Cinematic Adventures: Ice Age

Proposals and Old Faces

The icy winds eventually faded, as the blizzard slowly died down. A gentle snowfall took over the land in this silent hour. Finally, the Equestrians and the herd managed to find a way out of Half Peak as they approached the formation of Glacier Pass. One would imagine that the end of this little excursion through the Ice Age would be cause for celebration. However, at the moment, not a soul was in the mood for celebration or any joy for that matter.

Following the recent defeat of the sabretooth pack and the vanishing of a strange monstrous beast, the group had no choice but to leave their dying friend Diego behind if they had any hope of returning Roshan to his tribe. They still couldn't fathom the whirlwind of events that took place. In such a short time, Diego admitted to leading them to Half Peak for his pack to eat them and suddenly sacrificed himself for them when it truly mattered most.

All of this weighed heavily on everyone and every pony's minds, but they still kept walking to Glacier Pass... no matter how much it hurt to take a step.

"I can't believe Diego's gone," Twilight sighed sadly. "No pony deserves to go out like that."

"He went out of his way to protect us all," Spike spoke up. "It sucked he lied to us the whole trip, but he still chose friendship over his pack. He saved our lives today, and I can't think of a braver way to go out."

"He shouldn't have gone out at all," Gilda grumbled sadly. "He should be walking with us."

"I know it hurts, Gilda," Gabby told her friend. "It's terrible not having him here anymore. But he wouldn't want us moping around; he'd want us to finish this mission and get Roshan back to his family."

At the head of the group, Manny stared toward the valley between the pass and the settlement. He could just make out the outlines of the Neanderthal tribe, slowly trudging their way through the snow.

"Well, looks like we're about to," Manny informed the others.

The remainder of the group quickly approached the mammoth's side. Indeed, they could see the tribe moving forward unaware of their presence. Sid grew incredibly nervous, especially since every human in that herd were carrying spears.

"Eh heh, so um..." Sid chuckled nervously. "What's the plan, fellas?"

"It's not like we can just walk up and talk to them," Rarity pointed out.

"No kiddin'!" Applejack nodded. "That'd be like a long-tailed cat in a room full ah rockin' chairs. Won't be long till somethin' goes wrong."

"As long as we make sure to give Roshan back, nothing bad will happen to us," Fluttershy interjected. "... Right?"

Manny turned back toward the human tribe, who were quickly disappearing over the horizon. It wouldn't be long before they made it through the pass. A determined glint worked its way into Manny's eye, as he turned back toward the group.

"Alright, here's what's gonna happen," Manny told them. "You all stay behind me, and we'll head down there to return the kid."

"You sure that's a good idea?" Twilight questioned skeptically.

"I don't know," Manny shook his head. "But it's the best one we've got."

The huge mammoth grabbed little Roshan in his trunk, positioning him upon his back before heading towards the tribe. The remainder of the group looked toward each other for a moment, but they knew what had to be done. One by one, they proceeded to follow Manny through the valley with a slim bit of hope that all would go accordingly.

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The Neanderthals and their wolves ventured their path to their settlement. All they needed to do was pass under Glacier Pass, and the lengthy journey would be over. It was the final leg of their journey, and Runar had been traveling at the back of his party. The whole time he kept an eye out for anything out of the ordinary. Just as the tribe passed under the pass, their leader paused in his tracks and turned back toward the frozen land they'd soon be leaving behind.