Is anyone still reading this…? Well, if my old readers ARE out there I can say, I'm really really really really really really really really really sorry for not updating this in generations of generations! There isn't really much of an excuse for this one, I'm not really good at multitasking and I was writing two stories at the time, plus a NaNoWriMo story from since last I've updated. So I decided to take a break from this to write my NaNoWriMo story. When November passed I started updating my other story, posted a new Digimon fanfic, and Digimon is like my childhood in a bottle wrapped with nostalgia chocolate so I practically HAD to focus on it then I realized I'd forgotten all about this… Especially considering how much fun I had writing up to this point. I'd beg for your forgiveness but I think it would be better if I just posted an awesome chapter now wouldn't it? So for older readers, watch my rebirth to Piercing Heavens! To newer readers, disregard all of that above statement completely (what were you doing wasting your time reading it anyway? Sucks to be you doesn't it?) and enjoy the chapter!

This is the Real Deal presents:

Piercing Heavens!

Chapter 10: The Creeping Darkness

"Wow, they really did a number on this place," an unknown voice said. The late afternoon sun bathed the men on clean up duty in a warm glow. There was very little left of the former hidden base, not since the whole hill was flattened over them. In fact, if nobody was there it would look just like any other clearing. A tall man with tanned skin stood on top of a large wooden crate. His head was covered by mouse brown hair and murky brown eyes, the sideburns and beard on his face giving him the appearance of a bear on a diet. His blue jacket and leather trousers were faded and sun beaten, covered in grime and dirt. All around him teams dug in the dirt looking for salvageable material. The man didn't even know why they were sent there, it was clear that they weren't going to find anything anyway. The base was designed to self-destruct if its security became compromised. If the higher ups truly wished to preserve anything, the least they could've done was send in a team immediately after the incident, accompanied with more than just a prototype Iron Dragon. What's worse, one piloted by a kid. Jet-streams streaked through the air, all of the individuals on the ground steadying themselves as rough winds blew around them wildly. Everybody stopped what they were doing, some dropping their crates in shock as they looked up at the sky.

The Iron Dragon looked back down on them from high above, like a king looking down below at his subjects. Its eyes scanned the clearing before it turned around again. Flames shot out from its back, its thrusters sending him off in the direction of the setting sun. The man smiled slightly as he picked up a large crate. At least the brass had the sense to use the trip as a testing ground for the Dragon as well. One thing he had to admit though was this: the kid had skill when it came to flying.

. . .

"Help, bodyguards wanted to protect merchants. Reward negotiable. Really Lyn? If you wanted money you could've asked me to steal some…"

"This isn't about the money, and no more stealing!" Lyn berated him.

"Are you sure? Carvahall isn't exactly a busy place, even with the Lords manor just nearby. It would be easy to take something and go, so long as you leave before the rumours start. Rumours spread quickly in a place like this…" The town they'd stopped by this time wasn't as large or as bustling as any of their previous stops. It was actually peaceful by comparison, the town centre even being reserved. No matter what Dante thought of in his head, he couldn't exactly think of a way to describe the place. It held no defining features apart from the Lord's Castle, and that was quite a ways away from the actually town, closer to the forest. Vanir had left them to go and buy food for the journey while he went off and did whatever it was that grown elf men did on their own. As usual with every town they had stopped by, Draco and Lyn's dragon had gone off flying elsewhere by now. A month and a half had passed since they all set off on their journey, and little in the way of excitement had actually occurred. The most exciting thing that had happened since was the growth of Lyn's dragon and its newfound ability to talk. Lyn had finally determined the dragon's gender, it was definitely female, and they'd both agreed on a name for her to.

"Spyro," Lyn had said around the campfire that night. Both Dante and Vanir stopped for a moment and looked at the two of them.

"Spyro? Why?" Dante asked.

