Cinematic Adventures: Ice Age

When Sabers Attack

The air was still by the time it was morning. The atmosphere was quiet and peaceful as the sun slowly rose over the valley. In the small village nestled on the cliffs, the Neanderthal tribe slept soundly in their tents. In one tent in particular, Quill Cast and Atalanta slept snuggling close to one another. On the other side, Curtain Call laid on his side along empty bags of Doritos (Nacho Cheese flavored), a calico plushie held tightly in one hoof, and his other hoof... caught in Curtain's mouth. All eyes were still shut... par from one pair.

Meanwhile, Jon Snow sat wide awake inside the tent. Up till daybreak, he'd been sharpening his blade in preparation for today's events. He never was one to sleep for very long, not after everything he'd been through back in Westeros. He knew something was coming to disturb the peace, and so long as threats still existed, he couldn't afford to sleep for any reason. But not even Snow realized he had any further reason to be awake that day.

Suddenly, he snapped his head toward the entry of the tent. It was very faint, almost non-existent, but Jon swore he heard something drawing near the village. Slowly the man made his way toward the flap of the tent, quietly peaking his head out toward the valley entrance in the distance. Along the higher cliffs, he could make out the outlines. A whole pack of Sabretooth tigers slowly prowling toward the village.

Apparently, Jon wasn't the only one to notice. Ghost's head popped up and he started growling. Hearing the direwolf's growling, the rest of the wolf pack arose and started full on barking toward the approaching saber pack. Jon quickly ducked back into the tent and shook his friends awake.

"Wake up! Wake up!" Jon shouted.

"Huh-what?" Quill mumbled groggily. "What's going on?"

"No mom, I don't want to go to school today," Curtain whimpered dreamily. "The kids make fun of me; just let me stay home and bake cookies with you."

Quill and Atalanta both slowly rose from their sleep, watching Curtain Call squirm while putting that one hoof back between his lips. Having seen enough, Quill proceeded to give his partner in crime a good kick in the hindquarters and Curtain Quill sat straight up, dropping everything.

"I'm up! I'm up!!!" Curtain proclaimed.

"Jon, what's going on?" Quill asked their other companion.

"The village is under attack," Jon responded. "We have to go now!"

The remainder of the group quickly sat right up, their faces showing great concern.

"What is it?" Quill asked urgently. "Is it the Wendigo?"

"No," Jon replied, shaking his head. "Not Wendigos."

Jon quickly drew out Longclaw from his sheath, departing from the tent. But he was not alone. The other tribes people, all of them men, emerged from their tents carrying spears. At the lead was the village chief, Runar himself, keeping them together ready to defend their home. Quill, Curtain, and Atalanta emerged from their tent soon after Jon. That was when they saw the beasts leap into the fray and realized what they were up against.

"SABRETOOTH!!!" Curtain Call called out.

The battle was waged between the two opposing sides. Soto took a great leap toward Runar, who was able to hurl the great saber off him. The others lunged toward the humans, keeping them on their toes. It didn't take long for Quill Cast, Curtain Call, and Atalanta to cast themselves into the fight. What they lacked in 'handiwork' with spears, the two stallions relied on their martial arts capabilities blocking the claw swipes and retaliating with their own hooves. Whereas Ata maintained her distance using her magic to keep the pack at bay, the sabretooth was wise enough to avoid the beams of light emanating off her.