Chapter 10: Missing Meadow
Taking off in a sprint, Spyro spread his wings and jumped into the air, Cynder, Ember and Flame flying after him as he took off following the river back towards the village. They flew only a few feet off the ground so as not to waste time with trying to gain height but also to warn any of the villagers they may encounter on the way back. He doubted, or rather hoped, that the Apes had not decided to launch a full scale invasion of the valley, but such a thing he expected would leave much more evidence than a handful of tracks left by a single Dreadwing. The possibility, however, could not be discounted. Spyro felt his wings slapping down hard as he tried to force as much speed as he could, his teeth clenching hard on the blade's hilt as he kept scanning around for anything else amiss, any other sign of danger. His mindset had changed seemingly in an instant; he had stopped thinking of what the Hermit had said, he had stopped putting himself down and thought only of his training, of Terrador's lectures about tactical awareness and knowing his surroundings.
As they swooped back into the main valley, the wide-open spaces suddenly seemed not tranquil or inviting, but dangerous and lacking concealment. At once Spyro banked a hard right, careful that his companions were following as he stayed close to the treeline in case he and his friends needed to duck into the cover of the forest if there were indeed Apes roaming the area. He scanned ahead as they flew on towards the village, breathing a heavy sigh of relief when he spotted one of the Cheetah's fishing with his son by the river. They sat contently, enjoying the day and each other's company, Spyro immediately aimed for them to raise the alarm. The cub turned his head and saw the frantically approaching dragons, waving to them cheerfully followed by his father. Spyro tried to shout to them, but couldn't through the knife clenched in his teeth, but his friends did so for him.
"Hey! Help! We need help!" cried Cynder from behind him.
"Apes! Badguys! We've got trouble!" Flame concurred.
"Meadow is missing! Help us!" pleaded Ember as they landed just in front of the Cheetah father and son who hastily rose to their feet.
"What?" the Cheetah cried incredulously, "What in the world is happening?"
Spyro dropped the blade onto the ground in front of them hurriedly, looking up to them gravely,
"Meadow is gone! We think he was taken by the Apes. We found this where we last saw him," he explained, nodding to the blade.
"Dad?" asked the cub anxiously, "What's happening?"
"Easy, son," replied his father, touching his shoulder comfortingly as he leaned down and picked up the knife, staring at the bloodied edge before he lifted his eyes to the young dragons.
"Where did you find this?" he asked. "Down river to the south east, near the waterfall. We found…" Spyro suddenly paused looking over his shoulder to his companions, unsure if he should mention the Hermit. It was of course due to their absence that Meadow had been left alone, and they would have to explain that in due time since he was after all supposed to be taking care of them. There was no way they could escape the blame.
"You found what?" asked the Cheetah impatiently.
"We found a cave," Spyro blurted out, "We went exploring it. When we got back, Meadow was gone."
"So you weren't present when he was attacked?"
"No," Cynder interrupted, "But that is a Dreadwings blood, so the Apes must have entered the valley."
The Cheetah quickly slipped the blade into his belt, instructed his son to leave the fishing rods as he grabbed him up in his arms, "We must get back to the village and raise the alarm. Come quickly!"
The Cheetah took off running, breaking out into incredible speed even with his child in his arms as the four who lived took flight once more to catch up to him. They struggled to keep pace with him as he ran, the young dragons flailing their wings like humming birds as they followed the father and son back towards the village. Spyro looked anxiously over his shoulder towards his friends, all of them sharing the same look of worry for both Meadow and the cold reception they expected from Chief Prowlus.
The village soon came into view, the Cheetah fisherman began waving and shouting towards the lookout in the tower as they approached. The other Cheetah's training and working outside the village all looked towards them as his shouts of alarm drew their attention.
"Raise the alarm! Intruders in the valley!" Spyro and the others finally overtook the running Cheetah as they neared the village palisade, a flurry of confusion and excitement overcame the villagers as they began to gather around as the dragons flew in and landed just inside the gate, the fisherman and his son following quickly behind.
"Intruders? What intruders?" asked someone. "Has there been an attack?" asked another.
"Meadow is missing!" cried Spyro frantically, "He's out there somewhere! We have to find him!"
"Meadow is missing? What happened to him?" asked one of the female Cheetah's, holding the shoulders of her cub standing before her fearfully. Before anyone could answer, a voice roared from behind the crowd,
"What is all this nonsense?"
Spyro gritted his teeth hard though he kept his lips draped over them as Chief Prowlus stormed through the gathered villagers until he stood before the four dragons and the fishing Cheetah and his cub. The tribe leader scowled as he scanned them captiously, though more so to the dragons than his fellow villagers. Spyro stood on his hind legs as he opened his mouth to speak,
"Chief Prowlus…"
"What is the meaning of all this?" demanded the tribe leader, ignoring the purple dragon and speaking to the fishing Cheetah first. Spyro hid his frustration as he dropped back to all fours.
"Chief Prowlus, there is danger in the valley," explained the fishing Cheetah, placing his son onto the ground, "These dragons say Meadow is missing. They came to us for aid, they showed me this," he said as he drew the knife from his belt and handed it towards Prowlus.
"Missing?" he repeated as he took the blade into his paws, staring at the bloodied edge just as they had. He spared only a few moments for this before he turned towards the four dragons, eyeing them suspiciously.
"What happened? Where is Medaow? I thought Hunter had left you in his charge," he said harshly.
"Y-Yes, sir," Spyro nodded nervously,
"We… we sort of went off on our own while Meadow was taking a nap…"
"You went off on your own?" Prowlus snapped, "You were supposed to stay with him at all times!"
"We know, but…" started Cynder.
"Silence!" Prowlus snarled as he pointed the knife towards her, "I don't want to hear your excuses. Just tell me what happened to my herbalist!"
The anger in his voice seemed to take even the Cheetah's by surprise, they who were the most used to his leadership. Spyro gulped as he and his companions found themselves huddling closer to each other as they bore the full brunt of Chief Prowlus's fiery eyes. Looking among themselves as if hoping the other would speak up first, Spyro ultimately spoke up.
"We found the knife and what was left of Meadow's basket on the ground where we had last seen him, in the southeast corner of the valley by the waterfall. We found tracks and signs of a struggle; we think he was attacked by a Dreadwing."
"A Dreadwing?" gasped on of the Cheetah cubs, almost humorously mirroring Ember's reaction when the belief had first been stated. Prowlus turned his eyes back towards the blade as he held it up towards the sun, the villagers staring at it with garish fascination.
"It is the colour of a Dreadwing's blood, Chief Prowlus," added the fishing Cheetah pointedly. Prowlus grumbled moodily as he placed the blade carefully across his palm and lightly touched the bloodied edge with his thumb. He lifted his eyes and turned back to Spyro and the others.
