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Chapter Seventeen: A Family of My Own

Heavy clouds gathered at the edge of the island. They were ominous and dark, carrying evil within them. Drow fell from the clouds, landing on their feet. They began to destroy the homes of the orcs, taking their valuables.

But the orcs were always prepared to fight. They retaliated in great numbers, fighting off the Drow. Voodood led the charge as the leader of the Ooga Orcs. While the Ooga clan was infamous for banditry, they defended the orcs' home island from invaders. And defend the orcs' island they did, hacking away at the thousands of Drow that marched forth.

Voodood stayed back, covering the tails of his men. His Axe Reaver was quickly stained, dripping with the blood of his enemies. Except, it didn't seem like true blood. The color was too dark, and the scent was more salty than coppery. These enemies weren't men, but creatures of an entirely different breed.

Then Voodood looked at the cloud itself. The ground turned to ash in its wake, though fire wasn't used. Innocent orcs screamed when caught in the storm- they too were turned to ash. The cloud got bigger with everything it ate. Voodood realized the horror and gravity of the situation. Even if the Drow were stopped, the orcs couldn't win.

"Fall back!" Voodood shouted.

No one budged.

"Get away!" he shouted in their native tongue.

They did not. For their native tongue didn't have a term for "fall back," and orcs never retreated from battle.

Not even when they should.

"Hey Voodood, wake up!"

Voodood did. He literally jumped awake, leaping from the chair he had been sitting in. His mind was fired up for battle, and he grabbed his Axe Reaver. Voodood raised the axe and turned around- but quickly relaxed when he found that the ghoul with the chain had woken him. The battle from his nightmare was over. Instead he had hidden himself away in the library of Eon's Citadel.

"Sorry," Voodood sighed, lowering the axe.

"I know. You were only startled," the ghoul, Ghost Roaster, agreed. "Another nightmare?"

"Not another. Same one."

"Sounded different. You were shaking, muttering in your sleep. You nearly screamed.

It all sounded true. Voodood was often plagued with a recurring nightmare of the battle that destroyed his homeland. Why must he be forced to relive his failure every night? Hadn't he made up for that by becoming a Skylander? He couldn't change what had happened.

"Time?" Voodood asked.

Ghost Roaster cocked his head.

Right, he needed to be more specific. "What is...the time?" Voodood repeated.

"Oh! It's 7:35. And you missed the dinner rush."

That was the difficulty of being a Skylander for Voodood. Orcs had their own language that differed from other species. He learned bits and pieces from other villages, and even more on his own, but Voodood still had trouble. Even after Ghost Roaster began helping him, he still had trouble. For instance, the ghoul had explained that Voodood could call him "Ghost" and leave it at that. But people shared first names all the time. Suppose Voodood met another "Ghost" who was not a Roaster? It eased confusion to use full names.

"Voodood suppose all Skylanders miss dinner rush," Voodood teased, remembering Ghost's appetite.

"I wish," Ghost sighed.

"You wish friends to go hungry?"

"I meant that I missed dinner, too. After today's mission in Stormy Stronghold, I was wiped out- you were too, I guess. I went to my bedroom for a quick nap, but I woke up after dinnertime."

Voodood patted Ghost on the back. "Ghost Roaster need more sleep," he insisted. "Never sleep at all."

"I sleep. You just happen to be asleep when I am."

"Sure." Voodood rolled his eyes at Ghost's comment.

"Whatever. Let's just find the kitchen and see if someone saved us leftovers."

Ghost led the way as they left the library. They walked down the hallway, turning right at the next staircase. Walking down, Ghost turned left down another hallway. Voodood was confused- the kitchen was down the other hallway. He went and found Ghost Roaster, who had found four tiny griffin babies.

Oh. So that's why he came here.

"Ha ha! Haven't seen you little munchkins all day!" Ghost smiled. "Where's your mother?"

"Mom told us to wait here while she talked to Eon," a female chick explained. "Trying to find a cure to our curse."

