Cynder was exploring the underworld all on her own. The dark place she once considered her home awoke many vivid memories, memories she was hoping to forget. But she had to do this, she was the only one Hex would listen to.

"Hello?" The dragoness shouted out when she returned to Malefor's throne where the Skylanders battled the rogue witch. "Hex?" There was no answer.

The Skylander flew up to the now destroyed throne of the Undead King. How many times she's returned to this place to tell him about all the chaos she's caused in her days as the Black Dragon. With a long sigh Cynder passed the chunks of rocks and continued her journey.

The Undead Skylander looked everywhere. The Cadaverous Crypt, the Crawling Catacombs, all places that the Skylanders visited years ago, yet no sign of Hex. Finally, Cynder reached the Creepy Citadel. This was the place where they found the Eternal Undead Source back when they had to rebuild the Core of Light. It was the home of many ancient kings and queens of the underworld, until Malefor took over and claimed the title all for himself. The place has been lonely and forgotten ever since, yet it remained standing in its full dark glory.

Cynder walked across the stone bridge above the dark depths of the underworld. She saw scratch marks carved all over it, a book which has fallen apart, and finally a corpse. A dead body was nothing unusual in the underworld, yet something about this one struck Cynder as strange. There was a staff lying next to it, and upon closer inspection, she realized that the body was fresh. A month at maximum. The faded green skin was decaying, and parts of the skeleton were exposed, but Cynder realized that this person died not long ago. The dragon spotted black veins running across the body as well. She didn't want to believe it, but Cynder thought that this might have been Hex' doing. The blue robe and what was left of the elvish ears fit the description of one of her former friends. Would Hex truly kill someone in such a gruesome manner? They treated her badly, but she never expected her to seek revenge to this extent.

A sudden burst of magic in the distance pulled Cynder's attention away from the lifeless body. She started to believe that this was the place where Hex resided most of the time, since she can only be found outside of the underworld when she was cursing people into becoming bloodthirsty zombies. Determined but also scared, Cynder spread her wings and rose into the air to follow the fading purple light. She was hoping that it wasn't too late for her friend to have a change of heart.


The remaining Skylanders just returned to the Academy. Wounded after their fight with Hex, they made their way to the hospital, Stealth Elf most of all, before regrouping and discussing further plans with their allies.

Spyro sighed as he was looking his companions in the eyes. "Skylanders, there's a new threat at hand."

"Did Malefor escape the underworld?" Nightfall asked with spite in her voice.

"Did Moneybone free him?" High Volt recalled the last time the count posed a threat, when he managed to kidnap Master Eon himself.

"Is there… someone else?" Tidepool was hesitant. She was afraid that her former alliance, the Aqua-Marines, might have finally come out of hiding to strike.

"No… it's far worse." Spyro built up tension and had all ears for him. "Hex has turned against us."

"Hex?" Confused voices could be heard from the crowd. "Is she evil after all? Did Malefor manipulate her? How will we defeat her?"

Questions Spyro couldn't answer, and that was the problem. Even though they were able to defeat Malefor with their united strength, Hex is even more powerful than him. And their powers combined? Then Spyro remembered something. "An alliance destined to destroy" That's what the Book of Destiny showed him. Was this it? Will those two form an alliance that is capable of destroying the Skylanders?

Out of the crowd, a worried Spitfire blazed up to Spyro. "Spyro, you have to see this!" The dragon's eyes were set on the screen that the speed demon held in his hand. What he saw was terrible, but not surprising. "Malefor has ambushed multiple villages while you were gone. Dozens have died and most are left without a home." The two leaders watched with despair as the monitor kept showing them flashing pictures of the vicious dragon spewing fire at innocent people and burning their towns to the ground.

Spyro became furious. "I'll take care of this." With a swift flap of his wings, the Magic Skylander ascended into the skies and soared away from the Academy, leaving his allies confused before they took over to answer everyone's questions.


Spyro was flying at a speed he's rarely experienced before. He was fueled by anger and the will to put an end to the Undead King. He recognized the town displayed on the screen, and that's where he was going. He would no longer allow Malefor to spread fear across Skylands. He may not be able to stop him nor Hex, but he would do everything to protect the people of this world.

