Chapter 35
An old ally
A pair of dragons were hovering above a wood searching for something. They spotted a small clearing that was full of dragonflies.
At last, after 6 months of travelling, Spyro and Cynder had found it. They landed in the clearing to many remarks.
"What are they doing here?"
"Aren't they dead?"
"What do they want?"
Spyro saw the dragonfly he was looking for. "There he is."
The dragonfly sat alone mumbling to himself. "I wonder what he's doing. Not here with me for one. He's probably with that dragon he likes."
"Hello Sparx." Spyro smiled.
"Great now I'm hearing him too." Sparx perked up. "Wait, is that you Spyro?"
Spyro nodded. "It's good to see you again."
Sparx fluttered his wings. "It's been 4 years and you are still hanging around with her."
Cynder sighed. "He hasn't changed. Sparx, I risked my life to stop Malefor and you still treat me like an outsider."
"Well, you did try and kill us." Sparx began to poke her. "And you tried to eat me, several times. So yeah, I still do treat you like that."
Cynder looked fed up. "Well, technically I'm sort of your sister so-"
"Wait, what!?" Sparx mined throwing up and looked at Spyro. "So you married her!? Oh the torture it's going to be."
"Sparx, that's enough." Spyro was getting annoyed. "Just because you don't trust Cynder doesn't mean that I don't love her any less. The reason we came to find you is because we need to find a dragon called Dread. Do you know him?"
"Well, he is attacking the Dragon Temple right now." Sparx pointed to a column of smoke that was rising in the distance.
Spyro shot up into the air. "Oh no. When did this start?"
"Last week. He had that large troll that froze the dragons a long time ago."
"Gnasty Gnorc? This just gets better..." Spyro shot towards the Temple that was being swarmed with enemies.
Chapter 36
Attack at the Temple
Spyro saw an open window and flew through it. Gnasty Gnorc was on the inside. "Burn it! Burn it all!"
"Hello Gnasty Gnorc." Spyro flew into him, knocking him away into some of his minions.
"Well well well, the purple dragon lives. I thought you died after I defeated you." Gnasty Gnorc snorted.
"First off, I defeated you and second, I have died." Spyro smiled. He blew out a few Fireballs at Gnasty Gnorc. "So what will it be? A new pair of underwear or a pain in the backside?"
"Neither as I will kill you." Gnasty Gnorc tried to hit Spyro but was then hit with a lightning bolt. "Who was that?"
"Me." Cynder hit him in the chest.
"Ah, another one of Spyro's friends that I get to squash." Gnasty Gnorc attempted to swing his hammer at Cynder but was rammed up the backside by Spyro. "You little-"
"Dragon?" Spyro blew out a long stream of fire. Gnasty Gnorc started to scream in rage.
"STOP IT!" Gnasty Gnorc used a staff he had on his back to spray ice all around the room. Cynder felt extremely cold. Due to her corruption, she had lost all body heat and therefore was weak to frost attacks. She needed to get away from him but didn't want to leave Spyro.
Gnasty Gnorc laughed as he continued to blast ice at the two dragons. Spyro used his Fire Breath to unleash a wave of energy that made Gnasty Gnorc drop the staff.
"Ready to be defeated again Gnasty?" Spyro ran at him and slid under his legs, breathing out fire and making Gnasty Gnorc jump into the air, howling in pain.
"Great, now I need to go and steal another pair of underpants!" Gnasty Gnorc jumped onto a passing airship. "I'll be back Spyro! Then I will defeat you for the...first time ever..."
"Sure, whatever." Spyro went over to Cynder. "Are you okay? I know you're weak to frost attacks."
Cynder nodded. "I think I better be more careful from now on."
"Yes, we don't want either of you to fall." A green dragon appeared in the doorway.
"Terrador, it's good to see you." Spyro smiled.
"It's good to see you both, alive and well." Terrador said proudly. "We had though you both dead."
"Well, we get that a lot, seeming as Spyro did die at one point." Cynder smiled slightly.
"And yet here you both are." Terrador lead them to the familiar room with the statue of Malefor. "So has he fallen?"
