E/N: Hello, my name is Legion222. Some of you may remember that, as of Chapter 10, I am the editor of The Electric Dragon: Into the Abyss. I just wanted to take this opportunity to tell you all how honored I am that Superdale33 (who, by the way, is totally awesome and is NOT putting me up to this) is allowing me to have a part, however small, in the production of this story. I've got to say, this is a lot harder than I had expected it to be when I signed up for it, but what worthwhile thing isn't? So, yeah, assuming Superdale33 allows this to be in the final version when he posts it (since it is well within his right as an author to just delete this), I just want to say, thank you, Superdale, for this awesome opportunity; and thank YOU, reader, for supporting this story.
Read on,
Legion.
A/N: And with that said, it's my turn! I was really busy these last few weeks, with graduating and such. So, sorry this didn't come out sooner.
The Electric Dragon: Into the Abyss
Chapter 11: Dark Tidings
King Dragunov was sitting at his throne, rubbing his chin. Flame also sat in his own throne, but seemed distant from the others, with Ember sitting to his side. The Guardians, Sparx, Spyro, Cynder, Lemon, and Uranium formed a semi-circle around the thrones. Cole stood off to the side, leaning against one of the pillars with arms crossed.
"So Magma couldn't be found anywhere?" Cynder asked desperately, hoping it wasn't true.
King Dragunov sighed, hiding his annoyance expertly. "As I said," he explained, "I had my guards search everywhere in the Kingdom for him, and any nearby towns. There's no sign of him."
Spyro shook his head; Magma couldn't have just disappeared, but where could he have gone? Surely he would have flown to some town that was close by. "Maybe he's hiding in a cave or in the wilds," he suggested, his head tilted down in thought.
"That is a possibility," Dragunov agreed, nodding his head, "but there are too many caves nearby that he could hide in, and I cannot spare the resources to search them."
This wasn't good news for anyone to hear. Terrador hummed thoughtfully, his eyes averted upwards. "Then, sadly, it is a lost cause," he stated, giving off a sigh, "I suppose it is best if we concentrate on the real threat, Malefor."
"No," Cole said simply, causing all eyes to gaze at his position in confusion.
"No what?" Cyril asked for everyone.
Cole pushed himself off the pillar he was leaning against, facing the group. "We have to find him. Who knows what he'll do if he gets away..." he commented, slowly walking towards the group.
"He will surely not strike again," Volteer assumed, "He knows he's a wanted dragon now."
"Do you have proof of that?" Cole snapped standing in the middle of the group. "He was full of himself; arrogant to the end. He'll know that we won't be looking for him, and we have to exploit that."
"I am sorry, Cole," Dragunov apologized, lifting a hand for emphasise, "But as I said, we can't spare the resources. Terrador is right, we must find out what Malefor is planning."
Cole rubbed his head, becoming annoyed with their arguing. Though Cole did have a personal vendetta against Magma, he also wanted to find him so he wouldn't cause any more harm to other innocent dragons. Like Lemon. Then it hit him.
"What if he's working for Malefor?" Cole proposed, turning in a circle to face each dragon individually. "It would explain why he did the things he did. He wanted power, and Malefor promised that to him."
"How would Malefor even do that?" Cyril argued, and Cole turned to him with a frown. "How would he communicate with Magma without our knowing?"
Cole knew the answer, but suppressed a grin, knowing that this wasn't the time. "Easy, through his dreams," Cole announced, and everyone looked to one another in confusion. "That was how Malefor spoke to me back in my world; through my dreams. Malefor would do the same for Magma, and have him do his bidding."
Everyone contemplated this fact for a few seconds. Dragunov shook his head after a while, "There are still no solid facts that Magma is working for Malefor."
"You doubted me before," Cole snapped back, crossing his arms, "Look where that got you."
"I understand that, Cole," Dragunov exclaimed, his voice raising at Cole's persistance. "But I have to work with what we know, not go on some wild sheep chase."
Though he was right, Cole couldn't drop the feeling that he was on to something. What was Malefor planning? That was the big question, and Cole knew finding Magma would answer it to some degree.
