Spyro: Dawn of Light

Part 2, Chapter 18


The ground shuddered, clouds of dust streaming down from the stone masonry of the city as every brick vibrated. Ember shivered as the energy pulse from underground filtered through the air, making everyone it came in contact with dizzy and slightly disoriented for a few seconds. She curled her wings around herself. "Spyro...please be safe..." In her mind's eye she could clearly imagine him taking on whatever was causing these tremors and surges, locked in epic battle and emerging victorious... Her mind began to play tricks on her though. She saw both Flame and Spyro, side-by-side, almost recolored versions of each other, fighting against fierce foes...but then suddenly she found herself, in her daydream, fleeing in terror from the two. Their power levels were overwhelming, they frightened her. She felt helpless, threatened, cornered. She felt like she had to fight them. The thought shocked her back into reality with a loud gasp, her chest heaving from the scare. "What the hell is wrong with me..." she grumbled. "Ever since I was kidnapped, all these weird things... why me..." Going to the window of the small house she was hiding in, she looked around at the street below, watching everyone try to continue their daily lives. The tinking and clanging of metal against stone echoed down the street from the repair shops as stonesmiths hewed new bricks to mend the damage to the city. It was driving her nuts. She longed to go back to the Settlement, but there wasn't anything there for her now, her parents had moved here to Warfang. Looking up at the sky she sighed, thinking back to her childhood with Flame. She'd always known him, ever since they were able to walk. He'd always been a bit of a wuss though... "Nothing heroic and strong of body and will like Spyro..." she mused dreamily, then shook her head. "What am I thinking...I betrayed Flame so many times, how can I even think of someone as pure as the purplescale..." A sudden shiver raced through her, filling her with intense fear. It was approaching again. "No!" she whimpered, looking around frantically for a place to hide from it.

A loud, high-pitch shriek echoed over the whole city, filling everyone with that same intense fear as a shadow rose up from the street, flinging its dark wings apart.


Below the city, other pandemonium had been raging.
Cynder had woken up from her episode a little confused and disoriented, but she was able to remember the materials needed to help cure Spyro's affliction. While waiting for Neves to return with the herbs and gems needed, Caelos and Plazyma, and Flame and Cynder went exploring a bit in pairs while Shimmer cleansed Spyro's wounds and tried to staunch the bleeding. Unexpectedly, the entire underground began to shake, a deep bass tone echoing all around them as another energy pulse raced by from the depths. All at once the bridge Cynder was on collapsed right by Caelos. He jumped after her and flew her to safety only to narrowly avoid being crushed by falling rocks. He didn't get out unscathed though; a few sharp-edged stones caught his back, cutting deep. Plazyma and Cynder had to help him back to the room Shimmer was treating Spyro in.

"This place is dangerous," Plazyma growled as Caelos lay down on the floor. "Whatever's down here, it better show its ugly face soon or else."

"Go see if you can't find some kind of evidence, but be careful. Keep to the air this time," Shimmer said, turning to Caelos. "Ouch...that had to hurt."

"Everyone's risking themselves to save me...I don't get it..." Cynder mumbled, turning to follow Plazyma.

Caelos sighed silently to himself as he watched Shimmer tend to his wounds, wincing and hissing through his teeth as the salve suddenly stung sharply. "There...just stay still, this should tide you over until Neves comes back with more health crystals." His eyes watched hers as they trailed to the other end of the room to the limp purple form of Spyro. She sighed and hung her head. "All this training to heal others...and I can't revive him..."

Caelos nuzzled her foreleg. ~How could any of us have anticipated that wall?~ he asked with a sad expression, the air around him shimmering very slightly as he manipulated it to mimic his voice.

"There was no way of knowing...but still, I was trained by Rivyera to heal others in the middle of battle...wounds like his shouldn't be a problem..."

