This story is rewrite of my story named "The Forgotten Past" after a few years of plot development and character development. This story is also the first bit of content I've uploaded for the last four years. I hope that this story can provide an enjoyable read for all of you reading and can live up to the many great authors on this site!

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Legend of Spyro characters or places that appear in this story, however, I do own all other OCs and places that appear in this story.

Prologue:

He was alive.

That was the first thought which came to his mind as he regained consciousness and breathed in a lungful of air. The next was less of a thought but a feeling.

Exhaustion.

Fatigue ached through his entire body, poisoning his limbs and making them feel as if they made from lead. His breaths came in short, frantic gasps as he lay still, fading in and out as a primal part of him grasped for consciousness as if it was a lifeboat in the raging storm of exhaustion.

Minutes passed as he lay still, only vaguely aware of the grass he was resting on and the relaxing wind cooling his bunched muscles. The seconds felt like hours to the barely conscious dragon, time progressing languidly as he fought with everything he had left to not pass out. Minutes crept on at a pace that felt like a year to the red dragon, before the battle for awareness subsided as he felt the first dregs of strength return to his body. His breathing slowed as the world around him, along with its sounds and smells, became clearer, the haze of exhaustion lifting from his senses.

It was cool. For a long moment, his mind wandered over that simple fact, thinking of it, considering it, but not really processing it. He felt like a sloth on a warm, sunny day – a hatchling basking in the glow of a hot summer day after days of rain. He just wanted to lie down and soak in the sun's warmth without a care in the world.

He kept his eyes closed and a lazy smile come to his muzzle as he lay there. He could feel the life around him, the grass, he could breathe in the fresh, cool air. He could finally relax.

Cool.

The word finally processed and his mind cleared instantly. His snapped his eyes open, sending his body into full alert as he hastily climbed to his paws. The thoughts of lounging were already out of his mind as he looked in front of him. A feeling of pure awe filled him as he gazed upon the healthy green grass before him and he looked up.

Instinct told him to look around but it wasn't truly necessary. He knew where he was even before his bright fiery red eyes took in the colourful rows of flowers that sprinkled along the valley, the brilliant lush trees that were scattered around the place, forming vibrant, lively forests and the almost iconic waterfall, followed by the vast array of colossal, grey mountains. The smell of fresh grass filled his nostrils as the calm, relaxing wind passed over him.

He blinked a few times as he stared unseeingly at his surroundings, lost in nothing but his bewilderment. It was a few long moments before he regained his composure and he stared in thought at the red-scaled paws in front of him.

How did he get into the Valley of Avalar?

Last thing he remembered was the explosions and plumes of lava that reached over his head as the world exploded on itself from The Destroyer's Circle of Fire.

A shudder ran through his body as he recalled the world he was in seemingly a few minutes ago;

The air around him got hotter and hotter as he plummeted deeper into the planet, plumes of fire and destruction spraying around him. The red dragon flattened himself against the wide brown rock platform, wings pressed against his sides as a large plume of lava splashed. Tiny droplets of molten rock sprayed from where it collided with the rock and he hissed sharply, gritting his teeth as several of the droplets scorched his shoulder and across his back.

Shaking the rapidly-hardening rock fragments from his scales, he examined the state of his platform. A quick examine showed that the rather large piece of rock that had broken away from the Dragon Temple was now had a large chunk torn out of the bottom of it. As if on cue, a loud rupture cracked through the air as the platform he was standing on cracked in two. In a panic, the red dragon quickly shifted his weight onto his left and he stepped to it, a second before the right side was swept away by a tornado of fire.

Where is the temple?

Instinct told him to look right just as a cloud of sulphuric gas was suddenly upon him. The thick grey haze instantly entered his lungs, the black tendrils of smoke suffocating the air out of him. The red dragon coughed and hacked, his body wrenching, his eyes watering as he desperately tried to peer through the thick grey haze to the falling Dragon Temple ahead of him.

Still coughing violently, he crouched again to lower his centre of gravity and maintain his balance. Stray rocks and temple parts whizzed past his head, missing his golden horns by inches as the cyclone of sulphur and heat hurled everything they could get their fierce claws on. He quickly wiped his watery eyes with the back of his blackened forepaw and turned again to see the remnants of the temple be engulfed by the fiery ball of plasma at the centre of the world, disintegrating the white marble within a second.