Spyro soon reached the village, it was in ruins. People were crying and looking for their loved ones. It was hard for the leader to simply fly past such a scene, but help was already on its way. As much as he wanted to stop, he had other plans and directed his sights back forward with a determined look on his face.
After another short flight, he spotted the enormous dragon in the distance. Surrounded by grey clouds and a few small islands, he was heading towards his next target. Spyro wouldn't allow that.

"Malefor!" The Skylander exclaimed for the Undead King to halt in mid-air. "Stop your tyranny once and for all or face the wrath of the Skylanders!"

Malefor held in before bursting out in laughter. He turned around and flapped his wings to stay in the spot while facing the smaller dragon. "You think you stand a chance against me?"

Spyro responded to that by spitting three fireballs at the dragon. Malefor couldn't react and got hit by them, which barely had any effect. As a counter, the undead dragon used his tail to whip Spyro against an island, cracking the earth upon impact. "Oh Spyro, how pathetic you've become since you joined those Skylanders."

After shaking off the dirt from his body and getting back into the air, Spyro faced his enemy with confusion. "What are you talking about?"

"You don't remember, I'm aware of that, but you used to be different." Malefor went on about a story which sounded more like a legend than anything. "You, Cynder and I, we've known each other for longer than you might think. We were already bound by fate in another life."

Spyro had no idea what to make of that information. "That's nonsense! Why are you telling me this now?"

"Because you need to know what you've done to me before I burn you to ashes." Malefor charged up a powerful flame ball and aimed it at Spyro who was able to dodge it. "I used to be just like you a long time ago, when I was the only and first purple dragon. In the age of the dragons, I discovered that I possessed a far greater power than the rest of my kind, and I did not hesitate to use it. The elder dragons were foolish cowards, they didn't acknowledge my strength and banished me out of fear. However, I had my ways to return, one of which was Cynder. Then one day some naive purple dragon appeared out of nowhere and swayed my most loyal minion to take me down."
There was so much spite and hatred in Malefor's words, Spyro almost believed them. "When I was reborn into this world and realized that you did not appear yet, I used that freedom to fulfill my plans. I took Cynder once again and made her my most deadly weapon, I built an undead army that could conquer all of Skylands! Everything was going as planned, until I made the mistake to challenge Hex. I underestimated her, but she was also an opportunity to return and become more powerful than ever before, which I finally have."

"You've manipulated Hex just like Cynder to join you, but you won't win this time!" Spyro launched himself at the king who took the hit just to pin the Skylander down onto an island with his mighty steel claw.

"Everything Hex is doing is of her own accord, I have no part in her decisions." Malefor pushed the purple dragon further down and clenched his claw to squeeze his small body. "Perhaps if you had cared enough, she wouldn't have gone down that path, but that's exactly what I was expecting. Her hatred set me free and keeps me alive, and sooner rather than later we will reign over the Skylands with fear."

Spyro used his flame breath to heat up Malefor's armor and get his claw off him before rising back up. "We will stop you, both of you. There is no villain that was able to defeat us."

"Then a Skylander might get the job done." Malefor laughed as he teased Spyro and a battle ensued between the purple dragons.


In the meantime, Cynder has reached the Creepy Citadel and walked through the long hallways inside. A cryptic place, with empty halls and dark corners all around. Spiderwebs, molten candles and skulls decorated the old building, making sure only the bravest would dare to pass.

The dragoness kept looking for the sorceress dressed in black, but without success. Finally, she entered a large room at the heart of the citadel. Judging by the rusty chandeliers above, the torn curtains on the walls and the crumbling chair at the back, it must have been the throne room. The ceiling was broken and cracked, allowing some dim lights from the outside to enter and give the area a mystic touch. When Cynder moved closer to the throne, she could sense someone else arriving and turned around. "Hex!" Cynder wanted to run towards the witch but quickly changed her mind after getting no reaction.

"What are you doing here, Cynder?" Hex was calm. She had no intention of attacking the Undead Skylander, she just wanted her gone.

Cynder sighed after being met with the same cold frown from their last confrontation. Hex was never the cheerful type, but the dragon could tell how unhappy she was now. "Hex, we need to talk."

"There is nothing to talk about." Another attempt to get rid of her former ally. "You heard everything, I'm done playing nice."

"But this isn't the way, Hex!" Cynder had that desperate look in her eyes which only Spyro and Hex herself have seen before. "I know you. You're not a villain, you never were."