"So you saw nothing else? No trace of Meadow or anyone else when you returned?"
"No, sir," Spyro answered carefully, "That was all we found."
"And because you four went gallivanting off on your own, the herbalist of my village is now in grave danger! We could all be in grave danger! If you four had stayed by him, you may have been able to do something about it!"
"I'm sorry, we…"
"Whysker!" Prowlus called, turning away from them as a yellow furred Cheetah in a dark blue tunic quickly stepped up to him, "Send a falcon to Warfang and inform the dragons of what has happened. Tell them we will require help to find Meadow, and be sure to summon Hunter back here with all due haste."
"Right, Prowlus," Whysker answered as he turned away promptly before Prowlus bellowed another announcement,
"Listen everyone! I want you all to prepare your weapons and remain on alert! If the Apes have entered our territory, we must be ready should they arrive in force."
"But what about Meadow?" asked Roaraya as she shuffled her way to the front of the crowd, "We must find him!"
"No. It is too dangerous for us to send a search party without knowing what we might be up against. We cannot risk it until we get reinforcements from Dragon city."
"But that will take hours!" Roaraya protested, "By the time they arrive we may never find him."
"Meadow is a friend to all of us," argued another Cheetah, "But we must consider the risk to us all if we leave right now."
"We cannot just abandon him!" shot back someone else, siding with Roaraya. In a spit moment there was an uproar, the sentiments of both side readily expressed by many of the villagers as a chorus of voices soon erupted, drowning out each other as Spyro and his friends watched the arguing helplessly, feeling caught in the middle and ultimately responsible for the strife.
"QUIET!" Prowlus screamed above the noise, bringing the entire village to a dead silence, the four dragons looked around at the raw emotion etched into the faces of every Cheetah, the one underlying feeling fueling the disagreement was the concern for their fellow villager, Meadow.
"Their will be no argument! We will stay here and remain ready, only venturing outside these walls when the dragons have arrived. I fear for Meadow as much as any of you, but I must put the safety of the village as a whole first. Now prepare your weapons and secure the village. Everyone move!" he ordered.
There was a short grumble among many of the villagers, but they promptly went about as they were ordered, Spyro and the others sat planted where they were as the Cheetah quickly armed themselves and began making preparations. As the crowd dispersed, Spyro quickly broke from the group and trotted over towards Chief Prowlus.
"Chief Prowlus…" he began.
"What do you want?" he asked coldly. The steel in his voice made Spyros voice leave him for a moment as he awkwardly tried to force out his words.
"We want to help you anyway we can," he said earnestly, "We could go back out there if you want and search for more clues…"
"Didn't you hear what I said?" growled Prowlus, "No one is leaving this village until we have more troops on our side."
"Yes, but I thought…"
"Thought nothing!" the orange Cheetah barked, "You will stay here and for once do as you are told! If you had done that in the first place we may not be in this crisis!"
Cynder angrily stormed up from behind a disheartened Spyro, staring daggers up at the tribe leader. "We want to help," she said sternly, "If we are to blame for this then we should help to fix it, right?"
"Wrong," Prowlus sneered, "Once the dragons have arrived, I will have you four return to Warfang with them. You can explain yourselves to the Guardians when you get there!" he rasped before he turned his back and stormed off, leaving the four dragons in a mixed state of confusion, fear and anger, the latter in particular in Cynder's case.
There were few eyes turned towards them as the Cheetah's shuffled hurriedly around the village as the gates were closed and locked. Spyro and Cynder looked at each first, then to their friends behind them as they stared back at them wide eyed and lost for words. The black dragoness let out a haughty sigh as she strode over to them as Spyro slowly turned to follow, his eyes down on the ground and his heart sinking in his chest.
Passing by the Cheetah's busying themselves, the four dragons wandered sullenly towards the far end of the village, passing by the hut they knew to be Meadow's, none of them looking at it for too long as they slowly walked by.
They approached Chief Prowlus's larger hut at the top of the 'L' of the village, slipping between it and the huts to its left as they reconvened on the grass in a quiet corner of the village. Behind them was the palisade wall and its raised platform running around the perimeter of the village, the wooden planks creaking every so often from the Cheetahs moving back and forth as they scanned over the walls observantly. Occasionally they would glance down at the four sulking dragons, some eyeing them with sympathy while others, sharing the mind of their Chief, eyed them snidely, judging them for foolheartedly 'abandoning' a member of their tribe who was now likely in the custody of their most heinous enemy. Spyro stopped taking notice of them after a short while, his previous melancholy mindset returning in force when his offer of help was sharply cut down.
He sat with his back to the huts as Cynder, Flame and Ember sat in a rough circle in front of him, for a time sitting quietly with their own thoughts as they lulled over the current predicament and their role in it. The silence eventually became restless as Cynder stood up and began pacing back and forth, Flame groaned and slumped over on his back like a sloth and stared at the sky while Ember toyed joylessly with the ornate necklace the red dragon had bought for her. Spyro sat, eyes half lidded with his tail curled around himself and his back feet exposed as he sat with them laying back on his heels.
Flame broke the silence with, "Should we have told him about the Hermit guy?" he asked as rolled his head to his left.
"Why bother?" replied Cynder embitteredly, "I almost think Prowlus was waiting for this kind of foul up so he could throw us out."
"You know he wouldn't try that if Hunter was here," concurred Ember firmly, stamping her paw into a fist on the ground. Flame lifted his head and rolled onto his left side, eyeing her nervously as Cynder continued pacing between them. Spyro said nothing.
"You really think the Apes have got Meadow?" asked Flame earnestly.
"What else could have happened?" Ember asked back, "There are no wild beasts in Avalar that are big enough to take on a Cheetah or leave tracks like that," she said as Cynder continued to stride moodily in and out of her view.
"You think maybe the Hermit had something to do with it?" asked the red dragon curiously.
"How could he? He was with us while we were in the caves," answered Ember again.
"Maybe he was working with them," added in Cynder, "Maybe he was spying for the Apes. But what were those cretins doing in the valley anyway?" the black dragoness asked aloud, her face wrinkling as she digested her thoughts, "Why would they appear now after twelve years, and why would they kidnap a Cheetah?"
"Maybe it's their idea of hunting," Ember suggested grimly, Flame immediately shot to his feet in alarm, gasping,
"No way! That's horrible!"
"Of course it is," Cynder replied tersely as she stopped pacing, "What would you expect?"
Flame suddenly became jittery, his body began shaking as his wholesome red eyes shrank to the size of those of a Mole. He looked across to Spyro for solace, finding his purple eyes staring emptily at the ground so the red dragon looked back to the two dragonesses for some kind of support, but found they shared the same despair in their eyes as well.
"We really kinda' messed up, didn't we?" Flame asked meekly.
"Yeah," nodded Ember guiltily, "We are going to get in so much trouble for this."