Did they escape?

Trying to suppress the rising panic in his gut, his eyes scanned the place where the temple collided with the planet's core, searching for a hint of colour that wasn't white or bright fiery red. For several seconds, against his better judgement, he continued to look for a flash of purple or black scales in the array of tiny rocks but as time dragged on his heart dropped as he lay there mesmerised in deep-seeded horror, staring at the last place he saw the temple.

"Flare!"

The voice was a spark of lightning to him, jolting him out of his trance and he turned to his right. There was another dragon in a similar situation to him, blue body and golden wings pressed against their own piece of whirl winding rock a metre away from him who was looking at him, his face mirroring the distraught that the red dragon felt.

They shared a glance, their eyes meeting and a silent conversation passed between the two. The red dragon could see the blue lights of his brother's iris even from a metre away.

"We have to leave!"

There was an uncommon fear in the blue dragon's eyes as his brother broke eye-contact and twisted and turned his head desperately, his eyes getting wide in rising panic as he searched for an escape for them. Even as the other dragon continued to look around, the red dragon could see that the dragon's heart was not in it. They both knew that there was no escaping the world exploding. The Circle of Fire was complete. Malefor had won.

When a light exploded from the centre of the planet, it was then that Flare truly gave up. Fiery red eyes turned to the core of the world, as the curtain of light shone toward him. He closed his eyes as the warm glow of the end of the world engulfed them. He had accepted his fate, knowing that both himself and his brother had tried everything they had left to survive. And still failed.

His brother.

The memory faded as Flare returned to the Valley of Avalar, eyes clearing from the dreamy haze. Panic swelled inside him and his heart-rate skyrocketed as he again scanned around his immediate surroundings with heightened urgency, his eyes taking in the greens, browns and greys of Avalar but not the familiar blue scales of his brother.

Terror flooded through him as he desperately searched his memories for any inclination on how they got separated. They were right beside each other a minute or two ago before the world had gone into a blinding white and he had lost consciousness. It would make sense if he would be close by, in spite of whatever happened to the planet! He ran and took flight as the red dragon's eyes frantically searched.

There was no sign of his brother anywhere in sight, despite him widening his search to the surrounding small forests and rock crevices. After another minute passed of his unrelenting searching to no avail, his heart plunged with despair. He landed on a grassy outcrop which he had discovered gave a good vantage point of the valley, instantly collapsing onto the grass with a sigh as he allowing his head to fall until his chin made contact with the soft soil, tossing a few stray tufts of fresh grass into the air.

What was he going to do? Already a part of him felt missing without the familiar blue dragon beside him.

With a scowl, he absent-mindedly looked at the grass leaves as they came back down. He could see them as they swirled a small loop, before giving a few spins in the wind, twirling twice more and landing with their family. The thought that an inanimate object was having more success than he was caused him to let out a small scoff in irony of the situation. Closing his eyes, he took a few long breaths, inhaling deeply for a few seconds, before exhaling slowly.

As he breathed in a second time, he could feel the fresh, refreshing air stream throughout him, filling his lungs with a cool wind and clearing his mind almost instantly. It felt like a small wave of freshness that seemed to circulate through his body. He continued his breathing for a few more long moments, not opening his eyes, not moving. It was at least two minutes until he felt completely relaxed and the soothing feeling seemed to have integrated into his body.

Slowly, Flare opened his eyes and stared at the tufts of grass in front of him absently. This was not the time for panic, nor was it the time to sink into a depression and cry. Both he and he brother had a plan if they were ever split up, he just needed to follow it and hope the blue dragon would too. He was going to find his brother, even if it took him to the other side of the world. Because he was alive.

He was not going to lose another brother without trying.

With a renowned aura of determination, he lifted himself from the ground and walked to the edge of the small grassy ledge. His fiery red eyes scanned the Valley of Avalar below, taking in the various plant-life and beauty for one final time. That's when he saw them; a pair of purple and black blurs in the peach Avalar skies. Spiralling. Twirling.

Smiling.

On instinct, he crouched until his underbelly was touching the ground as his eyes scanned the two creatures. The red dragon was only a few hundred metres away and they could have probably seen him if they were not too busy celebrating their victory. He could hear the laughs that echoed from the two young dragons as they zoomed and twisted in the air, their faces full of joy and bliss.