"Yes and no." Spyro looked into the yellow eyes. "He is dead but is in a sort of spirit form. Ignitus told me. And he also me that that book you found Cynder was written by Malefor himself so you don't need to worry about me dying sooner that I plan to."
Cynder smiled. "Well, we do need to confirm some things before believing them."
"So Ignitus is still alive." Terrador looked pleased. "This is better than I could have expected. So where is he?"
"He's the Chronicler." Spyro said simply.
"Then the future of dragons is in safe hands." Terrador smiled as he went into a room that contained the Pool of Visions.
Spyro looked into it. He saw several minions at the Core of the World sweeping up ashes. But it disappeared. Spyro then knew what it meant but saved it for later.
"So who's Dread?" Cynder asked.
Terrador stopped suddenly. "He was a frost dragon that was a pupil here. I trained alongside him but he wanted more. He was never satisfied with what he got so a few months later he turned to the Darkness. Now he wants revenge for being 'mistreated'. So we must act before he does. But let us get some rest before we go to war."
Chapter 37
Old friends and older enemies
Spyro and Cynder made their way to Spyro's old room to rest. But then Spyro spotted someone. "Oh no."
"So you're back." A pick dragon came over to them. "I heard you had. So who's this?"
"Ummm...Ember, this is my mate, Cynder." Spyro began to back away. "I didn't-"
"What!?" Ember began advancing towards him. "You go away for 4 years and you come back and tell me you love someone else!"
"You were never my girlfriend..." Spyro mumbled and looked at Cynder for help.
"But you still liked me, right?" Ember looked angry.
"Look, I'm really tired all right, so I'll talk to you in the morning..." Spyro looked for a way to get past Ember.
"No! I want this settled now!"
"No it ends now." A large frost dragon came from behind Cynder. "Ember, go. I want to talk with my old friend."
Ember ran off. Now a familiar face stood in front of Spyro. Spyro's eyes narrowed. "Hello Red."
"It's been a while." Red smiled at Spyro. "We thought you died."
"Yeah, I get that a lot." Spyro spoke coolly. He didn't trust Red due to him being unpredictable. "You haven't changed."
"You have. You have a scar on your side." Red looked at the M. Or where the M would be as Spyro had that side turned away. "So who did that?"
"None of your business. Now if you excuse me, I want to rest." Spyro walked past him and went with Cynder.
"Who was that Red?" Cynder looked a little concerned.
"He was an old enemy of mine who has apparently turned good." Spyro shuddered. "I still don't trust him. He knew where my scar was even though I didn't show him it. He must have some sort of connection with Malefor."
"Let's not worry about him." Cynder smiled.
"Please don't start talking about Ember." Spyro groaned making Cynder laugh. They made their way to Spyro's old room and lay down on the bed.
"You are right to judge Red Spyro. He is an old enemy and if I've learned anything, don't trust anyone, especially someone who would stab you in the back."
"You may be coming back to life Malefor, but I won't rest until you are finished for good."
Chapter 38
The castle
Cynder woke up suddenly. She remembered something that could help them find Dread. She shook Spyro awake.
"Whuz going on?" Spyro rubbed the sleep out of his eyes.
"Spyro, I think we've seen Dread's castle before." Cynder got off the bed and went to the door.
"Really? Where?" Spyro jumped off and walked with her.
"When we fought Malefor the first time, he came with a castle that attacked us with cannons that made me feel cold." Cynder walked towards the library. "So that might have been Dread."
"So you're going to see Terrador now right?" Spyro smiled. He would have done the same. Cynder nodded. "So where do you-"
"Spyro!" Volteer came over. "I heard you had returned. Hey Cyril, I found him and Cynder."
"It good to see you both." Cyril smiled.
"Well, we couldn't visit here without running into our old mentors." Spyro smiled. He had expected to see them at one point.
"So what have you been doing Spyro, apart from defeating Malefor?" Volteer always talked a lot but not as much as Sparx. "Have you told Cynder yet?"
"Told me what?" Cynder looked at Spyro suspiciously.
"Yes Volteer, I have told Cynder that I love her." Spyro sighed.
