The village where Spyro lived was a peaceful one.
The covering of the woods and the distance from the actual lands where the conflicts actually happened made sure that the village and the ones who lived in it were far from danger. This way, the apes in there could enjoy the peace that came from living in such a nice place, and sometimes they could even forget about the war.
However, it was a mistake to think that only because the village enjoy safety that the war could never one day reach it. Gaul knew that, and so did the apes who followed him, and knew how terrible and dangerous the war actually was. That was the reason why the village had a set of bells to serve as alarms.
In the beginning, the bells' only purpose was to warn against a possible coming of an invasion. However, Gaul, being the tactician that he was, developed specific patterns to the bells, to indicate certain types of events. For instance, a certain pattern of bells indicated the coming of a hostile force of dragons. Another pattern indicated the presence of a small group or even of only a single dragon in the borders of the territory. Another one would indicate the need for an immediate evacuation.
With time, however, as no invasion or any real danger ever came, the bells took on other functions, as they were made with another purposes, for instance, to indicate a celebration, or to summon a gathering of all of the apes into a single place. The purposes of the bells were many.
Including the one that they were using right now.
BLIN-BLEN-BLEN-BLON
BLIN-BLEN-BLEN-BLON
"Dad is back!" Spyro cried out, as he got up in a hurry, and Aerea looked at him as he did.
"W-what?" The gray dragoness said, looking at the purple dragon. "G-G-Gaul is back!? H-how do you know!?"
"The bells!" Spyro said, and the dragoness once more heard the resounding bells.
BLIN-BLEN-BLEN-BLON
"This configuration of bells means that the troops are returning to the village!" Spyro said to her, sounding as excited as a child in the Christmas morning. "And if the troops are returning, this means that Dad is coming back along with them! I gotta go see him!"
With this, Spyro didn't said anything more or waited for anything before he dashed out of the hut like a purple-colored lightning. Even the guards didn't had time to do anything about it, as they only saw a purple blur passing by them and rushing away from the tent.
"Wow!" Sparx said, floating near to Area. "Never saw that purple boy run so fast before."
"He is excited." One of the guards said, as he looked to the entrance of the hut, through which Spyro had ran. "The last time he saw King Gaul was nearly six months ago, when he departed to help the armies on the front lines to repel the dragons' advances."
"The front lines?" Aerea asked, looking at the big ape.
"Of course." The ape said, looking at her, and he continued:
"King Gaul is one of the most important generals in the forces that still resist the advances of the Dragon Army, and he has allies in many of the tribes that still resist. Of course he would be among the ones who are helping..." The ape said, but he stopped as he heard intently. This caused the other two to look at him.
"Helping what?" Sparx asked, and Aerea looked at the ape with a raised eyebrow.
"What? What happened?"
"The bells." The ape said, and he continued to listen intently.
BLIN-BLEN-BLEN-BLON BLON-BLON-BLIN-BLEN
BLIN-BLEN-BLEN-BLON BLON-BLON-BLIN-BLEN
After a few moments of listening, and then his eyes widened.
"Oh, no." He said, and soon he was rushing out of the hut in a rush.
"Hey!" Sparx said, looking at the running ape. "Hey! Dude! Where's the fire?"
Aerea also looked at the running ape, and soon, she and Sparx were both rushing after him.
Spyro was so excited that he couldn't contain himself.
He hadn't seen his father in six months, and he was starting to wonder if dad would be away for a whole year, like he did during that one time that he went to the front lines before. Now his father was back!
Spyro wanted to meet with him, and that was why he was rushing so fast across the village, seeming like a purple blur that crossed the paths of anyone who was on his way. Of course, Spyro didn't bumped into anyone, and he apologized to the ones that he nearly bumped into, but he didn't reduced his speed or stopped for any means, not even during the moments when he had to look around to orientate himself and know in which direction he had to run. He certainly didn't stopped to hear the curses and bad words of the ones who were not happy for the young dragon rushing like that and nearly knocking them to the ground.
