Chapter 9

Cynder sighed and stretched, "is that the last of the food we had left?" she asked looking down at the empty rag on the ground next to the fire. Thorin took a bite out of a piece of rabbit meat and shook his head, "nah, just half...well, more or less I'm pretty sure I still have more packed away...somewhere," he said as he looked through his bag.

Spyro burped and sighed, "excuse me," he said, Cynder giggled and snuggled next to him. "It's fine Spyro, I don't mind it," she rubbed her head under his while Spyro in turn wrapped a wing around her body and kissed the top of her head, "I love you," she whispered.

Spyro smiled, hearing her say that always put a smile on his face and brought him more joy than anything, "I love you too," he whispered back and wrapped his paws around her, "more than you can imagine." Thorin smiled, a single tear running down his cheek, the smile turned into a frown and the look of sorrow slowly appeared upon his face.

It just...brought too many memories back...memories he didn't want to remember...memories he wished he didn't have and yet at the same time, hoped that they would never go away. Thorin took a deep breath and sighed, I miss you, he thought as he took the cloths and placed them inside his pack.

"Spyro," Cynder sounded nervous, and Spyro noticed but decided best not to say anything. "yeah Cynder?" he asked, he didn't move, just kept still with his head over hers, Cynder opened her mouth but nothing came out. We finally have a moment of peace...should I really ruin that?

"i..is everything okay Cyn?" he asked with worry in his voice. Not saying anything is only going to make it worse, just listen to him, she sighed and closed her eyes, "I...well, I'm..worried...for both of us," she said and slowly wrapped her paws around him.

Spyro tightened his embrace as did Cynder, "what are you worried about?" he asked, curious as to what she could possibly worry about now that they are so close to their destination. "Aren't you excited about almost reaching Warfang?" he asked as he looked down at her.

"Spyro," she whispered, her voice cracking slightly, "going back is what worries me," she said and tightened her grip even more. Spyro tilted his head to the side and rubbed her back, "why would you be worried about that?" he asked slightly confused, does she not want to go back? He wondered.

"I'm a monster Spyro...I've killed so many and now...now I'm going into a city full of people that hate me," she dug her claws into him slightly, Spyro cringed but not enough for her to notice, "I'm scared Spyro," she said sounding like she was about to cry.

Spyro looked at her with concern and hugged her tightly, he kissed the top of her head and laid it on top of hers while rubbing her back, "don't be, I'll be right there with you..and I promise you," he raised her head so that she was looking at him and gave her a comforting smile, "I'll never let anything bad happen to you."

Cynder kissed him in the mouth while a single tear slid down the side of her face, she pulled away soon after and laid her head on his shoulder, "I know you wont," she tightened her embrace, "that's what worries me," she whispered in a voice low enough that spyro couldn't hear her. "ahhhhhhh!" they both looked over at Thorin who had a terrified look on his face and was hyperventilating.

Between his legs lay a spear still shaking from impact, "WHOLY SHIT MAN...WHAT THE HELL...AHaHaaHaaa!" he shuffled backwards and looked behind him. Standing on the mountain was a group of about 7 hyenas who were quickly making their way down to them.

"RUHUN!" yelled Thorin as he took his pack and ran off towards the tunnel entrance, Spyro threw Cynder onto his back sideways and ran after Thorin, the hyenas threw spears at them while others launched arrows, one nearly hitting Thorin and several bouncing off of Spyro's horns which he was using to protect Cynder.

As they neared the cave some hyenas got down to the ground next to the opening and charged at them, Thorin took out a hatchet and stabbed one of them in the upper chest, the force big enough to send it on a back flip to the ground. Spyro dodged one while Cynder stabbed another with her tail scythe resulting in a quick death, soon Spyro was ahead of Thorin as they ran through the dark halls of the tunnel, as they ran they could hear the steps of their pursuers.

Ahead of them lay two entrances, one that kept going straight and another that took a sharp turn to the left, "take the left, take the left!" yelled Thorin as he aimed his hatchet at the cracked beams holding the entrance open. As soon as Spyro and Cynder were through Thorin sent the hatched spinning and slid towards the entrance, the beam easily broke and Thorin barely made it through before the ceiling caved in.

