3. A Place Once Called Home
The golden light filtered slowly between his flickering eyelids, bringing him back from a world of dreams and darkness. Spyro opened his eyes slowly, only to quickly shut them again when they were assaulted by light. Hesitantly he tried again and, blinking sleep from his eyes, raised his head from the ground.
The first thing he noticed was that he was quite warm, as though something soft and warm was pressed up against him. The second thing he noticed was the slight weight of something draped across his back. And the third thing he noticed was that Sparx was fast asleep on Cynder's head. Only then did it click in his mind.
Spyro's reaction was to jerk away from the black dragoness who had fallen asleep against him. Her wing slipped off his back as he scrambled away, but the movement wasn't enough to wake her. Sparx slept on, his snores hanging softly in the morning air. Spyro took a few deep breaths, calming his furiously beating heart, and turned his flushed face away from the sleeping Cynder.
After a few moments of silence, broken only by the snores of Sparx, Spyro turned his eyes back to her. Her eyes were closed in peaceful sleep as her ribs rose and fell gently with each breath. Spyro let his eyes wander over her body, eying the black scales that glimmered like jewels in the sunlight. He edged closer, suddenly wishing to feel her warmth beside him once again.
This feeling within him was strange and unfamiliar. It made his stomach feel as though he'd swallowed a thousand dragonflies, and caused his legs to become weak. It made his heart feel like it was growing bigger, so big it would burst, and it made his scales feel hot whenever he came near her. Such a strange ailment it was that he suffered from. Hesitantly he eased his body down beside the black dragoness, his eyes never leaving her peaceful face. She snuffled quietly in her sleep and Spyro couldn't help but smile.
'I want her close to me…' the thought echoed through his otherwise empty head. 'Is it possible that I…'
'I love you.'
The memory caused Spyro's scales to heat up once more and his heart to skip a beat. He wasn't sure where it was from, whether he had dreamt it or not, but somehow those words always seemed to haunt him. Had it been Cynder who had spoken those words to him, so quiet they were like the hiss of the wind in his ear, or had it been but a spirit of his dreams? Spyro couldn't know if she had truly spoken those words to him, if that confession had truly passed her lips. If only he could ask her. But the very thought of it scared him.
Her eyelids flickered suddenly and Spyro jumped, sliding quickly away from her. Seconds later her eyelids slid upwards to reveal her emerald eyes. Blinking sleep from her eyes, Cynder raised her head and turned towards the purple dragon.
"Spyro?" she asked, stifling a yawn. "Did we stay out here all night?"
"Yeah," he answered, quickly averting his eyes, "I guess we did."
Yawning, Cynder tipped her head back, causing the still-asleep Sparx to slide down her neck. The dragonfly was woken uncomfortably when he landed sprawled on the ground beside Cynder. She looked down at him in surprise, wondering where he could have come from.
"Argh, what did you do that for?" Sparx scowled, rubbing the side of his head and glaring up at the black dragoness.
"Do what?" she asked, bewildered. "Where did you come from?"
Spyro stifled a chuckle, causing the dragonfly and dragoness to give him quizzical looks.
"He was sleeping on your head, Cynder. You just threw him off."
"Oh."
Sparx only glared at Cynder's sheepish expression and fluttered away from her, muttering about disrespectful dragons. Spyro gave him an amused look before turning back to Cynder. She gave another yawn and stretched out her body like a cat, spreading her wings to their full span. Spyro watched her silently, every other thought having suddenly been eradicated from his head.
"I suppose we should go wake the others," Cynder suggested, snapping Spyro from his trance.
Realisation suddenly hit Spyro as he remembered what he was doing here, back in the old Dragon Temple with a scout party of nine dragons. Those nine dragons at that moment were most likely still snoring the day away within the temple. Hastily agreeing, Spyro led Cynder back towards the temple, snatching Sparx up with his tail as he passed him.
"Hey! Let me go!" Sparx protested, but when he realised he had no chance of escaping Spyro's grasp he resigned himself to being carried back into the temple.
The other dragons were indeed still asleep, their bodies sprawled ungainly on the floor as their snores filled the room. Spyro heaved a sigh as he considered his sleeping search party and released Sparx from his hold. The dragonfly hovered up to Spyro's head, folding his arms and glowering disapprovingly at the sleeping room of dragons.
"What should we do? Wake them?" he suggested, shrugging his tiny shoulders.
