Thirty five chapters in. I can't believe it. I'll try to keep updating weekly. With real life going on, I don't have much free time to be on a computer. I usually use my phone to do my writing. Though ineffective due to no physical keyboard, I've gotten this far. With Pokemon Let's GO Pikachu and Hyrule Warriors Definitive Edition last year, both The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (with its DLC) and Super Mario Odysea in 2017, and spending a lot of time playing as Anakin Skywalker on Star Wars Battlefront II (EA); I have been very busy. At least I have most of the stuff on both Zelda games mostly done and have only Generation One Pokemon left to catch in Let's GO Pikachu: Pinsir.
Now on with the chapter!
Chapter 35: The Frozen Fortress
The gate was locked firmly shut. Link couldn't find a way to open it, at least not with his claws. He briefly glanced around for something to help, but before he could spot anything, he heard the guards coming back. He swiftly hid around the corner of the gate wall, and the two ape guards exited the fortress grounds.
They were too busy talking to each other that they didn't see Link and Midna whip through the open gate before it closed. They were now inside the fortress.
"Link, look!" Sparx exclaimed. Link looked up to see the silhouette of Cynder flying toward the fortress, carrying something in her mouth.
"Okay, I'm ready to go home, how about you?" Sparx asked. Link and Midna rolled their eyes and continued forward.
Link glanced at the walls as he walked, and a chill that had nothing to do with the snow swept through him as he noticed the ghostly shapes of humans clad in white armor and machines frozen in the ice. He also noticed other creatures frozen in the ice as well.
"So what exactly happens if they escape?" asked Sparx, he, too, noticed the frozen agents of war.
"They'd continue fighting as if nothing happened, and wreak havoc everywhere," Link replied. "Though something about the armored humans are somehow familiar to me."
"Oh, cool," Sparx stated. "Great for Ignitus to teach you heat-based powers and then send you here as your first mission."
"I thought the same thing," Link replied. He came to the end of the path, which overlooked a massive crater of ice. In the center of the crater was a huge hemispherical structure.
"That must be the fortress," Link stated. He ducked behind some boxes so he could think of his next move without risk of being seen.
"So what do we do?" Sparx asked. "There is no way we can get down there without being seen!"
"Let me think," Link replied. He looked around and saw an ice tunnel nearby. Looking down into the crater, he saw several more entrances to the tunnel system.
"Through there," he stated. "It should lead us down without being in the open."
"Key word," Sparx replied, "should."
"Oh, stop being negative," Link replied. They entered the tunnel, and as they did, they heard something behind them. They turned to see Cynder taking flight and leaving again, the object she had been carrying now glowing bright yellow.
"Close call," Midna commented. They continued down the frozen labyrinth, trying to keep in mind which way the fortress was. They passed many more war machines and black suited soldiers. The white armored ones were still there, but less in number.
"Who do you think they were fighting?" Sparx asked.
"I have no idea about the dark suited ones," Link replied. "But something tells me that the humanoids in white armor were fighting the humanoid machines, judging from their weaponry. They look similar."
"The dark suited ones look as if they don't care who they're fighting, just as long as they are fighting."
They rounded a corner and stopped as a large, tall, thin black tower came into view. The top was rounded and spiked, like a harness for some kind of energy.
"What do you think that does?" Link asked.
"I don't know, or care, let's not stick around to find out!" Sparx replied. The three of them snapped to attention as they heard the sound of marching all around them. They quickly ducked behind some more crates as eight ape guards walked up to the tower and mobilized.
"Report," said the largest of them, clearly the leader.
"Nothing out of the ordinary, sir," said one of the guards. "But security is on alert, and looking for anything suspicious."
"Good," said the leader. "Cynder expects us to find and eliminate the target. Fail, and we'd all better off packing our bags and running."
Link, trying to get a better look at them, slipped on the ice and knocked over one of the crates, alerting all of the guards to his presence.