They could hear the angry growling and scratching of the hyenas from the other side of the wall, but it soon died down, "ughhhh," Thorin grunted as he sat up and leaned on the fallen rocks, "i..is everyone alright?" he asked rubbing his head.

Spyro shuffled and looked around, the tunnel was dark and he couldn't see a thing, "I think so.." he looked around though he couldn't see anything, "Cynder? You okay?" he asked as he reached forward. Cynder groaned and hissed when she tried to get up, "ahh, maybe..some bandages came loose but other than that, I think I'll be fine," she said through clenched teeth

Sparks could be seen flying around as Thorin struck the flint with steel, after a couple strikes a small fire started and dimly lit the area around. As the light illuminated the tunnel Spyro saw Cynder holding her side, she was bleeding from the side and the bandages around her waist and paws had been cut on several places.

Spyro crawled over to her, hissing at his own injuries and looked her over, "okay stand still," he said as he tightened the bandages around her chest. She hissed painfully and screamed when it was too much, eventually they were tight enough to stop the bleeding and he looked down at her paws, he took off his bandage and shredded it into small peaces, "Spyro," she hissed as she sat up, "wha, what are you doing?" she asked a little weak from the fall and intense pain.

"I'm stopping the bleeding, now stay still, this might hurt a little," he said as he tightened the bindings around her shredded ankle, she screamed and dug her claws into the ground. When Spyro was done Cynder had tears running down her face, "you're okay Cynder, you're okay," he said as he held onto her, she embraced him with all her strength as the pain lingered.

"you sure you'll be okay without those Spyro?" asked Thorin looking down at the small trails of blood that stained the ground where Spyro had been, he looked down at Cynder's ankle while averting his sight from something else. Spyro nodded and rubbed the back of Cynder's neck with his paw, "they're not as serious as Cynder's, she needed them more than me, I'm sure I'll be fine," he reassured him.

Cynder moved her head slightly and Spyro felt her tongue run across his chest where Thyrougn's blade had cut him, she licked up the little blood that was coming out and he cringed when she ran her tongue across the deeper cuts. Cynder stopped and looked up at Thorin, "you don't have anymore Thorin?" she asked with worry notable on her voice.

Thorin looked through his pack and shook his head, "afraid not, sorry," he said and looked down at the disappointed dragoness. Spyro placed a paw on her shoulder and she looked at him, "I'll be fine Cynder, how long is this tunnel Thorin?" he asked looking back at the cheetah.

Thorin scratched the back of his neck and looked around, "well seeing as how this is an alternate route, I'd say it'll take us about, a day maybe, could be wrong I haven't been down this tunnel in years, we usually used it only when trying to lose Cynder and her forces," he said as he lit up the walls, revealing deep cuts in the wall and scratches all over the ceiling.

He shuttered remembering those battles, "anyway," he shook his head and looked down the tunnel, "whenever we split up, the cheetahs that went down this tunnel usually took half a day longer to reach the end." Spyro groaned as he went underneath Cynder and stumbled onto his feet.

"Spyro what are you doing? yo...you're too injured to carry me," she said in a worried/frightened voice. Spyro looked up and moved her around with his wings, "then we better get going," he said looking up at Thorin and nodding. Thorin grinned and shook his head, "one of these days Spyro, that protective side of you is going to get you in trouble," he said as he led them down the dark tunnel.

As they walked Spyro stumbled a couple times, and Cynder could swear she saw drops of blood behind them, while they made their way through Cynder looked in awe at how many scratches covered the walls and ceiling. "Thorin...h-how many battles were fought here?" she asked, reluctant to hear the answer.

Thorin slowed slightly and looked down at the floor as he walked, "are you sure you want to know the answer to that question Cynder?" he asked looking back at her with a look that said "you don't." Only then did she notice something, those weren't scratches on the wall, they were names that had been carved into the wall.

Cynder's eyes widened as the list kept going from top to bottom and stretched throughout the entirety of the wall, she closed her mouth and gulped, she shut her eyes tight and shook her head as a couple tears escaped her eyes. Thorin looked back ahead of him and decided best to stay quiet.

