Chapter Two: Eminent
"Do you see any Roamers down there?" Cynder asked as Spyro observed the grounds around Flame and Ember's cave.
"No, I don't see anything there." Spyro concluded as the three dragons landed among the ground, still observing their surroundings, making sure not to cause to muck noise in case any Roamer tried a sneak attack on them.
"Flame," Spyro said shortly, but loud enough to let anyone inside the cave know he was there as Spyro checked around him once again to make sure no Roamer was in sight. "It's Spyro, come on, open up." No sooner did Spyro finish his command, the boulder in front of the mouth of the cave slid open just enough to allow Spyro, Cynder, and Skyro inside.
"Were you followed?" Flame asked as Spyro shook his head.
"No, are you guys alright?" Spyro said as he helped Flame shunt the boulder in front of the cave mouth.
"Yeah were fine," Flame said as he turned towards Ember who was sitting on a plushy couch made from cotton and silk. "Ember, can you run back and get Flare, let her know we have company please?" Flame asked as Ember stood up and began to make her way towards Flare's room."
"Yeah I'll tell her, do any of you four want a drink or something to snack on; you three in particular must be hungry." Ember asked Spyro and his family.
"I'll be fine, Cynder, Skyro?" Spyro asked as Cynder shook her head.
"I'll be ok to, Skyro?" Cynder asked as Skyro was a bit nervous to ask at first."
"Weren't you all excited to have some of Ember's delicious roasted lamb chops and orange slices before we left?" Spyro smiled as Skyro giggled with embarrassment.
"Yeah I was," Skyro blushed as he looked up towards Ember. "If you don't mind that is Ember."
"Nonsense, I'll have it ready before you know it," Ember winked at the young Skyro as she looked up towards Spyro and Cynder and pointed at the two with a smile on her face. "And I know you two are just trying to be polite, you'll get some to along with everybody else in this cave." Ember then walked back towards Flare's room where she was out of sight.
"Oh isn't she a sweetheart," Flame asked as he chuckled and invited his guests to sit in the living room. "Skyro, you can go back and play with Flare for a while until dinner is ready; just remember the rules though." Flame smiled, knowing that Skyro was a polite and trustworthy dragon just like his father.
"No going outside, don't break anything, and no roughhousing," Skyro said with a smirk as he pranced along the living room floor. "I got this rule thing down to just instincts Flame." Skyro then took off towards Flare's room as Flame made a gesture to get up and catch the young dragon, but remained in his seat laughing with Spyro and Cynder.
"That son of yours is quite the know-it-all isn't he?" Flame said with a smile as Spyro nodded his head in agreement.
"Flame, I hate to ask, but we were wondering if we could stay here for a little bit," Spyro asked as Flame listened to his best friend. "Only until we know that the Roamers have left our cave entrance so we can get back in. We'll help out however we can."
"You don't even have to ask, I kind of already knew that was why you came here," Flame said as he looked towards Ember. "Our friends need to stay here for a while until then can get back into their cave, or at least wait it out until the Roamers have more or less moved on to another region in bulk numbers."
"Great, now I have somebody else to talk to besides you, you're driving me insane." Ember pinched Flame's cheek jokingly as Cynder winked to Ember's action.
"Hi Flare, long time since I've seen you!" Skyro said as he entered Flare's room. The room was a pretty sight to see with the bed and ceiling decorated with flowers and her nice, smooth stone desk was masterly crafted by Mole's in Warfang before the Roamers got out of hand. Her chess which held most of her personal belongings was made of fine oak wood and marble as the blue marble slabs glistened in the candlelight.
"Hi Skyro, it has been awhile!" Flame yelped as she ran and gave her best friend a hug who returned the gesture. She was beautiful to Skyro, her orange color resembled her father's nearly perfectly as it was a shade darker than his. Her chest scales matcher her mother's while they were shaded in a dark pink. Her white horns mimicked her father's shape while her dorsal fins were of her mothers. The membranes of her wings and dorsal fins were the dark pink color of her chest scaled while the fin itself was a shade brighter than her father's skin color. Her tail blade was identical to Flame's. The yellow spade which would only progress to become sharper as she aged already showed signs of lethality as it was a constant reminder that it was indeed a weapon.
"So I overheard our parents talking and guess what," Skyro teased as Flare impatiently waited for an answer. "We're staying over here for a while!"
