Hey everyone. So, yeah, I left you all with a cliffhanger. Yes, I'm evil. And this chapter is super confusing.

I don't own Skylanders.

Have fun :)

Chapter 6

~Icicle

Everything was dark. I couldn't see, couldn't hear, couldn't feel. Disembodied isn't even the right word. There was nothing. Absolutely nothing. No elements, no people, no thoughts, nothing. I wasn't scared, I wasn't sad, I wasn't angry. I just was. It was just me and the darkness, the blissful, quiet darkness, for sometime between an eternity and forever.

And then gravity kicked in. Don't ask me how or why, but the next thing I knew, I was flat on my back. I wasn't sure what I was laying on but it was cushy and sort of soft. Using the small amount of pressure on my back as a focus point, I latched onto the first thought that came into my head: cherry limeade. Strange as it was, it was probably the best thing for me to be thinking at the time. With it brought memories of those few summers I had spent in the Elven Woods, sipping the sour drink with my cousins and playing endless games of hide and seek. As the sky grew dark, my aunts and uncles would call us in for a quick meal and then we would go catch fireflies under the stars. I hadn't thought about those times in years.

I hadn't thought about my family in general in a long time.

My family is...very large. My father's only sibling, my uncle Bergad, for some reason had twelve children. The oldest was approaching twenty-seven while the youngest, and the one I had always been closest with, was a few months older than me. Her name is Avril and last I heard, she was doing fairly well in the king's army, although sick of being considered the baby of the family. My mother, on the other hand, is one of five, so I've got close to fifteen cousins on her side. Being the only kid without siblings in my family is more than a little strange. I had always wondered what it would be like to have an older sister or a baby brother.

I haven't written home in a while. My parents are probably worried sick. I did promise to write home every week. I guess I've just been so busy with Skylander business that-

A flood of memories overtook my head. Kaos' invasion, the battle, the explosion, being hurled through space and crashing. I bolted upright, shaking out the cobwebs. What am I doing? My friends are scattered across who knows where and I'm here thinking about cherry limeade and random cousins I haven't seen in years. I'm alive and I'm conscious...sort of. I think this either a lucid dream or I'm actually in my head. Either way, I can control my thoughts, which is a major improvement to a few moments ago. I have to do something.

Okay...I can't move, I have absolutely no power, I have no idea where I am, and I'm not even completely awake.

Not a lot of options to choose from other than wait for morning.

Wait...it's a long shot but...

I got to my feet, looking around the landscape that appears to be my mind. It was darker than a midnight blizzard on the winter solstice. You know, in a lot of literature, people can do amazing things in their heads. Make light appear out of nowhere, fly, do things they can't do in real life, but in reality, that takes training. There are plenty of sorcerers and sorceresses who have so much control over their minds they can literally make something with just a thought both inside their minds and in real life. I, however, do not have such training, so, I was stuck with the lights off.

"Hello?" I asked my subconscious. "Person who spoke tae me last time and gave me that intense amount of energy? I really, really need that now." A small pin-prick of light appeared to the left of me, far from where I stood. I ran in the direction of the glowing orb, craving something other than inky, never ending blackness. The surface below me caved a little as I ran, a little like I was running on a thick bed of moss.

"Are you certain?" the voice asked. I stopped. It definitely sounded female, but hearing again, I was able to make out two very different people speaking. One had a lighter, softer tone, while the other was deeper and inquisitive, but they blended seamlessly. "The power you speak of has lain dormant in your body since the moment you were born. Should you fully accept it, you will never be able to go back. Think carefully before you respond." I swallowed.

Oh...right...forgot that I'm asking voices in my head for a foreign power that seems to be very destructive.

What are the chances that this will end up being a horrible idea?

...

Yeah, that's what I thought.

It's crazy. It's suicidal. It's irrational. It's mental. It's just plain bonkers. That's how demons and the Darkness get control of you; they go in, whisper promises of power and poof! You've just sold your soul for the rest of eternity. This is probably the worst idea in the history of worst ideas. Then again...since when do evil powerhouses warn you to think carefully before anything? They're manipulative and prefer when you make spontaneous decisions, not well thought out ones. Go with instinct and not with reason. My instincts say that I desperately need it but reason says that there's probably a catch. There's always a catch. The universe must remain in balance.

No, it's still too risky. I'll just say no and find another way to get conscious, moving, and locate my friends.