"Because of the way her horns spiral like that, and how the marking on my palm also spirals. Vanir, a spiral gedwëy ignasia is rare isn't it? And just look at her horns, they're almost like antlers, but spiralling! So we decided that her name should reflect that, so Spyro!"

I have no qualms with it, Spyro had said to them. All that I have left to do is grow a title to match it.

"Draco already has one that matches him," Dante spoke up with a playful smile. "Draco, the ever-silent-and-brooding-watchful one of the foul breath!" They all laughed as Draco blew a puff of acrid smoke into Dante's face. As befitting of his title, he said nothing at all at this statement, leaving his actions to speak for him.

Either way, that was then, at the time they were alone as they were, and weary from a month-and-a-half worth of travel exhaustion weighing down on their shoulders. The only problem now was Lyn's conscious.

"We got what we needed to get," Dante assured her. "We're no longer going to die of starvation and we got those mushrooms that Vanir loves so much, so we might as well leave now. What good is going to come from guarding some money hungry merchants?"

"I'm a rider, we protect people, unlike you who kills them! I've been hearing rumours all over town about attacks happening on the trade routes. If we find the people doing the attacks, we can stop them altogether."

"Or end up as worm food ourselves! And besides, I'm a reformed thief, I only kill people who try to kill me, don't you know that by now? I say we just move on with our lives like we saw nothing."

"What kind of Rider would I be if I couldn't even handle some lowly bandits? No, I have to take this request. They say it was put up by Lord Bracknell's guard themselves, shall we go Dante?" Dante sighed.

"I guess I don't have much of a choice now do I?" The two of them proceeded down the tiled streets, seeing a few friendly faces along the way. There was some kind of warm feeling around the town that Dante couldn't quite understand. Perhaps it was the smell of freshly baked pies wafting through the windows, or perhaps it was the soft texture of the wood that the buildings were made of. Either way, it made him feel comfortable. Something that was rare for him. The road beneath him began to wear itself down as he trekked along it, grass coming between the cracks in the tiles until there weren't any tiles left, nor any buildings left for that matter as the trail became a forest one. They walked on for another fifteen minutes of silence before they arrived at the men's barracks.

Instead of simple wood it was constructed entirely of stone. It wasn't as lavishly over-decorated as the forts that Dante had seen in the past, nor really large enough to belong to a mighty lord, especially not the terrifying and overbearing Lord Bracknell. Rather, it showed off just how solid it was easily. It was made from a dark exotic stone, and the front gate was easily as tall as the whole of Lyn's home. It was over fifty metres wide and lining most of the second floor were cannons, all pointed out around the castle menacingly, and if Dante knew anything about firearms, they were even more deadly than they looked. Dante didn't feel like risking being recognised by any of the guards at the guardhouse so he waited outside for the better part of ten minutes before Lyn returned.

"Well? What did they say?" Dante asked.

"Apparently the posters outside claiming a merchant needs help were just lures to get help in the first place. They're mercenaries hired by Lord Bracknell himself. The merchant trails have been under attack for the past couple of weeks and they're asking for help to try and find out what's really wrong. The merchants are all too scared to travel to and from Carvahall. So they want to do an undercover mission. We'll be the merchants and will pretty much act as bait to try and lure the bandits out. Once they blow their cover, the soldiers will spring out and remove them all."

"We're bait? Not only did we get the most dangerous job, but we got the most degrading one to… I don't care what you say, I'm doing my own thing once they blow their cover, understand?"

"Whatever you say, just don't come crying to me if things go badly for you…"

"No taking my lines!" Dante yelled. "Now come on, let's just get the food back to Vanir. I hope that he decides to act like the responsible guardian and stop you this time…"

. . .

"This is all your fault," Dante growled menacingly.

"Vanir said it would be a great experience for us, so just suck it up and think of it as training." Dante and Lyn were both dressed in heavy cloaks, their weapons totally concealed. Behind them was a horse drawn carriage, the horses and two guards being the only visible company they had. Dante didn't even need to expand his mind to feel the presence of more followers behind them, even in the dark, late afternoon atmosphere. There was no way that any good bandits wouldn't notice them.

