After successfully managed to prevent the magnetic magical asteroid from impact, Peaches and Julian married, It's time for them to set off on an adventure on their own, chase their dreams and explore, just like how Manny and Ellie told them to.
Packing off and preparing to go, Peaches asks them politely:"You guys have anything else to say before we go out?"
Manny, looking at Peaches with his big wide eyes, comes to give her a hug:"Remember, don't stop until you have make your dreams come true and found out the things you want to." He said it with a soft voice. "Oh, and don't forget to look out for each other!" Ellie added.
"I will miss all of you guys, We'll be back to visit you two!" Julian said it with a cheerful tone.
The possum brothers came to give their fuzzy giant niece a hug.
"Don't forget about us okay?"
"I won't" Peaches quickly replied, as she nudged both of them with her trunk.
"Remember sweet-heart, we'll always be her. If you ever need help, call us." Sid came to say goodbye as well. He knew he won't be seeing them for a long time.
Peaches just give Sid a friendly smile.
"Safe travels, Hotshot, and you too, Bro-son!" as Manny gives them his last farewell.
And so, they set out of Herd Valley to discover and explore beautiful lands and destination as they roam around freely. Places that would be too fantasy to be real and too odd to be true. Sometimes, Peaches let out a "Woah" everytime she was completely immersed in the landscapes. From high mountains, to green jungles. Both of them feasted their eyes on the tremendous beauty of the sights.
They traveled around, as they met new animal species and exotic weathers from all around the continent.
"Julian, this might be the best decision ever" she said as they wander around to new biomes everytime, which makes him blush slightly, he was feeling really lucky to stay with someone like Peaches.
Peaches was having the time of her life, with her husband. It was like a never ending dream for her. She was completely drowned in the hype of adventure and sight-seeing for days and nights.
That's not the case for Scrat, however, He was trying to get the acorn on top of the tree only to be picked up by a random bird, which makes them engage in a "Stop hitting me or there will be consequences" type of fight.
The fun and beauty soon came to an end as the duo ran out of places to go and explore around the continent.
"Let's visit an old place, my dad used to love it, despite it being old and common."
"Really? Sweet! Where are we gonna head to?" Julian didn't really care if the place is old or common, all he wanted was to spend time with his wife.
"We are heading to Ice Valley! One of my dad's old home, where there are events, both happy and sad, which leads to today" she ended that sentence with a bit of sadness on her face. But the joy and hype of adventure quickly smothered away the said emotion. "There are still some beautiful scenes over there so let's go!" she yelled that out in the peaceful atmosphere of the current place they're in, which makes Julian smile.
-•-
Buck was having a blast in the Dino-world, as he rode the somewhat tamed Rudy around and feeling like a god. He then paid a visit at the Dino-bird's home, as he wanted to invite them to join his "fun".
"Hey Roger, wanna go up there and visit the herd with me? Just a little visit!" Buck asked the Dino-bird.
"Well I guess I could, I'm pretty much free today" Roger nodded as he said it"
"Awesome! Well, what are you waiting for? Chop chop, come on then" After that he jumped off Rudy and just flings up into the sky with what was supposed to be his "Buck-made" launch pad from a bent down tree and some ropes.
"Awell, Buck has always been Buck"
"Hey, where are you planning to go with that weasel?" Gertie intrigued.
"Uhhh, just to visit the herd, my sister. You wanna come?" replied Roger.
"Sorry bro, got some things to do with dad today, just be back soon."
Meanwhile, the head of the herd, Manny was talking a walk around the area. When Ellie came along and greets him:
"Good morning sweetie, how are you today?"
Manny was having a weird blue mood, he just stood there looking up at the fresh big blue skies, but Ellie didn't quite notice it.
"Oh, I'm just walking around, and having a lo...I mean, I'm fine today." After Manny blurted that sentence out, Ellie immediately know what was her husband thinking.
"Daaww, Manny, it's alright, They'll be fine out there, They'll protect each other, and most importantly, will pay us a visit one day!" Manny stood there in amusement wondering how did Ellie read his emotions like a book.
"Well, I guess let's just hope for the best" claimed Manny. After that, they went back to have breakfast. Possum brothers Crash and Eddie was having a rock paper scissor fight, only to have it turn into a fight like they always have daily.
"Hi Manny!" as Sid walk by, with a box in his claws.
"Hey Sid! What you got there?" as the male mammoth curiously ask.
"It's a gift that I prepared for you, it's really nice!"
Manny take the box as Sid give it to him, he then opens it, Manny gave out a "God, Sid what are you up to now?" look.
"The "Lord of the Flames" has gifted you a-" before Sid can finish his sentence, Manny cut him off.
"Bag of Flints?" as Manny looks at Sid, waiting for the sloth's reply. The sloth paused for a while before he slowly reply to his big mammoth friend.
"Yes"
"Why do you give me this?"
"It's a blessing from the Lord myself"
"A blessing from the lord of Burning their own tails?" Manny felt that Sid was kinda ironic after he claimed the sentence.
