Chapter 36: Left Behind
By: Dardarax
Disclaimer: I, Dardarax, do not own Spyro, Cynder, the Guardians, the Temple, Warfang, or any other character or place belonging to the Spyro franchise. I do, however, own several characters who are featured in this chapter, and their names of which are listed at the bottom. Lyrith, what are you doing here again? And why are you… oh no. Not the- Freedom for all characters! Let the movement begin here! Rise up against your shackles! All authors will fall before us! We will not be owned any longer!
The food supplies had long since rotted away, but everything else was there, sitting at the entrance to the Crystal Graves as if they'd only been left an hour. Igneous swallowed as he landed, gulping back the bile in his throat at the smell of rot. He carefully dumped all the icky foul stuff out of the bags.
Crystals, lock picks, crowbars, magic-dispelling chalk, it was all there. He'd have thought ravens or magpies would have stolen some of the shiny things at least.
Igneous shrugged. Good enough. He shouldered the pack with the most essentials - and least rot - and turned to Savron, who was standing by the entrance. He looked better. He was taking in deep gulps of fresh air, and he was smiling. The old Sav was finally starting to peek through again. Of course an adventure would help him out! It was so obvious. He wasn't losing control, he just hated being cooped up so much!
It was time to have some fun, like back in their childhood.
Igneous cleared his throat and strode over to his friend. "What do you think is going to be in there again?"
Savron glanced up, his eyes focusing. "Huh?" he looked to Igneous, and then shook his head and shrugged. "Oh, right. Well, most of what I researched suggested traps and a couple of crystalized undead, but nothing spectacular. The main thing is that it's a labyrinth, so it will probably take us some time to get through."
"Well then, let's get going! You go ahead and take the lead, I'll lay out some of this string so we can find our way back," Igneous said, pulling out a ball of yarn from his bag. Savron beamed, a sight which sent a thrill through Igneous, and then he turned to stride in, having picked up one of the smaller bags for himself. Igneous followed behind, setting the start of the string beneath a rock at the entrance, before letting it fall to the ground. He kicked it as he walked, so that he wouldn't have to carry it as he went, and with a snort lit a torch on fire and picked it up in his jaws.
The Crystal Graves lived up to its name. While the exterior of the cave seemed mundane at first, Igneous only had to take a few steps in to know this really was the legendary tomb of the Fynor Clan. On all sides the walls of the caves were encased with crystal, mostly glittering quartz, but occasionally there were dragon crystals among them, shining with a colourful radiance that was refracted among the quartz around it, to cause the entire cave to shine green, red and, rarely, indigo in hue.
Igneous dropped the torch he had brought with him, and snuffed out the crackling fire with a paw. He would have no need for fire to light his way here. The red dragon blinked as Savron stopped only a few paces in, his grin splitting his face wide open.
Relief caused Igneous's shoulders to sag, only for the weight of the supply bag around his neck to nearly drag him to the ground thanks to his weak knees. Whew! Nearly face-planted there! Gotta be more careful!
With a grunt Igneous settled the bag once more around his neck, and checked to see if any of it had spilled out. Nope, it was still as secure as he had found it. A smile tugged at Igneous's muzzle. Finding the bags in tact was quite a stroke of luck, and after everything else that had happened recently that was a bit of relief.
Savron stopped by the first turn in the trail and glanced back, gesturing to Igneous.
"Come on, Iggy, what's taking so long?"
Igneous blinked and shook his head to clear it. There he was again, drifting off! How silly of him! He waved a wing, only to wince as it bumped against the ceiling and walls. "Sorry, distracted!"
The floor was noticeably slippery as Igneous dashed over to where Savron stood, and in the distance Igneous heard the faint drip of water. Ancestors it was cold in here. It wasn't exactly warm outside now, since it had begun to snow, but it was far worse in the cave and Igneous's breath steamed as he came to a stop by Savron, panting from the exertion.
Savron smirked and gestured down the left fork in the path, ignoring the one leading further forward. "This way leads further down. The other's a dead end."
"It kind of ruins the adventure when you always go on ahead and map the place out first," Igneous said with a snicker.
Savron rolled his eyes. "After all that bitching the others did about not wanting to walk into traps I figured I'd do them a favour, so sorry."
Igneous winced and gave Savron a nudge with his wing. "I know Sav, lighten up."
The purple dragon paused, and then shook his head. "Right. You never complained, it was always the others. Let's just… move on… actually have some fun for once."
"You lead the way, Sav," Igneous said again with a grin, gesturing down the passageway. "It's your adventure after all, so you should do the honours!"
Savron snickered. "Yeah, let me trip all the traps for you, Iggy. You were always too clumsy to go in the front anyway."
"You got that right."
His head held high, Savron strode down into the passage, his steps confident as he moved down the slight decline. Igneous felt his chest tighten and shoulders rise at the sight, the corners of his muzzle pulling back into a smile. Ancestors it was good to see that again, it almost was enough to make him forget everything else. Almost. Still, he needed to look on the bright side, it was an adventure right of their childhood. Focus on that.
Beaming perhaps just a bit too forcefully Igneous strode after Savron, his eyes never leaving him. Soon, however, Igneous found his thoughts beginning to trail off, and his attention wandering from the glimmering crystal as they walked on. He barely noticed the change in scenery as the tunnel curved, becoming increasingly wide and manufactured in appearance. Even the crystals began to take on unnatural, blocky shapes.
The harsh words Savron had spoken all that time ago rang in Igneous's ears, and all the elation that had risen from seeing Savron so happy soon fell back deep into his chest. When had it all become so wrong? Had it been when Tirren left the gang? Or had it been long before then, when the convexity training had started? The red dragon sighed as he and Savron turned yet another corner.
Igneous shook his head hard, clearing all the thoughts from his mind. No! He couldn't think like that! He had to focus! He had to remain peppy and optimistic, for Savron's sake.
"It's been awfully quiet, Sav," Igneous said as he rushed to catch up with the purple dragon. Savron paused and looked around, and Igneous followed suit.
They stood at the entrance of a large, vaulted chamber glimmering with crystal lights. Finally, Igneous could see where it had gotten the second part of its name. Row upon row of crystal tombstones stood around them, catching the light of the dragon crystals, creating a cascade of colours that outshone every rainbow Igneous had ever seen. Strange markings were etched on the tombstones, which were lit up with light, which Igneous couldn't quite make out. Despite how deep they had come, there were almost no shadows at all. It was just pure light and shimmering crystal. Igneous sucked in his breath at the sight, and he felt his eyes beginning to water at the brightness of it all. It certainly wasn't tears. He was too manly to cry over something like this.
Even still, to see a place like this after so long… it was just like when they were young and doing their first adventures. The wonder of it all pulled at his chest. If only the others could have seen this. Tirren might even take back what she said.
"You're right," Savron said after a long moment, his brow furrowed as he looked around. "I was certain there'd be at least a few monsters by now. Ancestors dammit, I want a good fight!" The purple dragon snorted, and two small bolts of lightning shot from his nostrils. Igneous winced at that, and glanced at Savron out of the corner of his eyes. He looked away after a moment, not wanting to make Savron suspicious.
A grumble rumbling in his throat, Savron began to stalk about the chamber, peering over the tombstones with narrowed eyes. Igneous watched from a distance as he began to poke, scratch and chip the crystal, only to look around in the hopes that something would emerge at his defiling of the grave. Nothing did.