That was another sad fact for the Skylanders. Sonic Boom had joined the Skylanders last month to avenge her babies. A curse caused the chicks to turn back into eggs after a period of time. So far, there was no cure. On the bright side, the chicks retained their memories outside of the eggs, and Voodood was glad that Ghost Roaster had bonded with them.

"You were in Stormy Stronghold, right?" a male chick asked. "Was it windy?"

"So windy!" Ghost exagerated.

"And you were fighting Drow! Were they scary?"

"Not to me. I was scarier!"

"Ghost Roaster chase Drow into my axe!" Voodood put in, joining the story.

"So why did it take you so long to get home?" another female chick asked.

Ghost shrugged meekly. "Of course, the Drow brought help in the form of Spell Punks," he added.

"Time Spell Punks!" Voodood elaborated. "Make Voodood fight slowly!"

"Did you die?" another male chick gasped.

"I think you know the answer to that," Ghost insisted.

The chicks all gasped in awe. Voodood admitted that Ghost was better with the chicks than he was. He'd never really been good with kids, even back when he was a child. Of course, he always tried to interact with the chicks when he could- they liked him too, he supposed. Voodood wasn't sure. He usually just followed Ghost's lead in things like this. The ghoul knew far more about being a leader than Voodood did.

"What are you doing with my babies!?" a voice screeched down the hallway.

And as per usual, here to ruin their fun with the chicks was Sonic Boom. She ran down the hallway at lightning speed once she saw Ghost Roaster. The griffin had bluish-black feathers- those were the colors used to describe bruises, but Voodood knew that the color of her feathers wasn't quite the same as a bruise. She also wore a silver helmet on her head dawning a swirly symbol, like some kind of token. He wasn't aware that griffins had tokens of their own- usually the orcs were the only ones who kept tokens. But the number one thing about Sonic Boom was that she was overprotective- a "helicopter parent" Ghost had described her as once.

"Aw c'mon, Mom, we were just playing," a female chick promised.

"Playing leads to falling, and falling leads to dying," Sonic Boom insisted as she corralled them closer to her with giant wings.

"You're going to keep them from playing now?" Ghost spat, crossing his arms.

"Until such point as the curse is lifted, yes," Sonic Boom sneered back.

It was surprising that Ghost had such a good relationship with the chicks. The same could absolutely not be said about him and the mother.

"I thought I said I didn't want you anywhere near my children," Sonic Boom said in a low growl.

"Is this still about the pancake incident?" Ghost asked. "You don't just leave eggs in a kitchen. Especially when they look exactly like chicken eggs they sell in cartons at the store. I'm actually surprised your species has survived this long despite that."

"They got away from me. You know how big of terrors these little brats can be when they're out of their eggs."

"Hey!" a tiny voice whined from under a giant wing.

"Be quiet!" Sonic Boom yelled at them. Toward Ghost Roaster, she continued, "Does anything get through that thick skull of yours?"

"You can't control them forever!" Ghost yelled. "They have to spread their wings at some point. And you know I wouldn't hurt them if I knew what they were!"

"But you don't know anything, you heinous creature! As long as this curse lasts, I will look over them with my very last breath! But I guess a ghoul like you couldn't understand the devotion of a parent, can you?"

A loud poof! was heard, and the chick had gone back inside of their eggs. While the curse was still strong, the chicks knew how to speed up the time before they went back into the eggs. They often did this when they were in danger or when things were getting too intense- like right now. Voodood just found himself angry. How dare Sonic Boom say these things when she hadn't spent that much time among the Skylanders!

"Good day to you," Sonic Boom spat, walking past them and up the stairs.

Voodood scoffed, arms folded. "Big bird has nothing but hot air!" he declared. "Right, Ghost Roaster?"

He looked at Ghost. The ghoul was visibly upset. His arms remained crossed, but now his head was drooping down slightly as well. He was thinking about something, his eyes flicking about and looking troubled. Was Ghost considering what Sonic Boom had said? He shouldn't! She didn't know what she was talking about!

"Hot air, Ghost Roaster!" Voodood yelled.

"Right. Hot air," Ghost muttered.

