Hi my peoples! Sorry its been so long! I actually had this chapter finished January 28. I was busy playing Gears of War 2, which I "borrowed" from my friend. So much fun... Anyway, here you go.

We took flight at dawn. For awhile we flew in silence, looking for anything that could give us a clue as to where we were. We had no clue where we were. I looked around fruitlessly, but all I saw was the rolling hills, the flowing streams, and the surrounding forest. The sheer size of the forest was intimidating. It could take days of flying without stopping to traverse it completely, not to mention how long it would take for us to orient ourselves and get home. We only had two days; might as well get started.

"Cynder, our best bet is to go through the forest." I glanced over at Cynder as I spoke, noting how she shivered slightly when she scanned the woods. If she had any disagreements, she didn't voice them, for she immediately angled herself towards the enormous woodland.

"What would you rather do: walk, or fly?" Cynder asked. I thought her question over for a few seconds before I answered.

"We'll fly for awhile, and if we don't see anything, we'll land and walk." I shrugged. "There might be some creatures in the woods that could help us."

Cynder nodded and flew forward. A few minutes later, it appeared as though we would be walking. The ground looked like a sea of green, and there were no distinguishable marks on the landscape for miles. We alighted on what seemed to be the only patch of ground devoid of trees.

"Do you feel that?" Cynder turned to look at me, her face calm but her eyes showing a sliver of fear within them.

"Feel what?" Just as I asked the question, I felt a queer tingle at the base of my skull.

"It feels like…"

"We're being watched." I finished her statement for her. I glanced around, taking in my surroundings, looking for enemies. Nothing smelled off. There was nothing here.

"Come on. We need to keep moving." I began to walk in the direction we were originally flying. It was eerily silent, seeming as if the trees were dampening any sound. The forest was dense; the trees were much closer together than anywhere else I had been. I almost expected enemies to pop out from the trees. It was tense for a few minutes before either of us spoke again.

"Where are we?" Cynder asked in frustration.

"I don't know." I looked around but all that existed was brown and green, the moss-covered ground, and the lichen-covered trees. I was beginning to worry. The world was cast in perpetual twilight; the trees blocked out any hint of the outside world, including the sun. I had no idea how long we had been walking; the monotony of the surroundings and the never changing shadows blurred away the passing of time, leaving us stumbling around an empty forest.

"Maybe we should mark one of the trees, so we'll know we've crossed this point," Cynder suggested, and I agreed. Raising a claw, I placed it onto the bark of the nearest tree and dragged down, leaving four long scratches in the wood. Then everything grew still. I didn't notice that the trees had been swaying until they stopped. I looked around, and the forest seemed changed. The trees looked sharper, more defined then before, the dreamlike haze lifted from my eyes. There was a rustling sound behind me and I twirled around, preparing for battle. But nothing was there. Cynder bared her teeth and growled at the spot the sound had come from, when the sound came from her left, and then my right. Cynder spoke.

"Wait for me." And then she disappeared. I glanced around, becoming frightened. I opened my maw, preparing to flame whatever was out there into the open, when a voice sounded from behind me.

"Don't." It wasn't a request; it was a command. I turned around, and saw a dragon standing at by the tree I had scratched. He, since it was obviously male, was light green, and thin, almost unnaturally so. His limbs were wiry, and his face long. Fangs were showing as he pulled his lips down into a frown, looking at the damage I had done. His talons, longer than average, were caressing the wood. And then he spoke again.

"If you value your life, do not continue your actions." Right then, Cynder reappeared next to the green dragon, her tail blade held to his throat.

"And if you value yours, you will tell us what you're doing here," Cynder growled menacingly in his ear. The dragon seemed completely unsurprised at this, simply staring at the tree, completely ignoring Cynder and her warning. Cynder's tail pressed closer against the dragon's neck. Any more pressure and the blade will cut.

"Tell me, or so help me I'll end your life right here and now!" Cynder's warned. The dragon sighed and finally broke his gaze away from the tree.

"I could ask you the same question. I could also ask what possessed you to harm this tree." The dragon replied, staring at Cynder. I wish I could see his face, to see his expression. But he was turned away from me. Cynder began to growl, and I quickly cut her off, trying to prevent a fight, although we could defeat this dragon no problem.

I'm sorry for harming the tree; we were trying to find our way out of the forest. I was trying to mark our passage. We're heading for the-"

"The dragon city," The dragon said, cutting me off, his eyes still locked on Cynder, "it is a three day trip, that way." The dragon jerked his head the direction we should travel.

"No, we're looking for some tunnels leading to an underground city," I said quickly.

The dragon, ignoring the blade pressed to his throat, cocked his head to the side, as if listening to someone speaking. Cynder's expression became one of bewilderment as the dragon turned around and walked towards me. She quickly began to move with him, keeping the blade near his throat. I moved out of the way, but the dragon didn't even seem to notice. But it was his eyes that confused me the most. The light green orbs were gazing past me, past the forest, focusing on something, yet nothing. And then he answered.