Lemon could almost feel Cole's determination to find Magma. She loved him for that, but she wished he would let it go. Though she was upset about the whole ordeal about her father, she didn't want Cole to worry about one dragon that they may never see again.
Cynder stepped forward, prompting everyone to look in her direction. "What if we send a small team to search for him? Would that be acceptable?"
Dragunov thought about the proposition for a few seconds, then finally looked up with a small smile. "That would be acceptable," he concurred, "but who would be going on this mission?"
"I will," Cole immediately volunteered, stretching his arms as he did.
"So will I," Spyro followed, earning a nod of thanks from Cole.
"I'm coming also," Cynder announced, and Spyro smiled, nuzzling her in thanks.
"Then it is settled," Dragunov finished, "You three shall search with any means necessary to find Magma. I hereby give you permission to go through any part of my Kingdom, as long you do not take advantage of my hospitality."
Cole, Spyro, and Cynder nodded, but Lemon was feeling distressed. "Wait, Cole!" she shouted, and ran over to him. Cole faced her, with a perplexed expression. "You don't have to find him for me! I don't know what I would do if something were to happen to you."
Cole felt a pinch of sadness well up inside him. It was true that he was mostly doing this for Lemon, but he could also tell that there was something more. Something that he had felt whenever he was taking down a criminal.
Justice.
Cole smiled, and knelt to Lemon's level. "I know I don't have to for you, Lemon," he explained kindly, "but I do have to do it. Not just for you or me, but for the Dragon Realms."
"For justice," Terrador agreed, giving a single nod.
Lemon was still feeling distraught, her head tilted down in worry. Cole lifted her chin up to face him, and gazed at Lemon's beautiful blue eyes. Cole didn't want to have her fret over him, nor did he want her to feel lonely. So with a smile, he leaned forward and kissed her passionately.
Lemon wasn't too surprised that Cole had kissed her, and accepted the kiss, closing her eyes as she did so. It lasted only a few seconds, and when they pulled apart, they both wished that they could continue the kiss. Unfortunately, there were other things that were more important at the moment
"Don't worry about me," Cole jested, standing back up to full height, "I'm Cole MacGrath, remember? If I can make it through a dangerous cavern filled with goblins, I think one simple search will be a piece of cake."
"What's cake?" Sparx asked bluntly, and Cole sighed, face palming.
"That's not important now," Volteer spoke up, "Head forth, heroes. Fulfill the deed to enact justice, and seek out the villainy of anybody who thinks they can stop democracy. Send the message that-"
"You can stop now," Cole stated bluntly, and Volteer gave a nervous chuckle.
"Right, sorry."
With a shake of his head, Cole lead the way toward the large doors that was the entrance. Spyro and Cynder followed close by, equally determined to complete the task.
"So, uh," Spyro began, as they stepped out of the Palace and into the streets, "Where do we start?"
Cole turned his head to the two, speaking over his shoulder, "Where did you last see Malefor?"
Spyro thought for a few seconds, but strangely couldn't rightfully remember. Cynder saw his hesitation, and spoke up for him. "At the Mountain of Malefor."
'Jeez, that guy is full of himself,' Cole thought, as he rolled his eyes.
"Alright, let's set out then," Cole said, pointing forward for morale.
"Right," Spyro and Cynder agreed simultaneously.
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/
Though the Dragon Temple in the Swamp was where Spyro had first learned his elemental abilities, it was abandoned. A passer-by might think it was never even occupied in the first place. Nature had grown around it heavily, and it was almost uninhabitable. Nevertheless, Milson had to enter the foreboding temple to meet Magma.
As he entered, he gazed up at the large dragon statue that took up the entire room. It was Malefor before his corruption; before the beginning of the large conflict that still raged to that day. Milson gave an involuntary shudder at the statue, as if it were Malefor himself. He ignored it though, and continued around it, to another room. His eyes fell on Magma, who was pacing angrily.
This room was not as big as the previous one, but had a small green pool of liquid in the center, the Pool of Visions. As Milson stepped inside, Magma whipped his head towards him, his face failing to hide his temper.
"What took you so long?" Magma yelled, walking over to Milson.