He was hardly thinking of Voodood's words. Voodood asked, "Wasn't Ghost Roaster looking for kitchen?" hoping that would grab his attention.

"Right. Kitchen."

Not even that? But Ghost Roaster loved food. "Voodood talk to Sonic Boom for Ghost Roaster," Voodood decided.

"Right. You do that."

Voodood turned back toward the stairs, leaving Ghost Roaster where he was. He almost thought to make sure he was okay, but he was too furious at Sonic Boom to think of anything else.

Had he known what Ghost was thinking about, he would've stayed to figure out the problem.

Voodood stomped up the stairs as quickly as possible. He reached the floor and ran down the hall, catching Sonic Boom as she moved toward the Skylanders' bedrooms. He stopped her in her path. Sonic Boom was visibly surprised, though her signature scowl soon returned.

"What are you doing here, orc?" Sonic Boom asked.

Voodood cleared his throat. She probably wasn't thinking about the words she'd said earlier. It was better to clear the air before he got to his lecture. "Voodood want to say that kin of Sonic Boom are very cute," he began.

This surprised her. "Why thank you," she mused.

"Who is father?"

"Well, I am from the Cirrus-Valkyrie clan, of which my father-"

"Not what Voodood mean." Voodood pointed to the eggs she was carrying. This angered him further. How could Sonic Boom assume that he was asking about her father when they were already talking about the chicks?

"Oh," Sonic Boom realized. Her scowl returned, and she started walking off, saying, "He doesn't matter."

"But who is father?" Voodood repeated.

"He doesn't matter. Can't we just leave it at that?"

Voodood stepped in her path once more. "Sonic Boom must apologize to Ghost Roaster!" he demanded.

"What? Why would I ever do something like that?" Sonic Boom scoffed.

"Ghost Roaster hurt. Sonic Boom apologize to Ghost Roaster."

"Honestly, I don't understand why you follow him like a little duckling. An ugly duckling, I might add. Ghost Roaster isn't the first ghoul I've met- they're all the same group of hideous, bloodthirsty monsters that the Underworld is known for."

"Sonic Boom not know that! Sonic Boom not know anything about Ghost Roaster or Skylanders! Learn to keep tongue! Learn to be nice! Learn about others before accusing them of these things!"

"I have a right to say what I want about you guys. It's a free world. Though I wouldn't want bandits and Drow running rampant throughout this free world, that's the way it is. I'm just here to break this foul curse on my children."

"Sonic Boom cannot simply say as she pleases! Must have regard for feelings of other people! How would Sonic Boom like it if Voodood said every mean thing off the top of head?"

"Go ahead! I can take it! If your friend is upset, it's because he can't!"

Oh, it was just too easy now! "Sonic Boom is ugly, disgusting creature!" he yelled. "Care only for herself! Feathers the color of bruises! Ugly beak that spits out lies! Arrogant, selfish, prideful! List goes on and on!"

A crowd of Skylanders had started gathering around the pair. They were intrigued at this display that Voodood was giving. Voodood hardly thought of them. In fact, why not let the world know what an awful creature Sonic Boom was?

Sonic Boom glanced toward the crowd, and said, "Keep going. What else can that small orc brain of yours come up with?"

"Sonic Boom is helicopter parent!" Voodood continued, louder this time. "Sonic Boom is bad parent! Sonic Boom know nothing about rearing children! In fact, one might even say Sonic Boom is naughty bird!"

A chorus of 'ohhhhhhs' arose from the crowd.

"What are you suggesting?" Sonic Boom dared him.

"Father- of kin- must be rogue bird," Voodood said slowly, accepting the dare. "Chicks are born, and he leaves!"

Sonic Boom's expression turned dark. She looked about ready to rip Voodood's head off. The Skylanders quickly cleared out as another, more powerful, figure came up the stairs- nobody wanted to be caught in that kind of crossfire.

"What? Did Voodood push button?" Voodood asked Sonic Boom, arms crossed.

A coughing sound came up. Voodood slowly turned around, looking directly at the powerful figure. It was Master Eon, the white-bearded, blue-robed Portal Master. He was the leader of the Skylanders- that also meant that he was the one who broke up these kinds of conflicts. Eon had his hands on his hips, clearly displeased.

