DISCLAIMER:
Terribly sorry for the delay, what with Christmas I've been busy with relatives and playing with presents. I'm working on trying to make my chapters a bit longer so the wait for them to be posted is actually worth it. I worked on this chapter for two hours getting the script as close as possible -for me- and working on the design of a newcomer in this chapter. Enjoy~
Chapter 14; Reptilian Attack
"Sid…" Manny groaned, getting ready to hit the sloth senseless. For the past hour the sloth had been trying to pass the time with conversation; Except his idea of 'conversation' was dicussing things such as plant species.
"What?" Sid frowned, looking over at the mammoth.
"Is it possible for you to shut up for five minutes?" Diego snapped, passing the two herbivores with a snarl directed to the smaller of the two.
"No." I answered plainly, stopping to rest my aching legs.
"Hey guys, c'mon!" Eddie yelled from up ahead, scampering along the ground and trying to catch Crash.
"Possums, what can you do with them?" Singe snarled as she took off walking again, aggravated.
"Eat them?" Soto suggested.
"We can all dream." Fatal remarked, stretching his slim body.
Later that day, the group began to tread on an ice field, leaving the safety of the plains behind. Oh dear. Why this place? If I remember correctly, it was where some sort of shark-like creatures attacked. Shuddering a little at what was to come, I slowed my pace to walk beside Fatal, but then slowed it even more so we were a while away from the herd.
"Delusion, what is it?" The male asked, letting his soft gaze sweep over me, concerned.
"You might want to stay back from the others right now." I whispered.
"Wh--" His reply was cut short as a thundering sound echoed around the area, along with the horrible sound of ice cracking, and not to mention startled yelps from the herd.
Luckily, Fatal and I were back far enough for our ice flows to crack into rather large pieces. But because we were standing so close together, I accidently tumbled into Fatal, which left us on the ground with me on top of him; an awkward position. I blushed and quickly got off, then let my eyes sweep over the water, looking for the herd members. Soto was on land along with Ellie, Crash and Eddie. Singe was in the water, great.
In my haste, I hadn't noticed how close I was to the edge of the ice piece I was on, along with Fatal; who was now straightening himself and if I saw correctly… a blush? So, I hadn't noticed green scales speeding towards the ice. Next thing I knew, I was torn off land and underwater, an immense force crushing down on my back leg. My captor swam deeply into the mini-ocean, and loosened it's grip. Yes! I was free! Wait, no I wasn't. It still held enough power to stop me swimming to the surface. Damn, it was trying to drown me.
Desperately struggling to get out of it's death-grip, I was relieved when I saw a figure plunge into the water. Once the animal came closer, I got a good look, Fatal! He swam past the fish's mouth though, what was he up to? I turned my head and saw an amazing sight; the wolf had latched his jaws onto the fish's fin and was turning quickly, like a crocodile death-roll! The fish gave a yelp and let it's jaws open, letting me speed out of it's striking range and towards air. Pressure on my lungs were killing me. I broke the surface and gasped for air, then looked desperately around for a sign of my grey-furred friend.
In a flash, something was under me. It came to the surface, so therefore made me on it's back. Fatal. Thank goodness. He quickly swam to the closest ice flow, then gently lowered me from his back.
"Thanks," I panted, rising to my paws. My left back leg had a deep inciscion on it, not enough to make it broken, but it risked infection. "You… How'd you do that? You did a crocodile death-roll!"
"No problem." Fatal smiled softly. "Well, it's a trick I use for water fights. I've been doing it my whole life." After explaining, the male slowly walked over to the next ice flow, jumping over the small gap of water inbetween the two.
Following suit, we continued to do this at a slower pace -Thanks to Fatal's concern of my leg- and soon made it to the largest one nearby to land. Everyone was already there, eagerly awaiting our return. Singe had a few cuts, and there was a nearby branch, thick and sturdy. My guess; Diego saved Singe. I'd ask about it later.
"Whoa, what happened to you?!" Sid exclaimed once I was on dry land, Fatal beside me. My leg was held off the ground, like a dog would do when it's paws hurt. This way the ground wouldn't add any pressure to the wound.
"Mutated fish got me." I growled, turning my head behind me to look at two figures glaring at us from the water. 'You sick little…' I snapped mentally at it's attempt to drown it's prey. "Fatal saved me before the fish could drown me."
"Speaking of savings, Diego saved Singe. Don't know how it happened though, was too busy laying down." The sloth grinned goofily, his eyes reading so-gonna-tell-him. I just gave him a glare in return.
"Can we get going, please? Unless you want another near-death experience." Manny snapped, turning to walk off.
"Oh, believe me -- I've had so many I'm basically immune to them now." I growled, but followed after the retreating mammals, Fatal still besides me.
"Ready Eddie?" Crash asked his twin brother as they rolled a log to the top of the hill, a mischievous grin on his face.