"Good on you!" Volteer smiled broadly. "A fine thing indeed. That is one of the hardest things to do in life but you did it. I must say I'm very proud for you both."
"We need to go and talk to Terrador." Cynder explained. "We have something important to tell him."
"Ah okay, well see you both later." Volteer walked away with Cyril.
"Well I must say I wasn't looking forward to that meeting." Spyro shook his head. "Apparently he knew I loved you since he saw us hanging out in the training room."
"Did you?"
"Well, not in the way we love each other now because we were a lot younger." Spyro smiled slightly. "Come on, we need to get to the library."
As they walked in, they found Terrador talking to Red. Spyro growled at him.
"Now Spyro, Red has turned to our side after helping you defeat the Sorcerer remember?" Terrador said sternly.
"I still don't trust him." Spyro snarled. "He knew where one my scars that I got from Malefor was even though I didn't show it him."
"We'll talk more later Red." Terrador didn't want a fight. Red nodded and walked out of the room. Spyro's eyes followed him all the way.
"Terrador, we need to talk to you about the whereabouts of Dread." Cynder looked at Spyro who was still looking to where Red had left.
"You can eavesdrop all you want Red, I can just use it to prove you can't be trusted." Spyro knew Red was behind the door. A loud thump was heard as Red walked away. "Sorry, go on."
"Very well." Terrador looked at Spyro, knowing about his feelings towards Red. "So what is it you want to tell me?"
"Well, when we first fought Malefor after his return, he came with a castle that seemed to bear many frost-like qualities." Cynder explained this carefully. "I saw heading to the Snowcapped Mountains, after we had that moment." Spyro blushed.
"Very well, I shall make preparations." Terrador went off to get ready. Spyro and Cynder was about to do the same when Spyro spotted Ember.
"See in our room." Cynder smiled as she went off. She heard raised voices as she got into the room and found something. Spyro came in fuming.
"Some dragons..." He then saw what Cynder had found. "Our dragon armour." He smiled. They put it on and went off to the Pool of Visions where Terrador was. "We're ready."
Chapter 39
Finally
Spyro flew through the air. He liked the feel of his old armour. He felt something awake inside of him. "Cynder, do you feel anything different about you after putting on the armour?"
"I feel like I've awoken the old elements inside me." Cynder smiled as she spat out a ball of Fear. Spyro used a blast of electricity to stop it.
"This is amazing!" Spyro swooped around laughing.
Meanwhile, Dread was sat in his fortress sharing a different feeling with someone in a reflection pool.
"I don't care how you do it Dread, just kill him." A shadowy figure was in the pool. "Blow up the entire fortress if you have to. I gave you the opportunity you wanted so do it!"
"Yes my Lord." Dread bowed down. The pool turned clear and then Dread turned to Gnasty Gnorc. "They're coming aren't they?" Gnasty Gnorc nodded. "Then prepare the defences."
Spyro and Cynder flew through a thick cloud. A noise was heard from a few feet away.
"DUCK!" Cynder dived down as Terrador yelled the word. The cloud disappeared and the castle was there in front of them. It was massive but they could see where Dread was.
"Come on Cynder!" Spyro flew right at the window where Dread was standing at. Dread smiled as he saw Spyro smashed through the glass and landed on the marble floor. "Dread. It's nice to finally meet the dragon that sent Gnasty to squash me."
"Pity, he isn't the villain I thought he was." Dread laughed. "Oh well, as they say, if you want a job done right, you've got to do it yourself."
"Or just admit that Gnasty is just a distraction so you get time to build up your army." Spyro smiled at Dread's surprised expression.
"Well, you are a clever one. It's no wonder that you put Malefor out of his misery."
"He's coming back, I know that. But you're not going to be there to see it."
"Nobody likes a smart-ass."
"I do, I married one." Cynder came through the hole in the window.
"So you must be the Terror of the Skies." Dread smiled. "So you're both here. Good, I get to kill you both." Dread lunged at them both. Spyro met him and started to push back.
"You ready to feel the burn?" Spyro allowed himself to become covered in fire as he turned into a Wheel of Fire. Dread was being burned as he tried to push back but was always hit with the fire. Cynder used this to climb up a wall, bounce back off it and use her claws to rake down Dread's back.