Flare's eyes widened in shock when he recognised the two dragons. They're alive? he thought, his eyes narrowing in a vain attempt to identify further details.

A minute passed and a small smile came to the edges of his muzzle as he observed Spyro and Cynder chase each other and talk, his own problems temporary forgotten in their joy. They were so happy. A part of him physically yearned to join them in their victory; to smile and laugh and have fun for the first time in years. But he knew better. As much as he wanted to meet the saviours of the world, to finally know them and talk to them and just tell him…

He could not ignore his other brother.

It was a long while until he decided it was his time to leave, and only then with a large amount of hesitation. With one final long look at the purple dragon and his companion, he turned and walked away. Away from the two heroes. Away from Warfang. Away from a life of celebration and happiness.

"Dear ancestors, Flare. You have more important issues to attend to," he told himself as he trudged through a vibrant forest, chiding himself for taking so long to leave.

As he continued the long walk through the forest, along the well-walked dirt path that connected the valley to the other sections of Avalar, he couldn't shake the feeling that something was not right. He turned his head to stare at the forest behind him and to the two heroes he had left. The dragon's brows narrowed, he did not doubt that those two were powerful dragons, but he also could not underestimate the strength and determination of Malefor. The gap between a dragon and The Dark Master was so great that he had a hard time believing that the latter could even be beaten, and that is not even beginning to question how the world was still in one piece.

Flare let out a grunt in frustration as he turned in front of him and back to the path. What ever happened in that fight must have been something extraordinary to have defeated The Master, he thought, a sour frown on his face. It annoyed him that he didn't know all the details on what happened. Of course he could just go back and ask the two heroes, but he didn't have the heart to ruin their victory and introduce doubt.

He did not doubt that the two heroes would not leave the job unfinished – at least to what they consider unfinished. But he couldn't shake the feeling inside his gut. Malefor was not done. If there was anything the young red dragon knew, it was that The Dark Master always had a backup plan – even if it may delay his plans to a point that most would give up. It was that sense of determination that Flare admired in the evil dragon but ultimately found it dreadful.

He stared in thought as he padded his way through the forest, his body guiding him as his eyes glazed over in thought. A few long moments passed before his mind returned to him and he focused on his immediate surroundings once again.

A great, defeated sigh escaped his maw. He was not going to get anywhere if he didn't know what happened. Which meant he had to wait for the news to spread, and he did not doubt that the defeat of Malefor would engulf all cities in the world in its glory, even to where he was heading.

And so, against his better judgement once again, he left the subject behind him and continued onward, for the second time focusing on his current issue.

It was nearly a minute of silent walking before the red dragon emerged from the forest, the bright sun peeking through the tree's leaves and temporarily blinding him, causing him to raise a wing to cover his eyes as he waited for his eyes to adjust to the new lighting from the shadowed forest. As he withdrew his wing, he was again assaulted by the vast array of colours and life in front of him as he gazed upon Avalar. He felt the smile return to his face as his mind instantly returned to The Valley behind him and the two dragons in it. A humourless chuckle escaped the red dragon's mouth as he stared at the road ahead of him, his mood lifting.

"This world truly has something out for me," he muttered aloud with a slow shake of his head, a smile clear on his face as he opened his wings, a bright flare in his eyes. "I lose one brother, and I find another."

And with that, he flapped his golden wings and took flight on his journey to the other side of the world.

And that's it for chapter one, or the prologue. I hope it was at least somewhat enjoyable to read. ^^ I do want to give a big thank you to Dragonmaster000 for beta-reading this chapter and correcting all my bad grammar!

I just want to give a short disclaimer. So, as I had mentioned before, this story is a rewrite of the story "The Forgotten Past" and will be the story that would be taking up the majority of my writing time. To all those that have read TFP, this rewrite is very different to the original and will be considered the canon version of the story as soon as I get back to writing the next "book' of the series. Most of the characters are the same and story would be the same, but there are a lot of things different. I hope that I had matured as an author and that, if I have, it shows. :)

Also, please expect upload times to inconsistent. ^^; I have already gotten nine-tenths through the next chapter but it has taken much longer than anticipated. I do not know when that would be uploaded but expect it to be relatively soon. Sorry in advance about that.

As always, all constructive criticism is appreciated and I hope everyone has enjoyed this chapter!

Until next time!