Chapter 14: Personal Heat, Part 2
Spyro had had no idea where he was flying. It was as if he was on autopilot; his body was flying away from the Dino Mines, but his mind was a long way off. He felt drained; shocked. How could he have let himself lose control like that? How could he have hurt Shabae?!
His wings had carried him to a small beach with reddish sand, where his strength ran out. He was now lying in the surf, the water washing around, barely registering the volcanic ash that filled the sky.
"How could I let that happen?" Spyro moaned. "How could I be so foolish? Ignitus warned me, and I didn't listen." He sighed deeply. "They're probably not going to want me there anymore, especially not Elora!"
He bowed his head low, tears trickling down his snout and splashing into the water.
"How am I going to make up for all this?" Spyro whispered. Just then, a volcanic explosion broke in on his thoughts. He looked up and his eyes found the Volcano towering over the landscape, smoke billowing into the air
"This is Boyzitbig? Looks immense..."
Then, he remembered what Ignitus had said; the Water Dragons and their Guardian were being held in the Volcano, as well as the other Manweersmalls. Could this be his chance to make amends?
"Guess I have little other choice…" the Purple Dragon muttered, and he heaved himself up out of the water with some difficulty. His legs felt like lead, and he staggered a little.
After regaining full feeling in his limbs, Spyro began making his way along the beach towards Boyzitbig. As he did so, he noticed large pieces of machinery and a pipe that spewed lava into the sea. Just then, a swarm of purple beetles with red wings and markings flew towards him.
"Oh, buzz off!" Spyro said impatiently, swatting at them, but they ignored him. "Alright, you asked for it!" He let loose a stream of Fire; however, he almost immediately felt weaker, and the stream sizzled out in a second. What was worse, the Beetles were completely unfazed by the Fire.
"Oh come on!" Spyro cried, annoyed. The Fire Beetles continued to buzz at him, just as Spyro figured he could try his Ice Breath. Summoning as much strength as he could, he shot an Icicle at the nearest Fire Beetle. It fell to the ground, dead, while its fellows flew away in fright. "Well, that's one way to get rid of those creeps."
Then, Spyro heard talking nearby. He spotted an Ape Guard and Riptoc talking with each other and hid behind a rock. As quiet as a mouse, Spyro listened in on their conversion.
"So, heard that the dragon lady is powering another orb using that Guardian?" the Riptoc Guard asked.
"Yeah," the Ape replied. "From what I heard, she was called over to the Dino Mines, because the Fire Guardian had been spotted there."
"And have they got 'im?"
"So far, no. He vanished as quickly as he appeared."
"Bummer, I would've loved to see that dragon lady pummel that Fire Guardian to dirt! Dragons are the worst! Lucky we got a few on our side!"
"Yeah. We should keep a lookout for the purple dragon! There's a bounty for him! Preferably alive. Though that doesn't mean we can't hurt him!"
The two guards laughed as Spyro sneaked away to find a way inside the Forge.
Meanwhile, Elora, Sheila and Sparx had arrived at Munitions Forge with Moneybags and Mole-Yair. Elora coughed as something unpleasant filled her nostrils.
"Goodness, what is it?" she cried, covering her nose.
"Sulphur and brimstone, mate," Sheila said. "It naturally occurs around volcanoes."
"Right, we got you here," Moneybags said. "I'll be on my way now."
"Uh-uh; I think it's better to keep an eye on you," Sheila said.
"What? You want me to get deeper in the volcano? I just got out of the mines!" Moneybags complained.
"Hey! After you sold us out on Tall Plains, you don't deserve any chances!" Sparx said.
"You lot really don't know how business works!" Moneybags grumbled.
"No, and we hope we never do," Sparx said. "Now, come along."
As they made their way into the Forge, Elora found her beginning to sweat profusely.
"Land sakes, it's hot!" she panted, fanning herself with her hand.
"Indeed," Sheila said, also sweating.
"We can't let that stop us," Sparx said. "But it could take a while to find Spyro in this place! How far in is your brother, Mole-Yair?"
"Inside a prison camp where the Apes are on patrol with those nasty Riptocs. Some of the Manweersmalls are in the caves getting materials for those Dark Armies," he explained.
"Great… I bet those Apes & Riptocs have a good time in this place..." Sparx said.
"Indeed, they do," Mole-Yair agreed.
Meanwhile, Spyro was making his way through a tunnel into the Forge, running along a set of tracks where carts were no doubt wheeled. Soon, the tunnel opened out into a large chamber with two large lava pools, a pumping mechanism and a crystal statue, no doubt one of the Water Dragons.
