Team Alpha: In pursuit of Wintrius

Axius found himself in the watery weird world that Triastrus had apparently created just for him. He sat down at a desk that had been appearing for him recently. Triastrus stood in front of him. Axius couldn't see his face underneath his helmet, but he seemed pleased about something.

"This is good," he said.

"What's that supposed to mean?" the Paladin Elementum asked. Triastrus gestured around him.

"This world has a name: Orbis."

"Wait," Axius interrupted, "this place is its own world?" Triastrus nodded.

"Indeed. You may think you're safe and sound in your camp, dreaming, but you're actually stuck in this realm, in both mind and body."

"You feel the need to tell me this now?!" Axius asked, standing up and pushing back his chair. He was beginning to grow angry. "This isn't what I signed up for!" Triastrus held up his hands to pacify the angry Scimitar.

"There are some things I cannot tell you Axius, but I need you to trust me." Axius crossed his arms.

"Why should I trust the guy who shows up out of nowhere with his own little realm who transports me here whenever I'm trying to sleep and while I'm trying to stop the world itself from ending?"

"Because I alone hold the key to defeating Armageddon… and I alone decide who receives that key." Axius sighed and shook his head.

"Sorry," he said. "I… I'm just worrying about a lot at once."

"There is no need for that here Axius. Your friends are fine and with what I am going to teach you, the rest of the Dragon Realms will be too." Axius gestured to the desk and chair next to him.

"I've been meaning to ask, what's this about?" Triastrus chuckled.

"It means you're welcome here. Orbis has taken a liking to you."

Team Charlie: In pursuit of Tenuem

"Dynamo what is that thing?" Spyro asked worriedly. The black and red dragon stared at the giant thing standing in front of him. He had taken the purple dragon deep into the woods to show him his new ability.

"Omicron called it an Archetype, though I have no clue what that is."

"And you say he gave it to you?" Dynamo nodded.

"It was either this or death." Spyro looked back to the avatar.

"What was it doing to that poison dragoness."

"I've figured it out… I think." He began to pace back and forth. "It's right and left arm do different things." Spyro cocked his head to the side.

"Different things?" Dynamo nodded again.

"Its right arm absorbs the kinetic energy of a moving object, while the left releases it." He took notice of Spyro's confused look. "I can absorb attacks and release them all at once in one attack." Spyro nodded in understanding.

"It's incredibly fast!" Dynamo grinned.

"It has to be." He began to pace back and forth. "I hate to go off topic, but how is PT holding up?"

"We just found another cluster of healing crystals, and he should be waking up soon." Dynamo nodded.

"That's good," he said. "He'll want to see this." Spyro stared at the thing.

"Does… Does it have a name?"

"I do, thank you." Both Spyro and Dynamo yelped and shot off the ground. Dynamo stared at the thing, like had seen a ghost.

"Y-You can talk?!" Dynamo stuttered. He looked like he was about to break down. The Archetype crossed its massive arms and nodded.

"You may call me Crimson Arcturus." Its voice was far deeper than Dynamo's. Spyro could feel the thing's baritone voice thrum inside his chest. The purple dragon cocked his head to the side.

"No offense… but… what are you?"

"I am… not quite sure." Spyro looked at Crimson Arcturus incredulously.

"How is that possible." The Archetype somehow stood up even taller, and the air seemed to hum with power.

"I was born yesterday," it said, seeming rather agitated.

"S-Sorry," Spyro stuttered. The sound of footsteps approaching got his attention. Omicron stepped into view from behind a towering tree and waved to them. He whistled when he saw Crimson Arcturus towering over him.

"I never got a good look at your Archetype." He chuckled. "I thought he would be taller."

"I'll have to make myself look taller… by cutting off your legs." Omicron gave an amused chuckle.

"Arcturus," Dynamo pleaded, "not now."

"I haven't seen one that talks in a long time." Arcturus growled.

"And you never will again!" Dynamo's eyes widened.

"WAIT! ARC—!" The Archetype reared back its fist, ready to obliterate Omicron with just one punch. Arcturus' fist shot towards Omicron's hooded head but stopped mere inches from its target. Dynamo and Spyro's eyes widened; a black thorny tendril was wrapped around Arcturus' wrist.

"I created you," Omicron said menacingly, "and I can just as easily destroy you." More tendrils wrapped around Crimson Arcturus' legs and arms, forcing him to his knees. Dynamo grunted and dropped into the same position.