"S-Sorry, sir," Milson apologized. Though Magma wasn't the one in charge, Milson didn't want to be killed by him. "I had to sneak past the guards that were looking for you."
Magma rolled his eyes, resuming his pacing, "Whatever. That stupid Cole ruined everything! I just needed a sacrifice to free Malefor, and it was going to be that girl Lemon. Now... I'll have to improvise."
"How will all this even free the Master?" Milson asked, and Magma glared at him, causing Milson to cower back slightly.
"Once all the ingredients are in place," Magma explained irritably, "one must sacrifice a soul to free Malefor through a pocket dimension. Basically, it opens a small rift in the space-time continuum and allows him to escape his crystal prison. You get all that, you idiot?"
Milson nodded his head rapidly, worried that Magma would snap and end his life. Instead, Magma walked over to the Pool of Visions, staring into it intently. "The sacrifice was supposed to be held right here," he said more to himself than to Milson, "Everything is in place, I just need someone to kill..."
"There's a town a few miles away," Milson announced, "Maybe, we can get a dragon from there."
"Maybe," Magma mumbled, thinking hard about how to remedy the predicament. An evil thought swept through his mind, and it caused him to give a scary grin. He looked over to Milson who was nervously playing with his hands. "Hey Milson, come over here for a second."
Milson had jumped when Magma called his name, but obeyed the order, shuffling over to the Pool of Visions. Magma's smile did not falter one bit, and it made Milson uneasy, but he soon found himself standing over the green pool.
"Now tell me," Magma requested, "What do you see?" he gestured towards the pool. Milson peered into it, but nothing was out of the ordinary.
"Nothing really," he stated, scratching his head.
"Anything red?" Magma asked, his smile still on his face.
"No, none at all," Milson replied, wondering why Magma would ask these strange questions. At that moment, Magma sliced Milson's throat seemlessly, causing Milson to jump back, clutching his thoat with his hands.
"How about now?" Magma asked sinisterly. It was true; some of Milson's blood had dropped into the Pool of Visions. However, Milson was too busy gagging on his own blood to respond. Milson fell to his knees, desperately trying to get air into his lungs.
Growing impatient at his slow death, Magma sunk his claws into Milson's head, killing him instantly. When Magma retracted his claws, Milson fell in the Pool of Visions, his blood mixing with the pool. Magma gave one look at his bloody paws, and groaned.
"Great," he whined, "Now I have to wash my paws."
Magma wiped what he could on Milson's fur, and took a few steps back, waiting expectantly. Nothing happened in the few seconds that followed, but soon the pool began to glow white, turning the green and red pool to pure light. Milson's deceased body evaporated, his body simply vanishing into steam. It rose into the air, and began spinning like a pin wheel.
Magma felt proud of himself for putting the ingredients into the pool prior to Milson's entry. He had a feeling that Malefor had wanted Milson to be the sacrifice in the first place.
'Malefor will surely be pleased,' he predicted, his body nearly shaking with excitement. The swirling mass of vapor was spinning fast by then, glowing as white as the pool below it. Then with a loud bang, the portal formed, growing rapidly to accommodate any mass that would pass through it.
Feeling the tug that the portal always had, Magma locked his claws into the stone floor, as to not be sucked through it. This was it, this was when Malefor would come through and rise to his rightful rank of ruler. With Magma getting as much power as he desired, of course.
"Come forth, Dark Master!" Magma called into the portal, laughing at the inevitable outcome. "Be free from the prison that Spyro and Cynder had trapped you in! Rule this land that so rightfully belongs to you! I, your servant, shall be by your side until the very end!"
The portal began to shoot off lightning in random directions, indicating that something was coming through. This caused Magma to laugh insanely, his true desires only an arm's reach away. An entity did jump out of the portal, but the mere sight of it filled Magma with absolute shock as the portal collapsed on itself.
"I have no idea what you're talking about, you overgrown lizard," the stranger admitted darkly, "but I like the sound of ruling a new land."
The stranger looked exactly like Cole. There were some distinct differences though, like his pale skin and red shirt, but it was Cole nonetheless. Why was a different version of Cole here? Wasn't Malefor supposed to come through?
"Who the hell are you?" Magma questioned, his eyes narrowing in frustration.