Sid realized he had his tail set on fire by the campfire nearby, making him panic and he jumped immediately into the river by the side. This made Manny chuckle, he still remember the first time this happened to the sloth decades ago, like it was printed into his brain.
"Everyone makes mistakes, even Lords" Sid whined.
"Don't you worry, you are a Lord, Sid. Lord of Mistakes" Diego added as him and Shira came just in time to witness that.
"I'm just kidding" Diego added, as he didn't wanted to be harsh on the soft sloth's feeling.
-•-
Peaches took Julian to visit her father's old home, Although quite frosty but Julian felt warm exploring the place with Peaches. They explore countless places around it, including the cave paintings.
"These are the drawings that haunts my dad the most" Peaches said that to Julian.
"What's the story behind it?" Julian wanted to know more.
"His wife and first child was killed decades ago by humans, this painting shows it. It might be a still drawing, but for him, it's a raw footage of his dreadful past."
"Man, now I know why Bro-dad didn't greet me well at the start, I kinda feel bad for him"
"Don't worry, there's always a rainbow around the corner!"
"What?"
"Uncle Sid taught me that sentence. Because after he saw this picture, he learns how to forgive things, and eventually returned a baby back to it's father!" Peaches said that with a pride tone, she really admired her father's accomplishments.
"Peaches, you are really lucky to have a father like that." Julian and Peaches traded smiles after he finished off that sentence.
They were chattering around for a while in the cave when suddenly there's a sound like stones just crashed into each other.
"What was that?" They both conclude that sentence at the same time, as things start to "warm up".
Peaches spotted a slightly unaligned plate of stone behind them, so she came to check.
"Peaches, watch out, it might be dangerous!" Julian shouted.
"Don't worry, I got this" Peaches then slowly approached the area near that stone plate.
It started to crumble, and she started to fright
"Nevermind." Peaches said as she starts to back down.
"DON'T GET TOO CLOSE!" Julian yelled as he comes over to pull his wife out.
The ground near the plate and the plate itself breaks, revealing a sinkhole that leads down to somewhere. There's a weird source of white, cyan light emitting from the inside.
"A secret entrance, Cool!" Peaches said and was ready to move in, but just before she could, Julian asked her.
"You sure you wanted to get in? It looks kinda scary and dangerous to me." Julian wanted to always make sure that his wife is always safe.
"Come on, we are exploring, don't start to be overprotective like my dad!" she laughed that off.
"You coming in fluff boy?" Peaches mocks Julian's cowardliness in a friendly way. Julian just sighed and join her, because staying outside and wait is a worse option.
And so, they entered into a ruin, everything around it was either frosted or was buried in snow, everything but the paths.
"How did it snow or freeze in here, it's completely cut off from the outside" Peaches wondered, she was really confused, as things in this ruin didn't make sense at all.
"Ooooh, spooky. You should know that we are in a strange place." said Julian.
As they entered deeper into the ruin, it started to get even colder.
"It's starting to feel a bit chilling in here" claimed Julian, he can feel the chilling breeze getting more intense every step forward.
"Well, at least it is a nice place." Peaches replied, she didn't care about it much.
They followed the emitted lightsource to check what was it. There are statues of weird entities and strange symbols carved deeply into the ruin's walls, but only one sentence of symbols was highlighted in a bunch of other million symbols. It was highlighted in blue-ish white:
𝙹 リ𝙹ℸ ̣ !¡𝙹𝙹ꖌᒷ ℸ ̣ ᒷ ᓭ!¡ℸ ̣ 𝙹 ℸ ̣ ᒷ ᓵᓵꖎᒷ ᒷᓭᒷᒲʖꖎᔑリᓵᒷ.
"Can these symbols be translated?" Peaches wondered, but her question was soon to be answered by Julian
"Is this… The Standard Galactic Alphabet?" Julian asked, but he feels like it's an answer to his said question.
"It is!" Peaches shouted it. "Also check this out! I found out what was emitting the light!"
"You check it first, lemme try to translate this highlighted sentence in stone" Julian said as he was more interested in what the sentence is trying to say
Peaches follows the lightsource, and what she found was like a den at the end of the ruin, filled with ice, snow, accompanied with the extreme cold and dry atmosphere in it. Peaches can feel it going through her fur, but those factors weren't enough to stop her from continuing. As she was looking around the den, her eyes caught itself on what it seems like a throne, made out of icicles. There was a single icicle that emits the lightsource from before, it was floating on the throne, the thing was like a star in the night skies.
"JULIAN! Look at this, oh my!" She shouted, making Julian come to her, however he is still looking down on a piece of leaf he used as a note, trying to translate the entire sentence, but he looks worried, as he managed to translate the first one or two words.
"Sweetie, look at this floating icicle! That's where the lightsource come from!" Her excitement increased.
Only because of that, Julian looked up to see the icicle in all of its glory
"Woah! Peaches, that would be nice for a torch in the night when we roam around the lands, a freezing torch, how ironic yet cool is that."
However, that doesn't dissuade Julian from his task, to translate the text from the walls of the ruin. The more he translate, the more shocking it gets.
