Chihiro Hatsuki's Skylanders

by Tilde-Heart

Chihiro Hatsuki is an ordinary Earth kid whose life is turned upside down when the Skylanders, the magical guardians of another world, land in her backyard and promptly tell her that she's a magical portal master! Now, Chihiro must help the Skylanders defeat their archenemy Kaos and restore the Core of Light that protects their world. (Canon-divergent retelling of SSA)

26. Chapter 26

Time for chapter twenty-six, or as I like to call it, the very belated Halloween special! Why? Well, you'll see in a little bit...

Greenswitch: Glad to hear you liked the chapter! I'm very glad to hear you enjoyed Dark Spyro's little act, just because that was one I was very concerned about pulling off just right—seems as though the work worked out!

Watch Seeker: Also glad to hear you liked the chapter, also sorry about your fever! Hopefully you're feeling better now!

Ohma flame: That's nice to hear! I honestly love how a few people now have talked about how nostalgic CHS makes them feel...

---

"UGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Ghost Roaster groaned as he repeatedly bonked her face into his pillow, "I'VE HAD ENOUGH OF THIS PLACE!"

Ghost Roaster groaned some more as he pulled his now slightly dizzy head out of the pillow, then turned towards the stack of books he had amassed next to his nightstand. He frowned as he reached for the book laid at the top of the stack, flipped through its pages… Then promptly decided he had read through it so many times that he had completely lost interest and put it aside. Ugh, will he ever be well enough to get out of this stuffy, lonely room? He was getting tired of staring at these walls and sulking, especially when Cynder had just been released not a day ago. He was just as well as she was, damn it! Why did he need solitary confinement?

Ghost Roaster groaned another time more as he stared at the ceiling, his whole body numb with boredom, then his eyes widened just a bit as a series of dull knocks sounded off at the door.

"Hey Roaster!" Chihiro chirped from the other side of the door, "Delivery's here!"

A faint finger snap was heard, then without even the slightest prompting the door slammed open at such a velocity that it caused the entire room to shudder!

"You could be a little less noisy about your entrances, you know," Ghost Roaster remarked as he raised a skeletal eyebrow.

Chihiro just chuckled and haplessly grinned as she stood in the doorway and clutched a steel tray filled with what was surely food. Crap, that reminded Ghost Roaster. Surely it was lunchtime by now? He was kind of hungry, but at the same time, he had a very hard time trusting cooking that wasn't his own. Hopefully she at least remembered his cooking lessons.

"Doing any better, Roaster?" Chihiro asked as she hopped over and laid the lunch tray on a nearby medical cart thing. Ghost Roaster could never remember what those things were called…

"Better enough that I'm sure I can leave this place," Ghost Roaster grumbled as he peered down at the tray and eyed the bowl of soup, then finally, warily dipped his spoon into it, "If Cynder can get out early—"

"I told you, Roaster, she got off the easiest of you three!" Chihiro peered up at Ghost Roaster and made a soft pout, "You had that huge crack in your skull and you were bleeding super badly! That's way worse than a few nasty cuts."

Chihiro looked aside and made a weak smile with the shrug to match. "If it makes you feel any better, Hex still needs to stay a little while longer to finish up her burn treatment and all."

"Eh, whatever." Ghost Roaster examined the soup and sniffed, then finally scarfed it down and paused for a moment.

It was clearly the sheep's meat soup recipe he had been craving ever since he got laid up, but it was peppered with not just pepper, but salt and a tiny bit of something else he couldn't quite pin down…

"You like it?" Chihiro twiddled her fingers and looked aside, "It's that sheep stew recipe you taught me, but I found a little bit of pukusa in the pantry so I threw that in too! Never know what you can kind in the depths of the shelves…"—Chihiro giggled and scratched the back of her head—"It's kinda like the stuff my mom made for me when I was feeling sick, so…"

Ghost Roaster frowned, then took another sip of the soup and made a soft chuckle. It was a bit hearty and maybe a little too garlic-y for his taste, true, but it filled his stomach nonetheless, and he had to admit, he wouldn't have thought of doing that with a sheep stew soup. It really brought out the flavor.

"It's alright," Ghost Roaster said at last with a firm nod of his head, "You did good."

Chihiro gasped with glee, then grinned and spun around. "Yes! I'm a culinary master at last!"

"Now I wouldn't go that far, but it beats sneaking out and raiding the snack cabinet. All they've got there is junk!"

"Sneaking out of your room when nobody's looking, huh?" Chihiro tsked a bit and wagged her finger as Ghost Roaster ate, "For shame~"

"Hey, you!" Ghost Roaster slurped up the last of his soup and shot Chihiro a glare, "I'm telling you, I've been feeling much better than before! I'll be out of this place any day, I can feel it!"

"Well, I'm glad to hear that~" Remarked a voice like whistling wind from across the way.

Ghost Roaster made a soft grunt, then turned around to see Whirlwind in the doorway! Ghost Roaster hiccupped as he jolted up… But in the process, he flipped over his tray and tossed his sandwich right in his face! Chihiro giggled, but Ghost Roaster just sighed and licked the sandwich remains off his face. Peanut butter and bone, his favorite! Though its salty, crunchy taste wasn't enough to salvage him from his embarrassment.

"Ah, Whirlwind!" Ghost Roaster chuckled as his face grew warm in the embarrassed kind of way, not the sickly one, mind you, "If you heard anything about me sneaking out when nobody was looking, I promise it wasn't true!"

Whirlwind only chuckled and rolled her eyes as she flew into the room.

"Don't worry, Ghost Roaster, your secret's safe with me~" Whirlwind flew over, then carefully unwrapped the bandages around Ghost Roaster's head and grinned, "Good, it seems like your skull's nearly healed!"

"What are you doing here, anyways?" Chihiro tilted her head as Whirlwind reapplied Ghost Roaster's dressing.

"I just wanted to check in on you before we all went to Darklight Crypt!"

"Darklight Crypt? You mean that crypt that's got so little undead energy that anyone can just run around whenever they want?" Ghost Roaster asked as he raised an eyebrow, "What's so important there that everyone has to go? Last I heard, only thing there's a couple old houses..."

"I don't know," Whirlwind smirked as she wagged her tail back and forth, "But I think a pie buffet is a good enough reason~"

"PIE BUFFET?" Chihiro and Ghost Roaster exclaimed at once, though their tones differed by far. Though Chihiro's eyes sparkled with glee surely from the prospect of a buffet where you could just eat tons of delicious pies for hours on end… The wary look on Ghost Roaster's face showed that he was of a different mind.

"Wait, they're holding a pie buffet?" Ghost Roaster asked, then frowned as Whirlwind handed him a simple paper flier.

"These arrived at the island this morning," Whirlwind explained as Ghost Roaster looked the flier over, "Apparently, the people of Darklight Crypt are holding a pie buffet to celebrate us freeing so much of Skylands from Kaos, and we're the guests of honor!"

"Wait, isn't this a bit sudden?" Ghost Roaster looked up at Whirlwind and flicked the flier.

"A little, but I don't mind that much!" Whirlwind beamed as she took the flier back from Ghost Roaster, "I'm just glad we can finally get a breather after all we've been doing lately!"—Whirlwind then turned to Chihiro and grinned—"You should come too, Chi! Even portal masters deserve a break here and there, after all~"

"I'd love to!" Chihiro exclaimed as she bounced up and down in her seat… Then promptly turned solemn and serious as she shook her head, "I mean, but, I do have a lot of work I need to take care of, so I can't really stop for anything right now."

Whirlwind, however, only made a frown paired with a solemn shake.

"Are you sure, Chi?" Whirlwind replied as she swished her tail, "I know how much you love your sweets."

Okay, now that was definitely odd. Chihiro loved her food almost as much as she loved being around them. Only the Ancients would know how many times he had caught her sneaking into the mess hall to steal snacks! And her sweet tooth only rivaled Hugo's in terms of how bad it was, so why would she turn down something like this?

"Well, work comes first and all!" Chihiro said as she forced a smile, "If we're gonna beat Kaos, I need to be on top of everything, no matter what!"

Whirlwind made a slightly concerned frown, then smiled and patted Chihiro's shoulder. "I'll bring you back some pie, alright?"

"Yeah, that'd be nice!" Chihiro chirped with a nod, "Can you bring back strawberry if they have any? Oh, with lots of ice cream on top too!"

"Duly noted!"

Whirlwind flew out of the room quick as a breeze, but oddly enough, Chihiro didn't follow and instead just stuck by Ghost Roaster's side as she eyed the floor. She seemed a little... Out of it, for lack of a better term as she scuffed her boots against the tile floor. What got her in such a mood?

"Are you sure you're not sick or something, Chihiro?" Ghost Roaster asked as he put his lunch tray aside.

"I hope not!" Chihiro exclaimed as she jolted up and shook her head, "I mean, I just… I've really gotta get going! I still need to check on Hex!"

And so, Chihiro turned around and bolted out of the room before Ghost Roaster could ask anything more. So instead, he just sighed and went back to staring at the ceiling, which he was sure now had a few more cracks than when he last counted it in his fits of boredom… Wait, no, he was pretty sure that one crack just moved.

"Whirlwind? Hey, Whirlwind?" Ghost Roaster shouted, "I think there's a spider on the ceiling!"

Oh right, she was probably gone now. Ghost Roaster grunted, then lifted up his ball and chain with a snarl. Seemed as though he'd have to deal with this little pest himself. So, he spun the chain around like a cowboy's lasso, then tossed it to the ceiling right as the spider scurried away!

"Oh, sh—"

CRASH!

Ghost Roaster grunted as his ball and chain slammed right into the ceiling… And got lodged right in its surface. Ghost Roaster winced as he swayed back and forth, then sighed as he crossed his arms.

"WHAT WAS THAT?" Whirlwind cried as she flew back in, then dropped her jaw as Ghost Roaster hung from the ceiling with a deep frown on his face.

"There was a spider," was all Ghost Roaster said as that spider spun down to Ghost Roaster's eye level from a strand of silk and cackled in his face.

Whirlwind just sighed and shook her head.

"I'd better get you out before we have to leave."

§

It had taken quite a few portals on Master Eon and Chihiro's parts, but at last, they had all arrived to Darklight Crypt! It was times like these that made Whirlwind seriously appreciate the convenience of portals. She couldn't possibly imagine how long it would've taken them to travel by ship or balloon, though she shuddered at the thought of sharing such little space with all the others… Nevertheless, they were here now and that's what mattered!

A few glances to the left showed the other Skylanders as they portaled in, all paired with flares of magic and the quickly-disappearing ring of magic energy that signified a portal's appearance… But something was odd. After all, they were the only ones here! Strange, where were all the other people? After all, you can't exactly have a banquet with only the guests of honor!

Well, Whirlwind supposed you could, but that would be a pretty lonely banquet nonetheless. Had they maybe arrived a little early? Whirlwind peeped down at the flier still grasped tight in her paw to find that no, they were right on time! Just where was everybody else? Whirlwind frowned and twitched her ear without even realizing, her eyes still trained on the party grounds as the other Skylanders conversed among themselves. They were all just as confused as Whirlwind was, at least from what little she could garner from their conversations.

Whirlwind turned around, maybe to see if anybody else would arrive, then stopped as she heard a familiar crash! Normally she'd be alarmed by the noise, but…

"Flynn…" Whirlwind whispered as she shook her head and turned back around.

Sure enough, she was right. Flynn's balloon had crashed down into the area and split an empty picnic table in two splintered, messy halves! Hopefully they could fix that later.

"EY-OH!" Flynn shouted as he hopped out of his surprisingly unscathed balloon basket, "The greatest pilot in all Skylands is here for the—"—Flynn frowned and rubbed his chin as he glazed over the attendees—"Wait, just where is everyone else?"

"That's what I'd like to know." Whirlwind flew up to Flynn and sat down on the adjacent picnic bench, "It seems like we're the only ones here!"

"Not quite, miss Skylander!" Cried a voice with a notable Vitalian accent.

Whirlwind chirruped, then turned around to find the voice's source.

Over at the pie stand, a portly, peach-skinned molekin dressed in surprisingly clean chef's clothes and a perfectly-trimmed black mustache wheeled out numerous pies on a steel cart. Whirlwind had to wonder what flavor… Blueberry? Cherry? Cloudling? She hoped there were cloudling ones. She hadn't had cloudlings in quite a while, and she was dying to try some again. Their soft exterior and the sweet taste that just melted in her mouth had always remained a remnant in her mind, an itch so bad it couldn't be fulfilled till you had one again!

"Let me tell you, it's an honor that you stopped by my little pie banquet!" The chef said as he wheeled the cart over to Whirlwind's bench and stopped, "My apologies for the invitation being so'a last minute…"

"Oh, think nothing of it!" Whirlwind replied as she shook her head, "We're thankful for the little break!"

"Thank goodness!" The chef clapped his hands, "I know you've been working'a so hard to free Skylands from that nasty Kaos… I just wanted to thank you for all you done for us!"

"It's no problem! We're Skylanders, after all, it's what we—"

"Oh, all in the day's work for heroes like us! But, nevertheless, you're very welcome…" Flynn interrupted as he pushed past Whirlwind and shook the chef's hand, "Er, uh…"

"Batterson," Batterson replied as he drew away from Flynn, a slightly uncomfortable grin on his face, then pulled a pie from the cart, "But enough talking, let's get to eating!"

However, Whirlwind only frowned and looked around.

"Are you sure?" Whirlwind asked as she gently flapped her wings, "It doesn't seem like the rest of the guests are here yet…"

"Oh, don't'a worry about them!" Batterson pushed the pie towards Whirlwind with maybe a little more force than before, a sickeningly large smile on his face, "The other guests will arrive in time! You know, fashionably late and all~"

Batterson's grin somehow stretched even wider, almost as if he was wearing a rubber mask instead of his actual face… Then again, Whirlwind knew precious little about molekin anatomy, so she probably couldn't say for sure. Nonetheless, that weird smile was starting to creep her out a little, so she reluctantly took the pie from Batterson.

"Enjoy your meal!"

With his hands grasped tight on the cart, Batterson hummed a song Whirlwind couldn't pin down the name of as he carted pies to the rest of the Skylanders. However, she didn't pay any more mind to him. Rather, she only took a cursory glance down at the perfectly-sliced pie she held in her paws. It looked like any other pie you'd see, but something about it seemed off. She couldn't tell what exactly, but part of her hesitated to dive in.

However, he did go to all this trouble for them, and this was supposed to be her break. So, why hesitate? Finally, Whirlwind grabbed a slice and crammed it in her mouth, then gagged and spat it right back out as the flavor hit her tongue!

"Yuck!" Whirlwind exclaimed, before she coughed into her wing and tempered herself.

Just what was in that pie? It tasted like rotten sewage mixed with old eggs! She couldn't have possibly tasted anything worse!

And all around her, it seemed as if everyone else had the same feelings! All of them spat out half-chewed pie, covered their mouths or practically begged to find something that would cleanse the taste out!

Whirlwind groaned, then shook her head and pulled herself up. She felt kind of dizzy... Hopefully that pie didn't make her sick, the Ancients only know how awful food poisoning could be. As she lifted her head up, she caught a couple of other Skylanders as they stormed up to Batterson, probably ready to complain, then moaned and fell face-first onto the grass instead!

Whirlwind gasped and stumbled back as everybody else followed suit. Just what's going on here?! Whirlwind whipped her head around as everybody fell comatose in droves, then winced as she heard a familiar cackle.

Batterson's.

Whirlwind snarled as she stormed over to Batterson… Or at least, tried to. But, her vision had grown so, so blurry, and she was practically stumbling over her own paws!

"Batterson!" Whirlwind croaked as she tripped and shook her head, "Whad… Whad's goin… On…"

Whirlwind groaned as he entire body ached with a kind of exhaustion that could barely let her keep her head up. Her stomach and mind churned with a grueling kind of weakness, her heart grew slower and slower and her vision had grown so blurry everything was little more than vague blobs of fading color. Despite this, she could still make out Batterson as he stomped towards her.

"Now!" Batterson yelled as he seemingly smirked down at Whirlwind, though her ears pumped with so much ringing that she could only barely make out his words, "You're coming with me, Skylanders!"

And with another cackle Batterson… Vanished into thin air? Whirlwind couldn't believe it, yet her head hurt so much that she could barely comprehend what was going on. Her vision had become spotted with black, like the whole world had grown dark.

"Get… Get back here, you…"

And with one last breath, Whirlwind's entire mind and body completely gave up and shut down…

§

Chihiro frowned and brushed her hands against the portals as she sat in the dimly-lit depths of the portal room. Though the Skylanders had all been gone for some time now, she couldn't really bring herself to leave the room just yet, so she just sat on a portal's cold, stone rim and sighed. The rim was colder than usual thanks to the chills of autumn escaping into the portal building, but Chihiro didn't really pay attention to that, for something else far more important preoccupied her mind, something that had her so worried she couldn't bring herself to think about or do anything else until it was put to rest.

"You've proven that you really do have the heart a portal master should."

Those words had stuck with Chihiro ever since that holographic Eon clone left them with her the other day, and yet she still couldn't wrap her head around why he said them. What does having the heart a portal master should mean? Did portal masters have something special about them beyond all that fancy magic and portal making, something that made them perfect for portal master stuff in the first place? Was it even important, when she wasn't nearly as strong or smart as she should be?

After all, with all the trouble she had caused, she couldn't help but wonder… Why was it her that ended up in this situation? Why was it her that found them and turned out to be a portal master? Surely the Skylanders could benefit from having someone stronger, faster, smarter, just plain better than she was? Why was it her that found them, when she obviously couldn't fulfill the role they needed? She could lie to herself and say she needed to work just a little harder, just a little more… But in the end, she knew it was just a lie.

Someone like her couldn't possibly be the one they needed, right? Not after all the times she failed! Surely there was a mistake, and she wasn't really meant to be the portal master who would protect them all! The one they really needed would show up any moment now, they'd get the hero, the proper friend they needed, and she'd go back to being the lonely kid from earth she was always destined to be.

But, Chihiro didn't really like that idea at all! She couldn't bear the thought of being apart from her closest friends, and yet, it would be selfish of her to stick around and cause trouble for them, but that was even if this weird destined to be a portal master thing was true to begin with… Ugh, so many complicated questions and worries and no easy answers. Chihiro let out another sigh as she traced the ruins on the portal.

"Young Chihiro, is something wrong?" Master Eon asked as a soft, brighter light filtered into the room, "Why are you sighing?"

Chihiro gasped, then perked up and turned her attention to the doorway, where sure enough Master Eon and Spyro stood.

"Master Eon! Gold!" Chihiro called as she hopped off the portal and forced a smile, "What're you doing here?"

"We came to see if anyone had called in to return from the pie buffet," Master Eon replied as he floated up to Chihiro, "Any signals?"

Chihiro just shook her head. "'Fraid not. Haven't heard a thing since I came here to check myself."

Spyro frowned, and the way Master Eon's light dimmed showed that he shared Spyro's concerns. Chihiro couldn't help but feel a little worried too, but not by much given her existing concerns had nearly run her numb. After all, it had been a while since they had left…

"I'll go check the docks," Spyro said as he flew outside, "Maybe Flynn got back without us noticing."

Spyro flew out the door with a smile, though everyone knew he was probably bargaining at this point. With Flynn's piloting skills, if he had come back then everyone on the island would have heard it! Still, though…

Chihiro frowned and wanted to follow after him, but before she did she turned her gaze to Master Eon and toyed with her vest.

"Anyways," Master Eon replied as he laid on Chihiro's shoulder, "Getting back to my first question, is anything on your mind, Young Chihiro?"—Master Eon gently nudged Chihiro—"You seem quite troubled."

Chihiro made a soft, barely-notable hum as her eyes trailed back and forth, then finally she sighed and watched Master Eon fly off her shoulder.

"Master Eon," Chihiro said at last while she looked down at her feet, "What exactly made me a portal master?"

Master Eon paused while his glow turned still with contemplation, then he chuckled while his glow brightened.

"Young Chihiro, nothing can make you a portal master!" Master Eon swirled around Chihiro, "Not bloodlines, riches, spells… Not even being descended from a portal master!"

Master Eon stopped spinning and floated away from Chihiro as he made a sagely nod.

"Ultimately, it was purely by fate's decision that you were one!" Master Eon looked back at Chihiro while his glow turned to a gentle yellow, "You just happened to be lucky enough that the universe gave you the gifts it did."

Chihiro clenched her teeth and hands, because to be honest, hearing that… Didn't exactly ease her worries any. So something in the big, wide universe just decided out of the blue that she'd have these magic powers and all this responsibility? Why her, and not somebody who could be better for this?

"Why do you ask?"

Chihiro made a sharp gasp, then twiddled her shaky, clammy fingers. "Well, when I was fighting that hologram during the last exam, it said something about the heart of a portal master or something like that…"

"That's not something you're born with, Young Chihiro." Master Eon hummed, then shook and glowed once more, "Rather, it's more about what a portal master should be."

"Then what is it?"

Master Eon let out a gust of magic, and from that gust formed an effectual theater of silhouettes in action! Those silhouettes fought villains, saved others from harm, offered aid to those that couldn't help themselves and more, all against a backdrop of sparkling blue light.

"With the great powers they hold, a portal master carries not just the responsibilities of a hero, but the fate of the entire universe on their shoulders," Master Eon explained as he examined this magical theater, "Thus, it stands to reason that they should use their powers for the good of the world around them."

Master Eon flew over an illusion of a humanoid figure fighting against a giant robot and floated back to Chihiro's side.

"Portal masters should be courageous, fair and wise…" Master Eon turned to Chihiro, "But most of all, kind and compassionate. A portal master should fight not out of malice or a lust for power, but out of a love for the world around them and a wish to protect it from harm."

Master Eon turned to Chihiro and softened his glow. "Does that make sense?"

"I guess," Chihiro said with a shrug as she ducked under the fading magical theater and ran towards the door, "I'd better go outside, I've been here for too long."

Chihiro dashed out the door and down the halls before Master Eon could respond, then slowed to a walk as she held her head low. To be honest, that conversation left her with more questions than answers. On one hand, she guessed it would be a good thing if she had the heart of a portal master, but on the other hand… Did she really? A part of her couldn't believe that with all her faults and flaws, she could really be someone like that. And even if she was, would just having the heart be enough? Cause she wasn't getting strong enough or smart enough to beat Kaos and his armies anytime soon, that was for sure!

Well, she mulled on this long enough. Chihiro sighed, then pushed the portal building's door and strode outside with her head still hung low. The cool, refreshing autumn winds hit her face as Chihiro stretched up to the sun, and the life returned to her just a bit. Even if it wasn't enough to make her worries disappear, getting out of that stuffy building and in the open did help a bit.

"Ah, I can't believe I'm saying this," Chihiro remarked as she rested her arms down at her side, "But boy, have I missed you, chilling winter cold!"

Chihiro made a soft smile, but it quickly faded away as Spyro flew in—and judging by the way he was muttering, it seemed as though Flynn hadn't returned.

"Should I really be worrying this much?" Spyro mumbled as he flew back to the portal building's door, "Maybe they just—"

"They still aren't back, Golden Boy?"

Spyro gasped and froze in place while he looked into Chihiro's eyes, then he sighed and looked aside. "Nope."

Chihiro frowned as well, but nonetheless grabbed his paw and squeezed it tight as a way of showing she shared the same concerns he did, in a sense. Thankfully, he did seem to understand this, because Spyro's frown turned to a smile as he squeezed her hand back. Chihiro smiled in tandem with Spyro and both made small chuckles, but their joy seemingly vanished as they looked around the island. Without everybody else around, its overwhelming size seemed much bigger and definitely much more lonely than it usually did. There was no chatter, no laughter, and the only other sounds were that of the whistling winds as they blew leaves to and fro… It was a bit creepy, to be honest.

"Feels kinda weird with just us, doesn't it?" Chihiro remarked as she looked back up at Spyro.