All that he thought about was meeting with his dad and talking to him after the nearly six months that the big ape had been away. He wanted to tell him how he advanced in the Munduri. He wanted to tell him how he got that beautiful gemstone from the cave of the owlbear. He wanted to tell him that he had made a new friend.
Spyro was the most excited about the new friend part, as he really looked forward to presenting Aerea and his dad. He was sure that the big ape would love the gray dragoness.
That was the reason why Spyro was in such a rush to get to his dad. And nothing was going to stop him.
After a few minutes, Spyro finally was moving away from the village, going in the direction where he knew that the group of warrior apes was coming from. He kept running for a few more minutes. He wasn't tired in the slightest, as he only cared about getting sight of his dad.
Finally, Spyro could see dots forming in the distance, catching the shapes of many apes moving together as one mass.
Spyro had a good enough vision to be able to make out the individual apes that formed the incoming group. Not really a gigantic army, but they were no small group either. They should be around two hundred of them in there, although Spyro was sure that not all of them were residents of the village. Spyro could not see well enough to easily differentiate their features from that distance, but he could see well enough to differentiate them for their armors and the coloration of their fur.
Among these apes, there was one in particular that stood out, due to him being much bigger than all other apes around him. He was truly a sight hard to miss, especially since he was clearly on the lead of the army.
"DAD!" Spyro said as he caught sight of that massive ape, and he speeded up even more, looking at the incoming army, as some of them looked at him with surprised expressions, although the dragon could not notice that from a distance.
"DAD!"
"SPYRO!" The big ape called back, as he recognized that purple shape moving on his direction, and he too started to move to his meeting.
The two figures ran to each other, both of them seemingly forgotten of everything that was around them, up until the moment they reached each other.
Spyro made a jump, flapping his wings as he landed right into the chest of the big figure, who put his arms around the purple dragon in a hug.
"Dad, you're back!" Spyro said, hugging the big ape as he nuzzled him, and the big ape hugged him back.
"Dad, I missed you!"
"I missed you too, my little dragon." Gaul said, as he continued to hug his son. After a while, they separated, and they looked at each other.
Gaul had not changed much in the years ever since he adopted Spyro. He was still bigger than any other ape that Spyro had ever seen, however, he did had some signs of age showing on him, starting with the wrinkles on the sides of his mouth and around his eyes, and for the small patches of grey fur that was forming on his face, which was covered in scars gained from the years of war against the dragons. Such wrinkles were very subtle, though, and most other creatures would hardly even notice unless they took a real good look at the big ape. Gaul was still on top shape. The most meaningful thing on his face, whatever, was the fact that is left eye had been replaced by a green gemstone, this was something that Spyro always remembered about him, for the big ape had lost it when Spyro was really young. The one eye that was left was always kind and welcoming to the purple dragon, though.
"Say, you have gotten another growth spurt?" Gaul said, looking at him, "You seem bigger."
"Dad, I'm so glad that you are back!" Spyro said, looking at his adoptive father, "So many things have happened! I made a new friend! She is a dragoness who is running away from the Dragon Lands, I invited her to stay in our hut and she is so nice! You have to meet her!"
"Okay. Okay." Gaul said, kneeling and putting Spyro down. "I am sure that you have a lot to tell me, but that can be later." He suddenly seemed worried at something as he looked at the purple dragon. "Now you have to go back to the village, now."
"What?" Spyro said, looking at him.
"Spyro, you have to return to the village and remain out of sight." Gaul said, looking at him, before he looked over his shoulder, at the army that was still coming after him. "Before they get sight of you."
"What do you mean?" Spyro asked. For a moment, he thought that his father was talking about the many apes, but Spyro didn't understood why he had to leave. However, he soon understood, as he heard a sound coming from the direction of the army. A sound that was not made by any ape.
It was a roar.
A dragon's roar.
Spyro looked at his dad as realization settled in, and the ape looked back at him.
