Well, guys, this is it, the final chapter. Now, before we begin, I have a few things I want to say. First off, I want to say thanks to all of you. Over the course of writing this, book 1 has achieved 8500+ views, over 70 reviews and over 35 favorites! (Must mean I'm doing something right. XD) In all honesty, I just hope right now that I can keep you all intrigued with book 2 and I thought what better way than with a teaser? Keep in mind, though, that not everything is set in stone and that wording will be subject to change. So, without further delay, let's begin the last chapter and I'll see you all again in Mergence book 2. Enjoy. : )
Note – Want to thank Riverstyxx for beta(ing)
Flame was the first to reach my side; he slid on the ground as he finally reached me. "Haze, that was intense! How did you; when did you?"
"I thought you left Avalar? How are you back? And how come you're a different color?" Ember started asking as she made her way opposite of Flame, also filled with questions.
Tuning out Flame and Ember, I looked around and found Krystal just standing next to me with a smile on her face, happy that I was alright.
"HAZE!"
Startled by the yell, I twitched in slight pain at the loud noise. I looked over to Flame, who seemed to be getting more anxious by the second. "Where have you been?!"
"I'm sure that's a tale we would all love to hear."
Turning around, I found Terrador and Cyril standing behind me.
"But first, Spyro, Cynder, are you two alright?" Terrador asked.
Spyro looked at the guardian confidently. "Yeah, just a bit banged up."
"Fine. Nothing a few days of rest won't fix," Cynder assured.
Having faith in their words, Terrador smiled in relief. "That's good to hear, but just to be sure, I want you two to head to the infirmary to get checked out," he recommended before shifting his gaze to me. "And are you alright?"
A small laugh came out as I struggled getting to my feet, my body groaning with fatigue. "Well, I'm still breathing, so I'm guessing so," I answered, though not entirely convinced myself.
"Ignoring your wounds will only get you so far, young one. Go with Spyro and Cynder to the infirmary. While there, you may be able to get that eye fixed," Terrador reasoned.
"You do know that my eye's been like this since even before we journeyed to Malefor's tomb, right?" I questioned, seeing as how it was old news.
Terrador wore an apologetic expression. "Forgive me, sometimes the smallest of wounds can be easily overlooked."
I shrugged, knowing that I was also to blame. "It's my fault as well. To be honest, I never even considered getting it looked at."
Terrador grinned. "Well, now's your chance."
Suddenly remembering the reason I was there, I turned around and gazed at the collapsed purple dragon. "What about him?"
"Malefor will be put in the Temple's detention area. We'll figure out a plan from there. For now, just worry about getting yourselves patched up," the Earth Guardian encouraged.
"Oh my, what happened?"
I looked up, finding Volteer coming over Warfang's walls. I snickered, amused by his shocked expression.
"Great Ancestors, he's unconscious!" Volteer exclaimed, landing on the ground by the other guardians.
Terrador took a step towards the Electric Guardian. "Yes, and I suggest that we take him to the detention center before he awakes."
After Volteer nodded in agreement, Terrador gazed upon Spyro once more. "Spyro, after the three of you get checked out, I want you to break for the rest of the day. Celebrate; you've earned it."
Spyro merely nodded before he began to hover in the air. I followed his lead, as did Cynder and the others.
Seeing me hover in the air, Spyro looked at me curiously. "Haze, when did you learn to fly?"
I laughed quietly, remembering there was much to be explained. "Let's get to the infirmary first, then I'll start answering questions."
Not saying another word, Spyro simply nodded in agreement before turning around and flying over Warfang's wall. Following him over the wall, I found myself in sheer awe as I started to look around the city for the first time. Everywhere I looked there were buildings, each one towering over the streets that went past them and all of them varying in size. It felt as if I were looking at some ancient city that was in a textbook.
My sightseeing didn't last long, though, as I noticed movement in the corner of my eye. I faced back to the front to find Spyro and the others heading to ground level. Following their lead, I also descended to the ground and found myself at the entrance of what looked to be an ancient church—well, that was how it looked to me, anyway. We went inside.
Once inside, I found myself in the middle of what appeared to be a rectangular type of room. Around fifteen beds were lying against the left and right sides of the room. The only difference between the two sides was that the left side had windows that shone light upon the beds that leaned against them, while the right side had double doors which led to another room.