"I don't think that matters so much. Meadow's in a lot more trouble than we are," Cynder remarked categorically,
"Right, Spyro?"
"Its my fault!" the purple dragon exclaimed despondently, startling the others, "We should never have gone into that cave! We should never have left Meadow alone like that! Its my fault this happened," he said as he shook his head furiously.
"Spyro, we all left him alone, not just you," Cynder replied softly.
"But I should have known better!" he retorted sorely, springing to his feet, "Everyone expects more from me! I'm the one everyone is counting on! What's everyone going to think when they hear about this? Meadow's in mortal danger and its all because of my stupid mistake!"
The despair in his voice was harrowing, leaving the three other dragons speechless as Spyro began to move about aimlessly as if he was searching for something, avoiding their gaze as he started breathing heavily. Flame cleared his throat awkwardly as he said,
"Well, you know, I found the cave after all, you could say its my fault…"
"No, no, its not," Spyro replied insistently, "I should have listened when you said we should go back, but I didn't listen."
"None of us listened, Spyro," Cynder added sternly, "We all should have known better, but we all let our curiosity get the better of us. What's done is done."
"No, its not," Spyro said coldly, anger brewing in his voice as he finally stood still, "Meadow is in danger and I can't just let him pay with his life because of me, not him or anybody else."
Ember raised her eyebrows with salient concern, "Spyro, what are you getting at?"
"Why do you think the Apes came here?" he asked her gravely, "Why would they come to Avalar just to kidnap a lonely Cheetah? Easy; he's not the one they were after; they were after me. They're always after me."
"But why would they take Meadow if they were after you?"
"To interrogate him! They'll torture him to find out where I am. If he tells them or not, they'll kill him when they don't need him anymore. I can't let anyone else die to get to me…"
Cynder cocked her slightly, stepping up closer to the distraught purple dragon. He shifted his eyes to the corner of his sockets, dodging her piercing emerald gaze, curling his bottom lip as stood face to face with him.
"We all feel bad about it, Spyro. But the Guardians will be here soon enough, they'll know what to do. They'll get Meadow back."
"It will take at least two hours for them to get here if the message gets to Warfang quickly enough," Spyro replied dismissively, "If he's been taken prisoner then there is only one place he'll be; the Mountain of Malefor," he said chillingly, the mere mention of the name put fear in the hearts of the young dragons. Cynder gulped nervously as she tried to force her composure to stay.
"If that's where they've taken him," she began solemnly, her voice heavy, "Then…. I don't think there is any hope for him…." she remarked sadly.
"Not while I'm standing around here there isn't," Spyro replied shortly, turning about and making to walk away before Cynder clapped her paw on his tail, Flame and Ember quickly scurried up beside her as they regarded their friend with odd hesitation.
"Where are you going?" asked Ember cautiously.
"We were gone not even half an hour, right?" Spyro asked swiftly, "They've got about half an hour's head start if I leave right now…"
"Leave?" exclaimed Cynder, "For where?"
"The Mountain of Malefor," he replied grimly but frankly, "That's the only place they'd have taken him."
"Are you nuts?!" cried Flame hectically, "You're going after Meadow all alone?!"
"Keep it down!" Spyro hissed, turning around and looking about to see if any of the villagers had heard the red dragon's voice, "Every second I wait gives them more time to get ahead."
"You can't be serious, Spyro," said Ember disbelievingly, "You might be the purple dragon, but not even the Guardians would try and go their alone. Its suicide!"
"And its certain death for Meadow if he gets there. I won't let him die because of me. I've got to try, no matter how dangerous it is," the purple dragon declared emphatically, making to turn away again but was once more stopped by Cynder's paws on his tail. He scowled as he tried to tug free from her hold. "Don't try and stop me. I've got to do this," he said warningly.
"You're not going anywhere, Spyro," Cynder promised harshly, "Not without us."
"What?!" stammered Flame with shock.
"Nobody is coming with me," Spyro retorted, "I won't endanger anyone else. I've got to do this on my own."
"Says who?" demanded the black dragoness as she let go of his tail, striding up to him as he turned to face her and the others. He hesitated for a moment, the three pairs of eyes staring back unsettled him. He breathed deeply as he opted to oppose them, despite them being his friends.
"This is what I've been training for isn't it? Its what its expected of me, that's all there is to it."
"Is it?" asked Cynder doubtfully, "Did you let that Hermit get under your skin? Is this about what he said?"
Spyro felt his heart tighten like a clenched fist, his sense of humility becoming inflamed. He involuntarily shook his head as if trying to literally shake off the question.
"Its not important. Now I'm going," he decreed firmly, turning to leave for yet a third time, but yet again he was foiled as Cynder swept around in front of him, blocking his path and fanning her wings out wide.
"If you go, we go with you, its that simple," she stated bluntly with a glint of mischievousness in her eyes.
Spyro sighed irritably, "Cynder, no…."
"We're the four survivors, aren't we?" she asked brightly.
"Yeah, and if you stay here you might be lucky enough to be called the 'three'who lived," he retorted sardonically. Ember then appeared at his left side, her blue eyes brimming with determination.
"Its all or nothing, Spyro. We're a team, you know that," she said comradely, her steadfastness and cheerfulness was infectious to him, despite his reservations. He retained a glum expression even so as Flame approached Ember's right side with noticeably less enthusiasm than the pink Ice dragoness has approached him.
"Well, I…" he began hesitantly, just before Ember's tail whipped hard against his own, "Right behind you, buddy!" he proclaimed, eyeing the pink dragoness fearfully as she glared at him.
Spyro sighed heavily as he lowered his head and closed his eyes, lamenting for the first time in his life the naïve loyalty of his friends, until he recognized the equally naïve prospect of himself single handily traveling to the very heart of darkness to try and rescue another friend from the clutches of the Dark Armies and whatever other horrors stalked the halls of Mount Malefor.
"All right," he conceded, lifting his head slowly, "But you know what we're getting into right? This won't be like training; if we make a mistake, it could be fatal. If we fail, there's no coming back."
"We get it, Spyro, we're not playing games here."
"Yeah," Flame added anxiously, "It'd be pretty stupid to think this was a game, right?"
"Sure would," Ember said thoughtfully. Drawing a long breath through his nostrils, Spyro looked at Cynder before turning his head and looking to both Flame and Ember, seeing their hearts in their eyes and the determination that was pumped through them. He nodded to them and then back to Cynder before he silently beckoned for them to follow him. With the same silence, the three of the them trailed Spyro as he walked slowly out from between the huts to in front of the entrance to Prowlus's hut. There they stood in a line alongside each other as the Cheetah manned their posts and scanned the skies for intruders, no one taking any notice of them. A fact that was soon to change. Spyro looked up at the sky, watching the clouds drifting by as his adrenaline began to build as he tried to wrap his mind around what it was the four of them were about to set out to do.