"Go to our hut and wait for me in there. I'll be going soon, I promise." He said gently to the dragon, and Spyro nodded, before he turned around and began to run back, as fast as his legs could carry him.
As he ran back, Spyro could once more hear the bells. This time, he was noticing the change in pattern and cadence of the bells.
BLIN-BLEN-BLEN-BLON BLON-BLON-BLIN-BLEN
Spyro knew that configuration, and was one that he had failed to notice in his excitement and rush to see his dad.
That configuration meant that the army was coming back, and that they were bringing prisoners.
It was rare for the army to bring back dragons as prisoners, but it did happened time to time, and they had developed some methods to keep them imprisoned without them representing a danger to the village. A process that involved using a special staff with gems that Gaul owned that drained their energy and rendered them unable to use their elements. Spyro never saw it himself, but he had already heard about that.
The whole procedure helped keep the village safe while the dragons were being kept in there. Spyro knew the whole procedure from his father, and he knew that there was an important procedure that was to be follow by the purple dragon himself: to remain out of the sight of the dragons.
Everyone in the village and practically everyone on the ape army was aware of Spyro's existence, and the fact that he was Gaul's adoptive son. However, outside of the apes, very few actually knew about him, and definitely, no dragon and no one of the Dragon Lands even imagined that Spyro existed.
"You would become a target in the moment they found out your existence." Gaul told him. "Malefor would certainly react to the existence of another purple dragon other than himself, and if he found out I am sure that he would react to it. That not to mention the fact that many of the other tribes would have their own reactions of they knew about another purple dragon, many of them have been deeply marked by the war, and I don't know how badly they could react if they found out about you."
Gaul was basically telling Spyro why it was so important to keep him a secret from the others, for his own safety. The purple dragon thought that this was a little over the edge from his dad, however, he was forced to agree that there was some logic behind his thought. So, Spyro saw himself forced to go along with it and, overtime, Spyro learned to share of his worry, as he started considering that it was important keep himself out of sight from these that could reveal him to the evil king of dragons.
Still, sometimes Spyro asked himself if this was actually needed. Would Malefor really be sending some kind of elite dragon to chase him if he found out that Spyro existed? Wasn't him too busy plotting how to take over the world to worry about a teenage dragon living among apes?
Spyro didn't thought of that at the moment. He was only worried about doing as his dad told him and getting back into the village before the dragons they brought as prisoners could catch sight of him.
As he was moving back, he soon met his guard and his two friends. They had gone after him once the apes realized that the cadence was telling that there were prisoners coming with the army. They knew very well of Gaul's worries of preventing Spyro's existence to coming into Malefor's knowledge, and they seemed to share of his worries. Or at least be made worried enough of it by Gaul.
Once they met with the purple dragon, they were quick to take him back to his hut, where he was to remain until Gaul came to him, after the prisoners have been place into their own prison hut, which certainly had begun being prepared as soon as the bells indicated that the army was bringing dragons as their prisoners.
Spyro was in the hut during this time, so he could not see what was happening. However, the purple dragon had a very good idea of what was going on into the village.
There was a celebration going on, as it was usual when Gaul returned. The massive ape was beloved by all of his people. He was fair and brave, willing to face the dragons head on and to lead through example, and this made him extremely popular among all of his people. He was the kind of king that would punish his followers if they broke the laws and harshly discipline his soldiers if they failed to follow his orders and the kind of discipline that he preached. However, he was also a kind leader, who would never punish anyone unfairly, and who treated even his captured enemies with justice and mercy. This made Gaul be both feared and loved by everyone who met him.
Gaul was the first true leader that the apes really had, their first king, or as close to a king he could be to a people that for a long time was divided into many tribes with each their own leader. It was thanks to him that they were able to assemble an army that allowed helping the other tribes to halt and repel the advances of the Dragon Army.
With all of that together, it was no wonder that Gaul's presence in the village would be a motive for celebration among all of the ones who live in there, as it was safe to say that were some among them who literally worshipped the ground the big ape stepped on.