"Master Eon...," Voodood grimaced, arms leaving the fold.

"Oh Master!" Sonic Boom said, bounding over to the Portal Master's side. There was fake distress in her voice- nothing Voodood had said had any effect on her. "You should've heard the nasty things he said to me! Ugly! Disgusting! Frivolous, of all things! Honestly, I can't believe you let this orc into the Skylanders with that tongue of his!"

"Master Eon should have heard things Sonic Boom say to Ghost Roaster!" Voodood yelled back.

"You are both being childish!" Eon yelled. "If you two have a score to settle, we have a training yard where you can actually duke it out to relieve tension. There is no need to resort to this name calling, no matter what happened. You two are allies, you are Skylanders, and you are adults! Now I want you to act like it."

Eon left them. Sonic Boom went on her way as well, giving Voodood a look that said, "Ha ha, you lose!" Voodood certainly felt like a loser. When his clan was alive, everything he had, including his words could shake the very foundation of the Skylands. But now, not even his words could change anything.


The night dragged on. Voodood had shut himself in his bedroom, door locked, refusing to talk to anyone. He was upset about something, though there were too many thoughts going through his mind to pick just one emotion.

Was he sad, like he was every night, about being a failure to his species? To his clan? To the Skylanders?

Was he mad? Mad about how awful Sonic Boom had been? Mad at Eon, even though he had done nothing to deserve it?

Was he worried? Because Ghost Roaster hadn't come up to see him yet. He did that every night to make sure Voodood would get to sleep. Sometimes he stayed through the night, if he was upset about something. Voodood had thought that Ghost would stay here tonight, since he was upset at what Sonic Boom had said.

He hated her so much!

Okay, maybe he was mad at her.

A knock on the door came. Eon's voice came through the other side, shouting, "Voodood, are you awake?"

"Go away!" Voodood shouted from where he sat on the bed. "Voodood not want to talk right now!"

"I'll take that as yes," Eon muttered silently. Again, he shouted, "Something important just happened, and it concerns you."

"Master Eon want to punish Voodood for insulting big bird? Voodood already punish himself! Happy?"

"I'm not punishing you for anything. Come out here. It's about Ghost Roaster."

It was about Ghost Roaster? Then maybe it was important. Voodood got up and walked toward the door. He was just inches away from unlocking the door when he stopped to think. What if Eon was just luring him into a false sense of security?

"No trick?" Voodood asked.

"I would never trick you into doing something you didn't want to do," Eon promised.

Voodood unlocked the door and opened it. There stood Eon, though his face was full of concern. He only ever got that face when something bad happened to one of the Skylanders. Nothing else crossed his mind, then. He could only think about saving the Skylander or getting them back.

"What happen to Ghost Roaster?" Voodood muttered fearfully.

"I'm not sure, yet," Eon began. "But he's nowhere on the premises. Not in the kitchen, not in the training yard, nowhere inside or outside of the Citadel. The Undead Skylanders are currently looking for him as we speak- erm, why don't you come with me and I'll show you what I found?"

Voodood complied. He followed Eon down the hallway, turning back down to the stairs, then making a left down the hallway where Ghost had encountered the chicks earlier that night. They kept walking, and turned right into a room with a large Portal of Power at the center of it. Sonic Boom was currently there as well- oh joy. Voodood and Eon walked toward the Portal, Eon touching its rim once they reached it.

"What did Eon find?" Voodood asked.

"I looked inside my Portal to see if I could find where Ghost had gone," Eon continued. "And I found where he was."

"Where?"

Eon waved his hand over the Portal. A location revealed itself on the Portal's surface- a medium-sized, grassy island.

"Perilous Pastures?" Voodood asked. "But Ghost Roaster does not like sheep."

"I'm sure he's doing his best to avoid them," Eon agreed. "And I linked this Portal to the other Portals in the Citadel- he used one to get there."

"Seclusion is bad for Ghost Roaster."

