Legend of Spyro - Four Pillars of Aether Book I

by Blazcowitz43

Twelve years after the Temple raid, the four survivors of that dreadful night live a happy, carefree existence. They are Spyro, Cynder, Flame and Ember; the four who lived. Spyro is a rare purple dragon who has been taught his whole life that great things await him, but as darkness approaches can he and his friends truly stand up to the evil that threatens the world? Book II soon.

17. Chapter 16: War Luck

Chapter 16: War Luck

Who will survive and who will die? Only the luck of war will decide.

But those who make it through, on post review, may wish they'd died instead.

Spyro felt a great whoosh of air overtop of him, curiosity forcing him to open his eyes when his ears did not hear the expected screams. A hulking mass of green filled his vision as it roared just barely above the trees of the rooftop garden. As it finally cleared them, he pulled himself up and saw the deep brown paint above the hull, the golden rails and the blue and gold flag waving atop the crowsnest.

It was the Doxantha! Canons blazing definitely, she soared overtop the building, coming to the rescue of the two besieged gondolas which pitched up and tried to meet her. The four young dragons were too mesmerized for words, watching the great airship fly swiftly through the sky as the Dreadwinds attacking the gondolas pulled away to meet their new foe. There was a triumphant roar as her cannons and deck mounted ballista's let loose, cutting down several of the monsters as they dived at the airship. Spyro was suddenly filled with a renewed vigour, along with a tad sense of embarrassment of being caught off by the airship's appearance. A fighting smile creased his mouth as Cynder and Flame and Ember began to cheer the Doxantha on.

"Yeah, go get 'em!" Flame exclaimed as he pulled away from Ember and stood up with one paw on the railing and shaking the other triumphantly. The pink dragoness forgot her tears and started hopping excitedly at the sight of the ship while Cynder just turned to Spyro and gave him a toothy grin.

"You see that?" Flame cried cheerfully, "We're not out of this fight yet!"

"Your right," Spyro said confidently, "But we've still got to get out of the city and back to the temple. Which means, we've got to get through all this..." he beckoned gravely towards the warzone in front of them. The glee which had infected them moments before promptly vanished as they considered the colossal task at hand. While theoretically it was a simple notion of flying almost directly south from the city and over the sea, it was impossible to expect they could do so without drawing attention and leading their pursuer's right to their destination. Somehow they had to get clear of the city and head towards the temple without being spotted by the thousands of apes now rampaging across the city.

"How are we going to get through all that?" asked Ember, "Without our powers, we'd have to fight them directly with tooth and nail!" she said as she eyed her dainty paws anxiously.

"If that's what it takes, so be it," Cynder replied fiercely, flexing her claws on the railing. Spyro raised his eyebrows almost uneasily at her enthusiasm, though he knew well that it was all but an eventuality they would need to fight their way through if they were to have any chance of escaping Warfang, let alone making it back to the temple.

"But what happens when we get there?" asked Flame cautiously, "What if nobody comes for us or what if the apes have already got to the temple? Spyro, are you sure we can't try and find the Guardians first?"

"No, there isn't time," he replied sadly, guilt clawing at his heart, "They wanted us to save ourselves first. We've just got to hope they are okay."

Flame nodded pensively, his eyes darting around unsurely, leaving Spyro feeling more guilt that he hadn't reassured his friend as much as he hoped. He let out a flustered sigh, but turned his focus back to the objective in mind; getting himself and his friends out of the city without being discovered.

'How's that even going to be possible?' he thought dismally as he became distracted by the sight of the Doxantha blasting away at the apes as the two gondolas took advantage to make their escape, flying side by side as they headed towards the northern quarter of the city, probably hoping to evacuate their passengers somewhere in the fields north of Warfang. Spyro thought that perhaps they could follow them? Fly aboard and join the refugees, then once clear of the city make for the cover of the forests west of Warfang and then follow the coast before stealthily making their way across the sea to the temple. He decided at that moment it was the best idea for them, though mainly because he feared there wasn't enough time to come up with any alternatives.

"Listen," he announced, turning his head to his companions as they all looked back at him expectantly. It made him feel strange to see them put their faith in him without hesitation. Spyro had somehow managed to lead them out of Gaul's lair, but had the Guardians not arrived when they did, they all surely would have been hunted down like rabbits. If anything went wrong, they couldn't count on the Guardians being there to rescue them this time.

"We'll follow those gondolas, and then we'll..." Spyro cut himself off abruptly as a new shadow swept over him, followed by an ear splitting shriek. He and the others looked up as they saw the fearsome wings of a Dreadwing hovering above and the glowing red eyes of the horned rider glaring down at them. The stubby figure raised his arms in vengeful fury as four more Dreadwings rose up and hovered behind him, two of them clutching the large explosive barrels that they had seen used to devastate the city.

"Oh no, it's the Assassin guy again!" exclaimed Flame. Spyro gasped just before the red eyed ape lobbed his finger towards them, the mumbled shouts behind his helmet in this case no longer debatable or indistinct,

"Krill dem!"

At once the four supporting Dreadwings lunged forward, diving down towards the four young dragons. Spyro's eyes bulged as the two with the steel barrels led the formation, their claws releasing their cargo with a scale shredding whistle. Cynder beat them all to it,

"JUMP!" she cried as Spyro and the rest of the group pounced upwards and leapt over the edge of the building, almost forgetting to spread their wings in the terror of the moment. Before he knew it, Spyro found himself plunging straight down the side of the tower like a bolt fired from a crossbow. He caught his breath and straightened his wings, finally noticing Cynder, Ember and Flame were parallel alongside and diving with him with unintentional cohesion. The shrieking whistles ended with two colossal explosions behind them; trees, soil and stone blasting out in a cloud of fiery debris as the roof was destroyed.

"Oh no! Oh no! Oh no!" Flame squealed frantically as the debris started falling after them and the street was fast approaching.

"Follow me!" Spyro shouted as pulled sharply to his right, twisting himself to avoid crashing into the ground that was hurtling towards him. Cynder, Ember and Flame followed in line with him, all four of them tucking their limbs tight to their bodies as they barely missed scraping along the cobblestone street, the mass of falling flaming debris crashing down behind them. They swept over an abandoned cart in the mostly empty street, Spyro catching glimpses of several moles watching anxiously from their doorways and windows before they suddenly cried out in fear and ducked back inside. The reason was soon clear as Spyro looked behind to see four of the Dreadwings from above had swept down after them, the Masked Assassin meanwhile followed the chase by staying above the buildings, his red eyes just as menacing from afar as up close.

"They're chasing us! Book it!" he cried as they fast approached a junction, the Dreadwings shrieking and snapping behind them as poor Flame at the rear surely feared for the wellbeing of his tail.

"Left!" Spyro called, turning sharply with his horns barely clearing the corner of the building. He flashed a quick look over his shoulder, just making out the others following behind as well as their pursuers. Looking ahead, the street curved around to the right, Spyro leading the formation as he clenched his teeth and flapped his wings as hard as he knew how. They swept around the curve with the Dreadwings howling behind, suddenly a ball of red flame soared over them and exploded against the building as they swept by, peppering them with a shower of red sparks.

"Yikes!" the shock made Spyro yelp as he gazed up and followed the smoking trail from where it had come; from the mouth of the Assassin's Dreadwing. He had no time to dwell on it as he on impulse darted for the first opening he saw; an alleyway between the buildings ahead.

"This'll be tight!" he shouted a warning to his companions as he aimed for the alley. There was a low fence and wooden door in the way, but they could simply fly over that. It looked just wide enough for a single large dragon to move through, but not a Dreadwing. He just hoped his perception of width was not affected by the speed of which he flew. Spyro propelled up, zooming over the dainty wooden entrance which swayed like grass in a gale as the four who lived swept over it. The four Dreadwing riders saw the danger and didn't follow, two of them pulling up sharply while the second pair banked right to follow the street around, the Masked Assassin staying high above as his prey slipped from view. Spyro was flying too fast to notice any of this or if his friends had made it, trusting that they had as the alley turned at a sharp left angle and opened into a broad courtyard. The large tower blocks bathed the courtyard in shadow, its numerous crates, barrels and rubbish carts passed by in a blur as the purple dragon set his eyes on the exit to the right across the yard.

"They're still coming!" Cynder cried out as three Dreadwings, one of them the Assassin, swept high above the courtyard, Flame and Ember looking up apprehensively, the sight giving them the feeling of mice trying to escape a maze. Spyro didn't share the view, looking dead ahead as he led the others through the narrow causeway, the way out a sharp right turn in reverse to how they came in. He pulled quickly to a halt as and hovered in the air as they came back out into the street, the others barely avoiding crashing into him they hovered just inside the alley as he snapped his head left and right. Both ways he saw moles running about in panic, some desperately pounding on the doors of stranger's homes hoping to be let in. Looking to the right again, his heart jumped as he saw the reason why; scurrying into view came the armour clad silhouettes of numerous ape soldiers streaming around the corner at the far end of the street.

"This way!" he shouted, taking off in the opposite direction.

"Why do you get to decide?" Cynder queried indignantly as she paused and then saw the party of charging soldiers, "Nevermind!" she gasped before taking off at speed after him, followed by Ember and Flame.