"Is anyone here?" Spyro asked aloud as he walked forward. "It's alright, the Dark Master has been defeated, you can come out."
For a moment, nothing happened, then one by one, moles started coming through the double doors, each one smiling at the news that they'd heard.
"You're sure?" one mole asked.
Spyro confirmed with a nod before facing me. "You can thank Haze over here," Spyro said before looking back at the mole. "His battle left the Dark Master unconscious."
The mole looked at me curiously, as did the rest of them. "You don't say?"
After a few moments of gazing curiously at me, the mole shifted his gaze back to Spyro. "So, where is the Dark Master now?"
XXX Detention Area XXX
Ghost sat in his cell as he stared at the ground. He had only been up for ten minutes since he had been beaten by his father—or should he now say his ex-father. According to the mole that was now guarding him, after he had been treated at the infirmary, Volteer had told the moles to bring him to the detention center. Also known as they wanted to keep a close eye on him now. Looking upwards, Ghost began to look at his surroundings. Heck, he had nothing better to do.
It was a four-by-four cell room, four cells each side, and the far side had windows. Gazing to his left, he found the door that held his way out, but he didn't care. Ghost knew that escape wouldn't be easy and besides, even if he did escape, where would he go? His mind went back to what the Dark Master had told him.
Tears began to roll down his face as he began to walk forward, teetering with every step he took. "This is how you repay me?! After everything I've done for you, did you forget that I'm your son?!"
Malefor continued to look at Ghost, unfazed by his words. "Should that mean something to me?"
Ghost rubbed his now watery eyes, still hurt by those words. Then, to his surprise, he saw the detention room door open. Cyril and Terrador walked through, along with the mole guard from behind. They were carrying someone who Ghost immediately recognized to be Malefor.
"Are you sure this is safe?" asked the mole as he opened one of the cells. "After all, what if he wakes up?"
Placing Malefor in the cell, Terrador looked at the mole reassuringly. "He is of no threat to us the way he is now. Even when he wakes, he will be too weak to try anything."
Now looking through the steel bars, Ghost gazed at the Dark Master in disgust. "That's if he wakes up."
Terrador and Cyril turned around, forgetting that Ghost had been put in a cell as well.
"In truth, I forgot you would be here. Volteer only briefly mentioned where he left you after you were patched up," Terrador explained.
Ghost sighed as he shifted his focus to the side. "Makes no difference to me…whether I'm here by myself or with him."
"He's your father," Cyril pointed out.
Ghost spat before looking at the Ice Guardian with anger, slamming his head against the bars in fury. "That monster doesn't deserve to be called my father! After what he's done, he can rot and die for all I care!"
Having nothing left to say, the guardians made their way out of the room, which was then locked by the mole.
"I pity young Ghost," Cyril told Terrador.
Terrador wore a sad expression before looking through the locked door window. "As do I. The youngling has essentially neither family nor friends. It will be difficult for him in the days to come."
XXX Infirmary XXX
I watched as Spyro and Cynder got out of their beds and stretched, wanting to see and make sure that their bodies had fully healed. Their treatment had taken a few minutes; the moles wanted to make sure that they were in top shape.
"How are you two feeling?" one of the moles asked.
Spyro looked upon the mole with gratitude. "Great, thanks for the treatment."
"Yeah, this is better treatment than we were ever able to give ourselves when we were on our journey," complimented Cynder.
"Hey, Haze, I didn't realize it until now, but you looked beefed up right now."
I turned to the side to find Flame staring me, surprised.
"Really?" I asked before looking down at my own body. Flame was right; my entire body looked pretty toned.
"I guess those three weeks of training were more intense than I thought," I said, now even more amazed.
Ember looked at me curiously. "Wait, what three weeks of training?"
I found Spyro and Cynder as well as the moles now looking at me. I sighed. "You remember the original human who came to Avalar? Well, he wasn't a myth. He helped take down the Dark Master the first time around. His grandson, who's back in my home world, has been training me for the past few weeks so I could take down the Dark Master."
"Didn't the original human help Malefor?" Cynder asked.
I gazed at Cynder with a sad expression. "He did, but…it was so that he could take down the Dark Master. It's a long story."
Krystal stepped up to my side. "Well, if you ask me, I think he did a fine job training you."
I found myself blush at Krystal's words. Suddenly, I felt something poking at my shoulder. I looked to find a mole staring at me.