"I agree, and it seems more serious than just Ghost wanting to be left alone. I think he's trying to run away."

Run away? Ghost Roaster actually wanted to run away? Voodood remembered that the ghoul had harbored doubts about joining the Skylanders- he later admitted his intentions to leave Voodood with them before going on his merry way. That stung a little, but it didn't matter now- they were Skylanders, and they were some of the best Skylanders that anyone had ever seen.

"Sonic Boom, what exactly did you say to Ghost Roaster?" Eon asked.

"Only the truth," Sonic Boom insisted.

"That not truth!" Voodood yelled.

Eon held his hands up to stop another feud. "We really do need to work on your temper, Sonic Boom," he continued. "Ghost Roaster has been tricky to work with. Often he'll fall into slumps like these, and it's hard to get him back to his usual self. Whatever you said to him put him in another slump- worse than the ones we've usually seen him in."

"It sounds like you have a hard time keeping your Skylanders in the Citadel."

"I let them run out if they need it. I can't keep them here all the time- it would hurt them too much. However, if they spend too much time away than they said, or if they're out late like this, that's when I worry. I want you two to go through this Portal to the Perilous Pastures and see why Ghost Roaster traveled out this far. If you can't convince him to come back, let me know and I'll come down there myself."

Voodood was expected to work with that horrible bird? What was Master Eon thinking? If he were in the right mind, Voodood would scream out all of his complaints. But his voice was no longer mighty- nobody would listen to him if he did so. Besides, as the senior Skylander, Voodood would be in charge- Sonic Boom would have to take his orders no matter what.

The two of them hopped onto the Portal and were immediately transported to the Perilous Pastures. This sky was the same one found at the Citadel- the Perilous Pastures weren't too terribly far away from their home. Ghost had probably taken the Portal to keep from bothering anyone. That was sad. He didn't even think to tell anyone of his woes before setting off on this trip.

They had started walking, searching for Ghost Roaster. Voodood suddenly paused, realizing that he had forgotten something. He lifted his hand in the air, shouting, "Axe!" Eon was still standing by the Portal, evident from the axe that was teleported into the air not two seconds after the request was given. The axe fell, and Voodood caught it before it hit the ground.

"Do you have to take that thing everywhere you go?" Sonic Boom sighed. "I've seen you carry that thing into the bathroom with you- please tell me you wash your hands before touching that axe."

Voodood nodded.

"Is that a 'yes, you wash your hands'?"

"And a 'yes, Voodood have to carry axe everywhere'."

"Why must you always have it?"

"Axe Reaver great artifact of Ooga Orcs. Greatest warriors carry axe. Must have it by side of Voodood always."

"Oh yeah, I read that in the Scrolls one time. Didn't you get that dragon skull hat from the same place? Is that a 'great artifact of the Ooga Orcs'?"

Voodood chuckled, shaking his head. "Dragon skull hat great artifact of Voodood!" he insisted.

They walked on. Voodood led Sonic Boom to higher ground, thinking that Ghost might have hidden there. He held onto the axe tightly, keeping the last remaining part of his honor. Recently he wasn't feeling very worthy of the Axe Reaver- nothing he had done had been truly special.

"So Sonic Boom read Scrolls in library," Voodood noted. "What else did big bird read?"

"I also read the Scroll on your friend," Sonic Boom added. "Did he ever tell you that he all but devoured a village of innocent little ghosts? That's rather harsh, isn't it? I've read almost every Skylander Scroll in the library, so I think I know what I'm talking about if it sounds like I'm insulting you people."

"Scrolls not hold everything about Skylanders. Scrolls not hold entire truth."

"But is it true that you actually fled from battle when your entire clan was being wiped out by the Darkness? I think you should've helped to evacuate the island."

Not only did his dreams have to remind him of his failure, but also his fellow comrades in arms?! It was true that Voodood had fled from battle- but only when he realized that the battle was not his to win. He had tried everything in his power to get his clan to listen to him, but they would not do it. Had his voice become weak back then? Had it been too weak even for his clan to listen to?