Looking behind, they saw the four Dreadwings who were pursuing them appear again; two swept around the corner and zoomed over the ape soldiers as the other two dived down from the rooftops ahead of them and back onto the tails of the four dragons. Spyro took the first left he saw, hoping to shake them off but the road ahead was blocked by the debris of a collapsed building. One of the great circular towers had crumpled up like it had been dropped from the sky, a curtain of black smoke rising from it and obscuring all that was beyond it. His first thought was to fly over it, but his gut feeling was to keep low between the buildings to try and avoid further attention. He then caught sight of a gap between the buildings upcoming to his right, Spyro banking hard towards it and swooping through between the towers with the others, friend and foe, taking after him. A glowing red ball struck the left tower as he passed through, reminding him that the Assassin was still high above, shadowing them.

Spyro pulled left and dived down low into the next street over, realizing too late that it may have been a mistake. The street ahead was a single long causeway of identical residential blocks with no side streets or alleys they could try and duck down. Suddenly another ball of red fire shot from the Assassin's Dreadwing zoomed overtop of them, sailing ahead and exploding in the middle of the street ahead of them. Spyro gasped as he pulled up to clear the crimson explosion, feeling the heat on his belly as he flew over it, his three companions following him in a rising wave motion as the Masked Assassin let out a garbled cry of anger.

"Don't fly straight! Zigzag!" Ember cried as another red ball came soaring at them. Baring his teeth gravely, Spyro began banking side to side aggressively as did the others as more crimson fireballs began to explode along the street, each one drawing nearer as the Assassin improved his aim. The pursuing Dreadwings began to get closer as their evasive flying slowed them down. Spyro feared the Assassin's aim would be on point before they reached the end of the street and if they tried climbing above the buildings they would surely only draw more attention. A quick look behind saved his life as he saw the next fireball coming straight at his head, throwing himself to the left as it hit the ground and showered him in red sparks.

"Spyro!" Cynder called out on reflex. With his heart pounding, the purple dragon was sure the next shot would be the end of his luck and the end of the street was still too far away. Climbing had to be their only chance, taking the chance of running the gauntlet through the entire squadrons of Dreadwings and dragons clashing above. But then Spyro had another off the wall idea, just like when he had used himself as bait to lure Meadow's Dreadwing after him so that it would fly him away from the mountain fortress. "Guys, just do what I do! Trust me!" he shouted, not waiting for their reply as he suddenly pulled up vertically. Looping over in midair, the next fireball shot past him before he spun himself over and flew head on straight at their pursuers! He saw Flame, white with fear, passing by underneath him with the Dreadwings on his tail as Spyro dived down towards them. The eyes of the first two monsters and their riders bulged as he soared right in between them, followed by Cynder, Ember and Flame completing the loop.

The second Dreadwing pair tried to stop in midair, reeling back and spreading their wings to block them. Spyro daringly swept down beneath them, sucking in his stomach as he nearly scraped the ground with Cynder flying alongside him and Flame and Ember bringing up the rear. As he looked behind to see his friends were clear, the two back Dreadwings clipped each other's wings, their riders losing balance as they and their mounts tumbled into a heap on the ground, thrashing about furiously while the second pair blew over top of them, still in pursuit. Spyro cracked a faint smile, but the fact they were still pursued, plus the shadow of the Masked Assassin passing over above and his muffled shouts reminded him that they were far from safe.

"Was that crazy or brilliant?!" shouted Cynder sardonically.

"We're still alive, right?" he called back as he swung his head around, trying to catch sight of the Assassin as he circled above them.

"Barely!" Flame retorted as they swept back along the street. Spyro tried to flash him a cheeky grin to bolster his spirits, but it quickly evaporated as the Assassin swung back into view high and behind them, another searing ball of red fire spitting from the mouth of his masked Dreadwing.

"Duck and weave!" he cried as the fireball blasted across the ground just behind them, the two pursuing enemy fliers nearly being caught in its wake. The gap they had passed through before came up again, Spyro sucking in a tense breath as he soared into a climb before pulling a tight right turn, snarling like a savage wolf as he pushed his body through the burning agony he was inflicting upon it. He told himself he should be grateful for it; pain meant he was still alive. He swept around the tower with Cynder, Ember and Flame right behind him, another red fireball sailing by them. They flew through the choking smoke of the fallen tower, the street beyond it ending a short distance on before it opened up ahead of them to another narrow street while opening into a much wider boulevard to the left.

Almost at once their path was crossed by several dragons and Dreadwings chasing each other over the rooftops, the roar of combat no longer out of sight but all around them. Choosing to bank left over the boulevard, Spyro's eyes bulged as they came upon a scene of all out war faring. Stretching out before them were a thousand battles far along the boulevard which flowed for almost the whole width of the city. At the far end it passed by under the eastern section of the colossal viaduct that spanned through and out of Warfang, the tall plateaus where the observatory and airdock stood rose up ahead and to the right of them as the young dragons swept over the immense battle scene.

Spyro and Cynder, Flame and Ember, even while they were being chased, could not help but gawk at the scale of it all; from side to side and almost end to end the street was packed with dragons and moles battling the apes, from one on one duels to small groups to clusters of dozens upon dozens of warriors parrying with each other. There was no order or distinguishable battle line to it, groups fought inside other groups as the endless clanging of swords was only interrupted by the screams of the dying. Dragons warriors lunged with their teeth, swiped with their claws and thrashed with their tails, unable to rely on their elemental powers that had been robbed of them. Not one eye looked up at the four young dragons being chased by the Masked Assassin and his wing mates as they soared over the carnage, Spyro lamenting that there was nothing he could do to help the warriors beneath him.

Checking behind, he continued to duck and weave as he saw his companions doing the same, catching sight again of the Assassin who stayed high up, releasing with relief he was unable to let his mount spit fire at them without potentially annihilating his own troops. As they zoomed over the chaos, there was a battle won and lost to each side every second; Spyro saw a great earth dragon send a half dozen apes sailing through the air with one mighty whip of his tail while elsewhere in the next instant saw a hapless mole at arm be picked up and thrown by a large Ape Commander into a group of other moles, bowling them over just before they were set upon by a pack of bloodthirsty Deathhounds. To Spyro, it seemed as if there would be no one left alive for either side to claim victory.

'This is unbelievable,' he thought drearily, 'How can we fight back against this? They're already all over the city! How do we stop them?'

"Spyro, lookout!" he heard Cyner shout as a Dreadwing suddenly dived down in front of him and caught his attention. But it suddenly turned its back as a glittering Ice dragon swept down in pursuit, the creature screaming as the dragon lunged and grappled it in mid air, sending the pair of them spiralling and crashing into the ground as Spyro flew over them. He only looked back for a second, seeing that is was not Cyril before he realised he needed to get himself and the others away from all this carnage; he scanned for any openings they might exploit for he knew as soon as the fighting masses below them cleared, the Masked Assassin would start firing again.

The numbers began to thin out already as they drew nearer the viaduct, the smoking observatory now behind them as the purple dragon deciding they had to avoid any more long straights if they were to have any chance of losing their attackers. When he 'zigged' to the left the next time, his eyes shot over to the right and he 'zagged' towards an opening he saw; a tunnel that cut through the plateau towards the centre of the city. There was a back to back battle raging outside its mouth as a platoon of mole and dragons fought a force of apes as behind them were other moles firing crossbows into the tunnel from behind a makeshift barricade of carts and boxes, but all this did not dissuade the purple dragon.

"This way!" Spyro shouted behind as he zoomed towards it, the tunnel he knew being just too narrow for an adult dragon to fly through and so too he hoped Dreadwings.

"Are you sure about this?!" he heard Ember gasp as they shot towards the tunnel, taking the chance to whack a tall Ape Commander in the back of the head with his tail as the four who lived flew over the heads of the two groups.

"Heads up!" he shouted to the moles as they shot over them, speeding over the barricade and into the tunnel as the chasing Dreadwing pair were shot out of the air in a hail of crossbow bolts. The Masked Assassin stayed well out of range, shouting incoherently as his prey slipped into the tunnel.

"Come back, you fools!" shouted a mole to them, but it was too late. Spyro knew he shouldn't have been surprised, but the sight of dozens of ape soldiers fifty meters ahead and running towards them as they entered the tunnel still caught him off guard, but then judging by all the bodies lying before the barricade, what else would the moles have been shooting at?

"Oh, cripes!" Flame exclaimed as he saw the mass of apes inside the confined space. The apes were wall to wall inside the curved brick tunnel although it had a reasonably high ceiling. Along with the burning torches hanging along the walls there were small versions of the gold, ring shaped chandeliers with their fire crystals now shattered but candles still burning hanging down above them like the larger ones they had seen at the airdock.

"Another brilliant plan?" Cynder sneered coldly as the four of them were poised to fly headlong into the herd of charging apes.

"Trust me!" he retorted, almost harshly, but for a moment Spyro thought he had just doomed them all, so desperate to avoid the Assassin that he had led them straight into another deathtrap. But his fear suddenly warped into constructive thinking as he saw the tunnel was also packed with dozens of abandoned carts which the apes needed to clamber over or around, wondering if that might help them somehow.