"Maybe I could get some help. That Dragon might know how to get around this place," Spyro muttered to himself. He walked up to the statue and touched the pad. There was a flash, and the Water Dragon, a thick-set Dragon with blue scales, purple wings that looked too small for flying, gills on his neck, webbed hands and feet, a tooth-necklace and a wooden hat, was freed.
"Thank you for releasing me, young one." The Dragon looked at Spyro and gasped. "The Purple Dragon? You did survive!"
"Yes," Spyro said. "I'm Spyro."
"I'm Bruno. Phew, it's sweltering here!"
"I don't feel that much heat."
"It's because I'm a Water Dragon. We feel the heat more."
"Right. Well, I need to find the Manweersmalls being held in this place. Do you know where I need to go?"
"Well, if you must know, they're being held in the tunnels of the volcano, where Apes and Riptocs are patrolling. And my water dragon friends are being held around the area," Bruno replied, gesturing into the tunnels nearby.
"I intend to free the others, especially the Guardian."
"Ah yes, Guardian Cordelia," Bruno acknowledged; Spyro nodded. "Well, once we free the dragons and rescue the Manweersmalls, we will escort them to a safe area and you can go through the mines; they're the quickest way to get to the Conductor and his dangerous train, Steam."
"Right." Spyro made to proceed towards the tunnel, but then staggered slightly.
"You okay, son?"
"Ohh... I feel so drained. I've… I really pushed myself earlier and now it seems I don't have much mana left."
"Well, we should find some Green Spirit Gems. It will do you good. In the meantime, stay close to me."
"Thanks."
They proceeded into the dark caves. Just then, they heard a buzzing noise. Next moment, more Fire Beetles came flying at them.
"Oh no!" Spyro groaned. "These things again!"
"No worries, young one," Bruno said. "I'll take care of this."
"But you don't have any water."
"I do have my Beast Maker skills. Watch this."
He closed his eyes and began to chant quietly under his breath. Suddenly, the Beetles suddenly turned around and flew away again.
"There! They're gone."
Spyro was astounded. "Wow, what did you do?"
"Simple, I just did a chant to make them leave."
"Well, glad it worked. Now to get some crystals." But as the two proceeded onward, they found no sign of any crystals. However, they did see a number of Manweersmalls secured by large pegs to the floor. Spyro remembered his promise to Mole-Yair. Strong or weak, he would save every prisoner here.
"Hold on!" he cried, and began breaking the pegs securing the Manweersmalls in place. As he did so, they were spotted by a Riptoc on patrol.
"It's the purple dragon! Men! The runt is here!" he called for his fellow troops, and a group of Riptocs came in.
"Young Dragon, find the other prisoners and free them!" Bruno said. "I'll deal with these dinosaurs!"
"Right!" Spyro said, and hurried off to find more Manweersmalls, while Bruno engaged the Riptocs.
Meanwhile, Elora, Sheila, Sparx, Moneybags and Mole-Yair were also in the process of freeing Manweersmalls. Elora had acquired a sword from one of the guards Sheila knocked out to use as a weapon.
"There you go," Elora said, as she broke the peg securing one of the prisoners.
"Thank you, faun girl," the nearest Manweersmall said gratefully.
"Say, any one of you small guys seen a purple dragon around here?" Sparx asked.
"No, but…"
At that moment, a klaxon started up, echoing through the tunnels.
"That must be because of Spyro!" Sheila said, her ears folding back in response to the alarm.
"Then he must be nearby!" Elora said, and she took to her hooves through the tunnels. She was moving so quickly, that even Sheila, with her bounds, had difficulty keeping up.
A moment later, Spyro came into view, freeing some more Manweersmalls.
"Spyro!" Elora called.
Spyro looked round. The moment he saw his sister, he turned and sprinted away.
"Spyro, wait!" Elora shouted, and sprinted after him. The young Dragon didn't look back, though he did wonder why Elora was following him, especially after she had watched him nearly kill her mother.
Soon, Spyro reached a cave where a large bell with a long clapper was hung. Spyro ran towards the bell and flew up into it, grabbing onto the clapper. A moment later, Elora came in, looking around for her brother.
"Spyro, where are you?"
Spyro didn't answer; he knew speaking in the bell would give him away.
"Spyro?! SPYRO!" Elora shouted. Then, she sighed, just as Sparx arrived. "Why won't you respond?"
Spyro felt awful about ignoring Elora, but he didn't know what to say.
"Spy, listen," Elora said seriously. "I know... that what happened back into the Mines was... bad... but I'm certain you'd never, ever mean to hurt Mom! I should've been looking out for you. I promised Ignitus that I'd make sure you didn't lose your head again."
