Author's Note:
Hey Everyone! Welcome back to another chapter. Holy crap… you guys completely blew my expectations out of the water. This story has now reached over ten thousand views and nearly halfway to eleven thousand already. That is just pure insanity. I cannot believe how much reception this story has received. Thank you all so much! Thanks to my frequent reviewers:
- TARDIS (You wearing sandshoes?)
- Dragon of Mystery
- IllusionMaster17
- Atlas FF
I cannot thank you guys enough for all of the support, I really appreciate it. Anyway, let's continue on with the story shall we? Without further ado…
Let the story continue…
Chapter 17: Blackheart
It was a dreary and pale morning, the sky hidden behind what seemed like a wall of grey and miserable clouds. The sea lost its shine, only a shroud covering its surface as the waves moved lifelessly over the water. Cynder found it funny as it almost resembled her mood. A mood of saddened proportions. It was not the fact that she was missing Spyro, of course she did miss him greatly, but it was the fact that she left Aerith at such short notice. There was a certain buzz when she was with the little cheetah cub, almost warming to her heart. It certainly made her smile, that she was sure of.
Beside her, Sparx was flying with excitement and anticipation, unable to wait to be worshipped again by the atlawan tribes. Cynder was growing ever so tired of his constant babbling, having to tell him to shut up a few times. The black dragoness did not get much sleep the night before either, her lack of sleep putting her on edge. She had been too scared by the thought of falling asleep and succumbing to one of her nightmares. Since she began her journey, the nightmares had started, and each nightmare always remained the same: Spyro laying in a pool of his own blood in the centre of the infirmary, Cynder sitting over him, powerless and distraught. It scared her... scared her beyond belief to wake up and not see him by her side. It scared her that she didn't know if he was safe. Cynder quickly wiped a tear from her eye, grunting angrily at her emotional weakness. She had to stay strong, not only for Spyro, but for Warfang, for Aerith and for Avalar. She had to keep going, continuing on to get these elemental stones so she could enter the White Isle and meet the Chronicler.
"I can't wait to get to Tall Plains," Sparx piped up cheerily, his voice cutting through Cynder's thoughts.
Cynder rolled her eyes with a groan. Sparx was unable to take his mind off being worshipped by the atlawa, and Cynder doubted they'd even remember him. Not many people did, especially since Spyro did most of the work and Sparx was just flying around, spitting witty remarks and not being much of a help at all, apart from when he knocked out one of the Skavenger parrots, according to Spyro.
"Sparx, you know they're probably not going to remember you, right?" Cynder deadpanned.
"They worshipped me, Cynder. I don't know if you've ever been worshipped, but I think they'd remember me if they bothered getting on their knees and bowing to me," Sparx argued.
"You sure they weren't worshipping Spyro? After all, he was the one that destroyed the Stone Sentinel and freed everybody from my wrath."
"Come on, you're just making up excuses now. I was there, with Spyro. They worshipped both of us, but it still meant they worshipped me!"
"Don't be surprised if they forget who you are, you annoying gnat. Spyro was the main attraction and he did all the work."
"You're only saying he's the 'main attraction' because you're absolutely in love with him."
"I wasn't back then, and even I was so hellbent on getting to him so I could get him out of the way of my plans to revive Malefor. I'm just stating facts. Plus, wouldn't you say the same about Livvy?"
Sparx remained silent for a bit, and Cynder knew he understood her point, but he wouldn't give her the satisfaction of acknowledging it. So maybe Spyro was the main attraction, but the look on Sparx's face still portrayed that he believed he would be worshipped. That he should be worshipped. The eager, egotistic look said it all.
Cynder just rolled her eyes for a second time and let it rest. She had warned him enough, and it was starting to get tedious. Sparx would find out the hard way when they don't remember him at all.
The black dragoness turned over to her satchel, opening it slightly and seeing the soft white glow of the ice stone inside it. Every now and then, she would check on it, paranoid about losing it and having to go find it again. But at the same time, laying her eyes on it put comfort in her heart, knowing she was one step closer to saving Spyro. She couldn't wait until after her stay at Tall Plains, because she knew she would likely be leaving with the earth stone beside the ice stone. She'd be halfway there.
She clutched the necklace the Spyro had given to her, kissing it gently before letting it dangle around her neck once again. It's funny how something so small could have such a big meaning and impact. Not only was it because it's a small pendant of a purple dragon, but because it was given to her by Spyro. It was something which kept him close to her.
A few hours later, Sparx talking for most of it, Cynder and Sparx landed at Tall Plains and began to search for the earth stone. The black dragoness was already on high guard after the previous events that occured at Dante's Freezer. She knew that Hunter would not be able to come to the rescue this time. She was all on her own. Sparx on the other hand was frantically searching for the atlawan tribe, shouting at the top of his lungs to get their attention.
"Hello! Atlawan people! I have returned! The mighty Sparx has returned to you!" he shouted triumphantly at the trees.
"Sparx! Shut up!" Cynder hissed. "You're basically putting a big fat cross on our asses for people to kill us. Just for once, shut your mouth."
"Jeez, someone got up on the wrong side of the bed this morning," Sparx mumbled, rubbing the back of his neck.
"Oh for the ancestors' sakes, just help me out and look for a sign to where the stone could be," Cynder replied impatiently, her voice laced with irritation and annoyance. "Also, I don't want a repeat of last time. Hunter won't be here to save us again, so we need to be on our guard, and you yelling at the top of your lungs 'I'm here! I'm here!' is not helping at all. So just keep that small but incessant gob of yours shut until we find this damned stone."
Cynder turned away and began to look for anything that may show any sign of the stone, markings on trees or anything on a rock in particular. Sparx on the other hand, remained determined to be recognised once again, still raising his voice somewhat and shouting into the trees yet again, disregarding Cynder's harsh and angry words. The black dragoness ignored him for the time being as she searched, still remaining on guard and keeping her wits about her.