"H-How?!" Arcturus asked in amazement. Dynamo could feel the tendrils crushing around the Archetype's chest on his own, forcing the air out of his lungs.

"With the power of my Archetype: VEGA BLACK!" The tendrils hoisted Arcturus in the air and hurled him as if he were a toy. Dynamo went airborne as well and slammed into a tree.

"OMICRON!" Spyro shouted. More tendrils erupted out of the cloaked figure's forearms and back.

"I will teach you a lesson about using that mouth of yours!" Spyro put himself in front of Omicron.

"STOP!" the purple dragon roared. "THERE'S NOTHING TO GAIN FROM THIS!" Spyro never saw the tendrils wrap around him. He was suddenly hoisted in the air.

"Stay out of my way!" Spyro thrashed and struggled in vain attempts to break free from the tendrils' iron grip. The tendrils tossed him through the air, and he landed on his feet. The tendrils had thrown him gently enough to not hurt him. The purple dragon didn't know if it was intentional or not.

Omicron stomped forward. "You must learn to control it, Dynamo!" He lashed out with Black Vega towards Dynamo. The dragon yelped and dove to the side. Vega Black's tendrils wrapped around the trunk of the tree Dynamo had been standing in front of.

Spyro couldn't believe his eyes when the trunk was wrenched out of the ground with a CRACK! Omicron whipped his arm around and the tendrils threw the tree in Dynamo's direction. Dynamo drew himself up to full height and his eyes turned crimson as the aura returned around his body.

"ARCTURUS!" The Archetype struck the tree with its right arm and it dropped like a stone.

"Good," Omicron said, "again!" He threw his arm out and the tendrils wrapped around another tree. "Protect yourself!" Arcturus struck the tree with his right fist again and it fell atop the previous one.

Spyro then realized what Omicron was doing: training Dynamo.

Omicron relaxed and chuckled. "Good job!"

Dynamo looked at the cloaked figure incredulously. "What?!"

"Look at Arcturus there," Omicron said, pointing to the dragon's Archetype. "It hasn't said a word since I first hit you."

Dynamo's eyes widened and he glanced up at the crimson avatar, who just grunted and crossed its arms. He rubbed the back of his head. "I guess you're right."

Omicron walked up to him and placed a gloved hand on the dragon's shoulder. "You are already showing great progress, and this is only day two. With patience, you can do even more."

Dynamo nodded, a blazing look of determination on his face as Omicron turned and moved back towards the campsite.

"I like the name you chose, Dynamo! It has a nice ring to it!"

Spyro looked over at the two-legged dragon. "You chose that name?"

Dynamo nodded, seeming proud of it.

"What made you choose Arcturus?"

Dynamo sighed, his forlorn demeanor returning. "That was my father's name."

Team Delta: In pursuit of Nautila

"How's she holding up Diablo?" Raden asked.

The human shook his head and sighed. "I don't think she's eaten. It's been three days."

The two were in the docking bay of the massive vehicle. Diablo sat on an empty shipping container, his hands folded in his lap. He had been fiddling ever since they returned to the Boulder. His worries about Samara had been eating away at him like fire to dead leaves. He wanted to comfort her, but he didn't know how. He had lost a lot just like she had, but it still put butterflies in his stomach knowing that he had no clue how to help her.

"You should go talk to her," Raden advised. Diablo shook his head.

"What do I say?" he asked desperately. "I… I want to… I really do, but I… I don't know what to do, what to say." Raden sighed.

"I don't think I'm who you should be asking."

Diablo huffed and buried his head in his hands. Raden noticed his shoulders shaking and he cried silently. He gently put a hand on his shoulder. The human looked up at him with tears shining on his face. He quickly looked back at the floor as Raden sat down next to him.

"It's not fair," he sniffed. "Why couldn't it be me? Why does she still have to suffer, after all she's been through?"

"I don't have the answer to that." Raden wished he could understand what the young boy was going through, but try as he might, it was a hopeless endeavor. His relationship with his parents was nothing like Samara's.

"Diablo," he eventually said, "I don't think it matters what you say to her, and I do think she feels neglected. She doesn't need anyone, she needs you."

Diablo looked over at the grey-furred cheetah. "Why the hell would you think that?"

"Because we've all tried to talk to her. She just locked her door and gave us the silent treatment."