These guys are amateurs, Dante said to both Lyn and Draco at the same time.

Patience sly one, they'll be the ones to flush out the enemy this time, Draco said.

What he said, with any luck the bandits will at least get close before they realize it's a trap, Lyn added. By that time Draco and Spyro will probably be able to see them from above. The rhythmic sound of the horse's hooves against the beaten dirt road pounded against their ears as they marched northwards, no real target specified. Dante spread his mind out across the forest. The sounds around him drowned out as the beating of life in the earth around him filled his mind. The breathing of the mice and squirrels, small birds chirping in the background. The steady hum of life flowed through the plants, beating as if through his own veins. Lyn's bright spark of life was by his side, with the raging infernos that were Draco and Spyro above them. The flames of life came off of the men following them as well and the horses. Dante froze on the spot. Lyn took a few more short steps before stopping herself, turning back to look at him with worry.

"What's wrong?" she asked.

"Is something the matter?" a guard asked as well.

"Lyn, scan the area." She opened up the scope of her mind, expanding across the whole forest.

"What's wrong?"

"There's a blank spot."

"What do you mean?"

"There's a gap in space somewhere, like nothing's living there. No… That's not it at all. I just can't get into it. It feels like there's a puddle of… Blood? Bloodlust? Somebody's here, and it's someone powerful…" A pyre of fire ignited in front of them, the horses rearing up on their hind legs in terror, neighing and kicking. Dante covered his face from the blast of heat, his other hand reaching for his gun while Lyn had already half-drawn her sword. The flames died down again. Dante's eyes widened in terror as the form revealed itself while Lyn gritted her teeth.

"You!" Dante screamed in shock. A solitary girl stood before them, dressed in a large black torn travelling cloak. Her hair was blood red and tied up in a ponytail, the tail standing up on end like flames. Her skin was as pale and fair as milk, seeming almost ghostly. She was looking down, her eyes shadowed by her fringe with a dark expression on her face.

"We meet again, Dante," she said. The Shade looked up, her scarlet eyes filled with an unimaginable rage, the depths of which actually frightened him. The rest of her face showed none of that anger, her whole body perfectly composed. "I believe I still owe you for last time." Dante didn't even hesitate this time, neither did Lyn. He yanked his pistol out, firing instantly, the recoil sending him backwards three steps as he hadn't even waited to steady himself. She moved her cloak in the way, the pellets smashing into it with little effect. Lyn immediately stepped in after him, swinging her sword angrily at her side. The Shade pulled back her cloak revealing an even larger broadsword than her last one, parrying Lyn's blow easily before crushing her side with the flat end of the blade. The two guards behind them rushed forward shouting out panicked cries for help to their comrades.

"No! Wait! You can't kill her!" Dante cried, the men ignoring his pleas to stop.

"He's right boys, I really won't harm you if you don't attack me," she said, no smile dancing on her lips like their last encounter. One of them stabbed with his spear angrily, the shade knocking the shaft of the weapon away with ease. Before he even knew what had happened, everything from the waist above had been severed, blood gushing from the lower half of his body like a fountain. The Shade moved as if she were a gust of wind behind the second guard, her bloodied sword protruding from his heart. He looked down at the blade with shock, unable to understand what had happened, before the sword was withdrawn, his body going limp as he collapsed to the ground. "You were warned, all you're doing now is throwing your lives away…" Dante and Lyn both leaped back, none of them willing to end up like the men they had just seen.

D-Draco! I need you, right now! Dante yelled, sending out a panicked, fear filled impulse. Draco was already on the way, roaring in anger. Spyro was lagging behind him, her wings straining to even keep up with the older dragon. The Shade acted as if she didn't notice them, instead looking to her right with anger. A body dropped out of a tree, clutching his throat as he suffocated from some unseen strangulation. She put up her hand, stopping a hail of arrows that rained down on her with some invisible magical barrier. Two more soldiers leaped out from the bushes with swords and daggers, their weapons striking on empty air. A head rolled to the floor as the other two reeled back in shock.