She continued searching, looking around her surroundings in silence, ready to snap at Sparx again, his yelling now doing nothing more than annoy her. The silence only lasted for a bit as a searing pain suddenly flared up in her right shoulder, causing her to let out a yelp of pain and stagger backwards. She turned her head towards her shoulder, seeing a large spear sticking out of it.
Cynder spotted another spear soaring towards her from behind a large bush, and she leapt backwards to dodge it. The spear soared past her, but Cynder suddenly felt her hind leg knock into something. There was a masculine grunt, and Cynder turned around to see a biped llama staggering backwards.
The black dragoness gasped as she realised she had just kicked the atlawa, and then pieced together what was actually going on. It was an ambush.
Before she could make a move, another spear was hurled at her, landing in her right shoulder again, just below the first spear. She staggered backwards, before the ground gave way around her. With a large explosion of leaves and foliage, thick ropes fanned out around her, trapping her inside a net. She was flung into the air as the net took her up into the large tree she realised she was standing under, her body now curled in on itself uncomfortably, tail wrapped around her belly and chest, the blade resting on her shoulder, and her wings crumpled in on themselves.
She felt the net lurch around her, and when she looked up, she saw an atlawa youth, likely in his early teens, sitting on top of the tree branch and using a knife to cut the net off the branch. With one more large lurch, the net was separated from the branch and she fell down in a crumpled heap on the ground, the net rubbing uncomfortably at her scales.
Cynder sighed as she saw a large group of atlawa step out of the bushy cover, heavy scowls on their faces. They each wore blue-and-yellow loincloths and leather gloves, some of them with blue-tipped feathers adorning their heads. One of them wore blue wristbands and had vibrant blue eyes like the rest of their attire, and Cynder knew this was the leader.
The leader walked up to Cynder and growled. His eyes moved rapidly, studying Cynder's form. He opened his mouth to speak, but was immediately interrupted by Sparx's loud demands, still trying to act like their god.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa, llama people! This is Cynder you're attacking here! As your god, I demand that you let her go, and then bow!" he boomed, flying in front of the atlawa leader's face, crossing his arms and puffing out his chest.
The atlawa all exchanged confused looks, even insulted. The leader broke his attention from Cynder to Sparx, his scowl unmoving.
"You dare claim to be our god, bug? You're unfit to even be spoken to," the leader said, before spitting at Sparx.
The glob of spit hit its aim accurately, causing Sparx to collapse to the ground as the thick saliva got all in the dragonfly's thin wings. He groaned in disgust, Cynder rolling her eyes again.
"They're camelidae, Sparx. They'll spit at you if they don't like you," she deadpanned, before the atlawa leader spat at her.
"You're right about that. Although with you, we're willing to do something a little bit more deserving, Terror," the leader scowled, twirling his long spear about in his fingertips threateningly, the metal blade gleaming brightly in the sunlight.
"I know I have hurt you in the past, killed many of your kind for which is unforgivable," Cynder stated, her voice low and serious. "But I assure you, I am a changed dragoness."
"It's true," Sparx added. "Even I was surprised when she turned out to be on our side for the last few days of the war."
"You don't get a say in this, cockroach!" the leader spat again, pinning Sparx down with another slob of spit.
"Sparx, just shut up, you're making this worse," Cynder hissed at him, before turning her attention back to the atlawa. "Before Malefor returned, the purple dragon, Spyro, saved me from my curse.
"A likely story!" the leader sneered sarcastically, crossing his arms and chuckling. "The purple dragon would never side with the likes of you."
"It's true! I have been living with him for most of my life. I am a changed dragoness. You must believe me. Spyro saved me and we became mates a few years later. But that's not why I'm here! Spyro is in danger!"
"The atlawa do not listen to murderous and conniving creatures like you," the leader growled, jabbing her with a spear. "You do not fool us, and we fear you no longer."
"I'm not trying to fool you!" Cynder pleaded desperately, trying to move herself to a more comfortable position. "Everything I'm saying is true! Spyro is being overrun by a parasite, an ancient ancestor that will stop at nothing to lay waste to the realms and kill all of us! Please! You must help me!"
"Shut her up!" the leader demanded, pushing forward another atlawan with a muzzle.
Cynder tried to move her head away, but was constricted by a multitude of atlawan paws, grabbing her jaw and pushing a muzzle onto her face. She felt the cold metal on her face, rubbing uncomfortably against her scales. The muzzle was cold and bitter, almost like a block of ice had been thrown at her face. Cynder felt the cold breath of the atlawan leader brush onto her face, recoiling at the stench of fish and rotten vegetables. A scowl was plastered on his face, looking into her eyes with hatred and malicious intent.
"You will pay for what you have done to us," he snarled. "And don't worry about your death being quick and simple. It will be slow… and painful. The same way you killed your victims."
Cynder couldn't help but feel a sense of dread and fear, knowing that she could do nothing to convince the atlawans that were holding her captive. She peered over to her right, watching Sparx being picked up and held with a firm grip, much to his increasing protests.
"Hey, let me go!" Sparx shouted. "I am your god, treat me with some respect!"
"Shut it you putrid slug!" the atlawa holding him snarled, before squeezing Sparx tightly.
The dragonfly made a few choking sounds, before he went limp in the atlawa's hold, falling into unconsciousness. Cynder exclaimed wordlessly in protest, the muzzle holding her maw shut. She grunted in annoyance as the atlawan leader chuckled, irritated that Sparx did not heed her warnings.