"No kidding." Spyro shuddered as a couple leaves blewpast, then grabbed one from its path and rubbed a toe against it, "Say, how long was this banquet supposed to last? It's almost evening,"—Spyro turned to the skies—"Shouldn't they be back by now?"

Chihiro frowned as she followed Spyro's gaze. Sure enough, the bright blues of the afternoon skies that marked the moment the others left had dipped to a brighter, yellow that soon poured into oranges and purples and red, all trademarks of the early evening.

"It does seem a little weird. Maybe they just lost track of time?"

"I'm not so sure about that."

Chihiro yelped as a whisperlike voice was carried around her by the winds, then turned around and breathed a sigh of relief. There behind her, Hex stood with Cynder close by.

"Phew, just you, Hex," Chihiro sighed as she wiped cold sweat from her brow, "For a moment, I thought you were a ghost or something!"

"I'll choose not to remark on that."

Hex shot Chihiro a very tired look, but then again with her blank white eyes and perpetual frown it was hard to tell just what she was feeling. Thankfully her burns had more-or-less healed, save for some faint scars that only made her seen even more ghastly. Not that it was a bad thing, to be honest, her creepy looks made her seem kinda cool, but…

"Oh, right, you're technically undead and all," Chihiro chuckled and hung her head, her voice trilled just a bit, "I'll shut up now."

"You're out now, Hex?" Spyro asked as he flew up to Hex, a glint of surprise in his golden eyes.

Hex only nodded as she turned to Cynder.

"Since Hex's feeling better, we were going on a quick walk," Cynder explained.

"And as I was telling Cynder," Hex said as she manifested a skull from nowhere and spun it around like a toy, "I couldn't help but feel that something was strange about this whole event."

"It was way too sudden, right?"

Spyro and Hex both made nods of agreement.

"And besides," interrupted a shrill voice as a ghastly presence manifested between Hex and Spyro, "If they wanted pies, I could've baked some twice as good as whatever junk they're serving over there!"

A warble sounded off as a purplish ectoplasmic formed between them, then finally grew more colorful and visible! Its gooey form had solidified into Ghost Roaster, who grunted as he wiped what seemed like sawdust from his chains. Guess what Whirlwind said was right…

"I thought you still needed to rest," Chihiro remarked as she tilted her head, "Especially after you got stuck in the ceiling and nearly busted your head open again trying to get a spider off—"

"Did Whirlwind seriously tell you about that?" Ghost Roaster remarked as he flicked Chihiro's nose with a skeletal finger, "Well, don't go telling anyone else. It wasn't one of my proudest moments."

Chihiro's face flushed with the warmth of slight embarrassment, then she giggled and looked aside.

"Sorry, Roaster," Chihiro chuckled as she scratched a sudden itch.

Ghost Roaster rolled his eyes, then turned those big orange peepers back to Spyro and Hex.

"Anyways, whatever they have there probably paled in comparison to my own cooking, so it's not like anything of value was lost because I didn't go." Ghost Roaster swirled his bony hand around, "What's the worst I'd miss out on? Food poisoning?"

"It might be worse than that, I'm afraid," Spyro said as he looked down at his paws, "It has been a while since they left, and I don't want to expect the worst, but…"

Hex made a grave nod of agreement.

"If something happens, it's their fault for getting takeout," Ghost Roaster scoffed, though the small, aside frown he made as he looked away spoke all the words his mouth didn't.

A flicker of concern rose in Chihiro's chest as they all shared looks of worry. She never liked assuming the worst, but just hearing what they said was enough to make all the worst-case scenarios flood into her mind! They could've gotten hurt, or attacked by rabid sheep, or turned into mindless zombie servants of an underworld overlord… Okay, maybe those only came about because she read too many of Hugo's novels, but still!

"Well, if you're so worried," Chihiro suggested with a shrug, "Then why not go check on them ourselves?"

"Oh, right!" Spyro chuckled as he looked to Chihiro, "You can just portal us there, right?"

Chihiro, however, just shook her head. "Not quite. I wanna make sure they're alright too, and I have been meaning to practice channeling warp magic…"

With a snap of her fingers, a small rift opened above Chihiro and a round, disc-like warp start dropped into her hands. Its dull blue metal was only further chilled by the cold autumn wind, and the fact that the massive orb on its top was dull and dark showed that it still had yet to be used. Ever since the Mabu Defense Force dropped them off just in case the Skylanders needed some alternate transportation, she had always wanted to try making a warp...

Spyro, Ghost Roaster, Cynder and Hex, however, all looked at each other and gulped.

"It's fine, don't worry!" Chihiro gestured with her hands for emphasis, "If Spyro, Hex and I start it up together, we should get there safe and sound…"—Chihiro lowered her voice to a hushed whisper as she looked aside—"Or it might blow us up in the process but let's not think about that."

"Yeah, I think I'll pass," Cynder said as she stepped back, "Besides, somebody needs to stay here, just in case."

Though Spyro and Hex seemed reluctant, they all gathered together nonetheless and placed their hands on top of the warp start. With all their hands gathered, Chihiro closed her eyes and focused the magic in her heart, with hopes that Spyro and Hex did as well.

Alright, Chihiro thought as she scrunched her face tight, Take us all to Darklight Crypt!

While Chihiro focused her heart and mind, the rushing noises of magic around her grew greater while the light grew bright and warmer, and for a moment, it felt like everyone's hearts were as one!

Whoosh!

Just like that, the disc spun out from Chihiro's hand and slammed onto the ground, right in the center of their little huddle. It shuddered for a few moments, then a bright pillar of orange light erupted from its center and rained sparkles down onto the ground!

"Welp, seems like it worked!" Chihiro proclaimed as she leaped on the disc, then spun around and grinned, "Last one to Darklight Crypt's a moldy pie!"

And just like that, Chihiro's vision was completely overridden with warm orange light as the warp whisked her away...

§

Chihiro smiled as the light faded and she got full view of Darklight Crypt… Then yelped and reeled back!

"What happened here?!" Chihiro exclaimed as she examined the wreckage before her, "It looks like somebody partied a little too hard!"

Chihiro's description wasn't entirely inaccurate. All across the front lawn, picnic tables were tossed aside while their tattered, worn cloths strayed the grassy outdoors, half eaten pies were smashed against the dirt, their tins bright against the fading afternoon light… And yet oddly, the entire premise was vacant. No signs of the other Skylanders, any patrons or chefs were to be found!

"Where is everyone?" Hex asked as she, Spyro and Ghost Roaster appeared behind Chihiro, then Hex herself floated ahead and examined what remained of one pie.

Spyro seemed hesitant as he veered his head around the party site, but finally pushed himself to walk ahead and sniff a pie…

"Ugh, these things smell awful!" Spyro exclaimed as he veered back and gagged, "If they taste as good as they smell, I'm glad I stayed behind."

"Where did everyone else go, though?" Chihiro remarked as she went to one of the few intact tables and picked up a pie, "It's like they just vanished into thin air!"

Chihiro tilted her head as she examined the pie, then hummed and tapped her foot. "Is it really that bad?…"

In one swift motion she slid her finger through the filling and got ready to taste, only for someone to snag the pie straight out of her hands!

"I wouldn't eat that if I were you," Hex warned as she placed the pie back on the table, "There's something wrong with these pies, they've all had curses laid on them!"

Chihiro made a grunt of shock, as did Spyro and Ghost Roaster around her, then shook her head and frantically wiped the filling from her finger.

"A curse?" Spyro repeated as he flew up to Hex and sat on the bench, "What kind?"

"I'm still trying to find out," Hex replied as she waved a hand over the pie, "It won't afflict you unless you actually consume it, at the least. But…"

Hex grew silent and stiff, then with a few blinks she turned around and glared down a slightly-torn array of potted plants.

"Someone's here!"

Low growling rumbled from the tiny corner of potted plants, low yet alarming enough to make everyone step back, save for Chihiro who tripped on a picnic bench and fell backwards onto its table. But while she groaned and pulled herself back up, Spyro, Hex and Ghost Roaster all readied themselves to attack!

A faint silhouette of beady red eyes and a solid body crept out from the shadows as the growling grew louder and louder, then something jumped in for the kill!

Everybody else jumped out in the nick of time and looked back as whatever had tried to ambush them crashed into a nearby picnic table! The picnic table was crushed under its weight, but that was hardly of concern to the creature as it staggered up and lunged around—wait, hold on a second! That creature looked like…

"Flynn?!" Everybody else exclaimed at once.

Indeed, the creature that hulked down before them did bear a very strong resemblance to Flynn… But something was very wrong.

His normally sunset orange fur was a dull, vaguely greenish color and fell out in patches to reveal graying skin, his eyes were blank and bloodshot while drool poured out from sharp, twisted fangs within a gaping mouth. Even his clothes were ragged and torn, which was definitely not like the Flynn they all knew, who took a good bit of pride in his carefully-kept appearance. What had happened to him?

"Flynn, calm down!" Chihiro exclaimed as she stepped forward and shielded the rest of her body with her hands, "It's us! We're your friends, remember?"

Flynn looked up at Chihiro and lowered his growling, as if he was hesitating for a moment… Could he have recognized them at last? Everybody else bated breath as Flynn sniffed the air, his arms drooped to his sides, but it was for naught. Flynn, instead, lunged forwards with his eyes fixed on Chihiro!

Before he could take even one bite, however, Hex pushed Chihiro down and cast a wall of bones that Flynn bounced off of!

Flynn slammed straight into another picnic table and overturned it, then shook his head and dropped to all fours. His eyes were still fixed on Chihiro, but this time she was ready! Chihiro immediately crafted a shield out of magic, then flung it straight towards Flynn! The shield flew so fast, Flynn couldn't scramble back in time to escape! Instead, it slammed straight into his gut and tossed him into a couple dead hedges!

"Alright…" Ghost Roaster groaned as he cracked his skeletal knuckles, now body now slowly engulfed in green flames, "I've had enough!"

In a flash of green fire and a cackle, Ghost Roaster transformed into a flaming, gigantic green skull and charged towards Flynn.

"It's time I took a bite out of all this!"

Ghost Roaster opened his jaw wide and got ready to bite down, but before he could even snap, Spyro tackled him from the side! Instead of stopping Flynn, Ghost Roaster just got a mouthful of leaves as he crashed into the shrubberies and shrunk back down to his normal size.

"Spyro, what was that for?" Ghost Roaster questioned as he plucked leaves off of his body, "I almost had him!"

Spyro winced as he stomped his paws and formed a magical barrier around Flynn, then whipped his head around to Ghost Roaster's.

"We can't hurt him, Ghost Roaster!" Spyro insisted, "The real Flynn's gotta be in there somewhere…"—Spyro clenched his fangs as he watched Flynn pound away at the barrier—"We've gotta get him out!"

Ghost Roaster just scoffed and crossed his arms. "And how exactly are we supposed to do that?"

Spyro froze as Ghost Roaster shot his terrified glare right back at him with scorn, then winced again as he looked towards Flynn… Who had nearly broken through Spyro's barrier! Spyro yelped, then rushed over and placed his paws on the barrier while his eyes turned purple.

"I…" Spyro winced as he watched the cracks in the barrier heal, then hung his head and flew away, "I don't know."

"I think I do, however."

Spyro turned around and frowned as Hex floated forward and ushered everyone closer.

"I have a plan," Hex said, "If you're willing to listen."

Ghost Roaster clenched his jaw as he hopped out of the shrubs, as did Spyro and Chihiro who both shot glances with tense frowns and tight brows, then finally they all crowded close to Hex and whispered to each other for a few short moments before nodding. With their objective finally determined and their huddle broken, all four of them turned back to Flynn as he continued to fight away at Spyro's shield.

Spyro gulped, then slammed the ground with his tail and they all watched the plates of his barrier slide down one by one!

Flynn snarled, fell to all fours and chased right towards them… Then panicked and turned tail as Hex shot a bunch of orbs at him!

"Oh no you don't!" Chihiro shouted as she skidded in front of Flynn and slapped the ground beneath her feet! Chihiro giggled, then dashed off as the world around began to shake and rumble.

Flynn whimpered and stumbled back as the ground below him grew violent, then fell face-first as Hex's orbs conked him right in the noggin! Flynn grumbled and shook his head as he pulled himself up, but before he could escape, magical rock pillars popped up all around him! Flynn groaned and scratched against the pillars, but not for long as Ghost Roaster crashed right through them and tackled Flynn straight towards Spyro! As Flynn barreled towards him, Spyro grinned and summoned a magical pile of rope, then whipped around Flynn and tied Flynn up tight!

Flynn grunted as he fell to the ground and snarled and snapped at Spyro as he tried to break free of the ropes. Spyro, however, just frowned and summoned a magical cloth that he tied around Flynn's mouth before he flew back.

"What could have possibly happened to him?" Spyro asked as he watched Flynn struggle against the ropes.

Chihiro, Hex and Ghost Roaster shared Spyro's confusion as they joined him in examining Flynn, then finally Hex summoned an orb with a faint glow and floated up to Flynn. She held the orb up to Flynn with a frown, a frown that grew deeper as the orb's glow became bright.

"I knew it," Hex proclaimed as she floated back, "This is the same curse that afflicted those pies!"

Spyro, Chihiro and Ghost Roaster gasped as they took a step back.

"So you're saying the pies are what made him like this?" Chihiro exclaimed as she pushed her face in Hex's, "But how? Why? Who could've done this?"

Hex didn't meet their gaze, and instead turned around and summoned a skull. As the skull chirped in Hex's grasp, she merely patted it and in response it glowed with an eerie white halo.

"Find Cynder and tell her what has just occurred, then bring her to my study. There should be curse-relieving antidotes within my potion chambers."

And with another pat from Hex and a nod from the skull's end, the skull vanished in a flash of shining white light! But while the light faded, Hex just turned her attention back to Spyro, Chihiro and Ghost Roaster.

"As for your questions, I am not entirely sure…" Hex pushed Chihiro away and looked back at the crypt doors across from them, "But I have a feeling that whatever answers we desire lie in the crypt itself."

They all watched the door for a few seconds, then Chihiro shrugged and teleported up to the crypt's door. She yanked on the handles for a few spells, twisted them like knobs, even scanned them for some kind of doorbell… But no matter what, it wouldn't open! So, Chihiro frowned and rapped her fist against the doors.

"Hellooooooo? Anybody home?" Chihiro shouted as she knocked even faster, "HELLOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO—"

Ghost Roaster snarled as he floated up Chihiro, then grabbed her by the collar of her shirt and yanked her away from the door.

"Are you trying to wake the undead or something?" Ghost Roaster shouted as he gestured towards the door, "Whoever these curse placing people are, something tells me they don't want us here! We can't draw attention to ourselves!"

Chihiro grunted, then shot Ghost Roaster a miffed look as she wiggled out of his grasp and hopped beside him with crossed arms. "But how else are we supposed to get in there?"

Chihiro's lips trembled as she took one last glance at the gates, then her eyes trailed over to a strange, circular switch.

"Unless…"

Chihiro skipped over to the switch, then leaped on the button in its center and watched as the world around them warped and shuddered… Before finally, they had found themselves in a different realm entirely!

The grass withered into the ground while the ground itself became cold, hard stonelike dirt, the tables' wood rotted and their cloths became tattered and dull, the trees and shrubs withered until there was nothing left but dry, dead wood, and even the skies shifted from evening yellows and oranges to a midnight blue painted with black clouds!

But, Chihiro didn't seem to care about any of that. She made a quick shudder as a burst of cold wind carried off some dead, crunchy leaves behind her, but she quickly shook it off and grinned as she gazed up at the crypt's door… Which were now wide open!

"Huh, turns out the key was right here all along!" Chihiro chirped as she marched forward, "Now, if you'll excuse me..."

Spyro, Hex and Ghost Roaster frowned as Chihiro disappeared down the crypt's pathway... Then gasped and jumped out of the way as Chihiro stormed back down the path, this time with a bunch of tiny green monsters latched tight onto her back like sticky moss!

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHH! GETTHEMOFFMGETTHEMOFFMEGETTHEMOFFME!" Chihiro cried as she spun around and shot off a round of magic blasts!

These blasts not only seared into those little green things that had latched onto her, but they slammed into everything else and exploded all around! Dents formed in the stone walls around, rotted tables and trees were blown to bits, and those little green monsters? Had turned into flaming purple fireballs that slammed against the ground and passed out!

"Chihiro, it's okay!" Spyro cried as he flew over to Chihiro and grabbed her by the shoulders, "Those things are gone now, you can stop freaking out!"

Chihiro completely froze, then jerked her head towards Spyro as her eyes fluttered.

"They are?" Chihiro looked down at herself, then giggled as a blush coated her cheeks, "Huh, guess they are!"

Hex just sighed and shook her head while Ghost Roaster buried his face in his hands, then all four of them glazed over the looming crypt doors before them and proceeded down the open path.

It didn't seem very abnormal, well, any more abnormal than usual for the undead. The cold stone paths were cracked and dry moss coated their surface, the flora was dead while fauna was nowhere to be found, and a thick, blue fog coated the area and made the sights around much harder to see… But still, those sights were generally normal for the underrealms. Though they trained their eyes for any sight of abnormalities, of creeps lurking in the shadows or odd figures in the night sky, nothing seemed to show!

Chihiro sighed and ruffled her hair as she passed through the fifth thick cloud of mist—or maybe it was the fourth? There was a stunning amount of mist here and surely everyone had lost track by now… Chihiro just groaned and hung her head, then pulled it back up as everyone had come to a stop. Had they finally found something, a hint or a clue hopefully?

Well, they had found something alright, but it wasn't a clue. Rather, the path ahead of them had completely diverged into two split paths!

"Now, where should we go…" Chihiro said as she rubbed her chin and looked over both paths, then stopped as she watched Hex grab Ghost Roaster by the collar and drag him down the leftmost path.

"Ghost Roaster and I will take this one," Hex said as she floated away.

"When did I agree to that?" Ghost Roaster shouted as he struggled against Hex's grip, though it was fruitless given that she completely ignored his protests while they disappeared into the mist.

"Good luck!" Chihiro shouted as she waved goodbye to them then turned her attention back to the rightmost path, "Guess that means we're taking this one, Golden Boy!"

So, they both sprinted forward and dove headfirst into the cold, foggy pathway that awaited them…

§

All was eerily silent as Hex floated down the path, her only companion the sound of Ghost Roaster's rattling chains as they indicated him behind her. Even for someplace in the Undead's realm, this place seemed so somber and lacking in energy… It would don the title of a ghost town quite well.

"I know this place is a realm of the undead and all," Ghost Roaster remarked as he tapped his bony arms, "But it could really stand to be a little less dreary!"—Ghost Roaster paused and shuddered—"When even I get the creeps, you know it's bad!"

Hex cast a glance towards Ghost Roaster, then back down at the worn cobblestones paths below her. While she did agree with Ghost Roaster's sentiment, at the same time…

"I don't know," replied a booming voice from out of the blue, one that arrived so suddenly it made Hex and Ghost Roaster practically jump out of their very souls, "I find it quite delightful!"

"What? Who's there?" Ghost Roaster whipped his head in all directions, then huffed and crossed his arms, "Whoever you are, I wasn't asking you!"

"Take a peek above you~" The mysterious voice crooned, "You'll see soon enough!"

Hex did just that, only to find that the churning blue skies and their wispy gray clouds had been blocked out by… A gigantic eyeball? Yes, a pristine white eyeball whose vast white held a blue iris tinged with pink in its center! It was contained within some kind of brownish-greenish-grayish tendril, with smaller tendrils in the vein of arms attached to its side. Whatever it was, Hex found it quite suspicious how it showed out of nowhere.

"My goodness, we hardly get visitors around here nowadays! What a sight for sore eyes!" The eyeball spun around and bowed, "I am Occulous, your local friendly floating eyeball!"—Occulous's eye glazed over Hex—"And what brings you here, elf and…"

Occulous let out a shrill squeal the moment his eye laid upon Ghost Roaster and scrambled back.

"THE GHOST EATER! YOU'VE COME TO EAT US OUT OF HOUSE AND HOME, HAVEN'T YOU?!"

As Occulous pointed an accusing tendril towards Ghost Roaster, Hex frowned and hovered in between the two.

"If you don't mind, that's far from our purpose here," Hex refuted, a bit of venom in her normally-cold voice, "And Ghost Roaster hasn't eaten a ghost in years!"

"Yeah!" Ghost Roaster scoffed and looked aside, "Besides, ghosts taste bland anywho! Nowadays, it's all about bones and brambles!"

Hex shot Ghost Roaster a glare. "You realize you're not helping your case here, right?"

Occulous cast an uneasy glance towards Hex and Ghost Roaster, perhaps affirming Hex's statement for a moment, but nonetheless he shook his… Eye? Well he didn't exactly have a head to shake, but nevertheless the sentiment was the same.

"Getting back on subject, what brings you two to Darklight Crypt?" Occulous asked as he crossed his tendril, the tip of one pressed to his eye like a hand pressed to a cheek, "Visiting relatives? Doing some sightseeing? Come to try our impressive undead cuisine?"

Hex made a twisted frown and took a glance at Ghost Roaster, whose matching stare conveyed the same thing. Neither of them trusted this eyeball.

"I could ask you the same question," Hex replied as she stared back up at Occulous and crossed her own arms, "What brings you here?"

"Well, I live here, don't I?" Occulous made a slight chuckle, "Anyways, I asked you first!"

"If you really must know, I merely came for someone." Hex grabbed Ghost Roaster's cold, bony hand and pulled him down the way, "Nothing more."

Though Occulous's gaze crawled down her spine, Hex was not one to let it bother her. Hopefully he was probably just a nosy local. He'd leave if not given the attention he desired, and Hex had no intention of providing him with it nonetheless. As she stumbled upon a block puzzle, Hex released Ghost Roaster and floated up to the blocks.

With a press from her cold hands, the chilling temperature only amplified by the frigid sensation of the blocks, one by one they shifted out of Hex's way. Hex went to float forward…

"Someone? What someone?" Occulous pried as his shadow imposed upon the block maze, "A family member? Old friend?"—Occulous clapped his tendrils together—"Ooh, ooh, don't tell me! It's a forbidden lover, isn't it?"

"It is nothing of your interest." Hex magically pushed another block out of the way then levitated onto its surface, "Now if you'll excuse me, I have places to be."

Hex mentally rolled her eyes given her lack of pupils, then drifted through the path she had created using the blocks. As she passed through, however, the area became abnormally darker than usual… What could have… Oh, one look up and Hex found her answer.

"Hmm, acting awfully suspicious, are we?~" Occulous stroked his massive eyeball as he hummed, "I was just asking a friendly question…"

Hex bit her tongue and the urge to snap at this suspiciously curious eyeball, because thankfully Ghost Roaster did it for her as he pulled himself on top of the blocks and glared at Occulous.

"You're no better, buddy! You're being way too nosy!" Ghost Roaster shot back as he rolled his eyes, "Any normal ghost would've gotten the message and left!"

Occulous scoffed and crossed his tendril arms.

"Fine then, I'll take my leave…" Occulous shot Ghost Roaster a glare at cold as the atmosphere around them then turned tail and drifted away, "But I'd watch out for the knights, if I was you!"

As Occulous made his leave, Hex and Ghost Roaster turned to each other and frowned.

"Knights? What knights?" Ghost Roaster remarked as he spun his chain around like a toy, "Unless you're talking about the time kind of nights, I'm not seeing any—"

Clank!

"… Did you hear that?" Hex whispered as she reflexively summoned a skull orb.

Clank!

Ghost Roasted gasped, then lowered his head and snarled like a guard dog as he glared down the path with eyes bounced in every direction. The clanking sounds grew louder and louder around them, but he didn't seem to notice just what they were coming from…

Clank! Clank! Clank! Clank!

The metal clangs had grown much more massive in number while Hex and Ghost Roaster stopped short, but at least those noises now had a definitive source! The clanging sounds consolidated just ahead of the maze, where some bulky silhouettes armed with swords could faintly be made out from the fog…

CLANG!