At this, Spyro felt he could keep silent no longer. He would not let his sister blame herself for his outburst.
"No!" he said firmly, his voice echoing inside the bell. "It's not your fault, Elora. I should've listened to Ignitus and Aureole! They told me what would happen if I used another Fury Surge, but I went and did it anyway!"
"Spyro, it was an accident! We can work things out!"
"I'm just getting my friends in danger! I was stupid and I hurt your mom because of it! You must've been so mad at me!"
"No, I wasn't. I was… horrified and scared, yes; but not mad, I swear."
Spyro wanted very much to believe her, but he found it hard to do so.
"Hey, big guy," Sparx called, suddenly appearing underneath the bell and looking up into it. "What are you doing in here?"
"Well…" But before Spyro could answer, there was a creaking noise. The bell yoke then gave way from Spyro's weight. Sparx flew out of the way just in time before it landed with a loud, echoing clang.
Elora gasped and ran towards the bell in panic. "Spyro! Spyro, are you okay?!"
"Oh no!" Sparx cried. "Spyro, listen, I'm sorry for all the insults I gave you when we were younger. I'm sorry if I called you fat and all, just… Please don't be dead…"
Both Elora and Sparx feared the worst for their brother. They couldn't bear the thought of losing him when they'd just rescued their parents! Suddenly, they heard some banging inside the bell. Elora and Sparx backed away quickly. Next moment, Spyro blasted his way out with a burst of green energy and flopped down onto the ground.
"What happened?" Spyro said, rotating his jaw. His ears were literally ringing like the bell; and his whole body felt heavy, as if he'd turned to lead.
"Spyro! You're alive!" Elora cried. She and Sparx grabbed their brother and hugging him. Spyro tried to push them away but he could barely lift his paw.
"Elora… Sparx…"
"Please don't run away from us again," Elora pleaded. "We were worried sick about you."
"But… Shabae…"
"She's alive," Elora said. "She's being treated by Aureole. She'll take care of her. Ignitus is staying with them where Cynder won't find him. I think he may have gone back to the haven."
"Okay…" Spyro said, his head bowed in shame. "I'm sorry. I just let my emotions get the better of me."
"Hey buddy, it happens to all of us," Sparx reassured. "Besides, if you were seriously hurt, we would've lost it too. But what's important is that we saved Elora and our folks!"
"And right now, we need to save the Manweersmalls. They could help us reach Cordelia," Elora said.
"Right," Spyro said. "Except I can barely stand now, after blasting my way out of that bell."
"How did you do that, by the way?" Sparx asked. "That blast was green."
"I just reacted instinctively," Spyro said. "But I really need to find some Spirit Gems, or I might just keel over any moment."
"That can be remedied," Bruno said, emerging from the tunnel, stirring a potion in a small cup in his hands. "I've managed to recover a few Spirit Gems from the Riptocs and mixed them into this potion. It won't restore your mana completely, but it should help you keep going. Here…"
He held out the cup. Spyro took it and drank. As he did so, a warm sensation of strength stole through him. His limbs suddenly felt energised again and he managed to climb back to his feet.
"Thank you," he said gratefully.
"No problem," Bruno said. "But I advise against using any more Elemental power until you can find some Spirit Gems, okay?"
"Understood."
"Good lad," Bruno said, just as Sheila, Moneybags and Mole-Yair arrived.
"Spyro mate, glad to see you again," Sheila said.
"Yeah, good to see you too. Sorry about earlier," Spyro apologised.
"It's alright, mate; right now, we do need to work together without jumping ahead," Sheila said.
"Heh, you had to say that," Sparx chuckled. Sheila rolled her eyes.
"Right," Mole-Yair declared. "Well, the camp where my brother is being held should be somewhere nearby."
"But how will we know your brother?" Elora asked.
"Yeah, no offence; but you Manny-were-smalls all look similar," Sparx added.
"Oh, you'll know him!" Mole-Yair laughed. "He is the most cantankerous, hard-nosed Manweersmall around! Whatever you do, don't get on his bad side!"
"We'll keep that in mind," Elora said. "You stay with…"
"Bruno."
"Bruno," Elora finished. "We'll rescue your brother and friends."
"An excellent strategy. Well, now that we saved some of those creatures, I should get going," Moneybags suggested, not wanting to stay where he was in danger.
"Fine, unless you want to run into Dark Blokes again," Sheila said, slyly.
"I'll… stay with Bruno here," Monyebags decided.
"Make sure he doesn't pull another fast one," Sheila said to Bruno, as she, Spyro, Elora and Sparx proceeded onward into the tunnels ahead.