A sharp pain flared through her left flank, causing her to let out another muffled yelp. She turned her head as best as she could through the complex netting that was wrapped around her, noticing a blow dart had been shot through the net and into her. The pain was sharp and burning, almost like being stung by a bee. It slowly began to fade as she noticed her vision begin to blur. Her head spun, and she realised that it was a tranquiliser dart to put her to sleep. Her head slumped to the ground with a heavy thud, the dart negating any pain she would have felt. She just watched as the atlawa leader stepped towards her, appearing to have four legs as her vision split and blurred in front of her. With a soft exhale, her vision became sightless, and she fell to the will of the atlawa.
"What a fine puppet you will become…"
Cynder's eyes shot open, her ears ringing with a sickening voice that she knew too well. She looked around, realising that she was in a large, oval, dilapidated room, chains hanging from the ceiling. Cynder tried to move, realising that her paws were chained to a metal table that she was lying on. Shrouds of rust were plastered over the edge of the table, sending a smell of rotten metal into Cynder's nostrils. Attempting to move her head, she also realised that her neck was clamped by a large shackle, two chains protruding from either side of it. She almost recognised this place, this situation. She was sure she had seen it before.
A sense of dread began to fill the black dragoness' heart. Her breathing began to speed up rapidly and beads of sweat began to form at her forehead. She felt trapped, ensnared by claustrophobia as the chains and shackles rubbed uncomfortably against her scales. It didn't help that everything felt so abnormally big around her.
That's when she realised her surroundings weren't big… she was small. She looked down at her paws. They were small and rounded, slightly thicker due to the hatchling fat. She reached towards the back of her head as best as she could to feel her horns, feeling nothing but tiny stubs where the long, elegant horns once jutted out from. They were rounded and wimpy, no longer wielding the threatening sharp edge they once had. On top of that, her scales weren't black. They were a bright grey colour.
This situation of being strapped to the table as a child suddenly became more and more familiar to her, the sense of dread starting to strengthen inside her, gripping onto her chest like a vice. A voice suddenly sounded, making everything worse.
"Hello, little one."
Cynder's heart lurched. The vice around her chest strengthened, and she found it hard to breathe. It was him. The voice that she recognised just a few moments ago, was the voice that had only been heard in her nightmares. She soon realised what was happening. She was back in Mount Malefor, about to be transformed into that hellish body which haunted her nightmares. She couldn't move, her body frail and seeming lifeless. The shackles around her paws cut through her scales and drew blood, sending a stinging sensation coursing through her arms and shoulders. Staring forward, she saw a figure, tall and hunched make its way into the light, making Cynder shiver with fright.
Gaul.
"Malefor is expecting me to make a soldier out of you," he growled, making his way over towards Cynder. "But first, I must make you whole."
Cynder tried to move, putting all of her strength into trying to escape the situation that she found herself in. She tried to plead, but a wordless squeal left her mouth. The dragoness couldn't speak. It was almost as if she'd completely forgotten how to. Another squeal emanated from her throat as she thrashed against the chains holding her, the rattling of the chains bouncing against her eardrums.
The hunched figure of Gaul continued to walk closer to her, reaching down and grabbing a hold of the underside of her jaw with his large paw. His fur was matted with dried, dark red splotches, and his claws long and sharp… cold even. He stroked her gently but menacingly, a low, rumbling chuckle thundering from his throat. His breath reeked of a rotten carcass that had been decaying for almost a century, making Cynder want to vomit. The stench of death and rotting flesh was strong as it wafted into Cynder's face. The hatchling was clueless as to what the smell was, only knowing it was terrible. Cynder was piecing more and more together as she watched, realising that this is where all of her torment began.
She still had the eyesight of her hatchling form however, which was pretty shoddy to say the least. It was rather blurry, and while she could make out some of the details of the things closest to her, like anything attached to her body like the chains, as well as Gaul's large paw, distant features like Gaul's face were incomprehensible. Cynder couldn't even pinpoint exactly where his face was, his green eye completely missing. In fact, his real eye was completely intact.
"It's okay, little one. Very soon, you'll know everything you need to," Gaul rumbled, before stepping back.
The blurry figure raised his arm, before two even larger figures, also chained up, were coaxed into the room, being pulled in by more ape-like figures, two to each creature, slightly smaller than Gaul. The larger figures that were brought in were clearly draconic in shape; Cynder could see that even with her blurry vision, which was slowly beginning to improve as her eyes adjusted to the dark room.
Cynder looked at the two dragons as they slowly became clearer, their features becoming more and more visible. They were clearly in very bad shape, bruises and cuts covering their bodies and loose scales were existent. Cynder squealed loudly, wondering who these figures were. At the sound of her squeal, the two dragons turned to look at her, utter horror and crushing terror possessing the expressions of the two dragons.
They were a young couple, the female a wind dragoness and the male a fire dragon. Their facial build however, made Cynder even more intrigued about them. The wind dragoness had a facial structure much like her own, with a slender face, a long and pointed snout, and long horns. The fire dragon however had a very stocky, round face, but his horns was what intrigued Cynder the most. He had six thick horns jutting out from around his face much like hers; his horns were shorter than hers and were orange in colour, with large rings wrapping around them. Cynder was suddenly hit with cold realisation, a shiver of shock running through her body.
Could these be… my parents?
"No! Let her go!" the female screamed, causing the little hatchling's heart to start hammering profusely against her chest, her breathing heavy.
"Gaul, you monster!" shouted the male, embracing his mate comfortingly.
"Shut them up!" Gaul ordered, before the apes that had walked the dragons in started poking them with large spears that crackled with electricity at the tip, causing them to collapse to the ground, brief seizures overtaking them.
The male was the first one to raise his head, glaring daggers at the Ape King. "You let us all go, Gaul," he demanded, his voice low and shaky.
"I answer only to Malefor, worm. He has plans for that whelpling tied up over there," Gaul explained darkly.