Four by four, those bulky silhouettes leaped from the fog and crashed down into the maze, now revealed to be bulky, silver suits of armor with intricate onyx detailing on their armor and gigantic swords with handles carved in the shape of ghosts and ghouls pressed in their hands! The armor suits stomped and slashed their swords against each other in unison, then turned those swords on Ghost Roaster and Hex!

Hex gasped as she just narrowly dodged the tip of one knight's blade, but Ghost Roaster seemed less concerned as he groaned and hung his head.

"Me and my big mouth," Ghost Roaster mumbled.

Hex and Ghost Roaster dashed back down the path they came, but before they could make a getaway more of those knights blocked off the entrance! They skidded back as the knights brandished their swords, but as they did their backs hit cold as ice metal and forced Hex to teleport herself and Ghost Roaster away as more armor suits swooped in! The two of them landed on top of the blocks Hex had rearranged not moments earlier and dashed down, then stopped and jumped off the path as more knights dashed down the blocks. Hex wove her way through the blocks' makeshift maze, and for a moment thought she had found a sanctuary… However, even that wasn't safe as smaller, yet more stubborn knights made haste after her!

But, from just above them, there was a glimpse of an open stone slope just above the blocks, and better yet, it was completely free of those pesky suits!

"Quickly, I think I can see the exit!" Hex proclaimed as she yanked Ghost Roaster's hand and pulled him past the swarms of metal suits.

Hex zoomed over the blocks and teleported close to the slope, then swooped down and hovered forward as fast as she could. But even then, she was too late! In the split-second before she could enter, the knights dashed forward and completely walled off the slope's top.

Hex snarled, then teleported herself and Ghost Roaster back on the ground and watched as the knights swarmed around them in a circle. Left in the eye of the storm, Hex and Ghost Roaster stood frozen as the knights continued to perform that odd stomping dance with their swords all pointed towards Ghost Roaster and Hex. Any ordinary being would've been panicked, but Ghost Roaster and Hex just turned to each other and nodded with cold, steely glances of urgency.

If they couldn't run out, then it seemed they'd have to fight their way out!

Ghost Roaster turned away from Hex as he unhinged his jaw and flipped backwards, all while green flames swirled around his body like an ethereal bonfire! The flames swirled around him with such heat and intensity that it made the knights retreat backwards, and Hex herself had to jump back to avoid getting singed! The flames churned and turned themselves around as a pair of eyes flashed open from their warm surface, then out from the flames came… None other than Ghost Roaster, now transformed into his gigantic skull form!

Ghost Roaster let out a shrill cackle as he dashed through a row of knights and tossed them into the air, then as he reached the end of the line he detransformed and watched them down crash down with a satisfied smile. Unfortunately, though, it seems his glee was wrongly anticipated, for when the knights fell down to the ground they landed perfectly on their feet!

"OH COME ON!" Ghost Roaster exclaimed as his jaw dropped.

Ghost Roaster just snarled as he grabbed his chain and swung it around, then paused as a swarm of cackling skulls drove into the knights and tossed them off the island's edge!

Just aside of Ghost Roaster, Hex had summoned an entire barrier of cold, hard bones and spat out spells at rapid speed! From her cold as death fingertips, eldritch orbs flooded with raw, untapped magic and cold skulls with nasty snarls trapped within the confines of green orbs flew out from her fortress's confines and mowed down whatever they could… But unfortunately, it was hardly enough for the battle at hand!

The lines her orbs drew through the masses of metal knights were quickly replaced, and worse yet the heads of the crowd had already begun slamming their swords against the bone fortress in a very successful attempt to crack through their exterior! Perhaps she should have used dragon bones rather than her usual ones this time… Hex frowned and drew back as the knights clamored and clattered against her bone fence, while some smaller knights even tried (and failed) to scale it like a mountain. But, among the sea of silver and black, Hex could spot a dull cream-colored head in the midst!

"Alright, you brainless metalheads!" Ghost Roaster shouted as he spun his chain around like a lasso and tossed it against the crowds, "I'll show you that the chain is—ACK!"

Well, Ghost Roaster tried, he really did. But instead of actually denting the knights' forces, one particularly large one grabbed him by the chain and dangled him above the crowds, then tossed him chain-first at Hex's bone barrier! Hex immediately cast up a barrier in front of herself, but even that wasn't good enough protection as Ghost Roaster's chains smashed a hole in her barrier!

As the barrier shattered, Ghost Roaster himself slammed into her and skidded them both through a number of vases! The sound of smashed pottery and a noise akin to scraping nails against stone echoed as the two of them flew backwards, then finally this impromptu ride came to a close as they both smashed into a wall and shattered a collection of cracked clay vases. While dust leaped up from the ground underneath, the two of them grunted and coughed.

"Ghost Roaster, what exactly was that?" Hex spat as she flew up from the shattered remains of the now thoroughly-destroyed vases behind them.

Ghost Roaster, in return, spat out dirt and shot a glare at Hex while he rubbed his head. "It was supposed to knock out those hunks of junk!"

The two of them cast glares at each other for mere moments, then the sound of metal clatter and quick shings drowned their ears as the knights surrounded Hex and Ghost Roaster and raised their swords!

"Whatever it was," Hex spat as she glared back at Ghost Roaster, "It seemed to have the opposite effect!"

"No kidding!" Ghost Roaster winced as he watched the knights gang up on them. He scurried backwards as one slammed its sword dangerously close to his body, then turned his eyes aside and gasped before he scrambled off!

"Ghost Roaster, what are you—"

Before Hex could finish, the knights had begun slashing at her at well! Hex once again summoned her barrier and shot off her orbs, this time intermingled with spiky black orbs of undead energy and a few larger skulls as well, but once again these knights proved themselves to be stubborn. Every blow she cast their way at most just swept them off their feet for a few seconds, but they were quick to jump back into the fray and slash against Hex's bone barrier.

Hex panted as she held her hands up and went to restore her barrier…

But before she did, the world around her completely shifted! The cold stone around them turned to a bright gold in color while the moss that coated it grew fuzzy and full of life, the skies turned back to the amber-streaked blue fraught with puffy clouds that was trademark of the fading afternoon… Even the area beside them turned from cold, dead earth to grassy plains and islands full of brightly-colored flowers!

The knights all dropped their weapons and looked around in confusion as the world around them changed, then all at once they completely froze into cold, metal statues!

Just how did this happen? Hex frowned and dropped her bone barrier, then turned backwards as Ghost Roaster gave her a thumbs up from the safety of a switch identical to the one she had seen at the crypt's doors! Seems there was more of those strange switches in here as well.

Hex nodded, then turned her gaze back to the lifeless piles of armor that were once the knights. Though they were effectively harmless for the time being, the moment they switched back that would hardly be the case, so just to be safe… Hex summoned another swarm of skulls, then gestured to the skulls and pointed their attention towards those lifeless statues.

The skulls turned their heads and cackled to the skies, then dashed off in packs and bowled through the lifeless armor suits! The sound of clanging metal turned from a sign of danger to the most relieving sound to Hex's ears as the armor suits went from proper suits to assorted piles of broken pieces and junk metal! But would it last though?

With a warble, the world around Hex warped back into the cold, dull undead world of before… But this time, the armor stayed a lifeless amalgamate of broken metal! Seems as thought it was finally time to move on!

Hex floated up to the end of the maze, then pressed her hands against the few remaining blocks and lifted her hands as the blocks shifted out of her way. As Ghost Roaster trailed up and narrowly dodged getting smacked in the face with one, Hex just frowned and floated up the pathway it unveiled.

The cold, paved cobblestones of before grew more bumpy and prominent, at least based on how often Ghost Roaster's chains rattled beside her, but Hex paid it little mind as she ran her hand against the stone bridges that barred off their pathway from the depths of the valley below.

Despite the bumpier roads, everything else here seemed much more civilized, so to speak. The dead fauna and open spaces of cold, dead earth from before were replaced by carefully-crafted pathways, cracked statues of ghosts dressed in regal apparel and mayoral clothes like monocles and sashes… There were even a few abandoned houses with shattered windows dusted in cobwebs! This certainly made the whole place feel a little less dead, for lack of a better word.

Hex paused and let her feet drop down to the ground, then passed her gaze towards an arched cobblestone bridge that lacked the guard rails of the prior bridges. However, the bridge itself wasn't of much concern to her—rather, she was more concerned with that gate that laid on its other side!

So, she floated back up and dashed over the bridge, then floated closer to find that it was indeed a gate made of rotted black wood! However, it had no traditional lock and key. Rather, it was bound tight by a rusted lock puzzle guarded by an imp that seemed a little more frazzled than the usual lockmaster imp.

"What's wrong, little one?" Hex asked as she brushed her finger against the lockmaster imp's fuzzy head.

"There's, there's another guy in her with me!" The lockmaster imp squealed as it jumped up and down, "And he's really freaking me out! He's all red and fiery and angry all the time and he never shares the teleporters!"

Hex hummed as she only half-listened to the lockmaster imp while it went on a further rant about its roommate, then both her and the imp jumped back as Ghost Roaster arrived in a burst of green flame!

"I'll tell ya what's wrong," Ghost Roaster scoffed as he eyeballed the lock puzzle, "There's a lock puzzle here! I'm awful at these things!"

The lockmaster imp gulped and dove back into its lock puzzle, then peered out the lock as Hex floated up to the puzzle and glazed over its insides. Four switches, a strange flaming red imp not unlike the ones that usually guarded undeath lock puzzles and a few stray rows of blocks… This wouldn't be so bad.

Hex held a hand up to the lock puzzle, and in response the puzzle glowed and shuddered, then twisted and turned before it dropped off the gate entirely!

As the gate's withered doors creaked open, Ghost Roaster's gaze bounced between the gate and Hex while his jaw dropped.

"How did you do that?" Ghost Roaster asked, "That thing would've taken me me a century!"

"It's only natural," Hex replied as she floated through the gate, "Lock puzzles were a favored hobby of mine in my youth."

As Ghost Roaster rattled behind her, Hex forwent examining the rotted houses and abandoned building in favor of the old, half-broken sign beside them.

Though the majority of the sign's arrows had been broken off or could barely be made out, there was one that stood bold and strong despite the tests of underworld time. It pointed straight down the brick road that made up the village's center, and on it was only a place's name…

"Haunted Village," Hex read as she drew her fingers against the signpost, then turned back to Ghost Roaster, "It seems there's civilization close by."

"You sure?" Ghost Roaster remarked as he glared up at the sign, "For all we know, it could be another ghost town like this!"

Hex turned her gaze down to the brick path before them. "I suppose there's only one way to find out."

§

"Hey, Spyro!" Chihiro exclaimed as she gently shook Spyro's shoulder, "I think I see something ahead!"

"You do?" Spyro asked as his eyes flashed yellow with a subtle light now emanated from them, "'Cause I can barely see anything in all this darkness!"

Chihiro hummed and leaned forward, a cyan glow bright from her hands and one of the few sources of light around this cold, dreary place, then skipped ahead.

"Alright…"

Chihiro rubbed her hands together and summoned a gigantic sphere of light. With a hup she cast it into the skies, then held up a finger that crackled with magic.

"LET'S SHED SOME LIGHT ON THINGS!"

A shot of magic like a rocket exploded from Chihiro's fingertip and slammed straight into the light sphere, which in turn exploded and shed gentle cyan light all across the area!

Spyro stood in wonder as the undead area changed from dreary to creepy to fantastic and mystical as the cyan light unveiled the rest of the world all around them... And more importantly, it also completely lit up the path ahead!

"Yep, that's what I thought!" Chihiro chirped as she turned around and ran a hand against the object before her, "A block puzzle!"

Sure enough, there before Chihiro was a chipped cinder block covered in dead moss and broken chips, one that blocked the way off for mere moments before a snap from Chihiro's fingers sent it skating away.

Chihiro smiled and beckoned for Spyro to follow before she herself jumped into the thick of the maze and pushed away the blocks. She had started out well enough, with the blocks hastily shifted away and formed into a makeshift path the moment she touched them… Then bonked right into a block she had accidentally pushed in front of her path. She moaned as she tried to push the block away, but it wouldn't budge a bit! It was completely stuck, almost like it had been frozen to the spot!

Chihiro made another loud groan as she held out hands dusted with an aqua glow. If she couldn't push it out of the way, that maybe she could toss it! Chihiro grinned as the aqua light from around her hands spread to the block while it nudged up just a bit... But her smile faded with the dying light as the block crashed back down onto the ground.

"Ugh, no more," Chihiro groaned as she panted and slunk down against the cold stone blocks, "I must be rusty or something."

"Being in an Undead realm probably doesn't help, either," Spyro said as he flew over to a switch at the beginning of the maze and flicked it on, "It's so cold down here, it might as well be in an eternal winter!"

With one single flick of the switch, the entire world around changed from the barely-illuminated undead realms to the much more lively (pun not intended) living realm! The cold, dead trees grew strong and full of colorful leaves, the dead earth became rich with grass… Heck, even the cinder blocks seem brighter as they became whole and covered in soft moss!

Chihiro beamed as Spyro flew over and pushed the block she faced with barely any strain, then jumped to her feet and pushed it alongside him. The two of them grunted as they pressed what felt like ten tons of cinder block against the floor, but finally with a little magic on their end and one last push, they sent the block flying down the path until it crashed into the blocks that bordered off the maze!

"Whew, talk about a workout!" Chihiro remarked as she brushed sweat from her brow, "Just how many of these are blocking the way, anyways?"—Chihiro's eyes grew wide before she broke out into a giggling fit—"Wait, blocked! I made a pun without even trying!"

Spyro joined in Chihiro's giggling, and soon enough the two of them broke into hapless laughter. The pun wasn't even that funny, but just being around each other made them both grin like idiots without even realizing it. After all, something about being Spyro made Chihiro feel a little less tense, a little safer than usual.

"Y'know…" Spyro remarked as he sat on top of a block next to Chihiro, "It's nice to see you back to your old self again, Chi."

"Old, self?" Chihiro made a couple strained giggles, "What are you talking about? Have I been acting weird or something?"

"Not weird." Spyro flew off the blocks and began pushing a few more into place, "Just, down in the dumps, I guess. It seemed like lately, you barely talk to anyone and just hole yourself up in the training arena,"—as Spyro charged into a block and sent it skidding, he turned back to Chihiro—"It doesn't really seem like you."

Crap, he noticed! That was the one bad thing about Spyro—he was perceptive, and he could see right through her no matter what!

"Ahahahahaha!" Chihiro trilled, then winced and looked away, "I hadn't even noticed, I mean, well, I guess it's only natural I'd be busy,"—Chihiro made all sorts of wild and disjointed hand gestures—"I mean, I've had to keep on top of training and study for my exams and all that—"

"But after that battle with Kaos, it seemed like it was all you ever thought about!"

"KAOS?" Chihiro jumped up straight and whipped her head every which way, a terrified look in her eyes, "Where? Where is he?!"

"I wasn't talking about Kaos, Chihiro…" Spyro raised an eyebrow towards Chihiro, a small frown on his face, "I was talking about you!"

As she heard this, Chihiro drooped into quiet, solemn silence. Geez, that was embarrassing, and somehow she got the feeling that Spyro was even more convinced something was wrong. But, she couldn't derail the mission with her problems, not right now!

"Ha, ha, silly me, guess I must've misheard!" Chihiro tittered as she tried to avoid the strange look Spyro gave her, then frowned and rolled up her sleeves, "Geez, is it just me or is it kinda hot in here?"

Spyro frowned and placed a paw to his chin. "Now that you mention it, it does feel kinda warm here… Isn't it supposed to be fall? Why would a place on this side of the hemisphere be so warm?"

Spyro turned tail, then flew on one of the blocks and scouted around. When nothing was found, he magicked up a pair of magical binoculars and took a peek through those instead.

"Good, he forgot about it." Chihiro breathed a sigh of relief, "That would've been awkward."

"Found our culprit, Chi!"

Chihiro climbed up the blocks and frowned as she sat next to Spyro. There, not that far across from the blocky conundrum they were confined in was a… Gate, she thought it was? Well, it didn't exactly look like a traditional gate, anyways.

It had twin, metal pillars, one on each side, that held in the center a round red disk which had a bright, white flame symbol with a sharp S carved in the heart of it. Heat radiated from its very presence, and with its fire it made the cold autumn world feel more like summer instead!

"A Fire Element Gate?" Spyro asked aloud as he tilted his head, "Why would something like that be here, of all places?"

Spyro watched his makeshift binoculars vanish into thin air, then flew over to the Fire Element Gate and tapped its surface.

"What's so weird about a Fire Element Gate being here, anyways?" Chihiro asked as she leaned in front of Spyro.

"These Elemental Gates only respond to strong elemental energy from a particular element, and the undead are especially vulnerable to fire. Nothing rots a corpse like a good bonfire, after all." Spyro tapped the gate a few more times, then frowned and stepped back, "So a Fire Element Gate, in a place where it's unlikely to find many Fire Elementals… Something's definitely up!"

Spyro's eyes flashed red as he opened his jaw. "You might wanna stand back."

In a moment's passing, Spyro shot a bright orange fireball right at the gate's center, then sat back as it receded into the earth!

Chihiro frowned as the unfolded Fire Element Gate showed off an entryway made entirely of warm red stone that radiated heat like a hot and ready oven… Which, in hindsight, was well more apt a comparison to make than she initially realized! Still, it felt like she'd burn to a crisp if she stepped foot inside. However, she couldn't hesitate. If Spyro was right, there was definitely something suspicious about this place, and they had to find out what.

Oh, and speaking of Spyro he already went ahead—Chihiro could hear the sounds of his wing flaps as they echoed through the halls. Funny how for once it was him taking charge, not her. So, Chihiro gulped and hopped her way into the oven…

§

"Just how long is this bridge, anyways?" Ghost Roasted whined as he held his skull, "My feet hurt."

"Ghost Roaster, you don't have feet," Hex reminded as she gestured towards Ghost Roaster's chain.

"Oh, same difference!" Ghost Roaster yanked up his chain and glared down Hex, "How can you stand all this walking and running and walking some more, Hex?"

Ghost Roaster cast one look down at Hex's feet and sighed. "Oh right, you can float. That's hardly fair."

While Ghost Roaster sulked over his lack of floating ability, Hex sighed again as she ran her fingers over the rails of the bridge they trailed on.

Its bone white stone floors were full of small cracks and stains, its fencing was black and arrow-shaped and might have looked ominous if not for all the rust stains. Its aged looks might have been a concerning sign of weakness, but for such a worn bridge it was quite sturdy—and good thing, too, because while the path below was shielded by thick fog, it looked like an awfully long drop down. Hex drew a hand back as she peered over the bridge, then frowned as an intense darkness unlike anything they experienced prior cast itself over their path.

"Hey, who turned out the lights?" Ghost Roaster asked as he looked up, then completely froze.

Above them, a gigantic cinder block precariously hung from a worn, rusted pair of chains, but those chains were quick to snap and send the block shooting down on them!

Ghost Roaster screamed, but only for a few minutes as Hex grabbed him and pulled both of them out of the block's path! As it crashed down behind him, Hex and Ghost Roaster both breathed sighs of relief… Then winced as another shadow fell across the area.

"RUN FOR YOUR LIFE!"

The two of them dashed down the path as the blocks all crashed down one by one behind them and left behind significant dents in the path, but thankfully their run didn't last for long. Right ahead was a midway section in the bridge, completely free of blocks!

Hex and Ghost Roaster gained an extra spring in their step as they sprinted ahead towards this free space, but before they could reach it another block crashed down and blocked it off! Thankfully they had managed to stop themselves before they got smashed underneath, but that relief was short lived. One by one, the other blocks behind them had wound up and crashed down again, including the one that loomed over them now, and at the rate they were falling it wouldn't be long before Hex and Ghost Roaster were squashed underneath!

Hex snarled, then held out her hands as magic so powerful it chilled the entire area flared around her. As her hands glowed, a gigantic skull manifested in front of her and blew holes through the blocks the blocked off her and Ghost Roaster!

"Hurry!" Hex shouted before she floated off the ground and dashed through the holes!

Ghost Roaster was quick to heed her warning as well, because he immediately turned into his giant skull form and raced behind her! The two of them sped faster as the blocks behind them started to lift once more, then they both leaped out of the final hole and fell onto a square of the bridge that was thankfully completely clear of falling blocks. All that laid there was another one of those odd switches!

Hex and Ghost Roaster paused for a moment and leaned against the bridge's railing, then shuddered as another set of blocks with dead trees trapped inside their concrete crashed down ahead of them at rapid speed and reeled themselves back up. And unlike the others, they were a lot quicker than before! In one blink they'd slam down, in another they'd wind themselves back up again and repeat.

"These ones seem much faster than the last," Hex observed as she floated forward and placed a hand on her chin, while her gaze turned itself towards the switch, "I wonder…"

Hex floated over to the switch, then flicked it and watched as the world around them went from still and dead to bright and lively. The pathways, the bridges, the skies and more all became colorful and full of life. All except the blocks, which, while now flushed with green moss, stood still on the path!

Hex breathed a sigh of relief as she floated forward… Then dashed back as growling and the sound of bark splitting like gnashing teeth sounded off above them! She peered up ahead, then snarled and summoned an orb.

While the blocks had grown still, the trees that once rested within them had become quite lively, indeed, for they had transformed into stump demons with beady yellow eyes and thick bodies made of strong bark! The stump demons all snarled as they pulled their roots out from the blocks, then one by one they leaped off their blocks and circled around Ghost Roaster and Hex!

"I had a feeling those trees looked suspicious," Hex hissed as she summoned another orb and flung them both at one stump demon!

However, the orbs barely did a number on the stump demon! The most they did was blow it back into the blocks behind. The stump demon roared as it lunged forward and slashed at Hex, who just leaped back and shot more orbs back at it!

Meanwhile, Ghost Roaster snarled as he slammed his chain at the stump demons and smashed them straight into each other, but like Hex he had very little luck! Every time he tossed them aside, they just jumped back up and got even angrier than they did before! While the stump demons ganged up on him, he just snarled and vanished from view, then skidded behind them and slammed their backs with his chain once more.

The stump demons screamed as they crashed into the blocks and collapsed, then grumbled and groaned as they staggered back up.

"Geez, these stump demons sure are stubborn," Ghost Roaster muttered under the safety of his invisible shield, "I think I understand why Kaos hates trees now!"

However, Ghost Roaster said that maybe a little too loudly, because the stump demons immediately jumped to their roots and snarled! Looks like they didn't take kindly to his little comment… Because with another loud growl, they slammed their fists into the ground and send a torrent of roots tearing through the bridge's surface! Ghost Roaster cried out as the roots tore through his cloak and poked through his ribs, then lowered his head and grimaced, but not out of pain. Rather, it was because in his shock, he had become completely visible once more!

"… Stupid trees," Ghost Roaster grumbled as he looked down and clenched his jaw.

Ghost Roaster grunted as he tried to swing around his chain and break the roots, but unfortunately that was of little success. The roots were so massive and plentiful, he could barely move it an inch! Ghost Roaster snarled and yanked against the roots, but even that barely did anything other than jostle them a little. He groaned and panted as he finally gave up on freeing himself… Then his eyes went wide as a large shadow cast over him.

"Don't tell me…"

Ghost Roaster gasped and leaned back the best he could as several of the stump demons raised their claws and got ready to slash his head off! He struggled as furiously as he could from within the roots' confines, yet once again he was still trapped within the roots and couldn't break his way free! Green flames crackled around him as he snarled back at the stump demons, but the moment their wooden hands sharpened into knives, the flames extinguished in panic! Ghost Roaster could only sit there and screw his eyes shut as the stump demons swung down their sharp, sharp arms… But the blow he anticipated never came!

Before the stump demons could strike, Hex shot them in the back with a crowd of giant skulls and threw their on the faces with their arms high in the air! As the stump demons whined in pain, Hex teleported to Ghost Roaster's side, then summoned a team of skulls and watched as they chomped away at the roots. Her gaze remained fixed on Ghost Roaster as the skulls chomped away, yet the sound of the stump demons as they smashed away at her bone wall didn't escape her either. She waved her hand without even a slight turn around, and cursed orbs shot down from the skies and forced the stump demons to take cover!