"There are a series of tunnels not far away. I will take you there." The dragon shrugged Cynder's tail away from him and began to walk away, not checking to see if we we're following him.

"Wait!" I chased after him. Cynder hesitated for a bit, then huffed angrily and grudgingly began to follow.

"What do we call you?" I asked, running to catch up. The dragon, not stopping, spoke over his shoulder.

"Jora."

"What was that back there?" I asked. Jora looked at me quizzically.

"Back there, it looked like you where listening to someone." I said.

"I was."

"Who? Cynder and I were the only ones there. I'm Spyro, by the way." Jora stopped, and his eyes flashed to Cynder, then me, and then back to Cynder.

"It is nice to meet you, Spyro and Cynder. To answer your previous question, I was conversing with the trees." Jora resumed walking, a little bit quicker than before.

"How?" I asked, "Trees don't speak." Jora let out a small chuckle at this.

"Trees can speak. Maybe you just haven't been listening. Or perhaps they deemed you not worthy to be spoken to." I began to growl at Jora. This dragon was beginning to get on my nerves. As I opened my mouth to make a rebuttal, Jora cut me off.

"Do you want to get to the tunnels or not? You and your… friend appear to be drowsy." Jora's eyes lingered on Cynder, and then snapped back to me as he spoke.

"Can I ask a question?" This time Cynder spoke. Jora turned his head to appraise her. After a second, he answered.

"Yes, you may." Jora nodded as he said this.

"Why are you here, and for how long?" Jora's eyes narrowed after Cynder spoke.

"That was two questions, not one. However, I shall answer both. I live here. This is my home. It has been for the past thirteen years, since I was hatched. I was raised by the trees." Jora stopped speaking, and then added onto his answer, "I have never left the forest."

So, he was our age. It was hard to believe. He was just a little taller than Cynder, and he was so thin, it looked like he hadn't eaten for weeks.

"Let us continue." Jora began to walk again, albeit slower than before. It was faster, travelling with Jora. He knew exactly where to go, and that alone helped us greatly. He never seemed to stumble and would always warn us before we tripped on a root. After another five minutes of walking, Jora stopped.

"We are here." Jora began to circle a spot and sat down, looking at the spot before him.

"Where are we? There's nothing here." I said, and Cynder grunted in agreement. Or was it in annoyance? Jora's eyes closed, and he began to hum to himself. While I was staring at him, a small movement on the corner of my vision caught my eye. I glanced at the ground, and then gasped when vines pulled away from the center of the patch, revealing a hole that went underground. Jora stopped humming and the movement ceased.

"There's the tunnel." Jora's lips twitched upward, as if he were about to smile, before his face returned to its stoic state. Cynder stepped forward.

"Thank you. And I'm sorry about how I acted earlier." She said, looking abashed.

"I also apologize. It was wrong of me to be following you, but I had to make sure you didn't harm the forest." Jora said, still keeping all emotion out of his tone.

"Good bye." I turned to walk away, eager to leave the forest behind, when Jora spoke again.

"Wait," he looked down, "I wish to travel with you." I was taken aback. From what I knew, Jora never left his forest. He was ignorant of all things outside.

"I want to go out there. I want to learn. The forest agrees with me. They want me to leave, to learn about the outside world. I need this. Please. Let me come with you." Jora's eyes were pleading with me, yet at the same time they seemed cold, distant, measuring my reaction. It was unsettling. And yet I found myself wanting to agree. Even though I knew nothing about him, I wanted him to travel with us.

"Will you excuse us? We need to discuss this." I said. I turned to Cynder, and motioned we walk a few yards away.

"I say we let him come with us." I whispered, preparing for the onslaught Cynder would unleash, but it never came. Her head was lowered, and she seemed to be in struggling with something inside of her. When she glanced up, she was in anguish. I took a step forward, and Jora's head snapped towards the two of us.

"What's wrong?" I asked in a whisper.

"When I was threatening him, holding the blade to his throat, it reminded me of when I was under Malefor. Killing, slaughtering for no reason. I remembered every single thing I killed at the beginning of this. I'm tired of it. I'm tired of all the killing." Cynder sounded close to tears. She took a raspy breath, and then looked me in the eye. "He's coming with us."

I nodded, and we walked to where Jora sat, waiting for us to finish. He glanced at Cynder for a second, evaluating her mood, before turning to me.

"You can come." I said, noting when Jora's lip twitched upwards, as if he already knew what my answer would be.

"Alright then. Better get started." I jumped into the whole, using my wings to slow my descent. Cynder followed soon after. I glanced up and saw Jora hesitate. He glanced behind him, took a deep breath, and then jumped, leaving the forest, his home, behind him.


Well, there you go. Remember, reviews are what keep the lifeblood that are my thoughts flowing through the clogged arteries of this story. So review. Bye.

The Ninja out.