Voodood stomped ahead of Sonic Boom. They walked up a steep hill, turning left when Voodood noticed a strange green-glowing substance in the grass. Ectoplasm. They continued this way before stopping at a giant grey rock that also had ectoplasm on it. Sitting at the rock was Ghost Roaster, arms hugging his body, head bent down in sorrow.

"This your fault, big bird," Voodood silently hissed toward Sonic Boom. He briskly walked toward Ghost, shouting, "There is Ghost Roaster!"

Ghost lifted his head up and sprinted away from him, hiding behind the rock. "Stay away from me!" he wailed. "Can't you see I want to be alone?"

"Solitude bad for Ghost Roaster," Voodood reminded him. "Bad thoughts fester. Bad feelings grow. Slump gets worse."

"We need to go home, Ghost," Sonic Boom said. "Why don't you pick yourself up so we can go?"

Ghost glared at Sonic Boom. "You brought her along?" he spat with seething venom.

"Not by choice," Voodood insisted.

Ghost kept his gaze on the griffin. "Why don't you just pack your things and fly away from here, huh?" he yelled. "Can't you take the hint? Everyone at the Citadel hates you! Not even Eon can stand your attitude!"

"I'm as much a Skylander as the two of you are!" Sonic Boom yelled. "I don't have to justify my being here!"

Voodood put his hands up to end the quarrel- it seemed to work when Eon did it. "Ghost Roaster, what is problem?" he asked.

"We don't have time for this," Sonic Boom retorted.

"There is no time limit," Voodood told her. To Ghost, he repeated, "What is problem?"

Ghost sniffed. "You don't want to hear my problem," he insisted.

"Voodood want to know how to help."

"You can't help me this time, buddy. I feel like I'm dying. I almost wish I was."

"Voodood want to try."

"There's nothing you can do."

Voodood got an idea in his head- a stupid idea. "Voodood cut of chain of Ghost Roaster!" he decided.

Ghost quickly shook his head, eyes showing great fear. "I've tried it before- nothing good can come from that," he begged.

"Yes, forever chained to a spiky ball," Sonic Boom quoted. "That's what a curse is, Voodood. It's a terrible spell that remains forever. Undead curses are the strongest- I think your friend is a prime example of that."

Voodood's mind was made up. "Axe Reaver strong enough!" he insisted. "Give Voodood chain of Ghost Roaster!"

Sonic Boom pulled the chain toward Voodood, straightening it to its full length. Ghost didn't budge- he was frozen in fear. But Voodood was adamant in this decision. He remembered Ghost saying how much he lamented that chain, how everyone fled in fear when they heard it. The Skylanders had grown used to the rattling, and they even accepted it as part of who he was. Voodood even thought he wouldn't recognize Ghost Roaster without it- but if it made Ghost happy, then this was what was going to happen.

Voodood lifted his axe into the air, swinging it down on the chain as hard as he could. An eruption of magic came forth, the curse on the chain conflicting with the magic embued in the Axe Reaver. Sparks bounced off both, battling each other in a ferocious display of power. The strong forces stirred the wind, knocking everyone back. Voodood was forced on the ground, hitting the back of his head and watching everything go dark afterward.


"Voodood, are you alright?" Sonic Boom asked when the orc came to. "You took quite a hit."

Voodood didn't answer her immediately. He just laid on the ground where he was, hating himself. The Axe Reaver was the most powerful relic of his clan. How had it failed to break the chain off of Ghost Roaster? Maybe Voodood had proven far too unworthy to wield it? He certainly wasn't the best orc warrior there ever was anymore. He had fallen far from grace, and there was no coming back.

"Where is Ghost Roaster?" Voodood mumbled when he decided to sit up. His head felt dizzy as he did so.

"I'm not sure. He was gone when I woke up."

"Big bird not go after him?!"

"Well I was more concerned with the unconscious orc in the area. I almost thought you were dead."

"Sonic Boom would have liked that, right?"

"Absolutely not. I would only wish a curse like that on my enemies, and I wish us to be allies."

"Not from way Sonic Boom talk to Voodood."