...

Eh, souls are overrated anyways.

"Aye, I'm sure," I said, knowing I was sealing my fate. "There's too much at stake for me not too."

"Very well then, Icicle Icela, once called Pixie," they responded. Like the sun rising after a long night, the world around me brightened like the rising dawn. Turns out, my subconscious looks a lot like a forest. Spindly trees stretched as far as the eye could see, some covered in snow, some bearing leaves, and some simply bare. I touched one, startled by how smooth the bark was and how hard the mind-wood was. It was a sheer miracle I hadn't run into one while running. Then again, my head probably wants to preserve its sanity. The ground beneath me was indeed made of moss.

As my eyes adjusted to the daylight, two women came into my vision, slowly walking in my direction. They were as different as day and night, one with skin paler than snow, the other with skin darker than onyx. Since I didn't know their names, I decided to call them Day and Night for the time being. Day had hair the color of ripe wheat and wore a pure white dress with golden pants and boots underneath. Night paralleled her companion exactly, having hair so dark it was almost blue and wearing a dark blue dress of the same style with black pants and boots.

Their most striking feature, however, were their wings. Large and shaped like the wings of a butterfly, they fluttered behind the women, Day's a shining gold, Night's a shadowed black. They didn't look anything like fairies, they were too tall and had legs for one, but I didn't know what else to consider them. Either way, they simply radiated power, ancient, archaic power. They finally stopped in front of me, regarding me placidly.

"Who...who are ye?" I asked.

"I am Lumina," Day responded.

"And I am Atra," Night added. "That is all you need to know of us for now."

"You have chosen a difficult path, Icicle," Lumina said. "Still, I suppose it is your inheritance and your right to use it."

"I am afraid we cannot offer you much assistance once you accept the power," Atra said. "However, we ask that you use it wisely and for the correct reasons. Can you promise us this?"

"Aye," I said, nodding my head. "I promise."

"Then let us begin," they said together. A ball of golden light appeared in Lumina's hand while shadows swirled in Atra's. As the two women summoned more and more power, a sphere of cream colored energy appeared in front of me. It was maybe the size of a cantaloupe and was mottled with small specks of color, currents of fractured light swirling under the surface. It was the most beautiful thing I had seen in my life and I knew that it was mine and had always been mine. It was also terrifying to see something so powerful as my own. Holding my hands out, I took the sphere in my hands, closing my eyes as warm energy coursed through my veins.

"Luck go with you...Gatekeeper."

And I fell on my ass.

I'm not kidding. One second, I was deep within my subconscious accepting the magical equivalent of an atom bomb and the second, I was on my butt, my knife falling out of my hand and clattering to the ground next to me.

"Great, just great," I mumbled, kicking a rock in frustration. I picked up my knife and fastened it to my belt, grumbling under my breath.

Wait...kick? Pick up? Fasten?

Holy-freaking-shit-I-can-move!

I leaped to my feet, looking myself over. I didn't look any different than usual and I had a feeling I was still minuscule, but I was moving! Never again will I take for granted the ability to walk, twitch my arm, or, heck, take a full breath of air. I can run! I can jump! I can scratch my nose! Hey, you try being flung across the universe without being able to scratch an itchy nose and then you can call me crazy.

Okay, now that the overly jubilant celebration is taken care of, down to business. Lumina and Atra called me a Gatekeeper, whatever that means. I've never heard of the term before, at least not in the context of magical abilities or occupations. Atra said they wouldn't be able to help me too much after I took the power, so I can rule out help in that department. Well, a gatekeeper implies that I'm either protecting or controlling access to something...which doesn't help me in the slightest. I need to find my friends, not guard a gate.

It's one thing to be alone. Normally, I don't mind being being by myself with a book and my thoughts. It's a different thing entirely to be alone, completely stumped, and needing to locate your friends. Where to even begin? Spyro would probably know what to do, or at least know where to start. He's good at dealing with impossible situations. I'm way out of my element here and even a little bit of help sounds absolutely wonderful. I just wish I knew where he was.

Suddenly, a map popped up in front of my vision, sort of like a video game mini-map. It was outlined in white and only showed rough outlines of what appeared to be trees and rocks, but it was passable considering my situation. There were two small dots, one white and blinking, the other green. I'm going to go out on a limb and say the white one is me, the green one is...hopefully Spyro, or if not, at least someone friendly. Green means friendly, right?