"No way, that is perfect!" Flare said as Skyro looked a bit confused.
"Why is that perfect, what do you got in mind?" Skyro asked as Flare chuckled to herself.
"You wouldn't believe what I found last night," Flare said as Skyro looked at her in awe. "It is a really amazing place."
"You left your cave at night, you know that is dangerous." Skyro said as Flare pushed him jokingly.
"Be quiet dummy, or I'll get in trouble," Flare said as she scolded Skyro playfully. "I know a way to get there without being caught by any Roamers, so how about it, you want to come see?"
Skyro thought about the risks thoroughly as he finally answered, "Alright, we'll go, we have to be back before our parents wake up."
"Deal, don't be such a wimp, we won't even see a Roamer on the way there." Flare said as the two children heard the adults laughing in the other room.
"Kids, dinner is ready. Come get some if you want some!" Ember called as the two ran into the dining room for their food.
"I might have an idea on how to thin out the Roamer numbers if you're interested," Flame whispered to Spyro, not wanting Ember or Cynder to hear. "We'll discuss it tonight only if you're interested."
"You know I'm open for ideas," Spyro whispered back as they walked into the dining room. "I want to rid this world of Roamers just as fast as anyone else."
"What are you two whispering about?" Cynder said as she flicked her tail blade at Spyro as she passed him, getting his attention as he gazed at her body, always falling into a trance when he really, really looked at her.
"Oh nothing dear," Spyro stammered as Cynder rolled her eyes. "I'm trying to annoy you like always." He couldn't help but smirk as Cynder smirked back at him, carrying his and her plate onto the table as everyone sat down to feast.
"Oh please hun, you can do that just by staring at me." Cynder shot back as Flame poked Spyro in the arm with his elbow.
"She got you friend, don't even try to fight back, you'll just lose." Flame poked as Spyro shook his head and smiled.
"Flare honey, can you run and grab everybody a drink please?" Ember asked as the little female dragon nodded her head.
"Skyro, go help her out a bit would you please," Spyro asked as his son skipped after Flare. "You mother and I will take water by the way!"
"Prowlus, you know this is a bad idea right?" Hunter whispered as the two Cheetah leaders, along with two other Cheetah warriors stalked through the tall weeds.
"Yeah, but Volteer said that the food rations were running low," Prowlus whispered back as he drew is arrow back into his bow. "I know this is suicide, but what else is there to do? We all have to fulfill a purpose in Warfang, or else we get shorted out on food for a day, you know how the system works."
"Yeah, prove your worth or get shorted out," Hunter said as he drew his bow as well. "Even though the method is cruel, I respect it nothing less."
"Which is why we need to be on our guard and take home a good poundage today to make certain of our worth in Warfang." One of the Cheetah warriors said who was inspecting his crossbow while observing the open meadow, counting at least over a dozen Roamers wandering aimlessly about in the clearing.
"Make good use of those arrows brothers, we need some to hunt with as well." The last Cheetah warrior said who was much bulkier and deep voiced than the others. A large bronze sword stayed firmly clinched in both of his left and right hands instead of a bow to serve as a close range protector.
"Alright, we'll use the tall grass for cover and make our way around and finish off each and every one of them silently with arrows," Prowlus said as he placed his bow back around and across his chest but held the arrow firmly in his hand. "If the arrow gets stuck, leave it until they disintegrate to get it back, no loud noises. Blaidus, hold back for a second before you follow us, even in this tall grass your size might become an issue when sneaking." The larger Cheetah warrior nodded his head in understanding as Hunter looked at the nearest Roamer which stood in their way.
"I'll go first," Hunter said as he got ready to bolt into the tall grass. "Prowlus, once I'm hidden you follow me. Savage, you're after him and Blaidus, you follow after him." Hunter then proceeded into the tall grass, near perfectly camouflaged with the thick bristles of nature as he stopped and motioned for Prowlus to follow. Though the Cheetah leader showed courage in entering the tall grass with his companion, he soon realized that he could no longer see where the Roamers were at anymore.
"Tell Savage to wait with Blaidus where they are at," Hunter whispered as he looked around the tall grass frantically. "If we are all in this tall grass at once and we end up getting split up, how will we ever find each other in here again?"
Prowlus signaled off Blaidus and Savage and ordered them to hide up in the tall trees and observe where Prowlus and Hunter where as he turned back to Hunter and said, "You're right, it is best to have someone watching over us if anything goes wrong." Hunter nodded his head as he turned to the tall grass among them, unknowing which way to go suddenly as he felt the ground with his left hand.