"Just keep going! Don't stop!" he cried as several of the apes tried jumping up to grab them, Spyro pulling up to the ceiling and nearly clipping one of the chandeliers. The apes below howled and screeched, swinging with their swords and clubs, some throwing axes and blades or shooting crossbows. Ahead to the left some had climbed on top of a cart, trying to block him, Spyro cutting sharply to the right, his tail swiping hard and sending them falling over into their comrades. Cynder dived down over the heads of the wailing mob and swept between two Ape lieutenants who both clubbed each other in the head in their efforts to strike her. Seeing this from behind, Ember, with Flame having caught up alongside to her left, watched as Spyro and Cynder both swept around either side of a larger cart that was carrying an enormous clay vase nearly as tall as the chandeliers, painted in intricate dragon letters. Two pairs of ape soldiers suddenly ran in front of it, the second pair leaping onto the shoulders of the first each with claws at the ready. With a fiendish smirk, she yelled across to Flame, "You take the right!"

"What?!" he replied as she suddenly soared ahead with a burst of speed and cut in front of him, seemingly just to show off. The piggybacking ape swiped and missed, Ember kicking her back legs out as she passed over him and sent the ape flying into the great vase with a heavy clunk, causing it wobble but not tobble. Flame realised her plan and swerved to the right just in time, but not in time to kick. Wailing more in fear than in a war cry, he ducked his head and ploughed his horns straight into the second piggybacking ape, sending him careening into the vase with another clunk as he swept past after Ember. The colossal work of pottery creaked as it slowly leaned and fell like a tree with a heart stopping crash on top of the apes that were too slow to escape its path, crushing some and slashing others into ribbons.

"I think that was expensive!" Flame remarked uneasily as he caught up to Ember.

"They'll blame it on the apes! Way to go, Flame!"" Ember laughed gleefully, the red dragon's heart fluttering as he shared in her rosy smile. That alone, in spite of their current situation was enough to make the young fire dragon wish he had the courage to say how he felt about her. But as they made to catch up to Cynder and Spyro, watching how he fearlessly led them through this tunnel of terror, Flame reminded himself that he could never be that brave. Not like how Spyro was now.

'Survive', not 'Bravery' was the word on Spyro's mind as he and Cynder soared ahead, narrowly missing every weapon and item that was slashed, thrown or fired at them. They dared not slow down as they ducked and swerved over and around the coaches and carts that filled the tunnel along with the apes. Through the mass of them he could see the light of the end of the tunnel ahead, knowing it would not take long now to reach it. He pulled up steeply as a sword nearly sliced across his belly, nearly making him crash into the chandeliers as he dived back down and raked the claws of his right paw across an apes face. Never had he wished to be able to use his powers more than right now, more for how it would protect his friends than how it would kill the enemy. He quickly looked behind as Flame and Ember caught up to them, the mass of apes thinning out as he looked ahead and saw the light getting brighter over the mass of piled up carts and crates.

"We're almost there!" Spyro cried cheerfully as the four of them were now flying abreast. Getting out of the tunnel would not mean total safety, but it was one step closer to escape. With the apes now shouting angrily behind them, they soared over top of the abandoned traffic as the exit came into full view ahead, but Spyro's heart sank as he saw what lay beyond the roadblock.

"There's more!" Cynder shouted in anguish as another barricade lay ahead, this time mounted by apes. It was a short distance before the mouth of the tunnel; carts and crates were stacked to block the tunnel and on top of them were a dozen or so apes, all armed with crossbows and aiming towards them. In the centre of them was a hulking Commander, holding up his hammer as he stood on a tall square wagon sitting between the others and shouting orders. As the distance closed, Spyro saw there was no chance of them getting over them without he and the others all being shot.

"What do we do?" Flame yelled put desperately as the Commander raised his hammer, ready to give the order to fire.

"Look! Through there!" Cynder pointed at the cart the massive ape was standing on. With the cart positioned side on, there was a gap under the chassis and between the large wheels. Just.

"Ladies first!" she cried as she surged ahead of the others, Spyro shaking his head in disbelief as she swept in front of him and aimed for the gap. He eyed the Commander as he held up his fist, shouting aloud "Hold!" with his troops flinching with excitement, fingers on their triggers. The unexpected pause gave Cynder the chance to surge ahead just before the Commander shouted the dreaded order; "Fire!"

"Go!" Spyro bellowed as he along with Flame and Ember plunged down almost to the ground as the barrage of crossbows passed over their heads, hot on Cynder's tail as she speed like a bolt of black lightning straight under the cart. Spyro felt a crossbow pass by his head with only the thickness of his wings membrane to spare as he zoomed out the other side, followed by Flame and Ember.

"We're alive!" the red dragon sang as he soared out and eyed the light ahead.

"Quick thinking, Cynder!" praised Ember as the coast ahead was clear with only a few carts before the end of the tunnel. But Spyro didn't join the merriment as he looked behind to see the angered Commander was now rallying to his troops to chase them, even though they had no chance to catch up to them. He knew such a force was still a serious threat to the defenders and civilians of Warfang and Spyro felt they had to contribute the fight somehow rather than just run away. He also couldn't help but notice the pause the Commander had ordered, almost as though he wanted Cynder clear from the line of fire before they fired on him and Flame and Ember...

Spyro's thoughts quickly surged back to the then and now as he swept out of the tunnel into the light behind the black dragoness with Flame and Ember behind him. The four of them stopped in the air and quickly surveyed their grim surroundings. Straight ahead was another wide street where there was another battle raging ahead with two narrower streets running straight down to the sides of the tunnel. The two side streets were blocked by more makeshift barricades of carts and barrels, several mole civilians trying to reinforce them with whatever they could lay their hands on. In the main street the moles and dragons were being pushed back towards the tunnel while the moles on the barricades were barely holding back the tide. All across the streets were scattered debris and the various bodies of friend and foe who had killed each other in battle, while there were wounded moles lying in pain against the walls of the right side buildings. Spyro guessed the main ape force had pushed on into the tunnel and the friendly troops had only just retaken the area, but were poised to lose it again.

As his eyes scanned across all this, Spyro's stomach tightened as he cursed himself for being unable to help, when his eyes caught sight of one particular abandoned cart. It sat to the right of the tunnel; it's partially blown off leather tarp exposing the top of two conspicuous red painted barrels. He pulled sharply away from his companions and flew over to it to confirm what he saw. Cynder looked behind and saw him, quickly sweeping around after him with Ember and Flame following.

"Spyro, what are you doing?!" she demanded. Spyro held off on a reply as he propelled himself over top of the cart, grasping the cover in his paws and pulling it away to reveal the wording stamped on top of the barrels. "Oil!" he cried, the red barrels were stacked five across and three barrels high, each one about the size of a small beer keg. The top of each barrel was marked with bold black painted letters; "WHALE OIL. KEEP AWAY FROM OPEN FLAMES!"

"We need to keep moving!" stressed Ember as she flew up to him, cocking her head at the barrels as Spyro suddenly grabbed hold of one.

"Grab one and give me a hand!" he said hastily as he strained to lift the barrel, flapping his wings like mad as he flew back in front of the tunnel entrance and then dropped the barrel. It struck the ground hard and cracked its lid, at once its contents of whale oil spilled out across the cobblestone road.

"What's the idea?" asked Flame hectically as all three of them hovered in place and watched him questioningly as he flew back to the cart. "These guys are about to be overrun! We can help, come on!" Spyro replied hotly as he grasped another barrel. The sounds of battle around them grew fiercer as they saw the dozen or so surviving mole at arms on the main street falling back frantically with the apes pursuing them mercilessly. The dragons they had seen among them had all fallen and the stand had into a rout.

"Whatever you're thinking, hurry!" Cynder cried a she flew forward and grabbed a barrel, as did Flame and Ember. Spyro had already thrown down another as they did the same, the apes inside the tunnel getting closer as they charged towards them. As he flew back for more, the others dropped their barrels onto the expanding pool of oil as the apes inside and outside the tunnel grew closer every moment. Spyro froze for a moment as he saw the retreating moles with the apes on their heels closing in as well as the helpless wounded who were trying to desperately move themselves from the approaching danger. He knew at once there was no more time and that he needed to act. NOW.

As the others flew back for more barrels, Spyro grabbed the one nearest to him, lacking anything else to use as a weapon.

"Keep doing what you're doing!" he shouted as he took off down the main street towards the charging hoard.

"Spyro!" he heard Cynder cry desperately after him, but he forced himself to keep his eyes forward, knowing he couldn't afford to waste a moment. The fleeing moles watched him in confusion as he swept over their heads with the red barrel in his paws, aiming towards the apes that pursued them. Spyro hoped that his appearance would distract them long enough, knowing Gaul would have a bounty out for him his troops would want to collect.

"Its him!" one of the apes shouted as he soared at them, Spyro sweeping low and catching a lieutenant across the head with his tail spike. The front ranks nearly skidded to a halt, the ones behind crashing into their comrades in front, nearly causing the whole mass of apes to topple on top of each other as Spyro circled above them.

"Yeah, that's right!" he jeered coldly, "You can't catch me!"

"Bring him down!" shouted the Commander of the group, the apes with swords and clubs jumped and slashed while others tossed spears and shot crossbows at him. Spyro gulped as his extra weight slowed him down, the barrel catching two crossbow bolts as others missed him by a hair's width.