Okay, that's new and extremely helpful. Seriously, this is perfect. If I use this correctly, I might be able to find all the Skylanders. One step at a time though. My map at the ready, I climbed out of the crater, pulling myself up one body length at a time. I willed myself to not look down and focused on trying to find handholds. For once, I was extremely grateful for the fact that the mission room could only be accessed by climbing up a rope.

Emerging into the forest I had seen from the sky, I just about fell back into the crater in shock. The trees. Were. Huge. Actually, everything was huge. The flowers looked large enough to be umbrellas and the mushrooms could make adequate shelters if needed. I thought Treetop Terrace had large foliage. Try being only a few inches tall in a forest of normal sized trees. It's terrifying. And cool. But mostly terrifying. They're not even trees I can easily climb.

Get it together girl...

Taking a deep breath, I made my way through the giant grass, first walking at a brisk pace before breaking into a quick jog. Without my normal powers, I was stuck at running pace. At least my ice skates seemed to have disappeared along with the platform thing or I would be really screwed. I passed by several ants and a few flies as I ran. After being shrunk, they didn't seem so small anymore. Nothing felt small anymore, except for me.

And I thought I was short before.

I followed my extremely rough map as I ran through the forest, passing by trees and bushes until I found a trail that lead roughly in the correct direction. It was heavily worn, hammered down by years of footsteps, but perfect for me. I followed the road for what seemed like hours before turning and heading deeper into the forest when I got closer to the green dot. When I was almost on top of it, the map disappeared from my vision. Confused, I continued in the same direction, hoping that I'd find someone who could help me and not a really elaborate trap.

Not thirty seconds later, I found Spyro. And someone else.

Spyro was still frozen, looking as fierce as he did in real life, if quite a bit smaller. He was currently in the hand of a giant. Now, the person holding Spyro didn't look very old, a boy maybe thirteen at the oldest, but at my height, he seemed to be as tall as one of the mythical Elder Elementals. He was wearing blue jeans, a grey hoodie over an aqua colored shirt, and a worn pair of sneakers. A grey beanie covered his dark brown hair that seemed to be pulled back in a small ponytail. Around his neck was a music note pendant on a silver chain and a backpack was slung over one shoulder. His skin was a healthy tan and his eyes reminded me of the leather used to bind books. Using said eyes, the boy regarded Spyro curiously.

"What in the world are you?" he asked, turning the figurine in several different directions. He looked at Spyro thoughtfully before sitting on the ground, carefully placing him on a stump. Shrugging off his backpack, he unzipped one of the pockets and took out a sketchbook and pencil. Opening it to a fresh page, he started drawing my friend.

Hm...this could be either extremely problematic or very promising. I don't think I'll be able to get Spyro from him unnoticed. I'm just not stealthy enough for a job like that. However, the boy doesn't seem to be hostile and he looks to be the curious type. Maybe he'll be willing to help me...or he'll freak and squish me.

You know, considering I've just survived an island leveling explosion, a trip through time and space, and two weird women in my head, the idea that I'm worried about the possibility of being squished just sounds absolutely stupid.

I slowly made my way towards them, taking cautious steps while trying to keep as quiet as possible. I probably shouldn't have worried; the flapping of bird wings was honestly louder than when I accidentally burped. The boy kept on drawing, looking up at Spyro every so often to check details or re-align him. When I found myself at the base of the stump, I looked up at the boy, took a deep breath, and shouted.

"Excuse me!" The boy's face molded into an expression of confusion before looking around. "Down here!" His eyes travelled downward, scanning the ground around the stump. I could tell the second he spotted me because his eyes went as wide as serving platters and blinked several times in a matter of seconds. He hurriedly set down his sketchbook and rubbed his eyes multiple times. I waved and put on the friendliest smile I could muster while trying to suppress feelings of certain doom.

Question, did accepting the power of a Gatekeeper make me stupider or am I really just that desperate?

"Um...hullo," I shouted. "I believe ye have ma friend so if ye'd be so kind as tae-"

"I can't hear you very well," he said, somehow shaking off the shock. "Here." He carefully laid his hand out, palm up, in front of me. I took a tentative step onto his hand, then another, until I was in the center of his hand. With a deliberate slowness, he lifted me up until we were somewhat at eye level. The boy looked at me with the same curiosity as Spyro but I could see his eyes sparkling with astonishment.