Gaul's return was always a reason for celebration, even when he brought dragons as his prisoners.
Meanwhile, the dragons would most likely have the opposite reception, as they were only more "stupid lizards" who were part of the army that oppressed them, attacked them and wanted to take their lands and kill their families. Spyro himself had to face a lot in the village of apes, and he was the son of their king. He could hardly imagine what it would be like to be one of the captured dragons, being in a place where they were seen by everyone in there as an enemy that didn't deserved any kindness or consideration, and that should be killed if possible.
This was the kind of thing that they would have to face while being in there, even if Gaul had strict policies that prevented the war prisoners from being mistreated, both by the soldiers and by the inhabitants of the village. They were going to be receiving death glares and cold shoulders every now and then until they were to leave the village.
However, Spyro found himself distracted to think about the prisoner dragons for too long. Especially when Gaul, true to his word, went to the hut as soon as he was done with the other business that he had.
That was when Spyro finally could properly reunite with the man who raised him ever since he came out of his egg, many years ago. Gaul was really happy for seeing Spyro, as much as the purple dragon was for seeing him.
"Seriously, you did had another growth spurt while I was out." The ape said, looking at his son as he kneeled to allow Spyro to climb into him. "You have grown anther foot ever since then."
Spyro was happy that his dad was finally back. He could finally talk to him and tell him all that had been happening ever since they last saw each other.
And there was a lot to tell.
Spyro told to him how he progressed on the Munduri, which granted him a lot of pride on his dragon, something that made Spyro really happy. His bodyguards, on their turn, told Gaul about how Spyro had received a spanking from the vines of the heart cashew tree, what made Spyro blush and the big ape chuckle a little bit, although he also could not avoid being worried for Spyro having gone to the heart cashews alone, what was dangerous by itself.
Howver, this was nothing compared to when they told him about the owlbear. About how Spyro was invited by Zeggor and his gang to "hang out", and he used Sparx help to lose his guard, and then he entered to owlbear's cave to try and get a gemstone for the gang of apes had told him to. Gaul was visibly flinching and getting a heavier expression as he heard this.
"And you just did as Zeggor told you?" Gaul said, looking straight at Spyro's eyes, causing the purple dragon to look away. The ape didn't showed signs of anger, and neither was him screaming. However, Spyro would prefer if he was, for the tune of worry and the look on his eyes were somehow worse.
"I... I really thought that they wanted to be my friends..." Spyro said. He thought that this was a good justification when he thought about it before. However, as he spoke it now, it didn't seemed like a good excuse at all.
"If they really wanted to be your friends, they would not have made you do something so dangerous." Gaul said to Spyro seriously. "Friends do not demand others to put their lives on the line for something as stupid as a small gem. Certainly they don't make them do it only to prove that they are brave."
The tune that Gaul was using was serious, and Spyro found himself unable to meet his gaze.
"And in the end, they were only using you to get a gem, ain't it right?" He asked, and Spyro nodded.
"I'll deal with them later on myself." The big ape said, and Spyro looked at the big ape. He was looking away from Spyro, and this time the purple dragon could see the anger on his face, as he thought of the ones who put Spyro's life in danger for something so stupid.
At that moment, Spyro almost felt sorry for Zeggor.
Almost...
"And you actually managed to repel the owlbear using Munduri?" He asked, looking back at Spyro, and the anger dissipating, as he pushed the thoughts out of his head. Spyro nodded at him.
"Yeah, I did." The purple dragon said, and he described how he managed to make the big bear retreat by using what he learned from his Karuum, and he even made a little movements to depict how he managed to apply the blows with precision.
"You should have seen, dad! I was amazing!" Spyro said, but them, he deflated. "But, I still didn't managed to fend off the bear. If it wasn't for Aerea, I don't think I would be here."
Silence followed this, as Gaul looked at Spyro, before he spoke:
"Spyro..." He said, his tune was gentle, but Spyro could still hear the disappointment tune hidden within it, which was much worse than if he was berating him. "You have put yourself in a great danger. You are lucky you are even here now, and you should know better than to do something so reckless."