"That's close enough!" Spyro muttered grimly to himself as the oil began to pour out. He swept back around and sighted the large Commander, barely missing more projectiles as he let the barrel go, turning around sharply just as it smashed over the head of the lead ape, drenching him in whale oil. There was an angry roar behind him, but Spyro didn't look back as he flew on towards the tunnel where the apes within were only moments from escaping. The mole at arms were fearfully standing back to back as they faced attackers from both sides while Cynder, Flame and Ember had kept up pouring the oil outside the tunnel Without a source of ignition it would be little more than a slip hazard, but Spyro knew where to find one and more acutely, what would happen if he failed.

"They're closing in!" shouted a mole as Spyro zoomed overop, shouting to his friends, "Get clear of the tunnel!" as he soared straight on into the tunnel.

"Spyro, come back! You're crazy!" Flame shrieked as they watched him go by. The purple dragon saw the dozens of blood lusting eyes all focus on him as he flew straight towards the horde of apes poised to breach the tunnel exit. Just like those outside, the front rank halted and those behind stumbled and crashed in surprise. Spyro gasped as he barely missed a blade that slashed the air near him as he swept over the front ranks, the shouting and hooting of the apes reaching a fever pitch. He let out an anguished cry as his tortured body begged for relief as he performed a near back braking aerial turn above the horde, nearly scraping the wall of the tunnel as he soared back towards the mouth of it.

As the ranks began to pick themselves up, he reached out with his right foreleg and snatched one of the torches hanging from the wall as the apes made an all out charge for the end of the tunnel just ahead of them. Spyro eyed the glistening pool of oil that had formed around the tunnel mouth and braced for yet another life and death moment. With the torch in his right paw, he banked just to the left side of the tunnel and swept the torch over the edge of the oil pool, keeping a firm hold even as his first instinct was to drop it.

At once there was a scorching whoosh as the oil was set alight, rising in a huge curtain of fire as Spyro propelled himself out of the tunnel, the flames licking at his tail as his companions and the moles ran or jumped clear of the inferno. He came to a halt, hovering high above the street as he looked back to what he had done. Screams of fear and panic followed right after as the apes in the tunnel fled from the flames before it could devour them, some too slow to avoid their fate. In truth, Spyro felt some guilt for his actions, hoping the flames would frighten and block them more so then kill them, but he had no time to let it unsettle him as there were still more danger afoot. He looked behind to see Cynder, Ember and Flame looking up at him as they stood amongst the frightened mole at arms that were half dazed by the fire and preparing to meet the other horde of apes charging from the main street. He saw the oil cart was still carrying around a dozen barrels on it, but knew it was too late to repeat what he had just done. He was sick with the realisation that while he and his fellow dragons could fly away and escape, the mole at arms and the wounded would be left to their fate.

It was just then Spyro saw Cynder make a move, calling the others to follow her as they and the moles rushed towards the cart, thinking at first they were moving it further away from the flames. As they moved behind it, Cynder looked up at him and called out, "Spyro! Stall them!"

He didn't think to ask why or even look at what it was she was doing, he simply trusted that whatever it was required his help. Spyro clutched the torch fiercely as he dived down towards the apes charging down the street. They were only seconds away from reaching the others, but he hoped the sight of the purple dragon would once again cause them to forget about them. Sure enough, the mass of apes all turned their eyes to him as he swooped at them with the torch, darting side to side frantically as they once again hurled every weapon and object at hand at him. The ape Commander he had drenched in oil earlier panicked at the sight of the torch and turned around, bowling over his own troops as he ran in terror away from him. Spyro waved the torch at him but did not chase him, seeing the chaos the Commander was causing was more effective than anything he was doing himself. Those eager for the bounty however remained greedily steadfast even without their leader, one ape clambering on top of a fruit market stall and making a leap at him, Spyro delivering a swift aerial kick that sent him crashing back into a pile of watermelons.

"Hurry up!" he shouted back as he surged higher to avoid a volley of crossbow bolts being fired at him, the bolts stabbing into the side of the nearest building. As he looked back to the others, he saw their plan. Cynder, Ember, Flame and the able bodied moles were pushing the oil cart towards the mass of enemy troops, digging their back feet into the cobblestones as they pushed themselves forward with their front paws pressed to the back of the cart. The sound of an axe going past his head drew his attention back to the apes below, but Spyro knew what he needed to do if there was any chance to save the moles. The cart began to pick up speed, the three young dragons behind starting to outpace the moles. Cynder suddenly flew around to the front of the cart, gripping the front edge of the cart and pushing with her wings.

"Come on!" she cried fervently. Inspired, Flame and Ember jumped into the air and took flight, each pushing the back corners of the cart as they drove their improvised ordinance towards their target. The cart was now rolling at speed, propelled by the power of the three dragons. Spyro made another diversionary sweep at the apes as he looked over and saw the approaching cart.

"Heads up!" Cynder shouted out. In one swift, graceful move, she propelled herself into an aerial back flip with the cart passing by under her, Flame and Ember ducking aside as the black dragoness completed the flip with a hard, four legged kick that sent the cart surging ahead.

"Spyro, now!" With a sharp breath, Spyro plunged into a dive towards the speeding cart, the apes now finally realising the danger. He knew he had to get close, realising he had only a one chance to be on target. As the apes began to dive out of the way of the speeding cart, his paw released the torch from its grasp before he threw all his remaining strength into the climb of his life. He only saw a flash as he cleared the cart, a wave of heat sweeping over him as the cart erupted into a cascading fireball that filled the full width of the street, sending timber, pottery and apes flying through the air. The force of the explosion rocked Spyro as he was sure the fireball would take him as the edges of his vision filled with orange flame. He sucked in a desperate breath which seemed to give him the extra inch of ground to clear the blast as the flames rose in a wall behind him.

Cynder, Ember and Flame had al landed some way back from the fire as the moles began to cheer and clap for them all as Spyro made an unsteady landing in front of them, panting heavily and his eyes wide with excitement.

"How many more crazy ideas are you going to have today?" demanded Cynder crossly, even as he broke out into a smile as she shook her head in disbelief.

"Today's been pretty crazy so far," he panted, looking over his shoulder to finally see their handiwork.

"I know, right?" Flame added tersely.

"I was sure you weren't going to make it," Ember confessed dimly, seemingly more upset in herself for her the lack of faith in her hero than how close he had actually come to perishing. The street behind him was engulfed in flames, the cart and its cargo of oil had exploded amongst the apes, killing countless of them and sending just as many fleeing for their lives. The mole civilians, the mole at arms and their wounded comrades continued clapping and cheering as they circled around the four young dragons.

"Outstanding, young dragons! You saved our lives!" said one of the mole soldiers standing to the left of the group.

"I thought that was it," said one of the wounded moles grimly, "I never would have expected such daring feats from those so young!"

"We owe you our lives!" a mole maid said tearfully as she wiped her eyes. The four who lived all blushed at the praise, but they knew there was no time to savoir their small victory as more explosions rocked the ground. The flames to either side of them continued to billow upwards, the combined heat becoming intense as Spyro looked across the group, wondering what they should do now.

"We were just doing what we were trained to do," the purple dragon replied simply as he looked upwards anxiously.

"You mean scraping through by the skin of our teeth?" Cynder remarked sarcastically.

"Lighten up, Cynder!" Ember growled.

"I hate to interrupt," one of the younger mole soldiers said tepidly. Unknown to the four who lived at the time, the young mole was none other than Anton, the sentry who had fist spotted the Dreadwing rider the previous say with the faux message of a peace offering.

"But we have lost our Captain, we're outnumbered and we have fire in front of us and behind us! What are we going to do now, Louie?" he asked his friend and the oldest of the group.

"First, we get the wounded and the civilians to shelter," Louie declared, even though his rank was no greater than the others, "Then we get back out there and drive the apes out of our city!"

The mole at arms, even the wounded, raised their hands and cheered with renewed spirits. Spyro couldn't help but smile at their dedication. The older mole soldier looked across at him and asked, "Master Spyro, my name is Louie. Will you and your friends come with us? We need all the help we can get!"

He took a quick look at his companions, who all gave small but firm nods in agreement to him. Spyro knew at the very least they had to ensure the wounded and the civilians were taken somewhere safe, but a cynical part of his brain reminded him that Ignitus wanted them to get out of the city with all due haste, not stopping to help anyone. But they had all just taken a huge risk to save this small group of moles. None of them would have forgiven themselves if they had just left them to die.

'The whole city is going to want your help,' the cynical part of his brain said, 'Are you going to try and save every mole and dragon you see? If you die today, everyone and everything will be lost. Do what Ignitus said and go!'

Spyro's expression hardened as he decided right then what they would do. "We'll help you get the others somewhere safe," he replied sternly, "But then my friends and I will have to go. Ignitus gave us orders in case something like this happened today."

"Very well," Louie nodded readily, "A shame, but you have your orders and we have ours. Now, we should... Look out!"

A familiar shriek filled the air as Spyro spun around and saw the Masked Assassin appear from behind the flames, hovering just above them as his mount let out a high pitched scream that drove daggers into their ears.