"This is a Shade? We're supposed to kill them on sight?!" The men looked around for their hidden enemy, fear clear in their eyes.

"I don't want to die, I don't want to die, I don't want to…"

"You wouldn't have to if you hadn't attacked me," she said behind his shoulder. A chill ran up his spine as he wheeled around in shock. His legs failed him. He collapsed to the ground in fear while his comrade charged toward her, his sword swinging blindly through the air. "Kveykva!" she screamed. Thunder clapped, lightning flashing in front of them. Dante and Lyn both collapsed, electricity coursing through even them, despite not getting hit directly. Dante's ears rang in pain as he tried recovering from the shock of the blow, getting unsteadily back up on his feet. He looked up with growing apprehension for what had happened to the man who was standing in front of him. His eyes widened in shock as he saw what was left of him.

What was once a man was just a fried clump of flesh now, smoke still coming from his body. His comrade looked on in shock, no sound escaping from his open mouth. The Shade looked down at him through cold, un-empathetic eyes. He got the message immediately this time, scrambling up off the ground in terror, back towards the bushes. Lyn and Dante just stared at the bodies in horror. If experienced soldiers couldn't even put a scratch on her, what hope did they have? She looked at them now, her eyes filled with fury.

"I believe I still owe you two and your mentor for last time don't I?"

"Wait, maybe we can work something out," Dante spoke up, speaking hurriedly.

What're you doing?! Lyn whispered mentally to him. That's a Shade, they don't ever listen to reason!

I'm not sure, Dante said back. She looks infuriated right now but I don't think she'll attack without reason…

Like what, how we killed her last time? Sounds like a good enough reason to me… True enough, the Shade didn't look like she was in any mood to negotiate as she pointed her sword at their throats, arcs of lightning flashing through her sword. Draco! A roar sounded above them as Draco crashed to the ground in front of Dante and Lyn, the air reverberating through the air.

"That monstrosity has really grown since last time hasn't it?" Draco charged forward, swiping with his claws. The Shade rolled just beneath the razor-like claws, thin hairs falling off of her head. She swung her blade angrily. The blow struck. The sword bounced off harmlessly, sparks erupting from the impact. Draco swung his tail like a mace, the Shade jumping back just in time. Another thud shook the ground as Spyro landed, at least half of Draco's size. Her purple scales glittered in the dwindling sunlight, and a pair of odd horns grew on her head. Unlike a regular dragon, these looked more like an odd twisting pair of antlers, or corals. They were just as hard as any pair of horns Lyn had seen though, if not harder. The Shade didn't even wait for Spyro to move, grabbing her by those horns. She screamed in anger, her veins pulsing from the exertion, as with a monumental effort she hurled Spyro at Draco, the two crashing into each other with an impact like boulders against rock. Lyn rushed in with no hesitation while Dante stared slack jawed. Lyn swung her sword swiftly, the Shade blocking the blow with barely any effort. Lyn swung again, aiming for her wrist before sharply twisting her wrist, going for her elbow instead. The Shade saw through the whole manoeuvre, taking a step back before planting her foot firmly in Lyn's gut. Before Lyn could recover, another sharp boot landed painfully hard in her jaw. She wheeled around, holding her hand up before her. As she thought, Dante had already recovered. She caught the knife that had been chucked at her between her fingers. She inspected the blade briefly, recognition lighting up her eyes.

"Oh, you kept my dagger for me! Thank you for returning it. Brisingr." The blade caught fire, including the area she was holding, but none of the flames so much as toasted her fingers. She hurled it back at Dante at triple the speed. He couldn't even blink before the blade stuck in his right shoulder, the pain sending him to his knees as he clutched his arm in agony, the heat from the flames keeping his hand well away from the actual injury.