"Can you hurry this up?" Ghost Roaster demanded, "I've got a really bad itch!"

"Don't rush me, Ghost Roaster," Hex scolded as she narrowed her eyes, "Managing two spells of this volume is hard enough as it is!"

Ghost Roaster snarled, then nudged his back against the roots as he tried to wiggle his arms out of their trap… But with no luck still! No matter how much he jiggled around and squirmed, he couldn't break free! And while he struggled and squirmed, his ball and chain kept slamming into the skulls and batting them away from the roots!

"Ghost Roaster, stop that this instant!" Hex scolded yet again as her eyes glazed down to the dazed skulls, "You're making this harder by moving around so much!"

"Well then go faster!" Ghost Roaster shot back as he glared back at Hex.

"I told you—"

CRASH!

Hex perked up and turned back to her bone wall, but now it was a bone wall no longer! While she was arguing with Ghost Roaster, her cursed rain relented, and without the cursed rain to bog them down, the stump demons got back up and shattered the bone barrier with one collective blow! And judging by the way those stump demons looked at Hex, she and Ghost Roaster were next.

But, Hex wasn't going to give in that easily! So, she summoned a trio of gigantic skulls, then blasted them forward and hurtled them straight into the stump demons!

Two of the stump demons were smacked into the blocks behind them and splintered immediately, but the third wasn't as quick to go down. It just skittered out of the way right before the skull could hit, then flung forward and slashed at Hex! Hex herself jumped out of the way, but the stump demon wasn't as quick to change its track…

So instead of hitting her, it slashed right into the roots that bound Ghost Roaster! Ghost Roaster's head nearly leaped out of his body as he narrowly avoided being slashed, but the moment he realized he was free he only grinned.

"Finally!" Ghost Roaster proclaimed as he scratched his head, "That itch was gonna drive me up a wall!"

The stump demon blinked for a few moments, then snarled as it glared at Ghost Roaster and charged at him. But, as it charged, Ghost Roaster turned into his giant skull form and slammed right into it! The two of them pushed against each other for a while, then finally Ghost Roaster broke into a smirk.

"Hey, ugly!" Ghost Roaster shouted as his gaze trailed away, "Over there!"

The stump demon turned around and yelped, but Ghost Roaster just cackled.

"Made you look!"

And just like that, Ghost Roaster opened up his jaws and bit the stump demon right in half! With a grunt, he spat the broken half of the demon over the bridge's side, then transformed back to normal and groaned while he pulled sprinters from his jaws.

As Ghost Roaster fished the last of the bark from his chompers, Hex floated up the blocks and drifted across, while Ghost Roaster scaled them in giant skull form and pursued after her. The two of them hopped off the blocks and passed across the blocks' makeshift path… Then stopped short as they nearly crashed into a block as tall as a tower!

"Yeah, something tells me that we're not flying over that one," Ghost Roaster remarked as his eyes turned to a switch seated beside him, "But maybe…"

Ghost Roaster hummed, then rushed forward and bonked the switch! As he recoiled and shook his head, the world around him went back to the cold, deathly atmosphere of the underworlds. But, ironically enough, the blocks were plenty alive as they lifted themselves up and dangled in midair!

Ghost Roaster grinned as he dashed down the open path, but Hex saw fit to just teleport again and again and again until she finally reached the very end of the bridge. She popped back into existence and floated back down to the ground as Ghost Roaster reached the bridge's conclusion, then the two of them left the bridge behind and turned their attention towards a broken wooden arrow.

"'Haunted Villa,'" Hex read from what could be made out of the broken sign's surface, "Seems we're close."

In fact, they were very close indeed! A trail of signs that warned ghost eaters to leave and had crude depictions of monsters eating hapless ghosts with bright red no signs painted onto them guided Hex and Ghost Roaster to a worn gate with a lock puzzle hung in its center.

Hex immediately wandered off to unlock the puzzle, but while she toyed with it Ghost Roaster just frowned and nudged a sign that depicted a bright red no painted over a skull that looked suspiciously like his own head.

"Huh," Ghost Roaster wondered as he stood back up, "Wonder who that's for?"

Whoever it was for, Ghost Roaster didn't have much time to contemplate their identity, for Hex had already solved the puzzle and unlocked the gates! So, they both passed through the gates and peered over the hill to find a worn little village that was hauntingly quiet and abandoned… Just what had happened there? Whatever it was, they had to find out. So, they crept down the hill and into the village limits…

§

Chihiro hummed and his head hands behind her back as she leaned against the gentle, warm surface of the oven's walls. The insides of the oven, surprisingly, weren't all that hot! Though it still had that warm glower of heat to it, it was more pleasant than unbearable, like a warm summer day.

Chihiro unzipped her vest to keep from overheating and hummed a tune to herself as she followed the path below her, the sound of Spyro's flight being her guide. Thankfully this path seemed straightforward enough with few turns. It shouldn't be long before they reached whatever destination they had!

"A dead end?" Spyro exclaimed from down the hall.

Wait, did she hear that right? Chihiro poked her head around the corner and unfortunately enough, she did. Spyro had found himself at a dead end.

"Just our luck, right Gold?" Chihiro chuckled as she walked up to Spyro with her hands dug deep into her pockets, and nudged her head to the left, "Follow me, I think I saw another way a few steps back!"

Spyro flew behind Chihiro as she traced her steps back to a few corridors prior, where sure enough a split in the path formed! She walked down that way, completely cool and collected despite the heat that beamed down from above… Then slammed face-first into a hot wall!

"OWCH!" Chihiro shrieked and rubbed her flaming hot face, "HOTHOTHOTHOTHOT!"

When the heat and pain subsided, Chihiro looked to her side and groaned as she saw another dead end. That is, until she turned around and found that the dead end was actually just a corner!

"Hopefully this one is it…"

Chihiro made an uncertain trill as she and Spyro walked down the path, but alas, it wasn't the end. Well, unless said end they were looking for was yet another dead end, which that path certainly was. For that matter, the rightward path they took lead them to another stop, as did the one they got when they went down a few steps, and turned around right, and slid to the left…

"Just how many dead ends are in this place, anyways?" Chihiro lamented as she finally fell to her knees and slunk against the wall.

"I'm just as lost as you are, Chi," Spyro replied as he sat down on the warm floors and sighed, "Everything starting to look the same…"

"So you wouldn't happen to remember the way out?"

Chihiro sighed as she leaned further back against the wall, only for the wall to fade out completely! With her support gone, Chihiro fell backwards on the floor with a shout.

"Hey, what's the deal here?" Chihiro pulled herself back up and turned around, a moment of pause taken to rub her aching head, "I could've sworn there was a…"—Chihiro frowned and looked up—"Wall here…"

Chihiro blinked once, then twice as she gazed down this strange new path before her. Its halls were a bit colder than the prior ones, almost more befitting of the chilling autumn world outside, and its surfaces slowly gradiated from red to purple the further down it stretched. It was nothing like the passages she had trailed down endlessly before!

"A secret path!" Chihiro exclaimed as she jumped to her feet and snapped her fingers, "Why didn't I think of that earlier?"

Spyro smiled and rolled his eyes, though the way he beamed showed it was more playful than sardonic.

"Come on!" Chihiro beamed and grabbed Spyro's paw, "Maybe this'll give us our way out!"

With no hesitation and a renewed spirit to boot, Chihiro blazed down the trail planted for her, Spyro close in hand. As she ran, the pathways shifted from red to purple to a chilling deep blue, almost in accordance with the cold temperatures… It had gotten so cold, Chihiro had to summon a torch just to keep warm!

But, that wasn't the only odd thing in this strange room. From down across the halls, faint voices like whispers echoed down the path at such a low volume that Chihiro could just barely pick up on them. But, that was odd. Chihiro hadn't heard anything prior, nor seen any signs of life. Either she was starting to hear things, or something strange was going on here.

"Voices?" Chihiro whispered as she stopped a little further ahead and perked up ahead.

Having gone a little further ahead, Chihiro had finally managed to glean some insight into what they talked about—they were all groaning in pain as they rambled on about "Conquering," and "Armies," and "Masters." Just what was that all about? Chihiro raced down the path to find herself at another seeming dead end, then pressed her palm against its icy surface and watched as it vanished under her touch, then drew back as it unveiled not another hall, but a room!

A wide, open room that was so chilly it had crystallized in certain places and sent a few nasty drafts down the halls, but that wasn't as concerning as what was inside. Rather, some gigantic eyeball… Tendril… Thing, went on a long, rambling speech to some party that couldn't be seen from the halls' confines.

Chihiro frowned and stepped forward just a bit as her eyes trailed over the gigantic eyeball dude… Then she completely froze as she saw the ones he addressed. No, no, no, it couldn't be! It wasn't! She didn't want to believe it…

But there, with blank, mindless eyes all trained on the eyeball, were the rest of the Skylanders! They looked just like Flynn did when they found him, all bloodshot eyes and sickly green skin that had patches fallen off to reveal graying cold flesh. They were no more than mindless zombies, unable to do anything other than address their "master."

"Guys?…" Chihiro croaked as her whole body shook without her realizing, "No, no, no…"

"This plan is absolutely perfect!" The eyeball proclaimed as it clapped its tendrils, "First, I starve the local ghouls of any substantial food until they're so desperate that they'll even feed on the living to cease their hunger…"

The eyeball floated back and forth as it spoke.

"Then, I trick the Skylanders into coming here and curse them into helming my undead army! And once the final step comes into fruition…"

Its tendrils balled into fists as the eyeball puffed its chest and stared at the ceiling.

"I, OCCULOUS, WILL RULE ALL OF SKYLANDS WITH AN IRON FIST!" Occulous chuckled and looked aside, "Well… I don't have hands, but the point still stands."

"We can't let him do this!" Spyro whispered as he pushed his head over Chihiro's shoulder, "Come on, Chi, let's roast this—"—Spyro stopped short as he gazed over Chihiro—"… Chihiro?"

Chihiro's breath turned fast and panicked as the blood rushed through her ears, pumped by a rapidly-beating heart. Her whole head had grown so sick and dizzy that she could barely look ahead, yet her bleary eyes couldn't tear themselves away from the sight of the zombies that were once the Skylanders…

That were once her friends.

"No, no, I can't do it! I can't do this!" Chihiro sobbed as she fell to her knees while her body shook worse than before, "I can't fight them! I can't, I can't do that! There's no way…"

Chihiro hung her shaking head, barely able to keep from passing out, while tears dripped from her face and froze on the cold blocks before them. They, this was what happened to them? All because they went to that buffet... And if she had gone with them, she might've ended up the same way herself... No, if she had gone with them, surely there was something she could've done to stop this, but she didn't! She didn't go with them and now they were cursed into zombie servitude and it was all her fault!

"Chihiro, it's okay, it's okay," Spyro whispered as he fell down to Chihiro's crumpled height and tried to pull her back up, "I know things look kinda bad right now, but I know there's some way—"

"IT'S HOPELESS!" Chihiro grabbed Spyro by the shoulders and stared him straight in the eye, in his very concerned golden eyes, "THERE'S NO WAY I CAN DO THIS! I CAN'T FIGHT MY OWN FRIENDS! NOT LIKE THIS!"

Tears poured down Chihiro's face at such mass and speed it was like waterfalls came down from her eyes and burned her face.

"THEY'RE ALL MINDLESS ZOMBIES NOW, AND IT'S ALL MY FAULT!"

"What?" Occulous exclaimed from above, "Who's there?"

Occulous snarled as his voice raised to a yell. "MINIONS! FIND THOSE INTRUDERS IMMEDIATELY!"

Those groaning, pained noises morphed to growls and snarls and gnashing teeth as the zombie Skylanders piled out from the room with surprising speed for zombies!

Chihiro only barely felt Spyro grab her hand and pull her away from the armies ahead, though her head was so dizzy it hardly mattered. Everything had become one and the same to her! The walls and floors blended into one, and her gaze had become transfixed on the hordes of hulking, groaning, rabid zombies behind her…

No wait, what was she doing? Those zombies were her friends, and if they got turned into zombies because of her, then she needed to bring them back to their senses! Chihiro yanked her hand out of Spyro's paw, then thrust a shield in front of herself and held her hands out high. Surely, a purification spell would be enough to cleanse them of whatever curse had caused this…

Chihiro grimaced as bright, sparkling rainbow light flared from her hands, then its light flickered as she lifted her head and caught another glance of her mindless, brainwashed friends scratching and pounding away at her barrier. Something in her mind completely went blank as she locked eyes with them, her thoughts replaced by the sound of her blood rushing to her brain… Chihiro's whole body locked up and froze in horror as the purification spell's light faded, then she screamed and fell back as the barrier finally shattered!

Chihiro sat frozen in utter, stoic horror as the hordes of zombie Skylanders pounced on her, but before they could attack Spyro rushed in front of her and scared them away with a warning fireball!

As the fireball hit the ceiling and exploded into faint embers, Spyro's eyes flashed from red to purple as he summoned magical chains and bolted them around each zombie's legs and arms! They all groaned as they strained against the bonds, but their struggling was futile, for no amount of thrashing and kicking and biting would free them! They struggled just as much as Spyro, who clenched his entire face and strained as he struggled to keep the chains from shattering.

"Chihiro!" Spyro grunted without even the slightest turn away from the zombies, "The spell, now!"

Chihiro gasped, then jumped to her face as cold, terrified sweat dripped down her face. "The purification spell, right!"

Chihiro whimpered, then held out her hands and watched as her hands flared with rainbow light once more. While the light burned bright and swirled like an active kaleidoscope, Chihiro directed it like a cannon towards Gill Grunt, who strained and groaned as patches of sickly green scales peeled off his body from the excessive movement.

Chihiro trembled as she got ready to fire, but then… Something flashed into her mind, something that caused her to completely freeze. In her mind, she saw Gill, still fully alive with a wide smile on his face as he ruffled Chihiro's face and congratulated her on her latest mission done well. By all accounts, this should've powered her further, but instead it made her stomach turn! Chihiro shook her head as she turned her gaze to the other Skylanders, but every single time her concentration broke the moment she locked eyes with them!

She saw Whirlwind, who screeched like a rabid vulture while monochrome rainbows shot from her horn, and Chihiro could only envision the same Whirlwind who had tended to her when she was hurt and even played board games with her through the long, lonely nights! Chihiro saw Terrafin as he gnashed and leaned forward in some attempt to bite down on something, and she saw the Terrafin who gave her fighting tips and joked along with her during tiresome patrols. She'd see Stealth Elf, who would spar with Chihiro and give encouragement in her own honest, to-the-punch way, Trigger Happy who was always a source of joy and cheesy jokes, Eruptor, who had always been a huge softie despite his grumpy attitude…

She looked among the swarms of zombies, and all she could see were the friends she had failed. She had vowed to protect them, to help then when they needed her, but she couldn't even stop something as awful as this from happening!

And worse, it was something entirely preventable too! Had she just gone with them instead of holing herself up to sulk and obsess over her failures, maybe she could have stopped this from happening! But she didn't!

And now they suffered the consequences of her actions, even though they had nothing to do with this. She had been so caught up in sulking and fretting about her fate and whether or not she was good enough for her friends… But in the end, that obsession ended up being those friends' undoing! She lost sight of everyone but herself again, and this time, surely there was no way her mistake could be undone!

"No…" Chihiro barely whispered as she stepped back, all while the rainbow glow of the purification spell flickered on and off like a dying light, "No, this can't…"

"Chihiro, hurry!" Spyro cried as he screwed his eyes shut, "I can't hold this much longer!"

Chihiro gasped and shook herself back into reality as Spyro spoke, then cried out as she grabbed hold of the light and tossed it into the crowds of zombies!

The rainbow light of the purification spell exploded and encompassed the area with a light so bright, Spyro stumbled back and completely lost his grip on the chains that kept the zombies from fully lashing out. This spell better work, because otherwise they'd be toast!

Chihiro clenched her teeth and hissed as the light faded, then as it completely disappeared Chihiro's eyes fluttered open. Had the purification spell worked? As her gaze refocused, Chihiro's heart beat faster than it probably should've… And nearly completely stopped as she fell to her knees.

No, her spell hadn't worked. There before her were the still-zombified Skylanders, who at most just seemed a little dazed and disoriented as they stumbled around and blinked… Then finally, they shook their heads and snarled before they scrambled towards Spyro and Chihiro!

Spyro gasped and scrambled back as Gill Grunt launched himself towards Spyro like a wild animal, then as Gill Grunt hit the floor headfirst. Spyro grimaced and stepped back.

"Gill, come back to your senses!" Spyro pleaded as he bit his lip, "You're not a zombie warrior, you're a Skylander! You're our friend, don't you recognize us?"

Gill Grunt grunted and tilted his head, then snarled as he stormed forwards on all fours and bit at Spyro once again!

"Alright, if you won't listen to words…" Spyro lowered his horns and charged forward, "Maybe this'll knock some sense into you!"

With a snarl and a grunt, Spyro slammed right into Gill Grunt's gut, then heaved Gill Grunt up and tossed him back into the zombie crowds! Spyro took a moment to watch as Gill Grunt crashed into Zook and Trigger Happy, but only for a moment as he jumped out of a sickly green flame shot by Sunburn!

Chihiro, meanwhile, wasn't doing much better than Spyro was! In fact, it was arguably even worse, for while Spyro could at least bring himself to attack, Chihiro couldn't even raise her palms! She just dodged attack after attack as she watched the zombies that were once her friends throw themselves right at her!

"Guys, please! This isn't you!" Chihiro begged as she avoided a punch from Slam Bam, then skidded away from a monochrome rainbow blast fired by Whirlwind, "You're our friends, try to remember!"

Chihiro shuddered as she tried to teleport out of Slam Bam's way before he could sock her, but it didn't work! She was so panicked and unfocused that all she could muster was a couple sparks of magic! Chihiro gasped as she looked down at her hands, then screamed as something headbutted into her chest and tossed her on the ground!

Her whole head swelled with pain as she slammed against the cold, hard floor, then she lifted that same sore head to find none other than a zombie Wrecking Ball, his jaw near-completely unhinged as he got ready to take a bite out of her! Chihiro screamed and kicked him off… Then gasped as she watched him hit the floor and cry out in pain!

"I'm sorry!" Chihiro wailed as Wrecking Ball cried like a hurt child, "I didn't mean it!"

Chihiro's head further swelled, but this time not from the usual kind of pain. Rather, her guilt bubbled in her heart as hot tears started to drip from her cheeks, while her whole body shuddered so badly she couldn't even peel herself from the floor. She just fell to her hands and knees while the sobs grew more intense and choked!

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry! I'm sorry I couldn't stop this!" Chihiro scratched her fingers against her face while the choked, strained, incredibly loud sobs poured out in waterfalls, "I tried, I really did! I know I should've gone with you and made sure this didn't happen, I know, I'm sorry! I tried to purify this curse away—"

"Purify?" Occulous echoed as he rounded the corner and glared down Chihiro, "Hah, what a joke!"

Chihiro gasped, then promptly crawled back as she caught sight of Occulous, who stood behind the zombie Skylander army like a monster ready to pounce.

"The zombification spell on them is so powerful, no measly purification spell you can throw can break it!" Occulous broke out in gleeful cackles that sounded so proud it made Chihiro sick to her stomach, "There's nothing you can do to bring them back! They belong to me now!"

There's nothing you can do.

Chihiro could only freeze up and hang her head while those words echoed in her mind. That's right, she had no chance whatsoever of breaking this curse. She had really lost them for good… It was really hopeless. Chihiro just sobbed into her legs as Occulous ordered an attack, but she didn't try to fight back this time. She just sat there and waited for the blow to strike. After all, it was what she had deserved. Maybe even if she got turned into a zombie too, they could at least be together in zombification…

"Come on, Chi!" Spyro cried as he grabbed Chihiro by the arm, "We have to get out of here!"

Chihiro gasped as the purple light of a magical shield filtered over her. Sure enough, Spyro had rescued her in the nick of time! But, she didn't feel relieved. All she could do was watch the zombie Skylanders pound and snarl and growl away as they tried to break down the walls…

"MINIONS, HURRY UP AND DELIVER THOSE INTRUDERS TO ME!" Occulous cried, "IF YOU DON'T, I'LL BURN YOU OVER THE STOVETOP!"

As Occulous's words rang around the halls, Spyro flew even faster thanks to a spell's burst, then cringed as the sound of shattering glass sounded off behind them followed by the crashing footsteps of a stampede!

"Alright, Chi," Spyro said as he dropped Chihiro off and dashed from wall to wall, "Which one of these was the one that brought us here?"

Chihiro winced as her eyes, which had grown bleary and sore from crying so much, bounced from wall to wall… But she couldn't remember! Everything looked identical, and her mind was so fuzzy that the memories before had bled together into one. Chihiro shuddered as she tried to pull herself off the ground, then gasped as the sound of gnashing teeth and guttural cries grew louder!

"They're gaining on us!" Chihiro cried as she looked back at Spyro, who in turn winced and pressed away even faster!

Chihiro whimpered as she turned back around and held out a trembling hand—maybe if she created a shield to block them off, that could buy her and Spyro a little more time. She shuddered as a bright blue glow leaped out from her hands and formed a faint shield that crackled like static as it stood in the gateway… But it flickered out immediately! And worse yet, the other Skylanders were already rounding the corner, it was too late!

Chihiro's whole head went numb as the world around her spun, though her body had grown too numb to really take it in. Her sights had grown blurry and morphed into one while her stomach churned with worry, and she barely made out Spyro pressing against a wall... Only for the wall to completely disappear! Chihiro gasped, then grunted as her body lurched towards the floor. But before she could hit the ground, Spyro grabbed her by the hand and pulled her into the open darkness!

Chihiro shuddered and panted as her hands and knees hit the cold floor, then as the wall formed behind her she completely froze. Wait, had the other Skylanders seen them? Did they know where she and Spyro were? Just outside, something that sounded vaguely like sniffing and grunting hit her ears and her whole body locked up, as did Spyro's as he looked back at the wall… Then both of them sighed and collapsed to the floor as the sounds of footsteps grew fainter in the distance.

They were safe, but only for now.

§

The moment Hex and Ghost Roaster stepped into the village, one would have expected they'd find some sort of company… But alas, nobody was there it seemed. No passerby as they floated about their day, no stragglers or loiterers who lingered about the alleyways, nothing.

"Hellooooo?" Ghost Roaster shouted as he trailed along the village paths, "Any ghoul home?"

Nobody answered Ghost Roaster save for the whistling winds.

"Talk about a ghost town." Ghost Roaster placed his hands on his hips, then his amber eyes trailed over to a cobweb-covered house.

Wait a second… As a wisp of blue glowed from the window, Ghost Roaster dashed over and peered inside.

Sure enough, a trio of spindly-looking ghosts who seemed like they haven't eaten in years huddled around each other within the house's confines! Then, the tallest one peered up at Ghost Roaster and screamed before they vanished into thin air, with its companions quick to follow!

"What's their deal?" Ghost Roaster grumbled as he peeled himself away from the window and turned around.

It seemed as if Hex had a bit better luck, as she was chatting it up with a cyan-colored ghost who donned a ectoplasmic mustache paired with a tattered top hat and rusted monocle.

"Hey, Hex!" Ghost Roaster walked up to Hex and swished his chains, "Did you find anything out yet?"

The moment the ghost laid eyes on Ghost Roaster though, his jaw dropped in panic.

"It's him, the Ghost Eater!" The ghost wailed as they disappeared from view, "Run before he eats your soul!"

"Geez," Ghost Roaster scoffed as he crossed his arms, "You eat a couple ghosts when you turn undead, and all of a sudden you're a 'monster' and a 'scary ghost eater!'"—Ghost Roaster shot glares towards the crowds of trembling ghosts—"I don't just eat ghosts, y'know!"