Spyro raised a scaly eyebrow as he considered the dragonfly's suggestion, "And how do you propose we do that?"
"Like this," Sparx opened his mouth wide and yelled as loud as his vocal cords would allow. "WAKE UP!"
The echo of his yell bounced around the room for a few moments before dying away. Unfortunately, it didn't seem to have any effect on the sleeping dragons. Sparx crossed his arms and pouted with annoyance. Cynder refrained from rolling her eyes, but Spyro chuckled at the dragonfly's failed attempt.
"Okay, let me try," he laughed, stopping to draw air in.
Seconds later he opened his jaws to let loose not a yell but a great roar that ricocheted off the walls and reverberated in the sensitive ears of every dragon present. Sparx covered his ears with his hands, screwing up his eyes against the pain of the extremely loud noise. The dragons awoke in a panic, scrambling upright with wings flared and eyes wide. The last echoes of his roar dying away, Spyro looked upon them approvingly.
"I see you're finally awake."
"Young dragon, do you really believe that was necessary?" complained one of the older dragons, waggling a claw in his ear as he scrunched his muzzle disapprovingly.
"Would you have preferred I let you sleep the day away?" Spyro asked. "We have a job to do, and I'm sure Terrador would prefer that job done sooner rather than later.'
Every eye in the room turned to him and he was tempted to spread his wings, just to make himself appear bigger to the dragons that were at least twice his size. However, despite his small stature and young age, there was no doubt that Spyro's command remained unchallenged. The older dragons nodded their heads in silent agreement, somewhat shamefaced in the face of the purple dragon's words. There was no telling from their expressions, though, whether any of them felt that having a leader half their age was humiliating. But, then again, he was the famous purple dragon of legend after all.
The moment of uncomfortable silence passed slowly between Spyro and the older dragons, until Spyro decided it was time to reveal his plan for the day. Of course, the purple dragon didn't really have a plan, but making up one as he went along was as good a solution as any.
"Now that we're all awake and ready, it's time we began the search that we were sent here to do," he began, trying to sound commanding. "Our best guideline is the Silver River. Wherever there is water, there will be life. I have lived in this area for a good part of my life, and I know it well enough."
He paused, noticing that the dragons were listening to his every word, intently waiting for his instruction. Cynder, too, was curiously waiting to hear what their course of action was to be.
"The Silver River runs downstream towards this temple from the poisonous forest in the south," at this he jerked his head towards the wall to his left, indicating which way the river was coming from. "By the time it reaches the temple the poison in the water has diluted and it is safe to drink."—Ignitus had told him this years ago—"Before it bypasses the temple, the river diverts into two. One section continues past the temple and back to the ocean. The other section," he paused and turned slightly, extending a wing towards the west, "runs westwards through the forest and marshes. Whether it eventually returns to the sea or not, I am uncertain. I am sure that, if there are any chances of dragon life on this island, it will be somewhere towards the west along that stretch of the Silver River. It is there I propose we begin our search."
Spyro fixed his search group with a hard stare, waiting to see if anyone argued against his suggestion. But they all nodded in affirmation, knowing that the purple dragon knew far more about this land than they did. Spyro sighed inwardly in relief.
"Well, let's get started then, shall we?"
Nine voices spoke up in eager agreement before heading towards the outside of the temple. Spyro waited until they had all exited the room before deciding to follow with Sparx hovering beside him. Cynder nudged him gently with her hips and he turned to see a subtle smirk upon her snout.
"That was well thought out, Mr. Strategist," she winked playfully. "Who knew there was a brain that intelligent stashed away in that purple head of yours?"
Spyro's cheeks flushed, "It wasn't all that intelligent. Most of it was just repeating what Ignitus told me a while ago. He was a good teacher…"
His voice trailed off quietly and his expression was replaced with one of sombre thought. Cynder nudged his shoulder gently.
"He taught you well."
Her smile could have outshone a thousand spirit gems and it was more than enough to get Spyro's heart racing. The look in her eyes when they met his was enough to carry away the heavy feeling that had settled upon his heart. Remembering his promise of the night before, Spyro returned her smile with his own.
"Oi, you gonna hang around here all day? Someone needs to light a bomb under the two of you," Sparx interrupted, half-annoyed, half-amused.
"R-Right!" Spyro stammered, quickly picking up the pace to catch up with the rest of the dragons. "Let's go!"