"That 'whelpling' is my daughter!"
Oh my ancestors… they are my parents... Cynder thought, her mind racing at the fact that she was actually looking at her parents that she had been wondering about her entire life. They're… they're actually my Mum and Dad...
Gaul was the one to react at the fire dragon's outburst, grabbing his sword and thrusting it into the dragon's shoulder. He let out a cry of pain, blood beginning to gush down his scales. Even as a hatchling, Cynder could feel herself getting worked up, as if she understood that the red liquid coming out of her father was not meant to be there.
Her more mature mind however was also stressing out. She had suddenly pieced together the fact that she was going to watch her parents get tortured. Probably even killed.
Wake up! Wake up please! I don't want to see my parents die!
Try as she might, Cynder didn't wake up, remaining in this nightmare of hers as Gaul stabbed the fire dragon again. The wind dragoness, Cynder's mother, lay beside him, bawling her eyes out in absolute terror. Gaul just laughed maniacally at the fear they displayed, licking his lips and smirking with a sickening grin.
"Now, parents are meant to provide a perfect example to their children right?" he inquired.
"Yes, but what has that got to do with us all being here?" Cynder's father snapped back. "Are you just going to torture and kill us all?"
"No, your little one will stay alive. Very much alive in fact. As for you, however, you get to be watched by your daughter as I cut you to pieces. She will sit here and watch as she learns our ways. And you will provide an example of what she is aiming to achieve. Her victims, lying in a repulsive, blubbering heap on the floor, begging for mercy, just like your mate here," Gaul explained, before raising his sword and wiping the blood on it all along the wind dragoness' bright scales, smearing them with a dark shade of red. "She will be raised underneath us, and will learn how to torture, and most of all, kill."
"You can't do that to her! She's just a kid! She's my kid! Please just leave her alone!" her father shouted, exploding into a cacophony of noise, pleading for mercy.
"Lovren! Lovren, no!" her mother screamed, long and loud, reaching a shaky paw towards her as she remained strapped up to the table.
My name isn't Cynder?
"Shut up, bitch!" Gaul growled, kicking the wind dragoness in the face.
"You filthy simian! You threaten to turn my daughter into a murderer and then you go and kick my wife?!" the fire dragon roared, struggling to his paws. "I will make sure you don't see the light of day ever again!"
"Silence the worm!" Gaul ordered, and the electric-tipped spears attacked the fire dragon once more, sending him collapsing back to the ground with heavy spasms as electricity coursed through his frame. "Also, I don't threaten. I do."
Gaul raised his sword, before slicing it across the fire dragon's back, separating his wings from his body. Blood sprayed everywhere as a loud howl burst from his jaws. Cynder's heart lurched in her chest, and this time a shrill screech was forced out of her chest instead of a little squeal. Tears were starting to blur her vision once again.
The ape stabbed and sliced at Cynder's father continuously, stabbing large holes in his shoulders and face, penetrating his left eye, and his slices taking out large chunks of flesh in his arms, back and face. His left paw had been cut off, as well as even his tongue, which had been caught in the range of the bloodstained sword as he screamed, his mouth wide open. Blood leaked from his entire form, the thick, rich red of the blood putting the natural red of his scales to shame.
With one final slash, Gaul brought the sword along the throat of Cynder's father, silencing his pained cries. Cynder's mother was howling in complete terror, just like Cynder herself was. Throughout her tears, Cynder's mother spat vulgar curses and insults at Gaul, not even caring that her foul words were being heard by her daughter.
Before long however, Gaul moved to the wind dragoness and smiled devilishly. The words died out from her throat as she stared up at him. Gaul raised the sword high, thrusting it down into the dragoness' left eye. Unlike Cynder's father however, Gaul decided to take it slowly with her mother, as he drew the sword slowly down through the eye, causing shrill howls to tear from the throat of the wind dragoness. Cynder's hatchling form was also shrieking at an insanely high pitch, her voice raw and hoarse as she screamed.
Gaul slowly pulled his sword out before thrusting it into the dragoness' other eye. Instead of sliding the sword down through her eye like the first one, he slowly twisted the sword before yanking it out, pulling the eye out with it.
The ape decided to slowly slice through more of the dragoness' face, cutting into the corners of her mouth, purposely slipping and poking the roof of her mouth with the blade, even at one point the back of her throat. He then began to draw on her face with the sword blade, decorating her forehead with three large rounded triangles that Cynder recognised as the pattern on her own forehead. The pattern was quickly lost as blood washed down her forehead, filling in the gaps between the triangles.
It was clear Gaul was finally finished as when he pulled the sword out this time he quickly brought it across the throat of Cynder's mother, killing her instantly and silencing her screams. The only shrill cries left in the room was that of Cynder, the hatchling a screaming, wailing mess.
The hatchling's screaming got worse and worse as Gaul suddenly began to make his way towards her. He knelt down beside her and began shushing her, before he stroked the flat of his blade along her body, smearing her scales with the blood of her parents. Cynder shivered with fear as he brought his other paw towards her, stained with her parents' fresh blood and a sickening grin widening on his face. Forcefully, he shoved his bloodied fingers into her tiny mouth, the blood staining them washing over her tastebuds. It tasted terrible, like a hideous metal that burned her tongue and throat.
"The first blood that you have ever tasted," Gaul smirked, his voice low and full of malice. "Does your parents' blood taste good? Do you want more?"
Cynder wanted to throw up. It was almost like eating an entire ward of rotting bugs, staining her tongue and dripping down her mouth as she cringed at the taste. Gaul slowly began to pull his fingers out of her mouth, but the taste of blood kept lingering. With her mouth empty and free from Gaul's large fingers, Cynder tried swallowing to get rid of the blood, but it only made it worse as the blood began to slowly traverse down her throat, causing her to retch and gag. A feeling of vomit began to grow in her mouth, like a snake that had bitten the inside of her neck. It was a terrible feeling, being so violently sick and ready to throw up, with the taste of blood overpowering everything in her maw.
