Well, book four is done. This was my favorite in the series to make, especially with the fact I was able to put so much more character development into Cynder. The song at the end of this story to listen to is Demons by Imagine Dragons. You probably noticed that a little with the references to the song I put in the last few chapters. The sequel to this story, Skylanders: Dark Warriors, will be coming up soon, so stay tuned! Have a nice day, and God bless you all!

Chapter Twenty-One: A Peaceful Morning

After it was all over, Spyro asked Stealth Elf if she had the strength enough to teleport them back to the Ruins, as he didn't want to risk flying with Cynder due to her injuries. To his delight, she explained that while she had used much of her power up in the fight, she had just enough to teleport them back.

Everyone prepared themselves, with Spyro touching Cynder ever so softly. Her injuries made him cringe, but he knew it was best he dealt with it for the time-being.

In less than a minute, they were gone from the fortress, and back in the Ruins. It was early morning now. Spyro took a deep breath, happy it was all over, happy his mate no longer had to deal with Aemus. With Stealth Elf's help, he hurried to the Ruins, with all those who trusted Cynder not far behind.

Cali was sitting on a stool, drinking her morning coffee. When she saw Cynder in Stealth Elf's arms, she gasped and looked to Spyro. "What happened?" she asked.

"The final battle with Aemus," Spyro replied.

"What happened to him?" Cali asked. "Aemus, I mean."

"He's dead," Sonic Boom replied. "Cynder ended him once and for all."

"All right," said Cali. "If you wouldn't mind, as I check over her injuries, I need some peace and quiet. It shouldn't take very long, though." It took her five minutes to look over all Cynder's injuries and see how badly she was wounded. "Well, it's good that you placed her on her stomach here. If it wasn't for how many ribs were broken, I could fix a lot of this. However, all but three of her ribs are broken, meaning this will take longer than you might have thought. Her lungs are bruised, and many of her scars will take some time to heal, especially the gashes upon her chest. Did Aemus do that?"

Spyro nodded. He felt tears coming to his eyes at the fact his mate was so badly injured because of Aemus. He sighed and sat down. "She was the bravest Skylander I've ever seen," he said. "She fought Aemus until she couldn't. She had a chance to destroy him, and she took it. She took all his power away, and she ended him with a blast of Electricity." He wasn't going to mention the fact Cynder's Electricity had turned a different color. It was strange, but he believed he needed time before he asked the question.

"Sonic Boom, do you need any help?" Stealth Elf asked.

"Do you have anything for just a broken wing?" she said.

Stealth Elf nodded and gave her a vial filled with a red substance. Sonic Boom nearly recoiled, because the substance's color reminded her so much of Cynder's blood. But she finally gave in and took it.

Spyro gave Cali a description of all that had happened, and it was hard for him during the descriptions of the battle between Cynder and Aemus. His mate's wounds were hard for him to look at. He sighed again.

"It will take a while for all her injuries to heal," Cali explained. "Magic could help her a lot, but it's best not to use Magic for now. Natural healing is the best remedy for this."

Spyro nodded. He looked to Flashwing and Sunburn. "Would you two mind telling the other Skylanders what happened?" he asked. "Those who stayed behind, I mean. I'd rather not say anything to them. I'm not ready for that at the moment."

"We understand, Spyro," Flashwing told him with a smile. "Your place right now is with Cynder. We'll be back soon." She and Sunburn left. Drobot placed a paw on Spyro's shoulder.

"When Cynder wakes up, tell her that I admire everything she's done for us," he said. "If it wasn't for her, we might all be in trouble, and without her, we'd be one truly valuable Skylander down."

Spyro nodded. "I'll make sure to tell her."

Drobot trailed after Flashwing, and Sonic Boom remained. Before leaving, she said, "If it wasn't for her, I would be dead now. I might not have said this many times in the past, but I'm saying it now: she's the greatest friend I could have ever asked for. She's my sister, and I love her."

Spyro nodded and smiled at her. "I'm sorry I didn't think of coming to save you sooner," he said.

"You don't have to apologize," she said. "It was a mistake, and it's over now. I'm not going to blame you for anything right now, Spyro. You're my brother, and I love you, too. Just tell me when she wakes up. I would like to see her."

Spyro nodded.

Soon enough, all the Skylanders in the healing tent left, with the exception of Spyro. He remained standing there the whole day, watching Cali do whatever she could to help Cynder heal. He wasn't sure how long it would take for her to heal, though, and neither did Cali. For the rest of the day, Spyro kept standing. When night came, Spyro looked back to his mate, who now needed an oxygen tank as a result of her broken ribs. The mask fit over her snout. Her breathing seemed labored at times, but the breaths were just as soft as they had always been. It gave Spyro a sense of peace.

Every Skylander had gone to bed by now. But Spyro was going to stay in the healing tent until his mate was healed. He didn't wish to leave her side. He loved her too much. There was a moment in the night where his back was turned to Cynder. His eyes were beginning to close. He knew he needed sleep, and he was finally giving in.