"Little old me?" the stranger asked, pointing to himself with a sly grin. "Name's Cole, Cole MacGrath, but a lot of folks back home like to call me the Beast."
Magma was grinding his teeth, his eyes glaring daggers at this person. It was Cole all over again. No matter how much he changed his appearance, it was Cole. He had foiled all of Malefor's plans and denied Magma his rise to power.
"You... asshole," Magma hissed, crouching down as if to pounce on the human.
"Excuse me?" Cole asked, all evidence of mockery gone. "What did you call me?"
"You son of a bitch!" Magma shouted, ignoring Cole's threatening tone. "That portal was meant for Malefor! Not some slimy monster that kicked me out of my home!"
"Look, pal," Cole said sternly, turning to the side, "I don't like your tone, and I suggest you fix that before things get messy."
Magma didn't answer, instead shooting a fire ball at Cole, who simply dodged to the side. "Oh ho," he chuckled, "You're going to regret that."
He began advancing on Magma, his arms crackling with red electricity. Magma did not back down, and sent more fire balls at Cole. Cole grinned devilishly, "Finally some competition."
He dodged each fire ball expertly, leaping out of the way by only a few inches. When the opportunity was open, Cole used a Firebird Strike and closed in on Magma quickly. Caught off guard, Magma was hit full force and into the air. He recovered mid-air with his wings, and dived at Cole.
Seeing the inevitable attack, Cole sent a red electric blast, one that was narrower than those used by the other Cole. Magma didn't have time to move away, and was forced back, slamming into the wall. As he slid down, Cole gave a small chuckle, "This sure beats having to fight humans back home."
Magma coughed roughly into his paw, and when he pulled back, he saw that it was stained with blood. He wearily climbed to his feet, staring at Cole with purpose. "I'm not down yet, you bastard," he growled.
"Aww," Cole fawned sarcastically, cupping his hands together, "Looks like someone is angry."
Giving a battle cry, Magma charged Cole, hoping to run him through with his horns. Cole rolled his eyes at the offensive rush, and retrieved his Amp from its place on his back. When Magma was close enough, Cole hopped and placed a foot on his head, then with a push, he bounced into the air. He did a dramatic spin before putting all of his strength into one final swing as the Amp came crashing down on Magma.
With all his energy spent, Magma could hardly move, gasping for oxygen. Cole backed away to examine his work, putting his Amp away. "How disappointing," he commented with a deep frown, "Still easier than Nix ever was."
Magma didn't know who Nix was, but still felt the insult was made with ill intentions. He tried to crawl towards Cole, but winced in pain when he tried. Cole saw this, and gave a short laugh, "Really? You still think you can take me?"
Magma was in too much pain to respond, instead just laying motionless where he had collapsed. Cole rubbed his chin thoughtfully, "Did you know that all creatures use electric impulses to send messages between the brain and the body?" Magma didn't answer, still too tired to do much. "Did you also know..." Cole continued strolling toward Magma with his hands behind his back superiorly, "That I can absorb those electric impulses?"
With a horrifying revelation, Magma tried uselessly to crawl away from Cole, to save himself. Cole shook his head, and kicked Magma to his back, and slowly knelt down.
"Y-You're supposed to be a hero!" Magma cried desperately, "You don't kill, damn it! You don't kill!"
"Sorry," Cole chuckled, holding up his electrified hand, "wrong Cole."
Swiftly, Cole shoved his hand onto Magma's face, and started absorbing Magma's bioelectric energy. Magma pushed his paws against Cole's hands, giving his all in an attempt to survive. It was too late, however, as the electricity inside of Magma arced through the air and traveled into Cole. A small hiss could be heard as Cole released Magma's head, letting the sapped body fall lifelessly to the ground as Cole rose to his full height.
"Nothing like a good Bio Leech," Cole stated to no one, cracking his knuckles. Gazing downward, he gave the lifeless husk that was Magma a small wave before heading over to a balcony that lead outside. As he stood upon it, he scanned the area, and his eyes fell on a town, so far away that the average person wouldn't have been able see it, but Cole had had his senses upgraded thanks to the Beast.