"Behind you all the way," Sparx answered, buzzing after his dragon brother and added as an afterthought. "That way I can use you as a shield against danger. Sparx, old boy, why didn't you think of that sooner?"
Cynder only rolled her eyes at his mutterings and hurried after the two of them, leaving the temple deserted once more.
The trip along the silver river was one filled with old memories for both Spyro and Sparx. It seemed the closer they came to home, the more the homesickness seemed to set in. Cynder swooped low over the water, which appeared molten gold in the early morning sun, before gliding up to Spyro's side.
"This was the river that Ignitus floated your egg down, right?"
"So he said," Spyro replied distantly, his thoughts elsewhere.
"I guess you must be close to the swamp you grew up in, then," was her reply, her emerald eyes scanning the tree line on either side of the river.
Spyro remained silent. Sparx, too, was staying unusually silent, and had been since they began the flight over the river. The other nine dragons were flying behind them, gazing around at the unfamiliar surroundings with interest. Cynder stared at Spyro, concerned about his silence.
"Everything okay?" she asked hesitantly.
Spyro turned his eyes upon her, surprised, "Of course, why wouldn't it be?"
"You're awfully quiet, that's all," Cynder murmured softly, watching his expression.
His eyes clouded over as though he was thinking deeply of something, and he didn't reply. Still Sparx remained in silence, his arms folded as he stared straight ahead with an oddly serious expression on his face. Cynder sighed.
"You want to see it again, don't you?" she asked, softly. "The swamp, that is. And the family that raised you…you really want to see them again, don't you, Spyro?"
He didn't seem surprised that she had figured out the reason for their silence.
"It's been…so long. I'd just like to see them again, to tell them that I'm happy and alive. And I'm sure Sparx would like it too…" he trailed off for a moment before shaking his head roughly. "But we've got a mission to complete; we don't have time for pleasantries. That can wait."
Cynder felt a rush of annoyance at his words and swished her tail in irritation. After all he had done to save the world, they couldn't give him a break to go see the family that raised him? He deserved better than that.
"No," she replied firmly, "you should go see them. I don't care what mission we have to complete; you deserve at least to go see the family that raised you. And they deserve it too. They deserve to see their son," she paused and looked at Sparx, "sons, again."
"But—"
"No buts," she scowled, giving him a swift slap on the flank with the flat of her tailblade. "We can give you at least an hour to go visit the swamp. I'll lead this group off to search the forest until you're ready to move on. And you're not allowed to say no. Go on, go see them. And take Sparx with you, it's creepy without him chattering like he usually does."
"But, Cynder…" Spyro protested, only to have her press her tailblade to his lips in order to silence him.
She smiled reassuringly, "Don't worry; I can handle these dunderheaded dragons. Take your time. We'll continue the search when you're ready. I won't be too far."
Spyro heaved a sigh and finally gave in, turning away with a word of thanks, "Alright, Cynder, don't go too far. I'll be back soon, I promise."
He turned away from her, using his wing to guide Sparx alongside him. Cynder watched him fly towards the trees and called out to him before he disappeared into the foliage.
"Come find us when you're done!"
Spyro's cry of assertion reached her from within the trees as he and the glowing Sparx disappeared into the forest. Turning back to the other nine dragons, none of whom seemed to have noticed the conversation between the purple dragon and the black dragoness, Cynder proceeded to take charge.
"Alright then, dragons," she called, hovering before them, "I'm in charge for now. Spyro has gone to search the swamp on his own, and until he gets back we're going to continue along the river. Search the trees along the river for any sign of life, be it claw marks or scents. Well, what are we waiting for? Let's go!"
Surprisingly, not one of them questioned Cynder why Spyro had gone off on his own. For that she was grateful. At least she could give Spyro the time he needed to visit his family again.
How familiar this scent was, of moist earth and musky fungi. The fresh scent of vegetation, the cool and almost invisible mist that settled around him, and the soft moist ground that made him feel as though he were walking on rain clouds. How familiar it all was.
Spyro inhaled deeply, letting the almost-forgotten memories wash over him, filling his lungs with the scent of a place once called home. Sparx hovered close to his horns, fidgeting nervously as he gazed around at their swampy surroundings. The purple dragon was no better off, the strange feeling of dragonflies in his stomach making him feel queasy. But if one were to ask the two why they felt such nervousness, neither would be able to answer.