In the next cave, they found another Dragon statue; along with a couple of Apes preparing to carry off some Dragon Eggs.
"Hey, you!" Spyro yelled. "Hand over those eggs, or else!"
"It's the purple dragon and he has his allies!" one of the apes said in surprise.
"Take the Eggs to the boss, we'll deal with those vermin!" another ape ordered as he drew a sword.
"Bring it, mates!" Sheila cried, slamming a fist into the face of the nearest Ape, knocking out several teeth. Sparx saw the Ape carrying the Eggs running of. He flew after him and hovered around the Ape's face.
"What kind of Fire Beetle are you?!" the Ape shouted, trying to swat Sparx away.
"Hey! I am not a beetle!" Sparx cried indignantly, before flying right in front of the Ape's eyes, dazzling him so much that he staggered backwards. Spyro, taking advantage of this, flew forward, and snatched the Eggs away from him. Elora then kicked the Ape in the chest so hard, he fell into a nearby pool of lava and melted instantly, screaming.
"Oooohhhh…" Elora yelped as she covered her eyes from the horrific sight. "Best to stay away from lava."
"Yeah, but man! Can't believe you did that," Spyro said, surprised.
"You she-goat!" another Ape roared. He had watched his fellow fall and, enraged, charged at Elora. Reacting, she swiped at him with her sword. With a whoosh and quick grinding noise, the sword cleaved through the Ape's skin. The Ape collapsed to the floor, dead.
"Well, at least that's a nicer way to go," Sparx gulped.
"Yeah, definitely better," Spyro agreed. The Dragon he subsequently released was covered with moss, which added to his water-based appearance. He wore a leaf for a hat, and a necklace with four teeth and a small sack hanging from it.
"Phew," he gasped. "It's so hot in there! It's like a sauna turned up to maximum. Thanks for freeing me. I'm Cleetus."
"Nice to meet you. Name's Spyro and these are my friends, Sparx, Elora & Sheila."
"Well, so you're a purple dragon. It's a blessing you survived," he said, impressed.
"And it's a blessing we saved you," Sparx said. "So any more dragons here in this hot place?"
"Hmm..." Cleetus thought for a moment. "I reckon about 9 or 10 more, plus Guardian Cordelia herself."
"Right," Spyro said. "We'll get on it. You get outta here! And take these Eggs with you."
"Cheers for the help," Cleetus said, and hurried off, the Eggs gathered in his arms.
The group hurried onward until they arrived in another large cavern. On the other side, Apes were gathered around a large steam locomotive with a caboose housing a load of crystals. One of the Apes wore a train driver's hat and carried a shovel. He had to be the Conductor.
"Come on, fellas! Steam needs more fuel, and we need to get to the Guardian! Cynder will return soon to claim the orb and the volcano will blow up when we're done!" the Conductor told his crew.
"Yes sir!" the crew replied. They climbed aboard and the engine puffed into the tunnel.
"We have to follow them; they could lead us to Cordelia," Spyro noted. Unfortunately, three Apes turned three different levers, causing a gate to close over the tunnel.
"Looks like we'll have to flip those switches if we're going to follow!" Elora said. "Spyro, you get the nearest one; Sheila, you get the second; I'll get the last one!"
"Right!" "Got it!"
Spyro went for the nearest lever. Ape saw him and threw a stick of dynamite, which narrowly missed. Spyro knocked the Ape away from the lever. He took a swipe at Spyro, hitting him in the face. Spyro staggered backwards. The Ape attempted to take advantage of this by throwing another stick of dynamite. But Spyro threw up a paw, which knocked the dynamite back at the Ape.
"Aw, cr-!" BOOM!
Sheila did a Super Jump towards her lever, and then did a slam right on top of the Ape, crushing him into the platform.
Elora ran to her respective Ape, dodging a sword swing before delivering an uppercut right in the Ape's face, knocking him out. All three switches were subsequently thrown, and the team regrouped next to the track.
"So, how are we going to catch up to that train?" Sparx asked.
"This will help!" Elora was pointing to a mine cart parked just in front of the buffers.
"Does anyone know how to drive this thing?" Sparx asked, as they climbed in.
"I'll do it!" Sheila said, taking the driver's seat. "'Old tight, mates! It's gonna be a bumpy ride!"
"Oh, joy," Sparx muttered.
Sheila started the cart, and kicked the throttle to maximum, and the cart shot into the tunnel. The track was full of twists and turns, and because the cart was travelling at breakneck speed, it was slightly nauseating. Before long, however, they were catching up to Steam.