Dread screamed in pain. He swiped his tail at them but Spyro jumped onto it and sunk his teeth into it. Dread tried to shake him off but Spyro hung on until he could get off.
"ENOUGH!" Dread was panting. He signalled to someone in the corner. Gnasty Gnorc charged right at Spyro but he was tripped up by Cynder. Gnasty Gnorc lay knocked out at Dread's feet who had an expression that was of rage.
"Wow, you really do have some help Dread." Spyro was laughing so hard he was crying.
"Help?" Dread spoke softly. "He wasn't my help...he was a distraction. The only help I have is secrets. I know of yours Spyro. I know who your father is."
"I don't have a dad, not any more anyway." Spyro looked at Dread carefully.
Dread started to laugh. "Oh no, he is still alive. His name is familiar to you."
"So who is it?" Spyro was worried about the answer.
"MALEFOR!"
Chapter 40
Are you worthy?
"No, he isn't." Spyro was shocked. "He couldn't be..."
"Oh but he is." Dread continued to laugh. "And when the dawn arrives he will hunt you down and kill you, as he tried to before. Only this time he cannot fail as I become his most favoured servant as I resurrect him tomorrow. Now lie down and die!"
Dread blew out several ice shards and Spyro dodged them just in time. He turned to see Dread laughing at something.
"Spyro..." Cynder was still in the same spot she was when Dread blew out the shards. She had one sticking into her stomach. She pulled it out carefully but then collapsed.
"No...Cynder!" Spyro ran over to her and felt her heartbeat. It was well out of sync. He struggled to control his rage as he turned into Dark Spyro. Dread smiled as he grabbed Spyro and threw him into a machine.
"That is exactly what I wanted." Dread smiled as he absorbed the Darkness out of Spyro. "Bring me the ashes."
Spyro saw Cynder on the ground. He attempted to break the glass but couldn't. He felt the Darkness being sucked out of him. Then a minion carrying a small pot came into the room. The pot was emptied into a separate chamber on the other side of the room.
"Now we'll see what happens when the ashes of the Dark one mixes with the rage of the legendary dragon." Dread smiled as he sent the Darkness into the other chamber. Spyro was now back to normal but wanted to get to Cynder. He tried to smash the glass using his elements but none of them worked.
The ashes rose as laughter started to fill the room. The ashes formed the shape of a fully grown dragon. Spyro tried the one attack he hadn't used: Dragon Beam. The glass finally shattered as the Darkness disappeared from the other chamber.
Spyro grabbed Cynder and flew out the window. Spyro then heard the voice. "SPYRO..!"
Spyro blacked out and fell out of the sky.
Chapter 41
Spyro's hunch
Spyro found himself in his bed at the Dragon Temple. He wasn't in the black void as he expected to be. He looked around for Cynder but she wasn't there.
He got up and walked towards the library. He found Terrador there speaking with a light blue dragon. He walked past them and continued to search for Cynder.
"What are you looking for?" The light blue dragon's voice was familiar.
"Cynder." Spyro didn't turn around. "Do you know where she is?"
"I know many things young dragon." The dragon smiled.
Spyro stopped. He turned around slowly. "Ignitus?"
Ignitus was there. "I said we will meet again soon. I am never wrong."
"What are you doing here?" Spyro had never seen Ignitus recently apart from his dreams.
"Dread approaches, and I want to help my old friends." Ignitus smiled at Terrador. "Cynder is around by the Pool of Visions."
Spyro nodded. He ran to that room to find Cynder there alive and well. "Cynder! You're all right!"
"Why wouldn't I be?" Cynder hugged him. "I was worried about you. Everyone said you blacked out after getting out of Dread's castle."
"I'm fine." Spyro smiled. Then his face dropped. "Oh no."
"What?" Cynder became concerned. Spyro wasn't like that to go from happy to frightened in that sort of timing.
"I saw him. He's back." Spyro's eyes showed his fear. Red came down the hall to them.
"What's the matter Spyro?" Red laughed. "Are you afraid? Indeed the Dark Master has returned. And soon all those who oppose him will die."