Ghost Roaster extended a skeletal hand and began counting off his fingers. "Pizza, sandwiches, cakes, pies…"

"Wait a second," peeped up a tiny ghost from the front as they raised their hand, "Did you say… Pie?"

Intrigued mumbles and rumination came from the ghastly crowds as they slowly peeked out from their hiding spots.

"I sure did!" Ghost Roaster placed a hand on his chest, "I make some of the best pies in Skylands, if I say so myself!"

"What kinds of pies, though?" Asked another, larger ghost, "Cherry? Strawberry? Blueberry? Macadamia nut?"

"All those and more!" Ghost Roaster made a sagely nod, "I could make them in my sleep if I wanted to, just give me the ingredients!"

The ghost looked towards each other with wide eyes and smiles, but those smiles quickly wavered as they looked back at Ghost Roaster and winced. Their gazes bounced between each other and Ghost Roaster for a while, then they huddled around and whispered among each other… Before finally they nodded and turned back to Ghost Roaster and Hex with trembling smiles.

"Well, we have been dying to have some pie again," Remarked an elderly ghost as they floated ahead of Ghost Roaster and waved, "Follow me, we'll take you to the kitchen!"—The elderly ghost made a few wary, strained chuckles—"Just… Not too closely, please."

Ghost Roaster sighed, then followed the ghost down the cold, graying earthen paths while a fleet of curious ghosts followed behind him… At a distance, of course, just in case he had cravings for ectoplasm all of a sudden.

Their journey was thankfully short, for the building itself was pretty easy to spot—it was probably the largest building in the entire village, with its cracked, dulling white body akin to a temple in appearance save for the fork and knife-shaped sign covered in cracks that just barely hung from its front. Was this supposed to be a restaurant? Certainly looked a bit more morbid, than the usual kind.

"You know, there used to be a nice molekin baker who used this place as his kitchen. Still has the ingredients and everything!" The ghost explained as they stopped at the front of the "kitchen" with Ghost Roaster, "If you could make us some tasty pies, well…"—The ghost clasped their hands and hung their head as they swept from side to side—"That, that would be quite nice."

Ghost Roaster frowned, then sniffed the restaurant's front door and frowned.

"Alright," Ghost Roaster replied as he clasped his bony hands and floated inside, "I'll see what this place has to offer."

Though the doors were open, the room itself was completely pitch-black. It was a good thing everyone was undead and had no need for decent light, or else surely everyone would be tripping over each other at the moment. Though, something that smelled vaguely like eggs wafted in the air…

And Ghost Roaster definitely took notice, because he took a few sniffs and dashed off to the source! As his scent trail guided him to a pair of rusted steel doors, Ghost Roaster pushed them open to find a kitchen! And not just any kitchen, too!

It was the kind of fancy kitchen like the ones in big-time restaurants, with the giant sinks and fridges and cabinets that were surely full of tools and ingredients, ginormous ovens made with the latest tech… It was like something out of any amateur chef's dream! But at the same time it didn't seem very, well, prime for cooking of any sort. The ovens were covered in rust and dried grease, spiderwebs and dust practically coated the kitchen from ceiling to floor, the wood of the cabinets and fridges had holes rotted into it. Heck, even the wallpaper was peeling away, which was not a good sign at all.

Ghost Roaster frowned as he swept through the kitchen and dusted away spiderwebs with his ball and chain, then turned to the fridge and pulled open its dying door.

Inside, it had all sorts of ingredients you'd expect to find in a fridge—eggs, milk, fruit, vegetables and all that good stuff—but… Something was clearly wrong. Everything was coated in deathly dull and pale shades of blue and green, with sad, ghastly faces printed on every thing and nasty, rotten stenches.

"Ugh, the food here's just as dead as the rest of the place!" Ghost Roaster proclaimed as he slammed the door shut, then frowned as it turned to shambles from the impact, "Maybe the cabinets have something decent…"

So, Ghost Roaster hopped on the counters and pulled open the cabinets, but the food inside there wasn't much better, either! The bread was moldy, the flour and sugar were hard as rocks, to say nothing of the salt, and the jars of peanut butter, jams and preserved fruits were just as rotten as the food in the fridge! And worse yet, all of them had that same ghastly aura and odd coloration…

Ghost Roaster snarled as he jumped off the counters and peered through all the other fridges and cabinets, but once again he was met with similar results. Everything around him was spoiled, moldy and gross—hardly ideal for cooking anything, much less desserts.

"WHAT IS WRONG WITH THE FOOD HERE?" Ghost Roaster demanded as he waved his arms around, "WHY'S EVERYTHING SO DEAD?!"

"That's the problem, mister Ghost Eater—" said one ghost as they crept into the kitchen, then gasped and trembled behind the doors as Ghost Roaster shot them a glare, "We, we're in the undead realm, so, so, so we only have undead food! And we can't access the switch to take us to the mortal realm…"

"So where's this switch, then?" Ghost Roaster raised an eyebrow, "And it's Ghost Roaster, thank you very much.

"Sorry, mister Ghost Eater." The ghost trembled and scurried away, "But I don't remember!"

Ghost Roaster just groaned and buried his face in his hands.

"I can't work in these conditions…" Ghost Roaster grumbled as he pulled his head up and glazed over a suspiciously-arranged stack of crates hidden in the corner, "Wait a second!"

Ghost Roaster trailed over to the crates, then grinned as smashed them right in the center with his ball and chain! Ghost Roaster frowned as the splintered, rotten wooden remains of the crates collapsed… But that frown quickly changed to a smile when he saw what was underneath!

"The switch!" Ghost Roaster proclaimed.

Sure enough, a switch identical to the ones outdoors laid in the corner of the kitchen, and in completely perfect condition to boot! Ghost Roaster grinned, then floated over to the switch and flicked it on!

The world around him warbled as the switch's effects took place, and sure enough the kitchen cleaned itself up in no time! The lights flickered on as the spiderwebs, dust and ruin cleaned itself away from the kitchen surface and the colors brightened into the trademark polished creams and egg whites of any professional kitchen… It was truly a sight to behold!

Ghost Roaster grinned, then rushed back to the fridge and whipped its doors open.

"Now we're talking!" Ghost Roaster proclaimed as he yanked a bunch of fresh, perfect-for-cooking ingredients from within the fridge.

Ghost Roaster scattered the fridge ingredients all across the counters, then jumped on top and pulled out excessive amounts of flour, sugar and salt from the cabinets until he could barely be seen under the pile of ingredients. Seemed like a lot, but hey, he was cooking for an entire village! As he dropped the ingredients on the counter as well, Ghost Roaster dove to the cabinets underneath and shuffled around. With a grunt, he yanked a mixing bowl about four times as large as he was out of the cabinets and dropped it on one of the tables!

"Now, to make pies these ghosts won't forget!"

Ghost Roaster yanked the flour, salt and sugar from the counters, ripped the bags open, then dumped them all into the mixing bowl all at once! His grin only grew wider as he grabbed some butter from the counter, then set his hand alight just slightly enough to soften it and dumped it in as well!

"Where's the mixer…" Ghost Roaster glazed over the kitchen, then lifted his head and chuckled, "Wait a second, I don't need a mixer!"

Ghost Roaster flipped backwards, and in moments he transformed into his gigantic skull form, albeit without the flames that normally accompanied it.

"I am the mixer!"

And so, Ghost Roaster leaped into and ran in circles within the bowl's confines just fast, but not rough, enough to mix the ingredients until they turned to a fine dough! Ghost Roaster grinned as he hopped out the bowl and shook the dough from his body, then perked up and turned around as the kitchen doors opened behind him!

"Hex, just the witch I wanted to see!" Ghost Roaster proclaimed as he hopped down from the table and grinned as he turned back to his normal form, "I need a kitchen assistant right about now!"

"Ghost Roaster, what are you doing?" Hex asked as the doors slammed shut behind her.

"I'm creating a magical horse for the king of Shattered Island." Ghost Roaster rolled his eyes and pulled Hex to the tables, "What does it look like I'm doing? My life's crafts, of course!"

Ghost Roaster gestured towards the gigantic bowl of pie dough and nudged his head. "Think you can use your fancy magic to get all this pie dough out of here? I… Made a lot."

Hex looked at the bowl and scoffed.

"Something like that is child's play."

Hex held out her hands, and in response the bowl floated off the surface and dipped its dough back onto the table, complete with a loud plop.

"See?"

Ghost Roaster, however, paid little mind to Hex as he floated over the pie dough and grinned.

"Now, to roll this all out!" Ghost Roaster proclaimed as he flipped in the air and transformed back into a gigantic skull!

Ghost Roaster spun in place as he crashed back down on the dough, then rolled everywhere which way until it completely encompassed the table it sat on. With the dough firmly spread, Ghost Roaster returned to normal and hopped back to the lower cabinets, then yanked out an entire tower of pie cutters! Of course, it was also a very precarious tower of pie cutters, for it was so tall that Ghost Roaster waddled every way he turned just to keep them all from falling!

"Allow me to handle this part," Hex said as she waved her hand.

All at once, the pie cutters flew out of Ghost Roaster's arms, then soared over to the dough and pressed into its soft, squishy surface! With the pie dough firmly cut, the pie cutters soared away into the sink while the pie crust floated over the table and spun like saucers in the sky.

"Impressive," Ghost Roaster said with a cross of his arms and a nod of his head, "But can you—"

Right as Ghost Roaster spoke, a flock of pie tins flew out from the open cabinets and caught the pie crusts with perfect precision and time, then dropped into the holes in the pie dough! Ghost Roaster blinked furiously and dropped his jaw as the pie crust crimped itself with no prompting, then coughed into his hand.

"I suppose you can."

Ghost Roaster turned back to the horde of ingredients, then rubbed his hands together and licked his lips.

"Now here's the fun part!" Ghost Roaster said as he pulled boxes of fresh fruit and jars of preserves and milk from the countertop, "Making the filling!"

The sweet scent of fruit wafted through the air as Ghost Roaster and Hex simmered sauces, stirred fruit juice and whisked the other ingredients to their hearts' content, and it was so sweet and intriguing that the ghosts couldn't help but sneak a peek!

They phased through the doors and peered through windows as Ghost Roaster and Hex poured the filling into the pies and striped the pies themselves with strips of dough, occasionally topped with dough shaped into ghastly decorations such as skulls and tiny ghosts, then shoved the pies into the ovens. That sweet, warm scent of baking sweets grew more intense as the pies cooked to perfection, and some of the ghosts couldn't help but drool as they surely envisioned the delicious pies that were soon to come… But they didn't have to wait for long, because a ding told them the pies were ready!

The ghosts all swarmed around the doors and shoved each other around as the world slowly shifted back to the underworld's aesthetics, then leaped out of the way as Hex and Ghost Roaster burst through the doors with carts full of freshly-baked pie!

"BONE APPETIT!" Ghost Roaster proclaimed as he wheeled the cart over to a nearby table and set the pies, "GET IT WHILE IT'S FRESH!"

And boy, did those ghosts get it! The moment the pies were laid, they dashed over to grab as many slices as they could—some of them even ran off with whole pies or completely devoured them without even leaving the tables!

Heck, poor Ghost Roaster had to duck so he wouldn't be showered in an onslaught of pie filling and whipped cream… Then poked back up in amazement as the ghosts that seemed so melancholy before smiled and chatted it up as they ate their pies! Guess food really did bring people together.

"Huh, talk about a fast turnaround," Ghost Roaster remarked with a slight smile, "And here I thought all that time in the infirmary made me rusty!"

"Rusty? If this is rusty, I'd be glad to taste what you consider your best work!" One of the ghosts praised as they floated up to Ghost Roaster, "I haven't had pie like this in months, it seems. Or any kind of decent food, really."

Ghost Roaster's jaw dripped slightly. "You… You haven't? You aren't joking around, are you?"

"I'm afraid not." The ghost sighed as they nudged their slice of half-eaten pumpkin pie with a fork, "You know, when that molekin baker, Batterson, his name was? Well, when he was still around, he brought us tons of treats!"

The ghost started to salivate as their eyes drifted to the ceiling.

"Cakes, cupcakes, cookies, Mont Blanc, flan… But the best of all were his pies! With their gentle, flaky crust and sweet filling that just melted in your mouth, oh, you had to taste it! It was a delicacy like we had never tasted before."

The ghost chuckled as they shook their head. "But to be fair, undead food is pretty bland and hardly filling."

"Tell me about it." Ghost Roaster crossed his arms and rolled his eyes, "It's even worse than eating stale crackers for an entire week straight!"—Ghost Roaster shuddered as he looked aside—"And I know about that from experience…"

The ghost, however, didn't seem very amused by Ghost Roaster's wisecracking. Rather, they just made another despondent sigh as they gobbled down their pie and licked the plate clean.

"All we ever wanted was to eat that baker's sweets every day of the week!" The ghost sobbed as they finished off their plate and grabbed another slice of pie, "But alas, it was not to be."

"It wasn't?" Hex interjected as she floated up and brushed her fingers against the table, "What happened?"

"That awful Occulous took control of our village and outlawed all pies!" The ghost cried as the ate their second pie piece in one gulp, all while ectoplasmic tears streaked down their face, "Even so much as eating a crumb would be punished with second death!"

"Over a pie?" Ghost Roaster exclaimed as his jaw dropped, "That's ridiculous!"

"We thought so too, but…" The ghost whimpered as they wiped away their tears, "We learned the hard way that he was quite serious about it indeed, and he was so powerful that we were too scared to fight back. So like it or not, we were forced to comply. Without our delicious pies, famine completely swept over our little village."

The ghost then took several more slices of pie and chuckled. "Me, I've been so hungry I could eat somebody's brains!"

"Oh trust me, buddy, I know the feeling!"

Ghost Roaster and the ghost both shared a laugh, then Ghost Roaster jolted up as the ghost patted him on the shoulder.

"You know, when we were told the Ghost Eater had come to consume our souls," the ghost chuckled, "I wouldn't have guessed that we'd be the ones getting fed instead!"

Ghost Roaster, however, didn't seem to find this nearly as funny, given that he immediately clasped his jaws and frowned. "You knew we were coming?"

"Well, yes…" The ghost sighed as they put their plate aside for the first time since the buffet began, "Someone left a note with a picture of you and your friend, telling us that the Ghost Eater had come to eat us out of house and home—literally!"

"Yeah!" Cried another ghost as they floated into the conversation, completely oblivious to the blueberry and whipped cream stains still on their face, "That's why we locked the place up and set up all those stone traps!"

The ghost licked the blueberry juice and whipped cream off their face, then turned back at Ghost Roaster and whimpered. "Sorry about that, by the way."

Hex and Ghost Roaster both looked at each other with the same scowl, then Hex turned back to the ghosts and crossed her arms.

"Tell me, why was it that Occulous banned pies?" Hex asked.

The ghosts looked at each other and tapped their chins with their forks.

"Well, actually, it wasn't just pies," piped up the first ghost, "All non-undead food in general outlawed! In fact, he even instilled those switches that drained the world of anything undead so we couldn't get it!"

"But why?" Hex furrowed her brows and frowned.

"That's the thing," the second ghost replied as they shook their head, "We don't know. He just swooped into our village and proclaimed that we couldn't have any mortal food!"

Hex made a soft gasp, then turned back to Ghost Roaster and grimaced, a grimace Ghost Roaster shared in.

"Sorry to bow out, folks," Ghost Roaster said as he and Hex dodged away from the crowds of ravenous ghosts and towards the restaurant doors, "But we need to go find someone!"

§

"Phew, that was close!" Spyro sighed as he got up from the bluish-purple stone wall he had pressed himself against, "For a minute, I thought that wasn't going to work!"—Spyro then bit his lip and looked back at the solid wall—"Looks like this problem is way bigger than I thought it was. We're gonna need a plan!"

Spyro turned back to Chihiro and grinned as he flicked his wings.

"Chihiro, do you have any—" Spyro's serious face grew soft when he found that Chihiro hadn't even looked his way.

"Chihiro?"

No, she was curled into a ball against the cold, cold walls, sobbing as quietly as she could. Which, wasn't very quietly admittedly, but he was so focused on escaping that he hadn't even noticed!

"There's no way, Spyro… It's all over," Chihiro whimpered, "You heard what that Occulous guy said, there's no way we can stop this!"

"But—"

Chihiro buried her face in her hands ruffled her hair as frantically, as furiously as she could.

"I wasn't able to bring them back to their senses, I couldn't break the curse or do anything at all… There's no way we can bring them back!"

Spyro opened his mouth and went to retort, but then he shut it as Chihiro's cries grew so loud that they'd surely drown out anything he'd have to say.

"Why did I even do this in the first place? I promised I'd help you guys, that I'd protect you no matter what, but in the end I couldn't do that at all!" Chihiro tucked her head further into her legs, "I don't know what I was thinking, doing all this portal master stuff, I just ended up messing everything up! I messed up the island, I nearly messed up that village during my exam, I lost the Eternal Undead Source and got Cynder, Hex and Roaster super banged up, I lost to Kaos…"

As the last of her words left her mouth, Spyro perked his head up… As did a now very terrified with realization Chihiro.

"And I just said that out loud, didn't I?…"

Chihiro only moaned and buried her face back in her hands once more.

"Chihiro." Spyro padded up to Chihiro and gently lifted up her tear-stained face, "Is this what you've been worrying about all this time?"

"… Maybe?" Chihiro winced and bit her lip, her eyes far away from Spyro's, "Was is that obvious?"

"Well, you aren't exactly good at hiding these things." Spyro paused and wiped Chihiro's tears away with his paw, "You've been so on-edge lately, I had a feeling that there was something bugging you that you didn't want to talk about… Guess now, you're ready to talk about it?"

Chihiro sniffled a bit more, then sighed and wiped her face with her sleeve before she made a small nod.

"Even since I lost to Kaos that day, well…" Chihiro hesitated to speak for a moment, but gulped and lifted her voice anyways, "I've realized that he's way stronger than I thought! We were in entirely different leagues when we fought. How on Earth could I compete with that?"

Chihiro's voice cracked, and the way her eyes shone bright showed her barely-kept attempt to hide her tears.

"I've been working harder than ever so when we fight again, if we fight again, I'll be strong enough to stop him…" Chihiro bit her lip again, this time so hard the drops of blood dripped out, "But, no matter how hard I do, it's never enough! I'll never be able to stop him by myself, let alone anyone else! After all, I just keep messing up and getting people hurt, cause I wasn't strong enough or fast enough or smart enough…"

Chihiro sucked on her lip and winced, the pain from biting it finally realized, then finally she broke down in sobs and buried herself in Spyro's grasp.

"And now, everybody's gone and it's all up to me to save them, but there's no way I can do it! I could barely protect them then, and I can't save them now!" Chihiro dug her hands into Spyro's back while the tears flew down once more, "How could I ever call myself a portal master? How can I even call myself your friend when I let you all down like this?…"

Chihiro sobbed a bit more, but her cries were so raw and free-flowing that Spyro just held his hand and ran a paw down her back. He didn't want to intervene just yet—something in his gut told him now wasn't the time.

"Master Eon told me that the universe makes people portal masters and gives 'em these powers and stuff for some special reason, but I don't understand why it dumped all this stuff on me! I'm not good for anything…" Chihiro drew away from Spyro and leaned back against the wall as she hung her head, "I, I don't deserve something like that. I'm just some stupid kid from Earth who can't do anything right. Why was someone like me picked over anyone else?"

Chihiro slunk further down as she wrapped her arms around her legs. "But, I guess you wouldn't get that. You've been saving worlds and beating bad guys for years… This kinda stuff just comes naturally to you."

"Oh, I understand better thank you think," Spyro said, plain and simple.

"You do?"

As Chihiro lifted her head a little and looked back at Spyro with those teary, swollen eyes, Spyro walked over to her side and wrapped a wing around her shoulders.

"See, there's an old legend about purple dragons like me." Spyro looked down at his paw and flexed it, and for a moment a tiny frown fell across his face, "They say we're born every couple of generations to set the fate of eras and things like that. In other words, a purple dragon being born is kind of a huge deal."

"So, kind of like a portal master?" Chihiro tilted her head as she turned around and faced Spyro once more.

"I guess so, but… Truth is, I don't entirely understand it myself. I don't really get why the universe decided I would be the one to be born with all these fancy magic powers and huge purpose." Spyro shrugged and pressed his frown back into a smile, "And to be honest, I don't think it really matters!"

"YOU DON'T?"

Spyro was completely silent as Chihiro sniffled, then finally he drew Chihiro away to face him. The silence was stiff for a bit, then finally Chihiro gulped and drew back a bit.

"But why not?" Chihiro asked, eyes wide as if she was unable to believe what she just heard, "You were born with this huge purpose and stuff, isn't that kind of a big deal?"

"Chihiro… I may not completely understand all there is about fate and purpose and all that stuff," Spyro said at last, his voice solemn and matter of fact, "But there's one thing I know, and it's that I want to protect this world from evil!"

Spyro laid a paw on Chihiro's cold, shaky hand.

"I didn't do all those things I did because I was some special purple dragon with a special purpose and super strong magic, I did them because I wanted to do the right thing!"

Spyro looked up at Chihiro, who in turn looked back at him with those wide eyes before she reluctantly turned away. "And that's how I know that you've got what it takes to fix this."

"But, what does all that mean?" Chihiro asked as she heaved a sigh, "I don't get it, what does that have to do with me being strong enough to fix all this?"

Spyro finally withdrew completely from Chihiro and raised an eyebrow.

"Let me ask you something. Why did you want to save Skylands? Why did you want to become an apprentice? Why did you do everything you did since you came here?"

"Huh?" Chihiro frowned and rubbed her tear-streaked chin, her tired eyes now deep into contemplation, "Well… you see,"—Chihiro turned to Spyro looked down—"I, well, I wanted to help you guys! You're my friends after all!"

Chihiro tugged on her sweater.

"And, even if we weren't, I still would've done it! I didn't really understand what was going on, but, I was the one who found you guys, I was the one who turned out to be a portal master and all! If I didn't help you guys, who would've?"

Spyro only smiled and nodded.

"See, that, Chihiro… That's what makes you so powerful." Spyro gently wagged his tail as he stepped forward, "You've got something better than strength and smarts and fancy spells! Heck, you've had it in you this whole time!"

"I do?"

Spyro nodded again.

"All this time since we met, there's something about you I've been drawn to that I never really understood… Until now." Spyro walked up to Chihiro and tapped her heart, "It's your heart!"

"My heart?" Chihiro's eyes widened while small tears dripped down, "Is that really true?"

"Yeah!" Spyro nodded and clasped his paw, then laid that paw on Chihiro's foot, "See, Chi… You're more than just our portal master, you're our friend, too!"

Chihiro just stayed silent and gazed at Spyro with wide eyes, almost as if she was silently prompting him to continue.

"You care so much about everyone around you and you never give up on anyone! After all, you lifted me back up when we were trapped in that nightmare world, you did everything you could to help those cyclopes and trolls, heck, even when we first met you jumped right in to help us even though you didn't know a thing about us… You've always been there, cheering us on and doing whatever you can to help us win!"

"But, those… Those were just flukes! I, I messed up all those other times, too..."

Chihiro's whimpers silenced as Spyro gently pressed his head against Chihiro's own.

"But did you really, though?"

That one question from Spyro was enough to shock Chihiro into silence as she curled up and nibbled on her nails, then sniffed and tried to wipe away her tears.

"Well, we did get rid of those monsters, and when I messed up that village, we were still able to fix it and clean it up, and I guess we did get the Eternal Undead Source back..."

Spyro tilted his head and smiled as his tail swished against the ground. "And why was that?"

Chihiro sucked on her lip as the tears dripped down from her chin, but she didn't seem very sad anymore. She just sat in silent contemplation as she knocked her knees together, then finally she let out one last sniffle.

"Well, we saved the Fairy Kingdom and stopped those monsters and got the Source back 'cause we all worked together and stuff, and after I messed up that village, I went back to apologize and clean everything up..."

"See?" Spyro said, "In the end, even though you messed up, things still worked out!"