He gritted his teeth as he sat up, nuzzling her cheek softly. ~Shimmer...I don't like seeing you worried... especially about this, something we weren't prepared for. All the training in the world can be rendered null by something new...at the very least, Cynder was able to identify the dark magic those spikes injected in him.~ Giving her a soft smile he pressed his nose against hers. ~Isn't that better than not knowing at all? At least you were able to cleanse the wounds properly.~

"I know...but what good does it do if we can't rouse him from this coma?"

He curled his tailtip around hers. ~Decreased risk of infection. Shimmer, just chill and stop worrying about it. Until Neves returns with the things we need, there's nothing we can do. Weren't you telling him once that since there's nothing we can do during a stalemate, it's pointless to worry?~

She sighed deeply, then nodded. "Yeah...I did tell him that..." She paused, then looked up at him. "Hey wait, you were down in the street then, were you listening to us?"

~I happened to catch that bit while listening for other things around myself. Purely unintentional.~

"Well...thanks...I didn't really think to follow my own advice." She nuzzled his cheek, then looked back at their tails. "Um...Caelos?"

He looked back, then backed away from her shyly a few steps. ~S-sorry...~ he said, looking down with his wings folded tight against his sides. She cocked her head at him in confusion.

"Caelos...you have a habit of acting strangely around me. What's going on?"

He remained silent for a moment, then laid down again. ~Nothing.~ His response didn't match his expression; with him not having to move his mouth or face to talk, his feelings were somewhat more pronounced through his expressions. She saw what almost looked like...heartache.

"Caelos..." Shimmer started, whipping around as the door behind them rolled open. Neves' tail wriggled into the room, then his hindquarters as he grunted through clenched teeth.

"Thimmr culju hlp-GHH!" he yelped as the door rolled shut on him, squeezing him between itself and the wall frame. "Ow! Damn this thing! Shimmer, can you open this door please?"

She fell over laughing. "Nev-Neves ahaha I'm sorry but hahaha you look sooo funny!" Forcing herself up and wiping her eyes, still laughing under her breath, she trotted up to him, then teasingly poked his thigh, bursting out laughing again when he twitched and his tail flailed.

"Shimmer this isn't funny!"

"Why noooooot?" she chimed, drawing a claw along the edges of his scales and giggling as it made him shiver. "Does the ice dragon not like having his butt stuck in the doorway?"

"Very funny," he growled, struggling. She laughed as his hind paws scrabbled at the floor. "I've got the stuff for Spyro, now come on, open the door already!"

"Oh all right..." she sighed, giggling as she tickled his thigh again. Gripping the edge of the door she slid it back open just enough for him to drag the bag of medicinal supplies through. "Why didn't you just carry it all?"

"It wouldn't fit for some reason." He shook himself off with a groan. "Ow that hurt."

She giggled and nuzzled him. "I'm sorry, it just looked so funny. What'd you bring back?"

"The stuff Cynder told me to get after she woke up." Looking around he spotted Caelos curled up against the wall with his face under his wing. "Is he okay?"

Her smile faded as she gazed at the wind dragon. "Physically, yes, he just needs health crystals."

"Just physically?"

She sighed. "I don't know what's going on with anyone lately. C'mon, let's try to get Spyro out of his coma." When they turned around though, not even Neves' ice could chill their blood like what they saw.


While this was going on, Flame and Cynder were resting after exploring a little more of the surrounding city. Cynder wasn't feeling well, and stumbled a little bit as she followed Flame, so he eventually coaxed her to lie down under a carved tree to catch her breath. Plazyma doubled back to check on the others, feeling that she'd rather not be around Cynder until the dragoness was feeling better. It was quiet, the only sounds around them being the faint but constant echoing of water droplets falling everywhere in the underground complex and the whispering of air currents from the lava streams far below. Eventually Flame felt a little unnerved by the silence and started pacing around the tree to stretch his legs, but this offered very little relief so he stopped by Cynder and cleared his throat to catch her attention. "Cynder, if you don't mind...can I ask you about...your time before you came back to us?"

The black dragoness hid under her wings with a pitiful groan. "I don't know if I wanna talk about it..."