The Shade ran towards him, her sword swinging down to his head. A green blur crashed into her, sending her to the floor. Almost instantly, the entire hulk of flesh and scales that was Draco went hurtling over her from a massive shove, landing in front of the terrified whinnying horses. The Shade looked at the carriage and horses in annoyance. "Jierda," she said. The entire carriage filled with supplies exploded in a cloud of smoke, the horses taking the first chance they had to bolt down the road, as far away from the demon as possible. Demon was the only description that Dante thought could even describe her. Even if they were still young, Draco and Spyro were both still dragons, and yet they were being beaten like children.

The Shade turned around, receiving a sharp and unexpectedly powerful slap from Spyro's wing. She stood back up only to have her legs swept from beneath her by her tail. Dante quickly fumbled with his gun, reloading it while Lyn jumped into the air with her sword, swinging the blade down onto her neck like an executioner. With unparalleled reflexes, the Shade's sword was already in front of her body, blocking the blow within an inch of her neck. She screamed angrily, launching Lyn somersaulting into the air before she landed on her back, the air leaving her lungs. Dante wasted no time firing another shot at his opponents head. The Shade was gone already, the bullets striking empty air, one flying too close to Lyn's face. Dante wheeled around, expecting a counterattack just to see nothing. He looked around himself in fear, panic forcing his heartbeat to triple in pace.

Draco, Spyro, do you see anything?

Nothing as far as the eye can see, Spyro replied, adrenaline running through her thoughts. Draco just sent a negative pulse as he tried getting back up on his feet.

Then where did she… up! Dante snapped his eyes skyward. A second too late, what he saw didn't even comprehend in his mind. It shouldn't have been possible, but there it was. A mass of purple was falling, wings beating futilely. Dante barely had any time left to roll out of the way, Spyro crashing onto the ground over the spot where he was just a second ago. Both he and Lyn looked in shock, unable to respond anymore to what they had just seen. Spyro, an entire dragon, had been lifted up off the ground, and hurled at Dante, and faster than even Spyro herself had had time to understand. The Shade stood on the spot where Spyro was only moments ago, her hand resting on the hilt of her sword. Her eyes had a steely look in them. Dante couldn't even understand it. He'd seen the looks people gave him when they wanted to kill him, and that wasn't it. Dante wasn't even so sure what it was anymore. She wanted to defeat them, crush their spirits, make them give up on ever fighting again. She was toying with them!

"Lyn,"

"I know, we can't win!"

"Glad to see that you understand that," the Shade said, the first smile they had seen since their last encounter gracing her lips. "I don't believe you children truly know what death is do you? Death is absolute. For a Shade however, it's simply a stepping stone, a journey one must make in order to gain newfound strength. Cursed to constantly walk again after having passed from the realm of the living, being forced to walk in the shadows between the living and the dead. Do you know what kind of pain you put me through? Do you realize the agony I had to experience as all of the spirits within me fought once more for control over my once mortal body, reliving the memories of my once weak mortal body as if they were my own… Disgusting! Disgusting how weak I was! How weak this body of mine once was! And with it came the understanding of how weak you are! Even when you've banded together with dragons you can't even reach my feet! I could slaughter you as I slaughtered those bandits who came before you!"

"Bandits?" Dante questioned, trying to stall for time. "Those were all soldiers fighting to protect the regular people. Sure, half of them were mercenaries, but I'm more like a bandit than they were." And perhaps I'm a little too proud of it, Dante thought to himself.