Igneous glanced ahead, towards the arched doorway, carved right out of the crystal. He gestured at the entrance to the next chamber, giving his best hopeful smile. Savron sighed, nodded and then trudged over to the door. Igneous followed after him a short step behind.
A rattle from the room ahead caught Igneous's ear and he froze. Savron followed suit in front of him. The purple dragon looked back to Igneous with a grin before he dashed into the chamber, not even glancing once to check for traps. Igneous swallowed to try and relieve his dry throat. He didn't like that look in Sav's eye.
Savron's battle cry caused Igneous to start, and he shook his head before rushing in after Sav, drawing down into his fiery core to let it burn his thoughts away. Fun. Have fun. For his sake.
The purple dragons stood above the shattered bones of what was once a crystalize skeleton, most of the white of its bones replaced with quartz. The blindingly bright lights of glowing crystals on the roof of the chamber refracted about the solid crystal walls of the room, from which skeletons emerged. The shimmering glass-smooth walls rippled as the skeletons pulled themselves free, the crystal moving around their bodies like water. With stiff movements they strode towards the two, cutting off the two exits of the room and surrounding them. Igneous's jaw clenched and he pushed all other thoughts away as he moved rear-to-rear with Savron.
A jerky, half-crystal dragon skeleton approached, its eyes glowing a strange yellow light.
"Fools. You have entered our crypt, now you will join-" it began, only to be cut off by a solid stone bolt that slammed straight into its face. Its skull shattered and it collapsed to the ground. The room was blown into a storm of motion.
Fire erupted from Igneous's mouth, and he squinted in order to see more easily through the flare. Then Savron was gone from behind him, and with wide eyes Igneous turned to face his partner. The purple dragon had left him, to tear through the mob.
Completely unrestrained any longer, Savron crashed into the line of crystalized undead, his bellow echoing throughout the halls and causing the crystals to shudder. The amethyst dragon tore through three skeletons with a single flame charge, spraying the wall with splinters of crystal and bone. Another four were crushed as he swung his tail around in a wide arc, stone and green energy forming around it, the force of the swing breaking each of their skulls.
Igneous's gaze was torn away as he heard the clatter of bones in front of him, and he instinctively ducked out of the way. A crystal shard encrusted tail swept by right where his head had been. Ancestors that was close! Pay attention and remember your training! With a flame imbued snort Igneous turned to the skeleton who had attacked him, fire building up in his throat, only to see four more had joined it and were swinging claws right for him. He jumped back and loosed a blast of fire, forcing them back, only for another skeleton to ram him in the side, nearly causing him to topple over. He rolled with the force to escape being surrounded.
The red dragon glanced around him and found more than a dozen skeletons closing in on him, many darting past Savron, who was a tornado of elements as lightning, fire, earth, and occasionally wind and ice blasting from him in all directions into the horde, which was rapidly thinning and streaming away towards Igneous instead.
Oh, Ancestors, they had realized Igneous was the weak link already. The red dragon swallowed, narrowed his eyes and gripped the hard stone firmly with his claws. Well if that was the case, then they would realize that the 'weak link' of this group was still made of solid steel. With a roar he charged into the crowd, his whole body wreathed in flames.
The battle was grueling. Even as they laid the skeletons to rest, more emerged from the walls, or from down the hallways. Savron, laughing, danced through the horde, obliterating everything that came within reach. Igneous, as usual, did not put up as incredible of a display, but he at least did a respectable job of it.
Skeletons came from left, right, and behind, and the red dragon fought his way through with tooth and claw. Within a minute he found himself already straining his magical reserves, and bit back the flames, to save them for when a particularly large group came within view. He ducked, dodged and dived out of the way of each swing and bite, avoiding the worst of it all, but he was still raked with the occasional cut. His heart hammered as he fought on, matching the beat of the battle and filling him with a sense of elation as he started to lose himself in the thrill of it all.
Pain brought him back out, the beat of his heart beginning to send jolts through his body as his chest began to crush it. Igneous staggered, struggling for breath, and just barely got out of the way of a trio of swings aimed for his legs. He tried to suck in breath, to ease the pain, but he found he couldn't. It was too hard, he couldn't get a proper lungful, no matter how hard he gulped.
Not again. He couldn't already be at his limit.
With a weak roar Igneous let out an explosion of fire all around him. The flames shattered the dragons closest too Igneous, and drove the rest back several paces. They stopped for a moment, their piercing yellow eyes glaring at him unwaveringly. Igneous tried his best to remain standing, but his paws gave way out from under him and he staggered forward a step, his whole body slumping.
Sucking in deep breaths, Igneous raised a paw to his chest, his claws gripping the two large scars that were etched into his scales. Damn this wound. Would it never give him peace?
After a moment the skeletons surged forward, rushing away from the purple dragon's rampage. Savron was too busy laughing as he shattered bones to notice. Igneous clenched his fangs, sucked in one last breath and turned, to blast away the skeletons near the wall. He rushed to it, backing into a corner so he no longer had to worry about his rear. At least it seemed no more skeletons were emerging from the walls.
The undead let loose an eerie howl as they closed in, and the red dragon drew up on all that was left of his reserves and steadied himself. He did not roar this time – he needed to conserve his air – but instead he simply opened his mouth and let the fire roll out before him, forming a blazing wall. The first of the skeletons jumped through, their bones catching fire. They met his tail, which seared with flame; the skeletons shattered into pieces. The flame did most of the work, as the wall of flame weakened their bones, and his blazing tail melted right through them.
The skeletons only slowed, before they parted and rushed the sides of the wall of flame, where it was weakest, and where he would be forced to divide his attention.
Igneous drew down into his reserves of power once more. He had plenty of spirit energy to spare. More than enough to last this fight, yet he just couldn't pull enough out! Igneous wheezed as he blasted the skeletons coming from his left with fire, and then hastily spun about to sweep his piddling flame over the ones on the right. At least it was able to destroy the first and push the rest back.
Each time he reached down, he felt his Spirit Core slip just a bit further out of his grasp, and with each sucking gasp for air it pulled away from him. He pulled as hard as he could, but was only able to pump a trickle of energy from it. Never before had it been this bad.
He'd been able to hide the issue in Advanced Combat and Guardian Magic training. He didn't have to fight as long as he did here, or worry about as many foes. He certainly did not have to exert his body as much as he did here. The strain was there, of course, but he always made up with the fact that he never used much effort to begin with. Nobody expected him to go all out, so that way he could relax, use only the energy he had to use, and never reveal to them that he was no longer the dragon he once was.
If only he could go back to those days, when everything was easy for him and he barely had to work at all. Now it was a struggle to even do that much.
A long fanged skeleton burst through the wall of fire, and Igneous froze. The large dragon skeleton landed and barred its two enormous fangs in a toothy snarl before it lunged towards him. Igneous flinched back, his breath freezing in his lung.
Black and red streaked towards him, faster than the eye could follow as his friends watched on in horror. The dragon was covered in blood, his own, as it sank its fangs into his chest and stomach. He remembered trying to scream, only for blood to erupt from his muzzle. He felt something in his chest collapse. Then the beast began to drink.
Igneous raised his wings to shield himself from the fanged skeleton, calling on all his magic to shield himself in fire, a wail on his muzzle.
