A/N: This story is NOT a sequel to the Legend of Spyro: Dawn of the Dragon. It is essentially a replacement story to Dawn of the Dragon, as I found that there were many aspects of the story that did not make sense, or else were left unanswered or unexplained in that game. Some of the story elements will stay the same as the original DOTD, but most of it will receive a clean slate.

Disclaimer: I, Telekinetic Moose, do not own Spyro or any other related content. As if it wasn't obvious enough that I'm uploading this onto a website called FANFICTION.


Prologue

The tall figure shrouded in a crimson cloak knelt on the hard, dusty ground, a bow of yew notched and drawn in his hands, directed at a small clearing in front of the grey and brown foliage that concealed his lean and muscular form. Motionlessly, he awaited his prey. He did not know how long he had been there, only aware of the fact that, sooner or later, his target would pass by his hiding place, unsuspecting of his attack.

He had spied the enemy patrol whilst searching for food. The Shattered Vale wasn't renowned for the lush forests teeming with wildlife that Hunter was used to in his home of Avalar, so wild game was very hard to come by. Fruits and nuts were out of the question, as cheetahs ate only meat, and, from his father's stories, he was pretty certain that the same applied to dragons.

So, in an attempt to find some possible way of locating a wild animal, he had approached the tallest, sturdiest looking tree he could find and, due to his natural climbing skills as a cheetah, scaled it to get a better look at the desolate excuse for a forest. Even from a distance, the colossal form of the Mountain of Malefor loomed over the valley like a great brooding monster waiting to strike. The sight of the haunted mountain sent a chill down Hunter's spine, made even worse in the knowledge that he would have to return to its eerie caverns before long. Upon sighting the abominable landmark, he had uttered a silent prayer to the ancestors to shorten the time he had to stay in this bleak place. Seven years had been bad enough.

Almost immediately upon searching he realised that he was not alone. Roughly half a mile from his vantage point, a thin column of smoke rose steadily from a small thicket of trees. He quickly descended and went to get a closer look. Upon further inspection, it was easy to confirm Hunter's suspicions, although he could not tell how many there were. He had decided to lay in waiting for his foe rather than attack their camp, as he guessed that they would be most vulnerable when on the move. He theorised that they would most likely have guards and lookouts surrounding their camp, so a full on assault would be both dangerous and stupid.

Although, I shouldn't give my enemy too much credit, mused Hunter from his hiding place. Apes aren't exactly famous for logical thinking.

The sound of footsteps caught Hunter's attention, and before long, a group of apes lumbered into view. There were six of them in total; the patrol leader, the largest one wielding a large hammer; an ape wielding a deadly looking sword; two small ape foot soldiers armed with nothing but their claws; an ape armed with a crossbow; an average-sized ape with one hand clasping a knife, the other holding the leash of a cruel-looking hunting wolf.

Quickly debating his first target, Hunter released the arrow, which buried itself in the throat of the crossbow ape. Before the ape had even hit the ground, a second arrow had already been loaded into the bow and found its way into the eye of the wolf. It wasn't until the third arrow punctured the wolf-guiding ape's heart that the rest of the group realised where the cheetah was shooting from. As the sword wielding ape charged at him, Hunter quickly launched an arrow between his eyes before vaulting over his falling adversary. He notched another arrow in mid-air and fired it into the skull of one of the small apes. He nimbly dodged the ape commander's hammer and clambered onto his back, where another of Hunter's arrows pierced the ape's head at point blank range. Riding his dead enemy to the floor, he easily shot the remaining ape in the back as it turned to get away.

Now that the threat had been taken care of, there came a much simpler task: looting the bodies.

He started by retrieving all of his arrows, as well as taking the ones from the crossbow ape. They were not of the same size or quality as Hunter's Avalarian Arrows, but they still worked reasonably well with his bow. He then searched through their supplies, hoping to find something, anything, of value. The sword was too large and clunky for Hunter's taste, but he did pocket the dagger, feeling that it would be handy to have a few extra blades.

He almost completely ignored the leader's hammer, and would have disregarded it entirely if he had not noticed a slight shimmering originating from it. Upon closer inspection, Hunter discovered its source: a small, yet extremely valuable, green magic gem.

For most creatures, a gem like this was absolutely worthless besides having monetary value. For dragons, however, even the smallest of gems could be the deciding factor in a fight. Hunter distinctly remembered his father recounting many such gems during his experiences with dragons: how red gems could heal a dragon's injuries, green gems could replenish their magical abilities; how purple gems could fill a dragon with explosive rage, and how blue gems, the rarest of the four varieties of Dragon Gems, could grant a dragon knowledge from the ancestors themselves and gift them with more powerful abilities. Hunter knew that what he had found embedded in the ape's hammer, the object that he now cradled in the palm of his hand, was worth more than everything else in his supplies put together.

As he opened his side pocket to store the precious stone in, something else caught his attention: a small, orange glowing something.

I can't believe I forgot about this. Hunter scolded himself, examining the glowing orange crystal shard. Although I shouldn't be too surprised. It has been seven years, after all.

He pocketed both of the gems and turned his eyes towards the distant mountain that he had been dreading to return to. This must mean… it's time! I can almost leave this place! The thought filled him with a joy he hadn't felt in years. He could soon go home, to his father, to his village, to Neema.

He lifted his head to the sky and whispered "Thank you, Ancestors."

He almost left right then, but he quickly remembered something: the wolf. It wasn't exactly a delicacy, and he wasn't sure how much meat there was on it that could feed both him and two adolescent dragons, but that hardly mattered. Meat was meat.

Slinging the wolf carcass over his shoulder, Hunter set off for the Mountain of Malefor for what he hoped to be the last time.

XXX

Several hours later, Hunter emerged into a sizeable cavern deep within the mountain. The chamber was filled with rubble and debris, including the remains of what looked like a barbed steel throne. A small camp with a few bundles of supplies rested in the middle of the cavern, by which Hunter deposited his kill. Everything in the cave was illuminated by something so extraordinary that everything else near it paled in comparison.

A gigantic crystal stood sturdily near the edge of the cavern, supporting what looked like half of the mountain. A sunset orange in colour, the centre of the crystal was glowing with such intensity that looking at it had the same effect as looking directly at the sun in the morning. Suspended in the gargantuan crystal were three figures; a small golden dragonfly and an adolescent dragoness with glossy black scales, enfolded within the crimson wings of a male dragon of the same age with scales of a magnificent purple. The purple dragon, said to hold unbelievable power, on whose shoulders the fate of the world rested upon.

Hunter's attention was directed to the crystal by an ear-shattering echo as the crystal began to glow even brighter, each flash like the pulse of the living beings it contained. The front of the crystal began to crack, fractions of pure white light escaping from the fractures. Then, with an almighty crash, the centre of the crystal shattered and the cavern was flooded with light before fading into darkness.