"Do you seriously mean to tell me you didn't notice already?" the Shade said. They looked at her questioningly. "Those men weren't soldiers at all, they were the bandits themselves, masquerading as mercenaries and the Lord's guard. They were busy here for a while, but when authorities began to pick up on them they switched tactics. They pretended to be looking for help to stop the bandits and so would lure travellers in to help them, claiming that they would be free from harm the whole time. Once they get far enough from the town, they kill the travellers and steal their belongings. They would then go back and report it as a failure to the actual surviving members that hired them. They've been changing disguises and employers frequently to keep suspicion off of themselves and make it seem like it's actually the bandit's skill that results in failure. I was planning on simply scaring them out of town, but when I saw you fools had fallen into their trap I had no choice but to kill them so you two would be left all alone to me. They weren't even worth killing, but you could say that I saved your lives…"

"But you killed them!" Lyn yelled in rage. "And you've killed so many people before them too!"

"So it's so bad when I kill those who attack me, but it's no such crime for your friend?" she pointed out. "I see the eyes of a killer in this one. He's probably killed more than me, and stolen the rings off of their dead fingers while at it to…"

"Shut up!" Dante screamed, rage building up from inside of him. "What would you know? You're just some kind of monster, you know nothing of me!"

"I'm a monster? I'm offended!" she exclaimed with mocking shock. "What about the lizards? Aren't they monsters? Violent, bad tempers, the power to kill whatever they lay their eyes on, I believe they fit the description just as easily as I do." Dante gripped his gun even tighter, his palms slick with sweat from the short exertion. Even as he was talking, he was searching for some way out. Some form of distraction, anything that would allow them to escape.

"What is the point of telling us all of this?" Lyn asked, her fingers edging closer to her sword.

"Didn't I tell you already?" She said with a sly smile. "I thought that you were cute, talented young warriors. It's a shame that I have to kill you know." The Shade took a step forward, Lyn and Dante taking a step back. Dante clutched the remaining knife in his belt even tighter, then felt a push at his mind.

Dante, don't move from there, Vanir said within his head. Dante froze, as did Lyn as she received the message to. The Shade stopped, noticing the slight change. Within a fraction of a second, she covered herself with her cape. A flash of light streaked over Dante's shoulder, crashing into the Shade with a resounding clap of thunder. The ball of red light dissipated against her frame, no visible damage. Vanir's foot appeared in thin air, as if going past some kind of invisible barrier, followed by the rest of his body.

"You again!" she screamed, her former rage returning again. "You sure do have some nerve to show your face to me again."

"I spotted you harassing my students and their friend. I can't allow you to harm them anymore."

"Wait, are you saying that I'm the friend?" Dante asked suspiciously. Vanir ignored him, drawing his sword while flames began licking up and down the Shade's blade. Lyn and Dante both scrambled out of the way as the two fighters clashed, their blows invisible to the naked eye.

"Lyn, let's get out of here," Dante said.

"Are you crazy? Vanir might need our help!" she yelled. Dante looked at the battle. The Shade swung her blade angrily, the slow and devastating swing looking like it could shatter rocks. Vanir blocked the blow easily, pushing her backwards before striking back with a flurry of blows, the Shade barely blocking them all.

"I don't think he needs our-" An explosion boomed behind them, knocking all of them, including the dragons, to the ground. They got back up dazed, looking around for the source of the explosion. Another one went off to their right, followed by another one in the trees. A whole chain of explosions went off all around them, blasting chunks of earth into the sky with each bang.

"Lyn, Spyro, this way," Vanir said, temporarily forgetting about the battle.

"Our fight will be on hold for now," the Shade said as she looked around angrily for the culprit. Dante and Draco looked at each other and nodded their heads. Dante ran over to his partner.

"Are you strong enough to carry me now?" Dante asked.

Don't underestimate me child, Draco replied. Dante smiled as he got onto his back.

"Alright Draco, take it away!" he yelled. Draco launched off from the ground, and not a second too soon as the earth beneath him exploded, large chunks of rock exploding. Draco soared through the sky like an overweight eagle, his wings straining with effort, veins pulsing. A large shadow hung over the sky, even larger than Draco and Spyro. It was far larger than any bird that Dante had seen, but the sun was behind it, masking its true identity. The large creature could only be a dragon.

Vanir, there's a dragon in the sky! Dante warned him.