An explosion rocked the area, sending Igneous tumbling backwards into the wall. He opened his eyes, blinking rapidly, only to find Savron standing before him, panting lightly among the bone shards of the last remaining skeletons. He beamed triumphantly down at the remains of the skeletons and then let out a roaring cheer.
"That was amazing! I haven't felt so good in my life! Ancestors, it feels good to cut loose sometimes, right Iggy?"
Igneous stood up and nodded, taking slow breaths despite what his body demanded. He smiled as widely as he could. He didn't try to speak, instead forcing himself to his paws and gave Savron an encouraging nudge with his wing. Then he strode over to the walls and sat down on his haunches, to pretend to examine the tomb stones and the engravings upon the walls.
He heard a groan from Savron at the action, but he ignored it, pretending to focus on the glyphs.
Savron paced restlessly, stopping by the various objects around the chamber, before finally turning to Igneous.
"Can we move on now; I need to beat the crap out of some more things!"
Having finally caught some of his breath, Igneous rose with a sigh. "Come on, Sav, let's just slow down a bit. We're here to have fun and explore, so let's so some exploring and not just fighting."
Savron snorted. "We can explore later! Let's clear the place out and have some fun!"
Igneous shut his eyes and nodded. Fine, he wouldn't argue. He was here for Savron's sake after all. Still, Igneous missed the days when the two would just explore together in a laid back manner, where the fighting was just a foot note in the adventure. When had it become Savron's only obsession? Why? Couldn't he just be satisfied with being out of his room and going to new places? Why did he need to fight?
Savron picked the path and strode forward, his pace quick and eager. Igneous did not object and tried his best to keep up, but he silently wished they could just take a lax pace.
The hallway ahead was dark, with no Dragon Crystals to light the way inside. Indeed, it almost seemed to Igneous that the crystal walls were absorbing the light, rather than reflecting it.
Before Igneous even had a chance to mouth a warning, Savron was already halfway down the hall. With a breathless groan Igneous followed, his jog staggered as he struggled to move his muscles as pain shot through his chest and shoulders. It was cold in the passageway, almost unbearably so. He snorted fire from his nostrils in an effort to light the passage and heat himself up, only for the flare of light to rise, and then fade, snuffed out. Igneous came to a stop and blinked in confusion. He snorted again, the effort putting a strain on his lungs. It was snuffed out again, all the light and heat pulled towards the crystal walls. The red dragon shuddered.
Well, this could be a benefit! It would be hard for him to keep snorting out air for so long and wasting so much magic would be a hassle! But what should he do about not being able to see? Hm… well he supposed it might be a decent time to practice his rune magic for his Guardian Exam. He hadn't done any yet since he was taught it, so now would be a good excuse to try it!
His eyes narrowed, Igneous focused his magic into his claw, and began scribing a glyph into the air. That was the rune for light, that was for dark, and he was fairly certain this one was vision. He plopped it onto his head and the darkness abated, his eyes adjusting to the gloom. It wasn't much, but it was something! Igneous pursed his muzzle and then drew a few of the other basic glyphs of protection, just in case. Though soon his paw grew weary of being waved around and he stopped.
He looked up, only to find himself alone in the passageway. Ancestors, he'd completely forgotten about Savron! Now he was gone! Igneous resisted the urge to curse and rushed down the hall, hoping Savron hadn't gone too far ahead.
Then he slowed himself back to a walking pace. Of all the dragons to worry about, Savron was the least of his concerns. There was nothing in this cave that Savron couldn't handle alone. Just relax and enjoy the quiet. Take this chance to catch his breath. He might not even need to worry about undead, as Savron would clear them all for him.
This was Savron's adventure, and a chance for him to have fun, and he didn't need Igneous to be there all the time. Igneous wasn't Savron's lackey, after all.
The red dragon winced at the thought, the stinging in his chest no longer just from his lack of breath. So what if he was? What was wrong with that? What was wrong with helping out a friend and supporting them? There had been absolutely no need to use that word, 'lackey.' You did not have to be a lackey to enjoy following somebody else, especially a childhood friend.
Now muttering under his wheezing breath, Igneous stomped forward. He focused on that one issue, on that insulting word, and not anything else that came to mind from then, or anything else that might have allegedly happened afterwards. He couldn't afford to completely lose his breath repeating all the words that he had only thought up only after the argument.
Igneous picked up his pace, his enchanted eyes focused ahead. His paw came down, and he froze as the stone beneath his paw shifted. Oh sweet Ancestors, why hadn't they reminded him to pay attention sooner?
Igneous jumped backwards and landed on the ground prone, just as a whoosh of air rushed right past his head. There was a clash of something hard against the crystal walls, a brief flare of light as sparks burst into being. As he landed on the ground he felt a groove on the ground right below his belly. His eyes flew wide and he jumped forward just as the blade above him struck. The red dragon hit the ground just ahead of the pressure plate at a roll. Two seconds later a second blade swept out of the ground where he had previously lain, cutting cleanly through the air.
Igneous stood still, his whole body tense as he gasped for breath. He couldn't feel any other pressure plates near him, nor could he see or feel any other grooves to hold traps. He was, for the moment, safe. He nearly collapsed to the floor as his muscles gave out. That had been far, far too close. Ancestors, he missed Savron being there to point out the traps for him. Even when it seemed like he wasn't looking, Savron always somehow seemed to know where traps were at any given moment.
Fortunately, Igneous had at least thought ahead far enough to ward himself. Hopefully they would be enough to keep him alive when he inevitably messed up.
Once his heart was no longer attempting to escape his chest out of panic, Igneous stepped forward, his paws feeling the stone over carefully. After the first few steps of finding nothing, Igneous let out a sigh and strode forward with a bit more haste. He couldn't leave Savron alone for too long! Still, he did his best to keep an eye out for any other traps along the way.
Igneous turned a corner and winced as light stabbed into his eyes, the exit just a short distance away. Gah! This night vision spell certainly wasn't any good when it was bright! He squinted as he strode through, and hoped that the enchantment would end soon.
It was a surprisingly small chamber, and it was scattered with the bones and shards of the undead. Good, so Savron had been through here and dealt with the monsters. Not too much to worry about then. Igneous continued on, moving through the next several rooms until he found one that was completely empty.
Unlike all the other chambers, no Crystal Graves could be found here. The walls were oddly smooth, and the floor, walls and ceiling resembled a slick pane of glass. Igneous, still squinting, tried to make out anything in the shining chamber. His eyes fixed on a patch of red right near the other end of the chamber, by the exit, his vision clear now that the enchantment had ceased.
Igneous's muzzle fell open, and he glanced around the chamber, his whole body tense. That blood was fresh! And unless there was another living thing in here, only Savron could have bled! It wasn't much blood, but it was still more than Savron ever bled from any trap. When Sav was only twelve he rolled backwards through halls full of guillotines for fun. Traps never touched him.
Swallowing hard, Igneous calmed himself. Savron wasn't lying there bleeding out. It was probably just a scratch. Igneous had faced many traps before too. He could do this. After a moment of working himself up, he pulled out a hunk of salted meats, soaked in so many preservatives that it had survived even the long period between adventures while sitting out in the autumn heat. Igneous took it in his jaws, twisted his head and then hurled it out into the chamber.
The entire room came alive. From the smooth crystal walls and ceiling countless glass blades emerged, to shoot forth, all aimed directly for where the meat had landed. It was torn to so many pieces that little remained of it but flakes. The crystal blades sank back into the smooth surface of the floor, the crystal rippling where they had impacted.
