Thanks to Okbuddy16 and Footrot Flats for reviewing the previous chapter! Once this story is fully uploaded, I'll re-upload my other Diego/Shira short novel.

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Chapter Four: Separate Paths, Shared Goals

Soto bared his teeth, a deep growl escaping from his throat. There was a change in the air. He could smell it. For days they had travelled the cold desert plains searching for a meal. Their plans had been delayed in favour of investigating the powerful tremors. "How much further, Soto?" Lenny whined, ignoring the grumblings in his stomach.

"I want to know about this earthquake that struck the ground a few days ago," Soto replied, a rough edge to his tone. "You should be able to find a meal there. Herds of animals always pass through this way."

The three sabres exchanged worried glances, not sure what else to say. Soto was their leader; he knew what was best for them. They had to place their trust in him. He stopped again, sniffing the air. "Did you catch scent of something?" Oscar said.

Soto did not respond. Instead he sniffed the ground. "I smell blood."

Zeke's eyes brightened. "Blood? That means fresh meat!"

Soto sniffed again. "And... mammoth."

Even the other sabres did not detect the scent of mammoth. Had Soto returned with enhanced senses? "Mammoth? Manny?" Lenny inquired.

He shook his head. "There are two of them hiding in a cave not too far from the earthquake." His pace increased into a slow trot. "Looks like there'll be mammoth on the menu tonight." Without offering further explanation, Soto broke into a sprint and ran towards the cave.

"Better follow him," Zeke said.

"Mammoth!" Lenny said.

"Come on, best not to keep him waiting." Oscar sprinted after Soto, his companions close behind. Were these mammoths related to Manny? His question would be answered soon.

One step closer...

Another paw forward...

His prey wasn't aware of his presence. With a vicious leap forward, Diego sunk his teeth into the deer calf's neck. Unable to support the extra weight, the deer dropped to the ground in a heap. Its legs kicked in various directions, trying to throw the sabre off but it was too late. In seconds, its frantic kicking slowed before coming to a stop.

Another calf torn away from its mother. Another belly to fill. Such was the vicious cycle of life. In some ways Diego felt sympathy for the deer. He wondered what it would be like to travel the icy plains without any form of protection to defend itself from predators. Hooves and speed could only do so much, but ultimately intelligence and strength came out on top. Bravery too otherwise Sid would've died a long time ago.

His stomach grumbled. A calf would keep his belly satisfied for another day, but he had another belly to feed. His thoughts drifted to the female sabre resting with the herd. He wondered what had caused her to become a lone sabre. Had her pack abandoned her? Had they died? It was a mystery. He wasn't going to ask otherwise risk being subjected to Sid's jokes.

Jaw clamped around the deer's neck, Diego walked over to a stray bolder and placed the animal behind it. He preferred to eat not in the wide open. He sunk his teeth into the warm flesh and pulled it apart piece by piece. Soon, all that remained of the deer was its bones, hooves and stray flaps of skin.

Stomach full, he returned back to his hunting ground and searched for another calf. He spotted a mother with two standing a couple of yards away, but she was alert. Chasing her would be futile. He needed an easier target. There. Two young male calves engaging in a fight with their developing antlers. Perfect.

The bigger of the two calves lunged forwards, his head low ready to battle with the other. Antlers clashed and locked. The two males struggled to throw the other one aside. Diego watched in amusement. "What a waste of energy..." he muttered, but he was thankful for it. It made catching prey much easier.

The smaller of the males stumbled, weakening his posture allowing the other male to cast him aside. As he stumbled to regain his composure, Diego jumped over the boulder and sprinted after the weakened male. His sprint caused the other deer to scatter. His target, exhausted by the fight, tried to run but failed to gain ground. He was down on the ground within seconds. Picking it up within his powerful jaws, he trotted back towards the herd.

His journey back was short. Sid covered his eyes unable to bear the vacant look in the calf's eyes. He dropped the calf before Shira's paws. "Here, have it." Dropping his head down, he pushed the corpse forward closer to Shira's jaws.

She looked up at him. "What about you? I don't see you with a meal."

"I ate mine before returning." It was impossible to carry two animals back to Shira, and leaving a meal behind would attract other predators. Avoiding a fight was necessary. He stepped away leaving Shira to eat her meal lost in his own thoughts.

Ellie trembled, but not because of the cold. Her two brothers sat on her back burying themselves into her fur whilst Peaches pressed her side against her leg. She wrapped her trunk around her daughter protecting her from the cold. Although mammoths had thick fur the young adolescents were still growing theirs. She felt the blistering winds ruffle her fur causing a shudder to run down her spine.

"Where are we going to go? We can't stay here in the open like this!" Peaches cried.

She was right. They were susceptible to predators in the open. Finding a place to rest in a cave was important. Ellie removed her trunk from Peach and pointed forward. "We're going to find some place to stay before we freeze to death." Or experience another earthquake. What was the cause behind that anyway?