"Thank ye very much," I said.

"Are you Scottish?" he sputtered in disbelief.

"I don't know about Scottish, but I'm half-frost elf," I replied, scratching the back of my head. "Though, I'm not sure if that means anythin tae ye."

"You're an elf," he stated.

"Aye," I replied. I could see the wheels turning behind his eyes as he tried to process my words. From his reaction, I was able to figure out two things. One, elves were either extremely rare or nonexistent on this planet. Two, this boy was obviously trying to wrap his head around a concept that shouldn't exist, namely me.

"With a Scottish accent," he slowly added.

"Fer yer information, I have a frost elf accent."

"Right. And you're half-frost elf. What's the other half?"

"Wood elf," I replied. The boy blinked a few times. Oh, right, classifications don't help in this situation. "That probably means nothin tae ye either."

"Well, now I know that there are at least two different kinds of elves and you happen to be both," he said with a slight smile. "If I give you my name, you're not going to use it to, like, posses me or something, right?"

"Did it sound stupid in yer head?" I asked. The boy chuckled a little.

"Yeah. I'm Jeremy," he said, holding out the pointer finger on his left hand.

"I'm Icicle. Ice tae meet 'cha," I replied, shaking it with both of my hands. We looked at each other and simultaneously laughed, realizing just how stupid this probably looked.

"Ice to meet 'cha too," he replied. My mouth almost dropped to my chest. Someone actually said my saying back to me word for word. That absolutely never happens. People usually substitute 'nice' for ice and 'you' for 'cha. While that makes sense, it's always been a secret wish of mine to have someone say it back to me. Instant respect for this guy.

"This is crazy," Jeremy said, shaking his head. "This is absolutely insane."

"Where exactly are we?" I asked, remembering that I had a mission to fulfill and I was really just stalling at this point. Getting my bearings, even if they're rough bearings, is better than having no bearings. And I just massively overused the use of the word bearings

"Northern Wisconsin," he replied. Cue blank stare. Okay, I'll admit, that one was on me. I should have been more specific.

"What planet is this?" I clarified. Jeremy looked at me like I was an idiot, then looked to a hole in the ground that looked a lot like a crater. He put two and two together pretty quickly.

"You're an alien? Like, from another planet?"

"Well, when ye put it that way, I guess ye could say we're aliens."

"We?"

"That dragon down there? He's ma friend," I said, pointing towards Spyro. "We're from a world called Skylands. Really lon story short, we got shot here by someone who's a complete idiot and now we're stranded here. What planet is this?"

"Uh...Earth," he replied, looking rather flabbergasted. Earth. Now that's a familiar name. A really, really long time ago, our two worlds were connected through a very complex set of portals. They were closed off after the rest of humanity deemed us demon spawn but no hard feelings. That's how humans got to Skylands and how the Loch Ness monster, unicorns, and yetis got in Earth's legends. I though Jeremy looked human, although, to be fair, Master Eon was one of three humans I had actually met.

Master Eon. Elder Elementals, he wasn't with us when we were blasted away. But if he's not here then...oh no. Please...he can't be. He's the last good Portal Master in Skylands. If he dies without an heir then...I don't even want to think about how bad that would be for everyone in Skylands. Without a Portal Master, we don't have a collective leader, we don't have an international peacekeeper, we don't have someone to hold back the forces of Darkness. It's even worse for the Skylanders. Without a Portal Master, without Master Eon, we can't use the portals and we can't ask him to open up one for us. We don't have a way to get home.

That hit really hard. Now it's even more important that I find the rest of the Skylanders.

"Jeremy," I said, "...I really need yer help. The rest of ma friends and cohorts are somewhere around here. I know how tae find 'em but look at me. I'm tiny. I need some help findin transportation and somethin tae carry 'em in."

"There are more of you?" he asked, his eyes widening.

"Thirty-seven countin me and Spyro," I confirmed.

"Spyro?"

"He's the dragon."

"...you're not invading the planet, right?"

"I've gone from someone who can possess ye with yer name to an alien invader. That's an improvement," I said. "As far as I know, the rest of ma friends are like Spyro, frozen intae action figures. So, unless ye consider immobile objects threatenin, nah."