"Spyro," Sparx muttered, his voice shaking noticeably, "you've got the shakes."
"Speak for yourself," Spyro replied, the irritated edge lost amongst the quivers in his voice. "You're vibrating like a glow-bug."
"Glow-bugs vibrate?"
Ignoring Sparx's feeble attempt at a joke, Spyro brushed his way through a large clump of bulrushes, squinting his eyes as the straggly plants whipped at his face. His paws squelched noisily in the soggy earth as he came to a stop and gazed at the all-too-familiar surroundings. It was as though nothing had changed.
The large tree in the centre of the clearing, where he and Sparx had so often played together, still stood in all its gnarled glory. The large mushrooms dotted here and there amongst the bulrushes were just the same, but Spyro wondered if perhaps they'd gotten smaller over the years. Sparx hesitated for an instant before hovering, ever so slowly, towards the old gnarled tree. His tiny hands caressed the knobbly bark of the trunk and he turned to Spyro with a strange look on his face.
"We're…we're back…" Spyro couldn't tell if Sparx wanted to laugh or cry, but his voice quivered strangely.
The purple dragon stepped his way delicately over to the tree, gazing up at the old stubbly branches that seemed to have given up reaching for the sun. How odd it felt to be standing here, gazing up at this same tree just as he had done all those years ago. It had looked bigger back then. This was where he had grown up, and the home he had left behind.
"Spyro…? Is that…you?"
A soft voice from behind caused the purple dragon to spin around, alarmed. But the sight that met his eyes was not an unpleasant one. Hovering towards them, their eyes full of hope and disbelief were two dragonflies, one green, and one blue. Sparx's eyes widened, and he stared at them as though afraid they would disappear the instant he looked away.
"Mom…Dad…?"
"Oh, Sparx," the green dragonfly whispered, her eyes brimming with tears, "you've come back."
Seconds later Sparx found himself caught in a tight embrace, one that only a mother could give. She sobbed loudly into his shoulder, while the blue dragonfly, Flash, looked on. Sparx hesitantly wove him arms around his sobbing mother, noticing suddenly that she seemed so frail in his embrace. Flash hovered over to Spyro, placing a hand on the purple dragon's muzzle.
"Welcome back, son," he murmured, "It's been a while."
"I know, I'm sorry I never came to see you," Spyro hesitated for a moment before adding, "…Dad."
Their mother, Nina, finally pulled herself together and pried her face away from Sparx's shoulder, wiping her eyes. Sparx let her go almost reluctantly as she turned to face Spyro with watery eyes.
"It doesn't matter how long we've had to wait," she smiled at her two sons, "just that you have returned to us is more than we could have ever asked."
"Aww, mum…" Sparx rubbed the back of his head bashfully, feeling both pleased and embarrassed.
"I'm glad that you escaped the worst of the war," Spyro said suddenly, breaking the warm silence that had fallen upon them. "I would hate to think that something had happened to you while we were away. I'm glad you're safe, Mum, Dad."
"There was no need to worry. However far the war stretched, our little swamp remained untouched," Flash replied. "We dragonflies are, after all, insignificant to the mighty world of dragons."
"Not to my world," Spyro countered strongly, "and if Malefor had ever known the connection between us, you may not have escaped so easily. So I am thankful that you remained safe, even if it may have seemed that there was no threat to your safety. You really were lucky to escape his attention, and that's only something I've realised now. I guess I should count my blessings that I can come here to see that you're still here waiting for me."
Flash and Nina looked upon him with stunned eyes for a moment before the latter gave a warm smile and gently stroked his muzzle.
"You've become very wise, my son," she murmured. "But, come, we shall find somewhere where we can sit and talk. There must be lots you wish to tell, for indeed there are many things I wish to hear."
Spyro agreed with a silent nod and together the mismatched family retreated to a quiet place to speak of times gone by, of memories built, of fears faced and battles won. There was indeed much that needed to be told.
Cynder hovered patiently above the river, letting her eyes roam over the trees, searching every shadow for any miniscule sign. But so far their search had been fruitless. Even those dragons who had searched deeper into the trees had returned with nothing. This forest seemed utterly empty of dragon life.
For the hundredth time Cynder craned her neck around to look for Spyro. But there remained no sign of the purple dragon. Sighing, Cynder continued to wait. The trees rustled beside her and the black dragoness twisted eagerly around, thinking that finally Spyro had returned. However, it was only two of the older dragons who had gone off to search the trees. Striving to keep the disappointment from her eyes, Cynder hovered towards them.