"They aren't moving, I can't tell where they are at," Hunter said as he sniffed the air. "Their stench is overwhelming, I don't even have to try and focus my thoughts to the smells around me to let me know that they are there but I can't smell where they are exactly though."
"Aye, I know what you mean," Prowlus whispered as he began ahead of Hunter, slowly stalking through the grass as he made sure he didn't accidently break a fallen tree branch. "We'll just have to go by memory, follow my lead." The two then began slowly through the tall brush, arrows ready to kill any Roamer which they ran into.
"Um Flare; I really don't think this is a good idea to go out this late." Skyro said, realizing that it was well into nightfall already and had never been out so late due to the threat of Roamers and Roamer Dragons.
"Oh come on, we'll be fine, I'm going to check to see if our parents are asleep yet." Flare said as she slipped out of her room cautiously into the living room of the cave.
"She must be crazy." Skyro said as he looked among her room again. "I wonder if she knows what happens when you get cornered by Roamers." He then caught himself staring at the walls among Flare's room, envying all of the paintings and sculptures she had compared to him. Three golden statues replicated from Spyro, Malefor, and Ignitus stood among her shelf above her bed in pride. Ignitus' stature was him sitting down. His tail tightly coiled around him and wings folded to his sides as his chest stuck out proudly along with his neck stretched upright with his head seemingly looking out into nowhere.
"Where did she get these?" Skyro thought to himself as he then looked towards the statue of Malefor. Skyro knew of his grandfather through both Spyro and Cynder as he looked among Malefor's stance. The great dragon stood perched among a large boulder, tail running the length of the statue as his wings were outstretched and leering as his head hung low to show dominance among those who were under him.
"Ok, we're all clear, we can go out." Flare said softly as she re-entered her room, looking at Skyro who's eyes were still fixed on the three sculptures.
"Where did you get these, the sculpture of my dad in particular?" Skyro asked as he looked at his father's statue. Spyro's wings were half open as he sat upright with great triumph over something. His sail was halfway curled around his body while his head looked over his shoulder at something like if he was staring back at something. His facial expression looked as though he had a great number of stories to tell about his life, in reality this was true.
"My dad made those when I was first born for me," Flame said as she looked among the three as well. "He just started to take up carving and sculpting as a hobby when he came across a large gold nugget in this cave when he and Spyro carved out my room. He idolized Ignitus for his fire element, Malefor carved Malefor because of the impact he had on his and mom's life, and your dad because he means a lot to him. He cares about Spyro as a friend more than you can imagine from what I've heard from mom." Flare said as Skyro nodded his head in understanding. The detail was perfect in the sculptures; hours of work from Flame on his free time went into each chisel and molding process while using his fire element.
"They're very impressive pieces of work, you're lucky to have them." Skyro said as Flare smiled to the compliment.
"Thanks, now come on I want to show you this." Flare said as Skyro unwillingly followed his friend towards the other side of her room. Skyro could hear his parents sound asleep due to the fact that he could hear them breathing softly from the other room in a deep sleep. Flare then shoved the rock which acted as a shelf away from the wall to reveal a large hole just big enough for the two to crawl into.
"Did you dig this tunnel yourself?" Skyro asked as he could feel a cool breeze of wind rush through the tunnel, signaling that the tunnel led directly to the outside world.
"Yeah, I finished it about a month ago and I've been going out ever since," Flare said as she began to crawl into the tunnel. "Now come on, we've only got about three hours or so until we have to head back." Skyro shook his head with a smile as he followed his best friend into the small, dark tunnel.
"So do you think we'll ever see a world without Roamers?" Skyro asked as he struggled to see with the poorly, moonlight lit tunnel.
"I hope so, there must be some way to get them all together and kill them all at once," Flare said as she seemed to move through the tunnel with no issues at all. "Either that or form an alliance large enough to face them all head on without any problems."
"Where did you hear those ideas at?" Skyro said as his eyes began to adjust to the dim lighting, nearly catching his horns on a tree root which passed just above him.
"My dad was talking about it to my mom the other day, she thought a large scale, head on attack was way too risky," said Flare as the two young dragons approached the end of the tunnel. "But I don't see any way to round them all up and kill them all at once, they have nothing else on their minds except bite, bite, and bite some more."
