The Realms of Chaos

Chapter 4: Complications

Rating:...Any suggestions? :p

Notes: Yep, this will probably end up to be my longest story yet! (I thought Concealment of Evil would take that title, but it only has seven chapters..) I'm also going to thank my fans for sticking by my side through thick and thin and supporting this little Spyro story I'm creating. Give yourself a pat on the back for making it this far! ^_~

Disclaimer: If you think that a fanfiction writer would own Spyro, then you need to get off this website and seek some help quick! I want to own Spyro, but then I wouldn't know what to do with him...

~*~*~~*~*~~*~*~

The troublesome trio walked down the hallways of the Mist Ruins, their spirits lifted from the receival of the Gigas Crystal. Snowflake, being the only one who could carry it, held it in her hands like she was caressing Avalar's life force in her hands. Spyro trotted happily beside her, for one less Gigas Crystal to find meant that he would see Elora sooner then he realized. Ripto stomped moodily on Snowflake's other side, his scepter held reluctantly in his hand in knowledge of the damage it was probably causing to him right now.

"I wonder what Grunge meant when he called you a mage, Snowflake?" Spyro asked suddenly, his voice shattering the eerie silence. Snowflake shrugged indifferently as she continued on walking.

"I dunno if I'm really a mage at all. I just got lucky that time. There's no magic to guessing what happened to a destroyed civilization..." Snowflake spoke her mind, although deep down she really didn't believe her words. She knew her mother was just a sea bound traveler of Tylia that traded fish and rare shells for profit, but as for her father...

"Two down, four to go. After that, I'll have these accursed things out of my life for good..." Snowflake heard Ripto mutter to her side. He was the only one who wasn't happy with the outcome in the Mist Ruins' gardens. She felt a small pang of pity for the troubled wizard, and then offered her advice. "You know, if you want I can take that Gigas Crystal out of your hands if it's bugging you. After all, Grunge said that the Gigas Crystals' radiation couldn't affect me."

Ripto turned his head and gazed into her eyes. "You know, you're too nice. I hate that in a dragon. Besides, if I gave you my scepter, I would be left helpless!" Snowflake agreed that Ripto had a good point and resumed walking. However, she now had another thing to worry about in the scheme of things; the Red Gigas Crystal and its effect on Ripto. 'He'll be fine. It's not like he's new to this whole "magic" thing like you are.' A nagging voice reassured her inside her head.

The rest of the trip through the Mist Ruins, they walked in silence. It wasn't long until they were in the Mist Ruins' courtyard; the place where they last left Nazza. Nazza was standing by the ancient fountain, a bored look etched on his face. When he noticed the three of them come out of the ruins; he bounded up to them in an ecstatic manner.

"Hello there, my friends! Did you receive the Green Gigas Crystal from the ruins?" Nazza asked. Snowflake smiled and wordlessly held out the crystal in front of Nazza's muzzle. Nazza gazed at it, entranced by the magic power flowing through the jewel. 'So, this is what Changeling's been looking for all these months. I can see why.' Nazza thought to himself.

"Neat crystal!" Nazza exclaimed as he gazed at the crystal. He then shifted his gaze to Snowflake and asked, "Can I see it for a moment?" Something flashed in Nazza's eyes as he asked that question, a new dark emotion that sent a chill down Snowflake's spine. She flinched under Nazza's cold look, but she figured that since the wolf couldn't touch the Green Gigas Crystal anyway, it wouldn't do any harm for him to look at it. She set the jewel down into the dirt for Nazza to look at it.

"Thank you very much, dragon. Changeling will be very pleased." The words took a while to register into their heads. By the time they did, Nazza was leaning against the dead fountain and was holding the Gigas Crystal in his right palm. "Nazza! I wouldn't touch that if I were you. It's full of nasty radiation! If you hold it for too long, you'll mutate into something hideous!" Spyro called out. Nazza paid no visible heed to his outburst as he held the crystal in his hand. He grinned at them.