Igneous winced at the sight and swallowed hard. That was going to be a difficult trap to avoid. But there was no way to go around the trap, so he had find a way across. In all likelihood Savron had probably shadow jumped across, so was it even possible to… Igneous frowned and looked around at the bright room. There were no shadows to speak of in the chamber, nor any in the hallway before him. There was just bright shining light. So Savron must have actually crossed it! Igneous bit his muzzle, and tried to think it over. His eyes, however, soon wandered away and his mind drifted with it. Why couldn't this have been a straight forward problem, like math, or science, or magic? Abstract stuff like this was so hard!
He blinked as his eyes found the scraps of meat, which had fallen beside scraps of stone, and other small debris. Wait, he hadn't thrown that!
While the surface of the chamber was glass smooth and mirror polished, in the corners there were piles of what at first seemed to be dust, but which, if Igneous squinted, actually appeared to more closely resemble gravel. The flame that had been smoldering in his mind flared to life now that it had finally been fed.
Igneous pulled out another scrap of meat, tore it in two, and then tossed one in, and then the other a second after.
They landed on the glass floor, and once more the walls came alive. The spears and blades of crystal slammed into the first scrap of meat, and vanished, only to emerge fromtell the walls again and tear through the second a moment later. Igneous beamed.
He had figured it out! Savron usually explained it to him, but this time he had done it all on his own! Hah!
Igneous turned to the walls and found a patch of crystal that was especially thin, with rock showing behind it. And he began smashing the walls with his tail to break through it, using fire to make it easier.
Savron had probably used earth magic to make stones to fool the chamber, which was why he had gotten through so quickly. Igneous would need to improvise.
Finally, he got to the stone and broke some chunks off. He smashed a few more times, until he had a big pile of stones. He rummaged about in his back, found a small sack meant for loot and filled it loosely with rocks. With a grin Igneous picked the bag up, strode over to the edge of the chamber. He took several deep breaths, well as deep as he could go at least, and then pulled his head back and hurled the bag at the far right corner of the chamber. The contents began spilling out long before it hit the ground, exactly as he hoped.
Igneous waited only a second for the walls to begin spitting blades, before he dashed in, going along the opposite wall towards the exit. The blades hurled towards the rocks on the other side, going after them one or two at a time. Unfortunately, the danger had not vanished.
All along the wall to Igneous's left the blades formed and began shooting towards him in an effort to reach the rocks he had thrown. At least they weren't all coming for him at once. With a grunt he leapt over three shards and landed with a roll, managing to get underneath several more. He scrambled to his paws, his claws slipping on the glass-like floor.
Then the pebbles began to shower him. The rocks, shattered by the crystal blades splintered and were sprayed all across the chamber, to clatter against his armour and against his scales. The wards he had set up blunted the impact, but even still the red dragon flinched away as they bombarded him.
Then a bright flare of light and a slight stab of pain flared up on his left flank. Igneous pulled out one of the pet curses his mother always used: "Frog-Nuggets!" That stung! Blast, he was letting the pebbles distract him from the real danger!
Then a second blade struck his leg, and he felt his last ward collapse. Igneous's throat went dry, and he abruptly wished he had spent more time preparing the wards.
He picked up the pace, rushing as fast as he could towards the exit. The crystal shards were no longer aimed at the right corner, but at all the pebbles scattered about, making it impossible to tell where any of them would go next. Igneous ducked and dived left and right, his eyes flickering from side to side to try and figure out some, or any pattern as he rolled and leapt over flying blades. He winced and snarled as they nicked him, drawing long gashes along his scales when they struck. Most bounced off his armour and then fell back into the crystal floor, to be reused again. He was two thirds across the room when the crystals began to lance towards him. It seemed that his grace time had finally run out.
With a breathless, wheezing roar Igneous conjured up his fire and cloaked himself in it, increasing the heat as high as he could, until there was a blazing aura of heat around him. It only blunted the oncoming wave.
He hissed as the blades began to slash into his sides and clatter off of his armour. The flames roared around him, the sheer heat created diverting a few of the blades upwards, but not nearly enough. Igneous rolled one last time and then lunged for the exit, his breath escaping his lungs in a rush. He had made it!
A bright flash of agony swept through him as he felt something stab into his hind leg, and he hit the ground on the other side of the chamber with a howl. Through teary eyes he glanced down and found a bright blade of crystal had embedded itself in his hind leg, piercing all the way through the muscle. His armour was painted red, and while it was difficult to see through his watering eyes he could just make out the dozens of deep cuts all across his body. Oh ancestors it hurt.
Igneous whimpered and lay still a long moment, sucking in much needed breath. The noise of the chamber continued, but the crystal in his leg did not, melting away like it were ice under his own element and then soaking into the bloody crystal he lay on. Igneous debated standing, but couldn't muster up the will to. Besides, he didn't think he could even stand on his leg in the state it was in.
If only Savron was here, he could have helped him. He could have ensured that Igneous got through there without any serious injury. He wouldn't let his best buddy lie bleeding out on the floor!
But he wasn't here. Igneous clenched his fangs, tears beginning to form in his eyes. Why had Savron left him behind? He knew his pal Iggy wasn't as good at avoiding traps as he was! Why would he just go on ahead? Even after he had helped him get out so he could go on one he had left him behind. That wasn't like Sav at all. The real Sav wouldn't do that!
Igneous snarled and shook his head. No! He couldn't think like that, he couldn't abandon his best friend! He needed him! Savron needed Igneous just like Igneous needed him! Only, Igneous had been there for Savron. Savron hadn't, had he?
Savron had abandoned him. He had left him behind during the battle. And then again to fend for himself against the traps. Savron didn't want to explore with his friend, he wanted to fight and destroy monsters.
Igneous shut his eyes, his fangs barred as he let the pain wash over him, his whole body limp on the floor. His breathing was ragged as he sucked in desperate gulps, needed to both calm his still hammering heart, and fend off the weight that was about to crush it.
After a long moment Igneous opened his eyes and looked around. He needed life crystals. If he didn't there was no guarantee he'd survive. His leg was already feeling numb, and his vision was beginning to swim, and he didn't think it was just from tears.
He shrugged off the bag and rummaged around in it, only to freeze. He pushed his paw through one end, and then out the other. The bag was torn open, and its contents empty.
The continued clatter of the crystal blades smashing up everything in the chamber behind him told him everything he needed to know. He looked around the hallway he was in, but found only the stumps of life crystals. Savron had smashed them all up to heal himself when he came through here. Igneous collapsed to the ground, his whole body going limp.
Well, that was it. It seemed his adventure was over. Unless Savron came back for him, it was entirely likely he'd lay here, bleeding out until he fell unconscious. He was certainly not going to move in this state. At least the crystals in this hall weren't too sharp. It was almost comfortable lying here, letting himself go numb. Why was he even trying to keep his eyes open? He might as well get some sleep. Even if it might be his last sleep.
With a sigh, Igneous shut his eyes, letting the darkness wash over him. He just wished that he had a chance to talk with Tirren again, to make things right. Maybe apologize for believing Savron when he told him that she had slept with Lyr.
The clatter of crystal blades stopped, and Igneous let out a sigh of relief. At least now he could rest in peace.
