Me- Here it is, the long overdue chapter 12. Sorry for the delay. Also on a side note, to the people who keep pestering me to talk to Dragonman10 about his story Aron's Journey, he says the story will be continues soon. He just got back from military service.

Spyro- *Yawn* You've been gone for too long.

Me- I know, anyway disclaimer.

Cynder- Cynderfan only owns his own characters. All others belong to their respective owners.

All- ON WITH THE SHOW.


As night fell over Warfang troops continued to pour through the portal into the city. By now the majority of high ranking officers had arrived and set up quarters in the temple. The soldiers were being given the area destroyed by the Golem during the first attack on the city to set up camp. The area had mostly been leveled so it would do for a camp.

Taylor stood near the portal with his comrades beside him, watching as rank after rank of Soviet troops marched through the portal followed by a division of T-34s. They were singing something in Russian as they marched. Schlesinger had identified it as the 'Internationale'.

The number of troops had by now swelled to over 12 000 and comprised of 2 German infantry divisions, 1 British, 4 Russian, 3 American (including the 101st and 82nd airborne) and the Canadian black watch, the entire Panzer Lehr armored corp, the Canadian 4th armored, the Soviet 6th through 10th armored and the Welsh Guard tank corps. They also had a small air force at their disposal but that would have to come from the other side of the portal.

Taylor turned to Spyro and Cynder, who were sitting next to him. "Impressive eh." He said.

"Very, who are these guys again?" Spyro asked as he watched a slightly out of place STV tank destroyer roll by.

"These guys are Soviets, or Russians I guess. When we march on Siverna, they'll make up the bulk of our forces." Said Taylor.

"Ja, the Russians." Said Schmitt. Both he and Schlesinger visibly shuddered. "We fought them on the Eastern Front. They're brutal and as far as I know, don't take prisoners."

"Why were you fighting them?" Asked Cynder.

"Our foolish leader decided that control of Western Europe wasn't enough. So he gathered up a million men and threw us against the largest army on the planet. We caught them off guard at first but then our attack bogged down in the freezing cold of the Russian winter. We were then surrounded, cut of from supply and crushed. We achieved nothing at the cost of over a million lives." The numbers staggered Cynder and Spyro.

"But we're on the same side now I guess." He continued. "Plus, those tanks of theirs will be useful. They are very hard to kill."

Someone tapped Taylor on the shoulder. He turned and came face to face with a cheetah soldier. He saluted before speaking. "Sir, the Guardians request your presence in the temple library. Your fellow colonels are too come too."

"Very good." Said Taylor and dismissed him. He turned to the others. "Duty calls." He said.

They waited for the last of the Soviet tanks to pass before running across before a small group of German Flak 88's were towed through. The temple stairs were bustling with activity as soldiers and messengers from many different armies attempted to get places. A pathway cleared almost immediately when the 7 colonels and two dragons began to climb. They fought their way through the temple lobby, which had now become a communications center and up a second, less crowded stairwell into the library.

The door was guarded by 6 soldiers, two British, two Russian and two German. The Germans and Soviets were eyeing each other but snapped to attention when the colonels requested access. The door was opened to reveal a command room. All the Generals from the original meeting in London, plus a large number of other high ranking officers were all standing around a large number of chairs, conversing with each other and the Guardians. A large map of the Dragon Realms was stuck on the wall in front of the chairs.

"Ah, the last Colonels." Said Terrador. "Now we can begin. Everyone please take your seats. I want my officers and the highest ranking officers from each army at the front please." Everyone took their seats and Terrador began his briefing.

This morning, a large number of troops under the command of the sorcerer Siverna attacked this city. They were repulsed with heavy losses. Now with your help we can finish them off. Our intelligence has indicated the Siverna has taken whats left of her troops and is heading back to Boyzitbig Island to regroup. Whatever she couldn't take was left behind. We need to get to that Island and finish her off for good."

"And how do you propose we do that?" Asked a Russian General from the second row. "I may be an army commander, but I know that we cannot launch an invasion without ships. It will take months to get a large number of landing craft here and even longer for escort ships."

"Maybe not." Said Taylor. "Terrador, were any ships left behind when Siverna left?"

"Yes." Said Terrador. "But only 5 small vessels, enough to carry about 800 men and about 8 tanks."

"Thats all I need to know." Said Taylor. "If we can get men ashore and destroy the enemy portal it will cut their supply of fresh troops. From there we can get Spyro and Cynder to dispose of Siverna and make our escape."

"Warfang also has a small fleet of ships that could act as escorts for the transports." Said Cyril. "They are too small to act as troop transports but if we load some of your artillery on them they could be used to bombard enemy positions from afar."

Taylor nodded in approval.

"It's a plan but it won't be easy." Said Terrador. "The only way I can think of destroying the portal is to bring down the entire factory complex, and I don't think we have enough explosives to do that. Those buildings are meant to withstand Volcanic eruptions."