That was Gaul's version of a berating whenever he talked to the purple dragon. The intensity variating depending on how bad Spyro had screwed up. Gaul had always been a loving father, the proof of it being that he never hit Spyro for anything, even thought many apes believed that he should, "to keep the young dragon on the line". Gaul never hesitated in admonishing him, though, and these were things that Spyro really didn't looked forward to, and sometimes he punished him with forbidding him from leaving the hut or taking away his favorite books, Spyro wondered if he would be doing that now.
Spyro felt the big hands of the ape landing on his shoulders, prompting him to look at the big simian.
Gaul pulled Spyro in a hug, surprising him, and he said:
"I am glad you are safe." He said, "Don't do something like that again, okay?" Spyro was stunned for a few moments, before he returned the hug.
"I won't, I promise." The purple dragon said, as he hugged his father back. They seemed to have forgotten about all around them, at least until someone said:
"Dawwwww, that's so sweet." Sparx said, looking at the exchange between father and son.
Soon, the two were parting, and Gaul looked at Spyro, before he asked:
"And, this 'Aerea' who rescued you from the owlbear?"
"Oh, she is right here!" Spyro said, "I invited her to stay after she saved me! Aerea! Aerea!" Spyro said, looking around, and not seeing her. But he soon was catching sight of her, she was looking from a corner, seeming like she wanted to remain out of sight.
"Hey, Aerea, come here! I want to introduce you to my dad!" Spyro said, sounding excited. The gray dragoness, however, seemed not to share of this excitement. She was hesitating to come out of the spot she was and approaching the huge ape.
"Don't be afraid, young one." Gaul said, looking at the gray dragoness. "I don't bite, unlike what you might have heard."
It took a few more moments, but Aerea was slowly making it out of the place and approaching. She looked a bit frightened. Spyro assumed that it was because of his dad's size. After all, Gaul was much bigger than the average ape. In fact, Gaul was certainly the biggest ape that Spyro had seen in his entire life, and he had already seen quite a few of them by living among the apes ever since he could remember. He assumed the scars that covered the simian's faced also helped.
Aerea approached slowly, keeping her head somewhat down, and Gaul got up as he looked at her.
There was a long silence between them, before the Ape walked to her, and kneeled in front of the gray dragoness.
This caused Aerea to shy away from him a bit, especially when the big ape raised a hand on her direction to touch her neck, or better saying, her necklace.
"This is really beautiful." He said, seeing the necklace decorated with blue and gray gemstones on the neck of the dragoness. She flinched a bit at his words, and she now looked like she wanted to run away from him.
The others looked at the scene, and it lasted for only a few moments, before Gaul leaned over, and pulled the dragoness in a hug.
Aerea was in shock at the big ape suddenly pulling her in a gentle hug.
"Thank you." Gaul said, after a few moments of hugging her. "Thank you so much for saving Spyro."
The gray dragoness said nothing, as she was not sure on how she should respond at a situation like that. She allowed herself to be hugged, and didn't resisted as the big ape broke the hug, and looked at her with a kind smile on his face.
"You are more than welcome in this hut." He said, looking at her. His smile was kind and welcoming, and it surprised the gray dragoness that someone with such scars on his face could have such a kind smile.
The dragoness looked at him, and she nodded, still unsure of what to do in a situation like that, and instead keeping a respectful silence as she smiled back.
"So, she has been staying in here for the past week?" Gaul asked, "You have been all good to her, right? She is a guest in our house, after all, it is important to be courteous."
Spyro and the guards made sure to let the big ape know that they were being as courteous as possible with the dragoness. They were treating her nicely and being as welcoming to her as possible. This satisfied the big ape.
Aerea had been listening to this, and she seemed to be glad that the big ape appreciated her. This was making her relax a little bit, and she was starting to talk to the massive ape as well, and she seemed to be actually warming up to him.