The sharp rattle of something landing right beside his head caused Igneous to jump, his eyes flying open. He hissed in pain, his whole body shuddering in pain as his wounds twisted from the motion. Through the haze of pain he blinked, and found that a small pile of Life Crystals had just been dumped beside him. A thrill raced through him, and he looked up at his savior. Savron had come for-
Standing above him was the slim figure of a white dragon clad in bronze and gold chain armour, peering down at him through his magnificent helmet. A sour smirk tugged at Lyrith's muzzle and he gestured down to the crystals, and upon his hind flanks and legs Igneous could see red blood oozing down. Less than half a dozen red slashes marred Lyrith's snow-white frame, but even as he watched they faded away, leaving only the crimson trail of blood upon his body to show there had been any damage at all.
"W-what are you-?" Igneous wheezed, only for Lyrith to snarl and jab a claw into Igneous's side.
He let out a shrill gasp, his side flaring up with pain from the wound Lyrith had just poked.
"Eat the crystals you simpering excuse for a Guardian. I'd rather you not die on me halfway through explaining how I got here."
Igneous hesitated a moment, still blinking up at him, wondering how he – Ow, fine! Igneous grumbled as he snatched up the crystals and gulped them down, a sigh of relief escaping him as he began to feel the pain leave. He then glared up at the dragon who had poked him twice.
Lyrith smirked and leaned back against the crystal wall, his head cocked to one side. "Good. Once you can stand lead me to Savron. I think we might have some words we want to share with that bastard."
The roaring inferno brought back far too many bad memories for Cynder, but she did not allow herself to look away. With one last blast of wind Cynder guided the flame Inferna controlled straight up into the air, where it had nothing to feed upon. The howl of the wildfire dwindled to a crackle, and Cynder felt Inferna slump against her side, to pant for breath.
Cynder grimaced but did not move. Inferna, like all the other Guardians, like her mate, had earned a chance to rest. They had all but halted the progress of the wildfire by themselves. Unlike Cynder. The black dragoness snorted. For once she actually wished she had been cursed with more power. At least then she could have done more than play support for the others.
The distant fire snapped and flared, but rapidly shrank as it devoured what little grass remained. Cynder tried to turn her gaze away from it, but each time she did her eyes found new shapes within the fire, the shapes of buildings and of people. Within the crackling flame she could just almost make out screams, but each time her ears focused on them, it faded from view.
A shiver crawled up Cynder's scales, and she finally snapped her eyes away from the flame, to the golden dragoness that had just landed a short distance away. For just a moment Cynder caught her cold stare, which tried to pierce through her black scales. A sneer twisted Cynder's muzzle, and Shimaria balked, her fake smile resuming once more. That only made the crawling sensation worse.
She could understand why every light dragon glared daggers her way the moment she came into view. That was something she had lived with long enough to get used to. Cynder just wished that she didn't feel the same way about them. Her claws dug into the burnt soil, which had been blasted clear by the light dragons to prevent the fire from spreading. Her claws itched for blood, but she wouldn't give in, no matter how much she wanted to.
Spyro settled beside her, and Cynder glanced up at him in relief. His shoulders drooped, but he still kept up that dopey smile like always, even though he'd been worked the hardest of them all. Out of the corner of her eye she saw Shimaria glanced to Spyro, the gold dragoness's eyes narrowing and her smile growing more natural.
A snarl bubbled in Cynder's throat and her claws tore up the ground, but thankfully Spyro didn't notice as he prodded Inferna. The Flame Guardian woke with a snort and looked around. Then she sighed as she stepped away from Cynder, mumbling grumpily to herself.
A snort escaped Cynder and she felt her claws relax somewhat. She hadn't even noticed Inferna snoring on her shoulder.
One by one the Guardians landed beside them, and Shimaria settled to wait for them all. Terrador had just settled with a grunt when she cleared her throat and stepped forward.
"You have certainly earned your titles, Guardians, if this is how you deal with a crisis. You dealt with the fire before we even had the chance to set up a water line."
Cynder rolled her eyes. Ugh, once more with the false flattery!
Volteer, however, straightened. "Well certainly! It is our job after all! Even our names suggest such a role! Why if we couldn't deal with a single wildfire our names would be pointless, meaningless, and all together-"
With a groan Cyril rolled his eyes. "Says the one who hardly did a thing the entire time! Of all of us you were the most useless, Volteer!"
A smirk cracked Cynder's face as Volteer spluttered.
"I most certainly was not! I provided support, I directed you to where the fire was most dangerous and-"
"I didn't know nagging counted as support," Inferna grumbled from the side, and Volteer glowered at all of them.
From off to the side Shimara watched, her brow furrowed at the sight of them bickering. "Well regardless thank you for your help. I am glad we were able to work together on this issue and resolve it successfully.
"Your people certainly were able to handle themselves," Terrador said with a rumble. "They were efficient in burning away the grass so the fire couldn't advance."
A smirk of pride flashed across Shimaria's face, and Cynder spoke up to bat it back down.
"Yes, they were very organized and efficient. They were almost like an army in how well they worked together."
A small surge of glee tickled Cynder's chest as she saw Shimara's face darken and her eyes glance her way. Terrador pursed his muzzle and nodded in agreement, which caused Cynder to smirk once more.
Spyro nudged her flank and looked at her with a pursed muzzle, but Cynder pretended not to notice. Spyro was too gentle with these bastards.
Inferna cleared her throat and turned to Shimaria, her eyes narrowed. "Which reminds me. Since we're here, will you finally tell us what you want?"
Cynder started and blinked. That was right! They were all here. And while the middle of the enemy camp might not be an ideal place to negotiate, it certainly was a place where Shimaria would be able to speak openly about her issues. The black draken turned with a sneer to the gold dragoness, who took a step back upon seeing her face. All the better.
The other Guardians rose as well, and Shimaria hesitated a moment. Then she nodded and sat upon her haunches. All around them the golden dragons moved with tight efficiency, working together in small squads of three or four to soak the nearby ground in water so the dwindling fire had no hope of rekindling.
"I suppose now would be as good a time as any to tell you our intentions. Though as I said before, they are not as opaque as you make them out to be."
Cynder groaned. "I'll be the judge of that. So get on with it."
Shimaria nodded. She closed her eyes to collect herself. She took several deep breaths, and then opened her mouth, her eyes opening.
A shout a short distance away cut her off.
"Stop moving and answer our question, what are you doing in the camp?"
"Answer swiftly, else we purge you here and now like we should have when we first saw you!"
Cynder stiffened and turned, only for her breath to halt in her throat. Two gold dragons stood above the weeping, partially purple form of Yeras, claws at her neck and snarling. Cynder moved before she had even registered what was going on.
With a roar she slammed into the side of the dragon holding Yeras down and then swept her tail under the legs of the other, causing him to trip and fall. Cynder stood above Yeras in a low crouch, her breath ragged as shadowy mist billowed from her muzzle. The light dragons all around her took a step back, and then hardened with resolve. From out of them a dozen light dragons approached, each of them wearing their silver armour while the rest of the light dragons locked in a circle formation around them, not approaching or acting threatening, but simply blocking their way. A faint shimmer of light appeared around all of them.
Cynder sneered, drawing upon her magic. Below her Cynder felt Yeras relax and look up at her. "Cynder! Thank the Ancestors…"
"They won't get you, Yeras, I promise," Cynder said with a snort, her body trembling with energy. She knew it! They really weren't peaceful after all!