"You don't have to, I was just wondering is all..." He nuzzled her wing, prompting her to peek out at him. "How did you even survive in there?"

She sighed softly. "I don't know why...but...the only thing that kept me going...was my recurring dream of having a family." Her voice lowered to barely a whisper. "A real family..."

Flame sat by her, looking her over, his mind churning. Finally he sighed and laid down next to her, laying his wing over her back. "Do you want to know why Spyro saved you, Cynder?"

"...Yes...it's confusing me to no end. It...it doesn't make sense to me."

"Do you remember anything of your life before?"

"Before...what?"

"Before Ripto and Tephra and the others?"

She laid her chin on her paws. "Bits and pieces...like fragments of lost dreams. The fact that you guys remember me...that tells me they're not just dreams."

"Before Tephra kidnapped you and Ripto brainwashed you... we were all friends. And Spyro...he was your best friend. You've been under their spell for three years. Spyro spent every single day of those three years growing stronger and stronger. For you."

"For me?" She scowled a bit. "To impress me?"

"No." He licked her cheek softly. "Because, like me, Spyro loved you...though I think he can't bring himself to admit it. He cared for you so much that he strengthened himself far beyond the rest of us in order to wrestle you from Ripto's dark snare. He did it to save you. In a way...he did it so that your dreams could come true. Now, when all this stuff is over...you can really have a real family someday."

Her eyes glazed over as her focus turned inwards on her fractured memories. Suddenly she looked up like an alarmed cat; Flame could almost feel all her senses fixated. "Flame there's something horribly wrong we have to go!" Before he could reply she bolted off, forcing him to scrabble after her in confusion.

Plazyma had felt it too; halfway before to Shimmer's little triage, she'd felt a strange dark power suddenly pulse, a direct contrast to what they'd been sent down here to investigate. From the room above in the ruin walls, a black form shot through the air, exuding a nasty power from itself that felt vaguely familiar. Shimmer and Neves' frightened voices told her this was very bad news. Charging herself, the electric dragoness shot after the black streak. It seemed to be completely aware of her, for as soon as she closed in on it, dark electric power swirled around its body and it zapped away, crashing through stalactites and carved columns without stopping. Plazyma gave chase, the air around them snapping, rumbling and flashing in a turmoil of electric fury. Molten rock splattered everywhere from the shadow form blasting or grazing past stone. The others watched as finally Plazyma caught it head-on, vicious blasts of yellow and black lightning pulsing from the sphere of struggling electric energy surrounding them. Plazyma caught whatever it was by the shoulders, straining to exert electric dominance. Glancing up at its face, two purple eyes shone out at her through the fog of shadow around its body, and she screamed in alarm, falling back and hovering in the air. "SPYRO?" Her only reply was a blast of dark lightning that smote her to the ground near the others. Without hesitating, Spyro shot off to the other side of the ruins, that strange energy wave and deep groaning sound sweeping over them with much more intensity than before.

"He's headed for the door!" Neves shouted, "we need to stop him!"

"What door? Wait!" Flame yelped as he felt static envelop them all. Plazyma glowed bright yellow and all at once they were escorted along lightning tracers, chasing Spyro straight ahead. The black-shrouded dragon flew across the Ruins, over deep chasms and through a myriad of empty streets and crumbling pillars, before alighting on an expansive platform with an intricate mural on the wall to the far side. When the others landed behind him, the first thing they noticed was the mural, for Spyro had dwindled into the shadows in the floor stones to elude them. Caelos gazed at the mural, then glared.

~They're all...worshipping him. Is that...Spyro?~ he asked, his wings folding closer to his sides and his tail going a bit rigid at the thought.

"It's not Spyro. It's Malefor. The Dark Master, the one they sealed away in Concurrent Skies. They had such high hopes for him..." Neves sighed, looking around. "Where the hell did Spyro go?"