This made Spyro happy, as he saw his new friend getting along with his father, and this was something that made him very satisfied. It was really important to him that the people close to him got along with his dad, after all, they were all people who he liked. Seeing the ones he liked getting along like that was something that the purple dragon really appreciated.
"So, it is true." A voice suddenly said, making everyone turn to look at who it was.
It was a big ape. Not as big as Gaul, obviously, but big on his own right, and with a muscled body that looked like he was made for battle, or at the very least hardened by enough combats for him to be able to boast about it. He still wore the combat armor, black and which contrasted to his crimson fur and his dark face. He had a serious expression as his yellow eyes looked ahead, focused on the gray dragoness into the place.
Spyro immediately groaned to himself as soon as he caught sight of that ape.
Not Kallag.
Spyro was no stranger to Kallag. He was a general on his father's army, and he was said to be one of their best warriors, although he was not as good of a warrior as Gaul himself. He was also popular, but not as much as Gaul. Possibly mostly because he was said to have killed many dragons during the war.
Spyro had long learned to avoid Kallag. The crimson ape was someone who had a very bad opinion on dragons, the same kind that most of the apes had in relation to dragons and the war. He would always be speaking about how they should be more aggressive with the dragons, and how they should not show as much mercy as Gaul wanted, not to mention that he was often bragging about all of the dragons that he killed in combat.
Spyro disliked that red ape. He was always giving glares to Spyro, and the purple dragon always knew that, if it wasn't for Gaul being his dad, Kallag would certainly have him added to the list of dragons that he slayed, or at least get him chased out of the village for good. The guy was a complete jerk.
Also, there was another reason why Spyro avoided him. He was afraid of Kallag. Spyro didn't like being afraid of a guy like that, especially after he realized that the crimson ape enjoyed the fact that Spyro winced and shied away as he came close. However, the purple dragon could not help it. He didn't even quite knew why the crimson ape scared him so much, but he knew that he had, since he was a hatchling, a recurring nightmare where he saw Kallag's face looking down at him with hatred, followed by a big clawed hand moving in his direction.
"I heard the villagers talking about it, and I had to come check for myself." The crimson ape said, walking into the hut, not even bothering to look to anyone else, as his gaze was fixated into the gray dragoness, who got a little into defensive as he came closer.
"So, our resident dragon finally started bringing friends of his own kind to the village." Kallag said, and he cast a glance of Gaul, "You know, this could actually be a good moment for me to start saying 'I told you so'."
Gaul was not impressed in the slightest, and he only glared back at the crimson ape, his arms crossed over his chest.
"Kallag, remember that conversation we have about entering someone's hut unannounced and uninvited?" Gaul said, looking at him, "It also includes my own living hut!"
Kallag looked at Gaul for a few moments, before he bowed his head:
"I terribly sorry, my king." Kallag said, in a respectful manner, although some of the ones who were around could notice a hint of mockery in the manners and voice of the crimson ape.
"I guess I got carried away by the information that your son started to bring dragons to our hidden village." He said, raising up and looking at Spyro. "It made me wonder if he had finally turned on us."
"He didn't." Gaul said, cutting Spyro, who had his own answer ready to say to that ape. "He merely decided to offer housing to someone as a sign of gratitude for having helped him in a moment of need."
"Yes, I am sure he did." The crimson ape said, looking in between the two dragons. "Well, now that we are in the village, I assume that we can give her the treatment that outsider dragons usually have in our village." He said, looking at Aerea, who didn't liked the gaze that this ape was giving her.
"After all, I am sure that she would feel more comfortable along with the others of her kind. Maybe with a special set of chains on her."
Aerea really didn't liked what the red ape was saying, and neither did Spyro.
"You are not chaining Aerea!" Spyro said, causing Kallag to look at him. Spyro flinched slightly as the gaze of the red ape landed on him, but he held on, as he would not give that guy the pleasure of seeing that he could intimidate him. Not on a moment like that.