"What if the ground shakes again?" Crash said, clinging on to a strand of fur.

Eddie nodded his eyes wide. "Yeah. The ground might eat us up for dinner!" He had always believed the ground beneath his feet was sturdy, but now he had doubts. If the ground opened up again would they fall in it? How far would they fall? Where would they go? What was beneath the ground they walked upon?

"We'll head back to the cave you celebrated your twelfth birthday at," Ellie said. She ushered Peaches to her feet with the tip of her trunk. "And then we'll find your father." Mentioning the word father brought tears of sadness to her eyes. Where was Manny now? Had he escaped the shaking grounds unscathed? She had no answers. All she could do was hope for the best.

She led them back to the cave which was only a couple of miles away from the earthquake. "Do you think dad is all right?" Peaches said, trotting alongside her mother.

"Your father will be fine," Ellie replied.

They reached the mouth of the cave and entered inside. In the middle of the room lay the remains of an egg shell. Ellie frowned. As far as she knew, no bird made their homes within caves nor did they lay giant eggs. "What's the matter?" Peaches said.

Crash and Eddie climbed off Ellie's back and chased each other around the cave, but stopped when they noticed the troubled expression on her face. "What's wrong? Are we in trouble?" The two exchanged glances and dropped to the ground motionless.

Peaches used her trunk to awaken the opossums. "That won't fool us."

"We're going to have to think of something new, Eddie," Crash said.

"Save it for later you two. There's something wrong about this cave, look at that egg. Well, the remains of it," Ellie said, pointing at the egg remains before them. "Something hatched out of it."

Crash and Eddie advanced towards the egg, treading carefully as if afraid the egg shells would come alive. "That must have been one giant bird to lay an egg like this," Eddie said, attempting to pick up one of the pieces. The large size of the egg shell was too much for him. He fell backwards onto the ground and laughed. Crash soon joined in the maddened laughter.

"Keep your voices down, something is coming!" Ellie hissed.

The opossums fell silent and became stiff. "Should we hide?"

She nodded. "Yes, hide!"

Crash and Eddie looked around themselves searching for a suitable place to hide. They both fixed their gazes on a stalagmite. "We'll hide there." They two scurried to hide leaving the two mammoths.

"Stay close to me Peaches," Ellie warned.

Peaches nodded. "I'm not going anywhere."

A large male sabre entered the cave. At first, she thought it was Diego, but one look at his eyes and she knew it wasn't. This sabre had blood red eyes. He stared at them, his eyes devoid of any emotion. "Look what we have here two mammoths." He took a few steps forward, a smirk on his face. "And here I thought I'd seen the last one..."

Ellie tightened her jaw. Had he encountered Manny? "What do you want?" She didn't dare look to see where the opossums were. Three other sabres joined the lead male. Their eyes stared at her then to Peaches with hunger. Instinct caused her to step forward and push Peaches behind her. "You're not having my daughter for dinner," she spat.

"We don't intend to eat you..." the lead male spoke. His eyes fell upon Peaches. "You look familiar..." He looked closer into her eyes. Then it hit him. She had the same eyes as Manny, the mammoth that killed him. The corners of his mouth curved upwards into a smirk. "This changes things." Once again he moved forward.

Ellie stepped back. "What do you mean?"

His eyes lingered on her face. "You're connected to Manny, aren't you? Don't lie to me, I know those eyes," he said, glancing down briefly at the younger mammoth. "You're going to help me find him."

"Why would I want to do that?"

He drew closer baring his teeth. "Disagree and you and your daughter will fill up our stomachs. Agree and you live," he said. "Your choice."

Ellie's eyes flickered over the four sabres as she contemplated her next move. There was no way she could fight four sabres. One could be handled, but four? Impossible! She glanced at her daughter. Her eyes were wide with fright. She would not place her child in danger. "Why do you want to find Manny?"

"Manny travels with a sabre called Diego. Diego is an old friend of ours. I would like to meet him again," he replied.

There was something about his words that filled her with uneasiness, but he had placed her in a tight situation. She suspected this sabre wanted to harm her friends and family. Unfortunately, she didn't have another option. For now, she had to play it safe. "Fine. We'll come up with you." She hoped the opossums were smart enough to remain hidden.

His smirk widened. "Excellent. Oscar! Zeke! Lenny! Check every inch of this cave and ensure this mammoth doesn't have spies." The three sabres behind him split in different directions sniffing the ground for traces of living flesh.

One of the sabres jerked its head up. "I've caught scent of something!" He leaped forward behind a stalagmite and brought his head down. Seconds later, he brought it up again but the excitement in his eyes had faded. "It's nothing, Soto. Just two dead opossums." Ellie fought the urge to sigh with relief. The opossums might be small, but their defence mechanisms worked wonders.

Soto sighed. "Let us leave then, we have a lot of miles to cover." He led the way out of the cave, Ellie and Peaches following behind.