"Why doesn't he ever quit?!" he barely heard Flame yell above the ringing in his ears. The moles were still covering their ears as Cynder stumbled up beside him, ready to fight even while scowling at the bells ringing in her head. Ember, apparently not wanting to be outdone, dragged herself up beside her as Flame, though wide eyed with fright, marched up unsteadily alongside the pink dragoness.

The Assassin let out more muffled threats as his mount opened its mouth, Spyro waiting to see the red glow of its unnatural fire before something at ground level caught his attention. A mole sized door of a square two story building on the left with a sign above it reading 'The Burrow Tavern' suddenly flew open and three moles came scampering out. Two were soldiers armed with spears, the third he recognized straight away as Mason, aka the Professor, his dirty coat waving behind him.

Before he could say anything, Mason aimed a strange, bulky looking crossbow towards the Assassin. Spyro and the others watched in amazement as he rapidly fired multiple arrows, pulling a handle straight after each shot as they zipped towards the Assassin. His Dreadwing wailed as the arrows struck widely under its belly and wings, the monster flailing about wildly as it reeled over backwards and fell behind the flames

"Mason!" Cynder called out loudly beside Spyro, her ears still ringing. The Professor turned around swiftly, holding his bulky weapon in one hand and waving them forward with the other,

"Get inside, quickly!"

The other moles wasted no time and began running past the four young dragons with the wounded hobbling behind them. Spyro quickly shuffled forward and let a wounded mole place his arm over his back as he helped him towards the door, Cynder, Ember and Flame doing the same with those they could help. Mason and his two companions watched their surroundings cautiously as the group filed through the door into the tavern, Louie and Anton standing with them as they moved the survivors inside. The four who lived were the last in line with a wounded mole beside each of them, Spyro turned his head to Mason as they shuffled to the door, "Are we glad to see you!"

"Likewise to all of you," he replied warmly, "Quickly now!"

As they moved along, the survivors took keen note of Mason's unusual crossbow. It was bulky and barely fit into his hands, almost resembling a violin type instrument. There was tall wooden frame in which several arrows had been placed were a single arrow or bolt would normally be. At the rear was a wooden handle that they had seen him crank to quickly load another arrow as he had fired at the Masked Assassin, albeit without the accuracy of a regular crossbow.

With Flame at the back of the line, Mason along with Anton, Louie and the other two soldiers followed behind him as they quickly shut the tavern door. The other mole at arms quickly took over the wounded the young dragons had helped inside as they congregated around the civilians in the centre of the room. Spyro and his companions stood just apart from the rest of the group as he gazed about the interior. It was rather dark with the inside walls made up of grey cobblestones set in mortar. He had never been in an establishment built solely for moles as most places he had visited in Warfang were built to accommodate moles and dragons together. But all across the room was the series of small wooden tables and chairs while stretching out from the back right corner across most of the back wall was the very low counter and bar where food and drinks were served. Just to the left of the end of the bar was an open passageway leading to the storage room. To the right side of the tavern was a narrow staircase leading up to a second-floor balcony where more tables stood. It was unusual to see no dragon sized furniture or large doorways, but fortunately it was not inconvenience for a young dragon like himself. As the frightened civilians caught their breath and the mole at arms reorganized themselves, Ember set her eyes on Mason as he looked alertly through the narrow window to the street outside.

"It's lucky you arrived when you did, Professor," she said gladly, "We saw the Observatory on fire and didn't know if you were okay."

"Yes, well I was lucky," Mason replied bitterly as he moved back and forth across the windows, holding his unusual crossbow close to his chest.

"I think you got that Masked Assassin guy!" Flame remarked hopefully, "He's toast!"

"I'm not sure," Spyro shook his head doubtfully, "We couldn't see if he fell into the fire or not."

Cynder nodded grimly as Mason stepped away from the windows and began marching towards them. She took a step forward and said, "That's quite a weapon you've got there, Professor."

"Yes," he said as he held up his invention proudly, "A Repeating Crossbow, something else I've been working on. It's the only one there is. After the Observatory was hit, I quickly grabbed it on my way out; I'll not have those blasted apes get their hands on it! Shame about my other work though..."

"Well, good thing for us you did," said Louie gravely, "We could all use one of those about now."

"Perhaps one day," Mason replied lowly, a nearby explosion shaking dust from the ceiling and making the tables quiver, "Come on now! We have to keep moving!" he announced as he and the two spear wielding moles began striding past the group towards the back of the tavern.

"Go where?" asked Spyro curiously as all eyes watched the trio march purposefully ahead of them.

"There is no time to waste! Everyone follow!" Mason called sternly. Louie and Anton began ushering the mole civilians to follow before their comrades gathered the wounded to follow after. Spyro looked over to Cynder wonderingly as she merely shrugged her shoulders as Flame and Ember looked searchingly to each other.

"Well, unless you've got anymore crazy ideas, Spyro..." Cynder said wryly as she walked to follow the others.

"I hope not," he replied shortly as she passed him by. He beckoned Flame and Ember to follow as they walked closely together almost unconsciously so. Spyro looked back towards the door and windows of the tavern, scanning for any sign of the Assassin or any other dangers. As he walked backwards behind the others, he couldn't shake the trapped feeling that was creeping over him as the fires outside continued to crackle ominously as did the sounds of war all over the city. Grimacing with despair, he quickly turned about and ran to catch up to the others.

As Spyro entered the passage into the back room, he saw the others were gathered by the wall to the right of the rear of the tavern. All around him were barrels of Ale and Mead, along with boxes of produce and extra furniture. As he moved to join the others, he saw Mason standing by the wall and feeling his tiny hand across the large cobblestones. Cynder, Flame and Ember all looked over their shoulders as they heard his feet approaching, the rest of the moles beginning to murmur and complain about Mason's apparent lack of direction and knowledge.

"There's no back door through here!" cried one of the mole civilians, "I've been in this tavern enough times to know that!"

The seeming truth of this made Ember tilt her head curiously, "Wait a minute. Then how did you get here, Mason?"

Right at that second, Mason's hand stopped on one particular stone and he gave a push. There was a loud click like a key being turned in a lock, followed by a vibration in the wall. All the murmurs and complaints stopped as a section of the wall in front of the group began to move. A shape like a tall doorway formed as the cobblestones receded into the wall several inches, the vibration growing stronger as the section of the wall began to slowly descend into the floor, dank candlelight being exposed behind it.

"This is how, Miss Ember!" Mason replied brightly as the final section disappeared into the floor and behind the wall was a narrow passageway descending into a tunnel lit by rows of candles.

"Cool!" the four young dragons exclaimed simultaneously.

"Where does it lead?" asked Anton as he eyed the passage uneasily.

"Somewhere safer than here!" Mason replied swiftly, "Single file now. Everyone, come on!"

The mole civilians were allowed to go first, forming into a rough line and quickly filing down the passageway as the soldiers and dragons waited behind them. Spyro and his companions inched closer as the mole at arms began to carry themselves and the wounded through the hidden passage. From behind, Spyro could see the tunnel descended quite steeply with the space between the ceiling and walls only just enough for an adult dragon to squeeze through but was more than enough for the moles. As Anton and Louie followed behind the rest of their comrades, Spyro stepped aside and beckoned the others to follow through. Cynder gave him a slight nod and smile as she passed, Ember frowning with what he thought might have been jealousy as she walked by, followed by Flame. The red dragon was noticeably frightened, but he put on a brave smile for his purple friend, Spyro guessing he was telling himself that nothing could go terribly wrong so long as his friend the purple dragon was with him. He hoped Flame was right.

"You too, Master Spyro," Mason nodded as he stood next to the hidden passage. The purple dragon nodded slowly as he gave one last look over his shoulder before he tagged on the back of the line, stepping through into the passage. There was only a noticeably short run of level ground before the tunnel descended sharply, the high ceiling giving a misleading impression as Spyro saw the column ahead of him filling down through the dim light. He paused and looked behind as Mason stepped into the passage, the tunnel shuddering as the hidden door began to rise from the floor once again. The sight of it closing made him feel uneased, but Spyro had to trust that wherever the tunnel led there was another way out for them. As the door rose back and locked into place, the already dim light became dimmer still as Mason clutched his crossbow and sighed heavily.

"Come along now, there is no reason for us to stay here." Spyro nodded silently and stepped cautiously forward with Mason following behind him. By now the others had made some headway, leaving the purple dragon and the Professor alone as they walked together through the tunnel. Passing by one of the candles on the wall, Spyro gazed at the indentations in the rock made by the countless strikes by picks that had dug out the tunnel years ago. Another muffled explosion from somewhere outside made the ground shudder, shaking loose dirt and tiny specks of rock from ceiling. Just ahead, Spyro gazed at the steep decline of carved steps heading down, feeling out precariously with his front paw as he struggled to see the first step in the dim light. The high ceiling helped with the claustrophobia but didn't sooth the feeling of being trapped.

"How long have these tunnels been here?" he asked as he walked carefully down the steps, his eyes drifting about the mined interior.

"Some have been here since the city was founded," replied Mason as he shuffled along behind him, "Others have been added overtime, like this one in fact. It was carved out after the last war."

"Where does it lead?" asked Spyro as they neared the end of the decent.

"It will bring us to an underground shelter where we can catch our breath and decide what to do next," Mason said as they reached the bottom of the decline. The tunnel now levelled out and continued onwards, Spyro seeing Cynder, Flame and Ember waiting up ahead for them, barely visible in the little light there was.