"No, that won't happen to me. The Green Gigas Crystal's radiation can be shielded with the proper tools, like this glove I'm wearing!" Suddenly, it hit them. Nazza's right paw was a different shade of blue from the other three, and it was kind of easy to tell that his right paw was covered by a blue fuzzy glove. Snowflake cursed herself for not seeing that before. Spyro just watched his friend, reluctant to try hurting him. On the other hand, Ripto was gladly looking for the right time to fry Nazza into a blackened wolf crisp.

"I wouldn't do that, short-stuff! I have lizardmen, and I'm not afraid to use them!" Nazza whistled a shrill note in the direction of some rainforest shrubbery, and instantly Wart bounded out of the underbrush with the two lizardmen behind him. The two lizardmen standing behind Wart were bright green raptor-like lizards with large colorful frills behind their heads and camouflaged battle armor covering their bodies. They stood twice as tall as Snowflake, and their claws were about as long as one of Spyro's spiral horns. Their rancid breath was enough to make Snowflake's eyes water. Nazza gave them a parting smile and handed the jewel to Wart, who quickly placed it into a knapsack hanging around his bumpy neck. Wart looked towards the creatures and gave them a hand signal, which beckoned them closer towards their prey.

"If you even think about getting this jewel from us, these lizardmen will rip you limb from limb!" Wart called out rather pathetically. Nazza winced visibly at the lame comeback, but he continued to stand confidently near the mutated dragon as he watched his former companions' angry expressions. The two agents of Changeling stood behind the two lizardmen, eager to watch the towering monsters tear through them.

Instantly, Spyro's mind began to work. "We're going after those creeps! We'll get rid of the lizardmen later, but we have to get the crystal back!" Spyro shouted to his friends. Snowflake gave him a nod and the two dragons rushed towards Wart and Nazza, their rage taking control over their movement. As they avoided the two lizardmen, Ripto covered their backs by distracting the slow reptiles. Before Wart and Nazza could realize what was happening, Snowflake and Spyro tackled them in a rush of scales and claws.

"Ack! Hey, you weren't supposed to do that!" Wart squeaked as he struggled to release himself from Snowflake's death lock. He heard an angry yelp beside him, and he could easily guess that Spyro was torturing Nazza in the same way. Snowflake had his back pressed to the muddy ground, crushing his fragile wings underneath his own weight. Snowflake gave the ugly little dragon a smug grin and pulled the Green Gigas Crystal out of his knapsack. With a parting sarcastic"Thank-You" from Snowflake, she ran to help Ripto with the lizardmen problem.

When Snowflake joined the melee, Ripto had the lizardmen out-matched. Their green bodies were covered in burns and smoke was still billowing from their newest wounds. They panted heavily and both looked like they were about to collapse. As for Ripto, he only had a few minor scratches that could be easily healed later. Sensing no threat, Snowflake let her guard down momentarily, which led to her downfall...

"Get the maiden! She has the crystal!" Wart shouted to the lizardmen hoarsely. The two monsters instantly listened to their master and bounded after Snowflake, their pain forgotten. Snowflake was taken completely by surprise, and the two lizardmen latched their sharp teeth onto her body. The dragon screamed in pain as one lizardman twisted her right wing until the bones snapped, while the other monster tried to tear her left leg out of its socket.

What happened next took everyone by surprise. Just when Snowflake thought that she was going to lose her right wing, the two lizardmen instantly burst into flames. Snowflake fell painfully to the ground, where she could see the lizards run around and try to put out the white flames that have consumed their scaly bodies. They gave a violent screech and then fell to the ground, where they shuddered and fell limp. Wart's mottled green and yellow skin turned into a sick shade of gray at the sight of his dead lizardmen and he ran away from the Mist Ruins screaming like a loon. Spyro then bounded out of the underbrush, his body covered in scratches and bite marks and his strength failing him. Snowflake tried hard to rise from the ground, but her left leg hurt like hell. She bit her lip and desperately raised into a sitting position.