"Then let's go find them," he said, placing his sketchbook and pencil into his bag while simultaneously keeping the hand I was on steady. Now it was my turn to be flabbergasted. That's a quick change of heart if I ever saw one.

"Just like that?" I asked. "Yer willin tae help me?"

"Well, it's not every day an elf from another planet asks you to help them. Plus, if I actually am crazy, the story for the psychiatrist will be a lot better if I go through with this," he replied with a grin. "Should I put Spyro in my bag?"

"Aye," I replied, looking at the purple dragon more intently. He must still be unconscious or he would have said something by now. That's just the kind of person he is. After an impact like that, probably all of the Skylanders had experienced some form of unconsciousness. Either way, we needed to hurry.

"Alright," Jeremy said, skillfully closing his bag with one hand. "So, shoulder?"

"Works fer me," I replied. He lifted me up and I hopped onto his left shoulder, grabbing onto his beanie for balance. Time to get to work. I thought about Stealth Elf, Whisper Elf, Hex, Flameslinger, Slam Bam, Cynder, Whirlwind, Gill Grunt, and all my fellow Skylanders. We had been through everything together, even being hurled through space and time and crashing on a planet in another universe, and more than ever, we needed each other.

I want to know where all the Skylanders are.

The map appeared in front of my eyes, but instead of one green dot, there were thirty-five, my powers somehow compensating for finding Spyro. They were scattered all over the map, some clustered close together while the vast majority were flung out in the middle of nowhere. It was a lot more detailed too, the rough outlines replaced with a few landmarks and other markings. I guess everything gets stronger with use. The closest two dots didn't seem that far away and I had a suspicion I knew who they were.

"Head straight," I said. Jeremy complied, walking at a casual pace through the forest. All the while, he was asking questions about literally everything. The curiosity in this boy knew no bounds.

It went a little something like this:

"So, you guys are from a place called Skylands?"

"Aye."

"Where's that?"

"In relation tae here? No idea."

"What's it like?"

"Picture floatin islands in the sky. Now picture 'em everywhere and of all climates and landscapes and there's no actual bottom no matter how far down ye go. That's Skylands in a nutshell."

"How do the islands float?"

"Magic."

"Magic?"

"Ye don't have magic on Earth?"

"Only in story books. Can you use magic?"

"I can use the water element if that's what yer tryin tae say."

"Isn't that the same thing?"

"Not even close. Magic is a separate element. We sometimes call other elemental castins magic but it's not really accurate."

"How many elements are there?"

"At least eight. Probably more."

"What are they?"

"Fire, life, water, air, earth, magic, tech, and undead."

"Undead? Tech? Life? How are those elements?"

"I'm not exactly the right person to explain that tae ye, but some of the other Skylanders might be able tae help."

"Skylanders?"

"That's what me and ma friends are."

"What do you guys do?"

Thankfully, we came upon the crater before I had to launch into literally the entirety of Skylands' history. It was surrounded by a patch of trees, broken branches slightly covering the hole. Jeremy ran over to it, pushing them out of the way. He peered down into the crater, his eyes widening further as he attempted to register the sight below. I, on the other hand, was about ready to jump for joy, Inside the crater were two small figurines, one of a blue Gillman and one of an orange gremlin.

"Hey Trigg," Gill Grunt said. "Look at who found us."

"That's one tall human," Trigger Happy said with a slight laugh. "Hey, what are you doing!?" Jeremy scooped them up, bringing them up to my level.

"Gill Grunt, Trigger Happy!" I called, waving my hands.

"Icicle!" Gill Grunt exclaimed. "You doing okay?"

"Aye, Gill," I replied.

"How come you can move?" Trigger Happy asked.

"It's a lon story but I found help," I replied. "This is Jeremy. Spyro's in his backpack. We're lookin fer the others."

"What are you waiting for?" Gill Grunt asked Jeremy. "Throw us in and let's get a' moving. Make sure to keep it open though." With hurried motions, Jeremy placed Gill Grunt and Trigger Happy into his back, opening it just enough to let their voices through clearly. He seemed a little rattled but mostly elated, like he had just found a new game that was difficult and a little strange but really cool at the same time. I was very glad he had been the one to find Spyro. There was just something...special about him.

I wonder...could he be...?

"Okay, Icicle, where to next?"

Like I said, confusing. Hopefully the next chapter will clear some of this up.\

And yes, I like OCs.

Please review :)