And just like that, Chihiro's eyes fixed on Spyro with a kind of quiet, shocked look that had just a hint of pleading to them, as if she was silently begging him to go on further. He had her attention, which meant it was time for the big finish

"You may have lost to Kaos back at the Fairy Kingdom, but we were still able to free it because you stalled him long enough for us to work things out, and we saved Ancient's Peak because you helped us stop those nasty monsters instead of giving up and running off. Not to mention, you worked just as hard as everyone else to help us get the Eternal Undead Source back and cared for Hex and Cynder and Ghost Roaster at the same time. Heck, if you didn't get them out of there in the first place, we would've lost a lot more than just the Eternal Undead Source back then."

Spyro drifted away from Chihiro and nodded, "But that's beside the point. You, heck, we all managed to get as far as we did because of how much you cared for everyone and everything, because you cared so much that you did everything in your power to help us out! You're practically the glue that's bound us together since all this started!"

Spyro lifted his head up and made a toothy grin.

"Your heart is your biggest strength, Chihiro. All those enemies we've fought before, those nasty clones, Kaos… All of those guys could never match up! And that's how I know you'll be able to stop this, because the Chihiro Hatsuki I know cares so much about everyone around her that she'll do anything to save them."

Chihiro only stood silent and awestruck, eyes wide and gaping jaw and all that. Though she said not a word, just the look on her face told Spyro that the things he said had definitely gotten through to her.

"Do you really mean it, Spyro?" She asked as last.

"I wouldn't say it if I didn't!"

Chihiro stood silent for a few moments, then finally she breathed in and hugged Spyro tight… But not in a desperate, broken way, one more sincere and warm.

"Thanks Spyro," Chihiro whispered as she finally brought herself to smile, "I, I… Thank you."

Chihiro's grin grew to that same radiant beam that was practically her trademark as she stood to full height, though it wavered with a bit of pain, then looked down at Spyro and pumped a fist!

"Now, let's get out of this place." Chihiro turned down to the halls and smiled, "We've still gotta save our friends, after all!"

"That's what I like to hear!" Spyro cheered as he jumped up and grinned. He turned his attention to the halls below, then flew down and frowned as he flapped down the way.

"Now, if I recall correctly I think we took a right here and a left after that!" Spyro looked back at Chihiro and watched her run her hands against the walls, "Actually, maybe it was the other way around?"

"Help!"

"I'm pretty sure it was the other way around," Chihiro replied as she drew to a stop and drummed her fingers against the wall, "Maybe,"—Chihiro held her head and sighed—"I got so worked up I completely forgot how we got here!"

"Help me! Help me! Can't anyone hear me calling for help?"

Spyro sighed and leaned against the wall behind him, unaware to how it flickered ever so slightly.

"I guess we could try that first, and maybe retrace our steps if we hit a DEAD ENDDDDDD—" Spyro screamed as the wall behind him completely vanished and he crashed down onto the floor, "ACK!"

Spyro groaned as he jumped back up to his paws and peered down the dark tunnel, while Chihiro skipped to his side and leaned forward. Spyro's little stumble had unveiled a deep, dark passageway into nowhere, lit only by the faint blue light that came off the walls around them.

"Seriously, help me! I can hear people over there, why's nobody heard me?"

"… And here I thought that was just my imagination," Chihiro remarked as she crossed her arms.

With a sigh, she lit a light sphere to use as a mock flashlight, then gingerly toed down the halls as the sphere's light grew brighter in response to the encroaching darkness.

"Better check it out."

Chihiro snapped her fingers, and the light of her sphere inched across the halls until finally, it had been completely lit up! Spyro's shadow crept up against hers as he joined her with a smile… Then flew up and caught her as she slunk down to the floor.

Chihiro heaved a few heavy breaths, then shuddered and forced herself to stand. "I guess all that crying took more out of me than I thought."

Spyro frowned, then leaned against Chihiro as an anchor of sorts as they walked down the halls. That same voice cried for help on loop, and Spyro couldn't help but get the feeling for a moment that this might have been some kind of trick… At least, until the voice started panting.

"Ugh, all that yelling's making my throat hoarse…" The voice whined, and true to their words their voice had gotten quite hoarse while they were crying out, "Why me? All I wanted to do was bake pies…"

Spyro's eyes crept across the halls, then narrowed as a short, third shadow joined his and Chihiro's! Surely, whoever was crying for help must have been close by! Spyro snapped his claws, and the light expanded a little further to reveal… A molekin!

Sure enough, before him was a fat, peach-skinned molekin with beady black eyes and a slightly-frayed black handlebar mustache on his face, dressed in chef's clothes that were stained and slightly torn in places. He had been tied together with a series of sleek, bony brambles that were effectively a functional rope, and he seemed awful worried… That is, until he caught sight of Spyro!

"Finally, somebody here who isn't undead!" The molekin cried in a very thick Vitalian accent before he made a shrill gasp of fear, "Wait a second, you aren't undead, are you?"

"Just as living as you are, buddy," Spyro said as his eyes turned silver, "Who are you, exactly? And how'd you get into this mess?"

"My name's Batterson." Batterson sniffled as he scuffed his shoes against the stone, "I'm, I'm just a humble baker who wanted to spread the joy of sweets to all Skylands… And look what it got me!"

Batterson broke out in sobs, and Spyro only sighed. Seems being trapped like this didn't make this Batterson guy inclined to speak, so Spyro would have to bust him free first. Spyro placed his paw on the brambles, then urged Chihiro to do the same with a tilt of his head. As she placed her own hands on the brambles, the two of them channeled their magic and watched as the brambles slowly unfolded underneath their fingers and toes!

Batterson gasped, then grinned and jumped to his feet.

"Thank you, kind stranger!" Batterson cried as he hugged Spyro tight!

"Er, it's all in a day's work," Spyro insisted as he pushed away Batterson, "Anyways, what happened to you?"

Batterson gasped, then shuddered so hard it almost chilled the entire area around them.

"Oh, it was awful!" Batterson cried as he made a series of exaggerated hand gestures.

"I just came here to sell some pies to the undead, because, well, who needs pie more than ghosts do, you know? And it was a huge success! The ghosts loved my pies so much that they'd flock in droves, and I made more gold than I ever had in my entire life!"

"That…" Chihiro said as she blew a strand of hair out of her face, "Doesn't sound that bad."

"But then, but then!" Batterson shoved his face in Spyro's and shook Spyor's shoulders, "That awful, awful Occulous ruined everything!"

Batterson whimpered as he nearly fainted from fear, but steadied himself and took a deep, shaky breath.

"He whisked me away in the middle of the night, stole my identity and dropped me into this dungeon! And that's not even the worst part!" Batterson sniffled, then blew his nose with his jam-stained apron, "He took my pies, the very pies I poured my heart and soul into baking… And he CURSED them!"

"CURSED THEM?" Spyro and Chihiro repeated as they looked at each other and then Batterson.

"Yes, indeed!" Batterson shuddered and bit his nails, "Whoever eats my pies turns into a mindless zombie, and if it hadn't been reversed by midnight… They stay a zombie forever!"

Chihiro gasped and looked down at Batterson with raised eyebrows. "Did you say it takes till midnight to become permanent?"

"Well, yes, that's what Occulous told me when he locked me up and ranted all about his evil plan to use my pies to raise a zombie army while I was being tied up!"

Chihiro made another small, shocked gasp, then turned back to Spyro and shared a grin with him. It was far from midnight right now, this curse wasn't permanent after all, and they still had time to save the others! This was probably the best news that they had heard all day!

"Thank goodness!" Chihiro cried as she pumped her fists to the skies, then shook her head and slapped her face—"Wait, what are we standing around here for?"—Chihiro stormed down the halls with a bit more energy than before—"We have to stop Occulous and save our friends!"

"Wait, your friends?" Batterson gasped and held his hands to his face, "Don't tell me he's already used those awful cursed pies!"

"It's a long story," Spyro said as he turned to Batterson and nodded, "We'll explain on the way!"

Chihiro dashed, then Batterson frowned and plodded after Spyro, who in turn flew towards Chihiro as the walls around gradiated from blue to purple, all while the temperature slowly rose… Seems like they were getting closer to the beginning!

Chihiro tapped a wall, then ushered Batterson and Spyro through as the wall disappeared before tailing after them right as the wall reappeared behind them.

"So, you said your friends got cursed, right?" Batterson asked as he grabbed Spyro's paws, "What happened? Have you contacted the Skylanders yet?"

Chihiro and Spyro both grimaced as they shot each other that look, the kind of look you make when you get roped into awkward situations where you really don't wanna have to break the news… But…

"Well, you see," Spyro said as he forced a smile, "Our friends… Are the Skylanders."

Batterson gasped and let go of Spyro's paws, then turned back to Chihiro who only affirmed this was a nod.

"Yeah, he's right. I'm a portal master apprentice and he's a Skylander," Chihiro explained as she fiddled with her zipper, "The rest of our team came here because they were told the residents were throwing a celebratory pie buffet in their honor, but…"

"Oh no," Batterson whimpered as he hung his head, "To think, my pies were used for such evil! If I knew it would end like this, I would have never become a baker!"

Batterson bit his trembling lip and seemingly got ready to sob again, but before he could burst into a crying fit Spyro patted his shoulder.

"It's alright, it's alright! That's why we're here!" Spyro exclaimed as he watched Batterson perk up, "We came here to try and reverse this curse!"—Spyro raised an eyebrow—"Which brings me to my next question… Occulous didn't mention anything about how to reverse the curse, did he?"

Batterson frowned and scratched his cheek as his eyes glazed over the ceiling.

"He said that it could only stop spreading if he himself was no longer alive, but… Nothing about reversing it, I'm afraid." Batterson's eyes lit up, "Oh, but the ghosts in the Haunted Village may know! They know a lot of these curses and conundrums!"

Spyro beamed, then flapped his wings and flew off the ground. "Then I suppose the Haunted Village is our next stop!"

The three of them walked in silence as the heat grew more intense, all while the purple walls around faded back into the bright red of the maze's beginning. The heat didn't particularly bother Spyro that much, in fact, it reminded him a bit of the warm, sunny days spent relaxing on the beach at Dragon Shores…

But Batterson didn't seem particularly happy with it, given that fact that he was sweating buckets and tugging on his shirt's collar every five seconds. But, thankfully Batterson didn't have to suffer for long, for after a few turns they had found themselves back at the beginning!

Chihiro grinned as she waved Spyro and Batterson over, then all three of them hopped out into the open and watched as the Fire Element Gate sealed back up once more.

"So, Batterson," Chihiro said as she zipped her vest back up, "Where'd you say this ghost village was?"

"Oh, the Haunted Village!" Batterson chirped as he ran ahead, "Follow me!"

Chihiro and Spyro shrugged as Batterson lead them over to a path of trees and bushes, then watched as Batterson pushed them aside to reveal… A pathway!

"The ghosts constructed this shortcut for me to make deliveries quicker and easier!" Batterson smiled as he walked through the hole and let the leaves fall into place once more, "It leads right to the village gates!"

Batterson then cheered, but his cheers sounded… Oddly echo-like. What in Skylands was that about?

Spyro and Chihiro shrugged as they crept through the leaves and walked down the dirt path that Batterson lead them through. It didn't seem like there was another other than extensive amounts of dirt and dead leaves. Wait a second, why did it feel like they were walking on air? The two of them dipped their heads down below, and found that the ground below had given way to a pit of glowing light!

With a scream, gravity finally took hold and dropped them into the light pit below in a whoosh of color and glitter…

§

Chihiro and Spyro both groaned as the flash of light vanished around them and dropped them at the top of a hill, right behind Batterson! Who, oddly enough, didn't seem shaken at all despite the impromptu teleporting. Well, if it was made for him, then Chihiro supposed he'd be used to it by now.

"Follow me!" Batterson said as he trailed down the hill, "The Haunted Village should be just pass this hill!"

While Batterson's hat disappeared pass the hilltop, Chihiro frowned and crept down the hill, all while her ears twinged just slightly. In the air were some uncannily familiar voices, and the further she and Spyro drew down this hill, the closer those voices grew… Could it be? Chihiro peered over Batterson just as the village came in clear sight…

And sure enough, there at the town square of an empty village were none other than Hex and Ghost Roaster, who talked among each other as they rested beside a broken fountain with no water! They seemed to have spied her and Spyro as well, because they immediately bolted across the village pavement!

"Hex, Roaster!" Chihiro cried as she bolted down… Then ran too far, tripped over hew own feet and faceplanted onto the cold stone floor. With a groan, Chihiro shook her head, then dusted herself off and jumped to her feet. "What happened to you guys?"

"Well, we just won the hearts of an entire village thanks to my baking skills," Ghost Roaster smirked as he popped his collar, "Let me tell you, I've still got it~"

Hex just sighed and shook her head, then lifted it up and cast Chihiro a glance.

"Anyways, what happened to you?"

"A lot," Chihiro replied before she took in a deep breath and released.

"Okay, so, Spyro and I found this weird gate that took us to the weird dungeon and we found this weird floating eyeball dude who kept talking about wanting a big undead kingdom—"

Ghost Roaster's eyes practically popped out of his skull as he looked back at Chihiro.

"Wait a second, did you say you say a floating eyeball?" Ghost Roaster asked.

Chihiro nodded, then frowned and tapped her chin. "I can't remember what his name was for the life of me, though… I think it was like, Octave or Octavius or—"

"Occulous?"

"OCCULOUS, THAT WAS HIS NAME!" Chihiro gasped and turned back to Ghost Roaster with wide eyes. "How did you know?"

"I knew there was something suspicious about that guy!"

Ghost Roaster grimaced at Hex, while Spyro flew up and shared a similar grimace with Chihiro. Then, all four of them nodded as Hex and Spyro stepped forwards.

"We ran into him while we were trying to figure out where our allies had went," Hex explained as she looked aside, "At the time, he just seemed particularly nosy… But then we met the locals, and according to them, he had taken over their village and forcibly starved them to second death!"

Hex turned back to Spyro with a steely look in her eyes. "Speaking of which, have you learned anything about their status?"

"I have…" Spyro winced as he clasped his front paws together, "But it's not pretty. That Occulous guy's a straight-up tyrant who wants to conquer all Skylands, and he turned the other Skylanders into zombie minions for his undead army! If we don't stop him by midnight, they're done for!"

Ghost Roaster gasped and snarled as green flames crackled around him… Then slowed himself as Hex threw an arm in front of him and shot him a glare.

"Thankfully, we still have time," Hex spat as she looked down at the village, "We just have to find out where Occulous went and beat him."

"But, that brings up another question," Chihiro said as she placed her hands in her pockets, "Just where here exactly is he? Heck, where should we even start looking?"

The four of them frowned as they mulled over this question, because it wasn't exactly an easy one. This was a pretty big place, and surely he could've be anywhere by now! He could be in the labyrinth, or he could be wandering about…

"BATTERSON, YOU'VE RETURNED!"

Chihiro, Spyro, Hex and Ghost Roaster all perked up and looked back in unison to see that the ghosts had finally left the restaurant and pie buffet behind! Now, they crowded around the restaurant's doors as they swarmed around Batterson and tossed him in the air.

"THREE CHEERS FOR THE SAFE RETURN OF BATTERSON, BEST BAKER IN ALL SKYLANDS!" The ghosts cried in unison, "HIP, HIP, HOORAY!"

"HIP, HIP, HOORAY!"

"HIP, HIP, HOORAY!"

Chihiro giggled, then skipped down to the crowds and joined in the cheers. It was hard not to, with how happy everyone was! Heck, even Batterson was smiling as the ghosts tossed him up and down! He must have been really well-liked if they were this happy to see him safe and sound…

"Best baker in all Skylands?" Ghost Roaster scoffed as he, Spyro and Hex joined the crowds as well, "Whose pies saved you from famine, I wonder?"

The ghosts turned away and let Batterson back on the ground, but they didn't seem to pay any mind to Ghost Roaster's smart remarks as they crowded around him, Spyro and Hex.

"Thank you kindly for saving Batterson!" Said one ghost as they shook Spyro's paw, "I couldn't imagine what our village would be like without his confections!"

"Yes, yes, indeed!" Chimed in another, "I think tasting that pudding is what going to the afterlife feels like…"

"I'm been dying a second death just to get even the slightest taste of a Mont Blanc again…"

Batterson just chuckled and blushed in the background.

"Actually, if you want to thank us," Spyro said as he withdrew his paw from the ghost, "You could tell us where Occulous is, if you happen to know."

All of a sudden, the ghosts' cheerful looks and wide grins turned to nerves and fretting as they looked towards each other and bit their invisible fingernails. That was never a good sign.

"Well, you see…" Said one ghost as they hid their arms behind their back, "Occulous resides at a fort just outside the village limits…"—The ghost winced as they sucked on their lip—"But, getting there won't be easy."

The ghost floated back and forth while their head hung low. "The fort is guarding off by a complex labyrinth guarded by dangerous monsters that very few have made it out of safely… Are you sure you would want to take on that?"

"Are you kidding? Of course we would!" Chihiro proclaimed as she stomped forward with eyes narrowed and fiery, "Our friends are at stake here, we'll do anything!"

"Well, if you say so…" The ghost handed Chihiro a worn, but still readable paper map and looked up at her with blank, but pleading eyes, "Good luck."

The ghosts all nodded in similar sentiment as they parted a path towards the village's exit, then whispered out brief wishes of luck and godspeed to Chihiro, Spyro, Hex and Ghost Roaster as they passed down the path.

Normally, Chihiro would probably be quick to acknowledge this, but instead she just clenched her brows even tighter as she wrapped up the map and stowed it away in her pocket.

"Don't worry guys," Chihiro just barely whispered as the paved stone paths made way for dead earth and withered trees, "We're coming."

Chihiro frowned as she finally lifted her head towards the rusted steel arrow fence that blocked off the entryway to what was surely Occulous's labyrinth, given the thick brambles of dead hedges that lined the way past it. But, not for long!

Spyro flew over to a switch that rested besides the gates, then with a quick press on his end the area around flourished with life as they swapped back to the land of the living! And while the hedges burst with ripe green leaves, the gates flung open and welcomed all who dared to enter!

Chihiro trailed after Spyro, Hex and Ghost Roaster as they dashed down the path, yanked the map from her pocket and glazed over it, then rubbed her finger across its worn paper surface.

"If this map is right," Chihiro said as Spyro, Hex and Ghost Roaster leaned over her shoulders and sneaked a peek, "This labyrinth starts here, and we have to take this path…"—Chihiro dragged her finger across the paper—"Take a left here, a right there, a turn ahead of that, twist there, and once we hit that lighthouse we should be halfway through…"

Chihiro just shrugged, then wrapped up the map and stowed it back away. "You know what? Now's not the time to linger on this. We've got hurry up and stop that Occulous dude!"

Chihiro bolted ahead, but this time Spyro, Hex and Ghost Roaster seemed almost hesitant to follow!

"Chihiro," Hex called as she floated forward, "Look where you're—"

"OWCH!"

Hex just sighed and shook her head. "Going."

Hex floated into the labyrinth's depths, then joined Chihiro and pulled her off of the ground.

"Ow, ow, owch," Chihiro groaned as she rubbed her aching face, then looked up and scoffed, "Hey, when did this block get here?"

"I tried to warn you." Hex turned back to the block, then held out her hands and tried to push it aside… But it wouldn't budge at all! So, Hex frowned as she placed her hand on the block's surface. "Strange, this doesn't seem to be an ordinary cinder block."

Hex hummed as she knelt down and felt around the block, then as her fingertips scraped against a suspiciously light patch in the block itself, the block shuddered and rumbled!

Right beside them, a peculiar, square-shaped hole had formed in the dead hedges, then the block slid through the hole and completely vanished as the hole was covered by dead thickets once more.

"I suppose I found our answer…" Hex whispered, then she made a soft gasp as the world around them warbled and shifted into the living's realm!

As the skies grew bright and leaves grew on the hedges once more, Spyro and Ghost Roaster ran up and watched the world around them turn bright and lively, then passed ahead of Hex and Chihiro as their attention turned to another cinder block before them.

Spyro frowned as he tapped a conspicuously pasty patch of stone on the block itself, then padded backwards as the block was absorbed into the bushes and flicked a switch that turned the world around them cold and undead once more!

With the block out of their way, they all passed around the corner with no mind paid to the suspiciously pale block that was lodged into the side of the hedges… Well, all but one.

"Hey, where did Ghost Roaster go?" Chihiro asked as she looked at the back of the group and frowned, "I'm sure he was with us a second ago—"

"GRRROOOOOARRRGGHHH!"

As Ghost Roaster rounded the corner, he whistled and held his arms behind his back… But unfortunately, the stump demon that followed him wasn't quite as quick to believe he was innocent, for it had leaped over the hedges and crashed right in front of Ghost Roaster! The impact was so great it not only shook the world around, but it blew Ghost Roaster straight into the hedges!

"I really hate trees," Ghost Roaster groaned as he plucked leaves off of his collar, then popped out of the bushes and shot a glare towards the stump demon, "Especially obnoxious ones like you!"

Ghost Roaster jumped back up and grabbed his chain, then twirled it around like a baton as the stump demon lunged at him and tried to punch him down. But, the chain's spin was so intense that it effectively became a makeshift shield—not a single blow the stump demon threw at him could land! In fact, it even completely splintered the stump demon's hands, too!

The stump demon wailed in pain as it stumbled back and looked down at its broken hands. Sappy tears seeped from its eyes, but while it sulked Ghost Roaster just beamed.

"See? You tree guys think you're so high and mighty," Ghost Roaster smirked as his chain of pain came to a stop, "But you're just—OOF!"

Unfortunately, what Ghost Roaster hadn't realized was that in the short moment he spent bragging, the demon's hands had grown back stronger than before! It punched him right in the kisser, and just like that Ghost Roaster crashed back into the ground.

"Ugh, I'm definitely gonna feel that one tomorrow morning…"

Meanwhile, Chihiro just winced as Spyro and Hex floated back behind her. She had seen stump demons in the books she had borrowed from Master Eon's study, but seeing one in person was even more terrifying than she had thought! Chompy blood dripped from its carved wooden lips as it glared down Ghost Roaster, and those large, beady eyes it held… Had fixed right on her!

The stump demon skittered around, then lunged down and growled as it launched itself towards Chihiro. But before it could hit her, Chihiro blocked its blow with a magical shield of her own!

The stump demon grunted in confusion as its fist bounced off the shield, then flew back as a flaming skull courtesy of Spyro and Hex blasted it back into the bushes! It groaned as it staggered up from the bushes and stumbled about… And yet, it still didn't get time to recover!

A shrill cackle chilled the air as Ghost Roaster charged forward back in giant skull form, then bit down on the stump demon's arm and spun it around. The demon's screams intermingled with Ghost Roaster's cackles as he turned to a big green blur, then finally he launched the bark demon into the horizon, never to be seen again! Well, hopefully.

"Ugh, bark tastes awful plain," Ghost Roaster snarled as he return to normal and spat the bark out, "That could seriously use some more salt."

"What did you do to that thing to get it so mad, anyways?" Chihiro asked as she turned around to Ghost Roaster and pressed her hands against her back.

Ghost Roaster just winced and scurried ahead. "Might have accidentally destroyed the chompy pod it had for lunch, but that doesn't matter."

As they passed on ahead, Chihiro frowned as they passed through the endless twists and continually-changing hedges of the maze, then pulled her map back out and scratched her head.

"Okay, we started here, took a few turns there…" Chihiro mumbled as she traced her finger around the map's surface, "Stopped that stump demon and all that… Just where are we? Did we get lost?"

Chihiro frowned and muttered something to herself as she paced forward with her face practically glued to the paper map. "Let's see, we take the turns there and the twist there, and we won't know we've reached the midway point until…"

Chihiro stopped and grimaced as a shadow cast over her face, turned around and peered up at the shadow's source… Then broke into a wide grin as she stowed her map back away!