The blood hit her stomach and at that point it finally enacted its revenge as it brought all its contents back up her throat, the nasty, pungent liquid rushing over her tongue and out of her lips. She only just managed to lean over the table in time as she threw up, spraying the foul liquid all over the end of the table, the smell making Cynder's nostrils burn with disgust. Gaul let out an angry growl as he staggered backwards, vomit covering a large area of his foot.
With a terrible snarl, Gaul slugged Cynder in the face, causing a pained cry to tear from her jaws, her tiny body heaving with sobs. The ape king took a few calm breaths before he spoke to Cynder again, grabbing her neck with a firm paw.
"So were you paying attention to all that? You know what to do? How to kill people? How to put fear into people?" he rumbled. "You like the taste of blood?"
Cynder didn't respond, but Gaul took the silence and lack of a nod of the head as a 'yes'. He smirked at her, showing his blackened teeth.
"Good," he grinned, fear consuming Cynder's tiny body as she lay there, completely bound to the table. "Now it is time for you to… evolve."
Removing his paw from her neck, Gaul made his way to the other side of the table, raising Cynder upwards so that more strain was put onto her tiny arms. She let out a squeal of pain as the table was raised completely upright, her muscles screaming and aching. Gaul turned the table around, making Cynder face what seemed to be a pedestal made of rock.
Three spikes protruded from the sides, almost wanting a head to be placed on top of them. There was writing embroidered on the side, Cynder noticing that it was ancient draconic. It was embroidered with silver, and surrounded by gold swirls. Cynder began to read the writing.
'Banri ekik wer kornari, put persvek wer whedabra.'
Cynder trembled with dread and fear, realising that this was no ordinary monument. She could feel Gaul's breath on her shoulder, making it want to wither.
This is how he did it, she thought. This is how it happened.
Gaul pushed the table forward, snarling and giggling vindictively. Cynder couldn't move. Fright filled her heart and her breath went cold as she was pushed further towards the pedestal, knowing what torment was to come. Gaul removed the chains from her neck before placing his paw around it, lifting Cynder onto the pedestal and threatening her with his sword.
"Don't you move now," Gaul warned her. "It will all be over soon."
Cynder looked over to the corner of the room where her parents were laying in their bloody graves, tears beginning to form in her eyes. A shroud of sorrow washed over her as their blood stained the floor, realising that seeing them die was the first and last time that she would ever see her parents. Gaul proceeded to clamp two rather large and rusty chains onto the shackle around Cynder's neck, holding her firmly in place. The ape grinned at her, showing his rotten fangs at the small wind dragoness.
Cynder let out a small squeal of protest as she felt the shackle around her neck tighten, almost cutting into the fragile scales of her young and feeble body. Gaul stood beside her, large paws outstretched ominously towards her, chanting an incantation that seemed to be spoken in an ancient language. Within a few seconds, his paws began to glow with a green mist, whispering and hungry for a mind to consume as they slithered towards her like snakes, moving slowly and menacingly. Cynder tried to backpedal, only finding that her paws were no longer on the ground, but suspended beneath her. Her throat was dry and her heart thundered frantically against her chest like a drum, pounding inside of her ear.
She could only stare, gazing at the serpentine strands of mist as they slithered closer to her, her frightful quivering getting stronger and stronger as tears now forced themselves out of her eyes. She couldn't breathe. Fear had completely destroyed all sense of thought that she had left.
Cynder could hear Gaul laughing maniacally as the mist finally reached her body. The first area of her that the mist came in contact with was her eyes, everything going hazy as her eyes buzzed inside their sockets, flaring up with an unbearable pain, causing her to scream. She felt her chest cramp up as the mist reached it too. Soon her whole body was in pain, her screams tearing at her mind. Before long, her vision began fading to black, as she succumbed to the darkness.
All her senses faded. The last thing she heard was Gaul speaking to her once more.
"You shall be named Cynder, for the ashes and cinders you will bring about this world. Now, arise."
Bright light filled Cynder's vision again, her eyes aching from the change of vision. In her mind, she hoped that she was in the waking world, but that thought soon turned to ash. She found herself in a large battlefield, smoke choking out the sky and bloody corpses of dragons scattering the ground. A huge explosion went off behind Cynder, almost making her lose her steady flight pattern. She looked back, seeing a large cannon manned by apes, releasing a fiery cannonball into the distance. There was a bright orange flash as it slammed into another group of dragons coming up into the battlefield over the horizon, and bodies were sent flying. None of them got up, being either dead or so critically wounded they couldn't move.
There were still dozens of forms still standing upright and moving across the corpse-scattered battlefield. The majority of them were apes, searching for any dragons that would still be alive, and putting them out of their misery if they did. There were several dragons still upright, moving quickly as they fought large swarms of apes. The dragons may have been bigger and more powerful, but the apes had the numbers and the gun power. Their smaller size also helped them dodge dragons' attacks easier.
Cynder was alerted by a loud, pained groan at her feet. She looked down, noticing a large dragon being pinned to the ground underneath her claws.
Terrador. Oh no.
The earth guardian was in a horrible condition. Heavy cuts streaked over both his eyes, sending blood dripping into them. His mouth was a bloody mess, several teeth knocked out of place, and his shoulders were covered with stab wounds.
Cynder's attention moved to her paws, which were drenched in a thick red coating of blood. She looked back at her tailblade; it was in the same condition. She clenched her claws tighter, digging them into Terrador's chest and feeling his hot blood rush over her digits.