"And where has that gotten me?" Hex clenched her fists remembering the countless times where she was rejected by the people she saved. "Those ungrateful pawns are getting what they deserve. They're getting what they want."

"Don't allow them to decide who you have to be, Hex!" Cynder knew too well what it was like to have your fate sealed by someone else, and she could sympathize with Hex on that note. "You were never bothered by those things before, you told me that you didn't care."

"I lied, Cynder. Not only to you, but to myself as well." The witch turned around and stared into the dark abyss of the underworld through a hole in the ground. "I thought I could rise above it. Spend the rest of my days pretending like nothing's wrong… I couldn't keep that up anymore."
Hex turned back around to look into Cynder's worried eyes. "You of all people should know what that's like. Being painted as the villain, all because of him."

She was talking about Malefor, Cynder knew right away. "I was a villain." She hated talking about her dark past, but if there was even the slightest chance of it helping her friend, she was willing to do so. "Malefor manipulated me, but he didn't force me to do anything. Death and destruction was all I ever knew." It was such a dark time in Cynder's life, she couldn't believe that she was capable of such things.
"Ever since I became a Skylander, I tried making up for everything I did, but that wasn't possible. I hurt people in unimaginable ways, and some will never forgive me for that." The Skylander also had to deal with not being accepted. Even though it wasn't to such an extreme extent due to not being recognized as the Black Dragon, it didn't hurt any less. "I learned to live with the fact that I am a villain to some, but I found the ones who are able to look past that and they helped me to become the best version of myself. My true self."

"Good for you." Hex' sarcastic response was as dry as the bones scattered throughout the room. "I didn't get that privilege, not after centuries. The Skylanders may tolerate me, but they never trusted me."

Hex turned away once more and Cynder was running out of options. "I understand what you're going through Hex, trust me I do. You're angry and you have a right to be, but that's no excuse to do the things you're doing." Cynder was careful with the words she chose, she could tell that Hex was on the verge of good and bad. "It's not too late to fix this. I won't lie to you, you will have to face the consequences, but if you stop now-"

"I've been facing consequences my entire life!" For the first time, Hex raised her voice and revealed a glimpse of the deep rage that's been growing inside of her. "Do I need to remind you that without me Malefor would have destroyed you all months ago? The Skylands might have been an undead wasteland by now if it wasn't for me! What I'm doing now may be bad, but I prevented far worse before."

Cynder was shocked to hear those sentences. "I'm sorry Hex, but you don't get to use your good deeds to justify this." She has been patient with the witch so far, but it looked like she had to use another tone to get through to her. "I am grateful for the things you've done, but I can't let you do this. Innocent people are dying by your hand!"

"And why should I care?" Hex kept her voice down, which terrified the dragon far more than any shouting. "You never had to worry about your actions, they didn't throw you into prison for all the things you did."

Cynder had no response to that. She didn't expect the sorceress to go there. "Hex, please-"

"Enough, Cynder! I have made my decision and you can't change that. I have tried being a hero for far too long, there is no use." In a moment of silence, Hex looked at Cynder and saw how worried she was. She despised the Skylanders, but she did share a special bond with the dragon, one even her hatred couldn't diminish. "You can try to stop me, but I assure you that none of you will be prepared for what's to come. However, you could be."

Cynder gave Hex a strange look. "What do you mean?"

"Join me, Cynder." Hex got straight to the point and made her offer. "The Skylanders' final days are upon us. Once they've perished, you won't have anywhere to go. By my side you wouldn't have to be afraid of anything, not even Malefor."

Cynder thought she was in a wild dream after hearing that. "Are you insane!?" The dragon shook her head and threw the witch a disbelieving look. "My days of evil are over! You may have submitted to Malefor, but I will never go back there! Never!"

"You think I submit to him?" Hex expected Cynder to know better than that, but she was disappointed. "Malefor is at my mercy. I have full control over him, and he only does what I allow him to. You wouldn't even have to see him."

"I'm not joining you!" Cynder was hopeless. She couldn't think of anything else to tell her former friend. "I won't fight you Hex, you know that, but if you continue like this, we will stop you."

"I'd like to see you try." Hex gave the dragoness a last glaring look before she spread her wings and left the citadel.