"Gentlemen, I may be of use here." Said the only German general in the room, obviously Von Richter. "Back on the other side of the portal, we have several V-2 rockets due for disassembling. If you could get ashore and get the exact coordinates of the factory, we could blow it up."

"There is still the matter of that death machine." Said a British officer.

"Yes but I have an idea for that as well." Said Taylor. "Colonel Schlesinger here worked on the model at one point. He will disable the machine before it can do any damage."

"I will?" Asked Schlesinger in surprise.

"Ja." Said Taylor, mockingly.

"Then it is settled then." Said Von Richter. "All in favor of this plan say Aye." A chorus of Aye, Da and Ja went around the room.

Barlow stood. "What troops will we take with us for this attack?" He asked.

"I must insist you take the 24th tank corp, or at least part of it." Said General Zhukov. "Our new tank destroyer prototypes can take on anything."

"Ok." Said Taylor. "I think we should take 4 Soviet tank destroyers, those two Sherman Fireflys the Canadians brought with them and two German Panzer IVs. For infantry, we'll take two Soviet regiments, the Fallschirmjager regiment, the 101st, the Welsh Guards and the Black Watch. That makes just about 550 men."

"Tell your men to get a good night sleep." Schmitt addressed the whole crowd. "We should set out at dawn tomorrow."

Off the coast of Warfang...

One of Siverna's largest ships lay anchored in a fog bank. On its deck were hundreds of Stratagons, each clutching a shell from the tanks that had been left behind. Siverna stood among them. "Remember, drop your ammunition and cause as much damage as possible, no one retreats until I leave the city."

The Stratagons spread their wings and lifted off, rocking the entire ship. The air became thick with wing beats as the airborne armada headed for Warfang. It was time for revenge.


Warfang...

Taylor was shaken from his bed by an almighty explosion. He dived out from under the covers and seized his rifle from a nearby wall. The door burst open and Cook ran in, his helmet askew and a small trickle of blood running down his face. "AIR RAID." He yelled.

Lights began to flash on all over the city, several searchlights flickered into life and pointed into the sky, revealing wave after wave of Stratagons pouring in at high altitude and releasing their payloads at targets of opportunity. Small bursts of flak and lines of tracer fire indicated that human AA batteries were returning fire in earnest.

Siverna swerved violently to avoid a column of tracer fire then had her face scales blackened by an explosion of flak. This wasn't exactly going to plan. She needed to get to the temple fast, complete her mission and get out again. She veered away from the Stratagons, aiming to approach the temple from another angle. One where their were less explosions. She aimed for a hole in the temple walls, blasted by a well aimed shell, and dove through, incapacitating two Soviet guards caught in the wrong place.

"Now, three floors down and to the right. If my memory serves me correct." She thought and set off.


Outside the temple nursary, two guards who had not deserted their posts, crouched in the corridor, watching as each explosion shook a little more dust from the ceiling. One was a big Russian, easily 6'5', carrying a PPSH-41. The weapon looked comically small in his hands. The other was a British rifleman with a Lee Enfield.

Siverna peeked around the corner and saw the two guards. "No problem." She thought and stepped around the corner. The two guards raised their weapons but lowered them when they saw she was a dragon. "I require entry to the hatchery." She said.

"Sorry, mam." Said the Brit. "This area is off limits until..." He didn't finish the sentence as Siverna's tail blade connected with his chest and threw him into the wall. The Russian turned and pulled his trigger. He was fast, but Siverna was faster, she seized him with a tendril of black magic an jerked his gun to the side. She then lifted him off the ground and hurled him at the hatchery door.

The door exploded, leaving an unconscious Russian lying against the doorframe. She smirked as she stepped over his body. All to easy. She scanned the rows of eggs that lined the walls all the way to the end of the room. Right in the middle in a slightly elevated cradle, lay a royal purple egg. This had to be it, the egg her spy's had reported, the egg she would use against them.

She carefully scoped the egg out of its cradle and held it loosely to her chest. She then turned and carefully walked out of the room again. Before leaving however, she glared at an ornate tapestry of Spyro and Cynder defeating Malefore that hung on the wall. With a blink, it burst into flames, which slowly began to spread to the straw cradles of the other eggs. She smiled slightly and turned to leave. He smile faded when she saw that the Russian was gone from the doorway, no doubt for help.

It didn't matter though, her mission was complete.


The temple foyer was a mess of officers and men running in every direction. Taylor had lost track of Cook in the melee but had run into Spyro and Cynder. Together the three sought shelter in a vacant corridor, where they were joined by several others, including Schmitt.

"All hell has broken loose." Said Schmitt. "There is heavy fighting in every sector." At that moment a Russian soldier raced up to them.

"Colonels." He gasped. "Siverna, Hatchery, Fire." He gasped out. Spyro and Cynder figured it out immediately.

"The hatchery's on fire. And Siverna's there!" Shouted Spyro.