"You can't… You can't win this, Cynder," Terrador choked, blood spilling out the sides of his mouth as he spoke. "You won't win this."
The black dragoness chuckled evilly, her voice rough and coarse, yet smooth at the same time.
"You say that, earth guardian, yet you've been beaten to a bloody pulp by my paws," she said, her tone of delivery slick and teasing. "You also made the mistake of leading this military operation on your own. Your precious guardian friends aren't here to help you now."
"They will come for me. I believe that with all my heart!"
Cynder's tailblade quickly snaked around to Terrador's throat, the metal blade poking uncomfortably in his flesh. She cackled, before red mist began to build up inside her jaws. She let out a sudden, shrill scream as red sound waves rushed towards Terrador. His expression immediately switched from one of determination and trust to one of fear, his pupils shrinking significantly. The earth guardian was beginning to break as he began to tremble in her hold.
"No, Terrador. They will not," Cynder laughed. "Just be thankful though that I have other plans for you, otherwise I would have killed you long ago."
"Let me go, please…" Terrador whimpered, his deep voice hoarse and cracking amongst the tears that were beginning to form in his eyes, Cynder's fear element distorting his surroundings and accenting the absolute terror swelling inside his heart. "Please, I beg you, Terror… Let me go."
The Terror of the Skies lowered her head towards Terrador, whispering directly in his ear, her breath hot and reeking of rotten blood.
"See, old fool, that's exactly what I will not do. I need you. I need your very essence, so I can bring my Master back," she breathed.
"No…" Terrador pleaded. "Please no!"
"It will start with you, and then I will take the rest of your pitiful guardian friends and extract their powers from them too. I will reduce all you guardians to a blubbering wreck when I'm done with you, unable to protect the realms from my Master when he returns."
"Anything but that! I'll do anything if you don't try to bring Malefor back! I'll do anything, I swear!"
Ancestors I've never heard Terrador so desperate, Cynder thought as she watched this horrific moment unfold in her nightmare. Sure he's under the influence of my fear element but... he's just so… broken.
The Terror of the Skies let out a growl as she tightened her hold on him, digging her talons further into his flesh. She raised herself, pulling the top of Terrador's torso with her, before she slammed him into the ground with such force that blood went flying out of the earth guardian's lips as he coughed violently.
She turned as she saw some more movement out of the corner of her eye. A large group of apes made their way to her, covered with blood, most of it from the dragons, but some of them were also decently wounded, simian blood mixing with draconic blood.
"Finish up here," Cynder ordered darkly. "Kill every last dragon. I'm taking this one back with me."
Terrador's wordless pleas were ignored as Cynder slammed him into the ground again, shutting him up as he was knocked out, before Cynder took to the skies and flew off with him in her firm hold, blood dripping down his scales and falling like soft, spitting rain onto the battlefield below them.
Her vision faded once again, echoes of her previous sight whispering away. Cynder longed for this to stop. She couldn't bear to see herself kill anymore of her own kind, let alone one of the guardians. Although the horror of seeing how she became 'Terror,' and capturing one of the guardians, she was finally beginning to piece together the contents of the dark beginning of her life.
Suddenly, her sight began to return to her. As it became clearer and less blurred, she found herself in what seemed like the Valley of Avalar, but wartorn and decimated. The lush fields that she had grown used to were dark and churned up, exposing the dirt. Trees were stripped bare of their leaves, some uprooted from where they stood tall. There was fire everywhere, burning the corpses of dragons and apes that laid in their graves amidst the dirt and fire.
Cynder made her way through the battlefield, slowly walking towards what seemed like an Ice dragon who was lying on the ground and bleeding. He had several large cuts across his arms and a rather large gash that plagued his chest. Cynder recognised him instantly, a sense of dread hitting her heart.
Cyril too? Cynder thought to herself. No wonder they were so hesitant when I first arrived at the temple. Ancestors… the things I've done...
As she got closer, Cynder realised that there were bodies littered all around the guardian, some with their limbs removed or decapitated. Blood was spilled all over the Valley, turning the ground to what seemed a dark crimson. Cyril had remnants of his armour still intact, but most had been cut through or discarded. The Terror of the Skies loomed over him, a smirk on her face as she licked her lips. She could sense the feeling of vindictive happiness that her Terror form was giving off, as if it was all she lived for.
Cynder grabbed Cyril by the scruff of the neck, lifting him up so that his face was level with hers. Blood was dripping down his chin and out of the corners of his mouth, staining his scales and removing the blue shine that they gave off.
"You should know by now," she whispered menacingly. "You cannot run from Terror, Cyril. If Terrador couldn't do it, then you certainly can't."
"I… d-d-don't care…" Cyril stuttered. "As long as there is breath in our lungs, you will never bring him back. Never!"
Cynder merely scoffed the guardian's words, pushing her claws into the cut across his chest, making him scream in agony. She slowly pulled her claws out again, her paws drenched with red as it streamed from the guardian's chest. Cyril hissed air through his teeth, trying to contain his screams to make himself look strong. He failed as Cynder threw his head back to the ground, forcing a heavy grunt out of him, before she kicked him twice in the gut.
"S-s-stop… please…" Cyril coughed, blood staining his lips as he continued to cough it out.
Cynder's response was two paws that wrapped around the ice guardian's throat. He tried to breathe but let out a whimpering squeak, his eyes going wide. He reached up to Cynder's paws, trying to pry them off him, but she was too strong, the guardian already physically drained. He began to spit out blood, trying to stop it from running down his throat. The blood was moving faster than he could spit however, and he quickly began choking on his own blood, which was now getting stuck in his throat as Cynder constricted it.
Cyril let out another squeak, trying to plead for Cynder's mercy, but he quickly realised the effort was useless. Cynder had absolutely no mercy.