Cynder soared away looking for the exit of the underworld. That conversation was not what she had hoped for. The Hex she once knew, who was always there to listen to her problems and support her, was gone. The woman she just saw was a vengeful witch, whose only interest is to destroy the living world for wronging her throughout all those years.


Spyro crashed onto another island. A stinging pain rushed through the dragon's entire body as he opened his eyes and dashed away before a blast of spectral fire could consume him. He ascended back into the skies and used his own flame breath to strike Malefor, who easily blocked the attack.

"You hope to defeat me with such pitiful blows? You do remember that I'm immortal, right?" Malefor grinned and whipped his entire body around to strike Spyro with his tail.

After the painful counterattack, the Magic Skylander struggled to keep himself in mid-air to answer. "I don't care! We will find a way to stop you, with or without Hex!" Spyro charged another powerful fireball and aimed it at Malefor, who easily brushed it off after getting hit.

The large dragon laughed sinisterly. "That's the point, Spyro. You can only defeat me without Hex!"

"What?" Spyro knew that they were somehow linked, but he also thought that the witch was the only one capable of defeating him. "What do you mean?"

"It's simple. I am being kept alive by Hex' powers. The only way to get rid of me, is to get rid of her." Malefor had a sick smile on his face, almost as if he wanted Spyro to follow his instructions. "You have to kill her."

Spyro didn't want to believe that. Hex may have turned against the Skylanders, but they would never kill one of their own, not even a villain for that matter. "Not a chance! I won't fall for your tricks!"

"Best of luck defeating both of us then." The Undead King flapped his large wings to create strong gusts of wind and push Spyro as far away as possible. "The Skylanders will fall, and the Skylands will finally bow to their rightful ruler, the Undead King!" With those words Malefor turned around and flew away from the small collection of islands. Spyro attempted to follow him, but the dragon was gone in the blink of an eye.


After the unsuccessful confrontation with Malefor, Spyro returned to the Academy, where countless reports of more possessed creatures ringed through the headquarters. Cynder arrived before him, she was talking to Stealth Elf and a few other allies. Spyro joined in on the conversation.

"Cynder, what's all the fuzz about?" The Magic Skylander approached the small group.

"There you are Spyro." Cynder turned her head to her friend to explain. "I tried talking to Hex, but nothing I said got through to her. I've never seen her like that before." Cynder's heart was heavy while proclaiming the news, but she had to put the safety of the Skylands first. "I'm afraid we have no choice… we have to take her down."

"I already thought so…" Spyro didn't want to tell the others what he heard from Malefor. While some might not even argue against it, Cynder would be devastated if they had to murder one of her former best friends. Not to mention that it was forbidden for a Skylander to kill unless there's no other choice. "We must find a way to defeat Hex first, that is the only way to stop Malefor as well."

"How are we supposed to do that?" Stealth Elf was ready to fight, but she knew firsthand what the undeads were capable of. "They're the most powerful undead beings in Skylands, we won't stand a chance against both of them."

Spyro was doubtful as well. They may outnumber them by a hundred, yet the power of the witch and the dragon was unmatched. A fight against them combined would be a bloodbath. "We will find a way, we always do! We just have to come up with something else."

While the group split up to attend to other business, Spyro remained where he was. He never hoped for anything like this to happen. It was a dangerous threat and truly the first one which had the potential to end the Skylanders. "An alliance destined to destroy" Spyro repeated that sentence in his head. He was afraid that those words might stand for the future they were about to witness.


Down at the Creepy Citadel, Malefor returned from his meeting with the leader of the Skylanders after Hex spent the rest of the day corrupting more people than ever before. As much as the two despised each other, they had no choice but to work together. For Hex to keep Malefor under her control, and for him to eventually rule the Skylands.

"When are we going to bring the Skylanders down?" Malefor grew bored of terrorizing simple townsfolk and finally wanted to unleash his wrath upon his sworn enemies. "Now that they know, it's only a matter of time until they try to stop you."

"Patience, Malefor. We have to pressure them before we strike." Hex advanced her plan with each passing day, and she wouldn't let Malefor interfere with it. "Fear is our greatest ally, we have to use it to break the Skylanders. Only then may we be able to defeat them." Hex was looking across the walls and floors of the citadel, gazing upon the dark cave surrounding them. The place she once feared and hated so much has now become her new home. "Then I will finally get my revenge."