"Okay," he said heavily, still looking up at the sky, "We fly over the valley to the southeast, we cross the Enchanted Forest, fly over Twlight Falls, and then press on to the Shattered Vale an onto the Mountain of Malefore, right?"
"Sounds about right," Cynder answered uneasily.
"Are we really sure about this?" asked Flame almost hopefully.
"Well, when I take off, it's all on you. I won't hold it against any of you if choose to stay…" He was abruptly cut off as Cynder suddenly lunged into the air, filling the view he had of the sky as she hovered several feet above him.
"Let's just go before you change our minds!" she demanded impatiently, her display finally drawing the attention of the Cheetahs in the village.
"Hey, what are they doing?" asked a voice from somewhere among the huts. The sudden alarming prospect of being caught seemed to override any other fears in that moment as Spyro leapt into the air as did Flame and Ember and hovered beside Cynder just as Chief Prowlus suddenly appeared as he stepped out from his home behind them.
"What is the meaning of this?!" he roared.
"Sorry, Chief Prowlus!" Flame called out apologetically, "They talked me into this!"
"You Fink!" Ember sneered.
"Get back down here, right now!"
"When the Guardians arrive, tell them we've gone to find Meadow. You can punish us when we get back!" Spyro called earnestly before he spun around and took off at great speed over the roofs and the palisade fence back into the valley.
His friends followed in tow as a great uproar of shouts and curses followed, seemingly all from Prowlus as the Cheetahs stared in blank disbelief as the four young dragons soared away through the air. Spyro took a quick look over his shoulder as his wings propelled him along, seeing the others following and the village shrinking behind them. Looking forward, he lifted his head and aimed upwards as his trajectory gave him more height, flying up towards the clouds as he struggled to lift the weight of the task he had placed on his shoulders. He looked down at the river, following the sparkling line as is stretched out below, heading over the path they had followed with Meadow as the rocky plateau that bordered the main valley approached them. Checking again to see that the others were still with him, Spyro propelled himself higher to clear the plateau, the clouds now almost in reach as they swept over the mountaintop, crossing over gorge and the log Flame had tried to hide under less than an hour before when they had played Hide and Seek.
Now they were venturing alone beyond any territory they had visited before on a quest to rescue their caretaker from the clutches of the evil Ape army. Never in their lives had anything changed so dramatically in such a short time. Spyro may have found it humorous if only he could think of anything other than how dangerous it was. Far below, the landscape opened out into one of the neighboring valleys with much of the same features as all of Avalar, lush green grasslands and an abundance of clusters of flowers and trees decorating the landscape, but these were of little interest as Spyro stared ahead at the towering mountains that were far off in the distance, the peaks of which were capped in snow and phased in and out of view as the clouds passed over them. He heard a whoosh behind him, Spyro looking to see Cynder, Flame and Ember forming up on him, the four now making a diamond formation with Cynder to his left, Ember on his right and Flame at the back.
"Are you sure we know where we are going?" Cynder asked loudly as the wind rushed around them.
"Can't be too hard," Spyro called back, "Over those mountains and we've just got to keep straight on, I think."
"Well, I hope that between the four of us we learned something in our geography lessons," pitched in Ember cynically.
"Shouldn't we have bought some food with us? Or water?" asked Flame from the rear, "It's a long way to go."
"Its about the same as from here to Warfang," Cynder called back to him, "We won't starve before then."
"I was kinda' thinking about having something for a last meal…" Flame confessed morbidly. A chill colder than the air pierced Spyro's body like the spines of an iron maiden, eliciting a hasty response as he ooked over his shoulder,
"Flame, don't talk like that! We'll be okay as long as we stick together."
"Is that a promise?" he asked warily.
"Sure!" Spyro answered peppily, grinning with borrowed confidence as his body almost made him retch in disgust at his flamboyant promise. He noted Cynder's dubious expression as he craned his head forwards, the grin quickly evaporating as he sucked in a deep breath to steady himself.
"What are you doing?" he muttered softly to himself, grinding his teeth together as his eyes aimed ahead at the mountains, the question repeating over and over in his head, but for so much more than just his kneejerk answer to Flame;
'What are you doing going off like this? What are doing trying to be a hero all of a sudden? What are you doing letting them come along? What are you doing letting that husky windbag of a Hermit get inside your head?'
Spyro thought he had answers to all of them, but whatever they were they seemed to have slipped from his grasp or gone up in smoke because for the life of him none of them were forthcoming. He tried to block out his doubts, focusing instead on the first obstacle to overcome; that being simply to get to where they were going. The prospect of flying to the infamous Mountain of Malefor was the most unnerving thing that the four of them had ever done, even more so than the time they had snuck into the back of the Dragon's Den tavern and sampled a taste of ale from a carelessly unguarded flagon. Somehow, they had not been caught and the crime never discovered, but it seemed unlikely that they would have such luck with this endeavor.
The open valleys began to be replaced by great expanses of forests as the distant mountains grew larger and larger and Spyro considered how to navigate the great landmass. Flying high and over it seemed simple, but the high altitude would bring thin air and freezing temperatures that an adult dragon could face well enough but would quickly exhaust the four young dragons. He opted instead they would go around the mountain, which would take longer but would, he hoped, put less strain on them for the long journey ahead.
"So how about that mountain, Spyro?" asked Cynder almost psychically as he made up his mind.
"We'll go around to the right," he said aloud, "Better than freezing by going over the top."
"Or fainting and crashing!" concurred Ember grimly.
Without any further exchanges, Spyro held out his right paw and waved a signal before he banked to the right, the others mimicking him as they banked in a line to go around the mountain. They were still a fair way from it, but acting sooner would again save energy so that they wouldn't have to turn tightly to circumvent it when the were closer. The landscape became hillier as they neared the mountain, its fin like plateaus stretching out from its base like the creases of a giant unmade bed. Having given a wide enough berth, Spyro signaled with his left paw and they stabilized once more, the enormous mountain filling all there was to see on their left, the sun glistening of its jagged edges and cascading toupee of snow. It may have been more beautiful to them if there thoughts were not on the mountain that they knew was somewhere far off in the distance and where they knew they would find Meadow. Secretly, Spyro hoped that he was wrong.
'Please let us find him before we get there,' he thought, though with little confidence, 'Maybe they have a camp somewhere in the valley. If they do, I just hope we see if before we get to the Mountain of Malefor.'