His eyes rolled back in his head as it went limp, and Cynder let go of the unconscious guardian. She gripped his arms and waist, digging her claws into his back as she took off, smirking and laughing as another one of the guardians fell into her capture.
Cynder's surroundings changed again, causing dread to continue to swell within her. Going from the pattern of what she had already experienced, she knew Volteer's capture was up next, as Ignitus' capture wasn't until much later when Spyro had gotten involved in the war. After watching Terrador and Cyril get taken, she wasn't looking forward to what Volteer's capture had in store for her.
She found herself in what seemed to be a swampy area, mushroom trees and moss everywhere. It was dense with foliage, but not as dense as the swamp had been getting to her destination. Standing in front of her was a large, ancient structure made of cobblestone and sandstone, embroidered with gold symbols.
It was the Dragon Temple.
The Terror of the Skies started marching forward, using her shadow element to slide underneath the closed doors as to not alert anyone who was inside. As she walked stealthily throughout the Temple, she heard two male voices down the halls, following the voices to reach their sources: Volteer and Ignitus.
"Ignitus, surely you can formulate some solution inside that thinking contraption of yours. We need to rescue Terrador and Cyril," Volteer murmured.
"I can't!" Ignitus moaned, sounding in pain from thinking too much. "I can't see anything in the Pool of Visions, and Cynder's forces will be guarding Terrador and Cyril heavily! I don't see how we can get them back without losing more soldiers!"
There was a small moment of silence, before Ignitus sighed. He sounded hope-deprived, almost defeated as his will had lost all meaning.
"I'm sorry. I don't mean to take out my anger on you," he murmured. "This war has been going on for twelve years now. It's starting to get to me. And now, with half of the guardian team taken away with who knows what is being done to them, I'm more stressed than ever."
Cynder turned the corner as the voices became clearer and clearer, before walking into the meeting room. Ignitus was hunched over the Pool of Visions, head in his paws, his face contorted with utter hopelessness. There was no presence in his eyes.
I did this to Ignitus? I always thought he was the strongest out of all of the guardians, being the leader of them, Cynder thought as she stared through her Terror form's eyes at the depressed fire guardian. He's just… gone. He's lost himself. Ancestors, what have I done?
Volteer reached out with a shaky paw, putting it on Ignitus' shoulder. He sensed how troubled and worried Ignitus was from his tense posture, but he could also see it in his eyes.
"Hey, we'll find a way through these trials," he said softly. "I'll make sure I remain positioned by your side from now on. We won't be taken."
Such irony those words held.
The Terror of the Skies slid into her shadow again, moving silently behind the guardians. They didn't seem to notice the moving shadow on the ground, too focused on each other. She stood behind Volteer, before rising ominously out of her shadow. She saw Volteer register the sudden presence behind him, but he couldn't react in time.
Cynder punched Volteer in the head, knocking him down onto the cold floor below. The electric guardian quickly recovered, breathing a beam of electricity at Cynder. She dodged by ducking into her shadow, rushing underneath Volteer and throwing him into the air from underneath. She grabbed Volteer and swung him around towards Ignitus, who was screaming with shock, his eyes gleaming with sheer terror and desperation.
Volteer and Ignitus both fell to the ground with a heavy thud, a tangle of limbs and wings lying before Cynder. The electric guardian quickly rolled off his comrade, before standing to his paws and rushing towards Cynder, claws outstretched. Cynder dodged the set of claws rushing her way, before retaliating with her own strike. Cynder's attack landed its mark, leaving bloody lines along Volteer's face. The electric guardian staggered backwards, his breath catching in his throat as he felt the wall behind him.
Cynder marched towards him, before grabbing the electric guardian and slamming him against the wall. Volteer cried in pain at the impact of his skull hitting the wall with such force. He was propelled into the wall again, and then a third time, before he was punched in the chest, causing him to collapse. The back of his head was already bleeding quite badly, having been cracked open from hitting the heavy wall three times in a row.
The beating was not over yet as Cynder made quick work of him, slugging him up the jaw twice, before she dug her claws into his shoulders and dragged them down along his arms. Volteer cried out, blood gurgling in the back of his throat as it began filling his mouth from getting hit in the jaw. Cynder pulled her claws out of Volteer's arms, before slashing them across his chest, leaving behind a large, bloody cross mark.
The Terror of the Skies finally relented, leaving Volteer coughing up blood all over himself, adding to the blood that was already on his face, chest and arms. Volteer tried to turn himself around, looking over to Ignitus who stood in the corner of the room, a look of horror on his face, eyes wide and jaw slack, his bottom lip quivering.
"Ignitus…" Volteer croaked, wincing as he heard his blood dripping onto the ground with an irregular plip plop sound. "Help…"
Volteer collapsed to the ground again as Cynder kicked him in the gut. His shout was harsh to the ears, his voice cracking. Her gaze then followed Volteer's towards Ignitus. As soon as the fire guardian made eye contact with the she-devil, he turned and bolted, fear controlling his every move.
"Ignitus, NO!" Volteer screamed, his words slurred by his lack of breath and the blood bubbling in his maw. "Don't leave me! Help!"
"No one's here to help you now Volteer," Cynder chuckled darkly. "And it looks like your leader is too terrified to come and help you."
That… coward… Cynder gasped in thought. He just… left him? Why?
"He will find help. I know it," Volteer coughed.
She slugged him in the face again. Volteer would have a black eye the next day, she was sure of it. Cynder punched him again, making sure his eye would be extra dark and swollen.
"Stop lying to yourself," Cynder snarled teasingly, a hideous smile pulling at her lips and exposing her gleaming fangs. "He's never coming back."
"Ignitus… why?" Volteer croaked as tears started to slip down his face.