"W-What happened?" Snowflake asked, her voice cracking from the pain coursing through her body. Spyro pointed in Ripto's direction, using his tail as the pointer. The short wizard looked exhausted and was using his scepter as a crutch, but Snowflake could see the Red Gigas Crystal glowing brightly through his fingers. It didn't take long to figure out what happened.

"It was the freakiest thing I have ever seen. I was making a truce with Nazza when suddenly the whole sky flashed a bright orange. Nazza and I watched as Ripto summoned a large whirlwind of fire that consumed the lizardmen in a shower of flames. I could feel the heat of the spell, and its unbelievable that you were unharmed..." Spyro explained.

"What about Nazza? Did you teach that colorful canine whose boss?" Ripto asked. Spyro smiled. "We found out that we're pretty much equal in terms of physical combat. After about five minutes of hopeless wrestling, Nazza explained that he isn't really on Changeling's side. He just wants the Gigas Crystals to free the Psychotix from Changeling, sort of a hostage deal there. So, we settled a truce and that's when you-"

Snowflake didn't hear the rest of Spyro's speech, for her two broken limbs proved to be too much for her body to handle. She soon fell into a state of unconsciousness, the Green Gigas Crystal still clutched in her hand...

~*~*~~*~*~~*~*~

"Whoa, that Ripto can kill two Tyrusian Lizardmen in one shot! Can you believe that?"

The two agents of Changeling were resting in the jungle, licking their wounds and thinking up of a good excuse for Changeling when they return empty-handed and Lizardmen-less. It was thirty minutes after they had run away from the Mist Ruins, their secret weapons dead and their exhaustion taking control. They found a nice spot near a churning river as they rested in the noon sun. They mindlessly chewed on their lunch, a pitiful raw fish meal. Wart was checking his wings for any broken bones, and Nazza was tying bandages around his paws where Spyro had lightly scorched them.

"I know, but I think that Changeling isn't going to miss two lizardmen, right?" Nazza concluded. He finished his fish in two bites, and Wart wondered how the wolf could eat so fast. The mutated dragon gave his wings another flap to make sure nothing was broken. He sighed and poked at his food. "You don't know how Changeling acts whenever you do something wrong, especially when you're her Lab Pet..."

Nazza stopped twisting his bandage at the sound of Wart's words. "So that's why you look like something that a cow threw up!" Wart glared at him fiercely with his greenish-yellow eyes. Nazza quickly changed the subject. "Elaborate, we don't have to rush to Changeling so soon..." Nazza suggested. The dragon sighed again.

"You don't want to hear it. It's downright pitiful..." Wart murmured. Nazza grinned a toothy grin as he added the finishing touches to his bandaged right hand. "Try me." Nazza interjected. Wart looked touched, but the emotion didn't last long. He sat down in front of Nazza and began his sad tale.

"I wasn't born this way, as you might have guessed. I was born in a poor family, with both of my parents working in a Hurricos factory just to keep us alive. To make it even worse, I was a half-blood." Wart saw the confused look on Nazza's face, then described.

"I was considered a half-blood because my mother was a dragon, and my father was a rhynoc. When I was born, I was a gray-scaled dragon with a rhynoc horn on the tip of my snout, blue webbed wings and claws, and the most beautiful brown eyes this side of the Summer Forest. However, rhynocs weren't really the most loved of all animals in Hurricos, and their crossbreed offspring was even more hated. Because of that, people would either ignore me or make fun of me when I was a child. Most of my childhood was spent either in a Dumpster looking for food and scraps or in the poorly run building they called a 'school'. That's how I lived my life until about four years ago when I crossed paths with Changeling..."

Nazza smiled nastily. "Changeling sure knows how to pick her Lab Pets. It sounds like your life was always miserable!" Wart looked up to him, his eyes glowing spitefully.