"There's the train and its cargo!" Elora cried.
"Time to make it crash!" Sheila said, and next moment, the cart rammed into the caboose, shaking several gems loose, and alerting the crew to their pursuers.
"Ah! It's the Purple Dragon! He's chasing us!" one of the Apes shouted.
"Well, speed up, you fools!" the Conductor shouted. "And blow them to smithereenies!"
Spyro absorbed the Spirit Gems that showered him. He felt his strength and mana return. "Not if I blow you up first!" he shouted. Spyro shot a fire ball at the caboose, which threw an Ape off and into the unforgiving rocks speeding behind them.
Elora smiled. "Nice job, Spyro."
"And there's more where that came from!" Spyro remarked. He shot another fireball at the caboose, causing more Spirit Gems to break off, giving Spyro more power. The tunnel rose and fell and curved rapidly from side to side like a roller coaster. Apes lobbed dynamite at the cart, but every time they did this, Spyro, Elora and Sheila tilted the cart to one side or the other. It became a fine balance between staying on track and away from the blasts. The Conductor growled at them.
"You're tough, fellas! But you'll never catch me!" Steam accelerated ahead, over a junction that sent the cart onto another line. Now there were two tracks running side-by-side. Spyro kept shooting fireballs at the evil-looking locomotive, while Sheila struggled to keep up. Several more sticks of dynamite flew by, blowing up the track and blasting chunks from the walls behind them, as did several of Spyro's fireballs.
"If they keep this up, the tunnel's gonna collapse!" Sparx cried.
"But we can't let that train get away!" Spyro shouted.
"Keep firing, mate!" Sheila said as the two tracks became one again. Spyro was only too happy to oblige, thankful for the constant invigoration from the Spirit Gems that tumbled off the caboose. The tunnel continued to rise and fall rapidly. Sparx started to feel sick.
"Why did this thing not come with sickness bags?" he groaned as they took a hairpin bend at speed. Soon, they came to another junction. By now, the caboose had taken serious damage.
"You'll never catch us, purple boy!" the Conductor yelled. He slammed his fist on a button, and the coupling connecting the caboose to Steam broke. The Apes still on it quickly jumped onto the engine. Then, the Conductor hit the brakes hard, allowing the smaller cart to get ahead.
"What's going on?" Elora wondered aloud, as they passed another set of points.
"Oh no!" Sheila cried, and slammed the throttle to maximum. Next moment, Steam shot up behind them and slammed into them.
"No escape this time! Time to be derailed, critters! It's the end of the line for you!"
Sheila drove the cart as fast as she could, while Spyro fired back at the locomotive, though his shots had little effect. Then, just as it looked like Steam would catch up again, they came to another junction. The cart went one way while Steam went the other. The four friends all looked at each other.
"Whoa," Spyro said in relief.
"Yeah, whoa," Sheila agreed. Then, as she looked ahead again, "WHOA!"
As the cart came out of the tunnel, they came to a break in the track, and the cart shot into the air. All four of them jumped clear, landing on solid ground. The cart was less fortunate and plunged into a pool of lava below.
"Well, there goes our ride," Sparx said, not sounding too upset. "Back to walking, or flying, in my case…"
"Man! That was quite a rush!" Spyro grinned. "I feel quite pumped now!"
"Let's have some fun after we save the dragons," Elora suggested, though she too was clearly pumped by the chase. "Like, hey, there's another Dragon statue!"
"On it!" Spyro said, hurrying forwards towards the statue that stood on a small patch of rock in the middle of a lava pool. Despite being mostly resistant to the heat, here it seemed really intense; like walking through a furnace. But Spyro pressed on. He reached the statue and touched it, releasing a female Water Dragon with thin, green horns all over her body, fur clothing, numerous scars and a bone necklace.
"Argh, those Apes!" she cried, making to stride off and immediately collapsing from the heat. "Whoa, it's like an oven here! I need some water, and quickly!"
"I think we're near the sea here," Spyro said, pulling an arm over his shoulder. "Elora, give me a hand with Miss, what's your name?"
"Cascadia, young one."
"Miss Cascadia, okay." Spyro nodded as Elora came over to help the she-dragon up. As they made their way over to the cliff edge, below which was a beach, they suddenly heard a scuttling noise. Next moment, what looked like giant scorpions with Apes mounted on their backs came barrelling towards them.
"AHH!" Sparx cried. "What are those things?"
"Buffalo Beetles," Cascadia said. "The biggest beasts bred here!"
"Elora, Sheila, get her to the water!" Spyro said. "I'll deal with them!"