"Set." The two leapt onto the log as it started to roll down a steep hill, coming to a sudden stop as they hit a dead tree. Ellie was next to roll down on her log, passing over her 'brother's' log and over the tree, then continuing down.
"So, you think she's the girl for me?" Manny asked doubtfully, turning to Sid.
"Uh-huh." He replied, a grin across his face. "She's tons of fun, and you're no fun at all. She completes you." He drew his index fingers together to touch.
"Don't listen to him, Manny. We know you have fun. Just maybe not fun for us…" Singe muttered, walking past the duo.
"That's very optimistic, Singe." Fatal stated sarcastically as he too passed the two animals.
The two possums ran out of the log, Crash reached his hand up for a high-five from Eddie. They both tried, but missed. Falling to the ground, Crash quickly hopped up and jumped on Eddie's head, then the top of the dead tree. "Hey Manny, can you shoot me out of this tree and into the pond?" He asked excitedly, using his tail to wrap around the small branch and keep steady.
"No." The mammoth answered plainly.
"Aww, come on!" Crash whined, unlatching his tail with a frown.
"How do you expect to impress Ellie with that attitude?" Sid questioned, giving a smirk to Manny.
"I don't want to impress her!" He snapped.
"Then why are you trying so hard to convince her she's a mammoth?"
"Because that's what she is! I don't care if she thinks she's a possum, you can't be two things."
"Oh contraire, my friend," Sid held his claws up to tick off what he was then about to say, "Tell that to the bull-frog, chicken-hawk and turtle-dove."
"He's never gonna let up on you," Diego growled as he passed. "It'll be easier on all of us if you just go with it."
Sid gave a triumphant smirk. Manny sighed and turned to Crash, who's tail was shaped into a triangle and sitting on it, while Eddie was pushing him like a swing. "Okay, what do you want me to do?"
"Pull back the tree and shoot me into the pond." Crash replied excitedly, scampering to the top branch and wrapping his tail around it again.
"I don't know…" Manny trailed off, unsure.
"Well," The possum yet again unlatched his tail and leaned back on the tree, wiping his tiny claws against his fur and then examining them. Kind of like one of those cool guys in high school. "If you're too lame to do it, we can get Ellie."
"No, no. I can do it." The mammoth assured, pulling back the tree with his trunk. "Have you done this before?"
"Only a million times!" Crash pointed a finger in the air, grinning. "FIRE!" Manny let go of the tree, while the possum soared out of it. Ellie looked up in surprise a few hills down. "I can fly! I believe I can fly! Ugh!" From all the way up here, it was hard to see what the small mammal had hit - but I knew it was a tree.
"Uh-oh." Manny took off down the hills, along with almost everyone else in the herd.
I really couldn't bother to watch the exact scene over again. I'd seen it so many times already.
"He'll be alright." I barked to Fatal as he stopped, looking back at me with a questioning gaze.
"There's more then one movie, isn't there?" He whispered softly, cocking his head.
"Yes, there is. Please don't tell them," I pleaded, reaching my head back to lick the wound on my leg. I'd need some special leaves to heal this. Withdrawing from the grooming session, I began to walk down the dirt trail. "There's three movies in all, but I don't want to tell them about this one and the next one."
"Why?"
"You know how Sid is, especially Crash and Eddie. If I tell them what's going on and that there's two more movies," I paused here to think of the best way to explain it. "Well, what happens after that? Once the third adventure is over, Sid will look to me for guidance every time he's in a pickle. He'll expect me to know what's next. And if someone dies he might even blame it on me. Also, if I tell them what's going on right now, they'll try change the course of what should happen. The whole universe could fall apart if they change the movies. So, I don't want to interfere."
"Ah, I understand." Fatal nodded, letting his tail softly sway in the wind. "I won't tell them."
I nodded in appreciation.
"What can I say? They're boys! They make my life a little adventure." Ellie smiled sheepishly and ran after the two possums, whom were now playing. "You guys are so dead!" The herd winced as the sounds of her trunk hitting Crash and Eddie reached our ears. That scene went quickly.
"See?" I whispered to Fatal.
"Sid went to go forage for food. How can you guys even eat that vile stuff?" Fatal snorted, looking up at Manny.
"It's not that bad." I interjected, which received startled looks from everyone but Crash, Ellie and Eddie, who were playing tag nearby. "What? Humans are omnivores. Vegetarian and Carnivourous. Lettuce actually tastes like water with a bit of crunch. I'm more meat though. And by that, no, I don't go out and hunt animals. Humans have poultry farms and slaughter chickens, small animals that there are way to many of." My tastebuds then churned for that creature, it was beautiful. "Great, now I want chicken nuggets from McDonalds. It's a delicacy for carnivores."
"Okay then… Shall we go out and hunt?" Fatal questioned, which received a nod from Singe and I.
"Bye boys, be good." Singe smirked at Manny, Diego, and Soto, before following after Fatal.