"Why not?" Kallag asked, looking at the purple dragon. "I mean, I understand why you are not in chains, since you are the 'prince'." He said, and there was obvious mockery on his voice as he said that, "But she, on the other hand, is an outsider, certainly coming from the Dragon Lands. We need to be sure that she will not represent a threat to anyone on our village."
"She is not a threat!" Spyro said, looking at Kallag in the eye. "She is an escapee from the Dragon Lands. She is trying to live a peaceful life!"
"How do you know that?"
"She told me!"
"And how do you know that she didn't lied?" Kallag said, looking back at Spyro, "I mean, she could very well have lied to your face to help her side. She seems a bit deceitful to me."
Aerea flinched as she heard that, but nearly no one around noticed.
"She certainly would not hesitate into lying to a fellow dragon to help her side." Kallag said, looking at the purple dragon. "Of course, unless she didn't needed." He was looking right at Spyro, as he said that, and Spyro had a feeling that he knew just what was coming.
"I also heard that you have formed a close bond with this dragoness ever since she came to live in here a week ago." Kallag said, looking at Spyro. "So, you finally found someone who is more important to you than the ape who raised you?"
Spyro felt rage fill him. He was about to open his mouth and curse at the red ape. However, Gaul beat him to it.
"Enough of this, Kallag!" Gaul said, with a volume and ferocity that made everyone around, save for Kallag, to give a step back. There was a serious, severe anger in the face of the big blue ape, as he looked at the smaller one.
"This dragoness is not an enemy of ours." Gaul said, looking at Kallag in the eye as he towered over him. "She was not captured in combat, and she is not a soldier of the Dragon Army. She is a refugee who is running from an oppressive ruling and that has stumbled in our village, and during this she saved my son from certain death."
Each word was controlled, and each sentence was calculated and had power behind itself. Gaul was making sure that Kallag understood that he was not joking as he spoke, and that he would not be taking any of his usual antics in that situation.
"She will remain in here as our guest, and she will not be mistreated. She shall remain free and be well-treated until she goes her way."
Spyro looked at his dad as the big ape said that. He could agree with everything that the big blue simian was saying. However, when he mentioned the part of Aerea "going her way", he felt a pang of sadness on his chest. So sudden that it caught Spyro by surprise.
"You mean, instead of keeping her in chains and secluded into the prison for a few days before you let her go?" Kallag asked, looking at the big ape. "Like you do with all of our prisoners?"
There was a silence as they looked at the big ape. Aerea, in particular, looked at him as if she was surprised.
"I have been wanting to talk with you about that, by the way." Kallag said, looking at Gaul, "Do you have to release all of the dragons that we make prisoner? Do you really think that this is wise?"
"Once they have witnessed what it is like in the war, they no longer want to have any part at it." Gaul said, looking back at the crimson ape with ferocity, "If they no longer want part in the war, then they are not out enemies anymore. So, we have no reason to keep them as prisoners. What else can we do than to free them so they can go back to their homes and to their families?"
"But there is another option." Gaul said, looking at him. "To execute them."
Spyro and Aerea both had a sick feeling on their stomachs as they heard that, and Gaul looked at Kallag with murder on his gaze.
"I am not having this discussion with you again, Kallag." The big ape said, "Not now."
"Well, it is an important discussion for a king and his general to have, ain't it?" Kallag said, looking at him. "Do you believe that is wise to let these dragons go after they have been in our village? To let them go and tell everyone of the outside world about the place where the king of apes make his residence?"
"They go to return to their families and to look for shelter from the war." Gaul said with seriousness on his voice. "They don't have any desire of going back to Malefor's army."
"How do you know?" Kallag asked, looking the king in his one eye. "Because they told you? Because they gave you their word? Please, you have no way of knowing that they say the truth when they say things like that. They might be able to bring them straight to our village."