Nobody spoke for a while as they made their way through the tunnel, the names still covering the walls, Spyro had asked at one point if these were all cheetahs to which Thorin shook his head, "this was where we held our ground, since the mountains overhead were too dangerous to take an army through there they had to pass through these caves, and we decided best to use that to our advantage, we formed barriers, and had an army that could cover all of Avalar Valley." He quieted down as he looked at the walls, "despite our best efforts, we were only able to hold this place, for no longer than one month."

Spyro stared in shock and glanced up at Cynder, thankful that she had fallen asleep, "how many of those battles did cynder take part in?" he asked as he looked back at Thorin. Thorin glanced back at her and sighed, "one," he said and ran his hand through the wall, "...she's the one that ended it," he took his paw away and wiped the dust off on his clothes.

Spyro was about the ask what he had meant but stopped when Cynder moved around and yawned, "what did I miss?" she asked in a sleepy tone. Spyro sighed and shook his head, "nothing, we were just...talking," Cynder sniffed and shook the sleep away.

"what about?" she asked looking over his head and down at him. Spyro smiled at her and licked her muzzle, she yelped and quickly drew away covering it with her paws, Spyro chuckled and looked back at her, "about you and what a great mate-to-be you are, why does that bother you?" he asked.

She took her paws away and looked at him, "n-not r-r-really," she stuttered, embarrassed at what he said. Spyro chuckled and looked forward, "so Thorin, how much further?" asked Spyro as he sped up to catch him. Thorin shrugged and looked down at him, "half way? I'm not sure to tell you the truth but we should be pretty far into the mountains by now."

"where does the tunnel end in Thorin? Will it leave us in Warfang, or somewhere close by?" asked Cynder looking up at Thorin. Thorin shook his head and looked at her, "this tunnel ends somewhere behind the waterfall in Twilight falls, the waterfall provides some cover so that it's not all that easy to find," he explained.

"so we'll have to go through the enchanted woods?" asked Spyro looking up at him, Thorin nodded and Cynder hummed. "I kinda liked Twilight falls, apart from the dangerous creatures that were trying to kill us, it was a beautiful place, peaceful even," Spyro could have sworn he heard her purr but decided that was dumb and shrugged it off.

"it's nice I'll agree with you on that, you know me and...and...a friend, used to go there all the time, she loved how it all looked, especially at night when the fireflies came out and lit up the place." "was she someone special?" Spyro lightly nudged her with one horn and looked at her shaking his head, she looked at him confused but understood when she saw the sad look on Thorin's eyes, "sorry I-I didn't mean to" "it's fine Cynder," he whispered, cutting her off, "you didn't know."

Cynder looked down and lied her head atop Spyro's, he was beginning to grow tired of carrying her and didn't know how much longer he could keep it up, "hey Thorin, why don't we have lunch here, it's just about time right?" he asked in an attempt to use that as an excuse to lie down and rest.

Thorin scratched his head and shook it, "I'm pretty sure it hasn't been that long Spyro, we'll have lunch when we reach the end, just a little further anyway," said Thorin much to Spyro's disappointment. Spyro sighed and hoped he would get that far, "alright, if you say so."

"are you tired Spyro?" asked Cynder, he could go for hours without needing to eat and she knew it, "if you want, I can get off and walk, it might hurt but, if I'm bothering you it's really no problem." He quickly shook his head, "no it's fine, I was just wondering after all we haven't had all that much to eat you know, even I can get hungry now and then," he lied, in truth he wasn't all that hungry, he might have been thirsty but for the most part, he was tired.

"you're not lying to me, right Spyro?" she asked, almost hurt at the thought. Hearing how she said that almost crushed him, she's hurt, what choice do I have, I can't just let her walk while she's injured like that. Spyro looked back and gave her a fake smile, "I'm not, really Cynder I'm fine...I'd never lie to you," saying that last part made him feel like as if he was being choked.

She smiled at him weakly and sighed, "yeah, I know," lying to Cynder was bad enough but to still hold her trust afterwards was even worse, he turned away and took deep breaths as quietly as he could manage. Cynder trusted him more than anyone but still the feeling of doubt lingered, he's not lying is he? Of course not he said so and I trust him, but I am injured, she thought as she looked back at her injured paws, would that be enough reason to make him lie to me? She wondered as she remembered the many times he put her health and needs ahead of his.

As they walked through the tunnel they began to hear the faint sound of rushing water, "you hear that, I think were almost there!" said Thorin and ran ahead of them. Spyro and Cynder both looked at each other before he took off after him, the further they ran the louder the sound of water got and the brighter the cave became.