Sonic Boom looked at the sky, a few drops of rain falling down. Voodood looked up as well, noticing that dark clouds had gathered in the sky. They were visibly seen, indicating that the day might have come. How long was Voodood out? Nevertheless, they had to find Ghost Roaster soon, in case a storm came upon them.

"That curse was way more nasty than I thought," Sonic Boom admitted. "Some powerful magic went into that chain. It might have hurt you more, since you were holding onto the axe during the collision. I think we should head back to the Citadel and let Eon know what has happened so he can come get Ghost back."

Voodood stood up. He became aware that he still held the axe- Voodood slammed it into the ground, the edge firmly in the dirt and keeping it from falling. He stomped away, trying to make distance from him and the axe. Let it rust there for all time as a relic of a dead clan- he was certainly not worthy to wield it.

"Um, your axe?" Sonic Boom noticed, running behind Voodood.

"Do not call Master Eon," Voodood commanded her. "Voodood did not try hard enough to talk to Ghost Roaster. Voodood should have prevented conflict by talking to Ghost Roaster when Sonic Boom said awful things. All fault of Voodood. Big bird not responsible. Not one bit."

"You're forgetting your axe! Don't you kind of need that for being a great warrior?"

"VOODOOD SHOULD HAVE DIED IN BATTLE THAT DESTROYED CLAN!"

Voodood fell to the ground. There was no stopping the tears. He should have made his voice harder to ignore. He should have herded his clan off the island in order to avoid annihilation. And if not, he should have died with them- orcs never flee from battle. Voodood had been selfish when he fled, saving his own hide when his friends and family were dying. Maybe Ghost almost wished that he was dead, but that wasn't the worst thing to wish upon yourself- Voodood wished himself to be truly dead every time he was reminded of this failure.

"Voodood miss family," he pouted. "All dead thanks to Voodood."

Sonic Boom sat next to him, letting the rain soak her feathers. "It was the Darkness that wiped out your home," she realized. "I doubt there was much you could do to save them. It was wrong of me to accuse you of doing nothing in a situation where there was nothing to be done- if I'd known that before telling you-"

"That is why Sonic Boom must mind tongue."

"I guess you're right,"- she let out a heavy sigh- "He left us, okay? My mate- the father of my chicks. He left us. But he wasn't some kind of 'rogue bird' as you thought he was. It was more than that. We were in love- when I start hating him, I remember that we loved each other more than anyone else in our clan. But when the griffins were being hunted down, and we had to hide in the mountains, my mate fled to save his own feathers, leaving me with the eggs I had just laid. Maybe if he had stayed, we could've worked together to save our chicks from that curse."

No comment. It hurt too much for Voodood to reply.

"But these are just a few of the things that can't be helped, I suppose. My mate's departure hurt me, Voodood. It taught me that the only person I could trust was myself- all I do is hide behind my words when I feel threatened. But we can't help the terrible things that happen to us. We can't help the destruction of our homes, or the curses on our families and our bodies. We can't help that, because we have no control over it. These things happen, and we have no control over keeping them from happening. We just have to learn to live with it, to grow from it, and to change in order to make yourself stronger for the harder times and the better times. Voodood, I don't want to see you destroy yourself because you think you're at fault for what happened that day. You're not at fault. Now go back there and grab that axe- it would be safer with a strong warrior of the Ooga Orcs."

Voodood slowly got up. He didn't know how to grow from it. He didn't know what he was going to do. But he was focused on the current situation at hand. He had to put that battle at the back of his mind for now- there was work to do.

"Voodood need to find Ghost Roaster," Voodood realized. "Voodood know he can help. Big bird stay here. Voodood and Ghost Roaster need to be alone."

Sonic Boom nodded, stepping back. Her scowl had disappeared, replaced by a more somber look. She had almost turned into a decent person. At the very least, Voodood hoped that she was starting to learn how to respect others.