"Pardon me, sir, but I would like to have a look at that eye of yours," the mole requested as he went over to one of the beds and patted the top of it.
Following his instructions, I went over to the bed and lay down on it, positioning myself so that my right eye was facing upwards. I watched as another mole brought in some red gems.
"You really think you can fix my right eye?" I asked the mole as he began analyzing it.
The mole shrugged slightly. "Can't say for sure. I never had to fix sight on a dragon before, but I will try."
XXX Detention Area XXX
Ghost stared at the unconscious Dark Master. For a while now, he had been debating what to tell his father when he woke up. Then, to his immediate surprise, he found Malefor begin to move. As he did, he groaned in pain.
"I didn't think you'd be up so soon," Ghost admitted.
The Dark Master laughed quietly. "I'm part of an elite race. Purple dragons heal faster than normal dragons." Now lifting his head, Malefor began to look around at his new surroundings. "Though, even that considered, I currently do not have the strength to escape."
Ghost closed his eyes and turned away. He wanted to pity his father, but at the same time he knew that the Dark Master didn't deserve it. Suddenly, a blood-curdling scream broke the silence. Ghost looked toward the door. He knew it was the mole guard that was screaming.
The door busted open and Reaper walked through a leather bag hanging from his wing. Ghost watched as the gray dragon approached Malefor's cell, a wicked grin forming on his face. "Reaper, what are you—?!"
The black dragon found he was unable to complete his sentence, as he felt multiple sharp rocks pierce his stomach from beneath and lift him up in the air. Looking down, he saw a pool of blood drizzle down the rocks. He looked at the gray dragon weakly.
Coughing up blood, Ghost felt his vision becoming blurry. "Reaper…" he said before finally going limp.
Malefor watched as another dragon entered the room.
"It's a good thing you can control the element of earth, Archer, otherwise things might have gotten messy right now," Reaper said, gaze still on the Dark Master.
Angered by his words, Archer rushed up to Reaper, knocking him to the ground and placing a paw on his neck. "Don't you dare try say we were fortunate for my element!" Archer hissed. "No one was even supposed to die!"
Reaper stared at Archer, unfazed by his words. "Well, tell that to Volteer. If it wasn't for him, we wouldn't have needed to!" reasoned the gray dragon as he forced Archer off.
Getting back on his feet, Reaper looked upon the purple dragon once more.
"Why are you here, Reaper?" Malefor asked.
Reaper didn't respond. Instead, the only reply given was from Reaper's eyes, which now turned blood-red. As Malefor looked into his eyes, he felt his body become weak and numb. The Dark Master began to move around in torment as he felt oxygen leave his lungs. Within moments he collapsed, dead.
"I must thank Haze for injuring the Dark Master," Reaper said as he pulled out a clear gem from his bag. "Because of that, our dream may finally become a reality."
As Reaper pointed the gem at the Dark Master, Archer watched as a purple aura began to rise from the Dark Master's body. Once outside the body, it started to move in the direction of the gem. Reaper smiled once more as the last of the aura was absorbed into the gem.
"What is that?" Archer asked as he leaned into the gem curiously.
Reaper put the gem back into the bag. "Malefor's life-force. With it we can resurrect the Ancient One, but first..."
Turning to the door, Reaper's eye began to glow purple, and as they did a purple aura began to surround him. Archer watched in awe as the aura started to leave Reaper's body and form an oval-shaped portal.
"First, we must acquire that which was stolen from the Original One."
XXX Infirmary XXX
"Alright, try opening your eye."
Following the mole's instructions, I slowly opened my right eye. As I did, my vision seemed to be blurry at first but gradually cleared up. "Wow!" I said, impressed by the results.
"Please be aware that, even though your eye has gained back vision, it will still take a few weeks for it to fully heal. If you strain it now, that eye will become permanently blind," warned the mole.
I looked at the mole, taking heed of her words. "Duly noted." Proceeding to get off the bed, I found the others talking amongst each other about how they were going to spend the rest of the day.
"What are they going on about?" I asked to no one in particular.
"We're figuring out what we want to do today, since we have the day off from classes," answered Cynder.
Hearing that, I sat down, just wanting to rest. As I did, Krystal walked up to me. She had a look of curiosity on her face.
"How's your eye?" she asked.
