know."
Ike hated unknowns, and unlike all his previous hazy skirmishes, he couldn't simply fight his way out of it. For all he knew, the teleporter would explode in his hands if he pressed anything, but he knew it could also be a quick way off the mountain.
"Local environmental data collected," the teleporter said. "Sending data to main source."
"Uh oh," Pit mumbled.
"Opening dialogue channel," it continued. "Please wait."
"Pit, if the teleporter points anything dangerous at my head, shoot it," Ike commanded.
"I thought you said trashing it was a bad idea."
"Changed my mind."
"I can't win with you, can I?"
"Enjoying your company?" the teleporter said. Unlike the first voice, this one was definitely male and possessed human emotion. Ike didn't recognize it, but he guessed it wasn't from a friend.
"Who is this?" Ike asked. He set the teleporter on the ground and backed up a bit.
"Just your friendly neighborhood watcher, tracking your every move. We have been for a fair bit, actually. Must be cold over there."
"So send us some blankets," said Pit.
"On orders from Pane, I'll do you one better," the voice responded. "For reasons still unspecified, he doesn't want us swooping in and annihilating your rear ends just yet, so we're just going to test and torment you a bit. There isn't a whole lot of juice left in the prototype portable teleporter you stole, so I'll keep it brief. Start running."
"Start running?" Ike repeated. "Why?"
"Because it amuses us, and I'm supposing you don't want to end up as food for the indigenous life-forms. Be grateful we were generous enough to warn you in advance. I'd have loved to hear your reactions when you saw it without expecting it."
Pit groaned and leaned back. "Come on. Give us five minutes to eat first."
"Too late. You're burning daylight, and it's getting closer. Peace out, you couple of freaks."
"Entering shutdown mode," the female teleporter voice said. "To restore power, please recharge this teleporter at an established charging station."
All lights on the teleporter went out. Ike blinked, sweating more than before. He'd suspected Horizon would try something, but it still didn't ease his conscience when it came.
Pit grabbed a few scraps of food and tore into them. Growling, Ike took one last bitter bite from a frozen vegetable, then threw the rest of the food into the bag and hoisted it over his back. Pit scooped up the rest, a few dropping out from forced clumsiness.
"This way," Ike decided, heading toward a dark blue tunnel.
Ike heard a very slight howling sound far behind them, along the lines of wind or rushing water. It didn't sound like it was close, but Ike didn't think they were too close to the base of the mountain, either. Whatever it was, it could easily catch up to them before they made it down.
"What is that?" Pit asked.
Ike nearly stumbled over a protruding crystal. "I don't know, and you know what? Let's not find out."
They entered another wide nexus. Ike noticed a couple of local creatures at the edges of the room. One, a Gulpit, fled into one of the tunnels. The other, a Frost Piranha, promptly disappeared beneath a snow patch. Ike rose his sword, arm trembling somewhat, ready for the Piranha to rise again. When it didn't, he crossed the room quickly but warily, steering for the tunnel the Gulpit went down.
"Even the animals are retreating," Pit commented.
The howling sound was louder behind them. They still had a good lead on it, Ike thought, but they'd need a quicker path down if they were going to outrun it. And he still didn't know what the heck it was.
The next room was much smaller than the last, only offering two paths. Ike immediately chose the one he perceived as darker and ran into it, silently praying it wasn't a dead end. He noticed the terrain was getting rougher and wasn't sure if that was good or bad.
He heard Pit grunt behind him, followed by a dull thump. Ike turned around and saw Pit had tripped over a crystal. Ike seized him by the arm and hoisted him up, almost carrying him the rest of the way through the tunnel. The rougher terrain was definitely worse, he decided.
They cleared the next several rooms with relative ease. The crystals were clearly getting sharper and more pronounced, and Ike could swear the place was getting more charged somehow. He felt like something was pricking him all over, and a sharp, sour taste pervaded the air. The howling sound was even louder, so whatever it was could move faster than them.
"If only that teleporter didn't die," Pit panted. "Anywhere is better than here right now."
Ike leaned against the wall for a second. His vision was getting blurry and shaky, probably from both exhaustion and the new element to the atmosphere. Pit didn't seem as affected by it, or maybe he was just in better shape.
Pit slapped him on the shoulder. "Come on, we can't stop."
"I know. I'm just dizzy."
"You'll laugh about your dizziness later. Living is more important right now!"
Ike shook his head and pushed himself off the wall. Pit was right. He'd been through worse and survived. He just hated not knowing what he was up against this time, and sticking around long enough to find out could kill him.
The howling was even closer.
Pit supported Ike as they went through the next tunnel. They were definitely getting near the bottom of the mountain. Ike even felt it getting warmer.
The next room almost seemed to be aware of how close they were. Six different paths branched off, and this room was even choppier and rougher than the previous ones. Ike guessed they had no more than ten of these rooms left before they reached the bottom level.
"That...does not look good," Pit muttered, looking behind them.
Ike's heartbeat picked up. Kind of not wanting to look, he turned and followed Pit's gaze.