"A whole new world to explore," he said, "and a whole new place to conquer."
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/
Malefor Mountain was rather simple to climb, or at least, Cole thought it was. Spyro and Cynder had wings, so they could just fly to the top. For Cole, the mountain was almost a straight line. The ledges weren't slippery, and there were multiple handholds as well.
The sun was starting to set as he climbed onto a platform, Spyro and Cynder landing beside him. He stood up on his feet, and brushed himself from any dirt or dust that attached to him. "Alright," he announced, "We made it."
"Well duh," Cynder commented dryly, earning a glare from Cole for her troubles.
He took a quick look at his surrounds, seeing a tunnel that lead to who knew where. He walked determinately in that direction without a word, and the two other dragons followed behind him. As he entered, Cole could feel a presence that was both there, and not there. It was confusing, but Cole could figure it out later.
They entered deeper into the cave, and soon the scene changed from dirt and rock to gray bricks, and torches were seen hanging on the wall.
"I guess we're in the right place," Spyro assumed, watching the torches warily. "But Malefor wouldn't be able to light these himself."
"Meaning...?" Cynder trailed off.
"Someone has been here recently," Spyro answered, narrowing his eyes.
Cole remained silent, his own contemplations dominating his mind.
'If it wasn't Magma who lit these torches,' Cole theorized in his head, 'than it must be Milson. No one has seen him since Magma escaped. At least I was right about him.'
All their ponderings came to a halt when a wooden door greeted them, and Cole clenched his hands tightly. This was the moment; if Magma wasn't behind that door, than Malefor was, and they could officially put a stop to him.
Before getting the dragons' consent, Cole kicked the door down, revealing pure darkness. Cole ran in, glowing with electrical energy that laced itself around his arms. Spyro and Cynder jumped to his side, ready to fight if need be.
At first, nothing happened, but then a small purple light began to pulsate in the darkness. The light began to grow, revealing its source to be a large crystal. The light then formed the head of a dragon, a very dangerous dragon.
"Malefor," Spyro announced, though it wasn't needed, as everyone could make it out as well.
Malefor laughed, "Spyro, my greatest nemesis. I still don't know why you haven't met your destiny of destroying the world."
Spyro chose not to answer, furrowing his brow. Malefor turned to Cynder and grinned. "Cynder too?" he commented, "My ever loyal servant, here to greet me."
Cynder growled, "Not on your life."
Lastly, Malefor turned to Cole, and his grin lowered to a deep frown. Cole smirked at this; he had really gotten on Malefor's nerves the last they spoke with each other. "And of course," Malefor finished, "the monster."
Cole's smile didn't waver for a second, "So you remember me, huh?"
Malefor scoffed, "How could I not, but I suppose you all aren't here to hear me speak."
"You presume correctly," Cole stated, his electricity flaring up. Malefor shook his head at the display of aggression.
"I might as well tell you all what has happened with me since you defeated me those few months ago," Malefor said, causing the group to freeze, their eyes wide with shock. He was really just going to tell them his plans?
"After Spyro had saved the world with his power," he began, "I lingered here for many weeks, contemplating my next move to destroy the world. At around that time, I discovered the different dimensions, how our own universe was not alone. I reached out to the closest one, and found Cole's world."
Cole could have predicted that explanation, but kept quiet to hear more, "I discovered a man who had dabbled in evil, one that wasn't afraid to take the necessary means to an end. He joined my ranks willingly, and I assisted him by giving him dark gems to suppress a dragon's breaths. He inevitably failed, unfortunately, and I retreated back to my world. This man, if you haven't already figured it out, was Bertrand."
The group suppressed their surprise the best they could; Malefor was working with Bertrand? It would explain some things, but it was still stunning to say the least.
"When that plan backfired, I put my concentration back here, and swept the land looking for servants to, well, serve me. I found Milson, a retched ape that was so afraid to die that he obeyed me without a struggle. Then, there was Magma, a dragon that had the lust for power as I did. And my new plan was coming to fruition."
"Magma collected the necessary ingredients to free me," Malefor continued, "as Milson built an army to attack Warfang for a distraction. Milson failed me, and I was forced to have him try to convince the leader of the Kingdom of Dragunov that Cole was evil. Magma, on the other paw, completed his preparation for reviving me."