"Send for the others," the leader stated. One of the guards ran off as those who remained advanced toward the dragon.
"Can't we talk this out, guys?" Sparx asked.
"Zip it, you little locust," the leader exclaimed. "You ain't walking out of this alive."
"That is what you think," Link replied as he noticed the shadow of a frozen humanoid clad in white armor. He shot a fire blast at the frozen soldier. Confused, the apes stopped their approach as large cracks appeared on the surface of the wall.
"Now!" Link exclaimed.
The three companions scampered away, and the wall fell to pieces as a legion a thousand year old warriors charged from the depths of the ice, attacking the apes. The white armored soldiers gathered around Link. Their awakening seemed to have caused a chain reaction across the whole area, as the entire frozen army was bursting from its prison and attacking the ape colony.
"Thank you, General," one of them stated. "Have we won the war?"
"I don't know about that," Link stated as he and the white armored soldiers tried to escape.. "The current war is against a being that wants to blow up the universe."
However, as they attempted to escape, one remaining ape activated the tower.
A bolt of lightning flew from the top of the tower and straight at Link, who turned at the last second to see it. It struck him directly over his heart and he was blasted backwards into another wall.
One of the armored soldiers knelt beside him. "Are you alright, sir?" he asked before crackling energy surged up Link's horns.
"I'm fine, captain," Link replied, enraged and consumed by primal energy, he launched a second bolt, twice as large as the first, back at the tower, which shattered the top and sent rubble flying everywhere. Sparx flew to his side.
"I was going to ask if you were okay, but I guess you're fine," he stated.
"Come on, we need to get inside!" Link replied.
They found an exit to the frozen maze that lead to an entrance to the fortress, the white armored soldiers following close behind. They looked at the crater and saw complete chaos. The apes were locked in combat with the orc-like creatures, who were trampling, burning, and crushing everything they could.
"Nice!" Sparx exclaimed.
"Let's go inside before they spot us," Link stated. They ran through the tunnel and came to a gigantic, round room. At the center of which was yellow dragon who was currently gagged and bound.
"That must be the Guardian of electricity," Link stated. He ran over to him, cut the bonds and removed the gag.
"What are you doing?" one of the soldiers asked.
"I came here to rescue this guy here," Link replied as he eyed one of the soldier's weapons. "Can you make some noise to wake him up?"
"Of course, sir," the soldier stated. He raised his strange weapon into the air and pulled a lever on it.
A blast sounded from the weapon as a blue beam exited the weapon and hit the ceiling.
"Hey, Mr Guardian," Sparx stated. "Wake up. We need to get out of here."
The yellow dragon stirred and his eyes slowly opened. When he was fully awake, he lifted his head and looked at Link.
"Hello," Link stated. "I'm Spyro. I am here to rescue..."
He was cut off as the dragon burst into an extremely rapid speech.
"Well, it is most delectable to make your acquaintance, young fellow. My name is Volteer, Guardian of the Element of Electricity and master of electric based powers and other such exhalation of devices in coherence with the electric element. If you are here to rescue me, you have most undoubtedly been dispatched by Ignitus, an old compatriot of mine, and I must say an intelligent and remarkably powerful individual, who of course, if he has once again enclosed control of the Dragon Temple, would have absolutely no problem in locating my position in that pool of his. Now, we best get moving before Cynder returns here, come along, boys." He got up as he finished and began to leave, the white armored soldiers following him. Link, Midna, and Sparx just looked at him.
"What exactly did he say?" Sparx asked.
"I think he said 'Hello, my name is Volteer, pleased to meet you. I'm the Guardian of electricity and a friend of Ignitus'," Midna stated.
"He reminds me of Starflight," Link stated. "I think the pair of them would just sit around reading books all day."
"He couldn't have just said so?" Sparx asked. "No wonder they gagged him."
The three of them followed Volteer back out of the fortress. And in Link's mind, one thought hung.
One down, two to go.