"Shut up Red." Cynder growled. "You've done nothing but insult Spyro since he's got here. I'm fed up of it." She was hit by him as he continued down the hall.
Spyro ran at him and tackled him to the ground. "I knew not to trust you. Once a villain, always a villain right Red?"
"You've read me like a book Spyro." Red blew a stream of frost at Spyro. Spyro jumped of him and they began to circle each other.
Spyro snarled at Red and ran at him. Red dodged him and used his staff to whack Spyro. He then was hit with some lightening that came from Cynder.
"Come on then Red." Spyro hit Red in the face causing him to back into Cynder who bit into his wing. Red yelped in pain as he swung his tail and knocked Cynder away. Spyro used this in grab Red's staff and smash it.
"You rat!" Red prepared to fly off. "Next time I see you Spyro, I'll be at my master's side and you will perish at his hand. Mark my words Spyro." He went out of the window and into the distance.
Spyro smiled as Ignitus and Terrador came down the hallway. "What happened?" Terrador looked at the destruction.
"Red wasn't what he seemed." Spyro grinned. "I love it when I'm right."
Cynder went over to them. "He was a follower of Malefor Terrador."
Terrador looked grim. "I should have listened to you Spyro. You have fought him and the clues you gave me, I should have known."
"Well, we make mistakes." Ignitus smiled. "At least someone found out before we were too late in stopping him."
"Speaking of finding stuff out," Spyro looked at Ignitus. "Ignitus, is Malefor my father?"
Ignitus looked at Terrador. Terrador nodded. "Yes Spyro, he is your father."
Chapter 42
Malefor's first strike
Spyro still couldn't believe it. "Why me? Why do I have to have a dad that is evil?"
"Think of it being a bond that you can use to your advantage." Ignitus tried to make Spyro feel a little better.
"How is it an advantage?" Cynder asked. "Malefor is as evil as they come. It can't be an advantage."
"It can be if you use it in the right way." Ignitus smiled. "Dread did and he won the first battle. Now we must prepare for another."
"So we had better get ready." Spyro went to his room with Cynder. They put back on their damaged armour, probably from the fall, and went to find Dread's castle hovering above the Temple. "Are you with me?"
"Always."
They both flew up towards the castle to an air battle between the dragons and the minions of the Darkness. Spyro found the window and flew through it with Cynder.
"Don't you ever use doors?" Dread stepped out of the shadows.
"Not if you're behind them." Spyro immediately went for Dread but was hit by a Fireball.
"Come on Dread, it's rude to not introduce our guests to everyone." A voice from the shadows rang out through the room.
"Oh yes." Dread smiled. "So here we have an old friend of yours, Gnasty Gnorc." Gnasty Gnorc grinned at Spyro. "And we also have his ally, Red." Red began to sharpen his claws. "But now the guest of honour, the Dark Master, Malefor!"
Spyro growled at Malefor. "Why the hostility? We are all friends here. After all, we can relate to each other through one thing: you, Spyro the Dragon. If Kaos and Ripto could have made it then we would have the complete set."
"So we met up and thought, if we cannot defeat you alone, then imagine what we could accomplish together." Dread prepared to strike. "We could get rid of you once and for all."
The others got ready. Spyro's eyes remained fixed on Malefor. Cynder was whipping around, looking at the others. Then Malefor made a move.
Spyro dodged to the side and blasted a volt of electricity at Red. Spyro immediately used his Earth element to turn into a ball and roll into Malefor. Cynder blasted Fear blasts at them all and they all connected. Gnasty Gnorc was stopped which allowed Cynder to use her Shadow Dash to slip past him and knocked him out.
Dread hit Spyro and this allowed Malefor to slash at him. Spyro felt his skin split open and blood rush out. Cynder breathed out a gust of wind that knocked back Malefor and Dread allowing Spyro recover. Red came round from the side and hit them with a burst of frost. Cynder felt cold as she returned it with lightening.
Spyro ran to the back of Red and sunk his claws into his back. Red swept around attempting to get him off but Spyro stayed on. Dread went to hit Spyro but that was when Spyro leapt off and Dread knocked Red down.