"How do you she doesn't want to be alone?" Raden looked at the floor.

"I don't. You have to take that chance." He noticed Diablo look away from him.

"I don't take chances when it comes to friends." Raden began to grow angry. How was he so reluctant to help his best friend?

The embers smoldering in his belly grew to an inferno and he lashed out, cracking Diablo across the face with a well-placed right hook. The human spun and fell to all fours.

"You yellow-bellied, gutless coward!" Raden growled, drawing himself up to his full height. "How can you live with yourself while she sits in her room suffering, stewing in her own misery?!"

Diablo rubbed his jaw with a look of shock on his face. He certainly hadn't expected it, and how did Raden get by his Storm Shield. The wall of electricity should have protected him. He slowly got to his feet and looked at Raden. The cheetah had his teeth bared and fists clenched, a fire raging in his eyes.

Raden stepped forward and got an inch from Diablo's face. "You had best go to her before she hurts herself," he growled, his breath somehow cold on Diablo's cheek. "Or before she does something worse."

As much as Diablo hated it, he knew Raden was right. He grunted and shoved past him, the door hissing open as he approached. He gave Raden an apologetic look over his shoulder and saw he did not reciprocate. He had his arms crossed and looked at him expectantly. The human simply scowled and exited, allowing the door to close behind him.

Raden nodded with satisfaction as the door slid shut.

"I think I have finally figured you out, Raden." The cheetah whirled around to find Chronos sitting on one of the containers, his back against the wall.

"Oh, have you?" Raden scoffed. Chronos nodded. He hopped off the container and pointed a finger at him.

"You're afraid of having compassion." Raden felt like he had a bucket of ice water thrown in his face, his limbs freezing up and his eyes going wide.

"Wh-What?" Chronos nodded.

"Anyone who has ever gotten close to you has either died or suffered a great deal of pain, sometimes both. As a result, you try to save those you care about by ostracizing them, and when you feel any form of empathy, you become angry with your weakness and lash out in anger."

Raden opened his mouth to speak, but Chronos held up a hand. "Do not tell me if I am correct or not, for it matters not to me." He walked past Raden over to the door. As is opened, he placed a hand on the doorway and glanced over his shoulder. "Ask yourself if I am correct and see where that gets you."

Team Alpha: In pursuit of Wintrius

Axius stood on the dock with his arms crossed, a look of satisfaction on his face. They had finished the boat. It was roughly the size of a galleon with an iron buttressed hull and reinforced windows. Caminus had converted the rest of the metals into coins to serve as a rainy-day fund.

"That should be everything," Storm said as Everithon set down the last piece of camping gear. Axius nodded.

"Perfect." He turned to the dock. "Everyone on board!" The team boarded with the efficiency of a trained squad of soldiers.

Once on board, Axius sat on the captain's deck with Jacob, who had volunteered to drive. The Paladin Elementum marveled at how well the human could pilot the enormous ship.

"I didn't know you knew how to sail." Jacob chuckled.

"I don't sail," he explained, "back home, I used to work on ships, and even build 'em on occasion. I was something called aeronautics engineer for the military." Axius nodded in understanding.

"I'm guessing you spent a great deal of time on ships." Jacob nodded.

"I picked up a thing or two."

They spent the next few hours getting comfortable with their new waterborne accommodations. Eventually, the mass of the mainland disappeared over the horizon.

As the sun began to dip below the horizon, the activity topside was beginning to wind down.

"I'll take a shift driving," Storm offered. "I've been studying nautical navigation for a while."

"If you're sure about it," Axius said. "We're going below deck to get some sleep. Let us know if there's any problems." The young Lightning Dragon nodded as the Scimitar disappeared below, leaving him by himself.

Axius was woken by a loud crash. He jolted up in his bunk. He glanced around and saw the others had awoken as well.

"It's a storm!" Stratos exclaimed.

"Speaking of which," Jacob grunted as he stumbled around, trying to maintain his balance on the tilting floor, "why didn't Storm wake us?"

Axius' eyes widened. He had forgotten about Storm. He bolted up the stairs, throwing open the hatch and peering out into the rainy black night.

"STORM?!" he called into the darkness.

No answer.

Axius emerged fully from the staircase and dashed over to the steering wheel. He gasped when he got there.

"Oh no." There was a trail of blood leading to the railing, and Storm was nowhere to be seen.