Hello, my little dragonlets! :) Mayflower here! Ready to close out Spyro 1 with a bang? I sure am! So let's get this show on the road!

You found a disclaimer!
Spyro the Dragon, both the game and all related characters (c) Insomniac. They own the Spyro that's in this story, so nyeh.

CHAPTER 7: Gnorc Gnexus

Finally, the time had arrived. Spyro could barely contain his adrenaline as Amos touched down in the Dragon Junk Yards. It was a tiny island, surrounded by metallic dragon heads, each blocking off portals. Gnasty Gnorc was hiding in one of these, Spyro just needed to figure out which one and crash his victory party.

Before he could go Gnorc-hunting, though, Spyro had one issue left to tend to: the dragon statue sitting in the center of the island. There was only one dragon that'd be way out in the Junk Yards, and considering all of the negative news that had built up, Spyro wasn't sure he wanted to rescue him until later.

He was a hero, though. There'd be time for spiteful pranks later.

The statue shook and cracked, releasing Delbin from its grasp. "Funny, I think I rescued you already, didn't I?" Spyro smirked.

"This isn't the time for jokes, Spyro," Delbin frowned. "You've got no time to lose. Gnasty's hiding somewhere in the Junk Yards, and YOU need to be the one to stop him."

"Delbin, I don't care what you say, but I'm-" Spyro had spent so long preparing his argument that he couldn't believe Delbin's reaction. "Wait...what was that?"

"I'm sorry, Spyro," Delbin sighed. "You CAN do this. In fact, I think you're the only dragon that can. I'm sorry I've been ignoring that all of this time."

The red full-grown knelt down to his pup's level. "No matter what, keep moving. Don't let his magic get you. If he crystallizes you, we're doomed. Be careful, but fight hard. You can do it."

Spyro scratched an excited claw against the scrap metal of the Junk Yards island. "Don't worry, Gnasty doesn't stand a chance!"

Delbin gave Spyro a Peacekeepers salute. "Ago phasmatis draconis, Spyro."

The full-grown went to fly off, likely to return to the Artisans, but the young pup stopped him. "Hey, Delbin!"

"Yes?"

Spyro paused, unsure of how to start. There were so many questions he had been forced to save up, all of these things where the other dragons pointed him to Delbin for answers. Now here they were, but Gnasty was right around the corner!

"...When I get back to the Artisans, we need to talk."

oo00oo00oo

"THIS is the almighty hero of the Dragon Realms? A DRAGONLET? Oh, you've got to be kidding me! If this is the best they've got, the Dragon Realms are even more pathetic than I thought! Go home to your Mommy and Daddy, dragon-boy, Gnasty Gnorc's got big-person things to do! Come on, little thing can't even walk on hind legs yet! With those wimpy wings, he probably can't even fly!"

Spyro would've given anything to chase Gnasty down and shut his trash-talking mouth for good. However, loud and obnoxious as he was, the old Gnorc had a point. The Artisan hero was small, and had no way of climbing up onto Gnasty's platform. The crafty gnorc was untouchable - hence the cockiness.

There had to be something, but the more Spyro's eyes darted around the arena, there was nothing to be found. It couldn't end like this, could it? Gnasty couldn't win!

"Nyeh-nyeh-ne-nyeh-nyeh! Heehehehee!"

Both dragon and gnorc looked up. Hiding in one of the corridors was a thief dressed in neon-green robes. And it was flashing a big, shiny key.

"HEY!" Gnasty snapped, firing a few shots at the thief. "I told you to steal the dragon treasure! Not my keys! Go put that back before I crystallize you!"

Spyro looked back and forth between the thief and the gnorc. Gnasty's platform had a large keyhole on one side. Perfect.

The Artisan gave chase after the thief, leaving a screaming Gnasty on his platform. "Is that the key that busts down Gnasty's wall?" Spyro asked, trying his best to keep on-par with the thief.

"Perhaps." It was the first time Spyro had ever heard one of the sneaky speedsters speak, apart from their laughs and taunts.

"Don't you guys work for him? Why'd you take it?"