That shadow came from a massive lighthouse striped in shades of silver and black, with a blue, pearly white top that held an inactive light! That had to be the lighthouse marked on this map! In lieu of a door at its base, however, it instead held an open, black space with a shimmer of gold inside. What could possibly be in there? Treasure, chocolate coins, something else entirely?

Chihiro frowned as she crept inside the lighthouse, then knelt to the floors to find that it wasn't any of those things, but rather a key!

"You know, why are people always leaving their keys everywhere?" Chihiro asked as she snatched the key off the ground and put it in her pocket, "Is everyone around here just as forgetful as Dad is?"

"FEAR THE DARK!" Hex cried from further ahead with the voice of a thousand!

Chihiro leaped into the air, then turned back around and dashed out of the lighthouse as the sounds of splitting wood, roars and battle cries flew across the wind. Sounds like the others were in a pinch! With a frown on her face, Chihiro followed the clatter of war to a path where the hedges had finally started to give way to a clearing!

This clearing had been blocked off from the rest of the area by a gigantic stone wall with a bunch of stone platforms attached to it that receded and pushed out every few seconds, while its top seemed wide enough to be something akin to a bridge.

And on top of it all stood Spyro, Hex and Ghost Roaster as they fought yet another swarm of those strange stump demons! Wait, more stump demons? Man, this place sure had a lot of those obnoxious things.

Chihiro frowned, then summoned a magical sword and dashed into the fray… But before she could land a blow, a wooden blade flew her way and forced her to duck before she lost an eye to it!

"Ghost Roaster, you really need to watch where you're going," Spyro scolded between the fireballs he spat at stump demons who simply clawed them away like embers, "The whole island probably knows we're here now thanks to that secret alarm!"

"Hey, how I was supposed to know there was a secret alarm?" Ghost Roaster shot back as he smashed his chain directly into the face of another stump demon, "They call them 'secret' alarms for a reason, you know!"

"Enough talking!" Hex scolded as she summoned an orb that practically radiated with foreboding energy and tossed it at another stump demon, then watched as it stumbled about in a daze, "You can bicker when we're not being swarmed by living trees!"

Spyro and Ghost Roaster frowned, then turned their attention back to the stump demons and went back to fighting! But man, there was a lot of them, and if the cherry red tint of their wood was of any indication, these guys were probably tougher than the last. And well, if that wasn't telling enough, the clenched looks and concerned glances of Spyro, Hex and Ghost Roaster said all.

Spyro snarled as his eyes flashed silver while several skeletal dragons leaped up from the ground below and charged towards the stump demons, but the demons just turned the skeletons to scattered piles with a single blow! Spyro grunted, then shook his head and turned back to their with red hot eyes instead.

"Alright then, a couple dead bones might not have been enough," Spyro said as fire formed in his open mouth, "But how about this?"

Spyro spat out a fire as bright as the morning sun and just as hot, then grinned as it enveloped the stump demons. "Nice!"

Spyro's confidence, however, only lasted for those few, sweet moments. While he watched the fire burn, a trio of angry faces formed in the flames before the stump demons burst out of the fire and shook the flames off their body!

"Crap, spoke too soon!"

While Spyro and the stump demons traded blow, however, he didn't seem to notice Chihiro sneak past the circle of stump demons that had surrounded Ghost Roaster and Hex. Well, not that they could've, since she had made herself completely invisible to the naked eye!

Chihiro grinned, then leaped up to the tallest of the stone platforms and grabbed onto its edge right before it started to recede.

"Hup!" Chihiro chirped as she hopped right before Spyro, then grinned as the stump demons came to a stop and started sniffing the air. She leaned against the wall behind her and grinned… That is, until she realized that there was no wall behind her and immediately fell on her back!

Chihiro let out a squeak of pain, then turned around and immediately shook her head. There, right across from where she had her impromptu fall, was none other than one of those switches! And it gave her a bit of an idea… So, she jumped back to her feet, teleported to the switch and flicked it back on! While Chihiro herself became visible once more, the world around her turned back to the underworld and all the flora around shuddered and died… Including the stump demons, who completely froze as they morphed into dead, withered trees tinged with red!

Spyro blinked a few minutes, then grinned as Chihiro looked back at him and gave him a thumbs up!

"Now that these guys can't do anything to stop us," Chihiro said as she summoned a magical ax and lifted it above her head, "How about we do some woodwork?"

Chihiro let out a mighty cry as she swung her ax and chopped the first dead tree into two clean halves, while Spyro fireballed the other two and made a very self-satisfied grin as they burned to ashes.

The sound of smashing wood below confirmed to Chihiro that the stump demons Hex and Ghost Roaster faced were dealt with, so she grinned and flicked the switch back again with the shot of a magic sphere.

The world burst to life once more, but unfortunately for the stump demons that didn't include them. While the trees and hedges bore leaves that blew in the breeze once again, the stump demons just remained broken piles of wood!

Light shimmered beside Chihiro as Hex and Ghost Roaster teleported to the top of the wall, and with the team reunited they all trailed down the way… Or at least they would have, if not for the gigantic tower that signified the wall's conclusion.

Chihiro frowned as she brushed her hands against the tower's stone surface, just in case there was some kind of loose brick or secret passageway key…

CRASH!

Chihiro gasped and whipped her head around in expectancy of an enemy, but all she saw was a sheepish Spyro as he stepped away from the shattered remains of a clay pot. For that matter, there was something shining under the pot's shattered remains, too…

"I swear, it wasn't on purpose," Spyro said as he caught sight of Chihiro's strange look.

"No, look!" Chihiro shouted as she magically lifted away the shattered pottery pieces, "A teleporter!"

Spyro looked down at the shining teleporter underneath and swished his tail, then hopped on and vanished in a flash of light!

"Hey, wait for me!"

Chihiro grinned as she jumped on the teleporter, then when she appeared she found herself in… A cave? Well, it seemed like one, with the stone dome surrounding and the poor lighting, with the only source of light a few holes in the ceiling that shone down on a golden key in the center! Chihiro tip-toed forward and went to grab the key, then stopped as Ghost Roaster appeared beside her and hurried ahead.

"Wait, who just leaves a key here in the middle of nowhere?" Ghost Roaster asked as he crept open and grabbed the key from the ground, "Seems like it's in good condition too!"—Ghost Roaster turned the key around and frowned—"So why?"

As Ghost Roaster held the key, however, he seemed perfectly oblivious to the appearance of beady, yellow eyes behind him! It started with just one pair, then two, four, seven…

"Wait a second." Ghost Roaster perked up and swiveled his head left and right, "I get the feeling I'm being watched."

While Ghost Roaster looked around front, however, he didn't seem to pay attention to the shadows behind him, where a pair of wrinkled hands reached out to grab him!

"Ghost Roaster, behind you!" Chihiro cried as she summoned a magic sphere!

Ghost Roaster turned around, then screamed and leaped back as a stump demon jumped out from the shadows and slashed at him!

This was all the prompting Chihiro needed to slam her magic sphere down on the ground, and in response it exploded and cast light all around the cavern… And thanks to that light, they all found that they weren't the only ones in this cavern. Inside it was inhabited by a small army of stump demons, and they all looked pretty mad!

"You know, for an undead realm," Ghost Roaster groaned as he floated back, "This place sure has a lot of obnoxious plants!"

Ghost Roaster dashed back as the stump demons chased after him, but unfortunately either he was too slow, or they were incredibly fast! While he tried to get back with the key, one of the stump demons stormed after him and yanked his chain! Ghost Roaster choked as he fell face-first onto the floor, while the key flew out of his hands and skidded down to Chihiro's feet! Chihiro went to grab the key, but the sound of intense growling and the feeling of something crawling down her spine quickly stopped her!

The stump demons all charged forward, but she wasn't intimated in the slightest! Instead, she just held out her hands and summoned a magical tennis racket, then created an entire handful of magical birdies and tossed them in the air.

"STRIKE!" Chihiro exclaimed as she leaped in the air and slammed the racket against the birdies.

With a mighty smack, the birdies rocketed towards the ground and burst with magical flames, then morphed from simple birdies to mighty, magical dragons! As these dragons fell to the ground, all hell broke loose among the stump demons! The dragons bit onto the stump demon's heads, chased them around the cavern, spit fire at their roots… There was no escaping for those stump demons!

And that included the ones that had made chase after Ghost Roaster, who had quickly abandoned him in favor of not getting eaten alive by magical flaming dragons.

Ghost Roaster groaned as he pushed himself off the ground, then perked his head up as Spyro held a paw out. With a reluctant sigh, Ghost Roaster grabbed onto Spyro's paw and climbed on Spyro's back, then the two of them flied back to where Chihiro basked in the fruits of her labor.

"Just to be safe…" Hex whispered as she held her hands to the ceiling.

A chant in some elven language escaped her lips, one ancient-sounding and haunting in nature, and in response a purple and silver vortex swirled around the ceiling! From that vortex rained down a series of silvery blue orbs that exploded the moment they hit the ground, and from them came a mist that seeped into the stump demons and caused them to fall unconscious one by one!

Hex nodded as the last of the stump demons fell unconscious, then turned around and floated back onto the teleporter and vanished in its light.

Ghost Roaster and Spyro joined Hex soon enough, so Chihiro just cast the sleeping stump demons one last glance before she leaped on the teleporter.

As she arrived back on the wall, however, something egged on at Chihiro's mind...

"What are these keys for, anyways?" Chihiro wondered as she pulled out the key Ghost Roaster had just retrieved and compared it to the one she found earlier, "They look pretty nice compared to everything else…"

"More importantly, where do we go next?" Hex asked as she overlooked the other side of the wall, "Everything after here's a dead end!"

Hex was right. There was only a tiny stretch of island on the other side of the wall before you dropped down into the skies below, and Chihiro wasn't currently interested in seeing if there was a bottom to Skylands. And the path they traveled before didn't seem to have anything else of interest…

Chihiro stepped back as she dug her hand in her pocket and went to pull out her map… But before she could, the entire world turned cold and dead once more! Chihiro's eyes fell on a particularly mossy corner of the bridge, which had completely shriveled and withered away to reveal… Another switch! But more importantly, that wasn't the only thing to be revealed. Just across from her, a ghastly arc bridge made of cyan ectoplasm formed across a gap in the bridge's railing.

Chihiro grinned, then dashed to the bridge's top and grinned as she slid down the other end. She made a soft cheer as she finally reached the bottom, then leaped up and grinned as she faced what the bridge had brought her to… But her grin quickly faded as she found just what it was.

It was a worn, stone platform with an entire center area full of blocks, all arranged around a yellowing part of the center with an odd, circle-shaped depression inside it paired with several square-shaped holes. That was clear indicator of a block puzzle, but… These blocks seemed to shudder and shake like they were alive! Or maybe Chihiro's eyes were just playing tricks on her.

"What'cha looking at, Chi?" Spyro asked as he slid down from the bridge and glazed over the puzzle too, "Oh, a block puzzle! Finally, something easy for once!"

Spyro grinned as he scampered over and went to charge one of the blocks… But before he could even slightly press into it, it skidded away with a sound that sounded vaguely like a haunting chuckle! Spyro jolted up and blinked for a few moments, then dashed back after the block, but it just turned around and rushed back down the way!

"Since when did these blocks move on their own?" Spyro asked as he sprinted after the block, which in turn continued to cackle in his face and caused him to puff his cheeks, "Hey, don't laugh at me!"

"I'll tell you what's going on," Ghost Roaster said as he and Hex slid down the bridge, "You're not going fast enough!"

Ghost Roaster spun around and changed into his giant skull form, then grinned as he charged after the same block Spyro pursued. "I'll show you!"

Ghost Roaster's grin grew wider as the block came closer and closer into sight… But before he could catch it, it teleported right out of his sights!

"What?!"

Ghost Roaster and Spyro tried to stop and turn around, but they were going so fast that they couldn't stop! They could only watch helplessly as they crashed and toppled over each other! The two of them groaned as Ghost Roaster shrank back down to normal, then shot a glare at the block as it teleported behind them and cackled!

But while the block laughed at Spyro and Ghost Roaster, it didn't seem to notice Hex teleport behind it and get ready to strike… Or so it seemed! Just before Hex could grab it, it teleported away again!

And this time, it wasn't the only one. The other blocks had all leaped out of their places and skidded around the floor like they were skating on an ice rink!

Chihiro frowned as Spyro, Hex and Ghost Roaster chase after the runaway blocks. It was almost like those blocks were haunted… Wait, haunted! That was just the problem! Chihiro turned back to the suspiciously open tower that stood behind them, then skipped inside and summoned a magic sphere for a makeshift lantern.

The cyan light filtered through the room and gave everything a gentle glow, from the cold stone floors and walls to the dusty floors right down to the switch that sat right in the tower's center!

Chihiro flicked the switch and watched as the world around her pulsated back to life, then turned around and grinned as the blocks slowly skidded to a stop. Finally, they could take care of this puzzle! Chihiro stepped out of the tower right as one block came to a stop right in front of her, then she crackles her knuckles and held out her hands. While her palms glowed a bright cyan, the block itself flew off the ground and right into one of the square-shaped depressions in the floor!

Chihiro skipped over right as Spyro, Hex and Ghost Roaster dropped the remaining three blocks into the other three square holes and backed away, then clasped her hands as she watched over the blocks. Though it could barely be seen, a simple silver light filtered out from under the depressions in the floor… But why?

Chihiro turned her gaze over to the circle-shaped depression, then gasped as a short, stone pillar shot up from the ground and opened up to reveal… Another key! So that's what was hidden underneath! Chihiro grinned as she collected the third key from the open pillar, then grabbed hold of everyone's hands at once and teleported them back to the other side.

As they reappeared back on the wall's top, however, Chihiro's smile faded into confusion. These three keys had been scattered everywhere, but what were they for? She unfurled the map and glazed over it, but it didn't seem to say anything about a gate!

For that matter, the map didn't say anything about how to get to Occulous's fortress, either. It just showed a simple, long line behind what was surely Occulous's fortress. Just what did all this mean?

Chihiro groaned as she held up the keys in front of the wall's tower and… Wait a second, were the keys glowing? Chihiro rubbed her eyes just to make sure she wasn't seeing things, but the keys still glowed bright—and for that matter, the tower bricks seemed shinier than before, too! While the bricks glowed in tandem with the keys, the keys themselves floated out of Chihiro's hands, straightened out and turned in midair like they were unlocking an invisible lock!

In fact, that was probably what they were doing, as immediately afterwards, a soft click sounded around just loud enough to gain Spyro, Hex and Ghost Roaster's attention!

The three of them joined Chihiro in watching the tower as its bricks rumbled and shuddered, then shifted away to unveil a magical, sparkling gate full of silver light.

Chihiro raised her eyebrows as the gears turned in her head, then yanked the map out and glazed over that strange line between the maze and the fortress again. Now that she got a close look at it, it was about the same color as the wall they stood on…

"Well, guess I know where we're going!" Chihiro proclaimed as the keys flew back into her pocket, "Let's go!"

Chihiro grinned as she leaped into the light, then popped out on a massive plain of green grass, while Spyro, Hex and Ghost Roaster quickly popped out behind her. The four of them all held their breath and frowned as they glazed over the gigantic gate that held off the even larger fortress in front of them, the sole decoration in all this endless green and loneliness. Surely, Occulous would be waiting for them within the fortress's walls, but not just him, either.

Their friends were probably still trapped inside, all mindless and cursed and unable to even think of what kind of horrors awaited them! There was no stopping now!

Chihiro turned her gaze down onto the locks, then yanked the keys out of her pockets and shoved them into the locks one by one. Without any prompting on her end, the keys turned themselves and released the locks in unison, all while the door crept open almost like it wanted them to come in. It seemed just as haunted as the rest of the world around, despite the fact they had left behind the underworld.

"Ready to bring everyone home?" Chihiro asked as she turned to Spyro, Hex and Ghost Roaster with an unwavering frown and a clasped fist.

As the three of them nodded in unison, Chihiro turned back around and marched with them through the gates…

§

In the heart of the castle, Occulous grinned as he sat within the confines of a throne made entirely of stark white bones, hovered above the skies below and trapped within a ring of stone floor. On that stone floor, three pillars with sparkling skull-shaped tops shone bright, their glimmer a stark contrast to the dull cannons that laid beside them. And, in spite of the fact that it was within the living realm, everything seemed so eerie… But perhaps the setting sun and dulling skies had a hand in that.

"Oh, I just can't wait to be the eyeball king of all Skylands~" Occulous sung as he brushed his tentacles against his bony throne, "Huh, doesn't have as nice a ring to it as I thought it would… But it's true!"

Occulous hummed to himself as his tendril legs wiggled in pure glee.

"Once I'm the eyeball king of all Skylands, I'll have everything an eyeball could want! I'll get a nice, fancy castle in the Deadly Isles, I'll have all the treasure in Skylands and then soon, I'll get my eye polished every week…"

"YOU'LL GIVE US BACK OUR FRIENDS IS WHAT YOU'RE GONNA DO!" Chihiro cried as she slammed open the doors to Occulous's hideout.

Chihiro lurched over and heaved heavy, warm breaths that shook an entire body filled with so much rage that it almost made her explode, all while Hex, Ghost Roaster and Spyro followed behind her with equally-furious looks. A kind of energy flared around them as Chihiro summoned a sword and pointed it straight towards Occulous, and in return all three of them summoned their own attacks and got ready to fire.

"NOW BREAK THAT CURSE AND LEAVE, OR ELSE I'LL MAKE YOU!"

"Oh, how scary, I'm quaking in my tentacles~" Occulous crowed before he broke into a fit of laughter, clearly not intimidated at all by Chihiro's little show, "Why, I was hoping you'd come here! In fact, I can't help but applaud you for making it through my maze!"—Occulous clapped his tentacles and made what was probably the magic eyeball equivalent of a smile—"Bravo, bravo!"

Occulous then narrowed his eye. "After all, this only proves to me that you'll make prime additions to my army!"

"I never said anything about anything about joining you, Occulous!"

Chihiro snarled as she tossed her sword right at Occulous's eyeball, then gasped and stepped back as he dodged its blow and laughed!

"Who said any of you had a choice?" Occulous cackled as he clapped his tentacles once more.

All around them, the throne room Occulous had seated himself within had morphed into a functional arena! The floors turned into a round, circular battlefield made of cold, paved stone littered with cannons and towers, bony fences shot up from the ground and blocked off all means of exit, and even the skies turned from a warm golden orange to a blood red. And most of all, Occulous himself sat in the eye of the storm as he hovered within an empty circle at the center of the battlefield, though he seemed more… Transparent, than usual, and not in the metaphorical sense. Rather, his body was nearly invisible!

"You may be Skylanders, but you'll never stop me from achieving my ultimate undead kingdom!" Occulous cried as he glared down Chihiro, "After all, I have Skylanders of my own!"

Occulous whistled despite his stunning lack of a mouth, and in response vortexes popped up all across the battlefield.

"MINIONS, FIGHT FOR YOUR MASTER!"

All at once, the zombified Skylanders leaped out of the vortexes and snarled as they landed on solid stone ground, then snarled and turned their blank, bloodshot eyes and weapons on Chihiro, Spyro, Hex and Ghost Roaster!

Chihiro winced and stepped back just a bit as she held up her sword, then her frown faded a little as she looked back to Hex.

After all, Hex had turned around and squandered herself as much as possible while she looked down at her arms, almost like she was trying to hide something!

"Well that hardly scares us," Hex proclaimed as she finally swept past Chihiro and furrowed her brow, "After all, we have a trick up our sleeve ourselves!"

"We do?" Spyro, Chihiro and Ghost Roaster sputtered out as they looked at Hex.

Despite their shock, however, Hex's confidence was hardly swayed. She just raised out an arm, then splayed out a hand and raised her fingers to the heavens. On her other arm, just underneath her gauntlet, a soft glow faded in and out, almost like a communicator sending a message…

"CYNDER!"

Right as Hex called out, a bright, rainbow-tinted blast of light like holy, raging thunder crashed down between Hex and the zombified Skylanders! Everybody else cried out in shock and shielded their eyes, but Hex was steely as ever as the light faded enough to unveil the faint silhouette of a dragon…

"TIME FOR TROUBLE!" Cried a familiar raspy voice over the screech of fading light!

All eyes turned back to the field, and as the last wisps of light scattered into the distance, none other than Cynder leaped up from the ground and flew in place, all while she held entire armfuls of potion bottles!

"CYNDER!" Chihiro cried as she stepped forward. Her eyes turned wide, then shrank as Cynder brushed past her and turned to Hex.

"Let me tell you, we were lucky Master Eon caught that skull of yours calling for a portal!" Cynder said as she handed off a couple of the bottles to Hex, "I don't think any of us would have known what was going on if he didn't!"

Hex just nodded as she handed the other bottles to Spyro, Chihiro and Ghost Roaster, then she and Cynder fixed their eyes on the reeling zombie Skylanders as they uncorked two of the bottles.

"Now…" Cynder snarled as she flung the bottle forward, "TASTE ANTIDOTE, YOU MINDLESS ZOMBIES!"

The bottle flew forward and its potion slipped over the first wave of zombie Skylanders and drenched them in murky purple liquid! The zombie Skylanders grunted as the potion dripped down their bodies and glowed a bit. Would it heal them?

All breath was bated as the liquid glowed brighter, then its glow faded as the zombie Skylanders shook it off like rain! It hadn't even done a thing!

"The antidote didn't work?" Cynder asked as she held the other few bottles tight in her paws.

"Of course they didn't you little lizard!" Occulous cackled as he glazed over the minions, "My zombification spell is far too strong for the likes of your little antidotes! As long as I stand here, it'll never relent!"

Cynder gasped, then clenched her muzzle and looked back to Hex with desperation in her wide, tiny eyes.

Hex frowned, then snapped her fingers and enveloped the antidotes in a bright glow! One by one the antidotes completely vanished from everyone's hands, then reappeared into a round bubble that shrank as it flew into the pocket of Hex's dress.

"Then we'll just have to stop you!" Hex demanded as her hands flared with magic.

"Ooh, such confidence!~" Occulous seemingly grinned as he placed his tendrils to his eye, "But can you get through your old friends first?"

Chihiro gulped and bit her lip as she stepped back, while her hand clasped on her rapidly-beating heart without her even realizing. For that matter, they were all hesitant. Spyro bit his lip and stepped back, Hex clasped her own hands in what was probably the most shock she could exude, Cynder's jaw dropped wide open… Even Ghost Roaster winced and tightened his jaw as he looked over the zombies that were once his comrades!

But, unfortunately the zombies didn't share in their hesitation, for they immediately snarled and rushed towards them! Gill Grunt and Chop Chop rushed forward first with guns and swords at the ready… But before they could attack, a pair of eldritch orbs blasted them to the ground.

"Whatever these zombies are, they certainly aren't our allies—not at the moment!" Hex proclaimed as she rushed into the crowds, "Like it or not, we have to stop them if we're going to eventually return them back to normal!"

Hex's words seemed to be the jumping point everyone else needed, because finally they raised their weapons and jumped into the storm! Hex frowned as they ran into battle, then turned her attention to Chop Chop as he groaned and reached for his swords.

"Chop, I know you may not be able to hear me," Hex said as her voice seemed to crack just slightly, though her slight pain didn't stop her from crafting another orb, "But I know you're in there somewhere. Please…"

Hex shot the orb towards the sword Chop Chop grappled for and watched it spin over the edge, then as he gasped and looked up, Hex formed a gigantic skull with such intense magic it caused cold breezes to whip around the entire arena.

"Forgive me for what I am about to do."

The gigantic skull unhinged its jaw and screeched a screech so loud it practically shattered the eardrums of all around, zombie and hero alike—and that included Chop Chop, who cried and fell to his knees! With everyone else incapacitated, the skull rocketed straight into him and blew him on his back!

Chop Chop howled in pain as he rolled against the ground, but before he could fall off the edge a wall of bones formed beside him and stopped his trip! That wall of bones spread from his side to all around him, then encased him in a bony cage right as he fell unconscious.