"What's that up ahead?" Flame asked, pointing with his wing at something glowing at the end of a long, thin walkway. From the platform they stood on, an extensive path of rock jutted out like a long tongue through a wide, high-roofed chamber, black against the red light coming up from the lava pool at the far end, above which sat another, smaller platform shaped like a ziggurat. Atop this, if they squinted their eyes, sat a door.

"It's a door that should never be opened..." Neves growled. "C'mon. Spyro landed somewhere around here and ten to one I'm betting that's his target."

"...Dare I ask why?" Plazyma whispered.

"Suffice it to say for now...it's the Chamber of Revelations." He sighed and strode forward. "C'mon. We should go wait to intercept him." Cynder leaned forward, feeling the air, then yelped and sprinted ahead. "WHOA! Cynder what the-"

"HE'S UP THERE!" she called over her shoulder at them. She sped down the treacherous stone pathway, the others chasing her in confusion over what was going on with her. The closer they got, the more clearly they could see the door Neves seemed to be so afraid of; tall and dark gold with onyx frame, it bore a red-eyed dragon face with two extended paws curling out, as if a dragon had been caught in metal in the middle of a lunge. The paws were held out as if waiting for someone to take them and pull him out. All over its surface, the door seemed to emit a fiery glow; warm and inviting, yet even more so foreboding and dangerous. As they reached the halfway point of the bridge, they saw a black form rise up out of the tiles about a stone's throw from them.

"SPYRO NO!" Cynder shrieked, lunging forward. Spyro's head snapped back; with a harsh glare over his shoulder, Cynder was suddenly sent flying back as if she'd hit an invisible wall. She tumbled past Neves and Shimmer and rolled over the edge of the pathway, paws flailing as she fell along one of the stone support columns holding the path up. Her claws glowed a sickly green and sank into the stone with a loud hiss, and she scrabbled madly at the stone until she got a good grip, hanging there while the others mobilized above to rescue her. Spyro however kept walking forward, the huge door glowing brighter the closer he got, the red glare turning him into a black silhouette. "SPYRO STOP!" she screamed when Caelos hoisted her up and she saw Spyro walking up the steps towards the door. The purple dragon did stop, right in front of the door, looking up at it. They saw his body shift slightly to the side as he raised a forepaw slowly to the door.

In the next instant, complete chaos broke out. Out of Spyro's shadow Cynder suddenly lunged with a screech, paralyzing him with a blast of Fear energy, Caelos and the others looking wildly between themselves wondering how the heck she had gotten over there so swiftly. At the same time, the side wall of the chamber cracked as a massive, lava-coated stone claw punched through, gripping the edge of the hole and yanking back enough for a hideous eagle-faced golem head to squeeze through, its deep bellow rising in tone to an ear-throbbing scream of rage. Behind the other kids, a shadowy figure lunged over them towards Cynder and the now-black dragon she was wrestling with.

"DAD LOOK OUT!" Neves shouted, though his voice was barely heard over the din of cracking stone, hissing lava and golem shrieks as the titan tore at the wall, widening the gap. The black form that had vaulted over them looped in mid-air around a flying boulder, then materialized as Nightshade right by Cynder, tearing her off Spyro. She scrabbled at the air with a hysterical cry, but was pinned to the floor as tendrils of shadow trapped her, the shadow dragon's attention now on the smaller black form bellowing and clawing at him with murderous intent. It was a brief skirmish but Nightshade finally clocked him upside the head with a knifepaw strike, knocking Spyro unconscious, the black fading instantly from his scales like fog. Grabbing the nape of Spyro's neck in his jaws the elder grabbed Cynder with his forepaws, just narrowly missing another massive stone shard as the wall fell apart, a huge wave of lava leaping up. The golem waded forward, clawing at the dragons but missing as Nightshade spun in the air between its heated fingers. In its rage it brought its fist down on the thin walkway, the stone shattering with a sharp CRACK.

~GET OUT!~ Caelos shouted, turning around and flaring his wings before the others as if to herd them away. They needed no second goading, turning around as their paws scrabbled at the stone for a grip before racing away from the falling cavern. The golem's harsh bellowing turned from rage to confusion and a hint of pain as the cavern fell upon it, burying it.

