Spyro: Gem Chronicles

Chapter 1: The Millennium Dragon Festival

Spyro the dragon stared at his target. He observed the target and examined everything about the target. Finally, he opened his mouth; fire from his muzzle passed in a straight beam through open air and shrouded the target in flames. Soon after, the target was devoured by the flames and smoke rose from the target's ashes into the evening air.

Cheers from the crowd in the arena reverberated around Spyro like Sparx during his usual adventures. He had to laugh. He had topped the score board. He was the best fire-breather around.

"And presenting our newest champion, Spyro!" shouted the referee, followed by more cheers and applauding.

He was awarded a gold medallion with a fire symbol on it. The symbol shined in the bright of the sun reflecting into the air with malevolence.

The Millennium Dragon Festival was the festival undergone once every thousand years celebrating the dragons' first appearance in this realm and the construction of their home-worlds. Dragons from all over the world crowded through their portals with tents and prizes and luggage of all sorts for a full day of games and competitions, eating and, the teenage dragons' personal favorite, mating…

But Spyro was only interested being with Sparx. Sparx and he had been helping out set up since the previous day and were glad to finally be able to relax. Then when the Elder dragons announced the festival's beginning, Spyro knew he was ready for a break.

Tired and sweaty, Spyro flew impressively out of the arena with his shiny new medal…and Sparx, and they flew to the Grand Hall to chow down. "Sparx…ready for some food?" he asked.

But Sparx was already pulling on the oak door into the Grand Hall, the smell of food overriding all of his senses…besides smell. Spyro knocked the door open with his tail, Sparx speeding past ignoring his existence. "Don't start without me!" Spyro joked. But Sparx was already into a plate of food squeezing between a burly brown dragon and an Elder dragon.

"Spyro? Spyro…ah it is you!" said a voice from behind.

Spyro turned to find a slim young dragon a few years younger than he sitting upright on a table. His wings were a sky blue color and his horns were still developing. Quickly, Spyro glanced at the window getting a glimpse of his reflection.

In the dragon realms, a dragon's adolescent growth stage was measured by two things: the height of his horns, and the length of his tail. Spyro was about fully developed, his tail extending as far as any other teenage dragon.

"Spyro?"

"Sorry youngling. What do you need?"

"My brother and I were playing in the valley, and we found something we wanted you to have." His brother, also a blue dragon, crawled out from under the table, obviously unsure on whether or not to be scared of him.

The first brother revealed in his palm a purple gem, the rarest in all of the Dragon Realms. It was said that long ago, purple gems were used to power an entire sea with one touch, or create sunlight that lasted for three days straight.

It appeared to Spyro though that this one didn't have any juice left. So Spyro decided to be nice. "Why are you giving this to me? Don't you want it?" he asked them.

"We thought you collected these though?"

"Oh, not the purple gems. Only really powerful dragons can have, or even find purple gems. I can't accept this. This belongs to you two."

"Are you sure?"

"Positive. Now why don't you run that home and come back quick. I heard an Elder saying that they were going to announce a Youngling game soon."

"Thank you Spyro!" said the timid brother. They both beat their wings while passing through the oak doors and into the field, excited at the thought of having a new treasure.

It was then that Spyro realized Sparx was floating next to him, a piece of meat shoved into the side of his yellow cheek. "Kids these days…" he said with a slur of the tongue.

After eating a meal, and after a discussion with two Elders on improvements to the portal system, Spyro exited the Grand Hall with a complaining-about-his-aching-stomach Sparx resting between his horns.

Erected inside of the arena was an obstacle course in which every dragon who thought he was strong enough would endeavor to complete and top the leader boards. Spyro decided to sit out not wanting other dragons to think he was boasting. He knew he could top the high score anyways.

Spyro and Sparx took a seat in the top row which if you were lucky, would get great gusts of wind rushing through your faces as the 'strong dragons' tensely beat their wings to give them leverage over to the next obstacle.

The referee began to speak. "On my roar. One…two…" The referee turned his head standing on his hind legs. He looked to the sky as a flash of lightning stretched across the sky. It weaved in and out of existence as it neared the Dragon Arena until finally, with a blast of fire and electricity, exploded into reality in front of them leaving a giant crater where once was the arena.

Spyro and a hundred other dragons were sent billowing helplessly into the air as the explosion took out a league of tents and storytelling booths. Spyro looked up as a cloud of black smoke dissipated in the air.

Shouts across the plain could be heard from the wounded dragons, the Elder's trying desperately to hoard the people away from the crater.

Spyro and Sparx must have been out for a few minutes because the clouds above them that were blue with white puffs of cloud all morning were replaced with an iridescent sheet of grey. "Sparx? Sparx, get up!" Spyro said rolling the dragonfly over with his muzzle.

Sparx opened his dirty eyes and hovered in the air for a second before collapsing on Spyro's back. "It's okay buddy, we'll get you…"

"HELP!" Spyro's words came from the two young brothers who were in the explosion's aftermath. Spyro raced forward a few paces until he saw what was going on. A green circle of energy hovered in front of him, a black hand holding the timid brother by his horns. The circle had the appearance of a portal, but wasn't like any around here.

Then the creatures, four of them, stepped out of the green portal, the two brothers being held prisoners. White beams of light shot randomly from the portal. Spyro ducked to the ground as one sped for his head.