I sighed. "Good for now, I guess. Since the Dark Master's been dealt with, I might be able to relax for a while. Give my eye time to recover."
Looking back up towards the others, I began to get curious about what had happened while I was away. "Curious, what of Spyro and Cynder? Are they...?"
Krystal giggled. "No. not yet. They're still shy about admitting, but I predict they'll be telling each other soon. As for Ember, well, she's been warming up to Flame. I don't think it'll be long for them, either."
I smiled. "Well, at least they're getting there."
Thinking that, my mind then wandered off to the question of Krystal and me. Who was that green dragon to her? Who was I to her? "And what about...?"
"Spyro, Haze!"
I turned to the entrance, as did everyone else, to find Volteer burst through the doors. He was out of breath.
Spyro stepped forward. "Volteer, what's the matter?"
Panting, Volteer looked at Spyro and then to me. "Terrador wants to see you in his office, immediately!"
XXX Terrador's Office XXX
As we entered Terrador's office, I froze at what lay ahead. Standing next to the Earth Guardian were two blue transparent figures: John and Ignitus.
"Ignitus!" Spyro cried in joy as he ran up to hug the Chronicler. But before he even got to him, Spyro quickly realized that his old teacher wasn't physically here; he was just an image. Even with that thought, Spyro couldn't help but feel joyful at his appearance.
Ignitus looked at Spyro. "Good to see you again, young dragon, and you as well, Cynder."
Cynder nodded appreciatively before looking at John curiously. "You're the original human, aren't you?"
John, who was now void of any expression, simply nodded to the black dragoness before shifting his gaze on to me.
"Why do I get the feeling this isn't a visit just to say hi?" I asked, feeling something was up.
John closed his eyes. "Malefor and Ghost have been murdered."
I went wide-eyed. "What?!" I practically shouted. "By who!?"
"Reaper and Archer," Ignitus answered sadly.
Everyone was dead silent after that, contemplating how Reaper, let alone Archer, could kill someone.
"No, that just can't be!" Ember cried in denial. "Archer has been friends with us ever since we were born… There's no way!"
John turned to the pink dragoness. "While it may be hard to believe, it is the truth." He changed his focus to me. "But that's not even what disturbs me the most."
I felt a cold shiver run down my spine. "And what would that be?"
John looked down at the ground. "That Archer and Reaper have left for the human world."
To Be Continued In
Legend of Spyro Mergence: Deception
"Argh!" I groaned, landing on the ground stomach-first. "Honestly, can't I go through a portal once without falling?!" I questioned as I looked around to find myself back in my world.
"Look out!" Ember cried.
My eyes went wide as I felt Ember land on top of me, her weight sending me back to the ground. I tried to get back up.
"Geronimo!"
Turning around, I found Flame land on top of Ember, which made me collapse to the ground yet again. I whimpered.
Old Friends Return
I heard the door bell ring.
"It's alright, I sent the baddy bad cops away."
Opening the door, I found Scorch smirking as he stepped inside. "Honestly, can't you go five minutes without needing my help?" he joked as he began to look at the picture frames.
I looked at him in disbelief. "Seriously?"
Scorch faced me. "Yup."
New Threats Arise, Friendships Are Tested
I watched in horror as the black van started to drive away. "EMBER, NOOOO!"
Before I could even give chase after the van, I felt my arm being tugged. I turned around to find Scorch holding me back. There was grim look on his face. "There's nothing you can do!"
Infuriated by his comment, I yanked my arm back. "What do you expect me to do? Sit by while Ember becomes a human experiment?!"
Secrets Finally Revealed
"Haze…" Archer said weakly, blood spilling from his mouth. "Please forgive me. I only wanted to bring them back. I would never have joined Reaper if I knew all of this would happen."
I watched helplessly as the green dragon's breathing increased.
"You need know to the truth…"
Friendships Are Severed
"You need to control your anger!" shouted Spyro as he walked across the rubble.
Turning towards the purple dragon, I felt anger beginning to rise towards him. "And you would know all about that, wouldn't you?! Especially back in the Belt of Fire!"
Spyro stopped dead in his tracks, obviously unnerved by what I had said. "I've learned to control my anger since then…"
In disbelief, I walked over to Spyro, putting my face right in front of his. "Then show me! Show me you can get angry without your scales turning pitch black!"