He walked alone, trudging through the growing rain. So far, it was falling steadily, too mild for an actual storm. It might not be long before an actual storm came, however, and so Voodood continued onward. He found a part of the Pastures with a few trees on it, left there for the sheep to jump for the apples. Ghost Roaster was seen at one of the trees, back toward Voodood, sobbing uncontrollably. He didn't seem hurt at all, which was good, but the conflict hadn't yet been resolved.

"Ghost Roaster! Please talk to Voodood!" Voodood pleaded.

Ghost moved behind the tree when Voodood spoke. "Get away from me! I'm not good for you!" he whined. His voice came out hoarse and scratchy- he must have been crying for a while.

"That it?" Voodood asked, flabbergasted that this idea even existed. "Ghost Roaster not bad for Voodood. Where did idea come from?"

The whine turned into a whimper. "I didn't want to say- I knew you wouldn't have liked to hear it."

"It matters not what Voodood likes. Voodood not like seeing friend suffer more than hearing something he not like. Tell Voodood the problem."

A few pouts let themselves go. "Sonic Boom said I was a heinous creature that couldn't understand the devotion of a mother. She said it as if I didn't understand love at all. You heard her yourself."

"Big bird full of hot air, Ghost Roaster."

"That's the misconception about the Undead. I was mortal, once. Most of us were mortal once. We know how to love. I'm pretty sure I still do. But then I thought that I really might be a heinous creature. That I can only bring pain and sorrow to those I'm around. I didn't used to think those things- I'm not sure when it started. I've almost been convinced right, though- me hurting you was the straw that broke the camel's back."

"There were no camels."

"It's an expression, buddy. It means I've taken all I can. I don't know what's going to happen now!"

"Big explosion thingy hurt Voodood. And Voodood fine. No need to worry."

"Get away from me, Voodood. I don't want the same thing to happen again."

"That was fault of Voodood. Voodood was being stupid. Heck, Ghost save Voodood!"

Ghost looked directly at Voodood this time. "You shortened my name...," he gasped.

That had grabbed his attention. Voodood couldn't waste this opportunity, then! "Clan of Voodood destroyed by Darkness- Ghost...is familiar with story," he continued. "Voodood alone for long time. Voodood felt he would die without family. Ghost...came by and found him. We became family. Ghost...not bad for Voodood. More than good for Voodood."

A few more tears fell down Ghost Roaster's face. "I wanted to jump off of the Skylands before I met you," he admitted.

Voodood gasped, his heart nearly stopping. "Voodood...not familiar with this story," he stammered.

"I had gotten the chain attached to me. Everyone fled when they heard it. Nobody wanted to be near me. I thought things would be better if I wasn't around to make everyone angry. This was still on my mind a little while after I found you. But I found you, and you showed me a place that could be my home. You showed me people that were willing to be my family. You saved me. Despite that, I've never felt worthy for the Skylanders."

"Voodood know feeling. But we need Skylanders to show way to worth."- Voodood held his hand out- "Let Voodood save Ghost again. Let us go home, Ghost."

Ghost stepped out from behind the tree. He leapt forward and wrapped Voodood in a hug. The sobbing returned, combined with coughing from his sore throat. Voodood wrapped his arms around him, patting him on the back to comfort him. Everything would be okay. Maybe not for a long while, but they were going to get there.

"...Enjoy the show?" Ghost suddenly mumbled. Voodood released him for a moment, turning around. Sonic Boom had followed him up here, axe in her beak. However long she had been here as they talked, Voodood had no idea. He decided that he didn't care at the moment.

"Thank you, big bird," Voodood said, taking the axe from her beak.

"I'm really sorry," Sonic Boom pouted. "I really do know nothing. And I'm far less worthy of being a Skylander than you two."

"You can join us in Voodood's room sometime," Ghost sniffed, wiping a few tears away as he calmed down. "We could have a good cry session about it when we get back."

A roll of thunder came by, making everyone stiffen where they were. Right, there was still the storm to think about.

"Let's go home now!" Sonic Boom screeched fearfully.

"Agreed!" Voodood and Ghost Roaster shouted.

I recently realized a song that would go great with Secret Agent Secrets.

"We Are Not Alone" by Karla DeVito.

I don't know why, but it's perfect! :)