"Do you know exactly what they do if they manage to get ahold of you?" Skyro said as Flare cringed to the thought.
"They eat you alive," Flare whispered as the two finally reached the end of the tunnel. "Alright, just remember to be quiet, they are attracted to noise."
"I know, I remember," Skyro whispered as they crawled from the tunnel and snuck behind a nearby bush. "I hope what you're showing me is worth it."
"Trust me, you won't forget about it for a lifetime," Flare whispered as she poked her head just enough out from the bush to look at the surroundings. "Alright, follow me, but keep quiet." Roamer Dragon cries filled the night sky while the unbearable sound or Roamer growls and snarls filled the forest with an orchestra of horror as Skyro's stomach cringed with fear. Never had he been outside at night when the world was at its most dangerous point of the day, only had he been outside during daylight hours.
"How far is it?" Skyro asked as he and Flare crept through the tall grass and giant trees while watching out for any sign of movement.
"No too far, we'll be there here soon," Flare answered as they stopped inside another bush. "I don't travel very far every night, just small distances." The sound of the river leading from Friendship Falls could be heard from where the two were at as Skyro still couldn't recognize where they were exactly.
"Where are we anyway?" He finally asked as they were soon moving again, this time much faster as the moans from the Roamers soon began to get quieter as if they were getting farther away.
"About a mile or so away from the cave," Flare said as she soon stopped, nearly causing Skyro to run into her as she sniffed the ground curiously. "Help me look for a very smooth rock around here somewhere."
"That's a pretty good description of ever rock around here," Skyro said as he soon regretted saying his thoughts. "Is this it?"
"Yeah, flip it over," Flare said as Skyro grasped the smooth surface of the rock and pushed it away with seemingly no effort at all. "Do you know what it is?"
"I don't know, it looks like a piece of bandage or something," Skyro then grabbed the smooth cloth and lifted it up in the moonlight. "It has blood on it… I think." The white and tan bandage looked as though it was rubbed into dirt and torn viciously from someone as the bloodstains provided the evidence that it must have been a very gruesome conflict.
"W-w-who are you, why are you messing with my things." A voice whispered as if it was being spoken with sadness as Skyro dropped the piece of fabric and looked around with confusion and fear, Flare did the same.
"Show yourself, I didn't know it was yours, please don't be afraid of us." Skyro whispered back as he soon saw a figure approach from the shadowy forest in front of him.
"That belonged to my mother," a dragon about the same age as Skyro and Flare soon emerged from the shadows. His grey skin and pitch black chest scales and black membrane wings made it seemingly impossible for them to see as his silver-blue eyes were filled with tears. "It was all that was left of her favorite necklace before the Roamers got to her. She was defending me you see, and they just ate her like she was a cheap snack." His sobs were quiet, yet pain filled as his tears refused to stop.
"I'm sorry to hear about your mother, my name is Skyro, and this is Flare," Skyro politely introduced himself and Flare. "Do you live around here, what about your dad?"
"He died while protecting us from those monsters before they started roaming about," the dragon said as he sobbed a little less in Skyro's presence. "Sorry to be so rude, my name is Smoke. Where are your parents?"
"Back at our cave, they don't know we're out her," Flare spoke up as she stepped up next to Skyro's side. "Aren't you scared of the Roamers?"
"Is that what you call them, Roamers," Smoke asked as he managed to squirm out a small smile. "Sounds like a fitting name. Not to scared, I generally come out at night anyway; my color helps me blend into the shadows a bit. My cave is actually right behind these large bushes here. I sometimes have to use my flame breath to light the way sometimes, only rarely though."
"You already mastered your element?" Skyro asked in awe as Smoke nodded his head.
"Dad said that I needed to so I could help protect mom if the time arose," Smoke said as Flame stood impressed, neither her nor Skyro had mastered their elements yet. "You two should really get back to your parents, they might grow worried if they wake up for some reason and see that you're missing."
"No, you should come with us," Skyro said as he walked up to Smoke so they were face-to-face. "I'm not leaving a friend behind out here by himself in this danger." Suddenly, a loud screech split the night air, sending chills of fear up Skyro's spine like lightning splitting the night sky.
"One of them might have heard us," Smoke whispered as he crouched low to the ground, followed by Skyro and Flare. "Alright I'll go with you; we'll have to make up a good story to tell your parents why there is another dragon in your cave."