"Right!" the girls said, taking Cascadia down towards the shore, as Spyro confronted the Buffalo Beetles. One tried to take a snap at the young Dragon, but he dodged it. The other shot a fireball from its tail, which narrowly missed, though it left Spyro's wings a little scorched.
"Oh, you shouldn't have done that!" the Purple Dragon snarled, and he sent a stream of ice at the offending Beetle, causing it to cry out in pain at the sudden exposure to an extreme low temperature. Spyro then channelled Electricity along the stream, zapping the Beetle and its rider. He used the Electricity to throw the Beetle off the edge of the cliff.
"How's that, huh?" Spyro smirked. The other Beetle reared in anger at what had happened to its friend, but before it could do anything else, a jet of water suddenly rose over the edge to deluge it. Spyro finished it with a blast of green energy like what he'd used to escape the bell.
"Well done, young Dragon," Cascadia said, as she levitated herself, Elora and Sheila into view on a geyser of water.
"Thanks," Spyro said. "I see that you're better now."
"I am. But I must warn you; my ability to help will be limited," Cascadia said, stepping off the geyser. "We Water Dragons are very sensitive to heat, as you have no doubt surmised. However, I have stashed enough water that should keep me going until we reach the prison camp."
"That's great," said Elora. "We need to get there to free the Manweersmalls. So, which way?"
"Along that cart track," Cascadia said, pointing upwards to a track that ran above them. "This way."
But at that moment, two Dreadwings flew towards them. "Uh oh! Dreadwings incoming!" Sparx said, scared.
"I'll deal with these creeps!" Cascadia said. "Time to make these creatures drown and gurgle!"
She raised her hands again, and two pillars of water rose, before forming into hands, which grabbed the Dreadwings and dragged them, riders and all, over the cliff and into the water below.
"Nice job Cascadia," Spyro said.
"Thank you. Now we should get going!" she said.
They climbed up onto the mine track that ran above them. Mine carts kept rattling by, frequently. Once or twice, the group were almost run over by one, and they had to leap off the track into floating platforms to avoid them. Once they reached the tunnel that the track ran out of, they hurried along until they came to a fork, where the track went off to the right. They then jumped off the track, just as another cart shot by.
"Phew!" Sheila said. "That was too close!"
Up ahead, they saw an opening, and just outside was another Manweersmall. "Hey, you think it could be Mole-Yair's brother?" Elora asked.
"Only one way to find out," Spyro said as he approached. As he got closer, the Manweersmall whirled round and raised his fists.
"Take one step closer and you'll get it!" he yelled.
"Wait, wait, wait!" Spyro cried. "We're on your side!"
"More likely you're spies for the Conductor!" Exhumor sneered. "Or that flying beast Cynder!"
"No, your brother, Mole-Yair, sent us!" Elora replied.
"Mole-Yair? My brother is alive?" Exhumor asked.
"Yes, he's safe and sound," Elora assured him.
"But I must say, he's the friendly one in the family," Sparx added.
"I am sorry, those were dark times for us and we can't take chances," Exhumor apologised. "Say, why did he send you here?"
"We're here to save you," Cascadia said.
"And yer brother told us yew might be able to help us find Cordelia," Sheila added.
"Ah, the female held at the core," Exhumor said. "I certainly can."
"Cool, so how will we get there?" Spyro said.
"We need to free my people, as Boyzitbig is getting more unstable by the minute. The majority of the Manweersmalls are being held in this camp." He pointed ahead to a large encampment, with several lava pits, pumping and drilling machines, and big huts to hold the Manweersmalls, all guarded by Apes, Riptocs and Buffalo Beetles. "There are rumours that your Dragoness friend is being held in the darkest pits of the volcano. Unless we escape soon, all of us are doomed!"
"Not if we have anything to say about it!" Spyro said.
"Then go," Exhumor said. "Once you free my fellows, I can help open the passage that will lead you to your friend. But be on the watch for that Conductor!"
"That ape on the train? Yeah, we have encountered him already," Sheila crossed her arms.
"Alright, let's go!" Spyro said, leaping down into the camp. Elora and Sheila made to follow, but then stopped.
"What's up?" Spyro asked.
"I don't think Sheila and I can take much more of this heat!" Elora panted. "You might be able to handle it, but we have fur, not scales."
"You're not the only ones," Cascadia said. "We Water Dragons can't handle it, either, remember? You stay here with me. Spyro, you'll have to do this alone."
"All right then..." Spyro sighed, before turning to Sparx. "Sparx, you in?"
"Of course, but to make sure you don't do something reckless again," Sparx said.