"That was a little uncalled for. I loved my old life, and I was foolish enough to believe Changeling when she said that a "Lab Pet" was a trusted scientist that surveyed all of the experiments. That was how it was for about a few months, before Changeling started to perform experiments on me, such as injecting me with untested chemicals and exposing me to toxic materials. She would reassure me and say that it wouldn't do anything to change me, but soon her words were not to be believed..."

Wart paused, and Nazza found a good time to cut in once again. "Let me guess, she kept saying that the experiments were harmless, even as your appearance started to turn for the worse. I've probably heard this story before."

Wart sighed heavily as he began to pace back and forth. "I'm sorry I can't tell you more, but my memory's been warped from the constant abuse Changeling gave to me. I can't remember my age, my parents' names, or even my last name! All I have are little snips and pieces of my former self. Changeling ruined everything I lived for!"

The air around them felt heavy with angry silence. Even the forest ceased its activity. There was a moment until Nazza spoke up. "If you're so miserable, why are you still by Changeling's side?"

"Like you, Changeling made a deal with me. In exchange for my service, she'll grant me the one thing I long more then anything; my old self..." Angry tears started to spill from his eyes. He hastily wiped them away. "I don't like having my strings pulled, but I have no choice. Changeling's the only one who could change me back into the handsome dragon I used to be. I know it, and Changeling knows it."

Despite all of this, Nazza still wore his smug grin. "I knew you felt that way, unless you really were the heartless dragon everybody takes you for. You're probably going to make some woman happy someday!" Nazza said jokingly. Wart's mood started to brighten, but he still didn't feel better. The blue wolf decided to change the subject. "Anyways, where are we heading to next in Avalar? What Gigas Crystal are we heading for next, now that the Green Gigas is in Spyro's hands?"

That did the trick, for Wart's mood instantly brightened as he explained. "The Blue Gigas Crystal is next, and you can probably guess where that lies. We're supposed to go find it in some ancient underwater civilization. However, unlike the Mist Ruins, the underwater civilization I'm talking about still exists!"

"Good, then it's settled. We rendezvous with Changeling and we snatch the Blue Gigas Crystal. I'm sure she will understand that we lost the gem for a short while." Nazza said. The two of them, now fully rested, began packing their things to meet up with Changeling. Wart's mind was already coming up with a good excuse to give to Changeling when she asked about the lizardmens' absence. 'If she doesn't buy it, I will have another DNA change. It's not like I can't handle another one of her experiments.' Wart thought in his mind.

"Besides, once Changeling finds out that Spyro and his reptile friends have the crystal, they probably won't live very long!" And with those last words, the two agents trudged into a whole different direction, expecting to see Changeling before nightfall. After all, the faster they got their job done; the sooner Changeling will cut their strings.

As least, that's what Nazza and Wart hoped for...

~*~*~~*~*~~*~*~

Snowflake was floating in a dimension of pain, confusion, and unconsciousness that were bound to the chains of her mind. She tried as hard as she could to break the bonds of her pain and wake up from her coma, but she was just too tired. She could feel her wing throb from the broken bones. As she floated in the prison in the depths of her coma, two separate voices started to materialize outside of her prison cell.


"...Give her some breathing room! Geez! Now hand me some of that water over there..."


"Hey, don't mess with her wing! Wait until she wakes up before you mess with it!"

"Why do we have to wait until she wakes up before we can make it better? I know a lot more about wings then you ever could! We have to clean it, bandage it, and set the bones back in place for it to heal properly, not perform some kind of voodoo on her!"

"Do you question my magic, you winged reptile?"

Snowflake slowly opened her eyes, and saw both Spyro and Ripto baring their teeth at the other. Spyro's nostrils were ablaze, and he was clicking his claws in annoyance. Ripto was in a fighting stance and Snowflake could see the Red Gigas Crystal start to glow faintly. Although the fight would've been amusing to watch, she knew she had to stop them before they caused any damage.