"Flare, get us back now please, I think you've showed me enough," Skyro whispered as he picked up the fabric which he dropped and handed it to Smoke. I'm pretty sure you don't want to leave this."
"Nor this," Smoke whispered, pulling a small blue crystal from the small hole in ground which was covered up by the rock and wrapped it in the piece of fabric. "My father gave it to me, he said it was magical and one day I'd learn how to use it." He then grabbed his things with his mouth and nodded his head.
"Alright, follow me." Flare whispered as she led the way back, feeling more nervous than when they started out as she heard the heavy footsteps of Roamers looming all around her.
"Alright, go this way about seventy paces and go left," Flare though, trying to remember the path which she took as she crept through the dully lit forest floor. "This was such a stupid idea to do this; we could have gotten killed over this. But we saved someone from these things… if we ever make it back." She then stopped suddenly behind a large boulder in the shadows, nearly cloaking them in complete black as Skyro and Smoke followed.
"What's wrong?" Skyro asked as Flare pointed towards a Roamer.
"The tunnel is behind the bushes right behind him," Flare whispered as Skyro sat down and thought of the predicament which they had fallen into. "We can't get to it unless he is out of the way." Skyro then thought of something that might work.
"Give me a rock," Skyro whispered as he looked around the dark ground, feeling around for a rock as he began to panic. "I'm going to lure him away by throwing a rock someplace where he can't be in our way."
"Here, I found two." Smoke whispered as he handed Skyro a small pebble and a large rock which was larger than his hand.
"Here it goes." Skyro started with the small pebble, hoping to hit a tree or something solid blindly so that the ill-lit Roamer would move along somewhere else. The young purple dragon threw the pebble with all of his strength into the pitch blackness of the forest, nothing. Not a sound was heard as the pebble simply landed among the forest floor, not even a simple thud could be heard by them.
"Try again; you'll get it this time." Flare whispered as Skyro grabbed the larger rock, finding a good place along its rough surface to grasp ahold of it firmly before the throw. Skyro heaved the rock with all of his strength, aiming it a little bit to the left as it flew into the forest for only a few seconds before impacting a tree to close to where they were at.
"Oh no," Skyro whispered as the Roamer turned to where they were and began to lurch forward. "He's heading right for us.
"Tuck your heads down low and don't move," Smoke whispered as he did the same, curling his head into a ball with the rest of his body and laid absolutely motionless. "Stay perfectly still; he may confuse us with just plain rocks." Skyro's body then began to shake and quiver with fear as a tree's leaves would in the wind as he felt a different knot in his throat arise.
"Stay back… stay away… leave us alone," Skyro thought as the Roamer was mere feet away from them. "I don't want to die, stay as far away as possible… go away, leave us alone!" The Roamer then looked down and saw the three dragons huddled together, noticing Skyro shivering along with Flare.
"He's found us." Skyro thought as he froze in absolute fear. The Roamer then opened his mouth with a quick snarl and growled sickly. Saliva then began to drip from his teeth as his hands became outreached for Skyro. Then, he released an ear-splitting shriek which felt like needles in in Skyro's ears as he lunged towards the young dragon.
"I said to back away from us!" Skyro yelled out loud. As if the knot in his throat finally untied itself, a powerful short blast of fire erupted from his mouth and exploded in the Roamer's face, causing the Roamer to howl in pain as Skyro was surprised by his action.
"Run to the tunnel go!" Flare yelled as the three sprinted past the Roamer which was still clinging to its face in pain, not ever paying attention to the three young dragons fleeing from him.
"Alright, crawl and don't look back!" Flare yelled as she allowed Skyro and Smoke to enter first, soon followed by her as she heard more footsteps coming up fast and the unforgettable swoosh of Dragon Roamer wings flapping near the ground before landing. Skyro's heard still raced over the experience of nearly being caught as he thought that the distance he was putting between him and the Roamers wasn't enough. Though they couldn't have crawled through the tunnel if they tried the constant reminder of fear and death overpowered him as he soon caught eye of the dull candlelight room of Flare's which seemed more inviting than ever to him.
"We're back, but keep quiet, or else-" Skyro was cut short after entering the room to see his parents and Flare's looking down at him with very angry and worried faces. Flare and Smoke soon saw this as they entered as well, Skyro and Flare both knew that they were both in very big trouble.