Those meager hopes whittled away with every minute they pressed onwards and by the time the first hour had passed, they had faded to nothing. There were few words uttered in that time as the four who lived scanned the horizon and the land below for the landmarks they knew from what they remembered from their geography lessons. Once past the mountain they had flown over another wide-ranging forest that bordered Avalar known as the Enchanted Forest. Despite the borderline cliched name, it was a suitable title for the land within the forest was brimming with magic and as a result was over abundant with wild Spirit Gems that at night made the forest glisten almost like the moonlight on the ocean. At least that was what they had heard for they had never been there and it was considered a protected zone and was virtually untouched with only minimal logging and gem farming permitted within its territory. From above during the day it looked the same as any forest and Spyro tried not to dwell on it, but the mortal danger their quest would involve caused him to think if he would ever get a chance to see it in all its beauty, if indeed any of them would see the next day at all.
As they neared the end of the forest, the landscape ahead formed another barrier like cliff face that the four dragons swept over effortlessly. On the other side was a smaller mountain with yet another waterfall flowing down its face from a large cave facing towards them. The water from the cave flowed down into the clearing down below, and Spyro eyed the large opening curiously.
"Do you guys remember anything about a mountain cave?" he called out as he looked down.
"Not that I can remember," answered Cynder shortly.
"Must've phased out of that one," said Flame bluntly.
"I think I remember something!" said Ember brightly.
"Good! Lets take a look at it!" Spyro announced swiftly.
Without further or do he reared his head back slightly before plunging into a dive towards the cave, the others following behind as water poured out down the slope of the mountainside. Spyro pulled up level with the cave, setting his eyes on a large rock just inside the mouth of cave that was above the flowing water and reasonably level. He looked behind and pointed to it for his companions, waving his paw to signal to land on it. The others slowed their decent as he swept in first, arching his wings back and landing with his hindlegs on top of the rock. Once he had safely settled, he nodded to the others as they came in one at a time and landed with him, first Ember, then Cynder and Flame, standing in the same places they had been flying in. The rock was barely large enough for the four of them to stand on, especially as its back corner sloped down sharply, causing them to stand close together.
"So what are we stopping for?" asked Flame in a raised voice from the back as the water flowed loudly by them and they stared ahead into the long cavern that continued on beyond what they could see.
"Yeah," said Cynder irritably on Spyro's left as a sheet of water splashed against the rock left her and the others soaking, "Why have we?"
Spyro shook the water from his face and turned to Ember on his right,
"You said you remembered something about this cave?" he asked her.
"Yes!" she shouted a reply, "But maybe not as much as I should have!"
"Well, what do you remember?" Spyro asked impatiently. "Its called the Twilight Falls," Ember replied knowledgeably, "Its called that because of how the moons glisten on it at night."
"Know anything useful?!" Cynder demanded crossly as she blocked another splash with her wing. Ember rolled her eyes as she continued,
"I remember Terrador saying something about it in one of his lessons. This cave goes on for a few miles before it opens up into a huge underground cavern. The Moles used to have an underground city there long ago. Catacombs or something."
"Catacombs?!" Flame shrieked.
"Could it take us to the Mountain of Malefor?" Spyro queried.
"Maybe, but from what I remember these caverns go on for miles and in so many different directions. We could get lost and we have no idea if there's any way to get back above ground," Ember replied gravely.
Spyro grimaced as he slowly looked ahead into the darkened tunnel, the rocky spires descending from the roof of the cave's mouth resembling great jaws ready to devour them if they ventured under them. He looked across to Cynder who eyed him with impatience before looking over his shoulder to Flame, whose nervousness was on full display as he regarded the cave with great wariness.
"Like I said," Spyro proclaimed solemnly, "If anyone wants to go back, I won't think any less of you for doing so."
"Go back just so I can get an earful from Prowlus or Ignitus? No thanks, I'll take my chances," replied Cynder defiantly. Spyro let out a short, faintly humorous chuckle, knowing it was pointless to try and argue with the black dragoness.
"Does Cynder speak for everyone?" he asked aloud, looking around him. Ember gave him a firm nod whereas Flame gave him a reluctant shrug.
"We'll be okay as long as we're with you, right?" the red dragon asked timidly. The question bounced around Spyro's head as he looked frontwards, trying to hide his nervous gulp.
"We'll be okay as long as we stick together," he replied with the most confidence he could muster, "Now lets go find Meadow."
Spyro opened his wings and took off from the rock, Cynder, Ember and Flame all taking off after him. Breathing deeply, the purple dragon stared ahead into the cave as the water flowed over the rocks beneath towards the mouth. He swerved around a rock spire that stood like a pole right in the middle of the tunnel as they flew on, the passage narrowing ahead as the river dropped down a short rise before them. The four dragons formed a single file as they flew between the enclosed walls, sweeping through a trio of spires like the bars of a gate trying to keep them out as the cave widened again. The darkness was not totally inhibiting, but troublesome as Spyro strained his eyes for further obstacles in their path. He caught a glimpse of light from a small cluster of luminous toadstools growing out from the rock walls ahead, helping to show the tunnel narrowing again. As they drew nearer, the fuzzy haze ahead took on new colours and contours; not just grey and black rock, but a more familiar shade of brownish gold and the distinctive shape of engineered stone. His eyes widened as the natural cave formation gave way to a rectangular tunnel of heavy stone blocks and familiar stone carvings.
"Wow!" gasped in wonder as he led his companions down a tall and wide stone tunnel, dilapidated and overgrown from who knows how long of abandonment. There were unlit torches inside stone recess all along the bottom walls, their height indicating that they had been placed for the convenience of moles but the high ceiling built for the convenience of dragons like what they had seen in Warfang.
"Guess I was right, huh?" called out Ember as the four of them glanced around their surroundings in wonder.
"Okay," conceded Cynder, "But do you remember what this place was for?"
"I'm sure we'll figure that out, come on!" Spyro replied as they flew on through the tunnel, the light growing stronger ahead as rays of some kind beamed across the left-hand wall of the tunnel, the answer soon being revealed as the right hand wall opened up into a line of around a dozen great stone pillars, granting view of a colossal cavern that seemingly stretched on forever. A short distance past the last pillar was a great towering doorway marking the end of the tunnel, the left side of the twin doors opened slightly inward, letting in a trickle of yellow light.
Clusters of multi-coloured natural crystals and infused spirit gems grew all around the cavern, their radiant light casting through the pillars into the tunnel as the four dragons gazed in wonder at the subterranean world. The distant shadows and silhouettes of more of the same stone spires created an alluring effect, tempting the sense of adventure that had sprouted within the four dragons. Overcome by curiosity, Spyro entered a glide and stepped lightly onto the floor, followed by his companions as they walked along the pillars, staring out into the mesmerizing view before them. Though not forgetting the urgency of their mission, the four of them could not help but stand on their hind legs and perch their paws on the ledge between the pillars as they each took a spot between four of them.
"Wow!" exclaimed Flame in a hushed tone, "How long do think it goes on for?"
"For ages!" beamed Ember excitedly, "Maybe all the way to the center of the earth!"