From around the corner of the tunnel they'd just come from was some sort of creeping black mist. At first glance it didn't look very fast, but it passed over the ground with such persistence and ease that it didn't need much time to move. Little tendrils of mist stretched out from the edge, looking disconcertingly like long, thin fingers. The mist pulsated from within. Ike had never encountered anything like it, and he somehow got the impression he wouldn't walk away if it touched him.
"We'd better move," Pit said quickly.
Ike started to trot toward a tunnel, but something in the corner of the ground caught his attention. Pit hurried to the tunnel and stopped when he realized Ike wasn't following.
"Come on!" Pit yelled.
"There's a hole in the ground," said Ike, pointing to the corner. It was about ten feet around and, to some extent, appeared to have been made by hand.
"Neat. Now let's go."
"We have to go down, Pit, and the quickest way anywhere is a straight line. We won't make it going through the tunnels."
Pit glanced worriedly at the creeping mist. "The bedsheet guy didn't mention anything about holes in the ground. We don't know where it leads. We're taking the tunnels."
Ike strode to the hole and looked into it. It was incredibly rough-hewn, but it went down at least seventy feet. Worthy of note was that he couldn't see the bottom.
"Ike!"
"This hole looks forged. I'm going in."
"Listen to me for once, you oaf! You don't even have wings!"
Ike lightly dropped over the edge and landed on a crystal shelf some ten feet down. Pit's protests were quieter above him. He desperately hoped Pit joined him; he didn't think the angel would make it through the tunnels, especially not on his own. He looked up one more time, and unable to see the black mist, he climbed down a few more shelves.
The bottom was more visible now. Actually, on closer inspection, it looked like a choppy slope leading beneath the wall on his right. This hole had better end soon, thought Ike. One wrong move and I'm dead.
He hopped onto part of the wall next to him and slid down about ten more feet, coming to a stop on a precariously short ledge. His right foot slipped off, pulling him down even further. He grabbed the ledge at the last moment, dangling with one arm.
Something white and fluffy landed on a shelf on the wall opposite him. "Curse me and my heroics," the form muttered.
Pit had taken his shirt off, revealing his feathery white wings. He was surprisingly well-muscled for his size, but being shirtless was clearly making him colder. He glared at Ike.
"Glad you could join me," Ike grunted, struggling with the ledge.
"Yeah, not for long," Pit replied, pointing up. The black mist had just reached the top of the hole. The tendrils curled over the edge like it was crawling its way in. "I can fly down there pretty easily, but I don't know how you're planning to do this."
"Give me a minute."
"More like a second. We don't have long."
Ike kicked off the wall and grabbed onto another ledge farther down. He misjudged his fatigue and instantly let go of the ledge, plummeting down the middle of the hole. He let out a loud curse, unable to restrain himself.
Pit dove off his shelf and wrapped his arms underneath Ike's shoulders, slowing his descent. Ike planted his feet on a slope and allowed himself to slide down it for another fifteen feet or so while Pit glided to another ledge.
They were just about at the turning point of the hole. The mist had reached the midway point, blocking out the view above. Ike wiped the sweat off his brow. He didn't know if he had enough energy to make it. And worst of all, going down the hole was his idea.
"I'm going on ahead," said Pit. "Be careful going down."
Pit hopped off his ledge, flapping his wings to slow his fall. Ike lowered himself over the edge he'd come to and dropped the rest of the fifteen feet down, narrowly avoiding landing on a particularly sharp crystal. The way forward went vaguely down but was mostly flat and concealed behind a low ceiling. Pit ducked underneath the ceiling and disappeared from view. To Ike's horror, the black mist had caught up to them significantly, howling louder than ever. He followed Pit beneath the low ceiling, forcing his tired limbs to respond at the appropriate strength level.
The low ceiling continued for another thirty feet or so. Ike had to crawl on all fours at a couple of points. To his slight relief, he'd put a good amount of distance between himself and the mist.
The ceiling raised back up about ten feet later. Ike straightened up and lumbered forward as quickly as he could, catching Pit rounding a corner. The sour taste and prickly feeling was almost overwhelming at this point.
They continued for another minute or so, struggling through the uncooperative terrain. Ike estimated they'd put about two minutes between them and the mist. Perhaps they could make it after all.
All hope was nearly dashed to pieces when Ike bumped into Pit, staring at the one thing he'd feared more than the mist then.
"No," Ike muttered.
"A freaking dead end."
A large clump of crystals blocked off the way forward. Judging by the shape of the environment around it, Ike guessed it was a cave-in.
Pit stared at Ike. "Any ideas?"
Ike backed up and put his hands on his hips. There had to be a way out. There had always been a way out for him before. "This looks like a cave-in," Ike started. "And if this tunnel was hewn out manually, it must have an exit beyond this. We just need to clear out the rubble."
"Finally, a brute-violence solution!" Pit exclaimed. He kicked at the crystal rubble, producing a loud smacking sound as virtually nothing happened.