The small hunting trio crashed through the trees, slower in speed then normal thanks to my goddamn leg. Over the months I had spent in this Ice Age world, I had become accustomed to the art of hunting. I accompanied every hunting trip, as I was the master of ambush. The hunting party was always made up of three members. I was the ambusher, a vital role in the hunt for fast animals. The second member, in this case Fatal, is the first to spring from hiding. He is to drive a selected target towards the third member; Singe. She is always in plain sight, as her prescence will drive the prey down another path, Fatal still in chase. Then, I make the first bite. All the antelope in the area had disappeared recently, most likely on the hunt for that boat. But a foolish Bush-Antlered Deer herd thought they would survive the flood, and therefore were grazing in a nearby clearing.
"Okay, Fatal, you circle around the herd." I ordered as we came to a stop. These animals were much stronger then gazelle, and it was on a rare time we'd hunt these deer. We'd have to make the best attempt. "See that old cow?" My head motioned towards a deer that was grazing on the edge of the clearing, she was old and weak, an easy target. "Drive it towards the paths down there. Singe will come out one of them and cause it to go down my path. I'll ambush it." My two companions gave a nod. Fatal separated from us as I lead Singe quietly towards a forked path.
"Which one do you want me on?" The sabre-tooth questioned, glancing at the paths.
"The left one." I jumped over to said path and instructed Singe to stay hidden in the bushes. "Once the deer comes your way, jump out and join Fatal in the chase. Lead it down the right path, I'll be waiting in ambush." She gave a nod. Satisfied, I disappeared down my path.
This one was coated with dark branches, they almost touched as they formed an arch over the path. A few metres through the trail and a large structure of rock caught my eye. Perfect. I stalked over and hid behind it, ears swivelling in all directions as I waited for the cow to come. Once she was in close range, I'd leap out and attack.
The sound of a roar reached my black ears, along with frantic hoof beats now turning in my direction. One…. Two….
"THREE!" I barked, leaping out from behind the rock structure and snarling at the cow, who was rearing in surprise. Singe, in a flash, was next to me. I growled and lunged for the deer's throat, successfully making a small inciscion. Falling back to the ground, I waited for the next move.
The deer suddenly began to fall to the ground slowly, that was the sign. Fatal had leapt on it's back and, under his weight, our prey was falling to the ground. I was next to join in, my claws latched around the cow's shoulders as I bit the back of it's neck. Unable to keep steady, she fell to the ground, Fatal and I keeping her pinned. My back paw stood on the cow's shoulder, as my two front ones heavily pinned the deer's head. Singe was to make the killing bite. We had to keep the cow's neck still, otherwise the sabre's fangs would break from making contact with bone. The female smirked, then her long fangs plunged into the deer's neck flesh. One bite severed the blood flow and strangled the wind pipe. The cow's life ended in a flash.
I leapt off of the corpse, licking my lips. As the sabre withdrew from the neck, her fangs were coated in a blanket of warm blood. Dinner was served. I lifted my muzzle to the sky and maw parted, letting a quick howl fill the air; one of triumph, and one to call. Finishing suddenly, I lay down and waited for Diego and Soto to join. I didn't like it when there were more then three hunters, as they paid no role with such an easily killed mammal. So, the two male sabres were my next companions in a hunt.
They joined the feast a few minutes later. With five hungry carnivores, the carcass was almost stripped to the bone by the time everyone had eaten their fill. The strong scent of blood was still wafting through the forest, which would attract other predators. I just didn't expect one to come so quickly. A low growl made me turn, looking over to the rock structure I was in only half an hour before. Emerald green eyes stared right back. Wolf. And a BIG one.
His eyes bore resemblence to Fatal's, emerald green with an intimidating gaze. Pelt was coal black with brown socks, but his right front paw was white, then had the same brown sock on top. His lips curled back into a menacing snarl, which revealed that his left fang was broken. It had a jagged point, and half of what a normal fang would be. Looked like he had bitten something and not let go, probably another wolf. The fang was sharper then a normal dire wolf's though. I actually thought of breaking one of my fangs in half at that moment to look more menacing, but it would hurt like hell.
He was about to pounce when his gaze quickly turned on Fatal. The resemblance of the eyes quickly thawed it's way into my mind. Were they relatives?
"Fatal?" The wolf asked, quickly pulling out of his fighting stance. His voice was deep.
"Connor?" The grey male replied, obviously startled. Once 'Connor' gave a nod and let a small smile across his lips, Fatal wagged his tail and excitedly turned to us. "Guys, this is my brother!"
Fatal has a brother? That's a surprise, ;o And no, Connor will not be joining the herd. He is a character that I've passed to many websites, like WolfQuest, Impressive Title, E-mail RP, and a few other sites. He will be making an appearence in every few chapters, visiting his brother and his 'family'. The next chapter will -hopefully- be longer and have an explanation on Fatal's past.
R&R. Have a good day readers!