"Wait a minute, guys! I'm awake!" Snowflake shouted. She thought the impulse to rise onto her feet in remembrance of her injuries earlier. The two of them instantly turned to her, a mix of embarrassment and disappointment evident on their faces. Both of the eager reptiles rushed to her and tended to her need.

"You've been sleeping for about three hours now," Spyro stated in an as-matter-of-factly voice. He was answering all of her questions. "Your leg wasn't broken, and its probably healed enough to walk on..." he informed. Snowflake inspected the many herbs and medicine applied to her leg. The Gigas Crystal was still clutched in her right hand, still glowing slightly like an annoyed firefly.

"What about my wing?" Snowflake asked. Spyro winced and told Snowflake to turn around and see for herself. She did as she was told, and she was scared out of her wits. Her left wing looked just fine, but her right wing was a twisted, broken parody of its former self. The ligament was broken and twisted into an unnatural shape, with a bone protruding from the skin. Spyro was smart enough to clean off the blood before Snowflake woke up, or she would've fainted from the even coat of rusty-smelling blood that had leaked from the many teeth wounds that the lizardmen inflicted on her.

Snowflake was at lost for words. The intense throbbing pain that focused on her right wing stole her voice. She bit her lip to keep from crying out; she did not want to show her friends any weakness that would've characterized her as a damsel. "Don't worry. If the purple pest will lend me a hand, I can heal your wing as good as new. Just turn your head and leave me to my work..." Ripto stated. Snowflake turned her head away from the crooked mess that was her right wing and waited.

"Cosmos Curiania!" Instantly, the pain began to increase in her right wing. She screamed; it felt like fire was burning her nerves into cinder. She was about ready to go hysterical when suddenly the pain stopped. Instant relief flooded her, and she chanced a look behind her. Snowflake's right wing was as good as new, but it felt a little numb. Her mouth hung agape.

"Ripto...How did you-" Snowflake babbled, amazed at his handiwork. He smiled smugly, which was rather disgusting in Spyro's point of view. "I've been training in the magic arts since I was a child. Do you think that repairing a few bones would be difficult? I laugh at your kind's ignorance of magic!"

"Keep that attitude and you can try repairing your own thick skull!" Spyro sneered. Snowflake sighed in half-defeat, and half relief. She didn't want a fight, but at least they were acting normally. She took a chance to try standing on her feet after her injuries, which she found that Spyro had done a great healing job on her leg. (Although all of the smelly medicine made her gag.) When she was finally able to stand on her own two feet, Spyro encouraged her to pull out the GCT.

"Let's see, now that the Red and the Green are out of the way, the closest Gigas Crystal is..." Snowflake resized the map several times and imputed random data. "...In some kind of civilization at the bottom of the ocean!" Spyro and Ripto both appeared chest fallen. Spyro let out an audible groan, while Ripto started to complain.

"Great! First a rainforest, and now an ocean! Now we have to sprout fins and gills to get the next accursed jewel!" He shouted hysterically. Snowflake couldn't help but smile; Ripto looked more comical then intimidating when he was upset. Spyro didn't say anything, and it looked like he expected this reaction. "No worries, Ripto. I think we'll find a way to get there as soon as we hit the shores. All we have to do is get out of this stupid rainforest!"

Everyone agreed; all the dangers they've experienced in this jungle all made them pretty sick of the rainforest. The only problem was that they had nobody with any idea to reach the coast from their current position, and wandering through the jungle without any direction was the last thing on their minds...

"Hey, Snowflake. What did Grunge say about that crystal?" Spyro asked rhetorically. Snowflake glared at him, not getting the gist of his question. "You were there! Grunge said that I'm the only one that can harness its power and hold it without any problems on my person. So what!" Spyro grinned, his canines gleaming in the afternoon sun.