But then he felt a soft paw on his shoulder. His eyes opened up, and he turned to find Cynder awake. Her eyes were only open halfway, but the beautiful light that came from them could still be seen, and Spyro was glad. She seemed confused at first. She touched the oxygen mask, and then looked at Spyro. "Spyro?" she asked, her voice hoarse. It sounded quite tired. "What—What happened? Where are the other Skylanders? Sonic Boom…all the others?"

Spyro calmed her. "It's okay, Cynder," he said. "You don't need to worry. It's all okay, my love. It's all over, thanks to you. I have a lot to thank you for now. Every Skylander who accompanied us is in your debt." Seeing her confused look, he explained, "You saved us from Aemus. He's dead now, Cynder. You ended him with your Electricity." At the mention of her Electricity, he felt he wanted to mention it to her, but decided to wait for her to reply to what he'd just spoken to her.

"I remember now," she said. "I remember the pain…all my injuries."

"You won't have to worry about it for long," Spyro told her. "It'll be over soon."

"I don't mind the injuries," she told him. "I don't mind them, because every battle comes with a price. My injuries…are the price that was paid. But it's over now. It's over."

Spyro nodded, and he smiled at her. "How do you feel now?" he asked.

"My sides still hurt," she explained. "What happened to everyone else?"

"All of them are fine. You saved us all from a fate none of us could possibly imagine. You are the reason why we can all wake up tomorrow without fear of what's coming." He felt a cool wind blow into the tent. He reached for the blanket to pull over Cynder, and then he noticed something as he gingerly touched one of her sides, careful so as to not touch where the ribs had been broken. He felt warmth there, something that he hadn't felt in a long time, and that side had never felt warm unless she'd been in front of a fire, he'd been next to her for over an hour, or she'd been covered by a blanket. But it was warm now in the healing tent, where there was no heat at the moment, and a blanket had not been over that side at all. Spyro wondered why that was, and then he realized. "Cynder, your side's warm, and nothing has caused that. If you remember, your sides are normally cold due to your lack of body heat. But right now, you're warm, and in the way one would be if they had body heat. I think I know what's happened. Back in the arena, Aemus used that crystal filled with Malefor's energy and used it to tear the Darkness used to corrupt you from your body. That Darkness stopped you from possessing any body heat at all. But with it gone…I think you have body heat now. Can you feel the cool air around us now?"

Cynder nodded. "I can, but it doesn't affect me," she answered. "I think you're right."

Spyro was surprised by this. He smiled, however. His mate was free of the Darkness, something that had held her back for so long. She was unaffected by cool temperatures now, and he smiled at the fact. Good things came out of large battles, he thought. And this was the best thing that had come out of a battle, in his opinion.

"I'm free," Cynder said. "I won't have to deal with that madness any longer. I have you to thank for that, Spyro. There were a lot of things that held me back and could have stopped me from succeeding in this journey. But I kept thinking of you. You and all those I love. You gave me the chance to be free from the demons around me."

Spyro placed a paw upon one of hers. "I'm glad I could help you. I'm sorry for the mistakes I've made in the past. But I won't blame myself any longer. You've show me there's a way to move on from past mistakes." Then another thought came to his mind. "Cynder, when you and Aemus dueled one another, your Electricity…it turned a different color. It became the same blue as your eyes. I think that's the color it would have been had you not been corrupted. You're more powerful now."

Cynder smiled. "That may be, but what matters is that I don't lose sight of those I love because of this power. That was what Aemus did. He may not have had many friends, but he had the chance to turn things around with his father, possibly. But he chose the wrong way out. That was what gave me the chance to defeat him. His failure lay in his own decisions. His pride was too much. All that was left of his past self was a shattered reflection. As for me, I have many who stood by my side, even when my mistakes shone through. I have you all to thank for that. There were times during this journey where I thought I would die. Where I lost sight of the truth. But when my kingdom come finally came, I thought of you and all those who have helped me. I thought at times, 'I can't escape this now.' But you showed me how." A tear rolled down her cheek. "Thank God for you, Spyro."

"Thank God for you, Cynder. You're someone I've never lost faith in. You don't have to worry anymore, my love. It's all over, and we can move on with our lives. If you remember, Whirlwind and Camo will be having their lifemate ceremony soon."

"I don't think I can be a maid of honor," Cynder said. "But I'll be there for her nonetheless. She was there for me when I needed her, and now I'll be there for her."

She closed her eyes. "I love you," where the last words she spoke before falling asleep. Spyro smiled.

He kissed her forehead and said, "Sleep well, Cynder. I love you, too."

When the dawn finally came, both of them remained asleep. They knew that when they woke, they would have no reason to worry. The demons were gone. The dark night was over, and the bright morning had begun.

End of Book Four