A/N: And here's chapter 14! Shorter chapter, I know, but also a shorter level to write about, On top of the fact that for most of the area, you can simply ignore the enemies. Anyway, enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own the Legend of Spyro, only my OCs

Chapter 14: The Floating Islands

Jolt's POV

Up the thermal carried us rapidly… we spiraled higher and higher, reaching the Floating islands. They were surprisingly beautiful, seeing as they'd literally been torn away from the ground far below. Farther above us was the central island where Malefor awaited us. That island was much less picturesque: It was roughly conical, and looked semi-molten. It was also positioned directly above the throat of the volcano. We came into land in front of a good-sized island with a large door blocking the way into a tower.

"It's beautiful up here," said Cynder.

"This tower… it must lead to Malefor's lair…"

"Thanks for ruining the moment," muttered Cynder.

On the wall above the door, there were eight dragon busts with open mouths, and on either side of the door was a brazier. Spyro and Gneiss lit the braziers, and the first two heads lit up.

'Two down, six to go,' I thought.

We then took off again, flying clockwise around the islands. The next brazier we reached was blocked by a cluster of Dark Crystals. I used my Light breath to quickly remove that issue, followed by Spyro lighting the brazier.

The next, larger island was a red herring: the fourth brazier was actually on the much smaller island hidden behind it. We flew over and Gneiss lit it, after we got rid of the orc defending it.

To reach the next set of islands, we had to drop some distance, but our next target soon came into view: the fifth brazier was on top of a section of what looked to have once been part of a viaduct. Like the third brazier, this one was also blocked by dark crystals. I disposed of them, and then Spyro lit the brazier.

We searched around the rest of the lower islands, but we'd gotten all the braziers on this tier. Instead, we started upwards again. The next island we reached did have a brazier on it, along with a strange looking device with a glowing orb on top. When we landed, this device shot out a series of spikes which lodged themselves in the ground. The restraint collars the Spyro and Cynder were wearing reacted to these spikes, and the energy chain connecting the collars looped around the spike, holding Spyro and Cynder down. I quickly reacted to this new hazard by breaking the turret that launched the spikes, while Gneiss and Tempest helped Spyro and Cynder take out the orcs that had burst out of the ground. Once we cleared the area and disposed of all the spikes, Gneiss lit the brazier.

From here it was only a short hop over to the next brazier on the adjacent island. Spyro quickly set it alight, bringing out total up to seven.

"I think there's only one left," Gneiss said.

"Let's hurry and find it!" said Spyro.

As it turned out, there was only one island left to check as well. We flew up to this island, which was located in the approximate center of the area, and found the last brazier easily, and Gneiss lit it, opening the doors.

We flew back up towards the island we'd initially landed on, readying ourselves to continue forwards.

"You know, for literally being our enemy's doorstep, the place seems awfully lightly guarded," said Tempest.

"The Dark Master probably never expected us… or anyone for that matter, to get this far," I said.

We landed in front of the doorway, and stepped into what appeared to be an entrance hall. There were spirit gem clusters everywhere, allowing us to get ourselves in top condition before moving forwards.

"I have to say this," said Gneiss, "if nothing else, Malefor's affable enough to allow us to be on good health before facing him".

After this, Spyro pulled the lever next to the door leading forwards, allowing us into the courtyard beyond. As soon as we entered the courtyard, a troll appeared and tossed several boulders at us, and a large number of Orcs showed up as well. This area was also guarded by a trio of those restraint turrets.

Gneiss, Tempest, and I rushed forwards and took out the restraint turrets since they weren't affected by them. After destroying them, we joined Spyro and Cynder in taking out our foes. It was a fairly lengthy battle overall since more and more orcs kept pouring in. Eventually though, the Troll decided to join the fight: Spyro and I worked to keep it stunned while slipping in a few attacks when we could, while the others did the majority of the damage.

When the Troll finally fell, it shook the ground sufficiently to break out a section of wall, thus opening the path to the final island. We flew up to the hole in the wall, and found a wind current that would carry us upwards towards our final goal: Malefor's Lair.

A/N: And there we go! Next time: our heroes face off against Malefor, the Dark Master's puppet. Only two more chapters remain... I hope your ready for them.