They ran and ran, the only thought on their minds being to put as much distance between themselves and the horrors as they could. Only when Flame tripped and skidded did they stop, their bodies crashing as the adrenaline wore off, leaving them completely exhausted, ears still ringing a bit from the intense noise. Nightshade landed behind them, panting as he lay Spyro on the ground and set Cynder down. She immediately raced over to Flame, shivering and trying not to cry as she huddled against his side. The others looked at Spyro with fear in their eyes as if afraid he'd suddenly rise up like a zombie and attack them. Nightshade's voice dripped with ire as he spoke. "What, pray tell, has been going on down here?" he snarled.


"No, we are somewhat more fortunate than that," Ignitus sighed as he strode out of the side room of the Temple, Terrador following him closely with a querying look in his eyes.

"Ignitus, there's no other way to explain this."

"Yes there is." The old fire dragon looked over his shoulder at the earth elder. "Cynder claims she's familiar with the strain of magic she sensed in him. Apparently she still has residual connections with the darkness that enslaved her, we must keep an eye on her." Looking further back, he paused as his eyes ran over the purple dragon lying unconscious on the bed. "That was not the accursed Dark Forme they encountered...merely a larval stage of the infection. We must keep Spyro under surveillance."

"Then what was it?"

The fire elder looked up at the statue in the center of the dojo with a slight glare, as if remembering something dark. "We shall tell the children tonight."

Terrador stared at him with wider eyes than before. "You're not serious are you?"

"I am indeed serious."

"About what?" Cyril asked as he entered from the Pool room. "Is Spyro quite alright?"

Terrador nodded. "He'll survive, there's no doubt about that. How is she holding up?"

"Rivyera's growing more anxious as the appointed day approaches, but for the most part she appears to be taking this far more smoothly. Undoubtedly she has ice blood within her family tree."

The two others rolled their eyes. "Cyril, tonight, we inform the children just what they're up against. Everything."

The ice guardian's rather proud countenance quickly dropped to shock and apprehension. "...Are you...quite sure of this, Ignitus?"

"Yes. Inform Volteer too when he's completed the core calibrations."

Nightshade slunk into the room, rather translucent but gaining solidity as he approached them. "Ignitus, I can't agree to this just yet."

"Why not?" Ignitus sat down, his tail twitching rather irritably.

"They need to know, yes. But Spyro isn't ready for the information yet, even with this sudden new attack directly from the enemy. With everything he's gone through since Cynder's rescue, the load might snap him." Purple almonds turned to red slits as his eyes narrowed dangerously and began to glow. "And we all here know what happened the last time that was risked."

"Are you challenging me?" Ignitus growled, lips curling up a bit to expose his teeth.

"No. As a father, I'm voicing my expertise on dealing with stressed children. Limited expertise, admittedly, but nonetheless. Spyro needs more confidence in his powers and abilities before this. After his furthered training, he should be ready. We shouldn't jump to these conclusions just yet."

Ignitus glared at him for what seemed like an hour. The others could feel the tension between them. Finally Ignitus broke the eye contact to look up at the statue once more, contemplating his response. "And how are we to know all this waiting isn't stressing him even more? He desires the knowledge."

Cyril butted in by clearing his throat. "I do believe that is Nightshade's point, Ignitus. Hetoo desired knowledge, and it was given before he was ready. With good intent, of course, but the outcome..."

"Hrmm...yes, there is that point..." Ignitus growled to himself.

"Spyro's need to know his purpose has been one of the many driving forces in his career," Terrador weighed in, "as it would be for anyone with so much potential and so much power and skill. I'm neither here nor there about this. The longer we wait, the more likely he is to become disgruntled about his confusion. On the other paw, giving him the knowledge could open unwanted doors."

"Then it appears I am outvoted without Volteer or Rivyera here to give their opinions." The fire elder grumbled to himself. "Okay then. We shall wait until after their training. When will Spyro be ready?"