"there it is!" yelled Thorin as he pointed at the falling water, "come on we're almost theagh..." as he ran across the entrance to the other tunnel a hyena kicked him in the stomach, knocking all the air out of him while another one came behind him and choked him with a spear.

"not another step, or your friend here gets it," said another, stronger looking hyena as he placed his sword underneath Thorin's neck, "it's simple really, you give yourselves up and we'll let your friend here go in a somewhat "unharmed" state," as he said that the others laughed while walking out into the light.

The hyena that was holding Thorin loosened his grip as he laughed, Thorin used the opportunity to elbow him in the gut, then grabbing onto the spear with both hands he flipped him onto the one infront of him. As the hyena fell onto his partner his sword went through him and was crushed soon after, "three against four, who's next?" asked Thorin as he drew his sword, while the hyenas were distracted with Thorin Spyro used this time to walk behind them.

One of them charged at him with its sword and swung as hard as it could manage, Thorin blocked the attack and stunned the hyena in the process, he used this time to lunge his sword through his chest. As this happened Cynder had stabbed another one from behind and Spyro was currently blocking the swinging swords and spears, as one of them raised their spear a sword pierced its chest, Thorin quickly pulled the sword out and spun around, cutting another hyena's head clean off. The last hyena finally got out from under his dead partner and ran at Thorin, catching him off guard.

Thorin raised his sword to block his attack but was disarmed by the force that the hyena had put into the attack, he lunged at Thorin and managed to stab his shoulder before Cynder leaped at him and bit down on his neck, the hyena struggled for a bit, but fell limp soon after.

"are you okay Thorin!?" asked Spyro as he ran over to his injured friend, he hissed as he held his shoulder. "oh yeah, ahhh...time of my life, couldn't be better," he said as he gave them a thumbs up, he chuckled briefly before hissing again. Thorin picked up the backpack that he had dropped during the fight and took out a rag, "this'll have to do," he said as he wrapped it around his shoulder and tightened it.

"it's too late to keep going, let's put up camp here, we'll continue in the morning," said Thorin as he struggled to get up. "here," Cynder broke the blade off the spear and handed the stick to Thorin, "this might help." Thorin took the staff and used it to pull himself up, "never thought I'd feel this old so soon," he said getting a couple laughs from them.

Spyro carried Cynder as they walked out of the waterfall and into Twilight Falls, Thorin almost slipped a couple times but thanks to Spyro and Cynder who were helping support him, he managed to get onto solid ground safely. "I'll take first watch, too dangerous to fall asleep in the open out here," said Thorin as he sat down and leaned against a tree.

"alright, wake me up whenever it's my turn," said Spyro as he lied down and rolled Cynder off his back, "hey! Haha," she laughed as she rolled away. He chuckled and walked behind her, "night Cynder," he said as he wrapped his paws around her waist and draped a wing over her.

Cynder giggled and turned around to lick his muzzle, "good night Spyro, oh, good night Thorin," she said as she looked back at him. He smiled and nodded, "goodnight Cynder," he said and went back to looking around for any possible sign of danger.

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Well I think I mangled this chapter but considering how much of an, uhm, a nuisance it was being I think I did a darn good enough job...though I'm pretty sure some of you would beg to differ, what with all the waiting I put you through just for this, I'd understand if you were angry or disappointed. But!...but...but uhm, in my defense I was working with a tunnel, I'm no good in closed spaces and a tunnel didn't give me much to work with..yeah that, that works right? Uhh, so much for a chapter every month...actually didn't I upload that "peculiar" chapter last month? If I did then I'm still keeping the "chapter-a-month" rule...didn't I upload that last month, I can't remember, you tell me if you remember feel free to tell me.

Also this ending was kind of...boring, but I did what I could, and I'm afraid that if I try anything I'll just break everything again. Anyway next chapter might be this same month or next, but like I said don't hold your breath cause I don't promise anything, mainly because if I do I'll most likely end up breaking it so..yeah, sorry folks.

Well that's pretty much all I can think of saying so I guess I'm done, again sorry for the delay, I'm almost certain that it will happen again but I'll do what I can to prevent it...so uh, until next time, Peace.