"Just to the Mountain of Malefor would be far enough…" remarked Spyro in a grey tone.
"Thanks for ruining the moment," retorted Cynder dryly, just as a sound like their wings flapping, only louder, came from the left. A piercing, shrill scream suddenly assaulted their ears as a monstrous shape swooped from out of view to the left on the other side of the pillars, cutting across their view like a demon from a nightmare.
"Get down!" Spyro hissed as quietly and as loudly as he dared as the Dreadwing swept by them, he and the others dropping flat behind the ledge as it shrieked again, its throbbing wings breaking the near silence of the cavern as it fly on by towards the colourful haze far down the cavern. As the sound of its wings died down, Spyro with his heart beating a thousand times a second, slowly risked a peak over the ledge as he saw the flying beast with an Ape rider on its back fading into the distant haze. Cynder and ember slowly did the same, save for Flame who remained laying down with his paws called over his eyes.
"Did it see us? Is it gone?" the red dragon asked frightfully, slowly peeking out from under his left paw.
"It didn't see us. It's gone," whispered Cynder cautiously, now eyeing the cavern disconcertingly.
"Oh my gosh," Ember gasped, "I've never seen a Dreadwing for real!"
Spyro tilted his head sideways as he scanned to the left where the bat-monster had come from, listening intently as he suddenly climbed up onto the ledge.
"What are you doing?!" Flame asked hastily.
"Keep quiet, I think I heard something," he replied calmly.
"Yeah, no kidding! We all heard that, Spyro!" Cynder retorted sarcastically.
"Just keep it down!" he whispered reassuringly as he peeked his head around the outside of the tunnel, catching his breath as he beheld the endless black abyss stretching out down below. Heights normally did not usually inspire fear in dragons, being creatures of flight, but the harrowing unknown darkness below rattled the mind of the young purple dragon with thoughts of falling forever into an ocean of darkness. Looking up and away, he scanned along the stone block wall for its last fifty feet or so, the wall covered in thick vines that had grown over the years of neglect. He strained his ears, hearing something like voices past the edge of the brickwork, when at that moment a loud clatter like breaking glass sounded against the door at the end of the tunnel.
"What was that?" asked Cynder in a hushed tone as Spyro jumped back down.
"I can hear voices," he warned, "Follow me and keep quiet," he told them as he hunched down and began to stalk quickly but quietly towards the door.
Cynder, Ember and Flame only nodded and followed in his example, hunching down and stepping lightly after him. The thin crack of light stretched across the floor from the left hand door, the voices Spyro had heard becoming more legible; they were gruff and hoarse, uttering the sounds of frustration and exertion as the purple dragon stopped just short of the crack of light, wary of crossing it. The doors themselves were made of hardy green steel with the gold image of a dragon on each side, though the doors were now rusted and grimy. He nearly jumped as another crash sounded against the door as something fragile was thrown against it, the door moving back by just the width of one of his toes. Spyro looked over his shoulder to the frightened expressions of his friends, mouthing to them,
"Get over next to the wall!" which they did so quickly and silently. As the others shuffled up behind the door, Spyro held his breath as he put one leg forward into the thin strip of light, sure it would give him away at once. As his right paw touched down he hastily slipped the rest of his body across the light back into the shadows, scurrying to the corner of the tunnel with the door straight across from him. He looked up and saw the others huddled together in the opposite corner, watching him anxiously as finally let himself breath.
"Argh!" came an exasperated groan from the other side of the door, "Nothin' here but junk!" said a slovenly voice. Spyro froze as he eyed the slit in the doors sharply.
"Told ya' they woulda' got all tha' good stuff first," replied a second, equally gruff voice, "But did ya' listin' ta' me? Nah!"
"Yeah, yeah," replied the first voice, "But it ain't fair that the bigshots get first dibs. They should leave somethin' for the rest of us."
"What? Like you would?" challenged the second voice. There was a smug chuckle from it as an embarrassed silence settled between it and the first voice. Spyro's heart skipped a beat as he heard steps approaching the door among the sound of clanking armor.
"Yeah, whatever," the first voice dismissed pettily as the steps halted just outside the door, Spyro beginning to panic as his friends looked to him for an answer that he did not have, Cynder's mouth asking without a voice, "What do we do?"
"Hide!" he mouthed silently as he saw the steel gauntlet clad hand of an Ape through the crack lean against the door, Spyro spinning and pouncing for the gap in the pillars as the door creaked open, the young dragon diving clear off the ledge and opening his wings in a glide.
"You hear somethin'?" he heard the first ape say just after he jumped clear. Spyro's first thought was to his friends behind the door, the second how he was going to get back to them without being seen. He held his breath again as he banked around sharply to the left, hoping he had the momentum to climb with a single dive and not have to flap his wings and risk the sound giving him away. He swung around tightly and angled himself up, his heart in his throat as he felt his momentum giving way to gravity just as he reached the thick vines on the outside wall. He reached forward and grasped them before he fell, gasping as his front paws clung onto the snake like vines, his back legs and tail dangling precariously. He dared to pull himself higher until his back feet were resting on the vines, flattening himself out as he looked to his left and heard the two apes moving around just beyond the pillar beside him. Being unable to see them or his friends was torturous as he held his tongue and only hoped the others would remain out of sight of the lurking danger.
Suddenly a pair of armored gauntlets clutched the top of the ledge, followed by the head of an ape as it leaned out and stared down into the abyss barely a few meters from him. The Ape's face was adorned in a dark purple helmet and mask with a protruding spike like a beak at its front. Its long drooping, baboon face and fangs rocked back and forth as the ape's slow wit pondered. Spyro caught a whiff of the creature's foul scent, almost making him gag as he squeezed his lips shut and hoped the ape didn't look towards him.
"Probably nothin'," he heard the second say ape say, "Lets get back on guard before someone see's we're gone."
"Alright," grunted the first ape, pulling his head back and lifting his arms off the ledge. Spyro nearly let out a cry of relief as he remained hugging the wall and the vines as he heard the footsteps of the two apes taking off down the tunnel.
"I'll race ya!" the second ape laughed gruffly.
"Hey! You gotta' head start!" complained the first as he took off after his partner, armor and weapons clanking loudly as they ran off down the tunnel. Spyro leaned back and stretched out his neck as he peered towards the ledge, cautious even as the sound of the apes faded. He gripped the vines hard, swayed his body for momentum, and then jumped for the gap. His front paws gripped the ledge by the edge of his claws, pulling his chest up and he clambered up back onto the ledge. He peeked around the pillar to where the apes had gone, faintly seeing their shapes disappearing into the darkness before he spun back to the door. Timely, he saw the heads and disbelieving eyes of Cynder, Flame and Ember peek around the door of which they had hidden behind. Wasting no time, Spyro hopped lightly from the ledge and beckoned his head towards the doorway, ducking low and scurrying through as the others followed after him. They entered onto an open stone bridge about as long as the width of the temple dojo with a staircase on the other side leading further into the underground cavern. Spyro pulled sharply to a halt to the right behind the cover of the closed side of the doorway as Cynder, Flame and Ember joined him.