Nightshade glanced over at the doorway, his tail-swaying slowing down. "I don't know. He keeps getting knocked unconscious so often, it's hard to tell with him anymore. I'm surprised the boy hasn't sustained mental damage."

While this debate was going on, the younger ones were all in the hidden tunnel area with Rivyera and the eggs. Cynder, stressed from the episode, had come back to the Temple looking ready to go into a nervous breakdown; now she was curled up around one of the eggs, sound asleep, while the others were finishing up their recount of the events in the Ruins. Rivyera sighed to herself at the ending.

"What you kids encountered at the end was no doubt what you were sent there to investigate. An ancient earth golem from the deeps, a remnant from an ancient, cruel age. Presumably there are many hidden within the molten bowels of the planet...and many other creatures of more devious natures."

"What's a golem exactly?" Flame asked. Neves sighed, readjusting his glasses on his muzzle with his wing.

"A golem is an animated construct. Those guardian machines at Tall Plains and in many other areas are golems; constructs animated with energy from Spirit Gems. Typically they have limited sentience, borderline none, only programmed to perform specific tasks. More advanced golems would be exemplified by those tornado golems that attacked us at Concurrent Skies and the skies above Tall Plains not too long ago; embodied malevolent will, only knowing destruction. What we saw though...I can't explain. Living rock and magma, I guess. Animated lifeless materials."

Rivyera nodded, looking down at the floor. Lifting a paw a bit, she began making graceful motions with her toes, a watery form growing up from the floor until they were looking at a miniature golem similar to what they had seen. "There are many things in this world we cannot explain. Users of darkness tend to be proficient in golem construction and animation, making entire legions of animated doll soldiers. They can use any material, from water to air to crystal to dark matter to light itself if they possess enough power to bind it to a form. The earth golems, however...it's been theorized that in ages past, the forbears of the Dreamweavers and Beastmakers delved too deep in their magic and accidentally created the monsters, intended for protection but turning into animal-minded beings only focused on their own existence. They can be controlled...if one possesses strong enough willpower. Ripto certainly does. Now that it's confirmed that a golem has arisen under Warfang, I'm worried that Ripto has summoned it. It's only just woken up though, and will take some time to wake up even more before it can be used. It's not dangerous yet unless directly confronted. They're terribly territorial, so as long as no one ventures into the Ruins, Warfang need not worry."

Shimmer grunted and lay down, tucking her paws under herself and curling her tail around her side, not noticing Neves's face go a bit red at how cute she looked. "Great. So...we go in for this training to take on giant ancient evil creatures along with Ripto and Gnasty and whoever else is out there?"

"Pretty much, yes." She glanced over at Caelos when he spread his wings a bit. He started signing when he got her attention. "I know, Caelos...It does feel that way."

"What did he say?" Flame asked, not being in a position to see the wind dragon's paws.

"You little ones are being pushed into a terribly unfair burden. Ripto and his cronies are resurrecting old creatures like the Nonsleers, the raptors, and now golems, in addition to their armies of more modernized minions. You're essentially going to have to finish the battles of everyone else before you on top of your own."

"So we've got the weight of thisworld on our shoulders, plus the unsolved weights from past generations...great..." Plazyma groaned, hiding under her wings. "Really frickin' wish I could just sign out of this...it's just too much..."

"Speaking of the Unoren, how are they doing?" Shimmer asked, attempting to change the subject. "Ever since Spyro saved them we haven't really heard about them or checked on them...I feel kinda bad about that, it's been three years and we basically just handed them over for others to deal with."

Rivyera gave a half-smile and looked down at her eggs before responding. "The Unoren raptors seem to be doing quite well. Since they're omnivorous and will eat just about anything, the Settlement has been using them to pretty much dispose of unused or unpurchased produce out in the farmlands to the south, as well as harnessing them for manual labor since they're so strong. Last I heard, the creatures were actually enjoying being helpful, especially when the farmers are appreciative of their ability to drag so much heavy equipment and till so much soil at once."

"That's good."

