Clouds soared beneath their wings. Staying high above the soft white cushions, the two dragons had to keep unseen until they were a safe distance from the city, where Guardians or their Moles and Cheetahs could spy them. Now, even from the highest towers in the city, they would have appeared as a black and purple streak, zipping side by side between the clouds and glistening in the morning light.

They were traveling into the sun, towards the Eastern Ocean, and the great city of Beauport that was seated upon its coast. It was still so early in the Season of Fire, but the air was hot these past few days, and the sun rose early. Heavy drafts and thermals gave the dragons relief from the morning heat.

The Cheetahs of Beauport, likely spiteful from the earlier days of the war, might persecute Cynder for her past deeds. Likewise, Spyro might be persecuted, as purple dragons, once revered as legendary, now were associated with Malefor and his works. Spyro pondered all this as he danced through the air, alongside Cynder.

"You're the one who looked at the maps." Cynder interrupted the silence. "How long do you think it'll take to get here?"

"At the pace we're going? Maybe tomorrow morning, if we sleep tonight." he estimated.

"Then let's kick it up a notch, and we'll make it there by midnight." she replied, a mischievous idea entering her mind and scrawling across her face. "Or are you too slow for it?" She rocketed forwards.

He saw the teasing glance in her eyes, looking back at him from far ahead.

"Who're you calling slow?" he muttered under his breath, preparing to race ahead of her. He tucked his wings inward, and pulled far ahead of his competitor, his lover, his friend.

Meanwhile, Ember was soaking in the hot torrents of the shower, not only to pass the time until Flame met up with her, but also to get last night's sweat and sex out of her scales. When the water first began to pour over her, she was anxiously awaiting Flame's arrival, but now, she was content and relaxed, soaping up as the heat and steam relaxed her completely.

The events of yesterday's evening played back through her mind. Flame had said that he'd help her decide how she felt about him, and he had lived up to that promise. But she still was so confused. One day, they're hardly friends. Now, they were mates. Forever. They had told each other that they loved them. It seemed impossible, loving Flame so easily...But it was true, and she loved it.

A slight scampering sound, hardly audible, cut through her blur of relaxation, but she barely registered it. She didn't see the scarlet silhouette creeping slowly towards her through the clouds of steam. As it approached closer and closer, the sound of heavy breaths caught her attention.

"...eh?" she muttered, turning her head to try and see where the breathing came from. She was too late. Paws drove through the steam, grabbed her by the waist, and pinned her roughly against the wall, her chest to the tile.

Flame explored the back of her neck with his teeth and lips, while his paws groped down her hips and butt. His tail yanked hers out of the way. She was surprised to say the least, but not quite frightened. She had been expecting him, and this was certainly a new kind of arrival.

"Flame..." she cried out.

"Shh..." he loosened his various holds on her, his voice letting up. "If you're uncomfortable, just let me know, alright?"

"Okay..." she purred, a stifled moan escaping as she was re-pinned against the wall, the familiar head of Flame's pulsing organ dancing around her ready slit. He drove in, steady, and a little faster than last time. She winced at the still-new feeling of being mated, but as he got in to the hilt, she felt that familiar ecstasy.

He didn't take the time to start slow. His medium starting pace made her gasp, and Flame crooked his neck closer to her ear, to purr,

"I love you."

"Mrr...I love you too!" Ember panted back.

"Well, the Moles think those two are off on a mission. The Cheetahs are out looking for them." Cyril announced.

"Speaking of which..." Prowlus said as he entered the room. "...We have important news."

"Of what?" Cyril asked. "Have you found them?"

"No, we haven't found of a trace of them. But a few of our scouts were up on a ridge to the north of the city, and they saw what appeared to be the formation of a Grublin army.

"What?" Terrador shouted.

"There seemed to be quite a few, maybe two thousand Grublins, organized in ranks, under the order of a few dozen apes. They looked to have marched from the mountains further north, in the direction of Warfang."

"How far away from the city are they?" Cyril asked.

"About a week, maybe less."

"It's no longer wise nor safe to keep the dragons here. We have to move." Terrador said. "None of us are in fighting condition. Two thousand Grublins is not an easy force to rival with four old dragons like ourselves and the remaining six young ones, even with the assistance of the Cheetahs and the Moles."

"So we're going to abandon the city?" Volteer asked. "How will the Moles sustain the city, in its preexisting state of disrepair, against yet another hostile invasion?"

"Train the young dragons." Blaze boomed.

Much to the chagrin of Cyril, Blaze had been invited to attend the Guardians' informal meetings, not only to substitute Ignitus, but as caretaker of the 6 dragons.

"I mean, I've done my best to keep my dragons in shape, and Spyro and Cynder are certainly the best fighters I've seen in ages." The crimson dragon continued. "But they all have more to learn. As Guardians, you should be training them the way we were trained by the previous Guardians, and our fathers, and so on."

Terrador mulled Blaze's idea over. Before he could talk, though, Cyril interrupted.

"What does that have to do with the situation at hand? And where on earth would we train them?"

Cyril had told Spyro that he would try to resolve his differences with Blaze, but he was far too stubborn to try and apply his words.

Blaze continued. "We'll train them to fight, and bring them back to save Warfang and fight the Grublins. I'd say, looking from the outside, that the Dragon Temple is probably two-thirds functional. I remember exactly how to get back there. What's stopping us from relocating and training them there?" Blaze said.

"We'll consider it a viable option." Terrador agreed. "But for now, we have dragons probably waking up." The meeting was adjourned, the dragons filing out into the halls.

Flame and Ember were just finishing washing each other, tired and still panting from their vigorous lovemaking.

"What on earth gave you the idea to do all that, Flame?" Ember asked, half-angry, half-curious.

"Well...I suppose I had been thinking about it, but really..." he trailed off.

"Yeah?"

"I was just horny." He admitted, a big toothy grin on his maw.

Spyro and Cynder had dipped below the clouds, a safe distance away from anywhere they had been before. They were still racing, plains blurring into forest as the two zoomed past landscapes.

"Can we take a break?" Cynder shouted, barely behind Spyro.

"Tired already?" Spyro gloated, smirking back.

"You wish! Just want to get a quick drink, is all." She defended. The two dipped down to a rushing river's bank, landing side by side.

"Does this mean I win?" Spyro asked. Cynder splashed a pawful of icy water at his face.

I'm back, I'm writing, and I know how it's gonna end!

Thanks for reading, keep reviewing, and message me any time!

Much love,

-SP