"Did you find anything?"
They shook their heads, apologetic, "Nothing. Not even a scratch on a tree or a paw print in the mud. There's no sign of any dragons around here."
Cynder heaved a disappointed sigh and shook her head, "Keep searching. We'll travel along the river. Perhaps there may be something further up."
She turned, beckoning to the dragons behind her, and moved on up the river. She flew slowly, looking this way and that to ensure she didn't miss anything important. Although she would have preferred to wait for Spyro, Cynder knew he could catch up. It was her job for the moment to continue the search until the purple dragon returned.
Looking ahead, Cynder noticed that the river curved in and out through the trees, never keeping a straight line. There was no telling what could be waiting beyond each bend. The minutes edged slowly by, until Cynder was sure time had frozen in place. She picked up the pace; beating her wings faster and dipping lower towards the water. This river seemed to be going nowhere, but what awaited her around the next bend made her stop dead in her tracks so quickly that the dragons behind almost collided with her.
Curiously, the dragons peered around her at what had made the black dragoness halt. Ahead of them was a solid rock wall that rose far above the trees. The river continued merrily on its way through a dark tunnel that cut its way deep into the rock to where the eye could not follow. Cynder stared at the foreboding tunnel, her green eyes searching its dark depths for any speck of light. Who knew where the tunnel could lead, or what may await them on the other side.
"What should we do?" asked one of the dragons behind her. "Go in?"
Cynder hesitated, keeping her eyes on the tunnel. The dragons looked at each other, some eager and some hesitant, unsure whether to brave the darkness of the tunnel or not.
"We'll wait for Spyro," Cynder announced, after a moment of hard thinking. "Otherwise he may not know where we have gone."
"And when he returns?"
She stared hard into the darkness of the tunnel, watching as the river disappeared into it, "We go in."
The dragons exchanged nervous looks, but remained silent. Cynder hovered delicately down to rest on the bank, keeping a stern watch on the tunnel as though afraid something would come rushing out of it. The other dragons followed her example and in silence they waited for the purple dragon to return. However, they didn't need to wait for long.
After a hurried goodbye to his surrogate parents, Spyro had left the swamp with Sparx at his side at the same moment Cynder had been brought to a halt in front the cave further up the river. At first her absence had confused him, but the purple dragon quickly surmised she had travelled further up the river and hurried after her. The twists and turns of the river made him anxious, wondering if Cynder had left the river at some point and was now within the forest. He was sure, though, that she wouldn't have left without telling him. Wherever this river led, he was sure she would be waiting at the end of it.
And sure enough, upon swerving around the next bend, she and the rest of the search party came into view.
Cynder looked up when she heard someone calling her name, and saw the welcome sight of Spyro and Sparx gliding towards her. She stood up from her position on the bank as he came to a reckless halt in front of her, landing half in the river and spraying the both of them with water.
"Cynder!" he gasped, looking relieved. "Thank the ancestors I found you! I thought you'd gotten lost."
She hid her blush remarkably well and turned his words against him playfully, "You're the only one thick-headed enough to get lost, Spyro."
He laughed good-naturedly, before shaking the water from his scales and getting her wet in the process. Sparx wrinkled his nose in disgust and edged away from them. It was only then, surprisingly, that Sparx noticed the gaping black tunnel that lead deep into darkness.
"Whoa! Who put that there?"
Every eye turned on the yellow dragonfly and Spyro stepped carefully along the bank to stare in awe at the gaping hole in the wall, into which the river was disappearing.
"I've never seen this before…" the purple dragon muttered to himself.
Cynder gave him a confused look, "You lived here how long, and you've never even seen this before?"
Sparx looked at her with irritation, gesturing violently back downstream, "Yeah? In the swamp, you mean? Way down that way?"
"Sparx is right," Spyro shook his head, not taking his entranced eyes off the tunnel. "Mum and dad never let us leave the swamp. We've never been this far upstream."
"So I guess you don't know where this leads?" Cynder sounded almost disappointed.
Spyro stared into the darkness for a moment longer before spinning around to face Cynder and the search party with a reckless glint in his eyes.
"Wanna find out?"
The older dragons exchanged nervous looks but said nothing. Cynder hesitated for a moment, until a devilish grin spread across her muzzle.