The other three sabres surrounded her preventing any possible means of escape. As they exited, she cast one forlorn glance at the opossums and hoped they'd survive without her.

After Shira had finished her meal, Sid turned around and walked over to her. "So, what's your name?" In the corner of his eye, he looked at Diego wondering if the big cat was listening.

She wiped her face with the back of a paw before responding, "Shira."

"That's a nice name," Sid replied, settling down beside her. He rested the back of his head on her body and crossed one leg over the other. "Where are your friends?"

Shira lowered her head onto her paws. "I don't have friends."

Sid sat up. "No friends?"

She shook her head. "My..." She stole a quick glance at Diego then swallowed, "My pack died." His ears perked up, but dropped as fast as they had. "Humans drove us off."

"How did you survive?"

"I was a teenager at the time. I managed to escape the conflict with my mother. Unfortunately, she was injured during the escape." She sniffed, as if recalling the memories right now. "A spear had pierced her side. She told me to flee, despite my wishes to remain at her side," Shira added, a tear rolling down her cheek. Drawing in a deep breath, she continued. "From that day on I've been alone."

Sid brought a hand to his heart and sniffed, wiping away tears from his eyes with his free claw. "That's so sad!" He wrapped his arms around her neck then pulled away. "It's all right Shira we are your friends now."

A warm smile crossed her face. "If you don't mind me asking, how did you three come together?" Again she looked at Diego, but he refused to acknowledge her. Hurt, she turned to face the friendliest of her new companions.

"Well it's quite strange really. I like to think that fate brought us together. We were migrating south and I was left behind by my family," Sid said, recalling the memory. It brought a smile to his face even though he had been rejected. It reminded him of just how much time had passed. "Two Brontops attacked me but Manny saved me. I followed him even though he didn't want to be followed at the time," he added, catching Manny's eye.

Manny rolled his eyes. "I tried to get rid of the sloth numerous times, but he's quite persistent."

"And what about him?" she said, glancing at Diego.

Sid followed her gaze. "You can tell her."

The cat looked at Manny and Sid. Both their eyes told him he had to explain. He sighed. "I was part of a pack. Don't know if you've heard of Soto before, but he was my leader. We were searching for a group of humans for revenge. They had taken away Soto's mate and we planned to act in kind by eating the chief's baby son. I had the opportunity to take the child, but I failed and as punishment, I was ordered to find and retrieve the baby." It felt strange explaining such detail to a stranger.

"Then Diego convinced us to let him travel with us to find the human, but all he wanted to do was lead his pack to ambush us," Sid said. "We found out about his plan at Soto's gang attacked us. It was a vicious fight," he said, attempting to act out some of the moves used during the battle. "It didn't appear to go in our favour, but Diego turned on Soto saving Manny. We won the battle and Soto died." Sid shrugged. "Oh, and we returned the child to its parents. That's how we became friends."

How odd, she thought. "That's nice."

"You mentioned you were eager to see us. Why?" Diego demanded, fixing his intense predatory eyes on her. He wanted to confirm his suspicious.

A light red tinge of red blush formed on her cheeks. She dropped her gaze, as if embarrassed to share with them her intentions. After the cold greeting she received from him, she didn't want him to know. "I... uh..." Darn. She cursed herself for not thinking of an excuse earlier. "I just wanted to meet another sabre, that's all." She forced a grin hoping her answer would suffice.

Sid seemed satisfied, but Manny and Diego were suspicious. Manny was beginning to think Shira was simply looking for a partner – like he had. He forced himself to not grin. If that was her intention, she was going to have a difficult time. He wasn't going to mention it out aloud though, not in front of the poor girl. "I think we should have a party!" Sid exclaimed.

"A party?" Diego repeated, thoughts broken. "This is no time to party, Sid."

Manny agreed with Diego's sentiments. "Have you forgotten about those dark mammals?"

Shira's eyes perked. "Dark mammals?"

Sid was quick to offer a response. "They're evil versions of us."

"Evil versions?"

Diego nodded. "That's why we have to keep moving."

"Where are you going exactly?"

Manny offered an explanation. "To reunite with my family."

"You can come with us. I'm sure Ellie will be happy to see another female," Sid said. "And you can meet Peaches, their daughter. She's so adorable! Almost as cute as me!" he smiled.

Diego rolled his eyes. "Yeah, you keep telling yourself that." He turned his back to the herd and looked forward. "We have to keep going, Manny. Those dark ones might find us."

Manny nodded. "But what about Shira? We can't leave her behind."

Feeling taken aback by the kindness they were showing her, Shira felt it was best if she left them. "No... it's all right. You can go on without me." She glanced down at her injury. "Besides, I'll only slow you down." She remained flat on her belly, trying to ignore the pang of sadness welling up inside.

Diego almost sighed with relief. "Then it's settled. We part now."