"The Gigas Crystal's power is over the elements of nature, and we're surrounded in green stuff. Use the crystal to get us out of here!" Spyro demanded. Snowflake looked at him as if he were crazy. "One problem, Spiral-Horn; I have no idea to use this kind of magic! All I know of magic is what they taught me in the low-budget school at Willowbranch, and even my best friend got better grades at that..." She saw the looks in their faces. Spyro had a look on his face that said, "Go on, give the sucker a try!" On the other hand, Ripto was probably thinking of burning their way through the rainforest, for he was chuckling to himself.

"Fine! I'll try!" Snowflake exclaimed. She closed her eyes, just like she did on the Magic 1 exam a few years back, and reached inwardly to the power within the Gigas Crystal. She managed to establish a link to the Gigas Crystal with a little difficulty, but she didn't know how to work the magic of the Gigas Crystal. Exasperated, she focused more into the jewel and tried the first command that popped into her head.

"Rainforests of Mist, heed my plea! Show us a safe route to the sea!"

Suddenly, the Crystal grew hot underneath her fingers. Snowflake opened her eyes and saw that the jewel was giving off a vortex of blinding green light, which made her eyes water. Her two friends were now a safe distance away from the crystal, as if she was a bomb ready to explode. The light focused into a single point, and immediately a ray of green light with enough force to knock her down to the ground shot out of the jewel. The path of green light snaked through the forest past their vision. A cracking noise suddenly became apparent throughout the rainforest. Snowflake sat up with a shock, and saw that the trees that were in the path of the ray parted by uprooting themselves, revealing a safe road all the way to the coast. Snowflake gaped in amazement.

"Well, Ripto. It seems that we dragons know more about magic then you expected us to know." Spyro said casually to Ripto. Ripto said nothing, but he was instead staring at Snowflake's Gigas Crystal as if astonished of the power it had over nature, even though he already experienced the fury from the Red Crystal. Snowflake dusted herself off from the rough landing earlier and stepped towards the road between the trees. She stared into the distance of the large pathway to the coast.

"I guess Grunge was right when he said that the Green Crystal had the power to manipulate plants..." Warily, she stepped in-between two of the manipulated trees, half-expecting for them to return to their natural spots and crush her. When she saw that it was safe, she turned to her male companions with a smile on her face. "The faster we reach the coast, the faster we're out of this rainforest!"

That convinced them. The two reptiles hurried after Snowflake, both of them eager to finish this quest as fast as possible. In their excitement to be rid of the torment of the rainforest, it never occurred to them how easy a parted tree path revealed their position...

~*~*~~*~*~~*~*~

"Those fools! It's like they *want* us to win!"

The sky was now reddish-purple from the sunset. Even though the spell had been cast many hours ago, Snowflake's command over the trees still remained strong. Changeling studied the handiwork of the Green Gigas Crystal from her aerial position above the forest. She smiled as the simplicity of her adversary's thinking, then signaled the nameless dragon crony to lower her down to the ground. The simple-thinking black dragon set her down onto solid earth softly, her feet barely making a sound against the soil. Everyone in her clan stared at her, waiting for her next order. Nazza and Wart were both filthy and tired, but they also awaited their masters' orders. Wart in particular watched her as if she was holding a knife to his main artery.

"You're right, Wart. The white dragon female does have the Green Gigas Crystal." Wart swallowed pathetically and nodded silently to his mistress. She glared at him, her dark purple eyes tearing into his will. "I didn't expect you to lose two of the best breed of lizardmen and the Crystal to a dragon and her two boyfriends, but luckily she wants to collect the Gigas Crystals too. This makes it all the easier for you, my Pet." Wart nodded once again. He knew he was going to receive his parting end of the bargain soon enough...

Changeling turned to a frilled lizardman standing beside her. "Send me the prisoner." The lizard gave a parting "Yessir!" And scurried off. Nazza and Wart looked to each other, unsure what she meant by 'prisoner'. Changeling read their minds with alarming accuracy.