Hex watched him with a bit of somberness at first, then dodged out of the way as a shower of rusted golden coins nearly grazed her down. She made a soft snarl as she clasped her hands, then turned her attention to Trigger Happy and Zook, who snarled and lifted their respective guns as they quite literally frothed at the mouth with rage.

"You two, however, I will not have such inclinations for!"

Hex's snarled grew larger and uglier as she held out her hands and narrowed hr eyes.

"THE DARKEST HOUR BEGINS!"

As Hex's orb battalion rushed towards the ground and became a meteor shower of eldritch magic that exploded and tossed the zombie Skylanders aside one by one, Ghost Roaster wove through the orbs while he made chase after Drill Sergeant!

"I still don't know how those weird pies could turn a robot into a zombie, admittedly," Ghost Roaster admitted as he looked aside and coughed, then regained his furious disposition as his flames grew hot and high, "BUT THAT DOES NOT MATTER! NOBODY TRIES TO SHOOT A ROCKET AT MY HEAD AND GETS AWAY WITH IT!"

Ghost Roaster grimaced as he dodged another blow, only to get spun around as something zipped past him! Ghost Roaster groaned as he pushed himself off the icy stone floors, then turned around and grimaced.

There, Cynder had squared off with Dark Spyro, eyes fixed on each other and all that fun stuff, but while Dark growled and got ready to attack, Cynder just winced and stepped back.

"Come on, Dark, snap out of it!" Cynder cried as she took another step back, "I don't wanna fight you, you know! This isn't like you!"

As Dark lunged for her, Cynder leaped into the shadows and popped out a few feet beside him.

"You might not think about what you're doing, but you wouldn't do something like this!"

Dark, however, just growled and lunged for Cynder again, all while she dashed away once more! As Cynder skidded backwards and stumbled to a stop, she heaved a breath while a flash of fear shone in her eyes, which seemed a little less cold than they usually did.

"Seems as though I'm gonna have to take care of this myself!" Ghost Roaster grunted as he turned back to Drill Sergeant and tackled straight into him!

Drill Sergeant made a deadly screech as he was tossed straight into Dark Spyro and crashed straight into the bony fence. As they slid down, Drill Sergeant's screech turned to a series of distorted beeps that kind of sounded like battery-run toys when their batteries started to die.

Ghost Roaster scoffed as he turned back to normal, then his eyes turned on Dark while he barely struggled to push a dizzy Drill Sergeant off his belly... But the blow had taken enough out of Dark that he just mumbled and passed out! As Dark's head hit the floor, Ghost Roaster just sighed and shook his head.

"For as much as I'd like to say it's what he deserves for wrecking the kitchen so many times…" Ghost Roaster admitted with a frown not of scorn, but of sorrow, "Even I'm not that cruel."

Drill Sergeant made a distorted, garbled whirring sound as he fell unconscious as well, but Ghost Roaster hardly paid any mind to him as he patted Dark's head.

"Just hang in there, Dark. We'll get you back soon enough."

Ghost Roaster turned his attention back to the zombies, then snarled and gripped his chain through his slender fingers. He swarmed forward as the zombies rushed after him… Then completely disappeared before they could even lay a finger on him! The zombies grunted and looked around, but not for long as a purple mist burst out of nowhere and completely stunned them! While they cough and froze like statues, Ghost Roaster reappeared and knocked them all down with a slam from his ball and chain! Ghost Roaster grinned and swung his chain around as they all fell on their backs, still completely unable to move.

"Didn't see me coming, did ya?" Ghost Roaster asked as he closed his eyes and held himself high, the picture of utter confidence…

But that cool aura soon faded as something yanked his chain and tossed him steel ball-first towards Voodood and Double Trouble!

"Sorry for this, Ghost Roaster!" Chihiro cried as she watched Ghost Roaster, Voodood and Double Trouble all crash into each other at once, "But we kinda need a distraction!"

Chihiro grunted, then turned back to Spyro and grabbed his paw tight. While the two of them squeezed each other tight and shared a nod, their arms stretched out towards the crowds and flared with a purple-tinted kaleidoscope of magic.

"If you won't listen to our words," Chihiro started as she narrowed her eyes and clenched a sweating brow…

"Then maybe this'll help you come back!" Spyro finished as he mirrored Chihiro's actions, all which their magical flare grew bright like a shooting star.

"Get ready for…" Chihiro smirked as the gigantic magic blast rocketed out from her and Spyro's hands, "THE MAGICAL ALLEGIANCE DOUBLE DECKER SPECIAL!"

That double decker special stormed through the crowds of zombies while the zombies themselves raised their weapons… Then completely dropped those weapons in shock as the gigantic supernova of magic split into a fleet of shooting stars them crashed into them all and knocked them down!

As they all fell on their backs or tried to stagger up, Chihiro made what was probably the first smile she had made since the battle began and winked towards Spyro.

"You're really set on making that a thing, aren't you?" Spyro asked as he stuck his tongue out.

"Beautiful Remedy taught me that every good duo needs a special finishing attack, you know!" Chihiro chirped back as she nudged Spyro's shoulder, "And we make a pretty good duo! After all, we've got a magical allegiance—"—Chihiro gasped and snapped her fingers—"That's it, a magicallegiance!"

Spyro chuckled and rolled his eyes. "You can't help yourself when it comes to puns, can you?"

"Nope!"

Spyro and Chihiro chuckled for a short while, then they completely froze as Occulous broke into their conversation with a sarcastic chuckle of his own!

"Oh, how cute," Occulous crooned as he laid back like he was sitting on a chair, despite the fact that his throne had vanished, "The dragon and the portal master are making puns while their allies have almost completely succumbed to my spell!"

Chihiro gasped, then her smile quickly faded away in favor of a snarl and a fiery look.

"Oh, don't give me that look! You're the ones who're taking your sweet time! After all, these zombification spells work pretty quickly…"

Whoever eats my pies turns into a mindless zombie, and if it hasn't been reversed by midnight… They stay a zombie forever!

Batterson's words rang in both Spyro and Chihiro's minds once more as their eyes went wide, then Chihiro looked up to the skies and gasped!

Just around them, the moon could barely be seen as it poked up a bit above their arena… It wouldn't be long before it would have risen in full! And when that came to pass, the other Skylanders would be gone for good!

And Chihiro must have realized this, because she just screamed as she summoned a gigantic magical cleaver and tossed it right at Occulous… Then gasped and staggered back as her cleaver phased right through him! With a growl, Chihiro pumped her hands and summoned a pair of hand cannons, then turned them on Occulous and punched the air! The cannons in response launched a flurry of magic blasts, but once again, those phased right through him too!

"Don't you get it? You've already lost!" Occulous cackled as Chihiro let out quick, panicked breaths.

Chihiro snarled as she glared up at Occulous, but he just cackled once again!

"There's no way in the afterlife that you'll stop me! Midnight's on its way, and no puny trick of yours will bring about my end! I'm completely immune to anything you can throw at me!"

"We'll see about that!" Chihiro cried as she went to summon something else… But before she could, the zombie Skylanders all jumped on her at once and dogpiled her!

"CHIHIRO!" Spyro cried as her arm disappeared into the pile of pulsing, thrusting dead flesh.

Spyro leaned down and got ready to jump in, then jumped back as a bright light flared out from the few visible spots in the zombie dogpile!

"Throw all the attacks you want! I'm not scared of you!" Chihiro proclaimed!

Just like that, the zombies flew off and unveiled Chihiro as she stood up and held one hand to a shining magical shield! Chihiro turned her gaze to Occulous as she held a second hand up to the shield while it crackled with magical lightning.

"After all, I can't just sit around and let you run around hurting my friends!" Chihiro narrowed her eyes and snarled as the shield glowed brighter, "That scares me way more!"

As the shield grew stronger and brighter like the morning sun rising after the longest night, or the moon clearing from the skies after a twilight storm, magic flared so powerfully within Chihiro that it tinged her veins to a bright, shining aqua!

"As long as I have the friends I love, as long as I want to protect them, I can't give up!" Chihiro shook her head and clenched her eyebrows tight, "No, I WON'T GIVE UP! NOT UNTIL I BRING THEM BACK!"

Chihiro's shield crackled like thunder, then completely exploded and not only tossed the zombified Skylanders into the skies, but completely blinded Occulous!

"AUGH, MY EYE!" Occulous wailed as he shut his eye and stumbled around, "HOW DID THAT EVEN WORK? YOU CAN'T HURT ME IN THIS REALM!"

In this realm? That was it, now they all knew how to stop him! Chihiro grinned as she magically lowered the zombiefied Skylanders that had fallen a little too close to the arena's edge back to safety, then turned her eyes towards a suspicious tower close by.

It was a strange, silver, spiral-shaped tower with a glowing skull on its top that crackled with electrical undead energy and stood stagnant as it watched over the battle… And yet, something about it seemed a bit suspicious.

Chihiro frowned, then teleported over to the spiral tower and held her glowing hands out straight as she channeled the magic within her body. Not only did her magic-tinted veins glow bright, but that glow infected the tower as well as it spun all the way down to the floor!

Once its skull top finally hit the ground, it let out a wave of pulses while the world around began to warble and transform! The stone underneath their feet grew cold and cracked, dry bone fragments and broken skulls littered the arena, the cannons became cracked and dusty, and though the blood red skies remained their bright color had grown duller and stained with sickly silver mist…

But most importantly, Occulous's form had gone from half-invisible to whole once more! Occulous grunted as he finally shook off the pain from Chihiro's light blast, then gasped and looked down at his now fully fleshy body!

"WAIT, NO! NOT MY PERFECTLY INTANGIBLE BODY!" Occulous cried as his eye darted all across his body, "MINIONS, QUICK! AFTER THE SKYLANDERS AND THAT STUPID CHILD!"

But, the zombie Skylanders had grown so weary from their prior fight that they could barely get up! All they could do was groan and twitch their limbs, while a few at most lifted up their heads and grabbed at the dead air before them.

"NOW IS NO TIME TO SIT AROUND AND GROAN LIKE ZOMBIES!" Occulous scolded as he glared down and shoot a tentacle at the zombie Skylanders… Then paused and blinked with realization. "Oh, right, you are zombies."

Occulous slapped his tendril against his closed eye and sighed. "Why did I think zombies would be a good idea? Why didn't I go for vampires? Vampires are good…"

But, while Occulous sat there and berated his choice in brainwashed minions, Chihiro grinned as she looked over to the cannons. Seems she finally had a chance! So, she rushed over to the cannon near the tower she displaced, then summoned a magical lighter and flicked it on.

"You know, even ghosts would've done better than zombies! They may be completely transparent, but at least they have brains!" Occulous groaned as he flicked his eye open, then frowned and looked up at the skies.

"Is something burning?"

Occulous turned his eye back to the battlefield below… Then gasped as Chihiro rushed towards the next cannon, lighter still in hand!

"YOU'RE USING MY OWN BATTLEFIELD AGAINST ME?" Occulous cried as his iris flared red with rage, "UNBELIEVABLE!"

Occulous growled as he balled his tendrils into something that vaguely looked like fists, then his whole eye turned red and shot an equally, furiously crimson laser down on the ground!

"I HATE HAVING TO DEAL WITH LITTLE PESTS LIKE YOU MYSELF, BUT IT SEEMS I HAVE NO CHOICE!"

Occulous snarled and roared as his laser carved a smoking path into the earth and came dangerously close to where Chihiro was getting ready to light the second cannon… But before it could fully hit her, Spyro and Hex teleported in front of her and cast out a shield that reflected the laser straight back at Occulous!

"AUGH, MY EYE! AGAIN!"

While Occulous wailed in agony and held his aching eye, Cynder flapped her wings and sent an entire party of ghosts out from underneath her wings! The ghosts all soared towards Occulous, then their eyes narrowed as they slammed into him and chattered!

"HEY, GET OFF OF ME, YOU LITTLE PESTS!"

With Occulous distracted, Chihiro grinned and rushed away from the now-lit second cannon! She bolted down to the third and final as the other two cannon's fuses crackled in the distance… Then something swept her off her feet and dropped her right beside the cannon.

"HIT HIM EXTRA HARD FOR ME, CHIHIRO!" Ghost Roaster cackled as he blazed off into the distance!

Chihiro grinned as she sparked her magic lighter and turned her attention towards Occulous, who was still screaming and writhing in pain. Just the very sight of him caused her confident look to turn to a snarl, one that sparked with a fire born of pure, unadulterated rage.

"THIS IS FOR MESSING WITH MY FRIENDS!" Chihiro shouted as she lit the fuse and slapped her hands against the cannon's cracked surface.

The cannon glowed with magic, and across from it the other two cannons did as well! All at once the cannon's fuses immediately burned away, then they all shot gigantic stone cannonballs straight towards Occulous!

Occulous grunted as his aching eye finally healed, then he squeaked and looked around as three gigantic cannonballs screeched dangerously close to him!

"Oh fu—"

Before Occulous could finish, all three cannonballs slammed into Occulous at once and exploded! Thick, gray smoke cast over the arena paired with a shrill scream, then as the smoke faded… Occulous himself was gone! All that was left was his tendril body, with a noticeable blank cavity where his eye once sat!

§

Chihiro, Hex, Ghost Roaster, Cynder and Spyro all peered over the hole while Occulous's eyeless corpse fell to its doom. It was a long, tough battle… But finally, the evil had been vanquished, hopefully.

"Serves that asshole right," Ghost Roaster remarked as the corpse vanished into the distance.

The four of them stared into abyss, just to be entirely certain that he was gone, then looked up as the sound of tired groans churned all around them. They peered around their former battlefield… And found that all the zombified Skylanders had fallen asleep!

"Think it worked?" Chihiro asked as she turned to Hex.

"There's only one way to find out," Hex replied as she floated off and knelt down to a comatose Gill Grunt.

She waved her hands over him as she chanted some kind of incantation, and from her spell came a puff of silver, glittery smoke. She frowned for a moment as Gill Grunt turned in his sleep, then turned away from him and performed the spell on a few others—Whirlwind, Terrafin, Wrecking Ball… But, it seemingly did nothing to disturb any of them. So, she simply nodded to herself and returned to Chihiro's side.

"Thankfully, the curse is no longer progressing, and it had greatly weakened as well…" Hex confirmed as she watched everyone else breath sighs of relief, then took a glance at the sleeping zombie Skylanders, "We should be able to break it now."

"Did somebody say break a curse?" Cried Batterson's voice.

Everyone looked towards the entrance, then gasped as they watched Batterson wheel in a giant, pie-filled wheelbarrow, followed by a near-army of ghosts with arms full of those same pies!

"How's pie going to help with a curse?" Chihiro asked as she tilted her head.

"Oh, this isn't any old pie!" Batterson exclaimed as he wheel up to Chihiro, "This is an old family recipe! It can cure anything from headaches to hives!"—Batterson parked his wheelbarrow and tapped his claws against his chin—"Admittedly, I'm not'a sure if it'll help, but I still wanna do something to make up for'a what my pies did to your friends."

Hex frowned as she joined Chihiro and Batterson, then took a whiff of the pies and raised an eyebrow.

"Is that ambrosia I spell?" Hex asked before a faint blush dusted her face as she shook her head, "Er, smell?"

"Indeed!" Batter beamed, "We make these pies with ambrosia jam, raw lemons, cloudling syrup…"

"Why, that's perfect!"

Hex's eyes grew wide as she snatched a pie from the wagon and stroked its crispy crust. "Any purification potion worth its salt has those as key ingredients!"

Hex snapped her fingers, and out from her pocket came the antidotes that Cynder had amassed earlier! They all hovered in midair for moments, then popped open and poured their contents over the pies.

"With these antidotes, we should be able to cure them using these pies!"

Chihiro made a wide, then yanked some more pies from the wagon and bounded towards the zombified Skylanders.

"You heard her!" Chihiro exclaimed as she crammed a pie into Gill Grunt's mouth, "Get those pies to them!"

So, Spyro, Ghost Roaster and Hex all grabbed pies from Batterson's little pie stock and flew over to the zombiefied Skylanders, then one-by-one crammed the pies down their throats!

Spyro frowned as he sliced the pie and shoved it in Gill Grunt's mouth, then winced as he pulled out a paw coated in sticky drool and shook it off. As the drool splattered everywhere, Spyro's eyes trailed towards Ghost Roaster… But Ghost Roaster himself was completely oblivious to Spyro's glances as he sniffed the pie.

"Is this really as good as my cooking?" Ghost Roaster asked as he held a finger over the pie and got ready to carve into it.

Just before he could make the first slice, however, he caught sight of the glare Spyro shot him and chuckled as he shoved the pie into Wrecking Ball's face.

Behind them, Chihiro skipped ahead with entire towers of pies held in her hands, then tripped on a stray arm and screamed as her leaning towers of pies became falling towers of pie! Chihiro winced and closed her eyes as the pies splatted on the floor, but as she opened them, she found that the [pies had landed perfectly on the zombie Skylanders' faces! So, she just giggled and stood up as she scratched he back of her head.

And in the back of it all, Cynder winced as she pushed a pie next to an unconscious Dark Spyro.

"Here you go, Dark," Cynder whispered as she drew back and frowned, "Eat up."

Dark Spyro stayed still and quiet for a few moments, and in those few moments Cynder frowned with worry… But then, his muzzle twitched, then he licked his lips and rolled over as he started licking the pie's crust in his sleep! Cynder's jaw dropped for a moment, then she chuckled and rolled her eyes.

"Typical Dark." Cynder shook her head, then turned around and waved to Hex, "How're things on your end, Hex?"

But Hex didn't respond, because she was far too focused on Chop Chop as she held a pie in hand, her eyes wide as she scanned him over.

"Now how in Skylands am I supposed to give you this?" Hex asked as she balanced the pie above Chop Chop, only for it to slip off her hand and slam right into his face!

Hex winced and floated back, but Chop Chop only groaned and twisted in his sleep as the pie's filling seeped over his body.

"Well, I suppose that's one way to do it."

As the last of the Skylanders were fed, Chihiro, Spyro, Hex, Ghost Roaster and Cynder drew back to where Batterson stood and winced. Would this really work? Their breath was bated as the zombie Skylanders sat up and groaned, some with their heads in their hands and others shaken to the bone… Then the five of them all made gasps of glee as the color returned to the now former zombie Skylanders' bodies while the light shone back in their eyes!

"Ugh, my head…" Gill Grunt groaned as he sat up and looked around, "What happened? Where am I?"

"That pie tasted yucky…" Wrecking Ball whined as he rolled on his head, then froze and blinked, "Wait, when did I get here? Was I sleep-eating again?"

"Something like that!" Chihiro chuckled, "I'll explain later!"

Chihiro then wandered over to a nearby teleported and hopped on. "But first, we should get back to enjoying that actually good pie!"

§

The moon shone its brightest as it hung in the vast skies, and now the real celebration was finally underway! The tables and cloths had since been repaired and reorganized, and were now lined with ghosts and Skylander alike! While Batterson and several ghosts manned booths filled with pies and tons of toppings, from sweet ice cream, syrups in fifty different flavors, fresh fruit dipped in jam and even a few plucked herbs and flowers, everybody else chatted around and ate to their heart's content!

Flynn and Wrecking Ball had a self-imposed content on who could eat the most pies with an eager Trigger Happy as the judge and an equally-excited Dark Spyro taking bets from those around, Whirlwind savored her cloudling pie with sweet cherry syrup, Sonic Boom wrangled her chicks as they spat over who got what pie, Chop Chop entertained several younger ghosts with tales of grand adventure as they enjoyed their sweets… Everybody around was eating, drinking and making merry to their hearts' content, and for once it really did like the weight of their responsibilities had lifted from their shoulders!

And Spyro, meanwhile, hid away in the corner of the celebration with his cinnamon apple pie, more than happy to finally enjoy a proper celebration after all the nonsense of today. Though normally he'd be happy to join in, he'd had enough excitement for one night. So, for now, he was more than happy to sit in his little corner and watch as Chihiro chatted it up with Batterson.

"Gotta hand it to ya, Batterson!" Chihiro chirped between large bites of a strawberry pie slice with far too much ice cream on it, "These pies are delicious!"

"For once, I've almost found something that can rival my cooking!" Ghost Roaster agreed with a nod and a wink, "Almost."

"Why, thank you, portal master!" Batterson beamed, "It's an honor to have my pies praised by you!"—Batterson then winked towards Chihiro and Ghost Roaster—"And since ya like it so much, let me let you in a little secret!"

Batterson cleared his throat, and in response a couple of the older ghosts in the crowd jumped from their seats and left their stations behind, then grinned as they swirled around Batterson's pie station.

"You'll get to try these pies a lot more in the future," Batterson proclaimed as he stretched his arms to the skies, "Because the ghosts and I are starting up a delivery service!"

"Really?" Chihiro gasped as she let her fork clatter against her plate.

"Indeed!" Chimed in one ghost.

"From now on, we'll deliver our baked goods all across Skylands!" Said another ghost, "All of Skylands will get to enjoy these tasty pies, and we can finally get out of that drafty crypt and experience all Skylands!"

That was certainly good news for everyone, as the whole crowd erupted into cheers and pumped fists. A few people even threw their pies in the air, only to frantically jump up and try to collect them as they fell back down! But though the excitement was intense, it was also just as brief. The night skies only grew darker by the second, and the lanterns had already lit themselves as the conversation died. A few people even fell asleep with their faces planted into their plates!

But while the excitement had stilled, Chihiro didn't seem any less energetic as she scanned the crowds and fixed her eyes on Spyro, wide-eyed grin and big smile and all that. He had to admit, he hadn't seen Chihiro this happy in quite a while! It, it was really nice, though he wasn't sure he'd say that with all these people around.

"Hey, Gold!" Chihiro shouted as she bounded forward and sat down next to Spyro.

Spyro jolted up in response, then smiled and relaxed his shoulder the moment he turned around and saw Chihiro by his side.

"Oh, hey Chi!" Spyro chirped as he tilted his head, "Finally got your strawberry pie?"

"How'd you guess?" Chihiro's eyes widened as she gently smacked her head, "Wait, don't tell me I've got jam all over my face!"

"You said it, not me~"

The two of them broke into hapless laughter as Chihiro licked the jam off of her face, then with a gulp Chihiro slid herself a little closer to Spyro than before. Her arm was warm and cozy against his own cool scales, and a bit of the heat made its way to his face before he even realized it!

"Hey, Spyro…" Chihiro whispered as a slight crimson blush formed in her cheeks, "Thanks for helping me pull myself together,"—Chihiro shrugged as she made a small smile—"Y'know, back when we got stuck in that maze and all."

"It's no problem, Chi!" Spyro looked up at Chihiro and made a wide grin, "That's what friends are for, right?"

"Yeah…" Chihiro looked aside and twiddled her fingers, but not in a shy or nervous way. Rather, it seemed more coy than anything as she smiled and blushed. "Oh, and one more thing…"

Spyro made a soft chirp and looked back at Chihiro… Then yelped as Chihiro tackled him into a tight hug!

"Spyro, I love you!"

Chihiro giggled, then released her hug and ran back to get what was probably her fifth slice of strawberry pie, but Spyro just sat there and watched her in a bit of a daze, like he was completely lost in the moment. Had, had, he wasn't hearing things, right? Had Chihiro just told him she loved him? After all, Chihiro was always quick to talk about how much she loved everything and all… But, never so bluntly had she said it before, and especially not to him, of all dragons! Of all people, even!

Spyro's eyes were wide and transfixed, but finally he closed then and melted into a soft smile. Maybe it was just the easygoing atmosphere of the party, but Spyro was in no mood to question it. Besides, something about hearing those words come from Chihiro's voice… It made his heart feel warm and fuzzy on the inside, if the saying wasn't too cliché, and it made everything around just that more warm and welcoming than before.

"…I love you too, Chi," Spyro replied, his voice whisperlike and soft.

---

Fun fact of the chapter: Ghost Eater, the alias used for Ghost Roaster, was actually his working name in the early development of Spyro's Adventure!