"Our egg!" Shrieked Cynder. The two of them set off at a full sprint towards the hatchery.

"Oh shit." Taylor swore as he and several men set off in pursuit while Schmitt ran back towards the main foyer.

By now, the majority of the Hatchery was engulfed in flames. Cynder used her wind ability to draw the oxygen away from the fire while Spyro doused what was left in a coating of ice. The two of them batted away the sheets of smoke and steam, hoping against hope that their precious egg would still be there. Upon seeing the empty cradle, Spyro let out a wail and Cynder screamed in fury. It was one thing to fight and try to kill her but to go this low and strike out against an innocent, unborn dragon, was unforgivable.

Taylor and his squad arrived seconds later. "Spread out and search for surviving eggs." He ordered. The men moved out and began to sift through the charred remains of small nests all along the walls. They all returned a few minutes later. A medic stepped forward.

"I'm no expert on dragons," he said. "But I think that three quarters of these eggs are too far gone. The others I can't be exactly sure." Taylor gritted his teeth, furious that nothing could be done. "Also, that purple one on the high pedestal is missing, and those two are pretty torn up about it." He gestured to Spyro and Cynder.

"I'm not surprised, it was theirs." Said Taylor quietly. The thundering of boots on marble caught his attention and he turned to see Schmitt, the Guardians and what looked like an entire battalion spill into the corridor.

"I brought everyone I could find, what happened?" Asked Schmitt.

"The majority of the eggs are beyond saving." Schmitt lowered his head slightly. "And worse, Spyro and Cynder's egg is missing."

"The eggs!" Cried Terrador. "Siverna will pay for this. I will personally bury her under a mountain." The other Guardians also looked furious but contained their anger.

"So what do we do now?" Asked Schmitt looking around at the destroyed room and trying to ignore the smell of burnt egg.

"Find General Von Richter and tell him to get those V-2s in position as fast as possible, we can't wait, not even until tomorrow morning. I don't know what Siverna's planning but it can't be good. We move out now."

"What about them?" Asked Schmitt, gesturing to Spyro and Cynder. Cynder was now leaning against Spyro and sobbing quietly.

"Let them be." Said Taylor. "We'll come back for them when we're ready to leave."

"What of us?" Asked Terrador.

"Stay here and clean up, leave this operation to us. We know what we're doing." Said Taylor.

"I will not stand idly by while a battle rages elsewhere." Said Cyril indignantly.

"Come then if you want, but i'm warning you, anything bigger than a human will be dead by the time the battle is over." Growled Taylor.

On second thoughts, the city will require much attention. Our presence here would surely boost morale." Said Cyril.

"Good, now everyone move out, we don't have much time."


Shouts and the roar of engines filled the city as men and machines moved towards the harbor, where the captured enemy ships had been towed. Taylor stood and watched as line after line of me went aboard. He glanced off to his right and caught sight of one of their escorts, a large double decker frigate, armed with about 45 primitive looking cannons and 3 Flak 88s mounted on deck. She was a beautiful sight with her top gallons set and her bow cutting through the light surf. The only smear on the image was the Maleforian flag flying from her main mast.

All the ships were flying Maleforian flags so as to confuse the enemy as to who they were, with any luck the Reptalons would not figure it out until it was too late. He looked back to his own ship, it reminded him of a human freighter with its bridge mounted in the center of the ship. The only real difference was where the forward and stern cargo holds should have been were two masts. He was also surprised to learn that the ship had a propeller, the only downside was that it was crank driven, meaning that twelve men had to turn the enormous crank to make the ship move.

He was so preoccupied with his thoughts that he almost did not notice a small figure attempt to walk past him onto the ship. He snagged the dragon by the tail and pulled him back. "What do you think your doing Ciro?" He asked.

Ciro pulled out of Taylor's grasp and flopped down on the dock. "I'm coming to fight."

"Well there's two things wrong with that, 1- your too young and 2- you have no experience, you'd be killed before you got 10 yards." Said Taylor, crossing his arms.

"But I can still fight." Said Ciro.

"Anyone can throw a punch, but in big unit warfare you will find yourself in situations that you need experience to survive. Since you have little, if any, i'm ordering you to stay here."

"But..." Ciro squeaked.

"No buts." Said Taylor. "Now go on and find master Terrador, he'll probably have something for you to do."

Ciro turned and walked slowly away, his head low. Taylor sighed, he wished he didn't have to do that but it was necessary.

Spyro and Cynder slowly walked up, dressed in full battle regalia. "You guys ready?" Asked Taylor.

"Yes." Said Cynder pointedly. "And if she has harmed my egg, the ancestors themselves cannot not save her from my wrath."

Taylor nodded. "Well, lets get aboard. We'll be arriving at Boyzitbig some time tomorrow evening.


Me- Thats all for now, I will return after exams in about 1 or two weeks. Until then, Chocks away.