The Guardians had stood but most hadn't taken battle positions yet as they watched the scene with concern. Spyro had stepped forward, his eyes wide and body held low, ready to pounce, though he was clearly reluctant to do so. Fighting other dragons had always been his least favourite thing to do.
The two dragons Cynder had tripped had hauled themselves to their paws and glared at Cynder, snarling. A glowing white light began to form in their muzzles. Cynder met their gazes with her iron stare, and a bright crimson light of her own poured from her muzzle, nostrils and eyes, creating a mien right out of most dragons' nightmares. They balked at the sight, sending a surge of satisfaction through Cynder, though they did not break formation.
The formation broke and Shimaria barged through, her disgustingly pretty voice shouting as loud as she could to hold. The light dragons wavered, looking between her and Cynder, and then reluctantly pulled back and returned to their duties. The two soldiers who had attacked Yeras remained, and saluted to their mistress, but the rest phased back into the crowd, vanishing among the gold and silver horde.
Shimaria slumped in relief, though Cynder did not budge. She glared at the two light dragons and Shimaria, her claws itching to bathe in their blood.
Below her Yeras spoke, her voice a whisper. "Cynder, I…" but Cynder ignored her, focusing her attention on Shimaria.
"What were you doing to Yeras you bastards? I swear to the Ancestors if you clawed a scale on her you will have your precious gold colouring bleached off you!"
"Good question," Shimaria said with a huff, glaring at the two soldiers. "What were you doing? You are aware she is one of the protected dragons, right? Despite her corruption she is not to be touched."
The two gold drakes glanced at one another, their expressions furrowed. "Master Warden, we found her running through the camp screaming! We subdued her only so that she would stop being such a disrupting influence and so that we could find out how she got here!"
"Cynder," Yeras said again, but Cynder shushed her. It would be alright.
"She, like any from the Temple, are welcome in the camp if they so desire," Shimaria said with a snort. "You are not to restrict her for such a menial thing. Only if she attacks another are you to…"
Cynder snarled. "It appears you aren't as in control as you'd lead us to believe!"
Years cleared her throat and spoke again, this time with more conviction. "Cynder!"
The light dragons glared at Cynder. The one who had remained silent spoke up. "She came from the command area of the camp, the area off limits to even low ranking members of the Order. We had no choice but to subdue her."
"What, you have secrets to hide? And here I thought you were finally going to open up and tell us every-"
Yeras screamed. "THERE'S A MONSTER IN THE CAMP!"
All movement stopped. The Guardians, the light dragons, even Cynder froze as they looked down to Yeras who lay shaking on the ground.
"A... monster?" Cynder repeated, her whole body stiff. Out of the corner of her eye Cynder could make out the Guardians finally getting into combat positions, their eyes casting about in search of the monster. The light dragons had begun to move as well, dropping everything to get into formation.
Yeras nodded, still sucking in sobbing breaths of air. Her whole body trembled pitifully under Cynder, and she just wanted to grab her and hold her close.
"A monster… it's in a huge iron box in the middle of the camp… Cynder, it… it…"
Shimaria straightened and Cynder turned to look at her with narrowed eyes. Shimaria's face went from worried, to shocked, to horrified in the span of two heart beats. She rushed forward, but Cynder moved to cut her off. Yet the gold draken persisted, shoving her way past Cynder to stand over Yeras.
"Did you speak with him!" she demanded, grabbing hold of Yeras by the shoulder. "Ancestors please tell me you did not speak with him!"
Yeras let out a yelp as Shimaria grabbed her and started shaking her, and with a snort of ice she drove Shimaria back a few steps. Cynder shoved Shimaria to the side with enough force to throw her to the ground, and took position once more with her between Yeras and the bitch.
There was a long moment of silence, Shimaria rising slowly to stare at them with wide eyes, all her composure gone.
"You know what this thing is?" Cynder demanded, storming forward to glare into Shimaria's face. She stiffened, her jaw setting.
"Yes. He is a member of the Order. Though your friend never should have gotten near him. There were supposed to be guards stationed there at all times to prevent the uninitiated from speaking with him." Shimaria looked around and barked out some orders to the dragons around her. "Get back to your posts dammit! And whoever was supposed to be on guard duty is to wait at my tent for punishment. No matter what he said you are not supposed to abandon your posts! And that includes if there is a wildfire going on!"
Cynder's glare narrowed, but before she could speak, Yeras perked up, her wavering voice growing a bit stronger.
"He's the one responsible for the fire! He told me it was a distraction!"
All movement stopped once more. Cynder's sneer turned into a snarl, and all sympathy from the other Guardians' faces vanished. Shimaria, who had frozen let out a long, weary sigh, her shoulders slumping.
"You bastard," she whispered under her breath. "What are you plotting this time?" With a sharp movement she turned to face Yeras, her eyes still shut tight.
"He called you, didn't he?" Shimaria asked, her voice low as she slowly strode towards Yeras. Cynder snarled to try and make her back off, but she did not flinch. "He dragged you along thanks to feelings you couldn't understand, or justify. Then he spoke to you. He said things that angered you, scared you, and hurt you. Didn't he?"
Shimaria opened her eyes, started when she found herself standing right in front of Cynder, and then steadied herself. She stopped moving, but looked past Cynder towards Yeras. Cynder tried to melt holes into Shimaria's skull with her eyes. What was she talking about?
Yet Yeras nodded, her face setting into stone, the terror that had once been there vanishing.
A long sigh escaped Shimaria, but before she spoke again Terrador approached.
"What is the meaning of this?" he said, his voice low, but as hard as his element. "Who is this… figure? And why has he accosted a friend of ours?"
"And why have you not told us of this… monster until now?" Cyril murmured as he approached.
Shimaria was silent for a long while, her eyes closed and a paw on her head. The other light dragons continued to move about, doing their duty, but they all fixed their eyes on their leader, worry etched on each of their faces.
When she spoke, it was with utter defeat. "Where is Mirrolus when I needed him most?" She turned to the Guardians, to stand firm. "No doubt he wants to meet you himself. He has arranged all of this," Shimaria gestured to the nearly dead wildfire. "just to meet one of your own, and she came all the way here to tell you of him. Doubtlessly he's planned all this out. Follow me."
With a sharp turn Shimaria stomped through the camp, heading back in the direction Yeras had just arrived from. Cynder glanced to the others, her brow furrowed. They all looked back at the gold draken with confusion as well, though also a fair bit of anger. Good, they were finally getting it. Whoever this was that caused the fire had made a grave error in announcing his presence. And a dire mistake in harming Yeras.
The crowds of light dragons parted to let Shimaria and the Guardians pass, Terrador, Cyril, Volteer and Inferna striding past Cynder to follow Shimaria. Spyro stopped beside Yeras and met Cynder's eyes with a grimace. She met his gaze with a grimace of her own. Things had just gotten very complicated. Together they helped steady Yeras, and set off after the Guardians.
Yeras's shivering had stopped, thankfully, though her steps were reluctant. Cynder clenched her fangs and leaned in, to whisper into Yeras's ear. She asked if she wanted to go back to the Temple, and that she could probably convince Spyro to take her there, but Yeras just shook her head. Cynder sighed. She had expected as much. Her strides growing more firm, Cynder focused her attention on the strange iron box in the distance, and wondered how she had not noticed it until now. She had probably been too distracted by the fire.
The Guardians had just stepped onto the platform in front of the box when Yeras stiffened and stopped in her tracks. She turned to Cynder, panic etched across her face.
"I forgot!"