"I'm gonna get it!" Peaches said as she got closer to the icicle. It started to shine brighter. The luminous icicle started to reveal its magnifying beauty. It was like a treasure chest from the darkest of dungeons. It lures Peaches like a bait in the eyes of a fish.
Except for a fact that it was literally a bait.
It was that moment when Julian was in a huge panic attack. He quickly jitters because of fear as he finished translating the sentence engraved on the ruin's walls.
"Peaches...PEACHES!" He shouted, as he tried his best to warn her.
"Julian?" she replied, only to be greeted with a chilling sentence.
"Do...not...g-get...near...the..i-ii..ICE!" Julian dissuade her from getting closer.
He shout the last letter in fear, as the entire sentence he translated depicts imminent danger.
"Peaches, STAY OUT!"
"Come one Julian, like I'm gonna be scared of a floating light icicle" She just ignores her husband warning, she is completely clueless about the surprises that the "icicle" had for her in store.
"It's not just a floating light icicle, It's A SPIRIT!" He reveals the icicle's true identity, but it was too late.
That sentence from Julian however caught Peaches attention.
"What?!" She raised her eyebrows, not realizing the threat in disguise right in plain sight.
The icicle suddenly floats higher, and its sharp pointy tip turned to the nearest target (which is Peaches)
"Uhhh...what is it DOING?!" She started to back away a few steps.
"PEACHES, RUN!"
Peaches quickly turned her back and took a few steps running, but the icicle launched itself hands down at the speed of sound, hitting Peaches right at the back, and it was in a few inches deep.
"PEACHES!" Julian shouted as he was shocked about what just happened in front of his eyes.
Julian rushed to her only to see the icicle shine brighter when it impaled into Peaches back. She just manage to let out an "A!" before dazzling around, and collapse.
She drops to the floor, unconscious, Julian came to check at her wound as tears form in his eyes.
"Peaches..no..no! Not now! Don't leave me here, don't end our adventure now."
There was no blood coming out from the wound, her body is stone cold. Julian can feel it, as he tried to keep his tears in. He tried to pull the icicle out, but remember that he shouldn't since Ellie once taught him how to perform first-aid, that pulling a sharp object from the wound is a bad idea.
"Peaches!" He shouted her name in agony.
He tried to bring her back to consciousness, but all efforts were futile, he only just sit by her body and cried more. He looked at her motionless body, as "rivers" flow from his eyes. He can't do anything about this situation, it feels like it was over for the unfortunate Peaches. The pain grew inside him more and more when he tried to deny the fact: That he failed to protect his own mate. He insist on calling her name and shake her body, but she just didn't respond to his call, nor any efforts that he threw at. He looked at her nearly closed eye and open mouth in disbelief. He held her trunk with his, hoping a miracle would happen, but nothing happened.
It's over, but is it?
Moments passed, he thought he'd lost her, but then, he saw her leg violently twitches.
"Peaches, Peaches you okay?" He was hoping for a respond from the wounded female mammoth. Anything but a respond.
He did received one, but in a more physical way.
A cluster of icicle swiftly rise from the ground, and almost hit Julian in the head if he didn't fall back. Something was causing this abnormality. He quickly backed away from Peaches.
"Peaches?" He started to worry and think about the unthinkable.
Peaches opens one of her eyes big and wide, but her eye is no longer green, it has a weird tone of ice in it, long with white blue-ish color, and the veins in her eye is also that white blue-ish color. Some of her fur turned into white, but it is still mostly brown and dark. She then give out some screeching that has some of her accent. Her husband still in fear calling her name.
"Peaches, it's me!" Julian doesn't know what had gotten into her. She screamed and screeched at his words, looking at him like a stranger.
She then charge towards Julian, sending the round mammoth into the walls. Despite being a huge mammoth, Julian can instantly feel the sharp pain as his back hit the hard stone wall with a big impact.
"OWW!...Peaches?!" He groaned out the pain, but tried one more time on calling her name with all of his remaining determination.
There's some icicles forming on top of Peaches' sides, Its sharp-like dagger tips was already pointing at Julian. He started to realized that the mammoth he loved is no longer in front of him anymore, but what in front of him now was a dangerous entity.
"WOAH!" He let out as he barely get hit by the icicles. Looking at the deadly sharp tips from the icicle is already nightmarish enough for this friendly mammoth, not to include Peaches.
Peaches then starts to cry, let out a zombie-like scream of pain or feeling lost. She had completely lost her control over her body and mind. Julian is now in a fight-or-flight situation.
Knowing that Peaches isn't there or isn't in control of herself anymore, he knew what's best to do in that moment.
As more icicles forms again by Peaches' sides, he took his chances and made a run out of the ruin. He ran and ran and ran, ran as far away as possible. He knew that he had to go back to Herd Valley and talk to the Herd about this urgent situation, knowing that it will only become worse if he doesn't speak out. He can already imagine the disappointment in Ellie's eyes, or maybe Manny's wrath if they know about this, but it was his only option. During his way back, he rewrites his "philosophy" in his head.
"No plan is the worst plan."
END OF PART 1.