"As you already know, the Blue Gigas Crystal is at the bottom of the sea. A very tricky spot to get to, especially for people with lungs. So, I've decided to get on the good side of a rather kind old sea dragon, but I need something to convince him. That's why I caught...HIM!" Changeling pointed to a struggling creature bound and gagged by the lizardman she sent earlier.

Nazza let out a loud growl and bared his teeth. Several other reptiles in Changeling army showed the same distaste, for the air was now filled with angry snarls and roars. A large bear was shouting random curses and threats to Changeling through the bandanna around his mouth. He was easily recognizable with his business suit, green eyes, tan fur, and the one monocle that hung from his eye. The lizardman that fetched him, obviously a pirate before Changeling enrolled him, was peering into a large white burlap bag with a green gem symbol on the side. Changeling casually ripped off the bandanna and let the bear speak his mind.

"You unkempt ill-mannered feline! Untie me this instant and give me my gems!" The bear yelled. Changeling looked behind the bear to see that the lizardman was now grabbing his fill from the burlap sack with hunger in his eyes. She smiled, her furry tail swishing behind her. "Now, now Moneybags. You did this to yourself! If you didn't try to sell me a poor misshapen mockery of a Gigas Crystal, then you would be safe at home counting your greedy gain. But, since you made that mistake, you're now at the mercy of the great Changeling!"

"Poppycock! You're no better then Ripto! If Spyro were here, he'd-"

"If Spyro were here, he'd sit back and watch you get tortured by Changeling with a smile on his face! The only reason he would ever do you a deed is if you forced him to pay you a "small fee". To Spyro, you're more of a parasite!" Nazza spat out. Several reptiles near him voiced their agreement. Moneybags, defeated, slumped slightly like a deflated balloon. Some dragons were glaring at him, fire glowing in their eyes.

"There's no need to feel sad. You're serving a wonderful purpose for this army!" Changeling explained. "You see, I've met this sea dragon off the coast of the Rainforest's coast. It turns out he's a fugitive from an ancient prison and goes by the name of Bane. I've had trouble convincing him to trust me, so I need someone to convince him that he is more then welcome to have a spot in my army." She waited a moment for Moneybags to respond.

"You want me to talk to this beast?" Moneybags asked. The whole campsite was filled with laughter, including the chuckles of Wart and Nazza.

Wart, who also knew Moneybags from personal experiences, said bluntly, "A sea dragon may be an intelligent creature, but they still keep some older traditions. The way to a sea dragon's trust is through his stomach!" Once again, the camp was full of loud laughter. However, Nazza and some of the larger dragons didn't laugh, but rather felt cheated that they weren't the ones to finish Moneybags off. This round of laughter caused Moneybags to snap. He started yelling like a mad-man to the reptiles and their leader.

"Murderers! Thieves! You creatures aren't fit to walk this planet! Spyro will destroy you all!" Moneybags shouted. Changeling, obviously through with the demonstration, signaled two lizardmen to carry him away. With great difficulty, the lizards secured Moneybags, and dragged him out of sight, his cries still ringing through the night. "Spyro will destroy you all!" was the last thing they heard of the greedy bear. When all the traces of Moneybags have faded away, everyone in the small army resumed their duties, some of them talking eagerly about the sacrifice of Moneybags.

"I never thought I'd see the day Moneybags went crazy. Isn't that right, Wart?" Nazza reflected. Wart didn't speak. Instead, the final calls of "Spyro will destroy you all!" echoed through his head, as if they were the words of a prophet for days to come....

~*~*~~*~*~~*~*~

End of Chapter 4

I'm sorry this took so long to write, but a combination of Writer's Block and school registration is to blame for the delay.

I've been receiving a lot of fan mail lately, including applications for fancharacters in the story! So far, I've denied nobody's character into being a part of my story. After all, I'm planning this to be one hell of a story! ^_^