"By the way," Mason remarked curiously, "What is that around your neck?" The mere mention of the necklace caused the young dragon pain, which he was struggling to keep suppressed without the healing crystal that it had once held.

"It had a crystal in it, but not anymore," Spyro replied moodily, his tone enough to ward of anymore questions from the Professor. He steadied his breathing as he approached his companions, not wanting to look poorly for them.

"Something wrong?" asked Spyro tensely as he strode up to them.

"No, just waiting for you," the black dragoness replied simply. Spyro gave a faint, appreciative nod and smile as they caught up to them. Just behind his companions the tunnel took a right-hand curve before straightening out again, the intermittent flickering candles almost giving the impression of numerous black voids in between them that they could step off into any moment. As they moved on, Spyro stretched his wing out to lightly brush the wall at one point to reassure himself there was no hidden passages or holes in the dark that anything could pounce out at them from.

The murmuring and rustling feet of the moles ahead of them vibrated down the tunnel as they went on, more muffled explosions shaking the tunnel. Down below they sounded like giant footsteps, and they were the tiny ants scurrying about below the surface hoping they were safe. Despite what they had seen so far, Spyro could only imagine that what was happening across the whole city was far worse. He wondered where Ignitus and the Guardians were, wondered if they were even still alive. He wondered if Remy and his crew had found somewhere safe to go. His heart pained at the thought of what may be, but he pressed it down as hard as he could, deep inside himself, deeper than the tunnel they were navigating through now.

"What are we going to do, guys?" Flame asked nervously, "What if the apes get down here?"

"Just stay positive," Ember told him gently, "As long as we stay together, we'll be fine."

"Stay with Spyro you mean," the red dragon said cynically. Ember's eyes widened at his harsh tone, something he rarely took with anyone, much less his secret crush. Spyro exchanged a glance with Cynder, her emerald eyes near glowing in the low light, but they both said nothing.

For the next several minutes or so, they shuffled through the tunnel a distance behind the main group of moles as they moved as quickly as the wounded allowed them. The dank lighting didn't improve the longer they went on, in some places the candles had burnt out or fallen, casting thick black shadows ahead that only added to the fearful imaginations of the young dragons about what or who lay unseen in the darkness. The tunnel winded through the earth, every so often a long straight would be ended by a sharp left or tight turn, usually bringing them to another long stretch. They passed by no other doors or passages along the way, the linear path giving the illusion of being an endless loop. There was little incentive for any of them to speak, the four who lived and the Professor walking close together as the only other sound in the tunnel was the feet of the other group and their worried murmurs echoing down the passage to them. A quick succession of explosions above ground rocked the tunnel, Spyro looking up at the ceiling apprehensively as more flakes of debris and dust showered upon them.

"Not too far now," added Mason confidently, wiping the dust off his spectacles. The tunnel made a slight left hand turn up ahead that the moles were already disappearing out of view around the corner. Spyro found himself walking faster to catch up, the others following in his example. As they reached the corner, he peered ahead and saw the moles were clogged up against a tall wooden door some way further on, shouting and demanding to be let in.

"Please, everyone keep calm!" shouted one of the mole at arms above them.

"Let us in!" cried someone.

"Come on, we are stuck here!" yelled someone else. As Spyro and the rest caught up to them, suddenly the door began to creep inwards, the first thing they all saw was the stony face of a large Fire dragon, flanked by a Ice and Lightning dragon and assorted mole at arms with weapons ready.

"Stand down! Let them in!" ordered the Fire dragon, the mole soldiers lowering their weapons as the crowd began to funnel through the door.

"We have wounded, and the purple dragon is here with us!" called Louie from the back of the crowd. Spyro lifted his head as he was mentioned, the three dragon warriors all stared over the crowd towards him as he looked back meekly.

"It is him!" the Fire dragon exclaimed heartily, "Everyone move along, quickly!" he said, trying to move the crowd of moles along. Spyro clamped his teeth together behind his tightened lips, feeling his shoulders suddenly becoming heavier as he feared what they might expect of him.

Passing through the doorway, the three dragon warriors and the mole soldiers on guard stepped aside as the four young dragons and Mason stepped through into a wide chamber. The four who lived could not help but stare in awe at the size of the chamber, all carved out by hand and by claw just like the tunnel. At a glance the chamber was carved in a rectangular shape at least a few hundred feet in width with the ceiling about fifty feet high. Spaced evenly across the chamber were eight rectangular pillars mined out as supports for the ceiling, each one holding burning torches on each side. There was nothing else elaborate about the room other than the sheer effort involved to mine it all out with no decorative floor tiles or any of the hallmarks of the buildings above ground. Straight across from them the group was another door like what they had passed, which he assumed led back towards the surface. There were candlelit chandeliers hanging from the ceiling and numerous torches along the walls, all of which only served to highlight the despair all around them.

Spyro gasped at the sight around him, for even this great space was crowded with wounded mole and dragon soldiers, as well as mole and dragon civilians. Everywhere he looked there were physicians and nurses doing what they could for the overcrowded masses of people who all needed help. There had to be over a hundred people crowded into this one space, even more now with the wounded they had just arrived with. There were so many bloodied bandages and cries of pain that Spyro found himself frozen, unable to move as the despair washed over him.

"It's him!" said a child's voice, Spyro's attention being drawn to a tiny mole pup ahead to his left who had just leapt to his feet while sitting with his friends. After a moment, he recognized them as the group of children he had entertained on the street a few days ago, minus their toy swords and shields.

"Its him! That's Spyro!" said another of the pups as they all leapt up, soon the whole room was looking in his direction, even those whose eyes were covered by bandages.

"Really? You'd better not be joking!" said one such wounded mole, grasping blindly for his cane as he helplessly turned and bumped his nose into the side of a dragon whose face and neck was covered with scars, earning an angry growl from him.

"We're saved! We can't be beat now!" cheered a voice as the chamber was soon filled with a chorus of cheers and hopeful cries, Spyro turning his head to the right to avoid most of the pleading eyes that were all centered on him. Mason suddenly stepped into view and tapped him on the shoulder,

"You'd all best come with me," he said sombrely and beckoned them to follow. Spyro looked over at his companions with a blunt shrug and followed behind the Professor as he took them through the chamber. The mole refugees began to crowd closer to them as they walked, their faces lighting up at the sight of the purple dragon in their presence. Spyro tried to avoid looking them in the eyes, but it became impossible as more and more of them congregated around the dragon who was going to save them.

"Please, make way!" Mason cried as he pushed between the shoulders of his fellow moles as the four who lived tried to keep up with him. Looking down through the crowd across the chamber, Spyro saw a an open archway down the far end leading to another room. He would likely have thought nothing more of it, if at that moment a wailing cry of anguish hadn't come from it and shredded his ears.

He came to a halt, his friends nearly bumping into him as the purple dragon watched as a female mole, wailing and in tears, was slowly walked out of the room by whom he presumed was her husband. He was holding his arm over her shoulder, trying to hold back tears himself as they wandered slowly from the far room. Her cries were as clear to him as if they were coming from right beside him, Spyro not hearing the voices of his friends asking if he was alright.

"Spyro, what wrong?" asked Cynder with increasing concern. The purple dragon found his view morphing into a macabre tunnel vision as he stared past the numerous faces in front of him towards the room at the end of the chamber, making out what looked like rows of white bedsheets packed closely together. Mason suddenly appeared in the right corner of his eyes, but he paid no attention to him.

"Master Spyro?" Mason asked a tad irritably, though Spyro never heard him, "We need to stay together. It is imperative that we..."

The Professor was cut off as the purple dragon pushed by him abruptly, marching briskly towards the room at the end of the chamber. He didn't hear any of his friends pleading to know what he was doing or the Professor's surprised indignation at his sudden rudeness. Moles and dragons in his path all stepped towards him to offer their support and praise, but Spyro heard none of it, pushing by them angrily as the agonized cries of the grieving mole woman became trapped in his ears, sending shivers down his spine. He couldn't understand why no one else was hearing it like he was.

"Spyro, wait up!" the voice of Flame finally broke the cycle of wailing in his ears, but still he strode on until he was finally standing just outside the archway, the room with the white sheets right in front of him. Only it was not just sheets. And some of them were stained red.

Cynder, Flame and Ember all stepped up beside him, but he barely noticed them as he stared through the archway into the room whose true horror he had only just realized. His mouth fell open in disbelief, his amethyst eyes beginning to glisten with desolation. Through the archway was another chamber of equal size, but one of which contained barely a living soul, even though it was far from empty. Stacked in several orderly double rows the full length of chamber were bodies, mole and dragon, each one covered by the white sheets. To Spyro's left side were the smaller bodies of the deceased moles while to the right were those of deceased dragons, the much larger victims covered in great white blankets. Close to them on the left, two mole nurses solemnly pulled another white sheet overtop of a small body that had just been removed from a stretcher and placed on the cold ground. The sheet was tucked around the body which was far too small for the sheet they used, the sickening profile it left being unmistakably that of a child.

A lump filled Spyro's throat as he realised it had been the parents he had seen and heard grieving for their loss. Tepidly and against his better judgement, he stepped into the chamber, wordlessly gazing across the expanse of death. The two nurses saw him and seemed poised to say something, but one look at him convinced them to remain silent.