Sparx hung unconscious and limp from Spyro's back. He managed to turn his head as another beam collided into the burly brown dragon from the Grand Hall in the chest. With a scream of pain, he vanished from the realm leaving nothing behind. Next was a tree and then part of the Arena debris. With the green portal in front of him, he realized something was wrong.

Then the creatures spoke in dark tones. "Where are your elders?" Their voices cracked and vibrated through the evening air. More dragons and Younglings vanished. Spyro had to act.

"We're right here!" shouted the whole lot of them who had gathered boldly in a small group.

"Thank you. Now, if you don't mind…" The two with free hands released jets of white light themselves which caused the Elders, all of them, to vanish instantly. The dragons were now in panic as more and more of them were zapped trying to escape. With none of the Elders, the mysterious strangers, and the debris of the festival surrounding them, the plain became a prison.

Then, as Spyro jumped up to make his move, a red blur came down from the skies and directed its flight path for one of the brothers who had tears streaming down his blue-ringed eyes. It was a red dragon, maybe about Spyro's age, that scorched the creature to ashes. Three were left.

But not for long.

Then, as sudden as everything had occurred, streaks of white flashed in Spyro's direction. This time, he sidestepped, and Sparx rolled off his purple scales. "Sparx!" he shouted out. As Spyro hit the ground, the white beam hit Sparx on his left wing, and then he began to disintegrate like the other dragons. His tiny wing vanished, and then his body, then his head until Sparx was no more.

Angry, Spyro jumped to his feet, smoke leaving his flaring nostrils. His eyes flickered between a pale white, and their normal color. At the creature holding the second brother, Spyro released a single flame that, in mid-air, took the form of a serpent and wrapped itself around the creature's body. With a yelp and cry of searing pain, the creature shriveled to nothing.

"Run!" commanded Spyro in a deep, controlling voice. The youngling raced away from the site meeting with his brother four leagues away. Soon, only about fifty dragons were left. They were all either wounded, or running away.

The remaining two creatures began to chant in their crooked tones. As they spoke, the green portal of uncontrolled energy glowed with a brilliant bright red around its perimeter, followed by lightning striking from the sky.

Spyro struck one of the creatures in the chest, a pool of black blood spilling on his partner. The partner continued the chant, and ended it before Spyro could release another jet of flame. The ground began to shake and the portal started flashing.

The red dragon descended to the ground in the crater and stuck his claws through the creature's chest. "Spyro. There's no time. Come with me into the portal!"

The red dragon spoke with authority as Spyro's eyes returned to normal. Something had overtaken him; a strange force fueled his anger. And so he stepped into the portal of green energy, and he blacked out…

"Is he here to help?"

"Yes. He had no choice. His world was ending."

"And by that you mean…"

"The Black Dragon…he has destroyed everything. Spyro is now the last dragon in the dragon realm…"

As Spyro slept, he picked up parts of multiple conversations much like that. He always kept his eyes closed and always analyzed every word. After two days in what he discovered was a stone dungeon, he decided he was done waiting, and hungry.

His bones ached as he sat up. There was a dim light from outside the room that he saw through a rickety wooden door. He crept across the floor and kicked open the door swiftly turning to each end of a long and extremely tall corridor.

"Hey. You! The dragon is awake!"

A dragon guard standing in bronze armor signaled down a connecting corridor, footsteps following. Spyro beat his wings until he was in the air, and then he flew towards the opposite end. He turned around the corner which emptied into a staircase of marble that led straight up to a metallic door.

"This way!" the guard shouted.

He flew at full speed into the door, his horns breaking through a half-inch of metal. His wings were scratched as he pushed the rest of the way through the door falling out into a circular chamber, dragon guards surrounding him with bows to his head.

"Where am I?" he asked. It seemed to be appropriate for the moment.

"The Fire Island Shadow Base. Why are you attempting to leave?" asked a guard in similar armor as the others.

"Your men were pursuing me. I had no choice but to run."

"You can justify that for us later. But for now, you may return to your cell…"

"Captain. Stand down. We need him to know we're the good side." The red dragon from the festival attack stood before Spyro, a red cape with gold embroidering hung around his neck.

"What's going on?" Spyro asked sitting up off the floor.

"My name is Torch. I'm the Prince of Fire Island. If it's answers you want, then it's answers you'll get, but even the Shadow Base isn't safe enough. Follow me."

The guards took positions around the room. The room had a red carpet and several canvases set up around the room. Different dragons stared at Spyro. Maybe it was that they'd never seen a purple dragon, or that they weren't sure about the interruption, but they continued to look at him afraid that if not, they might not have Spyro's respect in return.

Spyro followed Torch to a circular hatch in the wall in the side of the room, deserted from the other guards. Torch breathed a single ember onto the hatch into a small groove shaped like fire. For a moment, nothing happened. Then, the hatch opened revealing a cellar.

They walked in and shut the hatch behind them.

Well, this has been edited over and over and given an interesting beginning to how the story will unfold. On Chapter 2: The Siege of the Shadow Base, Spyro and Torch must work together to defeat a growing threat before the Fire Island warriors are defeated. Spyro must also learn of how to rescue his friends from the grips of the Ravengers.

Please Read and Review! Chapter 2 will be out soon. Thanks to TMHB77 for help with inspirational purposes!

-Hunter