"Stand back," Ike warned Pit. He raised Ettard as high as he could given the low ceiling and swung at the rubble repeatedly, trying to aim for the same spot each time. He managed to knock a few pieces loose, mostly small edges. "Pit, check on the mist for me."
Pit crouched as Ike continued to beat on the rubble, occasionally throwing a kick in for more direct force. "Holy Monoeye!" Pit shouted.
Ike looked over his shoulder. "Not good?"
"Really bad. This stuff travels quickly in tight spaces."
"Too bad we can't," Ike groaned.
"Let me take over. Palutena's weapons are powerful, and I can probably strike faster. I'll need you to throw in some brute force every now and then."
Ike backed away from the rubble. "Your call."
Pit separated his bow into the twin blades and pounded relentlessly on the rubble, moving twice as fast as Ike had. Ike bent down and looked beneath the low ceiling they'd come from. 'Not good' was right: Ike's initial time estimate had been off. They had twenty seconds remaining at best.
"Alright, now kick!" Pit commanded.
Ike backed up and plunged his foot into the rubble. A few more pieces knocked loose.
"Kick where I weakened it!" said Pit.
Desperate, Ike located Pit's slashes and kicked with all his might. The rubble shook, knocking several bigger pieces loose.
"One more time!" Pit yelled.
Ike threw his foot into the rubble, producing a smaller payoff than his last kick. Pit gestured for him to stand back again and resumed beating on the rubble.
Ike backed up a few steps and inexplicably lost the feeling in his left ankle. Shocked, he shuffled forward and looked behind him. The mist had come through the narrow tunnel and billowed behind them, blocking off any escape. Ike had accidentally put part of his foot into it, resulting in a loss of feeling. He found he could still move it, but he had absolutely no desire to see what effect the mist had on the whole body.
"Again! Kick it again!" Pit shouted.
Knowing they had mere seconds, Ike ran to the rubble and threw himself completely into the kick. The entire top part of the crystal wall fell apart, leaving enough room for a thin person to crawl through. For good measure, he gave the rubble one more kick, opening up more room on the bottom right.
"We did it!" Pit cheered. "Let's go!"
The two of them cleared the rubble and ran as fast as their tired legs would take them. They put more space between them and the mist, though Ike knew the lead wouldn't amount to much. The tunnel curved to the left and leveled off, being smoother and wider than what came before them. Ike took that as a positive sign and reinforced the strength in his limbs.
The tunnel finally opened into a square room constructed of frozen bricks, definitely made by hand. The only thing in the room was a large, frosted blue open-top pipe in the center and a sign next to it which read, "Within this pipe lies the secret entrance to yonder Shiver City. None of Gulpit, Piranha, Bowser, or especially Duplighost alliance shall enter this pipe. Violators shall be clubbed over the head with a mallet. Survivors shall be clubbed over the head with a mallet a second time."
"What does that say?" Pit asked.
"If you're evil, go away. I don't see another way out, so in we go."
Taking one last look behind him, Ike jumped into the pipe, followed soon after by Pit. The pipe was just barely big enough to fit him comfortably; actually, it kind of seemed like it expanded just for him. He really hoped he hadn't jumped into another death trap. The promise of a Shiver City at least sounded nice.
The pipe seemed to speed his descent automatically, causing the narrow interior to zip by him frighteningly fast. Pit began yelling behind him, and before long, Ike found himself unable to suppress a long shout. This is it - the next few seconds will either save me or kill me.
In the midst of all the madness, Ike realized the pipe had actually changed directions and was now taking them horizontally, winding through the underground at breakneck speed. Ike wasn't claustrophobic, but even he started to feel uneasy about how packed in they were.
The pipe levelled out instantly, and something boosted Ike up from his feet. He was zooming upward now, and if there was no opening at the top, his skull was going to shatter like an egg -
Ike suddenly felt brisk outdoor air whipping past his face. He tumbled onto ground, rolling over and over again in the snow, barely even aware of where he was. A few seconds later, he came to a stop on his back, staring up at the clear night sky. Pit came to a stop somewhere behind him, kicking a small amount of snow onto Ike.
"Where are we?" Ike whispered.
Pit groaned. "My eyes. That was way too fast."
Ike forced himself to sit up and looked around. The mountain was a good distance behind them, towering over them intimidatingly, but they were definitely off of it. The pipe they had just burst from was nowhere to be found. They were in the midst of a bunch of snow-covered trees. Ahead of them, however, was a large town, full of fair-sized houses with illuminated windows. Ike couldn't see the full extent of it, but he knew it must mean rest, food, and no one trying to murder them.
"Is the mist still following us?" Pit asked.
Ike wiped his eyes, then flung the snow off his hand. "How can it? The pipe we came from is gone. Now let's go find ourselves somewhere to stay. We need food, you need a shirt, and I need time to clear my mind."
Pit rolled to his feet. "A shirt would be good right now. I'm not used to the cold."
Brushing himself off, Ike stood up and walked to the town entrance. He was cold, tired, hungry, sore, and most of all, confused. For once, he might actually get a chance to rest and make some sense of what was happening.