Cynder, Flame and Ember were equally as distraught at the sight, but they each channelled their despair in their own ways. After some hesitation, Cynder stepped forward and began to slowly walk after Spyro. Flame and Ember both stood outside the room, unsure whether to follow. The red fire dragon looked across to the pink dragoness as she stared mournfully ahead at the rows of the dead. He watched her eyes flicker as she sniffled, turning herself away to the left, unable to enter or watch. Flame gasped and moved hurriedly to her side as she sat on her haunches and curled her tail around herself. He stood next to her, peering at her closely with wide eyes as she sobbed, a piece of his heart breaking away with every tear he saw streak down her cheeks.

Unsure if he was welcome in her presence at that moment, he slowly sat down to her left, crossing his front paws over, unsure if he should do anything as much as he might have wanted to. As if sensing his uncertainty, Ember suddenly swung her head around, pressing her forehead into his shoulder, causing him to gasp again. She turned her body towards him and pressed her head firmly against him, sobbing into his shoulder as he sat in an almost petrified state. An onlooker may have found it humorous were it not for the despair of the whole situation.

At that moment, Cynder was following behind Spyro as he stepped slowly through the rows of covered bodies, his head turning from side to side despondently. The lips of the black dragoness were pulled tightly into a firm line as she eyes panned slowly at the sea of white and red all around her. Although her poignant expression didn't show it, there was a raging anger burning in her chest that made her want to scream for the blood of those responsible for all she was seeing. Spyro paused ahead of her, Cynder coming to a stop behind him as the purple dragon stopped in the center of the chamber. He felt a terrible weight fill his body like choking smoke filling his lungs. In his fragile state, he could only imagine it was the souls of the dead filling his heart and asking one question of him and the whole world; why? Why did they have to die? What had they done to deserve their fate?

"More suffering… more death…" Spyro whispered to himself fragilely, feeling his eyes beginning to drip, "Is all this because of me?"

Behind him, Cynder heard him whisper something but could not hear what it was, though it was obvious that Spyro was heavily distressed. She drew a breath and made to step towards him when one of the sheets to her right suddenly drew her attention. They were mostly larger sheets to cover the bodies of adult dragons, but this on stood out to her as it was covering the body of someone much smaller, someone her own size. The realization that someone her own age was among the victims sent a painful jab to her heart, but she couldn't look away as she morbidly examined the profile covered by the sheet. As she looked closer, she saw the tip of a claw just sticking out from beneath the sheet. Perhaps that was invitation that she needed or perhaps Cynder may never have taken the step that day. Fighting against how wrong it felt with her stubborn curiosity, the black dragoness with her shaking right paw carefully gripped the edge of the sheet and lifted it. Her emerald eyes looked as though they might pop from their sockets as they fell upon an aqua blue dragoness not wholly dissimilar to herself.

Spyro heard a cry of shock behind him that he reacted to without thinking. Even with tears muddying his vision, he spun around and saw Cynder recoiling hurriedly from one of the bodies laying on the ground. He rushed over to her as she nearly fell over backwards, sitting frozen in fear, looking as if she had seen a ghost.

"Cynder, what's wrong?" he asked quickly, his mind a whirlwind of emotions for himself and for her. She was panting like she had just run for her life, the purple dragon moving close to her as she continued to stare ahead towards the line of bodies. He looked where she was, seeing the sheet of one of the bodies partially pulled way, seeing a pair of blue paws ghoulishly reaching out from it. He looked back at her curiously, asking hesitantly, "Cynder, did you…"

"It was Glacious…" she said weakly, her voice cracking in disbelief, "She's dead, Spyro. She didn't deserve that."

"Glacious?" he repeated in shock, looking back at the body. He had seen the smaller outline among the larger covered bodies in the row, but he had deliberately not given it too much attention, not wanting to think of who it might have been. But alas that question he did not want an answer for had just been revealed. Glacious had been no friend to them, but their resentment did no go so far as to wish any harm to her, let alone death. Cynder's eyes closed tightly as she dipped her head and began to sob. Spyro reacted by moving so that he was touching shoulders with her, his first instinct being to comfort her even as he struggled to contain his own emotions. She swung her head around and pressed her forehead under his chin, Spyro gulping as he sucked in a hoarse breath in an effort to compose himself. He lifted his left paw and brushed it over the edge of his eyes, clearing away the tears be had begun to shed. The chamber rumbled to the impact of more explosions above ground, Spyro instinctively looking at the high ceiling and wondering how many more lives had just been taken by those blasts.

Cynder turned her eyes back towards the body of Glacious, the sight immediately provoking another anguished cry from her. Spyro was taken by surprise as she pulled her head from under his chin and pulled him into an embrace, pulling her chin around the back of his neck and holding him tightly. His heart mellowed in spite of the pain that was weighing it down, the purple dragon clenching his claws tightly as he reassuringly rubbed the side of his snout against her neck.

"She wasn't my friend, but I never wanted anything like this to happen. She didn't deserve that, Spyro," she whimpered softly.

"None of them did, Cynder," he replied forlornly, casting his eyes across the countless white sheets that filled the room. The black dragoness moved her paws forward and clenched them atop those of Spyro, who's only reaction was to drag his eyes back and forth along the length of her body as she held him for comfort.

"How are we ever going to make this right?" she asked him meekly. Spyro grinded his teeth together behind his lips as the question made his wings feel as if they were made of stone. He looked behind her towards the doorway, seeing Mason standing there with Flame and Ember to his side. The other half of the four who lived were in a state much like their own, the red Fire dragon draping his wing over the pink Ice dragoness, both with their backs turned to them as Flame made an effort to console her. Spyro felt pity for Flame, knowing how he truly felt about Ember and knowing she would likely not read into his actions as being anything more than that of a friend. Not that it was the most important thing right now.

Spyro lightly tugged on Cynder, the dragoness allowing him to be free as he slowly pulled out of the embrace.

"The first step is to make sure we don't join them," he told her firmly, scowling purposefully as he drew a deep breath. Cynder sniffled before she lifted her head and let her face harden. She locked eyes with him and gave him a slow but firm nod of conviction. With a tear still forming in her eye, she turned and strode over towards the body of Glacious. Spyro watched her as she stood over the body of the dragoness she had no reason to mourn for, who's bullying had ostracized and reduced her at times to a lonely, angry dragoness with an at times hot-headed need to prove herself to others. Cynder sat down, grasped the sheet in her front paws, and pulled it across so that her former enemy was fully covered and dignified, even in death. Then she turned around and strode back over to him, finally wiping the tear away as she composed herself.

"Are you okay?" he asked her gently.

"I'm fine," she replied solemnly but with an air of restrained optimism that they would, as she had asked him, make it right, "I'm fine."

Spyro nodded slowly, but really, he was assuring to himself something that had come to mind as he watched her mourn. Something that he knew was needed to protect her and the others from having the same fate. Something he needed to do, no matter how dangerous it was.

"Then let's go," he declared with a soft but firm voice. Keeping his eyes forward, not taking another glance at the dead laying around them, Spyro walked with Cynder back towards the others. Mason had a sullen look on his face as they approached him, the Professor holding his experimental crossbow low beside him. Spyro looked over to Flame as he turned his head and saw him, nudging Ember who hastily breathed deep and wiped off her eyes.

"I'm sorry," said Mason heavily, "I'd hoped to spare you all that."

"Don't be," Spyro replied in a numb voice, "It puts it all in perspective now."

Mason nodded grimly, wiping his nose thoughtfully, "I'm afraid, my friends, that there will be a great deal more of that before this is all over."

"This is the worst day of my life EVER!" Flame cried despondently, his eyes wide and intense, "Everything has gone so wrong!"

"Steady, pal," Spyro said carefully to him, "Its not over yet. We still have to get to the temple and meet up with Ignitus."

"Get to the temple?" asked Mason incredulously, "The whole city is under siege! Even if you could make it, you'd have half of Gaul's army on your tail!"

"It's what Ignitus wanted," Cynder added fiercely, her voice still shaky from her emotional event moments before, "He told us if anything happened that's where we needed to go. He said he would meet us there."

The Professor sighed irritably, "That may be true, Miss Cynder, but I'm sorry to say we have no idea what has happened to the Guardians. The last we know is that they were at Castle Hill, but we've had no word from there since the attack began. I fear the worst for them. It may be better that you stay here, now."

"No!" Ember suddenly declared sternly, catching everyone by surprise. Spyro, Cynder, Flame and Mason all looked to the pink dragoness as she stepped forward in the middle of the group. Her eyes were still shimmering from sadness, but a firm scowl creased her usually cheery face as she looked at their faces harshly.

"We are not going to stay here and die, or worse hide when we are still able to fight," she said before turning her attention firmly to Mason, "Even if the worst has happened, Ignitus wanted us clear of the city. If we have to fight every step of the way, then we'll do it! We owe him this, especially if it is his last request."

"Uh, Ember?" Flame asked nervously, "You remember that we lost our powers, right?"

"So?" she snapped her head around to him harshly, "That isn't stopping the other dragons out there!"