Cynder jumped and turned to face her, eyes wide. Oh Ancestors what was it? Danger? Was it a trap? Had she been manipulated into leading them into an ambush by this monster?
Yeras spoke before Cynder could respond, words tumbling from her muzzle like rocks down a mountain side. "It showed me visions! Terrible things are going to happen soon! I-"
Cynder lifted a claw and pressed it to Yeras's muzzle. "Don't panic, I can barely understand you. Just take a deep breath. He can't hurt you over here."
Gulping down several deep breaths, Yeras slowly began to steady herself, though she still shook. She finally looked up into Cynder's face, the faint glow from behind the blindfold bright but dark with purple.
"I… I've never had visions as clear as these, Cynder, and-"
"Cynder!" came Volteer's voice, causing Cynder to groan. "We need you up here!"
His obnoxious voice was accompanied by a fierce knocking from Shimaria, who had begun to bang on the iron door. The black dragon groaned. Ancestors dammit, there was so much happening at once!
With a shake of her head Cynder glanced back to Yeras, trying to keep her smile calm, even though she knew Yeras couldn't properly see it.
"Yeras, how vital is the vision? When is it going to happen?"
The partially tainted seer paused, her body going stiff as she thought back. "I… I don't know. It didn't give me dates, it just showed me events. Warfang was being attacked, and there was this child and-"
"Cynder, you're the one leading the charge, so we need you up here now!"
Cynder turned back to glare at them with a hiss. They flinched and took a step back, causing her to snort and glance back over to Yeras. She didn't know when? Ancestors that made things difficult… was there any way they could figure out if… Cynder's eyes alighted upon the drifting snowflakes, and her eyes sparkled.
"Yeras, was it snowing in any of your visions?"
The seer froze and then slowly shook her head. "None of the ones he showed me…"
Cynder let out a sigh of relief. So it wouldn't be imminent then.
"How about this, Yeras. You take a moment to catch your breath and relax. I'll go kick this bastard's face in, and then you can tell me over a cup of tea, alright? Nice and relaxing, where you don't need to stress over it, and where I can have a notepad to write it all down."
For a moment Cynder wasn't sure Yeras would agree, but then her shoulders relaxed and she gave a slow nod. Cynder gave her a nudge on the flank with a wing.
"Stay back here and wait. That way you won't have to worry."
Cynder glanced up at Spyro and saw him standing a short distance away, a smile on his face. Beside him the other Guardians waited impatiently, while the light bitch continued to try and beat the door down with her wimpy paws. Cyndr rolled her eyes and strode up to the platform, all the while listening to Shimaria ranting.
"Dammit, I know you can hear me! Just what are you thinking? Wake up!"
Cynder stopped beside Inferna and glanced to her, and the Flame Guardian returned Cynder's gaze, and gestured in Shimaria's direction with crossed eyes and a stuck out tongue. Cynder smirked.
Shimaria stepped back, panting hard, her small golden body quivering with rage. Then, from within the box came a long, drawn out yawn. Cynder peered through the slot that Shimaria had opened in the door of the box, but she could see only darkness within, even with her keen vision. A strange aura of magic emanated from the box, which was covered in runes, many of which were ancient. Just a glance told Cynder that the box was impenetrable, both from the inside and the outside.
The sound of movement stirred within the box, something dragging itself towards the door. Then its eyes opened. One by one its eyes appeared from the shadows: blue, red, green and yellow. The four eyes whirled about in unseen sockets, the pupils expanding and contracting unnaturally all the while focusing on each of the Guardians independently, no two eyes settling on the same person at the same time. A shiver crawled across Cynder's scales.
"Ah, what a lovely nap! And it seems our guests have finally arrived! The famous Guardians: Terrador, Volteer, and Cyril; the up-and-comer Inferna; and… oh my, the Terror of the Skies herself! This time seeking me out for my blood because of how I treated my messenger." All four eyes stopped, focusing simultaneously upon Spyro, who took a step back, his violet eyes almost as wide as his gaping muzzle. It snorted. "And of course, the Idiot Savant." The green eye flickered to Shimaria, and a gasp echoed from out of the box. "Oh! Shimaria! I didn't hear you! You should have knocked; I would have woken up sooner."
The golden dragoness groaned and rolled her eyes. Cynder finally tore her gaze away from the eyes and looked to the Guardians beside her. They all stood frozen, staring at the strange four eyes of the thing within the box. Even Cynder had difficultly collecting her thoughts. How did it know all of their names? Well, Shimaria could have told it, but still, to recognize them all with but glance… Cynder shivered again. And what a glance it was, ugh.
Shimaria spoke, her voice firm. "Why did you light the fire?"
"You're not even going to properly introduce me before the interrogation begins? How very rude Shimaria, I expected better of the leader of 'our' Order."
Shimaria pursed her muzzle and stood firm. "I expected you to do it. You always enjoyed introducing yourself, often in ways that embarrassed me or my predecessors."
Green and yellow eyes flickered to Cynder, and she could see the smile upon them. "She is quite unprofessional, isn't she Cynder? I blame Mirrolus for being a bad influence on her as a child."
Cynder snorted and smirked, though it had only the façade of humour.
Inferna spoke up with a groan of exasperation. "You still haven't answered our question! Why did you light that wildfire and ruin everyone's day?"
"So impatient. At least let me get my introduction out of the way! That way you can stop referring to me as 'it.'"
Cynder snorted. Even after she learned the bastard's name she'd still refer to it as 'it.' It didn't deserve to be treated fairly after the shit it pulled.
All four eyes turned to Cynder and her whole body froze. A strange pressure formed in the back of her head, and out of the corner of her eye she saw flickers of something… she couldn't quite make it out, but her hackles raised and she nearly jumped, her battle instincts warning her there was a battle going on. Yet when she looked around she found nothing.
When none of the Guardians objected the figure let out a pleased chortle. "I have gone by many titles and names in the past. I have been known as the All-Seer, and the Eyes of the Ancestors. I have served countless rulers and kingdoms as their 'advisor,'" Prophet coughed. "Slave." It cleared its throat, apologized, and then continued. "And I have inspired and influenced more heroes and villains than history knows the names of. I am the Ancient's Witness, and the Source of All Visions. I am Prophet."
As Prophet spoke his name the bell in Darrowlight rang out, signaling to all that the wildfire had died, and it was safe to return home. Cynder started at the sound and turned to gaze at the distant tower with wide eyes. What an odd coincidence.
"How are you doing that?" Yeras shouted from the back, causing Cynder to glance to her. Yeras stood a distance back, her body shaking slightly as she looked back to Darrowlight. Prophet laughed, its voice wheezing as it cackled at the amazement in Yeras's voice, all four of its eyes squeezed shut.
Cynder cast one last concerned look back to Yeras, before she turned to sneer at Prophet. "That's quite a presumptuous attitude, given that you are locked away in a box."
Prophet's cackling turned into howls of glee. His eyes opened, watering with tears as they fixed on Yeras right through the iron box. Cynder's scales crawled. How did it know where she was? "See Yeras! I said you had her wit! Almost word-for-word."
Cynder snarled and stomped forward, to shove her face right up against the slit of the box. "Leave her alone."
For a moment Prophet met Cynder's eyes, the green and yellow orbs hooded slyly. Prophet gave a dismissive grunt. "Alright. I've had my fun. She is dismissed, as I have no more need of her."