"Oh my gosh! Oh my gosh, I thought we were done for!" exclaimed Flame as he hyperventilated.
"Keep it down!" Spyro hissed, "We got lucky, but we don't know how many more there might be."
"This place is creeping me out," Ember said in a frightful whisper as she eyed the staircase anxiously.
"But what are they doing here?" asked Cynder curiously, keeping her voice down, "Even here is well outside their territory. You think maybe they're just scavenging?" she asked as she eyed the broken pottery they had evidently just shattered.
"No," Spyro shook his head, "No, they've been here a while. One of them said others had been around here. My guess is they've been secretly hanging around here for some time. The ones who snatched Meadow might even be here."
"There could be an army just over those stairs…" Flame remarked nervously.
"Maybe," Spyro admitted bluntly, "So we've got to be smart, okay? We got to stay quiet and hidden as long as possible. We do that, there's a good chance we'll find Meadow and get out of here before anyone knows…"
Spyro's voice cut off in a heartbeat as a streak of thick, mysterious goop suddenly trickled down into a puddle in the middle of the four dragons. All four gasped silently as the mystery substance dripped down more feverishly, nearly splashing them. With shared dread, Spyro, Cynder, Flame and Ember slowly looked up in unison to the source of the goop. Their eyes shrank as they stared into the pupil-less, glowing eyes of six newly awakened Dreadwings, hanging upside down from the cavern ceiling. The mystery goop had been the drool of one hanging directly above the four who lived. The creatures opened their mouths in a howl of alarm, baring their fangs as the four dragons could think of nothing else to do other than scream together in terror.
"Yikes!" Flame shrieked as the Dreadwings detached themselves from the ceiling and plummeted down toward them, howling viciously.
"Watch out!" Spyro cried as the giant bats swooped at them, a pair screaming over top of them as the others swooped around and encircled the bridge. The two that had swooped them circled back, splitting up and landing on both ends of the bridge, blocking off the staircase and the door to the tunnel.
"Make a circle!" Cynder shouted, the four dragons backing up close to each other as the foul beasts shrieked and snarled. Even though they were without riders, the Dreadwings still regarded dragons as naturally hostile, be it because of instinct or training from their riders. Either way, it didn't matter as the four who lived found themselves surrounded as the other four Dreadwings hovered around the sides of the bridge. Spyro faced towards the stairs and Cynder faced the door while Flame and Ember faced the sides of the bridge.
"Oh, this is bad!" exclaimed Ember.
"Keep it together!" Spyro affirmed stoutly, "We're ready for this!"
"Are you sure?" asked Flame uneasily.
"We have to be!" he replied sharply just as the Dreadwing before him ran towards him with a scream. He growled and opened his maw, releasing a burst of flame towards it, the first thing that had come to his mind, the Dreadwing screeching as the fur of its head caught fire as it hastily retreated. Like a candle toppling from a table, his action lit up the rest of the cavern as the other Dreadwings attacked. At the other end of the bridge, Cynder jumped back as her Dreadwing snapped at her before she pounced back, casting a jet of fierce Wind into its face. Dust, dirt and debris flew into its face before she jumped up with a full spin, slashing the scythe of her tail across its eyes, the giant bat thrashing blindly before it stepped out too far and tumbled off the right side of the bridge, howling as it fell into the abyss.
Ember blew a crust of Ice across the front of her attacker, the monster's wings and forearms frozen stiff as it rigidly tumbled back over the edge of the bridge. Flame stood on his hind legs and cast quick bursts of fire towards his foe, the Dreadwings backing away cautiously as one of them took off with its wings singed. Their howls filled the cavern as from its depths another trio of Dreadwings suddenly emerged, this time carrying riders on their backs, the commotion drawing them from elsewhere.
"There's more coming!" alerted Cynder as suddenly two of the bat monsters slammed down on the ground in front of her and the third soared towards Spyro.
"Stay focused!" Spyro called out, risking a look over his shoulder at the state of his companions even as the Dreadwing landed in front of him. The speed of which they had come confirming at least Spyro's belief that there was a sizable force of apes here and that he expected them to arrive at any moment. The need to deal with the current threat was his priority, after which would be getting his friends off this bridge. He faced back to the Dreadwing, showing his teeth in an effort to hide just how fearful he truly was. The monster screeched, thrashing its head menacingly, throwing streaks of sickly drool across the floor. Spyro lunged and swiped his claws at it, the Dreadwing jumping forward and charging its head into him like a bull, knocking the purple dragon over on his back.
"Spyro!" he heard Ember scream as he found himself on the verge of panic, the Dreadwing clawing its way towards him. Reacting before thinking, he suddenly clambered to his feet and charged with his horns, his body bursting with some new kind of new vigor other than fear. His horns sparked with electricity as he rammed into the Dreadwing, the creature and its rider screaming as lighting coursed through it, Spyro grimacing as he forced his horns into its bulk, zapping all life from his foe in a matter of seconds. He pulled his horns back as the monster and rider's still twitching bodies collapsed to the floor, opening up the way to the stairs. The brief elation was cut down as several figures suddenly emerged at the top of the stairs; Apes in violet armor and carrying weapons.
"We got company!" said the largest of them, a towering Ape commander wielding a spiked mace, "Get 'em!" he bellowed.
At once a half dozen of the smaller ape soldiers, only slightly larger than the young dragons, jumped down the staircase, backed by two of the larger ape lieutenants wielding broad squarish swords. The lowly soldiers held their claws out as they drew short daggers from their sheaths menacingly, eyeing the purple dragon ravenously. Up close they were more hideous and frightening than the straw dummies he had pummeled countless time in training, and he could only hope they would fall just as easily.
"The purple dragon!" one of the ape soldiers remarked with savage glee to his comrades, clutching his knife eagerly, "This day just got interesting!"
"Well, today just got bad for you, friend," Spyro replied with grim cockiness. The ape chuckled mirthlessly as the others hollered and hooted in bloodlust,
"I got dibs on his head!" the one nearest to the front proclaimed as it led a charge of the smaller soldier with their daggers high in the air.
Spyro reeled back and breathed a blanket of Ice across their path, remembering how Ember had done so in the dojo, the ape soldiers feet slipping as the newly made icy surface them run on the spot before toppling over each other. He cracked a smile as they slipped and struggled to get back up, just as one of them from the back climbed over the backs of his comrades and dived towards him. Spyro jumped up with his wings to meet him, kicking his back feet out into the ape's face, sending him flying back into the others as they were finally getting back to their feet, bowling them over like statues across the icy floor.