Malefor smiled. "You're using our weaknesses against us. You are still as good as you were when I first fought you. My death didn't make you slack off."
"And you're still as clever as you were." Spyro snarled. "You lured me here in order to collect the Darkness from me and return. But seeming as you sucked all of it out of me, you won't be able to return next time."
"There won't be a next time." Malefor came from one side and Dread from the other. Spyro let out his energy into an attack that he hadn't used since the volcano. He let out a Convexity Fury wave.
The castle started to explode. Cynder saw Spyro fall to the ground. She grabbed him and went out of the window as a burst of fire came out of it. The castle collapsed in on itself and whoever was in it was no more.
Cynder landed on the roof of the Dragon Temple and she blacked out. She fell down with Spyro and off the roof, towards the ground. And the explosion carried them away from the Temple.
Chapter 43
Homecoming
Spyro woke up in the flowered garden. He groaned as he lifted his head up. Cynder was close by but was still knocked out.
"Cynder?" Spyro shook her gently. She opened her eyes slowly. "We did it. We're alive." Cynder smiled as she closed them again.
Spyro looked into the distance. The explosion must have hit them hard as the Dragon Temple was at least a mile away. He had done his best to contain the Fury in the walls of the castle but it seemed that it easily blew off the roof of the Temple.
Spyro then saw the volcano. He knew that the Skylands lay behind it. He wanted to say goodbye to everyone at his old home, but he knew his new family was waiting for him back at the Ruins. It had been nearly a year so he decided they would return there, after resting.
Spyro lay down and slept. He dreamed of soaring through the air with Cynder. The sky was blue and the sun was beating down on them. For the first time in ages, Spyro felt like he had found peace.
In the morning, he got up to find Cynder already awake. "You did some damage to the Temple."
Spyro laughed. "Yeah, I hope that Terrador doesn't find me."
"But we are going back, right?" Cynder looked a bit suspicious.
"You know, I was thinking it is time to return to the Ruins." Spyro smiled. Cynder's face turned into one of joy.
"Well, let's go." Cynder flapped her wings and took off. Spyro flew off with her. They flew over the Valley of Alavar and looked back at the Temple.
"We can come back." Spyro sighed as he looked at his past. Then he went off and left it behind.
Chapter 44
Back to the Skylanders
Sunburn looked to the sky with Sonic Boom. It had been a year since Spyro and Cynder had left. News of the battle at the Dragon Temple had got to them quickly and the news that two enemies of Spyro had been killed. Although there was no sign of the bodies of Spyro and Cynder.
Sunburn went to his tree house. He fell asleep and felt something was going to happen tomorrow.
A commotion was happening outside. Sunburn woke up and went to the balcony to see Spyro and Cynder beginning welcomed back.
"So you've returned." Sunburn smiled.
Spyro smiled back. "You didn't really believe that we died back at the Dragon Temple. It takes more than a little fire to kill us."
"So what happened?" Sonic Boom appeared behind Sunburn.
Spyro's face dropped. He had spotted something. A message was on the side of the tree. "Oh no..."
It said: "You didn't think a little fire would kill me, did you Spyro? M."
Chapter 45
After Trap Team
Spyro and Cynder went on to help the Skylanders in their battles against Kaos throughout the next few years. It never got as intense as Malefor though and it was mainly a simple battle with stupid amounts of defence. But Spyro knew one day Malefor would come out of the shadows.
The signs were everywhere. Strange things were happening in the Underworld. Reports of a blue dragon that closely resembled Dread flying around before vanishing. All of the activities pointed at Malefor. There was even rumour that Kaos got a visit from a large purple dragon.
All of this was building up to the return of the Dragon King.
And return he did.
Epilogue
Spyro was in Flynn's balloon. He was glad to have helped the Trap Team stop Kaos and remove him as a threat. Now he could get back to hunting Malefor again. But for now he would rest.
"Ummm...Spyro?" Flynn was staring at the Ruins.
Spyro saw it. The Ruins were burning with a message for him written in charred earth. "YOU SHOULD HAVE KNOWN. M."