A/N: Welcome to Chapter 12! I've been working really hard on reigning in the amount of ideas for this story. Let me know whether you guys want me to redo the already released chapters or if you guys want them to stay the same. This particular chapter is a gift to all of you for the feedback and support, but also a special gift for Guestspirit. Happy birthday! Without further ado, chapter 12…

After a restful night of sleep for the ten Portal Masters, breakfast was provided to them by Ghost Roaster who not only served as a Skylander but also as a chef for the Academy. It was a buffet of delicious breakfast foods from Earth, all different cuisines from different cultures as well as universal foods that seemed a little strange at first but ended up tasting quite pleasant. After everyone was done with their plates, they started making small talk amongst themselves until Master Eon appeared in the Dining Hall.

Jessica was the first to speak up. "Morning, Master Eon. What brings you here?" Master Eon smiled and returned the greeting as well as providing an answer. "I have come here to tell all of you that you will start training this afternoon with wielding your abilities and weapons. Before that, you will have a brief introduction to Skyland's history taught by Hugo. I hope you will all learn much from him and myself as well as every other ally here to teach all of you how to survive in Skylands." Eight of the Portal Masters looked at each other in confusion before looking at the two oldest: Damien and Angel. The two shared a knowing glance before all eyes turned back to Master Eon and subsequently to the doors leading to the rest of the Academy as Hugo came rushing in waving a particularly ancient looking scroll.

Master Eon turned to the mole as Hugo handed the scroll to him before turning to the table and opening the parchment to read the first few lines and immediately slammed it shut while turning even paler than his already spirit-like complexion. Turning abruptly, Master Eon began quickly walking towards the Library where Hugo had found the scroll, prompting the others to follow at a brisk pace. Once they reached the Library, they found Master Eon bent over a table with several books and many scrolls scattered over its surface with a look of concentration laced with an underlying feeling of fear. Approaching the table allowed Master Eon's mumbling to become somewhat clear. "No, no, no. It can't be him. He was locked away thousands of years ago by myself and the rest of the old Portal Masters. Unless…"

Before his rambling continued, Master Eon was interrupted by Damien. "Uh, Master Eon? Who are you talking about? Who did you lock away? Was it the same person who sent us the message last night?" Master Eon snapped his head up to look at the Portal Masters. "That…thing…is a monster. A malicious being that has existed since the dawn of Skylands and one of the Ancients' first creations. He's the entire reason the Arkeyans even existed. His name eludes me, but his actions still haunt my nightmares. He almost succeeded in conquering Skylands. Back then, magic charged all of Skylands to the brink of being too much and we Portal Masters were much stronger. If I am correct in thinking he has escaped his prison, then we are all in danger." The Portal Masters looked concerned for a moment before Oz suddenly gasped and collapsed, eyes glowing white while he seemed to almost vibrate. The other Portal Masters started panicking before Master Eon spoke. "Do not be concerned, Portal Masters. Oz is merely experiencing a vision. He will awaken in a few minutes." True to his word, Oz's eyes snapped open and he sat up breathing heavily before trying to stand and nearly collapsing until Cedric and Damien caught his arms and helped him over to a nearby chair.

Master Eon and the others kept their distance while Oz recovered, the old Portal Master asking him what he saw in his vision. Taking a deep breath, Oz recounted the scenes playing in his head like a home movie. "I saw ten statues in a clearing, each one seemed to have a different weapon and none of them had the same weapon. Then I saw a being with a glowing purple eye and a multicolored, almost crystal like eye but the rest of his face was covered in shadow. On both sides of him were shadowy shapes, one with glowing yellow eyes and the other glowing white eyes. I also saw a man and a woman in front of the three beings, wielding weapons that didn't seem normal. I saw the same being with two different eyes standing in the middle of the circle of statues holding a staff. The statues began to crack and right before they shattered, it went dark. Next thing I know, I see a mirror that shows ten other kids on Earth. One of them was hang gliding, one was scuba-diving, another was reading an old looking book, another two were sitting side by side, one was standing in a desert, another was standing in a funeral parlor, another one was using a crossbow, one was competing in a robot battle, and another was building a sandcastle. Then I woke up."

Master Eon handed a picture to Oz of a staff with ten triangular elemental gems arranged in a circle surrounding a crystalline hourglass. Oz studied the picture and nodded slowly before speaking. "This is exactly the staff I saw in my vision. But, the staff in my vision looked fully powered. What is it?" Master Eon sighed and sat in a nearby chair. Suddenly a female voice coming from the entrance of the Library made everyone quickly turn and face the familiar figure. "It's called the Riftmaker and it belongs to the Riftmaster, a nickname for the being you saw in your vision." Angel and Damien growled at the sight before them. Master Eon hushed them before turning to the intruders. "What do you want, Kaossandra? I warned you not to come near the Academy. That warning extends to all of you." Kaossandra merely tsked at Master Eon and shoved Kaos forward, the younger Dark Portal Master glaring at the ground as if he really didn't want to be in that room. Kaossandra was about to speak before another unknown male interrupted her.

"On behalf of my sister, I'd like to apologize for the extremely sudden intrusion and would also like to ask for your help. You see, my nephew may or may not have released an extremely powerful and dangerous", the male stressed, "…individual who also may or may not have taken Kaos' powers as soon as he was free." Kaossandra glared at what seemed to be her brother before speaking. "As much as it physically pains me to say this, Arcanon is right. We need your help to undo the mistake my foolish son has made. Glumshanks, dear, can you give me the crystal I asked you to grab before we evacuated?" The troll handed the crystal over to the Dark Portal Master before stepping back. Kaossandra frowned and held it out to Master Eon. "Go ahead. Watch what happened to our castle. I think you'll find confirmation of our sincerity and your theory."

A/N: Well, I'd like to thank everyone who has reviewed in the past as well as everyone who has read the story and stuck with it through the long pauses. I will try to upload at least twice a month, but I can't make any promises. See you next time!

~Captain X