Cynder glanced back to Yeras with a smile, but found that Yeras stood firm, her expression focused solely on the box. She wasn't going to be so casually dismissed. Good girl!
"How remarkable, fascinating, intriguing!" Volteer exclaimed, moving up to the box to try and get a peek in. "Ifyouarewhatyouclaimtobe thatwouldmakeyouatrulyremarkableseer! Ohthethingsyoucouldteachusortellusabout-"
Terrador interrupted Volteer with a powerful snort. "Now is not the time to gush, Volteer. This… creature has committed a grave offense, and we must investigate."
"The wildfire is hardly an atrocity worthy of note, Terrador," Prophet said with a yawn, all of his eyes rolling sardonically in different directions. "Only four people died."
Cynder's fangs flashed and she slammed her tail into the box, causing it to ring. Prophet let out a faint "oh ho!" and beside her Cynder could feel the Guardians' stances grow firm.
Spyro was the one who stepped forward, fire snooting from his nostrils. "Only four? You… you… jerk!"
Cynder could almost feel Prophet smile within the box. "What? Had I not lit the fire fifteen would have died from an ape bandit raid in three days."
Spyro froze, his eyes going wide. Cynder glanced to the other Guardians, and found them sharing similar looks. Shimaria had stepped back to watch them carefully, but she made no move to speak. Cynder turned to face the box once more, 'apeshit' on her tongue.
Prophet continued before she could speak. "And I believe not acting to save lives from a murderer when you know it will happen is 'accessory to murder.' No matter my choice I have committed a crime. Are you going to punish me for ensuring that eleven more people are safe and sound than there would have been?"
"There's no way we can know that's true!" Cynder snarled and spat into the slot of the box. She didn't know if she hit him, but she hoped she did. "That is something nobody can prove! You could be lying just to save your neck!"
Prophet rolled his eyes once more, causing Cynder to shiver. "And Spyro didn't save the world. There's no proof the world was about to end because of the Destroyer! I mean look, people are still alive, that means it can't be true the world was about to end!" Prophet spat back, and Cynder jerked out of the way, only for the wind to catch it, causing it to land right on her flank. She snarled and wiped it off. Prophet continued speaking, its tone growing petulant. "Speaking of which, you owe me for that, Spyro. I deserve just as much fame as you do for saving the world. That was my prophecy you followed." Prophet's green and yellow eyes glanced over to Shimaria. "Not that anyone will ever let the public know that."
Shimaria sighed and looked over to the Guardians. "You will never hear the end of this."
Spyro stood a fair distance back, his brow furrowed yet his eyes wide as he gazed into the box, half shied away as if near some horrific torture device. The other Guardians shifted, eyeing the box with trepidation. Cynder didn't need to read their minds to know what they were thinking. Could this really be the same prophet who had come up with that prophecy?
After a long moment Inferna spoke, her words deliberate. "So you set the fires to save lives?"
"Well, that was a happy coincidence. I set the fires so you would be right here, right now. I needed Yeras to approach, and that wouldn't be possible with guards, so I created a diversion. I needed you in the camp at the same time, so that diversion needed to be a crisis that was big enough for you to come down here to deal with. I calculated the best possible crisis that I could cause that would make you upset, but which would be easy enough for villagers to escape. I didn't want to offend you after all by making a real disaster. See, I'm a good person. If I didn't care about the worthless villagers I would have done something far worse! Like drop the match in the town!"
Cynder's fangs were clenched so hard that she feared she might draw blood. If only she could reach into that box and slap this bastard right across his smug face. She could just picture the grin on this jerk's face… Cynder frowned. No, she couldn't. She didn't know what race he was.
"Nor will you ever find out, Cynder. That is a very personal question."
Cynder jumped and looked into the box, "what" escaping her muzzle before she could stop herself. The Guardians looked to her as well, frowns creasing their faces. Had she said that out loud? No, they looked at her with confusion, they didn't know why he had said that. Could he…?
Prophet sighed. "Yeras will explain it later. But I'm tired and not interested in explaining the details of my nature all over again. I want to talk to you about why I called you all here, now that you have stopped with your pointless accusations. This - and what Yeras will tell you later - is vitally important to the survival of the world," Prophet said. He cleared his throat, sighed, and resumed with a cheerful bounce to his voice. "You know, it's quite nice to be making real prophecies again. The 'Order' has been making me dribble out inane information on their targets for the past two hundred years. Except for feeding Spyro information on the 'Second Resurrection' I haven't been able to do anything important."
Spyro stepped up, his head cocked. "I don't rememb-" Spyro gasped and fell to the ground, clutching at his head, tears welling up in his eyes. Cynder snarled and jumped over him, glaring at the box.
"What did you do?"
"That… that was..." Spyro said below her, causing Cynder to glance down to him. A chuckle reverberated from the box.
"That was the vision I sent to you, all those years ago right before the 'Second Resurrection.' Though that one was much more intense. It is significantly easier sending visions to someone, even someone with as weak seer blood as you, when they are right nearby. I cannot tell you how exhausting it was to try and send you visions from hundreds of kilometers away night after night. You should be grateful to me for all the suffering I endured for your people!"
"By the Ancestors!" Inferna exclaimed with a groan. "Are you going to tell us or what? We get it, you've helped us in the past! You have us here now and you have our attention! But you aren't as interesting as you think you are! I would much rather be home cuddling Deran and Lyr than listening to an arrogant prick stroke his ego until it bursts, spraying everyone with his pride until they drown in it!"
Cynder met Inferna's narrowed eyes with a smirk. Both Cynder and Prophet spoke at the same time. "Well said."
Cynder turned to glance at Prophet with a glower, but he had already resumed speaking.
"I agree. And as deserved as my ego is, it is about time I shared my vision with you."
There was a shift in the air. Cynder's muscles tensed and she tried to suck in a breath, only to find no air enter her lungs. Prophet's eyes shone with an eerie light as they focused on Cynder's face. When he spoke the very ground they walked on trembled. Faint visions flashed before Cynder's eyes, phantoms and shadows she could just barely make out, taking on the form of his words.
"In exactly thirty-two minutes and eighteen seconds after I complete this prophecy, in the Crystal Graves of the Fynor Clan, Spyro and Cynder shall witness Savron attack his friends, and begin his descent into darkness."
Cynder stopped trying to breathe. Her green eyes snapped to Spyro, who had fixed his own upon her. Prophet's voice faded and the entire camp fell still. The Guardians looked to them, their own eyes wide.
In unison Spyro and Cynder leapt into the air, calling upon all their magic to catapult themselves back towards their chambers, not even glancing back once to see if the Guardians followed. Behind them Prophet's voice echoed out across the camp, amusement colouring his voice dark as night.
"And you won't be able to save him!"
Dardarax's Characters
Deran, Igneous, Inferna, Lyrith, Savron
Cynder, Mirrolus, Prophet, Shimaria, Spyro
Rurik's Character Yeras
If this hasn't whetted your appetite for tension, plot, and action yet, everyone. Trust me, the next chapter will. =D
Special thanks to Rurik for looking over the chapter, letting me use his character like this, and then helping me make sure she was still in character. xD I don't like it when I fail to capture a character's personality.
Also, if I'm not able to catch up with my writing soon, then I'll have to make a permanent change toe schedule, in making it three weeks. The next chapter is still going to be posted on November 4th, and we'll see if I've manged to catch up by then or not. Hopefully I will have. =)