"Heh, you sure know how to look out for me. Let's go!" Spyro ran towards the nearest hut. The Apes and Riptocs guarding it spotted him and rushed to meet him. The Riptocs brandished staffs and took swings at the Purple Dragons; Spyro evaded using his Wind-enhanced movements, though one did manage to clip him on the back.
"Ouch!"
An Ape took advantage of this to throw a stick of dynamite at him. Spyro blew it back with a Wind Cyclone. It flew at the hut and exploded. The door was blown open. The Manweersmalls inside cowered.
"Stay back!" Spyro cried, before whirling himself into an Electric Twister. The nearest Riptocs were lifted off their feet and fried in mid-air, before Spyro darted around to slam them into the ground. The Apes tried to intervene but got frozen by Ice Shards.
Once the coast was clear, the Manweersmalls all scampered out to safety. More Apes and Riptocs came at them, along with two more Buffalo Beetles. But Spyro blew them back with a blast of green energy, which he now suspected was his Earth element. He then decided to give Magic another go. Reciting an incantation that Cyril had taught him, there was a flash of light. All the Apes, Riptocs and Beetles were turned into sheep, which Spyro toasted with a powerful burst of Fire. This filled the air with the smell of roasting mutton.
"Hmm, smells great!" Sparx said.
Spyro went over to the other huts, and busted them open, freeing the other Manweersmalls. He then went back to the tunnel to meet Exhumor, and found Mole-Yair had just joined them.
"I see you crazy kids found each other!" Sparx noted.
"Yes we have… thanks to you," Mole-Yair replied gratefully.
"We're just disappointed you didn't leave any fun for us," Exhumor added.
"Maybe later, but right now, how do we get to Cordelia?" Spyro asked.
"That way, but be careful," Exhumor pointed to the big gate on the far side of the camp. "The Conductor and his maniacal locomotive will surely be close by.
"When you say 'be careful', does that mean 'try not to die'? I'm trying to do that anyway!" Sparx said.
"Come Exhumor, we must get all the Manweersmalls underground… where they belong!" Mole-Yair said to his brother, as the ground shook suddenly very hard.
"Before you do so, reckon you could help get the other Water Dragons out of here?" Spyro asked. "They won't make it out on their own!"
"But of course!" Mole-Yair said.
"When you find them, leave them as statues," Cascadia advised. "Bring them to me somewhere outside the Forge. There, I can release them safely."
"As you wish, Madame," Exhumor said.
"Come on, guys," Spyro said to the others. "Let's get to Cordelia!"
Elora and Sheila looked worried. "Will we make it down there? If it really is the darkest pit, it's likely to get very hot. I'm going to have a heatstroke if this keeps up. And I can't ask you to protect us, Spy."
"Then you go with Cascadia," Spyro said. "You'll be safe with her."
"What about you, mate?" Sheila asked, looking anxiously. "Will you be alright?"
"I will! I can handle some heat; and Sparx will too," Spyro said.
"Oh boy, diving into the fiery pits of the volcano with my brother to save the day. Yeah, I sure live for that." Sparx said, a bit annoyed.
"Well, you be careful Spyro, and good luck. And try not to be upset again," Elora winked. "If you know what I mean."
Spyro inclined his head in acknowledgement. Exhumor and Mole-Yair opened the gate for him, before they and their fellows dived underground. Spyro and Sparx set off for the volcano's core.
Soon, the two brothers reached the darkest pit of the volcano, just as Exhumor had said. There was a railway track running around the edges in a great circle, with two lines perpendicular to each other crossing the middle. Directly opposite them, encased in a burning cage, was Cordelia. Like the other Water Dragons, she was essentially a sea serpent, with sea blue scales, vestigial wings on her back, webbed hands, and a large fin on her tail.
"That must be her," Spyro said. There was no doubt in his mind. "Careful," he added to Sparx. "This is never easy."
"After the last three times, chief, you're getting no arguments from me," Sparx said.
Just then, a gate opened, and the menacing form of Steam rushed in. The Conductor waved his shovel from the cab.
"Oh, here we go again," Sparx groaned.
"You're a bit late fella," the Conductor said. "The orb's already been taken and the volcano is set to blow! But before that happens, me and Steam will take great pleasure running you down!"
Pistons hissing loudly, Steak began to rumble along the tracks that ran around the pit. Spyro shot a burst of fire at the locomotive, just as he had with the caboose during the chase in the tunnel. But it had no effect.
"Ha-Ha!" The Conductor crowed. "Your fire won't do you any good! You really think a train that runs near lava won't be fireproof?"