To the rear, Cynder faced down the Dreadwing and the two newly returned ape soldiers as they rushed through the door from the tunnel. Trusting her companions were watching her back, she hunched down with her wings fanned out as the two apes moved around the Dreadwing and advanced on her slowly. She saw the daggers in their belts and pondered why they did not reach for them as they approached with bare hands. They approached with a surprising sense of trepidation, but then she thought that was to be expected. The ape to her right charged and tried to grab her as she leapt to the left, swiping her head back as her horns struck him in the arm with a hard crunch, leaving the ape snarling before she spun again and slashed him with her tail. The second ape lifted up a fair sized rock from the floor and heaved it towards her, Cynder sucking in her chest as her Wind boiled inside like a hot spring, projecting a short blast of air that sent the rock flying back as it smashed against the ape's head, knocking him down cold. The smoothness of the act surprised her, the brief moment of pride stalling her just enough for the Dreadwing to leap at her, the dragoness's face going white with fear as the mass of the creature knocked her back and pinned her down.
"Help!" she cried, the monster forcing its wings down on her to keep her down. Flame and Ember both looked toward her when she screamed, even as they still faced their own dangers. Spyro in that moment had cast a stream on electricity like a lasso at one of the ape soldiers, throwing his head to the left and sweeping the ape across the bridge and knocking two of the others off the side. He spun his head around and saw Cynder pinned under the Dreadwing squirming frantically as its jaws hung menacingly over her face.
"Cynder!" he cried desperately, turning back just in time to duck and avoid an ape lieutenant's sword, the purple dragon casting a jet of Ice all over the larger ape, turning him into a frozen idol. He swept the ground with more Ice, hoping to slow the other apes still confronting him, feeling his mana becoming depleted as he turned and ran towards Cynder. Flame and Ember managed to drive their Dreadwings back as he galloped past them, the Dreadwing holding Cynder leapt up and made to grab her in its hind claws, seemingly preparing to carry her away.
"Get away from her!" shouted Spyro as he ran, speeding his movements up with Electricity as he supercharged into a dive towards the monster. A sound like a lightning strike roared through the cavern as he shot like an arrow towards the giant bat, cutting off his power just before his horns plunged into the creatures belly, not wanting to electrocute the black dragoness along with it. The force of the impact sent him, as well as the Dreadwing and rider flying through the air and crashing through the doorway, Cynder falling from its claws and landing on her side with a hard thud.
Spyro yanked his horns out from the Dreadwings belly, his body shaking from his heavy panting and the exhilaration of lighting coursing through his veins. He turned back and saw Flame and Ember helping Cynder to her feet while behind them, the Ape Commander swung across his front with his mace, heartlessly clearing away the frozen ape lieutenant with a sickening crash, sending him plummeting over the side while his troops, along with a dozen or so newly arrived reinforcements, stayed warily behind their commander. Spyro ran over to his friends as Cynder unsteadily rose to her feet.
"Are you okay?" he asked sharply.
"I'm fine," she replied, somewhat uneasily. Turning back to the remaining apes, Spyro moved to the front of the group as the four dragons spaced out across the bridge, eyeing their adversaries venomously. The ape commander uttered a few grunts and calls in his own tongue to his subordinates, four of the ape soldiers among the rest suddenly moved in front of the commander, armed with crossbows. The sight of the weapons gave the young dragons pause for thought, but Spyro's eyes narrowed when he saw the unusual munitions they were loaded with; not bolts or arrows, but what looked like small bags. By the time the thought had registered in his mind, the apes had fired the crossbows and the small projectiles sailed through the air.
"Duck!" was all Spyro thought to say as he dropped down and covered his face with his wings, the others doing the same as the objects landed in pairs, two in front and two behind the group. They shattered as they hit the ground, revealing them to be small vases, a choking green mist suddenly blossomed from the shattered capsules. In moments a sickly green cloud had enveloped them, Spyro coughing as he felt his mouth at once becoming arid as the gas slithered into his mouth and nostrils.
"I can't breathe!" Flame coughed panickily, the gas already beginning to smother their view like acidic sweat falling into their eyes.
"What is this?" choked Ember as she tried pulling herself towards the door, as did the others.
"Get away from it!" Spyro forced out, his body feeling like it was carrying sacks of rocks, his legs and joints tightening as if swollen.
"I can't see…" Cynder coughed groggily, "Spyro…Flame….Ember…"
"Cynder…" Spyro replied weakly, the green haze filling his eyes and mind. He could no longer see the doorway he was trying to drag himself towards, his senses failing him. He stumbled, gasping in fear as he saw Flame, who now he could barely make out, collapse to his left, Ember grabbing his horns in her paws in a desperate attempt to drag him before she limply collapsed on top of him. He called out to them, at least he thought he did, but his drowsy brain did not comprehend what he had said, if he said anything at all. He saw a black mass just ahead to his right which he was sure was Cynder, but could no longer tell for sure as it tried to take flight to escape the gas, only to collapse after only a brief hop.
'Cynder…' he remembered thinking, perhaps uttering her name too, but he could barely make out his own voice as his eyelids forced down, the weight on his body finally too much to carry as he fell down onto his belly, reaching out with his left paw towards the doorway for one last chance at salvation he knew he didn't have.
A violent kick to his side opened his eyes and reminded Spyro he was still alive, though his present state did not allow him to guess how long he had been out for. He could still feel the stone of the bridge beneath him, his body was heavy and numb and his vision blurry, but he was in no doubt to the hairy silhouette his eyes looked up at as it stared down at him. The green fog seemed to have vanished as he made out some of the details of the cavern behind his vision was interrupted by the silhouette. The grinning face of an ape became horrifyingly clear as it rolled him over on his back, his limbs too weak to resist as he saw the shimmering edge of a blade being pressed towards his neck, the purple dragon having only the strength to draw a last fearful breath.
"Stop!" he heard a voice roar, recognizing it as the Ape Commander, the blade of his would be murderer stopping just short of his neck as the Ape soldier looked behind to his superior. "The King will be more pleased if we bring him alive. Bring the others too."
"But our orders were to only keep the black female alive," he heard another voice say as his eyes kept dipping.
'Cynder?'he thought as he tried fighting against his heavy eyelids.
"Doesn't change the outcome," the Commander replied tersely, "Gaul will be glad to slay the purple whelpling himself. There might be promotions in order."
Spyro heard a volley of cheers as his eyes closed over again, not able to muster the strength to open them, though his ears remained awake long enough before he passed out to hear,
"Guess we didn't need that scrawny cat after all," an ape soldier remarked casually.
"He'll make good chow for the Deathhounds. Now hurry up and bound them and let's go home…"
End of Chapter 10.
Next Chapter: Escape from the Mountain of Malefor!