Cynder slugged him in the face again, finally knocking him out. She grabbed him by the scruff of the neck, before dragging his bloodied form out of the Dragon Temple. When she walked back into the swampy marshland, she spread out her wings, adjusting her hold on Volteer so it was a lot firmer, before she took off, flying to Volteer's prison.
He just left him… like he was nothing… He really was just a coward…
"If only life were that easy little one."
Cynder's heart suddenly lifted as soon as she heard those words, knowing that she would see Spyro again. After a few seconds, he was standing in front of her, Sparx flying by his side and a stern expression on his face. Spyro was far smaller than he was in his current state. His wings were slightly folded back, and not yet fully grown. His paws were roughly the size of a swamp mushroom, but his heart and will made up for that fact. Cynder could see the determination in his eyes, shining like the sun as she stared.
He hasn't changed one bit, Cynder thought to herself. He does look adorable though.
Cynder circled him with malicious intent, as Spyro showed, not fear, but concern for the guardian in Cynder's custody. Sparx on the other hand, was shivering with utter terror. One thing that Cynder did notice however, was that Sparx had actually grown an inch or two over the span that they were apart. Spyro lowered himself into his battle stance, which had not yet been perfected. His paws were too wide apart, and his back not arched enough.
He would probably slap himself in the face if he saw his stance right now, Cynder chuckled in her thoughts. He does take pride in that stance of his.
"It's time you learn how complicated life can be," she hissed, her voice dry and cold.
"Run! Spyro! Save yourself!"
Cynder knew that voice all too well. It was Ignitus'. She suddenly remembered that at this point, she had captured him too, knowing that she only needed one more crystal to release Malefor.
"Not this time; this time… I fight," Spyro reprimanded, clenching his paws and fixing his gaze on Cynder who cackled maniacally.
"Bring it."
Spyro suddenly lurched forward, his paws outstretched and clenched. Cynder merely brushed him to the side, sending him tumbling into a pillar. He shook off the impact and immediately flew back towards Cynder, dodging the initial attack and a swipe of her tail. Spyro smacked her shoulder with a tail strike, making her lose her balance a little. She growled at the pain, rotating her arm so that it clicked before spinning and landing a direct hit onto Spyro's face and creating a deep cut on his cheek. The purple dragon clutched the cut, blood staining his paw. The Terror of the Skies merely smirked at him, making a motion with her paw that seemed to resemble a 'come at me' motion.
Spyro picked himself up and surged towards Cynder, keeping himself firmly on the ground this time. Cynder tried to hit him with her paw, Spyro dodging using a swift roll to the left. Cynder backpelled slightly, sending another tail strike towards Spyro, but missing its mark. The purple dragon clenched his paw, smacking Cynder square in the face with a glowing green fist powered by earth, sending her tumbling to the floor.
Cynder suddenly awoke from her series of nightmares, her breathing hard and a searing pain in her cheek. She looked around, finding herself in what seemed like a holding cell, her paws suspended above her. They were contained by a steel bar with a chain that was clamped to the end of it, connecting the shackles that were locked around her paws. Remnants from the nightmare still lingered in her mind. Were those dragons truly her parents? Was Cynder not her name? Was Ignitus just a cowardly old dragon?
She pushed herself forward, realising that the chains were held tightly around her paws, keeping her constricted. Cynder peered down to her left, seeing that Sparx was locked in a lantern and providing light for both of them.
"Oh good, you're up," Sparx said, crossing his arms. "I think they were just starting to remember me."
"You're kidding me right?" Cynder replied, scoffing at Sparx's statement. "The second that you tried to act all high and mighty, they spat at you. Kinda what I would do to be honest."
"Hey, it was probably a sign of respect," Sparx defended.
"Really? You think that spitting on you and then locking you in a lantern is a sign of respect?" Cynder asked him, getting slightly annoyed. "Ancestors, you're more stupid than Timber when he's drunk."
Sparx rolled his eyes, turning his back on Cynder and looking towards the wall.
"And for the record Sparx, if you didn't open that fat gob of yours, then we wouldn't be in this situation," Cynder continued angrily. "Now we've wasted more time and Spyro is getting sicker by the minute!"
"You don't think I know that?!" Sparx suddenly shouted, clenching his fists. "I'm trying my best here okay?! Yeah okay, I'm stupid! I get in the way! But nothing is going to hurt my brother! Nothing! Cause I won't let it!"
Cynder was slightly taken aback at his outburst, remembering her nightmare and all that Sparx had been through.
"I promised my Mum and Dad that I would take care of him when I left the swamp. I promised them, Cynder!"
"AT LEAST YOU HAD A MUM AND DAD TO TALK TO!" Cynder screamed, tears welling in her eyes. "I NEVER MET MINE!"
"That's not my problem!" Sparx replied. "If you want to sulk about it then sure! But do me a favour and stop slicing my wings for every prison we end up in!"
"SILENCE!"
Cynder and Sparx's attention suddenly snapped towards the cell door, a familiar face looking in through the bars.
"Kane?"
"Hello gnat," Kane smirked. "I see you haven't changed a bit."
Kane's gaze suddenly turned from Sparx to Cynder, his eyes full of suspicion and a twinge of hate.
"As for you, are you ready to repent your sins?"
Phew, okay this chapter took way too long to write. I hope you guys are all doing okay about the recent Corona outbreak. My school has been shut and I'm having to work a lot more so that is why this chapter has taken a while to come out so I apologise for that. Let me know what you guys thought of the chapter in a review, as I would love to see what you guys think. Thanks to SKda for beta-reading for me, he did a lot in this chapter that really helped with the flow so a massive thank you to him.
Hope you guys have a great afternoon, morning or evening…
And this is Mystic, Cheetah and SKda… signing off ^_^