"So now what?" Cole interrupted harshly, "You're just going to escape your prison and wreak havoc on the populace?"
"But of course," he answered with a grin, "Magma is already at the temple, setting up the ingredients that will free me. Yes, I can already feel it activating!"
The group glanced at each other in horror; Malefor was already escaping, and they did not have time to disrupt it. Thinking fast, Cole ran up to the crystal, placed his hands on it, and began to absorb whatever energy was in it.
The pain was almost unbearable, and Cole wanted to back out. However, the thought of Malefor escaping and hurting the dragons, hurting Lemon, kept him from letting go. Malefor was screaming, and his image was beginning to distort. Suddenly, a shockwave pushed Cole away, and sent him flying until he hit the ground.
The crystal Malefor occupied was flickering, his image all but gone. Then the low purple light dimmed until it was nothing more than a regular, dead crystal. Spyro and Cynder ran over to Cole, worried that something had happened to him. He was breathing hard, but all in all fine.
"Cole," Spyro asked quietly, "What the heck happened? What did you do?"
"I'm fine thanks," Cole retorted sarcastically, struggling to his feet. "I tried to absorb whatever energy was in that crystal. I think by doing that, I killed Malefor."
"You killed Malefor!?" Cynder cheered, her smile forcing the other two to do the same.
Saying Spyro was happy was an understatement; they had defeated the enemy that had been plaguing the land for a long time. It was the time to celebrate for them, but something kept Cole from doing so.
"I don't think we're finished though," Cole announced, his face grim.
"What... what do you mean?" Cynder asked hesitantly, her smile disappearing.
"That shockwave you felt? That wasn't me or the crystal, it was a completely different... thing. It felt like something I would be able to do. I don't know, it's hard to explain."
Spyro looked around the area, before addressing the group, "I think we're done here. Malefor may be gone, but Magma is still out there."
The group nodded, and headed for the exit. They walked through the same way they came in easily and in no time were back on the platform from before. That was when they saw the large column of smoke coming from the town that Cole saved a few days ago.
Their shock was evident with their dropped jaws.
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/
Lemon could only sit on the wall surrounding the Kingdom of Dragunov with sadness. She was so desperate to be with Cole, to be in his loving embrace once again, but knew that he had a obligation as a hero. She was both proud and depressed because of it.
She wasn't alone as she sat on the wall, gazing out into the land. Uranium was with her as well, though his motives for doing so were confusing. At first, it was to give Lemon company, then it was to wait for Cole, then it was to wait for Spyro and Cynder, and now it was to give Lemon company again.
Lemon didn't care, she just wanted Cole to come back as soon as he could.
"There goes another cloud," Uranium said absent mindedly, staring up at the sky. "That's forty eight. If another hundred and sixty-nine come across, it could rain in due time."
Lemon didn't respond to his constant ramble, focusing on the outskirts, searching for the inevitable return for Cole. Uranium may have short-term memory loss, but he knew when a friend was too depressed to talk. He, too, looked out into the outskirts, and gasped when he saw movement. Lemon saw it as well, but didn't express it the same way as Uranium.
It was three dragons, flying low to the ground. Two were adults, based on their size, and smaller one was on the back of one the adult dragons. One adult was dark green, and the other was light blue. The small dragon was also blue.
They collapsed from exhaustion upon nearing the city wall, gasping for air. Lemon took the initiative and glided down to their position, wondering what could have them so tired.
When she landed, the dark green dragon was the first to speak. "Please," he begged, "We need shelter, something is coming!"
"What town did you come from?" Lemon inquired sympathetically.
"Battleclaw," he answered, "I saw you there before with that... that..."
He shuddered involuntarily, and was suppressing tears. "Tell me," Lemon asked softly, "What happened?"
"We were attacked," he answered heavily, "by the same person that I thought had saved us."
Lemon knew the answer, but was too stunned to do anything. The dark green dragon finished anyway, "We were attacked by Cole MacGrath."
So, I'll just leave it like this. I hoped you enjoyed. Troll face.