"Take it easy," Spyro interjected calmly, "We need to keep our heads on straight if we're going to get through this. Mason, you said there are tunnels like this all over the city. Are there any that could take us outside the city towards the sea? We'd stand a better chance getting away unnoticed if there are."

The Professor's face was burdened with worry, the mole looking down at his feet as he grudgingly gave an answer, knowing his objections would be swiftly cast aside,

"There is a tunnel I know of that leads under the southern wall to the beach outside Warfang. But even if you make it there, I doubt you'll be able to slip across the ocean without being noticed."

"We'll take that chance," Spyro declared quickly, "Can you show us?"

Mason shook his head as he groaned in indignation at himself for not doing more to try and convince them to stay, but at the same time knowing the extra effort would be for naught. He looked behind him through the crowd of wounded and refugees to where the mole at arms they had saved were gathered. The able bodied were forming up in preparation to return to battle, among them being Anton and Louie. He turned back to them and said,

"They'll be heading out shortly. If you want to have a chance at making it, you should be leaving with them. Follow me!" he told them as he picked up his crossbow and began walking towards the soldiers, the four young dragons taking off after him. They made their way across the chamber to where the mole at arms were preparing weapons and fastening their armor and helmets. At the front of the group was Louie, who as before was taking upon the role of leader in the absence of any higher ranking moles.

"Alright boys, lets form up and get ready to move out! There is still plenty of war going on outside!" he announced with dry, cynical humor.

"Hold up!" called Mason as he led the young dragons to him, "We shall be tagging along! We must get these young dragons out of the city, by order of Ignitus the Fire Guardian."

Spyro watched as Louie stepped away from the ranks of soldiers and marched up to the Professor with a questioning glare, "Just a moment, what do you mean?"

"There is another tunnel that can be used to escape the city near the southern wall. It is imperative we get these four out of Warfang. They are due to rendezvous at the Dragon temple," Mason explained. Louie looked at the faces of the four young dragons and then to Anton standing just bend him before answering Mason with,

"We are all grateful to how these young dragons helped us and to you of course, Professor. But we have our own orders and, with all due respect, you are retired from the army now…"

"We don't mean to interfere with your orders," Spyro said sincerely, "We just want to know if you can help us. If not, we'll be on our way. We don't want to impose."

Louie scratched his head as he looked into the hopeful eyes of the four youngsters, a smile appearing as he shrugged his shoulders helplessly,

"Well, how ungrateful would I be if I didn't help you after you saved our lives? Very well, we'll help you, won't we boys?" he asked over his shoulder to the assembled mole at arms.

"On our honor!" one of them replied stoutly.

"We would be happy to help after what you four did for us!" another declared cheerily. The others offered similar remarks of affirmation, Spyro and Cynder, Flame and Ember all nodding to them thankfully.

"We are very grateful," Cynder said earnestly. Spyro found himself unable to say anything, putting on a numb smile as he eyed them all, anxiety riddling his insides. Though he was indeed grateful for their help, he was also disturbed by the possibility that their assistance may cost their lives, more lives lost to the promise of what he the purple dragon was to become and accomplish. Before he could linger in it any longer, Mason stepped up beside Louie and slapped him comradely on the arm,

"Is this old timer included in that?" he asked with a grin.

Anton answered first, "Well, you're the only one who knows where the tunnel is," he said uneasily.

"Well then, we'd best get moving," Mason announced as he turned back to the young dragons, "Come along then, you four. We've no time to waste!"

Spyro and the others all nodded and quickly fell in behind the moles as Louie and Anton returned to the front of the group and they began marching towards the other great door. Guarding it was another group of mole at arms and a pair dragon warriors who pulled the great door open as they approached. Spyro felt a cold shudder wash over him like a freezing gale as they prepared to leave the relative safety of the chamber. He looked behind him to Cynder, Flame and Ember, who all returned his gaze with hopeful eyes and brave faces. He envied their confidence, especially with what he had decided he needed to do to ensure that he did get them out of Warfang safely. He also knew that they would not like it, but believed to was the right choice.

'Another crazy idea,' he thought glumly.

The two dragon warriors stood by each side of the door, the left one a muscular, light brown Earth dragon with cream-coloured wings, underbelly and horns. The second was a fit but regal Ice Dragoness, her scales a dark aqua blue with green horns, wings and underbelly.

"Stay alert out there!" advised the Earth dragon as Louie and his comrades passed him by.

"Keep your eyes open and give em' what for!" one of the mole guards said with a stern wave of his fist.

"Good luck, all of you!" the Ice dragoness said in a resolute voice. Inevitably, all eyes settled onto Spyro as he led his three companions to the door, the whole room watching intently as they knew that they had nothing to fear with the purple dragon on their side. Some of the refugees called out and cheered as Spyro finally passed thought the doorway, wishing the group in front would move faster so he could get away from the hope that they were all counting on he would deliver for them. He wondered what they would think if they knew that his ultimate goal was escape, not to take on the entire Ape army alone and drive them from the city. He knew he couldn't do that as much as he wished he could. Is that what they really expected of him? Would they think him a coward if he'd told them he couldn't?

Spyro breathed a sigh of relief as the doors shut behind him, no longer feeling the dozens of eyes burrowing through his scales. He paused as he and the others found themselves standing in another chamber like what they had left, but noticeably smaller and filled with more soldiers and boxes of supplies and weapons. Across the other side over the heads of the mole soldiers was another tunnel like they had gone through before, the light showing part of a flight of stairs heading upwards. The four who lived blinked twice as a sparkling array of colors stood out among the brown wooden boxes and crates that surrounded them. The lively, magical colors of gems.

"Guys, look!" Spyro exclaimed excitedly at the sight of the shimmering stones inside heavy sacks and from insides crates and carts, or just scattered loosely about the other supplies, all beautifully intact. Just to the left of them near the wall were two carts loaded with clumps of green Spirit Gems, whilst the rest all around the room were various types of infused gems such as Fire gems fir lighting and warmth and Ice gems for preserving food among other uses. Mason turned back to them as they stood mesmerized by what they thought had all been destroyed.

"Your four had best gather your strength before we head above ground," he said as he pointed his thumb towards the green Spirit gems by the wall. Flame darted across to them as though they were candy with the others quickly following him behind. Flame stood on his hind legs and pressed his front paws into the cluster to the left, Ember soon joining him as Spyro waited for Cynder to join him before he too stood on two feet.

"We thought these had all been destroyed," Cynder remarked crisply as she stood up and grinned to the purple dragon with relief. In spite of how uneasy he felt inside, Spyro returned the gesture as he beckoned her to go first.

"Fortunately for us, our underground stores were untouched by that green blast that swept the city," Mason explained gravely, "Unfortunately, we are having a hard time getting to them for us to use. We've no idea about the other caches across the city. Most of what was here has already been taken above."

"Then we'd better make this count," Spyro said grimly, standing on his back feet and pressing his paws to the Spirit gems. They glowed as expected, the purple dragon sucking in a deep breath on reflex as he felt the surge of energy coarse through his body like a bolt of lightning. His eyes shot open as his aches and pains became inflamed, causing him to let out a yelp of pain and dropped back down on his haunches.

"Spyro!" Cynder cried in distress as she, Ember, Flame and Mason rushed over to him as he growled and grimaced in pain.

"You okay, buddy?" asked the red dragon frightfully. Spyro nodded with some great exertion as he waved his paw reassuringly to him,

"I'm okay."

Mason put his crossbow down and cautiously touched Spyro's shoulder, his fingers lightly tugging on the leather strap around the young dragon's neck as he took a closer look.

"It was a healing necklace, wasn't it?" the mole asked as he picked up the ring that had held it, "I'm sorry to say we have nothing here to replace it with…"

"Never mind," Spyro remarked coldly as he pulled away from Mason, "I wouldn't take one anyway. You've got a whole lot of people in their who could use it instead. Now let's go!" he said crossly as he made to follow the column of moles as they shuffled into the tunnel. He looked right past Cynder as she made to speak to him, which only put more pain to his heart, but he knew what was to happen soon and expected there would be more pain to follow. Watching him go, Cynder cocked her head as she saw something in his eyes that told her he was deeply entrenched in whatever was on his mind. She'd seen it before, usually when Spyro was about to do something outlandish, like going to the Mountain of Malefor on his own to rescue Meadow. Of course, he hadn't been talked out of it, only convinced to let them go with him. But she feared that he would insist on carrying out whatever it was without them.

"He's about to have another crazy idea," she said uneasily, Flame and Ember both peering at her curiously.

"Crazier than what?" Flame asked worriedly.

"Well, we aren't going to find out back here!" the black dragoness said with cynical humor, "Come on!" she said as Cynder took off running after Spyro.

"Hey, wait up!" Ember cried as she shoved past Flame to catch up, leaving the red dragon in a state of panic as he rushed to follow. Mason was caught off guard by their sudden exuberance and scrambled to pick up his crossbow as he heaved it over his shoulder and began scampering after them as fast as his short legs would allow.

"Why do they treat danger like it's a game?" the Professor grumbled as he reached the bottom of the stairs, shaking his head with a sigh as began to climb the steps.

"These four will either end up saving us, or burying us!"

End of Chapter 16

Next Chapter: Pyrrhic Victory

(The opening words of this chapter are inspired by the lyrics of the Sabaton Song "Hearts of Iron")