"You don't know much, do you, Artisan? How are WE supposed to steal the dragon treasure if Gnasty turns it all into those devilish gnorcs?"

While the thief was distracted, Spyro smashed his horns into its side, causing it to disappear in a screaming poof. "I dunno, but thanks for the key," the purple hero sneered, grabbing the key and rushing back out to Gnasty's arena.

The Artisan ducked and weaved between a fury of lime-green bolts from Gnasty's crafting staff, remembering Delbin's warning not to get crystallized. (Not that he needed to be told twice. Yeurgh.) Finally reaching the wall (where Gnasty's bulk prevented him from leaning over and getting the proper angle for attack), Spyro jammed the key into the lock, grabbing it in his teeth and turning.

With a heavy CLI-CLUNK!, the platform fell. With his one and only defense gone, Gnasty started running down the back-alleys of scrap metal and hot oil, desperate to escape the dragon menace.

Spyro took a long breath, watching the clumsy gnorc stumble for his life. This was the moment he had been dreaming of, chasing down Gnasty Gnorc and saving the Dragon Realms. Digging his claws into the metal, Spyro took off in a blaze. Time to be a hero!

oo00oo00oo

Spyro and Sparx finally caught up to the gnorc, who was panting to catch his breath down the winding paths.

"You ready to save the Dragon Realms, Sparx?"

"I'm SO ready. Come on, hurry before he gets up!"

Without any kind of countdown, Spyro charged into the fray, delivering Gnasty a hot blast of flame before he realized what had happened. "OW!" he cursed, hopping to his feet and running off once again, a trail of gems in his wake. "Dumb dragon, I'll finish you off once and for all!"

"You can't finish me off while you're running like a girl, Gnasty!" Spyro sneered, watching Gnasty take off into another one of his elaborate factories. At first, the chase seemed easy. Gnasty wasn't nearly as agile as a dragon, let alone a speedster like Spyro, so the flighty dragonlet could easily catch a bulky gnorc on the shaky metal platforms that suspended above the river of lava.

Spyro jumped to the first platform. Cli-CLUNK!

It took a few moments before the duo realized what the sound signified. Sparx only noticed it when he saw the gap between himself and Spyro growing, despite neither of them moving. "Uh...Spyro?"

The dragon looked down, then across to all of the other platforms. They were retracting into the wall! "Yikes! Come on, Sparx, we gotta hurry!"

Suddenly in a rush much bigger than catching up with Gnasty, Spyro scrambled from platform to platform, coming closer and closer to tragic mistakes as the scrap metal pulled further and further into the wall. This trap must've been Gnasty's plot all along - the entire factory was lined in boiling lava, sure to fry any dragonlet that found themselves trapped in it.

Gnasty was in sight, but the platforms were not. "Ha! Got you now, dragonlet! And I heard you were fast!" the gnorc snorted with a slobbery laugh.

Spyro lowered his horns and ran as fast as he could. There were three platforms to go. He could get all four paws on the first one, but only two made it on the second. By the final platform, only the side of his front paw made it, and his heart sank as he felt his other three legs scratch air.

Swallowing his fear, Spyro pushed forward, twisting his leg to push off of the wall, sending him tumbling onto the final platform. He was safe. For now.

Gnasty jumped. No fair, how did a little baby make it all the way through that?! "Alright, dragon-boy, time to finish you off once and for-"

Gnasty wound up a swing of his crafting staff, but dropped it and crumbled to his knees when another hot scald of fire-breath bounded against him. In one swift fall, the king of gnorcs collapsed, disappearing into a large pile of shining lavender gems.

Spyro, desperate to catch his breath and gingerly avoiding his twisted paw, still managed a smile when he saw the treasure that sat before him.

"You're toast, Gnasty Gnorc."

Yeah, I think this is the chapter hit hardest by the rewrite; definitely liked the old version better. :x But hey, we beat Gnasty, right! One of the easiest, but still heart-pounding boss fights of the Spyro series, DONE. So join us next time as we wrap up our trip through the Dragon Realms, right here on Legacy! Thanks for reading, guys! Hope you enjoyed! :)

§ Tucker's Mayflower, signing off! §