As Steam rumbled by, fire streamed from its cylinder cocks. Spyro flew back to avoid the flames, just as Steam surged down the centre of the railway circle. When it reached the other side, it scraped against the stone wall. This gave Spyro an idea. As Steam puffed round the track, Spyro tempted it by running across one of the radial lines. Steam turned onto that line, trying to run Spyro over. But Spyro dodged with Wind, and Steam crashed into the wall.
"No! Get up, Steam! Get up!" the Conductor shouted.
"Now's your chance Spyro!" Sparx said. Spyro sent a stream of Electricity at Steam's undercarriage. When it didn't do much, he tried an Ice Stream. This made Steam's metal crack slightly, until the Conductor managed to get the locomotive back onto its wheels.
"Not bad, but it won't go down that easily!" the Conductor said, continuing to drive Steam around. Spyro flew about, shooting Ice Shards at the large steam engine, which did seem to have a significant effect. He then tempted it by running across one of the middle tracks again, which led to Steam crashing and allowed Spyro to hit the undercarriage with more Ice. This made the Conductor furious.
"You'll pay for this!" he snarled, and Steam started to go faster. What was more, large rocks began shooting out of the funnel, landing at random spots around the area. One exploded near Spyro, almost burning his side.
"OW!" Spyro cried. The Conductor laughed derisively. This made Spyro angry, but he remembered Shabae, as well as Elora's words. He was determined not to let his anger get the better of him this time. Instead, he turned his energy towards something more effective and not as destructive: coldness built up inside him, fuelled by a detached view on his anger. Next moment, Sparx shot for cover, as a wave of super-cold Ice shot in all directions. The moment the wave hit Steam, the sharp contrast in temperature caused the metal to buckle and crack. The Conductor jumped clear, as Steam exploded, sending shattered metal everywhere.
"No! My beautiful Steam!" the Conductor wailed.
"You're finished, Ape Man!" Sparx chided.
Spyro advanced on the Conductor. "You want to become an Ape Ice statue?"
"No!" the Conductor cried. "Take their stupid Dragon friend! I'm out of here!" And he scampered like a jackrabbit.
"Yeah, run away, you wuss!" Spyro & Sparx laughed. They went over to Cordelia and Spyro released a burst of Ice that doused the flames, freeing Cordelia.
"Are you alright?" Spyro asked the Water Guardian.
Cordelia sat up slowly and blinked open her eyes.
"Oh, thank you," she said. "You must be the Purple Dragon. What a relief to see you alive."
"I'm Spyro."
"I'm Cordelia. I'm sorry to be blunt, but could you and your little friend help me out of here? The heat is getting to me, and I think the volcano might be about to blow."
"Yeah, I am thinking the same idea; the last place I ever want to be is in an active volcano," Sparx said.
"Agreed! Come on. Ignitus and Aureole are waiting for us," Spyro said.
"Oh, they're here too? I thought they were captured," Cordelia said, as Spyro used magic to levitate Cordelia beside him, given he was too small to carry her by himself.
"Aureole was, but we were able to rescue her," Spyro said, as he and Sparx flew back into the tunnel. "The other Water Dragons should be rescued too. The Manweersmalls are seeing to that."
"That is a relief," Cordelia smiled. Just then, there was a loud explosion, and lava started surging up behind them.
"Oh no!" Sparx wailed.
"We got to go!" Spyro said. He and Sparx flew faster to get away from the lava.
Outside the volcano, everyone, even the Apes and Riptocs were retreating. On the beach outside the Forge, Elora & Sheila were waiting with Cascadia and the other Water Dragons, worried for Spyro & Sparx.
"Where are they?" Elora cried anxiously. She was praying inwardly that Spyro and Sparx were alright. After another few minutes that felt much longer, something came shooting out of the Forge and stumbled onto the beach; two Dragons, and one Dragonfly.
"Ow…" Spyro staggered to his feet. "That was quite an explosion."
"Spyro! Sparx!" Elora ran to help her brothers. "Are you all right?"
"Yeah; we just saved another Guardian," Sparx said with a thumbs up. "Now, there's just one more."
"One more? Are the other Guardians saved?" Cordelia asked in surprise, as her fellow Water Dragons helped her up.
"Yeah, we just need to save one more Guardian and we're set," Spyro said.
"Come on. We need to regroup with Ignitus and our parents," Elora said.
"Would you be so kind as to carry me?" Spyro asked. "I'm a little tired from having to fly out of there at high speed."
"Sure thing, Spyro," Elora said, helping him up. "It's the least I can do for saving me and my parents."
"Yeah, and you did get out of the volcano," Sheila added as the group left the Forge to return to the haven.