Flame smirked. "Seems that Spyro is changing lives everywhere without really trying."

"Why does he keep getting knocked unconscious all the time?" Cynder mumbled, then yawned and stretched around the eggs, keeping her tail curled around it. Rivyera shrugged.

"It's the nature of combat. You train and train, go fight, and come back and nurse your wounds, train more, go fight, get wounded, rinse and repeat. Hopefully soon you young ones will become strong enough that you won't be getting knocked out like that so often."

Cynder stretched again, then froze and quickly looked down at the egg she'd been keeping warm. "It...it moved!" Immediately she planted herself back on the floor, hugging the egg with her ear pressed against the shell, listening intently. Rivyera smiled warmly and curled her tail a little tighter around the two by her.

"It won't be long now."


His side seared with a sudden sharp pain, then a fraction of a second later an even greater pain spread through his whole body as he forced himself to shift to shadow form, yet something was keeping him from fully converting. All at once the pain multiplied threefold as he was forced into little more than a two-dimensional space with intense pressure on either side of himself. Very dimly he could hear voices, but whatever was keeping him from fully shifting to shadow was also keeping him from touching the shadows of the block that was smashing him against the wall. The stone suddenly heated up several times, electrical power all around him, but again that darkness was preventing anything from happening.

I can't...get out...

The pain all around him was making him lose consciousness, and fast, his mind struggling to figure something out before he lost it. He was still "translucently solid", as Nightshade called it...

Wait...the spikes impaled me a bit...I must be bleeding...Forcing his thought and shadow powers he sought around himself and did indeed find a trickle of blood running from his side down to the floor; further searching found that it was starting to ooze out past the block. Ancestors be praised; the darkness power was negated where Caelos' shadow overlapped it. With the last bit of his power he forced himself along that shadow passage along his blood and into the wind dragon's shadow on the floor, just barely hearing them cry out in shock before his mind slipped away.

Or...did it?

The world around him seemed to fade into...something else. Another place. Hot. Heavy. Thick. Oppressive. What was this place? It felt like the heart of the earth or something, like he was inside the magma hundreds of feet below where he'd passed out. No...he wasn't in some other physical place. Something was searching him...something malicious. Something strong-willed.

Confusion...anger, shreds of hatred...anguish, pain...many ails.

"Who are you?" he called out into the oppressive heat surrounding him.

Do you fear the answer? The voice laughed, the sound echoing in the purple dragon's head. I assure you, I mean you no harm. In fact...I am much like you. We have so much in common, I feel almost as if you are the son I never had. Spyro found his vision opening up again to a mix of colors, all fiery, as if he were in the heart of a flame comprised of many colors...most of them dark. It made him feel sick. But...I move too swiftly. Forgive me...it's been so long since I've had another to converse with. Confusion permeates you, little one...it hangs upon you like a plague. Care to divulge?

Spyro didn't like the tone behind these words, but the voice itself was inviting. It was a deep, guttural voice that...sounded somewhat familiar... "Who are you?" he asked again, looking around.

The answers you seek...the solutions to the conundrums that plague you...there is a way. Every answer you've ever wanted is yours for the knowing.

Spyro froze. Answers... every answer to every question he'd ever asked... his mind raced frantically as questions long suppressed welled up. Who were his parents? Why had they abandoned him? Why did his fosters abandon him? Why...why did she leave... Who was he? Why was he purple? Why had everyone shunned him for his color? Why had no one come for him or taken him in? Who is Ripto; what is his motive? Who are the others assisting him? What could they possibly hope to gain? Why...why had they enslaved his best friend... Why...

Do you wish to know everything you've ever questioned?the voice whispered.

"...More than anything..." Spyro's curiosity grew. If answers were what this voice was offering...maybe he could find a solution to all this! Maybe he could find a solution that could end the war before anything else could develop! Maybe he could find the answers that would let him end the strife and live a normal life! But wait... "Why are you offering this? What's it gonna cost me? And who are you?"