"Not with all of the precautions that we take." Gaul said, looking at the ape. "They are blindfolded all the way into the forest until we are less than a few miles from the village, when we finally remove their blindfolds. When they arrive, they are kept isolated from everyone until the moment of their departure and we even limit the ones who have contact with them for interrogation. They don't receive any information that would be relevant while they are imprisoned, and they are made unconscious so they can be taken to the place where they will be freed, far away from here."
Gaul was looking down at crimson ape, before he finished:
"They don't leave with any information that would be meaningful or that would place us at risk. There is no need to kill them."
"Well, maybe we should kill some of them anyway." Kallag said, "After all, if we only release the prisoners without killing them, then the armies will realize that they don't need to fear us, and they will start looking down on us."
Gaul glared at the smaller ape, who seemed completely unfazed.
"So, we should execute some of the prisoners every now and then." He said, looking at the bigger ape, "Just so we won't look weak."
They glared at each other for a few moments.
"Is showing mercy a sign of weakness?" Aerea suddenly asked, making the focus of the room shift to her. She was looking at the crimson ape as she said that, her expression was serious as she was practically glaring at him.
"Is valuing the lives of others a weakness?" The gray dragoness asked, looking at him. "So, this means that not caring about them is a strength?"
"You stay out of this." Kallag said, and pointing a clawed finger at the dragoness. "This does not concerns you."
"I am not staying silent!" Aerea said, with an intensity that caught the ones around her off-guard, including Kallag. The dragoness looked at him as she seemed to be getting ready to admonish the ape in a serious way.
"You think that not caring about others is something that makes you better than everyone else?" She asked, looking at him. "You think that being willing to kill others just like that makes you powerful? Do you think it makes you brave or strong? Well, it doesn't!" She looked at him with anger. "There is nothing brave or strong in killing others only because you can! This only proves that you are nothing but a tyrant!"
Kallag glared at the little dragoness.
"Why, you little..." He said, his hand moving to the hilt of his weapon, something that the ones around noticed.
"Don't you dare." Gaul said, stepping up and getting between the ape and the dragoness, glaring daggers at the crimson simian. "You try to threaten my son's guest, and you will not be leaving this hut in one piece."
They both glared at each other for a long time, and Kallag soon was removing his claw from the hilt of his weapon. However, he still gave a serious glare to the bigger ape.
"Gaul, you proved many times that you are a good leader. And your decisions have always helped us and everyone else." Kallag said, looking at the bigger simian in the eye. "But I have to say that some of your decisions are the kind that I would not take in your place."
He cast a glance at Spyro. "Adopting a purple dragon as your son." He looked back at Gaul. "Freeing these dragons after taking them prisoner when they would never do the same for us." He then looked at Aerea. "And now, welcoming a strange dragon into our village, without even being sure if she could be a spy or otherwise a danger to all of us."
After this, he looked back at the big ape.
"It seems that you are far too lenient with the dragons, even though they are our enemies." Kallag said, looking at Gaul. "I have to say, if I were the king, things would be different."
"But you are not." Gaul said, glaring down at the smaller, crimson ape. "I am the king. So, you will change your tune, lower your head, and remember your place."
The silence was so heavy in there that it was as if everyone was holding their breath. It seemed that they were just waiting for the brawl that was about to break in there.
However, no fight broke.
Instead, Kallag just bowed his head slightly, and said:
"Yes, my king."
He then rose his head, and turned to leave, but not before he shot one last evil glare at Spyro and at Aerea. He walked out of the hut, with an up straight and dignified posture, as if he was a noble general getting out of the hut where they had been discussing strategy.
Some let out the breath that they had been holding. Among them, was Spyro, who was glad that Kallag was gone. That ape always made him nervous only for being around.
The purple dragon cast a glance at Aerea, and he saw that she too seemed relieved that Kallag was gone. Spyro had the impression that the gray dragoness had just gotten a lasting impression of Kallag, as did most of the ones who've met him.
After a while, Gaul sighed, turning back to Aerea, who looked back at him. The big ape then smiled, and said:
"Well, I assume you didn't had lunch yet, right?"