"I don't see why not!" she turned to the dragons behind her. "Is everyone up for it?"
There was a hesitation among most of them, however the decision was unanimous. Spyro grinned in satisfaction as each dragon agreed, bobbing their heads with slightly nervous expressions.
"Alright then!" Spyro announced, testing the water with a paw to see how deep it was. "We'll go on foot. The water isn't that deep. Stay close and move quickly. Let's go!"
Cynder quickly fell into step beside Spyro as he moved into the darkness of the tunnel; the other dragons following close behind. Sparx hesitated for a moment at the mouth of the tunnel, watching the purple dragon disappear into the darkness. There was no telling what they were possibly walking into. Sparx heaved a sigh, massaging his temples, and muttered to himself.
"Oh, brother."
Nevertheless, afraid to be left behind, Sparx steeled his nerves and flew into the darkness of the unknown to light the way for the dragons. No darkness, however deep it may be, was going to separate him from Spyro.
They walked onwards, following Sparx's glowing light and trudging through knee-deep water further and further into the tunnel. As the light behind them slowly faded, the temperature within the tunnel began to drop. The rock walls dripped with moisture, droplets glinting momentarily as Sparx passed by. Cold silence was broken only by the rushing hiss of the river against the rocks.
As he moved closer to Sparx, Spyro noticed his breath was rising in plumes of fog, reflecting the cold atmosphere within the tunnel. Cynder edged closer to him, shivering in the darkness and yearning for the warmth of light. But only Sparx's pale glowing shone through the darkness.
"Spyro?" Cynder whispered, her voice echoing eerily throughout the tunnel. "Suppose this tunnel…doesn't lead anywhere?"
"Don't worry," Spyro answered softly, shifting closer to lend her his warmth, "this water has to flow somewhere. Just keep going. Trust me."
Cynder nodded hesitantly, her spirits as damp as the rock walls around her. Step by step they waded through the river, hoping to see a light cut its way through the darkness. They walked for what seemed like hours, though it was only minutes, until Spyro began to hear something. He paused in the darkness, causing the dragon behind him to bump into him, and listened carefully. Cynder nudged him gently.
"What is it?"
"Shh!" he hissed swiftly, silencing everyone until only the soft flowing of water could be heard.
Cynder listened carefully, closing her eyes and concentrating, until a new sound reached her from afar. It was the rushing of water, not the soft flow of the river, but the deep bellowing sound of falling torrents.
"You hear that?" Spyro asked, breaking the silence.
Cynder nodded, a gesture barely visible in the light cast by Sparx, "It sounds like…a waterfall?"
"Right. Come on, it sounds close."
Their entourage continued along the river, listening for the sound of falling water, with rising hopes. Moments later, as the rushing of the waterfall became louder, a glimmer of light broke through the darkness. Spyro stopped dead, staring at the glow of light that seemed to be waiting for them at the end of the tunnel.
"Light!" he yelled. "We made it! Come on!"
Sparx at his side, Spyro sprang towards the glow, leaping through the water in great bounds. Cynder hurried after him, conscious of the other nine dragons hard on her tail.
"Spyro! Wait up!"
It would have been wiser to approach with caution, however the dragons felt only the need to escape this prison of darkness. Laughing, Spyro cantered into the light and suddenly skidded to a halt barely inches from the edge. The ground seemed to end, as though it had been sheered off by a massive claw, and the water fell in torrents down the rock to disappear into white spray. Spyro shielded his eyes from the light as Cynder skidded to a halt beside him.
When their eyes had adjusted to the brilliant glare of light, the two of them gazed out at their surroundings. They were standing at the very top of a tall waterfall that fell towards the sparkling lake below them. Skirting the lake below them were trees and shrubs, with emerald leaves that seemed to shine in the sunlight. From their position above, the forest below them seemed like a secret paradise forgotten by the rest of the world.
Sparx let out a low whistle, "Where are we?"
"You know, Sparx," Spyro answered softly, "I have no idea."
A/N: I'm not sure if the Silver River is the same one that Ignitus floated Spyro's egg down, or if it is the same one that connects to the poisonous forest that Spyro visited in The Eternal Night, but for the sake of this story it is. And I totally forgot that Malefor destroyed the Dragon Temple in Dawn of the Dragon...but let's just ignore that fact, shall we. ^.^ Thank you for the reviews. I hope you enjoyed this chapter.