I simply wish to help. You are full of confusion, and there is a way to fix that. It's been so long since I last had anyone to speak with...why does one need a reason to help out another in need?

That did make sense... "How...do I find these answers?" The flames around him seemed to part, revealing a door at the far end of the ruins. So...he really wasn't unconscious? But then...where were the others? All around him the flames seemed to fade away from the initial parting.

The door at the far end of the ruins. Beyond it lies a room in which everything you've ever wondered will be answered fully.

Nervously, Spyro began making his way there, jumping a bit as a transparent door suddenly opened around him and then faded as he passed through. Had he just left a room or something? Whatever it was, the ruins were now a lot clearer. "Everything...finally answered..." Filled with excitement and anticipation at the prospect, he ran towards the door. He couldn't see it, but he remembered where the parting flames had shown him to go. Feeling he couldn't run fast enough he charged himself with electricity and shot forward.

Out of nowhere a black streak suddenly shot at him, charged with electricity as well. Elites were here? No wonder his friends were hiding! Not wanting to encounter this pursuer he bolted off, zapping this way and that, trying to shake it off, but it kept up with him with amazing precision until finally it caught him. He yelped in fright as a demonic version of Plazyma glared at him and shrieked in his face; throwing off its grip he blasted it with his lightning breath and shot off towards the door again, hoping he could lose it by the time it recovered. Up ahead lay a large circular platform with a long, tongue-like stone bridge leading to the door; Spyro landed there and immediately cloaked himself in shadow power, slipping into the shadows of the tiles. Good thing too; the demon-Plazyma landed shortly after he did, along with more monsters. "So whatever it is we came down here to investigate...it created copies of them?" he asked himself, backing away. "Or...oh no...are they corrupted? Did something get to them?" Answers...he'd know up ahead for sure, the room would let him know what happened and how to cure them! Slipping through the shadows he traveled along the bridge, but to his dismay, they did as well. They were intending to corner him! How did they know where he was going? His shadow power gave way at the last minute and he materialized from the floor. "Maybe...they won't see me..." he said to himself, calmly walking forward. One of them let out a cry, making him look over his shoulder at them. One of them jumped backwards in fright and rolled over the bridge, the others scrambling after it. "Okay, I can do this..." he grunted, continuing towards the door. It gave off a bright, inviting light as it sat atop a small pyramid of steps. He climbed up slowly, then stopped in front of it, lifting his paw towards the graceful silver paw outstretched from the door to take his.

All of a sudden, the demon that had fallen off the bridge sprang out of his shadow and viciously attacked him, growing horrifyingly more monstrous as it roared at him. His strength left his body as sheer terror took him, but then it grabbed at him, making him flail out in panic against it. It leapt on him and they tussled in front of the door, Spyro doing everything he could just to stay alive as the beast assailed him with intent to capture him or pin him down, most likely for the others to come in and help finish him off. The next thing he knew the demon was torn off him, replaced by a much bigger, more lethal-looking version. Spyro lost it and threw himself at it, blasting it with ice and fire, only to watch in dismay as his elements seemed to ghost through the figure. He strove madly against it but everything suddenly went black again as a sharp pain seared through the right half of his head. This time, however, the world went totally black. Only a short time later he felt himself on his side on a familiar moss-covered stone shape, voices around him.

"Had I known this would have happened I would not have voted for letting them go down there."

"None of us could have known, Terrador."

"But this is the worst thing that could have happened, next to Cynder being captured. First we lose one of our better fighters and she's enslaved for three years, now something has force-shifted Spyro into Dark Forme?"

Dark Forme?Spyro asked himself. Their voices were muffled and echoey, but he could just barely make out what they were saying.

"No, we are somewhat more fortunate than that..." Ignitus said, his voice trailing off. Spyro couldn't hear any more than that as they left the room.

What...what the hell is Dark Forme...I wasn't in a dark form at all... Spyro sighed to himself mentally, trying to wake up but feeling his body resisting. Whatever happened, seems like they got me out of there...but...I never got to the door...I've got to go back.