No! That thing is no dragon! I can sense no signs of life coming from it! It's some kind of siege weapon of the likes I've never seen! Get away from it Dante! The weapon turned to face Draco in the skies. Instinctively, Draco growled protectively. They were joined by Spyro, without Lyn on her back.

Calm yourself Draco, she said. This opponent looks dangerous. We can't rush in and attack, even if we are powerful ourselves. Draco puffed angrily, clearly ignoring what she had said.

"Dragon Riders, desist your struggle immediately and come with me!" it boomed, its thundering amplified voice sounding like a young man or boy. "Unarm yourselves and land immediately and I shall have no reason to harm you! If you resist, I shall have no choice but to silence you!"

"Oi Draco, he worries me. I think we should listen," Dante said.

No, only I rule the skies. Here, he must answer to me.

"I don't think you get it… He was the one making those explosions!"

I care not. Tell him that I listen to nobody. Dante sighed.

"Why do you have to be so stubborn? We're already having difficulty with the Shade as is and you now want to fight another enemy? I can't tell him that!"

If you don't, I shall attack whether you say so or not. Before Dante could reply to that, Draco shot towards the weapon. They gathered speed almost instantaneously, the scales on Draco's side digging painfully into Dante's thighs. The weapon charged forward to greet them, flames burning on its back. They got closer, revealing the silhouette to be in the shape of a man, a giant that would stand tall above the roofs of most small houses. Draco instantly saw something was wrong, diving off to his side when a giant-sized blade swung close by him, nearly slicing his wings off. Draco turned in mid-flight, very nearly yanking Dante off in the process, his thighs chaffing even more. Draco flew higher, the sun now at his back while the weapon followed. It looked almost entirely constructed from some kind of metal, like a gigantic metal suit of dragon-sized armour. It had been painted yellow with a large jagged steel-grey plate on its stomach. Its back had an enormous pair of dragon stylized black metal wings, thought it didn't look like they could even move. Instead, it looked like flames were shooting out of its back, keeping the thing afloat. In its right hand it held a thin looking sword, proportionate to the armour of course so it was still easily the thickness of Dante's torso. A pair of long projections came out of the top of its head like ears of some kind and its lower half was completely black. Two fans were on its shoulders facing the ground, the propellers spinning rapidly as if to help keep it afloat and its other arm held some kind of giant gun that was easily as long as a long sword on its own. It even had a huge blade attached to its end.

Dante didn't need to take a second look to know they were outmatched at everything. Draco swung his tail at the armoured warrior to no avail, the giant stopping his ascent at the last second to dodge the attack. He aimed his gun at the two of them and fired, a cannonball getting sent flying towards them. Draco swerved out of the way, the attack hitting his tail directly. He howled in pain as they started to descend rapidly, Draco flapping his wings in frustration.

Are you alright Draco? Dante asked in concern. He sent back an affirmative as he corrected his flight path again, levelling out. Spyro flew up to the warrior, roaring angrily as she did so. The warrior turned around, swinging his sword at her neck. The attack connected, though not on point, as Spyro roared in pain, blood dripping from her thighs. She grabbed the warrior, beating at him angrily with her tail and claws. Large gashes started appearing all along his armour. The warrior barrel-rolled through the air, tossing Spyro off. Draco charged for the warrior to. The warrior turned around, pointing his gun at them. Neither Dante nor Draco had any time to react before the sound of cannon fire tore through the air, and then they were both falling. Dante blinked in surprise. He hadn't expected that, to see smoke coming off of their bodies. Dante hadn't even realized what had happened. He hadn't had the time to feel the heat on his skin as he was practically roasted from the attack. He couldn't hear Lyn screaming from down below nor the panicked roars from Spyro. All he knew was that he had been hit, and that he was falling. And then the pain caught up with him, and he wished it hadn't, the scorching heat, the sting of bleeding limbs, the wind that had been stolen from his lungs… And then, there was nothing.