The wyvern howled as it was slammed into the stone wall.
"Spyro, behind you!" Cynder shouted and spat a stream of venom from her jaws. Spyro ducked as the shot hit an approaching wyvern in the face. The beast shrieked as his skin burned away.
"It's too crowded in here!" Spyro called and froze an attacker where he stood before shattering it into uncountable pieces. "We need to get out of here or we'll be over run!"
"I'm open to ideas!" Cynder ducked as a tail swept over her head. Spyro fired a chain of lightning and stunned a trio of wyvern blocking the steps.
"Follow me!" He charge towards them with Cynder close behind him. Spyro rammed him horns into the chest of the lead wyrm. He hit the ground and fired an earth bullet and knocked the two remaining wyvern out of the way. He turned and zapped two more wyvern coming up on their rear.
Cynder raced past him up the stairs. "Spyro, come on!" The purple dragon slammed his tail against the stone wall. The cave shook violently and began to collapse. The wyvern shrieked as they tried desperately to evade the falling rocks.
The young dragons gasped for air as the dust cloud and dying cries surrounded them. The two of them burst out the tunnel and into a new chamber.
"Uh, where are we?" Cynder looked around. No sooner had she asked than a creature dropped from the ceiling and slammed both dragons into the floor. Maximus bared his teeth and snarled at the two dragons.
"I think we might be in trouble." Spyro answered.
Ember roared as she slammed the Fiona into the far wall. The dragoness followed with a blast of her fire breath. Fiona raised a hand and formed an earth barrier to protect against the intense heat. Ember charged and barreled through the stone slab and into the drake. She pinned Fiona against the wall and held her claws at her throat.
"Give Flame back right this instant!" She snarled.
"I don't think so." Fiona spat on her and kicked her in the chest. Ember fell to her knees from the hard blow and gasped for breath. "Flame, be a dear and help me out here." Ember looked up as Flame rammed her head on. The pink dragoness tumbled head over heals but quickly bounced onto her feet. Flame rushed her again. Ember side-stepped and tripped him with her tail. The fire breather whirled on her in an instant. Ember leaped up to evade his attack but Fiona struck her just as her feet left the ground. Ember spun in the air and hit the floor hard. She got to her feet with a bit more difficulty and glanced from one opponent to the next waiting for the next attack.
Flame snarled and charged again with horns forward. Ember waited until the last possible second before rolling sideways over Flame's back. The dragoness spotted the drake in mid-lunge and opened her mouth wide. Fiona shrieked as she took the full force of Ember's fire blast in the face. The drake rolled across the ground wildly, desperate to put the flames out. At last she stopped moving and lay there, a smoking heap of burned flesh.
Ember stood before Flame panting heavily. The fire dragon stared at her with fear in his eyes.
"It's okay Flame." Ember assured him as she took a step forward. "It's just me." Flame backed up against the wall. "It's okay." Ember said softly. "You remember me don't you?" Flame's head shook slightly. Ember's heart sank but then she remembered. "Well, then maybe you need your memory refreshed." She said and put on her most flirtatious gaze.
Flame felt his heart rate spike again. What was this girl doing? His markings flashed faster the more his heart beat.
Ember noticed and smiled. "Oh, I see I'm kind of getting to you." She slowed her approach letting her body sway more. "I used to do this to get Spyro's attention."
"S-Spyro?" Flame whispered in his mind. The name was familiar. But where had he heard it before.
"But I want you to come back to me Flame." Ember turned herself sideways she batted her eyes at him and the markings began to flash in rapid fire succession. Ember moved in closer and raised her talons to let them slide up Flame's breast scales. Halfway up she pressed him against the wall and leaned in. "You don't have to be afraid Flame. I'm always going to be here for you."
"E...E...Em..." Flame's eyes began flashing back to normal as he fought to break the spell. Ember silenced him by pressing her tail spade against his lips.
"I promised, I'd be there if you needed me. I keep my promises. And I'm here for you now."
Flame's eyes were as wide as saucers. His markings burned against his skin and began to die away as Ember leaned in close to his face. She closed her eyes, and he closed his.
"Is this really happening?" Flame thought to himself. "Is Ember really trying to kiss me? Me?" He waited for her to press her lips to his. Then Ember choked. Flame opened his eyes. Ember wore a sick and twisted expression on her face. She struggled to hold back a cry but coughed and spat blood all over Flame.
"Ember!" Flame cried as the dragoness fell onto him. He caught her and set her gently on the floor. She had five large puncture wounds in her back. He looked up at Fiona who stood on her hind legs, towering over them. Her talons were soaked in Ember's blood. The blood of the dragoness he loved.
Flame's attention was brought back when Ember gagged once more.
"Ember, I'm sorry!" He cried and held her close to him.
The dragoness smiled. "You're back." She wheezed.
"I'm sorry." Flame sobbed. "I'm so sorry!"
"Don't be." Ember shook her head. "It's my fault to begin with." She coughed again. "If I hadn't been so intent on chasing after Spyro, this never would have happened."
"But...but I..." Flame tightened his grip on her not wanting her to slip away from him.
"I never lost hope." Ember continued. "I never lost hope that you'd come back."
"Ember..." Flame snorted through his tears. He probably wasn't going to get another chance so he went for it. "I love you Ember! I always have! I always will! You're the most beautiful dragoness I've ever been gifted with laying my eyes on!"
"I know." Ember wretched on his chest again. "I was an idiot not to notice it before. But I do love you too."
Flame smiled through his tears. "You really mean it?"
"I do." Ember nodded weakly. "I just wish I had said it sooner." She leaned up and with the last of her strength, pressed her lips to his. She felt his warm tears stream down his cheeks and fall onto her. "I love you." She whispered.
"Ember?" Flame gasped as she began to relax. "Ember!" When she didn't reply he shook his head in disbelief. "No...No....NO!" He wailed.
Off to the side Fiona stared at them in her usual unfeeling manner. She raised her talons and licked the pink dragoness's blood off and smiled.
"Delicious." She hissed.
"Don't go." Flame sobbed as he looked down at his dragoness. "Don't go!" All of sudden he felt something give way inside him. All the stress, pain, anger, hatred, and remorse he'd had bottled up inside came bursting out. Flame let out an agonized roar that shook the mountains and echoed for miles. His eyes burned bright red again and the markings on his skin reappeared and blazed bright. The temperature inside the cave skyrocketed as Flame's power burned through the roof of the cave. The fiery beam cut through the clouds and deep into space.
"Ember!"